The Mega Yearbook 2016

A-25
IMPORTANT APPOINTMENTS 2015

JANUARY
1-Jan-15
Sindhushree Khullar--- Chief Executive Officer of NITI

Aayog
5-Jan-15
Sutirtha Bhattacharya ---- CMD of Coal India Limited
12-Jan-15
Alur Seelin Kiran Kumar---Chairman of ISRO
25-Jan-15
Divya Prakash Sinha --- Security Secretary in the Union

Cabinet Secretariat
28-Jan-15
S Jaishankar ---- Foreign Secretary of India
30-Jan-15
Hanumanthu Purushotham --- CMD of NRDC
FEBRUARY
1-Feb-15
Ashok K Agarwal --- General Manager Southern Railway
4-Feb-15
LC Goyal ----- Union Home Secretary
5-Feb-15
MO Garg ---- Director General of Council of Scientific &

Industrial Research
21-Feb-15
Tapan Misra ---- Chief of ISROs Space Application Centre
23-Feb-15
Takahiro Hachigo----President and CEO of Honda Motor

Co Limited
MARCH
1-Mar-15
Steve Easterbrook----CEO of McDonalds Corporation
3-Mar-15
Baldev Sharma ----- National Book Trust
16-Mar-15
Abid Ali Neemuchwala--- COO and Group President Wipro
APRIL
20-Apr-15
Neeraj Kumar ----- Chief Adviser of Anti-Corruption &

Security Unit of BCCI
MAY
8-May-15
Achal Kumar Jyoti ---- Election Commissioner
11-May-15
KV Kamath --- First President of New Development Bank of

BRICS Nations
28-May-15 S Christopher--- Director General of DRDO

30-May-15 Pradeep Kumar Sinha --- Cabinet Secretary to Union Government
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Important Appointments 2015
JUNE
1-Jun-15
Meena Hemchandra ----- Executive Director of RBI
1-Jun-15
Pawan Munjal ----- CMD of Hero MotoCorp Ltd
8-Jun-15
Vijai Sharma ----- Chief Information Commissioner of India
9-Jun-15
Dr. Srivari Chandrasekhar--- Director of CSIR-IICT
18-Jun-15
Archana Ramasundaram---- Director of National Crime

Records Bureau
JULY
20-Jul-15
Bhanu Pratap Sharma ---- Chairperson of Food Safety and

Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)
21-Jul-15
Maurice Obstfeld--- Chief Economist of IMF
25-Jul-15
Ajay Mathur -- Director-General of TERI
AUGUST
3-Aug-15
Roland S Folger--- CEO and MD of Mercedes-Benz India
11-Aug-15
Sanjay Jalona--- MD and CEO of L&T Infotech
13-Aug-15
OP Rawat ---- Election Commissioner of India
18-Aug-15
Kishor Piraji Kharat--- MD and CEO of IDBI Bank
SEPTEMBER
24-Sep-15
Stuti Narain Kacker----Chairperson of National Commission

for Protection of Child Rights
OCTOBER
4-Oct-15
Shashank Manohar ---- BCCI President
9-Oct-15
Tapan Ray--- Board of Securities and Exchange Board of India
16-Oct-15
MK Surana --- CMD of Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd
28-Oct-15
Najib Shah ---- Chairman of Central Board Excise

Customs
and
NOVEMBER
18-Nov-15
Justice T S Thakur ----Chief Justice of India
20-Nov-15
Swati Dandekar --- Executive Director to the Asian

Development Bank (ADB)
25-Nov-15
Sunil Kanoria -----President of The Associated Chamber of

Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM)
DECEMBER
3-Dec
Justice Tirath Singh Thakur ----- 43rd Chief Justice of India
24-Dec
Gautam H Bambawale --- Indias High Commissioner to

Pakistan
A-27
BOOKS AND AUTHORS 2015

Transcendence: My Spiritual Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji: Abdul
Kalam
Unbelievable Delhi to Islamabad: Prof Bhim Singh
Two Years Eight Months and Twenty Eight Nights: Salman Rushdie
Globalisation, Democratization and Distributive Justice: Professor Mool
Chand Sharma
Making India Awesome: Chetan Bhagat
Flood of fire: Amitav Ghosh
Education of Muslims: Islamic Perspective of Knowledge and Education:
J.S. Rajput
Neither a Hawk nor a Dove: Khurshid M Kasuri
The Red Sari: Javier Moro
Sourav Ganguly: Cricket, Captaincy and Controversy: Saptarshi Sarkar
China Confucius in the Shadows: Poonam Surie
Ahmedabad : A city in the world: Amrita Shah
30 Women in Power: Their Voices, Their Stories: Naina Lal Kidwai
Mrs Funnybones: Twinkle Khanna
R.D. Burman: The Prince of Music: Khagesh Dev Burman
Ghosts of Calcutta: Sebastian Ortiz
Beyond Doubt: A Dossier on Gandhis Assassination: Teesta Setalvad
Benazir Bhutto: A Multidimensional Portrait: Dr Anna Suvorova
Modi - Incredible emergence of a star: Tarun Vijay
The Accidental Prime Minister The making and unmaking of Manmohan
Singh: Sanjaya Baru
Hard Choices (Autobiography): Hillary Rodham Clinton
I am Malala (Autobiography): Malala Yousafzai
And Then One Day: Naseerudin Shah
Playing It My Way: Sachin Tendulkar
The Narrow Road To the Deep North: Richard Flangan
Go Set a Watchman: Harper Lee
Editor Unplugged : Media, Magnates, Netas and Me: Vinod Mehta
Super Economies: Raghav Bahl
Family Life: Akhil Sharma
A-28
Books and Authors 2015
Lucknow Boy: A Memoir: Late Vinod Mehta

A Brief History of Seven Killings: Marlon James
Beyond 2020: A Vision for Tomorrows India: A. P. J. Abdul Kalam and
Y. S. Rajan
Leading: Alex Ferguson With Michael Moritz
The Outsider: Frederick Forsyth
The Courage to Act A Memoir of a Crisis and Its Aftermath: Ben S.
Bernanke
Ruled or Misruled: Story and Destiny of Bihar: Santosh Singh
Hungry Bengal: War, Famine, Riots and the End of Empire: Janam
Mukherjee
To the Brink and Back: Indias 1991 Story: Jairam Ramesh
Complete Story of Indian Reforms: 2G, Power & Private -Enterprise:
Pradeep Baijal
The Pakistan Paradox: Christrophe Jaffrelot
Crusader or Conspirator: P.C. Parakh
Born Again On the Mountain: Arunima Sinha
The China Model: Daniel A bell
Scion of Ikshvaku: Amish Tripathi
Purity: Jonathan Franzen
God Help the Child: Toni Morrison
Love + Hate: Stories and Essays: Hanif Kureishi
The Heart Goes Last: Margaret Atwood
Because We Say So: Noam Chomsky
Deep South: Paul Theroux
The Country of First Boys: Amartya Sen
Hubris: Meghnad Desai
Unbound: 2,000 Years of Indian Womens Writing: Annie Zaidi
Farewell Kabul: How the West Ignored Pakistan and Lost Afghanistan:
Christina Lamb
A Strangeness in My Mind: Orhan Pamuk
The House that BJ Built: Anuja Chauhan
Alfred Hitchcock: Peter Ackroyd
Autumn of the Matriarch: Indira Gandhis Final Term in Office: Diego
Maiorano
Gods of Corruption: Promilla Shankar
Restart: The Last Chance for the Indian Economy: Mihir S. Sharma
The Tears of the Rajas: Ferdinand Mount
A-29
Awards & Honours 2015
AWARDS & HONOURS 2015

62nd National Awards
Best Feature Film: Court (Marathi, Hindi, English,
Gujarati)
Best Debut Film of a Director: Asha Jaoar Majhe(Bengali)
Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment:
Mary Kom (Hindi)
Best Childrens Film: Kaaka Muttai(Tamil), Elizabeth
Ekadashi(Marathi)
Best Direction: Srijit Mukherji for Chotushkone (Bengali)
Best Film on Other Social Issues: Chotoder Chobi (Bengali)
Best Film on Environment / Conservation / Preservation: Ottaal
(Malayalam)
Best Actor: Sanchari Vijay for Naanu Avanalla...Avalu (Kannada)
Best Actress: Kangana Ranaut for Queen (Hindi)
Best Supporting Actor: Bobby Simha for Jigarthanda (Tamil)
Best Supporting Actress: Baljinder Kaur for Pagdi The Honour (Haryanvi)
Best Child Artist: J. Vignesh and Ramesh for Kaaka Muttai (Tamil)
Best Male Playback Singer: Sukhwinder Singh for Bismil from Haider
Best Female Playback Singer: Uthara Unnikrishnan for Azhage from
Saivam
Best Cinematography: Sudeep Chatterjee for Chotushkone (Bengali)
Best Screenplay (Original): Srijit Mukherji for Chotushkone (Bengali)
Best Screenplay (Dialogues): Vishal Bhardwaj for Haider
Best Editing: Vivek Harshan for Jigarthanda (Tamil)
Gandhi Peace Prize 2014

Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2014was awarded to the Indian Space
Research Organization (ISRO) for its contribution to the countrys
development through space technology and satellite-based services.
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National Sports Awards

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2014-15:Sania Mirza was the recipient
of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award. It is Indias highest honour given
for achievement in sports. It carries a medal, a scroll of honour and a cash
prize of Rs. 750,000.
Dronacharya Award 2015: Naval Singh- Athletics (Javelin throw) Parasports coach, Anoop Singh- Wrestling coach, Harbans Singh- Athletics
coach, Swatantar Raj Singh- Boxing coach, and Nihar Ameen- Swimming
coach. The award is given for excellence in sports coaching.The award
comprises a bronze statuette of Dronacharya, a scroll of honour and a
cash component of Rs 500,000.
Arjuna Award 2015: Sandeep Kumar- Archery, M R PoovammaAthletics (4X400 metres relay), Kidambi Srikanth- Badminton, Mandeep
Jangra- Boxing, Rohit Sharma- Cricket, Dipa Karmakar- Gymnastics,
Sreejesh P R- Hockey, Manjeet Chhillar- Kabaddi, Abhilasha MhatreKabaddi, Swaran Singh- Rowing, Anup Kumar Yama- Roller Skating,
Jitu Rai- Shooting, Sathish Kumar- Weightlifting, Bajrang- Wrestling,
Babita Kumari- Wrestling, Y Sanathoi Devi- Wushu, and Sharath M
Gayakwad- Para-Swimming were the recipients of Arjuna Award. The
award is given to recognize outstanding achievement in National sports.
The award carries a cash prize of Rs 500,000 a bronze statue of Arjuna
and a scroll.
Dhyan Chand Award 2015: Romeo James- Hockey, Shiv Prakash MishraTennis, and P Nair- Volleyball.It is Indias highest award for lifetime
achievement in sports and games.The award carries a cash prize of INR
500,000, a plaque and a scroll of honour.
Ramanujan Prize 2015

Mathematician Dr. Amalendu Krishna was awarded the Ramanujan Prize
for year 2015 for his outstanding contributions in the area of algebraic
K-theory, algebraic cycles and the theory of motives.
Pl fill in the pictures of awards in the blank places against each award (as
per below)
A-31
Bharat Ratna 2015

Bharat Ratna (also known as Jewel of India) is the highest
civilian award in India. It was instituted on 2nd January
1954, to be conferred in recognition of exceptional
service/performance of the highest order, without any
discrimination on the basis race, occupation, position, or
sex.
1. Acclaimed educationist and freedom fighter Madan Mohan Malviya
was conferred with the award posthumously.
2. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was also conferred with
the honour.
Padma Vibhushan 2015

Padma Vibhushan is the second highest civilian award in India. It consists
of a medal and a citation. It was established on 2nd January 1954 to
recognize a persons exceptional and distinguished service to the nation in
any field, including government service.
1. LK Advani(Public Affairs-Gujarat); 2. Amitabh Bachchan(ArtMaharashtra); 3. Prakash Singh Badal(Public Affairs-Punjab);
4. Dr D Veerendra Heggade(Social Work- Karnataka); 5. Dilip
Kumar(Art-Maharashtra); 6. Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami
Rambhadracharya(Others- Uttar Pradesh); 7. Prof Malur Ramaswamy
Srinivasan( Science and Engineering-Tamil Nadu); 8. Kottayan K.
Venugopal(Public Affairs- Delhi); 9. Karim Al Hussaini Aga Khan(Trade
and Industry- France/UK)
Padma Bhushan 2015

Padma Bhushan is Indias third highest civilian award, after Bharat Ratna
and Padma Vibhushan. The award was instituted on 2nd January 1954 by
the President of India to award people for their distinguished service to
the nation, in any field.
Jahnu Barua(Art- Assam); Dr Vijay Bhatkar(Science and EngineeringMaharashtra); Shri Swapan Dasgupta(Literature and EducationDelhi); Swami Satyamitranand Giri(Others-Uttar Pradesh); N
Gopalaswami(Civil Service-Tamil Nadu); Dr Subhash C Kashyap(Public
Affairs- Delhi); Gokulotsavji Maharaj(Art- Madhya Pradesh);
Dr Ambrish Mithal(Medicine Delhi); Sudha Ragunathan(ArtTamil Nadu); Shri Harish Salve(Public Affairs- Delhi); Dr Ashok
Seth(Medicine- Delhi); Rajat Sharma(Literature and Education- Delhi);
Satpal(Sports- Delhi); Shivakumara Swami(Others- Karnataka); Dr
Kharag Singh Valdiya(Science and Engineering- Karnataka); Prof Manjul
Bhargava(Science and Engineering- USA); David Frawley(Others- USA);
Bill Gates(Social Work- USA); Melinda Gates(Social Work- USA);
Saichiro Misumi(Others- Japan)
A-32
Padma Shri 2015

Padma Shri (also Padmashree) is the fourth highest civilian award in India, instituted
to reward people for their distinguished contribution in various spheres of activity
comprising of Arts, Education, Industry, Literature, Science, Sports, Medicine, Social
Service and Public Affairs.
Dr Manjula Anagani- Medicine- Telangana; S Arunan- Science and EngineeringKarnataka; Kanyakumari Avasarala- Art- Tamil Nadu; Dr Bettina Sharada
Baumer- Literature and Education- Jammu and Kashmir; Naresh Bedi- ArtDelhi; Ashok Bhagat- Social Work- Jharkhand;Sanjay Leela Bhansali- ArtMaharashtra; Dr Lakshmi Nandan Bora- Literature and Education- Assam; Dr
Gyan Chaturvedi- Literature and Education- Madhya Pradesh; Prof (Dr) Yogesh
Kumar Chawla- Medicine- Chandigarh; Jayakumari Chikkala- Medicine- Delhi;
Bibek Debroy- Literature and Education- Delhi; Dr Sarungbam Bimola Kumari
Devi- Medicine- Manipur; Dr Ashok Gulati- Public Affairs- Delhi; Dr Randeep
Guleria- Medicine- Delhi; Dr KP Haridas- Medicine- Kerala; Rahul Jain- ArtDelhi; Ravindra Jain- Art- Maharashtra; Dr Sunil Jogi- Literature and EducationDelhi; Prasoon Joshi- Art- Maharashtra; Dr Prafulla Kar- Art- Odisha; Saba
Anjum- Sports- Chhattisgarh; Ushakiran Khan- Literature and Education- Bihar;
Dr Rajesh Kotecha- Medicine- Rajasthan; Prof Alka Kriplani- Medicine Delhi; Dr
Harsh Kumar- Medicine- Delhi; Narayana Purushothama Mallaya- Literature &
Education- Kerala; Lambert Mascarenhas- Literature and Education- Goa; Dr Janak
Palta McGilligan- Social Work- Madhya Pradesh
30. Veerendra Raj Mehta- Social Work- Delhi; Tarak Mehta- Art- Gujarat; Neil
Herbert Nongkynrih (Art), Meghalaya; Chewang Norphel- Others- Jammu and
Kashmir; TV Mohandas Pai- Trade and Industry- Karnataka; Dr Tejas PatelMedicine- Gujarat; Jadav Molai Peyang- Others- Assam; Bimla Poddar- OthersUttar Pradesh; Dr N Prabhakar- Science and Engg- Delhi; Dr Prahalada- Science
and Engg- Maharashtra; Dr Narendra Prasad- Medicine- Bihar; Ram Bahadur RaiLiterature and Education- Delhi; Mithali Raj- Sports- Telangana; PV RajaramanCivil Service- Tamil Nadu; Prof JS Rajput- Literature and Education- Uttar
Pradesh; Kota Srinivasa Rao- Art- Andhra Pradesh; Prof Bimal Roy- Literature and
Education- West Bengal; Shekhar Sen- Art- Maharashtra; Gunvant Shah- Literature
and Education- Gujarat; Brahmdev Sharma- Literature and Education- Delhi; Manu
Sharma- Literature and Education- Uttar Pradesh; Prof Yog Raj Sharma- MedicineDelhi; Vasant Shastri- Science and Engg- Karnataka; SK Shivkumar- Science and
Engg- Karnataka; PV Sindhu- Sports- Telangana; Sardara Singh- Sports- Haryana;
Arunima Sinha-Sports- Uttar Pradesh; Mahesh Raj Soni- Art- Rajasthan; Dr Nikhil
Tandon- Medicine- Delhi; H Thegtse Rinpoche- Social Work- Arunachal Pradesh;
Dr Hargovind Laxmishanker Trivedi- Medicine- Gujarat; Huang Baosheng- OthersChina; Prof Jacques Blamont- Science and Engg- France; Late Syedna Mohammad
Burhanuddin- Others- Maharashtra (Posthumous); Jean-Claude Carriere- Literature
and Education France; Dr Nandrajan Raj Chetty- Literature and EducationFrance; George L Hart- Others- USA; Jagat Guru Amrta Suryananda Maha RajaOthers- Portugal; Late Meetha Lal Mehta- Social Work- Rajasthan (Posthumous);
Tripti Mukherjee- Art- USA; Dr Dattatreyudu Nori- Medicine- USA; Dr Raghu
Rama Pillarisetti (Medicine), USA; Dr Saumitra Rawat- Medicine- UK; Prof
Annette Schmiedchen (Literature and Education), Germany; Late Pran Kumar
Sharma alias Pran- Art- Delhi (Posthumous); Late R Vasudevan- Civil Service- Tamil
Nadu (Posthumous)
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Oscar Awards 2015

Best Picture: Birdman
Best Director: Alejandro G. Irritu
Best Actor: Eddie Redmayne (The Theory
of Everything)
Best Actress: Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
Best Original Screenplay: Alejandro G. Irritu, Nicols Giacobone,
Alexander Dinelaris Jr. and Armando Bo for Birdman
Best Animated Feature Film: Big Hero 6
Best Foreign Language Film: Ida (Poland)
Best Original Song: Glory from Selma
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for Birdman
Best Film Editing: Tom Cross for Whiplash
Best Visual Effects: Paul Franklin, Andrew Lockley, Ian Hunter and
Scott Fisher for Interstellar
International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards 2015

Best Film: Queen (Phantom Films)
Best Director: Rajkumar Hirani for PK
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Shahid Kapoor for
Haider
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Kangana Ranaut for
Queen
Male Debutant Star: Tiger Shroff for Heropanti
Female Debutant Star: Kriti Sanon for Heropanti
Best Performance in a Comic Role: Varun Dhawan for Main Tera Hero
Best Performance in a Negative Role: Kay Kay Menon for Haider
Annual Grammy Awards 2015

Album of the Year: Morning Phase, Beck
Song of the Year: Stay With Me (Darkchild Version), James Napier,
William Phillips & Sam Smith, songwriters (Sam Smith)
Best New Artist: Sam Smith
Best Pop Solo Performance: Happy (Live), Pharrell Williams
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:Say Something, A Great Big World
With Christina Aguilera
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: Cheek To Cheek, Tony Bennett &
Lady Gaga
Best Pop Vocal Album: In The Lonely Hour, Sam Smith
A-34
Nobel Prize 2015

The Nobel prize is bestowed to various intellectuals around the world in
recognition of their academic, cultural and/or scientific advances. The
will of the Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel was used to institute the prizes
in 1895.
Nobel Prize in Physics 2015: Takaaki Kajita and Arthur B. McDonald
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2015: Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich and Aziz
Sancar
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2015:
William C. Campbell, Satoshi Qmura and Youyou Tu
Nobel Prize in Literature 2015: Svetlana Alexievich
Nobel Peace Prize 2015: National Dialogue Quartet
Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred
Nobel 2015: Angus Deaton
2015 Cannes Film Festival

Cannes Film Festival, held in Cannes, France, previews new films of all
genres, including documentaries, from around the world. The festival was
founded in 1946 and is one of the most prestigious film festivals in the
world.
Best Director- Hou Hsiao-hsien for The Assassin
Best Screenplay- Michel Franco for Chronic
Best Actress- Rooney Mara for Carol and Emmanuelle Bercot for Mon
roi
Best Actor- Vincent Lindon for The Measure of a Man
Jury Prize- The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos
Palme dOr Dheepan by Jacques Audiard
Grand Prix Son of Saul by Lszl Nemes
DSC Prize for South Asian Literature for 2015

Indian-American author Jhumpa Lahiri won the $50,000 DSC Prize for
Literature for 2015. The prize was instituted in 2011 by DSC Limited, an
Indian infrastructure and construction company which also sponsors the
Jaipur Literature Festival.
A-35
Pulitzer Prize 2015

The award was established in 1917 to reward
people and organisations for achievements in
newspaper and online journalism, literature,
and musical composition in the US in
accordance with the provisions in the will of
American (Hungarian-born) publisher Joseph Pulitzer.
Journalism
Letters, Drama, and Music
Public Service
The Post and Courier, Charleston, SC
Breaking News Reporting
The Seattle Times Staff
Investigative Reporting
Eric Lipton of The New York Times and
The Wall Street Journal Staff
Explanatory Reporting
Zachary R. Mider of Bloomberg News
Local Reporting
Rob Kuznia, Rebecca Kimitch and Frank
Suraci of the Daily Breeze, Torrance, CA
National Reporting
Carol D. Leonnig of The Washington Post
International Reporting
The New York Times Staff
Feature Writing
Diana Marcum of the Los Angeles Times
Commentary
Lisa Falkenberg of the Houston Chronicle
Criticism
Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles
Times
Editorial Writing
Kathleen Kingsbury of The Boston Globe
Editorial Cartooning
Adam Zyglis of The Buffalo News
Breaking News Photography
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Photography Staff
Feature Photography
Daniel Berehulak, freelance photographer,
The New York Times
Fiction
All the Light We Cannot See
by Anthony Doerr
Drama
Between
Riverside
and
Crazy by Stephen Adly
Guirgis
History
Encounters at the Heart of
the World: A History of the
Mandan People by Elizabeth
A. Fenn
Biography or Autobiography
The Pope and Mussolini:
The Secret History of Pius
XI and the Rise of Fascism
in Europe by David I.
Kertzer
Poetry
Digest by Gregory Pardlo
General Non-fiction
The
Sixth
Extinction:
An Unnatural History by
Elizabeth Kolbert
Music
Anthracite Fields by Julia
Wolfe
A-36
OBITUARY IN 2015
29th January: Subhash Ghising,
the President of Gorkha National
Liberation Front (GNLF)
2nd February: Mrinalini Mukherjee,
Acclaimed Indian sculptor and artist
14th February: Louis Jourdan,
French film and television actor
27th February: Leonard Nimoy,
acclaimed US actor
12th March: Terry Pratchett, author
of Discworld series of 41 novels
24th March: Malli Mastan Babu,
Indias ace mountaineer
1st April: Misao Okawa, Worlds
oldest person(117 years and 27 days)
10th April: Richie Benaud, Veteran
Australian Cricket legend and
former Captain
11th April: Retired Lieutenant General
Hanut Singh awarded Mahavir Chakra
for his role in the battle of Basantar in
the 1971 Indo Pak war.
13th April: Gunter Grass, German
Nobel laureate novelist and playwright
2nd May: Michael Blake, Oscarwinning author and screenwriter
7th May: Amalendu Guha, historian,
economist and poet from Assam
18th May: Aruna Shanbaug, face of
mercy killing in India
2nd June: Irwin Rose, Nobel Prize
Winner in Chemistry
2nd June: Irwin Rose, American
biologist and winner of 2004 Nobel
Prize in Chemistry
13th June: Sheila Kaul, former
Governor of Himachal Pradesh
21st June: Shashi Bala, Former
Indian women hockey captain
23rd June: Sister Nirmala Joshi,
successor of Nobel laureate Mother
Teresa
23rd June: Praful Bidwai, Veteran
Journalist and activist
26th June: Matti Makkonen,
Finnish engineer also known as
Father of SMS technology
25th July: APJ Abdul Kalam, Former

Indian President and Aerospace
scientist
25th July: Santasilan Kadirgamar,
eminent Sri Lankan historian
25th July: R.S. Gavai, Former
Governor of Bihar and Kerala
21st July: EL Doctorow, renowned
US novelist, editor, and professor
13th August: Om Prakash Munjal,
the founder and chairman of Hero
Cycles
18th August: Suvra Mukherjee,
First Lady of India
30th August: Dr.M. M. Kalburgil,
Senior Kannada writer
5th September: Adesh Shrivastava,
Eminent Music composer and singer
9th September: Ramaswamy Iyer,
renowned Water policy expert
12th September: Frank D Gilroy,
Pulitzer prize-winning playwright
19th September: Jackie Collins,
Novelist
22nd September: Yogi Berra,
American professional baseball
catcher, manager, and coach
27th September: Dr. Syed Ahmad,
Manipur Governor, politician, and
author
5th October: Henning Mankell,
renowned Swedish crime writer,
childrens author, and dramatist
10th October: Manorama, Veteran
Tamil actress
18th October: Gamal al-Ghitani,
Eminent Egyptian novelist
1st Nov: Brijmohan Lall Munjal,
Indian businessman, founder and
the chairman of Hero Motocorp
(Hero group of companies)
15 Nov: Saeed Jaffrey, Indian-born
British actor
22 Dec: Sadhana, Renowned
Bollywood Actress
A-37
Where is Modi Government

Heading?
uch has been said about

the performance of the
present government headed
by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi. The comments and
opinions have been both
positive and negative. It often
so happens that when one
is too close to the subject he
or she is saying, the subject
loses its sharpness and looks
disproportionate. It is so with
the case of peoples view on Modis government. What one needs is a birds
eye view to see what has the government actually done and what still remains
to be done. The question to ask is: Did they address the most pressing matters
at first? Or did they attempt to present a glorious and shining dream to India
with Smart cities and Bullet trains while the basic issues of gender inequality,
poverty and communalism were brushed under the carpet?
Promises versus Execution

The Modi Government arrived bearing a lot of promises very much
like any other government. The initial onset of actions pertaining to the
flood relief work at Jammu and Kashmir and the clean-up of bureaucracy
were a promising sign. The Modi government displayed hints of efficiency
and swiftness. In the past one and half years of the Government, various
initiatives like BetiBachaoBetiPadhao, Selfie with Daughter, Make in India,
SAGY (SaansadAdarsh Gram Yojna) in which a member of parliament has
to make one village of his or constituency a model village by the year 2016,
have been taken up. The government had also succeeded in passing 47 bills
barring the GST and the Land Acquisition Bill. One can say that it appears
to be more transparent and its actions are more visible to the general public.
In this short span of time, Prime Minister Modi has made 29 foreign
trips. India external policy is seeing a phase. Modis visit to various nations
is a statement emphasizing on the fact the India is ready and capable to
engage with other nations. He portrays India as a nation which has the seeds
of becoming a world power rather than a country which lies on the sidelines.
Despite the different initiatives taken by the government, it comes out as
the most polarized government where public support is concerned. Either
the masses love it or they hate it. There is no middle ground and therefore
A-38
Where is Modi Government Heading?
there is little scope for a reality check. Ever since this government came
into power and even during the time of campaign, one sees a palpable rift
forming between different sections of the society. Secularity has taken a
back seat and certain hotheads have become the mouthpiece of the party,
issuing anti-secular sentiments and spewing hatred. Such people are only
maligning the partys image.
Another significant setback to the Modi government was the stalling of
the Land Acquisition Bill. The Prime Ministers dream of Make in India
cannot be fulfilled without this bill. If the government wants other nations
to engage in the economy growth of India by putting up factories here, they
will need to provide land. Providing land becomes a possibility only when
the land acquisition bill is passed in the parliament. So, rather than dictating
terms to the opposition parties, the Modi Government should be concerned
about the best interest of the nation.
Apart from this, the inflating prices of vegetables and pulses have
disillusioned the masses with the government. The general public is not so
much interested in smart cities, Make in India projects or foreign policies.
Their primary concern is the prices of the day to day commodities. The
prices of petrol and pulses interest them more.
Right now India is at the brink or a glorious future. But that future
should not be at the expense of Indian people, striving hard to survive
each day. Basic needs and interests of people should be taken into account
first. What Modi government needs presently is political astuteness and
foresightedness. They should be able to foresee a future where the grandiose
and the banal go hand in hand. The gap between a promise and its execution
should be eliminated to make such future a possibility.
There is a burst of activity where Indian foreign policy is concerned
ever since Mr. Narendra Modi came
into power. This feat of visiting 29
countries in such a short span was
unprecedented. Not only did he
revitalize Indias connections with
smaller, neighboring states, but
he also forged connections with super
powers like the United States of
America. Some of the significant
consequences of these ties are- The
land boundary agreement with Bangladesh, a healthy relationship
between U.S and India. Rescue and post-disaster operations in Nepal is
another significant initiative taken by this government. Another
important initiative is the engagement of the current government with
the Indian Diaspora. Rather than just praising the Indian diaspora
settled in various countries, Modi government has tried to do
something for them. For example- the announcement of daily direct
flights from Ahmedabad to London. But some critics are of the view that
few of these initiatives are new, rest are just conclusions to an otherwise
finished national agenda.
A-39
Nehruvian Era
Nehruvian Era what found, what lost?
andit Jawaharlal Nehru

was the sole architect in
shaping Indias destiny and
leading it to prominence on the
world stage. He has always been
a figure that has attracted social
scientists all over the world.
These were the people who
critiqued him the most for his
policies of nation-building and
the mark those policies left on
India. It is generally reckoned
that no politician has had an
arduous task as Nehru. In the
wake of its independence, the
post-colonial India woke up to
multiple challenges demanding
urgent attention and resolution;
to name a few- communal
violence, food shortage, integration of princely states and resettlement of
millions of refugees. All this was to be followed by an equally daunting task
of nation-building- a mammoth task of framing the constitution, devising
the election system, a foreign policy and an economic policy to take India
into the modern age. It has been argued that it was Nehru who was most
directly identified with the new nation state with his ideas of democracy,
non-alignment, socialism and secularism, ideas that one often comes across
in his writings and speeches.
Yet, Jawaharlal Nehru is castigated today by many for his elitism and
identified with the upper caste and upper class English-speaking intelligentsia.
Different political parties have continued their attacks on Nehruvianism from their
own vantage point. For instance, he is condemned for initiating industrialization,
internationalizing the Kashmir issue, and his pseudo-secularism which rested
on the appeasement of the minorities according to Guha (2005). The other
line of argument is made by the Gandhians who argue that Nehru devastated
rural India because of his imposition of a model of industrial development
that centralised power in the cities. His planned industrialization fuelled
environmental degradation as opposed to Gandhis decentralised approach
to economic development.
A-40
Nehruvian Era
It is argued that the Nehruvian era witnessed certain distortions in Indias

nation-building process. It has been debated that much of the present day
dichotomies in Indian polity are rooted in these distortions. One of the biggest
flaws in the nation-building process was the element of continuity with the
British-style governance. The Indian government led by Nehru in many respects
reflected British attitudes and maintained the state apparatus of the British
Raj. The government decided against developing an alternative state structure
and so retained the same repressive police, paramilitary forces and other civil
organisations inherited from the British. The status quo was viewed by Das
(2001) as colonial systems imperfections.
What was socialism for Nehru?

The following quote embodies Nehrus undeterred faith in socialism as a
solution to world problems.
I am convinced that the only key to the solution of worlds problems and
Indias problems lies in socialism and when I use this word I do not use it
in a vague humanitarian way but as a scientific economic doctrine.... I see
no way of ending the poverty, the vast unemployment, the degradation and
subjection of Indian people except through socialism.
The weakest point in the Nehruvian legacy for India was that it failed to
create a movement that brought about the socio-economic transformation
because the social forces created in the quest for freedom proved inadequate
to qualitatively transform a country as large as India. Though, Nehru opted
in the Industrial Policy Resolution of 1956 for a socialistic pattern of society,
there was a move towards state capitalism with considerable participation
by the private sector, despite his leftist pretensions.
It is argued that from 1954 to 1964, socialism to Nehru largely meant a
planned mixed economy dominated by the public sector. His emphasis on
planning was neither so much on the socialist basis of equitable redistribution
nor providing the basic needs of the people. It represented a scientific and
efficient way of utilising the limited available resources with overall state control
of the economy. It has been said that although, he welcomed the private sector
because it brought competition
and keeping the public sector
from being sluggish. It was
believed that only the state
had the ability to generate
vast resources needed to set up
huge industries in the country.
Hence, the authoritative role of
the public sector was justified
on both economic and political
grounds. Nehru was more
Nehruvian Era
A-41
concerned about transforming the country into a future socialist society and
his focus was on increasing production rather than eliminating poverty. The
five-year plans gave low priority to eliminate endemic undernourishment,
banish illiteracy, provide basic medical facilities, and ensure safe drinking
water and economical food. It makes one wonder why the sectors such as
education and health that could yield high long term dividends were neglected
and not seen as vital social and economic investments.
Educational priorities for Nehru

On the issue of education,
there have been mixed views
on how Nehru viewed it.
Some argue that Nehru never
appreciated the significance
of education as a driver of
national integration. Unlike
Europe which relied strongly
on education for integration
of its citizens into the state
and to develop a shared
civic culture, Nehru largely saw education as a means of churning trained
manpower rather than a cultural and nation-building activity. His focus was
higher education and hence he ignored primary education which was evident
from his devotion of massive resources to universities, technical institutes
such as Indian Institutes of Technology, National Science laboratories and
research institutes.
Others were of the view that Nehru was acutely aware that India lagged
behind in science and technology, an area intentionally left barren in the colonial
era. He, therefore, made massive efforts to overcome this shortcoming. The
result was an unprecedented increase in the educational opportunities in science
and technology in the universities and institutes. Mukherjee (2015) is of the
view that the national expenditure on scientific research and development kept
growing rapidly with each plan. For example, it increased from Rs 10 million
in 1949 to Rs 4.5 billion in 1977. In roughly the same period, Indias scientific
and technical manpower increased more than 12 times from about 1,90,000 to
2.32 million; a spectacular growth by any standards, a growth whose benefits
India reaps today as the world moves towards a know ledge society.
Internationalization of Kashmir issue

The issue of Kashmir, a princely state was a complex one. Kashmir was
ruled by a Hindu maharaja and consisted of a majority of Muslim subjects. As
the maharaja wavered about the accession, tribesmen from Pakistan invaded
the region. Troops from both countries entered into a conflict which even
continues today. Lord Mountbatten prevailed upon Nehru to refer the issue
A-42
Nehruvian Era
of Pakistan invasion to the United

Nations. This meant involving
the world community with its
political cross-currents in a local
dispute. Hence, Pandit Nehru
internationalised the Kashmir issue
which was an internal issue against
the will of Sardar Patel. He had
ample time in hand to pre-empt
Pakistans military intervention in the Kashmir Valley. But his primacy to
idealistic considerations over strategic led him to take that decision.
Though Kashmir was Nehrus ancestral homeland, what was utmost
important for him was the future of Kashmir as part of India. He was of the
view that Kashmir was vital for Indias relations with its Muslim citizens
(Brown 1999) and felt that the identity of the Indian nation was at stake.
Despite a formal ceasefire in 1949, the situation served to make the issue a
non-negotiable one for the Indian government.
Nehruvian Legacy Today

Nehrus role in setting India firmly on the path of modern, secular and
democratic development against the odds was quite significant. Yet today,
that legacy stands seriously challenged.
And the challenge is coming from the
leaders and the state machinery and
not so much from the public. Today
when the Nehruvian ideals are facing
threat, it becomes more imperative to reanalyse his vision, his fierce imagination,
to understand his vision for India and
to examine the ideals and values that
went into making this nation. It becomes
important to pose fresh questions and ponder whether Nehru was an undisputed
hero of his age or a lesser patriot. Are we aware that there are efforts to make
him an outcast and why?
x
x
x
x
x
References
Brown J (1999) Nehru: Profiles in Power, Routledge: United States of
America
Das S (2001) The Nehru Years in Indian Politics, Edinburgh Papers In
South Asian Studies no. 16
Guha R (2005) Verdicts on Nehru, Economic and Political Weekly
Parekh B (1991) Nehru and the National Philosophy of India, Economic
and Political Weekly
Mukherjee A (2015) Nehrus Legacy Inclusive Democracy and Peoples
Empowerment, Economic and Political Weekly, 1(16)
A-43
DIARY OF NATIONAL EVENTS IN 2015

JANUARY
1st January: Planning commission
replaced by NITI Aayog.
1st January: Former Minister of
State (MoS) for External Affairs
Kamala Sinha passed away in the
United States.
2nd January: IAS officer R.K
Srivastava took over as the new
chairman of Airports Authority of
India (AAI).
2nd January: Union Government
launches integrated women safety
app called Himmat.
2nd January: A.K. Mittal appointed
as Chairman of Railway Board by
the Central Government.
3rd January: PM Narendra Modi
inaugurated the 102nd Indian
Science Congress 2015 at Mumbai
University.
3rd January: PK becomes highest
grossing Bollywood film by
collecting Rs. 278.52 crore since its
release on December 19.
3rd January: Union Sports Ministry
gives nod to Boxing India (BI) as the
new governing body for the overall
functioning and activities of boxing.
5th January: Freedom fighter and
National Flag designer Pingali
Venkayya was honored by naming
All India Radio (AIR) Vijayawada
building after him.
5th January: Columbia University
professor and eminent economist
Arvind Panagariya appointed as the
vice-chairman of the NITI Aayog.
5th January: Union Petroleum
Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
launched the sale of subsidised 5

kg LPG Cylinder scheme for BPL
families.
7th January: Bollywood actor
Amitabh Bachchan appointed as
the brand ambassador for the health
sector in Andhra Pradesh.
8th January: MLA Dinesh Oraon
of the Bhartiya Janta Party elected
as the Speaker of Jharkhand
Legislative Assembly.
9th January: M. Karunanidhi was
re-elected as Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam(DMK) Chief for 11th
time.
10th January: Aziz Qureshi was
sworn-in as the Governor of
Mizoram.
10th January: Former Planning
Commission Secretary Sindhushree
Khullar was appointed as the first
CEO of the NITI Aayog.
10th January: World Hindi Day was
celebrated.
12th January: National Youth Day
was observed all over the nation.
15th January: Former IAS officer
HS Brahma appointed as the 19th
Chief Election Commissioner of
India. He will take charge of his
office on 16th January 2015.
17th January: President Pranab
Mukherjee launched the Pulse Polio
Immunization (PPI) Programme.
21st January: Union Government
launches Heritage City Development
and
Augmentation
Yojana
(HRIDAY) scheme.
22nd January: Union Government
launches Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao
campaign.
Diary of National Events in 2015
A-44
22nd January: Haryana governor

Prof Kaptan Singh Solanki was
sworn-in as the 34th Governor of
Punjab.
23rd January: Popular Telugu
comedian and director Mylavarapu
Surya Narayana passed away.
26th January: 66th republic day
celebrated with US President Barack
Obama as the chief guest.
26th January: Death of cartoonist,
illustrator, and humorist, R.K.
Laxman due to multi-organ failure.
31st January: First Canister-based
Agni-V missiles successful third test
flight.
FEBRUARY
1st February: 29th Surajkund
International Crafts Mela started
in Faridabad district of Haryana.
The theme state of this year is
Chhattisgarh.
3rd February: Acclaimed Indian
sculptor
Mrinalini
Mukherjee
passed away in New Delhi.
6th February: Kolkata to become
Indias first Wi-Fi-enabled metro
city to have a 4G-enabled free Wi-Fi
service.
10th February: Aam Aadmi Party
wins the Delhi Legislative Assembly
election by winning 67 of 70 seats.
10th February: Vodafone India
appoints Naveen Chopra as Chief
Operating Officer (COO).
14th February: Aam Aadmi Party
chief Arvind Kejriwal sworn-in as
8th Chief Minister of Delhi.
14th February: 23rd edition of the
New Delhi World Book Fair began
at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.
19th February: India successfully
test-fired Nuclear-capable surface
to surface Prithvi-II missile from

Chandipur in Balasore district of
Odisha.
22nd February: Nitish Kumar
sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM)
of Bihar for the 4th time.
24th February: Ranchi Rays clinch
the Champions of Hero Hockey
India League 2015 by defeating
Jaypee Punjab Warriors.
26th February: Union Railway
Minister Suresh Prabhu presents
the Railway Budget 2015-16 in the
Parliament.
27th February: Justice Amitava Roy
sworn in as the judge of the Supreme
Court.
28th
February:
Celebrated
as National Science Day in
remembrance of the Raman Effect.
28th February: Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley presents the Union
Budget in the Parliament.
MARCH
1st March: Mufti Mohammad
Sayeed of Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) was sworn in as the chief
minister of Jammu and Kashmir for
the second time.
2nd March: Lok Sabha passed the
Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2015
by voice vote.
3rd March: Election Commission
of India launches the National
Electoral Roll Purification and
Authentication Programme.
3rd March: MC Mary Kom to retire
from boxing after the Rio Olympic
Games 2016.
3rd March: Worlds largest and
tallest Indian flag unfurled at Town
Park in Faridabad, Haryana.
3rd March: Lok Sabha passed the
Motor Vehicles Amendment Bill,
2015 by voice vote.
4th March: President Pranab

Mukherjee gave his assent to the
Maharashtra Animal Preservation
(Amendment) Bill, 1995.
9th March: Haryana Chief Minister
Manohar Lal Khattar launched
Aapki Beti Humari Beti Scheme.
12th March: Defending champion
Karnataka won Ranji Trophy for
season 2014-2015 by defeating
Tamil Nadu.
18th March: Astra, Beyond Visual
Range (BVR) air-to-air missile was
successfully test fired from test range
in Chandipur, Odisha.
24th March: Section 66A of the
Information Technology Act, 2000
declared unconstitutional by the
Supreme Court of India.
27th March: Former Prime Minister
Atal Bihari Vajpayee bestowed with
the Bharat Ratna.
28th March: PSLV-C27 successfully
launches Indias fourth navigation
satellite IRNSS-1D.
30th March: Freedom fighter
Madan Mohan Malaviya awarded
Bharat Ratna posthumously.
APRIL
1st April: Gulshan Rai took charge
as Indias first cyber security chief
under the Prime Ministers Office
(PMO) as Special Secretary for
cyber security.
1st April: Odisha Government
launched Aahar- cheap meal
scheme for providing subsidised
food to the urban poor people.
1st April: The Andhra Pradesh
Government to name the new
capital of the state coming up
in Vijayawada-Guntur region as
Amaravathi, after the ancient seat
of power of the Satavahanas.
A-45
4th April: West Bengal and Bihar

Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi
took additional charge of Mizoram.
5th April: Give it Up campaign
initiated by Petroleum and Natural
Gas Minster, Dharmendra Pradhan,
urging rich people to give up their
LPG subsidy.
7th April: World health Day was
observed all over the world to mark
the anniversary of the founding
of WHO in 1948, and publicize
knowledge and awareness about
human health.
8th April: Telecom Regulatory
Authority of India (TRAI) has
proposed 112 as a multipurpose
emergency number that can be used
all across the country for police, fire
and ambulance departments.
8th April: Prime Minister Narendra
Modi launches Micro Units
Development and Refinance Agency
Bank (MUDRA Bank) for providing
finance to small entrepreneurs.
10th April: Former Australia
captain and legendary cricket
commentator Richie Benaud passed
away. He was 84.
10th April: Arun Kumar Jha
appointed as Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) of Khadi and Village
Industries Commission (KVIC),
Mumbai.
12th April: Sania Mirza becomes
first Indian female tennis player to
be ranked World No.1 in Womens
Doubles.
16th
April:
Agni-III
tested
successfully from Wheeler Island off
Odisha coast.
21st April: Indian Railways
launched E-Samiksha, an online
monitoring mechanism of various
ongoing projects of Indian Railways
A-46
on real-time basis including Rail

Budget proposals.
25th
April:
A
devastating
earthquake measuring 7.9 on
Richter scale strikes Nepal.
MAY
5th May: The Akash missile was
inducted into the Indian Army.
6th May: Lok Sabha passed the
Goods and Services Tax Bill, 2014,
also known as Constitution (122nd
Amendment) Bill.
6th May: Agreement signed during
Transport Minister Nitin Gadkaris
Iran visit, allowing India to develop
the Port of Chabahar.
7th May: Constitution (119th
Amendment) Bill, 2013 passed by
the Parliament to solve the territorial
disputes with Bangladesh.
7th May: Lok Sabha passes Juvenile
Justice (Care and Protection of
Children) Bill, 2014 for trying
juveniles as adults who are between
the ages of 16 and 18 years for
heinous offences.
8th May: Retired IAS officer Achal
Kumar Jyoti appointed as the
Election Commissioner.
9th May: Prime Minister Narendra
Modi launches 3 large-scale social
security schemes, Pradhan Mantri
Suraksha Bima Yojana, Pradhan
Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana,
and Atal Pension Yojana, in Kolkata.
10th May: Veteran actor and film
producer Shashi Kapoor conferred
with the prestigious Dada Saheb
Phalke Award 2014.
11th May: K. V. Kamath of India
nominated as the head of the New
Development Bank (also known as
BRICS Development Bank).
11th May: Lok Sabha passed the

Undisclosed Foreign Income and
Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill,
2015 by a voice vote.
18th May: Ms. Draupadi Murmu
sworn in as the first woman and
overall 9th Governor of Jharkhand
since the state was granted statehood
status on 15th November 2000.
23rd May: Jayalalithaa sworn in as
the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
for the fifth time.
23rd May: Indian film Masaan won
the prestigious critics prize in the Un
Certain Regard category at the 68th
Cannes Film Festival.
24th May: Mumbai Indians (MI)
wins the eight edition of Indian
Premier League (IPL) 2015 by
defeating Chennai Super Kings
(CSK).
29th May: Eminent scientist
Dr. Selvin Christopher has been
appointed as the Director General
(DG) of Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO)
30th May: Case lodged in Barabanki
court in Uttar Pradesh against
Nestle India over inadequate safety
standards of its product Maggi.
JUNE
1st June: Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa
was sworn-in as the 19th Governor
of Arunachal Pradesh.
2nd June: Meena Hemchandra
appointed as the Executive Director
of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
5th June: World Environment Day
(WED) observed to raise global
awareness.
9th June: 16th edition of the
International Indian Film Academy
A-47
(IIFA) also known as the Bollywood

Oscars, were held in Malaysia.
to the Lok Sabha by the President

Pranab Mukherjee.
16th June: Union Government

has launched Augmented Reality
technology based mobile application
named Sakaar.
27th July: Ram Sevak Sharma was

appointed as the Chairman of the
Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India (TRAI).
21st June: First International Yoga

day held.
27th July:
Demise of former
president and scientist, Dr. A. P.
J. Abdul Kalam (83) of a sudden
cardiac arrest.
25th June: Indian spiritual leader Sri

Sri Ravi Shankar has been conferred
with Colombias highest civilian
award, Orden de la Democracia
Simon Bolivar en el grado de cruz
Caballero.
29th June: Legal framework
signed by India with the Asian
Infrastructure Investment Bank and
pledged US$8.3 billion towards it.
JULY
AUGUST
3rd August: India government
signs peace deal with the leading
Nagaland separatists after 60 years
of war.
5th August: Haryana Chief Minister
launched Thari Pension, Thare Pass
project which will help in directly
transferring pension into the bank
accounts of beneficiaries.
9th July: Nagaland declared a

disturbed region under Armed
Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958
for one year by the Ministry of
Home Affairs, starting from 30 June
2015.
5th August: Lok Sabha passed The

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)
Amendment Bill, 2014 by voice vote.
10th July: Shanghai Cooperation

Organisation (SCO) decided to
induct India as a full member.
5th August: Mathematician Dr.

Amalendu Krishna has won the
Ramanujan Prize for year 2015.
10th July: 5 UK satellites launched

by ISRO with a total payload of
1,440 kg using the PSLV-C28 launch
vehicle.
10th August: Union Government

has launched the School Nursery
Yojana.
21st July: Minister of Consumer

Affairs,
Food
and
Public
Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan
launches Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan
with the aim to promote food safety
in India.
23rd July:
George Baker and
Richard Hay from West Bengal and
Kerala respectively were nominated
as the two Anglo-Indian members
14th August: Central Government

has revised the National Solar
Mission target of Grid Connected
Solar Power projects from 20k MW
by 2022 to100k MW by 2022.
14th August: Assam state legislature
passed the Assam Witch Hunting
(Prohibition,
Prevention
and
Protection) Bill, 2015 to cut down
the rising incidents of witch hunting
cases across the state.
A-48
15th August: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi announced Startup India; Stand up India campaign
which is an initiative to promote
bank finance for Start-ups (an
entrepreneurial venture).
17th August: India and Bangladesh
have inked a MoU to tackle the
menace of fake Indian currency
notes (FICN) smuggling.
27th August: ISRO successfully
launches GSAT-6 using the GSLV
D-6 launch vehicle.
31st August: Union Government
has launched SAHAJ scheme
for online release of new LPG
connections for the customers as
parts of its friendly initiative.
SEPTEMBER
5th
September:
Eminent
Bollywood Music composer Aadesh
Shrivastava passed away in Mumbai,
Maharashtra due to cancer.
5th September: Union Government
has given its assent for the
implementation of the One Rank
One Pension (OROP) scheme for
ex-servicemen.
9th September: President Pranab
Mukherjee conferred the Gandhi
Peace Prize for the year 2014 on
Indian Space Research Organization
(ISRO).
19th September: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi launched National
Integrated Power Development
Scheme (IPDS) in Varanasi, Uttar
Pradesh to provide 247 power
supply to every house.
21st September: Board of Control
for Cricket in India (BCCI) President
Jagmohan Dalmiya passed away in
Kolkata, West Bengal. He was 75.
27th September: Indias champion

cueist Pankaj Advani wins 2015
IBSF World Billiards Championship
(Time Format) in Adelaide,
Australia.
28th September: Indias first
dedicated satellite for astronomy
research
Astrosat
successfully
launched from Satish Dhawan Space
Centre, Sriharikotta.
29th September: M.R. Poovamma
(Athletics) and Babita Kumari
(Wrestling) have been conferred with
the prestigious Arjuna Award 2015
for their individual achievements in
sports.
OCTOBER
1st October: V Shanmuganthan
sworn in as the 17th Governor of
Manipur.
2nd October: International Day
of Non-violence on the birth
anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
3rd October: DRDO established
worlds Highest Terrestrial Research
Centre near Pengong Lake at
Changla in Ladakh.
4th October: Shashank Manohar
elected as President of Board of
Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
6th October: INS Astradharani
commissioned into Indian Navy at
Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
7th October: Union Cabinet
gives its consent to 3 new AIIMS
which be established at Nagpur
(Maharashtra), Manglagiri (Andhra
Pradesh) and Kalyani in West
Bengal.
9th October: Veteran music director
and lyricist Ravindra Jain passed
away in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
9th October: Indias first Dolphin

Community Reserve will be
established in West Bengal.
16th October: Supreme Court
declared
National
Judicial
Appointments
Commission
(NJAC) Act, 2014 and 99th
Constitutional Amendment Act,
2014 unconstitutional and void.
19th October: TRAI makes it
mandatory for telecom operators
to compensate consumers by Rs.1
for call drops with effect from 1st
January 2016.
20th October: Union Government
appoints veteran sports administrator
Vijay Kumar Malhotra as President
of newly established All India
Council of Sports (AICS).
21st October: Former Delhi High
Court judge Reva Khetrapal has
been appointed as Delhis new
Lokayukta.
22nd October: First Car-Free Day
was observed in Delhi.
22nd
October:
Samardeep
Subandh has been appointed as
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of
Flipkart.
22nd October: PM Narendra
Modi laid the foundation stone of
Amaravati, the new capital city of
Andhra Pradesh.
23rd October: Union Government
gives consent to the first batch of
projects under the flagship scheme of
Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and
Urban Transformation (AMRUT)
for 89 cities from 3 states.
26th October: Indias archer
Deepika Kumari has won the Silver
medal at the 2015 Archery World
Cup Final held in Mexico City.
A-49
26th October: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi announced that
there will be no requirement of
interview for Group D, C and Group
Bs non-gazetted posts in central
government from 1st January, 2016.
31st October: National Unity Day
observed to commemorate the 140th
birthday of Independent Indias
first Deputy Prime Minister Sardar
Vallabhai Patel.
NOVEMBER
1st November: Indian Railways
launches Vikalp scheme to facilitate
waitlisted passengers to get an
alternative train accommodation.
Ist November: BrahMos missile
successfully test-fired from INS
Kochi off the western coast.
2nd November: India placed at 7th
position in worlds most valuable
nation brands.
4th November: Justice T S Thakur
(63) to be next Chief Justice of India.
5th November: Indian shooter Jitu
Rai has won silver medal in 50 metre
pistol event category at the 13th
Asian Shooting Championship in
Kuwait City.
5th November: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has been ranked as
Worlds ninth Most Powerful Person
in the Forbes annual ranking of 73
persons list of 2015.
7th November: Indian shooter,
Heena Sidhu has won Gold medal in
10 metre Air Pistol event in womens
category at 13th Asian Shooting
Championships.
7th November: The seventh edition
of India-Russia Joint Military
A-50
Exercise Indra-2015 began in

Bikaner district of Rajasthan.
10th
November:
Indigenously
developed Communication satellite
GSAT-15 of Indian Space Research
Organisation
was
successfully
launched from the spaceport of
Kourou in French Guiana.
10th November: Nuclear capable
surface-to-surface Agni-IV missile
successfully test-fired by the Indian
Armys Strategic Forces Command
(SFC).
13th
November:
Renowned
economist Subir Gokaran appointed
as the Executive Director on the
board of the International Monetary
Fund (IMF).
16th November: Indian shuttler
Saina Nehwal wins silver medal
at 2015 China Open Superseries
Premier Badminton tournament.
16th November: Syed Akbaruddin
appointed as Indias Permanent
Representative to the United
Nations at New York.
19th November: Vijay Keshav
Gokhale has been appointed as
Indias Ambassador to China.
20th November: 7th Central Pay
Commission submits report which
proposes 23.55% salary hike in
pay and allowances of government
employees.
20th November 2015: Nitish Kumar
has sworn in as the Chief Minister
(CM) of Bihar for the record fifth
time.
21st November: Indian cueist
Pankaj Advani wins the 2015 IBSF
World Snooker Championship.
21st November: Harshavardhan
Neotia, Chairman of Ambuja Neotia
group elected as President of FICCI
(Federation of Indian Chambers of
Commerce and Industry) for 2016.
23rd November: Uttar Pradesh

governments ambitious Clean UP,
Green UP initiative earns a place
in the Guinness Book of World
Records.
25th November: Dhanush ballistic
missile successfully test fired from
warship Subhadra, off the Puri coast
of Odisha in the Bay of Bengal.
26th November: National Milk
Day (NMD) observed to mark birth
anniversary Father of the White
Revolution Dr.Verghese Kurien.
30th November: Indian shuttler
PV Sindhu wins the $120,000 2015
Macau Open Grand Prix Gold
Badminton tournament.
DECEMBER
1st December: Union Government
launches Inactivated Polio Vaccine
(IPV) injection as part of the global
polio endgame strategy in New
Delhi.
1st
December:
President
Pranab Mukherjee gives assent
to
Maharashtra
Factories
(Amendment)
Bill,
2015
of
Maharashtra government which
allows women to work in factories
in night shifts.
2nd December: President Pranab
Mukherjee gives his assent to The
Labour Laws (Gujarat Amendment)
Bill, 2015.
3rd December: Union Cabinet
approves proposal of setting up of 6
new Indian Institutes of Technology
(IITs) across the country.
3rd December: Justice Tirath Singh
Thakur sworn in as 43rd Chief
Justice of India (CJI).
4th December: Lok Sabha passes

The Bureau of Indian Standards
Bill, 2015 by a voice vote to establish
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
7th December: Union Government
launches Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan,
a nationwide campaign in a bid to
achieve universal accessibility to
persons with disabilities.
8th December: Pune and Rajkot
have become the new interim
franchises in the Indian Premier
League (IPL) to replace CSK, RR.
9th December: Lok Sabha passes
the Indian Trusts (Amendment), Bill
2015 by voice vote.
11th December: India and South
Korea ink a new MoU on suspension
of collection of taxes during
pendency of mutual agreement
procedure.
12th December: National Green
Tribunal (NGT) bans registration
of new diesel-run vehicles in Delhi
to curtail the growing menace of air
pollution in the capital city.
12th December: India and Japan
ink 14 agreements in various fields
to enhance bilateral co-operation
between both countries.
12th December: India and Japan
sign historic Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) to introduce High
Speed Rail (HRS) on Mumbai
Ahmedabad sector.
14th December: Ministry of
External Affairs (MEA) appointed
senior IPS officer Ahmad Javed as
Indias Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
14th December: Legendary actor
Dilip Kumar (93) conferred with the
Padma Vibhushan.
A-51
15th December: Olympic medallist

Vijay Kumar wins gold medal
at the 59th National Shooting
Championship held in New Delhi.
16th December: Apurvi Chandela
wins Gold medal in the 59th
National Shooting Championship
in Delhi.
16th December: Supreme Court
appointed Justice Virendra Singh as
new Lokayukta of Uttar Pradesh.
17th December: (ISRO) successfully
places six commercial satellites from
Singapore in their dedicated orbits.
18th December: Former Defence
Secretary Radha Krishna Mathur
(62) appointed as Chief Information
Commissioner (CIC).
19th December: Indias biggest
Wildlife Rescue Centre, Gorewada
Zoo and Wildlife Rescue Centre
commissioned at Gorewada near
Nagpur.
22nd December: Parliament passes
Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection
of Children) Bill, 2015 for trying
juveniles as adults.
24th December: Union Government
launches mobile apps namely Crop
Insurance and AgriMarket Mobile
to benefit farmers.
24th December: A rare full moon to
appear on Christmas since 1977.
25th December: North Indias first
cable-stayed bridge named Atal Setu
inaugurated in Jammu and Kashmir.
25th December: India and Russia
ink 16 cooperation agreements
to expand cooperation in various
sectors to give a major push to their
strategic ties.
A-52
INTERNATIONAL EVENTS IN 2015

JANUARY
9th January: Maithiripala Sirisena
sworn-in as 7th President of Sri
Lanka.
18th January: Egypts best known
actresses Faten Hamama has passed
away.
18th January: 5th General Assembly
of the International Renewable
Energy Agency (IRENA) begins in
Abu Dhabi.
23rd January: Saudi Arabias King
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz has passed
away.
FEBRUARY
1st February: Father of Birth
Control Pill Carl Djerassi passed
away.
3rd Feb: Sergio Mattarella elected
as Italys 12th President.
15th February: Croatias first female
President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic
sworn-in.
23rd February: Takahiro Hachigo
appointed as new President and
CEO of Honda.
23rd February: Rana Bhagwandas
first Hindu Chief Justice of Pakistan
passes away.
MARCH
2nd March: Worlds first electric
satellites successfully lifted off
by a Space Exploration (SpaceX)
Technologies rocket from Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station, United
States.
7th March: Islamic State (IS)
militants destroy the ruins at the
ancient city of Hatra located in

south-west of Mosul in Northern
Iraq.
14th March: Historic bronze statue
of Father of the Nation Mahatma
Gandhi was unveiled at the
Parliament Square in London.
22nd March: Katherine Viner
appointed as editor-in-chief of The
Guardian newspaper.
23rd March: First Prime Minister
(PM) of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew
passes away.
29th March: Australia wins the ICC
Cricket World Cup 2015 for the
record fifth time.
APRIL
12th April: Asteroid 316201 named
after Malala Yousafzai.
14th
April:
Turkey
begins
construction of its first nuclear
power plant located at Akkuyu in
Mersin province on the shores of the
Mediterranean Sea.
21st April: Pakistan Government
confers Nishan-e-Pakistan, top
civilian award on Chinese President
Xi Jinping.
22nd April: Japans Magnetic
levitation technology (Maglev) train
clocked a new world speed record of
603 kms per hour in a test run near
Mount Fuji.
23rd April: Calbuco volcano in
Southern Chile erupted for the first
time in more than 42 years.
25th
April:
Earthquake
of
magnitude 7.8 on the Richter scale
strikes central Nepal.
International Events in 2015
27th April: Loretta Lynch swornin as United States first AfricanAmerican

woman
Attorney
General.
27th April: Raja Rajeswari became
the first Indian-born woman to be
appointed a judge in New York City.
29th April: Mohammed bin
Nayef appointed as Crown Prince
and Deputy Prime Minister of
Saudi Arabia by King Salman bin
Abdulaziz al-Saud.
MAY
2nd May: Renowned crime writer
Ruth Rendell passed away in
London, United Kingdom
3rd May: Mazen Darwish honoured
with UNESCO-Guillermo Cano
World Press Freedom Prize 2015.
5th May: Oscar-winning writer
Michael Blake of Dances with
Wolves novel passes away in
Tucson, Arizona.
10th
May:
World
Health
Organization
(WHO)
declares
Liberia Ebola-free.
18th May: India and South Korea
sign 7 agreements to enhance
bilateral relations.
23rd May: Ireland on 23 May 2015
becomes the first country in the
world to constitutionally legalise
same-sex marriage.
JUNE
3rd June: Edward Snowden awarded
Freedom of Expression prize in
Norway.
5th June: Prominent scientist
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim sworn-in
as the first woman president of
Mauritius.
7th June: China conducts the fourth
successful test of the new nuclear
A-53
capable Wu-14 hypersonic strike

vehicle.
15th June: Scientists Create
Worlds Thinnest Light Bulb Using
Graphene.
15th June: Mogens Lykketoft
unanimously elected as the President
of
United
Nations
General
Assembly (UNGA).
19th
June:
Worlds
First
Electric Passenger aircraft BX1E
manufactured in China.
23rd June: James Horner, the Oscar
winning composer of Titanic passes
away in a plane crash in California.
25th June: India pledges assistance
of one billion US dollars to Nepal
for its massive re-construction
programme.
29th June: Russias former PM
Yevgeny Primakov passes away in
Moscow.
30th June: Father of SMS
technology Matti Makkonen passes
away.
30th June: Cuba becomes the first
country in the world to eliminate
mother-to-child transmission of
HIV and syphilis.
JULY
5th July: US win the 2015 FIFA
Womens World Cup.
10th July: ISRO successfully
launches PSLV-C28 carrying 5 UK
satellites.
13th July: India and Georgia sign
a MoU for cooperation in the
field of election management and
administration.
23rd July: UNESCO names
Conakry, the Capital city of the
Republic of Guinea as the World
Book Capital for year 2017.
International Events in 2015
A-54
24th July: Jorge Sampaio and

Helena Ndume awarded with
the inaugural Nelson Rolihlahla
Mandela Prize.
AUGUST
9th August: 70th anniversary
Atomic bomb dropping on Nagasaki
city of Japan observed across the
world.
18th August: United National Front
for Good Governance (UNFGG)
emerges as largest group by winning
106 seats out of total 225 seats in
Sri Lankan Parliamentary election
2015.
SEPTEMBER
11th September: Peoples Action
Party (PAP) led by Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong has emerged
victorious at the 2015 Singapore
General Elections.
16th September: Nepals Parliament
approves new Constitution after
seven years of painstaking efforts
and deliberations.
21st September: Alexis Tsipras of
left wing Syriza party has sworn in
as the Prime Minister of Greece.
OCTOBER
10th October: UNSC adopts a
resolution to authorize the European
Union (EU) and individual countries
to use force to tackle the worst
refugee crisis.
12th October: India grants five
million US Dollars to Palestine as
Budgetary assistance.
19th October: Justin Trudeau of
Liberal Party sworn in as the 23rd
Prime Minister of Canada.
29th October: John Magufuli
elected as President of Tanzania.
30th October: China abandons

one-child policy and changed it twochild policy.
NOVEMBER
4th November: President of
Maldives Abdulla Yameen declares
state of emergency for 30 days
on grounds of threat to national
security.
7th November: World Health
Organization (WHO) officially
declared Sierra Leone as Ebola-free.
10th November: United Nations
General Assembly (UNGA) declares
year 2016 as the International Year
of Pulses (IYP).
16th November: Philippines to
host 2015 Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) summit from
1819 November 2015.
30th November: IMF approves
Chinas Yuan as elite reserve
currency.
DECEMBER
1st December: China hosts 1st
BRICS media summit in Beijing.
Dec 8: Pakistan successfully testfires nuclear capable Shaheen-III
ballistic missile.
19th
December:
Afghanistan
becomes 164th member nation
of the World Trade Organisation
(WTO).
20th December: Peoples Party
(PP) of Spain led by Prime Minister
Mariano Rajoy wins the 2015
general election of the country.
25th December: PM Narendra
Modi inaugurates new building
of Afghanistan Parliament in the
capital city Kabul built by India.
A-55
Intolerance in India:
Adding fuel to fire
ndia is seen as a country that is poised to be the next economic superpower

owing to its rapid growth on the path of free market. It also shares the values
of democracy and diversity with the west. However, it is felt increasingly by
the people of the country that the rise of intolerance in the country is making
this positive image murkier. More and more voices are increasingly being
heard from different parts of the country about growing intolerance amongst
people. And the word has created an outburst and resentment amongst the
people of India.
The intolerance movement began with writers returning awards and gradually
spread to a wider community of scientists, historians and filmmakers. Some
200 academicians teaching in India and abroad have issued a joint statement
against rising intolerance and bigotry. We are all aware that we are living
in an era of intolerance world-wide. But as far as a pluralistic country such
as India is concerned, incidents of intolerance have been seen and heard
since time immemorial. Moreover, one form of intolerance is a consequence
of another. Unfortunate incidents of violence such as murders, lynching,
burning and bombings have always taken place due to communal hatred. We
are also aware that no country on earth can claim to be fully tolerant.
So what kind of intolerance are we referring to? And why debate about
it now? The speculation is coloured with diverse shades as people from
different walks of life hold differing viewpoints. Perhaps, it could be the case
that some people see it as a way of protesting against murders in the name
of intolerance. Or, may be, people are killing each other because theres no
tolerance of each other. Also, the reason may have to do with killing of
people from a particular community. But the point of debate should be why
people are not protesting against increasing crime rate and a tardy law and
order situation in India. It has also been said that the whole phenomenon
of rising intolerance concurred with the Bihar election campaign. Was
it the discernment of a select few that was intentionally used to create an
atmosphere of intolerance to serve narrow political ends? It is also true
that the powerful influence of the media is no longer hushing up things and
bringing them to the limelight as never before.
But what is important to pay heed to the fact that its not about the number
and frequency of incidents and crimes that have taken place but the
direction in which intolerance is moving.
It is disheartening to see that intolerance
these days is taking the form of firstly,
non-acceptance of diverse or alternative
view points and punishing people if their
beliefs and practices did not match those
of the ruling ideology and secondly,
curbing peoples freedom of expression
A-56
Intolerance in India: Adding Fuel to Fire
and punishing them for talking their heart out. It also becomes a matter
of grave concern when progressive voices are made silent. Dr Raghuram
Rajan in his address to the graduating students from IIT Delhi pointed out
that tolerance and respect of alternative viewpoints were imperative for an
economy to advance
The debate on intolerance has emanated out of two separate disconcerting
incidents. Firstly, the murder of the celebrated Kannada writer M.M
Kalburgi in the month of August this year sparked widespread outrage in
the country. Kalburgi was gunned down by a visitor at his residence. In
September, a Muslim was charred to death by his neighbours because of
the rumour that a carcass of a cow was seen nearby. This announcement
was made at a local temple flared up emotions, formed a mob and a horrific
act as lynching was done. Yet in another incident, black ink was spewed on
Sudheendra Kulkarni, chairman of the Observer Research Foundation last
month for organizing a book release event for a former Pakistani foreign
minister.
Why should scholars and writers be chastised for their intellectual views?
A number of intellectuals have rightly
expressed the fear that freedom of
expression has been under threat.
Quite a few returned their prestigious
National and Sahitya Akademi
awards in protest against attempts to
undermine secular values enshrined
in the constitution. Its a matter of
deep concern that freedom of speech, belief and practices for which India
has been long commended are in danger of being lost. All this has generated
an environment of narrowness, intolerance and bigotry.
The rising intolerance against religious groups and intellectuals is smothering
progress which in turn has created an element of doubt over the credibility
of our country. But the solution of the problem does not lie in returning of
awards by the intellectuals. Its true that we can never progress if we are not
allowed to speak. But the gestures of protest such as award wapsi by an
elite few are not enough. The awards have been earned by them with their
efforts and returning them is not the best way to show dissent. It adds fuel to
fire and does not bring about any change. Rather, they should fight for the
cause and do something that would make a difference.
The exact reason for growing intolerance is still unknown but what is known
is that there is no place for it in a democratic republic and that its high time
we brought stability in a highly volatile environment as ours. The people are
the true strength of a country and if they are silenced and threatened for
speaking up, we have only to lose.
What saddens one the most is the way politicians have reacted to the
incidence of returning awards in their own ways. It is said that people
returning the awards have been long forgotten implying that this was an
attempt on their part to come back to limelight. Others were of the view that
the ones returning the awards were also the ones who didnt want to see the
rise of NDA to power in the year 2014 implying that the motive may have
been purely political and not humanitarian as it is being made out to be.
Hence, it becomes imperative that any time we have a national debate, its
important to approach it in as apolitical manner as possible.
A-57
Global Warming and Climate

Change
he Earths climate system has witnessed changes in its average

temperature since 1950s and these changes have been alarming to an
extent that has led to global warming. But, over the globe the temperature
changes vary. The measure of global warming indicates the rise of nearsurface atmospheric temperature and scientific studies have proved that this
increase in atmospheric temperature has resulted into the transfer of this
additional energy from the climate system to the oceans further leading to
oceanic warming. Melting of ice and warming of continents are what we have
been facing lately due to this climatic shift and in 2014 the Intergovernmental Panel
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a panel comprising of more
than 1,300 scientists from the United States and other countries. It has forecasted that
over the next century there would be a temperature rise of 2.5 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit.
on Climate Change (IPCC) reported the greenhouse gases to be the major

cause of global warming. It has been reported by NASA scientists that
human-made carbon dioxide is increasing beyond limits not observed in
hundreds of thousands of years. About half of the carbon dioxide produced
post burning of fossil fuels persists in the atmosphere at present and this
amount remains unabsorbed by the vegetation and the oceans.
A-58
Global Warming and Climate Change
Causes of Temperature Changes

External Forces
These include changes in the external forcing which are external to the
climate system but not external to the Earth; like changes in the atmospheric
composition. Examples of such forcing include increased concentrations of
greenhouse gases, solar luminosity, volcanic eruptions and variations in
Earths orbit around the Sun.
Radiative forcing from CO2, methane, tropospheric ozone CFCs and nitrous
oxide has also increased with the increase in amount of greenhouse gases
in the atmosphere due to human activity since the Industrial Revolution.
Over the past 20 years, burning of fossil fuels has produced three-quarters
of increase in CO2 from human activity. Changes in land use, particularly
deforestation have been another reason for the rest of the increase.
Environmental Effects
Some of the observed changes owing to the anthropogenic forcing are
sea level rise, changes in climate extremes like number of warm and cold
days, declines in Arctic sea ice extent, greening of the Sahara and glacier
retreat.
The widespread retreat of glaciers and snow cover is projected to continue.
The Arctic summer is also predicted to be ice-free as early as 2025-2030.
There might be plausible increase in the frequency and severity of some
extreme weather events like heat waves. Greater warming over land might
also occur due to changes in regional climate, where Southern Ocean and
parts of North Atlantic Ocean may experience least warming while high
northern latitudes may be most warmed.
Recent years have also seen the sea level rise, which if sustained might
bring widespread coastal flooding. More than 2C of global warming
can cause the sea level to rise eventually from 1to 4 m due to the thermal
expansion of sea water and melting of glaciers and small ice caps. Certain
ecosystems may also be affected leading to extinction of many species
and reduced diversity.
As carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere dissolve in the ocean,
the pH level of the oceans decrease leading to oceanic acidification;
which adversely affects many marine species like plankton, shellfish
and corals. Increase in ocean acidification leads to decline in calcium
carbonate which is the key building block for the shells and skeletons of
many marine organisms. The continuous rise in CO2 level will lead to
combined effect of global warming along with ocean acidification further
slowing the coral growth by nearly 50% by 2050.
Retorting to Global Warming at Global scale

In order to combat this issue, priority should be given to reduce greenhouse
gas (GHG) emissions which can be achieved by enhancing the capacity of
carbon sinks which would absorb the GHGs from the atmosphere. Energy
conservation and increased energy efficiency may reduce emissions. Besides
these, the use of low-carbon technologies like renewable energy, nuclear
energy and carbon capture and storage will potentially reduce emissions to
a greater extent. Reforestation and discouraging deforestation will further
enhance carbon sinks.
A-59
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

(UNFCCC) is a convention agreed in 1992 involving participation of many
countries and aims at preventing dangerous human interference in the climate
system. It states to maintain the GHG concentrations in the atmosphere at a
level where ecosystems can adapt naturally to climate change without letting
food production be threatened and economic development being slowed.
The objective of the UNFCCC was implemented by Kyoto Protocol held in
Kyoto, Japan. This international treaty sets binding treaty on industrialised
countries to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. The Protocol was
adopted by the parties to the UNFCCC in 1997 in Kyoto, Japan and came
into force in 2005. It was based on the principle of common but differentiated
responsibilities and put an onus of reducing current emissions on developed
nations owing to their historical responsibility for contributing to the current
levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Its commitment period started
in 2008 and ended in 2012. It was not that effective in curbing the climate
change.
In 2012, a second commitment period was agreed to extend the life of
Kyoto Protocol, which was termed as the Doha Amendment which saw
participation of 37 countries participating with binding targets. Based on
the concept of loss and damage, it focused on the principle that failure
of richer nations to reduce carbon emissions would make them financially
responsible to other nations. After objections from Russia and many other
nations, the conference culminated into a package of documents called The
Doha Climate Gateway; which enforced on extending the Kyoto Protocol
until 2020. As per this, India and Brazil are not subjected to any emission
reductions. Little progress towards the funding of Green Climate Fund was
also made in this conference.
The Paris Climate Conference, which took place from November 30 to
December 11, looked to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement
on climate for checking global warming. India has been much in focus of
developed nations and also been said to be a challenge by the US Secretary
of State John Kerry. India however has remained proactive in forging the
consensus on the issue
through its firm belief in
Future ice,
Paris to abide by all the
snowpack and
principles like CBDR,
permafrost
historical
responsibility,
polluter to pay and equity;
Future sea
Loss of
which were added in the
level change
Biodiversity
new Paris agreement and
finally accepted as well.
Increasing
greenhouse
gases
Ocean
Aci di fication
Future Climate Change

Future
precipitation
and storm
events
Continued emissions of
greenhouse gases will
cause
future
climate
changes
that
include
warmer
atmosphere,
A-60
warmer and more acidic ocean, higher sea levels and larger changes in
precipitation patterns. What we do now will determine the future climate
changes accordingly. More emission will lead to larger changes.
Our stand along with the world

According to the World Health Organizations survey of 1600 world cities;
Delhis air quality has been recorded to be the worst of any major city in
the world. The poor quality of air in Delhi damages the lungs of 2.2 million
or 50% children. As a solution to this, the AAP government has come up
with the odd-even formula for private vehicles which is said to be enforced
from January 1, 2016. This would lead to nearly 10 lakhs private vehicles
staying off roads. The proposal would allow private vehicles, including
two-wheelers with odd and even registration numbers on roads of national
capital only on alternate days.
The recent COP21- 21st Conference of Parties Climate Summit held in Paris
focused on negotiations based on the principles of equity and common but
differentiated responsibilities. China has been noted to emit about 30% of
the worlds greenhouse gases and the U.S. about 16%.
At the opening session of the World Climate Change Conference 2015
at Le Bourget near Paris, in his speech the Indian Prime Minister, Mr.
Narendra Modi has pointed out Indias ambitious target of producing 175
GW of renewable energy. He also urged the developed nations to fulfil their
responsibilities of making clean energy affordable and accessible to all in the
developing world and further quoted $100 billion a year plan for assistance
from the rich to poor nations by 2020. These funds are necessitated to clean
up coal-based generation. He said that our nation is working to take forward
development and protect environment together. He also released a book
on Indias climate friendly and sustainable practices, titled- Parampara. He
further stated that by 2030, 40% of our installed capacity will be based on
non-fossil fuel. In his words, we need to look beyond climate change and
focus on Climate Justice.
An amount of $7 billion has been pledged for clean energy research by
Mr. Bill Gates and other investors. Other backers and potential investors in
new energy technologies include U.S. President Barack Obama, Facebook
founder Mark Zuckerberg, billionaires George Soros and Saudi Prince
Alaweed bin Talal, Jack Ma of Chinas Alibaba and Indian industrialist
Mukesh Ambani.
United States, Canada and nine European countries have pledged nearly
$250 million as help to vulnerable countries so that they can adapt to rising
seas, droughts and other consequences of climate change.
The fight against climate change has become a major global challenge
after terrorism and it needs to be battled through united and strong global
agreement of working together through binding objectives. It is only possible
when we all think of a greener tomorrow and use our resources judiciously
without compromising the needs of future generations.
A-61
UNION BUDGET 2015-16

The Union Minister for Finance,
Shri Arun Jaitley presented the
Union Budget 2015-16 in front of
the Parliament on 28th February,
2015. The Budget was presented in
two parts which include Railway
Budget and General Budget, giving
an overall picture of financial
position of the Government.
&RUSRUDWHWD[UDWHWREHUHGXFHG
to 25% from 30% for the next 4
years period
The budget was primarily focussed on

growth, promoting entrepreneurship
and manufacturing, rationalizing
tax regime and announcing some
relief to the common man.
Education
Highlights of the Union Budget

2015-16 (Sector-wise)
Taxation
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the super-rich with income
exceeding ` 1 crore.
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12.36% to 14%
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Clean Ganga plan to get 100%
exemption.
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Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab,
Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh,
Bihar and Assam.
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and the Indian School of Mines,
Dhanbad to be upgraded to an
IIT.
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Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh.
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Research and Education for
Amritsar
A-62
Union Budget 2015-16
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of Pharmaceutical Education
and Research to be set up in
Maharashtra, Rajasthan and
Chhattisgarh.
7ZR QHZ LQVWLWXWHV QDPHO\
Apprenticeship
Training
Institute for Women to be
established for Haryana and
Uttarakhand.
Welfare Schemes
programmes
and
new
*67 *RRGV DQG 6HUYLFH 7D[

and JAM trinity (Jan Dhan
Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile) to
be launched in order to improve
the quality of the common man.
6L[FURUHWRLOHWVWREHFRQVWUXFWHG
across the country under the
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
`5,000
crore
additionally
allocated for MGNREGA.
+RXVLQJIRUDOOby the year 2020
08'5$ EDQN WR SURYLGH
finance to first generation SC/
ST entrepreneurs for their
encouragement.
'LUHFW%HQHILW7UDQVIHU'%7WR
be expanded from 1 crore to 10.3
crore.
8QGHUWKH$WDO3HQVLRQ<RMDQD
the government will contribute
50% of the premium limited to
` 1,000 a year.
*RYHUQPHQWWRODXQFKXQLYHUVDO
social security system for all
Indian citizens.
9LVDRQ$UULYDO9R$VHUYLFHWR
be increased upto 150 countries
from the current number of 43
countries.
)RUZDUG 0DUNHWV &RPPLVVLRQ

(FMC) to be collaborated with
the Securities and Exchange
Board of India (SEBI).
`25,000 crore financed in
favour of Rural Infrastructure
Development Bank.
`5,300 crore allocated to
maintain the Micro Irrigation
Programme.
8QGHUWKHQHZWRXULVPVFKHPH
renovation and development of
churches and convents in old
Goa; Hampi, Elephanta caves,
Jallianwala Bagh, Forests of
Rajasthan, Leh palace, Varanasi
Qutb Shahi tombs at Hyderabad.
$OORFDWLRQ RI C FURUH IRU
production of electric cars.
` 9,000 crore to be used by the
Government in concern with
unclaimed funds in PPF/EPF
for Senior Citizens Fund.
5HQHZDEOH HQHUJ\ FDSDFLW\
target revised to 175000 MW till
2022, comprising 100000 MW
Solar, 60000 MW Wind, 10000
MW Biomass and 5000 MW in
small hydro plants.
Defence
$OORFDWLRQ RI ` 2,46,726 crore
which means an increase of 9.87
per cent in consideration with
last year.
0DNH in India campaign to be
focussed for quick manufacturing
of defence equipment.
Infrastructure
,QFUHDVHLQRXWOD\VRI URDGVDQG
railways with capital expenditure
on the rise in the public sector
units.
Union Budget 2015-16

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A-64
RAILWAY BUDGET 2015

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu
presented the 2015 Railway Budget
in the Parliament on 26th February
2015. The budget focuses on Prime
Minister Narendra Modis most
important initiatives which include
Swachh Bharat Mission, Make in
India and Digital India.
8. All
India
24/7
helpline
introduced - 138 from March
2015; Toll free No.182 for
security.
Some of the key highlights of the

Railway Budget are as follows:
10. Speed on nine railway corridors

to go up to 200 km per hour.
1. No hike in the rail fares for the

passengers.
2. Train tickets can be booked 120
days in advance.
3. An investment of Rs 8.5 lakh
crore was proposed over the next
five years.
4. Operation
5-minute
introduced, which will allow
ticket bearer passengers to
purchase tickets within 5
minutes of entering the station.
5. Facility of SMS alerts introduced
in regards with the arrival and
departure of trains.
6. 200 stations to be allied with the
Adarsh Station Scheme which
will provide for basic facilities
like toilets, drinking water,
catering services, waiting rooms
etc.
7. Professional cleaning agencies
to be hired under the Swachh
Rail Swachh Bharat scheme for
cleaning of stations and trains.
9. Installation of CCTV cameras

in selected trains and ladies
compartment of suburban trains
to ensure women safety.
11. Introduction of bar coded/

RFID for tracking of parcels and
freight wagons.
12. Wi-Fi facility to be made
available in more stations and
mobile phone charging facilities
in all train compartments.
13. Building bio toilets and airplanetype vacuum toilets in trains.
14. Four dedicated freight corridors
will be completed in 2015 and
6608 km of tracks would be
electrified.
15. Indian Railway to raise Rs 17,655
crore from the market through its
two companies Indian Railway
Finance Corporation (IRFC)
and Rail Vikas Nigam Limited
(RVNL).
16. A sum total of Rs 856,020 crore
will be spent on the Railways in
the period 2015-19.
17. Satellite based stations to be built
around 10 major stations for
reduction of overcrowding.
A-65
Start-up India; Stand up India

New initiative to create jobs
In the coming days, start-ups will be promoted in every corner of the
country. We want a startup network to be established in India. We must be
number one in start-ups.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Startup?
ince 2009, India has seen a spate of investments in tech-enabled

companies that have disrupted the way we shop. Ecommerce has made a
huge difference in peoples lives today. This has been made possible because
of the advent of the startup model of business. The startup model is a style
of doing business which goes beyond the accepted norms, challenges the
existing ideas and ultimately improves or significantly alters an aspect of life
on the planet. A startup cannot be defined per se, but can be understood to
be a company that is currently in the transition stage trying to search for a
repeatable and scalable business model. In India, this is a relatively newer
way of understanding entrepreneurship and supporting it.
Entrepreneurship
The startup idea has entered public discourse because of the regular highdecibel pitch that is experienced when rich people want to popularize
something. Entrepreneurship as an idea is age-old for India. Indian trade
was well known for centuries and Indian traders were considered to be some
of the most street-smart people. Entrepreneurs all around the world are
A-66
Start-up India; Stand up India New Initiative to Create Jobs
considered to be a breed that challenges the norm to walk on a new path of

their own choosing. Why is there all this recent talk about startups then? Its
because of a couple of reasons.
One is that entrepreneurship is a lonely road and mostly a thankless one. People
perceive entrepreneurs as different and since working hard on a new product
requires cutting yourself up from a thriving social life, one leads a secluded,
focused lifestyle. This recent startup focus has made entrepreneurship the
flavour of the season. People have started understanding and sympathizing
with the pains of entrepreneurship. This normalization gives confidence and
ascertains a place for the entrepreneur in the society.
The other is that investors have identified young companies as a smart
vehicle to park their money in. The kind of valuation that these companies
receive is beyond what the globe has seen till now. This is all because of the
disruptive style of working which is needed right now in a planet that is
quickly getting engaged in an ever-widening network of technologies. The
need of the hour iscompanies that are huge in scale and can reach that level
fast. For this, two things are needed, one finance and the otherconsumer
interest. Finance is provided by private equity investors/institutions who in
turn want these products to be used by as many as possible. For this end,
discourse about startups is created which generates huge interest in peoples
minds about these new technologies. Today, we have been exposed to the
term start-up so much that we have accepted the culture of dropping out of
educational institutes or leaving MNC jobs to starting-up as a norm. This,
even though is a rare enterprise, still has become a normal state of action.
Standing with the startups?

PM NarendraModi has always wanted/tried to connect to the youth of
India. Today, when start-ups are hugely created by the young brilliant minds
of the country, then why should his government not seize the opportunity
A-67
and extend hands to support entrepreneurship amongst the youth. It is not

only good for the startups but also great for the country. There are policies
that are being bandied around, like the GOI is looking forward to a system
wherein all the branches of the bank would provide funds to at least one
startup initiated by tribals and dalits and one initiated by a woman.But
nothing has been prepared on the floor yet.
On the 10th July 2014, ArunJaitley, the finance minister of India, announced
the allocation of INR 10,000 crore funds for supporting startups around the
nation in all walks of life. The MSDE (Ministry of Skill Development and
Entrepreneurship), a relatively new ministry created by the NDA government
was given charge of this fund. Till date, the progress towards identifying
startups and utilizing the funds has been slow. There has not been prepared
any single policy or guideline that would help the startup ecosystem as a
whole.
Indias startups
India is home to a vibrant community of startups and it is proliferating fast.
According to a NASSCOM report, there were more than 3000 startups
functional in India in 2014, which is predicted to increase to more than
11,500 by 2020. Every year, more than 800 startups are coming up. In a
growing culture of entrepreneurship, it is disappointing that India is ranked
130th in the World Banks Ease of Doing Business Report 2016. Even though
our Finance Minister goes on record to say that this ranking should have been
much higher, is it not true that most of these startups are located majorly in
a couple of cities, viz. Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi? Also, is it not true that
most of them are designing products that cater to the target audience present
A-68
in these metro cities alone? How many Indian startups are pursuing social
goals? Also, how many of these private equity funds are putting their backing
behind social enterprises even when they mean business? These problems are
prevalent because we do not realize the change in the proper light. We see the
spate of newer technological companies, we hear newer terms like startups,
we see a quicker way to the riches and we think this is the new West story.
But the truth is, the game has changed very little for those entrepreneurs who
are not in the technology/mobile business. The endearment has created an
aura around entrepreneurship and glamorized it, but it has also decreased
the sanctity and seriousness associated with the lifestyle. This is welcome but
only to a certain extent.
The Government has its heart in the right place when it says it wants to support
startups. But there should be more than just talk. You cannot be serious when
you declare a budget for startups and then do nothing about itfor a year.
Startups are the fastest companies. They grow by the day. Bureaucratic or
political hurdles will make them look at other avenues for help. And they will
not appreciate the slow pace. The government should invest in accelerators/
incubators whichsupport initial ideas by seed funding them. They should
also focus on making key investments in later-stage companies which have
shown a clear business model. It is a stretch, but if instead of providing debt
to startups, the government could make equity based investments, it would be
hugely productive for the sector as a whole.
A-69
BILLS AND ACTS IN 2015

Arbitration and
(Amendment) Bill
Conciliation
8QLRQ&Dbinet headed by Prime

Minister Narendra Modi gave
its nod for amendments to the
Arbitration and Conciliation
Act 1996 by introducing the
Arbitration and Conciliation
(Amendment) Bill, on 26th
August 2015.
3DUWLHVWRWKHGLVSXWHPD\DJUHH
that their dispute be resolved
through fast track procedure
and the verdict shall be awarded
within six months period.
'XULQJ WKH H[WHQVLRQ RI WKH
period the court might reduce
the fees of the arbitrators which
may not exceed 5% for every
months delay, only if the court
finds the reason behind the delay
in proceedings attributable to
the arbitral tribunal.
6HFWLRQ $ DGGHG WR PHHW
the complete requirements
of the costs regime which
will be applicable to both, the
arbitrators as well as to the
related proceedings of the
course.
$PHQGPHQW RI 6HFWLRQ WR
ensure that only filing of the
forms to challenge the award
cannot automatically put a
stay on the execution of the
award. In fact the stay order can
come to effect only if a specific
judgement is passed on the
application filed by the party.
The Constitution (119th

Amendment) Act
7KH 3DUOLDPHQW RI ,QGLD SDVVHG
the
119th
constitutional
amendment bill 2013 on 7th
May 2015 after the consent of
the President of India Pranab
Mukherjee.
&RQVWLWXWLRQ
WK
Amendment) Act, 2015 is
related to the Land Boundary
Agreement (LBA) between
India and Bangladesh.
7KH ELOO DLPV WR DPHQG WKH VW
schedule of the constitution
for the exchange of disputed
territories occupied by both
the nations in agreement with
the 1974 bilateral LBA(Land
Boundary Agreement)
7KLV ZLOO SXW D VWRS WR WKH
illegal immigration and various
criminal acts going on across
the border.
,W ZLOO VROYH WKH ERUGHU UHODWHG
disputes involving the northeastern states like Meghalaya,
Tripura, Assam and West
Bengal and improve the
development works of the
region.
$OVR ZLOO SURYLGH UHOLHI WR
stateless citizens living in the
isolated lands of the countries
by granting them citizenship
and basic government services.
Bureau of Indian Standards Bill

7KH 8QLRQ &DELQHW FKDLUHG
by the Prime Minister, Shri
A-70
Narendra Modi introduced a

new Bureau of Indian Standards
Bill, on August 07, 2015.
7KH%LOOUHplaced the Bureau of
Indian Standards Act, 1986
7KH %XUHDX ZLOO ZRUN XQGHU
a Governing Council which
will work for the general
superintendence, direction and
management of the Bureau.
7KH\ ZLOO VHW XS DQG PDLQWDLQ
testing laboratories for quality
guarantee of goods, articles,
services, etc, and will act as the
licensing authority for quality
standards.
7KH %LOO JUDQWV SRZHU WR
the central government for
mandatory certification of
certain goods and precious
metals to confirm whether they
meet the standard mark or not.
Negotiable Instruments
(Amendment) Bill
7KH 1HJRWLDEOH ,QVWUXPHQWV
(Amendment) Bill, 2015 was
introduced in the Lok Sabha on
May 6, 2015 and passed by the
same on 13th May 2015.
7KH%LOOZDVLQWURGXFHGWRDPHQG
the Negotiable Instruments Act,
1881.
,W GHILQHV SURPLVVRU\ QRWHV
bills of exchange, cheques and
creates penalties for issues such
as bouncing of cheques.
,QVWDQFHV ZKHUH PRUH WKDQ RQH
case is filed against the same
person in different courts, then
the case will be transferred to
the court with the appropriate
jurisdiction.
7KH%LOODPHQGVWKHH[SODQDWLRQ
of cheque in the electronic
form which means a cheque
drawn in a electronic medium
Bills and Acts in 2015

using any computer source and
is signed in a secure system with
a digital signature, or electronic
system.
7KH%LOOZDVZLWKGUDZQRQ-XO\
24, 2015 for further amendment
of the same.
Citizenship (Amendment) Bill

7KH %LOO ZDV LQWURGXFHG LQ WKH
Lok Sabha by the Minister
of State, Ministry of Home
Affairs, Mr. Haribhai Partibhai
Chaudhary on February 27,
2015 for the amendment of the
Citizenship Act, 1955.
7KH ELOO ZDV SDVVHG E\ WKH /RN
Sabha on 2nd March 2015
and by the Rajya Sabha on 4th
March 2015.
7KH %LOO DOORZV WKH FHQWUDO
government to register a person
as an Overseas Citizen of India
cardholder even if s/he does not
satisfy the given eligibility under
special circumstances only.
,Q DFFRUGDQFH ZLWK WKH $FW DQ\
person who is/has been a citizen
of Pakistan or Bangladesh or
any other country notified by
the central government will
be deemed ineligible to apply
for Overseas Citizenship of
India. In addition to this the
Bill extends the provision
to cover persons whose
parents/grandparents/ greatgrandparents were citizens of
any of the above countries.
,W LV D 0HUJHU RI WKH 2YHUVHDV
Citizen of India (OCI) and
Persons of Indian Origin (PIO)
schemes. The Bill empowers
the central government to
notify that Persons of Indian
Origin cardholders who will
be considered to be Overseas
A-71

Citizen of India cardholders
starting from a specific date.
7KH %LOO DOVR DOORZV WKH FHQWUDO
government to cancel the
Overseas Citizenship of India
card in cases when the marriage
is dissolved by a court, or the
spouse enters into another
marriage even while the first
marriage has not been dissolved.
Motor
Bill
Vehicles
(Amendment)
7KH ELOO ZDV SDVVHG E\ WKH /RN

Sabha on 3rd March 2015 and
consequently by the Rajya
Sabha on 11th March 2015.
7KH %LOO UHFHLYHG WKH DVVHQW
of the President on the 19th
March, 2015.
7KH %LOO DLPV WR DPHQG WKH
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988
and replace the ordinance
promulgated in this regard.
7KH ELOO GHVFULEHV HFDUW RU
e-rickshaw as a special purpose
battery powered vehicle of
power not exceeding 4000 watts,
having three wheels for carrying
goods or passengers.
7KH ELOO HPSRZHUV 8QLRQ
Government to make the rules
on the specifications for e-carts
and e-rickshaws with conditions
and manner for issuing driving
licenses.
2QH RI WKH SULPDU\ DLPV WR
bring the E-cart and E-rickshaw
under the ambit of MV Act
will provide employment to
innumerable people who have
upgraded from the manually
pulled rickshaws to the electric
powered three-wheeled vehicles.
Regional
Rural
(Amendment) Bill
banks
7KH 5HJLRQDO 5XUDO %DQNV

introduced by Mr. Arun Jaitley,
the Minister of Finance, in
Lok Sabha on December 18,
2014. The Bill seeks to amend
the Regional Rural Banks Act,
1976.
7KH%LOOVHHNVWRUDLVHWKHDPRXQW
of authorised capital from ` 5
crore to ` 2,000 crore and states
that it cannot be reduced below
` one crore.
7KH %LOO VWDWHV WKDW WKH FHQWUDO
government may by notification
raise or reduce the limit of
shareholding of the central
government, state government
or the sponsor bank in the RRB.
7KH %LOO VWDWHV WKDW DQ\ SHUVRQ
who is a director at an RRB is
not eligible to be on the Board
of Directors for another RRB.
7KH %LOO UDLVHV WKH WHQXUH RI
office for a director (excluding
the Chairman) from two years
to three years with the provision
that no director can hold office
for a total period exceeding six
years.
7KHELOOFKDQJHVWKHFORVLQJDQG
balancing dates of the books of
RRB from December 31st of
every year to March 31st which
will bring the Act in uniformity
with the financial year.
The Undisclosed Foreign Income

and Assets (Imposition of Tax)
Bill
7KH %LOO ZDV LQWURGXFHG LQ /RN
Sabha on March 20, 2015 by
Mr. Arun Jaitley, the Minister
of Finance.
A-72
7KH %LOO ZDV SDVVHG E\ WKH /RN

Sabha on 11th May, 2015 and
by the Rajya sabha on 13th
May, 2015.
7KH%LOODSSOLHVWRDOOWKH,QGLDQ
residents and seeks to replace
Income Tax (IT) Act, 1961 for
taxation on foreign income.
&RQFHDOPHQW RI IRUHLJQ LQFRPH
and evading taxes related to the
same will be treated as criminal
offence.
7KH ILQH IRU QRW GLVFORVLQJ
foreign income or assets will be
equal to three times the amount
of tax with an addition of 30%
to it. Also the penalty for not
filing income tax returns in
relation to the foreign income
or assets will be ` 10 lakh but it
will not be valid for assets worth
` 5 lakh or less.
7KH SXQLVKPHQW IRU ZLOIXO
evasion of tax can lead to
imprisonment of 3 to 10 years
along with a fine. The failure
to furnish returns in relation to
the foreign assets can lead to
imprisonment of 6 months to 7
years along with a fine.
7KH 6FKHGXOHG &DVWHV DQG

Scheduled Tribes (Prevention
of Atrocities) Amendment Bill,
2014 was introduced in the Lok
Sabha by Mr Thaawar Chand
Gehlot, the Minister of Social
Justice and Empowerment on
July 16, 2014. The bill was
passed by the Lok Sabha on 4th
August, 2015
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention

of Atrocities) Act, 1989 which
prohibited the commission
of offences against members
of SCs and STs and holding
of special courts for the trial
of these offences and the
rehabilitation of victims.
7KH %LOO DGGHG FHUWDLQ WHUPV
to the offence of assaulting
or sexually exploiting a SC
or ST female, which include:
(a) deliberately touching an
SC or ST woman in a sexual
way without her consent, or
(b) using lewd remarks, acts or
gestures in any sexual manner,
or (c) compelling an SC or ST
woman to act as a devadasi of
a temple, or any related practice
which will also be considered
an offence.
6RPH RI WKH QHZO\ DGGHG
offences against the SCs or
STs under the Bill include:
(a) garlanding with footwear,
(b) forcing them to carry
human or animal carcasses,
or do manual scavenging, (c)
verbal abuse of the SCs or STs
by caste name in public, (d)
attempting to spread feelings
of ill-will against SCs or STs or
dishonouring any dead person
held in high admiration, and (e)
commanding or intimidating a
social or economic boycott.
7KH %LOO VSHFLILHV WKDW DQ
Exclusive Special Court must
be setup at the district level for
the trial of offences under the
Bill and a Public Prosecutor and
Exclusive Public Prosecutor
must be appointed for every
Special Court and Exclusive
Special Court correspondingly.
7KH %LOO VHHNV WR DPHQG WKH

Scheduled Castes and the
7KH %LOO PHQWLRQV WKH SURYLVLRQ

for the rights of victims and
The Scheduled castes and the

Scheduled tribes (Prevention of
Atrocities) Amendment Bill
A-73

witnesses which endows the
state to make arrangements for
the protection of victims, their
dependents and witnesses.
Consumer protection Bill

7KH &RQVXPHU 3URWHFWLRQ %LOO
2015, was introduced in Lok
Sabha on August 10, 2015 by
Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, the
Minister of Consumer Affairs,
Food and Public Distribution.
7KH %LOO VHHNV WR UHSODFH WKH
Consumer Protection Act,
1986 to widen the range and
modernise the law on consumer
protection
following
the
changes in the market.
7KH FHQWUDO JRYHUQPHQW ZLOO
set up the Central Consumer
Protection Authority (CCPA)
to promote, protect and enforce
the rights of consumers.
7KH GHIHFWV LQYROYHG LQ WKH
manufacture,
construction,
design,
testing,
service
marketing etc. of a product
resulting in any sort of damage
or individual injury to a user,
the manufacturer will be held
responsible for the action taken
against the product.
7KH 'LVWULFW &RPPLVVLRQ LV
empowered to pass orders in
relation with the complaints
regarding the removal of defects,
replacing of goods, stopping
the sale or manufacture of
hazardous products, refunding
the loss undergone by a
consumer.
7KH %LOO LQWURGXFHG PHGLDWLRQ
as a way of consumer
dispute resolution with the
Consumer Mediation Cells to
be established and attached to
the redressal commissions at

the district, state and national
levels.
7KHGHIDXOWHUVZKRIDLOWRFRPSO\
with the Commissions orders
will have to face imprisonment
ranging from one month to
three years, or inclusive of fine
from 10,000 rupees to 50,000
rupees.
The Rights
Persons Bill
of
Transgender
5DM\D 6DEKD SDVVHG 7KH 5LJKWV

of Transgender Persons Bill
2014 on 24th April, 2015 which
is the first private members Bill
to be passed in 45 years by the
House.
7KH %LOO JXDUDQWHHV UHVHUYDWLRQ
in education, jobs, financial aid
and social inclusion.
7KH%LOOSURPLVHVIRUFUHDWLRQRI
welfare boards at the Centre and
State level for the community
with two per cent reservation
in government jobs along with
providing for pensions and
unemployment allowances; and
establishment of Transgender
rights courts.
1R WUDQVJHQGHU FKLOG ZLOO EH
separated from their biological
parents on the basis of being a
transgender except on an order
from a competent court.
3XQLVKPHQW IRU GHOLYHULQJ
hate speeches against the
Transgender community can
face imprisonment up to one
year with fine.
Insurance Laws (Amendment)

Bill
7KH
,QVXUDQFH
/DZV
A-74
March, 2015 and by the Rajya

Sabha on 12th March, 2015.
7KH DPHQGment Act aims to
eliminate archaic and redundant
provisions in the legislations
and
incorporates
certain
provisions to provide Insurance
Regulatory and Development
Authority of India (IRDAI)
with the flexibility to carry out
its functions more effectively
and efficiently.
7KH$PHQGPHQWZLOOKDQGRYHU
the responsibility of selecting
insurance agents to insurers
and provides for IRDAI to
standardize their eligibility,
qualifications and other aspects.
It allows agents to work for
variety of companies in various
business categories; upholding
the conflict of interest that
would not be allowed by IRDAI
via suitable rules.
7KH DPHQGPHQWV SURYLGH D
comparatively easier process
for payment to the nominee of
the policy holder, as the insurer
would be discharged of its legal
liabilities once the payment is
made to the nominee.
7KH DPHQGPHQW KDV OHG WR
several provisions for charging
higher penalties ranging from
`1 Crore to ` 25 Crore for
violations like mis-selling and
misrepresentation by the agents
/ insurance companies.
Witch Hunting (Prohibition,

Prevention and Protection) Bill
7KH VWDWH $VVHPEO\ RI $VVDP
unanimously passed the Assam
Witch Hunting (Prohibition,
Prevention and Protection) Bill,
2015 on August 13th 2015 to
cull down the rising cases of
witch hunting in the state.

7KH %LOO VHHNV WR HOLPLQDWH
the superstition from society
by making any such offence
under the Act as nonbailable, cognizable and noncompoundable.
7KH %LOO KDV PDGH SURYLVLRQV
for anyone found guilty of
imprisonment up to seven
years along with a fine up to ` 5
lakh for declaring and calling a
person witch.
6SHFLDO FRXUWV WR EH VHW XS DV
proposed under the Bill in
session with the high court for
trial of such offences.
Delhi High Court Amendment

Bill
7KH %LOO ZDV SDVVHG LQ 5DM\D
Sabha in May 2015 and by the
Lok Sabha on 5 June 2015 by a
voice vote and finally received
assent of the President on the
11th August, 2015.
7KH %LOO VHHNV WR IXUWKHU DPHQG
the Delhi High Court Act, 1966
to reduce the workload of the
Delhi High Court.
7KH ELOO LQWHQGV RQ LQFUHDVLQJ
the pecuniary jurisdiction of
the Delhi high court from the
present 20 lakh rupees to 2 crore
rupees.
7KH ELOO HPSRZHUV WKH &KLHI
Justice of the Delhi High
Court to transfer any suit or
proceedings which are pending
in the High Court immediately
to any subordinate court.
Juvenile Justice (Care and

Protection of Children) Bill
7KH -XYHQLOH -XVWLFH %LOO
was introduced on 12th August,
2014 and passed by the Lok
Sabha on 7th August, 2015.

7KH %LOO UHSODFHG WKH -XYHQLOH
Justice (Care and Protection of
Children) Act, 2000. It focuses
on children in conflict with law
and children who are in ardent
need of care and protection.
7KH ELOO SHUPLWV IRU WKH WULDO RI
juveniles between the ages of
16-18 as adults for committing
heinous crimes such as rape.
-XYHQLOH -XVWLFH %RDUGV --%
and Child Welfare Committees
(CWC) to be established in each
district. The JJB will inquire
whether a juvenile offender is
to be sent for rehabilitation or
be tried as an adult whereas
the CWC will provide for
institutional care of children in
need of care and protection.
7KH HOLJLELOLW\ FULWHULD IRU WKH
adoption of children are
included in the bill.
7KH ELOO LQFOXGHV SHQDOWLHV IRU
crimes against children and
other illegal activities involving
offering of narcotic substances
and abduction or selling of
children.
The Benami Transactions

(Prohibition) (Amendment) Bill
0LQLVWHU RI )LQDQFH 0U $UXQ
Jaitley introduced The Benami
Transactions
(Prohibition)
Amendment Bill, 2015 in the
Lok Sabha on May 13, 2015.
Benami Transactions Act,
1988 which prohibited benami
transactions
and
provided
for confiscation of benami
properties.
7KH %LOO GHVFULEHV EHQDPLGDU
as the person under whose
name the benami property is
A-75
being held or transferred, and a

beneficial owner as the person
who benefits from the property
being held by the benamidar.
7KH %ill established four
authorities
for
conducting
inquiries
or
investigations
concerning benami transactions
which include: (i) Initiating
Officer,
(ii)
Approving
Authority, (iii) Administrator
and (iv) Adjudicating Authority.
$FFRUGLQJWRWKH%LOOWKHSHQDOW\
for giving out false information
can be rigorous imprisonment
ranging from six months to
five years, and a monetary fine
which may extend up to 10% of
the market value of the benami
property.
Land Acquisition Rehabilitation

and Resttlement (Amendment)
Bill
7KH5LJKWWR)DLU&RPSHQVDWLRQ
and Transparency in Land
Acquisition, Rehabilitation and
Resettlement
(Amendment)
Bill, 2015 was introduced on
11th May, 2015.
principal Act (LARR Act, 2013)
passed in 2013.
7KH %LOO HPSRZHUV WKH
government to excuse five
categories of projects including
defence, rural infrastructure,
affordable housing, industrial
corridors and infrastructure
including PPPs, from the
requirements of: (i) social
impact
assessment,
(ii)
restrictions on acquisition of
multi-cropped land, and (iii)
consent for private projects
A-76
and public private partnerships

(PPPs) projects.
7KH %LOO HOLPLQDWHG WKH
provisions from the principal
act which deemed the head of a
government department guilty
for an offence conducted by
the department and added the
requirement of a prior sanction
to take legal action against a
government employee.
7KH
JRYHUQPHQW
DOORZHG
its ordinance on the land
acquisition act to lapse on 31st
August 2015.
The Delhi Special Police

Establishment (Amendment) Bill
7KH 'HOKL 6SHFLDO 3ROLFH
Establishment (Amendment)
Bill, 2014 was introduced by the
Minister of Personnel, Public
Grievances and Pensions, Mr.
Jitendra Singh in the Lok Sabha
on November 25, 2014.
7KH %LOO ZDV LQWURGXFHG WR
amend the Delhi Special
Police Establishment Act, 1946
which constitutes a special
investigation
police
force
alternatively known as the
Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI).
7KH FRPPLWWHH LV WR PDNH
recommendations to the central
government for appointment
of the committee comprising
of
the
Prime
Minister
(Chairperson), the Chief Justice
of India or a Supreme Court
judge nominated by him, and
the Leader of Opposition in the
Lok Sabha faced amends under
the new bill which states that
in the absence of a opposition

leader, the Leader of the single
largest Opposition Party in the
House would become the part
of the committee.
7KH %LOO VWDWHV WKDW WKH
appointment of a Director
would not be invalid on the
grounds of vacancy or absence
in the Committee.
Maharashtra
Animal
Preservation Amendment Bill
3UHVLGHQW 3UDQDE 0XNKHUMHH
gave his consent to the
Maharashtra
Animal
Preservation (Amendment) Bill,
1995 on 4th March 2015.
7KLV ELOO VHHNV WR DPHQG
Maharashtra
Animal
Preservation Act 1976 which
bans slaughter of bulls and
bullocks in the state.
$FFRUGLQJWRWKH%LOODQ\SHUVRQ
found to be selling beef or in
possession of it can be jailed for
five years and fined ` 10,000.
7KHQHZ$FWDOORZVWKHVODXJKWHU
of water buffaloes, which
provides carabeef - which is
considered as an inferior quality
meat amounting to only 25 per
cent of the total beef market of
the state.
The Constitution (122nd

Amendment) (GST) Bill
7KH
&RQVWLWXWLRQ
QG
Amendment) Bill 2014 was
introduced in the Lok Sabha on
December 19, 2014 by Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley. It was
May, 2015.
Constitution for introduction
A-77

of the goods and services tax
(GST) which will include
various Central indirect taxes,
including the Central Excise
Duty, Countervailing Duty,
Service Tax, etc.
7KH *67 &RXQFLO ZLOO GHFLGH
which taxes to be levied by the
Centre, States and local bodies
will go into the GST; which
goods and services will be
subjected to GST; and the basis
and the rates at which GST will
be applied.
7KH %LOO LQVHUWV D QHZ $UWLFOH
in the Constitution, making
legislation on the taxation of
goods and services a concurrent
power of the Centre and the
States.
,W HPSRZHUV WKH FHQWUH WR OHY\
an extra one per cent tax on the
supply of goods in the course of
inter-State trade, which will go
to the states for two years or till
when the GST Council decides.
$OFRKROIRUKXPDQFRQVXPSWLRQ
has been exempted from the
purview of GST. GST will
apply to five petroleum products
at a later date.
Mines and Minerals (Development
and Regulation) Amendment Bill
7KH $PHQGPHQW %LOO VHHNV WR
amend the Mines and Minerals
(Regulation and Development)
Act, 1957 and replace the
ordinance promulgated in
January 2015.
,WVHHNVWREULQJWUDQVSDUHQF\WR
the allocation of mining licence
process by auctions.
7KH %LOO DGGV D QHZ )RXUWK
Schedule to the Act which
allows it to include bauxite, iron

ore, limestone and manganese
ore as notified minerals.
7KH YDOLGLW\ RI WKH OLFHQFHV ZLOO
be increased to 50 years from
the previous validity of 30
years and on the other hand no
licences will be renewed, only
re-auction.
7KH ELOO ZLOO PDNH LOOHJDO
mining,
trespassing
and
violation of norms, cognisable
offences punishable by 2 years
imprisonment and/or fine.
Warehousing
(Amendment) Bill
Corporations
7KH :DUHKRXVLQJ &RUSRUDWLRQV

$PHQGPHQW %LOO ZDV
introduced in the Lok Sabha
by Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, the
Minister for Consumer Affairs,
)RRGDQG3XEOLF'LVWULEXWLRQRQ
0DUFK 7KH %LOO VHHNV
WR DPHQG WKH :DUHKRXVLQJ
Corporations Act, 1962.
7KH %LOOV 6WDWHPHQW RI
Objects and Reasons states
WKDW WKH &HQWUDO :DUHKRXVLQJ
Corporation
has
been
awarded a Mini-Ratna Public
Sector Enterprise status by
the Department of Public
Enterprises.
2QHRI WKHFULWHULDWREHD0LQL
Ratna enterprise is that there
should be no financial support
from the government to the
enterprise.
7KH %LOO VHHNV WR GR DZD\ ZLWK
WKH &HQWUDO *RYHUQPHQWV
responsibility of being a
financial guarantor to the central
warehousing corporation.
A-78
POLICIES AND SCHEMES IN 2015

7KHVFKHPHDLPVDWFRQVWUXFWLQJ
more than two crore houses
across the length and breadth
of the nation within a span of
next seven years. This means
the scheme would conclude
successfully in the year 2022.
7KH WDUJHW EHQHILFLDULHV RI
the scheme would be poor
and people living under EWS
and LIG categories in urban
establishments of the country.
uploading bank account details

and photographs.
2Q VXEPLVVLRQ RI WKH GHWDLOV
customer
will
receive
a
registration number for enquiring
about the status of the new
connection with an additional
option of offline or online mode
of payment for the connection.
7KH *RYHUQPHQW WR SURYLGH

interest subsidy of 6.5% on
housing loans to the beneficiaries
for a term of 15 years.
$IWHUWKHFRPSOHWLRQRI SD\PHQW
an
electronic
subscription
voucher will be mailed to the
new customer and a physical
delivery of the gas cylinder,
regulator with hose pipe will be
made to the customer.
+RXVHV WR EH FRQVWUXFWHG XQGHU

the scheme will be allotted
preferably in the name of the
female head of the family or in
the joint name of the male head
of the family.
7KHWZHOYHFLWLHVLQYROYHGXQGHU
the scheme are Ahmedabad,
Bhubaneswar,
Bengaluru,
Bhopal, Chennai, Chandigarh,
Kolkata, Hyderabad, Lucknow,
Patna, Mumbai and Pune.
8QGHU WKH 30$< VFKHPH WKH

ground floor will be preferably
allotted to the differently-abled
and older people.
7KH
PLVVLRQ
HQFRXUDJHV
adoption of modern and green
technologies for faster and
quality construction of houses
with the deployment of disaster
resistant
and
environment
friendly technologies.
SAHAJ Scheme
8QGHU WKH 6$+$- VFKHPH
people are required to fill up
forms online for a new LPG
connection and avoid visiting
the
LPG
distributors.
It
involves filing the KYC form by
Smart Cities Project

8QLRQ *RYHUQPHQW QDPHG
cities under the Smart Cities
Project.
2XW RI WKH WRWDO FLWLHV
13 cities were selected from
Uttar Pradesh, 12 cities from
Tamil Nadu, 10 cities from
Maharashtra, 7 cities from
Madhya Pradesh, 3 cities each
from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.
7KHFLWLHVFRQVWLWXWHFURUH
people which covers around 35%
of the urban population of India
under the mission.
7KHVHOHFWHGFLWLHVZLOOUHFHLYHD
sum of two crore rupees each for
A-79
Policies and Schemes in 2015

the execution of the smart city
plan with the primary aim being,
enhancement of the urban life
under a practical and realistic
approach.
7KH 8QLRQ *RYHUQPHQW KDV
sanctioned 48,000 crore rupees
with the purpose to financially
support the project over the next
five years.
Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana

(SAGY)
6DQVDG $GDUVK *UDP <RMDQD LV
focused on the development of
the rural areas which involves
social and cultural development,
and spreading motivation among
the villagers for the betterment
of the village community.
03V DUH UHTXLUHG WR DGRSW RQH
village each with a population
of 3000-4000 in plains and 10003000 in hills with the criteria
that the village doesnt belong to
them or their spouses.
7KH\RMDQDUHTXLUHVWKH03VWR
prepare a village development
plan and motivate the residents
for participation in growth
oriented activities, channelizing
MPLAD funds to generate
further resources specifically
from the CSR initiatives of
various corporate houses, in the
field of sanitation and water
supply.
,PSURYLQJ XSRQ WKH VWDQGDUG
and quality of the mid-day meal
schemes, Aadhaar enrolment,
setting up smart schools with
IT-enabled classrooms and
e-libraries, and development
of the infrastructure of the
Panchayat under schemes like
MGNREGA and Backward

Regions Grants Fund etc.
'HYHORSPHQW RI VRFLDO OLIH DQG
harmony to be encouraged via
activities celebrating a village
day, formation of a village
song and implementation of
alternative methods for resolving
disputes.
7KH IXQFWLRQLQJ RI WKH \RMDQD
will be ensured by web-based
monitoring with an initial
5-month assessment by an
independent organisation and
ground-level survey by the
District Collectors to monitor
the progress.
PAHAL Scheme
7KH VFKHPH ZDV UHYLVHG DQG
reintroduced as PaHal in
November 2014 and launched in
54 districts. Later on the scheme
was implemented all over the
nation on 1 January 2015.
7KH VFKHPH LQYROYHV VDOH RI
subsidized LPG cylinders at
market rates and consumers are
allowed to collect LPG subsidy
straight into their bank accounts.
7KH SURFHVV RI UHFHLYLQJ WKH
subsidy is either via the bank
account or Aadhaar linkage
covering around 9.75 crore LPG
consumers across the nation.
7KH VFKHPHV SULPDU\ PRWLYH
involves elimination of duplicate
or bogus LPG connections.
Suraksha Bandhan drive

8QLRQ*RYHUQPHQWKDVODXQFKHG
Suraksha Bandhan drive with an
objective of creating a universal
social security system in the
country, particularly for the poor
and the deprived sections.
A-80
7KH GULYH ZLOO DVVRFLDWH WKH

poor and deprived sections with
social security schemes such as
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima
Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan
Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima
Yojana (PMJJBY).
7KH SDUWLFLSDWLQJ ,QVXUDQFH
Companies will support the
respective banks to work jointly
towards local outreach and
create awareness in order to
facilitate enrolments during this
drive.
3HRSOH ZKR HQURO GXULQJ WKLV
drive will be exempted from
submitting a certificate of good
health for the PMJJBY.
7KH GULYH HPSRZHUV SHRSOH WR
present social security to their
near and dear ones in the form of
Jeevan Suraksha gift cheques of `
351 which is one-year premium
for PMJJBY and PMSBY.
SAMANVAY portal
6$0$19$< ZHE SRUWDO
was launched by the Union
Ministry of Rural Development
to supervise the progress
and execution of the Sansad
Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY)
for development of Gram
Panchayats.
7KHDLPRI WKHSRUWDOLVWRDVVLVW
Members of Parliament (MPs)
to utilise relevant schemes in the
planning and implementation of
SAGY.
6$0$19$< KDV KHOSHG LQ WKH
documentation of around 1800
state schemes from across all
states.
Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan

8QLRQ *RYHUQPHQW ODXQFKHG
Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan with

the focus on creating awareness
and capacity building for safe
and hygienic food.
7KH Fampaign complements
the widely popular multi-media
campaign Jago Grahak Jago
which empowers the consumers
of their rights and demands.
8QGHUWKHFDPSDLJQQDWLRQZLGH
sensitisation sessions will be
organized across the country on
cleaning, hygiene & sanitation
for safe food, Walkathons
and
Media
dissemination
programmes for Consumers and
Street Food Industries.
7KH PLQLVWU\ DOVR ODXQFKHG
a website and a logo for the
campaign and signed a pledge for
adoption of safe food practices.
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee

Yojana (PMKSY)
30.6< DLPV SULPDULO\ DW
providing irrigation facilities to
every village in the country by
converging ongoing irrigation
schemes implemented by various
ministries.
7KH <RMDQD HQVXUHV SURWHFWLYH
irrigation to all agricultural
farms in the country in order to
produce per drop more crop
ensuring rural prosperity.
7KH VFKHPH HQVXUHV WKDW VWDWH
and district irrigation plans
are equipped on the basis of
availability of water and agroclimatic conditions in the
respective regions.
7KH30.6<IRFXVHVRQHQGWR
end solution in irrigation supply
chain by implementing the new
programme in a project mode
with decentralised state-level
planning and execution.
A-81

30.6< IXQGV ZLOO EH JLYHQ WR
states as 75% grant by the central
government and the rest 25%
share is to be taken up by the
state government. And in case
of the north-eastern region and
hilly states, the grant would be
90:10.
Deendayal Upadhyaya
Jyoti Yojana
Gram
7KH VFKHPH ZDV ODXQFKHG E\

with the primary aim to provide
247 uninterrupted electricity
supply to each rural household
across the nation by 2022.
7KH \RMDQD ZDV SODQQHG WR
separate agriculture and nonagriculture feeders facilitating
judicious rostering of supply to
agricultural and non-agricultural
consumers in rural areas.
,WDOVRVHHNVWRVWUHQJWKHQWKHVXE
transmission and distribution
infrastructure in rural areas
which
includes
metering
of
transformers/feeders/
consumers.
7KHVFKHPHKDVWKHWRWDORXWOD\
of 76,000 crore rupees for
execution of the projects for
which the Union Government
will provide grant of 63,000
crore rupees.
Sakaar
8QLRQ*RYHUQPHQWODXQFKHGDQ
Augmented Reality technology
based
mobile
application
named Sakaar to showcase the
achievements of the Department
of Space.
7KH DSSOLFDWLRQ LV GHYHORSHG E\
Development and Educational
Communication Unit (DECU)
of ISRO.
7KH DSSOLFDWLRQ VKRZFDVHV '

models of Mars Orbiter Mission
(MOM), RISAT, indigenous
rockets such as PSLV, GSLV
Mk-III; videos of INSAT
3D-predicting cyclones, MOM
launch and orbit insertion videos,
360 degree animated view of
MOM, GSLV D5/Cryo and
Anaglyph of Mars surface which
are purely for representational
and educational purposes.
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana

3UDGKDQ 0DQWUL -DQ 'KDQ
Yojana (PMJDY) was launched
as a nationwide scheme by
on 28th August 2014 which
seeks to provide a bank account
for every individual who does
not have one.
7KH VFKHPH IDFLOLWDWHV WKH
account holders with a zerobalance bank account with
RuPay debit card, with an
additional accidental insurance
cover of ` 1 lakh.
7KH DFFRXQW KROGHUV FDQ WDNH D
loan benefit of
IURP WKH EDQN DIWHU DQ
interval of six months from
opening of the account.
7KH IDFLOLW\ RI PRELOH EDQNLQJ
available for the poor through
National
Unified
USSD
Platform (NUUP) by the
combined efforts of all banks
and mobile companies.
7KH VFKHPH DOORZV WKH DFFRXQW
holders to avail the facilities
of
checking balance and
transferring funds through a
normal cellphone which was
earlier limited to smart phones
A-82
only, with the introduction of

new age technology introduced
by
National
Payments
Corporation of India (NPCI).
` 2,037 crore for the integrated

programme with the aim to
cover 8 states, 47 towns & 12
rivers under the project.
7KH DFFRXQW KROGHUV ZLOO EH

awarded an insurance coverage
worth ` 30000 if they comply
with certain condition of the
scheme, including opening an
account by 26th January, 2015
and possessing an accidental
insurance coverage worth `
200000.
6HYHUDO PLQLVWULHV DUH HQJDJHG

with nodal Water Resources
Ministry in relation with the
project including - Environment,
Urban development, Shipping,
Tourism & Rural Development
Ministries with the prime focus
on connecting people living on
the rivers banks in this project.
USTAAD Scheme
7KH 867$$' VFKHPH ZDV
launched in order to improve
the degrading condition of the
world renowned Banaras Saree
weavers belonging to various
minority communities.
7KH 6FKHPH VHHNV WR XSJUDGH
the Skills and Training of
the minority communities by
preservation of their customary
ancestral Arts and Crafts.
,W DOVR IRFXVHV RQ LPSURYLQJ
upon the skills of craftsmen,
weavers and artisans who
are already engaged in the
traditional ancestral work.
867$$' DOVR VHHNV WR ZRUN
on the skill development and
imbibing
better
marketing
strategies to the weavers and
artisans of traditional crafts.
Namami Gange Project

1DPDPL*DQJH3URMHFWKDVEHHQ
launched as an intergrated effort
by the Union Government for the
conservation and improvement
of the Ganga River.
7KH*RYHUQPHQWKDVVDQFWLRQHG
a sum of
7KHVFKHPHDOVRLQYROYHVVHWWLQJ
up river centric urban planning
process in order to establish
better citizens connect through
interventions at Ghats and River
fronts along with expansion of
sewerage infrastructure in 118
cities on banks of Ganga.
7KH SURMHFW DOVR LQYROYHV
ensuring ecological rejuvenation
by conservation of aquatic life
and biodiversity, and side by side
promoting tourism and shipping
in a rational and sustainable
manner.
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti

Bima Yojana
3UDGKDQ 0DQWUL -HHYDQ -\RWL
Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) was
launched by the Union finance
minister Arun Jaitley with the
aim to extend life insurance
cover to people both in the cases
of natural deaths or accidents.
7KH <RMDQD ZLOO EH DYDLODEOH WR
people who have an Aadhaar
number linked with a bank
account and within the age
group of 18-50 years.
7KH DQQXDO SUHPLXP IRU WKH
scheme is ` 330 which will be
A-83

auto-debited in one instalment
from the subscribers bank
account.
7KH VFKHPH ZLOO EH SULPDULO\
offered by LIC and other life
insurers who are willing can join
the scheme.
MUDRA Bank
0LFUR 8QLWV 'HYHORSPHQW DQG
Refinance Agency Bank (or
MUDRA Bank) was launched
by the Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on 8th April, 2015.
7KH SULPDU\ IRFXV RI WKH EDQN
is to provide loans at low rates
to microfinance institutions
and
non-banking
financial
institutions which then offer
credit to MSMEs.
7KH EDQN ZLOO DOVR PRQLWRU WKH
people who have taken up loans
to regulate his/her activities
if they are under any debts
and become a liability for the
government.
7KH DJHQFLHV ZLOO VHW XS D
method using the last-mile credit
agent scheme system for small
and micro businesses.
08'5$ %DQN ZLOO RIIHU
financing in 3 stages- Shishu,
Kishore and Tarun.
PRAGATI platform
35$*$7, LV D GLVWLQFWLYH
multipurpose platform aimed
at addressing common mans
grievances, and at the same
time monitoring and reviewing
important programmes and
projects of the Government of
India along with the projects
flagged by State Governments.
7KHSODWIRUPLQYROYHVDWKUHHWLHU
system which includes the PMO,
Union Government Secretaries,
and Chief Secretaries of the
States.
7KH LVVXHV WR EH KLJKOLJKWHG LQ
front of the PM will be taken
from the available database
regarding Public Grievances, ongoing Programmes and pending
Projects.
7KH V\VWHP ZLOO VWUHQJWKHQ DQG
re-engineer the data bases of the
CPGRAMS for grievances along
with the Project Monitoring
Group (PMG) and the Ministry
of Statistics and Programme
Implementation.
Beti
Bachao-Beti
campaign
Padhao
8QLRQJRYHUQPHQWODXQFKHGRQH
of its most ambitious projects
Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao (BBBP)
on 22nd January 2015 whose
prime objective is to create
awareness about the diminishing
child sex ratio in the country.
7KH VFKHPH ZDV ODXQFKHG E\
from Panipat in Haryana.
Haryana was chosen to launch
the scheme due to its low sex
ratio i.e. 879 girls per 1000 boys,
which is below the national sex
ratio that stands at 918 girls per
1000 boys.
7KH FDPSDLJQ LV WR EH
implemented in 100 districts
of the country, including 12
districts of Haryana where the
number of girl child is drearily
low.
&HQWUH KDV provided an initial
investment of 100 crore rupees
for it.
A-84
HRIDAY scheme
8QLRQ *RYHUQPHQW ODXQFKHG
the Heritage City Development
and
Augmentation
Yojana
(HRIDAY) on 21st January
2015 for the preservation and
rejuvenation of the invaluable
heritage of our country.
8UEDQ GHYHORSPHQW PLQLVWHU
Shri Venkaiah Naidu launched
the scheme in New Delhi.
C FURUH KDV EHHQ VDQFWLRQHG
for the HRIDAY scheme.
7KH KHULWDJH FLWLHV WR EH
renovated
and
developed
under the HRIDAY scheme
are
Amritsar,
Varanasi,
Gaya, Puri, Ajmer, Mathura,
Dwarka, Badami, Velankanni,
Kanchipuram, Warangal and
Amaravati.
+5,'$< ZLOO EH ZRUNLQJ LQ
collaboration with Tourism
Ministrys
Pilgrimage
Rejuvenation and Spiritual
Augmentation Drive (PRASAD)
scheme which aims at renovating
the infrastructure of various
pilgrimage sites over the country.
Atal Pension Yojana

$WDO 3HQVLRQ <RMDQD ZDV
launched for all those who come
from the unorganised sector to
make them self-dependent after
they have spent their lifetime
working for a non-pensionable
job.
8QGHU WKH VFKHPH D SHUVRQ
can receive a fixed amount of
pension starting from ` 1000 to
` 5000 per month depending on
the contribution made by them.
7KH PLQLPXP DJH RI MRLQLQJ
the scheme is 18 years and the

maximum age is 40 years.
7KH PLQLPXP SHULRG RI
contribution by the person under
the scheme is 20 years or more.
7KH JRYHUQPHQW ZLOO FRQWULEXWH
50% to the pension fund of the
nominee for every contribution
made by him/her for a period of
5 years.
One Rank One Pension

7KH8QLRQ*RYHUQPHQWJDYHLWV
consent for the implementation
of One Rank One Pension
(OROP)
scheme
for
exservicemen on 5th September
2015.
7KH VFKHPH SURPLVHV WR
provide uniform pension to exservicemen of the same rank
and the same length of service,
regardless of their date of
retirement.
7KH VFKHPH ZLOO EHQHILW DOO
the three branches of services
including army, air force and
navy.
$OO WKH 2523 DUUHDUV ZLOO
be paid in four half yearly
instalments and all the widows
including war widows will be
paid arrears in one instalment.
7KHJRYHUQPHQWKDVDQQRXQFHG
the revision of the pension after
every five years.
Unnat Bharat Abhiyan

8QQDW %KDUDW $EKL\DQ LV
launched with the purpose to
connect institutions of higher
education, including IITs, NITs
and Indian Institutes of Science
Education & Research (IISERs)
with the local communities
to
overcome
development
A-85

challenges and bring about rural
development.
(DFK ,,7V DQG 1,7V ZLOO
choose 10 villages from their
neighbourhood and solve the
gravest issues of the region by
using technology.
7KH +5' PLQLVWU\ DQG WKH
educational institutes along
with other ministries like rural
development and various NGOs
working for the development of
the villages are most likely to be
included in the scheme.
7KHKLJKSULRULW\SUREOHPVWREH
looked after during the scheme
are: supply of potable water,
sanitation, energy consumption
and construction of houses at a
low cost.
of 50% from the account is

permitted at the age of 18 years
for higher education purpose.
7KH account reaches the
maturation period when she
attains the age of 21 years.
Minority Ministry launches

OAMS for Nai Roshni
8QLRQ 0LQLVWHU IRU 0LQRULW\
Affairs, Dr. Najma Heptulla
launched the Online Application
Management System (OAMS)
for Nai Roshni in order to
bring the scheme into public
domain which will facilitate
transparency and quick delivery.
7KH SURFHGXUHV LQYROYHG DQG
benefits of the system include:
(a)
Submission of
online
application and generation
of an application ID with
date.
(b)
Online
screening
applications.
of
(c)
Online
receipt
documents.
of
(d)
No loss of documents
due to postal or human
negligence.
(e)
Curtailment of procedural
delays.
2QO\RQHDFFRXQWLVSHUPLVVLEOH
for every girl child.
(f)
Minimized paper work.
8QGHUWKHVFKHPHSDUHQWVQHHG
to deposit
(g)
Time saving.
(h)
The applicant can check the

status of their applications
with their ID.
(i)
Online project approval,

sanctions and release of
funds.
(j)
Online monitoring of
projects.
Sukanya Samridhi Yojana

6XNDQ\D 6DPULGKL <RMQD ZDV
launched by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on 22nd January
2015 as a girl child prosperity
scheme to ensure the bright
future of the girl child in India.
7KH6XNDQ\D6DPULGGKLDFFRXQW
can be opened anytime in
between the birth of the girl
child and till the time she attains
the age of 10 years under her
name.
` 1,000 at the time of her birth and

thereafter deposit multiples of `
100 with the maximum deposit
of ` 1,50,000.
7KH\RMDQDSHUPLWVWKHJLUOFKLOG
to access her account after she is
10 years old and a withdrawal
A-86
(k)

Reports on trained women,
location of projects etc.
available in public domain.
7KH VFKHPH ZDV ODXQFKHG

for Leadership Development
of Minority Women in 201213, to empower and instil
self-confidence in women by
providing knowledge, tools and
techniques for interacting with
Government systems, banks and
intermediaries at all levels.
Nai Manzil scheme launched by

the Union Government
'U 1DMPD +HSWXOOD WKH 8QLRQ
Minister for Minority Affairs
launched Nai Manzil scheme in
Patna on 8th August, 2015 for
empowering minorities.
7KH VFKHPH VHHNV WR GHDO ZLWK
educational
and
livelihood
needs of minority communities
in general and Muslims in
particular as it lags behind other
minority communities in terms
of educational attainments.
7KH IRFXV RI WKH VFKHPH LV WR
provide educational intervention
by offering bridge courses to the
trainees, getting them certificates
for class XII and X through
distance educational system and
facilitate them with trade basis
skill training in 4 courses namely
Manufacturing,
Engineering,
Services and Soft skills.
7KHVFKHPHZLOOFRYHUSHRSOHLQ
the age group of 17 to 35 years
from all minority communities
as well as Madrasa students.
The scheme will also provide
avenues for continuing higher
education and will also open up
employment opportunities in the
organized sector.
Start up India, Stand up India

3ULPH 0LQLVWHU 1DUHQGUD 0RGL
announced the Start-Up India
initiative
while
addressing
the nation on the eve of 69th
Independence Day.
7KHcampaign aims to encourage
entrepreneurship among the
youth and create employment
opportunities in India. PM
urged 1.25 lakh bank branches
to provide finance to at least one
Dalit or Adivasi and at least one
woman entrepreneur.
7KH LQLWLDWLYH ZRXOG EH
beneficiary in giving a new
dimension to entrepreneurship
and will help in setting up a
network of start-ups in the
country.
7KH FDPSDLJQ DLPV WR HVWDEOLVK
India as the number one start up
country. The Prime Minister has
also promised to do away with
the current practice of interviewbased selections for low-skilled
government jobs.
$V SDUW RI WKH 6NLOO ,QGLD DQG
Digital India initiative, the
PM announced that a package
of incentives will be given
to manufacturing units for
generating jobs.
Union Government launches

School Nursery Yojana
7KH 6FKRRO 1XUVHU\ <RMDQD
was launched by the Union
Government with the sole
purpose to bring school students
closer to nature by involving
them in raising saplings in the
nurseries created inside their
school campuses.

7KH VFKHPH DLPV WR FRYHU WHQ
thousand schools in the coming
three years, which will receive
a grant of Rs 25,000 in the first
year and Rs 10,000 per year for
the subsequent two years.
7KHVWXGHQWVZLOOVRZVHHGVDQG
nurture the saplings in the school
nursery as a part of their extracurricular activities and practical
exercise for Biology classes.
7KH VFKRRO QXUVHULHV ZLOO KDYH
minimum of 100 sq metres for
preparation of beds for raising
saplings and for nursery-related
activities.
7KH \RMDQD ZLOO HQFRXUDJH
schools to practice composting,
rainwater harvesting and water
recycling to inspire best practices
in the young minds.
7KH
VFKHPH
VHHNV
WR
inculcate best environmental
responsiveness
practices
in
young minds.
Thari Pension, Thare Pass

+DU\DQD
&KLHI
0LQLVWHU
Manohar Lal Khattar launched
the Thari Pension Thare Pass in
Chandigarh, seeking to directly
transfer pension into the bank
accounts of beneficiaries.
2YHU ODNK EHQHILFLDULHV IURP
1,744 villages and 81 towns in the
state would get pensions through
banks and post offices under the
first phase of the scheme.
7KHEHQHILFLDULHVZRXOGJHWWKHLU
pension through different modes,
including bank branches, post
offices, business correspondent
agents (BCAs), additional BCAs,
primary agricultural cooperative
society
(PACS),
Vodafone
A-87
M-Pesa, common service centres

and gramin dak sewaks.
7KHUH DUH FXUUHQWO\ RYHU
lakh beneficiaries getting pension
under various social security
schemes entailing a monthly
expenditure of Rs 270 crore.
The residents of other villages
would, for the time being, get
their pension manually.
7KH EHQHILFLDULHV DUH OLDEOH WR
withdraw the amount as per their
requirement and also trace their
account online to be acquainted
with the balance in his or her
account.
Spices Board launches Subsidy

Scheme
6SLFHV %RDUG RI ,QGLD ODXQFKHG
various subsidies for farmers
to sensitize them to enhance
the quality of spices and boost
production of spices in the
country.
8QGHUWKHQHZVFKHPHILQDQFLDO
aid to be given to farmers for
irrigation, land development,
mechanisation, replanting, soil
conservation, organic farming of
various spices (especially small
cardamom) and purchasing
modern irrigation and farming
equipment and tools.
7RLQFUHDVHSURGXFWLRQRI VSLFHV
especially of small cardamom,
cultivators of small cardamom
in Kerala and Tamil Nadu
will receive up to Rs 70,000
for replanting, while farmers
in Karnataka will get up to Rs
50,000.
$OVR WKHUH LV SURYLVLRQ RI
financial assistance up to 25 per
cent of actual cost for acquiring
A-88
irrigation pump sets, sprinkler

sets, equipment for gravity-fed
irrigation system along with
financial aid of 50 per cent for
water storage structure.
7KH ERDUG KDV DOVR DQQRXQFHG
subsidy of Rs.1 lakh for
purchasing improved cardamom
curing devices and 50 per
cent subsidy for GAP (Good
Agricultural Practices) kits and
bee-keeping boxes.
Aapki Beti Hamari Beti scheme

+DU\DQD JRYHUQPHQW ODXQFKHG
the Aapki Beti Hamari Beti
scheme aiming to combat the
problem of declining child
sex ratio and promote girls
education.
$FFRUGLQJ WR WKH VFKHPH
the first girl child born on or
after 22ndJanuary, 2015 in a
scheduled caste or below poverty
line family would be eligible to
receive a onetime grant of Rs
21,000.
7KHVFKHPHLVWREHLPSOHPHQWHG
in both rural and urban areas of
the state covering first-born girl
child of Scheduled Caste (SC)
and Below Poverty Line (BPL)
families.
7KH JUDQW ZLOO EH LQYHVWHG ZLWK
the Life Insurance Corporation
of India in the name of the girl
child, and the sum would be
given to the beneficiary when
she turns 18.
7KH SDUHQWV VKRXOG EH UHVLGHQW
of Haryana, to be eligible for the
scheme.
,I WKH DSSOLFDQW IDLOV WR VXEPLW
the application form within
the stipulated time, it can be

submitted within one year after
the birth of the child.
Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas

Yojana
3ULPH 0LQLVWHU 1DUHQGUD 0RGL
launched
Pradhan
Mantri
Kaushal Vikas Yojana, which
aims to offer 24 lakh Indian
youth meaningful, industry
relevant, skill based training.
8QGHU WKLV VFKHPH WKH WUDLQHHV
will be offered a financial reward
and a government certification
on successful completion of
training and assessment, which
will help them in securing a job
for a better future.
$Q DOORFDWLRQ RI 5V FURUHV
has been done for training of
youth from the Northeast region.
Green Highways Policy 2015

8QLRQ 0LQLVWHU RI 5RDG
Transport & Highways and
Shipping Shri Nitin Gadkari
launched the Green Highways
(Plantation,
Transplantation,
Beautification and Maintenance)
Policy, 2015.
7KH DLP RI WKH SROLF\ LV WR
promote greening of Highway
corridors with participation of
the community, farmers, private
sector, NGOs, and government
institutions.
7KH WDUJHW IRU WKH ILUVW \HDU LV
to plant trees along 6,000 km
of highways, for which 12,000
hectares of land allotted.
7KH*UHHQ+ighway Policy will
help in making India pollution
free and lessen the number of
road accidents in the country.
A-89
E-commerce vs. Brick and mortar

retailers
ast two decades have witnessed a series of changes in the way we

communicate, learn, read, express, consult, buy, sell and run business.
E-commerce has emerged as a totally new concept. Presently, High dependency
on internet and mobile phone usage has revolutionized the way business reach
people.
E-commerce connotes a method of conducting business through
electronic means rather than through physical means. The term takes into
account not just the act of purchasing goods through online platform but
also other activities associated with transaction such as delivery, payment
facilitation and service management. This means it is a click and buy
method using computers and mobile phones.
With the massive adaptation of common man to technology, the e-commerce
industry continues to evolve and experience high growth in both developed
and developing markets. The largest population within that market segment is
23-year-olds. That means millennials are big consumers of this market. Since,
they have their prime earning years still ahead of them - about 30 of them, those
30 years should make millennials tempting targets for any e-commerce strategy.
The digital commerce market in India has shown remarkable growth from
$4.4 billion in 2010 to $13.6 billion in 2014 whereas the global market is
forecasted to reach $1.5 trillion in 2016. The emanation of non-banking players
in the payments industry and exhilarated emergence of innovative start-ups mark
the expansion of the
Indian e-commerce
market at a rapid pace.
Nowadays, many
people are working
for longer hours than
before and more
people are entering or
re-entering the labour
market working part
time. Lifestyles are
A-90
E-commerce vs. Brick and Mortar Retailers
changing. And this change has led to increased consumer demand for a choice
of high quality goods and services which can be purchased and delivered
quickly. In recent past, the e-commerce revolution has latched on to country
to the extent that it has taken the shape of recent paradigm which the physical
retailers have to confront. E-commerce or e-tailing is the recent challenge in
the face of retailers and it has left them with no choice but to adapt to the
changing ways of doing business.
Around 75 per cent of retailers have already adopted e-commerce in some
form. Globally, retailing has already graduated to a multi-channel, omni-channel
retail industry. According to a new study, the shopping malls are already
witnessing lesser footfalls, leading to increase in vacancy rate at 25 percent,
along with a 30 percent drop in rentals during the last year. In view of such
developments, over 45 percent of shopping malls are expected to be converted
into non-retail space within next 15 years, as per the reports of Assocham.
Challenges confronted by brick and mortar retail

Flipkart, Snapdeal, Myntra and Jabong are confronting resistance from all
stakeholders of modern retail - from consumer goods makers and distributors
to offline retailers - as they try and grab a larger share of the consumers wallet
by swaying deals and discounts to attract customers.
The Assocham -PWC report has concluded the challenges of suburban
sprawl, bad automotive traffic, rising fuel prices and the difficulty of time
management in modern families have made visiting to the malls a difficult
activity. To the contrary, improvement in logistics, broadband and Internetready devices have increased the number of consumers buying online from
40 million to 65 million in 2015.
Similarly, as per the report, while the share of e-tail is expected to plunge
from 2 percent in 2014 to 11 percent in 2019 (more than five times), the share
of brick and mortar modern retail is expected to fall from 17 percent to 13
percent during the same period.
In Billion USD
29%
32%
37%
29%
12.6
9.5
7.0
5.3
3.8
53% 1.0 57% 1.5 53% 2.3
0.4 58% 0.6
2009
2010
2011
E-tailing
2012
2013
E-Commerce
10-20
CAGR
40-50%
2017-20 (E)
A-91
Heavy discounting from festival sales and daily deals, more online loyalty
programs and growing popularity of smartphones and tablet computers among
consumers are the key factors contributing to the growth of e-commerce.
According to Knight Frank India CMD Shishir Baijal, The e-commerce
industry is booming like never before and this coupled with high disposable
incomes have led to a spurt in the internet culture that aims to change the
dynamics of the brick and mortar modern retail segment.
Lately E-retailers have been able to attract significant customers to online
buying. These are not just limited to very exclusive categories such as consumer
electronics, apparels, jewellery and lifestyle, books, music and video but also
other categories such as food and beverages, departmental store, household
services, home furnishings, healthcare, home cleaning, maintenance and
office equipments.
Commodity Distribution in E-tailing

Home
Furnishing
6%
Healthcare Baby products

3%
2%
Beauty &
Personal
15%
Electronics
34%
Books
15%
Appareis & Accessories

34%
FDI issue
The online retailers are allowed 100 per cent FDI, as most of them are
run on the marketplace model, providing a platform for vendors. Multibrand
A-92
retailers, on the other hand are eligible for 51 per cent FDI, based on the consent
of state. Eminent Physical retailer and other chains argue that their stores should
be regarded as similar in nature as they are also marketplace because some
22,000 small and medium companies sell their products through their stores.
They questioned why (100 %) FDI couldnt be allowed in their business as
well. The law says FDI is allowed only in B2B (business to business) whether
its online or offline, but in case of online business, ecommerce transactions
are happening between business and consumer. This remains an unresolved
issue for physical retailers.
Future of Retailers
Retailers are hampered
with huge physical spaces that
they are bound to pay rents
for. Unlike the e-commerce
players, they arent getting
heavy funding from private
equity investors; in any case,
not for their brick-and-mortar
business model. Due to the
excessive discounts in sales offered by the e-commerce channels, the margins
of retailers have been impacted to a great extent. Although, it is expected that
discounting will continue for 12-18 months, the players are moving beyond
discounts and thinking about building customer loyalty. In the light of this
intensified competition and consolidation, retailers are forced to adapt to the
e-commerce opportunity.
The existing scenario portrays future, where India is going to see a model
that is not completely online nor completely offline. The retailers are likely to
function through omni-channel where they are able to address a customers
needs through multiple touch points.
A-93
What is Terrorism?
ny act,with political/religious or any other objective which causes terror

amongst the mass is termed as terrorism. Exploiting human fear to meet
political objectives is not a new thing. It has been in practice by many political
organizations, religious groups, revolutionaries, ruling governments, nationalist
groups and by both right and left-wing political parties. To reach some political,
religious or ideological goals, these terror groups use violence or threat to coerce
the population or the government. Terrorism bifurcates into two kinds: Political
and Criminal. Political creates panic to the mass at larger extent and criminal
targets kidnapping for taking heavy ransom or raising unlawful demands.
The impact of terrorism has been world-wide but we see it scattered in groups and
often hear of disturbances or blasts in selected states or places. These activities
tend to disturb the normal routine of the people and spread its vehement face
to create fear and panic in the mindset of the mass.
Terrorism in India
Depending on what their objectives are, terrorism in India is subdivided in
four major groups:
Ethno-nationalist terrorism
This type focuses on underlining the response of one ethnic group against
another and also looks forward to creating a separate state within India or
independent of India or in a neighbouring nation.
Eg. The insurgent tribal groups in North East India
Religious terrorism
Charged with religious imperatives, these groups fightfor specific religious
groups with their presumed duties and solidarity. Eg. The attack on Taj and
MumbaiAttacks on 26/11, by the Islamic terror group of Pakistan is a kind
of religious terrorism.
Left-wing terrorism
This group opposes the prevalent socio-political structure which according
to it creates a disruptive impact on the economy. Their aim henceforth lies in
bringing revolutionary changes by means of violence. Eg. Maoist violence in
Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh
Narco- terrorism
This group indulges in drug trafficking by creating illegal narcotics traffic zones.
Eg. drug violence in northwest India is an example of such type.
A-94
What is Terrorism?
Effects
Terrorism is an attack on humanity and civilization as a whole. It is an evil

and poses a great challenge to the world. The horrific killings of innocent
hostages in Syria are the recent turbulence created by the terror group named
ISIS. Thousands of people are forced to leave their homes and run away to
safe places in Germany and European states.
The Indian states of Jammu & Kashmir, east-central and south-central India
(Naxalism) and the Seven Sister States have been in persistent threat of longterm terrorist activities. As per the State Department of the United States,
there were 11, 098 terror-caused deaths worldwide while 231 civilians died
in the terror attacks in 2012 in India. As many as 800terrorist cells have been
operating in India, as per the data collected in August 2008 by the National
Security Council.
India is the 4th most terror affected country in the world, with an average of
500persons dying especially due to terrorism every year. It not just affects our
economy and degrades our position in the world but also creates insecurity
among people.
There is not just financial loss but inflow of foreign funds also gets reduced,
once we face such threats. This affects our tourism industry to a great extent
and thereby the countrys economy faces a setback.
With no respect for any religion, no ideology and no nation, terrorism is a
malady which has been prevailing in India since long, making it one of its oldest
victims. The rise of Islamic state (IS) militants in West Asia is a threatening
call to Indias security and might also cause unrest in the subcontinent. Other
groups like al-Qaida and Indian Mujahideen are some of the top terror groups
which have always focused on creating huge turmoil in Indian states. With no
specific boundary, these groups present ugly face of menace. They are very
specific of what they want and pose greatest threats to mankind. They know
What is Terrorism?
A-95
no friends and recognize no rules. Through acts of stray shooting or explosions

and their most preferred flight hijacking; they have aimed at spreading dread
amongst the masses.
Of all the kinds, political terrorists stand to be the most violent as they are
well-trained and pose a great challenge to the law enforcing agencies. Their
acts are well-planned under days and months of preparation. Terrorists recruit
young people and brainwash them in a manner that they start to believe in
the power of bombs and guns. They are taught that dying as a terrorist is a
sacred and holy act, which further makes them more determined and willing
to do anything and everything under the sun, in order to meet their purposes.
The best example that can be cited here is the training of hundreds of terrorist
in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). Pakistan also supplies weapons and
training to terrorists in Punjab. Assam in the northeast is the sole region
affected by terrorism and regional terrorism has proved to be more fatal and
violent of all kinds.
The serial explosion of thirteen bombs during the 1993 Bombay Bombings
is quoted as one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in India. Considered as the
most destructive bomb explosions in Indias history, these explosions were
believed to be synchronized by Dawood Ibrahim, a terrorist group leader
opposing India.
Terrorism with its different forms in different countries is a war that is neither
fought openly nor in a fair manner. Pirates in Somalia have been hijacking lots
of ships every now and then to get hefty ransom which has been interrogated
by UNO and it has asked the member nations participation in combating
the terror through active involvement of their respective forces. The brutal
attack on Twin Tower in USA in September 2011, followed by an attack by
USA in Afghanistan to demolish Mulla Omars regime are some of the eye
openers for us.
The fight over the common border shared by Afghanistan and Pakistan and
the seeking of right by Talibans has seen a series of disruptions in specific
zones of the concerned nations.
Steps by government
The recent visit of our Prime Minister to US saw him presenting his concerns
over the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. He said that US troops
should be withdrawn slowly to stop the rise of Taliban. Also, for the newly
formed government in Afghanistan to function democratically; he said that
Afghanistan should be allowed to stand on its feet. It was when he rejected
any distinction between good and bad terrorism in context to a previous
statement by Pakistan over the issue of Afghan Taliban (bad Taliban) vs.
Pakistan Taliban (good Taliban).
Many steps have been taken by our government like revamping of the old
A-96
security steps into new and more

complicated security systems at
airports. More strict laws like
POTA (Prevention of Terrorist
activity Act) have been made.
POTA is an anti-terrorism
legislation which was enacted in
2002 by the Parliament. POTA
has replaced the Prevention of
Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) of
2001. There has been a reduction
of criminal terrorism by 10%
after implementation of these
measures, though not much
difference in political terrorism
has been noticed.
What is Terrorism?
Terrorism is simply terror, not good or bad Spread across

world and in India
Globally what needs to be done?

Being a global threat, terrorism requires a control from the grass roots level to
the international level. The world needs to unite as a single power to face this
threat that is growing by leaps and bounds. We need to come up with ideas on
how to mobilize the world and take concrete actions to mitigate and end this
nuisance. Before safeguarding humanity, we need to come to an agreement on
what constitutes terrorism and thereby make it defunct step by step.
As our Prime Minister very well quoted at the SAP centre in September this
year that United Nations need to define terrorism such that the confusion
and delusion amongst people regarding good or bad terrorism gets evaded.
Terrorism is terror and cant be justified by labelling it as good terrorism even
if it originates for a cause like asking for ones religious or social rights. It
cant be distinguished in two parts because it is a massive destruction caused
to the people and doesnt spare anyone or shows any mercy. Today terrorism
has become a major global issue which needs to be resolved through the joint
effort of each nation. It is time we talk straight and come to terms with the
truth rather than citing such illogical quotes. Humanity needs to understand
that terrorism involves violent acts which aim to spread threat and anything
that feeds upon human blood just to satisfy ones ego cant be considerable
for categorizations as good or bad. Its simply venomous and malevolent.
A-97
A-98
People
JANUARY
Shekhar Sen appointed as Chairman of
Sangeet Natak Akademi: Renowned
singer and theatre
director Shekhar Sen
became the new
chairman of Sangeet
Natak Akademi this
January, as the place
remained vacant since
Leela Samson resigned on 30 september,
2014.
Sangeet
Natak
Akademi
is
countrys premier institution for the
performing arts in India set up by
the Indian Education Ministry on
May31, 1952. He was also honored
with Padma Shri by the government
of India on this Republic Day for
his contribution to the arts. Shekhar
Sen began his career in Mumbai in
1979 with objective of becoming
a music composer. He has been
involved as a singer, a lyricist and
a composer in various bhajan
albums since 1983. He is famous
for his monoact musical plays Tulsi,
Kabir, Vivekanand, Saahab and
Soordas. He has performed not only
in India but also abroad such as
US, England, Belgium, Suriname,
Singapore, Jakarta, Hong Kong,
Johannesburg, Sharjah, Mauritius,
Trinidad and Tobago, and received
great praises for his work. He has
been appointed for a term of five
years with immediate effect.
Arundhathi Subramaniam wins
prize for poetry: A poet and a
writer on spirituality and culture,
Arundhathi Subramaniam, won
the inaugural Khushwant Singh
Memorial Prize for Poetry for her
work When God is a Traveller.
She was given this honour at the

the ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival
on 24 January 2015. The event was
attended by over 2,500 poetry lovers.
She was awarded a cash prize of Rs.
2 lakh. The award was established
in the year 2014 by Suhel Seth in
memory of the late Khushwant
Singh. The finalists for the prize
included works of poetry - Escape
Artist by Sridala Swami, Central
Time by Ranjit Hoskote, When
God is a Traveller by Arundhathi
Subramaniam, Fire Altar by
Keki N Daruwalla and Selected
Poems by Joy Goswami translated
by Sampurna Chatterji. The prize
is open to Indian poets writing
in English or Indian language
translation. The award was instituted
during the annual Khushwant Singh
Literature Festival, set in the hills of
Kasauli. It was given for poetry by a
single author published between 15
September 2013 and 15 September
2014. The event was adjudged by
Ashok Vajpeyi, Jeet Thayil, Namita
Gokhale, Pavan K. Varma and Soli
Sorabjee.
Legendary Cartoonist R K Laxman
Dies: Born in Mysore on 24 October
1921, famous Indian cartoonist,
illustrator, and humorist, Rasipuram
Krishnaswami Iyer
Laxman, passed away
at the age of 94 in
Pune on 26 January
2015. Laxman was
critical and was on
ventilator support
after he suffered a multi-organ
failure. His father was a headmaster
and Laxman was the youngest of six
sons. Hes remembered for his
creation The Common Man and
A-99
People
daily cartoon strip, You Said It in
The Times of India which started in
1951. Through several decades, his
cartoons captured the politicians
peculiarities and mood of India in
its various political and economic
situations and brought smiles to
millions of faces. His works
expressed the weird perception of
the common man with sarcasm were
published in renowned magazines
such as The Strand Magazine,
Punch, Bystander, Wide World and
Tit-Bits. After suffering from a stroke
in September 2003, Laxman had his
left side paralysed, though he kept
drawing his daily cartoons with the
right hand. The Government of
India had honoured Laxman with
two civilian awards Padma Bhushan
and Padma Vibhushan in 1973 and
2005 respectively.
Major Mukund Varadarajan, Naik
Neeraj Kumar Singh posthumously
awarded with Ashok Chakra:
President Pranab Mukherjee on
26 January 2015, honoured two
Indian heroes - Major Mukund
Varadarajan and Naik Neeraj
Kumar Singh - with the Ashok
Chakra, the highest peacetime
military honour of the country. The
awards were received by their wives
as both the armymen sacrificed their
lives battling groups of militants
in separate operations in Shopian
and Kupwara districts of Kashmir.
Major Mukund Varadarajan, an
officer in the 44th Battalion of the
Rashtriya Rifles was killed by three
terrorists in an encounter in Shopian
district of Jammu and Kashmir. On
the other hand Naik Neeraj Singh
died in heavy firing during a search
operation in general area Gurdaji of
Kupwara district. He used to serve
the 57th Battalion of the Rashtriya
Rifles.
Ashok Chakra is a gallantry award

which can be given to bothmilitary
personnel and civilians and can be
given posthumously. This medal is
circular gold gilt with the chakra
(wheel) of Ashoka in the centre
surrounded by a lotus wreath and
with an ornate edge.
Arvind Panagariya becomes ViceChairman of NITI Aayog: Noted
economist Arvind Panagariya,
took charge on 13 January 2015 as
the first Vice-chairman of newly
created NITI Aayog. Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, is the Chairman.
Economist Bibek Debroy and
former DRDO chief V K Saraswat
are full-time members.
National
Institution
for
Transforming India (NITI) Aayog,
approved by the Prime Minister, has
replaced the 65-year old Planning
Commission.
Panagariya is an Indian-American
economist
and
professor
of
Economics at Columbia University.
Panagariya is recognized for his
market-friendly views and is a
close associate of well-known
trade economist Jagdish Bhagwati.
Panagariya
has
been
the
chief economist of the Asian
Development
Bank
and
a
professor of economics and codirector, Centre for International
Economics,
University
of
Maryland. He is PhD in Economics
from
Princeton
University.
He also worked for the World Bank,
International
Monetary
Fund,
World Trade Organisation, and
UNCTAD in various capacities.
FEBRUARY
Sumitra Mahajan named in Limca
Book of Records: Sumitra Mahajan
is an Indian politician who has been
A-100
Speaker of the Lok Sabha since

2014. Her name has been included
in the Limca Book of Records in
the first week of February 2015 for
being the longest-serving woman
member of the country to represent
the same Lok Sabha constituency on
the same party ticket for eight times
in a row. She was elected to the Lok
Sabha for the first time in 1989.
Since then she has been re-elected to
the Lok Sabha in 1991, 1996, 1998,
1999, 2004, 2009 and finally to the
16th Lok Sabha on 18 May 2014.
As a leader of Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP), she represents the
Indore constituency of Lok Sabha
in Madhya Pradesh. Throughout
her life she has acknowledged
the work of social reformer
Ahilayabai Holkar. Among the
16th Lok Sabhas women members
of Parliament, she is the eldest
and senior most and has handled
various portfolios such as Human
Resources, Communications and
Petroleum as a minister since 2002
to 2004. She is the second woman
after Meira Kumar to be elected as
Lok Sabha Speaker. Shes also an
avid debater and spirited questioner
inside the house, who with her calm
and strong intervention stands up for
whats right.
Tintu Luka Wins Gold in 800m
in 35th National Games: Tintu
Lukka, a Middle-distance runner,
won gold in 800m in 35th National
Games. She has broken the 18 years
old record of Rosa Kutty of Kerala
in 800m race. Tintu finished the race
in 2:01.186 sec to win gold.
Tintu is a silver medal winner in
the 800m at the Asian Games 2014.
She has won a gold medal winner in
4X400 m relay in the 2014 Incheon
Asiad. Born on 26th April 1989,
People
Tintu Luka is a track and field
athlete who competes in the 800m
and 400 metres. She is the national
record holder in the womens 800m
race. She is coached by P.T Usha at
the Usha School of Athletics and
supported by Olympic Gold Quest.
She was awarded Arjuna Award by
Government of India in 2014.
Women Scientists Tessy Thomas,
Geeta Varadan selected for Dr.Y.
Nayudamma Memorial Award
2014: Two women scientists, Project
Director (Mission) Agni V Tessy
Thomas and Director, Advanced
Data Processing Research Institute
of ISRO Geeta Varadan were
presented with the Y Nayudamma
Memorial Award for the year 2014,
for their contribution in the fields of
missile technology and remote
sensing. Former Head of the
N a t i o n a l
Commission
for Protection
of Child Rights
and
Ramon
Magsaysay
Award recipient Shanta Sinha
presented the award on March 1,
2015 at Tenali, Andhra Pradesh.
Dr Tessy Thomas the Missile
Women Of India is a director of
Advanced Systems Laboratory of
the state-run DRDO, Hyderabad.
Varadan, the Programme Director
of ISRO has developed 2A/2B and
GSAT-7 programmes for remote
sensing
and
communications
respectively.
Dr. Thomas and Dr. Varadan
deliverd lectures on- Make in India
- Defence needs and initiatives and
Remote sensing technology for
national needs respectively.
Scientist Tapan Misra appointed as
Director of ISROs Space Application
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People
Centre: Odia Scientist Tapan Misra
has been appointed
as the chief of
ISROS
Space
Applications Centre
(SAC), Ahmedabad.
Misra was been given
this responsibility due
to his experience for more than three
decades. A S Kiran Kumar who
previously headed SAC, was
appointed the chairman of ISRO.
He joined ISRO in 1984 as a digital
hardware engineer. Misra is an
electronics and tele-communication
engineering graduate from Jadavpur
University, Kolkata. He began his
career at SAC as a digital hardware
engineer where he undertook the
responsibility for the development
of Quick Look Display System
of X-band Side Looking Airborne
Radar.
He was awarded the Hari Om
Ashram Prerit Vikram Sarabhai
research award in 2004 and Isro merit
award in 2008 for his contribution to
development SAR technology. He
was elected as fellow of the Indian
National Academy of Engineering
in 2007.
Justice Amitava Roy sworn in as
Supreme Court judge: Justice
Amitava Roy was sworn in on 27
February 2015 as a
judge of the Supreme
Court. With the
elevation of Roy,
who was chief justice
of the Orissa High
Court, the strength
of the apex court has gone up to 29
against a sanctioned strength of 31
judges.He will have tenure of three
years.
Justice Roy from Kolkata, started
practice in the district courts in
Dibrugarh and Tinsukia in Assam,
before shifting to the Gauhati High

Court.
He was elevated as judge in the high
Court in 2002 and elevated as chief
justice of the Rajasthan High Court
in 2013.He was shifted to the Odisha
High Court in 2014.
Any judge of high court for at least
five years or an advocate for ten
years, or a distinguished jurist is
eligible. Appointment is done by the
President.
MARCH
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed the Chief
Minister of Jammu & Kashmir:
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the
leader of Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) was sworn in as the Chief
Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
Sayeeds swearing-in as the 12th
Chief Minister brought an end to the
49 days long Governors rule which
was imposed on the state after the
resignation of Omar Abdullah.
The coalition government has
eleven Cabinet Ministers from PDP,
including Sayeed himself, while the
BJP has six. Sayeed will be heading
a coalition government for the
second time. In 2002, he led a PDPCongress alliance and was the Chief
Minister for three years.BJP leader
Nirmal Singh was sworn as the
Deputy Chief Minister of the PDPBJP alliance government.
Arun
Singh,
new
Indian
Ambassador to US: Arun Singh,
Indias Ambassador to France,
has been named as the Indian
Ambassador to United States. He will
replace Jaishankar Subrahmanyam,
Indias Foreign Secretary. He is the
1979-batch IFS officer.
Mr. Singh has previously served
as the joint secretary in-charge of
Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan
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division in the Ministry of External

Affairs. He has also served in Japan
and Israel. He has also served as
the Deputy Chief of Mission in
Washington for nearly five years
and is seen as an expert on Indo-US
strategic ties.
Bharat Ratna to Atal Bihari Vajpayee:
Former Prime Minister (PM) Atal
Bihari Vajpayee was conferred with
Indias highest civilian
award Bharat Ratna
by the President on
27th March, 2015.
Union Government
had chosen Atal Bihari
Vajpayee along with
late educationist and freedom fighter
Madan
Mohan
Malviya
(posthumously) for the prestigious
award in December 2014.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee had served
as the PM for the first time for just
13 days in 1996 and second time
for 13 months in 1998-1999. In his
third term as PM he completed his
full five-year term and became first
PM from outside the Congress party
to serve a full term. Vajpayee is the
founder member of Bharatiya Jana
Sangh which later became known
as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In
2009, he retired from active politics
due to health concerns. Some of
the major projects launched under
him as the PM were the National
Highway Development Project
and Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak
Yojana, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
Union government led by Narendra
Modi has declared his birthday as
Good Governance Day.
He was the 11th Prime Minister of
India, served from 1998 to 2004.
Vajpayee was elected nine times to
the Lok Sabha and twice to Rajya
Sabha. He served as a Minister of
External Affairs in the cabinet of
People
Morarji Desai.Vajpayee is regarded
as one of the most charismatic
leaders and also he was lauded as
a statesman politician.Vajpayee is
famous for his bold initiatives such
as Lahore Declaration and Nuclear
Tests at Pokhran.
Madan Mohan Malviya conferred
with Bharat Ratna Posthumously:
Eminent freedom fighter and
educationist Madan Mohan Malviya
was conferred with Bharat Ratna
posthumously.
Madan
Mohan
Malviya was an eminent educationist
and politician who is known for his
role in Indias freedom struggle. He
was the founder of Banaras Hindu
University (Asias largest residential
university) established in 1916. He
was also the President of Indian
National Congress (INC) for the
term of 1909 and 1918. He was one
of the initial leaders of the right-wing
Hindu Mahasabha. He also served as
the Chairman of Hindustan Times
from 1924 to 1946 and his efforts
resulted in launching of its Hindi
edition named Hindustan Dainik in
1936. He also popularised the slogan
of Satyameva Jayate which was later
adopted as the national motto.
Balbir Singh Sr. awarded with
Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime
Achievement
Award:
Former
hockey player Balbir Singh Senior
was conferred with the Major Dhyan
Chand
Lifetime
Achievement Award
by Hockey India.
The
award
was
presented to Balbir
Singh
at
the
inaugural
Hockey
India Annual Awards ceremony
held at New Delhi. During his stint
as a hockey player, Balbir Singh
Senior had represented Indian team
in three Olympics games including
People
London Olympics (1948), Helsinki
Olympics (1952) and Melbourne
Olympics (1956). In all three
Olympics the team had won the gold
medal. He was also the captain of
Indian team during Melbourne
Olympics. His record of most goals
(five) in an Olympics final in 1952
still remains unbeaten and he also
figures in the list of 16 iconic
Olympians of all-time.
The Major Dhyan Chand award is
Indias highest award for lifetime
achievement in sports and games,
given by the Ministry of Youth
Affairs and Sports, Government
of India. The award was instituted
in 2002 after the legendary Indian
hockey player Dhyan Chand. The
award carries a cash prize of Rs
500,000, a plaque and a scroll of
honour.
Vice Admiral Cheema appointed
as the New Commanding-in-chief
of Western Naval Command: Vice
Admiral Surinder Pal Singh Cheema
took over the reins of the Western
Naval Command as the Flag
Officer Commanding-in-chief on
31st March, 2015. He took charge
from Vice Admiral Anil Chopra at
a ceremonial parade held at INS
Shikra in Mumbai.
Vice Admiral Cheema holds the
unique distinction of shouldering
responsibilities as a Commander-inChief for the fourth time, a record
in the Indian armed forces. He has
also served in Mumbai in various
capacities in the past four decades
and has commanded five frontline
ships, including the missile boat INS
Nishank, the guided missile frigate
INS Trishul and the only aircraft
carrier of the Indian Navy at that
time, INS Viraat, all three based in
Mumbai.
Vice Admiral Cheema has been
honoured with the Param Vishist
A-103
Seva Medal, the Ati Vishist Seva

Medal, and the Nau Sena Medal for
Gallantry while commanding INS
Nishank.
Dolly becomes the Youngest Archer:
Merely three year old Dolly Shivani
Cherukuri from Vijayawada, Andhra
Pradesh has set
history by becoming
the youngest archer
to enter India Book
of Records. During
an event in Vijayvada
she
scored
388
points after shooting 72 arrows in 24
attempts from two distances, seven
and five meters,with two minutes
duration for three arrows for both
distances. For her outstanding
performance, she has been awarded
with a medal and certificate by India
Book of Records. The event at the
Volga
Archery
Academy
in
Vijayawada was judged by esteemed
members from India Book of
Records and the Archery Association
of India (AAI). Shivani was
conceived through surrogacy after
the death of her elder brother, in
2010, Cherukuri Lenin who was
renowned International Archer and
coach. Her father, Cherukuri
Satyanarayana, had trained Shivani
since her childhood to become an
ace archer. Also, during her initial
days of learning, he had specially
made arrows of light carbon so that
she did not have to struggle while
carrying them. Shivani is committed
towards her goal of becoming a
champion archer.
Aditi Arya Wins Miss India 2015
Title: New Delhis Aditi Arya was
crowned the Femina Miss India
2015 crown at the 52nd edition of
the beauty contest. Aafreen Rachel
Vaz from Mangaluru was the 1st
runner-up, and Vartika Singh from
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh was the
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2nd runner-up. The 2014 Miss India

winner Koyal Rana crowned Aditi
Arya with the Miss India 2015 title
at Yash Raj Studio in Mumbai. 21
contestants from various parts of
the country had participated in the
contest.
Miss India also known as Femina
Miss India is a national beauty
pageant held in India. The event
is organised annually by Femina,
a womens magazine published by
Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. The
winner of the Miss India contest
proceeds ahead to represent the
nation globally at the Miss World
contest. The first and second runner
up goes to compete globally at Miss
International and Miss Continental
respectively.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni First Indian
Captain to Register 100 ODI Wins:
The captain of the Indian Cricket
team Mahendra Singh Dhoni has
become first Indian Cricket team
Captain to register 100 One Day
International (ODI) match wins. He
achieved this feat after Indian team
defeated Bangladesh in the 2015
ICC World Cup quarter-final match
by 109-run in Melbourne Cricket
Ground (MCG), Australia.
Dhoni is the third captain in the
history of the world cricket to record
100 wins. The other two captains
to achieve this feat are Australians
Allan Border (107 wins) and Ricky
Ponting (165 wins). Mahendra Singh
Dhoni had started his captaincy in
2007 after he took over from Rahul
Dravid. Under Dhonis captaincy,
Indian Cricket team has won 2007
World T20, CB Series of 200708, Asia Cup 2010, ICC Cricket
World Cup 2011, and Champions
Trophy 2013. Dhoni has surpassed
former Indian Captain Mohammad
Azharuddins record of 90 wins in
People
ODIs, followed by Sourav Ganguly
with 76 wins.
APRIL
Gulshan Rai takes charge as Indias
First Cyber Security Chief:
Gulshan Rai took charge as Indias
first cyber security chief under the
Prime Ministers Office (PMO) as
Special Secretary for
cyber security. This
new post was created
by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on
March 2015 in PMO
and
Rai
was
appointed as its head.
Rai has been working since 1998
in the area of evolving legal
framework to address issues arising
out of cyberspace. Prior to this
appointment, he was heading the
computer emergency response team
at the department of electronics and
information technology (DeitY). He
also heads the E- Security and Cyber
law division in the Union Ministry of
Communications and Information
Technology. He has over 25 years
of experience in different areas of
Information technology.
Cyber security is fast becoming
a nightmare for the government.
Reported attacks on Indian websites
have increased nearly five times in
the past four years. Until mid-2014,
more than 60,000 incidents were
recorded. Experts believe that a
special secretary for cyber security
under the PMO will help India
secure its digital assets in a better
way.
UP government confers Sahitya
Shiromani Samman to Gopal Das
Neeraj : On 9th April 2015, Uttar
Pradesh government conferred
popular Hindi poet Gopal Das
People
Neeraj with Sahitya Shiromani
Samman. UP chief
minister
Akhilesh Yadav presented Neeraj
the award containing 21 lakh rupees.
CM Akhilesh Yadav also announced
to give Rashtra Ratn- Sitara-e Hind
award to Neeraj for his lifelong
service to Hindi literature.
Veteran Hindi litterateur Uday
Pratap Singh was also conferred
with Sahitya Shiromani award and
cash prize of 21 lakh Rupees in the
same ceremony.
Born on 4th January 1925, Gopal
Das Neeraj has written many poems
giving the pen name Neeraj. He is
also a famous poet of Hindi Kavi
Sammelan. He also was Professor
of Hindi Literature in Dharma
Samaj College, Aligarh and also
a chancellor of Mangalayatan
University, Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh.
He was awarded with the Padma
Bhusan in 2007.
Novelist Siddhartha Gigoo wins
2015 Commonwealth Short Story
Prize in Asia region: On 28th April
2015, Novelist Siddhartha Gigoo won
2500 pounds 2015 Commonwealth
Short Story Prize in Asia region for
his novel Umbrella Man. With this
win he will compete
with the other four
regional winners for
the 5000 pounds
grand prize which
will be announced in
London
on
8
September 2015.
Gigoo was born in 1974 in Srinagar,
Jammu & Kashmir. He had studied
English Literature at Jawaharlal
Nehru University. Gigoos first novel
was The Garden of Solitude,
first published in 2011. He also has
written two poetry books, Fall
and Other Poems (1994) and
A-105
Reflections (1995). Gigoo also

had produced and directed a short
film The Last Day. His recent film
is titled Goodbye, Mayfly.
The Last Day was selected for the
6th International Documentary and
Short Film Festival of Kerala, the
7th Annual FilmAid Film Festival
(Kenya), the International Film
Festival of Cinematic ArtsShort
and Micro Cinema (Los Angeles),
the 11th International Exile Film
Festival (Sweden), the Kala Ghoda
Arts Festival (Mumbai) and the
Lucerne International Film Festival
(Switzerland).
Yashwant Sinha gets highest
French honour of Officier de la
Lgion dHonneur: On 27th April
2015, French Government honoured
former Union Finance Minister
and veteran BJP leader Yashwant
Sinha with Officier de la Lgion
dHonneur (Officer of the Legion of
Honour).
The honour was given to Sinha
by French Ambassador to India
Franois Richier in Delhi. Sinha
as External Affairs (from 20022004) had chaired Indo-French
Parliamentary Friendship Group
since its very inception (from 20092014).
It is the highest French civilian
distinction bestowed upon him in
recognition of his international
action taken during his stint as
Union Minister of Finance, Minister
External Foreign Affairs and for
his invaluable contribution to
international issues.
Officier de la Lgion dHonneur
(Officer of the Legion of Honour)
was created in 1802 by first emperor
of France Napoleon Bonaparte.
Yashwant Sinha was born on 6
November 1937 in Patna, Bihar.
A-106
He received his Masters degree

in Political Science in 1958.
Subsequently, he taught the subject
at the University of Patna till 1960.
Sania Mirza becomes first Indian
female tennis player ranked World
No.1 in Womens Doubles: On 12th
April 2015 Sania
Mirza
created
history by becoming
the first female
tennis player from
India to achieve the
world number one
rank in doubles. She also won the
WTA Family Circle Cup with
partner Martina Hignis.
The top Indo-Swiss pair beat Casey
Dellacqua and Darija Jurak with
score (6-0) (6-4) in just 57 minutes in
the lop-sided final.
Sania took 470 points from the
win to take her tally to 7965 as she
jumped past Italys Sara Errani
(7640) and Roberta Vinci (7640) to
sit atop the ranking table.
Before Sania, only Leander Paes
and Mahesh Bhuapthi had achieved
the top rank when they dominated
mens doubles circuit in the last 90s.
Sania Mirza was born in India on
15 November 1986. From 2003 until
her retirement from singles in 2013,
she was ranked by the Womens
Tennis Association as Indias No. 1
player, both in singles and doubles.
She has established herself as the
most sucessful woman tennis player
in India.
Dr Pramod Patil and Dr Ananda
Kumar win 2015 Whitley Award:
Two Indians, Dr Ananda Kumar
and Dr Pramod
Patil, were awarded
with the esteemed
Whitley Award on
29th
April,2015.
The ceremony was
People
held in Royal Geographical Society,
London.The Whitley Awards are
sponsored by the Whitley Fund for
Nature (WFN) to encourage
effective national and regional
conservation leaders across the
world. Dr pramod Patil received the
prestigious award named Green
Oscar for protecting the Great
Indian Bustard [GIB] in Thar desert.
Dr
Ananda
Kumar,
another
conservationist from India, was
awarded Whitley Award in honour for
developing innovative communication
systems called Elephant Information
Network [EIN], enabling humanelephant co-existence in southern
India. In India, almost 400 people
and around 100 elephants are killed
every year. This system would help
people in alerting them about the
elephants and know if elephants
are nearby. HRH the Royal Princess
presented the awards and each
winner received the Whitley Prize
worth 35000 pound.
K.N Tripathi sworn in as the
Governor of Mizoram : Keshari
Nath Tripathi, Governor of West
Bengal and Bihar, was sworn in as
the 16th governor of Mizoram.
Justice Michael Zothankhuma of
the Gauhati High
Court administered
the oath of office to
Tripathi, 80, at the
Durbar Hall of the
Raj Bhavan here.
Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla,
his cabinet colleagues, assembly
Speaker Hiphei, parliamentary
secretaries, legislators, leaders of
various political parties and top
security and civil officials were
present at the swearing-in ceremony.
Chief
Secretary
Lalmalsawma
conducted the programme.
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People
Tripathi replaces Aziz Qureshi,
who was sacked in March. His
term would have ended in 2017.
Tripathi practised as a lawyer in the
Allahabad High Court from 1956 till
2014 except for the three times when
he was speaker of the Uttar Pradesh
assembly - in 1991, 1997 and 2002.
Article 153 of the constitution
says that there shall be a governor
for each state. 7th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1956 facilitated
the appointment of the same person
as a governor for two or more states.
Congress-ruled Mizoram has seen
seven governors in eight months.
Nasim Zaidi Assumed Charge as
Chief Election Commissioner:
Syed Nasim Ahmed Zaidi assumed
the charge as Chief Election
Commissioner of India with effect
from 19th April 2015. He succeeded
Hari Shankar Brahma to serve as the
20th Chief Election Commissioner
(CEC) of India till July 2017. Dr.
Zaidi is an IAS officer from Uttar
Pradesh cadre of the 1976 batch.
He has a Masters degree in public
administration
from
Kennedy
School of Government, Harvard
University and a post-graduate
diploma in business finance from
Indian Institute of Finance along
with a doctorate in bio-chemistry
in his credentials. He has also
been a Mason Fellow for Public
Policy at Harvard Institute for
International Development. Also,
Dr Zaidi has been an esteemed
Permanent Representative of India
on the Council of ICAO from
November 2005 to October 2008.
He retired from IAS as Secretary
to the Government of India in
Ministry of Civil Aviation on 31
July 2012. While serving in aviation
security, Mr Zaidi was involved
with development of legislative
framework and contingency plans to
deal with terrorism threats.
MAY
Indian-Origin Harbhajan Kaur
Dheer elected As Mayor In Uk:
Indian-origin councillor Harbhajan
Kaur Dheer of
Labour Party became
the first Asian woman
to hold the title of
Mayor of Ealing, the
West London town.
She was elected as
Mayor in United Kingdom on 12th
May 2015. Taking over from Tej
Ram
Bagha,
the
Greenford
Broadway Councillor, 62 year old
Dheer was officially appointed as
Ealings new Mayor in a ceremony
held at Ealings town hall in London.
Punjabi by origin, Dheer had
migrated to Britain in 1975. Her early
years in Britain were difficult and she
had to work very hard to establish
herself and raise two children. She
studied Social Sciences at Kingston
University and obtained a degree in
1995. She worked as an Approved
Mental Health Professional in Surrey
County Council until 2003 and is a
rights activist advocating for rights of
children and elderly. Her husband
RanjitDheer is presently councillor
of Ealing Council and is a former
Mayor of Ealing from 2001-2002.
Ealing Council serves the residents
and businesses of Londons third
largest borough, which is located in
the heart of west London.
Tathagata Roy sworn in as
Governor of Tripura : Tathagata
Roy was sworn-in as the 16th
Governor of the
North-East regions
smallest
state,
Tripura, by Chief
Justice of the High
Court Deepak Gupta
on 20th May 2015 at
Raj Bhavan. Tathagata Roy was
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born on 14 September 1945 in

Kolkata. He had a distinguished
academic career, and studied Civil
Engineering in Bengal Engineering
College, Shibpur. Later, he joined
Indian
Railways
Service
of
Engineers. He worked as General
Manager, RITES and as Chief
Engineer
-Design
of
Metro
Railways, Calcutta. He also holds a
Law Degree of Calcutta University.
He was BJPs West Bengal unit
president from 2002 to 2006 and had
unsuccessfully contested twice for
Lok Sabha elections on party ticket.
Tathagata Roy has been a
controversial figure particularly for
his anti-Muslim tweets but he
promises to stop pertaining to the
demand of his new office. The
Governor is said to have a soft corner
for the state and Bangladesh that
surrounds it on three sides as his
forefathers had migrated from
erstwhile East Pakistan.
KV Kamath appointed as President
of New Development Bank : ICICI
Bank Chairman K V Kamath has
been appointed on
May 10 as the first
president of the New
Development Bank
set up by BRICS
nations. Kamath will
have a five year term at the bank,
which is supposed to be operational
in one year time. He was ICICI
Banks managing director and CEO
from 1996 to 2009. The bank will
start off with an initial paid-incapital of USD 50 billion with every
BRICS country contributing USD
10 billion. BRICS is the short form
for the alliance of five major
emerging national economies which
includes Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa. These nations
account for nearly USD 16 trillion in
People
GDP and 40 per cent of the worlds
population. The chairmanship of
the bank will be rotational and its
first President will come from India
for the first 5 years followed by
Brazil and Russia. Kamath has an
experience of working with Asian
Development Bank, Manila, in the
Private Sector department in1988
after serving at ICICI for more than
a decade. His work at ADB was in
various projects in China, India,
Indonesia, Bangladesh and other
emerging nations.
Prannoy Roy honoured with the
RedInk Lifetime Achievement
Award 2015: NDTV Group
executive Co-chairman Dr Prannoy
Roy has been awarded the 2015
RedInk
Award
for
Lifetime
Achievement for Excellence in
Journalism for his consistent and
pioneering contribution to news
television in India. Some of the
other
awardees
include Sreenivasan
Jain of NDTV who
was
awarded
Journalist of the
Year Award to
honour his consistent investigative
work in his series Truth versus Hype.
The Impact Editor of the Year
Award was given to Arnab
Goswami, Editor-in-Chief of Times
Now for his innate ability to expand
the audience reach with his show.
The News Start-Up of the Year
Award was awarded to Scroll.in for
increasing its influence rapidly as an
alternative source of news and
features. Apart from these, as many
as 24 journalists awards were also
presented in the categories of crime,
politics, courts, health, environment
and science. The RedInk Lifetime
Achievement Award was instituted
in 2010 by the Mumbai Press Club
People
to
encourage
good,
ethical
journalism that impacts people and
society. It comprises of a trophy and
a citation.
Dada Saheb Phalke Award conferred
upon Shashi Kapoor: Shashi Kapoor
became the 46th
person to be conferred
the most prestigious
Dada Saheb Phalke
Award
for
his
lifelong contribution
in enriching the
Indian cinema. He is the third person
in his family after Prithviraj Kapoor
and Raj Kapoor to have received this
award.
Shashi
Kapoor
is
remembered for his performances in
films like Deewar, Junoon and
Satyam Shivam Sundaram.
Born in 1938, Shashi Kapoor started
his career as child actor at the age
of four. He has acted in about 160
movies; 12 English and rest Hindi.
He has been bestowed the National
Film Award for Best Feature Film in
Hindi (1979) for Junoon, Lifetime
Achievement award (2010) and
Padma Bhushan (2011).
Dada Saheb Phalke Award is the
highest award in Indian cinema. It
was named after the famous screen
writer, producer director Dhundiraj
Govind Phalke popularly known
as the Father of Indian cinema.
The award was introduced in the
year 1969 and is conferred for
outstanding contribution to the
growth and development of Indian
cinema. The awards comprises of
a Golden Lotus (swarna kamal), a
shawl, a medallion and a cash prize
of 1,000,000. The first recipient of
the award was actress Devika Rani.
S. Christopher appointed as the
new Director General of DRDO:
S. Christopher who presently heads
the centre for airborne systems
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is appointed as the new Director

General of DRDO with the rank of
a secretary on 28th May, 2015. This
was in line with the Govt.s concept
of dividing top post into two parts.
Christopher obtained his BE (Hons)
in Electronics & Communication
Engineering from University of
Madras and M.Tech in Microwaves
and Radar Engineering from IIT,
Kharagpur. He joined IIT Madras,
as Project Associate in 1980, and
carried out research in Microwave
Antenna Design and Near-field
Measurement Techniques. He then
obtained PhD in Antennae and
Measurement Techniques from IIT,
Madras.After completing his PhD,
Christopher worked for Bharat
Electronics, Ghaziabad, as Senior
Eng. He led a team to create the
Automated Planar Near Field
Measurement Facility at LRDE for
the first time in the country, which
paved way for the electronically
scanned array antenna evaluation
at LRDE. He has been the first
Indian scientist who has pioneered
the manufacture of Indias first
indigenous AEW and C system.
He has been awarded the Padma
Bhushan; the third highest civilian
award after Bharat Ratna and
Padma Vibhushan and also DRDO
outstanding scientist award.
Shanmuganathan appointed as the
new Governor of Meghalaya : V.
Shanmuganathan, was sworn in as
the 17th Governor
of Manipur. He
succeeded Dr. Syed
Ahmed who died in
September,
2015.
Chief Justice of
Manipur
High
Court
LaxmikantaMohapatra
administered the oath of office as
per the provisions of Article 159 of
the Constitution of India. He is
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People
given the additional charge of

Manipur. Article 153 of the Indian
Constitution provides for a governor
for each state. By the 7th
Constitutional Amendment Act,
1956 same person can be appointed
as a governor for two or more states.
V. Shanmuganthan is an avid writer
and has written three books related
to culture and social aspects in
Tamil.
JUNE
Pawan Munjal appointed as the
CMD of Hero MotoCorp Ltd:
Two-wheeler manufacturer Hero
MotoCorp Ltd has
appointed
Pawan
Munjal as the new
Chairman of Hero
MotoCorp.
The
decision was taken
by the companys
board
unanimously
as
they
appointed Munjal as the Chairman,
CEO & Managing Director of Hero
Moto-Corp in place of his father,
Brijmohan Lall. This brought down
the curtains on the distinguished
career of the Hero Group patriarch.
Munjal has successfully steered the
company to maintain its vital
position in the aftermath of the
separation from partner Honda four
years ago. Lall has been chairman
of Hero MotoCorp since its
inception in 1984. This switch
successfully
concludes
the
companys
top
management
succession plan, which was initiated
in August with the elevation of
Pawan as vice chairman. Dr
Brijmohan Lall will continue to be
part of the board as a non-executive
director. Hero Motocorp Ltd also
formerly called as Hero Honda, is
an Indian motorcycle and scooter
producer based in New Delhi, India.
The company is the largest two
wheeler manufacturer in India.
JULY
Ajay Mathur appointed as DirectorGeneral of TERI: Ajay Mathur
has been appointed as the new DG
(Director General) of the TERI (The
Energy Research Institute) on 24th
July 2015. Previously, Ajay Mathur
has served in leadership positions at
different places such as World Bank
as a Director, Interim Secretariat,
Green Climate Fund in Bonn, and in
many private sector firms in India.
Before getting this position, he was
working as the Director General of
Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)
of the Union Government.
TERI was established in 1974 as
TATA Energy research Institute
and renamed in 2003 as The Energy
Research Institute. It is a non-profit
research institute that works in the
field of energy, environment and
sustainable development. TERIs
main aim is to focus on formulating
local and national level strategies for
shaping global solutions to critical
issues.
Before Ajay Mathur, Environmentalist
RK Pachuri was the TERI Chief who
served for 33 years and was removed
from the position on July 23, 2015
because of accusation of harassment
charges.
Ramachandra Guha chosen for
Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize 2015:
Ramchandra Guha was selected for
the
prestigious
Fukuoka Prize 2015
in
Academic
Category. He was
awarded
on
September 17, 2015
at the Fukuoka
International Congress Centre in
Japan.
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People
Ramchandra Guha is an acclaimed
historian and biographer. He
also writes columns in various
newspapers and magazines such as
The Telegraph, Hindustan Times,
The Outlook etc.
Previously, he has also been awarded
with Padma Bhushan Award in
2009, Sahitya Akademi Award
in 2011 for his famous biography
India After Gandhi: The History
of the Worlds Largest Democracy.
His other biographies are Gandhi
before India, Patriots and Partisans,
Makers of Modern India.
Fukuoka prize is an annual
prize awarded to the person or
organization for their outstanding
work in preserving or creating Asian
culture across world. The award
ceremony is held every year in the
month of September by Japanese
city of Fukuoka and the Yokatopia
Foundation. The Fukuoka Prize is
given in three categories viz. Grand
Prize, Academic Prize and Arts and
Culture Prize.
Ram Sevak Sharma appointed
as Chairman of TRAI: Tech
Savvy, Mr Ram Sevak Sharma
has been appointed as the newly
chairman of Telecom regulatory
Authority of India. Before getting
this position in TRAI, Ram Sevak
Sharma was serving as a secretary
for department of electronics and
information technology. However,
he got retired from this position of
DietY in September 2015. Before
him, Mr Rahul kulhar was the
chairman of TRAI who got retired
on May 14, 2015.Mr Ram Sevak
Sharma is an IAS Officer of batch
1978 of Jharkhand State and was
chief secretary of the Jharkhand
Government. He worked in the
Department of Economic Affairs
dealing with bilateral & multilateral
development agencies such as World
Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Moreover, he has also served in
various financing of infrastructure
projects in highways, ports, airports
and telecom sectors. He was also
awarded by Prime ministers Award
in 2008 for Excellence in Public
Administration.TRAI
(Telecom
Regulatory authority of India) is
an independent regulator of the
telecommunications business and
also fixes or revises the tariffs of
telecom services in India.
AUGUST
Sania Mirza honoured with Rajiv
Gandhi Khel Ratna Award:
Ace tennis player Sania Mirza
was conferred the prestigious
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award
(the countrys highest sporting
honour) in a splendid ceremony at
the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New
Delhi. Sania was honoured despite
clarifications sought by Karnataka
High Court from the Union Sports
Ministry following a petition
from Paralympian H.N. Girisha
challenging the Ministrys decision.
Sania is a multiple Grand Slam
champion, the second tennis player
after Leander Paes to get the honour,
and the first tennis player to receive
the award from the President Pranab
Mukherjee.
Sania attracted the loudest applause
from the esteemed gathering at the
Rashtrapati Bhavan, received a
medal, certificate and cash prize
of Rs. 7.5 lakh. She had flown to
Delhi a day ahead of the US Open
to receive the award. The award
was instituted in the year 199192
to be conferred for outstanding
sporting performance, whether by
an individual or a team, across all
sporting disciplines in a given year.
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Sundar Pichai named as the CEO

of Google: Chennai-born Sundar
Pichai, 43, has been
named CEO of the
new
restructured
Google
by
the
companys founders
Larry Page and
Sergei Brin. Founder
of the company Larry Page - will
hold his previous title at Alphabet
Inc. (the new parent company) and
Co-founder Sergey Brin will be the
president at Alphabet who will be in
charge of the companys newer
ventures such as research arm X
Lab, investment unit Google
Ventures and health and science
operations.
Pichai is a graduate from IIT
Kharagpur
in
Metallurgical
Engineering. He pursued his MS
from Stanford University in Material
Sciences and Engineering and MBA
from the Wharton School of the
University of Pennsylvania, where
he was named a Siebel Scholar and a
Palmer Scholar, respectively.
Pichai has worked with some of the
companys best-known products,
starting from the Chrome browser
to the Android mobile software.
He joined Google in 2004, the
year the company launched Gmail
and was in charge of the product
and engineering for the companys
internet businesses.
Om Prakash Rawat appointed
as new Election Commissioner:
Former IAS officer Om Prakash
Rawat appointed as the Election
Commissioner (EC) in the Election
Commission of India (ECI) by
President
Pranab
Mukherjee.
Following Rawats appointment, the
sole vacancy in the three- member
poll body has been filled. The other
two members are Nasim Zaidi
(Chief Election Commissioner) and
People
A K Joti (EC). He will have tenure
of more than three years which will
end in December, 2018 i.e. till he
attains the age of 65 years.
His appointment has come days just
before the poll watchdog takes a
decision on announcing the schedule
for Bihar assembly polls. Rawat is a
former IAS officer of the 1977 batch
from the Madhya Pradesh cadre. He
served at various posts in Madhya
Pradesh and at Centre including the
post of Secretary, Ministry of Heavy
Industries and Public Enterprises,
Department of Public Enterprises.
Election Commissioner of India is
a member of Election Commission
of India, a body constitutionally
empowered to conduct free and
fair elections to the national and
state legislatures. He is usually
a member of the Indian Civil
Service and mostly from the Indian
Administrative Service.
Cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin
awarded the Arjuna Award:
Ravichandran
Ashwin
was
facilitated with Arjuna Award by the
Union Sports Minister Sarbananda
Sonowal at a special
function organized
in the chamber of the
Sports Minister. The
off-spinner
was
conferred the award
on August 29th 2014,
but he was unable to make it to the
National Sports Awards function as
he was in England playing the OneDay International series.
Ashwin, who took 18 matches
to complete 100 Test wickets,
became the fastest Indian to reach
the milestone on November 2013,
going past the record of spin legend
Erapalli Prasanna who achieved the
feat in 20 Tests. He is the fifth fastest
bowler in Test history to bag 100
wickets.
People
Arjuna award was instituted in
1961. The award is presented by
the Ministry of Youth Affairs and
Sports to sportsperson in recognition
of their outstanding achievement in
National sports. The award includes
a bronze statuette, a citation and Rs.
five lakh.
Dr. M Veerappa Moily conferred
Saraswati Samman : Dr. M
Veerappa Moily was awarded the
24th Saraswati Samman for the year
2014 by the President of India, Shri
Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi. He
was presented this award for his Epic
Sri Ramayana Mahanveshanam
written in Kannada. Dr. Moily
became the second Kannada writer
to receive this prestigious award after
S. L. Bhyrappa (2010).
The President congratulated Dr.
Moily for contributing to literature
through his prolific writings along
with having a successful political
career. Dr Moily served as the Chief
Minister of Karnataka from 1992 to
1994. He has also held several other
ministerial portfolios under the UPA
government at the Centre including
Corporate Affairs, Petroleum and
Natural Gas, Law and Justice.
The Saraswati Samman was
instituted in 1991 by the K. K.
Birla Foundation. It consists of Rs
10 lakh, a citation and a plaque.
Harivansh Rai Bachchan was the
first recipient of this award for his
four volume autobiography.
Suhasini Haidar wins Prem
Bhatia Award: Suhasini Haidar
was awarded the Prem Bhatia
Memorial Award for the Best
Political Reporting-2015. Haidar
is Diplomatic and Strategic Affairs
Editor with The Hindu. She was
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awarded for her 21-year-long

reporting career and her analysis
on many bewildering variety of
conflicts and surges around the
world.
The award was instituted by the
Prem Bhatia Memorial Trust, carries
a cash prize of Rs. 200,000 and a
citation. Prem Bhatia, former Chief
Editor of The Tribune, was one
of Indias eminent and influential
journalists, whose career spanned
six decades.
Some of the previous awardwinners include Harish Khare, P.
Sainath, Gargi Parsai, Nirupama
Subramanian,
Pallavi
Aiyar,
Smita Gupta, Shalini Singh and
Amit Baruah for their valuable
contribution in The Hindu.
Kalam Award for ISRO scientist N.
Valarmarthi: Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) scientist N.
Valarmathi
was
conferred the Dr.
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Award by the Tamil
Nadu Chief Minister
Jayalalithaa. Valarmathi
has been working with
the ISRO since 1984 and involved in
any missions including Insat 2A,
IRS IC, IRS ID, TES. She became
project director of Indias first
indigenously-developed
Radar
Imaging Satellite RISAT-1, which
was launched successfully in 2012.
Valarmarthi is the first person to
receive the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Award, instituted by Government of
Tamil Nadu in honour of the former
president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam after
his death in 2015, in recognition
of contributions in the areas of
scientific development, humanities
and students welfare. The award
includes a sum of five hundred
thousand Indian rupees (about
US$7,700), a certificate and a gold
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People
medal weighing eight grams. The

award is scheduled to be given out
every year on Independence Day in
India starting with 2015.
SEPTEMBER
Tejinder Pal Singh named as
Australian of the Day: Tejinder
Pal Singh, an Indian-origin migrant
driver in Australia has been named
Australian of the Day for feeding
the homeless in Darwin for the
past three years. He has dedicated
the Sundays of the month to feed
the poor and homeless locals of
northern Darwin after he finishes his
shift as a cabbie. He cooks up 30 kg
of Indian cuisine which comprises
chickpeas, rice and vegetarian curry
to feed the homeless after his night
shift. The van that carries the food
bears a signature written as Free
Indian food for hungry and needy
people. Commonwealth Bank has
sponsored the Australian of the Year
Awards for over 35 years, recognising
extraordinary Australians who have
made a big difference to the country.
OCTOBER
AR Rahman conferred with
2015 Hridaynath Mangeshkar
Award: Eminent music composer
A.R. Rahman was honoured with
Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award
on the 78th birthday of Pandit
Hridaynath Mangeshkar. Pandit
Hridaynath Mangeshkar is a famous
music composer and younger brother
of Lata Mangeshkar. The award was
presented to Rahman by the skilled
filmmaker Subhash Ghai. It was the
fifth award presented to a renowned
person. Subhash Ghai expressed at
the ceremony that Rahman was a
beautiful soul. The two masters of
their fields had worked together in
the movie Taal. Ghai shared that
Rahman did not know Hindi and
Punjabi but worked for 70 nights

on the music of Taal and proved
he is the best musician. Hridaynath
Mangeshkar expressed that Rahman
made the country proud for the
contribution he had made to music.
Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, Grammy
Award winner of Hindustani
classical music and Ricky Kej, 2014
Grammy award winner attended the
ceremony. Earlier Lata Mangeshkar,
Asha Bhosle, Amitabh Bachchan
and Sulochana received this award
in the past prior to Hridaynath
Mangeshkar. A.R. Rahman has also
won Oscar for Best Original Score
and Best Original Song.
Jack Dorsey appointed as permanent
CEO of Twitter: Twitter Inc announced
Jack Dorsey, the cofounder of Twitter
and Square, as its
permanent
CEO.
The announcement
was followed by a
rise of 6 percent in its
shares. The board decided to
separate the roles of chair and CEO
and so the quest for new chairperson
continues. Dorsey was fired from his
position as Twitter CEO in the year
2008, making it doubtful for the
investors
about
Dorseys
effectiveness in his roles with both
Twitter and Square while others find
him to be an effective leader. Dorsey
was said to have made mathematical
errors in the track keeping of
Twitters expenses. Twitter was
spending about 6-figures per month
for the partnerships Dorsey had set
up with texting companies whose
SMS fees were really high. But
having successfully led Square, his
past mistakes, according to some
investors, should not be held against
Dorsey. The decision of Dorseys
hire was made on Wednesday,
September 30. Besides Dorseys
positioning of full-time CEO, Adam
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People
Bain was promoted to COO, who
was previously acting as the
president of global revenue.
NOVEMBER
Harshavardhan Neotia elected as
President of FICCI: Harshavardhan
Neotia has been chosen as President
of Federation of Indian Chambers
of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
He is serving as the Vice President
at the moment and he will serve for
one year as the President for the year
2016. Presently, Jyotsna Suri is the
acting President of FICCI. FICCI
is the oldest and the largest business
organisation in India. It was
established in the year 1927 and has
its headquarters at New Delhi. It is a
non-profit organisation. The mission
of the FICCI Group is to increase
business opportunities for domestic
as well as foreign markets by
providing special services and global
linkages. Strengthening efficiency
and worldwide competitiveness of
Indian industry is also part of the
groups mission. Harshavardhan
Neotia chairs the Ambuja Neotia
Group. The group covers a wide
business of Real Estate industry like
housing, health care and education.
Harshavardhan is also a member of
the Core Committee on industry led
by West Bengal Chief Minister. He
is also part of the Advisory Council
of Rajasthans Chief Minister.
For his outstanding initiative in
social housing, Harshavardhan
has been bestowed Padma Shri by
Government of India.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra
Modi emerged as Worlds ninth
most powerful person in the Forbes
annual ranking: In the Forbes
annual ranking of list of 73 persons
of the year 2015, Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi has taken
the ninth Most Powerful Person.
The ranking is given on the basis of
every rankers financial resources,

number of people they influenced
and the scope of power. While in the
year 2014, Forbes had PM Narendra
Modi at position 14. Earlier, only
Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of
Reliance Industries could manage a
position at the 36th place. A growth
of 7.4 percent in the Indian GDP
was seen in the first year of Modis
holding the PMs office. Modis
initiative of Make in India has been
the major effort of the PM that has
brought about the growth. Forbes
communicated that they considered
a huge number of candidates from
around the world before giving
away the final list. Vladimir Putin,
President of Russia, sustains the top
most position in the Forbes list for
the third consecutive year with the
President of United States, Barack
Obama holding the third position.
DECEMBER
P K Singh Takes Charge as SAIL
Chairman: P K Singh took charge
as the chairman of the domestic steel
giant SAIL. He had been serving as
the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
of Durgapur Steel Plant since 2012.
Singh started his career in SAIL
at the Bokaro Steel Plant in 1980.
He also worked at the IISCO Steel
Plant, Durgapur Steel Plant and
Bokaro Steel Plant. Singh took over
from MSME Secretary Anup Pujari
who held the additional charge of
SAIL Chairman. Steel Authority
of India Limited (SAIL) is one of
the largest state-owned steel making
company based in New Delhi and
one of the top steel makers in world.
It has an annual turnover of 50627
crore (US$7.6 billion) (FY 201415). It is a public sector undertaking
which trades publicly in the market
is largely owned by Government
of India and acts like an operating
company.
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People
JANUARY
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic swornin as President of Croatia: In the
history of Croatia, 46 year old
Kolinda
GrabarKitarovic became
the first women
President since 19
February, 2015. She
happens to be the
4th President of the former Yugoslav
republic after its independence in
1991. She defeated left-wing
predecessor Ivo Josipovic in an
election run-off on 11 January, 2015.
Grabar-Kitarovic served as Assistant
Secretary General for Public
Diplomacy at NATO during 20112014. Before this she was positioned
as Croatias ambassador to the
United States from 2008 to 2011 and
also served as the Minister of
Foreign Affairs in 2005. She started
her political career as an advisor in
international
cooperation
department of the Ministry of
Science and Technology in 1992 and
within a year joined Croatian
Democratic Union.
Under her presidency, she has not
only called for preventing organized
crime and co-operation on matters
of security, but also a more vigorous
fight against corruption, media
freedom,
democratic
systems,
control and the proper usage of the
intelligence in accordance with the
law.
Saudi Arabia King Abdullah Bin
Abdulaziz passes away: King
Abdullah of Saudi Arabia died at
the age of 90 after suffering from
pneumonia. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz

Al Saud was the King of Saudi
Arabia and Custodian of the Two
Holy Mosques from
2005 to his death on
23 January 2015. He
was ascended to the
throne on 1 August
2005 after the death
of his half-brother,
King Fahd. His successor is his halfbrother Crown Prince Salman who
has vowed to maintain the same
approach as his predecessors.
Throughout most of his adult life,
Abdullah has held vital political
positions. In his first public office, he
was appointed as a Mayor in 1961
and in the following year he was
appointed Commander of the Saudi
Arabian National Guard, which he
was still holding as a king. He has
also worked as Deputy Defense
Minister. As a king he managed
close and amicable relations with
the United States and Britain and
bought billions of dollars worth of
defense equipment from both states.
He had also stood up for providing
women the rights to compete in
Olympics and also vote for municipal
councils.
Maithiripala Sirisena sworn-in as
7th President of Sri Lanka:
On January 9, 2015, Pallewatta
Gamaralalage Maithripala Yapa
Sirisena (Maithiripala Sirisena)
was sworn-in as the 7th President

to Maithiripala Sirisena was
administered by Sri Lankas
Supreme Court judge, K Sri Pawan
in the oath

in Colombo. Sirisena won the

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People
whereas Rajapaksa, the opposition

Sirisena ente

Lankan Freedom Party and was

party in the year 2001. After three

of Cabinet Minister of Health in the

for presidential position again.
MARCH
Sunil Sabharwal re-nominated as
Alternate Executive Director at
IMF: Indian-American investor
Sunil Sabharwal has been renominated
as
the
Alternate
Executive Director
at the International
Monetary
Fund
(IMF). He was renominated to key
post at IMF by US
President
Barack
Obama. Sabharwal was first
nominated
as
the
Alternate
Executive Director at IMF in April
2014. He has also served as the
Senior Vice President of Strategic
Investments at First Data Corporation/
Western Union from 2003 to 2006.
IMF is an international organization
headquartered in Washington, DC.
It was formed in 1944 at the Bretton
Woods Conference, and came into
formal existence in 1945 with 29
member countries and the goal of
reconstructing the international

payment system. The organisation
works to promote global monetary
cooperation,
secure
financial
stability, facilitate international
trade, promote high employment
and sustainable economic growth,
and reduce poverty around the
world.
APRIL
Muhammadu Buhari elected as
President of Nigeria: Muhammadu
Buhari was sworn in as Nigerias
new president at a boisterous
ceremony in the
capital of Abuja. He
won the elections in
March 2015 and
was nominated as
the president in May
amongst dignitaries,
drummers and dancers. Crowds
clapped while others used brooms to
sweep to the beat, a reference to
Buharis campaign slogan, new
broom.
Muhammadu Buhari was born on 17
December 1942, in Daura, Katsina
State, to his father Adamu and
mother Zulaihat. He is the twentythird child of his father. Buhari was
raised by his mother, after his father
died when he was about four years
old.
Buhari joined the Nigerian Army by
enrolling in the Nigerian Military
Training College (NMTC) in 1961.
He retired from Nigerian Army as a
Major General and was the Head of
State of Nigeria from 31 December
1983 to 27 August 1985, after
taking power in a military coup. He
unsuccessfully ran for the office of
President in the 2003, 2007 and 2011
general elections.
Raja Rajeswari, first IndianAmerican woman judge of New
York : On 28th April 2015, Chennai
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born Raja Rajeswari was sworn in as

a criminal court judge in New York
by mayor Bill de
Blassio. She became
the first Indian born
woman
to
be
appointed as a judge
in New York City.
Rajeswari, who is
43 now, immigrated to the USA
from India as a teenager. She
has previously worked with the
Richmond County District Attorney
in several bureaus including Criminal
Courts, Narcotics, Supreme Court
and the Sex Crimes Special Victims
Bureau. She served as a deputy chief
there.
Rajeswari took the oath of office
along of 27 other judges who have
been appointed earlier this month to
the Family Court, Criminal Court,
and Civil Court, which are part of
the New York State Unified Court
System.
The mayor appoints judges to 10year terms in the New York City
Criminal Court and the Family
Court within the city.
Pedro Cateriano Bellido appointed
as Prime minister of Peru : On
2nd April 2015 Pedro Cateriano
Bellido was appointed as the seventh
Prime minister of Peru by President
Ollanta Humala in a ceremony
which took place in Lima, Peru. He
replaced Anna Jara who was sacked
after losing the vote of confidence in
Congress on 30th March 2015. She
also faced allegations of spying and
corruption.
Bellido formerly practiced as a
lawyer in constitutional court. At
the time of appointment he was
56 and served as Defense minister
of Peru. He has been the Defense
minister since July 2012. He served
People
as deputy justice minister from 2001
to 2002. He served as an agent of the
Peruvian state to the Inter American
Court of Human Rights in the
Chavin de Huanter case in 2012.
He was the member of parliament
of Peru 1990-1992 and served as
deputy Justice Minister from 2001
to 2002.
Pedro Alvaro Cateriano Bellido was
born on 26th July 1958. He is from
the Peruvian Nationalists Party.
Loretta Lynch sworn-in as first
black female Attorney General of
US : On 27th April 2015, Loretta
Lynch was sworn in as the new U.S.
attorney general, replacing Eric
Holder. She is the first AfricanAmerican woman
to serve in the role.
Her
nomination
held up more than
five months over
politicking in the
Senate. The highly
politicized five-month battle to
choose Obamas next attorney
general came to a close Thursday
when the Senate finally voted 56-43
to confirm Lynch.
A two-time U.S. attorney for the
Eastern District of New York,
Lynch takes on the high-profile
job at time when America faces a
series of challenges, from dealing
with strained relations and deep
distrust in some cities between the
police and the communities they
serve, to criminal justice reform, to
confronting the ongoing threat of
terrorism.
Loretta Elizabeth Lynch was born in
May 21, 1959 in Greensboro, North
Carolina. Lynch has graduated
from Harvard and grew up in North
Carolina during the civil rights
movement in 1960s.
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People
Mohammed bin Nayef appointed

as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia :
Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz
appointed his nephew, Deputy
Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Nayef, as the new heir apparent on
29th
April,2015.
The King replaced
his half brother with
Mohammed
bin
Nayef. King Salman
said that he has
followed thepath of
his late brother, King Abdullah bin
Abdulaziz in appointing the best
employees for the top jobs in the
worlds top oil exporter.
By appointing Mohammed bin
Nayef the new Crown Prince of
Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin
Salman, Deputy Crown Prince,
Saudi Monarch has strengthened his
branch of the empire.
The new Crown Prince has been the
Interior Minister since 2012 and was
the head of the kingdoms security
forces for a decade earlier. That
was the period in which he burnt
down an Al Qaeda uprising in Saudi
Arabia and had developed closed
ties with the United States.
The changes come at the time of
unprecedented regional turmoil, as
Saudi Arabia navigates the messy
aftermath of the Arab spring. It has
departed from decades of backroom
politics by launching a military
campaign in Yemen.
Chhurim Sherpaclimbs Everest
twice in a week: Chhurim Sherpa is
a proficient Nepali mountaineer
who got her name entered in the
prestigious Guinness Book of World
Records as the first
female mountaineer
to successfully scale
Mount
Everest
twice in a single
climbing season on
12th and 19th May
2012. A Sherpa from Taplejung in

east Nepal, Chhurim, like most
Sherpas, uses one name instead of a
first and last name. After the
expedition she said, People have set
different kinds of climbing records
for Everest, but no one has ever
climbed it twice in a week. So, I just
climbed with the sole motive of
making a world record. While
growing up, she sketched her plan
for climbing Mount Everest
whenever she saw tourists trekking
through her village. She got highly
inspired by Pasang Lhamu Sherpa,
the first Nepali woman to climb
Everest, who died during her
descent. Chhurim Sherpa had again
began her journey, for the third time,
to climb the 8,850 metre (29,035
feet) high Everest in April 2015 but
this time she took a cricket bat and
two jerseys belonging to late
Australian cricketer Phil Hughes to
the summit as a mark of tribute to
the player.
MAY
Hungarian
Writer
Laszlo
Krasznahorkai Won Booker Prize:
Lszl Krasznahorkai became the
first author from
Hungary to receive
the
Sixth
Man
Booker Prize 2015.
He was felicitated at
an award ceremony
at the Victoria and
Albert Museum in London on 20th
May. Krasznahorkai was chosen
from a list of ten eminent contenders
from around the world. The prize
was given to recognize his
achievement in fiction on the world
stage. Laszlo Krasznahorkai was
born in 1954 in Gyula, Hungary and
gained recognition in 1985 after he
had published his debut novel
Satantango. His novels are known to
be complex and demanding a
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People
single sentence can extend to a page

and deal with dystopian and
apocalyptic themes where an
impending
civilisational
crisis
threatens the world. The Man
Booker Prize is worth 60,000. It is
presented once every two years to a
living author of any nationality for a
body of work published either
originally in English or translated in
the
English
language.
Krasznahorkais other eminent
novels include The Melancholy of
Resistance
(1989,
English
translation 1998), and SeioboDown
Below (2008, English translation
2013).
JUNE
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar conferred
with Colombias highest civilian
award : Spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar has been conferred with
Colombias highest civilian award
for his contribution to peace issues
around the world.
He was conferred
with Orden de la
Democracia Simon
Bolivar en el grado
de cruz Caballero
by Fabio Raul Amin Saleme, President of the House of Representatives, Congress of Colombia. He
was conferred with the special honour for spreading the message of
peace in society, inter-mediation in
war, reducing stress and combating
violence through yoga and breathing
exercises. Sri Sri was congratulated
by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
on being conferred with Colombias
highest civilian award.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is a humanitarian leader, a spiritual teacher, and an
ambassador of peace. He is a spiritual leader and founder of the Art of

Living Foundation created in 1981,
which aims to relieve individual
stress, societal problems, and violence. In 2009, Shankar was named
by Forbes Magazine as the fifth most
powerful leader in India.
JULY
Anisa Rasouli nominated first
female Judge of Afghanistan
Supreme Court: A woman made
history in Afghanistan. Anisa
Rasouli, the Head of Afghan
Women
Judges
Association and a
former
Juvenile
Court Judge, was
nominated as the
first female judge of
Afghanistan Supreme Court by
Afghan President Asraf Ghani.
This has happened for the very first
time in Afghanistan ever since the
Taliban rule ended. The country has
been slowly becominga developing
country. Afghan President is
concerned about the womens right.
This is the biggest example of it.
Along with Rasouli, President Asraf
Ghani also appointed four women
as cabinet ministers and two women
as governors.
Anisa Rasouli may serve a 10 year
term in the Supreme Court alongside
8 other Justices but her nomination
needed to be approved by the
countrys parliament. She needed 97
votes out of 193 to win, but managed
to get only 88 votes with the MPs
approving another male member of
the Supreme Court and the governor
of the central bank.
People
92-year
Harriette
Thompson
became oldest woman to complete
a marathon: Harriette Thompson,
aged 92, became the oldest woman
to complete the Rock n Roll
marathon of 26.2 miles with a time
of 7:24:36 in San
Diego. She started
at 6:15:03 am and
finished at 1:39:38
pm. She is a cancer
survivor and ran
approx 7 hours and
24 minutes.
Previously, the oldest woman to
complete a marathon was Gladys
Burrill, who was 92 years and 19
days old when she completed the
2010 Honolulu Marathon whereas
Thompson is 92 years and 65
days old. She has raised more
than $100,000 for Leukemia and
Lymphoma Society by running
in marathons. She enjoys raising
money for cancer research.
This is the second consecutive year
Thompson downed one of the
Burrill records. She has still a long
way to go to beat the all comers
record. This record is currently held
by Fauja Singh, an India born man
who lives in Ilford, England who ran
in Toronto marathon in 2011 at the
age of 100.
Maurice Obstfeld appointed as
Chief Economist of IMF : Maurice
Obstfeld, 63, is appointed to
President Barack Obamas Council
of Economic Advisers as the Chief
Economist
of
International
Monetary Funds. He replaced
Olivier Blanchard
who
is
retired.
Obstfeld took over
the
charges
on
September 8, 2015.
Maurice Obstfeld
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took the responsibilities for the

funds world economic outlook,
which has proved to be over optimist
in recent years.
Maurice Obstfeld is a prolific author
of research papers on exchange
rates, international financial crises,
global capital markets and monetary
policy. Obstfeld also served as a
chair of Berkeleys Department of
Economics.
Maurice Obstfeld studied and
took degree from MIT, the
University of Cambridges Kings
College and the University of
Pennsylvania. He is also a coauthor of widely used economics
textbook by undergraduate students
International Economics with
Krugman and Marc Melitz and also
co-wrote leading graduate textbook
on international macro economics
Foundations of International
Macroeconomics with Kenneth
Rogoff.
Maurice Obstfeld was awarded
the John von Neumann Award
in 2003 for outstanding scholar
in the exact social science, by the
Rajk Laszlo College for Advanced
studies, Budapest, Hungary.
Mauritius gets its first woman
President: Bibi Ameenah Firdaus
Gurib-Fakim, a renowned biodiversity
scientist was designated as the first
women president of
Mauritius, the land
nation in the Indian
Ocean. She is the
perfect
example
which proves that
women in science can also reach the
worlds top political echelons. She
was born on 17th October 1959 in a
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humble Mauritian Family. Her

mother was a housewife and her
father was a primary school teacher.
She is an exceptional role model for
women in science around the world,
and also a living example that
perseverance and hard work can
lead to success. It was really difficult
for Gurib to reach at this stage and
also very surprising to find herself
for the presidential nomination.
Mauritius is the richest and least
corrupt country in Africa. Having
population of around 1.3 million
people and GDP is just over $9000
i.e. 7200 euros. Indian Ocean Island
gained independence from Britain in
1968 and which replaced Britains
queen Elizabeth II as its head of
state in 1992.
Professor Kamal Bawa elected to
Royal Society of London : Professor
Kamal Bawa, a scientist and ecologist
of Indian origin, has been elected
to the prestigious Royal Society in
recognition of his incredible work
in the field of conservation science.
The Royal Society in London is a
self-governing fellowship of worlds
most distinguished scientists in
areas of science, engineering and
medicine.
Professor Bawa, 76, is a distinguished
Biology professor at the University
of Massachusetts, Boston. He has
been contributing in the area of
conservation science. His discoveries
of unusual breeding system, novel
pollination mechanisms and long
distance gene flow in tropical
forest trees changed the prevailing
notions about population biology
and evolution of these trees. He
discovered new hypotheses for the
evolution of almost every major type
of breeding system in plants.
People
Professor Bawa has also won the
Gunnerus Sustainability Award in
2012, as well as MIDORI Prize in
Biodiversity in 2014. Also, he has
established ATREE (Ashoka Trust
for Research in Ecology and the
Environment), a Bangalore-based
NGO that works in the field of
biodiversity).
Russian cosmonaut makes World
Records for spending 804 days on
ISS : Russian spaceman Gennady
Padalka created a
world record by
spending 804 days
in
International
Space Station (ISS).
ISS was launched in
1998,the largest artificial body that
orbits earth nearly 400 km above the
surface, and can be seen with naked
eyes.
He officially set a new world record
by breaking the record of cosmonaut
Sergei Krikalev, former Russian Air
Force Officer who spent 803 days
and nine hours and 41 minutes in the
International Space Station. Padalka
was schedule to return to earth in
September, by then he would have
spent a total of 877 days in space.
Gennady Padalka was born on June
21, 1958 in Kransnodar, Russia.
He graduated from Eisk Military
Aviation College in 1979. He served
as a pilot and a senior pilot in the
Air Force. In 1989, he was selected
as a cosmonaut candidate to start
training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut
Training centre. In 1991, he was t
qualified as a test Cosmonaut.
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed of Bangladesh
wins 2015 World Food Prize : Sir
Fazle Hasan Abed has been
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People
honoured with 2015 World Food
Prize. This is a
highly prestigious
prize, also known as
the Nobel Prize for
food and agriculture.
He was honoured
for his outstanding contribution for
enhancing the production and
distribution of food to the needy and
alleviating hunger and providing
pathways out of poverty.
He is the founder and chairperson
of BRAC (Bangladesh Rural
Advancement Committee) which is
one of the most accomplished village
level civil society organizations.
BRAC, whose headquarter is
in
Bangladesh
and
operates
programmes in 10 other countries
around the globe, aims to reduce
poverty in developing countries and
ensure food security for all.
This Non profit organization has
provided the opportunity to over
100,000 people, 70 per cent of them
are women, and also touched the
lives of an estimated 135 million
people. BRAC is committed to
enhance food security and follow the
pathway out of poverty through its
dynamic and effective development
programmes.
US President Barack Obama enters
Guinness Book of World Record :
President of the United States of
America (USA) Barak Obama broke
the Guinness world
record of Iron Man
star Robert Downey
Jr. for reaching the
millions of followers
on Twitter in a span
of only 5 hours after going live on
20th may 2015.
The account is named @POTUS

which features tweets directly from
the president. Robert Downey Jr.
reached 1 million followers in less
than 24 hours after joining Twitter
where as Obama reached 1 million
followers in just 5 hours.
The president already has the
account named @BarackObama,
which is his personal account
and has crossed nearly 60 million
followers. @POTUS account stays
with the office.
At present, Obama is on the third
place for highest following on
Twitter with 59.3 million followers.
Singer Katy Perry is on the first
position with 70 million followers
and singer Justin Bieber is on the
second position with 64 million
followers.
AUGUST
Ranil Wickremesinghe sworn in as
PM of Sri Lanka (21st August):
United National Party (UNP) leader
Ranil Wickremesinghe was on
sworn in as the Prime Minister of Sri
Lanks for the fourth
time.
President
Maithripala Sirisena
administered oath
of office to Mr.
Wickremesinghe at
a brief ceremony
attended by leaders of various
parties including former President
Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Mr. Wickremesinghe, who has
been a Member of Parliament since
1977, has also served as the Prime
Minister of the country on three
occasions previously. He held the
post from 1993-94, 2002-2004 and
since January 2015.
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People
SEPTEMBER
Acclaimed writer Jhumpa Lahiri
awarded with 2014 National
Humanities Medal by White
House:
Jhumpa
Lahiri,
in
recognition of her
beautifully
wrought narratives of estrangement
and belonging which highlighted
the Indian-American experience
has been conferred with the
prestigious National
Humanities Medal
to Pulitzer Prize.
The US President
Barack
Obama
presented the medal
on September 11 in the East Room
of the White House in the presence
of luminaries from the field of arts
and humanities.
In her works of fiction, Dr Lahiri
has
illuminated
the
IndianAmerican experience in beautifully
wrought narratives of estrangement
and belonging, the White House
citation read. The first National
Humanities Medal was awarded in
1996. Since then, the medal has been
bestowed upon 163 individuals and
12 organisations including recipients
of 2014. Jhumpa Lahiri is an Indian
Bengali American author. Her debut
short story collection, Interpreter
of Maladies (1999), won the 2000
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and her
first novel, The Namesake (2003),
was adapted into the popular film of
the same name.
Queen Elizabeth II becomes
longest-reigning UK monarch:
Queen Elizabeth II has become the
longest reigning monarch in British

history. She beats the record set by
her
great-greatgrandmother Queen
Victoria 63 years
and 7 months
more than a century
ago. Elizabeth has
lived longer than
any of her predecessors. She saw a
dozen prime ministers come and go,
and presided over six decades of
British history from war with
Germany to the death of Princess
Diana and terror attacks on London.
Elizabeth has been the constant
heart of British life since she came
to the throne as a young lady aged
25. When Elizabeth married Prince
Philip in 1947, Britain was still
in the grips of post-World War II
austerity. Born April 21, 1926 in
London, the queen was christened
Elizabeth Alexandra Mary of York
and was known as young Lilibet to
her family. At the time it seemed
unlikely that she would become
queen that is until Edward VIII,
her uncle, unexpectedly abdicated in
order to marry American divorcee
Wallis Simpson. Elizabeths father
reluctantly became King George VI,
and she was the heir when he died
in 1952.
Malcolm Turnbull sworn in as
Prime Minister of Australia: New
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm
Turnbull was sworn
in as Australias
29th prime minister
on 15th September
after a surprise
ballot
of
his
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People
conservative Liberal Party colleagues
voted 54-44 to replace Tony Abbott.
The new prime minister has
promised to focus on stability and
improving a faltering economy.
Mr Turnbull is expected to
make significant changes to the
Governments ministry as he moves
to reset the Coalitions economic
narrative. Mr Turnbull is expected
to make significant changes to the
Governments ministry as he moves
to reset the Coalitions economic
narrative. There is also a push for Mr
Turnbull to promote more women
and thrust younger talented Liberals,
who currently hold junior roles, into
the limelight.
Turnbull was elected Leader of
the Liberal Party in September
2008 and became Leader of the
Opposition. In November 2009, his
support for the Carbon Pollution
Reduction Scheme proposed by the
Labor Government split the Liberal
Party. Turnbull challenged Abbott
in September 2015 for the Liberal
leadership, and won the subsequent
ballot with 54 votes to Abbotts
44. He succeeded Abbott as prime
minister the following day and
formed the Turnbull Government.
NOVEMBER
Justin Trudeau of Liberal Party
sworn in as 23rd Prime Minister of
Canada: Justin Trudeau has become
Canadas second youngest Prime
Minister. A former school teacher
and a member of parliament since

2008, Trudeau is the
son of former Prime
Minister,
Pierre
Trudeau. His father
remained
Prime
Minister until 1984
and has been among the few
Canadian politicians famous in
America. The 43-year-old Prime
Minister has now the opportunity to
restore his fathers Liberal legacy.
The new ministers in his cabinet
aged between 35 and 50, took oath
of office at Rideau Hall disclosed
the official residence of the countrys
governor general, David Johnston.
The new Prime Minister and his
cabinet arrived shortly after the
departure of Stephen Harper. Mr
Johnston administers the oath of
office to government ministers as the
representative of Queen Elizabeth
II. The ceremonies do not entail
much pomp than those of United
States presidents. Some of the
cabinet minister positions are still
occupied by the previous Liberal
governments while the key positions
are taken by the ministers of
Trudeaus party. Mr Trudeau, being
the first child of a prime minister to
become the head of a government in
Canada, has conveyed that he has
appointed a cabinet that looks like
Canada.
DECEMBER
Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
Assumed Presidency of the Royal
Society:
Sir
Venkatraman
Ramakrishnan assumed Presidency
of the Royal Society
in London. He was
elected to the office
in March 2015 by
the societys council
and will serve for up
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to five years. With this appointment,

he became the 61st president of the
society. And, he joined the elite club
that has included Christopher Wren,
Samuel Pepys, Isaac Newton,
Joseph Banks, Humphry Davy, and
Ernest Rutherford. In 2009, he
shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
with Thomas A. Steitz and Ada
Yonath for studies of the structure
and function of the ribosome. He
was elected as a member of the
European
Molecular
Biology
Organization (EMBO) in 2002 and a
Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in
2003. He also received Indias
second highest civilian honour, the
Padma Vibhushan, in 2010.
Nobel Peace Prize to Tunisias
National
Dialogue
Quartet
: The Norwegian Nobel Committee
has decided that the Nobel Peace
Prize for 2015 is to be awarded to the
Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet
for its decisive contribution to the
building of a pluralistic democracy
in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine
Revolution of 2011 aka Tunisian
Revolution. National Dialogue
Quartet was formed in 2013 when
the process of democratisation was
in danger of collapsing because
of widespread social unrest. The
quartet established an alternative
and peaceful political process as
Tunisia was on the brink of civil war.
Tunisia adopted a new constitution
in January 2014 and held democratic
elections at the end of last year.
Angela Merkel Named 2015 Times
Person of the Year: Time magazine
named German Chancellor Angela
Merkel its Person of the Year 2015
for the annual honour because her
leadership has helped preserve and
People
promote an open, borderless Europe
in the face of economic turmoil and
an ongoing refugee crisis. Other
contenders include Islamic State
leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and
Republican presidential hopeful
Donald Trump, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, Reliance Industries
chairman Mukesh Ambani and
Googles India-born CEO Sundar
Pichai. Mr. Modi was a contender
for the honour last year also and
while he was not chosen the Person
of the Year by Time editors, he was
named winner of the readers poll.
Indian-origin Politician Designated
to S Africas Finance Mister: Widely
respected South Africas finance
minister (2009-2014) and 66-yearold Veteran Indian-origin politician
Pravin Gordhan has been appointed
South Africas new Finance Minister
by President Jacob Zuma. He will
replace David van Rooyen who
was appointed on 10 November
2015. Gordhans appointment raised
the Rand up almost 5%. Gordhan
would be responsible to ensure fiscal
discipline in government spending
and work with the financial sector to
bring about stability.
Serena Named as Sportsperson of
2015: Serena Williams, the star of
tennis world now
has been named
Sports Illustrateds
2015 Sportsperson
of the Year. The
winner of 3 Grand
Slam titles (Australian Open, French
Open and Wimbledon before losing
at the U.S. Open) dominated
womens tennis this year. Williams is
the first individual woman to be
selected to the honor since track
champion Mary Decker in 1983.
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Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan: Has it

flopped?
he Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan(or Swachh Bharat Mission, SBM) was

started by Prime Minister NarendraModi on 2nd October 2014 at
Rajghat, New Delhi. It aims at making India a clean place to live in which
includes reducing the amount of waste on the streets and pavements,
inculcating a sense of personal hygiene with the focus being on creation
of public toilets, along with the creation of a solid waste management
facility in each town and city.The biggest challenges include curbing open
defecation,conversion of traditional toilets to pour flush toilets andproviding
access to clean water supply to every person by 2019.After a complete year,
people of India question how fruitful has the scheme been?
Why couldnt it have happened before?

