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CURRENT AFFAIRS (JANUARY – 2014)

1. OIL signs pact with IRMA for studying the feasibility of Project ‘Kamdhenu’ Its plan to set up dairy production facility in Assam. The project which has been named ‘Kamdhenu’ aims

to set up big milk production centre in Upper Assam.

Why OIL intends to enter dairy sector? OIL wants to set up dairy production facility under its project ‘Kamdhenu’ as part of a Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR) initiative. The project would seek to boost milk production in Upper Assam by providing

employment opportunity to the people of the state. In future, the project aims to enhance the production to

supply milk and dairy products in the whole North-East region. The project derives inspiration from the ‘Amul’

model which has been very successful in Gujarat.

What is CSR? As mentioned in the new Companies Act 2009, CSR or Corporate Social Responsibility is the obligation of

the companies to spend 2% of their net profit in philanthropic activities every year. The law was meant to be applicable for all companies with 1. a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more, or 2. a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore or more, or 3. a net profit of Rs 5 crore or more

2. Mr. Pradeep Kumar: New MD (Corporate Banking) of SBI The Country’s biggest lender, State Bank of India (SBI) appointed Mr. P.Pradeep Kumar as its Managing

Director and group executive in charge of corporatebanking. The seat was lying vacant as of Ms. Arundhati Bhattarcharya became the Chairman of SBI in October 2013.

The top management at SBI consists of a chairman, four managing directors, over a dozen deputy managing directors and about 35 chief general managers.

3. RBI extends deadline to issue inflation-indexed bonds The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) extended the time for issuance of “Inflation Indexed National Savings

Securities Cumulative” (IINSS-C) bonds (or) inflation linked bonds” by three months to March 31, 2014, from December 31, 2013. The issuance can be closed earlier than March 31, 2014 with a prior notice. Inflation linked bonds

The limit for investment per applicant per annum: Rs 5,000 – Rs 5 lakh.

The interest rate on these bonds would be linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

RBI will act as a central depository, as these securities will be issued in the form of Bonds Ledger Account (BLA) and held with RBI.

Distribution or sale of bonds would be through banks: SBI, nationalized banks and three private banks HDFC Bank, ICICI Bankand Axis Bank and Stock Holding Corporation of India.

Inflation linked bonds are launched as instruments that will protect savings from inflation, especially the savings of the poor and middle classes.

4. ‘Millionaire Tax” approved by the French constitutional council The French Constitutional Council approved the government’s controversial “millionaire tax” proposal for

companies to pay 75% tax on annual salaries exceeding €1 million ($1.375 million USD), in line with President Francois Hollande’s drive to limit executive pay at a time of economic hardship. To reduce France’s budget deficit, the increase in tax raised discontent among the business leaders and the football clubs.

5. Latvia becomes the 18th state to join the Eurozone The Baltic nation, Latvia joined the Euro Zone, with the expectation that the euro will lower its borrowing

costs and encourage investors by eliminating currency risk. It became the 18th

member of the European Union,

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which uses the Euro as its currency and the fourth smallest economy in the euro zone afterMalta, Estonia and Cyprus.

About the Euro Established by the provisions in the 1992 Maastricht Treaty.

Central bank: European Central Bank.

Official currency of the Eurozone.

The Eurozone is an economic and monetary union (EMU) of 18 European Union (EU) member states that have adopted the euro (€) as their common currency and sole legal tender.

Member states: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France,Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, theNetherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.

Latvia joined the Eurozone on January 1, 2014.

6. Ladakh celebrates Losar to mark New Year Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir celebrated the festival of Losar with traditional and religious fervor

and gaiety. The festival which is celebrated for 15 days marks the start of the New Year.

Study: Mangroves in Florida expanding poleward

The -4o C is the physiological temperature limit of mangrove survival.

7. New Zealand’s Corey Anderson smashes quickest ODI century New Zealand’s cricket player Corey Anderson created a record by hitting the fastest century in One-Day

International (ODI), reaching 100 in just 36 ballsagainst the West Indies. Prior to Anderson, Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi had this record who took 37 deliveries to hit century against Sri Lanka in 1996.

8. Assam will follow “Chaibagaan time” The state of Assam decided to follow the ‘chaibagaan’ time instead of the Indian Standard Time (IST). The

bagaan time will be helpful to save energy, reduce power consumption and increase productivity. IST is calculated on the basis of solar time in Allahabad in the northern-central state of Uttar Pradesh. States located to the west of this longitude have more daylight hours as compared to those in the east. Assam lies in the extreme east of the country and bordersBangladesh and Bhutan. This means that the sun sets as early as 16:31 (4:31 p.m.) IST in November and December.

