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October 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Imran Khan on anti-drone peace march to tribal belt Imran Khan on 6th October 2012 set off on a motorcade peace march to the terrorists-riddled South Waziristan to protest US drone strikes in the tribal belt. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Re-Elected for fourth term Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been re-elected for the third term. Mr Chavez defeated opposition leader Henrique Capriles. Mr Chavez garnered 54.42 per cent of the vote while his rival bagged 44 per cent votes. Pakistani youth support Malala Yousufzai Pakistani teenaged rights campaigner, Malala Yousafzai, who was on 14th October 2012 shot by the Taliban for publicly opposing them against the girl education.She got the support from all over the world. Ali Zidan elected Libya PM Libyas 200-member General National Congress has elected a former congressman and human rights lawyer Ali Zidan as the countrys new Prime Minister on 14th October 2012. Austrian skydiver breaks sound barrier Austrian national Felix Baumgartner, who jumped from a height of 39 km, became the first skydiver to record the highest ever freefall and also the first human to go faster than the speed of sound. Five New Non-Permanent Member Countries Elected to UN Security Council UN General Assembly elected five new non-permanent members to the Security Council. The New Members are South Korea, Luxembourg, Argentina, Australia and Rwanda.

Iran bans export of 50 basic foods to preserve supplies Iran has banned the export of around 50 basic goods in order to preserve supplies of essential items in the wake of tightening Western sanctions.

INDIA & WORLD India, Australia signs MoU to strengthen bilateral cooperation India and Austrlia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 1st October 2012 for strengthening long-term relationship and bilateral Cooperation on Road and Rail Infrastructure.The agreement was signed between the Minister of Railways and Road Transport and Highways, Dr. C.P.Joshi and visiting Federal Minister of Transport, Innovation and Technology of Austrlia, Mrs. Doris Burse in New Delhi. India, Austrlia tie up to develop smart cities India tie up with Austrlia to develop two smart cities in all states with a host of modern features like intelligent transport and carbon neutral status in each of the states in the second phase of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal mission.Initially half a million to one million population cities will be developed as smart cities with the help of Austrian Institute of Technology who is expertise in this field. India gets $500 mn World Bank fund for secondary education World Bank, the multilateral lending agency, and the government of India 5th October signed a loan agreement worth $ 500 million for Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) in the country. India lags behind China, Pak in reducing hunger level

India lags behind neighbouring China, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in reducing hunger level, says the 2012 Global Hunger Index (GHI) released by US-based International Food Policy and Research Institute.India is ranked 65th out of 79 countries in GHI, behind China at 2nd place, Pakistan at 57 and Sri Lanka at 37. IOC signs MoU with Korea Gas Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), on 17th October 2012, entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Korea Gas Corporation (Kogas) for jointly exploring opportunities in exploration of oil and gas and LNG business. Cabinet clears Rs 8,000cr missile purchase for armed forces Proposals worth over Rs 8,000 crore for procuring around 10,000 Invar missiles from Russia for the Armys T-90 tanks and over 200 airlaunched versions of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles for the IAF were cleared on 18th October 2012 by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS). India and Australia Sign Four Agreements of Cooperation India and Australia agreed to expand cooperation in security and Defence including fight against terrorism.They also agreed to begin negotiations for an agreement on Civil Nuclear Energy Cooperation which will precede actual cooperation. Both the countries also signed four agreements in the field of space science technology and education, cooperation in student mobility and welfare, skill development and textiles. Iran to complete gas pipeline work by year-end Iran has said it was for India and Pakistan to sort out issues related to the proposed Indo-Iran gas pipeline, even as it committed itself to complete its part of 800 km of gas pipeline to India till Irani boundaries by the end of this year. India, New Zealand sign five pacts to cooperate in field of education India and New Zealand signed five Memoranda of Understanding in the different fields of education on 19th October 2012. India, Switzerland to cooperate in Transport sector

India and Switzerland on 19th October 2012 discussed ways and means for enhancing cooperation in the field of Transport sector including roads and Railways. India & Pakistan may introduce a common currency called Papee After taking into consideration the decade long success of Euro, and due to increasing demands of businessmen of India (and terrorists of Pakistan), both countries ruling leaders (i.e. Indias UPA, and Pakistans Military) are thinking about introducing a common currency for India and Pakistan.The name with the highest votes , is a word derived by adding pa from Pakistan and pee from Indian Rupee i.e. Papee Hyderabad is worlds 3rd best city to visit in 2013 Hyderabad has been named as one of the best cities in the world to visit in 2013 by travel guide book Lonely Planet published on 22nd October 2012.The top 10 cities according to Lonely Planet to visit in 2013 are San Francisco, Amsterdam, Hyderabad, Derry/Londonderry, Beijing, Christchurch, Hobart, Montreal, Addis Ababa and Puerto Iguazu. India, Japan focus on expanding defence cooperation India and Japan on 22nd October 2012 discussed ways to expand their security and defence cooperation at a meeting of their foreign and defence secretaries in Tokyo. Super 30 ties up with Tokyo University The Super 30 programme for training students of the backward sections for the IIT-JEE tied up on 24th October 2012 with the University of Tokyo, which will sponsor study of its students in Japan.This agreement is a follow-up of the Japanese Government Program named Global 30, of engagement with Super 30 for increasing the flow of Indian Students to Japan. 7th SAFF begins in Goa The Seventh South Asia Film Festival (SAFF)-2012 held at Panaji in Goa from. India-US-Japan trilateral meet

The US pivot-to-Asia policy, Iran, China-Japan maritime dispute and South China Sea will be among the issues to be discussed during the 3rd round of India-US-Japan Trilateral dialogue in New Delhi on 29th October 2012. The meet will also focus on finding areas of cooperation between the three countries. India to give financial assistance to Nepals Palpa District India is to provide an assistance of four crore and thirty-three lakh Nepali rupees for Palpa District in Western Nepal on 31st October 2012.