A clean country is not just achieved by changing the mindset. This is
what Mahatma Gandhi tried to achieve post-independence. India was
a country infested with diseases and epidemics were virulent. In his trips
abroad, Gandhi had seen, lived and admired the cleanliness prevalent in
the countries under British rule including S. Africa and Britain itself. This is
what he had to say about it:
A-128
Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan: Has it flopped?
I learnt 35 years ago that a lavatory must be as clean as a drawing-room.

I learnt this in the West.
But there is no denying the fact that howsoever hard he tried, Indian
situation would not become better. It wasnt because of a lack of conviction.
Rather this was a case of the administration not being prepared for a willing
India. Enticed by the Mahatmas urgings, people wanted to bring about a
change, but for ensuring far-reaching effects, the administration was not
equipped to provide the requisite sanitation facilities to the people.
Is it happening now?
Some people claim that the SBM is a pet project of PM NarendraModi
and is his first fight towards changing India. This scheme is as much important
(or not) to the Government as any other populist scheme out there. The Jan
DhanYojna, Adarsh Gram Yojna, and others are all treated at a similar plane
along with the SBM. The only difference is that the campaigning for the
scheme has been on a much higher note compared to other schemes. It is
true because this is one scheme that creates the most photo opportunities for
the ruling party and other helping associates. Remember that the Mahatma
championed the plight of the manual scavengers and would go on to do it
for the innumerable others who couldnt think of cleaning their own feces.
Comparing this picture with politicians and actors holding brooms over a
mess of fresh leaves is indecent. We need to focus on the real talk behind the
loud noise of propaganda.
The idea of a clean India as viewed from the lens of the Swachh Bharat
Abhiyaan puts enormous pressure on the scheme and starts attributing all
existing problems on its shoulders. If we take the idea with a pinch of salt,
after a year, we cannot say that all the garbage outside our society doors is
because of a failure of the SBM. Neither can we go out there and celebrate
that the scheme is successful. A scheme such as this, which would impact
more than a crore households would take time to complete and start showing
results.
The completion of a year of the scheme has led to mixed results though.
The target for this year was to ensure complete collection and transportation
of waste in 1000 cities, to attain 100% processing and disposal of waste
in 100 cities, to construct 2,500,000 individual toilets along with 100,000
community and public toilets. The toilet construction pace has been
extremely slow in the cities, with only 20-25% of the target being achieved.
Although in the villages, 80% or more of the target has been achieved, but
about half of this is accomplished through other schemes like NREGA and
others which have been functioning at their own pace for all this time.
The reasons for the dismal growth are cited as limited administrative
capabilities of the municipalities, deficiency of adequate funds for the
astronomical task, and a clear lack of interest shown by the private sector.
Remember that the SBM is succeeding the NBA (Nirmal Bharat Abhiyaan)
which was trying to achieve more or less similar results except it had a longer
timeline (2022) and achievable targets.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan: Has it flopped?
A-129
The problem of lack of funds for

the scheme is glaring and one which
has been identified by the government
too. This is why, it introduced the
Swachh Bharat Cess, a tax imposed on
all taxable services. The rate was fixed
as 0.5% because of which the effectual
Service Tax rate shot up from 14% to
14.5%. This was initiated beginning
from 15 November 2015, and in a
months time about 329.6 crores had
been raised. It is predicted that by
the end of this financial year, in March 2016, the cess would have raised
funds of the order of INR 3,750 crores. Looking at the way Indians have
taken the added tax burden in stride, it seems that the government has hit the
right chord with this move. All that remains to be seen is how long can the
additional tax rate be kept up.
Can it happen in the future?

All large populist schemes in India which promise surprising results have
ended up disappointingly, to say the least. The lack of practical planning
and the practice of overpromising are two key elements which determine the
future of these schemes. The Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan is going to be utilized
by politicians to capture local imagination whenever the discourse needs to
be diverted from the regular issues. The idea is to present a good initiative
in spirit, which the opposition cannot dispute without hurting themselves
in the foot. When the elections come closer, the efforts will be doubled and
temporary measures will be adopted to present a rosy picture to the voters.
These techniques are so old that nowadays all Indians can spot them at an
arms length.
A better route
India is a large and diverse country with a huge population base. Any
scheme that impacts everyone in the country cannot really achieve the results
without drawing a lot of flak. The best way that India can become clean is by
following the development route. With an increase in the purchasing power
and the living standards of the people, the demands for a cleaner society
would go up. Companies with better solutions would get promoted which
in turn would remove the filth from our streets. A government initiative is
always that of a push whereas a free-market initiative is always that of
a pull. Take for example, the FDI opportunities presented by the Keep
Singapore Clean scheme as a backdrop. SBM needs to catch the publics
eye and drum up private participation. It has done the former till now but
the latter has seen lacklustre growth. It would be interesting to see how the
Government takes it forward in the coming years.
A-130
Do we really need smart cities in

India?
ndia is a land of smarts. Our smartness is visible in the classrooms,

where the students are pushing the boundaries of learning everyday.
Our smartness is visible in the business field, where the world is witnessing
Indians taking over some of the key companies and decision making seats.
Our smartness is visible on the streets, where people all around the world
come to admire our capabilities and vigour to survive in a densely crowded
country. We are smart. Our society is smart. I didnt know we lacked smart
cities till now.
Smart City
Typically, a smart city is a mesh of ICT (Information & Communication
Technologies) that covers a city wide area and facilitates better
communication between the people and the Government. For example, if
the local administration offers a newer, better public transportation scheme,
then it is in everyones interests that more and more people get to know
about it. It would be wiser to get the public more connected with online
booking of the tickets, real-time display of transport, stations, interchanges,
congestion, routes, available alternatives, etc. all on their own devices, viz.
cell phones.
This is merely an example to illustrate the ease of living when ICT blends
management with the customer (Government with the civilians). With more
Do we Really Need Smart cities in India?
A-131
connectivity, more solutions can be provided to reduce operational waste and

increase participation from the people in key decisions that affect them. The
idea of a data driven decision making style for urban development is a strong
allure. Some projects that can excite include (as identified by MIT):
Multi-modal mobility recommendation engines
Personalized, transformable urban housing
Electronic nervous systems, from the scale of the human body to the city
Dynamic smart grids that respond to human mobility and behaviour
patterns
New urban vehicles including electric scooters, automobiles, bike-lane
vehicles, etc.
Crystal Clear Advantages

The impact of including ICT into
governance is unmatched. Today, in
India, a transactional relationship
exists between the Government and
the governed. This means that a decree
is passed and the people are told to
adjust. It isnt all that autocratic, but the
system is such that it leaves much to be
desired. Where is the feedback? How
does it reach the policymakers? There
are processes that enable feedback, for
instance, public outreach, the media,
platforms like jan-samwad (known by
different names in different states), etc. but things are not streamlined. The
feedback from the people is not included in improving the systems. Or if it
is included, it is not really told/shown to the people. If you dont show the
people that their voices are heard, the inputs dry down and what remains is
frustration.
In product technologies, one thing is certain. You need to have an
amazing feedback mechanism to improve. The whole concept of A/B testing
depends upon feedback. How can the Government analyze what is working
and what isnt until they talk to the people? ICT helps here. With growing cell
phone and internet penetration, India is sitting on top of a ripe infrastructural
advantage. We need more companies that can match the peoples needs with
clear-cut advantages. A smoother ICT will help in getting more and more
people to participate in governance. This will in turn, enable better products
and systems.
Also consider that living in touch with the environment and mitigating
waste is a key concern for developing urban ecosystems. Cities like New
Delhi, which have been identified as having an extremely high level of air
pollution must work with nature as opposed to against it. The idea of an
eco-city is much closer to the idea of a smart city.
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Do we Really Need Smart cities in India?
The Indian connotation

There is a particular affection
towards the term smart. When the
Government announces that India is
going to develop smart cities, no one
is going to start proclaiming that they
want to live in un-smart places. With
this branding of white and black, and
right or wrong, anyone standing up
and saying that probably the smart
city concept isnt what we need, would
be identified as a naysayer. Take
for instance, how Facebook marketed its Facebook.org idea. They asked
people a loaded question: Do you want India to have free basic online
services? And then they changed the name facebook.org to free basics.
This kind of connotation branding would isolate the people who question
the implications of the policies. A smart city may be a good idea but there
needs to be a debate about whether the increase of technology based services
would really improve the situation or would cause a spiralling increase in the
already existing urban angst.
The affectation continues with more weight being put on rhetoric than
actual practice. India, or any country, needs smarter cities, but the onus of
the implementation lies with the bureaucrats. Bureaucracy is infamous for
being rigid and not open to newer ideas. For example, the PRT (Public Rapid
Transit) system has never taken off in the world, mainly due to multiple
factors like lack of public interest among others. But a major factor was also
the lack of confidence shown by many city administrations. The Indian
bureaucracy has its own limitations. The way the Net Neutrality issue has
been handled, the manner in which multiple other schemes related to internet
technologies are being worked out, shows that the Indian bureaucracy is not
in sync with the fast pace of ICT development. Take a cue from this.
What about the disconnect with the villages? According to the 2011
census, India has more than 600,000 villages. About 70% of India still
lives in the rural areas. If the majority of Indian population is rural, then
why would you focus on creating smart cities and not smart villages? Is
it because the contribution of agriculture to the GDP of India is less than
15%? Is it because the villages do not figure prominently in the pro-industry
policies of the Modi Government? It may be the reason, and keep in mind
that most industrialized societies went through the same route. So, yes we
want smart cities, but we also know that its not a low-hanging fruit. For
becoming smart, India will need more time than is being touted.
The article focuses on the technicalities of smart cities but doesnt talk
as to why smart cities should be on govts priorities while there are a host
of issues such as increasing poverty rate, lack of infrastructure and basic
amenities like implementing a proper drainage system, providing good
water, sanitation and healthcare facilities etc to attend.
The article is full of technical terms. Should be written in Plain English,
avoid using big words
A-133
India & its neighbours: Conflict

and Cooperation
Love your neighbour as yourself; but dont take down the fence.
Carl Sandburg
oreign relations are the pinnacle of diplomacy. You shake the extended
hand today that you condemned yesterday. Tact is the name of the game.
With both eyes on their own countrys benefits, governments join together
or lock heads on issues of global concern. India is a major force in its own
right and even more so when we talk of its strategic position in the South
Asian region.
With globalization and the recent changes in the government policies, Indian
foreign policy has been altered to make space for ideological neighbours who
are more in sync with Indias global efforts. These countries see India as an
ally for the coming decades which is a good sign for our own future. With a
stable government in place, and a growing economy, India is in a sweet spot.
It can discuss trade more openly with countries that are interested in safer
and smoother economic ties. And it can wield the iron hand when a country
shows aggressive tendencies.
Territorial Neighbours
In the South Asian region, India was perceived as a big player with benevolent
intentions. With the formation of SAARC (South Asian Association for
Regional Cooperation) and the active advocacy of NAM (Non-Aligned
Movement), India was looked up to by the other SAARC members as a
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India & its Neighbours: Conflict and Cooperation
benevolent big brother. But after becoming a nuclear power, the power
dynamics have changed. Nowadays, with the achievements that India has
scaled, including a healthy GDP growth rate, successful space programs,
increasing world presence, the other smaller SAARC members have started
viewing India as no more benevolent. Indias suggestions are also being
treated as infringing their political freedom.
For the smaller nations that surround India, it always makes sense to have
treaties with India that protect their economic and military interests. For
India, treaties like these inhibit any manipulative influence that a major
political power like China can have in the future.India and Nepalsigned
a similar treaty in 1950. The Indo-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship
created a sense of camaraderie which was hard to obtain otherwise.From
that time onwards, India has seen its upheavals and Nepal has moved on
from an autocracy to a democracy through a tumultuous route, but both
countries have stayed true to each other. There have been some clashes of
interests though. Nepal never liked that Sikkim was added to the Indian
polity and that India has not been supportive of the policy which claims that
Nepal be declared as a Zone of Peace. The time after that has been a topsyturvy ride and even now, when Nepal has instituted a new Constitution in
2015, India has been left blind-sided and trying to cope with it by pressurizing
Nepal to make changes that are more harmonious for the region as a whole.
India and Myanmar relations have always been overshadowed by two
influences, one the military (Myanmar had the worlds longest surviving
military rule till when it was dissolved in 2011) and the other China (China
has always maintained cordial relations with Myanmar and this has been a
major point of concern to India).
Still, after 1993, India started approaching the country with a more economic
mindset than a political one. Both P.V. Narsimha Rao and AtalBehari
Vajpayee governments agreed with this.
With Sri Lanka, India has a complicated tussle. On one hand, India has
maintained a policy of non intervention after burning its hands with the
tussle against LTTE. On the other, India has to negate the growing influence
of Pakistan and
China
over
Sri
Lanka in order to
ensure safe waters
for its territory. India
is Sri Lankas only
close neighbour and
as rightly pointed out
by the current PM,
Mr. NarendraModi,
the destinies of the
two countries are
intertwined.
A-135
Pakistan and China are two of Indias neighbours who will continue to
thwart any developmental efforts that India makes towards even a win-win
situation. Pakistan has prevalent institutions that foster and propagate a
genuine hatred towards India among the populace. These institutions will
continue to operate this way. For India to move on, we have to acknowledge
their presence while forming policies. For the last 60 years, China has claimed
Arunachal Pradesh as its own. They aggressively patrol the surrounding area
to provoke action. They even deny visas to Indian residents who are from
this region claiming that these people are not Indians. According to them,
they are Chinese residents and hence the visa cannot be issued to a Chinese
citizen. Border issues with both the countries are created because of differing
reasons. For Pakistan, border issues are a way of manipulating power within
the countrys own power circles. Also, economically, Pakistan is in that state
where it needs help from so many quarters of the world. Depending on
outside help for internal development leaves it exposed to manipulation from
these countries. This was what the USA had been doing for all this long by
providing foreign aid in the guise of arm-twisting the country and using it as
an army base among other indirect strategic advantages. China on the other
hand, uses border skirmishes as a way of disciplining its own people and
changing the countrys discourse towards a common enemy. In China, with
the communist government, it is important to indulge in activities like these
that prove to the country that the enemy of the state is on its borders and
not inside. India has secured its borders all along the Chinese and Pakistan
regions and even with the other neighbouring nations.
India shares scintillating ties with Bhutan and Maldives. India has always
helpedthese countries with foreign aids for developmental projects. As of
2015-16, Bhutan is the largest beneficiary of Indian aid.
India and Bangladesh have a complicated relationship which most often
stays on the positive side. There were some border issues but after the signing
A-136
of the 2011 treaty things have been moving in the positive direction. The last
major development in this regard was the signing of the Land Boundary Act
(LBA) which rested all border issues between the two countries. India and
Bangladesh have a healthy trade and the current Indian government has a
keen eye on energy investments in the region.
Ideological Neighbours
Neighbours dont always mean territorial ones. Nowadays, it is more
ideological than anything else. India has always had a trusting relationship
with Russia and a rather dicey one with America. Today, the country is
poised towards creating a much smoother kinship with USA and Europe.
India is also finding strong support from countries like Japan and Israel,
who have always supported India but were never prominent players (foreign
policy wise). Even the South-East Asia is now acknowledging Indias
strong presence and according accolades where it is due. For example,
the Afghanistancarried a 100 meter long Indian flag along with their own
national flag to show their gratitude towards Indian efforts to reconstruct the
Salma Dam. Theseare smart moves by the present government which will
bear fruit in the coming years.
A-137
A-138
Events
JANUARY
India
successfully
test-fires
canister-based
ICBM
Agni-V
missile: India on 31th January,
2015 successfully tested third
developmental trial of its long range
missile Agni-V at Wheelers Island
off Odisha coast. The first and
second tests were conducted on 19
April 2012 and 15 September 2013
from the same location. Agni-V
will be inducted into the services
after few more trials. Agni-V is an
indigenously developed canisterbased intercontinental ballistic
missile (ICBM) developed by the
Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO), India. It is
a surface-to-surface nuclear capable
missile which is about 17 metres
long, 2 metres wide and has a launch
weight of around 50 tonnes. It can
strike up to a range of 5,000- 5,800
km and capable of carrying nuclear
warhead of over one tonne. The
Agni series of India includes Agni1 with 700 km range, Agni-II with
2000 km range, Agni-III and AgniIV with 2500 km to more than 3500
range.
Way back in 2007, senior defence
scientist M. Natrajan unveiled
DRDOs working on an upgraded
version of the Agni III, known
as the Agni-V. At that time this
was not considered a threat by the
government of other countries
especially by our neighbours like
Pakistan and China.
World Bank report on Social
Inclusion
and
Sustainable
Development: A World Bank report
highlighted the progress of Himachal
Pradesh towards social inclusion
and Sustainable Development. The
State has achieved both economic

growth and human development
which have reduced poverty level
among different groups in the state.
It has covered the issues such as
declining female child sex ratio,
undernutrition in children and
an ageing population. Its poverty
level has dropped by fourfold
between 199394 and 2011. The
achievements are remarkable as far
as rural poverty is concerned. This
progress is seen in both rural and
urban areas of Himachal Pradesh.
Its per capita income was recorded
to be second highest in India and
people have life expectancy of 3.4
years longer than an average Indian.
Further, according to the report
Himachal
has
highest
work
participation rate in India. Half of
the male and one-third of female
population in working age group are
regular salaried personnels in urban
area. The state is predominantly
an agricultural economy which
tends to have higher labour force
participation rates. More than 60 per
cent of females in rural Himachal
Pradesh are involve in labour force.
\13th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas
2015 concluded in Gujarat: Pravasi
Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) is an event
of Ministry of Overseas Indian
Affairs (MOIA). The 13th event of
PBD started on January 7, 2015 and
completed on January 9, 2015 in
Ahmedabad, Gujarat. It is said to
be a day to honour the contribution
of the Indian community to the
development of India. The theme
of the event was Apna Bharat,
Apna Gaurav. Pravasi Bharatiya
Samman awards were given away
to 15 members of Indian Diaspora
during the event. Vice-President,
Events
Hamid Ansari, presented the awards
to the members. Donald Ramotar,
President of Republic of Guyana,
attended the event as the chief guest.
The event marked the 100th year
of Mahatma Gandhis return to
India. The event is also a medium
of reminding the citizens of the
Independence struggle. Cultural
evenings, exhibition of books
and paintings were some of the
captivations of the event. The next
Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) 2016
is to be held on January 10, 2016
at Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra, New
Delhi. It will be the 7th conference
being organised in New Delhi after
those in the years 2003, 2004, 2007,
2008, 2010, 2011 and 2014.
102nd Indian Science Congress
held in Mumbai: From January 3 to
January 7, 2015 was held the 102nd
Indian Science Congress in Mumbai.
Inaugurated by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and organized by
Indian Science Congress Association
(ISCA), the congress was themed
Science and Technology for
Human Development. Childrens
Science Congress, Womens Science
Congress and Science Exhibition
were also part of the congress.
APJ Abdul Kalam inaugurated
the Childrens Science Congress.
University of Mumbai played a
vital role in organizing the event.
Esteemed scientists, tech experts
and research students from India
and abroad were among the active
participants of the congress. A
total of 16,000 delegates attended it
indicating a growth in the number
of attendants which was only 108
in the first year. Padmashri Vasant
Gowarikar was given homage by the
Prime Minister for his contribution
to space, population and weather
research. He requested the eminent
scientists to guide the PhD students.
Prime Minister also awarded gold
A-139
medals to the Nobel Laureates in the

Congress. Discussions took place
on ancient sciences, ancient Indian
aviation technology, biodiversity
conservation, space application and
other topics. Issue of Genetically
Modified crops in India was also an
important discussion at the congress.
Periyar Tiger Reserve won NTCA
biennial award: The Periyar Tiger

and Climate Change. It aims at

The Periyar Foundation was set up
in the year 2006; it was a model

Foundation.
A-140
PM inaugurated Dandi Kutir

museum:

inaugurated
a
state-of-the-art
museum Dandi Kutir in Gandhinagar,

inauguration was done on the
th
th

of Mahatma Gandhis famous Dandi

Mahatma Gandhis life in the form

in the museum where the Prime
Minister penned his thoughts after

on Gandhis life. Prime Minister has
taken a deepinterest in the work of
setting up the museum to honour
the father of nation, Mahatma
Gandhi.
Pravasi
Bharatiya
Samman
Awards 2015:

2015 to January 9, 2015 at Mahatma
Mandir in Gandhinagar. 15 members
of Indian Diaspora were awarded
resident, Mohammad

Donald Rabindernauth Ramaotar
(President of Guyana), Mala Mehta,
Dr Rajaram Sanjaya, Kanwaljit Singh
Bakhshi, Rajmal Parakh, Duraikannu
Events
Karunakaran, Essop Goolam Pahad,

Shah Bharatkumar Jayantilal, Ashraf

Minister, Sushma Swaraj, was
also present there along with the
Gujarat Chief Minister, Anandiben

the highest honour presented to

Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) or
to organisation or institution run

medallions miniature in a lapel
pins form.
Saina Won Syed Modi Grand
Prix Gold 2015: Saina Nehwal the
badminton player has been ranked
as worlds number three clinched
the womens singles of Syed Modi
Grand Prix Gold badminton
tournament on 25 January 2015.
The tournament is named after the
famous Indian badminton player
Syed Modi, an eight-time National
Badminton champion. In an
ebullient comeback, she defeated
the seventh ranked world champion
Carolina Marin of Spain (19-21,
25-23, 21-16) in the finals played at
Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium
in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. Saina
did start off firmly as Carolina raced
away to a 5-2 lead. However, in
the next few minutes, Saina took a
vital 15-7 advantage. The Spaniard
carried the momentum with some
Events
deceiving shots that helped her to
bag the first game 19-21. But it was
Saina who got the better of Carolina
and managed a neck-and-neck affair
of the game which eventually led
to her win. With this strenuous
win, Saina managed a hat trick of
wins and maintained her 100% win
record against Carolina over the
three competitions played till date.
Indigenously-built Light Combat
Aircraft Tejas handed over to IAF
The first indigenously -built Tejas
Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) was
handed over by Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar to IAF chief
Air Marshal Arup Raha on 17th
January 2015. It was a great day for
Indian defence and aerospace sector
thirty-two years after sanctioning of
project. It was initiated in 1983 to
replace the ageing MiG-21s in IAFs
fleet.
Tejas has successfully demonstrated
weapon delivery capability during
trials at Jamnagar and Jaisalmer.
The entire project is estimated
to cost over Rs 30,000 crore. It
expected that 20 Aircrafts will be
built by 2017-2018, to make the first
squadron of the aircraft.
The LCA is significant for its
lighter weight, greater agility
and manoeuvrability. The lighter
weight is achieved by use of
higher percentage of Carbon Fibre
Composites.
Other
significant
features are the Digital Fly-By-Wire
System, Flight Control Systems,
Open Architecture Computer.
PETA announces Indias first fenced
elephant sanctuary: Bannerghatta
Biological Park, Karnataka became
the first fenced elephant sanctuary
of India as announced by People for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals
(PETA). PETA consultant along
with elephant expert Carol Buckley
designed the model of 49.5 hectare
A-141
(122 acres) fenced sanctuary. The

sanctuary has solar-fencing running
all along the specially designed
enclosure and a state-of-the-art
emergency corral made from steel
pipes. This provided the elephants
free movement within the secured
area without chains. They can even
bathe in ponds and socialize with
other animals. It is now home to
15 elephants, including 15-year-old
Sunder who got liberated from a
harsh life at a temple in Maharashtra
in 2014 by Indian Supreme Court
following public support from
Paul McCartney. Workshops were
organized to give training to the
local caregiver in the principles
of protected contact, ensuring
safe interaction between humans
and elephants by keeping them
separated by a sturdy barrier under
the guidance of Margaret Whittaker,
director of elephant programmes at
the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee
and Gail Laule, co-founder of Active
Environments.
18th National Conference on
e-Governance held in Gujarat: A
two day conference on e-governance
theme under Digital GovernanceNew Frontier was held on 30-31
January, 2015 at Gandhinagar,
Gujarat. It was organised by the
Department of
Administrative
Reforms & Public Grievances
(DARPG)
and
Department
of Electronics & Information
Technology (DeitY), Government
of India in collaboration with
the Department of Science &
Technology,
Government
of
Gujarat. Inaugurated by Chief
Minister of Gujarat, Anandiben
Patel, it provided a platform for
policy
makers,
practitioners,
industry leaders and academicians to
deliberate, interact and recommend
strategy for good governance.
The conference focused on Skill
development and Employability.
A-142
Main discussion emphasized on

building
stronger
relationship
between the government, industry
and academia to create programmes
and institutes as it may bring about
empowerment, equity, efficiency
in India, besides being the most
economic mode of governance.
PM launches Sukanya Samridhi
Yojana under BBBP campaign: On
January 22, 2015, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi announced the
launching of a small deposit
scheme for girl child called
Sukanya Samridhi Yojana under
the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
(BBBP) campaign. Girls have been
discriminated against boys with
regard to savings of a family. The
scheme is an initiative to eliminate
this discrimination. The scheme
enables parents to open bank
accounts for their girls who are under
the age of 10 years. Deposits in the
account opened under the scheme
will receive an interest rate of 9.1
percent and would get income tax
rebate. The account can be opened
from the time of the birth of the girl
to the time she reaches the age 10
years and with a minimum amount
of 1000 rupees. The account will
remain active till the marriage of
girl or completion of 21 years from
the date of opening of the account.
The account has a limitation on
the maximum amount that can be
deposited during a single financial
yearit is limited to 1.5 lakh rupees.
However, for the higher education
of the girl, 50 percent of the amount
can be withdrawn from the bank if
she has reached the age of 18 years.
Shanta Kumar Committee report
on FCI restructuring: Shanta
Kumar chairs the High Level
Committee (HLC) set up by the
Government of India on August 20,
2014. The committee has submitted
a report to the Prime Minister for
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restructuring of Food Corporation
of India (FCI). The report has made
recommendations on procurement,
stocking and movement, NFSA
and PDS and leakage related issues.
In the report, Shanta Kumar has
proposed that the FCI should entrust
all operations of paddy, wheat and
rice to Andhra Pradesh, Haryana,
Odisha,
Chattisgarh,
Madhya
Pradesh and Punjab expressing
that these states have considerable
experience
and
reasonable
infrastructure for acquisition. It
also advocates computerization of
food management system so that
leakages may be monitored and
hence avoided. Various agencies
like State Warehousing Corporation
should be entrusted with stocking
operations. Various stakeholders
should be invited and bidding
should be conducted among them
to lower down the cost of storage
of food grains. Containers should
be used instead of gunny bags to
transfer the grains to reduce losses
during transits. The report also
recommended cutting down the
taxes that are levied on food grains
from 14.5% to 3%.
J & K selected for the National
Award of e-Governance for Best
District Level initiative: Jammu
and Kashmir has won the National
Award for e-Governance for the best
district-level initiative in the country.
Project e-Panchayat was selected
among 53 nominees for spot-study
carried by PriceWater Coopers
Ltd and officers of Department of
Administrative Reforms, PMO at
New Delhi on December 22, 2014.
The award for the project
e-Panchayat was shared by Deputy
Commissioner Kathua, Shahid
Iqbal Choudhary, and Assistant
Commissioner Development Reasi
& Joginder Singh Rai.
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Project was launched in 20132014 in J&K to strengthen 147
Panchayats. Service delivery shifted
from block level to Panchayat
level as a decentralised regime of
Panchayats has been established.
The award was presented during
the 18th National Conference on
e-Governance held at Gandhinagar
on January 30 and 31, 2015. J&K
has bagged the award for the first
time in 18 years since 1997.
FEBRUARY
Arvind Kejriwal Sworn-in as 8th
C.M of Delhi: Following a sweeping
win of Aam Admi Party (AAP)
in the Delhi Assembly elections,
partys National Convener, Arvind
Kejriwal was sworn as the Chief
Minister of Delhi on 14th February
2015, exactly an year after Kejriwal
quit after a short regime of 49days. AAP had won 67 of the 70
seats in Delhi, wiping out Congress
completely and leaving only three
seats for the Bhartiya Janta Party
(BJP). Lieutenant Governor Najeeb
Jung administered the oath of
office and secrecy at the historic
Ramlila Maidan to Arvind Kejriwal,
Manish Sisodia, Asim Ahmed
Khan, Sandeep Kumar, Satyendar
Jain, Gopal Rai and Jitender Singh
Tomar. Soon after taking the oath,
the 46 year old Arvind Kejriwal
announced the priorities of his
government which included steps
against
corruption,
communal
elements, VIP culture. He also
guaranteed the Delhiites to fight
for full statehood for the national
capital. He called his win as miracle
of god and warned his party
leaders and workers to refrain from
arrogance as that was the reason of
defeat for Congress and BJP.
Delhi Assembly Elections 2015

Results Declared: The result of
Delhi Assembly polls, held on 7th
February 2015, was announced by
the Election Commission of India
on 10th February 2015. In a sweeping
victory, Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam
Aadmi Party (AAP) completely
wiped out Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) and the Congress by securing
67 of the 70 seats in Delhi Assembly
elections. This election result showed
a win percentage of more than 90,
a feat achieved only twice before in
Sikkim and Bihar. Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) won 3 seats, Indian
National Congress (INC), Bahujan
Samaj Party (BSP), Shiromani Akali
Dal (SAD), Indian National Lok Dal
and Independents did not win any
seat. This year the Delhi Legislative
Assembly elections recorded the
highest ever voter turnout of about
67.14% in the history. The former
revenue service officer Arvind
Kejriwal had a sensational victory in
the New Delhi constituency whereas
BJPs amateur candidate, Nupur
Sharma and Congress leader Kiran
Walia came in second and third
respectively. BJP even had a loss
of face with their chief ministerial
candidate Kiran Bedi losing out in
the traditional stronghold of Krishna
Nagar which was long held by party
veteran Harsh Vardhan.
MP Awarded for Excellent Work in
MGNREGA: On 2nd February 2015,
Union Rural Development Minister
Virendra Singh gave away the 10th
National Award for excellent work
done under Mahatma Gandhi
National
Rural
Employment
Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA)
to Madhya Pradesh. The award
was received by Madhya Pradesh
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Panchayats and Rural Development

Minister Gopal Bhargava. The
award was given at the MGNREGA
summit held in New Delhi.
MGNREGA is an Indian labour
law and social security measure
that aims to guarantee the right to
work. The scheme came in action
from 2 February 2006 in 200 districts
but w.e.f. 1 April 2008 is covering
all districts of India. MGNREA
was launched with the objective
to ensure secure livelihood in rural
areas by providing at least 100 days
of wage employment in a financial
year to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do unskilled
manual work. The award was given
to Madhya Pradesh for combining
MGNREGA and other schemes
for construction of permanent
assets and providing permanent
employment opportunities to the
needy.
Indian Army and State Bank of
India inked MoU on Defence
Salary Package: The Indian Army
and State Bank of India (SBI) signed
a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) on Defence Salary Package
on the 23rd of February, 2015. The
first MoU between SBI and Indian
Army was signed in the year 2011.
The revised MoU is suited to the
requirements of the soldiers and their
families. A number of additional
facilities have been added in the
revised MoU. Free/concessional
services like free funds transfer to
any bank in India through RTGS /
NEFT, free ATM cards, free cheque
books and free drafts are some of
the facilities that entail the MoU.
It also includes Personal Accident
Insurance (PAI) enhancement,
linking it to the savings account
rather than the debit card. Exemption
percentage of margin money for
car and house loans has been
enhanced. The processing charges
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on the loans were waived off. Instant
fund transfers to Nepal for Nepali
Domicile Gorkha Soldiers serving
the Indian Army were made easy
under the Nepal Express Remittance
Scheme. Modern banking facilities
will also be accessible. Almost 10
lakh serving personnel and 19.5 lakh
pensioners will be benefitted by the
revised MoU.
Government accepted 14th Finance
Commission
recommendations:
Union
government
accepted
the 14th Finance Commission
recommendations on Tuesday,
the 24th of February, 2015. The
recommendations were made to
devolve an unusual 42 percent of
the divisible pool of states during
the years 2015-16 to 2019-20 against
the 32 percent which was suggested
earlier by the previous commission.
Accordingly, in 2015-16, states would
receive INR 5.79 lac crore of the
Centres expected gross tax receipts
of INR 15.67 lac crore. While the
14th Finance Commission promised
to give sufficient space to the Union
Government to have its fiscal debit at
the recommended level which is 3.6
percent for next financial year and
3 percent for each of the following
four years, the Centre said that its
fiscal elbow room would be reduced.
The Finance Commission also
communicated that the government
would have INR 49.14 lac crore left
from the divisible pool during the
five-year period. The 14th Finance
Commissions
recommendations
have been taken in a positive spirit
as noted in the Prime Ministers
message to the chief ministers. The
Finance Commissions, previously,
had recommended only 1-2 percent
increase in the devolution.
Government
launched
portal
MADAD to redress consular
grievances: The launch of e-portal
MADAD took place at the MEA
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headquarters by External Affairs
Minister, Sushma Swaraj. It
has made easy for the Indian
citizens living abroad to file their
consular grievances online. The
salient features of the e-portal
are to improve the tracking and
redressal of grievances, handle and
forward complaints and escalate
unresolved cases. The cases related
to bringing back mortal remains of
any national would be dealt with
as the major priority. Linking of
similar grievances would be done
on the basis of passport number to
avoid duplication and automated
escalation. Colour code system
of red-amber-green would be
implemented; green would indicate
the case has been addressed well
while a red colour would show
pending cases. The red colour would
escalate the case to the high level
officials and would then be looked
into and resolved. The portal will
also aid in keeping a watch on the
performances of the authorities.
A call centre is also expected to be
linked with the Ministry of Overseas
Indian Affairs and a mobile
application, too, is being worked on
to allow people to use the portal on
the go.
Prime minister launched soil health
card scheme: Soil Health Card
Scheme is a scheme launched by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
behalf of Government of India on
19th February 2015. This nationwide
launch was held at Suratgarh
town of Sriganganagar district,
Rajasthan. Under this scheme, the
focus will be on health of soil in
agricultural areas across the country
to boost productivity and bring
about increased prosperity. The
government plans to issue Soil Card
to farmers that will carry crop-wise
recommendations for nutrients and
fertilizers required for the individual
farms to help farmers to improve
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productivity through judicious use

of inputs. The Soil Health Card
Scheme was announced in the
first budget presented by Union
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in
July 2014, who allotted a budget of
Rs 100 crore for issuing cards along
with supplementary Rs 56 crore
for setting up over 100 mobile soil
testing laboratories across India.
Further, the PM gave a slogan
Swasth Dharaa Khet Haraa
(Healthy Earth Green Farm). Krishi
Karman Awards were also given on
the occasion by the Prime Minister
who said that the government has
come out of the national capital to
distribute these awards.
Chhattisgarh awarded renewable
power
development:
The
Chhattisgarh Government was
felicitated for being the best
performing states in Renewable
Power Development in the state. The
state was adjudged for the award
on the basis of the criteria fixed up
by the 13th Finance Commission
headed by Vijay Kelkar.
The state is generating 45 MW off
Grid Solar power and 200 MW
through rice husk. Solar power is
being used in 600 primary health
centres, 100 community health
centres, 350 police stations, 1800
tribal hostels, 27 collectorates. In
addition 1,700 villages of the state
have been electrified. These villages
are using 3,000 solar power pumps
for drinking water and 1,500 for
irrigation purpose.
The alternative sources of energy
are being promoted by Chhattisgarh
State
Renewable
Energy
Development Agency (CREDA).
The state has won the award earlier
also for these projects.
35Th National Games Mascot
Ammu Named in Limca Book of
Records: 35th National Games
mascot Ammu, the Great Hornbill,
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has made into the Limca Book of

Records. It has made into the records
book owing to a play Kalikkunna
Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu (India Awaits Children Who
Play) in which Ammu is featured as
lead role. According to the Limca
Books 2015 Special Literature
Edition, this play is about a mascot,
which had been staged in most
number of schools. By 6th April,
2014, the play had been staged in
147 schools across seven districts of
Kerala. Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi
Bharatham
Kathirikkunnu
is
scripted and directed by theatre artist
Anil Karetee and enacted by a team
of police officers. It was envisaged
to promote sports among children
and persuade them to take up sports
along with academics.
The Great Hornbill is the State bird
of Kerala and was selected as the
games mascot to reflect on states
concern for conservation of this
species which is facing extinction.
It also expresses Keralas concern
to preserve its rain forests and
regenerate the lost habitat of this
precious bird. The feminine name
Ammu was chosen for the mascot
as tribute to women of Kerala and
is a reminder that Kerala is proud to
have a gender ratio that is tilted in
favour of women.
Union
Government
approved
revised Guidelines for Pradhan
Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana:
The centre has given approval to
amendments to Pradhan Mantri
Gram Sadak Yojana(PMGSY) to
accord priority in the selection of
roads to new connectivity as well as
upgradation, leading to the eligible
habitations in the Gram Panchayat
identified by the Members of
Parliament under Sansad Adarsh
Gram Yojana (SAGY).
The decision was taken at a meeting
chaired by the Union Minister
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for Rural Development. This is in
accordance with the decision of the
Cabinet wherein all the Ministries/
Departments of
the Central
Government have been to take
necessary action to make changes to
guidelines of their respective Central
sector and centrally sponsored
schemes to enable priority to be
given to Gram Panchayats selected
under the Adarsh Gram Yojana.
As per the revised guidelines,
the state governments shall give
priority to all roads leading to Gram
Panchayats identified under SAGY
irrespective of Comprehensive New
Connectivity Priority List (CNCPL)
to include all eligible unconnected
habitations in the selected Gram
Panchayats.
In case of up gradation of roads,
priority shall be given to the roads
which have Pavement Condition
Index (PVI) Value I and II identified
under SAGY.
The length required for up gradation
of these roads should be within the
overall target allocated to various
states under PMGSY-I and PMGSYII.
In case of roads already built under
PMGSY, in the Gram Panchayats
identified under SAGY, states
should carry out maintenance as
suggested in the Operations Manual
and Rural Roads Manual; even if the
maintenance period of five years is
over.
Adequate funds for this purpose will
be provided by the respective state
governments.
The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak
Yojana or PMGSY is a nationwide
plan in India to provide good
all- weather road connectivity to
unconnected villages.
This centrally sponsored scheme
was introduced in 2000, by the then
Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari
Vajpayee and Prabhjot Singh.
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Single window eBiz portal
launched: The Union Minister
of Finance Arun Jaitly launched
a single window eBIZ portal for
11 central government services in
New Delhi on Saturday. eBIZ is a
Government- to- Business (G2B)
portal and was launched with a aim
to bringing transparency and ease of
doing business in the country.
The portal will cater to 11Central
Government services: four services
of Ministry of Corporate Affairs
(MCA), two services of Central
Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT),
two services of Reserve Bank of
India (RBI), one service each from
Directorate General of Foreign
Trade(DGFT), Employees Provident
Fund Organization (EPFO), and
Petroleum and Explosives Safety
Organization(PESO).
A business user can avail of this
service any time from the day of
launch either from the portal of
respective Ministry/ Department or
by submission of forms.
National
Institute
of
Smart
Government (NISG) as a consulting
partner conceptualised the eBIZ
and Infosys Limited, Bangalore
developed it. It was developed in a
Public Private Partnership (PPP)
model for a period of 10 years.
In the first three years eBiz portal
will be implemented on a pilot basis
during which 50 services (26 central
and 24 states) will be covered. These
10 states will be Andhra Pradesh,
Delhi,
Haryana,
Maharashtra,
Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Punjab,
Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and West
Bengal.
One of the salient features of eBiz
is Payment Gateway Solution. It has
been set up in collaboration with
all the Public Sector Banks s(PSB)
to transfer government fees on T+1
basis.
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For eBIZ transactions, an electronic

PAO system has been set up in
Department of Industrial Policy
and Promotion to make booking
and reconciliation of all central fees
received through eBIZ portal.
The eBIZ portal has been approved
by the Comptroller and Auditor
General (CAG) of India and it is
the first time that collection of fees
through credit and debit cards for
different services has been permitted
making it very convenient for
business to deposit fees.
10
February
as
National
Deworming Day declared: 10
February was declared as the
National De-worming Day by
Union Minister for Health & Family
Welfare Mr. Jagat Prakash Nadda.
A path breaking initiative focused
mainly to reduce the threat of
parasitic and other forms of stomach
worm infections seen in millions of
children across the nation.
Worms in small children interfere
with nutrient uptake and can cause
severe complications resulting in
anemia, malnutrition and improper
mental and physical development.
The Union Minister declared that
target is to make India worm free
by de-worming all pre-school and
school age children between 1 to 19
years.
The day will be observed in 11 states
and Union Territories including
Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Dadra
& Nagar Haveli, and Haryana. The
initiative will be aimed at providing
Albendazole tablets to children (half
tablet to 1-2 years children and full
tablet to 2-19 years).
Prime Minister Constitutes 3
Sub-Groups of Chief Ministers
Within NITI Aayog: The Prime
Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has
announced that the NITI Aayog
would constitute three sub groups of
Chief Ministers. The themes behind
this are, Sub-group to study the 66
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Centrally Sponsored Schemes and

suggest which to carry on, which
to shift to states, and which to cut
down.
Sub-group to advise how NITI
Aayog
can
encourage
skill
development and creation of skilled
manpower inside states.
Sub-group to decide on institutional
mechanisms to be evolved and
technological inputs, for ensuring
that commitment to Swachh Bharat
becomes a part of life.
The Prime Minister asked all states
to create two task forces under the
guidance of the NITI Aayog. One
would focus on poverty alleviation,
and the other would focus on
development of agriculture in states.
Sub-groups will be decided once
the Chief Ministers indicate their
preferences.
MARCH
Stree Shakti Puraskar 2014:
President Mr. Pranab Mukherjee
awarded the Stree Shakti Puraskar
for the year 2015 to six illustrious
women on the eve of International
Womens Day for their exemplary
services in the upliftment of women.
The awardees of Stree Shakti
Puraskar 2015 are Sister Mariola
(Rajasthan) for the Rani Gaidinliu
Zeliang Award; Seema Prakash
(Madhya Pradesh) for the Rani
Lakshmibai
Award;
Astha
SansthanNGO
(Rajasthan)
for the Rani Rudramma Devi
Award; Chandraprabha Bokey
(Maharashtra) for the Mata Jijabai
Award; P. Bhanumati (Kerala) for
the Kannagi Award; and Anay Rahit
Zindagi- NGO (Goa) for the Devi
Ahilyabai Holkar Award.
The awards were given in six
categories which are named after
eminent women personalities in
the Indian history. The award was
instituted in 1991 and carries a

reward of Rs.300,000 and a citation.
Indias
First
Indigenously
Developed
Rotavirus
Vaccine
(Rotavac) Launched: The first
indigenously
developed
and
manufactured Rotavirus vaccineRotavac was launched on 9th
March, 2015. The vaccine seeks
to boost Indias efforts to combat
infant mortality due to diarrhoea. It
is the third vaccine of its kind which
is available globally to fight against
Rotavirus. The Rotavac vaccine was
developed by the joint association
between India and the United States
in the area of medical research. It
was developed under the publicprivate partnership (PPP) model
that involved Union Ministry of
Science and Technology, institutions
of the US Government and NGOs
in India supported by the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation. The
Bharat Biotech India Limited
(BBIL) and the Gates Foundation
had
contributed
immensely
towards vaccine development and
testing. Rotavirus is one of the
most common causative agents
of moderate-to-severe diarrhoea
(MSD) among infants below the
11 months age group in India. It
spreads from person to person due to
bacterial and parasiting agents that
are primarily transmitted through
contaminated food or water.
Indigenously Developed Astra
Successfully Test-fired: Indias
indigenously developed Beyond
Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air
missile Astra developed by Defence
Research
and
Development
Organisation
(DRDO)
was
successfully tested on 18th March,
2015 from a Sukhoi-30 fighter
aircraft. The test was undertaken at
the Integrated Test Range located at
Chandipur in Odisha. The missile
Events
successfully hit a simulated target
and also proved its manoeuvring
capability against a virtual target;
validating its various subsystems.
Missiles all subsystems like
propulsion, navigation; guidance
and separation from the aircraft
were also successfully tested. Single
stage solid fuelled and has payload
capacity of 15 kg conventional
explosives. Capable of engaging
and destroying highly manoeuvrable
supersonic aerial targets and destroy
enemy aircraft at supersonic speed
of 1.2 Mach to 1.4 Mach. It can
engage targets in head-on up to
80 km and tail-chase up to 20 km
modes. The missile can reach up to
110 km when fired from an altitude
of 15 km and 44 km when launched
from an altitude of 8 km and 21
km when fired from sea level. The
missile can be integrated with fighter
aircraft including Sukhoi-30 MKI,
Mirage-2000, MiG-29, Jaguar and
the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft
(LCA).
President Pranab Mukherjee gives
away Chakra Awards: President
conferred a Kirti Chakra award
and 11 Shaurya Chakra awards
to the armed forces personnel on
21st March 2015. In the list of the
11 awardees, three were conferred
posthumously for their gallantry.
The Kirti Chakra was awarded
to Captain Jaidev of Parachute
Regiment. The Shaurya Chakra
was awarded posthumously to
Subedar Prakash Chand, Lieutenant
Commander Manoranjan Kumar,
and Major Abhijai of Corps of
Engineers. The other Shaurya
Chakra awardees were Major Mukul
Sharma,
Commander
Gosavi
Kaustubh Vijaykumar, Major R
Vamshi Krishnan, Rifleman Manga
Ram, Wing Commander Huvey
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Upadhyaya,
Major
Abhishek
Kumar, Major Satnam Singh, Naik
Ansaigra Basumatary.
The Kirti Chakra is Indias second
highest peace gallantry award given
for valour, courageous action or
self-sacrifice away from the field of
battle. Shaurya Chakra is the third
highest peacetime gallantry award
for valour, courageous action or selfsacrifice while not engaged in direct
action with the enemy.
ISRO Named for Gandhi Peace
Prize: Gandhi Peace Prize for
the year 2014 was awarded to the
(ISRO) for its contribution to the
countrys development through
space technology and satellite-based
services.
ISRO is engaged in making space
technology and acts as a catalyst
of development to bring about
societal transformation. Its mission
is to provide the nation with spacebased services and to develop the
technologies to achieve the same.
ISRO recently sent its satellite
to Mars (Mars Orbit Mission),
becoming the fourth country to
reach Marss orbit, and first nation
to do so in first attempt. It has
emerged as one of the six largest
space agencies of the world.
The Gandhi peace prize was
established in 1995, on the 125th
birth anniversary celebration of
Mahatma Gandhi. The award is
presented annually to individuals and
institutions for their contributions
towards social, economic and
political transformation through
non-violence and other Gandhian
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principles. The award carries a cash

prize of Rs. 1.00 crore, a plaque and
a citation.
ISRO
Successfully
Launches
Fourth Navigation Satellite IRNSS
1D: ISRO successfully launched the
fourth navigation satellite called the
Indian Regional Navigation Satellite
System (IRNSS)-1D on 28th March,
2015. The satellite was launched by
the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
(PSLV) C-27 into the orbit from
Satish Dhawan Space Centre,
Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. It
weighs around 1,425 kg and carries
a navigation payload and CDMA
ranging payload in addition with a
laser retro-reflector.
IRNSS is a navigation system which
will cover India, and will also extend
1,500 kms from its boundaries. The
IRNSS system will include three
satellites in geostationary orbit and
four satellites in geosynchronous
orbit at the height of 36,000 km
above the Earth. The use of all
the satellites was expected to be
completed by 2015 at a cost of Rs.
1,420 cr. IRNSS is similar to other
navigation service providers like
USAs GPS (Global Positioning
System), Russias Glonass, Europes
Galileo, Japans Quasi Zenith and
Chinas Beidou.
APRIL
Mudra Bank to Provide Credit to
Small Entrepreneurs: On 8th August
2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi
launched Micro Units Development
Refinance Agency (MUDRA) bank
in New Delhi. The bank will provide
credit upto Rs 10 lakhs to small
entrepreneurs and act as a regulator
for Micro Finance Institutions

(MFIs) involved in manufacturing,
trading and service activities to
promote their growth. The Pradhan
Mantri MUDRA Yojana will be
the main support of the bank for
developing and refinancing.
MUDRA targets young, educated,
skilled workers and entrepreneurs,
mostly women. Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley had proposed that
MUDRA will have a corpus of Rs.
20,000 crores and credit guarantee
corpus of Rs. 3,000 crores. MUDRA
has basically three interventions:
Shishu, Kishore and Tarun. Shishu
is the first step when the business is
starting up with a loan cover upto
Rs. 50,000. Kishore is the middle
stage of business where loan cover
ranges from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh.
Tarun is the last and final stage
which provides loans upto Rs 10
lakh.
MUDRA will also take up other
initiatives such as supporting
financial
literacy,
creating
a
framework for small business
finance entities where it will work
with credit bureaus and rating
agencies among others.
India successfully test-fires nuclearcapable Agni-III: On 16th April
2015, India successfully test-fired
its nuclear-capable Agni-III ballistic
missile with a strike range of more
than 3,000 km from Wheeler Island
off Odisha coast. According to the
defence sources, the indigenously
developed
surface-to-surface
missile was test-fired from a mobile
launcher at launch complex-4 of
the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at
Wheeler Island by army at about
0955 hrs.
Logistic support for the test was
provided by the Defence Research
and Development Organisation
(DRDO). The Agni-III missile
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is powered by a two-stage solid
propellant system. With a length of
17 metres, the missiles diameter is 2
metres and launch weight is around
50 tonnes. It can carry a warhead
of 1.5 tonne which is protected by
carbon all composite heat shield.
The first developmental trial of
Agni-III was carried out on July
9, 2006 and it could not provide
desired result. Subsequent tests held
on April 12, 2007, May 7, 2008,
February 7, 2010 as well as the first
user trial on September 21, 2012 and
next on December 23, 2013 from the
same base were all successful.
India hosts 5th meeting of SAARC
Health Ministers: The 5th meeting
of the SAARC Health Ministers
hosted at New Delhi on 8 April,
2015. Approximately 50 delegates
from
all
SAARC
countries,
including India, comprising officials
and experts will participate in the
technical and official level meetings.
The meetings, to be chaired by India,
will deliberate and provide guidance
and a roadmap for strengthening
collaboration
among
SAARC
countries on a number of issues and
challenges faced by these countries.
Some of the prominent health issues
to be discussed include prevention
and control of communicable
and non-communicable diseases,
disease surveillance network, health
infrastructure, human resources for
health, immunization for vaccine
preventable diseases, HIV/AIDS,
mental health, improving access
to medicines and anti-microbial
resistance etc. The Health Ministers
will also discuss for adoption the
Delhi Declaration affirming their
commitment to work together
in identified areas and further
strengthen health collaboration
with agreed roadmap and timelines.
The purpose of the meetings is to
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find out ways and means to synergize

collective efforts, share strategies and
implement identified best practices
to provide better health and a better
quality of life to the citizens of
SAARC countries. These meetings
also signal Indias commitment to
promote health cooperation in a
more effective manner through the
SAARC platform in keeping with
the new policy of the Government
of India to promote cooperation
among the neighboring countries.
50th Jnanpith Award conferred on
Marathi litterateur Bhalchandra
Nemade: Modi awarded the 50th
Jnanpith Award to eminent Marathi
litterateur Bhalchandra Nemade
whose several books, including
Kosala and Hindu, have influenced
Indian writing. As a critic, Nemades
contribution rests in initiating
Deshivad, a theory of nativism that
negated globalisation, asserting the
value of a writers native heritage,
and language.
His novel, Kosala (Cocoon), 1963
was considered as a path breaking in
Marathi literature. His other novels
include Bidhar, Hool, Jarila and
Jhool. Melody and Dekhani are his
compilations of poems.
He had earlier been awarded with th
Sahitya Academy Award in 1990 for
his critical work Teenka Swayanvar.
Seventy-six-year-old Nemade, who
hails from Jalgaon, spoke about
the need for the Indian society to
stop thinking that progress would
come only with adopting foreign
influences.
ISRO Successfully Tests Indigenous
Cryogenic Engine: Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO)
successfully tested the powerful
version of the cryogenic engine
on 28th April,2015. The test was
conducted at ISRO propulsion
A-152
complex at Mahendragiri in
Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu .
This engine can carry a satellite of
up to four tonnes in geostationary
orbit. It will make India independent
of foreign support in sending heavier
satellites in the orbits.
There are few considerable facts
about the cryogenic engine. The
engine provides excess of thrust for
every kilogram of propellant burnt.
Cryogenic fuels are clean, they do
not emit any kind of harmful gas but
only water while burning.
Till now, Russias cryogenic engines
powered Indias GSLV. India had
been working hard to develop its
own indigenous cryogenic engine
which begun almost 30 years ago.
The first GSLV was launched in
January 2014 which was GLSV-D5.
This was the first successful launch
of a vehicle with indigenous engine.
Odisha government launches Aahar
scheme: Odisha Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik launched subsidised
Aahar scheme on the occasion of the
States Foundation Day. The scheme
was launched in Bhubaneswar,
Cuttack, Berhampur, Sambalpur
and Rourkela in the first phase. The
Chief Minister launched the scheme
in two towns first at the Capital
Hospital premises in Bhubaneswar
followed by Government Hospital in
Rourkela.
On the day of its launch, even
Hospital staffs purchased meal from
there.
Four Aahar outlets each have been
opened in five towns where meal
consisting of rice and Dalma is
being provided at a subsidised rate
with financial assistance from three
State run corporations and Tata
Steel. Each Aahar outlet caters to a
thousand people daily between 11
am and 3 pm.
Events
The scheme is supported by Odisha
Mining Corporation (OMC) in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, Odisha Power Generation Corporation (OPGC)
in Rourkela and Odisha Industrial
Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) in Sambalpur. Tata
Steel is sponsoring the scheme in
Berhampur.
Opposition Parties have been
criticising the State government for
launching the cheap meal scheme by
seeking assistance from companies
and not making budgetary provisions
Amaravathi named as new capital
of Andhra Pradesh: Amaravathi
was approved as the new capital
of Andhra Pradesh by the Andhra
Pradesh government. The city
is known for its historical and
spiritual significance and is located
in the Vijayawada-Guntur region.
Amaravathi, located on the banks of
river Krishna, derives its name from
Lord Amareswara temple in the
village and it is known as Dakshina
Kashi (Kashi of the south).
Amaravathi has a lot of Buddhist
significance as well with Lord
Buddha believed to have visited
the village, besides King Ashoka
and famed Chinese traveller Hsuan
Tsang were also believed to have
visited the place.
The foundation for the city was
laid at Uddandarayunipalem on 22
October 2015 by Prime Minister
of India, Narendra Modi, Chief
Minister of Andhra Pradesh,
N. Chandrababu Naidu, Chief
Minister of Telangana, Kalvakuntla
Chandrashekar Rao, the Japanese
minister for economy trade and
industry, Yosuke Takagi, and the
Singaporean Minister for Trade and
Industry S. Iswaran.
Events
The Resolution to This Effect
Was Passed By The State Cabinet
Which Met Under Chief Minister
N Chandrababu Naidu Here. He
Said That The Government Would
Like to Develop The Capital As A
Modern City That is Convenient To
Poor People As Well.
Union Government Unveils New
Foreign Trade Policy: Union
Government has unveiled new
Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) to make
India an exporting powerhouse in
the next five years. The new trade
policy will incorporate governments
ambitious initiatives such as Make
in India, Digital India Mission, Skill
India Programme, Ease of Business
in order to boost jobs and take
Indias exports to 900 billion dollars
by 2020.
Five different schemes Focus
Product Scheme, Market-linked
Focus Product Scheme, Focus
Market Scheme, Agri-infrastructure
Incentive Scrip and Vishesh
Krishi Gram Udyog Yojana for
rewarding merchandise exports
with different duty scrips have been
merged into the MEIS and there
would be no conditionality attached
to it.
The policy came amid a moderation
in global demand and the resultant
dip in Indias exports, which fell for
the third month in a row in February,
declining by over 15 per cent to
$21.54 billion. Exports during AprilFebruary stood at $286.58 billion
compared with $314.40 billion in
2013-14.
Government launches Give it up
campaign: On 4th April 2015, Union
Minister of State for Petroleum and
Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan
launched the Give It Up campaign
in Karnataka. The campaign appeals
the rich people to give up the subsidy
A-153
amount given on liquefied petroleum

gas (LPG) cylinders. The money
surrendered in this process will be
used to provide LPG connections
in rural areas where people still use
firewood for cooking.
Earlier, the Give It Up campaign
was launched by the Prime Minister
Narendra Modi at the annual energy
focused summit, Urja Sangam 2015.
During the aforementioned summit,
the Prime Minister had asked
companies and banks to encourage
their employees to give up the
subsidies on LPG for the benefit of
the people who require it more.
PM also mentioned that the Give It
Up campaign should be taken up on
the lines of the Union Government
initiatives like Swachh Bharat
Abhiyan and Beti Bachao, Beti
Padhao Mission.
India, Japan ink action agenda
to boost trade, investment: Japan
and India have signed a five point
action agenda on Thursday, 30th
April, 2015 to support Narendra
Modis Make in India initiative.
This move would increase bilateral
trade and investment between the
two countries. The action agenda
was signed between Japans Minister
for Economy,Trade and Industry
Miyazawa and Indias Commerce
and Industry Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman.
The action agenda includes the
process of developing selected
townships in India similar to
Japanese
industrial
townships,
investment
promotion
and
infrastructure development, AsiaPacific economic integration, further
development and cooperation in IT
sector and enhancing cooperation
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Events
strategic sectors.
This five-point action agenda is
a follow-up of Prime Minister
Narendra Modis visit to Japan in
2014 and will play an important role
in improving the trade relationship
between India andJapan. Between
April 2000 and February 2015, India
has received $18 billion as foreign
direct investment from Japan and
the bilateral trade stood at $16.29
billion in 2013-14.
MAY
BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile
test-fired: India successfully testfired BrahMos Supersonic Cruise
Missile from the Car Nicobar Islands
in Andaman and Nicobar. The
advanced version of the land-to-land
configuration of BrahMos Block-III
version was test-fired from a Mobile
Autonomous Launcher (MAL).
The supersonic cruise missile is
developed by BrahMos Aerospace
as a joint venture between DRDO
and NPO Mashinostroeyenia of
Russia. The 8.4-meter long missile
can fly at 2.8 times the speed of
sound and is capable of carrying
conventional warheads of up to 300
kgs for a range of 290 km. BrahMos
Aerospace is currently working to
develop the submarine launched, air
launched and hyper-sonic version
of the missile. The name BrahMos
is formed from the names of two
rivers, the Brahmaputra of India and
the Moskva of Russia.
Akash Weapon System (AWS)
inducted into Indian Army: Indian
Army inducted the indigenouslydeveloped supersonic surface-toair missile Akash which is capable
of targeting enemy helicopters,
aircrafts and UAVs for maximum
range of 25 kms. The missiles
which are developed by the Defence
Research
and
Development
Organisation (DRDO) will be
strengthening the Army Air Defence
Corps, who have been struggling
for years with outdated air defence
weapons. The Akash Weapon
System will be deployed towards the
western borders which will employ
command to line of sight guidance
and relies on sophisticated radars
and control systems to guide the
missile to its targets. The Army
had previously ordered two Akash
regiments along with six firing
batteries. The total price of the
order which consists of hundreds
of missiles is about Rs 19,500 crore.
Akash is one of the five core missile
systems of the integrated guided
missile development programme
which was launched by DRDO in
1984. The missile system has 96 per
cent indigenisation. It is capable of
simultaneously engaging multiple
targets in all weather conditions and
also providing comprehensive short
range missile cover to the vulnerable
assets in the field.
Two Highway Projects dedicated
to the Nation: Union Minister of
Road Transport and Highways Shri
Nitin Gadkari dedicated two major
Highway projects in the North East
at a ceremony during his visit to
Shillong. The projects aim to ease
the travel from Guwahati to Shillong
and other parts of the North East.
These include Shillong Bypass and
four laning of Jorabat-Barapani
Section of NH-40. The bypass
connecting NH 40 and NH 44 (New
NH 6) will decongest the traffic
in the city of Shillong from heavy
number of trucks and other heavy
vehicles coming from or moving
towards North Eastern parts of
Assam and other states-- Mizoram
and Tripura. The four laning of the
61.80 km Jorabat-Barapani section
Events
will strengthen the connectivity
between Guwahati and Shillong.
The project was constructed by the
NHAI on Design Build Finance
Operate & Transfer (DBFOT) Mode
on annuity basis. The projects seek
to improve the connectivity inside
the Northeast (NE) region and to
other parts of the country in order
to tackle the regions isolation
and improve the socio economic
conditions.
Himachal
Pradesh
to
Host
Paragliding World Cup 2015:
For the first time, India will be
hosting the Paragliding World
Cup in Himachal Pradesh from
23 October to 31 October 2015 at
Bir Billing in Kangra valley with
participation from over 50 countries.
The World Cup will be held under
the guidance of Paragliding World
Cup Association, France. The state
was selected to host the World Cup
after it successfully conducted the
paragliding pre-World Cup-2013.
The week-long event - one of five
such gatherings around the globe
that act as qualifiers for the Super
World Cup - will also include
a number of other aero-sports.
Announcing the participation of
the worlds best 130 pilots, including
an Indian team of seven, the
organisers have also unveiled the
AAI Paragliding World Cup Trophy
and the mascot based on Himachals
state animal, the snow leopard. Also
to ensure the success of the event,
the state government has formed
the Billing Paragliding Association
(BPA) under the chairmanship of
Urban Development Minister of
HP, Mr Sudhir Sharma. Besides, the
state government has directed to ban
construction activities near the takeoff and landing sites.
SBI Launches Contactless Card
Called Sbiintouch : On 14th May
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2015 State Bank of India (SBI)

launched contactless credit and
debit cards called sbiINTOUCH.
Empowered with NFC (Near Field
Communication) technology, these
contactless debit and credit cards
are more secure and hassle-free to
use at merchant outlets or ATMs
allowing users to make payments
by waving or tapping the card near
the contactless reader instead of
swiping or dipping it. These cards
come with a fraud liability cover
of Rs.1 lakh. These cards will be
especially targeted towards fastfood outlets, coffee shops and
supermarkets where customers
make quick transactions. Currently,
the bank has 2.5 lakh Point of Sale
terminals, out of which 1 lakh in the
top eight metros will be upgraded so
that they are NFC enabled. SBI has
already issued 1.08 lakh new cards
to its customers in the eight largest
metros and the remaining customers
will get the cards in the following
months. Also, private lenders ICICI
Bank and HDFC Bank have already
launched such NFC cards.
Supreme Court Issues Guidelines
On
Regulating
Government
Advertisements: The Supreme
Court (SC) on 13 May 2015 issued
guidelines on regulating government
advertisements. A bench comprising
Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice
Pinaki Chandra Ghose accepted the
majority of the recommendations
made by an expert committee
established by a court order dated
23 April 2014. The apex court
framed these guidelines with a view
to discourage such advertisements
from creating personality cults
and it applies to the frequent
advertisements that are placed by
the centre and state governments to
publicise schemes. According to the
guidelines set up by Supreme Court,
only photographs of the President,
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Prime Minister (PM) and Chief

Justice of India (CJI) can feature
in the newspaper advertisements
released by state and central
government
departments
only
after prior approval. Besides these
three, the photos of late leaders like
Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal
Nehru can also be used in the
government advertisements. The
use of photo of any politicians other
than these personalities was banned
by the apex court. Other than
politicians, the photos of even Chief
Ministers and bureaucrats were
also banned from being featured in
newspaper advertisements.
Government Allocates 5000 Crore
For Development Of Ayush:
The Government of India has
created the new portfolio AYUSH
(Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy,
Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy)
and allocated Rs 5,000 crore for
the same on 17th May 2015. It also
launched an independent National
AYUSH Mission aimed at capacity
building for the sector. Besides, for
creating awareness about Ayurveda,
the Ministry is considering to
observe Ayurveda Day. The Union
Government on 19 November
2014 had approved and notified
National AYUSH Mission (NAM)
as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
Currently, India and China are the
largest consumer of medicinal plants
in the world. However, traditional
Chinese medicines have gained easy
acceptance worldwide, whereas the
Indian Ayurvedic medicines have
seen a 25 per cent rise in its sales
in the last ten years, the highest
such increase in the world, are
yet to gain global acceptance. The
allocation of additional funds to
Department of AYUSH will help it
Events
to create awareness about Ayurveda
and promote traditional Ayurvedic
medicines at international level.
Kayakalp Award Scheme to
Improve Cleanliness: Kayakalpan initiative for awards to public
health facilities was launched by
the Union Minister for Health and
Family Welfare, Shri J. P. Nadda
on 15th May 2015. The Scheme
is intended to encourage and
incentivize Public Health Facilities
(PHFs) . The objectives of the
scheme are:
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and infection control practices in
public health care facilities
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such
public
healthcare
facilities that show exemplary
performance in adhering to
standard protocols of cleanliness
and infection control
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assessment and peer review of
performance related to hygiene,
cleanliness and sanitation
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practices related to improved
cleanliness in public health
facilities linked to positive health
outcomes
Under this scheme, five awards will
be given: Best two district hospitals
in each state (Best district hospital
in small states), best two community
health centres/sub district hospitals
(limited to one in small states) and
one primary health centre in every
district. The prize winners will
receive a cash award with a citation.
First rank and second rank awardees
at district level hospital will get Rs. 50
lakhs and Rs. 20 lakhs respectively.
Events
Ustaad Scheme For Traditional
Artisans Launched: The Union
Ministry of Minority Affairs on
14th May 2015 formally launched
USTAAD - Upgrading the Skill and
Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts
for Development. USTAADis a
flagship welfare scheme aimed at
upgrading and promoting the skills of
artisans from minority communities.
The scheme, linked to the Make in
India campaign, was launched by
Union Minister of Minority Affairs
Dr. Najma Heptullah in Varanasi,
Uttar Pradesh. It is the first scheme
being drafted to improve degrading
conditions of world famous Banaras
Saree weavers who belong to
minority communities. It is fully
funded by Union Government and
Union Ministry of Minority Affairs
is nodal agency in implementing it
across the country. It also envisages
boosting the skill of craftsmen,
weavers and artisans who are
already engaged in the traditional
ancestral work. Under the scheme,
support will be provided to
traditional artisans to sell their
products catering the need of both
national and international markets.
Furthermore, it will help provide
employment opportunities and a
better future to the youths belonging
to the minority community.
Pradhan
Mantri
Suraksha
BimaYojana launched: Pradhan
Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana,
a
government-backed
accident
insurance scheme was formally
launched by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on 9th May in
Kolkata. According to the scheme
the person who suffers accidental
death or full disability will be given
Rs 2 lakh, whereas if the person
has suffered partial disability will be
given Rs 1 lakh. Full disability has
been defined as loss of eyes, hands
or feet. Partial disability has been
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defined as loss of one eye, hand or

foot. The yojana will be offered to
those bank account holders which
are between the age group of 18 to 70
years. The premium will be collected
through auto debit facility. This
scheme is to be linked to the bank
accounts opened under the Pradhan
Mantri Jan DhanYojana scheme.
Most of these accounts had zero
balance initially. The government
aims to reduce the number of such
zero balance accounts by using
schemes like this.
RuPay Platinum Debit Card
launched: State Bank of India
launched a RuPay Platinum debit
card in association with National
Payment Corporation of India
(NPCI). The card has come with
special features for the convenience
of customers and will be easily
accepted at all payment channels
such as ATMs, PoS and eCommerce.
The card will be initially issued free
of cost to its customers who maintain
a quarterly balance of Rs 50,000.
State Bank has 19.7 crore debit cards
in circulation and of which 4.5 crore
are RuPay cards. The card offers
multiple benefits like 5 per cent cash
back on utility bills, complimentary
airport lounge access, personal
accident death and permanent
total disability insurance cover
of Rs 2 lakh. National Payments
Corporation of India (NPCI) is an
umbrella organization for all retail
payments system in India. It was set
up with the guidance and support of
the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and
Indian Banks Association (IBA).
It will soon launch international
RuPay debit cards which will allow
its customers to use them outside the
country by January 2016.
DD News Mobile App launched:
Union Minister for Information &
A-158
Broadcasting Arun Jaitley launched

the Mobile Application of DD
News, E-version of India 2015 and
Bharat 2015 and E-book of Ministry
of Information and Broadcasting.
The launch of the application by
DD News is a significant milestone
for PrasarBharati as it will cater
to the information needs of panIndian audience. It will also provide
DD News a platform to instantly
communicate the objective news on a
24x7 basis and add a new dimension
to its profile in addressing the vast
needs of the Indian audience. The
DD News Mobile App has a user
friendly interface and is available
even in poor network conditions.
Both Android and i-Phone versions
of the app are available. The App
will make it possible for people in
India to keep in touch with the latest
activities around them. The App
will enable the user to watch news
updates and trending news videos
on their mobile phone.
GPS Aided Geo Augmented
Navigation
(Gagan)
System
Operationalised: The GPS aided
GEO
Augmented
Navigation
(GAGAN) is a Satellite Based
Augmentation
System
(SBAS)
developed jointly by the Airports
Authority of India (AAI) and
Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO). Its primary objective is
to establish, deploy and certify
satellite based augmentation system
for safety-of-life civil aviation
applications for the Indian air space.
This will improve the accuracy
of a GNSS receiver by providing
reference signals. This can be viewed
as the first step towards introduction
of
modern
communication,
navigation, surveillance/ Air Traffic
Management system over Indian airspace.
Events
On 25th May the Indian Space
Research Organisation announced
the complete Operationalization
of GPS aided Geo Augmented
Navigation (GAGAN) System.
With this India become the fourth
country after the US, Europe and
Japan to have interoperable Satellite
Based
Augmentation
System
(SBAS). GAGAN is also the first
SBAS system in the world to serve
the equatorial region. This project
has established 15 Indian Reference
Stations, 3 Indian Navigation
Land Uplink Stations, 3 Indian
Mission Centres, and installation
of all associated software and
communication links. It will enable
the pilots to navigate in the Indian
airspace by 3m accuracy. It will
be helpful in landing aircraft in
tough weather regions like Leh and
Mangalore.
Astrosat Launched: ISRO launched
Indias first dedicated satellite
for astronomy research, named
ASTROSAT on 28 September, 2015.
It was launched from the first launch
pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre
at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
Astrosat is Indias major scientific
mission after the highly acclaimed
Chandrayaan-I and Mangalyaan
and this attempt of ISRO will help
it to set up an observatory in space,
a place from where it can study
cosmological phenomena. This
launch and its success makes India
a member of elite group of nations
having their own space observatory
after the US, Japan, Russia and
Europe. This is the third time that an
Indian rocket carried seven satellites
in a single mission. In 2008, ISRO
launched 10 satellites in one go
including Indias Cartosate-2A
satellite.
A-159
Events
Guidelines on Net Stable Funding
Ratio For Banks: The Reserve Bank
of India released draft guidelines
for Net Stable Funding Ratio under
Basel III framework for liquidity
standards for banks. The RBI
proposed to make NSFR applicable
to all banks from January 2018.
The main objective of Net Stable
Funding Ratio NSFR is to make sure
that banks maintain a stable funding
profile in relation to their asset and
off -balance sheets activities. A
sustainable funding structure can
reduce the probability of erosion
of banks liquidity positions due to
disruptions in its regular source of
funding that would increase the
risk of its failure and potentially
lead to broader economic stress. It
reduces the over reliance on short
term whole sale funding, encourages
better assessment of funding risk
across on all off balance sheet items
and promotes funding stability.
In the backdrop of 2007 global
crises the Basel Committee on
Banking Supervision proposed
certain reforms to strengthen global
capital and liquidity regulations
with the objective of promoting a
more resilient banking sector. In this
regard the Basel III International
framework for liquidity risk
management,
standards
and
monitoring was issued in December
2010 which presented details of
global regulatory standards on
liquidity.
Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) and
Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR)
are two standards prescribed by
the Basel Committee to achieve
two separate but complementary
objectives. The draft guidelines
issued by the RBI are based on
the final rules published by the
BCBS taking into account Indian

conditions.
JUNE
Indian Railways, Indian Army
among Worlds Biggest Employers:
According to the research published
by the World Economic Forum
(WEF) the two Indian organisations
Indian Army and Indian Railways
are among the worlds biggest
employers. Both organisations put
together have employed around 2.7
million people together.
Indian Railways is ranked at the
eighth place in the list of worlds
biggest employers with 1.4 million
staff. Immediately after Indian
Railways is the Indian Armed Forces
with 1.3 million employees. The
United States department of defence
is the worlds biggest employer
with over 3.2 million employees
on its roster. In the second place is
the Peoples Liberation Army (the
Chinese military) with 2.3 million,
while in the third position is the US
supermarket giant Walmart with
2.1 million workers. McDonalds is
the 4th biggest employer with 1.9
million employees. UKs National
Health Service was ranked at the 5th
place, with 1.7 million employees,
followed by state-run China
National Petroleum Corporation
with 1.6 million. The State Grid
Corporation of China was ranked
7th with 1.5 million. And the Hon
Hai Precision Factory (also known
as Foxconn) comes in at 10th place
with 1.2 million people.
Famous
Writer
Vishwanath
Tripathi Chosen for 28th Moorti
Devi Award: Veteran Writer
Vishwanath Tripathi was selected
for the 28th Moorti Devi Award
for the year 2014 for his book
Vyomkesh Darvesh. Vyomkesh
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Darvesh is a lifetime story of

Acharya Hazari Prasad Dwivedi.
The award was announced after a
selection board inclusive of many
illustrious personalities met at the
India International Centre under
chairmanship of M Veerappa Moily.
Some of Tripathis famous works
include
Lokwadi
Tulsidas,
Meera Ka Kavya, Desh ke is
Daur Main, Kuch Kahaniyan
Kuch Vichar, Ped Ka Hath,
Jaisa Kaha Saka and Nagatlai
Ka Gaon.
The Moortidevi Award constituted
by the Bhartiya Jnanpith is presented
annually for a contemplative and
perceptive work which expresses
underlines and illumines human
values rooted in the broad vision
of Indian philosophy and cultural
heritage. Books written in English
and all Indian languages are
considered for the Prize, which
comprises a cash award of four
lakhs rupees, a statue and a citation
plaque.
Sahitya Akademi announced Bal
Sahitya Puraskar for the year 2015:
Sahitya Akademi announced the
Bal Sahitya Puraskar for the year
2015. The winners list includes
five novelists, four writers of
short stories, and three authors of
poetries. The winners have been
awarded for their contribution
to childrens literature. The five
novelists comprise of Tiren Boro
(Bodo), Sowmya Rajendran and
Nivditha Subramaniam (English),
Ramnath G Gawade (Konkani),
Ramdeo Jha (Maithili) and Mukti
Upadhyay Baral (Nepali). Those
who have won for their short stories
are Nayeem Kashmiri (Kashmiri),
Thokchom Thouyangba Meitei
Events
(Manipuri), Krishna Kumar Ashu
(Rajasthani) and Janardhan Hegde
(Sanskrit). Tara Chand Kalandri
(Dogri), Srikanta Saren (Santali) and
Sella Ganapathi (Tamil) have been
awarded for their poetry collections.
Bano Sartaj (Urdu) has been
honoured for her book on a one
act play. Eli Ahmed (Assamese)
and Kartik Ghose (Bengali), were
among the others who have been
honoured with the Bal Sahitya
Puraskar 2015 for their contribution
to Childrens Literature. The Bal
Sahitya Puraskar was nstituted by
the Sahitya Akademi, the award
comprises Rs 50,000 and a casket
containing an inscribed copper
plaque and a citation.
Nadia wins the UN Public Service
Award 2015 for eliminating open
defecation: District Magistrate of
Nadia along with Sabhapati of Nadia
Zilla Parishad of West Bengal was
conferred with United Nations Public
Services Award 2015 for eliminating
open defecation in the district.
The award was given by acting
Secretary General of the UN Lenni
Montiel along with Head UN Women
Stefani Senese, on the concluding
day of the United Nations Day
Celebrations 2015, on 26th June at
Medellin, Republic of Columbia.
Nadia is the first open defecation
free district in India. The district
had achieved this feat by making
toilets available for all under state
governments flagship programme
Sabar Shouchagar (Toilets for All).
The scheme Sobar Souchagar,
meaning toilets for all, was launched
a year before Prime Minister Narendra
Modi launched the Swachh Bharat
campaign. The scheme is estimated
to cost over Rs 62,000 crore with a
time period of five years to achieve
the target of toilets for all.
Events
United Nations Public Service
Awards is one of the most prestigious
international recognition of excellence
in public service. It rewards the creative
achievements and contributions of
public service institutions that lead to
a more effective and responsive public
administration in countries worldwide.
RBI
Extends
Deadline
For
Exchanging Pre-2005 Currency
Notes By 6 Months: Reserve Bank
of India extended the deadline for
the exchange of pre-2005 currency
notes of various denominations,
including of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000,
till December 31st 2015. RBI had
set the last date for the public to
exchange of these notes till June
2015. Currency notes issued before
2005 do not have the year of printing
on the reverse side. On the other hand
the notes issued after 2005have the
year of printing visible at the bottom
on the reverse. The reason behind
the withdrawal of banknotes printed
prior to 2005 is to remove them
from the market because they have
fewer security features compared
with banknotes printed after 2005.
RBI promised that the notes can be
exchanged for their full value. And
it will continue to monitor as well
as review the process so that the
public is not inconvenienced in any
manner.
Khoya Paya Web Portal Launched:
The Union Minister of Women and
Child Development, Smt Maneka
Sanjay Gandhi and Union Minister
of Communication & IT, Shri Ravi
Shankar Prasad together launched
the Khoya Paya web portal at a
gathering organised at National
Media Centre in New Delhi. The
Khoya Paya portal is a citizen based
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website to exchange information on

the missing and found children. It
has been developed by the Ministry
of Women and Child Development
and the Department of Electronics
and
Information
Technology
(DeitY). The KhoyaPaya website
is an enabling stage, where citizens
can file a report of missing children,
as well as sightings of their
whereabouts without wasting much
time. According to the working
procedure of the portal, before
uploading information to Khoya
Paya web portal, this website suggest
to first dial 100 for police or 1098
for CHILDLINE and then go to the
Police station and register an FIR.
The new Khoya Paya web portal
establishes citizen to citizen contact
and allows India to take part in
search for missing children.
Weather Alert Service Nowcast
Launched:
Union
Agriculture
Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh
launched the Insurance Portal and
Weather alert service NOWCAST.
NOWCAST weather alert system
will send free SMS service alerts
on severe weather conditions (exhailstorm) to more than one crore
registered farmers on their mobile
phones. The free SMS alerts will
be sent in different languages
including Hindi, English and
regional languages according to the
farmers request. The SMS alert
system will be issued to farmers
whose mobile phones are already
registered on the governments
mKisan portal. The information for
NOWCAST service will be taken
from the India Meteorological
Departments (IMDs) 146 weather
stations. Under this scheme, the
extreme weather data originated
from IMD will be updated on
mKisan portal using a web service.
Then the data from the mKisan
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Events
portal will issue warnings regarding

extreme weather conditions which
will be automatically transmitted by
SMS to farmers located at district
and block level. A portal named
Insurance Web-Portal (www.farmer.
gov.in/insurance) will be used to
create awareness and encourage
farmers to insure their crops by
taking advantage of three schemes
like Modified National Insurance
Scheme
(MNAIS),
National
Agriculture
Insurance
Scheme
(NAIS) and Weather based Crop
Insurance Scheme (WBCIS).
JULY
PM Concludes his 6-nation
Tour: Prime Minister Narender
Modi returned to India after his
6-nation tour to Russia and five
other Central Asian countries
namely Kazakhastan, Krygistan,
Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and
Tajikistan. The highlights of his
visit were his attendance of 7th
BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa) summit
and SCO (Shanghai Cooperation
Organization) summits ; the main
objectives of the visit were energy
cooperation and voicing for India
to join Uzbekistan- TurkemistanOman Iran transit treaty to get a
share of Turkeministans natural
reserves.
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Minister also held a meeting with
his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz
Sharif; Indo-Pak statement was
released at Ufa, Russia. He met
the leaders of five countries
namely President of Tajikistan
EmomaliRahoman, President
of Kyrgyz Republic Almazbek
Atambaev, President of n, the
possible spill over effects of
militant threat from Afghanistan
and implementation of the
contract to supply Uranium

from mineral rich Uzbekistan.
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theme of BRICS partnership-A
powerful Factor of Global
Development.
5
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(RDFI) signed Framework
Agreements
for
equity
investments in BRICS countries.
3
ULPH 0LQLVWHU SURSRVHG D
ten point initiative named
DusKadam or ten steps for
the future. This would enhance
cooperation among the BRICS
countries
India Ranked 12th in terms of
power generation from nuclear
source: There are thirty one
countries in the world which
generate power from nuclear source
and among these, India ranked on
12th position in terms of power
generation from nuclear source
according to the data published by
Power Reactor Information System
(PRIS) od International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA). Moreover,
India ranked at 6th position in terms
of number of reactors in operation
country-wise, globally.
Total power generation of India
from nuclear reactors at 5308 MWe.
Also, India is expecting increase
in power generation to 10080 MW
on completion of projects which
are under construction and are
commissioning till 2019.
At present, India is under gone
with two different nuclear projects
at Gorakhpur Haryana (Fatehabad
District) Units I and II with total
capacity of 700 MW each. Another
is at MithiVirdi Bhavnagar Units
II and IV with total capacity of
1250 MW each. At Tamil Nadu,
Kalpakkam, Units II and III fast
reactor (FBR) of 500 MW capacities
Events
is in the stage of commissioning.
India has signed agreement with
different countries in order to meet
nuclear fuel demand. Countries
include US, Canada, Kazakhstan,
Russia, France, Australia, Namibia,
Mongolia, South Korea, Argentina,
United Kingdom and Sri Lanka.
Indias first Railway-line built
under PPP model inaugurated in
Gujarat: On 14th July, 2015, Indias
first railway-line built under PPP
model which was inaugurated in
Gujarat by Minister of Railways,
Suresh Prabhu. This is the first rail
line of India which was built with
private sector participation under
Non- Government Railway (NGR)
Policy 2012 of Indian railway. The
broad Gauge railway line is built
between Gandhidham, a town in a
Kutch and Tuna-Tekra Port, a port
20 km west of Kandla in Gulf of
Kutch,at at a cost of approximately
185 crore rupees which was funded
by M/s Kandla Port Trust (KPT)
and Western Railway Zone of
Indian Railways coordinated and
launched it.
The project was approved by
Railway Board in October 2013 and
construction was completed in the
record time of 12 months in May
2015 and was done in two parts i.e.
the first part is 11 km GandhidhamTuna rail line was completed by
western Railway Zone as deposite
work and the second part i.e. 6
km line between tuna-Tekra was
completed by M/s kandla Port
Trust.
Under this, Railway board has
undertaken connectivity to four
ports i.e. Dhamra Port, Tuna Port,
Jaigarh port, Dighi Port.
Indigenously developed helicopterlaunched Nag Missile Test Fired:
A-163
On 12th July 2015, indigenously

developed helicopterlaunched Nag
missile test fired at the Chandhan
firing range in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
HeliNa (Helicopter-launched Nag)
is a variant of Nag anti-tank guided
missile (ATGM) and developed
by the Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRD)
under the integrated Guided Missile
Development Programme (IGMDP)
with the budget of 300 crore. HeliNa
missile will also be integrated with
the Advanced Light Helicopter
(ALH) Dhruv Produced by HAL
Light Combat helicopter produced
by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. Out
of the three trials, only two were
successful in hitting the target. The
missile was aimed at hitting the
targets at varied distances of up to 7
km. It is a third generation fire and
forgot missile and can be used during
night and day. It weights 42 Kg in
mass and having length of 1.90m.
It can be fired against moving as
well as fired targets. It land version
has been developed for the army i.e.
NAMICA or Nag Missile Carrier.
National
Investment
and
Infrastructure Fund Approved:
The Union Cabinet headed by the
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
approved the creation of National
Investment and Infrastructure Fund
(NIIF), a sort of sovereign fund,
for development of infrastructure
projects, including the stalled ones.
For this, initial corpus of INR
20,000 crore is proposed by the
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in
the budget for 2014-15. It was also
decided in the cabinet meeting that
the government would contribute
49% of the subscribed capital of
NIIF so that it can be seen as a
sovereign fund. NIIF is also able to
take independent decisions on its
planned investments.
A-164
Besides this, the cabinet also gave

its approval to foreign investment
in the AIF (Alternative Investment
Funds) for facilitating domestic
investments in registered trusts,
incorporated companies or limited
liability partnerships.
NIIF is established with the
aim to boost the infrastructure
development in the country with
the commercially viable projects,
both green field and brown field. It
could also reduce the pressure on
the banking system, provide equity
support to non-banking financial
companies and institutions to fund
infrastructure projects across the
sectors.
Patnitop, Indias Longest Road
Tunnel opens in 2016: Indias
longest road tunnel, being built on
Jammu-Srinagar highway is set
to open in 2016. This tunnel will
reduce the distance between the two
cities by 30 Kms.This 9.2 Km tunnel
is a part of 286 km long-four-laning
project of the Jammu-Srinagar
National Highway.Once this tunnel
starts operating it will reduce the
traffic jams on national highway
1-A that occur due to snowfall and
avalanche in winter at Patnitop.
The tunnel will reduce the distance
between two points on the highway
41 to 10.89 km.It connects Chanani
in Udhampur district with Nashri
in Ramban district. It is being
completed at a cost of 2,500 crore.
The two tubes of the tunnel will
be internally connected through
29 cross-passages( each after a
gap of 300 meters) and the escape
tunnel would be exclusively used
for pedestrians. There is also a
provision for ventilation, keeping
in view the distance of the tunnel.
Events
This state-of the-art project will also
bring the regions of Jammu and
Kashmir closer and thus would end
the isolation of the valley from the
rest of the country.
Hriday Scheme Launched: On
14th July, 2015, Union Ministry
of Urban Development launched
HRIDAY (Heritage Development
and Augmentation Yoajna) scheme
for 12 cities throughout the country
including Amritsar in Punjab.
The scheme was launched in
Amritsar by Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley in the presence of Union
Minister of Urban Development
Venkaiah Naidu and Chief Minister
of Punjab Prakash Singh Badal. This
scheme is launched to preserve and
renovate the rich culture Heritage of
the country .
HRIDAY
scheme
aims
to
promote inclusive and sustainable
development of the heritage
sites including renovation and
maintenance of the monument. For
this scheme, Union Government
is to provide INR 500 crore to 12
cities to create good infrastructure
and provide full facilities around
the heritage sites which will attract
more tourist.
The 12 cities are Varanasi, Amritsar,
Warangal (Telangana), Ajmer, Gaya
(Bihar), Mathura, Kanchipuram
(Tamil Nadu), Vellankini (Tamil Nadu), Amaravati (Andhra
Pradesh), Badami (Karnataka),
Dwarka (Gujarat) and Puri (Odisha).
UFA Declaration at 7Th BRICS
Summit: Head of BRICS nations
released the UFA Declaration after
the 7th BRICS summit held in the
Russian city of Ufa, Bashkorostan,
from 8th to 9th July 2015. The theme
Events
for the 7th BRICS summit wasBRICs Partnership-A powerful
Factor of Global Development.
Main Highlights Of the Ufa
Declaration were:
1. Ufa Declaration saw the resolve
of the BRICS states to step
coordinated efforts in responding
to
emerging
challenges,
ensuring peace and security and
promoting development in a
sustainable way.
2. China and Russia supported
Brazil, India and South Africa to
play a bigger role in UN Security
Council.
3. It welcomed the Kenyas hosting
of 10th WTO Ministerial
Conference (MC10) on 10th15th December, 2015, in
Nairobi. It will advance the
working together to strengthen
an open, transparent, nondiscriminatory and rule based
multilateral trading system
based on WTO.
4. In the economic sphere the
BRICS countries expressed
support for the development
of action oriented economic
cooperation and systematic
strengthening of
economic
partnership for the recovery of
global economy and resisting
protectionism.
5. BRICS
Inter-Central
Bank
Agreement that sets technical
parameters of operations within
the BRICS CRA was signed.
6. Adoption of strategy for BRICS
economic partnership to foster
trade, trade, economic and
investment cooperation among
BRICS nations. In this regard
ministers/ sherpas were asked
to prepare a roadmap for the
period till 2020.
A-165
BRICS is an acronym for the

association of
five emerging
economies, Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa. Currently
Russia holds the chair of BRICS
group. The seventh Summit was
held in Russia.India will be hosting
the 8th summit in 2016.
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee
Yojana (PMKSY): The Cabinet
Committee on Economic Affairs
(CCEA), chaired by the PM
Narender Modi, has given its
approval to a new scheme the other
water saving technologies (More
crop per drop), enhance recharge of
aquifers and introduce sustainable
water conservation practices by
exploring the feasibility of reusing
treated municipal based water for
urban agriculture and attract greater
private investment in precision
irrigation system.
The scheme aims at reducing farm
sectors dependence on monsoon.
In India 65 per cent of the total of
142 million hectares of land is not
covered by irrigation. The scheme
also aims at bringing concerned
Ministries/
Departments/
Agencies/ Research and Financial
institutions engaged in creation/
use/ recycling/ potential recycling
of water, brought under common
platform so that a comprehensive
and holistic view of the entire
Water Cycle is taken into account
and proper budgeting is done for all
sectors; household, agriculture and
industries.
This
programme
aims
at
decentralising state level planning
and execution; to allow states to draw
up a District Irrigation Plan (DIP)
and a State Irrigation Plan (SIP).
Dip will have a holistic development
A-166
perspective of the district outlining

medium to long term developmental
plans integrating three components
namely, water sources, distribution
network and water use application
of the district to be prepared at two
levels; block and the district.
The government has already
undertaken several farmer-friendly
initiatives like Soil Health Card,
ParamparagatKrishiVikasYojana
and a dedicated Kisan Channel by
Doordarshan.
Corporation
Bank
Launches
Mudra Card: The state owned
Corporation Bank has launched
Micro Units Development and
Refinance
Agency
(MUDRA)
card for small enterprises. It
was launched by the Financial
Services Secretary HasmukhAdhia
at
Mangalore.
PradhsnMantri
MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) aims to
fund the unfunded and formalise
the informal under non-farm Micro
Units in manufacturing, trading and
services with affordable credit up to
Rs. 10 lakh.
Three loan schemes are offered to
the entrepreneurs based on their
capacity to repay:
1. Shishu Scheme offers a loan up
to Rs. 50,000.
2. Kishore Scheme will provide a
loan up to Rs. 5 lakh.
3. Tarun Scheme will provide a
loan up to Rs. 10 lakh.
As part of the Digital India
Programme, Corporation Bank
also launched a high- tech paperless
Point of sales (POS) terminal in
association with M/s MRI Posnet
and the Remit to India portal for
inward remittance by non-resident
Indians. Corporation Bank is the
first bank to start this scheme.
Mharagaon- Jagmaggaon Scheme
Launched: Haryana government
announced to launch a voluntary
scheme MharaGaon-JagmagGaon
Events
aimed at providing 24- hour
uninterrupted power supply to rural
domestic consumers and improving
electricity and improving electricity
bills collections in order to reduce
huge accumulated losses of power
utilities. Haryana is the first state to
have started this voluntary scheme.
The scheme will be implemented in
three phases as follows:
, QWKHILUVWSKDVHRI WKHVFKHPH
83 feeders have been identified
covering 310 villages having
minimum line losses between 25
to 70 per cent and which have
made payment of their electricity
bills.
3
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for 15 hours in these villages
from 12 hour power supply they
were getting until now.
7
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villages falling under these 83
feeders would now be urged to
install their meters outside their
houses and their old electricity
wires replaced with insulated
wires.
/
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further increased to 21 hours on
those feeders where payment of
bills would be 90 per cent.
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LQDOO\ WKH IHHGHUV ZKHUH
the outstanding amount of
electricity bills has been paid
in five equal instalments, their
penalty and interest would be
waived off and power supply for
24 hours would be ensured on
these feeders.
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organised in the villages falling
under these feeders. The officers
of the electricity departments
would be present in these
panchayats who would resolve
the complaints of the consumers
on the spot.
A-167
Events
Digital India Week Launched:
The PM Narender Modi on1st July,
2015 launched the Digital India
week to spread awareness about
Digital India Programme launched
in August 2014. Digital India has
been visualised as an ambitious
umbrella programme to transform
India into a digitally empowered
society and knowledge economy.
The vision of Digital India
Programme also aims at inclusive
growth in areas of electronic
services, products, manufacturing
and job opportunities etc. The vision
of Digital India is centred on three
key areas:
1. Digital Infrastructure as a Utility
to Every Citizen
2. Governanceand
Demand
Services
on
3. Digital
Empowerment
of
Citizens
Gagan
Launched:
Union
Government has launched GPSAided Geo Augmented Navigation
(GAGAN) system, for aviation
navigation. It is a joint endeavour of
(ISRO) and Airports Authority of
India (AAI). It is projected to provide
augmentation service for GPS over
India, Bay of Bengal, South-East
Asia and Middle East along with
expansion up to Africa. The system
with the help of reference and uplink
station will provide corrections to the
GPS signal in order to improve air
traffic management. It is believed to
be 10 times more accurate compared
to GPS and radio navigation aids
used for precision landing.
GAGANs primary objective is
to establish, deploy and certify
satellite
based
augmentation
system for safety-of life civil
aviation applications for the Indian
airspace. It is believed to make

airline operations more efficient by
increasing fuel savings, direct routes,
ease of search and rescue operations,
reduced workload of flight crew
and Air Traffic Controllers and cost
savings due to withdrawal of ground
aids.
With this launch of GAGAN India
will become the fourth country in
the world to have inter-operable
Satellite
Based
Augmentation
System (SBAS) after US, Europe
and Japan. It is inter-operable with
US-WAAS, Europe-EGNOS and
Japanese MASAS.
India And Georgia Sign MoU For
Cooperation In Field Of Election
Management: On 13th July 2015,
India and Georgia Signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
for cooperation in the field of election management and administration. The memorandum of understanding for Cooperation was signed
by Nasim Zaidi, Chief Election
Commissioner of India and Tamar
Zhvania, Chairperson of Central
Election Commission of Georgia.
During the signing ceremony, Election Commissioner of India, A.K
Joti and senior official and diplomats were also present. Till date,
India has signed twenty Memorandum of understanding for Cooperation with Election Management
Bodies and International Organization across the world. International
Signed MoU of India is with Kyrgyzstan, Egypt, Venezuela, Yemen,
Mauritius, South Korea etc.
The major aims of Signing the MoU
between India and Georgia is to
promote exchanges of knowledge
and experiences in electoral
processes, to exchange of material
expertise information and training
of personnel for electoral purpose.
Production and distribution of
A-168
materials in the field of electoral

systems, voting technology, voters
education and awareness and to
promote the participation of women
and minorities in the electoral
processes is also the main purpose
of signing MoU.
India And World Bank Sign
Financing Agreement For Andhra
Pradesh Disaster Recovery Project:
India and World Bank (WB) signed
a Financial Agreement to raise US
250 Million Dollars for Andhra
Pradesh Disaster Recovery Project
(APDRP) which was signed by
the Union Government, Andhra
Pradesh Government and the
World Bank (WB) in New Delhi
on 16th July, 2015. This fund is
loan for an implementation of a
project for the period of 5 years
and Andhra Pradesh Government
will be the implementing agency of
the project. The deal was signed by
Selva Kumar. Acting joint Secretary,
Department of Economics Affairs,
Ministry of Finance, on the behalf
of the government of India and on
the behalf of revenue department,
JC Sharma, the Principal Secretary
and on the behalf of World Bank,
Mr OnnoRuhl, Company director of
World Bank, signed the agreement
The objective of the project is
t restore, improve and enhance
resilience of
public services,
livelihoods
and
environmental
facilities in targeted communities of
Andhra Pradesh. The beneficiaries
of the project include approximately
3 Million populations in 4 widely
impacted districts of the state
i.e. Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam,
Vizianagarm and East Godavsri.
India Sign Loan Agreement Of $300
Million With ADB: On 28th July
2015, Indian Government signed
a loan agreement of $300 Million
Events
with Asian Development Bank
(ADB) with the aim for improving
the health status of countries Urban
Population. This is the first project
of ADBs in India and the loan
funds will be used to boost the health
system and to deliver the quality
health to the urban society.
For this, government launched
a programme named NUHM
(National urban Health Mission)
which mainly focus on urban
Development, Housing and Urban
Poverty relief, Human Resource
Development and Women &
child development. It will lead to
strengthen the coordination between
health and urban sectors. NUHM
is the submission of NHM i.e.
National Health mission. Under this
mission, approx 779 cities with the
total population of 50000 and above
will cover.
ADB (The Asian Development
bank) established in 1966 and based
in Manila, which aims to reduce
poverty in Asia and the Pacific
through inclusive economic growth,
environmentally sustainable growth
and regional integration which tends
to improved quality of life of people.
India is urbanizing briskly with the
huge growth of number of poor
people.
Indias 1st indigenously designed
cryogenic rocket engine tested:
Indias first indigenously designed
and developed High Thrust cryogenic
rocket engine Geosynchronous
Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV)
Mark lll is successfully endurance
hot- tested by Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO). This High
Cryogenic engine is capable of
generating a nominal thrust of 19
tonnes.
The test meets all its parameters
and was conducted on 16th July
Events
2015, at Indian Space Research
Organisations (ISROs) Liquid
Propulsion system centre at
Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu for
800 seconds time frame which
produces 25 per cent more thrust
than the burn duration of the engine
during flight. The engine designed is
totally in-house efforts with experts
from various fields such as fluid
dynamics, combustion, thermal,
structure, metallurgy, fabrication,
rotor dynamics, control components
etc working together.
The Cryogenic Rocket engine is
the Liquid Hydrogen and Liquid
Oxygen high speed turbo pump
system, which rotates at the speed
of 36,000 rpm with a power level
of 2 MW. The engine will be used
for generating power for the upper
cryogenic stage (C25) of the next
generation GSL V MK-lll launch
vehicles of ISRO.
National Policy For Skill Development
And
Entrepreneurship
2015: On 15th July 2015, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi formally
launched National Policy for Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship
2015 in New Delhi. After
independence, this is the first such
policy and is proposed to supersede
the National Policy on Skill
Development which was formulated
in 2009 and would form the backbone
of National Skill Development
Mission. This policy aims to promote
entrepreneurship culture, enhance
support for potential entrepreneurs
through mentorship and incorporate
entrepreneurship education in the
formal education system among
others which will provide job growth
and facilitate the development of a
skilled workforce to create Skilled
India. This policy is launched
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with the motive to make quality

vocational training aspirational for
young ones and employee.
National
Policy
for
Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship
2015 focuses on the approach
towards quality skilling, increasing
the capacity as well as quality
infrastructure. It also aims to establish
an IT base duality infrastructure for
accumulating demand and supply
of skilled workforce and promote
more women to participate in the
workforce.
RBI
To
Issue
Coins
To
Commemorate
International
Day Of Yoga: Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) is about to issue coins
of 10 rupee denomination to
commemorate International Yoga
day which is observed every year on
21st June throughout the world. The
design of the coin has been notified
by the Finance Minister in June.
The coin will bear the ion capital of
Ashoka Pillar in the centre and the
legend Satyamev Jayate inscribed
below this. And below the lion
&DSLWDOUXSHH6\PERO DQGLQ
international numerals will also be
engraved. The other side of the coin
will bear the logo of International
Day of Yoga with the inscription
Samanjasya Evam Shanti Ke liye
Yog in Devnagri font and Yoga
for Harmony and Peace around the
logo. The date of International Yoga
day i.e. 21st June is also engraved
at the bottom of the logo. The year
2015 is also written on the lower
periphery in international numerals
below the logo.
RBI
permitted
CBS-enabled
Cooperative Banks to issue ATM
Cards: Cooperative Banks are now
being able to issue ATM Cards/
A-170
ATM cards cum debit cards with a

bigger bank as a sponsor Bank.
On 16th July, 2015 Reserve Bank
Of India (RBI) permitted enabled
Core Banking Solution (CBS) with
Cooperative Banks to issue ATM
Cards/ ATM-cum-debit cards in
tie-up with a sponsor Bank. The
outcome of this decision is to move
towards a less cash economy. It
aims to impart the habit of using
electronic payment channels among
customers.
For this, bank needs to set up their
very own provisions for issuing and
authorization of cards, customer
support and to make sure to provide
uninterrupted services to their
customer.
It is mandatory if carrying out such
transaction, to become sub-member
of the National Financial Switch
(NFS) as per RBI Guidelines.
National Financial Switch is a
mechanism introduced by National
Payment Corporation of India
which allows transactions like
money transfer, direct payments,
and account balance checking etc.
SBI Launches Project Tatkal:
State Bank of India, Indias largest
commercial bank has launched
an initiative to provide doorstep
services and expedite home loans
application process. This project
will help get the loan within 10 days
after receipt of application form and
relevant supporting documents. The
implementation will be done at large
centres with sizeable home loan
business.
The project Tatkal will be rolled out
across all the Home loan marketing
and processing units in the bank
in a phased manner. The bank has
Events
also introduced Online Customer
Acquisition Solution (OCAS) for
instant e-approval of Home loan
Applications. State Bank has over 3
million home loan customers with a
portfolio of over Rs. 16, 60,000 crore
- the largest amongst all scheduled
Commercial Banks and Housing
Finance Companies in the country.
The Bank considers Home Loan
central to its overall Retail Business
strategy and has consistently
introduced innovative products and
simplified loan delivery systems to
ensure that its products and services
meet the ever rising expectations of
the customers.
Panagariya Committtee to Classify
Caste Census Data, 2011 approved:
Union Cabinet gave its approval on
setting up of Panagariya Committee
to classify Caste names returned
in the Socio Economic and Caste
Census data (SECC), 2011 on 16th
July 2015. The cabinet was chaired
by the Prime Minister, Narendra
Modi. SECC was conducted by the
representatives of the State/UT
governments.
According to the SECC data
released on 3rd July 2015,the expert
group will be tasked with classifying
about 46 lakh Caste/Sub Caste
names/
Synonyms/Surnames/
Clan/ Gothra Names The Socio
Economic and caste census data of
the rural areas has been released by
thw Ministry f Rural Development
(MoRD). The caste census was the
first since 1932. After the completion
of task, it will make public at an
appropriate time.
The approval of setting up
Panagariya Committee is given
in respect of the states who are
unsuccessful
in
consolidating
different categories and is in line
with the one taken by the UPA
government on May19, 2011.
Events
Interest Subvention Scheme To
Banks Extended: The Union
Government extended ISS (Interest
Subvention Scheme) to public sector
banks, Private sector banks (PSBs),
Private Sector commercial Banks,
Rural regional Banks (RRBs),
Cooperative Banks and NABARD
to assure availability of crop loan up
to 3 Lakhs Rupees to farmers at a
rate of 7 percent per annum.
An additional interest subvention
of 3 percent per annum is also
approved by cabinet for those
farmers who repay the loan on time.
Moreover, the agriculture credit is
raised by 8, 50,000 from 8, 00,000.
Interest subvention is also decided
to provide to small and marginal
farmer with Kisan Credit Cards
(KCC) for loans against negotiable
warehouse receipts post-harvest at
annual interest of seven percent for
six month. For the farmers, who are
affected by natural calamities will
be provided interest subvention of
2 percent from the banks who are
covered in the interest subvention
scheme. A central Agriculture
university at Samsatipur in Bihar is
also approved. As per the approval,
the agriculture university at Pusa,
which already exists, is to be
converted into an international level
institution through strengthening of
infrastructure, manpower and other
provisions.
National Mission For Skill
Development Launched: On 15th
July 2015, on the occasion of the
first ever World Youth Skills Days,
the Union Government of India
launched National Mission for Skills
Development (NMSD). The event
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was held at Vigyan Bhawan, New

Delhi and Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has consented to be the Chief
Guest.
The National Mission for Skill
Development
(NMSD)
was
launched to promote the overall
institutional framework to rapidly
implement and scale up skill
development efforts across India.
Under this mission, apporx 300
million skilled people will be train
by the year 2022.
The main aim of this mission is
to create a framework for skill
development which will create
lifelong learning opportunities,
to establish and accomplish
cross sectoral nationality and
internationally acceptable standards
for skill training in the country. 1000
Crore Rupees For Indo-Bangla
Rail Link Sanctioned: After PM
Narendra Modis Dhaka visit on
June 6-7and discussion with the
Bangladesh Prime Minister Seikh
Hasina, the approval has been made
on 25th July, 2015, the government
of India has passed the sanction
of INR 1000 crore for the purpose
of paying 15.06 km long tracks to
connect Bangladesh and North East
with Indian Railways.
The Indo-Bangla Rail Link would
be completed by year 2017. The
route will also impact the distance
between different places in India.
The project will connect Agartala
with Akhaura, Bangladesh railway
junction. This will reduce the
distance from Agartala to Kolkata
from 1650 km to 515 km. Moreover,
by this, difficult hilly area will also
be avoided from the route.
This is the step that has been taken
by Indian Government towards
brotherhood and to boost the socioeconomic, trade and commerce
A-172
Events
between the North- East region of

India and Bangladesh. People from
two countries would connect each
other easily by this.
AUGUST
NABARD accredited as National
Implementing Entity: National
Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD) received
accreditation by the Green Climate
Fund as the national implementing
entity for undertaking climate
change related projects in India.
Green Climate Fund (GCF) was
set up under the framework of
the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) in 2010 to aid the
developing countries finance clean
energy, other mitigation efforts and
adaptation to climate change.
NABARD is the only National
Implementing Entity (NIE) in the
country for undertaking climate
change projects. NABARD has
submitted a proposal to GCF for
financial support on Mitigating
climate change and enhancing
adaptation for farmers through
agro-forestry project set by Haryana
Government. The Haryana state
government plans to cover an area
of 30,000 hectare under the agroforestry plantation of fast growing
canal eucalyptus species. The plan
includes lowering of ground water
table in Haryana on account of
water logging due to excess canal
irrigation and mitigation of climate
change by sequestering carbon
dioxide from atmosphere.
Indias First Harbour Defence
System Commissioned In Kochi:
Indias first Integrated Underwater Harbour Defence and Surveillance System (IUHDSS) was commissioned in Kochi, Kerala. The
state-of-the-art automated system

is capable of detecting, identifying,
tracking and generating warning for
surface and underwater threats. It
was commissioned by Vice-Admiral
Sunil Lanba, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern
Naval Command.
IUHDSS was designed by Israeli
Aerospace Industries (IAI) ELTA.
It consists of electro-optic sensors,
surveillance radars and sound
navigation and ranging (SONAR)
systems. The system was contracted
by Integrated Headquarters of
Ministry of Defence in 2012 and
will operate under the control of the
Naval Officer-in-Charge (Kerala).
ELTA Systems Ltd is an Israeli
provider of defence products and
services specializing in radar,
C4ISTAR, RF, SIGINT and EW
products. It is one of Israels leading
defence
electronics
companies
and a global leader in the field of
Intelligence, Surveillance, Target
Acquisition and Reconnaissance
(ISTAR), Early Warning and
Control, Homeland Security (HLS),
Self-Protection and Self-Defence,
and Fire Control applications.
Indias first witness protection
scheme launched (1st August):
Delhi became the first state in the
country to announce a scheme in
concern with protection of witness
as notified by the Delhi Witness
Protection Scheme, 2015. For
implementation of this scheme
the government is willing to make
budgetary provisions in its annual
budget.
The Government decided to start
the scheme for protecting witness
in criminal cases in regards with the
directions of the High Court after
Events
the Jessica Lal and Nitesh Katara
murder cases.
The scheme prohibits revealing or
publication of name, address and
other details of witnesses in any
manner, either directly or indirectly.
The witnesses will have a changed
identity in order to protect their
identity. The scheme also provides
for in-camera proceedings and
live link, in which a witness can
depose without coming to court.
Government has appointed Delhi
State Legal Services Authority
(DSLSA) as the competent authority
for implementation of the scheme,
which will take all decisions and
reviews.
Mobile App Disha For Digital
Literacy
Launched:
Telecom
Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad
launched the new mobile app called
Disha to aid digital literacy in Bihar
on 10th August. The app is primarily
designed to educate the tribal and
Dalit women. The mobile app is
prepared to spread digital literacy
through self-learning modules and
is free and available on Google Play
Store.
The Telecom Ministry also launched
Disha Handbook that has
pictographic lessons on computer
operations, framed by the Common
Service Centres (CSCs) for the
purpose of digital literacy. This
initiative was taken by the Ministry
to spread out digital literacy in
women from tribal and Dalit
background of the state.
The Digital Saksharta Abhiyan
(DISHA) was launched on August
21, 2014, to provide digital literacy to
non IT literate citizens. The scheme
imparts IT training to 52.5 lakh
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persons that include Anganwadi

and ASHA workers and authorized
ration dealers in all the states/UTs
across the country.
Kochi Becomes The First Indian
City To Join WTCF Council:
Kochi has become the first city in
India to be a member of Beijingheadquartered
World
Tourism
Cities Federation Council (WTCF).
The Kerala Tourism Department
accepted the Councils invitation to
join the league of leading tourism
cities across the world on 10th
August 2015.
The document of acceptance of the
membership was handed over by
the Kochi Mayor Tony Chammany
to Chinese Ambassador to India Le
Yucheng at a function held in Kochi
in the presence of Chief Minister
Oommen Chandy, Chief Secretary
Jiji Thomson, Kerala Tourism
Secretary G Kamala Vardhana Rao
and Tourism Director P I Sheik
Pareeth.
The Beijing-headquartered World
Tourism Cities Federation Council
is a non-profit, non-governmental
international
organization
voluntarily formed by tourism
cities and organizations of various
countries and regions from around
the world. It was founded in Beijing
on September 15, 2012, and is
the first international tourism
organization to focus on cities
around the world.
Saral-Rural Housing Loan Scheme
Launched: Industrial Credit and
Investment Corporation of India
(ICICI) Bank has launched ICICI
Bank Saral-Rural Housing Loan
Scheme for the weaker sections
A-174
of the society. Under the scheme

applicants from various rural areas
and borrowers from the weaker
sections can avail home loans at the
ICICI Bank Base Rate (also known
as I-Base) which is currently at 9.7%.
Loan amount ranging from 5 to 15
lakhs can be provided to eligible
customers for the tenure of 320
years and the loan can be up to 90
per cent of the property value. The
scheme will be available in 189 cities
across the country. The loan facility
can also be available for purchasing,
construction, repairs, renovation of
houses in rural areas.
The scheme will aid the socioeconomic development of a larger
section of the society. It will also
empower
customers
including
women borrowers in the rural
locations to fulfil the dream of
owning a home at an affordable
interest rate.
Union Government to form Bank
Board Bureau: Union Government
has decided upon setting up of
a Bank Board Bureau (BBB) to
supervise the key performance
indicators of around two dozen
Public Sector Banks (PSBs).The
plan was announced by the Union
Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley as
part of a seven point revamp plan for
PSBs dubbed as the Indradhanush
plan.
The Bank Board Bureau (BBB)
will be headed by a Chairman and
will comprise six other members
three government officials and
three experts, two of which will be
from the private sector. The Bureau
will make recommendations for
Events
senior appointments and also advise
banks on strategies for consolidation
among themselves including mergers
and acquisitions.
The Bureau will replace existing
system of Appointments Board
in which appointments for top
level jobs at PSBs are made by an
appointments committee led by
the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
Governor.
This initiative by the Government is
welcomed by the banking industry
as the first step towards a holding
company structure for public sectors
banks.
Education Loan Portal Launched:
The Government has launched a
website, vidyalakshmi.co.in, for
students seeking educational loans.
This portal was launched with an
aim to administer and monitor
scholarship as well as educational
loan schemes under the Pradhan
Mantri Vidya Lakshmi Karyakram
(PMVLK).
The portal aims to ensure that the
students do not miss out on higher
education due to the lack of funds
and the launch of the portal is the
first step towards achieving this
objective. The portal will provide
information about educational
loan schemes of banks; common
educational loan application form
for students; facility to apply to
multiple banks for educational loans;
and facility for banks to download
students loan applications.
Finance
Ministry
announced
that 13 banks have registered for
22 educational loan schemes in
accordance with the Vidya Lakshmi
Portal and banks like SBI, IDBI
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Events
Bank, Bank of India, Canara Bank
and Union Bank of India have
integrated their system with the
portal for providing loan processing
status to students.
The Pradhan Mantri Vidya Lakshmi
Karyakram (PMVLK) was launched
on 15th July 2015 under the
governments ambitious National
Skill Development Mission.
Worlds
First
Solar-Powered
Airport: Adding a golden feather
to the cap of achievements of
India, Cochin International Airport
in Kerala became the worlds
first fully solar-powered airport.
Kerala Chief Minister Oommen
Chandy inaugurated the project. It
constitutes a 12 MW solar power
plant with 46,150 solar panels
laid across 45 acres. This power
generated will range from 50,000 to
60,000 thousand units of electricity
every day.
The airport is the first airport in
India to be constructed in a public
private partnership (PPP) model. It is
owned by a public limited company
called Cochin International Airport
Limited (CIAL). The state holds
33.36% stake in it, while the nonresident Indians and investors own
38.03% stake and the rest of stakes
are held by various companies. The
green power project will cull down
the emission of carbon dioxide from
the coal-fired power plants by more
than 300,000 metric tons, which is
the same as planting three million
trees.
The contract was awarded to Bosch
Ltd, Bangalore and the project was
completed in a short span of six
months.
500 Mw Thermal Power Plant
commissioned:
Bharat
Heavy
Electricals Limited (BHEL) has
successfully commissioned the 500

MW Unit-13 of Vindhyachal Super
Thermal Power Station (STPS),
Stage-V of NTPC in Vindhyanagar
in Singrauli district of Madhya
Pradesh.
BHEL has commissioned seven units
of 500 MW each at the Vindhyachal
power station aggregating to
3,500 MW, the highest by BHEL
in a power project. BHELs
primary focus in the contract
envisaged
design,
engineering,
manufacture, supply and erection &
commissioning of steam generator
and steam turbine generator
along with associated auxiliaries
and state of the art controls and
instrumentation. The equipment for
the project were manufactured at
BHELs Tiruchi, Ranipet, Haridwar,
Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Bhopal
plants, while the companys Power
Sector - Western Region undertook
erection and commissioning of the
equipment.
BHEL has made 76 sets of 500 MW
rating class each across the country.
In the financial year 2015-16 it has
commissioned power plants with a
cumulative capacity of 2,480 MW.
Super Thermal Power Stations
(STPS) are a series of ambitious coal
based power projects planned by the
Government of India in 1990. The
capacity of such thermal plant is
1000 MW and above.
SEPTEMBER
Warship INS Kochi Commissioned
into the Indian Navy: Indias
biggest, indigenously-built warship
INS Kochi was on September 30
commissioned into the Indian Navy.
The 7,500-tonne vessel, capable of
speeds of more than 30 knots, is
equal to any foreign ship. INS Kochi
was built as the second of the three
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Kolkata Class (Project 15A) Guided

Missile Destroyers at the Mazagaon
Docks Ltd (MDL) in Mumbai at a
cost of Rs 4,000 crore, and joined
the Indian Navy fleet as its 10th
destroyer.
The first of the Kolkata Class
destroyers, INS Kolkata was
commissioned in August 2014,
while the third and final - INS
Chennai - is due for induction by
the end of 2016. INS Kochi is the
second ship in the Indian Navy to
have multi-function surveillance
and threat alert radar to provide
information about targets for a longrange surface-to-air missile system.
Designed by the Navys in-house
organisation, Directorate of Naval
Design, the ship is named after the
vibrant port city of Kochi.
Asian Air Gun Championships:
Indian pistol shooter Heena Sidhu
on 30 September won the gold
medal in womens 10 meter air
pistol event at the 8th Asian Air
Gun Championships in New Delhi.
Heena, Indias first pistol shooter to
be ranked number one in the world,
shot a total of 197.8 points to finish
at the top of the podium on the final
day of the Championships. Another
shooter Shweta Singh won the silver
medal by aggregating 197.0. Korean
shooter Seon A Kim took the bronze
with a total score of 175.8. Indian
shooter Yashaswini Singh Deshwal,
playing her first international final,
finished fourth.
With winning an impressive 17
medals, Indias tally includes six
gold medals to finish as toppers in
the continental event. In the overall
standings, Iran took the second
place with 12 podium finishes,
including six gold and five silver
medals, followed by Taipei, winning
one gold, two silver and two bronze.
Events
India wins UNESCOs Award

of Excellence 2015 for Sree
Vadakkunnathan Temple: India on
September 1 won the top UNESCO
prize Award of Excellence 2015
in the Asia Pacific Heritage Award
for Cultural Heritage Conservation
for the remarkable conservation
efforts of the majestic Sree
Vadakkunnathan Temple in Kerala.
The award recognises the remarkable
conservation effort undertaken at the
sacred site which employed age-old
rituals and conservation techniques
drawn from vastu shastra focusing
on architecture and construction.
Sdaring Xieng Thong Temple in
Luang Prabang won the Award of
Merit and became the first project in
Lao Peoples Democratic Republic
to receive the UNESCO Asia-Pacific
Heritage Award. A 150-year-old
Sino-Portuguese former residence
of a Thai aristocrat, which has been
converted into a historic inn and
local museum, has been awarded
UNESCOs Award of Merit in
Heritage Award. Vadakkunnathan
Temple is an ancient Hindu temple
dedicated to Shiva at city of Thrissur
of Kerala. The temple is a classic
example of the architectural style of
Kerala and has monumental towers
on all four sides.
Global Investors Meet 2015
held in Tamil Nadu: The Tamil
Nadu Global Investors Meet
(GIM) 2015 was on September 10
inaugurated by Tamil Nadu Chief
Minister Jayalalithaa which is
believed to attract investments to
the tune of Rs. 1 lakh crore (US$
16 billion). Though the target was
one lakh crore, the Investors Meet
2015 received Rs 2,42,160 crore
investment commitment.
Of the total investment proposals, Rs
1,04,286 crore is in manufacturing
Events
sector, mainly focusing at the large
scale availability of land in states
southern districts. Power sector got
Rs 1,07,136 crore worth proposals.
Rs 10,950 crore in IT sector, Rs
1,955 crore in handloom sector, Rs
800 crore in agriculture sector and
Rs 500 crore in fisheries.
Medium and Small Enterprises
have signed MoUs worth Rs 16,533
crore. Solar energy sector alone
has received proposals worth Rs
35,356 crore, which would add a
total capacity of 5,345 mega watt
if implemented. Establishment of
an LNG terminal at Thoothukudi,
along with the LNG terminal at
Ennore, would secure the long term
energy security of the state.
Indias first dedicated satellite
ASTROSAT launched:Indias first
dedicated satellite for astronomical
research, Astrosat, has been
launched on 28th September from
here at 10am. The Polar Satellite
Launch Vehicle PSLV-C30 carried
it into a low earth equatorial orbit
after its take-off from the first launch
pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre,
along with six small satellites of
international customers. PSLV has
flown in its extended configuration
this time, keeping in view the total
payload weight of 1631 kg. The
Astrosat has the ability to observe
celestial bodies like distant stars and
cosmic X-Ray sources in different
wavelengths simultaneously. Four
identical nano-satellites of Spire
Global Inc., the US, a micro-satellite
from Indonesia and a nano-satellite
of the University of Toronto,
Canada Along with Astrosat, had
also taken off.
It lobbed Astrosat in its 650 km
orbit within 22 minutes 33 seconds
of ignition of the PSLV followed by
the smaller payloads. The science
research mission Astrosat with five
A-177
years of intended operational life

will serve as a space observatory.
PM Narendra Modi visits Ireland:
arrived in Dublin on 24th September
for a brief visit to Ireland enroute
to the US to strengthen bilateral
ties and cooperation. He is the first
Indian Premier to visit the country in
almost 60 years. He held talks with
Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda
Kenny at the Government Buildings
in Dublin City Centre followed by a
working luncheon hosted by Kenny
in honour of Modi. The talks also
covered global challenges like terror
and radicalisation. Prime minister
hoped that Irelands visa policy will
be sensitive to the requirements of
Indias IT firms.
The Prime Minister also sought
Irelands support for the reforms
of the UNSC within a fixed time
frame in particular, for successful
conclusion of inter-governmental
negotiations in the 70th year of the
United Nations. He then travelled on
to the West Coast of the US, where
he addressed the Indian community
in Silicon Valley and held meetings
with top tech CEOs as part of this
two-nation, three-city tour which
concluded on September 29.
National Health Profile 2015
Released: Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare has released
National Health Profile (NHP)
2015, which provides comprehensive
information related to health sector.
The 11th edition of the document has
been prepared by Central Bureau of
Health Intelligence (CBHI). It was
released in e-book (digital) version
for the first time in lines with Digital
India initiative. Union Minister
for Health and Family Welfare J P
Nadda released it in New Delhi.
The key facts of NHP focuses on
health information under six major
A-178
indicators viz. demographic, socioeconomic, health finance and health

status indicators, comprehensive
information on health infrastructure
and human resources in health in
India. Demographic indicators
give information about population
statistics
and
vital
statistics.
Socio-economic
indicators
provide
the
information
on
education; Economic indicators,
Employment, Social Indicators,
Drinking Water and Sanitation
and Housing and Amenities.
Health Status Indicators showcase
on incidence and prevalence of
common Communicable and NonCommunicable Diseases. They
also provide a short overview of
National Programme for Prevention
and Control of Cancer, Diabetes,
Cardio-vascular Disease and Stroke
(NPCDCS) and vital information of
Reproductive and Child Health of
respective states and UTs.
Health Finance gives an overview
of Public Expenditure on Health,
Health Coverage and Insurance.
Human Resources give an overview
of availability of human resource
or manpower working in the
Health Sector in the country.
Health Infrastructure gives detailed
information of various medical
institutes in the country including
of medical and dental Colleges,
Nursing Courses, AYUSH Institutes
and Paramedical Courses.
Telangana-Chhattisgarh
inked
Power Supply pact: The Telangana
and Chhattisgarh governments
signed a power purchase agreement
on 22nd September for supply of
1000 mw of power. This power
supply arrangement will be for 12
years and apart from 1000 mw of
power supply agreement signed by
the two States earlier.
Events
The supply pact was made following
request made by Chief Minister of
Telangana K Chandrasekhar Rao
to his counterpart Raman Singh.
It is aimed at bridging the demand
supply gap in the State particularly
when the demand spikes up during
the rabi crop season and summer
months as well as meeting projected
demand.
The State Government is planning
to develop a transmission network to
evacuate power from Chhattisgarh.
The line is coming up along Wardha
and Dichpalli. The 765-kv doublecircuit line will have capacity
to handle 4,350 mw of power,
according to a statement.
National Tourism Awards 2013-14
presented: The National Tourism
Awards 2013-14 were presented by
President Pranab Mukherjee on 18
September 2015 at a function held
at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.
The National Tourism Awards
are presented annually by Union
Ministry of Tourism to various
segments of the travel, tourism and
hospitality industry. The awards are
being given since the early 1990s.
The awards are given to State
Governments, Union Territories,
hotels, travel agents, tour operators
and individuals in recognition of
their performance in their respective
fields.
The national tourism awards are
awarded in several categories
including
Comprehensive
Development of Tourism, Best Rural
Tourism Project, Medical Tourism
Facilities, Best Heritage City, Best
Heritage Walk, Best Hotels, Awards
to Inbound Tour Operators and
Travel Agents for their outstanding
work.
Some of the important recipients
of awards include the state of
Gujarat for the best State/UT
Events
for
Comprehensive
Tourism
Development,
Heritage
City
Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh as
the Best Heritage City, Municipal
Council of Maheshwar (Distt.
Khargone) in Madhya Pradesh
for Best Civic Management of a
Tourist Destination in B Category
and Department of Tourism of
Kerala for most innovative use of
information technology.
Hindi Divas Observed: Hindi Divas
is an annual literary-day celebrated
on 14 September across India. It
is celebrated in the remembrance
for commemorating the occasion
of adopting Hindi as the official
language of Constituent Assembly
on 14 September 1949, though it
came into effect since 26 January
1950. Under the Article 343 of the
Indian Constitution, the Devanagri
script of Hindi was adopted as the
official language.
It seeks to propagate Hindi language
and its cultural heritage and values.
It also seeks to promote the Matra
Bhasha i.e. mother tongue of
India and show its importance as
a language in the country and the
world at large. On the occasion,
President
Pranab
Mukherjee
presented Rajbhasa awards in
various categories at a function
held at Rashtrapati Bhavan. These
Rajbhasa awards are instituted by
the Rajbhasha Vibhag of Union
Ministry of Home Affairs and
recognize Ministries, Departments
and Nationalized Banks and others
for their excellent contribution in the
field of Hindi.
Under the Article 343 of the Indian
Constitution, Hindi written in
Devanagri script was adopted as the
official language. However, presently,
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there are 2 official languages Hindi

and English.
India Signs Loan Agreement
With Asian Development Bank:
India signed a 123.51 million US
dollar loan agreement with Asian
Development Bank (ADB) to
upgrade tourism infrastructure and
services in Punjab, Uttarakhand and
Himachal Pradesh. The agreement
was signed by M Teresa Kho,
Country Director for ADB in India
and Raj Kumar, Joint Secretary
(Multilateral Institutions), Union
Ministry of Finance.
The loan will be used for development and conservation of the
places of tourist attractions. It
will also be used to improve basic
tourism facilities and to build the
capacity of sector agencies and
local communities in the States of
Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand
and Punjab. The loan will also
support conservation of important
heritage
structures
including
some century-old structures, new
facilities including centres for arts
and crafts in the three states. Ecoparks and eco-tourism will also be
developed to help the states attract
more tourists. Besides, to improve
income opportunities for the local
communities, more than 4000
community members will be trained
in tourism-related skills such as
guides, crafts, and other recreational
activities.
Green Highways Policy, 2015
Launched: Union Minister of Road
Transport & Highways and Shipping
Shri Nitin Gadkari on September
29 launched the Green Highways
(Plantation,
Transplantation,
Beautification & Maintenance)
Policy, 2015. The aim of the policy
is to promote greening of Highway
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corridors with participation of the

community, farmers, private sector,
NGOs, and government institutions.
As per the policy, 1% of the total
project cost of all highways projects
will be kept aside for the highway
plantation and its maintenance.
About Rs. 1000 crore per year will be
available for plantation purpose. The
policy will generate employment
opportunities for about five lakh
people from rural areas. There will
be strong monitoring mechanism in
place by using ISROs Bhuvan and
GAGAN satellite systems. Every
planted tree will be counted and
auditing will be done. The agencies
performing doing their best will
be awarded. The Green Highway
Policy will help in making India
pollution free and will also help
in curtailing the number of road
accidents in India.
Four
Brand
Ambassadors
For Digital India Programme
Appointed: Union Government on
29 September 2015 announced that
four brand ambassadors for Digital
India programme were appointed.
The appointments had taken place
in the first week of July 2015 as part
of the Digital India Week campaign.
The list of Brand Ambassadors
includes:
1. Satwat Jagwani, All India IITJEE Advanced Topper -2015
(Student)
2. Krati Tiwari, All India IIT-JEE
Advanced Girl Topper -2015
(Student)
3. Ankit Fadia, Author & Ethical
Hacker
4. Pranav Mistry, Samsung USA
(Computer Scientist & Author
of 6th Sense)
In order to generate mass awareness
for the programme, the services of
these Brand Ambassadors will be
Events
used for a period of one year since
their nomination.
Bi-Monthly
Monetary
Policy
Statement 2015-16 Announced:
Fourth bi-monthly monetary policy
statement 2015-16 was announced
on 29 September 2015 by Raghuram
Rajan, the Governor of Reserve
Bank of India (RBI).
The monetary policy cut the repo
rate, the rate at which RBI lends to
commercial bank, by 0.50 percent
from 7.25 percent to 6.75 percent
with immediate effect.
As a result, the reverse repo rate,
the rate at which RBI borrows from
commercial banks, stands adjusted
to 5.75 percent, and the marginal
standing facility (MSF) rate and the
Bank Rate to 7.75 per cent.
However, the cash reserve ratio
(CRR) of scheduled banks was
kept unchanged at 4 percent of net
demand and time liabilities (NDTL).
Further, RBI will continue to
provide liquidity under overnight
repos at 0.25 percent of bank-wise
NDTL at the LAF repo rate and
liquidity under 14-day term repos
as well as longer term repos of up
to 0.75 percent of NDTL of the
banking system through auctions;
and continue with overnight/term
variable rate repos and reverse repos
to smooth liquidity.
Comment
The RBI lowered the repo rate
against the backdrop of deflationary
tendencies-lowering inflation and
decelerating nominal GDP-in the
economy.
As the headline consumer price
index (CPI) inflation reached its
lowest level in August 2015 since
November 2014, except high prices
of onion and pulses, and is expected
Events
to reach 5.8 percent in January
2016 the RBI shifted its focus to
augmenting supply side economic
activity.
As a result, the repo rate was
decreased by 50 basis points or
0.50 percent to give boost to the
decelerating merchandise exports
and increase the investor confidence
on the Indianeconomy amidst
sluggish growth trends across the
world.
SBI & ICICI declared as Domestic
Systemically Important Banks: The
Reserve Bank of India announced on
August 31 the designation of State
Bank of India and ICICI Bank Ltd.
as Domestic Systemically Important
Banks (D-SIBs). The Reserve Bank
had issued the Framework for
dealing with Domestic Systemically
Important Banks (D-SIBs) on July
22, 2014.
These banks have been identified as
D-SIBs based on the methodology
provided in the D-SIB Framework
and data collected from banks as on
31 March 2015. Further, these banks
have been put under associated
bucket structure as required under
the D-SIB Framework and each
bucket corresponds to the higher
loss absorbency requirements that
they would be required to hold
from January 2016. As a result,
SBI has been put under Bucket 3
with additional Common Equity
Tier 1 (CET1) requirements as a
percentage of Risk Weighted Assets
(RWAs) placed at 0.6percent.
The additional Common Equity Tier
1 (CET1) requirements applicable to
D-SIBs will be applicable from April
1, 2016 in a phased manner and
would become fully effective from
April 1, 2019. The additional CET1
requirement will be in addition to
the capital conservation buffer.
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India Partners With UNs Better

Than Cash Alliance For PMJDY:
India on September 1 has joined
the UN-based Better Than Cash
Alliance, which promotes transition
from cash to digital payments to
reduce poverty and drive inclusive
growth. The new partnership with
the Better Than Cash Alliance, made
up of governments, companies, and
international organisations, is an
extension of Indian governments
commitment to reduce cash in its
economy.
India has joined the Alliance for
digitisation of payments to achieve
financial inclusion and to share
success stories from PMJDY, the
worlds largest financial inclusion
programme. Under PMJDY, as
many as 180 million new accounts
had been opened in one year, with
deposits totalling more than USD3.4
billion (223 billion Rupees).
Managing Director of Better Than
Cash Alliance Ruth GoodwinGroen termed Indias leadership and
progress inspirational for countries
around the world while commenting
on the development.
Forward Markets Commission
Merged With SEBI: The Union
government on September 2
notified the merger of commodities
market regulator Forward Markets
Commission (FMC) with Sebi with
effect from September 28. The
merger was on the cards Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley, in his Budget
speech, had announced its merger
with the capital market regulator
Sebi to strengthen the regulation of
commodity futures market.
Forward Contracts Regulation
Act (FCRA) 1952 gets repealed
and Regulation of Commodity
Derivatives Market will shift to
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Securities and Exchange Board

of India (Sebi) under Securities
Contracts Regulation Act (SCRA)
1956 with effect from 28th
September, 2015, the Finance
Ministry said in a statement.
In the wake of a Rs 5,500-crore
payment crisis at the National
Spot Exchange Ltd, FMC was
brought under Finance Ministry
in 2013. Currently, there are three
national and six regional bourses for
commodity futures in the country.
The Financial Sector Legislative
Reforms Commission (FSLRC)
had recommended that Sebi, IRDA,
PFRDA and FMC should be merged
into a single entity into a unified
financial agency (UFA).
G20 Launches W20 to Enhance
Role of Women in Business: The
worlds 20 leading economies the
G20 grouping on 6 September 2015
launched the W20 (Women20)
in Ankara, Turkey. The focus of
the W20 is to enhance the role of
women in business.
G20 is a group of major economies
formed to bring together systemically
important
industrialized
and
developing economies to discuss
key issues in the global economy.
The group aims to work toward
empowering women and ensuring
their participation in economic
growth.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu said that womens
participation was paramount to
economic growth and one of the
best indicators for the prosperity of
a country was the smile on the face
of its women. The launch event
was also addressed by IMF chief
Christine Lagarde, Organisation
Events
for Economic Cooperation and
Development
secretary-general
Angel Gurria, deputy executive
director of U.N. Women Lakshmi
Puri, International Trade Centres
executive director Arancha Gonzz,
among others.
Constitution
of
21st
Law
Commission Approved: The Law
Commission of India is a nonstatutory body constituted by the
Government of India from time to
time. The Constitution of the 21st
Law Commission of India was
approved by the Union Cabinet
chaired by the Prime Minister
Narendra Modi for a period of three
years w.e.f. 1 September 2015 to 31
August, 2018. The term of the 20th
Law Commission headed by former
Delhi High Court Chief Justice A P
Shah ended on 31 March 2015.
The task entrusted upon the Law
Commission is to undertake research
in law and review of existing laws
in India for making reforms therein
and enacting new legislations either
on a reference made to it by the
Central Government or suo-motu.
Commission also has to undertake
studies and research for bringing
reforms in the justice delivery
systems for elimination of delay in
procedures, speedy disposal of cases,
reduction in cost of litigation etc.
INS Vajrakosh Commissioned
At Karwar: Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar on 9th September
commissioned INS Vajrakosh, the
latest Indian Navy establishment
at Karwar base, which will handle
missiles and ammunition. INS
Vajrakosh will be a special storage
and servicing facility for missiles as
well as armaments for naval ships
operating off the Karwar coast.
Events
Karwar is going to emerge as Navys
most significant base on the western
seaface.
Vajrakosh will function under
the Flag Officer Commanding
Karnataka Naval Area and will
be in the forefront of providing
armament, missiles and related
technical support to the naval ships
in Karwar.
This establishment has some of the
most significant naval assets already
in service or being inducted. With
the ongoing expansion of the Indian
Navy, there has been increase in the
number of ships, submarines and
aircraft equipped with specialised
armament and missiles. These need
to be maintained in the best possible
manner throughout their service life.
Apache Attack and Chinook
Heavy-Lift
Helicopters
Deal
With US Cleared: The Cabinet
Committee on Security (CCS) on
22nd September cleared a multibillion dollar deal for 22 Apache
attack helicopters and 15 Chinook
heavy-lift choppers with American
aviation giant Boeing.
The deal for Apache is a hybrid
one, with one contract to be signed
with Boeing for the helicopter and
the other with the US government
for its weapons, radars and electronic
warfare suites. American companies
have over the last decade got defence
contracts from India worth around
USD 10 billion, including for aircraft
like P-8I maritime surveillance
planes, C-130J Super Hercules
and C-17 Globemaster-III in the
transport category.
The 22 Apache AH 64D Longbow
helicopters are one of the most
advanced
multi-role
combat
helicopters, featuring all-weather
and night fighting features, ability to
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track up to 128 targets in less than a

minute and engage with 16, besides
stealth characteristics, advanced
sensors and beyond visual range
missiles.
Integrated Power Development
Scheme launched: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on September 18
launched the National Integrated
Power Development Scheme (IPDS)
from Varanasi to provide 24-hour
power supply to each and every
house of the nation.
The 45 thousand crore rupees
scheme will enlighten the entire
urban population of the country
ensuring 24-hour power supply to
every house. Under IPDS, Varanasi
will get 572 crore rupees. Prime
Minister Modi said that IPDS is
the beginning to make Varanasi
a smart city and appealed to the
people to use LED bulbs in order
to reduce their electricity bills. Mr
Modi also said that only public and
private sector cannot accelerate the
process of economic development
in the country. The foundation stone
of seven developmental projects
for Varanasi was laid by the Prime
Minister.
Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra
Kalyan
Yojana
(Pmkkky)
Launched: The Union government
on September 17 announced the
launch of the Pradhan Mantri
Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana
(PMKKKY). The programme is
aimed to provide for the welfare
of areas and people affected by
mining related operations, using the
funds generated by District Mineral
Foundations (DMFs).
The
Mines
and
Minerals
(Development
&
Regulation)
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Amendment Act, 2015, mandated

the setting up of District Mineral
Foundations (DMFs) in all districts
in the country affected by mining
related operations.
60% of funds will be allocated for
high priority areas like drinking
water supply, health care, sanitation,
education, skill development, women
and child care, welfare of aged and
disabled people, skill development
and environment conservation. Rest
of the funds will be spent on making
roads, bridges, railways, waterways
projects, irrigation and alternative
energy sources.
NXT Digital-Headend in The Sky
Platform Launched: The Union
Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley
on 15 September 2015 launched the
Headend In The Sky (HITS) digital
platform initiative, under the brand
name NXT DIGITAL promoted
by Hinduja Group. The platform
is set to provide viewers access to
over 500 television channels of their
choice whether it is international,
national, regional and local. Apart
from these, a host of other services
like e-applications and TV will be
available.
Viewers in Andhra Pradesh,
Telangana, Maharashtra, Punjab
and Karnataka will now have
greater access to channels of their
choice. Other states will soon join
in. The customers will now pay for
what they want to see and it will
also increase in revenues to the
government due to full transparency.
The NXT DIGITAL Broadcast
Centre is a state-of-the-art nextgeneration MPEG-4 facility that
has been designed and purpose-built
to provide a variety of services to
Events
the cable distribution fraternity and
their customers all across India.
RBI grants approval to 10
Applicants For Small Finance
Banks: The Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) has on 16 September decided
to grant in-principle approval to
the following 10 applicants to set
up small finance banks under the
Guidelines for Licensing of Small
Finance Banks in the private sector
(Guidelines) issued on November
27, 2014.
The selected applicants include
1) Au Financiers (India) Ltd.,
Jaipur 2) Capital Local Area
Bank Ltd., Jalandhar 3) Disha
Microfin Private Ltd., Ahmedabad
4) Equitas Holdings P Limited,
Chennai 5) ESAF Microfinance and
Investments Private Ltd., Chennai
6) Janalakshmi Financial Services
Private Limited, Bengaluru 7)
RGVN (North East) Microfinance
Limited, Guwahati 8) Suryoday
Micro Finance Private Ltd., Navi
Mumbai 9) Ujjivan Financial
Services Private Ltd., Bengaluru and
10) Utkarsh Micro Finance Private
Ltd., Varanasi.
The in-principle approval granted
will be valid for 18 months to enable
the applicants to comply with the
requirements under the Guidelines
and fulfill other conditions as may
be stipulated by the RBI. Having
been satisfied that the applicants
have complied with the requisite
conditions laid down by it as part
of in-principle approval, the
RBI would consider granting them
a licence for commencement of
banking business under Section
22(1) of the Banking Regulation
Act, 1949.
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Events
OCTOBER
3rd India-Sri Lanka Joint Training
Exercise
Mitra
Shakti-2015
Concludes: In the interest of
strengthening the long time bond
of advisory shared between the two
nationsIndia and Sri Lanka
armies of both the nations meet
once a year for a joint military
exercise, MITRA SHAKTI. The
meeting takes place in Aundh
Military Station, Pune. This year the
two armies met for the third time
to discuss policies of military cooperation and training. The training
went on for 14 days and concluded
on September 29, 2015. The
MITRA-SHAKTI exercise intends
to build collaborative understanding
and share military expertise with
one another to counter threats like
those of terrorism. To eradicate
doubts between India and Sri Lanka
is yet another motive of MITRASHAKTI. The two countries have
been linked to each other from
ancient past, evidences of which
can be seen in the linkage that the
two countries share in terms of
mythologies. Both nations armies
have clear agreement of their
principles and plan of actions.
During war, India can benefit Sri
Lanka with its strong foot soldiers
while Sri Lanka can support India
with its intelligent stealth.
First car-free day observed in
Delhi: On October 22, 2015, was
observed the first Car-Free Day was
observed in Delhi. The day was
an encouragement to use public
transportation instead of using
cars. From 7 am to 12 noon on the
road connecting Red Fort to India
Gate. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister
Manish Sisodia also participated in
the cycle rally and rode the bicycles
from Red Fort to Bhagwan Das Marg

appealing others to participate in the
rally. Other cabinet ministers also
participated in the rally. Delhi Chief
Minister encouraged participants
to make riding bicycle a habit as it
offers many health benefits especially
for those suffering from diabetes.
Additional buses were deployed by
the DTC and the frequency of the
buses was short of about one to two
minutes on this route to facilitate the
commuters. A huge population of
Delhi participated in the cycle rally.
Mr Kejriwal appealed to the people
to make the city roads safer and
communicated that his government
is working on redesigning the roads.
The government of Delhi has
decided to have Car-Free Day on
22nd of every month to reduce the
pollution measure.
Green India Mission Plans of
Four States Approved: Annual
plan of National Mission for Green
India (GIM) of four states has been
approved by the Union Environment
Ministry. The four states include
Kerala,
Mizoram,
Manipur
and Jharkhand. The National
Executive Council (NEC) gathered
for a meeting that was attended
by its members, Principal Chief
Conservator of Forest (PCCFs),
state nodal officers of the four states,
inter-ministerial experts and mission
director. GIM is one of the eight
missions outlined under the National
Action Plan on Climate Change
(NAPCC). NAPCC recognises
the importance of forests for food
security, biodiversity conservation,
climate change mitigation and
livelihood security for those living
in the forests and aims at protecting,
strengthening and reinstating the
declining forest covers of India. The
NEC has approved the Perspective
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Plans (PP) for the four states and has

given a total financial aid of INR 902
crore for a period of five to ten years
plan. They have also been given an
amount INR 112 crore against the
present financial year. GIM will
take a total of 1,08,335 hectares
of area that covers both forest and
non-forest land. Out of this, 81,939
hectares will be utilised in upgrading
density of the existing forests while
16,393 hectares will be new land.
INS Kochi Latest Stealth Warship
Commissioned: On September 9,
2015, Defence Minister, Manohar
Parrikar,
commissioned
Naval
warship INS Kochi at the Naval
Dockyard in Mumbai. Directorate
of Naval Design, the in-house
organisation of Navy, designed
the warship. It was constructed by
Mazagon Dock Ship builders Ltd.
in Mumbai. The ship has been
equipped with advanced weapons
and sensors. It has new concepts
of stealth, manoeuvrability and
improved survivability. The ship has
a length of 164 metres and four gas
turbines for propelling. The turbines
are designed in a way to achieve high
speed of about 30 knots. To enhance
the sonar acoustic performance,
a bow mounted sonar dome has
been introduced in the design. The
dome is second of its kind in naval
platform. Vertical missile launch
system is yet another outstanding
feature of the ship. The system
can engage in shore and sea based
targets. The ship is fitted with MultiFunction Surveillance and Threat
Alert Radar (MF-STAR) that offers
data of its target to Long Range
Surface to Air Missile System (LRSAM). These systems (MF-STAR
and LR-SAM) have jointly been
built by Israel Aerospace Industries
Events
Ltd. and DRDO. The ship has been
armed with 76mm and 30mm gun
mounts to protect against incoming
threats of both air and surface. It is
second ship of Kolkata-class (Project
15A).
INS Astradharani commissioned
into Indian Navy: The Indian
Navy commissioned the first
indigenously-designed and built
torpedo launch and recovery vessel
INS Astradharani at the Naval Base
in Visakhapatnam. This 50-metre
twin-hulled warship is also the first
to be built at a private yard with
armament fixtures.
The ship was collaboratively
designed by Naval Science and
Technological Laboratory (NSTL)
of DRDO, Shoft Shipyard and
IIT Kharagpur. The design of the
ship was tested at the facilities
at the NSTL. It is an advanced
replacement for INS Astravahini
which was decommissioned on 17
July 2015. After commissioning, the
ship entered the Eastern Fleet.
Union Government sets-up R.V.
Easwar Committee to simplify the
provisions of IT Act, 1961: Union
Government has constituted a
committee to simplify the provisions
of the Income Tax Act (IT), 1961
under the Chairmanship of former
Delhi High Court Judge, Justice
R.V. Easwar. Other 9 Members: V.K.
Bhasin, Vinod Jain, Rajiv Memani,
Ravi Gupta, Mukesh Patel, Ajay
Bahl, Pradip P. Shah, Arvind Modi,
Dr. Vinay Kumar Singh. Term of
the Committee: It shall be for a
period of one year from the date of
its constitution. Terms of Reference
of the Committee To study and
identify: Provisions in the IT Act,
1961 which are leading to litigation
Events
due to different interpretations. The
areas and provisions of the Act
which needs simplification in the
light of the existing jurisprudence.
Provisions which are impacting the
ease of doing business. Suggest:
modifications
and
alternatives
to the existing provisions and
identified areas in order to bring
predictability and certainty in tax
laws without substantial impact on
the revenue collection and tax base.
Recommendations: The Committee
will set up its own procedures for
regulating its work and will put its
draft recommendations in the public
domain in batches after consulting
stakeholders. The First Batch shall
be submitted by 31st January,
2016 and shall contain as many
recommendations as possible.
India moves up in ease of doing
business ranking: Indias Ranking
for Ease of Doing Business Rises to
the 130th spot, out of 189 countries
in the Doing Business 2016 report
of World Bank. Last year, India was
ranked 134th. China is now ranked
84, moving up six spots. Singapore,
New Zealand and Denmark
occupied the first three spots in the
list.
The rankings are based on 10
indicators such as how easy it is to
start a business and sometimes form
the basis of foreign investments
in a country. The 10 parameters
are - starting a business, dealing
with construction permits, getting
electricity, registering property,
getting credit, protecting minority
shareholders, paying taxes, enforcing
contracts, trading across borders
and resolving insolvency. The rise
in the 2016 ranking was primarily
on account of improvement in two
areas - ease of starting a business and
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securing an electricity connection.

According to the new report, it takes
29 days to start a business in India.
It took 127 days in 2004. In May
2015, the government eliminated
the minimum capital requirement to
start a business and also ended the
requirement to obtain a certificate
to commence business operations,
which helped it improve its rankings.
World Bank Chief Economist
Kaushik Basu said that India can be
in the top 100 countries next year if
it continues with the set of planned
economic reforms, including the
crucial goods and services tax
(GST).
Plans Approved for 89 Cities
Under AMRUT: Atal Missions
for Rejuvenation and Urban
Transformation (AMRUT) was
approved by Ministry of Urban
Development. The aim of AMRUT
is to supply water according to the
norm and provide water supply and
sewerage to all urban households.
Plans worth INR 2,786.28 crore
were passed by Madhusudhan
Prasad, chairman of an interministerial Apex Committee of
AMRUT. These plans have been
approved for 89 cities of Andhra
Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
First time, a state level plan like
AMRUT has been approved by the
Urban Development Ministry. There
are a total of 143 projects in 89
AMRUT cities. Sewerage projects
have managed to get a major share
of INR 1,471.07 crore while water
supply related schemes received an
amount of INR 1,225 crore. State
Annual Action Plans (SAAP) was
approved by the Apex Committee
of AMRUT for the year 2015-16.
Investment of 1,204.42 crore, INR
919 crore and INR 662.86 crore
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Events
for SAAP have been proposed by

Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra
Pradesh respectively. Gujarat will
commence sewerage projects in 25
AMRUT cities and water supply
schemes in 11 cities. 6 cities will be
taken up by Rajasthan for sewerage
projects and 10 for watery supply
scheme. While Andhra Pradesh will
have sewerage projects implemented
in 26 cities and green space parks in
30 cities.
Punjab to Set Up Bio-Ethanol
Refinery:

straw burning. In this regard, state

bio-e

NOVEMBER
Delhi assembly passes CrPC (Delhi
Amendment) Bill, 2015: Code of
Criminal Procedure (CrPC) (Delhi
Amendment) Bill, 2015 has been
passed by Delhi Assembly. The bill
amends section 176 (1) of the CrPC
Act, 1973 and empowers Delhi

Government to initiate a magisterial
inquiry to cover any other cases
in police custody, suspicious
death, rapes in police custody and
suspicious disappearances.
The bill enacted by Parliament is a
subject in the concurrent list (having
52 items) in the 7th schedule to the
constitution of India and having the
power to amend it.
The code of Criminal Procedure
(CrPC) is the main act on the
procedure for administration of
substantive criminal law in India.
This act enacted by parliament in
1973 and came into effort with effect
from 1st April 1974. It ensures the
equipment for the investigation of
the crime, suspicion of suspected
criminals, collection of evidence,
determination of guilt or innocence
of the implicated person and the
determination of punishment of
the guilty. Moreover, it also deals
with public nuisance, prevention of
offences and maintenance of wife,
child and parents
Indias GSAT-15 Communication
Satellite Launched Successfully:
On November 11, 2015, Indias
latest
communication
satellite
GSAT-15 was successfully launched
by the European Ariane-5 VA-227
launch vehicle. It is a high power
satellites being inducted into the
INSAT/GSAT system. The GSAT15 weighing 3164 kgs and designed
to
deliver
telecommunications
services as well as a GPS Aided
GEO
Augmented
Navigation
(GAGAN) and emergency services,
into space in a flawless flight. The
launch GSAT 15 will enable ISRO
to provide continuity of service to
Indian users in Ku Band.
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GSAT-15 is the 19th payload
launched into a Geosynchronous
Transfer Orbit (GTO) after its copassenger Arabsat-6B (BADR7). GSAT-15 carries a total of 24
communication transponders in
Ku-band beacon as well to help in
accurately pointing ground antennas
towards the satellite. Indian Space
Research Organisations Master
Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan
in Karnataka took over all the
commands and control of GSAT 15
after its separation from the launched
rocket. GSAT- 15 will be positioned
at 93.5 deg East longitude in the
geostationary orbit along with the
operational INSAT 3A and INSAT
4B Satellites.
India and Bangladesh sign Standard
Operating Procedure (SOP): On
15-11-2015, India and Bangladesh
signed
Standard
Operating
Procedure (SOP) to operationalize
agreement on coastal shipping. It
will enable a vast saving in logistic
costs of export-import transport
between the two countries.
The aim for signing of SOP
is to pave the way to promote
coastal shipping between the two
countries and enhance bilateral
trade by bringing down the cost of
transportation of EXIM cargo. Both
the countries have also agreed upon
the use of vessels of River Sea Vessel
(RSV) category for Indo-Bangladesh
coastal Shipping.
It will enable the deep draft
ports on the eastern coast of
India can be hub ports for the
onward transportation of cargo to
Bangladesh. By this Indian port
will attract enhanced cargo and
also the overall transportation cost
to Bangladesh will get reduced.
Moreover, the Indian ports serving as
trans-shipping ports for Bangladesh
cargo will derive benefits by way of
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enhanced throughput as a result of

Indo-Bangladesh coastal trade.
India
Emerges
top
FDI
Destination: India has emerged as
the top destination for foreign direct
investment in 2015 leaving behind
countries like China and the Unites
States. Chinas and USs inflows
during January-June were $28
billion and $27 billion respectively
while Indias stood at $31 billion,
making India the most favoured
in the FDI. Published in Financial
Times, the report forwarded by the
Finance Ministry acknowledged
India grabs investment league pole
position. India made a more than
a double of the investment levels
than previous year where India had
only attracted $12 billion inflow in
the first half of the year. In terms of
capital investment, India was ranked
fifth after China, the US, the UK and
Mexico. Indias newly experienced
growth rates even increased the
number of its projects by 47%.
Prime Minister, Modis visit and
meetings with the top global CEOs
in the United States attracted a large
number of investments. India has
also turned into the fastest growing
economy in the world causing
shocks across the world. The Make
in India initiative made the country
friendly to the investors and rectified
the processes that kept the country at
the bottom of World Banks ease of
doing business list.
India Successfully Test Fires
Nuclear Capable Agni-IV: On 9th
November 2015, India successfully
test-fired a Nuclear Capable Agni
IV, from APJ Abdul Kalam Island,
formerly known as wheeler Island,
Off Odisha Coast in the Bay of
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Bengal by the Indian Armys

Strategic Forces Command (SFC).
This missile is capable of hitting
a target at a distance of 4000 km.
Over the past 5 years, this test has
undergone 1 failed and 4 successful
tests. This was the fifth test of the
Agni IV. The last test was successfully
conducted in December 2014.
During the test, the missile has
met all the parameters of mission
and it was monitored by all radar
stations, telemetry and electrooptical systems along the East
Coast during the entire operation.
The originally developed surfaceto-surface Agni-IV missile is a two
weapon system weighing 17 tonnes
and is 20 metres long. The missile
has a maximum range of 2,500
miles and is capable of carrying a
payload of approximately 2,200.
Agni IV is equipped with modern
and advance ring laser gyro-based
inertial navigation system (RINS)
and supported by reliable redundant
micro navigation system (MINGS)
which gives it two digit accuracy.
Justice T.S. Thakur becomes Chief
Justice of India (CJI): Justice T.S.
Thakur was appointed as the Chief
Justice of India (CJI) by Indian
President, Pranab Mukherjee as per
the provisions laid down in Article
124 of the Indian Constitution.
T.S. Thakur has been an eminent
advocate who later served as a
judge in Jammu and Kashmir High
Court. Later, he also served as the
union minister. He was given the
designation of a senior advocate in
1990. He fulfilled the duties of judge
in the High Courts of Karnataka and
Delhi. At the time of his elevation
to the Supreme Court in November
2009, T. S. Thakur was serving as
the Chief Justice of Punjab and
Events
Haryana High Court. T.S. Thakur
even headed the team of justices
that dealt with match-fixing scam of
IPL and the Saradha chit fund scam.
The incumbent CJI, H.L. Dattu
recommended Justice Thakurs
candidature for CJI as he was the
senior-most judge of the apex court.
The recommendation was forwarded
to the Union Law Ministry which
had further forwarded Thakurs
candidature to Prime Ministers
Office (PMO). On PMs approval,
Thakurs final approval for the post
of CJI was then approved by the
President.
N-capable Dhanush Test-fired:
The nuclear capable Dhanush is
successfully tested from warship
Subhadra, off the Puri coast of
Odisha in the Bay of Bengal. The
test was conducted by Defence
Research
and
Development
Organisation (DRDO). It is one
of the five missiles developed by
DRDO under the Integrated Guided
Missile Development Programme
(IGMDP). It is a perfect mission
as it hit the target point with high
degree of accuracy.
This is the 13th test of the anti-ship
missile. It is indigenously developed
naval version of Prithvi short range
ballistic missile (SRBM). It has a
length of 8.53 meters and 0.9 meter
wide. It range up to 350 km and can
carry single warhead, conventional
or nuclear up to 500 kg.
This missile already has been
inducted into the armed Services.
Naval variant of the missile was first
successfully tested in 2012.
The N- capable Danush missile can
be used as an anti ship weapon. It
can destroy land targets depending
Events
on the range. This missile gives the
Indian Navy the capability to strike
enemy targets with great precision.
President
Pranab
Mukherjee
launched (IMPRINT): President
Pranab Mukherjee and Prime
Minister Narendra Modi have
together
launched
Impacting
Research
Innovation
and
Technology (IMPRINT) India. The
INR 1,000 crore project has been set
up to provide a platform for boosting
the scientific research within the
country. Research proposals from
institutes across India will be
considered and screened for approval
if found worthy. The proposals will
then receive funds for their research
work. During the conference of
Chairmen, Board of Governors and
Directors of Indian Institutes of
Technology, the idea of launching
Imprint India arose. The objectives
of the platform are to identify and
prioritise the areas of relevance to
society and impact of the research
on the standard of living in rural
and urban areas. Ten themes of IIT/
IISc will be focussed by IMPRINT
India: Health care (IIT Kharagpur),
water resources and river systems
(IIT Kanpur), Computer science
and ICT (IIT Kharagpur), advance
materials (IIT Kanpur), sustainable
urban design (IIT Roorkee), defence
(IIT Madras), manufacturing(IIT
Madras), nano-technology hardware
(IIT
Bombay),
environmental
science and climate change ( IISc,
Bangalore) and energy security
(IIT Bombay). The participants and
attendants of the function included
top officials and researcher from
across Central Universities, NIFT,
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NITs, IISc, NIPERs and IIEST.

India was placed at 7th position
in worlds most valuable nation
brands report: India was placed at
7th position in worlds most valuable
nation brands report among the 100
assessed nations. It was revealed
in recently released annual report
compiled by Brand Finance. India as
a worlds seventh most valued nation
brand is having its brand value to 2.1
billion dollars. It has moved by one
position compared to year 2014. It
has brand value of 2.1 billion dollars
with an increase of 32 per cent. It is
highest surge among all the top-20
countries on the list. United States
had topped this edition of list with
a brand valuation of 19.7 billion
dollars. Top 7 countries: United
States, China, Germany, United
Kingdom, Japan, France and India.
Among BRICS nations: India is the
second most valued brand country
among BRICS emerging economies
after China and followed by Brazil,
Russia and South Africa. Worlds
most valuable nation brands report
of Brand Finance measures the
strength and value of the nation
brands of 100 leading countries.
Its method is based on the royalty
relief mechanism employed to value
the worlds largest companies. The
valuation is based on 5 year forecasts
of sales of all brands in each nation
and follows a complex process in
which Gross domestic product
(GDP) is used as a proxy for total
revenues.
UDAY
(Ujwal
DISCOM
Assurance Yojana) Launched: The
Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime
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Minister of India Narendra Modi

has today given its approval to a new
scheme moved by the Ministry of
Power Ujwal DISCOM Assurance
Yojna or UDAY.
UDAY provides for the financial
turnaround
and
revival
of
Power Distribution companies
(DISCOMs), and importantly also
ensures a sustainable permanent
solution to the problem.
UDAY is a path breaking reform
for realizing the Honble Prime
Ministers vision of affordable and
accessible 247 Power for All.
It is another decisive step furthering
the landmark strides made in the
Power sector over the past one and a
half years, with the sector witnessing
a series of historic improvements
across the entire value chain, from
fuel supply (highest coal production
growth in over 2 decades), to
generation (highest ever capacity
addition), transmission (highest ever
increase in transmission lines) and
consumption (over 2.3 crore LED
bulbs distributed).
7th Pay Commission Recommends
23.5 % hike: 7th pay commission
led by Justice A.K Mathur ,
recommended 23.55% hike in
allowance, pays and pensions for
nearly 47 lakh centeral government
employees and 52 lakh pensioners in
the report submitted to the Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley.
The suggested hike in the salary,
pensions and allowance would came
into effect from very beginning
of the 2016 calendar year i.e.
1st January 2016. It proposes
16 percent hike in basic pay, 63
percent rise in allowances and 24
percent hike in pension to INR 1,
76,300. Under the new policy, the
Events
maximum salary would be INR
2.5 lakh per month and minimum
would be INR 18000 has been fixed
for central government employees.
Ceiling of gratuity improved from
INR 10 lakh to INR 20 lakh with
ceiling on gratuity to be raised by
25 percent whenever DA rises by 50
percent. The implementation of the
seventh pay commission will impact
the fiscal deficit by 0.65 per cent
of GDP. It will also ensure more
money in the hands of the people.
Moreover, the hikes are expected to
boost sales of affordable homes and
consumer durables, which in turn
will drive demand in the economy.
DECEMBER
Bill, 2015: Lok Sabha has passed
Bill, 2015 by a voice vote to establish
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
The bill has proposed to make
BIS as the National Standards
Body of India and enable the
government to bring more products,
systems and services under ambit
of standardisation. The bill on
standardization was pending for
over 30 years and will replace the
Bureau of Indian Standards Act,
1986. The Bill was approved by
the Union Cabinet chaired by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in
June 2015. The bill will allow the
central government to authorize
any other agency having necessary
accreditation for the purpose of
conformity
assessment
against
Indian standards. The Bill will
allow multiple types of conformity
Events
assessment schemes in tune with
global best practices. The Bureau
would be a national body which will
formulate, certify and implement
certain standards of quality for
goods, articles, processes, etc.
National Good Governance Day:
Good Governance Day is observed
annually on the 25th December in
India to mark the birth anniversary
of former-Prime Minister Atal
Bihari Vajpayee. Good Governance
Day was established in 2014 to
honour Prime Minister Vajpayee
by fostering awareness among the
Indian people of accountability in
government. The health ministry
launched
four
information
technology driven initiatives to
mark good governance day. Kilkari
Audio-based mobile service that
delivers weekly audio messages
and is being supported by Tata
Consultancy Services as part of its
CSR initiative. M-Cessation ITenabled tool to help tobacco users
to quit tobacco. Mobile Academy
Mobile App developed through
which about 90,00,000 Accredited
Social Health Activists (ASHAs)
will be imparted training. Nadda
also inaugurated the new IT-enabled
OPD registry block at AIIMS.
Sikkim Declared Organic Farming
State: Sikkim will be the countrys
first state to produce everything
from maize and rice to orchid and
ginger though organic farming.
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There are 77,190 hectares of

farm land in Sikkim where both
agricultural
and
horticultural
crops such as rice, maize, orchids,
cardamom, ginger, mandarin are
grown. Out of that, around 44,000
hectares are currently certified as
organic while the remaining will
get certified by December 31. These
areas are registered with agricultural
and processed food products export
development authority. The state
has already enacted the Sikkim
Agricultural and Horticultural Input
and Livestock Feed Regulatory Act
effective from January this year,
which prohibits use of chemicals
fertilizers. Violation of the law
attracts imprisonment of three
months and a fine of Rs 1,00,000.
The state has 185 clusters where it is
mandatory to hold four awareness
campaigns in a year so that all
farmers get the latest information
on organic farming. Though maize
and rice are grown in about 50,000
hectares, the main cash crops are
cardamom, flowers and mandarins.
If the state is to achieve 100 per cent
organic, the yield is just one aspect;
the income levels of farmers will
go up, as they will get a premium
for their produce. The soil health
will improve and air and water will
be free of chemicals. The number
of tourists will go up when the
state will be environmentally clean
with air and water and it will also
generate more employment.
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Events
JANUARY
First organ transplant from a
newborn baby: A newborn baby
gave life to two sick patients in
the United Kingdom. The doctors
at Imperial College successfully
performed the first organ transplant
from a new born baby. The baby,
a girl, was born at Hammersmith
Hospital, London. The mother
had an emergency caesarean in the
neonatal unit of the hospital. The
baby weighed nearly three kilograms
but was sick as her brain had been
starving for oxygen during the
course of pregnancy resulting into
incurable brain damage. It was clear
that the baby would not survive long.
The doctors of organ donation team
along with the hospitals psychologist
discussed with the babys parents the
possibility of organ donation. The
parents understood how their baby
could benefit sick patients, and so,
gave their consent for the transplant.
Her kidneys were transplanted in a
patient dying with renal failure while
her liver cells helped yet another sick
patient. Her death was confirmed six
days after her birth and her tissues
were recovered by the National
Organ Retrieval Service for future
use. Her parents, though saddened
by her death, were happy to have
saved the lives of two.
Sergio Mattarella sworn-in as
the President of Italy: Sergio
Mattarella, a constitutional court
judge, was sworn in on 31st January
2015 as Italys new president.
Mattarella aged 73, was elected
by lawmakers to succeed Giorgio
Napolitano, who stood down two
years into his second term citing
fatigue at the age of 89. He became

Italys 12th president since the
country became a Republic after
World War-II. His election has been
seen as a political coup for Prime
Minister Matteo Renzi.
He is a member of Renzis
Democratic Party, but started his
carrier as a Christian Democrat.
In Italy, The President usually
play ceremonial role but become
significant at the time of political
crises, which is a regular feature in
Italy for last half century.
He is Sicilian who is closely
associated with the fight against
organised crime. But till he became
president, he was little known to
ordinary Italians.
ILO report on World Employment
and Social Outlook Trends 2015:
International Labour Organisation
(ILO) published a report on January
20, 2015 on World Employment and
Social Outlook (WESO) Trends
2015. The report was released as a
means of warning of unemployment
continuing to rise in the years
to come. It is a consequence of
a slowing growth and widening
inequalities the global economy
facing. By the year 2019, it is foreseen
that over than 212 million humans
will be unemployed.. Though the
employment
circumstances
in
countries like United States and
Japan have considerably improved
yet the situation remains different for
a number of advanced economies,
especially Europe. The decline in
the oil and gas prices may favour
employment opportunities in several
Asian countries, communicated
some forecasts. Workers aged
Events
between 15 and 24 are the most
affected ones. The middle class in
the developing countries have been
making development. The income
inequality is forecasted to widen in
the coming years leading to social
unrest particularly in countries with
acute unemployment. The middleskilled jobs like those of clerks and
libraries would be the most declining
ones.
Raghuram
Rajan
received
Governor of the Year Award: In the
Central Banking Awards for 2015,

of the Year. The Central Bank of the

be presented to Raghuram Rajan on

singled him out of the nominations.

were among the judging panel. Mr

that his work still has a long way to

Euromoney.

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life. An alien planet that orbits a
Lyra is
found to be an Earth-like planet.
It has been named Kepler 438b. It
is slightly larger than Earth and
und a small orange star.
days to orbit around its
star, 10 times faster than Earth.
It is one planet outside the solar
system that has been found to

Kepler 438b

Kepler
442b

about two third of starlight and has

position.
Bhakti set world record by
swimming 1.4 miles in 52 minutes
in the Antarctic Ocean: On 10th
January 2015, Indias open water
swimmer Bhakti Sharma has set
a world record by swimming 1.4
miles in 52 minutes in one degree
temperature at Antarctic Ocean
breaking the record of Lynne Cox
(USA) and Lewis Pugh (Great
Britain).
Bhakti is the youngest in the world
and the first Asian girl to have
achieved this feat. Bhakti has swum
in all the five oceans of the world,
besides swimming in or across eight
other seas and channels.
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Events
Bhakti started swimming at a young

age of 2 year and half years. Her
mother Leena Sharma coached her.
Her first open water (Sea) swim was
at the age of 14 when she swam 16
km from Uran port to Gateway of
India in 2003.
She was awarded the Tenzing
Norgay National Adventure Award
in 2010.
FEBRUARY
Gayle becomes first cricketer to
score Double Century in World
Cup: The master blaster, Chris
Gayle, rediscovered his own self in
match against Zimbabwe by hitting
a double century in Cricket World
Cup for the first time in history. The
match between the two countries
took place in Canberra. The West
Indies player batted in a spectacular
fashion with 16 sixes and 10 fours
in 147-ball innings. Gayle scored a
total of 215 run in the match that
helped West Indies win victory over
Zimbabwe in Pool B clash. Gaye
played 105 balls to score the first
century and for the next, he batted
33 balls. His strike rate per hundred
balls was 146.25. He broke the
record of 188 run by South Africas
Gary Kirsten against United Arab
Emirates at Rawalpindi in 1996.
Marlon Samuels and Gayle scored
a 372-run partnership. The 35 year
old cricketer finished the inning by
hitting the last ball of the match. The
rain shortly interrupted the match,
trimming the chase to 363 from 48
overs for Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe
played well initially but the wickets
soon began to fall and they were all
out in 45 overs with 289 run.
Forbes released Asias 50 Power
Business women 2015: On February
26, 2015, 50 women of Asia were
recognised as the most powerful

businesswomen by Forbes. These
women have been said to be the ones
driving a change in business across
the continent. The recognition has
knocked down the traditional male
dominance and power in business.
Six
Indian
women-Arundhati
Bhattacharya (head of State Bank
of India), Chanda Kochchar (CEO,
ICICI), Akhila Srinivasan (MD/
Non-Executive Director, Shriram
Life Insurance/Shriram Capital),
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw (Founder,
Chariman and MD, Biocon), Shikha
Sharma (CEO and MD of Axis
Bank) and Usha Sangwan (MD of
Life Insurance Corp. of India) were
noted as powerful businesswomen
among the other 50 on the 2015
list. Women from fast growing
economies like that of China have
also begun to find authoritative place
in business. These include Maggie
Wu (Chief Financial Officer) and
Lucy Peng (Co-founder)the top
women decision-makers of Alibaba.
Two women, Win Win Tint and
Garamjav Tseden from developing
countries Myanmar and Mongolia,
have also taken place in the list. The
full list is available in Forbes Asia
Magazine.
MARCH
Three South Asian Women Win
International Women of Courage
Award 2015: Three women
from South Asian countries have
been selected for the prestigious
International Women of Courage
Award for the year 2015.
Captain Niloofar Rahmani from
Afghanistan Air Force, Nadia
Sharmeen Journalist and womens
rights activist from Bangladesh
and Tabassum Adnan founder of
Events
Khwendo Jirga from Pakistan are
the awardees that will be conferred
the prestigious award. They will
receive the award in the presence
of US First Lady Michelle Obama
in Washington DC on 10th March
2015.
The International Women of
Courage Award is an American
award presented annually by the
United States Department of State
to women around the world who
have demonstrated exceptional
leadership, courage, resourcefulness,
and willingness to sacrifice for
others, especially in promoting
womens rights.
The award was instituted by the U.S.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
on International Womens Day in
2007. Every U.S. embassy has the
right to recommend one woman as
a candidate for the award.
India and Spain Agree to
Mutual Protection of Classified
Information: Mutual Protection
of Classified Information is a key
pact that a country agrees to get
involved in before negotiating on
further important talks on defence
cooperation. India and Spain signed
an agreement on Mutual Protection
of Classified Information on 5th
March, 2015. The agreement will
provide a boost to the framework for
enhanced cooperation in the defence
sector between the two countries.
Span has revealed clean interest in
participating in the Make-in-India
initiative especially in the defence
sector of Indian government.
Spanish companies have shown
keen interest in taking part in
Indias P75I project under which
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six conventional submarines will be

built. In addition to this agreement,
both countries also have agreed to
work on enhancing bilateral defence
cooperation.
Carolina Marin Wins Womens
Singles Title in All England Open
Badminton Championships 2015:
Spains Carolina Marin Martin won
the prestigious Womens Singles
Title in the All England Open
Badminton Championships 2015
by defeating Indias Saina Nehwal
in the final match. Carolina Marin
became the first Spanish player to
win this prestigious title. Indias
Saina Nehwal is the first ever Indian
woman badminton player to reach
finals of the All England Badminton
Championship. Saina had defeated
Chinas Sun Yu in straight-game in
the semi finals.
All England Open Badminton
Championships is one of the oldest
as well as the prestigious badminton
tournaments across the world. The
first championship was held in 1898
in Guildford. The championship
was started in only three categoriesMens Doubles, Womens Doubles
and Mixed Doubles, but in 1900
the individual Mens Singles
and Womens Singles titles were
added. Indian badminton legends
Prakash Padukone (in 1980) and P
Gopichand (in 2001) have won this
prestigious title in Mens Singles
category.
Rajendra Singh Wins 2015
Stockholm Water Prize (21st March):
Rajendra Singh, the renowned water
conservationist and environment
activist has been conferred with
the 2015 Stockholm Water Prize.
He was awarded this prize for
his innovative water restoration
efforts and consistent attempts to
improve the water availability in
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villages of India. He had played

an important role in rejuvenating
Arvari River after johads and check
dams were constructed on it. It has
helped the Arvari River to become
a Perennial River and was awarded
the International River Prize. He
was also member of National Ganga
River Basin Authority (NGRBA)
from 2009-12. Singh has been
awarded with Ramon Magsaysay
Award for Community Leadership
in 2001.
Stockholm
Water
Foundation
laid foundation of the prize and
the award is administered by the
Stockholm International Water
Institute (SIWI). It recognizes people
for their outstanding achievements
in conservation and protection of
the worlds water resources. The
award carries 150,000 US dollars
and a designed sculpture. Rajendra
Singh is the fourth Indian to win the
prestigious global award. Madhav
Chitale (1993), Sunita Narain
(2005), and Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak
(2009) have previously won the
award.
India and Qatar Agree to Boost
Trade and Investment: India and
Qatar signed six pacts to increase
the commercial and economic
exchanges between both the nations.
The list of Agreements/MoUs
signed between nations is:
1. Agreement on Transfer of
Sentenced Persons
2. MoU for Cooperation in the
field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
3. MoU between Union Ministry
of Earth sciences and Qatar
Meteorological
Department
for Scientific and Technical
cooperation
Events
4. MoU between Diplomatic Institute of Foreign Service Institute,
MEA and MOFA, Qatar
5. MoU for cooperation in the field
of Television and Radio
6. Agreement for Mutual Cooperation and Exchange of News
Australia Wins ICC Cricket World
Cup (29th March): Australia, the
four time winner of the ICC Cricket
World Cup once again proved their
dominance over the World cricket by
defeating New Zealand in the 11th
edition of the Cricket World Cup to
bag their 5th World Cup title which
was jointly hosted by Australia and
New Zealand. Australia beat New
Zealand in a nail biting finale by 7
wickets in day night match played at
the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
7.8 magnitude earthquake struck
Nepal: A magnitude 7.8 earthquake
struck Nepal on April 25, 2015 at
6:11:26 UTC which damaged several
buildings in the countrys capital
Kathamandu. Tremors were felt in
India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan as
well. Death toll rose up to 4,800. In
neighboring Tibet, roads buckled,
buildings collapsed and at least 13
people were killed.
Reportedly about 100 aftershocks
have occurred since then every 1520 minutes including one of 7.3
magnitude and another of 6.5.
The epicenter of the earthquake
was located about 50 mi (80 km)
northwest of Kathmandu, which is
the most populated city of Nepal.
The quake stuck Nepal just before
noon.
More than 6.6 million people are in
the area affected by the earthquake.
The earthquake is the second huge
earthquake of the world.
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Events
Nepal is an earthquake prone area
considering its proximity with
Everest.
Dubai ATP Tennis Championship
2015: Switzerlands Roger Federer
defeated Novak Djokovic of Serbia
by the score of 63, 75 to clinch the
ATP Tennis Championship Mens
single title held in Dubai. This was
Roger Federers seventh win at the
Dubai ATP Tennis mens singles
title.
Simona Halep of Romania won
the ATP Tennis Championship
womens single title held in Dubai.
She defeated Karolna Plkov of
Czech Republic by the score of 6-4,
7-6 in the final match. The duo of
Rohan Bopanna (India) and Daniel
Nestor (Canada) won the mens
doubles title by defeating the pair of
Aihsan-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Pakistan)
and Nined Zimonjic (Serbia) by the
score of 6-4, 6-1.
The team of Tmea Babos (Hungary)
and Kristina Mladenovic (France)
won the womens doubles title.
They defeated the pair of Garbie
Muguruza (Spain) and Carla Surez
Navarro (Spain) by the score of 6-3,
6-2 in the final match.
Kerala
Tourisms
Campaign
Wins Silver Prize in Golden Gate
Award: Kerala Tourism has won the
silver prize in the prestigious Golden
Gate Award at the Internationale
Tourismus-Brse
Berlin
(ITBBerlin), 2015. It received the prize
in the category of multimediacampaign for its global multimedia
The Great Backwaters Campaign
in
the
television-commercial
medium. This campaign has been
conceptualised by Kerala Tourisms
creative and marketing agency Stark
Communications.
Earlier,
The
Great Backwaters campaign had
won the Golden Gate Gold Prize in
the Print category at the ITB-Berlin

2014. Kerala Tourism had won the
Golden Gate Silver Prize for its
hugely successful ad campaign Your
Moment is Waiting in the print
category.
Golden Gate Award is entitled as
Oscar in tourism communication.
It is awarded for the ultimate
recognition in global tourism
communication and presented every
year at the ITB-Berlin.
APRIL
New Zealand wins Sultan Azlan
Shah Hockey Tournament 2015:
The 24th Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey
Tournament held in Malaysia was
won by New Zealand. New Zealand
beat Australia in the Shoot out stages
with score 3-1. The two teams were
locked at 2-2 at the end of full time.
It was the second win for team New
Zealand, the first one being in the
year 2012 against Argentina. It is
third time Australia came as runnerups position in tournament (1999,
2006 and 2015). Austalia has won
the tournament for record 8 times in
1983, 1996, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2011,
2013 and 2014. Other participating
teams include India, South Korea,
Malaysia, Canada. India beat Korea
by 4-1 in the penality shoot out and
ended up winning a bronze medal.
Both teams were tied at 2-2 at
regulation time
Azlan Shah Hockey tournament was
established in 1983 and is named
after 9th king of Malaysia and father
of Malaysian hockey Sultan Azlan
Shah.
Agreement between India and
Jordan on maritime transport
Approved: On 22nd April 2015,
the Union Cabinet meeting chaired
by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
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gave its approval for a shipping

arrangement between India and
Jordan. It will strengthen the
relationship
and
co-operation
between the nations in the area of
shipping. It will provide sustained
mutual assistance and advice on
merchant shipping and other related
maritime matters.
It will also help in exchange and
training of staff and students from
various maritime establishments,
exchange of information necessary
for accelerating and facilitating
flow of commercial goods at sea
and at ports. Establishment of joint
ventures in maritime transportation,
shipbuilding and repairs, maritime
training, information technology,
including
development
of
simulators, port facilities and related
activities is also expected to take
place by this shipping pact.
Lewis Hamilton wins Chinese
Grand Prix of Formula One: Lewis
Hamilton gains his fourth Chinese
Grand Prix victory on 12th April
2015. He put up an exceptional
display of race management during
the Formula One race. The double
Formula One champions drive at the
Shanghai International Circuit was
befitting of his status to underline a
thoroughly dominant weekend after
topping every practice session ahead
of claiming his 41st pole and 35th
win.
Hamilton finished ahead of
Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg
and Ferrari duo Sebastian Vettel
and Kimi Raikkonen. Hamilton
was 10 seconds clear of Rosberg,
with Vettel and Raikkonen just over
20 seconds adrift, his win was quite
clear. Teenager Max Verstappens
Toro Rosso blew on lap 54 of the 56
and he died in that accident.
The Chinese Grand Prix is a
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round of the formula one world
championship. Completed in 2004,
it is the most expensive Formula
One circuit facility, costing $240
million. The track is 5.451 km long.
It was designed by Hermann Tilke.
Russia, Argentina sign agreements
on economic & energy cooperation: Russia and Argentina
signed a series of framework
agreements on economic and energy
co-operation on 24th April 2015.
These agreements were signed
following talks between Argentine
President Cristina Fernandez de
Kirchner and her counterpart
Russian leader Vladimir Putin in
Moscow. Both leaders hailed their
co-operation as a comprehensive
strategic partnership.
The signed agreements include
Russian
investment
in
a
hydroelectric plant in Argentinas
Neuquen River, Russias Rosatom
nuclear corporation to build a new
reactor at Argentinas Atucha 3
nuclear power plant, Memorandum
of co-operation (MoC) on defense
between both nations.
Argentina is looking for foreign
investment as its battles US hedge
funds thwarting its effort to
restructure defaulted debt.
Xi Jinping conferred with Nishane-Pakistan award: Chinese president
Xi Jinping was conferred with
Pakistans top civilian award Nishane-Pakistan on 21st April 2015 due
to his outstanding contribution in
promoting of relationship between
the two countries.
The ceremony was organised at the
President House where President
Mamnoon Hussain conferred the
award on Mr. Xi. The ceremony
was attended by Prime Minister
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Nawaz Sharif, Federal Ministers,
Members of National Assembly and
Senate, Services Chiefs and Chinese
delegation.
The award is awarded to a person for
his highest degree of service to the
country and nation of Pakistan. It is
conferred on them for their merit and
distinguished services to the country,
foreign relations and international
community. It was established on
19 March 1957. Former Prime
Minister of India Morarji Desai is
only Indian to receive this award.
He was awarded this award in 1990.
Xi Jinping was born on 15 June 1953
in Beijing. He is the son of veteran
communist Xi Zhongxun and rose
through the ranks politically in
Chinas coastal provinces. He served
as the governor of Fujian between
1999 and 2002, then as governor and
part secretary of the neighboring
Zheingjia between 2002 and 2007.
India to chair 9th International
Renewable Energy Agency council
meet: The 9th International
Renewable
Energy
Agency
(IRENA) council meeting to be held
in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirate
(UAE) will be chaired by India. The
9th IRENA meeting will be starting
from 10th June 2015 and will be a
two-day event. 21 member nations
of IRENA will be participating in
the meet. They will be guiding the
agencys future programmes and
activities.
IRENA is an intergovernmental
organization that promotes adoption
and sustainable use of renewable
energy. It was founded in 2009 and
started working in full force from
8th June 2010. The headquarters
are located in Abu Dhabi. It has a
total of 140 members. India is one
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of the permanent 33 members and

founders of IRENA.
IRENA
has
two
governing
structures, IRENA assembly and
IRENA Council. The assembly takes
decisions at the macro level and
gives policy guidance. The council
is the main governing body which
is responsible for implementing
various decisions of the assembly.
India and US sign MoC on
Transportation: India and United
States
signed
Memorandum
of
Cooperation
(MoC)
on
transportation
between
both
countries on 9th April 2015. It was
signed by Union Minister of Road
Transport & Highways and Shipping
Nitin Gadkari and Anthony Foxx,
US Secretary of Transportation in
New Delhi. it is believed that the
initiative would enable India to make
use of worlds latest technology
available with the USA for projects
like developments of waterways and
multi-modal hub.
The aim of MoC is to foster co
operative work between both nations
on key issues of mutual interest
for all modes of transportation,
coordinating public and private
sector resources and expertise to
advance safe, secure, efficient and
integrated transportation systems.
It seeks to cover areas like
urban
transportation,
highway
transportation,
safety
and
environmental protections. It will
also cover rail transportation, fuel
efficiency, vehicle and behavioral
safety, intermodal transportation
and maritime shipping. The
MoC will enable India to make
use of worlds latest technology
which is available with the US
for developments of waterways
and multi-modal hub projects.
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Events
Lewis Hamilton wins Bahrain

Grand Prix of Formula One: Lewis
Hamilton won the Bahrain Grand
Prix of Formula One on 19th April
2015.This is his third win in four
races, extending his lead in the
championship to 27 points over his
Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg.
He had beaten Rosberg, a specialist
in Bahrain, in the qualifying and
final race.
In the championship standings,
Hamilton now has 93 points to
Rosbergs 66, Vettels 65 and
Raikkonens 42, while Mercedes have
159 to Ferraris 109 and Williams 61.
Rosberg battled the Ferraris
throughout and lost second to
Raikkonen with a braking problem
with two laps to go. Ferraris
Sebastian Vettel wrecked his
podium chances by going off track
and damaging his car while racing
Rosberg.
Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton
was born in 7th January 1985 in
Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England.
He races for the team Mercedes
AMG Petronas from England. His
car number is 44.
MAY
David Granger sworn-in as eighth
President of Guyana: David Arthur
Granger, a 69-year-old former army
Brigadier, was sworn in as the eighth
President of Guyana on 16th May
2015. Granger was sworn into office
by the Chancellor of the Judiciary,
Justice Carl A. Singh, just over an
hour after the Guyana Elections
Commission (GECOM) declared
the final results of the national
elections. In the national elections
held on 11 May 2015, his coalition
APNU Alliance for Change
(AFC) defeated the ruling Peoples
Progressive Party (PPP) and ended

the 23 year old grip on power of
Indo-Guyanese PPP. Earlier Donald
Ramotar, the PPP veteran and
incumbent President, had forced
an early election after suspending
and dissolving the parliament in
November 2014 to avoid a noconfidence vote. The retired army
veteran who was trained in Britain,
Brazil and Nigeria, had campaigned
on a platform of increased security
and fighting drug and human
trafficking. During the swearing
in ceremony, before thousands of
Guyanese nationals, members of
the diplomatic community as well
as religious leaders, Granger vowed
to end race politics in Guyana and
pledged to be a President for all the
people.
PM Modi inaugurated ICICIS
First Branch In China: The
countrys largest private sector
bank, ICICI Bank, has sharpened
its global ambitions by having its
first branch in China. Honourable
Prime Minister of India, Shri
Narendra Modi, inaugurated the
branch in Shanghai in the presence
of Ms. Chanda Kochhar, MD &
CEO, ICICI Bank on 16th May
2015. Senior Chinese and Indian
government officials and business
representatives were also present at
the occasion. With this branch, the
bank aims to provide greater support
to Chinese and Indian corporates in
their cross-border business interests.
ICICI Bank had first opened its
representative office in Shanghai in
2003 and in March 2015 it got the
regulatory approval to expand it into
a branch. This branch will engage in
banking activities permitted under
the guidelines of the China Banking
Regulatory Commission and would
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also facilitate international trade
between China and other countries
and support Chinese firms and
contractors bidding for infrastructure
projects and funding requirements
in India. Apart from this, it will also
handle remittances from China to
India. The branch will begin with
17 banking professionals spread
across different functions including
corporate banking, operations,
finance and treasury.
Pm Narendra Modi concluded his
Three-Nation Tour: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi arrived in Delhi
on 19 May 2015 after concluding a
six-day, three-nation tour of China,
Mongolia and South Korea. He is the
first Indian Prime Minister to visit
Mongolia to commemorate the 60th
year of diplomatic relations between
India and Mongolia and the silver
jubilee of Mongolias democracy.
During his 6 day tour from 14th
19th May he held bilateral talks
and signed several pacts to bolster
Indias relations with the three
countries. South Korea decided to
provide USD 10 billion to India for
infrastructure, development of smart
cities, railways, power generation
and other diversified areas as the two
countries agreed to upgrade their
bilateral relationship to a Special
Strategic Partnership. Also, 21
business agreements worth 22 billion
US dollars have been signed between
Indian and Chinese companies.
Furthermore, India announced to
provide one billion US dollar Line
of Credit to Mongolia and signed 13
agreements including enhancement
in cooperation in border defence, air
services, cyber security, renewable
energy and others.
2015 UNESCO Guillermo/Cano
World Press Freedom Prize:
Syrian journalist and rights activist
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Mazen Darwish was honoured

with UNESCO/Guillermo Cano
World Press Freedom Prize 2015.
UNESCO awarded its prize to
Darwish in recognition of the work
he had carried out in Syria for more
than 10 years at great personal
sacrifice, enduring a travel ban,
harassment, as well as repeated
detention and torture. Darwish was
arrested on February 16, 2012 along
with Hani Zaitani and Hussein
Ghreir, his colleagues at the Syrian
Centre for Media and Freedom
of Expression. They are accused
of promoting terrorist acts. The
annual UNESCO/Guillermo Cano
World Press Freedom Prize honours
a person, organisation or institution
that has made a contribution to the
defence and, or promotion of press
freedom anywhere in the world.
The award was created in 1997 and
is named in honour of Guillermo
Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist
who was assassinated in front of
the offices of his newspaper, El
Espectador, in Bogota in 1986. It
carries a monetary award of US
$25,000.
Indo-French
Naval
Exercise
VARUNA 2015: The fourteenth
edition of Indo-French naval exercise
(VARUNA) concluded in Goa. The
ten day long exercise commenced on
23rd April 2015 and included both
a harbour and sea phase. The event
was graced by the presence of Mr
Laxmikant Parsekar, Chief Minister
of Goa, French ambassador Mr.
Franois Richier along with Vice
Admiral SPS Cheema, Flag Officer
Commanding-in-Chief,
Western
Naval Command and other senior
naval officers embarked the French
Navys Aircraft Carrier, Charles de
Gaulle on the concluding day of the
sea phase of the exercise. During
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the exercise, French Navy was

represented by the Aircraft Carrier
Charles de Gaulle and Indian side
was represented by Aircraft carrier
INS Viraat. The exercise seeks to
enhance interoperability between
the two navies and also showcases
the close ties between the two
countries. The establishment of
strategic partnership in 1998 has
led to significant progress in all
areas of bilateral cooperation and
exchanges including naval exercises.
The Indian Navy and the French
Navy have been conducting naval
exercises since 1983 and since the
strategic partnership, these exercises
were christened as VARUNA in
2001.
MESSENGER Mission to Mercury
ends: National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) ended
the operations of MESSENGER
Mission on 30th April 2015. The
planetary exploration mission came
to a planned when it slammed into
Mercurys surface at about 8,750
mph and created a new crater on
the planets surface. It was the first
craft to orbit Mercury and, after four
years and 4,105 orbits, delivered a
stunningly long list of discoveries,
which changed views of the entire
inner solar system. MESSENGER
was launched on 3rd August, 2004,
and it began orbiting Mercury on
March 17, 2011. Even after the
completion of its primary science
objectives by March 2012, the
spacecrafts mission was extended
two times, allowing it to capture
images and information about the
planet in unprecedented detail.
The messenger managed numerous
accomplishments which include the
MESSENGER mission determining
Mercurys surface composition,
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revealing its geological history,
discovering its internal magnetic
field.
International Day For Biological
Diversity: The United Nations
observed 22nd May as International
Day for Biological Diversity. The
theme for year 2015 is Biodiversity
for Sustainable Development. This
years theme reflects the importance
of efforts made at all levels to
establish a set of Sustainable
Development goals (SDGs) as part
of the United Nations Development
Agenda for the period of 2015-30
and the relevance of biodiversity for
achieving sustainable development.
The selection of this particular
theme also underlies the adoption
of the Gangwon Declaration. The
Gangwon Declaration welcomed
the importance given to biodiversity
and called for the further integration
and mainstreaming of biodiversity in
the Post-2015 Development Agenda.
The UN General Assembly, by its
resolution of 20th December, 2000,
proclaimed 22nd May, as the day
for Biological Diversity, to increase
awareness and understanding on
biodiversity issues and also to
commemorate the adoption of
Convention on Biological Diversity
by the Nairobi Final Act on 22nd
May, 1992. Earlier, 29th December,
was chosen by UN General
Assembly as the Day for Biological
Diversity.
JUNE
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim Sworn-in
as President of Mauritius: Wellknown scientist Ameenah GuribFakim was sworn in as president of
Mauritius. After her swearing she
became the first woman to hold the
ceremonial position in the Indian
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Ocean island nation. Gurib-Fakim
is the first female president of the
island, after it gained independence
from Britain in 1968 and replaced
Britains Queen Elizabeth II as
its head of state in 1992. GuribFakim is at present director of the
Mauritius-headquartered Centre for
Phytotherapy Research (CEPHYR),
which carries out research on plants
for use in cosmetics, nutrition and
therapy. Mauritius is one of the
richest, and least corrupt, countries
in Africa. The country is a middleincome nation of some 1.3 million
people with a per capita GDP of
just over $9,000 (7,200 euros).
Fakim has authored numerous
academic and research papers. She
has received several accolades and
honours including Laureate for
the LOreal-UNESCO Women in
Science Award for Africa (2007),
African Union Award for Women
in Science for the Easter African
Region (2009) etc.
Worlds first electric passenger
aircraft BX1E launched: China has
manufactured and launched worlds
first electric passenger aircraft that
will be used for various purposes
including pilot training, tourism,
meteorology and rescue operations.
The passenger aircraft BX1E has
a 14.5-metre wingspan and an
utmost payload of 230 kilograms.
The aircraft can fly at an altitude
of 3,000 meters. The charging of
the machine is completed within
two hours, allowing a flight time
ranging from 45 minutes to one
hour, at a maximum speed of 160
km per hour. The plane has received
airworthiness certificate and was
designed by Shenyang Aerospace
University and Liaoning general
aviation academy in the north-
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eastern Liaoning Province. Each

aircrafts estimate priced is about
one million Yuan ($163,000). The
figure of advance orders for the
aircraft has reached to about 28. The
plane also participated in the 10th
China International Aviation and
Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai,
Guangdong Province in November
2015. The aircraft can be used in
pilot training, tourism, meteorology
and rescue operations.
41st G7 summit held: The 41st G7
summit was held in Schloss Elmau,
Krn, Bavaria, Germany on June
78, 2015. The theme for the summit
was Think Ahead. Act Together. The
attendees included the leaders of the
seven G7 member states, as well
as representatives of the European
Union. The summit focussed on the
global economy as well as on key
issues regarding foreign, security
and development policy. Some
others issues discussed during the
summit included protection of
the marine environment, marine
governance and resource efficiency,
antibiotic resistance, neglected and
poverty-related diseases, and Ebola,
and also empowering self-employed
women and women in vocational
training. The leaders also committed
to international greenhouse gas
emissions reduction target of 40
to 70% by 2050.These greenhouse
gases absorb and emit radiations
within their thermal infrared
ranges. They are responsible for the
greenhouse effect. G7 is the group
of seven major advanced economies
of the world and includes Canada,
France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the
United Kingdom, and the United
States.
First International Day of Yoga
Observed Globally: The opening
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International Yoga Day (IYD)

was celebrated across the world
on 21st June 2015. This version
of IYD was led by India and was
marked by 192 countries across the
globe. Prime Minister Narendra
Modi motivated thousands of
participants from various age
groups at the Rajpath yoga event.
The festivities were also held at the
United Nations headquarter in New
York which was led by External
affair minister Sushma Swaraj.
Several such mass events were held
in various cities across the world
including New York, London,
Tokyo and Sydney. The thought
of celebrating the International
Yoga Day was suggested by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi at the
United Nations General Assembly
(UNGA) in September 2014.
UNGA had unanimously adopted
India-led resolution to observe 21st
June as International Day of Yoga
on December 2014. This resolution
was adopted under the agenda of
Global Health and Foreign Policy.
The reason behind the selection of
21st June as International Yoga day
because it represents one of the two
solstices and it is the longest day in
the Northern Hemisphere which has
special significance in many parts of
the world.
ISRO Gets with 2015 Space Pioneer
Award for Mars Orbiter Mission:
Indias low-cost Mars mission has
been presented with the Space
Pioneer award for the year 2015 by
the US National Space Society. The
Space Pioneer award for the year
2015 was presented to Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) in the
Science and Engineering category
during the 34th Annual International
Space Development Conference
Events
held at Toronto in Canada during
May 20-24, 2015. National Space
Society (NSS) of USA presented
the award in recognition of ISROs
hard work in accomplishing Mars
Mission in its very first attempt.
The ISRO spacecraft was launched
on its nine-month-long odyssey on
a home-grown PSLV rocket from
Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on
November 5, 2013 and had escaped
the earths gravitational field on
December 1st. The Space Pioneer
Award consists of a silvery pewter
Moon globe cast by the Baker Art
Foundry in Placerville, California,
from a sculpture originally created
by Don Davis, the well-known space
and astronomical artist.
World No Tobacco Day Award
2015: Uttarakhand Health and
Family Welfare Minister Surendra
Singh Negi was conferred with the
World No Tobacco Day Award 2015
by the World Health Organsiation
(WHO). The Director General
presented special award to Marcelo
Fisch, who is the Head of the Fiscal
Special Control Division, Federal
Revenue Secretariat, and Ministry of
Finance in Brazil. The World Health
Organization (WHO) Director
General also presented special
Recognition Certificates to Saira
Afzal Tarar, Minister of state for
National Health services, Regulation
and Co-ordination of Pakistan, Luk
Joossens of Belgium, WHO expert
group on illicit Tobacco Trade, Mr.
Amal Pusp, Director, Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare, Republic
of India also awarded this award
on the occasion of No Tobacco
Day. Every year, the World Health
Organization recognizes individuals
or organizations from the six regions
for their accomplishments in the area
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Events
of tobacco control such as research,
capacity building, promotion of
policy or legislation and advocacy to
enhance tobacco control.
JULY
Fortune 500 list released: Fortune
released 61th edition of list of
top 500 companies on 22st July
2015. All the companies listed in
the magazine having 12.5 trillion
US dollar in revenues, 17 trillion
US dollar in the market value, 945
billion US dollar in profit and having
26.8 million people globally. Among
these 500 top companies, 7 Indian
companies are in the list. They are
Indian Oil ranked on 119th position
with 74 billion dollars of revenue,
Reliance Industries on 158th rank
Tata motors on 254th rank with 42
billion dollars of revenue, State
Bank of India (SBI) on 260th rank
Bharat Petroleum on 280th rank
Hindustan petroleum on 327th rank
Oil and natural gas on 449th rank
with 26 billion dollars of revenue.
This magazine is published globally
by times inc and complies of annual
ranking of the wealthiest companies
of the world.
SaniaMirza-Martina Hingis win
womens doubles: Indias tennis
star Sania Mirza won her second
consecutive Grand Slam title of the
season with Swiss partner Martina
Hingis. The top seeded Indi-Swiss
team outplayed the fourth seed
team of Cassey Dellacqua and
Yaroslava Shvedpva 6-3, 6-3 in the
final. Kazakhastans Shvedova and
Australias Dellacqua struggled to
hold serve, making it too easy for

Sania and Hingis. The contest was
over in just 70 minutes.
It was Sania and Hingis second
major title in a row, having won
Wimbledon championships earlier
this season. Sania now has five
Grand Slam titles in her bag. Martina
Hingis won her first Wimbledon title
since 1998 when she and her partner
SaniaMirza captured the womens
double trophy.
The championships, Wimbledon,
commonly known as Wimbledon
is the oldest tennis tournament in the
world, and is widely considered the
most prestigious. It has been held at
the all England Club in Wimbledon,
London since 1877. The tournament
takes place every two weeks in late
June and early July.
Inderjeet wins Gold at World
University Games: Indian shotputter Inderjeet Singh on 8th July
2015 came up with a best throw of
20.27 meter in the final attempt to
win the Gold medal of mens shot
put event at the World University
Games in Gwangju South Korea.
He created history to become the
first Indian to win a gold medal at
the World University Games.
The silver medal was won by Andrei
Marius Gag of Romania with a
throw of 19.92m while Alexander
Bulanov of Russia won the bronze
with a throw of 19.4m. Earlier in
June 2015, he won gold at the first
leg of the Asian Athletics Grand
Prix in Bangkok, Thailand. On 3rd
June 2015 he won gold at Asian
Championships in Wuhan, China.
In the Mens 25m Rapid Fire Pistol
Team Event of AchalPratap Singh
Grewal, Amrender Pal Singh
Chauhan and Akshay Jain won the
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bronze medal. The Gold and Silver

medal were won by Korea and
Russia respectively. The Universiade
is an international multi-sport event,
organized for university athletes by
the International University Sports
Federation (FISU). The Universiade
is the 2nd largest multi-sporting
event in the world, second only to
the Olympic Games.
ISRO launches British satellites:
The Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) successfully
placed into orbit five British satellites
using its Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle, PSLV-C28, from Satish
Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR)
Sriharikota. Three identical DMC3
commercial Earth Observation
Satellites along with two smaller
satellites from United Kingdom
were launched into the Polar Sun
Synchronous Orbit which were
very close to the intended orbit of
647 km height.This is the heaviest
commercial launch ever taken by a
PSLV rocket till date with the five
satellites weighing around 1,440 kg.
These five satellites were launched
as part of an agreement entered
into between DMC International
Imaging (DMCii) and wholly
owned subsidiary of Surrey Satellite
Technology Limited (SSTL), UK
and Antrix Corporation Limited
the commercial arm of ISRO, under
the Department of Space (DOS).
This was the 30th successful flight
of PSLV also known as ISROs
workhorse. The agency had used XL
version for the ninth time.
Each satellite weighing about 447
kg is aimed at capturing any target
on the earths surface every day
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and is expected to help in surveying
resources, environment and urban
infrastructure apart from its primary
aim of monitoring disasters. The
320 tonne (320,000 Kilograms)
rocket is as tall as a 15-storey
building and will hoist, apart from
a constellation of three disastermonitoring satellites into space.
India has launched 40 satellites from
19 countries on a commercial basis,
till date.
USA win Womens FIFA World
Cup: The US defeated former
champion Japan to win the Womens
FIFA World Cup title at BC Place
Stadium in Vancouver, Canada. Led
by midfielder Carli Lloyds three
goals, the game ended up as the
highest scoring final of Womens
World Cup, since its beginning in
1991.
This years tournament featured
52 games played by 24 teams in 6
different Canadian cities.
It was the third time that the U.S.
team appeared in the World Cup
Final, having won the world Cup
in 1991 and in 1999. The American
midfielder put the U.S team two
goals up within five minutes in a
stunning start to the match. Japan,
who had made it to the final after
defeating England were outshined
from the start and were not able to
cope up with the USAs set-pieces.
The USA is the only country to win
three Womens World Cup and the
only country to score the most goals
(five) in a WWC final- no other team
could score more than two.
With this Carli Lloyd is the first
US player to score in four straight
games in a World Cup. She scored
a goal against China, Colombia and
Germany and three against Japan.
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She became the first woman in a
FIFA WWC to score a hat trick in a
Final match and also the fastest hat
trick in Womens World Cup history.
World Population Day observed:
The world Population Day was
observed on 11th July with
theme Vulnerable Populations in
Emergencies. At present the United
Nations Population Fund is working
around the globe to respond to rights
of women and girls, and help them
to maintain their dignity by securing
their safety and restoring their access
to sexual and reproductive health
care.
The event was established by the
Governing Council of United
Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) in 1989; it recommended
that, in order to focus attention
on the urgency and importance of
population issues in the context
of overall development plans and
programmes and the need to find
solutions for these issues, 11th July
be observed by the International
community as the World Population
Day.
The world population in 2011
crossed the mark of 7 billion
people. A world of 7 billion is both
a challenge and an opportunity
with implications on sustainability,
urbanisation, and access to health
services and youth empowerment.
Earth-like
exoplanet
Kepler
452b discovered: NASA finally
announced the discovery of a Earthlike planet called Kepler 452b in our
galaxy, also known as Earth 2.0.
This newly discovered planet or
Earths twin has everything i.e.
from size to length of its year, from
estimated conditions on its surface
to environment is similar to earth.
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This planet is located 1400 light years

away in the Cygnus constellation of
the Milky Way. Also, this planet
is 1.6 times bigger than Earth.
Scientists told that Kepler 452b
whirls around its star once every 385
days, tantalizing close to Earths 365
days.
According to scientists, Kepler 452b
has been at the perfect distance from
its star for many billions of years. It
will be too hot to host life on a planet
if it is too close to its star. Similarly,
it will be too cold, if it is too far from
its star. So, it means it is possible to
host life on newly discovered planet,
Kepler 452b as it has a perfect
distance from its star.
Helena Ndume, Jorge Sampaio
awarded
Nelson
Rolihlahla
Mandela Prize: On 24th July 2015,
Helena Ndume and Jorge Sampaio
of Portugal were awarded with the
first-ever Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
Prize. The award ceremony was held
at United Nations Headquarters in
New York. This award is for those
who have dedicated their life for
the service of humanity and in the
development of community and
social cohesion.
Dr. Helena Ndume of Namibia is
an ophthalmologist who devoted her
life for treating blindness and eyerelated illnesses in Namibia, South
West Africa and throughout the
developing world.
Jorge Sampaio is the former Mayor
of Lisbon, from 1989 to 1995, who
became the President of Portugal
and served the country from 1996
to 2006. He became the leader
in struggle for the restoration of
democracy in Portugal and was
awarded for the same.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela Prize
was established in 2014 by the
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UNGA (UN General Assembly) to

pay homage to Nelson Mandelas
extraordinary life and legacy of
reconciliation, political transition
and social transformation
Ramon Magsaysay Awards for
2015: On 29th July, 2015, the board
of trustees of RMAF (Ramon
Magsaysay Award Foundation)
announced the list of awardees
for the year 2015. It is very proud
and honourable moment for India
as there are two Indians - Sanjiv
Chaturvedi and Anshu Gupta among five awardees.. The award
ceremony was held at Manila,
Philippines on 31st August, 2015.
Sanjiv Chaturvedi is a whistleblower,
a social worker, a bureaucrat and
also an Indian Forest Service officer
of batch 2002. He is awarded
for his efflorescent leadership
and commendable courage in a
protracted battle with the Centre
over alleged harassment for his
tough stance on graft.
Anshu Gupta, the founder of NGO
named Goonjwhich was established
in 1999 and works in 21 states
across the nation for disaster relief,
humanitarian aid and community
development.
Ramon Magsaysay Award is the
Asias most prestigious prize and
considered equivalent to the Nobel
Prize. It was established by the
trustees of the New York based
Rockefeller Brothers Fund and
Philippine government in 1957 in
the memory of Ramon Magsaysay,
3rd President of Philippines.
Golden Peacock Environment
Management Award 2015: Tata
Steels West Bokaro Division has
been conferred with the Golden
Peacock Environment Management
Award (GPEMA) for the year 2015.
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It has done commendable job for the
responsible environment practices
and resource management along
with training the employees with
new technologies.
GMR Hyderabad International
Airport Ltd has also been selected for
the Golden Peacock Environment
Management Award (GPEMA) for
the year 2015 for achievements in the
field of environment management at
Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.
Krishnapatnam Port in Andhra
Pradesh has received the GPEMA
for its initiative and achievements in
the field of environment.
The awards were given by Prakash
Javadkar, Minister of Forest and
Climate Change. The business
award is given in 15 categories,
one of them is GPEMA. Golden
Peacock Awards were instituted by
the Institute of Directors, India, in
1991 are regarded as the benchmark
of Corporate Excellence Worldwide.
The award winners can use the
Golden Peacock awards logo on
their promotional literature for the
next one year and thus the logo itself
speaks for the quality of the material
UNSC adopts resolution endorsing
Iran nuclear deal: The United
Nations Security council (UNSC)
which was co-sponsored by 15
countries unitedly adopted a
resolution 2231 (2015) endorsing
Joint comprehensive Agreement
on Iran Nuclear historic deal. The
joint comprehensive Plan of Action
(JCPOA) which reached between
Tehran and five permanent members
of Security Council plus Germany
and the European Union and Iran
(P5+1) group, signed in Vienna
on 14th July, after 18 days of talk
that capped almost two years of
momentous negotiations. In the
agreement, Iran cleared that it will
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under no circumstances ever seek,
develop or acquire any nuclear
weapon. This resolution cleared
that path for international sanctions
crippling Irans economy. This
also guarantees the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will
continue to verify Irans compliance
with its nuclear related commitments
under the Joint Comprehensive plan
of Action. The security also decided
by the resolution that as defined in
the agreement on the date ten year
after the joint comprehensive plan
of Action (JCPOA) adoption day, all
the provision of this action shall be
terminated and none of the previous
resolution shall be applied.
AUGUST
Japan restarts Nuclear Reactor:
Japan has restarted its first nuclear
reactor under new safety rules
after two years, following the 2011
Fukushima disaster. All Japanese
nuclear plants were gradually shut
down after a series of meltdowns
at the Fukushima plant sparked by
the tsunami and earthquake which
forced the evacuation of 160,000
people, many of whom might never
return home.
Kyushu Electric Power Company
reactivated its No. 1 reactor Sendai
nuclear power plant in Kagoshima
Prefecture, on the southern island of
Kyushu. The 30-year-old reactor is
expected to reach full capacity next
month. The plants second reactor
could be restarted in October. Japans
nuclear operators have applied for
approval to restart 25 reactors; the
regulators have cleared only five to
go back online.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe has pushed for the return to
nuclear energy, arguing it is vital to
the countrys economic recovery,
by reducing the skyrocketing utility

bills associated with energy imports.
The government assured that the
nuclear power will help cull down
both import bills and growing CO2
emissions.
SEPTEMBER
World Tourism Day observed:
Under the theme One billion
tourists, one billion opportunities,
World
Tourism
Day
2015
emphasizes the impact of the sector
on economic growth, job creation
and development. On the occasion,
the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki
Moon states in his message let
us work together to maximize the
immense potential of tourism to
drive inclusive economic growth,
protect the environment and
promote sustainable development
and a life of dignity for all.
At present, international tourism
contributes $US 1.5 billion to global
trade representing 30% of the
worlds service exports, a share that
goes up to 45% in Least Developed
Countries (LDCs). Tourism has been
a major contributor to the economic
recovery with five consecutive
years of growth creating jobs and
opportunities for communities in
many parts of the world.
World Tourism Day is celebrated on
27 September since 1980. This date
coincides with the anniversary of the
adoption of the UNWTO Statutes
on 27 September 1970. As part
of this years World Tourism Day
celebrations, UNWTO invites all
to join its Instagram Campaign by
sharing images of the transformative
potential tourism.
Chinas Long March-11 Carrier
rocket launched: China successfully
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launched a new model of carrier

rocket, the Long March-11 on
25th September from the Jiuquan
Satellite Launch Centre in the
northwestern province of Gansu.
The rocket carried four microsatellites into space, which will be
used mainly for testing. The solid
propellant rocket was developed
by the China Academy of Launch
Vehicle Technology with the China
Aerospace Science and Industry
Corporation. The rocket will
mainly be used for launching microsatellites.
In a statement the academy said
the successful launch of the rocket
marked a major breakthrough for
the nation in key technology for
solid propellant rockets. The trip
was the 211th mission for the Long
March rocket family. Long March
11 is the 211th launch of the Long
March series. The first rocket, Long
March 1 was launched in April 1970
when Chinas first satellite Dong
Fang Hong 1 was placed in orbit.
Long March 11 is the eighth launch
of China following the sending of
Gaofen-8, Gaofen-9 and Yaogan
Weixing-27
earth
observation
satellites into space. Long March 6
recently lofted 20 small satellites on
20th September 2015.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development: The 193-Member
on 25th September formally
adopted the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development, along
with a set of bold new Global
Goals. The Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon hailed them as a universal,
integrated and transformative vision
for a better world.
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The new framework is composed
of 17 goals and 169 targets to wipe
out poverty, fight inequality and
tackle climate change over the next
15 years. The Goals aim to build on
the work of the historic Millennium
Development
Goals
(MDGs),
which had rallied the world around
a common 15-year agenda to tackle
the indignity of poverty.
The Summit began with a full
program of events, including a
screening of the film The Earth
From Space, performances by UN
Goodwill Ambassadors Shakira
and Angelique Kidjo, as well as
call to action by female education
advocate and the youngest-ever
Nobel Laureate, Malala Yousafzai
along with youth representatives as
torch bearers to a sustainable future.
Indra
Nooyi,
Shobhana
Bhartia awarded with 2015
Global
Leadership
Award:
PepsiCo Chairman Indra Nooyi
and Hindustan Times Group
chairperson Shobhana Bhartia
have been presented with the 2015
Global Leadership Award of the
US India Business Council, for
their commitment to driving a
more inclusive global economy
and their roles as women leaders.
Nooyi and Bhartia were honoured
with this prestigious annual award
last evening during the annual gala
of the USIBC, the apex advocacy
group for India and American
companies in the US.
Renowned Indian-American artist,
Natvar Bhavsar who is known for
his abstract expressionism and
color-field painting was awarded
the Artistic Achievement Award.
9th Regional Pravasi Bharatiya
Diwas (RPBD): The 9th Regional
Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (RPBD)
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is to be held at Los Angeles,
California, USA from 14 November
to 15 November 2015. The Theme
for RPBD Los Angeles will be The
Indian Diaspora: Defining a New
Paradigm in India-US Relationship,
capturing the ethos of ongoing
relationship between India and USA
and the important role being played
by Diaspora in this regard.
This session of RPBD will be
organised by Consulate General
of India, San Francisco, and the
Embassy of India, Washington DC
in collaboration with the major
community organizations of People
of Indian Origin in the USA and the
Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs
(MOIA).
RPBDs are important Diaspora
engagement
meets
conducted
annually by the Union Government
outside the country as part of a
comprehensive program to reach
out to the growing Indian Diaspora
community globally.
Sherif Ismail sworn in as Prime
Minister
of
Egypt:
Former
Egyptian oil minister Sherif Ismail
was sworn in on September 19th as
the new prime minister. Ismail took
oath before President Abdel-Fattah
El-Sisi. The new cabinet includes
15 new faces, with the ministers of
foreign affairs, defence, interior,
justice and finance retaining their
portfolios.
Sisi accepted the resignation of the
cabinet headed by Prime Minister
Ibrahim Mehleb on September 12
after agriculture minister Salah
Helal was arrested for corruption.
The new cabinet was sworn in as
Egypt is preparing for a long-delayed
parliamentary election in October.
Electing a new parliament, scheduled
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to be completed by end of 2015,

is the final phase of a three-stage
road-map, including the presidential
election and the new constitution
announced by Sisi on the removal of
former Islamist President Mohamed
Morsi.
Nepals Parliament Passes New
Constitution: Nepals parliament
passed a new national constitution
on September 17, weeks after
political leaders reached a historic
agreement to create a federal state.
The long-delayed bill was passed
after violent protests that had killed
more than 40 people and shut down
large swathes of the south. In all,
507 of the young republics 598
lawmakers came out in favour of the
bill in the marathon vote.
The new charter will replace an
interim constitution in place since
the end of a decade-long civil war
that led to the abolition of the
Hindu monarchy. It will divide the
Himalayan nation of 28 million
people into seven federal provinces,
a move aimed at devolving power
from the centre.
Prime Minister Sushil Koirala
has already stepped down and a
new government is expected to be
formed. The process of drafting the
constitution began after the Maoists
ended their insurgency and turned
to politics, winning a 2008 general
election and forming a government.
However, they were unable to muster
enough support from rival parties
to push a new constitution through
parliament and the assembly finally
collapsed in May 2012 after missing
a series of deadlines to pass the bill.
Ruling Peoples Action Party wins
Singapore general elections: The
ruling Peoples Action Party (PAP)
on 12 September 2015 won the
general elections to the Parliament
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of Singapore. The party is headed

by the incumbent Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong. The PAP won 83
seats of the 89 constituency elected
seats in the Parliament of Singapore,
representing 69.86% of total votes
cast while the opposition Workers
Party got just six seats, one less
than it held in the last election. The
PAP registered its win for record
12th time since independence from
Malaysia in 1965.
This was also the first elections
held after the death of Lee Kuan
Yew, father of Prime Minister Lee,
who was the Prime Minister of the
country between 1959 and 1990. The
PAP, a centre-right political party
in Singapore and also Singapores
longest-ruling party, has been the
countrys ruling party since 1959.
Ever since, the PAP has dominated
Singapores
parliamentary
democracy and has been central to
the city-states rapid political, social,
and economic development.
Sania Mirza-Martina Hingis win
2015 US Open Womens Doubles
title:Indian ace Sania Mirza and
Switzerlands Martina Hingis won
their second successive womens
doubles Grand Slam title on
September 14 after defeating Casey
Dellacqua and Yaroslava Shvedova
in the US Open final in New York.
The duo took little more than an
hour to finish the game as they
continue to raise the profile of an
otherwise limited event on the tour.
They won the final match in straight
sets 6-3, 6-3 in front of relatively
sizeable Arthur Ashe Stadium
crowd. The pair had also won the
Wimbledon title in July, defeating
Ekaterina Makarova and Elena
Vesnina in the final.
With it being Sanias first US Open
womens doubles title and fifth
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Grand Slam victory overall, she
had won the mixed doubles title last
year with Brazilian Bruno Soares.
The 28-year-old Sania has won titles
in all Grand Slam tournaments
Wimbledon (2015 - Doubles),
US Open (2014 - Mixed doubles,
2015 - Womens doubles), French
Open (2012 - Mixed doubles) and
Australian Open (2009 - Mixed
doubles). Mirza is currently the topranked doubles player, while her
partner Hingis is second.
Leander Paes, Martina Hingis
win US Open 2015: Leander Paes
with Swiss partner Martina Hingis
created history by winning the U.S.
Open mixed doubles title. He outdid
compatriot and former partner
Mahesh Bhupathis record. Paes now
has won nine Grand Slam mixed
doubles titles, against Bhupathis
eight. The fourth seeded India-Swiss
pair edged past unseeded Americans
Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sam
Querrey 6-4 3-6 10-7 in a final to
win their third Major title together
this season.
Paes is now only to catch up with
legendary Martina Navratilova, who
has won 10 mixed doubles trophies.
Of those 10, two came with Paes,
when they won Australian Open
and Wimbledon in 2003.
With this win, Paes and Hingis,
who also won Australian Open and
Wimbledon titles early this season,
have become the first mixed doubles
team since 1969 to win three Grand
Slam mixed doubles titles in the
same year. It was Paes 17th Grand
Slam title overall and Hingis 19th.
Hingis has won four Grand Slam
titles and all of them have come
with Indians.
US-India-Japan
Trilateral
Ministerial dialogue held: With
growing assertiveness of China in
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the South China Sea, India, Japan
and the United States at their firstever trilateral ministerial dialogue
here called for a peaceful settlement
of disputes, freedom of navigation
and unimpeded lawful commerce in
that area. The three countries also
agreed to work together to maintain
maritime security through greater
collaboration while highlighting
the growing convergence of their
interests in the Indo-Pacific region.
The meeting was attended by
External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj, her Japanese counterpart
Fumio Kishida and US Secretary of
State John Kerry.
The three ministers highlighted
the growing convergence of their
respective countries interests in the
Indo-Pacific region. Representing
a quarter of the worlds population
and economic production power,
the three countries highlighted
their shared support for peace,
democracy, prosperity, and a rulesbased international order.
Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina
wins
the
United
Nations
Champions of the Earth Award
2015: Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Sheikh Hasina on 14 September has
been declared as one of the winners
of the United Nations Champions
of the Earth award in recognition of
her countrys initiatives to address
climate change. Serving as Prime
Minister of Bangladesh one of the
worlds least-developed countries
Sheikh Hasina has proven that
investing in climate change is
conducive to achieving social and
economic development, said the
announcement conferring the award
issued by the UN Environment
Programme (UNEP).
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The award cites, among other

initiatives,
the
progressive
Bangladesh
Climate
Change
Strategy and Action Plan of 2009,
which made it the first developing
country to frame such a coordinated
action plan. Besides Sheikh Hasina,
the other winners are the National
Geographic Society (Science and
Innovation); Brazilian cosmetics
firm
Natura
(Entrepreneurial
Vision); and South Africas Black
Mamba
Anti-Poaching
Unit
(Inspiration and Action).
Mount Aso, the largest volcano of
Japan erupts: Mount Aso, Japans
largest active volcano erupted on
September 15 sending plumes of
smoke two kilometres into the air
prompting tourists to evacuate. The
footage of the massive eruption
was streamed live with volcanic
ash visibly filling a large area. No
immediate damage or injuries were
reported but local authorities have
described the danger level to three
out of five.
Mount Aso is located on Japans
southernmost main island, Kyushu,
and is a popular hiking destination
for tourists. It is also the second
largest mountain in Japan and is one
of the biggest calderas in the world,
encompassing an area 25 kilometers
north to south and 18 kilometers
east to west.
Around 30 people happened to be
near the peak when the volcano
erupted, but they were evacuated.
Overall, about 100 tourists were
taken to safety. According to
meteorologists, there had been no
clue that an eruption was coming.
International
Literacy
Day
celebrated: International Literacy
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Events
Day was celebrated across the world

on 8 September, with this years
theme being literacy and sustainable
societies. The day was designated as
such by UNESCO and first observed
in 1966.
A special event was organized on
8-9 September 2015 at UNESCO
Headquarters in the presence of
the Director-General of UNESCO.
It intends to prepare the ground
for literacy action in the post-2015
era, in particular. The key issues
addressed in light of the Education
2030 Framework for Action at the
World Education Forum 2015 were
monitoring of literacy progress and
effective global coordination to
ensure sustained and coordinated
efforts for literacy.
OCTOBER
Chinas first lunar rover Yutu
longest stays on Moon: Chinas first
lunar rover, Yutu, has been reported
to have operated on the moon for
almost two years. It has set a record
of a rover having stayed on moon
for the longest duration. In 2013,
the rover was deployed and landed
on the moon by Chinas Change-3
lunar probe. Earlier, the rover to
set the record of longest stay on
moon was the Soviet Unions in
the year 1970. It spent 11 months
on the moon. Mechanical control
abnormality was reported in Yutu
in the year 2014 but within a month
it was fixed. The rover continues to
collect data despite it is unmovable
now. It sends and receives signals,
and record images. The major
objectives of Change-3 have
majorly been surveying the lunar

surface topography and geology,
composition of lunar surface material
and resource, space environment
detection of Sun-Earth-Moon, and
the astronomical observation of the
lunar. After United States, France,
Japan and Soviet Union, China is
the fifth nation to launch a domestic
satellite via domestic rocket.
India and Germany sign MoUs:
A deal for making it smooth
for companies of Germany to
operate in India was announced
by the Chancellor Angela Merkel
during her visit to New Delhi.
Both Indian Prime Minister and
Merkel are to have a continued
discussion in a business forum,
in Bangalore. The partnership
between the two nations is said
to grow in fields like intelligence,
countering terrorism and radicalism,
defence manufacturing and trade
in advanced technology in order to
expand relationship between the two
countries. The deals signed between
the two nations comprised of Joint
Declaration of Intent between HRD
ministry and the Federal Foreign
Office of Germany. Its objective
is to promote German as a foreign
language in India and to promote
modern Indian languages in
Germany. The pacts signed between
the two countries, is worth 2 billion
Euros ($2.25 billion). Germany
would invest in developing solar
energy industry and clean energy
sector of India. Germany has also
acknowledged sharing its knowledge
of vocational education with India
especially for Modis Make in
India campaign.
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Events
7.5
magnitude
earthquake
hits Hindu Kush Region of
Afghanistan: Northern Afghanistan
and Pakistan were hit by a deadly
earthquake. The magnitude of the
earthquake was recorded to be 7.5
on the Richter scale. It shook the
buildings throughout South Asia.
The epicentre of the earthquake was
Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan.
Tremors were felt in northern India
as well. About 260 people were
reported dead. It was the second
major earthquake of the year
after the earthquake of Nepal that
killed more than 8,000. Mobile
phones were disrupted, houses
collapsed in Pakistan. Northern
Pakistan reported major damage
post earthquake. Landslides made
it difficult for the rescue teams in
their mission. Office buildings were
evacuated in New Delhi when
tremors were felt. About 228 people
were killed in Pakistan with an
injured count of more than 1,000
while Afghanistan experienced
casualties of about 200 and deaths
of 33. The Indian subcontinent is
pushing northward into the main
Asian plate which causes most of the
biggest mountains to develop. Such
pushes of the plates are responsible
for these earthquakes. Washington
also offered assistance to help in the
rescue missions. The earthquake
was reported to be the biggest after
1949 to hit Afghanistan.
Typhoon Koppu hits Northern
Philippines:
Mighty
Typhoon
Koppu hit Northern Philippines
on October 10, 2015. It destroyed
many homes and displaced 10,000
people according to the disaster
agency officials. Koppu caused

heavy rain followed by flooding and
damaging of roads and bridges. No
casualties were reported but almost
a fourth of the town of Casiguran
were moved to evacuation centres.
Footage of a hospital building
having its roof ripped off was
aired on local television channels.
Surfing competition in Baler
had to be cancelled and about
2,000 participants were made to
stay indoors. President Benigno
Aquino appealed the nation to
not to panic and make necessary
preparations.
Landslides
and
floods in northern Luzon were
reported by the national disaster
council. Commercial aviation was
also affected with 30 flights being
cancelled while ferry services were
suspended to avoid any damages.
Local commuter bus services were
grounded in the mountain regions
due to the landslides. The damaged
electric posts made it difficult for
the emergency and rescue teams
to reach outlying areas. In 2013,
Philippines was hit by typhoon
Haiyan that killed over 6,300 people
and left many homeless. Philippines
has been reported to experience an
average of 20 typhoons every year.
NOVEMBER
ASEAN leaders sign declaration for
ASEAN Economic Community:
The leaders of ASEAN (Association
of Southeast Asian Nations) signed
a declaration for the launching of
ASEAN Economic Community
(AEC). The declaration was signed
in the presence of world leaders
including Prime Minister of India,
Narendra Modi. ASEAN, comprises
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of 10 members: Thailand, Brunei,