The chaibagaan time or bagaan time – Introduced by British people over 150 years ago, was set one hour ahead of the Indian Standard Time (IST) for tea estates, collieries and oil industry of Assam. This Baggan time is more suitable for tea plantations.

9. CCEA clears the Central Sector Scheme, ILDP for 12th plan The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved the central sector scheme, Indian Leather

Development Programme (ILDP) for overall development of the leather sector during the 12th Plan (2012-17).

Under this scheme, the six sub-schemes are also proposed with an outlay of Rs.990.36 crore.

10. India’s power network integrated into one grid with joining of Southern region India’s power network has been integrated into one grid as South India has been linked with the national

electricity grid. This completes the consolidation of the entire country into one network for distributing electricity to consumers. The integration was attained through the commissioning of the Raichur-Solapur 765 kilovolt (kV) single-circuit transmission line by state-owned Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd. With this, the Indian power system has become one of the largest operating synchronous grids in the world with about 232 GW (gigawatts) of installed power generation capacity. India has achieved its ‘ONE NATION’-'ONE GRID’-'ONE FREQUENCY’ objective.

11. ‘Mother of PIL’: Pushpa Kapila Hingorani passed away Pushpa Kapila Hingorani (86), a lawyer who is known by the title ‘Mother of PIL’ for being the first

women to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on behalf of voiceless under-trial prisoners in Bihar around more than three decades ago, has passed away.

Justice P. N. Bhagwati articulated the concept of PIL.

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12. Janet Yellen becomes the first women chief of Federal Reserve Bank of US Janet Yellen (67) has been confirmed as the new chief of the Federal Reserve Bank of the US. With this,

she has become the first woman to head the world’s most powerful central bank.

13. Scientists spot rare Indian Pitta after 60 years Indian Pitta, a bird endemic to the Himalayan foothills and Western Ghats, was spotted at Aravalli

Biodiversity Park near Vasant Kunj in Delhi recently. As per ornithologists, Indian Pitta, a small and colourful bird

which is mainly seen in closed-canopy forests, was spotted in Delhi after 60 years.

14. India joined ‘Cryo Club’ with successful launch of GSLV-D5; 6th spacefarer to develop a

cryogenic engine The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched its heavy-duty rocket

Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-D5 (GSLV-D5) from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh and placed

communication satellite GSAT-14 into orbit.

The satellite will be used for telemedicine and tele-education services. About ISRO’s indigenous cryogenic engine GSLV-D5 rocket

Powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine, injected into orbit atelecommunication satellite, GSAT-14.

It is the first successful flight of the indigenous cryogenic engine.

The GSLV is a three-stage engine rocket. The first stage is fired with solid fuel, the second with liquid fuel and the third is the cryogenic engine.

A cryogenic engine is more efficient as it provides more thrust for every kilogram of propellant burnt. Cryogenic fuels are extremely clean as they give out only water while burning.

After this launch, India joined the “Cryo Club” and became the sixth spacefarer after US, Russia, the European Space Agency, Chinaand Japan to develop a cryogenic engine — a necessity for interplanetary probes and manned space missions.

15. Get rid of SLR, end loan waivers: RBI committee A high-level panel of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has suggested that the central bank should gradually

abolish the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR), the portion of deposits that banks must compulsorily keep in government securities.

At present, SLR is at 23% while most banks keep it around 27% as state-backed bonds often provide attractive rates at low risk.

As per the Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low-Income Households, headed by Nachiket Mor (former executive director ICICI Bank):

16. RBI chooses CCIL to issue Unique Identity Codes in Financial Transactions The RBI has chosen the Clearing Corporation of India Ltd. (CCIL) to act as a Local Operating Unit (LOU) for

issuing internationally compatible Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) in India.

What is Legal Entity Identifier (LEI)? The LEI is a 20-character unique identity code assigned to entities which are parties to a financial

transaction. The assigning of LEI is part of Global LEI System (GLEIS) programme to which India is a party.

What is Global LEI System (GLEIS)? After the global economic crisis of 2008 jolted the world economy, countries across the globe felt the

absence of a common, accurate and sufficiently comprehensive identification system for parties undertaking

financial transactions. This deficiency led to the origin of the idea of setting up of aGlobal LEI System (GLEIS).

