josh magazine current affairs magazine august 2012 11

Current Affairs PDF August 2012

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WWW.JAGRANJOSH.COM CURRENT AFFAIRS PDF AUGUST 2012

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Table of Contents

Pick of the Month ......................................................................................................................... 12

NASA’s Curiosity Rover took its First Drive on the Surface of Mars ..................................... 12

NASA’s New Robot Rover Curiosity touched the Surface of Mars ....................................... 12

India’s NSE became the World’s Largest Bourse in Equity Segment as per WFE’s Global Ranking .................................................................................................................................. 13

CAG pegged Public Exchequer’s Loss at 1.86 Lakh Crore in Coal Blocks Allocation Scam ... 13

Russia formally became a Member of the World Trade Organisation ................................. 14

Antony Jenkins appointed as the New Group Chief Executive of Barclays .......................... 14

India successfully test-fired Medium Range Ballistic Missile Agni – II ................................. 14

Power Tripped in Northern, Eastern and North Eastern Grids: India’s Biggest Power Blackout ................................................................................................................................ 15

International ................................................................................................................................. 16

US and Pakistan inked NATO Supply Agreement ................................................................. 16

Election Commissions of India and South Korea signed MoU to Strengthen Democracy ... 16

India allowed FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) from Pakistan.............................................. 16

US Imposed Sanctions on Banks Handling Iranian Oil Transactions ..................................... 17

India signed Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Monaco ............................ 17

US Senate passed Bill to label Haqqani Network as a Foreign Terrorist Organization ........ 18

India and Israel signed Collaborative Academic Research Programme Agreement ............ 19

India and Belgium signed Agreement for the Modernisation of Indian Railways ................ 19

Pakistan Supreme Court annulled New Law Protecting the Prime Minister ........................ 20

United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution on Syria ......................................... 21

Sudan signed a Deal with South Sudan over Oil Payments .................................................. 21

Pakistan’s Supreme Court summoned Prime Minister over Corruption Cases against President ............................................................................................................................... 22

Libya's NTC Handed Power to Newly Appointed National Assembly ................................... 22





China signed Economic Agreements with North Korea which includes the Development of SEZs ....................................................................................................................................... 23

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria’s Membership ................................. 23

Joint Statement on the First India-CELAC Troika Foreign Ministers Meeting Held in New Delhi ...................................................................................................................................... 24

UN Security Council decided not to extend the UN Observer’s Mission in Syria ................. 25

Ecuador Granted Wikileaks Founder Julian Assange Political Asylum ................................. 26

Lakhdar Brahimi appointed New Joint Special Representative of UN and Arab League for Syria ....................................................................................................................................... 26

India to cut Import Duties on 234 Items from Pakistan ....................................................... 27

Myanmar abolished Censorship of the Country's Media ..................................................... 27

India, Iran and Afghanistan agreed for Transit Co-operation through Chabahar port ........ 28

Supreme Court of Pakistan granted Three-week Time to Prime Minister ........................... 28

India China agreed to set up Joint Working Group on Trade and Investments ................... 28

India, Afghanistan and Iran to set up Joint Working Group to spur Trade .......................... 29

India and Iran decided to expand Trade and Economic Cooperation .................................. 29

International Atomic Energy Agency set up Special Task Force for Iran .............................. 30

National ......................................................................................................................................... 31

Special Court convicted 32 People in Naroda Patiya Riot Case ............................................ 31

Supreme Court of India upheld the death sentence of Mumbai Terror Attack Convict Ajmal Amir Kasab ............................................................................................................................ 31

The Government approved a Complete Ban on Employment of Children .......................... 32

Government of India enacted Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006 ............................... 32

Supreme Court of India ordered Better Healthcare for Bhopal Gas Tragedy Victims ......... 32

BCCC asked TV Channels to be Extra-cautious while Showing Violence against Women.... 33

Bimal Gurung sworn in as the Head of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration ................... 33

Union Cabinet approved the Launch of Satellite to study Mars .......................................... 34

Special Tribunal approved MHA Move to declare SIMI as an Unlawful Organization ......... 34





Union Government approved Relaxation in Policies Related to Transfer of Government Land ....................................................................................................................................... 35

Power Tripped in Northern, Eastern and North Eastern Grids: India’s Biggest Power Blackout ................................................................................................................................ 35

Economy ........................................................................................................................................ 36

Growth of Eight Core Sectors slipped to 3.6 percent in June 2012 against 5.6 percent in June 2011 .............................................................................................................................. 36

EGoM approved 50% Diesel Subsidy to farmers in Drought Hit Areas to save Kahrif Crop . 37

RBI signed MoU with Financial Regulators of 9 Countries to promote Sharing of Information ........................................................................................................................... 38

India’s Fiscal Deficit reached 37 Percent of the Budget Estimate ........................................ 39

RBI directed NBFCs to maintain Net-owned Funds (NOF) at Rs 3 crore by 31 March 2013 39

Union Cabinet sets Base Price for Auction of 2G Spectrum at 14000 Crore Rupees ........... 40

India’s NSE became the World’s Largest Bourse in Equity Segment as per WFE’s Global Ranking .................................................................................................................................. 40

RBI permitted Banks to lend to Telecom Companies for the Upcoming Auction for Spectrum ............................................................................................................................... 41

Fitch Ratings revised the Indian Retail Sector Outlook for the second half 2012-13 to Negative ................................................................................................................................ 42

India’s Industrial Output declined to 1.8 Percent in June 2012 ........................................... 43

Moody’s cut India’s Growth Forecast to 5.5 Percent ........................................................... 43

India’s FDI Inflow plunged 53 Percent in April-June Quarter of Fiscal 2012-13 ................... 44

India’s Exports declined to 22.4 Billion Dollar in July 2012 .................................................. 44

India’s Headline Inflation eased to 6.87 Percent in July 2012 .............................................. 45

Inter-ministerial group recommended Linking Patented Drug Prices to Per-capita Income 45

PMEAC pegged India’s Growth at 6.7 Percent in the Fiscal Year 2012-13 ........................... 46

India’s Retail Inflation declined to 9.86 percent in July 2012 ............................................... 47

Regulator SEBI permitted seven Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) to start Operation in India ...................................................................................................................................... 47





Union Finance Ministry approved 49 Percent FDI in Insurance and Pension Sector ........... 48

India eased External Overseas Borrowing Rules to enable Easier Access to Cheap Dollar Funds ..................................................................................................................................... 49

Public Accounts Committee (PAC) called for Deterrent Penal Provisions against Units in SEZs ....................................................................................................................................... 50

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) transferred a Surplus of Rs 16010 crore to the Union Government .......................................................................................................................... 51

SEBI allowed Partial Flexibility in IDRs for Investors ............................................................. 51

State .............................................................................................................................................. 52

Uttarakhand announced a Substantial hike in Land Compensation to Victims ................... 52

Orissa is the first state to commence e-payment facility for government employees ........ 52

The Chief Minister of Odisha reshuffled his Cabinet Ministry ............................................. 52

EGoM decided to invest Rs. 425 crore for Gujarat Drought Relief....................................... 53

Annual Plan Size for Jharkhand finalised at 16300 Crore Rupees ........................................ 53

State Government of Goa Launched Ladli Laxmi Scheme .................................................... 54

Andhra Pradesh Government decided to put a Cap on the Tuition Fee Reimbursement ... 55

Union Cabinet Approved Three New Extension Lines in Delhi Metro .................................. 55

Union Government allocated 150 Crore Rupees to Uttarakhand for Flood Relief .............. 55

The House Sparrow was declared as State Bird of Delhi ...................................................... 56

UP Roadways introduced Bus Service from Noida to Agra via Yamuna Expressway ........... 56

SC: It will not allow resumption of Mining Activities of Iron Ore in Karnataka .................... 56

Gujarat state Government announced a Comprehensive Ban on Gutka ............................. 56

Uttarakhand Cabinet raised Maximum Age limit to 40 Years for Government Jobs ........... 57

Punjab Government set up an anti-ragging Cell to Curb the Menace of Ragging................ 57

Sikkim Lokayukta Bill received Presidential Assent .............................................................. 57

Indian Diary ................................................................................................................................... 58

Corporate ...................................................................................................................................... 61





SBI reduced Interest Rate on Home and Car Loans by Up to 0.5 Percent ............................ 61

Toshiba launched its new Thinking LED range RZ1 of TV sets .............................................. 62

The Sahara Group acquired landmark Plaza Hotel of New York .......................................... 63

NDTV filed Lawsuit against Audience Measurement Company TAM India .......................... 63

Hero MotoCorp invested 20 million dollar in US based Erik Buell for R&D ......................... 64

SBI reduced the interest rate on the deposits of more than 5 years ................................... 64

Gilead Sciences signed with 3 Indian companies for low-cost HIV drugs ............................ 64

National Housing Bank cut Interest Rate by up to 1 percent for Urban Low Income Group65

Court restrained sale of Videocon’s Pebble washing machine on Whirlpool appeal .......... 65

Micro Technologies India introduced Micro Call Blocker for unsolicited Calls & SMS......... 65

Geojit BNP launched Android OS Flip Me; first mobile trading solution on NSE & BSE ....... 66

German logistics Deutsche Bahn tied up with Moser Baer for Clean Energy Project .......... 66

KNR Constructions bagged the Tollway Road Project .......................................................... 67

Siemens India Bagged 290 Million Euro NMDC Deal ............................................................ 67

Jet Airways Tied Up With HDFC Bank and Launched Credit Cards ....................................... 68

Keshub Mahindra stepped down as the Chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra ..................... 68

Hoppr launched its Service in Chennai to allow Users explore Rewards and Offers ........... 68

M&M signed MoU with Oriental Bank for Personal and Commercial Vehicle Financing .... 69

ESPN signed Hero MotoCorp, Tata Docomo and Airtel Digital as the Sponsors .................. 69

Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma was signed as the Brand Ambassador of Unicharm’s Sofy ........................................................................................................................................ 69

Samsung unveiled New Tablet called Galaxy Note 10.1 Tablet in US, Britain and South Korea ..................................................................................................................................... 70

Philippe Divry appointed as the Managing Director of Volvo India ..................................... 70

Arvind Saxena appointed the Managing Director of Volkswagen India ............................... 70

Relaxo Footwear signed Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif as its Brand .................................. 71

Bharti Group sold its Stake in Centum Learning to Everonn Education ............................... 71





SpiceJet announced launch of Two Daily Flights to Jabalpur from Delhi and Mumbai ....... 71

The Bhilai Steel Plant won the Prime Minister’s Trophy for the 10th Time ......................... 72

IDBI Bank Ltd entered into a MoU with SMERA to evaluate its MSME ................................ 72

Antony Jenkins appointed as the New Group Chief Executive of Barclays .......................... 72

McNally Bharat won 122 crore Rupees Contract from SAIL ................................................. 73

HSBC sold its Entire Stake in Federal Bank for 341 Crore Rupees ........................................ 73

Jammu and Kashmir Bank was Awarded Best Banker Prize ................................................. 73

GAIL signed pact with French Energy Giant GDF Suez to import LNG .................................. 73

Apple won Patent Infringement Case against Samsung ....................................................... 74

Sports ............................................................................................................................................ 74

London Olympics 2012 concluded as US topped the Medal Tally ....................................... 74

Medal Tally – London Olympics 2012 ................................................................................... 77

Michel Phelps became the Most Successful Athlete in the Olympic History ....................... 79

Vijay Kumar bagged Silver in Olympics 25 Metre Rapid Fire Pistol Event ............................ 79

Saina Nehwal clinched Bronze in Women’s Singles Badminton Event at London Olympics 2012 ...................................................................................................................................... 80

Jamaican Sprinter Usain Bolt won Gold in Men’s 100 Meter Race, set Olympic Record ..... 81

Mary Kom bagged Bronze in Women Flyweight Boxing at London Olympics 2012 ............ 81

India bagged Record Six Medals in London Olympics 2012 as Sushil Kumar settled for Silver............................................................................................................................................... 82

VVS Laxman announced Retirement from International Cricket ......................................... 83

Rory Mcllroy won the US PGA Golf Championship ............................................................... 83

IOA set up Three-Member Committee to resolve Issues in Indian Hockey ......................... 83

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore appointed as the head of Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards Committee ............................................................................................................................ 83

Roger Federer and Li Na won Cincinnati Masters ................................................................ 84

South Africa replaced England as the World’s Number One Cricket Team ......................... 84





Vijay Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt chosen for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2012 ........... 85

Ankur Mittal won the Bronze Medal in the Fourth International Junior Shotgun Cup ........ 86

India defeated Australia to win ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup ........................................ 86

Delhi won the 23rd Federation Cup National Throwball Championship ............................. 87

Queen Elizabeth officially opened the London Paralympic Games ...................................... 87

England’s test team captain Andrew Strauss retired from International Cricket ................ 88

Hashim Amla became the Fastest Player to reach Landmark 3000 One-Day International Runs ....................................................................................................................................... 88

DLF announced to end its Association with Indian Premiere League .................................. 88

Environment Ecology .................................................................................................................... 89

Indian Project won the World Environment Day Challenge ................................................. 89

NASA’s Scientists warned Earth might face More Heat Waves ............................................ 89

Parliamentary Panel on Agriculture recommended to ban GM Food Crops ....................... 90

Ministry of Environment and Forest issued Advisory to reduce the Impact of Communication Towers ........................................................................................................ 90

Supreme Court extended the ban on Tourism Activities in Tiger Reserves ......................... 91

Science & Technology ................................................................................................................... 91

Study found Tumor Stem Cells multiply and Fuel Cancer .................................................... 91

A Web-based System developed for advising Farmers on Fertilizers .................................. 91

Scientists Unveiled the Origin of the Singing Mice ............................................................... 91

A New Strain of Rice developed by the Scientists that could boost Crop Yields .................. 92

One Liners ..................................................................................................................................... 92

News Capsule ................................................................................................................................ 94

Kaushik Basu Ended Tenure as the Chief Economic Advisor in New Delhi .......................... 94

9 physicists worldwide received the Fundamental Physics Prize ......................................... 94

UP Government inaugurated State Service Delivery Gateway in Lucknow ......................... 95

Indian Scientist Ashoke Sen was honoured with Fundamental Physics Prize ...................... 95





Kofi Annan quit as the UN special envoy to Syria ................................................................. 95

Pather Panchali secured 42 rank in Sight and Sound Poll .................................................... 96

Rakesh Singh appointed as the 55th President of ICAI ......................................................... 97

Bimal Gurung Appointed as Chief Executive Officer of GTA ................................................ 97

Typhoon Damrey hit the Chinese Provinces Liaoning and Hebei ......................................... 97

Prime Minister of Fiji, Laisenia Qarase was punished for One year Prison .......................... 97

Securities and Exchange Board of India inaugurated their local office in Jaipur ................. 98

New Species of Spider named after Naturalist David Attenborough ................................... 98

Former Chief Minister of Gujarat, Keshubhai Patel launched Gujarat Parivartan Party ...... 98

Gunman killed 6 at Sikh Temple in Oak Creek in Wisconsin................................................. 99

Naresh Chandra Committee submitted its Report on National Security ............................. 99

Syed Nasim Ahmed Zaidi appointed New Election Commissioner ...................................... 99

First Meeting of the India-CELAC Troika Foreign Ministers was held in New Delhi ........... 100

India successfully test-fired Medium Range Ballistic Missile Agni – II ............................... 100

Typhoon Haikui slammed into the East Coast of China ...................................................... 101

The Re-Designed Website of the President of India was Launched ................................... 101

Scientist identified a new Oxidant in the Atmosphere ....................................................... 101

Raghuram Rajan appointed the New Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry .... 102

Pak Government Honoured Saadat Hasan Manto with the Nisan-i-Imtiaz ........................ 102

Scientists found a Stem Cell Therapy to prevent Osteoarthritis ........................................ 103

The Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Didier Reynders visited India ..................................... 103

The Fiji Government gave Methodist Church Permission to held its Annual Meeting ...... 103

Time, CNN suspended Fareed Zakaria for Plagiarism ......................................................... 103

Pakistan Government honoured Gopi Chand Narang with Sitara-i-Imtiaz ........................ 104

Prime Minister Shram Awards for year 2011 announced .................................................. 104

Rogelio Sierra Diaz, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cuba visited India ........................ 104





Noted Indian Cinematographer Ashok Mehta passed away .............................................. 105

Wikileaks Founder Julian Assange would be Granted Political Asylum by Ecuador .......... 105

Lakhdar Brahimi was appointed the New UN Arab League Envoy for Syria ...................... 105

PJ Kurien elected the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha .................................................... 106

Maharashtra recorded the Maximum Number of Deaths due to SAEs during Drug Trials 106

Vayalar Ravi assumed Charge as Union Minister for Science and Technology .................. 107

Poonam Kishore Saxena appointed as Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes .......... 107

First Type of Tea prepared 1000 Years Ago by Native Americans ...................................... 107

Charles L Bennett received the Gruber Cosmology Prize 2012 .......................................... 108

Six Top Sporting Coaches to receive Dronacharya Award for 2012 ................................... 108

The Castle Naggar in Himachal Pradesh was given Heritage Status ................................... 108

Sonia Gandhi ranked Sixth in the Forbes’ List of 100 Most Powerful Women in the World............................................................................................................................................. 109

NASA’s Curiosity Rover took its First Drive on the Surface of Mars ................................... 109

Twitter banned Six Accounts Similar in Appearance to PMO Account .............................. 110

Indian American Karl Mehta was selected to Work on Five High-Impact Projects ............ 110

Species of Rat that doesn’t Chew discovered in Indonesia ................................................ 110

Air Force Version of Pilot-less Target Aircraft Lakshya-1 was successfully Test-flown ...... 111

Senkaku Islands became the Bone of Contention between China and Japan ................... 111

Veteran Actor AK Hangal passed away in Mumbai ............................................................ 111

US Astronaut Neil Alden Armstrong passed away .............................................................. 112

Delhi Government presented Lifetime Achievement Awards ............................................ 112

The CII held the Eleventh Energy Efficiency Summit in Hyderabad ................................... 113

PM Nair appointed the Director General of National Disaster Response Force & Civil Defence ............................................................................................................................... 113

The NCR Planning Board approved the Controversial Greater Noida Master Plan 2021 .. 113

The Book Challenged Official Story of Osama bin Laden Killing ......................................... 114





Archaeologists discovered 2000-Year Old Sculpture in Mexico ......................................... 114

Raghuram Rajan took over as the Chief Economic Advisor of in Union Finance Ministry . 114

Ordnance Factory Board signed a MoU for a Joint Venture with Rosoboronexport, Russia............................................................................................................................................. 115

Aditi Mukherjee won the prestigious Norman Borlaug Award .......................................... 115

G Ashok Kumar took over as the Southern Naval Command Chief ................................... 115

Current Affairs Quizzes ............................................................................................................... 116

Economy Current Affairs Quiz ............................................................................................. 116

Science Current Affairs Quiz ............................................................................................... 124

Corporate Current Affairs Quiz ........................................................................................... 128

Sports Current Affairs Quiz ................................................................................................. 131

Questions of the Month .............................................................................................................. 135

General knowledge Quizzes ........................................................................................................ 136

Indian Independence Quiz .................................................................................................. 137

Olympic Quiz ....................................................................................................................... 139





PICK OF THE MONTH

NASA’S CURIOSITY ROVER TOOK ITS FIRST DRIVE ON THE SURFACE OF MARS

NASA’s Curiosity rover took its first drive on the surface of Mars on 23 August 2012. The rover in its first drive moved around six metres from its original landing site. After more tests on its systems, NASA intends to move the Curiosity rover some 400 metres to the southeast to continue its exploration of the red planet.

NASA also released images of the tracks left by the rover, to show the success of the mission. The space agency also announced that the original landing site of the Curiosity rover would be named after the late science fiction author Ray Bradbury who died on 5 June 2012. The site will be known as the Bradbury Landing.

Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on 26 November 2011 aboard the MSL spacecraft and successfully landed on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater on Mars on 6 August 2012. The rover's goals include investigation of the climate and geology on the red planet. The rover would also explore if the Mars was ever hospitable to life. Besides it will also investigate the role of water and planetary habitability, and preparing for human exploration.

NASA’S NEW ROBOT ROVER CURIOSITY TOUCHED THE SURFACE OF MARS

The US space agency NASA landed Curiosity, a huge new robot rover on Mars on 5 August 2012. The one-tonne vehicle touched the surface of Mars after a 345-million-mile expedition. The robot rover will now conduct a study to find out whether the planet was ever hospitable to life.

SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGICAL FEATURES OF CURIOSITY

The 900 kg rover has the top speed of about 4cm/s

Plutonium generators installed on the rover will deliver heat and electricity for at least 14 years

75kg science payload more than 10 times as massive as those of earlier US Mars rovers

Equipped with tools to brush and drill into rocks, to scoop up, sort and sieve samples

Variety of analytical techniques to discern chemistry in rocks, soil and atmosphere

Even carries a laser to zap rocks; beam will identify atomic elements in rocks

Equipped with 17 cameras, which will identify particular targets, and a laser will zap those rocks to probe their chemistry

Findings of the mission will be delivered to Earth through antennas on the rover deck





The robot rover, which epitomizes the technological wizardry of mankind, is set to spend nearly two years for the mission.

NASA undertook the mission with an objective to determine whether Mars has ever had the conditions to support life. The ambitious project costed the US government about 2.5 billion dollar.

INDIA’S NSE BECAME THE WORLD’S LARGEST BOURSE IN EQUITY SEGMENT AS PER WFE’S GLOBAL RANKING

As per the latest global ranking compiled and published by the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in August 2012, the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) become the world’s largest bourse in terms of the number of trades in equity segment for the first six months of 2012. A total of 735474 trades took place in the equity segment of NSE in the January-June period of 2012, making it the world’s largest exchange on this parameter. NSE was followed by NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX at the second and the third positions.

Industry experts attributed the recent position of NSE acquired by the bourse to growing investor base, use of latest technology and new products. NSE's platform is connected to two lakh trading terminals in more than 2000 towns and cities across the country.

NSE is the second largest exchange globally after Korea Exchange for index options. Eurex was the third largest exchange worldwide in terms of total number of index options traded during the first six months of 2012.

BSE recorded a total of 187824 trades during this period in its equity segment. The total number of listed companies is much larger in case of the BSE, the exchange however lags behind NSE significantly in terms of volume and value of trades.

The latest data published by WFE indicated that investors from tier-three cities contributed more than 45 per cent of total cash market retail turnover in the financial year 2011- 12. The tier-three cities account for more than half of the total retail investor base on NSE platform.

CAG PEGGED PUBLIC EXCHEQUER’S LOSS AT 1.86 LAKH CRORE IN COAL BLOCKS ALLOCATION SCAM

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in its incisive audit report noted that India’s exchequer suffered a massive loss of 1.86 lakh crore due to the distribution of coal blocks without bidding. The CAG report was tabled in the parliament on 17 August 2012.

The CAG in its report stated that 57 coal blocks that were allocated to private companies during 2004-2009, extended them a windfall gain of 1.86 lakh crore rupees. The CAG report has also brought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh under scrutiny as he was holding the charge of Coal Ministry from 2006 to 2009. Besides, the CAG report also raised serious allegations against the





PMO which delayed the fair bidding process for coal blocks despite the clearance from Law and Justice Ministry.

Tata Group, Reliance Power, Jindal Power and Steel, Abhijit Group, Bhushan Group, Electro Steel, OP Jindal Group were some of the major beneficiaries of the coal blocks distribution.

The government has distributed about 150 coal blocks over the past eight years. During this period Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Shibu Soren and Prakash Jaiswal has been at the helm of the Coal Ministry. The 1.86 lakh rupees scam is the biggest in the history of India as it surpassed the 1.7 lakh crore 2G spectrum scam.

RUSSIA FORMALLY BECAME A MEMBER OF THE WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION

Russia formally became a member of the World Trade Organisation(WTO) on 22 August 2012 after 18 years of negotiations. Russia agreed to reduce import tariffs on goods, including food and cars and to relax controls on overseas companies entering its financial and telecom sectors. Russia will be the 156th member of the WTO.

WTO requires that any country that seeks to benefit from it must apply the same trade rules to all member countries. Russia negotiated for membership for 18 years, beginning when the WTO was called the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

ANTONY JENKINS APPOINTED AS THE NEW GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF BARCLAYS

Barclays, the British banking giant, appointed Antony Jenkins as its new Group Chief Executive on 30 August 2012. Jenkins replaced Barclays’ former chief executive officer Bob Diamond who stepped down following the interest rate manipulation scandal.

Jenkins currently leads Barclays Retail and Business Banking (RBB) business. He has been a member of the Group Executive Committee of Barclays since 2009.

The US and the UK authorities had slapped a 290-million pound penalty on Barclays to settle the charges of manipulating global benchmark lending rates such as Libor, and Euribor, which influence many other interest rates.

INDIA SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FIRED MEDIUM RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILE AGNI – II

India on 9 August 2012 successfully test-fired domestically built surface-to-surface two stage Agni-II ballistic missile. The missile was launched from a test range at Wheeler Island off Odisha





coast. The nuclear capable missile with a strike range of 2000 km was first test fired on 11 April 1999. The missile was inducted in the Army on 17 May 2010.

The missile was launched by the strategic force command of Indian Army as a routine users’ trial. The objective of the launch was to train the user team to launch the missile. Agni-II is 20 metres long and capable of carrying a nuclear warhead weighing one ton.

Agni-II was developed under the joint work of advanced systems laboratory, the missile development laboratory of the DRDO, Defence Research Development Laboratory and Research Centre Imarat, while it was integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad.

The Agni-II missile belongs to the genre of medium range ballistic missiles developed by India under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. The missile was made operational by the Indian Army in March 2010.

POWER TRIPPED IN NORTHERN, EASTERN AND NORTH EASTERN GRIDS: INDIA’S BIGGEST POWER BLACKOUT

India witnessed its biggest ever power blackout on 31 July 2012. Post the collapse of the northern power grid twenty states in India were left with no electricity till late evening. This is the second time that the country saw a power failure of a huge margin, interestingly both the failures happened in a time frame of over twenty four hours.

The collapse happened at around one o clock in the noon, when the northern grid tripped, which then immediately led to a similar effect on the eastern and north-eastern grids, as the two are connected as a common grid. The problem was compounded as several states had removed the under frequency relays that island their systems when grid disruptions occur.

Apparently, the failure of the three power grids despite a stable electricity supply was due to the mounting demand for electricity as monsoon rains remained deficient, outdated power transmission equipments and utter lack of discipline by state utilities in drawing power. Among the states affected were Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, West Bengal, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Orissa, Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Assam, meaning that the power trip covered more than half of the country’s population.

Amongst the worst hit were the two hundred coal miners trapped in West Bengal and Jharkhand as their shafts remained closed. Amongst the railways, almost three hundred trains remained stranded , also the Delhi Metro, which is a life line to many came to a stop leaving the traffic situation in the state a tizzy. During the peak hour the supply stood less than 40,000 MW against the demand of 130,000 MW.

The situation came back to control later by evening on 31 July 2012, forty percent of the system was operating normally again and power was eventually restored over the states. The first power cut of this kind happened just few hours back on the night of 30 July 2012.





INTERNATIONAL

US AND PAKISTAN INKED NATO SUPPLY AGREEMENT

After a week long negotiations, Pakistan and the US on 31 July 2012 finally signed an agreement on transporting supplies for NATO troops in Afghanistan through Pakistan, until the end of 2015. The agreement was signed by Additional Defence Secretary Rear Admiral Farrukh Ahmed and US Charge d Affaires Richard Hoagland.

Under the agreement, the US will provide 1.1 billion dollar aid to Pakistan for fighting terrorists within its borders. The agreement will cease to exist by the end of 2015, though, it can be renewed for one-year intervals beyond that. The agreement is set to replace the existing arrangements, which is not an official agreement and largely based on a verbal understanding.

MAJOR POINTS OF THE AGREEMENT ARE AS FOLLOWS:

The agreement bars transportation of arms and ammunition for NATO/ISAF in Afghanistan via Pakistan

Arms shipments and equipments for training of Afghan security forces allowed

Routes from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan are to be used by NATO tankers

No tax or duty to be levied on the containers though commercial carriers will have to pay a fee.

Pakistan to ensure the security and quick transfer of cargo while keeping the US authority in loop

Containers travelling to Afghanistan will be bound to return via Pakistan

The Defence Ministry which will act as a central coordination authority will review daily operations and other

matters related to the supply routes

Two monitoring offices for NATO supplies to be set up at the Defence Ministry and the US embassy

ELECTION COMMISSIONS OF INDIA AND SOUTH KOREA SIGNED MOU TO STRENGTHEN DEMOCRACY

The Election Commission of India and South Korean Election Commission on 1 August 2012 signed an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) to strengthen institutions and processes for democracy. This was 13th MoU that India signed with Electoral Bodies. It will also strengthen India-South Korea bilateral cooperation.

Both the nations will work together for the cause of the Asian electoral community and the larger global electoral fraternity.

INDIA ALLOWED FDI (FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT) FROM PAKISTAN





Indian government on 1 August 2012 decided to allow investment from Pakistan with the objective of boosting bilateral economic relations. However, India kept out strategic sectors of defence, space and atomic energy from Pakistan. Pakistan can explore sectors like cement, textiles and sports for investments in India. Besides, the FDI proposals from Pakistan need to be cleared from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB). It is important to note that India had granted the MFN status to Pakistan in 1996. Although Pakistan had notified granting the MFN status to India in March 2012, it is yet to implement it fully.

However, Pakistan had partially liberalised its trade regime with India in March 2012 by shifting from positive list rules to negative. It means that barring 1209 items Pakistan will allow import of all other Indian goods. can explore sectors like cement, textiles and sports for investments in the country.

US IMPOSED SANCTIONS ON BANKS HANDLING IRANIAN OIL TRANSACTIONS

United States announced fresh sanctions against foreign banks that helps Iran sell its oil on 1 August 2012.The U.S government signed an executive order of new sanctions which will target anyone buying Iranian petrochemicals or facilitating payments to Iran, including an Iraqi and a Chinese Bank. The government stated that the measure would increase pressure on Tehran for failing to meet its international nuclear obligations. The sanctions are targeting the foreign banks that handle transactions for Iranian oil or handle large transactions from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) or Naftiran Intertrade Company (NICO).

The order given by Obama also targeted the China's Bank of Kunlun and Iraq's Elaf Islamic Bank for providing services to Iranian banks. On this order, China reacted quite angrily , saying that the effort is being used to put pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.

China, a big importer of Iranian oil decided to lodge an official protest with U.S.A after the recent development. The new order provides waiver to countries that have cut the purchases of Iranian oil significantly. Oil and Petrochemical industry account almost eighty percent of Iran’s revenues.

INDIA SIGNED TAX INFORMATION EXCHANGE AGREEMENT (TIEA) WITH MONACO

India signed Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Monaco on 31 July 2012 in New Delhi. It will allow the two countries to check tax evasion and money laundering. This was the ninth TIEA signed by India.

KEY FEATURES OF THE AGREEMENT ARE AS FOLLOWING

It is based on international standard of transparency and exchange of information.





Information must be foreseeably relevant to the administration and enforcement of the domestic laws of the Contracting Parties concerning taxes and tax matters covered by the agreement.

The requesting State has to provide some minimum details about the information requested in order to justify the foreseeably relevance criteria.

Information is to be treated as secret and can be disclosed to only specified person or authorities, which are tax authorities or the authorities concerned with the determination of tax appeal.

It also provides for disclosure of information to any other person or entity or authority or any other jurisdiction (including foreign Governments) with the written consent of the competent authority of the requested Party.

There is a specific provision that the requested Party shall provide upon request the information even though that Party may not need such information for its own tax purposes.

There is a specific provision for providing banking and ownership information.

There is a specific provision for Tax Examination Abroad where authorities of one State can present in the tax examination of taxpayer in the other State.

Upon entry into force, the Agreement allows exchange of information forthwith.

US SENATE PASSED BILL TO LABEL HAQQANI NETWORK AS A FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATION

The US Senate on 27 July 2012 unanimously passed a resolution to label the Haqqani network as a foreign terrorist group. The resolution came following the US House of Representatives passed Haqqani Network Terrorist Designation Act of 2012 early July 2012. The bill was already passed in 2011 but had to be passed by the Senate again given the changes made in it by the House. As the final step to become a legislation, the bill now move to the White House for the approval of President Barack Obama.





INDIA AND ISRAEL SIGNED COLLABORATIVE ACADEMIC RESEARCH PROGRAMME AGREEMENT

India and Israel signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 2 August 2012 for starting a collaborative academic research programme. Under the Research programme both the countries will together work in areas such as medical, information technology, social sciences, humanities and arts.

The MoU was signed by Professor Benjamin Geiger, Chairman of the Israel Science Foundation and Ved Prakash, Chairman of University Grants Commission. The agreement will exist for next five years, providing support up to 100000 dollar a research project for three years

The idea of collaborative academic research programme came into being during a recent visit of Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal to Israel. Sibal during the course of her visit had conducted dialogue with Israel’s Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, Education Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Chairman of Planning and Budgeting Committee Manuel Trajtenberg.

INDIA AND BELGIUM SIGNED AGREEMENT FOR THE MODERNISATION OF INDIAN RAILWAYS

WHAT IS HAQQANI NETWORK?

The Haqqani Network is a group of Islamic fanatics which have been fighting against US-led NATO forces and the government of Afghanistan to reacquire control over the trouble-torn nation. The insurgent group, which came into existence in mid 1970s, was largely used by the US as a tool against Soviet Russia during the cold war days. Haqqani Network is widely believed to have the support of Pakistani administration as well as the ISI, Pakistan's top spy agency.