Malaysia,
Cambodia,
Laos,
Singapore, Indonesia, Myanmar,
Philippines and Vietnam, 5 of which
founded the ASEAN on August
8, 1967. The motto of ASEAN is
One Vision, One Identity, One
Community. ASEAN, according
to AEC, would be made a single
market entailing free flow of capital,
skilled labour and goods within the
region. Tariffs on imports would
be cancelled within the member
countries while the liberalization of
service industries such as tourism
will be encouraged. More free
movement of skilled labours such as
doctors will be boosted. Focus will
be laid, according to the declaration,
on the creation of a well-connected
economy of the member nations of
ASEAN. December 2015 will mark
the launching of the new economic
bloc making ASEANs GDP the 4th
largest in the world.
BRICS Countries Sign Moscow
Declaration
for
Supporting
Multilateral Science Projects:
BRICS nations include Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South
Africa signed Moscow Declaration
of partnership to address common
regional and global socio-economic
challenges by making use of science,
technology and innovation (STI).
At the third meeting of BRICS
Ministers for Science, Technology
and Innovation, the declaration was
signed. Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union
Minister of Science, Technology and
Earth Sciences, India, delegated the
meeting. The nations of BRICS have
mutually agreed to collaborate for
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cooperation in large research based
infrastructures like mega-science
projects in agreement with the
fellow member nations. Multilateral
research projects would be funded
jointly by BRICS. The meeting also
entailed the Action Plan for 201518 on BRICS Science, Technology
and Innovation. The event demands
about 50-75 young STI delegates to
work on the projects. The delegates
required would primarily fall in
the age group of 22-35 and from
varied disciplines like science and
engineering. The joint working of
the young STI experts from all five
nations of BRICS would increase
the connectivity among them. It
would further encourage knowledge
sharing, discussions and learning on
common societal challenges lending
itself to improving the skills and
research competencies of each one
of them.
IMF approve Chinas Yuan as Elite
Reserve Currency: International
Monetary Fund (IMF) included
Chinas Yuan into its elite reserve
currency basket. Yuans entry
into the basket takes effect from 1
October 2016. Yuan also known as
the Chinese Renminbi (RMB) was
included in the basket after it met the
existing criteria for its inclusion. The
action was taken after the executive
board at IMF completed the regular
five-yearly review of the basket of
currencies that make up the Special
Drawing Right (SDR). Yuan will be
a freely usable currency and will be
included in the SDR basket as a fifth
currency, along with the US Dollar,
Euro, Japanese Yen and British
Pound.
Events
The inclusion of the RMB will
enhance the attractiveness of the
SDR by diversifying the basket and
making it more representative of the
worlds major currencies. Inclusion
of Yuan in the SDR is considered
as a big political victory for China
as Yuans desirability as a reserve
currency for investors will increase
and undermine the hegemony of the
dollar as a global reserve currency.
The decision an important milestone
in the integration of the Chinese
economy into the global financial
system. It also recognises the
progress that the Chinese authorities
have made in the past years in
reforming Chinas monetary and
financial systems.
2015 G-20 Antalya Summit: The
2015 G-20 Antalya summit was the
tenth annual meeting of the G-20
heads of government. It was held
in Antalya, Turkey, a southwestern
city, which is the most visited
destination in Turkey and the tenth
in the world, on 1516 November
2015. The venue for the Leaders
Summit was Regnum Carya Hotel
Convention Centre.The Antalya
summit is the 10th edition of the
G20 leaders meeting. Together,
the G20 members represent around
90% of global GDP, 80% of global
trade and two-thirds of the worlds
population.
Agenda was to discuss the worlds
biggest political and security crises,
including Syria and the mass
migration of refugees. The G20
summit was focused on political
rather than economic issues due
to the terrorist attacks in Paris, in
which 132 people were killed. As
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an organization dealing with global

issues of financial and economic
cooperation, the G20 decided to
change the format of the session.
According to the summit results,
in addition to the pre-planned
communiqu, the parties adopted a
declaration on fighting terrorism.
Ground Zero Summit 2015:
Rajnath Singh, the Union Home
Minister, inaugurated Ground Zero
Summit 2015, the Asias foremost
information Security Conference.
Its theme is Digital India Securing
Digital India. To deal with the cyber
security challenges, the summit has
been organised by the Indian Infosec
Consortium (ICC). ICC is a not-forprofit organisation constituted by
experts in the fields of cyber security.
Being the largest collaborative
platform in Asia, Ground Zero
Summit provides opportunities
for establishing and strengthening
relationship between corporate,
public, government and defence
organisations. Rajnath shared that
cyber terrorism is a worldwide
danger. Cyber security is the fifth
dimension of security among the
other dimensionsland, air, water
and space. There will be more than
thirty sessions in the summit. Among
the eminent professionals who would
be addressing the summit include
Dr K.d. Naya (DG, DRDO), Air
Marshal S.B. Deo (Chief Western
Air Command) and Dr Gulshan
Rai (National Cyber Security
Coordinator). Demonstration and
sessions on concerns related to cyber
security in hospitals, security related
to Digital India and telecom security
will be focused. Investigation
challenges and crime cases will also
be discussed in the summit.
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India-ADB
Sign
Loabankn
Agreement: The Government of
India and Asian Development
Bank (ADB) has inked an USD 273
million loan agreement with the
Asian Development Bank (ADB)
for Rural Connectivity Investment
Program. The aim of this program
is to improve rural roads in the state
of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya
Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal
which will improve and sustain
the connectivity of selected rural
communities in the investment
program states to markets, districts,
headquarters, and other centres of
economic activities and facilitates
education. It will also ensure
improved road designs, road safety
and asset management measures
and training with women activity
involved in all aspects.
Under this program, over 6000
kilometres of all-weather rural
roads will be constructed and it
will be benefiting over 4,200 rural
habitations. The loan represents the
third tranche which is also the last
tranche of the USD 800 million
financing facility under the Rural
Connectivity Investment Program
(RCIP). It is a multi-tranche
financing facility (MTFF) started by
Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The third tranche is expected to be
completed by December 2017.
India and Australia have sealed
Nuclear-deal
procedures
for
supply of uranium: A Nuclear-deal
procedure for supplying uranium
has been sealed between India
and Australia. A bilateral meeting
between Indian Prime Minister,
Narendra Modi, and Australian
Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull
in Antalya, Turkey, followed the
sealing of Nuclear-deal. Despite
Events
not being a signatory to the Nuclear
Non-proliferation Treaty, India
is the first country to purchase
uranium from Australia. The
supply of uranium is being done for
peaceful power generation in India.
Indias talks with Australia on Civil
Nuclear Cooperation Agreement
had begun in 2012. The cooperation
agreement was accepted by both
the countries in September of 2014.
Australia owns about 40% of the
worlds uranium resource. Around
7,000 tons of uranium is exported
annually by Australia. India has
signed nuclear energy agreements
with 11 countries. India is presently
getting uranium from Russia, France
and Kazakhstan. Indias nuclear
energy contributes only 3% of its
electricity generation. The uranium
imported is sent to two dozen of
Indias small reactors that are set
up at 6 sites that have a capacity of
4780MW accounting for 2% of the
total power capacity.
India, Russia sign Defence
Cooperation Agreement: In follow
up to the India-Russia, a militarytechnical cooperation agreement
was signed by the Russian and
Indian defence ministers. Indian
defence minister, Manohar Parrikar,
called Moscow a privileged
strategic partner in the military field
during his talks with the Russian
defence minister, Sergei Shoigu. The
defence cooperation agreement has
been signed to fasten up the process
of ongoing projects. The agreement
would develop a bilateral RussianIndian relation in military-technical
ground. The two countries have
finalised the most powerful defence
pact ever for the acquisition of S-400
Events
anti-ballistic missile systems from
Moscow for somewhere around INR
70,000 crore. The system is capable
of detecting and killing enemy
missile from a range of 400kms.
To get another nuclear submarine
and the deal to get missile systems
will formally be signed during
Modis vist to Russia. The nuclear
submarine would be taken on a lease
for ten years from Moscow. Before
Indias decision to acquire S-400
missile system from Russia, China
had already decided to acquire six of
such systems from Moscow. Parrikar
in his statement said that Russia has
been and remains Indias leading
partner till date.
India-born Swati Dandekar has
been appointed as the United States
director of the Asian Development
Bank: Swati A. Dandekar, student
of Nagpur and Bombay University
was nominated as the United States
director of the Asian Development
Bank by the President of United
States, Barack Obama. She has
been honoured with the rank of
ambassador. Her nomination will
replace Robert M. Orr announced
the White House. Another eight
key administration posts were taken
along with Dandekars. Obama
expressed his faith in the experienced
and hardworking individuals whom
he sees as important team who
would help the nation in tackling
important challenges. He also
communicated his willingness to
work with them. According to her
records with the White House, Swati
Dandekar is a former Iowa state
legislator and member of the Iowa
Utilities Board. She had received
her BS from Nagpur University
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and Post-graduate diploma from

Bombay University. She served the
Iowa Utilities Board from 2011 to
2013. She had served as the Senate
in the Iowa State from 2009 to 2011
and from 2002 to 2008 in the Iowa
State House of Representatives.
She fulfilled duties at Linn-Mar
Community School District Board
of Education from the year 1996 to
2002 and remained a member of the
Iowa Association of School Boards
from 2000 to 2002.
Subir Gokaran Appointed as
Executive Director of IMF: Subir
Gokaran, Former Deputy Governor
of Reserve Bank of India, was
appointed as an Executive Director
on the board of the International
Monetary Fund (IMF). The role
of the 56-year-old economist
was appointed on the approvals
of Appointments Committee of
Cabinet led by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi after an order
was issued by the Department of
Personnel and Training. Gokarans
role would be representing India,
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan
on the Washington-based IMF
Executive Board. The board is
responsible for the conduct of
business in the day-to-day world.
The IMF Executive Board comprises
24 Directors. Their appointments
are made by the member countries
and the Managing Director. The
managing director serves as the
chairman of the executive board.
The meetings of the board are held
several times in a week to carry out
their work on the papers prepared
by their staff and management. The
total casting vote represented by
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Events
Gokaran for the Indian Constituency

(India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and
Bhutan) would be 2.8 percent.
Countries like US, Japan, Germany,
UK and France have their individual
representatives. US has the highest
vote percentage of 16.74.
DECEMBER
2015 United Nations Climate
Change Conference (COP 21)
Held: 2015 United Nations Climate
Change Conference or COP 21
was held in Paris, France from 30
November to 12 December 2015. It
was the 21st yearly session of the
Conference of the Parties with a
proposal of achieving zero GHG
emissions growth by 2060-80. The
conference reached its objective for
the first time to achieve a global
agreement on reduction of climate
change in the Paris Agreement,
which was adopted with acclamation
by nearly all states. On the sidelines
of summit 189 parties had
submitted their Intended Nationally
Determined Contributions (INDCs)
on climate actions.
Gambia Declares Itself an Islamic
Republic: Gambia is a popular
beach destination for British tourists.
About 90 per cent of Gambias 1.8
million people are Muslim. The
country gained independence from
Britain in 1965. Gambias President
Yahya Jammeh has declared the tiny
West African country an Islamic
republic as because Islam is the
majority religion of its citizens and
is an attempt to break away from the
countrys colonial past. However,
rights of Gambias Christian

community will be respected who
make up about eight percent of the
countrys population. There will be
no mandates on dress.
16th
India-Russia
Annual
Summit in Moscow: PM Modi
was in Russia for two days to
attend the annual India-Russia
Summit in Moscow with Russian
President Vladimir Putin to further
strengthen the already close bilateral
strategic partnership. The two
countries signed memorandums of
understanding (MOU) on technical
cooperation in the railway sector,
building solar energy plants in India,
investment cooperation in Russias
Far East.
India and Russia signed 16
Agreements/Memorandum
of
Understandings (MoUs) to deepen
bilateral cooperation in the fields of
energy, security, technology, etc.
The agreements include protocol
amending the agreement, which
was signed on 21 December 2010,
between India and Russia on
simplification of requirements for
mutual travels of certain categories
of citizens of the two countries.
Agreement between India and
Russia on Cooperation in the field of
Helicopter Engineering was signed.
Programme of Action Agreed
Between the Department of Atomic
Energy of India and the Russian
State Atomic Energy Corporation
Rosatom for Localization of
Manufacturing in India for RussianDesigned Nuclear Reactor Units.
A-223
Floods in India: Are we prepared

enough to manage the disasters?
atural disasters
always
strike
without prior notice.
There is all likelihood
that with changing
climate, the frequency
and
intensity
of
extreme rain and
tropical cyclones will
increase
resulting
in conditions that
will make us more
vulnerable and our
lives more hazardous. Disasters are now becoming more common-place and
occurring in least expected places. A pertinent question that often bothers
one is who is responsible for all these? Are we well prepared to handle the
calamity and forewarn people when they strike and therefore blame the
climatic changes or, if unprepared or underprepared, then why?
Floods are one of the most common hazards caused by various factors
such as heavy rainfall, melting of snow, tsunami effects or due to man-made
factors such as failure of dams or levee, urbanization, mismanagement of
reservoir, deforestation, unauthorized construction of buildings, inadequate
drainage infrastructure, etc. Floods cause rivers and waterways to overrun
their normal capacities of flowing and spread out to the surrounding land.
To manage city water systems, there are Flood Control Departments, Public
Health Engineering Departments, Development Authorities and Municipal
Corporations in every state. But how much is being done to plan and manage
the crisis is something to ponder?
Urban Centers
Urbanization in India is accelerating as the economic contribution
of agriculture to Indias Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is unwaveringly
declining with no improvement in economic opportunities in rural areas.
India has witnessed a staggering and unprecedented movement of people
from rural areas into the urban areas in the past few decades. Millions are
migrating to urban centers for employment and better living conditions.
However, most of those migrations are chaotic with no infrastructure in
A-224
Floods in India: Are we Prepared Enough to Manage the Disasters?
place to accommodate immigrants. When people move to urban areas, they

need space to live and work, and that invariably results in construction. It
is a known fact that a large number of unauthorized colonies occupied by
immigrants in different parts of India are without any drainage or sewerage
facilities. And what will befall upon them in an event of flood is anyones
guess. Networks of officers, engineers, contractors and politicians have
always had a tendency to overlook such constructions. Is the political class
myopic and insensitive to city problems? It indeed looks like, otherwise, how
could one allow a plethora of apartments in Dwarka, a locality in Delhi
without any proper access to the city centre. Why should the vehicles on NH
8 highway that connects Delhi to Gurgaon jostle their way or get jammed
most of the evenings because of a few marriage venues? The failure on the
part of the state to manage the exponential growth of our urban centers is
one of the critical factors that have led to the misery of some of the cities in
India. And this can have serious ramifications for human security.
Chennai floods are a perfect example of mismanagement and
unpreparedness towards a disaster of the magnitude that took place in
November 2015. Is blaming climate change or global warming enough? Have
we paid heed to the adverse role played by the governmental institutions
and political actors in creating such havoc and the dire implications it may
have for the country? An important question to reflect upon is: Has the state
failed to manage its urbanization?
Experts are of the view that Chennai floods are a man-made disaster.
According to environmentalists, over the years, water bodies across Chennai
have been filled up and built upon because of the interest of politicians in
the real estate business. A year back, 61 people died after a high-rise building
under construction on the lake bed collapsed. People still plod through kneedeep to waist-deep waters in the citys low-lying areas. The blame has been
put on state governments for concretizing riverbeds and converting water
bodies into housing societies. Some residents name it vote bank politics
while others say its complicity with real estate developers.
Non-existent Drainage System

The drainage infrastructure reportedly in most of the municipalities
in Chennai is either nonexistent or inadequate barring a handful of
municipalities that have functional drainage systems. The planning
and design of drainage systems is
inappropriate. Moreover, there is
no data on where the drains are.
Environmentalist Satyarupa Shekhar
of Citizen Consumer and Civic
Action Group, Chennai is of the view
that there is no correct map. It is also
A-225
is unknown what the lifecycle of the drain is. At many places, sewer lines
have been illegally connected to the drains. When there are intersections
with the sewer networks, complete flooding of the city becomes inevitable. It
is actually sewage water which is flooding it.
Failure of the states bureaucracy

It has been alleged that the flood that swept Chennai was a disaster
caused by the state bureaucracys failure to regulate release of water from
Chembarambakkam reservoir in the city. The forecast by international
agencies that there was a likelihood of 500 mm of rain on December 1st
and 2 was ignored. The public works department officials had advised
the senior bureaucrats to bring down the water level in the reservoir from
22 feet to below 18 feet so that it could absorb heavy inflow that had to
come four days later. But the request to release lake water was entangled in
bureaucratic red tape. It was said by the reliable sources that orders to open
the Chembarambakkam sluice gates were not received till impactful pouring
inundated the city and the reservoir started overflowing. No one had kept a
tab on the amount of water that was overflowing from Chembarambakkam
after the reservoir reached its full capacity of 24 feet. The problem aggravated
with the breaching of Athannur lake releasing about 5000 cusecs (cubic feet
per second) into river Adyar. Hence, Chennai had to bear the brunt because
of unnecessary procrastination by some officials. Some pertinent questions
that remain unanswered are: Whose orders were the bureaucrats waiting
for to open the sluice gates? Who is to blame for the lapses? How will the
government ensure that reservoirs are maintained at appropriate levels?
What action will be taken for people residing on river banks?
Political Mileage
Even as noble individuals and voluntary organizations joined hands
in the rescue and relief operations political actors and miscreants grabbed
the opportunity for self-glorification. Strangely, instead of helping the
government in the timely delivery of relief material to the victim, many
of the lower-level functionaries of the ruling political party tried gaining
political mileage through their unjust actions of ensuring that the material
reached the VIPs ahead of the commoners and the relief packages had the
image of the minister on them. This led to the piling up of relief packages
and delays in their distribution. All this makes one wonder whether some
election gimmick took precedence over a humanitarian act of relieving the
A-226
suffering victims. To top it all, panic spread through misinformation and

rumour-mongering. A few Army officers overseeing the relief operations
expressed their suspicion of being intentionally misled so that the VIPs in
posh localities could be rescued ahead of the commoners.
Similar mistakes of procrastination were made by the Uttarakhand
government in the year 2013. An Environmental Impact Assessment report
2014 for Uttarakhand by Bajpai et al argues that from June 14th to 17th, the
state of Uttarakhand and adjoining areas received the heaviest rainfall in 88
years. The report revealed that 80% of Uttarakhand was flooded, almost
10,000 people lost their lives, and the infrastructural systems suffered lengthy
breakdowns. It has been argued that poor environment management played
an important role. The situation was further magnified by the inadequate
preparedness and response of different disaster management agencies during
the crisis. The India Meteorological Department in Delhi issued flood
warnings for Uttarakhand from June 13th onward. The department issued
warning for extremely heavy rains of more than 244.5 mm for June 16 and
17. But the state paid no heed in spite of the initial warnings. Despite initial
reports of heavy rainfall, it was only on the evening of June 16 that the state
government issued a disaster warning, cautioning people about their travel to
the four pilgrimage centers. Yet there were no orders to halt the pilgrimage.
No sooner did the twelve bridges break down by the morning of June 17
than an alert was issued and rescue operations begun. Uttarakhand has also
witnessed a host of construction activities like building of underground
tunnels, resorts and hotels on river banks and encroachments of riverbeds.
All this intensifies the impact of a natural disaster.
The Way Out

Therefore, its important to remember that floods do not do the damage.
But improper planning and mismanagement does. Therefore, need of the
hour ought to be to put proper flood management systems in place. Measures
such as extensive flood forecasting systems, raising habitations above flood
levels and storing adequate food and fodder on raised platforms are some
of the many important steps that can help mitigate the crisis. It becomes
imperative that strict regulation of building plans is made mandatory and
construction disallowed on ecologically sensitive areas.
It seems a quote by Pandora Poikilos fits well here: Procrastination is
the foundation of all disasters. The apathy of the administrative machinery
in responding in time and the lackadaisical response of the government can
cost us heavily.
A-227
Indias Bid for Permanent Seat at

UN Security Council
hen the UN was formed, India wasnt an independent nation, neither

was it powerful or influential enough. Permanent membership of
the UN Security Council requires from a member nation that it provides
the Security Council some sort of foundation that provides the ability to
act and also the ability to maintain order. The member should also have a
strong military base, must be economically vibrant and should be capable
of displaying international influence. During the 1940s when UNSC was
in its early formative stage, India would not have surely met any of these
standards.
Why cant India be a permanent member of the United Nations

Security Council now?
India is not that powerful and its economy in comparison with other
permanent members is not close to being on par. While talking about the
Security
Council
reforms, other three
countries (Germany,
Japan and Brazil)
are also discussed;
comparing
to
them India stands
neither weaker nor
stronger. Brazil has
more than double
Indias
financial
contributions to the UNSC. Russia is outside the top 10 contributors of UN
funding and Indias contribution is far less than them.
All four countries namely, India, Brazil, Germany and Japan have been
backed up by France and the United Kingdom while Russia particularly
supports Brazil and Germany. India would be the poorest out of the current
permanent members and the countries suggested to be added to the Security
Council. Though at present, India surpasses Russia and is shifting closer to
Brazil in terms of overall GDP, the per capita GDP of India would make it
the poorest of all permanent members. Economic power is used as a coercive
force by the Security Council and concerning developing nations, it gets
hard to get them along with accepting and enforcing economic sanctions.
So, adding a new member to the council would require the same to reach a
certain level of economic development.
United Nations Security Council reforms include five key aspects that
are defined as:
A-228
Indias Bid for Permanent Seat at UN Security Council

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Any reform of the council requires agreement of at least two-thirds of
the UN member states and of all the permanent members of the UNSC
enjoying the veto right. The top decision making body of the Security
Council consists of 15 members. It was on 14th September 2015, when a
meeting comprising of nearly 200 member countries of the United Nations
was held, which agreed to negotiate the wording of the document mentioning
the reformations of the council. China strongly opposed the expansion
of the council while different countries submitted written suggestions for
presenting their views of what the resolution must state in.
US, Russia and China secluded them from this exercise with China
demanding to force a veto on UN proceeding with one-year discussion on
framing of reform. It however failed to gain much support.
The Question of equitable representation on Security Council and the
increase in its membership were equally called upon in the draft resolution
for next years UN agenda. If this draft is agreed upon, it will pass on to the
General Assembly for votes and would require a two-thirds vote for final
clearance.
Indias Claim
With the advancements in Indias relationship with like-minded countries
in multilateral organisations, Indias bid for a permanent membership in the
UN Security Council is surely a legitimate claim. A stronger reverberant
is being received by the Council on a worldwide platform. Talking in
terms of foreign policy of India, it has very well conducted the 3rd IndiaAfrica Forum Summit recently and has been efficacious in involving the
participation of all 54 African countries in the summit. India has henceforth
transitioned from selecting a group of nations to accomplishing the aptitude
and knack for engaging all the African nations so diligently.
Right from the Arctic Council and the Pacific Alliance to the UN
Security Council, India is playing a significant role in strengthening bond
with concurring nations in multilateral organisations. Indias quest to enter
the elite club as a permanent member has been supported by US. During her
visit to India for the maiden India US Strategic and Commercial Dialogue,
the US permanent representative to the UN, Samantha Power has expressed
that US supported the view of a reformed UN Security Council with India
as a permanent member. She also opined that US favours the increased
consultations between the UNSC and the nations that contributed to the
peacekeeper troops.
Indias Bid for Permanent Seat at UN Security Council
A-229
India has stood upfront for the UN Security Council reform and views it
as one of the most urgent and pressing needs. It also suggests the inclusion of
more developing nations in the decision making structures of the powerful
world body. The architecture of this body has been questioned by Indias
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj while she addressed the 70th
UN General Assembly. She argued that with the geo-political architecture
of 1945, we cannot have a Security Council in 2015 that doesnt allow a
permanent membership to Africa and Latin America. She also emphasised
on including more developing members to its decision making structure. The
Security Council in her words needs to change the style of its functioning
by discarding its archaic and non- apparent working methods. The Security
Council should thence be divulged with more legitimacy and balance to
restore its credibility and equip it for defying the concurrent challenges.
Though the council has been built for a wider world but it hasnt ever
challenged such unfairness in its system. The UN since its inception had been
successful in preventing a third world war and in promoting democracy and
human rights. It has abetted decolonisation and dismantling of apartheid.
It has also stood strong in battling global epidemics and plummeting global
hunger. But on the other hand, it has not subsisted in preventing conflicts
occurring in several parts of the world; neither has it come up with any
permanent solution for these conflicts. In the areas of international peace
and security, the United Nations seems to remain an ineffective institution
as it has botched in addressing the new challenges.
The negotiations on expanding and reforming the United Nations
Security Council is still under debate and will soon enter a crucial stage in the
coming year. Indias representative at the UNSC, Asoke Kumar Mukerji has
therefore suggested for an international campaign that should be formulated
and propelled for mustering support for its bid from the Indian diaspora, civil
society organisations and businesses around the world.
The final push for reforms will surely need the backing of UN member
nations US, Russia, China, United Kingdom and France. The various
constituencies that can influence their governments and lawmakers should
henceforth be tapped by India.
This decade old logjam in the reform process of the UN needs to be broken
through a negotiating text adopted consistently by the General Assembly.
Tapping the support of Indian diaspora is a must besides reassembling the
identified civil society organisations to the cause. A very strong influence of
the civil society can be marked through the recent climate change conference
held in French capital, Paris where they have buoyed the demands of India
and other developing countries for fair treatment and preserving their rights
to development. A negotiating text is very much essential in laying out
the framework for negotiations without which the UN reform discussion
couldnt further in an eloquent manner. Hence, for candidates like India who
seek a permanent status, it is very much required from the certain current
permanent members to become less and less capable of influencing events
on global level. Until then India should be patient and wait for its turn.
A-230
The Role of Education in a

Knowledge Economy
ocialist, capitalist, and welfare economies are fast becoming things of the
past as the current world order is rapidly moving towards a knowledge
economy. The 21st century is hailed by many as the Knowledge Age.
The World Bank officially defines a knowledge economy as an economy
that creates, disseminates, and uses knowledge to enhance its growth and
development. In other words, it refers to a nation that uses data as its raw
material, and transforms it into knowledge and expertise using human
intelligence, technology, and analysis tools. In todays highly interconnected
and globalised world, knowledge resources such as trade secrets and
technological expertise are as critical to a countrys growth as other economic
resources. It is therefore in every nations interest to develop its knowledge
capabilities to their full potential so as to be fully prepared to compete in the
global knowledge economy.
The World Bank has recognised the four pillars that form the base of a
knowledge economy: Economic Incentive and Institutional Regime (EIR),
Innovation and Technological Adoption, Education and Training, and
Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Infrastructure. The
EIR consists of incentives that promote the growth of entrepreneurship
and the efficient use of existing as well as new knowledge. A system of
innovation centres, such as firms, universities, research institutions, thinktanks, consultancies, and other organisations is required to put the global
stock of knowledge to good use, to adapt it to local and national needs, and
to create new technological solutions. Education and appropriate training
of the population are needed to make it capable of generating, sharing, and
utilising knowledge. And in the end, modern and highly accessible ICT
infrastructure is required to facilitate effective communications and the
dissemination and handling of information, which can be transformed into
valuable knowledge.
India: A growing knowledge economy

The Indian society has traditionally laid great emphasis on knowledge.
Some of the worlds major academic disciplines, religions, ideas, and theories
find their roots in traditional Indian knowledge. Modern estimates suggest
that knowledge will continue to drive growth in India for another 100 years.
Indias swift transition to a knowledge economy is quite evident in the fact
that a majority of the top twenty companies on the countrys stock exchange
are knowledge-based, unlike only a few years before. Moreover, until six
The Role of Education in a Knowledge Economy
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years ago, India did not have a single billion-dollar start-up (or unicorn) in
the technology start-up space, and today it has eight. This has taken India
from nowhere to being third in the world in terms of billion dollar startups. While most path-breaking innovations in the world have come from the
developed world, developing countries like China have begun to show their
knowledge prowess on a global scale, as the highest number of international
patents is lately being filed from China. India, with its unique blend of
traditional knowledge and modern spirit of entrepreneurialism, can hardly
be left far behind.
The evolution of economies throughout most of the world has followed a
consistent trend: from pre-industrial agriculture-based economy to industrial
economy, and then on from post-industrial service-intensive economy to the
knowledge economy now. However, the trajectory was slightly different in
India, as the services sector proliferated into the Indian economy at a much
faster pace than the industrial sector. This made India a services-oriented
economy even before the manufacturing sector could develop completely.
According to 2014 estimates, nearly 60% of the Indian population is in the
working age group (18-64). The proliferation of the services sector, paired
with the Indian demographic profile, gives the country a potential edge over
its competitors in the developing world.
The role of education in fostering knowledge economy

Education plays a driving role in promoting knowledge economy.
Primary education ensures literacy and the development of basic cognitive
skills, whereas secondary education lays down the foundation of a healthy,
skilled labour force that is capable of learning new skills and adapting old
skills according to need. Tertiary education further hones the individuals
intellectual capacity to produce knowledge and utilise it. To further
supplement these capacities, there should also be provisions for lifelong
learning that helps countries and populations adapt to changing market
demands. In the industrial age, educational institutions were designed to
produce worker-citizens. In the 21st century, on the other hand, schools
can no longer just produce mindless labour. There is thus an urgent need
for revision in the way education is imparted in order to make way for
inculcation of new skills and the spirit of innovation in young minds. In
India, even though near full enrolment has been achieved at the primary
level, the quality and accessibility of secondary and tertiary education need
serious attention. Once these educational structures are transformed and
made accessible to all, nothing can stop Indias triumphant march into the
global knowledge economy.
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The Role of Education in a Knowledge Economy
Reforming education using ICT

ICT can be used to give access to learning and education to those
sections of the society that face exclusion, such as high school dropouts,
illiterate farmers, and children with disabilities. It can also contribute greatly
in improving the quality of teaching and learning outcomes in existing
educational institutions. The Digital India initiative was launched in July
2015 with the aim of digitally connecting India so as to foster a digitally
empowered society and knowledge economy. The project includes initiatives
like universal access to mobile and broadband connectivity, e-governance,
e-healthcare, National Scholarships Portal, and the electronic delivery
of many other services. Moving ahead, a larger goal for the state is to
transform its role in education from that of the sole provider to a facilitator
and quality assurer. There is also a pressing need to address the political
economy of educational reforms, which often acts as a hindering force in the
implementation of corrective policies and measures in the education sector.
Need to move from knowledge economy to knowledge society

All said and done, it should be kept in view that knowledge economy and
knowledge society are two completely distinct and antithetical terms. While
knowledge economy gives rise to the concept of intellectual property rights,
wherein knowledge can be patented and monopolised by the originator, a
knowledge society can only be established when people at the bottom rungs
of society are able to benefit from this knowledge. Social and digital inclusion
is the fundamental criteria for a society to qualify as a knowledge society.
For instance, while it is imperative that patenting be allowed to make sure
innovation does not get discouraged, at the same time it is also necessary
to reduce the number of years for which patents are granted so as to make
knowledge accessible to all.
Just as the 19th century is touted to have been the European century,
and the 20th century the American century, the 21st century could
potentially be the Indian century. But for that, India needs to look at itself
in a whole new light. The nation needs to expand itself as a knowledge
economy built on innovation, skills, and technology, where the government,
corporates, educators and start-ups come together in the pursuit of economic
collaboration and advancement. And education will undoubtedly play an
essential role in building these institutions and ensuring effective linkages
between them.
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Environmental Democracy Index

& India
nvironmental Democracy Index is a powerful tool that works in the wake

of critical moments in environment and sustainability in the current
scenario. In a world where environmental issues are becoming matters of
concern, implementation of good governance and environmental rights are
found to be essential. This will not just help the government but also give the
ordinary citizens opportunity to enjoy the advocacy for more rights concerning
environment. This Index comes as a common objective to understand the
state of environmental democracy for all countries of the world. It also forms
the structure for empowering the laws and promoting the public participation
and involvement in environmental issues.
Environmental Democracy Index evaluates the progress of countries on certain
parameters related to their concerns for environment. It checks the countries
progress in enacting laws for promoting citizens engagement and accountability,
transparency in environmental decision-making. This index does this evaluation
of the countries on the basis of recognised international standards that include
75 legal and 24 practice indicators.
Environmental Democracy is the concept of providing environmental information
available to the public. It expects of the government a simple decree that allows
the citizens to be a meaningful part of the environmental decision-making
process. This access to information, participation and justice for decisions
about the environment in an amalgamated form accounts to the Environmental
Democracy Index (EDI). Developed by The Access Initiative and World
Resources Institute along with the civil society partners from around the world,
this EDI weighs the citizens rights to access environmental information. It
also evaluates their participation about natural resources and the complaints
registered by them or any judicial action taken on those decisions. It also serves
as a review mechanism for environmental agreements.
The Access Initiative (TAI) is the largest network in the world that strives to
ensure that citizens are accessed the right and ability to influence decisions
about their natural resources.
These are the rights which stand interconnected and are basic principles of EDI:
EDI aims to provide the citizens the right to:

x Access information freely on problems and quality of environment
x Participate in decision-making which should be meaningful and realistic
x Pursue enforcement of the environmental laws or seek compensation for harm
While signing the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, the
governments of 178 nations recognized these rights as part of the Principle 10 of
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Environmental Democracy Index & India
the pact. The minimum standards and obligates parties to the convention required
for implementation of these rights are defined by the Aarhus Convention. It
also provides a compliance mechanism which the citizens of the countries that
are parties to convention can get access to. Central to responsive and effective
environmental governance, these rights need to be systematically measured.
Considering the fact that the environmental democracy is meant to serve
sustainable democracy, these rights to access of information, participation
and justice on matters related to environmental concerns need recognition
and establishment by a countrys law. Once understood the true force of these
rights, thence the extent to establishing and recognizing these rights can be
measured. Measuring the extent includes the breadth of coverage across the
range of these decision making processes and their pre-emptive steps to address
the barriers which act as deterrence to fulfilling these rights.
Based on the objective and internationally recognized standards established
by the United Nations Environment Programmes (UNEP) Bali Guidelines,
the Environmental Democracy Index evaluates 70 countries across 75 legal
indicators and includes a supplemental set of 24 limited practice indicators
that keep an eye on the countrys performance in implementation.
Assessments were held in 2014 and need to be updated every two years. Over
more than 140 lawyers around the world evaluated and scored the national
laws and practices. This unique platform with an objective to spread awareness
to engage audiences for strengthening the environmental laws and public
engagement includes various features. These include:
EDI
Country
Comparisons
In-depth country
information
Rankings
Government
Feedback
Public & Civil

Society Engagement
What makes EDI unique?

EDI stands unique in its structure and contributions. It has a broad scope and
valuable gravity for expediting the comparison amongst nations and analysing
their legal frameworks systematically as well.
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Comprehensive
Evaluation of
Environmental
Democracy
International
Benchmarking
Standard
Up-to-date
Scoring
Unique Design
and contributions
of EDI
Assessment of
Laws in Practice
Actionable
Evidence
Where does India stand?

As per the index released by Washington-based World Resources Institute
(WRI) and Access Initiative, out of the 70 countries in the first Environmental
Democracy Index, Lithuania grabbed the first position while India ranked 24th.
Top 10 Countries with strong environmental Demo
Lithuania
2.42
United Kingdom
2.14
Latvia
2.31
Hungary
Russia
2.25
Bulgaria
2.10
United States
2.16
panama
2.02
South Africa
2.16
Colombia
1.99
All the top performing countries ensured their citizens the right to participate
in major national environmental decisions like infrastructure projects, forest
management planning, pollution permitting and more. Lithuania which marks
an outstanding performance on the justice bar has a good Civil Procedure
Code and Law on Environmental Protection which helps bring environmental
cases in the public interest.
The top ten performers list also indicates something interesting. It depicts that
strong environmental democracy laws do not require wealth for implementation
and formulation. In spite of being resource-strapped, nations like Panama
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and Colombia which rank ninth and tenth in the list have successfully enacted
strong environmental laws. Even an upper-middle income country like South
Africa has been the fifth nation to set clear-headed environmental policies.
Lowest-Scoring Countries for Environmental Democracy Laws
Belize
0.82
Sri Lanka
0.67
Combodia
0.76
Congo (REP OF) 0.66
Jordan
0.76
Nambia
0.59
Saint Lucia
0.73
Malaysia
0.58
Nepal
0.68
Haiti
0.51
It has been incurred that many countries are still much behind when it comes to
providing its citizens with the right to access information on basic environmental
facts. Out of all the assessed nations:
x Around 79 per cent have earned fair or good ratings for public
participation.
x Nearly half or around 46 per cent of them do not offer any data online
which states the ambient air quality of their capital cities or major cities.
x 73 per cent of the countries hear environmental cases in their judiciary
or courts and
x Only 14 per cent of the assessed nations keep legal mechanism for helping
women to contact courts so that they can get redressal on violation of
their environmental rights.
For the bottom performers, its an indicative that their governments are not very
open to their people. They need to proactively make environmental information
public. India being the 24th on this chart holds a significant position in this regard
and looks forward to ensuring more free and functional public participation
in matters concerning the environment. Its time we strengthen our position
on the global platform more and step towards development keeping an eye on
the environment as a key factor of our holistic approach to overall health and
well-being of our environment and biodiversity. We need to utilise our freedom
and rights in equilibrium so that the overall impact on the environment can
be justified in the end.
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MARCH
APRIL
Haryana Government Bans Cow

Slaughter: Haryana Government
passed the Haryana Gauvansh
Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan
Bill, 2015 which bans cow slaughter
in the state. This Bill aims to save and
develop indigenous breeds of cows
in the State. Anyone found guilty
of cow slaughter would be liable
for imprisonment for 3 to 10 years,
along with fine ranging from Rs. 30
thousand to Rs. 1 lakh. If a person
kills a cow in an accident or for
self-defence will not be considered
slaughter.
Sale of beef is completely banned
in the state. Any person found in
violation of the ban is liable to 3 to 5
years of rigorous imprisonment with
fine of up to Rs. 50 thousand. Any
person found guilty of exporting
a cow for the purpose of slaughter
either directly or indirectly will be
imprisoned for 3 to 7 years with a
fine ranging from Rs. 30 thousand to
Rs. 70 thousand.
Worlds Largest and Tallest Indian
Flag Unfurled in Haryana: Worlds
largest and tallest Indian national
flag was unfurled on 3rd March,
2015 at Town Park in Faridabad,
Haryana. The flags dimension is
96 feet by 64 feet and weighs 48
kilograms. It was hoisted at a height
of 250 feet (75 meters) which makes
it the Worlds largest and the highest
hoisted Indian flag. Another similar
flag is located at the Central Park
in Connaught Place, New Delhi.
The dimension of the flag is 60 feet
in width and 90 feet in length and is
hoisted on the top of a 207 feet high
mast.
Lowering of Age of Juveniles from

18 to 16 Years for Heinous Crimes
: On 23rd April 2015, Union Cabinet
approved lowering of age of juveniles
from eighteen to sixteen years for
heinous crimes.
This amendment proposes and adds
special provisions to tackle heinous
offences like murder and rape
committed by juveniles in the age
group of 16-18 year.
The cabinet also approved Amendment
to the Juvenile Justice (Care and
Protection of Children) Bill, 2014.
The amendments in the bill add
provisions that in case a heinous crime
committed by a person between 16 and
18 years, the accused will be examined
by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) to
assess if the crime was committed as
a child or as an adult. Then the trial
of the accused will take place either
as a juvenile or as an adult on basis
of JJBs assessment and accordingly
it will be decided whether the culprit
should be sent to an observation home
or tried in a regular court.
Amendments in the Prevention
of Corruption Act, 1988 : The
Union Cabinet headed by the Prime
Minister approved the proposal to
bring corruption under heinous crime
category. The approval was given
on 30th April, 2015. The proposed
amendment will ensure speedy trial
on corruption cases, limited to only
two years.
The Prevention of Corruption
introduced by the UPA government
in the Rajya Sabha. The committee
submitted its report on the bill to the
Rajya sabha in February,2014 but
the Bill was not passed. The latest
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Issues
Cabinet decision further amended
the Bill based on the reports of the
Department related Parliamentary
Standing Committee and the Law
Commission of India on the earlier
Bill.
The approved bill includes penal
provisions being extended from
six months to three years and from
maximum five years to seven years.
Non-monetary gratification will also
be taken under the definition of the
word gratification in the proposed
corruption act,1988.
The proposed amendments also
give out a stricter punishment for
offences of bribery. Under this,boththe bribe giver and bribe taker would
be punished.
MAY
Governors Reshuffied: President
Pranab Mukherjee on 12th May
2015 appointed Governors for four
States, bringing down the number
of Governors who had been holding
the additional charge of more than
two States for the past few months.
These appointments and transfers
were done in accordance with Article
155 of the Constitution of India. V
Shanmuganathan, member of BJP
national executive, was appointed
as the Governor of Meghalaya.
Draupadi Murmu was appointed
as the Governor of Jharkhand. She
is from BJP and was a Member of
Legislative Assembly (MLA) from
Odishas Rairangpur constituency in
2000. Tathagata Roy was appointed
as Governor of Tripura. Roy had
unsuccessfully contested on BJP seat
from Kolkata Dakshin Lok Sabha
constituency in 2014. JP Rakkhowa
was appointed as Governor of
Arunachal Pradesh. He is a 1968-batch
IAS officer. Syed Ahmed, Governor
of Jharkhand was shifted to Manipur

and his tenure will end in September
2016. Also, Lt General (retd.) Nirbhay
Sharma, who was serving as Governor
of Arunachal Pradesh since May,
2011, was transferred and appointed
as Governor of Mizoram for the
remainder of his term, which ends
in 2018.
JUNE
Literacy Rate 71 Percent In Rural
Areas, 86 Percent In Urban Areas:
NSSO survey According to the NSSO
reports literacy rate in rural areas rose
to 71 per cent last year in comparison
to 86 per cent in urban areas. It was
also found out that among the age
group of seven years and above, male
literacy rate was higher than the female
literacy rate. In the children aged seven
year and above, the male literacy rate
was registered at 83 per cent whereas
the female literacy rate was 67 per cent.
According to the data recorded from
the rural areas, only 4.5 per cent of
males and 2.2 per cent of females are
graduates and above, while in the
urban areas 17 per cent of males and
13 per cent of females have completed
this level of education. It was also
found out that 72 per cent of the
students at primary level, 76 per cent at
upper primary level and 64 per cent at
secondary and higher secondary levels
have attended government institutions.
Whereas in urban areas, 31 per cent
at primary level, 38 per cent at upper
primary level as well as secondary
and higher secondary level attended
government institutions.
The nationwide survey was conducted
by the National Sample Survey Office
(NSSO) under the Ministry of Statistics
and Programme Implementation.
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Union Government hiked national

floor-level minimum wage to 160 rupees
per day: Union Labour and Employment
Minister Bandaru Dattatreya announced
that the National Floor Level
Minimum Wage (NFLMW) has been
increased to Rs. 160 per day from
the current Rs. 137. The revised rate
will be effective from 1st July 2015.
The union minister has written to
the chief ministers and lieutenant
governors to take necessary steps to
fix minimum rates of wages in respect
of all scheduled employments in states
and union territories not below the
revised level.
NFLMW is a non-statutory measure
and after every revision states are
persuaded to fix minimum wages
such that in none of the scheduled
employments the minimum wage
is less than NFLMW. The list of
scheduled employment under the
Minimum Wage Act, 1948, differs
from state to state and covers a
wide spectrum of employment
creating sectors including industry,
construction,
agriculture
and
services sector. In order to have a
standardized wage structure and to
reduce the discrepancy in minimum
wages across the country, NFLMW
is fixed on the basis of the CPI-IW
(consumer price index for industrial
workers). The NFLMW was last
revised from Rs 115 to Rs 137 per
day in July 2013.
JULY
India to become most populous
nation by 2022: UN Report : The
UN has released a report on 29th
July 2015 named World Population
Prospectus: The 2015 Revision at the
UN Headquarters in New York which
stated India will soon surpass Chinas
Population in less than a decade. At
present, China is the most populous
country of the world with the
population approximately 1.38 billion
and India is second most populous

country with 1.31 billion people. India
and China cover around 18% and 19%
of the worlds population respectively.
According to this Report, by 2022,
India would become the most
populous nation of the world. It is
also stated that Indias population
will grow for several decades and it
will be around 1.5 billion by 2030 and
1.7 billion by 2050. If we see Indias
population density, it is already more
than double of that of China. Chinas
population density is 141 people per sq
km while Indias population density
is 382 people per sq km.
It is also projected in the report that
the worlds total population at present
is 7.3 billion which will increase up
to 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.7 billion
in 2050 and by the year 2100, there
will be 11.2
Socio Economic and Caste Census
2011: Union Government released the
first ever Socio-Economic and Caste
Census (SECC) after 80 years on the
lines of the 1931 census. It was released
by the Union Finance Minister Arun
Jaitly and union Minister of Rural
development, Panchayati Raj, Water
supply and Sanitation, Chaudhary
Birendra Singh. The SECC findings
reflect the state of poverty and
deprivation as well as important
social trends in rural India such as
ownership of assets, marital status,
gender dynamics, educational and
employment in rural India.
Following are the indications according
to the census:
x There are 24.39 crore total
number of households in the
country, of which 17.91 crore
live in villages. Of these 10.69
crore households are considered
as deprived 50 per cent or 5.37
crore households in rural areas
are landless and depend on
manual labour for livelihood.
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Issues
x
Household Size: Average size of

a rural Indian household is 4.93.
Uttar Pradesh has the highest at
6.26 and Andhra Pradesh has
the lowest of 3.86. 2.37 crore
(13.25%) families live in one
room houses with kaccha walls
and roof.
x Literacy: 36 per cent of 884
million people living in rural
India are illiterate. Over onethird of population living in
rural areas is illiterate. This is
higher than the 32% recorded
in 2011 census. In terms of
percentage Kerala has higher
literacy (88.62), Delhi (86.42),
Goa (84.58), Sikkim (79.88)
and Himachal Pradesh (77.95).
Rajasthan has the lowest literacy
rate (58), Madhya Pradesh
(44.9), Bihar (43.85), Telengana
(40.42) and Chattisgarh (39.59).
x SC and ST Population: Large
proportion of households across
the country belongs to the SC
and ST category, i.e. about 30
per cent of rural households.
x Employment: Rural India has
largely self-employed population
or people are employed mostly
in the unorganised sector.
Around 10 per cent households
are on salaried jobs of which the
majority are in government jobs.
The SECC 2011 was conducted in all
states and union territories of India
and the first findings were revealed
on 3rd July 2015 by Union Finance
Minister Arun Jaitly. SECC 2011 is
also first paperless census in India
conducted on hand-held electronic
devices by the government in 640
districts. The Union Government
has taken a decision to use the SECC
data in all its programmes such as
MGNREGA, National Food Security
Act, Deen Dayal Upadhaya Grameen
Kaushalaya Yojana.
SEBI Cancelled Certificate of

Registration of Sahara Mutual
Fund : The capital market regulator
SEBI (Securities and Exchange
Board of India) has cancelled the
registration of Sahara Mutual Fund
as it had found that the fund house
and their sponsors are no longer a
fit and proper company to do mutual
fund business. The Sahara group is
a leading privately owned company.
SEBI ordered Sahara to transfer
all the operations and activities of
Sahara India Financial Corporation
Limited (Sahara Sponsor) and Sahara
Asset Management Company Private
Limited (Sahara AMC) to an another
fund house and SEBI approved Asset
Management Company in five months.
The company was also instructed to
return the Certificate of Registration
to SEBI within six months.
SEBI also passed an order that if
Sahara fails to transfer asset to another
asset manager within the given time
frame, then it will be mandatory for
Sahara to redeem the units allotted to
its investors and credit the respective
fund to the investors within 30 days,
that too without any additional cost.
SEPTEMBER
Law Commission submits report on
Death Penalty : The Law Commission
of India on 31 August submitted its
272-page draft report on the Death
penalty to the Union Government.
The report favours speedy abolition
of the death penalty from the statute
books, except in cases where the
accused is convicted of involvement in
a terror case or waging war against the
nation. The report was submitted by
Chairman of Law commission Justice
(retd) AP Shah.
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The report further said that, the

administration of death penalty, even
within the restrictive environment of
rarest of rare doctrine was constitutionally
unsustainable. Continued administration
of death penalty raises constitutional
questions related to the miscarriage of
justice, errors, as well as the plight of
the poor in the criminal justice system.
Main highlights of the report
x The commission questioned the
mercy petition system provided
for under the Constitution.
The exercise of mercy powers
under Articles 72 and 161 of
Indian Constitution have failed
in acting as the final safeguard
against miscarriage of justice
in the imposition of the death
sentence.
x The report stated that from 26
January 1950 till date, successive
Presidents have accepted 306
mercy petitions and rejected 131.
x In focusing on death penalty, as
the ultimate measure of justice
to victims, the restorative and
rehabilitative aspects of justice
are lost sight of.
x It is essential that the state
establish effective compensation
schemes to rehabilitate victims
of crime.
x The voices of victims and witnesses
are often silenced by threats
and other coercive techniques
employed by powerful accused
persons. Hence, it is essential that
a witness protection scheme shall
also be established.
FCRA registration of Greenpeace
cancelled
The Union home ministry on
September 3 cancelled the foreign
contribution
registration
of
Greenpeace India as it continued using
its Foreign Contribution Registration
Act (FCRA) accounts despite the
suspension of the same.
Issues
In an affidavit filed in court, the
ministry of home affairs claimed
that Greenpeace had violated FCRA
by mixing its foreign and domestic
contributions. The affidavit was
filed in a plea moved by the NGO
challenging the suspension of its
FCRA registration and freezing of
its foreign and domestic contribution
accounts. Greenpeace was on 27 May
allowed by the court to use two of its
accounts for the purpose of receiving
and utilizing fresh domestic donations
for its day-to-day functioning. The
ministry had on 9 April suspended
the NGOs registration under FCRA
for 180 days.
Greenpeace India was founded in
2001, and is a registered society with
offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore,
Patna, Kolkata and Chennai.
Greenpeace India campaigns to
protect Indias forests, for clean air
and water, to promote solar power,
to prevent the dangerous impacts of
climate change and nuclear power, for
safe food and ecological farming and
to protect freedom of speech.
One Rank One Pension scheme
finally announced
The Union Government on 5
September 2015 announced One Rank
One Pension (OROP) scheme for exservicemen. The scheme was pending
for nearly four decades. This was
announced by the Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar. The scheme OROP
will be in effect from 1 July 2014.
OROP, (one rank, one pension) scheme
promises to pay uniform pension to
the Armed Forces Personnel retiring
in the same rank with the same
length of service irrespective of their
date of retirement and any future
enhancement in the rates of pension
to be automatically passed on to the
past pensioners.
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Issues
Highlights of OROP
x Will be in force from July 1, 2014
and the base year will be 2013
x Estimated
cost
for
the
implementation of OROP is
8,000 to 10,000 Crores
x Pension revision after every 5 years
x Soldiers who have died naturally
during war will be a beneficiary
of the OROP scheme
x Arrears will be paid in instalments
4 half yearly
x All widows including war
widows will be paid arrears in
one instalment
x Revised pension will be the
average of the minimum and
maximum pension in 2013
x Those who were drawing above
the average will be protected,
their pension will not be reduced
x A one-member judicial committee
will be constituted which will
report on equalization period in
6 months, for revision of pension
Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban
Mission
Union Cabinet headed by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi on 16
September 2015 approved the Shyama
Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission
(SPMRM). The Mission was approved
with an outlay of 5142.08 crore rupees
and facilitates transforming rural
areas to economically, socially and
physically sustainable spaces.
The mission aims to create 300 Rurban
growth clusters over the next 3 years,
across the country. Development of
Rurban growth clusters, which have
latent potential for growth, in all States
and Union Territories to trigger overall
development in the region. These
clusters are essentially Smart Villages.
Rural growth clusters would be
developed by provisioning of
economic activities, developing
skills and local entrepreneurship and
providing infrastructure amenities.
The funding for Rurban Clusters

will be through various schemes of
the Government converged into the
cluster. The SPMRM will provide an
additional funding support of up to 30
percent of the project cost per cluster
as Critical Gap Funding (CGF) as
Central Share to enable development
of such Rurban clusters.
OCTOBER
Article 370 cant be changed,
abrogated: J&K High Court :
Jammu and Kashmir High Court,
in their judgement, have stated that
Article 370 cannot be abrogated or
amended as it is a permanent feature
of the Constitution. The Article 370
grants special status to the State.
The Judgment Bench comprised
of justices Hasnain Massodi and
Janak Raj Kotwal. They said that
though Article 370 was a temporary
provision, it has gained permanence
in the Constitution. Under Article
370 (1), the President was given the
right to extend any provision of the
Constitution to the State subject to
consultation and agreement of the
State government; he may choose
to amend, alter, delete or omit part
or make additions to a provision
applied to the State. Some general
category government officials filed
petitions to challenge orders released
by the government to promote junior
officials under the Reservation Act and
Rules. These officials are members of
J&K Engineering (Gazetted) Service
Hydraulic Wing, J&K Law officers
(subordinate) Service, J&K Animal
Husbandry (Gazetted) Service. The
court stated that the provisions
of reservation made in terms of
Section 6 of Reservation Act and
Reservation Rules 9, 10 and 34 were
unconstitutional. The Constituent
Assembly of J&K did not recommend
any amendment of Article 370 before
its dissolution in 1957.
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Government test shows 12.5%

food items contain unapproved
pesticides: On October 2, 2015,
traces of pesticides in significant
amount were found in a number of
vegetables, fruits, milk and other food
items by the government. The samples
were collected from wholesale outlets
and retail stores across the country.
Monitoring of Pesticide Residues was
launched in the year 2005 to ensure
that the food items do not contain
any pesticides in them. About 12.50
percent of the 20618 samples gathered
were found adulterated with pesticides
according to the report from the
Monitoring of Pesticide Residues.
1,180 vegetable samples, 225 fruit
samples, 732 spice samples, 30 rice
samples and 43 pulses samples were
tested. Apart from these, wheat, fish,
meat, egg, tea, milk and even surface
water were examined by the ministry.
The pesticides found during the 201415 collection were non-approved
ones like profenophos, metalaxyl
and hexaconazole in rice, triazofos,
metalaxyl, carbaryl and acephate in
pulses, acephate, bifenthrin, triazofos,
acetamiprid, malathion and metalaxyl
in vegetables. The samples taken from
organic outlets and Agricultural
Produce Marketing Committee
(APMC) markets were also found
contaminated with pesticides.
Mortality rate among Indian girls
below age of five higher than the
boys: UN Report : According to the
report released by United Nations
(UN), India is one of the countries
that is experiencing excess of the
male gender when compared to the
girls. More deaths of girl child under
age five, has been noted in India.
The mortality rate of girls in the
Issues
country is directly connected with
the preference of the parents for a
boy child. Vaccinations, parental
care, parental investments, special
treatment are among few benefits that
boys get over girls. Despite banning of
the sex-selective abortions, there has
been little effect on the sex ratio so far.
Eastern Asia has about 50.5 million,
Southern Asia about 49.5 million and
Western Asia has about 12.1 million
of surplus men. The high percentages
of the surplus men in these regions are
mainly due to China, India and Saudi
Arabia and the UAE respectively. The
percentage of labour among women
has decreased from 35 to 27 in India
and 72 to 64 in China. Child marriage
is yet another issue that is practiced in
South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
India holds one-third of the total child
marriages taking place in the world.
NEW BLACK MONEY LAW
x
Under the new law, a three

month compliance window has
been given for disclosure of all
undeclared foreign assets fill next
month, for which they would
need to pay 30% tax & 30%
penalty & escape further action.
After this window, anyone with

undisclosed foreign assets would
have to pay 30% tax & 90% penalty
& they would also be liable/labile
for jail term of upto 10 years.
The law also provides for

Punishment for abetment. This
provision would be applicable to
everyone who abets or induces
in any manner another person
to make & deliver an account
or a statement or declaration
relating to tax payable under this
Act which is false & which he
A-245
Issues
either knows to be false or does
not belive to be true or to commit
on offence. The abettor would
be punishable with rigorous
imprisonment for a term which
shall not be less than 6 months
but which may extend to 7 years
& with fine.
Last-Minute Rush
Nearly 300
people have
declared assets
under new black
money law
The total
amount
is close to
`3,000 cr
Fillings can
be made on
line in return
they will not
be prosecuted
under the
harsh law
The declarations will be kept secret
STEEP TAX
Those declaring
tax will have to pay
30 % tax and 30%
penalty
NOVEMBER
Ten Straight Monthly Decline in
Exports : Contracting for the 10th
month in a row Indias merchandise

exports dipped 24.33% in September
to USD 21.84 billion, mainly due to
step fall in shipments of petroleum
products, iron ore jens & jewelery, tea
,coffee & engineering goods amid tepid
global demand.
An overvalued rupee, declining imports
from china & slewer global growth
are seen as reasons for Indias export
woes. The commerce department is
pressing for more incentives such as
subsidised finance to give a boost to
Indias exports.
Exports in the first half of the year
were about $133 billion. In 2014-15,
Indias exports totaled $310.5 billion.
Tobacco, oil meals & cereal
preparations have been added to
the new list of products showing
growth, besides drugs & pharma, jute,
products including floor coverings &
handicrafts.
Trade Woes
Contraction in export and import deepens...
0
Jan
Feb
Mar
-5
Apr
May
June
July
Aug
-7.48
19
-11.
-9.95
-10
-13.4
-15.66
-15 -11
.39
-20
-10.3
-13.96
-21.06
-20.19
-20.66
-24.33
-25
-25.42
-30
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Issues
NOT MUCH TO CHEER
JAN
8.32
24 out of 30 exports sector

show contraction
FAB
6.84
Among the big items

only pharma has reported
growth
Engineering goods exports
down 22 %
Petroleum exports decline
60%
..but trade deficit

manageable levels
at
MANY ISSUES
MAR 11.79 Global trade growing at a
APR 10.99 slow pace
10.4
Comeptition tough for

India because of over
JUN 10.82 valued rupee
JUL 12.81 Chinas imports falling
12.47
AUG
Low
crude
prices
10.47 impacting both exports and
SEP
imports
MAY
Daughters cannot inherit Ancestral

Property if father died before 2005:
SC : The Supreme Court of India has
said that right to ancestral property of
a daughter does not apply if the father
died before the year 2005. According
to the amended provisions of the
Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act,
2005, it is important for the father to be
alive on September 9, 2005, to let the
daughter inherit a share in her fathers
property along with the other male
siblings. The Hindu Succession Act
of 1956 originally denied any right
of women on the inheritance of
ancestral property as her brothers
or male relatives had. However, the
amendment entails a restriction that
if the property had been alienated or
partitioned before the date the Bill
was introduced, that it, December
20, 2004, the woman or girl child
will not be given any share to the
property. The daughters will not be
able to make appeal in the court for
such properties. The restriction has
been the judgement of the apex court.
Regarding the applicability of the new
amendment, it has been said that the
new law would apply regardless of the

date of birth of the girl child.
DECEMBER
India Ranks 130th in Human
Development Index: UNDP: As
per United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) report on account
of rise in life expectancy and per capita
income, India has been ranked among
130 among 188 countries in 2014 in
Human Development Report 2015
comparing to 135 in 2014 report. The
2015 Human Development Report
(2015 HDR) was on Rethinking Work
for Human Development. Between
1980 and 2014, Indias HDI value
increased from 326 to 0.609 showing
an increase of 68.1% or an average
annual increase of about 1.54%.
Norway topped followed by Australia
and Switzerland in the list.
Union Cabinet Gives Nod to Amend
Constitution (Scheduled Castes)
Order, 1950 : The Union Cabinet,
chaired by Prime Minister, gave its
approval for introduction of a Bill
for amendments to the Constitution
(Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, in
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order to modify the list of Scheduled
Castes in respect of the five states
Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Kerala,
Odisha and West Bengal. The castes
and communities that were found
eligible for their inclusion in SC
category are Sais from Chhatisgarh
who are also known as Sahis,
Sarathi, Soot-Sarathi and Thanwar.
Two castes from Haryana have also
been included in the SC list. These
are Aheria, also called Aheri, Hari,
Heri, Thori and Turi, and Rai Sikh.
In Kerala, Peruvannan caste has
been included the SC list while
Malayan from certain areas will
also be entitled to the same benefits.
Castes, which have been excluded
from the OBC list consequent upon
their inclusion in SC list include
Bariki and Kummari from Odisha,
while the area restriction of the
inclusion of Chain caste in West
Bengal has been removed. The
proposal also seeks some changes in
the Central List of Other Backward
Classes of the states of Chattisgarh,
Haryana and Kerala. After the Bill
becomes an Act, members of the
communities included in the list
of Scheduled Castes will be able to
derive benefits meant for Scheduled
Castes under the existing schemes.
Nirbhaya Case Juvenile Released
: The woman was found with her
intestines pulled out of her body. She
was dubbed Nirbhaya, one without
fear, as she struggled for survival,
first in Delhi and then in a hospital
in Singapore. She died of her injuries
13 days later. One of six men convicted
of taking part in the savage 2012 gang
rape of an Indian physiotherapy
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student on a moving Delhi bus was

released after completing his full
three-year sentence behind bars. He
had participated in the most heinous
of acts, but because he was just shy
of his 18th birthday on the night of
the rape, he served only three years
in custody, a sentence that many felt
amounted to a severe miscarriage of
justice.
The crime shook the country, stirred
global outrage and brought focus on
Indias attitudes and treatment of
women. The victim died of her injuries
13 days after the brutal attack.
The law states that the under-18
rapist cannot be named. Under
Indias juvenile justice laws, a
minors maximum punishment is
three years at a reform facility. The
Indian government had opposed
his release, but the New Delhi High
Court refused to grant a petition for
prolonged custody.
Indias juvenile justice laws were
drafted with the best of intentions
and aimed at reform for minors. In
the aftermath of the gang rape, a bill
introduced in Parliament sought to
amend the law to make exceptions to
the three-year sentence limit in cases
of heinous crimes. But that bill was
tabled in the upper house. Indian law
enforcement and lawmakers had asked
for continued custody of the minor,
who has been held at an institution
for juvenile reform. But the high court
could not find legal ground on which
to issue a stay. A three-year sentence
seemed vastly disproportionate given
the nature of the rape. The crime was
unimaginably brutal.
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Issues
JANUARY
Year 2014 ranked as Earths hottest
year since 1880: The year 2014
was the worlds hottest on record.
Scientist from two federal agencies
monitoring global climate trends,
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), conducted
independent analysis based on satellite
and ground readings. It was found that
averaged temperature over land and
ocean surfaces for 2014 was 58.24
degrees Fahrenheit, 1.24F (0.69C)
above the 20th century average,
recorded in1880. This included record
heat in the western United States,
Europe, Australia, and much of the
Pacific Ocean.
The human races inability to
control global warming due to rising
concentrations of carbon dioxide,
soot and other greenhouse gases in
the atmosphere, such as methane
and nitrous oxide, and to landuse changes has resulted in rising
temperatures and will continue to
do so if a collaborative effort fails to
curb it even now.
MAY
Global Warming Will Make 1 in 6
Species Extinct: Study According
to a new analysis one in six of the
planets species will be lost forever
to extinction if world leaders fail
to take action on climate change.
The change is a result of manmade
emissions of greenhouse gases, such
as carbon dioxide leading to the

extinction risks to species large and
small. The severe warning on the
global warmings impact on animals
and plants has come just months
before nearly 200 governments
meet for UN climate talks in Paris
in an attempt toforge a global deal
on cutting carbon emissions. The
endemic plants and animals of
Australia, South America and New
Zealand are at greater risk as they
would unable to go to other place
when their only homeland becomes
uninhabitable. The study published
was titled Accelerating extinction risk
from climate change and is authored
by Mark C. Urban who further said
that it was not possible to calculate
how long the extinctions would take,
but the rare species would get extinct
for sure as it would happen due to
the changing climate like habitat
loss and environmental degradation.
The study also revealed that total 16
percent of species in the world would
face the risk of extinction because of
the climatic change.
119th Constitutional Amendment
Bill cleared : The Union Cabinet
chaired
by
Prime
Minister
Narendra Modi approved the 119th
Constitutional Amendment Bill on
Land Boundary Agreement (LBA)
between India and Bangladesh.
The parliament of India passed the
119th constitutional amendment
bill 2013 on 7th May 2015 after
the consent of the President of
India Pranab Mukherjee. The bill
aims to amend the 1st schedule of
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Issues
the constitution for the exchange
of disputed territories occupied
by both the nations in agreement
with the 1974 bilateral LBA (Land
Boundary Agreement). This will
put a stop to the illegal immigration
and various criminal acts going on
across the border. It will solve the
border related disputes involving the
north-eastern states like Meghalaya,
Tripura, Assam and West Bengal
and improve the development works
of the region. It will also provide
relief to stateless citizens living in
the isolated lands of the countries
by granting them citizenship and
basic government services. The
bill was placed in the Rajya Sabha
in 2013 and subsequently referred
to a select committee, headed
by Shashi Tharoor of Congress,
which unanimously recommended
implementation of the deal.
JULY
Greece defaults on IMF debt : Greece
has become first developed country
to default on debt of International
Monetary Fund (IMF); an organisation
of 188 nations that tries to keep the
world economy stable. Greece became
a defaulter after it failed to pay $ 1.7
to the IMF. It is the first time in the
history of IMF that an advanced
economy has defaulted on a loan from
the worlds financial backstop, putting
Athens, which has seen its economy
contract by more than 25 per cent
since 2009, in the same bracket as
Zimbabwe, Sudan and Cuba. Greece
will now be cut off from access to IMF
resources until its payment is made.
After default, Greece shut its banks,
imposed capital controls and limited
ATM withdrawals to prevent the public

from emptying the banks.
The Eurozone finance ministers
refused to extend the bailout to
Greece after it rejected the proposal
given by the troika; International
Monetary Fund (IMF), European
Commission (EC) and European
Central Bank (ECB). According to the
proposal Greece needs to increase its
primary surplus within the next two
years, in order to receive 15.5 billion
Euros funding which in turn required
pension and tax reforms for which the
government is reluctant.
Iran, P5+1 countries reached
agreement on Irans nuclear
programme at Vienna: On 14th
July, 2015, in Vienna, Iran and P5+1
country (United States, The United
Kingdom (UK), Russia, China, France
and Germany made an agreement
on Irans nuclear programme.
The agreement is named as Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA)
or Vienna Agreement. The agreement
came into existence after 17 days f
uninterrupted negotiations involving
foreign ministers of seven countries in
Vienna. After this, agreement needed
to be approved by the Un Security
Council (UNSC) and came into force
after 90 days.
The deal reached after 12 year
standoff is a significant development
in the global politics. This deal would
probably give a psychological boost
to Iran on two fronts. Moreover, also
lead to greater mutual cooperation
and understanding on various
serious and security challenges in the
Middle East. The deal is a significant
achievement for the president of
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Iran, Hassan Rouhani, with the help

of whom this 12 year old standoff
with western powers came to an
end and also the economy of Iran
will get a major boost in trade and
investment start to flow within and
outside Iran by this deal.
World Day Against Trafficking
in Persons observed: To raise
awareness
among
worldwide,
UN launched the Day against
Trafficking person for the first time.
The day is now observed on 30th
July worldwide. It is a day for action
and to give victims back their dignity
and enjoy their basic fundamental
human right to live freely and not in
enslavement.
Across the world, human beings
are kidnapped, tricked, blackmailed
and manipulated into slavery such
as children are forced to do labour,
men for organ removal and women
for prostitution. Most targeted
among all are children.
Every country across the world is
affected by human trafficking, so
July 30th is observed as World day
against trafficking which calls to
fight for people for profit crime.
This day is launched for joining
hands together to eliminate the
transnational threat to the roots by
supporting and protecting victims.
Till now, approx 4.5 million peoples
from 152 countries of origin and
124 countries of destination are the
victim by trafficking in person and
among these, 98% are women and
girls and children who are victims of
forced sexual exploitation and child
labour.
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AUGUST
Women in Saudi Arabia to
participate in elections : Women
in Saudi Arabia were finally
awarded the right to cast their votes
and also contest in the elections.
King Abdullah made the official
announcement for the same in 2011
and the decision eventually came
to effect in 2015. The decision is
quite significant in relation with
conservative Islamic kingdom.
Dozens of women are expected to
contest Saudi Arabias municipal
elections for the first time in the
countrys history.
Saudi Arabia and Vatican City are
the countries which encouraged
participation of only men during the
electoral season. With Saudi Arabia
enabling a shift a policy shift to bring
the women in par with the men,
Vatican City is yet to make a call for
a similar change.
Women in the oil-rich Gulf state,
which applies a strict segregation of
the sexes, are banned from driving
and have to cover themselves in
public from head to toe. They also
have to obtain the consent of a male
guardian to travel, work, apply for a
passport or to marry.
SEPTEMBER
21st International Day for the
Preservation of the Ozone Layer :
The UN General Assembly in
1994 proclaimed 16th September
as the International Day for the
Preservation of the Ozone Layer
to commemorate the date of the
signing of the Montreal Protocol on
Substances that Deplete the Ozone
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Issues
Layer. The theme and the slogan
for the year 2015 are 30 Years of
Healing the Ozone Together and
Ozone: All there is between you
and UV respectively.
The countries are invited to devote
the day to promote activities in
accordance with the objectives of
the Protocol and its amendments. In
India, the day was celebrated with
organising various competitions for
school children like poster design
competition, painting competition
and slogan-writing competition.
In this regard, Union Minister of
Environment, Forest and Climate
Change,
Prakash
Javadekar
released a booklet titled Montreal
Protocol: Indias Success Story on
the occasion. The year also marks
the 30th anniversary of the Vienna
Convention for the Protection of the
Ozone Layer that was signed on 22
March 1985.
Russia rejected French proposal
to limit veto power of UNSCs
permanent members : Russia on
September 2 dismissed as populist
a French proposal to limit the use of
the veto at the UN Security Council.
France has launched an initiative
to persuade the other four Security
Council permanent members Britain, China, Russia and the United
States - to refrain from using their
veto at least in cases involving mass
atrocities that demands action. The
veto power accorded to the P5 dates
back to the UNs foundation, but calls
for re-thinking its use have mounted
as the world body celebrates its 70th
anniversary this year.
It was the first time that Russia had

come out in opposition to restricting
the use of the veto. The French
proposal gained traction after Russia
and China used their veto power
last year to block a resolution asking
the International Criminal Court
to investigate crimes committed in
Syria. Russia argued that declaring
that mass atrocities have occurred
could become a political tool,
and raised questions about who
would be empowered to make that
determination.
Frances idea has been welcomed by
some 70 non-veto wielding memberstates at the United Nations. China
and the United States however have
also expressed reservations. France
will host a meeting on September 30
on the sidelines of the UN General
Assembly session to discuss its
proposal, one year after it launched
the idea. Veto power can be termed as
the de-facto control over the UNSC
by the five permanent members also
known as the Permanent Five, Big
Five, or P5 since the creation of UN
in 1945.
OCTOBER
Extreme Poverty to Fall Below
10% for First Time: World Bank
On October 4, 2015, acknowledged
that for the first time the population
living in extreme poverty is to fall
below 10% in the year 2015. Living
on or below $1.25 a day, has been
described as extreme poverty. The
poverty line has however been fixed
at $1.90 by the World Bank on the
basis of cost of living in different
countries. On the basis of the new
data and benchmark, the World
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Issues
Bank estimates about 702 million

people of the worlds population will
be living a life under extreme poverty
in the year 2015 as compared to
the year 2012 when the population
living under extreme poverty was
902 million. A clear fall from 12.8%
to 9.6% can be observed. It has been
noted that the fall in poverty has been
due to growth in economic rates,
especially in emerging markets of
India. However, a slower economic
growth, high youth unemployment,
conflicts and the effect of climatic
changes would turn out to be hurdles
for satisfying the target set by the
United Nations to end poverty by
the year 2030.
NOVEMBER
Paris rocked by an Unprecedented
Terrorist Attack: Many Paris residents
and tourists were enjoying a soccer
match between France and Germany
when horror struck Paris. Sites
throughout French Capital including
the match stadium were attacked by
terrorists some of whom carried AK47s while some were reported to have
strapped themselves with bombs. 128
persons were reported to have been
killed and over 250 were injured in
the attacks. ISIS claimed to have taken
the responsibility of Paris attacks. The
attacks killed scores and left the nation
mourning and the globe in shock.
Bataclan Theatre was the main target
of the attack. Witnesses said that the
scene in there was a massacre. It was
reported that 87 people were killed after
gunmen barged into the concert hall.
Eagles of Death Metal, the famous

American rock band was playing the
concert with 1500 guests present.
Ambulances raced back and forth in
the area to help victims. Emergency
was declared in France by the French
President, Francois Hollande. His trip
to the G-20 summit of 2015 had to
be cancelled, too. President Obama
offered his condolences and assistance
for the investigation reported the White
House.
The Global Gender Gap Index 2015
: The Global Gender Gap Index was
first introduced by the world economic
forum in 2006 as a framework for
capturing the magnitude of genderbased disparities & tracking their
progress. This year is the 10th edition
of the Index, allowing for time-series
analysis on the changing patterns of
gender equality around the world
& comparisons between & within
countries.
The Global Gender Gap Index
examines the gap between men &
women in 4 fundamental categories
(sub indexes):1. Economic
Participation
Opportunity.
&
2. Educational Attainment.
3. Health & Survival.
4. Political Empowerment.
The Global Gender Gap Index
2015 ranks 145 economies with the
highest possible score is 1 (equality)
& the lowest possible score is 0
(inequality).
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INDIAS POSITION
Gender Gap Index 2015
Rank
Score
108
0.664
2015 RANK
GLOBAL TOP TEN
COUNTRY
RANK
Iceland
1
Norway
2
Finland
3
Sweden
4
Ireland
5
Rwanda
6
Philippines
7
Switzerland
8
Slovenia
9
New Zealand
10
SEX RATIO IN INDIA

2011 940 Females for every 1000
Males
Males
Males
Global Terrorism Index 2015 (GTI)
Produced by the Institute for
economics & peace, the GTI is based
on data from the global terrorism
Database which is collected & collated
bye the National Consortium for the
study of Terrorism & Responses to
terrorism. The GTI is a comprehensive
study which accounts for the direct &
indirect impact of terrorism in 162
countries in terms of its effect on
lives lost, injuries, property damage
& the psychological after-effects of
terrorism.
GTI RANKS 2015

5GTI RANK
COUNTRY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Iraq
Afghanistan
Nigeria
Pakistan
Syria
India
Yamen
Somalia
Libya
Thailand
President of Maldives Abdulla

Yameen
declared
state
of
emergency:

against his arrest by organising a

feared that the supporters in the rally

It has also been reported that present
President Abdulla Yameens boat was

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President Ahmed Adeeb was held
responsible.
DECEMBER
Brazil Entered Longest Recession
since 1930s: The economy of Brazil
is in a shaky condition. The worlds
seventh largest economy Brazils
economy shrank 4.5 per cent yearon-year in the third quarter that is
sharper than expected recession and
its GDP shrank 1.7 per cent from the
previous quarter. There are many key
reasons for this recession the primary
reasons for recession are constant
global economic slowdown, shrinkage
in exports and unprecedented scandal
at the government-run oil company
Petrobras. All these reasons together
have had impact on economy in
the country and thus diminishing
economy. The unemployment rate is
8.9 per cent during July-September
2015 higher from 6.8 per cent in 201415. Household spending has been cut
down by 4.5 per cent during JulySeptember 2015. Brazils currency
Real is down about 31 per cent against
the dollar. The inflation is 10 per cent
which is the highest in 12 years.
Glaciers in Mount Everest Shrink
28% in 40 Years: Himalayas
stretch across six nations; Bhutan,
China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and
Afghanistan. The outer Himalayas
lie between the lease Himalayas and
the Indo Gangetic plain which is a
source of three of the worlds major
river systems: the Indus Basin, the
Ganga-Brahmaputra Basin and the
Yangtze Basin. Chinese Academy
of Sciences (CAS) has released a
report showing Glaciers on Mount
Everest have shrunk by 28% over

the past 40 years due to climate
change. Glaciers on Mount Everest
are a major source of Asian rivers
including Brahmaputra and Ganges.
Data was based on long-term remote
sensing and on-site monitoring where
glacial shrinkage area is compared to
the measurements taken in the 1970s.
The shrinking glaciers have resulted in
swelling glacial lakes and higher river
levels. Earlier a group of international
researchers had warned that the
estimated 5,500 glaciers in the Hindu
Kush-Himalayan (HKH) region site
of many of the worlds tallest peaks
including Mount Everest could reduce
their volume by 70-99% by 2100.
Arctic
Region
Hits
Record
High Temperature over Land :
Annual Arctic Report Card of
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), a federal
agency of US for monitoring condition
of the oceans and the atmosphere has
revealed that the average temperature
over Arctic land for the year ending
in September 2015 was the highest
on record indicating that the Arctic
is warming twice as fast as other
parts of the Earth. The Arctic was
3 degrees Celsius above average for
the year ending in September 2015.
The recorded temperature rise is the
warmest since observations began in
1900. Due to temperature rise the
ice in this region is growing thinner
each year. The sea ice coverage in the
Arctic has reached its peak in February
2015 and marked the lowest extent
since record-taking began in 1979.
The newly formed thin ice comprises
about 70% of the winter ice cover in
the Arctic Ocean compared to about
half that in the 1980s.
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NJAC v/s Collegium System in

Judicial Appointments
here has been a protracted debate over the National Judicial

Appointments Commission (NJAC) in the past few years, with the
traditional Collegium System of appointments to the higher judiciary in
India facing a lot of criticism. The grounds for this dissent include partiality
and lack of transparency in appointments, and frequent cases of corruption
among members of the higher judiciary. Here we explore the composition
and working of both systems, the main points of contention between the
two, as well arguments from both sides.
What is the Collegium System?

The Collegium System is a judicial innovation originated by the
Supreme Court in 1993 in response to excessive outreach of the executive
into the judiciarys functioning. Under this model, appointments to the
constitutional courts in India are made by the Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court in consultation with the 5 senior most judges. It rests upon a
foundation comprising of three of the Courts own judgements, collectively
known as the Three Judges Cases. The collegium system operates on the
principle of judicial independence, effectively barring all other branches
of the state from intervening in judges appointments. The Constitution of
India makes no mention of it anywhere, and it is often one of the root causes
for confrontations between the judiciary and the executive and parliament.
The NJAC: Composition and Rationale

National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) was a proposed
body which would have been responsible for judicial appointments and
transfers within the higher judiciary in India. It was established under the
Constitution (Ninety-Ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 that was passed by both
houses of the parliament in August 2014. The NJAC was envisaged as a
replacement for the collegium system, with the latent objective of sanctioning
executive intervention in judicial appointments. The composition and
functions of the NJAC were left for the parliament to determine by way
of legislation. As a result, the National Judicial Appointments Commission
Act, 2014 was passed, which came into force in April 2015 along with the
amendment act. NJAC was to be composed of the Chief Justice of India,
A-256
NJAC v/s Collegium System in Judicial Appointments
the Union Law Minister, two SC judges, the Justice Secretary, and two
eminent citizens, who would be nominated by the Leader of the Opposition
in either house, the Prime Minister, and the Chief Justice. The President
would appoint judges to the higher judiciary based on the recommendation
of this body.
What is the contention between the two?

The setting up of NJAC has been considered an important judicial reform
by some members of the legal fraternity. Its supporters contend that the
appointments to higher positions in the judiciary should be transparent and
merit-based. They argue that the collegium system is unconstitutional and
anti-democratic, under which there is wide scope for the judges personal
biases and individual discretion to affect the process of appointments. This
may cause corruption and misuse of power within the judiciary, undermining
the very sanctity of the judicial system of India. On the other hand, the
retractors of the act argue that the governments involvement in judicial
appointments poses a grave threat to the independence of the judiciary. The
principle of judicial independence is enshrined in the Constitution of India,
and the appointments of higher judges are a key aspect of it. Article 124
clearly states that the Chief Justice of India is appointed by the president
in consultation with the senior judges of the Supreme Court and the high
courts. It also specifies that the CJI must be consulted in the appointment of
other judges. There are a number of other provisions in the Constitution that
guarantee judicial independence, such as fixed tenure, fixed salary, right to
punish for its contempt, etc. It is thus evident that the constitution seeks to
prevent the executive from possessing complete discretionary power in the
appointment of the judges. Since the government is the biggest litigator in the
Indian legal scenario, the executive wants to use NJACs power to appoint
pliant and submissive judges.
History of executive intervention in judicial appointments

Up until 1973, it was convention for the senior-most judge of the Supreme
Court to be appointed as the Chief Justice. But this convention was broken
under the Indira Gandhi government when Justice AN Ray was appointed
as the CJI after bypassing 3 more senior judges. This was considered by
the judiciary as an outright assault on its independence. The government
maintained that the word consult in the Constitution did not mean that the
president was in any way bound by the advice; he was free to make his own
decisions. In 1977, in the Union of India v/s Sankalchand Seth case, dealing
with the transfer of a judge from one high court to another under Article
222, the SC also held that the president had the right to differ from the advice
NJAC v/s Collegium System in Judicial Appointments
A-257
rendered by the consultants. The SC again upheld its judgement in S P Gupta

v/s Union of India, 1982, effectively curtailing its own powers significantly.
However, in the case of SC Advocates on Record Association v/s
Union of India, AIR 1982, the Court overturned its previous judgement and
adjudged that in the appointments of judges to the SC and HCs, the CJI must
retain primacy and the principle of seniority must be maintained. It also
held that the CJI must consult his two senior most judges and recommend
candidates only if there is a consensus. This is known as the Second Judges
Case.
SCs verdict and the way forward for Indian Judiciary

The Supreme Court had set up a 5-judge bench to examine the
constitutionality of the NJAC, and on 16 October 2015, the bench upheld the
collegium system by a 4:1 majority and declared the NJAC Act and the 99th
Amendment Act to be unconstitutional. Now it is an undeniable fact that
the collegium system has come under fire recently on charges of nepotism,
opacity, and unaccountability. Many senior judges, as well as the legal
fraternity, agree that there are inconsistencies and problems in the judiciary.
But if the history of executive interference in Indian judiciary is anything to
go by, the NJAC doesnt paint a very encouraging picture. Moreover, there
have been many cases recently (e.g. 2G scam, Coalgate), where rigorous
judicial scrutiny and the executives inability to direct the constitutional
authorities to act have caused speculation that the NJAC could actually be an
attempt to crush the independence of the judiciary. It might be more sensible,
therefore, to address the inadequacies of the collegium system to make it
more transparent and robust, rather than shift to the proposed model, which
does not lay down an objective procedure for appointments and leaves out
scope for its unconstitutional use by the executive.
After the Supreme Courts instruction to bring in a new Memorandum of
Procedure (MoP) for appointments to the higher judiciary to the government,
the centre on 24th December has initiated the consultation process. The Union
law ministry has sent letters to all the state governments seeking suggestion
on issues such as eligibility criteria, transparency in appointment process,
secretariat and complaints to improve the collegium system for the selection
of judges to high courts and the Supreme Court.
The debate over the NJAC may have settled somewhat after the Supreme
Courts seminal judgement, but the pursuit of transparency in higher judicial
appointments shouldnt be abandoned. It is only through a transparent,
honest, and upright judiciary that a democracy like India can continue to
function and flourish in the current global political order.
A-258
Who is Opposing The Land

Acquisition Bill?
he Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition,

Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (LARR) governs the land
acquisition in India. The Land Acquisition Act of 1894 governed the same
till 2013. An ordinance was proclaimed by the President of India on 31
December, 2014 which carried an official mandate with an objective to work
for farmer welfare and promptly meet the strategic and developmental needs
of the nation. LARR lends the union and state governments the power to
acquire lands for its own use which might include holding or controlling the
land for public purposes. To endorse the Ordinance further, an amendment
bill was passed in the Indian Parliament. Though the bill was passed by the
Lok Sabha, it is still kept on hold by the Rajya Sabha. President of India
promulgated the ordinance for the third time on 30 May 2015.
There are other purposes of Land Acquisition bill as well which include
strategic purposes - naval, military, air force or any work vital to national
security or defence, Infrastructure projects, Projects for project affected
families, projects for housing of such income groups, specified by the
appropriate Government etc.
Immediate consequences of the land acquisition for development projects
are direct and basic in nature- landlessness, joblessness, marginalisation, loss
of access to common property resources, increased morbidity and mortality,
food insecurity, homelessness and social disarticulation. It can also lead to
displacement which further leads to loss of education.
Subtle and indirect effects of this coercive and centralized legal procedure
mostly impair the land reforms and Panchayati Raj institutions. Land
acquisition in West Bengal has gained a lot of national and international
attention owing to the consequences and controversies surrounding it. Land
expropriation by government in Singur of Hoogly district and Nandigram of
East Medinipur district has met severe resistances by peasants. This further
led to the fall of communist party led government in West Bengal. The anticommunist Trinamul Congress led government which came to power in
2011, enacted a law on 14th June 2011 in West Bengal Assembly named
Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act, 2011; through which
the government intended
Landlessness
Displacement and
to return the 400 acres of
Joblessness
loss of education
farmland to the unwilling
farmers
who
roused
Homelessness and
Marginalisation
agitation
earlier.
social disarticulation
Development-induced
displacement has been
Loss of access to common
Food insecurity
property resources
widely used in India since
Increased morbidity
the era of Independence
and mortality
which
has
majorly
Who is Opposing The Land Acquisition Bill?
A-259
included displacing land with large-scale projects like dams, canals, thermal
plants, sanctuaries, industrial facilities and mining.
Citizens have been against the process of land acquisition as the amount
reimbursed remains fairly low to the current price index as prevalent in the
economy. Due to low level of human capital of displaced people, adequate
employment is impossible to be found. 75% of the displaced people since
1951 are till date waiting for rehabilitation as estimated by the draft of
the governments National Policy for Rehabilitation. Landless labourers,
fishermen and artisans are not covered in these rehabilitation policies.
About a million Adivasis have been displaced through dam projects and the
same story goes repeated for Dalits as well. The figures say that among the
displaced people, tribal origins form 40% of the lot and out of every ten
Indian tribal, one is a displaced person.
Recently, various industrialists have faced huge social and political
protests against the land acquisition ranging from Bengal, Karnataka and
Uttar Pradesh. The Singur Tata Nano controversy remains one of the most
cited examples where protests rose against the acquisition of 997 acres of
land by Tata motors in Bengal for setting up a factory for the cheapest car in
India. Government gained the power to acquire the private land through the
Land Acquisition Act of 1894 and this legislation in spite of being amended
several times, remained unsuccessful in serving its purpose. As per the 1894
Act, displaced people were accorded just monetary compensation equivalent
to market value of the land acquired and the amount was quite minimal due
to misleading circle rates.
Land Acquisition Amendment Bill driven by the current NDA
government in Lok Sabha on 10 March 2015 has faced severe resistance
from key opposition parties who claim the proposed amendments to be
anti-farmer and anti-poor. The proposed amendment does not state any
requirement to ask for permission from farmers before proceeding with the
land acquisition stated under the five broad categories of projects.
Points of Dispute
These five reasons create disputation:
Original Act
New Law/ Amendment
The original Act states the provision

to secure the consent of 80% affected
people before land acquisition.
This provision will be abolished

and the government will have
the power to acquire private land
without the owners permission.
Land Acquisition Act (LAA), 2013

focused on completing social impact
assessment within six months and
SIA meant opinion of Gram Sabha
or palli sabha before the acquisition.
After the amendment, the

SIA will lose its meaning and
the government will have the
autonomy of acquiring more and
more land than actually required.
A-260
Who is Opposing The Land Acquisition Bill?
LAA, 2013 stipulated that the land

if not used within five years, will be
returned to the farmers.
The amendment does not claim

of any such time frame.
As per LAA, 2013 the land can be

acquired for the industrial corridors.
In 2015 amendment it is stipulated

that the land can be acquired one
kilometre on both sides of the
corridor and the land along the
corridor would be allotted to the
builders and real estate firms.
Compensation at the rate of

four times to be given to the
land losers who havent received
their compensation over the land
acquisition under the 1984 Act.
The new Amendment will

remove this provision and the old
clause will be diluted.
Opposition parties and farmer organization have opposed the government

for the propositions made in Land Acquisition bill amendments. Opponents
claim this bill to be pro-corporate and anti-farmer and the main focus
of the amendments seems to benefit the large corporate houses. The bill
has been opposed in and out of the Parliament by the opposition Indian
National Congress. Sonia Gandhi has also apparently stated that this bill will
break the backbone of India.
Besides the opposition parties, even those organizations that earlier
supported Bharatiya Janata Party namely the Mazdoor Sangh, Bhartiya
Kisan Sangh and Akhil Bhartiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram have
comprehensively opposed the propositions made in the new amendment by
the Narendra Modi lead NDA government. The Right to Fair Compensation
and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement
Act, 2013 passed by UPA government was supported by the BJP two years
back but the land ordinance proposed by the Modi government appears to
twist the fundamentals of this right.
An unconventional solution to this land acquisition is following a certain
lease period for leasing land from landowners. The governments land
acquisition policies promote swaying of land and further making the projects
expensive as huge investments need to be put in for matching the land
acquisition costs. Political cronyism is another issue which emerges where
land is cheaply acquired through favours from local government bodies and
sold to industries at unreasonable profit prices.
As much as 49% of Indian population is involved in agriculture and in
return agriculture leads to only 13.7% of Indias total GDP. One important
thing that we need to understand is that If we want to move on the path of
development, then we need foreign investors, and that cannot be possible
without the bill getting passed by the government.
A-261
What is Black Money?

Black Money Compliance Window Ended 30th Sept with a Disclosure
of ` 4,147 core
oney being the medium of transaction in society is present in

apparent and hidden form. The apparent form is legal and open for
taxation while the second form is not exposed to taxation and is illegal. The
unaccounted money that comes through underhand earning of dishonest
people is termed as black money or evaded money.
The way in which our economy has been operating and the avoidance of
tax had led to concentration of wealth and this has further led to increase of
wealth in the hands of few people. This has encouraged more black money,
black marketing and smuggling etc.
Black money can be in various forms like shares, bonds, securities,
instruments of other forms, real estate houses, shops, plots and other assets
like cars, gold, silver, diamonds or jewellery as well.
Now looking at our country, it has been estimated that over 200 Crores of
black money is created every year. Corruption and prevailing illegal activities
have contributed a large share to this money while avoidance of income and
sales tax is one of the biggest means which leads to increase in black money.
About 627 Indians with their accounts in HSBC bank, Geneva; were
reported to the Supreme Court by the centre. A special investigation team
(SIT) was formed in May comprising of the former SC judge MB Shah and
highest level officials from financial and economic departments and law
enforcement agencies. SIT was assigned the task of probing tax on suspected
black money till March next year. On the same, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi plainly declared the prosecution of tax dodgers and enforced on
bringing the money stashed in tax havens back to the country.
Under the supervision of SIT, around ` 35,000Crores have already been
recovered from some of the account holders. The assessment proceedings
will complete the tenure by March 31st and till then, a net worth ` 6500
Crores is expected to be fetched by the department.
A-262
France has shared information of half of the 628 Swiss bank accounts
with India, which were either legitimate accounts or were held by nonresident Indians. From rest around `10,000 Crores is estimated to be
collected after the completion of assessment proceedings.
Compliance window
The compliance window is a part of the new anti-money law passed
by Parliament in May and notified on May 26 after the assent given
by the President.
Compliance window
The compliance window is a part of the new anti-money law passed by
Parliament in May and notified on May 26 after the assent given
by the President.
What is tax compliance?

The extent to which a taxpayer conforms or fails to conform to the tax
rules of his country. It can be done through filing a return, paying the due tax
in a timely manner or by declaring income. Compliance window to make
voluntarily disclosures ended on September 30th this year and there are three
categories of people who have been barred from availing this compliance
window:
Foreign account holders like those mentioned in HSBC list, against
which information has been collected by the government.
Those availing benefits under Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements
(DTAAs) and Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA) with foreign
countries and jurisdictions.
And those against whom IT-department has initiated proceedings before
June 30th or has carried out searches.
Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) is a Tax Treaty. It is
basically a bilateral agreement between two nations aiming to eliminate or
pass up double taxation of the same income in the two countries.
This 90 day compliance window had disclosures that mentioned about

30% tax and an equivalent of penalty, escaping the criminal prosecution and
jail term. The government has received unreported overseas assets of Rs.
4,147 Crores from total 638 disclosures at the end of compliance window
on September 30, against the earlier reported disclosure of Rs. 3,770 Crores
on October 1.
All the deposits made since opening of bank account will be assessed for
totalling the value of a persons asset, which would also include immovable
property, shares and jewellery. The shares and jewellery would be valued at
fair market price for tax levying and penalty during the compliance window
tenure.
A-263
Whats the purpose of this compliance?

Its a notification provided under The Black Money (Undisclosed
Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015; which
gives the person with black money a chance to come clean by declaring the
undisclosed foreign assets and income.
Under this law, those having hidden foreign wealth would be punished
with up to ten years of rigorous imprisonment and would have to pay tax
and penalty of 120% of the value of the wealth including its confiscation
as well.
The Black Money and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015, which has come into
effect from July 1, lends 90-days compliance window. This gives the person
having undisclosed foreign assets and income, a chance to come clean by declaring
all such assets and paying a total of 60% tax and penalty.
In order to allay the fears of taxpayers, the Central Board of Direct

Taxes has come out with these sets of guidelines:
In case of disclosure of foreign bank accounts
(a) For foreign bank account holders, any amount withdrawn from such
bank accounts and re-deposited would not be counted. The value for
purposes of declaration will only account to the sum of all the deposits
made in respective bank accounts.
(b) Deposits or non-chargeable income tax credits will not be considered for
valuation.
(c) The person can withdraw from his gross deposit to acquire new assets or
create deposits in another bank account which is being disclosed.
(d) If for a certain period, statements of such foreign bank accounts are
not available; then the taxpayer has to declare that period on his best
A-264
(e)
estimate basis and obtain a certificate from the bank to show that the
details are actually not obtainable. If however later, the estimate made
is found to be done despite the availability of bank statements, then the
declaration would be treated as void.
Immunities will not be granted and if the value declared on best-estimate
basis is found to be more than the final determination, the excess will not
be refundable.
Key take-aways:
Those who would fail to declare their overseas assets would be liable to
pay tax and penalty of 120 per cent and would also be facing jail term
of around ten years. Those who have already been notified or received
notices up to June 30, would not be considered to take advantage of the
compliance window.
Indians, against whom information has been received from foreign
nations or overseas accounts, will not be eligible for filing declaration
under this window.
The tax and penalties can be paid till December 31. The commissioner
of income tax (International Tax)-2, New Delhi, has been designated the
task of receiving all such declarations.
FEMA, Foreign Exchange Management Act is an act of the
Parliament of India, passed in 1999. It aims at facilitating external trade
and payments. It also amends the law concerning foreign exchange and
helps in promoting foreign exchange market in India.
The declarations of foreign assets for which taxes and penalties need to
be paid under the Black Money Act, wont be facing any proceedings
under the FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act), 1999. Those
waiting to dispose of assets declared and would want to bring back the
proceeds through banking channel, would be thereby exempted from
prosecution under FEMA.
A-266
Ideas
JANUARY
Kerala to get first International
Institute of Music: It was
announced in January 2015 by
the Kerala Culture Minister K C
Joseph that an international institute
of music, the very first of its kind,
would be set up on Indian land in
Kerala. The institute is expected
to start within two years. The land
for the institute would be provided
by the state government while the
responsibility of heading the institute
has been assigned to the Trust
run under the guidance of Ustad
Amjad Ali Khan, the well known
Sarod Maestro. The Sarod Maestro
also teaches students at Stanford
University three months every year.
The state government has suggested
Thiruvananthapuram or Kochi or
Kozhikode as the place to build
the institute but the final decision
will be taken by Ustad Amjad Ali
Khan. The institute would provide
opportunity for students from the
state, country and even from abroad.
Various courses related to different
kinds of music, musical systems and
musical instruments will be offered
to students at the institute. Though
the institute is said to be under the
Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi,
it would be managed by a separate
assembly.
RBI relaxed KYC rules for NonBanking Financial Companies:
Reserve Bank of India has amended
the rules for non-banking financial
companies (NBFCs) with regard to
Know Your Customer activity. The
amendment of rules was announced
on January 2, 2015. Practical
difficulties and constraints faced in

getting the KYC documents updated
at periodic intervals compelled the
RBI to ease the rules. According
to the previous norms, it was
mandatory for NBFCs to update
the KYC documents every 5 years
for low risk section customers and
once in two years for those falling
in the medium and high risk section.
The new norms have eased the
process of updating KYC for low
risk section customers to 10 years
and 8 years for medium and high
risk section customers. Also, RBI
communicated that NBFCs need
not ask the low risk customers to
submit fresh documentsidentity
and address proofs (if the address
remains the same)for opening a
new account with them. RBI has
asked NBFCs to keep a watch on
the transactions of the customers to
analyse business, risk and source of
funds. RBI has also communicated
to NBFCs that fresh photographs
of minor customers turning majors
would be required.
Government launched women
safety app Himmat: On January
1, 2015 was launched Indias first
ever unified mobile application for
the safety of women. The launching
of the app was done by the Union
Home Minister, Rajnath Singh in
the presence of Delhis Lieutenant
Governor, Najeeb Jung and Delhi
Police Commissioner B.S. Bassi. The
application is linked to the Police
Control Room and an immediate
notification will be sent to the PCR
by either shaking the phone or
pressing the power key twice. The
Ideas
information of the victim would also
be transmitted to the Police Patrol
cars in the area and the local SHO.
The location can be traced easily
as the movement of the person will
be updated in every ten seconds. It
is a free application for all and can
be downloaded from the website of
Delhi Police or Google Play Store.
The app also has a feature that
enables the person to send alerts via
sms to minimum five acquaintances.
An alert would even be posted on
social networking sites like Facebook
and Twitter. The applications sole
aim is to strengthen the safety of
women in the country.
Karnataka to amend Karnataka
Compulsory Primary Education
Act, 2012: The Government of
Karnataka decided to amend the
Karnataka Compulsory Primary
Education Act (KCPEA), 2012
to impart primary education in
Kannada language. This was done
in order to strengthen Karnatakas
case before the Supreme Court (SC).
In 1980s the committee headed by
VK Gokak recommended to use
Kannada as the first language in
schools which followed peoples
movement called as Gokak Agitation.
Formal action on this report was
taken in April 1994 by M Veerappa
Moily, Chief Minister then. The
Notification provided two options
to the students: Mother tongue
of the child, which covered eight
languages; and Kannada as medium
of instruction. The Karnataka
Unaided Schools Managements
Association (KUSMA) along with
several others, filed petitions calling
it non-Constitution. On cancellation
of this notification by Karnataka
High Court on 2 July 2008, the State
government challenged the verdict
in the SC where five-judge bench
A-267
of the apex court upheld KUSMAs

petition on 6 May 2014. The
government under the section 19(2)
of the Act tried to incorporate the
words Mother Tongue Kannada
which
guarantees
compulsory
primary education for children from
class I to V.
GTU Launched E-Raksha Research
Centre to Fight Cybercrime: To
control the rise in cybercrimes,
Gujrat Technological University
(GTU) launched e-Raksha Research
Centre on 28 January 2015 in
Ahmedabad. Former Chhattisgarh
Governor Shekhar Dutt and former
Deputy National Security Advisor
S D Pradhan were present at the
launch. This centre will not only
support research but also increase
the competency to provide latest
techniques of fighting cybercrimes to
build capacity for issues pertaining
to cyber security. The centre has
been set up by GTU in association
with Cyber Peace Foundation (CPF)
with the objective to ensure peaceful
and amicable cyber space for all.
This centre will undertake numerous
activities for faculties, students and
government officials in areas of
research on recent techniques of
cybercrime and enhance capability
to handle such issues. It will also
provide support to Make in India
campaign by manufacturing routers,
switches, firewalls, UTMs (Unified
Threat Management) and similar
network appliances. Furthermore,
the centre will play a fundamental
role to shield critical infrastructure
and mission critical services by
researching on malwares such as
botnet, and setting up malware
analysis test bed.
Gujarat government announced
new industrial policy for 2015: On
January 1, 2015, Gujarat announced
A-268
its new industrial policy for the year

2015. The chief minister of Gujarat,
Anandiben Patel, issued the policy.
The policy aims at creating a
business environment that is friendly
and encourages people to start their
own business rather than to search
job opportunities. Over 60% of the
population will be provided with
opportunities. The target population
would age group between 15
to 59 years. The key areas like
infrastructure development and new
innovations will be encouraged.
Besides, the need for incentives for
youth, women, scheduled castes
and tribes and physically challenged
individuals will be attended on
priority. Reducing the pollution by
promoting use of clean and green
energy is yet another important focus
of the policy. The existing resources
will be given a boost to scale down
the imports of auto components,
drugs, chemicals etc. Special
incentives would also be provided
for establishing new businesses in
sectors like garments, apparel and
food processing. The motive of the
policy is to make the state a global
manufacturing centre, therefore,
contributing to the encouragement
of PMs Make in India dream.
Ministry of Railways inaugurated
Indias first CNG Powered Train:
The Indian Railways has started
its green journey with Indias
first compressed natural gas
(CNG)-powered train which was
innaugrated by Rail Minister Suresh
Prabhu on January 13, 2015 on
Rewari Rohtak link of Northern
Zone.
A milestone in helping to reduce
greenhouse gas emission and also
diesel consumption by adoption of
green fuel in Indian Railways. Main
charecteristics were
Ideas
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emission by 90 percent, CO2 by
25 percent, nitrogen oxide by
35 percent and non-methane
hydrocarbon emissions by 50
percent.
New technology would come in
handy once India has substantial
reserves of natural gas.
Indias first CNG powered train
inaugurated: The Indian Railways
has started its green journey with
Indias first compressed natural gas
(CNG)-powered train which was
innaugrated by Rail Minister Suresh
Prabhu on January 13, 2015 on
Rewari Rohtak link of Northern
Zone.
A milestone in helping to reduce
greenhouse gas emission and also
diesel consumption by adoption of
green fuel in Indian Railways. Main
charecteristics were
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operating cost by say 50 percent.
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emission by 90 percent, CO2 by
25 percent, nitrogen oxide by
35 percent and non-methane
hydrocarbon emissions by 50
percent.
A-269
Ideas
New technology would come in
handy once India has substantial
reserves of natural gas.
FEBUARY
ICICI bank launched pockets indias first digital bank: In one of its
kind endeavour, ICICI Bank, Indias
largest private sector bank, recently
launched countrys first digital
wallet cum mobile app, Pockets.
Pockets gives any person, be it an
account holder or not, the facility
to download, instantly activate and
use the e-wallet. Currently available
only on mobile phones with android
system, Pockets is a free of cost
app with no usage and registration
charges. This virtual, VISA powered
wallet helps in instant transfer
of money to any email id, bank
account, mobile number, facebook
user or online retailer the user
selects. With its unique one on one
feature, the app ensures safety by
having only one registered user
for each mobile number. The user
also has the advantage of choosing
a zero-balance savings account
to the wallet, which will further
provide the benefit of earning
interest on their idle money. With
a new youth oriented outlook, the
Pockets digital bank offers two
unique products a universal wallet
and a savings account. Initially, the
transaction limit is Rs 10,000 for
non ICICI Bank users. Pockets
also provides its users the option of
having a specially designed physical
card that can be used for shopping or
other payments.
Indias first air quality checking
mobile app launched: To spread
awareness about the hazards of
increasing air toxicity in India,
Indias Earth Sciences Ministry
launched the countrys first air

quality checking mobile application
to provide the forecast for air
quality and corresponding health
advisories in real time. The mobile
app, SAFAR-Air, developed by
scientists at Pune-based Indian
Institute of Tropical Meteorology,
was launched on 17 February 2015
at the Indian Institute of Tropical
Meteorology in Pune, Maharashtra.
The service is presently for Delhi and
Pune, and by 2017 the forecasting
services will be extended to cover
Chennai and Kolkata. SAFAR is an
acronym for System of Air Quality
Weather Forecasting and Research
which was first launched in Delhi
in 2010 during the Commonwealth
Games. SAFAR-AIR will provide
current and one to three day forecast
based on a colour-coded system
indicating air quality, in which
green is good, yellow is moderately
polluted, orange is poor, red is very
poor and maroon is critical. The app
is initially available on smartphones
operating on Googles Android
system and later on will also be
available on devices using Apples
iOS.
Election Commission to Launch
Electoral Roll Authentication
Mission: The Chief Election
Commissioner (CEC) H.S. Brahma
announced to launch Electoral
Roll Authentication Mission. This
project will use the database of
Unique Identification Authority
of India to link Aadhar number of
citizens with their electoral database
to further authenticate and purify
electoral rolls.
The move will help to erase a large
number of bogus voters from the
list. The move will be started on a
mission mode. This move comes two
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days after the Centre clarified before

the Supreme Court that Aadhar will
be mandatory for the citizens for
availing any social benefit.
The Election Commission has
decided to mark 2015 as the year
of Easy Registration and Easy
Correction. Within this mission
ECI has already launched a National
Voter Service Portal (NVSP) on 25th
January, 2015 on the occasion of
National Voters Day; where people
can feed their Aadhar number for
linking it with the electoral data
base.
RBI to Bring Back One Rupee
Notes: The Reserve Bank of
India announced to bring back
the currency notes of one rupee
denomination into circulation.
Printing of one rupee notes was
discontinued in 1994, mainly due to
higher cost and for freeing capacity
to print currency notes of higher
denomination.
Printing of two and five rupee notes
was discontinued in 1995, since then
only coins have been issued for these
denominations. However, older
currency notes are still in circulation
and remain a legal tender. It has been
decided to reintroduce these notes
in order to meet the gap between
demand and supply of coins in this
denomination.
At present, one rupee coins are
minted. The new currency note will
be predominantly pink green on
obverse and reverse in combination
with other colours.
Unlike other currency notes which
bear the signature of the Governor
of the RBI, one rupee note will have
signature of the Finance Secretary.
These notes will contain the bilingual
signature of Finance Secretary with
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a replica of New Rupee One Coin
with symbol of 2015, issued with
Satyamev Jayate and capital letter
L inserted in the numbering panel.
On the reverse side these notes will
contain the words Bharat Sarkar
above the words Government of
India with the year 2015 on the
representation of One Rupee coin
with a symbol having floral design
surrounded by a picture of Sagar
Samrat- oil exploration platform
with the authentic rendering of
value in fifteen languages in the
languages panel and the year figure
shown in the centre bottom in the
international figure
Union
Government
decides
to infuse 6990 crore rupees in
nine Public Sector Banks: The
government has decided to infuse
Rs. 6,990 crore in nine public sector
banks under new criteria which
reward efficient banks with extra
capital to strengthen their position.
In the Budget for 2014-15, amount
has been allocated.
Method used for calculating at the
amount was based on efficiency
parameters.
First parameter is weighted average
of return on assets (ROA) for all
public sector banks for last three
years put together was considered
and all the banks above the average
were considered.
The second parameter used was
return on equity (ROE) for these
banks for the last financial year.
In beneficiaries, largest public
sector lender SBI leads the pack
with Rs 2,970 crore, followed by
Punjab National Bank with Rs
870 crore other banks are Canara
Bank, Syndicate Bank, Allahabad
Bank, Indian Bank, Dena Bank and
Andhra Bank.
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MARCH
Mc Mary Kom Quits Boxing
After Rio Olympics Games 2016:
Olympic medallist M C Mary Kom
has decided to quit boxing after
the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. She
explained that her body is not being
able to cope up with the rigours
of the sport any further.Mary is
concentrating on setting up her
boxing academy in Imphal. She is
the first Indian woman boxer to win
a Gold Medal in the 2014 Asian
Games held at Incheon, South
Korea. She had also won a bronze
medal in 2012 London Olympics in
the flyweight (51 kg) category and
was the only Indian woman boxer
to qualify for this category. Mary
has been nicknamed as Magnificent
Mary. She is the only woman boxer
to have won a medal in all the six
world championships.She has been
conferred with Padma Bhushan
(2013), Padma Shree (2010) and
Arjuna Award (2003) for her
important contribution to boxing.
APRIL
Rajya Sabha passes The Rights of
Transgender Persons Bill, 2014: On
25th April 2015, a private members
Bill protecting and providing rights for
transgenders was passed by the Rajya
Sabha. The Bill guarantees reservation
in education and jobs, financial aid and
social inclusion. This is the first time
in 45 years that a private members
Bill has been passed by the House.
The bill seeks to provide framework
for formulations and implementations
of laws to ensure overall development
of the transgender people. It demands
for 2 percent reservation in primary,
secondary and higher education and
in government jobs.
It also protects a transgender childs

rights saying they cannot be separated
from their parents on grounds of being
transgender. Penalty for hate speech
and social discriminations against
transgender include imprisonment
upto one year and fine.
29 nations and leading democracies in
the world including US, UK, Canada,
France, Australia, Italy and Singapore
have legislations protecting rights of
transgender persons.
Indian
Railways
launches
E-Samiksha to monitor rail
projects online: Indian Railways
based on Rail Budget proposals, on
21st April launched E-Samiksha, an
online monitoring mechanism. It is
a very good beginning and now each
and every project implementation
can be monitored on real-time basis,
Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu
said in New Delhi after launching
the system.
The software is designed by NIC
and is currently being used by
Cabinet Secretariat, PMO and
other Ministries for monitoring
progress implementation of various
programmes and follow-up of
meetings. The main objective of
this software is to to monitor the
progress of every project whether
small or big.
Computerization and Information
System (C&IS) of Railway Board
in coordination with NIC and
Department of Electronics and
Information Technology (DeitY)
have developed the software
for ESamiksha. According to
a Railway official involved with
the E-Samiksha, the software
has been developed to make it a
highly interactive web-based, userfriendly and customised system.
Currently, it is being used by Cabinet
Secretariat, Prime Ministers Office
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and other Ministries for monitoring

progress implementation of various
programmes and follow-up of
meetings.
MAY
RBI Allowed Tap And Pay Without
Pin For Transactions Up to 2000
Rupees: Relaxing norms, the Reserve
Bank of India on 14th May 2015
allowed banks to enable transactions
in contactless cards for values
up to Rs 2,000 without requiring
a separate PIN authentication.
Beyond this transaction limit, the
card has to be processed as a contact
payment and authentication with
PIN will be mandatory. This will
hasten acceptance of `tap and pay
electronic payments at retail outlets,
in transport services and for toll
payments. Tap and pay refers to
the use of near field communication
technology in payment cards where
instead of the traditional swiping of
the card and punching in payment
details, all the customer needs to
do is wave a card in front of an
acceptance device for the bill to be
settled. One of the preconditions set
out by RBI is that the contactless card
should also incorporate the latest
EMV Chip technology for enabling
payment beyond 2000 rupees. RBIs
announcement came on the day
State Bank of India announced the
largest roll-out of contactless card
payments in the country.
SEBI Notifies The Securities And
Exchange Board of India (Mutual
Funds) Regulations, 2015: On
20 March 2015 the Security and
Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
notified the SEBI (Mutual Funds)
Regulations, 2015. They have now
simplified norms for domestic funds
to manage offshore pooled assets
by dropping its 20-25 rule, that

required a minimum of 20 investors
and a cap of 25% on investment by
an individual, for funds from low-risk
foreign investors. The relaxation of
the rule is intended to make it easier
for domestic mutual funds to manage
offshore pooled assets. As per the
existing norms, a fund manager who
is managing a domestic scheme is
allowed to manage an offshore fund,
subject to three specific conditions.
The first requires the investment
objective and asset allocation of the
domestic scheme and of the offshore
fund to be the same. The second
condition requires at least 70 % of
the portfolio to be replicated across
both the domestic scheme and the
offshore fund. The third and most
stringent condition required offshore
fund to be broad-based with at least
20 investors with no single investor
holding more than 25% of the fund
corpus.
Government Launched Official
Website of NITI Aayog: The Union
Government replaced the Planning
Commission
with
National
Institution for Transforming India
(NITI) Aayog on January 1 2015
and on 18 May 2015 launched
official website of NITI Aayog. The
website was launched by Dr Arvind
Panagariya, Vice Chairman, NITI
Aayog. The function was attended
by Chief Executive of NITI Aayog
Sindhushree Khullar and members
Bibek Debroy and V.K. Saraswat.
The website has a unique feature of
blogs section that contains articles,
field reports, work in progress and
opinions by the officials; along with
details of the constitution, functions
and current activities of the NITI
Aayog. Nominated to serve as a
policy think-tank for the central as
well as state governments, NITI
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Aayog has the Prime Minister as
its chairperson. The website can
be accessed on http://www.niti.
gov.in. However, the final website
is under construction and will be
updated soon. The designing of
the website took a little longer than
usual because it would have a wider
target audience as there would be a
platform for states, experts, citizens
and stakeholders where they can
share their views on different issues
and see others perspectives.
JUNE
Railway Ministry Decides To Run
Suvidha Trains: Railway Ministry
has decided to run Suvidha with
dynamic to address the rush during
peak travel seasons. The railway
ministry has followed a list of terms
and conditions to be followed for the
running of these trains. Tickets will
be issued only for confirmed and
RAC passengers accommodation.
There shall be no provision for
waiting list in the train. The earliest
advance reservation period will
be 30 days while the minimum
Advance Reservation period will
be of 10 days. No concession shall
be relevant on these trains. Full
adult ticket shall be changed for
all passengers irrespective of their
age. No provisions for free passes/
complimentary
passes/warrant/
concessional voucher etc. will be
permitted in these trains. Apart
from e-ticketing the sale of tickets
shall also be allowed through PRS
counters. Only General quota
bookings will be applicable and
the up gradation option shall
not be applicable in these trains.
Passenger should produce one of
the prescribed Identity cards during
journey for verification purpose
for both e-ticket and PRS ticket.
According to the demand pattern,

Suvidha train services will run
during peak seasons like winter
rush, summer rush, Dussehara rush,
Holi rush and on other occasions
as jointly decided by COMs and
CCMs of the zonal Railways.
Delhi Metro got its first driver-less
train: Delhis highly anticipated
Metro received its first driver-less
train, equipped with several highly
developed features. The train was
manufactured at Changwan in
South Korea. The new-age train that
arrived at the Mukundpur depot will
eventually run unattended, guided
by Delhi Metros operations control
centres. The route they would run
on the over 58 km-long Majlish
Park-Shiv Vihar (Line 7) and the
over 38 km-long Janakpuri (West)Botanical Garden (Line 8) corridors
of the Phase-III. According to the
latest reports both these sections are
expected to be operational by the
end of 2016. The trains are designed
for a maximum speed of 95 kmph
and operational speed of 85 kmph.
A total of 20 six-coach trains will be
manufactured in South Korea by the
end of this 2015, while 61 are being
manufactured at the Bharat Earth
Movers Limited (BEML) plant in
Bengaluru. Each train will be able to
accommodate 2,280 passengers
240 more than the regular six-coach
Metro train as driverless trains do
not require a cabin for the operator.
JULY
E-Tourist Visa Scheme Extended
To China, Hong Kong And Macau:
On 29th July, the Government of
India has extended e-Tourist Visa
(eTV) scheme for the applicants
from China, Hong Kong and Macau
with effect from 30th July 2015.
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This would bring the total number

of nationalities availing this facility
from 74 to 77. The scheme is about
to be extended to more countries in
a phased manner.
Touristsundere-Tourist Visa scheme
can arrive at nine designated
airports i.e. Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad,
Kolkata,
Mumbai,
Bangalore,
Chennai, Cochin and Trivandrum.
After the launch of this scheme,
more than two lakh e-Tourists Visa
have been issued to nationals of
different countries.
Since last three year, a total of 1,
79,873 (One lakh seventy-nine
thousand eight hundred seventythree) tourist visas have been
issued to China, Hong Kong and
Macau. The aim of government for
launching e-Tourists Visa scheme
is to boost the tourist arrival from
these countries and strengthen
bilateral ties among people of these
regions.
RBI Releases Guidelines on PPI
For Mass Transit System: The RBI
has released Final Guidelines on
Prepaid Payment Instruments for
Mass Transit System (PPI-MTS) to
enable the issuance of a separate
category of semi-closed prepaid
instruments for mass transit system.
The PPI-MTS will not only enhance
commuter convenience but also
facilitate the transition towards the
countrys vision of moving to a lesscash society.
The PPI-MTS can be used within
the mass transit systems and will
have a minimum validity of six
months from date of issue. Such
PPIs will be reloadable instruments
subject to an outstanding limit of
2,000/- at any point of time.
This new category of semi-closed
Ideas
PPIs has been introduced taking
into account the requests received
from various segments, including
providers of mass transit services,
such as metro train and road
transport services, indicating the
need for PPIs catering to the
requirements of this segments to
enhance commuter convenience.
MPEDA Launches Mobile-Based
Applications: The Marine Products
Export Development Authority
(MPEDA), a nodal agency for
promotion of marine exports from
India has launched two mobile
based applications to help farmers
get prices on shrimp and capture
data on aquaculture through mobile.
The two mobile- based applications
are:
1. Shrimp price information over
SMS by a missed call.
2. mkrishi-Mobile
App
for
Aquaculture Operations
MPEDA is providing price related
market information on Vannamei
and Black Tiger shrimp to farmers.
The farmers need to give a missed
call to a predetermined number and
they will get to know the prices of
various grades of these two varieties
of shrimp in major world markets
such as Japan, the U.S. and EU
through an SMS.
This service is being provided at
no cost to farmers all over India
and would enable them to take
an informed decision on harvest
of their produce and get better
price realization. The agency
has launched an Android based
mobile app called mKrishi to
enable farmers get expert guidance
on all operations, besides helping
with book keeping and weather
information.
Ideas
The farmers can see the reports in a
graphical form. An option to view
the trends or reports in the computer
is also provided to give seamless
data entry and visualisation. This
will help in resolving issues quickly
on a more personalised manner.
NDDB
Launches
Mobile
Application
Pashuposhan:
National Dairy Development Board
launched a mobile application
Pashu-Poshan to boost dairy
farmers income by raising milk
yield and reducing feed cost. The
app will recommend a balanced
diet for cows and buffaloes. The app
will be available on both web and
android platforms. This service can
be accessed by registering on the
INAPH portal.
To avail of this service a farmer
needs to provide complete animal
profile; its breed, age, milk
production, fat content in milk apart
from the food items that the animal
is fed on along with the cost in
order to formulate a balanced ration
formula.
This has resulted in reducing the
feed cost by Rs. 5-15 per animal
and an average increase in milk
production by an average 300 ml per
animal per day.
India is the largest milk producer in
the world, but the challenge before
the countrys dairy sector is low
productivity of its bovine population
as compared to developed countries.
Online
National
Agriculture
Market: Union Cabinet has
approved setting up of an online
National Agriculture Market that
will provide more options to farmers
for selling their produce. For online
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national agriculture market, an

online platform will be set up. On
this platform farmers will be able
to sell and buy vegetables, fruits
and other produce from across the
country. The Union Government
will also establish an agency to
oversee online trading and ensure
that
transactions
take
place
smoothly.
This Online agriculture market will
also focus on creating godowns
and facilitate transportation of the
farm produce after online trade.
The move is expected to give
choice to farmers to sell the farm
produce both in physical mandis as
well as online. The free access to
sell via online trade is believed to
boost their incomes and improve
availability, moderating price rise.
Currently, farmers sell their produce
at traditional mandis or market
committees which charge various
taxes on producers.
1st Earthquake Warning System in
Uttarakhand: Uttarakhand became
the first state to install a system to
detect earthquakes and disseminate
warnings. This system has been
installed in Dehradun which will
issue warnings 1-40 seconds before
earthquakes of magnitude 5 or
more. The system is designed and
manufactured by Italian Company,
Space Dynamics.
Main Features of the Earthquake
Warning System (EWS):
This system has sensors, capable
of detecting P (Primary) and S
(Secondary) waves generated during
an earthquake.
It is capable of detecting the
harmless P wave, which travels
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faster than the S wave for advance

warning.
The system has the earliest detection
among those currently in use
worldwide.
It can generate a variety of alarms
like programmable built-in audio
alert, connected to external alarms
like sirens and public announcement
systems.
It can also trigger visual alerts
and send them via cell phones
and the internet. According to the
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS),
Uttarakhand falls under seismic
Zone V; a zone of high seismic
activity with magnitude of 6.9 or
larger on Richter scale. Apart from
it, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal
Pradesh, Rann of Kutch (Gujarat),
Northern Bihar and Andaman
and Nicobar islands fall under this
seismic zone.
AUGUST
6 new SEZ proposals approved:
(28th
August)
The
Union
Government approved six new
proposals which include four from
IT and IT enabled Service (ITeS)
sector, for setting up of Special
Economic Zones (SEZs). The
decision was taken by the Board of
Approval (BoA) for SEZ headed by
Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia.
The proposals which got the
approval include the HCL IT City
Lucknow, Loma IT Park Developer
and North Mumbai International
Commodity Township.
The exports from these particular
zones had risen to Rs 4.94 lakh
crore in 2013-14 from the previous
amount of Rs 22,840 crore in 200506. These SEZs account about 25%
of the nations total exports.

In total there are 330 notified SEZs
across the country of which 36 are
operational in Tamil Nadu, followed
by Karnatakaand Telangana having
26 each while Maharashtra having
25. The Commerce Ministry has
been taking a number of steps
to boost exports as the value of
countrys shipments in the last four
financial years has been around
$300 billion.
SEPTEMBER
Gold
Monetization
Schemes
Introduced: The Union Cabinet
chaired by the Prime Minister Modi
on September 9 gave its approval for
introduction of Gold Monetization
Schemes (GMS), as announced
in the Union Budget 2015-16.
The objective of introducing the
modifications in the schemes is to
make the existing schemes more
effective and to broaden the ambit
of the existing schemes from merely
mobilizing gold held by households
and institutions in the country to
putting this gold into productive use.
The long-term objective which is
sought through this arrangement is
to reduce the countrys reliance on
the import of gold to meet domestic
demand.
The long-term objective of the
scheme is to reduce the countrys
reliance on the import of gold to
meet domestic demand. GMS
would benefit the Indian gems and
jewellery sector which is a major
contributor to countrys exports
by accounting 12 per cent of total
exports. It would enable depositors
to earn interest on their on their
gold accounts. These schemes are
in addition to the implementation
Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme
Ideas
(SGBS) which was approved by the
Union Cabinet. Under this scheme,
bonds will be issued with an interest
rate decided by Union Government
and calculated on value at the time
of investment.
BSE Has Highest Number of
Listed Companies in the World:
WFE: Bombay Stock Exchange
(BSE) has the highest number of
listed companies in the world as
announced by the World Federation
of Exchanges (WEF). A total
number of 5689 companies were
listed with the BSE by the end
of June 2015. However, there is
only one foreign company out of
5689. By the end of June 2015, the
National Stock Exchange of India
(NSE) had 1750 listed companies.
The total value of transactions in
the BSE was 94 billion US dollars
during the same period.
AS for Shanghai stock exchange of
China (having 1070 companies), it is
at the top in terms of value of share
trading with 30 trillion US dollars
worth transactions in June 2015.
BSE is followed by TMX Group,
BME Spanish Exchanges, London
SE Group, NASDAQ OMX, NYSE
Euronext (US), Tokyo SE Group,
Australian SE, Korea Exchange
and NSE in the top ten. While
TMX has 3,964 listed companies,
London Stock Exchange has 2,782
companies, NASDAQ OMX has
2,598 and NYSE Euronext (US) has
2,345.
Purchase of 10 Heron TP Drones
From Israel Approved: India on
11 September 2015 approved the
purchase of 10 Heron TP drones
from Israel. This 400 million US
dollars proposal for buying armed
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missile-armed drones from Israel

will enhance Indias cross-border
military strike capabilities. The
Indian Air Force (IAF) which has
also a fleet of Harpy UAVs from
Israel will operate the drones; they
are primarily tasked with taking out
enemy radar positions.
The armed drones are equipped
with air-to-ground missiles which
will carry a payload of 1,000 kg.
The project has been given pace and
the drones may be put into service
within a year. The armed forces had
proposed buying the same armed
drones in 2012. But the proposal
didnt take off due to not getting
support of UPA-2 government. The
project was revived by the Modi
government this year.
The armed drones are the same
as the Predator unmanned aerial
vehicles
(UAVs)
capable
of
reconnaissance, combat and support
roles. India operates unarmed Heron
and Searcher UAVs for surveillance
and intelligence purposes.
Indian Railways & Google
Provide Free Wi-Fi Services:
Indian Railways and Google have
partnered to launch a new project
under the code name Project Nilgiri
on September 13. The project will
deliver free Wi-fi access to around
400 railway stations across India.
Google will be using the Google
Fiber project, thatll provide high
speed internet connection for the
travellers.
Commuters can access Wi-fi only
after mobile number verification
through a one-time password sent
over SMS. Initially, a user will get
high speed internet connectivity for
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the first 30 minutes and thereafter,

the speed will drop and become
slow though the connection of the
users will still be active.
In the first phase, Google and
Indian Railways will set up Wifi hotspots across 400 railway
stations throughout India over a
period of 4 months from now. In
its phase 2 expansion, Google will
provide Wi-fi on board moving
trains Pan India using cutting
edge technology. Presently, Indian
Railways provide Wi-fi connectivity
in moving trains for select routes
like Rajdhani express using satellite
communication technology.
National World
ranking ranking
Forbes Releases List Of Indias

100 Richest People: Forbes list of
Indian richest people is based on
an annual assessment of wealth
and assets compiled and published
by Forbes magazine in 2015. The
combined net worth of the 2015
class of the 100 richest Indians is
US$ 345 billion, down from 346
billion a year ago in 2014. Mukesh
Ambani remains Indias richest
person for the ninth consecutive year
with a net worth of US$18.9 billion,
according to the latest Forbes India
Rich List. The top 10 richest people
of India are as follows:
Name
Net worth
(USD)
Source(s) of wealth
39
Mukesh Ambani
18.9 billion
Reliance Industries
2
3
4
5
6
7
44
48
185
108
156
208
Dilip Sanghvi
Azim Premji
S P Hinduja
Pallonji Mistry
Shiv Nadar
Godrej family
18 billion
15.9 billion
14.8 billion
14.7 billion
12.9 billion
11.4 billion
Sun Pharmaceutical
Wipro
Hinduja Group
Shapoorji Pallonji Group
HCL
Godrej Group
82
13.5 billion
208
10
142
Lakshmi Mittal
Cyrus
Poonawalla
Kumar Birla
ArcelorMittal
Poonawalla Group,
Serum Institute of India
Aditya Birla Group
Indian
Railways
Develops
Prototype of Hybrid Vacuum
Toilet: The Indian Railways has
come up with an eco-friendly
sanitation project, under which,
this new kind of toilet has been
set up to save water on trains. A
prototype of the new hybrid vacuum
toilet has been made that comprises
a modified vacuum toilet that is
used in aircraft and a biodigester
tank, which converts the excreta
7.9 billion
7.8 billion
into water and gas with the help of

anaerobic bacteria.
With the transfer of the discharge of
the vacuum toilets into biodigester,
the need to create separate ground
handling installation and creating
additional sewer load on the
Municipal Corporation will be done
away with. The concept has been
converted into a working prototype
by Indian Railways as a first ever
system of its kind to have been
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developed and built by any railway
system in the world. This newly
developed toilet has been fitted in
one coach of Dibrugarh Rajdhani
for trial.
The prototype consists of a custom
designed Vacuum toilet adapted
from a commercially available
vacuum toilet that is used in aircrafts
which evacuates its discharge into
a biodigester tank which is now
successfully proven in the biotoilets
of Indian Railways. The biodigester
tank is fitted underneath the coach
and contains anaerobic bacteria that
convert human fecal matter into
water and small amount of gases
before discharging the same on the
ground/track.
Government Provides Additional
50 Days Work Under MGNREGA:
The
Union
government
on
September 14 decided to provide
additional 50 days of work in
drought-hit
areas
under
the
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment
Guarantee
Act
(MGNREGA) scheme to provide
relief to farmers on account of
deficit monsoon in various parts of
the country. Currently, 100 days of
work is provided to rural job card
holders under the MGNREGA.
The decision was taken following
monsoon deficit reaching 16 per
cent across the country, which
could affect kharif crops and rural
income. The move will enable
states to provide additional wage
employment to rural poor in drought
affected areas. The poorest rural
households will benefit from this, as
it will help in immediate absorption
of rural seasonal unemployment,
and reduce rural distress.
The
government
had
already
announced diesel subsidy for

farmers to help save standing crops.
It also enhanced ceiling on seed
subsidy to compensate the farmers
in the drought affected districts for
the additional expenditure incurred
in the re-sowing.
Besides, the government has
made flexible allocation under the
Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and
other centrally sponsored schemes.
It has put in place crop contingency
plan for 600 districts.
Marathi-film Court as Indias
Official entry to Oscar: Chaitanya
Tamhanes debut Marathi movie
Court, a courtroom drama has been
chosen as Indias official entry for
the Best Foreign Language Film
category at the 88th Academy
Awards. Court had also won a
National Film Award.
The 17-member jury to choose the
entry was headed by veteran actorfilmmaker Amol Palekar. According
to reports, PK, Masaan, Mary Kom,
Haider, Kaaka Muttai, Baahubali
and Kuttram Kadithal were among
the films that the jury also watched.
Court about a trial which unfolds
in a lower court, where the hopes
and dreams of the citys ordinary
people play out won the National
Film Award in the Best Feature
Film category for 2014.
With impactful performances by
actors Vivek Gomber, Vira Sathidar,
Geetanjali Kulkarni and Shirish
Pawar, the movie did its fair share
of rounds at foreign movie galas.
Last year, Liars Dice, a road drama
starring Geetanjali Thapa and
Nawazuddin Siddiqui in lead roles,
was selected as Indias official entry
to the Best Foreign Film category
of Oscars, but it failed to make
it to the top five at the Academy
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Awards. The 88th Academy Awards

ceremony will be held on February
28, 2016.
Four new isotopes discovered at
Manipal University: Researchers
from the Manipal Centre of Natural
Sciences at Manipal University,
Karnataka, with collaborators from
GSI, Germany, have succeeded in
discovering four new atomic nuclei
to be added to the Chart of the
Nuclides. The newly discovered,
exotic nuclei are one isotope each of
the heavy elements berkelium and
neptunium and two isotopes of the
element americium.
To enable the discovery of the new
isotopes, scientists used a new,
highly sensitive method to create
and detect the nuclei and the results
of this work constitute the first
proof of this new technique. A
300-nanometer-thick foil of curium
was bombarded with accelerated
calcium nuclei in this experiment.
In the collisions studied, the atomic
nuclei of the two elements touched,
and formed a compound system for
an extremely short time. Before the
compound system could break apart
again, after about a sextillionth of
a second, the two nuclei involved
exchanged a significant number
of their nuclear building-blocks
protons and neutrons to form
various isotopes as the end products.
The newly discovered isotopes have
fewer neutrons and are lighter than
the previously known isotopes of
the respective elements.
OCTOBER
RBI Allows NRIS To Subscribe
To National Pension System: The

PFRDA (Pension Fund Regulatory

age. The pension plan was, on May

RBI Issues Gold Monetization
Scheme Guidelines for Banks: The
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued
guidelines for banks to implement
the gold scheme that was approved
earlier by the government. The
Gold Monetization scheme would
allow the banks to fix interest rates
on gold deposit according to their
own guidelines. According to the
scheme the interest and the principal
payments on gold deposits will be
done in gold. Subject to a minimum
lock-in period, RBI will give the
provision of premature withdrawal
of the deposited gold. An idle gold
Ideas
worth about INR 5, 40, 000 crore
has been targeted by the banking
systems for gold monetisation
scheme. The scheme does not have
any limit to the maximum deposit
a person can make however, there
is a minimum deposit set which
is 30 grams. The gold can be in
any formcoins, bars, jewellery
excluding other metals and stones.
There will be two deposit options
available to the customersShort
Term Bank Deposit (1-3years)
and Medium (5-7 years) and Long
Term Government Deposit (1215 years). All the deposits will be
made Collection and Purity Testing
Centre (CPTC).
Union Government Launches
KISAN Project and Hailstorm
App for Crop Damage: The
pilot programme, KISAN, was
launched to fasten the payment
process of crop insurance claims
to the farmers. It will make use of
satellite and imaging by drone and
other technology to generate timely
and accurate data on crop yielding.
On the basis of crop cutting
experiments, the payment against
crop insurance is released. To
develop a new index based insurance
approach is yet another feature
incorporated in the program. The
delay in settlements of the insurance
has been of great concern to the
government. Mahalanobis National
Crop Forecast Centre, Indian
Space
Research
Organisation,
India Meteorological Department,
State Agriculture Departments and
Remote Sensing Centres, Climate
Change, Agriculture and Food
Security will all work together
jointly in this programme. The
newly launched android based
App will enable to collect data
of hailstorm causing damages to
standing crops. Hailstorms have
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been noted to be responsible for

crop damage on a large scale basis.
The App would allow farmers to
send pictures of hailstorms to the
ISROs Bhuvan server giving the
government opportunity to have a
quick assessment of the damages to
the crops.
E-Sahyog Pilot Project of IncomeTax Department to Facilitate
Taxpayers:
The
Income-tax
Department is committed to
the Digital India initiative of
the Government of India. The
Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley
launched here today an e-Sahyog
pilot project which furthers the
Departments commitment to work
in an e-environment and reduces the
need for the taxpayer to physically
appear before tax authorities.
The e-Sahyog project launched
on a pilot basis is aimed at reducing
compliance cost, especially for
small taxpayers. The objective of
e-Sahyog is to provide an online
mechanism to resolve mismatches
in Income-tax returns of those
assesses whose returns have been
selected for scrutiny, without
visiting the Income Tax Office.
Under this initiative the Department
will provide an end to end e-service
using SMS, e-mails to inform the
tax assesses of the mismatch. The
taxpayers will simply need to visit
the e-filing portal and log in with
their user-ID and password to view
mismatch related information and
submit online response on the issue.
The responses submitted online
by the taxpayers will be processed
and if the response and other
information are found satisfactory
as per automated closure rules, the
issue will be treated as closed. The
taxpayers can check the updated
status by logging in to the e-filing
portal.
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NOVEMBER
NITI
Aayog
Initiates
New
Nutrition Strategy Development
Idea_india: NITI Aayog conducted
its first initiative towards setting up
a National Nutrition Strategy on
October 28, 2015. It was chaired
by the CEO of NITI Aayog,
Ms Sindhushree Khullar. NITI
Aayog conducted a meeting with
the Ministries of Women and
Child Development and Health
and Family Welfare after having
gathered necessary data on under
nutrition
specifically
targeting
the poorly performing states and
districts.
Professional
bodies,
international agencies, voluntary
organisations and experts came
together at one place to discuss
the issue of under nutrition in the
country and the ways to eradicate it.
The NITI officials and the Ministries
of Health and Family Welfare
and Program Implementation and
Additional Registrar General of
India shared important vision and
design of the Nutritional Strategy.
International organisations such
as UNICEF, WHO, UN Women
and UNDP also presented their
views at the meeting. By the end of
December, 2015, NITI Aayog has
been asked to prepare a draft on
Nutrition Strategy in consultations
of the experts. Constitution of an
Inter-Ministerial Group on Health
and Nutrition Data has been seen
as an important requirement to
enable the identification of focus
districts and recommendations to
monitor and track the progress of
the strategy in these areas.
Indian Railways launches Vikalp
scheme for waitlisted passengers:
With effect from November 1, 2015,
Indian Railways launches passenger

friendly scheme - Vikalp Scheme for
waitlisted passengers. According
to this newly launched scheme, the
passengers on waitlist will be able
to get confirmed berths in the next
train on the same route subject to
availability. The pilot project of a
new scheme i.e. Vikalp Scheme
is also known as alternative train
accommodation scheme (ATAS)
and is launched on Delhi- Lucknow
and Delhi-Jammu routes. The
facility of this scheme is limited to
the express and mail trains. This
scheme is available only for the
tickets which are to be booked
online i.e. E-ticket.
The objective to launch this
scheme is to provide confirmed
accommodation to the waitlisted
passengers and to ensure the
optimal utilisation of available
accommodation
for
these
passengers. Under this scheme,
passengers have to pay No extra
charge to avail this facility or any
refund provided for the difference
of fare. In the next available train,
a separate list of the passengers
transferred will be pasted along with
the confirmed and waitlist charts.
DECEMBER
Employers
Attestation
not
Required for PF Claim: The
Employees
Provident
Fund
Organisation (EPFO) has allowed its
subscribers to file their applications
directly to the retirement fund body
without employers attestation.
This was earlier mandatory for this
purpose. Employees whose details
like Aadhaar Number and Bank
Account Number have been seeded
Ideas
in their Universal (or portable PF)
Account Number (UAN) and whose
UAN have been activated will be
able to enjoy this benefit given
by EPFO. Claims will have to be
submitted manually by subscribers
and this initiative will make the PF
withdrawals easy for the employees.
National Waterways Bill, 2015:
Union Cabinet has given its approval
to carry out official amendments
in The National Waterways Bill,
2015. The amendments are based
on the recommendations of the
Department related Parliamentary
Standing Committee on Transport,
Tourism and Culture and comments
of State Governments. It provides
for enacting a Central Legislation
to declare 106 additional inland
waterways
as
the
national
waterways by which the total
number of NW goes up to 111
from existing 5. Union Government
is empowered to make laws on
shipping and navigation on national
waterways as per Entry 24 of the
Union List of the 7th Schedule of
the Constitution.
SABLA Scheme to Empower
Adolescent Girls: Rajiv Gandhi
Scheme for Empowerment of
Adolescent Girls (RGSEAG)
Sabla has been implemented by
Govt. which aims at empowering
Adolescent Girls (AGs) between 1118 years through nutrition, health
care and life skills education. Nearly
100 lakh adolescent girls per annum
are expected to be benefitted under
the scheme. The scheme will cover
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205 districts selected from all the

States and UTs. An amount of Rs
27486.79 lakhs has been released
to states under SABLA in 2015-16
till date and amount utilised is Rs
7844.49 lakhs.
SETU
to
Support
Start-up
Businesses:
Government
has
set up a mechanism known as
SETU to support all aspects of
start-up businesses and other selfemployment
activities.
SETU
(SelfEmployment and Talent
Utilisation) has been established
under NITI Aayog is a TechnoFinancial,
Incubation
and
Facilitation Programme to support
all aspects of start-up businesses,
and
other
self-employment
activities, particularly in technologydriven areas.
Arbitration
and
Conciliation
(Amendment) Bill, 2015: The
Lok Sabha has today passed the
Arbitration and Reconciliation
(Amendment Bill), 2015 by voice
vote. The Bill seeks to make the
arbitration process more investorfriendly, cost effective and suitable
for expeditious disposal of cases. It
will also facilitate in making India
a hub of international commercial
arbitration. Courts will also be asked
to decide disputed arbitral awards
within a year. It may be noted that
the President had promogulated an
ordinance for amending the earlier
prevalent act, the Arbitration and
Conciliation Act 1996 related and
for matters connected there with or
incidental thereto.
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Ideas
JANUARY
Project Lettuce: To grow lettuce
on Mars in 2018: Scientists at
University of Southampton are
planning to grow lettuce on the
red planet in year 2018. The team
will grow some plants on Mars
to see if the plants can survive the
atmosphere. Minimum amount
of resources would be taken from
Earth while essential gases would
be extracted and processed from
Martian atmosphere for growing
the plants. A green house, frozen
seeds of lettuce, several nutrients
and systems for monitoring and
processing the atmosphere would be
taken along to Mars. A not-for-profit
foundation, Mars One, will launch
Mars One Lander. The frozen
lettuce seeds would be reactivated
inside the greenhouse chamber
after Mars One Lander reaches
Mars. The lettuce is reported to be
grown on Mars without any soil.
Water and other nutrients would
be sprayed timely on the plants.
The foundation, Mars One, aims at
establishing a permanent habitat for
humans on the red planet by the year
2026. The project leader, Suzanna
Lucarotti,
communicated
that
food is important for humans and
so it should be tested if the plants
can thrive on the planet before the
planet can be affirmed fit for human
habitation.
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna
made it to Guinness World
Records:

Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana entered

dia f

Yojana was an
Janua

subsidy and welfare programmes.

Minister, Arun Jaitley was presented

issued by the Guinness World

FEBUARY
3 Indians Shortlisted For The Trip
to Mars: In a proud moment, 3
Indians - 19-yearl Sharadha Prasad,
29-year Ritika Singh and 29-year
Taranjeet Singh Bhatia - are among
the 100 shortlisted applicants who
were chosen for one-way trip to
Mars under Mars One mission in
the third week of February 2015.
The candidates selected from a
pool of 202586 candidates for a
planned one-way trip to Mars in
2024 include 50 men and 50 women
from all around the world - 39
from America, 31 from Europe,
Ideas
16 from Asia, 7 from Africa and 7
from Oceania. The first troop will
reach the red planet in 2025. These
candidates will now appear in the
second and third round of the Mars
One Astronaut Selection Process to
be conducted by the Netherlandsbased non-profit organization Mars
One. These rounds will focus on
composing teams that can endure
all the hardships of a permanent
settlement on Mars. The candidates
will receive their first shot at training
in the replica of the Mars Outpost
on Earth and will demonstrate their
suitability to perform well in a team.
New 3D vaccine for cancer and
infectious diseases found: National
Institute Biomedical Imaging and
Bioengineering (NIBIB) funded
researchers have developed a novel
3D vaccine that could provide a
more effective way to manipulate
the immune system to fight cancer
and other infectious diseases. The
vaccine is able to self-construct
into a 3D structure and manipulate
immune cells.
The vaccine is composed of many
micro-sized, porous silica rods
dispersed in liquid; When injected
under the skin, the liquid quickly
diffuses leaving the rods to form
a randomly assembled three
dimensional structure resembling
a hayrack. The spaces between
the rods are big enough to house
dendritic cells and other immune
cells, and the rods have nano sized
pores that can be loaded with a
combination of antigens and drugs.
Cancer cells are often ignored by the
immune system because for the most
part- they closely resemble cells that
belong to the body than pathogens,
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such as bacterial cells or viruses. The

goal of cancer vaccines is to provoke
the immune system to recognize
cancer cells as foreign and attack
them.
RWB releases the World Press
Freedom Index 2015: The Reporters
without Borders (RWB) released the
World Press Freedom Index (WPFI)
2015. In the WPFI India was
placed at 136th position out of 180
countries that were surveyed in terms
of Freedom of Press. On the top
of the list were three Scandinavian
countries: Finland on the First
position followed by Norway and
Denmark. At the other end of the
scale were Turkemenistan, North
Korea and Eritrea were the worst
performers securing the last position
in the Index.
World Press Freedom Index
highlights
the
worldwide
deterioration in the freedom of
information in 2014.
India has shown improvement in its
rank from in 2014. However Indias
score has gone down from 40.34 to
40.49
World Press Freedom Index
is produced by France based
international
non-governmental
organization, Reporters without
Borders (RWB). WPFI aims to
promote and defend freedom of
information and freedom of press.
The WFPI ranks countries according
to index calculated based upon
various parameters.
These parameters include media
pluralism
and
independence,
respect for the safety and freedom
of journalists and the legislative,
institutional and infrastructural
environment in which the media
operate.
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MARCH
RBI Signs $400 million Currency
Swap Pact with Sri Lanka: The
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has
signed a US $400 million currency
swap agreement with the Central
Bank of Sri Lanka. The currency
swap agreement will permit the
central banks of both nations to
make withdrawals of US Dollar or
Euro in multiple tranches up to a
maximum limit of USD 400 million
or its equivalent. The agreement will
be valid for a period of three years
and strengthen the economic cooperation between the two countries.
During the SAARCFINANCE
Governors meeting held in Nepal
in 2012, the RBI announced that it
will offer currency swap facilities
aggregating USD 2 billion. This
facility will be offered in both foreign
currency and rupee to SAARC
member countries. In this regard,
the swap arrangement are signed to
provide a backstop line of funding
for the SAARC member countries
to meet any balance of payments
(BOP) and liquidity crisis till longterm arrangements are made.
APRIL
Canada to Supply Uranium to
India: On 15th April 2015, Canada
agreed to supply 3,000 metric tonnes
of uranium to energy-hungry India
from this year under a $254-million
five-year deal to power Indian
atomic reactors, four decades after
bilateral cooperation in this sector
was frozen over Indias nuclear
programme. The agreement for
uranium supply came two years after

protracted negotiations following
the 2013 civil nuclear deal between
India and Canada. It was signed
after comprehensive talks between
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
his Canadian counterpart Stephen
Harper.
Canada is the third country to
supply uranium to India after Russia
and Kazakhstan. The supplies will
be under the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.
Cameco Corporation will supply
3,000 metric tonnes of uranium over
five years to India at an estimated
cost of $254 million and the supply
will start from this year.
Canada is the second-largest
producer of uranium globally, with
exports valued at over $1 billion per
year.
MAY
Japanese scientists Discover new
State of Matter: Scientists at
Tokohu University in Japan, on
14th May 2015, discovered a new
state of matter called the JahnTellermetal that resembles an
insulator, superconductor, metal
and magnet all rolled into one. The
researchers said that the research
could help develop new molecular
materials that are superconductors
at even higher temperatures.
The study is led by Kosmas
Prassides of Tohoku University
in Japan and provides important
clues about how the interplay
between the electronic structure
of the molecules and their spacing
within the lattice can strengthen
interactions between electrons that
cause superconductivity. The study
shows that the material has a rich
combination of insulating, magnetic,
Ideas
metallic and superconducting phases
- including the otherwise unknown
state, dubbed as Jahn-Teller metal.
In terms of Science Advances, this
research involves caesium fulleride
(Cs3C60) in a face-centred-cubic
lattice with a Cs3C60 molecule at
each lattice site. Jahn- Teller Metal
was found by changing the distance
between neighbouring buckyballs by
doping the material with rubidium.
It is named after the Jahn-Teller
effect, which is used in chemistry to
describe how at low pressures, the
geometric arrangement of molecules
and ions in an electronic state can
become distorted.
Forbes Global 2000 Companies
List: Forbes released Global 2000
Companies list comprising the
worlds biggest, most powerful and
most valuable companies. China
landed five of the top 10 spots for
the second time in a row. The top
five companies include Industrial &
Commercial Bank of China (ICBC);
China Construction Bank (China);
Agricultural Bank of China (China);
Bank of China (China); Berkshire
Hathaway (United States). State
Bank of India (world ranking 152)
topped the Indian companies list
with assets worth $400.6 billion,
followed by Indian Oil (349) in the
second and Coal India (490) in the
third place. The Forbes Global 2000
is an annual ranking of the top 2,000
public companies in the world by
the renowned Forbes magazine.
The criteria for the ranking in the
list included sales, profits, assets
and market value. The list has been
published since 2003. The top five
country-wise breakdown include
US 579, China (mainland and Hong
Kong) 232, Japan 218, Britain 94
and South Korea 66.
State of Food Insecurity in The
World 2015 Report: State of Food
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Insecurity in the World 2015 was

released by Food and Agriculture
Organisation of the United Nations
(FAO), the International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD)
and the World Food Programme
(WFP) by UN hunger report titled
annually.
The report mentions that the
number of undernourished has
reduced significantly; now 795
people are undernourished globally
which is 216 lesser than in 19901992. This has brought the share of
undernourished people in the world
down from 23.3 per cent to 12.9 per
cent. The decline is more marked
in developing nations despite
population growth.
Chinese social media platform
Weibo joined by PM Modi: Prime
Minister Narendra Modi joined
Chinas popular social media
platform Weibo. He became the
first Indian leader to join Weibo.
The site also features accounts
of politicians like British Prime
Minister David Cameron. Modi is
one of the worlds most followed
politicians on social media. His
account had over 7,000 hits in the
first hour after he set up his Weibo
account. PMs Office maintains a
strong presence on social media so
that the prime minister can maintain
the sync with his vision of digital
India in which technology plays
a pivotal role for Governance and
policy making. International social
media sites like Google, Facebook
and Twitter arent available in
China, therefore, local services
possessing similar features have
become immensely popular with
the people of China. Sina Weibo is
a Chinese micro blogging website
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which was launched by SINA

Corporation on 14 August 2009, and
by December 2012 had 503 million
registered users. Sina Weibo has
approximately 100 million messages
posted each day.
JUNE
Wealth-X
Releases
Worlds
Wealthiest Self-Made Billionaires
List: Microsoft co-founder Bill
Gates was declared worlds richest
self-made billionaire with net
worth USD 86 billion, according to
Wealth-X, global wealth intelligence
and prospecting company. Business
magnate Warren Buffett with USD
70.1 billion took the second slot on
the list. Spains Amancio Ortega
(USD 65 billion) came in next. The
list of the top wealthiest self-made
billionaires includes Larry Ellison
(USD 51.5 billion), Ingvar Kamprad
(USD 48.1 billion), Jeff Bezos (USD
39.8 billion), Carlos Slim (USD
35.4 billion), Mark Zuckerberg
(USD 35.3 billion), Wang Jianlin
(USD 35.2 billion) and Michael
Bloomberg (USD 33.7 billion).
American entrepreneurs dominated
the Wealth-X list by grabbing 14 of
the 25 spots. The joint wealth of the
14 Americans on the list amounted
to USD 514.2 billion, which is
greater than GDP of Norway. The
list also features Googles Larry
Page and Sergey Brin, and Alibaba
chairman Jack Ma.Wealth-X is
the global authority on wealth
intelligence, providing sales and
marketing strategy and compliance
solutions to clients in the financial
services, luxury, and not-for-profit
and education sectors.
India and the US Sign 2015
Framework for the India-US
Defence Relationship: US Defence
Secretary Ash Carter and Indian

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar
signed a 10-year defence framework
agreement to strengthen the growth
of defence cooperation between
the two countries. The agreement
was an outgrowth of the meeting
that was held between President
Barack Obama and Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in January
2015. Both the countries have
finalized two project agreements
for joint development of Mobile
Electric Hybrid Power Sources and
the Next Generation Protective
Ensembles. The also agreed to speed
up discussions to take forward the
cooperation on jet engines, aircraft
carrier design and construction,
and other areas. The agreement
also included plans to cooperate in
developing a mobile solar energy
power source that could be used in
remote areas and in developing a
lightweight protective suit effective
in chemical and biological hazard
environments.The US secretarys
visit also aims at convergence of
Indias Act East policy and the U.S.
rebalance to the Asia-Pacific region.
Under the Act East policy, India
will focus on improving relations
with Association of Southeast
Asian Nations and other East Asian
countries. The two nations have
agreed to continue their efforts to
enhance bilateral cooperation in
areas such as maritime security and
knowledge partnership in the field of
defence.
China Unveil Worlds First Facial
Recognition
ATM
Machine:
China has unveiled the worlds first
facial recognition ATM, which
wont allow users to withdraw cash
unless their face matches their
IDs. Chinese researchers have
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successfully developed the first
automated teller machine (ATM)
with facial recognition technology.
The first of its kind ATM was
developed by researchers from
Tsinghua University and technology
firm Tzekwan. The machine has a
camera installed which captures the
facial features of the user and then
compares it with photos stored in
a database for authentication. Its
technology and software looks at
biological features of person and has
potential to identify people even if
their facial features have changed.
The machine combines high-speed
banknote
handling,
improved
counterfeit-bill recognition and
facial recognition. Cash machines
using fingerprint authentication have
sprung up in countries like Chile and
Colombia, though biometric ATMs
have not been released because of
concerns over cost and privacy.
It provides 20% more accurate
authenticity in verifying multiple
currencies compared to present
conventional ATMs used globally.
JULY
Banks operationalise Contingent
Reserve Arrangement: The Central
Banks of Brazil, Russia, India, China
and South Africa signed Mutual
Assistance
Agreement
(MAA)
to operationalise the Contingent
Reserve arrangement (CRA) of 100
billion US dollars. The Agreement
was signed after meeting the BRICS
finance ministers and Central Bank
governors in the Russian capital
Moscow.
MAA is an operating system of
mutual support specifying the
procedures to be followed by central
banks of BRICS countries as part
of the CRA and defines their rights
and obligations. The purpose of
BRICS is to provide mutual support

(monetary funds in US dollars)
in the event of national financial
systems facing liquidity problems.
The CRA along with the New
Development Bank are part of
the BRICS framework aimed at
maintaining financial stability in
BRICS countries. Total committed
resources of CRA are 100 billion
with individual commitment of
China-41 billion, Russia-18 billion,
Brazil -18 billion, India -18 billion,
South Africa -5 billion.
It would also contribute to
strengthening the global financial
safety net and complement existing
international arrangements (from
IMF) as an additional line of
defence.
DusKadam: 10 Steps for BRICS:
To facilitate closer cooperation
and coordination among BRICS
nations, Prime Minister Narender
Modi proposed a ten-point initiative
that includes India hosting the First
Trade Fair for the grouping and
establishing research centres for
railways and agriculture.
Calling it DusKadam: Ten steps
for the future, the Prime Minister
Narender Modi put forward new
initiatives for the BRICS grouping
that is formed by major economies.
The Prime Minister proposed these
points at the BRICS meet attended
by the Russian Prime Minister
Vladmir Putin, Brazilian President
DilmaRousseff and South African
President Jacob Zuma besides
Chinese Premier Xi Jinping.
The Ten Steps proposed by the
Prime Minister are:
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Ideas
1. BRICS Trade Fair

2. BRICs Railway Research Centre
3. Cooperation among Supreme
Audit Institutions
4. BRICS Digital Initiative
5. BRICS
Centre
Agriculture
Research
6. BRICS State/Local
ments Forum
Govern-
7. Cooperation amongst cities in

the field of urbanisation
8. BRICS Sports Council and
Annual BRICS Sports Meet
9. First Major NDB Project to be in
the field of Clean Energy
10. BRICS Film Festival
The Prime Minister also proposed
that every country should obey
international rules and norms.
BRICS is an association of five major
emerging economies namely, Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South
Africa. The five BRICS nations
represent over 3 billion people, or
42 per cent of the world population.
The five countries have a combined
nominal GDP of US $ 16.039
trillion, equal to approximately 20
per cent of the Gross World product.
Bilateral relations between BRICS
countries are mostly conducted
on non-interference, equality and
mutual benefit.
RBI Signed Special Currency Swap
Agreement with the Central Bank
of Sri Lanka: The Reserve Bank of
India signed a special Currency swap
Agreement with the Central Bank of
Sri Lanka in which it can draw up
to US $1.1 billion for a maximum
period of six months. This special
agreement is in addition to the
existing Framework on Currency
Swap Arrangement for the SAARC
Member Countries.
Earlier in 25th March 2015, The

Reserve Bank of India Signed a
currency swap agreement with the
central Bank of Sri Lanka for 400
million US Dollar under the existing
SAARC Swap Framework within
the overall limit of 2 billion US
Dollar.
The Governor of Central Bank of
Sri Lanka stated that the country
will receive the balance of 1.1 billion
US Dollar from the RBI to boost
foreign reserves under a 1.5 billion
US Dollar swap arrangement.
The significance of this is that the
exchange rate would stabilize in the
line with sound macroeconomic
fundamentals and movements of
other currencies of major trading
partners.
White-Fi Technology of Microsoft
to Boost Digital India Initiative:
US Software major Microsoft
Corporation
newly
introduced
White-Fi technology in the second
week of July 2015. As per the
technology, Microsoft will provide
free WiFi connectivity to a large
section of the Indian population and
give a boost to the Prime Minister
Narendra Modis Digital India
initiative.
White-Fi or television WhiteSpace technology has potential to
provide free WiFi to approx one
billion Indians with no internet
access through wider coverage and
economical deployment and licence
free access. WiFi has a range of
only 100 meters; however, 200-300
MHz spectrum band is available
in the white space which can reach
up to 10 kms, 93 percent of this
spectrum is not in use. Four worldclass Broadband products developed
by C-DOT launched under Digital
India Programme. It aims to
provide the digital connectivity
to low-income group segments
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Ideas
which mostly remain unattractive
to commercial telecom provider.
Other countries than India, where
Microsoft implement this new
technology are Kenya, Singapore,
the US and London.
21) to the 1992 United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC) and the 11th
session of the Meeting of the Parties
(CMP 11) to the Kyoto Protocol.
Science Express 2015: Science

Express has now been redesigned
on the theme Climate Change.
From October 2015, it has been
planned to run it as Science
Express-Climate Change Special
(SECCS). It is a unique collaborative
initiative of Department of Science
& Technology and Ministry of
Environment, Forests and Climate
Change (MOEFCC), and Ministry
of Railway, Government of India.
Climate change is the most
important environmental issue, with
short term as well as long term and
large scale impact. From shifting
weather patterns that threaten food
production, to rising sea levels that
increase the risk of catastrophic
flooding, the impacts of climate
change are not just global in scope
and unprecedented in scale but
more severely affect poor and
marginalized people.
The Science Express is an innovative
science exhibition mounted on a
16 coach AC train which has been
custom-built for Department of
Science & Technology (DST) by the
Indian Railways. This unique mobile
exposition was launched in the year
2007, by DST, in collaboration with
German Government and Max
Planck Society and it travelled across
India in 4 phases of 6-7 months
duration each.
For climate change, 2015 could
be a decisive year, when leaders
of 190 countries meet in Paris to
discuss a new global agreement on
climate change during 21st session
of Conference of the Parties (COP
SEPTEMBER
India, US create Joint Challenge
Coin to mark partnership: India
and US on 17 September jointly
created a Joint Challenge Coin to
symbolise their unique partnership
in creating a next generation aircraft
carrier for the Indian Navy. One side
of the coin reads Forward Together
We Go and Chale Saath Saath in
Hindi, which is the vision statement
of US President Barack Obama and
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The other side of this coin which
is golden in colour has the flags of
India and the United States and an
aircraft carrier floating on blue water.
The joint challenge coin was created
by the joint working group at their
first meeting in US in August 2015
to symbolise partnership. During
Obamas visit to India in January,
the two countries had announced
the establishment of a working
group for a next-generation aircraft
carrier to bolster the Indian Navys
blue-water capabilities, which held
its first-ever meeting here last month.
18th Edition of Global Innovation
Index 2015 Released: The Global
Innovation Index (GII) 2015,
released on September 17 saw India
ranked a disappointing 81 out of
the 141 countries surveyed. Topping
the list for the 5th year running is
Switzerland, followed by UK and
Sweden. The GII, presently in its
8th edition is an annual report co-
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published by Cornell University,

INSEAD, and the World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO).
Using 79 indicators from over
30 international sources and
with a transparent and replicable
computation methodology, it is
widely recognized as the leading
measure of the innovation power of
economies around the world. The
report has been themed Effective
Innovation for Development.
India, receiving a score of 31.74
(out of 100) ranked 81st of the 141
countries surveyed, 8th amongst 34
Lower-Middle Income Countries,
1st from the 11 Central and South
Asian region countries, and 31st
out of 141 countries in terms of
efficiency ratio.
While Indias continually dropping
rank is bound to raise some cause
for worry, it is interesting to note
that the Report refers to India as an
Innovation Achiever a term they
use to describe economies that are
performing at least 10% better than
their peers for their level of GDP.
Hangzhou City chosen to host
2022 Asian Games: The eastern
Chinese city of Hangzhou was
on 16 September chosen by the
Olympic Council of Asia (OCA)
to host the 2022 Asian Games. The
decision was made by the OCA at
its 34th Congress in Ashkhabad,
Turkmenistan. Hangzhou was the
only candidate city for the 2022
Asian Games. Its successful bid
means the regional games will
be staged in China for the third
time following Beijing in 1990 and
southern Guangzhou in 2010.
Beijing was just selected to hold
Ideas
the 2022 Winter Olympics after
hosting the Summer Games in 2008.
The South Korean city of Incheon
hosted the last Asian Games in
2014, while Indonesias Jakarta will
host in 2018.
Asian Games also known as Asiad
is a pancontinental multi-sport
event (44 sports events) among
athletes from all over Asia. It is held
every four years and regulated and
organized by the OCA since 1982. It
was first held in 1951 in New Delhi,
India under the aegis of Asian
Games Federation (AGF).
NASA and ISRO jointly working on
NISAR mission: ISRO and NASA
are jointly working on the NASAISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar
(NISAR) mission to co-develop and
launch a dual frequency synthetic
aperture radar satellite. NASA-ISRO
Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR)
mission is a dual frequency (L &
S Band) Radar Imaging Satellite.
In this joint mission, JPL/ NASA
will design and develop L-band
SAR, 12m unfurlable antenna,
GPS system and data recorder.
ISRO will be responsible for design
and development of S-band SAR,
Spacecraft Bus, data transmission
system, Spacecraft integration and
testing, launch using GSLV and onorbit operations.
The objectives of NISAR mission
are:
Design, Develop and launch a Dual
frequency (L and S Band) Radar
Imaging Satellite.
Explore newer application areas
using L and S band microwave
data, especially in natural resources
mapping & monitoring; estimating
agricultural biomass over full
A-293
Ideas
duration of crop cycle; assessing
soil moisture; monitoring of floods
and oil slicks; coastal erosion,
coastline changes and variation of
winds in coastal waters; assessment
of mangroves; surface deformation
studies due to seismic activities etc.
The cost of the project includes
cost of ISROs work share, which is
estimated to be Rs 788.00 Cr and
cost of JPLs work share, which is
expected to be around USD 808
millions.
Low-Cost Device to Monitor
Air Quality Unveiled: A groundbreaking air quality measuring
device was unveiled on August 31
in Nairobi by the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP),
expected to cost up to 100 times less
than existing solutions. The device
has the potential to revolutionize air
quality measurement in developing
countries and help prevent deaths
from air pollution.
The device is capable of collecting
all the vital parameters of air quality
and will cost around $1,500 per
unit. It would allow governments to
establish a countrywide network of
mobile and stationary air monitoring
stations for as little as $150,000200,000. Presently, around the same
amount of money is necessary to set
up just one monitoring station.
The low cost and ease of use of
UNEPs device will facilitate
community
participation
in
environmental
and
health
monitoring, and increase digital
and technological literacy through
the participation of schools. It
can measure the concentration of
particulate matter ranging from 1 to
10 microns in diameter (PM 1 - PM
10), including PM 2.5, considered
by the WHO to have the greatest

effect on human health.
Liquid Water on Mars: NASA:
Water exists in liquid form on the
surface of Mars, Nasa scientists
have revealed making it possible
for life to be sustained on the Red
Planet. Nasa claimed the strongest
evidence yet of intermittent
flows of briny water on Mars after
scientists found hydrated salts in
dark streaks that ebb and flow down
the planets slopes. The dark marks,
which appear in summer months,
are thought to be caused by the salty
water wicking up from a shallow
flow beneath the surface though the
origins of the briny flows still not
known.
The water appears to exist in the
form of thin layers of wet soil
rather than pools of standing water,
according to Alfred McEwen of
the University of Arizona, one of
the scientists who made the finding
using new imaging techniques.
Water is essential to life as we know
it on Earth and on Earth, wherever
there is water there is also life, the
scientists said. However, it is not
yet known whether the briny water
discovered on Mars may be too salty
to support terrestrial life forms.
NOVEMBER
China ends one child policy: Since
the time draconian family planning
rules were announced, the Chinese
could have only one child. This
rule went on for more than three
decades but the policy of one child
was scrapped. All the couples in
China are now allowed to have two
children. A four-day Communist
A-294
party summit took place in Beijing

following the announcement day.
In the summit, Chinas leaders
deliberated on how the growth could
be maintained at the time of raised
concerns of economy. Some people
took in a positive way, regarding
it to be a step towards a better yet
greater personal freedom in the
country. The human rights activists,
on the other hand, discouraged it
expressing that the Communist
party is continuing to control the
size of Chinese families. Because
of the fear of population increase
going out of control, the one child
policy had been introduced in China
in 1980. The minority families and
rural couples though had received
a relaxation since 2013 for having
a second child in case the firstborn
was a girl. The Communist party
claims to have prevented 400million
births through the one-child policy
that had contributed to a spectacular
economic rise since the 1980s.
Project Loon in India: Google,
govt working on balloon: Internet
giant Google and government
of India are working on Project
Loon. This project involves the
use of hot air balloons at a height
of 20 km above the surface of the
Earth which will provide internet
connectivity. The transmission f
internet services would cover about
40km diameter to beam 4G signals.
Each balloon has a capacity to float
for around 6 months. In the whole
project, Google will play the role
of an enabler and not the ISP. The
Department of Electronics and
Ideas
Information Technology (DeitY)
is also facilitating co-ordination
between various agencies to test this
project.For testing this technology by
using a broadband spectrum in the
2.6 GHz band, Google is believed
to initially partner with BSNL. The
aim to bring this technology is to
replace the mobile towers in the rural
areas and remote areas and designed
to connect people, to eliminated
coverage gaps and bring people back
online after disaster. This technology
has the potential to transmit signals
directly to mobile devices. Google
has already tested this technology in
New Zealand, California and Brazil.
DECEMBER
DTAC Agreement with Japan:
The Double Taxation Avoidance
Convention (DTAC) which was
signed between India and Japan in
1989 has been amended in order by
the Union Cabinet to facilitate taxrelated exchange of information.
The protocol will facilitate exchange
of information as per accepted
international standards on tax
matters, including bank information
and information without domestic
tax interest. The protocol signed
between the countries also has
a provision to offer assistance to
each other country in collection
of revenue claims as well as for
exemption of interest income from
taxation in the source country with
respect to debt claims insured by the
government or government-owned
financial institutions.
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How far have we been able to

Combat Open Defecation?
What is open defecation?
he practice of going out in the fields, bushes,open bodies of water, forests

or other open spaces in spite of using toilet to excrete is termed open
defecation. Besides being an uncontrolled practice in India, we also lead in
such population which defecates in the open thereby excreting approximately
65,000 tonnes of faeces into the environment each day. Though it may sound
like we have been following it like a tradition or it has been a part of our very
culture, but the broader picture tells that the prime reason for open defecation
is a shortage of proper public sanitation. Besides the usual public urination
practiced by majority of the male population in India, nearly half of our 590
million people excrete in the open.
Must know Facts
1. Every year 188,000 children under five die due to diseases transmitted
through flies which feed on human waste and one of the major ones is
Diarrhea.
Human waste running through public water streams such as wells
contaminate bathing and drinking water, further leading to water
communicable diseases.
2. Risk of Polio infection increases due to open defecation as the faecal-oral
route is an important polio transmission pathway.
3. One gram of faeces contains:
x 10,000,000 viruses
x 1,000,000 bacteria
x 1,000 parasite cysts
4. Child faeces contain comparatively more germs than adults.
5. India alone accounts for 90% of the South Asian population and 59%
of the total world population (1.1 billion) practicing open defecation.
Diarrhoea and worm infection not only implicate to severe health
conditions but also lead to learning disabilities in children of school-age. On
the other hand, women who feel constrained to relieve themselves only in
the dark to protect their dignity get exposed to encounters like snakebites or
physical attacks.
Open defecation as a term became ubiquitous through Water, Sanitation and
Hygiene (WASH) sector from 2008 onwards after the contribution to growing
awareness stood substantial by the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water
Supply and Sanitation (JMP) and the UN International Year of Sanitation.
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How Far have we been able to Combat Open Defecation?
Predecessor of the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs)
from 2016 onwards.
A joint programme by WHO

and UNICEF to monitor
sanitation and water targets for
the Milenium Development
Goals (MDGs).
JMP
Two categories created for
monitoring purposes :
Improved sanitation Uniproved
santitation
Publications of JMP and Un

International Year of sanitation
in 2008 aggravated awareness
towards sanitation.
Impacts:
Health Impacts:
Diarrhoea, intestinal worm infections, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis, polio,
trachoma and other diseases are the outcome of the lack of sanitation and
hygiene; further resulting into malnutrition and stunted growth in kids.
Infectious diarrhoea led to 0.7 million deaths in children under five in
2011. Diseases transferred via faecal pathogens in water are the worst cases
to be pondered upon, owing to the fact that a large part of Indian population
resides in rural India which still depends upon surface water and unprotected
wells for everyday water needs.
Moreover, a place with high population is prone to be affected more
through open defecation as it is twice as bad as compared to a place with
sparse population cover.
Safety and Gender impacts:
Women and girls become more vulnerable to violence due to lack of safe
and private toilets. It also acts as a hindrance to girls education further leading
to cases of rapes and sexual molestation while women are out searching for
secluded and private places for open defecation during dark hours.
Quick glance through major reasons and correlated factors:
Large disparities
between rich and
poor
High levels of
poverty- lack
of sanitation
High levels
of open
defecationHigh child
mortalityHigh levels of
undernutrition
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Wider Picture: the complete scenario

One in two people
uses a toilet and more
than 595 million people
defecate openly
One in two people uses
a toilet and more than
595 million people
defecate openly.
Safe disposal
of child faeces
in Indian rural
population
accounts to mere
11%
People in rural areas

with no access to
toilets - 65%
Mothers
disposing of
their childrens
faeces in the
open- 44%
Frequent diarrhoea
attack, malnutrition,
stunting and pneumonia
are major concerns.
Children suffering from
malnutrition - 43%
The need to combat - How is it met?

The challenge of open defecation is taken seriously by the Government
of India in collaboration with UNICEF and it targets to make India Open
Defecation Free by 2019. The government looks forward to meet this target
through its flagship programme named Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) with
UNICEF as its key partner. Swachh Bharat Mission aims at promoting awareness
through information sharing and influencing behavioural changes in order to
cement the gap between toilets construction and their proper use.
UNICEF is working with the state governments of India through its
national sanitation and hygiene advocacy and communication strategy, in
which it ideates the state governments to develop and implement respective
state sanitation and hygiene related strategies.
UNICEF has joined hands with the Ministry of Human Resource
Development and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to improve the
status of WASH in schools and health centres.
UNICEF has also introduced CATS Pilots Community Approaches to
Total Sanitation in six Indian states. It elaborates on harnessing grassroots
methods to achieve quick and quality open defecation free communities.
WASH compliance in health facilities in the most deprived districts is being
mapped by UNICEF and the Health Ministry. WASH caters to identifying
institutions in need of capacity-building like reforming water and sanitation
missions. It also identifies toilet technologies in accordance with variant climatic
and geographic zones and further lends support in improving the skills of
masons in constructing better quality toilets.
UNICEF, WASH and Advocacy and Communications sections have
collaboratively come up with a campaign named Poo2Looin the largest Indian
cities, which consciously opts to address the young Indian population to have
toilets at home and sensitizes them to the predicament of those lacking toilets.
This way it creates a youth social movement to stand up and advocate the
need for everyone to have a toilet.
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Prevention
These are the key drivers involved in eradicating this problem:
Focus on
behaviour change
Stronger
public sector
local service
delivery systems
Sanitation
solutions
offering better
value than open
defecation
Political will
Creating
right incentive
structures
Initiatives
What remains the most prevailing problem in Indian society is the ignorance
and lack of willingness as can be seen amongst small Indian villages where
people have not inculcated this habit of using private toilets. They would
still go for open sanitation rather than public toilets being available in their
locality. They have varied reasons like witches inside toilets who might kidnap
children or toilets being dilapidated, filthy, dark and unattractive in case of
shared or public toilets.
So, the need to spread awareness is the foremost thing to prioritize and
campaigns on behavioral change, community-led total sanitation would further
the process of clean and hygienic sanitation. Government has numerous
initiatives in its cap to reduce this open defecation menace from our society,
like Total Sanitation Campaign,Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan and Swachh
Bharat Abhiyan to name a few.
Simpler sanitation technology options like mobile sanitation options
(MoSan) can be practiced as an alternative to open sanitation. People can
use plastic bags or flying toilets at night to contain their faeces which as an
advanced concept is promoted by a Swedish company Peepoople, that produces
Peepoo bag, a personal, single-use, self-sanitizing, fully biodegradable toilet that
prevents faeces from contaminating the instant area as well as the surrounding
ecosystem. Schools and urban slums in developing nations are provided with
this bag and is a much applauded practice.
Bucket toilets or portable toilets are also another of the advanced concepts
most common in Kenya and can be opted as an alternative here.
Furthermore, government has increased subsidy on toilet construction to
an amount of Rs. 12000. After this new legislation, a number of industries like
Pronto have taken a lead in developing affordable toilets through prefabricated
techniques in order to match the high demands of quality and perseverance.
A western India city council has planned to pay residents to use public toilets
in order to discontinue the process of urination and defecation in public.
Combining subsidies with targeted community allocation is one of the effective
means amongst communities in combating the open defecation problem.
A-299
COMINGUP IN 2016
1st January to 15th January: OddEven Scheme Trial for vehicles in

Delhi.
10th June to 10th July: 2016 UEFA

European Championship scheduled
to be held in France.
20th January: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi to attend World
Economic Forum meeting.
26th January: France President
Franois Hollande to visit India on
the eve of Republic Day.
11th March 3rd April: The 2016
ICC World Twenty20 scheduled to
be held in India.
March: Assam Assembly Election

Schedule 2016 to be announced.
MayJune 2016: Legislative assembly
election to be held in West Bengal.
4th July: NASAs Juno spacecraft is

expected to arrive at Jupiter.
10th -14th July: 8th International

Congress on Environmental Congress
on Environmental Modelling and
Software in Toulouse, France.
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August 5th 21st: The 2016 Summer

Olympics will be held in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil.
Comingup in 2016
September: China plans to complete

the five hundred meter aperture
spherical telescope.
8th September: 58th US presidential
election to be held.
4th -5th September: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi to visit 2016 G-20
Hangzhou summit.
September: PM Narendra Modi
will visit Pakistan to attend the
SAARC summit likely to be held in
September 2016.
7th to 18th September: The 2016
Summer Paralympics will be held in
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
31st December: the last remaining

American, British and Australian
troops to be withdrawn from
Afghanistan.
3$125$0$
` Indian
` World
B-4
Panorama
Indian Panorama
INDIAN STATES AND UNION TERRITORIES
` Andhra Pradesh
Also known as : Rice Bowl of
India, Egg Bowl of Asia
Capital: Hyderabad
Largest City: Visakhapatnam
No. Of Districts : 13
Chief Minister: Nara Chandrababu
Naidu
Governor: E. S. L. Narasimhan
Area: 160,205sq. km(61,855 sq mi)
Language: Telugu and Urdu
Date of Establishment:1st October
1953
Population: 49,386,799
Sex ratio: 992 females per 1000 males
Literacy Rate: 67.7%
Population Density(per sq km): 308
Forest Area: Total area covered by
the forest are 22,862 sq. km
Agriculture : An exporter of many
agricultural products and about 60
percent of population is engaged in
agriculture and related activities. Rice
is the major food crop and staple food
of the state. Also grow wheat, jowar,
bajra, maize, minor millet, coarse
grain, many varieties of pulses, oil
seeds, sugarcane, cotton, chilli-pepper
and tobacco.
Industry: Home to firms like
PepsiCo, Isuzu Motors, Cadbury
India, Kelloggs, Colgate-Palmolive,
Kobelco etc. Along with the largest
PepsiCo plant in India.
Neighbouring states : Telangana
in the North-West, Chhattisgarh in
the north, Odisha in the North-East,
Karnataka in the West, Tamil Nadu
in the South and the water body of
Bay of Bengal in the East.
Art & Culture:

(a) Classical dance forms (Sastriya
Nrutyam) such as Kuchipudi,
Bhamakalapam, Veeranatyam; and
folk dances such as Butta bommalu,
Tappeta Gullu, Lambadi, Dhimsa,
and Chindu exists in Andhra
Pradesh.
(b) Festivals : Sankranti, Maha
Shivaratri, Ugadi or the Telugu
New Year, Sri Rama Navami,
Varalakshmi Vratam, Vinayaka
Chaviti, Dasara, Atla Tadde,
Deepavali, Deepothsavam during
the Deepavali season.
Religious places: Tirupati or
Tirumala is the richest pilgrimage
centre in the world, dedicated to the
god Venkateswara; Simhachalam is
believed to be abode of the saviourgod Narasimha, who rescued Prahlada
from abusive father Hiranyakasipu;
Srisailam is dedicated mainly to Lord
Shiva and is famous as one of the
locations of the various Jyotirlingams.
Tribes: Andh, Bagata, Bhil, Chenchu,
Gadabas, Bodo, Nakkala, Dhulia,
Koya, Kotia, Jatapus, Kulia, Malis,
Valmiki, Manna, Mukha, Pardhan,
Porja.
Cuisines: Mutton Biryani, Mirchi
Salan, Ghongpura Pickle, Korikoora
Animal: Blackback (Antilope cervicapra)
Bird: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
` Arunachal Pradesh
Also known as: The Orchid State
of India or the Paradise of the
Botanists
Capital: Itanagar
B-5
Panorama
Largest City: Itanagar
No. Of Districts:19
Chief Minister: Nabam Tuki
Governor: Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa
Area: 83,743 sq. km
Language: English
Date of Establishment: 20 February
1987
Sex Ratio: 920 females per 1000
males
Population density:17 per sq. km
Forest Area: 68045 sq. km.
Agriculture:Main crops:rice, maize,
millet, wheat, pulses, sugarcane,
ginger, and oilseeds. Also ideal for
horticulture and fruit orchards.
Industry:Arts and Crafts, weaving,
cane and bamboo, carpet weaving,
wood carving, ornaments, tourism
and horticulture.
Neighbouring States: Borders with
the states of Assam and Nagaland to
the south, and international borders
with Bhutan in the west, Burma in the
east and China in the north.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dance: Bardo Chham is a folk
dance which depicts the victory
of good over evil.
(b) Festivals: Losar or The New
Year festival, is the most important
festival of Tawang District in
Arunachal Pradesh.
Religious places: Parasuram Kunda
attracts lots of devotees in January
during the Parasuram mela Akashganga
Temple is also called Malinithan
temple and associated with the
legend of Daksha Yagya and Satis
self-immolation.
Tribes: Abor, Aka, Apatani, Momba,
Naga, Sherdukp, Nyishi, Galo,
Khampti, Khowa, Mishmi, Idu,
Hrusso, Tagin, Khamba, Adi
Cuisines: Chinese Cuisine & Apong

(Local Beer)
Animal- Gayal (Bos frontalis)
Bird- Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis)
` Asom
Capital: Dispur
Largest City: Guwahati
No. Of Districts: 32
Chief Minister: Tarun Gogoi
Governor: Padmanabha Balakrishna
Acharya
Area:78,550 sq. km
Language: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo
Date of Establishment: 1st April 1912
Population density:397 per sq km.
Forest Area:26,832 sq km
Agriculture : Asoms biggest contribution
to the world is Asom tea and has its own
variety of Camellia assamica. The state
produces rice, rapeseed, mustard seed, jute,
potato, sweet potato, banana, papaya, areca
nut, sugarcane and turmeric.
Industry: The industries housed by the
state include a chemical fertiliser plant
at Namrup, petrochemical industries at
Namrup and Bongaigaon, Paper mills
at Jagiroad, Hindustan Paper Corporatio
Ltd. Township Area Panchgram and
Jogighopa, sugar mills at Barua Bamun
Gaon, Chargola, Kampur, Cement plant
at Bokajan and Badarpur, cosmetics
plant of Hindustan Unilever (HUL) at
Doom Dooma, etc.
Neighbouring States: Asom is surrounded
by six of the other Seven Sister States:
Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur,
Mizoram, Tripura, and Meghalaya.
Art & Culture:
(a) Ankia Naat (Onkeeya Naat), a
traditional Vaishnav dance-drama
(Bhaona) popular since the 15th
century AD. Folk dances like Bihu
and the Bagurumba (both danced
during festivals held in the spring),
the Bhortal dance, the Ojapali
dance etc.
B-6
(b) Festivals: Bihu is the most

important and common and
celebrated all over Asom. Durga
Puja is another festival celebrated
with great enthusiasm. Muslims
celebrate two Eids (Eid ul-Fitr
and Eid al-Adha) with great zeal.
Religious places: Kamakhya Temple
is one of the most famous temples.
Tribes: Mikirs, Khasis, Nagas, Barmans,
Boro, Borokachari, Deori, Hojai, .
Kachari, Sonwal, Lalung, Mech, Miri,
Rabha, Dimasa, Hajong, Singhpho,
Khampti, Garo.
Cuisines: Masor Tenga, Pitha
Animal: One-horned rhino (Rhinoceros
unicornis)
Bird: White-winged wood duck
(Cairina scutulata)
` Bihar
Capital: Patna
Largest City: Patna
No. Of districts: 38
Chief Minister: Nitish Kumar
Governor: Ram Nath Kovind
Area:99,200 sq. km
Language: Hindi, Bhojpuri, Magadhi,
Maithili, Urdu
Date of Establishment: 1st April 1936
Sex Ratio: 916 females per 1000 males
Population density:1,102 per sq km.
Forest Area:6,764.14 sq mi (2,612 sq mi)
Agriculture: Largest producer of
vegetables, especially potatoes, onions,
brinjal/egg-plant, and cauliflower.
Largest producer of litchi, the third
largest producer of pineapples and a
major producer of mangoes, bananas,
and guava. Sugarcane,jute cash crops
Industry: Three major firms
United Breweries Group, Danish
Brewery Company Carlsberg Group
and Cobra Beer are to set up new
units in Patna and Muzaffarpur in
2012.
Panorama
Neighbouring States: It is contiguous
with Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal
to the north, the northern part of
West Bengal to the east, and with
Jharkhand to the south.
Art & Culture:
(a) Mithila painting is a style of
Indian painting practised in the
Mithila region of Bihar
(b) Festivals: Chhath, also called
Dala Chhath, is an ancient and
major festival in Bihar.Shravani
mela,Teej and Chitragupta Puja
along with all the major festivals
of India are celebrated in Bihar.
Religious Places: Mahabodhi Temple
is a Buddhist shrine and UNESCO
World Heritage Site;
Mahavir Mandir in Patna; Takht Shri
Harmandir Saheb in Patna and many
more.
Tribes: Gonda, Mundas, Oraon,
Gorait, Ho, Karmali, Kharia , Kha,
Omitted, Binjhia, Birhor, Birjia, Chero.
Cuisines: Litti-Chokha, Sattu Paratha,
Khaja, Khubi Ka Lai, Anarasa, Tilkut
Animal: Gaur (Bos gaurue)
Bird: House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
` Chhattisgarh
Also Known as: Rice bowl of central
India
Capital: Raipur
Largest City: Raipur
Chief Minister: Raman Singh
Governor: Balramji Das Tandon
Area:135,194 sq. km.
Language: Chattisgarhi, Hindi
Date of Establishment:1st November
2000
males
Forest Area: 41.33% of the total state area
B-7
Panorama
Agriculture: The main crops are rice,
maize, kodo-kutki and other small
millets and pulses oilseeds, such
as groundnuts (peanuts), soybeans
and sunflowers, are also grown.
Horticulture and animal husbandry
also engage a major share of the total
population of the state.
Industry: Industries: Bhilai Steel
Plant, Jindal Steel and Power, Bharat
Aluminium Company, Baldev Alloys
Pvt Ltd,Indian Oil Corporation
Engineering: Simplex Casting Ltd,
CHPL-Dream-Homes
(Chouhan
Housing Pvt Ltd.), NMDC, South
Eastern Coalfields, NTPC, Lanco
Infratech, KSK Energy Ventures,
Vandana Vidyut, Chhattisgarh State
Power Generation Company and
Jindal Power Limited.
Neighbouring States: Borders the
states of Madhya Pradesh in the
northwest, Maharashtra in the
southwest Telangana and Andhra
Pradesh in the south, Odisha in the
east, Jharkhand in the northeast and
Uttar Pradesh in the north.
Art & Culture: (a) Dances: Panthi,
Rawat Nacha Pandwani, Chaitra,
Kaksar, Saila and Soowa are the
several indigenous dance styles of
Chhattisgarh.
Festival Bastar Dussere, Bhoramdeo
Festival, Madai Festival. Hariyali,
Kora, Navakhani are the major
festival
Religious Places: Bhoramdeo temple,
Rajivlochan temple, Chandrahasini
Devi temple, Vishnu temple, Damudhara
(Rishab Tirth) and Sivarinarayana
Laxminarayana temple, Bambleshwari
Temple, Danteshwari Temple and
many more other ancient temples.
Tribes: Agariya, Andh, Baiga,
Bhaina, Bharia, Halba, Kamar,
Karku, Saur, Sawar, Sawara, Sonr ,
Majhi, Majhwar, Mawasi , Munda,

Kharia, Kondh, Kol, Kolam, Pao.
Cuisines: Bafauri, Kusli, Red Ant
Chutney
Animal: Wild buffalo (Bubalis arnee)
Bird: Bastar Hill myna (Gracula religiosa)
` Goa
Capital: Panaji
Largest City: Vasco da Gama
No. Of districts: 2
Chief Minister: Laxmikant Parsekar
Governor: Mridula Sinha
Area: 3,702 sq km (1,429 sq mi)
Language: Konkani
Date of Establishment: 30th May, 1987
Sex ratio: 968 females per 1000 males
Forest Area:1,424 sq km (549.81 sq mi)
Agriculture:
Rice
the
main
agricultural crop, followed by areca,
cashew and coconut.
Industry: Tourism is Goas primary
industry as it handles 12% of all
foreign tourist arrival in India.
Neighbouring States:It is bounded
by the state of Maharashtra to the
north and by Karnataka to the east
and south, while the Arabian Sea
forms its western coast.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dance: Some of the traditional
Goan dance art forms are
Dekhnni, Fugdi, Corridinho,
Mando, Dulpod and Fado.
(b) Festivals: The most popular
celebrations in the Indian state
of Goa are Ganesh Chaturthi,
Diwali,
Christmas,
Easter,
Samvatsar Padvo or Sanvsar
Padvo, Shigmo, Goa Carnival.
Goa known for its New Years
celebrations along with the Goan
Carnival is known to attract a
large number of tourists.
B-8
Religious places: Goa has two holy

World Heritage Sites: the Bom Jesus
Basilica and churches and convents
of Old Goa. The Basilica holds the
mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier,
who is the patron saint of Goa.
Tribes: Dhodia, Dubla (Halpati),
Naikda, Siddi, Varli, Kunbi, Gawda,
Velip.
Cuisines: Vindaloo, Xacuti, Bibinca,
Prawn Balchao
Animal: Gaur (Bos gaurus)
Bird: Black-crested bulbul (Pycnonotus
gularis)
` Gujarat
Also known as: Jewel of the Western
part of India
Capital: Gandhinagar
Largest City: Ahmedabad
No. Of districts:33
Chief Minister: Anandiben Patel
Governor: Om Prakash Kohli
Area:196,204 sq km (75,755 sq mi)
Language: Gujarati
Date of Establishment:1 May 1960
Population:60,383,628
males
Literacy Rate:79.31%
Population Density:310/ sq km(800/
sq mi)
Forest Area: 9.7% of the total
geographical area is under forest cover
Agriculture: Gujarats agriculture
is majorly focussed on cotton
production, livestock, fruits and
vegetables, and wheat production.
Industry: Large scale industries such as
Agro Marine Exports, Creative Castings
Ltd., Gujarat Dairy Development
Corporation, Austin Engineering
and JSW Power Co. The Alang Ship
Recycling Yard (the worlds largest),
General Motors manufactures, Tata
Motors manufactures the Tata Nano and
Panorama
AMW trucks are made near Bhuj. Surat
is the hub of the global diamond trade.
According to Forbes list Ahmedabad
ranks 3rd in the worlds fastest growing
cities in the world.
Neighbouring states: The state is
bordered by Rajasthan to the north,
Maharashtra to the south, Madhya
Pradesh to the east, and the Arabian
Sea as well as the Pakistani province
of Sindh to the west.
Art & Culture :
(a) Rass-garba is a folk dance
which is done as celebration of
Navratri.
(b) Festivals: Makar Sankranti,
Navratri, Uttarayana, Diwali,
Holi, Tazia and others are
celebrated with great enthusiasm.
Religious places: Somnath temple
and the Sun Temple are some of the
renowned Hindu temples. Palitana
templesfor the Jain community; Sidi
Saiyyed Mosque and Jama Masjid
are holymosques for Muslims.
Tribes: Bhils, Barda, Bavacha, Charan,
Gond, Dubla, Dhanka, Chodhara,
Chaudhr, Charan, Gamit, Kunbi,
Patelia, Pomla, Rabar, Rathawa, Siddi.
Cuisines: Thepla, Dhokla, Khandvi,
Handvo, Panki
Animal: Asiatic lison (Panthera leo
persica)
Bird: Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus
roseus)
` Haryana
Capital: Chandigarh
Largest City: Faridabad
Chief Minister: Manohar Lal Khattar
Governor: Kaptan Singh Solanki
Area: 44,212 sq. km(17,070 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Punjabi, Haryanvi
Date of Establishment:1 November
1966
B-9
Panorama
Population Density: 73 per sq km
(1,480/sq mi)
Forest Area:1,684 sq km (650 sq mi)
Agriculture: Wheat and rice are the
major crops making Haryana, the
second largest contributor to Indias
central pool of food grains. The main
crops are wheat, rice, sugarcane,
cotton,oilseeds, gram, barley, corn,
millet and many more.
Industry: National and international
companies like Samsung, DB Schenker,
Damco Solutions, Abacus Softech,
Nokia Networks, Mitsubishi Electric,
IBM, Huawei, General Electric, Tata
Consultancy Services and Amdocs
have their branch offices and contact
centres in Faridabad and Gurgaon(also
known as City of millennium). Largescale companies like Orient Paper
& Industries, JCB India Limited,
Nirigemes, Agri Machinery Group
(Escorts Limited), India Yamaha
Motor Pvt. Ltd., Whirlpool, ABB
Group, Goodyear Tyres and Knorr
Bremse India Pvt. Ltd.
Neighbouring States: It is bordered
by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to
the north, by Rajasthan to the west
and south. The river Yamuna defines
its eastern border with Uttar Pradesh.
Art & Culture: Festivals: Haryali Teej,
Lohri, Gangore, Makar Sankranti,
Gugga Naumi, Baisaki are some of
the famous festivals of Haryana
Tourism: Surajkund International
Crafts Mela, Sultanpur National
Park, Kalesar National Park, Pinjore
Gardens Resort, and Nahar Singh
Mahal are some of the major tourist
attraction.
Cuisine: Rabadi, Bajre ki Khichdi,
Cholia, Chaach-Lassi, Kachri ki Sabzi
Animal: Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra)
Bird: Black Francolin (Francolinus
francolinus)
` Himachal Pradesh
Name: Himachal Pradesh
Also known as: State of Apples, Dev
Bhoomi(Abode of Gods)
Capital: Shimla
Largest City: Shimla
No. Of Districts:12
Chief Minister: Virbhadra Singh
Governor: Acharya Dev Vrat
Area: 55,673 sq. km(21,495 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, English
Date of Establishment: 25th January
1971
(320/sq mi)
Forest Area: 66.52% of the total area
Agriculture: Agriculture contributes
nearly 45% to the net state domestic
product and 93% of the state
population depends directly upon
agriculture. The main cereals grown
in the state are wheat, maize, rice and
barley. Fruit cultivation has also proved
to be an economic boon,with Apple
farming producing the maximum
income which amounts to 3 billion
annually.
Industry: Textiles, pharmaceuticals,
food procurement and processing,
light engineering, IT and electronics,
cement, tourism and hydropower are
the key industries resident in the state
with Himachal accounting for 25
per cent of the countrys total hydro
power potential.
by Jammu and Kashmir on the
north, Punjab on the west, Haryana
on the south-west, Uttarakhand
on the south-east and by the Tibet
Autonomous Region on the east.
B-10
Art & Culture:

(a) Dances: Losar Shona Chuksam,
Dangi, Gee Dance and Burah
dance, Naati, Kharait, Ujagjama
and Chadhgebrikar and Shunto
are some of the known dance
forms.
(b) Festivals: Kullu Dussehra, Shivratri
Fair, Shoolini Mela (Solan), Minjar
Fair, Mani Mahesh Chhari Yatra,
Renuka fair, Lavi Trade Fair,
Vrajeshwari fair, Jwalamukhi Fair,
Holi Fair, and Naina Devi Fair,
and Fulaich are some of the most
celebrated festivals.
Tourism: The state is home to
many famous hill stations such as
Dalhousie, Kullu, Manali, Shimla,
Nainital, Dharamsala, Mcleodganj
and many more.
Tribes: Bhot, Bodh, Gaddi, Gujjar,
Jad, Lamba, Khampa, Kanaura,
Kinnara,
Lahaula,
Pangwala,
Swangla, Beta, Beda, Domba.
Cuisines: Sidu, Aktori, Dham, Seppu
Vadi, Badana, Babru
Animal: Snow Leopard (Uncia uncia
or Panthna uncia)
Bird: Jujurana Western Irogapa (Trogopan
melanocephalus)
` Jammu and Kashmir
Also known as: Heaven on Earth
Capital: Srinagar
Largest City: Srinagar
Chief Minister: Mufti Mohammad
Sayeed
Governor: Narinder Nath Vohra
Area:222,236 sq. km(85,806 sq mi)
Language: English, Urdu
Date of Establishment: 26th October
1947
Panorama
Population Density: 56 per sq. km
(150/sq mi)
Forest Area: 20230 sq. km
Agriculture: Known for its sericulture
and cold-water fisheries. Wood to make
high-quality cricket bats known as
Kashmir Willow. Kashmiri saffron.
Horticultural includes apples, apricots,
cherries, pears, plums, almonds and
walnuts with an annual turnover of
over 3 billion (US$46 million).
Industry: Horticulture plays a pivotal
role in the economy of the country.
Neighbouring States: It shares border
with the states of Himachal Pradesh and
Punjab to the south, an international
border with China in the north and east,
and the Line of Control separates it
from the Pakistani-controlled territories
of Azad Kashmir and GilgitBaltistan
in the west and northwest respectively.
Art & Culture: Dances: The Dumhal
is a famous dance in the Kashmir
Valley, performed by men of the Wattal
region whereas women perform the
Rouff, another traditional folk dance
of the region.
Religious places: Vaishno Devi
temple, Amarnath, and Raghunath
temple.
Nature Tourism: Gulmarg, Sonamarg,
Leh, Pahalgam and many more are
some of the most frequented hill
stations.
Tribes: Balti, Beda, Bot, Boto, Brokpa,
Drokpa, Dard, Shin, Changpa, Garra,
Mon, Purigpa, Gujjar, Bakarwal, Gaddi,
Sippi.
Cuisines: Gustaba, Tbak Maz, Dum
Aloo, Haak or Karam ka Saag
Animal: Kashmir Stag (Cervus
elaphus hanglin)
Bird: Black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis)
B-11
Panorama
` Jharkhand
Also known as: the Land of jungles
and jharis(bushes)
Capital: Ranchi
Largest City: Jamshedpur
Chief Minister: Raghubar Das
Governor: Draupadi Murmu
Area: 79,714 sq. km (30,778 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Santhali, Mundari,
Ho
Date of Establishment: 15th November
2000
(1,070/sq mi)
Forest Area: 23,605 sq.km which is
29.61% of the geographical area of
the state
Agriculture: Rice, Pulses, Jackfruit,
Blackberry, Mango and Litchi
Industry: Mining is the primary and
most important source of economy
for the state as it accounts to 40% of
mineral resources of the state.
Neighbouring States: The state shares
its border with the states of Bihar to the
north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
to the west, Odisha to the south, and
West Bengal to the east.
Art & Culture: Dance: The most
popular foll dances of Jharkhand are
Jhumar, Paika, Chau, Agni, Santhal,
Nanhai, Jamda, Ghatwari, Natwa,
Chaukare, Sohrai, Lurisayro, Uatha
Festivals: Karam festival, Vat savitri
puja, Teej, Sohrai, Jitia Puja, Sarhul,
Makar Sankranti, Deepavali, Durga
Puja and many more are some of the
most celebrated festivals.
Tourism: Sanctuaries: Palamau Tiger
Reserves, Hazaribag Wildlife Sanctuary,
Jawaharlal Nehru Biological Park, and
Betla National Park
Tribes: Asur, Agaria, Baiga, Banjara,

Bathudi, Bedia, Binjhia, Chero, Chik
Baraik, Gond, Gorait, Ho, Karmali,
Kharia, Kora, Kharwar, Khond,
Kisan, Mudi-Kora, Korwa, Munda,
Oraon, Lohra Santal, Sauria Paharia,
Savar, Bhumij, Kawar, Kol
Cuisines: Thekua, Pua, Pittha,
Marua-ka-Roti
Animal: Indian Elephant (Elephas
maximus indicus)
Bird: Asian koel (Eudynamys scolopacea)
` Karnataka
Capital: Bengaluru
Largest City: Bengaluru
Chief Minister: Siddaramaiah
Governor: Vajubhai Vala
Area:191,791 sq. km(74,051 sq mi)
Language: Kannada
Date of Establishment:1st November
1956
males
Population Density: 320/ sq.km
(830/sq mi)
Forest Area: 38,720 sq.km of forest
area.
Agriculture: The main crops: rice, ragi,
jowar, maize, and pulses (Tur and gram)
besides oilseeds and number of cash
crops. Cashews, coconut, arecanut,
cardamom, chillies, cotton, sugarcane
and tobacco are among the other crops
produced in the state. Karnataka is
the largest producer of coarse cereals,
coffee, raw silk and tomatoes among
the states in India. Karnataka occupies
the second position in India in terms
of production and 700 tons of flowers
(worth Rs.500 million) were produced
in 200405.
B-12
Industry:
National
Aerospace
Laboratories, Bharat Heavy Electricals
Limited, Indian Telephone Industries,
Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML),
Bharat Electronics Limited, Hindustan
Machine Tools and Indian subsidiaries
of Volvo and Toyota are headquartered
in Bangalore.
Neighbouring States: Karnataka is
bordered by the Arabian Sea and the
Laccadive Sea to the west, Goa to
the north west, Maharashtra to the
north, Telangana to the North east,
Andhra Pradesh to the east, Tamil
Nadu to the south east, and Kerala
to the south west.
Art & Culture: (a) Dance: Mysore
style of Bharatanatyam is the oldest
and most popular dance form and
is widely performed in Karnataka.
Bolak-aat, Ummatt-aat and Kombaat are some of the other forms of
folk dances in the state.
(b) Festivals: Mysore Dasara is
celebrated as the state festival of
Mysore. Ugadi (Kannada New Year),
Makar Sankranti (the harvest festival),
Ganesh Chaturthi, Nagapanchami,
Basava Jayanthi, Deepavali, and
Ramzan are the other major festivals
of Karnataka.
Tourism:
National Parks: Bandipur National
Park, Bannerghatta National Park
and Nagarhole National Park.
Waterfalls: Gokak Falls, Unchalli
Falls, Magod Falls, Abbey Falls, Jog
falls and Shivanasamudra Falls
Tribes: Adiyan, Barda, Bavacha, Bhil,
Chenchu, Chodhara, Dubla, Konda,
Koraga, Kurumans, Maha Malasar,
Malaikudi, Malasar, Malayekandi,
Maleru, Maratha Patelia, Rathawa,
Siddi, Sholaga, Soligaru , Toda,
Varli, Vitolia
Cuisines: Bisi Bele Bhaat, Kesari
Bath, Mysore Pak, Dharwad Pedha,
Chiroti
Panorama
maximus indicus)
Bird: Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
` Kerala
Also known as: Gods own country
Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
Largest City: Kochi
No. Of Districts:14
Chief Minister: Oommen Chandy
Governor : P. Sathasivam
Area: 38,863 sq.km(15,005 sq mi)
Language: Malayalam, English
Date of Establishment: 1st July 1949
Sex Ratio: 1,084 females per 1000
males
Population Density: 860/sq.km
(2,200/sq mi)
Forest Area: 10,336 sq.km (3,991 sq mi)
Agriculture: Kerala produces 97% of
the national output of black pepper and
accounts for 85% of the area under
natural rubber in the country. Coconut,
tea, coffee, cashew, and spicesincluding
cardamom, vanilla, cinnamon, and
nutmeg comprise a critical agricultural
sector. The key agricultural staple is
rice, with varieties grown in extensive
paddy fields.
Industry: Software giants like Infosys,
Oracle, Tata Consultancy Services,
Capgemini, HCL, UST Global, Nest,
Suntec and IBS have offices in the
state. Thiruvananthapuram is also the
IT Hub of Kerala and accounts for
around 80% of the software exports.
The Grand Kerala Shopping Festival
(GKSF) claimed to be Asias largest
shopping festival was started in the
year 2007.
by Karnataka to the north and north
east, Tamil Nadu to the east and
south, and the Lakshadweep Sea to
the west.
Panorama
Art & Culture:
(a) Dance: The classical dance
forms of Kerala are Kathakali,
Mohiniyattam,
Koodiyattom,
Thullal and Krishnanattam.
(b) Festivals: Onam is a harvest
festival celebrated by the people
of Kerala.
Tourism:
Beaches: Kovalam, Varkala, Fort
Kochi, Cherai, Payyambalam, Kappad,
Muzhappilangad.
Hill stations: Munnar, Wayanad,
Wagamon, Peermade, Paithalmala,
Nelliampathi and Ponmudi.
National parks and sanctuaries:
Periyar Tiger Reserve, Parambikulam
Wildlife Sanctuary, Chinnar Wildlife
Sanctuary, Thattekad Bird Sanctuary,
Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Muthanga
Wildlife Sanctuary, Aralam Wildlife
Sanctuary, Eravikulam National Park,
and Silent Valley National Park.
Tribes: Adiyan, Arandan, Irular, Kadar,
Cholanaickan, Paniyan, Ulladan ,
Ullatan, Uraly Mavilan, Karimpalan,
Vetta Kuruman, Mala Panickar
Cuisines: Puttu-Kadala, Kappa-Meen
Kari, Sadya Meal, Avial, Malabar
Parotha, Payasam, Irachi Stew,
Karimean Kari
maximus indicus)
Bird: Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis)
` Madhya Pradesh
Also known as: Heart of India
Capital: Bhopal
Largest City: Indore
Chief Minister: Shivraj Singh Chauhan
Governor: Ram Naresh Yadav
Area: 308,245 sq.km (119,014 sq mi)
Language: Hindi
Date of Establishment: 1st November
1956
B-13
(610/sq mi)
Agriculture: The state has an
agrarian economy. The major crops of
Madhya Pradesh are wheat, soybean,
gram, sugarcane, rice, maize, cotton,
rapeseed, mustard and arhar
Industry: Mining and Ordinance
factories comprise the major industries.
Neighbouring States: It borders the
states of Uttar Pradesh to the northeast, Chhattisgarh to the south-east,
Maharashtra to the south, Gujarat
to the west, and Rajasthan to the
northwest.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Badhai, Rai, Saira,
Jawara, Sher, Akhara, Shaitan,
Tertali, Charkula, Jawara, and
Maanch are some of the majore
dance forms.
(b) Festivals: Shivratri, Navratri,
Dussehra, Diwali, Bahgoriya, ShabI-Barat, Krishna Janamashtmi and
many more.
Tourism:
Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Panna,
and Satpura National Park.
Hill Station: Pachmarhi and
Amarkantak
Tribes: Bhil, Bhunjia, Biar, Binjhwar,
Birhul, Damor, Dhanwar, Gadaba,
Gond, Halba, Kamar, Karku, Kawar,
Kondar, Kharia, Kondh, Kol, Kolam,
Korku, Munda, Oraon, Panika, Pao,
Pardhan, Saonta, Saur, Sawar, Sonr.
Cuisines: Lapsi, Bafla, Bhutte ki
Khees, Bhopali Kabab
Animal: Barasingha (Rucervus duvaucelii)
Bird: Asian Paradise Flycatcher
(Trepsiphone paradisi)
B-14
` Maharashtra
Capital: Mumbai
Largest city: Mumbai
Chief Minister: Devendra Fadnavis
Governor: C. Vidyasagar Rao
Area: 307,713 sq.km(118,809 sq mi)
Language: Marathi
Date of establishment: 1st May 1960
males
Population Density: 370/sq.km (950/
sq mi)
Forest Area: 61,939 sq.km (23,915
sq mi)
Agriculture: Agriculture and allied
activities contributes 12.9% to the
states income. Staples such as rice and
millet are the main monsoon crops.
Cash crops include sugarcane, cotton,
oilseeds, tobacco, fruit, vegetables
and spices such as turmeric.
Industry: Mumbai is also known
as the financial capital of India and
houses major corporate and financial
institutions. Maharashtra contributes
25% of the countrys industrial output
and is manufacturing hub for some of
the largest public sector industries in
India, including Hindustan Petroleum
Corporation, Tata Petrodyne and Oil
India Ltd.
Neighbouring States: It shares its
border with Arabian Sea to the west
and states of Karnataka, Telangana,
Goa, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya
Pradesh and the Union territory of
Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Lavani is the most
popular form of dance in the
state. Koli dance is yet another
form of folk dance.
Panorama
(b) Festivals: Vijayadashami or
Dasara, Navaratri, Holi, Diwali,
Eid, Simollanghan is a ritual
performed on Dasara or Viajaya
Dashami day in Maharashtra.
Religious Tourism: Shirdi, Haji Ali
Dargah, Tuljabhavani temple, Parvati
temples,
Chaturshringi
Temple,
Pataleshwar.
Nature Tourism: Amboli, Chikhaldara,
Igatpuri, Jawhar, Karjat, Khandala,
Lavasa, Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar,
Matheran, Panchgani, Panhala,
Toranmal
Tribes: Andh, Baiga, Barda, Bavacha,
Bhaina, Bhunjia, Birhul, Kol, Halba,
Kamar, Kathodi, Kolam, Khairwar,
Kharia, Kokna, Parja, Patelia, Pomla,
Rathawa, Sawar, Thakur, Varli, Vitolia
Cuisines: Shrikhand, Thalipeeth,
Vada Pao, Modak
Animal: Indian Giant Squirrel (Ratufa
indica)
Bird: Yellow footed green pigeon
(Treron phoenicoptera)
` Manipur
Also known as: Gateway to the
East
Capital: Imphal
Largest city: Imphal
No. Of districts: 9
Chief Minister: Okram Ibobi Singh
Governor: Syed Ahmed
Area: 22,327 sq.km(8,621 sq mi)
Language: Meeteilon
Date of establishment: 21st Jan. 1972
(300/sq mi)
Forest Area: 14,365 dq.km
Agriculture: Manipurs climate and
soil conditions are ideally suited for
horticultural crops. It is home for
Panorama
variety of rare and exotic medicinal
and aromatic plants. Some cash
crops suited for Manipur include
litchi, cashew nuts, walnuts, orange,
lemon, pineapple, papaya, passion
fruit, peach, pear and plum.
Industry: Its economy is primarily
agriculture, forestry, cottage and
trade driven. Manipur has the
highest number of handicrafts units
and number of craftspersons, in the
entire northeastern region of India.
The state is covered with over 3,000
square km of bamboo forests, making
it one of Indias largest contributors
to its bamboo industry.
Neighbouring States: It is bounded
by Nagaland to the north, Mizoram
to the south, and Assam to the west;
Burma lies to its east.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Manipuri dance (Ras
Lila)
(b) Festivals: The various festivals
of Manipur are Lui-ngai-ni
Ningol Chakouba, Yaoshang,
Ganngai, Chumpha, Christmas,
Cheiraoba, Kang and Heikru
Hidongba.
Nature Tourism: Loktak Lake,
Kaina, Keibul Lamjao National Park,
Sadu Chiru waterfall and Thalon
Cave.
Tribes: Aimol, Anal, Angami, Chiru,
Chothe, Gangte, Hmar,
Kabui,
Koireng, Kom, Lamgang, Mao,
Maram, Maring, Mizo, , Suhte, Tangkh,
Thadou, Vaiphui, Zou, Kuki.
Cuisines: Iromba, Kabok, Chakkounba
Animal: Sangai (Cervus eldi)
Bird: Mrs. Humes Pheasant (Syrmaticus
humiae)
` Meghalaya
Also known as: the abode of the
clouds
B-15
Capital: Shillong
Largest city: Shillong
Chief Minister: Mukul Sangma
Governor: V. Shanmuganathan
Area: 22,429 sq.km(8,660 sq mi)
Language: English, Khasi and Garo
Date of establishment: 21 January
1972
Population Density :130/sq.km
(340/sq mi)
Agriculture: Basically an agricultural
state with about 80% of population
depending entirely on agriculture for
their livelihood. Rice, maize, wheat
and a few other cereals and pulses.
The important cash crops potato,
ginger, turmeric, black pepper, areca
nut, tezpatta, betelvine, short-staple
cotton, jute, mesta, mustard and
rapeseed etc. Horticultural crops like
orange, lemon, pineapple, guava,
litchi, banana, jack fruits and fruits
such as plum, pear and peach.
Industry: Meghalaya has a rich base
of natural resources which include
minerals such as coal, limestone,
sillimanite, Kaolin and granite
among others.
Neighbouring States: This state is
bounded to the south by the districts
of greater Mymensingh and the
Division of Sylhet and the west by the
Division of Rangpur of Bangladesh
and the north and the east by Assam.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Nongkrem` is an important
folkdance from the Meghalaya.
(b) Festivals: Shivratri, Nongkrem
Dance Festival, and Wangala or
the harvest Festival.
B-16
Tourism: Mawphlang sacred forest,

limestone and sandstone caves, and
some of the popular waterfalls like
the Elephant Falls, Shadthum Falls,
Weinia falls, Bishop Falls, Nohkalikai
Falls, Langshiang Falls and Sweet
Falls.
Tribes: Chakma, Dimasa, Garo,
Hajong, Hmar, Khasi, Jaintia, Kuki,
Pawi, Synteng, Boro, Koch, Raba,
Lakher, Man, Naga, Mikir, Mizo.
Cuisines: Jadoh, Kyat (local beer).
Bitchi
Animal: Clouded Leopard (Neofelis
nebulosa)
Bird: Hill Myna (Gracula religiosa)
` Mizoram
Also known as: land of the hill
people
Capital: Aizawl
Largest city: Aizawl
No. Of districts: 8
Chief Minister: Pu Lalthanhawla
Governor: Lt General Nirbhay Sharma
Area: 21,087 sq.km(8,142 sq mi)
Language: Mizo
Date of establishment: 20th February
1987
Population Density: 52/sq.km(130/sq mi)
Forest Area: 1,594,000 hectares
(3,940,000 acres)
Agriculture:55% to 60% of the
working population of the state is
annually deployed on agriculture.
Rice remains the largest crop grown in
the state; fruits are the second largest
category, followed by condiments and
spices.
Industry: Handloom, horticulture
industries, forestry, fisheries and
sericulture
Panorama
Neighbouring States: The state
shares borders with three of the seven
sister states, namely Tripura, Assam,
Manipur and a 722 km border with the
neighbouring countries of Bangladesh
and Myanmar.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Cheraw, Khuallam,
Chheihla, Chai
(b) Festivals:
Chapchar
Kut,
Thalfavang Kut, Mim Kut, Pawl
Kut, Christmas and Easter.
Tourism:
Murlen National Park, Dampa
Tiger Reserve, Khawnglung Wildlife
Sanctuary.
Hill stations: Hmuifang Tlang, Reiek
Tlang
Tribes: Chakma, Dimasa, Garo,
Hajong, Hmar, Khasi, Jaintia, Kuki,
Mikir, Naga, Pawi, Synteng, Paite,
Lakher, Man.
Cuisines: Zu (a special tea)
Animal: Hoolock gibbon (Hoolock
hoolock)
Bird: Mrs. Humes pheasant (Syrmaticus
humaie)
` Nagaland
Also known as: falcon capital of
the world
Capital: Kohima
Largest city: Dimapur
Chief Minister: T. R. Zeliang
Governor: Padmanabha Acharya
Area: 16,579 sq.km(6,401 sq mi)
Language: English
Date of establishment: 1st December
1963
Sex Ratio: 931
(310/sq mi)
Panorama
Forest Area: About one-sixth of the
states area is covered by tropical and
sub-tropical evergreen forests.
Agriculture: The main crops of
the state are rice, millet, maize, and
pulses. Cash crops, like sugarcane and
potato, are also grown in some parts.
Plantation crops such as premium
coffee, cardamom, and tea are grown
in hilly areas in small quantities.
Industry: Forestry is also an
important source of income.
Cottage industries such as weaving,
woodwork, and pottery are also an
important source of revenue.
Neighbouring States: It borders the
state of Assamto the west, Arunachal
Pradesh and part of Assam to the
north, Burma to the east and Manipur
to the south.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Zeliang is the one of
the most artistic dance forms.
(b) Festivals: Nagaland is known
as the land of festivals. The
Hornbill Festival in December,
Sekrenyi, Tsukhenyie, Mimkut,
Bishu, Aoling, Moatsu, Tuluni,
Nyaknylum, Mongmong, Tokhu
Emong and Yemshe are some of
the important festivals celebrated
by the various Naga tribes.
Tribes: Naga, Kuki, Kachari, Mikir,
Garo
Cuisines: Momos, Rice Beer, and
Cherry Wine
Animal: Gaur (Bos gaurus)
Bird:Blyths Tragopan (Tragopan blythii)
` Odisha
Capital: Bhubaneshwar
Largest city: Bhubaneshwar
Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik
Governor: S.C. Jamir
Area: 155,820 sq.km(60,160 sq mi)
B-17
Language: Odia, English

Date of establishment: 1st April
1936
males
(700/sq mi)
Forest Area: 48,903 sq.km
Agriculture: Rice is the dominant
crop in Odisha and is grown on 77%
of the area under cultivation. The
state is the fourth largest shrimp
producing state in India.
Industry: Industries like manufacturing;
mining and quarrying; electricity, gas
and water supply; and construction are
dominant in the state. NALCO and
Vedanta, two of the biggest aluminium
plants are in Odisha which makes the
state leading producer of aluminium
in the state.
Neighbouring States: It shares its
borders with states of West Bengal
to the north-east, Jharkhand to the
north, Chhattisgarh to the west and
north-west, Telangana to the southwest and Andhra Pradesh to the
south.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Odissi is one of the oldest
and most important classical
dance forms in the state. Other
dance forms include: Ghumura
Dance, Chhau dance, Mahari
dance, and Gotipua.
(b) festivals: Durga Puja, Kumar
Purnima, Deepabali, Prathamastami,
Vasant Panchami, Maha Shivaratri,
Ratha Yatra, Ganesh Chaturthi,
Raja Parba are some of the major
festivals celebrated across Odisha.
Religious Places: Lingaraja Temple
at Bhubaneswar, Jagannath Temple,
Puri and the Konark Sun Temple and
Maa Sarala Temple at Tirtol town.
B-18
Nature Tourism: Udayagiri and

Khandagiri Caves, Dhauli, Chilika
Lake, Bhitarkanika National Park,
Simlipal National Park.
Tribes: Bagata, Bathudi, , Birhor,
Didayi, Didayi, Chenchu, Dal,
Desua, Gandia, Ghara, Gond, Ho,
Holva, Kandha, Munda, Kol, Kolah
Laharas, Kol Loharas, Kolha, Koli,
Mahali, Mankidi, Mankirdia, Pentia,
Rajuar, Santal, Saora,
Cuisines: Fish Orly, Khirmohan,
Rsabali, Chhenapodapitha
Animal: Sambar (Rusa unicolor)
Bird: Indian Roller (Coracias
benghalensis)
` Punjab
Also known as: Granary of India,
Indias bread-basket
Capital: Chandigarh
Largest city: Ludhiana
Chief Minister: Parkash Singh Badal
Governor: Kaptan Singh Solanki
Area: 50,362 sq.km (19,445 sq mi)
Language: Punjabi
Date of establishment: 15th August
1947
males
Population Density: 550/sq. km
(1,400/sq mi)
Agriculture: Wheat is the most
important crop of the state. Rice,
sugarcane, fruits and vegetables are
also grown. The state produces 10.26%
of Indias cotton, 19.5% of Indias
wheat, and 11% of Indias rice.
Industry: Industries include the
manufacturing of scientific instruments,
agricultural goods, electrical goods,
financial services, machine tools, textiles,
Panorama
sewing machines, sports goods, starch,
tourism, fertilisers, bicycles, garments,
and the processing of pine oil and sugar.
Punjab also has the largest number of
steel rolling mill plants in India, which
are located in Steel TownMandi
Gobindgarh in the Fatehgarh Sahib
district.
is bordered by the Indian states
of Himachal Pradesh to the east,
Haryana to the south and southeast,
Rajasthan to the southwest, and the
Pakistani province of Punjab to the
west. To the north it is bounded by the
Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Bhangra and Giddha
are the major dance forms of the
state.
(b) Festivals: Bandi Chhor Divas
(Diwali), Mela Maghi, Hola
Mohalla, Rakhri, Vaisakhi,
Lohri, Teeyan and Basant.
Religious Places: The Golden Temple
in Amritsar and Sri Anandpur Sahib
are the major religious attraction of
the state.
Cuisines: Dal Makhni, Makke di
Roti-Sarson da Saag, Chana Bhature
Animal: Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra)
Bird: Northern Goshawk (Accipiter
gentilis)
` Rajasthan
Name: Rajasthan
Capital: Jaipur
Largest city: Jaipur
Chief Minister: Vasundhara Raje
Governor: Kalyan Singh
Area: 342,239 sq.km(132,139 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Rajasthani
Date of establishment: 1st November
1956
B-19
Panorama
(520/sq mi)
Agriculture: Wheat, barley, pulses,
sugarcane and oilseeds are cultivated
over large areas. Cotton and tobacco
are the main cash crops. The largest
producers of edible oils in India
and the second largest producer of
oilseeds. The biggest wool-producing
state in India and the main opium
producer and consumer.
Industry: Main industries are
mineral, agriculture, and textile
based. The second largest producer
of polyester fibre in India.
Neighbouring States: It shares a
border with the Pakistani provinces
of Punjab to the northwest and Sindh
to the west, along the Sutlej-Indus
river valley. Elsewhere it is bordered
by the other Indian states: Punjab
to the north; Haryana and Uttar
Pradesh to the northeast; Madhya
Pradesh to the southeast; and Gujarat
to the southwest.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Ghoomar dance from
Udaipur and Kalbeliya dance of
Jaisalmer
(b) Festivals: Deepawali, Holi,
Gangaur, Teej, Gogaji, Shri
Devnarayan Jayanti, Makar
Sankranti and Janmashtami
Religious Places: The Brahma
temple at Pushkar, Dilwara Temples
of Mount Abu, Ranakpur Temple
in Pali District, Mehandipur Balaji
Temple, Karni Mata Temple of
Bikaner, Ajmer Sharif Dargah are
some of the important religious
places in the state.
Cuisines: Dal-Bati-Churma, Ker
Sangari, Lal Maas, Gatte
Animal: Chinkara (Gazella bennettii)

Bird:Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis
nigriceps)
` Sikkim
Capital: Gangtok Largest city:
Gangtok
No. Of districts: 4
Chief Minister: Pawan Chamling
Governor: Shriniwas Dadasaheb
Patil
Area: 7,096 sq.km (2,740 sq mi)
Language: Nepali, Bhutia, Gurung,
Lepcha, Limbu, Manggar, Newari,
Sherpa, Sunwar, Tamang
Date of establishment: 16th May
1975
Population: 607,688
Population Density: 86/sq.km (220/
sq mi)
Forest Area: 81% of the state area
Agriculture: Crops such as Rice,
maize, millet, wheat, barley, oranges,
tea and cardamom are grown here.
Sikkim is the leading producer of
cardamom in India
Industry:
Brewing,
distilling,
tanning and watches are the main
industries. The state has also invested
in a fledgling gambling industry,
promoting both casinos and online
gambling. The Playwin lottery has
been a notable success in the state.
is bordered by Nepal to the west,
Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region to
the north and east, and Bhutan to the
east. The Indian state of West Bengal
lies to the south.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Singhi Chham is a
masked dance of Sikkim.
B-20
(b) Festivals: Diwali, Dussera, Maghe

Sankranti, Bhimsen Puja, Losar,
Loosong, Saga Dawa, Lhabab
Duechen, Drupka Teshi, Bhumchu,
Eid ul-Fitr, Muharram and
Christmas are the major festivals
celebrated in the state.
Religious Places: Rumtek Monastery,
Tsongmo Lake, Nathu la pass,
Gurudongmar Lake
Tribes: Bhutia, Lepcha, Limboo,
Tamang
Cuisines:Momos, Thukpa, Gundruk,
Phagshapa and Seal Roti
Animal: Red panda (Ailurus fulgens)
Bird: Blood pheasant (Ithaginis
cruentus)
` Tamil Nadu
Capital: Chennai
Largest city: Chennai
Chief Minister: J Jayalalithaa
Governor: Konijeti Rosaiah
Area: 130,058 sq.km(50,216 sq mi)
Language: Tamil
Date of establishment: 26th January
1950
Literacy Rate: 80.33 %
(1,400/sq mi)
Forest Area: 22,643 sq.km(8,743 sq mi)
Agriculture: Rice is the leading crop
and the Cauvery delta region is known
as the Rice Bowl of Tamil Nadu.
Mango and banana are the leading
fruit crops. The main vegetables
grown are tapioca, tomato, onion,
brinjal(eggplant), and drumstick.
Industry: Textiles, leather, electronics,
heavy
industries,
engineering,
software, and automobiles are the
leading industries of the state. Integral
Panorama
Coach Factory which is located in
Perambur is the largest producer of
railway coaches in Asia.
Neighbouring States: The state is
bordered by the union territory of
Puducherry and the south Indian
states of Kerala, Karnataka, and
Andhra Pradesh. It also shares a
maritime border with the nation of
Sri Lanka.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Bharatanatyam is the
famous dance forms of Tamail
Nadu. Other forms of folk dances
are Karakattam,Mayilam.
(b) Festivals: Pongal is the most
celebrated festival of the state.
Other major festivals are
Deepavali, Ayudha Poojai,
Saraswathi Poojai (Dasara),
Krishna Jayanthi and Vinayaka
Chathurthi, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakrid,
Milad un Nabi, Muharram, Good
Friday, Easter are celebrated in the
state.
Religious Places: Chidambaram,
Thiruvannaamalai, Brihadishwara
Temple, Gangaikonda Cholapuram,
Madurai
Meenakshi
Amman
Temple, Sri Ranganathaswamy
Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli,
and Rameshwaram are the famous
religious places of the state.
Tribes: Adiyan, Aranadan, Eravallan,
Irular, Kadar, Kammara, Kaniyan,
Kanyan, Kattunayakan, Kochu,
Konda, Kondareddis, Koraga, Kota
Muthuvan, Malai, Malakkuravan,
Malasar, Malayali , Palliyar, Paniyan,
Sholaga, Toda.
Cuisines: Appam, Dosai, Idli,
Sambhar, Rasam, Chettinad Chicken,
Pongal
Animal: Nilgiri Tahr (Nilgiritragus
hylocrius)
Bird: Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps
indica)
B-21
Panorama
` Telangana
Capital: Hyderabad
Largest city: Hyderabad
Chief
Minister:
Kalvakuntla
Chandrashekar Rao
Governor: E. S. L. Narasimhan
Area: 114,840 sq.km(44,340 sq mi)
Language: Telugu, Urdu
Date of establishment: 2nd June
2014
Population Density: 310/sq.km (790
/sq mi)
Agriculture: Rice is the major food
crop and staple food of the state. Other
important crops are Maize, Tobacco,
Mango, Cotton and Sugar cane
Industry: Automobiles and auto
components industry, spices, mines
and minerals, textiles and apparels,
pharmaceutical, horticulture, poultry
farming
shares its borders with Maharashtra,
Chhattisgarh to the north, and
Karnataka to the west, and Andhra
Pradesh to the south, east and north
east.
Art & Culture:
(a) Classical dance forms (Sastriya
Nrutyam) such as Kuchipudi,
AndhraNatyam, Bhamakalapam,
Veeranatyam; and folk dances such
as Butta bommalu, Tappeta Gullu,
Lambadi, Dhimsa, and Chindu.
(b) Festivals: Sankranti, Maha
Shivaratri, Ugadi or the Telugu
New Year, Sri Rama Navami,
Varalakshmi Vratam, Vinayaka
Chaviti, Dasara, Atla Tadde,
Deepavali, Deepothsavam during
the Deepavali season.
Religious Places: Alampur Jogulamba

temple, Gnana Saraswati Temple,
Bhadrachalam Temple, Sri Raja
Rajeswara Swami temple and the
Thousand Pillar Temple are some of
the famous temples of the state.
Cuisines: Gongura Ghosht, Pappuchura,
Gongura Pappu, Hyderabadi Biryani
Animal: Chital (Zinka)
Bird:Pala Pitta (Coracias benghalensis)
` Tripura
Capital: Agartala
Largest city: Agartala
No. Of districts: 8
Chief Minister: Manik Sarkar
Governor: Tathagata Roy
Area: 10,491.69 sq.km(4,050.86 sq mi)
Language: Bengali and Kokborok
Date of establishment: 21st Jan. 1972
(910/sq mi)
Forest Area: 57.73% of the state
Agriculture: Rice, potato, sugarcane,
mesta, pulses, and jute are some of the
crops grown in the state. Jackfruit and
pineapple are among the horticultural
products.
Industry: Brickfields and tea industry
is bordered by Bangladesh to the
north, south, and west, and Assam
and Mizoram to the east.
Art & Culture: Goria dance, Jhum
dance, lebang dance, mamita dance,
and mosak sulmani dance are some
of the dance forms of the state.
Tourism: Ujjayanta Palace, Kunjaban
Palace, Neermahal Lake Palace,
Laxminarayan Temple, Uma Maheswar
Temple, Jagannath Temple, Benuban
Bihar, Gedu Mian Mosque, Malancha
B-22
Niwas, Rabindra Kanan, Purbasha,