NATIONAL FICCI urges Centre to ban bauxite exports Trade body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has urged the Union ministry of commerce and industry to ban bauxite exports fearing closure of alumina refineries for shortage of the key raw material required to produce alumina. Supreme Court directs Centre and states to provide basic facilities to students The Supreme Court on 3rd October 2012 directed all schools across the country to provide basic infrastructure facilities like drinking water and toilets to school children within six months and failure to implement will be viewed seriously. The order was passed on a petition filed by an NGO Environmental and Consumer Protection Foundation. Kejriwal forms political party, promises to change the system Social activist Arvind Kejriwal added a new dimension to his movement against corruption as he formally launched his political party and said it belonged to the people of the nation. Ministry of Rural Development Launched Nirmal Bharat Yatra Ministry of rural development on 3 October 2012 started a campaign named Nirmal Bharat Yatra which focuses on making the country free from open defecation.The yatra will begin from Wardha District of Maharashtra from 3 october 2012 and will go through Indore, Kota,

Gwalior, and Gorakhpur and end up in Bettiah district of Bihar on November 17, covering about 2000 km of distance. SC orders new survey to identify bonded labour The Supreme Court on 15th October 2012 directed all states and Union Territories to conduct fresh surveys to identify bonded labour problems in the country and regretted that a large number of children continue to work as domestic help even after the enactment of the Right to Education Act. Centre to launch Aadhaar based delivery system The much awaited Aadhaar enabled system for direct cash transfer to beneficiaries under social schemes such as MNREGA and pension will be launched on 19th October 2012 by PM Manmohan Singh at Dudu, Rajasthan. Indias infant mortality rate drops Indias infant mortality rate (IMR) has come down by three points from 47 to 44 deaths per 1,000 live births during 2011. Centre, states sign MoU for broadband linking of villages The Central government has signed a tripartite agreement with 16 states and union territories and a special purpose vehicle Bharat Broadband Network Ltd (BBNL) has been launched to expedite the mission of connecting every gram panchayat with broadband network. Reshuffling of Central Cabinet Cabinet Ministers M. Veeerappa Moily S. Jaipal Reddy Kamal Nath Vayalar Ravi Kapil Sibal C.P. Joshi Kumar Selja Portfolio Petroleum & Natural Gas Science & Technology and Earth Science Urban Development & Parliamentary Affairs Overseas Indian Affairs Communications & Information Technology Road Transport & Highways Social Justice & Empowerment

Pawan Kumar Bansal Railways Salman Khursheed External Affairs Jairam Ramesh Rural Development K. Rahman Khan Minority Affairs Dinsha J. Patel Mines Ajay Maken Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation M.M. Pallam Raju Human Resource Development Ashwani Kumar Law & Justice Harish Rawat Water Resources Chandresh Kumar Katoch Culture Ministers of State with Portfolio Independent Charge Jyotiraditya Madharao Power Scindia K.H. Muniappa Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Sachin Pilot Corporate Affairs Jitendra Singh Youth Affairs & Sports Manish Tewari Information & Broadcasting K. Chiranjeevi Tourism Ministers of State Portfolio E. Ahamed External Affairs D. Purandeswari Commerce & Industry Jitin Prasada Defence & Human Resource Development S. Jagathrakshakan New & Renewable Energy R.P.N. Singh Home K.C. Venugopal Civil Aviation Rajeev Shukla Parliamentary Affairs & Planning Shashi Tharoor Human Resource Development Kodikunni Suresh Labour & Employment Tariq Anwar Agriculture & Food Processing Industries K.J. Surya Prakash Railways Reddy Ranee Narah Tribal Affairs Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Railways A.H. Khan Choudhury Health & Family Welfare Sarvey Sathyanarayana Road Transport & Highways Ninong Ering Minority Affairs

Deepa Dasmunsi Porika Balram Naik Kruparani Killi Lalchand Kataria Resigned Cabinet Ministers S.M. Krishna Ambika Soni Mukul Wasnik Mahadev Khandela

Urban Development Social Justice & Empowerment Communication & Inforamtion Technology Defence Portfolio External Affairs Information and Broadcasting Tourism Minister of State Justice and Empowerment

STATES Door-to-door cancer campaign in Punjab Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal sanctioned the biggest ever door-to-door campaign for a symptoms-based early detection and awareness about cancer.At least 50,000 personnel and volunteers would visit 54 lakh households in 12,603 villages and 217 census towns, for the exercise that begins in Faridkot district on October 2. In Goa Housewives with family income less than Rs 3 lakh to get Rs 1000 to fight inflation Housewives in Goa just got a breather from rising inflation, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition government on 2nd October 2012 launched a scheme to provide an allowance of Rs 1,000 a month to housewives in households whose annual incomes are less than Rs 3 lakh. EC announces dates for assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh The Election Commission on 3rd October 2012 announced dates for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections. While Gujarat will have elections in two phases December 13 and 17, Himachal Pradesh

will vote on November 4. The counting for both the assembly elections will take place on December 20. UP government announces ban on gutka industry from April 2013 On 3rd October 2012 Uttar Pradesh government decided to impose a ban on gutka industry in the state with effect from April 2013. Supreme Court bans mining activities in Goa In Goa, the Supreme Court imposed a complete ban on the mining activities as well as transportation of iron and manganese ore on 5th October 2012. Arvind Kejriwal launches bijli-paani satyagraha in Delhi Activist Arvind Kejriwal on 6th Octomber 2012 launched a bijli-paani satyagraha in Delhi to protest against inflated power and water bills and hike in tariffs by restoring electricity connection to the household of a labourer which was disconnected for non-payment of bills. EC fiat to Himachal Pradesh On 7th October 2012 The Election Commission (EC) stopped the BJP government in Himachal Pradesh from distributing free PDS bags carrying photographs of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Maharashtra tribals demand ban on alcohol Tribal women from Maharashtras Chandrapur have sent 80,000 postcards to Chief Miniter Prithviraj Chavan asking to make the district liquor-free. UPRVUNL, NLC to set up thermal plant at Ghatampur The UP Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (UPRVUNL) and the central government PSU Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd (NLCL) signed a joint venture agreement (JVA) to set up a 2,000 MW thermal power plant at Ghatampur (Kanpur) on 7th October 2012 . Union Government ruled out the decision of Cauvery River Authority Decision of the Cauvery River Authority was ruled out by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 8 October 2012. The Prime Minister

ordered Karnataka to release 9000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu every day, till 20 October 2012. Railways put 400 CCTVs at 10 stations to improve security system The Delhi division of Northern Railway authorities have completed the installation of 400 CCTVs at 10 stations with Rs. 20 crore to ensure better security and mobility at its stations.Only in the New Delhi Railway station they installed more than 100 CCTV cameras as part of an integrated security system (ISS). Presidents son Abhijit Mukherjee wins Jangipur Lok Sabha by-poll Abhijit Mukherjee, son of President Pranab Mukherjee and Congress candidate, on 13th October 2012 won the Jangipur Lok Sabha byelection by 2,536 votes defeating the CPI-M rival Muzaffar Hussain. Union Power Ministry gave its Nod to Implement Islanding Scheme in Delhi The Union Power Minister Veerapa Moily on 17 October 2012 announced the implementation of Islanding Scheme for Delhi by January 2013 to protect it from massive disruptions caused due to grid failures in power supply. The scheme of Delhi is different to that of the existing ones in cities like Mumbai and Kolkata because the transmission lines of different states is routed through Delhi. Haryana to give Rs.11,000 to couples at mass weddings The Haryana Government has announced on 20th October 2012 that it will give Rs.11,000 to each newly wedding couple at a mass marriage. Uttarakhand Named best Environmental standards Performing States in terms of

The state of Uttarakhand on 29 October 2012 tops the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list of being best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental well-being released by Planning Commission.