Regulators world over recognized the significance of the LEI as a key component of necessary improvements in

financial data systems. Consequently, the G20 at the Cannes Summit held in November 2011, endorsed the

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development and maintenance of a GLEIS and tasked theFinancial Stability Board (FSB) to spearhead the co-

ordination ofinternational regulatory work and to deliver concrete recommendations on the system. India’s RBI

joined ROC of the GLEIS in 2013 and as a member of FSB, the RBI, is committed to the adoption and

implementation best international practices.

17. Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram: India’s first adolescent health programme launched

The Government of India has started the country’s first comprehensive adolescent health programme-

Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram, which will also focus on adolescents’ reproductive healt

Strategy: RMNCH+A stands for (Reproductive, Maternal, New born, Child Health + Adolescent).

18. RBI: Gold loan finance companies can now give loans up to 75% of the market value of the gold

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has eased the norms for extending loans against gold jewellery as

collateral. It has decided to raise the Loan-To-Value (LTV) cap for loans against the collateral of gold jewellery to 75

% from the present limit of 60% with immediate effect. This means that gold loan companies in India viz. Muthoot

Finance, Manappuram Finance, etc can lend up to 75% of the value of gold jewellery deposited with them as

guarantee.

19. India’s first indigenously developed stratospheric balloon penetrates into mesosphere For the first time in India, an indigenously developed stratospheric balloon penetrated into the

Mesosphere. It is developed at the Balloon Facility, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Hyderabad under the

High Altitude Balloon Development Project (HAA). Till yet, only balloons from US and Japan have accomplished this

achievement.

Launch from the Balloon Facility campus located near Moula-Ali (Maula-Ali is a suburb of Hyderabad, India located at about 10 km from Secunderabad.)

20. Trident Group first corporate to pay salaries via Aadhaar Payment Bridge (APB) Diversified business house Trident Group became the first corporate to use Aadhaar Payment Bridge (APB)

for payment of salaries to its employees. The facility launched in the presence of Planning Commission

Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Chairman

Nandan Nilekani.

It’s a payment gateway platform created by National Payments Corporation of India .

21. Gorakhpur now has world’s longest railway platform A newly constructed railway platform in Gorakhpur, U.P. entered into theLimca Book of World Records for

being world’s longest railway platform. Platform No. 1 of the Gorakhpur is 1366.33 metres with ramp and 11355.40 metres without it. Gorakhpur is headquarter of North Eastern Railways zone.

After Gorakhpur,and Kollam, Kharagpur has the world’s third longest railway platform in the world with a length of 1,072.5 metres (3,519 ft).

22. Tennis: Australian Open begins in Melbourne The Australian Open Tennistournament, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, inaugurated at

Melbourne,Australia. It will be held at Melbourne Park from January 13-26, 2014. India’s Somdev Devvarman is the only Indian in

the Singles title and the Doubles section is featuring Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi, Rohan Bopanna, Divij Sharan, Yuki Bhambri and Sania Mirza with their respective team-mates.

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About Australia Open 2014 Founded in 1905.

Held annually in January at Melbourne, Australia.

Events: Men’s and women’s singles; men’s, women’s, and mixed doubles and junior’s championships; as well as wheelchair, legends and exhibition events.

It is the 102nd edition of the Australian Open, played on outdoor hard courts.

Surfaces played on: Surface Grass (1905–87)

Rebound Ace (1988–2007)

Plexicushion (2008–present) Organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is part of the 2014 ATP World Tour and the

2014 WTA Tour calendars under the Grand Slam category.

23. Sheikh Hasina becomes Bangladesh PM for 3rd time Awami League chief Ms Sheikh Hasina (66) sworn in as Prime Minister of Bangladesh for the third time

along with a 48-member cabinet. President Abdul Hamid administered the oaths of office and secrecy to Ms Hasina and her new cabinet members at the Bangabhavan presidential palace in Dhaka.

Awami League won 231 seats, of which 127 seats were uncontested, giving it a clear three-fourth majority

in the country’s 10thparliament.

24. Suresh Mathur Committee: IRDS sets up panel to study FDI in insurance intermediaries & TPA

The insurance sector regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) set up a 10-

member committee to study the options of allowing 100 % Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in insurance

intermediaries, Third-Party Administrators (TPA), surveyors and loss assessors.

Headed by: IRDA Senior Joint Director, Suresh Mathur Current Status: the FDI limit for these entities is 26 % in line with the limit stipulated for insurance

companies.