Handicrafts Designing Centre, Fourteen
Goddess Temple, and Portuguese Church
are some of major tourist attractions.
Tribes: Bhil, Bhutia, Chaimal,
Chakma, Garoo, Halam, Khasia,
Kuki, Mag , Munda, Noatia, Orang,
Riang, Santal, Tripura
Cuisines: Chakhwi, Mwkhwi, Muitru
Animal: Phayres
Langur
(Trachypithecus phayrel)
Bird:Green Imperial Pigeon (Dacula
genea)
` Uttarakhand
Also known as: Land of the Gods
Capital: Dehradun
Largest city: Dehradun
Chief Minister: Harish Rawat
Governor: Krishan Kant Paul
Area: 53,483 sq.km(20,650 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Sanskrit, Garhwali,
Kumaoni
Date of establishment: 9th November
2000
(490/sq mi)
Forest Area: 34651 sq.km
Agriculture: Basmati rice, wheat,
soybeans, groundnuts, coarse cereals,
pulses, and oil seeds are the major
crops grown in the state.
Industry: Tourism and hydropower
are the major industries of the state.
Neighbouring States: It borders Tibet
on the north; the Mahakali Zone of
the Far-Western Region, Nepal on the
east; and the Indian states of Uttar
Pradesh to the south and Himachal
Pradesh to the northwest.
Panorama
Art & Culture:

(a) Dances: Langvir Nritya, Barada
Nati, Hurka Baul, Jhora-Chanchri,
Jhumaila, Chauphula, and
Chholiya.
(b) Festivals: Kumbh Mela, Kanwar
Yatra, Kandali Festival, Ramman,
Harela mela, Nauchandi mela,
Uttarayani mela and Nanda Devi
Mela take place.
Tourism: It is home to some
most frequented hill stations like
Mussoorie, Nainital, Dhanaulti,
Lansdowne, Pauri, Sattal, Almora,
Kausani, Bhimtal, and Ranikhet.
National parks in the state include
Jim Corbett National Park, Rajaji
National Park, Nanda Devi National
Park, and Valley of Flowers National
Park. Badrinath and Kedarnath are
one of the most auspicious and holy
pilgrimages housed by the state.
Tribes: Bhotia, Buksa, Jaunsari, Raji,
Tharu
Cuisines: Aloo ke Gutke, Kaapa,
Jhangora (millets) ki Kheer, Chainsoo
Animal: Musk deer (Moschus
cupreus)
Bird:Himalayan Monal (Lophophorus
impejanus)
` Uttar Pradesh
Also known as: Hindi heartland of
India
Capital & Largest city: Lucknow
Chief Minister: Akhilesh Yadav
Governor: Ram Naik
Area: 243,286 sq.km(93,933 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Urdu
Date of establishment: 1st April
1937 as the United Provinces
males
B-23
Panorama
(2,100/sq mi)
Agriculture: Wheat is the major
food crop; and sugarcane is the main
commercial crop with 70% of sugar
produce from the state.
Industry: Major industries include
electronics, electrical equipment,
cables, steel, leather, textiles, jewellery,
frigates, automobiles, railway coaches,
etc
shares its border with Rajasthan
to the west, Haryana and Delhi to
the northwest, Uttarakhand and
the country of Nepal to the north,
Bihar to the east, Jharkhand to
the southeast, Chhattisgarh to the
south and Madhya Pradesh to the
southwest.
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Kathak is most popular
dance form.
(b) Festivals: Diwali, Buddha Purnima,
Christmas,
Rama
Navami,
Vijayadashami, Makar Sankranti,
Vasant Panchami, Ayudha Puja,
Ganga Mahotsava, Janmashtami,
Sardhana Christian Fair, Maha
Shivaratri, Mahavir Jayanti,
Moharram, Barah Wafat, Eid,
Bakreed, Chhath puja, Lucknow
Mahotsav, Kabob and Hanuman
Jayanti.
Tourism: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Bara
Imambara, Fatehpur Sikri, Sarnath,
Kushinagar, Patna Bird Sanctuary
and many more are the major tourist
attractions of the state.
Tribes: Bhotia, Buksa, Jaunsari, Raji,
Tharu, Gonda, Baiga, Parahiya,
Saharya, Chero, Kharwar, Bhuiya,
Pankha, Baiga.
Cuisines: Kabab, Biryanis, Bedmi
Aloo, Kachori, Banarasi Chaat
Animal: Swamp Deer (Rucervus

duvaucelii)
Bird: Sarus Crane (Grus antigone)
` West Bengal
Capital & Largest city: Kolkata
Chief Minister: Mamata Banerjee
Governor: Keshari Nath Tripathi
Area: 88,752 sq.km (34,267 sq mi)
Language: Bengali and English
1947
Population Density: 1,000/sq.km
(2,700/sq mi)
Agriculture: Rice, potato, jute,
sugarcane and wheat
Industry: steel, leather, textiles,
jewellery, frigates, automobiles,
electronics, electrical equipment etc
are the major manufacturing industries
of West Bengal.
is surrounded by the countries of
Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, and
the states of Odisha, Jharkhand,
Bihar, Sikkim, and Assam
Art & Culture:
(a) Dances: Chau dance and many
other folk dances.
(b) Festivals: Durga Puja, Poila
Baishakh (the Bengali New Year),
Rathayatra, Dolyatra or BasantaUtsab, Nobanno, Poush Parbon,
Kali Puja, Saraswati Puja, Laxmi
Puja, Christmas, Eid ul-Fitr,
Eid ul-Adha, Buddha Purnima,
Muharram, Christmas
Tourism:
Dakshineswar
Kali
Temple, Tipu Sultan Mosque, St
Pauls Cathedral, Victoria Memorial,
B-24
Howrah Bridge, Vidyasagar Setu are

some of the major tourist attractions.
Popular national parks include
Sundarbans National Park, Buxa
Tiger Reserve, Gorumara National
Park, Neora Valley National Park,
Singalila National Park, and Jaldapara
National Park.
Tribes: Asur, Baiga, Bedia, Chero,
Chik Baraik, Garo, Gond, Gorait,
Haja Mru, Munda, Nagesia, Oraon,
Parhaiya, Rabha, Santal, Sauria
Paharia, Savar, Limbu
Cuisines: Rosogulla, Mishti Doi,
Bhapa Illish
Animal: Fishing cat (Prionailurus
viverrinus)
Bird:
White-breasted Kingfisher
(Halcyon smyrnensis)
` Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Capital & Largest city: Port Blair
No. Of districts: 3
Area: 8,073 sq.km(3,117 sq mi)
Language: English, Hindi
Date of establishment:1st November
1956
Population: 379,944
Sex Ratio:878 females per 1,000 males
Population Density:46 per sq.km
Forest Area: 86.2% of the total land
area.
Agriculture: Paddy, oilseeds and
vegetables
Industry: Small scale industries and
handicraft units; Tourism plays an
important role in the economy of the
union territory.
Tourism: The island serves as an
excellent tourist destination with
major attractions like Havelock
island, Cellular Jail, Mahatma Gandhi
Marine National Park, Andaman
Water sports complex, Chatham
Panorama
Saw Mill, Mini Zoo, Corbyns cove,
Chidiya Tapu, Wandoor Beach, Forest
Museum, Cinque island, Mt Harriet
and Mud Volcano, Neil Island and
many more.
Tribes: Andamanese, Chariar, Chari,
Kora, Tabo, Bo, Yere, Kede, Bea,
Balawa, Bojigiyab, Juwai, Kol, Jarawas,
Nicobarese, Onges, Sentinelese, Shom.
` Chandigarh
Also known as: Wealthiest Town
of India
Administrator: Kaptan Singh Solanki
Mayor: Poonam Sharma
Commissioner: Vivek Pratap Singh
Area:114 sq.km(44 sq mi)
Language: English, Hindi, Punjabi
Date of establishment:1st Nov, 1966
Population Density: 9,300/sq.km
(24,000/sq mi)
Industry: Pharmaceuticals, machinery,
food products, and electrical appliances
are some of the major industries.
Neighbouring states: The union
territory shares its border with
Haryana and Punjab.
Tourism: Kasauli, Sukhna Lake,
Leisure Valley, Rock Garden and
many more are the major tourist
attraction.
Cuisines: Butter Chicken, Tandoori
Chicken, Mutton Pulao
` Dadra and Nagar Haveli
Capital: Silvassa
Administrator: Ashish Kundra
Area: 102 sq.km (39 sq mi)
Language: English, Gujarati, Hindi,
Marathi
1961
Panorama
Population: 342,853
Population Density: 698 per sq.km
Forest Area: 43% of the land is under
forest cover
Agriculture: paddy, ragi, small
millets, jowar, sugarcanes
Industry: Agriculture, Industries,
Forestry, Animal Husbandry and
Tourism
Neighbouring states: It is surrounded
by Valsad District of Gujarat on the
West, North and East and by Thane
District of Maharashtra on the South
and South-East.
Tourism: Vanganga Lake Garden,
Hirwavan garden, Piparia, Tribal
Museum, Vandhara Udyan, Mini
Zoo and Bal Udyan, Ayyappa Temple
,Silvassa, Tapovan Tourist Complex,
Bindrabin are the major tourist
attractions.
` Daman and Diu
Capital: Daman
Administrator: Ashish Kundra
Language: English, Gujarati, Hindi,
Marathi
Date of establishment: 30 May 1987
Population: 242,911
Industry: Major industries include
distillery, fishing andtourism
Neighbouring states: Gujarat
Tribes: Dhodia, Dubla (Halpati),
Naikda (Talavia), Siddi, Varli.
` Lakshadweep
Capital: Kavaratti
Largest city: Andrott
No. Of districts: 1
B-25
Administrator: H. Rajesh Prasad

Language: English, Malayalam
Date of establishment: 1st November
1956
Population: 65,473
Agriculture: fishing and coconut
cultivation
Industry: Fisheries, production
of fibre products, tourism and
desalination are major industries
Neighbouring states: Kerala and
Karnataka
Art & Culture: Festivals: Eid-Ul-Fitr,
Muharram, Bakra Eid and Milad-UnNabi are the most celebrated festivals.
Tourism: Bangaram and Kadmat
islands are the most frequented
tourist destinations.
Animal: Butterfly fish (Chaetodon
decussatus)
Bird: House Sparrow (Passer
domesticus)
Bird: Soofy Tern (onychoprion fuscata)
` National Capital Territory of
Delhi
Capital: New Delhi
Chief Minister: Arvind Kejriwal
Area: 1,484.0 sq.km(573.0 sq mi)
Language: Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu
Date of establishment: 1st Feb 1992
males
Population Density: 11,297 per sq. km
Industry: Information technology,
sports goods, medicines, leather
goods, telecommunications, hotels,
banking, media and tourism
B-26
Neighbouring states: Haryana and

Uttar Pradesh
Art & Culture: Festivals: Diwali (the
festival of lights), Mahavir Jayanti,
Guru Nanaks Birthday, Raksha
Bandhan, Durga Puja, Holi, Lohri,
Krishna Janmastami, Maha Shivratri,
Eid ul-Fitr, Moharram and Buddha
Jayanti.
Tourism: Red Fort, Qutab Minar,
Humayuns Tomb, India Gate, Jantar
Mantar, Laxminarayan temple,
Akshardham temple, Lotus temple,
Iskcon temple, Safdarjungs Tomb,
and Jama Masjid are the prominent
tourist attractions.
Cuisines: Chaat, Tandoori Chicken,
Paranthe, Chole Bhature
Bird: House Sparrow (Passer
domesticus)
` Puducherry
Capital & Largest city: Pondicherry
No. Of districts:4
Chief Minister: N. Rangaswamy
Area:492 sq.km (190 sq mi)
Language: French, Malayalam,
Tamil, Telugu
Date of establishment:7 Jan 1963
Sex Ratio:1,038 females per 1000
males
Population Density:2,500/sq.km
(6,600/sq mi)
Agriculture: Rice, pulses, sugarcane,
coconuts, and cotton
Industry: Fisheries, textile, automobile
parts, computer hardware, cotton yarn
and tourism are the major industries.
Tourism: Promenade Beach, Sri
Aurobindo
Ashram,
Auroville
Beach, Serenity Beach, French War
Memorial, 19th Century Light House,
Panorama
Bharathi Park, Governors Palace,
Romain Rolland Library, Legislative
Assembly, Pondicherry Museum,
Thirukaameeswarar Temple and
many more are the famous tourist
spots in Puducherry.
Cuisines: Kadugu yerra, Vendakkai,
Patchaddy
Animal: Squirrel Sciuridae ratufinae
Bird: Asian Koel (Eudynamys
scolopaceus)
Four Ends of India

Easternmost point of India is known
as Kibithu; situated on right bank of
river Lohit separating India from
China-Tibet region. It is a small
village with the population at the
altitude of 3,350 metre in Arunachal
Pradesh. Westernmost point is
situated in Kuch area of Gujarat
called as Ghuar Mota. The region
is famous for its harsh climate with
45C in summer and 20C in winter.
During monsoon season this region
looks like tortoise surrounded by
seawater. Northernmost point of
India has been in controversies
ever since Indias independence.
The Siachen Glacier in the state
of J&K is the northern boundary
of India according to the official
division of India during the time of
Independences. The Southernmost
point of the mainland of India is
Kanyakunar District in the state
of Tamil Nadu. Kanniyakumari,
formerly was known as Cape
Comorin. It is the second largest
and urbanized of Tamil Nadu.
Indira Point is a village in the
Nicobar district of Andaman and
Nicobar Islands, India. It is located
in the Great Nicobar tehsil. It is the
location of the southernmost point
of Indias territory.
B-27
Panorama
National Symbols of India

National
Flag
The national flag consists of a horizontal

rectangular tricolour with saffron at the top, white
in the middle and India green at the bottom. The
centre has a navy blue wheel with twenty-four
spokes, known as the Ashoka Chakra. The flag is
designed by Pingali Venkayya.
National
Emblem
The national emblem is the Lion Capital of Asoka

at Sarnath which was adopted on 26th January
1950. The motto inscribed on the emblem is in
Devana gari script: Satyameva jayate which
means Truth Alone Triumphs.
National
Anthem
Jana Gana Mana
The anthem was composed by Rabindranath

Tagore; adopted by the Constituent Assembly 24th
January 1950.
National
Song
Vande Mataram
Vande Mataram was composed by Bankim

Chandra Chatterjee. It was adopted as the National
song of India in 1950.
National
Flower
Indian lotus is the national flower. It is the

representation of purity as it remains flawless
despite growing in mud and water.
National
Fruit
Mango, also known as the King of Fruits, is the

National Fruit of India.
National
River
Ganga is the national river of India. It is also the

longest river of the country.
National
Tree
The Indian Banyan (Ficus bengalensis) is the

national tree.
National
Bird
Indian peacock (Pavo cristatus) is the national bird

of India.
National
Animal
The Tiger known as the Lord of the Jungle is the

national animal of India.
National
Calendar
Saka calendar
Saka calendar was introduced as the National

calendar by the Calendar Committee in 1957.
B-28
Panorama
SPACE SCIENCE
Space mission 1975-2015
Satellite
Launch Date
Launch Vehicle
Aryabhata
Bhaskara-I
Rohini Technology Payload
Rohini RS-1
Rohini RS-D1
Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment
Bhaskara -II
INSAT-1A
Rohini RS-D2
INSAT-1B
Stretched Rohini Satellite Series (SROSS-1)
IRS-1A
Stretched Rohini Satellite Series (SROSS-2)
INSAT-1C
INSAT-1D
IRS-1B
INSAT-2DT
Stretched Rohini Satellite Series (SROSS-C)
INSAT-2A
INSAT-2B
IRS-1E
Stretched Rohini Satellite Series (SROSS-C2)
IRS-P2
INSAT-2C
IRS-1C
IRS-P3
INSAT-2D
IRS-1D
INSAT-2E
Oceansat-1 (IRS-P4)
INSAT-3B
GSAT-1
Technology Experiment Satellite (TES)
INSAT-3C
Kalpana-1 (METSAT)
INSAT-3A
GSAT-2
INSAT-3E
RESOURCESAT-1 (IRS-P6)
EDUSAT
19-Apr-75
7-Jun-79
10-Aug-79
18-Jul-80
31-May-81
19-Jun-81
20-Nov-81
10-Apr-82
17-Apr-83
30-Aug-83
24-Mar-87
17-Mar-88
13-Jul-88
21-Jul-88
12-Jun-90
29-Aug-91
26-Feb-92
20-May-92
10-Jul-92
23-Jul-93
20-Sep-93
4-May-94
15-Oct-94
7-Dec-95
29-Dec-95
21-Mar-96
4-Jun-97
29-Sep-97
3-Apr-99
26-May-99
22-Mar-00
18-Apr-01
22-Oct-01
24-Jan-02
12-Sep-02
10-Apr-03
8-May-03
28-Sep-03
17-Oct-03
20-Oct-04
u-11 Interkosmos
C-1 Interkosmos
SLV-3
SLV-3
SLV-3
Ariane-1 (V-3)
C-1 Intercosmos
Delta 3910 PAM-D
SLV-3
Shuttle [PAM-D]
ASLV
Vostok
ASLV
Ariane-3
Delta 4925
Vostok
Ariane-44L H10
ASLV
Ariane-44L H10
Ariane-44L H10+
PSLV-D1
ASLV
PSLV-D2
Ariane-44L H10-3
Molniya
PSLV-D3
Ariane-44L H10-3
PSLV-C1
Ariane-42P H10-3
PSLV-C2
Ariane-5G
GSLV-D1
PSLV-C3
Ariane-42L H10-3
PSLV-C4
Ariane-5G
GSLV-D2
Ariane-5G
PSLV-C5
GSLV-F01
B-29
Panorama
HAMSAT
CARTOSAT-1
INSAT-4A
INSAT-4C
CARTOSAT-2
Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-1)
INSAT-4B
INSAT-4CR
CARTOSAT-2A
IMS-1 (Third World Satellite TWsat)
Chandrayaan-1
RISAT-2
ANUSAT
Oceansat-2 (IRS-P4)
GSAT-4
CARTOSAT-2B
StudSat
GSAT-5P / INSAT-4D
RESOURCESAT-2
Youthsat
GSAT-8 / INSAT-4G
GSAT-12
Megha-Tropiques
Jugnu
RISAT-1
SRMSAT
GSAT-10
SARAL
IRNSS-1A
INSAT-3D
GSAT-7
Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM)
GSAT-14
IRNSS-1B
IRNSS-1C
GSAT-16
IRNSS-1D
GSAT-6
Astrosat
GSAT-15
Space Centres and Units

x
x
Vikram
Sarabhai
Space
Centre (VSSC) - Thumba
(Thiruvananthapuram)
ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) Bengaluru
x
x
x
5-May-05
5-May-05
22-Dec-05
10-Jul-06
10-Jan-07
10-Jan-07
12-Mar-07
2-Sep-07
28-Apr-08
28-Apr-08
22-Oct-08
20-Apr-09
20-Apr-09
23-Sep-09
15-Apr-10
12-Jul-10
12-Jul-10
25-Dec-10
20-Apr-11
20-Apr-11
21-May-11
15-Jul-11
12-Oct-11
12-Oct-11
26-Apr-12
26-Apr-12
29-Sep-12
25-Feb-13
1-Jul-13
26-Jul-13
30-Aug-13
5-Nov-13
5-Jan-14
4-Apr-14
10-Nov-14
7-Dec-14
28-Mar-15
27-Aug-15
28-Sep-15
11-Nov-15
PSLV-C6
PSLV-C6
Ariane-5GS
GSLV-F02
PSLV-C7
PSLV-C7
Ariane-5ECA
GSLV-F04
PSLV-C9
PSLV-C9
PSLV-C11
PSLV-C12
PSLV-C12
PSLV-C14
GSLV-D3
PSLV-C15
PSLV-C15
GSLV-F06
PSLV-C16
PSLV-C16
Ariane-5 VA-202
PSLV-C17
PSLV-C18
PSLV-C18
PSLV-C19
PSLV-C18
Ariane-5 VA-209
PSLV-C20
PSLV-C22
Ariane-5
Ariane-5
PSLV-C25
GSLV-D5
PSLV-C24
PSLV-C26
Ariane-5
PSLV-C27
GSLV-D6
PSLV-C30
Ariane 5 VA-227
SHAR Centre - Shriharikota

(Andhra Pradesh)
Liquid Propulsion Systems
Centre (LPSC) - Bengaluru
Space Application Centre Ahemdabad
B-30
Developmental and Educational

Communication - Ahmedabad
unit (DECU)
x ISRO Telemetry Tracking and
Command Network (ISTRAC)
- Bengaluru
x National
Remote
Sensing
Agency (NRSA) - Hyderabad
x Master Control Facility (MCF) Hassan (Karnataka)
x The Antrix Corporation Limited
- Bengaluru
x North Eastern-Space Applications
Centre (NE-SAC) - Shillong
x Physical Research Laboratory
(PRL) - Ahmedabad
Indian Remote Sensing (IRS)
Satellite System
The Indian Remote Sensing (IRS)
satellite system is one of the
largest constellations of remote
sensing satellites in operation in the
world today. The IRS programme
commissioned with the launch of
IRS-1A in 1988 presently includes
eleven satellites that continue to
provide imageries in a variety of
spatial resolutions ranging from
better than one metre upto 500
metres.
Panorama
Mars Orbiter Mission is a space

probe, launched on 24 September,
2014. The mission focuses on
developing
the
technologies
for
designing,
planning,
management and operations of
an interplanetary mission. The
probe carries five instruments for
gathering knowledge about Mars.
The space craft is now jointly
monitored by ISRO Telemetry,
Tracking and Command Network
(ISTRAC) in Bangalore, and
Indian Deep Space Network
antennae at Byalalu.
GLOBAL SPACE PROBES

x
Indian Regional Navigation

Satellite System
The new of Navigation Satellite
system was launched in 2013 aimed
at providing accurate real time
positioning and timing services over
India and its surroundings upto a
range of 1500 km. The fully deployed
system consists of 3 satellites in GEO
orbit and 4 satellites in GSO orbits
placed approximately at an attitude
of 36000 km. The constellation has
total 7 satellites.
Venus :
Venera 1 USSR Venus flyby,
Feb 12, 1961; Now in a solar
orbit.
Mariner 2 USA Venus flyby,
Aug 27, 1962; Now in a solar
orbit.
Magellan USA Venus orbiter,
May 4, 1989 1994
Mars :
Mariner 3 USA Mars flyby,
Nov. 5, 1964.
Viking 1 USA Mars orbiter/
Lander, Aug 20,1975.
Phobas 1 USSR Mars orbiter/
Lander, July 7, 1988.
Mars Odyssey USA Mars
orbiter, Apr. 7, 2001
Spirit (MER-A) USA Mars
Rover, June 10, 2003
Opportunity (MER-B) USA
Mars Rover, July 7, 2003.
Mars Phoenix Lander USA
Mars Lander, Aug. 4, 2007.
Jupiter :
Galileo USA and Europe
probe, Oct. 18, 1989.
Hubble space Telescope USA
and Europe, Apr. 25, 1990.
B-31
Panorama
Change 1 Chinas lunar orbiter,

Oct 24, 2007.
Chandrayaan 1 India PSLV C
11, Oct 22, 2008. Indias first moon
mission and the cheapest moon
mission in the world.
New Horizons USA Kuiper

belt flyby, Jan. 19, 2006.
Moon :
Pioneer O USA Lunar orbiter,
Aug. 17, 1958.
Apollo 17 USA manned lunar
lander, Dec. 7, 1972
DEFENCE AND SECURITY

The Republic of India has worlds
3rd largest military force and has the
worlds largest volunteer army. The
President of India is the Supreme
Commander of the Indian Armed
Forces and is looked after by the
Ministry of Defence (MoD) is led
by the Union Cabinet Minister
of Defence. It consists of three
professional uniformed services:
the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and
Indian Air Force.
The President of India is the Supreme
Commander of the Armed Force.
However, the Cabinet is responsible for
National Defence. The Administrative
control of armed forces is exercised
by the Ministry of Defence, which
constitutes the following.
(a) Department of Defence
(b) Department
of
Defence
Production and Supplies
(c) Department of Defence Research
and Development (DDRD).
Army
Headed by
Chief of the Army

Staff
Headquarters New Delhi
Further, the three services Headquarters,
which were used to be attached offices of
Ministry of Defence are now integrated
with the Ministry and known as
Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry
of Defence.
Number of Commands
Command
Headquarter
1. Western Command Chandimandir
2. Eastern Command Calcutta
3. Northern
Udhampur
Command
4. Southern
Command
Pune
5. Central Command Lucknow

6. Training
Command
(added in 1991)
Mhow
7. South Western
Command
(added in 2005)
Jaipur
Air Force
Headed By
Chief of the Air

Staff
Headquarters
New Delhi
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Number of Command
Command
Headquarter
Western Air
Delhi
Command
South-Western Gandhinagar
Air Command
Central Air
Allahabad
Command
Eastern Air
Shillong
Command
Southern Air
ThiruCommand
vanathapuram
In addition to the above main

command, there are two support
commands, or functional commands,
namely:
1. Training Command Bangalore
2. Maintenance Command Nagpur
Today, the Air Force has an
array of modern aircraft on
its inventory besides other hitech electronic and support
B-32
Panorama
equipment. The aircraft fleet

consists of fighter-bombers, airsuperiority fighters, interceptors,
transport, and logistic aircraft
and helicopters.
Navy
Headed by
Headquarters
Chief of Naval Staff

New Delhi
Number of Commands
Command
Headquarter
1. Western Naval
Command
Mumbai
2. Eastern Naval
Command
Visakhapatnam
Operational
command
3. Southern Naval
Command
Kochi used for

training
Each command is commanded by

a flag officer commanding- in-chief.
The Indian Navy is a wellbalanced three-dimensional force
consisting of sophisticated missilecapable warships, aircraft carriers,
minesweepers, advanced submarines,
and the latest aircraft in its inventory.
At present, the Navy has two
major Naval bases at Mumbai and
Visakhapatnam. Goa and Arkonnam
are the major Naval air bases.
IMPORTANT SUBMARINES/
MISSILE BOATS/WARSHIPS
Submarines
INS Chakra
Warships
INS Savitri
INS Shahkul INS Delhi
INS Shalki
Missile
Boats
INS
Vibhuti
INS
Prahar
INS Mysore INS

Prashant
INS
INS
INS
Sindhushastra Brahamputra Nashak
INS Ghariyal INS Vipul
INS Kulish
INS Satpura
INS Talwar
INS
Tillanchang
Location of Defence
Establishments
Army
Indian Military
Academy
The College of
Military Engineering
The School of Signals
The Infantry School
The Corps of Military
Police Centre and
School
The Army Education
Corps and Training
College
Dehradun
Kirkee
(Pune)
Mhow
Mhow
Faizabad
Pachmarhi
Navy
Indian Naval Academy
Naval Air Station Garuda
INS Agrani (Petty
Officers School)
Naval Gunnery School
Torpedo Anti-Submarine
School
Navigation Direction
School
Air Force
Pilot Training
Establishment
Jet Training and
Transport Training
Wings, Air Force
Station
The Air Force
Technical Training
College
Kochi
Kochi
Coimbatore
Kochi
Kochi
Mormugao
Allahabad
Hyderabad
Jalahalli
B-33
Panorama
Paratroopers Training Agra
School
Inter-services Institutes
National Defence
Khadakvasla
Academy
National Defence
New Delhi
College
Defence Services
Wellington
Staff College
School of Land/Air Secunderabad
Warfare
Rashtriya Indian
Dehradun
Military College
Armed Forces
Pune
Medical College
DRDO
It was established in 1958 by
amalgamating Defence Science
Organization and some of the
Technical Development Institutions.
It functions under the control
of Scientific Adviser to Defence
Minister who is also secretary,
Defence R&D. DRDO formulates
and executes programmes of
scientific research, design and
development leading to induction of
state-of-the-art weapons, platforms,
and other equipment required by
the Armed Forces. It is engaged in
the pursuit of self-reliance in critical

technologies of relevance to national
security.
The major achievements towards
indigenous development of defence
weapons and systems are (i)
development leading to production
of surface-to-surface missile, Prithvi;
(ii) state-of-the-art MBT, Arjun; (iii)
flight simulators for aircraft; (iv)
pilotless target aircraft, Lakshya; (v)
parallel super-computer; and (vi)
the submarine sonar and weapon
control system, Panchendriya.
Indian (Space Research Organisation
(ISRO)) is the parented agency of
Indian space agencies which was
established on 15th August 1969.
The head quater of this organisation
is at Bangalore and it was founded
by Vikram Sarabhai with a vision
to harness space technology for
national development, while pursuing
space science research and planetary
exploration. The first satellite made
by ISRO was Aryabhata and it was
launched by Russia on 19th April
1975. Thereafter it has developed
numerous satellites and spacecrafts for
serving different technology such as
communication Earths observation,
navigation, climatic observations etc.
RANKS OF INDIAN ARMY, NAVY & AIR FORCE

Indian Army
Field Marshal
General
Lieutenant General
Major General
Brigadier
Colonel
Lieutenant Colonel
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Indian Navy
Admiral of the Fleet
Admiral
Vice Admiral
Rear Admiral
Commodore
Captain
Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant
Sub-Lieutenant
Indian Costal Guard (ICG)

Indian Costal Guard (ICG)
protects Indias maritime interests
and enforces maritime law, with
Indian Air Force

Marshal of the Air Force
Air Chief Marshal
Air Marshal
Air Vice Marshal
Air Commodore
Group Captain
Wing Commander
Squadron Leader
Flight Lieutenant
Flying Officer
jurisdiction over the territorial waters

of India, including its contiguous
zone and exclusive economic
zone. The Indian Coast Guard was
B-34
formally established on 18 August

1978 by the Coast Guard Act, 1978.
The Coast Guard works in close
cooperation with the Indian Navy,
the Department of Fisheries, the
Department of Revenue (Customs)
and the Central and State police
forces.
There are five coastal regions:
Western Region (W) Mumbai; Eastern
Region (E) Chennia; North Eastern
Region (NE) Kolkata; North Western
Region (NW) Ghandhinagar.
Paramilitary Forces:
1. Railway Protection Force (RPF)
(1861)
Mission
x Protect and safeguard railway
passengers, passenger area and
railway property.
x Ensure the safety, security and
boost the confidence of the
traveling public in the Indian
Railways
2. Central
Reserve
Railway
Protection Force (CRPF) (1949)
Mission:
x Crowd control
x Riot control
x Counter Millitancy / Insurgency
operations.
x Dealing with Left Wing Extremism
x Overall co-ordination of large
scale
security
arrangement
specially with regard to elections
in distrubed areas.
x Protection of VIPs and vital
installations.
x Checking environmental degradation and protection of local
Flora and Fauna
x Fighting aggression during War
time
x Participating in UN Peace Keeping
Mission
x Rescue and Relief operations at
the time of Natural Calamity.
Panorama
3. Border Security Force (BSF)

(1965)
Mission
x Promote a sense of security among
the people living in the border
areas.
x Prevent trans border crimes,
unauthorized entry into or exit
from the territory of India.
x Prevent smuggling and any other
illegal activity.
x Holding ground in less threatened
sectors so long as the main attack
does not develop in a particular
sector and it is felt that the local
situation is within the capability
of BSF to deal with.
x Protection of vital installations
particular air-fields against enemy
commandoes/para troopers or
raids.
x Providing extension to the flanks
of main defence line by the holding
of strong points in conjunction
with other units.
x Limited Aggressive action against
para military or irregular forces of
the enemy within the overall plan
of the Armed Forces.
x Acting as guides in an area of
responsibility where routes are
known.
x Guarding of prisoners of war cages.
x Assistance in control of refugees.
x Anti-infiltration duties in specified
area.
4. Central Industrial Security Force
-CPF. (1969)
Mission
x Providing total security solutions.
x Exposure to varied security
environments ranging from highly
disturbed areas in J&K, North
East and Andhra Pradesh to mafia
infested coalfields of Jharkhand
and West Bengal.
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x
Rich experience in security and

protection of highly sensitive
establishments, Airports and
Centres of economic growth.
x Protection of heritage monuments
like Taj Mahal.
x Only Force to have a full-fledged
Fire Wing comprising highly
trained personnel.
x Extensive use of latest security
gadgets.
x Excellent training infrastructure.
5. Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB)
(1969)
Mission
x To promote sense of security
among the people living in the
border area.
x To prevent trans-border crimes and
unauthorized entries into or exit
from the territory of India.
x To prevent smuggling and other
illegal activities.
6. Indo-Tibetan Border Police
(ITBP) (1962)
Mission
x Vigil on the northern borders,
detection and prevention of border
violations, and promotion of the
sense of security among the local
populace.
x Check illegal immigration, transborder smuggling and crimes.
x Security to sensitive installations,
banks and protected persons.
x Restore and preserve order in any
area in the event of disturbance.
Special Security Forces

Anti Terrorist Squad (1990)
x
A unit of government of
Maharashtra to tackle menace
and terrorism in collaboration
with RAW and IB.
Aims at tracking and neutralizing

activities of terror-groups ,
mafia and other organized
crime syndicates, and detecting
rackets of counterfeit currency
notes and smuggling of narcotic
substances.
Intelligence Bureau(IB) (1887)
x A unit of Indias internal
intelligence agency
x Tasked with intelligence collection
in border areas along with domestic
intelligence responsibilities
$VVDP5LHV
x
x
A unit of paramilitary forces

Aims at combating counter
insurgency, civil unrest,terrorism,
special weapons operations.
Garud Commando Force
(2004)
x A special unit of the Indian Air
Force
x Garuds perform both war
and peace time duties such
asrescuing downed airmen and
other forces from behind enemy
lines,suppression of enemy of
air defense,provide support to
other air operations,protecting
the air bases and other vital
infrastructure ,counter terrorism,
anti-hijacking, hostage rescue,
aid during natural calamities
and military tasks in the interest
of the nation
Ghatak Force
x A special unit of the an infantry
battalion in the Indian Army
x Performs task such as special
reconnaissance, raids on enemy
artillery positions, airfields, supply
dumps and tactical headquarters.
Rapid Action Force (1991)
x A specialized wing of the Indian
CRPF (Central Reserve Police
Force).
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They are trained to deal with riots,

riot like situations, crowd control,
rescue and relief operations, and
related unrest.
National security Guard (1984)
x It is a as a Federal Contingency
Deployment Forceunder the
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
x Aimed at performing counter
hijacking tasks on land, sea,
and air, bomb disposal (search,
detection and neutralization of
IEDs), Post Blast Investigation
and hostage rescue
National Investigation Agency
(2009)
x A federal agency established by
the Indian Government.
x It aims at creating prevention for
existing and potential terrorist
groups/individuals
alongside
developinga storehouse of all
terrorist related information.
Marcos (1907)
x A special force unit of Indian Navy.
It is created to conduct special
operations such as amphibious
warfare, counter-terrorism, direct
action, special reconnaissance,
unconventional warfare, hostage
rescue, personnel recovery, combat
search and rescue, asymmetric
warfare, foreign internal defense,
counter proliferation.
Research and Analysis Wing

(RAW) (1968)
x
x
Its a primary foreign intelligence

agency of India.
Aims at monitoring political,
military, economic and scientific
developments
in
countries
which have direct bearing on
Indias national security and
the formulation of its foreign
policy,coveting operations to
safe guard Indias National
interests,moulding international
public opinion with the help of
the strong and vibrant Indian
Diaspora, performing Anti Terror
Operations and neutralizing terror
elements posing a threat to India.
Commando Battalion for

Resolute Action (COBRA)
(2008)
x
x
Its a specialized unit of the CRPF

created to counter the Naxalite
problem in India.
They are specially trained in
guerilla warfare to tackle the
notorious naxalite groups in
the country. They also master
the techniques of camouflage,
jungle warfare, parachute jumps,
precision strikes and ambushes.
INDIAS MISSILE SYSTEM : AT A GLANCE

S.
No.
1
2
3
4
Missile
Feature
Astra Missile
Beyond Visual range air-to-air Missile
Akash Missile
Medium range Surface-to-Air Missile
Range
A range of over 80
km in head on mode
and 20 km in tailchase mode.
Shourya Missile Canisterised Surface-to-surface missile 600 km
Sagarika Missile Submarine-to-Surface Missile
More than 700 km
(K-15)
25 km
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Nag Missile
Third Generation-fire and forget-antitank guided missile
4 to 6 km
Nirbhay Missile
Long range subsonic cruise missile
1000 km
Dhanush Missile The Ship-based Surface-to-surface

ballistic missile
300 to 350 km
Brahmos Missile Supersonic cruise missile (can be

launched from ships, submarines,
(Joint IndoRussia Venture) aricrafts and land)
290 km
(a) Prithvi-I
(Army version)
A single stage liquid-fuelled surface-to- 150 km

surface missile.
(b) PrithiviII (Air force

version)
A single stage liquid-fuelled surface-to- 250 km

surface missile.
(c) Prithvi-III
(Naval Version)
A two-stage surface-to-surface missile

(first stage is solid fuelled and second
stage is liquid fuelled).
350 km
(a) Agni-I
Short range ballistic missile
700-800 km
(b) Agni-II
Medium range ballistic missile
2500 km
(c) Agni-III
Intermediate range ballistic missile
3500 km
(d) Agni-IV
Intermediate
4000 km
(e) Agni-V
Range ballistic missile
5500-5800 km
10
(f) Agni-VI (tested) undu development
600-800 km
TANKS IN INDIA
Type
Quantity
(Est.)
Ar jun
248
MBT
Origin
Description
India
The Indian Army ordered 124 'Arjun' Mk1 MBTs

in 2000 and placed another order for additional 124
'Arjun' Mk1 MBTs and 124 'Arjun' Mk2 MBTs in
2010, after Arjun tank had conclusively outperformed
the T-90. Indian Army is set to acquire 124 Arjun Mk2
tanks as a follow-on order, according to the Defence
Minister.
T-90
1,050
Russia
Procured in three separate orders. Two batches (310

tanks and knockdown kits in 2000 and a further 300
in 2006) were purchased from Russia. A further 1000
were to be produced locally by 2020. Of those, the first
batch of 10 were delivered in August 2009.
T-72
2,414
Soviet
Union,
Poland
Upgraded to advanced Ajeya Mk1 and MK2 standard

mainly based on Polish PT-91 Twardy Tank features
developed by DRDO
B-38
Panorama

Name
Type
Maximum
range (km)
Dhanush
Short-range
Sagarika (K-15) SLBM
K-4
SLBM3
350
700
500
Status
Developed, but not deployed
Awaiting deployment on INS
Tested

Class
Chakra
(Akula
II)-class
Arihantclass
Type
Attack
submarine
(SSN)
Ballistic Missile
sub marine
(SSBN)
Boats
Displacement
INS
12,770 tonnes
Chakra
(S71)
6,000 tonnes,
INS
Arihant surfaced
(S73)
Note
Under a 10 year lease from
Russia since 2012.
Undergoing sea trials,
expected to be commissioned
by 2014-2015.
AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
Class
Centaur
-class
Type
Ships
Displacement
Description
28,700 tonnes STOVL carrier. Scheduled to
Aircraft INS
carrier Viraat
be decommissioned by 2018
and replaced by INS Vikrant
(R22)
Modified Aircraft INS
45,400 tonnes STOBAR carrier.
Kiev-class carrier Vikramaditya (R33)
REPLENISHMENT SHIPS
Class
Type
Deepak-class Replenishment
oiler
Jyoti-class
Aditya-class
Ships
Origin
Italy
INS
Deepak (A50)
INS Shakti (A57)
Replenishment
INS
Russia
oiler
Jyoti (A58)
Replenishment
INS
India
oiler & Repair ship Aditya (A59)
Displacement
27,500 tonnes
35,900 tonnes
24,612 tonnes
RESEARCH AND SURVEY VESSELS

Class
Sagardhwani
Type
Research
vessel
Sandhayak-class Survey
vessel
Makar-class
Survey
vessel
Ships
INS Sagardhwani
(A74)
INS Nirupak (J14) INS
Investigator
(J15) INS Jamuna
(J16)INS Sutlej
(J17) INS Sandhayak
(J18) INS Nirdeshak
(J19) INS Darshak
(J20) INS Sarvekshak (J22)
INS Makar
(J31)
Displacement
2,050 tonnes
1,800
tonnes
500
tonnes
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ATOMIC & NUCLEAR SCIENCE

ATOMIC RESEARCH
Indias atomic research programme is
committed to peaceful uses only, for
example, atomic power, generation of
electricity, development of agriculture
and industry, medical science
application, etc.
Indians journey to atomic energy
research started with establishment of
the Atomic Energy Commission on 10
August 1948 under the chairmanship
of Dr. Homi J. Bhabha. Subsequently,
DAE was established in 1956 with the
following mandate:
(a) To generate safe, economic
electrical power from nuclear
energy.
(b) To build research reactors and to
utilize the radioisotopes produced
in these reactors for applications
in the field of agriculture and
medicine.
(c) To develop advanced technology
in areas such as accelerators,
lasers, biochemistry, information
technology,
and
materials
including development of nonnuclear and strategic materials
like titanium.
First Nuclear Implosion
Carried out on 18 May 1974 at
pokhran to Rajasthan (Thar) desert.
The main objective was use of
atomic energy for peaceful purposes,
that is, digging canals, reservoirs, oil
explorations as well as to study rock
dynamics. This successful implosion
made India the sixth nuclear nation
in the world.
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre
(BARC) Established in 1957, it is
located at Trombay (Maharashtra),
and is Indias largest atomic research
centre, for R&D.
(a) BARCs
atomic
reactors
Aspara Indias atomic reactor
was commissioned on 4 August
1956. One megawatt swimming
pool type reactor produces radio
isotopes. It is also the first atomic
reactor in Asia.
(b) Cirus (canada India Reactor) Built
in 1960, it is a 40 MW reactor.
(c) Zerlina (Zero Energy Reactor for
Lattice Investigation and New
Assemblies) Commissioned on 4
January 1961, used for studies of
uranium heavy water lattice.
(d) Dhruva Commissioned on 15
August 1984, this 100 MW reactor
is a completely indigenous nuclear
reactor with most advanced
laboratories in the world.
(e) Purnima - I (Plutonium Reactor
for Neutronic Investigation
in Multiplying Assemblies)
commissioned on 22 May 1972,
a plutonium fuelled reactor,
modified as Purnima-II that used
uranium as fuel and it is being
further modified as Purnima-III.
(f) Kamini Indias first fast breeder
neutron reactor, it has been set up
at Kalpakkam. Today.
Nuclear power plants

Nuclear power is the fourth-largest
source of electricity in India
after thermal, hydroelectric and
renewable sources of electricity.
India has 21 nuclear reactors in
operation in 7 nuclear power plants,
having an installed capacity of
5308 MW and producing a total
of 30,292.91 GWh of electricity
while seven other reactors are under
construction and are expected to
generate an additional 6,100 MW.
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POWER STATION IN INDIA

Power station
Operator
Tarapur Atomic Power NPCIL

Station
Rajasthan Atomic
Power Station
Establishment Location
Date
1969
Tarapur
State
Maharashtra
NPCIL
1973
Rawatbhata
Rajasthan
Kakrapar Atomic Power NPCIL

Station
1993
Kakrapar
Gujarat
Kudankulam Nuclear
Power Plant
NPCIL
2013
Kudankulam Tamil Nadu
Kaiga Nuclear Power

Plant
NPCIL
2000
Kaiga
Karnataka
Madras Atomic Power

Station
NPCIL
1984
Kalpakkam
Tamil Nadu
Narora Atomic Power

Station
NPCIL
1991
Narora
Uttar Pradesh
Gorakhpur Atomic
Power Station
NPCIL
Fatehabad
Haryana
Talcher Super Thermal NTPC

Power Station
1995
Kaniha
Odisha
Sipat Thermal Power

Plant
NTPC
2008
Sipat
Chhattisgarh
Vindhyachal Super
Thermal Power Station
Mundra Ultra Mega
Power Project
NTPC
2013
Singrauli
Madhya
Pradesh
Tata Power
2009
Mundra
Gujarat
Korba Super Thermal

Power Plant
NTPC
1983
Jamani Palli Chattish Gahr
Bhusawal Thermal
Power Station
Satpura Thermal Power
Station
Sterlite Jharsuguda
Power Station
Durgapur Thermal
Power Station
MAHAGENCO
MPPGCL
1968
Deepnagar
Maharastra
1967
Sarni
Vedanta
2006
Jharsuguda
Madhya
Pradesh
Odisha
DVC
1996
Durgapur
West Bengal
FIRST IN MALE
First governor of Bengal
Last governor of Bengal
The first British Governor General of
Bengal
The first British Governor General of India
The first British Viceroy of India
The first Governor General of free India
Lord Clive(1757-60)
Warren Hastings(1772-74)
Lord Warren Hasting(1774-1885)
Lord William Bentinck(1833-1835)
Lord Canning(1856-62)
Lord Mountbatten(1947-1948)
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The first and the last Indian to be Governor

General of free India
The first President of Indian Republic
The first Prime Minister of free India
The first Indian to win Nobel Prize
The first President of Indian National
Congress
The first Muslim President of Indian
National Congress
The first Muslim President of India
The first man who introduced printing
press in India
The first Indian to join the I.C.S
Indias first man in Space
The first Prime Minister of India who
resigned without completing the full term
The first Indian Commander-in-Chief of
India
The first Chief of Army Staff
The first Indian Member of the Viceroys
executive council
The first President of India who died while
in office
The first Muslim President of Indian
Republic
The first Prime Minister of India who did
not face the Parliament
The first Field Marshal of India
The first Indian to get Nobel Prize in
Physics
The first Indian to receive Bharat Ratna
award
The first Indian to cross English Channel
The first Person to receive Jnanpith award
The first Speaker of the Lok Sabha
The first Vice-President of India
The first Education Minister
The first Home minister of India
The first Indian Air Chief Marshal
The first Indian Naval Chief
The first Judge of International Court of
Justice
The first person to reach Mt. Everest
without oxygen
The first person to get Param Vir Chakra
The first Chief Election Commissioner
C. Rajgopalachari(1948-1950)
Dr. Rajendra Prasad
Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru
Rabindranath Tagore
W.C. Banerjee
Badruddin Tayyabji
Dr. Zakir Hussain
James Hicky
Satyendra Nath Tagore
Rakesh Sharma
Morarji Desai
General Cariappa
Gen. Maharaj Rajendra Singhji
S.P.Sinha
Dr. Zakhir Hussain
Dr. Zakhir Hussain
Charan Singh
S.H.F. Manekshaw
C.V.Raman
Dr. Radhakrishnan
Mihir Sen
Sri Shankar Kurup
Ganesh Vasudeva Mavalankar
Dr. Radhakrishnan
Abdul Kalam Azad
Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel
S. Mukherjee
Vice Admiral R.D. Katari
Dr. Nagendra Singh
Sherpa Anga Dorjee
Major Somnath Sharma
Sukumar Sen
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The first person to receive Magsaysay

Award
The first person of Indian origin to receive
Nobel Prize in Medicine
The first Chinese traveller to visit India
The first person to receive Stalin Prize
The first person to resign from the Central
Cabinet
The first person to receive Nobel Prize in
Economics
The first Chief Justice of Supreme Court
The first Indian Pilot
Acharya Vinoba Bhave

Hargovind Khurana
Fa-hein
Saifuddin Kitchlu
Shyama Prasad Mukherjee
Amartya Sen
Justice Hirala J. Kania
J.R.D. Tata (1929)
FIRST IN FEMALE
The first lady to become Miss World
The first woman judge in Supreme Court
The first woman Ambassador
The first woman Governor of a state in free
India
The first woman Speaker of a State Assembly
The first woman Prime Minister
The first woman Minister in a Government
The first woman to climb Mount Everest
The first woman to climb Mount Everest twice
The first woman President of Indian National
Congress
The first woman pilot in Indian Air Force
The first woman Graduates
Rita Faria
Mrs. Meera Sahib Fatima Bibi
Miss C.B. Muthamma
Mrs Sarojini Naidu
Shanno Devi
Mrs Indira Gandhi
Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
Bachhendri Pal
Santosh Yadav
Mrs Annie Besant
Harita Kaur Dayal

Kadambini Ganguly and
Chandramukhi Basu, 1883
The first woman Airline Pilot
Durga Banerjee
The first woman Honours Graduate
Kamini Roy, 1886
The first woman Olympic medal Winner
Karnam Malleswari, 2000
The first woman Asian Games Gold Medal Kamlijit Sandhu
Winner
The first woman Lawyer
Cornelia Sorabjee
The first woman President of United Nations Mrs Vijaya Laxmi Pandit
General Assembly
The first woman Chief Minister of an Indian Mrs Sucheta Kripalani
State
The first woman Chairman of Union Public Roze Millian Bethew
Service Commission
The first woman Director General of Police
Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya
The first woman Judge
Anna Chandy (She became judge in
a district court in 1937)
The first woman Cheif Justice of High Court Mrs Leela Seth (Himachal Pradesh
High Court)
The first woman Judge in Supreme Court of Kumari Justice M. Fathima Beevi
India
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The first woman Lieutenant General

Puneeta Arora
The first woman Air Vice Marshal
P. Bandopadhyaya
The first woman chairperson of Indian Airlines Sushma Chawla
The first woman IPS officer
The first and last Muslim woman ruler of India
The first woman to receive Ashoka Chakra
The first woman to receive Jnanpith Award
The first woman to cross English Channel
The first woman to receive Nobel Prize
The first woman to receive Bharat Ratna
Mrs. Kiran Bedi

Razia Sultan
Nirja Bhanot
Ashapurna Devi
Aarti Saha
Mother Teresa
Mrs Indira Gandhi
The first woman to receive Jnanpith Award
Ashapurna Devi
FIRST IN OTHERS
First Wax statue of a Living Indian
Mahatma Gandhi at Madame Tussauds in

1939
Bharat Samachar
Indrani Rehman
First Exclusive internet magazine

First Miss India to participate in Miss
Universe
First Judge in International Court of Justice Dr. Nagender Singh
First Graduate in Medicine
Soorjo Coomar Goodeve Chukerbutty
Indias First University
Indias First Open University
Indias First Lok Sabha Member to be
elected with a record
maximum number of votes
First Indian to reach Antarctica
First British to Visit India
First Test tube baby of India
)LUVW3RVW2IFH2SHQHGLQ,QGLD
Nalanda University
Andhra Pradesh Open University
P.V.Narasimha Rao
Lt. Ram Charan

Hawkins
Indira (Baby Harsha)
Kolkata(1727)
SUPERLATIVES
Structures
x Highest Tower ( Minaret ) Qutub
Minar
x Higher Gateway Buland
Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri near
Agra. Built by Akbar (53.5 m
/175 ft High)
x Highest Dam Bhakra Dam
x Highest Bridge Chenab Bridge
x Highest Airport- Leh Air Port in
Ladakh (3256 m/ 16080 ft high)
x Highest Hydel Power StationRongtong Hydel Project in
x
x
x
x
x
Kinnaur district of Himachal

Pradesh.
Highest
Mountain
PeakKanchenjunga
Highest
RoadRoad
at
Khardungla in the Leh-Manali
Sector
Highest Waterfall- Jog Waterfall,
Karnataka
Largest Residence Antilia
Bhawan built by Mukesh
Ambani
Largest Cinema Hall Prasad
Max, Hyderabad
B-44
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Largest Museum National

Museum Delhi
Largest River Barrage Farakka
Barrage
Biggest Auditorium (Mumbai)
Sri Shanmukhanand Hall
Largest zoo Arignar Anna
Zoological Park
Largest Cave Temple Ellora
Largest Gurudwara Golden
Temple, Amritsar
Largest Mosque Jama Masjid,
Delhi (built by Shah Jahan in
1644-58)
Largest Man-made Lake
Govind Sagar (Bhakra)
Largest Dome Gol Gumbaz
(Karnataka)
Largest Cantilever Bridge
Howrah Bridge
Longest Railway Tunnel- Pir
Panjal Railway Tunnel (11 km)
Longest Road Tunnel - 9.2 km
long tunnel on Jammu-Srinagar
National Highway
Largest Public Sector Bank- State
Bank of India
Largest Botanical Garden National Botanical Garden in
Kolkata
Largest Church- Se Cathedral at
Old Goa, 10 km from Panaji.
Largest Delta- Sunderbans (75,000
sq km) formed by the Ganga and
Brahmaputra in West Bengal and
Bangladesh
Largest Stupa- Kesariya Stupa in
Bihar
Largest Library- National Library,
Kolkata
Largest
PlanetariumBirla
Planetarium, Kolkata.
Largest Prison- Tihar Jail, Delhi
Largest
Concentration
of
Scheduled
TribesMadhya
Pradesh
Largest
Scheduled
CasteCommunity Santhal
Longest River Bridge BandraWorli sea link which is 5.6 km.
Panorama
x
Largest
Corridor
Rameshwaram Temple Corridor

x Largest irrigation Canal-Indira
Gandhi Canal or Rajasthan
Canal (959 km long)
x Longest Dam-Hirakund Dam on
Mahanadi river in Orissa (24.4
km long)
x Longest Glacier-Siachen Glacier
on the Indo-pakistan border
(75.6 km long and 2.8 km wide)
x Longest Railway Bridge Nehru
Setu Bridge (4.62 km) long
x Fastest Train-Shatabdi Express
between New Delhi and Bhopal
at a speed of 140 kmph
x Tallest Light House Jakhau, light
hour, Gujarat
x Tallest Statues Statue of Jain Saint
Gomateswara at Sravanabelagola
in Karnataka
x Tallest Chimber Hanuman
Swami statue with 135ft. tall.
x Oldest Church- St. Thomas
Church at Palayar in Trichur
district in Kerala built in 52 AD.
x Oldest Monastery- Buddhist
Monastery, (situated at an
altitude of 3,048 m /10,000 ft) at
Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.
x Largest mall- Lulu Mall Kochi
x Most Populous City- Mumbai
Natural
x Longest River Ganges
x Largest Desert Thar ( Rajasthan)
x Largest Lake Wular Rajasthan
x Largest Fresh Water LakeKolleru in Andhra Pradesh
x Largest Cave- Amarnath (about
44 km from Pahalgam in Jammu
and Kashmir)
Founders of Indian Institutions

x
x
x
x
Arya Samaj-Swami Dayanand

Saraswathi
Athmiya Sabha-Raja Ram Mohan
Roy
Brahma Samaj-Raja Ram Mohan
Roy
Deccan Education Society-
B-45
Panorama
G.G.Agarkar,
M.G.Ranade,
V.G.Gibhongar
Dharma Sabha-Radhakanthadev
Indian Brahma Samaj-Keshav
Chandra Sen
Manavadharma Sabha-Durgaram
Manjaram
Prarthana
Samaj-Athmaram
Pandurang
Pune Sewa Sadan-Smt.Remabhai
Ranade, G.K.Devdhar
Ramakrishna
Mission-Swami
Vivekananda
Sadharan
Brahma
SamajShivananda Sashtri, Anand
Mohan Bose
Servants of India SocietyGopalakrishna Gokhale
Sewa Sadan-Bahuramji M.Malabari
Sewa Samithi-H.N.Kunsru
Social Service League-N.M.Joshi
Thathwabodhini
SabhaDebendranatha Tagore
Theosophical Society-Madam
H.P.Blavadski, Col.H.L.Olkott
x
x
Leader of Nations-Famous Father
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
AmericaGeorge Washington
BangladeshMujibur Rehuman
ChinaSunyatsen
IndiaGandhiji
IndonesiaSukarno
MouritiusRamgoolam
NamibiaSam Nujoma
PakistanMuhammad Ali Jinna
SriLankaD.S.Senanayeke
TanzaniaJulius Nerera
TurkeyMusthafa Kamal
Founders of Towns in India

x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Agra- Sikkandar Lodhi

Ahmedabad - Ahmed Shah
Ajmeer- Ajaypal Chauhan
Allahabad- Akbar
Culcutta- Job Charnok
Delhi- Anankapalan
Fathepur Sikri - Akbar
Hisar- Ferozshah Tuglaq
Hyderabad - Quli Qutabshah
Jodhpur- Rao Jodha
Mahabalipuram
Narasimhawarman
Siri- Alaudden Khilji
Vijayanagaram - Hariharan 1
List of Revolutions Relating to

Products
x
x
x
x
x
x
Blue Revolution - Fisheries

Development
Brown Revolution - Leather
Production
Grey Revolution - Housing
Development
Green Revolution - Agriculture
Production
Pink Revolution - Drugs &
Pharmaceuticals
Silver Revolution - Egg Production
White Revolution - Dairy
Development
Yellow Revolution - Oil Seed
Production
INDIAN HERITAGE SITES RECOMMENDED BY UNESCO

There are 32 World heritage sites in India that are being recognized as World
heritage sites by UNESCO. Some of them are given below.
Ajanta Caves in
Ajanta offers a rich tapestry of images that speak of places,
1983
royalty, culture and tales of everyday life of ancient India.
Ellora Caves in 1983 Ellora is the finest example of cave temples with almost 34
caves with intricate interiors and ornamental facades
Taj Mahal1 in 983
The Taj was built to enshrine the remains of Begum Mumtaz
Mahal, the consort of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan
Agra Fort in 1983
The fort is surrounded by a 70 foot high wall. Its houses the
beautiful Pearl Mosque and numerous palaces
Sun Temple at
The Sun temple of Konark, also known as Black Pagoda, is
Konark in 1984
the crowning glory of the temple architecture of ancient Orissa
B-46
Monuments at
Mahabalipuram in
1984
Kaziranga National
Park in 1985
Manas Wildlife
Sanctuary in 1985
Keoladeo National
Park in 1985
Fatehpur Sikri in
1986
Churches and
Convents in Goa in
1986
Monuments at
Khajuraho 1986
Panorama
Mahabalipuram is world famous for its shore temples and it

was the second capital of the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram
Kaziranga is one of the last strongholds of the endangered

Indian one-horned rhinoceros
The Manas river divides the lush, mixed deciduous forests that
run through India to Bhutan
The Keoladeo Ghana Bird Sanctuary is situated just 55
kilometers from the Taj Mahal at Agra
Fatehpur Sikri is the one of the finest examples of Mughal
architectural splendour. It was built by Mughal Emperor Akbar
The churches and cathedrals built during 16th to 17th century
A.D. (Basilica of Bom Jesus, etc) at Goa are a legacy of the
Portuguese
Khajuraho Monuments were built between 950-1050 A.D. near
the village of Khajuraho under the patronage of the Chandela
kings of northern central India
Monuments at
Hampi, 353 kilometers from Bangalore, are one of the most
Hampi 1986
fascinating historical sites in South India.
Brihadeeshwara
The Brihadisvara temple with its 66.5 meters high srivimana
Temple at Thanjavur dominating the city is built of granite.
1987
Sundarbans National The Sunderbans National Park, covering about 1330.10 sq. km,
Park 1987
is the habitat of nearly 200 Royal Bengal tigers
Elephanta Caves
Elephanta consists of seven caves of which the most notable is
1987
the Mahesa-murti cave
Monuments at
Pattadakal 1987
Nanda Devi
National Park 1988
Buddhist Monastery
at Sanchi 1989
Pattadakal, in Karnataka, illustrates the Chalukyan art which,

in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D., under the Chalukya dynasty
The Nanda Devi National Park is one of the most spectacular
wilderness areas in the Himalayas.
Sanchi is a serene hill crowned by a group of stupas,
monasteries, temples and pillars dating from 3rd Century BC
to the 12th Cent AD.
Humayuns Tomb at Humayun`s Tomb is an early example of Mughal architecture
Delhi 1993
built in Delhi
Qutab Minar 1993 Qutab Minar with a length of 238 feet, commands a panoramic
view of the green fields extending into a sprawling city of Delhi
Darjeeling
This toy train has achieved worldwide fame for engineering
Himalayan Railway excellence, wonderful landscape and tourist attraction.
1999
Bodhgaya Complex A big complex of Buddhist temples that include the site where
of Buddhist Temples Lord Buddha had meditated to get enlightenment
2002
The very recent addition has been the rock shelters & over 500
Bhimbetka Rock
Shelters and Caves caves of Bhimbetka, belonging to the Neolithic age, which lies
46 km South of Bhopal, surrounded by the northern fringe of
near Bhopal 2003
the Vindhyan ranges.
B-47
Panorama
Chhatrapati Shivaji
Terminus (formerly
Victoria Terminus)
2004
Champaner
Pawagarh
Archaeological Park
in Gujarat in 2004
Red Fort complex,
Delhi in 2007
Jantar Mantar of
Jaipur,Rajastan in
2010
This is an outstanding example of Victorian Gothic Revival

architecture in India, blended with themes deriving from
Indian traditional architecture. The building, designed by the
British architect F.W. Stevens
A concentration of largely unexcavated archaeological, historic
and living cultural heritage properties cradled in an impressive
landscape which includes prehistoric (chalcolithic) sites, a hill
fortress of an early Hindu capital, and remains of the 15th
century capital of the state of Gujarat.
The 17th century Mughal marvel, Red Fort, has joined the
ranks of 26 other Indian sites, to be included in UNESCOs
list of World Heritage Sites. Earlier it almost got nominated
in 1993, but due to the army occupying it that time, the
government deferred nominating it that time.
The Jantar Mantar, in Jaipur, is an astronomical observation
site built in the early 18th century. It includes a set of some
20 main fixed instruments. This is the most significant, most
comprehensive, and the best preserved of Indias historic
observatories.
Hill Forts of Rajasthan The sites consists of six majestic forts Chittorgarh,
(2013)
Kumbhalgarh, Sawai Madhopur, Jhalawar, Jaipur, and
Jaisalmer of Rajasthan. They are the major urban centres
which flouriched during 8th to 18th centiry AD.
It is characterized by high alpine peaks, alpine meadows and
Rani-ki-Vav (the
riverine forests. It is situated in the northern India state of
Queens step well at
Himachal Pradesh covering nearly 90,540 ha of area which
patna Gujarat 2014)
include mountain glaciers, snow melt water sources of river,
rich assemblage of fauna species.
Western Ghats (2012) These ghats or (mountain ranges) are older than Himalayan
mountains which cover unique species of non-equatorial
tropical evergreen forest. It is characterised by exceptionally
high level of biological diversity known as one of the eight
hottest spot: in the world.
SOBRIQUETS
A sobriquet is a nickname, Occasionally assumed and often given by anther.
It is usually a familiar name. This significant distinctive is a ample familiarity
that the sobriquet can become more familiar than the original name.
Person
Anna
Badshah Khan/ Frontier Gandhi
Buddha
Chacha
Deenabandhu
Deshbandhu
Father of the Nation
Frontier Gandhi
Primary Names
C N Annadurai
Abdul Ghaffar Khan
Siddhartha Gautama
Jawaharlal Nehru
C F Andrews
C. R. Das
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Abdul Gaffar Khan
B-48
Grand Old Man of India

Gurudev
Guruji
Kaviguru
Lokmanya
Loknayak
Mahatma Gandhi
Man of Peace
Manitas de Plate
Netaji
Nightingale of India
Panditji
Punjab kesari
Rajaji
Saint of the Gutters
Father of the Nation
Haryana Hurricane
Prince of Kolkata
Places
Bengals Sorrow
Blue Mountain
City of Golden Temple
City of Palaces
Diamond City in India
Garden City of India
Garden of India
Gateway of India
Gods Own Country
Land of Five Rivers
Pink City
Queen of Arabian Sea
Spice Garden of India
The City of Joy
The City of Palaces
Venice of East
Queen of Arabian Sea
Garden City of India
Blue Mountains
Panorama
Dadabhai Naoroji
Rabindranath Tagore
M S Gohlwalkar
Rabindranath Tagore
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Jayaprakash Narayan
Mohandas K. Gandhi
Lal Bahadur Shastri
Flamenco guitarist Ricardo Baliardo
Subhash Chandra Bose
Sarojini Naidu
Jawaharlal Nehru
Lala Lajpat Rai
C Rajagopalachari
Mother Teresa
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Kapil Dev
Saurav Ganguly
Primary Names
Damodar Rever, India
Niligiri Hills, India
Amritsar, India
Kolkata, India
Surat, Gujarat
Bengaluru
Kashmir
Mumbai
Kerala
Punjab, India
Jaipur, India
Kochi, India
Kerala
Kolkata, India
Kolkata, India
Alleppey, India
Kochi, India
Bangalore
Niligiri Hills, India
B-49
Panorama
World Panorama
WORLD COUNTRIES, CAPITAL,
LANGUAGE & THEIR CURRENCY
Country
Afghanistan
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Azerbaijan
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belgium
Capital
Kabul
Algiers
Buenos Aires
Canberra
Baku
Manama
Dhaka
Brussels
Currency
Afghani
Algerian Dinar
Argentine Peso
Australian Dollar
Manat
Bahraini, Dinar
Taka
Euro
Thimphu
La Paz; Sucre
Sarajevo
Chief Language
Pushtu Dari
Arabic, French
Spanish
English
Azeri
Arabic, English
Bangla
Flemish (Dutch), French,
German
Dzongkha
Aymara Spanish, Quechua
Serbo-Croatian
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bosnia
and
Herzegovina
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Cambodia
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Congo
Formerly Zaire
Costa Rica
Croatia
Cuba
Czech
Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Ethiopia
Fiji
Finland
France
French Guiana
Brazilia
Sofia
Ouagadougou
Phnom-Penh
Ottawa
Santiago
Beijing
Bogota
Kinshasa
Portuguese
Bulgarian
French
Khmer
French, English
Spanish
Chinese (Mandarin)
Spanish
French
Real
Lev
Franc
Riel
Canadian Dollar
Peso
Yuan
Peso
Congolese Franc
San Jose
Zagreb
Havana
Prague
Spanish
Croatian
Spanish
Czech
Colon
Kuna
Peso
Koruna
Copenhagen
Quito
Cairo
Addis Ababa
Suva
Helsinki
Paris
Caine
Danish
Spanish
Arabic
Amharic
English
Finnish, Swedish
French
French
Krone
United States dollar
Egyptian Pound
Birr
Fijian Dollar
Euro
Euro
Euro
Ngultrum
Boliviano
Conv.Mark
B-50
Panorama
Country
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
India
Capital
Tbilisi
Berlin
Accra
Athens
Guatemala City
Georgetown
Port-au-Prince
Tegucigalpa
Victoria
Budapest
New Delhi
Indonesia
Jakarta
Iran
Teheran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Korea, North
Korea, South
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya
Luxembourg
Baghdad
Dublin
Jerusalem
Rome
Tokyo
Amman
Astana
Nariobi
Pyongyang
Seoul
Kuwait city
Beriut
Tripoli
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Putrajaya
(formerly
Kuala Lumpur)
Port Louis
Mauritius
Mexico
Mongolia
Myanmar
Netherlands
New Zealand
Chief Language
Georgian
German
English
Greek
Spanish
English
French
Spanish
English, Chinese
Hungarian
Hindi (official), English and
22 officially recognised
regional languages
Bahasa Indonesian, Dutch,
English Javanese
Persian (Farsi), Turk, Kurdish,
Arabic
Arabic, Kurdish
Irish, English
Hebrew, Arabic
Italian
Japanese
Arabic, English
Kazakh, Russian, German
Kiswahili, English, Kikuyu
Korean
Korean
Arabic, English
Arabic, French, English
Arabic
French, German, English,
Luxembourgish
Malay, English, Chinese,
Tamil
English, French, Creole,

Hindustani
Mexico city
Spanish, Amerindian
languages
Ulan Bator
Mangolian
Burmeses and tribal lanNaypyidar or
Pyinmana (for- guages
merly Yangon)
Amsterdam
Dutch
Wellington
English and Maori dialect
Currency
Lari
Euro
Ghana Cedi
Euro
Quetzal
Guyana Dollar
Gourde
Lempira
Hong Kong Dollar
Forint
Rupee
Rupiah
Rial
Iraqi Dinar
Euro
Shekel
Euro
Yen
Jordan Dinar
Tenge
Shilling
Won
Won
Kuwait Dinar
Pound
Libyan Dinar
Euro
Ringgit
Rupee Mauritian
Mexico Peso
Togrog
Kyat
Euro
New Zealand
Dollar
B-51
Panorama
Country
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Capital
Abuja
Oslo
Muscat
Islamabad
Chief Language
English, Hansa, Ibo, Yoruba
Norwegian
Arabic
Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi,
Pusthu, Baluchi, Brahvi,
English
Spanish, Quechua,
Aymara
Filipino, English, Spanish
Polish
Portuguese
Arabic, English
Russian
Arabic
Serbo-Croatian (official),
Albanian
Malay, Chinese, Tamil,
English
Arabic, English, Italian
Afrikaans, English
Spanish, Catalan, Basque,
Galician
Sinhala, Tamil, English
Currency
Naira
Krone
Omani Rial
Pakistani Rupee
Peru
Lima
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Russia
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Manila
Wrsaw
Lisbon
Doha
Moscow
Riyadh
Belgrade
Singapore
Singapore city
Somalia
South Africa
Spain
Mogadishu
Capetown
Madrid
Sri Lanka
Colombo
Sudan
Khartoum
Sudanese Pound
Bangkok
Tunis
Ankara
Kampala
Abu Dhubi
Arabic, English, Dinka,

Nubian
Swedish
German, French, Italian,
Romansch
Arabic, Kurdish, Armenian
Mandarian Chinese, Taiwan,
Hakka dialects
Thai, Chinese, English, Malay
Arabic, French
Turkish, Kurdish, Arabic
Englsih, Luganda, Swahili
Arabic
Sweden
Switzerland
Stockholm
Berne
Syria
Taiwan
Damascus
Taipei
Syrian Pound
New Taiwan
Dollar
Thai Baht
Dinar
Turkish Lira
Ugandan Shilling
Dirham
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
United Arab
Emirates
United
Kingdom
United States
of America
Venezuela
Vietnam
London
English, Welsh, Scots, Gaelic
Pound Sterling
Washington
D.C.
Caracas
Hanoi
English
Dollar
Spanish
Vietnamese, French, English,
Chinese
Arabic
English, Shona, Ndebela
Bolivar
Dong
Yemen
Zimbabwe
Sanaa
Harare
Nuero Sol
Peso
Zloty
Euro
Riyal (QAR)
Russian ruble
Rial (SAR)
Dinar
Singapore Dollar
Somali Shilling
Rand
Euro
Sri Lankan Rupee
Krona
Swiss Franc
Rial
Dollar (ZWD)
B-52
Panorama
LIST OF IMPORTANT GEOGRAPHICAL

DISCOVERIES AROUND THE WORLD
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Amundsen (Norwegian)-Discovered
South Pole in 1912.
Byrd-American aviator and polar
explorer. Flew over the North
Pole in 1926 and made the first
flight over the South Pole in 1929.
Discovered Edsel Ford mountains
and Morei Byrd land.
Cabot (Venetian)-Discovered New
Foundland in 1494.
Captain Cook (English)-Discovered
Sandwich (now Hawaiian) Isles
in 1770.
Columbus-Discovered West Indies
in 1492 and South America in 1498.
Copernicus-Discovered Solar
System in 1540. Propounded the
astronomical system which bears
his name.
David Livingstone-Discovered
course of the Zambesi, the Victoria
Falls and Lake Nyasa in Africa.
Edmund Hillary-Joint conqueror
of Mount Everest with Tenzing.
He also led a Trans-Atlantic
expedition and reached South
Pole on January 3, 1958.
Ferdinand de Lesseps-Conceived
the plan of the Suez Canal on
which work was completed in
1869 through his efforts.
Francis Younghusband-Explored
the frontier regions of India, China
and Tibet.
Kepler-Discovered the Laws of
Planetary Motion in 1609.
Lindbergh-Performed the first
solo-flight across the Atlantic in
1927 from New York to Paris.
x
x
x
x
x
x
Magellan-Commanded the first

expedition in 1519 to sail round
the world. Discovered passage
to the Pacific from the Atlantic
through Straits afterwards named
after him.
Marco Polo-Venetian traveller
who explored China, India,
South Eastern countries and
published the record of his various
explorations. He was the first
European to visit China.
Nansen-Norwegian explorer who
explored across Greenland and
reached the highest altitude in
the North Polar Region, till then
attained.
Peary, Robert-First to reach the
North Pole in 1909.
Pedro Alvares Cabral (Portuguese)
- Discovered Brazil in 1500.
Shackleton-Arctic
explorer,
reached within 160 km of the
South Pole.
Sven Hedin-Swedish explorer.
Made great contribution to the
geographic and archaeological
knowledge of large areas of
Central Asia.
Iksman-Dutch navigator, discovered
the Tasmania Island and New
Zealand in 1642.
Tenzing (Indian)-First to reach
Mount Everest on 29th May, 1953
along with Edmund Hillary. The
expedition was led by Col. Sir
John Hunt.
Vasco da Gama (Portuguese)Rounded the Cape of Good Hope
and discovered the sea route to
India in 1498.
B-53
Panorama
NATIONAL ANIMALS OF THE MAJOR COUNTRIES

Country
Afghanistan
Albania
Australia
Bangladesh
Brazil
Canada
China
Denmark
Japan
Myanmar
Animals
Snow Leopard
Golden Eagle
Kangaroo
Royal Bengal tiger
Macaw
North American beaver
Panda, Red Crowned Crane
Mute Swan
Green Pheasant
Tiger
Country
Nepal
New Zealand
Pakistan
South Africa
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
India
Kuwait
Belgium
Animal
Cow
Kiwi
Markhor
Springbok
Bull
Barbary Lion
Bald Eagle
Bengal Tiger
Camel
Lion
Official Books
Blue Book : An official report of the British Government
Green Book : An official publication of Italy and Persia
Grey Book : An official reports of the Government of Japan and Belgium
Orange Book : An official Publications of the Government of Netherlands
White Book : An official Publications of China, Germany and Portugal
Yellow Book : French official Book
White Paper : An official paper of the Government of Britain and India on a
particular issue
Red Data Book: Russian official book which contains lists of species whose continued
existence is threatened
NEW 7 WONDERS OF THE WORLD

Petra, Jordan
The Colosseum, Rome, Italy
The Taj Mahal, India
Chichen Itza, Mexico
Christ the Redeemer, Brazil

Great Wall of China, China
Machu Picchu, Peru
WORLDS MOST POWERFUL INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES

Detective Agency
Ministry of State Security
Australian Secret Intelligence
Service (ASIS)
FSB
State Security Agency
Inter Service Intelligence
(ISI)
MI (Military Intelligence) 5
and 6, Special Branch, Joint
Intelligence org.
Research and Analysis wing
(RAW), Intelligence Bureau
(IB)
Country
China
Australia
Detective Agency
VAJA
MOSSAD
Russia
Egyption Homeland Security
South Africa PSIA
Pakistan
Iraqi National Intelligence
Service
UK
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA),
Federal Bureau of investigation
(FBI)
INDIA
DGSE (Direction General Dela
Securite Exterieure
Country
Iran
Israel
Egypt
Japan
Iraq
USA
France
B-54
Direction Generale De La Securite

Exterieure (DGSE), France
The General Directorate for External
Security (DGSE) is the intelligence
agency of France. It was founded
in 1982 to gather intelligence from
foreign sources to assist in military
and strategic decisions. It is not
as famous as CIA or Mossad, but
DGSE claims to have prevented
more than 15 terrorist attacks in
France since 9/11. The agency has
a network of around 5000 agents
spread across France and the
world. Its head office is in the 20th
arrondissement of Paris.
The Institute for Intelligence

and Special Operations,
MOSSAD, Israel
One of the most powerful secret
service agencies in the world, the
Mossad, meaning Institute for
Intelligence and Special Operations,
is the national intelligence agency
of Israel. Mossad, like the CIA, has
active agents spread across the world
and are involved in intelligence
gathering,
covert
operations
and protecting Jews and Jewish
interests. Mossad was formed on
December 13, 1949, as the Central
Institute for Coordination at the
recommendation of Prime Minister
David Ben-Gurion to Reuven
Shiloah.
Federal Security Services

(FSB), Russia
Federal Security Services
is the principal security
agency of Russia and the
foremost successor agency
to the USSRs Committee
of State Security(KGB).
Panorama
Its main responsibilities are within
the country and include counterintelligence, internal and border
security, counter-terrorism, and
surveillance as well as investigating
some other types of grave crimes
and federal law violations. It is
headquartered in Lubyanka Square,
Moscows centre, in the main
building of the former KGB. The
Director of the FSB since 2008 is
army general Aleksandr Bortnikov.
Ministry of State Security

(MSS), China
The Ministry of State Security
(MSS) is one of the most powerful
and most active Chinese intelligence
agencies. Its main objective is to
keep track and neutralise enemies
of the Communist Party of China.
It is headquartered near the Ministry
of Public Security of the Peoples
Republic of China in Beijing. MSS
holds the same authority to arrest
or detain people as regular police
for crimes involving state security
with identical supervision by the
procuratorates and the courts.
Military Intelligence Section 6

(MI6), United Kingdom
The Secret Intelligence Service
(SIS), popularly referred to as the
Directorate of Military Intelligence
Section 6 (MI6), is known as the
the secret front line of Britain`s
national security. A century old
organisation, the MI6s presence was
not officially acknowledged till 1994.
The agency is tasked with gathering
foreign intelligence from across the
globe that could impact political and
economic interests in the UK. Since
1995, the SIS headquarters have
been at Vauxhall Cross on the South
Bank of the River Thames.
Panorama
Inter Service Intelligence (ISI),

Pakistan
Established in 1948, Pakistans
Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence
(ISI) is the premier military operated
intelligence service of Pakistan. The
ISI was established as an independent
intelligence service in 1948 in order
to strengthen the sharing of military
intelligencebetween the three branches of
Pakistan Armed Forces in the aftermath
of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, which
had exposed weaknesses in intelligence
gathering, sharing and coordination
between the Army, Air Force and Navy.
The ISI has headquarters in Islamabad,
Islamabad Capital Venue, and is currently
headed by Lieutenant-General Rizwan
Akhter, who succeeded Zaheerul Islam
in October 2014.
Central Intelligence Agency,

CIA, United States
The Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) of the United States of
America is indeed the largest secret
service with the maximum reach.
The CIA is known to play a pivotal
role in helping the US maintain its
status as the worlds sole super power.
More importantly, CIA has been
playing a central role in exchange
of intelligence between countries to
combat global terrorism.
Research and Analysis Wing

(RAW, India)
Founded in 1968, the Research and
Analysis Wing (RAW), initially,
focused its activities in Indias
immediate neighbourhood but with
the changing profile of New Delhis
geo-political interests, it has spread
its wings to other regions across
B-55
the world. The primary function

of R&AW is gathering foreign
intelligence and counter-terrorism.
R&AW was formed in September 1968
under the guidance of its first Director,
Rameshwar Nath Kao. Headquartered
in New Delhi, R&AWs current chief
is Rajinder Khanna, a 1978-batch IPS
cadre officer.
Canadian Security Intelligence

Service (CSIS)
Canadian Security Intelligence
Services is Canadas primary national
intelligence service. It is responsible
for collecting, analyzing, reporting and
disseminating intelligence on threats
to Canadas national security, and
conducting operations, covert and
overt, within Canada and abroad.
It also reports to and advises the
government of Canada on national
security issues and situations that
threaten the security of the nation.
Its headquarters is located in Ottawa,
Ontario, in a purpose-built facility
completed in 1995.
Australian Secret Intelligence

Service (ASIS)
The Australian Secret Intelligence
Service (ASIS) is Australias
intelligence watchdog which keeps a
close watch on developments across
the world, especially in the AsiaPacific region. Although Australia is
relatively isolated from global terror,
still ASIS works 24X7 to protect the
countrys political and economic
interests. Interestingly, the existence
of ASIS, founded in 1952, was a secret
even from its own government for over
twenty years.Its current DirectorGeneral is Nick Warner.
B-56
Panorama
FATHER OF VARIOUS FIELDS

Field
Father
Field
Father
Atom Bomb Dr. Robert

Oppenheime
Computer
Charles Babbage
Aviation
Sir George Cayley
Biology
Aristotle
Chemistry
Robert Boyle
Microbiology
Louis pasteur and Robert koch
Comedy
Aristophanes
Political Science
Aristotle
Economics
Adam Smith
Modern Philosphy
Rene Descartes
English
Poetry
Geoffrey
Chaucer
Psychology
Wilhelmam Wundt
Greek Trag- Aeschylus

edy
Modern Observational
Astronomy
Galileo Galilei
Immunology Edward Jenner
Modern Physics Science
Galileo Galilei
Modern
Chemistry
Nuclear
Physics
Sanskrit
Grammar
Geography
Antoini
Lavoisier
Ernest
Rutherford
Panini
Modern Science
Galileo Galilei
Nano technology
Richard Smalley
Indian Nuclear Science
Homi Jehangir Bhabha
Eratosthenes
Anatomy
Andreas Vesalius
Sociology
Mathematics
Auguste Comte
Archimedes
Geometry
Internet
Euclid
Vinton Cerf
SOBRIQUETS
A sobriquet is a nickname, Occasionally assumed and often given by another.
The sobriquet can become more familiar than the original name.
Sobriquets Person
Primary Names
Angel of Death
Josef Mengele
Bard of Avon
Bard of Twickenham
Bloody mary
Bonnie Prince Charlie
Brangelina
Caligula
Canuck
der Alte (the old man)
Desert Fox
Diamond Dave
Digger
Dr. Death
William Shakespeare
Alexander Pope
Mary I of England
Charles Edward Stuart
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
Canadian, from Johnny Canuck
Konrad Adenauer
Erwin Rommel
David Lee Roth, Singer
Australian soldier
Jack Kevorkian, proponent of assisted suicide
B-57
Panorama
Sobriquets Person
Dubya
EI Caudillo
Father of his country
Fuhrer
Genghis Khan
Grand Old Man of Britain
Hanoi Jane
Honest Abe
Ike Dwight
Iron Duke
Iron Lady
King James
Lady with the Lamp
Little Richard
Primary Names
George W. Bush
Francisco Franco
George Washington
Adolf Hitler
Temjin
Willian Ewart Glandstone
Jane Fonda
Abraham Lincoln
David Eisenhower
Duke of Wellington
Margaret Thatcher
LeBron James, American basketball player
Florence Nightingale
Rev. Richard Wayne Penniman, a prominent
figure in rock n roll.
Madge
Madonna
Madiba
Nelson Mandela
Maid of Orleans
Joan of Arc
Man of Blood and Iron
Otto Von Bismark
Man of Destiny
Napolean Bonaparte
Old Blood and Guts
George S. Patton
Old Blue Eyes
Frank Sinatra, entertainer
Old Hickory
Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the United
States
Old Kinderhook (OK)
Martin Van Buren, 8th President of the United
States
Old Nick
Santa
Old Rough and Ready
Zachary Taylor
Old St. Nick
Santa
Pel
Edson Arantes do Nascimento
Prince of the Humanists
Desiderius Erasmus
Qaid-e-Azam
Mohammad Ali Jinnah
Saint Jimmy
Billie Joe Armstrong
Satchmo
Louis Armstrong
Slick Willy
U.S. President Bill Clinton
Slowhand
Eric Clapton
Sting
Gordon Summer, British rock musician
The Bard
William Shakespeare
The Bird
Mark Fidrych, Baseball pitcher
The Boss
Bruce Springsteen
The Cincinnatus of the Americans George Washington
The Duke
John Wayne
The Fab Four
The Beatles
The Godfather of Soul
James Brown
B-58
Panorama
Sobriquets Person
The Golden Bear
The Great Commoner
The Greatest
The King (of golf)
The King (of Rock and Roll)
The King of Pop
The Lion of the Round Top
The Man from Tennessee
The Material Girl
The New Sinatra
The Rat Pack
The Red Baron
The Rock Chemeleon
The Tiger of France
Tricky Dick
Uncle Sam
Wizard of the North
Yank (a short form of Yankee)
Primary Names
Jack Nicklaus
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham (Pitt the
elder) or William Jennings Bryan
Muhammad Ali, Boxer
Arnold Palmer
Elvis Presley
Michael Jackson
Col. Joshua L. Chamberlain, commander of
the 20th Maine Regiment, American Civil War
Andrew Jackson
Madonna
Jay-Z
A group of American singers and entertainers
from the late 1950s to the early 1970s
Manfred von Richthofen, World War I,
German flying ace
David Bowie
Georges Clemenceau
Richard Nixon, 37th President of the United
States
The U.S.A. or sometimes the government
Walter Scott
Originally used derogatorily by Southerners but
now only heard outside the USA
PLACES
Beantown
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Blighty
Great Britain (used by British servicemen abroad

and expatriates)
PPSh-41
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
New Zealand
Washington, D.C., so named because of its
majority African-American population
Philadelphia
Oxford, England
San Francisco, USA
Washington D.C., USA
Rome, Italy
New York, USA
San Francisco
Belgium
Africa
Brass Fountain
Brew City
Brisvegas
Britain of South
Chocolate City
City of Brotherly Love
City of Dreaming Spires
City of Golden Gate
City of Magnificent Distances
City of Seven Hills
City of Skyscrapers
City of the Golder Gate
Cockpit of Europe
Dark Continent
B-59
Panorama
Empire City
Eternal City
Forbidden City
Frisco
Garden of England
Garrincha
Gate of Tears
Gift of Nile
Gotham
Granite City
Great White Way
Hermit Kingdom
Herring Pond
Hogtown
Holy Land
Humming Bird
Island of Cloves
Island of Pearls
Key of Mediterranean
Land of Cakes
Land of Canals
Land of Golden Pagoda
Land of Lilies
Land of Maple
Land of Midnight Sun
Land of Morning Calm
Land of Rising Sun
Land of the Golden Fleece
Land of the Golden Pagoda
Land of Thousand Lakes
Land of Thunderbolt
Land of White Elephants
Land of Windmills
Manchester of Japan
Never Never Land
Pearl of the Antilles
Pearl of the Orient
Perfidious Albion
Pillars of Hercules
Playground of Europe
Port of Five Seas
Powder Keg of Europe
Quaker City
Queen of Adriatic
New York, USA

Rome, Italy
Lhasa, Tibet
San Francisco, California
Kent, England
Manoel Francisco dos Santos
Bab-el-mandab, Jerusalem
Egypt
New York
Aberdeen, Scotland
Broadway, New York, USA
Korea
Atlantic Ocean
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Palestine
Trinidad
Madagascar
Bahrain
Gibraltar
Scotland
Netherlands
Myanmar (Burma)
Canada
Canada
Norway
Korea
Japan
Australia
Myanmar
Finland
Bhutan
Thailand
Netherlands
Osaka
Prairies of N.Australia
Cuba
Philippines
Great Britain
Strait of Gibraltar
Switzerland
Moscow
Balkans
Philadelphia, USA
Venice, Italy
B-60
Roof of the World

Sick Man of Europe
Sin City
Sorrow of China
Sugar Bowl of the World
Taiwan
The Antipodes
The Battlefield of Europe
The Bayou City
The Big Apple
The Big D
The Big Easy
The Big Smoke
The City of Light
The City or The City by the Bay
The Dragon
The Emerald City
The Emerald Isle
The Enchanted Isle
The Federal City
The Fourth Estate
The Mother-in-law of Europe
The Old Bailey
The Old Lady of Threadneedle
Street
The Old Smoke
The Paris of the South
The Paris of the West
Tie Rock (prison)
The Steel City
The Windy City
Tinseltown
Venice of the North
Westminster
White City
White House
White Mans Grave
Whitehall
Worlds Breadbasket
Worlds Loneliest Island
Yellow River
Panorama
Pamirs, Central Asia

Turkey
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
River Hwang Ho
Cuba
Republic of China
Australia and New Zealand
Belgium
Houston, Texas, USA
New York City
Dallas, Texas, USA
New Orleans, Louisiana
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Paris
San Francisco, California
China (as an economy)
Seattle, Washington, USA
Ireland and Puerto Rico
(from la isla del encanto) Puerto Rico
Washington D.C.
The press
Denmark
The Central Criminal Court in England
The Bank of England
London
So Paulo and Buenos Aires
San Francisco, USA
Alcatraz Prison
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Hollywood, California, USA
Stockholm
The British Parliament
Belgrade, Yugoslavia
The executive branch of the government of the
United States
Guinea Coast
The British government including Parliament
but excluding the monarchy
Prairies of N. America
Tristan De Gunha (Mid-Atlantic)
Hang He (China)
B-61
Panorama
ADDITIONAL FACTS
x
x
x
x
x
x
The largest coffee growing

country in the World is - Brazil
The biggest delta in the World is
the - Sunderbans
The Japanese call their country
as - Nippon
The biggest Island of the World
is - Greenland
The
river
which
carries
maximum quantity of water into
the sea is the - Mississippi
Mount Everest was named after
Sir George - Everest
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
The biggest stadium in the world

is the - Strahov Stadium, Prague
The worlds largest diamond
producing country is - South
Africa
The Eggel tower was built by Alexander Eiffel
The Red Cross was founded by Jean Henri Durant
The
permanent
secretariat
of the SAARC is located at Kathmandu
The earlier name of Sri Lanka
was Ceylon
The founder of the Republic of
China was - San Yat Sen
FIRST IN THE WORLD

The first person to reach Mount Everest
The first person to reach North Pole
The first person to reach South Pole
The first religion of the world
The first country to print book
The first country to issue paper currency
The first country to commence competitive
examination in civil services
The first President of the U.S.A
Sherpa Tenzing, Edmund Hillary

Robert Peary
Amundsen
Hinduism
China
China
China
The first Prime Minister of Britain

The first Governor General of the United
Nations
The first country to win football World cup
The first country to prepare a constitution
The first Governor General of Pakistan
The first country to host NAM summit
Robert Walpole
Trygve Lie
The first European to attack India
Alexander, The Great
The first European to reach China
Marco Polo
The first person to fly aeroplane
Wright Brothers
The first person to sail round the world
Magellan
George Washington
Uruguay
U.S.A
Mohd. Ali Jinnah
Belgrade (Yugoslavia)
The first country to send man to the moon

U.S.A
The first country to launch Artificial satellite Russia
in the space
The first country to host the modern Olympics Greece
The first city on which the atom bomb was Hiroshima (Japan)
dropped
The first person to land on the moon
Neil Armstrong followed by Edwin
E. Aldrin
The first shuttle to go in space
Columbia
B-62
Panorama
The first spacecraft to reach on Mars
Viking-I
The first woman Prime Minister of England
Margaret Thatcher
The first Muslim Prime Minister of a country Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan)

The first woman Prime Minister of a country Mrs. S. Bandamaike (Sri Lanka)
The first woman to climb Mount Everest
Mrs. Junko Tabei (Japan)
The first woman cosmonaut of the world
Velentina Tereshkova (Russia)
The first woman President of the U.N. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit

General Assembly
The first man to fly into space
Yuri Gagarin (Russia)
The first batsman to score three test century in Mohd. Azharuddin
three successive tests on debut
The first man to have climbed Mount Everest Nawang Gombu
twice
The first U.S. President to resign Presidency
Richard Nixon
SUPERLATIVES
Tallest Animal on (land)
Biggest Bell
Fastest Bird
Largest Bird
Smallest Bird
Longest Bridge (Railway)
Tallest Building
Tallest office Building
Longest Big Ship Canal
Busiest Canal (Ship)
Biggest Cinema House
Highest City
Largest City (in population)
Biggest City in (area)
Largest Continent
Smallest Continent
Largest Country (in population)
Largest Country (in area)
Largest Coral Formation
Largest Dam
Longest Day
Shortest Day
Largest Delta
Longest Desert (World)
Largest Diamond
Biggest Dome
Biggest Dome (New Archi)
Giraffe
Great Bell at Moscow
Swift
Ostrich
Humming Bird
Lower Zambeji (Africa )
Burj khalifa, Dubai (U.A.E)
Patronas Twin Towers Kuala Lampur (Malaysia)
Seuz Canal (Linkin red sea & Mediterranean)
Baltic White Sea Canal (152 miles)
Roxy (New York)
Wen Chuwan (Tibet, China) 16,732 ft.
Tokyo [(3,42,00000), Est. population in 2006]
Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia (41225 sq. km.)
Asia
Australia
China
Russia
The Great Barrier Reef (Australia)
Grand Coulee- Concrete Dam (U.S.A)
June 21 (in Northern Hemisphere)
Dec. 22(in Northern Hemisphere)
Sundarbans, India (8000 sq. miles)
Sahara, Africa (84, 00,000 sq. km.)
The Cullinan (over 1 1b.)
Gol Gumbaz (Bijapur), (Old archi) 144 ft. diameter.
Astrodome, Sports
Panorama
Longest Epic
Largest Island
Largest Lake (Artificial)
Deepest Lake
Highest Lake
Largest Lake (Fresh Water)
Largest Lake (Salt Water)
Largest Mosque
Biggest Library
B-63
The Mahabharata
Greenland (renamed Kalaallit Nunaat)
Lake Mead (Bouler)
Baikal (Siberia); average depth2300 ft.
Titicaca (Bolivia) 12645 ft. above sea level.
Lake Superior, U.S.A
Caspian Sea 3, 71,000 sq. km.)
Jama Masjid, Delhi, (area 10,000 sq. ft.)
National Kiev Library,Moscow & Library of the
Congress, Washington)
Highest Mountain peak (World) Himalayas
Longest Mountain Range
Andes (S.America) 5,500 miles in length
Biggest Museum
British Museum (London)
Tallest Minaret (Free Standing) Qutub Minar, Delhi 238 ft.
Tallest Minaret
Great Hassan Mosque, Casablanca, Morocco
Deepest & Biggest Ocean
The Pacific
Largest Palace
Imperial Palace (Gugong), Beijing (China)
Largest Park
National Park, Greenland
Largest Peninsula
Arabic (32,50,000 sq. km.)
Coldest Place or Region
Verkhoyansk (Syberia), Temperature 85 C
Driest Place
Death Valley (California); rainfall 1 inch.
Hottest Place (World)
Al-Aziziyah (Libya, Africa) 136F
Largest Planet
Jupiter
Brightest and Hottest Planet Venus
(also nearest to Earth)
Farthest planet (from the Sun) Neptune
Nearest Planet (to the Sun)
Mercury
Smallest Planet
Mercury
Highest Plateau
Pamir (Tibet)
Longest Platform (Railway)
Kharagpur W.B, India (833m)
Largest Platform (Railway)
Grand Central terminal, New York (U.S.A)
Largest Port
Port of New York & New Jersey (U.S.A)
Busiest Port
Rotterdam (the Netherlands)
Longest Railway
Trans-Siberian Railway (6,000 miles Long)
Longest River
Nile (6690 km), Amazon (6570 km.)
Longest River Dam
Hirakund Dam (Orissa), India 15.8 miles.
Largest sea-bird
Albatross
Largest Sea (inland)
Mediterranean
Brightest Star
Sirius (also called Dog star)
Tallest statue
Statue of Liberty, New York (U.S.A), 150 ft. high.
Tallest Statue (Bronze)
Bronze Statue of Lord Buddha, Tokyo (Japan).
Longest Swimming Course
English Channel
Tallest Tower
C.N Tower Toronto (Canada)
Longest Train nonstop
Flying Scoutsman
Longest Tunnel (Railway)
Seikan Rail Tunnel (Japan), (53.85 km.)
Longest & Largest Canal Tunnel Le Rove Tunnel (South of France)
B-64
Longest Tunnel (Road)

Highest Volcano
Largest Volcano
Longest Wall
Highest Waterfall
Longest Strait
Panorama
Laerdal, Norway
Ojos Del Salado, Andes Argentine-Chile (6,885 m.)
Mauna Lao (Hawaii)
Great Wall of China (1500 miles)
Salto Angel Falls (Venezuela)
Tartar Strait (Sakhalin Island & the Russian
mainland)
Broadest Strait
Davis Straits (Greenland & Baffin Island, (Canada)
Narrowest strait
Chaliks-45 yards (Between the Greek mainland the
island of Euboea in the Aegean Sea)
Largest Bay
Hudson Bay, Canada (Shore line 7623 miles)
Largest Gulf
Gulf of Mexico,( shoreline 2100 miles)
Largest Archipelago
Indonesia (over 3,000 Islands)
Tallest Active Geyser
Giant (Geyser ) yelowstone park U.S.A 200 ft. high
Largest River Basin
Amazon Basin- 27, 20,000 sq. mile.
World Rainiest Spot
Cherrapunji (Mawsynram), India
Largest Gorge
Grand Canyon, on the Colorado River, U.S.A
Lightest gas
Hydrogen
Lightest Metal
Lithium
Highest Melting Point
Tungsten, 3,410`C
Hardest Substance
Diamond
Longest Animal
Blue Whale, (recorded length 106 ft. weight-195
tons)
Longest Life Span of an Animal 190 to 200 years, (Giant tortoise)
Largest Land Animal
African Bush Elephant
Fastest Animal
Cheetah (Leopard ) 70 m.p.h
Longest Jump Animal
Kangaroo
Longest wing Spread Bird
Albatross
Slowest Animal
Snail
Domestic Dog
Irish Wolf Hound
Fastest Dog
Persian Grey Hound (speed 43 m.p.h)
Longest poisonous snake
King cobra
Biggest Flower
Raffesia (Java)
Largest Stadium
Strahov stadium in prague, (the Czech Republic)
Largest Church
Basilica of st. peter, vetican city, Rome Italy
Largest Temple
Angkor Vat (combodia)
Largest Diamond mine
Kimbarley (S.Africa)
Largest River in volume
Amazon, Brazil
Longest Corridor
Rameshwaram Temples Corridor (5000 ft.)
Highest Straight Dam
Bhakhra Dam
Highest Capital City
La Paz (Bolivia)
Largest Asian Desert
Gobi, Mongolia
Largest Democracy
India
Longest Thoroughfare
Verazano-Narrows, New York City Harbour
Largest Neck Animal
Giraffe
Largest Animal of the Cat Lion
Family
B-65
Panorama
Most Intelligent Animal

Bird, that never makes its nests
Wingless Bird
Reptile which changes its colors
Largest Mammal
Chimpanzee
Cuckoo
Kiwi
Chameleon
whale
FAMOUS LANDMARKS
AROUND THE WOrld
1. The Statue of Liberty in New
Your: USA
2. The Eiffel tower in Paris: France
3. St. Basils Cathedral in Moscow :
Russia
4. The Great Sphinx at Giza, The
Pyramids of Giza: Egypt
5. Neptune and the Place of
Versailles: France
6. The Great wall of China : China
7. The Taj Mahal in Agra : India
8. Christ the Redeemer: Rio de
Janeiro
9. Mecca: Saudi Arabia
10. Brandenburg Gate in Berlin:
Germany
11. Acropolis of Athens: Greece

12. Niagara Falls : Border of Ontario
(Canada) and New York (USA)
13. Angkor Wat : Cambodia
14. St. Peters Cathedral : Vatican
City
15. Mount Rushmore: South Dakota
16. The Grand Canyon : Arizona
17. Sydney Opera House : Australia
18. Forbidden City : Beijing
19. The Colosseum: Rome, Italy
20. The Empire State Building :
New York
21. Abu Simbel : Egypt
22. Tower of Pisa : Italy
23. The Burj al Arab Hotel : Dubai
24. Stonehenge: Wiltshire, United
Kindom
25. Big Ben : London
THE NATIONAL EMBLEMS OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

Country
Emblem
Country
Emblem
Australia
Kangaroo
Bangladesh
Water Lily
Barbados
Head of a Trident
Belgium
Lion
Canada
Denmark
France
Guyana
India
White Lily
Beach
Lily
Canje Pheasant
Lioned Capital
Chile
Dominica
Germany
Hong Kong
Iran
Candor & Huemul

Sisserou Parrot
Corn Flower
Bauhinia (Orchid Tree)
Rose
Ireland
Shamrock
Israel
Candelabrum
Italy
White Lily
Ivory Coast
Elephant
Japan
Chrysanthemum
Lebanon
Cedar Tree
Luxembourg
Lion with Crown
Mongolia
The Soyombo
Netherlands
Norway
Papua
New
Guinea
Sri Lanka
Syria
U.K.
Lion
Lion
Bird of paradise
New Zealand
Pakistan
Spain
Sierra Leone
Sudan
Turkey
Southern Cross, Kiwi, Fern

Crescent
Eagle
Lion
Secretary Bird
Crescent & Star
Lion
Eagle
Rose
B-66
Panorama
B-67
Panorama
IMPORTANT DAYS OF THE YEAR

9th January: NRI Day
7th April: World Health Day
10th January: World Laughter Day
18th April: World Heritage Day
12th January: National Youth Day
22nd April: World Earth Day
15th January: Indian Army Day
25th April: World Malaria Day
23rd January: Netaji Subhash

Chandra Boses birth anniversary
30th April: World Jazz Day
24th January: National Girl Child

Day
3rd May: World Asthma Day
25th January: National Tourism

Day
1st May: International Labour Day

5th May: World Athletics Day
26th January: Republic Day
8th May: International Red Cross

Day
29th January: National Newspaper

Day
11th May: National Technology

Day
30th January: Martyrs Day

2nd February: World Wetlands Day
17th May: World Telecommunications Day
4th February: World Cancer Day
20th May: World Refugee Day
13th February: World Radio Day
21st May: Anti-terrorism Day
14th February: St. Valentines Day
24th May: Commonwealth Day
21st February: International Mother

Language Day
31st May: World No Tobacco Day
28th February: National Science

Day
8th March: International Womens
Day and Mothers day
13th March: No Smoking Day
15th March:
Rights Day
World
Consumer
22nd March: World Water Day

23rd March: World Meteorological
Day
1stJune: World Milk Day

5th June: World Environment Day
8th June: World Ocean Day
20th June: International Refugee
Day
21st June: International Yoga Day
23rd June: International Olympic
Day
27th June: World Diabetes Day
24th March: World Tuberculosis

Day
1st July: World Doctors Day Van

Mahotsav Week (1stJuly to 7thJuly)
27th March: World Theatre Day
11th July: World Population Day
2nd April: World Autism Awareness

Day
26th July: Kargil Victory Day

28th July: World Hepatitis Day
B-68
Panorama
29th July: International Tiger Day

30th July: International Day of
Friendship
31st October: National Integration

Day
World
Cancer
6th August: Hiroshima Day
7th November:
Awareness Day
12th August: International Youth

Day
11th
November:
Education Day
15th August: Indias Independence

Day
14th November: Childrens Day
19th August: World Humanitarian

Day
29th August: National Sports Day
5th September: Teachers Day
8th
September:
Literacy Day
International
14th September: Hindi Day

15th September: World Engineers
Day
National
16th November: National Press Day

21st November: World Fisheries
Day, World Hello Day, World
Television Day
25th November: International Day
for the Elimination of Violence
against Women
26th
November:
constitution day
National
26th November: National Milk day
16th September: World Ozone Day
30th November: Flag Day
18th September: International Day

of Peace
3rd December: World Conservation

Day
21st September: Biosphere Day
5th December: World Soil Day
24th September: Girl Child Day
7th December: Armed Forces Flag

Day
25th September: Social Justice Day,

World Maritime Day
27th September: World Tourism
Day
1st October: International Music
Day
2nd October: Gandhi Jayanti,
International Non-Violence Day
3rd October: World Habitat Day
8th October: National Air force Day
9th October: World PostalDay
National Postal Week (9thOctober
to 14th October)
12th October: World Sight Day
16th October: World Food Day
9th December: International Day

against
Corruption,
National
Immunization Day
10th December: World Human
Rights
Day,
International
Broadcasting Day
11th December: UNICEF Day
14th December: National Energy
Conservation Day
16th December: Vijay Diwas
22nd
December:
Mathematics Day
23rd December:
(Farmers Day)
Kisan
National
Diwas
0267)$0286
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B-70
Albert Einstein (14th March

-1879 -April 18, 1955) : Albert
Einstein was a
German-born
physicist who gave the
theory of relativity. He
is considered the most
influential physicist of
the 20th century and is
best known for his
massenergy equivalence formula E
= mc2. He received the Nobel Prize
in 1921 in Physics for his services to
theoretical physics, in particular the
discovery of the law of the
photoelectric effect.
Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC) :
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher
and scientist born in the Macedonian
city of Stagira, Chalkidice. He
was one of the greatest intellectual
figures of Western history. He
was the author of a philosophical
and scientific system that became
the framework and vehicle for
both Christian Scholasticism and
medieval Islamic philosophy.
Most famous people of all time

was 32. He is regarded as one of
historys brilliant military leaders
and most powerful rulers.
Abraham Lincoln (12th February,
1809- 15th April, 1865): Abraham
Lincoln was the 16th President of
the United States, serving from
March 1861 until his assassination
in April 1865. Lincoln led the United
States through its Civil Warits
bloodiest war and its greatest moral,
constitutional and political crisis. In
doing so, he preserved the Union,
abolished slavery, strengthened the
federal government, and modernized
the economy.
Alfred Nobel (October 21, 1833December 10, 1896): Alfred Nobel
was a Swedish chemist, engineer,
entrepreneur
and
industrialist,
who invented dynamite and other,
more powerful explosives. He
had 355 patents to his name and
posthumously his was assets were
used to institute the Nobel Prizes.
Adolf Hitler (20th April- April

30th 1945): Hitler was the leader
of the National Socialist Party
(from 1920/21) and chancellor
(Kanzler) and Fhrer of Germany
(193345). He initiated World War
II and oversaw fascist policies that
resulted in around 6 million deaths.
Hitler committed suicide with wife
Eva Braun on April 30, 1945, in his
Berlin bunker.
Aryabhatta (476 CE-550 CE):

Aryabhata was an acclaimed
mathematician-astronomer, born in
Kusumapura
(present
day Patna) in Bihar. He
contributed immensely in
the field of mathematics,
science and astronomy.
Some of his written
works are Aryabhatiya
and Arya-siddhanta.
Alexander the Great (356323 BC): Alexander was the

King (Basileus) of the Ancient
Greek kingdom of Macedon and
a member of the Argead dynasty.
He went on to conquer Persia and
Egypt, his kingdom ranging from
the Mediterranean to the border of
India. He died of malaria when he
Ashoka the Great (August 304

BC- 232 BC): Ashoka was one
of the greatest emperors of the
Maurya dynasty. Ashoka renounced
armed conquest and adopted a
policy called conquest by dharma
and embraced Buddhism after
witnessing the destruction caused
during the Kalinga war.

Annie Besant (1st October 1847
20th September 1933): Annie
Besant was a prominent British
socialist, theosophist, womens rights
activist, and a supporter of Irish and
Indian self-rule. She was appointed
as the first female President of the
Indian National Congress in 1917.
Agatha Christie (15th September
1890 12th January 1976):
Agatha Christie was a novelist, short
story writer, playwright, and a poet.
She is best known for her numerous
detective novels and short story
collections. She has also written
the worlds longest-running play, a
murder mystery, The Mousetrap.
Azim Premji (24th July 1945):
Azim Premji is a business tycoon,
investorand philanthropist. He is the
chairman of Wipro
Limited. Premji owns
73% percent of Wipro
and also owns a private
equity
fund
called
PremjiInvest.
Alberuni (4/5th September 973
13th December, 1048): Al-Biruni
a Khwarezmian Iranian Muslim
scholar and polymath was a great
philosopher, mathematician and
historian. In 1017 he travelled to the
Indian subcontinent and authored
Tarikh Al-Hind (History of India)
after exploring the Hindu faith
practised in India. He is also called
the founder of Indology.
Andre Agassi (29th April,
1970-):Andre Agassi is an American
tennis player. Agassi is an eight-time
Grand Slam champion and a 1996
Olympic gold medallist in singles
tennis. Agassi was nicknamed as
The Punisher.
B-71
Ang Dorjee (1970-): Ang Dorje

(Chhuldim) Sherpa is a Nepali sherpa
mountaineering guide, climber and
porter from Pangboche, Nepal.
He has climbed to the summit of
Mount Everest 17 times, Cho Oyu
seven times since 1995, Broad Peak
(1995), Gasherbrum II (1997) and
Ama Dablam (1996).
Amir Khusro (12531325 CE):
Amir Khusro was a Sufi musician,
poet and scholar. He is credited for
the invention of the
musical
instruments
like tabla and sitar. He
is also regarded as the
father of Qawwali. He
was associated with the
royal empires of seven rulers of
Delhi.
Anne Frank (12th June, 1929
February 1945): Anne Frank was
a German-born diarist and writer.
She is one of the most discussed
Jewish victims of the Holocaust.
Her wartime diary The Diary of a
Young Girl has been the basis for
several plays and films. She gained
international fame posthumously
after her diary was published.
Arnold Schwarzenegger (30th July,
1947-): Arnold Schwarzenegger
is an Austrian-American actor,
producer,
director,
activist,
businessman, former professional
bodybuilder, and politician. He
was nicknamed the Austrian Oak
as bodybuilder and Arnie as an
actor.
Schwarzenegger
gained
worldwide fame as a Hollywood
action film icon with his movies
like The Terminator, which was
B-72
a massive critical and box-office

success. He appeared in a number of
successful films, such as Commando
(1985), Predator (1987), Total
Recall (1990) and True Lies (1994).
Schwarzenegger served two terms
as the 38th Governor of California
from 2003 until 2011.
Ala-ud-din Khilji (died 1316):
Ala-ud-din Khilji was the second
ruler of the Khilji dynasty (1296 to
1316). He is considered the most
powerful ruler of the dynasty. He was
a strategist and military commander
who commanded forces across the
Indian subcontinent. He is noted
in history for being one of the few
rulers in the world who repeatedly
defended his empire against Mongol
invasions. Alauddin died in January
1316, of oedema. It is said that his
lieutenant Malik Naib hastened
his death. His tomb and madrasa
exist at the back of Qutb complex,
Mehrauli, in Delhi.
Albert Camus (7th November
1913 4th January 1960): Albert
Camus was a French philosopher
and writer. Born in Algeria, he had
French parents. In 1941, Camus
wrote his first novel, which was
called The Stranger. His other novels
and plays include The Plague and
The Fall. Camus also wrote books
about philosophy (ways of thinking)
which said that life was absurd
(makes no sense, or has no meaning).
Camus won the Nobel Prize in
Literature in 1957 and became the
second youngest recipient of the
Nobel Prize in Literature, after
Rudyard Kipling. He died at an early
age in an automobile accident on 4
January 1960.

Akbar (15 October 1542 27
October 1605): Akbar was third
Mughal Emperor. He succeeded his
father, Humayun, under
a regent, Bairam Khan,
at an early age of 13
years. He expanded his
empire gradually covering
nearly all of Indian
Subcontinent north of Godavari
river.
He was a great administrator and in
order to preserve peace and order in
a religiously and culturally diverse
empire, he adopted policies that won
him the support of his non-Muslim
subjects. He promulgated Din-iIlahi.
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (15th
December 1832 27th December
1923): Alexandre Gustave Eiffel
was a French civil engineer and
architect. He graduated from the
prestigious cole Centrale des Arts
et Manufactures, France usually
associated with various bridges for
the French railway network most
famously the Garabit viaduct. He
is best known for the world famous
Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889
Universal Exposition in Paris, and
his contribution to building the
Statue of Liberty in New York. After
his retirement from engineering,
Eiffel concentrated on research into
meteorology and aerodynamics.
He died on 27th December 1923 in
Paris, France.
Alfred Hitchcock (13th August
1899 29th April 1980): Sir
Alfred Joseph Hitchcock was an
English film director and producer.
He was nicknamed as The Master
of Suspense as he was pioneer of
many elements related to suspense
and psychological thriller genres. He

pictured many successful silent films
and early talkies. He was known as
Englands best director. Hitchcock
directed more than fifty feature films
in a career. He was named as the
most influential filmmaker of all
time by Movie Maker magazine in
2002. He died on 29 April, 1980 at
Los Angeles in California.
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He entered companys board in 1986

and became chairman in 2007. He
became EY Entrepreneur of the
Year 2011.
Allan Border (27th July 1955-):

Allan Border was an Australian
former cricketer. His playing
nickname was A.B..
Throughout his career
he played 156 Test
matches. He still holds
the world record of
playing
153
test
matches in a row and the number of
Tests as captain. He was a left hand
batsman but also performed well as
a part-time left arm spinner. Border
amassed 11,174
runs and 27 centuries in his Test
career. He retired as Australias most
capped player and leading run-scorer
in both Tests and ODIs.
Angela Merkel (17th July 1954-)

Angela Dorothea Merkel has been
the Chancellor of Germany since
2005 and the Leader of the Christian
Democratic Union since 2000.
Before beginning her political career
Merkel was a research scientist and
got doctorate degree as a physical
chemist from University of Leipzig.
She became the spokesperson for
the first democratically elected East
German Government in 1990. In
her political career, she served as
Minister for Women and Youth in
1992, Minister for Environment in
1994 and was elected SecretaryGeneral of the CDU in 1998. On 26
March 2014, she became the longestserving head of government in the
European Union. Currently she is
the Senior G7 leader and ranked as
most powerful woman of world by
Forbes.
Anand Burman (1986-): Dr.

Anand C Burman is an Indian
entrepreneur and chairman of
Dabur. He is also the cofounder of
Asian healthcare fund. He serves as a
board of directors for 33 companies
including Hero Motocorp, Aviva
Life Insurance, Ester Industries
and Interx Laboratories. He is
the chairman of Fresenius Kabi
Oncology Ltd and an Independent
Non-Executive
Director
of
Hindustan Motors Ltd. He has also
invested in different sectors like
healthcare and education. Sundesh,
a non-profit organisation was set up
by him. He joined his family business
Dabur as manager in Research and
Development department in 1980.
Anna Hazare (15th June, 1937-):

Anna Hazare is a socialist who
started movements to promote rural
development, increase government
transparency, investigations and
punish corrupt. As a
socialist he organises
and
encourages
grassroots movements.
He practises nonviolence following the
path of Gandhi. His strong agitation
led to the development and structuring
of Ralegan Siddhi, a village in
Parner taluka of Ahmednagar
district, Maharashtra. He also
exerted pressure on the Indian
government to enact on anticorruption law and Lokpal Bill,
B-74
2011. He was awarded the Padma

Bhushan in 1992 for his efforts in
establishing Ralegan Siddhi village
as a model for others.
Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (4th June
1959-): Anil Dhirubhai Ambani is
a business tycoon and investor. He
serves as the chairman of Reliance
ADA Group. With a degree in
MBA from Wharton, University
of Pennsylvania he joined his
family business, in 1983 as co-chief
executive officer. After the death
of his father he took hold of the
Reliance Group with interests in
Telecom, Entertainment, Financial
Services, Power and Infrastructure.
He has produced a large number
of Bollywood films and is also
associated with 44 FM radio
stations, nationwide DTH business,
animation studios, and several
multiplex cinemas throughout India.
Ambanis net wealth is estimated
to be $5.9 billion according to the
Forbes billionaire list for 2014.
Business India in 1997 announced
him to be Businessman of the Year
1997. Then in 2004 he became the
CEO of the Year 2004 in the Platts
Global Energy Awards.
A. R. Rahman (6th January
1967-) : A. R. Rahman is a
composer and songwriter. He is
renowned for incorporate Eastern
classical music with electronic
music, world music and traditional
orchestral arrangements. Rahmans
film career began with a Tamil
movie Roja. Few of his well known
films are Rangeela, Dil Se, Slum
dog millionaire etc. His award list
includes two Academy Awards, two
Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award,
a Golden Globe, four National Film

Awards, fifteen Filmfare Awards and
thirteen Filmfare Awards (South).
He is nicknamed as the Mozart of
Madras but Tamil commentators
and fans call him Isai Puyal (the
Musical Storm). Songlines magazine
named him one of Tomorrows
World Music Icons in August 2011.
Arundhati Bhattacharya (18th March
1956-): Arundhati Bhattacharya is
the first woman Chairperson of
State Bank of India.
She started her career
as
a
probationary
officer by joining State
Bank of India in 1977.
She has served at
various positions in the bank such as
chief executive of the banks
merchant banking arm- State Bank
of India Capital Markets; chief
general manager in charge of new
projects. Different projects which
involved her were SBI General
Insurance, SBI Custodial Services
and the SBI Macquarie Infrastructure
Fund. She has been termed as 30th
most powerful woman in the world
by Forbes and 4th most powerful
woman in Asia Pacific by Fortune in
2015.
Aung San Suu Kyi (19th June
1945-): Aung San Suu Kyi is a
politician and opposition leader of
Myanmar. She is the chairperson of
the National League for Democracy
(NLD) in Burma. She was under
house arrest since 20th July, 1989 till
13th November 2010 and became
one of the worlds most prominent
political prisoners. She has been
bestowed with Rafto Prize, Sakharov
Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1990
and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.
In 1992, government of India and
government of Venezuela honoured

her with Jawaharlal Nehru Award
for International Understanding
and the International Simn Bolvar
Prize respectively. Aung San Suu
Kyi published her books known
as Freedom from Fear, and Other
Writings, and Letters from Burma
(1997; reissued 2010).
Atal Bihari Vajpayee (25th
December 1924-): Atal Bihari
Vajpayee was the 10th Prime
Minister of India. He
was the first Prime
Minister from outside
the Indian National
Congress party who
served for a full tenure
of 5 years. He was
elected to Lok Sabha nine times
from Lucknow constituency serving
parliament for over four decades. In
2009, he retired from active politics
due to his deteriorating health. He
was appointed as a Minister of
External Affairs in the cabinet of
Morarji Desai. His birthday, 25
December, has been declared as
Good Governance Day. Bharat
Ratna was given to him on 27th
March 2015.
Amitabh Bachchan (11th October
1942-):
Dubbed
as
Indias
first angry young man for his onscreen roles in Bollywood,
Amitabh Bachchan gained
popularity in the Hindi
cinema with movies like
Deewar and Zanjeer. He
has since appeared in
over 180 Indian films in
a career spanning more than four
decades. Bachchan is regarded as
one of the greatest and most
influential actors in the history of
Indian cinema. He was awarded the
Padma Shri in 1984, the Padma
Bhushan in 2001 and the Padma
Vibhushan in 2015.
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Amartya Sen (3rd November

1933-): Amartya Sen is an Indian
economist and philosopher. Sen
is a professor of Economics and
Philosophy at the Thomas W.
Lamont University and the Harvard
University. He was awarded the
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic
Sciences in 1998 and Bharat Ratna
in 1999 for his work in welfare
economics.
Barack Obama (4th August, 1961-)
Barack Obama is the 44th President
of the United States of America.
He is the first African American to
serve as President of USA. He was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in
2009.
Bob Dylan (24th May, 1941-):
Bob Dylan is an American singer,
artist and writer. Blowin in the
Wind, The Times They Are
a-Changing and Like a Rolling
Stone are some of his most popular
songs. He received the Pulitzer Prize
jury in 2008 and the Presidential
Medal of Freedom from President
Barack Obama in May 2012.
Bill Gates (28th October, 1955-):
Bill Gates is an American business
magnate,
philanthropist,
and
computer programmer.
In 1975, Gates cofounded Microsoft,
the worlds largest PC
software
company
with Paul Allen, and
subsequently became
one of the richest men in the world.
Benito Mussolini (29th July 1883
28th April 1945): Mussolini was
an Italian politician and dictator.
He was the leader of the National
Fascist Party and also considered the
founder of fascism. He was executed
by the Italian partisans when he was
attempting to escape north.
B-76
Benazir Bhutto (21st June, 1953

27th December 2007): Benazir
Bhutto was the 11th Prime Minister
of Pakistan (198890 and 1993
96). Bhutto was assassinated in
a bombing on 27th December
2007. Daughter of Destiny is the
autobiography written by her.
Bachendri Pal (24th May 1954):
Bachendri
Pal,
an
Indian
mountaineer, is the first Indian
woman to scale the summit of
Mount Everest in 1984. She has
authored her autobiography Everest
My Journey to the Top. She is also
the recipient of Padma Shri (1984)
and Arjuna award (1986).
Baichung Bhutia (15th December
1976-): Baichung Bhutia is a
professional Indian footballer of
Sikkimese-Bhutia
descent. Bhutia is
considered to be the
torchbearer of Indian
football
in
the
international arena.
He is also Indias most capped
player, with 104 international caps
to his name. He is honoured with the
Arjuna Award and the Padma Shri
for his contribution to Indian
football.
Bob Hope (29th May, 1903
27th July, 2003): Bob Hope was a
British-born American entertainer
and comic actor known for his
rapid-fire delivery of jokes and oneliners. He was successful in almost
all entertainment media and toured
overseas to entertain American
troops. Hope was awarded five
honorary awards by the Academy of
Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Baba Ramdev (25th December,
1965-): Baba Ramdev is a spiritual
leader. However, in
recent
years,
his
interest in politics and
agriculture has grown.
He was born as
Ramkrishna Yadav in
Haryana. He is best known for
popularising yoga among Indians
through his mass yoga camps. He
also founded the Divya Yog Mandir
Trust in 1995 for this purpose. The
Patanjali Group of Institutions was
established for the promotion and
practice of yoga and ayurveda. Since
2003, he is being featured in morning
yoga slot of Aastha TV. Ramdev has
more recently become a vocal
advocate on Indian political issues.
Bahadur Shah Zafar (28th
September 1837 14th September
1857): Bahadur Shah Zafar was
the last Mughal emperor and the
successor of Akbar II. He was a
poet, musician, and calligrapher. He
had more of an aesthete bend than
a political leader. His pen name was
Zafar. He was a nominal Emperor,
as the Mughal Empire existed in the
name only and his authority was
limited only to the city of Delhi.
He played a part in the revolt of
1857. He was captured and exiled to
Rangoon, Burma by the British.
Ban-ki-moon (13th June 1944-):
Ban Ki-moon is the eighth and
current Secretary-General of the
United Nations. His diplomatic
career started as soon as he
graduated. Bans first overseas
posting was to New Delhi where he
served as vice consul and impressed
many of his superiors in the foreign
ministry with his competence.
He served as foreign minister of

South Korea, from January 2004 to
November 2006. On 1 January 2007,
he succeeded Kofi Annan. Ban
diplomatically took strong outlook
on global warming and issues related
Darfur conflict. He was listed to be
worlds 32nd most powerful person
by the Forbes in 2013 and first
among South Koreans.
Banabhatta (601 649 AD):
Banabhatta was a Sanskrit prose
writer and poet in the court of King
Harsha Vardhana. His principal
works include a biography of Harsha
(the Harshacharita), and one of the
worlds earliest novels, Kadambari.
He died before finishing Kadambari
and later it was completed by his son
Bhusanabhatta. Both these works
are distinguished texts of Sanskrit
literature. His other works include
the Chandikasataka and a drama,
the Parvatiparinaya.
Bhagat Singh (September 28,
1907 - 23 March 1931): Bhagat
Singh was an Indian socialist and a
revolutionary. He was a
leader of Hindustan
Republican Association
(HRA). Bhagat Singh
killed John Saunders a
police officer seeking
revenge the death of
Lala Lajpat Rai. All the efforts of
police had failed to capture him.
Then he along with his companion
Batukeshwar Dutt surrendered to
British police as they threw two
bombs and leaflets which explained
their motives, inside the Central
Legislative Assembly. This led to his
arrest and subsequently jailed on the
charge of murder. He gained
widespread support of people as he
fasted for 116 days demanding equal
rights for Indians prisoners. He was
convicted and subsequently hanged
B-77
for his participation in the murder at

the age of 23 on 23 March, 1931 at
Lahore.
Begum Khaleda Zia (15th August
1945-): Begum Khaleda Zia is a
Bangladeshi politician who served
as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh
for two tenures (1991 to 1996 and
2001 to 2006). Her government
attempted to tackle the countrys
economic problems by privatizing
industry; improving educational
system and expanding the economic
opportunities available to women.
She is the first woman of Bangladesh
and second Muslim woman to head
a democratic government as prime
minister. She even became the
First Lady of Bangladesh during
her husband Ziaur Rahmans
presidentship. At present she is
he chairperson of the Bangladesh
Nationalist Party (BNP). She is also
known as Khaleda Majumdar and
Khaleda Zia ur-Rahman.
Sir Ben Kingsley (31st December
1943-): Sir Ben Kingsley is an
English actor who is known for
his role as Gandhi in film Gandhi
(1982). He got Academy Award
for Best Actor for playing this role.
In a career of 40 years, he has won
an Oscar, a Grammy, a BAFTA,
two Golden Globes and Screen
Actors Guild awards. He is also
known for his performances in the
films Schindlers List (1993), Sexy
Beast (2000), Lucky Number Slevin
(2006), Shutter Island (2010), Prince
of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010),
Hugo (2011), and Iron Man 3 (2013).
Kingsley was made a Commander
of the Order of the British Empire
in 2000, and a Knight Bachelor
in 2002. In 2013 he received the
B-78
BAFTA Los Angeles Britannia

Award for Worldwide Contribution
to Filmed Entertainment.
Bill Clinton (August 19, 1946-):
Bill Clinton is an American
politician who served
as the 42nd President
of the United States
from 1993 to 2001. He
served as Governor of
Arkansas from 1979 to
1981 and 1983 to 1992, and as
Attorney General of state from 1977
to 1979. He created the William J.
Clinton Foundation addressing
international causes such as
prevention of AIDS and global
warming. In 2004, he published his
autobiography My Life. In 2009, he
was named as United Nations
Special Envoy to Haiti, and after the
2010 Haiti earthquake he teamed
with George W. Bush to form the
Clinton Bush Haiti Fund.
Bimal Jalan (17 August 1941-):
Bimal Jalan is a former Governor of
Reserve Bank of India and a
nominated member of
the
Rajya
Sabha
(20032009). He held
several administrative
and advisory positions
in the government,
namely, Chief Economic Adviser in
the 1980s, Banking Secretary (19851989) and Finance Secretary,
Ministry
of
Finance.
The
government reappointed Jalan as
Governor of the Reserve Bank of
India, firstly between 22 November
2000 to 21 November 2002 and
again
commencing
from
22
November 2002 and ending 21
November 2004. He is the writer of
many books such as The Future of
India, Indias Politics: A View from

the Backbench, The Future Of
India: Politics, Economics, And
Governance, The Indian Economy:
Problems And Prospects, Indias
Economic Policy, Emerging India:
Economics, Politics and Reforms
and Indias Economic Crisis: The
Way Ahead.
Binny Bansal (17th August 1941-):
Binny Bansal is a co-founder of
e-commerce platform Flipkart with
Sachin Bansal in 2007. He worked
with Sarnoff Corporation for 1.5
years where he developed a lane
sensor device for cars. Then before
getting rejected by Google twice,
he was associated with Amazon.
There he realized that the market
for E-commerce in India was very
small and led the foundation of
Flipkart. There he serves as the
Chief Operating Officer.
Bhisham Sahni (8 August 1915
11 July 2003): Bhisham Sahni was
a Hindi writer, playwright, and actor.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan
for literature in 1998 and Sahitya
Akademi Fellowship in 2002. He
made his appearance in films like
Saeed Mirzas Mohan Joshi Hazir
Ho! (1984), Tamas (1986), Bernardo
Bertoluccis Little Buddha (1993)
and Aparna Sens Mr. and Mrs.
Iyer (2002). His novel and television
screenplay
Tamas
(Darkness,
Ignorance) is a powerful and
passionate account of the Partition
of India which in1975, won Sahitya
Akademi Award for literature. Two
of his masterpiece stories, Pali
and Amritsar Aa Gaya Hai, also
elaborate the time of partition. His
other famous Hindi novels include
Jharokhe (1967), Kadian (1971),

Basanti (1979), Mayyadas Ki Madi
(1987), Kunto (1993) and Neeloo,
Nilima, Nilofar (2000). He died on
July 11, 2003, Delhi.
Birbal (15281586): Raja Birbal,
was an advisor in the court of the
Mughal Emperor Akbar. He was
appointed as a poet and singer
in around 15561562. He was
considered one of the navaratnas or
nine jewels in the court of Emperor
Akbar. The folk tales of India has
made him famous as he influenced
Akbar by his witticism. In 1586,
Birbal led an army to crush conflict in
the north-west Indian subcontinent,
which failed tragically when he was
killed along with many troops, in an
ambush by the rebel tribe.
Brijmohan Mishra (4 February
1938-): Birjumohan Maharaj is the
leading exponent of
the Lucknow KalkaBindadin gharana of
Kathak dance in India.
He is a descendant of
the legendary Maharaj
family of Kathak dancers. Even
though dancing is his first love, he
also has an excellent command over
Hindustani classical music and is an
accomplished vocalist as well. He
took Kathak to new heights by
choreographing new Kathak dance
dramas. He remained as the head of
Bhartiya Kala Kendra (Kathak
Kendra) New Delhi till his retirement
in 1998. Then after retirement he
opened his own dance school,
Kalashram, in Delhi. He received
Lata Mangeshkar Puraskaar in 2002
and National Film Award for Best
Choreography
Vishwaroopam
(2012).
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Bismillah Khan (21 March 1913

21 August 2006): Ustad Bismillah
Khan was an Indian
musician credited with
popularizing
the
shehnai.
Khan
is
credited with elevating
shehnais status and
bringing it to the concert stage. He
was awarded Indias highest civilian
honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 2001.
He became the third classical
musician after M. S. Subbulakshmi
and Ravi Shankar to receive such an
honour. He was awarded the Padma
Vibhushan way back in 1968 for his
contribution in Indian classical
music. He died on 21 August 2006,
at Varanasi due to a cardiac arrest.
Brijmohan Lall Munjal (1st
July, 1923-1st November 2015):
Brijmohan Lall Munjal is the
founder of Hero Group. He is
considered as a prominent figure of
Indian two-wheeler industry. Hero
cycle was officially born in 1956 at
Ludhiana. Before 1956 he along
with his four brothers was engaged
in bicycle spare parts business. Hero
MotoCorp remained as worlds
largest two-wheeler company for
14 years in a row. In 1984, Hero
joined hands with Honda a Japanese
company and became the worlds
single-largest motorcycle maker.
This partnership ended in 2011. He
was awarded Padma Bhushan in
2005 and Lifetime Achievement for
the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship in
2011. He died on 1 November 2015
in New Delhi.
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B. K. S. Iyengar (14th December

1918 20th August 2014): B.K.S
Iyengar was one of the
most renowned Yoga
gurus in the world. He
is also known the
founder of the style of
yoga
known
as
Iyengar Yoga. Iyengar was one of
the contemporaries of the Tirumalai
Krishnamacharya, who is often
referred to as the father of modern
yoga. His most popular books
include Light on Yoga, Light on
Pranayama and Light on the Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali. He has been
awarded the Padma Shri (1991), the
Padma Bhushan (2002) and the
Padma Vibhushan (2014).
Charles Darwin (12th February,
1809- 19th April 1882): Charles
Darwin was an English naturalist
and geologist, is best known for his
work as a naturalist, developing
a theory of evolution to explain
biological change. His studies of
specimens around the globe led him
to formulate his theory of evolution
and his views on the process of
natural selection. In 1859, he
published On the Origin of Species.
He died on 19 April 1882 at the age
of 73 at Kent, England.
Christopher Columbus (14511506): Christopher Columbus was
an Italian explorer who sailed across
the Atlantic Ocean in 1492, hoping
to find a route to India (in order to
trade for spices). He made a total
of four trips to the Caribbean and
South America during the years
1492-1504.

Charles Dickens (7th February,
1812- 9th June, 1870): Charles
Dickens was an English novelist,
and considered the greatest of the
Victorian era. Some of his notable
works are Oliver Twist, A Christmas
Carol,
Bleak
House,
David
Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities
and Great Expectations.
Charlie Chaplin (16th April,
1889- 25th December, 1977):
Charlie Chaplin, a British comedian,
producer, writer, director,
and
composer
is
widely regarded as the
greatest comic artist of
the screen and one of
the most significant
figures in motion picture history.
Chanakya (350 275 BCE): Chanakya
was a philosopher, economist and
royal advisor to the Maurya Empire.
He is also known as Kautilya or
Vishnu Gupta. He authored the
Arthashastra (Economics). He
served as the chief advisor to
Emperor Chandragupta and his son
Bindusara.
Chandragupta Maurya (340 BCE
297 BCE): Chandragupta Maurya
was the founder of the Maurya
Empire. He became the first emperor
to unite most parts of India into one
secular state. Chandragupta was
succeeded his throne by his son
Bindusara.
Charlotte Bronte (21st April 1816
31st March 1855): Charlotte
Bronte was an English novelist and
poet. She is best known for her novel
Jane Eyre and published most of her
works under the pen name Currer
Bell.

Chinua Achebe (16th November
1930 21st March 2013): Chinua
Achebe was a Nigerian novelist,
poet, and professor. His debut
novel Things Fall Apart (1958)
is considered his greatest work.
He was awarded the Man Booker
International Prize (2007) and the
Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize
(2010).
Charles
Babbage
(26th
December 1791 18th October
1871): Charles Babbage was a
mathematician, philosopher, inventor
and mechanical engineer. He is
also known as the father of the
computer for inventing the first
mechanical computer.
Cyrus Mistry (4th July 1968-):
Cyrus Pallonji Mistry is an
eminent Irish entrepreneur and
the current Chairman of Indias
largest conglomerate, Tata Group
of Companies. The Economist
has described him as the most
important industrialist in both India
and Britain. He is the youngest son
of Indian construction magnate
Pallonji Mistry.
Chanda Kochhar (17th November,
1961-): Chanda Kochhar is the
managing director and chief
executive officer of
ICICI Bank. It is
Indias second largest
commercial bank and
the largest in the
private sector. She
started her career in
Industrial Credit and Investment
Corporation of India (ICICI) as a
management trainee in 1984. It was
after ten years she became Assistant
General Manager (1994) and
Deputy General Manager in 1996.
B-81
She joined Board of Directors of

ICICI Bank in 2001. Under
Kochhars
leadership,
ICICI
received Best Retail Bank in India
award in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005.
Kochhar was selected in Time
magazines list of the 100 Most
Influential People in the World
2015.
Chhatrapati Shivaji (9 February,
1630 -3 April 1680): Chhatrapati
Shivaji was the king of Raigad. He
was
of
Bhonsle
Maratha clan and
famous for his rivalry
with Aurangzeb. The
Muslim oppression and
religious harassment
on Hindus was witnessed by him
since an early age. At the age of 16,
he got ready to fight for this cause
and pursued it throughout his life.
He was famous for his gorilla war
and won a number of battles against
Mughals following this practice.
Charles Lamb (10 February 1775
27 December 1834): Charles
lamb was a writer and an essayist.
He is best known for his Essays of
Elia and the childrens book Tales
from Shakespeare. He was a member
of literary circle in England. He
published his first poem in 1796.
His best-known poem is The Old
Familiar Faces (1789), although
On an Infant Dying As Soon As It
Was Born (1828) is his finest poetic
achievement. In 1792 Lamb worked
as a clerk at East India House and
got retirement in 1825. He died Dec.
27, 1834, in Edmonton, Middlesex,
England.
Christine Lagarde (1 January
1956-): Christine Lagarde is a
French lawyer and the Managing
Director (MD) of the International
B-82
Monetary Fund (IMF) since 5

July 2011. In past she worked for
French Government as a Minister
of Economic Affairs, Finance
and Employment, before that as a
Minister of Agriculture and Fishing
(2007) and Minister of Trade (2005)
in the government of Dominique
de Villepin. She has the honour of
being first woman finance minister
of a G8 economy and first woman
to head the IMF. On 16 November
2009, the Financial Times ranked
her the best Minister of Finance in
the Eurozone.
Cleopatra (69- 12th August, 30
BC): Cleopatra was the Egyptian
queen succeeding her father Ptolemy
XII. She ruled from 51- 30 BC
successively with her two brothers
Ptolemy XIII (5147) and Ptolemy
XIV (4744) and her son Ptolemy XV
Caesar (4430). She is considered
to be last active pharaoh. After her
reign Egypt went into the hands of
Roman Empire under the kingship
of Octavian. She committed suicide
at the age of 39 on 12th August, 30
BC. She remained as a queen for 22
year.
Cyrus S. Poonawalla (1945-):
Cyrus S. Poonawalla is the chairman
of Poonawalla Group.
This group includes a
biotech company that
manufactures paediatric
vaccines. Forbes ranked
him the 9th and 208th
richest person in India and world
respectively. He was awarded the
Padma Shri in 2005 for his
contribution in medicine. His
interest in horse racing made him
the chairman of the Royal Western
India Turf Club. At the early age he

has also experimented with cars and
built sports car modelled on the
D-type Jaguar.
Dr. B. R Ambedkar (14th April,
1891- 6th December 1956 ): Dr B.
R. Ambedkar also popularly known
as Babasaheb Ambedkar, was one
of the architects of the Indian
Constitution. He was awarded the
Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1990.
He was the nations first law minister
in the cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru.
Dr APJ Abdul Kalam (15th
October 1931- 27th July, 2015):
A scientist and an administrator,
APJ Abdul Kalam served as the
11th President of India from 2002
until 2007. He was popularly tagged
as the Missile Man of India and
was honoured with great laurels and
awards like Padma Bhushan, Padma
Vibhushan and Bharat Ratna.
Dhirubhai Ambani (28th December,
1932- 6th July, 2002): Dhirubhai
Ambani was an Indian
business tycoon and
visionary. He was the
founder of Reliance
Industries
Limited,
established in 1966.
Dhirubhai was named the Man of
20th Century by the Federation of
Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI).
Dalai Lama (17th November
1950-): The 14th Dalai Lama
(Tenzin Gyatso) is the current Dalai
Lama. He received the Nobel Peace
Prize in 1989. Dalai Lamas are the
monks of the Gelug School which
is the newest school of Tibetan
Buddhism, nominally headed by the
Ganden Tripas.

Dhyan Chand (29th August,
1905- 3rd December, 1979):
Dhyan Chand was one of the
greatest hockey players of all time.
He was the member of the team
which won three Olympic gold
medals in the years 1928, 1932 and
1936. Dhyan Chand was nicknamed
as The Wizard owing to his superb
ball control. He was awarded the
Padma Bhushan in 1956.
Dev Anand (26th September
1923 3rd December 2011): Dev
Anand was an actor, writer, director
and producer. He was
awarded the Padma
Bhushan (2001) & the
Dadasaheb
Phalke
Award (2002) for his
contribution to Indian
cinema. His career spanned more
than 65 years with working in 114
Hindi films and 2 English films.
Dr. C.V. Raman (7th November
1888 21st November 1970):
Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman
was an Indian Physicist. He won
the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930
for his ground breaking work on
the scattering of light and for the
discovery of the Raman Effect. India
celebrates National Science Day on
28th February to commemorate his
discovery of the Raman Effect. He
was awarded the Bharat Ratna in
1954.
Dr
Rajendra
Prasad
(3rd
December 1884 28th February
1963): Dr Rajendra Prasad was an
Indian politician and lawyer. He was
the first president of Independent
B-83
India. He was the President of the

Constituent Assembly that drafted
the Indian Constitution.
Don Bradman (27th August
1908 25th February 2001): Don
Bradman was a legendary Australian
cricketer and is acknowledged as the
greatest Test batsman of all times.
During his test career, his batting
average was a staggering 99.4 which
is often highlighted as one of his
greatest achievement.
Dadabhai Naoroji (4 September
1825- 30, June 1917): Dadabhai
Naoroji is known as the Grand Old
Man of India. He is an early Indian
political and social leader known for
criticising British economic policy
in India. He was an intellectual,
educator and Parsi cotton trader. He
presided over the annual sessions
of the Indian National Congress, in
1886, 1893, and 1906. He remained
as a member of Liberal Party
between 1892 and 1895. He was the
first Indian to be a British MP. He is
well known for his writing skills and
wrote number of books of which
Poverty and Un-British Rule in India
became most famous.
David Beckham (2nd May, 1975-):
David Beckham is a
professional English
soccer player. He is
the first English player
to win league titles
in four countries:
England, Spain, the United States
and France. Beckham announced
his retirement in May 2013 after a
20-year career, during which he won
19 major trophies.
B-84
David Cameron (9th October,

1966-): David Cameron is the 53rd
Prime Minister of Britain since
2010. He is the
youngest Prime Minister
ever since 1812. He
is leader of the
Conservative
Party
since 2005 and has
been working as the Member of
Parliament
for
Oxfordshire
constituency of Witney since 2001.
After
Winston
Churchill
of
Conservative Party during Second
World War he is the only one to
form coalition government. His
government introduced Welfare
Reform Act of 2012, the Education
Act of 2011, the Health and Social
Care Act of 2012 and the
Immigration Act of 2014. In 2011
he became the first British Prime
Minister to veto an EU treaty. He
received Order of Abdulaziz al Saud
Medal of Excellence in 2012.
Dara Singh (19th November,
1928-12th July, 2012): An Indian
wrestler and actor, Dara Singh is
famous for his signature
role of Hanuman in
Ramayana (198788).
His debut Bollywood
movie
was
Saat
Samundar Paar in 1967. He even
directed and produced a number of
movies. Imtiaz Alis Jab We Met
marked the last movie of his career.
In 1996 he was inducted into the
Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall
of Fame. His wrestling earned him
two titles: Rustam-E-Punjab in 1966
and Rustam-E-Hind in 1978. He
announced his retirement from
active wrestling in 1983. From
August 2003 to August 2009 he was

a member of Rajya Sabha. He
passed away on 12 July 2012 in
Mumbai following a protracted
illness.
Derek Walcott (23rd January
1930-): Derek Walcott is a Professor
of Poetry at the University of Essex.
In 1992 he received Nobel Prize in
Literature. Other renowned awards
bestowed on him were 2011 T. S.
Eliot Prize and 2015 Griffin Trust
for Excellence in Poetry Lifetime
Recognition Award. His few of the
famous works include Dream on
Monkey Mountain and Other Plays
(1970), Omeros (1990), Tiepolos
Hound (2000) and White Egrets
(2010). He laid down the foundation
of Boston Playwrights Theatre in
1981.
Desmond Tutu (7th October,
1931-): Desmond Tutu is an
African Archbishop who received
the Nobel Prize for Peace for his
role in the opposition to apartheid
in South Africa. From 1972 to
1975 he served as an associate
director for the World Council of
Churches. He has campaigned
to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis,
poverty, racism, sexism, the
imprisonment of Chelsea Manning,
homophobia and transphobia. He
received the Nobel Peace Prize in
1984; the Albert Schweitzer Prize
for Humanitarianism in 1986; the
Gandhi Peace Prize in 2007; and
the Presidential Medal of Freedom
in 2009.
Dilip Shanghvi (1st October
1955-): Dilip Shanghvi is the
founder and managing director
of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries
B-85
Ltd. He is one of the richest

businessmen in India. He started his
career by helping his father in his
wholesale generic drugs business in
Kolkata. In 1997, he acquired USA,
Caraco Pharma and Israels Taro
Pharma in 2007 and brought Sun
Pharmaceuticals to fifth place in the
global generic drugs market. On 19
February 2015, he is said to surpass
Mukesh Ambani as the richest
person of India. He won CNNIndian Broadcasting Networks
Indian of the Year award, 2011 in
the business category.
and also received the Grammy

Lifetime Achievement Award at the
age of 36. He acted in films such
as Blue Hawaii (1961), Girls! Girls!
Girls! (1962), and Viva Las Vegas
(1964).
Dr. Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai

(12th
August 1919 30th
December 1971): Vikram Ambalal
Sarabhai an Indian
scientist who is widely
regarded as the father
of
Indias
Space
Programme. He received
Padma Bhushan in
1966 and Padma Vibhushan in 1972.
He built a number of institutions like
the Physical Research Laboratory
(PRL),
Indian
Institute
of
Management (IIM), Ahmedabad;
Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre,
Thiruvananthapuram; Electronics
Corporation of India Limited
(ECIL), Hyderabad and many
eminent institutes. Establishment of
(ISRO) in 1962 was one of his
greatest achievements. He died on
30 December, 1971 in Kovalam.
Edmund Hillary (20th July, 1919

11th January 2008): New
Zealand mountain climber Edmund
Hillary was the first to
reach the summit of
Mount Everest. He
also explored Antarctic
(South Pole) in 1958.
He began climbing
south Alps when in high school only.
He served the Royal New Zealand
Air Force as a navigator during
World War II. From 1985 to 1988 he
served as New Zealands high
commissioner to India, Nepal, and
Bangladesh. The second-highest
mountain range on Pluto is named
in his honour as Hillary Montes. He
was added to the UNESCO Memory
of the world archive in 2013. Hillary
was named by Time as one of the
100 most influential people of the
20th century. He died on 11 January
2008, in Auckland. In 2003, he was
made an honorary citizen of Nepal
as a part of observance of the 50th
anniversary of his climbing to
Mount Everest.
Elvis Presley (8th January, 1935

16th August 1977): Elvis Presley
was a musician and actor. He is often
referred to as the King of Rock and
Roll. He has won three Grammys
Edgar Allan Poe (19th January,

1809 7th October 1849): Edgar
Allan Poe was an American writer,
editor, and literary critic. He is
considered to be the inventor of
detective and science fiction. Some
of his famous works include The
Raven, and The Fall of the House
of Usher.
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Edmund Spenser (1552/53- 13th

January 1599): Edmund Spenser
was an English poet known for long
allegorical poem. Spenser is called
as a Poets Poet. His famous work
The Faerie Queene came to be
known as Spenserian stanza. It was
a long epic explaining the Tudor
dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is said
to be a craftsman of nascent Modern
English verse and is considered
as one of the greatest poets in the
English language. He died on 13
January, 1959 in London.
Elizabeth Taylor (27th February,
1932- 23rd March 2011): Oscar
winning Elizabeth Taylor started her
career as a child actress when MGM
Studios signed her to
cast in Lassie Come
Home (1943). She is
considered as a last star
of classical Hollywood
cinema
and
even
regarded as one of the
first modern celebrities. She won the
Academy Award twice for her
performance in Butterfield 8 (1960)
and Whos Afraid Of Virginia
Woolf (1966). One of her most
famous roles was in Cleopatra
(1961). She was the first celebrity to
take part in HIV/AIDS activism in
1984. She co-founded the American
Foundation for AIDS Research
(amfAR) in 1985 and The Elizabeth
Taylor AIDS Foundation in 1991.
She was honoured by the queen of
England in 1999 as Dame Elizabeth
Taylor. She died on 23rd March,
2011.
Edward
Joseph
Snowden
(21st June 1983-): Edward
Joseph Snowden is a computer
professional who copied classified
information from the United States
National Security Agency (NSA)

and United Kingdom Government
Communications
Headquarters
(GCHQ) while working in CIA.
These informations were related
to numerous global surveillance
programs, many run by the NSA
and Five Eyes with the cooperation
of telecommunication companies
and European governments. In
June 2013, he gave these classified
NSA and GCHQ documents to
journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura
Poitras and Ewen MacAskill who
published it in The Guardian on 6th
June, 2013. Right now he stays as
a refuge in an undisclosed location
in Russia, seeking for asylum
elsewhere. A documentary on his
story, Citzenfour, won an Oscar in
2015.
Elattuvalapil Sreedharan (12
June 1932-): A retired Indian
Engineering
Service
officer
Elattuvalapil Sreedharan is popularly
known as the Metro Man. He
is credited with the leadership of
building the Konkar Railways and
bringing Metro to Delhi. In 1970,
he worked as the deputy chief
engineer of the first ever metro in
India, Kolkatta. He worked as a
managing director of Delhi Metro
between 19952012. Sreedharan
was appointed as Principal Advisor
of the Kochi Metro Rail Project
after retiring from Delhi Metro. He
was awarded the Padma Shri by
the Government of India in 2001,
the Padma Vibhushan in 2008, the
Chevalier de la Lgion dhonneur
in 2005. He served in a High level
Advisory Group on Sustainable
Transport (HLAG-ST) by United
Nation for the period of three year.

Ferdinand Magellan (1480 27
April 1521): Magellan was a
Portuguese explorer who organised
the Spanish expedition
in which he assembled
a fleet of ships which
despite huge setbacks
and Magellans death,
accomplished the first
circumnavigation of Earth in a
single voyage.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (30th
January, 1882-12th April, 1945):
Franklin D. Roosevelt, commonly
known as FDR was an American
statesman and political leader who
served as the 32nd President of the
United States. Assisted by his top
aide Harry Hopkins, and with very
strong national support, he worked
closely with British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill and Soviet leader
Joseph Stalin in leading the Allies
against Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy
and Imperial Japan in World War
II. He is often rated by scholars as
one of the top three U.S. Presidents,
along with Abraham Lincoln and
George Washington.
Fa-hien (399-414 AD): Fa-hien
was a Chinese Buddhist monk,
pilgrim traveller, and writer, author
of one of the earliest and most
valuable Chinese accounts of India.
He travelled India during the reign
of Chandragupta II.
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13th
August, 1926-): Fidel Alejandro
Castro Ruz, is a political leader
of Cuba who won the Confucius
Peace Prize 2014, for his important
contributions
in
eliminating
B-87
nuclear war after his retirement.

He is politically a MarxistLeninist
and Cuban nationalist. He served
as Prime Minister of Cuba from
1959 to 1976. In 1976 he became
President of Cuba and relinquished
the presidency in February 2008
because of health problems. Ever
since, he has been engaged meeting
the leaders of world emphasizing
the need to eliminate nuclear war.
Castro was the Secretary-General of
the Non-Aligned Movement from
1979 to 1983 and from 2006 to 2008.
Florence Nightingale (12th May
1820 13th August 1910):
Florence
Nightingale
was
a
celebrated English social reformer
and statistician, and
the founder of modern
nursing. She was often
referred to as The
Lady with the Lamp
because she used to
make rounds of wounded soldiers at
night during the Crimean War.
Firdausi (934-1020): Firdausi is
known for his contribution to Persian
poetry. He wrote one of the greatest
national epics in world literature.
Firdausi was the pen name of the
poet called as Mansur ben Hasan
according to al-Bundari. He studied
philosophy, astronomy, poetry,
and astrology. His remarkable
work Shahnameh (Books of King),
consists of epic of nearly 60,000
couplets. It covers the history of
Iran covering four dynasties, the
Pishdadian, the Kayanian, the
Ashkanian, and the Sassanian. He
died in 102026, in Iran.
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Francis Xavier (7th April 1506

3rd December 1552): Francis
Xavier was the co-founder of the
Society of Jesus. He
was a doctorate in law
at the University of
Bologna and severed
as privy counsellor and
finance minister to
King John III of Navarre. Francis
studied theology and arrived in Goa,
then capital of Portuguese India on
6 May 1542. Francis Xavier devoted
much of his life to missions in Asia,
mainly in four centres: Malacca,
Amboina and Ternate, Japan, and
China. He died on 3 December,
1552 at Shangchuan and was buried
there. His relics are kept in a silver
casket, elevated inside the Bom Jesus
Basilica, Goa.
Galileo Galilei (15th February
1564 8th January 1642): Galileo
was
an
Italian
astronomer, physicist,
engineer, philosopher
and
mathematician
who played a major
role in the scientific
revolution during the Renaissance.
Galileo has been called the father of
modern observational astronomy
and the father of modern physics
and the father of modern science.
George Washington was the first
President of the United States,
the Commander-in-Chief of the
Continental Army during the
American Revolutionary War, and
one of the Founding Fathers of the
United States. He presided over the
convention that drafted the United

States Constitution, which replaced
the Articles of Confederation.
Washington
was
unanimously
elected President by the electors
in both the 17881789 and 1792
elections.
Genghis Khan (1162- 18th
August, 1227): Genghis Khan
was the founder and Great Khan
(emperor) of the Mongol Empire,
which became the largest contiguous
empire in history after his demise.
Many people were slaughtered
in Genghis Khans invasions, but
he granted religious freedom to
his subjects, abolished torture,
encouraged trade and created the
first international postal system.
George Orwell (25th June 190321st January 1950): George
Orwell was one of the sharpest
satirical fiction writers of the 20th
century with works such as Animal
Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four,
the latter a profound anti-utopian
novel that examines the dangers of
totalitarian rule. He was a man of
strong opinions who addressed some
of the major political movements of
his times, including imperialism,
fascism and communism.
Geoffrey Chaucer (1343 25th
October 1400): Chaucer was one
of the greatest English poets of
the Middle Ages. The Canterbury
Tales was his best known and most
acclaimed work. He is also known as
the Father of English Literature.
Graham Bell (3rd March, 1847
2nd August, 1922): Graham Bell
was a Scottish inventor, engineer
and innovator. He was one of the
primary inventors of the telephone
and did some groundbreaking work

in the field of communication for the
deaf. He held more than 18 patents.
Gamal al-Ghitani (9th
May
1945 18th October 2015):
Gamal al-Ghitani was an Egyptian
historical and political novelist.
He was also involved in cultural
and political commentaries. He
served as the editor-in-chief of the
literary periodical Akhbar Al-Adab
(Cultural News) till 2011. He
started writing at the early age and
published his first short stories at
the age of 14. He was trained to be
a carpet designer and even received
diploma in it, in1962. Gamal was
imprisoned from October 1966
through March 1967 for his critical
commentary on the regime of
Gamal Abd el-Nasser (President of
Egypt). In 1969 he switched career
and became a journalist for the
Egyptian newspaper Akhbar El Yom
(The Days News). In 1980, he was
awarded with the Egyptian National
Prize for Literature, and in 1987,
the French Chevalier de lOrdre des
Arts et des Letters. He died on 18
October 2015 in Cairo, Egypt at the
age of 70 years.
Garry Kasparov (13th April, 1963):
Garry Kasparov began playing chess
at the age of 6 and became Soviet
youth champion at 13. He won his
first international tournament at
age of 16 in 1979. Kasparov had the
title of international grandmaster in
1980. In twenty years of time (1986
- 2005) he was ranked world No. 1
for 225 out of 228 months. Kasparov
also holds records for consecutive
professional tournament victories
(15) and Chess Oscars (11). He took
his retirement from chess world in
2005.
B-89
George Eliot (22 November 1819

22 December 1880): George Eliot
was as English Victorian novelist.
She is known as Marian Evans and
Marian cross. She developed the
method of psychological analysis
characteristic of modern fiction. Her
major works include Adam Bede
(1859), The Mill on the Floss (1860),
Silas Marner (1861), Middlemarch
(187172), and Daniel Deronda
(1876). The Death of Moses, 1879,
From a London Drawing Room and
Count That Day Lost were few of
hers poems she wrote. She is known
to be writing with a politically astute
pen. She died on 22 December 1880
in Chelsea, Middlesex, England.
Girish Karnad (19th May 1938-)
Girish Karnad is an Indian actor, film
director, writer and playwright. He
predominantly worked for South
Indian cinema but
his contribution to
Bollywood is also
remarkable.
His
started his career as a
playwright in 1960s.
His plays are mostly
based on history and mythology
to tackle contemporary issues. He
wrote his first play, Yayati (1961)
followed by Tughlaq (1964) which is
regarded as his best works. His Hindi
movies are Iqbal (2005) and Dor
(2006) as an actor. He directed Utsav
in 1984. He played a role of Swamis
Father in Malgudi Days (1987). He
served as the director of Film and
Television Institute of India (1974
1975) and chairman of the Sangeet
Natak Akademi, (198893). He is
a recipient of many awards such as
Padma Shri (1974), Padma Bhushan
(1992) and Jnanpith Award (1998).
B-90
Graham Greene (2 October 1904

3 April 1991): Graham Greene
was an English novelist and author
regarded as one of the greatest
writers of the 20th century. He
worked as a private tutor for some
time and then turned to journalism.
He first joined the Nottingham
Journal then shifted to Times as a
sub-editor. His first published work
was a book of verse, Babbling April
in 1925. Then his first novel came
out in 1929 The Man Within. He
got his first true success with the
publication of Stamboul Train in
1932. He wrote thriller stories. The
Third Man, the Ministry of Fear and
Brighton Rock were few of his novels
which were later filmed. He died in
1991 at age of 86 of leukaemia, in
Vevey, Switzerland.
Gulzari Lal Nanda (4th July 1898
15th January 1998): Gulzari Lal
Nanda acted as the interim Prime
Minister of
India
twice. Firstly in 1964
he succeeded Jawarhal
lal Nehru after his
death and second time
after the death of Lal
Bahadur Shastri in 1966. Nanda
initiated his career as a research
scholar working on labour problems
at Allahabad University (1920
1921), and became a Professor of
Economics at National College in
Bombay (Mumbai) in 1921. In 1922,
he became the secretary of the
Ahmedabad
Textile
Labour
Association and worked there till
1946. He took part in noncorporation and was imprisoned for
Satyagraha in 1932, and 1942 to
1944. He was awarded the Bharat
Ratna in 1997. He died on 15
January, 1998, Ahmadabad, Pakistan.

Guru Nanak (15 April, 14691539): Guru Nanak was the first
Guru of the Sikhs. He has been
regarded as one of the greatest
religious innovators of
all time. He travelled
extensively preaching
the concept of One
God dwells in every
one of his creations.
Through his preaching he set up a
unique spiritual, social, and political
platform based on equality, fraternal
love, goodness, and virtue. He
rejected the authority of the Vedas
and attacked the Hindu Caste
System. He also rejected the path of
renunciation (Tyaga or Yoga). He
emphasized a householders (family)
life based on honest conduct, selfless
service (Sewa), and constant
devotion and remembrance of Gods
name. His words are registered in
Guru Granth Sahib in the form of
974 poetic hymns. He died on 22
September 1539 at Kartarpur, India.
Guru Gobind Singh (22th
December 1666 7th October
1708): The tenth and the last Guru
Sikh faith Guru Gobind Singh
was a Prophet and teacher of Sikh
faith. The sacred shrine Takht Sri
Harimandar Sahib, (place where he
was born) is situated at Patna. Five
elements of faith that Khalsa Sikhs
wear at all times (Five Ks), was
initiated by him in 1699. He fought
11 battles. The most famous among
them was Battle of Bhangani.
He died on 7th October 1708 at
Nanded, India and passed Guruship
to Eleventh and Eternal Sikh Guru,
the Guru Granth Sahib Ji.

Guru Dutt (9th July 1925 10th
October 1964): Guru Dutt was a
Hindi motion-picture
producer,
director,
writer, and actor. A
postage stamp, bearing
his face, was released
by India Post to
honour him on 11 October 2004. He
made classics such as Pyaasa,
Kaagaz Ke Phool , Sahib Bibi Aur
Ghulam and Chaudhvin Ka Chand.
Pyaasa and Kaagaz Ke Phool are
now included among the greatest
films of all time, both by Time
magazines All-TIME 100 best
movies and by the Sight & Sound
critics and directors poll.
Gopal Krishna Gokhale (9th May
1866 19th February 1915):
Gopal Krishna Gokhale was one of
the social and political leaders during
the Indian Independence Movement
against the British Empire in India.
Gokhale was famously a mentor to
Mahatma Gandhi in his formative
years. He is the founder of the
Servants of India Society (1905).
Gunter Grass (16th October
1927 13th April 2015): Gunter
Grass was a German novelist, poet,
playwright,
illustrator,
graphic
artist, sculptor, and recipient of
the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature.
His extraordinary first novel
Die Blechtrommel (1959; The
Tin Drum), became the literary
spokesman
for
the
German
generation that grew up in the Nazi
era and survived the war.
George W Bush (6th July, 1946-):
George Walker Bush served as the
43rd President of the United States
from 2001 to 2009. He acted as
the 46th Governor of Texas from
B-91
1995 to 2000. Bush led the United

States response to the 9/11 terrorist
attacks and initiated the Iraq War.
He is currently a public speaker, has
written a memoir titled Decision
Points.
Hillary Clinton (26th October,
1947): Hillary Clinton is an
American Government Official,
U.S. First Lady,
Womens
Rights
Activist. She served
as the 67th United
States Secretary of
State
under
President Barack Obama from 2009
to 2013. She is the wife of the 42nd
President of the United States Bill
Clinton.
Hellen Keller (27th June, 1880 1st
June, 1968): Helen Keller was an
American author, political activist,
and lecturer. She was
the first deaf blind
person to earn a
Bachelor of Arts
degree. Her birthday
is celebrated as Helen
Keller Day in the U.S. state of
Pennsylvania.
Ho Chi Minh (19 May 1890 2
September 1969): Ho Chi Minh
was a Vietnamese Communist
revolutionary leader. He became
the Prime Minister (194555)
and President (194569) of the
Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
He started Vietnamese independent
movement from 1941 an established
Communist-ruled
Democratic
Republic of Vietnam in 1945.
He achieved a major success by
defeating the French Union in the
battle of Dien Bin Phu (1954).
Though he officially resigned from
B-92
his post in 1965 due to health

problems but remained involved in
motivational work and inspiration
for those Vietnamese fighting for
his cause of a united, communist
Vietnam until his death. He died on
2nd September 1969, of heart failure
at his home in Hanoi, aged 79.
Isaac Newton (25 December
1642 20 March 1727): English
physicist and mathematician Sir
Isaac Newton, most famous for his
law of gravitation, was instrumental
in the scientific revolution of the
17th century. His book Philosophi
Naturalis Principia Mathematica
(Mathematical
Principles
of
Natural Philosophy), first published
in 1687, laid the foundations for
classical mechanics.
Indira Gandhi (19th November
1917 31st October 1984): Indira
Gandhi was the first female Prime
Minister of India and
also one of the main
figures of the Indian
National
Congress.
She was Indias third
Prime minister and
served from 1966 to 1984, when she
was assassinated by her bodyguards.
She was also the recipient of the
Bharat Ratna.
Ian Thorpe (13th October 1982-):
Ian Thorpe is a freestyle Australian
swimmer. He also competes in
backstroke and as an individual
medley. He is the first to win five
Olympic gold medals in Australia.
He also considered as the most
successful athlete at the 2000
Summer Olympics with three gold
and two silver medals. 2001 World
Aquatics Championships was his
major success as an athletic where

he became the first person to win six
gold medals. Till now he has eleven
World Championship gold medals
which the third-highest among the
swimmers. He is the first person
to be named as Swimming World
Swimmer of the Year four times and
had been the Australian Swimmer
of the Year from 1999 to 2003. His
achievements as a swimmer made
him one of Australias most popular
athletes. He was recognised as the
Young Australian of the Year in
2000.
Inder Kumer Gujral (4 December,
1919- 30 November, 2012): Inder
Kumer Gujral was the
prime minister of
India from April 21,
1997, to March 19,
1998. He was the third
Prime Minister who
was elected from the Rajya Sabha.
He is primarily remembered for the
Gujral Doctrine, a policy grounded
on Indias unilaterally reaching out
diplomatically to its neighbours
without
the
expectation
of
reciprocity. He acted as an
Ambassador of India to U.S.S.R.
(Cabinet Rank) from 1976-1980 and
held various ministerial positions
from 1967-1976. During the
government of Prime Minister V.P.
Singh, he happened to be the
Minister of External Affairs and
again in 1996 when Janata Dal-led
United Front government came to
power. He died out of lung infection,
on 30th November, 2012 at Gurgaon,
Haryana.
Ibn Battuta (1304-1369): Ibn
Battuta, was a geographer, explorer
and traveller. In history, he is known
for his extensive journeys. He
travelled different parts of Islamic

world covering North Africa,
West Africa, Southern Europe and
Eastern Europe in the West, to the
Middle East, Indian subcontinent,
Central Asia, Southeast Asia and
China in the East. It took him a
period of almost thirty years. After
his travel he returned to Morocco
and gave account of his experiences
to Ibn Juzay. This account has been
recorded in A Gift to Those Who
Contemplate the Wonders of Cities
and the Marvels of Travelling or
simply called as Rihla. He was
appointed a judge in Morocco and
died in 1368.
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (26
September 1820 29 July 1891):
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar was a
philosopher, academic educator,
writer, reformer and
philanthropist.
He
is known for his
efforts to simplify
and modernize the
Bengali Literature. He
simplified and reconstructed the
Bengali alphabet. He even reformed
Bengali typography into an alphabet
(actually abugida) of twelve vowels
and forty consonants. He was very
Liberal in his outlook though born
in an orthodox Brahman family.
Vidyasagar championed the uplift
of the status of women in India. His
Barna Porichoy is still considered
a classic work. His popular books
were Betaal Panchabinsati (1847),
Upakramanika (1851) and Sitar
Bonobas, 1860. He died on 29 July
1891 in North Calcutta, Bengal.
Indra Nooyi (28th October 1955-):
Indra Nooyi Indra Krishnamurthy
Nooyi is a business executive,
currently acting as a chairperson and
chief executive officer of PepsiCo.
B-93
She joined PepsiCo in 1994 and

became its president and CFO in
2001. Nooyi purchased Tropicana
in 1998, Quaker Oats Company
and brought them under PepsiCo.
Padma Bhushan was awarded to her
in 2007. She has consistently been
ranked among the Worlds 100 Most
Powerful Women and in 2014, she
was ranked 13. She is first woman
to lead the soft-drink and snack-food
company.
Indu Jain (8th September 1936-):
Indu Jain, the 79-year-old industrialist
handles the philanthropic genre
of the Times foundation. She is
chairperson of The Times Group
and known for her Oneness Forum.
She is an active supporter of womens
rights. Times Foundation runs
community services, research groups
and relief funds for various disaster
reliefs such as floods, cyclones,
earthquakes and epidemics. She
encourages budding entrepreneurs
and believes in their abilities to shine.
She is also founder President of the
Ladies wing of FICCI. The Oneness
Forum was given the MahatmaMahavira Award. International
Lifetime Achievement Award was
awarded to her by Indian Congress
of Women.
James Watt (19th January 173625th August 1819): James Watt
was a Scottish instrument maker
and inventor whose steam engine
contributed substantially to the
Industrial Revolution
in his native Great
Britain and the rest of
the
world.
He
developed the concept
of horsepower, and the
SI unit of power, the watt, was
named after him.
B-94
John F. Kennedy (29th May, 1917

22nd November, 1963): John F.
Kennedy was the 35th President of
the United States. He served from
1961 until his assassination in 1963.
Major events during his presidency
include the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the
Cuban Missile Crisis, the building of
the Berlin Wall, the Space Race, the
American Civil Rights Movement
and early events of the Vietnam War.
Javed Aktar (17th January 1945-):
Javed Aktar is an Indian scriptwriter,
lyricist, poet and an accomplished
mainstream writer. He
is a recipient of the
Padma Shri (1999),
Padma
Bhushan
(2007), the Sahitya
Akademi Award as
well as thirteen Filmfare Awards.
He along with Salim Khan wrote
classical Sholay which was released
in 1975 and proved to be an all time
hit.
Jawahar Lal Nehru (14th November,
1889- 27th May, 1964): Pandit
Jawahar Lal Nehru became first
Prime Minister of independent
India; a central figure in Indian
politics for much of the 20th century
and one of the main architects of
Non-aligned Movement. He was
very fond of children and they
affectionately called him Chacha
Nehru. In India, his birthday is
celebrated as Childrens Day.
Jackie Chan (7th April 1954-):
Jackie Chan is an actor, martial
artist, film director, producer.
Chan is a UNICEF Goodwill
Ambassador, and has championed

charitable works and causes. He has
received stars on the Hong Kong
Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood
Walk of Fame.
Jan Koum (24th February, 1976-) :
Jan
Koum
is
an
internet
entrepreneur and computer engineer
of America. Apart from being CEO
and co-founder with Brian Acton of
WhatsApp, he entered the Forbes list
of the 400 richest Americans in 2014
positing 62nd rank. He was hired by
Yahoo as an infrastructure engineer
way back in 1998. He met Acton
while working at Ernst & Young
as a security tester. In September
2007 Koum and Acton left Yahoo.
Both applied, and failed, to work
at Facebook. Then Feb. 24, 2009,
he incorporated WhatsApp Inc. in
California.
Jagdish
Chandra
Mahindra
(1892-1951): J. C. Mahindra was
an Indian industrialist who cofounded Mahindra &
Mahindra. In 1929, he
started with Tata Steel
as his first job. There
he worked as a senior
Sales Manager. World
War II was the critical time of steel
industry it was then when he was
appointed as the first Steel Controller
of India. Later in 1945 he founded
Mahindra along with K. C.
Mahindra and Malik Ghulam
Mohammed. After independence
when Ghulam Mohammad left
India and the company to be first
Finance Minister of Pakistan,
Mahindra brother decided to
manufacture the Willey Jeep form
Mumbai.
Soon, the companys
name changed to Mahindra &
Mahindra. He died of a heart attack
in 1951.

Jack Dorsey (19th November,
1976-): Jack Dorsey is an American
CEO and co-founder of Twitter.
He also serves as the founder and
CEO of Square, a mobile payments
company. In 2008, MIT Technology
Review TR35 named him as one
of the top 35 innovators in the
world under the age of 35. He got
Innovator of the Year Award in
2012, for technology. He has been
acting as a board member for Walt
Disney Company since 2013.
Jamshedji Tata (3rd March 193919th May 1904): Founder of Tata
Group, Jamshedji Tata was the
pioneer of industrialization in India.
He worked in his
fathers company till
29 years of age, then
initiated
his
first
business by founding a
trading company in
1868. Next year he bought an oil
mill and converted it to a cotton mill
and named it as Alexandra Mill. He
sold that mill two years later for
profit. Then again in 1874 he
established another cotton mill at
Nagpur in 1874 and named it as
Empress of India. He had four goals
in life: setting up an iron and steel
company, a world-class learning
institution, a unique hotel and a
hydro-electric plant. He laid down
the foundation of Tata Group, Tata
Sons, Taj Hotels Resorts and
Palaces, Indian Institute of Science.
He died on19th May, 1904 at Bad
Nauheim in Germany.
Jayadeva (1200-): Jayadeva was
an Indian Sanskrit poet famous
for his epic poem Gita Govinda
which is a depiction of the divine
love of Krishna, and Radha. The
poem presents the dramatic form
B-95
of lovers attraction, estrangement,

yearning, and final reconciliation.
Two hymns, composed by Jayadeva,
have been incorporated in the
Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book
of the Sikh religion. He is known
for popularizing Dasavatara, the
ten incarnations of Vishnu. He
also institutionalized the Devadasi
system in Oriya temples. He died in
Odisha, India.
Jean Jacques Rousseau (28th
June 1712 2nd July 1778):
Jean Jacques Rousseau was a
philosopher, writer, and composer.
His novels inspired the leaders of
the French Revolution and the
Romantic generation. It led a way
to development of modern political
and educational thought. His
famous works Emile, Julie, or the
New Heloise, Solitary Walker and
Confessions moulded the opinion
of masses. His works were mostly
related with the notable ideas of
general will, moral simplicity of
humanity, child-centred learning,
civil religion, popular sovereignty,
and positive liberty. He died in 1778
at Ermenonville in France.
Jimmy Wales (7th August 1966-):
Jimmy Wales is a co-founder and
promoter of the online non-profit
encyclopaedia
Wikipedia
and
the for-profit Wikia web hosting
company. His first job was related in
finance. Later he chose to work as the
research director of Chicago futures
and options firm. In 1996, he with
two other partners founded Bomis (a
male-oriented web portal featuring
entertainment and adult content). It
brought him initial funding for the
peer-reviewed free encyclopaedia
Nupedia (200003) and its successor,
Wikipedia. Wikipedia was available
B-96
in a number of languages and

became one of the Internets most
popular sites by 2006. In 2008 Wales
served as a co-chair of the World
Economic Forum on the Middle
East. Same year he received Global
Brand Icon of the Year Award. In
February 2014, Wales was named as
one of 25 Web Superstars by The
Daily Telegraph.
J.K. Rolling (31st July 1965-):
J.K. Rolling is famous for her novel
Harry Potter series. Earlier she
worked as a researcher and bilingual
secretary for Amnesty
International. One day
on a delayed train from
Manchester to London
in 1990 she conceived
the idea of Harry
Potter series. She completed the first
book of this world famous series in
1997 with the title Harry Potter and
the Philosophers Stone. Then in
2007 she produced the final six
sequels, the last, Harry Potter and
the Deathly Hallows. Since then, she
has written four books for adult
readers, The Casual Vacancy (2012);
the crime fiction novels The
Cuckoos Calling (2013), The
Silkworm (2014) and Career of Evil
(2015). In 1999 she was honoured
with National Book Awards
Childrens Book of the Year.
John F Nash (13th June, 192823rd May 2015): John F Nash
was a mathematician who was
awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize for
his contribution in Economics. His
contribution to game theory made
him Nobel Prize winner and got
the Abel Prize for his contributions
to the study of partial differential
equations. His work in mathematics
includes the Nash embedding

theorem, theory of nonlinear
parabolic
partial
differential
equations and to singularity theory.
His theories are used in economics,
computing, evolutionary biology,
accounting,
computer
science,
games of skill, politics and military.
On May 23, 2015 Nash and his wife
were killed in a road accident on
their way home after receiving the
Abel Prize.
John Napier (1st February 15504th April 1617): John Napier was
a mathematician, physicist, and
astronomer. He is best known as the
inventor of logarithms. He invented
Napiers bones and made common
the use of the decimal point in
arithmetic and mathematics. He
also made important contributions
to spherical trigonometry. A Plaine
Discovery of the Whole Revelation
of St. John (1593) is regarded to be
his most important contribution. He
died at Edinburgh in Scotland on 4th
April 1617. The crater Neper on the
Moon is named after him.
Jonathan Swift (30th November,
1667- 19th
October, 1745):
Jonathan Swift was an Anglo-Irish
satirist, essayist, poet
and cleric who became
Dean of St Patricks
Cathedral located at
Dublin. He wrote
some of the most
memorable novels such as Gullivers
Travels, A Modest Proposal, A
Journal to Stella, Drapiers Letters,
and The Battle of the Books etc. He
is regarded as the foremost prose
satirist in the English language by
the Encyclopdia Britannica. He
originally published all of his works
under pen name such as Lemuel
Gulliver, Isaac Bickerstaff, Drapiers

Letters as MB Drapier or
anonymously. He is also known for
being a master of two styles of satire
(the Horatian and Juvenalian). He
died on 19th October, 1745 in
Dublin, Republic of Ireland.
Jyoti Basu (8th July 1914- 17th
January 2010): Jyoti Basu was an
Indian politician belonging to the
Communist Party of
India (Marxist) from
West Bengal. He was
the
longest-serving
Chief
Minister in
countrys history. He
served as a Chief Minister of West
Bengal from 1977 to 2000. He
started his political career as a
student by organizing Indian
students studying in United
Kingdom for the cause of Indian
independence. Basu was elected to
the Bengal Legislative Assembly in
1946, contesting the Railway
constituency. In 1977, Jyoti Basu
became the Chief Minister and held
this position continuously for more
than 23 years. He died on 17 January
2010 at Kolkata due to pneumonia.
Julian Assange (3rd July 1971-):
Julian Assange is an Australian
computer programmer, publisher
and journalist. He is known as
the editor-in-chief of the website
WikiLeaks. In 2006, he co-founded
this company. WikiLeak produces
what is called scientific journalism i.e.
providing primary source materials
with a minimum of editorial
commentary. It came into limelight
in 2010 when it published U.S.
military and diplomatic documents
leaked by Chelsea Manning. He
has been under investigation in the
B-97
United States since then. In the same

year, the Swedish Director of Public
Prosecution opened the case against
him related to four sexual offences
that Assange allegedly committed. In
2012, facing extradition to Sweden,
he sought refuge at the Embassy of
Ecuador in London and was granted
political asylum by Ecuador.
Julius Caesar (13 July 100 BC15 March 44 BC): Julius Caesar
was a Roman statesman, general
and notable author of Latin prose.
He is well known for overthrowing
Roman Republic and the rise of the
Roman Empire. He was the first
Roman general to build a bridge
across the Rhine and cross it for
conducting the first invasion to
Britain. He is considered as one of
the greatest military commanders in
history by many historians. Julius
Caesar was posthumously granted
the title Divus Iulius or Divus Julius
by decree of the Roman Senate on 1
January 42 BC.
Karl Marx (5th May, 1818
14th March 1883): The German
philosopher,
social
scientist,
historian and revolutionary, Karl
Marx, was undoubtedly most
influential socialist thinker to
emerge in the 19th century. In
1848, he published The Communist
Manifesto with Friedrich Engels
and was exiled to London, where
he wrote the first volume of Das
Kapital (1867-1894) and lived the
rest of his life.
Khushwant Singh (2nd February
1915 20th March 2014):
Khushwant Singh was an Indian
novelist, journalist and lawyer. Some
of his acclaimed works include Train
B-98
to Pakistan (1956), Delhi: A Novel

(1990), The Company of Women
(1999), Truth, Love and a Little
Malice (2002), and The Good, the
Bad and the Ridiculous (2013). He
was awarded the Padma Bhushan
(1974), Punjab Rattan Award (2006)
and Padma Vibhushan (2007).
Kalpana Chawla (March 17,
1962- February 1 2003): Kalpana
Chawla was the first Indian-born
woman astronaut in space. She first
flew on Space Shuttle
Columbia in 1997 as a
mission specialist and
primary robotic arm
operator. Later in
2003, Chawla was one
of the seven crew members killed in
the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
Kabir (1398 or 1440 CE-1448 or
1518 CE): Kabir was a saint and a
poet. His writings influenced the
Bhakti movement in Hinduism. He
is revered by Hindus, Muslims, and
Sikhs alike.
Kiran Bedi (9th June 1949-):
Kiran Bedi is an Indian politician,
social activist, former tennis player
and a retired police officer. She was
the first Indian woman to join the
Indian Police Services. She was BJPs
CM candidate for the 2015 Delhi
Assembly elections against Arvind
Kejriwal. She lost the election from
Krishna Nagar constituency.
Kailash Satyarthi (1 January
1954-): Kailash Satyarthi works
for childrens rights and education
in India. He also advocates against
child labour. He is commonly known
for founding the Bachpan Bachao
Andolan in 1980. He has acted
to protect the rights of more than
83,000 children from 144 countries.

He gave up his career as a teacher
to become secretary general for the
Bonded Labour Liberation Front in
1980. He started save the childhood
movement. He has received various
national and international honours
and awards including the Nobel
Peace Prize of 2014, which he shared
with Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan.
In 1999 Satyarthi was among the cofounders of the Global Campaign
for Education. He came up with a
book Globalisation, Development
and Child Rights in loss in 2006.
Kanishka (127163 AD): Kanishka
was the emperor of the Kushan
dynasty, who was famous for his
military, political, and spiritual
achievements. His devotion and
conquest for Buddhism led to the
development of the Silk Road.
Images of the Buddha based on 32
physical signs were made during his
time. He encouraged both Gandhara
school of Greco-Buddhist Art and
the Mathura school of Hindu art.
The coin of his regime depicted
image standing Buddha.
Kiran Mazundar Shaw (23rd
March 1953-): Kiran Mazundar
shaw is the chairman and managing
director of biotechnology company
Biocon India Group.
She is also the current
chairperson of IIMBangalore. In 2014,
she was awarded the
Othmer Gold Medal
for her outstanding contributions in
the field of science, especially
chemistry. The Financial Times
ranked her among top 50 women in
business list. In 2014, she is listed as
the 92nd most powerful woman in
the world by Forbes. She initiated
her career with a consulting work.

Then in 1978 she became the partner
of Auchincloss (owner of Biocon
Biochemicals) in a new venture,
Biocon India. It produced enzymes
for alcoholic beverages, paper, and
other products. Within a year it
became the first Indian company to
export enzymes to the United States
and Europe.
Kofi Annan (April 8, 1938-): Kofi
Annan served the United Nations
(UN) as secretary-general from
1997 to 2006. He began his career
in 1962 as a budget officer of World
Health Organization. Since then he
has spent whole of his professional
career working with UN at different
administrative levels. He was
appointed as a secretary-general of
UN twice; for the first time in 1997
and then in 2001. He introduced a
reform plan that sought to reduce the
organizations budget and streamline
its operations. His other priorities as
a secretary-general of UN included
restoring public confidence in the
UN, combating the AIDS virus,
especially in Africa, and ending
human rights abuses. He along with
the United Nations was the corecipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace
Prize for their work for a better
organized and more peaceful world.
He is the founder and the Chairman
of the Kofi Annan Foundation and
chairman of The Elders, a group
founded by Nelson Mandela.
Kumar Birla (14th June 1967-):
Kumar Birla is the Chairman of the
multinational Aditya Birla Group
which operates in 36 countries
across the globe. It is Indias third
largest business group. He also
serves as the Chancellor of the Birla
Institute of Technology & Science.
B-99
He took over Aditya Birla Group

in 1995, after the sudden death of
his father. Under his leadership the
Aditya Birla Group has expanded
into new sectors including telecom,
software and BPO including textile
and garments, cement, aluminium,
fertilizer etc which existed during
his father time. Apart from handling
Aditya Birla Group, he worked as
a Director on the Central Board of
Directors of the Reserve Bank of
India. He was the Chairman of the
Advisory Committee constituted
by the Ministry of Company
Affairs and also served on The
Prime Minister of Indias Advisory
Council on Trade and Industry. At
present he serves National Council
of the Confederation of Indian
Industry and the Apex Advisory
Council of the Associated Chambers
of Commerce and Industry of India.
Kapil Dev (6th January 1959-):
Kapil Dev is a former Indian
cricketer best known
for leading his team to
a World Cup victory in
1983. He is regarded as
one of the greatest allrounders of all time.
He has received the Arjuna Award,
Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri and
many more awards for his
contribution to the game of cricket.
He was inducted to ICC Hall of
Fame in 2010.
Leonardo da Vinci (April 15,
1452 May 2, 1519): Leonardo
da Vinci was an Italian polymath,
being a scientist, mathematician,
engineer,
inventor,
anatomist,
painter, sculptor, architect, botanist,
musician and writer known for his
enduring works The Last Supper
and Mona Lisa.
B-100
Louis Pasteur (27th December,

1822- 28th September 1895):
French Chemist and Microbiologist
Louis Pasteur who came up with
the food preparing process known
as pasteurization also developed
vaccination for anthrax and rabies.
He is popularly known as the father
of microbiology. His scientific
accomplishments
earned
him
Frances highest decoration, the
Legion of Honour, as well as election
to the Acadmie des Sciences.
Louis Braille (4th January 1809
6th January 1852): Braille was
a French educator and Inventor.
He devised the Braille system of
printing and writing for the blind.
He was blinded accidentally in his
early childhood.
Lata Mangeshkar (28th September
1929-): Lata Mangeshkar is one of
the most renowned female playback
singers in Bollywood. She has also
been nicknamed as Nightingale of
Bollywood. She has been awarded
with numerous awards, including
Bharat Ratna, Padma Bhushan
(1969), Padma Vibhushan (1999),
Dada Saheb Phalke Award (1989),
Maharashtra
Bhushan
Award
(1997), NTR National Award (1999),
Bharat Ratna (2001), ANR National
Award (2009), three National
Film Awards, and 12 Bengal Film
Journalists Association Awards.
Lakshmi Mittal (15th June 1950-):
Lakshmi Mittal also known as the
Iron Man of Calcutta is the Indian
steel mogul. He is the Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer of Arcelor
Mittal, the biggest steel producing
company of the world.

Lal Krishna Advani (8th November
1927-): Lal Krishna Advani is an
Indian politician and one of the
most senior leaders of the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP). He served as
Deputy PM of India from 2002 to
2004 under Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He
was awarded the Padma Vibhushan
in 2015.
Lal Bahadur Shastri (2nd October,
1904- 11th January 1966): Lal
Bahadur Shastri was the Prime
Minister of India (196466) after
Jawaharlal Nehru. He was the leader
of the Indian National Congress and
was elected to the legislature of the
United Provinces in
1937
and
1946.
During first five year
plan he served as a
Railways
Minister
(195156) followed by
various functions, including Home
Minister (1961-63) and External
Affair Minister (1964-66). He led the
country during the Indo-Pakistan
War of 1965 with the slogan of Jai
Jawan Jai Kisan. The war formally
ended with the Tashkent Agreement
of 10th January 1966. He died there
in Tashkent of a heart attack the
following day.
Larry Page (March 26, 1973-):
Larry Page is the cofounder of
Google Inc. He is the computer
scientist, internet entrepreneur
along with being CEO of Alphabet
(parent company of Google). In
1998, PC Magazine ranked Google
among the Top 100 Websites and
Search Engines. The following year
it awarded Google the Technical
Excellence Award for Innovation
in Web Application Development.
Then, in 2001 Page gave up his
post as CEO of Goggle and

became president of the company.
He announced his rejoining as a
CEO of Alphabet. He is the board
member of the X Prize Foundation
(XPRIZE). The National Academy
of Engineering in 2004 elected him
as the winner of the Marconi Prize.
In October 2015, Forbes named
him as number one Americas Most
Popular Chief Executives.
Lenin (22nd April 1870- 21st
January 1924): Lenin, a Russian
communist revolutionary, served as
head of government of the Russian
Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
from 1917 to 1924 and
of the Soviet Union
from 1922 to 1924. He
was ideologically a
Marxist
and
his
political theories are
known as Leninism. He promoted
socialization of all property as
public
property
during
his
administration.
He
overthrew
Provisional Government and brought
in Bolshevik administration. He also
abolished the Russian Constituent
Assembly and suppressed both left
and right-wing rivals and established a
one-party state under the new Russian
Communist Party. In 1921, New
Economic Policy, a mixed economic
system was introduced by him. He is
considered as one of the most
significant and influential historical
figures of the 20th century. He died
on 21st January, 1924 at Gorki in
Russian.
Leo Tolstoy (9th September
1828 20th November 1910):
Leo Tolstoy was a Russian author
and the master of realistic fiction.
He is regarded as one of the worlds
greatest novelists. His first published
B-101
work, Detstvo (1852; Childhood),

was a fictionalized and nostalgic
account of his early years. Tolstoy
is best known for his two longest
works, War and Peace (186569)
and Anna Karenina (187577). In
shorter works, The Death of Ivan
Ilyich (1886) is considered to be his
best novel. Boyhood, and Youth and
Sevastopol Sketches (1855) were
based upon his experiences in the
Crimean War. He even wrote plays
and numerous philosophical essays.
Tolstoys final years have been
presented in the movie The Last
Station based on the novel by Jay
Parini.
Lord Mountbatten (25th June
1900- 27th August 1979): Lord
Mountbatten was the last Viceroy of
India and the first Governor-General
of the independent Dominion of
India (194748). He joined navy in
1913 and subsequently, in 1932 was
promoted to captain. He served as
the Supreme Allied Commander
South East Asia Command during
Second World War, (194346).
Serving as a viceroy of India he very
efficiently administered the transfer
of power from Britain to the newly
independent nations of India and
Pakistan. As the governor-general of
India, he helped in persuading Indian
princes to merge their states into
either India or Pakistan. He became
the admiral in 1956 and governor in
1965. In 1979, Mountbatten along
with his grandson Nicholas, and two
others were killed by the Provisional
Irish Republican Army (IRA).
Larry King (19th November
1933): Larry King is an American
television and radio host, actor,
B-102
and comedian. From 1985 to 2010,

he hosted the nightly interview
television program Larry King Live
on CNN.
Mahatma Gandhi (2nd October
1869- 30th January 1948): Mohandas
Karamchand
Gandhi,
most
commonly known as
Mahatma was the
preeminent leader of
Indian nationalism in
British-ruled
India.
Employing nonviolent
civil disobedience, Gandhi led India
to independence and inspired
movements for civil rights and
freedom across the world. Indians
widely describe Gandhi as the father
of the nation.
Martin Luther King Jr. (15th
January, 1929 4th April, 1968):
Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist
minister and social activist, who led
the Civil Rights Movement in the
United States from the mid-1950s
until his death by assassination
in 1968. King was posthumously
awarded the Presidential Medal of
Freedom and the Congressional
Gold Medal.
Mark Twain (30th November,
1835- 21st 1910): Mark Twain was
a pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne
Clemensas, an American humorist,
journalist, lecturer, and novelist
who acquired international fame for
his travel narratives, especially The
Innocents Abroad (1869), Roughing
It (1872), and Life on the Mississippi
(1883), and for his adventure
stories of boyhood, especially The
Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876)
and Adventures of Huckleberry
Finn (1885).

Munshi Premchand (31th July
1880 8th October 1936):
Munshi Premchand was a novelist,
short story writer, and dramatist.
His famous works include Godaan,
Bazaar-e-Husn, Karmabhoomi and
Shatranj ke khiladi. He is one of the
most celebrated writers of the Indian
subcontinent.
M.S. Dhoni (7th July 1981-):
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an
Indian cricketer and the captain of
the Indian cricket team in limitedovers format. The middle order
wicketkeeper and batsman is known
for his attacking batting style. He
was awarded the ICC ODI Player of
the Year award in 2008 and 2009 (the
first player to win the award twice),
the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award
in 2007 and the Padma Shri in 2009.
Mother Teresa (26th August
1910 5th September 1997):
Mother
Teresa was a Roman
Catholic religious sister
and missionary and
the founder of the Order
of the Missionaries of
Charity, a Roman
Catholic congregation
of women dedicated to the poor,
particularly to the destitute of India.
She received numerous honours,
including the 1979 Nobel Prize for
Peace.
Mirza Ghalib (27th December
1797 15th February 1869):
Mirza Asadullah Khan Beg was an
eminent Urdu and Persian language
poet. He wrote under the pen names
of Ghalib and Asad. He was one
of the most popular and influential
poets of the Urdu language.

Michael Jackson (29th August,
1958 25th June, 2009): Michael
Jackson was a singer, songwriter,
dancer and an actor.
He is often referred as
the king of Pop. Some
of his awards include
Guinness
World
Records, 13 Grammy
Awards, the Grammy Legend Award,
the Grammy Lifetime Achievement
Award and 26 American Music
Awards.
Mukesh Ambani (19th April
1957): Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani
is an Indian business magnate. He
is the chairman, managing director
and largest shareholder of Reliance
Industries Limited (RIL). He also
owns the Indian Premier League
franchise Mumbai Indians.
Mulk Raj Anand (12th December
Mulk Raj Anand was a prominent
Indian author who wrote numerous
novels, short stories, and critical
essays in English. He is known
for his realistic and sympathetic
portrayal of the poor in India.
Marie Curie (7th November
1867 4th July 1934): Marie
Curie was a Polish-born French
physicist, famous for her work
on radioactivity. She was the first
woman to win a Nobel Prize, the
first person and only woman to win
twice, the only person to win twice in
multiple sciences. Her achievements
include a theory of radioactivity (a
term that she coined), techniques
for isolating radioactive isotopes,
and the discovery of two elements,
polonium and radium.
B-103
Manna Dey (1st May 1919 24th

October 2013): Manna Dey was an
Indian playback singer. He debuted
in the film Tamanna in 1942, and
went on to record more than 4000
songs from 1942 to 2013. The
Government honoured him with
the Padma Shri in 1971, the Padma
Bhushan in 2005 and the Dadasaheb
Phalke Award in 2007.
Mick Jagger (26th July 1943-):
Sir Michael Philip Mick Jagger is
an English singer, songwriter and
actor. He is best known as the lead
vocalist and the co-founder of The
Rolling Stones. He was knighted for
his services to the music industry in
2003.
Mohammed Rafi (24th December
1924 31th July 1980):
Mohammed Rafi was one of the
most acclaimed playback singers of
the Hindi film industry.
He has won six
Filmfare Awards and a
National Film Award.
He has also been
honoured with the
Padma Shri in 1967.
Marco Polo (15th September,
1254 January 8 1324): He was
an Italian merchant traveller. His
book The Travels of Marco Polo,
1300 A.D. introduces Europeans
to Central Asia and China. He was
the first to leave a detailed chronicle
experience of his China visit. He
died in 1324 and was buried in the
church of San Lorenzo in Venice.
Muhammad Yunus (28 June
1940-): Muhammad Yunus is a
Bangladeshi social entrepreneur,
banker and economist. Yunus and
the Grameen Bank were jointly
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
B-104
in 2006 for creating economic

and social development from
below. They provided loans to
too poor entrepreneurs to qualify
for traditional bank to establish
a business. He was honoured
with United States Presidential
Medal of Freedom in 2009 and
the Congressional Gold Medal in
2010. Yunus along with three others
in 2011 co-founded Yunus Social
Business Global Initiatives (YSB).
YSB creates and empowers social
businesses to address and solve
social problems around the world.
He was a professor of economics
at
Chittagong
University
in
Bangladesh and he joined Glasgow
Caledonian University in Scotland
as a Chancellor in 2012.
Maria Sharapova (19th April
1987-): Maria Yuryevna Sharapova
a Russian professional tennis player,
who is ranked world
No. 4 by the Womens
Tennis
Association
(WTA) is United
States resident since
1994. She has been
ranked world No. 1 in singles by the
WTA on five separate occasions, for
a total of 21 weeks. She is the tenth
women and the only Russian to hold
Grand Slam.
Madame Tussaud (1st December,
1761- 16th April, 1850): Madame
Tussaud was a French and the
founder of Madame Tussauds
museum of wax figures, in central
London. She learned this art of
making wax figures from Philippe
Curtius at an early age. Her first wax
sculpture was of Voltaire, in 1777.
During the French Revolution she
modelled many prominent victims.

In 1802 she exhibited her work
alongside Paul Philidor show at the
Lyceum Theatre in London. She
travelled and exhibited her collection
throughout Britain and Ireland.
Finally, in 1835 she established a
permanent home in Baker Street,
London, where she worked until
eight years before her death. She
died on 16th April, 1850 in London,
England.
Mark Zuckerberg (14th May,
1984-): Mark Elliot Zuckerberg, an
American computer programmer
and Internet entrepreneur is best
known as one of five
co-founders, chairmen
and chief executives of
the social networking
website Facebook. He
launched
Facebook
from Harvard Universitys dormitory
rooms. At the age of 23, in 2007,
Facebooks success made him a
billionaire. He was ranked 7th
richest American as his personal
wealth was estimated to be $44.6
billion by Forbes in October 2015.
As CEO of Facebook he receives a
one-dollar salary a year.
Madan Mohan Malviya (25th
December 1861- 12th November
1946): Madan Mohan Malviya
was an Indian educationist and
politician. He was
respectfully addressed
as Pandit Madan
Mohan Malaviya and
Mahamana.
He
became the president
of Indian National Congress four
times. He founded Banaras Hindu
University (BHU) at Varanasi in
1916 and served as its Vice
Chancellor from 19191938. He left

Congress in 1934 and joined Hindu
Mahasabha. He acted as the
president of special session of
Mahasabha in Gaya (1922) and in
Kashi (1923). He founded The
leader an English newspaper
published from Allahabad in 1909
and was the Chairman of Hindustan
Times from 1924 to 1946. He was
awarded Bharat Ratan in 2014. He
died on 12th November 1946 at
Varanasi, UP.
Madhubala (14th February 1933
23rd February 1969): Madhubala
was one of the most influential
personalities and beautiful actresses
of Hindi movies. She
worked in Bollywood
between 1942 and
1960. Her performance
in
Mughal-e-Azam
established her as an
iconic actress of Hindi Cinema. She
did her first movie Basant (1942) at
the age of nine. Her first lead role
debut was at the age of 14 in Neel
Kamal opposite to Raj Kapoor in
(1947). Mumtaz Jehan Dehlavi was
her real name. After Neel Kamal she
assumed
her
screen
name
Madhubala. She died at the age of
36 years on 23 February 1969 after a
prolonged illness (ventricular septal
and pulmonary pressure of the
lungs) in Mumbai.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh (13th
November 1780 27th June
1839): Maharaja Ranjit Singh
was the founder of Sikh empire in
Punjab which existed between1799
to 1849. He was first Indian in a
millennium to prevent the invasion
of the Pashtuns (Afghans) and
re-conquered the homelands. He
fought a large number of battles
most significant among them were
B-105
fought in 1813, 1823, 1834 and 1837.

For his efforts he has been known as
the Lion of the Punjab. He was free
from religious bigotry, and was mild
in the treatment of his adversaries.
He completely renovated the
Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib)
at Amritsar. He died on 27th June
1839 at Lahore in Pakistan.
Malala Yousafzai (12th July
1997-): Malala Yousafzai is a
Pakistani activist for female
education. She is the
youngest among the
Nobel Prize winners.
Malala is a campaigner
of
the
right
to
education,
especially
female
education. The movement started in
Swat Valley (her native) a northwest
region of Pakistan, where the local
Taliban had at times banned girls
from attending school, became an
international movement. She was
former blogger for BBC Urdu which
she used to share the prevailing
condition in Swat valley with world.
Time magazine featured her as one
of The 100 Most Influential People
in the World in year 2013, 2014 and
2015.
Manoj Night Shyamalal (6th
August 1970): Manoj Night
Shyamalal is an Indian-American
film director famous for his movies
The Sixth Sense (1999) and
Unbreakable (2000) and Signs
(2002). He worked as screenwriter,
producer and occasional actor.
His first film was a semiautobiographical drama Praying
with Anger (1992) as a student.
Wide Awake came in1998 followed
by The Sixth sense in 1999 in which
his work was recognized worldwide.
B-106
He is known for making movies with

contemporary supernatural plots
along with psychological thriller
and science fiction. He is known to
filming his movies in and around
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, his
home town. His films are mostly
co-produced and released by the
Walt Disney Studios Touchstone
and Hollywood film imprints.
Shyamalan in 1998 was awarded the
Padma Shri.
Martina Hingis (30th September
1980-): Martina Hingis is a Swiss
professional tennis player, known for
winning five Grand
Slam singles titles the
Australian
Open
(1997, 1998, 1999),
Wimbledon
(1997),
and the United States
Open (1997). Throughout her career
she has won 43 singles titles and 37
doubles titles. She has spent a total
of 209 weeks as world No. 1. Hingis
became youngest ever Grand Slam
champion and youngest ever world
No. 1 setting a youngest ever series.
Then in 2002, at the age of 22 she
got ligament injuries in both ankles
which forced her to withdraw
temporarily
from
professional
tennis. She returned back in 2013,
July to play the North American
hard court season, partnering
Daniela Hantuchov. Time in June
2011 named her among one of the
30 Legends of Womens Tennis:
Past, Present and Future.
Marconi (25th April 1874 20th
July 1937): Marconi was an Italian
electrical engineer who invented
long-distance radio transmission
and a radio telegraph system. He
even developed a law which came

to be known as Marconis law.
He got Nobel Prize in Physics
in 1909 which he shared with
Karl Ferdinand Braun. He even
founded The Wireless Telegraph
& Signal Company (which became
the Marconi Company) in Britain
in 1897. Marconi made radio a
commercial success. He was sent
as plenipotentiary delegate to the
peace conference in Paris (1919),
where he signed the peace treaties
with Austria and with Bulgaria. He
was made marchese and nominated
to the Italian senate (1929) and
chosen president of the Royal Italian
Academy (1930). He died on 20th
July 1937 at Rome, Italy due to heart
attack.
Marry Kom (1st March 1983-):
Marry Kom is an Indian boxer from
Manipur. Her win at the First State
Level Invitation at the womens
boxing championship 2000 in
Manipur initiated her
boxing career. She
won five national
Championships from
2000 to 2005. In 2008,
at the Asian Womens
Boxing Championship in India, she
won a silver medal. In the same year
at AIBA Womens World Boxing
Championship in China she earned
the Gold medal which was her
fourth successive gold medal at the
championship. In 2012 at Summer
Olympics in London she won bronze
medal. In 2014 Asian Games, she
won a Gold Medal in Flyweight
category. She had been given Arjuna
Award (Boxing), 2003, Padma Shree
(Sports), 2006 and Padma Bhushan
(Sports), 2013 along with many
other honours.

Marilyn Monroe (1st June, 1926
5th August 1962): Marilyn
Monroe is an American actress.
She became a major sex symbol in
1950s and began to be considered as
popular culture icon. She stated her
modelling career in the year 1944
after meeting a photographer. Her
acting career started with two shortlived film contracts with Twentieth
Century-Fox
(194647)
and
Columbia Pictures (1948). After a
series of minor film roles, she signed
a new contract with Fox in 1951.
She played a lead role in the noir
Niagara, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
and How to Marry a Millionaire
which established her as a star. After
this she was imaged as a dumb
blonde. Monroe was found dead
in the bedroom of her Brentwood
home on 5th August, 1962 due to
acute barbiturate poisoning.
Medha Patkar (1st December
1954-): Medha Patkar is a
renowned Indian social activist and
reformer who initiated
Narmada
Bachao
Andolan. She is the
founder of National
Convener of National
Alliance of Peoples
Movements (NAPM). She left her
Ph.D. to take part in the agitation by
tribals and peasants of Maharashtra,
Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. She
was a representative to the World
Commission on Dams. Patkar was a
recipient of Right Livelihood Award
(1991), Human Rights Defenders
Award and Mother Teresa Awards
for Social Justice (2014) along with
many other awards.
Megasthenes (350 290 BC):
Megasthenes
was
a
Greek
ethnographer and explorer. His book
B-107
work Indica became famous. He was

the ambassador of Seleucus I of the
Seleucid of the Mauryan emperor
Chandragupta. He gave a detailed
account of India of that time. He is
regarded as one of the founders of
the study of Indian history in the
West.
Michael Faraday (22nd September
1791 25th August 1867):
Michael Faraday was the most
influential scientists in history.
He began his career as a chemist.
His main contribution is in field
of electricity and magnetism.
He discovered electromagnetic
induction,
diamagnetism
and
electrolysis.
Inventions
of
electromagnetic rotary devices
by him formed the foundation of
electric motor technology. Faraday
was the first and leading Fullerian
Professor of Chemistry at the
Royal Institution of Great Britain.
It is a lifetime position. The SI
unit of capacitance is named in his
honour: the farad. He died in 1867
in London.
Michael Schumacher (3rd January
1969-): Michael Schumacher is a
retired German racing driver. He is
known to win the
highest number of
world championship
and races than any
other driver in a career
which spanned 19
seasons. Michael Schumacher is a
seven-time Formula One World
Champion. He was named Laureus
World Sportsman of the Year twice.
Michael won two titles with
Benetton in 1994 and 1995. Then he
shifted to Ferrari and drove eleven
years for them. He won five
consecutive titles between 2000 and
B-108
2004. UNESCO named him as

Champions for sport in 2002 for his
contributions to sport and raising
awareness of child education.
Schumacher played voice role as
Ferrari F430 in the Disney/Pixar
film Cars. The French film Asterix
and Obelix at the Olympic Games
features Schumacher in a cameo
role.
Milkha Singh (1930-): Milkha
Singh has been the greatest Indian
Athlete the nation has
ever had. He has been
nicknamed as the
Flying Sikh. Milkha
Singh
initiated
practicing sport after
he joined Army in 1954. Under the
guidance of his mentor Havaldar
Gurdev Singh, he received rigorous
training. Milkha completed 2nd in
the 200m and 400m race events at
Services Athletic Meet 1955. At
Melbourne Olympic Games 1956 he
represented the nation. Milkha won
Gold Medals in Tokyo Asian Games
1958 and 1962. At the Cardiff
Commonwealth Games he won
Gold Medal the same year. In Rome
Olympic Games (1960) he finished
second there. He was awarded the
Padma Shri in 1956.
Michael Phelps (30th June 1985):
Michael Phelps is the most decorated
Olympian of all time who won 22
medals in three Olympiads. He
began swimming at the age of seven.
He held a national record for his
age group at the age of 10. Michael
qualified for the 2000 Summer
Olympics at the age of 15 and
become the youngest male to make
a U.S. Olympic swim team in 68
years. He holds the all-time records
for Olympic gold medals (18, double

the second highest record holders),
Olympic gold medals in individual
events (11), and Olympic medals in
individual events for a male (13).
Mihir Sen (16th November 1930
11th June 1997): Mihir Sen was
a long distance swimmer and the
first Indian to conquer the English
Channel from Dover to Calais in
1958. He became the only man to
swim across the Oceans of the five
continents in the year (1966). Mihir
was inspired by Florence Chadwick,
the first American woman to swim
the English Channel in 1950 and
started learning swimming. He was
awarded the Padma Shri in 1959.
Sen initially practised Criminal Law
at the Calcutta High Court as he
was a law graduate but later became
businessmen. The Government
of India regarded his company as
the countrys second largest silk
exporter and was thus awarded. He
died suffering from Alzheimers and
Parkinsons disease on 11th June
1997.
Mira Nair (15th October 1957-):
Mira Nair is an accomplished film
director, writer and producer. Her
film career began as
an actor and then she
turned to directing
award-winning
documentaries. Nair
made her debut with
Salaam Bombay which won the
Camera DOr (for best first feature)
and the Prix du Publique (for most
popular entry) at the Cannes Film
Festival. Mississippi Masala (1988),
Monsoon Wedding (2001), Vanity
Fair (2004), The Namesake (2006)
and 11901 September 11were few
of her best movies. She won Padma
Bhushan in 2012.
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Madurai Subbulakshmi (16th

September 1916-11th December
2004): Madurai Subbulakshmi was
a Carnatic vocalist and
the first musician ever
to be awarded the
Bharat Ratna (1998).
She is the first Indian
musician to receive the
Ramon Magsaysay award, often
considered Asias Nobel Prize, in
1974. At the age of ten she made her
debut at Madurai Sethupati High
School singing a Marathi song
Anada Ja on the request of her
mother. She did her first recording
Maragatha Vadivum for Twin
recording company in the same year.
She was capable of giving solo
performances even at the age of
seventeen. She got Padma Bhushan
in 1954.
Muhammad Iqbal (9th November

1877- 21th April 1938): Muhammad
Iqbal was known as a poet,
philosopher, and politician, as
well as an academic, barrister and
scholar. He is widely regarded
as having inspired the Pakistan
Movement. He is regarded as one
of the most important figures in
Urdu and Persian literature. His first
poetry book, Asrar-e-Khudi came
in 1915. Apart from his poetry, his
Urdu and English lectures along
with letters have significant effect
on cultural, social, religious and
political disputes. Iqbal is regarded
as the Shair-e-Mashriq in South
Asia and Urdu speaking world.
The Pakistan government officially
named him a national poet. He
was the one to author the song
Saare Jahaan Se Achcha. He died
on 21st April 1938, at Lahore.
Mike Tyson (June 30, 1966-):

Mike Tyson is an American former
professional boxer. He holds the
record of the youngest boxer to
win the WBC, WBA and IBF
heavyweight titles at 20 years, 4
months, and 22 days old. Tyson
successfully defended the world
heavyweight championship nine
times. In 1992, he was convicted
of raping Desiree Washington
and sentenced to six years but was
released after serving three years.
After that he tried to make his
comeback and in 1996, he won the
WBC and WBA titles. These wins
put him in the category of the men
in boxing history who regained a
heavyweight championship after
having lost it. Tyson retired from
professional boxing in 2006. He got
WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2012).
Naina Lal Kidwai (1957-): Naina

Lal Kidwai is an Indian banker. She
is currently the Group
General Manager and
Country Head of
HSBC India. She is the
first woman to guide
the functioning of a
foreign bank in India. Naina is also a
qualified chartered accountant. Her
first job was of an associate in Price
Waterhouse (19771979) and then
worked in ANZ Grindlays Bank
(19821985) as an investment
banker. She worked in Morgan
Stanley (India) between1994-2002.
Naina joined as vice chairman,
managing director, and head of
investment banking in 2002. She has
also received ALL Ladies Leagues
Delhi Women of the Decade
Achievers
Award
2013
for
Excellence in Banking.
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Narendra Modi (17th September

1950-): Narendra Modi is an Indian
politician. He is the
15th and current Prime
Minister of India since
26th May 2014. He
served as the Chief
Minister of Gujarat
from 2001 to 2014. He is the Member
of Parliament (MP) from Varanasi
constituency. Modi is known for his
unique initiatives like Swachh
Bharat Mission and Make in India
and Digital India. He was named as
the Best Chief Minister in a 2007
survey by India Today. He was
ranked fifth on Fortune magazines
second annual list of Worlds
Greatest Leaders in 2015.
Niccolo Machiavelli (3 May
1469- 21 June 1527): Niccolo
Machiavelli was an Italian diplomat.
He was a Renaissance historian and
a politician who is known as the
founder of modern political science.
Machiavelli is most notably known
for The Prince containing several
maxims concerning politics. The
Catholic Church banned The Prince.
His other works include On the Art
of War (1521) and satirical The
Mandrake (1524s). He died in the
city of Florence on 21st June, 1527.
Nelson Mandela (18th July, 1918
- December 5 2013): Nelson
Rolihlahla Mandela was a South
African anti-apartheid revolutionary,
politician, activist, lawyer, and
philanthropist
who
served as nationalist
and the first black
president of South
Africa (199499). He
was the symbol of
global peacemaking; and won the
Nobel Peace Prize in 1993.

Nitish Kumar (1st March 1951-):
Nitish Kumar has been the Chief
Minister of Bihar since 2005. He
belongs to the Janata Dal (United)
party. He became General Secretary
of the Janata Dal at the national
level. In 2001-04 he became Union
Cabinet Minister for Railways in the
NDA Government of Atal Bihari
Vajpayee. In 2005, he defeated
Lalu Prasad Yadav in the Bihar
assembly elections. He has won
three consecutive Bihar assembly
elections and remained as the Chief
Minister of Bihar since 2005.
Noam Chomsky (7th December,
1928): Noam Chomsky is an
American
linguist,
political
commentator and social justice
activist. He is known for his
groundbreaking contributions to
linguistics and his penetrating
critiques of political systems. In 1955,
professorial staff at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology invited
him to join their rank. There
he introduced transformational
grammar to the linguistics field.
Chomsky was awarded the Sydney
Peace Prize, 2011. The same year he
was inducted into IEEE Intelligent
Systems AIs Hall of Fame for the
significant contributions to the field
of AI and intelligent systems.
Norgay Tenzing (May 1914- 9th
May 1986): Norgay Tenzing was
a Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer
who is first to climb worlds
highest mountain (Mt. Everest).
He started climbing at the age of
19 years. Norgay participated as a
high-altitude porter in three British
officials attempts to climb Everest
from the northern Tibetan side in
the 1930s. In 1947, Norgay he again
participated in an unsuccessful

summit attempt of Everest. He got
success in climbing Mt. Everest
in 1953, with along with Edmund
Hillary. TIME named him as one
of the 100 most influential people
of the 20th century. He died 7 May,
1986 at Darjeeling, West Bengal.
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose
(23 January 1897- August 18
1945): Subhash Chandra Bose was
one of Indias greatest
freedom fighters. He
revived the Indian
National
Army,
popularly known as
Azad Hind Fauj in
1943 which was initially formed in
1942 by Rash Behari Bose.
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N. R. Narayana Murthy (20th

August 1946): Narayana Murthy
is an industrialist and the co-founder
of Infosys. He started
Infosys in 1981 and
served as its CEO from
1981 to 2002 and
served as the chairman
from 2002 to 2011.
Murthy has been awarded the
Padma Vibhushan and Padma Shri
awards.
Napoleon
Bonaparte
(15th
August, 1769 5th May, 1821):
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French
military and political leader who
rose to prominence during the later
stages of the French Revolution and
its associated wars in Europe. As
Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the
French from 1804 to 1814. Napoleon
dominated European affairs for
over a decade while leading France
against a series of coalitions in
the Revolutionary Wars and the
Napoleonic Wars. He won most
of these wars and rapidly gaining
control of continental Europe before
his ultimate defeat in 1815.
Nayantara Sahgal (10th May

1927-): Nayantara Sahgal is an
Indian Journalist and author. Her
writings are fictional based on
Indias elite responding to the crises
engendered by political change. She
belongs to the Nehru-Gandhi family
and is the daughter of Jawaharlal
Nehrus sister, Vijaya Lakshmi
Pandit. Some of her notable works
include Rich like us (1985), Plans for
Departure (1985), Mistaken Identity
(1988) Relationship, Extracts from
a Correspondence (1994) and Point
of View: A Personal Response to
Life, Literature, and Politics (1997).
She was awarded the 1986 Sahitya
Akademi Award for English. Sahgal
was recently in news on for returning
her Sahitya Akademi Award to
protest what she called, increasing
intolerance and supporting right to
dissent in the country.
Neil Armstrong (5th August,

1930 25th August, 2012): Neil
Armstrong was an astronaut and the
first man to walk on the moon. He
was the commander of Apollo 11
which was the first manned moon
landing mission in July 1969. He
was awarded the Presidential Medal
of Freedom by President Richard
Nixon.
Naseeruddin Shah (20th July

1950-): Naseeruddin Shah is a
renowned Indian film and stage
actor. Shah has acted
in movies such as
Nishant,
Aakrosh,
Sparsh, Mirch Masala,
Albert Pinto Ko Gussa
Kyon
Ata
Hai,
Junoon, Mandi etc. The Government
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has honoured him with the Padma

Shri and the Padma Bhushan. He
has been awarded the life
membership of International Film
and Television Club of Asian
Academy of Film & Television. He
won National Film Award for Best
Actor twice for his role in Sparsh
and Paar. He also played the part in
television series such as Mirza Galib
(as Mirza Galib) and Bharat Ek
Khoj (as Shivaji). He won Sangeet
Natak Akademi Award in 2000. The
same year he also got International
Indian Film Academy Awards
Artistic Excellence for Performance
in a Negative Role for Sarfarosh.
Om Prakash Jindal (7 August
1930 31 March 2005): Om
Prakash Jindal is known for
establishing business enterprise
Jindal Steel and Power. He was
appointed as the Minister of Power
in the Government of Haryana.
He won Legislative Assembly seat
of Haryana for three consecutive
years. He also served as a Member
of the Committee on Food, Civil
Supplies and Public Distribution
from 1996 to 1997. Om Prakash
was elected to Vidhan Sabha of
Haryana in February 2005. He was
in service as the Minister of Power
in the Government of Haryana at
the time of his death in 2005. He
received Life Time Achievement
Award in 2004, for his exceptional
input to the Indian Steel Industry by
the Bengal Chamber of Commerce
and Industry.
Oprah Winfrey (29th January,
1954-): Oprah Winfrey is an
actress, a philanthropist, publisher
and producer. She is famous for
hosting her own talk show from

1986 to 2011 which achieved
internationally popularity. She was
both the youngest news anchor and
the first black female news anchor at
Nashvilles WLAC-TV in 1976. She
even acted in films like The Colour
Purple (1985), Beloved (1998), The
Bee (2007) and The Princess and the
Frog (2009). She became the narrator
of the US version of the BBC nature
program Life for Discovery, 2010.
Winfrey published O, The Oprah
Magazine from 2004 to 2008. She
was awarded the Presidential Medal
of Freedom in 2013.
Osho (11th December 193119th January 1990): Osho is an
Indian spiritual leader with a
worldwide recognition
for his preaching on
doctrine of Eastern
mysticism, individual
devotion, and sexual
freedom. He is also
known as Acharya Rajneesh. He
travelled throughout India in 1960s
as a public speaker. He was criticized
for his views on socialism, Mahatma
Gandhi
and
institutionalized
religions. He also advocated a more
open attitude towards sexuality. He
took a role of spiritual teacher
having remarkable impact on
Western New Age which increased
markedly since his death. He died
on 19th January 1990 in Pune
because of heart failure.
Oscar Wild (16 October 1854- 30
November 1900): Oscar Wild was
an Irish playwright, novelist, essayist,
and poet. He is remembered for his
great novel The Picture of Dorian
Gray, his plays, as well as the
circumstances of his imprisonment
and early death. He published his
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first collection of poems in 1881.

In 1882, he undertook an American
lecture tour, delivered a staggering
140 lectures in just nine months. His
work The Happy Prince and Other
Tales were a collection of children
stories. His most notable plays were
A Woman of No Importance (1893),
An Ideal Husband (1895) and The
Importance of Being Earnest (1895).
Roy Emersons pre-Open Era record

of 12 Grand Slam singles titles and
retired with 14 titles which includes
seven Wimbledon, five US Open,
and two Australian Open. He also
won five of ATP World Tour Finals
and two Grand Slam Cups and still
holds the ATP record of six yearend No. 1 rankings, which were in
consecutive years from 1993 through
1998.
Plato (428 BCE- 348 BCE): Plato

was a philosopher, as well as
mathematician, in Classical Greece.
He is considered an essential figure
in the development of
philosophy, especially
the Western tradition,
and
founded
the
Academy in Athens,
the first institution of
higher learning in the Western
world.
Pope Francis (17th December,
1936- ): Jorge Mario Bergoglio is
the 266th and current Pope of the
Catholic Church (becoming Pope
Francis), a title he holds ex officio as
Bishop of Rome, and Sovereign of
the Vatican City.
Pele (23rd October 1940-): Pele

is the retied football player who
played forward for Brazil. He is
considered to be most successful
league goal scorer in the world, with
541 league goals. In 1999, Pel was
elected as an Athlete of the Century.
Time named him in their list of 100
most influential people of the 20th
century. In 2013 he received the
FIFA Ballon dOr Prix dHonneur
in recognition of his career and
achievements as a global icon of
football.
Pierre Cardin (2nd July, 1922):

Pierre Cardin is an Italian-born
French fashion designer. He
was appointed as the UNESCO
Goodwill Ambassador in 1991.
News of Pierre Cardins death
spread quickly in December which
was a complete hoax.
Petros Sampras (12th August
1971): Petros Sampras was one of
the greatest American tennis players
who started his career in1988. He
holds the title of world No. 1 earning
the nickname Pistol Pete. He
played his last game against Andre
Agassi in US Opens final and won.
He is the first professional to break
Pingali Venkayya (2nd August,

1876- 4th July, 1963): Pingali
Venkayya was an Indian freedom
fighter. He was designer of the
national flag. The AIR (All India
Radio) Vijayawada building was
named after Pingali in 2015 to
honour his contribution in the
designing of the Indian flag.
A postage stamp was issued to
commemorate him in 2009.
Pope Benedict 16th (16th April
1927-): Pope Benedict 16th is a
religious figure and served as Pope
of the Catholic Church from 2005
till his resignation in 2013. He was
elevated to the papacy on 19th
April, 2005, upon the death of Pope
John Paul II, and celebrated his
Papal Inauguration Mass five days
later. He resigned from his post on
February 28, 2013 and became the
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first pope to step down from his post

after Gregory XII in 1415. He was
succeeded by Pope Francis on 13
March 2013.
Pranab Mukherjee (11th December
1935-): Pranab Mukherjee is an
Indian politician and
government official.
He is the 13th and
current President of
India. He succeeded
Pratibha Patil (2007
12), Indias first woman president.
Mukherjee has also served as the
Union Finance Minister from 2009
to 2012. He has authored several
books, including Beyond Survival:
Emerging Dimensions of Indian
Economy (1984) and Challenges
Before the Nation (1993).
Prof. Max Mueller (6th December
1823 28th October 1900): Max
Mueller was a renowned German
indologist and Sanskrit scholar.
He was scholar of comparative
language, religion, and mythology.
Mllers special areas of interest
were Sanskrit philology and the
religions of India. The Goethe
Institutes in India are named Max
Mller Bhavan in his honour. Some
of his most important works include
Essays on the Science of Religion
(1869), vol. 1 of Chips from a
German Workshop; Introduction to
the Science of Religion (1873); and
Lectures on the Origin and Growth
of Religion (1878).
Pythagoras (C 570 C 495 BC):
Pythagoras of Samos was a Greek
mathematician and philosopher. He
is considered as the founder of the
movement called Pythagoreanism.
He is remembered today for his
famous theorem in geometry, the
Pythagoras Theorem.

Pt. Ravi Shankar (7th April 1920
11th December 2012): Ravi
Shankar was an Indian musician
and composer. He is
best
known
for
popularizing the sitar
and Indian classical
music in Western
culture. After serving
as director of All-India Radio, he
began to tour India and the United
States, winning three Grammy
Awards and collaborating with
many notable American musicians,
including George Harrison and
Philip Glass. Shankar wrote two
autobiographies named My Life,
My Music (1969) and Raga Mala
(1999). He was awarded the Bharat
Ratna in 1999.
P.C. Sorcar (23th
February
1913 6th January 1971): P.C.
Sorcar was a famous magician
in the mid-1930s. He preformed
internationally throughout 1950s
and 1960s. He is often regarded as
the Leonardo De Vinci of India as
he was mathematician, musician, an
accomplished aviator and an Indian
classical ballet dancer. He even
wrote a book Histroy of Magic
which was published in 1970. Sorcar
died of a heart attack at the age of
58 in Ashaikawa, Hokkaido, Japan,
on January 6, 1971, where he was
performing.
Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry (1929):
Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry is a
Parsi, Irish Indian construction
tycoon and chairman of Shapoorji
Pallonji Group Forbes Textiles and
Eureka Forbes Limited. He is the
single largest shareholder in Indias
largest private conglomerate Tata
Group. He is titled as the Phantom
of Bombay House. Pallonji is also

the former Chairman of Associated
Cement Companies. He gave up his
Indian citizenship in 2003 to obtain
Irish citizenship, because India did
not yet allow dual citizenship. His
son Cyrus is chairman of Tata Sons.
A short biography of Mistry was
written in a 2008 book by Manoj
Namburu titled The Moguls of Real
Estate.
PT Usha (27th June 1964-): P T
Usha is an Indian field and track
athlete. She is one of
the most famous and
successful
female
athlete India has ever
produced. She earned
the titles such as
Queen of Indian Track and Payyoli
Express owing to her extra-ordinary
performance at the track. She has
won 101 international medals so far.
She has been conferred with the
Padma Shri and the Arjuna Award
in 1984.
Panini (450350 B.C.): Panini
is known for his contribution to
classical Sanskrit grammar. Paninis
rules of grammar rely on two simple
concepts: that all nouns are derived
from verbs, and that all words
derivation takes place through
suffixes. Paninis work became
known in 19th century Europe.
India released a stamp in honour of
Panini in 2004.
Paul Allen (21st January 1953-):
Paul Allen is the founder and
chairman of Vulcan Inc but best
known as a co-founder of Microsoft,
alongside Bill Gates. He was
estimated to be the 51st richest person
in the world. He has also invested in
technology and media companies,
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real estate holdings, and stakes in

other companies. Allen has financed
a variety of wildlife conservation
projects. He was conferred with the
Champion for Global Health Award
(2015) by Centre for Infectious
Disease Research, for his leadership
and efforts to fight Ebola.
Rabindranath Tagore (7th May
1861 7th August 1941):
Rabindranath Tagore was a painter,
author, screenwriter,
poet, and playwright.
Tagore became the
first
non-European
person to win the
Nobel
Prize
in
Literature in 1913. Some of his bestknown works are Gitanjali (Song
Offerings), Gora (Fair-Faced) and
Ghare-Baire (The Home and the
World). His compositions were
taken up as the national anthem for
India and Bangladesh.
Rudyard Kipling (30th December
1865 18th January 1936):
Kipling was a poet, novelist and a
short story writer. His famous works
include The Jungle Book (1894),
Kim (1901), and many short stories
including The Man Who Would
Be King (1888). Some of known
poems include Mandalay (1890),
Gunga Din (1890). He received the
Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907.
Raja Rammohan Roy (22nd May
Raja Rammohan Roy was an Indian
religious, social, and educational
reformer. He is renowned for his
efforts in the abolishment of the
practice of sati. He is often called the
father of modern India.
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R. K. Narayan (10th October

1906 13th May 2001): R. K.
Narayan was an Indian writer and
journalist. Some of his
notable works include
The English Teacher
(1945), Waiting for the
Mahatma (1955), The
Guide (1958), The
Man-Eater of Malgudi (1961), The
Vendor of Sweets (1967), and A
Tiger for Malgudi (1983). He
received AC Benson Medal from the
Royal Society of Literature, the
Padma Bhushan and the Padma
Vibhushan.
Razia Sultan (1205 13th
October, 1240): Razia Sultan was
the female Muslim female ruler. She
was the Sultan of Delhi from 1236
to May 1240.
Robert Clive (29th September
1725 22nd November 1774):
Robert Clive was the Commanderin-Chief of British India. He
defeated the French and made
possible 200 years of British rule
in the Indian subcontinent. He
defeated Siraj-ud-Daula at the Battle
of Plassey in 1757.
Richard Branson (18th July
1950-): Sir Richard Charles
Nicholas Branson, founder of Virgin
Group is an English businessman
and investor. His first business
project was a magazine called
Student at the age of sixteen. Then
in 1970, he set up a mail-order record
business and in 1972, he opened
a chain of record stores. Virgin
Records, later came to be known
as Virgin Megastores. In 1980s he
set up Virgin Atlantic expanding
Virgin Records music label. Forbes
listed Bransons estimated net worth

at US $5 billion in July 2015. He
became a founding sponsor of the
International Centre for Missing &
Exploited Children in 1999.
Raghuram Rajan (3rd February
1963-): Raghuram Rajan a financial
economist, is the current and the
23rd Governor of the Reserve Bank
of India. He succeeded Duvvuri
Subbarao on 5th September 2013.
He was appointed as the Economic
Counsellor and Director of Research
at the International Monetary Fund
in 2003. His biggest achievement
as s RBI governor was his success
in bringing down retail inflation to
3.78% in July 2015 from 9.8% in
September 2013. Rajan was awarded
the Fischer Black Prize in 2003.
Raj Kapoor (14th December 1924
2nd June 1988): Raj Kapoor was
a film actor, director
and producer of Hindi
films. He was also
known as the show
man
of
Indian
Cinema. He has won
two National Film Awards and nine
Filmfare Awards. He was nominated
twice for the Palme dOr grand prize
at the Cannes Film Festival for his
films Awaara (1951) and Boot Polish
(1954).
Rahul Bajaj (10th June 1938-): Rahul
Bajaj is an Indian businessman,
industrialist, politician, and a
member of the Indian Parliament.
Bajaj is the Chairman of the Bajaj
Group, which ranks among the top
10 business houses in India. He
was awarded the Padma Bhushan
in 2001. In 2015, Forbes estimated
his net worth to be US $ 2.7 Billion
making him one of Indias top 50
richest persons.