CONFERENCES The international biodiversity meet in Hyderabad

The XI Conference of Parties (CoP-11) on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) being hosted by India at Hyderabad starts on 1st October 2012. Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit held in Kuwait Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit has given a call for stronger cooperation among member nations and to work for the improvement of living conditions.Leaders from 32 countries pledged to focus on key areas to fulfill the aspirations of the people. These include sustainable energy and development, economic growth, food security, trade and commerce, health care, climate change and co-operation in financial and education sectors. South Korea to host next UN biodiversity meet in 2014 South Korea will host the 12th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2014, it was announced in Hyderabad on 19th October 2012. Third Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit The 3rd Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit organized by EastWest Institute, a New York based think-and-do tank, kick-started in the New Delhi on 30th October 2012.

AWARDS & HONOURS President Confers Shastri awards to ISRO scientist Tessy Thomas On 1st October 2012 President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the prestigious Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award 2012 to ISRO scientist Tessy Thomas at an award function in Rashtrapati Bhawan. Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award is conferred every year for doing excellent work in the field of Public Administration, Academics and Management. Banaras Hindu University VC wins MV Pylee award for best academician Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice chancellor and renowned molecular biology scientist Dr Lalji Singh has won the 7th MV Pylee award for the best academician. The MV Pylee award was constituted in

year 1996 in honour of Cochin Universitys former vice chancellor MV Pylee. The award includes Rs 2 lakh, a memento and citation for excellence in teaching and research and contribution to academic community. It is awarded once every three years.

S.No Department

1.

PHYSICS

Name of the Person/ Organization Serge Haroche and

Country

Field of Research

France

For ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems For studies of GProtein-coupled receptors For the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent For the theory of stable allocations and the practice of market design Who with hallucinatory realism merges folk tales, history and the contemporary For over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation.

2.

David J. Wineland America CHEMISTRY Robert J. America Lefkowitz and Brain K. Kobilka PHYSIOLOGY Sir John B. OR Gurdon and MEDICINE America Britan

3.

4.

ECONOMIC SCIENCES

Shinya Yamanaka Japan Alvin E. Roth and America

5.

Lioyd S. Shapley LITERATURE Mo Yan

America China

6.

PEACE PRIZE

European Union (EU)

Europe

Democracy and human rights in Europe. Sachin Tendulkar to be made member of Order of Australia Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard made the announcement on 16th October 2012 that the first Indian sportsperson Tendulkar to be conferred with the Membership of the Order of Australia, an honour rarely bestowed on non-Australians. First-ever India Biodiversity Awards presented The women who led the ecological restoration of Gundlaba village in Odishas Puri district after the 1999 super cyclone are among the four winners of the first India Biodiversity Awards. The awards, instituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP). Vijay Kumar honoured with Services Best Sportsman London Olympics silver medallist shooter Vijay Kumar was named as the Services Best Sportsman award for 2012 at the Army Headquarters in New Delhi.The award is given to best sportsman from out of all the three services-Army, Air Force Navy. Bangladesh honours fifty-two Indians Bangladesh has honoured foreign friends who contributed to achieve the nations independence from Pakistan in 1971.Of the 61 recipients of the award in the third phase, 52 are from India and the rest are from Nepal, the United States, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, Australia, Sweden, and Italy.The former Indian Prime Minister, I.K. Gujral, and the former Nepalese Prime Minister, the late Girija Prasad Koirala, received the Bangladesh Muktijuddho Sammanana. Singham Bravery Award Posthumously given to IAS and Security Personnel Narendra Kumar the IPS officer who was brutally killed by illegal mining mafia in Madhya Pradesh and many other Security Personnel who had laid down their life for fighting against Maoists and anti Social element on 21 October 2012 were awarded with Singham Bravery Awards.

Bangladesh honours Babu Jagjivan Ram Former Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of India, late Babu Jagjivan Ram has been awarded with the Friends of Liberation War Honour by the Government of Bangladesh for his contribution in the 1971 War. Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover Medal IT giant Infosys founder, N.R. Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover Medal for promoting science at Global Humanitarian Technology Conference in Washington. Gavaskar to receive BCCIs lifetime achievement award Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will be conferred the Col C K Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award at the annual BCCI awards function on 25th October 2012. Amitabh Bachchan gets best TV host award for Kaun Banega Crorepati Amitabh Bachchan has won the best television host award for the popular game show Kaun Banega Crorepati. Lord Indarjit Singh conferred Punjab Ratan Award Lord Indarjit Singh, the first member of the House of Lords to wear a turban, has been presented with the Punjab Ratan (Jewel of Punjab) award by the World Punjabi Organisation, in recognition of his contribution to promoting Punjabi culture, heritage and inter-faith services. Delhi Metro bags JICA President Award The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was awarded the prestigious Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Presidents Award 2012 on 29th October 2012. Noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar presented with Indira Gandhi award for National Integration The Indira Gandhi award for National Integration for 2011 has been given to noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar in recognition of his contribution to national integration.

SPORTS & GAMES Indian judokas win 2 silver, 3 bronze in Asian Championship Indian judokas bagged two silver and three bronze in the Asian Youth and Junior Championships held in Chinese Taipei.In the Youth Championships, Vijay Kumar Yadav and Besto Rani Devi won a silver each in boys 60kg and girls 48kg categories respectively.Preety and Mongjam Kabita Devi won a bronze each in gilrs 40kg and 44kg respectively in the September 28-30 event.Khaidem Rashi Devi bagged a bronze in 70kg category in the junior section.Indian judokas had won one gold, four silver and two bronze in the Asian Youth and Junior Championships in Lebanon last year. India move up to 2nd spot in T20 rankings India might have failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing ICC World Twenty20, but four wins out of five matches have pushed the India by one place to the second spot in the latest T20 International team rankings released on 3rd October 2012.India now trail Sri Lanka (129) by nine points and are followed by Pakistan (118) and England (118). India 168th in FIFA rankings Indian football team moved a place up to be 168th in the latest FIFA rankings, India, who last month won a hat-trick of Nehru Cup titles, have 114 points. Red Bull driver Vettel wins Japanese Grand Prix Sebastian Vettel ,the driver Red Bull won the Japanese Grand Prix 2012 on 7th Ocober 2012. Australia retain womens World Twenty20 title The Australian Women Cricket team on 7 October 2012 defeated England by four runs to retain the Women T-20 world cup title. West Indies won the ICC World Twenty20 Tournament West Indies 7th October 2012 clinched the ICC World Twenty20 crown with a comfortable 36-run victory over Sri Lanka.

