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September 1, 2014

1) The much-awaited Nalanda
University started operations from 1
September 2014. The first two schools
to start are the School of Ecology and
Environmental Studies and School of
Historical Studies. Who is heading this
university, which was created following
a special Act of Parliament in 2010, as
its first Chancellor? Prof. Amartya
Sen
Explanation : The modern Nalanda
University was created to blend values
of the ancient Nalanda university that
was one of the worlds first residential
university established during the fifth
century by the kings belonging to Gupta
Empire. The newly started Nalanda
University is situated in Rajgir, near
Nalanda in Bihar. It is part of an
ambitious plan for reviving and re-
establishing Nalanda University which
was one of the oldest and most
prestigious higher-learning institutions
of the World. But as there has not been
any construction so far, the university
started functioning from Rajgir
Convention Centre, a state government
building. Government-owned Tathagat
Hotel will serve as the hostel for the
time being.

2) The much-awaited minimum monthly
pension of Rs. 1,000 and a higher wage
ceiling of Rs. 15,000 for social security
scheme run by retirement fund manager
Employees Provident Fund
Organisation (EPFO) came into effect
from 1 September 2014. This Rs. 1,000
pension scheme is being made
available under which scheme of
EPFO? Employees Pension
Scheme 1995 (EPS-95)
Explanation : The government has
notified enhancement of wage ceiling
to Rs. 15,000 per month, fixed minimum
monthly pension at Rs. 1,000 under
EPS-95 and enhanced the maximum
sum assured under the Employees
Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI)
Scheme to Rs. three lakh. The
governments decision to fix pension
entitlement of Rs. 1,000 under the
Employees Pension Scheme 1995
(EPFS-95) will immediately benefit 28
lakh pensioners who get less than this
amount at present. The move to
enhance the minimum wage ceiling for
becoming a subscriber of Employees
Provident Fund Organisation
to Rs. 15,000 per month is expected to
bring 50 lakh additional formal sector
workers under the ambit of the body.

3) Which Spanish woman badminton
player created history by becoming the

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first Spanish to become World
Badminton Champion on 31 August
2014? Carolina Marin
Explanation : Carolina Marin authored
one of the most significant results in
badminton history, beating favourite Li
Xuerui of China in the Womens Singles
final at World Badminton Champion
2014 to become Spains first-ever World
champion. She defeated World No. 1
Xuerui by 17-21, 21-17, 21-18. Marin
had also defeated Indias P.V. Sindhu in
the semi-finals to oust her out of the
championship on 30 August. She also
became the first world singles champion
from Europe for 15 years. It is worth
mentioning that Badminton is still at a
developmental stage in Spain.

4) Who won the Mens singles title at
World Badminton Championship 2014
on 31 August 2014? Chen Long of
China
Explanation : Second seed Chen Long
defeated the favourite and the top seed
Lee Chong Wei (Malaysia) by 21-19,
21-19. The 2014 World Badminton
Championship was held at Copenhagen
(Denmark).

5) Which team won the inaugural edition
of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), which
concluded with the finals on 31 August
2014? Jaipur Pink Panthers
Explanation : Jaipur Pink Panthers
defeated U Mumba by 35-24 in the final
held at the National Sports Club of
India, Mumbai. Patna Pirates got the
better of the Bangalore Bulls 29-22 in
the third-place play-off. U Mumba
captain Anup Kumar won the Most
Valuable Player award for the
tournament. The first edition of Pro
Kabaddi League (PKL), the IPL-style
professional league for traditional Indian
sport of Kabaddi, started from 26 July
2014. Eight franchisee teams took part
in the inaugural edition, with the other
four teams being Bengal Warriors,
Telugu Titans, Dabang Delhi and Puneri
Paltan.

September 2, 2014

1) With the deal for selling an
amphibious landing sea-plane to India
finalized on 1 September 2014, Japan
would sell military hardware to a
country for the first time since World
War-II. What is the name of this sea-
plane? US-2
Explanation : On 1 September 2014
Japan agreed to sell and transfer
technology to India to build the
specialised sea-plane, the US-2
produced by ShinMaywa. With this
deal Indian Navys ability to carry out
amphibious landing, casualty


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evacuation, humanitarian assistance
and long-range surveillance and
reconnaissance received a major
boost. The US-2 is one of the sturdiest
aircraft and can operate in sea state 5
conditions (at wind speed of 30 to 38
kilometres per hour) on the high seas
as well as on rivers and lakes. It can
carry nearly 30 personnel and 18
tonnes of load and can fly 4,500 km at
a stretch. This is the first time since
World War-II that ended seven
decades ago that Japan will be
selling military hardware. Following its
defeat, Japan imposed an embargo on
sale of weapons and military
equipment. The agreement is an
indication of the closeness between
India and Japan. Both nations are
actively pursuing each other mainly in
the areas of defence and trade to
counter the growth of China and its
increasingly aggressive behaviour in
the region. In keeping with the Modi
governments policy, these planes will
be made in India.

2) Nifty, the 50-scrip benchmark index
of the National Stock Exchange (NSE)
crossed which milestone mark for the
first time on 1 September 2014?
8,000 mark
Explanation : Nifty hit 8,000 level for
the first time while Sensex hit a new
high of 26,900 on 1 September mainly
due to positive GDP growth figures
released recently. The CSO had
estimated 5.7% GDP growth rate
during the first quarter of 2014-15,
which is the best quarter performance
since March 2012.

3) Former Chief Justice of India P.
Sathasivam is poised to become the
new Governor of which state, after he
accepted the governorship of the
state? Kerala
Explanation : Former CJI P.
Sathasivam accepted Union
Governments proposal to be
appointed as the Governor of Kerala.
The move to appoint him sparked a
debate in political and legal circles on
the propriety of giving gubernatorial
assignment to a person who retired
from the highest judicial office in the
country. This is the first time a retired
CJI is being appointed to serve as a
Governor of a State. There have been
instances where former Chief Justices
of High Courts were appointed as
Governors.

4) Which public-sector bank declared
Kingfisher Airlines, its promoter Vijay
Mallya and three directors as wilful
defaulters on 1 September 2014, with
which it became the first bank to make
such a declaration against Mallya?
United Bank of India (UBI)
Explanation : Kolkata-based United
Bank of India (UBI) is a part of the
State Bank of India-led consortium to
have financed Kingfisher and has an
exposure of around Rs. 400 crore to it.
A wilful defaulter tag means Mallya
cannot be on the board of any
company nor can he raise money from
the public. He can also be subjected to
criminal proceedings under Sections
403 and 425 of the IPC, dealing with
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5) Asias first Ballistic Research Centre
is all set to be established in which
Indian state very soon? Gujarat
Explanation : Gujarat Forensic
Science University (GFSU) at
Gujarats capital Gandhinagar is all
poised to get established a Ballistic
Research Centre (BRC), which would
be first one of its kind in the whole of
Asia. The BRC would be established
mainly to test bullet-proof armoured
vehicles as big as trucks. Till now, the
armoured vehicles from India are sent
to countries like the UK, USA and
France for testing. The GFSU was so
far able to conduct testing of only
bulletproof jackets, helmets and
bulletproof plates, but with this new
venture the entire armoured vehicle
can be tested successfully.

September 3, 2014

1) India won an ODI series against
England in England after 24 years
after it took an invincible 3-0 lead by
winning the fourth ODI at Birmingham
on 2 September 2014. With this win at
Birmingham Mahendra Singh Dhoni
became Indias most successful ODI
captain with record 91 ODI wins. Who
is the second most successful ODI
captain now, whose record of 90 ODI
wins was broken by Dhoni?
Mohammad Azharuddin
Explanation : Dhoni now has 91 ODI
wins as Indian skipper and he edged
past Mohammad Azharuddin, the
same man who had led India to their
last bilateral ODI series win in
England. Back then, the visitors had
won both their games in the Texaco
Trophy in 1990. Thus Dhonis stature
as a limited overs tactician and captain
continued to grow in England, despite
a disappointing Test series.

2) According to a recent study by the
Brookings Institution which city topped
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students for higher education to the
US during 2008-2012? Hyderabad
Explanation : The study done by
Brookings Institution an American
think-tank, revealed that during 2008-
2012 Hyderabad sent 26,220 students
to the US. Next was Mumbai, with
17,294, followed by Chennai with
9,141, Bangalore with 8,835 and Delhi
with 8,728. Thus Hyderabad sent more
students to the US than New Delhi and
Mumbai combined. The city was
ranked fourth globally in this
perspective. Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai,
Hyderabad and Riyadh were the five
foreign cities that sent the most higher
education students to the US during
that time.

3) The state government of Mizoram
on 2 September 2014 announced
lifting of total prohibition from the state
completely during this fiscal year by
bringing into effect the newly legislated
Mizoram Liquor Prohibition and
Control Act, 2014. Total prohibition in
Mizoram was clamped in which year?
1995
Explanation : The new Act was
legislated by the state Assembly in
July to replace the stringent Mizoram
Liquor Total Prohibition (MLTP) Act,
1995, imposed in the state for 19
years. The MLTP Act banned sale and
consumption of alcohol in the state.
The Mizoram Presbyterian Church, the
largest denomination in the Christian-
dominated state, played a major role in
the enforcement of prohibition.
Prohibition is being revoked as the
state government is of the view that
total prohibition did more harm than
good to the people of the state as
many people died due to consumption
of spurious liquor.

4) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee on 2 September 2014
announced setting up a small office in
the Darjeeling hills to facilitate
administrative work for the people of
the region. It would be manned by an
official from the Chief Ministers Office
(CMO). What is the name of the
special Secretariat for north Bengal
that was established by the West
Bengal govt. in Siliguri during January
2014? Uttar Kanya
Explanation : The move to set up the
secretariat christened Uttar Kanya in
Siliguri was to enable the government
prepare project proposals for north
Bengal districts on time. There had
been a long-standing demand in
several quarters for a separate
secretariat for north Bengal. The main
thrust of their argument was the time it
took to travel to Kolkata to get work
done at Writers Building and at
Nabanna in Howrah, which is close to
Kolkata.

5) Just ahead of the Asian Games,
star Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal split
with the national head coach Pullela
Gopichand. According to the
announcement made on 2 September
2014, Nehwal would now train under
which coach? Vimal Kumar
Explanation : Vimal Kumar is a former
India coach and Nehwal would move
to Bangalore to train under him.
Nehwal has been struggling with her


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form for quite some time now. On the
other end, the dramatic rise of
teenager PV Sindhu (another
Gopichand-trained shuttler) might
have forced her to think of other
coaching options. In the sports, Saina-
Gopi pair is by far the best coach-
player partnership in India, which
brought many laurels to the country.
Gopichand and his academy is based
at Hyderabad.

6) What is the name of the Hyderabad
resident who created a buzz online by
creating the Rice Bucket Challenge
(based on the ALS ice bucket
challenge), who has been honoured
with an award by iCONGO, an
international confederation of NGOs,
and the United Nations? Manjulatha
Kalanidhi
Explanation : Manjulatha Kalanidhi
created the Rice Bucket Challenge as
an alternative to the highly global and
popular ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
Rice Bucket Challenge was
conceived as an innovative way of
feeding the poor by donating buckets
of rice. Huge amount of rice was
collected and distributed to the needy
through Manjulathas Rice Bucket
Challenge within days of it being
launched. She would be honoured with
the Karmaveer Chakra Award and the
Rex Karmaveer Global Fellowship by
iCONGO for doing something small,
yet significant, to make a difference in
the world.

7) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
cancelled licences of five non-banking
financial companies (NBFCs) on 2
September 2014. These NBFCs
include Unichem Finance &
Enterprises Pvt., Shimansu Vyaparik
Kendra Ltd., Shree Bhagwati
Marketing Private Ltd. and Sureka
Teknik Private Limited. All these
NBFCs are based in same city. Which
city is this? Kolkata

September 4, 2014

1) What was the overall status of
livestock population in the country as
stated in the 19
th
Livestock Census for
2012 released on 3 September 2014?
Overall decline of 3.3% in
livestock population as compared
to 2007
Explanation : The 19
th
Livestock
Census (2012) published by the


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Department of Animal Husbandry,
Dairying and Fisheries was released
on 3 September 2014. The main
conclusion in the Census is that during
2012, the total livestock population,
consisting of buffaloes, sheep, goats,
pigs, horses and ponies, mules,
donkeys, camels, mithun and yak,
stood at 512.05 million in 2012 against
529.69 million in 2007. However, the
number of milch animals (in-milk and
dry), cows and buffaloes, increased
from 111.09 million to 118.59 million,
up 6.75%, while the number of
animals-inmilk increased from 77.04
million to 80.52 million, showing an
increase of 4.51%. The population of
female cattle (cows) also increased to
122.9 million, up 6.52% over the 2007,
along with a 7.99% rise in female
buffalo population, which stood at 92.5
million in 2012. However, the goat and
sheep population registered a decline
of 3.82% and 9.07% respectively over
the previous census. The camel and
donkey population also decreased
sharply by 22.48% and 27.22% in
2012, over the 2007 Census. The
19
th
Livestock Census was conducted
during 2012 with reference date 15
October 2012. The first livestock
census was carried out in 1919-20 and
since then 18 such endeavours have
been completed.

