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. Current Affairs – week 49Pdf . 

30 Nov –  6 Dec 2015

Best of Current Affairs Desk7

th December

IN THIS WEEK

WHAT'SNEW NIRDESHAK .COM 

Montenegro

Rajali naval air station

Chennai “The Hindu”

GIAN

Tata Motors

COP21

Patricia Scotland

Inactivated Polio Vaccine(IPV)

Barack 8

P V Sindhu

Davis Cup 2015

Justice Tirath Singh Thakur 

Dear Readers, 

Nirdeshak.com has initiated all new Current

Affairs (BNCA) with weekly pdf update. In today’s

competitive scenario, it has become most crucial

to read more analytical and absorbable content,

in order to get best result. The content is

developed scientifically developed so that it

becomes short, easy to remember and only

relevant part is recalled for exam preparation.

This is helpful for current affairs preparation,

developing acumen for interviews, GD and

overall remembering more get best scores in

competitive exams, for Banks, IBPS PO, SBI, IAS,

SSC and other exams.

In the week, many place, events and policy

remained important as India and world saw

many developments. Further know more about

key personalities of the week, banking news,

government policies and foreign relations with

neighbours.

Happy learning, 

Warm regards 

Editorial Team 

Nirdeshak.com

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Place

Montenegro

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

invited which Balkan-group country to join it on 2

December 2015, a development which was highly

criticized by Russia?

To Know: The small country of Montenegro came

to limelight on 2 December as Foreign Minister

Igor Luksic strode into the conference hall of

NATO at its headquarters in Brussels to loud

applause from his peers. Montenegro was thus officially invited to join NATO,which will be its first expansion since 2009.

  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the decision to invite Montenegro

was not directed at Russia. Russia opposes any NATO extension to

former communist areas of eastern and southeastern Europe as it is part

of an east-west struggle for influence over former Soviet satellites that is at

the centre of the crisis in Ukraine.

  NATO foreign ministers broke off practical cooperation with Russia in April

last year after Moscow annexed Ukraine‟s Crimea peninsula and sparkedthe conflict in eastern Ukraine that has killed more than 8,000 people.

  The last expansion of NATO was done in 2009 when Albania and Croatia

were inducted into the organisation to take its membership to 28. NATO is

the most prominent intergovernmental military organisation that was

formed in 1949. It is led by the US and has member countries across

North America and Europe.

Rajali naval air station (Arakkonam)

Naval air base situated near Chennai came to limelight

on 3 December 2015 after it was chosen as the base

to operate limited number of commercial flights to help

stranded passengers.

To Know: The Rajali naval air station in Arakkonam is

around 60 km from Chennai. It was chosen as the

base for operating limited number of commercial flights

after successful test-landing of an Airbus A320 with passengers on 2

December. From 4 December Arakkonam naval base is operating six flights

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each over the next two days. Shuttle train services have been made available

Chennai airport at every 15 minutes interval.

  Rajali naval air station (officially known as INS Rajali) is an Indian naval air

station located at Arakkonam, some 60 kms away from Chennai. It

operates under the Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy, and has

the longest military runway in Asia.

  The Chennai airport has been shut till 6 December due to flooding.

Gurgoan

First-of-its-kind on-demand two-wheeler taxi service was

launched in which city from 1 November 2015?

To Know: The on-demand two-wheeler taxi service in

Gurgaon was launched by M-taxi, a two-wheeler taxi serviceprovider, which had acquired permit for the service from the

Haryana government to start its operations.

  Thus Gurgaon became the first city in India which

has a legalised taxi system. Bike taxis are better equipped to deal with

congestion, traffic, and last mile connectivity, which are the three major

problems that Indian cities are struggling to cope with. This type of service

already exists in countries like Thailand, Indonesia, and China

  M-Taxi‟s pricing starts at Rs. 25 for the first three kilometres, and Rs. 5 for

every subsequent kilometre. Another two-wheeler taxi service, Baxi, has

also got permission from the Haryana government to start its operations.

