LIC AAO 2016 GK Capsule

LIC AAO Online Exam 2016
GK Power Capsule
for
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Exam Date :- 05-06-13 March 2016
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Page 1
GK Power Capsule :
LIC AAO 2016 Exam Pattern
Key Points To Remember
Current affairs from June 2015 to December 2015
Union Budget , Awards , Honours
Rail Budget
Important Dates
Currency and Capitals
About LIC AAO 2016 Exam/Post
Page 2
Total Number of Vacancies Available: 700

Name of Post: Assistant Administrative Officer (AAO)
Seats for Unreserved Category Candidates: 349
Seats for OBC Category Candidates: 192
Seats for SC Category Candidates: 106
Seats for ST Category Candidates: 53
Insurance Company In India

Public Sector Life insurance companies
Life Insurance Corporation of India
Private Sector Life Insurance Companies

AEGON Religare Life Insurance
Aviva Life Insurance Company India Limited
Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company Limited
Bharti AXA Life Insurance Company Ltd.
Birla Sun Life Insurance Co. Ltd
Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of Commerce Life Insurance Company Ltd.
DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance Co. Ltd.
Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance Co. Ltd.
Exide Life Insurance Company Limited
Future Generali India Life Insurance Company Limited
HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company Limited
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. Ltd
IDBI Federal Life Insurance Company Ltd
IndiaFirst Life Insurance Company Limited
Kotak Mahindra Old Mutual Life Insurance Limited
Max Life Insurance Co. Ltd
PNB Metlife India Insurance Co. Ltd.
Alimchandani Life Insurance Company Limited
Sahara India Life Insurance Co, Ltd.
SBI Life Insurance Co. Ltd
Shriram Life Insurance Co, Ltd.
Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance
Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Limited
Public Sector General Insurance Companies
New India Insurance
National Insurance Company
The Oriental Insurance Company
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United India Insurance Company

Agriculture Insurance Company of India
Private Sector General Insurance Companies

Bajaj Allianz General Insurance
Bharti AXA General Insurance Company Limited
Cholamandalam MS General Insurance Co. Ltd.
Cigna TTK Health Insurance Company Ltd.
Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited
HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Ltd.
ICICI Lombard
IFFCO Tokio
L&T General Insurance Company Limited
Liberty Videocon General Insurance Co Ltd
Magma HDI General Insurance Company Limited
Max Bupa Health Insurance Company Ltd
Reliance General Insurance
Royal Sundaram Alliance Insurance Co. Ltd
SBI General Insurance Company Limited
Shriram General Insurance Company Limited,
Star Health and Allied Insurance Company Limited
Tata AIG General
Universal Sompo General Insurance Co. Ltd.
Export credit guarantee insurance companies Govt.

Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India
Health insurance companies

Max Bupa Health Insurance Company
Star Health and Allied Insurance
CignaTTK Health Insurance Company Limited
Apollo Munich Health Insurance
Religare Health Insurance
LIC Life Insurance Corporation

Life Insurance Corporation (India) (LIC) is an Indian state-owned insurance group and investment company
headquartered in Mumbai. It is the largest insurance company in India .
The Life Insurance Corporation of India was founded in 1956 when the Parliament of India passed the Life
Insurance of India Act that nationalised the private insurance industry in India. Over 245 insurance companies
and provident societies were merged to create the state owned Life Insurance Corporation.
Page 4
"Your welfare is our responsibility" is the slogan of LIC which is derived from ancient Hindu text, the
Bhagavad Gita's 9th chapter, 22nd verse.
Zonal offices
Divisional offices
Branches
Satellite & Corporate Office
Customer Zone
Metro-Area Service Hubs
Individual Agents
Corporate Agents
Referral Agents
8
113
2048
992
54
25
Around 1,337,064
Around 242
89
List of LICs New plans launched in 2015.

JEEVAN TARUN will be launched in May 2015
Jeevan Lakshya Launched on 12 March 2015
Children Money Back Plan launched on 4 March 2015
Jeevan Sangam Single Premium Plan launched on 4 March 2015
Click here to Know more about LIC Policy
Key Points To Remember For LIC AAO 2016 Examination
Agriculture expert Ramesh Chand appointed as a full time member Niti Aayog
Arun Jaitley launched digital version of Mahatma Gandhi's collected work
Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit of South Africa selected for 2015 UNEP Champions
of the Earth award
Brij Raj Sharma appointed as Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir

Music Composer Aadesh Shrivastava died
Acclaimed writer Jhumpa Lahiri awarded with 2014 National Humanities Medal by
White House
Commemorative coins of Rs 125, Rs 10 released in honour of former President S

Radhakrishna
Haryana bagged Skoch Order-of-Merit National award for implementing e-governance

initiatives
NASA and ISRO jointly working on NISAR mission
R Sampanthan became first tamilian to lead opposition in Sri Lankan parliament in

32 years
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India won UNESCO's Award of Excellence 2015 for conserving Sree Vadakkunnathan
Temple
AK Jha appointed as Interim CMD of NTPC
Dinesh Kumar Likhi took charge as CMD of Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited
L C Goyal appointed as CMD of India Trade Promotion Organisation
Raghav Chandra took charge as the Chairman of NHAI
Ratan P Watal took charge as Union Finance Secretary
PM Modi released digitally restored recordings of epic Ramcharitmanas

Rajiv Mehrishi appointed as Union Home secretary
Eminent Kannada writer Dr. MM Kalburgi shot dead in Dharwad

Kandakatla Manohar appointed as Director of NIMS
US designated Aziz Haqqani as global terrorist
Tennis Player Novak Djokovic appointed as Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF

Rajendra Singh conferred with 2015 Stockholm Water Prize
Girish Sahni assumed charge as Director General of CSIR
Veteran journalist Pranab Kumar Borah passed away
105-year-old Urdu copy of Ramcharitmanas written by Shiv Brat Lal found
Syrian woman Journalist Zaina Erhaim awarded with Peter Mackler Award 2015
Indian-American Vince Chhabria appointed as a full-time federal judge by Obama

Union Government released Postal stamp on Ashoka
Amol Palekar appointed as Chairman of India's Oscar jury
Jains held nationwide protests against ban on Santhara by Rajasthan High Court
Noted academician Amitabh Mattoo appointed as Advisor to J&K CM Mufti
Mohammad Sayeed
Book titled Mrs Funnybones authored by Twinkle Khanna released
Historian Babasaheb Purandare bestowed with Maharashtra Bhushan Award 2015

Making India Awesome authored by Chetan Bhagat released
Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn in as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka

Ashwani Lohani appointed as CMD of Air India Limited
World Humanitarian Day observed with theme Inspiring the World's Humanity
Debut Novelist Zia Haider Rahman won the James Tait Black Award 2015
Indias First Lady Suvra Mukherjee passed away
Ajit Kumar Seth appointed as Chairman of Public Enterprises Selection Board

2015 United States-India Cyber Dialogue held in Washington, DC
PM Modi became the first Indian prime minister in over 42 years to visit Canada.
Page 6
North Koreas Foreign Minister, Ri Su-yong, arrived in New Delhi,India on a three

day visit.
The Union home ministry has renamed the tourist visa-on-arrival scheme as 'e-tourist
visa' scheme.
India has slipped 6 places to rank 89th on a global Networked Readiness Index.
India and Canada signed an agreement on uranium supply.
BALCOs IT major Reena Srivastava won 2015's "INFOSEC MAESTROS Top 50

Most Promising CEO Award".
Meenakshi Madan Rai sworn in as the first lady judge of the Sikkim High Court.
Mohan Kumar has been appointed the next Ambassador to France.
India retained its No. 2 position in the ODI rankings.
Pakistan successfully test- fired a new ballistic missile, Ghauri missile.
Sachin Tendulkar was inducted as one of the five new members into the prestigious
Laureus Sports Academy.
Former Prime Minister of Nepal, Surya Bahadur Thapa passed away.
Nokia announced to acquire French telecommunications firm Alcatel-Lucent for around

$16.6 billion.
Moodys pegged Indias growth at 7.5 percent for 2015.
Satya Nadella was honoured with the White House Champions of Change Award.
Satya Nadella is the first Indian-origin Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Microsoft.
Raja Rajeswari has become the first person of Indian descent to be named as a
criminal court judge in New York City.
Vivek Oberoi has been named for the prestigious 'Dada Saheb Phalke Pride Award
2015'.
India successfully test fired its nuclear-capable Agni-III ballistic missile.

The UN peace envoy to Yemen, Jamal Benomar, has resigned.
Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic was named the Laureus Sportsman of the Year.
Ethiopian sprinter Genzebe Dibaba was named the Laureus Sportswoman of the
Year.
Supreme Court appoints CBI SP Vivek Priyadarshi to head team probing IPL
scandal 2013.
India has clinched three awards in the annual awards given by Asian Squash
Federation (ASF).
Mary Kom has been named best film at the Stockholm International Film Festival
Page 7
Junior in Sweden.
Sitaram Yechury was unanimously elected CPI (M)s new General Secretary.
State Government of Kerala launched Subodham project, to help people in the state
to overcome addiction to liquor.
Shahrukh Khan was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution to Cinema award
at the 5th annual Asian Awards in London.
Britains swimmer Adam Peaty has broken the men's 100-meter breaststroke world
record.
IPC) has suspended the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) for indefinite period.
The annual trade deficit for India for fiscal year 2014-15 increased to touch $137
billion.
Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Bahrain Grand Prix for the
second year in a row.
Indias Y. Pranjala has won the Asian Junior Tennis championship title.
Maharashtra Government announced the target of 14400 MW power generation by

2019.
Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced a new tournament to be known as the Africa
T20 Cup.
Eminent historian Professor Christopher Alan Bayly died in Chicago. He was 70.
The government has retained the rate of interest for General Provident Fund (GPF)
at 8.7 per cent for the current fiscal.
Pakistan conferred its top civilian award 'Nishan-e-Pakistan' on Chinese President Xi

Jinping.
The Income Tax Department was awarded 'Prime Minister's award.
The Indian passport has been ranked 48th in a list of 50 most powerful travel
documents in the world.
Metals and mining conglomerate Sesa Sterlite Ltd has changed its name to Vedanta
Ltd.
Shah Rukh Khan has been conferred with Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation Award
2015.
Jaya Prada was conferred with Kalashree Award by the Dada Saheb Phalke Film
Foundation.
World Bank established Pollution Management and Environmental Health (PHEM)

program.
Page 8
The New York Times won two prestigious Pulitzer prizes for coverage of the Ebola
outbreak in West Africa.
ICICI Bank launched a payment service 'Tap-n-Pay'.
Janaki Ballabh Patnaik, a three-time Odisha Chief Minister and former Governor of
Assam, passed away.
Loretta Lynch has been chosen as the new attorney general of America.
Indian-American Vivek Murthy was sworn-in as the U.S. Surgeon-General.
Achanta Sharath Kamal will spearhead the Indian challenge in the World TableTennis
Championship (WTTC).
The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a shipping agreement between
India and Jordan.
Global Accounting company KPMG elected Lynne Doughtie as its CEO and
Chairman.
Gopinath Pillai has been bestowed with 'Outstanding Service Award' for his services
to Singapore.
The Indian Air Force received the first two upgraded Mirage-2000 aircrafts from
France.
Japan has been appointed as host of the FIFA Club World Cup for the next two
years.
India is at the 117th spot on Global Happiness Index 2015.
Russia and Argentina have signed a series of framework agreements on economic

and energy co-operation.
India would become fourth largest infrastructure projects market in the world by 2025.
The government has allowed EPFO to invest 5% of its corpus in exchange traded
funds (ETFs).
Len Blavatnik is Britain's richest man with a 13.17bn fortune.
Sangeeta Bhatia has won a prestigious USD 250,000 Heinz award.
India launched a relief and rescue Operation named Maitri in earthquake hit Nepal.
Actor Anil Kapoor was conferred the Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar Award.
State of Assam has been awarded as the Best e-Panchayat state.
Akhilesh Das Gupta was elected the vice-president of the Badminton Asia
Confederation (BAC) for a four year term.
Bhalchandra Nemade received 50th Jnanpith Award.
Page 9
Togo's President Faure Gnassingbe has won a third term with 58.75% of the vote in
polls.
Railway Sports Promotion Board has won the 5th Senior Mens National Hockey
Championship 2015.
'Margarita With A Straw' has bagged the best feature film honour at Washington DC
International Film festival.
China won the World Men's Team Chess Championship held in Armenia.
Georgia won the World Women's Team Chess Championship held in Armenia.
India Ratings projected the Indias economic growth at 7.7 per cent this financial
year.
Mukesh Ambani regained his position as the world's richest Indian with a networth of
$19.6 billion.
Uttar Pradesh has signed two MoUs for establishing a solar and an ultra-mega solar
power project in the state.
Raja Rajeswari became first India-born woman to be appointed a judge in the New
York City.
The government has raised the limit of FDI in pension sector to 49 per cent.
Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) has won the Asian Banker Achievement Award 2015.
India won for the first time the 22nd Presidents Cup Boxing Tournament in
Palembang, Indonesia.
Eden Hazard has won the Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year
award.
Lewis Hamilton has been named as the richest sportsman in Britain.

Kei Nishikori won Barcelona Open title.
China has for the first time overtaken the United States as Australia's largest source
of foreign investment.
Praful Patel was elected as vice-president, South Asian Football Federation

(SAFF)Region.
Austrailias Russell Ford announced his retirement from international hockey.

Siddhartha Gigoo has won the 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize.
The International Table Tennis Federation has become the world's largest sports
body in terms of membership.
Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim al Khalifa of Bahrain was re-elected as the president of
the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
Page 10
Mazen Darwish was honoured with UNESCO-Guillermo Cano World Press

Freedom Prize 2015.
The Fourteenth edition of the Indo-French naval exercise VARUNA

concluded.
2015
Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) won the 5th Hockey India Senior Women
National Championship 2015.
Tennis player Rafael Nadal received the Golden Medal for Merit in Work.
Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport has been adjudged the world's best airport
for the year 2014.
R&B and soul singer Ben E King, best known for the classic song 'Stand By Me'
passed away.
Government has made Permanent Account Number (PAN) mandatory for private firms
seeking central excise registration.
International Shooting Competition 2015 was held in Hannover, Germany.
Novak Djokovic held on to first place in the ATP world singles mens rankings.
Roger Federer won Istanbul Open Tournament.
Frances Richard Gasquet won the Estoril Open Tennis Tournaments Title.
Deepamale Devi won gold in the women's 20km walk in the 19th Federation Cup
National Senior Athletics championship.
Vasco da Gama secured the Rio de Janeiro state championship for the 23rd time.
Former Union minister and veteran Congress leader Baleshwar Ram died. He was
87.
Wang Jianlin became the wealthiest man in Asia.
France signed an agreement with Qatar to supply 24 Dassault Aviation-built Rafale

fighter jets.
The United States authorized commercial ferry services to Cuba for the first time in
more than a half-century.
Stuart Bingham won 2015 Snooker World Championship.
England batsman Jonathan Trott (34) has retired from international cricket.
Michael Blake, who won an Oscar for writing the script of Dances With Wolves died
at the age of 69.
The government has appointed Arun Jha as the next Tribal Affairs Secretary.
Norway is at the top of Global Motherhood Index 2015.
The IMF projected a 4.3 per cent growth rate for Pakistan this year.
Page 11
Nadia district in West Bengal has won the 2015 United Nations Public Service
Award.
Geeta Phogat bagged a bronze in the Women's freestyle 58kg category in the Senior
Asian Wrestling Championship.
India and China have signed 24 agreements worth over 10 billion dollars in Beijing.
Tata Consultancy Services has been ranked as the 57th leading brand in the US.
Tejaswini Sagar won under-15 category of World School Chess Championships.
Eminent Bengali writer Suchitra Bhattacharya passed away in Kolkata.
India was honoured for its significant contribution to UN Peacekeeping over the last
six decades.
India has been ranked at a lowly 100 position on the global Human Capital Index.
The US diplomatic mission in India has bagged People's Choice Greening

Diplomacy Initiative award.
The government appointed M.J. Joseph as the Controller General of Accounts in the
Ministry of Finance.
Indian shooter Gagan Narang won the bronze medal in the 50m Rifle Prone Event of
the ISSF World Cup.
Najama Heptullah is the Union Minister for Minorities Welfare.
Syndicate Bank has appointed Arun Shrivastava as its as Managing Director and
Chief Executive Officer.
Jonodev Osceola Chaudhuri has been sworn in as the chairman of the USs National
Indian Gaming Commission.
UC Browser has appointed all rounder Yuvraj Singh as its Product Specialist and
Brand Ambassador.
Kochi will host the World Senior Badminton Championships in 2017.