25. RBI inks a pact with Bank of Japan for raising BSA to $ 50 billion The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Bank of Japan (BOJ) signed an agreement to enhance the maximum

amount of the Bilateral Swap Arrangement (BSA)between the two countries to $50 billion. The agreement signed by RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan and BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda. The BSA shall be effective until December 3, 2015.

With this agreement, the current BSA, effective for 3 years from 2012 to 2015, has been raised from the original size of $15 billion.

26. Facebook acquires Bangalore based Little Eye Labs The social networking site, Facebook has acquired Banglore-based start up Little Eye Labs. Little Eye is a

tool that helps Android app developers to measure, analyze and optimize their apps. It helps visualize the app’s behavior and estimates the app’s power, memory and network data consumption trends.

This is Facebook’s first acquisition of an Indian company.

About Little Eye Lab Founded in 2012 by four Bangalore-based technology professionals – Giridhar Murthy, Kumar Rangarajan,

Satyam Kandula, Lakshman Kakkirala after working at companies such as Apple, IBM, HP and Yahoo.

27. ‘Sahayog –Kaijin 2014’: India and Japan joint Coast Guard exercise The 13th edition of joint exercise by the Indian Coast Guard and its Japanese counterpart held

approximately at 20 nautical miles off Kochi. The bilateral exercise titled ‘Sahayog-Kaijin 2014’ was successfully conducted by both the countries. Highlights:

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Japan Coast Guard ship Mizuho along with its integral helicopter;Indian Coast Guard Ship Samrat; interceptor vessel C-404, which in the simulated drill acted as a pirate-controlled vessel; a Chetak helicopter and a Dornier maritime recce aircraft participated in the exercise.

28. Iran seeks permission to open multiple bank accounts in India Iran has requested the Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to allow it to open

accounts in multiple banks to facilitate better non-oil trade between the two nations

The UCO Bank account is for oil transactions and there is a need for multiple channels, as the trade relations between the two nations extend beyond oil.

For all oil imports from Iran since July 2011, India has been paying 55 % of the amount in Euros through Ankara-based Halkbank. The remaining money is being remitted in rupees in Kolkata-based UCO Bank.

Presently, only UCO Bank facilitates oil related transactions with Iran.

29. RBI nod needed for Hong Kong and Macau citizens to set up business in India The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) included Hong Kong and Macau in the sensitive list of countries, along

with Pakistan and China that will require its prior approval to set up business or related activities in India. This was done under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

As per the existing conditions under the Foreign Exchange Management Regulations, no entity or person,

being a citizen of Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Iran or China is allowed to set up any branch office

or a liaison office or a project office or any other such business activity without the prior permission of the RBI.

Why Macau and Hong Kong entities will require prior approval from RBI to set up business in India? Macau and Hong Kong are two Special Administrative Regions controlled by China. Businesses in these

two regions are mostly owned by the Chinese.

30. Universal health coverage: Karnataka first state to provide tertiary care to all Karnataka became the first state in the country to provide universal healthcoverage for tertiary care to all

the sections of society.

Under the newly launched Rajiv Arogya Bhagya, for Above Poverty Line families, approx 1.12 crore people in Karnataka are covered. The Scheme implies the beneficiary to pay only 10% of the cost of treatment or procedures.

Aim: To provide subsidized healthcare to virtually every citizen in the State with Above Poverty Line (APL) card.

Under the scheme, APL family members are entitled for health check up to Rs 1.5 lakh per annum. In special cases, if the expenditure exceeds Rs1.5 lakh, the government grants another Rs. 50000. The BPL families are already covered under health scheme throughVajpayee Arogya Sree programme.

31. India’s first climate change theatre opened at Science City, Kapurthala India’s first climate change theatre opened at Pushpa Gujral Science City in Kapurthala,Punjab. The 18-

metre diameter theatre set up in a dome-shaped building with seating capacity of 125 persons.

32. India and South Korea signed nine pacts to boost trade and investments To boost bilateral ties, India and South Koreasigned nine agreements to deepen economic cooperation

and strengthen defenseengagements. The agreements were signed after delegation level talks between Prime

Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and visiting South Korean President Park Geun-hye in New Delhi.

The pacts viz. Protection of Classified Military Information, peaceful use of space, establishment of NalandaUniversity, cyber space cooperation, etc.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assured that “work on the $12 billion steel mill in Odisha by South Korea’s Posco” will soon become operational. Posco project is the biggest FDI in India.