IFFI 2015

“Embrace of Serpent” 

Which film won the prestigious Golden Peacock award in the

46th International Film Festival of India (IFFI 2015), that

concluded on 30 November 2015 at Goa?

To Know: Colombian film „Embrace of Serpent ‟ (Al Abrazo de

la Serpiente) was declared the best film of IFFI 2015. It was

awarded the prestigious Golden Peacock award which carries a sum of Rs.

40 lakh besides the citation.

  The best director award went to Peter Greenaway for „Eisenstein‟. French

actor Vincent Lindon was adjudged Best Actor for his role in „ The Measure

of a Man‟. 

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  Best Actress award was shared by five actresses  –  GunesSensoy,

DogaDoguslu, TugbaSunguroglu, ElitIscan and IlyadaAkdogan for their roles

in Turkish film „Mustang ‟. 

  Russian filmmaker Nikita Mikhalkov was given the Lifetime Achievement

 Award. Director GoranRadovavovic‟s „Enclave‟ was conferred the Special

Mention Award for focusing on ethnic conflict in Kosovo and Julia Vargas

directed film „Sealed Cargo‟ was awarded the Special Jury Award. 

  The only Indian name in the winner‟s list was that of Bengali filmmaker

KaushikGanguly, who was given the inaugural „ICFT –  UNESCO Fellini

Medal‟ for his movie „Cinemawala‟. 

  IFFI 2015 was held from 20 to 30 November 2015 at Goa, which is the

permanent venue for this event.

Malta

The 2-day Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting for

2015 (CHOGM 2015) concluded on 29 November 2015. This

24th edition of the biennial meet of the 53 Commonwealth

countries was held in which country?

To Know: CHOGM was held at the small and picturesque

Mediterranean country of Malta from 27 to 29 November 2015.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II declared proceedings officially open on 27November.

  The summit which was originally designated to be hosted by Mauritius,

was given instead to Malta when the Mauritian Prime Minister

NavinRamgoolam refused to attend the CHOGM 2013 over the human

rights situation prevailing in the host country, Sri Lanka. He thus withdrew

as the host of the 2015 summit as protocol had required him to attend the

summit in order to personally invite other member states.

  CHOGM 2015 held a special session on climate change and global

sustainability as it was held just before the United Nations Climate Change

Conference in Paris. The issue of international terrorism and the European

migrant crisis was also discussed in the meet.

  External Affairs minister SushmaSwaraj represented India in the meeting

instead of Prime Minister NarendraModi.

London will host the next edition of CHOGM in 2018, as the next summit

originally scheduled for 2017 in Vanuatu, was cancelled. It was cancelled as

Vanuatu rescinded its offer to host due to the long-term effects of devastation

to the island nation‟s infrastructure caused by Cyclone Pam in March 2015. 

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Bangkok (Thailand) 

In an important development in India-Pakistan

relations, the National Security Advisor-level talks

between the two countries wereheld on 6 December

2015.

To Know: Indian National Security Advisor

 AjitDoval and his Pakistani counterpart NasirJanjua

held a four hour meeting in Bangkok on 6 December. The decision to hold the

talks came after Prime Minister NarendraModi met his Pakistani counterpart

Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Summit in Paris on

30 November 2015.

  Discussions covered peace and security, terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir,

and others including tranquility over the Line of Control, as was disclosed

by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

  NSA-level talks were scheduled earlier this year when the two Prime

Ministers had met for a bilateral summit in Russia‟s Ufa on the sidelines of

a convention. But the meeting fell through at the last minute over a

proposed meeting between Pakistan‟s then National Security Advisor

Sartaj Aziz and the Kashmiri separatists.

Chennai “The Hindu”

One of India‟s oldest existing daily newspapers, was not

published from its headquarters Chennai for the first time since

1878 on 2 December 2015.

Explanation: The 2 December 2015 edition of “The Hindu” was not available

for Chennaiyans as its workers could not access the daily‟s press situated at

Maraimalainagartownship on the outskirts of Chennai city.