Raja Ravi Varma (29th April
1848 2nd October 1906): Raja
Ravi Varma was a renowned Indian
painter who greatly influenced
the future generations of Indian
painters. He is known for his
amazing paintings, which revolve
mainly around the great epics of
Mahabharata
and
Ramayana.
Varma was awarded the Kaisari-Hind Gold by Lord Curzon, on
behalf of the British King Emperor.
In 2013, a crater on Mercury was
named in the honour of this greater
Indian painter.
RK Laxman (24th October 1921
26th January 2015): R. K. Laxman
was an Indian cartoonist who
created the comic strip You Said It,
featuring the Common Mana
silent observer representing the
average Indian. He was awarded
The Ramon Magsaysay Award in
1984 in the category of Journalism,
Literature, and the Creative
Communication Arts (JLCCA).
He was also awarded the Padma
Vibhushan in 2005. He wrote few
novels such as The Hotel Riviera
(1988) and The Messenger (1993),
the short-story collection Servants of
India (2000), and an autobiography,
The Tunnel of Time (1998).
Rakesh Sharma (13th January
1949-): Rakesh is a former Indian
Test Pilot and Cosmonaut. He was
the first Indian, and
the
only
Indian
national to travel in
space.
He
was
conferred with the
honour of Hero of
Soviet Union upon his
return from space. The Hero of
Soviet Union and the Ashoka
Chakra Award were two of the
accolades given to honour his
achievements in space travel.
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Ratan Tata (28th December -):

Ratan Tata is an Indian businessman,
investor,
philanthropist
and
chairman Emeritus of Tata Group
(19912012). He was
succeeded by Cyrus
Mistry
on
28th
December,
2012.
Under his leadership,
Tata Tea acquired
Tetley, Tata Motors acquired Jaguar
Land Rover and Tata Steel acquired
Corus. Tata was awarded the Padma
Bhushan in 2000 and Padma
Vibhushan in 2008. He was also
awarded the Lifetime Achievement
Award by Rockefeller Foundation in
2012.
Ram Manohar Lohia (23rd March
1910 12th October 1967): Ram
Manohar Lohia was an Indian
Freedom Fighter, Socialist and
Political Leader. Lohia sparked
controversy when he wrote a
pamphlet 25000 rupees in a day
stating that the amount of money
spent on then prime minister
Jawahar Lal Nehru was way more
than the country could afford when
majority of the population lived on 3
annas a day. He was bestowed with
numerous nobilities including the
naming of Dr. Rammanohar Lohia
Hospital after him to honour his
memory.
Robert Boyle (25th January
1627 31st December 1691):
Robert Boyle was an Anglo-Irish
philosopher, inventor and writer. He
discovered Boyles Law the first of
the gas laws relating the pressure of
a gas to its volume. Boyle is regarded
as the first modern chemist, and
also as one of the founders of
modern chemistry. Among his
most influential writings was The
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Sceptical Chymist (1661) which is

seen as a cornerstone book in the
field of chemistry. As a founder of
the Royal Society, he was elected a
Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS)
in 1663.
Ruskin Bond (19th May 1934-):
Ruskin Bond is an eminent
contemporary Indian writer of
British descent. The Indian Council
for Child Education
recognized his role in
the
growth
of
childrens literature in
India. Some of other
notable
works
of
Ruskin Bond include Blue Umbrella,
A Flight of Pigeons, The Room on
the Roof, Vagrants in the Valley, The
Lamp is Lit and Funny Side Up. He
was awarded the Sahitya Academy
Award in 1992 for Our Trees Still
Grow in Dehra, for his published
work in English, the Padma Shri in
1999 and Padma Bhushan in 2014.
Socrates (470 BCE- 399 BCE):
Socrates was a classical Greek
(Athenian) philosopher credited
as one of the founders of Western
philosophy known chiefly through
the accounts of classical writers,
especially the writings of his students
Plato and Xenophon and the plays
of his contemporary Aristophanes.
At the age of 70, he was put to
trial on a charge of impiety and
sentenced to death by poisoning (the
poison probably being hemlock) by a
jury of his fellow citizens.
Rohit Bansal (not available):
Rohit Bansal is one of the youngest
entrepreneurs of India. Bansal
cofounded Snapdeal along with his
school friend Kunal Bahl on 4th
February, 2010. Currently he is the
COO of the e-commerce platform
Snapdeal.

Ronald Reagan (6th February,
1911 5th June, 2004): Ronald
Wilson Reagan was the 40th
President of the United States and
the Governor of California. Reagan
initially had chosen a career in
entertainment, appearing in more
than 50 films. He was honoured
with numerous prestigious awards
worldwide, including American
Presidential Medal of Freedom,
Republican Senatorial Medal of
Freedom,
Congressional
Gold
Medal, Honorary Knight Grand
Cross of the Order of the Bath- one
of the highest British order, and
Japans Grand Cordon of the Order
of the Chrysanthemum.
Steve Jobs (24th February 19555th October 2011): Steve Jobs was
as an American trailblazer of the
personal computer revolution of
the 1970s along with an engineer,
inventor. He co-founded Apple
Computers with Steve Wozniak.
In 2007, Jobs was named the most
powerful person in business by
Fortune magazine.
Sigmund Freud (6th May, 1856
23rd September, 1939): Sigmund
Freud
was
a
physiologist,
psychologist and influential thinker
of the early twentieth
century. Freud was the
founding father of
Psychoanalysis
(the
talking cure), a method
for treating mental
illness and also a theory which
explains human behaviour.
Sarojini Naidu (13th February
1879- 2nd March 1949): A poet,
freedom fighter and great orator,
Sarojini Naidu was the first Indian
woman to become the President
of the Indian National Congress
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and also the first woman to be the

governor of a state in India. She
was famously known as Bharatiya
Kokila (The Nightingale of India).
Some of her famous works are The
golden threshold (1905), The bird
of time (1912), and The broken
wing (1912) which attracted huge
readership.
Patel was the first Deputy Prime

Minister and Home Minister of
India. He was also referred to as
Iron Man of India. Vallabhbhai
was posthumously awarded the
Bharat Ratna in 1991. His birthday
is celebrated as Rashtriya Ekta
Diwas (National Unity Day).
Srinivasa
Ramanujan
(22nd
December 1887- 26th April 1920):
Noted Indian mathematician and
autodidact Srinivasa Ramanujan
is known for his extraordinary
contributions
to
mathematical
analysis, number theory, infinite
series, and continued fractions. His
papers were published in English
and European journals. In 1918, he
was elected to the Royal Society of
London.
Sachin Tendulkar (24th April

1973-): Sachin Tendulkar is a
former Indian cricketer and captain.
He is considered to be the greatest
cricketer in the world of cricket.
He is the first sportsperson and
youngest person to be conferred the
Bharat Ratna. He received a number
of awards including Arjuna Award
(1994), Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna
(1997), Padma Shri (1999) and
Padma Vibhushan (2008).
S. Radhakrishnan (5th September

1888 17th April 1975): Sarvepalli
Radhakrishnan, was a philosopher
and statesman. He was the first Vice
President of India (19521962) and
the second President of India (1962
to 1967). His birthday is celebrated
as Teachers Day on 5th September.
He was awarded the Bharat Ratna in
1954.
Swami Vivekanand (12th January
1863 4th July 1902): Swami
Vivekanand, was a monk and
philosopher. He founded the
Ramakrishna Math and the
Ramakrishna Mission. He is best
known for his speech, Sisters and
brothers of America ..., at the
Worlds Religions in Chicago in
1893. His birthday is celebrated
there as National Youth Day.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (31st
October 1875 15th December
1950): Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was
an Indian barrister and statesman.
Salim Ali (12th November 1896

20th June 1987): Salim Ali is one
of the greatest Indian ornithologists
and naturalists of all time. He is also
known as the birdman of India. Ali
was one of the very first scientists to
carry out systematic bird surveys in
India and abroad.
Shabana Azmi (18th September
1950-): Shabana Azmi is a
renowned actress of film, television,
theatre and a social activist. She has
the record of five National Film
Awards for Best Actress. She is also
the Goodwill Ambassador of the
United Nations Population Fund
(UNPFA).
Sabeer Bhatia (30th December
1968-): Sabeer Bhatia is an Indian
entrepreneur and co-founder of
Hotmail, one of the first free e-mail
services in the world.
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Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (22nd

May 1859 7th July 1930): Sir
Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle was
a British writer and physician.
He is renowned for his fictional
stories about the detective Sherlock
Holmes, which are generally
considered milestones in the field of
crime fiction.
Steffi Graf (14th June 1969-):
Steffi Graf is a former German
tennis player who won 22 Grand
Slam singles titles. She and Margaret
Court are the only players, male
or female, to win 3 grand slams
in a calendar year 5 times (1988,
1989, 1993, 1995 and 1996). Graf
dominated womens tennis in the
late 1980s and 90s.
Satyajit Ray (2nd May 1921
23rd April 1992): Satyajit Ray one
of the greatest filmmakers of the
20th century, started his career as a
commercial artist. He was a director,
producer, screenwriter,
and
writer.
Ray
directed 36 films,
including feature films,
documentaries
and
shorts. Rays first film,
Pather Panchali (1955), won eleven
international prizes, including the
Best Human Document at the 1956
Cannes Film Festival. Ray was
honoured with Bharat Ratna in 1992
and Dadasaheb Phalke Award
in1965 and with the Padma Bhushan
in 1965. He received an honorary
Hommage Satyajit Ray award at
the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. He
died on 23 April 1992 at the age of
71.

Stephen Hawking (8th January
1942-): Stephen Hawking is a
physicist, cosmologist, author and
the Director of Research at the
Centre for Theoretical Cosmology
at the University of Cambridge. He
is the member of the Royal Society
of Arts, a lifetime member of the
Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and
a recipient of the Presidential Medal
of Freedom, the highest civilian
award in the United States. He
authored the book A Brief History
of Time.
Shah Jahan (5th January 1592
22nd January 1666): Shahabuddin
Muhammad Shah Jahan was the
fifth Mughal Emperor of India. He
was son of Jahangir and his Hindu
wife, Taj Bibi Bilqis Makani and
became emperor after the death of
his father in 1627. His reign was
considered as the golden age of
Mughal architecture. The Jama
Masjid, the Wazir Khan Mosque,
the Moti Masjid, the Shalimar
Gardens, sections of the Lahore
Fort, the Jahangir mausoleum are
the renowned building built by him.
Saadat Hassan Manto (11th
May 1912 18th January 1955):
Sadat Hasan Manto was a Pakistani
writer. He was one of the greatest
writers of short stories and author
of over 100 radio plays and features,
remains a model for 21st-century
writers for plot construction, bitter
realism, and whimsical dialogue.
Some of his well-known Urdu
short stories include Bu, Khol Do,
Thanda Gosht, and Toba Tek Singh.
On 18th January 2005, the fiftieth
anniversary of his death, Manto
was commemorated on a Pakistani
postage stamp.

Sachin Bansal (5th August 1981):
Sachin Bansal is an Indian
software engineer and a successful
entrepreneur. He is the cofounder
of
the
Indian
e-commerce
giant Flipkart. Sachin won the
Entrepreneur of the Year award for
the year 2012-2013. Sachin along
with Binny Bnasal, the other cofounder were named the 86th richest
person in India with a net worth of
$1.3 billion by Forbes India Rich
List.
Saeed Jaffrey (8th January 1929
15th November 2015): Saeed
Jaffrey was an Indian actor. He was
considered to be Britains highestprofile Asian actor and
played the leading
roles in the movie My
Beautiful Laundrette
(1985) and television
series Tandoori Nights
(19851987) and Little Napoleons
(1994). His famous Bollywood
outings include Chashme Buddoor,
Masoom, Kissi Se Na Kehna,
Mandi, Mashaal Ram Teri Ganga
Maili, Ram Lakhan, Ajooba and
Henna. In 1995 he was awarded
an OBE (Order of the British
Empire) in recognition of his
services to drama, the first Asian to
receive this honour.
Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
(31st December 1935-): Salman
bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is the King of
Saudi Arabia, Custodian of the Two
Holy Mosques and the head of the
House of Saud. Salman was crowned
as the new King of Saudi Arabia
on 23rd January 2015 following
the death of his half brother, King
Abdullah. Previously he has served
as the Deputy Governor and then
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the Governor of Riyadh for 48 years

from 1963 to 2011. He was also
appointed as Minister of Defence
in 2011. He received the Lifetime
Achievement Award of Al-Turath
Charity Foundation in the field of
urban heritage in 2013.
Saina Nehwal (17th March 1990-):
Saina Nehwal is an ace Indian
badminton player. She is currently
ranked no. 1 in the
world by Badminton
World
Federation
Womens Singles 2015.
She became the first
Indian player to win a
medal in Olympics by winning the
Bronze medal at the London
Olympics 2012 on 4th August 2012.
Saina also became the first Indian
woman to win at medal at the BWF
World Championship by winning
silver at the 2015 edition of the
championship. She is the recipient
of the Arjuna award (2009), Padma
Shri (2010) and the Rajiv Gandhi
Khel Ratna award (20092010).
Satish Dhawan (25th September
1920 3rd January 2002):
Satish Dhawan was an Aerospace
engineer. He is known as the father
of experimental fluid dynamics
research in India and one of the
most eminent researchers in the field
of turbulence and boundary layers.
He succeeded Vikram Sarabhai,
the founder of the Indian space
programme, as Chairman of the
Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO) in 1972. He was also the
Chairman of the Space Commission
and Secretary to the Government
of India in the Department of
Space. After his death in 2002, the
Indian satellite launch centre at
Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, was
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renamed as the Prof. Satish Dhawan

Space Centre. He was awarded with
the Padma Vibhushan (1981) and
Padma Bhushan (1971).
Salman Rushdie (19th June
1947-): Salman Rushdie is one of
the most prominent
writers of the twentieth
century. He is known
to combine magical
realism with historical
fiction. Some of his
best known novels are Midnights
Children (1981), Joseph Anton
(2012), The Moors Last Sigh (1995)
and The Satanic Verses (1988), for
which he was accused of blasphemy
against Islam. Rushdie received the
Booker Prize in 1981 for Midnights
Children. Rushdie is also a Fellow
of the British Royal Society of
Literature.
Samudragupta (335 c. 375 CE):
Samudragupta was the third ruler
of the Gupta Dynasty and one of
the greatest monarchs in the Indian
history. He generally is considered
the epitome of an ideal king of the
golden age of Hindu history, as the
period of the imperial Guptas (320
510 ce) is often called. The western
scholars equate him with Napoleon
and call him Indian Napoleon due
to his extensive military conquests.
Sheikh Hasina (28th September
1947-): Sheikh Hasina is a politician
and leader of the Awami League
political party. Hasina is the current
Prime Minister of Bangladesh and
has previously served as Prime
Minister from 1996 to 2001. She
is sometimes referred-to as Sheikh
Hasina Wazed. In 1998, she was
awarded the M K Gandhi Award
by Norways Mahatma M K Gandhi
Foundation for promoting peaceful

understanding and democracy in
Bangladesh. She was also awarded
the Mother Teresa Award by the
All India Peace Council in 1998.
Serena Williams (26th September
1981-): Serena Williams is one of
the most dominant names in the
world tennis. She is an American
tennis player and currently ranked as
the Worlds no. 1 in womens singles
tennis. She has won 21 Grand Slam
singles titles and stands third on the
all-time list behind Margaret Court
(24) and Steffi Graf (22). Her win
at Wimbledon 2015 made her the
oldest Grand Slam singles champion
in the Open era.
Sania Mirza (15th November
1986-): Sania Mirza is Indias ace
tennis player. She is currently ranked
as World no. 1 in the womens
doubles. Mirza is the
most successful female
Indian tennis player
and also one of the
highest paid athletes in
the country. She has
been awarded with many awards
including the Arjuna award (2004),
Padma Shri (2006), Rajiv Gandhi
Khel Ratna (2015) and many more.
Shashi Tharoor (9th March
1956-): Shashi Tharoor is an author,
politician, and former international
civil servant. He is the member of
the Indian National Congress and
served as an official spokesperson for
the party from January to October
2014. Some of his famous books
are The Great Indian Novel (1989),
Riot (2001) and Show Business
(1992). He was also appointed as
the International Adviser to the
International Committee of the Red
Cross in Geneva for the period 20082011.

Satya Nadella (19th August,
1967-): Satya Narayana Nadella is
an Indian American businessman.
He was appointed as
the CEO of Microsoft
on 4th February 2014.
He has been working
with Microsoft since
1992, after he left Sun
Microsystems.
Shiv Nadar (14th July 1945-):
Shiv Nadar is the noted Indian
business tycoon. He is the founder
of Hindustan Computers Limited
(HCL) and Shiv Nadar Foundation.
He is nicknamed magus, which
in Old Persian stands for wizard.
He was presented with the Padma
Bhushan in 2008 for his great
contributions to the IT industry.
According to Forbes richest people
list, Nadar has a net worth of $12.2
billion.
Sir Edwin Lutyens (9th March
1869 1st January 1944): Sir Edwin
Lutyens was one of Englands most
prominent and innovative architects
belonging to the 19th and early
20th centuries. Lutyens along with
Sir Herbert Baker were the chief
architects of the India Gate and
Rashtrapati Bhavan. Lutyens is
also known as the greatest British
architect and to recognise his
contribution, New Delhi is also
known as Lutyens Delhi. He
was knighted in 1918 and elected
a Fellow of the Royal Academy in
1921.
Steven Spielberg (18th December
1946-): Steven Spielberg is one of
the most renowned screenwriters,
Directors and Producers. Some
of his famous films include as
Schindlers List, The Color Purple,
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Saving
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Private Ryan, Catch Me If You Can,

Lincoln and Bridge of Spies. He cofounded the studio DreamWorks
SKG in 1994, which was purchased
by Paramount Pictures in 2005.
Spielberg has won three Academy
Awards.
Suchitra Sen (6th April 1931
17th January 2014): Suchitra Sen
was an Indian actress who starred in
more than 50 Bengali films as well
as 7 Hindi movies. She was the first
Indian actress to be honoured by an
international film festival. She won
the silver prize for best actress at the
Moscow International Film Festival
for her film Saat Paake Bandha. Sen
was awarded the Padma Shri in 1972
and Banga Bibhushan in 2012.
Shekhar Kapur (6th December
1945-): Shekhar Kapur is an Indian
actor and director. Kapur is best
known for his films
Bandit Queen (1994)
and Elizabeth (1998).
His movies Elizabeth
(1998) and The Golden
Age (2007) won the
BAFTA Award for Best Film, and
two Academy Awards. He was
awarded the Padma Shri in 2000. He
was also appointed as one of the
Jury
Members
(International
Competition) at the 63rd Cannes
Film Festival.
Sylvester Stallone (6th July
1946-): Sylvester Stallone is an
American Film Actor, Screenwriter,
Director and Producer. Stallone is
best known for portraying boxer
Rocky Balboa, Vietnam War veteran
John Rambo and Barney Ross in
the three The Expendables films
from 2010 to 2014. In 1977, Stallone
was nominated for two Academy
Awards for Rocky, Best Original
Screenplay and Best Actor.
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Sundar Pichai (12th July 1972-):

Sundar Pichai is a
computer
engineer
and the current CEO
of Google Inc. Pichai
had joined Google
in 2004 as a product
manager and led the innovative
efforts for several of Googles
products including Google Chrome
and Chrome OS which were highly
successful.
Sunil Gavaskar (10th July 1949-):
Sunil Gavaskar is a former Indian
cricketer considered to be among
the best opening batsmen in cricket
history. His record for most centuries
(34) in test cricket was broken by
Sachin Tendulkar in December 2005.
He became the first player to score
10000 runs in Test Cricket. Gavaskar
is recipient of awards such as Padma
Shri, Padma Bhushan and Col CK
Nayudu Lifetime Achievement
Award for Cricket in India.
Sunita Williams (19th September,
1965-): Sunita Williams is an
American astronaut. She holds the
records for total spacewalks by a
woman (seven) and most spacewalk
time for a woman (50 hours, 40
minutes).Williams worked for the
International Space Station as a
member of Expedition 14 and
Expedition 15. She also served as a
flight engineer on Expedition 32 and
then commander of Expedition 33
in the year 2012.
Thomas Edison (February 11
1847- October 18, 1931): Thomas
Alva Edison was an American
inventor and businessman. Some
of his most famous inventions were
the phonograph, motion picture
camera and electric light bulb which
influenced the day to day life of
people around the world. Edison is

also known as the Wizard of the
Menlo Park.
Tansen (1506 - 1589): Tansen
was one of the most renowned
Indian classical music composers,
musicians and vocalists. He is
regarded as the greatest of all
musicians India has ever produced
till date. Tansen was considered as
one of the Navaratnas (Nine Gems)
in the court of Emperor Akbar. He
has also composed several Ragas that
have been the foundation of classical
music like Bhairavi, Darbari Todi,
Darbari Kanada, Malhar, Sarang
and Rageshwari.
Shakuntala Devi (4th November
1929 21st April 2013):
Shakuntala Devi was a
writer and a mental
calculator. She was a
mathematical prodigy,
also known as the
human
computer.
Shakuntala Devi was famous for her
complex problem-solving skills
without the aid of any mechanical
device. Her mathematical talent
earned her a place in the 1982
edition of The Guinness Book of
World Records. Some of her bestknown works are Figuring: the Joy
of Numbers, Astrology for You,
Perfect Murder and The World of
Homosexuals.
Tim Cook (1st November 1960-):
Tim Cook is an American business
executive, and is the Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) of Apple Inc. Cook
took control of Apple after its
founder and long-time leader Steve
Jobs died in 2011. Cook joined Apple
in 1998 as senior vice president of
worldwide operations. Cook has
also served as the executive vice
president of worldwide sales and

operations and was chief operating
officer until he was named the CEO
of Apple on August 24, 2011, when
he succeeded Steve Jobs.
Tipu Sultan (20th November
1750 4th May 1799): Tipu
Sultan was the ruler of the kingdom
of Mysore. He won
against the British in
the Second AngloMysore War, and
negotiated the 1784
Treaty of Mangalore
with them after his father Hyder Ali
suddenly died from cancer in
December 1782 during the Second
Anglo-Mysore War. He is known for
the use of the Mysorean rockets and
also wrote a military manual known
as Fathul Mujahidin, which is
considered a pioneer in the use of
rocket artillery. Tipu was killed on
4th May 1799 while defending his
fort of Srirangapatna.
Todar Mal (died in 8th November
1589): Raja Todar Mal was a Khatri
Rajput, an able administrator and
an exemplary finance minister.
He was one of the Navratnas of
Akbars courts. He introduced an
excellent land revenue system. In
1582, the title Diwan-I- Ashraf was
bestowed upon him by the Emperor.
The Kashi Vishwanath Temple was
rebuilt in 1585 by Todar Mal.
Toni Morrison (18th February
1931-): Toni Morrison is a Nobel
Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning
American novelist, editor and
professor. Some of her best known
novels are The Bluest Eye, Song of
Solomon and Beloved. She has won
the Pulitzer Prize and the American
Book Award in 1988 for Beloved
and the Nobel Prize in 1993. She
received the Presidential Medal of
Freedom on May 29, 2012.
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Usian Bolt (21st August 1986-): Usain

Bolt is a world renowned sprinter
and an Olympic gold winner. He has
won gold medals in the 100-metre
and 200-metre races at both the
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and
the London 2012 Games. He is the
first man to win six Olympic gold
medals in sprinting, and an eleventime World champion. At the 2009
world championships, Bolt shattered
his own 100-metre world record of
9.69 sec, by winning the event final
in 9.58 sec. He has been nicknamed
as Lightning Bolt, and awarded
with the IAAF World Athlete of the
Year, Track & Field Athlete of the
Year, and Laureus World Sportsman
of the Year.
Tulsidas
(1497/15321623):
Goswami Tulsidas was a great
Hindu poet saint, reformer and
philosopher. He composed various
popular books. He is best known as
the
author
of
the
epic
Ramcharitmanas. Tulsidas was
believed in his lifetime
to be a reincarnation
of
Valmiki,
the
composer
of
the
original Ramayana in
Sanskrit. He is also
considered to be the composer of the
Hanuman Chalisa, a popular
devotional hymn dedicated to
Hanuman, the divine devotee of
Rama.
Vincent Van Gogh (30th March
1853 29th July 1890): Vincent
van Gogh was a Dutch painter and
one of the most well known postimpressionist artists; for whom
colour was the chief symbol of
expression was born in GrootZundert, Holland. He remained
poor and virtually unknown
throughout his life.
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V. S. Naipaul (17th August

1932-): Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad
Naipaul is a Trinidadian-British
writer of Indian descent. Some of
his best known novels are A House
for Mr. Biswas (1961), A Bend in
the River (1979) and A Way in the
World (1994). He was awarded
Nobel Prize in 2001 for his novel,
Half a Life.
Varahamihira (505587 CE):
Varahamihira
is
an
Indian
philosopher,
astronomer,
and
mathematician. He is considered
to be one of the nine jewels
(Navaratnas) of the court of
legendary ruler Yashodharman
Vikramaditya of Malwa. The most
famous work by Varahamihira is
the Pancasiddhantika (The Five
Astronomical Canons).
Ved Vyas: Ved Vyas was the first and
greatest acharya of Sanatan Dharma.
He is responsible for classifying the
four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas
and recited the great Mahabharata.
Vyasa is also considered to be one
of the seven Chiranjivins (long
lived, or immortals), who are still in
existence according to Hindu belief.
The festival of Guru Purnima is
dedicated to him.

30 cooperative institutions like
AMUL, IRMA, and NDDB thrived.
He is the recipient of awards such as
(1966) and Padma Vibhushan (1999)
by the Government of India, the
Ramon Magsaysay Award (1963),
and World Food Prize (1989).
Vijay Tendulkar (6th January
1928 19th May 2008): Vijay
Tendulkar was a playwright and
screenwriter who wrote more than
30 full-length Marathi-language
plays and numerous one-act plays,
short stories, and movie scripts.
Some of Tendulkars most famous
plays include Shantata! Court Chalu
Ahe (1967; Silence! The Court
is in Session), Sakharam Binder
(1971) and Ghashiram Kotwal
(1972; Ghashiram the Constable).
Tendulkar was awarded the Padma
Bhushan (1984) and the Sangeet
Natak Akademi Fellowship in 1998.
Vinoba Bhave (11th September

1895 15th November 1982):
Acharya Vinoba Bhave was a freedom
fighter and a spiritual teacher. He is
best known as the founder of the
Bhoodan Movement (Land-Gift
movement). He is considered to be
the National Teacher of India and
the spiritual successor of Gandhiji.
Verghese Kurien (26th November
Vinoba was the first recipient of the
international Ramon Magsaysay
Verghese Kurien was the founder
Award for Community Leadership
Chairman of the National Dairy
in 1958. He was awarded the Bharat
Development Board.
Ratna posthumously in 1983.
Kurien is better known
as the Father of the
Virginia Woolf (25th January
White Revolution in
1882 28th March 1941): Virginia
India. He is also called
Woolf was a British writer and
as the Milkman of
essayist. She was one of the foremost
India. He led the Operation Flood modernists of the twentieth century.
which made India, a previously Her most famous works include the
milk-deficient nation the largest milk novels Mrs Dalloway (1925), To
producer in the world. Under his the Lighthouse (1927) and Orlando
able direction and guidance, around (1928), and the book-length essay A

Room of Ones Own (1929), with
its famous dictum, A woman must
have money and a room of her own
if she is to write fiction.
Vladimir Putin (7th October
1952-): Vladimir Putin has been
the President of Russia since 7 May
2012,
succeeding
Dmitry Medvedev. He
has served as president
(19992008, 2012) of
Russia and also was
the countrys prime
minister (1999, 200812). Putins
first presidency was marked by high
economic growth: the Russian
economy grew for eight straight
years, seeing GDP increase by 72%
in PPP. A number of Putins actions
are regarded by the observers as
undemocratic and it was stated that
Russia was in a long process of
regression [that] culminated in a
move from a hybrid to an
authoritarian regime in view of
Putins candidacy and flawed
parliamentary elections. In 2014,
Russia was suspended from the G8
group due to its annexation of
Crimea. The China International
Peace Research Center awarded the
Confucius Peace Prize to Putin on
15th November 2011.
Vikram Seth (20th June 1952 -):
Vikram Seth is an Indian poet,
novelist, and travel writer. Some
of his notable works include The
Golden Gate (1986), A Suitable
Boy (1993), An Equal Music (1999),
From Heaven Lake: Travels through
Sinkiang and Tibet, Mappings and
Beastly Tales and many more. He
is the recipient of several awards
including Padma Shri (2007),
Sahitya Akademi Award (1988),
B-127
Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (2005),

WH Smith Literary Award (1994)
and Crossword Book Award (1999).
Seth was conferred with a Poet
Laureate Award 2015 at the Mumbai
Literature Festival.
William Shakespeare (23rd April,
1564- 23rd April, 1616): William
Shakespeare was an English poet
and playwright, widely
regarded
as
the
greatest writer in the
English language and
the
worlds
preeminent dramatist. He
is often called Englands national
poet and the Bard of Avon. His
extant works, including some
collaboration, consist of about 38
plays, 154 sonnets, two long
narrative poems, and a few other
verses, the authorship of some of
which is uncertain.
Walt Disney (5th December,
1901-15th December, 1966):
Walt Disney was an American
entrepreneur, animator, and film
producer. Along with his brother
Roy O. Disney he co-founded The
Walt Disney Company. Disney has
won 22 Academy Awards and 7
Emmy Awards.
Wilbur (April 16, 1867 May 30,
1912) & Orville Wright (August
19, 1871 January 30, 1948):
Wilbur and Orville Wright were
American inventors and pioneers of
aviation. The Wright brothers are
credited with inventing and building
worlds first successful airplane.
They are also considered as the
fathers of modern aviation. From
1905 to 1907, the brothers developed
their flying machine into the first
practical fixed-wing aircraft.
B-128
Yash Chopra (27th September

1932 21st October 2012): Yash
Chopra was an Indian director,
Script Writer, and Producer in the
Hindi cinema. He is also known as
the King of Romance of the Indian
cinema. He received the Dadasaheb
Phalke Award in 2001 and the
Padma Bhushan in 2005. Chopra
was also presented with the lifetime
membership for his contribution to
films by BAFTA.
Yuri Gagarin (9th March 1934
27th March 1968): Yuri Gagarin
was a soviet cosmonaut who in
1961 became the first man to travel
into space. His Vostok spacecraft
completed an orbit of the Earth on
12 April 1961. Gagarin was awarded
the Order of Lenin and given the
titles Hero of the Soviet Union
and Pilot Cosmonaut of the Soviet
Union. He died in 1968 when the
MiG-15 training jet he was piloting
crashed.
Zohra Sehgal (27th April 1912
10th July 2014): Zohra Sehgal was
an Indian actress and choreographer.
She has acted in many Bollywood

films with a career-span of over 60
years. She has been the recipient of
many awards including the Sangeet
Natak Akademi Award (1963),
(2002), Padma Vibhushan (2010)
and many more.
Zakir Hussain (9th March 1951):
Zakir Hussain is an Indian tabla
player, musical producer, film actor
and composer. He has been conferred
with numerous awards including the
(2002), Sangeet Natak Akademi
Award (1990), and the United States
National Endowment for the Artss
National Heritage Fellowship, the
highest award given to traditional
artists and musicians in 1999.
Zoroaster
(628
BC-551):
Zoroaster is an Iranian prophet. He
was the founder of Zoroastrianism,
or Parsiism, as it is known in India.
He is credited with the authorship
of the Yasna Haptanghaiti as well
as the Gathas, hymns which are at
the liturgical core of Zoroastrian
thinking.
*(2*5$3+<
` Physical
` India
` World
B-130
Geography
Theories of Development
Universe
l
l
l
l
l
Big bang Theory

Steady State theory
Osclilating Universe Therory
Galaxy
Solar Systems
Planets and Moons
Cosmic Bodies
Seasons and Their Formation.

Earth
Chronology of the Earth
Geomorphology
Geological Era
Internal Structure
l
l
Oceanography
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Ocean Structure
Temperature
Salinity
Ocean Deposits
Ocean Tides
Ocean Currents
Coral Reef and Atolls
l
l
l
Atmospheric Structure
Insolation and Heat Budget
Winds and their type
Atmosphere
PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHYMIND MAP
Rocks and their classification

Movement of Earth
Factors Affecting movement of Earth

(Endogenetic and Exogenetic Forces)
Outcomes of Earth's Movement (Folded
Mountains, Earthquake, Volcanoes)
Mountain, Plains, Plateau
Process of Formation and their types
Planetary Wind (Polar winds, westerlies,

Trade winds)
Seasonal Winds (Monsoon)
Local Winds
Cyclones and Anti Cyclones
l
l
l
Air masses
Clouds and their types
Precipitation
Recent Major Cyclones
Conventional, Cyclonic, Orogenic
B-131
Geography
UNIVERSE
x
All existing matters and space as

a whole forms Universe. It was
termed as cosmos when first
conceived as an orderly unit and
it study called as cosmology. It
is believed to be expanding since
its creation in the Big Bang about
13 billion years ago.
The word universe derives from
the old French word univers,
which in turn derives from the
Latin word universum. The Latin
word was used by Cicero and
later Latin authors in many of
the same senses as the modern
English word is used.
Diameter
Volume
Mass
(ordinary
matter)
Density
Age
Fast Fact
8.81026 m (28.5
Gpc or 93 Gly)
41080 m3
1053 kg
Dark matters are neither

antimatter nor black hole. Back
holes are gravity lenses that bend
light. The instruments which
are used by the scientists for
these discoveries are cosmology
instrument (WMAP and Plank),
direct detection experiments
include CDMS, XENON, Zeplin,
WARP, ArDM and other; indirect
detection experiments like Gamma
ray detectors, antimatter detectors,
X-rays and radio facilities.
Theories of Development
Big Bang Theory
9.91030 g/cm3
(equivalent to 6
protons per cubic
meter of space)
13.7990.021 billion
years
2.72548 K
Average
temperature
Contents
ordinary (baryonic)
matter (4.9%)
dark matter (26.8%)
dark energy (68.3%)
Normal matters all that are
visible (star, planet and galaxies)
make up less than 5 % of the
total mass of the universe rest
are made of dark matters. These
dark matters are not seen by the
astronomers but can study their
effects.
Big bang theory was proposed

by Georges Lemaitre in1927.
x According to this theory billion
of years ago cosmic matters were
in highly compressed state and
expansion started with premordial
explosion which was bang in
superdense ball. These exploded
particles are still travelling at a
speed of thousands miles per
second and gave rise to our galaxies.
Steady State Theory
x
x
The steady state theory was

governed by Hermann Boudi
and Thomas Gold.
It is also known as theory of
continuos creation. According to
this theory universe has always
existed and will always exist
and will always look essentially
the same, so there is no over
B-132
all evolution thus balancing

the average density despite the
exapansion.
x As old galaxies move apart the
new galaxies are being formed.
Oscillating Universe Theory
x
x
The Oscillating Universe Theory

was advocated by Dr. Alan
Sandage.
This theory postulates that the
universe not only expands but it
also contracts. The time interval
between the two phases are
presumed to be billions of years.
It is a mixture of both Big Bang
an Big Crunch theory.
According to Dr. Sandage
the universe started with an
expolsion nearly 12 milion years
ago and continues to expand.
He was of view that it would
expand for another 17 milion
years or more. The process of
contraction would intiate after
the completion of expansion and
would continue upto 41million
years. The stage of contraction is
called as implosion. compress
would result into extremely
suspended state and then it will
expolde once again. It is the
latest theory given on evolution
of Universe till now.
Galaxy
x
A Galaxy is a large collection of

stars, gas, dust, and dark matter
bounded by gravitational force.
At times they are so big that they
are called as Island Universe.
The studies related to the distant
spaces with optical and radio
telescopes indicate that about
100 galaxies are visible universe.
It can be group of clusters and
super clusters.
Geography
x
According to Michael McDonald

Central galaxies have typically
been referred to as red and dead
- just a bunch of old stars orbiting
a massive black hole, and theres
nothing new happening.
Sturcture and composition of
Galaxy
Elliptical Galaxies :
x Elliptical galaxies can be classified
on the basis of their ellipticity,
ranging from nearly spherical
(E0) to highly elongated (E7).
These have low portion of open
clusters and low rate of new star
formation.
Spiral Galaxies:
x Spiral galaxies have a central
nucleus with great spiral arms
trailing round it resembling pin
wheel Andromeda Galaxy and
Milky Way are the example of
such galaxies. The spiral arms are
thought to be areas of high-density
matter, or density waves.
Irregular Galaxies:
x Irregular galaxies are youthful in
nature with no sharp and boundary
thinning out gradually, these
galaxies contain large amount of
gas and dust. This type of galaxy
is the result of gravitational
interaction or collision between
formerly regular galaxies.
Solar System
x
Solar System constitute of

heavenly
bodies
revolving
around an average star known
The measurement
as SUN.
unit used for large distance is
astronomical unit (AU). One
AU represents the distance of
150 million Kms (the distance
between earth and sun).
Heliosphere is a region of space
of bubbles dominated by the Sun
extending beyond the orbit of its
planets. Bubble in Heliosphere is
B-133
Geography
created by sun wind, which is a

stream of charged gas blowing
out of sun.
The area where sun wind
abruptly slows due to the pressure
from gas between the stars is
called as termination shock. The
entire Solar system consists of
devoius. Eight Planets (Mercury,
Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) ;
Asteroids (planet like objects);
Meteors (Chunks of iron and
stones); Comets (bodies of the
dust and forign gases).
Planets Superlatives
1. Biggest Planet-Jupiter
2. Biggest Satellite-Jupiter
3. Blue Planet-Earth
4. Green Planet-Uranus
5. Brightest Planet-Venus
6. Brightest Planet outside Solar

System-Sirus
7. Closest Star of Solar SystemProxima
8. Coldest Planet-Neptune
9. Evening Star-Venus
10. Farthest Planet From Sun-Neptune
11. Planet with maximum no. of
satellites-Saturn
12. Fastest revolution in solar systemMercury
13. Hottest Planet-Venus
14. Densest Planet- Earth
15. Fastest Rotation in Solar SystemJupiter
16. Morning Star-Venus
17. Nearest Planet to Earth-Venus
18. Nearest Planet to Sun-Mercury
19. Red Planet-Mars
20. Slowest Revolution in Solar
System-Neptune
21. Slowest Rotation in Solar
System-Venus
22. Smallest Planet-Mercury
23. Smallest Satellite-Deimos
24. Earths Twin-Venus
25. Atmosphere like Earth-Titan
INFORMATION BULLETIN
x Human population of the
Earth
x World Population Growth
x Countries of the world
x Earths Circumference at the
Equator
x Earths Circumference between
the North and South Poles
x Earths Diameter at the
Equator
x Average Distance from the
Earth to the Sun
x Average Distance from the
Earth to the Moon
x Highest Elevation on Earth
: Seven billion as of No. 2011, 7.389

billion (as of Dec 2015)
: 1.13% as of (2015-16) - 2014 estimate
: 196 (195 Excluding Taiwan)
: 24,901.55 miles (40,075.16 km)
: 24,859.82 miles (40,008 km)
: 7,926.28 miles (12,756.1 km)
: 92, 935, 700 miles
: 238.900 miles/384, 400 km
: Mt. Everest, Asia : 29,035 feet (8850 m)
B-134
Geography
x Tallest Mountain on Earth : Mauna Kea. Hawaii: 33,480 feet (rising

from Base to Peak
to 13.796 feet above sea level) (10204 m,
4205 m)
x Point Farthest from the Center : The peak of the volcano chimborazo
of the Earth
in Ecoador at 20.561 feet (6267 m) is
farthest from the center of the Earth due
to its location near the equator and the
oblateness of the Earth.
x Lowest Elevation on Land
: Dead Sea: 1369 feet below sea level
(417,27 m)
x Deepest Point in he Ocean
: Challenger Deep. Mariana Trench.
Western Pacific Ocean: 36,740 feet
(11022 m)
x Highest Temperature Recorded : 135.80F - A1 Aziziyah, Libya, Sep.
13,1922 (57.7C)
x Lowest Temperature Recorded : 128.5F - Vostok, Antarction. July 21,
1983 (89.2C)
x Water Vs Land
: 4.5 to 4.6 billion years
x Atmosphere content
: 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and 1%
traces of argon, carbon dioxide and
water.
x Rotation on Axis
: 23 hours and 56 minutes and 04.09053
second. But, it takes an additional four
minutes forthe earth to revolve to the
some position as the day before relative
to the sun (i.e., 24 hours)
x Revolution Around Sun
: 365 . 2425 day
x Chemical Composition of the : 34.6% Iron, 29.5% Oxygen, 15.2% Silicon,
Earth
12.7%, Magnesium, 2.4% Nickel, 1.9%
Suffer and 0.05% Titanium.
Cosmic World
Moon: 176
There are 181 known natural moons
orbiting planets in our Solar System.
173 moons orbit the full-size
planets, while 8 moons orbit the
smaller dwarf planets.
Asteroid: 645,118
A small rocky body orbiting the sun
is termed as asteroid. Large numbers
of these, ranging enormously in
size, are found between the orbits of

Mars and Jupiter, though some have
more eccentric orbits. The asteroid
is categorized by their spectra, with
most falling into three basic groups:
carbonaceous (C-type), silicate
(S-type), and metal-rich (M-type).
Meteor: A meteoroid is a small
rocky or metallic body travelling
through space and range in size from
small grains to 1 meter-wide objects.
B-135
Geography
When it enters the atmosphere to
become visible is called as a meteor.
It is also known as shooting star
or falling star. One can see nearly
20 million of meteors in a day. On
an average nearly each day nearly
one to two reaches Earth. In Huba
the largest meteorite was found
(Namibia 60 tons).
The rings of Saturn are made
up of countless small particles,
ranging in size from micrometres
to metres and orbit about Saturn.
They are most extensive planetary
ring system of any planet in the
Solar System. The ring particles are
made almost entirely of water ice,
with a trace component of rocky
material. There is still no consensus
as to their mechanism of formation;
some features of the rings suggest
a relatively recent origin, but
theoretical models indicate they are
likely to have formed early in the
Solar Systems history.
A dwarf planet is a planetary-mass
object that is neither a planet nor a
natural satellite. It orbits the Sun,
and is massive enough for its shape
to be in hydrostatic equilibrium
under its own gravity, but has not
cleared the neighborhood around
its orbit. The term dwarf planet
was adopted in 2006. Currently, the
International Astronomical Union
(IAU) recognizes five dwarf planets:
Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake,
Seden and Eris.
Pluto as dwarf planet

Pluto is called a dwarf planet.
A dwarf planet orbits the sun
just like other planets, but it is
smaller. A dwarf planet is so
small it cannot clear other objects
out of its path. Similarly, Pluto
is in a region called the Kuiper
(KY-per) Belt. Thousands of
small, icy objects like Pluto are
in the Kuiper Belt. The orbit of
which Pluto follows takes 248
days to revolve round the sun
once and it oval in nature. There
are moments when it is nearest to
the sun causing the ice present on
the planet to melts. Pluto having
about one-fifteenth the gravity of
Earth, its atmospheres altitude
rises more than any other planet.
Oort Clouds: roughly spherical,
shell of icy found in the outermost
reaches of the solar system is called
as
Oort
Clouds.
Astronomers
believe that it is remains of the disc

of material that formed the Sun and
planets. Estimates put it at around 2
trillion. It is also referred to as TransNeptunian object applied to objects
in the Kuiper Belt. Astronomers
think that long-period comets have
their origins in the Oort Clouds.
B-136
Geography
Seasons Formation
the Sun, therefore experiencing

summer. The Southern Hemisphere
on the other hand, is tilted away
from the Sun and thus, experiences
winter. The opposite occurs around
the December Solstice, when the
Southern Hemisphere is tilted
towards the Sun, while the Northern
Hemisphere is tilted away.
Revolution of the Earth around the

Sun along with its spins around
its axis, which is tilted at an angle
of 23.5 degrees, is the main cause
of
seasons
formation.
Around
the June Solstice, the Northern

Hemisphere
is
tilted
towards
Seasons and their Formation

Northern summer/Southern winter
Northern fall/Southern spring

21. March
Periapsis
ill.
3.
January
Equinox 47 m
1
m
k
21. June
Line of Solstice
es
21. December
d
psi
fa
eo
Lin
ll.
i
2m
Apoapsis 3. July
km
15
Northern summer/Southern winter
23. September
Northern fall/Southern spring
There are four seasons: Summer
tropic of cancer and secondly when
when the Suns ray falls directly
over tropic of Capricorn.
over the tropic of cancer. In autumn
An eclipse is a natural phenomenon.
the Suns ray falls directly over the
Eclipse is related to obscuring light
equator. During winter it is over
of the sun or the moon by any other
tropic of Capricorn and during
body. There are two types of eclipse.
spring it falls back on equator.
Lunar eclipse occurs when the earth
Equinoxes are the days and nights
comes in middle of the sun and the
are equal. The suns ray falls directly
moon. It occurs on full moon day but
over equator. March 21 is called as
not every full moon day experiences
Vernal equinox and 23rd September is
lunar eclipse. Solar eclipse occurs
autumnal equinox. In the same ways
when the moon comes in middle of
Solstice occurs when the difference
the sun and the earth. it occurs on
between the lengths of day and night
the new moon day when the moon
are maximum. Occurs twice in a
is in line with sun.
year firstly when the suns ray falls
B-137
Geography
Chronological age of the Earth

EON
ERA
PERIOD
EPOCH
Holocene
Pleistocene
Pliocene
Neogene
Miocene
Oligocene
Paleogene Eocene
Paleocene
Cretaceous
Jurassic
Triassic
Permian
Mesozoic
Paleozoic
Proterozoic
Mesoproterozoic
Paleoproterozoic
Archean
Precambrian
Neoproterozoic
Charboniferous
Phanerozoic
Cenozoic
Tertiary
Quaternary
Millions of
Years Ago
0.011477
1.806
5.332
23.03
33.9
55.8
65.5
145.5
199.5
251
299
Pennsylvanian
318.1
Mississippian
359.2
Devonian
Silurian
Ordiviclan
Cambrian
Ediacaran
Cryogenian
Tonian
Stenian
Ectasian
Calymmian
Statherian
Orosirian
Rhyacian
Siderian
Neoarchean
Mesoarchean
Paleoarchean
Eoarchean
Hadean
416
443.7
488.3
542
630
850
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
2050
2300
2500
2800
3200
3600
4000
4567
B-138
Geography
Internal Structure
The thickness and deepness of the earth is the study of seismology. The
interior structure of the Earth is layered in spherical shells. It was Edmund
Halley (1692) who put forth the idea of earth consisting of a hollow shell about
500 miles thick, with two inner concentric shells around an innermost core. These
shells can be divided by mechanical properties such as Rheology, or chemically.
Mechanically, are divided into lithosphere, asthenosphere, mesospheric mantle,
outer core, and the inner core. The interior of Earth is divided into 5 important
layers. Chemically, are divided into the crust, upper mantle, lower mantle, outer
core, and inner core.
Upper crust
er cr ust
Low
r Mantl
e
Uppe
m
0k m
k
20 m
k
40
Meso
sphere
r Mantl
Lowe
e
km
400 km
650
D Layer
Oute
m
0k
270 0 km
9
28
r Core
nner Core
m I
0k
515
Depth (Km)
Layers
0-60
Lithosphere (locally varies between
5 and 200 km) (density 2.9-3.3)
0-35
Crust (locally varies between 5
and 70 km)
35-60
Uppermost part of mantle
352,890
Mantle
100200
Upper mesosphere (density 3.3-4.3)
6602,890 Lower mesosphere (density 4.3-5.5)
2,8905,150 Outer core (density 10.00-13.3)
5,1506,360 Inner core (density 13.3-13.6)
6378 k
INTERIOR THE EARTH

Crust (6-11 km oceanic,
25-90 km
continental)
Lower
Mantle
id
qu
Li re
co
6300 km
3500
km
1200
km
Solid
inner core
Fe Fe + Ni
+
S (?)
Upper
Mantle
down to
about
100 km
(the upper
mantle
and crust
form the
rigid
lithosphere)
B-139
Geography
GEOMORPHOLOGY
Rock
Rock is a naturally occurring mineral and relatively hard.
Proportion of Elements Found in Rock in Rock
5.5 % Others
7 % Others
3 % Sodium
13 %
8 % Aluminium
Magnesium
28 % Silicon
15 % Silicon
30 % Oxygen
47 % Oxygen
35 % Iron
In Earth
In Earth Crust
Type of Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks : Sedimentary
rocks are formed through lithification,
compression and cementation of
sediments deposited in a particular
place mainly aquatic areas.
Igneous / Primary Rocks : Igneous
rocks are formed from solidification
and cooling of magma. Usually this
magma is partial melts of pre-existing
rocks derived from mantle or crust
of the earth. This melting of rocks

is caused by one or more processes
namely: increase in temperature,
decrease in pressure, or a change in
composition e.g. Basalt, Granite.
Metamorphic Rocks : When the change
occurs in the form or composition
of the pre-existing rock (igneous or
sedimentary) without any disintegration
taking place is called as metamorphic
rock.
CLASSIFICATION OF ROCKS
Sedimentary
Igneous
Metamorphic
Intrusive
Extrusive
Chemical
Clastic
Biloggic
Foliated
Basalt
Gabbro
Limestone
Andesite
Diorite
Dolostone
Granodiorite Dacite
Evaporites
Rhyolite
Granite
Conglomerate Coal
Chert
Slate
Breccia
Schist
Sandstone
Gneiss
Siltstone
Mudstone Shale
Non-foliated
Quartzite
Marble
B-140
Geography
Earth Movement
The forces affecting earths crust and the resultant movement can be
categorized into two broad categories and further into sub-categories. The
fig given below demonstrates different types of earth movement.
Forces which affects the Earths Crust
Endogenetic Forces
Exogenetic Forces
Diastrophic Forces
Catastrophic Forces
Epeirogenetic Forces Orogenetic Forces

Upward
Movement
(Emergence)
Volcanic
Eruption
Eatthqukes
Downward
Movement
(Submergence)
Tensional forces
Compressional Forces
Crustsal Fracture
Crustal Bending
Cracking
Faulting
(Faults)
Upwarping
Endogenetic Forces
The forces which originate within
the Earth surface are defined as
endogenetic forces. They can result
in both horizontal and vertical
movement of the earth surface.
Internal heat causing chemical
reactions inside the earth and transfer
of rock materials on the surface of
the earth by external forces results in
release of endogenetic energy.
Endogenetic forces are of two
types: Diastrophic movements and
Sudden movements.
Sudden movement causes fold, fault,
earthquake and volcanic activities.
Warping
Folding
(Folds)
Downwarping
Folds are the wave like structure

formed in the crustal rock due
to tangential compressive force
resulting from horizontal movement
caused by endogenetic forces.
Types of Folds
x
x
x
Symmetrical fold is the simple

fold, the limbs of which incline
uniformly.
Asymmetrical Fold is the folds
with unequal and irregular
inclination and length.
Monoclinal
Fold
is
the
folds with one limb inclined
moderately with regular slope
while the other limb inclines
steeply at right angle and the
slope is almost vertical.
Geography
x
Isoclinical Fold is a fold where

compressive force, forces both
the limbs of the fold to become
parallel but not horizontal to its
axis.
Recumbent Fold is formed when
compression force is strong
enough to make both the limbs
of the fold parallel as well as
horizontal to its axis.
Faults are the slippage or
displacement occuring in the
crust along the fracture plane.
Four types of faults: i) normal,
ii) reverse, iii) lateral and iv) step
faults.
Volcano is a fissure or vent in
the earths crust communicating
with the interior, from which
flows of lava, rock fragments,
B-141
hot vapor and gases are ejected.

A volcano begins to form when
magma, which is hot molten
rock from deep within the earth,
rises toward the earths surface
and collects in magma chambers.
Types of Volcanoes:
(a) Active Volcanoes: Alive now
(b) Dormant Volcanoes: have not
erupted for quite some time
(c) Extinct Volcanoes: have not
erupted for several centuries
B-142
Earthquake Motion ranging

from faint terror to wild shaking
of the earth surface is called as
earthquake. It occurs mainly
due to tectonic activities caused
by continuous endogenetic
processes inside earths crust.
The place from where it starts
is called as focus or hypocenter
and the point directly above
it is known as epicenter. It
is measured in Richter scale
varying from 0 to 9. There are
five Seismic Zone in India.
x Primary Wave (P) is a wave
which travels both through solid
and liquid part of the earth
interior.
x Secondary Wave (S) is a wave
which travels only through the
solid the earth interior.
x Long Wave (L) is a wave
confined to the earth crust,
causing structural damage only.
Plate Tectonic Theory: Our earth
surface is made up of plates which
are in motion due to the convection
current flowing beneath it. This
movement in the earths plate
is called as tectonic movement.
This movement has been widely
accepted cause of continental drift,
earthquakes, volcanoes, mountains,
and oceanic trenches. There are
three type major types of plates
(i) Constructive Plates is a place
of divergent boundary where
two plates slide apart from each
other. Here seafloor spreading
occurs i.e. new plates are formed.
(ii) Destructive Plates is a convergent
boundary where two (or more)
tectonic plates move toward one
another and collide. E.g. The
east coast of Pacific Ocean near
South America.
Geography
(iii) Conservative/ Transform Plates
occur where two lithospheric
plates slide and grind past
each other along faults. Here
plates are neither created nor
destroyed.
Types of Plates
Minor Plates
Minor Plates
Africa Plate
Cocos Plate
Pacific Plate
Filipino Plate
North American Juan de Fuca

Plate
Plate
Antarctic Plate Caribbean Plate
Eurasian Plate
Scotia Plate
Australian Plate Nazca Plate

South American Arabian Plate
Plate and
Indian Plant
Exogenetic/Denudational/
Destructional Forces
The forces which act above the earth
surface changing relief of earth surface
are known as exogenetic forces. These
processes are continuously engaged
in destructing the relief features
created by endogenetic forces. These
forces are carried on by the agents of
erosion such as wind, water, glacier
etc. the process through which these
agent work of the earth surface are
weathering and erosion.
x Weathering is a process in which
breaking down of the earth surface
takes place but the debris do not
move from their place.
x Erosion refers to the movement
in the weathered material
Denudation is a long-term sum of
processes that cause by weathering
leading to a reduction in elevation
and relief of landforms and landscapes
and erosion.
B-143
Geography
x
Major Land Forms

Mountains are the second order relief
features having an abrupt natural rise
from the adjacent surrounding area.
Collective system of long, narrow
elevated land for some distance is
a Mountain Ridge. Several parallel
long narrow mountains of different
period is called as Mountain
chain. Mountain Range is a series
of mountain ridges, peaks, and
summits and the valley of same age
but structurally different. Cordilleras
are the huge set of several mountain
groups and systems having different
ridges, ranges, mountain chains etc.
Types of Mountain :
x
Folded Mountains are originated

by compressive forces. Young,
mature and old are its sub types.
Its e.g. Alps in Europe, Rockies in
north America, Andes in South
America and the Himalayas in
Asia.
Block fault Mountain are originated
by tensile and comperessional forces.
E.g. Black forest mountains on the
boader of France and Germany.
Dome Mountain are originated by
magnetic intrusion and unwraping
of the crustal surface.
Volcanic Mountain formed by

accumution ofvolcanic materials
e.g. Mount Mauna Loa in Hwaai,
Mt,Fuji Yoma in Japan and Mt.
Popa in Central Myanmar.
x Residual
mountain
e.g.
Vindhyacha, Aravalli, Eastern
and Western Ghats.
Plateau
A second order relief feature
characterized by flat and rough top
surface and steep wall with a height
difference of at least 300 m from it
surrounding areas.
Type of Plateau:
(i) Intermontane Plateau (Tibetan,
Bolivian, Peru, Columbian
Plateau, Mexiacan, Iranian)
(ii) Piedmont Plateau (Appalachian
Piedmont Plateau. Patagonian
Plateau)
(iii) Continental Plateau (Deccan
Plateau of India, Ranchi, Shillong)
(iv) Coastal Plateau (Coromandal
Coastal upland of India)
Lake
Lakes are static bodies of water
surrounded by land from all sides.
These are not permanent features
on the earth surface. Sometimes
lakes are found near along the sea
coast. There are two type lakes e.g.
freshwater lakes and saline lake.
OCEANOGRAPHY
Ocean Structure
x Ocean can be divided into two
main groups (i) the ocean (ii) the
sea. Covers 70 per cent of the
earth surface and has an average
depth of more than 12,400 feet
x Geographically ocean has been
divided into (i) the Pacific (ii)
the Atlantic (iii) the Indian (iv)
the Arctic.
x Pacific Ocean the largest and
oldest occupies 50% of the ocean
x
x
would, followed by Atlantic

(29.9%), Indian (21%).
Arctic is strictly not an ocean
and not navigable.
The longest mountain range in
the world is under water MidOceanic Ridge.
Continental shelf
x
Continental margin submerged

under ocean water upto 100
fathoms (600 feet) with slope of
B-144
1 to 3 and often determined

by the coastal reliefs. High
mountainous coast have narrow
self. In Atlantic Ocean it is 2 km
to 80 km.
x They are rich in plankton, it
forms food for fish. Thus they
are rich source of fish like Grand
Bank of New Foundland, North
Sea and Sunda Shelf.
Continental slope
x Steep slope, beyond continental
slope towards ocean are called as
continental self. Its slope varies
from 2 to 5 and depth of water
is 200 m to 2,000 m. Occupies
8.5% of the total area of ocean
basin. Due to erosion, tectonic
and aggradations
Deep Sea Plain / Abyssal Plain
x Most extensive relief, covering
75.9% of the total area of ocean
basin. Flat and rolling submarine
having depth from 3000 m to
6000 m. The greatest Deep in
Mariana Trench near Guam
Island is the deepest of all.
Submarine Canyons
x Long, narrow and very deep
valley or trenches, located on the
continent shelves and slope with
vertical walls
x The continental shelf in Pacific
Ocean varies between 160 km to
1600 km of width on an average
there it 80 km wide.
x On an average Indian oceans
continental shelf is 640 km wide
in the west and in the east near
Java and Sumatra is as narrow
as 160 km and further narrower
along the coast of Antarctica
Temperature of Ocean
x
Ocean is divided into three layers

according to temperature.
Geography
(i) First layer upto 500 m from top
having temperature of 20 - 25C
(ii) Thermocline layer - below 500 m
where temperature decreases at
a rapid rate with the increase in
depth.
(iii) Third layer very cold and extend
upto deep ocean floor. Polar
region has only this layer from
surface to deep ocean form.
Daily Range of temperature is
the difference of maximum and
minimum temperature of a day
which is 0.3C Low latitude and 0.2
to 0.3C at higher latitudes.
Annual Range of temperature:
Maximum temperature is recorded
in August and minimum in February
in northern hemisphere. Average
annual range of temperature of
ocean water is - 12C usually.
Factors affecting distribution of
temperature
x Minor factors include: Latitude,
Unequal distribution of land and
sea, Prevailing wind and Ocean
current
x Minor factors include: Submarine
ridges, local weather, location and
shape of sea.
Horizontal distribution: average
temperature 26.7C and gradual
decrease from equator towards poles,
0.5 F per latitude.
Vertical Distribution: Solar energy
effectively penetrates 20m and nearby
reach beyond 200 m depth.
Increase in depth decrease the
temperature. And there is rapid fall
in temperature upto 200 m dividing
Ocean into two layers
(i) Photic/ Euphotic zone is the
upper surface upto the depth
of 200 m and receive solar
radiation.
B-145
Geography
(ii) Alphatic zone goes beyond
200 m depth to the bottom and
receive no solar rays.
Salinity of the Ocean

x
Density of Ocean
x
Amount of mass upper unit

volume of substance, measured
in g/cm3
x Density of pure water is 1 g/cm3
at 4C. and of ocean water is
1.0278 g/cm3 (2-3% higher than
water) at 4C.
x It increases with lowering of
temperature of ocean. Highest
density is recorded at -1.3C.
Density stratification of Ocean
Three layered structure: Surface layer,
Pychocline layer and Deep layer
x
x
x
Average salinity of ocean water

is 35%. Salinity of ocean water is
affected by marine organism, plant
community and physical properties
of ocean such as temperature density,
waves, pressure and currents.
Highest salinity is observed
between 20 - 40 N (36%).
Boiling point of saline water is
higher than pure water.
The line with same salinity is
joined by Isohalines.
Source of Salinity
Salts brought by rivers is the main
source It contains 60% of calcium
sulphate, 2% of sodium chloride
Distribution of Salinity
Latitudinal zones
70- 70 N
50- 40 N
40- 15 N
15- 10 N
salinity (%)
30-31
33-34
35-36
34.5-35
Latitudinal zones
10- 30 S
30- 50 S
50- 70 S
Salinity (%)
35-36
34-35
33-34
Ocean Deposits
One the bases of origin can be classified into the following groups:
Terrigenous deposits, (ii) Volcanic deposits, (iii) Biotic matter and deposits
(iv) Abiotic matter and deposit
Coral Reefs and Atoll
It is accumulated and compact skeleton of lime secreting organisms

known as coral polyps. They are confined between 25N - 25S latitude.
They live on lime and in colony form. High mean annual temperature
between 68F to 70F (20C - 21C) is required for the growth of corals.
They do not grow in more than 250 feet (60-77 m) of water as they require
oxygen and sunlight. Grow in open sea as fresh water is harmful for corals
Types of Coral Reef: (i) fringing reef (ii) barren reef and (iii) atoll
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Average salinity of the sea water : 35%

Average salinity of Atlantic Ocean : 35.67%
Maximum salinity of occurs between : 20 N and 40 Nand 10 S and 30S
Highest salinity is found : Lake Van (330%)
Average temperature of Pacific Ocean : 19.10C
Average temperature of Indian Ocean : 17C
Average temperature of Atlantic Ocean : 16.91C
Average annual temperature of oceans : 17.2C
Average temperature of surface water : 26.7C
B-146
Ocean Tide
x
Alternative rise and fall in

the sea level is known as tide.
The rise of sea water and its
movement towards coast is a tide
is high tide. The fall of seawater
and moving towards sea is called
ebb/low tide. The difference
between high and low is water is
called as tidal range.
The variation in the height of
both low and high tide from
place to place depends on depth
of ocean water, configuration
of sea coasts and coastlines and
openness or closeness of the
sea. Everyday tide is delayed by
26 minutes.
Types of Tide
(i) Spring tide: When the sun, the
moon and the earth are n the
same line, there is formation of
spring tide. The position when
all three are in a straight line is
called as syzygy. When the sun,
the moon and the earth are in
sequential order in a straight line
is called as conjunction. It occurs
on new moon day. When the
earth is in between the moon and
the sun are called as opposition.
It occurs on full moon day.
(ii) Neap tide: Its a quadrature (90o)
position between the earth, the
sun and the moon on seventh
or eighth day of the fortnight.
During this time the forces of
the sun and the moon acts in
Opposite direction
Ocean Currents
The movement of a mass of ocean
water parallel to the coast is called as
ocean current.
Currents are of two types on the
bases to temperature.
Geography
(i) Warm current and (ii) Cold
current
On the bases of velocity, dimension
and direction.
(i) Drift (ii) Current and (iii) Streams
3DFLF2FHDQ
1. North Equatorial Current (Warm)
2. South Equatorial Current (Warm)
3. Counter Equatorial Current
(Warm)
4. Kuroshio System (warm)
(i) Kuroshio Current
LLL 1RUWK3DFLF'ULIW
(iv) Tsushima Current
(v) Counter Kuroshio Current
5. Oyashio Current (Cold)
6. California Current (Cold)
7. Peur Current (Cold)
8. El Nino or Counter Current
(warm)
9. Eastern Australian Current (warm)
10. West Wind Drift (Cold)
Origin of Currents
Origin of ocean current occurs due
to following factors
(i) Rotation of earth
(ii) Temperature difference in ocean
(iii) Salinity difference in ocean
(iv) Density Difference
(v) Air pressure and wind
(vi) Rainfall and Evaporation
(vii) Direction,
shape
and
configuration of coast
(viii)Bottom relief
(ix) Seasonal variation
Atlantic Ocean
1. North Equatorial Current
(warm)
2. South Equatorial Current
(warm)
3. Counter Equatorial Current
(warm)
4. Gulf stream (warm)
1. Gulf stream
2. Gulf stream
3. North Atlantic Current
5. Conary Current (Cold)
B-147
Geography
6. Labraclor Current (Cold)
7. Brazil Current (Cold)
8. Talk land Current (Cold)
9. South Atlantic Drift (Cold)
10. Benguela Current (Cold)
Name
Pacific Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
Length
(square miles)
64,196,000
33,400,000
Indian Ocean
Southern Ocean
Arctic Ocean
Arabian Sea
South China Sea
Caribbean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
Bering Sea
28,400,000
20,327,000
5,100,000
1,491,000
1,148,000
971,000
969,000
873,000
ATMOSPHERE
The gaseous envelop which covers
a celestial body or planet is called
as its atmosphere. Air is a mixture
of gases in various proportions. It
has a mass of 5.15 1018 kg. of
which are concentrated within 11
km of the surface of the earth. The
gravity plays a vital role in holding
the atmosphere close to the earth.
Gases which contributes to the
formation of atmosphere are Nitrogen
(78.084%) Oxygen (20.946%), Argon
(0.93%), Carbon dioxide (0.0397),
Neon (0.001818), Helium (0.000024),
Methane (0.000179) along with water
vapour (0.001% 0.005%).
Proportion of gas in
the Atmosphere
other
1%
Oxygen
21%
Nitrogen
78 %
Structure of Atmosphere
Troposphere
The first layer of atmosphere from the
earth surface is known as troposphere.
It is at the height of 12 km from the
earth surface, generally associated

with 90 % atmospheric phenomena.
Here temperature decreases at the rate
of 6.5C per km with the increase in
height. This is called normal lapse
rate. The transition layer separating
troposphere from stratosphere is
known as tropopause which is between
16 km at equator to 8 km at pole.
Stratosphere
The layer which extends from 18
to 50 km above the earth surface is
called as stratosphere. In this layer
temperature increases as altitude
increases as the ultra violet ray by
ozone. Ozone forms to be the outer
limit for this layer. Turbulence free
zone hence is ideal for flying of jet
air crafts.
Mesosphere
Mesosphere lies from 50 to 80 km
above the ground level with the
temperature below 100C at 80 km.
Even pressure drops to 1 mb at 50 km
to 0.01 mb at 90 km. Mesopause are
the upper transitional layer separating
mesosphere from ionosphere. It is the
zone of meteorites activities.
Ionosphere
The layer between mesosphere
and thermosphere is known as
ionosphere.
Aurora
Austrialis
and Aurora Borealis occur due to
B-148
penetration of ionizing particles in

this layer. Temperatures rise with
increasing height here owing to the
absorption of ultra-violet radiation
by atomic oxygen. Above 100 km the
atmosphere is increasingly affected
by solar X-rays and ultra-violet
radiation, which causes ionization.
Thermosphere
The thermosphere is the second
highest layer of earths atmosphere
just above mesopause. It forms lower
boundary of exosphere is known
as exobase. Gradual increase of
temperature is witnessed with height
reaching up to 1500C (2700F).
Exoshpere
Outer most layer extending between
of 700 km to 10000 km. Gases like
nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide
are found. No meteorological
phenomenon is possible. Sometimes
Aurora Borialis and Aurora
Austrialis occur overlapping into the
thermosphere.
Insolation
x
The sun is primary source of

energy on earth. It enters earths
atmosphere in the form of
short waves. This is known as
insolation. The earth receives
solar radiation at the rate of 1.94
calories per cm2/m.
x The amount of solar radiation
received by earth is affected by
four factors which are as follows:
1. Solar Constant: is rate at which
incoming solar radiation is received
per unit area of earth surface when
the sun is at its mean distance
from the earth. Increase in the sunspot increases the amount of solar
radiation hence affecting insolation
as well.
Geography
2. Distance from Sun: The path
that is followed by the earth around
the sun is not at the same distance
throughout the year. The orbit of
the earth is elliptical in shape. The
shortest distance of the earth from
the sun is called as Perihelion (147
million km) and Apehelion is time
when the earth farthest from the
sun. The former occurs in January
and the latter in July.
3. Altitude of the Sun: Solar
altitude is this relative angle of the
sun with respect to earths horizon.
The angle formed between the sun
and the earth surface varies with the
latitude at which a place is situated.
The area closer to equators receive
greater amount of solar insolation
than at poles.
4. Length of Day: the amount of
insolation received by place also
depends on the length the day. Longer
the duration of the day more will be
the amount of radiation received.
Heat Budget:
Earth balances the incoming
solar radiation with the outgoing
terrestrial radiation and is called as
heat budget. The energy received if
not returned back to the space in the
form of long waves would increase
the temperature of the earth surface.
This balancing of heat affects the
amount of insolation absorbed.
Adiabatic Changes
When the air parcel moving towards
a low pressure zone without the
exchange of heat with surrounding
air. It increases volume and reduces
the heat available per unit volume
and hence temperature falls. Such
a change of temperature, where
neither addition nor subtraction of
heat involves is known as adiabatic
change.
B-149
Geography
Inversion of Temperatures
It refers to a condition where
temperature
increases
with
increasing height of the atmosphere.
There five causes of inversion of
temperature are radiation, drainage,
frontal, advection, subsidence.
x General
tendency
to
decrease in temperature with
increasing latitude is known as
temperature gradient. Not
only the temperature but even its
nature with latitude changes. The
rate of change of temperature
is comparatively low between
tropics. On the other hand the
gradient is high at the poles.
Isotherms : The line which
joining places having equal
temperature is called Isotherms.
Atmospheric Pressure
x
Atmospheric pressure is the

pressure exerted by the weight of
air in the atmosphere of Earth.
The standard air pressure at sea
level is 1013.25 mb. Air pressure
decreases with increase is altitude
at the rate of 0.1 inch or 3.4 mb
per 600 feet. The rate of decrease
is confined to the height of few
thousand feet. Line joining places
with equal pressure at sea level are
called isobars.
The areas affect by high pressure
are called as High Pressure zone or
Anticyclones and the low pressure
are called as Low or depression or
Cyclone. There are seven pressure
belts across the globes.
Equatorial Low Pressure Belt :
The region geographical situated
between 5 N to 5S is known as
Equatorial Low Pressure Belt.
This belt gets longer duration of
sunshine and suns ray falls at a
straight angle on earth surface.
Intense heat is received by the
earth surface causing thermal

induced atmosphere. It is also
a convergences zone of northeast and south-east trade winds.
The area is calm with no wind
movement thus known as Belt of
Calm or Doldrums.
Sub-Tropical High Pressure:
The sub tropical high pressure
belt extends between 25 to 35
in both the hemisphere. The air
upraises in equatorial region.
They start descending as they
become heavy after cooling at a
certain height and are deflected
towards poles because of earths
rotation causing a zone of high
pressure.
Sub Polar Low Pressure Belt: The
zone is situated between 60 to
65 in both the hemisphere. The
temperature of this area is generally
low throughout the year. It is a
convergence zone where winds
from sub-tropical low and polar high
meets together to produce Polar
front.
Polar High: The Polar High
Pressure zone is situated near
the pole. As the name suggests the
zone is originated due to thermally
induced factor as very low
temperature is solely responsible
for the creation of a high pressure
zone over the polar areas.
Major Pressure
B-150
Geography
Wind Belts
Wind can be defined as the movement large volume of gases from
high pressure area to low pressure area. There are two types of winds 1)
Permanent/ Prevailing Winds (blow throughout the year) and 2) Seasonal
Wind (blow in particular period of the year)
Permanent/ Planetary/Prevailing Winds

Types
Sub Types
Characteristics
Tropical Doldrum (5 x It is called as equatorial calms because wind

over there has no motion and cumulonimbus
Winds N - 50 S)
Equatorial
cloud are formed bring daily rainfall.
westerlies x It is not continues belt. Equatorial fronts are
(150N
formed and equatorial westerlies blow there. It is
0
associated with strong atmospheric disturbances
35 N)
or cyclonic storm.
Trade
x A wind flowing from subtropical high pressure
Winds
to equatorial low pressure belt is termed as Trade
Winds. It moves in north east and south east in
north and south hemisphere respectively.
Sub
Westerlies Blowing from subtropical high pressure belt (300
Tropical (350-650N
-350 N and S) to the sub polar low pressure belt (600
wind
and S)
-650 N and S) is called Westerlies. In the northern
hemisphere these wind blow from south west to
north east and in southern hemisphere from north
west to south east. 400S to 500S-Roaring Forties,
500S to 600S- Furious Fifties and 600S onwards
Shriecking Sixties are its name.
Polar
x A low pressure zone is created in between 600 to
Wind
650 in both the hemisphere due to the dynamic
factor of the earth.
x It blows from north easterly and south easterlies
in northern and southern hemisphere respectively.
0
Variable Wind
Sub Types
Seasonal Winds Characteristics
Monsoon
x It blows from the south west in summer and from north
east in winter. It is consistent and bi-directional regular
flow of wind over a year. It is thermally induced complex
air circulation where all layers of air circulation that is
surface, middle and upper layer are involve.
Local Winds
Sea Breeze x During the day time land is heated quickly than the sea
water. Low pressure is created over the land and wind rise
and Land
up creating vacuum over land. Thus the wind from sea
Breeze
rushes to take its place. This breeze is called as Sea Breeze.
Geography
B-151
x It blows during night as the land losses the heat faster than
the sea, this cool and denser wind rushes towards sea. This
breeze is called as land breeze.
x During day time sunlight warms the mountain slope more
Valley and
than mountain valley. Thus a high pressure is created on
Mountain
the top of mountain. The cold wind from the valley rushes
Breeze
up. This movement of air is called as valley breeze giving
precipitation through cumulus cloud.
x After sunset the air above the mountain cools faster due to
density than the air in the valley and descends down into
the valley is called as mountain breeze causing inversion
of temperature.
Chinook and It blowing on the leeward side of the mountain in USA and
Foehn
is called as Foehn in Switzerland. Its a warm air (4.40 C) and
melts snow (Snow Eater).
Harmattan This is a warm and dry wind blows from north to east and
east to west over Sahara desert. Harmattan is known to be
the Doctor in Guinea Coastal Area of western Africa.
Sirocco
A warm, dry and dusty wind blows in the north easterly
direction from Sahara Desert. As it crosses Mediterranean
picks up water vapour and yield rainfall southern part of
Italy. It is called as blood rain rain fall laden with red sand
from Africa Desert.
Mistral
Mistral is a cold local wind blowing over Spain and France in
north-west to south-east direction during winters creates high
pressure over Europe and low pressure over Mediterranean
Sea. It average velocity is 56-64 km/hour.
Bora
Extremely cold and dry north-easterly wind blows along
the coast of Adriatic Sea. The velocity of the wind ranges
between 128 to 196 km/hr
Blizzard
It is a violent stormy wind that carries large amount of dry
snow, mainly prevalent over both north and south poles. Its
velocity ranges from 80-96km an hour.
Abrolhos
An Abrolhos squall blow from May through August (austral
squall
winter) near the Abrolhos Islands off the coast of eastern
Brazil near 18S latitude.
Pampero
The pampero is a burst of cold polar air from the west,
southwest or south on the pampas in the south of Brazil,
Argentina and Uruguay. It is common during winter in the
southern hemisphere (principally between May and August).
Maestral or Maestral or maestro is mostly northwestern wind in the
maestro
Adriatic Sea blowing in summer characteristic for beautiful
and stable weather
B-152
Levante
Norte
Etesian
Helm
Buran/
Purga
Geography
It blows in western Mediterranean, near to the Strait of

Gibraltar. It is called as the Viento de Levante or the Levanter
and even Solano. It blows moderately or strongly bringing
rain and damp smell to the region.
The Norte is a strong cold northeasterly wind which blows in
Mexico along the Gulf of Mexico. It results from an outbreak
of cold air from the north.
Etesians blow as winds of northeasterly to northerly direction
over Northern Agean Sea while, in the southern Aegean
along with the Cretan and the Carpathian Sea, they blow as
northern westerlies.
Generally seen in Columbia and England these strong northeasterly wind blows down the south west slope of the Cross
Fell Escarpment
Extremely cold wind full of ice and snow blowing across
Russia and eastern Asia. In tundra region, it is also known as
Purga. In Alaska this severe north-easterly wind is known as
Burga bringing snow and ice pellets.
Brickfielder It is a hot and dry summer wind blowing in coastal regions

of South Australian desert. Blows strongly, for several days
at a time, along with dust, and parching all vegetation. In one
sense it is a healthy wind, as it destroys many injurious germs
due to its hotness.
Air Mass
A large volume of air defined by constant physical properties i.e. temperature
and water vapor, spreading over hundreds or thousands of square miles is
called as air mass.
Types of Air mass
Continental Polar (cP) forms over cold and dry land mass during winter
near poles north of 50-600N.
Maritime Polar (mP) is associated with cool or cold, damp and gray days
weather, near polar coastal areas.
Continental tropical (cT) form over deserts and plains. It is hot and dry
during summer and only dry during winter.
Maritime Tropical (mT) is hot and humid sticky weather on the tropical
coastal regions.
Cyclones
Cyclones are the low pressure centers surrounded by closed isobars having pressure
increasing outwards. Blows inward from high pressure to low pressure and hence
wind movement is anti-clockwise in northern hemisphere and clock wise in southern
hemisphere. They are also termed as atmospheric disturbances. There shape varied
from circular to elliptical and sometimes even V shaped. On basis of place of origin
there are two types cyclones which are as follows:
B-153
Geography
Tropical Cyclone
The tropical cyclones have a thermal
origin, exclusively over the tropical
seas.
A low pressure zone is created due to
extreme heat and further intensifies
with the increase in temperature
(above 270C) The winds from
surrounding high pressure region
rushes to the central low pressure
(eye) area developing a powerful and
destructive storm. The velocity of the
cyclone varies from 32-180 km/hour.
Its velocity decreases and finally
decays as they cross more land mass.
Usually ends with heavy down pour
rain and wind bringing devastation to
the coastal areas.
Clouds
Clouds are the visible mass of
condensed water vapour floating in
the atmosphere, typically high above
the general level of the ground. It
plays a major role in the heat budget
of the earth and the atmosphere as
they reflect, absorb and diffuse the
incoming short wave and outgoing
long wave terrestrial radiation.
According to the height there are
three type of cloud such as (i)High
Clouds (height 6 km to 20 km), (ii)
Medium Clouds (height 2.5 km to
6 km) and (iii)Low Clouds (height
ground surface to 2.5 km)
x A cloud is a mass of small water
droplets or thin ice crystals.
x Different types of clouds are as
follow:
x Cirrus : Feather like
x Cirrocumulus : Ripples like
x Cirrostratus : Transparent sheet
like causes sun and moonto have
halos.
x Altocumulus : Have bumpy-look
x Altostratus : Sheet like
Temperate / Extra-tropical cyclone

Formed in middle or high latitudes,
due to the development of front (350650 N and S).
Develops when a frontal surface
separates two opposing air masses
(warm and cold). As the amplitude
of the wave increases, the pressure
at the centre of disturbance falls,
eventually intensifying to the point at
which a cyclonic circulation begins.
When the cold air from the poles

sweeps off all the warm tropical air
and entire cyclone is composed of the
cold air mass temperate cyclone dies.
x
Stratocumulus : Large globular

masses
x Nimbostratus : Dark grey and
rainy looking give continuous
rain.
x Stratus : low clouds foggy in
appearance
x Cumulus : Round topped and
flat based
x Cumulonimbus : special type of
cumulous clouds spread out in
form of an anvil. Often indicate
convectional rain,lightening and
thunder.
Precipitations
It is a process in wherein water in the
form of droplets which condenses
from water vapor after reaching a
height and falls when they become
heavy enough in the form of rain.
Rain is a major component of the
water cycle and is responsible for
depositing most of the fresh water
on the Earth. Different forms of
precipitation are rain, snowfall, hale
storm and drizzle. Precipitation
occurs through different processes
which are Convectional, Cyclonic
and Orographic.
B-154
Geography
l
l
l
l
l
l
Himalayan Mountain Range

Indian Desert
Northen Plain
Coastal Plain
Peninsular Plateau
Island
Himalayan Rivers (The Indus, The Ganges & The
Peninsular Rivers (Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna,
Cauvery, Narmada, Tapi)

Lakes in India
Soil
l
l
l
l
Alluvial
Red
Black
Laterite
Climate
l
l
Factors Affecting Climate in India

State wise Rainfall Distribution
INDIAN GEOGRAPHYMIND MAP
India
Physiography
Drainage
Natural
Vegetation
Language
Agriculture
Brahmaputra)
l
l
l
l
Arid
Saline
Peaty and Marshy
Mountain and Forest
l Classification of Natural Vegetation

l Spatial Distribution of Natural Vegetation in India
l Languages spoken in different parts of India
l
l
l
l
Major Crops
Land use Pattern
Agro-Climatic Zone
Major Growing Season and its Associated
Crops
Industry
l Major Industrial Regions in of India

l Types of Industry
Minerals
l Minerals & their distribution
Energy
l
l
l
l
Conventional Energy
Hydroelectricity
Thermal Electricity
Wind Energy
Census
2011
l
l
l
Population density and Sex Ratio

ST & SC Population
Rural Urban Distribution
B-155
Geography
Official name: Republic of India
Capital: New Delhi
Nationality: Indian
Continent: Asia
Region: South Asia Indian
subcontinent
6. Area: Ranked 7th
x Total 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219
sq mi)
x Land 90.08%
x Water 9.92%
7. Borders : Total land borders :
15,106.70 km (9,386.87 mi)
x Bang ladesh : 4,096.70 km
(2,545.57 mi)
Bordering States - West Bengal,
Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and
Mizoram
x China (PRC) : 3,488 km (2,167 mi)
Bordering States - Jammu &
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,
Uttaranchal, Sikkim, and
Arunachal Pradesh)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Pakistan : 2,910 km (1,808 mi)

Bordering States- Jammu and
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,
Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat
x Nepal : 1,751 km (1,088 mi)
B o r d e r i n g S t a t e s B i h a r,
Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh,
Sikkim, and West Bengal
x Myanmar : 1,643 km (1,021 mi)
Bordering States Manipur and
Nagaland
x Bhutan : 699 km (434 mi)
Bordering States : West Bengal,
Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam
8. Highest point: K2 or Godwin
Au s t i n ( c l a i m e d ) 8 , 6 1 1 m
(28,251.3 ft)
9. Kangchenjunga (administered)
8,598 m (28,208.7 ft)
10. Lowest point : Kuttanad; 2.2 m
(7.2 ft)
11. L o n g e s t r i ve r : G a n g e s,
Brahmaputra
12. Largest lake : Chilka Lake
MAJOR PHYSIOGRAPHIC DIVISONS

The landmass of India can be divided
into following major physiographic
divisions:
The Himalayan Mountains

The Himalayas are the youngest
mountains in the world. They are
structurally folded mountains, form
an arc of about 2,400 km long from
west to east. The width varies from
400 km in Kashmir to 150 km in
Arunachal Pradesh. The altitudinal
variations are greater in the eastern
part than in the western part.
There are four parallel ranges in its

longitudinal extent. Zaskar range
lies west of Himalayas and Indus
gorge is beyond it.
B-156
The Great or Inner Himalayas:

Known as Himadri, it is the
most continuous range with
loftiest peaks. Average height
of peaks here is 6,000 meters.
Asymmetrical folds having
granite in the core are snow
covered throughout the year.
The Lesser Himalaya or
Himachal: This lies south of the
Great Himalayas and north of
Shiwalik with altitude varying
from 3,700 m to 4,500 m.
Average width of this range is
60-80 km. This range is mainly
composed of highly compressed
and altered rocks. Pir Panjal,
Dhaula Dhar, Mahabharat and
Mussorie ranges are found as we
move west to east.
Geography
MAJOR MOUNTAIN PEAKS OF INDIA

Peak
Country Height
in
meters
Mt. Everest
Nepal
8848
Kanchenjunga India
8598
Makalu
Nepal
8481
Dhaulagire
Nepal
8172
Nanga Parbat
India
8126
Annapurna
Nepal
8078
Nanda Devi
India
7817
Kamet
India
7756
Namcha Barwa India
7756
Gurla Mandhata Nepal
7728
The Northern Plain

The northern plain of India is
formed by three river systems,
x The
Shiwaliks
outer
viz. the Indus, the Ganga and the
Himalayas: It is an outermost
Brahmaputra along with their
range and is also known as
tributaries. Alluvial soil has been
lesser Himalayas. The altitude
deposited over millions of years.
varies between 900 - 1100
The total area of the northern plain
km and the width varies
is about 7 lakh square kilometer. It
between 10 -50 km in this
is about 2400 km long and about
range. The longitudinal valleys
240 to 320 km broad. The northern
lying between the Himachal
plain is divided into three sections,
and Shiwaliks are called
viz. the Punjab Plain, the Ganga
'XQ DQG DUH FRPSRVHG RI
Plain and the Brahmaputra Plain.
unconsolidated sediments.
x Punjab Plains: western part
x Trans Himalayas : It includes
most part of the northern plain.
Karakoram and Laddakh
Formed by the Indus and its
Ranges. Karakoram Range
tributaries like Jhelum, Chenab,
(Krishnagiri) lies north of
Ravi, Beas and Sutlej.
Indus. Extended from Pamir x Ganga Plains: This plain
extends between Ghaggar and
crossing Gilgit river reaches
Tista rivers. The northern states,
Laddakh. Elevation is above
Haryana, Delhi, UP, Bihar, part
5500 m and width is 120-140
of Jharkhand and West Bengal
Km. Laddakh Range is situated
lie in the Ganga plains.
in Kashmir between Indus and
x Brahmaputra Plains: This plain
its tributary Shyok. Highest
forms the eastern part of the
peak is Mt. Rakaposhi (7880).
northern plain and lies in Assam.
B-157
Geography
x
Based on the relief features the

northern plain can be divided
into four regions, viz. bhabar,
terai, bhangar and khadar.
The Peninsular Plateau

The peninsular plateau is a tableland.
It is composed of the oldest rocks
and drifted from Gondwana land
with elevation of 600-900 Km.
Broad and shallow valleys with
rounded hills are the characteristic
features of this plateau. The plateau
can be broadly divided into two
regions, viz. the Central Highlands
and the Deccan Plateau. The slope
of the Deccan Plateau is from west
to east as the rivers flows.
x The Central Highlands: lies to the
north of Narmada river (Satpura
range), covering portion of Malwa
plateau. It is wider in west and
narrower in east. Bundelkhand
and Baghelkhand mark the
eastward extension. The plateau
further extends eastwards into the
Chhotanagpur plateau. Touches
Aravilli in the west covering
Rajasthan uplands.
x The Deccan Plateau: Triangular
in shape, Satpura range makes
its northern boundary. The
Mahadev, Kaimur Hills and
Maikal ranges make its eastern
part. It extends into the north east
which encompasses Meghalaya,
Karbi-Anglong Plateau and North
Cachar Hills. Garo, Khasi and
Jaintia hills are the prominent
ranges starting from west to east.
x The Western and the Eastern
Ghats: The average elevation
of Western Ghats is 900 1600
metres compared to 600 metres
in case of Eastern Ghats. The
Eastern Ghats stretch from
Mahanadi Valley to the Nilgiris
in the south.
The Indian Desert

It lies towards the western
margins of the Aravali Hills.
This region gets scanty rainfall
which is less than 150 mm in a
year. Hence the climate is arid
and vegetation is scanty.
The Coastal Plains
Towards the west and east of
Peninsular stretches narrow coastal
strips are situated. They run along
the Arabian Sea in west and along
the Bay of Bengal in east. The
western coast lies between the
Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea.
It is divided into three sections. The
Konkan is northern part, comprised
of Mumbai and Goa. The Kannada
Plain makes the central part and the
Malabar coast is the southernmost
coast. The eastern coastal plain is
wider and runs along the Bay of
Bengal.
The Islands
The Lakshadweep Islands are in the
Arabian Sea. Its area is 32 sq km.
This group of islands is rich in terms
of biodiversity. The Andaman and
Nicobar Islands group of islands
can be divided into two groups.
The Andaman is in the north and
the Nicobar is in the south. These
islands too have rich biodiversity.
ISLANDS OF INDIA
B-158
Geography
DRAINAGE IN INDIA
The pattern of Drainage in India
is mostly influenced by its varied
physiological divisions. Thus they
are classified into three major types
such as:
Himalayan Rivers
The Himalayan Rivers are mostly
originated from Himalayan mountain
range. These are mostly perennial in
nature which means availability of
water throughout the year as they
Peninsular Rivers
The Peninsular Rivers are mostly
having their origin from Western
Ghats running parallel with western
coast from north to south. They are
seasonal in nature as the source of
water is rainfall only. The rivers form
deltas at their mouth. Some of the
rivers such as Mahanadi, Godavari,
Krishna and Cauvery are drained
into the Bay of Bengal where as the
other prominent rivers like Narmada
and Tapi both fall into the Arabian
Sea.
obtain water from the large ice cover

of great Himalayan range. Major
rivers of this section are the Indus, the
Ganges and the Brahmaputra. Other
important tributaries of this section
are Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and
Sutlej of Indus river system, Yamuna,
Son, Ramganga, Ghaghara, Gantak,
Kosi of the Ganges river System, and
Tista, Lohit, Manas, Subansiri River,
Dhansiri River of the Brahmaputra
River System.
Lakes
Lakes of India are of high
importance as they prevent
flooding during high rain and
on the other hand it stimulate an
even water flow during dry seasons.
India is bestowed with some really
beautiful lakes which are not only
of geomorphologic importance but
also attracts a large no of tourists
every year. Many such lakes are Dal
Lake,Wular, Chilka, Loktak, Nakki,
Kodaikanal, Sukhna, Puskar, Nakki,
Sukhna, Manasbal, Bhojtal, Hussain
Sagar, Tam dil, Pulicat etc.
B-159
Geography
SOIL
As a prime natural resource soil plays
an important role in the in the growth
of human activities of a specific
location. The type of soil found in
India can be classified in number of
ways but as per All India Soil Survey
Committee of Indian Council of
Agricultural Research there are 8
types of soil found in India.
Alluvial soil
x Spatial Distribution: wide
spread in northern plains and
river valleys such as Indus-GangaBrahmaputhra plain, NarmadaTapi plain, deltas and estuaries
of Peninsular India.
x Property: Mixture of Humus,
lime and organic matters and
hence highly fertile.
x Colour: Light Grey to Ash Grey.
x Texture: Sandy to silty loam or
clay.
x Suitable for: Production of
Wheat, rice, maize, sugarcane,
pulses, oilseed.
Red soil
x
x
x
Spatial Distribution: Mainly

found in the areas of low
rainfall. The states with red
soils are Tamilnadu, Karnatake,
South-east part of Maharashtra,
Eastern Part of Andhra Pradesh
and Madhya Pradesh, Chota
Nagpur in Jharkhand, Orissa,
Chhattishgarh Parts of South
Bihar, Birbhum and Bankura
districts of West Bengal, Mirzapur,
Jhansi, Banda, Hamirpur district
of UP, Aravali Hills and eastern
half of Rajasthan.
Property: Abundance of Ferric
oxide Absence of lime matters
and hence highly fertile.
Colour: Red
Texture: Sandy to clay and

loamy.
x Suitable for: Production of
Wheat, cotton, pulses, tobacco,
oilseeds, potato.
Black / Regur soil
x Spatial Distribution: Most of
the Deccan is occupied by Black
soil.
x Property: Mature soil with
high water retaining capacity,
become sticky when wet and
shrinks when dried. Iron, lime,
calcium, potassium, aluminum
and magnesium.
x Colour: Deep black to light black.
x Texture: Clayey.
x Suitable for: Best soil for cotton
production.
Arid / Desert soil
x Spatial
Distribution:
Seen
widely under Arid and Semi-Arid
conditions such as Rajasthan,
Parts of Haryana and Punjab.
x Property: Lack of moisture and
Humus and contains impure
Calcium Carbonate.
x Colour: Red to Brown.
x Texture: Sandy
x Suitable for: Salt tolerant crops
like barley , rape, wheat , millet,
maize.
Laterite soil
x Spatial Distribution: mostly
found in Eastern Ghats, the
Rajmahal
Hills,
Vidhyas,
Satpura and Malwa Plateau.
x Property: Prone to leaching of
lime and silica from soil, rich
iron and aluminum,
x Deficient in Nitrogen, Potash,
Potassium, Lime, Humus
x Colour: Red colour due to iron
oxide
B-160
x
x
Geography
Texture: Clayey rocky

Suitable for: Rice, Ragi,
Sugarcane and Cashew nuts are
cultivated mainly.
Saline soil
x
Spatial Distribution: mostly

found Andhra Pradesh and
Karnatak, in Drier parts of Bihar,
Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab,
Rajasthan and Maharashtra. In
Gujrat the area around gulf of
Khamart, vast estuaries of the
Narmada, Tapi and Mahi river
Property: mainly saline and
alkaline in nature, rich in sodium,
magnesium, and calcium salt,
and sulphurous acid.
Not Suitable for agricultural
productivity.
Peaty/marshy soil
x
Spatial Distribution: generally

found Coastal areas of Orissa
x
x
and Tamilnadu, Sunderbans of

West Bengal, Bihar and Almora
district of Uttaranchal
Property: heavy and highly
acidic in Nature, deficient in
Potash and Phosphate.
Colour: Black
Suitable for: paddy Cultivation.
Forest soil and Mountain Soil

x
x
x
Spatial Distribution: Mostly

found in Himalayan Region
mainly in valley basins, and
Western and Eastern Ghats of
Penninsular India
Property: rich in humus,
deficient in Potash, Phosphorous
and lime.
Suitable for: wheat, maize,
barley in southern India and
temperate fruit in Jammu &
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and
Uttaranchal
CLIMATE
Although India is basically a tropical
country, it experiences wide variation
in climatic condition depending
upon the altitude, latitude, distance
from sea and relief. The variability
can be observed in number of factors
such as:
x Western Rajasthan experiences
a high temperature during
June where as the areas close
to Kashmir are relatively
experiencing a much lower
temperature. The coastal lands
are comparatively having a
moderate climate due to the
nearness of sea.
x The amount of rainfall also
varies throughout the country.
The rainfall in India is primarily
governed by Monsoon wind
which which generally hits

the south west coast of India
generally in June and known
as onset of Monsoon. The
wind then starts circulating via
the Bay of Bengal covering the
entire eastern, north eastern
and parts of central India. The
highest rainfall is experienced
in Mawsynram in Meghalaya
i.e. 1221 cm of annual rainfall
every year. On the other hand
in the month of October and
November the monsoon trough
of Low pressure starts receding
from Northern Plain results into
rain in Southern India. About
50% to 60% of rainfall in Tamil
Nadu is caused due to Retreat
of Monsoon form North East.
B-161
Geography
Rain fall Distribution in India

Amount Heavy Rainfall
of Rain
(> 200cm)
fall
States
West coasts,
on the western
Ghats, SubHimalayan
areas in North
East and
Meghalaya
Hills. Assam,
West Bengal,
Southern slopes
of eastern
Himalayas.
Moderately
Heavy Rainfall
(100-200 cm)
Southern Parts
of Gujarat, East
Tamil Nadu,
North-eastern
Peninsular,
Western
Ghats, eastern
Maharashtra,
Madhya Pradesh,
Orrisa, the middle
Ganga valley.
Less Rainfall
(50-100 cm)
Scanty
Rainfall
<50cms
Upper Ganga Northern
valley, eastern part of
Rajasthan,
Kashmir,
Punjab,
Western
Southern
Rajasthan,
Plateau of
Punjab and
Karnataka,
Deccan
Andhra
Plateau
Pradessh and
Tamil Nadu.
NATURAL VEGETATION
Natural Vegetations or the forest type of India vary from place to place
depending upon several factors such as climate, soil, rainfall, temperature
as well as their seasonal variation along with varied edaphic and biotic
conditions. Various botanist and ecologist have given different classification
on the basis of climatic and adaptive factors. On the basis of such suggestion
a generalised classification can be done with 5 main types and 16 sub types
of vegetation.
&ODVVLFDWLRQRI1DWXUDO9HJHWDWLRQ
Type
Sub- Types
Moist Tropical Forest
x
x
x
x
Dry Tropical Forest
x Tropical dry evergreen

x Tropical dry deciduous
x Tropical Thorn
Tropical wet Evergreen

Tropical semi evergreen
Tropical Moist Deciduous
Littoral and Swamp
Montane Sub tropical x Sub tropic Broad leaved hill

Forest
x Sub tropical Moist hills (pine)
x Sub tropic dry evergreen
Montane Temperate
Forest
x Montane Wet Temperate

x Himalayan Moist Temperate
x Himalayan Dry Temperate
Alpine Forest
x Sub- Alpine
x Moist Alpine Scrub
x Dry Alpine Scrub
B-162
Geography
6SDWLDO'LVWULEXWLRQRI1DWXUDOYHJHWDWLRQLQ,QGLD
LANGUAGES
According to the schedule eight
of our constitution, there are 22
officially recognized languages in
India; among all, Hindi dominates
the scene as it is spoken by 41.03
per cent of people followed by
Bengali (8.11 %), Telugu (7.19 %),
Marathi (6.99), Tamil (5.91 %)
and Urdu (5.01%). Sanskrit, Bodo,
Manipur, Dogari and Konkani

are the languages which have least
speakers in India. Bodo, Dogri,
Maithili and Santali were added to
the Eighth Schedule with the passing
of the 100th Amendment to the
Constitution of India in 2003, taking
the total number of Scheduled
languages to 22 in 2001. There are
B-163
Geography
total 234 identifiable mother tongues
which have returned 10,000 or more
speakers each at the all-India level,
comprising 93 mother tongues
grouped under the Scheduled
Languages (Part A) and 141 mother
tongues grouped under the NonScheduled languages (Part B). Those
mother tongues which have returned
less than 10,000 speakers each and
which have been classified under a
particular language are included in

others under that language.
Official languages in India: Article
343 of the Indian Constitution
considers Hindi to be the official
language of the country along
with English to be an additional
language. Other than these two
French and Portuguese are the
official languages of Ponducherry
and Goa respectively.
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA
A wide range of crops can be grown
in India as the land is supported by
element essential for crop growth
such as relief, soil, climate, abundant
sun shine and long growing seasons.
The major Indian crop can be
divided into following categories.
Food Crops: Rice, Wheat, Maize,
Millet,Jower, Bajra, Ragi, and pulses
like Gram, Tur (Arhar)
Cash Crops: Cotton, Jute, Sugarcane,
Tobacco, Oilseeds, Ground Nut,
Linseed, Sesame, Castor seed, Rape
seed, Mustard
Plantation Crops: Tea, Coffee,
Spices, Cardamom, Chilles, Ginger,
Turmeric, Coconut, Areca nut and
Rubber
Horticulture: Apple, Peach, Pear,
Apricot, Almond, Strawberr y,
Walnut, Mango, Banana, Citrus Fruit,
Vegetables.
Land Use Pattern in India

Reporting area for land utilisation
statistics in India was recorded to be
305611, out of which only 45.84 per
cent of it is net sown area. 17.07 are
sown more than ones in a year. Total
cropped area accounted for 62.89
per cent.
Agro-climatic Regions
(i) Western Himalayan Region:
Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal
Pradesh and the hill region of

Uttarakhand fall into it. Valley
floors grow rice, while the hilly
tracts grow maize in the kharif
season. Winter crops are barley,
oats, and wheat. Apple orchards
and other temperate fruits such
as peaches, apricot, pears,
cherry, almond, litchis, walnut,
etc. Saffron is grown in this
region.
(ii) Eastern Himalayan Region:
Arunachal Pradesh, hills of
Assam, Sikkim, Meghalaya,
Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram,
Tripura, and the Darjeeling
district of West Bengal come
into this region. Annual rainfall
is 200-400 cm. The main crops
are rice, maize, potato, tea.
Orchards of pineapple, litchi,
oranges and lime are also found.
(iii) Lower Gangetic Plain Region:
located in West Bengal (except
the hilly areas), eastern Bihar
and the Brahmaputra valley lie
in this region with the rainfall of
100 cm-200 cm. Rice is the main
crop which at times yields three
successive crops (Aman, Aus
and Boro) in a year. Jute, maize,
potato, and pulses are other
important crops.
B-164
Geography
(iv) Middle Gangetic Plain Region:

large parts of Uttar Pradesh and
Bihar are covered and recieve100
cm and 200 cm of rainfall. Rice,
maize, millets grow in kharif;
wheat, gram, barley, peas,
mustard and potato in rabi are
important crops.
(v) Upper Gangetic Plains Region:

Central and western parts of Uttar
Pradesh and Hardwar and Udham
Nagar districts of Uttarakhand fall
into it. Rainfall is between 75 cm150 cm. Wheat, rice, sugarcane,
millets, maize, gram, barley,
oilseeds, pulses and cotton are
the main crops.
AGRO-CLIMATIC
ZONES OF INDIA
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
Western Himalayan Region

Eastern Himalayan Region
Lower Gangetic Plain Region
Middle Gangetic Plain Region
Upper Gangetic Plains Region
Trans-Ganga Plains Region
Eastern Plateau and Hills
Central Plateau and Hills
(vi) Trans-Ganga Plains Region:

Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh,
Delhi and the Ganganagar
district of Rajasthan come under
it. Rainfall varies between 65 cm
and 125 cm. The main crops are
wheat, sugarcane, cotton, rice,
gram, maize, millets, pulses and
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
Western Plateau and Hills

Southem Plateau and Hills
Eastern Coastal Plains and Hills
Western Coastal Plains and Ghats
Gujarat Plains and Hills
Western Dry Region
Island Region
oilseeds etc. The region faces the

threat of water logging, salinity,
alkalinity, soil erosion and fall of
water table.
(vii) Eastern Plateau and Hills:
Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh
and Dandakaranya come under
it. 80 cm-150 cm of annual
Geography
rainfall is received. Rice, millets,
maize, oilseeds, ragi, gram,
potato, tur, groundnut and
soyabean grow on rainfed areas.
(viii) Central Plateau and Hills:
Bundelkhand, Baghelkhand,
Bhander Plateau, Malwa
Plateau, and Vindhyachal Hills
receive rainfall 50 cm-100 cm.
Crops like millets, wheat, gram,
oilseeds, cotton and sunflower
grow in this region.
(ix) Western Plateau and Hills:
Malwa plateau and Deccan
plateau (Maharashtra), 25 cm75 cm. Wheat, gram, millets,
cotton, pulses, groundnut, and
oilseeds are the main crops in
the rain-fed areas, while in the
irrigated areas, sugarcane, rice,
and wheat, are cultivated.
(x) Southern Plateau and Hills:
Interior Deccan includes parts
of southern Maharashtra, the
greater parts of Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil
Nadu uplands from Adilabad
district in the north to Madurai
district in the south. Annual
rainfall is between 50 cm and
100 cm. Millets, oilseeds, pulses
grows here.
(xi) Eastern Coastal Plains and Hills:
Coromandal and northern Circar
coasts of Andhra Pradesh and
Orissa come into it. Annual
rainfall here varies between 75 cm
and 150 cm. Main crops include
rice, jute, tobacco, sugarcane,
maize, millets, groundnut and
oilseeds. Cultivation of spices
(pepper and cardamom) and
development of fisheries is also
done.
(xii) Western Coastal Plains and
Ghats: Malabar and Konkan
coastal plains and the Sahyadris
are included in it. Annual
rainfall is more than 200
B-165
cm. Rice, coconut, oilseeds,

sugarcane, millets, pulses and
cotton are the main crops. The
region is famous for plantation
crops and spices.
(xiii) Gujarat Plains and Hills: They
includes hills and plains of
Kathiawar, and the fertile valleys
of Mahi and Sabarmati rivers.
Annual rainfall varies between
50 cm and 100 cm. Groundnut,
cotton, rice, millets, oilseeds,
wheat and tobacco are the main
crops. It is an important oilseed
producing region.
(xiv) Western Dry Region: Extended
over Rajasthan, West of the
Aravallis, this region has an
erratic rainfall of an annual
average of less than 25 cm.
Horticultural crops like water
melon, guava and date palm
grow here.
(xv) Island Region: It includes
Andaman-Nicobar and Lakshadweep which have typically
equatorial climate (annual
rainfall less than 300 cm). Main
crops are rice, maize, millets,
pulses, turmeric and cassava.
Nearly half of the cropped area
is under coconut. The area is
covered with thick forests and
agriculture is in backward stage.
Major Growing Seasons in India:

Kharif (July to October): Major
crops are rice, maize, sorghum,
pearl millet/bajra, finger millet/ragi
(cereals), arhar (pulses), soyabean,
groundnut (oilseeds), cotton etc.
Rabi (October to March): Major
crops wheat, barley, oats (cereals),
chickpea/gram (pulses), linseed,
mustard (oilseeds) etc.
Zaid (March to June): Muskmelon,
Watermelon,
Vegetables
of
cucurbitacae family such as bitter
gourd, pumpkin, ridged gourd etc.
B-166
Geography
INDUSTRY
Major Industrial Regions of India
There are eight major industrial regions in India.
1. Mumbai-Pune Industrial Region
2. Hugli Industrial Region
3. Bangalore-Tamil Nadu Industrial Region
4. Gujarat Industrial Region
5. Chotanagpur Industrial Region
6. Vishakhapatnam-Guntur Industrial Region
7. Gurgaon-Delhi-Meerut Industrial Region
8. Kolfam-Thiruvananthapuram Industrial Region
B-167
Geography
Major Industrial Type
As per the type raw materials used

in the industry and its finished
product, the categories of Indian
Industry can be divided into:
x Agro Based Industry
Cotton Textile
Jute Textile
Sugar
Silk
x
x
x
x
x
x
Metallurgical Industry
Iron and Steel Industry
Aluminum smelting Industry
Engineering Industry
Fertilizer Industry
Aircraft Industry
Glass Industry
Cement Industry
Chemical Industry
MINERALS IN INDIA
Minerals are the natural resources
which are used in many industries as
raw materials. Iron ore, manganese,
bauxite, copper, etc. are such minerals.
Minerals are of two types: metallic and
non-metallic. Iron ore and copper are
metallic minerals while limestone and
dolomite are non-metallic minerals.
Metallic minerals are further
sub-divided into ferrous and
non-ferrous minerals. Those metallic
minerals which have iron content
belong to ferrous group. The metallic
minerals belonging to non-ferrous
group do not have iron content.
India is rich in iron, mica, manganese,
bauxite; self sufficient in antimony,
Mineral
Iron
Ore
Magnetitethe best
quality of iron ore and
contains 72% pure iron.
Haematite-contains
60 to 70% pure iron.
Limonite-contains
Siderite-contains many
impurities and has just
building materials, cement materials,

clay, chromite, lime, dolomite, and
gold, but deficient in copper, lead,
mercury, zinc, tin, nickel, petroleum
products, rock phosphate, sulphur,
and tungsten.
Mineral resources like potassium are
totally absent and have to be imported.
Minerals like crude petroleum (which
accounts for about 80 per cent of
the total value of Indian imports)
diamonds (uncut), sulphur, and rock
phosphorus are imported.
The state with the highest
mineral output is Jharkhand.
India is rich in ferrrous metals but its
reserves of non-ferrous metals are poor.
Found in
Odisha (Sonai, Mayubhanj,
Keonjhar), Jharkhand
and Bihar (Singhbhum
Hazaribagh, Palamau,
Shahbad), Chhattisgarh and
Madhya Pradesh (Raipur,
Durg, Bastar, Raigarh,
Bilaspur, Jabalpur, Balaghat),
Andhra Pradesh (Krishna,
Kurnool, Chittor, Cuddapha,
Warangal, Guntur), Tamil
Nadu (Salem,
Tiruchirapalli), Karnataka
(Ballary, Chitradurg,
Chikmagalur), Maharashtra
(Ratnagiri, Chanda), Goa
Features
India has the
worlds largest
reserves,
approximately
one-fourth of
worlds known
reserves;
Jharkhand
has the largest
reserves
accounting
for about 25%
of the total
reserves of
iron ore in
India.
B-168
Geography
Bihar-Jharkhand-Bengal belt
(Raniganj, Jharia, Giridih,
Bokaro, Karanpur), Madhya
Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
belt (Singrauli, Korba,
Raigarh, Sonhat, Sohagpur.
Umaria), Odisha (Desgarh,
Talcher), Maharashtra
(Chand), Andhra Pradesh
(Singreni), Assam (Makum,
Lakhimpur); in small
quantities in Arunachal
Pradesh, Meghalaya, Jammu
and Kashmir, and Nagaland
About
one-fourth
of Indias
coal reserves
lie in the
modarValley,
across Bihar,
Jharkhand,
and West
Bengal. India
is the fourth
largest coal
producing
country in
the world
according
to 1992 coal
production
in the
country.
Odisha (Keonjhar,
Kalahandi, Mayurbhaj,
Talcher) Madhya
Pradesh (Balaghat, Seoni,
Chhindwara, Jabalpur),
Maharashtra (Nagpur,
Bhandara, Ratnagiri),
Gujarat (Panchmahal),
Karnataka (Chitradurg,
Tumkur, Shimoga,
Chikmagalur, Belgaum,
North Canara, Dharwar),
Jharkhand (Singbhum),
Andhra Pradesh
(Visakhapatnam), Rajasthan
(Udaipur, Bansawara)
The three major types of Bihar (Gaya Monghyr),
mica found in India are Jharkhand (Hazaribagh),
Muscovite, Phlogopite Rajasthan (Ajmer, Shahpur,
and Biotite.
Tonk, Bhilwara, Jaipur),
Andhra Pradesh (Nellore)
Odisha is
the leading
producer of
manganese in
the country.
India ranks
third in world
in manganese
production.
Coal (Black Anthracite Coalthe

Gold)
best quality of coal
and contains 80 to 95%
carbon. It is found only
in Jammu and Kashmir
in small quantity.
Bituminous coalThe
most widely used coal
and contains 40 to 80%
carbon. It is found in
Jharkhand, Orissa, West
Bengal, Chhattisgarh
and Madhya Pradesh.
Lignite Also known as
brown coal. It is a lower
grade coal and contains
about 40 to 50% carbon.
It is found in Palna of
Rajasthan, Neyveli of
Tamil Nadu, Lakhimpur
of Assam and Karewa
of Jammu and Kashmir.
PeatIt is the first stage
of transformation of
wood into coal and
contains less than 40%
carbon.
Manganese India has the second
largest manganese ore
reserves in the world
after Zimbabwe. India is
the fifth largest producer
in the world after Brazil,
Gabon, South Africa
and Australia.
Mica
India has largest

deposits of
mica in world
India alone
contributes
about twothirds of
the worlds
production
B-169
Geography
Bauxite
(aluminium
ore)
Copper
Crude oil
Lignite
Gold
Magnesite
Jharkhand (Palamu), Gujarat

(Kaira), Madhya Pradesh
(Katni, Jabalpur, Balaghat,
Bilaspur, Bastar), Tamil
Nadu (Salem), Karnataka
(Chitradurg, Belgaum),
Maharashtra (Kolhapur),
Jammu and Kashmir (Kotli)
India contributes to Jharkhand (Singhbhum,
about 3.5 to 4% of the Hazaribagh), Rajasthan
worlds total production (Khetri, Alwar, Bhilwara,
of copper.
Jhunjhunu, Sirohi), Andhra
Pradesh (Guntur, Khamman,
Agnigundala), Karnataka
(Chitradurg, Hassan,
Chikmagalur, Raichur),
Madhya Pradesh (Balaghat),
Gujarat (Banaskantha);
some quantities also found
in Sikkim, Punjab, Uttar
Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
Assam, Tripura, Manipur,
West Bengal, Ganga Valley,
Himachal Pradesh, Kutch
of West Bengal coast,
Orissa, Andhra Pradesh,
Maharashtra, and Gujarat.
429 crore tones
Tamil Nadu (Neyveli fields)
Some deposits also found
in Gujarat, Punducherry,
Rajasthan (Palana fields),
Jammu and Kashmir (Riasi
fields).
Indias contribution to Karnataka
(Kolar
gold
gold production across fields, Hutti Mines), in small
the world is less than one quantities in Andhra Pradesh
percent (0.75%).
(Ramgiri gold fields and
Anantpur).
Third largest
producer
in
the world.
Very meager
reserves;
almost all
copper
comes from
Singbhum and
Hazaribagh
in Jharkhand
and Khetri in
Rajasthan.
51.08 crore tones
23.91 crore tones
Tamil Nadu (Salem),

Uttranchal (Almora,
Chamoli, Pithoragarh),
Karnataka (Mysore, Hassan)
Maximum
deposits of
about 383
crore tones,
are found in
Tamil Nadu.
Karnataka
was the
leading
producer
of gold
accounting
for 99% of
the total
production.
The remaining
production
came from
Jharkhand.
B-170
Geography
CENSUS 2011
The 15th Indian National census
was conducted in two phases,
houselisting
and
population
enumeration.
Information
for
National Population Register was
also collected in the first phase,
which will be used to issue a 12-digit
unique identification number to
all registered Indians by Unique
Identification Authority of India.
According to the provisional reports
released on March 31, 2011, the
Indian population increased to 1.21
billion with a decadal growth of

17.64%. Adult literacy rate increased
to 70.04% with a decadal growth of
9.21%.
The exercise, conducted every 10
years, faced big challenges, not least
Indias vast area and diversity of
cultures and opposition from the
manpower is involved. Information
on castes was included in the census
following demands from several
ruling coalition and opposition
parties.
Census Data
Population
Total Population
Males
Females
Ratio
'HFDGDO*URZWK
'HQVLW\RI3RSXODWLRQ
Literacy (in percent)
Statistics
1,21,01,93,422 (persons)
62,37,24,248
58,64,69,174
940 Females/1000 Males
18,14,55,986 (17.64%)
382 per sq. km.
Total; 74.04, Males: 82.14, Females: 65.46
HIGHEST/LOWEST POPULATION
State with Highest Population
State with Lowest Population
UT with Highest Population
UT with Lowest Population
District with Highest Population
District with Lowest Population
Uttar Pradesh
Sikkim
Delhi
Lakshadweep
Medinipur (West Bengal)
Yanam (Pondicherry)
166,197,921
540,851
13,850,507
60,650
9,610,788
31,394
Population Density Persons/Sq. Km.

India
State with highest Population Density
State with lowest Population Density
UT with Highest Population Density
UT with Lowest Population Density
West Bengal
Arunachal Pradesh
Delhi
Andaman & Nicobar
Islands
District with Highest Population Density North East (Delhi)
District with Lowest Population Density Lahul & Spiti
(Himachal Pradesh)
325
903
13
9,340
43
29,468
2
B-171
Geography
Sex Ratio (Females per Thousand Males)

India
Rural
Urban
State with Highest Female Sex Ratio Kerala
State with Lowest Female Sex Ratio Haryana
UT with Highest Female Sex Ratio Pondicherry
UT with Lowest Female Sex Ratio Daman & Diu
District with Highest Female Sex Ratio Mahe (Pondicherry)
District with Lowest Female Sex Ratio Daman (Daman & Diu)
933
946
900
1,058
861
1,001
710
1,147
591
Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes Population

Scheduled Castes
Scheduled Tribes
Population
166,635,700
84,326,240
Percentage
16.2%
8.2%
Scheduled Castes
State with highest proportion of Scheduled Castes
State with lowest proportion of Scheduled Castes
UT with highest proportion of Scheduled Castes
UT with lowest proportion of Scheduled Castes
District with highest proportion of Scheduled Castes
District with lowest proportion of Scheduled Castes
Lawngtlai
Punjab (28.9%)
Mizoram (0.03%)
Chandigarh (17.5%)
D&N Haveli (1.9%)
Koch-Bihar (50.1%)
Mizoram (0.01%)
Scheduled Tribes
State with highest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
State with lowest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
UT with highest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
UT with lowest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
District with highest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
District with lowest proportion of Scheduled Tribes
Mizoram (94.5%)
Goa (0.04%)
Lakshadweep (94.5%)
A & N Islands (8.3%)
Sarchhip, Mizoram (98.1%)
Hathras, Uttar Pradesh (0.01%)
Religion Based Data

Religious
Hindus
Muslims
Christians
Sikhs
Buddhists
Jains
Other Religions & Persuasions
Religion not stated
Total *
Composition
827,578,868
138,188,240
24,080,016
19,215,730
7,955,207
4,225,053
6,639,626
727,588
1,028,610,328
Population * (%)
80.5
13.4
2.3
1.9
0.8
0.4
0.6
0.1
100
B-172
Geography
Rural Urban Distribution

Rural-Urban Distribution
Population
Rural
742,490,639
Urban
286,119,689
State with highest proportion of Urban Population Goa
State with lowest proportion of Urban Population Himachal Pradesh
UT with highest proportion of Urban Population Delhi
UT with lowest proportion of Urban Population Dadra & Nagar
Haveli
(%)
72.18%
27.82%
49.8
9.8
93.2
22.9
QUICK FACTS
x
Indias population has jumped to

1.21 billion, an increase of more
than 181 million during 2001-11,
according to provisional data of
Census 2011 released.
Though the population is
almost equal to the combined
population of the U.S, Indonesia,
Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh and
Japan (1,214.3 million).
The percentage decadal growth
rates of the six most populous
States have declined during 200111 compared with 1991-2001.
The overall sex ratio nationwide
has
increased
by
seven
percentage points to 940 against
933 in Census 2001. Sex ratio is
defined as the number of females
per 1,000 males. An increase in
sex ratio was observed in 29
States/Union Territories. Kerala
with 1,084 has the highest sex
ratio followed by Puducherry
with 1.038. With 618, Daman
and Diu has the lowest ratio.
An increasing trend in the child
sex ratio was seen in Punjab,
Haryana, Himachal Pradesh,
Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Mizoram
and the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands, but in the remaining
States/UTs, the ratio showed
a decline. The total number of
children in the age group of 06

is now 158.8 million, less by five
million since 2001.
The literacy rate has gone up
from 64.83 per cent in 2001 to
74.04 per cent, an increase of
9.21 percentage points.
Kerala, with 93.91 per cent,
continues to occupy the top
position among States as far
as literacy is concerned, while
Mizorams Serchhip district
(98.76 per cent) and Aizawl
(98.50 per cent) recorded the
highest literacy rates among
districts. Madhya Pradeshs
Alirapur district has the lowest
literacy rate of 37.22 per cent
as also the naxalite-affected
Chhattisgarhs Bijapur district,
where the literacy rate is 41.58
per cent. Lakshadweep followed
kerala with a literacy level of
92.28 per cent, while Bihar
remained at the bottom of the
ladder at 63.82 per cent, followed
by Arunachal Pradesh at 66.95
per cent.
A significant milestone reached
in the 2011 census is the fall in the
number of illiterate persons by
31,196,847. Of the total decrease
in the number of illiterates,
women comprise 17,122,197
and men, 14,074,650.
B-173
Language
l
l
l
l
l
Chinese
Spanish
English
Hindi
Arabic
Religion
l
l
l
l
l
Christianity
Islam
Hinduism
Chinese Folk Religion
Buddhism
Climatic
Zone
l
l
l
l
l
l
Equatorial Zone
Hot Zone
Warm Temperate Zone
Cool Temperate Zone
Cold Zone
Alpine Zone
Industrial
Region
l
l
l
USA and Canada Industrial Region

European Industrial region
Asian Major Industrial Region
Portuguese
Bengali
Russian
Japanese
Javanese
Continents
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Asia
Africa
North America
South America
Europe
Australia
Antarctica
Things to Remember
WORLD GEOGRAPHYMIND MAP
Geography
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Continents Highest & Largest Points

Highest Mountain Peaks
Deepest Oceans
Some important Boundary lines
Longest Rivers
Deepest Lakes
Largest Deserts
Deepest Trenches
Some important Tribes and their Homeland
B-174
Geography
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Total Surface Area - 510,

072,000 km
Land Area - 148,094,000 km
Water Area - 361,132,000 km
Percentage of Land - 29.2%
Percentage of Water - 70.8%
Water Type - 97% salt water, 3%
fresh water
Circumference - 40,066 km at
Equator, 39,992 km at Poles
Continents - 7 recognized
Countries - 193 recognized
Oceans - 5
Population - 7,214,958,996 (2015)
Largest continent - Asia (43,810,582
km)
Most populated continent - Asia
(4,361,416,312) 2015
Smallest continent - Australasia/
Oceania (8,112,000 km)
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Least
populated
continentAntarctica (no native population)
Largest country - Russia
(17,075,400 km)
Most populated country - China
(1,401,586,609) 2015
Smallest country - Vatican City
(0.44 km)
Least populated country Vatican City (842) 2014
Highest point - Mount Everest
(8,848 m)
Lowest point - Dead Sea (-409 m)
Largest
Ocean
Pacific
(155,557,000 km)
Smallest
Ocean
Arctic
(14,056,000 km)
Largest Sea - South China
(2,974,600 km)
Largest Lake - Caspian Sea
(371,000 km)
Longest River - Nile (6,695 km)
LANGUAGES
There are numerous languages in
the world but they have varying
number of speakers for each one
of them. Approximately 2,300
languages are spoken in Asia, 2,140,
in Africa, 1,300 in the Pacific, 1,060
in the Americas, and 280 in Europe
(2015). Their existence depends on
the number of speakers the language
has. There are chances that nearly
90% of the 7, 080 languages would
extinct. Chinese tops the list of most
popular world languages, with over
one billion speakers. English trails
in third place, with 335 million
speakers. This data represents firstlanguage speakers.
Major Languages Spoken in the

World
Language
Approx. number
of speakers
1. Chinese
1,197,000,000
2. Spanish
414,000,000
3. English
335,000,000
4. Hindi
260,000,000
5. Arabic
237,000,000
6. Portuguese
203,000,000
7. Bengali
193,000,000
8. Russian
167,000,000
9. Japanese
122,000,000
10. Javanese
84,300,000
B-175
Geography
MAJOR RELIGION OF THE WORLD

Religion
Christianity
Islam
Hinduism
Chinese folk religion
Buddhism
Followers (in millions)

2,200
1,600
1,100
754 1,000
488 535
WORLD CLIMATIC TYPES

Climate
Zone
Equatorial
zone
Hot Zone
Latitude
0-10N
and S
10-30N
and S
30 - 45N
Warm
Temperate and S
zone
48-65N
Cool
Temperate and S
zone
Cold zone 65-90N

and S
Alpine
Zone
Climate Type
Rainfall
Regime
1. Hot we equatorial Rainfall all year
round
2. (a) Tropical
Heavy summer
Monsoon
(b) Tropical Marine rain
Much summer
3. Sudan Type
4. Desert : (a) Sahara rain
70 inches
type (b) MidRain mainly in
latitude type
summer
30 inches
Little
rain : 5 inches
Winter rain : 35
5. Western Margin
inches
(Mediterranean
Light summer
types)
6. Central Continental rain
20 inches
(Stepe type)
Heavier
7. Eastern Margin
summer rain :
(a) China type
45 inches
(b) Gulf type
(c) Netal type
More rain in
8. Western Margin
autumn and
(British type)
9. Central Continental winter, 30
inches
(Siberian type)
Light summer
10. Eastern Margin
(Laurentian type) rain:
25 inches
Moderate
summer rain
40 inches
11. Arctic or Polar
Very light
summer rain
10 inches
12. Mountain climate Heavy rainfall
(variable)
Natural Veg
Equatorial
rain
forests
Monsoon forests
Savana (Tropical
grassland)
Desert vegetation
and scrub
Mediterranean
forests and shrub
Steppe or
temperate
grassland
Warm, wet forests
bamboo
Deciduous forests
Evergreen
confierous forests
Mixed forests
(coniferous and
deciduous)
Tundra, mosses
lichens
Alpine, mosses
lichens Alpine
pastures, conifers,
fern, snow
B-176
Geography
MAJOR INDUSTRIAL REGIONS OF THE WORLD

Industrial regions are those areas,
where the focus of industries has
occurred due to favourable geoeconomic conditions. These are areas
where manufacturing industries
are carried out on a relatively large
scale and employ a relatively large
proportion of population. The
industrial regions of the world are
very unevenly distributed. With the
development of machinery, many
industrial centres have come up
where there is abundance of coal,
iron, and extensive water-power are
in abundance.
The major industrial regions of the
world are as follows:
x USA and Canada Industrial
Regions
Industrial region of USA and
Canada comprises the New
England Regions, The New York
- Mid-Atlantic Region, North Eastern Region. The Southern
Region, Western Region &
Pacific Region. These regions
include several major American
industrial cities & Metropolitans
like Hartford, New Havan, areas
from New York to Baltimore
with New Jersey, Chicago,
Detroit, Houston, etc.
x European Industrial Region
Western
Europe
major
industrial regions.
United Kingdoms industrial
regions are located in
Lancashire, London's basin,
Scotland, Midland,SouthWales,
etc.
producing
manufacturing
products
like engineering, ferrous,
chemical textile,food &
beverages, etc.
The Saar Region, the

Hamburg Region, Berlin
Region & Leipzig Region
with iron & steel heavy
chemicals, textiles & different
consumer goods Industries.
Frances industrial region
produces iron & steel, textile,
glass, leather, automobiles
with Northern, Lorraine
& Paris Industrial Regions.
Other European countries
like
Italy,
Switzerland,
Holland
Belgium
and
Sweden are industrial giants.
Eastern Europe has six
major industrial regions
Out of which four are in
Russia, one in Ukraine, and
one in southern Poland and
northern Czech Republic.
Asian major
China is most dominant
and powerful industrial
agglomerations of Asia.
The regions of Manchurian
region, Yangtze region,
North-china region, South
China region, etc. with
manymanufacturing units
producing
steel,
heavy
chemical's textiles, paper,
cement, automobiles, toys,
etc are major industrial
regions.
Japan has several industrial
cities
producing
steel,
Pedro-chemical,
cement,
footwear. toys, etc. at TokyaYokohama region, Osaka Kobe region, north Kyushu
region.
Indias
conurbation
of
Calcutta,
the
MumbaiPune
Industrial
belt,
B-177
Geography
Ahemadabad-Vadodara belt, Southern industrial regions with

Chennai, Coimbatore, Bangalore industrial belt, Damodar Valley
industrial belt, Northern regions with centers like Delhi, Ambala,
Gaziabad, Mathura, etc. Other major industrial regions include
Allahadad, Varanasi, Hyderabad, Patiala, Jaipur, Bilaspur,
Jullundhar, Meerut, Lucknow, Kanpur, etc.
MAJOR INDUSTRIAL CENTRES OF THE WORLD

Country
Britain
(Midland is the
largest Industrial
Major Industrial Centers

Birmingham
Coventry
Burton-on-Trent
region centered
at Birmingham)
Stoke-on-Trent
New Castle
Middlesbrough
Bradford
Halifax
Leeds
Shefield (Worlds largest
cutlery town)
Manchester
(Lancashire region)
Liverpool & Birkenhead
Along Manchester Canal
Glosgow
Hamilton
Motherwell
Coatbridge
France
Germany
(Ruhr-Westphalia
region, served by
Rhine River, is the
largest industrial
Industries
Iron & Steel, Heavy Machinery
Automobile
Brewing (largest brewery town
of
Britain)
Pottery (Pottery capital of
Britain)
Shipbuilding
Iron & Steel
Worsted textile
Garments
Cutlery, Iron & Steel
Cotton textile
Shipbuilding
Heavy chemicals
Iron & Steel
Pot Glasgow
Belfast region (Main
industrial region of Ireland)
Lille
Dunkirus
St. Etienne
Limoges
Lyone
Marseilles
Paris
Champaque
Lorrensar
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding &
Linen industry
Textiles
Iron & Steel
Armaments & Bicycle
Pottery
Silk making
Oil refineries
Aircraft & Transport
Wine
Iron & Steel
Frankfurt
Mainz
Mannheim
Ludwigshafen
Railway engineering
Leather, Brewing, Engineering
Chemical, electrical engineering
Iron & Steel.
B-178
Geography
region of Germany
This industrial
Hamburg
region is connected Munich
to North sea by
Dortmund-Ems
canal)
Stuttgart
Aachen
Leipzig
Jena Zeiss
Dresden
Karl Marx Stadt
Belgium
Liege
Antwerp
Ghent
Luxemberg
Luxemberg city
Netherland
Rotterdam
Amsterdam
Arnhem
Sweden
Goteborg
Stockhom
Switzerland
Zurich
Basel
Baden
Denmark
Kopenhagen
Italy
Milan (main industrial region)
Turin (Detroit of Italy)
U.S.A.
Boston
(Great Lake region) Pittsburg
is the most
important industrial
region
Akron
Detroi
Pontiac
Flint
Gary
Chicago
Toledo
Birmingham
Troy
Buffalo
Shipbuilding
Photographic equipment, Musical
instrument
Automobile
Iron & Steel, Textile
Optical instrument
Photographic equipment
Porcelain
Textiles
Iron & Steel, Guns, pistols &
other firearms
Diamond cutting
Linen textiles
Engineering
Shipbuilding and marine engineering
Diamond cutting
Tin smelting
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Engineering and Textiles
Engineering
Dairy
Silk textile
Motor Car
Shipbuilding
Iron and Steel
(Iron & Steel capital of the
world)
Worlds largest synthetic
rubber and tyre making centre
Motor car and Aeroplane
Cars and its spare parts
Iron and Steel
Automobile
Iron and Steel
Garment
Iron and Steel, Machine
(It is also the largest flour
milling centre of U.S.A.)
San Fransisco (Silicon Valley) Oil refining, Shipbuilding,
Computer technology
B-179
Geography
Canada
Russia
Ukraine
Argentina
China
Japan
Los Angels (Hollywood)

Montreal
Toronto
Otawa
Hamilton Birmingham)
of Canada)
Quebec
Film and Aircraft

Shipbuilding and Aircraft
Engineering and Automobile
Paper
Iron and Steel, Engineering
Shipbuilding
&
Marine
Engineering
Moscow and Gorky
Iron and Steel, Chemicals
Magnitogost
Iron and Steel, Oil refining
Leningrad (St. Petersberg)
Textile, Chemical, Paper
Krivoyrog
Iron & Steel and Heavy
Machinery
Bueons Aires
Shipbuilding
Shanghai
Textile and Machinery
Wuhan
Textile, Machinery,
Shipbuilding,
Iron and Steel
Nagoya (Detroit of Japan)
Aircraft, Car, Machinery
Osaka (Manchester of Japan) Shipbuilding, Textile, Iron &
Steel
Kyoto and Kobe
Shipbuilding, Testtile, Iron &
Steel
Tokyo
Shipbuilding, Engineering, and
Textile
Nagasaki
Shipbuilding, Iron and Steel,
Machinery
CONTINENTS OF WORLD
A continent is one of the large landmasses on Earth generally identified by
convention rather than any strict criteria, with up to seven regions commonly
regarded as continents. They are Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, south
America, Australia and Antarctica.
Continent
1. Asia
% of Earth Area Continents (by the number

of countries)
29.5
44
2. Africa
20.4
54
3. North America
16.3
23
4. South America
11.8
12
5. Europe
7.1
46
6. Australia or oceania
5.3
14
7. Antarctica
9.6
B-180
Asia
Asia is the worlds largest continent,
having an area of 44,444,100 sq km.
Asia covers to the east of the Suez
Canal, the Ural River, and the Ural
M o u n t a i n s,
and south of
the Caucasus
Mountains
and
the
Caspian and
Black Seas. It
is bounded
on the east by the Pacific Ocean, on
the south by the Indian Ocean and
on the north by the Arctic Ocean.
Physical Features
Region-wise it can be classified
into 6 regions which are as follow:
x Central Asia : Kazakhstanb,
Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
x Eastern Asia :China, Hong Kong,
Japan, North Korea, South Korea,
Macau, Mongolia, Taiwan
x Northern Asia : Russia
x Southeastern Asia: Brunei,
Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia,
Laos, Malaysia, Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste,
Vietnam
x Southern Asia: Afghanistan,
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India,
Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
x Western Asia : Armeniae,
Azerbaijana, Bahrain, Cypruse,
Georgiaa, Iran, Iraq, Israel,
Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,
State of Palestine, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia, Syria, Turkeya, United
Arab Emirates,Yemen.
Natural Vegetation of Asia
x The Tundra
x The Taiga
x Temperate
Grasslands,
the
Steppes
x Mediterranean Scrubland and
Forest
Geography
x
x
x
x
Desert Vegetation
Monsoon Region:
Tropical Rainforest
Vegetation in the Mountains
Africa
Africa is the second largest continent
in area (30,330,000 sq Km), covers
six percent of
Earth's total
surface area
and
20.4
percent of its
total
land
area. Algeria
is Africa's largest country by area,
and Nigeria by population. Africa's
population is the youngest among all
the continents; 50% of Africans are
19 years old or younger. Separated
from Europe by the Mediterranean
Sea, it is joined to Asia at its
northeast extremity by the Isthmus
of Suez 163 km wide.
Physical Features
Region-wise it can be classified into
6 regions which are listed below.
x Northern Africa : Algeria,
Canary Islands, Santa Cruz de
Tenerife, Ceuta, Egypt, Libya,
Madeira, Melilla, Morocco,
Sudan, Tunisia, Western Sahara.
x Northeast Africa : Djibouti,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia
x Eastern Africa : Burundi,
Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mauritius, Mayotte,
Mozambique, Reunion, Rwanda,
Seychelles, South Sudan,
Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia,
Zimbabwe.
x Central Africa : Angola,
Cameroon, Central African
Republic, Chad, Republic of the
Congo, Democratic Republic of
the Congo, Equatorial Guinea,
Gabon, So Tom and Prncipe.
B-181
Geography
x
x
Southern Africa: Botswana,

Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa,
Swaziland
Western Africa: Benin, Burkina
Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia,
Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory
Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania,
Niger, Nigeria, Saint Helena,
Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo
Natural Vegetation of Africa

x
x
x
x
x
x
Tropical Rain Forests

Tropical Savannas
Tropical Steppes and Deserts
Mediterranean Forests
Montane Forests
Mangrove Forests
Europe
The continent comprises the
westernmost part of Eurasia bordered
by Arctic Ocean in north, the Atlantic
Ocean in west, and the Mediterranean
Sea to the south. To the east and
southeast, it is separated from Asia
by the watershed divides of the Ural
and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural
River,
the
Caspian and
Black Seas,
and
the
waterways of
the Turkish
Straits. The
coastline of Europe is 80500 km,
which is longer than Africa. It is the
second smallest continent in the world.
Physical Features
Region-wise classification of
Europe can be as follows
x European High lands
x Western Uplands : Landscape of
Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden,
and Denmark), Finland, Iceland,
Scotland, Ireland, the Brittany
region of France, Spain, and

Portugal.
x Central Uplands : Central
Europe and include western
France and Belgium, southern
Germany, the Czech Republic,
and parts of northern Switzerland
and Austria.
x Alpine Mountains : The Italian
and Balkan peninsulas, northern
Spain, and southern France. The
region includes the mountains of
the Alps, Pyrenees, Apennines,
Dinaric Alps, Balkans, and
Carpathians.
x North European Plain : France,
Belgium, the Netherlands,
Germany, Denmark, Poland, the
Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and
Lithuania), and Belarus.
x Island : British Isles, Corsica,
Alba, Sardinia, Crete , Malta ,
Cyprus, are some of the major
Islands of Europe.
x Deserts : Accona Desert,
Bardenas Reales, Bdowska
Desert, The Stone Desert, Larzac,
Santorini and Anafi, Piscinas
are some of the major deserts
of Europe
x Sub tropical dry forest
x Subtropical Mountain Forest
x Temperate Oceanic Forest
x Temperate continental Forest
x Boreal Coniferous forest
x Boreal Tundra Forest
x Boreal Mountain
1RUWK$PHULFD
North America covers about 4.8%
of the planet's surface or about
16.5% of its land area, having the
population of 565 million (2013) in
23 independent states. It is the third
B-182
largest continent by area, following

Asia
and
Africa
and
fourth largest
in terms of
population
with
the
density of 24
million/sq km. It extends from 7o N
to 85o N latitudinal-wise and
longitude-wise 20oW to 179oW. It
has 5 time zones.
Physical Features
x Western Region : Young
Mountains rise in the west. The
most familiar of these mountains
are probably the Rockies, North
Americas largest chain. They
stretch from the province of
British Columbia, Canada, to
the U.S.state of New Mexico.
x Great Plains : In the middle
of the continent lies the Grate
Plain. Deep, rich soil blankets
large areas of the plains in
Canada and the United States.
Grain grown in this region,
called the Bread basket of
North America, feeding a large
part of the world.
x Canadian
Shield
:
The
Canadian Shield is a raised but
relatively flat plateau. It extends
over eastern, central, and north
western Canada. The Canadian
Shield is characterized by a
rocky landscape pocked by an
astounding number of lakes.
x Eastern Region : This varied
region includes the Appalachian
Mountains and the Atlantic
coastal plain. NorthAmericas
older mountain ranges, including
the Appalachians, rise near the
east coast of the United States
and Canada
x Caribbean Region : The
Caribbean Region includes more
Geography
than 7,000 islands, islets, reefs,
and cays. The regions islands
and smaller islets are varied in
their topography.
x Arctic/ Tundra Forests:
x Boreal
Forests/
Taiga/
Coniferous forests:
x Eastern Deciduous Forests:
x Grasslands:
x Desert Scrub:
x Mediterranean and Madrean
Scrublands and Woodlands:
x Pacific Coast Coniferous Forests
x Western Montane Coniferous
Forests:
x Tidal Wetlands
South America
This is a triangular shape continent,
stretching from 12 N to 55S
latitude. Towards its west lies Pacific
Ocean, Atlantic Ocean on the east
and, North
America and
the Caribbean
Sea lie to the
northwest. It
is the fourth
l a r g e s t
continent of the world with smooth
and inlet coastline.
Physical Features
x The Pacific coastal strip lies
between the west Pacific and
Andes.
x The Andes stretches through
entire continent in length
running in north-south direction
from Isthmus of Panama to
Strait of Magellan.
x The Central Lowland: two great
river system are covered under it
namely the Amazon-Orinoco
and Parana-Paraguay rivers.
B-183
Geography
x
The Eastern Highland consists

of
Brazilian and Guiana
Highlands along with Patagonia.
Natural Vegetation of South America
x Equatorial Forest
x Temperate Forests
x Mediterranean Forests
x Savanna Grasslands
x Pampas
x Desert
Australia
Thousands of islands combined
form Oceania region, mostly
covering the
Central and
South Pacific
Ocean. The
region
is
dominated by
w o r l d s
biggest island
and two other major landmasses,
micro-continent
of
Zealandia
(including New Zealand) and the
western half of the island of New
Guinea, made up of the nation of
Papua New Guinea. Oceania also
includes three island regions:
Melanesia,
Micronesia,
and
Polynesia (including the U.S. state of
Hawaii). It stretches from the Strait
of Malacca to the coast of Americas.
Tropic of Capricorn divides it into
almost two halves.
There are 28 countries and Island
groups in Australasia/Oceania
covering 5.3% of the Earth's land
and 1.5% of the Earth's surface. The
largest cities of this region includes:
Jakarta, Manila, Sydney, Bandung,
Melbourne, Surabaya, Medan etc.
Physical Features
Region-wise it can be classified
into 3 regions such as:
The great western Plateau
covers two third of Australia
The central lowland extends

from the shallow Gulf of
Carpentaria in the north to the
Southern Ocean.
The eastern highlands stretch
along the eastern edge of
Australia, all the way from Cape
York to Tasmania.
Natural Vegetation
x The tropical Rain forest
x The deciduous forest Savanna
x The dry desert and desert scrub
Antarctica
The continent of Antarctica is the
fifthlargest
continent in
term s of
geographical
area, and it is
situated in a
remote cold
location of Southern. The continent
covers approximately 20 percent of
the hemisphere.
As such there are no countries in
this continent except some parts
of few nations such,New Zealand,
Australia, France, Norway, the
United Kingdom, Chile, and
Argentina.
Physical Features
As a frozen continent it has only a
few prominent physiographic units
such as:
x Trans Antarctic Mountain
dividing the continent into West
Antarctica and East Antarctica.
x The Antarctic Peninsula
x The islands of the Antarctic
region which contains South
Orkney Islands, South Shetland
Islands, South Georgia, and
the South Sandwich Islands, all
claimed by the United Kingdom.
B-184
Geography
THINGS TO REMEMBER
CONTINENTS HIGHEST AND LOWEST POINTS
Continent
1. Asia
Highest Point
Everest (8848 m)
Lowest Point
Dead Sea (396.8m)
2. Africa
Kilimanjaro (5894 m)
Lake Assai (156.1 m)
3. North America
Mckinley (6194 m)
Death Valley (85.9 m)
4. South America
Aconcagua (6960 m)
Valdis Penin (39.9 m)
5. Europe
Elbrus (5663 m)
Caspian Sea (28.0 m)
6. Australia
Koscisko (2228 m)
Lake Eyre (15.8 m)
7. Antarctica
Vinson Massif (5140 m)
(Unexplored)

Name
1. Mount Everest
2. K2 (Godwin Austen)
3. Kanchenjunga
4. Lhotse
5. Makalu I
6. Dhaulagiri I
7. Manaslu I
8. Cho Uyo
9. Nanga Parvat
8. Annapurana I
Height (in metres)

8848
8611
8598
8511
8481
8167
8156
8153
8126
8091
Range
Himalayas
Karakoram
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
Himalayas
THREE DEEPEST OCEANS

Name
1. Pacific Ocean
2. Atlantic Ocean
3. Indian Ocean
Greatest depth (in metres) Greatest depth location

11,033
Mariana Trench
9,460
Puerto Rico Trench
7,542
Java Trench
SOME IMPORTANT BOUNDARY LINES

Durand Line
Hindenberg Line
49th Parallel
Mac Mahon Line
Maginot Line
38th Parallel
Oder Neisse Line
Radcliffe Line
17th Parallel
between Pakistan and Afghanistan

between Germany and Poland
between USA and Canada
between India and Tibet/China
between France and Germany
between North and South Korea
between Germany and Poland
between India and Pakistan
between India and Pakistan (as claimed by Pakistan)
B-185
Geography
LONGEST RIVERS
Name, Nation/Continent
Length in kms
Nile Africa
6695
Amazon, South America
6516
Yangtze Kiang, China
6380
Mississippi Missouri, USA
5959
Ob Irtysh, Russia
5568
Yenisey Angari a Selenga, Asia
5550
Yellow (Hwang Ho), China
5464
Congo (Zaire), Africa
4667
Parana Rio de la Plata, S. Am
4500
Irtysh, Asia
4440
Mekong, Asia
4425
India
Indus
Asia
Brahmaputra
Asia
Ganga-Hooghly-Padma
India
Godawari
India
Sutlej
India
Krishna
India
Narmada
India
Chenab
India
Ghaghara
India
Shortest River
Europe Ombia river, Croatia
North America, Roe River, Montana, USA
South America Azvis River, Brazil
Basin Area m2km

3.25
6.14
1.72
3.20
2.97
2.55
2.58
Deepest Lakes
Baikal, Russian Fedn
Tanganyika, Africa
Caspian Sea, Asia-Europe
Malawi of Nyasa, Africa
Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan
3180
2948
2620
1465
1372
1300
1289
1086
1080
(metres)
30
61
147
1620 m
1463 m
1025 m
706 m
702 m
LARGEST DESERTS OF THE WORLD

Subtropical
Sahara, North Africa
Arabian, Middle East
Great Victoria, Australia
Kalahari, Southern Africa
Chihuahuan, Mexico
Thar, India/Pakistan
Great Sandy, Australia
8,600,650 sq. km
2,300,000 sq. km
647,475 sq. km
582,727 sq. km
453,232 sq. km
453,232 sq. km
388,485 sq. km
B-186
Geography
Gibson, Australia
Sonoran, S.W. USA
Simpson/Stony, N Africa
Mohave, S.W. USA
Cool Coastal
Atacama, Chile SA
Namib, S.W. Africa
Cold Winter
Gobi, China
Patagonian, Argentina
Great Basin, S.W. USA
Kara-kum, West Asia
Colorado, Western USA, also called the Painted Desert
Kyzyl-kum, West Asia
Taklamakan, China
Iranian, Iran
310,788 sq. km
310,788 sq. km
145,034 sq. km
139,854 sq. km
139,854 sq. km
33,668 sq. km
1,166,450 sq km
673,374 sq km
492,081 sq. km
349,636 sq. km
336,687 sq. km
297,838 sq. km
271,939 sq. km
258,990 sq. km

Name
Mariana*
Tonga Kermadec (S. Pacific)
Kuril-Kamchatka
Philippine
Java-Indian**
Length
2250
2575
2250
1350
2250
Depth
10.924
10.850
10.542
10.539
7725
Deepest Pt.
Challenger Deep
Vityaz 11 (Tonga)
Galathea Deep
Planet Deep

Aleuts : Alaska
Ainus : Japan
Aeta : Phillip Cines
Bushman : Kalahari
Buryak : Central Asia
Berbers : N. Africa
Bedouin : Sahara and Middle East
Bindibu or Aborigins : Australia
Chukchi : N.E. Asia, U.S.S.R.,
North Siberia
Eskimos : Greenland, North
Canada, Alaska, N. Siberia
Fulani : Western Africa
Gobi Mongols : Gobi
Guicas : Amazon forest area
Hausa : North Nigeria
Hotten tots : Hot tropical Africa
Ibans : Equatorial rain forest region
of South-East Asia
India Tribes : Amazon basin
Koryaks : N. Siberia, Eurassian

Tunda, N.E. Asia
Kalmuk : Central Asia
Kareus or Meos : Myanmar
Kirghiz : Asiatic steppes
Kazakhs : Kazakhistan
Lapps : N. Finland, Scandinavian,
country
Maoris : New Zealand
Masai : East and Central Africa
Orange Asli : Malaysia
Pygmies : Congo basin, Zaire
Red Indian : N. America
Somoyeds : Siberia
Semangs : East Sumatra
Turregs : Sahara
Tapiro : Papua New Guinea
Yoakuts : Siberia
Zulus : South Africa
+,6725<
` India
` World
B-188
History
INDIAN HISTORY MIND MAP

ANCIENT
Indus Valley
Civilization
Harappa
Mohenjodro
Chanhu-daro
Kalibangan
Lothal
Banawali
Amri
Dholavira
Rangpur
Ropar
Alamgirpur
Vedic Period/ Aryan
Jainism & Buddhism
Mahajanpad
Magadh Empire
Maurya Dynasty
Sunga Dynasty
Satyahana dynasty
Kushan Dynasty
Gupta Empire
Reign of
Harshvardhan
Pala Empire
Southern Kingdoms
Pallav
Chalukya
Chola Dynasty
MODERN
MEDIEVAL
Delhi Sultanate
Trade Initiation of British
Vijayanagar
Establishment of British
Empire
Religious
movement in
India
Bhakti & Sufi
Movement
Mughal Dynasty
Advent of
European
Commerce
The
Portuguese
The Dutch
The French
Kingdom of
Great Marathas
in India Company in
1600 Ad
India under British Rule
before 1857
Indian Rebellion against
British in 1857 (Sepoy
Mutiny)
Freedom Struggle of
India
Major Events of Indian
Freedom struggle
Rowlatt Act (1919)
Jallianwala Bagh
Massacre(1919)
Chauri Chaura
Incident(1922)
Non Cooperation
Movement(1920-22)
Civil Disobedience
Movement or
Satyagraha(1930)
Quit-India Movement
(1942)
Azad Hind Fauz (1943)
Partition of India and
formation of a new
country Pakistan
(1947)
India got
Independence(1947)
End of Drafting of
Indian Constitution on
26 November 1949
The Indian
Constitution came into
effect on 26th Jan,
1950
B-189
History
ANCIENT INDIA
Pre Historic Ages
Stone Age
x Pre - historic period is divided
into three sections- Stone age,
Bronze age and Iron age
x Stone age is divided into three
periods i.e., Palaeolithic Age,
Mesolithic Age and Neolithic Age.
x Lower Palaeolithic Age covers
the greater part of the Ice Age.
x Its people used to eat fruits, birds
and raw animal flesh etc.
x The tools were usually made of
hard rock.
x In Middle Palaeolithic age a bit
change occurred in the shape of
tools made of stones or bones.
x In Upper Palaeolithic age,
human lived as nomadic hunter
gatherers.
x Mesolithic
Age
was
an
intermediate stage in the stone
age. It ended with the introduction
of agriculture.
x Neolithic age was an age of
polished tool culture.
x Tool making became an
important profession and a
variety of polished tools were
manufactured.
Bronze Age
It began with the development of
Indus valley civilization around 3000
BC and continued up to 1300 BC.
x People started using weapons
and agricultural tools made of
Bronze, an alloy of copper and
tin.
x It had opened the trade networks
of Mesopotamia civilization to
reach out in various directions.
x The age came to an end primarily
because of the fact that the metals
used as alloy in manufacturing
bronze were not very common
and widely found. More over the
expenses of making bronze were
high at that time.
Iron Age
x
x
x
They learnt the art of pottery

and their pots were well made
and decorated with paintings.
They discovered the art of
producing fire by the friction of
stones and the wheel was also an
important discovery of this age.
It was the last principal period

among the three-age system of
prehistoric societies, preceded by
the Bronze age.
The development of this era
was due to the fact that people
started using weapons and tools
made by iron marked by other
prominent changes in the society
such as agricultural practices,
religious belief and inclinations
towards art.
The age began in the 6th century
BCE in northern Europe and 8th
century BCE in central Europe
B-190
History
followed by12th century BCE in

the ancient Near East, ancient
Iran, ancient India, and ancient
Greece.
In India the late Harappan
Culture was marked with the
Iron Age archaeological cultures
of India with emphasis given on
the Painted Grey Ware culture
(1200 to 600 BCE) and the
Northern Black Polished Ware

(700 to 200 BCE).
Indus Valley Civilization

Indus Valley Civilization was the most ancient urban civilization in this world
which flourished on the bank of Indus River during Bronze Age Period. The
important cities under this civilizations were given below.
IMPORTANT SITES
Name of
Sites
Harappa
Year of Excavators Region/River

Excavation
1921
Daya Ram Montgomery
Sahni
district of
Punjab (Now
in Pak) on the
left bank of
Ravi
Mohenjodaro 1922
Chanhu-daro 1931
Features
1. City followed grid planning
2. Row of six granaries
3. Only place having evidences
of coffin burial
4. Evidence of fractional
burial and coffin burial
5. Cemetery-H of alien people.
1. City followed grid planning

Larkana
district in Sind 2. A large granary and Great
Bath, a college
on the right
bank of Indus 3. Human skeletons showing
invasiona and massacre.
(Now in Pak)
4. Evidence of Horse come
from superficial level.
5. A piece of woven cotton
alongwith spindle whorls
and needles
6. Town was flooded more
then seven times.
N. Gopal Situtated in
1. The city has no citadal
2. Famous for bead makers
Majumdar, Sind on the
shop
Mackey
bank of Indus
3. A small pot, possibly an
inkpot
4. Foot prints of a dog chasing
a cat
5. Three different cultural layers,
Indus, Jhukar and Jhangar
R.D.
Banarjee
B-191
History
Kalibangan
1953
Lothal
1953
Banwali
1974
Amri
1935
Dholavira
1985-90
Rangpur
1953
Ropar
1953
Alamgirpur
1958
A. Ghosh
Situated in
1. Shows both Pre Harappan
Rajasthan on
and Harappan phase
the Bank of
2. Evidence of furrowed land
Ghaggar
3. Evidence of seven fire
altars and camel bones
4. Many houses had their
own well
5. Kalibangan stand for black
bangles
6. Evidence of wooden furrow
S.R. Rao Situated in
1. A titled floor which bears
Gujarat on
intersecting design of
Bhogava river
circles
near Gulf of 2. Remains of rice husk
Cambay
3. Evidence of horse from a
terracotta figurine
4. A ship designed on a seal
5. Beads & trade ports
6. An instrument for measuring
angles,pointing to modern day
compass
R.S. Bisht Situated in
1. Shows both Pre-Harappan
and Harppan phase
Hissar district
of Haryana
2. Good quantity of barley
found here
N.G.
Situated in
1. Evidence of antelope
Majumdar Sind on the
bank of Indus
R.S. Bisht Situated in
1. Seven cultural stages
Gujarat in
2. Largest site
Rann of
3. Three party of city
Kutch
4. Unique water management
M.S. Vats, Situated on
1. Rice was cultivated
B.B. Lal & the bank of
S.R. Rao Mahar in
Gujarat
Y.D.
Situated in
1. Evidence of burying a dog
below the human bural
Sharma
Punjab of
the banks of 2. One example of rectangular
Sutlej
mudbrick chamber was
noticed
3. Five fold cultures - Harappan,
PGW, NBP, Kushana - Gupta
and Medieval
Y . D . Situated on
1. The impression of cloth on
a trough is discovered
Sharma
Hindon in
2. Usually considered to be
Ghaziabad
the eastern boundary of
the Indus culture
B-192
History
Early Vedic period/ Aryan

(c. 1500500 BCE)
x
x
x
The earliest specimen of IndoEuropean language is Rig Veda.

Aryans were the people who
spoke Indo-European languages
basically belonging to Central
Asia, migrated to India.
They settled themselves in Sapta
Sindhu the land of seven rivers
in north-western region of India
which included Kubha river of
Afghanistan along with Indus
and its five tributaries.
According to the oldest Vedic
literature (Rig Veda) the Aryan
king came into conflict with
Dasa (branch of early Aryans)
and Dasyus (original inhabitants
of the country). They were soft
to Dasas but strongly hostile to
Dasyus.
Gradually the region came to be
known as Bharatavarsha named
after the tribe Bharata. This clan
consists of 5 Aryan chiefs and
5 non-Aryan chiefs. Dasrajna
Yudha or Battle of ten Kings has
been mentioned in hymns of Rig
Veda.
The battle of ten kings was
between Sudas, Bharata king
of Tritsu family (belonging to
Aryan clan) and ten well-know
tribes ---Puru, Yadu, Turvasa,
Anu, Druhyu, Alina, Parktha,
Bhalanas, Shiva and Vishanin.
The battle was fought on the
x
x
x
bank of river Parusni, identical

to river Ravi and was won by
Bharatas.
Kurus were the ruling tribe which
was formed after this battle,
when Bharatas joined hands
with Purus (most important tribe
among defeated tribes).
Samgrama meant that gram
clashed with one another and
caused war.
The Aryans were pastoral people
and fought most of the war for
it. Rig Veda is gavisihthi or
search for cows as they were the
most important form of wealth.
The concept of women slave
was most common. Women and
cows were gifted to the priests in
those days.
Voluntary offering to the chief
was known as bali.
Two priests who played important
role during this time were
Vasishtha and Vishvamitra.
The people of Vedic period were
theists. Vedic literature shows
the existence of god and some
invincible powers. Atharvaveda
time or Kala has been described
as the originator of everything.
Vedic people worshipped many
gods not out of fear but for
gaining their favours. The
religion of the Vedic Aryan
worshipped nature with one in
many concepts.
Indra (rain god) was important
as he played role of a warlord.
250 hymns were devoted to him.
Agni (fire god) was devoted 200
hymns. Varuna, Soma (plant
god), female divinities like Aditi
and Usha were also worshipprd
but were not given importance as
the male gods.
B-193
History
x
The administrative machinery

worked under tribal chief called
as Rajans. Clan based assemblies
were found such as sabha,
samiti, vidatha, gana. Saba and
samiti were most important to
the chief as the places of wining
support. Women attended sabha
and vidatha.
Social structure of the society was
based on the kinship. Common
term for nephew, grandson and
cousin was naptri.
x
x
x
Jainism
x
Later Vedic Period

x
The hymns or mantras were

known as Samhitas. Rig Veda
text were tune and its modified
collection was known as Sama
Veda Samhita. Two other
collections were added in Sama
Veda during post Rig Vedic time.
These were The Yajur Veda
Samhita and the Atharva Veda
Samhita.
x
x
Later Vedic Period

Rig Veda contained 1017 hymns
and was divided into ten
mandalas. The first and tenth
hymns are said to be added later
as their language differ from
other eight mandalas. Its the
tenth mandala which explains
the four varnas.
Sama Veda consist of 1603 verses
and after 99 all the rest have been
borrowed from Rig Vedas.
Yajur Veda Samhita contains not

only hymns but also rituals which
have to accompany their recitation.
Atharva Veda Samhita contains
charms and spells to ward off
evil and diseases.
All these were complied in the
upper Ganga basin in circa 1000600 B.C.
x
x
x
x
Mahavira (540-468 B.C.) was

born in Kundagrama village, of
Muzzafarpur, Bihar. He belonged
to Jnatrika clan and Trishal clan
from his fathers and mothers side
respectively. At the age of 30 he
gave up his crown and became an
ascetic. He attained the supreme
knowledge after thirteenth year of
his asceticism outside the town
of Jrimbhikgrama. Then on he
was called as Jaina or Jitendriya
(one who conquered his senses),
Nragrantha (free from all bonds)
and Mahavira (the brave). His
teaching included:
He advocated an austere and simple
life with the aim of Kaivalya.
He believed that the universe was
the product of nature outcome
of cause and effect; Karma and
transmigration of soul. Atma
(soul) is eternal and is born and
reborn. Ultimate aim of the jiva
(conscious) should be getting rid
of the birth cycle.
He laid great stress on equality.
Five vows includes: Ahimsa
(non-violence), Satya, Asateya
(non-stealing), Aparigraha (nonpossession) and Brahmacharya.
Jains devotees were categorized as
a) Tirthankara b) Arhat c) Acharya
d) Upadhyaya and e) Sadhu.
There are two sect of Jainism:
Digambara and Shvetambara.
B-194
History
During first century A.D. image of
Buddha was developed in Greek and
Indian form which created a new
form of art called as Gandhara Art.
Buddhism
Gautama Buddha was the founder
of Buddhism. He was a prince in the
kingdom of Kapilavastu in 563 B.C.
At the age of 29 he left his home in
search of enlightenment, which he
attained at the age of 35 at Bodh Gaya
under the peepal tree. He delivered
his first sermon at Sarnath, Banaras.
He passed away at the age of 80 (483
B.C.) at Kushinaga. He recommended
an eight fold path (ashtangika marga)
which included right observation, right
determination, right speech, right
action, right livelihood, right exercise,
right memory and right meditation.
Mahajanapadas
During the age of Buddha whole of
northern territory especially north
of Vindyan was divided into sixteen
states called Sodasha Mahajanapadas
either monarchical or republican
in character. The kingdoms of
Magadh, Koshala, Vatsa and Avanti
were considered powerful. Buddhist
literature Anguttara Nikaya listed
them as:
Mahajanapadas
Capital
Gandhara
Taxila
Present place
A part of Afghanistan
Kamboja
Rajauri
Part of Kashmir and Afghanistan
Asmaka
Vatsa
Avanti
Surasena
Chedi
Malla
Kurus
Matasya
Vajjis
Anga
Kashi
Kosala
Magadha
Panchala
Potana
Kaushambi
Ujjain
Mathura
Shuktimati
Kushinara, Pawa
Hstinapur/Indraprashta
Virat Nagari
Vaishali
Champa
Banaras
Shravasti
Girivraja/Rajgriha
Ahichhatra/Kampilya
Godavari Valley
Allahabad
Malwa and a part of M.P
Mathura in U.P
Bundelkhand in M.P
Eastern U.P
Delhi and Meerut
Jaipur and Alwar
North Bihar
Bhagalpur and Monghyr in Bihar
Banaras
Oudh in U.P
Patna and Gaya in Bihar
Rohilkhand in U.P
B-195
History
Magadha Empire
Magadha roughly represents the
present Patna and Gaya districts of
Bihar. It was situated between the
Ganga (north), Son (west), Vindhyan
range (south) and Champa (east). Its
earliest capital was Girivraja (Now
Rajagriha). King Bimbisara was the
founder of this empire.
Three dynasties ruled over Magadha
are as follow:
x The Haryanaka Dynasty (544412 BC) : Bimbisara was the first
ruler (544 B.C.-492 B.C.) and
founder of Haryanka dynasty.
He was contemporary to Buddha
and located his capital at Rajgir
(Girivraja). He strengthened his
empire by conquest and aggression
even using matrimonial alliances
for this purpose. He had three
wives: daughter of the king Kosala,
Chellana (Lichhavi Princess) and
daughter of the chief of the Madra
clan of Punjab. Bimbisara sent Jivaka
to Ujjain for the treatment of King
Pradyota, (king of Avanti). He was
killed and succeeded by his son
Ajatasatru. He built the fort upon the
confluence of the Ganga and Son
at Patna. He shifted his capital from
the Rajgir to Pataliputra. Ajatasatru
was killed by his son Udayin.
x Shishunaga Dynasty (412-344 BC) :
The last Haryanka ruler, Nagadasaka
killed by his courtier Shishunaga in
430 B.C. thus becoming the king and
founded Shishunaga dynasty. He
was succeeded by his son Kalashoka
who organized the second Buddhist
Council at Vaishali in 383 B.C. The
last ruler of Shishunaga dynasty
was Nandivardhan.
Nanda Dynasty (344-321 BC):

Mahapadma Nanda established
the Nanda dynasty. They had a
huge army of 2, 00,000 infantry,
60,000 cavalry and 2,000 war
chariots and 6,000 war elephants.
Dhanananda was the last ruler of
this dynasty. He was contemporary
of Alexander, who invaded India
in 326 B.C. during his reign.
Mauryan Empire (322185 B.C)

Rulers of Mauryan Dynasty:
Chandragupta Maurya (322 BC-298 BC);
Bindusara (298 BC-272 BC); Ashoka
(274 BC-232 BC) Dasaratha (232 BC-224
BC); Samprati (224 BC-215 BC) Salisuka
(215 BC-202 BC); Devavarman (202
BC-195 BC); Satadhanvan (195 BC187 BC); Brihadatha (187 BC-185 BC).
x Chandragupta Maurya defeated
Dhanananda with the help of
Chanakya.
x Greek and Latin name of
Chandragupta was Sandracottos
or ndracottus.
x Megasthenes was the ambassador
sent by Seleucus.
x Chandragupta Maurya was
succeeded by his son Bindusara.
Greek sources refer him as
Amitrochates or amitraghata
(destroyer of foes) in Sanskrit.
x Ashoka was the son of Bindusara,
who fought the battle of Kalinga in
261B.C. The scene of mass death
of battle altered his mind and thus
became the follower of Buddhism.
Ashok Stambh at sarnath was
adopted as national emblem of
India. Ashoka built Dhamek
Stupa (Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh),
Bharhut stupa (Madhya Pradesh),
Mahabodhi Temple (Bihar).
x Last Mauryan King was Brihadratha
(Killed by his general Pushyamitra).
Pushyamitra founded Sunga Dynasty.
B-196
Sunga Dynasty (185 to 73 B.C.)

Rulers of Sunga Dynasty: Pushyamitra
Sunga, Agnimitra, Vasujyeshtha,
Vasumitra, Andhraka Pulindaka,
Ghosha, Vajramitra, Bhagabhadra,
Devabhuti.
x Pushyamitra Sunga was the
senapati of last king of Mauryan
Empire Brihadratha. He killed
Brihadratha and founded the
Sunga dynasty in 185 B.C. The
kingdom extended upto eastern
Punjab.
History
rivers. Most powerful king of
the dynasty was Gautamiputra
Satakarni (A.D. 106-130). He
defeated the Sakas, Yavanas (Greeks)
and Pahlavas (Parithans).
Kushan dynasty (30375 AD)

Kanishka was the greatest ruler of this
dynasty and is known for his military
powers. The Capital of Kushans is
Purushpura (Peshawar). Kanishka
is considered to have conflicted with
the Pataliputra. He was a patron
of Buddhism and convened the 4th
Buddhist council in the Kundalvana
of Kashmir in 78 AD. Scholars in
the Court of Kanishka were Parsva,
Vasumitra, Asvaghosa, Nagarjuna,
Charaka and Mathara. Sushruta who
wrote Sushruta Samhita, has also
been connected to Kanishka.
The Gupta Empire (320-550AD)

x
It was a Magadha dynasty and

its capital was Pataliputra but
later Vidhisha was the capital of
Sunga rulers.
Patanjali (grammarian of Sanskrit)
was patronized by Pushyamitra
Sunga. They performed vedic
sacrifices trying to bring back
Brahmanical way of life.
Other Sunga Rulers are Bhumimitra,
Narayana, Susarman. Susarman
was put to death by Satavahana
ruler.
They were succeeded by Kanva
dynasty: Vasudeva Kanva was
the founder of Kanva dynasty.
He was a Brahmin and follower
of lord Vishnu.
Satvahana dynasty (167196 AD)

Simuka was the founder of this
dynasty. It was situated between
the region of Krishna and Godavari
This period is known as Golden Era

x Chandragupta I (319-335 AD)
was the founder and an important
ruler of the Gupta dynasty.
He married to Kumaradevi
princess of lichchhavi in order to
strengthen his position.
x Samudragupta (335-380 A.D.)
expanded the kingdom as he
was very much delighted in
violence. The poet in his court
Harishena in his works Prayag
and Prashasti have described
glowing account of the military
exploits of the patron. Thus was
known as Indian Napoleon.
B-197
History
x
x
x
Chandragupta II succeeded
Samundragupta. Extended his
empire by marriage alliances and
conquers. He married his daughter
Prabhavati with a Vakataka prince
who belonged to the Brahmana
caste and ruled in central India. He
patronized the famous Nav Ratan.
Kalidasa and Amarasimha were
among them. He conquered western
Malwa and Gujarat, ruled by the
Saka Kshatrapas for about past four
centuries and adopted the title of
Vikramaditya after conquering
Ujjain. Chinese pilgrim Fa-hsien
came to India during his reign.
His son Kumaragupta succeeded
him. Kumaraguptas dominion
suffered severely from the invasion
of Huna Hordes, all over North
India. Skandagupta son of
Kumaragupt defeated Pushyamitra
who became powerful during
Kumaragupta time. He also
defeated the White Hunas.
Nalanda University was built by
Kumargupt.
The great Mathematician Aryabhata
lived during this period. He
discovered the number 0 and
value of Pi. He wrote Aryabhatiya
and Suryasiddhanta.
Poets Kalidasa, Dandi, Visakhadatta,
Shudraka, and Bharavi, all belonged
to the Gupta Age.
Tamralipti, a port in Bengal ,
was an important trade centre
during Gupta period
The empire was divided into
divisions: bhuktis (under the
charge of an uparika) and vishayas
(Districts) under the charge of
vishyapati.
Harshavardhana (606-647 A.D.)

x
Fall of Guptas and Humu invasion

left northern India in a disorder
and chaotic situation. It gave rise to
small kingdoms and Thaneswar, near
Kurukshetra under the leadership
of Prabhakarvardhana and his son
Harsha.
He made Kanauj his capital
and his kingdom spread over
northern India except Kashmir.
Banabhatta was a poet in his court
who wrote Harshacharita describing
early history of his reign.
Chinese pilgrim Hsuan Tsang
who visited India during his
reign has thrown great deal
of light on the administrative,
political and social life of that
time. He spent his six years of
life in India (606-612 A.D.).
Harsha himself wrote the Ratnavali,
Naganandam and Priyadarshika
plays in Sanskrit.
The Pala Empire (7501174

B.C.) Golden era of Bengal
It was Buddhist dynasty from

Bengal founded by Gopala I. The
empire reached its peak under
Dharmapala and Devapala.
Dharmapala conquered Kanauj
and extended his sway up to the
farthest limits of India in the
northwest.
B-198
History
Palas were followers of the

Mahayana and Tantric schools of
Buddhism, they also patronised
Shaivism and Vaishnavism.
Dharmapala founded the
Vikramashila and revived Nalanda.
Nalanda reached its height under
the patronage of the Pala Empire.
The Palas also built many viharas.
They maintained close cultural and
commercial ties with countries of
Southeast Asia and Tibet. Sea trade
added greatly to the prosperity of the
Pala kingdom. The Arab merchant
Suleiman notes the enormity of the
Pala army in his memoirs.
Southern Kingdoms
x
x
x
The Pallavas of Kanchi, the

Chalukyas of Badami and the
Pandyas of Madurai emerged as
powerful states in southern India
in the beginning of seven century.
Pallavas constructed temples of
Shiva and Vishnu in Tamil Nadu.
Epigraphs found in Andhra and
Karnataka between second and
third century B.C. were mostly
written in Prakrit but around 400
A.D. Sanskrit became official
language.
Pallavas ruled over southern Andhra
and northern Tamil Nadu. Made
Kanchi their capital identical to
present Kanchipuram and made it
a city of temple and vedic learning.
The Chalukyas setup their sovereign

state at Vatapi (modern Bijapur
district). Pulakesin I (543-567
A.D.) established this dynasty
and Pulakesin II (608-647) was
greatest of all rulers.
Well known Kasivisvesvara Temple
at Lakkundi, the Mallikarjuna
Temple at Kuruvatti, the Kallesvara
Temple at Bagali and the Mahadeva
Temple at Itagi were built during
Chalukyas reign.
The Pallavas and Chalukyas were
in conflict during Pulakesin II.
Narasimhavarman captured his
capital during their second clash
between the two. Narasimhavarman
then assumed the title of vatapikonda
(conquer of Vatapi).
Chola Dynasty
Vijayalaya was the founder of Chola
Dynasty. Most powerful kings of
Chola Dynasty was Rajaraja (9851014) and his son, Rajendra I.
Rajendra I founded a new capital
of Gangai Kondacholapuram. He
defeated the kings of Sumatra in
a naval campaign and annexed a
part of Sumarata kingdom to his
kingdom. Rajendra Chola III was
the last king of the dynasty. Under
the Cholas, the South India reached
new heights of excellence in art,
religion and literature.
MEDIEVAL HISTORY
Delhi Sultanate
Delhi sultanate begins with Turkish invasion in India by Muhammad Ghori
in1173 to 1202. He nominated his faithful slave Qutubbudin Aibak as the
governor of the newly possessed region called India. During this period
Delhi became the centre of Turkish and Afghan Power.
B-199
History
Dynasty
Sultan / Agent
Event Highlights
x Construction of world
Mamluk x Qutb-ud-din Aibak (12061210)
famous monument Qutub
x Aram Shah (12101211)
(1193x Shams ud din Iltutmish (1211 Minar by Qutb-ud-din
1290)
Aibak and finished by
1236),
his successors. They have
x Rukn ud din Firuz (1236)
x Raziyyat-ud-din Sultana (1236 also attacked temples of
Ajmer, Samana, Kuhram,
1240)
x Muiz ud din Bahram (12401242)
Delhi, Kol, Benaras
x Alaud din Masud (12421246),
x Nasir uddin Mahmud (12461266),
x Ghiyas uddin Balban (12661286),
x Muiz uddin Qaiqabad (12861290),
x Jalal ud din Firuz Khilji (1290 x Known for their cruelty
as they levied taxes on
1296)
the defeated community.
x Alauddin Khilji (12961316)
x Umar Khan Khilji (1316)
During the period of
x Qutb ud din Mubarak Shah (1316- Alauddin Khilji the
famous
Koh-i-noor
1320)
x Khusro Khan (1320)
Diamond of Warangal
was looted somewhere
around 1310
Tughluq x Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq (1320- x Geographically the largest
(13201325)
dynasty; Muhammad
1395)
x Muhammad bin Tughluq (1325- bin Tughluq one of the
1351)
powerful sultans changed
x Mahmud Ibn Muhammad (March the capital from Delhi
1351)
to Daulatabad (present
x Firuz Shah Tughluq (13511388)
Deogir in Maharashtra)
x Ghiyas-ud-Din Tughlaq II (1388 to rule the empire more
1389)
proficiently thus ordered
x Abu Bakr Shah (13891390)
for forceful migration of
x Nasir ud din Muhammad Shah III common masses. Though
(13901393)
a good idea but he failed
x Sikander Shah I (March-April 1393) to execute.
x Nasir-ud-Din
Mahmud
Shah x Secondly his ideas to
Tughluq (13931413)
introduce bronze coin
x Nasir-ud-din Nusrat Shah Tughluq instead of silver coin also
failed as the bronze coins
(13941414),
were easy to forge
Sayyid
x Khizr Khan (14141421)
x The vast Tughlaq dynasty
(1400x Mubarak Shah (14211434)
shrunk within 10 miles of
1442)
x Muhammad Shah (14341445)
Delhi during this period.
x Alam Shah (14451451)
Khilji
(12901320)
B-200
Lodi
(14571518)
History
x
x
x
Bahlul Lodi (14511489)

Sikandar Lodi (14891517)
Ibrahim Lodi (15171526),
x The dynasty had fought

one of the greatest
battles in India- Battle
of Panipat in 1526 with
Babur who was invited
by Daulat Khan Lodi
to enter India and at the
end Ibrahim Lodi lost
the battle
Vijayanagara Empire
Dynasty
Emperors
Sangama x Harihara Raya I(13361356)
Dynasty x Bukka Raya I (13561377)
x Harihara Raya II (13771404)
x Virupaksha Raya (14041405)
x Bukka Raya II (14051406)
x Deva Raya I (14061422)
x Ramachandra Raya(1422)
x Vira Vijaya Bukka Raya
(14221424)
x Deva Raya II (14241446)
x Mallikarjuna Raya (1446
1465)
x Virupaksha Raya II (1465
1485)
x Praudha Raya(1485)
x Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya
Saluva
(14851491)
Dynasty
x Thimma Bhupala(1491)
x Narasimha Raya II(1491
1505)
Tuluva
Dynasty
Aravidu
Dynasty
Important Highlights
x The rise of Vijayanagar dynasty
was the result of political and
cultural movement against the
Tughlaqs.
x Presumably Harihar I and
Bukka I were the founders
of this dynasty.
x This dynasty had to face the
invasion from Bhamani Sultan
Ahmed Lin.
x The kings of this dynasty were
generous and worked for the
social welfare of the people.
x Some of the kings were great
patronage of literature.
x The Saluva started ruling soon

after Saluva Narasimha had
a fight with the Sambetas of
Peranipadu and the Paligers of
Ummattur but they couldnt
sustain power for a very long
period
x Tuluva Narasa Nayaka (1491 x Founded by Tuluva Narasa
1503)
Nayak, the third Hindu
x Vira Narasimha Raya
dynasty of Vijayanagar Empire
(15031509)
seemed to be the most powerful
x Krishna Deva Raya (1509 dynasties.
1529)
x Krishan Deva Raya the
x Achyuta Deva Raya (1529 most powerful king of this
1542)
dynasty.
x Venkata I
1542
x Believed to be the golden
x Sadasiva Raya (15421570)
period of Telugu literature
x Worshipped Nagaraja Vasuki
hence called as Nagavanshis
B-201
History
x Aliya Rama Raya 15421565 x The last dynasty of Vijayanagar

x Tirumala Deva Raya 1565 empire founded by Tirumal
Deva Raya
1572
x The battle of Raksa Tangadi
x Sriranga I
15721586
happened hence the Aravidu
x Venkata II
15861614
dynasty as well as Vijayanagar
x Sriranga II
1614
empire came to an end by the
x Rama Deva Raya 16171632
combined forces of Bijapur
x Venkata III
16321642
muslims
x Sriranga III
Religious Movement
During fifteenth and sixteenth century
religious movements have emerged
in India so as to liberate people
from dogmatic beliefs, ritualism,
caste and communal hatred etc.
Two major movements that carried
out juxtaposing by both Hindu and
Muslim communities were Bhakti
and Sufi Movement.
x
x
x
x
Bhakti Movement
x
x
x
x
x
x
Bhakti means personal devotion

to God. It stresses the Union of
the individual with God.
Bhakti movement originated in
South India between the 15th and
the 17th centuries AD.
The Nayanars, who worshipped
Siva, and the Alwars, who
worshipped Vishnu, preached the
idea of Bhakti
Saints like Sankara, Ramanuja
and Madhwa gave their concepts
of God and the individual soul.
Teachings of Ramanuja were
based on the Upanishads and
Bhagwad Gita.
Ramananda was disciple of
Ramunaja. He was the first
reformer to preach in Hindi.
Kabir was an ardent disciple of
Ramananda. He wanted unity
between the Hindus and the
Muslims
He preached that both the Hindus
and the Muslims are the children
of a single God.
x
x
The devotees of Kabir were

known as Kabir Panthis.
Namdeva was a waterman by
birth. He composed beautiful
hymns in Marathi.
Nanak was the founder of the
Sikh religion.
Nanaks teachings were in
the form of verses. They were
collected in a book called the Adi
Granth.
Later Adi Grantham was written
in a script called Gurmukhi.
Chaitaniya, a great devotee of
Lord Krishna, was a saint from
Bengal.
Meerabai was a Rajput princess.
She married the Rana of Mewar.
She was a pious devotee of Lord
Krishna.
Chatrapati Shivaji, the great
Maratha ruler, was a follower of
Ramdas.
Tukaram was a saint who lived
in Maharashtra. He composed
a large number of verses called
Abhangas
Tulsidas composed the famous
Ramcharitamanas in Hindi,
expounding the various aspects
of Hindu dharma.
Surdas was a devotee of Lord
Krishna and Radha. His works
include Sursagar, Sahitya Ratna
and Sur Sarawali.
Dadu Dayal was a disciple of
Kabir. His followers were known
as Dadu Panthis.
B-202
History
Eknath was a devotee of Vithoba.

He wrote commentary on verses
of the Bhagavad Gita.
The prominent sufi saints were

Khwaja Nizamuddin Aulia, Ganje-Shakar Fariduddin, Qutubuddin
Bakhtiyar Kaki and Hamuddin
Nagori .
Hazrat Nizam-ud-Din was the
7KH6X0RYHPHQW
x Sufism is basically a religion

x
based on the truth of life. The

mystics of Islam are called Sufis.
The founders of the most
important Sufi lineage Chisti,
Suhrawardi, Qadiri, Naqshbandi
originally came from central and
west Asia.
disciple of Fariduddin Ganj-iShakkar.
Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki
was the disciple and the spiritual

successor of Moinuddin Chishti.
MUGHAL DYNASTY
Sultans
Babur
(1526-1530)
Humayun
(1530-1556)
Akbar
(1556-1605)
Important accomplishments
x Babur won Delhi sultanate by defeating the last king
of Lodhi dynasty.
x Two major battles won by Babur were Battle of Panipat
I (April 1526) and Khanwa Battle (March 1527)
x Continued to conquer places in the coming years and
his territory extended almost up to the northern part
of India.
x Came to power soon after the death of his father
Babur in 1530.
x Forcefully driven to Afghanistan by the Muslim rebel
Sher Shah and returned to India after twelve years.
x Encouraged Persian artists for their fine arts; brought
two of them from the school of Bihzad to teach Akbar,
the lessons of drawing.
x Died accidentally by falling down from stone stair case
x Ruled from 1555 till his death.
x His power influenced entire country because of the
dominance of Mughal military, politics, culture and
economy.
x Was quite different from other mughal emperors
in terms of his liberal behaviour with the society,
religious practices and administrative policies
x Abolished pilgrimage tax which the common people
had to pay while visiting to pilgrim spots
x Rajputs were made equal partners in government.
x Driven by the thought of religious equality,
formulated his own religion Din-i-Ilahi which focused
on universal harmony.
x His great passion about knowledge made him appoint
intellectual people in his court and name them as Navratna.
B-203
History
Jahangir
(1605-1627)
Shahjahan
(1628-1658)
Aurangzeb
(1658-1707)
x The only heir survived and ruled the mughal dynasty

after Akbar.
x First military expedition was against Rana Amar
Singh, son of Rana Pratap of Mewar.
x Art, literature, and architecture prospered under
Jahangirs rule, and the Mughal gardens in Srinagar
remain an enduring testimony to his artistic taste.
x The fifth ruler of Mughal dynasty and famous for his
great administration
x Not liberal for other religions like Akbar, ordered to
abolish the churches and temples of the then society.
x As a great lover of art and culture took interest in the
construction and architecture and the master piece is
Taj Mahal built in the memory of his beloved wife
Mumtaz Mahal
x Started ruling the dynasty as its sixth emperor.
x Was a ruler with religious orthodoxy and used to
support Islam
x Was not much passionate about art and culture, so
during his tenure only few monuments have been
developed - gateway of the Red Fort and the exquisite
Moti (Pearl) Mosque at Delhi.
x Reintroduced Jaziya i.e. taxation on non-muslims.
Advent of European Commerce

in India
The Portuguese
Vasco de Gama discovered new sea
route to India via coast of South
Africa and reached Calicut coast
on 20th May 1498 and established
factories at Cochin. Successively
Francis co de Almeida reached India
in September 1505 and became the
Portuguese governor in India. He built
a fort and settled there and named
it as Anjadiav. Like him his other
successors continued the same practice
of building forts and expanding their
territory from Malabar port in South
to the northern ports of Gujarat.
The territory of Portugal was based
on the command of the sea and the
possession of ports along the sea coast.
The Dutch
The first Dutch expedition reached
East Indies under the leadership
Cornelius Houtman in the year1565. The
expedition aimed at opening spice roots
to India. However, in between 1595 to
1601 several such expeditions were made
to monopolize the entire spice trade to
Europe with their skill administration
and vigour commercialization.
The French
The very first attempt of the French
community to enter Indian coast was
in the early days of sixteenth century
but they failed to do so due to the
monopoly of Dutch Territory. Later
on they discovered land routes through
Asia minors under the guidance of
Richelieu. They were permitted to sail
to Madagascar and the neighbouring
islands and establish colonies and trade
there.
B-204
History
THE KINGDOM OF THE GREAT MARATHA

Eminent Persons
Notable accomplishments
x Known as the father of Maratha nation,
x Before killing Adilshahi general Afzal Khan in 1647,
he gradually started capturing forts in the region like
Purandar, Rajgad, Torna.
x The guerrilla tactics and brilliant military strategies
was his key to success in every war
Shivaji Bhonsle
x Fought with Jai Singh, general of Aurangzeb in which
(1630-80 A.D)
he lost and arrested in 1666, but soon he escaped and
regained his lost territory
x Assumed the title of Chhatrapati at his elaborate
coronation in 1674.
x Died in 1680 and at that time had control over most of
western Maharashtra and had made Raigad capital.
x Was the first son of Chhatrapati Shivaji and succeeded
his father after his death in the first week of April 1680.
x Gave shelter to Sultan Muhammad Akbar, the fourth
son of Aurangzeb, who sought Sambhajis aid in
winning the Mughal throne from his emperor father.
x During this period Mughals sieged the Maratha fort
Sambhaji
of Ramsej in 1682, but after five months of failed
attempts, including planting explosive mines and
building wooden towers to gain the walls, the Mughal
siege failed.
x Was imprisoned and executed by Aurangzeb, in 1689
x After the execution of Shambhaji, Rajaram, the second
son of Shivaji had taken the charge of Marathas in
1689 but soon died in 1700.
x Tarabai the widow of Rajaram, put her young son
Sambhaji II on the throne after his fathers death,
at the tender age of ten, and continued the fight
Rajaram
against Mughals until the death of Aurangzeb in 1707.
x Sahuji the son of Sambhaji was released from Mughals
captivity in 1707.
x He attacked Tarabai and Sambhaji II from the
throne of Maratha with the help of Peshwa Balaji
Biswanathan and won the battle. Soon had his own
territory.
Sahuji
x Didnt posses a strong affinity towards politics he
settled down in Satara.
History
B-205
x He was appointed as Prime Minister of Sahuji and

assisted him on political issues.
x This was the beginning of another great dynasty in
1718 known as Peshwa dynasty.
x He was died in 1721.
Balaji
Vishwanath
Bajirao
Peshwa I
Balaji Bajirao
(Nanasaheb)
x As the eldest son to his father Balaji Vishwanath,

Bajirao Peshwa I took the charge of Peshwa dynasty
after his death in 1721.
x During his tenure, Pune regained the status of capital
Maratha Kingdom from Raigad.
x In 1734, captured the Malwa territory in the north,
and in 1739, drove out the Portuguese from nearly all
their possessions in the Western Ghats.
x He was died in 1740.
x Succeeded as Peshwa after his father Bajirao Peshwas
Death.
x Fought the third war of Panipat with Ahmad Shah
Abdalli in 1761 but lost the war.
x Was shattered by the loss of his elder son and brother
in the war and died soon after the war ended.
x Assumed the title of Peshwa in 1761.

x His leading achievements included the defeat of
Nizam of Hyderabad, Hyder Ali of Mysore and
Bhosle of Nagpur.
x Defeated Jats and took the hold of Agra and Mathura
in 1769 with the help of Mahadaji Shinde and Nana
Madhav Rao
Phadnis.
x In 1772, died at an early age of 27 years.
x Was a trusted lieutenant of the Peshwa and one of the
three pillars of Maratha Resurrection
x Wiped out the power of Jats of Mathura and during
1772-73 and destroyed the power of Pashtun Rohillas
in Rohilkhand and captured Najibabad.
Mahadaji Shinde x Died of typhoid fever, at his camp at Wanavdi near
Pune on 12 February 1794 while he was at the zenith
of power.
B-206
History
x Was a prominent minister and statesman of the

Maratha Empire during the Peshwa administration in
Pune.
x Handled the Peshwai well and with great unity among
Maratha chiefs.
x The then rising powers have been halted by his great
Nana Phadnavis
efforts and continued to serve the Peshwas until his
death in 1800AD.
MODERN HISTORY
British India (16121947)
In 1617 the British East India
Company was given permission
by Mughal Emperor Jahangir to
trade in India. As a result of three
Carnatic Wars, the British East
India Company gained exclusive
control over the entire Carnatic
region of India. The Anglo-Mysore
Wars (17661799) and later the
Anglo-Maratha Wars (17721818)
led to control of the vast regions of
India. Ahom Kingdom of Northeast India first fell to Burmese
invasion and then to British after
Treaty of Yandabo in 1826. Punjab,
North-West Frontier Province, and
Kashmir were annexed after the
Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849;
however, Kashmir was immediately
sold under the Treaty of Amritsar to
the Dogra Dynasty of Jammu and
thereby became a princely state.
The border dispute between Nepal

and British India, which sharpened
after 1801, had caused the AngloNepalese War of 181416 and
brought the defeated Gurkhas under
British influence. In 1854, Berar was
annexed, and the state of Oudh was
added two years later. Their policy
was sometimes summed up as
Divide and Rule, taking advantage
of the enmity festering between
various princely states and social
and religious groups.
In 1757, Clive was appointed by
the company as its first Governor
of Bengal. In same year Treaty of
Allahabad was concluded by which
the Mughal Emperor granted the
Diwani rights to the English East
India Company. Thus the British
power in India was thoroughly
established.
Governors (17571854)
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B-207
History
Event
First
Carnatic
War (17461748)
Second
Carnatic
War (17491754)
East India Company before 1857

Involved
Consequences
French La Bourdonnais British victory
and British Admiral
Edward Peyton fought
at Negapatam
Nasir Jung aided by x Ended with the Treaty of

France while England Pondicherry in 1754 and Muzafar
aided Muzaffar Jung
Jung became the Nizam.
x Dupleix was replaced by Godeheu
as the French governor.
Third
At Wandiwash (1760) x Defeat of French
Carnatic
Count de Lally French x Treaty of Paris (1763) was signed,
War (1758- commander was defeated which returned Chandernagore
1763)
by British General Sir and Pondichry to France.
Eyre Coote
Battle of
French supported Siraj- x Paved way for British mastery of
Plassey (23 ud-Daula and East Bengal and eventually whole of
June 1757) India Company led by India.
x Rich revenue of Bengal helped
Robert Clive.
British to maintain strong army.
East India Company x Treaty of Allahabad secured
Battle of
Buxar, 22nd led by Hector Munro Diwani Rights for the Company
October,
and Mughal Emperor to collect and manage the revenues
1764
along with the Nawab of real estate.
of Bengal
1781 War
Forces of the Kingdom x Eyre Coote defeated Haider Ali at
of Mysore and Great Port Novo.
Britain.
x British government supreme got
1784, Pitts
Act
control over the companys affair
and its administration.
War 1789
Tipu Sultan and East x Treaty of Seringapatam was
-1792
signed. Tipu had to cede half of
India Company
his territories to English and paid
` 330 lakhs as indemnity.
x Introduced the famous Doctrine
Awadh
Lord Dalhousie
annexation
of Lapse.
1856
The
East India Company and united force of Indian leaders like
rebellion of (Bahadur Shah, Bakt Khan, Begum Hazart Mahal of Avadh,
1857 Sepoy Tanti Tope, Nana Saheb, Azimullah, Rani Lakshmibai,
Mutiny
Kunwar Singh etc.), The revolt marked the end of the East
India Companys rule, now India came under the direct rule
of the British Crown.
B-208
History
SOCIAL AND CULTURAL REFORMS

Date
1815
Person
Event
Raja Rammohan Roy Established Atmiya Sabha. He was
the first Indian to start an agitation for
social, religious and political reforms.
1828
Raja Rammohan Roy Established Brahmo Samaj to preach
monotheism and purify Hinduism.
1839
Debendranath Tagore Founded Tatvabodhini Sabha to
propagate Ram Mohan Roys ideas.
1850
Vidyasagar
Protest against child-marriage and
promoted women education.
1850
Vishnu Shankar
Founded
widow
remarriage
association.
Pundit
Rehnumai Mazdayasan Sabha or
1851
Naoroji Furdonji,
Dadabhai Naoroji and Religious Reform Association.
S.S.Bengalee
1852
Kassondas Mulji
In
Gujarat
advocated
widow
remarriage.
1866
Dadabhai Naoroji
Established East India Association in
London.
1872
Baba Ram Singh
Namdhari Movement originated in
north-west corner of Sikh kingdom. It
was also known as Kuka movement.
23
Mahatma Jyotirao
Formed Satyashodhak Samaj (Society
September, Govindrao Phule
of Seekers of Truth).
1873
1875
Swami Dayanand
Founded Arya Samaj in Bombay.
Saraswathi
Called Vedas to be source of true
knowledge and gave the motto back
to Vedas. Was against idol worship,
child marriage and caste system.
B-209
History
1897
1902
Vivekananda
Founded the Ramakrishna Mission

to carry out humanitarian relief and
social work.
Swami Shradhananda Started Gurukul near Hardwar to
propagate more traditional idea of
education.
THE FREEDOM STRUGGLE TIME LINE

1885
Pherozeshah Mehta, K.T. Telang, Badruddin Tyabji formed

Bombay Presidency Association.
Indian national congress was formed by Allan Octavian Hume
28 Dec.
1885
28-31 Dec. First session of Indian national congress was attended by 72
delegates under the presidency of W.C. Bannerjee.
1885
1896-97
Bal Gangadhar Tilak initiated a no-tax campaign in
Maharashtra.
20 July,
Partition of Bengal order was passed by lord Curzon.
1905
Dec. 1905 Gokhale then the president of Congress condemned the
partition of Bengal and supported Swadeshi and Boycott
movement.
1906
Dadabhai Naoroji became the president of National Congress
and clearly declared their goal to be self-government or Swaraj
like the other colonies.
30 Dec.
All India Muslim League was formed by Aga Khan III and
the founding meeting was hosted by Nawab Sir Khwaja
1906
Salimullah.
1909
The Indian councils Act or Morley-Minto Reform was
announced.
1911
Government announced the withdrawal of Partition of Bengal.
1913
Ghadar Party founded by Punjabi Indians in the United States
and Canada aiming at securing Indias independence.
April, 1915 First session of Hindu Mahasabha was held under the
presidentship of Maharaja of Kasim Bazar.
26 Dec.
Lucknow Pact was signed dealing with the structure of the
government of India and with relation to the Hindu and
1916
Muslim communities.
1917
1918
1919
March,
1919
Satyagraha started by M.K. Ghandhi in Champaran, Bihar.

Edwin Montagu, then the Secretary of State and lord
Chelmsford, the Viceroy produced a scheme of constitutional
reform which was called as the Montague-Chelmsford reforms.
Enactment of the Government of India Act.
Rowlatt Act was passed which enabled government to imprison
people without trial.
B-210
13 April,
1919
History
Unarmed crowd gathered at Jallianwala Bagh to protest

against the arrest of Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew and Dr. Satyapal
was attacked by the British army as commanded by Gerneral
Dyer.
31 August, Khilafat Committee launched a non-cooperation movement.
1920
1 February, M.K. Ghandhi announced mass civil disobedience.
1922
5 Feb. 1922 Protesters participating in the Non-cooperation movement
turned violent, leading to police opening fire in Chauri Chaura.
Congress as a result halted the non-cooperative movement
1925
Communist Party came into existence.
Nov. 1927 Simon headed commission was set up to submit report on
working of Indian constitution established by Government of
India Act, 1919.
17 Nov.
Lala Lajpat Rai died due to the injuries by the beating of local
1928
police during a protest demonstration at Lahore.
Dec. 1928 Gandhi joined back the active politics at Calcutta session.
26 Jan.1930 Was fixed as the first independences day and since then was
celebrated every year up to 1947.
Feb. 1930 Chandra Shakhar Azad was shot dead in a park called Azad
Park at Allahabad, in an encounter with police.
12 March, Dandi March lead by M.K.Ghandhi took place. Together with
1930
78 companions he walked 375 km from Sabarmati Ashram to
Dandi.
6 April,
Gandhi reached Dandi and broke the Salt law.
1930
12 Nov. 1930 First round table conference was held in London, was chaired
by British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald.
5 March,
Gandhi-Irwin Pact was signed between Gandhi and then
1931
viceroy of India Lord Irwin. According to which British
agreed to withdraw all ordinances and end prosecutions and
release all political prisoners.
24 August, Poona Pact was signed between Gandhi and Dr. B.R.
1932
Ambedkar at Yerwada Central Jail.
1935
Government of India Act was passed according to which All
India Federation was established including British India and
Princely States (representative were appointed by the rulers)
forming a bicameral federal legislature.
October,
Gandhi gave an order for a limited satyagraha (for few
1940
individuals only).
8 August, Quit India Movement was launched by M.K.Gandhi.
1942
1945
Congress working committee adopted a resolution to abolish
landlordism.
B-211
History
2 Sept. 1946 Interim government of India was formed the newly elected
Constituent Assembly of India. This Idea was rejected by
Muslim league.
9 Dec. 1946 The Constituent Assembly met for the first time.
INTERIM GOVERNMENT
External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations
Defence
Home (including Information and Broadcasting)
Finance
Posts and Air
Food and Agriculture
Labour
Transport and Railways
Industries and Supplies
Education and Arts
Works, Mines and Power
Commerce
Law
Health
Mountbatten Plan
The Indian Independence Act
1947 also called 3 June Plan or
Mountbatten Plan, declared that
power would be handed over by
15 August 1947. It gave India
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
Jawaharlal Nehru
Baldev Singh
Vallahbhai Patel
Liaquat Ali Khan
Abdur Rab Nishtar
Rajendra Parsad
Jagjivan Ram
M. Asaf Ali
John Matthai
C. Rajgopalacharia
C.H. Babha
I.I. Chundrigar
Jogindar Nath Mandal
Ghazanfar Ali Khan
and Pakistan a dominion status.

The Act received the royal assent
on 18 July 1947. The boundaries
between the two dominion states
were determined by a Boundary
Commission which was headed by
Sir Cyril Radcliff.
List of Presidents of the Party

C. Vijayaraghavachariar
1920
Nagpur
Hakim Ajmal Khan
1921
Ahmedabad
Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das
1922
Gaya
Mohammad Ali Jouhar
1923
Kakinada
Abul Kalam Azad
1923
Delhi (Special Session)
Mohandas Gandhi
1924
Belgaum
Sarojini Naidu
1925
Kanpur
S. Srinivasa Iyengar
1926
Gauhati
Mukhtar Ahmed Ansari
1927
Madras
Motilal Nehru
1928
Calcutta
Jawaharlal Nehru
1929 & 30 Lahore
Vallabhbhai Patel
1931
Karachi
Madan Mohan Malaviya
1932
Delhi
B-212
History
Madan Mohan Malaviya

Nellie Sengupta
Rajendra Prasad
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Subhas Chandra Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose (resigned)
Rajendra Prasad replaced Bose
after the session.
Abul Kalam Azad
J. B. Kripalani
Pattabhi Sitaraimayya
Purushottam Das Tandon
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
1933
1933
1934 & 35
1936
1936& 37
1938
1939
Calcutta
Calcutta
Bombay
Lucknow
Faizpur
Haripura, Gujarat
Tripuri, Madhya Pradesh
/ Chhatisgadh
194046
1947
1948 & 49
1950
1951 & 52
1953
1954
Ramgarh
Meerut
Jaipur
Nasik
Delhi
Hyderabad
Calcutta
NEWPAPER/JOURNAL NAME
Newspaper/Journal Name
Founder
Bengal Gazette (1780) (Indias First J.K.Hikki
Newspaper)
Kesari
B.G.Tilak
Amrita Bazar Patrika
Sisir Kumar Ghosh and Motilal
Ghosh
Vande Mataram
Aurobindo Ghosh
Kavivachan Sudha
Bhartendu Harishchandra
Rast Goftar(first newspaper in
Dadabhai Naoroji
Gujarati)
Statesman
Robert Knight
Hindu
Vir Raghavacharya and G.S. Aiyar
Yugantar
Bhupendranath Data and Barinder
Kumar Ghosh
Bombay Chronicle
Firoze Shah Mehta
Hindustan
M.M. Malviya
Mooknayak
B.R. Ambedkar
Comrade-1914
Mohammad Ali
Tahzib-ul-Akhlaq
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan
Al-Hilal-1914
Abul Kalam Azad
Al-Balagh
Abul Kalam Azad
B-213
History
Independent
Punjabi
New India(Daily)
Pratap
Motilal Nehru
Lala Lajpat Rai
Annie Besant
Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi
Samvad Kaumudi (Bengali)

Mirat-ul-Akbhar
Young India-1919
Ram Mohan Roy

Ram Mohan Roy (first Persian
Newspaper)
M.K Ghandhi
Harijan-1933
M.K Ghandhi
Hindustan Times
K.M. Pannikar
GREAT TRAVELERS IN INDIAN HISTORY
Megasthenes
Identity: Greek ethnographer ambassador.

Time of Visit to India: during the rule of Chandragupta
Maurya.
Duration of Stay: 302-298 BC.
Contribution: wrote the book Indica.
Identity: a Buddhist Monk who came from China.
Time of Visit to India: reign of Chandragupta II.
Duration of Stay: 405-411 A .
Contribution: wrote Record of Buddhist kingdoms.
Fa Hsien
Husuain-tsang/
Xuanzang
Al-Biruni/
Abu Rayhan
Muhammad
Marco Polo
Identity: Chinese Buddhist monk.

Time of Visit to India: reign of Chandragupta II.
Duration of Stay: 630-645 A .
Contribution: wrote Si-yu-ki or the Records of estern
orld.
Identity: Muslim scholar and polymath from Persia
Time of Visit to India: Came along with Mahmud of
Ghazni.
Duration of Stay: 1024-1030 A
Contribution: wrote Taharikh-al-Hind, about social
religious, political nature of India this time.
Identity: Italian merchant traveler
Time of Visit to India: Came during the Period of
Rudramani evi of Kakatiya ynasty.
Duration of Stay: 1292-1294 A
Contribution: wrote The book of sir Marcopolo,
describing about Indian Economy at that time.
B-214
Ibn Battuta
History
Identity: Traveller of Morocco

Time of Visit to India: Came in India at the reign of
Muhammad bin Tughluq.
Duration of Stay: 1333-1347 AD
Contribution: write Rihla, relating geographical,
social and economical behaviour of this time.
Identity: Russian merchant Traveller
Time of Visit to India: Came in India in Bahmani
Sultanate.
Duration of Stay: 1469-1472
Contribution: The Journey beyond Three Seas.
Nicolo Conti
William
Hawkins
Identity: Ambassador of James II, king of England

Time of Visit to India: Came in India at the reign of
Jahangir, the great mogul along with William finch
came with him.
Duration of Stay: First Visit: 1421 Revisited: 1430
Identity: Italian Traveller
Time of Visit to India: Came during the rule of Devaraya
I of Sangam dynasty of vajay nagar empire.
Duration of Stay: First Visit :1421 Revisited: 1430
Contribution: Author of Voyage aux Indes.
Afanasy Nikitin
Abdur Razzaq
Identity: Persian traveller

Time of Visit to India: Came in India in Bahmani
Sultanate.
Duration of Stay: 1443-1444 AD
B-215
ANCIENT
History
l Mesopotamian Civilization (5000 900 BC)

l Egyptian Civilization (500 30 BC)
l Israel Kingdom (1300 63 BC)
l Greek Civilization (776 388 BC)
MEDIEVAL
l Medieval Europe Civilization

Feudalism
Crusades
l African Civilization
l Mongol Empire Civilization
l Arab civilization
l Renaissance
l Reforms
MODERN
WORLD HISTORY MIND MAP
l Roman Civilization (753 BC - 476 AD)
l Major Revolutions of World

Glorious Revolution
Industrial Revolution
American Revolution
French Revolution
Russian Revolution
l An insight into World Wars
l Major wars of World
Trojan War
Persian War
Peloponnesian War
Punic Wars
Hundred Years War
Russo-Japan War
Vietnam War
Iraq War
B-216
History
ANCIENT HISTORY
MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION
Time Period
Events
5000-3500 BC
The first city built by Sumerian people in southern

Mesopotamia.
3500 BC
Writing started with pictogram based script and took about

a thousand year to be evolved in full cuneiform script
The first akkadian ruler Sargon started to conquer
Sumerian cities
The central city of Ur was built by Ur-Nammu and called
as the third dynasty of Mesopotamian.
Development of Babylonian civilization by king
Hammurabi along Euphrates River.
Kassite came into being in Hammurabis rule in 1750 BC
and categorized into minorities of Mesopotamia.
Northern Mesopotamia is conquered by an Indo-European
ruler called Mittani. He has also conquered Syria and Asia
Minor.
Assyria started to lose its importance due to political
instability engulfing Anatolia, Syria, and the Levant coast.
2300 BC
2112-2095 BC
1792-49 BC
1530 BC
1500 BC
1200 - 900 BC
EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION
Time Period
5000 BC
3500-3000 BC
2650 BC
2575-2465BC
2381-2345BC
2055 BC-c.
1650 BC
1539 BC
1344-1328BC
1336-1327BC
1279-1213BC
728BC
Events
Farming started along the bank of Nile River.
Starting of Pre dynastic period which was characterized by
permanent settlement.
Old kingdom began to flourish which was known to be the
era of dynamic development of Egyptian art.
Pharaoh Khufu built Great pyramid of Giza having a
height of 481 feet.
The Old Kingdom ended during the realm of Unas.
The era of middle kingdom started with reunion of Egypt.
With the expulsion of the Hyksos and reunification of
Egypt, it became the leading power in the Middle East.
The first ever instance of monotheism had been illustrated
by the religious reforms of pharaoh Akhenaton.
The realm of Tutankhamen.
The existence of Ramses Realm when Egypt experienced
the height of its power.
Nubian kings took over the power of Egypt.
History
B-217
639BC
The period of revival started with the expulsion of

Assyrians by Egyptians.
Persians started ruling the Egypt.
Alexander the great conquered Egypt.
A greek-speaking dynasty was established by one of the
generals of Alexander the Great.
the last queen of independent Egypt died and Roman
empire occupied Egypt.
525BC
332BC
305BC
30BC
THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL

Time Period
1300-1200 BC
1050-970BC
970BC
931BC
722BC
620BC
597-582
538BC
164BC
63BC
Events
The land of Canaan occupied by the Israelites
The kingdom was ruled by Soul followed by David
Davids son Solomon became the new king
The kingdom divided into north (Israel) and south(Judah)
parts
The Assyrians destroyed the northern kingdom,
A religious revival took place in southern kingdom of
Judah
The destruction of both Judah and Jerusalem occurred
The Persian king Cyrus repatriated the kings of Judah and
Jerusalem and encouraged them to rebuild the temple in
Jerusalem
The revolution broke out against the Seleucid kings under
the leadership of the Maccabbees brothers by Jews
Judaea was conquered by Romans and the family of Herod
the Great started ruling.
GREEK CIVILIZATION
Time Period
776 BC
750BC
490-479
447BC
431-404
399
338
Events
The first official date of Olympic Games
Greek started planting colonies on the Mediterranean
coast
Athens and Sparta took lead for defending their land
against invasion from the huge Persian Empire
Athenian Empire was at the height of its power
Athens was defeated by Sparta in the Second Peloponnesian
War
Socrates, the famous philosopher of Athens was sentenced
to death as he was questioning conventional ideas
The Greek city-states were defeated by King Phillip II of
Macedon
B-218
History
ROMAN CIVILIZATION
Time Period
753 BC
509BC
390BC
264-241BC
218-202 BC
83-31 BC
27 BC
117AD
312AD
410AD
476AD
Events
Rome was founded
Roman republic was built
Rome was sacked by the Gauls
First Punic War between Carthage and Rome took place
Second Punic War consisting of several small battles took
place where Rome was the ultimate winner
Decline of Roman Republic due to the continuous phase
of civil wars
Augustus established himself as the first of the Roman
emperors
Roman Empire became the largest empire of its time
Constantine the great got converted to Christianity
Goths sacked Roman Empire
The last Roman emperor was thrown out by German
Tribes
MEDIEVAL HISTORY
MEDIEVAL EUROPE CIVILIZATION
Time Period
500-600AD
650-700AD
800AD
850-900AD
900-950AD
1000-1050
1050-1100 AD
1150-1200 AD
1200-1250 AD
1250-1300 AD
Events
x A monastery was built in Italy.
x Christianity was introduced in England.
x The foundation stone of Roman Catholic Church was
laid by Gregory the Great.
History of the English Church and People was written by
Bede
Charlemagne, the King of the Franks, was crowned as
Holy Roman Emperor.
First Russian states founded at Kiev and Novgorod
Viking raids across Western Europe
Medical school set up in Salerno, Italy (1030)
x William of Normandy invaded England and becomes
king
x First Crusade was proclaimed
Construction of the cathedral of Notre Dame
x St Francis of Assisi sets up a monastic order,
emphasizing austerity and compassion
x Rebellion against the king by the Lords of England
as he signed the Magna Carta, accepting to rule
according to law.
Establishment of the Hapsburg dynasty that continued to
rule Austria till 1918
B-219
History
Feudalism was a socio-political hierarchy which started in 8th century AD

in Europe and ended in 14th century AD.
Crusades were the series of military campaign organized under the banner
of the cross so as to recover the holy places of Palestine from Muslim
occupation.
AFRICAN CIVILIZATION
Time Period
830AD
1050-1100AD
1100-1150AD
1200-1250 AD
1375 AD
1465 AD
158891 AD
Events
Ghana Empire was created
Expansion of Almoravid kingdom from Ghana to
southern Spain
Emergence of Zimbabwe as a centre for producing gold
and copper artifacts and long distance trade.
x Christian churches established in Ethiopia
x Kingdom of Mali was established in West Africa, with
Timbuktu as a centre of learning
Gao rebelled against and Songhai started to expand its realm
Songhai conquered Mema and after three years seized
Timbaktu
Songahi was attacked by Moroccan forces with firearms
and they kept on conquering Tondibi, Timbuktu and Gao
one after the other
MONGOL EMPIRE
Time Period
1206 AD
Events
Temjin from the Orkhon Valley received the title Genghis
Khan, and started ruling the unified nomads of Mongolia
homeland
1227 AD
Death of Genghis Khan
12501350 AD Pax Mongolica or stabilization of Mongol empire
1260-1294 AD Fragmentation of Mongol Empire into Ilkhanate Yuan
dynasty, Chagatai Khanate, Golden Horde
1368 AD
Fall of Yuan dynasty
1687 AD
Collapse of Chagatai Khanate
ARAB CIVILIZATION
Time Period
571AD
632AD
13th Century
AD
Events
The great Prophet of Islam, was born in Mecca
With the rise of new religion Islam, the Arab
civilization started expanding its realm
After the death of Mohammad his successors continued
to spred his teachings and were known as Caliphs or
Khalifas
The Islamic Empire came to end with the defeat of
Abbasids by Seljuq Turks
x
x
B-220
History
MODERN HISTORY
Renaissance
The European era between 14 to
17th centuries AD was designated
as the Age of Renaissance generally
known for Revival of Learning.
The Florence city of Italian region
Tuscany was well known as the birth
place of Renaissance.
th
Reformation
Reformation It was a social
movement initiated by Martin
Luther during 16th century in Europe
against Roman Catholic Church. He
started criticizing the selling of self
indulgence of higher authorities
in the church by highlighting the
fact that the Pope had no authority
over the purgatory and there was no
evidence of catholic doctrine of the
merits of the saints in the gospel.
Major Revolutions of Modern

World
Glorious Revolution It was
otherwise known as the Bloodless
Revolution primarily focused on
securing freedom of worship from
Catholics and unifying Whigs and
Tories of Anglican church against
the Roman Catholic ruler James II.
Industrial Revolution It was
the process of change in earning
livelihood by adopting industrial
processes rather than agriculture. It
started during mid 18th century in
Britain with the invention of several
technological aids such as spinning

jenny by James Hargreaves in 1764,
water-powered spinning frame by
Richard Arkwright in 1769, spinning
mule by Samuel Crompton in 1779,
power loom by Edmund Cartwright
in 1785, steam engine by James Watt
in 1769 etc.
American Revolution It was the
mutiny of people leaving in thirteen
colonies of England in North
America in late eighteenth century.
Various factors such as French and
Indian War, stamp act, Townshend
Acts, Boston Massacre, Boston
Tea Party/Intolerable Acts, can be
considered as the triggering fact of
this revolution in 1775-83.
French Revolution It was one of the
greatest revolutions of eighteenth
century which put an end to French
monarchy. It was lasted from 1789
until 1799, and partially carried
forwarded by Napoleon during
the later expansion of the French
Empire
Russian Revolution Based on the
ideology of Marxism, Russian revolution took place in1917 and eventually ended up in creating the Russian
Soviet Union. The prime causes of
these revolutions were the autocratic
rule Czars, inefficient and vigorous
use of power, low living standard
of people in the society, to support
church forcefully.
AN INSIGHT INTO WORLD WARS

Event
Countries
Involved
Duration of
War
World War I
World War II
Germany,
Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, USSR, US,
Bulgaria, Turkey vs. France, Other nations vs. Germany,
Russia, Britain, US, Italy.
Italy, Japan
July 28, 1914 November 11, September 1, 1939
1918
September 2, 1945
B-221
History
Causes
Immediate
Murder of Austrian King
Archduke
Ferdinand
at
Serajevo by a Serbian which
resulted in strong hostility
between Austria-Hungary and
Serbia.
Associated
x Militarism
x Nationalism or Competitive
Patriotism
x Economic Imperialism
x Anglo-German Rivalry and
the charter of William II
x Lack
of
International
Organization
Consequences x End of the German,
Russian, Ottoman and
Austro-Hungarian empires
x Formation of new countries
in Europe and the Middle
East.
x Transfer
of
German
colonies and regions of the
former Ottoman Empire to
other powers
x Establishment of the League
of Nations
Immediate
Germanys
ultimatum
and
Polands rejection for surrender of
Port Dazing.
Refusal of Poland to establish rail
link between Germany and West
Prussia through Polish corridor
Associated
x The treaty of Versailles (1919)
x Nationalist
movement
of
Germany & Italy.
x Ideological conflict between
Dictatorship and Democracy
x Inefficiency of League of Nation
x Colonial and commercial rivalry
x Aggressiveness of Berlin-Rome
Tokyo axis
x Collapse of Nazi Germany
x Fall of Japanese and Italian
Empires
x Creation of the United Nations
x Emergence of the United
States
and
the
Soviet
Union as superpowers
x Beginning of the Cold War
Major Wars in History

Trojan War:
x Participants: City of Troy Vs City of Sparta
x Duration of War: 10 years
x Causes of War: The war resulted due to the kidnapping of Queen Helen
from her husband, the king of Sparta by the Trojan Prince
x Outcome of war: The war ended with victory of Greek and destruction
of Troy.
Persian War
x
x
x
Participants: Greek vs. Persia

Duration of War: 499 BC449 BC
Causes of War: The king of Persia, Darius I attacked Athens when the
series of Greeek uprisings were suppressed.
x Outcome of war: The Greek made its victory against Persia,
Peloponnesian War:
x Participants: Athens vs. Sparta
x Duration of War: 431 BC 404 BC
B-222
Causes of War: The war occurred

due to the political fragmentation
and mutual two city states of
Greece, Athens and Sparta .
x Outcome of War: Eventually
Sparta registered its victory by
defeating Athens in Decelean
war (known to be the third phase
of Peloponnesian War), with the
help of Persian Empire.
Punic Wars:
First
x Participants: Rome vs. Carthage
x Duration of War: 264 BC -241 BC
x Causes of War: the war broke
out as the Carthaginians
established a base of Island that
seemed to be a potential threat to
Rome.
x Outcome of War: the Romans
won the war.
Second
x Participants: Greek vs. Trojan
x Duration of War: 218 BC- 201 BC
x Causes of War: The war
occurred when Carthage started
expanding its power in Spain
and striving for the coastal city
of Saguntum (the present day
Sagunto) which was allied with
Rome.
x Outcome of War: Finally
Rome won over Carthage in
the battle of Zama forcing the
Carthaginians to give up Spanish
territories and its navy.
Third
x Participants: Greek vs. Persian
x Duration of War: 149 BC- 146 BC
x Causes of War: The fear of
Carthaginian resurgence led
to the war in the city streets of
Carthage
x Outcome of War: Ultimately
Romans destroyed the city of
Carthage
Hundred Years War
x Participants: France vs. England
x Duration of War: 1337 BC
-1453 BC
History
x
Causes of War: The war broke

out after King Edward III of
England invaded the country of
France and continued to seize its
land and became its ruler.
x Outcome of War: At the end
France managed to defy the
Englands reign with the help of
Scotland.
Russo-Japan War
x Participants: Russia vs. Japan
x Duration of War: 1904 05 AD
x Causes of War: The war fought
for having imperial authority
over Manchuria and Korea
x Outcome of War: Japanese won
the war.
Vietnam War
x Participants: Democratic Republic
of Vietnam allied with Soviet
Union vs. China.
x Causes of War: The war fought
for checking communism to
spread all over South-Asia
x Outcome of War: the war
ended with the victory of
North Vietnam by empowering
the Communist government
in South Vietnam, Laos and
Cambodia with annexure of
South Vietnam. The Americanled forces had to back out from
Indochina.
Iraq Iran War
x Participants: Islamic Republic
of Iran and the Republic of Iraq
x Causes of War: The war started
with the invasion of republic
of Iran resulting from a border
dispute of two Republics
x Outcome of War: Iraq failed to
take over the east bank of the
Shatt al-Arab and strengthen
Arab separatism in the region of
Khuzestan. The Iranian invasion
failed and the idea of deposing
Saddam Hussein was shattered.
32/,7<
` India
` World
B-224
Polity
Making of
Constitution
Indian Constitution
Structure of
Indian
Constitution
Constitutional
Framework
Constitutional
Bodies
Statutory
Bodies
Indian Government
INDIAN POLITY - MIND MAP
Salient Features
of Constitution
l Important Acts
l Constituent Assembly
l Enactment & Enforcement
l
l
l
l
Introduction
Basic Features
Important Quotes
Sources
l List of Articles
l List of Schedules
l List of Amendments (Till date)
Preamble
Union & Territories
Citizenship
FRs, FDs, & DPs.
Union & State Executives
Union & State Composition
Supreme Court & High Court
Indian Penal Code
Panchayati Raj System & Municipalities
Centre State Relations
List I, II, III
Interstate Council
Zonal Council
l Article 370 - Jammu & Kashmir
l Uniform Civil Code
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Election Comm.
UPSC / SPSC
Finance Comm.
National Comm.
l Lokpal & Lokayukta l NDC

l NITI Ayog
l NHRC
Types of
Government
l Democratic
l Parliamentary
l Federal
Institutional
Framework
l Legislature
l Executive
l Judiciary
Levels of
Government
l Union
l State
l Local
Elections
Political Parties &
Pressure Groups
Foreign
l CAG
l AG
l Advocate General
l Electoral System
l Electoral Reforms
l Composition
l Principles &
Objectives
l Look - East
l Gujaral Doctrine
l Nuclear Policy
Modi's Visit to Nation
B-225
Polity
INDIAN CONSTITUTION
Making of Constitution
Important Acts
Constitutional
Landmark
Pitts India Act, 1784
Important Provisions
x Indian affairs under direct control of British government.
x Board of control was established.
Government of India, x Company rule replaced by British crown.

x Secretary of state for India appointed to exercise the
1858
power of the crown. He was a member of British cabinet,
responsible to it & was assisted by council of India with
15 members.
x Governor General became the agent of the crown and
now known as Viceroy of India.
Indian Councils Act, x Parliamentary system started in India.
1861
x Indians become non-official members of the legislature.
x Started decentralization of power.
Indian Councils Act, x Central legislative council becomes imperial legislative
council with officials forming the majority.
1909 (Morley-Minto
Reforms. Lord Morley x Provincial legislative councils had a majority of non-official
members.
was the then secretary
of state for India and x Introduced communal representation for Muslims with a
separate electorate system. Legalized communalism. Lord
Lord Minto was then
Viceroy of India).
Minto created a communal electorate.
Government of India x Separated central subjects from provincial subjects.
Act, 1919/ Montague x Provincial subjects were: transferred and reserved.
- Chelmsford Reforms. x Transferred subjects were administered by Governor with
help of ministers who were responsible to the legislature.
Montague was the
x Reserved subjects were administered by Governor
secretary of state
and executive council who were not responsible to the
for India and Lord
legislature.
Chelmeford was the
x Diarchy/ Dual system of government was introduced.
Viceroy of India.
x Bicameral legislature with upper and lower houses were
formed with direct elections.
x Majority of members in both houses were directly elected.
x 3 of the 6 members of governor-generals council had to
be Indians.
Government of India x Established All India federation of provinces & princely
Act, 1935
states as constituent units.
x Federal, provincial & concurrent were introduced.
x Abolished diarchy in provinces which now had provincial
autonomy.
x Introduced diarchy at the centre & bicameralism in the
provinces.
x Introduced responsible governments in provinces.
B-226
Polity
x Expansion of the Governor-Generals Executive council

to include more Indians.
x Establishment of an advisory war council.
Cripps Proposals, 1942 x Provision made up for participation of Indian states in the
constitution making body.
x The leaders of the principle sections of the Indian people
were invited to take active and effective participation in the
councils of their country.
Cabinet Mission Plan, x There should be a Union of India, embracing both British
1916
India and the states which should deal with foreign affairs.
x A Constituent Assembly should be set up to draw up the
future constitution of the country.
Indian Independence x Declared India as independent & sovereign state.
Act, 1947
x Established responsible government at the center &
provinces.
x Designated Governor General of India & Provincial
Governors as Constitutional heads or nominal heads.
Objective Resolution x On Jan 22, 1947 the Constituent Assembly adopted
Objective resolution as advocated by Jawahar Lal Nehru.
It contained fundamental propositions of the constitution
& set forth the political ideas that should guide its
deliberations.
The August Offer,
1940
Constituent Assembly
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
The Constituent Assembly was constituted in Nov. 1946 under the scheme
formulated by the Cabinet Mission Plan 1946.
Total members 389
Members elected indirectly from British India 296
Members nominated by princely states. 93
The Constituent Assembly had both Nominated & Elected members. The
elected members were indirectly elected by members of the Provincial
Assemblies.
1st meeting of Constituent Assembly Dec.9, 1946.
Muslim League boycotted the Constituent Assembly.
Temporary president of the Assembly Dr. Sachidanand.
Permanent President of the Assembly Dr. Rajendra Prasad.
Vice President of the Assembly H.C. Mukherjee.
Constitutional Advisor to the Assembly Sir B.N.Rau
Important Committees
COMMITTEE
CHAIRMAN
Drafting Committee
Flag Committee
Union Constitution Committee
Provincial Constitution Committee
Union Powers Committee
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

J. B. Kriplani
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
B-227
Polity
Committee on Fundamental Rights and Minorities
Special Committee to Examine the Draft Constitution (Chairman: Alladi

Krishnaswamy Iyer)
Expert Committee on Financial Provisions
Ad-hoc Committee on Supreme Court
Ad-hoc Committee on National Flag
Committee on Chief Commissioners Provinces
Drafting Committee
It consisted of 7 members
1 Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman)
2 N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar
3 Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar.
4 Dr. K.M. Munshi
5 Syed mohammad Saadullah.
6 N. Madhava Rau
7 T.T Krishnamachari
The Drafting Committee took less than 6 months to prepare its draft. In all
it sat only for 141 days. Indian Constitution was formed by a Constituent
Assembly in a long time of 2 years, 11 months & 18 days.
Enactment & Enforcement of the Constitution

The constitution was adopted on Nov. 26,1949, contained a Preamble, 395
Articles & 8 Schedules. Now, it increased to 447 Articles & 12 Schedules. It
came into force on January 26,1950. This day is celebrated as the Republic Day.
Salient features of the Constitution

The term Constitution is derived from Latin word Constituere which means
to establish. A Constitution is something established as the basis of government
(whether by a constitutional convention or by process of evolution). The
Constitution of our country is a collection of legal rules which provides the
framework of the governmental machinery & also it is an effective instrument
of orderly social change .
Lengthiest
Written Constitution
Supremacy of Constitution
Republican form of govt.
Secularism
Federal character
Sovereignty of the Country
Parliamentary Democracy
Fundamental Rights, DPs.
Basic
Structure
Features
Parliamentary System
of Government
Synthesis of Parliamentary
Sovereignty & Judicial Supremacy
Features of Indian Constitution
Combination
of Rigidity &
Flexibility
Emergency
Provisions
Federal System
with Unitary Bias
Integrated and
Independent
Judiciary
B-228
Polity
Sources of Indian Constitution

Indian constitution has borrowed its provisions from following sources.
Country
Provisions Borrowed
Government of
India Act, 1935
Federal scheme
Declaration of emergency powers
Ordinance defining the power of the President and Governors
Office of the Governor
Power of federal judiciary
Administration at the centre and state level
United
Kingdom
Parliamentary system
Bicameral parliament
Prime minister
Council of ministers
Single citizenship
Office of CAG
Writ jurisdiction of courts
Rule of law
USA
Written constitution
Fundamental rights
Supreme Court
President as executive head of the state
Impeachment of the president, removal of S.C and HC judges
Vice President as chairman of Rajya Sabha
Judicial review, independence of judiciary
Australia
Concurrent list
Cooperative federalism
Centre State relationship
Joint sitting of two houses of parliament
USSR
Fundamental duties
Weimer
Constitution of
Germany
Suspension of fundamental rights during emergency

Ballot system
Canada
Federal system
Residuary powers
Appointment of Governor
Advisory jurisdiction of S.C.
South Africa
Procedure of constitutional amendment.