Kaltenborn becomes first female F1 team principal India born Monisha Kalterborn is set to become Formula 1s first woman team principal after she takes charges from founder of Sauber chief Peter Sauber on 12th October 2012. Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions in the Fenesta Open national tennis championship at the RK Khanna Stadium in New Delhi on 13th October 2012. Hat-trick for Vettel Sebastian Vettel has claimed his third successive victory at the Korean GP on 14h October 2012.He is already won the Singapore and Japan GP titles. Novak Djokovic beats Andy Murray to win Shanghai Masters Novak Djokovic beated British Tennis Player Andy Murray, on 14 October 2012 saving five match points to seal a stunning 5- 7, 7- 6 ( 13/ 11), 6- 3 victory in the Shanghai Rolex Masters final. Bhullar wins Macau Open golf Indias Gaganjeet Bhullar completed a commanding start-to-finish victory at the Venetian Macau Open golf on 14th October 2012. Indias Saina Nehwal win Denmark Open Badminton Title Indian badminton player and Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal has won the Denmark Open Super Series Premier trophy on 21st October 2012. Martin Guptill wins NZ top cricket award Opening batsman of New Zealand Cricket team Martin Guptill on 18 October 2012 claimed the top honour at the New Zealand Cricket Awards in Auckland, winning the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2011-12. Martin Guptill was also named ODI and Twenty20 player of the year, based on performances between 1 September 2011 and 31 August 2012. Anaka Alankamony clinches her second WISPA title

Asian junior gold medallist Anaka Alankamony today claimed her second title and first one abroad in the womens professional squash tour when she beaten the top seed Kylie Lindsay of New Zealand in the final of the Ipswich Open in Queensland. Lance Armstrong stripped of his 7 Tour de France titles, banned for life Cyclings governing body agreed on 22nd October 2012 to strip Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and ban him for life, following a report from the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that accused him of leading a massive doping program on his teams. Womens Indian Golf Open from November 30 The creme-de-la-creme of Indian womens golf will be up against a strong international field, including the likes of Laura Davies and defending champion Caroline Hedwall, when the tri-sanctioned Hero Womens Golf Open tees off from November 30. Sun TV Network Acquired Hyderabad IPL Franchise Chennai based SUN TV Network acquired the Indian Premier League (IPL) Hyderabad franchise on 25 October 2012 for an enormous amount of 85.05 crore Rupees per year. Sebastian Vettel won F1 Second Indian Grand Prix Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28 October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.This is his fourth consecutive success in this year. Pankaj Advani defeats Russell, clinches seventh World Billiards Championship title India`s Pankaj Advani won his seventh World billiards title when he outclassed defending champion Mike Russell 1,895-1,216 in the final on 28th October 2012. Joshna Chinappa wins Penang Open squash title

Indias top squash player Joshna Chinappa claimed the IJM Land Penang Open, defeating top seed and local favourite Siti Munirah Jusoh in straight games on 28th October 2012. India retains third spot in ICC ODI ranking India retains the third spot in the ICC ODI ranking after England and South Africa. England has retained the top spot in the latest ODI rankings with 121 points followed by South Africa. The latest ICC rankings were released in Dubai on 30th October 2012. India lifts the Asian Cricket Council Womens Twenty-20 trophy at Guangzhou in China Indian women lifted the title of Asian Cricket Council Womens Twenty20 Asia Cup cricket tournament by defeatingthe Pakistan by 18 runs in the final match at Guangzhou in China.

ECONOMY Govt approves 49% FDI in insurance & pension sectors On 4th October 2012 The Cabinet has cleared proposals to allow more Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in the insurance and pension sectors.In both the sectors government approves 49% of FDIs. Govt approves 12th Five-Year Plan On 4th October 2012 Government approved the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) document that aims to achieve annual average economic growth rate of 8.2 per cent, down from 9 per cent envisaged earlier, in view of fragile global recovery. HDFC Bank partners Indian Oil Corporation to offer rural banking services HDFC Bank has partnered Indian Oil Corporation to provide banking services in the rural areas where IOCs petrol pump outlets Kisan Seva Kendras will act as the business correspondents for the banks. IMF cuts Indias Growth Forecast for 2012 to 4.9 Percent

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed Indias growth forecast to 4.9 per cent for 2012 due to low business confidence and sluggish structural reforms. India-US trade to touch $100 bn Bilateral trade between India and the US is expected to touch USD 100 billion in the coming years on increasing economic engagement between the countries. Rangarajan lowers FY13 GDP growth forecast to 6% Prime Ministers key advisor C Rangarajan 25th October 2012 lowered the growth projection for the current fiscal to 6 per cent from 6.7 per cent estimated earlier.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Scientists discover bacteria that can produce 24-carat gold Scientists have discovered a bacteria that has the ability to withstand incredible amounts of toxicity and can be the key to creating 24-carat gold.Researchers from the Michigan State University have found that the metal-tolerant bacteria Cupriavidus metallidurans can grow on massive concentrations of gold chloride or liquid gold, a toxic chemical compound found in nature. India sucessfully test-fires Prithvi-II ballistic missile On 4th October 2012 India sucessfully test-fired surface-to-surface Prithvi-II ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur of Balasore district off Odisha coast. India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile A day after the launch of Prithvi-II, India successfully test-fired nuclearcapable Dhanush ballistic missile for its full range of 350 km from a naval ship off Odisha on 5th October 2012. Australia launches worlds fastest radio telescope In the remote Australian outback, scientists have launched the worlds fastest radio telescope which will exponentially increase astronomers