  Hence, it was just the first day in reputed daily‟s 137-year long history thatit was not published. However the edition of 3 December 2015 was made

available as was done regularly.

  Chennai is passing through the worst rains in last 137 years. The army

has been deployed to rescue thousands of stranded people after days of

heavy rains. Flights from the city‟s airport have been indefinitely

suspended after flood waters entered the runway and tarmac areas on 2

December. Over 300 persons have been killed in the floods in the state.

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Colombia

Which South American country on 5 December

2015 claimed to have found the shipwreck of a

storied Spanish galleon laden with gold and

precious stones, which is said to be the most

valuable treasure that has been found in the history

of humanity?

To Know: Colombian President Juan Manuel

Santos made this announcement from the northern port city of Cartagena,

close to where experts made the hugely valuable find.

  The Spanish ship „San Jose‟ was sunk in June 1708 near the Islas del

Rosario, off Colombia‟s Caribbean coast, during combat with British ships

attempting to take its cargo, part of the War of Spanish Succession. It was

the main ship in a treasure fleet carrying gold, silver and other valuable

items from Spain‟s American colonies to King Philip V. Only a handful of

the ship‟s crew of 600 survived when the San Jose sank. 

  This ship was found on 27 November 2015 by a team of Colombian and

foreign researchers, including a veteran of the group that discovered the

wreck of the Titanic in 1985. The discovery of this ship ended over 300-

year old mystery surrounding the ship.

Vyachakurahalli

India‟s first smokeless village in Karnataka.

Explanation: Vyachakurahalli village (in

Gauribidanurtaluk of Chikkaballapur district) in Karnataka

came to limelight as it was officially declared as India‟s

first smokeless village. This village is around 77 km from

Karnataka capital Bengaluru. This came to reality as all the households in the

village gained access to LPG connections. Altogether 274 households in the

village have this facility.

  This became possible as Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) piloted the „Mission

Smokeless village‟ project. For over four decades, firewood had been the

only fuel for the most of the village‟s women. Hence cooking was an ordeal

for womenfolk with bouts of cough caused by the soot-filled air in the

blackened kitchens.

  Now, the kitchens have got swanky steel gas stoves and red cylinders. On

4 December 2015 the Union petroleum ministry officially declared

Vyachakurahalli as India‟s first smokeless village, owing to its conversion

from conventional fuel to LPG.

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Education

GIAN

What is the primary objective of Global Initiative of

 Academic Networks (GIAN) that was launched on 1

November 2015 by the HRD Ministry? – To improve

the quality of higher education through

international collaboration 

Explanation: Global Initiative of Academic Networks

(GIAN) aims at bringing high quality academicians to participate in delivering

courses in Indian institutions. It is an initiative of the Human Resource

Development (HRD) Ministry that was flagged-off at IIT Kharagpur by UnionHRD Ministry SmritiIrani.

  Under GIAN, international academicians of international repute will impart

short-term high-end courses in various knowledge fields. These courses

will be undertaken in Indian institutes and will not be limited to IITs and

other such national institutes.

  IIT Kharagpur has been made the nodal institution of GIAN initiative and

the inaugural courses have also been made available in the institute.

These courses will have a credit-based approach.

  The inaugural course on „Orthopaedic Biomechanics: Implants and

Biomaterials‟ will be undertaken by professor NicoVerdonschot from

Netherlands who is a leading international figure in the field of computer

modelling of orthopedic bio -mechanics.

Corporate

Tata Motors

To Know: „Zica‟ is the name of Tata Motors‟ entry-level

hatchback that was unveiled in Goa by the company on 2

December. This car is likely to make its debut before the

 Auto Expo 2016 kicks in.

  This car‟s engine features two driving modes (City and Eco). It‟s   the first

car from the Tata Motors portfolio to feature variable valve timing.

  Tata Motors is expected to price „Zica‟ at a very competitive price. It is the

newest car in Tata stable after „Bolt‟ and „Zest‟. 