The Network is led by Maulvi Jalaluddin Haqqani and his son Sirajuddin Haqqani. The group, which believed to have its base in Pakistan, operates across the Afghanistan- Pakistan border. The dreaded terror group consistently remains one of the most formidable threats to the US led NATO forces and the Afghan Government given its striking capabilities and the influence it enjoys among the conservative Islamic groups existing across the border. The network has drawn extreme reactions from the leaders in US and western countries, which consider it as the most resilient enemy network.





India on 1 August 2012 signed an agreement with Belgium for the modernisation of the Indian Railways and make some of the major railway stations in the country of global standard. Under the agreement the two countries would share design and current practices in railway infrastructure and deputation of experts in areas of mutual interest. The countries will also explore the new avenues of co-operation in the Railway sector.

Belgian state run companies such as Euro Station and Euro Immostar have vast experience in developing stations. The companies have extensive expertise in transforming historical railway stations into the modern international terminals.

Numerous Belgium or Belgium-based companies are already operating in India and have been involved in activities such as fastening and coating of rails to delivery of parts for train construction and software for safety and network management.

PAKISTAN SUPREME COURT ANNULLED NEW LAW PROTECTING THE PRIME MINISTER

Supreme Court of Pakistan on 3 August 2012 annulled the new law called CONTEMPT OF COURT ACT 2012 (COCA 2012) seeking to protect the Prime Minister from disqualification. A five-member bench of the Court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry ruled that the new law is unconstitutional and void with effect from the day it was enforced. The court found Section 2(a), Section 3, Section 4(4), Section 6(2&3), Section 8(1, 3 &5), Section 10(b), Section 11(3, 4 & 5), Section 12 and Section 13 of COCA 2012 as ultra vires the constitution of Pakistan.

The Court also noted that under Article 204 read with Entry 55 of the Fourth Schedule to the constitution, the high courts and the Supreme Court have powers to punish any person who is found guilty of contempt of court, falling within the definition of contempt of court given in Clause (2) of Article 204 of the constitution of Pakistan.





COCA 2012 was promulgated under Clause 3 of Article 204 of the constitution, which confers power on the legislature to make law to regulate the exercise of power by the Courts, and not to incorporate any substantive provision or defences as it has been done in the proviso.

The court ruling said that powers of the courts were reduced by incorporating expression by SCANDALISING A JUDGE IN RELATION TO HIS OFFICE whereas in Article 204(2) the word COURT has been used. The court further observed that incorporation of Article 248(1) in proviso (i) to Section 3 is tantamount to amending the constitution, which could not be done without following the procedure given in in articles 238 and 239 of the constitution.

UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADOPTED RESOLUTION ON SYRIA

The United Nations General Assembly on 3 August 2012 adopted a non-binding resolution that condemns Syria's use of heavy weapons in the fight against rebel forces. The resolution, drafted by Saudi Arabia, deplored the unrelenting bloodshed in Syria and demanded a peaceful political transition in the country.

The resolution got 133 votes in favour in the 193-member body, while 12 voted against the resolution. 31 nations including India chose to remain absent during the voting. The fresh resolution is largely in line with the League of Arab States’ resolution which demanded Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad to step down from power and urged world community to severe diplomatic relations and ties with Syria.

Syrian government, however, deemed the resolution as an attempt to jeopardize the regional peace and stability. Those who opposed the UN resolution including China, Iran, North Korea, Belarus, Cuba argued that putting pressure only on one party would not help resolve the Syrian issue and would instead derail the issue from the track of a political settlement.

India abstained from voting after it found some of the provisions of the resolution contrary to its long held stance on the Syrian crisis. Provisions such as forced regime change and sanctions against the country India found particularly objectionable. Before deciding to abstain from the voting Indian Ambassador to the UN Hardeep Singh Puri had held several rounds of dialogue with his Saudi and Qatari counterparts to remove these provisions.

SUDAN SIGNED A DEAL WITH SOUTH SUDAN OVER OIL PAYMENTS

In pursuit of its goal to debilitate Iran’s oil exporting economy, the US government on 2 August 2012 announced to impose some fresh sanctions on Iran. Sanctions, imposed under Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (CISADA), put punitive regulation on those who continued to maintain ties with Iran.





Under the sanction Bank of Kunlun in China and Elaf Islamic Bank in Iraq faced cut off from transactions with US institutions. The two banks were punished for facilitating transactions worth millions of dollars on behalf of sanctioned Iranian banks. The new sanctions categorically target the Iranian energy and petrochemical sectors.

The sanctions are aimed at preventing Iran from establishing payment mechanisms for the purchase of Iranian oil to circumvent existing sanctions, and utilises the existing structure of our sanctions law, including exceptions for significant reductions in the purchase of Iranian oil.

Earlier this year India, China and a host of other nations had opposed US’ dictate to cut down their oil imports from Iran. US and European Union have come down heavily on Iran’s nuclear programme seeking all possible diplomatic methods to stop the belligerent nation to carry on its nuclear programme. Though the heavy sanctions imposed by the US and EU over Iran have not yielded them the desired result as Iran has thus far not gave up its plan to build nuclear armaments.

PAKISTAN’S SUPREME COURT SUMMONED PRIME MINISTER OVER CORRUPTION CASES AGAINST PRESIDENT

In a step towards contempt hearing, Pakistan’s Supreme Court on 8 August 2012 ordered the Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf to appear before judges for he failed to write Swiss authorities to reopen corruption cases against the president Asif Ali Zardari. The court asked the PM to appear before judges on 27 August 2012 to explain his actions.

Earlier on 3 August 2012 the apex court had nullified a legislation which sought to protect elected legislators from contempt charges. It was believed that the legislation was meant to prevent court from disqualifying current Prime Minister from the office under contempt charges.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan had removed Yousuf Raza Gilani from his post on 19 June 2012 after he failed to follow court’s order to write a letter to Swiss authorities asking them to reopen corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardari. Gilanis’ lawyers had argued that President enjoyed immunity from prosecution in foreign courts while in office, making an approach to Swiss authorities impossible.

The ruling coalition, led by the Pakistan Peoples Party, is aiming to become the first elected administration in Pakistan’s history to serve a full five-year term. But the current controversy, which could see Raja Parvez Ashraf also witnessing the same fate as that of his predecessor, might push the country for an early election. Elections in Pakistan are scheduled to take place in 2013, when the present government is set to complete its five-year term.

LIBYA'S NTC HANDED POWER TO NEWLY APPOINTED NATIONAL ASSEMBLY





The ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) handed over power to the newly elected National Assembly on 8 August 2012 in a night ceremony in Tripoli, Libya. NTC Chairman, Mustafa Abdel Jalil passed on the responsibility to the oldest member of the new two hundred member assembly, Mohammed Ali Salim.

Later, the congress members took an oath led by Mohammed Ali Salim. The new assembly will appoint a new interim Prime Minister to form the government and a sixty member panel to draft the new constitution of Libya. The NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdul Jalil and the oldest member of the body, Mohammed Ali Salim, also signed documents during the event.

The ceremony marked the first peaceful government transition of the country post Gadhafi seized power in Libya. The event was held on the twentieth day of Ramadan.

Though the handover of power came in as good news, Libya still struggles with its security concerns. Unknown individuals attacked the residence of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Misrata on 5 August 2012. None of the staff members inside the building at the time of the attack were registered hurt, but the building suffered extensive damage. NTC was announced in the city of Benghazi, Libya on 27 February 2011 to act as the political face of the revolution.

CHINA SIGNED ECONOMIC AGREEMENTS WITH NORTH KOREA WHICH INCLUDES THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEZS

China in the second week of August 2012 signed agreements with North Korea to increase the bilateral economic co-operation. The agreements were signed during a visit of senior North Korean official.

The agreements included the development of two special economic zones in North Korea. One is in Rason, on North Korea’s east coast and the other is in Hwanggumphyong on the border with China. Moreover, China and North Korea also signed agreements on agricultural co-operation and electricity supply.

ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION SUSPENDED SYRIA’S MEMBERSHIP

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the 57-member body of Islamic countries, suspended Syria from the organization. The decision to suspend Syria was taken despite Iran's vociferous opposition, during the OIC summit meeting in the Saudi city of Mecca on 16 August 2012.





The OIC move is aimed at pressurizing Syrian President embattled regime to cease violence against its own citizens. More than 20000 people have been killed so far in one of the bloodiest civil war in the history of Arab nations. In an statement issued at the end of the summit, OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said that the OIC decision is a strong message of Islamic Orgainsation to the trouble-torn nation.

The summit of the world's largest Islamic bloc, which represents nearly 1.6 billion muslim population globally started on 14 August 2012 with the suspension proposal put forward by a preparatory meeting of foreign ministers. Saudi King Abdullah presided over the meeting, attended by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad whose country has openly criticised the push to suspend Syria.

Earlier, Syria had faced suspension from Arab League in 2011 for supporting violence following the massive uprising against the current regime. Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad had however termed the move as a plot of western countries against Syria.

JOINT STATEMENT ON THE FIRST INDIA-CELAC TROIKA FOREIGN MINISTERS MEETING HELD IN NEW DELHI

The first meeting of the India-CELAC Troika Foreign Ministers was held on 7 August 2012 in New Delhi. The Indian delegation was led by the External Affairs Minister of India, Shri S.M Krishna, whilst the CELAC Troika was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile Mr. Alfredo Moreno Charme, the pro-tempore President of CELAC. Apart from both the nations, the Foreign Minister of Venezuela Mr. Nicolas Maduro and the Vice Foreign Minister of Cuba, Mr. Rogelio Sierra participated in the meeting as members of the Troika.

ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION (OIC)

Oragnisation of Islamic Cooperation, which was earlier known as Organisation of Islamic Conference came into existence on 25 September 1969. The 57-member body is headquartered Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The bloc claims to be the representative of nearly 1.6 billion muslim population across the world. Arabic, English and French are the official language of the organization. Despite the fact that India represents about 10 percent of muslim population in the world, it has not been given the membership of the organization.





OBJECTIVE OF THE MEET

To discuss the regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest, to strengthen the multifaceted bilateral cooperation between India and CELAC.

To co ordinate responses to regional issues and address international challenges including the UN reform, the international financial crisis, climate change and international terrorism.

To enhance the exchange of visits at all levels including at the Summit level leading towards a 'Strategic Partnership' between India and CELAC.

To expand relations between India and countries in the Latin America and the Caribbean region and make it possible for them to work together bearing in mind each sides' respective development priorities based on the common shared values of democracy, freedom, equality and justice.

COLLECTIVE DISCUSSIONS

The two nations expressed satisfaction over the growth of commercial, economic and investment relations between India and CELAC, that has crossed US$ 25 billion in 2012.

The nations agreed to set up an Energy Forum to discuss energy security issues.

Both the countries agreed to work towards providing value addition in the exchange of commodities through direct trading and by setting up of manufacturing units.

Both sides agreed to work towards providing for food security for their people

Both the countries agreed to initiate various projects related to tele-education, e-governance and tele-medicine that would cover the entire Latin America and Caribbean region.

The Foreign Ministers of India and the CELAC Troika ended the First Meeting of the India-CELAC Troika Foreign Ministerial Dialogue at a good note after the commencement of CELAC in December 2011. The pro-Tempore President and Troika Foreign Ministers of CELAC will present this Joint Statement in next meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Community that will be held in September 2012 in New York.

UN SECURITY COUNCIL DECIDED NOT TO EXTEND THE UN OBSERVER’S MISSION IN SYRIA

The United Nations Security Council decided not to extend the mandate of UN Observer’s Mission in Syria. However, it has supported the idea of maintaining a political office in Damascus. The French Ambassador to the UN said in New York that the conditions to continue were not fulfilled. The mission will come to an end on 19 August 2012.





The UN Security council had set two conditions for extending the mission of the unarmed observers beyond 20 August 2012. These included a halt to the Syrian Government's use of heavy weapons and a significant reduction in the violence. UN stated neither condition had been met nor Syria now risks a descent into a full-scale civil war. It virtually sealed the fate of UN Observer mission in Syria. Due to escalation in violence and risk to the lives of observers, the mission had to suspend its operations Mid way in June 2012.

ECUADOR GRANTED WIKILEAKS FOUNDER JULIAN ASSANGE POLITICAL ASYLUM

The foreign ministry of Ecuador announced that Ecuador would be granting Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange a political asylum on 16 August 2012. This decision will help Assange shield from being extradited from Britain to Sweden, where he is facing charges of rape and sexual molestation.

Ecuador officially the Republic of Ecuador is a Representative democratic republic in South America, it is bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west.

In June 2012, Assange sought shelter in the Ecuadorian embassy in Britain after filing a petition seeking asylum from being extradited to Sweden. Assange claims that the accusations are a device of getting him to the US authorities so he could be indicted for divulging State secretes.

Following this, Ecuador requested the British government to grant the embassy permission to fly Assange to Ecuador, but the British authorities have declined any such permission as of now. This decision taken by the British government hasn’t gone down well with Ecuador and both the nations have started a war of words on the social networking site called Twitter.

Assange shot to fame in the year 2010 after he leaked a number of US diplomatic cables and videos regarding the war in Iraq and Afghanistan through Wikileaks. Following the incident, USA and other countries whose secrets were divulged jumped into considerable action. Assange and his team argue that the alleged sex crimes allegations and these accusations are untrue and falsely built up.

LAKHDAR BRAHIMI APPOINTED NEW JOINT SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF UN AND ARAB LEAGUE FOR SYRIA

Veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi was appointed the new joint special representative of the UN and the League of Arab States for Syria on 17 August 2012. Brahimi, the former Algerian Foreign Minister, will replace Kofi Annan, who had stepped down as UN and Arab League joint special envoy to Syria on 2 August 2012.





Brahimi, who served as Algeria’s foreign minister from 1991 to 1993, joined UN in 1994 and served various high profile positions until he retired in 2005. Brahimi also has a vast experience of working with Arab nations. He served as under-secretary-general of the Arab League from 1984 to 1991.He also served as the Arab League's special envoy to Lebanon from 1989 to 1991, mediating the end of a civil war in that country.

Brahimi's appointment to the high profile poition came a day after the UN Security Council decided to set up a new political liaison center in Damascus, the Syrian capital.

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on 16 February demanding the heads of the UN and the Arab League to appoint a special envoy for Syria, a country which has been troubled by prolonged tension and violence between anti-government protesters and rebels and the forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan was appointed the UN and Arab League’s joint special envoy to Syria on 23 February 2012.

INDIA TO CUT IMPORT DUTIES ON 234 ITEMS FROM PAKISTAN

The Union Cabinet on 17 August 2012 approved the Commerce Ministry’s proposal to cut down the list of sensitive items under South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) for Pakistan by 30 percent. Besides, India will also cut import duties on about 234 items from Pakistan under the bilateral trade normalisation programme. The cabinet, however, made it clear that the India will follow these measures only when Pakistan reciprocates with the same gesture and allows goods to be traded through the land routes

Pakistan permits only 137 items to be imported through the Attari land route, while the rest goods are imported through sea route, making exports largely unviable for Indian traders. Indian authorities have been consistently demanding Pakistan to allow all goods to be traded through land, but the demand has not received any positive response as yet.

India and Pakistan initiated the trade normalisation programme in early 2011 which subsequently paved the way for fastpaced liberalisation of trade and investments. The process, however, slackened over the past few months due to the political turmoil in Pakistan.

MYANMAR ABOLISHED CENSORSHIP OF THE COUNTRY'S MEDIA

Myanmar government on 20 August 2012 abolished censorship of the country's media. The reporters would no longer have to submit their work to state censors before publication. Burma had begun censorship on media on 6 August 1964.

The journalists were given permission to print without prior censorship and restrictions were lifted on 30000 internet sites, allowing users unrestricted access to political content for the first time.





INDIA, IRAN AND AFGHANISTAN AGREED FOR TRANSIT CO-OPERATION THROUGH CHABAHAR PORT

India, Iran and Afghanistan agreed to work for expanding trade and transit co-operation through Chabahar port in Iran. The representatives of the three countries will meet in September 2012 to expedite the process. The move was finalized at a trilateral meeting of the top officials from the three nations. India was represented by Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai.

Located in South East Iran, Chabahar port offers great opportunities in trade and commerce for India in Afghanistan and Central Asia.

SUPREME COURT OF PAKISTAN GRANTED THREE-WEEK TIME TO PRIME MINISTER

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on 27 August 2012 granted three-week time to the Prime Minister Raja Parvez Ashraf in the show-cause notice for contempt of court regarding the implementation of National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO).

The Supreme Court, on 8 August 2012, issued a contempt notice to Prime Minister Ashraf for not implementing its order of writing a letter to the Swiss authorities to reopen a graft case against President Asif Ali Zardari.

A five-judge special bench of Apex Court comprising Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, Justice Ijaz Ahmed Chaudhry, Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Muhammad Ather Saeed heard the case.

If the Prime Minister fails to implement the Supreme court’s order to write the letter to the Swiss authorities to reopen the graft case against President Asif Ali Zardari then he might also face the same fate like his predecessor Yusuf Raja Gilani. The apex court on 19 June 2012 had disqualified and ousted Yusuf Raza Gillani from holding the prime minister office in the contempt charge.

INDIA CHINA AGREED TO SET UP JOINT WORKING GROUP ON TRADE AND INVESTMENTS

India and China agreed to set up a joint working group (JWG) to look into issues related to trade and investments. The decision to set up the JWG was taken at the meeting of India-China Joint Group on Economic Relations, Trade, Science and Technology in New Delhi on 27 August 2012. Besides, the two nations also agreed to adopt a five-year plan on economic cooperation. The ministerial level meeting was attended by Indian Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and his Chinese counterpart Chen Deaming.





The working group will submit its report within three months. The working group is set up even as India has expressed serious concerns over the widening trade deficit with its neighbour and sought a correction. On its part, China expressed serious concern over the imposition of duty on import of power equipment by New Delhi.

The total bilateral trade between India and China for 2011-12, stood at 75457.42 million dollar as compared with 59000.36 million dollar in 2010-11. During 2011-12, the exports were 17902.98 million dollar while the imports stood at 57554.44 million dollar. The provisional trade deficit for 2011-12 was 39651.46 million dollar.

The Joint Group on Economic Relations, Trade, Science & Technology was formed in 1988 when then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi visited Beijing.

INDIA, AFGHANISTAN AND IRAN TO SET UP JOINT WORKING GROUP TO SPUR TRADE

Iran, India and Afghanistan discussed options for investment in the Chabahar Port, located in southeast Iran. In a crucial trilateral meeting held on 26 August 2012 ahead of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit, the three nations agreed to set up a joint working group to spur trade and transit through the Iranian port of Chabahar.

Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai held dialogues with deputy foreign ministers of Iran and Afghanistan in Tehran to explore ways to expand trade and transit cooperation, including investment, among the three countries, starting with the Chabahar Port.

In a joint statement released after trilateral dialogue the three countries committed to meet within next three months at Chabahar to take the discussions forward.

In another significant development Indian External Affairs Minister SM Krishna held bilateral dialogues with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi on 27 August 2012. The two leaders discussed issues related to trade and economy during the meeting. The two nations hoped to take their economic ties to a new level through increased cooperation in the economic sector.

Iran is hosting the 16th Nan-Aligned Movement Summit in capital Tehran from 26 August to 31 August 2012.

INDIA AND IRAN DECIDED TO EXPAND TRADE AND ECONOMIC COOPERATION





India and Iran 28 August 2012 decided to expand Trade and Economic Cooperation. The two nations agreed to expand trade and economic cooperation through the Chahbahar port. The port will act as an important trade and transit point for Afghanistan and central Asia. On the nuclear issue, India expressed hope that progress will be on the P5 plus one dialogue in the interest of peace and stability in the region. Both the nations agreed to set up an Indian cultural centre in Tehran.

India also discussed the issue of global governance confronting the developing world.

INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY SET UP SPECIAL TASK FORCE FOR IRAN

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the international agency for the monitoring of nuclear energy, on 29 August 2012 set up a special Task Force to handle inspections and other issues related to the Iran's disputed nuclear programme.

The Vienna based agency is aiming at handling the sensitive Iran issue by deploying the experts and other resources under one unit. IAEA, which regularly inspects Iran's nuclear sites, has voiced growing concern over the lran's nuclear program. Tehran, however, has argued that its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and there is no any military dimension to it.

Iran has been at the target of western nations for carrying out its nuclear plan. The western nations including US and European Union have been persuading Iran to stop its nuclear development programme to yield to vital result. Iran has been facing tough economic sanctions imposed by US and European Union. The Islamic state has dubbed the allegations made by US and its allies as ridiculous and maintained that the country has no military ambition behind its nuclear programme.





NATIONAL

SPECIAL COURT CONVICTED 32 PEOPLE IN NARODA PATIYA RIOT CASE

A special court on 29 August 2012 convicted 32 people, including former Gujarat Minister Maya Kodnani and Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi in the 2002 Naroda Patiya riots case. The communal riot in Naroda Patiya in Gujarat had claimed the lives of 97 people from the minority community.

Kodnani, a three-time BJP MLA from Naroda area and Bajrangi were held guilty under sections 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of

IPC in the post-Godhra riots case.

The court acquitted 29 other accused in the same case as it didn’t find any solid evidence against them. The court will award the punishment to all the convicts on 31 August 2012. The trial in the case began in August 2009 and charges were framed against 62 accused.

The massacre in the Naroda Patiya area had taken place a day after the Godhra train burning incident of 27 February 2002. On February 28, 2002 when a bandh call was given by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a large crowd gathered in the Naroda Patiya area and attacked people belonging to minority community that resulted in the death of 97 people while 33 others were injured in the violence.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA UPHELD THE DEATH SENTENCE OF MUMBAI TERROR ATTACK CONVICT AJMAL AMIR KASAB

Supreme Court of India on 29 August 2012 upheld the death sentence of Mumbai terror attack convict Ajmal Amir Kasab. Upholding the death sentence of Kasab the Supreme Court bench of Justice Aftab Alam and Justice CK Prasad held that waging war against the country was the primary and foremost offence committed by the Pakistani terrorist.

Kasab along with nine other Pakistani terrorists had executed the country’s one of the deadliest terror attack on 26 November 2008. They had travelled from Karachi by sea and had gone on a shooting spree at various city landmarks including Taj palace hotel, in which 166 people were killed. While Kasab was captured alive, the other eight terrorists in his group were killed by security forces during the counter-terror operations.

The Apex Court’s order came after hearing to a petition filed by Kasab against the Bombay High Court’s decision to uphold his death sentence awarded by a special court. Since no advocate was ready to take the case, Raju Ramchandran, senior Supreme Court lawyer, was appointed the Amicus Curiea by the court.





Kasab was awarded the death sentence by a special anti-terror court on 6 May 2010 on charges of criminal conspiracy, waging war against the nation and various other provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the anti-terror law, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Later on 21 February 2011, the Bombay High Court had upheld the special court’s verdict on 19 different charges under the IPC, the Arms Act, the Explosives Act, the Explosive Substances Act, the Foreigners Act, the Passport Act and the Railway Act.

With the Supreme Court dismissed his mercy petition, Kasab can move to the President of India seeking mercy. President of India holds the authority to pardon a death convict. As the Supreme Court confirmed his death sentence, became the 309th prisoner on death row in India. If executed, he will be the 52nd person to be hanged after India got independence.

THE GOVERNMENT APPROVED A COMPLETE BAN ON EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN

The Union Government on 28 August 2012 cleared a proposal to put a complete ban on employment of children up to the age of 14 both in hazardous and non-hazardous work by amending an anti-child labour Act. The Union Cabinet, approved bringing amendment to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, which has also penal provisions for non compliance.

As per the existing Act, children below 14 years of age are allowed to work in industries not considered to be hazardous. Children between 14-18 years will also be defined as adolescents in the amended Act. The amendment will also fulfill the mandate of Right to Education to free and compulsory education for children in the age group of 6-15 years. It will also bring labour laws in the country in line with International Labour Organisation norms. The Union Cabinet also referred the Land Acquisition Bill, to a Group of Ministers (GoM).

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ENACTED PROHIBITION OF CHILD MARRIAGE ACT 2006

The Government of India enacted the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA) 2006, which will have under its ambit all the States and Union Territories of India except the State of Jammu & Kashmir. The Act also applies to all citizens of India without and beyond India.

Under the PCMA 2006, every child marriage is voidable at the option of the contracting party who was a child at the time of the marriage, within two years of the child attaining majority.

PCMA 2006 replaced Child Marriage Restraint Act (CMRA) of 1929. PCMA was notified in the Gazette of India on 11 January, 2007 and has been enforced 1 November, 2007.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA ORDERED BETTER HEALTHCARE FOR BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY VICTIMS





In an order passed on 9 August 2012, the Supreme Court of India directed the government to make all the medical records of Bhopal Gas victims computerised and issue health booklets and smart cards to each victim. The court’s directive came as it seek to ensure better healthcare and proper implementation of relief and rehabilitation programme for thousands of victims of world’s worst industrial disaster.

The Apex Court Bench of Chief Justice SH Kapadia and Justices AK Patnaik and Swatanter Kumar passed the order on a petition filed by the Bhopal Gas Peedith Mahila Udyog Sanghathan.

An Empowered Monitoring Committee will be set up to carry out the court’s order. The committee will undertake the tasks such as making medical surveillance operational, computerisation of medical information, publication of ‘health booklets,’ etc. It will also ensure that ‘health booklets’ and ‘smart cards’ are provided to each victim irrespective of where such victim is being treated.”

BCCC ASKED TV CHANNELS TO BE EXTRA-CAUTIOUS WHILE SHOWING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

The Broadcasting Content Complaints Council (BCCC) in its report submitted to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, asked TV channels to be extra-cautious while showing violence against women. BCCC received almost half of the complaints related to obscene scenes during its first year of functioning.

BCCC stated that during the period from 20th of June 2011 till the 2nd July 2012, out of the 717 specific complaints received, 47 per cent were on obscenity and nudity while 16 per cent were regarding depiction of violence.

The BCCC directed some channels that since these programmes were not suitable for telecast during general viewing hours, they should suitably modify the content and air such programmes during restricted viewing hours. The main concern was use of vulgar language by participants and the alleged obscene acts performed by them during the shows.

BCCC is the non-news television industry’s self-regulatory body. It was formed in July 2011.

BIMAL GURUNG SWORN IN AS THE HEAD OF GORKHALAND TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION

The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), a semi-autonomous body for trouble-torn Darjeeling hills in West Bengal, sworn in on 4 August 2012. The 50-member body was administered oath by West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan in presence of Home Minister Sushil Shinde, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Railway Minister Mukul Roy.

Bimal Gurung, President of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), will head the first elected body of the GTA. The 50-member body will consists of 45 elected candidates and 5 nominated candidates.





The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) had emerged victorious on all 45 seats in the Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) election. The party won 28 seats out of 45 uncontested while, the voting for remaining 17 GTA seats were held on 29 July 2012 and results were declared on 2 August 2012.

Gorkhaland Territorial Administration is the successor of Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council which came into existence in 1988. Gorkhaland Territorial Administration was the result of three-year long agitation by Bimal Gurung led Gorkha Janmukti Morcha for separate Gorkhaland state. The agitation which kicked off in 2007 culminated with the formation of GTA in 2011. In 2011, when Mamta Banrjee led Trinmool Congress stormed to power in West Bengal, three sides viz. Union Government, West Bengal Government and GJM inked a tripartite agreement with respect to the formation of GTA.

The West Bengal Legislative Assembly had passed a legislation for the formation of Gorkha Land on 2 September 2011. According to the legislation the GTA will have administrative, executive and financial powers but no legislative powers.

UNION CABINET APPROVED THE LAUNCH OF SATELLITE TO STUDY MARS

The Union Cabinet on 3 August 2012 gave its consent to the launch of satellite to the Mars proposed in 2013. The Cabinet decision came following a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The Department of Space had sent a proposal to the Union Cabinet, in which it had sought government’s permission to launch a satellite to study Mars, also called Red Planet. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is expected to launch a Mars Orbiter in November 2013 with a 25kg scientific payload. The Mars mission will be launched by ISRO’s advanced Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The objective of the mission is to study the climate, geology, origin, evolution and sustainability of life on the planet. If the ISRO fails to launch the Mars Mission next year, other opportunites are available in 2016 and 2018.

India has undertaken the massive space project with the help of United States, Russia, Europe, Japan and China. The mission is estimated to cost the government exchequer about 450 crore rupees. An initial allocation of 125 crore rupees was already made in the budget 2012-13.

SPECIAL TRIBUNAL APPROVED MHA MOVE TO DECLARE SIMI AS AN UNLAWFUL ORGANIZATION

A special tribunal in its decision pronounced on 1 August 2012 approved the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) move to declare Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) as an unlawful association. The tribunal headed by sitting Delhi High Court Judge Justice VK Shali submitted its report to the Union Home Ministry. The tribunal was constituted to decide whether there was sufficient cause for declaring the association unlawful.





The Union Home Ministry on 3 February 2012 had extended the ban on SIMI for another two years. SIMI was first designated as an unlawful association on 27 September 2001, given its alleged involvement in the numerous terrorist incidents in the country. The organization also believed to have a close rapport with dreaded terrorist organization like Lashker-e-Taiba.

SIMI was founded by Mohammad Ahmadullah Siddiqi on 25 April 1977, in Aligadh, Uttar Pradesh. The organization was banned under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. SIMI appealed against the ban in various courts including Special Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act tribunals, but it was not given any respite. Though a special tribunal in August 2008 had lifted the ban on SIMI, but the ban was soon restored by the then Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan, on 6 August, 2008.

UNION GOVERNMENT APPROVED RELAXATION IN POLICIES RELATED TO TRANSFER OF GOVERNMENT LAND

The Union Government of India on 2 August 2012 approved relaxation in policies relating to transfer of government land. The objective of the policy is to speed up private-public partnership in the country and to fast-track pending infrastructure projects. The decision will ensure that infrastructure projects are not held up for procedural delays.

A ban was imposed in 2011 on transfer of government-owned land to any entity except in cases where land was to be transferred from one government department to another.This ban however excluded the cases where the land was to be transferred from one government department to another. The policy has also been relaxed for all land transfers from ministries to statutory authorities or PSUs (Public Sector Units).

Besides, the government allowed use and development of railway land by Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA), as per the provisions of Railways Amendment Act, 2005.

POWER TRIPPED IN NORTHERN, EASTERN AND NORTH EASTERN GRIDS: INDIA’S BIGGEST POWER BLACKOUT

India witnessed its biggest ever power blackout on 31 July 2012. Post the collapse of the northern power grid twenty states in India were left with no electricity till late evening. This is the second time that the country saw a power failure of a huge margin, interestingly both the failures happened in a time frame of over twenty four hours.

The collapse happened at around one o clock in the noon, when the northern grid tripped, which then immediately led to a similar effect on the eastern and north-eastern grids, as the two are connected as a common grid. The problem was compounded as several states had removed the under frequency relays that island their systems when grid disruptions occur.

Apparently, the failure of the three power grids despite a stable electricity supply was due to the mounting demand for electricity as monsoon rains remained deficient, outdated power transmission equipments and utter lack of discipline by state utilities in drawing power.





Among the states affected were Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, West Bengal, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir, Orissa, Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Assam, meaning that the power trip covered more than half of the country’s population.

Amongst the worst hit were the two hundred coal miners trapped in West Bengal and Jharkhand as their shafts remained closed. Amongst the railways, almost three hundred trains remained stranded, also the Delhi Metro, which is a life line to many came to a stop leaving the traffic situation in the state a tizzy. During the peak hour the supply stood less than 40,000 MW against the demand of 130,000 MW.

The situation came back to control later by evening on 31 July 2012, forty percent of the system was operating normally again and power was eventually restored over the states. The first power cut of this kind happened just few hours back on the night of 30 July 2012.

ECONOMY

GROWTH OF EIGHT CORE SECTORS SLIPPED TO 3.6 PERCENT IN JUNE 2012 AGAINST 5.6 PERCENT IN JUNE 2011

As per the official figures released on 31 July 2012, growth of eight core sectors slipped to 3.6 percent in June 2012 against 5.6 percent in June 2011. During April-June 2012-13, the cumulative growth rate of the Core industries was 3.6 % as against their growth at 5.2% during the corresponding period in 2011-12. Core sector growth in May 2012 had moderated to 4 percent, from 5.9 percent in May 2011.

The Eight core industries that include crude oil, petroleum refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished steel have a combined weight of 37.90 per cent in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

Coal: Coal production (weight: 4.38% in IIP) registered a growth of 7.2% in June 2012 compared to its growth at (-) 3.0% in June 2011. The growth of the coal sector in cumulative terms witnessed a growth of 6.4% during April-June 2012-13 compared to its growth at 0.3% during the same period of 2011-12.

Crude Oil: Crude Oil production (weight: 5.22% in IIP) registered a growth of (-) 0.8% in June 2012 compared to its growth at 7.7% in June 2011. Cumulatively Crude Oil production registered a growth of (-) 0.5% during April-June 2012-13 compared to its growth at 9.5% during the same period of 2011-12.

Natural Gas: Natural Gas production (weight: 1.71% in IIP) registered a growth of (-) 11.1% in June 2012 compared to its growth at (-) 11.7% in June 2011. Cumulatively, Natural Gas production registered a growth of (-) 11.1% during April-June 2012-13 compared to its growth at (-) 10.2% during the same period of 2011-12.