2) What was Indias position in the
Global Competitiveness Report 2014-
15 that was released on 3 September
2014 by Geneva-based World
Economic Forum (WEF)? 71
st

Explanation : India slipped by 11
places in the 2014-15 as against
60
th
position in the report for 2013-14.
Indias position was lowest among the
5 BRICS countries. China, which has
improved its position by one place to
28
th
spot, leads the BRICS grouping.
Russia is ranked at 53
rd
position,
followed by South Africa (56
th
) and
Brazil (57
th
). Switzerland was once
again placed as the most competitive
economy, followed by Singapore and
United States. Other countries in the
top ten are Finland (4
th
), Germany (5
th
),
Japan (6
th
), Hong Kong SAR (7
th
),
Netherlands (8
th
), United Kingdom (9
th
)
and Sweden (10
th
). According to the
report, Indias slide in the
competitiveness rankings began in
2009, when its economy was still
growing at 8.5% (it even grew by
10.3% in 2010).

3) What is the name of the newly
launched domain name in Devanagari
script that includes 8 Indian languages
including Hindi and Marathi? .bharat
domain
Explanation : The name would have
.bharat (.) in Hindi script as its
extension instead of commonly top
level domains such as .com, .net or
.in. With the launch, individuals or
companies who are interested in
owning a website with domain name in
Hindi language would be able to book
the name in Hindi script. The 8 Indian
languages which can have .bharat
domain are Bodo (Boro), Dogri, Hindi,
Konkani, Maithili, Marathi, Nepali, and
Sindhi. However, this domain will be
available in all the Indian languages
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4) What is the name of a deadly
Trojan virus which hacks and steals
personal credit and debit card data
and is prowling in the Indian
cyberspace as announced on 3
September 2014 by Indian cyber
security watchdog CERT-In?
Backoff
Explanation : Backoff is being seen
spreading through computer networks
which use Windows as their operating
systems. It targets Point of Sale (POS)
systems and propagates by scanning
for systems with remote desktop
applications enabled. The virus is
capable of stealing customer payment
cards data like card holders name,
account number, expiration data, CVV
code among others from POS
systems. The virus is so notorious that
it is able to capture keystrokes and
communicate with the command and
control server for further hacking.
CERT-In (Computer Emergency
Response Team India) is the nodal
agency to combat hacking, phishing
and to fortify security-related defences
of the Indian Internet domain.

5) Which city sent highest number of
students to Indian Institutes of
Technology (IITs) during 2014 as
revealed in a detailed analysis by the
Joint Implementation Committee (JIT),
released by IIT Kharagpur? Jaipur
Explanation : The other five cities with
most number of successful candidates
are Delhi, Hyderabad, Vijayawada,
Patna and Mumbai. The six cities
account for 10,882 or 40.07 per cent of
the candidates who qualified this year.
While 1,26,995 candidates registered
this year, 1,19,581 appeared in both
papers and 27,152 candidates
qualified JEE (Advanced) 2014. 2,780
students qualified as against 10,116
registrations from Jaipur. The data
reveals that among the states, which
have the maximum candidates
qualifying, Andhra Pradesh (18.32%),
Rajasthan (15.81%), Uttar Pradesh
(12.21%), Maharashtra (8.52%) and
Delhi (NCT) (6.61%) occupy the top
five positions. The IIT-JEE for 2014
was conducted by IIT Kharagpur.

6) Which auto company introduced
Ciaz, its new mid-sized sedan, on 3
September 2014? Maruti Suzuki
Explanation : Maruti Suzuki, which
already dominates the compact cars
segment in India, wants to target the
top spot in mid-sized sedan category
with Ciaz. Maruti Suzuki has twice in
the past tried to grab a share of this
segment with Baleno and SX4.
However, these models failed to make
a significant impact. Ciaz would be
officially launched during first week of
October 2014.



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September 5, 2014

1) The proposed new capital of Andhra
Pradesh would be located around
which city as announced by state
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu
on 4 September 2014? Vijayawada
Explanation : Putting an end to
months of suspense, Naidu made a
statement in the Legislative Assembly
that the new capital of the State would
be located around Vijayawada. It was
stated that nearly 50% of the
representations received by the
Sivaramakrishnan Committee
(appointed by the Centre) favoured
Vijayawada-Guntur region as the best
location for the capital area.
Sivaramakrishnan Committee was
constituted to recommend a suitable
place for the proposed capital. The
state Cabinet met on 1 September and
resolved to locate the capital city in a
central place of the State, around
Vijayawada, and go for decentralised
development of the State with three
mega cities and 14 smart cities.

2) Which country on 4 September
2014 launched New Colombo Plan to
enhance student exchange and
collaboration between it and India?
Australia
Explanation : New Colombo Plan was
launched by the Australian Prime
Minister Tony Abbott on the first day of
his visit to India on 4 September. The
Plan involves a scholarship
programme for study of up to one year
and internships or mentorships, and a
flexible mobility grants programme for
short and long term study. It mainly
aims to lift knowledge of the Indo-
Pacific in Australia by supporting
Australian undergraduates to study
here. The plan will be implemented
from the next academic year.

3) What is the name of the largest
offshore patrol vessel that was
commissioned into the Indian Navy on
4 September 2014? INS Sumitra
Explanation : The INS Sumitra is
Indian Navys largest offshore patrol
vessel, the fourth in its class and built
on an in-house design of the state-
owned Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL). It
was commissioned into the Eastern
Naval Command fleet of the Indian
Navy at Chennai by naval Chief
Admiral Robin Dhowan. The ship is
fitted with most sophisticated
weapons, guns, heavy calibre SRGM,
rapid fire Russian AK630 guns, chaff
launchers Kavach, electronic warfare
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planned on the warship has been tried
and fully operational.

4) What is the name of a new branch
of Al-Qaeda that was announced by
the group on 4 September 2014 to
wage jihad in the Indian subcontinent?
Qaedat al-Jihad in the Indian
Subcontinent
Explanation : Qaedat al-Jihad in the
Indian Subcontinent is the name of
the newly constituted sub-group of Al-
Qaeda that was announced by As
Sahab, al-Qaedas official media
outlet, in a lengthy video posted on the
social media outlets including You
Tube on 4 September. It has primarily
been established to wage jihad in India
and revive its Caliphate and impose
Sharia in the Indian sub-continent. Al-
Qaeda is active in Afghanistan and
Pakistan, but the groupss leader
Ayman al Zawahiri said Qaedat al-
Jihad would take the fight to India,
Myanmar and Bangladesh.

5) What is the name of the Japanese
player who defeated Switzerlands
Stan Wawrinka in the US Open mens
singles quarterfinals to become the
first Japanese man in 81 years to
reach a grand slam semi-final? Kei
Nishikori
Explanation : Kei Nishikori defeated
third seed Stan Wawrinka 3-6, 7-5, 7-6
(7), 6-7 (5), 6-4 in the quarterfinals on
3 September 2014 to become the first
Japanese man in 81 years to make a
grand slam semi-final. He thus
became the first Japanese man to
reach the last four of a grand slam
since Jiro Satoh at Wimbledon in
1933. As far as US Open is
concerned, the last Japanese to make
it into semi-finals was Ichiya kumagae
who reached the semi-finals in 1918.

September 6, 2014

1) In a major step towards realising its
nuclear energy ambitions, India on 5
September 2014 signed the Civil
Nuclear Cooperation Agreement
(CNCA) with Australia. The deal thus
concluded uranium sales talks that
started between the two countries
during 2012. What is the global status
of Australia in uranium deposits? It
has about a third of the worlds
recoverable uranium resources


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Explanation : Australia has the largest
uranium deposits in the world. It
exports nearly 7,000 tonnes of it
annually. India and Australia have held
five rounds of negotiations on the
uranium deal since 2012, when
Australia reversed its policy on nuclear
sales to India. The policy was based
on Indias refusal to sign the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty.

2) Which public sector bank on 5
September 2014 Pehla
Kadam and Pehli Udaan two new
Savings Bank products for children?
State Bank of India (SBI)
Explanation : Pehla Kadam is a
Savings Bank account for minor of any
age operated jointly with his/her
parent/guardian, while Pehli Udaan is
a singly operated Savings Bank
Account for a minor aged 10 years and
above and who can sign uniformly.
Specially branded passbook and
cheque book have been designed for
these products. All the account holders
will be given an exclusively designed
personalised photo ATM-cum-Debit
Card. Other features bundled along
with the two products include Internet
banking with limited transaction
facilities like bill payment, opening of
fixed deposits, recurring deposits, etc.
with per day transaction limit
of Rs. 5,000, and mobile banking with
limited transaction facilities like bill
payment, and top-ups with per day
transaction limit of Rs. 2,000.

3) Palaniappan Sathasivam created
history on 5 September 2014 when he
took over as the Governor of Kerala.
He thus became the first former Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court of India
to take responsibility as governor of a
state. He is .Governor
of Kerala? 23
rd

Explanation : P. Sathasivam was
sworn in as the 23
rd
Governor of Kerala
by Ashok Bhushan, acting Chief
Justice of the High Court of Kerala.
The opposition in the state, however,
chose to boycott the swearing-in
ceremony as it held on to its argument
that appointing a former Chief Justice
for a political post is against traditions
and was also bereft of minimum logic.
Sathasivam replaced Sheila Dixit, who
had tendered her resignation on 26
August 2014.

4) What is the name of a photo-
sharing website, which announced
shutting down its operations from 25
September 2014 due to a trademark
dispute with micro-blogging site
Twitter? Twitpic
Explanation : Twitpic was a popular
service in Twitters early days as a
means of sharing photos on the social
network. A few weeks ago Twitter
contacted Twitpics legal department
demanding that it abandon its
trademark application or risk losing
access to Twitters API.Since Twitpic
did not had the resources to combat
Twitters efforts it decided to shut its
operations from 25 September. The
users of Twitpic would however be
able to export all their photos and
videos from servers of Twitpic.



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5) The Australian Prime Minister Tony
Abbott on 5 September 2014 handed
over to Indian Prime Minister two
antique statues of Hindu deities which
were allegedly stolen from temples in
Tamil Nadu. These stolen statues,
which were later bought by art
galleries in Australia, represent which
two deities? Nataraja and
Ardhanariswara
Explanation : Nataraja is the form of
dancing Shiva and this statue
belonged to the Chola dynasty of 11
th
-
12
th
century. The other sculpture is of
Ardhanariswara, which represents
Shiva in half-female form, and dates
back to 10
th
century. Both the statues
were allegedly stolen from temples in
Tamil Nadu and their return was
sought by India in March 2014.

6) Whose name was cleared for the
post of the next Chief Justice of India
by the President Pranab Mukherjee on
5 September 2014? Justice H.L.
Dattu
Explanation : Justice Dattu is the
senior-most judge in the Supreme
Court and would take over from
Justice R.M. Lodha on 27 September
2014. Justice Dattu could become the
last Chief Justice of India to be
appointed under the collegium system
of judicial appointments.

7) Great Brazilian footballer Zico has
recently agreed to become coach of
which Indian football team for the
upcoming first season of Indian Super
League (ISL)? FC Goa
Explanation : Zicos real name is
Arthur Antunes Coimbra and is
considered among one of the greatest
footballers Brazil has produced. He
won 71 Brazil caps and played in the
1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups. He
was often called the White Pele for
his skills comparable with Pele. He
has coached in Brazil, Japan, Turkey,
Russia, Greece, Iraq and Qatar. ISL is
the first major professional football
league to be staged in India and is
expected to popularize football in the
country in a major way.
September 7, 2014

1) An indigenously made nuclear plant
unit of India recently made history by
running continuously for a period 765
days, or a little over two years. This
unit is associated with which power
plant of India? Rawatbhata Nuclear
Power Plant in Rajasthan
Explanation :


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The Unit-5 at Rawatbhata Nuclear
Power Plant is now ranked number
two globally for continuous generation
of electricity by a nuclear plant. The
pole position is still held by a Canadian
reactor, Ontario Power Corporations
Pickering-7 plant, which ran
continuously for 894 days before it
was shutdown in 1994. Usually, most
nuclear plants globally need to be shut
down every year for maintenance, only
well-maintained facilities can run for
longer periods. This unit at
Rawatbhata is a Pressurised Heavy
Water Reactor (PHWR) and is run by
the Nuclear Power Corporation of
India Limited (NPCIL). It was
established at the cost of Rs. 1200
crore in 2010.

2) Which professional services firm
was hired by the Union Finance
Ministry to undertake a validation
exercise of the number of basic bank
accounts opened by the banks under
the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana
(PMJDY)? KPMG
Explanation :
KPMG would provide some comfort to
the Finance Ministry that the numbers
submitted by the banks pertaining to
PMJDY were accurate and reflected
the true picture. KPMGs confirmation
of the number of accounts opened will
help the Centre pitch for an entry into
the Guinness Book of World Records
for the maximum number of bank
accounts opened in a day. On 28
August 2014, the launch date of the
PMJDY, the banking system had
opened between 1.8 crore to 2 crore
bank accounts. KPMG has already
commenced work for this purpose and
have approached banks to share
information on the number of accounts
opened under the PMJDY. Under the
PMJDY, the Government is looking to
open at least 7.5 crore basic bank
accounts for 7.5 crore unbanked
families in the country.

3) The Competition Commission of
India (CCI) during September 2014
initiated an investigation against public
sector general insurers and their
association. The PSU insurance
companies against whom this
investigation has been initiated include
New India Insurance, Oriental
Insurance, United India Insurance and
National Insurance, as well as their
combine, the General Insurers (Public
Sector) Association of India (GIPSA).
What is the reason for this
investigation? Alleged anti-
competitive practices relating to
third-party administrators (TPAs) in
health insurance committed by
these companies
Explanation :
The charges against these public
general insurers are that they are not
allowing TPAs to function
independently and have created in-
house TPAs to settle any claims. It is
also alleged that GIPSA, an ad hoc
and unregistered body, was providing
a platform to the companies to share
sensitive information with each other.
This affects competition in the market
and also provides space to them for
exchanging information regarding
claims ratios, marketing efforts and


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terms and condition of TPAs, among
others.

4) Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza won
the US Open mixed doubles title in
partnership with which Brazilian player
on 5 September 2014? Bruno
Soares
Explanation :
Sania Mirza and Bruno Soares
defeated American Abigail Spears and
Santiago Gonzalez of Mexico in a
tough three-setter final by 6-1, 2-6, 11-
9. This was the first ever US Open title
for Sania Mirza. On the other hand it
was the second US Open title for
Soares after a 2012 win with Russian
Ekaterina Makarova in 2012.

5) Indian online fashion retailer Jabong
will merge with four other firms to
create a new global fashion e-
commerce group as announced by
Investment AB Kinnevik and Rocket
Internet AG, the two investors in
Jabong. What will be the name of the
new group to be created with this
mega-merger? Global Fashion
Group (GFG)
Explanation :
The newly created e-commerce entity
Global Fashion Group (GFG) will
combine five fashion e-commerce
businesses, namely Dafiti (Latin
America), Jabong (India), Lamoda
(Russia & CIS), Namshi (Middle East)
and Zalora (South East Asia &
Australia). This deal is expected to be
completed later in the year. GFG will
focus on growth markets, covering 23
countries with a EUR 330 billion
fashion market and population of over
2.5 billion people. It will market a wide
assortment of leading International
apparel and accessories brands, a
tailored selection of highly engaging
internally developed brands and local
assortments developed for specific
ethnic markets notably in India,
Indonesia and the Middle East. GFC
will be based in Luxembourg.

September 8, 2014

1) The Law Ministry of India has
opined that the Government of India
has all the powers to print currency
notes of Re. 1 denomination. Why the
opinion of Law Ministry on this issue
was taken?
The RBI was of the view that with
the repeal of Section 2 of the
Currency Ordinance, the


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Government of India is not
empowered to issue note of
denominational value of one rupee
Explanation:
Section 4 of the Coinage Act of 2011
provides that the central government
may authorise minting of coin of
denomination not higher than Rs.
1,000. The definition of coin in the Act
makes it clear that Government of
India one rupee note is included in the
definition of coin. The Law Ministry in
its opinion stated that the Act, which
consolidates the laws relating to
coinage and the mints, does not bar
the Government of India from printing
one rupee notes. The printing of notes
in the denominations of Re. 1 and Rs.
2 has been discontinued as these
denominations have been coinised.
However, such notes issued earlier
are still in circulation.

2) The Union Government during
September 2014 asked Expenditure
Management Commission (EMC) to
suggest an effective strategy for
meeting reasonable proportion of
expenditure on services through user
charges. The newly set up EMC will
have to review the major areas of
Central Government expenditure and
suggest ways for creating fiscal space
required to meet developmental
expenditure needs. Who is heading
EMC?
Bimal Jalan (former RBI Governor)
Explanation:
Bimal Jalan, who has been conferred
with the status of a Union Cabinet
Minister, has been asked to design a
framework to improve the operational
efficiency of expenditures through
focus on utilisation, targets and
outcomes. Union govt. has asked the
EMC to review the fiscal responsibility
and budget management (FRBM)
rules to suggest improvements for
enforcing better fiscal discipline. The
EMC, which will be headquartered in
New Delhi, will have to submit an
interim report before Budget 2015-16.

3) India has been ranked third in a list
of countries most affected by online
banking malware during the April-June
quarter of 2014 as announced by
security solutions provider Trend Micro
on 6 September 2014. Which country
has been ranked first in this list?
Japan
Explanation:
Japan topped the list with the highest
number of online banking malware
infections during the April-June quarter
of 2014. In May alone, it saw 13,000
malware infections. Japan was
followed by U.S. in this list which saw
about 5,000 malware infections during
the month, followed by India with
3,000 attacks. Growing Internet
penetration and rising popularity of
online banking have made India a
favourite among cybercriminals, who
target online financial transactions
using malware. These and many such
incidents show that cybercriminals will
always adapt to new trends and
situations whether in the use of new
malware or targeted attacks
techniques to continue their attacks.


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4) Barring a few, most of the life
insurance companies have disclosed
lower persistency ratios for the first
quarter of the current fiscal ended 30
June 2014 as also for the full financial
year ended 31 March 2014. What is
the reason for lower persistency
ratio?
A new standardised disclosure
regime put in place for insurance
sector
Explanation:
The persistency ratio broadly
measures the quantum of the
customer retention by the life
insurance companies, while
determining the percentage of
policyholders paying renewal
premiums at the end of one year, or
more years depending on the tenure of
the policy. However, persistency ratio
has been one of the most abused
financial metric by many insurers, who
tend to disclose their best possible
persistency ratios without following
any standard formula or any specific
time period. The insurance sector
regulator IRDA earlier this year made
changes in norms for such disclosures
and put in place a standard formula to
be followed by all companies in
reporting their 13
th
month persistency
ratios. An analysis of the disclosures
made by various life insurers so far
this year shows that there has been a
marked decline in the high level of
persistency reported earlier by many
companies.

5) China last year relaxed its
controversial decades-old one-child
policy which was designed to curb
population growth as the country
grappled with looming demographic
crisis with the increase in the numbers
of old aged people. Till September
2014 nearly 20,000 couples have been
allowed to have a second child in
Beijing under countrys One Child
Policy, which was recently modified to
meet demographic challenges. What
are the main demographic problems of
the One Child Policy that China has
been facing for years now?
Wider gender gap, declining labour
force and an aging population
Explanation:
Under the one-child policy, many
couples, particularly in Chinas
countryside, had abortions as they
prefer boys to girls. The policy also
resulted in huge decline in countrys
labour force which is an important
factor for the worlds second largest
economy.

6) What is the name of the worlds
most expensive and eagerly awaited
video game, which is expected to be
grabbed by a record 10 million players
on the day of release on 9 September
2014?
Destiny
Explanation:
Destiny is a newly developed video
game by US-based company Bungie.
It is the most pre-ordered piece of
entertainment software in history.
When a beta demo version was
released in July 2014, a record-
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The project has cost $500 million,
more than twice the budget of the new
Star Wars films.

7) After being in business for seven
years, Future Generali Life Insurance
has reported its maiden quarterly profit
during the quarter ended 30 June
2014. Future Generali Life Insurance
is the part of which group?
Future Group
Explanation:
Future Generali Life Insurance is life
insurance venture between Kishore
Biyanis Future Group and Italian
insurance company Generali.
8) Who won the Italian F1 Grand Prix
on 7 September 2014?
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes team
Explanation:
British F1 driver Lewis Hamilton
defeated his teammate Nico Rosberg
(Germany) to make the race to F1
champion for 2014 more interesting.
Third place was taken by Williams
Brazilian driver Felipe Massa.
However, Nico Rosberg is still leading
the 2014 season with 22 points lead
over Hamilton.

September 9, 2014

1) Croatias Marin ili won the U.S.
Open mens singles title on 8
September 2014 to become the
newest winner of this coveted Grand
Slam title. With this title win he also
became the second Grand Slam
singles title winner from his country.
Who was the first-ever Grand Slam
singles title winner from Croatia?
Goran Ivanisevic
Explanation : Goran Ivanisevic
became the first-ever Grand Slam
singles title winner from Croatia when
he won Wimbledon mens singles title
in 2001. He is now the coach of Marin
ili who defeated Japans Kei
Nishikori 6-3 6-3 6-3 in under two
hours in the finals. Kei Nishikori had
earlier created history after he became
first Asian male player to make it to the
final of a Grand Slam after he defeated
Serbian Novak Djokovic in the semi-
finals.

2) Which state recorded the fastest
growth rate among Indian states


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during 2013-14 as disclosed the newly
released data by the Central Statistical
Office (CSO)? Madhya Pradesh
Explanation: Madhya Pradesh
outpaced all the major states to top the
economic growth charts. According to
CSO data, Madhya Pradeshs gross
state domestic product (GSDP)
registered a double-digit growth of
11.08% at constant prices, up from
9.9% in 2012-13. Uttarakhand (9.9%)
was second while Bihar (8.82%),
which had been topping the growth
charts in the last few years, was
relegated to the third spot. What is
noteworthy is that high growth in
Madhya Pradesh has happened
despite the states industrial growth
slipping to a new low during the year.
Led by largely an agricultural boost
and expansion by the services sector,
Madhya Pradesh claimed the first
spot.

3) Which public-sector bank during
September 2014 sought permission of
the RBI to launch contact-less debit
cards which would enable customers
to carry out some transactions without
entering the pin number? SBI
Explanation: Right now, for any card
which has to be used, a customer has
to put in the pin number. Many banks
feel that some exception has to be
made as for lower amount deals like
buying a Metro or bus ticket, where the
customer can simply show the card
and get in. Hence the SBI has
requested the RBI to come up with a
limit below which the pin will be
waived. It has requested a limit of Rs.
2,000 for the same. The bank is
currently doing a test-run of such
contact- less cards at the Chennai and
Mumbai metro stations.

4) State Bank of India (SBI) on 8
September 2014 launched its first
multi-currency international debit card
to allow consumers to use a single
card to pay in multiple currencies. This
card launched in a tie-up with
MasterCard would, at present, enable
customers to load how many
international currencies in this card?
Four
Explanation: These 4 currencies
include US dollar, euro, Great Britain
pound and Singapore dollar. More
currencies will be added going forward
as the card has the facility to be
loaded up to 12 currencies.

5) During September 2014 India a free
trade agreement (FTA) in the area of
services and investments with which
association of countries? ASEAN
Explanation: The FTA was signed
with the 10-member Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to
enable freer movement of
professionals and further open up
opportunities for investments. This
FTA thus concluded 2-year old
discussion between ASEAN on this
issue. India had implemented the FTA
in goods with ASEAN members in
2010, while it had concluded the
negotiations for FTA in services and
investments in 2012. With the signing
of the pact in services and
investments, the FTA will now become
a comprehensive economic


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partnership between the two sides.
ASEAN presently comprises of
Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia,
the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam,
Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia.

6) Serena Williams won the U.S. Open
womens singles title when she
defeated Caroline Wozniacki of
Denmark by 6-3, 6-3 in the finals on 7
September 2014. This title was her
..grand slam title? 18
th

Explanation: With her 18
th
Grand
Slam title win Serena Williams now
stands alongside Chris Evert and
Martina Navratilova, and four behind
Steffi Graf as major winners in the
Open era. But she is still trailing Helen
Wills Moody (19) and Margaret Court
(24) in the history of the game.

7) Which doubles duo created history
by claiming their 100
th
doubles title
after they won the U.S. Open mens
doubles title on 7 September 2014?
Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan
Explanation: Mike Bryan and Bob
Bryan of the United States are
brothers and have held the world no.1
doubles ranking jointly for 380 weeks
(as on 8 September 2014), which is
longer than anyone else in doubles
history. They defeated 11
th
-seeded
Spaniards Marcel Granollers and Marc
Lopez 6-3, 6-4 in the finals. This title
win was their record 100
th
win and the
Bryans now own the Open era mark,
moving ahead of Bob Lutz and Stan
Smith.


September 10, 2014

1) Which two most-awaited new smart
phones were launched by Apple Inc.
on 9 September 2014? iPhone 6
and iPhone 6 Plus
Explanation : The two phones were
launched by Apple CEO Tim Cook at
the Flint Centre in Cupertino,
California, where the iconic Macintosh
was first launched 30 years ago. The
iPhone 6 will be priced at $199
(16GB), $299 (64GB) and $399
(128GB) with a two-year contract. The
iPhone 6 Plus will be available for
$299 (16GB), $399 (64GB) and $499
(128GB) with a two-year contract. The
phones were launched along with
Apples first wearable device,
the Apple Watch. The iPhone 6
features a 4.7-inch display, while the
iPhone 6 Plus has a 5.5 inch screen.


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Compared to a thickness of 7.6 mm of
iPhone 5S, the sixth generation has a
thickness of 6.9 mm (iPhone 6) and
7.1 mm (iPhone 6 Plus), respectively.
The devices feature Apple-designed
A8 chips, which have 25 per cent
faster processing power and up to
50% faster graphics. The handsets
feature 8MP iSight camera and
support Voice over LTE. The iPhone 6
also has improved face detection for
selfies and group selfies. The Apple
Watch sports a flat screen with
sapphire glass and has a digital
crown with a twisting control that lets
the user scroll through different
functions. It runs apps, takes dictation
and interacts with the iPhone. The
phones will be available in India
starting 17 October 2014.

2) Which state government officially
declared September 9 as Himalaya
Diwas on 9 September 2014?
Uttarakhand
Explanation: 9 September would be
celebrated across the state of
Uttarakhand as Himalaya Diwas to
spread the message of conservation of
the Himalayan ecosystems, as
announced by the government.
Accepting a proposal by senior BJP
leader and Leader of the Opposition
Ajay Bhatt, Chief Minister Harish
Rawat officially declared that from
2015, the day would be celebrated by
the State government as well.

