Current Affair Oct 2013

2/8/2014
Tw eet 0
Share 0
Okkal
29
Login
Register
Select Language
Pow ered by
Translate
Forgot Password
Cart
Search
About us
News and current updates
Courses / offers
FAQ's
Archives
Opportunities
Counselling
Contact us
Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 1, 2013 1. Australia records fastest temperature rise among G20 nations Australias exposure to climate change has worsened more rapidly than in any other major economy in the past two years, with stresses on water supplies increasing and the cost of natural disasters running second only to China, a report has found.The study, compiled by HSBC, found that temperatures in Australia had risen faster than in any other G20 country over the past two years up by 0.39 degree C to 18.9 degree C on a decade average basis. Deterioration in water resources is also a major issue, with Australia, along with Saudi Arabia, experiencing the worst increases. HSBC concluded that India, China, Indonesia, South Africa and Brazil are the countries most vulnerable to climate change, based on the challenges posed by climate change and their ability to respond to them. 2. Vodacom in talks to buy Neotel British major Vodafones South African subsidiary Vodacom, on Monday, said it had entered into exclusive discussions regarding a potential acquisition of Neotel, controlled by Tata Communications.There are a number of important steps that we still need to complete to conclude the transaction. If the deal is implemented, Vodacom intends to put significant investment into the combined entity to provide high-speed fixed connectivity to many more businesses and consumers, Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub said in a joint statement. Neotel, South Africas second-biggest fixed-line phone operator, is 68.5 per cent owned by Tata Communications. 3. Nikhat nurtures big ambitions Like a true champion, Nikhat Zareen nurtures big ambitions. The 17-year-old from Hyderabad, who bagged the 54kg World youth womens boxing silver medal in Albena, Bulgaria, has already set her sights on the more important targets next year the Youth Olympics and the Asian Games. 4. Minimum capital requirement for MFs to be raised to R25 crore The minimum capital requirement for mutual funds (MFs) to operate within the industry is set to go up by 2.5 times from Rs 10 crore to Rs 25 crore. The Mutual Fund Advisory Committee set up by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has proposed to raise the minimum capital for asset management companies to Rs 25 crore.. 5. Unregulated players endanger market discipline, says FM The financial sector operates in a speed and dynamism, and generates new space, sometimes "undefined" areas, which provide opportunities for "unregulated" players in the market, he said at a seminar here. "The existence of such (unregulated) players who operate in the twilight zone endanger the discipline of the markets leading to systemic instability. Invariably, such activities adversely impact a large number of consumers. This reduces their confidence in the system," FM Chidambaram said regarding"unregulated" players in the financial market. 6. Infosys, IBM to develop system for RBS arm in 300 m euro deal Infosys, IBM have won a 300 million euro (about Rs.2,535 crore) contract to develop the computer system for the U.K.-based bank Williams & Glyns, which was dormant for about 30 years. It is being revived by U.K.-based lender the Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBSG). The bank is part of the RBS Group and is scheduled to launch operations by 2015. RBS will spend over 300 million euro to develop computer systems for Williams & Glyns bank. Infosys and IBM will lead the project to build the system, which will be based on RBSs computer platform, a person in know of the development said. 7. The methylhexaneamine debate continues Ever since the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) brought methylhexaneamine (MHA) into the Prohibited List, the substance has courted controversy. So has the application of Article 10.4 in the WADA Code, which allows the reduction of punishment in a set of substances classified specified substances. MHA which comes under specified stimulants, was banned by the WADA in the 2010 Prohibited List. Thanks to the information available on the internet, it was taken for granted that MHA was an ingredient of geranium oil or geranium root extract, both natural products, and could be inadvertently ingested by an athlete through a variety of supplements and beauty aids. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 2, 2013 1. India, US to move beyond buyer-seller ties in defence: PM Underlining the significance of taking India-US defence relations to a higher plane, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday made it clear that defence cooperation with the US was "in line" with India's own thinking on building a strong defence manufacturing base. Singh, who firmed up a new defence declaration a major outcome of his visit with US President Barack Obama, explained that both countries had decided to move beyond the current buyer-seller relationship in this sector. 2. India can become global hub for skilled labour: Pallam Raju Minister of human resource development MM Pallam Raju on Tuesday said India has the "potential to become a worldwide hub" for sourcing skilled manpower and earn from the demographic dividend. Raju said the greatest challenge is to make the large workforce more employable. "Out of around 4 lakh engineering students passing out every year only about 20 per cent are employable. Developing skills is as important as training. A larger effort is needed to create a skilled workforce with employment potential," he said at the CII HR Summit here. 3. Panels to sort out bottlenecks in food law implementation Barely a month after the food security law was passed by Parliament, the government Tuesday moved to address concerns raised by the states to ensure speedy implementation. Food Minister K V Thomas held a meeting with counterparts from states and decided to set up two panels to remove the
http://www.okkal.com/results
1/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
implementation bottlenecks. The meeting saw many states raise concerns, including sharing of financial burden and timeline for identification of beneficiaries. 4. New Land Acquisition Act will weaken Maoist ideology: Ramesh The new Land Acquisition Bill passed in Parliament will protect the interests of farmers as well as the tribal community and if properly implemented by the State governments it will weaken the ideology of Maoist organisations, Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said here on Tuesday In my opinion if the Act is implemented in letter and in sprit in the Maoist-affected areas land-related problems will come down and much of the ideology of the Maoist outfits will be weakened, he told journalists, speaking about The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. 5. Minority commission urges rehabilitation of riot survivors The Union Government may have dumped the Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice and Reparation) Bill, 2011, but the National Commission for Minorities wants rehabilitation of the survivors of the Muzaffarnagar violence to be done as per mandated by the Bill.The NCM would strongly recommend speedy rehabilitation of the affected, preferably on the lines recommended under the Communal and Targeted Violence Bill, which is yet to become law, but can be used as a guideline, said Wajahat Habibullah in his report after visiting the violence-affected areas and relief camps. 6. States not promoting Buddhist sites: RTI reply Even though foreigners from South Asian countries come to India to visit Buddhist sites, the archaeological departments of various States are neither promoting nor spending enough funds for the upkeep of around 50 such ancient sites. This information was provided in reply to a query filed under the Right to Information Act by non-government organisation Buddhist Forum. For the past three years, the Forum has been seeking information on 12 aspects including exploration, excavation, preservation and promotion of Buddhist sites from 1990-2011.
(Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 3, 2013 1. Greenbelt A green belt or greenbelt is a policy and land use designation used in land use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighbouring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges which have a linear character and may run through an urban area instead of around it. In essence, a green belt is an invisible line designating a border around a certain area, preventing development of the area and allowing wildlife to return and be established. 2. Hashim Committee The Hashim Committee, which was set up to review and rationalise Centrally Sponsored Schemes for poverty alleviation and employment generation, had gone into the question of rationalisation of the existing poverty alleviation programmes. Based on the recommendation of the Committee the Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) has been launched with effect from 1.12.97 and NRY, PMIUPEP and UBSP have been phased out. The programme has two sub-schemes namely, (a) Urban Self Employment Programme and (b) Urban Wage Employment Programme. The selfemployment and wage employment components of the NRY and PMIUPEP have been re-organised under this single programme. The shelter upgradation components of both NRY and PMIUPEP has been merged with the National Slum Development Programme. 3. Tom Clancy Was an American author best known for his technically detailed espionage and military science storylines that are set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games which bear his name for licensing and promotional purposes. Seventeen of his novels were best-sellers, with over 100 million copies in print. 4. United Nations Resolution on Syria An agreement to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons was reached on several fora in September 2013, imposing on Syria responsibilities and a timeline for the destruction of its chemical weapons and chemical weapons production facilities. On September 27, 2013, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Security Council Resolution 2118, which incorporated and made binding on Syria an earlier Decision by the Executive Council of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). The Security Council resolution was the culmination of a series of negotiations, the first of which led to the September 14, 2013 "Framework for Elimination of Syrian Chemical Weapons," an agreement between the Russia and the United States calling for the elimination of Syria's chemical weapon stockpiles by mid-2014. 5. Twin Deficit The twin deficits hypothesis, also called the double deficit hypothesis or twin deficits anomaly, is a concept from macroeconomics that contends that there is a strong link between a national economy's current account balance and its government budget balance. 6. GST The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a Value Added Tax (VAT) to be implemented in India, the decision on which is pending. It will replace all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Indian Central and State governments. It is aimed at being comprehensive for most goods and services. India is a federal republic, and the GST will thus be implemented concurrently by the central and state governments as the Central GST and the State GST respectively. Exports will be zero-rated and imports will be levied the same taxes as domestic goods and services adhering to the destination principle.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 4, 2013 1. Important for scientists to publish work globally Dispelling the perception that Indian scientists are averse to advertising their work, recipient of this year's Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar prize, Dr Eknath Ghate and Dr Amol Dighe, said that in science, it is important to publish and publicise one's work globally. While Dighe has won the award
2/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
for his contribution in high energy physics, Ghate clinched the prize in mathematical sciences category. Both are scientists at Mumbai's Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR).. 2. New drug pricing policy under SC scanner The government's new drug pricing policy came under the scanner Thursday as the Supreme Court sought an explanation over the latest pricing formula for essential medicines and questioned if market driven forces had an effect on it. 3. Govt clears medical institute for paramilitary forces The government Thursday decided to set up an Central Armed Police Forces Institute of Medical Sciences. The institute will include a 500-bed general hospital, a 300-bed super-specialty hospital and a nursing college and is estimated to come up in about six years at a cost of Rs 1366.53 crore. The government has already purchased 48.80 acres of land at Maiden Garhi in southeast Delhi for it and construction will begin soon. 4. Cabinet panel nod to higher education reform scheme The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs Thursday approved the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan, a central government-sponsored scheme to reform the state higher education system. RUSA had been a pproved by the National Development Council for inclusion in the 12th Five Year Plan. It was subsequently included in a list of 66 restructured central schemes cleared by the Cabinet on June 20, 2013, said a statement released by the government. 5. Walmart hasnt given requisite documents: Mudgal panel The one-man inquiry panel on Walmart's lobbying activities in India has told the government that it cannot conclude allegations of bribery as the US company did not furnish the required documents. In its report Justice Mukul Mudgal told the ministry of corporate affairs that Walmart did not furnish the details of wages and other benefits extended to external advisers hired by its parent company. Instead the consultants hired by Walmart USA do not lobby for the firm, it told Justice Mudgal. 6. Signs suggest N Korea has restarted n-reactor North Korea's main nuclear complex was discharging hot waste water in a further sign that the country has restarted a Soviet-era nuclear reactor there that it had used to obtain plutonium fuel for atomic bombs, an American research institute said on Thursday. 7. Gambia pulls out of neo-colonial Commonwealth
Gambia has withdrawn from the Commonwealth, the 54-member grouping including Britain, India and most of its other former colonies, branding it a "neo-colonial institution," according to a statement released by the West African nation on Wednesday. It joined in 1965. 8. Global Remittance A remittance is a transfer of money by a foreign worker to his or her home country or simply sending amount from one country to another. Money sent home by migrants constitutes the second largest financial inflow to many developing countries, exceeding international aid. In 2012, according to the World Bank Report, $401 billion new remittance record went to developing countries with overall global remittances (including developed countries) topped $514 billion. Remittances contribute to economic growth and to the livelihoods of people worldwide. Moreover, remittance transfers can also promote access to financial services for the sender and recipient, thereby increasing financial and social inclusion. 9. Central Forensic Science Laboratory(CFSL) The Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) is a wing of the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, which fulfills the forensic requirements in the country. It houses the only DNA repository in South and Southeast Asia. There are four central forensic laboratories in India, at Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh and New Delhi. CFSL Hyderabad is centre of excellence in chemical sciences, CFSL Kolkata (oldest laboratory in India) in biological sciences and CFSL Chandigarh in physical sciences. These laboratories are under the control of the Directorate of Forensic Science (DFS) of the Ministry of Home Affairs. The laboratory in New Delhi is under the control of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and investigates cases on its behalf. 10.Telangana Telangana is a region within the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. It was formerly part of Hyderabad State which was ruled by the Nizams. Telangana is bordered by the states of Maharashtra to the north and north-west, Karnataka to the west, Chhattisgarh to the north-east and Odisha to the east. Andhra Pradesh State has three main cultural regions: Telangana, Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema. The Telangana region has an area of 114,840 square kilometres (44,340 sq mi), and a population of 35,286,757 (2011 census) which is 41.6% of Andhra Pradesh state population.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 5, 2013
1.
Operational bribes, third-party risks bother Indian firms: Report

Indian companies are most concerned about operational bribes and third-party risks, and lag behind their global peers in providing anti-corruption training to their employees, having whistleblowing mechanisms and budget dedicated to anti-corruption initiatives. This is the outcome of a survey conducted by Control Risks, a global risk consulting firm, and the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), canvassing general counsels and compliance heads of 316 companies across the globe.
2.
Twitter makes IPO plans public; offer price not set

Twitter had, last month, announced that it would go public but had filed confidential papers. On Thursday, it made its prospectus public, providing a glimpse at its financial health. The Twitter initial public offering the most hotly anticipated stock sale since Facebook went public last year will make early employees and investors in the firm very rich.
3.
Dates out for 5 states polls, NOTA to be introduced

Setting the ball rolling for the poll season, the Election Commission on Friday announced dates for Assembly elections in the five states of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pra-desh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram. Counting of votes in all the states will take place on December 8. These will likely be first polls where "none of the above" option will be introduced.
4.
SC agrees to hear plea for Aadhaar order review