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State

Maharashtra 

The state emerged as the biggest economy within Indian states as disclosed

in a latest report released during December 2015 by credit rating agency

Brickwork Ratings.

To Know: Brickwork‟s fourth edition of a nationwide multi-state research to

analyze finances of all the Indian states was released on 1 December 2015.

This report rated Maharashtra as the biggest economy within India at Rs.

16.87 lakh crore in terms of gross state domestic product (GSDP). It is

followed by Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.

  The report mentioned the fact that Maharashtra earns approximately 70%

of its total receipts through tax revenues, which is the highest among the

bigger states. In this aspect it is followed by Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

  The manufacturing sector in Gujarat and Maharashtra accounted for

27.26% and 25.18% of GSDP respectively in 2014-15. Other states with

higher manufacturing sector share were Tamil Nadu (19.1%), Jharkhand

(18.8%) and Haryana (18.1%).

  Karnataka leads in the growth of services sector, largely due to the growth

in the IT/BPO/ KPO sector, followed by Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and

 Andhra Pradesh.

  The three fastest-growing states were Bihar at 17.06 per cent, MP

(16.86%) and Goa (16.43%). The laggards were Telangana at 5.3%,

Punjab (10.16%), Rajasthan (11%).

  Meanwhile, at a national level, India‟s GDP growth rate at 7.3% in 2015

exceeded that of China, which grew at 6.9%.

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Banking

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC)

Tata Group on 2 December 2015 announced signing up an alliance with a

Chinese bank to provide it with a host of banking services.

To Know: Under the alliance, ICBC will provide the Tata group with financing

products, global cash management, consulting, international trade finance

business, investment banking, foreign exchange, derivatives trading, and

other global financial services. The services will be provided to Tata Group in

locations including India, China, the United States and Europe.

  ICBC is a state-owned Chinese multinational banking company. It is the

largest bank in the world by total assets and by market capitalization.

Banks transmitted only 0.60% of 1.25% repo rate cut benefits to borrowers

  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its 5th bi-monthly policy review

on 1 December 2015 in which it chose to keep the all-important Repo Rate

unchanged at 6.75%.

  To Know:  It is worth mentioning that the RBI has slashed the repo rate

cumulatively by 125 basis points since the beginning of calendar year

2015. But it disclosed that the banks transmitted just 60 points of the 125

point benefit to its borrowers.

  However, the series of rate cuts by the RBI since January seem to have

had the desired impact, with GDP growth rising to 7.4% in the second

quarter (July-September) against 7% in the previous quarter. This

apparently allowed RBI to take a breather and keep the Repo Rate

unchanged. 

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Environment

International Agency for Solar Technologies and Applications (IASTA)

In an important development in the field of global solar energy scenario, India

launched an international solar alliance at the ongoing UN Climate Summit

(COP21) at Paris on 30 November 2015.

To Know: The International Agency for Solar Technologies and Applications

(IASTA) was launched by Indian Prime Minister NarendraModi along with the

French president, François Hollande, at the Paris COP21 climate summit.

This alliance comprises of over 120 countries with the primary aim to spread

cheap solar technology across the globe with pooled policy knowledge.

  The idea behind the establishment of IASTA is that larger markets and

bigger volumes will lead to lower costs, making it possible to spur demand.

  IASTA will have its headquarters in India. The Indian government is

investing an initial $30m in setting up its headquarters in India. The

eventual goal is to raise $400m from membership fees, and international

agencies.

  Companies involved in the project include Areva, Engie, Enel, HSBC

France and Tata Steel.

  It is worth mentioning that India has emerged as the natural leader for this

alliance, with its ambitious targets to install 175GW of renewable energy

by 2022.