Petroleum Refinery Products: Petroleum refinery production (weight: 5.94% in IIP) had a growth of 6.1% in June 2012 compared to its growth at 4.6% in June 2011. In cumulative terms, Petroleum refinery production saw a growth of 3.2% during April-June 2012-13 compared to its 5.2% growth during (April-June) period of 2011-12.

Fertilizers: Fertilizer production (weight: 1.25% in IIP) registered a growth of (-) 11.7% in June 2012 against its growth at (-) 2.4% in June 2011. Cumulatively Fertilizer production had a growth of (-) 12.2% during April-June 2012-13 corresponding to 1.1% growth during (April-June) period of 2011-12.

Steel (Alloy + Non-Alloy): Steel production (weight: 6.68% in IIP) registered a growth rate of (-) 0.5% in June 2012 against its 14.5% growth in June 2011. Cumulatively, Steel production registered a 3.6% growth during April-June 2012-13 compared to its 8.4% growth during the same period of 2011-12.

Cement: Cement production (weight: 2.41% in IIP) registered a growth of 10.2% in June 2012 against its 1.7% growth in June 2011. The cumulative growth of Cement Production was 9.9% during April-June 2012-13 compared to its 0.1% growth during the same period of 2011-12.

Electricity: Electricity generation (weight: 10.32% in IIP) had a 8.1% growth in June 2012 compared to its 7.9% growth in June 2011. The cumulative growth of Electricity generation was 6.4% during April-June 2012-13 compared to 8.2% growth during the same period of 2011-12.

India's economic growth rate dipped to nine-year low, both in the March quarter at 5.3 percent, as well as for the 2011-12 fiscal at 6.5 percent on account of global economic slowdown and its own domestic problems thereby prompting the industry to demand immediate and bold action to arrest slowdown. The data released by the Commerce Ministry on 1 August 2012 India’s exports in June also slipped by 5.45 per cent, year-on- year, to 25 billion dollar on account of sluggish global economy.

EGOM APPROVED 50% DIESEL SUBSIDY TO FARMERS IN DROUGHT HIT AREAS TO SAVE KAHRIF CROP

An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on drought, headed by agriculture minister Sharad Pawar in a meeting on 31 July 2012 announced a 50 per cent diesel subsidy scheme for the farmers to help them save the standing kharif crop through irrigation. The total subsidy burden would be around Rs 1,260 crore and is to be borne equally by the state governments and the farmers. Districts that received 50 per cent deficient rainfalls can avail this facility. The subsidy scheme will be applicable in districts that had more than 50 per cent deficient rains as on 15 July 2012

The EGoM also approved an increase in the subsidy on the seeds of alternative crops under contingency plans. A relief package of Rs 1440 crore was also cleared towards watershed development-related efforts in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan where around 56 lakh hectares of farmland are estimated to go uncultivated. Around Rs 500 crore was





approved for meeting drinking water-related challenges in these states. Rs. 453 crore would be given under the National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) to Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Haryana.

It was decided in the EGoM meeting that the subsidy amount on seeds of cereals is to be increased from Rs 500 a quintal to Rs 700 per quintal, while that of pulses and oilseeds would be enhanced from Rs 1200 per quintal to Rs 2000 per quintal. The government has prepared contingency plans for 320 districts.

The Agriculture Ministry also decided to waive the duty on import of certain items to increase the availability of feed ingredients for animal husbandry sector needs. Duty- free imports of oilmeal is to be allowed to ensure feed availability to livestock. The withdrawal of customs duty on oilmeal imports is to be applicable for de-oiled soyameal, sunflower, mustard and canola oilmeal. Currently, oilmeal imports attract a duty of 15 per cent.

RBI SIGNED MOU WITH FINANCIAL REGULATORS OF 9 COUNTRIES TO PROMOTE SHARING OF INFORMATION

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) signed three memoranda of understanding – with Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC), Financial Services Authority of UK and Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed with regulators of other countries to promote greater co-operation and sharing of supervisory information between the regulators. RBI signed nine MoUs thus far with financial regulators of different countries.

DROUGHT-LIKE CONDITIONS

The South-West monsoon created a drought-like situation in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab. Of the 36 metrological sub-divisions, 17 have received normal or excess rains, while the remaining 19 had scanty or deficit rainfall.

The rainfall deficit for the country was estimated at at 20 per cent as on 30 July 2012. About 400 of the 630 districts have received scanty or deficient rains in the 2012 monsoon. North-West India has witnessed a deficit of 31 per cent, while Central India witnessed 18 per cent shortfall in rains. South India was affected by a rain deficit of 52 per cent, while the shortfall is 10 per cent in East and North East India.

Kharif crops have been sown in a total of 668.24 lakh hectares (lh) in 2012 as against 724.17 lh in the corresponding period in 2011. Crops such as rice, coarse cereals and pulses have witnessed a major decline in areas at 8.7 lh, 43.48 lh and 16.83 lh, respectively. However, soyabean has seen a rise of 16.9 lh, while sugarcane and cotton acreage has gone up by 5.89 lh and 3.2 lh this year.





The MoU with the Jersey Financial Services authority was signed on 16 July 2012. Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC) is an independent statutory body. The main function of JFC is the regulation, licensing and supervision of financial services providers for compliance with prudential norms and conduct of business requirements in Jersey.

The MOU with the Financial Services Authority (FSA), UK was signed on 17 July 2012 at FSA, UK Headquarters, London. The FSA is the United Kingdom’s principal national financial services and markets regulator and administers the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000(FSMA) that provides for the supervision of firms, financial services, financial products as well the financial markets.

The MoU with the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (Finanstilsynet) was signed on 19 July 2012 at FSA, Norway headquarters. Finanstilsynet as the supervisory authority is entrusted with supervision of banks (insurance companies and investment firms, etc.) in Norway as per the Financial Supervision Act of 1956.

INDIA’S FISCAL DEFICIT REACHED 37 PERCENT OF THE BUDGET ESTIMATE

According to the latest data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on 1 August 2012, India's fiscal deficit in the first quarter (April-June) of the fiscal year 2012-13 stood at 1.90 lakh crore rupees which was 37 percent of the entire budget estimate.

The Union Government in the budget 2012 had pegged the fiscal deficit for the financial year 2012-13 at 5.13 lakh crore, or 5.1 percent of total GDP. Fiscal deficit during the corresponding period of fiscal year 2011-12 was 39 percent of the budget estimates amounting 1.63 lakh crore rupees.

The revenue receipts, however, increased in the first three months of fiscal year 2012-13. The revenue receipt during the given period stood at 1.18 lakh crore rupees, which was 12.7 percent of the budget estimates. Total expenditure of the government stood at 3.12 lakh crore rupees, or 21 percent of the budget estimates.

RBI DIRECTED NBFCS TO MAINTAIN NET-OWNED FUNDS (NOF) AT RS 3 CRORE BY 31 MARCH 2013

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in a notification issued on 3 August 2012 stated that all registered non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) which who intend to convert themselves into non-banking financial company-micro finance institutions (NBFC-MFIs) would have to seek registration with immediate effect, not later than 31 October 2012.

The central bank also mentioned that the NBFCs have to maintain net-owned funds (NOF) at Rs 3 crore by 31 March 2013, and at Rs.5 crore by 31 March 31 2014. If the NBFCs fail maintain the NOF they will have to ensure that lending to the micro finance sector, that is, individuals, SHGs or JLGs, which qualify for loans from MFIs to be restricted to 10 per cent of the total assets.





The NBFCs operating in the north-eastern region are to maintain the minimum NOF at Rs.1 crore by 31 March 2012, and at Rs.2 crore by 31 March 2014.

UNION CABINET SETS BASE PRICE FOR AUCTION OF 2G SPECTRUM AT 14000 CRORE RUPEES

The Union Cabinet on 4 August 2012 approved the reserve price for auction of 2G spectrum as well as spectrum usage charges (SUC). The Cabinet set the reserve price of 14000 crore rupees for the 5 megahertz pan-India spectrum in the 1800 megahertz band. The price is 22 percent lower than the telecom regulator's suggestion. An auctioneer will be soon appointed to conduct a fresh auction. The Cabinet also endorsed the EGoM's recommendation that the reserve price for the 800 megahertz band, which is used by CDMA operators, be fixed at 1.3 times the price for 1800 megahertz band.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had recommended the base price at 18000 crore rupees, which drew a heavy criticism from telecom companies, who argued that the base price suggested by TRAI is irrational.

INDIA’S NSE BECAME THE WORLD ’S LARGEST BOURSE IN EQUITY SEGMENT AS PER WFE’S GLOBAL RANKING

OPERATIONAL FLEXIBILITY

To promote operational flexibility the NBFCs are to ensure that the average interest rate on loans during a financial year does not exceed the average borrowing cost during that financial year plus the margin, within the prescribed cap. The RBI notification also stated that while the rate of interest on individual loans may exceed 26 per cent, the maximum variance permitted for individual loans between the minimum and the maximum interest rate cannot exceed 4 per cent.

The average interest paid on borrowings and charged by the MFI will have to be calculated on the average monthly balances of outstanding borrowings and the loan portfolio, respectively.

CAP MARGIN

The RBI also decided that the cap on margins as defined by the Malegam Committee are not to exceed 10 per cent for large MFIs (loans portfolios exceeding Rs.100 crore) and 12 per cent for others. The measure was initiated to ensure that in a low cost environment, the ultimate borrower will benefit, while in a rising interest rate environment and that the lending NBFC-MFIs will have sufficient leeway to operate on viable lines.





As per the latest global ranking compiled and published by the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in August 2012, the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) become the world’s largest bourse in terms of the number of trades in equity segment for the first six months of 2012. A total of 735474 trades took place in the equity segment of NSE in the January-June period of 2012, making it the world’s largest exchange on this parameter. NSE was followed by NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX at the second and the third positions.

Industry experts attributed the recent position of NSE acquired by the bourse to growing investor base, use of latest technology and new products. NSE's platform is connected to two lakh trading terminals in more than 2000 towns and cities across the country.

NSE is the second largest exchange globally after Korea Exchange for index options. Eurex was the third largest exchange worldwide in terms of total number of index options traded during the first six months of 2012.

BSE recorded a total of 187824 trades during this period in its equity segment. The total number of listed companies is much larger in case of the BSE, the exchange however lags behind NSE significantly in terms of volume and value of trades.

The latest data published by WFE indicated that investors from tier-three cities contributed more than 45 per cent of total cash market retail turnover in the financial year 2011- 12. The tier-three cities account for more than half of the total retail investor base on NSE platform.

RBI PERMITTED BANKS TO LEND TO TELECOM COMPANIES FOR THE UPCOMING AUCTION FOR SPECTRUM

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) permitted banks to lend to telecom companies for the upcoming auction for spectrum, subject to conditions such as mortgaging the spectrum to the lenders. The RBI had laid down a few pre-conditions for financing of telecom firms for the auction of airwaves to protect banks against potential defaults.

The Union cabinet on 3 August 2012 approved a proposal that allows telecom companies bidding for airwaves to mortgage spectrum to raise funds from banks. The government set a reserve or base price of Rs 14000 crore for the auction.

That banks were revising their lending rates in specific maturities without lowering the base rate concerned the RBI. This activity of the banks resulted in the transmission of monetary





policy signals by the central bank to be ineffective. The base rate is supposed to be responsive to changes in monetary conditions.

The RBI had formed a committee to assess the monetary policy transmission mechanism and also loan products offering fixed interest rate. The RBI want banks to enact changes in lending rates through their respective benchmark base rates for floating-rate loans.

FITCH RATINGS REVISED THE INDIAN RETAIL SECTOR OUTLOOK FOR THE SECOND HALF 2012-13 TO NEGATIVE

Fitch Ratings revised the Fitch Ratings revised the Indian retail sector outlook for the second half of the financial year 2012-13 to negative from stable in the backdrop of a decline in the discretionary spending ability. Fitch has revised down its real GDP forecasts to 6.5% and 7.0% for 2013 and 2014 respectively from the earlier 7.5% and 8.0%. The downward revision was attributed to sluggish demand, high construction costs and liquidity pressures. The worsening business conditions are likely to negatively impact credit profiles. The impact on individual retailers however depends on their ability to manage their capital structures.

According to the rating agency the Private Final Consumption Expenditure (PFCE) growth rate, which was weakest in the last seven years in the first six months of 2012, cannot be expected to improve significantly unless consumer price inflation dips and consumers receive a significant raise in real wages.

The agency stated that RBI's caution on interest rate cuts and high EMIs continue to be a deterrent for potential home buyers. The general slowdown and subdued job growth in the IT sector, which was at its lowest quarterly level so far is likely to hold back demand for commercial and retail properties. Real estate companies will continue to face margin compression from high construction costs for both building materials and labour.

ASSUMPTIONS

Fitch assumes that retailers will combat slowing SSG across format (lifestyle and value) by offering discounts, which in turn would help boost volumes and consequently overall revenue. However, this may lead to an erosion of gross margins.

Margin contraction, expansion plans as well as the need for inventory as retailers open up new stores, will increase working capital requirements which will be largely debt-funded. Companies, were however observed to be implementing various strategies to contain the debt, including raising equity and selling certain non-related assets and business segments to help in the maintenance of credit profiles.





INDIA’S INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT DECLINED TO 1.8 PERCENT IN JUNE 2012

India’s industrial output plunged to 1.8 per cent in June 2012 compared to 9.5 per cent growth registered during June 2011. For the first quarter, the index of industrial production (IIP) declined 0.1 per cent against 6.9 per cent growth in the same quarter of fiscal 2011-12. The figure released by the Central Statistics Office of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on 9 August 2012.

Manufacturing sector at -3.2 per cent and mining sector at 0.6 per cent largely hurt the overall IIP growth in June 2012. Manufacturing sector had recorded 11.1 per cent growth and mining sector output declined by 1.4 per cent in June 2011.

The capital goods category recorded a decline of 27.9 per cent in output in June 2012, while, the category had seen a 38.9 percent growth in the same month in 2011.

Basic goods output grew 4.1 per cent in June against 7.8 per cent growth in the June 2011. Growth of Intermediate goods remained unchanged at 1.6 per cent.

Consumer durables witnessed a growth of 9.1 per cent. However, consumer non-durables declined 1 per cent in June against a growth of 4.3 per cent in the same month last year.

Power sector registered a marginal 8.8 per cent growth in June 2012, higher than 8 per cent growth recorded in the same month in 2011.

The weak number of IIP could force Reserve Bank of India to cut policy rates at the next mid-quarter monetary policy review meeting slated for mid-September. Thus far the central bank has been counting on tight monetary policy to keep inflation in check. RBI had left the key policy rates unchanged in its mid-quarterly monetary policy review in July 2012.

MOODY’S CUT INDIA’S GROWTH FORECAST TO 5.5 PERCENT

Moody's Analytics cut India's growth forecast to 5.5 percent for the fiscal year 2012-13, as it blamed government or RBI of inaction despite slowing economy, as well as a poor monsoon.

INDEX OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION (IIP)

(Index of Industrial Production IIP) is compiled using data received form 16 source agencies including Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP); Indian Bureau of Mines; Central Electricity Authority; Joint Plant Committee; Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas; Office of Textile Commissioner; Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals; Directorate of Sugar; Department of Fertilizers; Directorate of Vanaspati, Vegetable Oils & Fats; Tea Board; Office of Jute Commissioner; Office of Coal Controller; Railway Board; Office of Salt Commissioner and Coffee Board.





The research unit of ratings agency Moody's Investors Service becomes the latest to cut India's growth forecasts this week.

Earlier CLSA and Citigroup had cut their growth outlooks for India to 5.4 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively for the fiscal year ending in March 2013. Moody’s noted despite the slowing growth both the government and the Reserve Bank of India had provided little policy response. Moody's added weaker-than-average rainfalls during the monsoon period would also weigh on India's growth. The research unit also cut its 2013 growth forecast to 6 percent from 6.2 percent.

INDIA’S FDI INFLOW PLUNGED 53 PERCENT IN APRIL-JUNE QUARTER OF FISCAL 2012-13

According to the FDI data released by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 10 August 2012, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in India declined to 5.4 billion dollar in the April-June quarter of fiscal 2012-13. The figure stood at 12.2 billion dollar during the same period of fiscal 2011-12.

On a cumulative basis FDI flows into India registered a fall of 53 percent as it was estimated at 7.7 billion dollar in the first quarter of the financial year 2012-13 compared to 16.3 billion dollar during the corresponding period of previous year.

Overall foreign investment, however, remained on positive trajectory with inflows estimated to have declined nearly 83 percent to 2 billion dollar, compared to 11.6 billion dollar in April-June 2011.

With poor show on investment front and higher trade deficit, India’s balance of payment is likely to aggravate further. As per the RBI data released on Balance of Payment for the last quarter of fiscal 2011-12, the trade deficit exceeded 50 billion dollar (10.6 per cent of GDP) and current account deficit rose to 21.7 billion dollar (4.5 per cent of GDP).

CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT (CAD)

India’s current account deficit (CAD) was at 30-year record high of 4.2 per cent of the GDP in 2011-12. CAD occurs when country’s total imports and transfers exceeds its total exports and transfers. High level of CAD leads to the deterioration in the value of a currency, while it also hurts the economy.

INDIA’S EXPORTS DECLINED TO 22.4 BILLION DOLLAR IN JULY 2012

India’s exports for the month of July 2012 stood at 22.4 billion dollar registering a decline of - 14.8 percent as compared to 26.3 billion dollar during the same month of 2011. Imports during July 2012 stood at 37.9 billion dollar as compared to 41.1 billion dollar in July 2011. Balance of Trade stood at 15.5 billion dollar during July 2012 as compared to 14.8 billion dollar in July 2011. The trade data were released by the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry on 14 August 2012.





The cumulative figure for exports for the period of April-July 2012 stood at 97.6 billion dollar as compared to 102.8 billion dollar in April-July 2011; The cumulative figure for imports for April-July 2012 stood at 153.2 billion dollar as compared to 163.8 billion dollar in April-July 2011. The cumulative figure for the Balance of Trade for the period of April-July 2012 stood at 55.6 billion dollar as compared to 61.0 billion dollar in April-July 2011.

INDIA’S HEADLINE INFLATION EASED TO 6.87 PERCENT IN JULY 2012

India’s annual headline inflation for the month of July 2012 eased to its three-year low of 6.87 percent in July 2012 from 7.25 percent in June 2012 and 9.63 percent in July 2011. The monthly inflation figure was released by the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry on 14 August 2012. Despite the inflation appears to be on a downward trajectory, RBI is unlikely to take a call on easing the key policy rates as inflation still remain way above its comfort level of 5-6 percent.

Owing to the meager drop in vegetables price food inflation which has a share of about 15 per cent in the Wholesale Price Index basket, fell marginally to 10.06 per cent in July 2012 from 10.81 per cent in the previous month.

Inflation in manufacturing sector or core inflation rose to 5.58 percent in July 2012 as compared to 5 percent in June 2012. Rise in core inflation was mainly attributed to higher prices of cotton textiles, paper and paper products, cement and lime.

The Apex Bank is scheduled to undertake its mid-quarter monetary policy review on 17 September 2012. Notwithstanding the dipping trend in inflation, there are remotest possiblities of RBI Governor taking any call on easing policy rates as he has reiterated that inflation is still above the RBI's comfort mark of 5-6 percent. There have been vociferous demands from various quarters to relieve the tight monetary policy stance, which is apparently hurting the growth of the economy. RBI had left the policy rates unchanged in its quartely monetary policy review in July 2012.

INTER-MINISTERIAL GROUP RECOMMENDED LINKING PATENTED DRUG PRICES TO PER-CAPITA INCOME

An inter-ministerial group formed in 2007 and entrusted with the responsibility of regulating prices of patented medicines recommended using a per capita income-linked reference pricing mechanism. The proposal by the group is expected to reduce prices of several patented dugs by up to one-third. However it will hit the profitability of foreign companies. The committee suggested fixing the price of patented drugs by comparing the price at which these drugs are procured by governments in the UK, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand. The committee recommended that the retail price is to be fixed by adjusting it to the per capita income of the country. The new mechanism is to be applicable for patented drugs that don’t have any therapeutic equivalents in the market.





For patented drugs that have similar alternatives in the market, the price is to be fixed in such a manner that it should not lead to an overall increase in the treatment cost. If the global launch of the patented drug takes place in India, the retail price will have to be based on the cost of developing the drugs and other factors. Prices of patented drugs are currently unregulated.

Patented drugs account for 1% of the $13-billion domestic market. This share is expected to grow to 5% of the estimated $50-60 billion drug market by 2020. The Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, the representative body of big Indian drugmakers, supported the reference-based system. The Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI), the lobby body of multinationals however stated that the cross-country per capita income-linked proposal is fundamentally flawed.

The Indian government is of the opinion that if patented drugs are not regulated, these would remain unaffordable for most Indians. A WHO study stated that as many as 79% of Indian patients pay for their healthcare expenditure from their own pockets. However it must also be noted that if the government fixes the prices of these drugs at excessively low levels, companies may stop selling drugs in the market.

PMEAC PEGGED INDIA’S GROWTH AT 6.7 PERCENT IN THE FISCAL YEAR 2012-13

According to the Economic Outlook 2012-13 released by Prime Minister Economic Advisory Council on 17 August 2012, India’s economy will grow at 6.7 percent in the financial year 2012-13. India economy had registered 6.5 percent growth in the fiscal 2011-12, which was the lowest in the past nine years.

The council also raised the projection for inflation to about 6.5 – 7 percent from earlier 5 – 6 percent.

The government’s fiscal deficit is expected to go up to 6 percent in the financial year 2012-13 as compared to 5.8 percent in the previous fiscal.

The current account deficit of the government pegged at 67. 1 billion dollar (3.6 percent of GDP).

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had earlier lowered its growth projection for 2012-13 to 6.5 per cent from 7.3 per cent estimated earlier. Other global agencies had also cut their growth

HISTORICAL BACKDROP

India had adopted a new product patent regime in 2005 after it became a signatory to TRIPS, an international intellectual property protection agreement, providing 20 years of marketing exclusivity to the patent holder. Global innovator companies such as GSK, Bayer AG, Novartis, Merck & Co and Bristol Myers Squibb who started launching their drugs in India continue to remain jittery about the government’s policies aimed at reducing healthcare costs. They complain that India’s implementation of intellectual property rights has been unsatisfactory.





forecast for Indian economy on the account of paralyzed policy reforms, high policy rates and weak monsoon.

The PMEAC in its report advised the government to take some concrete measures to reverse the pessimistic economic environment in the country. To accelerate the stalled reform council Chairman C Rangrajan urged the government to open multi-brand retail to foreign investment. It also recommended the government to raise diesel prices in one or more steps to moderate the widening fiscal deficit.

INDIA’S RETAIL INFLATION DECLINED TO 9.86 PERCENT IN JULY 2012

According to the retail inflation data released by Central Statistics Office (CSO), on 21 August 2012, India’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) based retail inflation came down to 9.86 percent in July 2012. The retail inflation number for June 2012 was revised downwards to 9.93 per cent from the provisional estimate of 10.02 per cent.

Prices of vegetables, edible oil, egg, meat, fish, pulses shot up considerably keeping the overall retail inflation high during the month of July.

Inflation rates for rural and urban areas stood at 9.76 per cent and 10.10 per cent in July 2012. As per the revised data, the inflation rates for rural and urban areas stood at 9.65 per cent and 10.44 per cent in June 2012.

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based headline inflation also declined to 6.87 percent in July 2012. The WPI inflation stood at 7.25 percent in June 2012.

REGULATOR SEBI PERMITTED SEVEN ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENT FUNDS (AIFS) TO START OPERATION IN INDIA

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in August 2012 permitted seven Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) to start operation in India under a newly formulated route that enable pooling of funds for investments in areas such as real estate, private equity and hedge funds. Six AIFs registered with the regulator in August 2012, while one was granted registration back on 23 July 2012. SEBI had published its guidelines with regard to AIF in May 2012.

The seven AIFs that registered with SEBI include IFCI Syncamore India Infrastructure Fund, Utthishta Yekum Fund, Indiaquotient Investment Trust, Forefront Alternate Investment Trust, Excedo Realty Fund, Sabre Partners Trust and KKR India Alternate Credit Opportunities Fund.

Funds established or incorporated in India for the purpose of pooling in of capital from Indian and foreign investors for investing would have to follow a pre-decided policy. SEBI decided to allow promoters of listed companies can offload 10 per cent of equity to AIFs such as such as





SME Funds, Infrastructure Funds, PE funds and Venture Capital Funds registered with the market regulator to attain minimum 25 per cent public holding.

AIFs, as per SEBI guidelines can operate broadly in three categories and it is mandatory for them to get registered with the regulator. The SEBI rules apply to all AIFs, including those operating as private equity funds, real estate funds and hedge funds, among others.

UNION FINANCE MINISTRY APPROVED 49 PERCENT FDI IN INSURANCE AND PENSION SECTOR

In a move aimed at encouraging investment sentiment in the country, the Union Finance Ministry on 22 August 2012 approved 49 percent foreign direct investment in insurance and pension sector. Earlier the permitted level of FDI in the insurance and pension sector was 26 percent.

The proposal for 49 percent FDI in insurance and pension sector was made during Pranab Mukherjee’s tenure at the finance minister office. However, the decision on the same was delayed because of resistance from the cronies.

With the approval of Union Finance Ministry, the bill will now be discussed in the cabinet and will require to be approved by the parliament. The chances of the bill getting through in the monsoon session of the parliament are very low as opposition parties have been consistently stalling the house on the issue of coal scam. The monsoon session is set to end on 27 August 2012.

As per the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) estimates, over the next five years, the insurance sector requires a capital infusion of more than 12 billion dollar. The

AIF CATEGORIES

The Category I AIFs are those where funds stand a chance of getting certain incentives or concessions from the government, SEBI or other regulators in India and include Social Venture Funds, Infrastructure Funds, Venture Capital Funds and SME Funds.

The Category II AIFs are those funds which can invest anywhere in any combination but are prohibited from raising debt, except for meeting their day-to-day operational requirements. These AIFs include PE funds, debt funds or fund of funds, as also all others falling outside the ambit of Category I and Category III.

The Category III AIFs are those trading with an objective to make short term returns and include hedge funds, among others.





Union Government has been trying hard to introduce the major reforms to revive the ailing economy. The measures such as FDI in multi -brand retail and civil avaiation, implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) have, however, faced fierce opposition from different political parties.

Indian economy is rapidly moving towards the grim economic situation similar faced during the recession. The economy needs some big ticket reforms to reverse the pessimistic economic environment. India's GDP growth fell to 6.5 percent during 2011-12 but the fourth quarter growth rate dropped to 5.3 percent, the slowest in past nine years. Business confidence among the investors and business leaders has touched the historic low as industrial output and trade figures are constantly going down.

The tight monetary policy measures adopted by the central bank to check inflation has actually aggravated the situation as high interest rates are hugely impacting the overall growth scenario. Indian industries have been reiterating that there is an urgent need to create conditions for revival of private investment.

The FDI in insurance might prove to be a start of the long pending reform but the Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram will have to work hard on political front to make it possible. Earlier the government had to defer the decision on the bill as it faced opposition from its allies such as Trinammol Congress.

INDIA EASED EXTERNAL OVERSEAS BORROWING RULES TO ENABLE EASIER ACCESS TO CHEAP DOLLAR FUNDS

The high-level committee on external commercial borrowings (ECB),chaired by secretary, department of economic affairs Arvind Mayaram on 22 August 2012 decided to further liberalise the foreign borrowing norms.

India eased overseas borrowing rules to enable easier access to cheap dollar funds to housing finance companies such as HDFC, small industry financier SIDBI. It was decided to permitted non-resident entities to provide rating enhancement facility to Indian borrower. India’s measure to ease overseas borrowing is expected to boost capital inflows by permitting lower rated companies to raise dollar funds. Even a company with low credit rating will be able to raise foreign funds using credit enhancement facility that states that third party is to assure the lender that he will be compensated if the borrower defaulted.

The government permitted foreign entities to provide credit enhancement to rupee bonds of Indian companies which will improve their appeal to investors. The minimum maturity period of such rupee bonds was reduced from seven years to three years.

Manufacturing sector too now will enjoy access to cheap dollar funds and they will be thus able to revive investments plans stuck on account of high costs. Earlier, only infrastructure and infrastructure finance companies could issue rupee-denominated bonds with guarantees from multilateral or regional financial institutions.





THE DECISION TAKEN BY THE HIGH-LEVEL COMMITTEE ON 22 AUGUST 2012 INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING:

Foreign institutional investors were permitted to invest in these bonds upto US$5 billion within the overall corporate bond limit of US$45 billion.

The minimum maturity period for rupee bonds was reduced to three years

Credit enhancement to provide an enabling mechanism for Indian companies to raise foreign debt

Costly credit observed to be one of the key issue impeding investments.

The panel also decided to increase the maturity of such buyers credit to maximum five years thereby allowing companies flexibility in payment. Extending refinance facility to SPVs will ease debt financing for infra projects.

ADVANTAGES FOR LOWER-RATED COMPANIES

The guarantee for domestic companies from offshore entities effectively lifts the credit ratings of the bonds thereby benefitting lower-rated borrowers. Indian companies have always been constrained in their funding options due to high domestic interest rates and difficulties in tapping markets overseas.

The actions targeting credit guarantees will benefit sectors such as telecoms and energy, where foreign companies often operate via Indian units, but whose domestic borrowing get constrained if they had lower ratings than their parent companies.

Infrastructure and manufacturing companies can re-finance a higher proportion of their rupee borrowings via cheaper overseas debt. These infrastructure and manufacturing companies can now tap overseas loans up to 75% of their average forex earnings over the previous three financial years from 50% previously.

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE (PAC) CALLED FOR DETERRENT PENAL PROVISIONS AGAINST UNITS IN SEZS

Parliament's Public Accounts Committee on 23 August 2012 decided to bring the three latest CAG reports on coal allocations, GMR-run Delhi airport and Reliance Power, onto its agenda for the year 2012.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in its meeting on 23 August 2012 called for deterrent penal provisions against units in Special Economic Zones which default duty payments to the exchequer. PAC in a report adopted in the meeting recommended an oversight mechanism which would ensure no misuse of the SEZ policy.

The PAC panel based its findings on a sample of 22 SEZ units. The panel found that out of an overall export of Rs 7149.23 crore made by 22 SEZ units, the actual export content was only Rs 1999.27 crore (28%) and the remaining Rs 5149.96 crores (72%) related to Domestic Tariff Area earnings.





PANEL FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS

The report stated that low figures of actual physical export of goods were typical of most SEZ units. The aim of SEZ Act was to boost exports and earning of foreign exchange by giving these units certain duty waivers and incentives. PAC however observed that there is no mandatory requirement of undertaking exports in the SEZ legislation. Since the units located in SEZs enjoy tax benefits and are expected to fuel economic growth, PAC recommended revisiting the scheme.

The committee recommended that all SEZs undertake physical export of at least 51% of their product, and even import tax waivers raw material for goods falling under the Domestic Tariff Area (DTA) is to be considered on the credit account of the SEZ firms.

It was noted that SEZ units could sell their goods, including by products, and services in DTA on payment of applicable duty including at nil rate with no requirement to payback the duty foregone on inputs used in the clearance of products. This policy will put SEZ units at a distinctly advantageous position compared to similar units in the DTA.

RESERVE BANK OF INDIA (RBI) TRANSFERRED A SURPLUS OF RS 16010 CRORE TO THE UNION GOVERNMENT

The Reserve Bank of India in its annual report released on 23 August 2012 mentioned that it transferred a surplus of Rs 16010 crore to the union government during 2011-12 which is 6.7% more than Rs 15,009 crore transferred in 2010-11.The central bank’s gross income increased by 43.4% to Rs 53176 crore in 2011-12. Its expenditure however rose by 17.1% to Rs 10137 core. After transfers to the contingency reserve, the asset development reserve and the four statutory funds, Rs 16010 crore was allocated for transfer to the centre.

The Reserve Bank recorded a sharp rise in its income from domestic resources as it aggressively bought bonds through its open market operations. However, the lower interest rates in the advanced markets led to a dip in income from foreign currency assets for the third consecutive year.

The earnings from domestic sources increased by Rs 17446 crore to Rs 33366 crore in 2011-12, an increase of 109.6% earned from liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) operations, higher coupon receipts on an increased portfolio of government securities and profit on sale of securities.

The Reserve Bank’s earnings from the deployment of foreign currency assets (FCA) and gold fell 6.3% to Rs 9810 crore in 2011-12. The rate of earnings on FCA and gold was lower at 1.47% in 2011-12, compared with 1.74% in 2010-11 because of the low interest rates in international markets.

SEBI ALLOWED PARTIAL FLEXIBILITY IN IDRS FOR INVESTORS





India’s market regulator Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on 28 August 2012 allowed partial flexibility in the conversion of Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs) into equity shares by investors. The SEBI move is aimed at retaining domestic liquidity besides, it is also expected to attract foreign entities to enroll their IDRs on India stock exchanges.

In another circular released by the RBI, the central bank put an overall cap of 5 billion dollar for raising of capital through IDRs by foreign companies in Indian markets. The RBI measure will help Indian investors to convert their depository receipts into equity shares of the issuer company and vice versa.

STATE

UTTARAKHAND ANNOUNCED A SUBSTANTIAL HIKE IN LAND COMPENSATION TO VICTIMS

The state government of Uttarakhand on 28 August 2012 announced a substantial increase in land compensation to victims. The land compensation to victims in hilly areas was increased from 240 rupees per nali (land area) to 2500 rupees per nali.

In the plains, such compensation was increased from 12000 rupees per hectare to 1.25 lakh rupees per hectare. Besides, the government decided to have one Secretary who will head both the departments, horticulture and agriculture. The state government would also modernize mandi samitis and make them hi-tech and introduce contract farming in the state.