The Supreme Court Friday agreed to hear on October 8 the central government's plea for modification of a court order restricting all authorities from denying a benefit or service to any citizen of India for want of the Aadhaar card. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, in its application, sought "clarification or modification" of the order to enable it continue with its Direct Benefit Transfer for Liquefied Petroleum Gas Consumers scheme. Only those holding Aadhaar cards are listed as beneficiaries to this scheme.
5.
India gets its first LGBT radio station
3/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
The countrys lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community can now celebrate freedom of airwaves with a round-the-clock radio station dedicated specifically to them. Q Radio, which started operating from Bangalore this September, claims to be the first radio station in the country that is tailored for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender audience.
6.
Anti-dumping probe
The government has initiated a probe into alleged dumping of electrical insulators by Chinese companies following complaints by domestic players. The Directorate-General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties has begun the investigations into the matter. The period of investigation is from April 2012 to March 2013. However, for the purpose of analysing injury, the data of previous three years would also be considered, according to a notification. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Times of India, The Economic Times& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 6, 2013 1. Call off Uttarakhand autumn festival too In the wake of cancellation of the Corbett Mahotsav by Uttarakhand Tourism Minister Amrita Rawat, there is a demand to cancel the Sharadotsav (autumn festival) too. Ms. Rawat cancelled the Corbett Mahotsav, which was to be held between October 3 and 7 at Ramnagar, because people protested against the merrymaking when massive rehabilitation work remains pending in the State, which was ravaged by floods and landslides in June. After the Corbett Mahotsav was called off, representatives of the Aam Aadmi Party and the Uttarakhand Lok Vahini demanded cancellation of the Sharadotsav and have written to Governor Aziz Qureshi in this regard. 2. Bangladesh honours Krishna Menon Forty years after its Liberation War, Bangladesh has honoured former Defence Minister V K Krishna Menon posthumously at a ceremony attended by the Bangladesh President and PM in Dhaka, thus formally recognising his contribution to their war of Independence. Menon's grandniece Radha Anand Menon and her husband Anand Menon were invited as state guests at the award ceremony on October 1. Radha received the award on behalf of her granduncle. This is the seventh phase of the award ceremony. President Pranab Mukherjee had received the award in February this year. 3. OilMin launches LPG portability
As in the case of mobile phone operators, one can now opt for a better LPG dealer without much effort. Under the LPG portability scheme launched on Saturday by the petroleum ministry, a consumer can opt for a supplier within a group of distributors in the vicinity by registering on the LPG company's website. The scheme is currently available in 24 cities. 4. Afghan Taliban plotted to kidnap Prince Harry Prince Harry was the prime target of the Taliban during his stint with British troops in Afghanistan and there were many plans to capture him. But his "good luck" saved him, a top militant commander has claimed. The rebels were determined to capture Britain's fourth-in-line to the throne during his tour of duty in Afghanistan, commander Qari Nasrullah said in an interview with the Daily Mirror at a heavily guarded compound near Peshawar in northwest Pakistan. 5. Iran a year or more away from n-weapon capability: Obama
The United States believes Iran is a year or a more away from being able to produce a nuclear weapon, President Barack Obama said in an interview with the Associated Press released Saturday, describing the estimate as "conservative". (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 7, 2013 1. Proxyvon
It contains Propoxyphene, a very mild narcotic analgesic. Some of the most common side effects include: drowsiness, nausea, dry mouth and constipation. The Madras High Court has restrained pharma major Wockhardt Ltd., from manufacturing and selling Dextyropropoxyphene (DPP) and the formulations containing it till the disposal of two writ petitions. 2. 13 th Amendment It is a landmark amendment that created a provincial council system within the unitary state based on a 1987 agreement with India. Recently Sri Lanka has constituted, a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to study and suggest possible changes. In July 1987, Indo-Sri Lanka signed between Rajiv Gandhi and J.R. Jayawardene. 3. As Germany pushes austerity, Greeks press Nazi-era claims
As they moved through the isolated villages in this region in 1943, systematically killing men in a reprisal for an attack on a small outpost, German soldiers dragged Giannis Syngelakis father from his home here and shot him in the head. Within two days, more than 400 men were dead and the women left behind struggled with the monstrous task of burying so many corpses. 4. Iran arrests 4 in nuclear plant sabotage plot
Iran has arrested four people suspected of attempting to sabotage one of its nuclear plants, said the Atomic Energy Organisation chief Ali Akbar Salehi said on Sunday. Some time ago, we uncovered sabotage activities by several people at a nuclear plant, Mr. Salehi said in comments carried by the Mehr news agency.. 5. Aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya to be inducted into Navy in Nov after 5 years' delay
The long-delayed aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya will be inducted into Indian Navy by Defence Minister A K Antony during his Russia visit slated between November 15-17."The Defence Minister is expected to induct the warship into the Indian Navy during his visit for the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission for Military and Technical Cooperation meeting now expected to be held in November," sources said. 6. The Juv enile Justice(Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000
The Government of India enacted the Juvenile Justice Act in 1986.In 1989 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Rights of a Child. India ratified the UNCRC in 1992. The convention outlines the right of the child to reintegration into society without judicial proceedings where avoidable. Hence the Government, to fulfil the standards of the convention felt a need to re-write the law. Hence in 2000 the old law was replaced by the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act.
4/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
7. Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 is the primary legal framework for juvenile justice in India. The Act provides for a special approach towards the prevention and treatment of juvenile delinquency and provides a framework for the protection, treatment and rehabilitation of children in the purview of the juvenile justice system. This law, brought in compliance of Child Rights Convention 1989, repealed the earlier Juvenile Justice Act of 1986 after India signed and ratified Child Rights Convention 1989 in year 1992. This Act has been further amended in year 2006 and 2010. Government of India is once again contemplating bringing further amendments and a review committee has been constituted by Ministry of Women and Child Development which is reviewing the existing legislation. 8. Department of Atomic Energy(DAE)
The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is a department directly under the Prime Minister of India with headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The department is responsible for nuclear technology, including nuclear power and research. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) was constituted on November 15, 1983 by the President of India by exercising the powers conferred by Section 27 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (33 of 1962) to carry out certain regulatory and safety functions under the Act. The regulatory authority of AERB is derived from the rules and notifications promulgated under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986. 9. Gross domestic product(GDP)
Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of livin g; GDP per capita is not a measure of personal income (Standard of living and GDP). Under economic theory, GDP per capita exactly equals the gross domestic income (GDI) per capita (Gross domestic income). GDP is related to national accounts, a subject in macroeconomics. GDP is not to be confused with gross national product (GNP) which allocates production based on ownership. 10. Infiltration Infiltration is the process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil. Infiltration rate in soil science is a measure of the rate at which soil is able to absorb rainfall or irrigation. It is measured in inches per hour or millimeters per hour. The rate decreases as the soil becomes saturated. If the precipitation rate exceeds the infiltration rate, runoff will usually occur unless there is some physical barrier. It is related to the saturated hydraulic conductivity of the near-surface soil. The rate of infiltration can be measured using an infiltrometer. 11. Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO)
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is the primary space agency of the Indian government. ISRO is amongst the six largest government space agencies in the world, along with USA's NASA, Russia's RKA, Europe's ESA, China's CNSA and Japan's JAXA. Its primary objective is to advance space technology and use its applications for national benefit. Established in 1969, ISRO superseded the erstwhile Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR). Headquartered in Bangalore, ISRO is under the administrative control of the Department of Space, Government of India. ISRO has achieved numerous milestones since its establishment. India's first satellite, Aryabhata, was built by ISRO and launched by the Soviet Union in 1975. Rohini, the first satellite to be placed in orbit by an Indian-made launch vehicle, SLV-3, was launched in 1980. ISRO subsequently developed two other rockets: the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for putting satellites into polar orbits and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) for placing satellites into geostationary orbits. These rockets have launched numerous communications satellites, earth observation satellites, and, in 2008, Chandrayaan-1, India's first mission to the Moon. 12. Geomagnetic Reversal
A geomagnetic reversal is a change in the Earth's magnetic field such that the positions of magnetic north and magnetic south are interchanged. The Earth's field has alternated between periods of normal polarity, in which the direction of the field was the same as the present direction, and reverse polarity, in which the field was the opposite. These periods are called chrons. The time spans of chrons are randomly distributed with most being between 0.1 and 1 million years with an average of 450,000 years.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 8, 2013 1. Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) of their respective Net Demand and Time Liabilities" outstanding at the end of the second
Under this scheme, Banks are able to borrow upto 2%
preceding fortnight . The rate of interest on the amount accessed from this facility wef 7th October, 2013 has been fixed at 9.00% (earlier w.e.f. 20th September, 2013, it was reduced 9.50%). This reduction has been done to meet the crunch in liquidity in the banking sector. This scheme is likely to reduce volatility in the overnight rates and improve monetary transmission. 2. Influential rabbi in Israel dies Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a fiery figure in Israeli politics who, as the spiritual leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas Party, fought for the interests of Jews of Middle Eastern and North African origin, died Monday in Jerusalem. Rabbi Yosef embodied a particular blend of religion, tradition, populism and ethnicity. As leader of a Sephardic council of Torah sages that founded Shas in early 1980s, he harnessed the underdog sentiment of many non-European Israeli Jews, restored their pride and turned them into potent political force. 3. Supreme Court refuses to review order on Cairn stake sale to Vedanta
The Supreme Court has refused to interfere with its approval to the government's nod for the $8.48 billion deal by the Vedanta Group to acquire a majority stake in Cairn India, which had rights to explore oil and natural gas blocks in Rajasthan. 4. NGOs with substantial govt funding under RTI The Supreme Court Monday ruled that that all private organisations and NGOs will be obligated under the Right to Information Act to disclose information if they were substantially financed by the government. These organisations could fall within the definition of public authority under the transparency law since they received substantial government grants, it said. However, it would be for the person seeking information from such organisations to prove that they were financed "substantially" by the government. 5. Pranab petitioned on Jamias decision on historian
Several academics, civil society activists and students have sought the intervention of President Pranab Mukherjee in reversing Jamia Millia Islamias decision to accept eminent historian Mushirul Hasans voluntary resignation as professor in the History Department. A petition has been sent to the President in his capacity as Visitor of Jamia Millia, a Central University. According to the petition, Professor Hasan, who was the Vice-Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia between 2004 and 2009, put in his papers because of nefariously calibrated exercises by sections of the university and outside, aimed at
5/45
2/8/2014
damaging his credentials. 6. Volatile food prices here to stay, says FAO
Okkal
Volatility in food prices is here to stay, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said on Monday, even as it called upon its member countries to adapt to the situation by helping small landholding farmers and low income groups. The worlds food price problems are not over despite a current market lull, FAO Director-General Jos Graziano da Silva told a ministerial meeting on international food prices in Rome. More than 30 Agriculture and Food Ministers participated in the meeting held on the sidelines of the 40th Session on World Food Security. 7. Election Commission of India
The Election Commission of India is an autonomous, constitutionally established federal authority responsible for administering all the electoral processes in the Republic of India. Under the supervision of the commission, free and fair elections have been held in India at regular intervals as per the principles enshrined in the Constitution. The Election Commission has the power of supe rintendence, direction and control of all elections to the Parliament of India and the state legislatures and of elections to the office of the President of India and the Vice-President of India. 8. Chief Justice of India
The Chief Justice of India is the highest-ranking judge in the Supreme Court of India, and thus holds the highest judicial position in India. As well as presiding in the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice also heads its administrative functions. As the chief judge, the Chief Justice is responsible for the allocation of cases and appointment of constitutional benches which deal with important matters of law. In accordance with Article 145 of the Constitution of India and the Supreme Court Rules of Procedure of 1966, the Chief Justice allocates all work to the other judges who are bound to refer the matter back to him or her (for re-allocation) in any case where they require it to be looked into by a bench of higher strength. 9. National Green Tribunal Act, 2010(NGT)
National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (NGT) is a federal legislation enacted by the Parliament of India, under India's constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment. The tribunal itself is a special fast-track court to handle the expeditious disposal of the cases pertaining to environmental issues. The Tribunal's dedicated jurisdiction in environmental matters shall provide speedy environmental justice and help reduce the burden of litigation in the higher courts. The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice. The Tribunal is mandated to make and endeavour for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same. 10. Securities and Exchange Board of India The Securities and Exchange Board of India (frequently abbreviated SEBI) is the regulator for the securities market in India. It was established in the year 1988 and given statutory powers on 12 April 1992 through the SEBI Act, 1992. Initially SEBI was a non statutory body without any statutory power. However in the year of 1995, the SEBI was given additional statutory power by the Government of India through an amendment to the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act 1992. In April, 1998 the SEBI was constituted as the regulator of capital markets in India under a resolution of the Government of India. 11. Border Security Force(BSF)
The Border Security Force (BSF) is a border guarding force of the Government of India. Established on December 1, 1965, it is one of the Central Armed Police Forces. Its primary role is to guard India's international borders during peacetime and also prevent trans border crime. Like all Central Armed Police Forces of India, the BSF is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is one of the many law enforcement agencies of India. The unique BSF Camel Contingent during the annual Republic Day Parade. With a strength of 240,000 personnel in 186 battalions, including women personnel, it is one of the world's largest border patrol forces. K F Rustomji, the BSF's first Director General is referred to as the founding father of the BSF. 12. Aadhaar Enabled Payment System
Aadhaar Enabled Payment System or AEPS is an Indian payment system developed by National Payments Corporation of India based on unique individual identification numbers, the AADHAAR. The system allows a person holding an Aadhaar number to carry out financial transaction on a micro-ATM provided by the banking correspondent.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 9, 2013 1. Arundhati Bhattacharyabecomes first woman to head SBI
Bhattacharya, 57, is the bank's 24th chairperson and has a two and a two-and-a-half-year term at the top. Recently, the government had promoted her to the post of managing director and chief financial officer of the bank. 2. Prithvi-II test-fired again successfully
For the second consecutive day, Prithvi-II missile was successfully test-fired by personnel of the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) from Chandipur, Odisha, on Tuesday. On Monday, the missile was tested for a range of 300 km, against its maximum strike range of 350 km. In Tuesdays mission, the singlestage liquid-propelled rocket was test-fired for a range of 325 km by a missile regiment unit of the SFC. The entire exercise was monitored by scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). 3. NOTA option unlikely for Bengal civic polls Voters from the State might have to wait a bit longer to exercise the NOTA (None of The Above) option while exercising their franchise as the State Election Commission may not be able to provide electronic voting machines (EVMs) with the option in the civic polls scheduled for next month. So far as the NOTA option is concerned we are yet to start on itThere are still a few unanswered questions on the issue which we have also been asking. What happens if there are a high percentage of voters exercising the NOTA option? These issues need to be resolved also before the State Commissions decide on the NOTA option, State Election Commissioner Mira Pande said at an interactive session here on Tuesday. 4. IMF lowers Indias 2013 growth estimate
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its projection of India's growth rate to 3.75 per cent in 2013 from 5.7 per cent estimated earlier. The IMF's GDP at factor cost forecast, which is a part of its World Economic Outlook, pegged India's growth at about 5 per cent in 2014. 5. Orissa on alert as cyclone threat looms
The Orissa government Tuesday put 14 of its 30 district collectors on alert following reports of depression over the north Andaman Sea about 1,350 km east-southeast of port of Paradip. Special Relief Commissioner P K Mohapatra said the cyclonic system would intensify into a deep depression and further into a cyclonic storm by
6/45
2/8/2014
that a supercyclone had hit Orissa coast killing over 10,000 people.
Okkal
Wednesday. "Prediction as of now indicates that the system may have its landfall on Orissa coast on October 12," he said. It was on October 29, 1999
6. New Delhi pressuring Beijing on Brahmaputra: Chinese scholar Even as China goes ahead with the construction of four hydropower dams on the Brahmaputra, a Chinese scholar at an influential State-run think-tank has accused the Indian government of attempting to pressure China on the issue by seeking sympathy from the international community. 7. IRDA to focus on distribution channels to spur growth
The insurance industry will undergo another round of regulatory reforms, particularly related to distribution channel, to drive growth, according to Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Chairman T. S. Vijayan. 8. DMICDC
Delhi - Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) is India's most ambitious Infrastructure programme aiming to develop new industrial cities as "Smart Cities" and converging next generation technologies across infrastructure sectors. The objective is to expand India's manufacturing and services base and develop DMIC as a "Global Manufacturing and Trading Hub". The programme will provide a major impetus to planned urbanization in India with manufacturing as the key driver. In addition to new Industrial Cities, the programme envisages development of infrastructure linkages like pioneer plants, assured water supply, high capacity transportation and logistics facilities as well as softer interventions like skill development programme for employment of the local populace. In the first phase seven new industrial cities are being developed. The programme has been conceptualized in partnership and collaboration with Government of Japan.
9.
Central Forensic Science Laboratory(CFSL)
The Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) is a wing of the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, which fulfills the forensic requirements in the country. It houses the only DNA repository in South and Southeast Asia. There are four central forensic laboratories in India, at Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh and New Delhi. CFSL Hyderabad is centre of excellence in chemical sciences, CFSL Kolkata (oldest laboratory in India) in biological sciences and CFSL Chandigarh in physical sciences. These laboratories are under the control of the Directorate of Forensic Science (DFS) of the Ministry of Home Affairs. The laboratory in New Delhi is under the control of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and investigates cases on its behalf. DR. V K Kashyap is Director DFSS, New Delhi. Dr. Bhattacharya is dir of CFSL Kolkata. Dr S K SHUKLA is currently director of CFSL Chandigarh.
10.
Non-performing asset(NPA)
A Non-performing asset (NPA) is defined as a credit facility in respect of which the interest and/or installment of principal has remained past due for a specified period of time. NPA is a classification used by financial institutions that refer to loans that are in jeopardy of default. Once the borrower has failed to make interest or principal payments for 90 days the loan is considered to be a non-performing asset. Non-performing assets are problematic for financial institutions since they depend on interest payments for income. Troublesome pressure from the economy can lead to a sharp increase in nonperforming loans and often results in massive write-downs. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 10, 2013 1. Oil spill off Mumbai worse than estimated
The oil spill on the Uran coast close to Mumbai is larger than what was estimated, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has said. The admission came two days after the leak of crude oil from an ONGC pipeline. It took 12 hours to cap. Initially the MPCB estimated that 1,000 litres of oil had washed into the sea. On Wednesday, it said the figure could be thrice more. In the recent past, major oil spills have caused major damage to the ecology. In August 2010, the collision of merchant ships MSC Chitra and MV Khalija 3 off Mumbais coast spilled over 800 tons of oil into the sea. Over 8.57 lakh mangroves along the coastlines of Mumbai, Thane and Raigad districts were severely affected. In January 2011, ONGCs Mumbai-Uran trunk pipeline burst spilling oil across four sq.km. off the Mumbai coast. 2. Show-cause notice to AgustaWestland likely
The Defence Ministry is planning to issue a show-cause notice soon to Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland for cancellation of its over Rs.3,600-crore helicopter deal in view of the bribery charges against it. The government has already frozen the contract for supply of 12 AW-101 VVIP choppers to the IAF. 3. That the God particle bears Boses name is a great honour in itself
Welcoming The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciencess decision to award this years Nobel Prize in Physics to scientists Peter Higgs and Francois Englert for predicting the existence of the Higgs boson (popularly known as the God particle), which is named after Mr. Higgs and Indian scientist Satyendra Nath Bose, prominent physicists here highlighted Professor Boses contribution in the field of particle physics. 4. New Pakistan envoy to India
Veteran diplomats Syed Ibne Abbas and Jalil Abbas Jilani will be the new Pakistani envoys to India and the United States. Abbas will replace current High Commissioner to India Salman Bashir, official sources here said. Abbas is a career diplomat and had earlier served as Counsellor (political) at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi. 5. U.S. could whittle down Egypt aid
The United States was poised to suspend much of its military aid to Egypt due to Cairos sweeping crackdown against supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsy, U.S. officials said Wednesday. The decision was to hold up the delivery of major weapons, including Apache helicopters, F-16 fighter jets and M1A1 Abrams tanks, officials told AFP, confirming overnight U.S. media reports. But American aid focused on counter-terrorism efforts including operations in the Sinai desert near Israels border would likely continue, officials said. 6. CERN too should have got the prize A member of the Swedish institution that awards the Nobel Prize for Physics contested this years award, saying on Wednesday the honour for two physicists should have included the CERN laboratory which proved their theories. I think its wrong, Anders Barany, a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences told AFP, commenting a day after the decision, which was delayed for an hour due to a lot of discussion. 7. India to set up separate mission for Asean
As a testimony to the intensity of the relationship that India seeks to have with Asean (The Association of Southeast Asian Nations), New Delhi
7/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
has decided to open a separate mission for this 10-nation bloc that is billed as the growth centre of Asia.An announcement of an Ambassador is expected to be made by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Brunei, where he will participate at the 11th Asean-India summit on Thursday. Dr. Singh arrived here late on Wednesday afternoon to participate in the Asean-India engagement and the 8th East Asia Summit (EAS). 8. Trade Deficit
An economic measure of a negative balance of trade in which a country's imports exceeds its exports. A trade deficit represents an outflow of domestic currency to foreign markets. Economic theory dictates that a trade deficit is not necessarily a bad situation because it often corrects itself over time. However, a deficit has been reported and growing in the United States for the past few decades, which has some economists worried. This means that large amounts of the U.S. dollar are being held by foreign nations, which may decide to sell at any time. A large increase in dollar sales can drive the value of the currency down, making it more costly to purchase imports. 9. Rihand Thermal Power Station
Rihand Thermal Power Station is located at Rihandnagar in Sonbhadra district in Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The power plant is one of the coal based power plants of NTPC. Rihand Thermal Power Station has an installed capacity of 2500 MW. The First unit was commissioned in March 1988. The coal for the plant is derived from Amlori and Dudhichua mines. The water source is from Rihand Reservoir which is constructed on Son river. NTPC rihand is situated 75 km away from Renukoot railway station. By personal cab or public transport bus, one can reach rihandnagar. Local market outside NTPC township is Bijpur. If one is interested in little bit bigger market, one has to Waidhan which is 30 km away from rihandnagar. 10.Public Enterprises Selection Board [P.E.S.B] The Public Enterprises Selection Board [P.E.S.B] is a high powered body constituted by Government of India Resolution dated 3.3.1987 which was subsequently amended from time-to-time, the latest being on 11.11.2008. The P.E.S.B has been set up with the objective of evolving a sound managerial policy for the Central Public Sector Enterprises and, in particular, to advise Government on appointments to their top management posts. 11. Kerala solar panel scam 2013 Kerala solar panel scam involved a fraudulent solar energy company, Team Solar, in Kerala, India, which used two women to create political contacts with links even to the Chief Minister's office, duped several influential people to the tune of rupees7 crore, by offering to make them business partners, or by offering to install solar power units for them, and receiving advance payments for the same. The Team Solar Energy Company (Team Solar), floated by the main accused Biju Radhakrishnan and Saritha Nair, directors of the company, allegedly collected advance amounts from large number of people and investors by offering to make them business partners, or in the guise of installing alternate sources of energy and failed to deliver the goods. The company awarded a "Virgin Earth Golden Feather Environment Award" to several prominent people of Kerala to gain media coverage and credibility. The scam came to light when one of the customers who had paid for the installation filed a case against the company. 12. President's Rule President's Rule refers to Article 356 of the Constitution of India deals with the failure of the Constitutional machinery of an Indian state. In the event that government in a state is not able to function as per the Constitution, the state comes under the direct control of the central government, with executive authority exercised through the Governor instead of a Council of Ministers headed by an elected Chief Minister accountable to the state legislature. Article 356 is invoked if there has been failure of the constitutional machinery in any state of India. During President's Rule, the Governor has the authority to appoint retired civil servants or other administrators, to assist him. These advisors assume the functions of State's Council of Ministers.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 11, 2013 1. Banks can borrow from multilateral bodies till Nov 30
The Reserve Bank of India on Thursday allowed banks to raise funds from multilateral institutions until November 30 as long as the money raised is for general banking purposes and not for capital enhancement. These borrowings from multilateral bodies will also be eligible for the recently opened forex swap facility. 2. WB accepts IOC bid for Haldia Petrochem
The West Bengal government on Thursday declared that Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) was the "sole and valid bidder" for the government's stake in Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL). The state government has a 31 per cent share in the company, which till date has an accumulated loss of Rs 3,200 crore and a debt of Rs 4,000 crore. The government placed its stake for sale to exit the loss making company as well as to raise funds. 3. Republicans to offer short-term debt limit plan to Obama
House Republicans, looking for a way out of a budget standoff they began, are coalescing around a plan that would raise the debt limit through November 22, which they will present to President Obama at a meeting at the White House Thursday afternoon. The White House indicated that while the president might sign a short-term bill to avert default, it rejected the proposal as insufficient to begin negotiations over his healthcare law or further long-term deficit reductions as the plan does not address the measure passed by the Senate to finance and reopen the government. 4. British govt introduces tough immigration bill
The British government took another crack at curbing illegal immigration Thursday, introducing a bill that would require immigration checks to accompany private housing applications and health care access. 5. China, EU sign euro currency swap pact China and the European Union, on Thursday, signed a 350 billion yu an (euro 45 billion) currency swap agreement, a major step in pushing international use of the Chinese currency yuan. The deal, signed between the Peoples Bank of China and the European Central Bank (ECB), aims to support bilateral trade and protect financial stability, an official statement here said. The agreement lasts three years and can be extended if both parties agree, it said. 6. U.K. hails Indias move on antibiotics sale
The United Kingdom appreciated Indias move to restrict the sale of antibiotics to check drug resistance describing it as a fantastic example of political leadership that will protect the integrity of life-saving treatments. The restricted sale of antibiotics was one of the main recommendations
8/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
of the Chennai Declaration. The government recently added a new provision in the Drugs and Cosmetic Act 1940 that will seek to ensure antibiotics and anti-tuberculosis drugs will not be sold over the counter from March 1 next. 7. Nobel Prize The Nobel Prize is a set of annual international awards bestowed in a number of categories by Swedish and Norwegian committees in recognition of cultural and/or scientific advances. The will of the Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel established the prizes in 1895. The prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace were first awarded in 1901. The related Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was created in 1968. Between 1901 and 2012, the Nobel Prizes and the Prize in Economic Sciences were awarded 555 times to 863 people and organizations. With some receiving the Nobel Prize more than once, this makes a total of 835 individuals and 21 organizations. 8. National Green Tribunal
National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (NGT) is a federal legislation enacted by the Parliament of India, under India's constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment. The tribunal itself is a special fast-track court to handle the expeditious disposal of the cases pertaining to environmental issues. The Tribunal's dedicated jurisdiction in environmental matters shall provide speedy environmental justice and help reduce the burden of litigation in the higher courts. The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice. The Tribunal is mandated to make and endeavour for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same. 9. Article 356
Article 356, Provisions in case of failure of constitutional machinery in State. If the President, on receipt of report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution, the President may be Proclamation assume to himself all or any of the functions of the Government of the State and all or any of the powers vested in or exercisable by the Governor or any body or authority in the State other than the Legislature of the State; declare that the powers of the Legislature of the State shall be exercisable by or under the authority of Parliament.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 12, 2013 1. Call to adopt national competition policy
Terming it the need of the hour, Competition Commission of India (CCI) chairman Ashok Chawla has called for adoption of a National Competition Policy to help address entry barriers in public and private sectors. It was important to adopt the policy in the country where the state still plays a major role in the economic sectors. The policy paradigm in the liberalised era still has a tilt towards control by the state, he said while speaking at a seminar on National Competition Policy: Second Big Wave of Reforms organised by Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) International. 2. State to set up water resources management centre
The State government will set up an Advanced Centre for Water Resources Management to integrate various kinds of water resources surface, ground and rainfor maximum exploitation and also to integrate all departments dealing with water. Water Resources Minister M.B. Patil told presspersons here on Friday that the Cabinet recently cleared a proposal to seek $150 million from the Asian Development Bank for the purpose. 3. US debt fear: Asia readies $6 tn forex safety net
As the US struggles to avert a debt default, Asia's policymakers have trillions of reasons to believe they may be shielded from the latest financial storm brewing across the Pacific. From South Korea to Pakistan, Asia's central banks are estimated to have amassed some $5.7 trillion in foreign exchange reserves excluding safe-haven Japan, much of it during the last five years of rapid money printing by the US Federal Reserve. 4. India wont seek IMF funds in 5 years: Rajan
India is not facing any economic crisis and won't approach IMF for funds in the next five years as the country has enough forex reserves, Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan has said. In other words, the country can pay three-fourth of its debt from its forex reserves, Rajan added. 5. NGT asks Centre to evolve plan to mitigate damage caused by oil leakage
The National Green Tribunal (NGT), Southern Bench, on Friday directed the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to convene a meeting of secretaries of the ministries of Environment and Forest and Industry, and the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu, and oil companies to chalk out a clear-cut plan to mitigate the damage caused by the recent oil leakage in north Chennai. 6. Cyclone Phailin
Cyclone Phailin is a very severe cyclonic storm that has affected Thailan d, Myanmar and the Indian provinces of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. The system was first noted as a tropical depression within the Gulf of Thailand, to the west of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. Over the next few days, the system moved westwards within an area of low to moderate vertical wind shear, before as it passed over the Malay Peninsula, it moved out of the Western Pacific Basin on October 6. The system emerged into the Andaman Sea during the next day and moved west-northwest into an improving environment for further development. The system was subsequently named Phailin on October 9, after it had developed into a cyclonic storm and passed over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands into the Bay of Bengal. 7. Right to Information Act(RTI)
The Right to Information Act (RTI) is an Act of the Parliament of India "to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens" and replaces the erstwhile Freedom of Information Act, 2002. The Act applies to all States and Union Territories of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Under the provisions of the Act, any citizen may request information from a "public authority" (a body of Government or "instrumentality of State") which is required to reply expeditiously or within thirty days. The Act also requires every public authority to computerise their records for wide dissemination and to pro-actively publish certain categories of information so that the citizens need minimum recourse to request for information formally. 8. Carbon Credit A carbon credit is a generic term for any tradable certificate or permit representing the right to emit one tonne of carbon dioxide or the mass of another greenhouse gas with a carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide. Carbon credits and carbon markets are a component of national and international attempts to mitigate the growth in concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs). One carbon credit is equal to one metric tonne of carbon dioxide, or in some markets, carbon dioxide equivalent gases. Carbon trading is an application of an emissions trading approach. Greenhouse gas emissions are capped and then markets are used to allocate the emissions among the group of regulated sources.
9/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
9. Secularism Secularism is the principle of separation of government institutions, and the persons mandated to represent the State, from religious institutions and religious dignitaries. In one sense, secularism may assert the right to be free from religious rule and teachings, and the right to freedom from governmental imposition of religion upon the people within a state that is neutral on matters of belief. (Separation of church and state and Lacit.) In another sense, it refers to the view that human activities and decisions, especially political ones, should be unbiased by religious influence. 10.Census 2011 The 15th Indian census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved collection of information about all buildings. Information for National Population Register was also collected in the first phase, which will be used to issue a 12-digit unique identification number to all registered Indians by Unique Identification Authority of India. The second population enumeration phase was conducted between 9 to 28 February 2011. Census has been conducted in India since 1872 and 2011 marks the first time biometric information was collected. According to the provisional reports released on 31 March 2011, the Indian population increased to 1.21 billion with a decadal growth of 17.64%. Adult literacy rate increased to 74.04% with a decadal growth of 9.21%. The motto of census 2011 was 'Our Census, Our future'. 11. Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) Securities Appellate Tribunal is a statutory body established under the provisions of Section 15K of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 to hear and dispose of appeals against orders passed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India or by an adjudicating officer under the Act and to exercise jurisdiction, powers and authority conferred on the Tribunal by or under this Act or any other law for the time being in force.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 13, 2013 1. State to focus on relief, rescue measures
The Andhra Pradesh government shifted its focus from large-scale evacuation of people from vulnerable areas to relief and rescue measures as cyclone, Phailin, crossed the coast at Gopalpur in Odisha. Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy who reviewed preparedness in the afternoon and later again held a meeting after the Phailin crossed the coast on Saturday at 8 p.m. was informed that there were no reports of loss of life till Saturday night as people had been shifted to safer areas. 2. Varsities to focus on value education
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to introduce value education at the university level for promotion of arts and culture, sports and youth development and other community outreach programmes. Importantly, inter-disciplinary research centres on sports technology, sports medicine and sports management would be established in the universities. The UGC has constituted a seven-member committee, chaired by Prof C.R.Visweswara Rao, former Vice-Chancellor of Vikrama Simhapuri University to frame the guidelines for the new scheme. 3. India hopes Maldives will complete polling by Nov. 11
Amid fresh judicial intervention ahead of the Maldives presidential election, India hopes the island nation will be able to complete polling by November 11, as the overshooting of the date will give rise to yet another unprecedented situation in this nations five-year-old tryst with democracy.. 4. Reinstate mining panel, Bastar Gonds urge Centre
Maan Sai Darro and Narayan Markan chiefs of 84 villages each in Bastar in Chhattisgarh on Saturday travelled to the Capital to plead with the Centre to reinstate the Justice M.B. Shah Commission of Inquiry, which, set up by the Ministry of Mines in 2010 to look into illegal mining in seven States, has been dismantled before its investigations are completed. After giving it two extensions in 2012 and 2013, the government has set the Commissions termination date for October 16. 5. Cyclone Phailin: At Ground Zero, waves inspire fear and prayer Twenty-four hours before Cyclone Phailinwas due to barrel down the Gopalpur coast, assistant sub-inspector of the Marine police station, G D Behera, focused his torch on a damaged section of its boundary wall. The police station is by the sea and the waves can be seen rising menacingly. The winds are not so strong but dark clouds have gathered over the sea whose roar is getting increasingly louder. 6. Bankers warn of dire consequences if US defaults Three of the world's most powerful bankers warned of terrible consequences if the United States defaults on its debt, with Deutsche Bank chief executive Anshu Jain claiming default would be "utterly catastrophic". "This would be a very rapidly spreading, fatal disease," Jain said on Saturday at a conference hosted by the Institute of International Finance in Washington. "I have no recommendations for this audience... about putting band aids on a gaping wound." 7. Gross domestic product (GDP)
Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living; GDP per capita is not a measure of personal income (See Standard of living and GDP). Under economic theory, GDP per capita exactly equals the gross domestic income (GDI) per capita. GDP is related to national accounts, a subject in macroeconomics. GDP is not to be confused with gross national product (GNP) which allocates production based on ownership. 8. India Meteorological Department (IMD)
The India Meteorological Department (IMD), also referred to as the Met Department, is an agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India. It is the principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology. IMD is headquartered in New Delhi and operates hundreds of observation stations across India and Antarctica. IMD is also one of the six Regional Specialized Meteorological Centers of the World Meteorological Organization. It has the responsibility for forecasting, naming and distribution of warnings for tropical cyclones in the Northern Indian Ocean region, including the Malacca Straits, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf.
10/45
2/8/2014
Okkal