Franz Wright, a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, passed away.
Islamic clothing company East Essence tied up with Snapdeal.
Novak Djokovic captured his fourth Rome Masters Tennis title with a win over Roger
Federer.
Narendra Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Mongolia.
ICICI Bank opened its first branch in China.
India announced a US $1 billion credit line to Mongolia for infrastructure

development.
Infosys announced to establish its first overseas centre outside India in China.
Page 12
Private sector Federal Bank along with card issuing company SBI Card launched cobranded credit cards.
India announced that it would contribute USD 2.1 million to the World Health
Organisation.
Australia wicketkeeper-batsman Brad Haddin has announced his retirement from oneday international cricket.
David Granger, a retired army general, has become Guyanas new president.
The government has allocated Rs. 5,000 crore for the growth of Department of
AYUSH.
Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai has won the Man Booker International Prize.
Bank of India has elevated R.A. Sankara Narayanan as the executive director of the
bank.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) named Kuldeep Malik as the new chief
national coach.
Joe Root has been elected England Cricketer of the Year for 2014-15.
Former Union minister and BJP MP S.S. Ahluwalia was appointed chairman of a
Joint Committee of Parliament.
India has ranked 24th out of 70 countries in the first Environmental Democracy
Index.
Lithuania topped the Environmental Democracy Index.
Indians have become the second biggest job creators in London in 2015.
India is on 6th position in terms of scientific publications.
Indian-origin US filmmaker Prashant Bhargava passed away.
Indian IT major Wipro has been felicitated by Microsoft with 'Supplier of the Year
award'.
Hwang Kyo-ahn has been named the new South Korean prime minister.
Rory McIlroy has been named the European Tours Golfer of the Year and the
Players Player of the Year.
AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa sworn in for the fifth time as Tamil Nadu chief
minister.
Gujarat government and Chinese software firm ZTEsoft have signed an agreement
for smart city projects in the state.
IRCTC has partnered with Mydala.com to provide deals and offers to customers.
French thriller film Dheepan has been awarded Palme dOr Award at 68th Cannes
Film Festival.
Page 13
Mumbai Indians' (MI's) won the eight edition of Indian Premier League (IPL).
India's Deepa Kumari has been accorded an international outdoor umpire status by
the FIH.
Indian boxers won a total of seven medals including four gold, one silver and two
bronze medals at the Doha International boxing tournament.
G. Mohan Kumar has been appointed as the Secretary of the Ministry of Defence
(MoD).
John Nash, a Nobel prize winner and Mathematician passed away.

Andrzej Duda has won Poland's Presidential elections.
Saurabh Kumar was appointed as the next Indian Ambassador to Iran.
Batsman Ajinkya Rahane won the CEAT Indian Cricketer of the Year award.
Ranjit Singh Baxi has been elected as the head of the Bureau of International
Recycling.
ICICI Bank has launched a service where customers can make transactions using
just their voice.
China has set up a gold sector fund involving countries along the ancient Silk Road.
Nico Rosberg of Germany won the Monaco Grand Prix Formula 1 World
Championship title.
Western Union has renewed its 14-year-old partnership with India Post.
Manoj Mishra has been appointed as CMD of National Fertilizers Ltd (NFL).
China's PM Li Keqiang and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet signed a currency

swap deal.
Lt general (Retd) Nirbhay Sharma was sworn-in as the governor of Mizoram.
Ace cross-country bike racer C.S. Santosh won the coveted Motorsport Man of the
Year award.
The PM Narendra Modi, launched DD Kisan - India's first television channel

dedicated to farmers.
India and Vietnam signed a Joint Vision Statement on Defence Cooperation for the
period 2015-2020.
Veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai has been selected for FIFA Lifetime Achievement
honour.
The Indian food and beverage sector is likely to touch Rs. 3.80 lakh crore by 2017.
Indias exports to China are expected to grow by around 14 per cent a year in the
decade to 2030.
Anindo Majumdar has been appointed as the CMD of Delhi Finance Corporation.
Page 14
Documentary photographer Mary Ellen Mark passed away.
Pakistani spinner Raza Hasan was banned by the Pakistan Cricket Board from
playing any form of cricket.
The Spanish football club, Sevilla Football Club (FC) won Europa League title.
India has topped the world hunger list.
Eminent scientist Dr. Selvin Christopher has been appointed as the Director General
of DRDO.
Singapore has appointed S. Chandra Das as its non-Resident High Commissioner to

Sri Lanka.
The Maharashtra Government launched 'Swachhata Saptapadi' scheme.

Nebraska has become the 19th US state to abolish the death penalty.
Sepp Blatter was re-elected President of FIFA for a fifth term.
Mauritius President Kailash Purryag has resigned from office.
Akinwumi Adesina has been elected as the new President of the African
Development Bank (AfDB).
G. S. Reddy has been appointed as the Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister.
The United States has removed Cuba from its list of countries sponsors of terrorism.
More than 100 US cities will organise a Yogathon on the first International Yoga Day
on June 21.
American actor and comedian Reynaldo Rey passed away.
Service tax hike to 14% has become effective from 1st June 2015.
India won four gold at International Wrestling tournament
Italy.
(Mens) in Sassari City,
Himachal Pradesh has emerged as first the state in the country to start Aadhaar
Based Payment System (ABPS).
Edward Gilligan, the president of American Express Co. Passed away.

Muhammadu Buhari sworn-in as President of Nigeria.
Govt. approved agreement on Coastal Shipping between India and Bangladesh.

Singapore honoured Gautam Banerjee with 'Public Service Medal'.
US-based taxi hailing app Uber has appointed Amit Jain as President of its India
operations.
Veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai has been selected for FIFA Lifetime Achievement
honour.
The Indian food and beverage sector is likely to touch Rs. 3.80 lakh crore by 2017.
Page 15
Indias exports to China are expected to grow by around 14 per cent a year in the
decade to 2030.
Anindo Majumdar has been appointed as the CMD of Delhi Finance Corporation.
Documentary photographer Mary Ellen Mark passed away.
Pakistani spinner Raza Hasan was banned by the Pakistan Cricket Board from
playing any form of cricket.
The Spanish football club, Sevilla Football Club (FC) won Europa League title.
India has topped the world hunger list.
Eminent scientist Dr. Selvin Christopher has been appointed as the Director General
of DRDO.
Mauritius President Kailash Purryag has resigned from office.
Coal India Limited has become the 6th-largest mining company in the world in terms
of market capitalisation.
ADB announced to give 3,200 crore rupees loan assistance to the West Bengal
Government.
Nearly 300 deals worth USD 55 billion have been signed at the 3rd China-South
Asia Expo in Kunming.
The National Union of Seafarers of India has bagged the 'Best Welfare Organisation
of the Year Award-2015'.
Former Union minister (Congress) and close relative of Jawaharlal Nehru Sheila Kaul
passed away.
FDI inflows into the services sector grew to 3.2 billion dollars in 2014-15.
India is home to the fourth largest number of ultra-high-networth households.
India signed a motor vehicles pact with three SAARC nations, Bhutan, Bangladesh
and Nepal.
SEBI has barred Karvy Stock Broking from taking up new IPO assignments for one
year.
An Egyptian court sentenced former President Mohamed Morsy to 25 years in prison.

India and Poland has set an ambitious trade target of USD 5 billion.
The Centre has approved an anti-chit fund bill passed by West Bengal Assembly in
2013.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is the world's richest self-made billionaire.

Australia signed a landmark Free Trade Agreement with China.
Narendra Kumar Yadav has taken over the charge of CMD of MTNL.
Viswanathan Anand lost to Magnus Carlsen in the Blitz Chess tournament.
Page 16
Charles Correa, the face of modern architecture in India, passed away.
The UNGA elected Denmark's Mogens Lykketoft as its President for its 70th
session.
China launched "Wu-14", a supersonic nuclear delivery vehicle.
Sunil Chhetri became the first Indian footballer to score 50 international goals.
BSNL announced to set up 40,000 wi-fi hotspots across the country.
India's rank is 143th on Global Peace Index (GPI).
Iceland topped the Global Peace Index (GPI) 2015.
Mumbai is the most expensive city in India according to the latest Mercer survey for
2015.
Archana Ramasundaram was appointed as the Director of National Crime Records

Bureau.
Sharad Pawar was re-elected as the President of Mumbai Cricket Association.
Asia has overtaken Europe as the worlds second-richest region in the world in 2014.
The Election Commission of India suspended the recognition of the National Peoples
Party.
Asian Development Bank announced to increase about 50 percent loan to India to

$12 billion by 2018.
Japan lowered the voting age to 18 years from 20 years.
Turkey's former president and prime minister Suleyman Demirel passed away.
South Korea's Justice Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was appointed as the country's new
prime minister.
India has been ranked third in a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Report for 2013.
Russia topped World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Report for 2013.
Journalist and writer Aakar Patel appointed as Executive Director of Amnesty

International (AI) India.
10th Bharatiya Jnanpith Navlekhan Price was awarded to Babusha Kohli and
Upasana.
ONGC lifted the 42nd All India Goswami Ganesh Dutt Memorial Cricket
Tournament 2015.
Hawaii becomes first US state to raise smoking age from 18 years to 21 years.
ISRO announced to provide navigational support to Indian Railways through GAGAN

system.
Historian-author Ramachandra Guha has been selected for Japan's prestigious

Fukuoka Prize.
Page 17
Eminent scientist C.N.R. Rao was conferred Japan's highest civilian award.
China has manufactured the worlds first electric passenger aircraft
SBI has launched Internet-based platform SBI eforex.
BX1E.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Narendra Modi Mobile App.
BJP MLA and former Madhya Pradesh Minister Tukojirao Puar passed away.
HDFC Bank launched a 10-second paperless instant loan plan for its existing
customers.
India created two world records on the first International Yoga Day on 21st June
2015.
Serbia won the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2015 by defeating Brazil.
Roger Federer defeated Andreas Seppi to win ATP Gerry Weber Open Halle Tennis
title.
Bangladesh defeated Team India in the second ODI cricket match.
Benni Joseph Mavelil has been chosen for the V.K. Krishna Menon award.
German football club Colognes striker Patrick Helmes has announced his
retirement.
Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport has the world's fastest WiFi service.
Former Indian women hockey captain Shashi Bala and her son Agrim Thakur died in
a road accident.
Indian mission in Sweden has launched India Unlimited platform.
India-born Nikesh Arora appointed the president of Japan's SoftBank Corp.
EPFO has made Universal Account Number (UAN) mandatory for all employers.
ICICI Bank has partnered with Alibaba.com, to launch a trade facilitation centre.
Carnatic vocalist Sanjay Subrahmanyam selected for Sangitha Kalanidhi award of

Madras Music Academy.
Britains Andy Murray won the mens singles of the Aegon Championships.
Nico Rosberg won Austrian Grand Prix 2015 beating Lewis Hamilton.
Nagesh Kukunoor is the director of the film Dhanak.
China won the 2015 Nongfu Spring Snookers World Cup by defeating Scotland.
India has moved down to 61st place in terms of foreigners' money in Swiss banks.
Debendranath Sarangi elected as president of the Squash Rackets Federation of
India (SRFI).
K. Rajendiran elected as secretary-general of the Squash Rackets Federation of India

(SRFI).
Tennis legend Steffi Graf was appointed the Ayurveda brand ambassador of Kerala.
Page 18
Railway Team defeated France in the 20th USIC- Tennis (World

Railways)Championship.
Narayana Murthy conferred with

Related Technologies Award.
Astronautical Society of India's Rocket and
'Sabar Shouchagar' project in West Bengals Nadia district won UN award for
innovative public services.
SIDBI has set up a Rs.1000 crore 'Make in India' fund for MSMEs.
Rajasthan topped the list of states commissioning grid connected solar power
projects in the country.
Former Pakistan captain Zaheer Abbas has been appointed President of ICC.
India is at 9th rank in terms recipients of FDI in 2014.
India has emerged as the third largest source of FDI for United Kingdom.
India would provide an assistance of $1 billion for quake-hit Nepal's reconstruction.

Australia announced that it would join the new China AIIB as a founding member.
Prominent journalist, riter and anti-nuclear activist Praful Bidwai passed away in
Netherlands.
Russia and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of
nuclear energy.
HDFC Bank extended managing director Aditya Puri's tenure for another five years.
Satnam Singh Bhamara became the first Indian basketball player to be drafted in
America's NBA.
Asha Bhosle is declared the greatest Bollywood playback artist of all times by the
U.K. based Eastern Eye newspaper.
State Bank of India announced the appointment of Anshula Kant as its Chief
Financial Officer.
Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has been conferred with Colombia's highest
civilian award.
Axis Bank has launched an EMV-chip-based debit card called Secure+.
Sachin Tendulkar has been voted the 'Best Test player' of the 21st century.
11 Indian companies are ranked in Forbes Asia's 'Best Under A Billion' list.
Dr. Vishwanath Tripathi has been choosen for the 28th Moortidevi Award 2014.
Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won the Canada Open Grand Prix women's
doubles title.
Bangladesh cricketer Shakib Al Hassan ranked the best all-rounder in ODI once
again.
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Ericsson has appointed Paolo Colella as the new head of its India operations.
Exim Bank has extended a loan of $268.35 million to Tanzania.
Russia's former prime minister Yevgeny Primakov passed away.
Pratap Pawar was awarded Punyabhushan Award 2015.
FIICI and Quality Council of India started a programme for 'Zero Defect, Zero Effect'
products.
Railways is the 8th largest employer in the world.
U.S. Department of Defense is worlds largest employer.

India is at the top in Baseline Profitability Index (BPI).
Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia won the men's singles title of the Canada Open
Badminton tournament.
Michelle Li of Canada won womens singles title of the Canada Open Badminton
tournament.
IMF has approved USD 506.4 million loan tranche to Pakistan.
Justin Gatlin won the 200m title at the US athletics championships.
Ujjwal Batria was appointed as the CEO of French cement maker Lafarge's India
operations.
Brazilian racer Nelson Piquet Jr won the FIA Formula E Championship title of the
2014-15 season.
IDFC appointed Indias former CAG Vinod Rai as independent director.

Y.C. Modi has been appointed as Additional Director in the CBI.
Nandkumar Saravade has been appointed as CEO of the Data Security Council of
India (DSCI).
HDFC Bank launched '30-min auto' and '15-min 2-wheeler' loan schemes.
Khalin Joshi finished sixth at the USD 76,000 Bali National Golf Championship.
Suresh Prabhu inaugurated the Integrated Security System (ISS) at four railway
stations in Mumbai.
Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani for the first time nominated a female as judge
in Supreme Court.
Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel has become the worlds third largest mobile operator.
Infosys has launched a mobile app, the 'Finacle SME Enable'.
Current Affairs of October/November - 2015
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INTERNATIONAL
China to sell 8 submarines to Pakistan
China will sell eight submarines to Pakistan, with four of them being built in Karachi under a
technology transfer agreement. The construction of the eight submarines will simultaneously
begin in Pakistan and China and four of them will be built in Karachi. China will transfer
technology to Pakistan for submarine construction. The deal is for Yuan-class Type 041 dieselelectric submarines equipped with air independent propulsion (AIP) systems.
North Korea celebrated 70th Anniversary of the Country

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un attended the Military parade and mass rally in PyongYang on
10 October to mark the 70th anniversary of the countrys ruling party. Thousands of goosestepping troops, tanks, armored vehicles, rocket launchers and a variety of missiles mounted on
trucks rolled through the Square.
China starts biggest dam on Brahmaputra in Tibet

China on 13 October operationalised the 1.5 billion US Dollars Zam Hydropower Station, the
largest in Tibet, built on the Brahmaputra river. Located in Gyaca county, Shannan prefecture,
Zam Hydropower station also known as Zangmu Hydropower station, harnesses the waters of the
Brahmaputra, known in Tibet as Yarlung Zangbo. Considered the worlds highestaltitude
hydropower station and the largest of its kind, the dam will produce 2.5 billion kilo-watt-hours of
electricity a year.
Fiji Parliament elects new President Jioje Konrote

Fiji Parliament on 12th October 2015 has elected the Minister for Employment, Productivity and
Industrial Relations as the next President of the country, namely Jioji/George Konrote. He was
nominated by the ruling Fiji First party gaining 31 votes in the presidential elections held at the
parliament. Opposition SODELPA party candidate Ratu Epeli Ganilau received a mere 14 votes.
As per the constitution of Fiji, PM and leader of opposition submit presidential candidates name
to Parliament Speaker for voting. Konrote is an ex major general who had joined the Republic of
Fiji Military Forces in the 1960s.
NATO launched Trident Juncture Military Excercise

To test the alliances ability to respond to new security threats, North Atlantic Treaty
organization (NATO) launched a biggest military excercise called Trident Juncture Military
Excercise in Italy. The Military excercise has mobilised around 36,000 soldiers, sailors and
airmen from more than 30 NATO countries.
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INDIA & WORLD