ORISSA IS THE FIRST STATE TO COMMENCE E-PAYMENT FACILITY FOR GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

Orissa became the First Indian state to commence e-payment facility for government employees from 1 August 2012.

Now, the government employees in the state will receive their salaries and pensions through the online Portal of Reserve Bank of India. Employees received their salaries and pensions directly to their bank account.

Reserve Bank of India took an initiative for e-payment facilities.

THE CHIEF MINISTER OF ODISHA RESHUFFLED HIS CABINET MINISTRY

The Chief Minister of Odisha reshuffled his Cabinet Ministry on 2 August 2012. Patnaik suspended MP Priyamohan Mohaptra. He dropped Five Ministers and introduced Three Cabinet Members and Six Ministers in his Cabinet.





The CM of the state dropped five Ministers namely; Ghadai, Prafulla Samal, Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak, Pushpendra Singhdeo and Pratap Jena.

The Six new Ministers appointed by the Chief Minister of the State are:- Pratap Keshari Deb, Subrat Tarai, Rajanikant Singh, Sarojini Hembram, Arun Kumar Sahu and Rabi Narayan Nanda. Damodar Rout and Routray were appointed as the new Cabinet Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Forest and Environment department respectively.

Debi Prasad Mishra was appointed as the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Resources Development. She was the former Minister of Forest and Environment department. In addition, Rajanikant Singh was appointed as the Minister of Steel and Mines department. Usha Devi became the minister for Women and Child Development department. Arun Kumar Sahu had given charge for the Energy department.

Patnaik has 21 member ministry with only two women ministers Usha Devi and Sarojini Hembram, three tribal members (L.B. Himirika, Ramesh Majhi and Sarojini Hembram) and Subrat Tarai is a single member from scheduled caste community.

According to the Constitution of India, Odisha can have maximum number of 22 ministers in their state.

EGOM DECIDED TO INVEST RS. 425 CRORE FOR GUJARAT DROUGHT RELIEF

The Union Government decided to invest Rs. 425 crore for Gujarat Drought Relief on 3 August 2012. The decision took in the meeting with the Chief Minister of Gujarat. It was headed by the Union Agriculture Minister and Rural Development Minister.

The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) was also agreed to consider the demand of the state to extend the employment opportunities for the state under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), 2005.

The Chief Minister of Gujarat decided to leave 30 percent draught relief funds spent by State government.

ANNUAL PLAN SIZE FOR JHARKHAND FINALISED AT 16300 CRORE RUPEES

The Annual Plan for Jharkhand for the fiscal year 2012-13 finalised at 16300 crore rupees. The plan size was finalised at a meeting between Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Arjun Munda in New Delhi on 6 August 2012. Discussing the progress made by the state government the Planning commission noted that the total literacy rate in Jharkhand has improved from 54.13 percent in 2001 to 67.63 percent in





2011. But it is still lower than the National Literacy Rate of 74.04 percent in 2011. As per census 2001 the gender gap in literacy was 28.4 percent. In 2008 this gap was reduced to 27.31 percent (As per NSS data).

The overall GSDP growth rate of Jharkhand reached at the peak level of 20.5 percent in 2007-08 which turned negative at -1.7 percent in 2008-09 and subsequently improved to 5.0 percent and 6.0 percent respectively in 2009-10 and 2010-11. The growth of agriculture sector was 5.6 percent in 2007-08 and which significantly improved to 16 percent in 2008-09 but again came down to 1.8 percent in 2009-10. The growth rate of agriculture sector however improved to 7.7 percent in 2010-11. Similarly the growth rate of industry sector was very high at 44.7 percent in 2007-08 which suddenly dipped to -2.4 percent in 2008-09 and also remained at low level of 0.8 percent in 2009-10 and -0.1 percent in 2010-11. The growth of service sector has been good compared to the Primary and Secondary sectors. The growth rate of the services sector was 12.3 percent, 8.8 percent, 9.7 percent and 9.9 percent respectively in 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11.

The Per Capita income of Jharkhand at 1999-2000 (constant) prices increased from 15303 rupees in 2007-08 to 16294 rupees in 2008-09 but was still lower than the all India per capita income of 25494 rupees in 2008-09. The Per Capita Net State Domestic Product of Jharkhand was 22902 rupees in 2011-12 compared to 38005 rupees All India Per Capita NDP.

The focus during the 12th plan would be on catching up with the rest of country in human development indices and continuing efforts to create investment friendly environment. Road transport, health care and education would also be given special attention. Besides, the State would pursue an ambitious plan of 10 per cent growth in the 12th plan in order to double per capita income by 2016-17. Target for the growth of agri sector pegged at 6.5 percent while growth target for industries pegged at 12.5 percent.

STATE GOVERNMENT OF GOA LAUNCHED LADLI LAXMI SCHEME

State Government of Goa launched Ladli Laxmi Scheme on 6 July 2012. Women and Child Welfare department initiated this scheme. The meeting was headed by the Chief Minister of Goa. It aims to prevent female foeticide in the state.

Under this scheme, girls who are 18 years and above would be provided with Rs. 1 Lakh for their marriage. This scheme is for those girls who lie between the age group of 18-40 years.

This scheme is valid for those girls whose parents are living in Goa for the last 25 years. In addition, the girl should have been born and brought up in the state.

The State Government had reserved the fund of Rs. 150 crore for this scheme. Five banks were enrolled with the Women and Child Welfare department. Goa registers 1000 marriages (approx) every year.





ANDHRA PRADESH GOVERNMENT DECIDED TO PUT A CAP ON THE TUITION FEE REIMBURSEMENT

Andhra Pradesh state Government on 6 August 2012 decided to put in force a cap on the tuition fee reimbursement to 31 thousand 2 hundred rupees per student and introduce eligibility criteria under Tuition Fee Reimbursement Scheme to pursue higher education. This was decided at a meeting of the Cabinet Sub Committee and a panel of experts in Hyderabad following a recent ruling from the Supreme Court to implement Uniform Fee Structure in all the professional colleges.

Andhra Pradesh Government was reimbursing 100 percent tuition fee for the students belonging to BC, EBC, SC, ST communities and Minority students to pursue higher education including professional courses like engineering and medicine. In the wake of a recent ruling from the Supreme Court to implement a Uniform Fee Structure in all the professional colleges, the Government reviewed the present scheme on the basis of recommendations from an experts committee to ensure continuation of the scheme as well as to see not to bear any additional burden. An eligibility criterion also will be enforced to continue fee reimbursement to those students who clear at least 50 percent subjects in the previous year. These changes will be affecting about 20 lakh students especially the BC, Economically BC and Minority students as they are coming into force from the present academic year.

UNION CABINET APPROVED THREE NEW EXTENSION LINES IN DELHI METRO

The union cabinet sub-committee approved three new extension lines in the Delhi Metro on 7 August 2012. With this recent addition in the Delhi Metro, the lines are all set to cover the rural parts of Delhi and Haryana. Despite a financial stress situation, the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) approved proposals by the urban development ministry to extend the Dwarka line to Najafgarh in west Delhi, Mundka line to Bahadurgarh in Haryana and increase the length of the under-construction Mukundpur-Yamuna Vihar line to Shiv Vihar.

UNION GOVERNMENT ALLOCATED 150 CRORE RUPEES TO UTTARAKHAND FOR FLOOD RELIEF

The Union government allocated 150 crore rupees as interim relief for the flood affected people of Uttarakhand. The Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Vijay Bahuguna also demanded a special relief fund from the Centre.





Uttarakhand government has enhanced immediate relief amount to 5400 rupees from earlier announced 2700 rupees for the people hit by national calamity. Besides, this 20 crore rupees has already been sanctioned for relief purpose.

THE HOUSE SPARROW WAS DECLARED AS STATE BIRD OF DELHI

The House Sparrow was on 14 August 2012 declared as state bird of Delhi by the state government. The new status of the bird is likely to help in its conservation. State government announced the decision after launching a campaign RISE FOR THE SPARROWS. The campaign is aimed at conserving the species.The campaign will try to reach out to people across the Indian subcontinent.

UP ROADWAYS INTRODUCED BUS SERVICE FROM NOIDA TO AGRA VIA YAMUNA EXPRESSWAY

Uttar Pradesh Roadways in the second week of August 2012 introduced a bus service via Yamuna Expressway, which would be available from UP Roadways Bus Depot near Metro City Centre. A total six trips a day are planned. The first bus for Agra will depart at 7 am and the other departure timings are 9 am, 11 am, 1pm, 4 pm and 7 pm. The travel time will be two and half hours.

If passenger volume is enough to run the fleet, UPSRTC has planned not to pass on the toll burden to passengers. However, if passenger volume is less, then the fare will be hiked in next few days.

SC: IT WILL NOT ALLOW RESUMPTION OF MINING ACTIVITIES OF IRON ORE IN KARNATAKA

The Supreme Court of India on 17 August 2012 ruled that it would not allow resumption of mining activities of iron ore in Karnataka unless there is a statutory compliance and full implementation of reclamation and rehabilitation measures.

A special forest bench headed by Justice Aftab Alam accepted all recommendations of August 16 report of the apex court-appointed Central Empowered Committee. The Apex Court directed the authorities in Karnataka to fully cooperate in the implementation of the suggestions.

GUJARAT STATE GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCED A COMPREHENSIVE BAN ON GUTKA





Gujarat state government on 15 August 2012 announced a comprehensive ban on gutka, which will come into effect from 11 September 2012. From this date, the production, storage, sale and distribution of gutka shall be banned in the state.

Maharashtra government recently imposed a comprehensive ban on gutka and pan masala. Gutka is also banned in Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, while Rajasthan government had announced its decision to ban the product in July 2012.

UTTARAKHAND CABINET RAISED MAXIMUM AGE LIMIT TO 40 YEARS FOR GOVERNMENT JOBS

The Uttarakhand Cabinet on 21 August 2012 increased the maximum age limit from 35 to 40 years for government jobs in the state for general category candidates. The cabinet also approved a policy to carry out projects in partnership with private companies.

Moreover, the cabinet decided to provide 50 per cent reservation to women in Van Panchayats. It also approved a beach camping policy and sanctioned ropeways to Purnagiri and Yamunotri hill shrines. The Cabinet also approved opening up of Rajiv Gandhi Navodaya Vidyalayas in Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Bageshwar, Rudraprayag and Udhamsingh Nagar districts, earlier sanctioned as Shyama Prasad Mukherjee residential schools.

These would be operated on the PPP model. Under the scheme, 50 per cent seats would be allocated to government-sponsored students while the remaining would be filled by private players on fee structure to be decided by them.

PUNJAB GOVERNMENT SET UP AN ANTI-RAGGING CELL TO CURB THE MENACE OF RAGGING

The Punjab government on 22 August 2012 set up an anti-ragging cell to curb the menace of ragging in technical educational institutes in the state. The anti-ragging committees had already been set up in all technical educational institutions.The members of the committees included teachers and parents of students. Any victim could approach an anti-ragging committee in the concerned institution or the anti-ragging cell at the Director Technical Education in Chandigarh.

The Punjab government had issued strict instructions to all concerned officials to implement anti-ragging guidelines in all educational institutions. Strict action would be taken against institutes which failed to follow the instructions.

SIKKIM LOKAYUKTA BILL RECEIVED PRESIDENTIAL ASSENT





The Sikkim Lokayukta Bill, an act seeking to check corruption in the state, got the approval of the President of India on 28 August 2012. The bill was passed by the Sikkim Assembly on 29 December 2010, subsequently it was sent to the state governor who forwarded it for presidential nod on 13 January 2011.

The Sikkim Lokayukta Act sets accountability on government authorities and aims at checking corruption in the state. The principal objective of the Act is citizens’ grievances redressal, especially those related to corruption in the functioning of public bodies or authorities including that of favouritism.

As per the Act the Lokayukta is to be appointed by the Governor and be given the responsibility to conduct enquiry and investigations after consultations with the Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court, the Speaker of the Assembly and the Leader of Opposition. It also provides that the Lokayukta initiate enquiry on the receipt of complaints and after the approval of a Minister, Chief Secretary or Secretary.

INDIAN DIARY

1 August 2012

Power supply fully restored in Delhi and north east; 82 per cent restored in north and 65 per cent in eastern region following outages since last afternoon.

2 August 2012

High alert sounded in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata following bomb blasts in Pune; Union Home Secretary says the terror angle cannot be ruled out in yesterday's blasts

3 August 2012

South-west Monsoon rains in the country to be deficient this year due to El Nino effect, says Meteorological Department in its update

Regional Rural Banks allowed to open branches in Tier 2 cities without RBI's permission

4 August 2012

Bimal Gurung Appointed as Chief Executive Officer of GTA

5 August 2012

EGoM to meet again to decide further relief measures for drought -hit states

High health alert sounded in Assam to avert epidemics in relief camps in violence-hit districts.

6 August 2012





Seven persons including the attacker killed and twenty injured in a shootout at a Gurudwara in Wisconsin in the United States.

Haryana Minister of State for Home Gopal Kanda resigns after being booked for abetment to suicide

7 August 2012

Voting today to elect the next Vice President of India

Finance Ministry to review tax provisions with retrospective effect to boost investment

8 August 2012

Monsoon Session of Parliament begins today; About 36 pending bills likely to be passed.

9 August 2012

Lok Sabha takes up for discussion BJP Adjournment Motion on Assam violence

10 August 2012

Raghuram Rajan, former chief economist of International Monetary Fund (IMF) was appointed as the Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry. The Appointments Committee of Cabinet cleared the appointment of Rajan as the new CEA on 10 August 2012

11 August 2012

Hamid Ansari sworn in as the Vice President of India

12 August 2012

Mumbai situation returns to normal after yesterday's violence in a protest rally against Assam violence; 20 people taken into custody; crime branch starts probe to ascertain any conspiracy angle.

13 August 2012

30th Olympic Games conclude in London; India finishes with a record haul of six medals.

Abu Jundal, Key Handler of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack makes confessional statement before a magistrate

14 August 2012

Pune Police arrest 11 persons for attacks on the North-East students

15 August 2012

In his Independence Day address, Dr. Manmohan Singh, stresses on efforts to bring transparency and accountability to end corruption





Announces new schemes for skill development for jobs, urban housing and improved health services

16 August 2012

About 10 terrorists storm Pakistan Air Force base at Kamra in Punjab province in an early morning attack; gun battle with security forces continues

Prime Minister asks Karnataka Chief Minster to ensure safety of students from the North-East

17 August 2012

Karnataka government initiates measures to build confidence among people from North East, living in the state

18 August 2012

Government bans bulk SMS and MMS for 15 days throughout the country to check spread of rumours; Six arrested in Karnataka for sending threatening text messages to people from the North-East

19 August 2012

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, the silver medallist of Athens Olympics 2004, was named the head of the 15-member committee, set up to select the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee and Arjun Award winners. Aslam Sher Khan, the former hockey team skipper, was named the head of the 15-member committee that will select the Dronacharya Awardees.

20 August 2012

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) assertively demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on the allocation of coal blocks.

21 August 2012

Poonam Kishore Saxena appointed as Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes.

Vayalar Ravi assumed Charge as Union Minister for Science and Technology.

Delhi State Government launched kerosene free Delhi scheme.

PJ Kurien elected as the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.

Maharashtra recorded the Maximum Number of Deaths due to SAEs (Serious Adverse Events) during Drug Trials.

The DEIT (Department of Electronics and Information Technology) issued an ultimatum to social networking site Twitter to block nearly 30 of its WebPages

22 August 2012





The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) recommended the extension of the ban on import of milk and milk products from China till 23 June 2012 or until further orders.

RBI stipulated the Norms for Securitisation of Loans by NBFCs (Non banking Finance Companies).

Supreme Court extended the ban on Tourism Activities in Tiger Reserves.

23 August 2012

Arvind Saxena appointed the Managing Director of Volkswagen India.

Ankur Mittal won the bronze medal in double trap in the fourth International junior shotgun Cup in Orimattila, Finland.

Parliament's Public Accounts Committee decided to bring the three latest CAG reports on coal allocations, GMR-run Delhi airport and Reliance Power, onto its agenda for the year 2012.

Sonia Gandhi ranked number six in the Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most powerful women

24 August 2012

The Bhilai Steel Plant won the Prime Minister’s Trophy for the 10th Time.

Celebrated Sarod exponent Amjad Ali Khan, vocalist Girija Devi and famous writer Ruskin Bond were conferred the Delhi Government’s Lifetime Achievement Awards.

Reliance power entered into a partnership with China Datang Corporation(CDT) for developing and operating Energy products in India and abroad.

25 August 2012

India successfully test fired nuclear-capable ‘Prithvi-II' ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range off Odisha coast as part of a user trial by the Army.

26 August 2012

India against corruption (IAC) Supporters created uproar on Delhi roads to protest against the allocation of coal blocks.

CORPORATE

SBI REDUCED INTEREST RATE ON HOME AND CAR LOANS BY UP TO 0.5 PERCENT

India’s leading bank State Bank of India (SBI) on 1 August 2012 reduced its interest rate on home and car loans by up to 0.5 percent. The new interest rate will be effective from 7 August 2012. It has reduced the interest rate on home loans of up to 30 lakh rupees from 10.50





percent to 10.25 percent. Whereas, the loan more than 30 lakh to 75 lakh, the interest rate is 10.40 percent against 10.75 percent.

SBI new car loans are likely to be available at an interest rate of 10.75 percent against previous rate of 11.25 percent for 7 years. It makes customers to pay 1699 rupees EMI for every 1 lakh rupees against 1725 rupees EMI per month earlier. The reduction is likely to save 312 rupees per year on every one lakh.

TOSHIBA LAUNCHED ITS NEW THINKING LED RANGE RZ1 OF TV SETS

Toshiba on 1 August 2012 launched its new Thinking LED range of TV sets RZ1 for Indian markets. It is the first large-screen glasses free 3D TV powered by multi- processor platform REGZA Engine Cevo Duo S. The screen sizes ranges from 19 inches to 55 inches.

RZ1 delivers nine parallax images that create multiple angle viewing zones and shares 3D experience at a contrast ratio of 9000000:1 that improves the experience for the viewers. With 4K Super Resolution+ function that provide 2D experience by converting and mixing 2D content to 4K levels. It is priced at 12 lakh rupees.

Besides, RZ1 Toshiba also introduced RW1 Passive 3D Smart-TV, PX200 Internet TV, PT200 Full HD LED TV, PS 200 Edge LED TV, PU200 Edge LED TV, and PB200 Direct LED TV.

RW1 Passive 3D Smart-TV

It uses 3D technology, lightweight passive 3D glasses and gives sharp and clean pictures. It has Dolby® Digital solution and MHL™ powered by Gracenote. The Music Search function that identifies the artist, song and album in movies, TV programs and commercials. It is available in two screen sizes 47-inch and 55-inch. It is priced between 120000 to 170000 rupees.

PX200 Internet TV

The Wi-Fi PX200 Internet Smart TV makes viewers to use social networking services and view content online. It is also providing many smart applications and with connectivity options includes 4 HDMI ports, 2 USB ports and 2 composite ports. It has high efficiency speakers with the option of HD and Full HD. It is available in 32-inch, 40-inch and 46-inch screen sizes, priced between 36990 rupees to 75990 rupees.

PT200 Full HD LED TV

PT200 has a combination of minimalistic design and unmatched performance. It has the full HD display with good picture quality powered by the REGZA Engine technology. It is available in 32-inch screen size at 35990 rupees.

PS 200 Edge LED TV

It has high definition images and high efficiency speakers and Power Bass Booster that improves TV viewing experience. It is also powered with the REGZA Engine technology. The 40-





inch screen size Full HD version is priced at 33990 rupees and the 32-inch HD version at 53990 rupees.

PU200 Edge LED TV

It is likely to play 28 different formats of movies by a USB port. It has Power Bass Booster, Auto Signal Booster, Auto Clean and AutoView. For easy connectivity, it has 2 HDMI ports and an RCA port. It is available in 40-inch and 23-inch screen sizes of 40-inch and 23-inch with full HD experience and 32-inch with HD display. It is priced between 18990 rupees to 52990 rupees.

PB200 Direct LED TV

It provides high resolution images. It has sound bar with the Power Bass Booster that generates sounds at different frequency with the increases the frequency depth and clearness of the bass. It is available in 23-inch and 32-inch with an option of HD and Full HD, priced at 17990 rupees to 29990 rupees.

THE SAHARA GROUP ACQUIRED LANDMARK PLAZA HOTEL OF NEW YORK

The Sahara Group acquired landmark Plaza Hotel of New York on 30 July 2012 in a deal worth 570 Million Dollars. Plaza Hotel was jointly owned by the Israeli Businessman, Yitzhak Tshuva and Saudi Arabia based firm, Kingdom Holdings Co.

Elad Properties sold their 60 percent of their stake to Sahara group. The remaining 40 percent was received by Kingdom Holdings Co.

Five Star Hotel Sahara Star situated in Mumbai is owned by the Sahara Group. The Sahara Group also owns the Grosvenor House Hotel situated in London.

NDTV FILED LAWSUIT AGAINST AUDIENCE MEASUREMENT COMPANY TAM INDIA

India's national news broadcasting channel NDTV sued the country’s only television audience measurement company TAM India and its global parent firms Nielsen and Kantar on 31 July 2012. The channel accused officials at TAM of being indulged in fraudulent and manipulating TV ratings.

NDTV, which filed the lawsuit in Supreme Court of New York, demanded damages of at least 810 million dollar for its losses over the last eight years. Besides, it also claimed the 580 million dollar compensation for losses due to negligence over the last three years.

What is TAM?

TAM (Television Audience Measurement) the media research company installs PeopleMeters in over 8000 sample homes to monitor viewership patterns. The findings of TAM are instrumental





in making the corporate decisions. In its lawsuit, NDTV accused TAM of fraudulent and claimed that the small sample size gave rise to the rampant corruption in Media industry.

NDTV

NDTV is one of the India’s top broadcasters which has its presence in both English and Hindi media. The company also runs a business channel with name NDTV Profit. It was founded by Prannoy Roy, an eminent journalist and current chairman and director of NDTV Group in 1988.

HERO MOTOCORP INVESTED 20 MILLION DOLLAR IN US BASED ERIK BUELL FOR R&D

The two-wheeler maker company Hero MotoCorp on 2 August 2012 invested 20 million dollar (110 crore rupees) into US-based Erik Buell Racing (EBR) to maintain its leadership and expand globally. The investment also helps EBR grow its Milwaukee production capacity and hire more people in its own R&D team.

The investment was announced to modify MotoCorp available products and on new products design and development. The agreement is likely to ends in June 2014.

Hero entered into the agreement with EBR in February 2012. The company also announced sponsorship of two EBR-powered teams in a US superbike racing championship.

The company has already hired 300 engineers for strength its own R& D. The company also signed up with Austrian auto engineering firm AVL for engine development.

SBI REDUCED THE INTEREST RATE ON THE DEPOSITS OF MORE THAN 5 YEARS

India’s leading bank State Bank of India (SBI) on 2 August 2012 reduced the interest rate on the deposits of five year and above to 8.5 percent. The new interest rate will be effective from 7 August 2012. Currently, SBI is providing 8.75 percent interest on the deposits of 15 lakh or below and 9 percent on the deposits from 15 lakh to 1 crore. Recently, SBI on 1 August 2012 announced 0.50 percent reduced interest rate on home and car loans.

However, India’s third largest bank Punjab National Bank (PNB) raised the interest rate on single deposit by 0.25 percent against 8.75 percent for the maturity of less than 1 crore rupees for one year

GILEAD SCIENCES SIGNED WITH 3 INDIAN COMPANIES FOR LOW-COST HIV DRUGS

World’s biggest HIV drugs maker Gilead Sciences on 2 August 2012 signed deals with three Indian firms to promote its low-cost generic versions of its HIV medicine EMTRICITABINE in developing countries. The three firms are Ranbaxy, Strides Arcolab and Mylan Laboratories.





The partnership is likely to help the Indian firms to produce high volumes of emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) based HIV medicines and to maintain price equality to regimen.

Gilead Sciences is one of the world’s biggest makers of HIV drugs. The company licensed HIV medications to 13 Indian companies. There are more than 2.5 million HIV patients in developing countries who receive a TDF-containing regimen.

NATIONAL HOUSING BANK CUT INTEREST RATE BY UP TO 1 PERCENT FOR URBAN LOW INCOME GROUP

Housing finance industry regulator National Housing Bank (NHB) on 2 August 2012 reduced interest rate up to 1 percent on refinance to banks and housing finance companies to support affordable finance for urban low income group having income above 15000 rupees per month.

NHB is likely to be lower refinance rate by reduction in its lending rates by 0.75 to 1 percent under this special refinance scheme for urban low income housing (LIH).

Refinance (replacing an older loan with a new loan offering better terms) is likely to be extended from 5 and 15 years at fixed rates. The new interest rates on NHB refinance is 9 percent against 10 percent up to 2 lakh rupees loan and from 2 to 5 lakh rupees, the rate is 0.75 percent lower at 9.25 percent.

NHB is also providing long-term fixed rate refinance at reasonable interest rates for construction and purchase of houses in urban areas for low income group.

COURT RESTRAINED SALE OF VIDEOCON’S PEBBLE WASHING MACHINE ON WHIRLPOOL APPEAL

The Bombay High Court on 2 August 2012 passed a temporary restriction warning Videocon from selling its washing machine PEBBLE. Pebble is similar to Whirlpool’s ACE washing machine.

Whirlpool had launched its Ace Washing machine in September 2010 where as Videocon launched its Pebble in June 2012. Pebble is a semi-automatic machine as Whirlpool’s ACE. It has the similar design of wash area and square spin area at lower price. Whirlpool’s Ace 6.8 kg washing machine is priced at 10800 rupees each whereas Videocon’s Pebble washing machine is priced at 8300 rupees.

As per the order, Whirlpool had already registered the design of Ace in July 2009 and is completely permitted to use the design till 2019. The court has ordered Videocon to recall its washing machines.

MICRO TECHNOLOGIES INDIA INTRODUCED MICRO CALL BLOCKER FOR UNSOLICITED CALLS & SMS





Micro Technologies India Ltd on 3 August 2012 introduced an application Micro Call Blocker to detect and block unwanted calls and SMSs. The application is offering to first 10000 users for free.

The new application introduced to put an end to the majority of unwanted calls and SMSs.

Micro Technologies is a leading India-based IT company. It offers security solutions. The company’s objective is to display technological innovation with product expansion in number of segments of vehicle, premises, mobile, other assets and energy and health.

GEOJIT BNP LAUNCHED ANDROID OS FLIP ME; FIRST MOBILE TRADING SOLUTION ON NSE & BSE

Geojit BNP Paribas on 3 August 2012 launched its new version for Android Operating System (OS) Flip Me. It is the first mobile trading solution which offered customers the facility to place orders on National Stoke Exchange (NSE) as well as on Bombay Stoke Exchange (BSE). The mobile trading was created by Geonit BNP Paribas in the year 2010.

The customers with an Android OS in mobiles or tablets can download Flip Me Android application for multiple market watch views, real time updates, active real time charts, arrange and place orders for all cash and copied segments of the stock exchanges and view the order and trade book in a security environment. It also has the facility to place orders beyond market hours.

It has also added many new features to the previous application that use the improved capabilities of the phone hardware and the Android OS like customers can take calls to the tele-trading centre of Geojit BNP Paribas while watching the market. Flip Me also providing views and themes, trading ideas to make good trading decisions and multi-view market watch like graph, MBP and security info in single screen.

Flip Me Android OS is available free of cost in all registered customers of Geojit BNP Paribas. Also, the application can be downloaded for free from Google Play.

GERMAN LOGISTICS DEUTSCHE BAHN TIED UP WITH MOSER BAER FOR CLEAN ENERGY PROJECT

German Logistics Company Deutsche Bahn (DB) PV plant on 3 August 2012 tied up with Indian company Moser Baer to build a solar park that will generate electricity. Moser Baer Clean Energy had already set up a photovoltaic plant on a railway-owned surface in Wittenberge, Germany.

The solar power is likely to be located on former 8-hectare dump site. It has the power generation capacity of 3.92 megawatts-peaks (MWp) that will help to meet the needs of 900 households annually.





DB has also installed number of PV plants on railway station roofs at Uelzen, Hamelin and the Berlin Central Station from 1997. It has also classified the use of solar energy from late 2010 to identify surfaces that can be used for renewable energy in Germany. Besides this, 3 million square feet of area was already selected for setting solar plants.

KNR CONSTRUCTIONS BAGGED THE TOLLWAY ROAD PROJECT

KNR Constructions bagged the Tollway Road Project on 5 August 2012. The Company has to build, operate and Transfer (BOT) mode tollway road project from National Highway Authority of India situated in Kerala. National Highway Authority granted concession worth Rs 264.6 crore. The order involves the four-laning of the Walayar-Vadakkancherry section situated in Kerala on National Highway 47 between 182 km to 240 km.

This Project was handed over to KNR Constructions under the National Highway Development Programme–II. It has a concession Period for 20 years. It includes the construction phase of 910 days from the appointed date.

KNR Constructions is a Hyderabad-based infrastructure company. In the month of July, this company had joint-venture with SLMI Infra Projects.

SLMI Infra Projects get the road development project by Hyderabad Growth Corridor Ltd worth Rs 49.25 crore. The radial road project was executed with the loan assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

SIEMENS INDIA BAGGED 290 MILLION EURO NMDC DEAL

Siemens India nailed an order worth two ninety million Euros from National Mineral Development Corporation (NDMC), which is state run, for developing basic oxygen furnace converter for steel marking.

The contract has been awarded to a consortium which is led by Siemens Vai Metals Technologies, SEW infrastructure and Mukand Engineers. The steel works is scheduled to be built at a place called Nagarnar in Chattisgarh with an annual capacity of around three million tones steel. The completion of the steel work is scheduled by mid of 2015.

While, SEW Infrastructure and Mukand Engineers, would be responsible for the civil works, manufacturing and erection of the steel structures, general erection of equipment, Siemens would be in charge of the design and turnkey supply of the steel plant, including the two LD (BOF) converters, two 175-tonne de-sulfurisation plants, two ladle furnaces and a degassing plant.

The turnkey supply also includes material handling systems, primary and secondary de-dusting systems, a gas recovery plant and a water treatment plant apart from the other mentioned. NMDC’s steelmaking plant is part of a national programme which is being steered to increase the steel production capacity in India.





JET AIRWAYS TIED UP WITH HDFC BANK AND LAUNCHED CREDIT CARDS

The Jet Airways tied up with the HDFC bank in order to launch the ‘Jet Privilege-HDFC Bank Credit’. This is a range of credit cards which will offer benefits and rewards in the form of JP Miles.

This is being regarded as another unique travel option aimed at making air travel for economical. The credit card would be offered in world, platinum and titanium variants on the Master card platform.

The Jet Priviledge-HDFC Bank World Credit Card allows members to enjoy several lifestyle benefits, including six JP Miles for every rupees one fifty spent and another ten thousand JP Miles with in the first ninety days.

The partnership will enable cardholders to sum up all their spends into one account with rewards in the form of JP Miles. The bank issues nearly ninety thousand cards a month and now its customer base stands at five point seven million.

KESHUB MAHINDRA STEPPED DOWN AS THE CHAIRMAN OF MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA

Keshub Mahindra stepped down as the Chairman of 15.4 billion dollar business conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra on 8 August 2012. His nephew and Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of the company Anand Mahindra elevated to the position of Chairman, the position Keshub held for nearly 48 years. He would, however, continue to be Chairman Emeritus of the group. During the 48 years of his chairmanship, the Mahindra Group made its presence felt in various sectors including automobile, IT, real estate, financial services and hospitality.

He was instrumental in establishing business ties with global business giants like Willys Corporation, Mitsubishi, International Harvester, United Technologies, British Telecom and many others. The founder Chairman of HUDCO, he served on many corporate boards, including SAIL, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, Indian Hotels, IFC, ICICI and HDFC. He also held the position of President of Employers' Federation of India and the Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was a member of the Sachar Commission on Company Law and Reforms.

HOPPR LAUNCHED ITS SERVICE IN CHENNAI TO ALLOW USERS EXPLORE REWARDS AND OFFERS

Hoppr on 9 August 2012 launched its service in Chennai to allow users explore rewards and offers available with brands and merchants in a locality. Hoppr is a brand of Y2CF Digital Media, which is funded by Bharti SoftBank. Y2CF has tied up with six mobile service providers - Airtel, Aircel, Idea, Reliance, Tata Docomo and Vodafone – to provide the Hoppr service.





Hoppr on 9 August 2012 launched its service in Chennai to allow users explore rewards and offers available with brands and merchants in a locality. Hoppr is a brand of Y2CF Digital Media, which is funded by Bharti SoftBank.

Y2CF has tied up with six mobile service providers - Airtel, Aircel, Idea, Reliance, Tata Docomo and Vodafone – to provide the Hoppr service.

M&M SIGNED MOU WITH ORIENTAL BANK FOR PERSONAL AND COMMERCIAL VEHICLE FINANCING

Mahindra & Mahindra on 17 August 2012 signed an MoU with the Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) for personal and commercial vehicle financing. Customers of Mahindra & Mahindra will be able to take advantage of these services at any of OBC’s 1808 branches. M&M has 250 dealer outlets.

The MoU was signed by Arun Malhotra, Senior Vice - President, Sales & Customer Care - Mahindra & Mahindra and Atul Gautam, General Manager, Oriental Bank of Commerce.