There is the possibility of setting up a Korean Industrial Park in India.

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South Korea and India agreed to revise their double taxation avoidance pact in a way that helps reduce

tax burden on their companies and expand information sharing on offshore tax evasion.

33. GOLDHEDGE: NCDEX launched gold contract for hedgers The National Commodity Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) launched an “innovative” gold contract

“GOLDHEDGE” that will give a transparent and straightforward price benchmark of the yellow metal to the consumer.

The contract, GOLDHEDGE, is available for trading from Jan 16, 2014.

The unit of trading for GOLDHEDGE is one kg, with a ticket size of Re 1. The duration of the contract is for 1-4 months.

MoD to Bombay HC: INS Vikrant has completed operational life, best to dispose it INS Vikrant is the first aircraft carrier of India.

34. NDMA in place of MFN between India and Pakistan In order to boost bilateral trade, Commerce Ministers of India and Pakistanhave agreed on a Non-

Discriminatory Market Access (NDMA) on reciprocal basis to each other, in place of the Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN). India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma accepted Pakistan Trade Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan’s invitation to visit Pakistan in February 2014. India and Pakistan have decided to:

Expedite the process of giving bank licences so that Indian and Pakistani banks to operate in the other country to facilitate trade.

Carry out trade through the Wagah-Attari border on all days of the week and allowed containers carrying shipments from both sides.

35. Logo of Housing Start Up Index (HSUI) launched The Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation,launched the Housing Start Up Index (HSUI)

logo, web site and monitoring tool “Integrated Urban Poverty Monitoring System” (IPoMs) for JnNURM and Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY).

What is a Housing Start-Up Index? The Housing Start-Up Index (HSUI) is an index that tracks the number of houses being constructed every

year across the country.

Joint initiative of Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

WHO: Peshawar world’s ‘largest reservoir’ of polio The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Pakistan’s troubled north-western city of Peshawar as

the world’s “largest reservoir” of endemic polio and has called for urgent action to boost vaccination.

Pakistan, along with Afghanistan and Nigeria, are the only countries in the world where polio remains endemic. Pakistan is the only polio-endemic country in the world where polio cases rose from 2012 to 2013.

36. Bimal Jalan panel on new bank licences to meet on Feb 10, 2014 The Bimal Jalan panel which is scrutinizing applications for new bank licences will hold a meeting on

February 10, 2014.

The last two entities to get banking licences from RBI in 2003-04 : Kotak Mahindra Bank and Yes Bank.

37. Mr. Hery Rajaonarimampianina: New President of Madagascar Mr. Hery Rajaonarimampianina(55) has been declared as thePresident of Madagascar to restore

democracy on the island nation in the following elections. Mr. Hery is the 8th elected Malagasy president and 11th chief of state since Madagascar’s independence

in 1960. He was the former Finance Minister of Madagascar.

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38. Union Cabinet decides to grant ‘Minority’ status for the Jain community The Union Cabinet decided to grant minority status to Jain community.

Objective: The status would help to give constitutional safeguards on Jains and make them eligible for welfare programmes of the minority affairs ministry.

Thus, the Jains will be the 6th community to have minority status after Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis.

39. P.J.Nayak Committee set up by RBI to review governance of bank boards The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) set up an 8 -member panel to review governance of board of banks and

examine ‘fit and proper’ criteria for directors, including their tenure. The Committee will be chaired by former Axis Bank Chairman P J Nayak.

40. WEF 2014: Swiss banks devise new ‘cash’ strategies to lure rich clients The 44th World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting at Davos, Switzerlandfrom January 22 to 25,

2014.

The event sets the key priorities and challenges for the world to tackle in 2014.

Theme: ‘The Reshaping of the World: Consequences for Society, Politics and Business’.

From India a 125-member delegation including senior ministers and top corporate leaders are attending the meeting.

The Swiss bank has put up innovative ideas to attract rich clients from India and other countries by providing services like ‘cash courier’ as well as by offering large metal vaults to store currency notes, gold, artworks and other valuables. Also, on the platter is advice to put money in virtual currencies, especially in the wake of Bitcoin ATMs becoming operational in Zurich.

41. “Dexter”: A virus in the Indian Online Banking System detected by CERT The Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-India) detected a “black” private information stealing

virus in the Indian online banking transactions space. The virus is especially more threatening for the users of credit cards who make payments at the shopping

counters. The virus named “Dexter, black POS, memory dump and grabber” can acquire 7 false names when infecting a

system and once it is successful in breaking the security protocols of a Point of Sale (POS) terminal, it steals confidential data like card holder’s name, account number, expiration date, CVV code and other discretionary information which could lead to financially compromising and phishing attacks on the card at a later stage.