ability to survey the universe, mapping black holes and shedding new light on the origins of galaxies.The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), located near the region of Murchison about 650 kilometres north of Perth, was officially opened 5th October 2012 by Science Minister Chris Evans. Indian navy successfully test-fires BrahMos supersonic cruise missile The Indian Navy on 7th October 2012 successfully test-fired the 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, capable of carrying a conventional warhead of 300 kg, from a warship off the Goa coast. The Barcode Turns 60 Years Old October 7, 2012 marks the 60th anniversary of the registration of the first bar code patent. The original patent for what we know today as the modern barcode was granted on October 7, 1952 to Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver, its inventors. New planet discovered in Earths backyard Astronomers have found a new planet called exoplanet in Alpha Centauri , the closest yet outside our solar system and just an astronomical stones throw away at four light years.Alpha Centauri is a three-star system consisting of two stars similar to our sun and a faint red star called Proxima Centauriand another one is the Alpha Centauri B.The Exoplanet orbits Alpha Centauri B.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) Appointments Congress selects Raja, Suresh Kalmadi and Kanimozhi as members of standing committee The congress on 3 October 2012 nominated the former Union Minister, A. Raja, Kanimozhi and Suresh Kalmadi as the members of the Parliamentary Standing Committees on Energy, Home Affairs and External Affairs respectively.Raja was arrested in the 2G scam case on February 2 last year and is on bail since 15 May 2012. Suresh Kalmadi, who was accused in the Commonwealth Games scam case, spent about

nine months in jail and was released on bail on 19 January 2012. DMK MP Kanimozhi, also an accused in some cases related to the 2G spectrum allocation, was nominated to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs. Ajit Saran Appointed as Secretary in National Commission for Women Senior IAS officer Ajit M Sharan was appointed as Member Secretary in National Commission for Women (NCW). Ajit Sharan is a 1979 batch officer of Haryana cadre. Vivek Rae appointed new MSME secretary On 5th October 2012 the government appointed Vivek Rae as secretary, ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises. Rae, a 1978 batch IAS officer of the UT cadre, is currently director general, acquisition, defence ministry. He will take over from RK Mathur. Anil Kumble appointed chairman of ICC Cricket Committee Former India captain Anil Kumble was unanimously appointed chairman of ICC`s Cricket Committee by the game`s governing body, replacing West Indies great Clive Lloyd on 11th October 2012. Jaspal Rana appointed junior pistol chief coach Multiple Asian Games gold medallist, Jaspal Rana, has been appointed chief coach for junior pistol shooters by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) on 16th October 2012. Ashok Kumar appointed Indias ambassador to Brazil Mr. Ashok Tomar has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Brazil on 31st October 2012. b). Resigns Michael Schumacher announces retirement from Formula One Michael Schumacher has announced that he will retire from Formula One at the end of the season.Schumachers announcement follows news last week that he will be replaced at Mercedes by Lewis Hamilton in 2013.

UP revenue minister resigns due involved in CMO abduction UP revenue minister Vinod Singh was forced to resign on 12th October 2012 for his alleged involvement in the abduction of Gonda chief medical officer (CMO) SP Singh. External Affairs Minister S M Krishna resigned External Affairs Minister SM Krishna has resigned from his post ahead of on 28th October 2012 cabinet reshuffle. Badminton Player Peter Gade Retired From International Career Danish legend Baminton Player, Peter Gade on 30 October 2012 retired from international badminton. c). Deaths Historian Eric Hobsbawm dies, aged 95 Eric Hobsbawm, one of Britains most eminent historians, has died at the age of 95, on 1st October 2012 at the Royal Free Hospital in London .Mr Hobsbawm, a historian in the Marxist tradition, wrote more than 30 books.He published his final book, How to Change the World, in 2011. Freedom fighter, ex-Governor Satyanarayana is dead Freedom fighter and former governor of Uttar Pradesh B Satyanarayana Reddy died at a hospital in Hyderabad on 6th October 2012. Zimbabwe cricket coach Kevin Curran passes away Kevin Curran, the former Zimbabwean all rounder and coach, has died in Mutare on 10th Ocober 2012. Cambodia ex-king Sihanouk dies Cambodias former king Norodom Sihanouk died on 15th October 2012 in China at Beijing. Bandya Kakade dead Bandya Kakade, former India football goalkeeper, passed away here on 18th October 2012 evening. Kakade and Kuppuswami Sampath (MEG, Bangalore) were the two goalkeepers of the Indian team that won the

bronze medal at the 1970 Bangkok Asian Games. Kakade was also part of the Indian team Yash Chopra, the King of Romance passes away Yash Chopra, one of Bollywoods most well-known filmmakers, died of dengue fever on 21st October 2012. Eminent litterateur Sunil Gangopadhyay passes away Eminent litterateur and Sahitya Akademi President Sunil Gangopadhyay died at his South Kolkata residence on 23rd October 2012 following a massive heart attack. d). Visitors U.S. Treasury Secretary Geithner to visit India on Oct. 9 U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner visit India on 9th October 2012 to participate in the third annual meeting of the U.S.-India Economic and Financial Partnership with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. Australia PM Julia Gillard begins India visit Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has begun a three-day visit to India.The two countries are expected to announce negotiations on civil nuclear co-operation during Ms Gillards visit. Suu Kyi to visit India next month After 40 years, Myanmars Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will travel to India on November 13. She will deliver the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on November 14. Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, New Zealand visited India Hon. Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, New Zealand visited the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi on 18th October 2012. Ex-Bangladeshi PM Khaleda Zia to meet PM Manmohan Singh Bangladeshs former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Begum Khaleda Zia, who is on a week-long trip to India,

will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singhin New Delhi on 28th October 2012. e). Miscellaneous Pakistan spinner Rehman hit with ban after failed drug test Pakistans Abdur Rehman has been banned from cricket for 12 weeks after testing positive for cannabis during his recent stint with Somerset. Mukesh Ambani richest Indian The China-based research firm Hurun releases a report on 10th October 2012 declared Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani is the richest person in India. Hyderabads last Nizam named all-time richest Indian Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam (or ruler) of Hyderabad is Indias all-time richest person.According to a new inflation-adjusted list of the worlds richest people of all time, the Nizam, who ruled Hyderabad between 1886-1967, was ranked sixth with $ 236 billion. Mukesh Ambani tops Forbes India rich list Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian for the fifth year in a row with a net worth of $21 billion, according to the Forbes India rich list. Manju Seth appointed as next Ambassador of India to Madagascar Ms Manju Seth has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Madagascar.She is presently Consul General of India in Reunion Island, which is a French-administered territory in the Indian Ocean between Mauritius and Madagaskar.

PLACES IN NEWS Shadman Chowk renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore Pakistan government has finally renamed Shadman Chowk as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore as a mark of respect to the martyr and an acknowledgement of his role in the struggle against British rule.