COP21

The United Nations (UN) Climate Change

Conference or the 21st United Nations

Conference of the Parties (COP21) started at

Paris on 30 November 2015. This ambitious

and historic conference aims to unite around

150 nations for a single agreement on tackling climate change. What is one of

the most important proposed targets for this conference? – To cap the rate of

global warming at 2 degrees Celsius 

Explanation: COP21 aims to cap the rate of global warming at 2 degrees

Celsius, as compared to the current 2.5 to 3.76 degrees Celsius. This will be

done by, among other things, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and shifting

towards cleaner energies such as wind or solar power.

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  However, scientists say even a 2 degrees Celsius rise in global

temperature will mean faster melting of glaciers and polar ice caps and a

corresponding rise in sea level that will gobble up land.

  Last year, the global carbon emissions were the highest ever. China is

considered the biggest polluter, followed by the US, the European Union,India, Russia and Japan.

Mission Innovation

21 countries pledged $20 billion to promote clean

technologies. During COP21, the UN Climate Change

Conference in Paris, 21 countries including India launched

an ambitious initiative to double their clean energy

research and development budget over the next five years

as part of global efforts to tackle climate change.

To Know: Under „Mission Innovation‟ each participating country will seek to

double its governmental and/or state-directed clean energy research and

development investment over five years.

  The countries participating in the new initiative include: Australia, Brazil,

Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy,

Japan, Mexico, Norway, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, the

United Kingdom (including Northern Ireland), the United Arab Emirates

(UAE), and the United States of America (USA).

  In addition to 21 countries that launched the initiative, other countries will

be encouraged to join in the future.

  The formal announcement of „Mission Innovation‟ was made during

COP21 at a meeting attended by US President Barack Obama, Prime

Minister NarendraModi and French President Francois Hollande along with

other leaders. (Photo Courtesy: Mission-Innovation.net)

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International

China’s Yuan into its benchmark currency basket 

In a victory for Beijing‟s campaign for recognition as a

global economic power, the International Monetary

Fund (IMF) admitted China‟s Yuan into its benchmark

currency basket on 30 November 2015. With this Yuan

will be added to the Special Drawing Rights (SDR)

basket alongside the dollar, euro, pound sterling and

yen. When Yuan will be officially added to the SDR basket to get reserve

currency status? October 2016 

Explanation:  The Yuan (also known as the Renminbi) will have a 10.92%share in the SDR basket and will officially be included in it from October 2016.

This development is being seen as an important milestone in China‟s

integration into global finances and a nod to the progress it has made with

reforms.

  To meet the IMF‟s criteria, Beijing has undertaken a flurry of reforms in

recent months, including better access for foreigners to Chinese currency

markets, more frequent debt issuance and expanded Yuan trading hours.

  To be included in the SDR basket, the Yuan had to meet the criteria to be

freely usable, or widely used to make international payments and widely

traded in foreign exchange markets, a yardstick it missed at the last review

in 2010.

Patricia Scotland

The first-ever female Secretary-General of the Commonwealth

was elected on 27 November 2015 during CHOGM 2015.

To Know: Dominica-born lawyer Patricia Scotland, who is a

former attorney general to the British government, was elected

as the new Secretary-General of the Commonwealth on 27

November during its biennial summit in Malta.

  She thus became the first-ever woman to be elected for running the 53-

country organisation. She will thus replace Indian diplomat Kamalesh

Sharma on 1 April 2016, who will complete his second term then.

  While Queen Elizabeth II is the head of the Commonwealth, the Secretary-

General‟s duties involve representing the organisation globally and

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promoting its values and principles, chiefly democratic standards and

development.

  Previous Commonwealth Secretaries-General have been Arnold Smith of

Canada (1965-1975), ShridathRamphal of Guyana (1975-1990), Chief

EmekaAnyaoku of Nigeria (1990-2000) and Don McKinnon of NewZealand (2000-2008).

Medicine

Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV)

To Know:  The Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV), in injectable

form, was launched under the National Immunization Programme

(NIP) on 30 November 2015. The launch of IPV marks a shift in

addressing vaccine derived poliovirus cases. IPV, which uses

killed polio viruses, will be used alongside the oral polio vaccine

(OPV). With its launch India is trying to push for the so-called

“endgame polio” mission. 