India and Germany signed 18 MoUs
India and Germany on 5 October, 2015 ink 18 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) for
cooperation in various fields including higher education, civil aviation, railways and food safety.
India and Germany also signed a deal to fast track business approvals. The other deals include
promotion of German as a foreign language in India and promotion of modern Indian languages
in Germany, cooperation on Indo-German solar energy partnership, cooperation in fields of skill
development and vocational education and training, cooperation in the field of disaster
management, Indo-German partnerships in higher education, cooperation in the field of railways.
Union Cabinet approved MoU with Mozambique for cooperation in renewable energy
The Union Government on 14 October 2015 approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
between the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, India and Mozambique. The agreement
aims at establishing a cooperative institutional relationship to encourage and promote technical
bilateral cooperation, investment promotion and partnership on new and renewable energy issues
on the basis of mutual benefit, equality and reciprocity. The focus will be on the development of
new and renewable energy technologies in the field of conducting on-the-job and specialized
training courses on renewable energy field, research & development and of technology transfer
in renewable energy.
ADB to provide loan for India-Bangladesh Electricity link upgradation

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide $120 million loan to upgrade the IndiaBangladesh electricity network. Once completed, this will allow Bangladesh to meet its
increasing power demand and support power exchanges across South Asia. The loan will be used
to double the capacity of the existing inter-grid connectivity which links the power grid of
western Bangladesh at Berhamara with the power grid of eastern India at aharampur.The two
electricity networks were first connected in December 2013 under a previous ADB project under
which India exports 500 MW power to Bangladesh.
India pips China to emerge as worlds largest cotton producer

India has emerged worlds largest cotton producer in the season ending in September 30, 2015
by surpassing China. As per data released by the International Cotton Advisory Committee
(ICAC) India has produced 6.51 million tonnes (mt) of the cotton against 6.48 mt registered by
China in the cotton year 2014-15. US Department of Agriculture has predicted that India will
retain its top position till next cotton season by producing around 29 million bales or around 27
per cent of the global cotton crop.
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India-Sri Lanka joint training exercise Mitra Shakti-2015 concluded

The third India-Sri Lanka jointt raining exercise Mitra Shakti-2015 culminated on 12 October
2015 after a closing ceremony held at Aundh Military Camp, Pune.The 14-day joint training
included understanding of transnational terrorism, developing interoperability and conduct of
joint tactical operations controlled by a Joint Command Post. Brigadier Tapan Lal Sah of the
Indian Army and Brigadier KP Aruna Jayasekera of the Sri Lankan Army jointly reviewed the
parade commanded by Major Ashish Kumar, of Indian Army.
NATIONAL
India to cut emissions intensity upto 35 Per cent by 2030
The Union Environment Ministry on 2 October, 2015 submitted its Intended Nationally
Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the UN Frame work Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC), committing to cut the emissions intensity of GDP by 33-35 per cent by 2030 from
2005 levels. India has committed to 40 per cent of non-fossil fuel energy to be adopted by 2030.
It has also set the target of generating 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent of Carbon sinks in the
form of forests. India aims to mobilise domestic and global funds to implement its mitigation
actions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi released postal stamp on Abdul Kalam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the A P J Abdul Kalams birth anniversary celebrations
held at DRDO Bhavan in New Delhi on 15 October. Modi released a commemorative postal
stamp on Kalam. Narendra Modi also announced a memorial for Kalam at Rameshwaram in
Tamil Nadu. The Prime Minister unveiled a statue of Dr. Kalam at DRDO Bhavan and opened a
photo exhibition titled A Celebration of Dr. Kalams Life.
Supreme Court Bench strikes down NJAC Act as unconstitutional and void
The Supreme Court on 16 October rejected the National Judicial Appointments Commission
(NJAC) Act and the 99th Constitutional Amendment which sought to give politicians and civil
society a final say in the appointment of judges to the highest courts. With this veredict, the
Collegium system as it existed before the NJAC Act was passed, will become operative again.
Central Government launches KISAN Project and Hailstorm App for crop damage
The Central Government launched its flagship Kisan Project on 5 October to help farmers in the
long run. KISAN stands for (K)rop Insurance using Space technology And geoinformatics.
Combining the forces of digital world with the age old tradition of agriculture, the government is
all set to make the lives of farmers more secure and comfortable. The project uses satellite and
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drone-based imaging and other geospatial technology to get accurate data on crop yields.The
KISAN project will be implemented by Mahalanobis National Crop Forecast Centre (MNCFC)
in collaboration with ISRO Centres Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad & National
Remote Sensing Centre, Hyderabad; India Meteorological Department; CCAFS; state agriculture
departments and state remote sensing centres.
India launched massive awareness drive on climate change by flagging off unique train
Science Express Climate Action Special is a 16-coach air-conditioned train that was launched
on 15 October from Delhi in the run-up to the global climate summit in Paris in December 2015.
The exhibits on the train would cover specific topics like adaptation, mitigation, Indias action on
mitigation, international climate change negotiations, nature conservation, innovations in India,
science lab, biotechnology applications and others.Over 190 countries would meet in Paris in
December 2015 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) to strike a new global climate deal aimed at controlling global carbon emissions for
tackling global warming.
STATES
Jammu and Kashmir High Court ruled that Article 370, granting special status to the state
is permanent
Jammu and Kashmir High court has ruled that Article 370, granting special status to the state,
has assumed place of permanence in the Constitution and the feature is beyond amendment,
repeal or abrogation. The Court also said that Article 35A gives protection to existing laws in
force in the State. Article 370 though titled as Temporary Provision and included in Para XXI
titled Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions has assumed place of permanence in the
Constitution.
House of Kalam launches international foundation in Chennai
Three months after former President of India Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam died, his family House of
Kalam has launched an international foundation to carry forward his good deeds and accomplish
the vision envisaged by Abdul Kalam. Legendary music director Illayaraja officially launched
the logo of the foundation and pledged his support for the initiative. The family promised that it
will realise the dreams of Dr Kalam and hold his flag of education and human values.
Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu declared as AMRUT town
Rameshwaram town in Tamil Nadu has been declared as AMRUT town on 15 October, 2015
by the Minister of Urban Development. Rameshwaram has been included in Atal Mission for
Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) for providing basic urban infrastructure.
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Tamil Nadu Government banned drug Ketoprofen to save vultures

Tamil Nadu in the second week of October 2015 banned the use of Ketoprofen, a non-steroid
antiinflammatory drug (NSAID), which is used extensively for veterinary purposes. The step has
been taken to save critically endangered vultures in the state.This drug has been banned in the
three western districts of state viz in Erode, Coimbatore and Nilgiris where the vulture
population is in danger.
Swadhar Greh scheme approved by Haryana Government for women in distress

The Haryana Government on 18 October 2015 approved Swadhar Greh scheme, which will
assure economic and social security to women in distress. The scheme aims at creating a
supportive institutional framework catering to their primary needs in difficult situations. The
scheme will work upon providing basic amenities, such as shelter, food, clothing and health
along with economic and social security to women in distress.
CONFERENCES
Indo-German Summit 2015 held in Bengaluru
The Indo-German Summit 2015 has been held in Bengaluru on 6 October, 2015. The summit
was organised by Nasscom. Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with German Chancellor
Angela Merkel attended the summit. Industrialists from India and Germany and deligates from
15 states attended the summit. In this summit both the nations signed five B to B (Business to
Business) agreements.
BRICS Ministerial migration meeting held in Sochi

The First BRICS Ministerial migration meeting was held in Sochi on October 8, 2015. The
discussion of the meeting focused on the regulation of migration processes exerting greater
influence on the geopolitical environment in the world. Alongside with the meeting the round
table on New strategies of managing migration as the key to a successful development of
society was organized. The BRICS leaders emphasized the importance of mutual cooperation
among BRICS countries in the migration area and welcomed Russias initiative to hold the first
BRICS Ministerial migration (Heads of migration authorities) meeting.
2015 IMF, World Bank Annual Meeting held in Peru

The 2015 annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank has
been held from 9-11 October, 2015 in Lima, the capital city of Peru. After 48 years the meeting
was held in Latin America. Over ten thousand pariticipants from 188 countries attended the
meeting. The main subjects of discussions are challenges facing the world economy, ways to
combat illicit financial flows, private investment in renewable energy, structural reforms, among
others. Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister from India also attended the meeting. IMF MD Christine
Lagarde and World Bank President Jim Yang Kim attended the meeting. The meeting is very
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important for discussing and clarifying the road map for getting to the 100 billion dollars goal in
climate finance.
5th Meeting of the India-Maldives Joint Commission held in Maldives

The 5th meeting of the India-Maldives Joint Commission was held on 11 October 2015 in Male,
the capital of Maldives. India-Maldives Joint Commission was co-chaired by External Affairs
Minister Sushma Swaraj and Maldivian foreign minister Dunya Maumoon. It assessed the entire
range of bilateral relations including economic security and cultural aspects apart from focusing
on the growing policy alignment between two countries as seen in Indias Neighbours First and
Maldives India First policies.
AWARDS & HONOURS

Maruthi Chairman Bhargava honoured with Forbes Life Time Achievement Award
Maruthi Suzuki chairman R.C. Bhargava has been honoured with the Life Time Achievement
Award at the Forbes India Leadership Awards, 2015. Mr Bhargava was one of the founding
members of Maruthi in 1982. He led the company as MD from 1990 to 1997. From 2007 he was
leading the company as the Chairman.
Jamaicas Marlon James wins Man Booker Prize

Marlon James became the first Jamaican winner of the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction on 14
October, 2015. His book A Brief History of Seven Killings won the prestigious Man Booker
Prize Award. The novel is based on the attempted assassination of Bob Marley.
2015 Right Livelihood Awards announced for three persons

Laureates of 2015 Right Livelihood Awards were announced on 1 October 2015. Tony de Brum
& the People of the Marshall Islands, Sheila Watt-Cloutier (Canada), Kasha Jacqueline
Nabagesera (Uganda) and Gino Strada & his organisation Emergency (Italy) were chosen for
the prestigious award that is also known as Alternative Nobel Prize. The Canadian was
recognised for her lifelong work to protect the Inuit of the Arctic and defend their right to
maintain their livelihoods and culture.
SPORTS & GAMES

India won Gold medal in the Womens event at Asian Air Gun Championship
Indian pistol shooter Heena Sidhu won the gold medal in womens 10 meter air pistol event at
the 8th Asian Air Gun Championships in New Delhi. Heena is the Indias first pistol shooter to
be ranked number one in the world. Indias Shweta Singh won the Silver medal and Korean
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shooter Seon A Kim took the bronze medal.

Sania-Hingis pair won the Wuhan Open Womens Doubles Title
Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis pair won the Womens doubles final at the Wuhan Open tennis
tournment held on 2 October, 2015 in central Chinas Hubei Province. They defeat the
Romanias Irina Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu in the finals. This is the 7th title for the
Sania-Hingis pair. They have won the Indian Wells, Miami, Charleston, Wimbledon, the US
Open, Guangzhou and Wuhan Open this year. They have 7 WTA doubles titles won together this
year. This is the 8th title for Sania Mirza.
Harikrishna wins PokerStars Isle of Man International Chess Tournament 2015

Andhra Pradesh Grand Master P. Harikrishna won the PokerStars Isle of Man International
Chess Tournament 2015 held on 11 October in British Islands. About 39 Grand Masters and 66
other chess players are participated in this event. In the womens event another Andhra Pradesh
Grand Master Dronavalli Harika stood at third place.
Johor Cup Hockey winner Great Britain

Great Britain on 18 October 2015 defeated Indian junior mens hockey team and captured Sultan
of Johor Cup (SOJC). Great Britain defeated defending champions India by 4-3 in sudden death
penalty shootout in the final. For the third place, the host Malaysia defeated Argentina to settle
for Bronze.
Novak Djokovic won the Shanghai Masters Tennis Championship

World Number 1 ranking Novak Djokovic on 18 October 2015 won the 2015 Shanghai Rolex
Masters tennis title in the mens singles category. The top seeded Serbian player defeated JoWilfried Tsonga 6-2 6-4 in the final match held in Shanghai, China. It was the third Shanghai
title for Djokovic in four years.
ECONOMY
Ambani Family ranks third in Forbes Asias 50 richest families list
As many as 14 Indian families are in the list of Forbes 50 richest families in Asia. In this list,
Ambani family ranked third with a net worth of 21.5 billion dollars. The other Indian families in
the top 10 include the Premji family in the 7th place and the Mistry family in the 10th place.
With 14 Indian families, India stood first in the list. The overall list has topped by Lees of
Samsung group, with a net worth of 26.6 billion dollars.
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India ranks 3rd in Global startup ecosystems

India ranks third among global startup ecosystems with more than 4,200 new-age companies.
Nasscom along with Zinnov on 13 October launched the second edition of the startup report
titled Start up India Momentous Rise of the Indian Start-Up Ecosystem on the sidelines of
Nasscom Product Conclave 2015 in Bengaluru. Three to four startups being born every day and
nearly five billion dollars of funding coming in 2015.
China beats US in number of dollar billionaires for the first time

China has beaten the United States for the first time in the number of dollar billionaires whose
number have climed to 596 over Americas 537. Now China has the Worlds largest number of
billionares. The China billionaire list is dominated by Wang Jianlin, who founded the
conglomerate Wanda unseating e-commerce gaint Alibabas Jack Ma as the countrys richest
person.
India ranks 55th on 2015 Global Competitiveness Index: WEF Report

India has been placed at 55th position on 2015 Global Competitiveness Index of the worlds
most competitive economies. It was published in Global Competitiveness Report of World
Economic Forum (WEF) which has assessed total 140 countries. Switzerland has retained its top
position as the worlds most competitive economy for seventh year in a row. Switzerland,
Singapore, United States, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Hong Kong, Finland, Sweden & United
Kingdom.
RBI and UAE central Bank Signed MoU on supervisory information exchange
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Central Bank of United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed a
Memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Supervisory co-operation and Exchange of
Supervisory Information. By signing the MoU, RBI is seeking to promote greater Co-operation
and share supervisory information among the authorities.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

China launched 20th Satellite for its Navigation system
China on 30 September 2015 launched a 20th new generation satellite for the BeiDou Navigation
system (BDS) into orbit that will support its global navigation and positioning network. The
satellite was launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in the South Western Province of
Sichuan. A Long March-3 B carrier rocket carried the satellite. It was the first time that the
satellite featured a hydrogen atomic clock.
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NASAs New Horizons found blue skies and water ice on Pluto
The first colour images of Plutos atmosphere returned by NASAs New Horizon Spacecraft has
revealed a blue skies and numerous small exposed regions of water ice. Scientists say a blue sky
often results from scattering of sunlight by very small particles. On Earth those particles are very
tiny nitrogen molecules. On Pluto they appear to be larger but still relatively small soot-like
particles. The Haze particles are grey or red, but the way they scatter, the blue light attracted the
attention of the New Horizon.
ARSAT2 is a second communication satellite launched by Argentina