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 14, 2013 1. Material wastage plagues industry: experts Changes in material handling process can help companies save a minimum 10 per cent of their materials that go waste or get lost during transit, said experts. To improve cost-efficiency and bottom lines, organisations must provide due importance to material handling, a neglected area, they said. Currently, material wastage is to the tune of 10 per cent in any plant. It is rampant in coal and iron ore. This is due to contamination, pilferage or spillage during transit. If companies can plug this, the benefit will be enormous, said Babak Mukhopadhyay, General Manager & Head Material Handling Systems, L&T Construction, on the sidelines of an industry event, Powder & Bulk Solids India 2013, here. 2. FM meets Lew, raises visa concerns
Finance minister P Chidambaram on Sunday met his American counterpart Jack Lew and raised concerns of Indian IT companies on visa issues in the comprehensive immigration reform bill which is currently under the consideration of the US Congress. Lew, who led the American delegation for the annual India-US Economic and Financial Partnership meeting, is understood to have assured Chidambaram that he would work towards addressing concerns of the Indian IT companies, particularly those related to H-1B and L-1 visas, within the limitations of US laws and systems. 3. As crisis fades, G20 tries to get its mojo back
Top officials for the world's biggest economic powers get nostalgic over how they mobilised to save the world from economic collapse in 2008. They are not nearly so glowing about their current muddle. At meetings held in Washington last week, there was a sense that the Group of 20, which brings together policymakers who oversee the vast majority of global output, has grown bogged down by a sprawling agenda no longer focused by crisis. 4. ONGC Videsh wins two oil blocks in Myanmar ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp, has won two onland oil blocks in Myanmar, strengthening its presence in the south-east Asian nation. OVL, which has stakes in the A-1 and A-3 gas discovery blocks and three other offshore acreages in Myanmar, was last week awarded two oil and gas exploration blocks in that country's Onshore Blocks Second Bidding Round - 2013. 5. Election Commission okays NOTA option
The Election Commission has ordered the Chief Electoral Officers of all States and Union territories to provide for None of the Above (NOTA) option in electronic voting machines (EVMs) and ballot papers. The option will be provided at the bottom of the panel on the EVMs or as the last row in the ballot paper after all the candidates have been listed with their respective symbols in the same language used to list the candidates. Likewise, the contours of the NOTA panel will be identical to that given to each candidate. 6. Celluloid Man director to get Bimal Roy award Filmmaker Shivendra Singh Dungarpur has been selected for this years Bimal Roy Memorial Emerging Talent Award for his widely appreciated documentaryCelluloid Man . C elluloid Man , a documentary made in 2012, explores the life and work of P.K. Nair, legendary film archivist and founder of the National Film Archive of India. The film won two awards best historical/biographical reconstruction and best editing for Irene Dhar Malik at the 60th National Film Awards. 7. Directorate General of Civil Aviation(DGCA) The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is the Indian governmental regulatory body for civil aviation under the Ministry of Civil Aviation. This directorate investigates aviation accidents and incidents. It is headquartered along Sri Aurobindo Marg, opposite Safdarjung Airport, in New Delhi. The Government of India is planning to replace the organisation with a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), modelled on the lines of the American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Endeavour to promote safe and efficient Air Transportation through regulation and proactive safety oversight system. 8. National Investigation Agency(NIA) National Investigation Agency (NIA) is a federal agency established by the Indian Government to combat terror in India. It acts as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency. The agency is empowered to deal with terror related crimes across states without special permission from the states. The Agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by the Parliament of India on 31 December 2008. 9. Non-bank financial companies(NBFCs) Non-bank financial companies (NBFCs) are financial institutions that provide banking services without meeting the legal definition of a bank, i.e. one that does not hold a banking license. These institutions are not allowed to take deposits from the public. Nonetheless, all operations of these institutions are still exercised under bank regulation. However this depends on the jurisdiction, as in some jurisdictions, such as New Zealand, any company can do the business of banking, and there are no banking licenses issued. If an organisation in New Zealand intends to describe itself as a bank and intends to use the word bank in its title it must first receive approval and official registration and thus licence from the nation's central bank, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 15, 2013 1. Bangalore hardware park to have an exclusive Taiwanese zone A 1,100-acre hardware technology park of the Karnataka Government, near the Bengaluru International Airport, will have a facility dedicated to Taiwanese companies The project is expected to be cleared by the State Government in about a fortnight when the State High-Level Clearance Committee on major projects meets. The hardware park has been on the cards for nearly two years, and is now being speeded up. The The Chief Minister is reported to have agreed to requests laid out by the Taiwanese group, which is keen on having an independent facility for companies from that region. The hardware park is expected to attract an investment of over $1 billion. 2. Tighter norms for settlement of default proceedings mooted The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on Monday, proposed new norms for settlement of administrative and civil proceedings against suspected market defaulters, except in cases of serious violations such as illicit pooling of funds from investors, insider trading and fraudulent and unfair trades. The list of violations that cannot be settled has been expanded widely under the new norms, which also provide for the involved
11/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
entity to file settlement plea within 60 days of the show-cause notice served by SEBI. 3. Paper trail of votes: Rs 1,700 cr needed to implement SC order With the Supreme Court asking the Election Commission (EC) to use voter verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) in electronic voting machines (EVMs) in a phased manner in the coming elections to ensure transparency, the election regulator has begun the exercise to implement the decision. 4. Land Act: Govt eases retrospective clause to bring in more beneficiaries
Making the 'retrospective clause' in the recently passed Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act more encompassing, the Rural Development Ministry has eased provisions in the draft rules to the Act. This will ensure that everyone whose land has been acquired but who has not taken compensation or given up possession yet can choose to benefit from the new legislation. 5. Malaysian court rules use of Allah exclusive to Muslims In a landmark judgment, a Malaysian court on Monday ruled that non-Muslims cannot use the word "Allah" to refer to God and prohibited a Christian newspaper from using it in the Muslim-majority nation. A unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal here allowed the government's appeal to set aside the 2009 decision of a High Court which had allowed The Herald, a Malaysian Catholic newspaper, to use the word "Allah" to refer to God. 6. Foreign Institutional Investor FII An investor or investment fund that is from or registered in a country outside of the one in which it is currently investing. Institutional investors include hedge funds, insurance companies, pension funds and mutual funds. The term is used most commonly in India to refer to outside companies investing in the financial markets of India. International institutional investors must register with the Securities and Exchange Board of India to participate in the market. One of the major market regulations pertaining to FIIs involves placing limits on FII ownership in Indian companies. 7. Employees' Provident Fund Organisation The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation, abbreviated to EPFO, is a statutory body of the Government of India under the Ministry of Labour and Employment. It administers a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme. It is one of the largest social security organisations in the India in terms of the number of covered beneficiaries and the volume of financial transactions undertaken. The EPFO's apex decision making body is the Central Board of Trustee (CBT). 8. National Disaster Management Authority
The National Disaster Management Authority (reporting name: NDMA), is an independent, autonomous, and constitutionally established disaster preparedness federal institution mandate and responsible to deal with whole spectrum of disaster management and preparedness in the country. The NDMA formulate and enforces national disaster policies at federal and provisional levels and collaborated closely with various government ministries, military forces, and United Nation-based organizations to jointly coordinate efforts to conduct its disaster management, search and rescue, and wide range of humanitarian operations in the country and abroad. The NDMA aims to develop sustainable operational capacity and professional competence to undertake its humanitarian operations at its full capacity. 9. Information Technology Act 2000
The Information Technology Act 2000 (also known as ITA-2000, or the IT Act) is an Act of the Indian Parliament (No 21 of 2000) notified on October 17, 2000. This act is being opposed by Save Your Voice campaign and other civil society organizations in India. User-review and consumer social networking site MouthShut.com has filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court of India to repeal and nullify parts of IT Act 2000. Information technology Act 2000 consisted of 94 sections segregated into 13 chapters. Four schedules form part of the Act. In the 2008 version of the Act, there are 124 sections (excluding 5 sections that have been omitted from the earlier version) and 14 chapters. Schedule I and II have been replaced. Schedules III and IV are deleted.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 16, 2013 1. State will try to bring dairy farming under MGNREGS Rural Development Minister K.C. Joseph has said the State government will exert pressure on the Central government to include dairy farmers as beneficiaries of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). 2. Panel falls off AI Dreamliner; probe ordered
A large panel in the belly of a Dreamliner of Air India, carrying around 150 passengers, fell off while landing at the Bangalore airport, prompting a probe by civil aviation regulator DGCA. The incident which occurred on Saturday when an 8X4 feet panel in the fuselage fell off as the plane from Delhi made a hard landing at the airport, leaving a gaping hole in the cargo hold area of the aircraft. 3. United Nations praises Orissa for cyclone management
The United Nations has praised the Orissa government's "effective" management of cyclone Phailin, which hit the state's coast on October 12. "Orissa's handling of the cyclone will be a landmark success story in disaster management," Margareta Wahlstrm, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction, said, according to an official in the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's office. Wahlstrm spoke to the CM on the phone, the official said. 4. No decision on CHOGM participation yet: Manmohan Singh Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on Monday, said a decision on his participation in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will be taken only after considering all relevant factors, including the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu and the DMK. The DMK has been demanding that India boycott the CHOGM to be held in Colombo in November. 5. States ill-prepared to deal with disasters Several states, including Madhya Pradesh where more than 100 people were killed during a temple stampede Sunday, don't have a disaster management plan in place. According to the minutes of a national workshop of state relief commissioners to review utilisation of capacity building grants held on August 26, states such as MP, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, UP, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and J&K were found lacking. 6. UIDAI appeals against SC Aadhaar order
12/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has joined the government and oil PSUs in appealing against the SC order which restricted all authorities from denying a benefit or service to any citizen of India for want of the Aadhaar card. Citing benefits of the Aadhaar card, the authority submitted that "as part of its pro-poor approach the UIDAI focuses on enrolling India's underprivileged community for many of whom Aadhaar may be the first form of identification but no one gets enrolled for Aadhaar without undergoing verification". 7. Iran proposal aimed at breakthrough in nuclear standoff
Iran said it presented "logical" proposals in talks with six world powers US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany Tuesday aimed at achieving a breakthrough in a decade-old standoff over its disputed nuclear programme. Details of the Iranian proposal, unveiled as a PowerPoint presentation, were not immediately available. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 17, 2013 1. OVL not to exercise pre-emption rights in Venezuela oil project A consortium of ONGC Videsh, Indian Oil and Oil India has decided against buying 11 per cent stake that their partner Petronas of Malaysia is selling in a $20 billion oil project in Venezuela. Petroliam Nasional Bhd, Malaysia's state-run oil company, has decided to withdraw from the Carabobo-I project following dispute over terms with Venezuela's state explorer Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PdVSA). OVL, the overseas arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), has 11 per cent stake in the project while OIL and IOC hold 3.5 per cent each. Spain's Repsol SA holds 11 per cent stake in the project while the remaining 60 per cent is with PdVSA. All the partners in the project, including PdVSA, have right of first refusal or pre-emption rights to the Petronas stake. 2. Witch hunting: NGOs intervene to bring situation under control British major Vodafones South African subsidiary Vodacom, on Monday, said it had entered into exclusive discussions regarding a potential acquisition of Neotel, controlled by Tata Communications.There are a number of important steps that we still need to complete to conclude the transaction. If the deal is implemented, Vodacom intends to put significant investment into the combined entity to provide high-speed fixed connectivity to many more businesses and consumers, Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub said in a joint statement. Neotel, South Africas second-biggest fixed-line phone operator, is 68.5 per cent owned by Tata Communications. 3. Ministry drops plan to name food Act after Indira Gandhi
Sensing that its plan to name the National Food Security Act after Indira Gandhi may face opposition in Parliament in a poll year, the Food ministry is now planning to name the main scheme under the Act after the former PM. "It is a toss up between Indira Amma Anna Yojana and Indira Amma Bakshya Suraksha Yojana," Food Minister K V Thomas said. He said the Act will not be renamed and only the scheme under the Act will be named after Indira which will not need Parliament approval. 4. Obama urges US Congress to approve deal swiftly US President Barack Obama quickly endorsed the Senate deal aimed at averting a US debt default and wants Congress to approve it swiftly, the White House said. Spokesman Jay Carney, briefing reporters on Obama's reaction to the bipartisan Senate deal that emerged on Capitol Hill, said the agreement will reopen the government and remove the threat of a debt default. 5. Get bridge on Chennai runway examined by independent consultant: DGCA to AAI
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to get the bridge on the second runway at the Chennai airport examined by an independent consultant. "We have asked AAI to get a study done on the bridge's capability to handle landing and take-off by an independent consultant. We will allow operations from the second runway only after the consultant gives nod," said a DGCA official. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 18, 2013 1. Veteran social activist Sarojini Varadappan passes away Sarojini Varadappan, veteran social activist and daughter of Tamil Nadus last Congress Chief Minister M. Bakthavatsalam, passed away at a private hospital.Associated with a number of organisations, especially those working in the areas of womens welfare and empowerment, Ms. Varadappan belonged to the genre of activists who prefer to work silently, undaunted. She joined the Womens India Association (WIA) in 1941. 2. Deputy NSA questions U.S. control over critical Net resources
India on Thursday questioned the control of U.S. contracted entities over critical Internet resources like allocation of domain names and pointed out that the current system needed to be revitalised to make the global Internet governance regime truly multilateral, transparent and democratic.The present system cannot really be reflective of the international character or community of Internet users. This cannot really be said to be truly representative or reflective of the international character or community of Internet users, Deputy National Security Advisor Nehchal Sandhu said at a seminar here on Internet to Equinet Empowering a Billion Online, organised by FICCI. 3. China gets to set up power gear service centres
The Cabinet has gave an approval for signing an initial agreement with China for setting up power equipment service centres in India that would cater to the electricity generation firms here. According to sources, the Cabinet approved signing MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with China for setting up power equipment service centres here. 4. CESTAT to get 6 new benches
After six cities, Chandigarh, Allahabad and Hyderabad will also now have CESTAT benches, a move aimed at speedy disposal of cases related to Customs, Excise and Service Tax. The Union Cabinet has approved for setting up six additional benches of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), including three at the existing locations in New Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai and three new benches in Chandigarh, Allahabad and Hyderabad. Kolkata, Bangalore and Ahmedabad already have one CESTAT bench each. With these additions, nine major cities will have the benches of the appellate tribunal of the three revenue departments. 5. Mirchpur violence a scar on society, says Supreme Court The Supreme Court Thursday described Haryana's 2010 Mirchpur violence against Dalits as a "scar on society" and said that burning a physically challenged girl alive was "unacceptable" from any standard of human life. A Bench of Justices G S Singhvi and C Nagappan reproached the state
13/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
government for its inaction and failure in protecting the life of its citizens and maintaining the law and order situation. Dalit settlements were targeted and torched by the members of the dominant Jats in April 2010 in which a 70-year-old man and his 18-year-old physically challenged daughter were killed. 6. eBay founder to fund Greenwalds new media venture For years, the tech billionaire Pierre M Omidyar has been experimenting with ways to promote serious journalism, searching for the proper media platform to support with the fortune he earned as the founder of eBay. He has made grants to independent media outlets in Africa and US watchdogs. In a more direct effort, he created a news website in Hawaii. 7. Canada offers Malala honorary citizenship Canada will offer honorary citizenship to Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai. Malala will become just the sixth person to be granted honorary Canadian citizenship after South African anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, British business magnate Aga Khan and Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, state-run Radio Pakistan reported Thursday. 8. National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL)
National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL) is the national level, institutionalized, electronic, transparent spot trading platform for commodities. It is a structured market place, set-up to transform the commodity market by way of reducing the cost of intermediation and thereby improving marketing efficiency. Its state-of-the-art technology facilitates risk free and hassle free purchase and sale of various commodities. NSEL provides customized solution to farmers, traders, processors, exporters, importers, arbitrageurs, investors and other stakeholders pertaining to commodity procurement, storage, marketing, warehouse receipt financing, etc. NSEL commenced Live trading on October 15, 2008. At present, NSEL is operational in 16 States in India, providing delivery-based spot trading in 52 commodities. 9. Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) is a research and development organization under the Department of Information Technology, India. The National Centre for Software Technology (NCST), ER&DCI and CEDTI were merged into C-DAC in 2003. After being denied Cray supercomputers as a result of a technology embargo, India started a program to develop an indigenous supercomputer in collaboration with Russia. Supercomputers were considered a double edged weapon capable of assisting in the development of nuclear weapons. For the purpose of achieving self sufficiency in the field, C-DAC was established by the Department of Electronics in 1988. Vijay Bhatkar was hired as the Director of C-DAC. The project was given an initial run of 3 years and an initial funding of INR30,00,00,000 as the same amount of money and time was usually expended to secure the purchase of a supercomputer from the U.S.A. 10.Public Accounts Committee (PAC) The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is a committee of selected members of Parliament, constituted by the Parliament of India, for the auditing of the expenditure of the Government of India. The PAC is formed every year with a strength of not more than 22 members of which 15 are from Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament, and 7 from Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament.[1] The term of office of the members is one year. The Chairman is appointed by the Speaker of Lok Sabha. Since 1967, the chairman of the committee is selected from the opposition. Earlier, it was headed by a member of the ruling party. Its chief function is to examine the audit report of Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) after it is laid in the Parliament. CAG assists the committee during the course of investigation. None of the 22 members shall be a minister in the government.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 19, 2013 1. Legacy of a mercurial spaceman
Legendary astronaut Scott Carpenter, who passed away in the U.S. last week (October 10) following a stroke, belonged to an era when astronauts regularly risked their lives testing new technologies in conditions alien to humans. On May 24, 1962, Carpenter became the second American after John Glenn to orbit Earth in his Aurora 7 space capsule. Carpenter, along with Glenn, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, Deke Slayton, Gus Grissom and Gordon Cooper comprised the original Project Mercury a group of astronauts whose determination and courage pointed the way to the stars for the hundreds of astronauts who would follow them. 2. World Bank praises India's Phailin evacuation efforts The World Bank has praised India's evacuation of nearly 10 lakh people in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, which ensured minimal loss of human lives, before the cyclone Phailin made landfall and attributed it to its years of disaster management preparedness. Successfully evacuating a million people is not a small task. This cannot be merely achieved by kicking the entire state machinery into top gear for three-four days following a cyclone warning, the World Bank said, days after the cyclone crossed the coast. 3. Those in preventive detention can vote: EC
The Election Commission on Friday instructed Chief Electoral Officers of poll-bound States of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram to allow voting rights through postal ballots to all electors subjected to preventive detention. 4. U.S. vessel never entered Indian waters President and Chief Operating Officer of AdvanFort International Inc., Captain William H. Watson, has claimed that Seaman Guard Ohio, the antipiracy vessel that was detained by coastal security agencies, did not enter Indian territorial waters until instructed to do so by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG). 5. Parliament panel clears proposal to upgrade BESU The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resource Development (HRD) has unanimously cleared a proposal to upgrade the 157-year-old Bengal Engineering and Science University (BESU) to an Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST). A Bill to this effect The National Institute of Technology Science Education Research (Amendment) Bill 2013 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 4 during the budget session of Parliament but was referred to the Standing Committee. 6. Fossil may rewrite human evolutionary history
After eight years spent studying a 1.8-million-year-old skull uncovered in the republic of Georgia, scientists have made a discovery that may rewrite the evolutionary history of our human genus Homo.
14/45
2/8/2014
7. Lloyds puts conditions for Indian entry
Okkal
The mega plan of state-owned reinsurer General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re) to become a member of Lloyd's market, the Mecca of insurance companies, is not going to work out unless the country opens up the insurance sector further. Putting conditions for the Indian reinsurer's entry into the Lloyd's market, a top official and board member of Lloyd's UK said the Indian company can think of joining Lloyd's only after India allows more foreign investment in the insurance sector. 8. China growth rebounds to 7.8% in Q3 China's economy grew at its quickest pace this year between July and September in a rebound fuelled largely by investment, although signs are already emerging that the pickup in activity may lose some vigour. GDP rose 7.8 per cent from a year earlier, official data showed, marking only the second quarter in the last 10 in which growth has accelerated. 9. Krishna-Godavari Basin Krishna-Godavari Basin is a peri-cratonic passive margin basin in India. It is spread across more than 50,000 square kilometres in the Krishna River and Godavari River basins in Andhra Pradesh. The site is known for the D-6 block where Reliance Industries discovered the biggest natural gas reserves in India in 2002. It was also the world's largest gas discovery of 2002. It was in 1983 that Gas was first struck in Rajole Well No.1 when ONGC had a small office in Rajahmundry and Narsapur that was headed by Iqbal Farooqi. Since that discovery there had been no looking back. Reliance and others are late players in that area. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

1.
Malayalam music legend K Raghavan dies at 99

Renowned music director K Raghavan, who brought originality and local flavour to Malayalam film music in a career spanning more than five decades, died in a hospital here Saturday. He was 99. Raghavan had been unwell for a while, family sources said. He shot to fame when he sang for the1950s hit Neelakkuyil. He went on to make music for more than 400 films. Known as Raghavan Master among colleagues and fans, he never copied Hindi and Tamil tunes.
2.
New RTGS system to improve financial market efficiency

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan on Saturday said the new real time gross settlement (RTGS) system for fund transfers would improve the efficiency of the countrys financial markets.With its advanced liquidity and queue management features, the new RTGS system is expected to significantly improve the efficiency of financial markets, Dr. Rajan said while inaugurating the ISO 20022-compliant system. The RTGS system is used to settle inter-bank fund transfers by banks and their customers and is critical in facilitating orderly settlement of payment obligations.
3.
Indian companies likely to shift to IFRS from April 2015

After the enactment of the Companies Act, 2013, the ministry of corporate affairs has now shifted its focus on rolling out international reporting standards for Indian companies which were to be implemented beginning April 1, 2011. According to the draft plan, the ministry wants to implement the international financial reporting standards (IFRS) beginning with companies that have a net worth of over Rs 1,000 crore from April 1, 2015.
4.
Prominent Syrian intelligence officer killed in fighting