  The IPV uses killed polio viruses and when used in combination with OPV

can quickly boost immunity against poliovirus and offer double protection.

Till date, India, like many other countries, has been relying on an OPV

campaign-style programme several times a year to keep the naturally-

occurring wild polioviruses at bay.

  For now, immunization using IPV will be restricted to Bihar, Chhattisgarh,

Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. In the first

quarter of 2016, it will be expanded to the other Northern and North-

eastern States and in the second quarter, will encompass the five southern

States and Maharashtra.

  It is worth mentioning that no new cases of polio have been reported in

India for around 5 years now.

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Defence

Barack 8

In an important event associated with India‟s defence forces, the Long Range

Surface to Air Missile (LRSAM), jointly designed and developed by Israel‟s IAI

and India‟s DRDO, was successfully flight tested from an Israeli naval

platform on 27 November 2015.

To Know: LRSAM (or Barack 8, as it is called in Israel) is an advanced, long-

range missile defence and air defence system. Its main features are long

range, active radar seeker missile, vertical launch and multiple simultaneous

engagements.

  The air defence system has been jointly developed by India‟s Defence

Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace

Industries (IAI) of Israel. The system was successfully tested from an

Israeli Naval Platform, wherein the missile successfully engaged and

destroyed the incoming air target.

  Further Operational Flight Trials (O.F.T) will be conducted shortly from

Indian Naval Platform before induction into the service. It will be inducted

into Indian Naval Ships (P-15A).

Economy

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate 

7.4%was the GDP growth rate of the Indian economy during the second

quarter (July-September) of 2015-16.

Explanation: India‟s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate for the

three-month period ended 30 September 2015 stood at 7.4% as compared

with 7% in the previous quarter (April-June 2015) and 8.4% in the same

quarter last year. Growth is thus tracking as per RBI‟s trajectory of between 7 -

7.5% for the full year.

  Manufacturing growth during the quarter was 9.3%, against 7.2% in the

previous quarter. The agricultural sector grew 2.2%, against 1.9%.

  With these figures being disclosed, there is likely to be a downward

revision in official GDP growth estimates for the full financial year 2015-16.

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Sports

P V Sindhu - completed a hat-trick of titles at the Macau Open 

Explanation:  Two-time defending champion P V Sindhu won her

third consecutive Macau Open title after defeating sixth seeded

MinatsuMitani by 21-9, 21-23, 21-14 in the finals on 29 November.

  She had earlier advanced to finals of the event with a gruelling three-game

triumph over second seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the semifinals,

which she won 21-8, 15-21, 21-16.

HockeyWhich team won the FIH Hockey World League title for 2015 on 6

December 2015? – Australia 

Explanation: World champions Australia defeated Belgium by 2-1 to

win the prestigious FIH Hockey World League title 2015 on 6

December 2015. With this win they stamped their authority in men‟s

hockey.

  Australia, who finished fourth in the last edition of the tournament two

years back, showed why they are considered as the most consistent teamin world hockey. Australian team took control of the match from the word

go to dominate the world number seven Belgians.

  -Belgium had defeated hosts Indian in the semi-finals to reach the finals

while Australia pipped the Netherlands.

  The tournament was played from 28 November to 6 December 2015 at the

SardarVallabhBhai Patel Stadium in Raipur (Chhattishgarh).

India won bronze

Indian men‟s hockey team created history by winning the bronze medal at the

FIH Hockey World League Final on 6 December 2015 as they claimed their

first medal at a major FIH event after 33 years. Which team they defeated in

the play-off match? –Netherlands 

To Know:  India avenged their 3-1 defeat to Netherlands in pool games to

come out victorious in the third-place playoff in the FIH Hockey World League

Finals played at Raipur. India came back from a 2-0 deficit to stun the world

No.2.