Recently, RBI has made it mandatory for debit card holders to punch in their PIN numbers every time they use the card to minimize frauds. The order was passed following the spread of Dexter virus of Trojan Family which was detected at the Point of Sale (POS).

42. Urjit R Patel Committee suggests adoption of new CPI for Anchoring Monetary Policy RBI should adopt the new Consumer Price Index (CPI) for anchoring the monetary policy.

Set the inflation target at 4% with a band of +/- 2% around it.

Monetary policy decision making should be vested in a Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) that should be headed by the Governor.

43. National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 extended to Karnataka and Chhattisgarh The Union Government of India extended the implementation of National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013

to the States of Karnataka and Chhattisgarh. Now, the act has taken off in seven states and union territories –Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Karnataka and Chhattisgarh. Uttrakhand and Chandigarh are also expected to join this group soon.

Identified beneficiary will get 5 kg of grains.

Pregnant women and lactating mothers and children are entitled to get meals under the prescribed nutrition by MDM and (ICDS. The age group would be 6 months to 14 years.

NFSA 2013 will provide high nutrition food to the age group of 6 years.

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Pregnant women and lactating mothers will be entitled to get maternity benefit of not less than Rs. 6,000.

If an identified beneficiary is poor of the poorest than he will entitle to get 35 kg of grains under Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY).

44. LIC’s stake in Axis Bank crosses 10% The stake of country’s largest life insurer Life Insurance Corporation of India(LIC) in Axis Bank crossed 10%

after it picked up the private lender’s shares through open market transactions. LIC is one of the promoters in Axis Bank, bought 52.07 lakh shares or over 1 % of paid-up capital worth Rs

625.64 crore between September 2013 and January 21, 2014.

45. Cabinet approved proposal for setting up Rail Tariff Authority to advise Railway Ministry on fares

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a proposal to constitute a Rail Tariff Authority (RTA) that will advise the Railway Ministry on fares. The RTA is crucial for railways as it will recommend fare revision from time to time taking into account input cost and volatile market condition.

As per existing law, The RTA’s recommendations will not be mandatory for railways as only the Railway Board can fix the tariff.

The next government will initiate the process of making RTA a mandatory body by amending the Railway Act, 1989 to insert a sub-section called Chapter 5 (A).

46. NRI scientist AJ Paulraj wins Tech ‘Nobel’- 2014 Marconi Prize The Indian-born scientist and Professor (Emeritus) at StanfordUniversity, Mr. Arogyaswami Joseph

Paulraj(69), won the prestigious Marconi Society Prize 2014 for developing the theory and applications of Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antennas.

Every wifi router and 4G phone uses MIMO technology that was pioneered by Mr. Paulraj.

Mr. Paulraj is the only India-born scientist to receive both the Marconi Prize and the IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal– the two top global IT technology awards.

Also known as “Tech Nobel”

Founded: 1974 by Guglielmo Marconi’s daughter Gioia Marconi Braga to mark the centennial of her father’s birth and memorialize his spirit of ingenuity in service to humanity. (He was the radio inventor).

Previous winners: Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Bin, world wide web (www) designer Tim Berners-Lee, , cell phone inventor Martin Cooper and fibre-optic communications developer Charles Kao, etc.

The society is celebrating its 50th year in 2014. An electrical engineer, Paul worked for the Indian Navy which then sent him to IIT Delhi for an M.S program. He is known for pioneering the development of military sonars (APSOH family). He also served as the founding director for three major labs in India – CAIR (Center for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics ), CDAC (Center for Development of Advanced Computing) and CRL (Central Research Labs of Bharat Electronics).

Violence, epidemic and climate change led to end of Indus Valley Civilization (IVC): Research Infectious diseases like leprosy and tuberculosis were probably transmitted across an interaction sphere

that spanned Middle and South Asia.

Leprosy appeared at Harappa during the urban phase of the Indus Civilization.

Half of the skulls examined showed evidence of violence, with 20% signs of leprosy.

47. India-China launch ‘Year of Friendly Exchanges’ India and China launched the ‘Year of Friendly Exchanges’at a lively Republic Day reception attended by

Vice PresidentLi Yuanchao in Beijing, China. From India, new Indian Ambassador Ashok K Kantha hosted the function.