Electing member to Rajya Sabha
Ireland
Concept of Directive Principles of State Policy.

Nomination of members to Rajya Sabha by the President.
Presidential election.
Schedules of the Constitution

Numbers
Subject Matter
Articles Covered
Names of the States and their territorial jurisdiction. 1 and 4
First
Schedule Name of the Union Territories and their extent.
Polity
Second
Schedule
Third
Schedule
Fourth
Schedule
Fifth
Schedule
Sixth
Schedule
Seventh
Schedule
Eighth
Schedule
B-229
Provisions relating to the emoluments, allowances, 59, 65, 75, 97, 125, 148,
privileges and so on of:
158, 164, 186 & 221
The President of India
The Governors of States
The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha
The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the
Rajya Sabha
The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the
Legislative Assembly in the states
The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the
legislative Council in the states
The Judges of the Supreme Court
The Judges of the High Courts
The Comptroller and Auditor - General of India
Forms of Oaths or Affirmations for:
75, 84, 99, 124, 146, 173,
188 and 219
The Union ministers
The candidates for election to the Parliament
The members of Parliament
The Judges of the Supreme Court
The Comptroller Auditor - General of India
The state ministers
The candidates for election to the state legislature
The members of the state legislature
The judges of the High Courts
Allocation of seats in the Rajya Sabha to the states 4 and 80
and the union territories.
Provisions relating to the administration and control 244
of scheduled areas and scheduled tribes.
Provisions relating to the administration of tribal 244 and 275
areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura
and Mizoram.
Division of power betweeen the Union and the 246
States in terms of List I (Union List), List II (State
List) and List III (Concurrent List). Presently, The
Union List contains 100 subjects (originally 97),
The State list contains 61 subjects (Originally
66) and the concurrent list contains 52 subjects
(originally 47).
Languages recognized by the Constitution. 344 and 351
Originally, it had 14 languages but presently there
are 22 languages. They are: Assamese, Bengali,
Bodo Dogri (Dongri), Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada,
Kashmiri, Konkani, Mathili(Maithili), Malayalam,
Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, sanskrit,
Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Sindhi
was added b the 21st Amendment Act of 1967:
Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali were added by the
71st Amendment Act of 1967; Konkani, Manipuri
and Nepali were added by the 71st Amendment Act
of 1992; And Bodo, Dongri, Maithili and Santhali
were added by the 92nd Amendment Act of 2003.
B-230
Ninth
Schedule
Tenth
Schedule
Eleventh
Schedule
Twelfth
Schedule
Polity
Acts and Regulations (originally 13 but presently

282) of the state legislatures dealing with land
reforms and abolition of the zamindari system
and of the Parliament dealing with other matters.
This schedule was added by the 1st Amendment
(1951) to protect the laws included in it from judicial
scrutiny on the ground of violation of fundamental
rights. However, in 2007, the Supreme Court ruled
that the laws included in this schedule after April
24, 1973, are open to judicial review.
Provisions relating to disqualification of the
members of Parliament and State Legislatures
on the ground of defection. This schedule was
added by the 52nd Amendment Act of 1985, also
known as anti defection Law.
Specifies the powers, authority and responsibilities
of Panchayats. It has 29 Matters. This schedule
was added by the 73rd Amendment Act of 1992.
Specifies the powers, authority and responsibilities
of Municipalities. It has 18 matters. This schedule
was added by the 74th Amendment Act of 1992.
31 - B
102 and 191
243 - G
243 - W
List of Important Amendment

No
Amendments
Enforced since
Objectives
1
Amend articles 66 and 19 December
Election of Vice President by Electoral
71.
1961
College consisting of members of
both Houses of Parliament, instead
of election by a Joint Sitting of
Parliament. Indemnify the President
and Vice President Election procedure
from challenge on grounds of existence
of any vacancies in the electoral college
2
Amend article 31.
20 April 1972
Restrict
property
rights
and
Insert article 31C.
compensation in case the state takes
over private property
3
Amend articles 81, 330 17 October 1973 Increase size of Parliament from 525 to
and 332.
545 seats. Increased seats going to the
new states formed in North East India
and minor adjustment consequent to
1971 Delimitation exercise
1 July 1974
Protection of regional rights in
4
Amend article 371.
Telangana and Andhra regions of State
Insert articles 371D
of Andhra Pradesh
and 371E.
Amend schedule 7.
Polity
7
8
10
11
12
13
Amend articles 31, 1 April 1977

31C, 39, 55, 74, 77, 81,
82, 83, 100, 102, 103,
105, 118, 145, 150, 166,
170, 172, 189, 191, 192,
194, 208, 217, 225, 226,
227, 228, 311, 312, 330,
352, 353, 356, 357, 358,
359, 366, 368 and 371F.
Insert articles 31D,
32A, 39A, 43A, 48A,
131A, 139A, 144A,
226A, 228A and 257A.
Insert parts 4A and
14A.
Amend schedule 7.
Amend articles 330 16 June 1986
and 332.
B-231
Amendment passed during internal

emergency by Indira Gandhi. Provides
for curtailment of fundamental
rights, imposes fundamental duties
and changes to the basic structure of
the constitution by making India a
Socialist Secular Republic
Provide reservation to Scheduled Tribes

in Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram
and Arunachal Pradesh Legislative
Assemblies
Amend article 326.
28 March 1989
Reduce age for voting rights from 21
to 18
Amend article 356.
16 April 1990
Article 356 amended to permit Presidents
rule up to three years and six months
in the state of Punjab
Amend article 338.
12 March 1990
National Commission for Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes formed
and its statutory powers specified in
The Constitution.
Amend article 16.
9 June 2000
Protect SC / ST reservation in filling
backlog of vacancies
Amend article 335.
8 September 2000 Permit relaxation of qualifying marks and
other criteria in reservation in promotion
for SC / ST candidates
Provides Right to Education until the
Amend articles 45 and 12 December
2002
age of fourteen and Early childhood
51A.
care until the age of six
Insert article 21A.
Amend article 338.
28 September
The National Commission for
Insert article 338A.
2003
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes was bifurcated into The National
Commission for Scheduled Castes
and The National Commission for
Scheduled Tribes
B-232
14
Polity
Amend Art 19 and 12 January 2012

added Part IXB.
15 Insertion of
new 13 April 2015
articles 124A, 124B and [103]
124C. Amendments to
Articles 127, 128, 217,
222, 224A, 231.
16
Amendment
of 1 August 2015
First Schedule to
Constitution[105]
Added the words or co-operative

societies after the word or unions in
Article 19(l)(c) and insertion of article
43B i.e., Promotion of Co-operative
Societies and added Part-IXB i.e., The
Co-operative Societies.
The amendment objective is to
encourage economic activities of
cooperatives which in turn help
progress of rural India. It is expected
to not only ensure autonomous and
democratic functioning of cooperatives,
but also the accountability of the
management to the members and other
stakeholders.
The amendment provides for the
formation of a National Judicial
Appointments Commission. 16 State
assemblies out of 29 States including
Goa, Rajasthan, Tripura, Gujarat
and Telangana ratified the Central
Legislation, enabling the President of
India to give assent to the bill.[104]
The amendment is in toto quashed by
Supreme Court on 16 October 2015.
Exchange of certain enclave territories
with Bangladesh and conferment of
citizenship rights to residents of
enclaves consequent to signing of
Land Boundary Agreement (LBA)
Treaty between India and Bangladesh.
PREAMBLE
Meaning
x Introduction or preface to the constitution.

x Summary or essence of the Constitution
Components
x Source of Authority People of India

x Nature of Indian State Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic
& Republican.
x Objectives of Constitution Justice, Liberty, Equality & Fraternity.
x 42nd Amnd Act 1976 added 3 new words Socialist, Secular & Integrity.
Amendment
Part of the x In kesavananda Bharati case (1973), Supreme court held that
Constitution
preamle is an integra part of the constitution.
x
x
x
x
The Union & Its Territory

Article 1 stipulates that India, that is Bharat, shall be Union of states.
The country is described as Union beacuse it is indestructible.
The territory of India includes the entire area over which the Sovereignty
of India extends.
Under Articles 2 &3, Parliament has the power to establish new States,
form a new State from the territory of any State or by uniting two or more
B-233
Polity
States, increase or decrease the area of any State, or after the boundaries
or the name of any State.
x First Linguistic State Andhra Pradesh.
State Recorganisation Act 1956
States Recorganisation Act 1956 was adopted by the Govt. of India that resulted
in the formation of new states & UTs.
LIST OF NEW STATES & UTs CREATED AFTER 1956

STATES/UTs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Maharashtra & Gujarat

Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Goa, Daman & diu
Goa (Statehood)
Puducherry
Nagaland
Haryana, Chandigarh
Himachal Pradesh (Statehood)
Manipur, Tripura & Meghalaya (Statehood)
Sikkim (full fledged State)
Arunachal Pradesh & Mizoram
Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand & Jharkhand
Telangana
YEAR
1960
1961
1962
1987
1962
1963
1966
1971
1972
1975
1987
2000
2014
Citizenship
Single Citizenship
3 Categories entitled
to citizenship
Indian
Citizenship Act (1955)
Citizenship
Provides for acquisition
& loss of Citizenship
after commencement of
the Constitution.
Dual Citizenship for PIOs
Person domiciled
in India
Refugees who migrated
to India from Pakistan
Indians living in other
Countries.
Acquisition of Citizenship
By Birth
By Descent
By Renunciation
By
By
Naturalisation Incorporation
of Territory
Loss of Citizenship
By
Registration
By Termination
By Deprivation
(18) Abolition of titles.
(22) Protection against arrest

& detention in certain
cases.
(17) Abolition of
untouchability.
(28) Freedom from attending

religious instruction
or worship in certain
educational institutions.
(27) Freedom from payment of

taxes for promotion of any
religion.
(21) Protection of life &

personal liberty.
(16) Equality of
opportunity in
public employment
(30) Right of minorities

to establish
& administer
educational
institutions.
Includes writs:
(1) Habeas Corpus
(2) Mandamus
(3) Prohibition
(4) Certiorari
(5) Quowarranto
Articles
32
Right to Constitutional
Remedies
FRs available only to citizens

& Not to Foreigners- Art. 15,
16, 19, 29, 30
Curtural and
Educational Rights
(26 ) Manage religiour affairs.
Right to Freedom of
Religion
Can be Suspended
during Emergency
except Art. 20 & 21
(15) Prohibition of
(20) Protection in respect of (24) Prohibition of
discrimination on
conviction for offences.
employment of
grounds of religion,
children in factories
race, sex etc.
etc.
Right Against Exploitation
Fundamental Rights
Borrowed from
USA & France
Articles
Articles
25-28
29-30
(25) Freedom of conscience & (29) Protection of
free profession, practice &
interests of
propagation of religion.
minorities.
Right to Freedom
Part III (Article

12 to 35)
Articles
Articles
Articles
14-18
19-22
23-24
(23) Prohibition of traffic
(14) Equality before Law (19) 6 Rights: Freedom of
in human beings &
& Equal protection
speech & expression,
forced labour.
of law.
Assembly, Association,
Movement, Residence
& Profession.
Right to Equality
Magna Carta
of India
B-234
Polity
Fundamental Rights
B-235
Polity
Directive Principles
Promote concept
Part IV, Article
of welfare state
Instrument of instructions
36 51
B.R. Ambedkar
Mixture of
socialist
Gandhian &
Liberal
principles
Directive
Principles
Non-justiciable
Borrowed from
Fundamental
Aim to economic
guidelines in countrys Ireland
& social justice
governance
ARTICLES RELATED TO DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY

AT A GLANCE
Article No.
Subject - matter
36
Definition of State
37
Application of the principles contained in this part
38
State to secure a social order for the promotion of welfare of the people
39
Certain principles of policy to be followed by the State

x Means of livelihood to all.
x Use of resources for common good.
x Prevention of concentration of wealth
x Equal pay for equal work
x Protection of workers, children & youth
39 A
Equal justice and free legal aid
40
Organisation of village panchayats
41
Right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases
42
Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief
43
Living wage, etc., for workers
43 A
Participation of workers in management of industries
43 B
Promotion of co-operative societies
44
Uniform civil code for the citizens
45
Provision for early childhood care and education to children below

the age of six years
B-236
Polity
46
Promotion of educational and economic interests of scheduled Castes,

Scheduled Tribes and other weaker section.
47
Duty of the State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of
living and to improve public health
48
Organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry
48 A
Protection and improvement of environment and safeguarding of forests

and wildlife
49
Protection of monuments and places and objects of national importance
50
Separation of judiciary from executive
51
Promotion of international peace security
FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES
Fundamental Duties
Covered
Part IV A, Article 51A
Borrowed from
USSR
Amendment
42nd Amendment 1976, introduced Article 51 A in the

constitution.
Recommended by
Swaran Singh Committee.
Numbers
Originally10 duties
Now11 duties (added bye 86th Amendment ACT, 2002)
List of F.Ds
51 A (a) Abide by the Constitution and respect National Flag

& National Anthem
B
Follow ideals of the freedom struggle
Protect sovereignty & integrity of India
Defend the country and render national services when

called upon
Spirit of common brotherhood
Preserve composite culture
Protect natural environment
Develop scientific temper
Safeguard public property
Strive for excellence
Duty of all parents & guardians to send their children

in the age group of 6-14 years to school..
Term
Value of vote of an MP
Election
2QH[SLU\RI
term
%\GHDWK
%\UHVLJQDWLRQ
%\LPSHDFKPHQW
Vacancy
Executive
Legislative
Judicial
Emergency
Powers
Total population of state

1
u
Total no.of elected members in the state legislative assembly 1000
(OHFWHG
&LWL]HQRI
indirectly by
India
electoral college
&RPSOHWHG
consisting
years
elected members
4XDOLILHGIRU
of both houses
election as a
of parliament &
member of
states legislative
Lok Sabha
assemblies
1RWKROGDQ\
office of profit )ROORZLQJ
formula is
under GOI
adopted first
stage:
Qualification
Total value of votes of all MLAs of all states

Total no.elected MPs
` 1.5 lakh
per month
3HQVLRQ
` 75,000
per month
Emolument
Value of vote of an MLA
%\FKLHI
justice
of India
or senior
most
judge of
supreme
court
Oath
At second stage, a complex system of calculating Quota of individual candidate is used which
is based on the order of preference of candidates.
([HFXWLYH \HDUV
(OLJLEOH IRU
Head of
Re-election
the state
)LUVWFLWL]HQ
of the
country
Position
President
Polity
B-237
UNION & STATE EXECUTIVES

President
Appoints PM,
Directly
Council of
administers
ministers,
UTs
Attorney_General,
CAG, Judges of
Supreme Court
& High Courts,
Governors,
Administrators
of UTs, Chairman
& Members of
Public service
Commission,
Chairman &
Members of.
finance Commission,
Chief Election
Commissioner
& Election
commissioners,
Inter - State
Council,
Commission
investigate the
condition of SCs,
STs & OBCs.
Executive
Dissolution
or
Prorogation
of
Parliament
Address
& Send
messages
to houses
Assent
on Bills
passed by
Parliament
Supreme
Commander
of Armed
Forces
Issue
Laying
down some Ordinance
reports
before
Parliament
Conclude
& Approve
International
Treaties &
Agreements
Miscellaneous
Nominates
Members
of
Parliament
Legislative
Powers of President
Failure of
National
Financial
Emergency Constitutional Emergency
Machinery
(Art. 352)
(Art. 360)
in States
(Art. 356)
Power to
Seek
grant
Advice of
Supreme pardon
Court
Emergency
Judicial
B-238
Polity
B-239
Polity
List of Presidents till date

List of President
Joining date
Leaving date
Dr.Rajendra Prasad
1/26/1950
5/13/1962
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
5/13/1962
5/13/1967
Zakir Hussain
5/13/1967
5/3/1969
Varahagiri Venkata Giri
5/3/1969
7/20/1969
Muhammad Hidayatullah
7/20/1969
8/24/1969
Varahagiri Venkata Giri
8/24/1969
8/24/1974
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed
8/24/1974
2/11/1977
Basappa Danappa Jatti
2/11/1977
7/25/1977
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy
7/25/1977
7/25/1982
Giani Zail Singh
7/25/1982
7/25/1987
Ramaswamy Venkataraman
7/25/1987
7/25/1992
Shankar Dayal Sharma
7/25/1992
7/25/1997
Kocheril Raman Narayanan
7/25/1997
7/25/2002
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
7/25/2002
7/25/2007
Smt. Pratibha Patil
7/25/2007
7/25/2012
Pranab Mukherjee
7/25/2012
Incumbent
Vice President
Qualification
(1) Citizen of India.
(2) Completed 35 years.
(3) Qualified for election as a member
of of Rajya Sabha.
(4) Not hold any office of profit under
Union/State government or any
Local Authority.
Term
(1) 5 years.
(2) Elegible for re-election.
Oath
(1) Administered by the President.
Emoluments
(1) ` 1.25 Lakh per month salary.
Election
(1) Indirectly elected
(2) Elected by an electoral college
consisting of the members of
both Houses of Parliament & in
accordance with the system of
Proportional representation by
means of the single transferable
vote.
Functions
(1) Ex-officio chairman of Rajya
Sabha.
(2) Suspend or adjourn the business
of the House.(Rajya Sabha)
(3) Issues direction to the Chairman
of various committees.
(4) Acts as President when vacancy
occurs in the office of the President
due to his resignation. Removal,
death, or otherwise.
Removal
(1) He can be removed by a resolution
of the Rajya Sabha passed by an
absolute majority & agreed to
by the Lok Sabha. But, no such
resolution can be moved unless at
least 14 days advance notice has
been given.
B-240
Polity
Prime Minister
Appointment
(1) By President
Position
(1) Real executive authority (de facto executive).
(2) Head of the government.
(3) Leader of the majority party in the Lok Sabha.
Election
(1) Elected directly by the people.
Term
(1) 5 years
(2) The PM actually stays in office as long as he enjoy the confidence of the
parliament, but the normal term is automatically reduced if the Lok sabha
is dissolved earlier.
Powers
(1) Advise the president to summon & prorogue the Parliament & dissolve
the Lok Sabha.
(2) Act as a Link between the cabinet & the President.
(3) All the members of the council of ministers are appointed by the president
on the recommendations of the Prime Minister.
(4) Allocates Portfolios among the various ministers & reshuffles them.
(5) Presides over the meetings of the council of Ministers.
(6) Ask a minister to resign.
(7) Coordinates the policies of the various departments & Ministries.
List of Prime Ministers of India Till Date
Narendra Modi
2014 till date
Manmohan Singh
2004-14
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
1998-2004
IK Gujral
1997-98
HD Deve Gowda
1996-97
AB Vajpayee
1996
PV Narasimha Rao
1991-96
Chandra Shekhar
1990-91
VP Singh
1989-90
Rajiv Gandhi
1984-89
Indira Gandhi
1980-84
Charan Singh
1979-80
Morarji Desai
1977-79
Indira Gandhi
1966-77
Gulzarilal Nanda
1966-66
Lal Bahadur Shastri
1964-66
Gulzarilal Nanda
1964
Jawaharlal Nehru
1947-64
Party Name
Bharatiya Janata Party
Indian National Congress
Janata Dal (Secular)
Samajwadi Janata Party
Janata Dal (National Front)
Janata Dal (Secular)
Janata Dal
B-241
Polity
Governor
Position
Qualification
Appointment &
Tenure
Oath
Powers and
Functions
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Chief Executive of the State.

Act as an head agent of the Central Government.
Citizen of India.
Completed 35 years.
Not hold any office of profit under government.
Not a member of Parliament or State legislature.
Appointed by President.
Term is 5 years.
Administered by chief justice of high court
(A) Executive Powers
Appoints Chief Minister & other ministers, Advocate
General, chairman & Members of State PSC, State Election
Commissioner & Finance Commission, Vice Chancellors of
Universities in State.
Nominate one member of Anglo Indian Community to the
legislative Assembly of his State & 1/6th members of Sate
legislative council.
Recommend President that government of the Sate cannot
be carried on in accordance with the Provisions of the
Constitution.
(B) Legislative Powers
Summon, adjourn & Prorogue State legislature & Dissolve the
State legislative assembly.
Address the state legislature at the commencement of the first
session after each general election and the first session of each
year.
Give or withold Assent to the bill.
Return or reserve the Bill.
Submission reports from auditor General, State PSC, State
finance commission before the legislature.
(C) Discretionary Powers
Appointing a new Chief Minister when no Single Party
Commands a clear-cut majority in legislative Assembly.
Dismissal of ministry if he is convinced that it has lost
majority support.
(D) Other powers
Grant Pardons & Suspend the sentence of any person but
cannot Pardon in case of death sentence.
No demand of grants can be made except on the
recommendation of the governor.
Ensures that Budget of State is laid before State legislature
every year.
Individual
Responsibility to
President at central
level & Governor at
State level.
Collective
Responsibility to
Lok Sabha at central
level and Legislative
Assembly at State
level
T Y M I N IS T
(Independent
Charge)
CABINET
MINISTERS
ERS O F S
T
ST
PU
I
N
ER
S
E
AT
Not members of Cabinet &
donot attend Cabinet meeting.
Work under Supervision &

guidance of Cabinet ministers.
Independent charge of
Ministries / Departments.
Supreme
Executive
authority
Attend Cabinets
meetings & decide
policies
Head Important
Ministries of central
/ State Government
No Separate charge
Appointment
Tenure
Qualification
Powers & Functions
D
MI
Assist Ministers with

whom they are attached
& perform administrative
duties
B-242
Polity
Chief Minister
By Governor
5 years
Member of either house of the State legislature
(1) Chief link between the Governor & the council of
Ministers.
(2) Head of the Council of Ministers.
(3) Recommends to the Governor the names of persons to
be appointed as members of the Council of Ministers
(4) Allocates portfolios among Ministers.
(5) Supervises & coordinates Policies of the several
Ministries & Departments.

Polity
B-243
COUNCIL OF MINSTERS IN 12TH FIVE YEAR PLAN

Prime Minister
Shri Narendra Modi
Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
Department of Atomic Energy
Department of Space
Cabinet Ministers
1 Shri Raj Nath Singh
Home Affairs
2 Smt. Sushma Swaraj
External Affairs
Overseas Indian Affairs
3 Shri Arun Jaitley
Finance
Corporate Affairs
Information & Broadcasting
4 Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu
Urban Development
Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
Parliamentary Affairs
5 Shri Nitin Jairam Gadkari
Road Transport and Highways Shipping
6 Shri Manohar Parrikar
Defence
7 Shri Suresh Prabhu
Railways
8 Shri D. V. Sadananda Gowda
Law & Justice
9 Sushri Uma Bharati
Water Resources, River Development and Ganga
Rejuvenation
10 Dr. Najma A. Heptulla
Minority Affairs
11 Shri Ram Vilas Paswan
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
12 Shri Kalraj Mishra
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
13 Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi
Women and Child Development
14 Shri Ananth Kumar
Chemicals and Fertilizers
15 Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad
Communications and Information Technology
16 Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda
Health and Family Welfare
17 Shri Ashok Gajapathi Raju
Civil Aviation
Pusapati
18 Shri Anant Geete
Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
19 Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal
Food Processing Industries
20 Shri Narendra Singh Tomar
Mines, Steel
21 Shri Chaudhary Birender Singh Rural Development
Panchayati Raj
22 Shri Jual Oram
Tribal Affairs
23 Shri Radha Mohan Singh
Agriculture
24 Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot
Social Justice and Empowerment
25 Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani
Human Resource Development
26 Dr. Harsh Vardhan
Science and Technology
Earth Sciences
Ministers of State (Independent Charge)
1 General V. K. Singh
Statistics and Programme Implementation
External Affairs
Overseas Indian Affairs
B-244
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
Polity
Shri Inderjit Singh Rao

Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar
Shri Bandaru Dattatreya
Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy
Planning Defence
Textiles
Labour and Employment
Skill Development & Entrepreneurship
Shri Shripad Yesso Naik
AAYUSH Health & Family Welfare
Shri Dharmendra Pradhan
Petroleum and Natural Gas
Shri Sarbananda Sonowal
Shri Sarbananda Sonowal
Shri Prakash Javadekar
Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Shri Piyush Goyal
Power
Coal
New and Renewable Energy
Dr. Jitendra Singh
Development of North Eastern Region
Prime Ministers Office
Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions
Department of Atomic Energy
Department of Space
Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman
Commerce and Industry
Dr. Mahesh Sharma
Culture
Tourism
Civil Aviation
Ministers of State
Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
Minority Affairs
Shri Ram Kripal Yadav
Shri Haribhai Parthibhai
Chaudhary
Shri Sanwar Lal Jat
Shri Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai
Kundariya
Shri Giriraj Singh
Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir
Shri G. M. Siddeshwara
Shri Manoj Sinha
Shri Nihalchand
Shri Upendra Kushwaha
Shri Radhakrishnan P
Shri Kiren Rijiju
Shri Krishan Pal
Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan
Shri Mansukhbhai Dhanjibhai
Vasava
Shri Raosaheb Dadarao Danve
Shri Vishnu Deo Sai

Home Affairs
Water Resources
River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
Agriculture
Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises
Chemicals & Fertilizers
Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
Railways
Panchayati Raj
Human Resources Development
Road Transport & Highways, Shipping
Home Affairs
Social Justice & Empowerment
Agriculture
Tribal Affairs
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Mines
Steel
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19 Shri Sudarshan Bhagat

Rural Development
20 Prof. (Dr.) Ram Shankar Katheria Human Resource Development
21 Shri Y. S. Chowdary
Science and Technology
Earth Science
22 Shri Jayant Sinha
Finance
23 Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore Information & Broadcasting
24 Shri Babul Supria (Babul Supriyo) Urban Development
Baral
Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
25 Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti
Food Processing Industries
26 Shri Vijay Sampla
Social Justice & Empowerment
Parliament
Indian Legislature
Union Leg
(Parliament)
President Rajya Sabha
State Leg
Lok Sabha
Upper House
Lower House
Also known as
council of states
House of People
Total members
- 250
12
238
Indirectly Nominated
elected
Permanent Body
Term of
individual
member - 6 years
1/3 rd members
retires at
expiration of
every 2nd year.
Presiding officers
Chairman
530
20 2 (Nominated
(States) (UTs) members
from AngloIndian
Community)
Members are
directly elected
Term - 5 years
Presiding Officers
Not less
than 30
years
Deputy
Speaker
Qualification
Deputy Citizen
Chairman of India
Qualification
Citizen of
India
Maximum
Strength - 552
Speaker
Unicameral
Bicameral
Not less
than 25
years.
Legislative
Council
Leg. Council
or Vidhan
Parishad
Leg. Assembly
or Vidhan
Sabha
Lower House
Upper House
Maximum
Strength - 1/3 rd
of total strength
of Assembly.
Minimum
Strength - 40
Members
are indirectly
elected
Permanent body
1/3rd of its
members retire
every second year.
Term - 6 years
Maximum
Strength - 500
Minimum
Strength - 60
Members are
directly elected
by people
Term - 5 years
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Polity
Sessions of Parliament
Budget Session
Monsoon Session
Winter Session
February- May
July-September
NovemberDecember
Indian Judicary
INTEGRATED JUDICIARY
President
Supreme Court
1. Chief Justice
2. Judges
Governor
Parliament
High Courts
1. Chief Justice
2. Judges
COURTS
The Supreme Court
Delhi
High Courts
(In States)
(In Districts)
District and
Session Courts
Metropolitan
Areas
Metropolitan
Magistrate Courts
(Civil)
Subordinate
Courts
Munsif
Courts
Provincial
Small Cases
Courts
Nyaya
Panchayat
City - Civil and

Session Courts
(Criminal)
Session Courts
Subordinate
Magistrate Courts
Judicial
Magistrate
Panchayat
Courts
Executive
Magistrate
Presidency Small
Cases Courts
B-247
Polity
x
Supreme Court
x
x
x
x
Supreme court is the final

interpreter & guardian of our
constitution. It is the highest court
of appeal in India.
Presently there are 31 judges
(including Chief justice) in
Supreme Court.
The CJI is appointed by the
President. The present CJI is
Honble Mr. TS Thakur.
There is no fixed period of office
for SC judges. Once appointed,
they hold office till the age of 65
years.
A judge of SC can be removed
from his office only by the process
of impechment.
According to Article 129, SC is

a Court of Record. It means:(a)
Court records are
admitted to be of
evidentiary value.
(b)
It can punish for
Contempt of the court.
Qualification for appointment as
a Judge of SC :(1) Citizen of India.
(2) Either be a distinguished jurist,
or one who has been a High
Court Judge for atleast 5 years
or an advocate of a High Court
( or 2 or more such courts in
Succession ) for atleast 10
years.
JURISDICTION OF SUPREME COURT

Types of Jurisdiction
Original
Jurisdiction
Appellate
Jurisdiction
Disputes
Disputes
involving
relating to
union and the vialation of
fundamental
states
rights (writ
jurisdiction)
Appeal in
civil cases
Advisory
Jurisdiction
Review
Jurisdiction
Give its legal

opinion on matters
referred to it by the
president
Appeal in
Criminal cases
Appeal in
constitutional
cases
Special leave
to Appeal
Power of Judicial Review (means it can

pronounce upon the constitutional validity
of laws passed by legislature and actions
taken by administrative authority.
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Polity
High Court
x
x
x
x
The judiciary in a State consists of a HC & a hierarchy of Subordinate courts.

The judges of HC are appointed by the President .
The judge of a HC holds office until he attains the age of 62 years. He can
be removed by the process of Impeachment.
Qualification a person appointed as a judge of HC should
(1) Citizen of India.
(2) Held a judicial office in the territory of India for 10 years or have
been on advocate a high court for 10 years.
JURISDICTION OF HIGH COURT

Types of Jurisdiction
Writ
Jurisdiction
Original
Jurisdiction
Appellate
Juristiction
Issue writs for

enforcement of FRs
of citizens
Matters of
Admirality
Disputes
relating to
election of
parliament
and state
legislature
Revenue
matter
Review its own

judgement
Crime
The Indian Penal Code was passed
in the year 1860 and came into effect
from January 1, 1862. The Indian
Penal Code applies to the whole of
India except for the state of Jammu
& Kashmir. It contains 23 Chapters
and 511 Sections. Before the Indian
Penal Code came into effect, the
Mohammedan Criminal Law was
applied to both Mohammedans and
Hindus in India.
Court of
Record
Appeal against
judgements of
subordinate courts
in civil and criminal
matters
Judgements
Proceedings
and Acts are
recorded for legal
references
Power to
punish for
contempt
of court
%URDG FODVVLFDWLRQ RI FULPHV

under the Indian Penal Code (IPC)
1. Crimes Against Body: Murder, Its
attempt, Culpable Homicide not
amounting to Murder, Kidnapping
& Abduction, Hurt, Causing
Death by Negligence;
2. Crimes Against Property: Dacoity,
its preparation & assembly,
Robbery, Burglary, Theft;
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3. Crimes Against Public order:
Riots, Arson;
4. Economic Crimes: Criminal
Breach of Trust, Cheating,
Counterfeiting;
5. Crimes Against Women: Rape,
Dowry Death, Cruelty by Husband
and Relatives, Molestation, Sexual
harassment and Importation of
Girls;
6. Crimes Against Children: Child
Rape, Kidnapping & Abduction
of Children, Procreation of minor
girls, Selling/Buying of girls for
Prostitution, Abetment to Suicide,
Exposure and Abandonment,
Infanticide, Foeticide;
7. Other IPC crimes.
Few Known Sections
Section 120: Concealing design to
commit offence punishable with
imprisonment
Section 120-A and B: Definition of
criminal conspiracy and Punishment
of criminal conspiracy
Section 141: unlawful assembly
Section 146 and 147: Rioting and
Punishment for rioting
Section 169: Public servant unlawfully
buying or bidding for property
Section 171-B: Bribery
Section 279: Rash driving or riding
on a public way
Section 295: Injuring or defiling place
of worship with intent to insult the
religion of any class
Section 298: Uttering, words, etc.,
with deliberate intent to hurt the
religious feelings of any person
Section 300: Murder
Section 304-B: Dowry death
Section 307: Attempt to murder
Section
317:
Exposure
and
abandonment of child under twelve
years, by parent or person having care
of it.
Section 369: Kidnapping or abducting

child under ten years with intent to
steal from its person
Section 372: Selling minor for
purposes of prostitution, etc.
Section 373: Buying minor for
purposes of prostitution, etc.
Section 378 : Theft
Section 375: Rape
Section 376: Punishment against rape
Section 383: Extortion
Section 390: Robbery
Section 397: Robbery, or dacoity, with
attempt to cause death or grievous hurt
LEGAL TERMS
Affidavit: This is a sworn statement
made by a party, in writing, made in
the presence of an oath commissioner
or a notary public which is used either
in support of applications to the Court
or as evidence in court proceedings.
Alimony : The maintenance given by
a husband to his divorced wife.
Amicus curiae : Translated from
the Latin as friend of the Court.
An advocate appears in this capacity
when asked to help with the case by
the Court or on volunteering services
to the Court.
Arbitration : Settling disputes by
referring them to independent third
parties as an alternative to court
proceedings.
Audi alteram partem : This is a rule
of natural justice which translates from
the Latin as hear the other side or
hear both sides.
Bequeath : To dispose of personal
property by Will.
Caveat : Where it is apprehended that
an opposite party may file a case, a
party may file a document requesting
the court that no order be made in
the case without hearing the caveator.
Cognizable offence : An offence in
which arrest can be made without a
warrant.
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Dasti Notice : Dasti is a persian

word, which means by hand. Dast
Notice means service of the notice by
the Petitioner on the Respondent(s)
in person, and not by the Registry
through post.
Decree : The formal expression of an
adjudication which, so far as regards
the Court expressing it,
Estoppel : A legal principle that bars
a party from denying or alleging a
certain fact owing to that partys
previous conduct, allegation, or denial.
Habeas Corpus : A writ requiring
a person under arrest to be brought
before a judge or into court, especially
to secure the persons release unless
lawful grounds are shown for their
detention.
In pari delicto : When both the parties
are equally in fault.lk
Interim Order : Any order by a court
before a final order is made.
Interlocutory Application : Petition
seeking a relief even while the main
petition remains in the Court.
Intervenor : A person who is not a
party to the proceedings may, with the
permission of the court, intervene if it
is shown that the outcome of the case
will affect such person in some way.
Judgment-debtor : Any person against
whom a decree has been passed or an
order capable of execution has been
made;
Judicial Review : A term that
describes the function of the judiciary
being able to examine and correct the
actions of all the organs of State
the executive, the legislature and the
judiciary itself.
Justiciable : A matter is justiciable
if it lends itself to adjudication by a
court. This is determined by criteria
laid down in law.
Polity
Litigation : The totality of the legal
proceedings in any dispute.
Locus Standi : Translated from Latin
as place of standing, locus standi
gives the right to pursue a litigation.
Under this rule, only a person or group
of persons affected by the issue may
petition the Court.
Ordinance : A codified law made, as
a temporary measure, by the President
of India or the Governor of a State
when the Parliament or legislature of
a state is not in session.
Perjury : This occurs when a person
gives false evidence or false affidavit
in a case.
Petition : A written document filed
in a court asserting a claim or a right
and seeking relief on legal grounds.
Pleadings : A collective noun for
all the petitions, affidavits, replies,
rejoinders drafted by or on behalf of
the parties to a case.
Prima facie : At first sight; on the
face of it.
Pro bono publico : Translated from
the Latin as for the public good. In
PIL, this refers to a petitioner acting
bonafide in the public interest.
Respondent : A party against whom
a petition is filed. A proforma
respondent is a party against whom
no relief is sought.
Stare decisis : The principle that
decisions of Courts in previous cases
must be followed in subsequent cases
of similar nature.
Statute : A codified law that is
enacted by the Parliament or a State
Legislature.
Stay Order : A party filing a petition
may require some immediate relief,
even before the respondents can be
heard or a final decision given.
Suo Motu : The Court may take action
on its own when facts requiring legal
B-251
Polity
intervention reach its notice. The Court
is then said to be acting suo moto.
Void : One that law regards as never
having taken place.
Vox populi : Translated from the Latin
as the voice of the people.
Writ : A writ is a direction that the
Court issues, which is to be obeyed
by the authority/person to whom it
is issued.
Writ Petition : A petition seeking
issuance of a writ is a writ petition.
Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI)

The term Panchayati Raj (PRI) in
India signifies the system of rural
local self government. It has been
established in all the States of India
by the Acts of the state Legislatures to
build democracy at the grassroot level.
It is entrusted with rural development.
It was constitutionalised through the
73rd Constitutional Amendment Act
1992.
COMMITTEES ON PANCHAYATI RAJ

Committee
1. Balwant Rai
Mehta
Year
Important Recommendations
1957 x Three tier Panchayati Raj System Gram Panchayat
at Village level, Panchayat Samiti at Block level & Zila
Parishad at district level.
2. Ashok Mehta
1977
3. GVK Rao
4. LM Singhvi
1985
1986
x Two tier PR System Mandal Panchayats at Village

level & Zila Panchayat at district level.
x Official representation of Political Parties at all levels
of Panchayat elections.
x Seat for SCs & STs should be reserved.
x Constitutional recognition to PRIs.
x Regular elections to the PRIs.
x Regular, Free & fair elections to PRIs.
x Establishment of Nyaya Panchayats.
x More financial resources to village Panchayats.
Constitutionalisation
73rd Amendment Act 1993
The Parliament has passed 73rd and
74th Constitutional Amendment Acts in
1993 to ensure the effective participation
of rural & urban people in the
institutions of local Self government.
x Added part -IX (Articles 243 to
243-0) & the 11th Schedule to the
Constitution.
x 11th Schedule contains 29
functional items & deals with
Article 243 G.
x The important provisions of 73rd
Constitutional Amendment Act
are as Follows
1. It made mandatory to hold the
elections of Panchayats in due
time on regular basis.
2. Reservation of seats for women,

SCs, STs & OBCs in Panchayats,
at all levels.
3. Elections to the panchayats shall be
held with in a period of 6 months
from the date of dissolution.
4. Members of Block Panchayat &
Zilla Panchayats are to be elected
by people directly along with the
election of members of Gram
Panchayat. The heads of Gram
Panchayat shall be elected by the
directly elected members of these
bodies.
5. Establishment of an independent
State Election commission in
every State.
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6. Power to the Panchayats to impose

and collect taxes in accordance
with the provisions made by the
State government.
7. Establishment of a State Finance
Commission.
8. Prepare & implement the plans
for economic development.
relations. A total of 56 Articles, from

Article 245 to 300 deal with the centre
state relations.
Committees Appointed to study
Centre -state relation.
1. Setalvad committee (1966).
2. Rajamannar committee (1969)
3. Sarkaria committee (1983).
Municipalities
Division of Legislative Powers

between Centre & the States
For the establishment of selfgovernment in urban areas urban

bodies have been established.
The urban institutions have been
granted constitutional status by 74th
constitutional Amendement (enforced
with effect from January 1,1993). In
the Part IX A of the Constitution the
provisions for Municipalities have
been made from Article 243 P to 243
ZG. Besides a 12th Schedule also has
been incorporated in the Constitution,
which contains 18 subjects relating to
the jurisdiction of Municipalities.
As per this Constitutional Amendment
3 types of urban institutions have been
established on the basis of population
they are
1. Nagar Panchayat for a transitional
area.
2. Municipal council for a smaller
urban area.
3. Municipal corporation for a larger
urban area.
I.
1.
2.
3.
Three Lists
Union List List I 97 subjects
State List List II 66 subjects
Concurrent List List III 52
subjects
IMPORTANT SUBJECTS IN
VARIOUS LISTS
Union List (List I)

1. Atomic energy and mineral
resources.
2. Extradition.
3. Banking.
4. Insurance.
5. Stock exchanges and futures
markets.
6. Patents, inventions and designs;
copyright; trade-marks and
merchandise marks.
7. Census.
8. Corporation tax.
9. Any other matter not enumerated
in List II or List III including any
tax not mentioned in either of
those lists.
Centre State Relations
State List (List II)
The basic provisions regarding the

distribution of powers between the
central & provincial governments are
in Part XI & XII of the Constitution.
Both the Union & the States derive
their authority from the Constitution,
which divides all powers Legislative,
executive & financial between them.
Our Constitution makers elaborate
provisions to govern centre state
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Public order.
Local government.
Public health and sanitation.
Libraries, museums and other
similar institutions.
Agriculture.
Fisheries.
Gas and gas-works.
Markets and fairs.
Captivation taxes.
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Concurrent List (List III)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Criminal law.
Criminal procedure.
Preventive detention.
Marriage and divorce.
Transfer of property other than
agricultural land.
6. Contracts.
7. Civil procedure.
8. Contempt of court, but not
including contempt of the
Supreme Court.
9. Prevention of cruelty to animals.
10. Economic and social planning.
11. Legal, medical and other
professions.
12. Electricity.
13. Archaeological sites.
II. Inter state Council
InterState Council is one of the
important extra judicial bodies formed
in 1990 on the recommendation of
Sarkaria Commission. The Article
263 of Constitution empowers the
President to appoint or establish an
InterState Council for (1) enquiring
into & advising upon interstate
disputes. (2) Investigate & Discuss
on subjects in which states alone or
states & union have common interest.
The Council is headed by the Prime
Minister & its members include 6
Cabinet Ministers & Chief Ministers
of States.
III. Zonal Council
Zonal Councils were constituted
on the recommendation of States
Reorganization Commission 1956.
In 1956, five zonal councils were
established North, South, East,
West & Central. In 1971, the 6th zonal
council was established i.e. Northeast
zonal council. Its objectives are:
(a) To promote collective approach &
sorting out common problems of
the member states.
(b) For providing cooperation for the

implementation of development
plans & progress.
Composition : The Union Home
Minister is the exofficio chairman
of all the Zonal Councils. Each
Zonal council includes the Chief
Ministers of the member states &
the Administrators of the Union
Territories. The chief secretaries of
the member states are also included.
Uniform Civil Code

No specific definition is available
on UCC. All we know is that some
common law covering issues relating
to marriage, succession and property
is called Uniform Civil Code but what
these laws would be is anyones guess.
In article 44, our constitution clearly
specifies the UCC: The State shall
endeavour to secure the citizen a
Uniform Civil Code throughout the
territory of India. The constitution is
thus, very clear that unless a uniform
civil code is followed, integration
cannot be imbibed. However, the fact
is that it is only a directives principle
laid down in the constitution and as
Article 37 of the Constitution itself
makes clear, the directive principles
shall not be enforceable by any court.
Nevertheless, they are fundamental in
the governance of the country. This
shows that although our constitution
itself believes that a Uniform Civil
Code should be implemented in
some manner, it does not make this
implementation mandatory. Hence,
the debate on having a uniform civil
code for India still continues. The
demand for a uniform civil code
essentially means having one set of
laws that will apply to all citizens of
India irrespective of their religion.
Though the exact contours of such a
uniform code have not been spelt out,
it should presumably incorporate the
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most modern and progressive aspects

of all existing personal laws while
discarding those which are retrograde.
Article 370
Under Article 370 of the Indian
Constitution, Jammu & Kashmir is
granted autonomy. It is a temporary
provision that accords special status
to the state. All the provisions of
the Constitution are not applicable
to J&K, unlike other states. Except
finance, defence, communications,
and foreign affairs, central government
needs the state governments consensus
for applying all other laws. Because
of this article, residents of Kashmir
follow separate set of laws in terms of
citizenship, property ownership, and
other rights.
Moreover, as per Article 370, the power
of Parliament to make laws for the said
State is limited to those matters in
the Union List and the Concurrent
List. It doesnt have the authority
to increase or reduce the borders of
the state. For those uninitiated, the
article was drafted by N. Gopalaswami
Ayyangar in 1949 against the wish
of Dr BR Ambedkar, who found
it discriminatory and against the
interest of India. Despite Jawaharlal
Nehrus promise that Article 370 will

be gradually abrogated, it has not
happened even after more than six
decades have whiled away.
It is not known to many that the article
370 has been eroded time and again
due to a series of Presidential Orders.
These orders over a period of time
have made almost all Union laws
applicable to J&K. Today, the state
is within the scope and jurisdiction
of almost every institution of India.
How J&K Different from Other
States?
x Directive Principles of State
Policy (DPSP) are not applied to
J&K but applied to other states.
DPSP = states are required to do
some things for the welfare of
community.
x President cant declare financial
emergency (salaries and allowances
reduction etc.) in relation to J&K.
x High Court of J&K can issue
writs only for enforcement of
Fundamental Rights.
x Right to property is still guaranteed
in J&K.
x Permanent residents of J&K have
some special fundamental rights.
x Although Supreme Court, EC and
CAG are applicable to J&K along
with all other states.
CONSTITUTIONAL BODIES
Election Commission
It is a permanent & an independent
body established by the Constitution
of India directly to ensure free & fair
elections in the country. Elections to
Parliament, State legislatures, President
& VicePresident are vested in it.
Composition:
The
Election
Commission consists of a Chief
Election Commissioner & such other
commissioners as the President may,
form time to time, decide.
Appointment & Term: The CEC
& other Election Commissioners
are appointed by the President for

a term of 6 years. The Regional
Commissioners may also be appointed
by the President in consultation with
the Election Commission for assisting
the Election Commission. The CEC
can be removed from office before
expiry of his term by the President
on the basis of a Resolution passed by
the Parliament by a special majority
on the ground of proved misbehavior
or incapacity. The other Election
Commissioners may be removed by
the President on the recommendation
of the CEC.
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Polity
Powers & Functions:
Current Chief Election Commissioner is Mr. Nasim Zaidi
Public Service Commissions

I. Union Public Service
Commissions (UPSC)
x
x
x
Independent Constitutional body.

Recruitment of civil servants at
the union level.
Chairman & members are
appointed by the President & have
tenure of 6 years or until age of
65 years.
The President can also remove
them before expiry of their term on
grounds of proved misbehaviour.
The President can issue orders for
the removal of the members of the
UPSC only after the Supreme court
makes such a recommendation on
the basis of an enquiry.
Functions:
1. Conduct
examinations
for
appointment to the services of
the union.
2. Assists the states in framing
& operating schemes of joint
recruitment.
3. Advises the President of India
(a) All matters relating to
methods of recruitment in
civil services & for civils posts.
(b) Suitability of Candidates for
appointments for promotions.
(c) On all disciplinary matters

person serving under the
goverment of India.
4. Presents annually to the President
a report on its performance. The
President places this report before
both the Houses of Parliament.
II. State Public Service
Commission
x Recruitment of Civil Services at
the state level.
x Two or more states, if parliament
provides by law, may have a Joint
Public Service Commission.
x Service conditions of SPSCs
members are determined by
Governor
whereas
service
conditions of Joint PSC are
determined by President.
x Chairman & members of SPSC
are appointed by Government &
in case of JPSC by the President.
x Chairman & members of SPSC &
JPSC have tenure of 6 years or
until age of 62 years.
x Members may resign by writing to
Governor. It is only the President
who can make a reference to the
Supreme Court & make an order
of removal in pursuance of the
report of the Supreme court.
Functions
1. Conduct
examinations
for
appointments to the services of
the state.
B-256
2. Advise on matter that may be

referred by the Governor.
3. Present Annual report to the
Governor who shall cause it to
be laid before the state legislature.
4. Any other function that state
legislature may by law assign.
Finance Commission
An instrument which the constitution
has evolved for the purpose of
distributing financial
resources
between centre & states is the Finance
Commission,. According to Article
280 of the Constitution, it is to be
constituted by the President once every
5 years consisting of a chairman &
four other members appointed by the
President.
Functions
The duty of the Commission is
to make recommendations to the
President as to
1. The distribution between the
Union & the States of the net
proceeds of taxes which are to
be divided between them and
the allocation between the states
themselves of the respective shares
of such proceeds.
2. The principles which should
govern the grant inaid of the
revenue of the states out of the
Consolidated fund of India.
3. The measures needed to augment
the consolidated fund of a state to
supplement the resources of the
Panchayats & the Muncipalities
in the state on the basis of the
recommendation by the State
Finance Commission.
4. Any other matter referred to the
commission by the President in
the interests of sound finances.
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National Commission for

Scheduled Castes & Tribes
The President has power to appoint
a National Commission for SCs &
STs. The Commission shall consist
of a Chairman, a ViceChairman &
5 other members. This Commission
was given contitutional status by the
65th Amendment Act 1990.
Functions
1. To investigate & monitor all
matters relating to the safeguards
provided for SCs & STs under the
Constitution of India & to evaluate
the working of such safeguards.
2. To enquire specific complaints
with respect to the deprivation
of rights & safeguards of SCs &
STs.
3. To submit its Annual Report to
the President.
National Commission for

Backward Classes
Article 340 empowers the President to
appoint a Commission to investigate
the conditions of the socially &
educationally backward classes. The
Commission recommends removal of
all difficulties of Backward Classes
& raising them to a higher social,
educational & economic standard.
After constitution was adopted two
Backward Class Commissions
were appointed (1) Kaka Saheb
Kalelkar Committee & (2) B.P. Mandal
Committee.
Comptroller & Auditor

General (CAG)
The CAG is the custodian of public
purse & controls the entire financial
system of the country. He is appointed
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by the President for a period of 6 years
or till he attains the age of 65 years
whichever is earlier. It is his duty to
see that no money is spent out of the
Consolidated fund of India or of a
State without the authority of the
appropriate legislation. The reports
of the CAG are presented to the
President or the Governor, as the case
may be, & laid before the Parliament
& the respective State legislatures.
In Lok Sabha, the Public Accounts
Committee considers this Report.
The current CAG of India is
Shashikant Sharma.
Attorney General (AG)
Functions
Functions:
He can audit & report on:

1. All expenditure from consolidated
fund of India & each state &
each Union Territories having
a legislative Assembly & see
whether expenditure has been in
accordance with the law.
2. All expenditure from the
Contingency Funds & Public
Accounts of the Union & the
states.
3. All trading, manufacturing, profit
& loss accounts etc.., Kept by any
Department of the Union or a
State.
4. The receipts & expenditure of
the Union & of each state to
satisfy himself that the rules
& procedures are designed to
secure an effective check on the
assessment, Collection & proper
allocation of revenue.
5. The receipts & expenditure of all
bodies & authorities substantially
financed from the Union or state
Revenues.
1. Give advice on all such legal

matters & to perform all such other
duties of a legal character as may,
from time to time, be referred to
him by the President.
2. Discharge the functions conferred
on him by the constitution or any
other law for the time being in
force.
3. Appear before the Supreme Court
& various High Courts in cases
involving the Goverment of India.
The AG is the highest legal officer

of the Goverment of India. He is
appointed by the President & holds
office during the pleasure of the
President. He must have the same
qualifications as are required to be a
judge of the Supreme Court.
Though the AG of India is not a
member of the Cabinet, he shall have
the right to address in the House of
Parliment but shall have no right to
vote. In the performance of his official
duties the AG is entited to audience
in all Courts in the territory of India.
Advocate General
Each state shall have an Advocate
General. He is the states counter
part of the Attorney General of India.
He is appointed by the Governor of
the State who holds office during the
pleasure of the Governor. A person
qualified to be a High Court Judge can
be appointed Advocate General. He
has the right to address & take part
in the proceedings of the House of
the State Legislature. But he has no
right to vote. His functions are similar
to those of the Attorney General.
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NONSTATUTORY BODIES
PLANNING COMMISSION
The Planning Commission of India was established on March 15, 1950 on
the basis of a resolution of the Cabinet to that effect. It is a nonstatutory/
extra constitutional body. Prime Minister is the exofficio Chairman of the
Planning Commission. The Deputy Chairman of planning Commission is
of Cabinet rank.
Examine Achievements of
Plans & suggest Corrective
measures
Assessment of material, capital and

human resources and prepare plans for
effective and balanced utilisation of these
resources
Functions of
planning
Commission
Determine appropriate
machinery required for
successful implement action
Advise the
Government
Indicate factors which

retard Economic
development
National Development Council

(NDC)
NDC is one of the key organizations
of the Planning system in India. It
was set up by a resolution of Central
goverment on August 6, 1952. It is
an extraconstitutional body. It is
described as a Super Cabinet. It should
meet atleast twice every year.
Composition = Prime minister
(Chairman) + Chief Minister of all
states + Administrators of all union
territories
All Union Cabinet Ministers +
Members of Planning Commission
Objectives
x
x
x
Determine Priorities
& Define stages in
which plan should be
carried out
Strengthen & mobilize the efforts

for national planning & the
national resources.
Prescribe common economic
policies.
Ensure rapid & balanced economic
development of all parts of
country.
Functions
x
x
x
x
Lays down the guidelines for the

formulation of 5 year plans.
Approving & Reviewing the Plan
from time to time.
Securing
Corrdinated
implementation of the plans.
Consider important questions of
social & economic policy affecting
national development.
NITI Aayog
The government of India has
replaced Planning Commission with
a new institution named NITI Aayog
(National Institution for Transforming
India).
The institution will serve as Think
Tank of the Government - a
directional and policy dynamo.
NITI Aayog will provide Governments
at the Central and State Levels with
relevant strategic and technical advice
across the spectrum of key elements
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of policy, this includes matters of
national and international importance
on the economic front, dissemination
of best practices from within the
country as well as from other nations,
the infusion of new policy ideas and
specific issue-based support.
Composition: NITI Aayog will have
Prime Minister as its chairman, one
Vice-Chairman cum chief-executive
officer, 5 fulltime members and 2 part
time members, apart from 4 central
government ministers.
Lokpal
In India, the institution of
Ombudsman (Swedish word meaning
Commissioner) has given the name of
Lokpal & use it as an anti-corruption
institution. The Dictionary defines
the Ombudsman as an official to
investigate complaints by individual
against maladministration by public
authorities. Lokpal is visualised
as the countrys watch dog. The
idea of creating Lokpal was first
conceptualized in 1968 in 4th Lok
Sabha. Thereafter in 1971, 1977, 1985,
1989, 1996, 1998 & 2001 efforts were
made to enact legislation to create the
institution of Lokpal. The Bill received
Parliaments assent on 1st Jan 2013.
The Bill as passed by Parliament
creates a Lokpal at the centre which
shall consist of a chairperson &
upto 8 members. Half of these
members should have higher judicial
experience & other half should have
experience in public administration,
finance, insurance & banking laws,
anti corruption & vigilance. It also
provides that half the members of
Lokpal shall be from amongst SCs,
STs, OBCs, minority & women.
The chairperson & members of

Lokpal shall be appointed by a
Selection Committee consisting of
PM, Speaker of Lok Sabha, Leader
of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Chief
Justice of India & an eminent jurist to
be nominated by the President based
on the recommendations of the other
members of the Selection Committee.
The jurisdiction of Lokpal extends
to the PM, Ministers, Current &
former MPs & members of legislative
assemblies, government employees
& employees of companies funded
or controlled by the control or state
government.
It specifies a time limit of 60 days for
completion of inquiry & 6 months for
completion of investigation by CBI.
Lokayukta
The anti-corruption institution of
Lokayukta is set up at the state level.
He is appointed by the Governor of
the state. In most of the states, the
term of office fixed for Lokayukta is
of 5 years duration or 65 years of age,
whichever is earlier.
National Human Rights

Commission (NHRC)
NHRC is a statutory body, established
in 1993, to act as the watch dog of
human rights in the country, that is the
rights relating to life, liberty, equality
& dignity of the individual guaranteed
by the constitution or embodied in the
international covenants & enforceable
by courts in India. The commission
is a multi-member body consisting of
a chairman and four members. The
Chairman and members are appointed
by the President. They hold office for
a term of 5 years or until they attain
the age of 70 years.
Representatives
are elected by
people indirectly
or directly.
Responsive
Ensure
to the public
Political
opinion
freedom &
socio-economic
development
Democracy
Government is
responsible
to parliament
of
Govt.)
Union
List
of State)
Central
Govt.
State
Govt.
State Concurrent
List
List
Local
Govt.
Decentralisation
of Authority
Federal
Government
2 Heads
Party
Distribution
governs through Repreof powers
sentation
assembly or
P.M. President
parliament
(Head
(Head
Parliamentary
FEATURES OF INDIAN GOVERNMENT
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INDIAN GOVERNMENT
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Institutional Framework
Legislature
Law-making
Body
Introduction,
Discussion &
passing of
the bills
Make
Laws
Judiciary
Executive
Law-Implementation
Body
Includes Ministers
& Civil Servants
Responsible
to the electorate
Law-Adjudication
Settlement
of Disputes
Formulation
& Implementation
of Plans & Policies
Judicial
Review
Guardian
of Fundamental
Rights
LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT
Union Govt.
State Govt.
Responsible for
Administration
& Governance of
whole Country
Chief Council of Responsible for
Minister Ministers Administration &
Governance of
1 District Level unit
State
1 Examine the Budget
Local Govt.
1 Organise meeting
PM
Council
of
Ministers
& supervise work

of panchayat samiti
1 Adopt measures for
completion of
activities
1 Block level
1
xecutive Organ
of Gram Sabha
1 Prepare Plans
1 erform social
welfare &
Developmental
of activities
1 owest Unit
1 Directly Elected
Members
Panchayati Raj Institutions

(Rural)
Municipalities
(Urban)
Zila
Panchayat
Nagar
Panchayat
Panchayat
Samiti
Municipal
Council
Gram
Sabha
Municipal
Corporation
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ELECTIONS
3 Types
Procedure
Basis
Steps
General
Election
Elections
of Lok
Sabha
& State
Assemblies
By Election
Election
to till
vacant
seat of
a member
of Lok
Sabha or
State
Legislative
Assembly
Mid term
Election
Election
due to
Dissolvement
of Lok Sabha or
Vidhan Sabha
before its tern
is over
Adult Geographical Single Member

Suffrage Representation Territorial
1. Nomination
Constituencies
of Candidates
2. Declaration
of final list
of candidates
3. Allotment
of symbols to
political
parties &
Independent
Candidates
Election
Manifesto
& campaign
Polling
Counting
of votes
Declaration
of Result
Committees for Electoral Reform :

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Tarkunde Committee (1974)

Dinesh Goswami Committee (1990)
Vohra Committee (1993)
Indrajit Gupta Committee (1998)
Election Commission of India Report on Proposed Electoral Reforms
(2004)
6. Tankha Committee (2010)
Important Electoral Reforms :
x
x
x
x
Lowering of voting age from 21 years to 18 years.

Use of Electronic Voting Machines.
Adjournment of poll or countermanding of elections in case of Booth
capturing.
Listing of
candidates
Names
Candidates of
Recognised
Parties
Candidates of
Registered
Unrecognised
Parties
Other Independent
Candidates
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x
x
x
x
Contestants restricted to Two constituencies.

Campaigning period reduced from 20 to 14 days.
Declaration of criminal antecedents, assets, etc., by candidates on nomination
paper.
Ceiling on Election Expenditure Increased.
Political Parties & Pressure Group

Political Parties
x
Meaning : Group of persons who agree on some ideology & seek to capture
the power & form the government on the basis of collective leadership.
x Type of Party System in India : Multi Party System :
x Functions
(i) Representation
(ii) Elite Formation & Recruitment
(iii) Goal Formulation
(iv) Interest Articulation & Aggregation
(v) Socialization & Mobilization
(vi) Organization of Government.
x Category of Political Party in India:Category
National Party
6% of valid
votes in 4 states
OR
or more
+
4 seats in lok
sabha from any
state or states
2% seats in lok
sabha & members
are elected from
3 different states
State Party
6% of valid
votes in state
+
OR
2 seats in
assembly
3% of total
no. of seats
or 3 seats
in assembly,
whichever is
more
Pressure Groups
x
x
x
x
x
Represents socio-economic & political interests of a particular section in

political system. Eg. farmers, industrial workers etc.
Organised on basis of common goals & share similar values.
Seek support of party leaders, legislators & bureaucracy in vigorous pursuit
of their goals.
Exert pressure on government in order to obtain laws and administrative
measures in favour of their specific interests.
Termed as a Anonymous Empire
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Types of Pressure Group in India

Types
Associational
Pressure Groups
Industry, Labour,
Agriculture, etc.
(Eg. ASSOCHAM,
AITUC)
Non-Associational
Pressure Groups
Institutional
Pressure Groups
Religion, Caste,
Tribe, language
or culture
(Eg. Anglo-Indian
Christians Association)
Civil Services, Police,

Defence services,
Public Sector
Employees
(Eg. AISA)
Anomic Pressure
Groups
Adhoc interest
Groups set up for
specific objective
(Eg. All Assam
Students Union)
NATIONAL POLITICAL PARTIES OF INDIA

No.
Name
1. Bharatiya
Janata Party
2 Indian National
Congress
3 Communist
Party of India
(Marxist)
4 Communist
Party of India
Abbreviation
Symbol
Foundation
Current
Year
Leaders
1980
Amit Shah
BJP
Lotus
INC
Hand
1885
Sonia Gandhi
CPI-M
Hammer,
Sickle and
star
Ears of
corn and
sickle
Elephant
1964
Sitaram
Yechury
1925
1984
Suravaram
Sudhakar
Reddy
Mayawtai
Clock
1999
Sharad Pawar
CPI
5 Bahujan Samaj BSP

Party
6 Nationalist
NCP
Congress Party
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN POLITICAL PARTY & PRESSURE GROUP

Political Party
1. Strive to organise public opinion
in issues of public concern. (Wider
objectives)
2. Represents aggregation of interests.
(Large membership)
3. Generalist in organisation of
opinion.
4. Contest Elections.
5. Intention of gaining political power.
6. Help in formulating policies.
Pressure Group
Specific or sectional interets (united
objectives)
Represents specific interest. (Limited
Membership)
Specialist in organisation of opinion.
Do not contest Elections.
No intention of gaining political power.
Tend to influence the policies of
government.
Polity
FOREIGN POLICY OF INDIA

I.
Principles and objectives
1. Preservation of Indias sovereign

independence.
2. Non-alignment.
3. Opposition to Imperialism,
colonialism & Racial discrimination.
4. Opposition to discriminatory
international regimes & hedonistic
policies.
5. Panchsheel
x mutual respect for each others
territorial integrity &sovereignty.
x non-aggression
x Non-interference in each others
internal affairs.
x equality & mutual benefit.
x peaceful co-existence.
6. Support for United Nations &
international peace.
7. Promotion of unity & solidarity
of Third world for securing an
equitable share in world politics.
II. Look East Policy
Indias Lok East Policy was first
initiated in 1992 by the then Prime
Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao. Since
then, the policy has been one of
the cornerstones of Indias foreign
policy. It lays emphasis on improving
cooperation with Indias neighbouring
south-east & east. Asian countries
(eg. China, Bangladesh, Myanmar,
Thailand etc.) & also engagement
with various regional organisations
such as ASEAN, East Asia Summit,
BIMSTEC & Mekong Ganga
Cooperation (MGC). The policy is
pursued in a multi faceted manner
in diverse areas such as improved
connectivity, promotion of trade,
investment & cultural exchanges.
III. Gujral Doctrine
The Gujral Doctrine is a milestone
in Indias foreign policy. It was
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propounded & initiated in 1996 by

I.K. Gujral, the then Foreign Minister
in the Deve. Gowda Government. The
Doctrine is a 5-point roadmap to guide
the conduct of Indias foreign relations
with its neighbours.
These 5 principles are as follows
1. With the neighbours India should
not ask for reciprocity, but give to
them what it can is good faith.
2. No south asian country should
allow its territory to be used
against the interest of another
country of the region.
3. No, country should interfere in the
internal affairs of another country.
4. All South Asian Countries should
respect each others territorial
integrity & sovereignty.
5. All South Asian countries should
settle all their disputes through
peaceful bilateral negotiations.
IV. Nuclear Policy of India
India adopted its Nuclear doctrine in
2003. Its main objectives are:1. India shall pursue a doctrine
of credible minimum nuclear
deterrence.
2. India will not resort to the use or
threat of use of nuclear weapons
against states which donot
possess nuclear weapons, or are
not aligned with nuclear weapon
powers.
3. Deterrence requires that India
maintain:(a) Sufficient, survivable &
operationally prepared nuclear
forces.
(b) Robust command & control
system.
(c) Effective intelligence & early
warning capabilities.
Indias first nuclear test - 18 May 1974.
India second nuclear test- 11 May &
13 May, 1998.
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MODIS VISIT TO NATIONS
Place
Victoria, Seychelles
Date
10th-11thMarch
Place
Port Louis, Mauritius
Date
11th -13th March
3
4
Purpose
To strengthen maritime and bilateral ties
Agreements Cooperation in:
x hydrography
x renewable energy
x infrastructure development
x Sale of navigation charts and electronic
navigational charts.
Purpose
To build strategic asset with the island nation.
Agreements Cooperation in:
x MoU in the field of Ocean Economy.
x Programme for Cultural Cooperation for the
year 2015-18.
x MoU on Cooperation in the field of
Traditional System of Medicine and
Homeopathy.
Place
Colombo, Sri Lanka
Date
13th -14th March
Purpose
State Visit.
Agreements The two sides signed four agreements on :
x visa
x customs
x youth development,
x And building Rabindranath Tagore memorial
in Sri Lanka.
Place
Paris, Toulouse, Neuve-Chapelle in France
Date
9th-12th April
Purpose
Strengthening International Relations.
Agreements x MoU between L&T and AREVA to improve
the financial viability of Jaitapur project.
x MoU between ISRO and CNES on Megha
Tropiques, the joint project for sharing and
use of data from the satellite.
x Railway protocol between Indian Ministry
of Railways and French National Railways
(SNCF) for semi-high speed rail and station
renovation.
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Place
Singapore
Date
29th March
Purpose
State funeral of Lee Kuan Yew
Agreements Along with attending the state funeral of Lee

Kuan Yew, Prime Minister Modi met several world
leaders including the Israeli President.
Place
Berlin, Hannover in Germany
Date
12th-14th April
Place
Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver in Canada
Date
14th-16th April
Place
Xian, Beijing, Shanghai in China
Date
14th-16th May
Purpose
Strengthen the Bilateral ties
Purpose
Strengthening Bilateral relations
Agreements No agreement signed until German Chancellor
Angela Merkel visits India in October 2015.
Purpose
Bilateral Visit
Agreements x Commercial agreements and announcements
worth 1.6 Billion Canadian Dollars under
which Saskatchewan-based Cameco will
supply India with over seven million pounds
of uranium over the next five years.
of
skill
development
and
Agreements x MoU
entrepreneurship of India and the ministry of
human resources and social security of China
focussing on vocational education and skill
development.
x MoU on consultative mechanism for
cooperation in trade negotiations.
x MoU on education exchange programme.
x MoU of Niti Aayog and the Development
Research Centre, State Council of China.
x MoU between Doordarshan and China
Central Television on cooperation in the field
of broadcasting.
Place
Ulan Bator, Mongolia
Date
Purpose
16th-17th May
International Relations
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Agreements x Agreement for avoidance of Double Taxation

and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with
Respect to Taxes on Income.
x MoU for Cooperation of National Security
Council Secretariat of India and the Office of
National Security of Korea.
x MoU between the Ministry of Youth Affairs
and Sports of India and the Ministry of
Gender Equality and Family of Korea on
Cooperation in Youth Matters.
10
Place
Seoul, South Korea
Date
18th-19th May
11
Place
Dhaka. Bangladesh
Date
6th-7th June
Purpose
Promote Make in India
Agreements x Cooperation in audio-visual co-production
enabling the co-production of films, animation
and broadcasting programmes.
x MoU with Ministry of Power and the Ministry
of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea
on cooperation in the field of electric power
development and new energy industries.
x MoU in the fields of maritime transport
and logistics including through sharing of
technologies, information and experiences.
Purpose
Expand the cordial relationship
Agreements x Memorandum of Understanding between Coast
Guards
x MoU on Prevention of Human Trafficking
x MoU on Prevention of Smuggling and
Circulation Fake Currency Notes
x MoU between Bangladesh and India and for
Extending a New Line of Credit (LoC) of US$ 2
billion by Government of India to Government
of Bangladesh
x MoU on Blue Economy and Maritime
Cooperation in the Bay of Bengal and the
Indian Ocean
x MoU on Use of Chittagong and Mongla Ports
x MoU for a Project under IECC (India
Endowment for Climate Change) of SAARC
x Agreement on Dhaka-Shillong-Guwahati Bus
Service and its Protocol
x Agreement on Kolkata-Dhaka-Agartala Bus
Service and its Protocol.
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12
Place
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Date
6th July
13
Place
Astana, Kazakhstan
Date
7th July
14
Place
Ufa, Russia
Date
8th -10th July
Purpose
To improve Bilateral and regional issues.
Agreements x Cooperation in Law Enforcement to CounterTerrorism.
x Cooperation in the field of defence and cyber
security.
x UN Security Council Reforms to reaffirm Indias
candidature for permanent membership of UN
Security Council.
Boosting trade, energy, defence and security

cooperation
Agreements x MoU by JSC Kazxnex Invest and JSC Invest
India to establish bilateral trade and economic
relations.
x MoU on Technical Cooperation in the sphere
of railways between the NC Kazakhstan Temir
Zholy JSC and Indias railways ministry.
x MoU on defence cooperation which includes
supply of 5,000 tonnes of uranium to India
during 2015-19.
x Transfers of sentenced persons.
Purpose
Purpose
BRICS summit
Agreements x MoU between Quality Council of India (QCI)
and Federal Accreditation Service of Russian
for elimination of technical barriers in trade
and economic cooperation.
x MoU by Indian Council of Medical Research
(ICMR) and the Russian Foundation for Basic
Research (RFBR) for cooperation in various
areas of health research.
x MoU between TATA Power and Russian
Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) exploring
opportunities in the energy sector.
x MoU between ACRON of Russia and
NMDC of Indiato acquire stake in a potash
mine in Russia.
x MoU between ESSAR and ROSNEFT to
ensure ten year supply and purchasecrude oil
and feed stocks/productsby India.
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x Agreement for Training of Indian Armed

Forces Personnel in the Military Educational
Establishments of the Defence Ministry of the
Russian Federation establishing understanding
between the two forces.
15
Place
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Date
10th-11th July
To enhance cooperation among the two

nations.
Agreements x MoU on Supply of Chemical Products between
the Indian Public Sector Undertaking Rashtriya
Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited and the
Turkmen State concern Turkmenhimiya
x MoU between the Foreign Service Institute of
the Ministry of External Affairs of India and
the Institute of International Relations of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.
x MoU between India and Turkmenistan on
Cooperation in Yoga and Traditional Medicine.
Purpose
16
Place
Bishkek,Kyrgyzstan
Date
12th July
17
Place
Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Date
12th-13th July
Purpose
To counter threat of terrorism and extremism
Agreements x Agreement on Defence Cooperation in
relation to matters of defence, security,
military education and training.
x MoU and Cooperation in the field of
Electionsrelating to legislation on elections
and referendums.
x Agreement on cooperation in culture
ensuringpreservation of cultural heritage,
organisation of folk arts, theatre.
Purpose
Bilateral ties
Agreements x Programme of Cooperation (POC) between
Ministries of Culture of India and Tajikistan
in the field of Culture for the years 2016-18
for greater cultural understanding between the
countries.
x Exchange of Note Verbale (NV) on setting up
of Computer Labs in 37 Schools in Tajikistanto
set up computer labs in 37 schools in Tajikistan
for supporting Tajikistans human resource and
skill development efforts.
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18
Place
Abu Dhabi, Dubai
Date
16th -17th August
Purpose
To counter threat of terrorism and enhance

trade
x UAEs landmark decision to allocate land
for a temple.
x UAE to invest 4.5 lakh crore rupees in India.
x UAE - India to boost trade and establish a
security dialogue.
Highlights
19
20
Place
Dublin, Ireland
Date
23rd September
Purpose
Highlights
To enhance trade and commerce and aviation.

x Promotion of business links and cooperation to
boost tourism ties, which are already growing
at a yearly rate of 14 per cent.
x Economic partnership in the fields of
information technology, biotechnology and
pharmaceuticals, agricultural and clean energy.
x Ireland to provide support for Indias
membership into the Nuclear Suppliers Group
and permanent seat in the UNSC.
x Exchange of views on important international
issues like, terrorism, radicalism and the challenges
emerging out of it in Europe and Asia.
Place
New York, San Francisco in USA
Date
24th-30thSeptember
Purpose
Highlights

x PM Narendra Modi addressed the Indian
diaspora at the SAP Center in Silicon Valley.
x Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced
a proposal for introduction of broadband
connectivity, through Wi-Fi hotspots, at 100
railway stations.
x Qualcomm
Incorporated
announced
establishment of $150 million India-specific
Venture Fund formed to foster promising
Indian start-ups.
x Modi launched Bharat Fund at IndiaU.S. StartUp Konnect programme. It is
aimed at providing seed funding to Indian
entrepreneurs.
x Modi answered questions from the audience
at a Townhall at the Facebook headquarters at
Menlo Park, California.
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Polity
21
Place
London, Chequers in United Kingdom
Date
12th-14th November
Purpose
Highlights
To enhance and deepen economic engagement.

x India and the UK have announced commercial
deals worth 9 billion pounds in London.
x OPG Power Ventures plc will further invest in
India by 2.9 billion to a total of 3.4 billion,
creating around 100 UK jobs over next few years.
x Merlin Entertainments to open a Madame
Tussauds wax attraction in New Delhi in 2017.
x Genus ABS to invest 1 million in India, creating
latest dairy genetics and constructing a state-ofthe-art facility near Pune.
x Solar PV generator in the UK and Europe,
Lightsource, has announced a 2 billion
investment in India.
x Vodafone has announced a range of further
investments in India totalling 1.3 billion
(` 13,000 crore) to support the Government
of Indias Digital India and Make in India
campaigns.
x Holland & Barrett International has partnered
with Apollo Hospitals in a deal worth 20
million.
x Bharti Airtel intends issuing its maiden sterling
bond of up to 500 million to be listed on the
London Stock Exchange.
x Wipro has increased its investment in the UK
with the opening of its newest office for Wipro
Digital.
x MoU signed between the two countries on tech
cooperation in the rail sector.
22
Place
Antalya, Turkey
Date
15th16th November
Purpose
Highlights
G-20 Summit
x PM Modi met the leaders of Australia and
Spain, and also the Saudi Arabias King
Salman Al-Saud on the sidelines of the G20
Summit.
x India and Turkey to team up for infrastructure
projects and tackling the problem of terrorism.
x Modi urged the G20 nations to fulfil the global
aspirations for clean energy.
x India promised to increase renewable power
capacity four-folds to 175 gigawatt by 2022
and cut fossil subsidies.
x Nuclear-deal procedure for supplying uranium
has been sealed between India and Australia.
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Polity
23
Place
Date
Purpose
Highlights
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

21-22 November
ASEAN-India summit and East Asia Summit
x MoU was signed on Performance Management
Delivery Unit (PEMANDU) to ensure excellent
cooperation in Public Administration and
Governance.
x PM urged Malaysian government for cooperation and enhanced participation in projects
like Make in India and Smart city initiatives.
x PM Modi also announced the inauguration of
Torana Gate at the entrance of Little India in
Bricksfield, Kuala Lumpur.
x India and Malaysia to deepen their cooperation
on security challenges and terrorism.
24
Place
Date
Purpose
Highlights
Singapore
23rd-25th November
To elevate bilateral relations of both countries.
x MoUs on curtailing drug trafficking and
improving cyber security.
x Collaboration in urban planning and wastewater
management.
x MoU for cooperation in civil aviation services
and airport management beginning with Jaipur
and Ahmedabad airports.
x Extending of long-term loan of Indian artefacts
to the Asian Civilisations Museum of Singapore.
25
Place
Date
Purpose
France
30th November 1st December
2015 United Nations Climate Change
Conference COP21
x PM Modi inaugurated India Pavilion
showcasing Indias harmony with nature,
environment and commitment to mitigate
climate change.
x PM Modi and French President Francois
Hollande jointly unveiled the International
Solar Alliance.
x PM Modi also attended Mission Innovation
hosted by President of the United States.
Highlights
26
27
28
Place
Date
Russia
23rd December 24th December
Place
Date
Afghanistan
25th December
Place
Date
Pakistan
25th December
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Polity
World Polity
Cold War Era
Contemporary world politics is the
direct outcome of World War II.
In 1945, the Allied Forces, led by
the US, Soviet Union, Britain and
France defeated the Axis Powers led by
Germany, Italy and Japan, ending the
Second World War (1939- 1945). The
war had involved almost all the major
powers of the world and spread out
to regions outside Europe including
Southeast Asia, China, Myanmar and
parts of Indias northeast.
The First World War had earlier shaken
the world between 1914 and 1918. The
end of the Second World War was
also the beginning of the Cold War.
The world war ended when the United
States dropped two atomic bombs on
the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in August 1945, causing
Japan to surrender. With the defeat of
Germany and Japan, the devastation
of Europe and in many other parts
of the world, the United States and
the Soviet Union became the greatest
powers in the world with the ability to
influence events anywhere on earth.
The Cold War in spite of being an
intense form of rivalry between great
powers remained a cold and not
hot or shooting war. The dominance
of two superpowers, the United States
of America and the Soviet Union, was
central to the Cold War. As a result
Non Aligned Movement (NAM) as
a challenge to the dominance of the
two superpowers was born.
Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis is a time
when the United States and the Soviet
Union almost had a nuclear war.
When the U.S. discovered offensive
nuclear missiles in Cuba, it started
a tense period of 13 days while the
world watched to see if the Soviets
would remove the missiles, just 90
miles from the U.S.
President Kennedy did not dare to
invade Cuba, because that action could
have started a world war - yet he could
not let the missile sites be completed.
With his advisers, he decided on a
naval blockade to prevent Russian
ships delivering the missiles for the
Cuban sites.
Khrushchev warned that Russia
would see the blockade as an act
of war. Russian forces were put on
alert; US bombers were put in the air
carrying nuclear bombs; preparations
were made to invade Cuba. There was
massive tension in both Washington
and Moscow. Everybody thought the
world was going to come to an end.
Secretly, the Americans suggested a
trade-off of missile bases - US bases
in Turkey for Russian bases in Cuba.
Polity
The Russians made the first public
move. The ships heading for Cuba
turned back, and Khrushchev sent
a telegram offering to dismantle the
Cuban bases if Kennedy lifted the
blockade and promised not to invade
Cuba. Then, as though having second
thoughts, he sent a second letter
demanding the dismantling of the
Turkish bases. At the vital moment,
a US U2 spy plane was shot down.
However, Kennedy ignored the U2
attack and agreed publicly to the first
letter, and secretly to the second. The
crisis was over.
The Emergence of Two Power

Blocs
The two superpowers were keen on
expanding their spheres of influence
in different parts of the world. In a
world sharply divided between the two
alliance systems, a state was supposed
to remain tied to its protective
superpower to limit the influence of
the other superpower and its allies.
The smaller states in the alliances
used the link to the superpowers for
their own purposes. They got the
promise of protection, weapons,
and economic aid against their local
rivals, mostly regional neighbours with
whom they had rivalries. The alliance
systems led by the two superpowers,
therefore, threatened to divide the
entire world into two camps. This
division happened first in Europe.
Most countries of western Europe
sided with the US and those of eastern
Europe joined the Soviet camp. That
is why these were also called the
western and the eastern alliances.
The western alliance was formalised
into an organisation, the North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO),
which came into existence in April
1949. It was an association of twelve
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states which declared that armed

attack on any one of them in Europe or
North America would be regarded as
an attack on all of them. It was created
in 1955 and its principal function was
to counter NATOs forces in Europe.
In East and Southeast Asia and in
West Asia (Middle East), the United
States built an alliance system
called the Southeast Asian Treaty
Organisation (SEATO) and the Central
Treaty Organisation (CENTO). The
Soviet Union and communist China
responded by having close relations
with regional countries such as
North Vietnam, North Korea and
Iraq. The Cold War threatened to
divide the world into two alliances.
Communist China quarrelled with the
USSR towards the late 1950s, and, in
1969, they fought a brief war over a
territorial dispute. The other important
development was the Non-Aligned
Movement (NAM), which gave the
newly independent countries a way
of staying out of the alliances.
The Cold War did not eliminate
rivalries between the two alliances,
mutual suspicions led them to
arm themselves to the teeth and to
constantly prepare for war. Huge stocks
of arms were considered necessary
to prevent wars from taking place.
In time, therefore, the US and USSR
decided to collaborate in limiting or
eliminating certain kinds of nuclear
and non-nuclear weapons. A stable
balance of weapons, they decided,
could be maintained through arms
control. Starting in the 1960s, the
two sides signed three significant
agreements within a decade. These
were the Limited Test Ban Treaty,
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty
and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
Thereafter, the superpowers held
several rounds of arms limitation
talks and signed several more treaties
to limit their arms.
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Polity
India and the Cold War

As a leader of NAM, Indias response
to the ongoing Cold War was two-fold:
At one level, it took particular care in
staying away from the two alliances.
Second, it raised its voice against the
newly decolonised countries becoming
part of these alliances. Indias policy
was neither negative nor passive.
During the Cold War, India repeatedly
tried to activate those regional and
international organisations, which
were not a part of the alliances led
by the US and USSR.
Arms Control Treaties

Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT):
Banned nuclear weapon tests in the
atmosphere, in outer space and under
water. Signed by the US, UK and
USSR in Moscow on 5 August 1963.
Entered into force on 10 October 1963.
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT): Allows only the nuclear
weapon states to have nuclear weapons
and stops others from aquiring them.
For the purposes of the NPT, a
nuclear weapon state is one which
has manufactured and exploded a
nuclear weapon or other nuclear
explosive device prior to 1 January
1967. So there are five nuclear weapon
states: US, USSR (later Russia),
Britain, France and China. Signed in
Washington, London, and Moscow
on 1 July 1968. Entered into force on

5 March 1970. Extended indefinitely
in 1995.
Strategic Arms Limitation TalksI
(SALT-I): The first round of the
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks began
in November 1969. The Soviet leader
Leonid Brezhnev and the US President
Richard Nixon signed the following in
Moscow on 26 May 1972 a) Treaty
on the limitation of Anti-Ballistic
Missile Systems (ABM Treaty); and
b) Interim Agreement on the limitation
of strategic offensive arms. Entered
into force on 3 October 1972.
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks II
(SALT-II): The second round started
in November 1972. The US President
Jimmy Carter and the Soviet leader
Leonid Brezhnev signed the Treaty
on the limitation of strategic offensive
arms in Vienna on 18 June 1979.
Strategic Arms Reduction TreatyI
(START-I): Treaty signed by the
USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev
and the US President George Bush
(Senior) on the reduction and
limitation of strategic offensive arms
in Moscow on 31 July 1991.
Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty
II (START-II): Treaty signed by the
Russian President Boris Yeltsin and
the US President George Bush (Senior)
on the reduction and limitation of
strategic offensive arms in Moscow
on 3 January 1993.
UNITED NATIONS
The United Nations is an international
organization founded in 1945 after the
Second World War by 51 countries
committed to maintaining international
peace and security, developing
friendly relations among nations
and promoting social progress, better
living standards and human rights.
Quick Facts
x
x
x
x
Membership: 193 Member States

Established: 24 October 1945
Current
UN
peacekeeping
operations : 16
Official
languages:
Arabic,
Chinese, English, French, Russian,
Spanish.
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Polity
x
x
x
The first day approved by the UN

General Assembly was United
Nations Day, 24 October (by
resolution 168 (II) of 31 October
1947).
Based on five principal organs
(formerly sixthe Trusteeship
Council suspended operations
in 1994, upon the independence
of Palau, the last remaining UN
trustee territory); the General
Assembly, the Security Council,
the Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC), the Secretariat, and
the International Court of Justice.
General Assembly: 193 Member
States
Security Council: 5 permanent
members and 10 non-permanent
The Permanent Members of the

Security Council
x
x
x
The Peoples Republic of China;

The Republic of France;
The United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland;
x The Russian Federation; and
x The United States of America.
Official Language of United Nations :
There are six official languages
of the United Nations, used in
intergovernmental meetings and
documents. They are Arabic, Chinese,
English, French, Russian and Spanish.
The UN Flag and the Emblem

The UN General Assembly adopted
the UN flag on 20 Oct. 1947. The
white UN emblem is super-imposed on
a light blue back ground. The emblem
consists of the globe map projected
from the North pole and embraced in
twin olive branches (symbol of peace).
The UN emblem was approved on 7
Oct. 1946.
Aims and Objectives

The Main objectives of the UN are :
(1) To maintain peace and security in
the world.
(2) To work together to remove
poverty, disease and illiteracy and
encourage respect for each others
rights of basic freedom.
(3) To develop friendly relations among
nations.
(4) To be a centre to help nations
achieve these common goals.
The six main organs of the

United Nations System are :
General Assembly
The General Assembly is the main
deliberative assembly of the United
Nations. Composed of all United.
Nations member states, the assembly
meets in regular yearly sessions under
a president elected from among the
member states.
Security Council
The Security Council is charged
with maintaining peace and security
among countries. While other organs
of the United Nations can only
make recommendations to member
governments, the Security Council has
the power to make binding decisions
that member governments have agreed
to carry out, under the terms of Charter
Article 25. The decisions of the Council
are known as United Nations Security
Council resolutions.
The Security Council is made up of
15 member states, consisting of 5
permanent membersChina, France,
Russia, UK, USA and 10 nonpermanent members.
Secretariat
The United Nations Secretariat is
headed by the Secretary-General,
assisted by a staff of international
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Polity
civil servants worldwide. It provides

studies, information, and facilities
needed by United Nations bodies
for their meetings. It also carries out
tasks as directed by the UN Security
Council, the UN General Assembly,
the UN Economic and Social Council,
and other UN bodies.
The Secretariat is headed by the
Secretary-General, who acts as the
spokesperson and leader of the UN.
The current Secretary-General is Ban
Ki-moon, who took over from Kofi
Annan in 2007 and will be eligible
for reappointment when his first term
expires in 2011.
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ),
located in The Hague, Netherlands, is
the primary judicial organ of the United
Nations. Established in 1945 by the
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
United Nations Charter, the Court

began work in 1946 as the successor to
the Permanent Court of International
Justice.
Economic and Social Council
Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC) assists the General Assembly
in promoting international economic
and social cooperation and development.
ECOSOC has 54 members, all of which
are elected by the General Assembly
for a three-year term.
Trusteeship Council
It is one of the principal organs of
United Nations which armed at ensuring
the fact that the trust territories were
administered in the best interest of their
in habitant and of international peace
and security. It was formed in 1945
council the mission of the was fulfilled,
it collapsed on 1 November 1994.
Secretaries-General of the United Nations

Name
Country of Took office
origin
Trygve Lie
Dag Hammarskjold
U Thant
Kurt Waldheim
Javier Prez de Cullar
Boutros Boutros-Ghali
Kofi Annan
Ban Ki-moon
Norway
Sweden
Burma
Austria
Peru
Egypt
Ghana
South Korea
2-Feb-46
10-Apr-53
30-Nov-61
1-Jan-72
1-Jan-82
1-Jan-92
1-Jan-97
1-Jan-07
Left office
10-Nov-52
18-Sep-61
1-Jan-72
1-Jan-82
1-Jan-92
1-Jan-97
1-Jan-07
Incumbent
SPECIALIZED AGENCIES OF
THE UNITED NATIONS
United Nations Educational,
6FLHQWLFDQG&XOWXUDO
Organization (UNESCO)
Headquarters : Place de Fontenoy,
Paris, France
Established : 16 November 1945
Head
: Irina Bokova,
Members
: 195 member states

and 9 associate
members
Functions:
x Mobilizing for education by
providing every child, irrespective
of its gender quality education as
a fundamental human right
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Polity
x
x
x
Creation of World Heritage

Sites to support cultural diversity
and protect sites of outstanding
universal value.
Pursuing scientific cooperation
Protecting freedom of expression
The United Nations Childrens

Fund (UNICEF)
Headquarters : New York City
Established : 11 December 1946
Head
: Anthony Lake
Members
: 36 Member States
Functions :
x Child protection from violence,
exploitation and abuse along with
social inclusion for disabled.
x Basic education and gender
equality through programmes
like girls education innovation for
education learning for the peace
out-of-school initiative.
x Policy advocacies and partnership
through data analysis, leveraging
resources and child participation.
International Labour
Organization (ILO)
Headquarters : Geneva, Switzerland
Established : 1919 Head: Guy
Ryder
Members
: 185 of the 193
member states of the
United Nations plus
the Cook Islands are
members of the ILO
Functions :
x Creation of international labour
standards
x Formulation of international
policies,
x Technical assistance training,
x Education, research and publishing
activities
World Bank (WB)

Headquarters : Washington, DC, USA
Established : July 1944
Head
: Jim Yong Kim
Members
: 188 states (187

UN countries and
Kosovo)
Functions :
x World Bank provides various
technical services to the member
countries.
x Bank can grant loans to a member
country up to 20% of its share in
the paid-up capital.
x Quantities of loans, interest rate
and terms and conditions are
determined by the Bank itself.
x Bank grants loans for a particular
project duly submitted to the Bank
by the member country.
The International Monetary

Fund (IMF)
Headquarters : Washington, D.C.
Head
: Christine Lagarde
Members
: 188 countries
Functions :
x Surveillance over Members
Economic Policies
x Financing Temporary Balance of
Payments Needs
x Combating Poverty in LowIncome Countries
x Mobilizing External Financing
The World Health Organization

(WHO)
Established : 7 April 1948
Head
: Margaret
Chan,
Director General
Members
: 194 member states
Functions :
x Providing leadership on matters
critical to health and engaging in
partnerships where joint action is
needed;
x Shaping the research agenda
and stimulating the generation,
dissemination
of
valuable
knowledge
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x
x
Polity
Providing technical support,

catalyzing change, and building
sustainable institutional capacity;
Monitoring the health situation
and assessing health trends.
International Fund for

Agricultural Development
Objective (IFAD)
Headquarters
Established
Head
Members
:
:
:
:
Rome, Italy
1977
Kanayo F. Nwanze
176 member statesv
(174 UN members
states along with
the Cook Islands and
Niue)
Functions :
To ensure that poor rural mass have
access to:
x Natural resources, especially
secure access to land and water
x Improved agricultural technologies
and effective production services.
x A broad range of financial services
The Food and Agriculture

Organization of the United
Nations (FAO)
Headquarters : Palazzo, Rome, Italy
Established : 16 October 1945, in
Quebec City, Canada
Head
: Jos Graziano da
Silva
Members
: 197 members
Functions:
x Help eliminate hunger, food
insecurity and malnutrition.
x Make agriculture, forestry and
fisheries more productive and
sustainable.
x Reduce rural poverty
International Atomic Energy

Agency (IAEA)
Headquarters
Established
Head
Members
:
:
:
:
Vienna, Austria
July 29, 1957
Jos Yukiya Amano
166 member states
Functions :
x Peaceful uses: Promoting the
peaceful uses of nuclear energy
by its member states.
x Safeguards:
Implementing
safeguards to verify that nuclear
energy is not used for military
purposes.
x Nuclear safety: Promoting high
standards for nuclear safety.
United Nations Industrial

Development Organization
(UNIDO)
Headquarters : Vienna, Austria
Established : 1966(converted to a
specialized agency in
1985)
Head
: Li Yong
Members
: 172 States
Functions :
x Assists developing countries in
the formulation of development,
institutional,
scientific
and
technological
policies
and
programmes in the field of
industrial development;
x Analyzes trends, disseminates
information and coordinates
activities in their industrial
development;
x Acts as a forum for consultations
and negotiations directed towards
the industrialization of developing
countries;
The United Nations World

Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
Headquarters : Madrid, Spain
Established : 1957
Head
: Taleb Rifai
Members
: 157 states
Functions :
To promote and develop sustainable
tourism so as to contribute to
economic development, international
understanding, peace, prosperity etc.
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Polity
The World Food Programme

(WFP)
Headquarters : Rome, Italy
Established : 1961
Head
: Ertharin Cousin
Members
: 36 member states.
Functions :
x Save lives and protect livelihoods
in emergencies.
x Support food security and nutrition
and (re) build livelihoods in fragile
settings
x Reduce risk and enable people,
communities and countries to
meet their own food and nutrition
needs.
The World Intellectual Property

Organization (WIPO)
Established : July 14, 1967
Head
: Francis
Gurry
(Director-General)
Members
: 188 member states
Functions :
x Promoting creative intellectual
activity and for facilitating the
transfer of technology related
to industrial property to the
developing countries
World Meteorological
Organization (WMO)
Headquarters :Geneva, Switzerland
Established : 1950 HeadMichel
Jarraud (SecretaryGeneral)
Members
: 191 Member States
and Territories
Functions :
x Provides a frame work for
international cooperation in the
development of meteorology and
operational hydrology and their
practical application.
x played a unique and powerful role
in contributing to the safety and

welfare of humanity
Under
WMO,
National
Meteorological and Hydrological
Services contribute substantially to
the protection of life and property
against natural disasters
The United Nations

Development Programme
(UNDP)
Established : 1965
Head
: Helen Clark
Members
: 177 countries
Functions :
x Poverty reduction
x Crisis prevention and recovery
x Environment and Energy
The United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR)
Head
: Antnio Guterres
Members
: 98 members
Functions :
x To
lead
and
co-ordinate
international action to protect
refugees and resolve refugee
problems worldwide.
x To protect and providing
humanitarian assistance to whom
it describes as other persons of
concern, including internally
displaced persons
The United Nations

Environment Programme
(UNEP)
Headquarters
Established
Head
Members
:
:
:
:
Nairobi, Kenya
5 June 1972
Achim Steiner
54 countries on the
African Continent
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Polity
Functions :
x Assessing global, regional and
national environmental conditions
and trends
x Developing international and
national environmental instruments
x Strengthening institutions for
the wise management of the
environment
The United Nations Population

Fund (UNFPA)

Established : 1964
Head
: Dr.
Babatunde
Osotimehin
Members
: 194 member states
Functions :
x To formulate policies relating to all
aspects of development including
trade, aid, transport, finance and
technology.

Established : 1969
Head
: Dr.
Babatunde
Osotimehin
Members
: 36 countries
Functions :
x Universal access to reproductive
health services by 2015
x
x
Universal primary education

and closing the gender gap in
education by 2015
Reducing maternal mortality by
75 per cent by 2015
Reducing infant mortality
United Nations Conference on

Trade and Developmental
UN INTERNATIONAL YEARS
Since 1959 the UN has designated International years in order to draw attention
to major issues and to encourage international action to address concerns
which have global importance and ramifications.
2000 International Year for the Culture of Peace; and
International Year of Thanksgiving
2001 International Year of Volunteers; and
United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations; and
International Year of Mobilization against Racism, Racial Discrimination,
Xenophobia and
Related Intolerance
2002 International Year of Mountains; and
International Year of Culture Heritage; and
International Year of Ecotourism
2003 International Year of Freshwater
2004 International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and Its Abolition;
and
International Year of Rice
2005 International Year of Microcredit; and
International Year for Sport and Physical Education
2006 International Year of Deserts and Desertification
2008 International Year of
International Year of
the Potato; and

Planet Earth; and
Sanitation; and
Languages
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Polity
2009 International Year of Human Rights Learning - from 10 December 2008 (Human
Rights Day) to
10 December 2009
International Year of Reconciliation; and
International Year of Natural Fibres; and
International Year of Astronomy
2010 International Year of Biodiversity; and
International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures
International Year of Youth: Dialogue and Mutual Understanding - from 12
August 2010 (International Youth Day) to 11 August 2011
2011 International Year of Forests; and
International Year of Chemistry; and
International Year for People of African Descent
2012 International Year of Cooperatives
2013 International Year of Water Cooperation.
2014 International Year of Family Farming International Year of Crystallagraphy
International decades
20112020 Third International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism.
United Nations Decade on Biodiversity.
Decade of Action for Road Safety.
20102020 United Nations Decade for Deserts and the Fight against Desertification.
20082017 Second United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty.
20062016 Decade of Recovery and Sustainable Development of the Affected Regions
(third decade after the Chernobyl disaster).
20052015 International Decade for Action, Water for Life.
20052014 United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. Second
International Decade of the Worlds Indigenous People.
20032012 United Nations Literacy Decade: Education for All.
20012010 International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the
Children of the World.
Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in
Africa.
Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism.
International U.N. Week

x
x
x
x
March 2127 Week of Solidarity

with the Peoples Struggling against
Racism and Racial Discrimination,
recognized by the UN.
April 25 May 2 (2009)
Vaccination Week In The Americas.
May 2531 Week of Solidarity with
the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing
Territories, recognized by the UN.
4th week of September -
x
x
x
x
x
(International) Peace Week.

October 410 - World Space Week,
recognized by the UN.
October 2430 - Disarmament
Week, recognized by the UN.
October 2531 - International
Epidermolysis Bullosa Awareness
Week.
Road Safety Week - November
Shark Week - Summer
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UN WOMEN
The United Nations agreed to the
formation of a new institution
named UN Women on 2nd July
2010. The main objective will be the
sexual/gender equality and women
empowerment.
The fifty-ninth session of the
Commission on the Status of
Women took place at United
Nations Headquarters in New
York from 9 to 20 March 2015.
Representatives of Member States ,
UN entities, and ECOSOC-accredited
non-governmental
organizations
(NGOs) from all regions of the
world attended the session. The
main focus of the session was on the
Beijing Declaration and Platform for
Action, including current challenges
that affect its implementation and the
achievement of gender equality and
the empowerment of women.
The sixtieth session of the Commission
on the Status of Women will take place
at the United Nations Headquarters in
New York from 14 to 24 March 2016.
World Trade Organization

(WTO)
The World Trade Organization

(WTO) is the only global international
organization dealing with the rules of
trade between nations. The goal is to
help producers of goods and services,
exporters, and importers conduct
their business.
Facts :
Location
: Geneva, Switzerland
Established : 1 January 1995
Created by
: Uruguay
Round
negotiations (198694)
Membership : 161 members
Head
: Roberto Azevedo
Functions
:
x Administering
WTO
trade
agreements
x Forum for trade negotiations
x Handling trade disputes
x Monitoring national trade policies
x Technical assistance and training
for developing countries
x Cooperation with other international
organizations
Event: Tenth WTO Ministerial
Conference (15th to 19th Dec, 2015)
Place : Nairotri, Kenya
Agenda: Decision on agriculture,
cotton and issues related to least
developed countries.
OTHER AGENCIES
Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
is an intergovernmental organization
of states considering themselves not
aligned formally with or against any
major power bloc. As of now, the
organization has 120 members and 17
observer countries. Generally speaking
the Non-Aligned Movement members
can be described as all of those countries
which belong to the Group of 77 (along
with Belarus and Uzbekistan), but
which are not observers in Non-Aligned
Movement and are not Oceanian (with

the exception of Papua New Guinea
and Vanuatu).
The organization was founded in
Belgrade in 1961, and was largely
the brainchild of Yugoslavias first
President, Josip Broz Tito, Indias first
Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru,
Egypts second President, Gamal
Abdel Nasser, and Indonesias first
President, Sukarno. All four leaders
were prominent advocates of a middle
course for states in the Developing
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Polity
World between the Western and
Eastern blocs in the Cold War.
The purpose of the organisation as
stated in the Havana Declaration
of 1979 is to ensure the national
independence, sovereignty, territorial
integrity and security of non-aligned
countries in their struggle against
imperialism,
colonialism,
neocolonialism, racism, and all forms
of foreign aggression, occupation,
domination, interference or hegemony
as well as against great power and
bloc politics. They represent nearly
two-thirds of the United Nationss
members and 55% of the world
population, particularly countries
considered to be developing or part
of the third world.
Event: Working group meeting (14July, 2015)
Place: Egypt Agenda total elimination
of nuclear weapons.
THE COMMONWEALTH
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally
referred to as the Commonwealth
and previously known as the British
Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental
organisation of fifty-four independent
member states. All except two
(Mozambique and Rwanda) of these
countries were formerly part of the
British Empire.
The member states co-operate within
a framework of common values and
goals. These include the promotion
of democracy, human rights, good
governance, the rule of law, individual
liberty, egalitarianism, free trade,
multilateralism and world peace. The
Commonwealth is not a political union,
but an intergovernmental organisation
through which countries with diverse
social, political and economic
backgrounds.
The symbol of their free association

is the Head of the Commonwealth,
which is a ceremonial position currently
held by Queen Elizabeth II.
Member countries span six continents
and oceans from Africa (19), Asia (8),
the Americas (2), the Caribbean (12),
Europe (3) and the South Pacific (10).
The Commonwealth Heads of
Government Meeting, abbreviated to
CHOGM, is a biennial summit meeting
of the heads of government from all
Commonwealth nations. Every two years
the meeting is held in a different member
state, and is chaired by that nations
respective Prime Minister or President,
who becomes the Commonwealth
Chairperson-in-Office.
Event: Young Professional Programme
(2015)
Place: London
Agenda: Recruit young professionals in
the division such as Economic Policy,
Rule of Law, Human Resources and
Youth.
European Union
The European Union (EU) is an
economic and political union of 28
member states which are located
primarily in Europe.
The Maastricht Treaty established the
European Union under its current name
in 1993. The last amendment to the
constitutional basis of the EU, the Treaty
of Lisbon, came into force in 2009.
Event: European Council, (17-18
December 2015)
Place: Brussels
Agenda: Focused on migration, fight
against terrorism, the five presedents
report on the Economic and Monetary
Union the completion of the single market
and the UK plans for the referendum.
SAARC
The South Asian Association for
Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an
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Polity
organization of South Asian nations,

founded in 1985. Its seven founding
members are Bangladesh, Bhutan,
India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan,
and Sri Lanka. Afghanistan joined the
organization in 2007. Meetings of
heads of state are usually scheduled
annually; meetings of foreign secretaries,
twice annually. Headquarters are in
Kathmandu, Nepal.
x The concept of SAARC was first
adopted by Bangladesh during
1977, under the administration
of President Ziaur Rahman.
x Afghanistan was added to the
regional grouping on 13 November
2005.
x On 2 August 2006 the foreign
ministers of the SAARC countries
agreed in principle to grant
observer status to the US, South
Korea and the European Union.
x The SAARC Secretariat was
established in Kathmandu on 16
January 1986 and was inaugurated
by Late King Birendra Bir Bikram
Shah of Nepal.
x The SAARC Secretariat and
Member States observe 8 December
as the SAARC Charter Day .
SAARC SUMMITS
No. Location
Date
1st Dhaka
7-8 December
1985
2nd Bangalore 16-17 November
1986
3rd Kathmandu 2-4 November
1987
4th Islamabad 29-31 December
1988
5th Mal
21-23 November
1990
6th Colombo
21-Dec-91
7th Dhaka
10-11 April 1993
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
19th
New Delhi
Mal
Colombo
Kathmandu
2-4 May 1995

12-14 May 1997
29-31 July 1998
4-6 January
2002
Islamabad 2-6 January
2004
Dhaka
12-13 November
2005
New Delhi 3-4 April 2007
Colombo
1-3 August 2008
Thimphu
28-29 April 2010
Maldives
November 2011
Nepal
2014
Pakistan
2016
DESIGNATED SAARC YEARS

1989 SAARC Year of Combating
Drug Abuse and Drug
Trafficking
1990 SAARC Year of Girl Child
1991 SAARC Year of Shelter
1992 SAARC Year of
Environment
1993 SAARC Year of Disabled
Persons
1994 SAARC Year of the Youth
1995 SAARC Year of Poverty
Eradication
1996 SAARC Year of Literacy
1997 SAARC Year of
Participatory Governance
1999 SAARC Year of Biodiversity
2002- SAARC Year of
2003 Contribution of Youth to
Environment
2004 SAARC Awareness Year for
TB and HIV/AIDS
2005 South Asia Tourism Year
2006 South Asia Tourism Year
2007 Green South Asia Year
Polity
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NATO
organization facilitating international

police cooperation. It was established
as the International Criminal Police
Commission in 1923 and adopted its
telegraphic address as its common
name in 1956.
Its membership of 190 countries
provides finance of around $78
million through annual contributions.
The organizations headquarters is in
Lyon, France.
Its current Secretary-General is
Jiirgen Stock. Mireilli Ballestrazzi is
the current president.
Events: Conference on strengthening
law enforcement capacity in the
Americas (14-15 December, 2015)
Place: Trenidad and Tabago.
Agenda: Discuss strategic and
operational policing issues affecting
the Americas region and to identify
the ways to strengthen collaborating
partnerships.
The
North
Atlantic
Treaty
Organization or NATO also called
the (North) Atlantic Alliance, is an
intergovernmental military alliance
based on the North Atlantic Treaty
which was signed on 4 April 1949. The
NATO headquarters are in Brussels,
Belgium, and the organization
constitutes a system of collective
defence whereby its member states
agree to mutual defense in response
to an attack by any external party.
On 1 April 2009, membership was
enlarged to 28 with the entrance of
Albania and Croatia.
Meetings of NATO Ministers of
Foreign Affairs
Place: Brussels
Agenda: Open door policy
SEATO
The
Southeast
Asia
Treaty
Organization (SEATO) was an
international
organization
for
collective defense which was signed
on September 8, 1954 in Manila. The
formal institution of SEATO was
established at a meeting of treaty
partners in Bangkok in February
1955. It was primarily created to block
further communist gains in Southeast
Asia. The organizations headquarters
were located in Bangkok, Thailand.
SEATO was dissolved on June 30,
1977.
SEATO was planned to be a Southeast
Asian version of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO), in
which the military forces of each
member would be coordinated to
provide for the collective defense of
the members country.
INTERPOL
Interpol (the International Criminal
Police Organization) is largest
GROUP OF 8
The Group of Eight is a forum, created
by France in 1975, for governments
of six countries in the world: France,
Germany, Italy, Japan, the United
Kingdom, and the United States. In
1976, Canada joined the group (thus
creating the G7). In 1997, the group
added Russia thus becoming the G8.
In addition, the European Union
is represented within the G8, but
cannot host or chair. G8 can refer
to the member states or to the annual
summit meeting of the G8 heads of
government.
Event: G8 Elmau Summit (7-8 June,
2015)
Place: Germany
Agenda: Biodiversity: A vital foundation for sustainable development.
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Group of 77
The Group of 77 (G-77) was
established on 15 June 1964 by
seventy-seven developing countries
signatories of the Joint Declaration
of the Seventy-Seven Countries
issued at the end of the first session
of the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
in Geneva. Beginning with the first
Ministerial Meeting of the Group
of 77 in Algiers (Algeria) on 10 - 25
October 1967, which adopted the
Charter of Algiers, a permanent
institutional structure gradually
developed which led to the creation
of Chapters of the Group of 77 with
Liaison offices in Geneva (UNCTAD),
Nairobi (UNEP), Paris (UNESCO),
Rome
(FAO/IFAD),
Vienna
(UNIDO), and the Group of 24 (G-24)
in Washington, D.C. (IMF and World
Bank). Although the members of the
G-77 have increased to the original
name was retained because of its
historic significance.
GROUP OF 15
The Group of Fifteen (G-15) was
established at a Summit Level Group
of Developing Countries in September
1989, following the conclusion of the
Ninth Non-Aligned Summit Meeting
in Belgrade. The Group was originally
founded by 15 developing countries.
While there are now 17 member
countries, the original name of the
Group has been retained.
This forum was set up to foster
cooperation and provide input for
other international groups, such as
the World Trade Organization and
the Group of Eight. It is composed
of countries from North America,
South America, Africa, and Asia with
a common goal of enhanced growth
and prosperity. The G-15 focuses
on cooperation among developing
Polity
countries in the areas of investment,
trade, and technology.
Group of 20
The Group of Twenty Finance
Ministers and Central Bank Governors
from 20 economies: 19 countries
plus the European Union, which
is represented by the President of
the European Council and by the
European Central Bank. Their
heads of government or state have
also periodically meet at summits
since their initial meeting in 2008.
Collectively, the G-20 economies
comprise 85% of global gross national
product, 80% of world trade (including
EU intra-trade) and two-thirds of the
world population.
The G-20 was proposed by former
Canadian Finance Minister Paul
Martin (later, Prime Minister) for
cooperation and consultation on
matters pertaining to the international
financial system.
Event: Years Summit (15-16
November, 2015)
Place: Antalya, Turkey
Agenda: Concrete action to slrengthen
the global economy, make goal growth
more inclusive, enhance the resilience
of international financial system,
mobilize investment for long-term
growth and implement previous
commitments on economic reforms
and labour markets.
Asian Development Bank

The Asian Development Bank (ADB)
is a regional development bank
established on 22 August 1966 to
facilitate economic development of
countries in Asia. The bank admits
the members of the UN Economic
Commission for Asia and the Far East
(now UNESCAP) and nonregional
developed nations.
Event: Loan Support Program to
Improve Urban Health in India (28
May 2015)
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Polity
Arab League
The Arab League is a regional
organisation of Arab states in North
and Northeast Africa, and Southwest
Asia. It was formed in Cairo on 22
March 1945 with six members:
Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi
Arabia, and Syria. Yemen joined as
a member on 5 May 1945. The Arab
League currently has 22 members
and four observers. The main goal
of the league is to draw closer the
relations between member States and
co-ordinate collaboration between
them, to safeguard their independence
and sovereignty, and to consider in a
general way the affairs and interests
of the Arab countries.
Event: Arab League Summit 2015
Place: Egypt
Agenda: Yeman, Libya and Joint
military force among tropics were
discussed.
ASEAN
The Association of Southeast
Asian Nations is a geo-political and
economic organization of 10 countries
located in Southeast Asia, which
was formed on 8 August 1967 by
Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand. Since then,
membership has expanded to include
Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia,
Laos, and Vietnam. Its aims include
the acceleration of economic growth,
social progress, cultural development
among its members, the protection
of the peace and stability of the
region, and to provide opportunities
for member countries to discuss
differences peacefully.
If ASEAN were a single country, it
would rank as the 9th largest economy
in the world and the 3rd largest in Asia
in terms of nominal GDP.
Event: 27th ASEAN summit (18-22
November, 2015)
Place: Kuala Lumpur
Agenda: Discuss the significant

achievements in the implementation
of the Road map for an ASEAN
community (2009-2015)
OPEC
The Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries is a cartel of
twelve developing countries made
up of Algeria, Angola, Ecuador,
Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab
Emirates and Venezuela. OPEC has
maintained its headquarters in Vienna
since 1965, and hosts regular meetings
among the oil ministers of its Member
Countries. Indonesia withdrew in 2008
after it became a net importer of oil,
but stated it would likely return if it
became a net exporter in the world
again.
Event: OPEC 168th Meeting (4
December, 2015)
Place: Vienna
Agenda: Negotiated the importances
COP-21/CMP-11 for all OPED
member countries.
APEC
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) is a forum for 21 Pacific
Rim countries that seeks to promote
free trade and economic cooperation
throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
Established in 1989 in response to
the growing interdependence of AsiaPacific economies and the advent of
regional economic blocs (such as
the European Union and the North
American Free Trade Area) in other
parts of the world, APEC works to
raise living standards and education
levels through sustainable economic
growth and to foster a sense of
community and an appreciation of
shared interests among Asia-Pacific
countries. Members account for
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approximately 40% of the worlds

population, approximately 54% of
world GDP and about 44% of world
trade.
OECD
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development is an
international economic organisation
of 34 countries founded in 1961 to
stimulate economic progress and
world trade. It defines itself as a
forum of countries committed to
democracy and the market economy,
providing a platform to compare
policy experiences, seeking answers
to common problems, identifying
good practices, and co-ordinating
domestic and international policies
of its members.
The OECD originated in 1948 as
the Organisation for European
Economic Co-operation (OEEC),
led by Robert Marjolin of France,
to help administer the Marshall Plan
for the reconstruction of Europe after
World War II. Later, its membership
was extended to non-European
states. In 1961, it was reformed into
the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development by the
Convention on the Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and
Development. Most OECD members
are high-income economies with a
high Human Development Index
(HDI) and are regarded as developed
countries (Chile being the only OECD
member which is also a member in the
organisation of developing countries,
the Group of 77).
Event: OECD Forum 2015
Place: Paris
Agenda: Idea factories a new age and
the future of the internet.
Polity
Amnesty International
Amnesty International was established
on 28 May 1961, with its headquarters
at London, by Peter Benson, a British
lawyer.
A worldwide organization, it
investigates violations of human
rights. It campaigns for the release of
all prisoners of conscience, provided
they have not used or advocated
violence, fair, and prompt trails for all
prisoners, and abolition of torture and
capital punishment. It now has more
than 1,100,000 members in over 150
countries, with 6,000 local groups in
70 countries in Africa, the Americas,
Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. It
won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1977.
Red Cross
Red cross was established in 1864
by Jean Henri Durant. In 1859,
J.H. Durant, a Swiss businessman,
travelling through Italy witnessed the
Battle of Solferino, when France tried
to free Italy from Austrian domination,
in which about 30,000 soldiers were
wounded of killed. He organized relief
work for the wounded soldiers and
subsequently called for the formation
of a permanent relief society for those
wounded in war. Durants appeal had
immediate results. An international
conference took place in Geneva in
1864 where 26 governments were
represented. The Conference led
to the Geneva Convention and the
emblem of Red Cross was adopted.
Each year World Red Cross and Red
Crescent Day is celebrated on May
8, the birthday of its founder Henri
Dunant. Its motto is Charity in War.
A red cross on a white background
is its symbol (it is the reverse of the
flag of Switzerland). The Red Cross
completed 132 years on 8 May 1994
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Polity
and in it 126th year, it adopted the
slogan 125 Years at Work and Stilll
Developing
In the Middle Fast, a Red Crescent
replaces The Red cross. ICRC
(International Committee of the Red
Cross) together with the League of
Red Cross Societies, constitutes the
International Red Cross. The League
of Red Cross Societies was founded
in 1929.
BRICS
BRICS is the acronym for an
association of five major emerging
national economies: Brazil, Russia,
India, China, and South Africa.
The grouping was originally known
as BRIC before the inclusion of
South Africa in 2010. The BRICS
members are all developing or newly
industrialised countries, but they
are distinguished by their large, fastgrowing economies and significant
influence on regional and global
affairs; all five are G-20 members.
As of 2014, the five BRICS countries
represent almost 3 billion people
which is 40% of the world population,

with a combined nominal GDP of
US$16.039 trillion (20% world GDP)
and an estimated US$4 trillion in
combined foreign reserves. As of
2014, the BRICS nations represented
18 percent of the world economy.
Brazil held the chair of the BRICS
group in 2014, having hosted the
groups sixth summit in 2014.
Russia chaired the 7th BRICS summit
on 8-9th july 2015.
Events: 7th annual diplomatic summit
(8-9 July, 2015)
Place: Ufa, Russia
Agenda: Inaugural meetings of
New Development Bank were held
and BRICS contingent Reserve
Arrangement were discussed.
MDG 2015
The united Nation organisation started
or fixed the millenium development
Goal (MDG-2015) in 2000. There
are eight main aims mentioned in the
goal. These goals range from halving
extreme poverty rates to halting the
spread of HIV/AIDS and providing
universal primary education.
LIST OF PARLIAMENT OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

Country
India
Pakistan
Bangladesh
China
Bhutan
Srilanka
Afganistan
England
Canada
Australia
USA
Germany
Taiwan
Japan
Israil
Parliament Name
Sansad/Parliament
National Assembly
Jatiya Sansad
National Peoples Congress
Tsondu
Parliament of Sri Lanka
Shora
Parliament
Parliament
Parliament
Congress
Wondstag
Yuan
Daet
Neset
Country
Maldeep
Span
Nepal
Russia
France
Iran
Malasiya
Switzerland
Turkey
Parliament Name
Majlis
Cortes
Rastriya Panchayat
Duma
National Assembly
Majlis
Diwan Nigara
Fedral Assembly
Grand National Assembly
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Country
India
Polity
Pakistan
Bangladesh
China
Ruling Party or Coalition

National Democratic Alliance led by
Pakistan Muslim League (N)
Awami League,
Communist Party of China
Bhutan
Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party
Parties in opposition
UPA, NDA and Other nonUPA, non-NDA parties
Jatiyo Sangshad
National
Assembly
of
Pakistan
Peoples Democratic Party
United Kindoms Conservative Party
Labour Party
Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
Loyal Opposition
Australia
Taiwan
Social Democratic Party of Austria, Freedom Party of Austria

Austrian Peoples Party
Democratic Party (President),
Republican Party (Legislature)
Christian Democratic Union, Christian
Social Union, Social Democratic Party
of Germany
National Unity Government (consists Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi
of All Ceylon Muslim Congress,
Jathika Hela Urumaya, Sri Lanka
Freedom Party, Up-Country Peoples
Front, National Union of Workers,
Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, United
National Party, Democratic Peoples
Front)
Kuomintang
Democratic Progressive Party
Japan
Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito
Democratic Party
Burma
National League for Democracy
Aung San Suu Kyi
Iraq
State of Law Coalition, Al-Muwatin,

Al-Ahrar Bloc, Kurdistan Democratic
Party, Iraq Alliance
Likud, The Jewish Home, United The Knesset
Torah Judaism, Kulanu, Shas
Peoples Party
Congress of Deputies
US
Germany
Srilanka
Israel
Spain
Nepal
Russia
France
Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Nepali Congress

MarxistLeninist), Unified Communist
Party of Nepal (Maoist), Rastriya
Prajatantra Party Nepal, Madhesi Jana
Adhikar Forum, Nepal (Loktantrik)
United Russia
Shadow Cabinet
Iran
Socialist Party, Radical Party of the National front

Left
Moderation and Development Party Tudeh Party
Malaysia
National Front
Barisan Nasional
Turkey
Justice and Development Party
Republican Reoples Party
(&2120<
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Economy
ECONOMY
Micro-Macro
Economics
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
Demand
Supply
Price
Elasticity
Marginal
Utility
Equilibrium
Revenue &
Cost
Profit & Loss
Recession &
Depression
Market
Factors of
Production
? Land
? Labour
? Capital
? Entrepreneur
Inflation
Public Finance
l
Budget
? Terms
? Expenditure
? Measurement
Tax
? Types
? Classification
? Methods
Banking &
Insurance
l National Income
? Revenue
? Deficit
l
Indian Economy
l Human Development
Index
l Five Year Plans
l Poverty
l Unemployment
? Type
? Schemes
l Foreign Trade
Deficit Financing
? Foreign Exchange
in India
? Balance of Payment
Government
? Export Import
Subsidies
l Agriculture
Finance
? Green Revolution
Commission
? NABARD
Stock Exchanges
? Food Security
SEBI
l Industries
? Manufacturing
? Services
B-295
Economy
MICROMACRO ECONOMICS
Demand
Price
Demand refers to how much

(quantity) of a product (goods) or
service is desired by buyers. The
quantity demanded is the amount of
a product people are willing to buy
at a certain price; the relationship
between price & quantity demanded
is known as the demand relationship.
The law of demand states that as
the price of a good increases (or
decreases), the quantity of that good
demanded will decrease (increase).
Price is the amount of money that

has to be paid to acquire a given
product. Price mechanism is based
on the principle that only by allowing
prices to move freely will the supply
of any given commodity match
demand. If supply is excessive,
prices will be low & production will
be reduced, this will cause prices
to rise until there is a balance of
demand & supply. In the same way,
if supply is inadequate, prices will
be high, leading to an increase in
production that in turn will lead to a
reduction in prices until both supply
& demand are in equilibrium.
Supply
Supply represents how much the
market can offer. The quantity
supplied refers to the amount of a
certain good producers are willing
to supply when receiving a certain
price. The correlation between price
& how much of a good or service is
supplied to the market is known as
the supply relationship.
The law of supply states that as
the price of a good increases (or
decreases), the quantity of that good
supplied will increase (decrease).
Elasticity
The concept of elasticity is
intended to measure the degree of
responsiveness of a buyer or seller
to a change in a key determinant, in
particular price.
OR
Elasticity is a ratio of relative
changes in quantity demanded/
supplied & price.
Elasticity I
(Price is determinant)
Demand
Supply
Elastic p (buyer response) o Inelastic

Pricep
Pricen
OR

Demandn
Demandp
Elastic p (seller response) o Inelastic
Quantity
Pricep
Demanded Pricen
OR

is same at
Supply s
any price Supply q
Supply is
unaffected
when price
changes
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Economy
Elasticity II
(Demand/supply is determinant)
Demand
Supply
Elastic p (seller response) o Inelastic

Demandn
Demandp

OR
Pricen
Pricep
Elastic p (buyer response) oInelastic
Price is
Supplyp
Supply n
constant
OR

irrespective
Price n
of demand Price s
Marginal Utility
Supply
Marginal utility is the additional

satisfaction a consumer gains from
consuming one more unit of a goods
or service. It is used by the economist
to determine how much of an item a
consumer will buy.
Price
Equilibrium
Equillibrium
When supply & demand are equal
(i.e. when the supply function &
demand function intersect) the
economy is said to be at equilibrium.
At this point, the suppliers are selling
all the goods that they have produced
& consumers are getting all the
goods that they are demanding.
Demand
Quantity
Revenue
Revenue refers to the amount
received by a firm or an individual
from the sale of a given quantity
of a commodity in the market. It
is directly influenced by sales level,
i.e. as sales increases, revenue also
increases.
REVENUE
Average Revenue (AR)
Total Revenue (TR)
p
p
TR = Quantity of
TR
commodity sold AR
No.of units sold
Price of
commodity
Marginal Revenue (MR)
p
MR = TR from number of
units sold TR from
sale of one more
unit of commodity
Cost
Cost is defined as the money expenditure incurred by the producer to
purchase ( or hire) factors of production & raw materials to produce goods
& services.
B-297
Economy
TYPES OF COST
Fixed cost
Variable cost
Implicit cost
Explicit cost
Expenditure on
Expenditure on Expenditure inhiring/purchasing of variable inputs EWTTGFQPDQVJZGF
& variable inputs
ZGFKPRWVU
GINCPF
GINCDQWT
Concepts
Total Cost (TC)
Average Cost (AC)
Marginal Cost (MC)
MC = Increase in total
cost due to increase in
one extra unit of output
AC = Total cost
6%6QVCNZGF
Total output
cost + Total variable cost
3URW
Cost of self
supplied
factors
Loss = Total cost Total revenue
Profit is the surplus of revenue over

total cost of production.
Profit = Total Revenue Total Cost
Normal profit: This occurs when
total revenue is equal to total cost.
This is the Break-even Point for a
firm. It is the minimum profit level
to keep the firm in the industry in the
long run.
Supernormal profit: This occurs
when total revenue is more than
total cost
Loss
Loss is a situation in which a
producer does not earn the level of
profit that would justify remaining
in business in the long run.
Recession
A period of temporary economic
decline during which trade and
industrial activity are reduced,
generally identified by a fall in GDP
in two successive quarters.
Depression
A period during which business,
employment, & stock-market values
decline severely or remain at a very
low level of activity.
MARKET
Market is a place where forces of
demand & supply operate, & where
buyers and sellers interact to trade
goods, services, or contracts or
instruments, for money or barter.
FEATURES OF MARKET STRUCTURE

S.
Market
No.
1. Perfect
competition
2. Monopoly
3.
4.
Oligopoly
Types of
product
Homogeneous
product
Unique
Numbers of
Entry & exit
sellers/firms
Many
Freedom of entry
& exit
One
Barriers to entry
Differentiated Few
products
Monopolistic Differentiated Many
Competition products
Price
determination
Firms are pricetakers
Firm is pricemakers
Barriers to entry Firm are pricemakers
Freedom of
Firms are price entry & exit
makers
B-298
Economy
Factors of Production
An economic term to describe the
inputs that are used in the production
of goods or services in the attempt to
make an economic profit are called
factors of production. The factors of
production include land, labour,
capital & entrepreneurship.
x Land: Represents all natural
resources used in the production
of goods.
x Labour: All work that labourers
& workers perform at all levels
of an organization.
x Capital: All of the tools,
machinery, cash used to produce
a goods or service.
x Entrepreneur: Individual who
takes an idea & attempts to
make an economic profit from it

by combining all other factors of
production.
,QDWLRQ
In a broad sense, inflation is that
state in which the prices of goods &
services rise on the one hand & value
of money falls on the other.
Types of Inflation
1. Demand Pull Inflation: It is that
inflation when prices rise due
to higher demand for goods &
services over the available supply.
2. Cost Push Inflation: It is the
type of inflation in which prices
rise due to increased inputs costs.
&GITGGQH+PCVKQP
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Creeping
Running
Trotting
Runaway/Galloping
+PCVKQP
+PCVKQP
+PCVKQP
+PCVKQP
p
p
p
p
Price rise at Price rise moderately Price rise rapidly
Price rise at very fast
very slow rate
(10 - 20%)
(Less than 10%)
rate (20 100%)
less than 3%
(Between 3 7%)
measures the increase in prices a
0HDVXUHPHQWRI,QDWLRQ
consumer will have to pay for the
1. General Price or Wholesale Price
designated commodity basket
Index: It measures the changes in
which may be revised every
average prices of goods & services.
4 5 years to factor in changes in
A base year is selected & its index
consumption pattern.
is assumed as 100 & on this basis
Price Index = Current years
price index for the current year
price/base years price 100
is calculated. If the index of
In India, inflation is measured in
the current year is below 100 it
terms
of the WPI.
indicates the state of deflation
&, on the contrary, if index of &DXVHVRI,QDWLRQ
the current year is above 100 it The inflation occurs due to two
indicates the state of inflation.
main broad factors :2. Consumer Price Index (CPI):
It measures the average change
(b)
in prices paid by ultimate (a)
consumers for a particular Increase in demand Decrease in
basket of goods & services over for goods & services the supply
of goods &
a period of time. CPI actually
services
Economy
(a) Factors causing an increase in
demand for goods & services:
(i) Increase in public expenditure
(ii) Increase in pvt. expenditure
(iii) Increase in exports
(iv) Reduction in taxation
(v) Rapid growth of population
(vi) Black money
(vii) Deficit financing
(viii) Cheap money policy
(ix) Increase in consumer spending
(x) Department of Tax internal
debts.
(b) Factors causing decrease in
supply of goods & services:
(i) Shortage of supplies of factors
(ii) Industrial disputes
(iii) Natural calamities
(iv) Loop-sided Production
(v) Hoarding by traders
(vi) Operation of Law of
Diminishing Returns.
,PSDFWRI,QDWLRQ
Inflation is the most regressive form
of taxation as it affects the poor and
vulnerable sections of the society
the most. Such a situation leads to
increasing income disparities.
Inflation dampens exports by
making our products expensive and,
conversely, makes imports attractive.
Such a situation may warrant formal
or informal devaluation of the
currency in order to make our exports
competitive.
Inflation leads to recession, as people
with fixed incomes set apart an
increasing share of their income to
meet the growing costs of essential
commodities, leaving very little for
expenditure on non-essential terms.
The production of such items has to
be reduced, leading to shutdowns and
recession.
Policy measure to control
LQDWLRQ
The issue of inflation is addressed
from both demand and supply sides.
Demand management implies putting
a check on the demand of the public
for goods and services. Demand
B-299
management is achieved by measures

such as postponing public expenditure,
reducing up excess liquidity either
through taxes or saving schemes and
restrictions on ad hoc treasury bills.
While such measures help contain the
money supply, there is a danger that
these will contract the economy and
lead to an increase in unemployment.
Rationalisation of excise and import
duties of essential commodities to
higher the burden on poor.
RBI assists in controlling inflation
through monetary measures such
as quantitative and selective credit
controls and by manipulating the
Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and the
Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR).
These are the monetary policies
adopted by government.
On the supply side, the mechanism
of Public Distribution System (PDS)
ensures availability of essential
commodities for the vulnerable
sections of society. This helps to
maintain price levels. Fixation of
maximum prices to eliminate the
incentive for hoarding and speculative
activity in foodgrains. Control over
private trade in foodgrains. Adoption
of Open General Licence (OGL) to
ease the imports of sugar, pulses,
etc.,in case of shortages. Coupled with
this is the open market sale of rice
and wheat resorted to by FCI from
its buffer stock in times of price rise.
Related Terms
1. Deflation: Deflation is that state
in which the value of money rises
& the price of goods & services
falls.
2. Stagflation: It refers to the
situation of coexistence of
stagnation & inflation in the
economy. Stagnation means low
National Income growth & high
unemployment.
3. Disinflation: The rate of
inflation at a slower rate is called
disinflation.
Others
Receipts
loans to Economic, Defence

states & Social &
& Others
UTs
Community
development
Expenditure
Capital A/C
Net Recoveries Net Market Net Small Others

Borrowing Savings
of Loans &
Advances
Collections
Social & Community

Services (Education,
Medical, Employment)
Economic Services
(Agriculture Industries,
Transportation, Trade)
Expenditure
General Services
(Police, Judiciary,
Defence)
Interest
Receipts &
Dividends
Non Tax
Commodities
& Services
Currency
Coinage
& Mint
Property
& Capital
Income &
Expenditure
Tax
Receipts
Revenue A/C
Budget
B-300
Economy
PUBLIC FINANCE
Budget
Budget is an annual financial statement. The Budget in India is divided into

2 parts Revenue Account & Capital Account.
Defence Revenue
Expenditure
Industries
Broadcasting
Grants to States &,

UTs & Foreign
Governments
Agriculture
Interest
Payments
Revenue
Subsidies
Education
Police
Pensions
Central Assistance
for Plans of States
& UTs.
Social Services
& others
Technology &
Environment
Transport
Central Palns
Plan (Expenditures
envisaged in
5 year plan documents)
Rural Development
Agriculture
Loans to States
& UTs & Foreign
Governments.
Loans to public
Enterprises
Capital
NonPlan (Expenditures
not envisaged in
5 year plan documents)
Public Expenditure
Economy
B-301
1HZ&ODVVLFDWLRQRI([SHQGLWXUH
B-302
Economy
Important Terms
(1) Revenue It is the income received by the government.
(2) Expenditure It is the amount incurred by the government to meet day to
day & regular needs.
(3) Deficit It means shortage. The gap between the Receipts & Expenditure
is called Deficit. The important types of Deficit are as follows:
(a) Budget Deficit = Total Expenditure Total Receipts
(b) Revenue Deficit = Revenue Expenditure Revenue Receipts
(c) Fiscal Deficit = Total Expenditure Total Receipts except Borrowing &
Other Liabilities.
(d) Primary Deficit = Fiscal Deficit Interest Payment
Tax
The money which public have to pay to the government so that it can pay for
public services is called tax.
(i)
Types of Taxes
Indirect Tax
Direct Tax
Income
Tax
(ii)
Excise Value added Goods & Services

Wealth Minimum
Alternate
Tax
Tax (GST)
Duties Tax (VAT)
Tax
Custom
Corporate Commodities
Service
Transaction Tax
Duties
Tax
Tax
Broad Areas of Tax
Tax on Income
& Expenditure
Tax on
Commodities
Personal Income,
Corporate Income,
Sales Tax
Excise
Duty
(iii)
Tax on Property &

Property Transaction
Wealth Tax,
Estate &
Succession Duties.
Classification of Taxation
Proportional
Taxation
Tax levied as
a% of tax base
at a uniform
Progressive
Taxation
Tax rate increase
with increase in
size of Tax base.
Regressive Taxation
Tax rate decrease
with increase in
Tax base.
B-303
Economy
x
Types of Taxes
x
x
x
x
x
Direct Tax The tax that people

pay directly to the government is
called tax.
Indirect Tax The tax burden
when shifted to another persons
that tax is called indirect tax.
Income Tax Tax on the personal
income of the individuals.
Corporate Tax Levied on
Companys profit income.
Wealth Tax Imposed on the
accumulated wealth or property
of every individual.
x
x
x
MAT (Minimum Altemate Tax)

Imposed on zero tax companies
(companies pay very low tax by
using the provisions of exemptions,
deductions, incentives, etc.
Excise
Duties
Tax
on
production of commodities.
Custom Duties Tax on Import
& Export of commodities.
VAT (Value Added Tax) Tax
on sale of commodities. It is a
state level tax. The tax rate is
imposed as a% of value added.
GST It is a uniform tax on
goods & services throughout the
country.
METHODS OF TAXATION OF GOODS

Methods of
Taxation on Goods
Specific Duty
Ad Valorem
(1) Ad Valorem If tax is levied as

A% of the value of the goods
regardless of number of units
produced/ sold/ imported, then
it is called ad valorem.
Eg. Price of car Tax Amount

` 2 lakh
` 20,000
` 4 lakh
` 40,000
(2) Specific Duty If tax is levied
at a flat rate per unit of goods
produced/
sold/
imported
regardless of the value then it is
called specific Duties.
Eg. Cars Price
Tax
` 2 lakh
` 10,000
` 4 lakh
` 10,000

1. For Individual/HUF/Association of person
Income tax slab (in Rs.)
Tax
0 to 2,50,000
Nil
2,50,001 to 5,00,000
10%
5,00,001 to 10,00,000
20%
Above 10,00,000
30%
2. For Senior Citizen (who is 60 years or more but less than 80 years)
Upto Rs 3,00,000
Nil
Rs. 3,00,00 Rs. 5,00,000
10%
Next Slabs are same as general

3. For Super Senior citizen (80 years of age or more).
Upto Rs 5,00,000
Next Slabs are same asa general
Nil
B-304
Economy
Banking System
Unscheduled Banks
Other
Public
Sector Bank
Reserve Bank of India

x
It is the apex ragulatory body

of Indian Banking system. Also
called as the Central Bank.
x It keeps the cash reserves of
all scheduled Banks & hence is
know as the Reserve Bank.
x It was inaugurated in April 1935.
Functions of RBI
(a) Bank of Issue (All notes except
` 1 note & coins are issued by
RBI. One rupee note & coins are
issued by Ministry of Finance but
circulated by RBI.
(b) Banker & debt manager to
Government.
(c) Bankers Bank.
(d) Custodian and manager of
Foreign Exchange.
(e) Controller of credit
(f) Supervision over commercial &
x
cooperative Banks.
Commercial Banks: Accept
deposits, give loans and provide
other financial services to earn
profit. Consist of both public
sector and private sector banks.
Public Sector Banks : Public
sector banks are those banks in
which the majority of ownership

is with government. The majority
of ownership means, shareholding
of more than 51%.
State Bank Group: State Bank
group means State Bank of India
(SBI) and its Associates. Previous
name of SBI was Imperial Bank
of India. It was created in 1921
by amalgamating the three
Presidency Banks of Bengal
(1806), Bombay (1840) and
Madras (1843). Imperial Bank of
India was partially nationalized
on July 1, 1955 and renamed as
State Bank of India (SBI).
Other Nationalised Bank: The
public sector banks other than
SBI and its associates are other
nationalised Banks. For examples
PNB, BOI, etc.
The Regional Rural Banks
(RRB) : These banks were
established since 1975, under
RRBs Act 1976. These banks
were set up by public sector banks.
RRBs were established to lend to
weaker section called target group
like landless labour, artisan and
craftsmen at concessional rate.
Economy
x
Co-Operative Banks : Cooperative

banks are established by State
laws. These banks are called
as cooperative banks because
these have cooperation of stake
holders as motive. Along with
lending, cooperative banks accept
deposits. NABARD (National
Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development) is the apex body of
cooperative sector in India.
NABARD : The functions of
NABARD viz., financing of
agriculture and refinancing of
cooperative banks and RRBs.
NABARD was set up in July 1982.
Tools of Credit Control

RBI acts as controller of credit.
Control of Credit means control of
lending & deposit creating capacity
of the Banks. These controls result
in control of money supply which is
essential to control inflation & there
by promote economic growth.
Some of the important measures or
tools of credit control are as follows
(1) Bank Rate It is the rate charged
by the central Bank for lending
funds to commercial Banks.
(2) CRR Cash Reserve Ratio
(CRR) is a specified minimum
fraction of the total deposits of
customers which commercial
banks have to hold as reserves
with the Central Bank.
(3) Repo Rate It is the rate at
which commercial banks borrow
from RBI by mortgaging their
dated government securities
and Treasury bills. If repo rate
is increased, the banks have
two options either to reduce the
borrowing from RBI or borrow
at higher rate from RBI and
B-305
charge higher interest rate from

customer. If banks borrow fewer
amounts, the credit creating
capacity of banks will come
down and money supply will
come down. If bank borrows
and charges higher interest rate,
the customer will borrow less.
The money supply will come
down. If the rate is decreased the
reverse will be the case.
(4) Reverse Repo Rate It is the
rate at which RBI borrows from
commercial Banks by mortgaging
its dated Government securities
and Treasury bills. If the reverse
repo rate is increased, the banks
have two options either to lend
to RBI or lend to customer at
higher interest rate. If banks lend
to RBI, the money available with
the bank to lend to its customer
will come down. The credit
creating capacity of banks and
money supply will come down.
If the banks raise interest rate on
loans to customers at higher rate,
the customer will borrow lesser
amount. So, the money supply
will come down.
The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan
Yojana has set an ambitious target
of bringing more than 7.5 crore
un-banked families into Indias
banking system by opening more
than 15 crore bank accounts at
the rate of two bank accounts per
household by 15 August 2015.
The remaining hilly areas and
the other 75 naxalite-affected
distrricts will be covered under
the Yojana by the end of August
2016.
B-306
Economy
Insurance
x
Insurance: It is a form of risk

management primarily used
to hedge against the risk of a
contingent, uncertain loss.
Insurance policy: It is a financial
contract between the insurer
& the policy holder where the
details of the policy is mentioned
including the benefits & the
premium that policy holder has
to pay.
Premium: It is the periodic
payment made on an insurance
policy. Insurance premiums are
collected in monthly or quarterly
or half-yearly or yearly mode.
Major Types of Insurance:
(a) Life Insurance: Descendents
family receives financial
benefits.
(b) Automobile Insurance: Protects

policy holder against financial
loss in the event of an incident
involving a vehicle they own.
(c) Health Insurance: Cover
the expenditures associated
to treatment & medical
expenditures.
(d) Property Insurance: Provide
protection from risks associated
to theft, fire, floods, etc.
x Insurance Industry in India
The Indian government passed
an ordinance on January 19, 1956
whereby the life insurance sector
was nationalised & the life Insurance
Corporation India (LIC) came into
existence. The Indian Parliament
passed the General Insurance
Business (Nationalisation) Act in
1972 & the general insurance sector
was brought under governmental
control from January 1, 1973.
Insurance Companies in India

(IRDA - regulatory authority)
Life Insurance
Public Sector
(LIC)
Private Sector
(24 Companies)
Insurance
Regulatory
and
Development Authority of India
(IRDAI) is an autonomous apex
statutory body which regulates and
develops the insurance industry
in India. It was constituted by
a Parliament of India act called
Insurance
Regulatory
and
Development Authority Act, 1999
and duly passed by the Government
of India.
General Insurance
Public Sector
(5 G.I Cos)
Private Sector
(23 G.I. Cos.)
The agency operates from its

headquarters at Hyderabad, Telangana
where it shifted from Delhi in 2001.
The key objectives of the IRDA
include promotion of competition so
as to enhance customer satisfaction
through increased consumer choice
and lower premiums, while ensuring
the financial security of the insurance
market.
Endowment
Provide lump
sum once
the policy
holder dies
to nominee
or when
the policy
matures
Term Plan
Nominee
receives
D[HG
payment
once the
policy
holder dies
during
policy
period.
Whole life plan
Taken for entire

duration of
insureds life. It
is a pension plan.
Life Insurance Plans
ULIP
Taken by
individual
to cover
against
accidental
death,
injury,
health.
Personal
ans
Used as
Unit linked
a form of
Insurance
investment
plans are
that produces one where
JRRGQDQFLDO WKHQDQFLDO
returns in
worth of a
future for
policy is
using in
dependent on
various
present net
purposes.
asset value
of the core
investment
assets related
to it in the
share market.
Money Back
Insurance
For rurally
bases
business or
individuals,
provide
coverage
from life
& health
to natural
disasters.
Rural
Avail by
companies to
get protection
for important
projects,
construction,
contracts &
equipments
Industrial
General Insurance Plans
Security
against theft,
liability, &
property
damage.
Commercial
Economy
B-307
B-308
Economy
Indias Public Debt

Public Debt The Public Debt of the
govt. of India is composed of (a)
Internal Debt & (b) External Debt.
Internal Debt comprises of market
loans, compensation bonds, prize
bonds & 15year annuity certificates.
It also includes borrowings of a
temporary nature, viz treasury
Bills issued to the RBI, commercial
banks, etc & also non negotiable,
noninterest
bearing
securities
issued to international financial
institutions like the IMF, World
Bank & the Asian Development
Bank.
External Debt includes borrowings
by Central Government from external
sources & are based upon historical
rates of exchange.
The total Public Dept & other
liabilities of the Indian Government
would come to `68,94, 691 crores by
end March 2016; it was only `15, 58,
900 crores in March 2003, Central
Govts public debt & other liabilities
has increased by nearly 4.5 times.
Government Subsidies
It is the money paid by government
to help an reganisation industry to
reduce its costs, so that it can provide
products services at lower prices.
Subsidies A sum of money granted
to support an undertaking held in
public interest.
Types of Subsidies
(1) Cash Subsidies Providing food
or fertilizers to the consumer
at prices lower than those at
which government procures the
commodities.
(2) Interest or credit subsidies
relate to loans given at rates
lower than market rates. This
takes the form of concessional
credit to small scale industries
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
or priority sector loans to

individuals to buy a taxi, an
auto-rickshaw or to set up some
small enterprise by buying some
equipment.
Tax subsidies can be in the form
of tax exemption of medical
expenses, postponing collection
of tax arrears.
Procurement subsidies It is
the purchase of food grains at
an assured price which is higher
than the prevailing market price.
In-Kind subsidies Provision
of free medical services through
g ove r n m e n t d i s p e n s a r i e s,
provision of equipment to
physically handicapped persons.
Regulatory subsidies Fixation
of prices of goods produced
by the public sector at less
than the cost with a view to
providing inputs to industry or
helping certain other categories
of consumers. Examples are
making steel, coal or other
minerals available to industry,
providing electricity to farmers
at a rate much lower than the
cost.
Finance Commission
The Finance Commission Under
the provisions of Article 280 of
the Constitution, the President is
required to constitute a Finance
commission every fifth year for the
specific purpose of devolution of
nonplan revenue resources. The
functions of the Commission are
to make recommendations to the
President in respect of
(i) the distribution of net proceeds
of taxes to be shared between
the Union and the States and
the allocation of share of such
proceeds among the States,
B-309
Economy
(ii) the principles which should
govern the payment by the
Union Govt. as grants-in-aid to
the States, and
(iii) any others matter concerning
financial relations between the
Union and the States.
The appointment of the Finance
Commissioner is of great importance,
for it enables the financial relation
between the Centre and the units to
be altered in accordance with changes
in need and circumstances.
Stock Exchange in India

In India, there are small and big
stock exchanges. The most prominent
exchanges are National Stock
Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock
Exchanges (BSE).
National Stock Exchange NSE
The NSE is the leading stock
exchange of India, located in
Mumbai. nIt was established in 1993
on the recommendation of Pherwani
Committee, Industrial Development
Bank of India (IDBI) is the main
promoter of this exchange. The
number of listings in NSE is 1696.
Bombay Stock Exchange BSE
It is an Indian stock exchange located
at Dalal street, Kala Ghoda, Mumbai.
Established in 1875, the BSE in Asiss
first stock exchange and the Worlds
fastest stock exchange with a median
trade speed of 6 micro seconds. More
than 5000 companies are publicly
listed in the BSE.
Top 10 Stock Exchanges of World
1. New York Stock Exchange
2. NASDAQ
3. London Stock Exchange
4. Japan Exchange Group
5. Shanghai Stock Exachange
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Hongkong Stock Exchange

Euronext
Shenzhen Stock Exchange
TMX Group
Deutsche Borse
Like wholesale price index which

measures the rise/fall in the price
of commodities, there are share
price indices. The most prominent
indices in India are Sensex, Nifty
and Nifty Junior.
Sensex stands for Sensitive index.
This is an index of Bombay Stock
Exchange. This measures the price
movement of top 30 company
shares. The top 30 companies are
called Blue chip companies.
Nifty stands for National Index
for fifty. This and Nifty Junior
are indices of National Stock
Exchange. Nifty measures price
movement of top fifty companies.
Nifty Junior is an index of next 50
top companies.
The top companies are selected
on the basis of total value of all
shares that are traded in the stock
exchange.
SEBI (Security and Exchange

Board of India)
SEBI was established in 1988 for the
development & regulation of securities
market (Shares & Debentures) through
a resolution of government. It was
given statutory status in 1992. Its
head office is in Mumbai. Its regional
offices are in Kolkata, Delhi &
Chennai. SEBI was authorized to
regulate all merchant banks on issue
activity, lay guidelines & supervise
& regulate the working of mutual
funds & oversee the working of stock
exchanges in India.
B-310
Economy
INDIAN ECONOMY
National Income
National Income of a country is the
total value of all final goods and
services produced in the country in
a particular period of time usually,
one year. The growth of National
Income helps to know the progress
of the country. National Income is a
flow, not a stock. In India, National
Income estimates are related with
the financial year, i.e. April 1 to
March 31.
Measures/Concepts of National
Income
1. Gross
Domestic
Product
(GDP): GDP is the total
money value of all final goods
& services produced within the
geographical boundaries of the
country (produced by resident
citizens + foreign nationals)
during a given period of time,
generally one year.
GDP = Q P,
Q = Total quantity of final goods
& services.
P = Price of final goods &
services.
2. Gross National Product (GNP):
GNP is the money value of total
output or production of final
goods & services produced by
the nationals of a country during
a given period of time, generally
a year. In this case, the income
of all the resident & non-resident
citizens of a country is included
whereas the income of foreign
nationals who reside within the
geographical boundary of the
country is excluded.
GNP = GDP + (X M)
X = Export of goods & services

M = Import of goods & services
X M = Net Factor Income
from Abroad (NFIA)
So, GNP = GDP + NFIA
3. Net National Product (NNP):
can be calculated in 2 ways:(i) NNP at market price:
NNP = GNP Depreciation
Depreciation means wear & tear
of goods produced.
NNP at market price includes
Indirect taxes and excludes
subsidies.
(ii) NNP at factor cost: NNP
at factor cost calculates National
Income only on the basis of
cost incurred to produce the
goods & services. This cost is the
payment made to the factors of
production.
NNPfc = NNPmp Indirect Taxes +
Subsidy
When NNP is obtained at factor
cost, it is known as National Income.
Likewise, GDP at factor cost
also can be calculated.
GDPfc = GDPmp Indirect Taxes
+ Subsidy
4. Personal Income : It is that income
which is actually obtained by
nationals in one year.
P.I. = National Income
Undistributed
Profits
of
Corporation Payments for
Social Security Provisions
B-311
Economy
Corporate Taxes + Government
Transfer payments + Business
Transfer payments + Net Interest
paid by government.
SOCIAL SECURITY PROVISIONS
= Payments made by employees
towards pension & provident fund
TRANSFER PAYMENTS =
payments made not against any
productive activity. eg. old
age pension, unemployment
compensation, disaster relief
payment, etc.
5. DISPOSAL
PERSONAL
INCOME (DPI): Income that is
available to individuals that can
be disposed at their will.
6. National Income at constant

price & current price
NI
CONSTANT
PRICE
= Total quantity of all final
goods & services produced in a
particular year Price of base
year.
Base year of National Income
accounts is the year chosen to
enable inter year comparisons.
The new series changes the base
to 201112 from 200405
NI CURRENT PRICE =
6QVCNSWCPVKV[QHCNNPCNIQQFU
& services produced in a particular year Price of goods &
UGTXKEGUKPVJCVRCTVKEWNCT[GCT
DPI = Personal Income

&KTGEV6CZGU
Measurement of National Income
Methods of Measurement
Product/Output/Production method
Income
method
Consumption/Expenditure method
)TQUUXCNWGCFFGF 0+6QVCN4GPV
1WVRWVQHPCNIQQFU Total wages + Total
services Intermediate +PVGTGUV 6QVCNRTQV
Consumption
)&2)TQUUXCNWGCFFGF
+ Indirect Taxes Subsidy
Human Development Index

The UNDP Human Development
Report ranks countries on basis of
measuring human development
by combining indicators of the
Health, Education & Income into
a composite Human Development
Index (HDI). The HDI classifies the
World into 4 broad segments :
GDP = Consumption
Expenditure of Consumers + Consumption
Expenditure of investors
or entrepreneur called
investment + consumption of government
Very High High Medium

Low Human Develoment Components
of HDI
HDI
(a) Health : Life Expectancy at Birth
(b) Education : Mean years of schooling,
Expected years of schooling
(c) Living standards : Gross National
Income Per Capita
B-312
Economy
India has been classified in the Medium Human Development Category,

placed at 130 rank out of 187 countries (Human Development Report 2015)
The first Indian Human Development Report was formally released by
Prime Minister Mr. Bajpai on April 23, 2002. Madhya Pradesh was the first
state to release state-level Human Development Report.
FIVE YEAR PLANS

Plans
Period
Growth Performance
(% p.a.)
1st Plan
2nd Plan
(1951 - 56)
(1956 - 61)
Target
2.1
4.5
3rd Plan
(1961 - 66)
5.6
2.8
Annual Plan (1966 - 69)
3.9
4th Plan
(1969 - 74)
5th Plan
(1974 - 78)
5.7
4.4
3.2
4.7
5.2
6th plan
(1980 - 85)
5.2
5.5
7th plan
(1985 - 90)
5.0
5.6
3.4
Actual
3.5
4.2
8th Plan
9th Plan
(1992 - 97)
(1997 - 2002)
5.6
6.5
6.5
5.5
10th Plan
11th Plan
12th Plan
(2002 - 07)
(2007 - 12)
(2012 - 17)
7.9
9.0
8%
7.7
8.0
Poverty
Poverty can be defined as a social
phenomenon in which a section of
the society is unable to fulfil even its
basic necessities of life.
Magnitude of Poverty in India
The planning commission of India
has estimated rural and urban
poverty in India from the sixth Five
year plan ownwards.
Themes
Development of primary sector

Development of public sector
(Industries)
Agricultural
Development,
Defence
Industry,
Price
stabilization
Growth with stability &
Progress Towards Self-Reliance.
(Nationalisation of Banks, Green
Revolution).
Employment, Poverty Alleviation
Economic Liberalisation
Growth, Modernisation, SelfReliance & Social Justice
Human Development in various
aspects, Beginning of Liberalization - Privatisation- Globalization
Growth with Equity &
Distributive Justice
Equity with Social Justice
Towards more Inclusive Growth
Faster more Inclusive & Sustainable Growth
Type of Poverty
1. Absolute
2. Relative
Rural & Urban Poverty
I. Rural Poverty
Main Reasons for Rural Poverty
1. Rapid population growth.
2. Lack of capital.
3. Lack of alternative employment
opportunities other than agricultural.
Economy
4. Excessive population pressure on
agriculture.
5. Illiteracy
6. Regional disparities.
7. Joint family system.
8. Child marriage tradition.
9. Indifferent
attitude
towards
investment.
10. Lack of proper implementation of
public distribution system.
Government Efforts for Eliminating
Rural Poverty
1. Legal elimination of bonded

labourers.
2. Preventing the centralisation of
wealth by modifying the law.
3. Antyodaya plan.
4. Small Farmer Development
Programme (SFDP).
5. Drought Area Development
Programme (DADP).
6. Twenty Point Programme
7. Food for Work Programme
8. Minimum Needs Programme
(MNP).
9. Integrated Rural Development
Programme (IRDP).
10. National
Rural
Employment
Programme (NREP).
11. Rural Labour Employment Guarantee
Programme (RLEGP).
12. Jawahar Gram Samriddhi Yojana
(JGSY) (Formerly known as Jawahar
Rojgar Yojana).
13. TRYSEM scheme.
14. Family Planning/Welfare
programme for population control.
15. Employment Assurance Scheme.
16. Scheme for Rural artisans /
craftsmen.
17. DWCRA programme.
18. Swarna Jayanti Gram Swarozgar

Yojana.
19 Mahila Samriddhi Yojana.
20 National Social Assistanc Programme
(NSAP)
21 Group Life Insurance Scheme for
Rural Areas.
B-313
22. Rural Housing Programme

23. Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya
Yojana (PMGY)
24. Swarna Jayanti Gram Swarojgar
Yojana
25. Sampurna Gramin Rojgar Yojana
26. Indira Awaas Yojana
27. Samagra Awaas Yojana.
28. Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Yojana.
29. Agriculture Income Insurance
Scheme.
30. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme
(MGNREGS).
II. Urban Poverty

Main Reasons for Urban Poverty
1. Migration of rural youth towards
cities.
2. Lack of vocational education /
training.
3. Limited job opportunities of
employment in the cities.
4. Rapid increase in population.
5. Lack of housing facilities.
6. No proper implementation of
public distribution system (PDS).
Government Efforts for Eliminating
Urban Poverty
1. Emphasis on vocational education.

2. Nehru Rozgar Yojana (NRY).
3. Self-Employment Programme for
the Urban Poor (SEPUP).
4. Financial assistance for constructing
houses.
5. Self-Employment to the Educated
Urban Youth (SEEUY) programme.
6. Prime Ministers Rozgar Yojana
(Also implemented in rural areas).
7. National
Social
Assistance
Programme.
8. Urban Basic Services for the Poor
(UBSP) programme.
9. Prime Minister's Integrated Urban
Poverty Eradication Programme
(PMIUPEP).
10. Swarna Jayanti Shahri Rozgar
Yojana.
B-314
Unemployment
In broad sense a state of
unemployment appears when a
labour does not obtain employment
opportunity despite his willingness
to work on existing wage rate.
Different Types of Unemployment
in India
1. Structural
Unemployment:
This type of unemployment is
associated with economic structure
of the country, i.e. rapidly growing
population, technological change
and their immobility fall in rate of
capital formation.
2. Under-employment:
Those
labourers are under-employed
who obtain work but their
efficiency and capability are not
utilised at their optimum and as
a result they contribute in the
production upto a limited level.
3. Disguised Unemployment: If
a person does not contribute
anything in the production
process or in other words, if he
can be removed from the work
without affecting the productivity
adversely, he will be treated as
disguisedly unemployed. The
marginal productivity of such
unemployed person is zero.
4. Open Unemployment: When
the labourers live without any
work and they dont find any
work to do, they come under the
category of open unemployment.
Economy
Educated and unskilled labouress
unemployment are included in
open unemployment.
NREGS
(National
Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme)
NREGS was started by the
UPA Government as a national
programme to provide 100 days of
employment to begin with through
asset-creating public works every
year at minimum wages to oneable bodied person in every poor
class household.
The National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act came into force in
2006 in Indias 200 most backward
districts. In 2007, it was extended
to another 130 districts. With
effect from April 1,2008, the Act is
to cover all districts.
The following are the major shortcomings of NREGS:
Lack of adequate professional
staff
x Lack of project planning
x Bureaucratic resistance of
NREGA on account of
the widely held belief that
it is much more difficult to
make money under NREGS
as compared with other
employment programmes.
x Lack of transparency and
absence of social audit
x Inappropriate
rates
of
payment.
VARIOUS DEVELOPMENT AND EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMMES

Programme/Plan/
Year of
Objective/Description
Institution
beginning
Command Area Development 1974-75
To ensure better and rapid utilisation of
Programme (CADP)
irrigation capacities of medium and large
projects
Twenty Point Programme 1975
Poverty eradication and raising the
(TPP)
standard of living
Economy
B-315
Programme/Plan/
Year of
Institution
beginning
National Institution of Rural 1977
Training, investigation and advisory
Development
organisation for rural development
Antyodaya Yojana
1977-78
To make the poorest families of the
village economically independent (only in
Rajasthan)
Training Rural Youth for Self- 1 August Programme of training rural youth for selfEmployment (TRYSEM)
15,1979
employment.
Integrated Rural Development October 2, All-round development of the rural poor
Programme (IRDP)
1980
through a programme of asset endowment
for self-employment
National Rural Employment 1980
To provide profitable employment
Programme
opportunities to the rural poor
Rural Landless Employment August 15, For providing employment to landless
farmers and labourers
Guarantee
Programme 1983
(RLEGP)
Self-Employment to the 1983-84
To provide financial and technical assistance
Educated Unemployed Youth
for selfemployment
(SEEUY)
National Fund for Rural February To grant 100% tax rebate to donors and
Development (NFRD)
1984
also to provide financial assistance for rural
development projects
Industrial Reconstruction March
To provide financial assistance to sick and
Bank of India
1985
closed industrial units for their reconstruction
Council for Advancement of September To provide assistance for rural prosperity
Peoples Action and Rural 1, 1986
Technology (CAPART)
Self-Employment Programme September To provide self-employment to urban poor
for the Urban Poor (SEPUP) 1986
through provision of subsidy and bank credit
Jawahar Rozgar Yojana
April 1989 For providing employment to rural
unemployed
Nehru Rozgar Yojana
October
For providing employment to urban
1989
unemployed
Members of Parliament Local December To sanction Rs. 1 crore per year to every
Area Development Scheme 23, 1993
Member of Parliament for various
(MPLADS)
development works in their respective areas
through DM of the district
Scheme of Infrastructural 1993-94
To provide capital through special institutions
Development in Mega Cities
for water supply, seewage, drainage, urban
(SIDMC)
transportation, land development and
improvement of slum projects undertaken
in Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai
and Hyderabad
District Rural Development 1993
To provide financial assistance for rural
Agency (DRDA)
development
Mahila Samridhi Yojana
October 2, To encourage the rural women to deposit
1993
in Post Office Saving Account
Kasturba Gandhi Education August 15, To establish girls schools in districts having
Scheme
1997
low female literacy rate
B-316
Economy
Programme/Plan/
Year of
Institution
beginning
Swarna Jayanti Shahari December To provide gainful employment to
Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY)
1997
urban unemployed and under employed
poor through self-employment or wage
employment
Annapurna Yojana
March
To provide 10 kg. foodgrains to senior
1999
citizens (who did not get pension)
Swarna
Jayanti
Gram April 1999 For eliminating Rural poverty and
Swarozgar Yojana.
unemployment and promoting selfemployment
Jan Shree Bima Yojana
Aug. 10,
Providing Insurance Security to people
2000
living below poverty line
Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya 2000
To fulfil basic requirements in rural areas
Yojana
Antyodaya Anna Yojana
Dec. 25,
To provide food security to poor
2000
Pradhan Mantri Gram Dec. 25,
To line all villages with Pacca Road
Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)
2000
Valmiki Ambedkar A was Dec.
Constructing Slum houses in urban areas.
Yojana (VAMBAY)
2,2001
Vande Matram Scheme
Feb. 9,
2004
National Food for Work Nov. 14,
Programme
2004
Janani Suraksha Yojana
April 12,
2005
Bharat Nirman Programme Dec.
16,2005
Major initiative in public-private partnership

during pregnancy check-up.
Programme to intensify the generation of
supplementary wage employment.
Providing care to expectant mothers.
National Rural Employment Feb. 2,

Guarantee Scheme (MNREGA) 2006
To provide at least 100 days wage

employment in rural areas.
Development of Rural Infrastructure

including six components : Irrigation,
Water Supply, Housing, Road, Telephone
and Electricity.
FOREIGN TRADE
Foreign Trade deals with export and import of goods & services between
nations.
Composition of Indias Foreign Trade
Export-Items
Import-Items
I. Agricultural & Allied (coffee, tea, I. Food & Allied Products
fruits & vagetables)
p
Cereals, Pulses, Edible oils
II. Ores & Minerals
II. Fuel
III. Fertilizers & Capital Goods
III. Manufactured Goods
p
p
Gems & Jwellery, Drugs &
Machinery (except electrical
Pharmaceuticals, manufactures of
machinery, Transport Equipment
metals, Transport Equipment, Machinery
& Instruments, Electronic Goods,
Readymade Garments, Handicrafts
&
B-317
Economy
IV. Crude & Petroleum
V. Others
Balance of Trade = Export Import
Balance of payment: The BOP of a

country is a systematic record of all
economic transactions between the
residents of a country and the rest
of the world. It presents a classified
record of all receipts on account of
good exported, services rendered
& capital received by residents &
payments made by them on account
of goods imported & services
received from the capital transferred
to non-residents.
BOP accounts consists of 2 accounts
Current & capital A/c. Current
A/c includes all the debit & credit
entries of invisible items side-by-side
with trade items, while the capital
A/c is related with the entries of
capital transactions in the country.
BOP: At a Glance
A. Current A/c:
1. Visible Balance of trade
(merchandise)
2. Invisible BOT a. Service:
Tourism, Transport, Software.
b. Private transfers
c. Account of
Investment
Income
B. Capital A/c
a. FDI: India & Abroad
FDI: Foreign Direct Investment
is considered to be the most
attractive type of capital flow
for emerging economy as it is
expected to bring latest technology
& enhance production capabilities
of the economy.
b. Portfolio Investment: Loans,
Banking
Capital,
NRI
Deposits, shares, debentures.
+8 Others
p
Chemicals, Pearls, precious & semiRTGEKQWUUVQPGUIQNFUKNXGT
Electronic Goods
Related Terms
1. Exchange Rate: It is the rate
at which home currency is
exchanged for one unit of foreign
currency.
For example `50 = US $1
2. Depreciation: Increase in the
exchange rate, i.e. fall in external
value of domestic currency
because of more demand for
foreign currency (less supply of
foreign currency) more supply
of (less Demand of) Domestic
currency is called depreciation.
3. Appreciation: Fall in the
exchange rate, i.e increase in
the external value of domestic
currency, due to more demand
for home currency (or less
supply of home currency) or
less demand for (or more supply
of) foreign currency is called
appreciation.
4. Devaluation: Reduction in the
external value of home currency
is called Devaluation. For
example changing the exchange
rate from `50 = US $1 to `75
= US $1 is called devaluation.
Devaluation is aimed at
increasing export of the country.
5. Foreign Exchange Reserves:
Also called forex reserves are
assets held by a central bank
or other monetary authority,
usually in various reserve
currencies, mostly the US dollar,
& used to back its liabilities.
6. Foreign Exchange: System
of trading in & converting the
currency of one country into of
another.
B-318
Economy
AGRICULTURE
Features of Indian Agriculture
Sector
(1) Accounts for almost 27% of GDP
(2) Contributes 21% of total exports
(3) Provides employment to around
65% of the total workforce
(4) Provides raw materials to several
industries
GREEN REVOLUTION IN INDIA

Since the mid-1960s, the traditional
agricultural practices are gradually
being
replaced
by
modern
technology & farm practices in India
& veritable revolution is taking place
in our country. American Scientist
Dr. William Grande termed it as
Green Revolution. During the
middle of 60s, Indian agricultural
scientists developed a number of
new high yielding varieties of wheat
by processing wheat seeds imported
from Mexico. These varieties were
having production potentialities of
60 65 quintals per hectare.
As a result Green Revolution ensured
Indias self-dependence in foodgrains.
The credit for it goes not only to Nobel
Laureat Dr. Norman Borlaug but also
to Dr. M. S. Swaminathan.
Second Green Revolution
(Strategy Adopted in 11th Plan)
The urgent need for taking agriculture
to a higher trajectory of 4 per cent
annual growth can be met only with
improvement in the scale as well
as quality of agricultural reforms
undertaken by the various States
and agencies at the various levels.
These at efficient use of resources
and conservation of soil, water and
ecology on a sustainable basis, and in
a holistic framework. Such a holistic
framework must incorporate financing
of rural infrastructure such as water,
roads and power.
Evergreen Revolution
The pioneer of Indian green
revolution Mr. M.S. Swaminathan,
presently chairman of National
Commission on farmers gave a new
call for Evergreen Revolution for
doubling the present production
level of foodgrains from 210 million
tonnes to 420 million tonnes. For
making Evergreen Revolution
a success, he stressed on adopting
organic farming. He also mentioned
four pre-requistes for getting the
success:
i. Promoting soil health.
ii. Promoting Lab to Land
exhibitions.
iii. Making rainwater harvesting
compulsory.
iv Providing credit to farmers on
suitable conditions.
AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION
IN A NUT SHELL
Revolution
1. Green
Area
Foodgrain production
2. White
Milk
3. Yellow
Oil seeds
4. Blue
5. Red
Fisheries
Meat/Tomato
6. Golden
Fruits apple
7. Grey
Fertilisers
8. Black/ Brown Non-conventional &

Energy Sources
9. Silver
Eggs
10. Round
Potato
FOOD SECURITY
World Development Report defined
food security as access by all people
at all times to enough food for an
Active, healthy life.
B-319
Economy
Main components of the food
security system
1. Promoting domestic production
to meet the demands of the
growing population as also to
reduce under-nutrition among
quite a large section of the
population.
2. Providing minimum support
prices for procurement & storage
of food items.
3. Operating a Public Distribution
System.
4. Maintaining buffer stocks so as
to take care of natural calamities
resulting in temporary shortage
of food.
Public Distribution System (PDS)
x It is established by the
Government of India in an Indian
Food Security system.
x It distributes subsidized food &
non-food items to Indias poor.
x Scheme was launched in India
on June 1997.
x Major commodities distributed
include
staple
foodgrains,
such as wheat, rice, sugar, and
kerosene oil, through a network
of public distribution shops,
(also known as ration shops)
established in several states
across the country.
x Food Corporation of India

procures and maintains the
PDS.
Minimum Support Price of

Agriculture Production
Minimum Support Price announced
by the government is that price
at which government is ready to
purchase the crop from the farmers
directly if crop price becomes lower
to MSP. As a result, market price of
the crop never comes down from the
levels of MSP. The minimum price
security gives incentives to farmers
to increase their production.
NABARD
A National Bank for Agriculture
and Rural Development (NABARD)
or the National Bank, for short,
was, therefore; set up in July 1982
by an Act of Parliament to take
over the functions of ARDC and
the refinancing functions of RBI
in relation to co-operative banks
and RRBs. NABARD is linked
originally with the RBI by the latter
contributing half of its share capital
the other half being contributed
by the Government of India and
nominating three of its Central
Board Directors on the board
of NABARD, besides a Deputy
Governor of RBI being appointed as
Chairman of NABARD.
Functions of NABARD
(i) It provides refinance facilities
to all banks and financial
institutions lending to agriculture
and rural development.
(ii) It provides short-term, mediumterm and long-term credits
to State Co-operative Banks
(SCBs), RRBs, LDBs and other
financial institutions approved
by RBI.
(iii) NABARD
gives
long-term
loans (up to 20 years) to State
Governments to enable them to
subscribe to the sharre capital of
co-operative credits societies.
(iv) NABARD gives long-term loans
to any institution approved by
the Central Government.
(v) NABARD has the responsibility
of co-ordinating the activities of
Central and State Governments,
the Planning Commission and
other all- India and State level
institutions entrusted with the
development of small scale industries,
village and cottage industries, rural
crafts, industries in the tiny and
decentralised sectors, etc.
B-320
Economy
(vi) It has the responsibility to

inspect RRBs and co-operative
banks, other than primary cooperative societies; and
(vii)It maintains a Research and

Development Fund to promote
research in agriculture and rural
development.
INDUSTRIES
Ty es of Industries
Primary
Production
of
goods with help
of nature
Secondary
(Manufacturing)
Tertiary
(Services)
Transform raw material into Provide services to other

QLVKHGSURGXFWZLWKWKHKHOS people & industries
of manpower machines.
Heavy & Light Industries, Travel & Tourism,

Eg. Agriculture,
$XWRPRELOH 2LO 5HQLQJ Information Technology,
Forestry, Fishing,
Textile, Energy Production etc.
Horticulture
Liberalisation: Liberalisation is of (iii) Average annual turnover of more
human resources commonly known
than Rs. 25,000 crore, during the
as free trade. It implies removal of
last 3 years.
restrictions & barriers to free trade.
(iv) Average annual net worth of more
1. Privatisation: Privatisation can
than Rs. 15,000 crore, during the
be partner and players in the
last 3 years.
global defined as the transfer
(v) Average annual net profit after
of ownership arena & control
tax of more than Rs. 5,000 crore,
of public sector units to private
during the last 3 years.
individuals or companies.
2. Globalisation: It refers to a (vi) Should have significant global
presence/international operations.
process whereby there are
social, cultural, technological Companies:
exchanges across the border.
1. Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited
2. Coal India Limited
MAHARATNA CPSEs (Central
3. GAIL (India) Limited
Public Sector Enterprises)
4. Indian Oil Corporation Limited
Criteria for grant of Maharatna
5. NTPC Limited
status :
6. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation
The CPSEs fulfilling the following
Limited
criteria are eligible to be considered
7. Steel Authority of India Limited
for grant of Maharatna status.
Navratna CPSEs (Central Public
(i) Having Navratna status.
(ii) Listed on Indian stock exchange Sector Enterprises)
with minimum prescribed public Criteria for grant of Navratna
shareholding under SEBI regulations. status :
Economy
The Miniratna Category I and
Schedule A CPSEs, which have
obtained excellent or very good
rating under the Memorandum of
Understanding system in three of the
last five years, and have composite
score of 60 or above in the six
selected performance parameters,
namely,
(i) net profit to net worth,
(ii) manpower cost to total cost of
production/services,
(iii) profit
before
depreciation,
interest and taxes to capital
employed,
(iv) profit before interest and taxes to
turnover,
(v) earning per share and
(vi) inter-sectoral performance.
Companies:
1. Bharat Electronics Limited
2 Bharat Petroleum Corporation
Limited
3. Container Corporation of India
Limited
4. Engineers India Limited
5. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
6. Hindustan
Petroleum
Corporation Limited
7. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam
Limited
8. National Aluminium Company
Limited
9. National Buildings Construction
Corporation Limited
10. NMDC Limited
11. Neyveli Lignite Corporation
Limited
12. Oil India limited.
13. Power Finance Corporation
Limited
14. Power Grid Corporation of
India Limited
B-321
15. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited

16. Rural Electrification Corporation
Limited
17. Shipping Corporation of India
Limited
INDUSTRIAL POLICY 1991: AN
OVERVIEW
(A) Main Features (objective)
x to maintain a sustained growth
in productivity.
x to enhance gainful employment.
x to achieve optimum utilisation
of human resources.
x to
attain
international
competitiveness
x to transform India into a major
partner and players in the global
arena.
(B) Main Focus on
x deregulating Indian industry.
x allowing the industry freedom
& flexibility in responding to
market forces
x providing a policy regime which
facilitates and fosters growth of
Indian industry
(C) Policy Measures
(i) Liberalisation of
Industrial
Licensing Policy.
(ii) Introduction
of
Industrial
Entrepreneurs Memorandum (i.e.
no industrial approval is required
for industries not requiring
compulsory licencing).
(iii) Liberalisation of Locational Policy.
(iv) Liberalised policy for Small Scale
Sectors.
(v) Non-Resident Indians Scheme
(NRIs are allowed to invest upto
equity on non-repatriation basis
in all activities except for a small
negative list).
(vi) Electronic Hardware Technology
Park
(EHTP)/
Software
Technology Park (STP) Scheme
for building up strong electronic
industry to enhance exports.
(vii) Liberalised policy for Foreign
Direct Investment (FDI).
B-322
Economy
AGRICULTURE
Agriculture plays a vital role in
Indias economy. Over 58 per cent
of the rural households depend on
agriculture as their principal means
of livelihood. Agriculture, along
with fisheries and forestry, is one of
the largest contributors to the Gross
Domestic Product (GDP).
There are two major agricultural
seasons in India: Kharif and Rabi.
Kharif season lasts from April to
September (summer); rice (paddy)
is the seasons main crop. Rabi

season lasts from October to March
(winter); wheat is the seasons main
crop. Total food grains production
in India reached an all-time high of
257 million tonnes in FY14.
India has the second largest
agricultural land in the World with
157.35 million hectares of land
available.
Agriculture
sector
in
India
contributes 16% of GDP & 10% of
export earnings.
INDIA GDP FROM AGRICULTURE

5500
5217.45
5160.49
5026.56
5000
4637.96
4500
4211.93
4035.75
4152.28
4000
3500.52
3622.12
2862.99
3500
2920.28
2956.92
Jan 2013 Jul 2013 Jan 2014 Jul 2014 Jan 2015 Jul 2015
Agricultural export constitutes 10 per

cent of the countrys exports and is
the fourth largest exported principal
commodity. The agro industry in
India is divided into several sub
segments such as canned, dairy,
processed, frozen food to fisheries,
meat, poultry, and food grains.
As per the 4th Advance Estimates,
food grain production is estimated at
252.68 million tonnes (MT) for 201415. Production of pulses estimated at
17.20 million tonnes.
With an annual output of 138 MT,
India is the largest producer of
milk. It also has the largest bovine
population. India is the largest
3000
2500
importer of pulses at 19.0 MT and

3.4 MT, respectively. India, the
second-largest producer of sugar,
accounts for 14 per cent of the global
output. It is the sixth-largest exporter
of sugar, accounting for 2.76 per
cent of the global exports.
Spice exports from India are
expected to reach US$ 3 billion by
201617 due to creative marketing
strategies, innovative packaging,
strength in quality and strong
distribution networks. The spices
market in India is valued at ` 40,000
crore (US$ 6.16 billion) annually, of
which the branded segment accounts
for 15 per cent.
B-323
Economy
The procurement target for rice
during marketing season (MS)
201516 has been finalised as 30
MT.
100 percent FDI is permissible under
automatic route for development of
seeds.
Given the importance of the
agriculture sector, the Government
in its Budget 201516, planned
several steps for the sustainable
development of agriculture. It has
already taken steps to address two
major factors (soil and water) critical
to improve agriculture production.
Steps have been taken to improve
soil fertility on a sustainable
basis through the soil health card
scheme and to support the organic
farming scheme Paramparagat
Krishi Vikas Yojana. Other
steps include improved access to
irrigation through Pradhanmantri
Gram Sinchai Yojana; enhanced
water efficiency through `Per Drop
More Crop; continued support
to Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee Act
(MGNREGA) and the creation of a
unified national agriculture market
to boost the incomes of farmers.
The Government of India recognises
the importance of microirrigation,
watershed
development
and
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai
Yojana. Therefore, it has allocated
a sum of ` 5,300 crore (US$ 815
million) for it.
Given the correlation between
improvement in agriculture and
the development of the country,
the Government of India adopted
several initiatives and programmes
to ensure continuous growth.
Some of
the recent major
government initiatives in the sector
are as follows:
India and Lithuania have

agreed to intensify agricultural
cooperation, especially in sectors
like food and dairy processing.
Gujarat Government has planned
to connect 26 Agricultural Produce
Market Committees (APMCs) via
electronic market platform, under
the National Agriculture Market
(NAM) initiative.
The State Government of
Telangana plans to spend Rs
81,000 crore (US$ 12.1 billion)
over the next three years to
complete ongoing irrigation
projects and also undertake two
new projects for lifting water from
the Godavari and Krishna river.
The National Dairy Development
Board (NDDB) announced 42
dairy projects with a financial
outlay of Rs 221 crore (US$ 34.02
million) to boost milk output and
increase per animal production of
milk.
The 12th Five-Year Plan estimates

the foodgrains storage capacity to
expand to 35 MT. Also, a 4 per cent
growth would help restructure the
agriculture sector in India in the next
few years.
Biotechnology Industry in India

India is among the top 12 biotech
destinations in the World and ranks
third in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Indian biotech industry holds
about 2 per cent share of the
global biotech industry. The Indian
biotechnology sector is expected
to grow from the current US$ 5-7
billion to US$ 100 billion by 2025,
growing at an average rate of 30 per
cent.
Biopharma is the largest sector
contributing about 64 per cent
of the total revenue followed by
B-324
Economy
bioservices (18 per cent), bioagri (14

per cent), bioindustry (3 per cent),
and bioinformatics contributing (1
per cent).
The high demand for different
biotech products has also opened
up scope for the foreign companies
to set up base in India. India has
emerged as a leading destination for
clinical trials, contract research and
manufacturing activities owing to
the growth in the bioservices sector.

India has all the ingredients to
become a global leader in affordable
healthcare. If there is an annual
investment of US$ 4.01 billion to
US$ 5.02 billion in the next five
years, the biotech industry can grow
to US$ 100 billion by 2025, with a 25
per cent return on investment, and
set a growth rate of 30 per cent yearon-year.
12 th Five-Year Plan fund allocation

Medical biotect
21 %
26 %
Agri biotech
Basic bio & emerging areas
Biodiversity, bioresources
& Environment
14 %
22 %
Capacity building
17 %
Soruce : Deptt. Of science and Technology,

Planning Commission, Aranca Research
Cement Industry in India

India is the second largest producer
of cement in the World. Indias
cement industry is a vital part of its
economy, providing employment to
more than a million people, directly
or indirectly.
Some of the recent major government
initiatives such as development of
100 smart cities are expected to
provide a major boost to the sector.
Expecting such developments in
the country and aided by suitable
government foreign policies, several
foreign players such as LafargeHolcim, Heidelberg Cement, and
Vicat have invested in the country in

the recent past.
Indias cement demand is expected
to reach 550-600 million tonnes
per annum (MTPA) by 2025. The
housing sector is the biggest demand
driver of cement, accounting for
about 67 per cent of the total
consumption in India.
In the 12th Five Year Plan, the
Government of India plans to
increase investment in infrastructure
to the tune of US$ 1 trillion and
increase the industrys capacity to
150 MT.
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Economy
Gems and Jewellery Industry in

India
x
Contributor to semi-skilled
employment. Consists of 3
segments Diamonds, Gold
Jewellery & Coloured Gemstones.
It is extremely export oriented and
labour intensive. It contributes to 6
7 percent of the GDP.
The gems and jewellery sector
in India is engaged in sourcing,
manufacturing, and processing,
which involves cutting, polishing
and selling precious gemstones and
metals such as diamonds, other
precious stones, gold, silver and
platinum.
Gems & Jewellery Exports
(USS Billion)
2014-15 (P)
Cut & Polished Diamond Exports

(USS billion)
2014-15
(P)
2013-14
36.2
2013-14
35.0
2012-13
39.2
2011-12
2010-11
2009-10
10
20
30
40
2011-12
43.0
2010-11
50
23.2
24.5
2012-13
43.2
29.4
0
It contributed US$ 39.9 billion in

terms of foreign exchange earnings
in FY 2014-15.
The industry grew 4.3 per cent, with
exports worth US$ 36.2 billion in
201415.
In 201415, export of cut and
polished diamonds declined 5.0 per
cent to US$ 23.2 billion.
It is expected that gems and jewellery
exports could reach US$ 58 billion
by 2015.
According to a report by Research
and Markets, the Jewellery Market
in India is expected to grow at a
CAGR of 15.95 per cent over the
period 2014-2019.
2009-10
0 5 10
17.4
23.4
28.2
15
18.2
20 25 30
Source Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion

Council (G.EPC) Notes : P.Provisional
Manufacturing Industry in India

Indian
Manufacturing
sector
currently contributes 16% to GDP
(2015) and gives employment to 12%
(2014) of the countrys workforce.
Studies have estimated that every
job created in manufacturing has a
multiplier effect, creating 23 jobs in
the services sector.
Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi,
has launched the Make in India
initiative to place India on the world
map as a manufacturing hub to give
global recognition to the Indian
economy.
In a major boost to the Make in

India initiative, the Government
of India has received investment
proposals of over US$ 3.05 billion
till end of August 2015 from
various companies. India has
become one of the most attractive
destinations for investments in the
manufacturing sector.
Clean energy investments in India
increased to US$ 7.9 billion in 2014,
helping the country maintain its
position as the seventh largest clean
energy investor in the world.
B-326
Economy
has allowed 100 per cent foreign

The oil and gas sector is among direct investment (FDI) in many
the six core industries in India and segments of the sector, including
natural gas, petroleum products, and
plays a major role in influencing
refineries, among others.
decision making for all the other
Presently, domestic production
important sections of the economy.
accounts for more than threeIn 199798, the New Exploration
quarters of the countrys total gas
Licensing Policy (NELP) was consumption. India increasingly
envisaged to fill the ever-increasing relies on imported LNG. The
gap between Indias gas demand and country was the fifth-largest LNG
supply. A recent report points out importer in 2013, accounting for
that the Indian oil and gas industry 5.5 per cent of global imports.
is anticipated to be worth US$ 139.8 Indias LNG imports are forecasted
billion by 2015.
to increase at a CAGR of 33 per
The Government of India has cent during 201217. However, net
adopted several policies to fulfil the imports of Natural Gas fell from
increasing demand. The government 13.14
Energy Consumption Pattern in 2014
Oil and Gas Industry in India
4.64 %
2.18 % 1.23 %
Coal
7.14 %
Oil
Natural Gas
Hydro Electric
28.33 %
56.47 %
Renewables
Nuclear Energy
Source: US Energy Information Administration (EIA),

BP Statistical Review 2015
State-owned Oil and Natural Gas

Corporation (ONGC) dominates
the upstream segment (exploration
and production), accounting for
approximately 68 per cent of the
countrys total oil output (FY14).
PAHAL - Direct Benefit Transfer
for LPG consumer (DBTL) scheme
launched in 54 districts on November
11, 2014 and expanded to rest of

the country on January 1, 2015
will cover 15.3 crore active LPG
consumers of the country. 24 7 LPG
service via web launched to provide
LPG consumers an integrated
solution to carry out all services at
one place, through MyLPG.in, from
the comfort of their home.
B-327
Economy
The Government of India launched
the Give It Up campaign on LPG
subsidy that helped it save ` 140
crore (US$ 21.11 million) as on
22nd July 2015 with nearly 12.6 lakh
Indians registering for the cause.
Subsidised cooking gas will no
longer be provided to consumers
earning ` 10 lakh or more a year
from January 1, 2016. The rule
will initially be implemented on
self-declaration basis for cylinders
booked from January 2016 onwards.
India has proven oil reserves of 5.7
billion barrels, and gas reserves of
1.4 trillion cubic meters, yet given
the low production base, the country
remains a net importer of energy.
Real Estate Industry in India

India is the second largest employer
of Real estate after agriculture and is
slated to grow at 30 per cent over the
next decade.
The real estate sector comprises
four sub sectors - housing, retail,
hospitality, and commercial.
Bengaluru is expected to be the
most favoured property investment
destination for NRIs, followed by
Ahmedabad, Pune, Chennai, Goa,
Delhi and Dehradun.
The Indian real estate market is
expected to touch US$ 180 billion
by 2020. The housing sector alone
contributes 5-6 per cent to the
countrys Gross Domestic Product
(GDP).
Mumbai is the best city in India for
commercial real estate investment,
with returns of 12-19 per cent likely
in the next five years, followed by
Bengaluru and Delhi-National
Capital Region (NCR).
Under the Sardar Patel Urban

Housing Mission, 30 million houses
will be built in India by 2022, mostly
for the economically weaker sections
and low-income groups, through
public-private-partnership
(PPP)
and interest subsidy.
Textile Industry in India

Indias textiles sector is one of the
oldest industries in Indian economy
dating back several centuries. Even
today, textiles sector is one of
the largest contributors to Indias
exports. India is the worlds second
largest exporter of textiles and
clothing contributing approximately
11 per cent of total exports. The
textiles industry is also labour
intensive and is one of the largest
employers.
The industry realised export
earnings worth US$ 41.4 billion in
2014-15, a growth of 5.4 per cent,
as per The Cotton Textiles Export
Promotion Council (Texprocil).
The Indian textiles industry,
currently estimated at around US$
108 billion, is expected to reach US$
223 billion by 2021.
The Indian Textile Industry
contributes approximately 5 per cent
to Indias gross domestic product
(GDP), and 14 per cent to overall
Index of Industrial Production
(IIP). Readymade garments are the
largest contributor to total textile
and apparel exports from India in
FY15. The segment had a share of
40 per cent in overall textile exports.
Cotton and handmade textiles were
also major contributors with shares
of 31 per cent and 16 per cent,
respectively.
B-328
Economy
Share of Indias textile exports (Fy15)

3%
Ready Made Garments
10 %
Coton Textiles
40 %
16 %
Natural Gas
Man Made Textiles
Handicrafts (Carpet,
Handloom, Coir, Handicrafts
excluding carpets)
31 %
Others (Silk, Wool, Jute)
Soruce : Ministry of Textiles, Budget 2015, TechSci Research
Foreign direct investment (FDI)

in textile sector increased to US$
1,587.8 million in FY15 from
US$ 1,424.9 million in FY14. The
Ministry of Textiles is encouraging
investments through increasing focus
on schemes such as Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS).
IT & ITeS Industry in India

India is the worlds largest sourcing
destination for the information
technology (IT) industry, accounting
for approximately 67 per cent of the
US$ 124-130 billion market.
Indias IT industry amounts to 12.3
per cent of the global market, largely
due to exports. Export of IT services
accounted for 56.12 per cent of total
IT exports (including hardware)
from India. The Business Process
Management
(BPM)
segment
accounted for 23.46 per cent of total
IT exports during FY15.
The IT industry has also created
significant demand in the Indian
education sector, especially for
engineering and computer science.
The Indian Information Technology
(IT) sector is expected to grow 11 per
cent per annum and triple its current
annual revenue to reach US$ 350
billion by FY 2025, as per National
Association of Software and

Services Companies (NASSCOM).
Indias internet economy is expected
to touch Rs 10 trillion (US$ 151.6
billion) by 2018, accounting for
5 per cent of the countrys gross
domestic product (GDP), according
to a report by the Boston Consulting
Group (BCG) and Internet and
Mobile Association of India
(IAMAI). Indias internet user base
reached over 350 million by June
2015, the third largest in the world,
while the number of social media
users grew to 143 million by April
2015 and smartphones grew to 160
million.
Indian start-ups are expected to
receive funding worth US$ 5 billion
by the end of 2015, a 125 per cent
increase in a year, according to a
report by IT Industry association
NASSCOM.
The Government of India has
launched the Digital India program
to provide several government
services to the people using IT
and to integrate the government
departments and the people of India.
The adoption of key technologies
across sectors spurred by the Digital
India Initiative could help boost
Indias gross domestic product
B-329
Economy
(GDP) by US$ 550 billion to US$ 1
trillion by 2025, as per research firm
McKinsey.
SMAC, increasing at a CAGR of
approximately 30 per cent to around
US$ 650-700 billion by 2020. The
social media is the second most
lucrative segment for IT firms,
offering a US$ 250 billion market
opportunity by 2020.
The Indian e-commerce segment
is US$ 12 billion in size and is
witnessing strong growth and
thereby offers another attractive
avenue for IT companies to develop
products and services to cater to the
high growth consumer segment.
Indian Automobile Industry
The Indian automobile industry
registered a growth of 8.68 percent
in the FY 2014 15 over last year
and produced 23.37 million vehicles.
The automobile industry accounts
for 7.1 per cent of the countrys
gross domestic product (GDP).
Two-wheeler production is projected
to rise from 18.5 million in FY15 to
34 million by FY20. Furthermore,
passenger vehicle production is
expected to increase to 10 million in
FY20 from 3.2 million in FY15.
The government aims to develop
India as a global manufacturing as
well as a research and development
(R&D) hub. It has set up National
Automotive Testing and R&D
Infrastructure Project (NATRIP)
centres as well as a National
Automotive Board to act as
facilitator between the government
and the industry.
Alternative fuel has the potential
to provide for the countrys energy
demand in the auto sector as the
CNG distribution network in India
is expected to rise to 250 cities
in 2018 from 125 cities in 2014.
Furthermore, the luxury car market
can register high growth and is

expected to reach 150,000 units by
2020.
Coal Industry in India

Coal is one of the important parts
of Indias energy mix. India is
third-largest producer of coal with a
production of 565.6 million tonnes
(MT) in FY14. It has the fifth largest
coal reserves in the world at 301.6
billion tonnes (BT). It is a major
source of electricity production in
India.
Coal India Limited (CIL) was
formed as a holding company
in 1975, incorporating the stateowned companies that were created
following the nationalisation of
Indias coal assets.
Coal India Limited accounts for
around 80 per cent of Indias total
coal production. CILs production
target for the 201516 financial year
(April 2015 to March 2016) has been
set at 550 million tonnes, up 8.5 per
cent from the previous years target.
In the previous fiscal year CIL
produced 494 million tonnes, 3 per
cent below its target of 507 million
tonnes (Bahuguna 2015). To achieve
the new target, CIL will need to
produce an extra 56 million tonnes
during the 201516 financial year.
Although the central government
has primary carriage over Indias
coal sector, state governments retain
some influence over developments
through approval of mining licences
and leases.
Iron & Steel Industry

Started by TISCO at Jamshedpur
in 1907. India is worlds 3rd largest
producer of crude steel. Provide
employment to large number of
people. Steel sector contributes
nearly 2% of GDP. Key industry
for construction. Backbone of all
industries. SAIL largest public
sector steel producing company.
B-330
Economy
Travel & Tourism Industry

According to world Economic Forums
Travel & Tourism Competitiveness
Report 2013, India ranks 11th in the
Asia Pacific region and 65th globally
out of economies ranked on Travel
& Tourism Competitiveness Index.
Tourism in India accounts for 6.8%
of the GDP & is the 3rd largest foreign
exchange earner for the country. The

direct contribution of Tourism &
Hospitality sector to GDP totalled
US $ 44.2 billion in 2015. Over 7.757
million foreign tourist arrivals were
reported in 2015. Important Travel
Companies in India Cox Kings
Ltd., India Tourism Development
Corporation Ltd., Thomas Cook Ltd.
WORLD ECONOMY
By the term world economy, we mean
that comprehensive economy which is
based on national economies of every
country of the world. In other words it
is the economy of global community
encompassing economies of every
local society across the entire globe.
The 20th century world witnessed two
world wars, the Great Depression of
the 1930s, the end of colonial rule,
robust scientific and technological
developments, the Cold War between
the Western alliance and the Warsaw
Pact nations, living standards
enrichment in North America, Europe,
and Japan; increased concerns about
environmental degradation, energy
conservation, declining biological
diversity, etc., the emergence of the
US as world superpower, continued
population explosion.
As for global economic history,
economic growth took place first
during the Industrial Revolution

in Europe, because of huge energy
conversion taking place. Economic
growth spread to cover the entire
world during the twentieth century
and world GDP per capita multiplied
by five times. Maximum growth took
place in the 1960s the period of post
war reconstruction. Trade revolution
brought in by container ships after
the 1950s, paved way for cheap
transportation of goods.
So far as the 21st century is concerned
the continued advancement in
science and technology has both its
inherent merits and demerits- merits
in terms of advances in medicine,
agriculture beneficial to humankind
and propagation of lethal weapons
of war, mass destruction harmful for
mankind.
%86,1(66
B-332
Business
BUSINESS ENTITIES
x
Sole Proprietorship: It is an
unincorporated business with one
owner who pays personal income
tax on profits from the business.
Partnership: A type of business
organisation in which two or more
individuals pool money, skills, &
other resources, & share profit &
loss in accordance with terms of
the partnership agreement.
Limited Liability Partnership
(LLP): It is a partnership in which
some or all partners have limited
liabilities.
Hindu
Undivided
family
(HUF): It is an extended family
arrangement prevalent throughout
the Indian subcontinent consisting
of many generations living in
the same household, all bound
by the common relationship. A
huf is a legal term related to the
Hindu Marriage Act. The female
members are also given the right of
share to the property in the HUF.
Cooperative: It is a firm owned,
controlled, & operated by a group
of users for their own benefit. Each
member contributes equity capital,
& shares in the control of the firm
on the basis of one-member, onevote principle.
Dormant
Company:
The
Companies Act 2013 (section 455)
introduces a concept of a dormant
company withein its ambet. The
Dormant Company is a company
formed & registered under this
act for a future project or to hold
an asset or intellectual property
& has no significant accounting
transaction, such a company or
an inactive company may make an
application to the registrar in such
manner as may be prescribed for

obtaining the status of a Dormant
company.
Family Owned Business: It is a
kind of business in which two or
more family members are involved
& the majority of ownership or
control lies within a family.
Private Limited Company: A type
of company that offers limited
liability, or legal protection for its
shareholders but that places certain
restrictions on its ownership.
Small Company: It is a company
that satisfies either of the following
conditions:
(i) Paid-up share capital which
does not exceed 50 lakh rupees
or such higher amount as may be
prescribed which shall not be more
than 5 crore rupees.
OR
(ii) Turnover of which as per
its last profit & loss account
does not exceed 2 crore rupees
or such higher amount as may
be prescribed which shall not be
more than 20 crore rupees.
Public Limited Company: A
company whose securities are
traded on a stock exchange & can
be bought & sold by anyone. Its
formation, working & its winding
up, in fact, all its activities are
strictly governed by laws, rules &
regulations.
Public Sector Unit (PSU): The
government owned corporations
are termed as public sector
undertakings (PSUs) in India. In
a PSU majority (51% or more) of
the paid up share capital is held
by Central Government or by any
state government & partly by one
or more state governments.
B-333
Business
x
One Person Company: It is a

registered company who has
only one shareholder. It is a
private company.
Unlimited Company: It is a
company in which all members
or shareholders have total & joint
responsibility to cover all debts
& other liabilities the company
generates, regardless of how

much capital each contributes.
Incorporated Company: A
company that has been granted
a charter legally recognizing it as
a separate entity having its own
privileges, rights, & liabilities
distinct from other business &
persons.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
The framework of rules & practices
by which a Board of Directors ensures
accountability, fairness, & transparency
in a companys relationship with its
all stakeholders (financiers, customers,
management, employees, government,
& the community).
The corporate governance framework
consists of
1. explicit & implicit contracts
between the company & the
stakeholders for distribution of

responsibilities, rights & rewards.
2. procedures for reconciling the
sometimes conflicting interests of
stakeholders in accordance with
their duties, privileges & roles.
3. procedures for proper supervision,
control & information-flows to
serve as a system of checks &
balances.
COMPANY ACT 2013

Companies Act, 2013 is an act
which regulates incorporation of
a company, responsibilities of a
company, directors, dissolution of a
company.
The Act has replaced The Companies
Act, 1956 (in a partial manner) after
receiving the assent of the President
of India on 29 August 2013.
Brief description of new concepts
introduced in Companies Act 2013
x One Person Company is a
company with only one person
as a member. That one person
will be the shareholder of the
company. It avails all the benefits
of a private limited company
such as separate legal entity,
protecting personal assets from
business liability, and perpetual
succession.
Woman Director: Every Listed

Company /Public Company with
paid up capital of `100 Crores
or more/Public Company with
turnover of `300 Crores or more
shall have at least one Woman
Director.
Corporate Social Responsibility:
Every company having net worth
of rupees five hundred crore or
more, or turnover of rupees one
thousand crore or more or a net
profit of rupees five crore or more
during any financial year shall
constitute a Corporate Social
Responsibility Committee of the
Board consisting of three or more
directors, out of which at least one
director shall be an independent
director.
B-334
Business
Registered Valuers : Where a valuation is required to be made in respect

of any property, stocks, shares, debentures, securities or goodwill or any
other assets (herein referred to as the assets) or net worth of a company or
its liabilities under the provision of this Act, it shall be valued by a person
having such qualifications and experience and registered as a valuer in
such manner, on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed and
appointed by the audit committee or in its absence by the Board of
Directors of that company.
A Class Action Suit refers to a law suit that allows a large number of
people with a common interest in a matter to sue or be sued as a group. It
is a procedural device enabling one or more plantiffs to file and prosecute
a litigation on behalf of a larger group or class, wherein such class has
common rights and grievances.
Fast Track Merger : Under fast track merger processes Central
Government has the power to sanction all such scheme and there will be
no requirement to approach National Company Law Tribunal (powers
presently exercised by the High Court).
New Pension System

Pension Plans provide financial security & stability during old age when
people dont have a regular source of income. To provide social security
to more citizens the government of India has started the National Pension
System. Government of India established Pension Fund Regulatory
& Development Authority (PFRDA) on 10th October 2013 to develop &
regulate pension sector in the country. The National Pension System (NPS)
was launched in 1st January, 2004 with the objective of providing retirement
income to all the citizens. With effect from 1st may 2009, NPS has been
provided for all citizens of the country including the unorganised sector
workers on voluntary basis. Additionally, Central Government launched
a co-contributory pension scheme, Swavalamban Scheme in the Union
Budget of 2010-11, under which the government will contribute a sum of
` 1,000 to each eligible NPS subscriber who contributes a minimum of
` 1,000 & maximum ` 12,000 per annum.
The NPS is structured in 2 tiers. A Tier-1 account is a basic retirement
pension account available to all citizens from 1 May 2009. It doesnot
permit withdrawal of funds before retirement. A Tier-2 account is a
prospective payment system account that permits some withdrawal of
pension prior to retirement under exceptional circumstances, usually
related to the provision of health care.
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Business
MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS

MCA regulates corporate affairs in India through the Companies ACT, 1956,
2013 and other allied Acts, Bills and Rules. MCA also protects investors and
offers many important services to stakeholders.
The Ministry is also responsible for administering the Competition Act,
20002 to prevent practices having adverse effect on competition, to promote
and sustain competition in markets, to protect the interests of consumers
through the commission set up under the Act.
Besides, it exercises supervision over the three professional bodies, namely,
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) which are constituted
under three separate Acts of the Parliament for proper and orderly growth
of the professions concerned
Registrar of Companies
Registrars of Companies (ROC) appointed under Section 609 of the
Companies Act covering the varuous States and Union Territories are vested
with the primary duty of registering companies and LLPs floated in the
respective states and the Union Territories and ensuring that such companies
and LLPs comply with statutory requirements under the Act. These offices
function as registry of records relating to the companies registered with
them, which are available for inspection by members of public on payment
of the prescribed fee. The Central Government exercises administrative
control over these offices through the respective Regional Directors.
Income Tax Department

The Income Tax Department, also referred to as IT Department, is a
government agency in charge of monitoring the income tax collection by
the Government of India. It functions under the Department of Revenue of
the Ministry of Finance. It is responsible for administering following direct
taxation acts passed by Parliament of India.
x Income Tax Act
x Wealth Tax Act
x Gift Tax Act
x Expenditure Tax Act
x Interest Tax Act
x Various Finance Acts (Passed Every Year in Budget Session)
The IT Department is also responsible for enforcing the Double Taxation
Avoidance Agreements and deals with various aspects of international
taxation such as Transfer Pricing.
BALANCE SHEET
A financial statement that summarizes a companys assets, liabilities and
shareholders equity at a specific point in time. These three balance sheet
segments give investors an idea as to what the company owns and owes, as
well as the amount invested by shareholders.
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Business
The balance sheet adheres to the following formula:

Assets = Liabilities + Shareholders Equity
SOURCES OF FUNDS
Debt : A duty or obligation to pay
money delivery goods or render
service under an express or implied
agreement.
Debentures : It is a medium- to
long-term debt instrument used by
large companies to borrow money,
at a fixed rate of interest.
Shareholders Equity : It represents
the amount by which a company
is financed through common and
preferred shares.
Seed Funding : It is a type of
securities contribution in which and
investor invests capital in exchange
for an equity stake in the company.
This sort of funding is done in the
initial stages of a business.
Venture funding : It is the capital
invested, or available for investment,
in an enterprise that offers the
probability of profit along with
the possibility of loss. This sort of
funding is done, generally, after a

company has a proof of concept and
has crossed early stages of business.
IPO : Initial public offering of IPO
is the first sale of a companys shares
to the public, leading to a stock
market listing. A lot of venture funds
adopts this route to exit a company
in which they have invested.
Shares : A unit of ownership that
represents an equal proportion of
a companys capital. It entitles its
holder( the shareholder) to an equal
claim on the companys profits & an
equal obligation for the companys
debts & losses.
There are 2 major types of sharesx Ordinary shares : entitle the
shareholder to share in the
earnings of the company & to
vote at the companys annual
general meatings & other official
meetings.
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Business
x
Preference shares : entitle the

shareholder to a fixed periodic
income but generally donot give
him/her voting rights.
Loans : A loan is a debt pronded

by entity (organisation of
individual) to another entity at
an interest rate.
PERFORMANCE OF A COMPANY
Debt/Equity ratio : It is a debt
ratio used to calculate companys
financial leverage. It is calculated by
dividing a companys total liabilities
by its stockholders equity. It shows
how much debt a corporation is
using to fund its assets relative to
the amount of value represented in
shareholders equity.
P/E ratio : The price-to earnings
ratio is an equity valuation multiple.
It is defined as market price per
share divided by annual earnings
per share, (EPS = total income of
company divided by number of
shares issued)
Turnover ratio : The turnover ratio

measures how well a company is
utilizing its capital to support a given
Level of Sales. A high turnover ratio
indicates that management is being
extremely efficient is using a firms
short term assets & liabilities to
support sales. Conversely, a low ratio
indicates that a business is investing
in too many accounts receivable &
inventory assets to support its sales,
which could eventually lead to an
excessive amount of bad debts &
obsolete inventory
SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

Small and medium-sized enterprises
(SMEs; sometimes also small and
medium enterprises) or small and
medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are
businesses whose personnel numbers
fall below certain limits. Indian
Small and Medium Enterprises
(SME) sector has emerged as a
highly vibrant and dynamic sector
of the Indian economy over the
last five decades. SMEs not only
play crucial role in providing large
employment
opportunities
at
comparatively lower capital cost
than large industries but also help
in industrialization of rural areas.
SMEs are complementary to large
industries as ancillary units and this
sector contributes enormously to the
socio-economic development of the
country. The sector consisting of 36
million units, as of today, provides
employment to over 80 million
persons. The Sector through more
than 6,000 products contributes

about 8% to GDP besides 45% to
the total manufacturing output and
40% to the exports from the country.
The SME sector has the potential to
spread industrial growth across the
country and can be a major partner
in the process of inclusive growth.
SMEs also play a significant role in
Nation development through high
contribution to Domestic Production,
Significant Export Earning, Low
Investment Requirements, Operational
Flexibility, Location Wise Mobility,
Low Intensive Imports, Capacities
to Develop Appropriate Indigenous
Technology, Import Substitution,
Contribution
towards
Defence
Production, Technology Oriented
Industries,
Competitiveness
in
Domestic and Export Markets thereby
generating new entrepreneurs by
providing knowledge and training.
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Business
ECOMMERCE IN INDIA
E-commerce or electronic commerce
deals with the buying & selling of
goods & services, or the transmitting
of funds or data, over an electronic
platform, mainly the internet. These
business transactions are categorised
into
x Business to Business (B2B)
x Business to Consumers (B2C)
x Consumer to Consumer (C2B)
x Consumer to Business(C2C)
Business to Business to Consumer
Ecommerce processes are conducted
using applications, such as Email,
fax, online catalogues & shopping
carts, electronic data interchange,
file transfer protocol & web services
& enewsletters to subscribers. E
Travel is the most popular form of
Ecommerce, followed by eTail
which essentially means selling of
retail goods on the internet conducted

by the B2C category.
As of Q1 2015, six Indian E-commerce
companies have managed to achieve
billiondollar valuations, namely
Flipkart, Snapdeal, Inmobi, Quikr,
Ola cabs & Paytm.
Mobile Commerce
(M Commerce)
MCommerce is the buying & selling
of goods & services through wireless
handheld services such as cellular
telephone & personal digital assistants.
The phrase mobile commerce was
originally coined in 1997 by Kevin
Duffey at the launch of the Global
Mobile Commerce Forum. Mobile
Commerce transaction continues
to grow, & the term includes online
banking, Bill payment & so on.
MNC
A corporation that has its facilities
and other assets in at least one
country other than its home country.
Such companies have offices and/
or factories in different countries
and usually have a centralized head
office where they co-ordinate global
management. It can also be referred
as an international corporation, a
transnational corporation, or a
stateless corporation.
NGO
A non-governmental organization
(NGO) is an organization that is
neither a part of a government nor a
conventional for-profit business.
The
term
non-governmental
organization was first coined in
1945, when the United Nations
(UN) was created.The UN, itself
an inter-governmental organization,
made it possible for certain approved
specialized international non-state
agencies i.e., non-governmental

organizations to be awarded
observer status at its assemblies
and some of its meetings. Later
the term became used more widely.
Today, according to the UN, any
kind of private organization that is
independent from government control
can be termed an NGO, provided it
is not-for-profit, nonprevention, and
not simply an opposition political
party.
Examples include improving the
state of the natural environment,
encouraging the observance of human
rights, improving the welfare of the
disadvantaged, or representing a
corporate agenda. However, there are
a huge number of such organizations
and their goals cover a broad range
of political and philosophical
positions. This can also easily be
applied to private schools and athletic
organizations.
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Business
FICCI (Federation of Indian

Chamber of Commerce &
Industry)
the Directorate of Marketing &

Inspection, an agency of the
Government of India.
Established
in
1927,
FICCI
is the largest and oldest apex
business organisation in India. A
non-government,
not-for-profit
organisation, FICCI is the voice of
Indias business and industry. From
influencing policy to encouraging
debate, engaging with policy makers
and civil society, FICCI articulates
the views and concerns of industry.
ISI Mark
AGMARK
It is a certification mark employed
on agricultural products in India,
assuring that they confirm to
a set of standards approved by
ISI (Indian Standards Institute) mark

is a certification mark for industrial
products in India. The mark certifies
that a product confirms to the
Indian Standard, mentioned as IS:
xxxx on top of the mark, developed
by the Bureau of Indian Standards
(BIS). The ISI mark is mandatory
for certifying products to be sold in
India, like many of the electrical
appliances, kitchen appliances, other
products like LPG valves, LPG
cylinders, automotive tyres, etc.
IMPORTANT BUSINESS TERMS

Term
Ahead of the Curve
Backroom Deal
Meaning
To be more advanced than the competition
An agreement or decision that is made without the public

knowing about it.
Go broke
To go bankrupt or to loose all the money a person or business
had.
In the black
If a company is in the black, it means that they are making
a profit
In the red
If a company is in the red it means that they are not
profitable & are operating at a loss.
Lose Lose situation When someone has to choose between various options & all
the options are bad.
Pink Slip
If someone gets the pink slip, it means they have fired.
Snail Mail
Letter or messages that are not sent by email, but by regular
post.
Blue Collar Worker Someone who works with his/her hands (manufacturing
construction, maintenance, etc.).
White Collar Worker Someone who works in an office (customer service,
management, sales, etc.)
Win Win situation
A situation where everyone involved gains something.
Corner a market
To dominate a particular market.
Downsizing
A planned reduction in the number of employees needed in
a firm in order to reduce costs & make the business more
efficient.
Venture Capital
money that is invested in new or emerging companies that are
perceived as having great profit potential.
B-340
Term
Opportunity Cost
Logistics
Equity
Merger
Acquisition
Hedging
Intellectual Property
Swap
Bankrupt
Liquidity
Business
Meaning
Cost in terms of foregone alternatives.
Process of strategically managing the efficient flow & storage
of raw materials, in-process inventory, & finished goods from
point of origin to point of consumption.
Difference between market value of a property & claims held
against it.
Combination of two or more companies into a single firm.
Taking over the control of one company by another.
A Risk management Strategy used in limiting or offsetting
probability of loss from fluctuations in the prices of
commodities, currencies, or securities.
Knowledge, creative ideas, or expressions of human mind that
have commercial value & are protectable under copyright,
patent, servicemark, trademark, or trade secret laws from
imitation infringement, & dilution.
Exchange of one type of asset, cash flow, investment, liability,
or payment for another.
When individual/company cannot pay their debts & are not
able to reach an agreement with their creditors.
How quickly assets can be converted into cash.
BUSINESS CONCEPTS
Agent : A business entity that
negotiates, purchases, and/or sells,
but does not take title to the goods.
Doing Business As (DBA) DBA
stands for Doing Business As,
which is a company name, also
commonly called a Fictitious
business name. When a sole
proprietor operates a company using
any name except his or her own given
name, then the DBA or ficticious
business name registration establishes
the legal ownership to satisfy banks,
local authorities, and customers.
Ideas vs opportunities Ideas
are the basis of potential business
opportunities. Good ideas do
not necessarily represent good
opportunities.
Initial Public Offering (IPO) A
corporations initial efforts of raising
capital through the sale of securities
on the public stock market.
Inventory Goods in stock, either
finished goods or materials to be used

to manufacture goods.
Outsourcing Purchasing an item or
a service from an outside vendor to
replace performance of the task with
an organizations internal operations.
SWOT analysis A formal
framework of identifying and framing
organizational growth opportunities.
SWOT is an acronym for an
organizations internal Strengths
and Weaknesses and external
Opportunities and Threats.
CRM- C-R-M stands for Customer
Relationship Management. At its
simplest, a CRM system allows
businesses to manage business
relationships and the data and
information associated with them.
Supply
Chain
Management
(SCM) is the oversight of materials,
information, and finances as they
move in a process from supplier
to manufacturer to wholesaler to
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Business
retailer to consumer. Supply chain
management involves coordinating
and integrating these flows both
within and among companies.
Memorandum of
Association
(MoA) :
MoA is a legal document prepared
in the formation & registration
process of a limited liability
company to define its relationship
with shareholders.
Articles of Association : It is a
document of a company which
defines the responsibilities of the
directors, the kind of business to be
undertaken, & the means by which
the shareholders exert control over the
board of directors.
Start ups
A start-up company is an
entrepreneurial venture or a new
business in the form of a company, a
partnership or temporary organization
designed to search for a repeatable
and scalable business model. These
companies, generally newly created,
are innovative in a process of
development, validation and research
for target markets.
Boot Strap
A situation in which an entrepreneur
starts a company with little capital.
An individual is said to be boot
strapping when he or she attempts
to found and build a company
from personal finances or from
the operating revenues of the new
company.
x Employees State Insurance (ESI)
ESI is a self-financing social
security & health insurance
scheme for Indian workers.
The ESI is managed by the ESI
Corporation (ESIC) according to
rules and regulations stipulated
there in the ESI Act 1948,

which oversees the provision
of medical and cash benefits to
the employees and their family
through its large network of
branch offices, dispensaries and
hospitals throughout India.
Provident Fund (PF)
It is a fund which is composed
of contributions & made by the
employee during the time he/
she worked along with an equal
contribution by his employer.
Its purpose is to help employees
save a fraction of their salary
every month, to be used in
an event that the employee is
temporarily or no longer fit to
work or at retirement.
TDS
Tax deducted at source (TDS),
as the very name implies aims at
collection of revenue at the very
source of income. It is essentially
an indirect method of collecting
tax which combines the concepts of
pay as you earn and collect as
it is being earned. Its significance
to the government lies in the fact
that it prepones the collection of
tax, ensures a regular source of
revenue, provides for a greater reach
and wider base for tax. At the same
time, to the tax payer, it distributes
the incidence of tax and provides for
a simple and convenient mode of
payment.
The concept of TDS requires that
the person on whom responsibility
has been cast, is to deduct tax at the
appropriate rates, from payments of
specific nature which are being made
to a specified recipient. The deducted
sum is required to be deposited to the
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credit of the Central Government.

The recipient from whose income
tax has been deducted at source, gets
the credit of the amount deducted
in his personal assessment on the
basis of the certificate issued by the
deductor.
Lease
A legal document outlining the
terms under which one party agrees
to rent property from another
party. A lease guarantees the lessee
(the renter) use of an asset and
guarantees the lessor (the property
owner) regular payments from the
lessee for a specified number of
months or years. Both the lessee and
the lessor must uphold the terms of
the contract for the lease to remain
valid.
Financial Leasing
As one of the most popular
financing tools in modern business
world, Financial Leasing Services
uses finance leases to leverage assets.
A Finance Lease (or Capital Lease)
is a lease that is primarily a method
of raising finance to pay for assets,
rather than a genuine rental.
It is a commercial arrangement
where:
x the leases (customer or borrower)
will select an asset (equipment,
vehicle, software);
x the lessor (finance company) will
purchase that asset;
x the leassee will have use of that
asset during the lease;
x the lessess will pay a series of
rental or installments for the use
of that asset;
x the lessor will recover a large
part or all of the cost of the
asset plus earn interest from the
Business
rentals paid by the lessee;
the lessee has the option to
acquire ownership of the asset
(e.g. paying the last rental, or
bargain option purchase price);
The finance company is the legal
owner of the asset during duration
of the lease.
E-FILING
Electronic tax filing, or e-filing,
is a system for submitting tax
documents to a revenue service
electronically,
often
without
the need to submit any paper
documents. E-filing has manifold
benefits; the taxpayer can file a tax
return from the comfort of home,
at any convenient time, once
the tax agency begins accepting
returns. E-filing saves the tax
agency time and money, because
the tax data is transmitted directly
into its computers, significantly
reducing the possibility of keying
and input errors.
x
Corporate tax
Corporate taxes are taxes against
profits earned by businesses during a
given taxable period. Corporation tax
is a tax imposed on the net income of
the company. The present corporate
for is 30% on the Net Income of the
company.
It was announced in Union Budget
2015 that corporate tax rate will be
gradually reduced from 30% to 25%
over the period of 4 years, starting
in April 2016. 2% surcharge was
introduced on earnings above 10 crores.
Surcharge is applied in the
following cases:
x If the company has a total
income less than Rs. 1 crore,
then it does not have to pay any
income tax.
x If the net income of the company
for that year is in the range of Rs.
x 10 crore then 5% surcharge is
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Business
applied on its net income.

If the net income of the company
for that year exceeds Rs. 10 crore
then 10% surcharge is applied on
its net income education cess
3URWDELOLW\RIFRPSDQ\
Profitability is the ability of a
business to earn a profit. A profit is
what is left of the revenue a business
generates after it pays all expenses
directly related to the generation of
the revenue, such as producing a
product, and other expenses related
to the conduct of the business
activities.
Dividend
A share of the after-tax profit
of a company, distributed to its
shareholders according to the number
and class of shares held by them.
Start-ups and other high-growth
companies such as those in the
technology or biotechnology sectors

rarely offer dividends because all of
their profits are reinvested to help
sustain higher-than-average growth
and expansion. Larger, established
companies tend to issue regular
dividends as they seek to maximize
shareholder wealth in ways aside from
supernormal growth.
Issued Capital
The share capital that has been
issued to the shareholders. This
is part of a companys authorised
capital.
Paid up capital
The amount of a companys capital that
has been funded by shareholders. Paidup capital can be less than a companys
total capital because a company may
not issue all of the shares that it has
been authorized to sell. Paid-up capital
can also reflect how a company depends
on equity financing.

Rank
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Com any
TCS
Cognizant Technology Solutions
Infosys Technologies
Wipro
Hewlett-Packard India
HCL Technologies
Tech Mahindra
IBM India
Ingram Micro India
Redington India
Dell India
Oracle India
SAP India
Cisco Systems India
Microsoft India
IGATE
APC by Schneider Electric India
Capgemini India
Intel India
HCL Infosystems
Source: NASSCOM
Re enues ` Cr
94,648
65,779
53,319
47,318
37,985
35,709
22,621
20,442
15,823
14,610
13,984
12,440
9,896
9,740
8,624
7,879
6,848
6,305
6,292
6,270
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Business
LIST OF TOP 10 RICHEST PERSON OF INDIA

S. No.
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
Name
Mukesh Ambani
Dilip Shanghvi
Azim Premji
Hinduja brothers
Pallonji Mistry
Shiv Nadar
Godrej family
Lakshmi Mittal
Cyrus Poonawalla
Kumar Birla
Net worth (USD)

$19.9
$18.0
$15.9
$14.8
$14.7
$14.7
$11.4
$11.2
$7.9
$7.8
Company
Reliance Industries
Sun Pharma
Wipro
Hinduja Group
Shapoorji Pallonji Group
HCL Technologies
Godrej Group
ArcelorMittal
Serum Institute of India
Aditya Birla Group
WORLDS MOST VALUABLE BRANDS

Rank
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
Brand
Industry
Apple
Microsoft
Google
Coca-cola
IBM
Mc Donalds
Samsung
Toyata
General Electric
Facebook
Technology
Technology
Technology
Beverages
Technology
Restaurants
Technology
Automotive
Diversified
Technology
TOP 10 BRANDS OF BRANDZ 2015 REPORT

Rank 2015
Brand
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
HDFC Bank
Airtel
SBI
ICICI Bank
Asian Paints
Bajaj Auto
Hero MotoCorp
Axis Bank
Kotak Mahindra Bank
Maruti Suzuki
Category
Bank
Telecoms
Banks
Banks
Paints
Automobiles
Automobiles
Banks
Banks
Automobiles
Brand Value 2015

(SM)
12,577
11,039
9,374
5,122
3,867
3,345
2,907
2,494
2,394
2,318

1
2
3
4
wehive by flipkart.com
babyoye... by Mahindra Retail
Taxi for sure by OLA
AdiQuity by flipkart.com
5
6
7
8
unicommerce by snapdeal.com
martmobi by snapdeal.com
app ITERATE by flipkart.com
car sale by CARTRADE
*(1(5$/6&,(1&(
`
`
`
`
Physics
Chemistry
Life Science
Everyday Science
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General Science
Physics
MECHANICS
Physical Quantities
Those quantities which can describe
the laws of physics and possible to
measure are called physical quantities.
The physical quantities which do not
depend upon other physical quantities
are called fundamental quantities.
In Standard International (S.I.) system
the fundamental quantities are mass,
length, time, temperature, luminous
intensity, electric current and amount
of substance.
The physical quantities which depend on
fundamental quantities are called derived
quantities e.g. speed, acceleration, force,
etc.
Units
The unit of a physical quantity is the
reference standard used to measure it.
1. Fundamental Units: The units
defined for the fundamental
quantities are called fundamental
or base units.
Fundamental Unit for MassKilogram (Kg), Length-metre (m),
Time-second(s), Temperaturekelvin (K), Electric Currentampere (A), Luminous intensity
- Candela (cd), Amount of
Substance - mole (mol).
2. Derived Units: The units defined
for the derived quantities are
called derived units. e.g. unit
of speed or velocity (metre per
second), acceleration (metre per
second2) etc.
Some Important Conversions
(i)
1 yard = 0.9144 m #0.91m
(ii) 1 foot (1) = 0.305 m
(iii) 1 inch (1) = 2.54 cm = 0.025 m
(iv) 1 mile - 1609 m = 1.609 km
(v)
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)
1 ltr. = 1000 cc = 10-3 m3

1 cm2 = 10-4 m2
1 mm = 10-3 m
1 atomic mass unit 1 (amu) =
1.67 10-27
(ix) 1 slug = 14.57 kg
(x)
1 tonne = 10 quintal = 1000kg
(xi) 1 kg/m3 = 1000 g/cm3
5
(xii) 1 km/h =
m/s and 1 m/s
18
18
=
km/h
5
(xiii) 1 newton = 105 dyne, 1 kg wt
= 9.8 N and 1 g wt = 981 dyne
(xiv) 1 joule = 107 erg,
1 eV = 1.6 1019 J
(xv) 1 atm = 76 cm of Hg = 1.01
N
dy
105 2 1.01 u 2
m
cm
(xvi) 1 h.p. = 746 watt
(xvii) 1 kw h = 3.6 106 J
(xviii) 1 tesla = 1 web/m2 = 104 gauss
Path Length or Distance: The length
of the actual path between initial and
final positions of a particle in a given
interval of time is called distance
covered by the particle.
Displacement: The shortest distance
from the initial position to the final
position of the particle is called
displacement.
Speed, Velocity and Acceleration
Distance travelled
Speed =
TimeTaken
Displacement
Velocity =
Time interval
Change in velocity
Acceleration =
Time interval
B-347
General Science
Kinematic Equations for Uniformly
Accelerated Motion
Motion under uniform acceleration
is described by the following equations.
1
v = u + at ; s = ut + at2 and
2
v2 = u2 + 2as
Distance Travelled in nth Second
of Uniformly Accelerated Motion
a
S th u (2n 1)
n
2

Relative Velocity: If v A and v B be
the respective velocities of object
A and B then
of A
relative
velocity

w.r.t. B is v A B v A v B
Similarly, relative
of B w.r.t.
velocity

v BA v B v A
A is
Scalars and Vectors
The physical quantities which require only
magnitude to express, are called scalar
quantities. Ex. Mass, distance, time,
speed, volume, density, pressure,
work, energy, power, charge, electric
current, temperature, potential,
specific heat, frequency, etc. Certain
physicsl quantities have both magnitude
and direction, they are called vector
quantities. Ex. Displacement, velocity,
acceleration, force, momentum,
impulse, electric field, magnetic field,
current density, etc.
Newtons Laws of Motion
1st law: Every body continues to be in
its state of rest or of uniform motion in
a straight line unless compelled by an
external force to change its state. This
fundamental property of the body is
called inertia. This law is known as
Newtons first law of motion or law
of inertia.
Inertia: Inertia is the property of a body
due to which it opposes the change in its
state. Inertia of a body is measured
by mass of the body. It is directly
proportional to the mass of the body
i.e., Inertia v mass.
Momentum: The linear momentum

of a body ( p ) is defined as the
product of the mass of
thebody (m)
and its velocity. i.e., P mv .
Relation between momentum and

kinetic energy:
Consider a body of mass m moving
with velocity v. Linear momentum
of the body, p = mv.
KE of a particle can be expressed as
P2
E
and p
2mE
2m
2nd law: The rate of change of
momentum of a body is directly
proportional to the unbalanced external
force applied on it.

dp

dp
i.e., F v
or, F k
or F ma
dt
dt
Impulse: If a large force acts on a
body or particle for a smaller time,
then impulse = product of force and
time.

Impulse = F't
3rd law: According to this law,
every action has equal and opposite
reaction. Action and reaction act
on two different bodies and they
are simultaneous. There can be no
reaction without action.
Law of Conservation of Linear
Momentum
If the total external force acting on a
system is equal to zero, then the final
value of the total momentum of the
system is equal to the initial value of
the total
momentum of the system.

p = constant or pf = pi
Motion in a Lift
Let a man of weight W = Mg be
standing in a lift.
Case (a): If the lift is moving with
constant velocity v upwards or
downwards.
a=0
W = Mg
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General Science
In this case there is no accelerated

motion hence no pseudo force
experienced by observer O inside
the lift.
So apparent weight, W = actual
weight W
Case (b): If the lift is accelerated
i.e., a = constant and in upward
direction.
Then net forces acting on the man are
(i) weight W = Mg downward
(ii) fictitious force F0 = Ma downward.
So apparent weight,
W = W + F0 = Mg + Ma
= M (g + a)
W = M(g+a)
Case (c): If the lift is accelerated
downward with acceleration a < g:
a<g
W = M (g a)
The fictitious force F0 = Ma acts
upward while weight of a man
W = Mg always acts downward,
therefore
apparent
weight,
W = W + F0 = Mg Ma = M (g a)
Friction
Whenever a body moves or tends
to move over the surface of another
body, a force comes into play which
acts parallel to the surface of contact

and opposes the relative motion.
This opposing force is called friction.
Centripetal force: The force
directed towards the centre required
for traversing a circular path is called
centripetal force.
mv 2
mZ2 r .
Centripetal force = F
r
In a banked path with curvature
(q) with friction, the safe
velocity is given by
Y >UJWDQT + P) / (1 Ptan T)].
Bending of cyclist: In order to
take a circular turn of radius r
with speed v, the cyclist should
bend himself through an angle
q from the vertical such that
v2
tan T
rg
Work: Work done by a force on a body
is defined as the product of force and the
displacement of the body in the direction
of force. SI unit of work is joule.

W F.S FScos T where T is the

angle between F and S .
Power: Power is the rate of doing work.

dW F.dS
F.v
Power = P
dt
dt
Its SI unit is watt.
1 Horse power [1HP] = 746 W,
1 calorie = 4.2J and
6
1 kW h = 3.6 10 J
Energy
Energy is the capacity of doing work.
It is also a scalar quantity. The SI
unit is joule.
Work-energy theorem states that
the work done on a body is equal to
the change in its kinetic energy.
Kinetic energy: K.E. is the energy
possessed by the body due to its motion.
1
2
K.E. = mv
2
Potential energy: P.E. is the energy
possessed by the body due to its
position or shape.
B-349
General Science
Gravitational P.E. = mgh (due to
change in position)
Law of conservation of energy
states that energy can neither be
created nor be destroyed but it can
be transformed from one form to
another.
Mass-energy equivalence: According
to this theorem mass and energy are
inter-convertible.
E=
mc2.
8
where c = 3 10 ms1 is velocity of
light in vaccum or air.
Collision
If the path of a body is affected
by another body when two bodies
physically come in contact, then
collision is said to have taken place.
Elastic collision: Both momentum
and K.E. are conserved.
For elastic collision in one
dimension,
Inelastic collision: Only momentum
is conserved.
Coefficient of restitution is defined
as the ratio of velocity of separation to
the velocity of approach.
Coefficient of restitution
v v
=e= 2 1
u1 u 2
e = 1 for perfectly elastic collision
e = 0 for perfectly inelastic collision
Centre of Mass: It is an imaginary
point at which the whole mass of a body
is supposed to be concentrated.
Torque and Angular Momentum
Torque is the moment of force. It is
the cross product of the force with
the perpendicular distance between
the axis of rotation and the point of
application of force withthe force.