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  The match was tied at 5-5 at the end of regular time (60 minutes) and the

match was decided by penalty shoot-out. India defeated the Netherlands

3-2 in the penalties to win a historic bronze medal. Indian goalkeeper

Sreejesh played important role in this win making three brilliant saves.

Davis Cup 2015

Great Britainbecame title holders of this prestigious tennis

team title after a gap of 79 years.

To Know: Andy Murray led Great Britain to its first Davis

Cup title since 1936 after defeating hosts Belgium by 3-1 in

the finals played at Ghent. In the first reverse-singles on 29

November, Murray defeated Belgium‟s David Goffin by 6-3,

7-5, 6-3 to give his country a great tennis gift. Earlier Andy had partnered his

elder brother Jamie Murray to victory in the doubles on 28 November.

  Belgium had hosted Britain in the final from 27 to 29 November 2015 in a

repeat of their 1904 final when the Britons won 5-0 at Wimbledon. Belgium

had reached its first Davis Cup final since 1904 when in September 2015

they had defeated Argentina by 3-2. On the other hand Britain had

defeated arch-rivals Australia 3-2 in the semis.

Davis Cup is the most prestigious men‟s team tennis championship and is

often called the “World Cup of tennis”. It is run by the International Tennis

Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing

countries in a knock-out format.

Badminton

India‟s KidambiSrikanth lost in the men‟s singles final of Yonex Indonesian

Masters BWF Grand Prix Gold tournament on 6 December 2015. Who won

the final against him? – Tommy Sugiarto (Indonesia) Explanation: Second-seeded Tommy Sugiarto won the men‟s singles final of

Indonesian Masters BWF Grand Prix Gold as he defeated top seeded

KidambiSrikanth (India) by 17-21, 21-13, 24- 22 in a tense final at Maland

(Indonesia) on 6 December 2015.

  Sugiarto thus won the gold medal while KidambiSrikanth had to contend

with the silver.

  The 2015 Indonesian Masters Grand Prix Gold was the 20th Grand Prix

tournament of the 2015 BWF Grand Prix circuit.

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Formula One F(1) 

Lotus 

The French car giant Renault will return to Formula 1 of 2016 session as

a constructor, It will replace Lotus F1 team.Explanation: Renault sold the team to investment group Genii Capital at the

end of 2009 after deciding to quit as a constructor but remained involved as

an engine builder. The company will now make a comeback in 2016 session

as a constructor.

  Renault has won four world drivers‟ titles, two as Benetton with Michael

Schumacher in 1994 and 1995, and two as Renault with Fernando Alonso

in 2005 and 2006.

Formula One F(1) 

Mercedes‟ Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) officially won the

Formula One (F1)

To Know: Lewis Hamilton‟s teammate NicoRosberg won

the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with Hamilton

finishing second. Rosberg thus ended his 2015 season in

triumph when he completed a hat-trick of victories in the Abu Dhabi Grand

Prix ahead of world champion Lewis Hamilton. This was Rosberg‟s sixth titlewin of the year.

  But Hamilton still secured his third drivers‟ title as he had taken an

unassailable lead at last month‟s United States Grand Prix. Hamilton won

10 titles during the year. Ferrari‟s Sebastian Vettel (Germany) finished at

third spot.

Tyson Fury

Tyson Fury created boxing history by ending Ukrainian boxer

WladimirKlitschko‟s 11-year reign as the world heavyweight

champion on 28 November 2015.

To Know: British boxer Tyson Fury created a huge upset when

he defeated legendary Ukrainian boxer WladimirKlitschko‟s 11-

year reign as the world heavyweight champion after winning the

title fight on 28 November. This bout was held in Dusseldorf (Germany) and

Fury won it on points.

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  Fury was awarded the fight 115-112, 115-112 and 116-111 by the three

 judges to take Klitschko‟s WBA, IBF, IBO and WBO belts. 

  WladimirKlitschko is the second longest reigning heavyweight champion of

all time and has the second most successful title defenses for any

heavyweight boxer with total 23 title defenses in his illustrious career.