This year China will commemorate the 60th year of Panchasheel (5- Principles), along with Myanmar. Correspondingly, in February 2014, a function is expected to be organized by the Chinese Embassy in New

Delhi to formally inaugurate the Year of Friendly Exchanges in India.

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48. Any Time Milk (ATM): Amul launches its first Milk ATM India’s dairy major Amul has launched India’s first milk ATM which will sell milk through “Any Time Milk”

vending machines. The 24×7 ATM has been installed at the Amul Dairy gate at Anand in Gujarat. The ATM machine can store 150 pouches of milk, each of 300 ml. The milk costs Rs 10 per pouch. The milk

pouches are kept in the automatic dispensing machine which also keeps them chilled under 4oC.

49. 65th Republic Day: Japanese PM Shinzo Abe the Chief guest for this year The Nation celebrated 65th Republic Day this year. The main function held at Rajpath, Delhi where

President Pranab Mukherjee unfurled the tricolour and take salute of the Parade. The Parade showcased India’s military might and cultural diversity to the world. Prime Minister of JapanShinzo Abe was the chief guest at this year’s Republic Day parade. He is the first ever Japanese dignitary to grace the occasion.

PM Shinzo Abe announced a loan of $2 billion for 3rd phase expansion of Delhi Metro that would add another 103 km to the network.

50. Australia Open 2014: Stanislas Wawrinka won the Men’s title Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka won his first Grand Slam title with victory over an injury-hit Rafael Nadal

in the Australian By this victory, he became the second Swiss man to win a Grand Slam singles title after 17-time champion

Roger Federer. The other winners of the Australia Open 2014

Women’s Singles: Li Na (China) won her first Australian Open title against first-time major finalist Dominika Cibulková (Slovakia)

Mixed doubles: Kristina Mladenovic (Fra) & Daniel Nestor (Can) beat Sania Mirza (Ind) & Horia Tecau (Rou).

Men’s Doubles: Łukasz Kubot (Poland) and Robert Lindstedt (Sweden) took the men’s doubles title with a victory over Eric Butorac(USA) and Raven Klaseen (South Africa).

Women’s Doubles: Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci were the defending chanmpions and successfully defended their title, by defeating Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina in the final.

The 2014 Australian Open is the 102nd edition of the tournament, held at MelbournePark in Melbourne, Australia.

51. M.S.Dhoni became the first captain to play in four tied O.D.I.s Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni became the first captain to be involved in four One-Day

Internationals (ODIs) ties. This feat was achieved by him as India tied the third ODI against New Zealand in Auckland on January 25, 2014.

52. GOI launched National Waterway-4 project in Chennai The Central Government launched the project for the development of the stretch of 37 km of the National

Waterway-four (NW-4) between Sholinganallur to Kalpakkam in South Buckingham Canal in Tamil Nadu.

53. Dr. Tej Vir Singh won the UNWTO Ulysses Prize for the Creation and Dissemination of Knowledge

Professor Dr. Tej Vir Singh won the 2013 UNWTO Ulysses Prize for Excellence in the Creation and Dissemination of Knowledge in Madrid, Spain. About Professor Dr. Tej Vir Singh

Belong to Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

Established the CTRD in 1976, a Non-Government Organization (NGO) devoted to the cause of tourism academics and research, with a special focus on India.

Founding director of the Centre for Tourism Research & Development (CTRD) in India.

And also founding editor of Asia oldest tourism journal ‘TourismRecreation Research’.

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The UNWTO Ulysses Prize is given to a distinguished scholar, whether in academia, government or private industry, for outstanding contributions to innovation and knowledge in tourism.

NALSA launched free legal service clinics across the country National Legal Services Authority (NALSA)

Constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.

Chaired by Mr. Justice P.Sathasivam, hon’ble Chief Justice of India.

National Legal Literacy day observed on November 9 every year.

Functions: To provide free legal services to the eligible persons and to organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes.

54. RBI reviewed norms on restructuring of advances by NBFCs The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued norms for loans restructured by Non-Banking Finance Companies

(NBFCs), to create a level-playing field between NBFCs and other commercial banks. The new norms are based on

the recommendations of the Mahapatra committee.

55. UoC became the first public university in the world to accept Bitcoin in tuition fees The University of Cumbria in northwest England became the first public university in the world to accept

the online currency Bitcoin as payment for fees.

The university uses the system Bitpay to process any payments. Bitpay is a US-based company that enables thousands of merchants to accept Bitcoin.