ESPN SIGNED HERO MOTOCORP, TATA DOCOMO AND AIRTEL DIGITAL AS THE SPONSORS

ESPN signed Hero MotoCorp, Tata Docomo and Airtel Digital as the Sponsors on 21 July 2012 for London Olympics 2012. The Olympics will be aired on Star Sports, ESPN and ESPN HD. These companies sold 80 per cent (approx) on the advertisement inventory to their sponsors.

They decided the ad break of ten minutes, eight minutes and five minutes on ESPN, Star Sports and ESPN HD respectively. Star Sports will air international events such as gymnastics, equestrian and volleyball. And, ESPN HD will air the mixture of ESPN and Star Sports.

According to the company, 100 million (approx) viewers will watch London Olympics 2012 on ESPN Channels and Doordarshan. In addition, Doordarshan has the rights for terrestrial broadcast for the event.

London Olympics will start from 27 July 2012. ESPN decided to focus on specific events that are related to Indians and popular in India. The sports like:- hockey, shooting, boxing, wrestling, tennis and football.

BOLLYWOOD ACTRESS ANUSHKA SHARMA WAS SIGNED AS THE BRAND AMBASSADOR OF UNICHARM’S SOFY

Japanese FMCG Firm Unicharm on 23 July 2012 signed Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma as brand ambassador for Sofy. The target audience of the company is youth and Anushka Sharma has a great fan following among young girls and women in India.





Prachi Desai was the former brand ambassador of Unicharm’s Sofy. Sofy is the brand of sanitary napkins from the company Unicharm. Unicharm was established in the year 1961.They had launched Mamy Poko Pants in the Indian Market in the year 2009. They actively participate in the different Corporate Social Responsibilities as well.

SAMSUNG UNVEILED NEW TABLET CALLED GALAXY NOTE 10.1 TABLET IN US, BRITAIN AND SOUTH KOREA

Samsung on 16 August 2012 launched the Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet in the United States, Britain and South Korea. The Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet is named after its screen size, which is slightly larger than the 9.7-inch iPad, and has impressed with a split-screen feature that allows users to have two apps active side-by-side.

The Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet uses Google's Android software and a quad-core processor with 1.4 GHz clock speed. It boasts a 5 megapixel rear camera and 1.9 megapixel front-facing camera, which also detects the user's eye movements to prevent the device from going into standby mode.

PHILIPPE DIVRY APPOINTED AS THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF VOLVO INDIA

Philippe Divry was appointed as the new Managing Director of Volvo India and Senior Vice-President of Truck Joint Ventures India, the Indian subsidiary of the Swedish heavy vehicles manufacturer Volvo.

Divry was also appointed as a Board Member of the Volvo Group’s joint venture company VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV), which comprises the entire Eicher Motors truck and bus operations and the distribution of the Volvo Trucks vehicles.

As the MD of the Volvo India he will be responsible for the overall performance of the truck business of the company in India. As Senior Vice-President at Group level, he is the highest ranking executive of the Volvo Group ever positioned in India.

ARVIND SAXENA APPOINTED THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF VOLKSWAGEN INDIA

German car maker Volkswagen appointed Arvind Saxena as the Managing Director of Volkswagen passenger car in India. In this new role Saxena will be heading the Volkswagen brand with responsibility for sales, after sales and marketing.

Prior to joining Volkswagen, Saxena was heading the sales and marketing operations at Hyundai Motor India Limited. Before leaving the company on 19 July 2012, he worked for Hyundai Moto India Limited for seven years. In a career spanning over three decades he had also been associated with Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj, Fiat India and Escorts.





Volkswagen has invested over 3700 crore rupees in a plant in Chakan near Pune which manufactures 110000 vehicles annually. The company is making various cars targeting Indian customers. The current car variants that company is selling in Indian market include Polo, Vento, Jetta, Passat, New Beetle, Touareg and the Phaeton.

RELAXO FOOTWEAR SIGNED BOLLYWOOD ACTRESS KATRINA KAIF AS ITS BRAND

Footwear maker Relaxo Footwear on 22 August 2012 signed Bollywood actor Katrina Kaif as brand ambassador for its Flite brand. As part of a two-year contract, Kaif will endorse the Flite brand that is mainly targeting young consumers. Katrina will feature in TV commercial endorsing the Flite footwear which would be aired soon, the company added.

Relaxo manufactures over three lakh pairs of footwear per day at the nine manufacturing units in North India. In 2011-12, its annual turnover stood at 870 crore rupees. Its other brands include Sparx, Schoolmate, Elena, Casual, Mary Jane and Boston.

BHARTI GROUP SOLD ITS STAKE IN CENTUM LEARNING TO EVERONN EDUCATION

Leading Indian business house the Bharti group sold its group company Centum Learning to Everonn Education. As per the terms of the transaction the Bharti group will receive a combination of cash and equity shares in Everonn. The deal of the size was, however, not revealed by the Bharti group. The deal is in line with the company’s stated objective of concentrating its energy in core businesses.

BSE-listed Everonn is now run by the Dubai-based Varkey Group/GEMS Education after Everonn's former managing director P Kishore was forced to step down on accusations of bribery by the CBI. The company provides end-to-end training programmes and skill development solutions. With this acquisition, Everonn will aim to expand its reach in the Indian training space by adding corporate training, the flagship product of Centum, as a new vertical.

SPICEJET ANNOUNCED LAUNCH OF TWO DAILY FLIGHTS TO JABALPUR FROM DELHI AND MUMBAI

SpiceJet on 22 August 2012 announced launch of two daily flights to Jabalpur from Delhi and Mumbai from 7 September 2012.





Jabalpur would be the third destination of the low-cost airline in Madhya Pradesh after Bhopal and Indore. SpiceJet would be deploying its newly acquired Bombardier Q400 NextGen Turboprop aircraft, which can accommodate 78 passengers on these two routes.

THE BHILAI STEEL PLANT WON THE PRIME MIN ISTER’S TROPHY FOR THE 10TH TIME

The Bhilai Steel Plant, on 24 August 2012 won the prestigious Prime Minister's Trophy for the 10th time. Bhilai Steel plant is the flagship unit of India’s largest public sector steel maker, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL). The plant is based in Chhattisgarh's Durg district, some 30 km west of capital Raipur. It has an annual production capacity of over 5 million tonnes.

The award includes a cash element of Rs. 2 crore, is given to integrated steel plants (ISPs) on the basis of an evaluation by a panel of judges appointed every year. The Prime Minister's Trophy is awarded to an ISP based on customer satisfaction index, its overall performance, and observations by the panel of judges based on plant visits.

IDBI BANK LTD ENTERED INTO A MOU WITH SMERA TO EVALUATE ITS MSME

IDBI Bank Ltd entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with SME Rating Agency of India Ltd (SMERA) to evaluate its existing as well as potential MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise) clients. This will make it easier for IDBI to get information and expedite the credit decision in lending to the prospective MSME customers.

IDBI has agreements with rating agencies such as CARE and Crisil to rate its prospective MSME clients. IDBI Bank’s outstanding MSME lending was estimated at 17000 crore rupees on 31March 2012.

The net non performing assets (NPAs) for the segment (MSME) increased to 2.29 per cent in financial year 2012 as compared with 1.83 per cent in financial year 2011.

ANTONY JENKINS APPOINTED AS THE NEW GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF BARCLAYS

Barclays, the British banking giant, appointed Antony Jenkins as its new Group Chief Executive on 30 August 2012. Jenkins replaced Barclays’ former chief executive officer Bob Diamond who stepped down following the interest rate manipulation scandal.

Jenkins currently leads Barclays Retail and Business Banking (RBB) business. He has been a member of the Group Executive Committee of Barclays since 2009.

The US and the UK authorities had slapped a 290-million pound penalty on Barclays to settle the charges of manipulating global benchmark lending rates such as Libor, and Euribor, which influence many other interest rates.





MCNALLY BHARAT WON 122 CRORE RUPEES CONTRACT FROM SAIL

McNally Bharat Engineering Company on 29 August 2012 won a 122 crore rupees contract from Steel Authority of India's Bhilai Steel Plant. This contract is a part of steel mill's modernisation and expansion plan. Bhilai Steel Plant is India's only producer of rails and heavy steel plates. BSP's modernisation is the part of SAIL's about 70000 crore rupees expansion plan to take capacity to approximately 23 million tonne (MT) by 2013 from the present 14 MT.

McNally Bharat Engineering Company is engaged in providing solutions in the areas of power, steel, material handling, aluminium, coal washing and mineral beneficiation, among others.

HSBC SOLD ITS ENTIRE STAKE IN FEDERAL BANK FOR 341 CRORE RUPEES

Banking major HSBC on 28 August 2012 sold its entire stake in Kerala-based private sector lender Federal Bank. HSBC sold its 5 percent stake in Federal Bank through open market transaction for 341 crore rupees.

HSBC was holding 85.16 lakh shares of Federal Bank, which it sold on an average price of 401.04 rupees.

Earlier in June 2012, HSBC had sold its total stake in Axis Bank and Yes Bank for 2425 crore rupees. The UK-based bank held 4.75 percent and 4.76 percent in Axis Bank and Yes Bank respectively.

JAMMU AND KASHMIR BANK WAS AWARDED BEST BANKER PRIZE

Jammu and Kashmir Bank on 20 August 2012 won four national awards - THE SUNDAY STANDARD FINWIZ-2012 BEST BANKERS’ AWARDS. The Bank was awarded Best Banker in FINANCIAL INCLUSION AND CUSTOMER FRIENDLINESS and declared runner up for BEST BANKER IN PRIORITY SECTOR GROWTH AND AGRICULTURAL CREDIT.

The Sunday Standard is a part of the New Indian Express Group which is based in Chennai. It had engaged Indicus Analytics- India’s premier economic research agency- to conduct a survey and find out India’s best bankers.

The surveyors highlighted the J&K Bank’s contribution in facilitating the workings of the economy and contributing to its growth by promoting entrepreneurs and innovation.

GAIL SIGNED PACT WITH FRENCH ENERGY GIANT GDF SUEZ TO IMPORT LNG

State-owned gas utility GAIL India on 26 August 2012 signed a contract with French energy giant GDF Suez to import 0.8 million tones of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from 2013 to 2014. GDF would supply six cargoes of LNG in 2013 beginning January and an equal number in 2014. It will supply one cargo once in two months, most probably from its Yemen portfolio.





As per the agreement, GDF will supply six cargoes of LNG in 2013 and an equal number in 2014. The LNG could be imported at Dahej terminal of Petronet LNG Ltd in Gujarat or Kochi import facility in Kerala. The gas in its liquid form could be shipped to the Dabhol terminal in Maharashtra.

GDF holds a 10-per cent stake in Petronet LNG Ltd. It had in November 2011 agreed to supply 9 cargoes of LNG to Petronet LNG Ltd. GAIL owns and operates over 9,500-km of natural gas pipeline network in India and can manage 175 mmscmd of gas.

APPLE WON PATENT INFRINGEMENT CASE AGAINST SAMSUNG

US technology giant Apple on 24 August 2012 won a 1-billion dollar patent case against Samsung after a California court ruled that the South Korean firm stole a series of Apple’s patents pertaining to software and design of mobile devices such as the iPhone and iPad.

The 9-member jury held that Apple’s patents were valid and the company did not violate any of Samsung’s patents. The jury rejected Samsung’s claim that some of Apple’s patents should be declared invalid. The jury also rejected Samsung’s counterclaims, declaring that Apple did not infringe on Samsung’s patents with the iPhone and the iPod Touch.

SPORTS

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 CONCLUDED AS US TOPPED THE MEDAL TALLY

The 30th Summer Olympics (London Olympics 2012) concluded in London on 12 August 2012. The 17-day event was inaugurated at Olympic Stadium at the Olympic Park in East London on 27 July 2012. London Olympics witnessed nearly 10500 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees participating in as many as 26 sports events.

At the end of the game US topped the medal tally with a total of 104 medals (46 Gold+29 Silver+ 29 Silver) followed by China, which bagged a total of 88 medals (38 Gold+27 Silver+23 Bronze). Great Britain with 65 medals (29 Gold+17 Silver+19 Bronze), Russia with 82 medals (24 Gold+26 Silver+32 Bronze) and South Korea with 27 medals (13 Gold+8 Silver+6 Bronze) finished third, fourth and fifth respectively. India with a total of 6 medals (2 Silver+4Bronze) finished 55th on the medal tally.

INDIA AT LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

India had sent 83-member team to the London Olympics 2012, which is the largest ever contingent sent by Indian Olympic Association in the Olympics. India’s total number of medals in London Olympics 2012 stood at a record haul of six medals. Shooter Vijay Kumar bagged the silver medal in the 25 m Rapid Fire event, while MC Mary Kom, five-time world women's boxing champion, ace shuttler Saina Nehwal and rifle shooter Gagan Narang won India bronze medals.





Gagan Narang opened India’s account at the medal tally after he won bronze in shooting event on 30 July 2012.

India’s men's hockey team badly disappointed those who were expecting them to reclaim the lost glory of Indian hockey. The team in a show of disastrous performance finished 12th and at the bottom most as they lost all their six matches. It was the worst-ever performance by the Indian hockey team in the history of Olympics. Prior to this the worst ever performance of the Indian Hockey team came in 1996 Atlanta Olympics when it had finished 8th.

Besides, major medal hopes for the country such as Beijing Gold medalist Abhinav Bindra in shooting and Deepika in Archery also could not meet with the expectations of the people, as they squarely failed to deliver a medal winning performance. Beijing bronze medalist Vijender Kumar also failed to recreate the magic in the boxing ring as he lost to Uzbekistan's Abbos Atoev 17-13 in the quarterfinals.

INDIA'S HISTORY IN SUMMER OLYMPICS

India started participating in Summer Olympics from Paris Olympics 1900 after Norman Pritchard, an Anglo-Indian, participated in two events and claimed silver in both the events. India first sent its contingent to Summer Olympics in Antwerp Olympics 1920 and has sent its team in every Olympics since then. In the last 112 years of modern Olympics India has won mere nine gold and 8 of them are in hockey and one in individual shooting event. After 6 medal haul at the London Olympics 2012 total number of medals won by India now stands at 26.

MAJOR MEDAL WINNING PERFORMANCES AT LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

Michael Phelps bagged 6 medals (4 Gold + 2 Silver) in swimming, becoming the most decorated Olympian ever with 22 medals.

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt clinched three gold in three separate events (100 meter race, 200 meter race and 4X100 meter relay team race). He won the 100 meters gold medal with a time of 9.63 seconds, setting a new Olympic record for that distance. He took 19.32 seconds to clinch 200 meters gold. With a storming victory in both 100 and 200 meters race he became the only sprinter in the history to defend both Olympic titles.

Germany beat Netherlands 2-1 to win men’s hockey gold.

Mexico beat Brazil 2-1 to win Soccer gold

United States defeated Spain to win men’s Basketball gold

Andy Murray of Great Britain beat Roger Federer of Switzerland to win tennis men’s singles gold

OLYMPIC TORCH

Olympic Torch is the symbol of Olympic Games which is lit in Olympia (modern day Greece). The initial editions of Olympics were organized without flame. The tradition of torch was reintroduced in Amsterdam Olympics 1928.





Russia defeated Brazil to win men’s volleyball gold

Dan Lin of China beat Malaysian Chong Wei Lee to clinch Badminton men’s singles gold

MASCOT FOR LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

Mascots have been a part of Olympic Games since Munich 1972, when Waldi, a dachshund, was the symbol of the Munich games. The mascots of London Games were Wenlock and Mandeville. While Wenlock is a mascot of Olympics, Mandeville is mascot for Paralympics. These are two ultra-modern one-eyed creatures.

OLYMPIC MEDALS

There were 4700 medals (Gold, Silver, Bronze) up for grab at the London Olympics 2012.

The Olympic medals weigh between 375-400 grams, they are eighty-five millimetres in diameter and seven millimetres thick.

The gold medals are not actually made of solid gold.

They are in fact 92.5 percent silver and 1.34 percent gold, while the rest is copper.

Metals used in the medals were mined in Mongolia and Utah in the United States.On every medal there is the image of Nike, the Greek Goddess of victory.

31st Summer Olympics

The 31st edition of Summer Olympics will be held in Reo de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016. The city was made the host of the event in 121st IOC session. The games are scheduled to be held from 5 August to 21 August 2016.





MEDAL TALLY – LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

Rank by Gold

Country Gold Silver Bronze Total

1 United States of America 46 29 29 104

2 People's Republic of China 38 27 23 88

3 Great Britain 29 17 19 65

4 Russian Federation 24 26 32 82

5 Republic of Korea 13 8 7 28

6 Germany 11 19 14 44

7 France 11 11 12 34

8 Italy 8 9 11 28

9 Hungary 8 4 5 17

10 Australia 7 16 12 35

11 Japan 7 14 17 38

12 Kazakhstan 7 1 5 13

13 Netherlands 6 6 8 20

14 Ukraine 6 5 9 20

15 New Zealand 6 2 5 13

16 Cuba 5 3 6 14

17 Islamic Republic of Iran 4 5 3 12

18 Jamaica 4 4 4 12

19 Czech Republic 4 3 3 10

20 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 4 0 2 6

21 Spain 3 10 4 17

22 Brazil 3 5 9 17

23 South Africa 3 2 1 6

24 Ethiopia 3 1 3 7

25 Croatia 3 1 2 6

26 Belarus 2 5 5 12

27 Romania 2 5 2 9

28 Kenya 2 4 5 11

29 Denmark 2 4 3 9

30 Azerbaijan 2 2 6 10

30 Poland 2 2 6 10

32 Turkey 2 2 1 5

33 Switzerland 2 2 0 4

34 Lithuania 2 1 2 5

35 Norway 2 1 1 4

36 Canada 1 5 12 18





37 Sweden 1 4 3 8

38 Colombia 1 3 4 8

39 Georgia 1 3 3 7

39 Mexico 1 3 3 7

41 Ireland 1 1 3 5

42 Argentina 1 1 2 4

42 Slovenia 1 1 2 4

42 Serbia 1 1 2 4

45 Tunisia 1 1 1 3

46 Dominican Republic 1 1 0 2

47 Trinidad and Tobago 1 0 3 4

47 Uzbekistan 1 0 3 4

49 Latvia 1 0 1 2

50 Algeria 1 0 0 1

50 Bahamas 1 0 0 1

50 Grenada 1 0 0 1

50 Uganda 1 0 0 1

50 Venezuela 1 0 0 1

55 India 0 2 4 6

56 Mongolia 0 2 3 5

57 Thailand 0 2 1 3

58 Egypt 0 2 0 2

59 Slovakia 0 1 3 4

60 Armenia 0 1 2 3

60 Belgium 0 1 2 3

60 Finland 0 1 2 3

63 Bulgaria 0 1 1 2

63 Estonia 0 1 1 2

63 Indonesia 0 1 1 2

63 Malaysia 0 1 1 2

63 Puerto Rico 0 1 1 2

63 Taipei (Chinese Taipei) 0 1 1 2

69 Botswana 0 1 0 1

69 Cyprus 0 1 0 1

69 Gabon 0 1 0 1

69 Guatemala 0 1 0 1

69 Montenegro 0 1 0 1

69 Portugal 0 1 0 1

75 Greece 0 0 2 2

75 Republic of Moldova 0 0 2 2

75 Qatar 0 0 2 2





75 Singapore 0 0 2 2

79 Afghanistan 0 0 1 1

79 Bahrain 0 0 1 1

79 Hong Kong, China 0 0 1 1

79 Saudi Arabia 0 0 1 1

79 Kuwait 0 0 1 1

79 Morocco 0 0 1 1

79 Tajikistan 0 0 1 1

MICHEL PHELPS BECAME THE MOST SUCCESSFUL ATHLETE IN THE OLYMPIC HISTORY

US swimmer Michel Phelps became the most successful athlete in the history of Olympic games after he won the gold medal in 4x200 metre freestyle relay in final race at the Aquatic Centre

on 31 July 2012.

Phelps, who is playing his 4th Olympics, with this victory took his individual Olympic tally to 19 (15 gold, two silver and two bronze), surpassing the 18 won by Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina between 1956 and 1964.

He first swam at the Olympics in 2000 Sydney Olympics, when he was just 15. He became the youngest American male swimmer in 68 years and placed fifth in the 200m butterfly. He also holds the world record in swimming when he swam1:54.92 in the 200m butterfly event in March 2001.

Six-time winner of the World Swimmer of the Year Award, Phelps has to his credit the record of winning maximum number of gold medals (8) won in a single Olympics, the feat he achieved hduring 2008 Beijing Games surpassing American swimmer Mark Spitz's seven-gold record at Munich in 1972.

VIJAY KUMAR BAGGED SILVER IN OLYMPICS 25 METRE RAPID FIRE PISTOL EVENT

In a nerve-wracking battle for Olympic medal in the individual 25 metre rapid fire pistol event, Indian shooter Vijay Kumar clinched the silver on 3 August 2012. Kumar hit the target 30 times out of 40 attempts in the series comprising eight rounds of five shots each. Leuris Pupo of Cuba, whi clinced the gold clinched scored 34 out of 40. Chinese marksman Ding Feng bagged the bronze.

Born on 19 August 1985 in Hamirpur district of Himachal





Pradesh is presently a Subedar in the Indian Army’s 16th Dogra Regiment. He booked his place at the London Olympics when he won a silver medal at the shooting World Cup in Fort Benning, US in 2011. The persevering shooter has more than 20 international medals and 75 national medals to his credit. He had won 3 gold medals and one silver medal in the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi. 2006 Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne saw him winning two gold medals in two separate shooting events. In one of the major achievements in 2009 ISSF World Cup held in Beijing he bagged Silver missing the gold by mere 0.1 point.

Acknowledging his excellent track record and medal winning performances, the India government awarded him with the Arjuna Award in year 2007.

SAINA NEHWAL CLINCHED BRONZE IN WOMEN’S SINGLES BADMINTON EVENT AT LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehawal won India its third medal at London Olympics 2012 after she clinched a bronze in women's singles badminton event played at Wembley Arena on 4 August 2012. Saina bagged the bronze after her Chinese opponent Xin Wang conceded the match due to a knee injury. Xin Wang was one game point ahead of Saina when she decided to quit the game due to the unbearable pain. Chinese shuttlers Li Xuerui and Wang Yihan won the gold and silver medals respectively.

Saina’s bronze marked India’s third medal at London Olympics 2012 and twelfth individual medal in the history of modern oympics. The previous two medals came in shooting events. While Gagan Narang won India its first bronze in the London Olympics on 30 July 2012, Vijay Kumar clinched silver on 3 August 2012. With this victory, Saina became the second Indian woman after Karanam Malleshwari to win a medal in the history of olympics. Karnam Malleshwari had earned India a bronze in weight lifting event in 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Born in Hisar, Haryana on 17 March 1990, Saina Nehwal turned a professional shuttler in 2006. Year 2008 saw her winning the World Junior Badminton Championships. In 2008 Beijing

SAINA NEHWAL’S MEDAL TALLY

2008: BWF World Junior Championships (Gold) 2009: Indonesia Super Series (Gold) 2009: Indian Open Grand Prix (Gold) 2010: Badminton Asia Championships (Bronze) 2010: Indian Open Grand Prix (Gold) 2010: Singapore Open Super Series (Gold) 2010: Indonesia Open Super Series (Gold) 2010: Commonwealth Games (Gold) 2010: Hong Kong Super Series (Gold) 2011: Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold (Gold) 2011: Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold (Silver) 2011: Indonesia Open Super Series Premier (Silver) 2012: Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold (Gold)





Olympics she had reached the quarter-finals round becoming the first Indian woman to reach the quarter finals in the Olympic Games. In year 2009, she won the Indonesia Open Title, becoming the first Indian to win a BWF Super Series title. Saina’s career best ranking came in 2010 when she rose to world number two position.

Former Indonesian badminton great Atil Jauhari is the present coach of Saina while, national coach Pullela Gopichand is her mentor.

Saina was awarded with the Arjuna Award in 2009 and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the highest award given to a sportsperson in the country, in year 2010. The government of India also conferred Padm Shree, the fourth highest civilian award in India, upon her in 2010.

JAMAICAN SPRINTER USAIN BOLT WON GOLD IN MEN’S 100 METER RACE, SET OLYMPIC RECORD

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt won gold in men’s 100 meter race with 9.63 seconds, fastest in the history of Olympics. His compatriot Yohan Blake came second as he took 9.75 second to complete the race. US’ sprinter Justin Gatlin grabbed bronze with 9.79 seconds.

Bolt holds a world record of 9.58 second in 100 meter racing, the record he set at the Berlin World Championships in 2009. With it, he now has the three fastest 100 meters in history next to his name. He is only the second Olympic champion in the 100 meters to defend his title after United State's Carl Lewis.

MARY KOM BAGGED BRONZE IN WOMEN FLYWEIGHT BOXING AT LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

In a bout fought on 8 August 2012 at the Excel Arena, star Indian female Boxer Mary Kom got India its fourth medal in the London Olympics 2012, giving the country its biggest medal haul in the history of modern Olympics. The ace pugilist, however, knocked out of the Olympic Games flyweight (51 kg) semi-finals after she suffered an 11-6 defeat in the hand of Britain’s Nicola Adams.

Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom popularly called Mary Kom or Magnificent Mary got her place secured at London Olympics 2012 after winning 2012 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championship held in Qinhuangdao, China from 9 May to 22 May 2012. There too she had suffered a defeat to Nicola Adams in the quarter-finals.

Kicking off her Olympics campaign on 5 August 2012, Mary Kom had beat Karolina Michalczuk of Poland 19-14 in the in the first round. In the quarter-final, the following day, she defeated Maroua Rahali of Tunisia 15-6, securing one medal for the country. This was the first time when the women boxing event was introduced in the Olympic games.

Born on 1 March 1983 in Kangathei in Manipur, India, Mary Kom turned professional boxer after her victory in the Manipur state women's boxing championship in 2000. Mary made her





international debut at the first AIBA Women's World Boxing Championship held in the United States, where she bagged a silver medal in the 48 kg weight category. Subsequently she won a gold medal in the 45 kg class at the second AIBA Women's WorldBoxing Championship in Turkey in 2002. Kom has total 5 world boxing championship titles in his name.

The government of India had awarded her with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, country’s highest award given to sports persons, in 2009. Besides she was also given the Arjuna Award in 2003 and Padma Shree Award in 2006. She was also appointed the International Boxing Association’s Ambassador for Women’s Boxing in 2009.

INDIA BAGGED RECORD SIX MEDALS IN LONDON OLYMPICS 2012 AS SUSHIL KUMAR SETTLED FOR SILVER

Sushil Kumar, the star Indian grappler, won India its sixth medal on the very last day in London Olympics 2012. The wrestler bagged the silver after his Japanese opponent Tatsuhiro Yonemitsu overpowered him 3-1 in the gold medal bout in the 66-kg freestyle category on 12 August 2012.

With this victory Susheel Kumar also got his name written in the sports history annals of the country as became the first ever Indian sportsperson to win individual medals in two successive Olympic Games. Kumar had won a bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games.

In a separate 60-kg wrestling event, Yogeshwar Dutt, another Indian wrestler won India a bronze medal. Dutt defeated North Korea's Ri Jong Myong in the bronze medal bout on 9 August 2012.

With the two medals in wrestling India took the total number of its medals in London Olympics 2012 at a record haul of six medals. Shooter Vijay Kumar bagged the silver medal in the 25 m Rapid Fire event, while MC Mary Kom, five-time world women's boxing champion, ace shuttler Saina Nehwal and rifle shooter Gagan Narang won India bronze medals. Gagan Narang opened India’s account at the medal tally after he won bronze in shooting event on 30 July 2012.

In a major setback to the country’s Olympic campaign, India’s men's hockey team finished 12th and at the bottom most as they lost all their six matches. It was the worst-ever performance by the Indian hockey team in the history of Olympics. Prior to this the worst ever performance of the Indian Hockey team came in 1996 Atlanta Olympics when it had finished 8th.

Besides, major medal hopes for the country such as Beijing Gold medalist Abhinav Bindra in shooting and Deepika in Archery also could not meet with the expectations of the people, as they squarely failed to deliver a medal winning performance. Beijing bronze medalist Vijender Kumar also failed to recreate the magic in the boxing ring as he lost to Uzbekistan's Abbos Atoev 17-13 in the quarterfinals.





VVS LAXMAN ANNOUNCED RETIREMENT FROM INTERNATIONAL CRICKET

V.V.S. Laxman, on 18 August 2012 announced his retirement from international cricket, ending a glorious career spanning 16 years. Laxman played 134 Tests, amassing 8781 runs at an average of 45.97. He scored 17 hundreds and 56 half centuries and earned the sobriquet Very Very Special. Laxman made his Test debut in 1996 against South Africa at Ahmedabad.

Laxman, played 86 ODI matches for an aggregate of 2338 at an average of 30.76. But he could never become the part of Indian team in any cricket world cup edition.

RORY MCLLROY WON THE US PGA GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

Rory Mcllroy won the US PGA Golf Championship at Kaiwah island on 12 August 2012, claiming his second major title with a record-setting eight-shot victory. With this victory Mcllroy also became world number one player surpassing Luke Donald.

23-year Mcllroy, hit a six-uneder 66 to finish 13 under, while, David Lynn and Ian Poulter finished second and third respectively. Tiger Woods, four-time winner of the title, faltered to a level par 72 and two under total.

IOA SET UP THREE-MEMBER COMMITTEE TO RESOLVE ISSUES IN INDIAN HOCKEY

The Indian Olympic Association set up a three-member committee to resolve the issues in Indian Hockey. Hockey India and the Indian Hockey Federation, the two bodies for Hockey in India have been asked to present their stand before the committee on 21 August 2012.

The committee has been set up following the directions from the International Hockey Federation in July 2012. The three-member committee will have former Wrestling Federation of India president GS Mander, the Indian Weightlifting Federation president Birendra Prasad Baishya and the Handball Federation of India secretary-general SM Bali as its member. The committee will submit its report on 31 August 2012.

In its worst ever performance the Indian Hockey team had finished at the bottom in the London Olympics 2012. The team, which had failed to qualify for the Beijing Olympics 2008, suffered defeat in all the eight matches it played in the London Games.

RAJYAVARDHAN SINGH RATHORE APPOINTED AS THE HEAD OF RAJIV GANDHI KHEL RATNA AWARDS COMMITTEE





Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, the silver medallist of Athens Olympics 2004, was named the head of the 15-member committee, set up to select the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee and Arjun Award winners. Aslam Sher Khan, the former hockey team skipper, was named the head of the 15-member committee that will select the Dronacharya Awardees.

Rajeev Gandhi Khel Ratna Award is the highest sports award in the country. The award consists of a cash award of 7.5 lakh rupees, a scroll of honour and a medal. Arjuna Awards, the second highest awards given to sportspersons, carries a scroll of honour, and a cash award of five lakh rupees. Dronacharya Awards are given to the coaches of different sports for their remarkable contribution. The Dronacharya Awards are consisted of a plaque, a scroll of honour, ceremonial dress and a cash award of five lakh rupees.

ROGER FEDERER AND LI NA WON CINCINNATI MASTERS

World no. 1 tennis player Roger Federer won a record fifth Western & Southern Open Title (Cincinnati Masters) at Cincinnati on 19 August 2012. Federer beat second seeded Novak Djokovic 6-0, 7-6, (9-7). This was the first time when top-seeded men’s players clashed in the final of Cincinnati Masters.

In women’s singles final China’s Li Na beat German Angelique Kerbar to win her first title of the season. Li Na overcame the terrible first set to record a 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory over her rival.

To make it to the final, Li defeated American wild card Venus Williams in the semifinals. Kerber, meanwhile defeated Petra Kvitova, the winner over Li in Montreal, in her semifinal match at night on Center Court. Defending Champion Maria Sharapova withdrew from the tournament due to illness.

SOUTH AFRICA REPLACED ENGLAND AS THE WORLD’S NUMBER ONE CRICKET TEAM

South Africa replaced England as the World’s Number One Test Cricket team. The feat was achieved after its 2-0 victory over England in the three Test-match series, which ended at Lord’s Cricket Ground in London on 21 August 2012. England had been the top team in the Reliance ICC Test Championship table since August 2011 when it dethroned India while South Africa has assumed the number one spot for the first time since November 2009. Here is the latest ICC Test Championship table given in the box.

Note: Zimbabwe is presently unranked, as it has played insufficient matches.

South Africa 120 points

England 117 points

Australia 116 points

Pakistan 109 points

India 104 points

Sri Lanka 98 points

West Indies 90 points





VIJAY KUMAR AND YOGESHWAR DUTT CHOSEN FOR RAJIV GANDHI KHEL RATNA AWARD 2012

London Olympics silver medalist Vijay Kumar and Bronze medalist Yogeshwar Dutt will be conferred with the country’s highest sporting honour Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award for the year 2012. Besides, 25 sportspersons will be presented the Arjuna Awards, the second highest sports award in the country. The awards were announced by the Union Sports Ministry on 19 August 2012.

Usually the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award is given to only one sportsperson in one calendar year but the rule can be relaxed in special circumstances such as an Olympic medal. Pistol shooter Vijay Kumar bagged a silver in the 25m rapid fire event at the London Olympics, while wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt claimed a bronze in 60kg free style event.

LIST OF THE SPORTS PERSONS, CHOSEN FOR ARJUNA AWARDS:

A 15-member selection committee headed by Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, the 2004 Sydney Olympics silver-medalist and comprising noted sportspersons such as Akhil Kumar (boxing),





Khajan Singh (swimming), Baichung Bhutia (football) and Ravi Shastri (cricket) finally approved the name of the 27 sportspersons for the coveted award.