Mercedes-Benz rolls out M-Class luxury SUV from Pune facility Mercedes-Benz India has rolled out its first locally manufactured MClass luxury SUV from its facility in Chakan, Pune. The company has also declared the start of operations of its paint shop at the same location.India is the only country outside of the USA where the German luxury car maker has begun production out of the new ML-Class. 44 killed in Syrian air strikes At least 44 people were killed in air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held town of Maaret al-Numan on 18th October 2012. 5.5 magnitude earthquake hits off Taiwan A 5.5-magnitude earthquake struck off southern Taiwan on 25th October 2012, the islands Seismology Center said, but there were no reports of any damage or casualties. Earthquake in Canada triggers tsunami in Hawaii A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake rattled the west coast of Canada, triggering tsunami warnings for Hawaii on 28th October 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS Abbreviation of FICCI Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Abbreviate JNNURM Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal mission Abbreviate NCM National Commission for Women Abbreviate IOC Indian Oil Corporation Abbreviate ASKAP

The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder Abbreviate ISS Integrated Security System Abbreviate LPN Liquefied Natural Petroleum Abbreviate WISPA Womens International Squash Players Association

BOOKS IN NEWS Hilary Mantel wins Booker Prize for Tudor saga British writer Hilary Mantel won the prestigious Booker literary prize for a second time on 16th October 2012 with her blood-soaked Tudor saga. Ms Mantel, who took the 50,000 pound ($82,000) award in 2009 for Wolf Hall, is the first British author, and the first woman, to achieve a Booker double. The Folded Earth and A Free Man won the 11th Economist Crossword Book Award The Folded Earth written by Anuradha Roy and A Free Man by Aman Sethi won the 11th Economist Crossword Book Award that was declared at Mumbai. Governor releases Ek Thhi Kusum by former Speaker Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi on 22nd October 2012 released Ek Thhi Kusum, a short stories collection authored by former State Assembly Speaker Prakash Pant.

COMMITTEES IN NEWS Rangarajan panel for total decontrol of sugar industry

Rangarajan Committee has recommended deregulation of the sugar sector, by giving freedom to mills to sell sugar in the open market.The Millers should sell the 10%of sugar to government below the market price,for running the ration shops ,remaining should sell in the open market.

DAYS & DATES UP cancels holiday on Kanshi Rams death anniversary The Samajwadi Party (SP) government on 6th October 2012 cancelled the October 9 public holiday on the death anniversary of BSP founder Kanshi Ram, which had been announced by the Mayawati government in May 2007. World Food Day Celebrated worldwide on 16 October 2012 World Food Day is celebrated every year across the globe on 16 October in honour of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945.The aim of this World Food Day is to raise awareness on global food problems and to create a sense of solidarity in the fight against poverty, hunger and malnutrition.

November 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Barack Obama re-elected as President of US Barack Obama re-elected as President of US with a clear victory over Republican challenger Mitt Romney on 7th November 2012. Hindu-American elected to US Congress for the first time

Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu-American elected as the US House of Representative from Hawaii in November 2012 elections. Nepal elected to UN ECOSOC board Nepal elected a board member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for a three-year term starting in January 2013. Nepal along with 17 other countries were elected board members of ECOSOC 8th November 2012 by the UN General Assembly. Israel fires into Syria Israel was drawn into the fighting in neighboring Syria for the first time on 11th November 2012, firing warning shots across the border after an errant mortar shell landed near an Israeli military installation in the Golan Heights. Chinas Communist Party selects new leadership China elects the new President as Xi Jinping and Prime Minister as Li Keqiang on 14 November 2012. Japan to go to polls on 16 December 2012 Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda dissolved the Lower House of Parliament on 16 November 2012 ,paving the way for elections in which his ruling party will likely give way to a weak coalition government divided over how to solve Japans myriad problems. Elections were set for 16 December 2012. U.N. approves Palestinian observer state bid The United Nations General Assembly on 30 November 2012 endorsed an upgraded U.N. status for the Palestinian Authority, despite intense opposition from the United States and Israel.The vote was 138 delegates in favor of the measure including India, nine against including America, Brazil and Canada and 41 abstentions including Britain.

INDIA & WORLD The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) lift export ban on some milk products

Amid surplus availability of milk powder in the country, the government is likely to decide on 1st November 2012 on lifting ban on export of milk products, especially whole milk powder, dairy whitener and infant milk foods. US included as dialogue partner of Indian Ocean countries The US was inducted as a sixth dialogue partner in the 20-nation Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) grouping on 3rd November 2012.The ministers of countries which are members of IOR-ARC decided unanimously to give the US the same status that they had earlier accorded to the United Kingdom, France, Egypt and Japan. Agreement with World Bank for Assam road project India has signed a 320-million dollar loan agreement with the World Bank for road projects in Assam on 5th November 2012. Canada to allow civil nuclear trade with India India and Canada signed an agreement on 6th November 2012 in New Delhi for bilateral Cooperation in civil nuclear trade. So, India imports Uranium from canada for civil nuclear reactors. DRDO ties up with York University, Canada Defence Research and Development Organisation and York University, Canada signed a memorandum of understanding for doing collaborative defence research in the areas of advanced materials, nanotechnology, life sciences, bio-informatics, chemical and biological defence, sensors, and others. Indian-origin CEO of Datawind and MIT professor among Forbes top 15 education innovators list Indian-origin CEO of Datawind, the maker of Indias low-cost tablet Aakash, Suneet Singh Tuli and Massachusettes Institute of Technology professor Anant Agarwal named by Forbes magazine among the 15 classroom revolutionaries who are using innovative technologies to reinvent education for students and teachers globally. Mahatma Gandhi Grandson elected to Kansas State Assembly

Mahatma Gandhi grandson Shanti Gandhi elected to a State Assembly in the United States from Kansass 52nd Assembly District as a Republican Party candidate during the general elections held on 6 November 2012. India and Afghanistan signed four agreements India and Afghanistan signed four agreements to cooperate in areas of social welfare, fertilizer, coal mining and youth affairs on 12th November 2012. Dr Ami Bera is the third Indian-American elected to the US House of Representatives An Indian-American physician from California became only the third person of Indian-origin to be elected to the US House of Representatives by defeating Republican Dan Lungren with just 184 votes lead. Japan signs pact to import rare earths from India India and Japan on 16 November 2012 inked a strategic agreement on Tokyo to import rare earth minerals from India. Maldivian Airlines inks pact with Apollo Hospitals Maldivian Airlines on 19 November 2012 had signed a pact with the Chennai-headquartered Apollo Hospitals to give discounts to each others clients. For example, Apollo Hospitals will give a discount on its service charges for those who fly the airline, and the airline will give similar discounts to the hospitals patients on the airfare. India adds 22 items in the list of border trade with Myanmar India had notified 22 additional items including agricultural tools, bicycles, coal and garments in the list of items for border trade with Myanmar.According to a study conducted by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), bilateral trade between India and Myanmar is expected to double by 2015 from $1.3 billion, on the back of free trade agreement between New Delhi and ASEAN region. India votes against UN resolution on death penalty ban India was among the 39 countries that voted against a UN General Assembly draft resolution which called for abolishing the death penalty,

saying every nation had the sovereign right to determine its own legal system. India, China joint economic strategy held at New Delhi The Second India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue was held in New Delhi on 26 November 2012. In this meeting China and India discussed several topics including greater cooperation at the global level, strengthening communication on macroeconomic policies, deepening and expanding trade and investment and promoting bilateral cooperation in the financial and infrastructure sectors. The bilateral trade between these two countries enhanced from $74 billion to $100 billion. India- Maldives joint military training exercises held at Belgaum The fourth joint military training exercises between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) EKUVERIN 2012 was held in Belgaum from 12 to 25 November 2012.