ARSAT2 is a second communication satellite launched by Argentina. The countrys previous
telecommunications satellite, ARSAT1, was sent up nearly a year ago, when Argentina became
the first Latin American country to develop and launch a telecommunications satellite into orbit.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A). APPOINTMENTS
A.K.Pujari assumed additional charge as CMD of SAIL
Dr. Anup K. Pujari on 1 October, 2015 assumed additional charge as the chairman and Managing
Director of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL). At present he is the secretary, Government
of India, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). He was also given the
additional charge of the post of Secretary in Ministry of Steel.
Shashank Manohar elected as BCCI President
Nagpur lawyer, Mr. Shashank Manohar has been elected as the President for Board of Control
for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the second time on 4 October, 2015. He is the 36th President of
BCCI. He will be in this post for two years. He has promised to initiate stern and practical steps
and deliver results in two months to win back the confidence of Indian cricket fans.
Sekhar Basu to be the next chairman of Atomic Energy Commission
Renowned scientist Sekhar Basu was on 9 October appointed as chairman of Atomic Energy
Commission. Basu, who is presently director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and
chief executive of the Nuclear Recycle Board (NRB), will replaced RK Sinha who superannuates
on October 23 and he will have a tenure till September 19, 2016. Basu has also been appointed
Secretary, department of atomic energy. Basu was instrumental in setting up reprocessing and
waste management facilities at Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research in Kalpakkam.
IPCC Elects Hoesung Lee as New Chairman
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) elected Hoesung Lee of the Republic of
Page 29
Korea as its new Chairman 2015. Hoesung Lee was elected by 78 votes to 56 in a run-off with
JeanPascal van Ypersele. A total of six candidates had been
nominated for the position.
B). RESIGNS
Author Shashi Deshpande resigned to Sahitya Akademi General Council
Award-Winning author Shashi Deshpande on 9 October resigned from the Sahitya Akademi
general council expressing a sense of strong disappointment over the literary bodys silence on
the killing of Kannada writer M.M. Kalburgi. She wrote several novels, short stories and essay
collections and books for children and won the Sahitya Akademi award for her novel That Long
Silence in 1990. She was awarded the Padma Sri in 2009.
Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala resigned
Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala on 10 October resigned to his post. Koirala resigned after
parties failed to forge a consensus amid continued protests and blockade of key border trade
point with India over the countrys new Constitution.
C). DEATHS
Veteran Tamil actress Manorama passed away
The legendary Tamil actress Manorama (78) was passed away on 10 October in Chennai. A
comedy artist and a singer, she belonged to a generation of South Indian Cinema. In a career
spanning nearly six decades, she acted in over 1500 films and created a Guinness world record.
Renowned Swedish crime writer Henning Mankell passes away
Renowned Swedish crime writer Henning Mankell was passed away on 5 October. He was 67.
He created the famous character Kurt Wallander in 1997 and a series of mystery novels till 2009
revolving around this protagonist. He is also known as a dramatist and childrens author. He
received Corine Literature Prize for German audio book.
D). VISITORS
German Chancellor Angela Merkel three day visit to India
German Chancellor Angela Merkel came to India on 4 October on a three day visit to Delhi and
Bangalore. She met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 October and bilateral discussions
takeplace between India and Germany. A deal to fast track approval for German companies in
India and Euro 1 billion Solar power fund by Germany were among major takeaways from the
talks between the two countries. Both sides inked 18 MoUs to scale of ties in strategic areas.
Germany returned to India a 10 century Durga idol that had gone missing from a temple in
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Kashmir over two decades ago. On 6 October Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Angela Merkel
attended the Indo-German summit held in Bengaluru. In this summit two countries signed deals
worth 2.25 billion dollars (around Rs.14,600 crore) on German Investment in developing India.
Modi and Merkel visited the vocational training centre at Bosch in Bengaluru. On 6 October
German Chancellor Angela Merkel completed her tour.
President Pranab Mukherjee visit to Jordan
President Pranab Mukherjee on 10 October began a six day historic visit to Isreal, Jordan &
Palestine. Pranab Mukherjee is the first Indian Head of State to visit these countries. On 10
October he visited Jordan and met the Jordan King Abdullah and held deligate level talks. He
discussed terror related issues with the Jordan King. During the talks India and Jordan said an
understanding was needed to fight terror. President inagurated the Mahatma Gandhi street in
Jordan capital city Amman.
E). MISCELLANEOUS
Google tops list of Worlds Best Workplaces
Google has topped the list of worlds best company to work for compiled by research and
consulting firm Great Place to Work Institute, grabbing the numero uno position for the third
straight year, while software developer SAS Institute and manufacturing firm W L Gore were
ranked second and third respectively. The annual Worlds Best Multinational Workplaces List
ranks the top 25 global companies to work for. Data storage specialist NetApp and mobile
communications provider Telefonica are at fourth and fifth places respectively. EMC
Corporation has been ranked sixth, followed by software giant Microsoft at seventh position in
the list. Others in the top ten include, BBVA (8th), Monsanto (9th) and American Express (10th)
place.
Nepal elects Onsari Gharti as first woman Parliament speaker
Nepal on 16 October elected the countrys first woman speaker of Parliament. UCPN- Maoist
law maker Onsari Gharti Mangar elected as the speaker of Parliament. Earlier she had served as
Deputy Speaker in Parliament. Ganga Prasad Yadav has been elected as the Deputy Speaker of
the Parliament.
Modi ranks 13th in global list of most influential people
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has debuted at the 13th spot in Bloomberg Markets Most
Influential annual ranking topped by US Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen. Chinese
premier Xi Jinping(2nd place), US President Barack Obama(6th place) and German Chancellor
Angela Merkel(9th place) are other politicians ranked above PM Modi in the coveted list of 50
people.
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DRDO Missile Complex renamed as Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex

The DRDO Missile Complex in Hyderabad was renamed as Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile
Complex by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on 15 October 2015. Dr Kalam joined the
Missile Complex, DRDO in 1982 and was a part of it for nearly two decades. The Missile
Complex comprises Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL), Defence Research and Development
Laboratory (DRDL) and Research Centre Imarat (RCI), which are considered to be the brain
child of Dr Kalam.As founder Director, Dr Kalam conceived and steered RCI as a generator of
critical missile technologies.
PLACES IN NEWS
DRDO inagurates new R&D centre at 17,600 Ft in Jammu & Kashmir
The DRDO on 2 October, 2015 inaguarated an Extreme Altitude Research Centre at Chan La in
Jammu and Kashmir at 17,600 Ft above the mean sea level. This is in records as the worlds
highest terrestrial R&D centre. It has been established by Defence Institute of High Altitude
Research (DIHAR) of DRDO. This centre is for Research & Development work in frontal areas
of food and agriculture and bio-medical sciences for well being of the soldiers deployed in highaltitude cold deserts.
Biotechnology International Conference-2016 to be held in Bengaluru

Bangalore India Bio 2016 themed Whats trending in Biotech India featuring multi track
conferences, international trade show, talks and many other events is scheduled from February 911 in the year 2016 in Bengaluru. It will also feature 100 young researchers presenting
innovations through poster sessions.
Indias largest container port terminal, JNPT inaugurated By PM Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Sir Narendra Modi on 11 October 2015 inaugurated the fourth terminal of
countrys largest container post, named Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Mumbai. The
terminal will be 4th terminal of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust.This project will be executed by
Bharti Mumbai Container Terminal (BMCT) is a subsidiary port of Singapore.
ABBREVIATIONS
PBD: Pravas Bharatiya Divas
PMSKY: Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana
DDUGJY: Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram Jyothi Yojana
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DRDA: District Rural Development Association

RWSS: Rural Water Supply, Sanitation
Books in News
The Nationalist President Pranab Mukherjee book released by Vice-President
The coffee table book The Nationalist President Pranab Mukherjee edited by Prabhu Chawla,
The New Indian Express Editorial Director has been released by the Vice-President Hamid
Ansari on 7 October, 2015 at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The first copy of the book was received by the
President.
The book Courage to Act: A Memoir of Crisis and its Aftermath released
The former chairman of the US Federal Reserve Ben S Bernanke released his book titled
Courage to Act: A Memoir of a Crisis and its Aftermath. The book is a personal and detailed
account of the events that ensued as he witnessed it. Bernanke, headed the USs central bank
from 2006- 2014 and was at the centre of the banks response to the 2008 financial crisis and the
subsequent recession.
Smita Patil: A Brief Incandescence by Maithili Rao launched

The book titled Smita Patil: A Brief Incandescence authored by Maithili Rao was launched on 18
October 2015. The book, which was launched on Smita Patils 60th birth anniversary, acquaints
the readers with a remarkable journey of the short-lived actress. It traces the journey of the
actress from her childhood to stardom.
COMMITTEES
Committee on Kalams Memorial at Ramesh-waram
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 October announced a memorial would be constructed for
Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam at Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu. A committee of Union Ministers
Venkaiah Naidu, Manohar Parrikar and Pon Radhakrishnan and former Chief Election
Commissioner N Gopalaswamy will work out the details of the memorial.
Achary panel recommended 400% hike in basic salary of Delhi MLAs

The three-member committee chaired by former Secretary General of Lok Sabha PDT Achary, in
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its report submitted to Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel, has favoured a 400 percent hike in
basic salary of MLAs from Rs 12,000 to Rs 50,000 per month. Overall, the hike recommended
has been 138 percent. In July, a group of AAP legislatiors had demanded a significant hike in
salary, arguing their earnings were not enough to run their family and offices.
Central Press Accreditation Committee reconstituted

The Central Press Accreditation Committee (CPAC) that issues Press Information Bureau (PIB)
cards to journalists has been reconstituted by the Ministry of Information and Broad casting. PIB
director general Frank Noronha will be the ex-officio chairman of the Committee. The period of
the committee is two years from the date of its first meeting.
IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES

Oct 2 : International Peace Day
Oct 8 : National Airforce Day
Oct 9 : International Post Office Day
Oct 10 : National Post Office Day
Oct 17 : International Poverty eradication Day
Oct 21 : National Police Day
Oct 24 : United Nations Day
Current Affairs of September - 2015
INTERNATIONAL
China celebrated 70th anniversary of Japans defeat in World War-II
On 3 September, 2015 China celebrated the 70th anniversary of Japans defeat in World War-II.
Chinese President announced that the size of the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) would be
reduced by 300,000. This will be the fourth reduction of forces for China. Russian President
Vladimir Putin, South Korea President Park Guen Hye, United Nations Secretary General Ban
KI Moon, Indian Minister of State for External Affairs general V.K. Singh are participated in the
celebrations along with deligates from nearly 30 different countries.
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900 million active users for WhatsApp around the world

Mobile messaging App WhatsApp now has 900 million regular and active users around the
world, following the addition of 100 million users in last five months. In November, WhatsAPP
had said India accounted for 70 million of its active users. In India WhatsApp is mostly used
along with other messaging Apps such as Line, Viber and Hike.
Boeing signed to sell 300 jets to Chinese Firms

Americas Boeing company has signed deals to sell 300 aircrafts to three Chinese firms and set
up an aircraft plant in China, becoming the first U.S. firm to clinch a business tie-up in China.
The aircraft deals, potentially worth tens of billions of dollars in total, are collectively the largest
order the aerospace firm has received from Chinese companies. Boeing signed a cooperation
document with Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China to build the aircraft completion centre
for its 737 passenger jet in China.
Indian Origin Ashok Sreedharan elected as Mayor of German Town

Indian Origin Ashok Sreedharan, a mayoral candidate of Chancellor Angela Merkel led Christian
Democratic Union (CDU) has won the election in the town of Bonn, becoming the first person of
Indian origin as mayor in German city. His victory marks the end of more than 21 years rule of
the city by the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Until now, he served as the treasurer and assistant
mayor in the municipal administration of Koenigswinter.
Tallest mountain is North America, Mt. Mckinley renamed as Denali

United states has renamed the tallest mountain in North America Mount Mckinley as Denali. It is
the original native name. The summit elevation of Mount Denali is 6,190 m above sea level. It is
located in the Alaska Range and Denali National park in the US state of Alaska.
INDIA & WORLD

India Australia joint Naval excercises AUSINDEX-2015 in Vishakapatnam
The first ever India Australia joint Naval excercises called AUSINDEX-2015 have been
started in Vishakapatnam on 11 September upto 19 September. In a significant development that
is seen as the tangible sign of the growing defence cooperation between Australia and India, it is
noted that the bilateral maritime excercise will be a regular event to be held every two years.
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6th Indo-Maldives Joint Military Exercise begins in Thiruvananthapuram

The sixth Indo-Maldives joint Training Exercise with tha name EKUVRIN 2015 has
commenced at Pangode Military Station in Thiruvanantha puram district of Kerala. Aim of the
Joint Exercise is to acquaint forces of both countries with each others operating procedure and
increase understanding and interoperability between Armies of both countries.
Government cleared multi billion dollar deal with Americas Boeing for military
helicopters
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) on 22 September cleared a multi billion dollar deal
for 22 Apache attack helicopters and 15 Chinook heavy lift choppers with American aviation
giant Boeing. The deal valued to be over USD 2.5 Billion. The 22 Apache AH, 64 D Longbow
helicopters are one of the most advanced multi role combat helicopters, featuring all weather and
night fighting features, ability to track up to 128 targets in less than a minute and engage with 16.
The deal for Apache is a hybrid one. The deals have direct commercial contracts with Boeing as
well as a direct government to government component between the two governments.
Modi addressed special summit on Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations
Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is on a visit to US addressed a special summit on
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. Modi met the United Nations
Chief Ban Ki-Moon on 25 September. Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina discussing bilateral ties. Modi attended a meeting
with 42 CEOs of Fortune 500 companies in New York in the name of Round Table with
American Inc. Modi invited US companies to set up manufacturing units in India. During his
visit in US Narendra Modi also met the World Bank president Jim Yong Kim.
India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Excercise Mitra Shakti 2015

The third edition of India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Excercise MITRA SHAKTI-2015 has
begun in pune on 29 september. It is a 14 days excercise. The aim of the excercise is to share the
best military practices, to develop joint strategies between the two armies and to build Military to
Military Co-Operation and inter operability.
NATIONAL
Union Government recognizes Yoga as Sports discipline
On 1 September 2015,the Sports Ministry has decided to recognize Yoga as a sports discipline
and place it in the Priority category. The Ministry also decided to upgrade Fencing from Others
to General category, based on the past performance in major international events. The sports
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ministry reviewed the categorization of various disciplines and also revised the scale of financial
assistance admissible to each category.
Internet user base in India reached 302 million in 2014: IAMAI

The number of Internet users in India rose 32% last year, to reach 302 million, according to the
Internet and Mobile Association of India, which includes members such as Google, Microsoft,
eBay, IBM, Flipkart, Ola Cabs and LinkedIn. The Internet in India took more than a decade to
move from 10 million to 100 million and three years from 100 to 200 million. However, it took
only a year to move from 200 to 300 million users .Mobile Internet in India also grew
significantly last year. The mobile Internet user base reached 213 million by June 2015. The
country had 159 million mobile Internet users by October 2014, out of which 119 million users
were from urban users and the rest 40 million were from rural India.
Central Government accepted One Rank One Pension (OROP) Scheme

The Central Government on 5 September announced the acceptance of 40 year old demand of
One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme for the retired military personnels. The scheme will be
effective from July 1, 2014. New pensions will be fixed with 2013 as the base year. The scheme
expected to benefit three million pensioners retiring in the same rank with the same length of the
service, regardless of the date of retirement. The Government will engage a one member
committee on this issue.
Indian Army organises cycle rally to commemorate 1965 victory over Pakistan in the name
of The Victory Car Rally
The Indian armys Udhampur headquartered Northern Command on 12 September
commemorated the victory in the 1965 India-Pakistan war.Thirty-six army officials began a
cycle rally from the northern Jammu town to New Delhi to commemorate the golden jubilee of
Indias victory over Pakistan in the 1965 war. The Victory Car Rally comprises a team of exservicemen and serving officers who traverse 1700 kms from Udhampur to New Delhi.
Government of India launches Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana

(PMKKKY)
The Central Government on 17 September 2015 announced the launch of the Pradhan Mantri
Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojna (PMKKKY). This is a new programme meant to provide for the
welfare of areas and people affected by mining related operations,
using the funds generated by District Mineral Foundations (DMFs).
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STATES
Punjab Government wins award for achievement in rooftop solar power output
Punjab Government has won first award in the category of highest capacity addition in grid
connected solar rooftop power in the country during the financial year 2014-15. It is one of 5
awards won by Punjab New and Renewable Energy Department (PNRED) for outstanding
performance in the various fields of Renewable Energy and Power Generation.
West Bengal Government declassified 64 secret files on Subhash Chandra Bose

West Bengal Government on 18 September in Kolkata declassified 64 secret files on Netaji
Subhash Chandra Bose. The declassified files contained total 12,744 pages. The files were kept
under secrecy for 70 years. The files are being kept at Kolkata police museum. It will be open for
public from September 21.
A stadium with the name of Sachin in Kerala

The Kerala Cricket Asso-ciation (KCA) decided to name a newly built cricket stadium in the
name of Sachin Tendulkar. There is already a pavilion in the name of Sachin at the Jawaharlal
Nehru stadium in Kochi. Sachin Tendulkar act as brand ambassador for the National Games of
2015 which were held in Kerala.
Perumanna Grama Panchayat becomes first Panchayat in Kerala to declare a water policy
In Kerala, Perumanna Grama Panchayat in Kozhikode district has become the first Panchayat in
the State, to declare a water policy on the lines of the State governments water policy declared
in 2008.The water policy of Perumanna was drafted with the help of the Centre for Water
Resources Development and Management, Kunnamangalam, after a detailed study of water
resources and usage in the Panchayat over the last two years.
Rajasthan Assembly passed two bills on Reservations

Rajasthan Legislative Assembly on 22 September 2015 passed two seperate bills providing for 5
percent and 14 percent reservation for Specially Backward Classes (SBC) and Economically
Backward Classes (EBC) respectively. The purpose of the bills is to ensure advancement of
backward communities and financially weaker sections fo unreserved categories in the State. The
names are Rajasthan Special Backward Classes Bill 2015 and Rajasthan Economically Backward
Classes Bill 2015.
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CONFERENCES
SAARC countries conference on Disaster Mitigation in New Delhi
Disaster Mitigation conference of member countries of South Asian Association on Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) begin in New Delhi on 3 September 2015. The two day conference seeks
to chalk out and undertake various joint efforts on various issues related to disaster mapping and
mitigation in the member nations.
The third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting held in Ankara
G 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors third meeting was held in Turkish
Presidency Ankara on 4-5 September , 2015. The meeting was attended by Finance Ministers
and Central Bank Governors of the G 20 members, invited countries and the heads and senior
representatives of the international organisations. The theme of the meeting is to submit Finance
Track deliverables to G20 leaders at the Antalya Summit & discuss actions required to achieve
G20s ambitions of this year.
The Economist: India Summit 2015 held in New Delhi