One of the Syrian government's most prominent intelligence officers, Maj. Gen. Jamea Jamea, was killed during fighting in Deir al-Zour, Syrian rebels and state news media said on Friday as government warplanes bombed the city after several days of fierce clashes. General Jamea, killed Thursday, is the most senior security figure confirmed dead in more than a year. He was respected in Syria's powerful inner circles of intelligence and military leaders after a long career as a Syrian strongman in Lebanon and most recently for "doing a good job" against the uprising at home, according to a Syrian in contact with senior security figures. U.N. commits to greater role for women in peace efforts The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a resolution on Friday renewing its commitment to promote womens leadership and participation in all negotiations to resolve conflicts and bring peace to war-torn countries. The council said it remains deeply concerned at the exacerbated vulnerability of women in armed conflict and post-conflict situations, and the abuses, threats and human rights violations they suffer. It noted that girls and women who become pregnant as a result of rape should have access to the full range of sexual and reproductive health services ... without discrimination. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Times of India, The Economic Times& Indian Express)
5.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 21, 2013 1. Israel allows 899 Indian Jews to immigrate
The stage is set for 899 Indian Jews from Manipur and Mizoram, all members of the lost Bnei Menashe tribe, to immigrate to Israel, with Tel Aviv giving the nod for their migration. The Cabinet last week decided to allow the immigration of the community in multiple groups with the first batch expected by the end of the year.The Bnei Menashe (literally meaning sons of Menashe) tribe trace their roots to one of the 10 lost tribes of Jews exiled by the Assyrian regime over 2,700 years ago. Hundreds of Bnei Menashe are already living in Israel, having made aliyah (immigration) with the help of NGO Shavei Israel, which is dedicated to bringing lost Jews around the world to Israel. 2. High-level panel to oversee Ghats conservation work
The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests will soon constitute a high-level committee to monitor the implementation of the controversial K. Kasturirangan committee report on the Western Ghats in a time-bound manner. The decision was taken days after the Ministry gave its approval in principle to the report prepared by the 10-member high-level working group headed by Dr. Kasturirangan.A high-level committee of the Ministry will be set up to monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the working group, a Ministry note said. Sources said the draft notification on the implementation of the Kasturirangan panel report was ready and would be sent to the Law Ministry for vetting. 3. AviationMin rejects inflation-indexed airport charges The civil aviation ministry has rejected a Planning Commission model to link landing and parking charges at airports to inflation based on the wholesale price index (WPI). The differences have surfaced in the discussions between the two for the award of Chennai, Lucknow, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Guwahati airports to private parties for operations. 4. Former first lady of the Non-Aligned Movement dead Jovanka Broz, once a symbol of elegance as the wife of Yugoslav communist strongman Tito, lived the last three decades of her life as an outcast.
15/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
For Ms. Broz, who died in Belgrade on Sunday aged 88, the glory days ended shortly before Josip Broz Titos death in 1980 when his allies accused her of plotting a coup. Her last public appearance was at Titos state funeral in May 1980. 5. Directorate of Military Intelligence(MI)
The Directorate of Military Intelligence (MI) is the intelligence arm of the Indian armed forces. The agency was set up in 1941 (then as part of the British Indian Army) to generate field intelligence for the army. The agency is based at Sena Bhavan in Delhi. MI was initially tasked with generating only tactical or field intelligence in all countries bordering India. Its geographical mandate was set to 50 km from the border. These limits were quickly crossed in the mid-1990s when the organisation began playing an increasing role in countries within the subcontinent and its outer periphery. MI's mandate also includes counter-terrorism in the north and North-east and generating pinpoint intelligence for small team operations. It is also tasked with counterintelligence in the army, which entails detecting spies in military areas. 6. National Investigation Agency(NIA)
National Investigation Agency (NIA) is a federal agency established by the Indian Government to combat terror in India. It acts as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency. The agency is empowered to deal with terror related crimes across states without special permission from the states. The Agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by the Parliament of India on 31 December 2008. 7. Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO) The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is the primary space agency of the Indian government. ISRO is amongst the six largest government space agencies in the world, along with USA's NASA, Russia's RKA, Europe's ESA, China's CNSA and Japan's JAXA. Its primary objective is to advance space technology and use its applications for national benefit. Established in 1969, ISRO superseded the erstwhile Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR). Headquartered in Bangalore, ISRO is under the administrative control of the Department of Space, Government of India. ISRO has achieved numerous milestones since its establishment. India's first satellite, Aryabhata, was built by ISRO and launched by the Soviet Union in 1975. Rohini, the first satellite to be placed in orbit by an Indian-made launch vehicle, SLV-3, was launched in 1980. ISRO subsequently developed two other rockets: the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for putting satellites into polar orbits and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) for placing satellites into geostationary orbits. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 22, 2013 1. Centres tie-up with PATH kicks up a row Health activists have expressed shock over the governments tie-up with One World Health (OWH), an affiliate of Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), for a training workshop on crisis management in clinical research for clinical trial professionals organised by the Department of Science and Technology. Reacting to the news reported in The Hindu , Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, a national health coalition, said they were shocked and extremely concerned over the training scheduled for October 29-30 by the governments Department of Biotechnology in collaboration with OWH, and Clinical Development Service Agency (CDSA) at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication. 2. Communal violence Bill: Govt yet to take call Terming the laws to deal with communal violence inadequate, Minorities Minister K Rehman Khan Monday said though he is in favour of introducing the long-pending Communal Violence Bill in the winter session, the government is yet to take a call. The Bill is designed to stem a conflagration of the sort that happened in Muzaffarnagar and surrounding areas last month claiming 62 lives. 3. Conditions at relief camps appalling: NHRC The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), has said that seven deaths have occurred in the Loi relief camp in the aftermath of last month's riots in Muzaffarnagar even as organisers at Malakpur camp in Shamli district admitted that eight babies died at the camp. The commission, in its report, also came down heavily on the Muzaffarnagar Chief Medical Officer (CMO), describing him as 'highly irresponsible and unreliable'. The report states that the district administration had initially denied any deaths to have occurred in the camp. 4. China to restrict TV satellite stations to one foreign programme
China will allow satellite television stations to buy the right to broadcast only one foreign programme each year from 2014 as part of new restrictions to push "morality-building" and educational shows, state media reported Monday. The new rules are an intensification of an earlier policy announced in February, which capped the broadcast of foreign television series to 50 episodes, and will result in fewer foreign series being broadcast in China. 5. Oil discovery in BPCL-Videocon block in Brazil A significant oil discovery has been made in an ultra-deep water block off Brazil where Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd. (BPCL) and Videocon Industries together hold 40 per cent interest. Brazilian oil giant Petrobras, which is the operator of the block, has confirmed the Farfan-1 oil discovery in the ultra-deep waters of the Segipe-Alagoas basin, off Brazil, Videocon said in a statement. The state-owned firm has confirmed excellent productivity of good quality crude following a drilling test. Petr Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) has completed a test in well 3-BRSA-1178D-SES (3-SES-176D), informally known as Farfan 1, to test the production capacity of the accumulation in the BM-SEAL-11 concession area of Block SEAL-M-426. 6. Tax Reform Commission to submit first report in six months: Shome
The Tax Administration Reform Commission (TARC), set up by the Finance Ministry to suggest measures to prevent economic offences among other things, is expected to submit its report in six months, TARC Chairman and Advisor to Finance Minister Parthasarathi Shome said here on Monday. The Commission held its first meeting here on Monday. The term of the 7-member TARC is 18 months, and it will work as an advisory body to the Ministry of Finance. 7. Infant mortality Infant mortality is the death of a child less than one year of age. Childhood mortality is the death of a child before the child's fifth birthday. National statistics tend to group these two mortality rates together. Globally, ten million infants and children die each year before their fifth birthday; 99% of these deaths occur in developing nations. Infant mortality takes away societys potential physical, social, and human capital. Generally the most common cause worldwide has been dehydration from diarrhea, a preventable disease; however, a variety of programs combating this problem have decreased the rate of children dying from dehydration. Many factors contribute to infant mortality such as the mothers level of education, environmental conditions, and political and medical infrastructure. 8. Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is an Indian force conceived on October 24, 1962 for security along the India's border with the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, border covering 2115 kilometres. It is one of the Central Armed Police Forces. The first Director General of the ITBP
16/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
was Late Sardar Balbir Singh. This was also his brain child along with his colleagues. Only four battalions were sanctioned to begin with, to fill up the security vacuum that was prevalent at that time on the Indo-Tibetan border. Later in view of the additional responsibilities and the task redefined in 1976, the Force was restructured in 1978. 9. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws relating to micro, small and medium en terprises in India. Presently headed by K. H. Muniyappa. The President of India amended the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961, under the notification dated 9 May 2007. Pursuant to this amendment, the Ministry of Agro and Rural Industries (India) and the Ministry of Small Scale Industries (India) were merged into a single ministry, the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. 10. Goods and Services Tax (GST) The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a Value Added Tax (VAT) to be implemented in India, the decision on which is pending. It will replace all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Indian Central and State governments. It is aimed at being comprehensive for most goods and services. India is a federal republic, and the GST will thus be implemented concurrently by the central and state governments as the Central GST and the State GST respectively. Exports will be zero-rated and imports will be levied the same taxes as domestic goods and services adhering to the destination principle. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 23, 2013 1. Commercial operation to begin in 20 days: Narayanasamy Union Minister of State in the Prime Ministers Office V. Narayanasamy on Tuesday said the 1,000-MWe unit of the Kudankulam power plant would reach the full capacity and start commercial operation in about 20 days. The power output would be raised to 350 MW in the next three days after a series of tests and then to 500 MW over the subsequent five days. 2. VHP, BJP intensify stir against Canadian evangelists event The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), supported by the local BJP unit, has launched protests against a five-day event organised by Christian missionaries, which the saffron group alleged, will be used for mass conversion to Christianity. The public healing and prayer show Allahabad Friendship Festival beginning Wednesday will be addressed by Canadian evangelist Peter Youngren, who was earlier denied permission to visit the country in 1998 by the then NDA government. 3. India signs West Philippine Sea statement
As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meets the Chinese leadership in Beijing, India has signed a joint statement with Philippines which mentions South China Sea as 'West Philippine Sea' and has supported peaceful resolution of the dispute over the name, in accordance with the "freedom of navigation" and "rule of law". 4. SC directs FSSAI to conduct periodic checks of soft drinks The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the government to conduct periodic checks of soft drinks manufacturing units. A Bench of Justices KS Radhakrishnan and AK Sikri asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to rigorously monitor manufacturing of soft drinks, saying the issue pertained to citizens' fundamental right to life. 5. EPFO undergoes digital makeover For the eight lakh subscribers of the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation, managing their retirement savings could soon be as easy as operating their bank accounts. Nearly 15 years after it began computerisation of its offices, the EPFO has gone back to the drawing board as it tries to take the exercise to its second phase with a central database of its members. The country 's largest retirement fund manager has now set up an internal taskforce to truly modernise its functioning and work out a roadmap for its future computerisation needs. 6. Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant
Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power station in Koodankulam in the Tirunelveli district of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The plant's first reactor is the first Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR) belonging to the Light Water Reactor (LWR) category in India, and the 21st nuclear power reactor in the country. N. Nagaich, Executive Director (corporate planning and corporate communications) of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL), described the first unit at Kudankulam as "the harbinger of the large-size LWR technology in India". Construction on the plant began on 31 March 2002, but faced several delays. Long construction times for nuclear reactors are common in India, but this delay was partly due to the 500-day long anti-nuclear protests by the locals, led by the People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE). 7. Central Industrial Security Force The Central Industrial Security Force (established in its present form: 15 June 1983) is a Central Armed Police Force in India. It was set up under an Act of the Parliament of India on 10 March 1969 with a strength of 2,800. CISF was subsequently made an armed force of the Union of India by another Act of Parliament passed on 15 June 1983. Its current strength is 165,000. The strength will be raised to 200,000 over the next 23 years. CISF is the largest industrial security force in the world. It is directly under the federal Ministry of Home Affairs and its headquarters are at New Delhi. 8. Okhla Bird Sanctuary Okhla Bird Sanctuary is a bird sanctuary at the Okhla barrage over Yamuna River. It is situated in Noida, Gautam Buddh Nagar district, on DelhiUttar Pradesh state border and known as a haven for over 300 bird species, especially water birds. In 1990, an area of 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) on the river Yamuna was notified as a bird sanctuary by the Government of Uttar Pradesh under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. The site is located at the point where the river enters Uttar Pradesh. The most prominent feature of the sanctuary is the large lake created by damming the river, which lies sandwiched between Okhla village towards the west and Gautam Budh Nagar towards the east. 9. Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation reflects a reduction in the purchasing power per unit of money a loss of real value in the medium of exchange and unit of account within the economy. A chief measure of price inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index (normally the consumer price index) over time. 10.Special Economic zone(SEZ)
17/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
A Special Economic zone (SEZ) is a geographical region that is designed to export goods and provide employment. SEZs are exempt from federal laws regarding taxes, quotas, FDI-bans, labour laws and other restrictive laws in order to make the goods manufactured in the SEZ at a globally competitive price. The category SEZ includes free trade zones (FTZ), export processing Zones (EPZ), free Zones (FZ), industrial parks or industrial estates (IE), free ports, free economic zones, and urban enterprise zones. 11. Directorate of Military Intelligence(MI) The Directorate of Military Intelligence (MI) is the intelligence arm of the Indian armed forces. The agency was set up in 1941 (then as part of the British Indian Army) to generate field intelligence for the army. The agency is based at Sena Bhavan in Delhi. MI was initially tasked with generating only tactical or field intelligence in all countries bordering India. Its geographical mandate was set to 50 km from the border. These limits were quickly crossed in the mid-1990s when the organisation began playing an increasing role in countries within the subcontinent and its outer periphery. MI's mandate also includes counter-terrorism in the north and North-east and generating pinpoint intelligence for small team operations. It is also tasked with counterintelligence in the army, which entails detecting spies in military areas.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 24, 2013 1. Prevent exploitation of surrogate mothers, says Health Ministry
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has asked the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to ensure that every surrogate mother is provided with independent legal representation and mental health counselling if she is to protect herself from exploitation. Responding to the Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Bill, being drafted by the ICMR, the Ministry pointed out that surrogacy arrangements usually take place between parties with unequal power, education and economic status. The Bill should provide for punitive action in case the provisions of the Bill are either not followed or misused. The emphasis should be to ensure that the benefits of surrogacy are most beneficial to those who are weakest in the supply chain (the surrogates), it said. 2. Defence Ministry serves final show-cause on AgustaWestland The Defence Ministry on Monday issued a final show-causeto Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland, asking it why its Rs. 3,600-crore contract on the purchase of 12 helicopters by India to ferry VVIPs should not be cancelled for violating the terms of the pre-integrity pact and the contract for procurement. The U.K.-based firm has been given 21 days to reply to the notice, sources in the Ministry said here. 3. Delhi suspense ends, Harsh Vardhan is BJP nominee Ending weeks of suspense, the BJP on Wednesday named Harsh Vardhan, a former Delhi Health Minister, as its chief ministerial candidate for the December Assembly elections. The name was cleared by the BJP Parliamentary Board at a meeting presided over by party president Rajnath Singh. For almost two months, there had been speculation in the media on a rift in the Delhi unit because its chief Vijay Goel was opposed to Dr. Vardhans candidature. The 58-year-old ENT specialist will be pitted against the three-time Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, of the Congress and debutant Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). 4. U.S. does not want rigid rules in global climate pact
The U.S. does not want the new global climate agreement to have rigid rules or penalties for countries that do not meet their greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change Todd Stern said this at a Chatham House conference in London on October 22, explaining the U.S. vision of the new agreement countries will have to sign by 2015. He also said the chances of a substantial increase in public financing by the rich countries to fight climate change were unrealistic. There is certainly a role for rules, standards and obligations in this agreement. But an agreement that is animated by the progressive development of norms and expectations rather than by the hard edge of law, compliance and penalty has a better chance of working. 5. Trai sticks to its guns on auction price cut The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on Wednesday stuck to its earlier proposal of up to a 60 per cent cut in the reserve price for the next round of spectrum auctions in the 1,800 and 900 MHz bands saying the price was arrived at by the use of internationally accepted methodologies. 6. National Green Tribunal Act, 2010(NGT) National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (NGT) is a federal legislation enacted by the Parliament of India, under India's constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment. The tribunal itself is a special fast-track court to handle the expeditious disposal of the cases pertaining to environmental issues. The Tribunal's dedicated jurisdiction in environmental matters shall provide speedy environmental justice and help reduce the burden of litigation in the higher courts. The Tribunal shall not be bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, but shall be guided by principles of natural justice. The Tribunal is mandated to make and endeavour for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 25, 2013 1. APMC Act
Agriculture markets are regulated in India through the APMC Acts. According to the provisions of the APMC Acts of the states, every APMC is authorized to collect market fees from the buyers/traders in the prescribed manner on the sale of the notified agricultural produce. The Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) on Inflation convened in 2011 has suggested reforms of APMC Acts to strengthen supply-chain effeciency. Overall, any strategy for strengthening agricultural marketing needs to have a three-pronged objective: 1. 2. 3. 2. of providing remunerative prices to farmers; strengthening efficiencies of supply chain; and ensuring that end consumers are charged fair and reasonable prices SC agrees to reconsider verdict on scrapping NEET
18/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
The Supreme Court has agreed to have a relook at its judgment scrapping the single common entrance test for admission to MBBS, BDS and postgraduate courses in all medical colleges, which was delivered three months back.The court decided to grant oral hearing to the Centre and other petitioners who had sought a review of its July 18 majority (2-1) verdict that had quashed the notification for National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) on the ground that it violated the rights of private institutions to administer such institutions. 3. Odisha imposes fishing ban for turtle nesting A seven-month ban on fishing was on Thursday clamped from November 1 by the Odisha Government within 20 km from the river mouths of Dhamara, Devi and Rusikulya in Gamjam district for protecting nests of endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles. The ban was on motor boats, trawlers and mechanised fishing boats, a notification issued by the Fisheries department said. The ban on the 20 km stretch of the Dhamra-Rushikulya river mouth was clamped in accordance with Sections 2, 7 and 4 of the Orissa Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1982. 4. EU grapples with unemployment
As Europes leaders convened to discuss the continents massive unemployment problem, it was a visitor this week, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who most eloquently summed up what is at stake. Youth unemployment is a time bomb, said the Myanmar opposition leader, who held talks on how Europe could help her country emerge from decades of dictatorship.In the EU, the biggest trade bloc, some 23.3 percent or 5.5 million of those under 25 are jobless, according to EU figures. EU leaders will specifically address the issue at their summit Thursday, but there are few solutions in sight due to countries high debt, a lack of funds, sometimes strict labor laws and a reluctance among the young to relocate. 5. Babys HIV cure not a fluke A little girl who was treated for HIV shortly after birth still shows no sign of infection at age three, suggesting her apparent cure was not a fluke, said the U.S. researchers on Wednesday. The story of the first child known to have been cured of HIV through early treatment with powerful doses of antiretroviral drugs was initially announced in March when she was two and a half. 6. Pension funds ask fossil fuel producers for impact studies on climate change policy Some of the largest pension funds in the US and the world are worried that major fossil fuel companies may not be as profitable in the future because of efforts to limit climate change, and they want details on how the firms will manage a long-term shift to cleaner energy sources. 7. National Security Advisor(NSA) The National Security Advisor (NSA) is the chief executive of the National Security Council (NSC), and the primary advisor to the Prime Minister of India on national and international security. It is the National Security Advisor to whom intelligence agencies such as the Research and Analysis Wing and Intelligence Bureau report, rather than directly to the prime minister. Due to such vested powers NSA is a prominent and powerful office in the bureaucracy. All the NSAs appointed since the inception of post belong to Indian Foreign Service except M. K. Narayanan who belonged to Indian Police Service. 8. Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB)
The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is a national agency of Government of India, with the remit to consider and recommend foreign direct investment (FDI) which does not come under the automatic route. It provides a single window clearance for proposals on FDI in India. In a significant move aimed at expediting flow of foreign investment into the country, the Union Cabinet liberalised the FDI policy further by allowing the FIPB to clear proposals from overseas entities worth up to 1,2566 crore, against the existing limit of 6240 crore. 9. External debt External debt (or foreign debt) is that part of the total debt in a country that is owed to creditors outside the country. The debtors can be the government, corporations or private households. The debt includes money owed to private commercial banks, other governments, or international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. Note that the use of gross liability figures greatly distorts the ratio for countries which contain major money centers.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 26, 2013 1. India ranks 101 on global gender gap index India was on Friday ranked 101 out of 136 countries on a global gender gap index. The index, compiled by Geneva-based World Economic Forum, ranked the countries on the division of resources and opportunities between men and women in the areas of economy, education, politics, education and health. 2. Kudankulam first reactor resynchronised The turbine of the first reactor at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP), which had been stalled for conducting a range of tests following the maiden synchronisation early on Tuesday morning, was synchronised again at 9.43 pm on Friday. After the power started cascading from the first reactor for a short while from 2.45 a.m. on Tuesday and the quantum of electricity transmitted to the Southern Grid touched 160 MWe, the turbine was stopped manually for tests. 3. Cabinet to take decision on boundary row Ministers of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh on Friday held discussions on issues related to identifying and demarcating the inter-State border between the two States. The Supreme Court, in its order dated April 18, 2013, had directed Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to demarcate the inter-State border through a survey conducted by the Survey of India (SoI).Andhra Pradesh Minister for Revenue N. Raghuveera Reddy said his government was in favour of asking the Survey of India, to demarcate boundaries between two States. 4. Over 90 lakh LPG buyers Aadhaar linked to bank A/Cs
The government has completed seeding of Aadhaar numbers in bank accounts of 40 per cent of the targeted LPG customers in the first two phases of the exercise. Finance ministry data indicates that of the 2.23 crore LPG customers identified in the first two phases of the rollout of the direct benefit transfer scheme, Aadhaar numbers of 90.96 lakh such beneficiaries have been seeded in their bank accounts. This means they can get the LPG subsidy directly into their accounts instead of buying the cooking gas cylinders at a subsidised price. 5. HRD ministry approves Aakash 4 tablet project
The Pallam Raju led Human Resource Development Ministry has, after much contemplation, decided to back the Aakash tablet project. The HRD Ministry will now move a Cabinet note seeking approval for procuring over 22 lakh Aakash 4 tablets, officials confirmed. Estimated to cost over Rs 330 crore, the 22 lakh 47 thousand tablets are proposed to be procured through the Directorate General of Supplies and Disposals (DGS&D) a
19/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
central government purchase and quality assurance organisation that will conclude rate contracts for the low-cost tablet. 6. Security forces pulled up by MHA in Chhattisgarh Concerned about the lethargy of security forces in poll bound Chhattisgarh, Union Home Secretary Anil Goswami Friday pulled up central paramilitary forces, the CRPF and the BSF. Goswami is believed to have criticised the "purely defensive strategy" adopted by security forces in the state. The Centre has already expressed its displeasure with the Chhattisgarh administration and central forces over the "lull" in action despite the government asking them to step up anti-Naxal operations, especially after the May 25 Darbha attack on a Congress convoy. 7. Anti-sub corvette runs aground on way to sea trial
An anti-submarine corvette made by GRSE for the Indian Navy ran aground while going for a sea trial at Geonkhali in West Bengal's East Midnapore district. Describing it as a minor incident, Rear Admiral (retd) A K Verma, CMD of Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited (GRSE), told PTI, The river channel is narrow and the ship had a little drift while turning. The ship is most likely to come out during high tide post midnight. 8. National Human Rights Commission(NHRC)
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India is an autonomous public body constituted on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Ordinance of 28 September 1993. It was given a statutory basis by the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (TPHRA). The NHRC is the national human rights institution, responsible for the protection and promotion of human rights, defined by the Act as "rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants. 9. Lokayukta The Lokayukta (also Lok Ayukta) is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states. The Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966. In this report, the ARC recommended the setting up of two special authorities designated as 'Lokpal' and 'Lokayukta' for the redressal of citizens' grievances. The LokAyukta, along with the Income Tax Department and the Anti Corruption Bureau, mainly helps people bring corruption amongst the politicians and officers in the government service to public attention. Many acts of the LokAyukta have not resulted in criminal or other consequences for those charged. 10.Ministry of Minority Affairs The Ministry of Minority Affairs, a ministry of the Government of India established in 2006. It is the apex body for the central government's regulatory and developmental programmes for the minority communities in India, which include Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) notified as minority communities under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. The ministry is also involved with the linguistic minorities and of the office of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities, representation of the Anglo-Indian community, protection and preservation of non-Muslim shrines in Pakistan and Muslim shrines in India in terms of the Pant-Mirza Agreement of 1955, in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs. The Minister in charge is also Chairperson of the Central Wakf Council, India, which manages the running of the State Wakf Boards. 11. Directorate General of Hydrocarbon(DGH) The Directorate General of Hydrocarbon (DGH) is the Indian governmental regulatory body under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) was established in 1993 under the administrative control of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas through Government of India Resolution. Objectives of DGH are to promote sound management of the oil and natural gas resources having a balanced regard for environment, safety, technological and economic aspects of the petroleum activity.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 27, 2013 1. Australia records fastest temperature rise among G20 nations Australias exposure to climate change has worsened more rapidly than in any other major economy in the past two years, with stresses on water supplies increasing and the cost of natural disasters running second only to China, a report has found.The study, compiled by HSBC, found that temperatures in Australia had risen faster than in any other G20 country over the past two years up by 0.39 degree C to 18.9 degree C on a decade average basis. Deterioration in water resources is also a major issue, with Australia, along with Saudi Arabia, experiencing the worst increases. HSBC concluded that India, China, Indonesia, South Africa and Brazil are the countries most vulnerable to climate change, based on the challenges posed by climate change and their ability to respond to them. 2. Vodacom in talks to buy Neotel British major Vodafones South African subsidiary Vodacom, on Monday, said it had entered into exclusive discussions regarding a potential acquisition of Neotel, controlled by Tata Communications.There are a number of important steps that we still need to complete to conclude the transaction. If the deal is implemented, Vodacom intends to put significant investment into the combined entity to provide high-speed fixed connectivity to many more businesses and consumers, Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub said in a joint statement. Neotel, South Africas second-biggest fixed-line phone operator, is 68.5 per cent owned by Tata Communications. 3. Nikhat nurtures big ambitions Like a true champion, Nikhat Zareen nurtures big ambitions. The 17-year-old from Hyderabad, who bagged the 54kg World youth womens boxing silver medal in Albena, Bulgaria, has already set her sights on the more important targets next year the Youth Olympics and the Asian Games. 4. Minimum capital requirement for MFs to be raised to R25 crore
The minimum capital requirement for mutual funds (MFs) to operate within the industry is set to go up by 2.5 times from Rs 10 crore to Rs 25 crore. The Mutual Fund Advisory Committee set up by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has proposed to raise the minimum capital for asset management companies to Rs 25 crore.. 5. Unregulated players endanger market discipline, says FM
The financial sector operates in a speed and dynamism, and generates new space, sometimes "undefined" areas, which provide opportunities for "unregulated" players in the market, he said at a seminar here. "The existence of such (unregulated) players who operate in the twilight zone endanger the discipline of the markets leading to systemic instability. Invariably, such activities adversely impact a large number of consumers. This reduces their confidence in the system," FM Chidambaram said regarding"unregulated" players in the financial market. 6. Infosys, IBM to develop system for RBS arm in 300 m euro deal
20/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
Infosys, IBM have won a 300 million euro (about Rs.2,535 crore) contract to develop the computer system for the U.K.-based bank Williams & Glyns, which was dormant for about 30 years. It is being revived by U.K.-based lender the Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBSG). The bank is part of the RBS Group and is scheduled to launch operations by 2015. RBS will spend over 300 million euro to develop computer systems for Williams & Glyns bank. Infosys and IBM will lead the project to build the system, which will be based on RBSs computer platform, a person in know of the development said. 7. The methylhexaneamine debate continues Ever since the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) brought methylhexaneamine(MHA) into the Prohibited List, the substance has courted controversy. So has the application of Article 10.4 in the WADA Code, which allows the reduction of punishment in a set of substances classified specified substances. MHA which comes under specified stimulants, was banned by the WADA in the 2010 Prohibited List. Thanks to the information available on the internet, it was taken for granted that MHA was an ingredient of geranium oil or geranium root extract, both natural products, and could be inadvertently ingested by an athlete through a variety of supplements and beauty aids. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 28, 2013 1. SpiceJet plans to increase international destinations Low-cost private carrier SpiceJet is working on adding two more international destinations, including Dammam and Kuala Lumpur by the end of the current fiscal while it will also increase frequencies on certain existing global routes, taking foreign flights per day from 28 to about 42 by end of March 2014. 2. In a first, NTPC to ship imported coal via waterways In a strategy aimed at cushioning the impact of expensive imported coal, power major NTPC Ltd is in final stages of launching an ambitious plan to move this coal from the high seas to its generating stations through inland waterways, starting with its Farakka plant in West Bengal. The very first consignment for Farakka a ship bearing 69,060 metric tonnes (MT) of imported coal has already arrived at Sandheads, the transshipment point in the Bay of Bengal, on October 15. 3. Wireless sensors to predict landslips being tested
Scientists, including one of Indian-origin, have developed low-cost sensors that might save lives by warning of deadly landslips in at-risk areas around the world. The wireless sensors, developed using technology adopted in cell phones, are being tested and have been installed around an active landslip zone in the Monte Sano State Park in the United States. A team from the Atmospheric Science Department of the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is studying the sensors to see whether they can provide useful information about soil stability and the likelihood of a landslip. 4. Britain gears up for worst storm in two decades Hurricane-force winds and heavy rains have been forecast for Monday as Britain braces for its worst storm since 1987. The storm, which has been named St Jude after the patron saint of lost causes whose feast day falls Monday, is expected to leave a trail of destruction in its wake. 5. Railways to deploy food auditing firms to conduct quality checks on trains Fed up with complaints about food served on trains, Railways has decided to deploy international food auditing firms who do quality checks at five star hotels to do its quality assessment. On Thursday, it abandoned its one-week-old menu on Rajdhanis and Shatabdis following constant passenger complaints. 6. U.S. quietly ramping up military presence in Africa The attack on the Westgate mall in Kenya last month by al-Qaeda-affiliated militants has underscored the need for enhancing U.S. engagement with the African continent, said senior American officials in an online press conference. It highlighted to us that we were pursuing the right strategy and proved that we had to bolster that strategy, said Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of African Affairs of the US State Department. 7. Iran-Pakistan pipeline unviable While Pakistan is demanding that the U.S. pave the way for its long pending natural gas pipeline from Iran by easing sanctions, a new report claims that the gas purchase agreement and pricing should be renegotiated or else the project could be a death sentence for the countrys economy. 8. Georgia holds elections to replace Saakashvili Georgia on Sunday voted in a presidential election that will draw the curtain on the 10-year rule of President Mikheil Saakashvili and may see renewal of rivalry between Moscow and Washington for control of the strategically located post-Soviet state. 9. Foreign direct investment(FDI)
Foreign direct investment (FDI) is a direct investment into production or business in a country by an individual or company in another country, either by buying a company in the target country or by expanding operations of an existing business in that country. Foreign direct investment is in contrast to portfolio investment which is a passive investment in the securities of another country such as stocks and bonds. Broadly, foreign direct investment includes "mergers and acquisitions, building new facilities, reinvesting profits earned from overseas operations and intra company loans". In a narrow sense, foreign direct investment refers just to building new facilities. The numerical FDI figures based on varied definitions are not easily comparable. 10.National Highways Authority of India(NHAI) The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous agency of the Government of India, responsible for management of a network of over 70,000 km of National Highways in India. It is a nodal agency of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The current chairman of the NHAI is Rajinder Pal Singh. The NHAI was created through the promulgation of the National Highways Authority of India Act, 1988. In February 1995, the Authority was formally made an autonomous body. It is responsible for the development, maintenance, management and operation of National Highways, totaling over 71,772 km (44,597 mi) in length. 11. Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority(IRDA) Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) is an autonomous apex statutory body which regulates and develops the insurance industry in India. It was constituted by a Parliament of India act called Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999 and duly passed by the Government of India. The agency operates its headquarters at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh where it shifted from Delhi in 2001. The Insurance regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), batted for a hike in the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit to 49 per cent in the sector
21/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
from the present 26 per cent. The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill has been pending before Parliament for about four years as there has been no consensus among political parties on the issue of raising the FDI limit to 49 per cent.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 29, 2013 1. Raghavan, next Russian envoy P.S. Raghavan, currently Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Russian Federation. He will succeed Ajai Malhotra who has retired. 2. World Bank willing to assist State in flood relief
The World Bank has expressed its willingness to assist the State in taking up relief and rehabilitation measures in flood-hit districts. A high-level meeting under the chairmanship of Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy will be held shortly to consider the proposal, according to Revenue Minister N. Raghuveera Reddy. The Minister, who reviewed the flood situation with senior officials, said that the government had decided to hold negotiations with the Markfed, Nafed and Cotton Corporation of India for purchasing discoloured cotton, soybean, maize and paddy fom farmers. 3. Worlds longest power cable in the works
Icelands President Olafur Grimsson is expected this week to call on the British government to provide financial support for the construction of a 4.3-billion subsea electricity cable which will be the longest in the world linking his country to the U.K.s electricity grid. The ambitious project, drawing on hydro geothermal and wind power generation, could deliver five terawatt-hours a year to Britain at a cost 15 per cent lower than offshore wind, according to Icelands state-owned electricity firm Landsvirkjun. 4. South Indian tea prices drop Prices of south Indian medium quality teas dropped by nearly Rs. 20 a kg during the last three weeks, according to Executive Director of the Tea Board of India R. Ambalavanan. The fall in prices at this time of the year is unusual. Last year the prices had picked up by October. The main reason for the decline is the arrival of huge volume of teas from Assam and north Bengal as the production is high in the north. 5. Sharma flags concerns over immigration bill Raising concerns over some of the "elements" of a US legislation on immigration reforms, India on Monday said the bill will undermine the competitiveness of Indian IT businesses in America. "Sharma expressed his concern over the discriminatory measures related to skilled nonimmigrant visas in the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill passed by the US Senate ...elements of the Bill will undermine the competitiveness of Indian IT businesses in the US," said an official statement. Quoting Sharma, it said that Indian IT companies have contributed enormously to the US economy through job creation and enhancing the competitiveness of their clients, who included some of the USs largest businesses. 6. Gross domestic product(GDP) Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living. GDP per capita is not a measure of personal income (Standard of living and GDP). Under economic theory, GDP per capita exactly equals the gross domestic income (GDI) per capita (Gross domestic income). GDP is related to national accounts, a subject in macroeconomics. GDP is not to be confused with gross national product (GNP) which allocates production based on ownership. 7. NET Asset Value
Net asset value (NAV) is the value of an entity's assets less the value of its liabilities, often in relation to open-end or mutual funds, since shares of such funds registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are redeemed at their net asset value. This may also be the same as the book value or the equity value of a business. Net asset value may represent the value of the total equity, or it may be divided by the number of shares outstanding held by investors and, thereby, represent the net asset value per share. 8. Medical Council of India(MCI) The Medical Council of India (MCI) is the statutory body for establishing uniform and high standards of medical education in India. The Council grants recognition of medical qualifications, gives accreditation to medical colleges, grants registration to medical practitioners, and monitors medical practice in India. The Medical Council of India was first established in 1934 under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1933. The Council was later reconstituted under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 that replaced the earlier Act. 9. None of the Above(NOTA) None of the Above (NOTA), also known as "against all" or a "scratch" vote, is a ballot option in some jurisdictions or organizations, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system. It is based on the principle that consent requires the ability to withhold consent in an election, just as they can by voting no on ballot questions. When None of the Above is listed on a ballot, there is the possibility of NOTA receiving a majority or plurality of the vote, and so "winning" the election. In such a case, a variety of formal procedures may be invoked, including having the office remain vacant, having the office filled by appointment, re-opening nominations or holding another election (in a body operating under parliamentary procedure), or it may have no effect whatsoever, as in the state of Nevada, where the next highest total wins regardless.