NATIONAL President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage stamp on late Ramgopal Maheshwari President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage stamp on late Ramgopal Maheshwari on 20 November 2012. Arvind Kejriwal launches Aam Admi Party Arvind Kejriwal announced the name for his newly launched party as Aam Admi Party on 24 November 2012 in New Delhi. Bangalore among top polluted megacities in the world Indias silicone valley Bangalore was rated among top polluted megacities in the world, claims a new study, using data collected by NASAs high-tech satellites.Scientists at Tel Aviv University tracked pollution trends for 189 megacities, including Mumbai, New York City and Tokyo, by analysing eight years worth of data from three of NASAs high-tech aerosol monitoring satellites.

STATES 50% reservation for women in Assam Panchayat Elections The Assam State Election Commission has announced 50 per cent reservation of seats for women in the forthcoming panchayat polls as stated by State Election Commissioner Biren Dutta on 9th November 2012 Chain of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra Pradesh Union Minister of State for Defence Jitendra Kumar inaugurated a chain of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra Pradesh at a programme organised at the Coast Guard district headquarters Visakhapatnam on 23 November 2012.This will improve surveillance along coast. Ban on plastic bags comes into force in New Delhi The ban on manufacture, sale and use of most types of plastic bags in the Capital came into force on on 23 November 2012.

CONFERENCES SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians Conference held at Islamabad The sixth conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians held in Islamabad on 4th November 2012.From India, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and Deputy Chairman Rajya Sabha Professor P. J. Kurien are participated the conference.In this conference they discussed the role of women parliamentarians for social justice and the strengthening of democracy in South Asia. Countries G20 finance ministers and central bankers summit held in Mexico The G20 countries finance ministers and central bankers summit held in Mexico on 4th November 2012.In this summit the Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the Indias economy should grow by 5.5 percent to 6.0 percent in the year 2012 and return to 7 percent growth in 2013.

E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi on 9th and 10th November 2012.The E-9 countries are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria and Mexico . Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian summits Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. Bangladesh Opted out of D-8 Summit Scheduled to be Held in Pakistan Bangladesh opted out of the key summit known as D-8 Summit in Pakistan which is scheduled to be held later in November, 2012. Bangladesh opted out because Pakistan refused to apologise for the deeds committed during 1971 war which eventually led to Bangladeshs independence. The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on counter terrorism The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on counter terrorism was held on 20 November 2012 in New Delhi.

AWARDS & HONOURS Aishwarya Rai was honoured with French Civilian Award Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachan was honoured with the second highest French civilian award Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by French government for her contribution in promoting Indo-French cooperation in Cinema on 1st November 2012. Tata Literature Live! First Book Award Banker and New York based author Ruchir Sharma was awarded the Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for his Breakout Nations:In Pursuit of the Next Economic Miracles at the Mumbai Lit-fest on 4 November 2012.

Durgabai Deshmukh Awards for Womens Development Presented by President of India President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 5 November 2012 presented the Durgabai Deshmukh awards for womens development for the years 2005, 2006 and 2007 at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.The eighth Award for 2005 was jointly given to two winners, Mizoram Hmeithai (Widows) Association and Peoples Forum, Bhubaneswar. The ninth Award for the year 2006 was awarded to Sumangali Seva Ashram of Bangalore.The tenth Award for the year 2007 was awarded to the Snehalaya of Ahmednagar. Germany honoured the Baba Kalyani The chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge, Babasaheb N. Kalyani honoured with Cross of Order of Merit by Germany. This is the highest honour awarded to individuals for their services to the country in Germany. Madhav Chavan wins education Nobel prize Dr Madhav Chavan has won the WISE Prize, which has been likened to a Nobel prize for education.The award, announced on 13 November,2012 at the WISE summit in Qatar, recognises his education work in the slums of Mumbai. Bitter Seeds won 18 international awards Bitter Seeds, a documentary film produced by US-based filmmaker Micha Peled on the agrarian crisis of cotton growers and their plight was being shown in Vidarbha region. Every 30 minutes, a farmer in the country kills himself in despair because he no longer provide anything for his family. The film has won 18 international awards. Urdu Scholar Gopi Chand Narang Awarded Moortidevi Award for 2010 The Vice President of India Hamid Ansari presented the Moortidevi Award for 2010 to eminent Urdu scholar Gopi Chand Narang for his outstanding work on Urdu Ghazal aur Hindustani Zehan wa Tehzeeb at a function organized by Bhartiya Jnanpith. Chinese movie `11 Flowers` wins award at Kolkata Film Fest

Chinese movie 11 Flowers, directed by acclaimed filmmaker Wang Xiaoshuai has won the prestigious NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) award at the 18th Kolkata International Film festival (KIFF), which ended on 17 November 2012. Liberian President got the Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012 President of the Republic of Liberia Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf got the Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012 for her Excellency, Peace,Disarmament and Development. Malala chosen for bravery award Malala Yousafzai,who became the face of Pakistans struggle against the Taliban was honoured with bravery award by the Peace and Prosperity Foundation Chairman Prince Ali Khan, at the Cholmondeley Room of the House of Lords on 19 November 2012. Gavaskar conferred with CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar was on 21 November 2012 conferred with BCCIs prestigious Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award. Indian Origin Autar Kaw is U.S. Professor of the Year Autar Kaw, an Indian born professor of mechanical engineering at the University of South Florida was received the award of 2012 US Professor of the Year . Indira Gandhi Peace Prize presented to former Brazilian President Lula Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the former President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, was conferred the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 22 November 2012. Punjabi film Andhey Ghorey Da Daan bags Golden Peacock Award 2012 in 43rd IFFI Goa Andhey Ghorey Da Daan a Punjabi film directed by Gurvinder Singh and produced by National Film Development Cooperation was bagged the Golden Peacock award of the International Film Festival of India,

IFFI. The award carries a Golden Peacock with a cash prize of 20 lakhs prize of20 lakh rupeex.