The awardees will be presented the award by the President of India on National Sports Day on 29 August 2012.

ANKUR MITTAL WON THE BRONZE MEDAL IN THE FOURTH INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR SHOTGUN CUP

Ankur Mittal won the bronze medal in double trap in the fourth International junior shotgun Cup in Orimattila, Finland. He scored 177 points.

Mittal had scored 45, 41 and 45 in qualification and 46 in the final. Shayan Masood, the other Indian came fourth, one point behind. He had scored 130 in qualification following a series of 43, 45 and 42.

The results of Men’s double trap: 1. Artem Nekrasov (Rus) 190 (142); 2. Kiril Fokeev (Rus) 183 (139); 3. Ankur Mittal 177 (131); 4. Shayan Masood 176 (130).

INDIA DEFEATED AUSTRALIA TO WIN ICC UNDER-19 CRICKET WORLD CUP

India defeated host and defending champion Australia to win ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup. In the final match played at Townsville in Australia on 26 August 2012, the Indian under -19 squad led by Unmukt Chand beat Australian side by 6 wickets. Skipper Unmukt Chand scored unbeaten 111 runs leading his team to a glorious victory.

Batting first the Australian team scored 225 runs with the loss of 8 wickets. Australian captain William Bosisto scored unbeaten 87 runs. India started strongly but lost 4 wickets on just 97 runs. Subsequently skipper Chand guided the Indian team to a 6 wickets victory in the 48th over.

Rajeev Gandhi Khel Ratna Award:

The Rajeev Gandhi Award was instituted in 1991-92. The award carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a cash prize of 7.5 lakh rupees. So far the award has been given to as many as 26 sportspersons. VishvanathanAnand was the first sportsperson to receive the award.

Arjuna Award

Arjuna Award was instituted in 1961. The award carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a cash prize of 5 lakh rupees.





William Bosisto, the Australian skipper received the Man of the Tournament award. Anamul Haque of Bangladesh scored 365 runs, highest in the tournament. Reece Topley of England claimed 19 wickets and remained the leading wicket taker of the tournament.

This victory marked third under-19 world cup title for India after Mohammad Kaif in 2000 and Virat Kohli in 2008 had led the team to the tournament victory.

A total of 16 teams participated in the tournament. The teams were put into four groups A, B, C and D. India was placed in group C along with Papua New Guinea, West Indies and Zimbabwe. Australia was placed in group A alongside Ireland, England and Nepal.

ICC UNDER-19 WORLD CUP

The ICC Under-19 World Cup started as an 8-team event in 1988. The tournament was not staged after its first edition in 1988 till 1998 and since then has been organised by the ICC as a biennial event. The number of competing teams in the tournament has increased from eight in 1988 to the present 16 giving an opportunity for a number of associate and affiliate teams to showcase its talent.

DELHI WON THE 23RD FEDERATION CUP NATIONAL THROWBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

Delhi teams, both in male and female categories, lifted 23rd Federation Cup Throw Ball Championship-2012. The Championship which was held on 23-25 August 2012, was organised by the J&K Throw Ball Association in collaboration with Throw Ball Federation of India at sports ground Government College for Women M A Road Srinagar. As many as 20 teams, both in male and female categories, from various States and Union Territories of the country participated in the Championship.

Delhi beat Tamil Nadu 15-10, 15-12 in the women’s final of the Federation Cup National throwball championship which was held in Srinagar. In the men’s final, Delhi beat Andhra Pradesh 2-1. Nine State teams took part in the championship.

QUEEN ELIZABETH OFFICIALLY OPENED THE LONDON PARALYMPIC GAMES

Queen Elizabeth officially on 29 August 2012 opened the London Paralympic games, which will be the biggest in the event's 64 year history. The flame was lit at midnight, local time. The ceremony was watched by some 80000 spectators. Britain's first Paralympic Games gold medallist, Margaret Maughan hit the cauldron.

The opening ceremony signalled the start of 11 days of competition by 4200 athletes from 164 countries, including more than 300 athletes from Britain.





ENGLAND’S TEST TEAM CAPTAIN ANDREW STRAUSS RETIRED FROM INTERNATIONAL CRICKET

England’s test team captain Andrew Strauss announced his retirement from international cricket on 29 August 2012. Under Strauss’ captaincy the England team witnessed back-to-back Ashes wins over Australia and reached to the top of the test rankings. He was appointed the skipper of English team in 2009 replacing Kevin Pietersen.

A left-hand batsman, Strauss made his first class debut in year 1998 and one-day international debut in 2003 against Sri Lanka. Strauss made his test debut against New Zealand at Lord’s in 2004, where he scored 112 and 83 runs in two innings and received Man of the Match award.

In a nine-year long international career, Strauss played 100 tests and 127 one-day internationals. Strauss has to his credit 7037 and 4205 runs in test and ODIs respectively.

HASHIM AMLA BECAME THE FASTEST PLAYER TO REACH LANDMARK 3000 ONE-DAY INTERNATIONAL RUNS

Hashim Amla, the star South African Batsman, became the fastest player to score 3000 runs in one-day international on 29 August 2012. Amla achieved the tremendous feat during the course of his 150 run individual knock that led South African squad to a 80-run victory over England at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. Hashim Amla took a total of 57 innings to become the fastest player to score 3000 runs while his closest competitor Vivian Richards took 69 innings. Here is the list of 10 players who reached the landmark 3000 ODI runs, in quickest time, in terms of innings.

DLF ANNOUNCED TO END ITS ASSOCIATION WITH INDIAN PREMIERE LEAGUE

India’s largest real estate company DLF decided to end its five-year long association with Indian Premiere League as its title sponsor. The last date of renewal of contract was 28 July 2012, and the company did not file application for the renewal of its contract. The company spent 250 crore rupees in its five-year association with IPL.





DLF has been actively promoting different sports in the country. The company organizes DLF Masters Golf Tournament in Gurgaon every year. It is also one of the sponsors of the Davis Cup tennis tournament 2012, which will be held in Chandigarh.

Besides, DLF has associated itself with various other sports over the years. It had supported Haryana Open Badminton Championship, Delhi Football League and various other sports events.

ENVIRONMENT ECOLOGY

INDIAN PROJECT WON THE WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY CHALLENGE

An environment project made by Hand in Hand India, a Chennai based development organization was named the winner of World Environment Day Challenge 2012 organised by the UN. Projects of our other organisations also emerged victorious for their unique and inspiring work.

Hand in Hand India created a colourful 10000 square foot rangoli carpet depicting 10 environmental themes. The awe inspiring theme came into being after the tireless efforts of nearly 500 volunteers.

The names of a Colombian group Fundacion Ecoprogreso, Kenyan group Maji Mazuri Centre International, Asutralia's Sunshine Coast Environment Council and a Bangladeshi non-profit organization, Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha also figured in the list of winners.

To increase the people’s participation in environmental activities the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) had come out with the innovative competition on World Environment Day 2012. Under the competition people across the world were asked to come out with an unique environmental project in connection with World Environment Day 2012. The World Environment Day is observed on 5 June every year.

NASA’S SCIENTISTS WARNED EARTH MIGHT FACE MORE HEAT WAVES

Scientists at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) warned that most of Earth's land areas might face an extreme summer heat wave than they did between 1951 and 1980. Scientists revealed that over the past 30 years the northern hemisphere has witnessed more "hot" (orange), "very hot" (red) and "extremely hot" (brown) summers.

Scientists noted that Earth's northern hemisphere, which comprises of 90 percent of the planet's land has become much more likely to experience an extreme summer heat wave compared to a base period from 1951 to 1980.

The researchers described how "extremely hot" summers has become a routine over the past 30 years. Since 2006, about 10 percent of land area across the Northern Hemisphere has experienced these temperatures each summer. Study show how heat waves in Texas,





Oklahoma and Mexico in 2011, and in the Middle East, Western Asia and Eastern Europe in 2010 fall into the new "extremely hot" category.

PARLIAMENTARY PANEL ON AGRICULTURE RECOMMENDED TO BAN GM FOOD CROPS

In a major setback to the production of genetically modified (GM) foods in the country, a parliamentary panel on agriculture asked the government to ban all field trials of GM crops until it develops until it develops a better system of monitoring and oversight.

In the 389-page report submitted in the parliament on 9 August 2012, the panel also demanded a complete probe into how permission was granted in 2009 for the commercialisation of Bt brinjal (also known as aubergine, or eggplant). Bt Brinjal was developed by Pune-based Mahyco (Maharashtra Hybrid Company) in a joint venture with US seed giant Monsanto.

The Genetic Engeneering Appraisal Committee had cleared the commercialization of Bt Brinjal on 14 October 2009, though soon after its clearance it was caught amidst bitter controversies ranging from its environmental impacts to ethical concerns such as corporate control of the food supply and intellectual property rights. Bt cotton was the only GM crop before Bt Brinjal which had got clearance for commercialization.

MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FOREST ISSUED ADVISORY TO REDUCE THE IMPACT OF COMMUNICATION TOWERS

The Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) on 14 August 2012 issued an advisory to reduce the negative impact of Electro Magnetic Radiations emanating from the communication towers. Acting on the recommendations made by an expert panel, constituted to Study the possible Impacts of Communication Towers on Wildlife including Birds and Bees, the ministry issued numerous guidelines.

Some of the major directives issued by the MoEF are as follows:

1. Regular Electro Magnetic Radiation (EMR) to be conducted in urban localities and ecologically sensitive regions.

2. New mobile towers not to be set up within the 1 km radius of existing towers.

3. Any study conducted on impact of EMR radiation on wildlife needs to be shared with Forest Department andDepartment of Telecommunications to facilitate appropriate policy formulations.

4. The location and frequencies of cell phone towers and other towers emitting EMR, should be madeavailable in public domain.

5. State governments are urged to spread awareness among the people about the negative impacts of EMR using different media.





SUPREME COURT EXTENDED THE BAN ON TOURISM ACTIVITIES IN TIGER RESERVES

The Supreme Court of India on 22 August 2012 extended the ban on tourism activities in the core areas of tiger reserves. A bench of Justices A K Patnaik and Swatanter Kumar asked the Union government some searching questions as it made a fresh plea for the review of the apex court's July 24 order banning tourism in the core areas of tiger reserves.

The ban extended would remain in place at least till next hearing on 29 August 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

STUDY FOUND TUMOR STEM CELLS MULTIPLY AND FUEL CANCER

In the studies conducted by American, Belgian, British and Dutch researchers it was found that tumors contain their own pool of stem cells that can multiply and keep fueling the cancer, seeding regrowth. Studies were published on 1 August 2012 in the journals Nature and Science

Stem cells in healthy tissues are known for their ability to produce any kind of cell. The new research deals with a different kind, cancer stem cells. Some researchers, but not all, believe they lurk as a persisting feature in tumors. The three studies used labeling techniques to trace the ancestry of cells within mouse tumors.

A WEB-BASED SYSTEM DEVELOPED FOR ADVISING FARMERS ON FERTILIZERS

The Indian Institute of Soil Science developed a web-based system for advising farmers the right quantity of fertilizers that they should use in their soils for a particular type of crop.

The software takes into account the soil type in different districts of the country and available nutrient in the soil. It takes into consideration the crop and cropping season in calculating the nutrient requirement. In some cases, it takes care of even different available varieties of main crops. Finally, the system converts the nutrient data into the quantities of main fertilizers-urea, MOP and SSP that are required to be used by the farmer.

This system is presently available district-wise for these 11 states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

SCIENTISTS UNVEILED THE ORIGIN OF THE SINGING MICE

Scientists discovered the origin of singing mice that use songs to communicate. The scientists stated that this can help identify genes that affect language in humans.





The singing mice are brown fur rodents instead of the normal white ones, they are found in the tropical cloud forests in the mountains of Costa Rica. Apparently, the song of the singing mice is a rapid-fire string of high pitched chirps called trills , which are used mostly by males to attract mates.

Up to twenty chirps are squeaked out per second, however unlike birds, the mice generally stick to a song made up of only a single note.

Steven Phelps the main researcher behind the singing mice is already making news. Phelp’s research on the behavior of the mouse has appeared in the journals 'Hormones and Behaviour' and 'Animal Behaviour'.

His newest research project is responsible for examining the genetic components that influence song expression and is a special gene called FOXP2.

A NEW STRAIN OF RICE DEVELOPED BY THE SCIENTISTS THAT COULD BOOST CROP YIELDS

Scientists developed a new strain of rice that could increase crop yields by a fifth for small farmers. It grows well in soils lacking the nutrient phosphorus. The gene will be now transferred to modern varieties of rice using classic methods of cross-breeding, not genetic engineering.

Many soil types bond tightly to phosphorus, allowing only a small quantity of the precious mineral to plant roots.To solve this problems, farmers seek help of phosphorus fertilisers. But in poor countries, this option costs too much, which means the plant is left undernourished. Ultimately, this meagre growth affects yields.

In October 2011, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said the global population of seven billion could rise to at least 10 billion by 2100. Therefore, we need more yields. Phosphate fertilisers are typically extracted from layers of rock which were ocean sediments millions of years ago.

ONE LINERS

The one liner for the month of August 2012 talks about the most important happenings that have happened over the world. It helps the student understand what news to be remembered. It is a very good exercise for students sitting for various competitive examinations, as it also helps brushing one’s knowledge on current affairs. Students can visit this section to keep abreast with the world happenings.

The person who is appointed as Union Finance Minister after a small cabinet reshuffle - P Chidambram

US Swimmer who became the Most Successful Athlete in the Olympic History - Michel Phelps.

Indian sports personality who bagged Silver in Olympics 25 Metre Rapid Fire Pistol Event - Vijay Kumar.





Former UN secretary general quit as the UN special envoy to Syria - Kofi Annan.

India signed Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with which Sovereign city state on 31 July 2012 in New Delhi that will allow the two countries to check tax evasion - Monaco.

The Indian Scientist who was honoured with Fundamental Physics Prize (FPP) 2012 - Ashoke Sen

Jamaican Sprinter who won Gold in Men’s 100 Meter Race and set Olympic Record - Usain Bolt

The personality who sworn in as the Head of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration - Bimal Gurung.

The Indian badminton player who clinched Bronze in Women’s Singles Badminton Event at London Olympics 2012 - Sania Nehwal

The world renowned sports personality won the US PGA Golf Championship – Rory Mcllroy

THE INDIAN ECONOMIST WHO IS APPOINTED THE NEW CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISOR IN THE FINANCE MINISTRY- RAGHURAM RAJAN

The corporate personality who stepped down as the chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra - Keshub Mahindra

INDIA successfully test-fired medium range ballistic missile - AGNI-II

FIRST MEETING OF THE INDIA-CELAC troika foreign ministers was held in - NEW DELHI

THE BANK WITH WHICH JET AIRWAYS TIED UP AND LAUNCHED CREDIT CARDS - HDFC Bank

The person who is appointed as the New Election commissioner - Syed Nasim Ahmed

Death of famous Indian cinematographer - Ashok Mehta

The VICE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF CUBA WHO VISITED INDIA in August - Rogelio Sierra Diaz

The Indian- American journalist and author suspended by Time, CNN for plagiarism - Fareed Zakaria

The bird which was declared as state bird of Delhi - The house sparrow

The Union minister of science and technology who passed away - Vilas Rao Deshmukh

1975 Batch IRS Officer appointed as chairman of central board of direct taxes (CBDT) - Poonam Kishore Saxena

The person appointed as the new Union Minister of Science and technology-Vayalar Ravi


http://www.jagranjosh.com/current-affairs/rory-mcllroy-won-the-us-pga-golf-championship-1344925287-1

http://www.jagranjosh.com/current-affairs/raghuram-rajan-appointed-the-new-chief-economic-advisor-in-the-finance-ministry-1344842163-1

http://www.jagranjosh.com/current-affairs/raghuram-rajan-appointed-the-new-chief-economic-advisor-in-the-finance-ministry-1344842163-1




Two Indian sports personality choosen for Rajiv Gandhi khel ratna award - Vijay Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt

Person elected as Deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha - PJ Kurien

NEWS CAPSULE

KAUSHIK BASU ENDED TENURE AS THE CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISOR IN NEW DELHI

Kaushik Basu ended his tenure as India’s Chief Economic Advisor on 31 July 2012. A professor from Cornell University, he held the position for two and a half years at the North-Block, New Delhi.

Prior to his stint as the economic advisor, Basu was the Chairman of the Department of Economics in the year 2009 and between 2006-9 he was the Director of the Center for Analytic Economics at Cornell. He at present is the fourth President of the Human Development and Capabilities Association, which was founded by Amartya Sen.

He has also held advisory posts with the ILO, the World Bank, the Reserve Bank of India and was, for several years, member of the steering committee of the Expert Group of Development Issues set up by the Swedish Government. At present, he is a member of the Board of Directors of the Exim Bank of India.

As a Fellow of the Econometric Society, the Ex chief economic advisor published widely in the areas of Development Economics, Industrial Organization, Game Theory and Welfare Economics. His books include Analytical Development Economics, Prelude to Political Economy: A Study of the Social and Political Foundations of Economics and Of People, Of Places: Sketches from an Economist’s Notebook.

In the month of May, 2008 he was awarded, the Padma Bhushan, by the President of India, which is one of India’s highest civilian awards.

As a pass out from the St. Stephens College and the London School of Economics, this stalwart saw various fluctuations in the economic background of this country. Whilst stepping down, he stated that the inflation in India is expected to dip down by September 2012, by seven percent. Basu also stated that India needs to tackle corruption to be able to tackle bigger issues.

9 PHYSICISTS WORLDWIDE RECEIVED THE FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICS PRIZE

9 physicists worldwide were given the Fundamental Physics Prize on 31 July 2012. The prizes were given to the physicists for their remarkable contribution to the field of fundamental physics. Fundamental Physics Prize has been established by Russian Businessman Yuri Milner and the most money-spinning academic prize in the world.





Winners of the award include, Ashoke Sen, N J Nima, Arkani-Hamed, Juan Maldacena, Nathan Seiberg, Edward Witten, Andrei Linde, Alexei Kitaev, Maxim Kontsevich, Ashoke Sen

The winners will receive 3 million dollar as the prize amount. The Nobel Prize currently comes with an award of 1.2 million dollar, which is generally divided between two or three people.

UP GOVERNMENT INAUGURATED STATE SERVICE DELIVERY GATEWAY IN LUCKNOW

Lucknow: The state government inaugurated State Service Delivery Gateway here. Lucknow is the capital of Uttar Pradesh.

Uttar Pradesh government on 1 August 2012 inaugurated State Service Delivery Gateway, in Lucknow. In first phase, 26 services of eight departments were included in this scheme. Now people can get certificates etc. from Panchayati Raj, Revenue, Labour, Urban development, social welfare and food and civil supplies departments.

INDIAN SCIENTIST ASHOKE SEN WAS HONOURED WITH FUNDAMENTAL PHYSICS PRIZE

Indian Scientist Ashoke Sen was honoured with Fundamental Physics Prize (FPP) 2012 on 31 July 2012. He is 56 years old. Ashoke will get the cash prize of three million dollar which is double the cash prize of Nobel Prize. He is the only Indian who was honored with this award.

He was the Professor of Physics in Harish Chandra Research Institute, Allahabad. In the year 1988, he had joined Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai.

This Prize was started by the billionaire of Russia Yuri Milner. The prize was given to the physicists for their remarkable contribution to the field of fundamental physics. The winners of Fundamental Physics Prize were selected by Yuri Milner. Yuri Milner was the researcher in Lebedev Physical Institute.

Prof. Sen received Padma Shri award and the Indian National Science Academy in the year 2001 and 1995 respectively. He had received CSIR’s Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in the year 1994. He was also elected as the fellow of the Royal Society of London in the year 1998.

Sen studied at Presidency College of Kolkata and had successfully completed his masters from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur in the year 1976. He had completed his PhD from State University of New York, Stony Brook. He also worked with Fermilab and Stanford before coming back to the Country.

KOFI ANNAN QUIT AS THE UN SPECIAL ENVOY TO SYRIA

Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on 2 August 2012 stepped down as the UN special envoy to Syria. Annan formally informed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Secretary-





General of the League of Arab States, Nabil El Araby about his decision. His appointment for the high-profile as the UN peace interlocutor was set to expire on 31 August 2012.

Annan was appointed the UN-Arab League special envoy to Syria in February 2012. A formidable diplomat Annan was assigned with the task to explore for the peaceful solution to the Syrian crisis and secure a peaceful transition of the regime.

Kofi Annan right after taking over the charge as the special envoy to Syria came up with a six-point peace plan to stop violent struggle in the Syria. The peace plan which was submitted to UN Security Council comprised of following points:

1. Working with international envoy to secure peaceful political transition in the country by taking into account of the legitimate aspirations and concerns of Syrian people 2. End to violence by all sides; army troops to stop using heavy weapons and withdraw to barracks 3. Permission for humanitarian assistance particularly for the areas worst hit by violence 4. Accelerate the pace of release of detainees who were detained arbitrarily by the present government 5. Ensuring freedom of movement for journalists 6. Permission to the citizens for peaceful demonstrations

Kofi Annan, who was named the special envoy to Syria given his extra ordinary credential as a diplomat, starkly failed to restore peace in the war-torn nation. His failure in making Bashar-al-Assad led Syrian regime fall in line caused major disappointment for the peace initiatives in the country. Besides, he also failed miserably in attempt to get all the super powers on one platform as Russia and China two veto-wielding nations in UN Security Council vehemently opposed the western plan of peace in Syria.

An estimated 20000 people have already lost their lives in one of the most violent chapter of Arab Spring, which took the entire Arab world by strom in 2011. The unrelenting bloodshed is now on the verge of morphing into a civil war, which could prove to be more troublesome for the global community.

PATHER PANCHALI SECURED 42 RANK IN SIGHT AND SOUND POLL

Pather Panchali secured 42 rank in SIGHT AND SOUND POLL with 31 votes on 2 August 2012. It was featured in the 50 greatest films of all time List by Sight & Sound Maganzine.

Pather Panchali (Song of the Road) was made by the Film maker Satyajit Ray. This Film was based on Bengali Novel PATHER PANCHALI written by BIBHUTIBHUSHAN BANDOPADHYAY.

This movie was made under the small budhet of Rs. 150 thousand. It was lyrical and the story of the film was related to the peasant family in rural India of 1920. Approximately, 846 critics, academics and distributors had given the vote to Pather Panchali for the 50 greatest films.





Pather Panchali was honoured with Best Human Document prize at the Cannes Film Festival in the year 1956. This is first Indian Film that was the part of the Sight & Sound list. In 2002, this film was ranked 22 in Sight and Sound Poll. SIGHT & SOUND is the reputed Magazine from the Film Institute of British. Vertiogo secured first rank in Sight and Sound Poll.

RAKESH SINGH APPOINTED AS THE 55TH PRESIDENT OF ICAI

Rakesh Singh was appointed as the 55th President of Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICAI) on 21 July 2012 for the year 2012-13. He succeeded M. Gopalakrishnan. Rakesh Singh was the former Vice-President of ICAI. S.C. Mohanty succeeded Rakesh Singh as the Vice-President of ICAI.

Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICAI) is the Professional Institute. It is a statuary body under an act of Parliament. ICAI serves for the nation, government, industry and the Society. They had received the National Award for Excellence in Cost Management in the year 2011.

BIMAL GURUNG APPOINTED AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF GTA

Gurung was sworn in as the CEO on 4 August 2012. It was administered by the Governor of West Bengal, Union Ministers Sushil Kumar Shinde and Mukul Roy, and Mamata Banerjee.He was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) on 3 August 2012. He was the former president of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM). He has the responsibility to develop hills of Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars. He has to take care of the Administration of Gorkhaland.

Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) is a semi-autonomous administrative body for Darjeeling hills in West Bengal, India. GTA has three hill sub-divisions they are: - Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Kurseong and some areas of Siliguri sub-divisions.

TYPHOON DAMREY HIT THE CHINESE PROVINCES LIAONING AND HEBEI

Typhoon Damrey hit the Chinese provinces Liaoning and Hebei in the first week of August 2012 causing severe damage to life and properties. The Typhoon also caused heavy rains and floods.

Approximately, 1.46 million people of 43 counties and urban districts in 10 cities of Liaoning were affected by heavy rains and floods.

PRIME MINISTER OF FIJI, LAISENIA QARASE WAS PUNISHED FOR ONE YEAR PRISON

Prime Minister of Fiji, Laisenia Qarase was punished for One year Prison on 3 August 2012 by the Supreme Court of Fiji. He found guilty on corruption charges. He was unable to answer the

Damrey- A Typhoon

which hit China in the

first week of August

2012





Government about his private investment in three companies to whom he was helping financially from past 20 years. He is not allowed to take part in the Prime Minister’s elections of Fiji in the year 2014.

Laisenia served as the Prime Minister for six years. He became the Prime Minister in the year 2000. In 2006, he was ejected from a military coup. He was also convicted for nine charges when he was a public servant in the era of 1990.

The former Prime Minister of Fiji, Mahendra Chaudhry was also caught in the case of Corruption. He was blamed with the three charges under the Foreign Exchange Control Act.

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA INAUGURATED THEIR LOCAL OFFICE IN JAIPUR

Jaipur: Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) inaugurated their local office here. Jaipur is known as the Pink City. It is the largest city in Rajasthan State.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) inaugurated their local office in Jaipur on 4 August 2012. It was inaugurated by Rajeev Kumar Agarwal, the member of SEBI. The office will be responsible to look after all the regulatory aspects of investor protection, investor education and all the other responsibilities within Rajasthan state.

NEW SPECIES OF SPIDER NAMED AFTER NATURALIST DAVID ATTENBOROUGH

A new species of spider found only on one island in Queensland, Australia was named after the British naturalist and celebrated TV broadcaster Sir David Attenborough. The prethopalpus attenboroughi spider is just over one millimetre in length and exists only on Horn Island in the Torres Strait in Queensland.

The spider was discovered and described by Queensland Museum research fellow Barbara Baehr and WA Museum head of terrestrial zoology Professor Mark Harvey. Prethopalpus is commonly known as a goblin spider.

It is not the first time a species has been named after Sir David as earlier a fossil of a fish that existed 380 million years ago was named Materpiscis attenboroughi.

FORMER CHIEF MINISTER OF GUJARAT, KESHUBHAI PATEL LAUNCHED GUJARAT PARIVARTAN PARTY

Former Chief Minister of Gujarat, Keshubhai Patel launched Gujarat Parivartan (GPP) Party on 6 August 2012. Keshubhai Patel and the former union textile minister Kanshiram Rana resigned from Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) on 4 August 2012. This Party would contest all the 182 seats in Gujarat assembly elections which will be held by the end of 2012.





GUNMAN KILLED 6 AT SIKH TEMPLE IN OAK CREEK IN WISCONSIN

Oak Creek: Oak Creek is a city in Milwaukee County of Wisconsin state in United States

Wisconsin: Wisconsin is one of the 50 states of United States, located in the north-central part of the country.

The place came in spotlight after a gunman killed 6 worshipers at a Sikh temple at Oak Creek in Wisconsin on 5 August 2012.The temple in Oak Creek was founded in October 1997 and has a congregation of 350 to 400 people.

An estimated 500000 or more Sikhs live in the United States. Since the attacks of September 11, 2001 by Islamist militants, Sikhs have sometimes been confused publicly with Muslims because of their turban headdress and beards. Sikh is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world, with more than 30 million followers.

NARESH CHANDRA COMMITTEE SUBMITTED ITS REPORT ON NATIONAL SECURITY

Naresh Chandra Committee, a 14-member task force on national security, submitted its report to the government on 8 August 2012. The committee was set up by the Union government on 21 June 2012 to suggest ways to revamp of defence management in the country.

Naresh Chandra, a former bureaucrat, headed the committee which members included former military officers, intelligence chiefs, diplomats and strategic analysts. Air Chief Marshal (retired) S. Krishnaswamy, General (retired) VR Raghavan, the former Department of Atomic Energy chief Anil Kakodkar, Admiral (retired) Arun Prakash, the former R&AW head KC Verma, the former Union Home Secretary V.K. Duggal, G Parthasarathy, former diplomat, and senior journalist Manoj Joshi were the other members in the committee.

The main objective behind the constitution of the committee was to contemporarise the Kargil Review Committee’s recommendations, which was tabled in the Parliament on 23 February 2000. Besides, the task force was also asked to examine the state of country's border management and restructuring system.

KARGIL REVIEW COMMITTEE

The Kargil Review Committee (KRC), headed by the late K. Subrahmanyam, had submitted its report a decade back. The recommendations made by the committee had paved the way for the setting up of a Group of Ministers which had suggested massive reforms in the country's security management system. The KRC is considered to be the first major attempt at revamping the country's security after Independence.

SYED NASIM AHMED ZAIDI APPOINTED NEW ELECTION COMMISSIONER





Syed Nasim Ahmad Zaidi, a 1976 batch IAS officer of UP cadre, was appointed as an Election Commissioner on 7 August 2012. His appointment was approved by President Pranab Mukherjee. Zaidi had retired as Civil Aviation Secretary on 31 July 2012.

Zaidi was appointed to fill the vacancy which was created by the retirement of former Chief Election Commissioner S Y Quraishi and the elevation of V S Sampath as Chief Election Commissioner. H S Brahma is the other Election Commissioner.

In a long and illustrious career as a bureaucrat, Syed Nasim Ahmed Zaidi has served various key positions including Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Permanent Representative of India to the Council of International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) from and Chairman in Airport Authority of India.

ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA

Article 324 of the Indian constitution provides for the institution of Election Commission of India. The commission was set up on 25 January 1950 as a one member body but the number was later expanded to 3 on 16 October 1989. However, the tenure of other two members in the body was very short as they left the office on 1 January 1990. Subsequently, on 1 October 1993 two additional Election Commissioners were appointed. The concept of multi-member Commission has been in operation since then, with decision making power by majority vote. The three-member body is headed by the Chief Election Commissioner who is appointed by the President of India.

FIRST MEETING OF THE INDIA-CELAC TROIKA FOREIGN MINISTERS WAS HELD IN NEW DELHI

The first meeting of the India-CELAC (The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Troika foreign ministers was held in New Delhi on 7 August 2012. The CELAC Troika was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile Alfredo Moreno Charme, the pro-tempore President of CELAC. The Foreign Minister of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro and the Vice Foreign Minister of Cuba, Rogelio Sierra participated in the meeting as members of the Troika. The Indian delegation was led by the External Affairs Minister of India, SM Krishna. The meeting was held with the objective of strengthening India-CELAC relationship.

INDIA SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FIRED MEDIUM RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILE AGNI – II

India on 9 August 2012 successfully test-fired domestically built surface-to-surface two stage Agni-II ballistic missile. The missile was launched from a test range at Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. The nuclear capable missile with a strike range of 2000 km was first test fired on 11 April 1999. The missile was inducted in the Army on 17 May 2010.





The missile was launched by the strategic force command of Indian Army as a routine users’ trial. The objective of the launch was to train the user team to launch the missile. Agni-II is 20 metres long and capable of carrying a nuclear warhead weighing one ton.

Agni-II was developed under the joint work of advanced systems laboratory, the missile development laboratory of the DRDO, Defence Research Development Laboratory and Research Centre Imarat, while it was integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad.

The Agni-II missile belongs to the genre of medium range ballistic missiles developed by India under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. The missile was made operational by the Indian Army in March 2010.

TYPHOON HAIKUI SLAMMED INTO THE EAST COAST OF CHINA

Haikui-The Typhoon which hit China on 8 August 2012.

Typhoon Haikui slammed into the east coast of China on 8 August 2012. This is the third typhoon to hit China's east coast in less than a week. The other two typhoons which hit China were Damrey and Saola.

A severe typhoon is considered to have maximum sustained wind speed of between 150 and 184 kilometers per hour (93 and 114 mph). A typhoon has maximum sustained winds of between 118 and 149 kilometers per hour (73 and 93 mph).

THE RE-DESIGNED WEBSITE OF THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA WAS LAUNCHED

The re-designed website of the President of India was launched at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 3 August 2012. While the historical perspectives from the earlier websites have been retained, the re-designed website has some new features, which include direct connectivity from the website to social networking media of the President i.e. Facebook and You-Tube. These two features have been initiated after assumption of charge by the President Pranab Mukherjee. The new website also has a Video Gallery.

Citizens can connect to the President directly by clicking the button Write to the President, which will take them directly to the helpline portal. Moreover, visuals have been conceptualized and made user friendly.

Launching the website would be a step forward to bring the President of India closer to the people.

SCIENTIST IDENTIFIED A NEW OXIDANT IN THE ATMOSPHERE

Scientists for the first time found evidence of another oxidant named X, which plays an important role in the formation of gaseous sulphuric acid in the atmosphere. Until now there





was a misconception that the combination of OH(hydroxyl radical) oxidant with sulphur dioxide was the reason behind the formation of gaseous sulphuric acid is formed in the atmosphere.

The results are published on 9 August 2012 in Nature. The new oxidant is capable of oxidizing suphur dioxide. Experiments done by Scientists showed that the concentration of ‘X’ also does not remain constant during the day.

RAGHURAM RAJAN APPOINTED THE NEW CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISOR IN THE FINANCE MINISTRY

Raghuram Rajan, former chief economist of International Monetary Fund (IMF) was appointed as the Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry. The Appointments Committee of Cabinet cleared the appointment of Rajan as the new CEA on 10 August 2012. The position was lying vacant since Kaushik Basu demitted the office on 31 July 2012.

Raghuram Rajan has already been serving as the ‘Honorary Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister’, the position he was given in November 2008. He also headed High Level Committee on Financial Sector Reforms in 2007.