3) What is the name of Kolkata-born
British author whose latest novel The
Lives of Others was shortlisted for
the prestigious Man Booker Prize
2014? Neel Mukherjee
Explanation: The novel The Lives of
Others set in troubled Bengal of the
1960s and centered around a
dysfunctional family. This is the first
time the prestigious literary award
opened up for anyone writing in
English regardless of nationality.
Previously, the prize was open only to
authors from the U.K. and
Commonwealth, Republic of Ireland
and Zimbabwe. For the first time in its
46-year history, the 50,000-prize has
been opened up to writers of any
nationality, writing originally in English
and published in the U.K. The others
on the shortlist include American
authors Joshua Ferris for To Rise
Again at a Decent Hour and Karen
Joy Fowler for We Are All Completely
Beside Ourselves, Australian Richard
Flanagan for The Narrow Road to the
Deep North; and British authors
Howard Jacobson for J and Ali Smith
for How to be Both.

4) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on
9 September 2014 fixed the maximum
age for Managing Directors and Chief
Executive Officers in private sector
banks at 70. This age fixation has
been done primarily with regard to
which act to be complied by the
companies? The Companies Act,
2013
Explanation: The Companies Act,
2013 prescribes that no company
shall appoint or continue the
employment of any person as
Managing Director, Whole Time
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below the age of 21 years or has
attained the age of 70 years. Within
the overall limit of 70 years, individual
banks boards are free to prescribe a
lower retirement age for WTDs,
including MD & CEO, as an internal
policy.

5) According to data released by the
World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) the levels of carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere rose at the highest
rate in nearly three decades in 2013.
This increase in carbon dioxide was
the biggest increase in carbon dioxide
levels since which year? 1984
Explanation: The concentration of
CO2 in the atmosphere was 42%
higher than in the mid-18th century,
before the industrial revolution. Since
then, methane levels have risen by
153% and nitrous oxide by 21%.

6) Saral Rozgar cards were launched
in West Bengal during September
2014 with the aim to create a common
pool of jobseekers and job providers
with about 4,000 job openings. Which
major IT services company launched
these cards? Tech Mahindra
Explanation: Saral Rozgar is a
mobile job marketplace that helps blue
collared and entry-level job seekers to
connect to mainstream employers
anywhere in India via mobile in their
own language in an affordable
manner. The company (Tech
Mahindra) helps jobseekers create
their digital presence to connect them
to potential employers calling through
the call centre. Additionally, SMEs or
entrepreneurs can also reach them
through voice calls.

September 11, 2014

1) The iconic HMT range of watches is
on its way to become history as the
Union Government has decided to
shut-down HMT Watches and HMT
Chinar Watches Ltd. The two are the
wholly-owned subsidiaries of HMT Ltd.
and are engaged in manufacturer of
HMT watches. In which year HMT
watches were introduced? 1961
Explanation: The manufacture of
HMT watches were started in 1961 in
technical collaboration with Japans


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Citizen Watch Company. In 2000,
HMT Watch Business group was
restructured as HMT Watches Ltd.
However, with changing times HMT
Watches started accumulating losses
from 2000. Companys net loss rose to
Rs 242.47 crore in 2012-13 from Rs
224.04 crore in 2011-12. At the end of
March 2012, it also had government
loan, including budgetary support for
salary and statutory dues, amounting
to Rs 694.52 crore.

2) State Bank of India (SBI) has
recently planned an incentive plan for
its employees, which, if implemented,
would be the first of its kind in the
public sector banking space. What
plan is this? To roll out an
employee stock option scheme
(ESOS) for employees
Explanation: The move to offer ESOS
is aimed at motivating employees to
perform better as also to attract and
retain talent. Competition to attract
experienced bankers has intensified
with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
granting in-principle approval in April
to IDFC and Bandhan Financial
Services to set up banks in the private
sector. Therefore, SBI is now
considering an ESOS, which will give
an employee the right to purchase or
subscribe to the securities offered by
the bank at a future date, and at a
predetermined price.

3) Which private-sector bank
announced its unique Cardless Cash
Withdrawal service on 10 September
2014, which allows its customers to
transfer money from their account to
anyone in India with a mobile number?
ICICI Bank
Explanation: Under the Cardless
Cash Withdrawal service, the recipient
can withdraw money round the clock
without using a debit card from over
10,000 ATMs of ICICI Bank across the
country. One can do this even without
having a bank account of any bank.
However, the sender needs to be an
ICICI Bank savings account holder.
The facility can be initiated by any
ICICI Bank savings account customer
(sender) by logging into internet
banking of ICICI Bank website.

4) The Union government on 10
September 2014 gave a go-ahead to
the much-awaited disinvestment in
Coal India Ltd (CIL), which could fetch
over Rs. 23,000 crore to the
exchequer. How much stake of CIL will
be divested? 10%
Explantion: The Cabinet Committee
on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 10
September approved the
disinvestment departments proposal
to offload 10% stake in CIL through
Offer For Sale (OFS) route. A planned
stake sale in CIL in 2013-14 had to be
deferred after stiff opposition from
trade unions. At that time CIL had to
make up for that by paying about Rs.
19,000 crore as dividend to the
exchequer. The CCEA also approved
the stake sale in ONGC and NHPC.
5% stake sale in ONGC is expected to
fetch over Rs. 18,000 crore while
11.36% in NHPC is expected to fetch
around Rs. 2,800 crore. Thus the govt.
could raise over Rs. 43,000 crore in


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2014-15 and held bridge the fiscal
deficit.

5) Which Pakistani spin-bowler was
suspended by International Cricket
Council (ICC) for illegal bowling
action on 9 September 2014? Saeed
Ajmal
Explanation: Saeed Ajmal is the
leading off-spinner of Pakistan and his
suspension came as a major blow for
the country. According to the analysis
of Ajmals bowling action, all his
deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees
level of tolerance permitted under the
regulations. The analysis was
performed on 25 August 2014 by the
ICCs accredited team of Human
Movement Specialists using the
National Cricket Centre in Brisbane
(Australia). Saeed, who was reported
after the first Test match against Sri
Lanka in Galle last month, can apply a
re-assessment after he has modified
his bowling action.

September 12-13, 2014

1) According to UNICEFs latest report
on South-Asia, India had the second-
highest number of child marriages and
the highest number of unregistered
children under age five between 2000
and 2012. Which country had the
highest rate of child marriages in the
region during the corresponding
years? Bangladesh
Explanation: This information was
revealed in the UNICEF report titled
Improving Childrens Lives,
Transforming the Future 25 years of
child rights in South Asia. According
to the report, highest rate of child
marriage is in Bangladesh (where two
out of every three girls marry before
age 18), followed by India, Nepal and
Afghanistan. In India, 43% of women
aged 20-24 were first married by the
age of 18 between 2005 and 2013. At
71 million, India had the largest
number of children under the age of
five whose births were not registered
between 2000 and 2012.

2) Drugs manufactured at the Indian
plant of a huge Canadian generic drug
company came under fire from the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(USFDA) for serious quality-related
deficiencies. This created a huge
furore in Canada. Which drug


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company is this whos Bangalore plant
came under fire? Apotex
Corporation
Explanation: Apotex Corporation is
the largest producer of generic drugs
in Canada, with sales exceeding $1
billion a year. It has a plant in
Bangalore that produces and exports
generic drugs to North America. In its
latest report USFDA observed that
Apotex employees at Bangalore facility
did not report undesirable test results
and doctored bacterial growth test
records. The furore over sub-standard
drugs making their way into the
Canadian market comes in the wake
of multiple import bans issued by the
FDA against Indian generics firms, the
most notable case among which was
that of Ranbaxy.

3) The integration of Border Security
Force (BSF) with which state level
geo-informatics agency of Gujarat was
done on 11 September 2014?
Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space
Applications and Geo informatics
(BISAG)
Explanation: BISAG is a State level
agency of the government of Gujarat
to facilitate services and solutions in
implementing map-based GeoSpatial
Information Systems. It implements
geo-spatial technologies for the
planning and developmental activities
pertaining to agriculture, land and
water resource management,
wasteland/watershed development,
forestry, disaster management,
infrastructure and education. BISAGs
integration with BSF will provide BSF
with a dedicated and encrypted
channel to be used for its varied
applications and requirements.

4) The Assembly polls in the states of
Maharashtra and Haryana will be held
on which date as announced by the
Election Commission on 12
September 2014? 15 October 2014
Explanation: Assembly elections in
288 seats in Maharashtra and 90
seats in Haryana will be held on 15
October and counting will take place
on 19 October 2014. Apart from these
States, by-elections will be conducted
on the same day for five Assembly
seats in five States Arunachal
Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Uttar
Pradesh and Gujarat. By-elections for
two Parliamentary constituencies in
Maharashtras Beed and Odishas
Kandhamal will also be held on 15
October and counting for all the seats
will take place on 19 October.

5) The Supreme Court on 12
September 2014 allowed Massimiliano
Latorre, the Italian marine detained for
the 2012 killing of two Kerala
fishermen, to fly home on medical
grounds. The permission was given
after a written underwriting by the
Italian ambassador that the marine will
return to India in four months. Latorre
and fellow marine Salvatore Girone
are living at which place while facing
their criminal prosecution in India?
The Italian Embassy
Explanation: The two Italian marines
are accused of shooting two fishermen
off the Kerala coast in February 2012


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while they were assigned to protect an
Italian-flagged oil tanker from pirates.

6) Who was elected as the new
Chairman of the Advertising Standards
Council of India (ASCI) on 12
September 2014? Narendra
Ambwani
Explanation: ASCI is a non-profit self-
regulatory voluntary organization of
the advertising industry which was
founded in 1985. Its primary objective
is to maintain and enhance the publics
confidence in advertising..

September 14-15, 2014

1) What is the name of the latest
operating system programme
launched by Google for its Android-
based phone OS, that is being
unveiled by the company on 15
September 2014 in India? Android
One
Explanation: Under the Android One
programme Google partners with local
phone makers to create and sell
affordable yet feature-packed Android
phones. Sundar Pichai, the Google
executive, who heads Chrome and
Android divisions at the company, is in
India for the Android One launch event
on 15 September. The phone devices
based on Android One are meant to
give Google a tighter control over the
system, so that users get a better
Android experience. Google gives its
mobile operating system, Android, for
free to manufacturers, which can
customise it for the sake of
differentiation. But, this has made the
Android ecosystem highly fragmented.
The Android One program guarantees
that the phones that come out of it will
run on the most recent Android
release, as Google will push updates
to those phones similar to the way it
handles GPE devices. The phones
based on Google One are made
available in the Indian market from 15
September.

2) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
during September 2014 closed down
six Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs),
the conduct of whom was found
suspicious. What was the main charge
against these UCBs? Being
indulged in money laundering
activities
Explanation: The report had emerged
that such entities were being used as


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conduits for money laundering. The
matter of misuse of UCBs, over which
there is dual control by central and
state governments, was discussed
during a recent meeting of the
Economic Intelligence Council (EIC)
headed by Finance Minister. UCBs are
inspected annually or once in two
years depending on their ratings or
classification. About 70% of these
urban cooperative banks are subjected
to inspection every year. RBI has
aggressively pursued the issue.

3) Which Chinese e-commerce giant is
poised to offer its mega initial public
offering (IPO) worth $21.1 billion soon,
which now appears set to exceed Visa
Incs $19.7 billion IPO in 2008?
Alibaba
Explanation: Alibaba runs Internet-
based e-commerce businesses
including B2B (business-to-business)
online web portals. It was the
companys first online commerce
platform, launched in 1999 and was
founded by Chinese entrepreneur Jack
Ma. Sellers on Alibaba.com are
typically manufacturers and
distributors based in China and other
manufacturing countries such as India,
Pakistan, the United States and
Thailand. Its IPO is the most
anticipated IPO of recent times and is
expected to open on 18 September
2014. Alibaba stock will be listed on
the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
under the symbol BABA. With most big
IPOs seeing a decent pop on debut,
investors are keen on getting some
shares of Alibaba even if at higher end
of price band ($66/share). Indian
investors can invest in this IPO via
overseas trading accounts and some
brokerages offer the facility to invest in
various stocks that are traded on US
exchanges.

4) The extremists of Islamic State (IS)
on 14 September 2014 released a
video showing the beheading of a
British aid worker who was abducted
in Syria during 2013. What is the
name of this aid worker who became
the third western citizen to be
beheaded by the IS? David Haines
Explanation: David Haines became
the third western citizen to be
beheaded by IS after two American
journalists James Foley and Steven
Sotloff. The IS group has also put out
videos showing the beheading of
Kurdish and Lebanese soldiers and
the mass shooting of dozens of
captured Syrian soldiers. On 12
September, Haines family had issued
a public plea urging his captors to
contact them.

5) The West Bengal has decided to
transfer its shareholding in the
troubled Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd
(HPL) in favour of which New York-
based group led by an Indian
entrepreneur? The Chatterjee
Group (TCG)
Explanation: TCG is led by Indian
entrepreneur Purnendu Chatterjee
who founded the group in 1986. TCG
has diversified interests in areas such
as investment banking, real estate,
petrochemicals and life sciences.
Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd. is the


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second largest petrochemical
company in India. Apart from TCG,
other stake-holders in HPL are the
West Bengal government, Indian Oil
Corporation (IOC) and the Tata Group.
HPLs huge petrochemical complex is
situated at Haldia in West Bengal
which is around 120 km from capital
Kolkata. The complex has been shut
for more than two months with
authorities citing reasons of a technical
snag. The company had long been
facing fund crunch and was operating
the plant at sub-optimal capacity owing
to non-availability of naphtha in
desired amount. As per the terms of
agreement, the West Bengal Industrial
Development Corporation (WBIDC)
would transfer its block of around 40%
of its stake in HPL to TCG at Rs. 25.10
per share.