India Summit-2015 by The Economist publishers has been held in New Delhi on 09 September.
Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Commerce Nirmala Sitaraman and many
other industralists are attended the meeting. India summit convenes 150+ business leaders, senior
policy makers, leading academics and business leaders to examin the critical issues and
opportunities for India.
First Conference on contemporary relevance of Bhagvad Gita

The first conference on the contemporary relevance of Bhagvad Gita was held at London on 25
September, 2015. It was organised by Indian Council of cultural Relations (ICCR) and High
commission of India. The aim of the Conference is deal with the innumerable questions that
excercise and confound through Bhagvad Gita and help to tep unique transpormational energy.
AWARDS & HONOURS

Kerala Temple won the UNESCO Award 2015
India has won the top UNESCO Award of Excellence 2015 for Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple
in Kerala. The award recognises the remarkable conservation effort undertaken at the sacred site
which employed age-old rituals and conservation techniques drawn from Vastu Sastra focusing
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on architecture and construction. Xieng Thong Temple of Thailand received the UNESCO Asia
Pacific Heritage Award.
Hariprasad Churasia to be felicitated with Kopparapu Kavula National Eminence Award

2015
The Kopparapu kavula National Eminence award 2015 has been given to the classical flutist
Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia in Vishakapatnam on 9 September, 2015. In the year 2014,
Hindustani maestro Pandit Jasraj was awarded with this National award of Kopparapu Kavula
Peetham.
Gandhi Peace Prize-2014 for ISRO

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) won the Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2014. The
ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar on behalf of ISRO received the Prize from the President
Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapathi Bhavan on 9 September, 2015.
Marathi Film Court as Indias Official entry to 88th Oscar Awards

The Marathi Film Court has been selected by the Amol Palekar headed 15 member Oscar
selection Jury on 21 September as the Official entry to 88th Oscar Awards. The movie has
already won several prizes in India and abroad. It was awarded as Best Feature Film in the 62nd
National Film Awards in March 2015. It was directed by the first-time director Chaitanya
Tamhanhe.
SPORTS & GAMES

Levan Aronian of Armenia won the Sinquefield Cup Chess Tournament
Levan Aronian of Armenia won the Sinquefield Cup International Chess Tournament which was
held at St. Louis (USA) on 2 September, 2015. Indian Grand Master Viswanathan Anand is at
9th place in the tournament.
Bronze Medal for India in World Junior Boxing Championship

In the World Junior Boxing Championships held in St Petersburg on 4-12 September, 2015
Indian junior boxer Sachin won the Bronze medal in 50 Kg round. Sachin lost 0-3 to American
Rey Diaz and get the bronze medal. This is the only medal for India in the championship.
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Womens Hockey Team Selected for Rio Olympics

The Indian Womens Hockey team selected for the 2016 Olympics which are going to be held in
Rio de Janerio of Brazil. The Federation of International Hockey (FIH) announced this on 2
September. The fifth place at the Hockey World League semifinals which were held at Belgium
in July,2015 is the reason for the team to select for Olympics. After 36 years Indian women
hockey team is going to participate in the Olympics. In 1980 at Moscow Olympics Indian team
got the fourth place.
India wins silver Medal at 2015 Asian Air Gun Championship

India won the silver medal in 2015 Asian Air Gun Championship held in New Delhi. Indias ace
shooter Gurpreet Singh won the medal, in the 10 metre Air Pistol event. The gold medal in this
event won by Iran. Indias Jitu Rai is at third position and won the bronze medal.
ECONOMY
The 11th Indo -American Economic Summit held in New Delhi
The 11th Indo -American Economic Summit has been held in New Delhi on 14 September,
2015. In this summit, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has participated along with US
Ambassador to India Richard Verma. The Indo -US bilateral trade will surge five times to 500
billion dollors in the next few years.
Chanda Kochhar of ICICI tops Fortunes Asia Pacific most powerful women list
Indian bankers Chanda Kochhar and Arundhati Bhattacharya have been ranked as the top two in
a list of most powerful women in Asia-Pacific prepared by the global magazine, Fortune. Chanda
Kochhar, head of ICICI bank ranked first in the list from second position last year. Arundhati
Bhattacharya, the Chairman of SBI ranked second. Her rank was fourth in the last years list.
Hindustan Petroleum Corporations Chairperson and Managing Director Nishi Vasudeva is at
fifth place in the list and Shikha Sharma, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of Axis
Bank ranks 9th place. With 11 names, Chinese women lead the list.
India ranks 11th place in World Wealth Report-2015

India has become the 11th largest population of millionaires with 198,000 such high net worth
individuals (HNWI). India got the 11 rank in the World Wealth Report- 2015 released by
Capsgemini and RBC Wealth Management. In 2013, there were 1,56,000 HNWIs in India. The
US topped the list with 43,51,000 millionaires followed by Japan with 24,52,000 millionaires,
Germany with 11,41,000 millionaires and China with 8,90,000 millionaires in the second, third
and fourth places respectively.
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India signed Loan Agreement with Asian Development Bank

India on 28 September signed a 123.51 million US dollar loan agreement with Asian
Development Bank (ADB) to upgrade tourism infrastructure and services in Punjab, Uttarakhand
and Himachal Pradesh. The loan will be used for development and conservation of the places of
tourist attractions. India emerged most-favoured destination for FDI. London based business
daily Financial Times (FT) on 29 September released foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Data for
the Six Months of 2015. India in the first half of 2015 surpassed China to emerge as the most
favoured destination for FDI. In 2014, India ranked fifth in terms of capital investment. after
china, the US, the UK and Mexico. FDI inflow into India grew 47% to 24 billion dollar in 2014.
India attracked 30 billion dollars by the end of June 2015.

India to launch Indonesian satellite LAPAN A2/ Orari
India will launch a second multi-spectral remote sensing Indonesian satellite that will help the
country to monitor land-use, natural resource and in disaster mitigation. The name of the satellite
is LAPAN A2/ Orari. LAPAN A2/Orari satellite is a successor to LAPAN A1/Tubsat.The
satellite was delivered to India on 4th September 2015 and will be launched at the Satish
Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
The first indigenous howitzer Dhanush developed by Ordanance Factory Board of

Kolkata
The Indian army is set to soon be handed over the indigenously developedhowitzer Dhanush
also known asdesi bofors has been developedby Ordanance Factory Board, Kolkata. Dhanush
is a indigenously developed 155 mm gun with 45 calibre having advanced features, a towed
howitzer with a strike range of 38 Km. This will be handed over to the army in the month of
November.
NASA developing worlds first space shot gun to blast Asteroids

NASA is developing the worlds first space shot gun that can blast asteroids into small pieces for
collection as samples when a robotic space craft reaches near one such space rock in the near
future. Along with a Brooklyn based company Honey Bee Robotics, the US Space agency is
working on a shot gun as part of its Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM). The ARM aims to chop
off a massive chunk of an asteroid and shift it into the moons orbit.
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China Successfully launched Long March -11 carrier Rocket

China successfully launched a new model of carrier rocket, the Long March-11,on 25 September
from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwestern province of Gansu. The rocket
carried four micro-satellites into space, which will be used mainly for testing. The solid
propellant rocket was developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology. The
rocket will mainly be used for launching micro-satellites.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A). APPOINTMENTS
J. Manjula as the first Woman Director General at DRDO
J. Manjula has been appointed as the first Woman Director General (D G), Electronics and
Communi-cation Systems Cluster at Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
She has assumed charge from distinguished scientist and Director General Dr. K.D. Nayak on 9
September, 2015. Manjula has the honour of being the first woman DG of DRDO cluster.
Manjula is a receipient of DRDO award for Perfor-mance Excellence and Scientist of the Year
2011.
K.M. Singh as new Chairman of NHPC

K.M.Singh on 23 September took over as the new Chairman and Managing Director of National
Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC). Prior to this appointment, he was the chief executive
director of NHDC, a joint venture company of NHPC and the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
He began his professional career as an executive trainee in NHPC at its Loktak Power Station in
1979.
Meghalaya Governor V. Shanmuganathan gets additional charge of Manipur

Governor of Meghalaya V. Shanmuganathan was given additional charge of Manipur after
previous Governor Syed Ahmed passed away. He was appointed as Governor of Meghalaya in
May 2015. He will discharge additional functions of the Governor of Manipur along with his
own duties.
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B). RESIGNS
Egypts Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb resigned
Egypts Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb resigned on 12 September, 2015, days after a
government minister was accused of corruption and detained. Egypt President Abdel Fattah Al
Sisi accepted the resignation and appointed the minister of petroleum, Sherif Ismail to form a
new government. Egyptian Paliamentary elections are scheduled to begin in October and go
through November. The results will be announced in December.
Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned

Volkeswalken CEO Martin Winterkorn resigned on 23 September, taking responsibility for the
German Carmakers rigging of U.S. emissions tests in the biggest scandal in its 78 years history.
Volkswagen could face penalities of up to 18 billion dollars for cheating emissions tests on some
of its diesel cars.
C). DEATHS
Shortest person in the world Bahadur Dangi died
Bahadur Dangi of Nepal who was in Guiness Records as the shortest person in the world died on
4 September, 2015. His hight is 54.6 centimeters as per the 2012 Guiness World Records.
The famous British author Jackie Collins died

Jackie Collins (77), the best selling British born author died on 19 September in California. She
wrote more than 30 books. Her first novel, The World is full of Married Men was published in
1968, which was banned in some countries. Her works also included Confessions of a Wild
Child, The Stud and Hollywood Wives. Her last novel, The Santangelos was published in June,
2015.
Manipur Governor Syed Ahmed passed away

Manipur Governor Syed Ahmed (70) passed away in Mumbai on 27 September. Mr. Ahmed
served as a Minister in the Maharashtra Government from 2001 to 2004. He was sworn in as
16th Governor of Manipur on May 16,2015.
D). VISITORS
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Vice President Hamid Ansari visited Combodia

India Vice-President Hamid Ansari on 15 September went to Combodia on a four day official
visit to conduct delegation level talks and sign Memorandums of Understanding in tourism and
infrastructure building. The visit is an effort to shore up bilateral trade and investment which
remains much below potential.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit to Ireland

Narendra Modi, who is the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Ireland after 1959, held talks with
the Prime Minister of Ireland Enda Kenny. Modi on 23 September visit Ireland and sought
Irelands support for Indias membership of UN Security Council and International export
control regimes, including NSG, during wide ranging talks with Enda Kenny and also covered
global challenges like terror and radicalisation.
E). MISCELLANEOUS
Indian-origin Mahesh Ramanujam as new CEO of Americas Green Council
Indian-origin Mahesh Ramanujam has been named as the new CEO of the prestigious US Green
Building Council (USGBC), a non-profit organisation that promotes sustainability in how
buildings are designed, built and operated. Ramanujam is from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. In 2009,
he joined the company as senior vice-president, in 2011 he become the COO of the company and
in December 2012 he become the president of GBCI.
Japanese centenarian Golden Bolt sets Guinness World Record in racing

A fleet-footed Japanese centenarian raced into the Guinness World Records reference book on
23 September and declared him a medical marvel as he continues to stalk sprint king Usain
Bolt. Hidekichi Miyazaki, dubbed Golden Bolt after the fastest man
on the planet clocked 42.22 seconds in Kyoto to set a 100 metres world record in the over-105
age category.
Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian in Hurun Reports India Rich List-2015
Relience Industries Head Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian as per the Hurun Reports India
Rich List-2015. His assets are valued at Rs. 1,60,951 Crores. As per Hurun Reports there are 124
dollar billionaires in the country. And there are 296 high net-worth individuals (those whose
assets are valued above Rs. 1600 Crores). The Pharmaceuticals tycoon Dilip Singhvi of Sun
Pharma is the second richest Indian and S.P. Hinduja is the third. This is the fourth year for
Hurun Report, a Shanghai based luxury publishing group has come out with the list of Super rich
in India.
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PLACES IN NEWS
2000 Year old Ashoka Stupa in China
A 2000 year old stupa constructed by emperor Ashoka in Chinas Nangchen which fell into ruin
has been restored and unveiled by spiritual head of Ladakh based Drukpa Buddhism. The
renovated stupa enshrined with precious Buddhist relics is a precious structure of the Buddha
followers. It underwent a restoration process in the last a few years and was inaguarated by
Gyalwang Drukpa.
Vishakapatnam Steel Plant gets CIO-100 Award in IT excellence

For the highest level of operational and strategic excellence in Information Technology shown
during the year, RINL, the corporate entity of Vishapatnam Steel Plant was conferred with CIO100 award and its Chief Information Officer (CIO) KVSS Rajeswara Rao, General Manager
(IT) received it on RINLs behalf.
Hangzhow city of China will host the 2022 Asian Games

The Chinese city of Hangzhow has been confirmed as the host of the 2022 Asian Games.
Chinas capital city Beijing will host the winter Olympic games in 2022. The 2018 Asian Games
will be held in Indonesia.
Odisha government names Wheeler Island as Abdul Kalam Island

On 3 September 2015,the Odisha government has renamed the Wheeler Island in Bhadrak
district as Abdul Kalam Island. The Wheeler Island is located approximately 10 kilometres of the
Odisha coast on the Bay of Bengal. The Island, which is about 2 kilometres in length and 390
acres, is considered as countrys most advanced missile testing site. Wheeler Island assumes
great significance in view of its strategic location. It has been used as the launching pad for
Indias missile defence system.
ABBREVIATIONS
SPMRM : Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurbal Mission
OROP : One Rank One Pension
SFB : Small Finance Banks
NTCA : National Tiger Conservation Authority
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PMKKKY : Pradhan Mantri Khaniz Khestra Kalyan Yojana

PMAY : Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana
Books in News
Neither a Hawk Nor a Dove book launched by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press on September 8, 2015 launched its latest publication Neither a Hawk
Nor a Dove : An Insiders Account of Pakistans Foreign Relations including Details of Kashmir
Frame Work which was written by former foreign minister of Pakistan Khurshid Mahmud
Kasuri. A large number of retired army generals, diplomats, writers and academicians attended
the book launching ceremony. The book is the first comprehensive account by a Pakistan foreign
minister who contributed in moving the peace process with India forward.
Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane unveil Aakash Chopras book The Insider
Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane unveil Aakash Chopras book, The Insider on 4 September
2015. This book describes different angles inside the cricketer.
The Chronology of Ancient India book released by Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu in
Hyderabad
The Union Minister for Urban development M.Venkaiah Naidu on 13 September released a book
on ancient Indian history, The Chronology of Ancient India Victim of concoctions and
distortions in Hyderabad. The book was written by Vedveer Arya, an Indian Defence Accounts
Services (IDAS) officer. The book explains about the chronology of ancient Indian History.
COMMITTEES
An expert committee to review Civil Services exam pattern
An expert committee has been formed by the Government to examine various issues related to
age relaxation, eligibility, syllabus and pattern of the civil services examination to select the IAS
and IPS officers. Based on the report of the committee, further changes in the civil services exam
pattern would be considered. The panel would be headed by the former Chattisgarh cadre IAS
officer B.S. Baswan and consists of leading academicians, technocrats and senior bureaucrats.
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Union Government formed Mihir Shah Committee on restructuring Water Agencies

The Union Ministry of Water Resources on 11 September, 2015 constituted a seven member
committee to advice it on restructuring the Central Water Commission (CWC) and The Central
Ground Water Board (CGWB). The expert committee will be headed by former planning
commission member Mihir Shah. The committee was mandated to suggest ways for optimal
development of water resources in the country.
IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES

September 5 Teachers Day (Birthday of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan)
September 8 World Literacy Day
September 14 Hindi Diwas ( Day)
September 15 Engineers Day
September 16 World Ozone Day
September 20 Railway Police Force (RPF) Foundation Day
September 21 Alzheimers Day
September 27 World Tourism Day
September 29 World Heart Day
Current Affairs of July/Aug - 2015

INTERNATIONAL
Cuba Becomes First Nation To Eliminate Mother-To-Child HIV
World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced Cuba has become the first country to
eliminate the transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and syphilis from mother
to baby. Over the past five years, Caribbean countries have had increased access to antiretroviral
drugs as part of a regional initiative to eliminate mother-to-child transmission.
Iran and P5+1 Countries Reached Agreement On Irans Nuclear Programme
Iran and P5+1 countries comprising of the United States, the United Kingdom (UK), Russia,
China, France and Germany on 14 July reached an agreement on the Iran nuclear programme.
The agreement called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) or Vienna agreement was
reached after 17 days of almost uninterrupted negotiations in Vienna (Austria) involving foreign
Page 48
ministers of seven countries.
Japan Pledges $6 billion To Mekong Nations

Japan on 4 July committed 6.1 billion US dollars (750 billion Japanese Yen) in Official
Development Assistance (ODA) to Mekong Region countries for the next three years. The
decision was taken by Japan during the seventh Mekong-Japan Summit held in Tokyo. The
Mekong region countries include Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Japans Lower House Approved Change To Self-defence Law
Lower House of Japans Parliament (Diet) on 16 July approved 11 security-related bills that
change the self-defence law, which was followed by Japan since World War -II.The change
paves the way for the Japanese military to potentially fight abroad for the first time since World
War II.
EU approves 7 Billion Euro Short-Term Loan To Greece