Born on 3 February 1963 in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, Rajan obtained his bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Later, he studied at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad followed by a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1991 with a thesis entitled "Essays on Banking."

A Professor of Finance at the Booth School of Business of University of Chicago, Rajan also served as the "Economic Counselor and Director of Research" (Chief Economist) at the International Monetary Fund from September 2003 until January 2007.

PAK GOVERNMENT HONOURED SAADAT HASAN MANTO WITH THE NISAN-I-IMTIAZ

Acclaimed Pakistani writer Saadat Hasan Manto on 14 August 2012 was honoured with the Nisan-i-Imtiaz, Pakistan's highest civilian award. Manto is best known for his Urdu short stories, especially those that explored the impact of the partition of the subcontinent into India and Pakistan in 1947. Toba Tek Singh, Bu (Odour), Khol Do (Open It) and Thanda Gosht (Cold Meat) were written by him.

Saadat Hasan Manto worked for the Urdu Service of All India Radio in 1941 for several months. Manto ended a career as a scriptwriter in Mumbai to move to Pakistan in 1948. He died at the age of 42 in 1955. His frank style angered conservatives in Pakistan and he faced trial three times on charges of obscenity.

Besides Manto, renowned singer Mehdi Hassan, Lt.Gen (retired) Khalid Kidwai and Munir Ahmed Khan were honoured with civilian awards for their contributions in fields like arts and





literature, nuclear science, education and sports, healthcare and public service. The awards will be given away at a ceremony to be held on Pakistan Day on 23 March 2013.

SCIENTISTS FOUND A STEM CELL THERAPY TO PREVENT OSTEOARTHRITIS

Scientists in the second week of August 2012 found a stem cell therapy to prevent osteoarthritis after a joint injury. Scientists used MSCs (mesenchymal) stem cells in mice with fractures that typically result into developing arthritis.

This scientific finding could result into a therapy that will be used after joint injury. Osteoarthritis means painful and stiff joints.

THE BELGIAN DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER DIDIER REYNDERS VISITED INDIA

The Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs Didier Reynders visited India from 1-5 August and 8-12 August 2012. During his visit, he discussed bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest.

Besides that, A MoU was signed between Ministry of Railways, Government of India and the Ministry of Mobility of Kingdom of Belgium on 2 August 2012.

THE FIJI GOVERNMENT GAVE METHODIST CHURCH PERMISSION TO HELD ITS ANNUAL MEETING

The Military led Government in Fiji on 14 August 2012 gave the influential Methodist Church permission to hold its annual meeting for the first time in four years although any discussion of politics has been banned. The government is slowly easing its grip on the country.

The church has been critical of the army which overthrew an elected government in 2006. A promise to restore democracy has prompted Australia and New Zealand to re-establish diplomatic ties with Fiji.

TIME, CNN SUSPENDED FAREED ZAKARIA FOR PLAGIARISM

Noted Indian-American journalist Fareed Zakaria was suspended by Time Magazine and CNN as their columnist and show host after he confessed the charges of plagiarism. Zakaria was accused of copying sections of his column THE CASE FOR GUN CONTROL in the 20 August 2012 issue of Time.

Some passages written by Zakaria in his column on gun control found stark similarity to those written by historian Jill Lepore on the same issue, which appeared in the 23 April 2012 issue of The New Yorker. The similarities in the texts were spotted by the conservative Web site





NewsBusters, and quickly spread across the Internet after appearing on the media blog JimRomenesko.com.

Born on 20 January 1964 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Fareed Zakaria obtained his Bachelors degree in Arts from Yale University. Later he received Doctorate in Political Science from Harvard University in 1993. In a career spanning more than two decades in journalism, Zakaria worked with numerous global media organizations such as News Week, Time, CNN.

PAKISTAN GOVERNMENT HONOURED GOPI CHAND NARANG WITH SITARA-I-IMTIAZ

Pakistan government on 14 August 2012 honoured Urdu author, Gopi Chand Narang with sitara-i-Imtiaz, the third highest civilian honour given by the nation. In the past, former Prime Minister Morarji Desai and matinee idol Dilip Kumar were bestowed Pakistan's highest civilian honour, Nishan-i-Imtiaz. The award will be given to Gopi Chand Narang in Pakistan on 23 March, 2013, Pakistan's Republic Day.

Gopi Chand Narang was born on 11 February, 1931, in Dukki, Pakistan. He is an Indian scholar of Urdu language and literature, an eminent Urdu writer, scholar, critic and linguist. He is author of many books in Urdu, Hindi and English.

PRIME MINISTER SHRAM AWARDS FOR YEAR 2011 ANNOUNCED

Union Ministry of Labour and Employment announced the Prime Minister Shram Awards for year 2011 on 15 August 2012.

This year, no nomination was found suitable for the presitigious Shram Ratna Award. Six nominations for the Shram Bhushan Award, Thirty Three nominations for Shram Vir/Shram Veerangana and twenty nine nominations for Shram Shree/Shram Devi Awards have been selected.

Even though, the total number of Shram Awards is 33, the number of workers receiving the Awards is 68 (Including six women), as some of the Awards have been shared by workers and/or teams of workers consisting of more than one worker. These include 52 workers from the public sector and 16 workers from the private sector.

Shram Bhushan awards carry a cash prize of 1 lakh rupees and a Sanad. Shram Veer/Veerangana awards carry a cash prize of 60000 rupees and a Sanad. Shram Shree/Devi Awards comprise of a cash prize of 40000 rupees and a Sanad.

Shram Awards were set up by the Government of India in 1985 to recognize the outstanding contributions of workers in different fields.

ROGELIO SIERRA DIAZ, VICE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF CUBA VISITED INDIA





Rogelio Sierra Diaz, vice foreign minister of Cuba visited India on 7 August 2012 to participate in the First India-CELAC foreign ministers Troika meeting in New Delhi. On the sidelines of the meeting, he met SM Krishna, Minister of External Affairs of India. During this meeting, both nations discussed ways to improve bilateral relations encompassing the areas dealing with political, commercial and economic; energy; sports; science and technology; education and culture. India and Cuba agreed on the need for the reform of the United Nations Organisation.

The Indian side appreciated Cuba’s expression of support to India’s candidature for permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council.

NOTED INDIAN CINEMATOGRAPHER ASHOK MEHTA PASSED AWAY

Veteran Cinematographer Ashok Mehta passed away in Mumbai on 15 August 2012. He was 65. Mehta was suffering from lung cancer and was getting treatment at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai.

During his long career in Bollywood Mehta worked with prominent filmmakers like Subhash Ghai, Rajiv Rai and MF Husain. He was the director of photography in films like 36 Chowringhee Lane, Utsav, Trikal, Khalnayak, Bandit Queen, Chalte Chalte, Gajgamini, Trimurti, Khalnayak, Moksha and Ram Lakhan.

WIKILEAKS FOUNDER JULIAN ASSANGE WOULD BE GRANTED POLITICAL ASYLUM BY ECUADOR

The foreign ministry of Ecuador announced that Ecuador would be granting Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange a political asylum on 16 August 2012.

Assange shot to fame in the year 2010 after he leaked a number of US diplomatic cables and videos regarding the war in Iraq and Afghanistan through Wikileaks. Following the incident, USA and other countries whose secrets were divulged jumped into considerable action. Assange and his team argue that the alleged sex crimes allegations and these accusations are untrue and falsely built up.

He is best known as the editor-in-chief and co-founder of WikiLeaks, a media website which has published information from whistleblowers.

LAKHDAR BRAHIMI WAS APPOINTED THE NEW UN ARAB LEAGUE ENVOY FOR SYRIA

Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi was appointed the new UN-Arab League envoy for Syria on 17 August 2012. He will succeed Kofi Annan, who resigned earlier this month after his six-point peace plan failed to achieve a meaningful cease-fire. Lakhdar Brahimi will be known as the Joint Special Representative for Syria.





The 78-year-old Algerian diplomat has served as a U.N. special envoy in Iraq after the U.S. invasion; in Afghanistan, before and after the end of Taliban rule; and in South Africa after the apartheid era. He also brokered an end to the Lebanese civil war as a senior Arab League official between 1984-91. He went on to serve as Algerian foreign minister between 1991-3.

Meles Zenavi, the Ethiopian Prime Minister, passed away on 20 August 2012 following prolonged illness. He was 57. Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who is also Ethiopia's foreign minister, will assume the charge as the acting Prime Minister of the country.

Born into a middle-class family in Adawa, Tigray, in Ethiopia's northern highlands, Meles Zenavi joined the politics when he was still studying in the university. He later dropped out of university to take full participation in the insurrection against the Syrian military regime.

In 1991 when Mengistu Haile Mariam led Military Council was finally thrown out of power, Meles assumed the charge as the president in a transitional government. Later in 1995 he took over as the prime minister of the country. He went on to lead the African country for nearly 20 years and influenced the Ethiopian public life until his death.

PJ KURIEN ELECTED THE DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF RAJYA SABHA

Congress leader PJ Kurien was unanimously elected the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh moved the motion for the election of Kurien.

Kurien has been the member of national parliament for the last three decades representing Idukki, and Mavelikkara Lok Sabha constituencies. Since 2005 he is a member of the Rajya Sabha.

The Deputy Chairman is elected in the meeting of the Rajya Sabha as decided by Chairman of the Rajya Sabha from amongst the members of the Rajya Sabha. He is supposed to resign from his original party because as a Deputy Speaker, he has to remain impartial.

Deputy Chaiman of Rajya Sabha acts as the Presiding Officer in case of leave or absence of the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, the Vice-President of India.

MAHARASHTRA RECORDED THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF DEATHS DUE TO SAES DURING DRUG TRIALS

According to data disclosed by the Drug Controller-General of India, during the period (January 2008- January 2012), India recorded 2061 drug trial-related deaths. Maharashtra recorded the maximum number of 268 deaths due to SAEs (Serious Adverse Events) during drug trials while Madhya Pradesh recorded the least number of such deaths.

It is followed by Andhra Pradesh-153, Delhi/National Capital Region -97, Gujarat -87 and Karnataka -78. The number of deaths in Maharashtra was over 10 times that of Madhya Pradesh.





VAYALAR RAVI ASSUMED CHARGE AS UNION MINISTER FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Vayalar Ravi assumed charge as the Union Minister for Science and Technology on 21 August 2012. He was allocated the charge by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after Vilasrao Deshmukh, who was holding the portfolio passed away on 14 August 2012.

In three years of UPA – II, Vayalar Ravi is the fifth Science and Technology minister. Earlier, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Pawan Kumar Bansal, Kapil Sibal and Prithviraj Chavan had been in the charge of the Ministry.

Vayalar Ravi is also holding the portfolio of Union Ministry of Overseas Affairs, the charge he assumed in January 2006. Besides he also holds the charge of Ministry of Earth Sciences and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

POONAM KISHORE SAXENA APPOINTED AS CHAIRMAN OF CENTRAL BOARD OF DIRECT TAXES

The Union Finanace Ministry appointed Poonam Kishore Saxena, a 1975 batch IRS officer, as Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on 21 August 2012. She was holding the additional charge of the post after incumbent chairman Laxman Das retired July 2012.

Prior to her appointment as CBDT Chairman, Saxena worked as Director General (Investigation) in Jaipur for three years. In her more than three and a half decade long career in IRS, Saxena has worked in various areas like Administration of Income Tax, Appeals and Recovery.

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)

CBDT is responsible for administration of direct tax laws through the Income Tax Department and also provides essential inputs for policy and planning of direct taxes.

FIRST TYPE OF TEA PREPARED 1000 YEARS AGO BY NATIVE AMERICANS

Scientists claimed that the first cup of primitive form of tea was brewed by native Americans some thousand years ago. Inhabitants of Cahokia, a massive pre-Columbus settlement near the meeting point of Missouri and Mississippi rivers in Illinois, consumed a 'Black Drink' from ceramic beakers.

The beverage, made from toasted holly leaves and stems, was six times more potent than coffee. It could have been created for special ceremonies and is the first known evidence of a tea-like drink in what is now the US. Cahokia was a city with as many as 100,000 residents in its heyday - the largest prehistoric North American settlement north of Mexico.

The pre-Columbian settlement at Cahokia was the largest city in North America north of Mexico, with as many as 50000 people living there at its peak. Europeans were the first to record the use of what they called the black drink by Native American men in the southeast.





CHARLES L BENNETT RECEIVED THE GRUBER COSMOLOGY PRIZE 2012

Charles L Bennett, a professor of physics and astronomy at Johns Hopkins University, US, was awarded with the Gruber Cosmology Prize 2012 in Beijing at the opening ceremony of the 28th Conference of the International Astronomical Union on 22 August 2012. The 500000 dollar award was given to him acknowledging his immense contribution to the world of physics.

Bennett, a prominent physicist, led a 26-member team that worked on NASA's Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe. The findings of the study helped astronomers refine their understanding of the age, shape and makeup of the universe. The Gruber Prize is the second for Bennett, who also was a member of a NASA team that won the prize in 2006. As the member of the COBE Team he conducted a ground-breaking studies confirming that our universe was born in a hot Big Bang.

SIX TOP SPORTING COACHES TO RECEIVE DRONACHARYA AWARD FOR 2012

The names of six sporting coaches were recommended for the Dronacharya Awards for the year 2012. Wrestling coach Yashvir Singh, Boxing Coach BI Fernandez, Athletics Coach Virender Poonia, Kabaddi Coach Sunil Davas, Parathletics Coach Dr. Satyapaul and Hockey Coach Harinder Singh are the six coaches who have been selected for the coveted award, given to the coach of different sports, for their excellent contribution to the sports.

Boxing Coach BI Fernandez, who is a Cuban national, became the first foreign coach to be recommended for the Dronacharya Award. Fernandez has been instrumental in India’s impressive performances in Boxing in the international tournaments.

The Dronacharya Awards committee was headed by former Indian hockey captain Aslam Sher Khan. The other members include Rajkumar Sangwan (boxing), Dhanraj Pillai (hockey), Shiny Wilson (athletics), Morad Ali Khan (shooting), Karnam Malleswari (weightlifting), Bahadur Singh (athletics), Bhupender Dhawan (powerlifting,G S Sandhu (boxing), Ramphan Mann (wrestling, Prem Chand Degra (body building).

Dronacharya Award

The Dronacharya Award was instituted by the government of India in 1985. The award has been given to 72 people until 2011. The award carries five lakh rupees and a citation and is conferred to coaches of different sports for their noteworthy contribution. The awards will be presented by President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhawan on 29 August 2012, the National Sports Day.

THE CASTLE NAGGAR IN HIMACHAL PRADESH WAS GIVEN HERITAGE STATUS





The Castle Naggar, Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation's prime hotel in the picturesque Kullu valley, was notified under the heritage status by the Union Tourism ministry on 23 August 2012. Naggar was the capital of the erstwhile Kullu state for about 1460 years.

The castle was built by Raja Sidhi Singh in the 16th century. The castle has traditional architecture called Kathloonmi, which uses a combination of stones and wooden beams. The castle was handed over to state-owned HPTDC in 1978 to be run as a hotel.

SONIA GANDHI RANKED SIXTH IN THE FORBES’ LIST OF 100 MOST POWERFUL WOMEN IN THE WORLD

Sonia Gandhi ranked number six in the Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most powerful women. Sonia Gandhi, the chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance and the Congress party is among the five Indian women who have been named in the world’s 100 most powerful women list. The other four Indian women in the list are Indira Nooyi (12), Padmashree Warrior (58), Chanda Kochar (59) and Kiran Mazzomdar Shaw (80). Gandhi was figured on 7th position in the list of powerful women in 2011.

German Chancellor Angella Markel topped the list for a second successive year. She was followed by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who have been ranked number two and three respectively for second year in a row. Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and wife of Microsoft Corp co-founder Bill Gates, and Jill Abramson, executive editor of the New York Times was ranked fourth and fifth respectively.

Michelle Obama, wife of the US President Barak Obama and IMF director Christine Lagarde ranked seventh and eighth respectively in the list. The magazine’s list included women who have been working in the areas such as policymaking, business, entertainment, technology and nonprofit organizations.

NASA’S CURIOSITY ROVER TOOK ITS FIRST DRIVE ON THE SURFACE OF MARS

NASA’s Curiosity rover took its first drive on the surface of Mars on 23 August 2012. The rover in its first drive moved around six metres from its original landing site. After more tests on its systems, NASA intends to move the Curiosity rover some 400 metres to the southeast to continue its exploration of the red planet.

NASA also released images of the tracks left by the rover, to show the success of the mission. The space agency also announced that the original landing site of the Curiosity rover would be named after the late science fiction author Ray Bradbury who died on 5 June 2012. The site will be known as the Bradbury Landing.

Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on 26 November 2011 aboard the MSL spacecraft and successfully landed on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater on Mars on 6 August 2012. The rover's





goals include investigation of the climate and geology on the red planet. The rover would also explore if the Mars was ever hospitable to life. Besides it will also investigate the role of water and planetary habitability, and preparing for human exploration.

TWITTER BANNED SIX ACCOUNTS SIMILAR IN APPEARANCE TO PMO ACCOUNT

Social media site Twitter on 23 August 2012 banned six accounts similar in appearance to the Prime Minister's Office account. The move by twitter came after the Department of Information Technology served an ultimatum to the social media site for failing to block the offending and inflammatory web pages. Government has already ordered blocking of 310 webpages where morphed and inflammatory contents were uploaded with the aim to incite disturbance in the country. Earlier, the government issued guidelines for its departments using social media networks asking them not to post confidential information and unverified facts.

In the meantime, after checking the use of SMSes to prevent spreading of rumours which had led to mass exodus of north eastern people from certain states, the government has increased the number of SMSes to 20 per day with immediate effect. The other conditions will remain the same.

INDIAN AMERICAN KARL MEHTA WAS SELECTED TO WORK ON FIVE HIGH-IMPACT PROJECTS

Indian-American entrepreneur Karl Mehta was selected among the 18 PRESIDENTIAL INNOVATION FELLOWS who would work on five HIGH-IMPACT projects in the US capital Washington DC.

Selected from an applicant pool of nearly 700 innovators from across the country, the FELLOWS would spend six months in Washington DC to work on five high-impact projects aimed at supporting entrepreneurs, small businesses and the economy, while significantly improving how the Federal Government serves the American people.

SPECIES OF RAT THAT DOESN’T CHEW DISCOVERED IN INDONESIA

A unique species of rat that doesn’t chew was discovered in Indonesia. The animal with a long, pointed snout is the only rodent out of more than 2200 known species that does not have molars and instead has bicuspid upper incisors.

Rats were found in the mountainous rainforest of southern Sulawesi Island on Mount Latimojong and 100 km northwest on Mount Gandangdewata. They lives off earthworms.





AIR FORCE VERSION OF PILOT-LESS TARGET AIRCRAFT LAKSHYA-1 WAS SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FLOWN

The Air Force version of micro-light pilot-less target aircraft Lakshya-1 was successfully test-flown from the launch complex-2 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Orissa on 23 August 2012. The test was carried out with an objective to test the validity of its engine and duration enhancement. Lakshya has been inducted into the Indian Air Force since 2000.

The aircraft is remote-controlled from the ground and designed to provide training to both airborne and air defence pilots. Lakshya-1, fitted with an advanced digitally controlled engine and is a sub-sonic, re-usable aerial target system. It is launched by a solid propellant rocket motor, and sustained by a turbojet engine in flight. The flight duration of the six-foot-long aircraft is 30 to 35 minutes.

The PTA developed by India’s aeronautic development establishment, Bangalore has been designed to perform discreet aerial reconnaissance of battlefield as well as target acquisition.

SENKAKU ISLANDS BECAME THE BONE OF CONTENTION BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN

Senkaku Islands: Ten Japanese on 23 August 2012, made an unauthorized landing on Uotsuri, which is known in Japan as the Senkaku Islands and in China as the Diaoyu Islands. The uninhabited islands surrounded by rich fishing grounds are controlled by Japan but also claimed by China and Taiwan.

The Senkaku Islands dispute engulfs in itself a territorial dispute on a group of uninhabited islands. Of the ten Japanese people who visited the island, five were apparently conservative local assembly members.

The Senkaku Islands are located in the East China Sea between Japan, and the Republic of China. The archipelago contains five uninhabited islands.

VETERAN ACTOR AK HANGAL PASSED AWAY IN MUMBAI

Veteran actor Avatar Krishan Hangal, popularly called AK Hangal, passed away in Mumbai on 26 August 2012 after prolonged illness. He was 97. In a career spanning nearly 40 years Hangal worked in around 225 films. A devoted artist, he also worked in numerous theatre plays and TV Series.

Born in Sialkot, now in Pakistan, on 1 February 1917, AK Hangal actively participated in the Indian freedom struggle from 1929-1947. An ardent communist, he was also jailed for two years from 1947-1949 due to his leftist leanings. Hangal was long associated with IPTA, where he worked alongside Balraj Sahani and Kaifi Ajami.





AK Hangal made his debut in the Hindi cinema at the age of 50 with Basu Bhattacharya's Teesri Kasam in 1966 and Shagird. Some of his memorable works came in the movies like Namak Haraam, Shaukeen , Sholay, Aaina, Avtaar, Arjun, Aandhi, Tapasya, Kora Kagaz, Bawarchi, Chhupa Rustam, Chitchor, Balika Badhu, Guddi, Naram Garam.

Considering his immense contribution to the Indian film industry the government of India awarded him with the Padma Bhushan in 2006.

US ASTRONAUT NEIL ALDEN ARMSTRONG PASSED AWAY

Neil Alden Armstrong, the US Astronaut, who got his name written in the history of mankind after he became the first person on the Earth to walk on the surface of moon, passed away on 25 August 2012. He was 82.

At the age of 38, Armstrong, as the commander of the Apollo 11 mission, became the first human to land on the moon on 20 July 1969. Right after he stepped on the surface of moon, Armstrong uttered that famous sentence "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

Born on 5 August 1930 in Wapakoneto, Ohio, US, Neil Armstrong was an American astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor and United States Naval Aviator. The Apollo 11 mission was his last mission to space. Armstrong was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Richard Nixon along with Collins and Aldrin, the Congressional Space Medal of Honor by President Jimmy Carter in 1978, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2009.

Apollo 11 Mission

Apollo 11 was the space flight which landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, two humans for the first time on the surface on moon. The landing of Apollo 11, also called mission insignia, on the lunar surface marked America’s triumph in the Cold War space race that began on 4 October 1957, with the launch of the Soviet Union’s Sputnik 1, a satellite that sent shock waves around the world.

DELHI GOVERNMENT PRESENTED LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Celebrated Sarod exponent Amjad Ali Khan, vocalist Girija Devi and famous writer Ruskin Bond were conferred the Delhi government's Lifetime Achievement Awards on 24 August 2012. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit presented the award acknowledging the outstanding contribution of the awardees to their respective fields at the national and international level. The award was consisted of a cash prize of 11 lakh rupees and a citation.

The award was instituted by the Delhi government's Sahitya Kala Parishad in 2004 to felicitate on eminent personalities for their outstanding contributions to the fields of music, dance, theatre, visual arts, sports and literature.





Bhimsen Joshi, MS Subbulakshmi, Zohra Sehgal, Kapila Vatsayan, Rahim Fahimuddin Dagar, Ebrahim Alkazi, , Habib Tanvir, Vishwanathan Anand and Ram Kumar are some of the noted recipients of the award.

THE CII HELD THE ELEVENTH ENERGY EFFICIENCY SUMMIT IN HYDERABAD

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) held the eleventh Energy Efficient Sumit in HICC, Novotel Hyderabad. The summit was held between 22 August 2012 and 25 August 2012.

The objective of the summit was to facilitate the Indian industry to improve energy efficiency on a continuous basis and help them in achieving the target set as part of Perform Achieve and Trade under the National Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency.

Also, to create a platform for all the energy efficient technology suppliers and equipment manufacturer who could interact with industry and support them in achieving the target for energy efficiency improvement. The other objective was also to disseminate information on the latest trends and energy efficient technologies and facilitate sharing of best practices amongst the Industries.

The conference involved the following four parallel conferences.

EnCon in Electrical systems

EnCon in Thermal systems

Compressors & Compressed air system

Energy efficiency in buildings

Also while the summit was going on, The Swedish Energy Agency, CII and the Cleantech Scandinavia entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) of understanding for cooperation in the energy sector.

PM NAIR APPOINTED THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF NATIONAL DISASTER RESPONSE FORCE & CIVIL DEFENCE

The Ministry of Home Affairs on 27 August 2012 appointed P M Nair as the Director General, National Disaster Response Force & Civil Defence (NDRF & CD). The appointment will be effective from the date of his taking over the charge of the post and until his superannuation on 31 May 2013 or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

A 1978-batch Indian Police Service Officer of Bihar cadre, Nair is presently working as Special Director General, Central Reserve Police Force.

THE NCR PLANNING BOARD APPROVED THE CONTROVERSIAL GREATER NOIDA MASTER PLAN 2021





The NCR (National Capital Region) Planning Board on 24 August 2012 approved the controversial Greater Noida Master Plan 2021. This will allow builders to restart construction of around 2,00,000 apartments in various projects in the Noida Extension area of Greater Noida.

NCR planning board comes under the ministry of urban development, Government of India. The board was constituted in 1985.

THE BOOK CHALLENGED OFFICIAL STORY OF OSAMA BIN LADEN KILLING

The book No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama bin Laden written by a former Navy SEAL claimed that Osama bin Laden was shot in the head by a SEAL bullet when he looked out of his bedroom door into the hallway and not killed inside the room. The book was written under the pseudonym Mark Owen.

The US government after the raid in May, 2011 claimed that the SEALs shot Osama bin Laden only after they entered his bedroom.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS DISCOVERED 2000-YEAR OLD SCULPTURE IN MEXICO

Mexican archaeologists in the first week of August 2012 discovered a 2000-year-old sculpture of a jaguar in Izapa. The one-tonne piece measures 1.38 meters long by 87 centimeters high and 52 centimeters wide. Izapa, is located about 12 km from the border with Guatemala. It was an important civic religious center built 2500 years ago by a pre-Mayan culture. The sculptures of Izapa were made with stones because there were no metals in that period.

The jaguar sculpture seems to be only partially completed because the other faces of the stone are blank. It indicated that it was possibly in the process of being carved when work was halted on it.

RAGHURAM RAJAN TOOK OVER AS THE CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISOR OF IN UNION FINANCE MINISTRY

Raghuram Rajan, former chief economist of International Monetary Fund (IMF) took over as the Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry on 29 August 2012. The Appointments Committee of Cabinet had cleared the appointment of Rajan as the new CEA on 10 August 2012. The position was lying vacant since Kaushik Basu demitted the office on 31 July 2012.

Raghuram Rajan has already been serving as the ‘Honorary Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister’, the position he was given in November 2008. He also headed High Level Committee on Financial Sector Reforms in 2007.

Born on 3 February 1963 in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, Rajan obtained his bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Later, he studied at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad followed by a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1991 with a thesis entitled "Essays on Banking."





A Professor of Finance at the Booth School of Business of University of Chicago, Rajan also served as the "Economic Counselor and Director of Research" (Chief Economist) at the International Monetary Fund from September 2003 until January 2007

ORDNANCE FACTORY BOARD SIGNED A MOU FOR A JOINT VENTURE WITH ROSOBORONEXPORT, RUSSIA

Ordnance Factory Board on 27 August 2012 signed a Memorandum of Understanding for a Joint Venture with M/s Rosoboronexport, Russia and M/s Splav “SPA”, Russia to manufacture five versions of Smerch Rockets based on the technology received from Russia. The MoU was signed in New Delhi. The Smerch Rockets are technologically superior having a range of 70-80- kms. With formation of this Joint Venture, the Indo-Russian Friendship will be strengthened.

After indigenizing the technology of Smerch Rockets, OFB will attain new heights in manufacturing of advanced Rocket.

ADITI MUKHERJEE WON THE PRESTIGIOUS NORMAN BORLAUG AWARD

Aditi Mukherjee, a Delhi based scientist, won the prestigious Norman Borlaug Award in Field Research and Application. Mukherjee was picked for the award for her work in transforming access to water for thousands of farmers in West Bengal. The award will be formally presented to Mukherji on 17 October 2012 in Des Moines, Iowa, US.

Mukherji, 37, is a senior researcher at the Delhi office of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). As alumnus of Presidency College (Kolkata), JNU (Delhi), she completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge.

The international award is conferred by the World Food Prize Foundation, which was started by Norman Borlogue, the father of Green Revolution in India. The award carries 10000 dollar cash prize. The Borlaug Award is restricted to scientists under 40.

G ASHOK KUMAR TOOK OVER AS THE SOUTHERN NAVAL COMMAND CHIEF

Rear Admiral G Ashok Kumar assumed the charge as the Southern Naval Command Chief, Kochi on 28 August 2012. Prior to this this, Kumar was serving as the Flag Officer at Sea Training, Kochi, where he was responsible for preparing all major warships for combat readiness. A specialist in navigation and direction, he commanded INS Kulish and INS Ranvir.

G Ashok Kumar, who hails from Ponnani in Malappuram district in Kerala, joined the Navy in 1982. In a career spanning 30 years, Kumar served various top-notch positions such as, the defence adviser of India in Singapore, Chief Staff Officer (Operations) at the Western Naval Command and head of Naval Training at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington. He also received the Vishisht Seva Medal for his extra ordinary service to the Indian Navy.





CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZZES

ECONOMY CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ

1. As per the latest global ranking compiled and published by the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in August 2012, which became the world’s largest bourse in terms of the number of trades in equity segment for the first six months of 2012?

a) National Stock Exchange (NSE) b) Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) c) MCX-SX d) Ahmadabad Stock Exchange

Answer: (a)

2. The Union Cabinet on 4 August 2012 approved the reserve price for auction of 2G spectrum as well as spectrum usage charges (SUC). The Cabinet set what reserve price for the 5 megahertz pan-India spectrum in the 1800 megahertz band?

a) 1400 crore rupees b) 14000 crore rupees c) 140 crore rupees d) 14 crore rupees

Answer: (b)

3. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in a notification issued on 3 August 2012 stated that all registered non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) which who intend to convert themselves into non-banking financial company-micro finance institutions (NBFC-MFIs) would have to seek registration with immediate effect, not later than 31 October 2012. Which of the following statements are not true with respect to this?

1. The central bank also mentioned that the NBFCs have to maintain net-owned funds (NOF) at Rs 3 crore by 31 March 2013, and at Rs.5 crore by 31 March 31 2014

2. NBFCs operating in the north-eastern region are to maintain the minimum NOF at Rs.1 crore by 31 March 2012, and at Rs.2 crore by 31 March 2014

3. The rate of interest on individual loans may exceed 31 per cent, the maximum variance permitted for individual loans between the minimum and the maximum interest rate cannot exceed 4 per cent

4. The cap on margins as defined by the Malegam Committee are not to exceed 10 per cent for large MFIs (loans portfolios exceeding Rs.100 crore) and 12 per cent for others

a) 1 & 4





b) 2 & 4 c) Only 3 d) Only 4

Answer: (c)

4. According to the latest data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on 1 August 2012, India's fiscal deficit in the first quarter (April-June) of the fiscal year 2012-13 stood at 1.90 lakh crore rupees. The amount is what per cent of the entire budget estimate?

a) 31% b) 33% c) 35% d) 37%

Answer: (d)

5. An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on drought, headed by agriculture minister

Sharad Pawar in a meeting on 31 July 2012 took certain decisions to help farmers in the backdrop of the draught like situations prevailing in certain states. Which of the following is not a part of d decision taken by the EGoM?

1. The EGoM announced a 50 per cent diesel subsidy scheme for the farmers to help them save the standing kharif crop through irrigation

2. A relief package of Rs 1440 crore was also cleared towards watershed development-related efforts in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan

3. The subsidy amount on seeds of cereals is to be increased from Rs 500 a quintal to Rs 800 per quintal, while that of pulses and oilseeds would be enhanced from Rs 1200 per quintal to Rs 2200 per quintal

4. Agriculture Ministry also decided to waive the duty on import of certain items to increase the availability of feed ingredients for animal husbandry sector needs.

a) Only 3 b) Only 2 c) 1 & 2 d) Only 4

Answer: (a)

6. Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India during the Month of July 2012 stood at 5.25 lakh as compared to 5.14 lakh in July 2011 and 4.67 lakh in July 2010. The July figure translated into FTAs growth of what percent in July 2012 over July 2011?

a) 2.1% b) 12.1%





c) 5.5% d) 1.33%

Answer: (a)

7. With respect to the India’s industrial output figures released by the Central Statistics Office of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on 9 August 2012, which of the following statements are not true?

1. India’s industrial output plunged to 1.8 per cent in June 2012 compared to 9.5 per cent growth registered during June 2011

2. For the first (April-June) quarter of 2012-13, the index of industrial production (IIP) declined 0.7 per cent against 6.9 per cent growth in the same quarter of fiscal 2011-12.