1.
Passage of insurance bill key to India-EU FTA
The European Union has pressed upon India to ensure implementation of the long pending Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill and has indicated that it will be crucial for the finalisation of the free trade pact. The bill seeks to raise the FDI limit in the sector to 49 per cent but has been hanging fire for nearly a decade now. Talks between India-EU chief negotiators on FTA in May got stuck on the insurance matter.
22/45
2/8/2014
2. Parikh panel for capping subsidy bill for ONGC, OIL
Okkal
Irrespective of the quantum of losses suffered by state-run oil marketing companies (OMCs), the Kirit Parikh Committee has prescribed that the subsidy burden on ONGC and Oil India Ltd be capped at 50 per cent of crude oil price at $120 a barrel and above. The Expert Group has recommended that from fiscal 2014-15, the ad-hoc system of fixing subsidy contribution by national oil companies towards OMCs' under-recoveries be discontinued and a slab-based compensation formula be adopted. 3. UN agency reports polio outbreak in northeast Syria The UN's health agency said Tuesday it has confirmed 10 polio cases in northeast Syria, the first confirmed outbreak of the highly contagious disease in the country in 14 years. Officials are awaiting lab results on another 12 cases showing polio symptoms, said Oliver Rosenbauer, spokesman for the World Health Organisation (WHO). Rosenbauer said the confirmed cases are among babies and toddlers, all aged below two years. 4. Cabinet to take up proposal for renewing pharma policy The Union Cabinet will on Wednesday take up a proposal of the department of pharmaceuticals to renew a policy allowing all government institutions to procure drugs directly from pharmaceutical PSUs without calling for tenders. The policy lapsed in 2011. However, the policy, aimed at revitalising sick pharma PSUs, does not make such procurement mandatory. Direct procurement from PSUs is meant largely as an emergency measure for buying drugs and supplies in the wake of natural calamities, but if agencies are so inclined they can practice it otherwise too. Rates will be fixed by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority. 5. Robust ties between regulators and banks needed Top regulators and the boards of banks need to have a closer, more trusting relationship to stave off the risk of another financial crisis, according to a leading policy group, which also called for banking supervisors to be paid more. Acknowledging bankers earn three times more than their regulators, the report by the influential Group of 30 said the relationship between the two needed to be overhauled and banks should shift their focus away from taking short-term risks to generate bigger profits. 6. National Commission for Women (NCW)
The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act. The first head of the commission was Ms. Jayanti Patnaik. The present head of the Commission is Mrs. Mamta Sharma, former MLA of Bundi district, Rajasthan. The objective of the NCW is to represent the rights of women in India and to provide a voice for their issues and concerns. The subjects of their campaigns have included dowry, politics, religion, equal representation for women in jobs, and the exploitation of women for labour. They have also discussed police abuses against women.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: October 31, 2013 1. Type T for Thakre, get voter details Type M, and the names of all voters whose name begins with the alpahabet in a constituency flash on the screen with full details including age, voter ID number, booth number, booth and residence address. Write Man, and you get results like Manisha, Manpreet, Mangi, Mannu, Raman and Arman, etc. Nagpur-based supplier of election material, Purushottam Thakre, is among the select techies in Maharashtra to have developed a software that charts the electoral horoscope of voters in a constituency. 2. New email policy for govt officials in pipeline Government officials and departments may soon have unique email IDs and domain names depending on where they are in the country. The Centre's standing counsel, advocate Sumit Pushkarna, Wednesday told the Delhi High Court about a new proposed policy on email use by government officials. Under this, specific domain names will be assigned even for small cities and towns. 3. SC slams frivolous litigation by govt officials The Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on rise in frivolous litigation by government officials across the country and regretted such officers were not held accountable for waste of public money. "For almost two decades, courts across the country have witnessed a surge in frivolous litigations by public authority which results in wastage of public money that could have been utilised for deciding meaningful litigation," said a Bench led by Justice G S Singhvi. 4. Com m onwealth Heads of Gov ernm ent Meeting The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM)is a biennial summit meeting of the heads of government from all Commonwealth nations. Every two years the meeting is held in a different member state, and is chaired by that nation's respective Prime Minister or President, who becomes the Commonwealth Chairperson-in-Office. Queen Elizabeth II(With the Allowance of UviThil.) , who is the Head of the Commonwealth, has attended every CHOGM beginning with Ottawa in 1973,although her formal participation only began in 1997. However, she will be represented by the Prince of Wales at the 2013 meeting as the 87-year-old monarch is curtailing her overseas travel. 5. Oman detects MERS infection
Oman has discovered the first case of the MERS coronavirus in the Gulf sultanate. The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERSCoV) has so far claimed 62 lives worldwide, with most of the deaths occurring in Saudi Arabia, where the disease first appeared in September 2012, according to the World Health Organisation. The WHO said last week there was a total of 144 confirmed cases of the respiratory disease worldwide. 6. Israel announces E. Jerusalem construction Israel on Wednesday announced new construction in east Jerusalem an area the Palestinians demand for their future state just hours after it freed a group of Palestinian prisoners as part of a deal to set peace talks in motion. The building is seen as an attempt by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make up for the prisoner release, for which he has been sharply criticised at home. The prisoners were jailed for deadly attacks on Israelis. 7. Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India is an Indian government agency in the Department of Culture that is responsible for archaeological studies and the preservation of cultural monuments. The ASI's function is to "explore, excavate, conserve, preserve and protect the monuments and sites of
23/45
2/8/2014
National & International Importance."
Okkal
8. Competition Commission of India (CCI) Competition Commission of India is a body of the Government of India responsible for enforcing The Competition Act, 2002 throughout India and to prevent activities that have an adverse effect on competition in India. It was established on 14 October 2003. It became fully functional in May 2009. The objectives of the Act are sought to be achieved through the Competition Commission of India (CCI), which has been established by the Central Government with effect from 14 October 2003. 9. Stem-cell therapy Stem-cell therapy is an intervention strategy that introduces new adult stem cells into damaged tissue in order to treat disease or injury. Many medical researchers believe that stem-cell treatments have the potential to change the face of human disease and alleviate suffering. The ability of stem cells to self-renew and give rise to subsequent generations with variable degrees of differentiation capacities, offers significant potential for generation of tissues that can potentially replace diseased and damaged areas in the body, with minimal risk of rejection and side effects. A number of stem-cell therapies exist, but most are at experimental stages or costly, with the notable exception of bone-marrow transplantation. [citation needed] Medical researchers anticipate that adult and embryonic stem cells will soon be able to treat cancer, Type 1 diabetes mellitus, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, Celiac disease, cardiac failure, muscle damage and neurological disorders, and many others. Nevertheless, before stem-cell therapeutics can be applied in the clinical setting, more research is necessary to understand stem-cell behavior upon transplantation as well as the mechanisms of stem-cell interaction with the diseased/injured microenvironment. 10.Private Equity In finance, private equity is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange. A private equity investment will generally be made by a private equity firm, a venture capital firm or an angel investor. Each of these categories of investor has its own set of goals, preferences and investment strategies; however, all provide working capital to a target company to nurture expansion, new-product development, or restructuring of the companys operations, management, or ownership.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 1, 2013 1. US infiltrated into Google, Yahoo centres Intelligence agencies of the United States and the United Kingdom secretly infiltrated into the communication links of popular email providers like Yahoo and Google to get access to its millions of emails, a media report said Thursday. The NSA in collaboration with its British counterpart GCHQ has secretly exploit the data links to collect the data of hundreds of millions of user accounts. 2. FAA allows use of electronic devices throughout flights, cells still banned Airline passengers can use electronic devices in "all phases of flight" if the airline determines that its aircraft can tolerate the interference, the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday, but using a cellphone will still be banned. The change will most likely take effect before the end of the year. Rules for cellphone use are set by the Federal Communications Commission, and unlikely to change soon. 3. Reality check: similar rules have been gathering dust The Supreme Court order to protect bureaucrats from undue political interference and give them a sense of security in the discharge of their duties is mostly a reiteration of service rules and may not have been required in the first place if the Centre's move in 2007 to legislate a Civil Services Act had not fizzled out. 4. Cairn ranked fastest growing energy firm in the world Cairn India has been ranked as the fastest growing energy company in the world while Reliance Industries is the top ranked Indian energy firm in the global ranking. With a compound growth rate of 121 per cent in past three years, Cairn was ranked the fastest growing energy company in the world ahead of Cnooc of China, Valero Energy of the US, PetroChina, Essar Energy and Russian Rosneft, according to the Platts Top 250 Global Energy Company Rankings. 5. Russia collects saliva samples of Muslim women in Dagestan Ahead of the Sochi Olympics in February, Russia is taking saliva samples from religiously conservative Muslim women, according to locals in the North Caucasus, gathering DNA so authorities can identify the body parts if any become suicide bombers. The move coincides with a drive by President Vladimir Putin to crack down on an Islamist insurgency in Dagestan, a province in the foothills of the Caucasus mountains east of the Winter Games sites in Sochi. 6. U.S. energy chief offers Japan aid with nuke cleanup
U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said he expects deepening cooperation with Japan over the high-stakes cleaning up and decommissioning of the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. The Fukushima plant has had a series of mishaps in recent months, including radioactive water leaks from storage tanks. The incidents have added to concerns about the ability of operator Tokyo Electric Power Co., or TEPCO, to safely close down the plant, which suffered meltdowns after being swamped by the March 2011 tsunami on Japans northeastern coast. 7. A Supreme Social Happiness department in Venezuela Venezuelas social programmes, which have lifted millions out of abject poverty and reduced inequality, are being raised to the next level: Happiness. President Nicols Maduro has announced the creation of a department of Supreme Social Happiness to coordinate the more than 30 welfare schemes, known as the Missions, and rid them of corruption and bureaucratic lethargy. 8. Delimitation commission Delimitation commission or Boundary commission of India is a Commission established by Government of India under the provisions of the Delimitation Commission Act. The main task of the commission is to redraw the boundaries of the various assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies based on a recent census. The representation from each state is not changed during this exercise. However, the number of SC and ST seats in a state are changed in accordance with the census. The Commission is a powerful body whose orders cannot be challenged in a court of law. The orders are laid before the Lok Sabha and the respective State Legislative Assemblies. However, modifications are not permitted. 9. Indian Council of Medical Research(ICMR) The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi, the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research, is one of the oldest and largest medical research bodies in the world. In 1911, the Government of India set up the Indian Research Fund
24/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
Association (IRFA) with the specific objective of sponsoring and coordinating medical research in the country. After independence, several important changes were made in the organisation and the activities of the IRFA. It was redesignated the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in 1949, with considerably expanded scope of functions. The ICMR is funded by the Government of India through the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. 10.Nano- particles In nanotechnology, a particle is defined as a small object that behaves as a whole unit with respect to its transport and properties. Particles are further classified according to diameter. Coarse particles cover a range between 10,000 and 2,500 nanometers. Fine particles are sized between 2,500 and 100 nanometers. Ultrafine particles, or nanoparticles, are between 1 and 100 nanometers in size. The reason for this double name of the same object is that, during the 1970-80s, when the first thorough fundamental studies with "nanoparticles" were underway in the USA (by Granqvist and Buhrman) and Japan, (within an ERATO Project) they were called "ultrafine particles" (UFP). 11. National Spot Exchange(NSEL) National Spot Exchange (NSEL) is a Commodities exchange in India, and is a joint venture of Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. (FTIL) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED). National Spot Exchange commenced its live trading operations in different commodities on Wednesday, 15 October 2008. It began trading in pre-certified cotton bales for Mumbai delivery and imported gold and silver bars for Ahmedabad delivery immediately, and has since added a number of commodities. National Spot Exchange's stated mission is to develop a common Indian market by setting up a nation-wide electronic spot market and providing state of art trading, delivery, and settlement facilities in various commodities.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 2, 2013 1. Kannur declared first zero-landless district in country Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh has said that the Kerala government has to muster political will to find the land required for assignment among 2.5 lakh landless families in the State over the next two years under its Zero Landless (Citizens) Kerala Project. 2. Court will not go into extension for civil servants The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a public interest writ petition for a direction to the Centre to have a cooling-off period of two years before re-employing senior civil servants or extending their services on superannuation. 3. Thailand House passes amnesty bill for politicians Thailands Parliament moved a step closer to granting amnesty to people involved in a wrenching political conflict that has divided the country for almost a decade, prompting thousands to protest in the streets and renewing fears of violence. The 500-member House of Representatives passed the bill after 19 hours of acrimonious debate, which culminated with the entire opposition walking out and refusing to vote. It was then passed with the 310 lawmakers from the ruling coalition left in the House voting for it and no votes against. It must now be approved by the Senate to become law. 4. Australian govt grants green clearance to GVK project Cairn India has been ranked as the fastest growing energy company in the world while Reliance Industries is the top ranked Indian energy firm in the global ranking. With a compound growth rate of 121 per cent in past three years, Cairn was ranked the fastest growing energy company in the world ahead of Cnooc of China, Valero Energy of the US, PetroChina, Essar Energy and Russian Rosneft, according to the Platts Top 250 Global Energy Company Rankings. 5. GK Pillai appointed chairman of MCX-SX
Australian Federal Government has granted environmental approval for GVK's Kevin's Corner Project in Queensland, the infrastructure major said today. In late 2011, GVK had acquired a 100 per cent stake in the Kevin's Corner project and a 79 per cent stake in the Alpha Coal and Alpha West Coal projects from Hancock Prospecting Pty. Ltd. 6. PM reviews China border infrastructure at NSC meeting
A high-level security review meet headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reviewed the status of infrastructure development on the borders with China and Pakistan Friday, weeks after India signed a new border agreement with China to reduce tensions along the disputed boundary. While a Chinese patrol party had set up camp at Ladakh's Depsang plain area earlier, sparking off a three-week stand-off, there have been several incidents on the Pakistan border, including at least two cross-border raids that have killed seven soldiers. Also, the Line of Control as well as the International Border with Pakistan have seen an unprecedented quantity of exchange of firing since the ceasefire arrangement was brought into effect in 2003. 7. Indonesia summons Aus envoy as spy row in Asia spreads Indonesia summoned Australian ambassador in Jakarta Friday over a report that his embassy was part of a vast US-led surveillance network, as the spying row that has soured US-Europe relations spread in Asia. Concern was growing in Asia, with China among countries demanding answers from Washington over reports of clandestine surveillance. 8. POCSO Child sexual abuse laws in India have been enacted as part of the nation's child protection policies. The Parliament of India passed the 'Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Bill, 2011' regarding child sexual abuse on May 22, 2012 into Act. The rules formulated by the government in accordance with the law have also been notified on 14th November 2012 and the law has become ready for implementation. Fifty three percent of children in India face some form of child sexual abuse. The need for stringent law has been felt many times. The new Act provides for a variety of offenses under which an accused can be punished. It recognizes forms of penetration other than peno-vaginal penetration and criminalizes acts of immodesty against children too. The legislators tried to draft a gender-neutral Act, but failed, using the pronoun 'he' in the description of various offenses. 9. Public-Interest Litigation(PIL) Public-Interest Litigation (PIL) is litigation for the protection of the public interest. In Indian law, Article 32 of the Indian constitution contains a tool which directly joints the public with judiciary. A PIL may be introduced in a court of law by the court itself (suo motu), rather than the aggrieved party or another third party. For the exercise of the court's jurisdiction, it is not necessary for the victim of the violation of his or her rights to personally approach the court. In a PIL, the right to file suit is given to a member of the public by the courts through judicial activism. The member
25/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
of the public may be a non-governmental organization (NGO), an institution or an individual. The Supreme Court of India, rejecting the criticism of judicial activism, has stated that the judiciary has stepped in to give direction because due to executive inaction, the laws enacted by Parliament and the state legislatures for the poor since independence have not been properly implemented.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 3, 2013 1. 5-kg rice packets to be supplied through PDS
Union Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs K.V. Thomas said here on Saturday that the Centre would soon launch the pilot project of distributing 5-kg packets of rice to consumers in Kerala through the Public Distribution System as part of supplying quality rice and checking irregularities. This would replace the existing practice of transporting grains in 50-kg bags. 2. M.S. Swaminathan for special drive to attract youth to farm research
To get youth interested in agriculture research, the Agriculture Scientists Recruitment Board (ASRB) must undertake a special drive, noted farm scientist M.S. Swaminathan said on Friday. He said there should be a special analysis of the gaps in regional-level research, particularly in northeastern and tribal areas as was done in the past. Special recruitment drives should be undertaken by inducting young scientist graduates from such regions and grooming them intensively. He suggested that farmer scientists should be profiled so that young scientists could interact with them as a learning process. 3. India-Bangladesh retreat ceremony The joint retreat ceremony of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) would start on Petropole-Benapole, a stretch separating the two countries along West Bengals North 24 Parganas district and Jessore district of Bangladesh on November 6. The ceremony would subsequently be extended to two other places along the border. The other two places where the ceremony will be held are Changrabandha-Burimari (along the West Bengal-Bangladesh border) and Akhura-Phulbari (along the Tripura-Bangladesh border), a release issued by the BSF. 4. NGO wins Google Global Impact Award Bangalore-based NGO Janaagraha has been awarded the Google Global Impact Award. In a release, Janaagraha said the award was given in recognition of its path-breaking hyper-local social change network, www.ichangemycity.com, which connects citizens with the local government and communities in their neighbourhood. 5. As deadline expires, illegal foreigners queue up to leave Saudi Arabia Thousands of illegal foreigners, mostly unskilled workers from Asia, are rushing to leave Saudi Arabia before an amnesty expires on Sunday as they risk being fined or even jailed. Nearly a million Bangladeshis, Filipinos, Indians, Nepalis, Pakistanis and Yemenis, among others, have taken advantage of the three-month amnesty announced on April 3 and then extended for four months and left the country. Another roughly four million have legalised their situation by finding employers to sponsor them, a must to reside in most Gulf monarchies. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

Note: Students are advised to go through all articles as suggested. Important articles are bold for quick study. November 4, 2013 Due to the Non-availability of todays edition of the newspaper this section has not been updated. To go to the previous days newspaper you can visit:http://www.okkal.com/archive/newspaper

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 5, 2013 1. Thousands protest in Thai capital over amnesty bill
Thousands of people marched in Thailand's capital and blocked a major road to protest an amnesty bill they said is designed to bring former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra back from overseas exile. More than 1,000 people blew whistles and temporarily halted traffic in Bangkok's financial district of Silom at lunchtime to protest the legislation, which was approved by the lower house of Parliament few days back. The bill would grant amnesties to those involved in the sometimes-violent political conflict that has sharply divided the country for almost a decade. 2. Proposed UK visa bond scheme to be scrapped The controversial 3,000-pound "security bond" for some "high-risk" foreign visitors to the UK, including those from India, is to be scrapped, the Home Office has confirmed. The scheme, announced by Home Secretary Theresa May in June, was to come into force this month. A Home Office spokesman confirmed a Sunday Times report that the policy would be scrapped. Hugo Swire, Britain's Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs told PTI recently that "no decision was taken on the visa bond scheme". The decision is thought to have been taken after Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg threatened to block it. India had also expressed its concern to the UK government both at the ministerial and official levels. 3. Euro zone factory PMI points to broad-based recovery Euro zone manufacturing activity accelerated in October as new orders increased for the fourth month in a row, although strong competition left factories with scant room to raise prices, a survey showed. Increasingly robust gains in production countries such as Spain, Italy and Ireland mean the bloc's nascent recovery is becoming more broad-based, survey compiler Markit said. Their final Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 51.3 from September's 51.1, in line with an earlier flash reading and with the consensus forecast of economists. 4. State FMs to hold GST meet in Shillong in November The Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on GST will meet in Shillong on November 18 and 19 and may firm up views on issues concerning the taxation of liquor and petroleum products in the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.
26/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
5. FSSAI holds up imported foods over labelling violations Large consignments of food products including that of chocolate maker Lindt have been lying in government warehouses for not conforming to the labelling requirements as laid down by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), according to industry sources. Given the huge quantity, embassies of the US and European nations have made representations to the authority and the health ministry for releasing the consignments. 6. Bariatric Surgery
Bariatric surgery (weight loss surgery) includes a variety of procedures performed on people who are obese. Weight loss is achieved by reducing the size of the stomach with a gastric band or through removal of a portion of the stomach (sleeve gastrectomy or biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch) or by resecting and re-routing the small intestines to a small stomach pouch (gastric bypass surgery). Long-term studies show the procedures cause significant long-term loss of weight, recovery from diabetes, improvement in cardiovascular risk factors, and a reduction in mortality of 23% from 40%. 7. Global depository receipt A global depository receipt or global depositary receipt (GDR) is a certificate issued by a depository bank, which purchases shares of foreign companies and deposits it on the account. GDRs represent ownership of an underlying number of shares. Global depository receipts facilitate trade of shares, and are commonly used to invest in companies from developing or emerging markets. Prices of global depositary receipt are often close to values of related shares, but they are traded and settled independently of the underlying share.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 6, 2013 1. Focus on engineering, NMEICT ignoring Humanities The National Mission on Education through Information & Communication Technology (NMEICT), which was initiated nearly five years ago with an aim to use technology to provide quality education to students in higher education sector across the country, seems to be providing the bulk of its funds to IITs and the engineering sector, ignoring crucial Humanities courses. The disproportionate focus on engineering education has already been noticed by the Union Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry. 2. Its for Centre to decide on opinion polls: Election Commission Amid a variety of views doing the rounds on the need to ban opinion polls for the duration of the election process, the Election Commission is looking to leave it to the Centre to decide on the issue. At present, the ban on displaying election material, including election survey results under Section 126(1)(b) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 applies only to the electronic media, cinematograph or other similar apparatuses and not to the print media. Similarly, the ban on conducting or publicising an exit poll is valid from the commencement of poll hours for the first phase till the end of poll for the last phase. 3. Britain operating spy post from Berlin embassy, new report says Britain has been operating a secret listening post from its Berlin embas sy, a stone's throw from German Chancellor Angela Merkel's office, a media report said Tuesday. The Independent report said Britain's electronic eavesdropping centre GCHQ (Government Communications Headquarters) appeared to be using high-tech equipment on the embassy roof to intercept German data. 4. HC restores cricket stadium to HPCA In A major jolt to the Virbhadra Singh government, the Himachal Pradesh High Court on Tuesday restored possession of the Dharamsala international cricket stadium to the Anurag Thakur-led Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA). The stadium, built in the foothills of the Dhauladhar ranges on 32 acres of land, was taken over by the government late at night on October 26 after the state cabinet, in a meeting presided over by CM Virbhadra Singh, cancelled the grant of lease of all lands handed to the HPCA. Kangra deputy commissioner was directed to immediately take possession of the stadium. 5. First National Institute of Disaster Response to be set up in Nagpur
The first National Institute of Disaster Response (NIDR) will be set up on the outskirts of Kamptee in Nagpur district. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) officials said land had been allotted and the Union Home Ministry was set to approve the Rs 190-crore project. The world-class facility would train future battalions of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), central and state forces and units from foreign countries, NDMA Vice-Chairperson M Shashidhar Reddy said. 6. Opinion Poll An opinion poll, sometimes simply referred to as a poll, is a survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence intervals. Opinion polls for many years were maintained through telecommunications or in person-to-person contact. Methods and techniques vary, though they are widely accepted in most areas. Verbal, ballot, and processed types can be conducted efficiently, contrasted with other types of surveys, systematics, and complicated matrices beyond previous orthodox procedures. 7. National Investigation Agency(NIA) National Investigation Agency (NIA) is a federal agency established by the Indian Government to combat terror in India. It acts as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency. The agency is empowered to deal with terror related crimes across states without special permission from the states. The Agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by the Parliament of India on 31 December 2008. Agency aims to be a thoroughly professional investigative agency matching the best international standards. It aims to set the standards of excellence in counter terrorism and other national security related investigations at the national level by developing into a highly trained, partnership oriented workforce. It also aims at creating deterrence for existing and potential terrorist groups/individuals. It aims to develop as a storehouse of all terrorist related information. 8. Geological Survey of India(GSI) Geological Survey of India (GSI), established in 1851, is a government organization in India which is an office attached to the Ministry of Mines of Union Government of India for conducting geological surveys and studies. It is one of the oldest of such organizations in the world and the second oldest survey in the country. GSI is the prime provider of basic earth science information to the government, industry and the general public, as well as responsive participant in international geoscientific fora. The vibrant steel, coal, metals, cement and power industries.
27/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
9. Border Roads Organisation(BRO) The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) maintains roads that serve the borders areas of India. It is staffed with a combination of Border Roads Engineering Service officers from the General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF) and officers from the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army civil engineers from College of Military Engineering Kirkee Pune. The organisation develops and maintains arterial roads on the borders of India. The BRO is also involved in the construction of a tunnel at the Rohtang pass. BRO's activities have also helped to accelerate the economic development of the North and North-Eastern border states of India. The road-construction teams have to deal with harsh climatic conditions. The BRO faces environments like the icy Himalayan mountaintops, the marshes of West Bengal, and the deserts in Rajasthan.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 7, 2013 1. Mars mission set for orbit-raising
The first of the six orbit raisings of Mangalyaan would be carried out in the early hours of Thursday. The maneuver would be conduted by Isro scientists sitting at a satellite tracking and telemetry centre in Bangalore at around 1.15 am. The orbit of the spacecraft, launched at 2.38 pm Tuesday and placed in a 246.9 km-by-23,566 km Earth parking orbit, would be raised to a height of 28,790 km, Isro officials said. 2. Madhya Pradesh invoking terror law on flimsy grounds: JTSA
Police in Madhya Pradesh have been invoking the tough Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against Muslim youths on "flimsy grounds" such as "shouting slogans", "pasting posters", "carrying incriminating literature" or being "sympathetic" to SIMI, research by the Jamia Teacher Solidarity Association (JTSA) has found. 3. CO2, methane level at a record high: WMO The World Meteorological Organization's (WMO) annual Greenhouse Gas Bulletin released Wednesday in Geneva said greenhouse gases reached a record high in 2012 with carbon dioxide and methane touching a new high. The CO2 increase accounted for 80% of the increase and was just hovering below the 400 parts per million (ppm) mark it is expected to touch in in 2015 or 2016, the bulletin said. 4. India to get $10 bn ADB assistance for five years The Asian Development Bank on Wednesday announced plans to provide an annual $2 billion loan to India for the next five years till 2017 but warned that the country will have to resolve complex policy and regulatory issues to return to a high growth path. 5. Kerala unveils rehabilitation plan for Saudi returnees The Kerala Cabinet took a series of decisions on Wednesday to rehabilitate Keralites who are forced to return from Saudi Arabia following the implementation of Nitaqat in that country. The government will enlist the help of Indian employers in the Gulf to make jobs available to returnees who want to go back to the Gulf for work. A separate database of those seeking such employment will be prepared for assistance through the job portal of the Non-Resident Keralites Affairs Department (NoRKA) and the recruitment system of the Overseas Development and Employment Promotion Consultants (ODEPEC). A special package will be arranged for them, combining the skill development programme of the Industries Department and the skill upgrade training programme of NoRKA-Roots. While 1.3 lakh Indians had to return under nitaqat, India campaigned among its expatriates in Saudi Arabia to impress upon them need to have proper visa and work documents. The government engaged intensively with the parents of about 50,000 children studying in 10 Indian schools in Saudi Arabia. 6. Review FDI policy in defence: IAF officer Air Marshal P.P. Reddy VM, Director General (Inspection & Safety), Indian Air Force, wanted a rethink of the governments policy of putting 26 per cent limit on foreign direct investment (FDI) in defence. I do not think it is attractive for the foreign industry. Why do we restrict FDI? We need to ponder over it, he said. There have been attempts by the Commerce and Industry Ministry in the past to raise the FDI limit to 49 per cent, but Defence Minister, A.K. Antony had taken a firm stand against it. The government had stated it was ready to consider increased FDI on a case-tocase basis for induction of state-of-the-art technology. 7. National Commission for Women(NCW) The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act. The first head of the commission was Ms. Jayanti Patnaik. The present head of the Commission is Mrs. Mamta Sharma, former MLA of Bundi district, Rajasthan. The objective of the NCW is to represent the rights of women in India and to provide a voice for their issues and concerns. The subjects of their campaigns have included dowry, politics, religion, equal representation for women in jobs, and the exploitation of women for labour. They have also discussed police abuses against women. 8. International Film Festival of India (IFFI) The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually in the beach state of Goa, on the western coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excellence of the film art; contributing to the understanding and appreciation of film cultures of different nations in the context of their social and cultural ethos; and promoting friendship and cooperation among people of the world. The festival is conducted jointly by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the government of Goa. 9. Greenhouse Gas A greenhouse gas (sometimes abbreviated GHG) is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. In the Solar System, the atmospheres of Venus, Mars, and Titan also contain gases that cause greenhouse effects. Greenhouse gases greatly affect the temperature of the Earth; without them, Earth's surface would average about 33 C (59 F) colder than the present average of 14 C (57 F). 10.Free-Trade Area (FTA) A free-trade area is a trade bloc whose member countries have signed a free-trade agreement (FTA), which eliminates tariffs, import quotas, and preferences on most (if not all) goods and services traded between them. If people are also free to move between the countries, in addition to FTA, it would also be considered an open border. It can be considered the second stage of economic integration. Countries choose this kind of economic integration if their economic structures are complementary. If their economic structures are competitive, it is likely there will be no incentive for a FTA, or only selected areas of goods and services will be covered to fulfill the economic interests between the two signatories of
28/45
2/8/2014
FTA.
Okkal