The European Union (EU) on 17 July approved a short-term loan of 7.16 billion euros to Greece
after it was backed by the 28 member states. This loan will allow Greece to pay its debt to
European Central Bank (ECB) and the Inter-national Monetary Fund (IMF) till new bailout plan
is ratified. The loan will be given through the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism
(EFSM) which is a rescue fund set up during the first time bailout of Greece in 2010. But
presently it covers the whole of the 28 EU member nations and not just the 19 eurozone
members.
INDIA & WORLD

India-Uzbekistan Signed Three Agreements
India and Uzbekistan have signed three agreements during delegation level talks held between
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov in Tashkent, the capital
of Uzbekistan on 6 July 2015. The agreements were signed in the field of tourism, culture and
protocol.
India Pakistan Become Permanent SCO members
India and Pakistan on 10 July were accepted as the full members of the Shanghai Cooperation
Organisation (SCO), a six-member regional grouping, including China and Russia. India that has
had on the observer status of the group for past 10 years will become a full member of SCO by
2016.
India Ranked 33rd Most Reputable Nation In The World
Canada has been named as the most reputable nation in the world, in a recent survey on how
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countries are perceived across the world.The north American country reclaimed the top spot in
the Reputation Institutes annual report, which looks at the government, environment and
economy of 55 nations.India is ranked 33rd among 55 countries as far as its reputation perceived
by people from across the world is concerned. Its reputation has increased by 7.4%.
India Singapore Signed Agreement On Maritime Cooperation

India and Singapore signed Technical Agreement (TA) on sharing white-shipping information to
enhance maritime cooperation between the two navies. The agreement was signed on 21 July.
India and US signed Inter-Governmental Agreement

India and United States (US) signed Inter Governmental Agreement (IGA) to implement the
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). The intergovernmental agreement (IGA) on
FATCA was signed by Indian Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das and the US Ambassador to
India Richard Verma on 9 July in New Delhi. The agreement will promote transparency on tax
matters between the two countries.
NATIONAL
PM Narendra Modi Launched Digital India Week
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 1 July launched the Digital India Week in New Delhi. The
newly created week is aimed at encouraging peoples involvement and creating awareness
among them about various initiatives launched under the Digital India Programme launched in
August 2014.
Union Cabinet Approved Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
Union Cabinet on 1 July approved Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) aiming at
providing irrigation facilities to every village. The Yojana was approved with an outlay of 50000
crore rupees over a period of five years, that is, from 2015-16 to 2019-20 and the allocation for
the financial year 2015-16 has been kept at 5300 crore rupees.
PM Narendra Modi Launched Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 July launched the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana in
New Dehi.The programme aims to impart skill training to 24 lakh youth during 2015-16 with
focus on first time entrants to the labour market and class 10 and class 12 drop outs.
Prime Minister Unveiled National Policy for Skill Development & Entrepreneur ship 2015
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 July unveiled National Policy for Skill Development and
Entrepreneurship 2015 in New Delhi.The policy was unveiled in a programme held on the
occasion of first-ever World Youth Skills Day. It is the first such policy on entrepreneurship
since independence and intended to replace the National Policy on Skill Development 2009.
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India signed Loan Agreement of $300 Million with ADB For NUHM
India on 28 July signed a loan agreement of 300 million US dollars with Asian Development
Bank (ADB) for its flagship programme National Urban Health Mission (NUHM). The main of
the NUHM is to improve the health status of the countrys urban population.
STATES
Adani Group To Set Up 650 MW Solar Power Plant in Tamil Nadu
Adani Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tamil Nadu Govern-ment
to set up 650 Mega Watt (MW) solar power plant in Ramanathapuram district. The group will set
up five solar power units at a cost of 4,536 crore rupees.
Uttar Pradesh Tops List of States with Highest Mobile Penetration

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.
Asias First Armed Forces Preparatory Institute For Women
Asias first ever institute to train young women to join armed forces Mai Bhago Armed Forces
Preparatory Institute was inaugurated by the Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in Mohali, Punjab on 25 July. With 25 girls being
selected, the one-of-its-kind institute will equip students with skills required in army, navy and
air force.
Indias First Railway-Line Built Under PPP model Inaugurated In Gujarat
Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu on 14 July inaugurated the broad-gauge railway-line
between Gandhidham and Tuna-Tekra Port in Gujarat by flagging off a goods train.The rail line
is Indias first railway-line built with private sector participation under Non-Government
Railway (NGR) Policy 2012 of Indian Railways.
CONFERENCES
Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit 2015
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 2015 summit was held on 9-10 July 2015 in Ufa,
Russia. Leaders and officials from the four SCO observer countries of Mongolia, Iran, Pakistan
and India were also present at the summit. India has been accorded full accorded the full
membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at its Ufa summit Technically,
India will become the member of SCO by 2016 after completion of certain procedures. The SCO
group has six full time members at present namely China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia,
Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
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46th Indian Labour Conference

The 46th Session of Indian Labour Conference was held on 20 July in New Delhi. Prime
Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 46th Indian Labour Conference dedicating the National
Career Service (NCS) the largest nationwide portal for job matching in dynamic and efficient
manner and launching of ESIC 2.0, the second generation health reform agenda for the numerous
employees nationwide.
AWARDS & HONOURS

Sanjeev Galande Selected For G D Birla Award 2014
Noted scientist Sanjeev Galande has been selected for the prestigious G D Birla award for2014.
He was selected for his pioneering research in the field of epigenetics and molecular cell biology.
The name was on 1 July announced by the K K Birla Foundation and he is the 24th recipient of
the award.
Ravi Shankar Conferred with Perus Highest Award Grand Officer
Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was on 1 July conferred with Perus one of the highest
awards Grand Officer for social work and mission to deliver peace through his foundation The
Art of Living. Andean Parliament in Lima honoured Sri with the award titled Medalla dela
Integracion en el Grado de Gran Oficial.
Indian-American Teacher Darshan Jain Named For US Presidential Award

Darshan Jain, an Indian American teacher was chosen for prestigious Presidential Award for
Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching. He is one of the 108 teachers named by
President Barack Obama as recipients of the prestigious award.
Indian-American Woman Sunita Viswanath Honoured with Champion of Change

Sunita Viswanath,an Indian-American woman has been with Champion of Change award by the
White House of United States. Sunita Viswanath, the only Indian American to figure in the list,
has been selected for her work to encourage Hindus to take care of the environ-ment.
SPORTS & GAMES

Lewis Hamilton Won 2015 Birtish Grand Prix
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain won 2015 Birtish Grand Prix of Formula One (F1)
on 5 June. This was his fourth victory of the season and his second of Birtish Grand Prix. With
this win, Hamilton became the second British driver since David Coulthard in 1999-2000 to post
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successive wins in the race.
Wimbledon Tennis Championship 2015 Winners

Mens Singles: Novak Djokovic of Serbia on 12 July won mens singles title of Wimbledon. In
the final clash played in London, Serbian Djokovic defeated Roger Federer of Switzerland. It is
Djokovics 3rd wimbledon title and overall 12th mens single
Grand Slam title.
Womens Singles: Serena Williams (US) won wimbledon womens singles title. In the final
match played she defeated Garbine Muguruza of Spain.It is Williams sixth Womens Singles
Wimbledon title and overall 21th Grand Slam title.
India Won 2015 South Asian Basketball Championship

India on 5 July won the South Asian Basketball (SABA) Championship title. In the final played
at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, Karanataka, India defeated Sri Lanka 93-44. It was 4th
edition of the championships. India was the winner of third SABA Championship.With this win
India qualified for the FIBA Asia Champion-ship which will be hosted by China in September
2015.
ECONOMY
Corporation Bank Launched First MUDRA card
Corporation Bank on 4 July launched countrys first MUDRA (Micro Units Development and
Refinance Agency) card under the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) in Mangalore,
Karnataka. The card is based on the RuPay platform and facilitates the withdrawal and use of the
working capital finance by micro entrepreneurs.
RBI signed Special Currency Swap Agreement with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka
A Special Currency Swap Agreement was signed between Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and
Central Bank of Sri Lanka on 17 July.As per this agreement, Central Bank of Sri Lanka can draw
up to 1.1 billion US dollar for a maximum period of six months. This special arrangement is in
addition to the existing Framework on Currency Swap Arrangement for the SAARC Member
Countries.
Seven Indian Companies Among Worlds 500 Largest Companies
Seven Indian companies were listed among the worlds 500 largest companies in the Fortune
Global 500 list for 2015 that was released on 22 July. The list has been topped by Wal-Mart,
which retained its top spot.
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Ten Indian Companies In Forbes Asia Fabulous 50 List

The Forbes Asias Fabulous 50 list of the year 2015 was released on 23 July. India has secured
the second highest position in the Forbes Asia Fabulous 50 list with 10 Indian companies
featuring in the list. China secured No 1 position in the list with 25 companies.

NASA successfully Flight Tested Prandtld Aircraft
NASA announced that it successfully flight tested Prandtl-d aircraft. It was a prototype
of Prandtl-d aircraft which will be the first airplane to be launched on Mars between 2020 &
2024. ICGS Rani Durgavati Commissioned The Third Inshore Patrol Vessel (IPV) of
the Indian Coast Guard ICGS Rani Durgavati was commissioned at Visakhapatnam (Andhra
Pradesh) on 6 July. The vessel, built by HSL, has a maximum speed of 34 knots and at an economical 14 knots has an endurance of 150 nautical miles.
GAGAN Satellite Based Navigation System Launched
Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on 13 July launched the GPS-Aided Geo
Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) system,which would make airline operations more efficient
and reduce costs. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Airports Authority of
India (AAI) developed the system, at a cost of Rs. 774 crore, over 15 years. India is the fourth
country to offer space-based satellite navigation services to the aviation sector.
India Ranks 12th In World In Nuclear Power Generation

India has been ranked at 12th place in terms of power generation from nuclear source, as per the
report published by the Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA). India also holds 6th position in terms of the number of reactors in
operation in the country.
China Successfully Tests 5th Generation Long March Carrier Rocket
Chinese scientists have successfully tested the power system of a Long March-5 carrier rocket
scheduled for flight in 2016. The fifth-generation launch vehicle of the Long March family, has
entered a run off phase. The rocket will have a payload capacity of 25 tonnes to low Earth orbits,
or 14 tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit, about twice the current capacity.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A). APPOINTMENTS
China Nominates Jin Liqun as AIIB president
China on 6 July nominated its former finance Minister Jin Liqun as the Presidential candidate for
$100 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Presently, Jin is Secretary General of
AIIBs interim secretariat.
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RS Sharma Appointed as the Chairman of TRAI

IT secretary RS Sharma has been appointed the Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India (TRAI) on 27 July. Sharma is an IAS officer from 1978 Jharkhand batch and replaces
Rahul Khullar, who had retired in May 2015.
Ashish Bahuguna Appointed as Chairman of FSSAI

Ashish Bahuguna, former agriculture secretary, has been appointed as the chairman of Food
Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on 27 July. His tenure will be of three years
and he succeeded K Chandramouli whose tenure ended in January 2015. Since then the position
was lying vacant and the Health Secretary Bhanu Pratap Sharma was given the interim charge of
chairman of FSSAI.
B). RESIGNS
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis Resigned
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis on 6 July resigned from his post after Greeks voted
resoundingly to reject the austerity terms of a bailout.
C). DEATHS
Former Indian President APJ Abdul Kalam Died
Former Indian President Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen (APJ) Abdul Kalam passed away on 27 July in
Shillong (MeghalayA).He was 83. He was also known as the Missile Man of India. He was born
on 15 October 1931 in Rameswaram, Ramanathapuram District of Tamil Nadu. He spent four
decades as a scientist and science administrator, mainly at the DRDO and ISRO. During his
tenure as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister from July 1992 to December 1999, he
led the weaponisation of strategic missile systems and the Pokhran-II nuclear tests, which made
India a nuclear weapon state. He was the 11th President on India from 2002 to 2007. He has been
awar-ded with the coveted civilian awards including Padma Bhushan (1981) and Padma
Vibhushan (1990) and the highest civilian award Bharat Ratna (1997).Kalam authored numerous
inspira-tional books including India 2020, Wings Of Fire and Ignited Minds.
D). VISITORS
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Visited Uzbekistan
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Uzbekistan on 6-7 July 2015. India and Uzbekistan have
signed three agreements during delegation level talks held between Prime Minister Narendra
Modi and Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov in Tashkent ,the capital of Uzbekistan. During
the visit, Narendra Modi released the first Uzbek-Hindi dictionary at the event along with
Uzbeki-stan Prime Minister and Indologist Rakhmatov.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi Visited Turkmenistan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Turkmenistan on 10-11 July 2015. During the visit,
Narendra Modi held formal talks with Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow.
The two leaders reaffirmed their strong commitment towards timely implementation of the
strategic Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) project. In the visit, India and Turkmenistan signed eight agreements to deepen bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
During the visit Narendra Modi had unveiled a bust of Gandhi at a traditional medicine and yoga
centre in Turkmenistan capital Ashgabat.
E). MISCELLANEOUS
Gennady Padalka Sets Record For Spending Longest Time In Space
Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka has set a Guinness World Record for spending longest
time in space with a total of 804 days as on July 2015. With this he broke the previous record of
803 days, nine hours and 41 minutes set by Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev (now retired)
across six missions from 1998 to 2005.
Guinness Book Recognises Madhya Pradeshs World Record in Washing Hands
The Guinness Book of World Records has on 3 July 2015 recognised a record created in Madhya
Pradesh on World Hand washing Day in 2014. The mega hand washing event was held on 15
October 2014 to create awareness about hygiene by washing hands with soap.
PLACES IN NEWS
Worlds First 3-D Printed Office To Be Built In Dubai
The worlds first office building constructed using 3-D printer is set to come up in Dubai, UAE.
The Office will be approximately 2,000 square feet in size and will be printed layer-bylayer
using a 20-foot tall 3-D printer, then assembled on site in Dubai.
Remnants of Indias One of the Oldest Port Discovered In Goa
A team of scientists from Goa based National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) on 15 July
discovered the remnants of a historically important port on Goas Zuari river which is expected
to be amongst the oldest signs of human trade on the central west coast.The Port is supposed to
be existed between 1000 to 3500 AD which makes it Indias oldest ports.
ABBREVIATIONS
FATCA Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act
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UGC University Grants Commission

MGNREGA Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Gurantee Act
SECC SocioEconomic&Caste Census
CDC Centre for Disease Control
MUDRA Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency
AIIB Asian Infrastructure Invest ment Bank
Books in News
Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years Book Released
The book titled Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years was published on 6 July by HarperCollins. It was coauthored by AS Dulat and Aditya Sinha. The book focuses on initiatives launched by the Vajpa-yee
government between 1998 and 2004 to restore normalcy in Indias most beautiful but troubled state.
COMMITTEES
Deepak Mohanty Committee To Frame Action Plan On Financial Inclusion
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) formed a committee to work out a five-year (medium term)
action plan for financial inclusion. This committee comprises total 14 members and will be
headed by RBI executive director Deepak Mohanty. The main aim of this committee will be to
review the existing policy of financial inclusion, including customer protection framework and
supportive payment system.
Ashwini Nachappa Committee To Study Status of SAI training Centers

The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports on 8 July 2015 constituted an eight member
committee to study status of Sports Authority of India (SAI) training centers across the country.
The committee will be headed by former athlete Ashwini Nachappa and includes Pullela Gopi
Chand as a member among others.
Current Affairs of June - 2015

INTERNATIONAL
US President Barack Obama Signed USA Freedom Act 2015 into Law
US President Barack Obama on 2 June signed the USA FREEDOM Act 2015 in law. The USA
FREEDOM stands for Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ensuring
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Effective Discipline Over Monitoring Act of 2015. With this, the National Security Agency
(NSA) lost its authority to collect the phone records of millions of Americans.
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim Is First Woman President of Mauritius
Ameenah Gurib-FakimProminent scientist Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was on 5 June sworn in as
President of Mauritius. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim is an internationally-renowned scientist and
biologist. She replaced Kailash Purryag who stepped down as countrys President on 29 May
2015.
African Leaders Signed 26 Nation Free Trade Agreement
African countries have signed a historic The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) that facilitates
creation of Africas largest free-trade zone. This free-trade zone will cover 26 countries in an
area from southernmost tip of African continent i.e. Cape Town (South Africa) to Cairo (Egypt)
in the north. The agreement was signed on 10 June in Egypt.
Hwang Kyo-ahn Is The New Prime Minister of South Korea
South Koreas Justice Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn was on 18 June appointed as the countrys new
Prime Minister.The National Assembly approved the appointment of Hwang Kyo-ahn by a vote
of 156-120.
INDIA & WORLD