6) What is the name of the young
Indian badminton player who won the
Indonesian Masters Grand Prix Gold,
the maiden Grand Prix title of his
career on 14 September 2014? H.S.
Prannoy
Explanation: 22-year old Prannoy
won the title after defeating local
favourite Firman Abdul Kholik
(Indonesia) in the finals by 21-11, 22-
20. Prannoy is upcoming young
badminton player from Kerala and had
earlier won a silver medal in Boys
singles at Summer Youth Olympics of
2010.

September 16, 2014

1) Which bank claimed first spot in the
mobile banking segment in the
country, as reported in the latest data
released by the RBI on 15 September
2014? State Bank of India (SBI)
Explanation: SBIs total number of
mobile banking users stood at 1.15
crore. ICICI Bank stood second with
19.5 lakh users and was followed by
Axis Bank (13.6 lakh), Yes Bank (4.3
lakh) and HDFC Bank (3.5 lakh). The
number of SBIs mobile banking users
is larger than the mobile banking
customer base of large banks in the
West. Only a couple of Chinese banks
have more mobile banking customers.
SBIs emergence as countrys largest
mobile banking operator came as a
surprise as traditionally new
generation private banks and foreign
banks have been the early adopters of


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alternative platforms like mobile
banking.

2) The WPI-based inflation during
August 2014 came down to the lowest
levels during last 5 years. What was
the inflation level recorded during the
month, as disclosed in the data
released by the Union Govt.? 3.74%
Explanation: The inflation based on
wholesale price index (WPI) of 3.74%
recorded during August 2014 was the
lowest since October 2009, when it
stood at 1.8%. India has always been
comfortable when WPI-based inflation
is at 4% or less. This low level of WPI-
based inflation is partly attributed to a
statistical base effect and below-$100
global crude oil prices. During July
2014 this rate stood at 5.19%.

3) The Union Cabinet on 15
September 2014 gave its approval to a
new mission to address the gaps in
health services through promotion of
ancient and traditional systems of
medicine like Ayurved, Siddha, Unani
and Homeopathy. What is the name of
this mission? National AYUSH
Mission (NAM)
Explanation: The proposed Mission
will address the gaps in health
services through supporting the efforts
of State and Union Territory
Governments for providing AYUSH
health services/education in the
country, particularly in vulnerable and
far-flung areas. The term AYUSH has
been used for clubbing various
traditional and ancient medicine
systems like Ayurved, Siddha, Unani,
Naturopathy and Homeopathy. NAM
aims to improve AYUSH-based
education, better access to AYUSH
services through increase in the
number of AYUSH hospitals and
dispensaries, sustained availability of
quality raw material for AYUSH
systems of medicine and improving
the quality of AYUSH-based drugs.

4) India lost by 2-3 to Serbia in the
World Group play-off tie after India lost
the deciding final tie on 15 September
2014 at Bangalore. With this Serbia
reclaimed its place in the elite World
Group while India would has to again
fight it out in Asia/Oceania zone in the
2015 season. In which year India last
made it to Davis Cups World Group?
In 2011
Explanation: India had made it to the
World Group last time in 2011, but
ironically it lost to Serbia in the very
first round that year. On 15 September
Indias Yuki Bhambri lost easily to
Serbias Filip Karjinovic by 6-3, 6-4, 6-
4. The deciding rubber was needed as
India made a strong comeback by
winning two continuous matches after
losing the first two matches in the tie.

5) Which combination scored victory in
the Jawaharlal Nehru University
Students Union polls (JNUSU) held on
14 September 2014 by bagging all the
top four positions? All India
Students Association (AISA)
Explanation: AlSA is the left-backed
combine which won all the 4 positions
at stake including the Presidents post,
for the second consecutive year.


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Presidents post was won by AISAs
Ashutosh Kumar, Anant Prakash won
Vice Presidential post. AISAs Chintu
Kumari claimed the post of General
Secretary while Shafqat Hussain Butt
was elected as the Joint Secretary.

6) Which north-eastern capital city was
named as a permanent venue for the
bi-annual Mumbai International Film
Festival (MIFF) by the Films Division
on 15 September 2014? Aizawl, the
capital of Mizoram
Explanation: According to the
announcement made by Films
Division, there will be two permanent
venues for the MIFF. Every year MIFF
will be organised at four venues and
two among these will be permanent
venues. Aizawl will be one such
permanent venue. Films Division,
which comes under the Information
and Broadcasting Ministry, is
organising the week-long MIFF 2014
at Aizawl which was inaugurated on 15
September.

September 17, 2014

1) A major pharma company
announced on 15 September 2014
that it would sell Sovaldi, the so-called
wonder drug for Hepatitis C, in India
for about $1800 (around 1.1 lakh) for a
24-week treatment regimen. The same
drug costs $84,000 (around Rs. 50.5
lakh) in the U.S. for the same regimen.
What is the name of the company
which holds patent for this drug and
made this announcement? Gilead
Sciences
Explanation: Gilead Sciences is a
U.S. biotechnology company. The
company has licensed its Hepatitis C
drug Sovaldi to seven India-based
drugmakers that will sell the drug at far
cheaper price than in the United
States. Sovaldi, chemically known as
sofosbuvir, is a far more effective and
better-tolerated treatment of Hepatitis
C than older injection regimens, but
Gilead has come under fire over its
U.S. price tag, with cost presenting a
huge barrier in poor countries. Cipla,
Ranbaxy, Cadila Healthcare, Sequent
Scientific, Strides Arcolab, Hetero
Drugs and Mylan Laboratories will now
be able to make and sell the generic
version of Sovaldi in India.


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2) The investments in the Indian
capital market through foreign
institutional investors (FIIs) broke all
records during 2014. What is the
aggregate investment through the FII
route till 15 September, the data
pertaining to which was released by
the SEBI on 16 September 2014?
Rs. 1,97,715.9 crore
Explanation: Out of this Rs. 85,247
crore was invested through the equity
route while Rs. 1,12,469 was invested
through the debt route. It is worth
mentioning that this figure is far above
the next best year of FII investment
2010, in which total aggregate
investment stood at Rs. 1,79,674.6
crore for the full year.

3) Not a single Indian university found
a place in the Quacquarelli Symonds
(QS) World University Rankings Top
200 list that was released on 16
September 2014. Which international
university topped this list, which is
considered as the most rigorous of its
type? Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT)
Explanation: MIT successfully
retained its number one position in the
list for third time in a row. The highest
placed Indian university in this list was
IIT Mumbai (222
nd
place), followed by
IIT Delhi (235
th
), IIT Kanpur (300
th
), IIT
Madras (322
nd
) and IIT Kharagpur
(324
th
).

4) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
suffered a major setback in the
assembly by-polls held in the states of
Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat
on 11 September 2014. It was able to
win how many seats out of total 24
assembly seats in these three states?
10
Explanation: The BJP won just 3
seats out of a total 11 seats in the
important state of Uttar Pradesh. The
results for the same were declared on
16 September. The ruling Samajwadi
Party (SP) won remaining 8 seats
signalling a major comeback after its
virtual rout in the Lok Sabha elections.
Major reversal was witnessed in
Rajasthan where Congress won 3 out
of 4 seats giving the BJP just 1 seat. In
Gujarat too party conceded seats to
the Congress. BJP won 6 out of 9
seats in Gujarat and Congress won
the remaining 3 seats. BJP was able
to retain the Vadodara seat, which fell
vacant after Prime Minister Narendra
Modi vacated it in favour of Varanasi.
This loss has been seen as major loss
of face for the BJP just 4 months after
its stunning win in the Lok Sabha
elections of 2014.

5) The BJP opened its account in
West Bengal assembly by winning a
seat in the assembly by-elections in
the state. Which seat was won by the
party? Basirhat (South)
Explanation: BJPs Shamik
Bhattacharya won the Basirhat (South)
assembly seat while the Chowringhee
seat was won by the ruling TMC. The
last time the BJP won an assembly
seat in West Bengal was in 1999 when
its candidate Badal Bhattacharya won
the bypoll from Ashoknagar in North
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6) With the declaration of his victory in
Lok Sabha by-election on 16
September 2014, who became the
youngest MP in the 16
th
Lok Sabha?
Tej Pratap Singh Yadav
Explanation: 26-year old Tej Pratap
Singh Yadav of SP won the Lok Sabha
by-election from the prestigious seat of
Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh. The seat
was held by SP supremo Mulayam
Singh Yadav. He thus became
6
th
member of the SP in Lok Sabha,
who all belong to the Yadav family.

September 18, 2014

1) Chinese President Xi Jinping on 17
September 2014 commenced his
three-day state visit to India from
Gujarat the home state of Indian
Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Before
him, who was the last Chinese
President to visit India? Hu Jintao
Explanation: However, Hu Jintaos
2012 visit to India was to attend the
BRICS Summit Meet during March
2012. Before him Chinese premier
Wen Jiabao came to a state visit of
India during 2010. Xi Jinpings state
visit is aimed at ramping up trade and
investments. It will also be the
occasion to have discussions on
important issues including the
contentious border dispute between
the two countries.

2) Despite numerous signs of recovery
being seen in Indian economy,
banking credit growth plunged to its
lowest level in last 5 years. What was
the banking credit growth rate as on
31 August 2014, which was the lowest
in last 5 years? 10.9%
Explanation: The last time credit
growth had dipped to similar levels
was during November-December
2009, after the 2008 financial crisis.
Over the last two years, the credit
growth of banks has slipped
substantially. In 2012-13 and 2013-14,
the credit growth slowed down to 13-
14%, after growing at 22% annually
since 2004-05. Banking credit growth
rate is one of the most powerful
indicators of the countrys economic
activity. It is a function of growth in the
gross domestic product (GDP). Over
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been 2.5 to 3 times the real GDP
growth in the economy. Thus, with the
economic growth hitting a low of 4.7%
in 2013-14, the loan growth also
slowed down to 14%.

3) Which Indian Institute of
Management (IIM) of the country on
17 September 2014 launched
www.iboughtproperty.com, a
crowdsourcing portal, with the
objective of promoting transparency in
the real estate sector? IIM
Bangalore
Explanation: The portal has been
developed to create benchmarks for
property values by collecting data
directly from buyers and validating the
information using standard scientific
practices. It will have the facility to take
information from the persons who
have bought or sold properties in
recent years about what they paid or
received after providing some basic
details about the property. A market
value report summarising information
across all respondents that will be
shared with the public seeks to
alleviate a key source of consumer
anxiety. Policymakers can utilise this
data to study the effects of registration
charges and stamp duty rates on
disclosed property prices and the
impact of the parallel economy in this
sector.

4) Shankar Barua, who allegedly
committed on 17 September 2014,
was the former Director General of
Police (DGP) of which state? Assam
Explanation: Baruas Guwahati
residence was searched by the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
on 28 August 2014 in connection with
the multicrore Saradha chit-fund scam.
He reportedly shot himself at his
residence. Barua headed the Assam
Police as the DGP from July 2009 to
January 2012.

5) What was the percentage drop in
mortality rates for children under-five
years worldwide as stated in the
pertaining report released by the
United Nations Organisation on 16
September 2014? 49%
Explanation: The report titled Levels
and Trends in Child Mortality 2014
revealed that in 2013, globally, 6.3
million children under five years of age
died from mostly preventable causes.
The neonatal period (0-27 days) is the
most vulnerable period for a newborn.
It was therefore not surprising that in
2013, 2.8 million babies across the
world died during this period. The 2.8
million neonatal deaths account for
44% of all under-five deaths in
children.

6) Which country recorded the highest
number of neonatal deaths in the
world during 2012 as revealed in the
report released by the United Nations
on 16 September 2014? India
Explanation: According to the report,
of the three million neonatal deaths
globally in 2012, 779,000 took place in
India. Over 300,000 newborn deaths in
India were on the very first day of birth.
Thus, India accounts for about one-


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third of all babies dying globally on the first day of birth.

September 19, 2014

1) 17
th
Asian Games gets underway at
the South Korean city of Incheon from
19 September 2014. Who will be the
flag-bearer of the Indian contingent at
Games opening ceremony? Sardar
Singh, the captain of mens Hockey
team
Explanation: 17
th
Asian Games would
be the largest sports extravaganza in
Asia and would be held from 19
September to 4 October 2014.
Incheon is the third South Korean city
to host this event after capital Seoul
(1986) and Busan (2002). 45 countries
would take part in these games.

.
2) How many agreements were signed
between India and China on the
occasion of Chinese President Xi
Jinpings official visit to India?
Sixteen (16)
Explanation: The sixteen agreements
included four agreements signed on
17 September in Gujarat and 12
signed on 18 September 2014. The
agreements were signed on varied
subjects including a Memorandum of
Understanding on peaceful uses of
outer space, cooperation in Railways,
opening of an additional route to
Kailash Mansarovar, etc. China also
committed investments worth $20
billion in India over the next five years.
The Chinese president brought along
with him a business delegation of 135
Chinese CEOs.

3) The 16 agreements signed between
India and China included giving the
status of sister cities to Shanghai and
Mumbai. Which Chinese city was
given the status of the sister city of
Ahmedabad on 17 September 2014?
Guangzhou
Explanation: The agreement for
establishing sister-city relations


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between Mumbai-Shanghai and
Ahmedabad- Guangzhou was inked so
as to enhance people-to-people
exchanges fostering greater mutual
understanding between the respective
sister cities.