Torque = t = r F ; S.I. unit
is N m
Angular momentum is the moment
of linear momentum. It is also the
product of the linear momentum
and the perpendicular distance of
the mass from the axis
of rotation.

t = r p where p = position
relative to origin
= linear momentum at position.

Angular momentum L = r p =: S.I
unit kg m2/s
Relation between torque and angular
momentum,
dL
T=
dt
Moment of Inertia
It is equivalent to mass in rotational
motion. It is defined as the sum of
the product of the constituent masses
and the square of their perpendicular
distances from the axis of rotation.
For an n-particle system having
mass points m1, m2, m3, ...............,
mn at perpendicular distances
r1, r2, ............, rn, moment of inertia,
I = m1r12 m2r22............ + mnrn2
n
mi ri 2
i 1
S.I. unit is kgm2 and it is a scalar quantity.

Gravitation
It is the force of attraction between
any two bodies.
Newtons Universal Law of
Gravitation: Every body in this
universe attracts every other body with
a force which is directly proportional
to the product of their masses and
inversely proportional to the square
of the distance between them.
1
mm
F v m1m 2 and F v 2 F v 12 2
r
r
mm
? F G 12 2
r
G = Universal gravitational constant
= 6.67 1011 Nm2/kg2
Acceleration due to gravity: The
acceleration produced in a body due
to gravitational force of the earth is
called acceleration due to gravity (g).
GM e
g=
(on the surface of the earth);
Re 2
Me = mass on the earth and Re =
radius of the earth.
gR2e
= 6 1024 kg,
Me
G
Re = 6400 km;
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General Science
Acceleration due to gravity. g is

maximum at poles and least (zero)
at equator.
Gravitational Potential: Gravitational
potential at a point in a gravitational
field is defined as the work done in
taking a unit mass from infinity to the
point.
GM
Gravitational potential = V =
r
Escape Speed: Minimum speed
required to escape the earths
gravitational pull.
ve
2 u vo (For
2gr
earth
ve = 11.2 km/s)
where v0 = orbital speed
Satellite
It is a heavenly body or an artificial
object which revolves round a planet
in a particular orbit. The required
centripetal force is provided by the
gravitational force. Keplers laws of
planetary motion are applicable to
them.
(a) Orbital velocity of a satellite:
Velocity with which the
satellite orbits around the
planet.
GM
vo
Rh
(b) Time period of a satellite:
Time taken by it to complete
one revolution around the
planet.
3S R h
GUR 3
2S
R
R h 3
g
(c)
Height of a satellite above

the surface of the planet:
T 2 R 2g
H =
2 R
4S
(d) Total energy of a satellite
orbiting on a circular path
is negative with potential
energy being negative but
twice as the magnitude of
positive kinetic energy.
(e) Binding energy of a satellite is
the energy required to remove
it from its orbit to infinity.
GMm
B.E. =
No energy is
2r
required to keep the satellite in
its orbit.
Geostationary satellites: The satellites
in a circular orbit around the earth
in the equatorial plane with a time
period of 24 hours, appears to be
fixed from any point on earth are
called geostationary satellite.
For geostationary satellite, height
above the earths surface = 35800
km and orbital velocity = 3.1 km/s.
Polar Satellites: A satellite that
revolves in a polar orbit along northsouth direction while the earth
rotates around its axis in east west
direction.
Weightlessness: A situation where
the effective weight of the object
becomes zero. An astronaut
experiences weightlessness in space
satellite because the astronaut as
well as the satellite are in a free fall
state towards the earth.
PROPERTIES OF MATTER
Elasticity and Plasticity
The property of the body to regain its
original configuration (length, or shape)
when the deforming forces are removed
is called elasticity. On the other hand,
if the body does not have any tendency
to regain its original configuration on
removal of deforming force the body is

called plastic body and this property is
called plasticity.
Perfectly elastic body: A body which
regains its original configuration
immediately and completely after
the removal of deforming force from
General Science
it, is called perfectly elastic body.
Quartz and phosphor bronze, are
closed to perfectly plastic body.
Perfectly plastic body: A body
which does not regain its original
configuration at all on the removal
of deforming force, however small
the deforming force may be is called
perfectly plastic body. Putty and mud
are closed to perfectly plastic body.
Stress: The internal restoring force acting
per unit area of a body is called stress.
i.e., Stress = Restoring force/ Area
Strain: The ratio of change in
configuration to the original
configuration is called strain.
Change in configuraion
i.e., Strain =
Original configuration
Strain being the ratio of two
like quantities has no units and
dimensions.
Elastic Limit
Elastic limit is the upper limit of
deforming force up to which, if
deforming force is removed, the
body regains its original form
completely and beyond which, if
deforming force is increased, the
body loses its property of elasticity
and gets permanently deformed.
Hookes law
It states that within the elastic limit
stress is directly proportional to strain.
i.e., Stress v strain
or Stress = E strain
Here E is the coefficient of
proportionality and is called
modulus of elasticity or coefficient
of elasticity of a body.
Materials-Ductile, Brittle and
Elastomers
(i) Ductile materials: The materials
which have large range of plastic
extension are called ductile
materials. They can be drawn
into thin wires, e.g., copper,
silver, aluminium, iron, etc.
(ii) Brittle materials: The materials
which have very small range of
plastic extension are called brittle
B-351
materials. These materials break

as soon as the stress is increased
beyond the elastic limit. e.g.,
glass, ceramics, cast iron, etc.
(iii) Elastomers: The materials which
can be stretched to large values of
strain are called elastomers. e.g.,
rubber, elastic tissue of aorta, etc.
Youngs modulus of elasticity (Y):
It is defined as the ratio of normal
stress to the longitudinal strain within
the elastic limit.
Normal stress
Thus, Y =
Longitudinal strain
Fluids
Fluids are the substances that can
flow. Therefore liquids and gases
both are fluids. The study of fluids
at rest is called fluid statics or
hydrostatics and the study of fluids
in motion is called fluid dynamics
or hydrodynamics. Both combined
are called fluid mechanics.
Density (U)
Mass per unit volume is defined as
density. So density at a point of a
fluid is represented as
dm dm
U = lim
=
dV
'v o0 dV
Relative Density
It is defined as the ratio of the density
of the given fluid to the density of pure
water at 4C.
Relative density (R.D).
Density of given liquid
=
Density of pure water at 4C
The density of water is maximum at
4C and is equal to 1.0 103 kgm3
Pressure
If a uniform force is exerted normal
to an area (A), then average pressure
(pav) is defined as the normal force (F) per
unit area.
F
i.e., Pav
A
In
limiting
sense,
pressure
'F
p = lim
Pressure is a scalar
'A o0 'A
quantity.
B-352
SI unit: pascal (Pa), 1 Pa = 1 N/m2

Practical
units:
atmospheric
pressure (atm), bar and torr
1 atm = 1.01325 105Pa = 1.01325
bar = 760 torr = 760mm of Hg
column pressure.
Pascals Law of Transmission of
Fluid Pressure
Pascals law is stated in following ways:
7KHSUHVVXUHLQDIOXLGDWUHVWLV
same at all the points if gravity
is ignored.
$ OLTXLG H[HUWV HTXDO SUHVVXUHV
in all directions.
,I WKH SUHVVXUH LQ DQ HQFORVHG
fluid is changed at a particular
point, the change is transmitted
to every point of the fluid and to
the walls of the container without
being diminished in magnitude.
Applications of Pascals law:
Hydraulic machines, lifts, presses and
brakes, are based on the Pascals law.
Atmospheric Pressure
Force exerted by air column on unit
cross-section area of sea level is called
atmospheric pressure (P0)
F
P0
101.3kN / m 2
A
Barometer is used to measure
atmospheric pressure which was
discovered by Torricelli.
Atmospheric pressure varies from
place to place and at a particular
place from time to time.
Buoyancy and Archimed Principle
If a body is partially or wholly
immersed in a fluid, it experiences
an upward force due to the fluid
surrounding it. This phenomenon of
force exerted by fluid on the body is
called buoyancy and force is called
buoyant force or upthrust.
Archimedes Principle: It states that the
buoyant force on a body that is partially
or totally immersed in a fluid equal to the
weight of the fluid displaced by it.
Bernoullis Principle
When incompressible, non-viscous,
irrotational liquid i.e., ideal liquid flow
from one position to other in streamline
General Science
path then in its path at every point, the
sum of pressure energy, kinetic energy
and potential energy per unit volume
remains constant.
1
i.e., P1 Ugh1 Uv12
2 1 2
= P2 Ugh 2 Uv 2
2
Uv 2
?
P + Ugh +
= constant
2
Viscosity
The property of a fluid due to which it
opposes the relative motion between its
different layers is called viscosity (or
fluid friction or internal friction)
and the force between the layers
opposing the relative motion is
called viscous force.
Terminal Velocity
It is maximum constant velocity
acquired by the body while falling freely
in a viscous medium.
2r 2 U V g
VT =
9K
Surface Tension
Surface tension is basically a
property of liquid. The liquid
surface behaves like a stretched
elastic membrane which has a
natural tendency to contract and
tends to have a minimum possible
surface area. This property of liquid
is called surface tension.
Force F
Surface tension T =
Length L
Examples of surface tension
(i) Raindrops are spherical in shape.
(ii) The hair of a shaving brush cling
together when taken out of water.
(iii) Oil spread on cold water but
remains as a drop on hot water etc.
Capillarity
A glass tube with fine bore and open
at both ends is known as capillary
tube. The property by virtue of which
a liquid rise or fall in a capillary tube
is known as capillarity. Rise or fall
of liquid in tubes of narrow bore
(capillary tube) is called capillary
action. Rise of kerosene in lanterns,
rise of ink in fountain pen etc. are
due to capillary action.
B-353
General Science
HEAT
Temperature and Heat
Temperature is defined as the degree of
hotness or coldness of a body. It is a scalar
quantity. Its S.I. unit is kelvin (K).
Heat is a form of energy which causes
sensation of hotness or coldness. The
flow of heat is always from higher
temperature to lower temperature.
No heat flows from one body to other,
when both the bodies are at the same
temperature. The two bodies are said
to be in thermal equilibrium. The SI
unit of heat is joule. Its CGS unit is
calorie, 1 cal = 4.2 joule
Measurement of Temperature
A branch of science which deals with
the measurement of temperature of
a substance is called thermometry.
Ther mometer is a device used
t o m e a s u r e t h e t e m p e r a t u r e.
Thermometer used for measuring
very high temperatures are called
pyrometer.
Relationship Between Different
Scales of Temperature
C 0
F 32
K 273.16
100
212 32 373.16 273.16
R0
Ra 460
80 0 672 460
T(K) = (tC + 273.16)
Normal temperature of human body
is 310.15 k (37C = 98.6F)
STP or NTP implies 273.15 K (0C
= 32F)
Ideal-gas Equation and Absolute
Temperature
The equation,
PV = nRT
where, n = number of moles in the
sample of gas
R = universal gas constant; (its value
is 8.31 J mol1 K1), is known as idealgas equation
It is the combination of following
three laws
Boyles law: When temperature

is held constant, the pressure is
inversely proportional to volume.
i.e., P v 1 ( at constant temperature)
V
(ii) Charles law: When the pressure
is held constant, the volume of the
gas is directly porportional to the
absolute temperature.
(i)
i.e., V v T (at constant pressure)

(iii) Avogadros law: When the
pressure and temperature are kept
constant, the volume is directly
proportional to the number of
moles of the ideal gas in the
container.
i.e., V v n (at constant pressure
and temperature)
Absolute Temperature
The lowest temperature of 273.16
C at which a gas is supposed to have
zero volume and zero pressure and at
which entire molecular motion stops is
called absolute zero temperature. A new
scale of temperature starting with
273.16C by Lord Kelvin as zero.
This is called Kelvin scale or absolute
scale of temperature.
T(K) = tC + 273.16
Thermal Expansion
The increase in the dimensions of a body
due to the increase in its temperature is
called thermal expansion.
Linear expansion: The fractional
increase in length per C rise in temperature
is called FRHIFLHQWRI OLQHDUH[SDQVLRQ.
Coefficient of linear expansion,
'l

dl
l
D=
'T
l.dT
Superficial expansion: On increasing
the temperature of a solid, its area
increases. This increase in area is
referred as superficial expansion.
&RHIFLHQW RI VXSHUFLDO H[SDQVLRQ is
B-354
defined as the fractional increase in area

per C rise in temperature.
i.e., Coefficient of a real expansion
DA / A
dA
=
E=
DT
A.dT
Cubical expansion: On increasing
the temperature of a solid, its volume
increases. This increase in volume
with increase in temperature is called
cubical or volume expansion.
&RHIILFLHQW RI YROXPH H[SDQVLRQ is
defined as the fractional increase in volume
per C rise in temperature.
i.e., Coefficient of volume expansion,
'V / V
dV
J
=
'T
V.dT
Relation between coefficient of
linear expansion (D), coefficient
of superficial expansion (E) and
coefficient of cubical expansion (J)
E J
D
D : E : J 1: 2 : 3
2 3
Anomalous Expansion of Water
Almost all liquids expand on heating
but water when heated from 0C to
4C its volume decreases and hence
density increases until its temperature
reaches 4C. Its density is maximum
at 4C on further heating its density
decreases. This behaviour of water is
called anomalous behaviour of water.
Specific Heat Capacity
It is the amount of heat energy needed
to raise the temperature of unit mass of
substance by 1C (or 1K).
It is denoted by s or c.
Cwater = 1 cal/g C = 1 cal/g K = 1 kcal/kg
K=4200 joule/kg K
Latent Heat or Hidden Heat
When state of a substance changes,
change of state takes place at constant
temperature (m.pt. or b.pt.) heat is
released or absorbed and is given by,
Q = mL
where L is latent heat.
Change of State
Any state of a substance (solid/
liquid/ gas) can be changed into
another by heating or cooling. The
transition of a substance from one
General Science
state to another is called a change
of state.
Some common changes of states:
(i) Melting: When heat is supplied,
solid substance changes into
liquid, this change of state of
substance is called melting.
Heat
Solid
o Liquid
The temperature at which the
solid and the liquid states of
a substance coexist in thermal
equilibrium with each other is
called its melting point.
(ii) Freezing: When heat is released,
liquid changes into solid, this
change of state of substance is
called freezing.
Cool
Liquid
o Solid
(iii) Condensation: When vapour
is cooled, it changes into liquid,
this change of state is called
condensation
Cool
Vapour
o liquid
(iv) Evaporation: Conversion of
liquid into gaseous state at
all the temperatures is called
evaporation or boiling.
Heat
Liquid
o Vapour
(v)
The temperature at which the

liquid and vapour states of a
substance coexsist in thermal
equilibrium with each other is
called its boiling point.
It is a phenomenon that occurs
at the surface of liquids. The
rate of evaporation increases
with rise in temperature. Heat
required to change unit mass
of liquid into vapour at a given
temperature is called heat of
evaporation at that temperature.
Sublimation: It is the conversion
of a solid directly into vapours.
Heat
Solid
o Vapour
Sublimation takes place when
boiling point is less than the
melting point.
General Science
Heat transfer: Heat energy transfer
from a body at higher temperature
to a body at lower temperature
by three different methods. They
are conduction, convection and
radiation.
Conduction: Conduction is that
mode of transmission of heat in which
heat is transferred from a region of
higher temperature to a region of lower
temperature by the aid of particles of
the body without their actual migration.
Conduction requires material medium.
C o nve c t i o n : C o nve c t i o n l i k e
conduction requires a material
medium. It is the process in which heat
is transferred from one place to other by
actual movement of heated material
particles.
Radiation: When a body is heated
and placed in vacuum, it loses heat
even when there is no medium
surrounding it.
The process by which heat is lost
in this case is called radiation. This
does not require the presence of any
material medium. It is by radiation
that the heat from the sun reaches
the earth.
Newtons Law of Cooling
The rate of cooling of a body (rate of
loss of heat) is directly proportional to
the excess of temp. of the body over the
surroundings, provided that this excess is
small and loses of heat by radiation only.
If T and T 0 are the temperatures
of the body and its surroundings
respectively, then according to
Newtons law of cooling,
dQ
v T T0
Rate of loss of heat,
Thermodynamics dt
The thermodynamics is the branch of
science in which the conversion of heat
into mechanical work and vice versa is
studied.
Triple point of water: The triple
point of water represents the coexistence of all the three phases
of water ice, water and water
B-355
vapour in equilibrium. The pressure

corresponding to triple point of water
is 6.03 103 atmosphere or 4.58 mm
of Hg and temperature corresponding
to it is 273.16 K.
Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics
If objects A and B are separately in
thermal equilibrium with a third object
C then objects A and B are in thermal
equilibrium with each other.
First Law of Thermodynamics
If some quantity of heat is supplied to a
system capable of doing external work,
then the quantity of heat absorbed by the
system is equal to the sum of the increase
in the internal energy of the system and
the external work done by the system.
i.e., GQ = U + GW
The first law of thermodynamics
is essentially a restatement of the
law of conservation of energy, i.e.,
energy can neither be created nor be
destroyed but may be converted from
one form to another.
Heat Engines
Heat engine is a device which converts heat
energy into work.
Efficiency of heat engine,
Work done W
K
Heat taken from source (Q1 )
T1 T2 Q1 Q 2
Q
K
1 2
T1
Q1
Q1
Refrigerators and Heat Pumps
A refrigerator is the reverse of a heat
engine. A heat pump is the same as
a refrigerator.
The coefficient of performance of a
refrigerator or heat pump.
Q1
Q2
>? W = Q1 Q2 @
W Q1 Q 2
Carnot Theorem
No irreversible engine (I) can have
efficiency greater than Carnot reversible
engine (R) working between same hot and
cold reservoirs.
T
Q
i.e., KR ! KI or 1 2 ! 1 2
T1
Q1
B-356
General Science
SOUND
Periodic Motion
Any motion that repeats itself in equal
intervals of time is called periodic motion.
A periodic motion can be represented
in terms of sines and cosines, so it
is called a harmonic motion. The
uniformly rotating earth represents a
periodic motion that repeats itself at
every 24 hours.
An oscillatory motion is always
periodic but a periodic motion may
not be oscillatory.
Examples of S.H.M. (i) clock pendulum,
(ii) oscillating liquid in a U-tube, (iii)
oscillating block in a liquid, (iv)
oscillating frictionless piston fitted
in a cylinder filled with ideal gas, etc.
Sound
Sound is a form of energy which produces
a sensation of hearing in our ears.
Sound Needs a Material Medium for
its Propagation
In the absence of medium (air)
around the source, sound is not
being propagated and light (electromagnetic) waves travel through the
vacuum.
Mechanical Waves
A mechanical wave is a periodic
disturbance which requires a material
medium for its propagation.
(a) Transverse wave: When the
particles of the medium vibrate
in a direction perpendicular to the
direction of propagation of the wave,
the wave is known as the transverse
wave. For example, waves produced
in a stretched string, waves on the
surface. These waves travel in form
of crests and troughs. These waves
can travel in solids and liquids only.
(b) Longitudinal wave: When the
particles of the medium vibrate
along the direction of propagation of
the wave then the wave is known as
the longitudinal wave. For example
sound wave in air, waves in a solid

rod produced by scrabbing etc.
These waves travel in the form of
compressions and rarefactions. These
waves can travel in solids, liquids and
gases.
Electromagnetic Waves
The waves which do not require
medium for propagation are called
electromagnetic waves. This means
that these waves can travel through
vacuum also. For example, light
waves, X-rays, J-rays, Infrared waves,
radio waves, microwaves, etc. These
waves of transverse type.
Difference between sound waves
and electromagnetic waves
(i) Sound waves are longitudinal
and electromagnetic waves are
transverse.
(ii) Sound waves travel at a speed of
340 m/s whereas electromagnetic
waves travel at a speed of 3 108
m/s
(iii) Sound waves do not pass through
a vacuum but electromagnetic
waves (light) do.
Characteristics of Sound Waves
Sound is characterised by three
parameters:
(i) Pitch (ii) Loudness (iii) Quality
(i) Pitch: Pitch is the sensation
(brain interpretation) of the
frequency of an emitted sound
and is the characteristic which
distinguishes a shrill (or sharp)
sound from a grave (or flat)
sound.
(ii) Loudness: Loudness or softness
of a sound wave is the sensation
that depends upon its amplitude.
The loudness of sound is a
measure of the sound energy
reaching the ear per second.
The loudness of sound is
measured in decibel dB. The
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loudness of sound of people
talking quietly is about 65
dB, the loudness of sound in
a very noisy factory is about
100 dB.
(iii) Quality (Timber): Quality or
timber of a sound wave is that
characteristic which helps us in
distinguishing one sound from
another having same pitch and
loudness. We recognise a person
(without seeing) by listening to his
sound as it has a definite quality.
A pure sound of single frequency
is called a tone.
An impure sound produced by
mixture of many frequencies
is called a note. It is pleasant to
listen.
Reflection of Sound
When sound waves strike a surface, they
return back into the same medium. This
phenomenon is called reflection.
Laws of reflection of sound waves
(i)
Angle of incidence is equal to
the angle of reflection.
(ii) The incident wave, the reflected
wave and the normal all lie in
the same plane.
Echo
Phenomenon of hearing back our own
sound is called an echo. It is due to
successive reflection from the surface
of obstacles of large size.
Conditions for the formation of
Echoes
(i) The minimum distance between
the source of sound and the
reflecting body should be 17.2
metres.
(ii) The wavelength of sound should
be less than the height of the
reflecting body.
(iii) The intensity of sound should be
sufficient so that it can be heard
after reflection.
Reverberation
Persistence of sound after its production
stopped, is called reverberation.
When a sound is produced in a big
hall, its wave reflect from the walls
and travel back and forth. Due to
this energy does not reduce and the
sound persist.
A short reverberation is desirable
in a concert hall (where music is
being played) because it gives life
to sound.
OPTICS
Optics
The branch of physics which deals
with the propagation, nature and
behaviour of light is known as optics.
Light
Light is a form of energy which enables
human beings and creatures to see things.
Light is an electromagnetic radiation
which exhibits properties like a
wave as well as a particle. It always
propagates in a straight line.
Light travels with a speed nearly
equal to 3 108 m/s. According to
current theories, no material particle
can travel at a speed greater than the
speed of light.
Luminous and Non-luminous Objects
Luminous objects are those which emit
its own light e.g., sun, glowworm,
burning candle, electric lights. Nonluminous objects do not give out its own
light but are visible only when light from
a luminous object falls on it. e.g., moon,
earth, table, paper, etc.
Transparent, Translucent and
Opaque materials
Transparent materials are those
which allow most of light to pass
through them. Example: Glass,
water, air.
Translucent materials allow only a
part of light to pass through it. We
cannot see distinctly through them.
Example: greased paper, paraffin
wax, etc.
Opaque materials do not allow any
light to pass through it. They reflect
or absorb all the light that falls on
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them. Example: Books, desk, stone,

rubber, trees, etc.
Reflection of Light
The turning back of light in the same
medium is called reflection of light.
Laws of reflection
1. The angle of incidence i is
equal to the angle of reflection r.
2. At the point of incidence, the
incident rays, the normal to the
surface and the reflected ray all
lie in the same plane.
Images and their properties
An image is defined as the
impression of an object carried over
and formed by light reflected from it.
An image is said to be a real image
if it can be caught on a screen, and a
virtual image if it cannot be caught
on the screen. For example, the
image on the screen in a theatre is
a real image and the image observed
in a plane mirror is a virtual image.
Real image
1. When the rays of light actually
meet, the image so formed is
known as real image.
2. A real image can be caught on
a screen since it is formed by
actual meeting of rays.
3. A real image is always inverted.
4. A real image is formed by a
convergent reflected beam.
5. In ray diagrams, for real image,
the rays are represented by full
lines.
Virtual image
1. When the rays of light appear
to meet, the image so formed is
known as virtual image.
2. A virtual image cannot be
caught on a screen since it is
formed by meeting of imaginary
rays.
3. A virtual image is always erect.
4. A virtual image is formed by a
divergent reflected beam.
5. In ray diagrams, for virtual
image, the rays are generally
represented by dotted lines.
General Science
Characteristics of images formed
by a plane mirror
The image formed by a plane mirror is
(a) virtual (the image cannot be
formed on a screen)
(b) upright
(c) laterally inverted (the left side of
an image is formed by the right
side of an object)
(d) the same size as the object
(e) the same distance behind the
mirror as the object is in front
of the mirror
Concave and Convex Mirror
Concave mirror: If the reflection
takes place from the inner surface of
a spherical mirror, then the mirror is
called concave mirror.
Convex mirror: If the outer surface
of the spherical mirror acts as a
reflector then the mirror is called
convex mirror.
Uses of concave mirrors:
(i) In torches, search-lights and
vehicles headlights to get
powerful beams of light.
(ii) As a shaving mirror to see a
large image of the face.
(iii) As a dentists mirror to see large
images of the teeth of patients.
(iv) Large sized concave mirror is
used to concentrate sunlight to
produce heat in solar furnaces.
Uses of convex mirrors:
(i) As a rear -view mirrors in vehicles.
(ii) For security purposes.
Mirror Formula
If an object is placed at a distance
u from the pole of a mirror and its
image is formed at a distance v (from
the pole) then,
1 1 1

v u f
Magnification
If a thin object linear size O situated
vertically on the axis of a mirror at
a distance u from the pole and its
image of size I is formed at a distance
v (from the pole), magnification
(transverse) is defined as
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General Science
(+ve means erect image)

I v
m= =
O u
(ve means inverted image)

(|m| >1 means large image)
(|m| < 1 means small image)
Refraction of Light
When a ray of light passes from one
medium to another medium it bends
towards the normal when goes from rarer
to denser and away from the normal
when goes from denser to rarer medium.
This phenomenon is called refraction of
light.
Twinkling of stars, sun is visible to
us about 2 minutes before the actual
sunrise, and about 2 minutes after
actual sunset etc. due to atmospheric
refraction.
Refractive index
Refractive index of medium II with
respect to medium I
Speed of light in medium I
P 21
Speed of light in medium II
Laws of Refraction
(i) Snells law: For any two
media and for light of a given
wavelength, the ratio of the sine
of the angle of incidence to the
sine of the angle of refraction is
a constant.
sin i
i.e.,
constant where i =
sin r
incidence angle, r = refraction
angle.
(ii) The incident ray, the refracted
ray and the normal at the
incident point all lie in the same
plane.
When object is in denser medium
and observer is in rarer medium:
Real depth
Refractive index P
Virtual depth
Lens
A lens is a piece of transparent
material with two refracting
surfaces such that atleast one is
curved and refractive index of used

material is different from that of the
surroundings.
Refraction through a thin lens (lens
formula)
If an object is placed at a distance u
from the optical centre of a lens and
its images is formed at a distance v
(from the optical centre) and focal
length of this length is f then
1 1 1

v u f
This is called lens formula.
Power of a lens
The power of a lens is defined as
1
. The unit of power is
P=
f in m
diopter.
Focal length of a lens (lens makers
formula)
1
1
1
= (mC 1)
f
R1 R2
where mC refractive index of lens
with respect to medium.
R1 = radius of curvature of first
surface of lens, R2 = radius of
curvature of second surface of lens.
Total Internal Reflection
When the object is placed in an
optically denser medium and if the
incident angle is greater than the
critical angle then the ray of light
gets reflected back to the originating
medium. This phenomenon is called
total internal reflection.
Critical angle (ic): When a ray
passes from an optically denser
medium to an optically rarer
medium, the angle of refraction r is
greater than the corresponding angle
of incidence i. From Snells law.
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Let P1
General Science
P2
P2
1 and let for i =

ic, r = 90 then sin ic 1 / P
1
? ic sin 1 ; ic is called the critical
P
angle.
This phenomenon takes place in
shining of air bubble, sparkling
of diamond, mirage, looming, in
optical communication, endoscopy
using optical fibre.
Dispersion of Light
When a white ray of light or sunlight
passes through a prism it breakes into
its seven constituents colours violet,
indigo, blue, green, yellow, orange and
red (VIBGYOR). This phenomenon is
called dispersion of light. The band
of seven constituents colours is
called spectrum. The deviation is
maximum for violet colour and least
for red colour.
The Rainbow
A rainbow is a spectrum of
white light from the sun. This is
a phenomenon due to combined
effect of dispersion, refraction and
reflection of sunlight by spherical
water droplets of rain.
(i) Primary rainbow: It is formed
due to two refractions and one
total internal reflection of the
light incident on the droplet.
Sunlight is first refracted as it
enters a raindrop which cause
different colours of light to
separate. The observer sees a
rainbow with red colour on the
top and violet on the bottom.
(ii) Secondary rainbow: It is formed
due to two refractions and two
total internal reflection of light
incident on the water droplet. It
is due to four - step process. The
intensity of light is reduced at
the second reflection and hence
the secondary rainbow is fainter
than the primary rainbow.
and
Scattering of Light
As sunlight travels through the
earths atmosphere it gets scattered
by the small particles present in the
atmosphere.
According to Rayleigh law, the
amount of scattering is inversely
proportional to the fourth power of
1
the wavelength .
O4
Phenomenon based on scattering
of light
(i) Blue colour of sky: Blue colour
has a shorter wavelength than
red colour therefore blue colour
is scattered strongly. Hence the
bluish colour predominates in a
clear sky.
(ii) White colour of clouds: Clouds
contain large dust particles,
water droplets or ice particles.
These large sized Particles
do not obey Rayleigh law of
scattering. All wavelengths are
scattered nearly equally. Hence
clouds are generally white.
(iii) Sun looks reddish at the
Sunset or Sunrise: At sunset or
sunrise, the suns rays have to
pass through a larger distance
in the atmosphere. Most of
the blue and other shorter
wavelengths are scattered. The
least scattered light reaching
our eyes, therefore the sun looks
reddish.
Power of Accomodation of Eye
The ability of the lens to change its shape
to focus near and distant objects is called
accommodation.
A normal human eye can see
objects clearly that are between
25 cm and infinity.
Microscope: It is an optical
instrument used to see magnified
image of a tiny objects.
Resolving power (R.P.) of a microscope
Resolving power of a microscope is
defined as the reciprocal of the least
separation between two close objects, so
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General Science
that they appear just separated, when
seen through the microscope.
Telescope (Astronomical): It is an
optical instrument used to increase the
visual angle of distant large objects.
It is used to see far off objects clearly.
Resolving power (R.P.) of a telescope
Resolving power of telescope is defined
as the reciprocal of the smallest angular
separation between two distant objects,
so that they appear just separated, when
seen through the telescope.
D
Resolving power of telescope =
1.22O
Interference of Light Waves
The phenomenon of redistribution of light
energy in a medium due to superposition
of light waves from two coherent sources is
called interference of light.
Conditions for sustained interference:

(i) Two sources must be coherent.
(ii) Amplitudes of waves should be
either equal or approximately
equal.
(iii) Light should be monochromatic.
Polarisation
It is the phenomenon of restricting the
vibration of light in a particular plane.
Light waves are transverse in
nature i.e., the electric field vector
associated with light wave is always
at right angles to the direction of
propagation of the wave. When
unpolarised light is incident on a
polaroid (Nicol Prism), the light
wave gets linearly polarised i.e., the
vibration of electric field vector are
along a single direction.
ELECTRICITY
Electric Charges
Charge is something associated with
matter due to which it produces and
experiences electric and magnetic effects.
The study of charges at rest is called
static electricity or electrostatics
while the study of charges in motion
is called current electricity. There
are two types of electric charge:
(i) Positive charge and (ii) Negative charge
The magnitude of elementary
positive or negative charge is same
and is equal to 1.6 1019 C.
Charge is a scalar quantity and its SI
unit is ampere second or coulomb (C).
Basic Properties of Electric Charge
(1) Similar charges repel and opposite
charges attract.
(2) A charged body attracts light
uncharged bodies.
(3) Accelerated charge radiates energy.
Conductors and Insulators
The materials which allow electric
charge (or electricity) to flow freely
through them are called conductors.
Metals are very good conductors of
electric charge. Silver, copper and
aluminium are some of the good
conductors of electricity.
The materials which do not allow electric
charge to flow through them are called
nonconductors or insulators.
For example, most plastics, rubber,
non-metals (except graphite), dry
wood, wax, mica, porcelain, dry air
etc., are insulators.
Coulombs Law
It states that, the electrostatic force
of interaction (repulsion or attraction)
between two electric charges q1 and q2
separated by a distance r, is directly
proportional to the product of the charges
and inversely proportional to the square
of distance between them.
i.e., F v q1 q2 and F v 1/r2
or F k q1q2
r2
1
Nm 2
K=
= 9 109
H0
4 SH0
coul 2
= 8.8510-12
coul 2
NM 2
Electric Field
The region surrounding an electric charge
or a group of charges in which another
charge experiences a force of attraction or
repulsion is called electric field.
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General Science

F
F
, E lim
q0
q0 o 0 q0
The S.I. unit of electric field
intensity is N/coul or volt/metre.
Electric Lines of Force
An electric line of force is that imaginary
smooth curve drawn in an electric field
along which a free isolated unit positive
charge moves.
Two lines of force never intersect. If
they are assumed to intersect, there
will be two directions of electric field
at the point of intersection, which is
impossible.
Capacitors and Capacitance
A capacitor or condenser is a device
that stores electrical energy. It consists
of conductors of any shape and size
carrying charges of equal magnitude
and opposite signs and separated by an
insulating medium
The symbol of a capacitor is
or
The net charge on a capacitor is zero.
Capacitance or capacity of a
capacitor is a measure of ability of the
capacitor to store charge on it.
When a conductor is charged then
its potential rises. The increase in
potential is directly proportional to
the charge given to the conductor.
Q
i.e., Q v V or Q = CV or, C
V
The constant C is known as the
capacitance of the conductor.
Its SI unit is farad (F) or coulomb/
volt
Capacitance of the conductor
depends upon:
(i) Size of conductor
(ii) Surrounding medium
(iii) Presence of other conductors
nearby
Electric Current
The time rate of flow of charge through
any cross-section is called electric current.
,I TFKDUJHSDVVHVWKURXJKDFURVV
VHFWLRQLQWLPHWWKHQ

E
average current I av
'q
't
Instantaneous current
'q dq
I lim
dt
't o0 't
Electric current is measured in
ampere (A).
Types of electric current:
(a) Direct current: The current
whose magnitude and direction
does not vary with time is called
direct current (dc). The various
sources are cells, dc dynamo,
etc.
Its symbol is
(b) Alternating current: The current
whose magnitude continuously
changes with time and periodically
changes its direction is called
alternating current. It has constant
amplitude and has alternate
positive and negative halves. It
is produced by ac dynamo.
Its symbol is
Resistance,
Conductance
and
Resistivity Resistance (R): It is the
property of a substance due to which it
opposes the flow of current through it.
Its SI unit volt/ampere called ohm
().
1
L
R v L and R v so, R v
A
A
L
or R U
A
where L = length, A = area of
cross-section of wire and U is called
resistivity or specific resistance.
The reciprocal of specific resistance
1
is conductance i.e. V
U
Superconductors
At a very low temperature, the
resistance of the conductor may
vanish
completely.
When
it
happens, the conductor is called
a superconductor. For example,
helium is a super conductor at
4.2 K ( 268.8C).
General Science
Ohms Law
It states that if the physical state i.e.
temperature, nature of material and
dimensions of a conductor remain
unchanged then the ratio of potential
difference applied across its ends to
current flowing through it remains
constant.
V
i.e., V v I or V = I R, where R
is
I
the resistance of conductor.
Electrical Energy, Power
When a current is passed through
a resistor energy is wasted in
overcoming the resistance of the
wire. This energy is converted into
heat.
The heat generated (in joule) when
a current of I ampere flows through
a resistance of R ohm for T second
is given by:
V2
H I 2 RT VIt
t joule
R
I 2 RT
calorie
4.2
This is the joules law of heating
1 unit of electrical energy
= 1 Kilowatt hour (1 KWh) = 3.6 106 joule
This is known as Board of trade
(B.O.T) unit of electrical energy.
Energy liberated per second is called
its power. The electrical power
P delivered or consumed by
an electrical device is given by
P = VI, where V = Potential
difference across the device and
I = current.
Ammeter : An ammeter is a low
resistance galvanometer used to measure
strength of current in an electrical circuit.
Conversion of galvanometer into
ammeter:
A galvanometer can be converted
to an ammeter by connecting a low
resistance or shunt in parallel to coil of
galvanometer.
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Voltmeter: A voltmeter is a high

resistance galvanometer used to
measure potential difference.
Conversion of galvanometer into
voltmeter:
A galvanometer is converted to a
voltmeter by connecting a high resistance
in series with the coil of galvanometer.
Alternating Current
When an alternating voltage is applied
across a coil or a bulb, it sends a similar
varying current (i.e., of the same nature
as that of voltage) through the coil. The
current is called alternating current
(A.C.).
The current flowing in only one
direction in a circuit is called
direct current (D.C.). Batteries,
thermocouples and solar cells
are some of the sources of direct
current.
Advantages of Alternating Current
Over Direct Current
(i) A.C. can be obtained over a
wide range of voltages. These
voltages can be easily stepped
up or stepped down with the
help of transformers.
(ii) The generation of A.C. is found
to be economical than that of
D.C.
Transformers
It is a device used for transforming a low
alternating voltage of high current into
a high alternating voltage of low current
and vice versa, without increasing power
or changing frequency.
Principle: It works on the
phenomenon of mutual induction.
If a low voltage is to be transformed
into a high voltage, then the number
of turns in secondary is more than
those in primary. The transformer is
called a step up transformer.
If a high voltage is to be transformed
into a low voltage, then the number
of turns in secondary is less than
those in primary. The transformer is
called a step-down transformer.
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General Science
Uses of Transformer
A transformer is used in almost all
ac operation.
(i) In voltage regulators for TV,
refrigerator,
computer,
air
conditioner etc.
(ii) In the induction furnaces.
(iii) Step down transformer is used
for welding purposes.
(iv) In the transmission of ac over
long distance.
AC Generator/Dynamo/Alternator
An electrical machine used to convert
mechanical energy into electrical energy
is knownm as AC generator/alternator
or dynamo.
Principle: It works on the principle
of electromagnetic induction, i.e.,
when a coil is rotated in uniform
magnetic field, an induced emf is
produced in it.
DC Motor
A D.C. motor converts direct current
energy from a battery into mechanical
energy of rotation.
Principle: It is based on the fact that
when a coil carrying current is held
in a magnetic field, it experiences a
torque, which rotates the coil.
Efficiency of the d.c. motor:
EI E
Back e.m. f .
K
VI V Applied e.m. f .
Uses of D.C Motor
1. The D.C. motors are used in
D.C. fans (exhaust, ceiling or
table) for cooling and ventilation.
2. They are used for pumping
water.
3. Big D.C. motors are used for
running tram-cars and even
trains.
MAGNETISM
Magnetism
The phenomenon of attracting magnetic
substances like iron, cobalt, nickel etc. is
called magnetism. A body possessing the
property of magnetism is called magnet.
Lodestone or magnetite is natural
magnet. Earth is also a natural
magnet.
In magnetised substance all the
atomic magnets are aligned in
same direction and thus resultant
magnetism is non-zero.
Bar Magnet: A bar magnet consists

of two equal and opposite magnetic
poles separated by a small distance.
Poles are not exactly at the ends. The
shortest distance between two poles is
called effective length (Le) and is less
than its geometric length (Lg). For bar
magnet Le = 2l and Le =(5/6) Lg.
L=
e 2 l
Lg
Bar magnet
Properties of Magnet
(i) Attractive property: The places
where its attracting power is
maximum are called poles.
(ii) Directive property: When
a magnet is suspended its
length becomes parallel to N-S
direction. The pole pointing
north is called the north pole
while the other pointing in the
geographical south is called the
south pole of the magnet.
(iii) Poles of a magnet always exist
in pairs: In a magnet the two
poles are found to be equal in
strength and opposite in nature.
(iv) Repulsive property: A pole of
a magnet attracts the opposite
pole while repels similar pole.
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General Science
Demagnetisation of Magnet
A magnet gets demagnetised, i.e.,
loses its power of attraction if it is
heated, hammered or alternating current
is passed through a wire wound over it.
Permanent and Temporary Magnets
(Electromagnets)
The permanent artificial magnets
are made of some metals and alloys
like Carbon-steel, Alnico, Platinumcobalt, Alcomax, Ticonal etc. The
permanent magnets are made of
ferromagnetic substances with large
coercivity and retentivity
The temporary artificial magnets
like electromagnets are prepared by
passing current through coil wound
on soft iron core. These cannot
retain its strength for a long time.
These are made from soft iron, nonmetal and alloy. Electromagnets are
stronger than permanent magnet.
Some Applications of Electromagnets
(i) Electric motors
(ii) Doorbells
(iii) In scrapyards to separate iron
from other metals
Magnetic Field
The space around a magnet (or a
current carrying conductor) in which
its magnetic effect can be experienced is
called the magnetic field.
Magnetic Lines of Force
Magnetic line of force is an imaginary
curve tangent to which at a point gives
the direction of magnetic field at that
point or the magnetic field line is the
imaginary path along which an isolated
north pole will tend to move if it is free
to do so.
Magnetic lines of force do not
intersect each other. Because if they
do, there will be two directions of
magnetic field which is not possible.
The Earths Magnetism
The branch of Physics which deals
with the study of earths magnetic
field is called terrestrial magnetism.
William Gilbert suggested that earth
itself behaves like a huge magnet.
(a) A freely suspended magnet
always comes to rest in N-S
direction.
(b) A piece of soft iron buried in

N-S direction inside the earth
acquires magnetism.
Geographic meridian: It is a vertical
plane passing through geographic
north and south pole of the earth.
Geographic equator: A great circle
on the surface of the earth in a plane
perpendicular to geographical axis is
called geographic equator. All places
on geographic equator are at equal
distances from geographical poles.
Magnetic meridian: It is a vertical
plane passing through the magnetic
north and south pole of the earth.
Magnetic equator: A great circle on
the surface of the earth in a plane
perpendicular to magnetic axis is
called magnetic equator. All places
on magnetic euqator are at equal
distance from magnetic poles.
Magnetic Elements
The physical quantities which determine
the intensity of earths total magnetic
field completely both in magnitude and
direction are called magnetic elements.
Angle of declination (I): The angle
between the magnetic meridian and
geographical meridian at a place is called
angle of declination.
Angle of dip or inclination (T):
The angle through which the N pole
dips down with reference to horizontal
is called the angle of dip. At magnetic
north and south pole angle of dip is
90. At magnetic equator the angle
of dip is 0.
Horizontal component of earths
magnetic field: The total intensity
of the earths magnetic field makes
an angle T with horizontal. It has
(i) component in horizontal plane
called horizontal component
BH.
(ii) component in vertical plane
called vertical component BV.
BV B sin T
B H B cos T
So,
BV
BH
tan T and B
H2
B
V2
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General Science
Comparison of properties of soft

iron and steel:
(1) The area of hysteresis loop for
soft iron is much smaller than
for steel, so energy loss per unit
volume per cycle for soft iron is
smaller than steel.
(2) The retentivity of soft iron is
greater than that of steel.
(3) The coercivity of steel is much
larger than that of soft iron.
(4) The
magnetisation
and
demagnetisation is easier in soft
iron than steel.
(5) Soft iron acquires saturation
magnetisation for quite low
value of magnetising field than
in case of steel or soft iron is
much strongly magnetised than
steel.
Diamagnetic
Substances:
The
substances which when placed in a
magnetic field are feebly magnetised

in a direction opposite to that of the
magnetising field are called diamagnetic
substances.
Some diamagnetic substances are
Cu, Zn, Bi, Ag, Au, Pb, He, Ar,
NaCl, H2O, marble, glass, etc.
Paramagnetic Substances: The
magnetic field are feebly magnetised in
the direction of magnetising field are
called paramagnetic substances.
Some paramagnetic substances are
Al, Na, Sb, Pt, CuCl2, Mn, Cr, liquid
oxygen, etc.
Ferromagnetic Substances: The
magnetic field are strongly magnetised in
the direction of the magnetising field are
called ferromagnetic substances.
Iron, cobalt, nickel, etc. are some
examples of ferromagnetic substance.
SEMICONDUCTOR ELECTRONICS
Metals, Semiconductors and Insulators
On the basis of electrical conductivity
(V) or resistivity (U = 1/V) the solids
are classified as
(i) Metals have low resistivity
Ua 102 to 108P
Va 102 to 108 Sm1
(ii) Semiconductors
have
intermediate resistivity
Ua 105 to 100P
Va105 to 100 Sm1
(iii) Insulators have high resistivity
Ua 108P
Va 108 Sm1
i.e. the Semiconductors are the
materials whose conductivity is
more than insulators but less than
conductors.
Types of Semiconductors
Intrinsic semiconductors or Pure
semiconductors
In semiconductors forbidden energy
gap Eg is more than metals or
conductors and less than insulators.
Silicon (Si) and Germanium (Ge) are
the examples of pure semiconductors.

In pure or intrinsic semiconductor,
ne = nh = ni where, ne = no. of
electrons; nh = no. of holes
and
ni = no. of intrinsic carrier
concentration.
(a) n type semiconductor: Si or
Ge with pentavalent doping.
(b) p - type semiconductor: Si or
Ge with trivalent doping. The
trivalent atom is negatively
charged as it acquires an
electron and is called acceptor
atom or impurity.
Formation of p n junction: Part
of p-type can be converted into n
type by adding pentavalent impurity.
There is concentration gradient
between p and n sides, holes diffuse
from p side to n side (p o n) and
electrons move from (n o p) creating
a layer of positive and negative
charges on n and p side respectively
called depletion layer.
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General Science
Symbol of p-n junction diode
Special purpose p n junction diode:

Zener diode: It is fabricated by heavy
doping of p and n sides of p n
junction. Depletion region is thin <
106 m. Electric field of junction is
high ~ 5 106 V/m. Reverse bias ~
5V.
It is used as voltage regulator.
p-n junction diode is used as a
rectifier.
5HFWLHU is a device which converts
A.C. into D.C.
Inverter converts D.C. into A.C.
Optoelectronic junction devices:
(a) Photodiode: It is a p n
junction fabricated with a
transparent window to allow
light photons to fall on it. These
photons generate electron hole
pairs upon absorption. The
generation of electron hole pair
is near the junction and due
to junction field they remain
separated till external load is
connected. The electron are
collected on nside and holes
on pside near junction and give
rise to an emf.
When
external
load
is
connected, current flows. The
magnitude of current depends
on intensity of
incident
radiation.
(b) Light emitting diode (LED):
It consists of heavily doped
p n junction in forward bias.
Electrons move from n p
and holes from p n (minority
carriers). Thus, near junction,
minority carrier concentration
increases (under no bias it is less)
and they combine with majority
carriers near the junction to
release energy in form of
photons with energy equal to or
less than band gap energy. As
forward bias increases, current

increases till light intensity
reaches maximum.
Junction Transistor:
Types: (i) n-p-n type, (ii) p-n-p type.
Structure: (i) Emitter (E), (ii) Base
(B), (iii) Collector (C)
Symbol:
E
B
n-p-n type
E
C
B
p-n-p type
AC parameters:
(i) Input resistance
=
Changein base emitter voltage

Basecurrent
'VBE
ri =
'I C I B
o dynamic resistance
(ii) Output resistance, r0
'VCE
=
'I C I
B
(iii) Current amplification factor (E)

'I
Eac C
'I B V
CE
Edc
IC
Eac Edc
IB
Uses of Transistor:
As a switch, an amplifier, an
oscillator, etc.
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General Science
Chemistry
NATURE OF MATTER
x
Substance
(or
chemical
substance): A substance is a
kind of matter that can not be
separated into other kinds of
matter by any physical process.
e.g. gold, silver, iron, sodium
chloride, calcium carbonate etc.
3XUHVXEVWDQFH is one that is a
single substance and has a uniform
composition. Such a substance
always have the same texture and
taste. e.g. water, salt, sugar etc.
Testing the purity of a substance:
The purity of substance can
easily be checked by checking
its melting points in case of a
solid substance or by checking
its boiling points in case of a
liquid substance.
Types of pure substances:
Two different types of pure
substances are
(i) Element: An element is
a substance which can
not be split up into two or
more simpler substances
by usual chemical methods
of applying heat, light
or electric energy. e. g.
hydrogen, oxygen, sodium,
chlorine etc.
(ii) Compound: A compound
is a substance made up
of two or more elements
chemically combined in
a fixed ratio by weight
S No.
Mixture
1.
Insoluble solid in
solvent
2.
Solution of solid in
liquid
e.g. H2O (water), NaCl

(sodium chloride) etc.
Mixture: A mixture is a
substance
which
consists
of two or more elements or
compounds not chemically
combined together.
Types of mixtures: Mixtures
are impure substances. They are
of two types:
(i) Homogeneous mixture:
It has a uniform composition
throughout and its components
can not be distinguished visually.
e.g. a well mixed sample of
vinegar.
(ii) Heterogeneous mixture:
It is one that is not uniform
throughout. Different samples
of a heterogeneous mixture may
have different composition. e.g.
a mixture of salt and pepper.
Solution: It is a homogeneous
mixture of two or more
substances whose composition
can be varied. e.g. solution of
common salt in water, solution
of ammonia in water. Some
other examples are lemonade,
coke, pepsi etc.
Separating the components of
a mixture: Depending upon the
type of mixture (i.e. whether it
is a homogeneous mixture or
heterogeneous mixture) different
methods used are given below:
Separation Method
Sedimentation followed by filtration. In
case of a fine solid centrifugation is used
instead of filtration
Evaporation, crystallization, distillation
General Science
3.
B-369
Miscible mixture of
Fractional distillation
liquids.
4.
Immiscible mixture of Separating funnel
liquids.
5.
Mixture of two solids Sublimation
one of which is
sublime
6.
Mixture of substances Chromatography
in solution.
it the solute particles do not
x Solute: The component of
dissolve but remains suspended
solution that is dissolved and
through out the bulk of the
present in smaller quantities in
medium.
a solution is known as solute.
x Solvent: The component of x Colloids or colloidal solution:
solution in which solute is
Colloid is a heterogeneous mixture.
dissolved is known as solvent.
The size of particles of a colloid
It is always present in larger
is intermediate between true
amount in a solution.
solutions and suspensions (i.e
x Saturated Solution: A solution
between 1nm and 100 nm). The
particles of a colloid can not be
in which no more solute
seen with naked eye.
can be dissolved at the same
temperature is called saturated x Types of colloidal solution:
Since colloidal solution is
solution.
heterogeneous
mixture
it
x Unsaturated Solution: It is a
consists of two phases. These are
solution in which more solute
can be dissolved at the same
(i) dispersed phase (colloidal
temperature.
particles)
x Super-saturated Solution: It is
(ii) dispersion medium (The
a solution which contains more
medium in which colloidal
particles are dispersed.)
mass of the dissolved solute
Emulsions
are
than the saturated solution x Emulsion:
liquid-liquid colloids.
at the same temperature and
x Types of Emulsion: Emulsions
pressure.
are of two types:
x Concentration of a solution:
(i) water in oil (ii) oil in water
Concentration of a solution is the
amount of solute present in a x Emulsifiers are those substances
that help in forming stable
given amount (mass or volume)
emulsions of oil and water, e.g.
of a solution or the amount of
milk, cod-liver oil, cold creams,
solute dissolved in a given mass
vanishing creams, moisturising
or volume of a solvent.
cream, paints, etc.
Amount of solute
Concentration=
x
Physical change: During such
Amount of solvent
a change no new substances is
x Solubility: It is defined as the
formed and there is no change
amount of solute dissolved
in the chemical properties of the
in 100g of solvent to form a
substances.
saturated solution.
x Chemical change: Such a change
x Suspension: It is a nonis accompanied by change
homogeneous mixture in which
in chemical properties and
solids are dispersed in liquids. In
formation of new substances.
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General Science
STRUCTURE OF ATOM
x
Law of conservation of mass:

This law was stated by Lavoisier
in 1744. It states that In all
physical and chemical changes, the
total mass of reactants is equal to
total mass of products.
Law of constant proportions
(or constant composition): This
law was first stated by Proust in
1797. According to the law a
chemical compound is always found
to be made up of the same elements
combined together in the same
proportions by weight e.g. the
ratio of hydrogen and oxygen
in pure water is always 1: 8 by
weight. This law is also called
law of definite proportions.
Law of multiple proportions:
This law was given by John
Dalton (1803) and states that
when two elements combine to
form two or more compounds,
the different mass of one of the
elements and the fixed mass of
the one with which it combines
always form a whole number
ratio. This law explains the
concept of formation of more
than one compound by two
elements.
Daltons
Atomic
theory:
Postulates of Daltons Atomic
Theory
(i) Matter is made up of
extremely small indivisible
particles called atoms.
(ii) Atoms of the same
substance are identical
in all respects i.e., they
possess same size, shape,
mass, chemical properties etc.
(iii) Atoms
of
different
substances are different
in all respects i.e., they
possess different size,
shape, mass etc.
(iv) Atom is the smallest
particle that takes part in a
chemical reaction.
(v) Atoms
of
different
elements may combine
with each other in a fixed
simple, whole number ratio
to form compound atoms.
(vi) Atoms can neither be
created nor destroyed i.e.,
atoms are indestructible.
Atom: It is the smallest particle
of an element which can take
part in a chemical change. It
may or may not be capable of
independent existence.
Symbol: The abbreviation used
for lengthy names of elements
are termed as their symbols.
The symbol of an element is
the first letter or the first and
another letter of English name
or Latin name of the element.
While writing a symbol, the first
letter is always capital and the
second is always small.
Molecule : It is the smallest
particle of an element or
compound that is capable of
independent existence land
shows all the properties of that
substance.
Atomicity: The number of
atoms present in a molecule of
an element or a compound is
known as its atomicity. e.g. the
atomicity of oxygen is 2 while
atomicity ozone is 3.
Formula of simple and
molecular compounds
Binary compounds are those
compounds which are made up
of two different elements e.g.
NaCl, KBr, CaO etc. Following
rules are to be followed for
writing the formula.
(i) The valencies or charges on
the ions must be balanced.
(ii) For a compound made up
of a metal and a non-metal
the symbol of metal is
written first.
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General Science
(iii) In compounds formed
with polyatomic ions, the
ion is enclosed in a bracket
before writing the number
to indicate the ratio.
Valency: The electrons present
in the outermost shell of an
atom are known as valence
electrons.
These
electrons
determine the valency of an
atom.
Valency is equal to the number of
valence electrons.
In case the number of valence
electrons is close to its full
capacity. Then,
Valency=8 valence electrons
numbers are known as Isotopes

e.g.
and
x
35
36
and 17
Cl , and 11 H
17 Cl
2 , 12
and 14
etc.
1H 6 C
6 C
Applications of
Isotopes:
Isotopes are used in various
fields. For example.
(i) Isotope of uranium is used
as a fuel in nuclear reactor
(ii) Isotope of cobalt is used in
treatment of cancer
(iii) Isotope of iodine is used in
treatment of goitre.
x Isobars: Atoms of different
elements having same mass
numbers are known as Isobars,
e.g K-40 and Ar-40
x The discovery of cathode rays
x Atomic number (Z): Atomic
was done by J.J. Thomson an
number of an element is equal
English physicist.
to the number of protons
Sub-atomic Particles:
present in the nucleus of an
Electron, proton and neutron are
atom.
subatomic particles.
Atomic number (Z) = number of
The credit for discovery of these
protons = number of electrons.
particles goes to
x Mass number (A): It refers to
Electron J.J. Thomson
the total number of neutrons
and Proton E. Goldstein.
and protons (i.e., sum of
Another subatomic particle
protons and neutrons) called
which is neutral and has a
collectively as nucleus, present
mass approx. equal to that of a
in an atom.
proton was called neutron and
Mass number (A) = number of
was discovered by chadwick.
protons + number of neutron
The neutron is a neutral particle
x Isotopes: Atoms of the same
found in the nucleus of an
element having same atomic
atoms.
number but different mass
Properties of atomic particles (Comparative)
Particles
Electron
Proton
Neutron
(i) Symbol
e or e
p
n
(ii) Nature
Negatively charged Positively charged neutral (no
charge)
0
(iii) (a) Charge
(a) 1.6 10 19 C (a) +1.6 10
19
0
(b) 1
C
(b) Unit
(b) + 1
charge
(iv) Mass (a) amu (a) 0.0005486 amu (a) 1.00753 amu (a) 1.00893 amu
(b) kg
(b) 9.1 1031kg (b) 1.67265
(b) 1.67495
1027 kg
1027 kg
(v) Location
Extra nuclear space nucleus
nucleus
0
(vi) Notation
1
1
1e
1P
0n
(vii) Relative mass
1/1840
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General Science
GENERAL CONCEPTS OF CHEMISTRY

x
Definition
Chemistry is a branch of
science which deals with study
of matter and various changes
it undergoes. It deals with
the preparation, properties,
reactions
and
structures
of chemical elements and
compounds.
For convenience the study of
chemistry is sub-divided into
various branches such as:
(i) Inorganic chemistry
(ii) Organic chemistry
(iii) Physical chemistry
(iv) Analytical chemistry
(v) Industrial chemistry
Ions or radicals
An ion is formed when electrons
are removed from or added to
an atoms or group of atoms.
When
electron(s)
is/are
removed the resulting ion is
called a cation or basic radical.
A cation is positively charged
ion. (e.g. Na+).
When electron(s) is/are added
the resulting ion is called an
anion or acidic radicals. An
anion is negatively charged ion
(e.g. Cl, O22)
An ion or radical is classified as
monovalent, divalent, trivalent
or tetravalent when the number
of charges over it is 1, 2, 3 or 4
respectively.
Formula of elements and
compounds
Formula of elements: The
molecule of an element is
denoted by writing the symbol
of the element and, to the
right and below it, a number
expressing the number of atoms
in the molecule.
Formula of compound: A
molecule of a compound may
be made up of atom of different
elements linked up together
chemically and in definite
proportion by weight.
Chemical formula: It is of two
types:
(i) Molecular formulae:
Chemical
formulae
that indicate the actual
number and type of atoms
in a molecule is called
molecular formulae.
(ii) Empirical formulae:
Chemical formulae that
indicate only the relative
number of atoms of each
type in a molecule is called
empirical formulae.
Equivalent weight
(i) Equivalent
weight
of
element
=
Molecular mass
Basicity of acid / Acidity of base
(ii) Eq. wt of an acid/base =

Molecular mass
Basicity of acid / Acidity of base
(iii) Eq. wt of salts =
Formula mass
(Valency of cations)(No.of cations)
x
Expression of strength
concentration of solution
(i) Mass percent
Weight of solute(gm)
u 100
Weight of solution (gm)
(ii) Normality =
Number of gram equivalents of solute
Volumeof solution (lit.)
=
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General Science
x
(iii) Molarity
=
Number of gram moles of solute

volumeof solution (lit.)
(iv) Molality
Gram moles of solute
=
Weight of solvent (kg)
(v) Mole
fraction:
fraction of solute
nA
XA
nA nB
Mole
Mole fraction of solvent

nB
XB
nA nB
x
XA + XB = 1
Chemical change: A chemical
change is generally accompanied
by a change of state, change of
colour, evolution of a gas or change
of temperature etc.
Chemical
equation:
The
qualitative representation of
a chemical reaction in a short
hand or concise form in term of
symbols and formulae, is called
a chemical equation.
Skeletal chemical equation or
symbol equation: A chemical
equation written in the form of
symbols and formulae is called
a skeletal chemical equation.
Balanced chemical equation:
A chemical equation in
which number of atoms of
each elements on L.H.S.
(i.e. reactants) and R.H.S.
(i.e.products) is equal is called a
balanced chemical equation.
Balancing of chemical equations:
The process of making the
number of different elements
on both side of the equation
equal is known as balancing of
chemical equation.
Types of chemical reactions

Various types of chemical
reactions are:(i) Combination reactions:
Combination reactions are
those in which one element
reacts with another to form
a compound.
(ii) Decomposition reactions:
Decomposition reactions
are those reactions in which
a compound breaks down
into simpler compounds
(or substances). These
reactions require energy
in the form of heat, light,
electricity, etc.
(iii) Simple displacement reaction
and simple substitutions: A
displacement reaction is a
reaction in which an atom,
or group of atoms, present
in a molecule is displaced by
another atom. This type of
reaction can be represented
as follows:
AB + C AC + B
(Compond) (New compound)
(iv) Double displacement reactions

or Double decomposition:
The reactions in which mutual
exchange of radicals takes
place are known as double
decomposition reactions.
(v) O x i d a t i o n - R e d u c t i o n
Reactions
Oxidation: Oxidation is
defined as a process which
involve addition of oxygen
or removal of hydrogen.
Reduction: The term reduction
is defined as a process which
involve the removal of oxygen
or addition of hydrogen.
(vi) Redox reactions: Those reactions
in which oxidation and reduction
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General Science
takes place simultaneously, are

known as redox reactions.
Example:
(vii) Exothermic and endothermic
reaction: Chemical reactions
usually proceed with either
liberation of heat or the
absorption of heat.
When a chemical reaction
liberates
heat
to
the
surroundings, it is said to be
exothermic reaction and when

it absorbs the heat from the
surroundings, it is said to be
endothermic reaction.
Rancidity: The most important
cause of deterioration in fats
and fatty foods is oxidation
of fats. What we perceive is
an unpleasant change in the
flavour and odour of a food,
called rancidity.
CLASSIFICATION OF ELEMENTS AND

PERIODICITY IN PROPERTIES
x
Doberiners law of triads:

According to this law, in certain
triads (group of three elements) the
atomic mass of the central element
was the arithmetic mean of the
atomic masses of the other two
elements.
Limitations of Doberiners
Triads: He could identify only
a few such triads and so the
law could not gain importance.
In many traids like in the triad
of Fe, Co, Ni, all the three
elements have a nearly equal
atomic mass and thus does not
follow the above law.
Newlands law of octaves:
According to this law the
elements are arranged in such a
way that the eighth element starting
from a given one has properties
which are a repetition of those of
the first if arranged in order of
increasing atomic weight like the
eight note of musical scale.
Drawback of Newlands law
of octaves:
(i) According to Newland
only 56 elements exists
in nature and no more
elements
would
be
discovered in the future.
But later on several new
element were discovered
whose properties did not fit

into law of octaves.
(ii) In order to fit new elements
into his table Newland
adjust two elements in the
same column, but put some
unlike elements under the
same column.
Thus, Newlands classification
was not accepted.
Mendeleevs periodic table:
Mendeleev
arranged
63
elements known at that time in
the periodic table. According to
Mendeleev the properties of the
elements are a periodic function of
their atomic masses. The table
consists of eight vertical column
called groups and horizontal
rows called periods.
Merits of Mendeleevs periodic
table:
(i) At some places the order
of atomic weight was
changed in order to justify
the chemical and physical
nature.
(ii) Mendeleev left some gap
for new elements which
were not discovered at that
time.
(iii) One of the strengths of
Mendeleevs periodic table
was that, when inert gases
General Science
were discovered they could
be placed in a new group
without disturbing the
existing order.
Characteristics of the periodic table:
Its main characteristics are:
(i) In the periodic table, the
elements are arranged in
vertical rows called groups and
horizontal rows called periods.
(ii) There
are
eight
groups
indicated by Roman Numerals
I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII. The
elements belonging to first seven
groups have been divided into
sub-groups designated as A and
B on the basis of similarities.
Group VIII consists of nine
elements arranged in three
triads.
(iii) There are six periods (numbered
1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6). In order to
accomodate more elements, the
periods 4, 5, 6 are divided into
two halves. The first half of the
elements are placed in the upper
left corners and the second half
occupy lower right corners in
each box.
Achievements of Mendeleevs
periodic table
(i) The arrangement of elements
in groups and periods made the
study of elements quite systematic
(ii) Prediction of new elements
and their properties: Many
gaps were left in this table for
undiscovered elements. The
elements silicon, gallium and
germanium were discovered in
this manner.
(iii) Correction of doubtful atomic
masses: Mendeleev corrected
the atomic masses of certain
elements with the help of
their expected positions and
properties.
B-375
Limitations
of
Mendeleevs
classification:
(i) He could not assign a correct
position of hydrogen in his
periodic table, as the properties
of hydrogen resembles both
with alkali metals as well as
with halogens.
(ii) The isotopes of the same
element will be given different
position if atomic number
is taken as basis, which will
disturb the symmetry of the
periodic table.
(iii) The atomic masses do not
increases in a regular manner
in going from one elements to
the next. So it was not possible
to predict how many elements
could be discovered between
two elements.
x Modern periodic law: This law
was given by Henry Moseley in
1913. It states, Properties of the
elements are the periodic function of
their atomic numbers.
Cause of periodicity: Periodicity
may be defined as the repetition
of the similar properties of the
elements placed in a group and
separated by certain definite gap of
atomic numbers.
x Modern periodic table
Moseley proposed this modern
periodic table and according to
which the physical and chemical
properties of elements are periodic
function of their atomic number
and not the atomic weight.
(i) The modern periodic table
has 18 vertical columns called
groups and seven horizontal
rows called periods. The
groups have been numbered 1,
2, 3.......18 from left to right.
(ii) The elements belonging
to a particular group make a
family and usually named after
the first member. In a group all
the elements contain the same
number of valence electrons.
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General Science
(iii) In a period all the elements

contain the same number of
shells, but as we move from left
to right the number of valence
shell electrons increases by one
unit.
The
maximum
number
of electrons that can be
accommodated in a shell can be
calculated by the formula 2n2
where n is the number of the
given shell from the nucleus.
x Trends in modern periodic
table: The trends observed in
some important properties of
the elements in moving down
the group (from top to bottom
of the table) and across a period
(from left to right in a period)
are discussed below:
(i) Valency: Valency may be
defined as the combining capacity
of the atom of an element with
atoms of other elements in order to
acquire the stable configuration (i.e.
8 electron in valence shell. In some
special cases it is 2 electrons).
(ii) Atomic size: It refers to the
distance between the centre of
nucleus of an isolated atom to
its outermost shell containing

electrons.
The atomic radius decreases on
moving from left to right along a
period. This is due to an increase
in nuclear charge which tends to
pull the electrons closer to the
nucleus and reduces the size of
the atom.
In a group atomic size decreases
from top to bottom due to
increase in number of shells.
(iii) Metallic and non-metallic
properties: In a period from
left to right metallic nature
decreases while non-metallic
character increases.
In a group metallic character
increases from top to bottom
while non-metallic character
decrease.
(iv) Electronegativity: The relative
tendency of an atom to attract
the shared pair of electrons
towards
itself
is
called
electronegativity.
In a period from left to right,
the value of electronegativity
increases while in a group from
top to bottom the value of
electronegativity decreases.
ACIDS, BASES AND SALTS

x
Acids and Bases: The term

acid, in fact, comes from the
latin term acere, which means
Sour. In everyday life we
come across many compounds
that chemists classify as acids.
Bases are compounds which
taste bitter eg. milk of magnesia.
x Properties of acids and bases
A. Properties of acids
Chemical properties:
(i) Action of metals
Metal + Acid Salt + Hydrogen
(ii) Action with metal oxides
(Basic oxides)
Basic oxide + Acid

Salt + Water (neutralisation
reaction)
(iii) Action
with
metal
carbonates and metal
hydrogen carbonates
Carbonate/bicarbonate +
Acid Salt + water +
carbon dioxide.
B. Properties of bases
Chemical Properties:
(i) Reaction of metals with
bases: Metals (e.g. Zn, Al,
Sn) dissolve in NaOH (an
alkali) to liberate hydrogen
gas.
B-377
General Science
(ii) Action with acids: It is a

neutralisation reaction.
Base + Acid Salt + Water
Non - metallic oxides react in
the same way hence non-metallic
oxides are acidic in nature.
Strength of Acids and Bases
The strength of an acid or a
base can be easily estimated
by making use of universal
indicator which is a mixture of
several indicators. The universal
indicator show different colours
at different concentrations of
hydrogen ions in solution.
pH Scale: It is a scale that is
used for measuring H+ ion
(hydrogen ion) concentration of
a solution.
The term pH stands for
potential of hydrogen. It is
the amount of hydrogen ions in a
particular solution.
For acids pH < 7
For bases pH > 7
For neutral substances pH = 7
Importance of pH in Daily
Life
(i) Blood pH: For proper
functioning
our
body
needs to maintain blood
pH between 7.35 and 7.45.
Values of blood pH greater
than 7.8 or less than 6.8
often results in death.
(ii) Acid rain: When pH of
rain water is less than 5.6,
it is called acid rain, when
acid rain flows into rivers,
it lowers the pH of river
water.
(iii) pH in our digestive system:
We know that hydrochloric
acid (HCl) produced in our
stomach helps in digestion
of food without harming
stomach. However excess

of acid causes indigestion
and leads to pain as well
as irritation. To get rid of
this people use bases called
antacids.
(iv) pH of the soil: For their
healthy growth plants
require a specific pH. Soils
with high peat content
or iron minerals or with
rotting vegetation tend to
become acidic and the soil
pH can reach as low as 4.
(v) pH change as the cause of
tooth decay: Tooth decay
starts when the pH of
mouth is lower than 5.5
Salts: A salt is an ionic compound
which dissociates to yield a
positive ion other than hydrogen
ion (H+) and negative ion other
than hydroxyl ion (OH) e.g.
NaCl
Salts are formed by the reaction
of acid and base which is also
known as neutralisation.
(i) Sodium hydroxide (NaOH)
or Caustic soda: It is
prepared on commercial
scale by the electrolysis of
strong solution of sodium
chloride (NaCl) also called
brine. The process is called
chlor-alkali process.
The overall reaction taking
place is:
2NaCl(aq) + 2 H2O(l)
H2(g) + Cl2(g) + 2NaOH(aq)
Uses:
(a) Sodium hydroxide is
most used base in the
laboratory.
(b) It is used in many
industries, mostly as
strong chemical base
B-378
General Science
in manufacture of pulp
and paper, textiles,
drinking water, soap
and detergents etc.
(ii) Baking soda, Sodium hydrogen
carbonate, (NaHCO3)
NaCl + H2O + CO2 + NH3
NH4Cl + NaHCO3
When heated the following
reaction occurs
2NaHCO3
Heat

o
Na 2 CO3 H 2 O CO2
The above reaction occurs

when baking soda is heated
during cooking.
Uses:
(a) In baking powder:
The most practical
use of baking soda is
as a leavening agent in
baking.
(b) As an antacid: Baking
soda reacts with acid
due to its alkaline
nature and neutralizes
acidity (i.e. acts as an
antacid)
(c) In fire extinguishers: It
is used in soda-acid fire
extinguisher.
(iii) Washing soda, Na2CO3.
10H2O, Sodium carbonate
Sodium carbonate can be
obtained by heating baking
soda; recrystallisation of
sodium carbonate gives
washing soda. It is also a
basic salt.
Na 2CO3 10H 2O
o
sodium
carbonate
Na 2CO3 10H 2O
Hydrated Sodium Carbonate
(WashingSoda )
Uses:
(a) Sodium
carbonate
(washing soda) is used
in glass, soap and paper
industries.
(b) It is used for removing
permanent hardness of
water.
(iv) Bleaching powder:
Calcium hypochlorite is
a chemical compound
with formula CaOCl2.
It is a yellowish powder
with smell of chlorine.
It is widely used for
water treatment and as a
bleaching agent (bleaching
powder)
2Ca(OH)2 + 2Cl2
CaOCl2 + CaCl2 + 2H2O
Calcium hypochlorite is
used for the disinfection
of drinking water or
swimming pool water.
(v) Plaster of Paris,
CaSO4 .1/2 H2O
It can be obtained by heating
gypsum (CaSO4. 2H2O)
(CaSO 4 .2H 2O heat o
1
3
CaSO 4 . H 2O H 2O
2
2
Plaster of paris is a white
powder and on mixing
with water it changes to
gypsum once again giving
a hard solid mass
1
1
CaSO 4 x H 2O 1 H 2O o
2
2
CaSO 4 .2 H 2 O
Uses: It is used
(a) for making moulds or
casts for toys, pottery,
cermics etc.
(b) in surgical bandages for
setting fractured bones.
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General Science
METALS AND NON-METALS

x
Metals and Non-metals: There

are more than 114 elements
present in the periodic table.
These elements can be broadly
classified into two categories
i.e., metals and non-metals. Out
of 114 elements, 22 are nonmetals.
Physical properties of metals:
(i) They are usually shiny i.e.
have a metallic luster.
(ii) Metals have a high density
(iii) Metals are ductile i.e. they
can be drawn into wires.
(iv) Metals are malleable i.e.
they can be founded into
thin sheets.
(v) Metals are good conductors
of electricity.
(vi) Metals have high melting
point and are generally
in solid state at room
temperature.
(vii) Metals are good conductors
of heat and sound.
Uses of metals:
Metals
are
used
in
manufacturing
of
bridges,
railways, aeroplanes, diesel
mobile units (DMU), electric
mobile units (EMU), motor
cars, electric motors, telephones,
televisions, interplanetary space
vehicles, or even common
articles like cooking utensils and
coins. Metals are very important
Alloy
Brass
Composition
Cu = 80%, Zn = 20%
Bronze
Cu = 90%, Sn = 10%
Solder
Sn = 50%, Pb = 50%
for the economy of a country.

Some metals, such as titanium,
chromium, manganese and
zirconium are strategic metals.
These metals and their alloys
find wide applications in atomic
energy, space science projects,
jet engines and high grade steels.
Gold and silver ornaments are
obtained from small pieces of
metals by hammering.
Noble metal: Noble metals
are metals that are resistant to
corrosion or oxidation, unlike
most base metals. Examples
include
tantalum,
gold,
platinum, and rhodium.
Precious metal: A precious
metal is a rare metallic
chemical element of high
economic value precious metals
include the platinum group
metals: ruthenium, rhodium,
palladium, osmium, iridium,
and platinum, of
which
platinum is the most widely
traded.
Alloy: An alloy is a mixture
of two or more elements
in solid solution in which
the major component is a
metal. Combining different
ratios of metals as alloys
modify the properties of pure
metals to produce desirable
characteristics.
Uses
For making utensils and
cartridges.
For making statues, medals,
ships, coins and machines
For joining metals, solding wire
and electronic components etc.
B-380
General Science
4 Duralumin Al = 95.5%, Cu = 3%, Used in bodies of aircrafts,

Mn = 1.0%, Mg = 0.5% kitchen ware and automobile
parts etc.
5
German Cu = 60%, Zn = 20%, For making utensils and
Silver
Ni = 20%
ornaments
6 Gun metal Cu = 90%, Sn = 10%
For gears and castings etc.
7 Bell metal Cu = 80%, Sn = 20%
For bells, gangs etc.
8 Magnalium Al = 90%, Mg = 10%
For balance beams, light
instruments.
9 Type metal Pb = 82%, Sb = 15%, Sn For casting type
= 3%
10 Stainless Fe, Ni, Cr, C
For utensils, cutlery etc.
steel
x Physical properties of nonrocks and in the form of
graphite as electrode and
metals:
in manufacturing of lead
(i) They are dull, however
pencils.
diamond, graphite and
(v) Sulphur
is
used
in
iodine are lustrous.
vulcanization of rubber,
(ii) They are poor conductors of
as fungicide and in
heat and electricity. Graphite
manufacture of dyes, gun
is a good conductor.
powder etc.
(iii) They are weak and brittle
(vi) Chlorine is used as water
(they easily break or shatter).
disinfectant and in the
(iv) They have a low density
manufacture of pesticides
(they feel light for their
like gammaxene.
size).
(v) They do not make a ringing
x Extraction of Metals
sound when they are hit.
(i) Minerals: The natural
(vi) Melting points and boiling
substance in which the
points are usually low.
metals or their compounds
(vii) Non-metals are usually
occur in the earth is called
soft. (Diamond is an
minerals.
exception, it is quite hard.
(ii) Ores:
The
minerals
It is a crystalline solid).
from which the metals
(viii)They exist in allotropic
can be conveniently and
forms.
economically extracted are
called ores.
8. Uses of Non-Metals
(iii) Native ores: These ores
(i) Oxygen is essential for
contain metals in the free
survival of life.
state, e.g., silver, gold,
(ii) Hydrogen is used to convert
platinum, etc.
vegetable oil into vegetable
(iv) Metallurgy: The whole
ghee by hydrogenation.
process of obtaining a pure
(iii) Nitrogen is used to preserve
metal from one of its ore is
food and for manufacturing
known as metallurgy.
proteins by plants.
(v) Gangue or matrix: Ores
(iv) Carbon in the form of
usually contain soil, sand,
diamond is used for cutting
B-381
General Science
stones and others useless
silicates. These undesired
impurities
present
in
ores are called gangue or
matrix.
(vi) The removal of unwanted
earthy
and
silicious
impurities from the ore
is called ore-dressing or
concentration of ores
and the process used to
concentrate an ore is called
the benefication process.
(vii) Concentration of ore is
achieved by
(1) Physical methods:
(a) Hand-picking: It is
used in the case when
the impurities are
quite distinct from
the ore so that these
may be differentiated
by naked eye.
(b) Hydraulic washing
or Levigation or
Gravity separation:
The
separation
is based on the
difference in the
specific gravities of
the gangue particles
and the ore particles.
(c) Electromagnetic
separation: When
one
component
either
the
ore
or
impurity
is
magnetic in nature,
this method can be
used for separation.
(d) Froth
floatation
process:
This
method is used for
the concentration
of sulphide ores.
(2) Chemical
method
(Leaching)
involves
the treatment of the
ore with a suitable
reagent as to make it
soluble while impurities
remain insoluble. The
ore is recovered from
the solution by suitable
chemical method.
(viii) Extraction process used to
obtain metals in free state
from concentrated ores is
called extraction.
(ix) Extraction of crude metal
from the concentrated
ore involves following
chemical processes.
(a) Conversion of ore into
metallic oxides.

&DOFLQDWLRQ LQYROYHV
heating the ore
below its fusion
temperature in the
absence of air. It can
remove
moisture
from
hydrated
oxide or CO2 from
carbonates. It makes
the ore porous.

5RDVWLQJ LV WKH
heating of the ore
in the presence of
air below its fusion
temperature.
(b) Reduction to free metal:

Smelting:
This
involves the reduction
of the ore to the
molten metal at a
high temperature. For
the extraction of
electropositive metals
such as Pb, Fe, Sn,
powerful reducing
agent like C, H2, CO,
Al, Mg, etc., are used.

Self reduction process:
These processes are
also called autoreduction process.

Electrolytic
process: The oxides of
B-382
General Science
highly electropositive metals like Na,
K, Mg, Ca, Al, etc.,
are extracted by
electrolysis of their
oxides, hydroxides
or chlorides in fused
state. For example,
Al is obtained by
the electrolysis of
S.
no.
1
2.
3.
4.
5.
Name of the ore

Bauxite
Haematite
Magnetite
Zincite
Cuprite
Formula of the
ore
Al2O3.2H2O
Fe2O3
Fe2O4
ZnO
Cu2O
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Litharge
Malachite
Magnesite
Lime stone
Cinnabar
Chalcopyrite
Zinc blende
Galena
Common salt
PbO
CuCO3.Cu(OH)2
MgCO3
CaCO3
HgS
CuFeS2
ZnS
PbS
NaCl
15. Fluorspar
CaF2
16. Horn silver
AgCl
17. Chalcocite
Cu2S
Corrosion of Metals: Corrosion

is an oxidation reaction with
atmospheric oxygen in the
presence of water on the surface
of a metal. Rusting is
3
Fe(s) O 2 (g) xH 2O(l ) o
2
Fe 2 O3.xH 2O(s)
i.e., rust is hydrated iron (III)

oxide.
Prevention of Corrosion: Iron
alumina mixed with

cryolite.
(x) Refining is the process
of purifying the extracted
metals.
(xi) Chromatography is based
on the principle that the
different components of
a mixture are adsorbed
to different extents on an
adsorbent.
Types of ore Metal obtained
from the ore
Oxide
Aluminium (Al)
Oxide
Iron (Fe)
Oxide
Iron (Fe)
Oxide
Zinc (Zn)
Oxide
Copper (Cu)
Oxide
Carbonate
Carbonate
Carbonate
Sulphide
Sulphide
Sulphide
Sulphide
Chloride
(Halide)
Fluoride
(Halide)
Chloride
(Halide)
Sulphide
Lead (Pb)
Copper (Cu)
Magnesium (Mg)
Calcium (Ca)
Mercury (Hg)
Copper (Cu)
Zinc (Zn)
Lead (Pb)
Sodium (Na)
Calcium (Ca)
Silver (Ag)
Copper (Cu)
and steel (alloy of iron) are most

easily protected by paint which
provides a barrier between the
metal and air/water. Moving
parts on machines can be
protected by a water repellent oil
or grease layer. Other important
methods are
(i) Alloying: Iron or steel along
with other metals can also
be protected by alloying
or mixing with other metals
B-383
General Science
(e.g., chromium) to make
non-rusting alloys.
(ii) Galvanizing: Coating iron
or steel with a thin zinc
layer is called galvanizing.
Purity of Gold:
24-Carat gold: The carat
(abbreviation ct or Kt) is a
measure of the purity of gold
alloys. Carat is used to refer
to the measure of mass for
gemstones.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
x
The pollutants may be inorganic,

biological or radiological in
nature.
(i) Bio-degradable pollutants
are domestic wastes which
are rapidly decomposed by
micro-organisms.
(ii) Non-biodegradable
pollutants include chemicals,
mercuric salts, lead compounds, pesticides, etc.
(iii) Natural pollution is caused
by radioactive substances,
volcanic eruptions, forests
and mines fires floods, etc.
(iv) Artificial
pollution
is
caused
by
industries,
thermal plants, automobile,
exhausts, sewage, etc.
Environment: The conditions
existing around animal or
human life.
Atmosphere: The gaseous
envelop surrounding the
earth. It has been classified
into following regions:(i) Stratosphere: The layer
of the earths atmosphere
above the troposphere and
below the mesosphere.
(ii) Troposphere: The lowest
region of the atmosphere
extending from earths
surface to the lower boundary
of the stratosphere. In this
region, human beings along
with other organisms live. It
contains water vapour and
is greatly affected by air

pollution.
Note: The other two layers are
Thermosphere and Mesosphere.
Air pollution: The major air
pollutants are
(i) Carbon monoxide (CO): It
is produced by incomplete
combustion of gasoline in
motor vehicles, wood, coal,
inceneration and forest fires.
It is treacherous and deadly
poisonous gas. It induces
headache, visual difficulty
coma and death. It blocks
the normal transport of
oxygen from the lungs to
other parts of the body.
(ii) Sulphur dioxide (SO2):
It is produced by petrol
combustion,
coal
combustion, petrol refining
and smelting operations.
It hinders the movement of
air in and out of lungs. It
is particularly poisonous to
trees causing chlorosis and
dwarfing. In presence of
air it is oxidised to which is
also irritant.
2SO2 + O2 (air) 2SO3
In presence of moisture
is converted into highly
corrosive sulphuric acid.
SO3 + H2O (moisture) +2SO4
It attacks marble, limestone,
vegetation, paper and textiles
and injurious to human beings.
B-384
(iii) Oxides of nitrogen: and

NO, Source - combustion
of
coal,
gasoline,
natural gas, petroleum
refining, chemical plants,
manufacturing explosives
and fertilizers, tobacco
smoke.
Breathing NO2 causes
chlorosis to plants and
chronic lung conditions
leading to death. reacts
with moisture to form
acids.
2NO2 + H2O HNO2 + HNO3
3HNO2 2NO + HNO3 + H2O
(iv) Smoke, dust:
Sources: cement works,
iron and steel works, gas
works, power generating
stations.
Smog: It is a mixture
of smoke and fog in
suspended droplet form. It
is of two types:
(a) London
smog
or
classical smog: It is
coal smoke plus fog.
The fog part is mainly
SO2 and SO3. It has
sulphuric acid aerosol.
It causes bronchial
irritation and acid rain.
It is reducing in nature.
(b) Photochemical smog
or
Los
Angeles
smog: The oxidised
hydrocarbons
and
ozone in presence
of humidity cause
photochemical smog.
Hydrocarbons + O2,
NO2, NO, O, O3 Peroxides, formaldehyde,
p e r ox ya c e t y l n i t r a t e
(PAN), acrolein etc.
General Science
It is oxidising in nature
and causes irritation
to eyes, lungs, nose,
asthamatic attack and
damage plants.
Acid rain: The oxides
of C, N and S present
in the atmosphere,
dissolve in water and
produce acids and
lower the pH of water
below 5.5.
The acids are toxic to
vegetation, react with marble
and damage buildings.
CaCO3 + H2SO4 CaSO4 +
H2O +CO2
Acids corrode water pipes
and produce salts with
heavy metals ions viz Cu,
Pb, Hg and Al toxic in
nature.
(v) Green House effect: The
retention of heat by the
earth and atmosphere from
the sun and its prevention
to escape into the outer
space is known as green
house effect.
Global warming is average
increase in the temperature
of earth due to increase
in concentration of green
house gases (CO2, O3, NOx
etc).
Consequences of global
warming:
(i) Global warming would
result in rise in sea level
due to increased rate of
melting of glaciers and
floods.
(ii) Increase in infectious
diseases like malaria,
dengue, etc.
(vi) Ozone layer and its
depletion: The ozone
General Science
layer, existing between 20

to 35 km above the earths
surface, shield the earth
from the harmful U. V.
radiations from the sun.
The U. V. radiations cause
skin cancer, cataract of eye,
and harm to vegetation.
Depletion of ozone is caused
by oxides of nitrogen
N2O + hX NO + N
reactive nitric oxide
NO + O3 NO2+ O2,
O3 + hX O2+ O,
NO2 +O NO + O2
2O3 + hX 3O2 (Net reaction)
The
presence
of
chlorofluorocarbons also
increase the decomposition
of O3.
CF2Cl2 + hX + CF2Cl + Cl
CFCl3 + hX CFCl3 + Cl,
Cl + O3 ClO+ O,
ClO + O Cl + O2
O3 + O O2 (Net reaction)
(vii) Control of air pollution:
It can be controlled by
1. Dissolving HCl, HF, in
water and , , in alkaline
solution.
2. Adsorbing gas and
liquid molecules over
activated charcoal and
silica gel.
3. Chemical reactions.
4. Use of precipitators to
settle charge particles.
5. Use of settling chambers
under the action of
gravity.
6. Use of natural gas in
place of diesel, petrol,
etc.
Water pollution: The contamination
of water by foreign substances
which would constitute a health
hazard and make it harmful for all
B-385
purposes (domestic, industrial or

agriculture etc.) is known as water
pollution. The polluted water may
have offensive odour, bad taste,
unpleasant colour, murky oily, etc.
(i) Sources of water pollution
(a) Domesticsewage:Discharges
from kitchens, baths,
lavatories, etc.
(b) Industrial
waters:
Wastes from manufacturing
processes
which includes acids,
alkalines,
pesticides,
insecticides, metals like
copper, zinc, lead, mercury, fungicides, etc.
(c) Oil: from oil spills
or
washings
of
automobiles.
(d) Atomic
explosion
and processing of
radioactive materials.
(e) Suspended
particles
(organic or inorganic)
viruses,
bacterias,
algae, protozoa, etc.
(f) Wastes from fertilizer
plants
such
as
phosphates,
nitrates
ammonia, etc.
(g) Clay: Ores, minerals,
fine particles of soil.
(ii) Aerobic and anaerobic
oxidation: The oxidation
of organic compounds
present in sewage in
presence of good amount
of dissolved or free
oxygen (approx. 8.5 ml/l)
by aerobic bacterials is
called aerobic oxidation.
When dissolved or free
oxygen is below a certain
value the sewage is called
stale. Anaerobic bacterias
B-386
General Science
bring out putrefaction

producing H2S, NH3, CH4,
(NH4)2S, etc. This type of
oxidation is called anaerobic
oxidation.
(iii) Biological
Oxygen
Demand (BOD): It is
defined as the amount of
free oxygen required for
biological oxidation of the
organic matter by aerobic
conditions at 20C for a
period of five days. Its unit
is mg/l or ppm. An average
sewage has BOD of 100 to
150 mg/l.
(iv) Chemical Oxygen Demand
(COD): It is a measure
of all types of oxidisable
impurities present in the
sewage. COD values are
higher than BOD values.
Soil pollution: The addition

of substances in an indefinite
proportion
changing
the
productivity of the soil is known
as soil or land pollution.
Sources of soil pollution:
(i) Agricultural
pollutants:
Chemicals like pesticides,
fertilizers,
bacteriacides,
fumigants,
insecticides,
herbicides, fungicides.
(ii) Domestic
refuge
and
industrial wastes.
(iii) Radioactive wastes from
research centres, and hospitals.
(iv) Soil conditioners containing
toxic metals like Hg, Pb, As,
Cd, etc.
(v) Farm wastes from poultries,
dairies and piggery farms.
(vi) Improper
disposal
of
human and animal extreta.
(vii) Pollutants present in air
from chemical works.
SOME IMPORTANT MAN MADE MATERIALS

x
Glass
It consists of a mixture of two
or more silicates.
Preparation of glass:
Common glass (or soft glass):
It is used to make bottles, glass
wares etc. and is obtained by
heating together silica (in the
form of sand), sodium carbonate
or sodium sulphate and chalk or
lime stone (calcium carbonate).
Some broken glass and a little
coke are usually added. The
glass so prepared consists of
silicates of sodium and calcium.
Na2CO3(s) + SiO2(s)
(silica)
Na2SiO3(s) + CO2(g)
Na2SO4(s) + SiO2(s)
Na2SiO3(s) + SO3(g)
CaCO3(s) + SiO2(s)
CaSiO3(s) + CO2(g)
Hard glass: For preparation
of hard glass K2CO3 is used in
place of Na2CO3. It consists
of a mixture of calcium and
potassium silicates.
Physical properties of glass:
Hard, rigid, high viscosity,
bad conductor of heat and
electricity, brittle, etc.
Blowing: It is a method to cast
the molten glass into different
moulds. There are two different
methods of glass blowing
(i) Free blowing and ( ii) mould
blowing
Free blowing: It involves the
blowing of air to inflate the
molten glass which is gathered
at one end of the blow pipe to
give the desired shape.
B-387
General Science
Mould blowing: This method
was developed after the
technique of free blowing.
In this method, molten glass
is inflated into a wooden or
metal carved mould with the
help of blow pipe which gives
the molten glass the shape and
design of the interior of the
mould.
Chemical properties of glass
(i) It is resistant to action
of air and acids except
hydroflouric acid.
(ii) It is alkaline in nature.
(iii) It slowly reacts with water
to form alkaline solution.
Types of glass
(i) Silica glass: For this type
of glass the raw material
used is 100% pure form of
quartz. It is quite expensive. It
is used in the manufacture
of laboratory apparatus. It
has low thermal expansion.
Its softening point is very
high and it is resistant to a
wide variety of chemicals.
(ii) Alkali silicate glass: For it
the raw materials used are
sand and soda. It is also
called water glass because
it is soluble in water and
used only as a solution. It
is generally used to make

gums and adhesives.
(iii) Lead glass: For this type
of glass lead oxide is
added to ordinary glass.
The addition of lead oxide
increases the density and
also the refractive index.
This type of glass is used
for the manufacture of
ornamental glass ware,
decorative articles etc.
(iv) Optical
glass:
This
type of glass is used
in the manufacture of
optical instruments like
binoculars,
spectacles,
lenses, prisons, telescopes,
microscopes etc. It is
transparent and can be
grounded into the required
shape. It generally contains
phosphorus, and lead
silicates with little cerium
oxide which absorbs UV
radiations.
(v) Processed glass: The
properties and applications
of glass also depend upon
the processing of glass.
Some types of processed
glass and their applications
are given here:
Processed glass
Applications
1. Laminated glass Used for doors and windows of automobiles. (It
has high strength).
2.
Fibre glass
Used for reinforcing purpose (It has enough tensile

strength)
3.
Foam glass
Used for civil construction and insulation purposes

(it is light weight).
4.
Opaque glass
In it non-transparent glass filters the light entering

into it. Thus provides an aesthetic look.
(vi) Borosilicate
glass:
It
contains silica and Boron
oxide and small amount
of oxides of sodium and
aluminium. It is resistant to
a wide variety of chemicals
due to this property it is
used in the manufacture of
laboratory ware.
B-388
Fertilizers
Fertilizers
are
chemical
compounds which when added
to the soil increase their fertility
and directly supply the need of
essential elements [N, P, K] of
primary importance.
Classification:
Chemical
fertilizers are broadly classified
into the following three types:
(i) Nitrogenous fertilizers:
Ammonium sulphate, urea
etc.
(ii) Phosphatic fertilizers: Super
phosphate,
ammonium
phosphate
(iii) Potash fertilizers: Potassium chloride, potassium
sulphate.
Soaps and detergents
Soap: Fatty acid salts of sodium
and potassium are known as
soaps. These are prepared by
the action of fatty acids with
sodium hydroxide or potassium
hydroxide.
Fatty acid + sodium hydroxide
Soap + glycerol.
Detergents are sodium salt of
long chain sulphonic acids or
alkyl hydrogen sulphate.
Advantages of detergents over
soaps
(i) Detergents can be used for
laundering even with hard
water as they are soluble
even in hard water.
(ii) Detergents possess better
cleansing properties than
soaps.
Disadvantages of detergents
over soap: Detergents are
prepared from hydrocarbons,
while soaps are prepared from
edible fatty oils. Thus they are
non biodegradable.
Saponification: It is the process
of making of soap by the
hydrolysis of fats and oils with
alkalis.
General Science
Both soaps and detergents are

soluble in water and act as
surfactants which reduce the
surface tension of water to a
great extent. This increases the
water - fabric interaction as
a consequence of which dirt
particles, grease spots etc are
washed away effectively. In other
words soaps and detergents
enhance the cleansing action of
water.
Portland cement: It was first
discovered in England. It is
essentially a mixture of lime
stone and clay. It was called
Portland cement because in
presence of water it sets to a
hard stone-like mass resembling
with the famous Portland rock.
The approximate composition
of Portland cement is
Calcium oxide (CaO) 62%
22%
Silica (SiO2)
7.5%
Alumina (Al2O3)
Magnesia (MgO)
2.5%
2.5%
Ferric oxide (Fe2O3)
The above compounds are
provided by the two raw
materials, namely lime stone
(which provides CaO) and
clay (which provides SiO2,
Al2O3 and Fe2O3). In cement,
almost entire amount of lime
in present in the combined state
as calcium silicate (2CaO. SiO2
and 3CaO. SiO2) and calcium
aluminates (3CaO. Al2O3 and
4 CaO. Al2O3).
(i) Cement containing excess
amount of lime cracks
during
setting;
while
cement containing less
amount of lime is weak in
strength.
(ii) Cement with excess of
silica is slow-setting and
that having an excess of
alumina is quick-setting.
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General Science
(iii) Cement containing no iron
is white but hard to burn.
Cement is manufactured by two
processes, viz. wet and dry. A
small amount (23%) of gypsum
is added to slow down the setting

of the cement so that it gets
sufficiently hardened. Setting of
cement is an exothermic process
and involves hydration of calcium
aluminates and calcium silicates.
Lime stone and

clay are powdered
and mixed
Burnt at
1770-1870K
in a rotatory kiln
Addition of
Calcium silicates +
calcium aluminates
gypsum
Portland Cement
GENERAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

CARBOHYDRATES
Carbohydrates are defined as the optically active polyhydroxy aldehydes or
ketones or substances which yield these on hydrolysis.
Classification of Carbohydrates
Based on Molecular Size
CARBOHYDRATES
MONOSACCHARIDES OLIGOSACCHARIDES
Based on Nature
PROTEINS
Carbohydrates are also classified as Proteins are highly complex, natural
reducing and non-reducing sugars compounds, composed of a large
depending on whether they reduce number of different Damino acids
Fehlings and Tollens reagent or not. joined together with peptide linkage,
i.e., they are naturally occurring
Based on Taste
polypeptides.
The
biological
importance of proteins can be
Carbohydrates with sweet taste are judge by the fact that the animals
called sugars while those without a can live for a long time without fat
sweet taste are called non-sugars.
or carbohydrate, but not without
LIPIDS
protein.
Lipids are organic compounds NUCLEIC ACIDS
soluble in non-polar fat solvents Nucleic acids are colourless,
such as acetone, ether, chloroform,
benzene, etc. and insoluble in water. complex, amorphous, compounds
The most important role of lipids is made up of three units: bases, sugar
that of biological fuel. Lipids supply and phosphoric acid. These are
more energy than carbohydrates, macro-molecules of high molecular
excess of lipids is stored in the body weight and are present in every
and used at the time of starvation.
living cell.
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General Science
Life Science
CELL BIOLOGY AND GENETICS
Cell is a basic structural and functional
unit of life.
x Robert Hooke in 1665 coined the
word cell.
x Anton von Leeuwenhoek first saw
and described a live cell.
x Robert Brown later had discovered
the nucleus.
x Cell theory was proposed by
Schleiden and Schwann in 1855 to
explain the concept of the cellular
nature of living organism.
membranous covering of plant

and animal cells.
Fluid mosaic model of plasma

membrane
x
Prokaryotic Cells
x
x
Prokaryotic
cells
are
morphologically most primitive.
Prokaryotic cells are devoid of
membrane bound organelles
like plastids, mitochondria and
advanced (9+2) flagella.
Prokaryotic cells are represented
by bacteria, cyanobacteria (blue
green algae) mycoplasma and
PPLO (pleuro-pneumonia like
organisms).
Eukaryotic Cells
x
A eukaryotic cell consists of the

following components:
Cell Wall
x
x
x
The cell wall is a non-living,

semi-rigid, external protective
covering of the cell.
Cell wall is entirely lacking in
animals.
It is made up of cellulose
secreted by the cell itself.
Cell Mebrane
x
The cell membrane is a living,

thin, elastic and semi-permeable
S.J.Singer and G. Nicolson in

1972 proposed the most accepted
model of membrane structure.
The plasma membrane is a lipidbilayer with proteins embedded
in it.
Lipids are amphipathic, i.e., they
are structurally asymmetric with
polar hydrophilic and non-polar
hydrophobic group.
One of the most important
function of plasma membrane
is the transport of the molecules
across it.
Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)

There are two types of endoplasmic
reticulum i.e.,
x Smooth or agranular ER They
do not have attached ribosomes
on their surface.
x Rough or granular ER They
bear ribosomes on their surface,
for protein synthesis.
Golgi Apparatus
x
Golgi apparatus or Golgi

complex is a stack of flattened,
membrane bounded, parallely
arranged organelles that occur in
the association of endoplasmic
reticulum in the cytoplasmic
matrix.
The golgi apparatus principally
performs the function of packaging
materials to be delivered either to
the intra-cellular targets or secreted
outside the cell.
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General Science
Lysosomes
Nucleolus
x
x
Lysosomes are popularly called

suicide bags.
Vacuoles
x
In plant cells, the vacuoles can

occupy up to 90 percent of the
volume of the cell. The vacuole
is bound by a single membrane
called tonoplast. They are
responsible for maintenance of
turgour pressure.
Mitochondria
x
Mitochondria are also called as

powerhouse of cells.
It is present inside the nucleus.

It is the site of active ribosomal
RNA synthesis.
Study of heredity and variation is
called genetics.
x Term genetics was given by Bateson.
x Father of genetics - Gregor
Johann Mendel.
x Father of experimental genetics Thomas Hunt Morgan.
x Father of human genetics Archibald Garrod.
Plastids
Some Terms in Genetics
Gene : It is segment of DNA. It is

basic unit of heredity.
Back cross : It is cross which is
performed between hybrid and one
of its parents.
Test cross : Test cross is crossing of
offspring with unknown dominant
phenotype with the individual
homozygous recessive for the trait.
Monohybrid cross : It is a cross
between two organisms of a
species which is made to study the
inheritance of a single pair of alleles
or factors of a character.
Monohybrid ratio : Monohybrid
ratio is usually 3 : 1 (phenotypic
ratio) or 1 : 2 : 1 (genotype ratio)
in which 25% of the individuals
carry the recessive trait, 25% pure
dominant and 50% have hybrid
dominant trait.
Dihybrid cross : It is a cross between
two organisms of a species which is
made to study the inheritance of
two pairs of factors or alleles of two
genes.
Dihybrid ratio : Dihybrid ratio is 9
: 3 : 3 : 1 (phenotypic ratio) where
9/16 first recessive and second
dominant and 1/16 carry both the
recessive traits.
Plastids are found in plants and

few protists Euglena.
Ribosomes
x
Ribosomes are smallest cell

organelles. They are protein
synthesising factories.
There are two types of
ribosomes viz.,
Prokaryotic or 70S ribosomes
Eukaryotic or 80S ribosomes
Nucleus
x
Nucleus is centrally located,

spherical and largest component
of the all eukaryotic cell. It
contains the genetic material of
the cell.
Structure of Nucleus
x
A typical nucleus consists of

four structures:
(i) nuclear
membrane, (ii) nucleoplasm (iii)
chromatin and (iv) the nucleolus.
Satellite
Short arm
Secondary
constriction
Short arm
Centromere
Centromere
Long arm
Telocentric
Acrocentric
Submetacentric
Metacentric
Fig. : Types of chromosomes based

on the position of centromere
B-392
Mendel
conducted
cross
hybridization experiments on
Garden Pea plant (Pisum sativum).
The first was the Principle of
segregation, which claimed that
each trait was specified by paired
hereditary determinants (alleles
of genes) that separate from each
other during gamete formation.
This law is also called Law of
purity of gametes or Law of
splitting of hybrids.
Gregor Mendel was the first
individual to apply a modern
scientific approach to the study
of heredity. Mendel proposed
two basic principles of trasmission
genetics.
Mendels second basic conclusion
was the Principle of independent
assortment, which stated that the
segregation of one pair of genescontrolling a given trait - was not
influenced by the segregation of
other gene pairs. The chormosome
theory provided a physical basis
for the principle of independent
assortment. Genes located on
different chromosomes move to
gametes independently of each
other during meiosis.
General Science
x
x
Sex Determination
x
The system of blood groups in

humans was discovered by Karl
Landsteiner in 1900s.
There are four phenotypes of
Blood namely A, B, AB and
O produced by three different
alleles IA, IB and i of a gene.
The allele IA and IB are equally
dominant and do not interfere
with expression of each other
hence the allele IA IB are said to
be co-dominant because both are
expressed in the phenotype AB.
Linkage is the phenomenon of
certain genes staying together
during inheritance through
Henking discovered X body in

spermatogenesis of few insects
and it was given name of X
chromosome. Due to involvment
of X and Y chromosomes in
determination of sex, they were
called sex chromosomes.
Rest of the chromosomes which
determine
other
metabolic
character of the body are called
autosomes.
Mutation
x
Human Blood Groups and

Multiple Allele
x
generations without any change

or separation due to their being
present on the same chromosomes.
Linkage in the genes can be
identified by test cross.
The rearrangements of linked genes
due to crossing over is known as
recombination. Recombination
also occurs due to chance
separation of chromosomes
during gametogenesis and their
random coming together during
fertilization.
Phenomenon that results in

alteration of DNA sequence and
consequently results in change in
genotype and phenotype of an
organism is called mutation.
Mutagens are various chemical
and physical factors that induce
mutations, e.g., UV radiations,
carcinogenic chemicals like
nicotine, nitric oxide (NO).
Genetic Disorder
x
A genetic disorder is a disease

that is caused by an abnormality
in an individuals DNA.
Haemophilia
x
A protein involved in clotting of

blood is affected in an affected
individual; if person gets a cut,
will result in non-stop bleeding.
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General Science
x
Females are heterozygous and

carriers of haemophilia.
It is an excellent example of
single mutation.
Sickle Cell Anaemia
Phenylketonuria
It is due to inheritance of defective

allele coding for E-globin. It
results in the transformation of
HbA into HbS in which glutamic
acid is replaced by valine at 6th
position in each of two E-chains
of haemoglobin.
Affected individual lacks enzyme

phenylalanine hydroxylase that
converts amino acid phenylalanine
to tyrosine.
It is characterized by severe mental
retardation, hypopigmentation of
skin & hair, eczema, etc.
PLANT PHYSIOLOGY
Citric acid cycle/Krebs cycle
occur in mitochondrial matrix and
3NADH2, 1FADH2 and 1 GTP
(ATP) produced by each turn of
TCA cycle. In Electron transport
system electron are passes in
a downhill journey releasing
energy at every step that is used
in generating electrochemical
proton gradient which help in
synthesizing energy.
Photosynthesis
x
x
Photosynthesis
occurs
in
specialized cells called mesophyll
cell which contain chloroplast.
Photosynthesis follows two main
step Light dependent reaction
which occur in grana of the
chloroplast and Light dependent
reaction which occur in stroma
region of the chloroplast.
It is actually oxidation reduction
process in which water is
oxidized and CO2 is reduced to
carbohydrates.
The reduction of CO2 to
carbohydrates needs assimilatory
powers, ie., ATP and NADPH2.
Respiration
x
Carbohydrates are broken down

through the process of oxidation
and releasing of energy for
cellular use, is called respiration.
Respiration occurs in three steps
as Glycolysis, Krebs Cycle and
Electron transport system.
C6H12O6 + 6CO2 o 6CO2 +
6H20 + energy
Glycolysis occurs in the cytoplasm
of the cell and the final product is
pyruvate which is transported from
the cytoplasm to mitochondria.
Transpiration
x
Loss of water in the form of

water vapour from plant through
the small pore (stomata) present
on leaves is called transpiration.
Nitrogen metabolism
x
Plants obtain Nitrogen from the

soil in the form of nitrites (NO2),
nitrates (NO3) and ammonium
(NH4)+ salts. Nitrogen assimilation
is carried out by plants in three
steps.
Ammonification: It is the
process of conversion of complex
organic compounds like protein
into ammonia in the presence of
ammonifying bacteria.
Proteins o Amino acids o
Organic acids o Ammonia
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General Science
Nitrification:
Ammonia
is
rapidly converted first to nitrite
and then nitrates by the process
of nitrification. Nitrification
is brought about by nitrifying
bacteria such as Nitrosomonas
and Nitrobacter.
Denitrification: It is the process
of conversion of nitrate salts
present in the soil and water to
gaseous nitrogen which escapes
into atmosphere. It takes place
with the help of bacteria called
Pseudomonas.
Plant Growth Regulators

Some chemical molecules secreted
by the plants which affect the growth
of the plant known as Plant growth
regulators.
x Auxin: It controls division in the
vascular cambium and xylem
differentiation. It Promotes
flowering. It also causes the

phenomenon of apical dominance.
Gibberellines: It causes an
increase in length of axis of
the plant. It delay senescence
and help in induction of seed
germination.
Cytokinins: It promotes cell
division and growth of lateral
branches by inhibiting apical
dominance. It also promotes
formation of adventitious shoot.
Ethylene: It is synthesized in the
tissue undergoing senescence
and ripening of fruits. It
promtes in ripening of fruits
and accelerate the abscission of
flower.
Abscisic acid: It causes ageing
and abscission of leaves and
fruits. It also regulates bud and
seed dormancy.
HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY
Digestion of Food
Name of the
Name of the
enzymes
Digestive
juice
Saliva
Ptyalin (Salivary
amylase)
Pancreatic
Amylopsin
iuice
(pancreatic amylase)
Intestinal
Sucrase (invertase),
juice
Maltase, Lactase
Substrate
Starch
Starch,
Glycogen
Sucrose;
Maltose,
Lactose
Gastric Juice Pepsin, Rennin
Proteins,
Casein
Pancreatic
Trypsin,
Proteins,
Juice
Chymotrypsin,
Proteins
Carboxyl peptidases Peptides
Intestinal
Amino peptidase,
Peptides
juice
Dipeptidase
End product
Maltose
Maltose and Glucose
Glucose and fructose, Glucose,
Glucose and galactose
Proteoses and peptones,
Calcium caseinate
Proteoses and peptides
Peptides Amino acid.
Amino acids, Amino acids
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General Science
Vitamin required by the body

Vitamin
B1
Chemical
Function in
Deficiency
Name
Body
Disease
Thiamine
Part of
Beri-beri:
pyrophosphate coenzyme for nerve and heart
respiration
disorders
B2
Riboflavin
B12
Cyanocobalamin
B5
Nicotinic
acid (niacin)
Ascorbic acid
Retinol
Part of
coenzyme
FAD
needed for
respiration
Coenzyme
needed for
making red
blood cells,
bone, blood
and nerve
changes
Part of
coenzymes
NAD,
NADP used
in respiration
Not precisely
known
Not fully
known but
forms part
of visual
pigment,
rhodopsin
Sources
Found in whole
grain cereals,
legumes, beans,
nuts, brewers
yeast, wheat
germ, pork,
ham, and liver.
Ariboflavinosis: Milk, yogurt,
skin and eye
other dairy,
disorders
meat, leafy
greens, whole
grains.
Pernicious
Animal
anaemia
products (meat,
fish, poultry,
shellfish, eggs,
cheese, milk).
Pellagra: skin,
gut and nerve
disorders
Scurvy:
degeneration of
skin teeth and
blood vessels.
Xeropthalmia:
dry eyes
Widespread in
foods.
Milk, eggs,
meat, fish liver
oilsz: Green
leafy vegetables
- kale, spinach,
broccoli Yellow
Vegetables carrots, sweet
potatoes
Fruits- mango,
papaya and
apricot
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General Science
Cholecalciferol Stimulates
Rickets: bone
calcium
deformity
absorption
by small
intestine,
needed for
proper bone
growth
Tocopherol
Not precisely Infertility
known
Phylloquinone Involved
in blood
clotting
Possible
haemorrage
Minerals
Source
Sodium (Na) Table salt large amounts is
present in processed foods,
small amounts in milk, breads,
vegetables, and meats
Formed in skin
when exposed
to sunlight.
Also found in
dairy products,
egg yolk, fish
liver oils,
oysters, yeast.
Found
primarily in
plant oils,
green, leafy
vegetables,
wheat germ,
whole grains,
egg yolk, nuts,
seeds, and liver.
Bacterial
synthesis in the
digestive tract.
Diet generally
supplies
remaining
need.
Green, leafy
vegetables,
cabbage-type
vegetables and
milk
Function
Needed
for
proper
fluid
balance,
nerve
transmission, and muscle
contraction
Chloride
Table salt, large amounts is Needed for proper fluid

present in processed foods, small balance, stomach acid
amounts in milk, meats, breads,
and vegetables
Potassium
Meats, milk, fresh fruits and Needed

for
proper
vegetables, whole grains, legumes fluid
balance,
nerve
transmission, and muscle
contraction
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General Science
Calcium
Milk and milk products, canned

fish with bones (salmon,
sardines), fortified tofu and
fortified soy milk, greens
(broccoli,
mustard
green),
legumes
Phosphorus Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk,

processed foods
Magnesium Nuts and seeds; legumes, leafy,

green vegetables, seafood, and
chocolate
Sulfur
Occurs in foods as part of

protein, meats, poultry, fish,
eggs, milk, legumes, nuts
Iron
Organ meats; red meats, fish,

poultry, shellfish (especially
clams), egg yolks, legumes; dried
fruits dark, leafy greens, ironenriched breads and cereals, and
fortified cereals
Seafood, foods grown in iodinerich soil, iodized salt, bread,
dairy products
Iodine
Important for healthy bones

and teeth, helps muscles
relax and contract, important
in nerve functioning, blood
clotting, blood pressure
regulation, immune system
health
Important for healthy
bones and teeth, found
in every cell, part of the
system that maintains acidbase balance
Found in bones, needed
for
making
protein,
muscle contraction, nerve
transmission,
immune
system health
Found in protein molecules
Part of
a molecule
hemoglobin found in red
blood cells that carries
oxygen in the body, needed
for energy metabolism
Found in thyroid hormone,
which
helps
regulate
growth, development, and
metabolism
Inorganic Elements in the Human Diet

Element
Calcium
Common
ions
Ca2+
Phosphorus H2PO4
Potassium
Sodium
Chlorine
K+
Na+
CI
Functions in human body

Calcium ions are needed for stability of cell
membranes, as cofactors for some enzymes and
are involved in muscle contraction and blood
clotting.
Bones component of many organic molecules
like DNA, RNA and ATP.
These ions are important in determining the
balance of electrical charges in body fluids.
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General Science
Iron
Fe2+, Fe3+
Iodine
Copper
Manganes
Zinc
I
Cu2+
Mn2+
Zn2+
Component of haemoglobin and cytochrome

molecules.
Component of hormone thyroxin.
Trace elements as enzyme cofactors, for example,
Cu2+ is co-factor for cytochrome oxidase.
Marasmus is produced by a
simultaneous deficiency of proteins
and calories. In Marasmus, protein
deficiency impairs growth and
replacement of tissue proteins;
extreme emaciation of the body
and thinning of limbs results,
the skin becomes dry, thin and
wrinkled. Growth rate and body
weight decline considerably.
Kwashiorkar is produced by
protein deficiency unaccompanied by calorie deficiency. Like
marasmus, kwashiorkor shows
wasting of muscles, thinning
of limbs, failure of growth and
brain development.
Human Respiratory System

x
Human respiratory system consists

of external nostrils, nasal cavity,
nasopharynx, larynx, trachea,
bronchiole and lungs.
Transport of gases
x
97% of oxygen is transported

from the lungs to the tissues in
combination with haemoglobin
(Hb + O2
HbO2,
oxyhaemoglobin). 3% is transported
in dissolved condition by the
plasma.
There are three ways of

transport of CO2.
x
x
5%7% (approximately) of CO2

is transported, being dissolved in
the plasma of blood.
CO2 react with the water to
form carbonic acid (H2CO3) by
the enzyme carbonic anhydrase
(present in RBC).
CO2 reacts with amine radicals
(NH2) of haemoglobin molecule
and forms a carbamino
haemoglobin (HbCO2) molecule.
Nearly 23% of CO2 is transported
through this mode.
Circulatory Pathways
nasal cavity
larynx
lobes
of lung
windpipe
(trachea)
bronchial tree
alveoli are in
here
The circulatory patterns are of two

types
x Open circulatory system is
present in arthropods and
molluscs in which blood pumped
by the heart passes through large
vessels into open spaces or body
cavities called sinuses. Annelids
and chordates have a closed
circulatory system in which
the blood pumped by the heart
is always circulated through
a closed network of blood
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General Science
vessels. All vertebrates possess
a muscular chambered heart.
Fishes have a 2-chambered
heart with an atrium and a
ventricle. Amphibians and the
reptiles
(except
crocodiles)
have a 3-chambered heart with
two atria and a single ventricle,
whereas crocodiles, birds and
mammals possess a 4-chambered
heart with two artia and two
ventricles.
Heart beat and pulse

x
The human heart beats at the

rate of about 72-80 per minute in
the resting condition.
Electrocardiograph
x
x
ECG is the graphic record of

electronic current produced by
the excitation of cardiac muscles.
A normal electrocardiogram
is composed of a p wave, QRS
complex and T wave. P wave
indicate the depolarisation of the
atria. QRS complex expresses
the ventricular depolarisation. T

wave indicate an repolarisation
of ventrcle.
Excretion
x
The process of
excreting
ammonia is -Ammonotelism.
kidney plays a minor role in the
elimination of ammonia e.g.,
teleost fishes, tadpoles, aquatic soft
bodied invertebrates. Organism
undergoing ammonotelism are
called ammonotelic.
The process of excreting urea
is - Ureotelism. Examples are
mammals, many terrestrial adult
amphibians and cartilaginous
fishes (shark).
The process of elimination of uric
acid is Uricotelism Examples are
land snails, insects, birds and many
reptiles.
Each kidney has nearly one
million complex tubular structures
called nephrons, which are the
functional units of kidney. These
filter the blood to produce urine.
Skeletal System
Human Skeleton (comprising 206 bones)
divided into
Axial Skeleton
made up of
Appendicular Skeleton
made up of
Ribs
Vertebral Sternum
Girdles
Limbs
column
Axial Skeleton : Skeleton which x Facial bones (14 in number) :
occurs in the mid axial or longitudinal
Nasal-2; Maxillae - 2; Zygomatic
part of the body.
-2; Lacrymals-2; Mandibles - 1;
(i) Skull is made up of 29 bones. It
Inferior turbinals-2; Vomer-1;
is composed of
Palatines-2. Hyoid Tongue bone-1
x Cranium (8 bones) : Frontal -1;
x
Ear ossicles (6 bones) : Malleus
Parietal-2; Occipital-1; Temporal
-2; Incus - 2; Stapes - 2.
- 2; Sphenoid - 1; Ethmoid - 1.
Skull
B-400
(ii) Vertebral column : 33 in babies,

26 in adults. Grouped into 5
categories :
x Cervical-7;
Thoracic-12;
Lumber-5; Sacral - 5; Coccygeal
- 4 (fused in adults).
(iii) Sternum : Composed of 3 parts
o Manubrium, body of sternum
and xiphoid process .
(iv) Ribs : They are twelve pairs. First
seven pairs are true ribs. The 8th,
9th and 10th ribs are called false
ribs or vertebrochondrial ribs.
The last 11th and 12th pairs are
called floating ribs.
General Science
Fore limbs : Humerus (1); RadiusUlna (2); Carpals (8); Metacarpals
(5); Phalanges (14); Phalanges
formula = 2, 3, 3, 3,
(iii) Hind limbs : Femur (1); TibiaFibula (2); Patella (1); Tarsals (7);
Metatarsals (5); Phalanges (14).
Joints
x
A joint is a location at which

two bones make contact and
is essential for all types of
movements, involving the bony
parts of the body.
Synovial joints - Movable joints:
They are characterised by the
presence of a closed space or cavity
between the bones.
x This kind of joint are classified
into six major categories.
Plane (gliding joint) : Present
between carpals. Only sliding
motion in all direction is
allowed.
Hinge joint : Present between
Knee joint
Pivot joint : Present between
atlas and axis
Saddle joint : Present between
carpal and metacarpal
Ball and Socket joint : Present
between humerus and pectoral
girdle.
Neural Control and

Coordination
Appendicular Skeleton : Present
laterally or attached to the axial
skeleton.
(i) Girdles : 2 types - pectoral and
pelvic.
Pectoral girdle : made of two
parts - clavicle and scapula.
Pelvic girdle : made of three
bones - ilium, pubis and ischium.
(ii) Limb bones : Hind limbs and fore
limbs - both made up of 30 bones
each.
The neural sysem is the control

system of the body which
consists of highly specialized
cells called neurons.
x A neuron consists of main cell
body and cytoplasmic processes
arising from it.
The human brain is divisible into
three parts:
x Forebrain : It comprises the
olfactory lobes, cerebrum and
diencephalon.
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General Science
Cerebrum is the largest and

complex part. It consists of
the left and right hemispheres
connected by a bundle of
myelinated fibres, called corpus
callosum. The outer layer of the
cerebrum is called the cortex.
Diencephalon : The main
parts of the diencephalon are
epithalamus, thalamus and
hypothalamus.
The hypothalamus is the highest
centre of autonomic nervous
system. It governs emotional
reactions and exercise control
over sleep mechanism.
Midbrain : It is formed of corpora
quadrigemina
and
cerebral
peduncles. Cerebral penduncles
are bundles of fibres connecting
the cerebral cortex with other parts

of brain and spinal cord.
Hind brain : It comprises of :
Cerebellum : It controls the
balance and posture of the body.
Pons varolii - The pons is
concered with maintenance of
normal rhythm of respiration.
Medulla oblongata - Medullary
centres (reflex centres) are
present for controlling the
functions of important organs,
e.g., cardiac centres (heart),
respiratory centre, vasomotor
centre (for regulating diameter
of blood vessels) and reflex
centres
(for
swallowing,
vomiting, peristalsis, secretion
and activity of alimentary canal,
salivation, coughing etc.)
Chemical Coordination in Animal (Hormones)

Endocrine Gland
Thyroid
Parathyroid
Adrenal gland
(medulla)
Adrenal cortex
Hypothalamus
Hormone
Thyroxine (T4) and
Triiodothyronine (T3)
Calcitonin
Principal action
Maintains calcium level
normal in the body.
Increases rate of
metabolism in the body.
Parathormone (PTH) Increases plasma
calcium
Adrenaline and
Increases heart beat,
Noradrenaline
blood sugar and also
constricts blood vessel
Mineralocorticoids Increases reabsorption
(aldosterone)
of sodium and
excertion of potassium
Glucocorticoids
Increases blood
(cortisol)
sugar and affects
carbohydrate, fat and
protein metabolism
ARH
Regulates corticotropin
secretion
TRH
Thyrotropin secretion
SRH
Stimulates secretion of
gonadotropins
(Growth hormone
Regulates secretion of
releaing factor)
prolactin
Disorders
Cretinism,
myxoedema goiter
Parathyroid tetany
osteoporosis
Addisons disease
Adrenal virilism
Cushings
syndrome
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General Science
(Prolactir releasing
hormone) and
(Prolactin inhibitory
hormone)
Pituitary gland
anterior lobe
Prolactin
Pituitary gland
anterior
lobe
Intermediate
lobe
Posterior lobe
(Follicle stimulating
hormone)
(Lutemizing
hormone)
(Thyroid stimulating
hormone)
Adrenocorticotropic
hormone
Melanocyte
stimulating hormone
Oxytocin
Vasopressin
(ADH)
Control secretion of
MSH
Stimulates general
growth
Pituitary dwarfism,
gigantism,
Acromegaly
Stimulates milk
production and secretion
Stimulates ovarian follicle
and spermatogenesis
Stimulates corpus luteum
and ovulation in females
and interstitial cell in
males
Stimulates thyroid gland
to secrete hormones
Stimulates adrenal cortex
to secrete glucocorticoids
Growth and development
of melanocyte
Contraction of uterine
muscles and mammary
gland cells
Promotes reabsorption Diabetes insipidus
of water from collecting
ducts of kidneys
DIVERSITY IN LIVING ORGANISM

x
x
Biodiversity refers number and types of wide variety of plants and

animals present on earth.
In 1773, Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus formulated the system of
binomial nomenclature in his book Species plantarum. In binomial
system, each name is expressed in two parts i.e., generic name and
specific name.
Taxonomy is the branch of biology that deals with the framing of
laws and principles for classifying the organisms on the basis of their
characteristics and evolutionary relationships.
The hierarchial system of classification was introduced by Linnaeus.
Kingdom o Phylum or Division o Class oOrderoFamily o Genus
o Species
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General Science
Basic Features of Whittakers Five Kingdoms

Kingdom
Cellular
Organisation
1. Monera (All Unicellular,
Prokaryotes) without
nucleus or
membranous
organelle.
2. Protista
Unicellular,
(Protozoans, eukaryote with
unicellular
nucleus and
algae)
membranous
organelles.
Multicellular
3. Fungi
(Multicellular eukaryote
decomposers) coenocytic,
no plastids,
cells wall of
cellulose,
chitin.
4. Plantae
Multicellular,
(All plants)
higher
organisation
eukaryotes,
cellulosic cell
wall, plastids
present.
5. Animalia
Multicellular,
(All animals) higher
organization,
eukaryotes
without cell
wall and
chlorophyll.
Movement
By flagella
(tubulin-dynein
system)
Nutrition
Reproduction
Absorptive or Asexual
photosynthetic
Both sexual
By flagella, cillia, Absorptive,
photosynthetic and asexual
pseudopodia
& holozoic
and mucilage
propulsion
Non-motile
Heterotrophic Asexual and

(saprophytic/ sexual both
parasitic)
Non-motile
Autotrophic or Asexual and

photosynthetic sexual both
Heterotrophic Both sexual

Highly motile
and asexual
(holozoic or
with all type of
but in higher
motile machinery saprozoic)
forms only
sexual
Plant Kingdom
DIVISIONS OF ALGAE AND THEIR MAIN CHARACTERISTICS
Classes
Name
Common
Chlorophyceae Green
algae
Major
Pigments
Food
Chlorophyll
a, b
Stored
Starch
Cell Wall Flagellar

Habitat
Number
and
Position of
Insertions
Cellulose 2-8, equal, Fresh
apical
water,
brackish
and salt
water.
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Phaeophyceae Brown
algae
General Science
Chlorophyll
a, c,
fucoxanthin
Mannitol, Cellulose 2, unequal, Fresh

laminarin and algin lateral
water
(rare),
brackish
water, salt
water
Rhodophyceae Red algae Chlorophyll Floridean Cellulose Absent
Fresh
a, d,
starch
water
(some),
phycoerythrin
brackish
water,
salt water
(most)
Bryophytes
x
Bryophytes are also called

amphibians of the plant
kingdom because these plants
can live in soil but are dependent
on water for sexual reproduction.
They usually occur in damp,
humid and shaded localities.
Species of Sphagnum, a moss,
provide peat that have long been
used as fuel, and because of their
capacity to hold water as packing
material for trans-shipment of
living material.
Angiosperms (Flowering Plants)

x
Pteridophytes
x
Evolutionarily, they are the

first terrestrial plants to possess
vascular tissues xylem and
phloem.
The main plant body is a
sporophyte which is differentiated
into true root, stem and leaves.
These organs possess welldifferentiated vascular tissues.
Examples are Psilotum, Equisetum,
Dryopteris, Marsilea, etc.
Gymnosperms
x
Gymnosperms are plants which

bear naked seeds i.e., the ovules
and the seeds that develop from
these ovules after fertilization
are not enclosed in fruit wall.
Roots in some genera have

fungal association in the form
of mycorrhiza (Pinus), while
in some other (Cycas) small
specialised roots called coralloid
roots are associated with N2
fixing cyanobacteria.
Angiosperms are seed bearing,

flowering vascular plants in
which seeds are enclosed in
fruits.
The flower is the most
characteristic structure of the
angiosperms. The male sex
organ in a flower is the stamen.
Each stamen consists of a
slender filament with an anther
at the tip. The anthers, following
meiosis, produce pollen grains.
The female sex organ in a flower
is the pistil or the carpel. Pistil
consists of an ovary enclosing
one to many ovules. Within
ovules are present highly reduced
female gametophytes termed
embryo sacs.
Each embryo-sac has a sevencelled egg apparatus one
egg cell and two synergids,
three antipodal cells and two
polar nuclei. The polar nuclei
eventually fuse to produce a
diploid secondary nucleus.
B-405
General Science
x
Pollen grain, after dispersal from

the anthers, are carried by wind
or various other agencies to the
stigma of a pistil. This is termed
as pollination.
The pollen tubes enter the
embryo-sac where two male
gametes are discharged. One
of the male gametes fuses with
the egg cell to form a zygote
(syngamy). The other male
gamete fuses with the diploid
secondary nucleus to produce
the triploid primary endosperm
nucleus (PEN). Because of the
involvement of two fusions,
this event is termed as double
fertilisation, and event unique
to angiosperms.
Animal Kingdom
x
Animals are the most diverse

groups of organisms. Multicellular,
heterotrophs characterised by
mobility, sensory and nervous
systems.
Phylum-Ctenophora
x
x
Phylum-Platyhelminthes
x
Sponges are aquatic, mostly

marine, solitary or colonial and
sessile.
Examples of some sponges are :
Sycon (scypha), Spongilla (fresh
water sponge) and Euspongia
(bath sponge).
x
x
All are aquatic and are mostly

marine (exception-Hydra are
found in fresh-water), solitary
or colonial, sessile, or freeswimming
and
radially
symmetrical animals.
Example-Physalia (Portuguese
man of war), Adamsia (Sea
anemone),
Pennatula
(Seapen), Gorgonia (Sea-fan) and
Meandrina (Brain coral).
They may be free-living, aquatic

and terrestrial or parasitic in
plants and animals.
Examples: Ascaris (Round worm),
Wuchereria (filarial worm), Ancylostoma
(Hook worm), Enterobius (Pin worm).
Phylum-Annelida
x
x
It is characterised by metameric
segmentation forming ring like
segments.
Example:
Neries,
Pheretima
(Earthworm) and Hirudinaria
(Blood sucking leech).
Phylum-Arthropoda
x
Phylum-Coelenterata (Cnidaria)
x
These are mostly endoparasites,

bilateral symmetrical, triploblastic
and acoelomate animals with
organ level of organisation.
Examples Taenia (Tape worm),
Fasciola (liver fluke).
Phylum-Aschelminthes
Phylum-Porifera
x
These are diploblastic, radial

symmetrical animals with tissue
level of organization.
ExamplesHormiphora (sea walnut),
Pleurobranchia (sea gooseberry),
Cestum (venus girdle), Beroe.
They are bilateral symmetry,

triploblastic animals, which
have organ-system level of
organisation.
Example: Apis (Honey bee),
Bombyx (Silkworm), Laccifer (Lac
insect).
Phylum-Mollusca
x
They are aquatic (marine or

fresh water), or terrestrial
having an organ-system level of
organisation.
Ex. Pila, Octopus (devil fish),
Loligo (sea squid).
B-406
General Science
Phylum-Echinodermata
Class : Osteichthyes
x
x
All existing echinoderms are

marine, generally live at sea
bottom.
Ex. Asterias (star fish), Cucumaria
(commonly called as sea
cucumber), Antedon (water lily
or feather star).
Phylum-Hemichordata
x
x
They are bilaterally symmetrical,

triploblastic, and entrocoelous
animals.
Ex. Balanoglossus (acorn worm or
tongue worm), Saccoglossus.
Phylum-Chordata
x
The fundamental four characters

of phylum chordata are presence
of notochord, a dorsal hollow
nerve cord, paired pharyngeal
gill slits and post anal tail either
in the embryonic or adult stage.
Examples: Herdmania (sea squirt),
Branchiostoma.
Superclass : Tetrapoda (Bear

Limbs)
Class : Amphibia
x Adapted for both water and land
life.
x They are oviparous and
development indirect through
distinct larval stage called tadpole.
Exambles : Bufo (Toad), Rana
(Frog), Hyla (Tree frog), Salamandra
(Salamander), Ichthyophis (Limbless
amphibia).
Class: Reptilia
x
x
Subphylum vertebrata is
divided into two sections:
Section 1 Agnatha (The jawless
vertebrates)
Class : Cyclostomata
x Mouth jawless suctorial and
round.
x All
living
members
are
ectoparasites on some fishes.
x Ex. Petromyzon (lamprey), Myxine
(hag fish).
Section 2 Gnathostomata (The

jawed vertebrates)
6XSHUFODVV3LVFHV%HDUQV
Class : Chondrichthyes
x They have a cartilagenous skeleton.
x Some of them possess electric
organs e.g. Torpedo.
x Examples: Scoliodon (Dog fish),
Trygon (Sting ray).
They have a bony skeleton.

Examples : Marine Exocoetus
(Flying fish), Hippocampus (Sea
horse), Lophius (Angler fish), Fresh
water fishes Labeo (Rohu), Catla
(Katla).
The class name refers to their

creeping or crawling mode of
locomotion.
They are oviparous ; Development
direct.
Examples: Crocodilus (Crocodile),
Bangarus (Krait)
Class: Aves
x
x
Birds are bipedal feathered

animals.
Endoskeleton is fully ossified
(bony) and the long bones are
hollow with air cavities (pneumatic).
Examples : Corvus (crow), Pavo
(Peacock).
Class: Mammalia
x
x
These are warm blooded

(homiothermous) animals having
hair and mammary glands.
They are viviparous with few
exceptions and development is
direct.
Example
:
Oviparous
Tachyglossus = Echidna (spiny

Anteater). Viviparous Pteropus
(Flying fox), Camelus (Camel),
Macaca (Monkey).
B-407
General Science
DISEASE AND DEFENCE MECHNANISM

Pratozoan diseases
Disease
1. Malaria
2. Amoebiasis
Pathogen
Plasmodium
Enta moeba
histolylica
Giardia Lambia
Trypanosoma
3. Giardiasis
4. Sleeping
Sickness
5. Leshmanis
Leishmania
6. Trichomoniasis Trichomonas
Vaginalis
Fungal diseases
Disease
1. Aspergillosis
Pathogen
Aspergillus
fumigatuo
2. Candidiasis
Candida albicens
3. Ringworm
Trichoplyton
4. Blastomycosis Blasto myces
dermatitidis
5. Sporotnichosis Sporothrix
Schenckii
Bacteria Diseases
Disease
Dysentery
Plague
Diphtheria
Pathogen
Shigella
Pasteurellapestis
Corynebacterium
diphtheriae
Cholera
Tuberculosis
Vibrio cholerae
Mycobacterium
tuberculosis
Tetanus
Clostridium tetani
Whooping cough Bordetella pertussis
Leprosy
Mycobacterium
leprae
Anthrax
Bacillus anthrasis
Weils disease
Leptospira
Viral Diseases
Disease
Rabies
Dengue
Influenza
Measles
German measles
Mumps
Chicken pox
Small pox
Polio
Chikungunya
Avian flu
Pathogen
Rabies virus
Dengue virus
Influenza virus
Rubeola virus
Rubella virus
Mumps virus
Varicella zoster
Variola virus
Polio virus
Chikungunya
(CHIK) Virus
H5N1 virus
H1N1(Swine flu) H1N1 virus
6HOHFWQXWULHQWGHFLHQF\GLVHDVHV
Vitamin/
Diseases
Symptoms
nutrients
Vitamin A xerophthalmia blindness from chronic
eye infections, poor
growth, dryness and
keratinization of
epithelial tissues
Vitamin D rickets
weakened bones,
bowed legs, other bone
deformities
Food Sources
liver, fortified milk,
sweet potatoes,
spinach, greens, carrots,
cantaloupe, apricots
fortified milk, fish oils,
sun exposure
B-408
General Science
Thiamin
beriberi
Niacin
pellagra
nerve degeneration,
altered muscle
coordination,
cardiovascular
problems
diarrhoea, skin
inflammation,
dementia
Vitamin C scurvy
Iron
Iodine
delayed wound
healing, internal
bleeding, abnormal
formation of bones
and teeth
iron-deficiency decreased work
anemia
output, reduced
growth, increased
health risk in
pregnancy
goitre
enlarged thyroid
gland, poor growth
in infancy and
childhood, possible
mental retardation,
cretinism
Immunity
x
The term immunity refers to the

specific resistance exhibited by
the host towards infections by
micro-organisms
(pathogens)
and their products.
Innate or Natural Immunity
x Innate immunity is developed
in an individual without having
the disease or immunization,
e.g., recreation of sweat glands
contain
certain
chemical
substances which prevent the
entry of micro-organisms.
x It is present from birth.
x It is the general defence of body
including the following four
mechanism
(i) Phagocytosis of invaders by
leucocytes and macrophages
(called cellular barrier).
pork, whole and

enriched grains, dried
beans, sunflower seeds
mushrooms, bran, tuna,
chicken, beef, peanuts,
whole and enriched
grains
citrus fruits,
strawberries, broccoli
meat, spinach, seafood,

broccoli, peas, bran,
whole-grain and
enriched breads
iodized salt, saltwater
fish
(ii) Resistance of skin to invading

micro-organisms (called physical
barrier).
(iii) Destruction of micro-organisms
swallowed with food by the HCl
of gastric juice & by digestive
enzymes and tear from eye
(called physiological barriers).
(iv) Virus infected cells secrete proteins
(called interferons) which protect
non-infected cells from further
viral infection (cytokine barriers)
Acquired Immunity
x It is a third line defence and
developed by an animal in
response to a disease caused by
infections of microbes.
x The resistance against infectious
disease that an individual
acquires during life is known as
acquired immunity.
General Science
Antibody Mediated Immunity

x
B cells produce specialized

proteins
called
antibodies
(immunoglobulin) which are
glycoproteins.
&ODVVLFDWLRQRI$QWLERGLHV
(a) Ig A Protects from inhaled or
ingested pathogens.
(b) Ig D Present on lymphocyte
surface as receptors, activation
of B cells.
(c) Ig E Mediator in allergic
response.
(d) Ig G Stimulation of phagocytes
and complement system, passive
immunity to foetus.
(e) Ig M Activation of B cells.
MERS : Middle East Respiratory
Syndrome (MERS) is new viral
disease related to respiratory illness.
It has been reported to World Health
Organization (WHO) since 2012,
first reported in Saudi Arabia. To
date most of the affected countries
is Middle East include Egypt, Iran,
Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE.
People affected with MERS-CoV
developed severe acute respiratory
illness including fever, cough and
shortness of breath.
SARS : Severe Acute Respiratory
Syndrome (SARS) is one of the
severe and readily transmissible new
disease emerged in the 21st Century.
SARS is caused by coronavirus
called, SARS-associated coronavirus
(SARS-CoV). First time this disease
was reported in November 2002
in Guangdong province, China.
In general SARS begins with high
fever headache an overall feeling of
discomfort, and body aches. Some
people also have mild respiratory
symptoms at the outset.
B-409
Ebola: Ebola hemorrhagic fever

(Ebola HF) is a severe, often-fatal
disease in humans and nonhuman
primates (monkeys, gorillas, and
chimpanzees). The disease is caused
by infection with Ebola virus,
named after the Ebola River found
in Democratic Republic of Congo
(DRC). Ebola is spread through
direct contact (through broken skin
or unprotected mucous membranes
in, for example, the eyes, nose, or
mouth). The symptoms appears
for Ebola HF from 2 to 21 days.
Symptoms are characterized by
fever, headache, joint and muscle
aches, sore throat, and weakness,
followed by diarrhea, vomiting, and
stomach pain.
AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome (AIDS) is caused by Human
Deficiency Virus (HIV) which destroys
the CD4 Cells that are essential for
the body immune symptoms. HIV
is transmitted (spread) through the
blood, semen, genital fluids, or breast
milk of a person infected with HIV.
Unprotected sex and sharing of drug
injection equipment with the person
infected with HIV are the most
common ways of HIV transmission.
It takes many years to develop the
HIV symptoms but the HIV infected
person can spread the virus at any
stage of HIV infection. 1st December
is also remembered as World AIDS
day globally people unite together to
fight against HIV showing support to
the people infected with HIV.
Rabies: Rabies is a viral disease
which is endemic in most African
and Asian countries and it affects
the central nervous system of warm
blooded animals, including human.
This fatal zoonotic viral disease
transmitted to human through
contact (mainly bites and scratches)
B-410
with infected animals both domestic

and wild. Clinical signs of rabies
in animals will vary depending
on the effect of the virus on the
brain. Typical signs include sudden
behavioral changes and progressive
paralysis leading to death.
Dengue: Dengue fever occurs
through 1 to 4 types of dengue virus.
It is spread by the bite of an infected
dengue mosquito (Aedes aegypti).
Dengue fever is more commonly
seen in older children and adult. It
is characterized by high fever lasting
3-7 days frontal headache pain
behind the eyes and muscle and joint
pain. There is no specific treatment
for Dengue fever till now.
Chikungunya: Chikungunya fever
(CF) is a viral illness caused by an
arbovirus transmitted by the Aedes
mosquitoes. Chikungunya disease
does not often result in death, but
the symptoms can be severe and
disabling. Symptoms appear after
3-7 days after infected by the virus.
Most common symptom is fever and
joint pain. Other symptoms may
include headache, muscle pain, joint
swelling, or rash.
Common Heart diseases

x
Coronary artery disease or

Arthrosclerosis: In this disorder
the deposition of calcium, fat,
cholesterol and fibrous tissue
occur in coronary arteries which
makes the lumen of arteries
narrower and thereby affect the
blood supply.
Angina (angina pectoris): Angina
is an acute chest pain due to oxygen
deficiency to heart muscles. It
occurs due to oxygen deficiency
to heart muscles. It occurs due to
improper blood flow. It is common
General Science
among middle-aged and elderly

person.
Heart Failure (congestive heart
failure): It is the condition in
which heart is not pumping
blood enough to meet the need
of the body. Congestion of the
lung is the main symptom.
Arteriosclerosis: It is the state
of hardening of arteries and
arterioles due to thickening of
the fibrous tissue and consequent
loss of elasticity. It leads to
hypertension.
Common Lung diseases

x
Asthma: It is a disease caused

due to an allergic reaction to
foreign substances that affect the
respiratory tract. In people with
asthma, the walls of these airways
become inflamed (swollen)
and oversensitive. The airways
overreact to things like smoke,
air pollution, mold, and many
chemical sprays. Bronchioles
can constrict (narrow) because
of muscle spasms. Drugs called
bronchodilators
(inhalers).
These devices help dilate (open
up) the bronchioles.
Bronchitis (Inflammation of
the Bronchi): A condition where
the bronchi and bronchioles
get inflamed and their cavities
become narrow so that air cannot
pass in and out of lungs easily.
The bronchial pathway gets
blocked with the accumulation
of mucus on the wall of bronchi
due to which walls inflammation
of the wall occur. Bronchitis
occurs due to cough and cold
smoking and exposure to air
pollutant like carbon monoxide.
B-411
General Science
Common Brain diseases

x
Epilepsy: Epilepsy is a condition

where a person has recurrent
seizures, abnormal discharge of
electrical activity in the brain cells
which may give rise to abnormal
behavior such as involuntary
muscle movements, unusual
perceptions and disturbed level
of consciousness. Epilepsy can
occur due to brain injury, brain
tumor, chemical abnormalities
and alcohol or drug effects.
Loss of Consciousness: Faintness
includes the sensation of dizziness
lightheadedness and weakness.
The majority of attack is due to
altered reflex affecting cardiac rate,
vascular tone and some time due to
severe cardiac disturbances.
Cancer : Cancer is a complex genetical

disease which occurs due to the
environmental factors. Cancer causing
agent (carcinogen) may be present in
food and water, in air in sunlight and
in chemicals. Since epithelial cells
cover our body surface and internal
organs also like respiratory organ
and alimentary tract which are more
exposed to the carcinogens and more
than 90% of cancer occur in epithelia.
Tumors are of two main types benign
and malignant. Benign tumors are
slow growing and are located at a
place and compress the surrounding
tissue by their expensive mass of cells.
Whereas malignant tumors are rapidly
growing, invading surrounding tissue
and most significantly colonizing
the distant organ. Five common
types of cancer in India are breast
cancer, stomach cancer, oral cancer
and cervical cancer. Breast cancer is
the most common malignancy type
diagnosed in women in developed

countries and the second most
common type diagnosed in developing
countries. In 2003, Indian Council of
Medical Research (ICMR) reported
that oral cancer is very common in
India. There has been great increase
in oral sub-mucous fibrosis especially
in youngsters.
Rotavirus: Rotavirus is a double
stranded RNA belongs to the family
of Reoviridae. Rotavirus was first
time identified as a cause of diarrhea
in 1973. Virus get enter through
mouth and its replication occur in
the villous epithelium of the small
intestine. The incubation period for
rotavirus diarrhea is short, usually
less than 48 hours. The confirmation
of rotavirus infection is detection of
rotavirus antigen in stool by enzymelinked immunoassay (EIA). There are
two live oral Rotavirus vaccine RV5
(RotaTeq) and RV1 (Rotarix).
Various Transplantation
Transplantation of Organ: Organ
transplantation is technique in which
surgical removal of an organ or tissue
from donor to the recipient has been
done. Most donated organs and tissues
are from people who have died but
living person can also donate the
organ. Newborns as well as senior
citizens have been organ donors.
Skull transplantation: Doctor of
US has successfully performed the
worlds first partial scalp and skull
transplantation of James Boysen.
He also had the kidney and pancreas
transplantation at the same time.
Boyson was suffering from the
leiomyosarcoma a rare form of cancer
B-412
that affects the smooth muscles of his

scalp. Radiation therapy for the cancer
destroyed part of his head, immune
suppression drugs kept his body from
repairing the damage. Texas doctors
have done the worlds first partial skull
and scalp transplant to make him free
from cancer treatment. More than
50 doctors assisted or supported the
surgery, including transplant surgeon,
plastic surgeon, neurosurgeon and an
anesthesiologist. This surgery is very
complex as surgeons had to transplant
the tissues utilizing microsurgery.
Kidney transplantation: Kidney

transplantation is the treatment
preferred for the patients who have
developing end-stage renal disease
or undergoing, chronic dialysis
therapy. Large number of patients
of kidney failure and high success
rates of transplantation is a result
of ongoing research studies to
advance transplantation technique.
A successful kidney transplant may
improve the patient blood count and
energy level. It may also improve the
bone strength, growth, and appetite.
But still some risk are there as of blood
transfusions, immunosupressions and
wound healing.
Heart transplantation: In 1968,
Dr. P. K. Sen carried out first heart
transplantation in India. In Mumbai
after 47 years first successful heart
transplantation was done by Dr.
General Science
Anvay Mulay. Recipient was 22 yrs
who suffered a stroke because of
cardiomayopathy and later his heart
got failure. Donor was 42 year old
woman declared brain dead in Pune
after brain stroke. Donated organ
flown from Pune was rushed 20 km
to a Mulund hospital along a green
corridor created during peak hours by
the police in as little as one-fifth of
the usual time. The operation took
five hours and now the patients new
heart is beating and his kidney and
liver that had got affected in the last
few months after heart failure showed
the signs of normalcy.
Liver
transplantation:
Liver
transplantation is a very effective
form of treatment for chronic liver
disease as well as for acute liver failure.
Living Related Liver Transplantation
(LRLT) is an important advancement
in liver transplantation. Generally liver
transplantation is done in Cholestatic
disorders and chronic parenchymal
diseases. There are three types of
liver transplantation viz., coventional
liver transplantation, expanded
criteria donor and living donor liver
transplantation.
x Conventional liver transplantation:
This type of liver transplantation is
performed to replace the diseased
liver with healthy liver from
deceased person
x Expanded Criteria donor: In
this type the donor are over the
age of 60, or a donor over the age
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General Science
of 50 with two of the following:
a history of high blood pressure,
a creatinine (blood test to show
kidney function). The term
expanded is used because
an expansion of the donor
pool is considered to increase
transplantation.
x Living donor liver transplantation
(LDLT): In this type of liver
transplantation healthy living
person donates a portion of his
liver to the recipient.
Lung
Transplantation:
Lung
transplantation is a surgical procedure
in which a patients diseased lungs are
partially or totally replaced by the
donors lung. Some of the diseases due

to which lung transplantation favored
are chronic obstructive pulmonary
disease, Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis,
cystic fibrosis and idiopathic pulmonary
hypertension. Generally there are three
types of lung transplantation.
x Single lung transplant: Single
donated lung comes from the
brain dead donor.
x Double lung transplant: In
this type both the lungs are
transplanted especially in case
of cystic fibrosis.
x Heart-lung transplant: In severe
cardiac disease both heart and
lungs have been transplanted.
BIOLOGY IN HUMAN WELFARE

Animal Husbandry
It deals with the care, breeding
& management of domesticated
animals that are useful to humans.
Poultary Farming
x
x
Poultary is a rearing of
domesticated fowls, ducks, geese
turkeys guinea fowls and pigeons.
Poultry birds exclusively grown
for meat are called broilers,
layers are for egg production,
cockerel for young male fowls
and rooster are mature male
fowls.
Fisheries
x
x
Pisciculture is the rearing,

breeding and catching of fishes.
Aquaculture is rearing and
management of useful aquatic
plants and animals like fishes,
oysters, mussels and prawns etc.
Apiculture
x
Apiculture is rearing and

breeding of honeybees for the
production of honey. It also

produces beeswax and bee
pollen. Beeswax is used for the
preparation of cosmetics and
polishes of various kinds.
The commonest species of
honeybee is Apis indica.
Animal Breeding
x
Animal breeding is the production

of new breeds of domesticated
animals with improved traits.
Breeding is the modification
of genotype of an organism to
make that organism more useful
to human.
Inbreeding: Mating between
the closely related animals of
same breed.
Out-breeding: Mating between
the animals which are not
closely related.
Out-crossing: Mating between
the animals of the same
breed which do not have a
common ancestor.
B-414
Cross-breeding:
Mating
between the superior animals
of different breeds of the
same species.
Plant Breeding
General Science
x
MOET (Multiple Ovulation

Embryo Transfer) technique is a
programme which improves the
chances of successful production
of hybrids.
Plant breeding refers to the modification and improvement of genetic

material of plants resulting in the development of crops which are more
beneficial to human beings.
Crop
Variety
Resistance to diseases
Wheat
Himgiri
Hill bunt & leaf and stripe rust
Cauliflower
Pusa snowball
Blight black rot Black rot and
K-1 Pusa shubra
curl
Brassica
Pusa Swarnim (Karan rai) White rust
Cowpea
Pusa Komal
Bacterial blight
Chilli
Pusa
Chilly mosaic virus, Tobacco
Sadabahar
mosaic virus and leaf curl.
Table : Crop varieties bred by hybridization and selection for disease
resistance to fungi, bacteria and viral disease.
processes using living organism,
x Examples of insect pest resistance
cells or enzymes. This technology
crops bred by hybridization are
has application in agriculture,
(i) Pusa Gaurav variety of
food
processing
industry,
Brassica is resistant to
bioremediation,
medicine
aphids.
diagnostics, waste treatment and
(ii) Pusa Sawani and Pusa A-4
energy production.
varieties of Okra (Bhindi)
are resistant to shoot and x Biotechnology deals with:
Microbe-mediated processes
fruit borer.
(making curd, bread, wine
(iii) Pusa sem 2 and Pusa sem
3 varieties of flat bean are
etc.)
resistance to aphids and fruit
In vitro fertilization (test
borer.
tube baby programme)
Synthesis and using of gene
Biotechnology and its
Preparation of a DNA vaccine
application
Correcting a defective gene
x It deals with large scale production
and marketing of products and
Genetically Modified Plants
1. Golden Rice
It is a genetically modified variety of Rice, Oryza
sativa which has been developed as fortified food for
areas where there is shortage of dietary vitamin A.
2. Bt Cotton
Bacillus thuringiensis forms protein crystals during
the particular phase of their growth. These crystals
contain a toxic insecticidal protein. BT toxin gene
were isolated from B. thuringiensis and genetically
transferred to several crop plants such as cotton.
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General Science
3. Flavr savr variety Flavr savr is the first genetically engineered crop in
of tomato
which tomatoes have longer shelf life.
Benefits of Transgenic Animals
1. Transgenic animals Study of insulin-like growth factor helps to study the
are used to study biological role of the factor in the body.
gene regulation
2. Biological products (a) Human protein (D-1-antitrypsin) used to treat
emphysema.
(b) Protein for the treatment of Phenylketonuria
(PKU) and cystic fibrosis etc.
DISCOVERIES IN BIOLOGY
x
x
x
Willaim Harvey discovered the

double circulatory system of
blood also known as Systemic
Circulation.
Marcello Malpighi discovered
the link between arteries and
veins.
Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister
discovered role of microorganism
in causing infectious diseases.
Daniel Nathens and Hamilton
Smith discovered Restriction
endonuclease enzyme used in
Genetic engineering.
Hargovind Khorana showed the
order of nucleotides in nucleic
acid and also shared Noble prize
for Physiology or Medicine with
Marshall W. Nirenberg and
Robert W. Holley.
Viroids were discovered by
T.O.Diener.
Stanely Prusiner did most of the
work on Prions and was awarded
Noble Prize in 1998.
Nerinberg and Philip Leder
discovered the triplet nature of
the genetic code.
Edward Jenner first time

demonstrated the vaccination
against the small pox in year
1798.
George Kohler and Cesar
Milstein
discovered
the
monoclonal antibodies.
Francis Crick and James
Watson discovered the double
helical structure of DNA
molecule in year 1953.
Matthias
Jacob
Schleiden
and Theodor Schwann (1939)
proposed the Cell theory.
Van Niel postulates that in green
plants, water is utilized in place
of H2S and O2 evolved in place
of sulphur and this discovery
was confirmed by Ruben and
Kamen in 1941 using Chlorella,
a green alga.
Brtish Scientist Arthur Tansley
coined the term ecosystem
which was later adopted by
Eugene Odum.
Morgan in 1910, showed
that genes reside on specific
chromosomes
B-416
General Science
HEALTH GUIDE
CALORIE CHART
Food Categories Measure Calories
MILK & MILK PRODUCTS
Milk (Cow)
90 ml
Milk (Buffallo) 45 ml
15 gms
Cheese
1 tbsp
Butter
1 tbsp
Ghee
FRUITS
Apple
1 small
Medium
Banana
20 small
Grapes
1 small
Mango
1 Medium
Musambi
1 small
Orange
CEREAL
Cooked Cereal Cup
25 gms
Rice Cooked
1 Medium
Chapatti
STARCY VEGETABLES
Potato
1 Medium
Dals
1 Large
Katori
Mixed
150 gms
Vegetables
PROTEIN / MEAT
Fish
50 gms
Mutton
1 oz
Egg (Hen)
2 pieces
COOKED FOOD
Biscuit (Sweet) 15 gms
Cake (Plain)
50 gms
Cake (Rich
50 gms
Chocloate)
Dosa (Masala) 1 Medium
Pakoras
1 Medium
Puri
1 Large
Samosa
1 Piece
Vada (Medu) 1 Small
50
50
50
50
50
50-60
50-60
50-60
50-60
50-60
50-60
80
80
80
80
80
80
55
75
100
70
135
225
MAIN DISH
Biryani (Mutton)
Biryani (veg.)
Curry (Chicken)
Curry (Veg.)
Fried Rice
Pullao (Veg.)
SWEET DISH
Carrot Halwa
Jalebi
Kheer
Rasgulla
BEVERAGES
Beer
Cola
Wine
225
200
225
130
140
130
50 gms
20 gms
100 gms
150 gms
300
100
180
140
12 Fl. oz 150
200 ml
90
3.5 Fl. oz 85
HEIGHT & WEIGHT CHART

Height Weight Height Weight
Cms
Kgs
Cms
Kgs
+ Men
+ Women
157.5 53.5-57.1 147.5 43.5-48.5
160.0 54.8-60.3 150.0 44.4-49.9
162.5 56.2-61.6 152.5 45.8-51.2
165.0 57.8-63.0 155.5 47.1-52.6
167.5 59.0-64.8 157.5 48.5-53.9
170.0 60.7-66.6 160.0 49.9-55.3
172.5 62.6-68.9 162.5 51.2-57.1
175.0 64.4-70.7 165.0 52.6-58.9
178.0 66.2-72.5 167.5 54.4-61.2
180.0 68.0-74.8 170.0 56.2-63.0
183.0 69.8-77.1 172.5 58.0-64.8
185.5 71.6-79.3 175.0 59.8-66.6
188.0 73.4-81.6 178.0 61.6-68.4
190.5 75.7-83.9 180.0 63.5-70.3
193.0 78.0-86.1 183.0 65.3-72.1
+For
120
175
85
140
70
1 Cup
1 Cup
100 gms
100 gms
85 gms
100 gms
Medium Frame Persons
B-417
General Science
Everyday Science
1.
2.
3.
4.
Why does a ball bounce upon

falling?
When a ball falls, it is
temporarily deformed. Because
of elasticity, the ball tends to
regain its original shape for
which it presses the ground and
bounces up (Newtons Third
Law of Motion).
Why is standing in boats
or double decker buses not
allowed, particularly in the
upper deck of buses?
On tilting the centre of gravity
of the boat or bus is lowered
and it is likely to overturn.If
you stand in a boat, you change
the center of gravity making the
boat more likely to roll if struck
by a wave and if you stand up
on the second deck of a double
decker bus (which has no roof)
and are looking at where youve
been, you probably wont see
that low bridge ahead of you.
Why is it recommended to add
salt to water while boiling dal?
By addition of salt, the boiled
point of water gets raised
which helps in cooking the
dal sooner. Salt is added to
improve the taste; also sodium
is indispensable for the life.
Why is the sky blue?
A clear cloudless day-time sky
is blue because molecules in the
air scatter blue light from the
sun more than they scatter red
light. When we look towards
the sun at sunset, we see red and
orange colours because the blue
light has been scattered out and
away from the line of sight.
5.
6.
7.
8.
On the moon, will the weight

of a man be less or more than
his weight on the earth?
Since the moon is smaller
than Earth, it has a weaker
gravitational pull. In fact, the
moon only has 1/6 the gravity
that Earth does. This means
you weigh six times less on the
moon than you do on Earth!
Why can we see ourselves in a
mirror?
We see objects when light rays
from them reach our eyes. As
mirrors have a shiny surface, the
light rays are reflected back to
us and enter our eyes.
Why is cooking quicker in a
pressure cooker?
The trapped steam increases the
atmospheric pressure inside the
cooker by 15 pounds per square
inch (psi), or 15 pounds above
normal sea-level pressure. At
that pressure, the boiling point
of water is increased from
212F to 250F. This higher
temperature is what cooks
food faster. The trapped steam
increases
the
atmospheric
pressure inside the cooker by
15 pounds per square inch (psi),
or 15 pounds above normal sealevel pressure. At that pressure,
the boiling point of water is
increased from 212F to 250F.
This higher temperature is what
cooks food faster.
Ice wrapped in a blanket or
saw dust does not melt quickly.
Why?
B-418
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Both wood and wool are bad

conductors of heat. They do not
permit heat rays to reach the ice
easily.
Why does a balloon filled with
hydrogen rise in the air?
Since the density of hydrogen
is lower than that of the air,
balloon will go up in the air
Why does an electric bulb
explode when it is broken?
The bulb is a partial vacuum and
as it breaks, air rapidly enters in
resulting in a small explosion.
Why do we lean forward while
climbing a hill?
We lean forward while climbing
up a hill, so that the
vertical line drawn through the
center of the gravity of the
body should fall within the base.
Why does a man fall forward
when he jumps out of a running
train or bus?
When the person is sitting
inside a train, his complete body
was in a state of motion with
the train. The moment he jumps
out of the moving train, his feet
touches the ground, and the
lower portion of his body comes
to rest. But the upper portion
remains in motion due to inertia
of motion. Thats why he falls
in the direction of motion of the
train.
Why does an ordinary glass
tumbler crack when very hot
tea or milk is poured in it?
The crack is caused by
differential thermal expansion.
The part of the glass that the
boiling water touches first
expands due to the heat, but the
heat doesnt conduct through
the glass quickly so there is stress
between the expanded inside
of the glass and unexpanded
General Science
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
outside of the glass. This stress

is sometimes too much and the
glass cracks.
Why is a compass used as an
indicator of direction?
The compass needle aligns
with the Earths magnetic field
direction and points northsouth.
Why is water from a hand
pump warm in winter and cold
in summer?
In
winter
the
outside
temperature is lower than that of
water flowing out of the pump,
and therefore , the water feels
warm. Whereas in summer, the
outside temperature is higher
than the water of the pump, and
therefore, it feels cold.
Why does a swimming pool
appear less deep than is
actually is?
The refraction of light at the
surface of water makes ponds
and swimming pools appear
shallower than they really are.
Why is ones breath visible in
winter but not in summer?
Absolute dew point in cold
weather is lower than in warm
weather. water from your breath
condenses and freezes in cold
weather.
Why does water remain cold in
an earthen pot?
In an earthen pot, water gets
evaporated quickly through
the pores. Cooling is caused by
evaporation
Why do we place a wet cloth
on the forehead of a patient
suffering from high temperature?
Water evaporating from the wet
cloth produces a cooling effect
and brings the temperature down.
General Science
20. To prevent multiplication of
mosquitoes, it is recommended
to sprinkle oil in the ponds
with stagnant water. Why?
Mosquitoes breed in stagnant
water. The larvae of mosquitoes
keep floating on the surface of
water due to surface tension.
However, when oil is sprinkled,
the surface tension is lowered
resulting in drowning and death
of the larvae.
21. Why is it dangerous to sleep
under trees at night?
Because plant on respiration
gives CO2, because the absence
of light. So in nights if we sleep
under big trees we do not have
sufficient amount of oxygen.
22. Why is a new quilt warmer
than an old one?
A quilt feels warm because
the air trapped in the cotton
or woolen batting acts as an
insulator and does not allow
the heat of the body to escape.
However, when the quilt gets
old - the cotton/wool gets
compressed and the airspace
are done away with. It does not
remain as good an insulator to
heat as it was earlier. Hence it
feels less warm.
23. How do bats fly in dark?
In dark, bats ears are more
important than their eyes they use a special sonar system
called echolocation, meaning
they find things using echoes.
24. Water pipes often burst at hill
stations on cold frosty nights.
Why?
The temperature may fall below
0C during cold frosty nights
which converts the water inside
the pipes into ice, resulting in an
increase in volume. This exerts
great force on the pipes and as a
result, they burst.
B-419
25. Why are white clothes more

comfortable in summer than
dark or black ones?
White clothes are good reflectors
and bad absorbers of heat,
whereas dark or black clothes
are good absorbers of heat.
Therefore, white clothes are more
comfortable because they do not
absorb heat from the sun rays.
26. Why does a rose appear red
grass green in daylight?
The rose absorbs all the other
color light and reflects or gives
out red so we see it in red color.
Simliar is the condition with
grass, Green grass absorbs blue
and red light, but reflect green
light. So it is the reflected light
which gives color what we see.
27. If a highly pumped up bicycle
tyre is left in the hot sunlight,
it bursts. Why?
The air inside the tube increases
in volume when heated up. As
sufficient space for the expansion
of the air is not available because
the tube is already highly pumped,
it may result in bursting of the
tyre.
28. What will be the color of green
in blue light?
Grass will appear dark in color
because it absorbs all other
colors of the light except its
own green color. The blue light
falling on grass will be absorbed
by it, and hence, it will appear
dark in color.
29. Why do two eyes give better
vision than one?
Because two eyes do not form
exactly similar images and the
fusion of these two dissimilar
images in the brain gives three
dimensions of the stereoscopic
vision.
B-420
30. When a man fires a gun, he is

pushed back slightly. Why?
Newtons 3rd law says Every
action has an equal and
opposite reaction.. So when a
man fires in forward direction,
he is generating a force on the
gun. As a result of that action
the gun returns the force.. Or
make a reaction in the backward
direction..Hence, the man is
pushed back slightly.
31. Why is a small gap left at the
joint between two rails?
The gap in the joint between
two rails is to compensate for
the expansion of the material of
rail during summer.
32. Who will possibly learn swimming
fastera fat person or a thin
person?
The fat person displaces more
water which will help him float
much more freely compared to
a thin person.
33. Why is a flash of lightening
seen before thunder?
We see the lightning before we
hear the thunder because light
travels faster than sound. The
light from the lightning travels
to our eyes much quicker than
the sound from the lightning. so
we hear it later than we see it.
34. Why are ventilators in a room
always made near the roof ?
The hot air being lighter in
weight tends to rise above and
escape from the ventilators at
the top. This allows the cool air
to come in the room to take its
place.
35. A burning candle gets extinguished
when covered with a tumbler.
Why ?
Fire needs oxygen to burn and
when the tumbler covers the
General Science
fire it uses up all the oxygen in
the little space quickly and is
extinguished.
36. A parachute enables a person
to descend in safety in case of
an accident to aircraft ?
A man falls to the earth because of
the gravitational pull of the earth.
The parachute offers considerable
resistance to that gravity, thereby
slowing down the speed of the
descending man. The parachute
thus enables a person to descend
in safety.
37. Why does tea cool more rapidly
in a saucer than in a cup ?
Cooling is caused by evaporation.
In a saucer evaporation takes
place more rapidly than in a cup.
38. It is advisable to work electric
appliances when they are
earthed suitably. Why ?
In case of short-circuiting, the
current passess to the earth
without harming the user, if an
electrical appliance is properly
earthed.
39. Explain why the planets do not
twinkle.
Planets are much closer to earth
as compared to stars. They are
extended source of light. They
behave like a number of point
sources so that the average
variation is zero. Thus, planets
do not twinkle.
40. Why does the Sun appear
reddish early in the morning?
In the morning, the sun is nearer
to the horizon. Blue light have
shorter wavelength, so, it scatters
more. Therefore the red light
which have longer wavelength
reaches upto the eye of the
observer and the sun appears
reddish.
General Science
41. Which is more elastic, rubber
or steel?
Steel is more elastic for the same
stress produced, compared to
rubber.
42. Why do some liquids burn
while others do not?
A liquid burns if its molecules
can combine with oygen in the
air with the production of heat.
Hence, oil burns but water does
not.
43. Why do we bring our hands close
to the mouth while shouting
across to someone far away?
By keeping hands colose to mouth
the sound is not allowed to spread
(phenomenon of diffraction of
sound) in all directions but is
directed to a particular direction
and becomes louder.
44. Why does silver acquires a
blackish tinge when exposed to
air for a long time?
Silver on exposure to air
acquires a blackish tinge due to
the formation of silver sulphide.
45. In chilled winters the nose
and ears turn red. Explain the
advantage of this response?
In cold days, skin blood vessels
of the ears and nose can dilate,
bringing warm blood to the
ears and nose, to prevent the
tissue damage from cold. The
increased blood flow makes the
ears and nose appear red.
46. What would happen if the force
of gravity were to disappear
suddenly?
In the absence of the force of
gravity all living objects on the
earth will be practically in a
floating condition. They will
be thrown away because of the
centrifugal force caused by the
rotation of earth. Thus, one will
not be able to eat, drink, move
and continue to live.
B-421
47. When we drink soft drink

through a straw, why does the
liquid go up into our mouth?
When a person sucks air from
the straw, the pressure of air
inside the straw is reduced as
compared to the atmospheric
pressure acting on the surface
of the liquid. Therefore, the soft
drink rushes up into the straw
and to the mouth.
48. Explain why it takes more time
to cook meat and vegetables at
hill stations.
The boiling point of water
depends upon the pressure
on its surface. It increases
with the increase of pressure
and decreases on lowering of
pressure. At higher altitudes,
the atmospheric pressure is
low as compared to that in the
plains, therefore, water boils
below 100C. Hence, sufficient
heat is not supplied for cooking
the meat and vegetables at hill
stations. This difficulty may be
overcome by using a pressure
cooker. Water can be made to
boil at any desired temperature
with the help of this appliance.
49. Why does blotting paper
absorb ink?
Blotting paper has fine pores
which act like capillaries. When
a portion of blotting paper is
brought in contact with ink, ink
enters the pores due to surface
tension (capillary action of liquids)
and is absorbed.
50. Why does kerosene float on
water?
Because the density of kerosene
is less than that of water.
51. Why is a metal tyre heated
B-422
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
before it is fixed on wooden

wheels?
On heating, the metal tyre expands
by which its circumference also
increases. This makes fixing
the wheel easier and thereafter
cooling down shrinks it ; thus
fixing the tyre tightly.
Why is it easier to swim in the
sea than in a river?
The density of sea water is
higher; hence the upthrust is
more than that of river water.
Why does oil rise on a cloth
tape of an oil lamp?
The pores in the cloth tape suck
oil due to the capillary action of
oil.
Why are aircoolers less effective
during the rainy season?
During the rainy reason the
atmospheric air is saturated
with moisture. Therefore, the
process of evaporation of water
from the moist pads of the
cooler slows down thereby not
cooling the air blown out from
the cooler.
Why does grass gather more
dew in nights than metallic
objects such as stones?
Grass being a good radiator
enables water vapour in the air
to condense on it. Moreover,
grass gives out water constantly
(transpiration) which appears
in the form of dew because
the air near grass is saturated
with water vapour and slows
evaporation. Dew is formed on
objects which are good radiators
and bad conductors.
Why is it dangerous to have
charcoal fire burning in a closed
room?
When charcoal burns it produces
General Science
57.
58.
59.
60.
carbon monoxide which is

suffocating and can cause death.
Why does ENOs salt effervesce
on addition of water?
It contains tartaric acid and
sodium bicarbonate. On adding
water, carbon dioxide is produced
which when released into water
causes effervescence.
Eskimos live in double-walled
ice houses. Why?
Because the air in between two
ice walls does not allow heat to
pass.
Why is sunlight so hot and
moonlight so cool?
The Sun is millions of times
brighter than the Moon. All of
the Moons light is just scattered
sunlight; it does not emit any
light of its own. The fact that we
can discern objects in moonlight
is due to the remarkable
capacity of our eyes to adjust to
extremely low levels of light. Of
course, moonlight differs from
sunlight in its basic character
as well; it also depends on the
scattering properties of the
Moon surface.
What is DNA finger printing?
what are its uses?
The sequence of bases of DNA
in each of our cells is the same,
but differs from that of any other
living thing except possibly an
identical twin. This difference
makes the DNA break at different
places when certain proteins
called enzymes are added to
it, resulting in smaller DNA
fragments of different sizes. These
fragments migrate at different
rates in an electric field, resulting
in a unique pattern; this pattern is
referred to as a DNA fingerprint.
Our DNA is inherited from our
General Science
parents. Some parts come from
the father and some from the
mother. DNA fingerprinting can
help identify parentage, since a
son or daughter would always
exhibit a pattern identifiable
as coming from both parents.
DNA fingerprinting analysis is
very useful in forensic science;
from a single hair or a tiny
sport of blood, it is possible to
prove the innocence or guilt of
a murder suspect. Similarly, it is
also possible to identify human
remains after violent accidents
have caused disfigurement.
61. How does cooking happen in a
microwave?
Passage of microwaves through
food results in increased agitation
of molecules. If we can increase
the amplitude of the random
movements of molecules, we
are doing nothing but heating
the food. But how do microwaves
increase the agitation? At
microwave frequencies, the
alternating electric field of the
radiation interacts with the
electric dipole moment of water
molecules, making them vibrate
faster. The absorption length of
the microwave energy is long,
meaning that not all energy falling
on a chunk of cooking food
gets absorbed while traversing
through it. It also means that
for microwaves, in the simplest
approximation, there is no inside
or outside of the food chunk;
heating occurs all through the
body of the food. That is the
reason you do not get a crisp
surface on the outside, as you
would in normal cooking where
the heat has to travel inwards from
outside.
B-423
62. If you press the upper lid of

one of your eyes you see two
images. Why?
The two eyes send independent
image signals to the brain,
which has the mechanism
to combine them to give the
sensation of a single 3D image.
When we press on one eyelid,
we are essentially tilting its
lens, and therefore moving the
image on the retina. The brain
remains unaware and two
visualised images are the result
of improper superposition.
63. Why does an air conditioner
leak water?
An air conditioner sucks in the
outside air and passes it over
fin-like projections, which have
been cooled by the compressor.
It cools the inside of a room
while heating the outside. The
outside air is not only hot but
often it is also quite humid.
When passed over the cold fins,
the temperature of air drops
below the dew point and excess
moisture condenses out.
64. Why do stars twinkle and the
planets do not?
Starlight passes through the
atmosphere before reaching us.
If the air above us were a passive,
well-behaved and completely
homogenous medium. we will not
have any twinkling. Fortunately
for us, our atmosphere is active
and vibrant. Air masses are
always on the move. It is natural,
therefore, that there would be
pockets of slightly higher density,
and others of slightly lower
density, flitting around. Starlight
passing through these pockets is
minutely deflected higher and
thither.
B-424
To an observer, the star will

seem to come into view and
then disappear, many times a
second. We poetically refer to
this phenomenon as twinkling.
On the other hand, planets
are not point objects like stars.
A spatially extant bundle of
rays comes to us from various
parts of the planet surface and
there never is a time when all
the rays are bent out of our eye.
Therefore, where planets are
concerned, we do not see any
twinkling.
65. How is it possible for insects
and spiders to walk on water
or on the walls?
Tiny insects can walk on water
because of the phenomenon of
surface tension. The unbalanced
intermolecular force makes the
surface behave like a stretched
membrane.
The
classical
demonstration of the carrying
capacity of this membrane is to
gently lay flat a shaving blade
(to ensure that the weight per
unit area is kept low) upon the
surface of still water; the blade
does not sink. The blade is
heavier than an equal volume
of water and would surely sink
if the force of surface tension
were absent. Thus, one can
easily understand why little
insects and larvae can float on
the surface of water.
As regards the ability of
insects to walk on walls, several
explanations are provided. The
most popular is the hypothesis that
such creatures have suction cups
on their feet using which they can
stick to walls and ceilings. Some
recent investigations indicate a
special construction of the feet;
General Science
thousands upon thousands tiny,
protruding hair-like projections
stick to surfaces due to good old
molecular forces.
66. What are the benefits of using
GSLV to launch satellites into
geostationary orbit?
Communication satellites are
usually placed in a geo-stationary
orbit. This is an orbit over the
equator at a height such that
the period of revolution of the
satellite around the Earth is
exactly the same as the period of
rotation of the Earth - namely 24
hours. The advantage is that the
satellite in such an orbit appears
to be stationary with respect to
the Earth. The communication
antennas on the ground can then
be pointed in a fixed direction
without worrying about the
rotation of the Earth. We already
have several such satellites
providing
communication,
including television broadcast and
networking services. The demand
for such services is continuously
increasing. Therefore, we do need
more satellite transponders in
orbit. We also need to replace
satellites that are close to the end
of their lives.
So far, we have depended
on European or American
launchers to raise our satellites
into the geo-stationary transfer
orbit. However, we are now
beginning to use our own
launch vehicle. Some of the
rocket stages and associated
technologies already developed
for putting satellites in polar
orbits around the Earth (for
remote sensing) were upgraded
and modified for GSLV ( Geostationary Satellite Launch
Vehicle). A new rocket stage
using liquid hydrogen and
liquid oxygen was added, in
General Science
addition to other modifications
in the launch systems previously
developed for polar launches.
67. What is the use of the glass
sheet in a solar cooker?
To raise the temperature within,
a solar cooker you have to allow
maximum possible energy
from sunlight to come in and
lose the least amount through
re-radiation to the environment.
Most of the Suns energy is
concentrated in the visible
range of radiation. A glass sheet
is transparent in this range,
so it allows a large fraction
of the Suns energy to enter
the cooker. The temperature
inside the cooker may rise to
100 degrees Celsius, at the
most. At this temperature,
most of the radiation is in the
infrared range; in other wards,
it is heat radiation. Glass is
not very transparent at these
wavelengths. This radiation is
trapped inside the cooker, thus
raising the temperature. Of
course, ultimately, the energy
going out must become equal
to the energy coming in. This
balance is achieved only after
the cooker temperature has
been elevated.
68. Is it true that body weight
increases after death?
A dead body is heavier to
carry, much like a person who
is unconscious or drunk. The
perception is probably due to
the fact that a dead person does
not cooperate in distributing
his weight on to different parts
of your body - for example,
by putting an arm around your
shoulder or clasping his legs
around your middle. After a
while, the remains of a dead
body must weigh much less
because much of the body
degrades through the action of
bacteria.
B-425
69. Water is colourless, water

vapour is colourless, so why
are clouds white or black and
not colourless?
You must have noticed that
clouds are not only white or
black; at sunrise or sunset, they
are also pink and red. This is
because the colour of the cloud
is dominated by the light that is
scattered from the surface of a
large number of tiny droplets.
That colour is the same as that
of the light falling on them.
During the day when the sun
is up, it is the scattered light
that filters through; after many
scatterings of water droplets.
This makes the clouds white.
When the sky is almost covered
with thick clouds, little of the
scattered light from the cloud
comes down, and the dark
colour of the clouds is due to
absence of light.
70. Why does the Universe appear
black to us?
From out in space, the Universe
does look black except for the
stars and galaxies with which it
is studded. This is so because no
visible light is scattered in our
direction from positions and
directions that do not have a
star.
71. Why do we dream?
The phenomenon of dreams
has been studied in detail by
many experts. There are a large
number of books on this subject.
It is clear that our body
needs sleep; the brain and the
central nervous system need
rest. We also know that our
brain, does not shut down
while we are asleep. There is an
enormous amount of delegation
of power and autonomy. We do
not stop breathing when we are
sleeping. The heart rate might
B-426
slow down a bit, yet its beat

keeps our blood flowing; our
digestive system keeps working
as well. Many of our senses are
given a holiday and yet kept on
alert should there be a need to
take action. There are a lot of
images and stories residing in
some structures of the brain.
When we are awake, these are
under conscious control. On
the other hand, when we fall
asleep, they are still present
but they are unsupervised and
have some freedom to combine
in odd ways, often responding
to strong experiences - some
very recent and others very
old, fished out from the bottom
of the storage file. The editing
and serialisation of images and
thoughts might seem random
but even the randomness seems
to have some logic. Those
impulses that are suppressed
while we are awake become free
to operate and be experienced.
72. Why does hair stand on end on
a chilly morning?
When it is cold the body reduce
the loss of heat, particularly due
to evaporation. This is due to
closing of the pores on the skin
tends to make the hair stand up
like little poles.
73. Why does the rain fall in drops?
Rain
is
the
result
of
condensation of vapour when
the air is cooled below the dew
point. All the vapour in a cloud
cannot condense at the same
time and turn into a large pool
of water. Pockets of air move
up independently and slowly
cool till condensation begins
and water droplets form. It is
believed that most raindrops
start out as tiny ice crystals
- so tiny that they float down,
slowly accreting more moisture
General Science
on the way; at lower altitudes,
the crystals melt into water
droplets. In colder climates,
the crystals reach the ground as
snowflakes.
74. Is there a method of counting
all the stars of the Universe?
We cant even see all the stars.
Some are hidden by dust clouds,
many more are in galaxies so
far away that they cannot be
resolved as separate entities
even by the most powerful of
telescopes. So how do we say
that there might be a hundred
billion stars in our galaxy and a
hundred billion galaxies? Not by
counting, but by estimating on the
basis of sample counts in some
small representative parts of the
Universe. For example, for some
parts of our own galaxy, we might
count the stars in a tiny bit of an
angle of view. Then it becomes a
problem of repeating this exercise
on selecting representative bits of
the sky in all directions and doing
the same. What remains then is
to estimate the total volume in
various representative bits.
75. Why do clouds look reddishorange in the evening?
In the late evening, when it
begins to get dark on the Earths
surface, the clouds can still
catch the Suns rays for a while
longer, since they are high up.
But, to reach the clouds, the
rays of the Sun have to pass
through the atmosphere almost
tangentially.
This
distance
travelled through air is therefore
very large. You This long path
through air leads to excessive
molecular scattering. Orange
and red light scatters away
much less than the blue and
green colours. Therefore, the
clouds are illuminated by light
that appears mainly orange-red.
(&2/2*<$1'
(19,5210(17
Ecology & Environment
B-428
ECOLOGY
Ecology is a distribution and
abundance of living organisms and
their relationship with environment.
It is a branch of biological science.
There are four basic concepts of
ecology which are as follows:
x Holism: is a philosophy term
which conceived as a directive
and creative principle operating
from initial to last level in
ecology.
x Ecosystem: involve both the
living and non-living factors
working together, working in a
complex web.
x Succession: the living organisms
and its environment commonly
reactive and influence each other
in different ways. Increase in the
capacity of tolerance towards
changing
environment
by
modifying their environment as
the process of growth, dispersal,
reproduction, death and decay
follows changing the abiotic
component of ecosystem is
called as succession.
x Conservation: Regulation of the
population through naturallyoperating trophism ensures
resilience of the system.
Rea m of co ogy
ecology as a basic division of biology
explains patterns within and among
organism. The hierarchical level of
ecology is shown below.
x Biosphere
x Ecosystem
x Communities
x Population
x Organism
Biosphere
The global conglomeration of all
the ecosystem i.e. a zone where
all the living organisms on earth
together with the dead organic
matter produced by them exist.
It is the key component of earth
systems, intermingle with and
exchange matter and energy with
the other spheres, helping to drive
the global biogeochemical cycling of
carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur
and other elements. It includes
the
lithosphere,
hydrosphere,
atmosphere and other spheres
(e.g. cryosphere, anthrosphere, etc.).
Ecosystem
Ecosystem is defined as a specific

and recognizable landscape such
assuch as forest, wetland, coastal
area, grass lands, deserts etc having
both living and non living elements
Components of Ecosystem
x
Abiotic components are the nonliving elements of an ecosystem

as air, water, climate and soil
etc containing both organic and
inorganic matters.
Biotic components consist of
all the living community of
plants and animals in any area
togetherwith the non-living
components of the environment
such as soil, air and water.
B-429
Function of Ecosystem
The function of ecosystem can
be referred a producer consumer
arrangement of nutrients known as
energy cyclesand each food level of
this pyramid is known as trophic
level. The three major aspects of
energy cycles are food chain, food
web and ecological pyramids.
Food chain is a chain or series
of feeding relationship among
different living things in a particular
environment or habitat. Plant is
always the first step of food chain as
it produces its own food from non
living things and eventually eaten by
the next higher level of living orgasm
such as herbivores who only takes
plant as their food item.The plants
are the known as producers and
the animal depend upon producers
are known as primary consumer.
The next level in this hierarchy is
known as secondary consumer who
depends on primary consumer for
food.
Food Web is defined as the system
of interlocking and interdependent
food chains.
Energy Flow in Ecosystem

x
x
x
x
x
Ecosystem
obtains
energy
from sun, which, is trapped by
producers via photosynthesis and
is converted into chemical energy.
The chemical energy is converted
into mechanical and heat energy
in cellular activities.
Energy enters is the ecosystem as
light and exits as heat.
Energy flows in a one way
direction through ecosystem i.e.
not recycled
Herbivores are primary consumers
and can store only 10% of
producerss energy in their biomass
and they use the remaining 90%
in life activities.
In the same way carnivores store
only 10% of the stored energy of
herbivore.
Types of Ecosystem
Energy Pyramid is a graphical

presentation of the trophic levels
in an ecosystem where the energy
from the sun is transferred through
the ecosystem by passing through
various trophic levels. Only 10%
of energygets transferred from one
trophic level to the next.
Ecosystems are classified on the

basis of climate, habitat and plant
communities.
x Aquatic ecosystem : The aquatic
ecosystem has been classified in
a number of ecological ways.
On the basis of salt content in
water they are further divided
into fresh water, estuarine and
marine ecosystem.
x Terrestrial ecosystem : It is futher
divided into Forest, Grassland,
Desert ecosystem and artificial
ecosystems such as crop fields,
gardens etc.
B-430
conditions so support specialized

vegetation and fauna. Often
a prime breeding habitat for
waterfowl, many migratory birds
and other aquatic or semi aquatic
vertebrates.
Aquatic Ecosystem
On the basis of salt content in water
they are further divided into:
x Wet lands
x Estuarine and
x Marine ecosystem.
Wetlands
x
Wetlands are lands which,

due to geological or ecological
factors, have a natural supply of
water either form tidal flows,
flooding rivers, connections with
groundwater, or because they are
perched above aquifers.
x Wetlands are coverd or soaked for
at least a part, and often all, of the
year and thus are intermediaries
between terrestrial and aquatic
ecosystems.
x The periodicity of water level
fluctuations is termed as
hydroperiod and it is the key factor
that determines the productivity
and species composition of the
wetland community.
x Generally low lying areas,
covered by shallow water and
have charachteristic soils and
water toierant vegetation.
x Wetlands occupy only 2 per cent
of the surface area of earth and
they are estimatted to contain 10
to 14 percent of carbon.
x They may be either freshwater or
salt water (coastal).
x Man made wetlands : paddy
fields, fishery ponds, Trapa &
Euryale cultivation ponds and
other aquaculture habitats.
6LJQLFDQFHRI:HWODQGV
x
x
Nutrient rich and have high

primary productivity.
Since they have both aquatic
and semi-aquatic environmental
Helps in controlling flood by

holding excess water, and the
flood water stored in wetlands
then drains slowly back ino the
rivers, providing a steady flow of
water throughout the year.
x Serve as groundwater recharging
areas.
x Provide important commercial
products, including wild rice and
various types of berries (such as
black berries, blue berries etc.).
x Hold sediments and accumulate
soil slong the shoreline.
x National Wetland Conservation
Programme(NWCP) has been
initiated for indentified wetland
which are at present 66 covering
21 states.
Estuaries
x
An estuary (from Latin aestus,

tide) is a semi-enclosed coastal
body of water, which has a free
connection with the open sea.
Nutrients from the river enrich
estuarine waters, making estuaries
one of the most biologically
productive environments on
earth and thus have more
biodiversity in unit area.
It is strongly affected by tidal
action which is an important
physical regulator and an energy
subsidy.

x
x
x
x
x
Variability is a key characteristic

of most of the estuaries. Since
temperature and salinity varies
spatially within estuaries, from
nearly that of fresh water to that
of the ocean and also on a daily
cycle with the rise and fall of the
tides so tha organisms inhabiting
such habitats are eurythermal
and euryhaline.
They are transitional zones/
ecotones between the freshwater
and marine habitats.
Examples include river mouths,
coastal bays tidal marshes and
bodies of water behind barrier
beaches and extensive interidal
mudflats or salt marshes often
border them.
They are considered in a
youthful stage with regard
to their productivity and often
generate more fertility than they
can use (P exceeds R), resulting
in the export of nutrients and
organic detritus into the ocean.
Outwelling : Movement of
nutrient rich estuarine water out
to the sea.
Estuary provides the nursery
grounds for most coastal
shellfish and other fishes. e. g.
Several kind of commercially
important shrimp live and spawn
as adults offshore and come into
the estuaries as larvae. Fishes
such as salmon and eels also
depend on estuaries where they
may reside for considerable
lengths of time during their
migrations from salt to fresh
water.
Estuaries are also crucial
feeding areas for many semiaquatic vertebrates, particularly
wtaerfowl.
B-431
Mangroves
x
x
x
Found in tropical and sub

tropical land - sea ecotones.
They are potential land builders
that help to form islands and to
extend seashores.
On the basis of salinity, five
zones of mangrove distribution
are considered, namely euhaline,
polyhaline, mesohaline, oligohaline
and limnetic zones.
Indian coastline covers about
7500km and it accounts for 8%
of the worlds mangrove area
which is approximately 700,000
ha.
The Gulf of kachchh & the
Gulf of khambhat constitute the
major mangrove zones of the
Gujarat Coast.
6LJQLFDQFHRI0DQJURYHV
x
Mangroves perform a variety of

productive as well as protective
functions. The resilient mangroves
protect the hinterland against
cyclonic storms during cyclones,
super cyclones, and ingress of
seawater during tidal surges and
other natural catastrophes acting
as an effective shelterbelt.
Are considered as land

builders. It is belived that the
roots of mangroves secretea
substance, which modifies the
B-432
x
x
x
x
coarse particles into fine ones

and help in soil formation. The
tangles of stilt roots also trap the
sediments.
Support a range of interconnected
food webs, which directly sustain
the fisheries. Algae and detritus
sustain shrimps and prawns,
which provide a food source for
fishes and prawns.
They are repositories of
immense biological diversity.
The mangrove conservation
programme was launched in
1987 and so far 35 mangrove
areas have been identified for
intensive convervation and
management in our county.
Sunderbans has been included
in the world list of Biosphere
Reserves by UNESCO.
A mangrove genetic resource
center is established in the
Pichavaram mangrove area,
Chidambaram, India where the
endangered mangrove species
are being conserved.
x
x
x
Importance of Coral reefs

x
Apart from tropical rain

forests, they are the other most
productive natural ecosystems in
the world.
They protect coastline from

storms & high waves by breaking
the force of the waves, thereby
allowing mangroves and sea
grass to flourish.
They serve as nurseries for
many fish species and provide
resources for fisheries.
Coral skeletons are being
used as bone substitutes in
reconstructive bone surgery. The
pores and channel in certain
Coral Reefs
x
x
x
Coral is plant-animal super

organism, an algae called
zooxanthellae, grow inside the
tissues of the animal polyp, thus
exhibits mutualism between
polyps & algae
Located generally between 30
degrees North and 30 degrees
South latitudes.
Found scattered in coastal zones
above
contineantal
shelves
throughout the tropical and
subtropical western Atlantic and
Indo-pacific oceans.
The polyp is able to feed itself
using stinging cells found on its
tentacles, but is able to feed itself
partially. The ramainder comes
from the zooxanthellae and

the carbohydrates are also used
by the polyp to make calcium
carbonate via calcification.This
material forms the skeleton of
the coral and eventually the
framework known as the coral
reef.
Polyps secrete hard limestone
deposits (calcium carbonate that
ramain when polyps die.
Coral reefs are sometimes
referred to as tropical rainforests
of the deep.
Bleaching: Under enviornmental
stress much of the algae are
lost and corals appear white in
colour. If the symbiotic green
algae leave the coral animal and
the mutumlism is not restored
then the coral slowly dies of
starvation.
x
x

corals resemble those found in
human bone. Bone tissue and
blood vessels gradually spread
into the coral graft. Eventually,
bone replaces most of the coral
implant.
Terrestrial Ecosystem
Biomes can be defined as major
ecological communities of flora and
fauna, which generally extend over
a large part of the earth surface and
usually characterized by a distinct
type of vegetation.
The main terrestrial biomes are:
x Tundra
x Coniferous
forests/Temperate
evergreen forests
x Temperate Broadlead deciduous
forests
x Mediterranean Shrublands
x Grasslands
x Deserts
x Tropical deciduous forests
x Tropical scurubs/Thornwoods
x Tropical rain forests
x F.E elements and V.E shelford
(1939) introduced the biome
concept.
x Ecotone: boundary between two
biomes.
x Bailey (1976) developed the
concept of ecoregion.
x Ecoregions: Ecosystems based
on a continous geographical or
landscape area across which
the inderactions of climate,
soil
and
topography
are
sufficiently uniform to permit the
development of similar types of
vegetation
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interactions is defined as community.

The species may be plant,animal or
micro organism.
Characteristics:
x
x
x
x
Population
A population is a summation of
all the organisms of the same
group or species, which live in
aparticular geographical area, and
have the capability of interbreeding.
Population Dynamic is the change
in the number of individuals in a

population or the vital rates of a
population over time.It is the key
to
x Examine the response of species
to ecosystem manipulation,
x Analyzetheendangered species
x Understand ecosystem dynamics
and ecology
Theories of Population Dynamics
x
Community
A group of population of different
species living togetherin a given area
with mutual tolerance and beneficiary
Biodiversity
1. Species richness
2. Relative abundance
Dominant vegetation
Stability/disturbance
Succession
Exponential population growth

is when the birth rate is constant
over a period of time and isnt
limited by food or disease. A
species growing exponentially
would also affect other species
directly due to competition
for food and other resources.
Exponential growth can be
affected by modern medicine,
quality and quantity of food and
the overall standard of living for
a species.
Logistic
growth
describes
a
sustainable
growth
of
populations which slows down
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measure of population growth

than the exponential model
because it accounts for the
real-world factors that inhibit
population growth.
after a period of significant

development as the availability
of living space and resources,
along with other factors, limits
its growing ability. The logistics
growth model is a more reliable
(a) Exponential
(unrestricted) growth
(b) Logistic (restricted)

growth
Population size
The growth rate

of the population
accelerates
Time
Organism
An organism, is any form of
contiguous living system such as
an animal, plant orbacterium with
cell as its basic units. Allorganism
have developed with some degree of
response to to stimuli,reproduction,
growth and development and
homeostasis. As the basic unit of
every organism is cell it can be
categorized into both uni cellular and
multi cellular depending upon the
no. of cells present in the organism.
Mostly the unicellular organisms are
microscopic by nature.
Biodiversity
means
diversity
or heterogeneity at all levels of
biological organization, i.e., from
macromolecules of the cells to the
Biomass. The term Biodiversity
was popularized by the sociologistEdward Wilson.
Population size
Carrying capacity of
environment
The rate
slows down
The rate
accelerates
0
Point of
maximum
growth
Time
The important levels of biodiversity

are
1. Genetic diversity, 2. Species
diversity, 3. Ecological diversity
1. Genetic diversity
It is the diversity at genetic level, or
at subspecies level, i.e. below species
level, in a single species.
The genetic diversity helps the
population to adapt. If a population
has more diversity it can adapt
better to the changed environmental
conditions. The low diversity leads
to uniformity. The genetic variability
is therefore, considered to be the raw
material for speciation.
2. Species diversity
The measurement of species
diversity is its richness, i.e. the
number of species per unit area. The
greater is the species richness the
more will be the species diversity.

In nature, the number and kind of
species, as well as the number of
individual per species, vary, and this
leads to greater diversity.
(FRORJLFDOGLYHUVLW\
It is the diversity at community level.
It can be of 3-types
1. Alpha (D) diversity : It is the
diversity of organisms within the
same community or habitat.
2. Beta (E) diversity : It is the diversity between communities
or different habitats. Higher the
heterogenecity in the altitude,
Humidity and Temperature of
a region, the greater will be the
dissimilarity between communities, and higher will be the E diversity.
3. Gamma (J) diversity : It is the
diversity of organisms over the
entire geographical area, covering several ecosystems or habitats and various trophic levels
and food webs. Such diversity is
most stable and productive.
Causes of Loss of Biodiversity

The accelerated rate of speciesextinction is largely due to human
activities. There are 4-major causes,
called
The Evil Quartet, for the loss of
biodiversity
1. Habitat loss and fragmentation
2. Overexploitation
3. Invasion of Alien or exotic
species
4. Co-extinctions
The Conservation of biodiversity
can be in situ (on site) or ex situ (off
site)
In such conservation the endangered
species are protected in their natural
habitat with entire ecosystem. The
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conservationists, on global basis,

have identified certain Biodiversity
Hot Spots
The 3-biodiversity hot spots of
India, that cover rich-biodiversity
regions, are
1. Western Ghat
2. Himalaya
3. Indo-Burma
The in situ conservation in India,
is done through 15 Biosphere
reserves, 90-National Parks, more
than 450 sanctuaries and several
Sacred Groves or the tracts of
forests.
1. Biosphere reserves
They represent natural biomes
which contain unique biological
communities. They include land as
well as coastal environment.
(i) Core (natural) zone It is inner
most zone
(ii) Buffer zone - In this zone limited
human activity is allowed for
research and education purposes.
(iii) Transition (manipulation) zone
It is the outermost zone of
biosphere reserve in which large
number of human activities are
permitted,
2. National Parks
They are reserved for the betterment
of wild life, both fauna and flora.
In national parks private ownership
is not allowed. The grazing,
cultivation, forestry etc. is also not
permitted. The first national park of
the world, Yellow stone, in U.S.A.,
was founded in 1872.
6DQFWXDULHV
In sanctuaries the protection is given
to fauna only. The activity like
harvesting of timber, collection of
forest products and private ownership
rights are permitted so long as they
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do not interfere with the well being

of the animals. The important wild
life sanctuaries are Chilka wild life
sanctuary (Odisha), Bharatpur Bird
Sanctuary (Rajasthan),
4. The sacred groves are found in

Khasi and Jaintia hills (Meghalaya),
Aravalli hills (Rajasthan), Western
ghats (Karnataka and Maharashtra)
and Sarguja, Chanda and Bastar
areas of Madhya Pradesh.
Biodiversity conservation
In-situ conservation
National Parks
and Sancturies
Terrestrial
Biosphere
reserves
Ex-situ conservation
Sacred
lakes and
forests
Zoos,
Botanical Gardens,
Arboreta and
Aquaria
Seed Bank/
Gene bank
(Cryopreservation)
Sacred
plants
Marine
2. Ex situ conservation
In such type of conservation the
threatened animals and plants are
taken out of their natural habitat
and are protected in special parks

or areas like, Zoological parks,
Wild life safari parks and Botanical
gardens etc. The ex situ conservation
also includes Cryopreservation.
BIO-GEOGRAPHY
Bio-geographic classification of India
is the division of India according
to bio-geographic characteristics.
Biogeography is the study of the
distribution of species (biology),
organisms, and ecosystems in
geographic space and through
geological time. There are ten biogeographic zones in India.
1. Trans-Himalayan Region
The range lies north of the Great
Himalayan range is called the TransHimalayas. Its sparse vegetation
has the richest wild sheep and goat
community in the world. The snow
leopard and the migratory blacknecked crane are found here.
2. Himalayas
The youngest and loftiest mountain
chains in the world are found here.
The high altitude, steep gradient and
rich temperate flora of the Himalaya
contain extensive growth of grass
and evergreen tall trees. Oak,

chestnut, conifer, ash, pine, deodar
are abundant in Himalayas. There
is no vegetation above the snowline.
The chief species of fauna include
wild sheep, mountain goats, ibex,
shrew, and tapir. Panda and snow
leopard are also found here.
6HPL$ULG$UHDV
In transitional zone between the
desert and the denser forests of the
Western Ghats lies the semiarid
area. This region is characterized
by discontinuous vegetation cover
with open areas of bare soil and
soil-water deficit throughout the
year. The main vegetation of the
region includes thorny scrubs,
grasses and some bamboos along
with few species of xerophytic
herbs and some ephemeral herbs are
found in this semi-arid tract. Birds,
jackals, leopards, eagles, snakes, fox,
buffaloes are found in this region.
4. Western Ghats
Extend from the southern tip of
the peninsula (8N) northwards
about 1600 km to the mouth of the
river Tapti (21N) lies the Western
Ghats between the west coast and
peninsular India. The Western Ghats
are amongst the 25 biodiversity hotspots constitute one of the unique
biological regions of the world.
The climate varies with topography.
Mountain side facing Arabian Sea
gets heavy rainfall and evergreen
forest is found there in contrast with
the other side of the mountain that
lies in rain shadow.
1RUWK:HVW'HVHUW5HJLRQV
This landmass comprised Rajasthan,
Kutch, Delhi and parts of Gujarat.
It experiences less rainfall and
very hot and dry summer and cold
winter. Plants are mostly xerophytic
in nature. Moderate rainfall regions
grow Babul, Kikar and wild palm.
Indian Bustard, a highly endangered
bird is found here. Camels, wild
asses, foxes, and snakes are found in
hot and arid deserts.
6. Deccan Plateau
To the east and west of Ghats lies
the Deccan Plateau, having semiarid vegetation laying in rain shadow
region of Western Ghats. This is the
largest unit of the Peninsular Plateau
of India. The highlands of the
plateau are covered with different
types of forests, which provide a
large variety of forest products.
7. Gangetic Plain
Gangetic plain extending up to
Himalayan foothills forms the largest
plain of India. Main rivers of this plain
are the Ganga and the Brahmaputra,
covering about 72.4mha area. Thick
alluvial sediments are found with
varying thickness across plain with
highest density in India. The trees
belonging to these forests are teak, sal,
B-437
shisham, mahua, khair etc. The region

has agro-based economy. It extends
from arid and semi-arid landscapes
of Rajasthan Plains in west to Assam
valley in the east.
8. North-East India
Being the richest flora region in the
country it has numerous species of
orchids, bamboos, ferns and other
plants. Many wild relatives of cultivated
plants such as banana, mango, citrus
and pepper can be found.
9. Islands
There are two groups of islands in
India, i.e., the Arabian Sea islands
and Bay Islands. The islands of
Arabian Sea (Laccadive, Minicoy,
etc.) belong to the old landmass
remnants (590 Km nearest main
land mass) as compared to the Bay
Islands which lay only about 220
km. Some of the islands are fringed
with coral reefs. Many of them are
covered with thick forests and some
are highly dissected.
10. Coasts
The coastline of India extends over
5,500 km. Most of the area here
has fertile soil with different crops
growing. Narrow coast is found
in the west than east I.e. Gulf of
Cambay and the Gulf of Kutch
and extreme south- however, it is
somewhat wider along the south
Sahyadri. The western coast is
characterized by the backwaters.
The east coast plains have broader
coast due to depositional activities
of the east-flowing rivers owing
to the change in their base levels.
Extensive deltas of the Mahanadi,
Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri are the
characteristic features of this coast.
Mangrove vegetation is characteristic
of estuarine tracts along the coast for
instance, at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra.
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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
Deforestation
It is the conversion of forest to another land use or the long-term reduction
of the tree canopy cover. This includes conversion of natural forest to tree
plantations, agriculture, pasture, water reservoirs and urban areas but excludes
timber production areas managed to ensure the forest regenerates after logging
(WWF, 2015).
Causes
Impact
Subsistence farming x Physical and ecological processes, (e.g. disruption
of hydrological regimes and loss of watershed
(48%)
protection).
Commercial
x Soil and water resources, (e.g. soil erosion, loss of
agriculture (32%)
nutrients and increase in sediment loads in river
Logging (14%)
systems)on local and global climate, e.g. albedo
Fuel wood removals
changes, changes in surface energy budget, and
(5%)
alteration of biogeochemical cycles (such as the global
carbon cycle) leading to an increase in atmospheric
CO2 and other trace gases, affecting the climate and
causing global temperature change, Diversity and
abundance of terrestr ial species through destruction
and fragmentation of habitats and the edge effects,
decreasing ecological complexity.
'HVHUWLFDWLRQ
The U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) defines it as land
degradation in arid, semiarid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various
factors, including climatic variations and human activities. This process is
the result of a long-term failure to balance human demand for ecosystem
services and the amount the ecosystem can supply. The stress mounts on dry
land ecosystems for providing services related to basic human existence. The
situation worsens when combined with human factors (such as population
pressure and land use patterns) and climatic factors (such as droughts).
Causes
Overgrazing
Effects
Soil
becomes
less usable
Farming of Average Land Vegetation
is Lacked or
Damaged
Destruction of Plants in Causes
Dry Regions
Famine
Measures
Afforestation and planting of soil
binding grasses can check soil
erosion, floods and water logging
Crop rotation and mixed cropping
improve the fertility.
Artificial bunds or covering the
area with vegetation.
B-439
Incorrect Irrigation in Arid Food Loss

Regions Causes a Build-up
of Salt in the Soil
Salinity of the soil can be checked

by improved drainage
Ozone Layer Depletion: Causes and Effects

Chlorofluoro carbons or
associated hydrocarbons
start dissociating in
presence of UV rays which
release chlorine, which
is catalyst of destroying
ozone.
Ozone Layer
Depletion:
A process wherein oxygen
molecules are photolyed
splitting into 2 atoms,
weakening the ozone as
solar UV
enters accentuating
conversion
Effects on
Human Health:
Causes nonmelanoma
skin cancer,
malignant melanoma
development and
clouding of
eyes
Effects on Marine
Ecosystem:
Phytoplankton lead
aquatic food webs
which are effected by
amount of sunlight
received
Effects on
Biogeochemical
Cycles: Increased
UV radiation affects
terrestrial and aquatic
biogeochemical
cycles
Effects on
Plants: amount
of UVB in
present-day
sunlight affecting
the plant growth
directly
Effects on
Materials:
Synthetic polymers
and naturally
occurring
biopolymers are
affected by UVB
B-440
Pollution Types and measures of their Control

Pollution: process which contaminants natural
environment that resulting in adverse change
Air Pollution
Photochemical smog, Acidrain
Primary Pollutant enter the

atmosphere directly from various
sources (CO, HCs, SO2, NO)
Secondary Pollutantformed during
chemical reaction between primary
pollutant and other atmospheric
constitution (water vapour)
Anthropogenic Sources Combustion
from power plant, vehicles,
household fuel etc.
Pollution control
devices
x Vapor recovery systems
x Phytoremediation
x Sewage /industrial
waste treatment
x Scrubber (Baffle spray,
Cyclonic spray, Ejector
venture, mechanically
aided Spray tower,
Wet)
x Bag houses
Light pollutionlight trespass,

over- illumination and astronomical
interference
How to Control
x recycling
x reusing
x Waste
minimization
x mitigating
x preventing
x compost
Litteringman-made objects, piling

onto public and private properties.
Noise pollution created by Vehicles,

aircraft, sonar, underground leakage
etc.
Radioactive contamination nuclear

power generation and nuclear weapons
research, manufacture and deployment
Thermal pollution temperature

change in natural water bodies(using
water as a coolant)
Visual pollution overhead power

line, motorway billboard, municipal
solid waste, debris, scarred landforms.
Water Pollution waste disposal to

the water bodies (sewage, commercial
by-products, surface runoff)
Plastic pollutionplastic products in

the environment, adversely affects
wildlife, wildlife habitat, or humans
Soil Pollution Chemical spill or

underground leakage (hydrocarbons,
heavy metals, MTBE, pesticides)
B-441
Green House Effect and Global Warming

Greenhouse effect is the phenomenon of heating of Atmosphere as a result
of short wave radiations transmitted inward through earth atmosphere owing
to its absorption by atmospheric carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane,
and other gases. Its a natural process that keeps the temperature suitable
for sustenance of life. But the matter of concern is enhanced greenhouse
effect which refers to intensification of the effect due to increase in the toxic
gaseous envelop of these gases and ultimately lead to the rise of temperature.
The process of rise in temperature is known as Global Warming.
Greenhouse gas emission is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits
radiation within the thermal infrared range. The primary green house gases
in Earths atmosphere are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous
oxide, and ozone.
GHG
emission
24%
WHO IS DOING WHAT FOR CLIMATE?

Country
CHINA : Envisages a peak in emissions by around 2030, and reducing carbon
intensity (CO2 emitted per unit of GDP) by 60-65 per cent by 2030 compared
with 2005 levels. The worlds most populous nation will boost the share of
non-fossil fuel in primary energy consumption from 11.2 per cent in 2014 to
20 per cent, and boost the volume of CO2-absorbing forest by about 4.5 billion
cubic metres.
INDIA : Plans to reduce carbon intensity by 35 per cent by 2030 from 2005
6.4%
1.6%
4.9%
2.9%
1.6%
10.8%
2.1%

levels, and generate 40 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources by
the same date.
IRAN : Iran has made an unconditional pledge to reduce its greenhouse
gas emissions in 2030 by four per cent compared with a business as usual
secnario. In addition. Tehran said it would reduce emissions by another eight
per cent if it receves financial and technology support, and if what it describes
as :unjust sanctions where lifted.
RUSSIA : Has mooted cutting emissions by 25-30 per cent by 2030 from 1990
levels, Conditional on the pledges of other major emitters.
JAPAN : Has pledged a 26 per cent reduction in emissions from 2013 levels
by 2030, with nuclear energy offline since the 2011 Fukushima disaster
providing 20- 22 per cent of electricity by then. Renewable electricity
production, including hydro power, would be expanded to a 22-24 per cent
share, from 11 per cent in 2014.
INDONESIA : A 29 per cent cut in emissions by 2030 compared with what
the level would have been with our any action. With financial and other help,
this could be raised to 41 per cent.
EUROPEAN UNION : The 28-member bloc in tends to cut emissions by at
least 40 per cent by 2030 over 1990 levels, and has set 27 per cent targets for
renewable energy supply and efficiency gains.
BRAZIL : Will cut emissions by 37 per cent by 2025 from 2005 and 43 per
cent by 2030.
UNITED STATES : Has pledged a 26-28 per cent reduction in emissions from
2005 levels by 2025. Power plants are to cut carbon dioxide pollution by 32 per
cent by 2030.
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1.5%
CANADA : Will seek to cut emissions by 30 per cent from the 2005 levels by
2030. Canada has done its bit by cutting carbon emission and putting a curb on
pollution in major cities in the country.
Source: TOI
Source: TOI
B-443
ENDANGERED SPECIES IN INDIA
Birds
Fish
White-bellied heron
Great Indian bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps)
Forest owlet (Athene blewitti)
Baers pochard (Aythya baeri)
Spoon-billed sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus)
Siberian crane (Grus leucogeranus)
White-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis)
Indian vulture (Gyps indicus)
Slender-billed vulture (Gyps tenuirostris)
Bengal florican (Houbaropsis bengalensis)
Himalayan quail (Ophrysia superciliosa)
Jerdons courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus)
Pink-headed duck (Rhodonessa caryophyllacea)
Red-headed vulture (Sarcogyps calvus)
Sociable lapwing (Vanellus gregarius)
Bugun liocichla (Liocichla bugunorum)
Knifetooth sawfish (Anoxypristis cuspidata)
Pondicherry shark (Carcharhinus hemiodon)
Ganges shark (Glyphis gangeticus)
Deccan labeo (Labeo potail)
Largetooth sawfish (Pristis microdon)
Longcomb sawfish (Pristis zijsron)
Humpback mahseer
Northern river terrapin (Batagur baska)

Red-crowned roofed turtle (Batagur kachuga)
Hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata)
Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus)
Ghats wart frog (Fejervarya murthii)
Gundia Indian frog (Indirana gundia)
Toad-skinned frog (Indirana phrynoderma)
Charles Darwins frog (Ingerana charlesdarwini)
Raos torrent frog (Micrixalus kottigeharensis)
Reptiles and
Amboli bush frog (Pseudophilautus amboli)
Amphibians White-spotted bush frog (Raorchestes chalazodes)
Griet bush frog (Raorchestes griet)
Munnar bush frog (Raorchestes munnarensis)
Ponmudi bush frog (Raorchestes ponmudi)
Sacred Grove bush frog (Raorchestes sanctisilvaticus)
Shillong bubble-nest frog (Raorchestes shillongensis)
Resplendent shrubfrog (Raorchestes resplendens)
Anaimalai flying frog (Rhacophorus pseudomalabaricus)
Patinghe Indian gecko (Geckoella jeyporensis)
Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus)
Namdapha flying squirrel (Biswamoyopterus biswasi)
Himalayan wolf (Canis himalayensis)
Mammals Andaman Shrew (Crocidura andamanensis)
Jenkins shrew (Crocidura jenkinsi)
Nicobar shrew (Crocidura nicobarica)
Northern Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis lasiotis)
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Coral
Kondana soft-furred rat (Millardia kondana)

Pygmy hog (Porcula salvania)
Indian Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus inermis)
Malabar large-spotted civet (Viverra civettina)
Elvira rat (Cremnomys elvira)
Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla)
Kashmir stag (Cervus canadensis hanglu)
Fire corals (Millepora boschmai)
Spiders
Rameshwaram Ornamental or Parachute Spider (Poecilotheria
hanumavilasumica)
Gooty Tarantula, Metallic Tarantula or (Poecilotheria metallica)
INDIA INITIATIVES TOWARDS

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
x
National Solar Mission: the

NAPCC aims to promote the
development and use of solar energy
for power generation and ohter
usees with the ultimate objective
of making solar competitive with
fossil-based energy options.
National Water Mission: with
water scarcity projected to
worsen as a result of climate
change, the plan set a goal of a
20% improvement in water use
efficiency through pricing and
other measures.
National Mission on Sustainable
Habitat: To promote energy
efficiency as a core component
of urban planning.
National Mission for Enhanced
Energy Efficiency: Current
initiatives are expected to yield
saving of 10,000 MW by 2012.
National Mission for Sustaining
the Himalayan Ecosystem: The
plan aims to conserve biodiversity,
forest cover, and other ecological
values in the Himalauan region,
where glaciers that are a major

source of indias water supply are
projected to recede as a result of
global warming.
National Mission for a green
India: Goals include the
afforestation of 6 million hectares
of degraded forest lands and
expanding forest cover from 23%
to 33% of Indias territory.
National Mission for Sustainable
Agriculture: the plan aims to support
climate adapation in agriculture
through the develoment of climateresilient crops, expansion of
weather insurance mechanisms,and
agricultural practices.
National Mission on Srategic
knowledge for Climate Change:
To gain better understanding of
climate science, impacts and
challenges, the plan envisions a
new Climate Science Research
Fund, improved climate modeling,
and increased international
collaboration.
B-445
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS FOR CLIMATE CHANGE

Convention
United nation
Conference on
environment and
Development or
Earth Summit
(1992)
The United
Nations
Framework
Convention on
Climate Change
(1994)
Place
Crucial documents
Rio de Janeiro, x Draft Earth Charter

Brazil
x Convention on climate change and Biological
Diversity
x Convention on Forest
x Agenda 21
Kyoto, Japan
Convention on
Biological Diversity
(1993)
Ramsar
Convention on
Wetland (1971)
Ramsar, Iran
Convention on
International Trade
in Endangered
Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora
(1963)
Convention on the
Conservation of
Migratory Species
of Wild Animals
(1976)
Washington,
U.S.A.
International
Tropical Timber
Organization
(1983)
Geneva
Bad
Godesberg,
Germany
x Gather and share information on greenhouse

gas emissions, national policies and best
practices
x Launch national strategies for addressing
greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to
expected impacts, including the provision
of financial and technological support to
developing countries
x Cooperate in preparing for adaptation to the
impacts of climate change
x The conservation of biological diversity
x The sustainable use of the components of
biological diversity
x The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits
arising out of the utilization of genetic resources
x Halt the worldwide loss of wetlands and
x To conserve, use and management, those that
remain.
x This requires international cooperation, policy
making, capacity building and technology
transfer.
x Help in conservation of species
x It is an intergovernmental treaty
x should promote, cooperate in and support
research relating to migratory species
x hall endeavour to provide immediate protection
for migratory species
x conservation and management of migratory
species included in Appendix II
x Provide an effective framework for cooperation
between tropical timber producers and
consumers
x To encourage the development of national
policies aimed at sustainable utilization
x Conservation of tropical forests and their
genetic resources
B-446
United Nations
Forum on Forests
(2000)
Global tiger forum

(1994)
Stockholm
Convention on
Persistent Organic
Pollutants (2001)
New Delhi,
India
Stockholm,
Sweden
Basel Convention
on the Control of
Trans boundary
Movements of
Hazardous Wastes
and Their Disposal
(1989)
Rotterdam
Convention
(2004)
Basel,
Switzerland
United Nations
Convention
to Combat
Desertification
(1994)
International
Whaling
Commission
(1946)
Montreal
Protocol on
Substances that
Deplete the
Ozone Layer
(1987)
Rotterdam,
Netherlands
x Implementation of agreements and foster a

common understanding on sustainable forest
management;
x To provide policy development and dialogue
among Governments and international
organizations,
x To enhance cooperation
x To foster international cooperation and
x To monitor, assess and report on progress of
the above functions and objectives
x To strengthen political commitment to the
management, conservation and sustainable
development.
x Set up to embark on a worldwide campaign
to save the wild tiger
x It develops a risk management evaluation
x Determines whether the substance fulfills POP
screening.
x Manage and dispose of POPs wastes in an
environmentally sound manner
x To reduce hazardous waste generation and
promote environmental sound management
system for their disposal.
x Restrict trans boundary movement of such
wastes and
x Provide regulatory system applying to cases
where such movement is allowable.
x convention promotes open exchange of
information
x calls on exporters of hazardous chemicals to
use proper labeling
x inform purchasers of any known restrictions
or bans
x promotes a global response to desertification,
land degradation and drought
Washington,
D.C., United
States,
x to keep under review and revise as necessary

the measures laid down in the Schedule to
the Convention which govern the conduct of
whaling throughout the world
Helsinki,
Finland
x Play role in controlling the ozone depletion
B-447
NATIONAL PARKS IN INDIA

Name
Bandipur National
Park
(1974)
Bannerghatta
National Park
(Bannerghatta
Biological Park)
(1974)
Betla National Park
(1986)
Bhitarkanika
National Park
(1988)
Buxa Tiger Reserve
(1992)
Dachigam National
Park (1981)
Dudhwa National
Park (1977)
Gir Forest National
Park (1965)
Great Himalayan
National Park (1984)
Gulf of Mannar
Marine National
Park (1980)
Indravati National
Park (1981)
Jaldapara National
Park (2012)
Jim Corbett
Kanha National
Park (1955)
Kaziranga National
Park (1905)
Keibul Lamjao
Keoladeo National
Park (1981)
Manas National
Park (1990)
Mandla Plant Fossils
Marine National
Park, Gulf of Kutch
(1980)
State
Karnataka
Karnataka
Notability
Chital, gray langurs, Indian giant squirrel, Gaur,

leopard, Sambar deer, indian elephants, honey
buzzard, red-headed vulture and other animals.
White Tiger, Royal Bengal Tiger, Bear, other
animals
Jharkhand
Tiger, Sloth Bear, Peacock, Elephant, Sambar

deer, mouse deer and other animals.
Odisha
Mangroves, Saltwater crocodile, white crocodile,
Indian python, black ibis, wild pigs, rhesus
monkeys, chital and other animals
West Bengal Tiger
J&K
Only area where Kashmir stag is found
U.P
Swamp deer, sambar deer, barking deer, spotted

deer, hog deer, tiger, Indian rhinoceros,
Asiatic lion
Gujarat
Himachal
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Pradesh,
Tamil Nadu Green turtles and Olive Ridley turtles and
whales.
Chhattisgarh Wild Asian Buffalo, Tiger Reserve, Hill Mynas
West Bengal Indian one horned rhinoceros
Uttarakhand Tiger
M. P.
Swamp Deer, Tigers
Assam
Indian rhinoceros, UNESCO World Heritage Site
Manipur
only floating park in the world
Rajasthan
Assam
M. P
Plant Fossils National Park
Gujarat
70 species of sponges, Coral 52 species along

with puffer fishes, sea horse and sting ray
B-448
Namdapha National
Park (1974)
Nanda Devi
Neora Valley
Nokrek National
Park (1986)
Periyar National
Park (1982)
Ranthambore
Sariska Tiger
Reserve (1955)
Simlipal National
Park (1980)
Sultanpur National
Park (1989)
Arunachal Snow Leopards, Clouded Leopards, Common

Pradesh
Leopards and Tigers
Uttarakhand UNESCO World Heritage Site
West Bengal clouded leopard, red panda and musk deer
Meghalaya
UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve
Kerala
Tigers
Rajasthan
Tigers, Leopards, Striped Hyenas, Sambar deer

and Chital.
Tiger
Rajasthan
Odisha
Tiger, Leopard, Asian elephant, Sambar,

Barking deer, Gaur, Jungle cat, Wild boar, and
other animals.
Haryana
Siberian crane, greater flamingo, ruff, blackwinged stilt, common teal, northern pintail, and
yellow wagtail.
West Bengal UNESCO World Heritage Site
Sundarbans
Valley of Flowers
Uttarakhand Flying squirrel, Himalayan black bear, red
fox, Himalayan weaseland Himalayan yellowthroated marten, and Himalayan goral
WILD LIFE SANCTUARIES

India has 515 animal sanctuaries referred to as wildlife sanctuaries category
IV protected areas. Among these, the 48 tiger reserves are governed by
Project Tiger, and are of special significance in the conservation of the tiger.
WILD LIFE SANCTUARIES IN INDIA

Name of the
Sanctuary
Gir Wild Life
Sanctuary
Wild Ass
Sanctuary
Hingolgadh
Sanctuary
Marine
Sanctuary
Simlipal
Sactuary
Kutch Desert
Sanctuary
Location
Major Species
Sasan Gir,
Junagadh,
Amreli
Little Rann of
Kachchh
Hingolgadh,
Rajkot
Gulf of
Kachchh,
Jamnagar
Odisha
Lion, Leopard, Chausinga, Chital, Hyena,

Sambar, Chinkara, Herpetofauna, Crocodiles
and birds
Wild Ass, Chinkara, Blue bull, Houbara bustard,
Wolf, Waterfowls, Herpetofauna
Chinkara, Blue bull, Wolf, Hyena, Fox, Birds,
Herpetofauna
Sponges, Corals, Jellyfish, Sea horse,
Octopus,Oyster, Pearloyster, Starfish, Lobster,
Dolphin, Dugong, waterfowls
Elephant, Tiger, Leopard, Gaur, Cheetal
Great Rann of
Kachchh
Chinkara, Hyena, Fox, Flamingo, Pelicans &

other waterfowls, Herpetofauna
B-449
Rampara
Sanctuary
Ghana Bird
Sanctuary
Rampara, Rajkot Blue bull, Chinkara, Wolf, Fox, Jackal, Birds,

Herpetofauna
Rajasthan
Water Bird, Black-buck, Cheetal, Sambar
Panchmarhi
Dandeli
Sanctuary
Kutch Bustard
Sanctuary
Madhya Pradesh Tiger, Panther, Sambhar, Nilgai, Baskeng, Deer

Karnataka
Tiger, Panther, Elephant, Cheetal, Sanbhar,
Wild Boar
Near Naliya,
Great Indian Bustard, Lesser Florican, Houbara
Kachchh
bustard, Chinkara, Blue bull, Herpetofauna

Name
Nilgiri Biosphere
Reserve
State
Tamil Nadu,
Kerala and
Karnataka
Key Fauna
Nilgiri tahr, lion-tailed macaque
Nanda Devi National Uttarakhand

Park & Biosphere
Reserve
Gulf of Mannar
Tamil Nadu
Dugong or sea cow
Nokrek
Meghalaya
Red panda
Sundarbans
West Bengal
Royal Bengal tiger
Manas
Assam
Golden langur, red panda
Simlipal
Odisha
Gaur, royal Bengal tiger, elephant
Dihang-Dibang
Arunachal
Pradesh
Pachmarhi Biosphere Madhya Pradesh Giant squirrel, flying squirrel

Reserve
AchanakmarAmarkantak
Biosphere Reserve
Madhya Pradesh, Four horned antelope (Tetracerus quadricornis),

Chhattisgarh
Indian wild dog (Cuon alpinus), Saras crane
(Grus antigone), Asian white-backed vulture
(Gyps bengalensis), Sacred grove bush frog
(Philautus sanctisilvaticus)
Great Rann of Kutch Gujarat
Indian wild ass
Cold Desert
Himachal
Pradesh
Snow leopard
Khangchendzonga
Sikkim
Snow leopard, red panda
AgasthyamalI
Biosphere Reserve
Kerala, Tamil
Nadu
Nilgiri tahr, elephants
Great Nicobar
Biosphere Reserve
Andaman and
Nicobar Islands
Saltwater crocodile
Dibru-Saikhowa
Assam
Golden langur
Seshachalam Hills
Andhra Pradesh
Panna
Madhya Pradesh Tiger, chital, chinkara, sambhar and sloth

bear
B-450
ANIMAL WELFARE
People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals (PETA)
It is a non-profitable American
animal rights organization based
in Norfolk, Virginia. Led by
Ingrid Newkirk, its international
president, founded in 1980 with a
slogan of Animals are not ours to
eat, wear, experiment on, use for
entertainment, or abuse in any other
way. It focuses its attention on
the four areas in which the largest
numbers of animals suffer the most
intensely for the longest periods
of time: on factory farms, in the
clothing trade, in laboratories, and
in the entertainment industry.
World Wide Fund for Nature

The organisation was conceived
in Morges, Switzerland (29, April,
1961). It is an international nongovernmental
organization
in
nature. Works in the field related
to
biodiversity
conservation,
and the reduction of humanitys
footprint on the environment. It
is the worlds largest conservation
organization with the slogan of
For a Living Planet. The method
of its working involves Lobbying
Research and Consultancy. Basically
its a charitable trust. WWFs giant
panda logo originated from a panda
named Chi Chi. It has been designed
by Sir Peter Scott from preliminary
sketches made by Gerald Watterson.
The main missions of WWF are as
follows:
x conserving the worlds biological
diversity
x ensuring that the use of renewable
natural resources is sustainable
Promoting
the
reduction
of pollution and wasteful
consumption.
At present WWFs current strategy
of achieving its mission which is
related to restoring populations
of 36 species (species or species
groups that are important for their
ecosystem or to people, including
elephants, tunas, whales, dolphins
and porpoises), and ecological
footprint in 6 areas (carbon
emissions, cropland, grazing land,
fishing, forestry and water).
Animal Welfare Board of India

Functions
x
x
x
To keep the law in force in India

for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals under constant study
and to advise the government
on the amendments to be
undertaken in any such law from
time to time.
To
advise
the
Central
Government on the making
of rules under the Act with a
view to preventing unnecessary
pain or suffering to animals and
transported.
To advise in the design of
vehicles so as to lessen the
burden on draught animals.
To take all such steps as the Board
may think fit for amelioration
of animals by encouraging, or
providing for the construction of
sheds, water troughs and the like
and by providing for veterinary
assistance to animals.
To advise in the design
of slaughter houses or its
maintenance.
B-451
INDIA INITIATIVES TOWARDS

ANIMAL PROTECTION
Project Tiger an government of
India initiative for conserving its
national animal, the tiger. The
project was launched in 1973.
Since then the no of tiger reserve
has been increased from 9 to 47
which accounts for 2.08% the total
geographical area of our country.
The area of tiger projects have been
developed on core/ buffer strategy.
The core areas are legally termed
as National Parks and the buffering
areas are a mixture of forest and
non-forest land managed as a
multiple used area. The project aims
at fostering an exclusive tiger agenda
in the core areas of tiger reserves,
with an inclusive people oriented
agenda in the buffer
Project Rhino was joint venture
of the Assam Forest Department
and Wildlife Trust of India InternationalFund
for
Animal
Welfare (WTI-IFAW) and initiated
in February 2006 with the trans
location
of a hand-raised rhino
calf to Manas Wildlife Sanctuary.
The projects aims at repopulatimg
the one horn rhino by displacing
them to Manas wild life sanctuary
from Kaziranga National Park.
The whole project is supported by
Bodoland Territorial Council and
the Assam Forest Department.
Project Crocodile Conservation
was launched in 1975 in different
States for protecting the endangered
crocodile species like Gharial,
Gavialis
gangeticus;
Mugger
crocodile, Crocodylus palustris and
Saltwater crocodile, Crocodylus
were on the verge of extinction

by the seventies. The funds and
technical support for the project
came from UNDP/ FAO through
the Government of India.
Project Elephant (PE) is a central
government initiative to provide financial
and technical support to major elephant
bearing states of India. It was launched
in February 1992. It aims at protecting
the elephants, their habitat and corridor.
It also looks after the human elephant
issues. It is implemented in 13 States /
UTs, viz. Andhra pradesh, Arunachal
Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Karnataka,
Kerala, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Orissa,
Tamil Nadu, Uttranchal, Uttar Pradesh
and West Bengal.
SAVE i.e. Saving Asias Vultures from
Extinction is a consortium of regional
and international organization to
co-ordinate conservation, campaigning
and fundraising activities to help the
plight of south Asias vultures. The
key strategies of vulture conservation
SAVE is involved in a wide range of
conservation activities across South
Asia including:
x breeding vultures in captivity
so that their offspring can be
released back in to the wild
when the environment is free
from diclofenac
x an active advocacy programme
targeting the vets and farmers
using diclofenac
x legislation
controlling
the
manufacture and sale of
veterinary drugs
x in-situ conservation actions
focused around the small but key
remaining vulture populations in
the wild
B-452
an active research programme

that underpins these activities
and monitors their effectiveness
Project Dolphin Gangetic river
dolphins is Indias national aquatic
animal and is often known as the
Tiger of the Ganges. This dolphin
species is an indicator animal which
represent healthy river ecosystem in
a same position as a tiger in a forest.
Their population is estimated to be
less than 2,000 in the country. Some
of the major threats are habitat
fragmentation due to construction
of dams and barrages, direct killing,

indiscriminate fishing and pollution
of rivers.
For conservation of dolphins,
Indias first Dolphin Community
Reserve established in West Bengal
to protect the endangered mammal,
Gangetic river dolphins. The reserve
would be set up in the Hooghly River
between Malda and Sundarbans as
per provisions of Wildlife Protection
Act, 1972. State Forest department
also has announced that it would
also conduct a census to estimate the
population of dolphins.
ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
The Water (Prevention and

Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
Control of Pollution) Rules, 1975
The Water (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977
Control of Pollution) Cess Rules,
1978
The Air (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1981
The Air (Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Rules, 1982
The Environment (Protection)
Act, 1986
The Environment (Protection)
Rules, 1986
Hazardous Wastes (Management
and Handling) Rules, 1989
Manufacture,
Storage
and
Import of Hazardous Chemical
Rules, 1989
The Forest (Conservation) Act,
1980
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
The Forest (Conservation) Rules,

1981
The Wildlife Protection Act,
1972
The Wildlife (Transactions and
Taxidermy) Rules, 1973
The Wildlife (Stock Declaration)
Central Rules, 1973
The
Wildlife
(Protection)
Licensing (Additional Matters
for Consideration) Rules, 1983
The Wildlife (Protection) Rules,
1995
The Wildlife (Specified Plants
- Conditions for Possession by
Licensee) Rules, 1995
The Public Liability Insurance
Act, 1991
The Public Liability Insurance
Rules, 1991
The National Environment
Tribunal Act, 1995
The National Environment
Appellate Authority Act, 1997
B-453
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Hazards are the situations which
occur on the earth surface and have
the capability of impacting life,
health, property and environment
negatively. When they really start
impacting they turned into disasters.
Major types of natural disasters are:
Drought is a period of
unexpected rainfall deficit which
results in a shortage of water,
which develops slowly affecting
an extensive area. The associated
impacts of drought are the lack
of adequate drinking water, loss
of vegetation, loss of farmland,
loss of livestock and loss of life
due to famine or dehydration.
Floods are the overflow of
water from rivers and streams
which submerge the connected
dry lands caused due to
excessive precipitation driven by
atmospheric factors. They can
be divided into two types, river
flood and sea flood basing upon
their place of occurrence.
The capital city 'Chennai' of Tamil
Nadu along with its surrounding
areas had faced one of the most
dangerous and catastrophic flood
situation during 1st and 2nd week
of December 2015 as a result
heavy down pour which had
occurred from 28th, Nov to 4th
Dec 2015.
Tsunamis are the series of huge
sea waves that strike a coast with
the massive amount of water in
the coastal areas as a result of
underwater seismic disturbances.
Hurricanes,
Earthquakes are the vibration
of the earth surface caused due
to the convergence of two plates
under the earth crust giving
rise to physical damage such as
demolition of buildings, rupture

in the roads etc.
Nepal earthquake killed over
9,000 people and injured more
than 23,000 occurred on 25th
April 2015 with intensity of 7.8
on Richter Scale.
Tornadoes are the localized gust
of wind moving in a circular
motion over the land surface.
Generally they form funnel like
structure and commonly termed
as thunder storm as well.
A major torando broke out in Eads,
Colorado tornado on May 9, 2015.
Hurricanes are the typical
disturbance of the North
Atlantic and East Pacific
Oceans. In other ocean basins
they are known as Typhoons,
Tropical Cyclones, or Cyclones.
These are the low pressure zones
over the ocean surface which
continues to intensify as long as
they are moving on it. Once they
hit the coast they start to weaken
and result into heavy down pour
with high velocity of wind.
Typhoon Soudelor was one of the
biggest disaster which hit Japan
and Taiwan in August 2015 with
a wind speed of 241km/h.
Cyclonic storm Komen hit
Bangladesh coast on 30 th July
2015, bringing heavy rainfall
to Gangetic West Bengal and
Odisha. The wind speed was
approximately 300km/h.
x Land Slide is a downward
movement of rock and soil
debris that becomes detached
from the underlying slope.
The material can move by
falling, toppling, sliding,
spreading and flowing.
B-454
Uttarakhand faced one of the

toughest situations of the century
in form of a natural disaster with
landslides and flash floods on 16
June 2013.
Managing a Disaster

x These are applied management
practices
with
systematic
observation and analysis of
the types of disaster, measures
of
improvement
related
to prevention, emergency
response,
recovery
and
mitigation and finally planning
for and responding to disasters
including both pre and post
disaster activities.
x Disaster management practices

are the policies, initiative or
operational activities, that
pertains to various stages of
disasters at all levels.
Integrated Disaster Management
Preparedness
Response
Recovery
Activities prior Activities dur- Activities
to a disaster.
ing a disaster
following a
x Preparedness
disaster.
x Public
plans
x Temporary
Warning
x Emergency
housing
system
exercises
x Claims
x Emergency
x Training,
processing
Operations
x Warning
x Grants
x Search and
Sytem
x Medical care
rescue
Institutional Framework for

Disaster Management
The disaster management practice
is an integrated effort of several
institution who joins hand together to
mitigate the problem and rehabilitate
the victims in best possible way.
The top down approach of the
institutional framework for disaster
management cell is as follows:
Disaster Management Structure
x NDMA
Apex
Body
with Prime Minister as
Chairperson.
x National Executive Committee
- Secretaries of 14 Ministries
and Chief of Integrated
Defence Staff.
Recovery
Activities
that
reduce effects of
disasters
x Building codes
& Zoning
x Vulnerability
analyses
x Public
education
Centre Level
x Central Ministries; National
Disaster
Management
Authority,
x National Institute of Disaster
Management
x National Disaster Response
Force (NDRF).
State Level
x SDMA headed by Chief
Minister.
x State Executive Committee
(SEC).
District Level
x DDMA headed by District
Magistrate.
x Interface between Govt. and
Public.
$57 &8/785(
B-456
Art & Culture
ART & CULTURE

Culture plays an important role in
the development of any nation. It
represents a set of shared attitudes,
values, goals and practices. Culture
and creativity manifest themselves
in almost all economic, social
and other activities. A country as
diverse as India is symbolized by the
plurality of its culture.