India and Sweden Signed Six Agreements
India and Sweden on 1 June signed six agreements, including in the field of polar research and
for boosting trade. Both sides also signed a MoU for cooperation in the field of micro, small and
medium enterprises. The agreements were signed in the presence of President Pranab Mukherjee
and Swedan Prime Minister Stefan Lofven at Rosenbad in Stockholm, Sweden.
India US signed Defence Framework Agreement
India and the US on 3 June signed a new strategically important 10-year defence framework
agreement envisaging joint development and manufacture of defence equipment and technology
including jet engines, aircraft carrier design and construction. The framework was signed by the
Manohar Parrikar, Indias Defence Minister and Ashton Carter, US Secretary of Defence.
India Bangladesh Ratify Historic Land Boundary Agreement
India and Bangladesh on 6 June signed ratification pact to operationalise the historic Land
Boundary Agreement (LBA).It was signed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his
Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina.According to the agreement 111 enclaves with a total
area of 17,160.63 acres from India will be transferred to Bangladesh, while 51 enclaves of area
7,110.02 acres will be transferred to India.
India Netherlands Signed Agreements
India and the Netherlands on 5 June signed a number of agreements, including to collaborate in
building dredgers in India as part of the Make in India initiative and manufacture vaccines
against measles and rubella in India.The agreements were signed in the presence of Prime
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Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Netherland Mark Rutte in New Delhi after the
two leaders held discussions on various issues related to the region and the world.
India Thailand Signed Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty
India and Thailand on 29 June signed the Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty (DTAT) and
exchanged instruments of ratification on the extradition treaty signed in 2013. The tax treaty
provides for the framework of avoiding double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with
respect to taxes so as to promote bilateral economic cooperation.
NATIONAL
Union Government Announced Rs 1500 crore INIP
Union Government on 13 June launched an Indian Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP) of 1,500 crore
rupees as per the mandatory provision under the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act
(CLND), 2010. This pool will be the 27th such market pool globally. This insurance pool was
launched to address the concerns of the clauses in the CLND Act, which give the operator the
Right to Recourse and allow it to sue the suppliers in case of any accident. General Insurance
Corporation of India (GIC Re) is the fund operator of this Rs. 1,500 crore Indian insurance pool
and it includes 11 other non-life insurers as associates of the pool.
Union Cabinet Approved Housing For All By 2022 Mission
The Union Cabinet on 17 June gave its approval for Housing for All by 2022 Mission aimed at
providing housing facilities to all eligible people in urban areas by 2022. It will be implemented
as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme and the States and Union Territories (UTs) are given greater
autonomy in execution of the mission. Union Cabinet also approved increasing Indias solar
power capacity target under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) to 1 Lakh
Mega Watt (MW) by 2022.
Union Cabinet Approved Bureau of Indian Standards Bill 2015
The Union Cabinet on 17 June gave its approval to introduce Bureau of Indian Standards Bill,
2015 in the Parliament. It will repeal the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Act, 1986.The bill is
intended to improve the quality of goods, services and systems in the country.
Union Cabinet Approved Six new IIMs In India
The Union Cabinet on 24 June 2015 approved setting up of six new Indian Institutes of
Management (IIMs) in the country. These new IIMs will be located at Amritsar (Punjab), Bodh
Gaya (Bihar), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Sambalpur (Odisha), Sirmaur (Himachal Pradesh) and
Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh). The Union Cabinet also gave its approval to the proposal of
the Ministry of Culture for setting up of a National Memorial at Lala Ka Tola, Sitab, Diara,
District Chhapra (Saran) in Bihar the birth place of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan.
STATES
Maharashtra Govt Approved new Renewable Energy Policy
Maharashtra government has approved a new Renewable Energy Policy which aims at achieving
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14,400 MW of installed capacity over a period of five years i.e. till 2020. The approval decision
of new policy worth 4,156.43 crore rupees was taken by state cabinet meeting chaired by Chief
Minister Devendra in Mumbai. The policy aims at achieving installed capacity of renewable
energy of 21,100 MW by 2020 from current installed capacity of 6,700 MW.
World Bank Approves $ 250 million Loan For Jammu & Kashmir
Multi-lateral lender World Bank on 3 June approved 250 million US dollars loan for Jhelum and
Tawi Flood Recovery Project in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K). The project will be funded by loan
credit from International Development Association (IDA), a World Banks concessionary with a
maturity of 25 years, including a 5 year grace period.
Haryanas Jind, Karnal & UPs Muzaffarnagar Included In NCR
Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on 9 June announced that Jind and
Karnal districts of Haryana and Muzaffarnagar of Uttar Pradesh have been included in the
National Capital Region (NCR). With this the total number of districts included in NCR has risen
to 22.
Kerala Govt Declares June 22 as Snake Bird Day
Kerala Government has declared June 22 as Snake Bird Day in a bid to protect the endangered
species which is also known as Indian darter.
CONFERENCES
41st G7 Summit Held In Germany
G7 Summit 2015 was held at Schloss Elmau in Bavaria, Germany from 7- 8 June 2015. This was the 41st
G7 summit and the theme for the summit was Think Ahead. Act Together. The Summit focused on the
global economy as well as on key issues regarding foreign, security, environment and development
policy. After the talks, the leaders of the G7 committed to raising a 100 billion US dollars fund through
public and private sources to combat the rising global temperatures and agreed to implement
international mechanisms to bolster global healthcare security by creating a financial instrument at the
World Bank to react better to pandemics. The Summit was attended by all the seven members viz.,
Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States and the European
Commission (EC). EC is a permanently welcome participant in all meetings and decision-making since
1981.
AWARDS & HONOURS

Bangladesh Conferred Award of Liberation War Honour On Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was conferred Award of of Bangladesh Liberation
War Honour for his active role in the country independence struggle and consolidating India
friendship with the Bangladesh.Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi received this award on
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behalf of Former PM from Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid at a ceremony at Bangabhaban,

the President house on 7 June 2015.
Historian Ramachandra Guha Selected For Japans Fukuoka Prize
Eminent Historian-writer Ramachandra Guha has been selected for Japans Fukuoka Prize 2015
in n the Academic category. Fukuoka Prize honours those who have made outstanding
contributions to academia, arts and culture across Asia.
Sanjay Subrahmanyam Selected For Sangitha Kalanidhi Award 2015
Renowned Carnatic singer Sanjay Subrahmanyan was on 21 June selected for Sangita Kalanidhi
award for his outstanding achievements in Carnatic music.The Sangita Kalanidhi is the highest
honour given to Carnatic musicians in India.
Ravi Shankar Conferred With Colombias Highest Civilian Award
Indian spiritual leader, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar was on 25 June conferred with the Columbias
highest civilian award Orden de la Democracia Simon Bolivar en el grado de cruz Caballero
(Order of the Democracy Simon Bolivar) by Columbia. The award has been given in recognition
to the spiritual leaders contribution in spreading the message of peace in society, inter-mediation
in war, reducing stress and combating violence through yoga and breathing exercises.
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna 2015 and Arjuna Awards 2015
A large number of nominations were received for these awards this year, which were considered
by the Selection Committee headed by Mr. Justice V.K. Bali, former Chief Justice of Kerla High
Court and consisting of eminent sportspersons and sports administrators.
Based on the recommendations of the Committee and after due scrutiny, the Government has
approved to confer Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and Arjuna Awards for 2015 upon the following
sportspersons:
i)
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ranta 2015
S. No.
Name of the sportsperson
Discipline
1
Tennis
Ms. Sania Mirza
(ii)
Arjuna Awards 2015

S. No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Name of the sportsperson

Discipline
Naib Subedar Sandeep Kumar
Archery
Ms. M.R. Poovamma
Athletics
Mr. Kidambi Srikanth
Badminton
Nammalwar
Mr. Mandeep Jangra
Boxing
Mr. Rohit Sharma
Cricket
Ms. Dipa Karmakar
Gymnastic
Mr. Sreejesh P.R.
Hockey
Mr. Manjeet Chhillar
Kabaddi
Ms. Abhilasha Shashikant Mhatre
Kabaddi
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10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
Mr. Sawarn Singh

Mr. Anup Kumar Yama
Mr. Jitu Rai
Shri S. Sathish Kumar
Mr. Bajrang
Ms. Babita Kumari
Ms. Yumnam Sanathoi Devi
Mr. Sharath M. Gayakwad
Rowing
Roller Skating
Shooting
Weightlifting
Wrestling
Wrestling
Wushu
Para-Swimming
The awardees will receive their awards from the President of India at a specially organized
function at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on August 29, 2015.
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee will receive medal, certificate and award money of Rs. 7.5
lakh and Arjuna Awardees will receive statuettes, certificates and award money of Rs.5 lakh
each.
SPORTS & GAMES

French Open Tennis Tournament 2015 Winners
Womens Singles :- Serena Williams of United States won French Open womens single title on
6 June. In the final match she defeated Lucie Safarova of Czechoslovaki. This was her third
French Open title (earlier she had won in 2002, 2013) and overall 20th Grand Slam title.
Mens Singles :- Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland won his first French Open title of Tennis on
7 June. In the final clash played at Roland Garros in Paris, Wawrinka defeated Novak Djokovic
of Serbia.It was his first his first French Open title second grand slam title after Australian Open
2014.
Wesley Hall Inducted into ICC cricket Hall of Fame
Former West Indies fast bowler Sir Wesley Winfield Hall was on 12 June inducted into the ICC
Cricket Hall of Fame. He is 80th cricketer to be inducted in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame and
18th from West Indies. Hall is the fourth cricketer this year to be inducted into the ICC Cricket
Hall of Fame after Betty Wilson, Anil Kumble and Martin Crowe, who were inducted earlier this
year during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
Serbia Won 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup
Serbia won the FIFA U-20 World Cup by defeating Brazil on 20 June at the final match held at
the North Harbour Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand.
China Won 2015 Snookers World Cup
China won the 2015 Nongfu Spring Snookers World Cup on 21 June by defeating Scotland 4-1
Page 62
in the final match held at Wuxi near Shanghai in China.India stood at the third position in the
competition, the best finish so far for India.
ECONOMY
RBI lowers Repo Rate To 7.25 per cent
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its second bi-monthly policy announced on 2 June has
reduced the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 25 basis points from
7.5 per cent to 7.25 per cent with immediate effect. However, the cash reserve ratio (CRR) of
scheduled banks was kept unchanged at 4 percent of net demand and time liabilities (NDTL).
The reverse repo rate under the LAF stands adjusted to 6.25 per cent, and the marginal standing
facility (MSF) rate and the bank rate to 8.25 per cent.
India Joined MCAA on AEOI
India joined the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA) on Automatic Exchange
of Financial Account Information (AEOI) on 3 June in Paris, France, alongwith Australia,
Canada, Costa Rica, Indonesia and New Zealand.Earlier, Fifty-one countries had joined MCAA
on 29 October 2014, in Berlin. Switzerland became the fifty-second country on 19 November
2014. On 3 June 2015, 6 countries India, Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Indonesia and New
Zealand joined MCAA by signing the agreement in Paris.
India Tops The World Bank Growth Chart
World Bank Groups latest Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report released on 10 June puts
India at the top of the growth chart of major economies. With an expected growth of 7.5 percent
this year, India is, for the first time, leading the World Banks growth chart of major economies.
According to the report China is likely to grow at 7.1 percent. The Bank expects developing
countries to witness a rise in growth to 5.2 percent in 2016 and 5.4 percent in 2017.
India Placed at 61st Position In Terms Of Foreigners Money In Swiss Banks
India was placed at 61st position in terms of foreigners money in Swiss banks. This was
revealed by latest data released by Swiss National Bank (SNB), the central bank of Switzerland
on 21 June 2015. As per the data, India now accounts for a meagre 0.123 per cent of the total
global wealth worth 1.6 trillion US dollars in Switzerlands banking system. Indians money in
Swiss banks declined by over 10 percent to about 1.8 billion Swiss francs (1.98 billion US
dollars or 12615 crore rupees) in 2014.

Indian Researchers Successfully Complete Whole Genome Sequencing of Tulsi
Scientists at Central Institute of Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (CIMAP), Lucknow succeeded in
whole genome sequencing of Holy basil or Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum). CIMAP is a frontier plant
research laboratory of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).This is the first
report of complete genome sequence of Tulsi, which is both used as an essential medicinal plant
and revered as Vishnupriya and worshipped for over 3000 years in India.
Page 63
Indias First Indigenous Aircraft Carrier INS Vikrant Undocked

Indias first indigenously-built largest aircraft carrier INS Vikrant was on 10 June successfully
undocked at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) in Cochin district of Kerala. The ship will undergo
a series of fitment and trial processes along with series of static and dynamic trials before
inducting it into the Indian Navy in end-2018. With successful completion of construction of INS
Vikrant India joins elite group of four nations in the world viz United States, Russia, United
Kingdom and France that are capable of designing and constructing aircraft carriers.
Worlds Thinnest Light Bulb Created From Graphene
Researchers have created the worlds thinnest light bulb using graphene as filament. It was
created by team of scientist led by Young Duck Kim comprising members from Columbia
University School of Engineering, Seoul National University and Korea Research Institute of
Standards and Science.
China Produces Worlds First Electric Plane
The worlds first electric passenger aircraft named BX1E was manufactured in China. The
aircraft was designed by Shenyang Aerospace University and Liaoning General Aviation
Academy located in the northeastern Liaoning Province of China.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A) APPOINTMENTS
Petteri Taalas Appointed Secretary-General of WMO
Petteri Taalas, Director-General of the Finnish Meteorological Institute, was on 4 June appointed
as the next Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) for a four-year
mandate starting 1 January 2016. He succeeds Michel Jarraud (France).
K.V.Chowdary is new Central Vigilance Commissioner
K V Chowdary, former chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), was on 10 June
sworn in as the new Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) by President Pranab Mukherjee.
Vijai Sharma, the senior most information commissioner, was also sworn in as the Chief
Information Commissioner (CIC) by the president.
B)RESIGNS
FIFA President Sepp Blatter Resigned
President of the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Sepp Blatter has
resigned on 2 June amid a corruption scandal which under investigation in United States. Earlier
on 30 May 2015, he was re-elected as the FIFA President for a fifth term by defeating his rival
candidate Prince Ali bins Al Hussein of Jordan.
C)DEATHS
Nobel Chemistry Winner Irwin Rose Died
Irwin Rose, a biochemist who shared the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering a way
Page 64
that cells destroy unwanted proteins the basis for developing new therapies for diseases such as
cervical cancer and cystic fibrosis has died on 2 June in Massachusetts.. He was 88. Rose was
born on July 16, 1926 in New York, United States. He had shared this noble prize with Aaron
Ciechanover and Avram Hershko.
Chandigarhs Iconic Rock Garden Creator Nek Chand Died
Nek Chand Saini, creator of Chandigarhs iconic Rock Garden passed away on 12 June in
Chandigarh. He was 90. His creation Rock Garden of Chandigarh was opened for public on 24
January 1976. The garden is maintained by the Nek Chand Foundation, formed in 1996. Nek
Chand was awarded the Padma Shri in 1984. Born on 15 December 1924 in Shakargarh region,
now in Pakistan, Chand immigrated to India with his family and settled in Chandigarh in 1950.
D)VISITORS
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Visited Bangladesh
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Bangladesh on 6 7 June 2015. During the visit,the two
sides held talks and signed 22 agreements. These includes the Land Boundary Agreement,
cooperation in maritime safety and agreement to curb human trafficking and fake Indian
currency. Narendra Modi along with her Bangladeshi Counterpart Sheikh Hasina and West
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee flagged off the Dhaka-Shillong-Guwahati and KolkataDhaka-Tripura bus services. Modi received the Award of Liberation of War Honour on behalf of
former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who emphasized on strong ties with the neighboring
country.
E)MISCELLANEOUS
Bhutan Sets New Guinness Record For Tree Planting
A team of 100 volunteers in Bhutan has set a new world record by planting 49,672 trees in one
hour. They smashed the previous record by almost 10,000 trees. It had been set by an Indian
team three years ago.Bhutans planters gathered in the capital, Thimphu, for their feat, which
was confirmed by Guinness World Records on 5 June 2015.
PLACES IN NEWS
3800 Year Old Statuettes Discovered In Peru
Researchers discovered a trio of mud statuettes inside a reed basket in a building, an important
archaeological site, in the ancient city of Vichama in northern Peru. They believe that it was
created about 3800 years ago by the ancient Caral civilization.
ABBREVIATIONS
CDRI Central Drug Research Institute
ESMA - Essential Services Maintenance Act
Page 65
HDFC - Housing Development Finance Corporation