4) Which Chinese province (state) was
given the status of the sister province
of Gujarat in an MOU signed on 17
September 2014? Guangdong
Explanation: Guangdong is Chinas
richest province posting the highest
GDP growth compared to all Chinese
provinces, since 1989. It is where
Chinese reformist leader Deng
Xiaoping launched his famous SEZ
pilot project at Shenzhen which
became Chinas biggest business and
industrial hub. With a population of
over 100 million, Guangdong raked in
a GDP of $1.5 trillion last year with per
capita income of over $9,500. This
MOU was signed between Chief
Secretary, Government of Gujarat and
the Executive Vice Governer of
Guangdong Province. The agreement
will enhance people-to-people
exchanges and in fostering greater
mutual understanding between the two
states.

5) China agreed to allow the conduct
of the annual Kailash Manasarovar
Yatra through Nathula Pass in Sikkim.
This is in addition to the existing route
which is perceived hazardous and
difficult to undertake. The existing
route is through which pass?
Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand
Explanation: The route through
Nathu-la Pass will augment the
capacity and reduce the hardship and
journey time for this annual Yatra to
the abode of Lord Shiva. The new path
will enable many more pilgrims,
particularly the aged ones, to
undertake the Yatra. However, Indias
request to open another route through
Shipki-la pass in Himachal Pradesh
was not accepted by Chinese
authorities. The route via Nathu-la will
however prove a long one, particularly
for pilgrims from Northern and
Western regions of India.

6) The Hyderabad Metro project has
reportedly run into serious troubles
after the company involved in
developing the project reportedly
threatened to walk out of it due to it
becoming less viable. The company
mentioned adverse economic
conditions after the creation of
Telangana and the change in the
status of Hyderabad for this. Which
company is this? L&T Metro Rail
Explanation: L&T Metro Rail is
undertaking this Rs. 16,000 crore
project covering 71-Km metro-rail in
the city of Hyderabad. The states
ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS)
reportedly demanded changes in the
project, and wanted realignment of
some routes. The company has
reportedly been asked to build
underground to accommodate the
changes, which would escalate the
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7) The largest-ever counter-terrorism
raids in Australia were conducted on
18 September 2014 in which a plot by
Islamic State (IS) jihadists to conduct
demonstration killings was foiled by
the security agencies. This biggest
operation of its kind was undertaken
primarily in which two cities of the
country? Sydney and Brisbane
Explanation: The jihadists of the IS
were reportedly on their way to carry-
out the beheading a member of the
public on camera. The raids by
Australian agencies, which spanned
multiple suburbs apart from Sydney
and Brisbane, came barely a week
after the country boosted the terror
threat level to high for the first time in
a decade on growing concern about
militants returning from fighting in Iraq
and Syria. Around 800 federal and
state police officers were involved in
these raids in which 15 persons were
arrested.

8) Former Italian national football
legend and World Cup winner
Alessandro del Piero arrived in India
on 18 September 2014 to be part of
the inaugural Indian Super League
(ISL). He will play for which team in
the ISL? Delhi Dynamos
Explanation: Alessandro del Piero is
a former captain of Italian national
team and also played for marquee
club Juventus. He will be a brand
ambassador of the ISL, the eight-city
football league slated for 12 October-
20 December 2014. Del Piero had
scored a penalty in the shoot-out of
the 2006 World Cup final against
France that Italy won. He is currently
Italys joint fourth all-time leading
scorer.
September 20-21, 2014

1) Pension regulator PFRDA during
September 2014 constituted an expert
committee to review the investment
guidelines for National Pension
System (NPS) schemes in private
sector. Who was appointed as the
Chairman of this committee? G N
Bajpai, Former Chairman of SEBI and
former Chairman of LIC
Explanation: This committee will look
at the investment guidelines in a
wholesale manner so as to enable
flow of pension monies in new
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banks, infrastructure debt funds and
Basel 3 compliant bonds. The
committee will among other things also
consider moving to dynamic market-
based allocation of funds/choice of
fund managers. The review of
investment guidelines will also help
revamp the role of pension fund
managers (PFMs) and could allow
them to proactively promote pension
products. The members of the expert
committee include Deepak
Satwalekar, former CEO and
Managing Director at HDFC Standard
Life Insurance Company, S B Mathur,
former LIC Chairman, C R
Murlidharan, former IRDA Member
and Madhavi Das, Executive Director,
PFRDA.

2) Scottish voters rejected the
proposed independence of Scotland
from the United Kingdom (UK) in a
keenly-watched referendum held on
18 September 2014. The results of the
referendum were declared on 19
September 2014. With this Scotland
would continue to remain part of the
UK. In which year Scotland joined the
UK? In 1707
Explanation: 55.3% Scottish voters
voted in favour of remaining with the
UK while the remaining 44.7% voted
for independence of Scotland. The
question asked in this referendum was
Should Scotland be an independent
country?. In is worth mentioning that
Scotland joined the United Kingdom in
1707 which comprised of England,
Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and Northern
Ireland. Later Ireland became
independent and came to be known as
Republic of Ireland.

3) U. Shrinivas, the Carnatic classical
instrumentalist, who passed away on
19 September 2014 at the age of 45,
was associated with Western
instrument? Mandolin
Explanation: U. Shrinivas was one of
the most famous Carnatic classical
instrumentalist of present times. His
greatest achievement was his amazing
dexterity with a western instrument like
Mandolin, on which he played some of
the most complex Carnatic
compositions. He was better known as
Mandolin Shrinivas for his command
over the instrument. As a child
prodigy, he created waves in the
Carnatic music world at the tender age
of 11.

4) The first gold medal of 17
th
Asian
Games was claimed by which country
on 20 September 2014? China
Explanation: China won the first gold
medal when its women shooters-
Olympic champions Guo Wenjun,
Zhang Mengyuan and Zhou Qingyuan
clinched the 10m Air Pistol team title.
The silver and bronze medals were
won by Taiwan and Mongolia
respectively. The competitive events
started on 20 September 2014 after a
grand opening ceremony a day earlier
at Incheon (South Korea).

5) Who won the first gold medal for
India at 17
th
Asian Games at Incheon


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on 20 September 2014? Jitu Rai (in
Shooting)
Explanation: Ace shooter Jitu Rai
won the first gold medal for India on 20
September 2014 when he stood first in
the mens 50m Pistol event. Rai
accumulated 186.2 points in
comparison to Vietnams Nguyen
Hoang Phuongs 183.4 and Wang
Zhiwei (China) stood a distant third
with 165.6 points. Jitu Rai is the
Lucknow-based shooter and he
completed a grand double as he had
won gold in the Commonwealth
Games in Glasgow earlier this year.

6) Indias first medal of 17
th
Asian
Games at Incheon was won by which
player on 20 September 2014?
Shooter Shweta Chaudhary
Explanation: Shweta Chaudhary won
the bronze medal in the womens
10m air pistol at the Ongnyeon
International Shooting Range. She
shot a total of 176.4 in the final to
clinch the bronze medal while the
silver went to South Korean Jung
Jeehae (201.3) and Chinas Zhang
Mengyuan (202.2) won the gold.

7) Chinese tennis player Li Na
announced her retirement from
international tennis on 19 September
2014. She was the only tennis Grand
Slam winner from China and had won
two women singles Grand Slam titles.
Which 2 titles were these? French
Open (2011) and Australian Open
(2014)
Explanation: 32-year old Li set a host
of milestones for tennis in China,
including being the first Chinese player
to win a WTA title and the first to win a
major. She became the first player
from China to win a Grand Slam
singles title when she won the French
Open title in 2011. She retired due to
her recurring injuries.

September 22, 2014

1) Who was chosen as the next
President of Afghanistan after the
presidential candidates signed a deal
to share power on 21 September
2014? Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai
Explanation: Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai
is a former finance minister of the
country. The power sharing deal was
struck between Ashraf Ghani and his
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turmoil over a disputed election that
destabilised the nation at a crucial time
as most foreign troops are preparing to
leave. The deal was brokered by U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry even
though the final results of a hotly
contested run-off poll held on 14 June
2014 are yet to be released. Later
countrys election commission also
declared Ashraf Ghani as countrys
next president. He will replace
outgoing leader Hamid Karzai.

2) A new round of Naga peace talks
between Indian Government and the
leaders of NSCN(IM) is set to resume
more than 10 months after the last
round of talks. The NSCN(IM)
chairman Isak Chisi Swu and general
secretary Thuingaleng Muivah are
leading the delegation of Naga
leaders. There has been a ceasefire
between NSCN(IM) and Government
of India from which date? 1 August
1997
Explanation: NSCN(IM) has been on
this ceasefire to hold discussions with
the Government of India on its
numerous demands pertaining to
Nagaland. While the group has
dropped its demand for sovereignty, it
has maintained that it would continue
to press for integration of all Naga-
inhabited areas, with the present state
of Nagaland.

3) In a strongly-worded order, Indian
capital market regulator SEBI during
September 2014 barred as many as
13 entities from the securities market
for varying periods ranging from three
to five years. What was the charge on
these 13 entities? Manipulation of
global depository receipts (GDRs)
by these entities
Explanation: A detailed probe by
SEBI found that these entities actively
traded in the shares of GDR-issuer
companies and thereby facilitated the
sub accounts of Foreign Institutional
Investors (FIIs) in selling those shares
in Indian markets. The 13 entities are
Basmati Securities, Oudh Finance
and Investment, Alka India, SV
Enterprise/Sarfaraz Khan Pathan,
Ashok Panchariya, Madanlal
Girdharilal Bugualiya, Indra Varun
Trade Impex, Delight Financial
Advisors, Vinod Amrutlaal Naai,
Newgen International, Excel Paints,
Cherry Cosmetics and Edelweiss
Estate.

4) India womens badminton team
created history by claiming their
maiden medal in Asian Games after
they settled for bronze medal in
womens team badminton event at the
Asian Games in Incheon on 21
September 2014. Which team
defeated India in the semi-finals?
South Korea
Explanation: Hosts South Korea
defeated India by 3-1 in the semi-
finals. The lone victory for India was
achieved by countrys no. 1 player
Saina Nehwal, who pulled off a great
victory in three tough games against
Korean world no. 4 Sung Jihyun 21-
12, 10-21, 21-9. Other members in the
Indian team were P.V. Sindhu, P.C.
Thulasi, Pradnya Gadre and N Sikki
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semifinalist Japan (who lost to title
favourites China 1-3) automatically
gained the bronze. This was Indias
first medal in badminton since the
team bronze won by the men in Seoul,
1986.

5) What is the name of the Prime
Minister of New Zealand who won a
third term in office with an
unprecedented govern-alone victory
on 20 September 2014? John Key
Explanation: John Key-led National
Party (NP) scored a huge victory in
countrys Parliamentary elections. His
victory sealed his third consecutive
term in office as the alliance between
controversial leader Kim Dotcom and
the Maori Mana Movement (MMM)
failed to win a single seat. It was the
first time since the MMP voting system
was introduced in 1996 that any party
has held an outright majority in New
Zealand parliament. Key led his party
to victory at the November 2008
general election and had repeated this
feat in the November 2011 general
election. He is the 38
th
Prime Minister
of New Zealand.

6) Who won the Singapore F1 Grand
Prix on 21 September 2014 to take a
lead over this years leader Nico
Rosberg? Lewis Hamilton (UK)
Explanation: Mercedes Lewis
Hamilton won the Singapore GP to
take a slender 3-point lead over his
teammate Nico Rosberg (Germany),
who was leading the 2014 season till
now. Rosberg could not complete the
race due to steering wheel problems.
Second spot was claimed by Red
Bulls Sebastian Vettel (Germany)
while his teammate Daniel Ricciardo
(Australia) was third. Hamilton now
has 241 points and is followed closely
by Rosberg with 238 points with 5
races remaining in the season.

September 23, 2014

1) The Indian Army on 20 September
2014 called-off the massive operation
to provide assistance and
humanitarian relief to the people of
Jammu & Kashmir affected by the
huge floods. What was the name given
to this operation undertaken by the
Northern Command of the Indian
Army? Operation Megh Rahat


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Explanation: Operation Megh Rahat
was launched early in September
2014 in response to the disastrous
floods that inundated huge areas of
the state causing very heavy loss to
lives and property. Huge resources
from Army, Navy and Air Force were
employed in the massive operation.
Till 20 September almost 2.5 lakh
people were rescued and a huge set
of temporary and permanent
infrastructure was created under the
operation. Almost 30,000 troops were
involved in Operation Megh Rahat.

2) Which West African country on 21
September 2014 completed the
unprecedented act of complete
lockdown of the country for three days
to combat the deadly Ebola disease?
Sierra Leone
Explanation: The lockdown involved a
government order for the countrys 6
million residents to stay in their homes
and a wide-spread sweeping and data
collection by teams of health care
workers and volunteers bearing
information about the disease. Sierra
Leones government was hoping the
lockdown the most aggressive
containment effort yet attempted would
turn the tide against the disease.
Spread by contact with bodily fluids,
Ebola has killed more than 560 people
in Sierra Leone and more than 2,600
across West Africa in the biggest
outbreak ever recorded, according to
the World Health Organization. The
disease, which has also touched
Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Senegal,
is believed to have sickened more
than 5,500 people.

3) According to a recently released
report by international ratings firm
Moodys, how much fund would be
needed by the major public sector
banks of India for the full
implementation of Basel III norms by
year 2019? Between Rs 1,50,000
crore to Rs 2,20,000 crore ($26-$37
billion)
Explanation: The rating agency
estimated that public sector Indian
banks that it rates could need that
external capital, assuming a moderate
recovery in Indias GDP growth, and a
gradual decline in non-performing
loans from current levels. This report
by Moodys rated 11 PSU banks which
represent around 62% of net loans in
the Indian banking system. Basel III
raises the minimum required capital
levels for both total Tier 1 to 7.0% and
Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital
to 5.5%, and banks will also need to
meet a Capital Conservation Buffer to
pay dividends. That will pressure the
Indian public sector banks, as low
capital levels remain a key credit
weakness.