Insurance

Sun Life

Insurance major Sun Life will increase its stake in Birla Sun Life Insurance

(BSLI) to 49% from 26% as announced by Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd (ABNL) on 3

December 2015. Sun Life is a leading insurance service provider of which

country? – Canada 

Explanation: BSLI is one of the leading private life insurance players in India,

with the new business premium market share of 7.9% for the half year ended

30 September 2015.

  With this stake sale Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd (ABNL), the majority stake-

holder in the company will have the remaining 51% stake in the enterprise.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of financial year 2015-16,

subject to the customary closing conditions and the requisite statutory and

regulatory approvals in India and Canada.

  The 23% stake sale will fetch ABNL Rs. 1,664 crore, valuing BSLI at Rs.

7,235 crore.

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Person

Justice Tirath Singh Thakur

43rdChief Justice of India

To Know: Justice Tirath Singh Thakur (Justice T.S. Thakur)

was administered the oath as the 43 rd Chief Justice of India by

the President on 3 December 2015 at a function held at the

RashtrapatiBhawan. He took over from incumbent Justice H.L.

Dattu who retired a day earlier on 2 December.

  He was the senior-most judge in the Supreme Court till his elevation as the

CJI and had headed the bench which had delivered the verdict to reform

cricket controlling body BCCI in the wake of allegations of betting and

spot-fixing scandal in the IPL.

  He will have the tenure as CJI for a little over one year and would retire on

4 January 2017.

Vijay Kumar Choudhary

Unanimously elected Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly on 2

December 2015.

Explanation: Vijay Kumar Choudhary is a senior leader of the JD (U)

and has been a close associate of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. He thus

became the 16th Speaker and 14th person to hold the position of the Speaker

of Bihar Assembly.

  Choudhary represents the Sarairanjan assembly segment in Samastipur.

MAM Ramaswamy

Veteran industrialist and former parliamentarian MAM Ramaswamy,

who passed away on 2 December 2015, was associated with which

industrial house? – Chettinad Group 

To Know: Apart from being a noted industrialist and former

parliamentarian, 84-year old MAM Ramaswamy was also the last

King of Chettinad in Tamil Nadu. He was heading the Chettinad

Group as its Chairman till his death. The group has diverse interests in

cement, granite and engineering among others. He represented Karnataka in

the RajyaSabha from 2004 to 2010.

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  He belonged to the NattukottaiChettiar community, also known as „The

Rajah Family‟ in the Tamil fraternity. He had very important role in

transforming the Annamalai University (in Chidambaram), that was

founded by his family in 1929.

  He was of the most famous professional horse-racer in India and had therecord of over 600 Classics in his name. He also had interests in sports

administration. He was the president of the Indian Hockey Federation and

it was during his stewardship in 1975, India won its World Cup hockey

championship.

  MAM Ramaswamy, however, had bitter relations with his adopted son

MAMR Muthiah. In 2014 Ramaswamy was eased out from the board of

Chettinad Cement by Muthiah-led group.

Manoj Bhargava

The Indian-American billionaire philanthropist who

unveiled a path-breaking new invention in the form of a

stationary cycle that can generate free electricity.

To Know: Manoj Bhargava is an India-born billionaire

philanthropist who shot to fame with his 5-Hour Energy

drink. He has reportedly net worth of around $4 billion.

On 28 November 2015 he unveiled his new invention  – a stationary cycle that is capable of generating electricity through pedalling.

  The stationary cycle that was launched by Manoj Bhargava generates

power by pedalling. The pedalling turns a flywheel, which spins a

generator that charges the attached battery. One hour of pedalling can

meet a rural household‟s electricity needs for 24 hours, including running

lights, a small fan and charging a cell phone, all without electricity bills, fuel

costs or pollution. The price of one such cycle is expected between

Rs. 12,000-15,000 and will be available by March 2016.

  Bhargava intends to first start selling the product in Uttarakhand and later

target rest of the domestic market. Production of this path-breaking cycle

will also be done in India.