IFFI -
International Film Festival of India
IISCO Indian Iron and Steel Company
BOOKS IN NEWS
President Pranab Mukherjee Released Yogikaspars
President Pranab Mukherjee on 8 June released Yogikasparsh, a yoga manual in braille written
by Nivedita Joshi, at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. Nivedita Joshi, daughter of
senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi, suffered from a critical ailment some 19 years ago and
got fully cured with the help of Yoga.
COMMITTEES
Recommendations of Bibek Debroy Committee On Restructuring Of Indian Railways
The Bibek Debroy committee on the restructuring of Indian Railways (IR) has submitted its final
report to the Union Ministry of Railways on 12 June.Union government had constituted the highlevel committee in September 2014 to restructure the Railways and suggest ways for resource
mobilisation. It was seven-member panel headed by eminent economist and NITI Aayog
member Bibek Debroy.
Recommendations of Bibek Debroy committee:* Establishment of an independent regulator Railway Regulatory Authority of India (RRAI) with
a separate budget and to be independent of the Ministry.
* No privatisation of Indian Railway but allowed participation of private sector in the railway
projects.
* Separation of activities like running of hospitals, schools, real estate development, catering,
manufacturing of locomotives, coaches and wagons from the core business of running trains.
* State governments should be asked to entirely fund the Government Railway Police (GRP).
* The recommended changes should be implemented only by Union Railways ministry in the
first five years including the resolution of the social cost issue.
Page 66
Highlights of Union Budget 2015-16

Three Key achievements:
1. Financial Inclusion - Rs.12.5 crores families financially mainstreamed in 100 days.
2. Transparent Coal Block auctions to augment resources of the States.
3. Game changing reforms on the anvil:
Goods and Service Tax (GST)
Jan Dhan, Aadhar and Mobile (JAM) - for direct benefit transfers.
STATE OF ECONOMY:
1.CPI inflation projected at 5% by the end of the year.
2. Monetary Policy Framework Agreement with RBI, to keep inflation below 6%.
3. GDP growth in 2015-16, projected to be between 8 to 8.5%
4. The fiscal deficit targets are 3.9%, 3.5% and 3.0% in FY 2015-16,
2016-17 & 2017-18 respectively.
5. Direct Transfer of Benefits to be extended further with a view to increase
the number of beneficiaries from Rs.1 crore to Rs.10.3 crore.
6. Target of Rs.8.5 lakh crore of agricultural credit during the year 2015-16
7. Rs.5,300 crore to support micro-irrigation, watershed development and the
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana.
8. Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojna to cover accidental death risk of
Rs.2 Lakh for a premium of just Rs.12 per year.
9. Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana to cover both natural and
accidental death risk of Rs.2 lakh at premium of Rs.330 per year for the age group
of 18-50.
10. 5 new Ultra Mega Power Projects, each of 4000 MW, in the Plug-and-Play mode.
11. Rs.1000 crores to the Nirbhaya Fund
12. Visas on arrival to be increased to 150 countries.
13. An IIT to be set up in Karnataka and Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad to be
upgraded in to a fullfledged IIT.
14. New All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) to be set up in J&K,
Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Assam. Another AIIMS like institutions
to be set up in Bihar.
15. A post graduate institute of Horticulture Research & Education is to be set up in
Amritsar.
16. 3 new National Institute of Pharmaceuticals Education and Research in
Maharashtra,
Rajasthan & Chattisgarh and one institute of Science and Education Research
Page 67
is to be set up in Nagaland & Orissa each.

17. University of Disability Studies will be established in Kerala. 50
18. In Arunachal Pradesh, Centre of film production, animation and gaming will come
up.
19. For Infrastructure sector Rs. 70,000 crores allocated. Projects in rail road and
irrigation bonds will be tax free.
20. For Rural Infrastructure Development Bank, Rs. 25,000 crore allocated.
21. Target of renewable energy capacity revised to 175000 MW till 2022,
comprising 100000 MW Solar, 60000 MW Wind, 10000 MW Biomass and 5000 MW
Small Hydro.
22. Forward Markets commission to be merged with SEBI.
23. National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), to be established with an
annual flow of
Rs.20,000 crores to it. Tax free infrastructure bonds for the projects in the rail, road
and irrigation
sectors
BUDGET ESTIMATES:
>Gross Tax receipts are estimated to be Rs. 14,49,490 crore.
>Total Expenditure has accordingly been estimated at Rs.17,77,477 crore.
>Fiscal deficit will be 3.9 per cent of GDP and Revenue Deficit will be 2.8 per cent of
GDP.
TAX PROPOSAL:
>implement GST from next year.
>No change in rate of personal income tax.
>Proposal to reduce corporate tax from 30% to 25% over the next four years,
starting from next financial year.
>Wealth-tax replaced with additional surcharge of 2 per cent on super rich
with a taxable income of over Rs.1 crore annually
>PAN being made mandatory for any purchase or sale exceeding Rs. 1lakh.
>Evasion of tax in relation to foreign assets to have a punishment of rigorous
imprisonment upto 10 years, be non-compoundable, have a penalty rate of 300%
and the offender will not be permitted to approach the Settlement Commission.
>Non-filing of return/filing of return with inadequate disclosures to have a
punishment of rigorous imprisonment upto 7 years.
>General Anti Avoidance Rule (GAAR) to be deferred by two
years.GAAR to apply to investments made on or after 01.04.2017, when
Page 68
implemented.
>Domestic transfer pricing threshold limit increased from Rs.5 crore to Rs.20 crore.
>Excise duty on footwear with leather uppers and having retail price of more than Rs.1000
per pair reduced to 6%.
>Education cess and the Secondary and Higher education cess to be subsumed in
Central
Excise
Duty.
>Time limit for taking CENVAT credit on inputs and input services increased from
6 months to 1 year.
>Service-tax plus education cesses increased from 12.36% to 14% to facilitate
transition to GST. >Online central excise and service tax registration to be done in
two working days.
>100% deduction for contributions, other than by way of CSR contribution, to
Swachh Bharat Kosh and Clean Ganga Fund.
>Clean energy cess increased from Rs.100 to Rs.200 per metric tonne of coal,
etc. to finance clean environment initiatives.
Benefits to middle class tax-payers:
>Limit of deduction of health insurance premium increased from Rs.15000 to
Rs.25000, for senior citizens limit increased from Rs.20000 to Rs.30000
>Senior citizens above the age of 80 years, who are not covered by health
insurance, to be allowed deduction of Rs.30000 towards medical expenditures.
>Deduction limit of Rs.60000 with respect to specified decease of serious
nature enhanced to Rs.80000 in case of senior citizen.
>Additional deduction of Rs.25000 allowed for differently abled persons.
>Limit on deduction on account of contribution to a pension fund and the new
pension scheme increased from Rs.1 lakh to Rs.1.5 lakh.
>Additional deduction of Rs.50000 for contribution to the new pension scheme u/s 80CCD.
>Payments to the beneficiaries including interest payment on deposit in
Sukanya Samriddhi scheme to be fully exempt.
>Service-tax exemption on Varishtha Bima Yojana.
>Yoga to be included within the ambit of charitable purpose under Section 2(15) of
the Income-tax Act.
Defence:
Page 69
>Rs.2,46,726 crore allocated for Defence. It is 9.87 per cent greater than last year.
>Make in India campaign will take into consideration for speedy
manufacturing of Defence equipments.
Highlights of Railway Budget 2015-16

Financial Performance for the year 2014-15
Total Receipts were ` 1,39,558 crore
Total Expenses - 1,30,321 crore,
Operating ratio - 93.6%
Budget Estimates for 2015-16
Total receipts - 1,64,374 crore
Total expenditure - 1,49,176 crore.
Operating ratio - 88.5%
Highlights
There will be no hike in passenger fares in the year 2015-16.
No new trains.
Social service obligation rose from 9.4% of Gross Traffic Receipts in 200001 to 16.6% in
2010-11.
Bullet train to be introduced in Mumbai-Ahmedabad route.
CCTVs to be installed to monitor cleanliness.
eTicketing system to be upgraded. Right 2000 tickets can be booked per
second. It is
proposed to increase this limit to 7200 per second. This system will be able to handle
1,20,000
users simultaneously.
Ultrasonic system to be installed to detect problems in tracks.
17,000 toilets to be replaced by bio-toilets.
Track capacity to be increased to 1.38 lakh km.
Railways to raise finances via PPP, FDI.
4,000 women constables to be recruited in RPF.
Battery operated cars to be provided at major stations for Physically disable
people.
Nation wise helplines to be installed. Toll free number -182 (It will be active
from 01-03-2015).
Tickets can be booked 4 months prior to travel, earlier it was 2 months.
Senior citizens to get lower births.
Entry gates will be broader.
Disposable bags will be provided for sleerper passengers.
Mechanical designing of new engines that would consume less fuel.
Water vending machines to be installed at stations.
Page 70
e-Tickets will be available in lical language.

WiFi facility will be provided at railway stations.
List of Important Days

Sr.no.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
march)
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
Date
12th January
15th January
24th January
25th January
30th January
4th February
28th February
8th March
9th March
Day
National Youth Day ( Birthday of Swami Vivekanand)
Army Day
National Girl Child Day
National Tourism Day/ voters Day
National Martyrs Day & World anti Leprosy Day
World Cancer Day
National Science Day
International Womens Day
World Kidney Day (celebrated on 2nd Thursday of
15th March
20th March
21st March
22nd March
23rd March
24th March
2nd April
7th April
21st April
22nd April
24th April
1st May
3rd May
11th May
21st May
31st May
5th June
1st July
11th July
6th August
9th August
12th August
29th August
5th September
8th September
14th September
15th September
16th September
2nd October
International Consumer Day

World Sparrow Day & International Happiness Day
World Forestry Day
World Water Day
World Meterological Day
World T.B Day
World Autism Day
World Health Day
Civil Service Day
World Earth Day
Panchayat Divas
International Labour Day
World Press Freedom Day
National Technology Day
Anti Terrorism Day ( death date of Rajiv Gandhi)
Anti Tobacco Day / No Smoking Day
World Environment Day
Doctors Day
National Technology Day
Hiroshima Day
Nagasaki Day
International Youth Day
National Sports Day
Teachers Day
World literacy Day
Hindi Divas
Engineers Day
Ozone Day
International non-violence Day
Page 71
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
Vajpai)
53.
8th October
9th October
24th October
17th November
18th November
19th November
27th November
1st December
4th December
10th December
14th December
22nd December
24th December
25th December
Air force Day

World Post Day
United nation Day
Students Day
Adults Day
Citizen Day
National Law Day
AIDS Day
Navy Day
Human Rights Day
National Energy Conservation Day
National Mathematics Day
National Consumer Rights Day
Good Governance Day (Birthday of Atal Bihari
21st June
International Yoga Day
WSTECHCAFE.C
STE
List of Countries Capital and Currency
Countries
Austria
Argentina
Australia
Afghanistan
Azerbaijan
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bhutan
Brazil
Cambodia
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Costa Rica
Colon
Croatia
Cuba
Czech Republic
Denmark
Egypt
Ethiopia
Fiji
Capital
Currency
Vienna
Buenos Aires
Canberra
Kabul
Baku
Dhaka
Minsk
Brussels
Thimphu
Barsilia
Phnom penh
Ottawa
Santiago
Beijing
Bogota
San jose
Euro
Peso
Australian Dollar
Afgan-afgani
Zagreb
Havana
Prague
Copenhagen
Cairo
Addis Ababa
Suva
Kuna
Peso
Koruna
Krone
Pound
Ethiopian Birr
Dollar
Manat
Taka
Ruble
Euro
Ngultrum
Real
Riel
Canadian Dollar
Peso
Yuan
Peso
Costa
Rican
Page 72
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Hungary
Hong-kong
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Jordon
Jamaica
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Korea North
Korea South
Kuwait
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Maldives
Mauritius
Mexico
Myanmar (Burma)
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Helsinki
Paris
Berlin
Accra
Athens
Budapest
Victoria
Reykjavik
New Delhi
Jakarta
Tehran
Baghdad
Dublin
Jerusalem
Rome
Tokyo
Amman
Dinar
Kingston
Astana
Nairobi
Pyongyang
Seoul
Kuwait City
Riga
Vilnius
Luxembourg
Kuala Lumpur
Male
Port Louis
Mexico city
Nay Pyi Taw (Rangoon)
Windhoek
Kathmandu
Amsterdam
Wellington
Abuja
Oslo
Muscat
Islamabad
Lima
Manila
Warsaw
Lisbon
Doha
Euro
Euro
Euro
Cedi
Euro
Forint
Dollar
Euro
Indian Rupee
Rupiah
Rial
Dinar
Euro
Sheqel
Euro
Yen
HCAFE.COM
Dollar
Tenge
Shilling
Won
Won
Dinar
Euro
Euro
Euro
Ringgit
Rufiyaa
Rupee
Peso
Kyat
Dollar
Rupee
Euro
Dollar
Naira
Krone
Rial
Rupee
Nuewo Sol
Peso
Polish Zloty
Euro
Riyal
Page 73
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
South Africa
South Sudan
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Tajikistan
Thailand
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
United States of America
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe
United Kingdom
Moscow
Riyadh
Victoria
Freetown
Singapore
Cape Town
Juba
Madrid
Colombo
Stockholm
Bern
Damascus
Taipei
Dushanbe Tanzania
Bangkok
Ankara
Kampala
Kyiv
Abu Dhabi
Washington D.C
Hanoi
Sanaa
Lusaka
Harare
London
Ruble
Riyal
Rupee
Leone
Dollar
Rand
Pound
Euro
Rupee
Krona
France
Pound
Dollar
Somoni
Bhat
Lira
Shilling
Hryvnia
Dirham
Dollar
Dong
Rial
Kwacha
Dollar
Pound
Page 74

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LIC AAO Online Exam 2016

LIC AAO 2016 Exam Pattern

Key Points To Remember

Current affairs from June 2015 to December 2015

Union Budget , Awards , Honours

Currency and Capitals

About LIC AAO 2016 Exam/Post

Total Number of Vacancies Available: 700

Insurance Company In India

Private Sector Life Insurance Companies

United India Insurance Company

Private Sector General Insurance Companies

Export credit guarantee insurance companies Govt.

Health insurance companies

LIC Life Insurance Corporation

List of LICs New plans launched in 2015.

Brij Raj Sharma appointed as Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir

Commemorative coins of Rs 125, Rs 10 released in honour of former President S

Haryana bagged Skoch Order-of-Merit National award for implementing e-governance

NASA and ISRO jointly working on NISAR mission

R Sampanthan became first tamilian to lead opposition in Sri Lankan parliament in

AK Jha appointed as Interim CMD of NTPC

Ratan P Watal took charge as Union Finance Secretary

PM Modi released digitally restored recordings of epic Ramcharitmanas

Eminent Kannada writer Dr. MM Kalburgi shot dead in Dharwad

Tennis Player Novak Djokovic appointed as Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF

105-year-old Urdu copy of Ramcharitmanas written by Shiv Brat Lal found

Indian-American Vince Chhabria appointed as a full-time federal judge by Obama

Amol Palekar appointed as Chairman of India's Oscar jury

Book titled Mrs Funnybones authored by Twinkle Khanna released

Historian Babasaheb Purandare bestowed with Maharashtra Bhushan Award 2015

Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn in as Prime Minister of Sri Lanka

Ajit Kumar Seth appointed as Chairman of Public Enterprises Selection Board

North Koreas Foreign Minister, Ri Su-yong, arrived in New Delhi,India on a three

BALCOs IT major Reena Srivastava won 2015's "INFOSEC MAESTROS Top 50

Pakistan successfully test- fired a new ballistic missile, Ghauri missile.

Former Prime Minister of Nepal, Surya Bahadur Thapa passed away.

Nokia announced to acquire French telecommunications firm Alcatel-Lucent for around

Moodys pegged Indias growth at 7.5 percent for 2015.

India successfully test fired its nuclear-capable Agni-III ballistic missile.

Maharashtra Government announced the target of 14400 MW power generation by

Pakistan conferred its top civilian award 'Nishan-e-Pakistan' on Chinese President Xi

The Income Tax Department was awarded 'Prime Minister's award.

World Bank established Pollution Management and Environmental Health (PHEM)

ICICI Bank launched a payment service 'Tap-n-Pay'.

Indian-American Vivek Murthy was sworn-in as the U.S. Surgeon-General.

India is at the 117th spot on Global Happiness Index 2015.

Russia and Argentina have signed a series of framework agreements on economic

Len Blavatnik is Britain's richest man with a 13.17bn fortune.

Sangeeta Bhatia has won a prestigious USD 250,000 Heinz award.

Bhalchandra Nemade received 50th Jnanpith Award.

Lewis Hamilton has been named as the richest sportsman in Britain.

Praful Patel was elected as vice-president, South Asian Football Federation

Austrailias Russell Ford announced his retirement from international hockey.

the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

Mazen Darwish was honoured with UNESCO-Guillermo Cano World Press

The Fourteenth edition of the Indo-French naval exercise VARUNA

International Shooting Competition 2015 was held in Hannover, Germany.

Wang Jianlin became the wealthiest man in Asia.

France signed an agreement with Qatar to supply 24 Dassault Aviation-built Rafale

Stuart Bingham won 2015 Snooker World Championship.

The US diplomatic mission in India has bagged People's Choice Greening

Najama Heptullah is the Union Minister for Minorities Welfare.