4) Who was appointed as the new
chief of Pakistani intelligence agency
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) on 22
September 2014? Lt. Gen Rizwan
Akhtar
Explanation: Lt. Gen Rizwan Akhtar
is a close associate of Pakistani Army
Chief Gen. Raheel Sharif and was
appointed Director General of the
agency. The ISI was established in
1948 and became the primary


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institution running the intelligence
operations of countrys army, air force
and navy.

5) Which disgraced former chief of
Medical Council of India (MCI) was
recently appointed the President of the
World Medical Association for 2016,
an appointment severely criticized by
the medical fraternity of India? Dr.
Ketan Desai
Explanation: Dr. Ketan Desais
appointment as WMA President was
published in the latest issue of the
WMA journal. He was chosen as
president-elect of the WMA in 2009
prior to his arrest by the CBI in 2010.
He allegedly went before the WMA
Assembly last year with a letter from
the Indian Medical Association (IMA)
claiming that the CBI had dropped all
charges against him. However, a large
medical fraternity of the country feels
that it is unacceptable that a doctor
who is awaiting trial for serious
criminal charges of bribery and
corruption and whose medical
registration still remains suspended by
the MCI would head the world medical
body.

6) Indian shooting team won the
bronze medal in womens 25 m pistol
event on 22 September 2014 at the
ongoing 17
th
Asian Games at Incheon
(South Korea). This women shooting
team comprised on which 3 shooters?
Rahi Sarnobat, Anisa Sayyed and
Heena Siddhu
Explanation: The team of these three
shooters accumulated a total score of
1729 points to claim the bronze. Rahi
Sarnobat scored 580 points, Anisa 577
points and Heena scored the
remaining 572 points. Hosts South
Korea won the gold with a score of
1748 while China got the silver with
1747 points.

7) Which Indian player won the bronze
medal in the womens squash singles
semifinals at the ongoing 17
th
Asian
Games on 22 September 2014?
Dipika Pallikal
Explanation: Dipika Pallikal was
defeated in a one-sided semi final by
Malaysias world number one Nicol
David by 4-11, 4-11, 5-11. The top-
seeded Malaysian came into the
match as the overwhelming favourite,
having not lost a singles match since
the sport was introduced in the 1998
Bangkok Games.





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September 24, 2014

1) Which film will be Indias official
entry into the 87
th
Academy Awards
(Oscars) for 2015? Liars Dice
Explanation: Liars Dice is a Hindi
film directed by Geetu Mohandas and
starring Geetanjali Thapa and
Nawazuddin Siddiqui in lead roles.
The film is a road drama about a tribal
womans journey to find her missing
husband. It beat 29 other films to
represent India at the Oscars 2015.
The film won the National award for
best actress to Thapa and best
cinematography award to Rajeev Ravi.
The last Indian film that made it to the
final five nominees at the Oscars was
Ashutosh Gowarikers Lagaan.
Mother India and Salaam Bombay
are the only other two Indian films to
have made it to the top five.

2) The Union Govt. during September
2014 constituted a committee to
recommend strategies on restructuring
the Railway Board. Who is heading
this committee? Bibek Debroy
Explanation: Bibek Debroy is the
leading economist and has been
associated with the Centre for Policy
Research (CPR). The committee
basically has to suggest ways to
restructure the board to ensure faster
decision-making. It also has to suggest
ways to ensure objectivity in decision-
making. Additionally, it has to
recommend ways to raise finances.
Other members on the panel are
Gurcharan Das, Ravi Narain (former
CEO of National Stock Exchange), KM
Chandrashekhar (former Cabinet
Secretary), Partha Mukhopadhyay
(Centre for Policy Research) and
Rajendra Kashyap, former Finance
Commissioner of Railways.

3) What is the new name of MCX
Stock Exchange (MCX-SX) that was
approved by capital market regulator
Securities and Exchange Board of
India (SEBI) recently? Metropolitan
Stock Exchange of India (mSXI)
Explanation: The board of MCX-SX
approved the proposal for
rechristening the exchange few
months ago and subsequently an
application was submitted to the SEBI.
The name change is a part of the
turnaround strategy to give the
exchange a new identity and
disassociate itself from the scam-
tainted promoter Financial
Technologies.



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4) The National Pharmaceuticals
Pricing Authority (NPPA) announced
to roll-back its earlier decision to bring
about 108 non-scheduled drugs under
price control. These drugs are meant
for the treatment of lifestyle diseases
such as heart disease and diabetes.
Which Paragraph of the Drug Price
Control Order, 2013 (DPCO 2013) is
associated with this issue?
Paragraph 19
Explanation: This move comes soon
after the Delhi High Court instructed
the Government and the
pharmaceutical companies to resolve
the matter expeditiously since it
impacts people. The pharmaceutical
associations challenged the move by
NPPA to cap the price of 108 drugs by
an order on 29 May 2014. The
Authority had invoked Paragraph 19,
DPCO, to extend the controlled regime
to medicines which dont fall under the
National List of Essential Medicines.
Under Paragraph 19, DPCO, the
NPPA has the authority to extend price
control over medicines outside of the
essential medicines list in
extraordinary circumstances and in
the public interest.

5) Who won the first silver medal for
India at the 17
th
Asian Games on 23
September 2014? Saurav
Ghosal (in mens squash singles)
Explanation: Saurav Ghosal won the
silver medal in the mens squash
singles after he lost to Kuwaits
Abdullah Almezayen by 12-10, 11-2,
12-14, 8-11, 9-11. Saurav let the two-
game advantage slip away as
Abdullah staged an incredible come-
back to claim the gold. His silver
medal thus became Indias first silver
medal in the Games. Prior to this
Ghosal had three Asian Games
medals, all bronze, in his name.

6) Anandji Jamnadas Dossa (A.J.
Dossa), who passed away on 22
September 2014 at the age of 98, was
a renowned authority on which aspect
of cricket? Cricket Statistics
Explanation: A.J. Dossa was
associated with the All India Radio
(AIR) as cricket statistician from 1956-
57 to 1972-73. He served as the first
President of the Association of Indian
Cricket Statisticians and Scorers
(ACSSI), which was formed in the
1980s. His fame of keeping cricket
statistics was such that he was often
described as the human computer of
cricket.

7) Sudhir Kumar Jain was terminated
from the post of Chairman-cum-
Managing Director (CMD) of which
public-sector bank on 22 September
2014? Syndicate Bank
Explanation: In a communication to
the stock exchanges, the bank said
that the Central Government in its
letter dated 22 September has
terminated the term of office of Sudhir
Kumar Jain as CMD of the bank with
immediate effect. He had been placed
under deemed suspension with effect
from 2 August 2014 in the wake of his
arrest by CBI for allegedly accepting
bribe to hike the credit limit of some
private companies bypassing rules.


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September 25, 2014

1) Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), Indias
spacecraft to Mars, beamed back
about 10 pictures of the Red Planets
surface. These photographs were
taken by a colour camera on board the
spacecraft and show Mars craters.
The first pictures were received by the
Indian Space Science Data Centre
(ISSDC). Where is the ISSDC
situated? Bayalu (Karnataka)
Explanation: Bayalu is situated
around 40 km from Bangalore. The
camera which took these photographs
was switched on a few hours after
Indias Mars mission made history on
24 September 2014 by entering the
planets orbit. The camera is among
the 5 instruments on board the
spacecraft. The other instruments will
become operational one by one in the
next few days.

2) India created history on 24
September 2014 by becoming the first
country to successfully enter Mars
orbit on its very first attempt as ISROs
Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) was
successfully placed in planets orbit.
When this mission took-off from Earth?
5 November 2013
Explanation: ISROs first and historic
mission to Mars, the red planet, was
launched on 5 November 2013 from
Indias spaceport of Sriharikota (in
Andhra Pradesh) along the eastern
coast some 100 kilometres north of
Chennai. The ambitious mission to
Mars was first publicly announced by
former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan
Singh from the Red Fort on 15 August
2012 on the occasion of his
Independence Day address. The
success of Indias Mars mission is
undisputedly a shining moment in the
space exploration history of a country
otherwise beset with developmental
challenges. Over half a century, the
Indian space programme has
managed many feats, but none as
dramatic as this successful mission to
the red planet.

3) On 24 September 2014, ISRO
became fourth agency in the World to
have successfully executed a mission
to Mars. Which three worldwide space
agencies have been able to succeed
in their respective Mars missions prior
to ISRO? NASA (United States),
Roscosmos (Russia) and the
European Space Agency (ESA) of
European Consortium
Explanation: NASAs Mariner 4 was
the first successful mission to Mars
when it had the closest approach of


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Mars on 15 July 1965. It was launched
during November 1964. Mars 2 (1971)
was the first partially successful
Russian mission to Mars. Mars
Express (2003) was the first
successful Mars mission of the
European Space Agency (ESA)

4) Which are the winners of the Right
Livelihood Award for 2014, an award
also known as the alternative Nobel?
Edward Snowden with Alan
Rusbridger, Asma Jahangir, Basil
Fernando and Bill McKibben
Explanation: Edward Snowden is
known for his disclosures of top secret
surveillance programs conducted by
the United States. He will share the
honorary portion of the prize
with Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger.
Asma Jahangir is a noted human
rights activist of Pakistan. Basil
Fernando is associated with the Asian
Human Rights Commission. Bill
McKibben is a noted American
environmentalist. The 1.5 million
kronor ($210,000) cash award will be
shared by the winners and the award
will be given on 1 December 2014 at
Stockholm (Sweden).

5) What is the share split that was
agreed by the central board of the
State Bank of India (SBI) on 24
September 2014? 1:10
Explanation: A share split of 1:10
means one equity share of SBI will
now be split into 10 shares. This
stands for reducing the face value of
equity shares of the bank from Rs. 10
per share to Rs. 1 per share and to
increase the number of issued shares
in proportion thereof. The stock split is
expected to increase investor
participation in the stock. Earlier during
September 2014, Punjab National
Bank and ICICI Bank had also
announced share split. Both the banks
have approved sub-division of one
equity share into five.

6) The Supreme Court on 24
September 2014 cancelled all but four
of the 218 coal block allocations it had
declared illegal and arbitrary in its
order of 25 August 2014. The four coal
blocks exempted belong to which
entities? Sasan Power Limited,
NTPC and SAIL
Explanation: The four functional coal
blocks exempted from cancellation
include two ultra mega power projects
(UMPPs) under Sasan Power Limited
in Madhya Pradesh and two other
operated by NTPC and another by
SAIL. Acting on the Central
governments assurance that it is fully
prepared to face the cancellation of
the coal block allocations and will not
have any difficulty to take the coal
industry forward, a three-judge bench
led by Chief Justice of India R.M.
Lodha passed the order. On the
Centres request to save 40 functional
coal blocks and six ready-to-function
ones, the court said 42 of them would
continue to function for the next 6
months, till 31 March 2015, to give the
government breathing space to
manage the emerging situation.


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September 26-27, 2014

1) Which act associated with setting
up of a tribunal was struck down by
the Supreme Court through its order
delivered on 25 September 2014?
National Tax Tribunal Act
Explanation: In its order delivered on
25 September 2014, a Constitutional
Bench of the Supreme Court said that
Parliament could not take away the
powers of the judiciary and rest them
in a tribunal which is not a court in its
characteristic. A tribunal was set up in
2005 under the National Tax Tribunal
Act. This tribunal was set up to decide
tax-related cases by taking away
jurisdiction of high courts in such
matters. However, the 2005 law was
stuck in litigation in high courts. All
cases were transferred to the
Supreme Court for a final decision.
The Act allowed the executive
extensive control with regard to
appointments of members and
procedure of the tribunal. The tribunal
was envisaged to function like National
Green Tribunal (NGT) in the taxation
field.

2) What is the total amount allocated
for Union Governments five-year
Clean India Mission (Swachh Bharat
Mission) for urban areas as
announced on 24 September 2014?
Rs. 62,000 crore
Explanation: The Clean India Mission
would be implemented from 2 October
2014 for 4,041 towns of the country.
The mission will include elimination of
open defecation, conversion of
insanitary toilets to pour flush toilets,
eradication of manual scavenging,
municipal solid waste management,
bringing about a behavioural change in
people regarding healthy sanitation
practices, generating awareness
among citizens about sanitation and its
linkages with public health beside
others. It will cover 1.04 crore
households, provide 2.5 lakh seats of
community toilets, 2.6 lakh seats of
public toilets and solid waste
management facility for all towns.

3) Which former Union Home
Secretary took over as the Chairman
of Tata International, the global trading
and distribution arm of the Tata
Group? GK Pillai
Explanation: Apart from being a
former Union Home Secretary, Pillai
also took some other highly
responsible government jobs such as
Union Commerce Secretary and
Secretary of the Department of Justice
in the Ministry of Law and Justice. As


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Special Secretary in the Commerce
Ministry, he was Indias Chief
negotiator at the WTO. He succeeds B
Muthuraman, who retires from the
Tata group.

4) Which West Bengal based plant of
Dunlop India Limited was re-opened
after around 3 years on 25 September
2014? Sahaganj plant
Explanation: The plant was re-
opened after a tripartite agreement
between the management, workers
unions and the State Labour
Department. Dunlop India Limited, the
legendary maker of iconic Dunlop
brand of tyres is going through rough
weather for many years now. The
company is owned by the Ruia Group.
The Sahaganj plant was the first tyre
manufacturing plant of Asia and was
set-up in 1936. The operations in the
plant were closed in October 2011
after the management had declared
suspension of work citing law and
order problems.