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 8, 2013 1. Enhance Indo-Pak trade relations Enhanced trade and investment relations between India and Pakistan will play a critical role in improving overall bilateral relations between the two countries. This was the message conveyed by Rahul Khullar, chairman of Trai and Zafar Mahmood, member of Punjab Public Service Commission, Pakistan, at a lecture on Indo-Pak trade relations, organised by the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER). 2. Re to stabilise in a day or two: FinMin As the rupee weakened against the US dollar in early trade, the finance ministry said it will stabilise within a few days as strong inflows of NRI deposits and robust export proceeds are expected. "Strong FCNR (B) inflows, export realisation will strengthen rupee... Rupee will stabilise in 1 or 2 days," Arvind Mayaram, economic affairs secretary, said. The weakness in rupee, he added, was due to shifting 30-40 per cent of state-run oil companies demand to open market. Consistent dollar buying by some state-run banks in recent sessions had led to speculation that refiners were meeting some of their dollar demand directly from the market. 3. 'Bill to give UIDAI legal status in next session' The Bill that seeks to provide statutory status to the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) will be introduced in the winter session next month. "All necessary steps have been taken for introduction of the National Identification Authority of India Bill, 2013 in the winter session likely to commence from the 1st week of the next month," Planning Commission said. According to the press release, the Cabinet has already approved the proposal submitted by the Ministry of Planning for moving official amendments to the Bill last month. 4. 1st orbit raising of Mangalyaan a success The first of the six orbit-raising to generate velocity to ultimately catapult Mangalyaan from the Earth orbit towards Mars on December 1 was successfully carried out at 1.17 am Thursday. "All systems aboard the spacecraft are functioning normally. Further orbit-raising maneuvers using the 440 Newton liquid engine (NLE) have been planned in the next few days, following which the spacecraft will be put on Mars transfer trajectory on December 1," Isro said. 5. RBI pact with central bank of Australia The Reserve Bank of India has signed cooperation agreement with central banks of Australia and New Zealand for exchange of information. The MoUs provide a formal, yet legally non-binding, channel for information exchange between the supervisors, the RBI said in a statement. With this, the Reserve Bank has signed such MoUs with 18 supervisors. 6. Goa International Film Festival to kick off on Nov. 20 India will host two international film festivals in November. The Childrens Film Festival will be held in Hyderabad between 14th and 20th, followed immediately by the International Film Festival of India between the 20th and 30th of this month. 7. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research(CSIR) Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) established in 1942, is an autonomous body and India's largest research and development (R&D) organisation, with 37 laboratories and 39 field stations or extension centres spread across the nation, with a collective staff of over 17,000. Although CSIR is mainly funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology, it operates as an autonomous body registered under the Registration of Societies Act of 1860. The research and development activities of CSIR includes various fields such as aerospace engineering, Structural engineering, ocean sciences, Life sciences, metallurgy, chemicals, mining, food, petroleum, leather, and environment. 8. Ministry of Commerce and Industry The Ministry of Commerce and Industry administers two departments, the Department of Commerce and the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion. The head of the Ministry is a Minister of Cabinet rank. The incumbent Minister of Commerce and Industry is Anand Sharma, who has held the post since 9 May 2009 and is assisted by Minister of State for Commerce & Industry Sudarsana Natchiappan. The department is entrusted with formulating and implementing the foreign trade policy and responsibilities relating to multilateral and bilateral commercial relations, state trading, export promotion measures, and development and regulation of certain export oriented industries and commodities. 9. DMICDC Delhi - Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) is India's most ambitious Infrastructure programme aiming to develop new industrial cities as "Smart Cities" and converging next generation technologies across infrastructure sectors. The objective is to expand India's manufacturing and services base and develop DMIC as a "Global Manufacturing and Trading Hub". The programme will provide a major impetus to planned urbanization in India with manufacturing as the key driver. In addition to new Industrial Cities, the programme envisages development of infrastructure linkages like pioneer plants, assured water supply, high capacity transportation and logistics facilities as well as softer interventions like skill development programme for employment of the local populace. In the first phase seven new industrial cities are being developed. The programme has been conceptualized in partnership and collaboration with Government of Japan. 10.National Human Rights Commission(NHRC) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India is an autonomous public body constituted on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Ordinance of 28 September 1993. It was given a statutory basis by the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (TPHRA). The NHRC is the national human rights institution, responsible for the protection and promotion of human rights, defined by the Act as "rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants". 11. Central Forensic Science Laboratory(CFSL) The Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) is a wing of the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs, which fulfills the forensic requirements in the country. It houses the only DNA repository in South and Southeast Asia. There are four central forensic laboratories in India, at Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh and New Delhi. CFSL Hyderabad is centre of excellence in chemical sciences, CFSL Kolkata (oldest laboratory in India) in biological sciences and CFSL Chandigarh in physical sciences. These laboratories are under the control of the Directorate of Forensic Science (DFS) of the Ministry of Home Affairs. 12. Non-performing asset(NPA) A Non-performing asset (NPA) is defined as a credit facility in respect of which the interest and/or installment of principal has remained past due
29/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
for a specified period of time. NPA is a classification used by financial institutions that refer to loans that are in jeopardy of default. Once the borrower has failed to make interest or principal payments for 90 days the loan is considered to be a non-performing asset. Non-performing assets are problematic for financial institutions since they depend on interest payments for income. Troublesome pressure from the economy can lead to a sharp increase in non-performing loans and often results in massive write-downs.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 9, 2013 1. National Green Tribunal issues notice to Environment Ministry on idol immersion The National Green Tribunal has issued a notice to the Ministry of Environment and Forest and Ministry of Water Resources regarding immersions of idols in rivers and water bodies of the country. This follows a petition filed to the Tribunal by city-based environmentalist Subhas Datta demanding a uniform, practical, pragmatic and well-accepted standard operating procedure for immersions. 2. Unlisted firms can directly raise funds abroad: RBI The Reserve Bank of India on Friday said unlisted companies can directly list on stock exchanges abroad to raise funds for acquisitions or retiring overseas debts, a move which may help India containing high current account deficit. As of now, unlisted companies are not allowed to directly list in overseas markets without prior or simultaneous listing in Indian markets. 3. Indian Hotels drops bid for Orient-Express Tata group's Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL) on Friday said it would not pursue its $ 1.86 billion bid to acquire the Bermuda-based OrientExpress Hotels. 4. US, Israel lose UNESCO voting right in dispute American influence in culture, science and education around the world took a high-profile blow Friday after the US automatically lost voting rights at UNESCO, after missing a crucial deadline to repay its debt to the world's cultural agency. 5. Minorities Commission chairman slams 'misuse' of police authority Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities, Wajahat Habibullah, has said that possession of a Quran is treated as incriminating evidence in terror related cases against Muslims. "But when they are asked to read the incendiary portions from the said texts in courts, the policemen cannot read it," he said. 6. NAC second term a mixed bag as policy issues get stuck The second term of the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) has at best been a mixed bag with several of its key recommendations yet to see the light of day. According to its recent report for the period of June 2010 to July 2013, a substantial number of policy recommendations are still "under consideration" by the government, including the crucial Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice and Repatriation) Bill, 2011. 7. Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) It has sole authority to deal with matters concerning children in conflict with law. A Juvenile Justice Board has to be constituted for each district or group of districts, and consists of two social workers and a Judicial Magistrate. This is an attempt to bring change in the nature of the inquiry and decriminalize the administration of juvenile justice through the presence of the two social workers. Once the crime is committed and the child is apprehended, the case comes before the JJB. Till the inquiry is pending the child is kept in an observation home, unless otherwise released as per the law. On conviction, the child is sent to the special home or place of safety. 8. MFN Status In international economic relations and international politics, "most favoured nation" (MFN) is a status or level of treatment accorded by one state to another in international trade. The term means the country which is the recipient of this treatment must, nominally, receive equal trade advantages as the "most favoured nation" by the country granting such treatment. (Trade advantages include low tariffs or high import quotas.) In effect, a country that has been accorded MFN status may not be treated less advantageously than any other country with MFN status by the promising country. There is a debate in legal circles whether MFN clauses in bilateral investment treaties include only substantive rules or also procedural protections. 9. Central Vigilance Commission(CVC) Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) is an apex Indian governmental body created in 1964 to address governmental corruption. It has the status of an autonomous body, free o f control from any executive authority, charged with monitoring all vigilance activity under the Central Government of India, and advising various authorities in central Government organizations in planning, executing, reviewing and reforming their vigilance work.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 10, 2013 1. Nobel Memorial Wall unveiled at Rajiv Chowk The Embassy of Sweden and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation on Saturday jointly inaugurated the Nobel Memorial Wall at the Rajiv Chowk metro station. This year, the Nobel Memorial Week is dedicated to Rabindranath Tagores centenary of winning the Nobel Prize in Literature. The Nobel Memorial Wall has a bust of Ta gore against the original text of his Nobel Prize nomination, which has been procured by the Swedish Embassy from the Swedish Academy. 2. Chandigarh moots underground nuke shelter for 'top brass'
Of all places in the world that might be in the direct line of fire of nuclear and chemical warfare, Chandigarh city is most worried. The Chandigarh administration has mooted setting up of an underground safe house shelter for its "top brass" in case of a chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear (CBRN) attack on the city. This "CBRN safe house" to cost approximately Rs 40 crore would be built 2 to 5 metres underground and could house the city's top IAS and IPS officers for at least seven days in an emergency, according to the minutes of the meetings and memo sent
30/45
2/8/2014
by former IGP, P K Srivastava, to the UT Home Secretary, Anil Kumar.
Okkal
3. Cyprus to hold talks for removal of tax 'non cooperation' tag The government of Cyprus has said it will hold talks with India's income tax department this month to help remove the tag of a tax-noncooperating jurisdiction that India had given the tag to the Mediterranean island nation last week. 4. Olympic torch in spacewalk The Olympic torch unlit was taken for a spacewalk on Saturday in a showcasing of Russias hosting of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games in three months time. Oleg Kotov ventured outside the International Space Station with the torch in his gloved hand. It was tethered to his spacesuit to ensure it did not spin away in orbit 420 km above the Earth. 5. Typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops in the western part of the Pacific Ocean between 180 and 100E. This region is referred to as the northwest Pacific basin. For organizational purposes, the northern Pacific Ocean is divided into three regions: the eastern (North America to 140W), central (140W to 180), and western (180 to 100E). The Regional Specialized Meteorological Center (RSMC) for tropical cyclone forecasts is in Japan, with other tropical cyclone warning centers for the northwest Pacific in Honolulu (the Joint Typhoon Warning Center), the Philippines, and Hong Kong. While the RSMC names each system, the main name list itself is coordinated amongst 18 countries who have territories threatened by typhoons each year. The Philippines uses their own naming list for systems which approach the country. 6. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals(PETA)
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is an American animal rights organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. A non-profit corporation with 300 employees, it claims to have three million members and supporters and to be the largest animal rights group in the world. Its slogan is "animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, use for entertainment or abuse in any way." 7. None of the Above(NOTA) None of the Above (NOTA), also known as "against all" or a "scratch" vote, is a ballot option in some jurisdictions or organizations, designed to allow the voter to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in a voting system. It is based on the principle that consent requires the ability to withhold consent in an election, just as they can by voting no on ballot questions. When None of the Above is listed on a ballot, there is the possibility of NOTA receiving a majority or plurality of the vote, and so "winning" the election. In such a case, a variety of formal procedures may be invoked, including having the office remain vacant, having the office filled by appointment, re-opening nominations or holding another election (in a body operating under parliamentary procedure), or it may have no effect whatsoever, as in the state of Nevada, where the next highest total wins regardless.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 11, 2013 1. Middle Eastrespiratory syndrome coronav irus The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a novel coronavirus (nCoV) first reported on 24 September 2012 on ProMED-mail by Egyptian virologist Dr. Ali Mohamed Zaki in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. As of 31 October 2013, the World Health Organisation confirmed that 149 people have contracted MERS worldwide, of which 63 have died. 2. Arundhati Roy writing her second novel Writer Arundhati Roy has been in the limelight since her debut novel The God of Small Things won the Booker Prize in 1997. But the criticallyacclaimed book remains, to date, her only novel. All of Ms. Roys writing since then has focused on political issues from the Maoist movement to capitalism. The author, however, is now working on her second novel. 3. Cinema does not only entertain, it is a great unifier too: Amitabh Bachchan Very few institutions in the fast-disintegrating world can boast of the integration that cinema provides, Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan said here on Sunday at the inauguration of the 19 th Kolkata International Film Festival. Apart from being a great medium of entertainment cinema has always played the role of a unifier and integrator. 4. Ageing dams not being decommissioned, reveals International Rivers report A report by International Rivers, an NGO campaigning against destructive dam projects worldwide, has highlighted the absence of policies regarding decommissioning of old dams in India.Ageing dams are a serious concern in India. The report reviews the lifecycle of dams and its relation to the safety of the riverine system and downstream areas. These concerns should be introduced in mainstream policy debates, said Bharat Lal Seth, South Asia Program Coordinator, International Rivers. 5. 'I am Malala Malala Yousufzai's book has been banned in Pakistan's private schools after the teenage activist was accused of becoming a tool of the West for writing "highly controversial" contents in her memoir. The All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) issued a statement, saying it has been decided that Malala's book, 'I am Malala', will never be made part of the libraries or the curriculum in private schools. 6. Trade Deficit An economic measure of a negative balance of trade in which a country's imports exceeds its exports. A trade deficit represents an outflow of domestic currency to foreign markets. Economic theory dictates that a trade deficit is not necessarily a bad situation because it often corrects itself over time. However, a deficit has been reported and growing in the United States for the past few decades, which has some economists worried. This means that large amounts of the U.S. dollar are being held by foreign nations, which may decide to sell at any time. A large increase in dollar sales can drive the value of the currency down, making it more costly to purchase imports. 7. Rihand Thermal Power Station Rihand Thermal Power Station is located at Rihandnagar in Sonbhadra district in Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The power plant is one of the coal based power plants of NTPC. Rihand Thermal Power Station has an installed capacity of 2500 MW. The First unit was commissioned in March 1988. The coal for the plant is derived from Amlori and Dudhichua mines. The water source is from Rihand Reservoir which is constructed on Son river. NTPC rihand is situated 75 km away from Renukoot railway station. By personal cab or public transport bus, one can reach rihandnagar. Local
31/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
market outside NTPC township is Bijpur. If one is interested in little bit bigger market, one has to Waidhan which is 30 km away from rihandnagar. 8. Department of Atomic Energy(DAE) The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is a department directly under the Prime Minister of India with headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The department is responsible for nuclear technology, including nuclear power and research. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) was constituted on November 15, 1983 by the President of India by exercising the powers conferred by Section 27 of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (33 of 1962) to carry out certain regulatory and safety functions under the Act. The regulatory authority of AERB is derived from the rules and notifications promulgated under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 and the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986. 9. Geomagnetic Reversal
A geomagnetic reversal is a change in the Earth's magnetic field such that the positions of magnetic north and magnetic south are interchanged. The Earth's field has alternated between periods of normal polarity, in which the direction of the field was the same as the present direction, and reverse polarity, in which the field was the opposite. These periods are called chrons. The time spans of chrons are randomly distributed with most being between 0.1 and 1 million years with an average of 450,000 years.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 12, 2013 1. Saudi authorities willing to go the extra mile for Indians, says Consul-General The Embassy of India, Riyadh, was one of the first diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia to bring out detailed guidelines for Indians, which were disseminated through the media, Indian community, and by word of mouth to reach out to the last individual in the country. It is one of the primary reasons why Indian missions in the country were not only ahead of their counterparts in assisting Indians but also completed almost all their work in time while others languished and are presently demanding another extension of the grace period. We used our available resources, including community members and Indian International Schools to disseminate information and help immigrants with paper work and legalisation process during the grace period. 2. Defying Maoists, Chhattisgarh votes with its feet Sixty-seven per cent of the electorate in Maoist-hit Bastar and Rajnandgaon districts voted in the first phase of assembly elections in Chhattisgarh on Monday. As the region witnessed the heaviest turnout in a decade, some tribal constituencies saw up to 75 per cent polling. 3. SC breather for government over bungalow allotment In the dock for its decision to allot a bungalow in New Delhi to a UPSC member instead of a retired judge, the government earned a breather from the Supreme Court Monday after it handed out a fresh order of allotting a prized Type VII bungalow to the former judge. The Centre informed a Bench of Justices C K Prasad and Kurian Joseph that a new bungalow had been allotted to the retired judge and that a formal order had been passed. 4. India calls for resolution of crisis in Maldives India has sought a quick second round of presidential elections in the Maldives even as the outgoing President Mohammed Waheed defied international pressure and declared that he will stay on until his successor is sworn in. As the political crisis in the Maldives deepened, the Indian High Commission said it was disappointed that the run-off for the presidential elections was not held Sunday as scheduled and hoped that a newly elected President is sworn in at the earliest. 5. Gas dispute: SC declines stay on RIL arbitration petition The Supreme Court Monday declined to stay the hearing relating to the appointment of a arbitrator for adjudication of dispute between Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and the government over recovery of cost for developing the country's key natural gas field in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin. 6. Foreign Institutional Investor FII An investor or investment fund that is from or registered in a country outside of the one in which it is currently investing. Institutional investors include hedge funds, insurance companies, pension funds and mutual funds. The term is used most commonly in India to refer to outside companies investing in the financial markets of India. International institutional investors must register with the Securities and Exchange Board of India to participate in the market. One of the major market regulations pertaining to FIIs involves placing limits on FII ownership in Indian companies. 7. Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation, abbreviated to EPFO, is a statutory body of the Government of India under the Ministry of Labour and Employment. It administers a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme. It is one of the largest social security organisations in the India in terms of the number of covered beneficiaries and the volume of financial transactions undertaken. The EPFO's apex decision making body is the Central Board of Trustee (CBT). 8. National Disaster Management Authority The National Disaster Management Authority (reporting name: NDMA), is an independent, autonomous, and constitutionally established disaster preparedness federal institution mandate and responsible to deal with whole spectrum of disaster management and preparedness in the country. The NDMA formulate and enforces national disaster policies at federal and provisional levels and collaborated closely with various government ministries, military forces, and United Nation-based organizations to jointly coordinate efforts to conduct its disaster management, search and rescue, and wide range of humanitarian operations in the country and abroad. The NDMA aims to develop sustainable operational capacity and professional competence to undertake its humanitarian operations at its full capacity. 9. Information Technology Act 2000 The Information Technology Act 2000 (also known as ITA-2000, or the IT Act) is an Act of the Indian Parliament (No 21 of 2000) notified on October 17, 2000. This act is being opposed by Save Your Voice campaign and other civil society organizations in India. User-review and consumer social networking site MouthShut.com has filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court of India to repeal and nullify parts of IT Act 2000. Information technology Act 2000 consisted of 94 sections segregated into 13 chapters. Four schedules form part of the Act. In the 2008 version of the Act, there are 124 sections (excluding 5 sections that have been omitted from the earlier version) and 14 chapters. Schedule I and II have been replaced. Schedules III and IV are deleted.
32/45
2/8/2014
Okkal