What is Bitcoin? Bitcoin is an online currency and payment system which enables theinternational transmission of funds. It

is a distributed peer-to-peer digital currency that functions without the inter-mediation of any central authority. Bitcoin is also called a “cryptocurrency” since it is decentralized and uses cryptography to prevent double-spending, a significant challenge inherent to digital currencies.

56. Pitroda Committee recommends autonomy for Prasar Bharati The Prasar Bharati Expert Committee, headed by technocrat Sam Pitroda, submitted its report to the

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

Padma Awards 2014

Late Justice Jagdish Sharan Verma, Public Affairs, Uttar Pradesh #

Late Dr. Anumolu Ramakrishna, Science and Engineering, Andhra Pradesh #

Shri Ashok Kumar Mago, Trade and Industry, USA*

Dr. Siddharth Mukherjee, Medicine-Oncology, USA*

Dr. Vamsi Mootha, Medicine – Biomedical Research, USA*

Dr. Sengaku Mayeda, Literature and Education, Japan*

57. India Post to install 3000 ATMs,1.35 lakh mirco-ATMs by Sept 15, 2014 In a bid to start a commercial banking, India Post has drawn a plan to install approx 3,000 ATMs and 1.35

lakh micro-ATMs at the post offices across the country for savings account holders by September 2015. On this plan, India Post worked with software giant Infosys.

58. India ranked 155th on Yale’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) India ranked 155th out of 178 countries with an index score of 31.23 points, in its efforts to address

environmental challenges, in the 2014 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) issued by Yale University. Regardless of an improvement in overall performance, India ranks behind China (118), Pakistan(148) and Nepal (139). Among the BRICS nations, South Africa was placed at 72nd position, followed by Russia (73), Brazil (77) and China (118).

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Prepared by America’s Yale and Columbia universities in collaboration with the World Economic Forum (WEF) as well as with support from the Samuel Family Foundation and the McCall MacBain Foundation.

Released at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

The 178 nations in the index represent 99% of the global population, 98% of the world’s total land area and 97% of the global GDP.

59. UP government launched ‘Samajwadi Pension Scheme’ for rural poor Uttar Pradesh government launched “Samajwadi Pension Scheme” which will benefit about 40 lakh rural

families living below poverty line. The new pension scheme will replace the Rani Laxmibai Pension Yojana, which will be phased out gradually. This scheme was launched by the State government in 2013-14 and, at present, there are about 25 lakh beneficiaries.

60. Govt. launched “India Inclusive Innovation Fund (I.I.I.F.)” The National Innovation Council (NIC), in partnership with the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium

Enterprises (MSME), launched the India Inclusive Innovation Fund (IIIF). IIIF is an impact investment fund that will invest in ventures catering to the country’s poor. It is an autonomous Rs. 500-crore fund, with the Union Government contributing 20 %. The balance will come from public sector banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, multilateral/bilateral development agencies, Indian & global corporates.

Will be registered under SEBI’s Alternative Investment Fund Category I guidelines with an initial corpus of Rs 500 crore, with the Ministry of MSME committing to 20% (Rs 100 crore) and the balance being given by banks, insurance companies, overseas financial and development institutions.

The Fund will invest in innovative ventures that are scalable, sustainable and profitable.

61. Mahatma Gandhi’s grand daughter Ela Gandhi honored with prestigious South African Award ‘Amadelakupha’

Mahatma Gandhi’s grand daughter, Ms. Ela Gandhi honored with the Prestigious South African Award, ‘Amadelakupha’by the South African Government. This award was also given to Sunny Singh and Mac Maharaj of Indian Decent. The South African Government stated that Ms. Gandhi selected for the award in recognition for her lifetime contribution to the freedom struggle in South Africa.

Born: July 1, 1940 in Durban, South Africa.

Peace activist and was a Member of Parliament in South Africa from 1994-2004

Awards: Community of Christ International Peace Award, Padma Bhushan award(2007), Pravasi Bhartiya Award (2014) and Umkhonto we Sizwe. The award title, ‘Amadelakufa’ means ‘those who are prepared to make sacrifices’ in Zulu language and

was hosted by the South African military.

62. Chinese New Year 2014 – “Year of the Horse” Chinese people marked the arrival of the “New Lunar Year” generally considered an auspicious time,

across China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. This year is the Year of the Horse, which is said to bring prosperity and wealth. The horse signifies kindness, strength, and gregariousness.