3. The capital goods category recorded a decline of 27.9 per cent in output in June 2012

4. Consumer durables witnessed a growth of 9.1 per cent. However, consumer non-durables declined 1 per cent in June 2012

a) 1 & 3 b) Only 3 c) Only 2 d) 3 & 4

Answer: (c)

8. According to the FDI data released by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 10 August 2012, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in India declined to what amount in the April-June quarter of fiscal 2012-13?

a) 5 billion dollar b) 5.4 billion dollar c) 6.4 billion dollar d) 7 billion dollar

Answer: (b)

9. India’s annual headline inflation for the month of July 2012 eased to its three-year low to what percent in July 2012 from 7.25 percent in June 2012 and 9.63 percent in July 2011?

a) 4.1% b) 3.3% c) 5.2% d) 6.87%

Answer: (d)





10. India’s exports for the month of July 2012 stood at 22.4 billion dollar registering a

decline of - 14.8 percent as compared to 26.3 billion dollar during the same month of 2011. Imports during July 2012 stood at 37.9 billion dollar as compared to 41.1 billion dollar in July 2011. What was the Balance of Trade figure for July 2012?

a) 15.5 billion dollar b) 14.7 billion dollar c) 13.6 billion dollar d) 9.6 billion dollar

Answer: (a)

11. According to the data provided by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) in August 2012, India's marine exports are expected to grow by what per cent year-on-year to USD 4.5 billion in 2012-13 fiscal?

a) 28% b) 17.2% c) 13% d) 23%

Answer: (a)

12. In a move aimed at encouraging investment sentiment in the country, the Union Finance Ministry approved what per cent of foreign direct investment in insurance and pension sector in August 2012?

a) 29% b) 49% c) 39% d) 19%

Answer: (b)

13. Extending the guidelines of securitisation of loan from banks to non-banking finance companies (NBFC), India’s Central Bank Reserve Bank of India on 21 August 2012 tightened the securitisation norms for NBFCs. Which of the following facts are not true with regards to the statement?

1. RBI instructed that a non-banking finance company will have to retain at least 5 per cent of the loan being sold to another entity.

2. RBI in its revised guidelines also stipulated that NBFC cannot sell or securitise a loan unless five monthly installments have been paid by the borrower

3. The latest directives from the RBI are aimed at checking unhealthy practices and distributing risk to a wide spectrum of investors

4. These guidelines have to implemented by NBFCs in two phases by the end of October 2012.





a) 1 & 3 b) Only 1 c) Only 2 d) Only 4

Answer: (c)

14. As per the data revealed by the Union Aviation Ministry in the Parliament in August 2012, the loss incurred by Air India following its merger with Indian Airlines between 2007-08 and 2011-12 has been pegged at what amount?

a) 21146 crore rupees b) 23535 crore rupees c) 32971 crore rupees d) 28046 crore rupees

Answer: (d)

15. The high-level committee on external commercial borrowings (ECB),chaired by secretary, department of economic affairs Arvind Mayaram decided to further liberalise the foreign borrowing norms. Which of the following with respect to the liberalization norms are not true?

1. It was decided to permitted non-resident entities to provide rating enhancement facility to Indian borrower

2. The government permitted foreign entities to provide credit enhancement to rupee bonds of Indian companies. The minimum maturity period of such rupee bonds was reduced from seven years to three years.

3. The panel also decided to increase the maturity of such buyers credit to maximum seven years thereby allowing companies flexibility in payment

4. Infrastructure and manufacturing companies can re-finance a higher proportion of their rupee borrowings via cheaper overseas debt. These infrastructure and manufacturing companies can now tap overseas loans up to 75% of their average forex earnings

a) Only 2 b) Only 1 c) Only 3 d) 2 & 3

Answer: (c)

16. SEBI, on 16 August 2012, has made it mandatory that all listed companies must have minimum ______ public shareholdings by June 2013.

a) 25% b) 30% c) 20%





d) 10% Answer: (a)

17. On which date, the Union Cabinet approved the Commerce Ministry’s proposal to cut

down the list of sensitive items under South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) for Pakistan by 30 percent.

a) 14 July 2012 b) 15 Feb 2012 c) 17 Aug 2012 d) 30 Apr 2012

Answer: (c)

18. According to the Economic Outlook 2012-13 released by Prime Minister Economic

Advisory Council on 17 August 2012, India’s economy will grow at ____ in the financial year 2012-13.

a) 6.7% b) 3.5% c) 4.9% d) 5.3%

Answer: (a)

19. India’s annual headline inflation for the month of July 2012 eased to its three-year low

of ____ in July 2012 from 7.25 percent in June 2012 and 9.63 percent in July 2011. a) 5.15% b) 3.24% c) 9.12% d) 6.87%

Answer: (d)

20. According to the retail inflation data released by Central Statistics Office (CSO), on 21

August 2012, India’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) based retail inflation came down to _________ in July 2012.

a) 9.86% b) 2.34% c) 7.33% d) 14.88%

Answer: (a)





21. Which market regulator in August 2012 permitted seven Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) to start operation in India under a newly formulated route that enable pooling of funds for investments in areas such as real estate, private equity and hedge funds.

a) RBI b) SEBI c) Ministry of Finance d) Ministry of Corporate Affairs

Answer: (b)

22. The high-level committee on external commercial borrowings (ECB),chaired by

secretary, department of economic affairs Arvind Mayaram on ____________ decided to further liberalise the foreign borrowing norms.

a) 22 Aug 2012 b) 13 Aug 2012 c) 04 Aug 2012 d) 14 Aug 2012

Answer: (a)

23. In a move aimed at encouraging investment sentiment in the country, the Union

Finance Ministry on 22 August 2012 approved what percent foreign direct investment in insurance and pension sector.

a) 52% b) 33% c) 49% d) 37%

Answer: (c)

24. According to the data provided by the Marine Products Export Development Authority

(MPEDA) in August 2012, India's marine exports are likely to grow by over what percent year-on-year to USD 4.5 billion in 2012-13 fiscal.

a) 28% b) 40% c) 33% d) 18%

Answer: (a)

25. Supreme Court extended the deadline for 2G Spectrum auction. The auction will be now

held on________ a) 12 February 2013 b) 10 December 2012





c) 11 January 2013 d) 13 July 2013

Answer (c)

26. Union Government approved ____________ Crore Rupees Fund to spur Production of

Hybrid and Electrical Vehicle in the month of August. a) 12000 b) 13000 c) 14000 d) 25000

Answer (c)

27. India’s market regulator Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on 28 August 2012

allowed partial flexibility in the conversion of Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs) into ___________ by investors.

a) Equity shares b) Provident Fund c) Gratuity d) None of these

Answer (a)

28. RBI, the central bank put an overall cap of ______________for raising of capital through

IDRs by foreign companies in Indian markets. a) 10 billion dollar b) 6 billion dollar c) 4 billion dollar d) 5 billion dollar

Answer (d)

29. Japan-based Nissan Motor Co. Ltd’s electric car is the largest-selling car in the world that

runs on battery. What is the name of that electric car? a) Leaf b) Buffet car c) Reva d) Green car

Answer (a)





SCIENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ

1. The Australian Climate Commission warned that the world’s sea levels could increase by _______ by the end of the 21st Century.

a) 1.5 Metre. b) 2 Metres. c) 3 Metres. d) 1 Metres.

Answer: (d) 1 Metre

2. Isle of Wight rock yielded three fossil footprints of Dinosaurs. In which one of the following countries Isle of Wight is located?

a) USA b) UK c) India d) Germany

Answer: (b) UK

3. In the studies conducted by American, Belgian, British and Dutch researchers it was

found that tumors contain their own pool of stem cells that can multiply and keep fueling the cancer, seeding regrowth. Which one of the following techniques researchers used to trace the ancestry of cells within mouse tumors?

a) labeling technique b) Striking technique c) Bubble technique d) None of the above

Answer: (a) labeling technique

4. US researchers are using a new tool called___ for detecting illegal nuclear explosions.

a) The Earth’s Global Positioning System (GPS) b) Water alarm device c) Seismometer d) Geiger counter

Answer: (a) The Earth’s Global Positioning System (GPS)

5. A Rare bird Jerdan’s Baza was found for the first time in Dantepally tank area in Pocharam reserve forest of on 16 June 2012. Consider the given facts regarding Jerdan’s Baza.

i. Jerdan’s Baza mainly eats frogs, lizards and large insects.





ii. The bird id recognized by broad round wings, a long squarish tail, jaunty crest and forest dwelling habits. Choose the right option:

a) Only i is correct. b) Only ii is correct. c) Both i and ii are correct. d) Neither i nor ii is correct.

Answer: (c) Both i and ii are correct.

6. Prime Minister said India will send a mission to "Mars" to collect scientific information.

What is the name of this mission? a) Mars Orbitor Mission b) Mars Yojana c) Mangal Yaan d) India Mars Plan

Answer: (a) Mars Orbiter Mission

7. The House Sparrow was on ___________ declared as state bird of Delhi by the state

government. The new status of the bird is likely to help in its conservation. a) 14 August 2012 b) 13 Feb 2012 c) 12 March 2012 d) 16 July 2012

Answer: (a) 14 August 2012

8. Which Indian institute developed a web-based system for advising farmers the right

quantity of fertilizers that they should use in their soils for a particular type of crop? a) Indian Institute of Management b) Indian Institute of Soil Sciences c) Indian Institute of Foreign Trade d) Indian Institute of Finance

Answer: (b) Indian Institute of Soil Sciences

9. On which date in August 2012, the Ring-planet Saturn and Red planet Mars came

together in Western Sky after sunset? a) August 12 b) August 05 c) August 15 d) August 11





Answer: (c) August 15

10. Scientists in the second week of August 2012 found a stem cell therapy to prevent which

disease? Scientists used MSCs (mesenchymal) stem cells in mice with fractures that typically result into developing arthritis.

a) Osteoarthritis after a joint injury b) Cataract c) Cancer d) Skin Infection

Answer: (a) Osteoarthritis after a joint injury

11. Which Indian University signed an agreement for establishing a centre for earthquake

and hydrological studies with Hyderabad based NGRI (National Geophysical Research Institute) on August 15, 2012?

a) University of Kerala b) University of West Bengal c) University of Kashmir d) University of Assam

Answer: (c) University of Kashmir

12. On 25 August 2012, the ballistic missile "Prithvi II" was successfully launched from the

test range off Odisha Coast. Which type of missile is Prithvi II? a) Air-to-air missile b) Surface-to-air missile c) Air-to-surface missile d) Surface-to-surface missile

Answer: (d) Surface-to-surface missile

13. On 23 August 2012, ______________________ won environmental approval for its $10

billion Alpha coal and rail project in Australia's Queensland. a) Jaypee Enterprises b) GMR Infrastructure c) GVK Power and Infrastructure d) Adani Enterprises

Answer: (c) GVK Power and Infrastructure

14. Which university scientists developed a mechanical device that measures the mass of

individual molecules? a) University of Oxford





b) University of Delhi c) University of China d) California University of Technology

Answer: (d) California University of Technology

15. On which date NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has fired its laser for the first time on Mars,

using the beam to study a fist-size rock called "Coronation." a) Aug. 10, 2012 b) Aug. 20, 2012 c) Aug. 15, 2012 d) Aug 22, 2012

Answer: (b) Aug. 20, 2012

16. A new strain of rice developed by the scientists, which can enhance the productivity in

the soil that lacks a nutrient content. Name the nutrient, lack of which effects crop yield. a) Sulphur b) Oxygen c) Phosphorous d) Carbon

Answer: C. Phosphorous

17. Name the two planets that came together in the Western sky on 15 August 2012 after

sunset. a) Mars and Saturn b) Earth and Mars c) Jupiter and Saturn d) Venus and Earth

Answer: A. Mars and Saturn

18. The identified singing mice that use songs to communicate are found in which region?

a) The Himalayan terrain b) The tropical cloud forests in the mountains of Costa Rica c) On the volcanic plates of Pacific d) Greenland

Answer: B. The tropical cloud forests in the mountains of Costa Rica

19. Name the NASA’s Robert that has recently touched the surface of Mars

a) Rover Curiosity b) Gale Crater





c) Martian home d) Calif

Answer: A. Rover Curiosity

20. Name the process that will be applied for transferring the gene of the newly developed

Stained Rice to the modern variety of rice a) Cross-Breeding b) Genetic Engineering c) Hybridization d) None of these

Answer: A. Cross-Breeding

CORPORATE CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ

1. Andheri's newly constructed headquarters of anti-terror force was inaugurated by N. Kumar Reddy on August 13, 2012 in Hyderabad. What is the name of this counter-terrorist commando force?

a) Organisation to Counter Terrorist Operations (Octopus) b) Anti Terrorism Agengy (ATA) c) Anti Terrorism squad (ATS) d) Anti terrorism Operations (ATO)

Answer: (a) Organisation to Counter Terrorist Operations (Octopus)

2. On which date, Mahindra & Mahindra signed an MoU with the Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) for personal and commercial vehicle financing?

a) 14 Feb 2012 b) 17 Mar 2012 c) 17 Aug 2012 d) 30 July 2012

Answer: (b) 17 Aug 2012

3. In which Indian State, Hoppr on 9 August 2012 launched its service to allow users explore rewards and offers available with brands and merchants in a locality. Hoppr is a brand of Y2CF Digital Media, which is funded by Bharti SoftBank.

a) Uttar Pradesh b) Rajasthan c) Punjab d) Chennai

Answer: (d) Chennai





4. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in its incisive audit report noted that India’s exchequer suffered a massive loss of 1.86 lakh crore due to the distribution of coal blocks without bidding. The CAG report was tabled in the parliament on which date?

a) 17 Aug 2012 b) 14 May 2012 c) 13 July 2012 d) 14 Jan 2012

Answer: (a) 17 Aug 2012

5. Who was appointed as the Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry?

a) G. K. Vasan b) Raghuram Rajan c) Mukul Roy d) Ajay Maken

Answer: (b) Raghuram Rajan

6. In an initiative to make Delhi Kerosene free, the Delhi Government launched a

Kerosene-free Delhi scheme on _____________? a) 21 Aug 2012 b) 13 Aug 2012 c) 10 Aug 2012 d) 14 Aug 2012

Answer: (a) 21 Aug 2012

7. Which Indian-American entrepreneur was selected among the 18 Presidential

Innovation Fellows who would work on five high-impact projects in the US capital Washington DC?

a) Satish K. Tripathi b) Karl Mehta c) Renu Khator d) Beheruz Sethna

Answer: (b) Karl Mehta

8. On 23rd Aug 2012, which Social media site banned six accounts similar in appearance to

the Prime Minister's Office account? a) Facebook b) Skype





c) Linkedin d) Twitter

Answer: (d) Twitter

9. Which Leading Indian business house sold its group company Centum Learning to

Everonn Education? a) Bharti Group b) LIC c) Reliance d) Toyota

Answer: (a) Bharti Group

10. Footwear maker Relaxo Footwear on 22 August 2012 signed which Bollywood actor as

brand ambassador for its Flite brand. a) Shahrukh Khan b) Hritik Roshan c) Katrina Kaif d) Imran Hashmi

Answer: (c) Katrina Kaif

11. Which Indian company signed a pact with a French Energy company GDF Suez to import

LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas)?

a) GAIL

b) Indian Oil corporation

c) ONGC ( oil and natural gas corporation)

d) Reliance petroleum limited

Answer (a) GAIL

12. Name the Indian telecom service company which had acquired US firm WPCS

International.

a) Tata teleservices

b) MTNL

c) Kavveri telecom

d) Shyam Telecom

Answer (c) Kavveri telecom





13. Which personality is appointed as the new Group Chief Executive of Barclay’s?

a) Antony Jenkins

b) Bob Diamon

c) Marcus Agius

d) David Walker

Answer (a) Antony Jenkins

14. Name the steel plant of India which has won the Prime Minister trophy for the 10th

Time.

a) Bhilai steel plant, Chattisgarh

b) Bokaro steel plant, Jharkhand

c) Durgapur steel plant, West Bengal

d) Salem steel plant, Tamil Nadu

Answer (a) Bhilai steel plant, Chattisgarh

15. Which company was directed by the Supreme Court to refund an amount of 17400

crore of rupees to their Investors?

a) Sahara group of company

b) Reliance industries limited

c) Maruti Suzuki

d) Air India

Answer (a) Sahara group of company

SPORTS CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ

1. Which Indian batsman announced his retirement from International cricket on August 18, 2012?

a) Sachin Tendulkar b) VVS Laxman c) Virat Kohli d) Saurav Ganguly

The answer is (b) VVS Laxman

2. In London Olympics, Sushil Kumar won a silver medal in Men's wrestling event and silver

medal in 2008 Olympics. In which wrestling event he won the medals? a) 66 kg Freestyle wrestling





b) 59 kg Freestyle wrestling c) 73 kg Freestyle category d) 85 kg Freestyle category

The answer is (a) 66kg Freestyle wrestling

3. Who was appointed as the head of Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards Committee?

a) Aslam Sher Khan b) Yogeshwar Dutt c) Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore d) Sushil Kumar

The answer is (c) Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore

4. Which association set up a three-member committee to resolve the issues in Indian

Hockey? a) Indian Olympic Association b) Indian Oil corporation c) Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards Committee d) Indian Sorts Association

The answer is (a) Indian Olympic Association

5. London Olympic medalists, shooter _________ and Wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt have been

the country’s highest sporting honour “Rajiv Gandhi Kel Ratna”. a) Abhinav Bindra b) Vijay Kumar c) Gagan Narang d) Niccolo Campriani

The correct answer is (b) Vijay Kumar

6. South Africa replaced England as the World’s Number One Test Cricket team. The feat

was achieved after its 2-0 victory over England in the three Test-match series, which ended at Lord’s Cricket Ground in London on ___________.

a) 21 Aug 2012 b) 14 Aug 2012 c) 10 Aug 2012 d) 16 Aug 2012

The correct answer is a) 21 Aug 2012





7. The names of six sporting coaches were recommended for the Dronacharya Awards for the year 2012.The awards was presented by ________________ at Rashtrapati Bhawan on 29 August 2012, the National Sports Day.

a) P Chidambaram b) Pranab Mukherjee c) Manmohan Singh d) Rahul Gandhi

The correct answer is b) Pranab Mukherjee

8. How Many Medals did India Win in London Olympics 2012?

a) Four b) Eight c) Six d) Nine

The correct answer is c) Six

9. On 23rd Aug 2012, which sportsperson has announced that he will not contest against

US Anti doping Agency charges of doping? a) Carl Lewis b) Lance Armstrong c) George Hincapie d) Bradley Wiggins

The correct answer is b) Lance Armstrong

10. Which country won the highest number of medals in London Olympics 2012?

a) USA b) France c) India d) Japan

The correct answer is a) USA

11. Name the Captain of India’s Under-19 team under whose captaincy India won the U-19

world cup final 2012 a) Prashant Chopra b) Akshdeep Nath c) Sandipan Das d) Unmukt Chand

Answer: d) Unmukt Chand





12. Inauguration of the London Paralympic games was done by whom. a) Prince Charles b) Queen Elizabeth c) Barack Hussein Obama d) David Cameron

Answer: B. Queen Elizabeth

13. Winner team for 23rd Federation Cup National Throw ball Championship

a) J&K b) Manipur c) Andhra Pradesh d) Delhi

Answer: D. Delhi

14. England’s Andrew Strauss, who retired recently from International Cricket, was a captain

to which format of game a) Twenty-Twenty b) Test c) One-day d) None of these

Answer: B.Test

15. Name the player who recently became the fastest player to achieve the landmark of

3000 international runs in one day cricket a) Hasim Amla b) Virat Kohli c) Ricky Pointing d) Virendra Sehwag

Answer: A .Hasim Amla





QUESTIONS OF THE MONTH

Q.1) Pakistan successfully test-fired Hatf III Ghaznavi Missile recently. In the wake of this statement, comment on the growing armament race in South Asian region.

Q.2) Supreme Court of India upheld the death sentence of Mumbai Terror Attack Convict Ajmal Amir Kasab. In the light of this statement, do you agree that we need capital punishment in India? Support your answer with reasons.

Q.3) India and Tajikistan on 3 September 2012 signed six agreements in six different areas. Identify these areas and critically discuss the importance of these agreements.

Q.4) Write short notes on the following:

a) Aseem Trivedi

b) Mamta Banerjee

c) Sonia Gandhi

d) Tehran

e) Sachin Pilot

Q.5) Write brief notes on the following:

a) Chemotherapy

b) Web-based system for advising farmers on fertilizers

c) New strain of rice to boost crop yields

d) Gene Therapy to reduce the sense of smell

Q.6) Supreme Court of India in its judgement asked the Centre to prepare revised guidelines for tourist activities in core areas of tiger reserves. Elaborate how tourist activities in tiger reserves harm the tiger population? Suggest additional measures to make tiger conserving more effective.

Q.7) Cabinet gave a nod to two subsidiaries of Air India: AIESL and AITSL. Air India suffered heavy losses recently. Do you think the cabinet decision is related to those losses? Support your answer with reasons.

Q.8) Critically evaluate the 16th NAM Summit. Do you think it is relevant today? Support your answer with reasons.





GENERAL KNOWLEDGE QUIZZES

1. Who became Miss World 2012? a) Denise Perrier b) Marita Lindahl c) Yu Wenxia d) Azra Akin

The Correct Answer is c) Yu Wenxia

2. How many entrants competed for

Miss World 2012? a) 122 b) 116 c) 115 d) 119 The Correct Answer is b) 116

3. Who was the first runner up Miss World 2012? a) Mariana Notarangelo b) Shamim Nabil c) Evgeniya Klishina d) Sophie Moulds The Correct Answer is d) Sophie Moulds

4. Who was the Second runer up Miss World 2012? a) Vanya Mishra b) Aránzazu Estévez c) Jessica Kahawaty d) Jeneva Bosko The Correct Answer is c) Jessica Kahawaty

5. Who won Miss World 2011 title? a) Doe Kyung-min b) Nicoline Artursson c) Ivian Sarcos d) Nicole Huber The Correct Answer is c) Ivian Sarcos

6. Who was the first runer up Miss World 2011? a) Nicoline Artursson b) Esonica Veira c) Gabriela Pulgar d) Gwendoline Ruais The Correct Answer is d) Gwendoline Ruais

7. Who was the Second runer up Miss World 2011? a) Amanda Vilanova b) Tania Bambaci c) Lourdes Figueroa d) Amber Greasley The Correct Answer is a) Amanda Vilanova

8. How many entrants competed for Miss World 2011? a) 108 b) 119 c) 113 d) 104 The Correct Answer is c) 113





INDIAN INDEPENDENCE QUIZ

1. Who framed the Constitution of India? a) Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru b) Dr. B R Ambedkar c) Jatin Banerjee d) Ram Manohar Lohia The correct answer is b) Dr. B. R. Ambedkar

2. When did India adopt its Constitution? a) August 15, 1947 b) January 26, 1950 c) February 20, 1947 d) December 9, 1946 The correct answer is b) January 26, 1950

3. Writer Urvashi Butalia recently published a major work of great historical importance to the people of the subcontinent. It is a collection of the personal experiences as told by the survivors of Partition, and lifts the silence on this period. What is her work called? a) The Other Side Of Silence b) Train to Pakistan c) Lajja d) Midnight's Children The correct answer is a) The other Side of Silence

4. Who was the president of the Constituent Assembly that held the 'Independence Meeting'? a) Rajendra Prasad b) Mahatama Gandhi

c) S. Radhakrishnan d) Lal Bahadur Shastri The correct answer is a) Rajendra Prasad

5. How many eventual presidents signed the Declaration of Independence? a) 1 b) 3 c) 4 d) 2 The correct answer is d) 2

6. Until when India remained a Dominion of the Crown? a) Until 14 Jan 1988 b) Until 26 Jan 1950 c) Until 22 Feb 1955 d) Until 19 Sep 1940 The correct answer is b) Until 26 Jan 1950

7. How many years Britain ruled India? a) About 200 years b) About 150 years c) About 100 years d) About 50 years The correct answer is a) About 200 years

8. The famous movement launched by Gandhi to break salt law was a) Civil Disobedience Movement b) Non Cooperation Movement c) Quit India Movement d) Indian National Movement





The correct answer is a) Civil Disobedience Movement

9. Who is known as the Nightingale of India? a) Sarojini Naidu b) Annie Besant c) Asha Bhosle d) Lata Mangeshkar The correct answer is a) Sarojini Naidu

10. The first Indian National Army was founded by a) Capt Mohan Singh b) Vallabhbhai Patel c) Bhagat Singh d) Subhash Chandra Bose The correct answer is a) Capt Mohan Singh

11. Who was assigned the task of partitioning India in 1947? a) Allen Octavian Hume b) Lord Lytton c) Sir Cyril Radcliffe d) Robert Clive The correct answer is c) Sir Cyril Radcliffe

12. The first Indian National Army was founded by a) Bhagat Singh

b) Capt Mohan Singh c) Subhash Chandra Bose d) Vallabhbhai Patel The correct answer is b) Capt Mohan Singh

13. What does the blue wheel that appears in the Indian national flag stand for? a) The wheel of law of justice b) The wheel of religion c) The wheel of Krishna d) The wheel of fortune The correct answer is a) The wheel of law of justice

14. Who gave the slogan “Give me blood and I shall give you freedom”? a) Vallabhbhai Patel b) Chandrashekhar Azad c) Ramprasad Bismil d) Subhash Chandra Bose The correct answer is d) Subhash Chandra Bose

15. Who gave the slogan “Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it”? a) Mahatma Gandhi b) Lal Bahadur Shastri c) Bal Gangadhar Tilak d) Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru The correct answer is c) Bal Gangadhar Tilak





OLYMPIC QUIZ

1. Who officially opened the first Olympic Games? a) Prince Andrew b) Constantine I c) Otto d) King George I The correct answer is d) King George I

2. Which venue hosted the athletics events in the first Olympic Games? a) Kallithea b) Panathinaiko Stadium c) Neo Phaliron Velodrome d) Bay of Zea The correct answer is b) Panathinaiko Stadium

3. How many sporting events were included in the first Olympic games? a) 10 b) 22 c) 43 d) 55 The correct answer is c) 43

4. Which country did not participated in first Olympic Games? a) Greece b) America c) Germany d) New Zealand The correct answer is d) New Zealand

5. Which Country won the most number of Gold Medals in the first Olympic Games? a) United States b) Germany c) Greece d) Austalia The correct answer is a) United States

6. How many countries participated in the first Olympic games? a) 9 b) 14 c) 19 d) 22 The correct answer is b) 14

7. How many sports were included in the first Olympic games? a) 7 b) 9 c) 11 d) 13 The correct answer is b) 9

8. How many sporting events were included in the first Olympic games? a) 10 b) 22 c) 43 d) 55 The correct answer is c) 43

9. In which year, the International

Olympic Committee was estabilished?





a) 1821 b) 1849 c) 1875 d) 1894 The correct answer is d) 1894

10. How many National Olympic Committees are under the International Olympic Committee? a) 178 b) 184 c) 197 d) 205 The correct answer is d) 205

11. Until which year, both Summer and Winter Olympics were held in the same year? a) 1920 b) 1968 c) 1992 d) 2000 The correct answer is c) 1992

12. The first Summer Youth Olympics were in a) 1920 b) 1968 c) 1992 d) 2010 The correct answer is d) 2010

13. Which is awarded to athletes who demonstrate a special spirit of sportsmanship in Olympic events? a) Olympic Order b) Olympic Trophy c) Pierre de Coubertin medal d) Olympic Cup

The correct answer is c) Pierre de Coubertin medal

14. Abbreviate IOC?

a) International Olympic Committee b) Indian Olympic Committee c) International Olympic Comission d) International Olympic Corporation The correct answer is a) International Olympic Committee

15. The first Winter Olympics organized by the International Olympic Committee were held in a) 1920 b) 1924 c) 1928 d) 1932 The correct answer is b) 1924

16. Which IOC President was the only non-European member to hold the post? a) Demetrius Vikelas b) Henri de Baillet-Latour c) Pierre de Coubertin d) Avery Brundage The correct answer is d) Avery Brundage

17. The Olympic Museum is in which country? a) Switzerland b) USA c) Germany d) Japan The correct answer is a) Switzerland





18. Who founded the International Olympic Committee? a) Pierre de Fortius b) Pierre de Coubertin c) Citius de Coubertin d) Citius de Fortius The correct answer is b) Pierre de Coubertin

19. How many National Olympic Committees are under the International Olympic Committee? a) 178 b) 184 c) 197 d) 205 The correct answer is d) 205

20. Which IOC President was the Longest serving President? a) Demetrius Vikelas b) Henri de Baillet-Latour c) Pierre de Coubertin d) Avery Brundage The correct answer is c) Pierre de Coubertin

21. The IOC Session (general meeting) held in every a) 1 Year b) 2 Year c) 3 Year d) 4 Year The correct answer is a) 1 Year

22. The Olympic Museum is in which country? a) Switzerland b) USA c) Germany

d) Japan The correct answer is a) Switzerland

23. In which year of Olympics, the torch was carried under water by divers? a) 2000 b) 2004 c) 2008 d) 2012 The correct answer is a) 2000

24. In which year of Olympics, the flame was transformed to a radio signal and then again ignited by a laser beam? a) 1964 b) 1968 c) 1972 d) 1976 The correct answer is d) 1976

25. Who designed the 2012 London Olympic Games Torch? a) Jule Barber b) Jape Barber c) Edwin Barber d) Edward Barber The correct answer is d) Edward Barber

26. On which day, the Olympic flame is

extinguished in Olympic Games? a) On opening ceremony b) On closing ceremony c) Decided by the host country d) It never extinguished The correct answer is b) On closing ceremony





27. In which year of Olympics, the first global torch relay was undertaken? a) 2000 b) 2004 c) 2008 d) 2012 The correct answer is b) 2004

28. On which day, the Olympic flame is extinguished in Olympic Games? a) On opening ceremony b) On closing ceremony c) Decided by the host country d) It never extinguished The correct answer is b) On closing Ceremony

29. In which year of Olympics, the first global torch relay was undertaken? a) 2000 b) 2004 c) 2008 d) 2012 The correct answer is b) 2004

30. Who introduced the torch relay in

Olympics? a) Jon Capp b) Carl Diem c) Mark Carl d) Carl Marks The correct answer is b) Carl Diem

31. Which company created the first torch for relay in 1936 Berlin Olympics? a) Srupp armaments b) Jrupp armaments c) Krupp armaments

d) Brupp armaments The correct answer is d) Brupp armaments

32. When and where the Olympic torch was first lit? a) 1928, Amsterdam b) 1924, Paris c) 1936, Berlin d) 1932, Antwerp The correct answer is a) 1928, Amsterdam

33. At which Olympics was the Olympic flag first hoisted? a) 1936, Berlin Olympics b) 1920, Antwerp Olympics c) 1920, London Olympics d) 1948, Melbourne Olympics The correct answer is d) 1948, Melbourne Olympics

34. Where were the first Olympic games held? a) Olympia b) Barcelona c) Antwerp d) Athens The correct answer is d) Athens

35. The Ancient Olympic Games were made a part of the religious festival in the honour of which mythological deity? a) Perseus b) Heracles c) Zues d) Eros The correct answer is c) Zues





36. In which Olympic, the torch relay

was introduced? a) 1928 Summer Olympics b) 1932 Summer Olympics c) 1936 Summer Olympics d) 1940 Summer Olympics The correct answer is c) 1936 Summer Olympics

37. From which Olympic Games, the Olympic Games have had a mascot? a) 1968 Winter Olympics b) 1972 Winter Olympics c) 1976 Winter Olympics d) 1980 Winter Olympics The correct answer is a) 1968 Winter Olympics

38. In which Olympic Games, the torch

relay came in effect? a) 1928 Summer Olympics b) 1932 Summer Olympics c) 1936 Summer Olympics d) 1940 Summer Olympics The correct answer is c) 1936 Summer Olympics

39. In which year, the Olympic Hymn was declared as official hymn by the IOC? a) 1957 b) 1965 c) 1970 d) 1978 The correct answer is a) 1957

40. In which Olympic Games the Olympic Ring Symbol was debuted? a) 1916 Summer Olympics

b) 1920 Summer Olympics c) 1924 Summer Olympics d) 1928 Summer Olympics The correct answer is b) 1920 Summer Olympics

41. The 5 rings in Olympic Symbol

represents a) 5 continents b) 5 countries c) 5 members d) 5 motto The correct answer is a) 5 continents

42. Who wrote the Olympic Anthem or Olympic Hymn? a) Spyridon Samaras b) Demetrius Vikelas c) John Williams d) Kostis Palamas The correct answer is d) Kostis Palamas

43. The following mascot is of which Olympic Games? a) 1988 Seoul Olympics b) 1992 Barcelona Olympics c) 1996 Atlanta Olympics d) 2008 Beijing Olympics The correct answer is c) 1996 Atlanta Olympics

44. Who created the Olympic Flag?

a) Carl Jung b) Javis Hein c) Louis Fredy d) Pierre De Coubertin





The correct answer is d) Pierre De Coubertin

45. Which city hosted the Paralympics in 2008? a) Sydney, Australia b) Athens, Greece c) Beijing, China d) Montreal, Canada The correct answer is c) Beijing, China

46. Who is the Paralympian in the picture at the top of this quiz?

a) Oscar Pistorius b) David Weir c) Dave Roberts The correct answer is a) Oscar Pistorius

47. The London 2012 Paralympic Games will begin on: a) 27 July 2012 b) 27 August 2012 c) 29 August 2012 d) 22 August 2012 The correct answer is c) 29 August 2012

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To be in touch with the missed out information of the year you can click on the links mentioned below:

Current Affairs July 2012 - http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/51011/Josh-Magazine/Current-Affairs

Current Affairs June 2012 - http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/45776/Josh-Magazine/Current-Affairs

Current Affairs May 2012 - http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/44738/Josh-Magazine/Current-Affairs


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Current Affairs April 2012 - http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/45165/Josh-Magazine/Current-Affairs

Be in touch with the things necessary with the perspective of IBPS PO

Current Affairs for IBPS PO 2012 - http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/45765/Josh-Magazine/Latest-Current-




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http://epaper.jagranjosh.com/45765/Josh-Magazine/Latest-Current-

josh magazine current affairs magazine august 2012 11

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