India has one of the worlds largest
collections of songs, music, dance,
theatre, folk traditions, performing
arts, rites and rituals, paintings and
writings that are known, as the
Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH)
of humanity.
Art forms in India

The vibrant and colorful land of India is also famous for its versatility of its
art and culture as each of the forms are different from each other in terms of
their place of origin, creativity and raw materials used.
FAMOUS ART FORMS

Names
State of Origin
The art form has its origin
dates back in 5th century BC
and and since then it has been
lovingly nurtured in the areas
like Raghurajpur Village in Puri
Patachitra painting district of Odisha
The indigenous art form belongs
to Bengal and very interestingly
it depicts spoofs on retrograde
social practices, thus attempting
Bengal pat painting to highlight them for change.
This art form comes under the
cultural legacy of Madhubani
district of Bihar depicting
mythological stories of Lord
Krishna. Various geometric
shapes have given emphasis on
Madhubani
the colourful environment of
painting
Madhubani Painting Canvas.
Developed during Mughal Period

i.e. 16th 19th century this style
of painting are very small in size
but having a lot of niceties of
court life and the contemporary
personalities, events and actions
Miniature painting
of the Mughal times.
Materials Used
Canvas made of fine gauzelike cloth fortified with
tamarind paste, chalk powder
and gum and natural dyes for
intricate painting over it
Artists use dye that are made
of spices, earth, soot etc, and
particularly red, indigo, green,
black and ochre colours are
seen widely in such painting
Traditionally people were using
mud coated wall as canvas for
painting. But with time the
canvases modified into cloth,
handmade paper to give the
painting the same authentic
look. The colors used in the
painting are derived from
natural element like bamboo
shoots, turmeric powder, Rice
powder, flower extracts, pollens
etc.
The intricate designs are given
form by using colours using
precious stones conch shells,
gold and silver
B-457
Art & Culture
As the name indicates this form

of art has its origin in Tanjore
district of Southern Tamil Nadu
depicting the stories of gods
and goddess with an aristocratic
touch.
Semi-precious stones, glass

and gold are used to give the
painting a royal look with
embellished designs
This ethnic painting is a

patronage of Golkonda
and Mughal Sultanate and
flourished near Kalahasti region
of Chennai an Masulipatnam
area of Hyderabad
This is a rudimentary wall painting
with emphasis on graphical pattern
and legacy of North Sahyadri
Range in India. Its an age old
tribal painting started during the
2500 or 3000 BCE depicts the
nature, celestial body and human
invention with different graphical
shape
This is a tribal art form developed
by Gond Tribes of Central India.
The typical design Gond art with
dots and lines depict the nature
and social customs of the tribal
community
The art is executed by fine

pens made of bamboo and
natural colours extracted from
vegetables
Tanjore art
Kalamkari
Warli Painting
Typical natural elements such

as Rice paste, mix with Gum
and Water Red clay (Geru),
cow dung, mud are used to
give the painting an authentic
tribal look
These art forms are generally

drawn on made on walls,
ceilings and floors of village
houses
Gond art
FAMOUS INDIAN PAINTERS

Rabindranath Tagore
7 May 1861 7 Aug 1941
Abanindranath Tagore
7 Aug 1871 5 Dec 1951
Amrita Sher-Gil
30 Jan 1913 5 Dec 1941
Jamini Roy
1 Apr 1887 24 Apr 1972
Francis Newton Souza
12 Apr 1924 -28 Mar 2002
S.H. Raza
22 Feb 1922 - Till date
Tyeb Mehta
25 Jul 1925 2 Jul 2009
Satish Gujral
25 Dec 1925 - Till date
Nandalal Bose
3 Dec 1882 16 Apr 1966
Manjit Bawa
1941-29 Dec 2008
M. F. Husain
17 Sep 1915 9 Jun 2011
B-458
Art & Culture
Indian Music
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk music, pop and
classical music. Indias classical music tradition, including Hindustani music
and Carnatic, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several
eras. Music in India began as an integral part of socio-religious life.
LEGENDS OF INDIAN MUSIC

Legends
Life Span
Forte
7 April 1920 Sitar
11 Dec 2012
Awards
Grammy Award, Padma Bhushan,
Magsaysay award, Padma Vibhushan,
UNESCO International Music,
Lgion dhonneur, Sangeet Natak
Akademi Award, Kalidas Samman,
Bharat Ratna
Pandit Ravi
Shankar
1st July 1938
Bansuri
Sangeet Natak Academy, Padma

Bhushan, Konark Samman, Yash
Bharati Sanman, Padma Vibhushan,
Dinanath Mangeshkar Award,
Akshaya Sanman
Pandit Hariprasad
Chaurasia
January 13,
Santoor
1938
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award,

honorary citizenship of the city
of Baltimore, Padma Vibhushan,
Padma Shri
Pandit Shivkumar
Sharma
9 October
Sarod
1945
UNESCO Award, Padma Bhushan,

Padma Vibhusha, Unicef s National
Ambassadorship, The Crystal Award
by the World Economic Forum,
Ustad Amjad Ali

Khan
Commander of the Order of Arts

21 March
Shehnai
and letters
Bharat Ratna, Fellow of Sangeet
1913- 21
Natak Akademi, Bharat Ratna, Talar
August 2006
Mausiquee from Republic of Iran,

Padma Vibhushan
Ustad Bismillah
Khan
B-459
Art & Culture
9 March 1951 Tabla
Ustad Zakir
Hussain
4 February
1922 24
January 2011
Indian
classical
vocalist
28 January
1930-till date
Indian
classical
vocalist
Pandit Bhimsen
Gururaj Joshi
Pandit Jasraj
16 September Classical
1916 11
vocalist
December
2004
M. S. Subbulakshmi
23 July 1947till date
Dr.
Lakshminarayana
Subramaniam
6 July 1930till date
M.Balamurali
Krishna
Padma Bhushan,Padma Shri,

Grammy, Sangeet Natak Akademi,
Indo-American Award, Indias
National Academy of Music,
Dance & Drama, National Heritage
Fellowship of National Endowment
for the Arts, National Heritage
Fellowship of National Endowment
for the Arts, Kalidas Samman
Padma Bhushan, National Film
Award for Best Male Playback
Singer, Sangeet Natak Akademi
Award, First platinum disc, Padma
Vibhushan, Aditya Vikram Birla
Kalashikhar Puraskar, Karnataka
Ratna by Government of Karnataka,
Maharashtra Bhushan, Maharashtra
Bhushan
Padma Vibhushan, Sangeet Natak
Akademi Award, Padma Bhushan,
Sangeet Kala Ratna, Master
Dinanath Mangeshkar Award,
Lata Mangeshkar Puraskar,Swathi
Sangeetha Puraskaram, Sangeet
Natak Akademi Fellowship
Padma Bhushan, Sangeet Natak

Akademi Award, Sangeetha
Kalanidhi, Ramon Magsaysay
award, Padma Vibhushan, Sangeetha
Kalasikhamani, Kalidas Samman,
Indira Gandhi Award for National
Integration, Bharat Ratna
Classical, Lifetime Achievement Award,
Carnatic, Limca Book of Records, GiMA
(Best Carnatic Instrumental Album
jazz
Innovations), Asthana Vidwan,
fusion,
Indo jazz, ISKCON, Bangalore , Viswa Kala
Bharathi Bharat Kalachar, Chennai
world
(2004), Sangeetha Kalaratna,
fusion,
Sangeetha Kalaa Shiromani, Padma
Western
Bhushan, Sangeeta Ratna Mysore,
music
T. Chowdaiah Memorial National
Award, Sangeeta Sagaram, Cultural
Centre of Performing Arts, and many
Carnatic Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan,
music
Sangita Kalanidhi by The Music
Academy, Sangeetha Virinchi
B-460
Art & Culture
NA
2 April 1902 Sarangi,
25 April 1968 Hindustani
classic
vocal
Bade Ghulam Ali

Khan
Indian dance
There are many types of dance forms
in India which are deeply religious in
content to those which are performed
on small occasions. The Indian
dances are broadly divided into
Classical dances and folk dances. The
Classical dances of India are usually
spiritual in content. Though the folk
dances of India are also spiritual and
religious in content but the main
force behind the folk dances of India
is the celebratory mood.
The most popular classical dance
styles of India are Bharatnatyam of
Tamil Nadu, Kathakali and Mohiniattam of Kerala, Odissi of Odisha,
Kathak of Uttar Pradesh, Kuchipudi
of Andhra Pradesh and Manipuri of
Manipur.
Indian Classical Dances
India has thousands of year old
tradition of fine arts and classical
and folk music and dances. Some of

the world-famous dance forms that
originated and evolved in India are
Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Kathakali,
Kuchipudi, Manipuri, Mohiniattam
and Odissi. All these dance forms
use basically the same mudras or
signs of hand as a common language
of expression and were originally
performed in the temples to entertain
various Gods and Goddesses.
Indian Folk Dances
India is a land of varied cultures
and traditions. Indian folk and tribal
dances are product of different socioeconomic set up and traditions. Indian
folk and tribal dances are simple and
are performed to express joy. In India
we have festivals and celebrations
virtually every day. This has added
to the richness of Indian culture.
VARIOUS DANCE FORMS

Dance Forms
Odissi
Origin
Odissi is believed to be the
oldest form of Indian dance
from the state of Odisha, It
is considered a dance of love,
joy and intense passion, pure,
divine and human. It divides
the body into three parts,
head, bust and torso
Lagends
Kelucharan MohapatraSonal
Mansingh Mayadhar Raut ,
Jhelum Paranjape, KumKum
Mohanty, Madhumita Raut,
Aloka Kanungo, Ileana Citaristi
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Art & Culture
Bharatnatyam
is
more Alarmel Valli, Yamini
popular in South Indian Krishnamurthy, Rukmini Devi,

states. This dance is almost Padma Subramanyam, Yamini
2,000 years old. This dance Krishnamurthy, Mrinalini
Bharat Natyam
flourished in the Hindu Sarabhai, Meenakshi Sundaram

temples of South India.
Pillai, Padma Subramanyam,
Balasarswati
It presents scenes from Hindu Bhavana Reddy, Yamini Reddy,
Epics and mythological Raja & Radha Reddy, Kaushalya
tales through dance-dramas Reddy
combining music, dance and
acting.
Kuchipudi
This north Indian dance form Pandit Birju Maharaj, Kumudini
is inextricably bound with Lakhiya, Sitara Devi, Shovana
classical Hindustani music, Narayan,
Malabika
Mitra,
and the rhythmic nimbleness Kumudini Lakhiya, Kartik Ram

of the feet is accompanied by - Kalyan Das, Manisha Gulyani
the tabla or pakhawaj
Kathak
It literally means story play
and is an elaborate dance
depicting the victory of truth
over false-hood
Kathakali
Kalamandalam Krishna Prasad,

Kavungal Chathunni Panicker,
Kavungal Chathunni Panicker,
Kalamandalam Ramankutty
Nair, Kalamandalam Kesavan
Namboodir, Kottakkal Sivaraman,
Kalamandalam Gopi
It is a very graceful dance Smitha Rajan, Sunanda Nai,
meant to be performed as a Jayaprabha Menon, Pallavi
solo recital by women.
Krishnan, Gopika Varma,
Vijayalakshmi
Mohiniattam
The most striking part of
Manipur dance is its colorful
decoration, lightness of
dancing foot, delicacy of
abhinaya (drama), lilting
music and poetic charm
Manipuri
Poushali Chatterjee , Rajkumar

Singhajit Singh, Sohini Ray, Guru
Nileswar Mukharjee, Guru Bipin
Singha
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Art & Culture
THEATRES AND FILMS

The rich Indian theater culture has its origin dates back in first century, CE, and
started being nurtured by the society as means of expressing, communicating
and sharing the ideas-opinions-emotions-believe of mankind. Since then it
has gone through many ups and downs but the culture remain undaunted.
Today many of Indian theatre have internationally acclaimed fraternity.
SOME OF THE IMPORTANT THEATRES OF MODERN INDIA

Name
Founder
National School of
Drama
(Deemed
University)
Year and Place of

Establishment
Ministry
1959, New Delhi
of Culture,
Government
of India.
Bhartendu Academy Padma Shri 1975, Lucknow,

of Dramatic Arts
Raj Bisaria.
Theatre Arts
Raj Bisaria 1966, Lucknow
Workshop (TAW)
People Associated with it

Naseeruddin Shah, Irrfan
Khan, Anupam Kher,
Nawazuddin Siddiqui,
Pankaj Kapur, Himani
Shivpuri and many more
Rajiv Jain, Raajpal Yadav,
Anupam Shyam
Hindi Films
Bollywood is the Hindi Language film industry which is based in Mumbai,
Maharashtra. They are one of the largest film producers in India and one
of the largest centres of film production in the world. Raja Harishchandra
(1913), by Dadasaheb Phalke, is known as the first silent feature film made in
India. The first Indian sound film, Ardeshir Iranis Ara (1931), was a major
commercial success. In 1937, Ardeshir Irani, of Alam ara fame, made the
first colour film in Hindi, Kisan Kanya.
INDIAS HIGHEST GROSSING FILMS

Movie
Year
Studio(s)/
Producers
PK
2014 Vinod Chopra
Films
Bajrangi
2015 Saliman Khan
Bhaijaan
Films/Kabir Khan
Films
Baahubali The 2015 Arka Media Works
Begining
Dhoom 3
2013 Yash Raj Films
Cheennai
2013 Red Chillies
Express
Entertainment
Prem Ratan
2015 Rajshri
Dhan Payo
Productions
3 Idiots
2009 Vinod Chopra
Films
Happy New
2014 Red Chillies
Year
Entertainment
Language
Worldwide gross
Hindi
` 735 crore (US$110 million)
Hindi
Telugu
and Tamil
Hindi
Hindi
Hindi
` 400 crore (US$ 60 million)
Hindi
` 392 crore (US$ 59 million)/

Hindi
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Art & Culture
TOURISM
India has become a popular tourist
destination with thousands of people
visiting different parts of India each
year. It has much to offer to travelers
and tourists. It is a land of hills,
rivers, plateaus, plains, beaches,
deltas and deserts. Some of the major
tourist destinations in India are the
Himalayas, Agra, Jaipur,Goa, Kerala,
Delhi, Odisha and Maharshtra.
Famous Tourist Destination in

India
Akshardham Temple: The 108
feet tall temple was built on 2nd,
November 1992 in memory of
Pramukh Swami in Gandhinagar
district of Gujarat.
Ajmer Sharif: It is sufi shrine
dedicated to the sufi saint
Moinuddin Chishti. It is situated
Ajmer, Rajasthan. The Dargah
attracts people from different faith
who come and worship here.
Amarnath Cave: It is situated in
Jammu and Kashmir and is one of
the ancient
pilgrimages
in India. It
is
famous
for
the
Linga which
is
created
naturally by ice every year. The
Amarnath Yatra is an annual event
taken up by Hindu pilgrims who
reach the temple after a rigorous trek
to the cave temple.
Ajanta and Ellora Caves: They
contain a cluster of Hindu and Jian
temples along with cave monuments.
Ajanta along with Ellora caves are
one of the major tourist attraction
of Maharastra, Primarinly for their
cave paintings.
Beaches of Goa: Goa is famous

for its beautiful beaches, wonderful
churches, wildlife sanctuary, goan
cuisine, water sports and most
happening night life. The wellknown beaches of Goa are Baga
Beach, Aguada Beach, Arambol
Beach, Palolem Beach, Calangute
Beach, Calangute Beach, Butterfly
Beach, Colva Beach etc and the
magnificent churches are Basilica
of Bom Jesus, Rachol Seminary and
Church, St. Alex Church, Church
of St Francis of Assisi, Immaculate
Conception Church, Se Cathedral.
Bandipur Wildlife Sanctuary:
Established in 1947 Bandipur
Wildlife sanctuary is well known
for its tiger reserve. The entire area
constitute the vast Nilgiri Biosphere
Reserve which comprises the tracts
of protected forest.
Badrinath: It is located in the
Chamoli district in Uttarakhand. It
is the most
important
of the four
sites
in
Indias Char
D h a m
pilgrimage.
It is also gateway to several
mountaineering expeditions headed
to mountains like Nilkantha.
Bodhgaya: It is one of the most
important and sacred Buddhist
pilgrimage center in the world situated
in Gaya district in Bihar. It is famous
as the place where Gautama Buddha
is said to have obtained Enlightenment
under the Bodhi Tree.
Dwarkadhish Temple : The temple
is situated o the bank of river Gomti
and dedicated to lard Krishna, The
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temple is constructed of limestone

which is still in immaculate condition.
Dal Lake, Ladakh: The enchanting
lake of Jammu and Kasmir bordered
by ice covered mountains from three
sides is famous for its gardens,
shikara rides and house boat stay.
Golden Temple: A symbol of
brotherhood and equality the
Harmandir Sahib Gurudwara, is
commonly called as Golden Temple
is located in
Amritsar
is
famous for its
sanctity and
is the main
pilgrimage of sikh community but it
welcomes a large no. of tourist every
years despite of their religion cast and
creed.
Gateway of India: It is a crude jetty
made by British People in the year
1914 in Mumbai which is a basalt
arc and having a height of 26 feet.
Haji Ali Dargah: The very famous
dargah (tomb) is located on an
islet of the coast of Worli in the
Southern part of Mumbai built in
1431 in the memory of a wealthy
merchant Sayyed Peer Haji Ali
Shah Bukhari, who gave up all his
worldly possessions before making a
pilgrimage to Mecca
Hemkund Sahib: It is a Sikh place
of worship situated in Chamoli
district, Uttarakhand, India, devoted
to Guru CiObind Singh Ji, the tenth
Sikh Guru. The scenic beauty of the
place is astounding as this shrine is
located amidst lofty hills that are
covered with snow.
Haridwar: It is one of the most
ancient cities located on the banks
Art & Culture

of river Ganga in the state of
Uttarakhand. The Kumbha Mela
which happens once in every 12
years attracts millions to the city
with devotees thronging the place all
year round.
Incredible India
Incredible India is thae name of an

international marketiing compaign by
the government of India to promote
tourism in India to an audience of
global appeal
Jagannath Temple, Puri: It is a

sacred Hindu temple dedicated to
Lord Jagannath situated in Odisha
and is one of
the char dham
pilgrimages
that
every
Hindu intends
to visit.
Jama Masjid: It is situated in Delhi
and is one of the largest mosques
in india. It was built by Shah Jahan
between 1644 and 1656.
Kerala Backwaters: A chain of
brackish water lagoons lying parallel
to the Malabar Coast of Kerala in
southern part of India which is a
large web of water bodies i.e. five
large lake interconnected natural and
manmade canals and fed by 38 rivers.
Kanyakumari : The southernmost
part of Tamilnadu which was
formerly known as Cape Comorin
and famous for place of tourist
interests like Vivekananda Rock
Memorial, Thiruvalluvar Statue,
Our Lady of Ransom Church,
Tsunami Memorial Park.
Art & Culture

Kaziranga National Park: This
national park was established in the
year 1904 in Golaghat and Nagaon
districts of the state of Assam are
famous for the heavy population
of one-horned rhinoceros. Among
the other specialties of this national
park tall elephant grass, marshland,
and dense tropical moist broadleaf
forests, river crisscross of four major
rivers, including the Brahmaputra,
and the park includes numerous
small bodies of water are wellknown.
Khajuraho Group of Monuments:
It is a group of Hindu and Jain
temples situated in Madhya
Pradesh. The temples are famous
for the nagara style architecture and
erotic sculptures.
Konark Sun Temple: It is situated in
Odisha. The iconic temple is in the
form of a gigantic chariot, built in
the 13th century. It also features on
the list of seven wonders of India.
Lotus Temple: It is located in New
Delhi, is a Bahai House of Worship
constructed in 1986.
Mahabaleshwar: It is a vast
magnificent plateau located at a
distance of 120 km south west of
Pune with an average height of 1353
meters. It is bound by valley from
all sides and having some beautiful
high rise peaks. The highest peak is
known as Wilson or Sunset Point.
Mathura: It is known as the
birthplace of Lord Krishna located
50 km North of Agra in Uttar
Pradesh. The Krishna Janbhoomi
temple is visited by a large number
of devotees throughout the year.
During Janmashtami the town
becomes overcrowded with devotees
from all over India.
B-465
Rishikesh: It is the starting point of

the chardham pilgrimage situated
in the Uttarakhand. The city is
regarded as one of the holiest places
to Hindus and also referred as the
Yoga Capital of the World. It has
innumerable Hindu temples and the
heavy settlement of yoga centers.
The Great Rann of Kutch: It is
a seasonal salt marsh is spread
over an area of 7,505.22 square
kilometers (2,897.78 sq mi) in Thar
Desert. It is the land of various well
known sanctuaries such as Wild Ass
Sanctuary, bird-rich Nawa Talao
lake, Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary.
Somnath Mahadev Temple : Adding
to the beauty of western ghat the
famous Somnath Mahadev Temple
of Prabhas Patan is believed to be
the first among twelve Jyotirling of
Shivas. The age old temple was
initially built in the 11th century by
Solanky rajput . but it was rebuilt in
1951.
Siddhivinayak Temple: It is one of
the richest hindu
temple built in
the heart of
Mumbai city on
19
November,
1801 built by
Laxman Vithu and Debubai Patil.
Taj Mahal: It is a white marble
mausoleum located on the southern
bank of the yamuna
river is Agra, Uttar
Pradesh. It was
built by Shah Jahan
in 1632 in the
memory of his loving wife Muntaz
Mahal.
Tirumala Venkateswara Temple:
It is an iconic vaishnavite temple
located in Tirumala at Tirupati in
Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh.
It is one of the most visited Hindu
temples in India with a footfall of
60,000 pilgrims each day.
B-466
Art & Culture
Valley of flowers: A national park

situated in West Himalaya and
renowned for its meadows of endemic
alpine flowers and the variety of flora.
Vaishno Devi Temple, Jammu
Kashmir: The temple is recognized as
one of the Shakti Peeths of goddess
Durga. The holy shrine is situated in
the folds of mighty Tirkuta Hills
which attracts lakhs of devotees from
all parts of India and abroad.
Varanasi: It is one of the most popular

pilgrimages for the
Hindus. It houses
one the Shakti
Peethas and one
of the twelve
Jyotir Linga sites in India. The Ganga
Arti performed ritualistically every
morning and evening at the Ganga
ghats which enhances its divinity.
TOP TEN MONUMENTS WITH HIGHEST DOMESTIC VISITORS IN INDIA

S. No.
Monuments
No. of Domestic
Visitors
% age share
1.
Taj Mahal, Agra
5139640
11.9
2.
Qutub Minar, Delhi
2980710
6.9
3.
Red Fort, Delhi
2736699
6.4
4.
Sun Temple, Konark
2334556
5.4
5.
Agra Fort, Agra
1794737
4.2
6.
Golconda Fort, Hyderabad
1471232
3.4
7.
Charminar, Hyderabad
1397000
3.2
8.
Ellora Caves, Aurangabad
1336367
3.1
9.
Bibi ka Maqbara, Aurangabad
1276206
3.0
10.
Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur
1064265
2.5
TOP TEN STATES WITH HIGHEST FOREIGN TOURIST ARRIVAL IN INDIA

S. No.
State
Number
% age share
1.
Maharashtra
4156343
20.8
2.
Tamil Nadu
3990490
20.0
3.
Delhi
2301395
11.5
4.
Uttar Pradesh
2054420
10.3
5.
Rajasthan
1437162
7.2
6.
West Bengal
1245230
6.2
7.
Kerala
858143
4.3
8.
Bihar
765835
3.8
9.
Karnataka
636378
3.2
10.
Goa
492322
2.5
B-467
Art & Culture
HANDICRAFTS
India has got international acclamation in terms of its beautiful and creative
handicrafts. Given below are the states with diversified crafts.
State
Handicrafts
Odisha
Weaving craft, palm leaf writing, patachitra- the chitrakars foray,

applique, stone carving, metal craft,
Delhi
Zardozi, lacquer work, clay and paper made dolls
Maharastra
Paithani saris, sawantwadi crafts, warli paintings, kolhapuri

chappals, narayan peth
West Bengal
Artistic leather craft, brass & bell metal, pottery, mat making, dhokra
metal casting, cane & bamboo, fine arts, clay dolls, horn work, jute
products, shell & conch shell, sholapith, famous handloom sarees
like dhakai jamdani, tangail etc
Gujrat
Bead-work, jewellery, inlay work, embroidery, wood carving, cloth

printing, dyeing, patola fabric, zari work
Rajasthan
Tie-and-dye textiles, hand block printing, quilting, jewellery, gems

and stones, blue pottery, leather craft, woodcarving
Himachal
Pradesh
Jewelry, leather craft, woodcarving, architecture, kangra paintings
Goa
Pottery & Terracotta, Brass metal ware, Crochet & Embroidery,

Bamboo Craft, Fiber Craft, Jute Macrame Craft, Coconut Mask
carving, sea shell craft
Andhra Pradesh Priceless Pearls

Karnataka
Woodcarving, Ivory carving
Jharkhand
Wood craft, paitkar paintings, metal work, stone carving,

ornaments, toy making
Manipur
Wood carving, textile weaving, stone-carving, block printing, kauna

(water reed) mat, hand-embroidery
Jammu &
Kashmir
Carpets, Basket Weaving, Namdas, pashmina shawls, PapierMchie, Leather and fur, wood carvings
TOP INTERNATIONAL EVENTS OF ARTISTIC AND CULTURAL EVENTS

Events
Yale International
Choral Festival
International Kinetic
Art (Exhibit and
Symposium)
Significance
The event was organized to team up outstanding choir
throughout the world in a five day ceremony of singing,
learning and exploring the connections that choral music
fosters between people
The exhibition gave a platform to the kinetic art exhibitor
to display their art work to the public throughout the world
B-468
Art & Culture
The International
Indian Film Academy
Awards
Global Indian Music
Academy Awards
The Oscars Night
Cannes Film Festival
This set of awards presented annually by the International

Indian Film Academy to honour both artistic and technical
excellence of professionals in Bollywood, the Hindi
language film industry
An event for giving honor and recognition to Indian Music
The highest honour of international film fraternity
A festival for showcasing the internationally acclaimed film
from countries throughout the world
TOP TEN STATES

Rank
Area
Population
Density
UA
Literacy
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Rajasthan
MP
Maharashtra
AP
UP
J&K
Gujarat
Karnataka
UP
Maharashtra
Bihar
WB
AP
MP
TN
Rajasthan
Delhi
Chandigarh
Puducherry
Daman & Diu
Lakshadweep
Bihar
WB
Kerala
Delhi
Gr. Mumbai
Kolkata
Chennai
Bangalore
Hyderabad
Ahmedabad
Pune
Kerala
Lakshadweep
Mizoram
Tripura
Goa
Daman & Diu
Puducherry
Chandigarh
9
10
Odisha
Karnataka
Chhattisgarh Gujarat
UP
D&NH
Surat
Jaipur
Delhi
A&N
TOP TEN MONUMENTS WITH HIGHEST FOREIGN VISITORS IN INDIA

Monuments
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Taj Mahal, Agra

Agra Fort, Agra
Qutub Minar, Delhi
Humayuns Tomb, Delhi
Fatehpur Sikri, Agra
Red Fort, Delhi
Mattancherry place Museum, Kochi
Western Group of Temple, Khajuraho
Excavated site, Sarnath
Group of Monuments, Mamallapuram
No. of Foreign
Visitors
695702
363823
307043
276641
255129
141498
104717
89511
85991
70840
% age share
23.2
12.1
10.2
9.2
8.5
4.7
3.5
3.0
2.9
2.4
632576
B-470
Sports
TROPHIES ASSOCIATED WITH SPORTS

NATIONAL
Uber Cup
Name of the Trophy Related game

Aga Khan Cup
Barna Bellack Cup
Beighton Cup
Bombay Gold Cup
Burdwan Trophy
D.C.M. Trophy
Dhyan chand Trophy
Dr. B.C. Roy Trophy
Duleep Trophy
Durand Cup
Ezra Cup
I.F.A Shield
Lady Ratan Tata
Trophy
Moin ud daula Gold
Cup
Rangaswami Cup
Ranji Trophy
Santosh Trophy
Scindia Gold Cup
Subroto Mukherjee
Cup
Wellington Trophy
Hockey
Table Tennis
Hockey
Hockey
Weight Lifting
Football
Hockey
Football
Cricket
Football
Polo
Football
Hockey
Cricket
Hockey
Cricket
Football
Hockey
Football (InterSchool)
Rowing
INTERNATIONAL
Name of the
Trophy
Nehru Trophy
American Cup
Ashes Cup
Related game
Azlan Shah
US Masters
Hockey
Yatch Racing
Cricket (AustraliaEngland)
Hockey
Golf
Hopman Cup
Lawn Tennis
Colombo Cup Trophy Football

Davis Cup
Lawn Tennis
Kings Cup Race
Air Races
(England)
Merdeka Cup
Football (Asia)
Thomas Cup
World Badminton
(Men)
World Badminton
(women)
US-Open
Lawn Tennis
French-Open
Lawn Tennis
Australian Open
Lawn Tennis
Wimbledon
Lawn Tennis
Masters Champions Hockey
Trophy
British Open
Golf
Malaysian Open
Badminton
Tata Open
Lawn Tennis
NUMBER OF PLAYERS ON EACH

SIDE
Badminton
Baseball
Basketball
1 or 2 Polo
9 Rugby
Football
5 Tennis
and Table
tennis
4
15
1 or 2
Cricket
11
Water Polo
Football
11
Volleyball
Hockey
11
Kabaddi
Chess
NATIONAL SPORTS OF FAMOUS

COUNTRIES
Name
Australia
Brazil
Canada
China
England
India
Japan
Malaysia
Pakistan
Russia
Scotland
Spain
United States of
America
National game
Cricket
Football
Ice Hockey
Table Tennis
Cricket
Hockey
Judo or Ju Jitsu
Badminton
Hockey
Chess, Football
Rugby, Football
Bull Fighting
Baseball
B-471
Sports
TERMS USED IN SPORTS AND

GAMES
Badminton
Baseball
Billiards
Boat Race
Boxing
Bridge
Chess
Cricket
Deuce, Double, Drop,

Fault, Game, Let,
Love, Smash.
Bunt, Diamond,
Home, Pitcher, Put
out, Strike.
Break, Cannons, Cue,
In off, Jigger, Scratch,
Cox
Hook, Jab, Knock-out,
Punch, Upper cut.
Diamonds, Dummy,
Grand slam, Little
slam, Revoke, Ruff,
Tricks, Trump.
Check, Checkmate,
Gambit, Stalemate
Bowling,
Bouncer,
Crease, Cover point,
Drive, Duck, Follow
on, Googly, Gulley,
Hat Trick, Hit wicket,
L.B.W. (Leg Before
Wicket), Leg Break,
Leg spinner, Leg bye
Maiden over, No ball,
Pitch, Run, Silly point,

Stumped,
Wicket
keeper.
Football
Dribble, Drop Kick,
Foul, Hattrick, Offside, Penalty, Throw
in, Touch Down.
Golf
Bogey, Caddie, Hole,
Links, Put, Putting the
green, Stymie, Tee.
Hockey
Bull, Carry, Centre
Forward,
Carried,
Dribble, Goal, Hat
trick, Penalty corner,
Scoop, Short corner,
Sticks, Striking circle,
Under cutting.
Horse Racing Jockey, Place, Protest,
Punter, Win.
Lawn Tennis Back-hand-drive, Service,
Smash, Volley, Deuce,
Game, Set, Love.
Polo
Bunder, Chuckker,
Mallet.
Rifle Shooting Bulls eye.
Rugby
Drop kick, Screen.
Swimming Stroke.
Volley ball
Booster, Deuce, Love,
Service, Spikers.
Wrestling
Half Nelson, Heave.
HOCKEY
A game resembling hockey was first
played in ancient Egypt around 2050
BC. The modern game was evolved
in the British Club established
in 1861. The English Hockey
Association was formed at Cannon
Street Hotel, London in 1875.
Hockey World Cup
The concept for an international
hockey competition at the world
level originated in a joint proposal

made by India and Pakistan at an
International Hockey Federation
FIH council meeting on March 30,
1969. The first world cup was held
in Barcelona (Spain) in 1971. From
1978 onwards, the tournament has
been held once in four years. India
has won the tournament only once
in 1975.
A LOOK AT HOCKEY WORLD CUP

Year
Host
1971
Spain
1973
1975
Netherlands
Malaysia
Winner
Runner-up
Pakistan
Spain
Netherlands
India
India
Pakistan
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Sports
1978
Argentina
Pakistan
Netherlands
1982
1986
1990
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
India
England
Pakistan
Australia
Netherlands
Malaysia
Germany
India
Netherlands
India
Pakistan
Australia
Netherlands
Pakistan
Netherlands
Germany
Germany
Australia
Australia
West Germany
England
Pakistan
Netherlands
Spain
Australia
Australia
Germany
Netherlands
COMMONWEALTH GAMES
The Commonwealth Games are a festival of sports of the commonwealth
countries. The games are held once in four years but only in between the Olympic
years. When the games first began in 1930, only 11 countries participated.
The Games were originally known as the British Empire Games. These have
undergone a change of name and expanded into a major multiracial and
cultural event.
COMMONWEALTH GAMES SINCE 1930

Year
1930
1934
1938
1950
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
Places
Hamilton
(Canada)
London
(England)
Sydney
(Australia)
Auckland
(New Zealand)
Vancouver
(Canada)
Cardiff
(Wales)
Perth
(Australia)
Kingston
(Jamaica)
Edinburgh
(Scotland)
Christchurch
(New Zealand)
Edmonton
(Canada)
Brisbane
(Australia)
Participant Competitions
Countries
First
Place
Indias Medal
11
England
Not participated
16
England
1 Bronze Medal
15
Australia
No medal
12
Australia
Not Participated
24
England
No medal
35
England
Gold-2, Silver-1
35
Australia
Not Participated
34
England
42
Australia
Gold-3,Silver4,Bronze-5
Gold-5,Silver-3
38
Australia
46
10
Canada
46
10
Australia
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Sports
1986
Edinburgh
(Scotland)
Auckland
(New Zealand)
Victoria
(Canada)
Kuala Lumpur
(Malaysia)
Manchester
(England)
26
10
England
Not Participated
55
10
Australia
63
10
Australia
70
16
Australia
72
17
Australia
2006
Melbourne
(Australia)
71
16
Australia
2010
Delhi
(India)
71
17
Australia
2014
Glasgow
(Scotland)
71
18
England
Gold-32,Silver21,Bronze19(Third
Position)
Gold-22,Silver17,Bronze11(Fourth
Position)
Gold-74,Silver55,Bronze48(Second
Position)
Gold-15,Silver30,Bronze19(Fiveth
Position)
2018
Gold Coast
(Australia)
Proposed
1990
1994
1998
2002
SAF GAMES
The SAF games was first held in 1984
at Kathmandu, Nepal. The seven
participating countries are India,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh,
Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives. The motto
of SAF games is Peace, Prosperity
and Progress. The games year 1986
edition was not staged as it was a year
of Commonwealth and Asian Games.
New Name For SAF Games: The
SAF Games have been rechristened
as South Asian Games, according to

a decision taken by the South Asian
Sports Federation at its 32nd meeting
held in Islamabad (Pakistan) on April
2, 2004.
Year Games
2010
2013
2014
2016
XI
XII
XIII
XIV
Host
City
Dhaka
New Delhi
Kathmandu
Hambantota
Country
Bangladesh
India
Nepal
Sri Lanka
OLYMPIC GAMES
Olympic Games are an international sporting event which is organised in the
form of summer and winter sports. The Summer Olympic Games were first
held in 1896. The Winter Olympic Games were created after the huge success
of the Summer Olympics. Baron Pierre de Coubertin founded the International
Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894. The Olympic Games are held after every
four years, with the Summer and Winter Games alternatively occurring every
four years but two years apart from each other.
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Sports
The Olympics games originated in

the city of Olympia, an ancient city
of Greece. These games were held
at Mount Olympia. India officially
participated in the Olympics for the
first time in the year 1920, in the 6th
edition of the games at Antwerp,
Belgium.
The Olympic flag is made up
of white silk and contains five
intertwined rings as the Olympics
emblem.
The colour of rings represents

different continents as given below:
Year
Blue
Yellow
Black
Red
Green
Europe
Asia
Africa
America
Australia and Ocenia
Winter Olympic Games

Winter Olympic games were
started in the year A.D. 1924. The
first game, were held at chamonix
(France). The winter games are
numbered in rotation as they are
held. The programme at the winter
games includes ice hockey, figure
skating, speed skating, alpine sking,
skiting, etc. Like the summer games,
the winter games are also awarded
gold silver and bronze medals.
Venue
Year
Venue
1924 Chamonix, France
1980 Lake placid, New York
1928 St. Moritz, Switzerland
1984 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia
1932 Lake Placid, New York
1988 Calgary, Canada
1936 Garmisch Parten/Kirchen, Germany

1948 St. Mortiz, Switzerland
1992 Albertville, France

1994 Lillehammer, Norway
1952 Oslo, Norway
1998 Nagano, Japan
1956 Cortina d Ampezz, Italy
2002 Salt Lake City, USA
1960 Squaw Valley, United States
2006 Turin, Italy,
1964 Innbruck, Austria
2010 Vancouver, Canada
1968 Grenoble, France
2014 Sochi, Russia
1972 Sapporo, Japan
2018 Pyeongchang, South Korea
1976 Innsbruck, Austria
2022 Beijing, China
SUMMER OLYMPICS
Year
Host
Opened by
Nations
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
Athens, Greece
Paris, France
St. Louis, United States
Stockholm, Sweden
Antwerp, Belgium
Paris, France
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Los Angeles, United States
Berlin, Germany
King George I
Governor David R. Francis

King Edward VII
King Gustaf V
King Albert I
President Gaston Doumergue
Prince Hendrik of the Netherlands
Vice President Charles Curtis
Chancellor Adolf Hitler
14
24
12
22
28
29
44
46
37
49
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Sports
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016

Helsinki, Finland
Melbourne, Australia
Rome, Italy
Tokyo, Japan
Mexico City, Mexico
Munich, West Germany
Montreal, Canada
Moscow, Soviet Union
Los Angeles, United States
Seoul, South Korea
Barcelona, Spain
Atlanta, United States
Sydney, Australia
King George VI
President Juho Kusti Paasikivi
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
President Giovanni Gronchi
Emperor Hirohito
President Gustavo Daz Ordaz
President Gustav Heinemann
Queen Elizabeth II
Chairman Leonid Brezhnev
President Ronald Reagan
President Roh Tae-woo
King Juan Carlos I
President Bill Clinton
Governor-General Sir William
Deane
Athens, Greece
President Konstantinos Stephanopoulos
Beijing, China
President Hu Jintao
London, United Kingdom Queen Elizabeth II
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
59
69
72
83
93
112
121
92
80
140
159
169
197
199
201
204
204
206
PARALYMPIC GAMES
x
x
x
Back in 1948, Sir Ludwig

Guttman, a neurologist who
was working with World War
II veterans with spinal injuries
at Stoke Mandeville Hospital
in Aylesbury, began using sport
as part of the rehabilitation
programmes of his patients. He
set up a competition with other
hospitals to coincide with the
London Olympics in that year.
The Paralympics are elite
sport events for athletes from
six different disability groups.
Athletes include those with
mobility disabilities, intellectual
disabilities, visual impairments,
cerebral palsy and amputees.
This event focuses on the
athletes achievements rather
than their disabilities.
Paralympic
sports
include
athletics, cycling, judo, rowing,
swimming, and volleyball.
x
x
The Paralympic Games are

always held in the same year as
the Olympic Games. The name
comes from the fact that it runs
parallel to the Olympic Games
hence the name Paralympics.
The first Paralympic Games
were held in Rome, Italy, in 1960
and involved 400 athletes from
23 countries. Originally, only
wheelchair athletes were invited
to compete.
The Paralympics are held in two
seasons: summer and winter.
Athletes with disabilities have
been competing in the Winter
Games since 1976. Sweden
hosted the first Winter Games,
which included 12 countries
competing in Alpine and CrossCountry Skiing events.
International Paralympic Com-
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Sports
mittee: (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic

Movement. The IPC organizes
the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, and serves as the
International Federation for nine
sports, for which it supervises and
co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions.
Winter Paralympic Games

2002 - Paralympics VIII - Salt Lake
City - United States
2006 - Paralympics IX - Turin - Italy
Janeiro - Brazil
2010 - Paralympics X - Vancouver

Canada
2014 - Paralympics XI - Sochi - Russia
Summer Paralympic Games

2000 - Paralympics XI - Sydney Australia
2004 - Paralympics XII - Athens Greece
2008 - Paralympics XIII - BeijingChina
2012 - Paralympics XIV - London United Kingdom
2016 - Paralympics XV - Rio de
ASIAN GAMES
The idea of the Asian Games

was first conceived by Prof. G.D.
Sondhi. The suggestion for holding
the Asian Games was first made
in a conference of Asian countries
held in New Delhi in 1947 and
Jawaharlal Nehru suggested that it

be called Asian Games. The first
Asian Games were held at New
Delhi in March 1951. Since then
Asian Games are held after every
four years.
ASIAN GAMES SINCE 1951

Games Year
Serial
Places
1
2
1951 New Delhi(India)

1954 Manila(Philippines)
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
1986
1990
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
Tokyo(Japan)
Jakarta(Indonesia)
Bangkok(Thailand)
Bangkok(Thailand)
Tehran(Iran)
Bangkok(Thailand)
New Delhi(India)
Seoul(S.Korea)
Beijing(China)
Hiroshima(Japan)
Bangkok(Thailand)
Busan(S.Korea)
Doha(Qatar)
Guangzhou(China)
Incheon(South Korea)
Jakarta (Indonesia)
Number of Number of Number

Countries
Sports of Players
11
18
6
8
491
1021
20
16
18
18
25
25
33
27
37
42
41
44
45
45
45
Scheduled
13
13
14
13
16
19
21
25
27
34
38
38
39
42
36
1422
1545
1945
1752
2869
3000
3447
3883
4500
7300
7000
7711
9524
9704
9501
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Sports
FIFA World Cup 2014

The FIFA World Cup 2014 was
the 20th FIFA World Cup, the
tournament for the association
football
world
championship,
which took place at several venues
across Brazil. Germany was the
finalist and won the tournament
and grabbed its fourth title, it was
first after its reunification of West
and East Germany in 1990. It
defeated Argentina by 10 in the
final in extra time the same result

as the 1990 FIFA World Cup Final.
The
tournament
began on 12 June
with a group stage
and
concluded
on 13 July with
the championship
match. Brazil hosted
this championship
for second time, the
first was in 1950.
TENNIS GRAND SLAMS

The four Grand Slam tournaments
also called majors, are the most
important annual tennis events. The
Grand Slam itinerary consists of the
Australian-open in mid January,
the French open in May/June
Wimbledon in June/July, and the
US open in August /September.
Each tournament is played over a
period of two weeks.
Grand Slams
Nature of Court
ATP/WTA
Rankings
No ATP/WTA
Rankings
ATP world tour
Davis Cup
finals
WTA Tour
Fed Cup
World Team Cup
Championships
ATP Masters 1000
olympics
Hopman Cup
1. Australian open
Hard court
ATP 500 Series

ITF Mens Circuit
2. French open
3. Wimbledon
4. U.S. Open
Clay court (Red)

Grass court
Hard court
ITF Womens
Circuit
US OPEN 2015
Mens Singles:
Womens Singles:
Mens Doubles:
Novak Djokovic (Serbia)

Flavia Pennetta (Italy)
Pierre-Hugues Herbert & Nicolas Mahut (France)
Womens Doubles:
Martina Hingis (Switzerland) & Sania Mirza (India)
Mixed Doubles:
Martina Hingis (Switzerland) & Leander Paes (India)
AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2015

Mens Singles:
Womens Singles:
Serena Williams (USA)
Mens Doubles:
Simone Bolelli & Fabio Fognini (Italy)
Womens Doubles:
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) & Lucie afrov (Czech

Republic)
Martina Hingis (Switzerland) & Leander Paes (India)
Mixed Doubles:
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Sports
FRENCH OPEN 2015

Mens Singles:
Womens Singles:
Mens Doubles:
Womens Doubles:
Mixed Doubles:
Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland)

Ivan Dodig (Croatia) & Marcelo Melo (Brazil)
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) & Lucie afrov (Czech
Republic)
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) & Mike Bryan (USA)
WIMBLEDON 2015
Mens Singles:
Womens Singles:
Mens Doubles:
Womens Doubles:
Mixed Doubles:

Jean-Julien Rojer (Netherlands) & Horia Tecau (Romania)
Martina Hingis (Switzerland) & Sania Mirza (India)
Leander Paes (India) & Martina Hingis (Switzerland)
ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP

The four time winner of the ICC
Cricket World Cup once again
proved their dominance over the
World cricket by defeating New
Zealand in the 11th edition of
the Cricket World Cup to bag their
5th World Cup title which was
jointly hosted by Australia and New
Zealand. Australia defeated New
Zealand in a nail biting finale by 7
wickets in day night match played at
the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Scores : New Zealand 183 all
out (Grant Elliot 83, Taylor 40,
Mitchell Johnson 3 for 30 and James
Faulkner 3 for 36) Australia 186-3 in
33.1 overs (Steve Smith 56, Michael
Clarke 74, Warner 45, MJ Henry 2
for 46 and Boult 1 for 40)
Quarter-finals
Man of the Match: JP Faulkner

(Australia)
Player of the series: MA Starc; 22
wickets (Australia)
Highest Run getter: Martin Guptill,
547 runs (New Zealand)
Semi-finals
A1
B4
New Zealand 393/6

250
West Indies
A3
B2
Sri Lanka
South Africa
133
134/1
B3
A2
Pakistan
Australia
213
216/4
B1
A4
India
Bangladesh
303/6
193
B2
A1
Final
South Africa 281/5

New Zealand 299/6
A1
A2
A2
B1
Australia
India
328/7
233
New Zealand 183

Australia
186/3
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Sports
IPL 2015
The Mumbai Indians team led
by Rohit Sharma outshone the
consistent performance of the
Dhonis Chennai Super Kings by
winning the final of the Pepsi IPL8 at the Eden Gardens. Led by the
fiery batting performances of opener
Lendl Simmons (68) and skipper
Rohit Sharma (50), the Mumbai
Indians notched 202 runs in the
allotted 20 overs. Chennai Super
Kings succumbed to 161 for eight in
its quota of 20 overs while chasing
the mammoth score.
Score: Mumbai Indians 202 for 5 in
20 overs (Lendl Simmons 68, Rohit
Sharma 50, Dwayne Bravo 2 for 36)
Chennai Super Kings 161 for 8 in
20 overs (Dwayne Smith 57, Suresh

Raina 28, Mitchell McClenaghan 3
for 25)
Man of the Match: Rohit Sharma

Orange Cap for the tournament:
David Warner, Sunrisers Hyderabad
(562 runs)
Purple Cap for the tournament:
Dwayne Bravo, Chennai Super
Kings (26 wickets)
INDIAN SUPER LEAGUE

The Indian Super League (ISL) also
known as the Hero Indian Super
League is a professional
football league in India.
The league consists of eight
franchise teams from all
around India. The Indian
Super League was founded in 2013
in an effort to make football a top

sport in India and to make Indian
football a major player worldwide.
The inaugural season of the league
started on 12th October 2014 and
concluded on 20th December 2014.
The inaugural season was won by
Atltico de Kolkata when it defeated
the Kerala Blasters in the final 10.
TEAMS
Team
City/State
Stadium
Atltico de Kolkata
Chennaiyin
Delhi Dynamos
Goa
Kerala Blasters
Mumbai City
North East United
Pune City
Kolkata, West Bengal

Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Margao, Goa
Kochi, Kerala
Mumbai, Maharashtra
Guwahati, Assam
Pune, Maharashtra
Salt Lake Stadium

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Fatorda Stadium
DY Patil Stadium
Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium
Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex
Top Scores
The defending champions Atltico de Kolkata were defeated in the semifinals by Chennaiyin. The final was played between Goa and Chennayin
on 20th December 2015 at the Fatorda Stadium in Goa. Chennayin
became the champions by defeating Goa 3-2 in the final.
B-480
Sports
Rank
1
2
3
5
8
Player
Club
Stiven Mendoza
Iain Hume
Reinaldo
Sunil Chhetri
Antonio German
Chris Dagnall
Jeje Lalpekhlua
Nicols Vlez
Chennalyin FC
Atltico de Kolkata
Goa
Mumbai City
Kerala Blasters
Kerala Blasters
Chennalyin
NorthEast United
Arata lzumi
Atltico de Kolkata
Goals
13
11
7
6
5
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

UEFA Champions League also
known as Champions League is a
yearly continental club football
competition organised by the Union
of European Football Associations
(UEFA), played by top-division
European
clubs.
The
club
competition was launched one
month after UEFAs first Congress,
held in Vienna on 2 March 1955.
There are total of 32 teams who are
drawn into eight groups of four

teams each and play each other in a
double round-robin system. The
current champions are Barcelona,
who secured their
fifth title in the
competition after
defeating Juventus
31 in the 2015
Final.

Rank
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Player
Goals Appearances Years
Cristiano
88
Ronaldo
Lionel Messi 80
121
Ral
71
142
Ruud van
Nistelrooy
Thierry
Henry
Alfredo Di
Stfano
Andriy
Shevchenko
Eusbio
56
73
50
112
49
58
48
100
46
65
Karim
Benzema
Fllippo
Inzaghi
46
77
46
81
102
Clubs
2003- Manchester United, Real

Madrid
2005- Barcelona
19952011
19982009
19972010
19551964
19942012
19611974
2006-
Real Madrid, Schalke 04

PSV, Manchester United, Real
Madrid
Manaco, Arsenal, Barcelona
Real Madrid
Dynamo Kyiv, Milan, Chelsea
Benfica
Lyon, Real Madrid
1997- Juventus, Milan

2012
+($/7+&$5(
Healthcare
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HEALTHCARE IN INDIA
The healthcare services of India have seen tremendous growth in the past few
years which can be revealed by different indicators and health parameters.
Inspite of this fact, the expenditure on healthcare is very less i.e. 4% of the
GDP and private parties have the dominance over the sector.
Healthcare Infrastructure in India

x
x
x
Primary, secondary and tertiary care institutions, manned by medical and

paramedical personnel;
Medical colleges and para-professional training institutions to train the
needed manpower and give the required academic input;
Programme managers managing ongoing programmes at central, state
and district levels.
Health Sector In India
Indigenous system Voluntary health

of Medicine
agencies
+ ural
+ ""ed Cross
+ Ayurveda and
+ Private Hospital
Sub Centers
Society
Siddha
+ olyclinic
(SCs)
+ Hind Kusht
+ Unani
+ Nursing Homes
Primary Health + Dispensaries
Nivaran Sangh
+ Homeopath
Centres (PHCs) + General
+ Indian council for
+ Un-registered
Community
child Welfare
Practitioners
Practitioners and
Health Centres
+ uberculosis
clinics
(CHCs)
Association of
+ Urban
India Etc
District
+ Bharat Sevak
Hospitals
Samaj
Teaching
Hospitals
Public
Private
Problems in India
x
x
x
x
Poor Sanitation
Infectious and non-communicable
diseases
High Infant Mortality Rate
Malnutrition
Major Concerns in last decade

x
India ranked 67th among the

top developing countries with
a doctor patient ratio of 0.7
doctors per 1000 patient (The
World Bank).
A wide gap between urban
and rural population in terms
provision of medical facilities.
x
x
x
x
x
x
Poor facilities in large Government

institutions compared to corporate
hospitals.
Increasing cost of curative
medical services, high tech
curative services not free.
India leading the world in
dengue,most rapidly spreading
mosquito-borne viral disease.
Malaria is still a major concern
for Indian Health sector.
Tuberculosis is the biggest threat to
India with 2.2 million tuberculosis
patients.
Hepatitis C patients lack access
to affordable treatment and care.
Healthcare
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NATIONAL HEALTH PROGRAMMES

National AIDS Control
Programme (AIDS)
A division of Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare,was established
in 1992 to prevent and control HIV/
AIDSinfectionthrough35HIV/AIDS
Prevention and Control Societies.
National Cancer Control

Programme (Cancer)
Launched in 1975 with an initiation
of giving priority for equipping the

premier cancer hospital/institutions.
The further evolution has added few
other important aspects which include
recognition of new Regional Cancer
Centre, strengthening of existing
RegionalCancerCentres,development
of oncologyunits,DistrictCancerControl
Programme etc.
Pulse Polio Campaign (Do

Boond Zindegi Ke)
Initiated in 1978 the programme
aimed at preventing polio by
vaccinating against the disease. It
was the extended programme of
Universal Immunisation Program
which successfully covered 95% of
the country and as a result India was
declared Polio free in 2014.
National Filaria Control

3URJUDPPHODULDVLV
Launched in the state since 1957 with
an objective:
x To carry out surveys in different
parts of the state where the
problem was known to exist in
order to determine the extent of
prevalence, types of infection and
their vectors.
x To undertake large scale pilot
studies to evaluate the known
methods of filariasis control in
selected areas in different parts
of states.
To train professional and ancillary

personnel required for the
programme.
National Leprosy Eradication

Programme (NLEP)
Launched in 1955 is a centrally
sponsored Health Scheme of the
Ministryof HealthandFamilyWelfare,
Govt. of India with an objective of
eliminating Leprosy with the use
of Multidrugtherapy(MDT)inphases.
Eliminate Kala-azar
A part of National Heath Policy
envisaged in 2010 to eradicate the
dreaded disease Kala-azar or
Visceral Leishmaniasis, also known
as Black Fever and Dumdum Fever
from India by 2015.
National TB Control
Programme
Launched in 1962 with an objective
of eradication of the disease but till
1992 only 30% of the country had
been covered. So the programmes has
been revised in 1993 with an objective
of achieving and maintaining a cure
rate of 85% among newly detected
infectious (new sputum smear
positive) cases. This resulted in the
coverage of 450 million populations
which is more than 80% in 2004.
TB-Mission 2020
x
TB Mission 2020 was announced

by the Union Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare on 28th
October 2014 at WHOs Global
TB Symposium in Barcelona
with an initiative to eliminate
Tuberculosis in India by 2020.
The Indian government will take
up projects of providing free
diagnosis, treatment, nutrition
support and financial aid to the
affected patients.
Healthcare
B-484
National Tobacco Control

Programme
Launched in 2007 by the Ministry
of Health and Family Welfare with
objectives:
x To bring about greater awareness
abouttheharmfuleffectsof tobacco
use and about the Tobacco Control
Laws.
x To facilitate To facilitate effective
implementation of the Tobacco
Control Law.
National Rural Health Mission

(NRHM)
Launched on 5th April,2005. The
mission initially started for:
x Creation of cadre of Accredited
Social Health Activist (ASHA)
x StrengtheningalltheCHCs,PHCs
and Sub centres
x Mainstreaming AYUSH (Indian
System of Medicine)
x Integrating health and family
welfare programme
x Developingcapacitiesforpreventive
health care at all levels
x Promotion of public private
partnerships for achieving public
health goals
x Strengthening capacities for data
collection, assessment and review
for evidence based planning,
monitoring and supervision
Involve the community and urban

local bodies in healthcare delivery.
x Supplement the National Rural
Health Under a unified National
Health Mission.
Special Focus on:
x Urban Poor Population living in
listed and unlisted slums.
x All other vulnerable populations
such as homeless, rag-pickers,
street children, rickshaw pullers,
construction site workers, sex
workers and any other temporary
migrants.
Mission Indradhanush
x
National Urban Health Mission

(NUHM)
Launched by the former Union Health
Minister Ghulam Nabi Azadin 2014
underNationalHealthMission(NHM).
The scheme will focus on primary
healthcare needs of the urban poor.
The main objectives are to:
x Improve the health care status of
the urban population particularly
the poor and other disadvantaged
sections.
x Strengthen public health care
system.
MissionIndradhanushwaslaunched
to immunize all children against
sevenvaccinepreventablediseases
including diphtheria, whooping
cough (Pertussis), tetanus, polio,
tuberculosis,measlesandhepatitis
B by the year 2020.
The mission involves four special
vaccination campaigns which will
be conducted between the months
of AprilandJuly2015,focussingon
intensive planning and monitoring
of these campaigns.
The campaigns will be planned
and executed in accordance with
the learning from the successful
implementation of the polio
programme.
The focus of the systematic
immunization drive will be
comprehended through a catchup campaign mode with the aim
to cover the left out children who
missed out immunization.
The mission will be carried out
in 2 phases in 2015 in which the
first phase will cover 201 districts,
while the second phase will cover
297 districts.
The Government has recognised
201 districts across 28 states in the
countrywith82districtsfromBihar,
Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and
UttarPradeshhaving25%children
who are unimmunized or partially
immunized.
Healthcare
B-485
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan

x
x
x
x
The Swachh Bharat Mission

was officially launched by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi on 2nd
October 2014, covering 4041
statutory towns with the purpose
to clean the streets, roads and
infrastructure of the nation.
The mission aims to make the
nation open defecation free by
2019throughconstructionof IHHL
(individual household latrines),
clustertoiletsandcommunitytoilets.
SBH also aims at eradication of
manual scavenging.
It also involves 100% collection
and processing/disposal/reuse/
recycling of municipal solid waste.
The campaign involves generation
of awareness among the citizens
regarding sanitation and public
health.
Themissionencouragesprivatesectors
to participate in construction and
maintenanceof sanitaryfacilitiesasa
partof corporatesocialresponsibility
initiative. L&T has announced the

construction of 5000 toilets across
the nation as the part of their CSR
initiative.
National Bal Swachhta Mission

x
x
x
The National Bal Swachhta

MissionwaslaunchedbytheUnion
Government on 14th November
2014,onthe125thbirthanniversary
of Indias first prime minister
Jawahar Lal Nehru.
The Bal Swachhta Mission is an
integralpartof thefamoussanitation
drive Swachh Bharat Mission.
The six themes to be included in
the mission are:
1. Clean Anganwadis
2. Clean Surroundings like
Playgrounds
3. Clean Self (Personal Hygiene/
Child Health)
4. Clean Food
5. Clean Drinking Water.
6. Clean Toilets
Bal Swachhta Week will be
observed from 14th to 19th
November under this mission.
RECENT OUTBREAK OF MAJOR DISEASES IN INDIA

Disease
Time of
Symptom
Recommended Treatment
Outbreak
Influenza A
2009
x Chills
Use of anti viral drugs such as
(H1N1) virus
x Fever
x Oseltamivir (brand name
x Cough
Tamiflu),
x Sore Throat
x Zanamivir (brand name
x Runny or Stuffy Nose Relenza)
x Body Aches
x Peramivir (brand name
x Fatigue
Rapivab)
x Diarrhea
x Vaccination to prevent
Swine flu
2014-2015 x Cough
infection.
x Fever
x Oseltamivir (brand name
x Headache
Tamiflu),
x Sore Throat
x Muscle Pain
x Zanamivir (brand name
x Chills
Relenza)
x Vomiting Or Diarrhea.
Hepatitis
2009
x Liver Inflammation, x Lamivudine (Zeffix)
x Adefovir (Hepsera)
x Vomiting
x Entecavir (Baraclude)
x Jaundice.
x Tenofovir (Viread)
x Pegylated Interferon (Pegasys)
Healthcare
B-486
2014-2015 x High Fever, Possibly

As High As 105F
(40C)
x Pain Behind The
Eyes And In The
Joints, Muscles
And/Or Bones
x Severe Headache
x Rash Over Most Of
The Body
x Mild Bleeding From
The Nose Or Gums
x Bruising Easily
Cholera
2010
x Mild fever
x Body ache
x Abdominal pain
and cramps
x Lethargy and
fatigue
x Excessive thirst
x Headaches
x Loss of elasticity of
the skin
Plague
1994
x Sudden onset of
fever
x Headache
x Chills
x Weakness and one
or more swollen,
tender and painful
lymph nodes (called
buboes)
Chikungunya 1963-1973 x Arthritis like pain
around the joints
x Muscle aches
x Fever
x Malaise
x Headache
x Fatigue
x Nausea
x Vomiting
Dengue
x As such there is no such specific

drugs for treating Dengue.
However doctors prescribe
Acetaminophen
(Tylenol,
others) for alleviating pain and
reduce fever.
x Antibiotic
x Oral Health drink to prevent
dehydration
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Streptomycin
Gentamicin
Tetracycline
Chloramphenicol
Doxycycline
Oxytetracycline
Sulfamethoxazole/ trimethopri
x Aspirin
x Non-steroidal inflammatory
drugs
x Chloroquine Phosphate
YOGA and its Health BHQHW

A healthy lifestyle is a function of healthy mind and body, and so as to keep a
person really healthy, YOGA is just a master stroke. Its an ascetic Hindu discipline
which involves practices like controlling breath with prescribed body position and
meditation with an objective to attain a state of deep spiritual insight and tranquility.
These practices in turn promote good health, fitness and control of mind. Sage
Patanjali was known to be the founder of this practice and the knowledge he had
given was known as Yoga Sutra. In recent years, this age-old practice has been
revitalized by several spiritual leaders like Baba Ramdev, Sadhguru who have made
tireless efforts to propel yoga to each and every corner of India for improving health
condition of India and make the people strong and immune enough to combat day
to day or serious health issues. The United Nations has declared June 21 as the
International Day of Yoga.
&20081,&$7,21
75$1632571(:6
0(',$
B-488
Communication, Transport, News and Media
COMMUNICATION
2013 and April 2015 respectively
due to the increasing pressure of
electronic communication media,
but still continues with the services
of electronic money order (eMO)
and instant money order (IMO)
which were introduced in 2008.
3RVW2IFH
x
x
x
The Department of Posts was

founded in India on 1st April, 1774.
This department serves as an agent
of Govt.
It provides services like letter post,
parcel service, EMS, delivery,
freight forwarding, third-party
logistics, and deposit accounts,
saving banks, retailing, life
insurance, remittance etc.
Indian Post has been terminated
two of its major services such as
Telegram and Money order in July
Quick Facts
Founder of Telegraph and Postal
in India
First General Post Office opened in India
First postage stamp of India
Pin system started in India
The First Indian Post Office Outside India
Speed Post started in India
Money Order System
Postal Life Insurance started
Postal Staff College situated at
World Postal Day is observed on
Indian Postal Day is observed on
Telecommunication
x
Telecommunication occurs when

the exchange of information
between two or more entities
includes the use of technology.
Communication technology uses
channels to transmit information
(as electrical signals), either over
a physical medium (such as
signal cables), or in the form of
electromagnetic waves.
Early means of communicating over
a distance included visual signals,
such as beacons, smoke signals,
: Governor General Lord System

Dalhousie
: 1774 (Kolkata)
: Sinde Dawk (1852)
: 1972
: Dakshin Gangotri in Antarctica
(1983), Indian Territory
: 1986
: 1880
: 1884
: Ghaziabad (UP)
: 9th October
: 10th October
semaphore telegraphs, signal flags,

and optical heliographs.
Other examples of pre-modern
long-distance communication
included audio messages such
as coded drumbeats, lung-blown
horns, and loud whistles.
Modern technologies for long
-distance communication usually
involve electrical and electromagnetic
technologies, such as telegraph,
telephone, and teleprinter, networks,
radio, microwave transmission,
fiber optics, and communications
satellites.

x
A revolution in wireless
communication began in the
first decade of the 20th century
with the pioneering developments
in radio communications by
Guglielmo Marconi, who won
the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1909.
Other highly notable pioneering
inventors and developers in the
field of electrical and electronic
telecommunications
include
Charles Wheatstone and Samuel
Morse (telegraph), Alexander
Graham Bell (telephone), Edwin
Armstrong, and Guglielmo
Marconi (radio), as well as Vladimir
K. Zworykin, John Logie Baird
and Philo Farnsworth (television).
The Telecommunications system in

India is the 2nd largest in the world.
Telephone services was introduced
in 1881-82 in Kolkata for the first
time and first automatic exchange
was opened up at Shimla in 1913-14
with a capacity of 700 lines only. In
1850, the first experimental electric
telegraph line was started between
Calcutta and Diamond Harbour.
In 1851, it was opened for the use
of the British East India Company.
The construction of 4,000 miles
(6,400 km) of telegraph lines was
started in November 1853. These
connected Kolkata and Peshawar in
the north; Agra, Mumbai through
Sindwa Ghats, and Chennai in the
south; Ootacamundand Bangalore.
William OShaughnessy pioneered
the telegraph and telephone in India.
A separate department was opened in
1854 when telegraph facilities opened
to the public.
B-489
Mobile Communication
x
A mobile phone is a telephone that

can make and receive calls over a
radio frequency carrier while the
user is moving within a telephone
service area.
Modern mobile phones support
a variety of services, such as
text messaging, MMS, email,
Internet access, short-rangewireless
communications
(infrared,
Bluetooth), business applications,
gaming, and photography. Mobile
phones which offer these and more
general computing capabilities are
referred to as Smartphone.
The first handheld mobile phone
was demonstrated by John F.
Mitchell and Martin Cooper of
Motorola in 1973, using a handset
weighing c. 4.4 lbs (2 kg). In 1983,
the DynaTAC 8000x was the first
commercially available handheld
mobile phone.
Mobile
computing
is humancomputer
interaction by which
a computer is expected
to be transported during
normal usage. Mobile
computing
involves
mobile communication, mobile
hardware, and mobile software.
Wireless data connections used
in mobile computing take three
general forms. Cellular data service
uses technologies such as GSM,
CDMA or GPRS, 3G networks such
as W-CDMA, EDGE or CDMA
200 and more recently 4G networks
such as LTE, LTE-Advabced.
GSM (Global System for Mobile
Communications, is to describe the
protocols for second-generation
(2G) digital cellular networks used
by mobile phones, first deployed
in Finland in July 1991.
B-490
Code division multiple access

(CDMA) is a channel access
method used by various radio
communication
technologies.
CDMA is used as the access method
in many mobile phone standards
such as cdmaOne, CDMA2000
(the 3G evolution of cdmaOne),
and WCDMA (the 3G standard
used by GSM carriers), which are
often referred to as simply CDMA.
3G, short form of third generation,
is the third generation of mobile
telecommunications technology.
3G telecommunication networks
support services that provide an
information transfer rate of at least
200 kbit/s.
4G, short for fourth generation,
is the fourth generation of mobile
telecommunications technology,
succeeding 3G. A 4G system must
provide capabilities defined by
ITU in IMT Advanced. Potential
and current applications include
amended mobile web access,
IP telephony, gaming services,
high-definition mobile TV, video
conferencing, 3D television, and
cloud computing.
Bharti Airtel launched Indias first 4G

service, using TD-LTE technology,
in Kolkata on 10 April 2012.
The first artificial Earth satellite

was Sputnik 1. Put into orbit by the
Soviet Union on October 4, 1957,
it was equipped with an on-board
radio-transmitter that worked on
two frequencies: 20.005 and 40.002
MHz. Sputnik 1 was launched as
a step in the exploration of space
and rocket development.
India has launched 80 Indian

satellites (as of 11th November 2015)
of many types since its first in 1975.
The organisation responsible for
Indias satellite program is the Indian
Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
On 11 November 2015, Indias latest
communication satellite GSAT-15
was successfully launched at 03:04
am by Ariane-5 rocket in the early
hours from the spaceport of Kourouin
French Guiana in South America.
Electronics and Information

Technology
Communications Satellite
National Knowledge Network
x
x
A communications satellite is an
artificial satellite that relays and
amplifies radio telecommunications
signals via a transponder; it creates a
communication channel between a
source transmitter and a receiver(s)
at different locations on Earth.
Communications satellites are used
for television, telephone, radio,
internet, and military applications.
There are over 2,000 communications satellites in Earths orbit,
used by both private and government organizations.
The objective of the National

Knowledge Network (NKN) is
to interconnect all institutions of
higher learning and research with
a high speed data communication
network to facilitate knowledge
sharing and collaborative research.
It will bridge the existing
knowledge gap in the country.
It will help the country evolve
as a Knowledge Society and
spur economic activities in the

Knowledge domain. Under this
Network, it is proposed that
the core and associated links to
around 1500 institutions shall be
established in 2-3 years time.
Application Areas
x Agriculture
x Education
x Health
x e-governance
x Grid Computing (High Performance Computing)
TDIL
x The Department of Information
Technology initiated the ambitious
programme of (Technology
Development for Indian Languages)
with the aim of developing
Information Processing Tools and
Techniques to facilitate humanmachine interaction without
language barrier; creating and
accessing multilingual knowledge
resources and integrating them to
B-491
develop innovative user products

and services.
The primary objectives include
developing
and
promoting
Software Tools and Applications
for all 22 officially recognized
Indian Languages, contributing
to collaborative development of
futuristic technologies leading to
innovative products and services,
acting as a catalyst for proliferating
Language Technology products
and providing solutions and
standardization across all levels.
Some of the other major initiatives
undertaken are in the realm
of Cross Lingual, Information
Access and Retrieval, Human
Machine Interface systems,
Text to Speech system (TTS),
Language processing and Web
tools, adapting IT Tools and
solutions in Indian languages,
Human Resource Development
in Language Technology etc.
TRANSPORT
Indian Road Network
x
x
Highways through three agencies.

viz. National Highways Authority of
India has a road network of over
India (NHAI), State Public Works
approx. 4,689,842 kilometers.
Department (PWDs) and Border
The Central Government is
Road Organization (BRO).
responsible for development and
x
National
Highways Development
maintenance of the National
Project (NHDP) is the largest
Highways system.
highway project ever taken in the
The Ministry carries out development
and maintenance work of National
country.
Quick Facts
Categories
National Highways
Dimensions in Kms
(up to 2011)
92,851
State Highways
1,63,898
Major and Other

District Roads
17,05,706
Rural Roads
27,49,805
Responsible Authority
Ministry of Road Transport and
Highways (Central government)
State governments (States public
works department)
Local governments, Panchayats
and Municipalities
Local governments, Panchayats and
Municipalities
B-492
National Highways Development Projects

Golden Quadrilateral : It comprises construction of 5,846 km long 4/6 lane,
high density traffic corridor, to connect Indias four big metro cities of DelhiMumbai-Chennai and Kolkata. With the construction of Golden Quadrilateral,
the time- distance and cost of movement among the mega cities of India will
be considerably minimised.
North-South and East-West Corridors: North-South corridor aims at connecting
Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir with Kaniyakumari in Tamil Nadu (including
Kochchi-Salem Spur) with 4,076 km long road. The East-West Corridor has
been planned to connect Silchar in Assam with the port town of Porbandar
in Gujarat with 3,640 km of road length.
Important National Highways
NH
NH 1
NH 2
NH 3
NH 4
NH 5
NH 6
NH 7
NH 8
NH 9
NH 10
NH 24
NH 26
Connects
New Delhi-Ambala-Jalandhar-Amritsar
Delhi-Mathura-Agra-Kanpur- Allahabad-Varanasi-Kolkata
Agra-Gwalior-Nasik-Mumbai
Thane and Chennai via Pune and Belgaum
Kolkata-Chennai
Kolkata-Dhule
Varanasi-Kanyakumari
Delhi-Mumbai (via Jaipur, Boroda & Ahmedabad)
Mumbai-Vijaywada
Delhi-Fazilka
Delhi - Lucknow
Lucknow-Varanasi
Indian Railways
Indian Railways is a state-owned enterprise and one of the worlds largest
railway networks comprising 115,000 km of track over a route of 65,808 km
and 7,112 stations.Indian Railways is the second most important means of
communication in India contributing 1% to the gross domestic product from
transportation point of view. It was founded on April 16, 1853.
In terms of gauge the Indian railway is divided into three types.
x Broad gauge contributing 63%
x Meter gauge contributing 31%
x Narrow gauge contributing 6%
B-493
INDIAN RAILWAYS ZONES AND

THEIR HEADQUARTERS
Name
Route
(km)
Headquarters
Southern (SR)
5098
Chennai
Central (CR)
3905
Mumbai
Western (WR)
6182
Mumbai
Eastern (ER)
2414
Kolkata
Northern (NR)
6968
Delhi
3667
Gorakhpur
2631
Kolkata
3907
Maligaon
North Eastern
(NER)
South Eastern
(SER)
Northeast
Frontier (NFR)
South Central
(SCR)
East Central
(ECR)
North Western
(NWR)
East Coast
(ECoR)
North Central
(NCR)
South East
Central(SECR)
South
Western(SWR)
West Central
(WCR)
5951
3628
5459
Secunderabad
Hajipur
Jaipur
2677
Bhubaneswar
3151
Allahabad
TOP TEN STATES WITH

LONGEST RAIL NETWORK IN
IN INDIA
Rank
State
Route Km.
1.
Uttar Pradesh
8832
2.
Rajasthan
5872
3.
Maharashtra
5725
4.
Andhra Pradesh
5322
5.
Gujarat
5257
6.
Madhya Pradesh
4955
7.
West Bengal
4037
8.
Tamil Nadu
4027
9.
Bihar
3656
10.
Karnataka
3228
TOP TEN COUNTRIES WITH

LONGEST RAIL NETWORK IN
THE WORLD
Rank
Country
Route Km.
1.
USA
250000
2.
China
100000
3.
Russia
85500
4.
India
65000
5.
Canada
48000
6.
Germany
41000
7.
Australia
40000
8.
Argentina
36000
9.
France
29000
10. Brazil
28000
Metro Rail
2447
Bilaspur
3177
Hubli
2965
Jabalpur
Metro Rail was started in India on

24th October, 1984 in Kolkata. By far
it has covered the major metropolitan
cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad,
Chennai, Kochi and Bangalore. With 8
operational metro systems, metro rail
lines are composed of both standard
gauge and broad gauge.
B-494
SCENARIO OF METRO RAIL IN P FOUR METROPOLIS

City
Owner
Began
Operation
24 October 1984
24 December
2002
8 June 2014
Kolkata Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation

Delhi
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation
Limited (DMRCL)
Mumbai Mumbai Metropolitan Region
Development Authority (MMRDA)
Chennai Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) 29 June 2015
Kolkata Metro: Kolkata Metro is

the first mass rapid transit system
in the country and Indias Oldest
Metro Railway. The Line 1 NorthSouth Metro of 25 kilometers is in
the operation with 23 stations of which
15 are underground station. Kolkata
Metro is also the first in country to
build an operational underground
railway. There are 5 more railway lines
under construction at the different
corner of Kolkata, West Bengal.
Chennai Metro: Chennai is second
city in India to run a rapid transit
system in 1995, Chennai Mass Rapid
Transit System is an elevated railway
line run within the city from Chennai
Beach to Velachery.Chennai Metro
Rail project consist both elevated and
underground section.
Delhi Metro: Delhi Metro has 6 lines
of 189.63 kilometers with 142 railway
stations of which 35 are underground.
Delhi Metro consist combination of atgrade,underground and elevated lines.
Bangaluru Metro: Bengaluru Metro
also known as Namma Metro is
recently started rapid transit rail system
Distance in Kms
28.14 km
213 km
11.4 km
10km
in the Bengaluru city of Karnataka.

Mumbai Metro : Mumbai, the
financial and commercial capital of
India is all set to provide another mode
of transport to the people. Mumbai is
already running Monorail system, the
first monorail in India. Mumbai metro
is opened and over 10 lakh commuters
traveled on the citys first Metro train.
It covers the 11.4 km-long journey
from Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar
corridor.
Hyderabad Metro : Hyderabad Metro
is under construction with 3 lines and
covering a distance of around 71 km
for the city. The Hyderabad Metro
is the first public-private partnership
metro project in India. Hyderabad
is already running a Multi-Modal
Transport System for particular routes.
Jaipur Metro: The pink city of
Rajasthan is got its first metro line of
9.2 km from Mansarovar to Chandpole
Bazaar in November 2010. Rajasthan
is one of the most visited tourist place
in India, specially international tourist
and Jaipur is best place to enjoy royal
Rajasthan.
Aviation industry
Aviation industry is the highly growing
market, in terms of World Economy.
It targets to be the third largest market
by 2020 and to be in the first position
by 2030. Over the next five years, the
industry will experience an increase
in the domestic and international
B-495

passenger traffic at an annual average
rate of 12 per cent and 8 per cent,
respectively.
Air transport in India made a beginning
in 1911 when airmail operation
commenced over a little distance of
10 km between Allahabad and Naini.
But its real development took place in
post-Independent period. The Airport
Authority of India is responsible for
providing safe, efficient air traffic and
aeronautical communication services
in the Indian Air Space. The authority
manages 125 airports.
Major Aviation
Industry
5/20 rule : The rule allows an

Indian carrier to fly abroad only
after it has completed five years of
domestic operations and maintains
a fleet of 20 aircrafts.
Commenced
operations
Owner
IndiGo
8 April 2006
Rahul Bhatia of Inter Globe Enterprises

and Rakesh Gangwal
Jet Airways and Jetlite 1st April, 1992
Naresh Goyal
SpiceJet
5th May, 1993
ModiLuft
Air India
15th October, 1932 JRD Tata
Go Air
November 2005 Bombay Dyeing and Britannia
Air India Express
29th April, 2005 Govt. of India
AirAsia India
Air Costa
28th March 2013 Tony Fernandes

15 October, 2013 LEPL group
100 Golden Years of Civil

Aviation in India:
1911:The first commercial civil
aviation flight in India took place in
India between Allahabad and Naini,
covering a distance of 6 miles.
1912:The first London-Karachi-Delhi
flight was introduced by Indian State
Air Services in collaboration with UK
based Imperial Airways.
1924:Construction of civil airports
in India in Calcutta at Dum Dum,
Allahabad at Bamrauli and in
Bombay in Gilbert Hill.
1929:JRD Tata became the first
licensed pilot of
Federation
Aeronautique International on behalf
of the Aero Club of India and Burma.
1931:Lt Col. Shelmerdine became the
Director General of Civil Aviation

(DGCA).
1934:Formation of Indian Aircraft
Act.
1937:Regulation of Indian Aircraft
Act.
1948:Prem Mathur became the first
female commercial pilot to start flying
for Deccan Airways, as she obtained
her commercial pilots license in 1947.
1953:Nationalization of entire airline
industry under the Air Corporations
Act.
1956:Ms. Durba Banerjee was
inducted as the first woman pilot of
Indian Airlines.
1972:Airport Authority of India
constituted.
1976:Airbus A300 was introduced
for domestic services.
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1990-93:Entry of private airlines after

the de-regulation of the civil aviation
sector.
2006:Government approved
restructuring and modernisation
of Mumbai and Delhi Airport
through Public Private Partnership.
2010:The colossal Terminal 3 (T-3)

integrated terminal was inaugurated
at New Delhis Indira Gandhi
International Airport.
2012:In September foreign airlines
have given permission to attain a stake
of up to 49% in domestic airlines.
BUSIEST AIRPORTS IN INDIA

Rank
Name
1. Indira Gandhi International Airpot
2. Chhatrapati Shivaji International
Airport
3. Kempegowda International Airport
4. Chennai International Airport
5. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose
International Airport
6. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport
7. Cochin International Airport
City
Delhi
Mumbai
State
IATA Code
Delhi
DEL
Maharashtra
BOM
Bangalore
Chennai
Kolkata
Karnataka
Tamil Nadu
West
Bengal
Hyderabad Telangana
BLR
MAA
CCU
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Ahmedabad Gujarat

Airport
9. Pune International Airport
Pune
Maharashtra
10. Goa International Airport
Dabolim
Goa
AMD
8.
HYD
PNQ
GOI
Water Ways
India has 14,500 km of navigable waterways, contributing about 1% to the
countrys transportation. It comprises rivers,canals, backwaters, creeks, etc.
At present, 5,685 km of major rivers are navigable by mechanised flat bottom
vessels.For the development, maintenance and regulation of national waterways
in the country,the Inland Waterways Authority was set up in1986.
NATIONAL WATERWAYS OF INDIA

Waterways
Stretch
NW 1
Allahabad-Haldia
stretch (1,620 km)
NW 2
Sadiya-Dhubri stretch
(891 km)
NW 3
Kottapuram-Kollam
stretch (205 km).
NW 4
Specified streches of Godavari

and Krishna rivers along with
Kakinada Puducherry stretch of
canals (1078 km)
Specification
It is divided into three parts for
developmental purposes (i) HaldiaFarakka (560 km), (ii) Farakka-Patna
(460 km), (iii) Patna- Allahabad (600 km).
Brahmaputra is navigable by steamers up
to Dibrugarh (1,384 km) which is shared
by India
and Bangladesh.
It includes 168 km of west coast canal
along with Champakara canal (23 km)
and Udyogmandal canal (14 km).
B-497
NW 5
Specified stretches of river

Brahmani along with Matai
river, delta channels
of Mahanadi and Brahmani
rivers and East Coast canals
(588km).
Ports
Indian coastline is about 7516.6
kilometers and it is one of the biggest
peninsulas in the world. It is serviced
by 12 major ports, 200 notified minor
and intermediate ports. Maharashtra
(48) has the maximum number of
non-major ports followed by Gujarat
(42) and Andaman & Nicobar Islands
(23).
Name of the Port
The Major Ports are administered

by the central governments
shipping ministry.
x The Minor and Intermediate ports
are administered by the relevant
departments or ministries in the
nine coastal states.
The Coastal States in India are Andhra
Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil
Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa,
Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Coast
State
Kandla
Western Coast
Gujarat
Mumbai
Western Coast
Maharashtra
Jawaharlal Nehru
Western Coast
Maharashtra
Marmugoa
Western Coast
Goa
Manglore
Western Coast
Karnataka
Kochi
Western Coast
Kerala
Haldia
Eastern Coast
West Bengal
Paradip
Eastern Coast
Odisha
Vishakapatnam
Eastern Coast
Andhra Pradesh
Chennai
Eastern Coast
Tamil Nadu
Ennore
Eastern Coast
Tamil Nadu
Tutikorin
Eastern Coast
Tamil Nadu
Interesting Facts about Major

Ports of India
x
Kandla Port is located on the Gulf

of Kutch. It is the largest port of
India by volume of cargo handled.
It is a tidal port having a free trade
zone.
Mumbai Port is the biggest
port in our country. It handles
one-fifth of Indias foreign trade
with predominance in dry cargo
and mineral oil from the Gulf
countries.
B-498
Jawaharlal Nehru is the trendsetter of port development in India

through new initiatives like private
sector participation.
Mormugao Port is the leading iron
ore exporting port of India with
an annual out-put of around 27.33
million tonnes of iron ore traffic.
New Mangalore Port is an all
weather port and the only major
port of Karnataka. Panambur is
the site of sea port called New
Mangalore Port.
Kochi port is a natural harbour
on the west coast. It largely
handles coal, petroleum products,
fertilisers, raw materials and
general cargo.
x
x
Paradip Port is an artificial and

deep-water port.
Ennore Port, officially renamed
Kamarajar Port Limited, is the
only corporatised major port and
is registered as a company.
Jawaharlal Nehru Port is the
largest container port in India.
It was formerly known as Nhava
Sheva port.
Tuticorin Port is an artificial deepsea harbour of India. Tuticorin
Port is officially known as VO
Chidambaranar Port.
Madras Port is the one of the
oldest port of India and the second
largest port in the country.
NEWS & MEDIA

Newspaper
Newspaper is the print media usually prints information, the activities and
happenings around us, generally categorized into daily and weekly basis. It
was introduced way back in 1780.
Quick facts
Event
Publishing
Year
Name of the Publication
First newspaper in India
1780
Hickys Bengal
Calcutta General
Gazette
First newspaper from Bombay
1789
Bombay Herald
First newspaper in Hindi
1854
Samachar Sudha Varshan
or
Registrar of Newspapers is a statutory body of Government of India which is

popularly known as RNI. It was established on 1st July 1956 with an objective
of regulating and monitoring the printing and publication of newspapers based
on the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867. It has both statutory and
non-statutory functions.
E-paper : It is a display technology which is the reusable and refreshable version of a traditional newspaper that hold information electronically. This type of
newspaper is available free of cost on internet and can be accessed anywhere.
B-499

Newspaper
1 Dainik Jagran
2 Hindustan
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Language
Owner
Hindi
Owned by Jagran Prakashan Ltd.
Hindi
Owned by Hindustan Media Ventures Ltd.
owned by HT Media Ltd
Dainik Bhaskar
Hindi
Owned by D B Corp Ltd.
Malayala Manorama Malayalam Owned by Malayala Manorama Company Ltd.
Daily Thanthi
Tamil
Founded by S. P. Adithanar
Rajasthan Patrika
Hindi
Owned by Rajasthan Patrika Pvt. Ltd.
Amar Ujala
Hindi
Owned by Amar Ujala Publications Ltd.
Times of India
English
Owned by Bennett, Coleman and Co. Ltd.
Mathrubhumi
Malayalam Owned by The Mathrubhumi Group
10 Lokmat
Marathi
Owned by Lokmat Media Limited
11 Ananda Bazar
Patrika
12 Hindustan Times
Bengali
Owned by Ananda Publishers
English
Owned by HT Media Ltd
TOP TEN INTERNATIONAL DAILY NEWSPAPERS

Name of the Newspaper
The New York Times
The Daily Mail
The Peoples Daily
The Washington Post
The Daily Telegraph
The Guardian
USA Today
The Wall Street Journal
China Daily
Los Angeles Times
The Independent
The Times of India
The Examiner
Daily News
Financial Times
Press Trust of India (PTI) was

incorporated in Madras on, 27th
August, 1947 but started providing
full-fledged news and information both
in Hindi and English medium from 1st
February,1949.Its a non-profit sharing
cooperative organization and known
for its unbiased news coverage. The
corporate and registered officesare
Country of Publication
United States
United Kingdom
China
United States
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
United States
United States
China
United States
United Kingdom
India
United States
United States
United Kingdom
located at Sansad Marg, New Delhi

and D N Road, Mumbai respectively.
It has a news channel known as PTITV featuring documentaries.
United News of India (UNI) was
founded on December 1961under
the company acts. However its
commercial application started on
21st March 1961.
B-500
Samachar Bharti came into being

in 1967. It was supported by states
like Bihar, Gujarat, Rajasthan and
Karnataka. Samchar Bharti is well
known for its services of news, sports,
entertainment image stories and many
more. It merged with other three
agencies to form a nationalized news
agency Samachar inFebruary 1976.
Prasar Bharti is an autonomous body
set up by an Act of Parliament on 23
Nov, 1997. It has two major divisions
Doordarshan Television Network and
All India Radio. It is known to be the
largest broadcasting agency in India.
All India Radio (AIR) or Akashwani
was formed in 1930 as a part of Prasar
Bharti. It is considered to be one of
the nations premier Public Service
Broadcasters which truly lives up to
its motto of Bahujan Hitaya: Bahujan
Sukhaya.At the beginning AIR started
broadcasting in 23 languages and 146
dialects.
Doordarshan was launched on 15
September, 1959 as a part of Prasar
Bharti with the motto Satyam Shivam
Sundaram. It provides television,
radio, online and mobile services
throughout metropolitan and regional
India with more than 60 channels
which broadcast programmes in
almost all regional languages along
with Hindi and English. It has also a
wide spread network in the overseas
also.
Reuters is an English news service
opened in London by Julius Reuter
in 1851, and now the most important
institution of its kind in the British Empire.
It has correspondents in all the great
news centres of the world and furnishes
telegraph and other news features
throughout the eastern hemisphere and,
to some extent, to Latin America, the
United States and Canada.
A F P Agence France-Presse (AFP)
is an international news agency. The
head-quarter of AFP is located in Paris.
It was founded in 1944. It is the third
largest in the world (after Associated

Press and Reuters). AFP has regional
offices in Nicosia, Montevideo, Hong
Kong, and Washington, D.C., and
bureaus in 150 countries. It transmits
news in French, English, Arabic,
Portuguese, Spanishand German.
AP (Associated Press) is one of the
largest and most trusted sources of
independent newsgathering. It is neither
privately owned nor governmentfunded; instead, as a not-for-profit news
cooperative owned by its American
newspaper and broadcast members.
Founded in 1846, AP has covered all
the major news events of the past 165
years, providing high-quality, informed
reporting of everything from wars and
elections to championship games and
royal weddings.Since the Pulitzer
Prize was established, in 1917, AP
has received 51 Pulitzers, including
31 photo Pulitzers.AP headquartered
in New York, operates in more than
280 locations worldwide.
BBC (The British Broadcasting)
Corporation is the public service
broadcaster of the United Kingdom,
head-quartered at Broadcasting House
in London. It is the worlds oldest
national broadcasting organisation and
the largest broadcaster in the world. The
BBC is established under a Royal Charter
and operates under its Agreement with
the Secretary of State for Culture, Media
and Sport. The history goes back to June
1920 when Britains first live public
broadcast from the Marconi factory in
Chelms ford took place.
Al Jazeera It is a Doha-based state
funded broadcaster owned by the Al
Jazeera Media Network, Partly funded
by the house of Thani, the ruling
family of Qatar. It is one of the largest
news organizations with 80 bureaus
around the world. The channel was
launched on 1st November 1996
following the closure of the BBCs
Arabic language telivision station.
Hamid bin Thamer Al thani is the
chairman of the channel.
('8&$7,21$1'
&$5((5
B-502
Education and Career
UPSC
Union Public Service Commission
(UPSC) is one of the many
constitutional bodies in India. It is
authorized to conduct competitive
examinations and interviews for
recruitment of civil services, defence
services and posts under the Union
Government or Central Government.
Some of the most sought after
exams are as follows:
x Civil Services Examination
x Indian Forest Service examination
x Engineering Services Examination
x Combined Defence Services
Examination
x National Defence Academy
Examination
x Combined Medical Services
Examination
Civil Services Examination

It is conducted by the UPSC. Top
services offered by this examination
are: IAS (Indian Administrative
Service), IPS (Indian Police Service),
IFS (Indian Foreign Service), IRS
(Indian Revenue Service), Indian
Customs and Central Excise Service
etc. There are total twenty-four
services offered through this single
examination.
Considering
the
importance and the nature of the
jobs, UPSC takes utmost care in
selecting the right people. A three
level examination is conducted to
achieve this purpose which include
Preliminary Examination (Objectivetype questions), Main Examination
(Descriptive-type questions), and
interview test.
Indian Forest Service

Examination
IFS officers are recruited through
the IFS examination conducted
annually by the Union Public Service
Commission. The examination is
open to graduates in any science
or engineering discipline and has a
three-stage selection process including
Preliminary Examination (Objectivetype questions), Main Examination
(Written and Interview) spanning
nearly seven months. The officers
while in field postings in their
state cadres work for conservation,
protection and development of forests
and wildlife along with an aim to
enhance livelihood opportunities of
forest dependent communities of rural
and tribal areas.
Engineering Services
Examination
(UPSC) conducts Engineering Services
Examination as a combined competitive
examination for recruitment to
the services or posts of Electrical
Engineering, Civil Engineering,
Mechanical
Engineering,
and
Electronics and Telecommunication
Engineering. The exam is conducted for
selection of engineers for governments
engineering organizations, such as
Indian Railway Service of Engineers
(IRSE), Central Engineering Service
(CES), Military Engineering Services
(MES), etc. The entrance comprises
of a Written Exam (section I and II)
and an Interview.
B-503
Combined Defence Services

Examination
CDS Exam or Combined Defence
Service Examination is an exam
conducted twice every year by
(UPSC). It is an exam to induct
officers into the Indian Defence
Forces i.e. the Army and the Air
force. The entrance comprises of
a Written Exam followed by and
Intelligence and Personality Test.
National Defence Academy

Examination
This exam is conducted for
admission to the Army, Navy and
Air Force wings of the NDA and
for Indian Naval Academy Course
(INAC) by UPSC. It is an exam to
induct cadets into the Indian Defence
Forces i.e. the Army and the Air
force. The candidates Joining Indian
Naval Academy would undergo
4 years B.Tech Course and would
be given an opportunity to join
Executive and Technical Branches

of the Navy subject to availability
of vacancies. The examination
consists of 2 Papers-Mathematics
(300 marks) and General Ability
Test (600 marks) with objective
type questions, inclusive of negative
marking for every wrong answer.
Combined Medical Services

Examination
The Combined Medical Services
Examination or the CMS Exam
is conducted by the Union
Public Service Commission for
recruitment as Medical Officer in
various organizations such as the
Indian Ordnance Factories, Indian
Railways functioning under the
Government of India. There is an
objective-type written examination
with two papers of two hours
duration, each carrying a maximum
of 250 marks. This is followed by a
Personality Test carrying 100 marks
of candidates who qualify on the
results of the written examination.
SSC
Staff Selection Commission (SSC)
is an Indian organization to recruit
staff for various posts in the various
Ministries and Departments of
the Government of India and in
Subordinate Offices by administering
various competitive exams.
Headquartered in Delhi, this
commission is an attached office of the
Department of Personnel and Training
(DoPT) which consists of Chairman,
two Members and a Secretary-cumController of Examinations. Besides,
there are post of one Director, one
Deputy Secretary, two Joint Directors,
nine Under Secretaries, four Deputy
Directors, one Finance & Budget
Officer, one Assistant Director (OL),

24 Section Officers and more than 183
supporting officers / staff working
at the Headquarters for discharging
the duties and responsibilities of the
Commission.
SSC (like UPSC) is an organization
entrusted with the task of conducting
examinations and/or interviews,
whenever required for recruitment
people for government jobs at
subordinate (Non-Gazetted) levels.
The examinations which are
conducted under the purview off SSC
are broadly categorized as:
1. Open Examinations
2. Departmental Examinations
B-504
OPEN EXAMINATION
S. No. Name of the Examinations
1
Combined Graduate Level
Examination
2
Tax Assistant Examination
3
Statistical Investigators (SSS)
Grade IV Examination
4
Junior Engineers(Civil and
Elect) Examination
5
Junior Translators (CSOLS)
Examination
6
Section Officer (Commercial
Audit) Examination
7
Deputy Field Officer (Cab Sect)
Examination
8
Data Entry Operator (DEO)
Examination
9
Sub
Inspector
in
CPOs
Examination
10 Section
Officer
(Audit)
Examination
11 Combined
Matric
Level
Examination
12 Section Officer (Accounts)
Examination
DEPARTMENTAL EXAMINATIONS
S. No. Name of the Examinations
1
Grade C Stenographers Ltd.
Depttl. Compt. Examination
2
UD Grade Ltd. Depttl. Compt.
Examination
3
Clerks Grade (For Group D
Staff only) Examination
Career options after choosing

SSC or its branches
Ever since its inception in
November 1975, the Staff Selection
Commission recruits Indians to
Group B governmental posts, Group
C technical posts, and more. SSC
has announced the prospective
job vacancies open for suitable
candidates in 2015. Indian citizens
have the option to apply for 62,390
job vacancies across governmental
organizations like:
x Assistants, in CSS, AFHQ, MEA
etc, Inspectors in Central Excise/
Preventive Officer/Income Tax,
Inspector of Posts, Sub Inspector
in CBI, Divisional Accountants,
Auditors, UDC etc
x Tax Assistant in CBDT and CBEC
x Statistical Investigators (SSS)
Grade IV in Dept. of Statistics
x Junior Engineers (Civil and
Elect) in CPWD/Dept. of Posts,
Military Engineering Service
x Junior Translators of CSOLS
Cadre in DOL
x Section Officer (Commercial Audit )
x Deputy Field Officer (Cabinet
Sect)
x Data Entry Operator (DEO)
x Sub Inspector in CPOs
x Section Officer (Audit)
x Steno Grade C, Steno Grade
D, and LDC
x Section Officer (Accounts)
BANKING
IBPS PO & Clerk
SBI PO & CLERK
Candidates aspiring for a Probationary

Officer (PO) and Clerk in any Indian
Public Sector banks have to go
through the compulsory IBPS exams.
Recruitment under the IBPS includes
a three-tier process consisting of a
Preliminary exam of 100 marks of 60
minutes duration, followed by a mains
exam of 200 marks with duration
of 120 minutes for the shortlisted
candidates and finally the third tier
is an Interview.
State Bank of India (SBI) accepts

application form through offline or
online for recruitment of Probationary
Officer (PO). Candidates who have
completed their graduation or above
qualification from any recognized
university are eligible to apply.
The selection of the candidates is
done in three phases which include
Preliminary Examination, Main
Examination, and Group Discussion
and Interview.
B-505

The SBI Clerks selection is based on
an online objective test consisting of
General English, General Awareness,
Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning
Ability, and Marketing Aptitude/
Computer Knowledge. Each of the
sections carries 40 marks, which

makes it a total of 200 marks and
the candidates have to complete the
test within a span of 2 hours and 15
minutes.
VARIOUS INTERNATIONAL TESTS

Reason
to take
the test
SAT
GRE
Used by most Used as
U.S. colleges a judging
to determine parameter
by most U.S.
whether
colleges to
students
determine
should be
accepted into admissions
the institutions to masters
undergraduate and doctoral
degree
programs.
programs.
GMAT
Required for
admissions
in graduate
management
programs of
most business
schools.
TOEFL
Required for
An
international testing the
English language
test of
proficiency
English
of non-native
language
Proficiency English speakers
wishing to enrol
for nonin American
native
universities.
English
language
speakers
for higher
education
and
immigration.
The GMAT The IELTS Has internet
consists of
test has four based test and
analytical
sections
paper based test.
writing
Listening (30 The internet
assessment
minutes plus based test has
(30 min),
10 minutes reading (60100
integrated
transfer
min), listening
reasoning (30 time),
(6090 min),
min for 12
Reading (60 speaking (20 min)
questions), the minutes),
and writing (50
quantitative Writing (60 min). And the
section (75
minutes) and paper based test
min for 37
Speaking
Listening (30 40
questions),
(1114
min), Structure
and the verbal minutes)
and Written
section (75
Expression (25
min for 41
min), Reading
questions)
Comprehension
(55 min) and
Writing (30 min).
Structure The SAT

The GRE
of the
consists of a
consists of
test
70 minutes
Analytical
Critical Reading Writing
section (one
section
20-min section (1 hour),
and two 25Verbal
min sections); Reasoning
a 70 minutes section (20
Math section questions in
(one 20-min
30 minutes)
section and
and 2
two 25-min
sections of
sections) and Quantitative
a 60 minutes Reasoning
Writing section (20
questions in
(one 25-min
35 minutes)
essay, one
25-min section,
and one 10min section)
The test is a The GMAT is
Format It is a
Computer- a computerpaper-based
based
standardized based or
paper-based standardized
test.
standardized test.
test.
IELTS
The test
involves 2
modules
of the
IELTS: the
Academic
Module and
the General
Training
Module.
The TOEFL
is either
Internet-based
or paper-based
standardized test.
B-506
Scoring 200800
(in 10-point
increments) on
each of three
sections (total
6002400).
Essay scored
on scale
of 012,
in 1-point
increments.
Analytical The total score The test is

writing
ranges from scored on a
nine-band
scored from 200 to 800
0.0 to 6.0
and Scores
scale, with
each band
(in 0.5 point are given in
increments), increments
equivalent to
of 10.
a specified
Verbal
reasoning
competence
in English.
and
Quantitative
reasoning
marked on
the scale of
130 to 170
(in 1 point
increments)
each.
Test
3 hours and 45 Around 3
3.5 hours
2 hours, 45
duration minutes
hours and 45
minutes
minutes
The iBT test

is scored on a
scale of 0 to 120
points whereas
the PBT score
ranges between
310 and 677 and
is based Listening
(3168), Structure
(3168), and
Reading (3167).
Validity 5 years
Internet-based
test: 3 hours 10
minutes to 4
hours 20 minutes
Paper-based
test: 2 hours 20
minutes to 2
hours 30 minutes.
2 years
5 years
5 years
2 years
TOP TEN UNIVERSITIES IN THE WORLD

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

University of Cambridge
Imperial College London
Harvard University
University of Oxford
UGL (University College London)
Stanford University
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Princeton University
Yale University
USA
UK
UK
USA
UK
UK
USA
USA
USA
USA
CAREER OPTIONS
Management
MBA, Brand management, Hotel Management, Corporate communication, customer
relationship management, Disaster Management, Event Management, Finanace
management, Hospital management, HR, Foreign trade, Investment management,
Library mangement, Logistics management, Museology - Museium management,
Purchase management, Quality Assurance management, Real estate management,
Retail management, Rheumatology, Rural management, Scurities analyst, Sports
management, Telemarketing
B-507
Medical
MBBS, BDS, BAMS, Anesthesiology, Aromatherapy, Ayurveda, Cardiology, Clinical
research, Dermatology, Epidemiology, Gastroentology, Gynecology, Hydro therapy,
Magnetic therapy, Medical transcription, Music therapy, Naturopathy, Nephrology,
Neurology, Nursing, Nutrition and Dietics, Occupational therapy, Optometry,
Osteopathy, ENT, Pediatrics, Physiotherapy, Psychiatry, Psychology, Radiography,
Reflexology, Veterinary science
Other Science Courses
BSc, BSc - Bio technology, BSc - Micro biology, BSc- Criminology, BSc- Genetics,
BSc. - Nursing, BSc. - Information technology, Agriculture Sciense, Anthropology,
Archaelogy, Astronomy, Biochemistry, Bioinformatics, Biophysics, Biotechnology,
Botany, cartography, criminology, Entomology, Environmental science, Fishery
science, Floriculture, Forestry/ wildlife, Fragrance chemists/perfumers, Geophysics,
Gerontology, Home science, Horticulture, Marine biology, Microbiology,
Oceanography, Poleontology (study of fossils), Photonics, Political science,
Sericulture, Speech pathology and audilogy, Toxicology, Cosmetology, Behavioural
science
Engineering
Aeronautical Engineering, Agriculture Engineering, Animation, Automobile
Engeenering, Biomedical engineering, Broadcast Engineering, Architecture,
Chemical, Civil, Cloud computing, CAD, Computer, Computer system analyst, Dairy
technology, Electrical, Electronics, Environmental engineering, Ethical hacking, Fire
engineering, Food technololgy, Footwear technology, Gaming industry, Gemology,
Genetic engineering, Graphic Designing, Industrial Engineering, Instrumentation
Engineering, Leather Technology, Marine engineering, Mechanical engineering,
Mechatronics engineering, Medical laboratory technology, Mining engineering,
Nanotechnology, Nuclear engineering, Ocean engineering, Paint technology,
Petroleum engineering, Pharmaceutical technology / engineering, Polymer/
plastic engineering, Robotics engineering, Rotoscoping, Strutural engineering,
Surgical technology, Telecommunication engineering, Textile technology, Thermal
engineering, Transportation engineering, VLSI/chip designing, Web designing
Accountancy/Economics
Agriculture Economics, Auditing, Issurance, CS, Banking, CA
Sports
Adventure Sports, Fitness trainer, Coach
Arts
Dance, Music, DJ, Fashion choregraphy, Interior desigining, Jewellery designing,
Makeup artist, Photography, Photojournalism, Radio jockey, Video jockey
Food/ Catering
Chef, Chocolatier, Food critic, Oenology,
Education and training
Corporate training, Counselling, Creative writing, Foreign language, Lexicography
Other Professions
Adventure Tourism, Mass Communication, Advertising, Air Hostess, Fashion
Designing, Anchoring, Modelling, Cinematography, Film making, Commercial pilot,
Detectives/private investigators, Merchant navy
Defence
Chief of Army Staff, Flying Branch, Technical Branch, Ground duty branch, Pilot,
Air traffic Controller, Logistic Cadre, Adjutant General, Quarter Master General,
Master General of Ordnance, Military Secretary, Engineer- in-Chief
B-508
MOST SOUGHT-AFTER COURSES

Engineering
Premier institutions: The Indian
Institutes of Technology (IITs),
Birla Institute of Technology &
Science (BITS), Indian Institutes
of Information Technology (IIITs),
National Institutes of Technology
(NIT) and many more.
Major Branches of Engineering:
Mechanical Engineering: The
branch applies the principles of
engineering, physics and material
science for the design, analysis,
manufacturing and maintenance of
mechanical systems.
Eligibility: Aspirants must have
appeared in the 10+2 with Physics,
Chemistry and Mathematics as core
subjects.
Course Duration: 4 years for B.E or
B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering.
Computer Science Engineering:
Computer Science engineering deals
with design, implementation, and
management of information system of
both software & hardware processes.
A computer engineer specializes in
theory of computation and design of
computational systems.
Eligibility: Must have appeared in
the 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry
and Mathematics as core subjects.
Course Duration: 4 years for B.E
or B.Tech in Computer Science
engineering.
Electronics and Communication
Engineering: This branch of
engineering develops everyday devices
such as transistors, integrated circuits
and printed circuit boards (PCBs)
which can be used in computers,
MP3 players, cell phones, television
to name a few.
Course Duration: 4 years for B.E

or B. Tech in Electronics and
Communication Engineering.
Electrical Engineering: Electrical
Engineering deals with the study and
application of electricity, electronics,
and electromagnetism. The focus of
the course remains on designing and
testing ICs, inductors, capacitors and
resistors.
B.Tech in Electrical Engineering.
Civil Engineering: The discipline
of Civil Engineering deals with the
various aspects of planning, designing,
construction, maintenance and
modification of physical structure
and naturally built environment.
Eligibility: Should have passed 10+2
from a recognized board with ScienceMathematics, Physics and Chemistry
with 50 percent.
B.Tech in Civil Engineering.
Information
Technology:
Information Technology is the
study of utilizing computers and
telecommunications in order to
control, gather, store and circulate
information.
Eligibility: Should have passed
10+2 from a recognized board with
Science- Mathematics, Physics and
Chemistry with 50 percent.
B.Tech in Information Technology.
Aeronautical Engineering: Aeronautical
engineering is the specialized branch of
engineering for the aviation industry.
It involves studying, designing,
construction and science of the airplanes
and other spacecraft.

Course Duration: 4 years for B.Tech
in Aeronautical Engineering.
Architecture Engineering: Architecture
Engineering is the area of study, which
deals with the designing, and planning
of buildings and structures and the
spaces between them.
Course Duration: 5-year Bachelor of
Architecture degree programme.
Chemical Engineering: Chemical
Engineering is concerned with
the design, construction, and
operation of machines and plants
that perform chemical reactions to
solve practical problems or make
useful products. It deals with the
application of physical science and
life sciences with mathematic, to the
process of converting raw materials
or chemicals into more useful or
valuable forms.
Course Duration: 4 years for B.Tech
in Chemical Engineering.
Medical
Premier institutions: All India
Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS),
Delhi, Armed Forces Medical College
(AFMC), Pune, Christian Medical
College (CMC), Vellore, Maulana
Azad Medical College (MAMC),
Delhi, (JIPMER) Jawaharlal Institute
of Postgraduate Medical Education
& Research, Pondicherry, and many
more.
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Major courses of Medical:

M.B.B.S: MBBS (Bachelor of
Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery)
is the bachelor degree in medical
field for cure & diagnose.
Eligibility: Should have secured
50% marks in physics, chemistry,
biology and English in the 10+2
examinations.
Course Duration: The course
duration is 5 years (4 years of
classroom study followed by a year
of rotating internship)
B.D.S : The BDS (Bachelor of Dental
Surgery) is the only educational and
professional programme of dental
surgery in India.
Eligibility : Candidates should have
passed the 10+2 examination with
Physics, Chemistry, Biology and
English.
Course duration: The BDS is a 5
year (4 years academic education +
1 year mandatory internship) UG
degree programme.
B.H.M.S: BHMS (Bachelor of
Homeopathic
Medicine
and
Surgery) is an undergraduate degree
programme in medical field. This
degree covers the medical knowledge
of the homeopathic system.
Eligibility: Students should have
passed 10+2 examination with
physics, chemistry and biology.
Course Duration: 5.5 years academic
programme containing the 4 and
1/2 year academic session and one
year internship programme.
B.A.M.S: Bachelor of Ayurvedic
Medicine and Surgery (BAMS)
is an integrated Indian Degree
in the medical field. This degree
programme is conferred to those
students who studied the modern
medicines and traditional Ayurveda.
examination with physics, chemistry
and biology.
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Course Duration: 5 years and 6 month

degree programme containing the 4
and 1/2 year academic session and
one year internship programme.
B. Pharma: Bachelor of Pharmacy
or B.Pharma is an undergraduate
degree course in Pharmacy. After
the completion of this degree,
the students can practise as a
Pharmacist.
Eligibility: Must have passed
10+2 with Physics, Chemistry,
Mathematics or Biology and must
have scored minimum of 50%
marks.
Course Duration: This duration of
this course is 4 years.
M.D: M.D (Doctor of Medicine)
is awarded to the doctors who are
physicians.
Eligibility: The minimum eligibility
for this course is MBBS.
Course Duration: 3 years
M.S: This degree is awarded to
the doctors who master course in
surgery.
for this course is MBBS.
Mass Communication
Premier Institutions : Symbiosis
Institute of Media & Communication
(Pune);
Amity
School
of
Communication (Noida); Delhi
College of Arts & Commerce;
Manipal Institute of Communications;
Department of Media Studies, Christ
University (Bangalore); St. Xaviers
College (Mumbai); Institute of Mass
Communication Media Technology
(Kurukshetra) and many more.
Main
Branches
of
Mass
Communication
Bachelor of Journalism and
Mass Communication (BJMC):
Bachelors programs in journalism
and mass communication combine

classes in journalism, writing and
communications. Students must
complete both a broad liberal arts
education and rigorous writing
course work.
Eligibility: Pass with 50% aggregate
marks in 10+2 or equivalent (with
English)
Master of Journalism and Mass
Communication (MJMC):
It is an academically-oriented degree
that prepares students for doctoral
studies or a career in research.
Eligibility: Graduation.
Law
Premier Institutions: National Law
School of India University (Bangalore);
National Academy of Legal Studies
and Research (Hyderabad); National
Law University (Delhi); Faculty Of
Law, BHU; Faculty of Law, Aligarh
Muslim University; University School
of Law & Legal Studies, GGSIPU and
many more.
Major courses of Law:
LLB (Bachelor of Law): It is an
undergraduate law course. The degree
felicitates a student to become a lawyer
or work in a legal department.
Eligibility: Graduate or equivalent
Course of Duration: 3 years
LLM (Masters in Law): The
University Grants Commission
approved one-year LLM courses in
India on 6 September 2012 and the
guideline for the same was notified
in January, 2013.
Eligibility: Should have cleared LL.B./
Five-Year Integrated LL.B./any other
equivalent examination with minimum
55% marks for General/OBC/PWD
categories and minimum 50% marks
for SC/ST categories
Course of Duration: 2 years
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Business & Management

Premier
Institutions:
Christ
University;
Symbiosis
Centre
for Management Studies; Amity
International Business School; Indian
Institutes of Management (IIMs);
XLRI (Xavier Labour Relations
Institute) Jamshedpur; FMS (Faculty
of Management Studies) Delhi;
JBIMS (Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of
Management Studies) Mumbai.
Major courses of Business &
Management
Bachelor of Business Administration
(BBA) : It is a bachelors degree in
commerce and business administration.
with at least 50% marks.
Master of Business Administration
(MBA): It is a masters degree in
business administration (management).
criterion for admission is at least a
3-year bachelors degree with at least
50 per cent marks or equivalent.
The following are the list of some of
the specialization in MBA Courses
in India:
x Finance
x Marketing
x Human Recourse (HR)
x International Business (IB)
x Health Care Management
x Operations
x Banking and Finance
x Sales and Marketing
Hotel Management
Premier Institutions: Institutes of
Hotel Management (IHM), Oberoi
Centre of Learning and Development,

Welcomgroup Graduate School of
Hotel Administration (WGSHA)
Manipal, Christ College Bangalore.
Major courses of Hotel Management
Bachelor of Hotel Management
(BHM)
Eligibility: The candidate should
have passed 10+2 stage examination
Course duration: 3 years
Bachelor of Science in Hotel
Management: The program teaches
students the necessary technical,
organizational, and communication
skills needed to manage restaurants,
hotels, and other places where
hospitality is essential to the nature
of the business.
Eligibility: Must have passed Class 10+2
examination with at least 50% marks.
TOP TEN EDUCATIONAL

INSTITUTIONS IN INDIA
1. Indian Institute of
Delhi (IITD)
Bombay (IITB)
Kanpur (IITK)
Madras (IITM)
Karagpur
Roorkee (IITR)
7. University of Delhi
Guwahati (IITG)
9. University of Calcutta
10. University of Mumbai
Technology
Technology
Technology
Technology,
Technology
Technology
Technology
UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION

The University Grants Commission
(UGC) is a constitutional organization
established in 1956 by an Act of
Parliament. It provides grants to
eligible universities and colleges, and
also advises the Central and State
Governments on the measures which

are necessary for the development of
Higher Education. Its headquarters
is situated in New Delhi and the
other six Regional offices are located
in Bangalore, Bhopal, Guwahati,
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Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune. Indian government has set a National Institutional
of Ranking Framework under UGC which will rank all educational institutes
by April 2016. Prof. Ved Prakash is the incumbent Chairman of UGC. The
commission along with CSIR conducts NET for appointments of teachers
in colleges and universities. It has made NET qualification mandatory for
teaching at Graduation level and at Post Graduation level since July 2009.
ALL INDIA COUNCIL FOR

TECHNICAL EDUCATION (AICTE)
The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is the statutory body
and a national-level council for technical education, under Department of
Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development. The council
was established in November 1945 as an advisory body but 1987 was given
statutory status by an Act of Parliament. It is responsible for proper planning
and coordinated development of the technical education and management
education system in India. The AICTE accredits postgraduate and graduate
programs under specific categories at Indian institutions as per its charter.
What is a deemed university?
Deemed university, or Deemed-to-be-University, is a status of autonomy
granted by the Department of Higher Education in the Union Human
Resource Development Ministry, on the advice of the UGC, under Section
3 of UGC Act, 1956. The status allows full autonomy in courses, syllabus,
admissions and fees. The first institute to be granted deemed university
status was Indian Institute of Science which was granted this status on
12th May 1958.
CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY

EDUCATION (C.B.S.E)
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is a Board of Education
for public and private schools which functions under the under supervision
of the Union Government of India. CBSE affiliates Kendriya Vidyalayas,
Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, private schools and most of the schools
approved by central government of India. It conducts 10th and 12th boards
every year in the month of March. It also conducts AIPMT (All India Pre
Medical Test) for admission to major medical colleges in India. In 2014,
the conduct of the National Eligibility Test for grant of junior research
fellowship and eligibility for assistant professor in institutions of higher
learning was outsourced to CBSE. With the addition of NET in 2014, the
CBSE has become the largest exam conducting body in the world. Vineet
Joshi is the current chairman of the board.
COUNCIL FOR THE INDIAN SCHOOL

CERTIFICATE EXAMINATIONS (CISCE)
Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) is a national
level, private, Board of School education in India which conducts the Indian
Certificate of Secondary Education and the Indian School Certificate
examinations for 10th and 12th standard respectively. The board was established
in 1958.
,1)250$7,21
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Information Technology & Computers
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Information technology is playing vital
role in India today and has transformed
Indias image from a slow moving
bureaucratic economy to a land of
innovative entrepreneurs.
The IT sector in India is generating 2.5
million direct employment. India is now
one of the biggest IT capitals of the
modern world. Information technology
in India is an industry consisting of
two major components:
a. IT services
b. Business process outsourcing (BPO).
The IT sector has increased its
contribution to Indias GDP from
1.2% in 1998 to 9.5% in 2015.
According to NASSCOM (The
National Association of Software
and Services Companies) is a trade
association of Indian Information
Technology (IT) and Business Process
Outsourcing (BPO) industry), the sector
aggregated revenues of US$147 billion
in 2015, where export revenue stood at
US$99 billion and domestic at US$48
billion, growing by over 13%.
Indian Government Initiatives

Some of the major initiatives taken
by the government to promote IT and
ITeS sector in India are as follows:
1. The Government of India has launched
the Digital India programme to provide
several government services to the
people using IT and to integrate the
government departments and the
people of India. The adoption of key
technologies across sectors spurred
by the Digital India Initiative
could help boost Indias gross
domestic product (GDP) by US$
550 billion to US$ 1 trillion by 2025,
as per research sources. India and
the United States (US) have agreed
to jointly explore opportunities for
collaboration on implementing
Indias ambitious Rs 1.13 trillion
(US$ 18.22 billion) Digital India
Initiative.
What is Digital India Programme?

Digital India is an initiative of
Government of India to make the
government services available to
citizens of India electronically. It
is to be done by improving the web
services and internet connectivity
all over India. The programme was
launched on July 1, 2015 by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi. The
core components of the initiative
are to create digital infrastructure,
digital literacy and delivery of
services digitally. DigiLocker is
another feature of the programme
through which Indian citizens will
be able to digitally keep in reserve
their important documents like
passport, mark sheets, certificates
and Election card and Aadhaar
Card. These electronic documents
safe has been introduced to
avoid the hassle of submitting
the documents physically with
government agencies. The other
features of Digital India also include
the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM)
Mobile app that will enable people
and Government organisations
to achieve goals of SBM. eSign
framework is a feature that would
enable nationals to digitally sign
documents only by making use of
Aadhar authentication. E-Hospital
system is yet another important
feature that would enable online
registration, fee payment, fixing
appointments, checking blood
availability and medical reports
for the users. It is a wholesome
package to connect citizens with
many services without having to
avail them physically.
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2. Human Resource Development
Ministry has launched the National
Web Portal for promotion of
National Apprenticeship Scheme
for graduates, diploma holders
and 10+2 pass-outs vocational
certificate holders, with a view
to bridge the gap between the
students and the industry.
3. The Government of Telangana has
begun construction of a technology
incubator in Hyderabaddubbed
T-Hubto make the city as a
technology destination. The state
government is initially investing
` 35 crore (US$ 5.3 million) to set
up a 60,000 sq ft space, labelled
the largest start-up incubator
in the county, at the campus
of International Institute of
Information Technology-Hyderabad
(IIIT-H). Once completed, the
project is proposed to be the worlds
biggest start-up incubator housing
1,000 start-ups.
Supercomputing in India
Indias supercomputer programme was
started in late 1980s. PARAM 8000 is
considered Indias first supercomputer.
It was indigenously built in 1990 by
Centre for Development of Advanced
Computing and was replicated and
installed at ICAD Moscow in 1991
under Russian collaboration.
Supercomputers of India:
x Aaditya: It is used for climate
research and operational forecasting.
It ranks 96th among the worlds
top 500 supercomputers.
x Anupam: Anupam is a series of
supercomputers designed and
developed by Bhabha Atomic
Research Centre (BARC) for their
internal use. It is mainly used for
molecular dynamical simulations,
reactor
physics,
theoretical
physics, computational chemistry,
computational fluid dynamics, and
finite element analysis. The latest in
the series is Anupam-Aagra clocked
at 150 TFlops.
PARAM Yuva II: Unveiled on 8

February, 2013, this supercomputer
was made by Centre for Development
of Advanced Computing and will
be used for research in space,
bioinformatics, weather forecasting,
seismic data analysis, aeronautical
engineering,
scientific
data
processing and pharmaceutical
development.
Educational
institutes like the Indian Institutes
of Technology and National
Institutes of Technology can be
linked to the computer through
the national knowledge network.
This computer is a stepping
stone towards building the future
petaflop-range supercomputers in
India. It ranks 174th among the
worlds top 500 supercomputers.
IT Trends
(a) Internet.org
Social networking services company
Facebook along with Samsung,
Ericsson, MediaTek, Opera Software,
Nokia and Qualcomm have moved
into a partnership which is named as
Internet.org. This coming together of
companies is to attain the objective of
bringing affordable access to selected
services of Internet in countries.
Internet.org was launched in August
20, 2013 by Mark Zukerberg to
improve internet access for people
across the world. In May 2015, it was
announced that Internet.org users
would be able to use third-party apps
soon. The platform would be made
available to all developers to have
their apps on the portal subject to
fulfilling the technical criteria like
websites requiring high-bandwidth
will be excluded, partner services
should be optimized for smart
phones and services should promote
the exploration of broader internet
wherever possible. The first summit
of Internet.org was held in New
Delhi, India on October 9, 2014.
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Internet.org has launched its Free

Basics Android application to offer
free web services to its users.
(b) Net Neutrality
Network Neutrality, Internet Neutrality
or Net neutrality is a term that was
first given by media law professor of
Columbia University, Tim Wu, in
the year 2003. The principle makes
it necessary for the Internet service
providers and governments to treat
all Internet data as same. There will
not be any charges imposed on by
user, application, type of enclosure,
content, website, etc. It is the best way
for all to enjoy the usefulness of internet
without any charges. It is a feature of
net neutrality to allow different websites
to exist side-by-side without affecting
others. At the same time and same
speed, all the websites are accessible
for users. Net neutrality will support
competitive market place by providing
a chance to each firm irrespective of
its size. Net Neutrality has enabled
Google, Facebook and Zomato to
reach various places around the globe.
Until now, India has had no laws to
govern the net neutrality. Although
Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India (TRAI) has released rules
for unified access service license to
encourage net neutrality, they do not
execute them.
Free Basics by facebook is
a free step to connecting one
billion Indians to jobs, education,
and opportunities online, and
ultimately a better future.
(c) Windows 10
Windows 10 is a personal computer
operating system developed by
Microsoft. It has launched new
features to facilitate the users.
Cortana is a feature that acts as

personal assistant for the user by
aiding in the easy management of
calendar, file finding, chatting, telling
jokes and tracking packages. It gives
a complete personalized experience
to the user. Office app is of two types
for desktop and mobile. The desktop
office app enables the users to enjoy
advanced features of the traditional
programmes. Office mobile app are
deigned to work in both mobiles and
tablets. Microsoft Edge on Windows
10 allows users to surf the web. It
has the feature of Hub that stores
all the stuff the user collects on the
web and when the user signs in with
a Microsoft account, all favourites,
browsing history, current downloads
and reading lists are available across
the Windows 10 devices the user has.
Xbox offers games streaming from
Xbox. Another appealing feature is
Continuum that allows optimization
of the look and behaviour of apps
according to users preferences.
Mobile Trends
(a) 4G
Fourth generation, also called as 4G,
is the succeeding generation of 3G
in mobile telecommunications. It is
an advanced system with advanced
capabilities of telephony, mobile web,
gaming services, high definition TV,
video conferencing, 3D television and
cloud computing. It is faster and has
better features than its successor 3G.
Mobile generations began in 1981
with analogue (1G) moving to digital
transmission (2G) in the year 1992.
Then, in 2001, multi-media supported
3G was introduced. It had peak bite
rate of 200 kb/s. 4G is assumed to
have a five times faster speed than its
predecessor 3G. 4G aims at providing
a download speed of 100MB/s.
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(b) Android M
Android M is the code name of
Android 6.0 Marshmallow, a version
of Android mobile operating system.
It was first unveiled in May 2015 and
officially released in October 2015.
It offers to improve user experience
of Lollipop. The system has a new
Assist API that allows sending a
screenshot of the application to the
assistant application for analysis.
It has an application Google Now on
Tap that allows user to search Google
in one step.
This version of android has a different
application permission model like
applications do not automatically take
permissions in one click at the time
of installation. Users can now grant
or deny individual permissions while
installing an application.
Marshmallow has introduced Doze
and App standby as a new power
management system. Doze is a brainy

battery manager that identifies when
your mobile is not in use and enters
hibernation to save power. Android
Marshmallow takes about 3-5 per
cent of battery life overnight as
compared to other devices that lose
about 15-25 per cent. App Standby is
yet another feature that identifies and
disables them when found not in use
for a while. It has also a fingerprint
recognition procedure that is necessary
for allowing third-party application
installation.
Alphabet Inc.: At a glance

American search engine company,
founded in 1998 by Sergey Brin and
Larry Page that is a subsidiary of the
holding company Alphabet Inc. More
than 70 per cent of worldwide online
search requests are handled by Google,
placing it at the heart of most Internet
users experience. Its headquarters are
in Mountain View, California.
Alphabet
Fiber
Calico
Fights ngo-rolated
disooso
Google X
Google Ventures
Worldng on big
bronkthroughs
Providing super-fast
internet
Calico
Funding for bold

Smart home now companlos
Google
products
Android
Search
Calico: Calico is a research and

development company whose mission
is to harness advanced technologies
to increase our understanding of the
biology that controls lifespan.
Google X: Google X is a semi-secret
research and development facility
created by Google and operated as
a subsidiary of Alphabet. Google
Life Sciences, a former division of
Google X became a direct independent
subsidiary of Alphabet.
YouTube
Google Capital
Invosts in long-term
toch tronds
Apps
Maps
Ads
Project Loon: Project Loon

is a research and development
project. It is developed by Google
X with the mission of providing
Internet access to rural and
remote areas. The project uses
high-altitude balloons placed in
the stratosphere at an altitude of
about 18 km (11 mi) to create an
aerial wireless network with up to
4G-LTE speeds.
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Google Ventures: GV is the venture

capital investment arm of Alphabet
Inc. It provides seed, venture, and
growth stage funding to technology
companies. The firm operates
independently from Google and
makes financially driven investment
decisions. GV seeks to invest in
startup companies in a variety of fields
ranging from Internet, software, and
hardware to life science, healthcare,
artificial intelligence, transportation,
cyber security and agriculture.
Google Capital: It is the late-stage
growth venture capital fund financed
by Google. It was founded in 2013.
It focuses on larger, growth stage
technology companies, and invests
for profit rather than strategically
for Google. Google Capitals
approach includes giving portfolio
companies access to Googles people,
knowledge, and culture to support the
companies growth and offer them
guidance. This includes connecting
them with a roster of advisors.
Nest Labs: A Subsidiary of alphabet
this is a home automation producer of
programmable, self-learning, sensordriven, Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats,
smoke detectors, and other security
systems. It introduced the Nest
Learning Thermostat in 2011 as its
first product. The Nest Protect smoke
and carbon monoxide detector was
then introduced in October 2013. Nest
Cam was introduced in June 2015.
Google Apps and Chrome: In
2006, in what many in the industry
considered the opening salvo in a war
with Microsoft, Google introduced
Google Appsapplication software
hosted by Google that runs through
users Web browsers. The first free
programmes included Google Calendar
(a scheduling programme), Google Talk
(an instant messaging programme), and
Google Page Creator (a Web-pagecreation programme). In order to use
these free programmes, users viewed
advertisements and stored their data

on Googles equipment. This type of
deployment, in which both the data and
the programs are located somewhere
on the Internet, is often called cloud
computing. In 2008 Google released
Chrome, a Web browser with an
advanced JavaScript engine better
suited for running programmes within
the browser.
Android Operating System: Android
is the operating system that powers
more than one billion smart phones
and tablets. Since these devices make
our lives so sweet, each Android version
is named after a dessert. Whether its
getting directions or even slicing virtual
fruit, each Android release makes
something new possible. Googles
entry into the lucrative mobile
operating system market was based on
its acquisition in 2005 of Android Inc.,
which at that time had not released
any products. Two years later Google
announced the founding of the Open
Handset Alliance, a consortium of
dozens of technology and mobile
telephone companies, including Intel
Corporation, Motorola, Inc., NVIDIA
Corporation, Texas Instruments
Incorporated, LG Electronics, Inc.,
Samsung Electronics, Sprint Nextel
Corporation, and T-Mobile (Deutsche
Telekom).
Google Earth: In 2004 Google bought
Keyhole Inc., which was partially
funded by the Central Intelligence
Agencys venture capital arm, InQ-Tel. Keyhole had developed an
online mapping service that Google
rebranded in 2005 as Google Earth.
This service let users find detailed
satellite images of most locations on
Earth and also create combinations
(known as mashups) with various
other databases, incorporating details
such as street names, weather patterns,
crime statistics, coffee shop locations,
real-estate prices, and population
densities into maps created by Google
Earth.
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Technology
TOP TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS

Biotech & Medical
Breakthroughs
Tissue Engineering: Tissue engineering
is a field that applies the principles
and methods of bioengineering
and life sciences that will restore,
maintain, and improve tissue. Current
approaches of tissue engineering are
undergoing on organ transplantation
on much emphasis on the application
of stem cells.
Gene Editing: Gene editing is a tool
for the CRISPRs (Clustered Regularly
Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats)
which are the segment of prokaryotic
DNA containing short repetitions
of base sequences. Genome editing
techniques were concurrent with other
approaches over the years to manipulate
gene function, including homologous
recombination and RNA interference.
Cancer Spit Test: Forget biopsiesa
device designed by researchers at the
University of California-Los Angeles
detects oral cancer from a single drop
of saliva.
Smart Contact Lens: Contact lenses
developed at the University of
California-Davis contain conductive
wires that continuously monitor
pressure and fluid
flow within the eyes
of at-risk people.
The lenses then
relay information
to a small device
worn by the patient;
the device wirelessly transmits it to a
computer.
Speech Restorer: For people who have
lost the ability to talk, a new phonetic
speech engine from Illinois-based
Ambient Corporation provides
an audible voice. Developed in
collaboration with Texas Instruments,
the Audeo uses electrodes to detect
neuronal signals travelling from brain

to vocal cords.
Absorbable Heart Stent: The bioabsorbable version made by Abbott
Laboratories
in
Illinois does its job
and disappears.
After six months
the stent begins to
dissolve, and after two years its
completely gone, leaving behind a
healthy artery.
Stem cell treatment: Stem cell has
been used to treat range of diseases,
injuries and other health related
conditions. The widely used stem cell
treatment is the transplantation of
blood stem cells used to treat disease
and immune system.
Nanomedicines: Nanomedicine is one
of the applications of nanotechnology
which is used for diagnosing, treating,
and preventing diseases. Nanomedicine
shoes, the promising use in disease
diagnosis, drug delivery on a targeted
site in the body and molecular imaging.
Nanosensors: Today detection of
biological and chemical species is the
centre of area in the field of health
care. Nanosensors are any biological,
chemical, or surgical sensory points
used to convey information about
nanoparticles to the macroscopic world.
Biosensors: Biosensor is a device for the
detection of biological component with
a physiochemical detector component.
Biosensors can convert the biological
data to electrical signal which can be
later used to detect enzymes, receptors
antibodies and microbial cell.
Artificial brain: Artificial brain is a
collection of interconnected neural net
module which is evolved in a special
electronic hardware downloaded into
PC and interconnected according to
the design of human brain.
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Technology
Artificial Intelligence: It is the field
of science in which we study how
computers and computer softwares
can be created that are capable of
intelligent behaviour.
Bio-printing: 3D bio-printing is the

process of creating spatially-controlled
cell patterns, in
which the behaviour
of biological tissues
can be reproduced.
PHYSICS DISCOVERIES
Physicists compressed quantum
data: If todays classical computers
could not compress the information
were constantly sending back and
forth, then your Internet connection
would have been infinitely slower.
The nuclear fusion reaction that
produced more energy than it
used up: Scientists at Lawrence
Livermores
National
Ignition
Facility (NIF) brought us one step
closer to the cleaner, more economical
power of nuclear fusion by finally
making more energy than they used
to start the fusion reaction. They
compressed a small amount of fuel
enough to induce nuclear fusion and
they extracted more energy from the
fuel than they put in.
Robot for testing the lifetime of

human-machine interfaces:
Keypads and touchscreens make a
wide range of
different devices
easy and intuitive
to operate. However,
the material is
subject to especially
high loading through constant use and,
at some point, becomes impaired in
its functionality. A robot system
developed by Fraunhofer IPA now
allows device manufacturers to
realistically simulate such loading in
order to determine how durable their
devices are.
CHEMISTRY INVENTIONS
Polythene : In 1933 a method for
making the plastic was discovered
by chemists at, the now defunct
chemical company, ICI. ICI turned
this serendipitous discovery into a
practical method for producing the
common plastic thats almost certainly
within easy reach of you now.
The Haber-Bosch process : In 1910,
German chemists Fritz Haber and Carl
Bosch combined atmospheric nitrogen
and hydrogen into ammonia. This in turn

can be used as crop fertiliser, eventually
filtering up the food chain to us.
Penicillin: Alexander Fleming generally
gets the credit for penicillin when, in
1928, he observed how a mould growing
on his petri dishes suppressed the growth
of nearby bacteria. Full-scale production
of penicillin started in 1944 by Margaret
Hutchinson Rousseau who converted it
into a full-scale production plant.
SPACE
Artificial gravity: It is the increase or
decrease of apparent gravity (g-force)
by artificial means, particularly in
space as well as on Earth.
Hyper Telescope: Hyper-telescope
is a set of telescopes, arranged in a

large lens-shape, working together
to resolve astronomical images at
much higher angular resolutions than
possible with each telescope alone.
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Geo-stationary satellite: A geostationary

satellite is an earth-orbiting satellite,
placed at an altitude
of approximately
35,800 kms (22,300
miles) directly over
the equator, that
revolves in the same direction the earth
rotates (west to east).
Polar Orbit: It is an orbit in which a
satellite passes above or nearly above
both poles of the body being orbited
(usually a planet such as the Earth,
but possibly another body such as the
Sun) on each revolution.
Space shuttle : The primary vehicle
for research and exploration is the
space shuttle. The space shuttle takes
off like a rocket, orbits the earth like a
spacecraft and lands, like an aeroplane.
It consists of an orbiter, an external
tank and two solid rocket boosters.
Artificial Satellites : An artificial
satellite is a manufactured moon. It
circles the earth in space along a path
called an orbit. An artificial satellite
may be designed in almost any space.
It does not have to be streamlined,
because there is little or no air where it
travels in space. Artificial satellite may be
classified according to the jobs they do
as : weather satellites, communications
satellites, navigation satellites, scientific
satellites and military satellites.
Space Probes : Space probes are used
to explore space at various distances
from the earth. Four main kinds of
probes are :
(i) Sounding rockets : It carry
instruments into the upper
atmosphere and into space near
the earth.
(ii) Lunar Spacecraft : It explores
the moon to prepare the way for
astronauts to land there.
(iii) Interplanetary Probes : It explore
space between the planets. They do
not reach a specific body in space.
Technology
(iv) Planetary Probes : It travel in
orbits around the sun. They may
fly past the target planet, go into
orbit around it, or land.
Orbits : Selecting the orbit is one of
the first steps in planning the launch
of an earth - orbiting spacecraft. Early
manned space craft usually orbited
less than 320 Kilometres high. In this
way, they avoided the radiation in the
Van Allen-belts. A communication
satellite may orbit at a much greater
distance in order to serve many
ground stations.
Remote Sensing : The term remote
sensing refers to the process of
sensing, identifying and delineating
various objects on ground from a
distance without coming into direct
physical contact with them. ISRO and
the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research conducted during 197475 a joint experiment called the
Agricultural Resources Inventory and
Survey Experiment (ARISE). Indian
experimental satellites, Bhaskara I
and II carried out remote sensing
for land cover mapping, geology
and vegetation cover of the country.
Today, India has the largest group of
remote sensing satellites providing
services at both the national and
global levels.
Launch Vehicle Technology :
x
SLV : The indigenous capability for

the development of satellite launch
vehicle (SLV), was demonstrated
through the first successful launch
of SLV-3 in July 1980, carrying
the 40-kilogram Rohini satellite.
ASLV : The Augumented Satellite
Launch Vehicle (ASLV), basically
derived from SLV-3, was originally
meant for putting 150 Kilogram
class technological/ scientific
payloads into near-circular orbit.
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Technology
x
PSLV : The PSLV,

the countrys first
operational launch
vehicle, is a fourstage rocket. The
first stage is a solid
propellant,
the
second stage is
based on the liquid
engine technology,
the third stage is a solid propellant
motor and the fourth, a liquid
propellant stage.
GSLV : On March 28, 2001,
the ISROs efforts to launch the
geosynchronous satellite launch
vehicle ended in failure. On April
18, ISRO managed to prepare
the GSLV again and launch it
successfully from Sriharikota. The
GSLV was commissioned after its

successful second flight in 2003.
Cryogenic Engine : The cryogenic
engine is crucial to the development of
GSLV. Cryogenics refers to technology
of sub-zero temperatures, and cryogenic
engines use liquid oxygen as the oxidiser
and liquid hydrogen as the fuel. India
was to acquire the cryogenic engine
and technology from the Russian space
agency, Glavkosmos.
The advantage of the cryogenic engine
is that it would develop one-and-ahalf times the thrust of conventional
liquid rocket engines using fuel
storable at room temperature. It
is a high risk high technology and
would help bridge the gap between
the number of satellite being made
by India and the vehicles needed for
their launch.
DEFENCE
Ballistic Missiles: Ballistic Missiles
are generally used to combat land
attacks. These missiles follow a
trajectory path with an objective of
delivering one or more warheads to
a predetermined target. Long range
intercontinental ballistic missiles
(ICBM) are launched at a steep,
sub-orbital flight trajectory and
spend most of their flight out of the
atmosphere. Shorter range ballistic
missiles are restricted only within
Earths Atmosphere. Prithvi missile
series and Agni missile series are the
example of Indian ballistic missiles.
Cruise Missiles : Cruise Missiles are
low flying missiles, which are
programmed to target by an on
board computer. These missiles are

used for long distance warheads
with high accuracy. These are selfcorrected avionic missiles with high
tech aeronautics using transistor and
computer technology. BrahMos and
Nirbhay missiles of Indian origin are
under this category.
Submarine-launched ballistic missiles:
are the type of ballistic missiles which
can be launched form submarine. They
can efficiently strike multiple targets
at time using multiple independently
targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV). The
Indian origin SLBMs, K-15 (aka B0-5)
and K-4 are the examples.
INFRASTRUCTURE
Construction robotics startup
develops revamping building process:
Construction robotics startup Asmbld,
based in Brooklynis working on a
robotics system that can reconfigure a

room in minutesand is called like 3-D
printing upside down. The Project
Dom Indoors process involves tiny
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Technology
robots living inside cubes created from

5-inch tiles and aluminium studs that
make up the floor of a room. Those
cubes can rise out of the floor to create
walls, surfaces and tables, and then
slide back into their original position
in the floor.
Self-driving crash trucks at roadside
work zones: A Coopersburg, PA,
equipment company launched a selfdriving truck which can be used by
highway construction crews in Florida.
The driverless vehicles will serve as
construction-site crash trucks
the barrier-surrounded vehicles that
lead the roving construction crews that
paint highway lines, inspect bridges
and pave roads.
Parking lot drinks 1,000 gallons

of water in 1 minute: To prevent
devastating damage caused by
stormwater runoff, a parking lot
paved with a product called Topmix
Permeable absorbs more than 1,000
gallons of water in a minute.
Robot replaces construction crews:
A Japanese construction equipment
maker proposed replacing crews with
robots as a solution to the labour
shortage. Komatsu also introduced a
team of driverless, robotic excavation
vehicles that are guided by drones,
which create a real-time 3-D map of
the area to track the work site.
TELECOM
LiFi delivers speeds 100x faster than
WiFi : A super-fast alternative to WiFi
known as LiFi has moved beyond the
research lab and into a real-world test
after Estonian startup Velmenni has
begun to offer the technology in a
commercial setting. Velmenni is using
LiFi to send data at up to 1Gbps more
than 100x using light bulbs.
Small chip solves rural coverage
issues: A small chip designed by
Saankhya Labs in Bengaluru could be
a feasible solution in the short-term
of connecting people in remote areas
to the rest of the world. The chip,
called Pruthvi, beams an internet
connection to households which can
receive a TV signal but are unable
to benefit from a fixed broadband
infrastructure. Pruthvi harnesses
unused TV spectrum known as
White Space to bring more people
online than ever before.
Agriculture
Data preserved in soil: For traditional
farming models, the primary
determinantsare the availability and
suitability of land. However, any idea
of future potential must be built on
current data, with what data there is then

mapped to tell the story of a region. This
story is effectively written in the dirt,
the soil. The Africa Soil Information
Service (ASIS) is developing continentwide digital soil maps for sub-Saharan
Africa using new analysis, statistics, field
trials and crowdsourcing.
Greens fed on rainbow waste:
Hydroponicsis a growing method
based on use of mineral-enriched
water, whereas aquaponics takes
matters a step further, bringing
together fish and plant farming in
one recirculating system.
Genetically Modified Food (GMF):
Genetically modifying a food involves
introducing a gene
into a fruit, vegetable,
or animal from
another organism.
Broad
scientific
consensus suggests
that genetically modified foods present
no more danger than conventional food.
GMFshave been commercially available
since the 1990s and are most often
associated with fruits and vegetables.
Technology
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Education
portal or software-based and require a

downloadable executable file.
E-learning: eLearning is learning

or utilizing electronic technologies
to access educational curriculum
outside of a traditional classroom.
m-Learning: m-Learning is one of
the latest developments in e-Learning
which takes advantage of mobile
devices for learning on accessible
portable platforms. It is ideal for
people on the go or for those who
cant access a regular computer.
Virtual classroom: A virtual
classroom is an online learning
environment. The environment can
be web-based and accessed through a
Displays
OLED: An organic light-emitting
diode (OLED) is a light-emitting
diode (LED). They are used to
create digital displays in devices
such as television screens, computer
monitors, portable systems such
as mobile phones, handheld game
consoles and PDAs.
3-d display: A stereo display also
known as3D display is a display
device capable of conveying depth
perception to the viewer by means
of stereopsis for binocular vision.
SPORTS
Kinetic Energy Recovery System
(KERS)- Auto Racing: Used in
Formula One racing, this 35-kilogram
car part recovers the kinetic energy that
is present in the waste heat created by
the cars braking process. It takes the
energy used when a car brakes and uses
it later on to boost acceleration.
Computerized Scoring- Bowling: The
difficulty of keeping score manually
can put people off of the game.
Bowling, in particular, can be difficult
for the infrequent alley visitor to score.
However, using a computer eases the
pain of scoring by 100 percent. Having
a computer keeping the score can keep
all your focus on your next ball rather
than adding and multiplying pins.
Above the Net Camera-Hockey: One
of the most game-changing devices, a
camera above the net will primarily
be used to see what goals passed the
line, if it beat the clock, etc., just very
basic events. The camera-evidence has
changed the outcome of numerous
games, all for the better.
The Headset-Football: The headset

is the best technology football has
to offer.Coaches up in the press box
can see aerial views of the game,
and with the headset they can relay
information to the head honcho who
may not be able to get that look at
ground-level.
Heart Monitor-Training : Heart
monitors help out the average joggers
as well as the elite athletes. These
devices can be used to alert athletes of
dehydration and malnutrition. This is
a simple wrist or strap-on mechanism
that can warn people of an unsafe
workout.
Advancements in protective gear :
With bigger hits than ever on the field,
athletes want to be more protected.
Rob Vito guarantees that players
wont get hurt on game day. Another
company, evoSHIELD, creates gear
for all 32 NFL teams. The technology
is dubbed a second skin and doesnt
add a ton of bulk.
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Technology
TRANSPORT
Maglev Trains : The maglev train
has no wheels. So, these locomotives
levitate. The tracks they run on are
magnetized. The trains use the force
this creates to propel themselves
upward and forward at high speeds.
Running these engines requires
the consumption of only a small
amount of fuel. Thus, in addition
to being faster than traditional style
locomotives, these ones are more ecofriendly and less costly to operate.
Electric Cars : The electric car is a good
solution
to
the
transportation crisis at
hand. These automobiles
are just plugged in to the
appropriate outlet and then they are on

the road. The cars do almost no harm
to the environment and are also
economical. One study published by
IDC Energy Insights stated that by the
end of 2015 there will be three million
cars on the road.
Driverless Cars: A large and
complex camera is mounted to the
roof of driverless cars which is used
to navigate the road. These cars are
safer, if the technology is right, to ride
in as a precisely calibrated robot is
at the wheel. The automobiles also
allow people to work or relax during
a trip, as they eliminate the need to
focus on the road. However, they are
bad for the environment.
PRINTING
3D Printing : Printing is no longer
limited to flat sheets of paper. 3D
printing or additive manufacturing is
a process of making 3-dimensional
solid objects from a digital file.
The creation of a 3D printed
object is carried out using additive
processes. In an additive process
an object is created by laying down
successive layers of material until
the entire object is made. Each of
these layers can be seen as a thinly
sliced horizontal cross-section of the
eventual object.
Hybrid Printing: Hybrid printing is
where a mix of printing technologies
are used on a press or finishing system
to allow for adding variable data to
offset or flexo printed content.
Print-on-demand : It is a book
distribution method made possible
by, and inseparable from, digital
printing. It prints books only in
response to orders, and only prints
the exact amount ordered. With the
capabilities of digital printing, print
on demand is capable of filling an
order for one book economically.
IT & Communication:
4G:4G (fourth generation) is
the fourth generation of mobile
telecommunications
technology,
succeeding 3G. It is an IP-based and
packet-switched evolution of 3G
technologies like WCDMA, HSDPA,
CDMA2000 and EVDO that uses
voice communications.
5G:5G (5th generation mobile
networks or 5th generation wireless
systems) denotes the next major
phase of mobile telecommunications
standards beyond the current4G/
IMT-Advanced standards.
Voice Recognition: It is the field of
computational linguistics to develop
methodologies and technologies
that enable the recognition and
translation of spoken language into
text by computers and computerized
devices such as Smart Technologies
and robotics.
Cloud Technology : Cloud technology
or cloud computing is the practice of
storing, processing and managing data
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Technology
in remote server connected
through internet rather than
a local server or personal
computers. Cloud Computing
benefits the user in no of ways
like, companies can scale up
their computing needs with
increasing demand of their
product and service in the
market and then scale down
again as demands decrease.
The users only need to pay
the amount for the services
they will use rather than paying for
the whole infrastructure unnecessarily.
The the wider acceptance of cloud
technology is due to the reason that it
can provide multi-level services, such
as private, public and hybrid i.e. from
local to global host.
The leaders of cloud service provider
are Amazon Web Services (AWS),
Microsoft Azure, IBM/SoftLayer and
Google Compute Engine. Keeping in
view the type and extent of services,
there are three basic models of cloud
computing, infrastructure as a service
(IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS)

and software as service (SaaS). In a
recent study it has been declared that
as a result of increasing demand and
wider acceptance of cloud services, it
will touch the market of 250 billion
dollar in 2017.
Ambient computing: Ambient
computing is the backdrop of sensors,
devices, intelligence and agents that
can put the concept to work. For
example, getting a vending machine
to book an order replenishment from
the supply chain, through embedded
sensors tracking stock levels.
BUSINESS
Dimensional marketing: Marketing
has evolved significantly in the last
half-decade. The evolution of digitallyconnected customers lies at the core,
reflecting the dramatic change in
the dynamic between relationships
and transactions. This modern era
for marketing is likely to bring new
challenges in the dimensions of
customer engagement, connectivity,
data and insight.
Amplified intelligence: Amplified
intelligence is focused on deploying
tools at points when a business really
needs it for effective decision-making.
Natural language processing techniques
(allowing conversational interaction
with a complex system), visualisation
tools (letting individuals explore data
on their own terms and find new

patterns of discoveries), or advanced
analytics mobile solutions (such as
those embedded inside smartphones
or tablets) are the examples.
CRM
(customer
relationship
management): CRM software is a
category of enterprise software that
covers a broad set of applications and
software designed to help businesses
manage customer data and customer
interaction, access business information,
automate sales, marketing and customer
support. It also manages employee,
vendor and partner relationships.
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) :
Enterprise resource planning (ERP)
is the business process management
software that allows an organization to
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Technology
use a system of integrated applications

to manage the business and automate
many back office functions related
to technology, services and human
resources. ERP software integrates

all facets of an operation, including
product planning, development,
manufacturing, sales and marketing.
BANKING
Satellite Banking : Satellite banking is
an upcoming technological innovation
in the Indian banking industry, which is
expected to help in solving the problem
of weak terrestrial communication
links in many parts of the country.
The use of satellites for establishing
connectivity between branches will
help banks to reach remote areas in
a better way, and offer better facilities,
particularly in relation to electronic
funds transfers.
Introduction of Biometrics: A
number of banks have started the
process of setting up ATMs enabled
with biometric technology to tap the
potential of rural markets. People in
such areas do not adopt technology
as fast as the urban centres due to the
large scale illiteracy. Development
of biometric technology has made
the use of self service channels like
ATMs viable with respect to the
illiterate population.
Electronic Funds Transfer Systems:
The beginning of the electronic funds
transfer mechanisms began with the
Electronic Funds
Transfer (EFT)
System.
The
EFT System was
operationalized
in 1995 covering
15 centres where the Reserve Bank
managed the clearing houses.
A new variant of the EFT called
the National EFT (NEFT) was
started (November 2005) to broad
base the facilities of EFT. This was
a nation-wide retail electronic funds
transfer mechanism between the
networked branches of banks. While
RTGS is a real time gross settlement
funds transfer product, NEFT is a
deferred net settlement funds transfer
product.
RTGS: The other payment and
settlement systems deployed were
mostly aimed at small value repetitive
transactions, largely for the retail
transactions. The introduction of
RTGS in 2004 was instrumental in
the development of infrastructure
for Systemically Important Payment
Systems (SIPS).
FILM PRODUCTION
Virtual reality: Virtual reality (VR),
is a technology that offers new and
exciting ways to consume information
and entertainment. As a non-linear
medium, VR brings a very different
viewing experience to the table.
VR offers exciting possibilities: as a
dynamic new storytelling medium;
as a rich narrative device within
conventional film; and as a practical,
time-saving preproduction tool.
Depth Sensors : Developed as a

CGI-video hybrid, the software
repurposes the depth-sensing camera
from the Microsoft Kinect to capture
and visualise the world as wireframe
forms.By syncing the Depth Kit to the
camera with which shooting is done,
a 3D CGI sculpture for every frame
of the film is captured, essentially
producing a file of 3D animation
that perfectly lined up to the films
characters and action.
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B-530
ENGLISH LANUAGE
Grammar is the set of rules that
explain how words are used in
a language. In the world, every
language has its rules, regulations
and principles.These rules are called
the Grammar of the language.
Similarly is the case with English
Language.
NOUN
The first and the foremost important
constituent is the Noun. A noun
is a word used as the name of a
Person, Place or thing: e.g. boy,
girl, Delhi, India, table, chair, lion,
deer etc. There are four types of
main nouns: (1) Common Noun,
(2) Proper Noun (3) Collective
Nounand (4) Abstract Noun.
Common Noun: A common noun is
the word used for a class of person,
place or thing.e.g. boy, king, birds,
ball, garden, road, bat etc. For
example: A boy plays football.In the
sentence: the boy and football
are common nouns.
Examples: Common Nouns in
the following sentences have been
identified.
i. The girls are dancing.
ii. The lion is in the jungle.
iii. The crow is sitting on a tree.
Proper Noun: A Proper Noun is
the name of some particular person
or place.e.g. Ram, Delhi, Himalya,
Taj Mahal etc. Examples:Ramesh
plays football.Suresh is going to
Delhi. In these sentences Ramesh,
Suresh and Delhi are proper nouns,
as they are the proper and particular
names of the persons i.e. Ramesh
and Suresh and a particular place
named Delhi. It should be noted
that Proper Nouns should always be
written with a Capital letter at the
beginning.
Examples: - Proper Nouns in the
following sentences have been
English Language
identified.
i. Delhi is the capital of India.
ii. Kapil is a good cricket player.
ii. C.V. Raman was a great
scientist.
Collective Noun:- A Collective
Noun is the name of a number of
(or collection) persons or things,
taken together and spoken of as
one whole e.g. a crowd of People,
a team of Players, a flock of sheep,
a school of children, an army of
soldiers, a herd of cattle etc.
In these sentences crowd, team,
school, army, flock, herd are
collective nouns.
Examples:- Collective Nouns in
identified.
i) A crowd had surrounded the thief.
ii) The Indian cricket team has not
yet arrived.
iii) The shepherd is coming with his
flock of sheep.
Abstract Noun: An Abstract Noun
is the name of a quality, action or
feelings of a person or an animal.
e.g. Ram is very kind. The night is
dark. John is an honest man.
In these sentences kind, dark and
honest are Abstract Noun as they
show the quality, action and feelings
of a person.
Examples:- Abstract Nouns in
identified.
i. Indian soldiers are brave.
ii. Laughter is a good medicine.
iii. Childhood is the golden period
of ones life.
PRONOUN
A pronoun is a word that takes the
place of or refers to a noun. Thus,
a word which is used instead of a
Noun is called a pronoun. e.g. Ram
is sitting. Ram is reading a book.
In these sentences, it does not look
B-531
English Language
good in repeating the name Ram; so,
to avoid the repetition of the Noun
Ram, we use the Pronoun He.
Thus, the sentence would become:
Ram is sitting and he is reading
a book. Here he refers to the Noun
Ram, which it has replaced.
Examples: Pronouns
in
the
following sentences have been
identified.
i) John is running as he is an athlete.
ii) Sweety is a good girl and she is
also beautiful.
iii) A camel is drinking water, it is
called the ship of the desert.
It must be noted that for a man we
use He, while for a woman, we
use She. On the other hand, for an
animal or a non-living thing, we use
it. e.g. The table is not here, it is in
the other room . The lion is roaring,
it is in the jungle.
There are also relative pronouns
which refer or relate to other Nouns
e.g.
John, who is an athlete, is standing
there
Sita has found the pen which she
had lost.
Here is the book that you lent me.
Here who, which and that are
relative pronouns which are related
to the Nouns: John, Pen, Book
respectively.
ADJECTIVE
An Adjective is a word that is used
to modify or add something to the
meaning of a noun.For example:
Sita is an intelligent girl.
Ashoka was a brave king.
Delhi is a big city.
The Adjectives intelligent, brave and
big tell us what kind of a person or
a thing it is.
Comparison of Adjectives
When things are compared we

use the Adjectives to compare
them. When only two things are
compared, the comparative degree
of the adjective should be used.
For example:
Ram is wiser than Shyam.
Ashoka is braver than Kapil.
Suresh is the taller of the two boys.
When more than two things are
compared, the superlative degree of
the Adjective should be used.
For Example:
Ram is the wisest boy of the class.
Ashoka was the bravest king of his
time.
Suresh is the tallest boy in his cricket
team.
It should be noted that the article
the should be used before the
superlative degree. Thus, we
come to know that there are three
degrees of comparison e.g.Positive,
Comparative and Superlative.
VERB
A verb is usually called adoing verb
when a word tells us about some
action or work done, then it is called
a verb. e.g.
i) Ram plays football.
ii) The lion killed the deer.
iii) The School bell is ringing.
Here in (i) we see that a person
named Ram is playing. In the (ii)
we see that the lion has killed a deer
and in (iii) Anon-living thing bell
is ringing. Thus, the action being
performed i.e. playing, killing or
ringing are all verbs, whether it is
done by a person, animal or a thing.
Examples:- Verbs in the following
sentences have been identified.
The girl cut her hand with a knife.
Mother wrote a letter yesterday.
The Sun rises in the East.
ADVERB
A word that modifies the meaning
of a verb, an adjective, or another
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Adverb is called an Adverb. e.g.The

boy runs quickly.
The girl dance swiftly. The bird is
chirrupingsweetly.
In the above examples, the verbs
runs, dances and chirruping have
been modified and explained by the
adverbs quickly, swiftly and sweetly
respectively.
Adverbs modifying the Adjectives
When a word modifies an adjective,
it is also known as an Adverb. For
Example:The boy runs very fast.
The apples are extremely sweet.She
reads quite clearly.
In the above sentencesthe word
Very defines the adjective fast,
thus it becomes an Adverb.Similarly,
in second sentence and third
sentence the words extremely and
quite defines the Adjective sweet
and clearly respectively: thus they
are called Adverbs.
PREPOSITIONS
A preposition is a word placed
before a Noun or a pronoun to show
the relation between a person or a
thing. Actually the word preposition
means the position of noun or a
pronoun, and is usually placed
before it.
For example:
The book is on the table.
The cow is in the field.
The cat jumped on the table.
The sentence (i) and (iii) show the
position of the book and the cow
respectively. Some generally used
preposition are in, on, about above,
across, along, among, around,
before, behind, below, within,
without etc.
CONJUNCTION
A conjunction is a word which joins
together sentences and also words.
English Language
For Example:
The man is Poor. The man is honest.
Now if we join these two sentences
with but, then they join together:
The man is Poor, but he is honest.
Similarly in the sentences below:Ram sells mangoes and oranges.
You must study hard or you will fail
Sita has failed, but Rita has Passed.
We can see that these sentences have
been joined by the conjunction and,
or and but.
Aconjunction also joins two words
e.g.Two and two make four.Ram
and Shyam are brothers. Sita and
Geeta are neighbours.
Some conjunctions are used in pairs
only e.g.
Either do it or go away.
It is neither required nor is useful.
Though he is my friend, yet he hides
his secrets from me.
Whether you stay or go away, its
your wish.
We both love and honour our
teacher.
INTERJECTIONS
Interjections are words used to
express strong feeling or sudden
emotion. They are included in
a sentence usually at the start
to express a sentiment such as
surprise, disgust, joy, excitement, or
enthusiasm.
Examples:
Hey! Get off that bike!
Oh, that is a surprise.
Good! Now we can move on.
Introductory expressions such as
yes, no, indeed, and well also fall in
this category.
Examples:
Indeed, this is not the first time he
came late.
Yes, I do intend to go to Delhi.
English Language
Articles
An article is a word used to modify
a noun, which is a person, place,
object, or idea. The articles a or an
and the are called Articles. In fact,
they are demonstrative adjectives
which specify whether the person
or thing is singular or plural, or is
indefinite or a definite. For Example:
I saw a boy playing.
I saw the boys playing.
In the above sentence the boy is
singular, so it takes a singular Article
awhereas in second sentence, the
boys is plural, so it takes the plural
article the.
Examples:
This is a chair.
This is a girl.
This is an apple.
This is an ass.
In the above examples, we can see
that both the articles a and an
denote that all the Nouns chair, girl,
apple and ass are singular. Thus, we
can say that both these articles a
and an are singular. However, we
can also perceive that the article an
is used before a noun which starts
with a vowel - a,e,i,o,u.
For Example:I saw an asson the way.
An elephant is the strongest animal.
An Indian lady is respected
everywhere.
In summer, you must take an orange
everyday.
It might rain, so take an umbrella.
It must be noted in the above
examples that the articles an is
used before the words ass elephant
Indian, Orange and umbrella,
which all start with the vowels a, e,
i, o, u. Thus, Now it is clear that we
use the article a before the words
starting with a consonant, and we
use the article an before the words
starting with a vowel.
B-533
However, there is an exception in

using the article an. When begin
with a silent h and the next syllable
is a vowel, then we use an and not
a.
Examples:
The train is an hour late.
Ram is an honest man.
Mahatma
Gandhi
was
an
honourable man.
THE DEFINITE ARTICLE- THE
The definite article the is used
when we refer to some particular
person or thingsuch as:
The boy along with me is my brother.
The dog which was playing with you
is mine.
We are going to the school.
We also use the definite article the
for a person or a thing which we
have already referred to, e.g.
A boy entered the class seriously,
but the boy stated smiling when he
saw me. In this sentence, we see
that an unknown i.g. indefinite boy
entered the class, so we used the
indefinite article a for him, but
when we refer to him the second
time, we use the definite article the
which shows that now the boy has
become a definite and a known
person to us.
We also use the definite articleThe
for some outstandingthings:for
example:
Some outstanding books e.g. The
Gita, The Bible, The koran, Tha
Ramayana, The Guru Granth etc.
Some outstanding mountains and
rivers e.g. The Ganga, The Indus,
The Thames, The Himalayas, the
Alps, The Hindkush, The Nilgiris,
The Satpura Range etc.
Before the names of newspaper,
magazines etc. e.g. The Times of
India, The Hindustan Times, The
Illustrated Weekly, The Economic
Review etc.
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Some important buildings-The

TajMahal, The Red Fort, The
United Nations etc.
Names of Planets -The Sun, The
Moon, The Earth, The Mars, The
Sky etc.
TENSES
There are three tenses in the English
language. They are i) the Present
Tenses (ii) the Past tense (iii) the
future Tense. The tenses of a verb
show the time of an Action or event.
The present tense
Averb in a sentence which refers
to the present time or situation is
calledthe Present Tense. e.g.:
I play football.
Sita dances everyday.
Ram writes a letter.
In all these three sentences, the
work is done in the Present time.
However, the Present Tense has four
different forms, which clarify the
state or the situation of the action.
For example:I play football. Simple Present
Tense
I
am
Playing
football
PresentContinuous
I have played football Present
Perfect
I have been Paying football
Present perfect continuous
In sentence (i) the verb playshows
that the action is mentioned and
done at the present time. While
in sentence (ii) the verb playing
shows that the action is still going
on and not complete yet. In sentence
(iii) the verb have Played, shows
that the action has completed and
finished perfectly. Lastly, in sentence
(iv) the verb have been playing
shows that the action is still going on
continuously, and has not completed
yet.
English Language
PAST TENSE
When a verb in a sentence refers to
the past time or situation is called
the Past Tense. e.g.
I Played football.
Sita danced everyday.
Ram wrote a letter.
In all these sentences, the work has
been already done and completed
in the Past. Thus, it is calledthe Past
Tense. Similar to the Present tense,
it also four different forms, which
denote the state or the situation of
the action.
For Examples:I played football. Simple Past
I wasplaying football. Past
continuous
I had played football. Past perfect.
I had been playing football. Past
Perfect continuous
In sentence (i) the verb played show
that the action had been done in the
Past. In sentence (ii) the action of
playing had continued in the Past
and was in Process. The sentence (iii)
shows that the action or the work of
playing football has completed fully
and completed perfectly. In the end,
in sentence (iv) the verb had been
playing shows that the action of
playing football was being done and
continuing in the past.
THE FUTURE TENSE

When the verb in a sentence refers to
the future time or situation, then it is
denoted as the future Tense.
Example
I shall play football.
Sita shall/will dance everyday.
Ram shall write a letter.
In all these sentences (i), (ii), and (iii)
we can see that the work has neither
been done nor completed, but has
been said and planned to be done in
future. As in the above two tenses,
this also has those four forms, which
B-535
English Language
tell the state and affairs of the work
which is to be done.
For Example:
I shall play football. Simple
Future Tense
I shall be playing football. Future
continuous Tense
I shall have played football.
Future Perfect Tense
I shall have been playing football.
Future Perfect Continuous Tense
However, from the above sentences
(i) to (iv), it is obvious that the work
has been planned and proposed to
be done in the future, thus, the result
of these action are still in the air and
not certain or completed.
ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE

Active Voice:
When the subject of a verb performs
an action the verb is said to be in the
active voice. The effect of the action
may or may not fall on an object,
that is, the verb may or may not have
an object.
Passive Voice:
When the object of a verb appears to
perform an action so that the effect
of that action appears to fall on the
subject the verb is said to be in the
passive voice.
ACTIVE AND PASSIVE IN VARIOUS TENSES

Tense
Simple Present
Present
Continuous
Simple Past
Past Continuous
Present Perfect
Present Perfect
Continuous
Past Perfect
Past Perfect
Continuous
Simple Future will

Simple Future
Future Continuous
will
Future Continuous
be going to
Future Perfect will
Active
Once a week, Calvin cleans
the shed.
Right now, Shreya is writing
the letter.
Samuel repaired the car.
The accountant was helping
the customer when the thief
came into the store.
Many tourists have visited
that fort.
Deepti has been doing the
work since morning.
Michelle had repaired many
cars before she received her
mechanics license.
Chef Vikas had been
preparing the restaurants
fantastic dinners for two
years before he moved to
London.
Someone will finish the
work by 5:00 PM.
Sarita is going to make a
beautiful dinner tonight.
At 8:00 PM tonight, Kevin
will be washing the dishes.
At 8:00 PM tonight, Kevin
is going to be washing the
dishes.
They will have completed
the building before the
deadline.
Passive
Once a week, the shed is cleaned
by Calvin.
Right now, the letter is being
written by Shreya.
The car was repaired by Samuel.
The customer was being helped
by the accountant when the thief
came into the store.
That fort has been visited by many
tourists.
The work has been being done by
Deepti.
Many cars had been repaired by
Michelle before she received her
mechanics license.
The restaurants fantastic dinners
had been being prepared by Chef
Vikas for two years before he
moved to London.
The work will be finished by 5:00
PM.
A beautiful dinner is going to be
made by Sarita tonight.
At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes
will be being washed by Kevin.
At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes
are going to be being washed by
Kevin.
The building will have been
completed before the deadline.
B-536
English Language
Future Perfect
Future Perfect
Continuous
Future Perfect
Continuous
Used to
Would Always
Future in the Past
Would
Future in the Past
Was Going to
They are going to have

completed the building
before the deadline.
The famous artist will have
been painting the mural for
over one year by the time it
is finished.
The famous artist is going
to have been painting the
mural for over one year by
the time it is finished.
Kunal used to pay the bills.
My mother would always
make the desserts.
I knew Akriti would finish
the work by 5:00 PM.
I thought Swati was going
to make a beautiful dinner
tonight.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT SPEECH

Direct Speech:
Direct speech is a sentence that
reports speech or thought in its
original form phrased by the original
speaker.
Example: He said, I am going to
school.
Indirect or reported speech:
Indirect speech is a sentence where
the main idea of a speakers words is
reported by another person. Usually,
they are summarized or paraphrased
and there are no special punctuation
issues to take into account.
Example: He said that he was going
to school.
RULE CHART FOR CHANGING

DIRECT INTO INDIRECT
The building is going to have been

completed before the deadline.
The mural will have been being
painted by the famous artist for
over one year by the time it is
finished.
The mural is going to have been
being painted by the famous artist
for over one year by the time it is
finished.
The bills used to be paid by Kunal.
The desserts would always be
made by my mother.
I knew the work would be finished
by 5:00 PM.
I thought a beautiful dinner was
going to be made by Swati tonight.
Next week
The following week

The next week
The week after
Yesterday
The previous day
The day before
Last week
The previous week
The week before
Ago
Previously before
2 weeks ago
2 weeks previously
2 weeks before
Tonight
that night
Last Saturday The previous Saturday
The Saturday before
Next Saturday The following
Saturday
The next Saturday
The Saturday after
The Saturday after
Tense Change Rules
Simple present
Simple Past
Past Perfect
Now
Then
Simple Past
Today
Here
This
This week
Tomorrow
That day
There
That
that week
The following day
The next day
The day after
Present continuous Past Continuous

Present Perfect
Past Perfect
Can
Could
Will
Would
May
Might
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English Language
LIST OF SIMILYES
Gleamed like
pearls
As green as mold
as clear as crystal
As bold as brass
as dead as a
doornail
deaf as a post
hot as hell
as crooked as a
witchs hat
sharp as a razor
as sick as a dog
as slippery as an
eel
as fiery as a
volcano
as solid as a rock
as stubborn as a
mule
as clean as a
whistle
as white as a ghost
wise as an owl
as red as a
beetroot
eat like a horse
drink like a fish
have a memory
like a sieve
sleep like a log
have eyes like a
hawk
to work like a
dream
sleep like a baby
shining very
brightly
very green
easy to understand
very brave and
confident
quite dead
having very bad
hearing
extremely warm
very dishonest
very sharp
very ill
devious and
untrustworthy
quickly or easily
becoming angry
to be very strong
extremely stubborn
very clean
extremely pale
(when frightened)
very wise
red-faced,
typically through
embarrassment
to eat large
amounts of food
drink excessive
amounts of alcohol
to be very bad at
remembering things
to sleep very
soundly
miss nothing of
what is going on
around one
if something or
someone does
something like a
dream
a very deep and
restful sleep
Know something
like the back of
ones hand
sing like a bird
be entirely familiar
with a place or
route
to have a beautiful
singing voice
finding a needle in something
the haystack
extremely difficult
(or impossible) to
find
eat like a pig
to eat noisily and
unpleasantly
As harmless as a innocent, meek and
dove
gentle
As fragile as a
easily destroyed or
house of cards
spoilt
as blue as the
completely blue
deepest ocean
as easy as taking very easy or simple
candy from a baby
as fresh as the air very fresh
in spring
as ugly as sin
very ugly and
unpleasant to look
at
as soft as a
very soft
daffodils petals
LIST OF IDIOMS
A penny for
your thoughts
to ask someone what

they are thinking
about
At the drop of without hesitation or
a hat
good reason
Ball is in your
it is someones turn to
court
make the decision
Beat around the To avoid getting to
bush
the point of an issue
Best of both
a situation wherein
worlds
one can enjoy two
different opportunities
take on a
Bite off more
commitment one
than you can
cannot fulfill
chew
Blessing in
an apparent
disguise
misfortune that
eventually has good
results
Burn the
read or work late into
midnight oil
the night
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Cant judge
a book by its
cover
English Language
You cant tell what

something/someone
is really like just by
looking at it
to be very expensive
Costs an arm
and a leg
Curiosity killed Being curious can get
the cat
you into trouble
Devils
to pretend to disagree
Advocate
with someone
in order to start
an argument or
interesting discussion
dont risk everything
Dont put all
your eggs in one on the success of one
venture
basket
Every cloud has Every bad situation
a silver lining
has some good aspect
to it
Give the benefit a concession that a
of the doubt
person or fact must be
regarded as correct or
justified
Hit the sack
go to sleep
It takes two to Actions or
tango
communications need
more than one person
Once in a blue Happening very
moon
rarely
Piece of cake
something easily
achieved
See eye to eye
to agree about
someone or
something with
someone else
Steal someones win praise for oneself
thunder
by pre-empting
someone elses
attempt to impress
Your guess is as To say something
good as mine
when you do not
know the answer to a
question
Whole nine
everything possible or
yards
available
Taste of your
Give someone the
own medicine same treatment that
they have given to
others
Miss the boat
to miss out
Last straw
the final difficulty in
a series
Barking up the
wrong tree
Cry over spilt
milk
Cut corners
To pursue a mistaken
line of thought or
course of action
to be unhappy about
what cannot be
undone
do something
perfunctorily so as to
save time or money
List of Homophones
1. Aid: to help
Aide: an assistant
2. Allowed: let someone to do
something.
Aloud: out loud
3. Alter: change in character or
composition
Altar: The table in a Christian church
on which the bread and wine are
consecrated in communion services.
4. Bait: Food placed on a hook or in
a net
Bate: An angry mood
5. Bail: temporary release of an
accused person awaiting trial
Bale: A large wrapped or bound bundle
of paper, hay, or cotton
6. Base: The lowest part or edge of
something
Bass: The member of a family of
instruments that is the lowest in pitch
7. Berth: a fixed bunk on a ship, train,
or other means of transport
Birth: give birth to
8. Bridal: of or concerning a bride or a
newly married couple.
Bridle: the headgear used to control a
horse
9. Cereal: a grain used for food
Serial: consisting of or taking place in
a series.
10. Desert: abandon in a way
considered disloyal or treacherous.
Dessert: the sweet course eaten at the
end of a meal
11. Discreet: careful and prudent in
ones speech or actions
B-539
English Language
Discrete: individually separate and

distinct
12. Flour: a powder obtained by
grinding grain
Flower: The seed-bearing part of a
plant
13. Genes: a unit of heredity which is
transferred from a parent to offspring
Jeans: hard-wearing casual trousers
made of denim or other cotton fabric
14. Grate: reduce (food) to small shreds
by rubbing it on a grater
Great: intensity considerably above
average
15. Hoard: a stock or store of money or
valued objects
Horde: a large group of people
Anecdote
One Word Substitutions
Barbarian
Beverage
Bibliography
Abdicate
Renounce a throne,
high office or dignity
Abolish
Do away with
Acoustics
Science of the
production,
transmission, reception
and effect of sound
Acrobat
One who performs
gymnastic feats
Actuary
One who calculates
insurance and annuity
premium etc.
Adulterate
Make impure by the
addition of inferior
substance
Abattoir
A building where
animals are killed
for meal (or
slaughterhouse)
Ad hoc
Made for a particular
purpose
Aesthete
A person with a highly
developed sense of
beauty
Agoraphobia Fear of open spaces
Alimony
Compensatory
allowance given to wife
after divorce
Altruist
One who is habitually
kind to others
Alumnus
A former student of a
school or college
Anachronism That which appears to
be in the wrong period
Anthology
Apiary
Arboreal
Ascetic
Astronomy
Aviary
Backlog
Biennial
Bigamy
Blue Blood
Blueprint
Bonsai
Bookworm
Bottleneck
Boulevard
Bourgeois
Bric-a-brac
A short interesting or
amusing story
A collection of poems
or writings
A place where bees are
kept
Those who live in trees
One who avoids
physical pleasures and
comforts
Scientific study of
heavenly bodies
A place for keeping
birds
It means an
accumulation of
arrears. Example: I
must clear my heavy
backlog of arrears.
An uncivilised person
A liquid for drinking
A list of writings on a
subject
Happening once every
two years
System of two
marriages
The quality of being a
noble person by birth
The word originated
in the engineering
industry where it
means the final stage of
paper design. So it may
mean the final plan or
layout. Example: The
blueprint of the FiveYear Plan is ready.
The art of growing
a plant in a pot that
is prevented from
reaching its natural size
One who is too fond
of reading and study
It is a narrow passage,
a place, stage or
condition that checks
progress.
A broad street having
trees on each side
Belonging to the
middle class
Small objects kept for
decoration
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Bust
Cabal
Calligraphy
Canine
Cannibal
Catch-22
Chalet
Charlatan
Celibacy
Clock-andDagger
Clot
Clubfoot
Coagulate
Cold war
Colloquial
English Language
A piece of sculpture
showing a persons
head, shoulders, and
upper chest
A small group of
people who make
secret plans for political
action
The art of beautiful
writing by hand
Of a dog
One who eats human
flesh
A situation from which
one is prevented from
escaping by something
that is part of the
situation itself
A wooden house with a
steeply sloping roof
One who deceives
others by falsely
claiming to have a skill
One who does not
indulge in carnal
pleasure
Stories that deal with
adventure and exciting
mystery
A half-solid mass or
lump formed from a
liquid, especially blood
A badly-shaped foot
twisted out of position
from birth
Change from a liquid
into a solid by chemical
action
Severe political struggle
between countries,
without actual fighting
Suitable for ordinary,
informal, or familiar
conversation
Foreign Words and Phrases

The knowledge of foreign words
and phrases will help you reading
comprehension and other types
of common questions. So, make
yourself familiar with the common
foreign words and phrases.
Aborigine
Addenda
from the origin

list of additions
(addenda to a book)
Ad hoc
a body elected or
appointed for a
definite work. (ad hoc
committee).
Alma mater a school which one has
attended
A la carte
according to the bill of
fare (a la carte dishes
are available)
Alter ego
the other self, intimate
friend, (Kissinger is the
alter ego of Nixon)
Amour propre self love
Au revoir
until we meet again (to
say au revoir at parting)
Beaumonde the world of fashion
Bonjour
Good morning
Bona fide
good faith (His bona
fide in the matter
cannot be doubted)
Bizarre
odd, fantastic
Bon voyage
a good voyage or
journey to you
Chefd oeuvre masterpiece (Mona
Lisa is Vincis Chef-d
oeuvre)
Corrigenda
a list of errors (in a
book)
Cul-de-sac
a blind alley (The
failure of the Policy of
non-alignment in 1962
saw our foreign reach a
cul-de-sac)
Dejure
from the law, by law.
Dramatis
characters of the drama
personae
or play
En masse
in a body (They took
leave en masse)
Errata
list of errors
Esprit de
the animating spirit of
corps
a collective body, as a
regiment
Ex-officio
in virtue of his office
Faux pas
a false step; slip in
behaviour
Impasse
a deadlock (Talks
reached an impasse)
In memoriam in memory
Modus
manner of working. (of
operandi
a gang, group etc.)
Per se
by itself
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General Aptitude
GENERAL APTITUED TERMS
An aptitude is natural ability to

do something i.e. for learning
and proficiency in a specific
area or discipline. Aptitude
is expressed in interest and is
reflected in current performance
which is expected to improve
over time with training.
x Reasoning is the set of processes
that enables us to go beyond the
information given
x Logic is a tool to develop
reasonable conclusions based
on a given set of data. Logic is
free of emotion and deals very
specifically with information in
its purest form. For example
1.
If K > 10 then K > 2
2.
If Tom is philosopher, then
Tom is poor.
Tom is philosopher.
Therefore, Tom is poor.
x Logical reasoning is the process
of using a rational, systematic
series of steps based on sound
mathematical procedures and
given statements to arrive at a
conclusion.
x Aptitude tests are one of
the most commonly used
assessments
in
measuring
candidates suitability for a role.
Advantage of aptitude tests is
that they may suggests areas in
which you could succeed, even
though you do not have yet any
experience of them. The kind of
ability testing is usually called
aptitude testing. There are 2
types of aptitude tests.
x General aptitude test
x Scholastic aptitude test
(a) General Aptitude Test: These
test are designed to give you
information about types of
intelligence that are relevant
to different skills. Completing

all of the tests will allow you
to establish different skills.
Completing all of the tests will
allow you to establish your likely
strengths and weaknesses.
(b) Scholastic Aptitude Test: These
tests are designed to give you
information about intelligence
relevant to different subjects.
Completing all the tests will
establish your strengths and
weaknesses in different subjects.
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1. Accurate Prediction: Aptitude
tests are quite accurate in
predicting the potentials for
success. There are further
advantages too in using the
test to help identify the right
candidate for the job, whether it
is a new hire or promotion.
2. Accurate Assessment: These
tests are fairly accurate when
it comes to assessing a persons
strengths and weaknesses.
3. Aptitude tests can afford the
candidate an opportunity to
examine the types of skills the
position calls for. Job applicant
should feel that they will be the
right fit for the position
Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning

Verbal reasoning is understanding and
reasoning using concepts framed in
words. It aims at evaluating, ability
to think constructively rather than
at simple fluency or vocabulary
recognition. This type of reasoning
refers to how well students solve
problems using words.
Non-verbal reasoning refers to
students ability in spatial and abstract
thinking. This type of reasoning also
refers to how well students solve
problems using shapes and figures.
B-543
General Aptitude
Types of Verbal Reasoning Tests:
The skill needed to perform well in
verbal reasoning tests can be broken
down into 4 separate categories:
x Comprehension: Your ability to
understand and analyse written
information.
x Critical reasoning: Your ability
to analyse written information
and use it to make correct
conclusion based solely on the
information you find in the text.
x Grammar: Your ability to spell
correctly and know to correct
tenses. Such tests include
sentences completion and same
type of tests.
x Vocabulary: Some tests are
deliberately worded difficulty
and use long complicated routes
to tell you the information. Such
methods include the use of
double negative and other such
forms.
Types of Verbal Reasoning Tests
x Analogy: Analogy refers to
relationship. In this type of tests
a particular relationship is given
and another similar relationship.
has to be identified from the
alternatives provided.
Abstract Reasoning
Abstract reasoning involves the
ability to analyze and understand
non-verbal or visual information to
figure out problems using non-verbal
reasoning.
Diagrammatic Reasoning
In diagrammatic reasoning tests you
are given a diagram or a flowchart.
In this flowchart, you are given a set
of rules and these rules have to be
applied to a new situation.
Classification:
Classification
means to separate the item which
does not belong to a particular
group of items classified on the
bases of certain qualities.
x Coding-decoding: Code refers
to a system of words, letters
or symbols used to represent
others. Coding is a method of
tranmitting a message between
the sender and the receiver
without knowing anybody else.
While decoding is translation
(data or message) from a code
into the original language or
form.
x Blood-Relations Test: In this, a
round about description is given
in the form of certain small
relationship and we analyse
the whole chin, of relation and
find out the direct relationship
between the persons cencerned.
Non-Verbal Reasoning Tests:
Non-verbal reasoning involves the
ability to understand and analyze
visual information and solve
problems using visual reasoning. For
example: identifying relationship,
similarities and differences between
shapes and patterns, recognizing
visual sequences and relationship
between objects.
B-544
Inductive Reasoning
This is a form of logical reasoning
which involves going from a series of
specific cases to a general statement.
Non-verbal reasoning such as
abstract reasoning is also referred to
as inductive reasoning. Examples
of inductive reasoning are number
sequences and a particular form of
syllogism.
Spatial Reasoning
These type of tests test your ability
to understand a logical series of
patterns but involves your ability to
mentally rotate pictures and three
dimensional shapes in your mind.
What is the difference between
logical and analytical reasoning?
1. In logical thinking, we proceed
through the logical steps 1, 2,
3, ...... In analytical thinking,
we analyze each element of the
situation before proceeding.
2. Logical thinking argues from
specific points to general conclusion
while analytical thinking breaks
complex
information
into
simpler, identifiable components
to facilitate
more careful
examination and testing. For
example a business analyst will
create a description (abstract)
of a business (e.g. by describing
process, departments, products,
by-products, transactions etc.).
Psychological Testing
It is related with psychological tests.
A psychological test is an objective
General Aptitude
and standardized measure of
individuals performance on specific
tasks this individual performance
on specific tasks is usually referred
to simple of behaviour. This sample
of behaviour consists of a paperand-pencil tests which are a series
of items.
Types of Psychological TestsIQ/Achievement Tests : IQ
tests are designed to measure the
intelligence level and achievement
test measure the use and level of
development of ability. In IQ tests,
a series of tasks is given to a person
being evaluated and the persons
response are graded according o
priscribed guidelines. After the
result is completed, the results can
be compiled and compared to the
responses of a norn group examples
of verbal IQ tests are vocabulary and
information Non-verbal examples
are Puzzle solving and identifying
images in a fixed pattern (Matrix
reasoning).
Attitude tests : These type of tests
are individuals feelings about an
event, person or object. Attitude
scales are used in marketing to
determine and individual or group
preference for brands or items .
These tests use specific type of scale.
Psychometric
Testing
:
Psychometric testing is related
with evaluation of candidates
performance and includes skills and
knowledge, abilities, personality
traits, attitudes and job/academic
potentials.
*(1(5$/
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B-546
1. Which was the largest site of Indus

Civilization?
(a) Mohenjodaro
(b) Lothal
(c) Chanhudaro
(d) Dholavira
2. Which of the following sites is
famous for stupas, monasteries,
temples and pillars?
(a) Gooty
(b) Hatta
(c) Sanchi
(d) Amarjpura
3. Babur established Mughal rule in
India through his victory in 1526, over
(a) Rana Sanga
(b) Sikandar Lodi
(c) Daulat Khan Lodi
(d) Ibrahim Lodi
4. The cavalry of Shivaji was known as
(a) Risala (b) Sir-i-Naubat
(c) Bergir (d) Paga
5. The first jute mill was set up in
India in
(a) 1920
(b) 1850
(c) 1855
(d) 1755
6. Who among the following created
the Khalsa Panth?
(a) Guru Teg Bahadur
(b) Guru Hargobind
(c) Guru Gobind Singh
(d) Guru Arjan Dev
7. Who was the first Governor
General of Bengal?
(a) Warren Hastings
(b) Robert Clive
(c) William Bentinck
(d) Lord Cornwallis
8. Who was the founder of Indian
National Congress?
(a) Gopal Krishna Gokhle
(b) Allen Octavian Hume
(c) Feroz Shah Mehta
(d) Bipin Chandra Pal
9. Who is regarded as the Mother
of the Indian Revolution ?
(a) Devika Rani
(b) Madam Bhikaji Cama
(c) Rani Laxmibai
(d) Begum Hazrat Mahal
10. Arya Samaj was started by(a) Swami Vivekananda
General Knowledge Quiz

(b) Raja Ram Mohan Roy
(c) Swami Dayanand Saraswati
(d) Gopal Krishna Gokhale
11. Bannerghatta National Park is
situated in
(a) Meghalaya
(b) Rajasthan
(c) Madhya Pradesh
(d) Karnataka
12. The zonal soil type of peninsular
India belongs to
(a) red soils
(b) yellow soils
(c) black soils
(d) older alluvium
13. The oldest rocks in India are
reported from
(a) Dharwar region, Karnataka.
(b) Aravalli range, Rajasthan.
(c) Vindhyan range, Madhya
Pradesh.
(d) Siwalik range, Punjab.
14. Which of the following crops is
regarded as a plantation crop?
(a) Coconut
(b) Cotton
(c) Sugarcane (d) Rice
15. The most ideal region for the
cultivation of cotton in India is
(a) the Brahmaputra valley
(b) the Indo-Gangetic valley
(c) the Deccan plateau
(d) the Rann of Kutch
16. Albedo effect would be relatively
higher in
(a) Early morning and late evening
(b) Early Morning only
(c) Noon
(d) Late evening only
17. The Aravallis mountain ranges are
the example of(a) old fold mountains
(b) young fold mountains
(c) Volcanic mountains
(d) block mountains
18. The only state in India that
produces saffron is(a) Assam
(b) Himachal Pradesh
(c) Jammu and Kashmir
(d) Meghalaya
19. The Indias highest annual rainfall
is reported at

(a) Namchi, Sikkim
(b) Churu, Rajasthan
(c) Mawsynram, Meghalaya
(d) Chamba, Himachal Pradesh
20. The typical area of sal forest in the
Indian peninsular upland occurs
(a) on the western ghats
(b) between the Tapti and the
Narmada
(c) to the north-east of the
Godavari
(d) on the Malwa plateau
21. Who created fictional detective
Feluda?
(a) R.K. Narayan
(b) Satyajit Ray
(c) Mulk Raj Anand
(d) V.S. Naipaul
22. Which mythological weapon is
depicted on the Param Vir Chakra
medal?
(a) Vajra
(b) Khatvanga
(c) Sudarshan Chakra
(d) Kaumodaki
23. Shankars International Dolls
Museum, founded by renowned
cartoonist K. Shankar Pillai
which has the largest collection
of costume dolls in the world, is
located in which city?
(a) Mumbai
(b) New Delhi
(c) Chennai
(d) Kolkata
24. Which gas is the main constituent
of Gobar Gas, the biogas
generated by de-composition of
cow dung?
(a) Butane
(b) Propane
(c) Methane
(d) Hydrogen
25. Which is the oldest football club
in India?
(a) Mohun Bagan
(b) East Bengal
(c) Mohammedan Sporting
(d) Churchill Brothers
26. What name has been given to the
first Boeing 747/700 jet, inducted
into Indian Air Force, designed
to work as the Indian Presidents
office-in-the-sky?
B-547
(a) Samrat
(b) Rajdoot
(c) Maharaja
(d) Badshah
27. The novel Q & A, on which
8 Oscar awards winning film
Slumdog Millionaire (2008) is
based, was authored by which
Indian civil servant?
(a) Vikas Swarup
(b) Vikram Seth
(c) Amitav Ghosh
(d) Aravind Adiga
28. Ghatigaon Sanctuary, set up for the
conservation of the Son Chiriya
(great Indian bustard), is located
in which state?
(a) Haryana
(b) Rajasthan
(c) Madhya Pradesh
(d) Karnataka
29. Which Indian state is the largest
producer in the world of the
golden coloured Muga silk ?
(a) Assam
(b) Odisha
(c) West Bengal
(d) Karnataka
30. Under Annapurna Scheme by
Central Government, how much
food grain (wheat or rice) per
month is given free to senior
citizens (65 years or above age),
who though eligible but remained
uncovered under the National Old
Age Pension Scheme (NOAPS)?
(a) 10 Kgs
(b) 12 Kgs
(c) 15 Kgs
(d) 20 Kgs
31. Which among the following
is manufactured at Avadi
(abbreviation for Armoured
Vehicles and Ammunition Depot
of India) town in Tamil Nadu?
(a) Maruti Cars
(b) HMT Tractors
(c) Tejas Aircrafts
(d) Arjun Tanks
32. Which was the first Indian company
to list on the Nasdaq in 1999?
(a) Wipro
(b) Infosys
(c) Satyam Computers
(d) Tech Mahindra
33. Goal is the autobiography of
B-548
which Indian sportsman?

(a) Wilson Jones
(b) Dhyan Chand
(c) K.D. Singh Babu
(d) Chunni Goswami
34. Which state is known as the Spice
Garden of India?
(a) Kerala
(b) Karnataka
(c) Andhra Pradesh
(d) Tamil Nadu
35. In addition to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya
Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra
Pradesh, which is the sixth Indian
state to have both houses i.e. Vidhan
Sabha and Vidhan Parishad ?
(a) Tamil Nadu
(b) Madhya Pradesh
(c) West Bengal
(d) Jammu & Kashmir
36. Who is the first Indian sportsman
whose wax statue was inducted at
Madame Tussauds Wax Museum
in London?
(a) Pankaj Advani
(b) Sachin Tendulkar
(c) Vishwanathan Anand
(d) Abhinav Bindra
37. In which town of Uttar Pradesh
did Gautam Buddha attain
Mahaparinirvana (salvation)?
(a) Lumbini
(b) Kushinagar
(c) Nanded
(d) Pavapuri
38. Who wrote the patriotic song
`Saare Jahan Se Achcha ?
(a) Rabindranath Tagore
(b) Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
(c) Muhammad Iqbal
(d) Kavi Pradeep
39. In which hill station is the
Himalayan
Mountaineering
Institute (HMI) located?
(a) Darjeeling (b) Srinagar
(c) Nainital
(d) Shimla
40. In India, the inflation rate
represents the annual change (in
percentage) in which index?

(a) Consumer Price Index (CPI)
(b) Consumer Confidence Index
(CCI)
(c) Wholesale Price Index (WPI)
(d) Index of Industrial Production
(IIP)
41. Directed by Satyajit Ray, the Apu
Trilogy films - Pather Panchali,
Aparajito and Apur Sansar were based on the novels of which
Bengali writer?
(a) Rabindranath Tagore
(b) Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
(c) Sharat Chandra Chatterjee
(d) Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay
42. In addition to Gujarat, Rajasthan,
Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand and West Bengal, the
Tropic of Cancer passes through
which north eastern states of
India?
(a) Assam and Meghalaya
(b) Meghalaya and Manipur
(c) Manipur and Nagaland
(d) Tripura and Mizoram
43. In 1965, at which port was the Indias
first Free Trade Zone established?
(a) Kandla (Gujarat)
(b) Kochi (Kerala)
(c) Falta (West Bengal)
(d) Chennai (Tamil Nadu)
44. By what name is the Irish lady
Margaret Elizabeth Noble, a
disciple of Swami Vivekananda,
better known?
(a) Meera Ben
(b) Mother Teresa
(c) Savitri Khanolkar
(d) Sister Nivedita
45. Which among the following is
the indigenously developed Light
Combat Aircraft (LCA) of India?
(a) Saras
(b) Tejas
(c) Kiran (d) Chetak
46. Who authored the Gitanjali, an
anthology of poems?
(a) Sumitranandan Pant
(b) Makhanlal Chaturvedi
(c) Rabindranath Tagore
(d) Maithili Sharan Gupt

47. To have legal rights for
self-employed
women
like
industrial workers, which lady
activist founded Self-Employed
Womens Association (SEWA)?
(a) Aruna Roy
(b) Ela Bhatt
(c) Medha Patkar
(d) Teesta Setalvad
48. Kailash Temple at Ellora in
Maharahstra, the epitome of Indian
rock-cut architecture, was built by
the rulers of which dynasty?
(a) Kadamba
(b) Rashtrakuta
(c) Chalukya
(d) Satavahana
49. Anamudi Peak, located in the
Idukki district of Kerala, is the
highest peak of which Indian
mountain range?
(a) Aravali
(b) Vindhyas
(c) Sahyadri (W.Ghats)
(d) Satpura
50. Which Indian state was originally
known as the North East Frontier
Agency (NEFA) ?
(a) Manipur
(b) Meghalaya
(c) Arunachal Pradesh
(d) Nagaland
51. Which Ramon Magsaysay Award
winner, popularly known as Water
Man, founded an NGO called
Tarun Bharat Sangh near Alwar
in Rajasthan to work on watershed
projects and rain-water harvesting?
(a) Sandeep Pandey
(b) Rajendra Singh
(c) Mahesh Chandra Mehta
(d) Arvind Kejriwal
52. What is the minimum age limit to
become the President of India?
(a) 25 years
(b) 30 years
(c) 35 years
(d) 40 years
53. Which lake separates the
Hyderabad, capital of Andhra
Pradesh, from its twin city
Secunderabad?
(a) Loktak Lake
(b) Chilka Lake
(c) Wular Lake
B-549
(d) Hussain Sagar Lake

54. In which city is the dargah (tomb)
of sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti
located ?
(a) Mumbai
(b) Srinagar
(c) New Delhi
(d) Ajmer
55. Who was the first person to address
the United Nations in Hindi?
(a) Morarji Desai
(b) Atal Behari Vajpayee
(c) V.P.Singh
(d) P.V. Narasimha Rao
56. Ao, Sema and Konyak are
the principal languages of which
north-eastern Indian state?
(a) Manipur
(b) Meghalaya
(c) Mizoram
(d) Nagaland
57. Which princely state was the
first to be annexed to the British
East India Company under the
Doctrine of Lapse policy, devised
by Lord Dalhousie?
(a) Satara
(b) Sambalpur
(c) Jhansi
(d) Awadh
58. Gyandarshan is an educational
TV channel of which Indian open
university?
(a) Nalanda Open University,
Patna
(b) Dr.B.R.Ambedkar
Open
University, Hyderabad
(c) Indira Gandhi National Open
University, New Delhi
(d) Netaji
Subhas
Open
University, Kolkata
59. Which one of the following
organisation was launched to
help the poor in rural area to make
them self employed
(a) DPAP
(b) IRDP
(c) TRYSIM
(d) DDP
60. Who among the following is called
the guardian of the public purse
of India?
(a) Governor of Reserve bank of
India
B-550
(b) Finance Minister of India

(c) Comptroller & Auditor
General of India
(d) Supreme Court of India
61. The National Optic Fibre Network
(NOFN) project is to link the
optical fibre for offering a 100
mbps broadband service to which
among the following levels?
(a) District
(b) Tehsil / Taluka
(c) Gram Panchayat
(d) Block Gram Panchayat
62. Setting up a supreme court in
Calcutta was a part of ?
(a) Regulating Act of 1773
(b) Pitts India Act of 1784
(c) Charter Act of 1793
(d) Charter Act of 1893
63. In which Constitutional Amendment
Act Goa was made a full-fledged
State with a State assembly?
(a) 43rd Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1977
(b) 44th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1978
(c) 56th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1987
(d) 57th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1987
64. How many articles are there in
Constitution of India?
(a) 395
(b) 397
(c) 448
(d) 410
65. Which of the following is not a
constitutional body?
(a) Election Commission
(b) Planning Commission
(c) National Advisory Council
(d) Inter State Council
66. Which article ensures Abolition
of Titles?
(a) Article 16 (b) Article 17
(c) Article 18 (d) Article 19
67 Who was Indias Constitutional
Advisor?
(a) B L Mitter
(b) K M Munshi
(c) B N Rao
(d) A.K.Iyer
68. Which Indian artist decorated
the handwritten Copy of the
Constitution?

(a) Mihir Sen
(b) S.N. Banerji
(c) Mukesh Bandhopadhyaya
(d) Nandalal Bose
69. The oath of office is administered
to the Governor by the
(a) Chief Justice of India
(b) President
(c) Chief Justice of high court
(d) Speaker of legislative assembly
Act Sikkim was made full-fledged
State of the Union of India?
(a) 21st Constitutional
Amendment Act
(b) 31st Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1973
Amendment Act, 1974
(d) 36th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1975
71. When Right to Information Act
came into force in India?
(a) 10th October 2005
(b) 11th October 2005
(c) 12th October 2005
(d) 13th October 2005
Act, seats of Lok Sabha were
increased from 525 to 545?
(a) 21st Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1967
(b) 24th Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1971
Amendment Act, 1971
(d) 31st Constitutional
Amendment Act, 1973
73. Article 44 is related to?
(a) Uniform civil code for citizens.
(b) Provision of early childhood
care and education to children
below the age of 6 years.
(c) Duty of the state to raise the
level of nutrition.
(d) Organization of agriculture
and animal husbandry.
74. Who among the following is a
famous Santoor player?
(a) Hari Prasad Chaurasia
(b) Ravi Shankar
(c) Zakir Hussain
(d) Shiv Kumar Sharma

75. Natya Shastra the main source of
India classical dances was written by
(a) Bharat Muni
(b) Tandu Muni
(c) Narad Muni
(d) Abhinav Gupt
76. Kalaripayattu is a form of (a) Classical Dance
(b) Folk Dance
(c) Martial Art
(d) Dance Drama
77. The words Satyameva Jayate
inscribed below the base plate of
the emblem of India are taken
from which scripture.
(a) Ramayana
(b.) Mundaka Upanishad
(c) Rigveda
(d) Satpath Brahmana
78. Where is the largest concentration
of Stupas in India?
(a) Himachal Pradesh
(b) Andhra Pradesh
(c) Madhya Pradesh
(d) Arunachal Pradesh
79. Who wrote Lehar (Wave)?
(a) Suryakanth Tripathi
(b) Jaishankar Prasad
(c) Maithili Sharan Gupt
(d) Yashpal
80. Where is the Brihadeswara or
Rajarajeshwara temple situated?
(a) Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu
(b) Murshidabad in West Bengal
(c) Jamnagar in Gujarat
(d) Thiruvananthapuram
in
Kerala
81. Which one of these schools of the
performing arts was founded in
1953?
(a) Sangeet Natak Academy
(b) Margi
(c) Kerala kalamandalam
(d) School of Drama
82. Manusmrithi was translated into
English by(a) Macauely
(b) J.S Mill
(c) William Jones
(d) Max Muller
83. Who wrote Gita Govinda?
(a.) Jayadeva
(b) Tuka Ram
B-551
(c) Tulsi Das

(d) Purandava Das
84. Who wrote Poverty and Un-British
Rule in India?
(a) R.C Datt
(b) Charlies Wood
(c) M.N Roy
(d) Dadabai Navaroji
85. Who wrote Charaka Samhita?
(a) Kautiliya
(b) Charaka
(c) Aryabatta (d) Chanakya
86. Who is the Sanskrit Scholar in the
court of Chandragupta II?
(a) Bimbisara
(b) Ariean
(c) Amarsimba
(d) Bindu Sar
87. Who was the founder of Mourya
dynasty?
(a) Karikala
(b) Raja Raja
(c) Chandragupta Mourya
(d) Ashok
88. Which city is known as the
Pittsburg of India?
(a) Jamshedpur
(b) Kerala
(c) New Delhi
(d) Punjab
89. Indias first Defence University is
set up in(a) Haryana
(b) Uttar Pradesh
(c) Punjab
(d) Delhi
90. Pahla kadam , pahli udan
account is launched by which
bank ?
(a) SBI
(b) Andhra Bank
(c) Bank of Baroda
(d) Canara Bank
91. Which one of the following
Constitutes limitation upon the
concept of judicial review in
India?
(a) Rule of Law
(b) Due Process
(c) Procedure established by law
(d) Equal Protection of law
92. When, for the first time, did
the Prime Minister of India
B-552
announce the 20-point Economic

Programme?
(a) 1973
(b) 1974
(c) 1975
(d) 1976
93. How much a customer will have
to pay for using Automated
Teller Machines (ATMs) beyond
the permitted numbers of
transactions in Delhi, Mumbai,
Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and
Hyderabad?
(a) `50/(b) `15/(c) `20/(d) `22/94. Name the Card launched by
Indian Railways to avoid payment
transaction during ticket booking?
(a) Go India smart Card
(b) Metro Card
(c) Smart Citizen Card
(d) Adhar Card
95. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Scheme
was launched by which ministry?
(a) Ministry of Women and Child
Development
(b) Ministry of Human Resource
Development
(c) Ministry of Home Affairs
(d Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare
96. The committee on Cauvery water

dispute was known as:
(a) P. Sathasivam
(b) H. L. Dattu
(c) B.S Chauhan
(d) K. G. Balakrishnan
97. RBI Adjusts Liquidity by which
tool?
(a) Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR)
(b) Statutory Liquidity Ratio
(SLR)
(c) Liquidity Adjustment Facility
(LAF)
(d) Market Stabilisation Scheme
(MSS)
98. IFSC Code contains how many
digits:
(a) 5
(b) 11
(c) 14
(d) 17
99. In NSDL, the letter S stands for
(a) Scheme
(b) Statistics
(c) Security
(d) Service
100. Which of the following organizations
look after the credit needs of
agriculture and rural development
in India
(a) FCI
(b) IDBI
(c) NABARD (d) ICAR
Answer Key
1
7
13
19
25
31
37
43
49
55
61
67
73
79
85
91
97
(a)
(a)
(a)
(c)
(a)
(d)
(d)
(a)
(c)
(b)
(c)
(c)
(a)
(b)
(b)
(d)
(c)
2
8
14
20
26
32
38
44
50
56
62
68
74
80
86
92
98
(c)
(b)
(a)
(d)
(b)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(c)
(d)
(a)
(d)
(d)
(a)
(c)
(c)
(b)
3
9
15
21
27
33
39
45
51
57
63
69
75
81
87
93
99
(d)
(b)
(c)
(b)
(a)
(b)
(a)
(b)
(b)
(a)
(c)
(c)
(a)
(a)
(c)
(c)
(c)
4 (d)
10 (c)
16 (a)
22 (a)
28 (c)
34 (a)
40 (c)
46 (c)
52 (c)
58 (c)
64 (c)
70 (d)
76 (c)
82 (c)
88 (a)
94 (a)
100 (c)
5
11
17
23
29
35
41
47
53
59
65
71
77
83
89
95
(c)
(d)
(a)
(b)
(a)
(d)
(d)
(b)
(d)
(c)
(c)
(c)
(b)
(a)
(a)
(a)
6
12
18
24
30
36
42
48
54
60
66
72
78
84
90
96
(c)
(a)
(c)
(c)
(a)
(b)
(d)
(b)
(d)
(c)
(c)
(d)
(c)
(d)
(a)
(c)
)81=21(
B-554
Fun Zone
UNSCRAMBLE THE WORDS

1. Edeecfn
____________________
2. Rdfeemo
____________________
3. Egaurtlrcui
____________________
4. Liwledfi
____________________
5. Ontnaifli
____________________
6. Mtocnmnoiuaci
____________________
7. Mmtciteoe
____________________
8. Rnainatnioetl
____________________
9. Tnotsctoinui
____________________
10. Noekwledg
____________________
11. Nosfaih
____________________
12. Rphegayog
____________________
13. Mponoeshoh
____________________
14. Ceonmosic
____________________
15. Eecetprni
____________________
16. Cgelaouta
____________________
17. Oanamz
____________________
18. Elrxaetn
____________________
19. Nreogif
____________________
20. Reneofccen
____________________
ANSWERS
1. Wildlife
8. Communication
15. Bollywood
2. Knowledge
9. International
16. Conference
3. Agriculture
10. Defence
17. Amazon
4. Inflation
11. Organic
18. Hashtag
5. Freedom
12. Athens
19. Monopoly
6. Constitution
13. Fashion
20. External
7. Committee
14. Catalogue
B-555
Fun Zone
BRAIN TEASERS
1. Neha has two empty jugs 3 litre jug and 5 litre jug. How can she measure
exactly one litre soup without wasting any soup?
2. 3 playing cards are lying on floor with face up. An eight is just to the right
of a five. An eight is just to the left of a five. A spade is just to the left of
a club and a spade is just to the right of a space. Identify these 3 cards.
3. The following rhyme spells out a word, letter by letter, my first tells the
words first letter and so on. Find out the word.
My first is in fish but not in snail
My second is in up but not in down
My third is in ear but not in mouth
My fourth is in lion but not in tiger.
4. There are 3 boxes. One box contains black ball second box cantains
red ball and third box contains black and red ball. All the 3 boxes are
labeled wrong. If I can open only one box how can I label all the 3 boxes
correctly?
5. Mr. X carries his son into the hospital because his son has a nail in his
foot. The surgeon refuses to operate on this boy because he was that
surgeons son. How was that possible?
ANSWERS
1. Neha filled 3l jug and then emptied the soup into 5l jug. She then filled 3l
jug again and continued to fill 5l jug was exactly one litre.
2.
Or
3. FUEL.
4. Open the box which is labeled Red and Black balls. The box must
contain either Red ball or Black balls. If you find Red ball in that box
change the label Red ball on that box and then change the label to
Black ball to the box which is labeled Red ball and then third box to
Red and Black ball.
5. The surgeon was boys mother.
B-556
Fun Zone
MATH FUN
1. y Think of any 3-digit number
y
Add 7 to it
y
Multiply the number with 2 obtained in previous step.
y Subtract 4 from the number obtained in pervious step.
y Divide the number obtained in previous step by 2.
y Finally subtract the number from the original number.
Answer is Always 5
2. Magic Square
Arrange the numbers 1 to 16 in this square in such a way that addition in
rows and columns and across diagonals is always 34.
3. Number Trick With Years

(i) Add 1 to the number of month in which you were born
y
Multiply it by 100.
y
Add the date on which you where born.
y
Multiply it by 2.
y
Add 11 to it.
y
Multiply by 5
y
Add 50 to it.
y
Add your present age to it.
y
Add 61 to it.
y
Subtract 11111 from it.
(ii) Ask the number obtained by your partner.
(iii) Last two digits from the right gives your birth year, next 2 digits give date
and the remaining digit give month of your birth.
4. Use the numerals 1,2,3 and 4 (each numeral only for one time) using the
PDWKHPDWLFDOV\PEROV ^(exponent symbol) to make the
following numbers
(a) 13
(b) 33
5. There is a 5-digit number. If we put digit 1 in front of the number, we get
1
a number rd of the number obtained by putting the digit 1 behind the
3
number, Find the 5-digit number.
6. Find a 8-digit number in which first digit is how many zeros in the
number, the second digit is how many 5s in the number etc. Until the
eighth digit which is how many 9s in the number.
B-557
Fun Zone
ANSWER
1. For example 3-digit number is 102
y 102 + 7 = 109
y 109 2 = 218
y 218 4 = 214
y 214 2 = 107
y 107 102 = 5
2.
2
7
12
13
16
9
6
3
5
4
15
10
11
14
1
8
3. Suppose a person is born on 10th august and his present age is 45 years.
August is 8th month of year.
A. 8 + 1 = 9
B.
9 100 = 900
C. 900 + 10 = 910
D. 910 2 = 1820
E
1820 + 11 = 1831
F.
1831 5 = 9155
G. 9155 + 50 = 9205
H. 9205 10 = 92050
I.
92050 + 45 = 92095
J.
92095 + 61 = 92156
K. 92156 11111 = 8 10 45
So that person birth month is 8 o August that persons present age is 45
years that persons birth date is 10th.
4. Using numerals 1, 2, 3 and 4 (each numeral only for one time)
13 = 42 3 1
33 = 23 4 + 1
5. Using equation
3(x + 100000) = 10x + 1,
7x = 300000 1
x = 42857
428571
So 42857 is 5-digit number
= 3
142857
6. Such number is 42500500
B-558
Fun Zone
CROSSWORD
1
2
3
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Across
2. the Air Marshal appointed as vice
chief of Indian Air Force
3. elected as the new president
of International Association of
Athletic Federation.
5. Internationally celebrated on 21st
June every year
7. the PSLV satellite was launched
from Satish Dhawan Space Centre
in Sriharikota on 28th September
2015
8. the
state
where
BHEL
commissioned a thermal Unit
of Kanti Bijlee Utpadan Nigam
Limited on 4th May, 2015
9. the new chief of Air India
10. the countries denies to create naval
base in its territory for the rest of
the world.
12. the newly appointed CEO of
Google on 10th August 2015
Down
1. won by veteran journalist of
Ananda Bazar Patrika and
famous Tagore researcher,
Mr Amitabha Chowdhury in
1961
4. the botanical name of Rice
6. the head quarter of Arab
League,
22
nations
organization.
8. the author of the book The
Road Ahead
11. the state launched a free drug
distribution scheme covering
the whole state.
13. the district that is going to
host the biggest solar photo
voltaic plant with a capacity
of 750mw
14. the Stock Exchange of
Hongkong.
B-559
Fun Zone
ANSWER
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Ashwani Lohani the new chief of Air India

Astrosat the PSLV satellite was launched from Satish Dhawan Space
Centre in Sriharikota on 28th September 2015
Yoga Day Internationally celebrated on 21st June every year
Magsaysay Award won by veteran journalist of Ananda Bazar Patrika
and famous Tagore researcher, Mr Amitabha Chowdhury in 1961
Hang Seng the Stock Exchange of Hongkong.
Odisha the state launched a free drug distribution scheme covering the
whole state.
Cairo the head quarter of Arab League, 22 nations organization.
Oryza Sativa the botanical name of Rice
Sunder Pichai the newly appointed CEO of Google on 10th August
2015
Sebastian Coe elected as the new president of International Association
of Athletic Federation.
Ravi KantSharma the Air Marshal appointed as vice chief of Indian
Air Force
Bihar the state where BHEL commissioned a thermal Unit of Kanti
Bijlee Utpadan Nigam Limited on 4th May, 2015
Rewa, the district that is going to host the biggest solar photo voltaic
plant with a capacity of 750mw
14. Bill Gates the author of the book The Road Ahead
B-560
Fun Zone
CARTOONS
Fun Zone
B-561
NATIONAL TWITTER TOPPER IN 2015

1.
#IPL: The biggest

T20 cricket league
in the world made
a full season return
to India after being
partially played in
the Middle East last
year and saw cricket
fans enthusiastically
engaging in public
conversation about the
league with over 9 million #IPL Tweets this season.
2.
#BiharResults: #BiharElections got the chatter going about breaking

news, candidates sparring over agendas, and wooing the public.
#BiharResults trended on polling day with over 2.6 lakh Tweets.
3.
#SelfieWithDaughter: This Modi-led campaign started in the state of

Haryana in July 2015 to promote the rights of the girl child and started
trending within hours as dads clicked selfies with their daughters to
participate in the initiative with over 3.75 lakh #SelfieWithDaughter
Tweets.
4.
#DDLJ20Years: Bollywood love story Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge

turned 20 and it celebrated its birthday on Twitter with fans and
celebrities reminiscing about their favourite DDLJ dialogues, scenes,
songs, and photos. Twitter presented a wonderful reflection to all the
excitement with over 1.4 lakh #DDLJ20Years Tweets.
5.
#SaalEkShuruaatAnek: Indian Prime Minister @narendramodis

first year as PM unfolded as one of the key Twitter India moments of
2015. On his first year anniversary in office, there were over 1.79 lakh
#SaalEkShuruaatAnek Tweets.
6.
#INDvsPAK: Over 1.7 million tweets used the after India defeated
Pakistan in the first match of the Cricket World Cup in 2015.
7.
#DelhiElections: Approximately 10.8 million tweets used the hashtags

#DelhiElections & #DelhiVotes during the Delhi Legislative Assembly
Elections held in February 2015.
8.
#HappyDiwali: The multiple activations including the first-ever Diwali

emoji, Twitter provided a way for users to be delighted using the twitter
platform. Around 1.8 million tweets along with the diwali emoji were
used.
9.
#ChennaiRains: Chennai local citizens sent over 1.4 million Tweets

using #ChennaiRains, #ChennaiFloods and#ChennaiRainsHelp
hashtags to crowdsource assistance and help each other during the
disastrous Chennai floods.
B-562
Fun Zone
SOME AMAZING FACTS

7KHZRUOGVGHHSHVWSRVWER[LVLQ6XVDPL
Bay in Japan. It is 10 metres underwater.
7KH'DQFH)HYHURI ZDVDPRQWK
long plague of inexplicable dancing
in Strasbourg, in which hundreds of
people danced for about a month for no
apparent reason. Several of them danced
themselves to death.
7KHUHV DQ RSHUD KRXVH RQ WKH 86
Canada border where the stage is in
one country and half the audience is in
another.
0DZV\QUDP D YLOODJH RQ WKH .KDVL
Hills, Meghalaya, receives the highest
recorded average rainfall in the world.
Cherrapunji, also a part of Meghalaya,
holds the record for the most rainfall in
the calendar year of 1861.
%DQGUD :RUOL 6HDOLQN KDV VWHHO ZLUHV
equal to the earths circumference. It
took a total of 25,700,000 man hours for
completion and also weighs as much as
50,000 African elephants.
7KH ,QGLDQ QDWLRQDO .DEDGGL WHDP KDV
won all World Cups. India has won all 5
mens Kabaddi World Cups held till now
and have been undefeated throughout
these tournaments. The Indian womens
team has also won all Kabaddi World
Cups held till date.
,QGLDLVWKHZRUOGVVHFRQGODUJHVW(QJOLVK
speaking country. India is second only
to the USA when it comes to speaking
English with around 125 million people
speaking the language, which is only
10% of our population. This is expected
to grow by quite a margin in the coming
years.
+XPPLQJELUGVFDQIO\EDFNZDUGV
7KH ODUJHVW EDW FRORQ\ LQ WKH ZRUOG LQ
Bracken Cave, Texas, is believed to have
20 million bats.
2VWULFKNLFNVFDQNLOODKXPDQ
$QRFWRSXVKDVWKUHHKHDUWV
:KLOH PRPV KXQW HPSHURU SHQJXLQ
dads fast for weeks and protect their egg
from the cold with a special flap of skin.
'ROSKLQV FDQ VWD\ DFWLYH IRU GD\V RU
more by sleeping with only one half of
their brain at a time.
(OHSKDQWV DUH SUHJQDQW IRU DOPRVW WZR

years.
3HQJXLQVKDYHNQHHV

= 12, 345, 678, 987, 654, 321
FDUVFDQEHGULYHQVLGHE\VLGHRQWKH
Monumental Axis in Brazil, the worlds
widest road.
$FRFNURDFKFDQOLYHVHYHUDOZHHNVZLWK
its head cut off.
$ JROGILVK KDV D PHPRU\ VSDQ RI WKUHH
seconds.
7KHUH DUH GLPSOHV RQ D UHJXODWLRQ
golf ball.
7KHUH DUH RQO\ IRXU ZRUGV LQ WKH
English language which end in -dous:
tremendous, horrendous, stupendous,
and hazardous.
<RXUH ERUQ ZLWK ERQHV EXW ZKHQ
you get to be an adult, you only have 206.
3WHURQRSKRELDLVWKHIHDURI EHLQJWLFNOHG
by feathers.
$GLPHKDVULGJHVDURXQGWKHHGJH
7KH DYHUDJH SHUVRQ IDOOV DVOHHS LQ VHYHQ
minutes.
7KHWRQJXHRI D*LUDIIHLVVRORQJLWFDQ
lick inside its own ear.
6SLGHUVKDYHOHJVDQGNQHHV
7KHKRXVHIO\KXPVLQWKHPLGGOHRFWDYH
key of F.
7KHUH DUH PRUH SODVWLF IODPLQJRV LQ
America than real ones.
0RVW FRZV JLYH PRUH PLON ZKHQ WKH\
listen to music.
0RUH 0RQRSRO\ PRQH\ LV SULQWHG LQ D
year, than real money printed throughout
the world.
,I \RXWRVVDSHQQ\WLPHVLWZLOO
not be heads 5,000 times, but more like
4,950. The heads picture weighs more, so
it ends up on the bottom.
:KHQKLSSRVDUHXSVHWWKHLUVZHDWWXUQV
red.
(YHU\ WLPH \RX VQHH]H VRPH RI \RXU
brain cells die.
<RXU OHIW OXQJ LV VPDOOHU WKDQ \RXU ULJKW
lung to make room for your heart.

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A-25

IMPORTANT APPOINTMENTS 2015

Sindhushree Khullar--- Chief Executive Officer of NITI

Sutirtha Bhattacharya ---- CMD of Coal India Limited

Alur Seelin Kiran Kumar---Chairman of ISRO

Divya Prakash Sinha --- Security Secretary in the Union

S Jaishankar ---- Foreign Secretary of India

Hanumanthu Purushotham --- CMD of NRDC

Ashok K Agarwal --- General Manager Southern Railway

LC Goyal ----- Union Home Secretary

MO Garg ---- Director General of Council of Scientific &

Tapan Misra ---- Chief of ISROs Space Application Centre

Takahiro Hachigo----President and CEO of Honda Motor

Steve Easterbrook----CEO of McDonalds Corporation

Baldev Sharma ----- National Book Trust

Abid Ali Neemuchwala--- COO and Group President Wipro

Neeraj Kumar ----- Chief Adviser of Anti-Corruption &

Achal Kumar Jyoti ---- Election Commissioner

KV Kamath --- First President of New Development Bank of

28-May-15 S Christopher--- Director General of DRDO

Important Appointments 2015

Meena Hemchandra ----- Executive Director of RBI

Pawan Munjal ----- CMD of Hero MotoCorp Ltd

Vijai Sharma ----- Chief Information Commissioner of India

Dr. Srivari Chandrasekhar--- Director of CSIR-IICT

Archana Ramasundaram---- Director of National Crime

Bhanu Pratap Sharma ---- Chairperson of Food Safety and

Maurice Obstfeld--- Chief Economist of IMF

Ajay Mathur -- Director-General of TERI

Roland S Folger--- CEO and MD of Mercedes-Benz India

Sanjay Jalona--- MD and CEO of L&T Infotech

OP Rawat ---- Election Commissioner of India

Kishor Piraji Kharat--- MD and CEO of IDBI Bank

Stuti Narain Kacker----Chairperson of National Commission

Shashank Manohar ---- BCCI President

Tapan Ray--- Board of Securities and Exchange Board of India

MK Surana --- CMD of Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd

Najib Shah ---- Chairman of Central Board Excise

Justice T S Thakur ----Chief Justice of India

Swati Dandekar --- Executive Director to the Asian

Sunil Kanoria -----President of The Associated Chamber of

Justice Tirath Singh Thakur ----- 43rd Chief Justice of India

Gautam H Bambawale --- Indias High Commissioner to

BOOKS AND AUTHORS 2015

Books and Authors 2015

Lucknow Boy: A Memoir: Late Vinod Mehta

Awards & Honours 2015

AWARDS & HONOURS 2015

Gandhi Peace Prize 2014

Awards & Honours 2015

National Sports Awards

Ramanujan Prize 2015

Awards & Honours 2015

Bharat Ratna 2015

Padma Vibhushan 2015

Padma Bhushan 2015

Awards & Honours 2015

Padma Shri 2015

Awards & Honours 2015

Oscar Awards 2015

International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards 2015

Annual Grammy Awards 2015

Awards & Honours 2015

Nobel Prize 2015