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 13, 2013 1. India PM offers condolences, rushes relief Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday conveyed his condolences to Philippines President Benigno Aquino over the catastrophe and offered India's help in relief and rehabilitation efforts. "The scale and severity of the death and destruction caused by the typhoon has saddened and shocked us," Singh said in his message to Aquino. 2. India backs Iran's 'uranium enrichment' right Going beyond its traditional approach of stating its conventional position, India has for the first time gone a step ahead to articulate support for Iran's right to "uranium enrichment" a contentious issue between Tehran and the international community for peaceful use of nuclear power. This was put in a joint statement of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral meeting. 3. Coal panel calls for de-allocation of at least five captive blocks After over 15 days of deliberations, an Inter-Ministerial Group of the coal ministry has recommended de-allocation of at least five captive blocks, freeing coal reserves worth 5.6 billion tonne to be auctioned in the near future. It has also suggested imposing heavy financial penalties on 17 firms found partially responsible for idling on their coal blocks. 4. TRAIs U-turn on spectrum pricing can cause Rs. 35,000-crore loss, says Sinha Bharatiya Janata Party leader Yashwant Sinha has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, alleging that changes in the telecom sector could cost the exchequer up to Rs. 35,000 crore. As per the TRAI recommendations, the reserve price for 1 MHz of spectrum of a Pan-India basis in 1800 MHz band has been reduced from Rs. 2,376 crore to Rs.1,496 crore or by 37%. In the case of key circles like Mumbai and Delhi, this reduction is much steeper by more than 50%. Similarly, for spectrum in 900 MHz band, the TRAI has proposed a reduction in reserve price in three Metro Service Areas by almost 62%, from Rs.1,718 crore to Rs. 650 crore for block of 1 MHz spectrum. 5. Decision on CHOGM not a boycott External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid, who is leaving for Colombo on Wednesday, said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Manmohan Singhs decision not to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) should not be interpreted as India boycotting the multinational session. 6. Mauritius PM to skip CHOGM Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Chandra Ramgoolam has decided to skip the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). He told Parliament that his decision was taken in the face of absence of progress in Sri Lanka in respect of human rights, AFP reports.However, Mauritian Foreign Minister Arvin Boolell, who was at the CHOGM press conference here, said there was no judgmental posturing in this decision. We [Mauritius and Sri Lanka] have excellent relations. I am here representing my Prime Minister, he said. Mauritius, incidentally, will host CHOGM 2015. 7. National Investigation Agency(NIA) National Investigation Agency (NIA) is a federal agency established by the Indian Government to combat terror in India. It acts as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency. The agency is empowered to deal with terror related crimes across states without special permission from the states. The Agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by the Parliament of India on 31 December 2008. 8. Non-bank financial companies(NBFCs) Non-bank financial companies (NBFCs) are financial institutions that provide banking services without meeting the legal definition of a bank, i.e. one that does not hold a banking license. These institutions are not allowed to take deposits from the public. Nonetheless, all operations of these institutions are still exercised under bank regulation. However this depends on the jurisdiction, as in some jurisdictions, such as New Zealand, any company can do the business of banking, and there are no banking licenses issued. If an organisation in New Zealand intends to describe itself as a bank and intends to use the word bank in its title it must first receive approval and official registration and thus licence from the nation's central bank, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 14, 2013 1. Study finds bird flu virus adapted to human infection
A 20-year-old woman who was hospitalised in Taiwan in May 2013 with shortness of breath has been found to be infected with a novel H6N1 avian influenza virus subtype. The woman did not come in contact with poultry or have a travel history three months prior to getting infected with the virus. According to a paper published on November 14, 2013 in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine , the virus in question was generated through intercede reassortment. Genetic analysis of the virus showed that it has evolved the ability to target a particular receptor (SA-2,6) in the human upper respiratory tract. The very ability to target a human receptor is proof that the virus has adapted to human infection. 2. Bangalore is major e-waste generator Indias IT capital produces nearly 37,000 tonnes of electronic waste every year, putting it in third place in e-waste generation after Mumbai (61,000) and New Delhi (43,000), says a White Paper on electronic waste management released by ASSOCHAM at a seminar on e-waste on Wednesday. More than 70 per cent of e-waste contributors are government, public and private industries, while household waste contributes about 15 per cent. Televisions, refrigerators and washing machines make up the majority of e-waste, while computers account for another 20 per cent and mobile phones 2 per cent, says the report. 3. Exempt populated zones in Western Ghats from ESA Legislators representing constituencies falling within the Western Ghats region in Kerala have reiterated their demand to exempt populated zones from the Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESAs) demarcated by the Kasturirangan committee on conservation of the Western Ghats.
33/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
4. Mumbai Elevated Rail Corridor set to derail DESPITE push from the Planning Commission and the PMO for the past six years, the estimated Rs 20,000 crore public-private-partnership project of Mumbai Elevated Rail Corridor the biggest in India is set to go off-track, thanks to strong opposition from the Maharashtra government.
5. Flash details of complaint committee online, install CCTVs, I&B panel tells AIR Admitting that women presenters at All India Radio (AIR) had made allegations of sexual harassment and there is lack of information on how to report such incidents, an inquiry committee set up by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry has recommended that the broadcaster should give details of the complaints committee on its website and install CCTV cameras "at key places" to curb the problem. 6. RBI Deputy Gov stresses on institutional control Given the fact that public institutions are not performing with optimal efficiency leading to leakage of revenue, there is an urgent need to strengthen institutional control mechanisms, particularly in banks, financial institutions and PSUs, KC Chakrabarty, deputy governor of RBI, said. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 15, 2013 1. Panic buying of salt in Bihar There was panic buying of salt in four Bihar districts following rumours which led to the arrest of three persons and left State Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Shyam Rajak blaming the Opposition BJP for it.. 2. UNP to boycott CHOGM opening ceremony Sri Lankas main Opposition, the United National Party, will boycott the CHOGM opening ceremony here on Friday, to protest against the government's undemocratic and violent conduct. 3. World Bank, ADB offer Odisha $313m aid International funding agencies, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, have assured financial assistance of $313 million to the Odisha government for restoration and rehabilitation activities in cyclone Phailin-hit areas. 4. Muzaffarnagar probe panels term extended by six months
The Uttar Pradesh government extended by six months on Thursday the term of the Vishnu Sahai Commission probing the communal violence in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining districts. The initial two-month deadline set for the probe panel to submit its report expired on November 9. About 10,000 displaced people are still staying in relief camps in Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts. 5. Article 371 D a sticking point, says Law Ministry
In a significant development that could have implications for the process of division of the State, officials of the Law Ministry reportedly told the Group of Ministers (GoM) that an amendment to Article 371 (D) of the Constitution was necessary as part of bifurcation. Ministry officials told the GoM during their five-hour-long meeting here on Thursday night that an amendment was needed to Article 371 D which lays down special provisions for giving equal opportunities in education and employment. 6. Infant mortality Infant mortality is the death of a child less than one year of age. Childhood mortality is the death of a child before the child's fifth birthday. National statistics tend to group these two mortality rates together. Globally, ten million infants and children die each year before their fifth birthday; 99% of these deaths occur in developing nations. Infant mortality takes away societys potential physical, social, and human capital. Generally the most common cause worldwide has been dehydration from diarrhea, a preventable disease; however, a variety of programs combating this problem have decreased the rate of children dying from dehydration. Many factors contribute to infant mortality such as the mothers level of education, environmental conditions, and political and medical infrastructure. 7. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws relating to micro, small and medium en terprises in India. Presently headed by K. H. Muniyappa. The President of India amended the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961, under the notification dated 9 May 2007. Pursuant to this amendment, the Ministry of Agro and Rural Industries (India) and the Ministry of Small Scale Industries (India) were merged into a single ministry, the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. 8. Goods and Services Tax (GST) The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a Value Added Tax (VAT) to be implemented in India, the decision on which is pending. It will replace all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Indian Central and State governments. It is aimed at being comprehensive for most goods and services. India is a federal republic, and the GST will thus be implemented concurrently by the central and state governments as the Central GST and the State GST respectively. Exports will be zero-rated and imports will be levied the same taxes as domestic goods and services adhering to the destination principle. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 16, 2013 1. Swedish companies flag growing concerns about India Swedish companies, including furnishing major Ikea, on Friday said that the business climate in India is 'non-favourable' while bureaucracy in the country remains a big challenge for their growth. According to a business climate survey conducted by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in India, though the willingness of Swedish companies to invest in India remains high, 40 per cent of the 157 companies operating in India feel that "the current Indian business climate is non-favourable, a big jump from last year's 28 per cent stating the same". 2. Food inflation needs more than rate hikes to tame, says FM
Finance minister P Chidambaram said the monetary policy did not have any impact on food prices, taking a different view from the Reserve Bank of India's stance. "The only way we can contain food inflation is to augment supplies. For supplies to rise you need greater investment, greater
34/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
production, greater distribution. You need better logistics and you need to reach the products to stores," he said. 3. Sebi to unveil new disclosure norms The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) will come out with detailed guidelines on corporate disclosures in order to improve the governance and transparency standards of listed companies. "There are 1,100 companies which are not compliant with the requirement of Clause 35 of shareholding pattern, which means the direction with regard to shareholding pattern has not been complied with. There are 900 firms which are not compliant with the corporate governance norms as per Clause 49 of the listing norms. You will accept that this can't go on like this," Sebi chairman UK Sinha said while addressing a capital market summit organised by Ficci here. 4. 'Banks' exposure to shadow banking entities up globally India is among the nations which have witnessed a marked increase in the exposure of its banks to 'shadow banking' entities, whose asset base globally grew to $71 trillion in 2012-end, according to an international body of financial regulators. Shadow system refers to credit intermediation involving entities outside the purview of the regular banking system. 5. Forest dept steps in to stop elephant deaths on rail tracks With seventeen elephants being killed on the train track between Siliguri and Alipurduar in Jalpaiguri this year, including four being mowed down on Wednesday, the state Forest Department has decided to introduce scientific methods to keep away the animals every time a train passes through the elephant corridor. The department will install devices on trains that generate infrasonic waves, which can be sensed by elephants. When a train fitted with such a device passes by, the waves will keep elephant herds away. 6. Police begin inquiry into charges against ex-judge The Delhi Police on Friday opened a preliminary inquiry into the charges of sexual harassment made by a former law intern against a Supreme Court judge, a day after the former dean of the Delhi Universitys Faculty of Law filed a complaint. 7. India International Trade Fair The India International Trade Fair, ever since its inception in 1980 has evolved as a major event for the Business community. It is a premier event organized by the India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO), the nodal trade promotion agency of the Government of India. The event is held between 14 - 27 November every year at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, India. The Theme of IITF 2013 is Inclusive Growth with Bihar as Partner State and Japan as Partner Country. 8. Public-Interest Litigation(PIL) Public-Interest Litigation (PIL) is litigation for the protection of the public interest. In Indian law, Article 32 of the Indian constitution contains a tool which directly joints the public with judiciary. A PIL may be introduced in a court of law by the court itself (suo motu), rather than the aggrieved party or another third party. For the exercise of the court's jurisdiction, it is not necessary for the victim of the violation of his or her rights to personally approach the court. In a PIL, the right to file suit is given to a member of the public by the courts through judicial activism. The member of the public may be a non-governmental organization (NGO), an institution or an individual.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 17, 2013 1. Spacecrafts apogee raised again When spacecraft specialists took their seats at the unearthly hour of 1 a.m. on Saturday at the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bangalore, they were in a confident but normal mood. The final orbit-raising manoeuvre on December 1 will shoot the spacecraft out of the earth-centric orbit into a sun-centric orbit. From December 1, the spacecraft will sojourn around the Sun for 300 days before its rendezvous with Mars on September 24, 2014. 2. 'India top sourcing destination for apparel chains'
India has emerged as the most preferred destination for global brands and stores like Zara, H&M, Tommy Hilfiger and Walmart, apex industry body for apparel sector Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) has said. AEPC chairman A Sakthivel said that India's garment industry has its inherent strengths in terms of design and raw material. 3. China signals shift to put market in charge of IPOs
China may reduce the influence of the state on stock markets as part of its sweeping reform agenda, including by making it easier for companies to list their stocks and making management of state-owned enterprises more accountable to shareholders. 4. Plan for US drone strikes was hatched in Germany: report Many American drone strikes for targeted killings in places like Pakistan and Afghanistan are planned and carried out from US military bases in Germany as it has become as a crucial strategic hub for anti-terrorism operations, media reports said. The US has been organising kidnapping and torture of suspected terrorists in other countries from Germany and American security forces used German airports to detain them, a report by German TV channel NDR and the Munich daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung said. 5. DD National fails to telecast Sachin's last Test match
Millions of DD National viewers missed out on watching Sachin Tendulkar's 200th and final Test match appearance on Saturday as the I&B Ministry failed to take a call on repeated requests by Prasar Bharati for a minor change in The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing With Prasar Bharati) Act, 2007, which would have allowed it to broadcast the Wankhede Test without incurring massive losses. 6. INS Vikramaditya
INS Vikramaditya is a modified Kiev-class aircraft carrier set to enter service with the Indian Navy in 2013. The ship has been renamed in honour of Vikramaditya, a legendary 1st century BC emperor of Ujjain, India, famed for his wisdom, valour and magnanimity. Originally built as Baku and commissioned in 1987, the carrier served with the Soviet (until the dissolution of the Soviet Union) and Russian Navies before being decommissioned in 1996 as she was too expensive to operate on a post-Cold War budget. The carrier was purchased by India on 20 January 2004 after years of negotiations at a final price of $2.35 billion. The ship successfully completed her sea trials in July 2013 and aviation trials in September 2013. She was formally commissioned on 16 November, 2013 at a ceremony held at Severodvinsk, Russia.
35/45
2/8/2014
7. Bar Council of India
Okkal
The Bar Council of India is a statutory body that regulates and represents the Indian bar. It was created by Parliament under the Advocates Act, 1961. It prescribes standards of professional conduct, etiquettes and exercises disciplinary jurisdiction over the bar. It also sets standards for legal education and grants recognition to Universities whose degree in law will serve as a qualification for students to enroll themselves as advocates upon graduation. 8. Archaeological Survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India is an Indian government agency in the Department of Culture that is responsible for archaeological studies and the preservation of cultural monuments. According to its website, the ASI's function is to "explore, excavate, conserve, preserve and protect the monuments and sites of National & International Importance."

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 18, 2013 1. FinMin okays road ministry's plan for safety of women under Nirbhaya Fund The finance ministry has approved plans by the road transport and home ministries and the department of information technology to implement safety improvement measures for women under the Nirbhaya Fund. "The plans by ministry of road transport and highways and home affairs and department of information technology have been selected by the finance ministry," said a senior road transport ministry official. The approvals came in a meeting chaired by the finance minister this month. 2. Nigeria, Ivory Coast & Cameroon book berths Nigeria qualified for the World Cup, continuing an outstanding year for the African champion after it claimed the continental title for the first time in nearly two decades while Ivory Coast qualified for their third straight World Cup in a match played later in Casablanca. 3. Apple buys Israel's PrimeSense for $345 mn Apple has bought PrimeSense, an Israeli maker of chips that enable 3D machine vision, for $345 million, the Calcalist newspaper reported on Sunday. PrimeSense has raised $85 million from Israeli and US venture capital funds such as Canaan Partners Global, Gemini Israel and Genesis Partners, Calcalist said. 4. Doris Lessing, outspoken novelist who won 2007 Nobel, dies at 94 Doris Lessing, the uninhibited and outspoken novelist who won the 2007 Nobel Prize for a lifetime of writing that shattered convention, both social and artistic, died on Sunday at her home in London. She was 94. Her breakthrough novel, The Golden Notebook, a structurally inventive and loosely autobiographical tale, is her best-known work. The 1962 book was daring in its day for its frank exploration of the inner lives of women who, unencumbered by marriage, were free to raise children, or not, and pursue work and their sex lives as they chose. The book dealt openly with topics like menstruation and orgasm, as well as with the mechanics of emotional breakdown. 5. Saudis are worlds biggest Tweeters, India at 21st position
In an unexpected finding, Saudis have emerged as the worlds largest active Twitter users, while Indians ranked among the lowest tweeters on the microblogging site, according to a new research. According to PeerReach, one-third or 32 per cent of the Saudis online population are active monthly Twitter users. However, countries such as India, Nigeria and Germany seem to have very little to tweet with only one per cent active Twitter users in each nation. The study considers active Twitter users to be those who tweet, rather than Twitters metric of those who log in to the service, Mashable reported. Interestingly, U.S., the home of microblogging platform, ranks eighth on the list. 6. Bharat Ratna Award Bharat Ratna is the Republic of India's highest civilian award, for performance of highest order in any field of human endeavour. Any person without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex is eligible for the award. The recommendations for Bharat Ratna are to be made by the Prime Minister of India to the President of India. The holders of the Bharat Ratna rank 7th in the Indian order of precedence; however they do not carry any special title nor any other honorifics. 7. National Commission for Women(NCW) The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act. The present head of the Commission is Mrs. Mamta Sharma, former MLA of Bundi district, Rajasthan. The objective of the NCW is to represent the rights of women in India and to provide a voice for their issues and concerns. The subjects of their campaigns have included dowry, politics, religion, equal representation for women in jobs, and the exploitation of women for labour. They have also discussed police abuses against women. 8. National Pension System(NPS) The National Pension System (NPS) is a defined contribution based pension system launched by Government of India with effect from 1 January 2004. Like most other developing countries, India does not have a universal social security system to protect the elderly against economic deprivation. As a first step towards instituting pension reforms, Government of India moved from a defined benefit pension to a defined contribution based pension system. Apart from offering wide gamut of investment options to employees, this scheme would help government of India to reduce its pension liabilities. Unlike existing pension fund of Government of India that offered assured benefits, NPS has defined contribution and individuals can decide where to invest their money. 9. The Arms Act of 1959 The Arms Act of 1959, is an act of Indian law to consolidate and amend the law relating to arms and ammunition to curb illegal weapons and violence using illegal weapons. The act has undergone many changes since 1959, the most recent being in 2010 through an amendment for the arms act. There was also controversy around air guns to be included as part of this act which was rejected by supreme court of India.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 19, 2013
36/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
1. Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 is the primary legal framework for juvenile justice in India. The Act provides for a special approach towards the prevention and treatment of juvenile delinquency and provides a framework for the protection, treatment and rehabilitation of children in the purview of the juvenile justice system. This law, brought in compliance of Child Rights Convention 1989, repealed the earlier Juvenile Justice Act of 1986 after India signed and ratified Child Rights Convention 1989 in year 1992. This Act has been further amended in year 2006 and 2010. Government of India is once again contemplating bringing further amendments and a review committee has been constituted by Ministry of Women and Child Development which is reviewing the existing legislation. 2. National Commission for Women(NCW) The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act. The first head of the commission was Ms. Jayanti Patnaik. The present head of the Commission is Mrs. Mamta Sharma, former MLA of Bundi district, Rajasthan. The objective of the NCW is to represent the rights of women in India and to provide a voice for their issues and concerns. The subjects of their campaigns have included dowry, politics, religion, equal representation for women in jobs, and the exploitation of women for labour. They have also discussed police abuses against women. 3. Systematic Investment Plan(SIP) A Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) is a vehicle offered by mutual funds to help investors save regularly. It is just like a recurring deposit with the post office or bank where you put in a small amount every month, except the amount is invested in a mutual fund. The minimum amount to be invested can be as small as INR100 (100 Indian Rupees) and the frequency of investment is usually monthly or quarterly. A SIP allows investment in the stock market without trying to second-guess its movements. It is also known as dollar cost averaging. 4. Nuclear Suppliers Group(NSG) Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials. The NSG was founded in response to the Indian nuclear test in May 1974 and first met in November 1975. The test demonstrated that certain non-weapons specific nuclear technology could be readily turned to weapons development. Nations already signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) saw the need to further limit the export of nuclear equipment, materials or technology.
5.
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is a branch of the Government of India is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to information, broadcasting, the press and films in India. The Ministry is responsible for the administration of Prasar Bharatithe broadcasting arm of the Indian Government. The Censor Board of India is the other important body under this ministry being responsible for the regulation of motion pictures shown in India. 6. Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)
The Central Reserve Police Force also known as CRPF is the largest of India's Central Armed Police Forces. It functions under the aegis of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of the Government of India. The CRPF's primary role lies in assisting the State/Union Territories in police operations to maintain law and order and contain insurgency. It came into existence as the Crown Representative's Police on 27 July 1939. After Indian Independence, it became the Central Reserve Police Force on enactment of the CRPF Act on 28 December 1949.

1. National Security Advisor(NSA) The National Security Advisor (NSA) is the chief executive of the National Security Council (NSC), and the primary advisor to the Prime Minister of India on national and international security. It is the National Security Advisor to whom intelligence agencies such as the Research and Analysis Wing and Intelligence Bureau report, rather than directly to the prime minister. Due to such vested powers NSA is a prominent and powerful office in the bureaucracy. All the NSAs appointed since the inception of post belong to Indian Foreign Service except M. K. Narayanan who belonged to Indian Police Service. 2. Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is a national agency of Government of India, with the remit to consider and recommend foreign direct investment (FDI) which does not come under the automatic route. It provides a single window clearance for proposals on FDI in India. In a significant move aimed at expediting flow of foreign investment into the country, the Union Cabinet liberalised the FDI policy further by allowing the FIPB to clear proposals from overseas entities worth up to 1,2566 crore, against the existing limit of 6240 crore. 3. External debt External debt (or foreign debt) is that part of the total debt in a country that is owed to creditors outside the country. The debtors can be the government, corporations or private households. The debt includes money owed to private commercial banks, other governments, or international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. Note that the use of gross liability figures greatly distorts the ratio for countries which contain major money centers. 4. Bhimunipatnam beach.
Bheemunipatnam is a part in Greater Visakhapatnam district, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It was the second municipality in Indian mainland, established on 9 February 1861. 150-Years of its formation has been celebrated in 2011. Bheemunipatnam is supposed to have originated in the days of the mahabharatha (its named after Bheema) as per legends. Most probably its origins were around the 3rd century BCE related to early Buddhism in Andhra Pradesh. 5. India ready to support new government India has welcomed the successful conduct of free and fair elections in Nepal on Tuesday for the Constituent Assembly-cum-Parliament, describing them as an important step towards realising Nepals goal of a democratic and prosperous future. India believes that early promulgation of a new Constitution, together with progress on the development agenda, will contribute to peace, prosperity and stability in Nepal.
37/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
6. Patrolling stepped up in Chilika lake With the onset of winter, patrolling has been stepped up in Chilika lake, which attracts thousands of winged guests during this time every year. At least 17 camps have been set up in the lake, to be manned by over 50 forest personnel.

1. Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is an authority, established by the Constitution of India under Chapter V, who audits all receipts and expenditure of the Government of India and the state governments, including those of bodies and authorities substantially financed by the government. The CAG is also the external auditor of government-owned companies. The reports of the CAG are taken into consideration by the Public Accounts Committees, which are special committees in the Parliament of India and the state legislatures. The CAG is also the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service, which has over 58,000 employees across the country. 2. National Commission for Minorities(NCM)
The Union Government set up the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. Five religious communities, viz; Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) have been notified as minority communities by the Union Government. The NCM adheres to the UN Declaration of 18 December 1992 which states that "States shall protect the existence of the National or Ethnic, Cultural, Religious and Linguistic identity of minorities within their respective territories and encourage conditions for the promotion of that identity.
3. Foreign direct investment(FDI) Foreign direct investment (FDI) is a direct investment into production or business in a country by an individual or company in another country, either by buying a company in the target country or by expanding operations of an existing business in that country. Foreign direct investment is in contrast to portfolio investment which is a passive investment in the securities of another country such as stocks and bonds. Broadly, foreign direct investment includes "mergers and acquisitions, building new facilities, reinvesting profits earned from overseas operations and intra company loans". In a narrow sense, foreign direct investment refers just to building new facilities.
4.
National Spot Exchange(NSEL)
National Spot Exchange (NSEL) is a Commodities exchange in India, and is a joint venture of Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. (FTIL) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED). National Spot Exchange commenced its live trading operations in different commodities on Wednesday, 15 October 2008. It began trading in pre-certified cotton bales for Mumbai delivery and imported gold and silver bars for Ahmedabad delivery immediately, and has since added a number of commodities. National Spot Exchange's stated mission is to develop a common Indian market by setting up a nation-wide electronic spot market and providing state of art trading, delivery, and settlement facilities in various commodities. 5. G-77 The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but by November 2013 the organization had since expanded to 133 member countries. Fiji holds the Chairmanship for 2013. 6. South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around 3,500,000 square kilometres (1,400,000 sq mi). The area's importance largely results from one-third of the world's shipping transiting through its waters, and that it is believed to hold huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed. It is located south of mainland China and the island of Taiwan, west of the Philippines, north west of Sabah (Malaysia), Sarawak (Malaysia) and Brunei, north of Indonesia, north east of the Malay peninsula (Malaysia) and Singapore, and east of Vietnam. 7. Frederick Sanger Was a British biochemist who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry twice, the only person to have done so. In 1958 he was awarded a Nobel prize in chemistry "for his work on the structure of proteins, especially that of insulin". In 1980, Walter Gilbert and Sanger shared half of the chemistry prize "for their contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids". The other half was awarded to Paul Berg "for his fundamental studies of the biochemistry of nucleic acids, with particular regard to recombinant-DNA". He was the fourth person to have been awarded two Nobel Prizes, either individually or in tandem with others. 8. Cyclone Helen Cyclone Helen is going to hit Andhra Pradesh. Cyclone "Helen" would cross the south Andhra Pradesh coast near Kavali on the night of November 21. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

1. ISROS MARS MISSION Mars Orbiter Mission is India's first interplanetary mission to planet Mars with an orbiter craft designed to orbit Mars in an elliptical orbit. The Mission is primarily technological mission considering the critical mission operations and stringent requirements on propulsion and other bus systems of spacecraft. One of the main objectives of the first Indian mission to Mars is to develop the technologies required for design, planning, management and operations of an interplanetary mission. Exploration of Mars surface features, morphology, mineralogy and Martian atmosphere by indigenous scientific
38/45
2/8/2014
instruments.
Okkal
2. WTO The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948. The organization deals with regulation of trade between participating countries; it provides a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements, and a dispute resolution process aimed at enforcing participant's adherence to WTO agreements, which are signed by representatives of member governments and ratified by their parliaments. Most of the issues that the WTO focuses on derive from previous trade negotiations, especially from the Uruguay Round. 3. CHOGM The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting is a biennial summit meeting of the heads of government from all Commonwealth nations. Every two years the meeting is held in a different member state, and is chaired by that nation's respective Prime Minister or President, who becomes the Commonwealth Chairperson-in-Office. Queen Elizabeth II, who is the Head of the Commonwealth, has attended every CHOGM beginning with Ottawa in 1973, although her formal participation only began in 1997.However, she was represented by the Prince of Wales at the 2013 meeting as the 87-year-old monarch is curtailing her overseas travel. The first CHOGM was held in 1971, and there have been twenty-one held in total: the most recent was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. They are held once every two years, although this pattern has twice been interrupted. They are held around the Commonwealth, rotating by invitation amongst its members. 4. ICANN
Created on September 18, 1998. ICANN's primary principles of operation have been described as helping preserve the operational stability of the Internet; to promote competition; to achieve broad representation of the global Internet community; and to develop policies appropriate to its mission through bottom-up, consensus-based processes. 5. Gross domestic product(GDP) of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. a country's standard of livin g; GDP per capita is not a measure of personal income (Standard of living exactly equals the gross domestic income (GDI) per capita (Gross domestic income). GDP is related to GDP is not to be confused with gross national product (GNP) which allocates production based on
Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of and GDP). Under economic theory, GDP per capita national accounts, a subject in macroeconomics. ownership.
6. Sovereign Bonds A government bond is a loan taken out by a national government, generally with a promise to pay periodic interest payments and to repay the face value on the maturity date. Government bonds are usually denominated in the country's own currency. Bonds issued by national governments in foreign currencies are normally referred to as sovereign bonds, although the term "sovereign bond" may also refer to bonds issued in a country's own currency. The terms on which a government can sell bonds depend on how credit worthy the market considers it to be. International credit rating agencies will provide ratings for the bonds, but market participants will make up their own minds about this.

1. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958 with a distinctly civilian (rather than military) orientation encouraging peaceful applications in space science. The National Aeronautics and Space Act was passed on July 29, 1958, disestablishing NASA's predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). The new agency became operational on October 1, 1958 2. Reserve Bank of India(RBI)
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is India's central banking institution, which formulates the monetary policy with regard to the Indian rupee. It was established on 1 April 1935 during the British Raj in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The share capital was divided into shares of 100 each fully paid, which was entirely owned by private shareholders in the beginning. Following India's independence in 1947, the RBI was nationalised in the year 1949.
3. Exchange-Traded Fund(ETF) An exchange-traded fund (ETF) is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. An ETF holds assets such as stocks, commodities, or bonds, and trades close to its net asset value over the course of the trading day. Most ETFs track an index, such as a stock index or bond index. ETFs may be attractive as investments because of their low costs, tax efficiency, and stock-like features. ETFs are the most popular type of exchange-traded product. 4. Panel rejects proposal to include GST in Union List The Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers on Goods and Services Tax (GST) has recommended substantial changes in the Constitutional Amendment Bill proposed by the UPA government. The States feel that when 246A is there, then the Centre should not have to incorporate GST into the Union List. 5. UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Its purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science, and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the UN Charter. It is the heir of the League of Nations' International Commission on Intellectual Cooperation. UNESCO has 196 member States (it recently added Palestine in November 2011) and nine Associate Members. Most of the field offices are "cluster" offices covering three or more countries; there are also national and regional offices. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express) G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER:
39/45
2/8/2014
Okkal

November 24, 2013 1. INS Vikrant to be commissioned by 2017 Indias first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, being built at the C ochin Shipyard Limited and formally launched in August this year, will be commissioned by 2017, the Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral D.K. Joshi, said today. With the commissioning of INS Vikrant, India will join the elite club of nations with the capability of designing and building aircraft carrier indigenously, he told journalists on the sidelines of the passing-out parade at the Indian Naval Academy here. 2. Indian short film Kush among Oscar hopefuls Indian director Shubhashish Bhutianis short film Kush has been selected by the Academy in the short-list of 10 live-action shorts that will advance in the Oscar race.b Three or five films out of these 10 films will be selected for Oscar nomination by the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members. The 25-minute film, stars Sonika Chopra, Shayaan Sameer and Anil Sharma. It has been produced by Shubhashishs father Sanjay Bhutiani through their Red Carpet Moving Pictures banner. 3. Centre asks States to specify steps for safe travel of women In a fresh letter issued to all Chief Secretaries, the Union Urban Development Ministry has asked for details of all steps adopted by the States for providing safe travel for women.States have also been asked to suggest mew measures that need to be adopted to make transport systems safe for women; they have also been asked to send proposals for undertaking measures that can be paid for from the Rs. 1,000 crore Nirbhaya Fund, which was announced by the Centre in the 2013 Union budget, said a senior official of the Ministry. An intelligent transport system (ITS) with cameras in buses was meant to not only create faith in public transport, but also help check the menace of harassment and overcharging, said the official. 4. Goa womens panel seeks report On the alleged sexual harassment of a programmer by an official of the Directorate of Film Festival in the run-up to the ongoing International Film Festival of India here, she said she would write to Director of Film Festival Shankar Mohan on Monday, seeking the entire report of the case. The Delhi-based girl was dissatisfied with the closure of the case after the committee failed to get conclusive evidence. Taking cognisance of the alleged sexual assault by Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal of a woman journalist of the magazine, the Goa State Commission for Women has asked the State police to submit a complete report by Monday. 5. Wyeth India to merge with Pfizer's local unit Drug majors Pfizer and Wyeth today said they will merge their India operations in a share-swap and operate under a single brand, a move that would give the combined entity increased therapeutic presence and a de-risked business profile. The operations would be unified under 'Pfizer brand'. The boards of Pfizer India and Wyeth India approved a swap ratio which would give Wyeth Ltd shareholders 7 Pfizer shares for every 10 they hold. 6. Netizens The term Netizen is a portmanteau of the English words Internet and citizen. It is defined as an entity or person actively involved in online communities and a user of the Internet, especially an avid one. The term can also imply an interest in improving the Internet, especially in regard to open access and free speech. Netizens are also commonly referred to as cybercitizens, which has the same meaning. 7. Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is an authority, established by the Constitution of India under Chapter V, who audits all receipts and expenditure of the Government of India and the state governments, including those of bodies and authorities substantially financed by the government. The CAG is also the external auditor of government-owned companies. The reports of the CAG are taken into consideration by the Public Accounts Committees, which are special committees in the Parliament of India and the state legislatures. The CAG is also the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service, which has over 58,000 employees across the country. 8. Gorkhaland Territorial Administration(GTA)
Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) is a semi-autonomous administrative body for the Darjeeling hills in West Bengal, India. GTA replaced the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, which was formed in 1988 and administered the Darjeeling hills for 23 years. GTA presently has three hill subdivisions Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong and some areas of Siliguri subdivision under its authority. Gorkhaland was the name of the proposed state in India that the Nepali/Gorkhali-speaking Gorkha ethnic group in Darjeeling and the Dooars in north West Bengal have expressed a desire to create. 9. Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is a national agency of Government of India, with the remit to consider and recommend foreign direct investment (FDI) which does not come under the automatic route. It provides a single window clearance for proposals on FDI in India. In a significant move aimed at expediting flow of foreign investment into the country, the Union Cabinet liberalised the FDI policy further by allowing the FIPB to clear proposals from overseas entities worth up to 1,2566 crore, against the existing limit of 6240 crore. Recommendations of FIPB for proposals up to 12566 crore are approved by Minister of Finance. While recommendations for proposals of more than 12566 crore need to be approved by Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 25, 2013 1. Ponzi Scheme A Ponzi scheme is a scam investment designed to separate investors from their money. It is named after Charles Ponzi, who constructed one such scheme at the beginning of the 20th century, though the concept was well known prior to Ponzi. 2. WTO: Cabinet to take strong stand on food security The Cabinet Committee on World Trade Organization on Monday will deliberate on the stand India should take in the upcoming Ninth WTO Ministerial Talks in Bali next month. Ahead of the talks, India is of the view that a watering down of the "peace clause" could help it provide higher subsidy payouts to farmers. "The duration of the peace clause should not be seen as the main issue. Lifting of the subsidy cap could be more useful to a country like ours, which provides minimum support price to more than two dozen crops," said a senior government official.
40/45
2/8/2014
Okkal
3. Obamacare, buyouts boost India's tally of ANDAs A fiscally stressed Washington's policy support to low-priced alternatives to innovator drugs and a flurry of recent acquisitions have helped Indian drug companies outdo their American counterparts in the latter's home turf in securing approvals for generic medicines. According to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data reviewed by FE, one in four abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs) approved by the regulator in 2012 belonged to an Indian company, a shade better than the performance by the US generic drug companies led by Mylan and Watson Labs. Available data for this year (till October-end) have only cemented India's lead. 4. Fall in captive elephant population in Kerala With a ban on bringing in captive elephants from other States in force coupled with the Forest Department putting an end to issuing ownership certificates for elephants, the captive elephant population of the State has plunged from more than 750 three years ago to less that 500 now. While this could be good news for animal rights activists, it is bad news for the remaining captive elephants. Those that remain will be forced to make up for the shortage. With more festivals getting elephant-oriented, the work load is only expected to increase. 5. Adopt organic farming for sustainable agriculture growth: Vandana Shiva Organic farming is needed for sustainable and natural growth of agriculture in the future rather than going for genetic modified (GM) technology, renowned environmentalist Vandana Shiva said. Organic farming, in a way, fulfils every one of the principles of Gross National Happiness. It respects cultural values and promotes protection of the natural environment, whereas genetic modified crops destroy the natural web of life, threaten biodiversity and the environment, and are a scourge for human health and society. 6. Foreign direct investment(FDI) Foreign direct investment (FDI) is a direct investment into production or business in a country by an individual or company in another country, either by buying a company in the target country or by expanding operations of an existing business in that country. Foreign direct investment is in contrast to portfolio investment which is a passive investment in the securities of another country such as stocks and bonds. Broadly, foreign direct investment includes "mergers and acquisitions, building new facilities, reinvesting profits earned from overseas operations and intra company loans". In a narrow sense, foreign direct investment refers just to building new facilities. The numerical FDI figures based on varied definitions are not easily comparable. 7. National Highways Authority of India(NHAI)
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous agency of the Government of India, responsible for management of a network of over 70,000 km of National Highways in India. It is a nodal agency of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The current chairman of the NHAI is Rajinder Pal Singh. The NHAI was created through the promulgation of the National Highways Authority of India Act, 1988. In February 1995, the Authority was formally made an autonomous body. It is responsible for the development, maintenance, management and operation of National Highways, totaling over 71,772 km (44,597 mi) in length. 8. Central Vigilance Commission(CVC) Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) is an apex Indian governmental body created in 1964 to address governmental corruption. It has the status of an autonomous body, free o f control from any executive authority, charged with monitoring all vigilance activity under the Central Government of India, and advising various authorities in central Government organizations in planning, executing, reviewing and reforming their vigilance work. It was set up by the Government of India in February, 1964 on the recommendations of the Committee on Prevention of Corruption, headed by Shri K. Santhanam, to advise and guide Central Government agencies in the field of vigilance. 9. Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority(IRDA) Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) is an autonomous apex statutory body which regulates and develops the insurance industry in India. It was constituted by a Parliament of India act called Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999 and duly passed by the Government of India. The agency operates its headquarters at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh where it shifted from Delhi in 2001. The Insurance regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), batted for a hike in the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit to 49 per cent in the sector from the present 26 per cent. The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill has been pending before Parliament for about four years as there has been no consensus among political parties on the issue of raising the FDI limit to 49 per cent.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 26, 2013 1. Pakistan deploys first domestic drones The Pakistani military deployed its first fleet of domestically developed drones Monday, as police cracked down on a protest by demonstrators angry at the US for using similar aircraft to attack Islamic militants in the country. The new Burraq and Shahpar drones will be used by the Pakistani army and air force, the military said in a statement. It was unclear whether the aircraft are armed or unarmed, and military officials did not immediately respond to request for comment. 2. Over 11,000 children killed in Syria: Study More than 11,000 children have been killed in Syria since the conflict there began over two and a half years ago, many of them summarily executed or targeted by snipers, a UK-based think tank said in a report published on Sunday. The Oxford Research Group study, which called on all sides in the conflict to stop targeting children, said seven out of 10 children killed in the war had lost their lives in shell fire, by aerial bombardment or by improvised explosive devices. 3. Nepali Cong chief Koirala projected as next PM The Nepali Congress maintained its lead over other parties as the counting for votes under the proportional respresentation system continued. The party has staked its claim - though not yet officially - to head the government and has projected party chief Sushil Koirala as the new Prime Minister. 4. Power-deficit Kenya bets big on geothermal energy The region is considered one of the most exciting geothermal prospects in the world. Where Mr. Kirimi and his team have drilled wells, water heated by molten lava roars like a jet engine as it bursts out of the ground. East Africa is undergoing an energy revolution driven by massive offshore natural gas finds in Tanzania and notable oil discoveries in Kenya and Uganda, all in the past three years. Energy from these hydrocarbons is yet to be realised, however. The domestic shortfall is a major hindrance to growth, leaving millions of people literally living in the
41/45
2/8/2014
dark. 5.
Okkal
SC refuses to direct EC to hold fresh polls if majority exercise NOTA option
The Supreme Court on Monday refused to direct the Election Commission to hold fresh polls if the majority of the electorate exercises None of the Above Option (NOTA) in the electronic voting machines while casting their votes. A three-judge of Chief Justice P. Sathasivam and Justices Ranjana Desai and Ranjan Gogoi told the counsel for the petitioner that it was for the legislature to amend the law as it was too early to pass such a direction. The CJI said: The NOTA has been introduced recently and it remains to be seen how the people respond to it. We cannot give such a direction. It is for Parliament to amend the law. If you want, you give a representation to the government. 6. Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) It has sole authority to deal with matters concerning children in conflict with law. A Juvenile Justice Board has to be constituted for each district or group of districts, and consists of two social workers and a Judicial Magistrate. This is an attempt to bring change in the nature of the inquiry and decriminalize the administration of juvenile justice through the presence of the two social workers. Once the crime is committed and the child is apprehended, the case comes before the JJB. Till the inquiry is pending the child is kept in an observation home, unless otherwise released as per the law. On conviction, the child is sent to the special home or place of safety. 7. MFN Status In international economic relations and international politics, "most favoured nation" (MFN) is a status or level of treatment accorded by one state to another in international trade. The term means the country which is the recipient of this treatment must, nominally, receive equal trade advantages as the "most favoured nation" by the country granting such treatment. (Trade advantages include low tariffs or high import quotas.) In effect, a country that has been accorded MFN status may not be treated less advantageously than any other country with MFN status by the promising country. There is a debate in legal circles whether MFN clauses in bilateral investment treaties include only substantive rules or also procedural protections. 8. Central Vigilance Commission(CVC) Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) is an apex Indian governmental body created in 1964 to address governmental corruption. It has the status of an autonomous body, free o f control from any executive authority, charged with monitoring all vigilance activity under the Central Government of India, and advising various authorities in central Government organizations in planning, executing, reviewing and reforming their vigilance work.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 27, 2013 1. Am icus curiae An amicus curiae (also amicus curi; plural amici curiae, literally "friend of the court") is someone who is not a party to a case who offers information that bears on the case but that has not been solicited by any of the parties to assist a court. This may take the form of legal opinion, testimony or learned treatise (the amicus brief) and is a way to introduce concerns ensuring that the possibly broad legal effects of a court decision will not depend solely on the parties directly involved in the case. The decision on whether to admit the information lies at the discretion of the court. The phrase amicus curiae is legal Latin. 2. Panel formed to probe snooping scandal The Gujarat government on Tuesday formally issued a notification constituting an inquiry commission into the alleged snooping on a woman by the Gujarat police. The panel has been asked to find out if there was any conspiracy in releasing the tapes after four years. The panel has been given six terms of references to inquire into and submit its report. 3. CBI sought death, Talwars get life A day after they were held guilty of killing their 14-year-old daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj in May 2008, dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar were sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for life by a CBI court in Ghaziabad on Tuesday. Besides the life term and a fine of Rs 10,000 each for murder, the Talwar couple were also given rigorous imprisonment for five years and a fine of Rs 5,000 each for destruction of evidence, while Rajesh Talwar got another one-year simple imprisonment and an additional fine of Rs 2,000 for filing a misleading FIR. All the sentences will run concurrently. 4. Goa police issue flight alert on Tejpal after they get statement from victim In a bid to stop Tehelka founder and former editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal from fleeing the country, the Goa Police Tuesday issued an "immigration checkpost alert" for him as it recorded the crucial statement of a junior colleague who has accused the veteran journalist of sexually assaulting her.. 5. CAR tense as rebels wreak havoc
Human rights activists have called for a military commander in Central African Republic (CAR) to be suspended over the pillaging and burning of a town in what they say is a crucial test of the governments authority. The NGO Human Rights Watch identified General Abdallah Hamat as responsible for a raid which saw residents flee as hundreds of homes were looted and torched and at least three people were said to have been killed. 6. China says it will crack down on outfit China has said it would take steps to crack down on the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) a terror outfit with ties to several Pakistan-based groups after the group released a video pledging to launch attacks on high-profile targets in the Chinese capital, including the Great Hall of the People, or Parliament building. State media reported on Tuesday that the western Xinjiang region, where authorities have blamed the TIP for carrying out a number of violent attacks, had recorded more than 190 attacks carried out in the name of jihad in 2012, underlining the instability in the Muslim-majority region. 7. Infant mortality Infant mortality is the death of a child less than one year of age. Childhood mortality is the death of a child before the child's fifth birthday. National statistics tend to group these two mortality rates together. Globally, ten million infants and children die each year before their fifth birthday; 99% of these deaths occur in developing nations. Infant mortality takes away societys potential physical, social, and human capital. Generally the most common cause worldwide has been dehydration from diarrhea, a preventable disease; however, a variety of programs combating this problem have decreased the rate of children dying from dehydration. Many factors contribute to infant mortality such as the mothers level of education, environmental conditions, and political and medical infrastructure.
42/45
2/8/2014
8. Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
Okkal
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is an Indian force conceived on October 24, 1962 for security along the India's border with the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, border covering 2115 kilometres. It is one of the Central Armed Police Forces. The first Director General of the ITBP was Late Sardar Balbir Singh. This was also his brain child along with his colleagues. Only four battalions were sanctioned to begin with, to fill up the security vacuum that was prevalent at that time on the Indo-Tibetan border. Later in view of the additional responsibilities and the task redefined in 1976, the Force was restructured in 1978. 9. Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws relating to micro, small and medium en terprises in India. Presently headed by K. H. Muniyappa. The President of India amended the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961, under the notification dated 9 May 2007. Pursuant to this amendment, the Ministry of Agro and Rural Industries (India) and the Ministry of Small Scale Industries (India) were merged into a single ministry, the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. 10.Goods and Services Tax (GST) The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a Value Added Tax (VAT) to be implemented in India, the decision on which is pending. It will replace all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Indian Central and State governments. It is aimed at being comprehensive for most goods and services. India is a federal republic, and the GST will thus be implemented concurrently by the central and state governments as the Central GST and the State GST respectively. Exports will be zero-rated and imports will be levied the same taxes as domestic goods and services adhering to the destination principle.

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 28, 2013 1. Centre unlikely to accord UT status to Hyderabad
The Centre may ignore the strident demand voiced by Seemandhra Congress leaders to make Hyderabad a permanent Union Territory and instead make provisions in law to safeguard the interests of people from other regions settled in the State capital. This was reflected in the interactions that a group of Union Ministers from Seemandhra had with party leaders and Ministers in Delhi, including Digvijay Singh and Jairam Ramesh. The GoM dropped hints that UT status was not possible though it said an arrangement could be made to protect the interests of Seemandhra people settled in Hyderabad. 2. Tata Sons withdraws from new bank licence fray
Tata Sons has decided to withdraw its application for a new bank licence. . Tata Sons Ltd. has withdrawn its application made on July 1, 2013 for a new bank licence. The company has indicated that its current financial services operating model best supports the needs of the Tata Groups domestic and overseas strategy, and provides adequate operating flexibility to its companies, while securing the interests of the Groups diverse stakeholder base. The Reserve Bank has accepted withdrawal of the application, the RBI said in a statement.. 3. USFDA places import curbs on one more Wockhardt unit In yet another blow to drug maker Wockhardt Ltd., U.S. health regulator has imposed restrictions on import of medicines produced at the companys Chikalthana plant at Aurangabad in Maharashtra, the second unit of the firm to face such an action. In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company said it had received a warning letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its manufacturing units located at L1, Chikalthana, Aurangabad, and B15, Waluj, Aurangabad. 4. Raheel Sharif is new chief of Pakistan army
Ending weeks of speculation, Pakistan Prime Minister Muhammed Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday promoted and appointed Lt. Gen. Raheel Sharif as army chief. An official statement said Lt. Gen. Sharif was named as Chief of the Army Staff and Gen. Rashid Mehmood as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee by President Mamnoon Hussain. 5. Global trade deal talks collapse in Geneva
The World Trade Organization's General Council meeting in Geneva on global trade facilitation deal failed to reach a consensus and could impact the ministerial-level talks that begin next week in Bali, Indonesia. The trade facilitation deal (under the WTO framework) would reduce delays at national borders and could boost global GDP by about $1 trillion annually, according to a study. 6. FinMin against FDI cap on critical pharma projects
Even as the industry ministry is all set to propose a new policy on foreign direct investment in the pharma sector, reducing the cap on FDI in brownfield pharma projects to 49 per cent in critical areas, opposition from departments including the finance ministry continues. 7. National Disaster Response Force(NDRF) The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is a disaster response agency under National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) created by the Ministry of Home Affairs, government of India. It was established in 2009 in Delhi, for disaster management and specialised response to natural and man-made disasters. Functioning at state and central-level under the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) based in Delhi, it consists of eight battalions of Central Armed Police Forces, including two each of the BSF, CRPF, CISF and ITBP. 8. Foreign Institutional Investor FII
An investor or investment fund that is from or registered in a country outside of the one in which it is currently investing. Institutional investors include hedge funds, insurance companies, pension funds and mutual funds. The term is used most commonly in India to refer to outside companies investing in the financial markets of India. International institutional investors must register with the Securities and Exchange Board of India to participate in the market. One of the major market regulations pertaining to FIIs involves placing limits on FII ownership in Indian companies. 9. Employees' Provident Fund Organisation The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation, abbreviated to EPFO, is a statutory body of the Government of India under the Ministry of Labour and Employment. It administers a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme. It is one of the largest social security organisations in the India in terms of the number of covered beneficiaries and the volume of financial transactions undertaken. The EPFO's apex decision making body is the Central Board of Trustee (CBT).
43/45
2/8/2014
Okkal

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 29, 2013 1. Now Tendulkar bats for sanitation
Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has been named the regional brand ambassador by the UNICEF to promote its Total Sanitation Campaign in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. After signing the relevant documents accepting his new role in the presence of Karin Hulshof, UNICEF regional director South Asia here on Thursday, Mr. Tendulkar said he was thrilled to be part of the programme and he would try his utmost to make aware the importance of washing ones hands. 2. World Bank imposes 11-year ban on Union Textiles Ministers firm
The World Bank has banned Progressive Constructions Ltd (PCL), founded by Union Textiles Minister and Congress leader K. Sambasiva Rao, for at least eleven years for engaging in fraudulent practices in execution of three contracts for a national highway project. During the sanction period, which would extend to all legal entities directly or indirectly controlled by PCL, the company would not be able to work on any World Bankfinanced projects, the multilateral lender said in an order. 3. India keen on developing Irans Chah-bahar port India indicated its plan to move decisively on developing a port in Iran that would ensure connectivity with Afghanistan and Central Asia even though the recent Iran-P-5+1 interim agreement does not seem to offer a big relief from the sanctions. Speaking in the wake of Iran Deputy Foreign Minister Ibrahim Rahimpur holding extensive talks with Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon on Monday, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said India felt the development of Chah-bahar port barely 80 km away from Pakistans Gwadar port and providing access to Afghanistan doesnt get affected by sanctions. 4. Cabinet rejects proposal to change FDI policy in pharma The Cabinet on Thursday unanimously rejected a proposal from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) to ban complete takeovers by foreign companies of critical lifesaving drugs production facilities. The DIPP proposed to lower the cap for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from 100 per cent to 49 per cent, subject to approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), as it feels an alarming number of foreign acquirers of cancer oncology injectables and APIs manufacturing facilities have, over the last two years, post-takeover, shut down the manufacturing units and R&D centres of the acquired companies. This, the DIPP feels, can render the country vulnerable in the critical area. 5. China reiterates support to Sri Lanka on human rights
China has underlined its strong backing to Sri Lanka by calling on the international community to respect the right of the Sri Lankan government and people to choose their own path of promoting human rights, amid recent criticism of the countrys human rights record. With the issue coming under renewed attention following the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Colombo, the Chinese Embassy, in a statement issued in the Sri Lankan capital on Thursday, said it was Beijings view that the Sri Lankan government and people have the wisdom and capacity to deal appropriately with its internal affairs. 6. World Trade Organization(WTO)
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948. The organization deals with regulation of trade between participating countries; it provides a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements, and a dispute resolution process aimed at enforcing participant's adherence to WTO agreements, which are signed by representatives of member governments 7. International Film Festival of India (IFFI)
The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952 is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. Held annually in the beach state of Goa, on the western coast of the country, the festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excellence of the film art; contributing to the understanding and appreciation of film cultures of different nations in the context of their social and cultural ethos; and promoting friendship and cooperation among people of the world. (Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express)

G.K. / EVENTS TO REMEMBER: November 30, 2013 1. Supreme Court seeks Centres view on guidelines to regulate TV content
The Supreme Court Friday issued notices to the Centre and others, asking them to respond to a PIL seeking framing of guidelines to regulate contents of TV channels. Taking up the PIL filed by Hindu Janjagruti Samiti, a charitable trust, the Bench issued notices to Union ministries of Information and Broadcasting, Law and Justice and Communications & Information Technology as well as the Press Council of India, Election Commission, News Broadcasters Association, Indian Broadcasting Foundation and Advertising Standards Council of India.. 2. We scrambled jets to tail U.S., Japanese flights: China China said on Friday it had scrambled fighter jets to identify and tail 12 American and Japanese aircraft that had, in recent days, entered its newlyestablished Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), underlining rising regional tensions. The Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force scrambled two fighter planes to investigate flights by two U.S. surveillance aircraft and a separate deployment by 10 Japanese aircraft that included one F-15 fighter, air force spokesman Shen Jinke was quoted as saying by Xinhua. 3. RBI dilutes policy, allows banks to become insurance brokers
Diluting its earlier tough stance, the Reserve Bank of India has decided to permit banks to undertake insurance broking business departmentally, subject to the requirements, including the minimum net worth of Rs 500 crore. "Banks desirous of offering insurance broking services should seek specific prior approval of the RBI. 4. No compromise on right to food security at WTO Bali meet: Sharma
Commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma on Friday said that India would not compromise on its right to food security in the upcoming World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meet in Bali and would stress for a permanent solution for food subsidies.
44/45
2/8/2014
5. Iran invites IAEA inspectors to Arak nuclear plant
Okkal
Days after Iran struck a landmark accord with world powers on its nuclear programme, the International Atomic Energy Agency announced on Thursday that Tehran had invited its inspectors to visit a heavy-water production plant linked to the deal - the first tangible step since the agreement was concluded. In a speech in Vienna, the agency's director general, Yukiya Amano, said the invitation was for inspectors to travel to the plant in Arak, in central Iran, on December 8. 6. Gross domestic product(GDP) Gross domestic product (GDP) is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living. GDP per capita is not a measure of personal income. Under economic theory, GDP per capita exactly equals the gross domestic income (GDI) per capita. GDP is related to national accounts, a subject in macroeconomics. GDP is not to be confused with gross national product (GNP) which allocates production based on ownership. 7. Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (frequently abbreviated SEBI) is the regulator for the securities market in India. It was established in the year 1988 and given statutory powers on 12 April 1992 through the SEBI Act, 1992. Initially SEBI was a non statutory body without any statutory power. However in the year of 1995, the SEBI was given additional statutory power by the Government of India through an amendment to the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act 1992. In April, 1998 the SEBI was constituted as the regulator of capital markets in India under a resolution of the Government of India. 8. Public-Interest Litigation Public-Interest Litigation (PIL) is litigation for the protection of the public interest. In Indian law, Article 32 of the Indian constitution contains a tool which directly joints the public with judiciary. A PIL may be introduced in a court of law by the court itself (suo motu), rather than the aggrieved party or another third party. For the exercise of the court's jurisdiction, it is not necessary for the victim of the violation of his or her rights to personally approach the court. In a PIL, the right to file suit is given to a member of the public by the courts through judicial activism. The member of the public may be a non-governmental organization (NGO), an institution or an individual. 9. National Commission for Women(NCW) The National Commission for Women (NCW) is a statutory body for women established in 1992 by Government of India under the provisions of the Indian Constitution, as defined in the 1990 National Commission for Women Act. The first head of the commission was Ms. Jayanti Patnaik. The present head of the Commission is Mrs. Mamta Sharma, former MLA of Bundi district, Rajasthan. The objective of the NCW is to represent the rights of women in India and to provide a voice for their issues and concerns. The subjects of their campaigns have included dowry, politics, religion, equal representation for women in jobs, and the exploitation of women for labour. They have also discussed police abuses against women. 10.Free-Trade Area (FTA) A free-trade area is a trade bloc whose member countries have signed a free-trade agreement (FTA), which eliminates tariffs, import quotas, and preferences on most (if not all) goods and services traded between them. If people are also free to move between the countries, in addition to FTA, it would also be considered an open border. It can be considered the second stage of economic integration. Countries choose this kind of economic integration if their economic structures are complementary. If their economic structures are competitive, it is likely there will be no incentive for a FTA, or only selected areas of goods and services will be covered to fulfill the economic interests between the two signatories of FTA.
(Based on excerpts from The Hindu , The Tim es of India, The Econom ic Tim es& Indian Express) About us | News and current updates | Courses / offers | FAQ's | Archives | Opportunities | Contact us | Counselling | Feedback | Disclaimer | Site Map
C opy Right Okkal. Rights Reserved. Designed, Developed & Maintained by EduappsT M Technology Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
45/45

Current Affair Oct 2013

Diunggah oleh

Informasi Dokumen

Judul Asli

Hak Cipta

Format Tersedia

Bagikan dokumen Ini

Bagikan atau Tanam Dokumen

Opsi Berbagi

Apakah menurut Anda dokumen ini bermanfaat?

Apakah konten ini tidak pantas?

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

Current Affair Oct 2013

Diunggah oleh

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

2/8/2014

News and current updates

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Operational bribes, third-party risks bother Indian firms: Report

Twitter makes IPO plans public; offer price not set

Dates out for 5 states polls, NOTA to be introduced

SC agrees to hear plea for Aadhaar order review

India gets its first LGBT radio station

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Under this scheme, Banks are able to borrow upto 2%

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Central Forensic Science Laboratory(CFSL)

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Malayalam music legend K Raghavan dies at 99

New RTGS system to improve financial market efficiency

Indian companies likely to shift to IFRS from April 2015

Prominent Syrian intelligence officer killed in fighting

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Passage of insurance bill key to India-EU FTA

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday

Events to Remember / G.k. (The Hindu) will be available by 1:00 pm everyday