5) Which international rating agency
on 26 September 2014 revised its
outlook on India to stable from
negative following which a spurt in
share prices was registered in all
major stock exchanges of the country?
Standard & Poors Ratings
Services (S&P)
Explanation: S&P stated that
improved political setting offers a
conducive environment for reforms,
which could boost growth prospects
and improve fiscal management. At
the same time, it affirmed the BBB-
long-term and A-3 short-term
unsolicited sovereign credit ratings on
India.

6) Which player became the first one
to fail the dope test at the ongoing
17
th
Asian Games (Incheon, South
Korea) following which he was banned
from all sporting activity for 30 days?
Khurshed Beknazarov, the football
player of Tajikistan
Explanation: Khurshed Beknazarov
was tested positive with
methylhexanamine after a match
against Singapore on 14 September
2014, five days before the opening
ceremony. He was subsequently
banned on 24 September 2014.





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September 28, 2014

1) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27
September 2014 made his first
address to the United Nations (UN)
General Assembly. In his address he
made a global call for cooperation on
terrorism, calling for the world body to
speedily adopt a comprehensive
international convention of terror, so
that no country could differentiate
between good terrorism and bad
terrorism. His one hour speech was in
Hindi and he thus became the second
person to address the UN General
Assembly in Hindi. Who was the first?
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Explanation: Atal Bihari Vajpayee,
who was Prime Minister from 1998 to
2004, was the first to speak in Hindi at
the UN General Assembly. This first
Hindi address was delivered in a
session in 1977. Vajpayee was then
the Foreign Minister in the Janata
Party cabinet. Hindi is not among the
official languages of the UN. Narendra
Modi in his address to the General
Assembly, avoided a direct retort to
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharifs harsh language at the UNGA
a day earlier on 26 September,
choosing instead to call on Pakistan to
understand its own duty in creating an
atmosphere for talks.

2) A Special Court Bangalore on 27
September 2014 convicted and
sentenced Tamil Nadu Chief Minister
J. Jayalalithaa to four years in prison
and a fine of 100 crore, in the
disproportionate assets case. The
conviction led to her immediate
disqualification as an MLA and she
ceases to be states Chief Minister.
What is the name of the Judge of this
Special Court who delivered the
judgment which changed the politics in
Tamil Nadu? John Michael Cunha
Explanation: The verdict was
delivered at Gandhi Bhavan, in front of
Bangalore Central Prison at
Parappana Agrahara, where the court
has been temporarily shifted for
pronouncing the verdict in view of Z+
security available to Jayalalithaa. The
other three accused in the case, V.K.
Sasikala, V.N. Sudhakaran, and J.
Ilavarasi, who were also convicted,
were sentenced to four years in jail
and a fine of 10 crore.

3) The disproportionate assets case, in
which Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J.
Jayalalithaa was convicted on 27
September 2014, is almost 18 years
old. Who had filed the complaint


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against her in this case in 1996? Dr.
Subramanian Swamy
Explanation: Dr Subramanian
Swamy, then a leader of Janata Party,
files a case against Jayalalithaa
alleging that during her tenure as Chief
Minister from 1991 to 1996, she
amassed properties worth Rs 66.65
crore disproportionate to her known
sources of income.

4) Which railway station of India on 26
September 2014 became the first one
to offer free Wi-Fi Internet access?
Chennai Central
Explanation: The free Wi-Fi Internet
facility was inaugurated by the Union
Railway Minister D.V. Sadananda
Gowda. The facility was started as a
pilot project at Chennai Central by
RailTel, a public sector telecom
infrastructure provider. Under it,
Internet browsing facility is free for the
first half-an-hour, and after that, a
nominal amount will be charged. Free
Wi-Fi facility at railway stations was
announced by the Railway Minister in
the Rail Budget 2014-15.

5) International ratings agency
Standard & Poors (S&Ps) revised the
rating outlooks on 11 Indian banks and
financial institutions to stable from
negative. However, the outlook was
still kept negative for two banks. Which
two banks are these? Indian
Overseas Bank (IOB) and Syndicate
Bank
Explanation: The negative outlook for
Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) and
Syndicate Bank means a possible
weakening in these banks asset
quality and capitalisation. The 11
banks whose rating outlooks were
revised from negative to stable are
ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank,
Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of
India, Bank of India, IDBI Bank Ltd,
Indian Bank, Union Bank of India,
IDFC and Kotak Mahindra Prime.

6) Which city replaced Hong Kong as
the most expensive city for companies
to locate employees, according to a
study done by Savills plc., a global real
estate services provider? London
Explanation: This fact was revealed
in the 5
th
edition of the Savills
Live/Work Index that was released on
26 September 2014. The Index
measured the total costs per employee
of renting living and working space on
a US dollar basis in 12 world cities.
London was placed at the top place in
the index with annual cost per
employee at $1,20,568. Hong Kong
slipped from top spot to second place
with $1,15,717 annual cost per
employee. The two cities were
followed by New York, Paris and
Tokyo among the top 5 places.
Mumbai retained its position as the
cheapest world city, at $30,000 per
person per year, down 21% in US
dollar terms since 2008.

7) What is the name of the Japanese
volcano that started erupting on 27
September 2014 resulting in
diversions of numerous flights and
injuries to some people? Mt. Ontake


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Explanation: Mt. Ontake, which
straddles Nagano and Gifu prefectures
around 200 km of Tokyo, started
erupting on the morning of 27
September. The thick grey smoke from
the volcano affected flying routes of
numerous flights and the planes were
diverted on alternative routes.

September 29, 2014

1) How much per cent reduction in salt
intake was recommended by the
World Health Organisation (WHO) in
an official communiqu to all countries
released on the occasion of World
Heart Day (29 September)? 30%
Explanation: In this communiqu, the
WHO asked stakeholders to take
action against the overuse of salt by
implementing its sodium reduction
recommendations. The WHO
cautioned that consuming too much
salt could lead to, or contribute to,
hypertension, or high blood pressure,
and greatly increase the risk of heart
disease and stroke. The WHO wanted
the governments to implement the
global action plan to reduce non-
communicable diseases that set nine
targets, one being to reduce salt intake
by a relative 30% across the globe by
2025.

2) Yogeshwar Dutt on 28 September
2014 became the first Indian wrestler
in last 28 years to win a gold medal at
Asian Games after he won the gold
medal in mens 65 kg freestyle event
at 17
th
Asian Games (Incheon). He
defeated Zalimkhan Yusupov of
Tajikistan to expectedly pick the gold.
Who was the last Indian wrestler
before him to win a gold medal at
Asian Games? Kartar Singh
Explanation: Kartar Singh had won
the gold medal in the 10
th
Asian
Games at Seoul in 1986. Dutt, the
2012 Olympic bronze-medallist, was
trailing all through in his semifinal bout
before coming good in the last few
seconds to enter the final. But in final
he defeated Tajikistans Yusupov by 3-
0 to claim a historic gold medal.

3) Who on 28 September 2014
became the first woman from India to
win a medal in 20km Race Walking at
Asian Games? Khushbir Kaur


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Explanation: Khushbir Kaur became
the first Indian woman to win a medal
in race walking event in the Asian
Games as she clinched silver in 20km
event. The 21-year-old from Amritsar
clocked 1:33:07 to finish behind Lu
Xiuzhi of China, who won the gold in
1:31:06. Khushbir also set a new
national record in the process by
bettering her previous personal best of
1:33:37.

4) Justice H.L. Dattu, who took the
oath as the new Chief Justice of India
on 28 September 2014, is the
. Chief Justice of India? 42
nd

Explanation: 63-year old Justice H.L.
Dattu (Handyala
Lakshminarayanaswamy Dattu) was
administered the oath of office by
President Pranab Mukherjee at the
Durbar Hall of the Rashtrapati
Bhawan. He replaced Justice RM
Lodha, who retired a day earlier on 27
September 2014. Justice Dattu has
been heading the Supreme Court
bench that is monitoring investigations
into the 2G spectrum scam. He will
have a tenure of 14 months and will
retire on 2 December 2015.

5) On 28 September 2014 O.
Panneerselvam was chosen as the
next Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to
take place of the convicted AIADMK
chief J. Jayalalithaa. He was elected
as the leader of AIADMK legislature
party held at Chennai. This would be
the second time that Panneerselvam
would take place of Jayalalithaa in
almost similar circumstances. In which
year he first took Jayalalithaas place
as Tamil Nadu chief minister? In
2001
Explanation: Jayalalithaa has been
lodged in the Bangalore central jail
after her conviction in disproportionate
assets case. It was due to his loyalty
factor that Panneerselvam was picked
up by Jayalalithaa then in 2001 and
now under almost similar
circumstances he was picked up for
the second time.

6) According to the initial findings of
the first of its kind study being carried
out by consultancy firm ICF
International, how much energy
savings were made in India between
2000 and 2011 by measures such as
using CFL lamps, LED lights, LED TVs
and energy saving electric appliances?
791 million tonnes of oil
equivalent (to electricity)
Explanation: The study claimed that
because of these savings, about
10,836 MW of electricity generation
was avoided in India in these 11 years.
In terms of electricity, 95.3 billion units
were saved. Indias annual
consumption of electricity is about 700
billion units. If this entire saved
electricity had to be produced from
coal-based thermal power plants, India
would have burnt another 98 million
tonnes of coal. The study also
elaborated that a bulk of these savings
have come after 2006, once the
Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE),
that was created in 2002, started
pushing various energy efficiency
schemes.


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September 30, 2014

1) Which region of Spain was on its
way to hold a referendum for its
independence from the country, which
was suspended by Spains
constitutional court on 29 September
2014? Catalonia
Explanation: Spains constitutional
court on 29 September suspended the
planned referendum in Catalonia, thus
halting all campaigning and
preparations for the vote on
independence. The Catalan leader
Artur Mas had given a formal call on
27 September for holding a
referendum for regions independence
from Spain. The court in its order also
suspended the law that allowed the
regional government to hold such
voting for up to five months. The
region of Catalonia has been pressing
for its independence from Spain for
quite some time now, with which it has
been since the 15
th
century.

2) On 29 September 2014 Australian
airline Qantas made flying history by
starting the worlds longest flight on
worlds largest passenger aircraft, the
superjumbo A380. This flight lasting
almost 16 hours is between which
cities? Sydney and Dallas/ Fort
Worth
Explanation: The total distance
between Sydney (Australia) and
Dallas/ Fort Worth (U.S.) is 8,578
miles (13,804km). It is now the longest
regular passenger flight in the world
being serviced by Qantas. It is
followed by Deltas Johannesburg to
Atlanta flight at 8,439 miles
(13,582km) and Emirates Dubai Los
Angeles flight at 8,390 miles
(13,420km).

3) The famous Komagata Maru
episode associated with the Indian
national freedom movement
completed how many years on 27
September 2014? 100 years
Explanation: A century of the famous
Komagata Maru episode was
completed on 27 September. Exactly
100 years ago on 27 September 1914
a bunch of Indians reached Calcutta
on a Japanese steamship named
Komagata Maru. These passengers
had been forcibly turned away from
the shores of Vancouver by the
Canadian government after a long,
bitter stand-off. At Calcuttas Budge
Budge port they were fired at by the
police killing 18 passengers. This was


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the bloody climax of one of the most
fascinating episodes in countrys
independence movement. This
episode became a symbol of the worst
in racist colonial oppression and of the
indomitable spirit of resistance
possessed by poor Indian migrants.

4) Who won the first gold medal for
India from an athletic event on 29
September 2014 at the 17
th
Asian
Games? Seema Punia (in womens
Discus throw)
Explanation: Seema won the gold
medal with a throw of 61.03m, which
was the only effort of over 60m in the
finals. Chinas Lu Xiaoxin took the
silver with 59.35m. This was Seemas
second major medal of the season,
having won the silver medal at the
Commonwealth Games earlier in the
year.

5) The Union Govt. on 29 September
2014 cancelled approvals of nine
special economic zones (SEZs). This
included proposed SEZs of Adani
Group, Essar Group and Hindalco.
What is the reason for cancelling these
SEZs? No satisfactory progress
being made in developing these
projects
Explanation: Adani Townships & Real
Estate Company Ltd had proposed an
IT/ITeS zone in Gujarat. The formal
approval for the same was given in
June 2007, which expired in June
2010. Essar Jamnagar SEZ Ltd, which
had proposed to set up a multi-product
zone in Gujarat, got formal approval in
August 2006. It was expired in August
2009. The developer did not make any
request for further extension of
approval. Similarly Hindalco Industries
had proposed to set up an aluminium
product SEZ in Orissa. The formal
approval to the developer was granted
in July 2007. The developer was
granted extension from time to time
and the last extension granted expired
in Dec 2013.

6) Union Govt. has proposed to repeal
how many outdated laws in the
upcoming Winter Session of
Parliament as stated by the Union Law
Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on 29
September 2014? 287
Explanation: In the previous session,
the government had introduced the
Repealing and Amending Bill, 2014, to
repeal 36 obsolete laws. The Bill is
currently pending. The Govt. is also
acting on a report submitted by the
Law Commission of India (LCI) on 12
September 2014 in which it has
identified 72 antiquated statutes, which
have to be immediately axed. These
72 laws are part of 261 statutes, the
oldest one of them dating back to
1836.





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