SPORTS & GAME Kimi Raikkonen won Abu Dhabi GP Kimi Raikkonen won an Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 4th November 2012. Mahesh Bhupathi-Rohan Bopanna win Paris Masters Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna clinched the Paris Masters, their second title of the year, after scoring a hard-fought win over Aisam-ulhaq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer in Paries on 4th November 2012. Czech Republic lifted Fed Cup The Czech Republic got the Fed Cup title after beating Serbia in the final on 4 November 2012. National Anti-Doping Disciplinary panel suspendes 11 athletes for two years The National Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (NADDP) suspended all the 11 athletes for two years, who were tested positive with methyl hexane amine (MHA) in the run-up of the last Commonwealth Games.The suspended 11 athletes are :Two athletes, Saurabh Vij and Akash Antil; Six wrestlers, all of them internationals, Arjuna awardee Rajeev Tomar, Joginder Singh, Sumit Sehrawat, Rahul Maan, Gursharanpreet Kaur and Khatri; and three swimmers, Amar Muralidharan, Jyotsana Pansare and Richa Pakistan won Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 Pakistan won the Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 against India on 6th November 2012. Gaganjeet Bhullar, Youngest Indian on Elite Golfers League Gaganjeet Bhullar, 24, became the youngest Indian to make it to the elite group of the worlds top-100 players in the latest rankings. Hanoi to host 2019 Asian Games

Vietnams capital Hanoi will host the 2019 Asian Games. India bags four medals in 14th Asian Youth (boys & girls) weightlifting championships India won four medals on the opening day of the 14th Asian Youth (boys & girls) weightlifting championships at Yangon, Myanmar, on 8th November 2012.Santa won a bronze in snatch with a lift of 95 kg before securing a gold each in clean and jerk and total lift with efforts of 126 kg and 221 kg respectively. The other medal of the day for the Indians was won by Chandrika Tarafdar in youth girls 44 kg category. She won a silver with a total lift of 132 kg. Rahul bags 3 more golds for India in Asian Youth Weightlifting Ragala Venkat Rahul won three gold medals to help India increase their medals tally to seven on the second day of the 14th Asian Youth (Boys & Girls) Weightlifting Championships at Yangon, Myanmar on 9th November 2012.Competing in the 77kg weight category, Rahul secured the yellow metals in snatch, clean and jerk and overall with a total lift of 280 kgs. International news agencies boycott India-England Test series International news agencies on 15 November 2012 decided to boycott the high-profile Test series between India and England which began in Ahmedabad to protest against the restrictions imposed by the BCCI on some photo agencies covering the tour. Saina Nehwal retains 3rd place in Badminton World Federation womens rankings London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal retained her third place in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) womens rankings released on 16 November,2012. Priyanka is Asian under-10 champion Asian under-10 girls chess champion Nuthaki Priyanka bagged the world youth chess championship at Maribor, Slovenia on 18 November 2012. She completed with 9.5 points of 11 rounds. McLarens Lewis Hamilton won United States Grand Prix 2012

McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 2012 United States Grand Prix race at Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas. It was the first F1 race in United States since 2007. Usain Bolt, Allyson Felix named IAAF world athletes of the year Usain Bolt won the IAAF(International Amateur Athletic Federation) World male Athlete of the Year award for the fourth time and United States sprinter Allyson Felix won the womens World Athlete of the Year award on 24 November 2012. Sebastian Vettel won third Formula One world title Sebastian Vettel became the youngest triple champion in Formula One history on 25 November 2012.He stood sixth position in Brazilian Grand Prix with 8 points.But overall he got F1 world title for this season with 281 points. This is the third time consecutively he got the F1 title. India to hold 3rd World cup Kabaddi in December Punjab would host 3rd World Kabaddi Cup from 1 to 15 December 2012. 23 countries are participating in this world cup.The prize money for this world cup is Rs.4.54crores.

ECONOMY Rs 6,000-cr fine on Tata Steel for illegal mining The Odisha government imposed a fine Rs 6,000 crore on Tata Steel for its alleged involvement in illegal and excess mining at its captive mines. India signs loan agreement with World Bank for USD 70 million India signed a 70-million US Dollar loan agreement with World Bank for financing the Karnataka Health Systems Development as well as Reform Project on 22 November 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Indian diamond fetches 16.9 million euros at auction

A 76-carat flawless diamond from Indias famous Golconda mines broke world record by fetching a whooping 16.9 million euros (Rs 1,18,16,98,700) at an auction in Geneva on 14 November 2012. Scientists Created a Paper-thin material that can stop bullets A team of mechanical engineering and materials scientists from Rice University and MIT has created special nanomaterials that were able to stop bullets in the lab. The type of material, called a structured polymer composite, can actually self-assemble into alternating glassy and rubbery layers. Solar Systems largest planet discovered A team of astrophysicists had discovered an enormous gaseous planet that is 13 times more massive than Jupiter, earning the name SuperJupiter and is the largest planet in our own solar system. India successfully test fires supersonic interceptor missile India successfully test-fired an indigenously developed supersonic interceptor missile, capable of destroying a hostile ballistic missile, from a test range off the Odisha coast on 23 November 2012. Drug that can halt cancer spread Scientists was developed a new drug called Aflibercept, for stop the cancer cells from multiplying. Pakistan tests nuclear-capable ballistic missile Pakistan successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable ballistic missile called Hatf-V(Ghauri) on 28 November 2012 that can hit targets up to 1,300 km (807 miles) away. Astronomers Discovered Giant black hole in tiny galaxy Astronomers claim to have discovered the most massive black hole ever known in a small galaxy about 250 million light-years from Earth, holding a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.The super-massive black hole is located inside the galaxy NGC 1277 in the constellation Perseus.It makes up about 14 per cent of its host galaxys mass, compared with the 0.1 per cent a normal black hole would represent, scientists said, adding that it has a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) Appointments Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive director on IMF board Former RBI Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive director on the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). VK Malhotra re-elected Archery Association President Vijay Kumar Malhotra was on 9th November 2012 re-elected as President of the Archery Association of India after beating Assam unit vice-president BVP Rao in Archery Association presidents elections. Obama appoints Indian-American Rajiv Shah to head USAID Indian-Americans won one of their highest-ever appointments in the US government when President Obama on 13 November 2012 nominated Dr Rajiv Shah as administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Anil Dev Singh appointed new chief of IOA election panel Anil Dev Singh, retired Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, appointed as the new Chairman of The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on 19 November 2012. Scott Flemming named Indias basketball coach The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) had appointed Scott Flemming, who brings along with him over 30 years of collegiate and professional experience in the United States, as the head coach of the mens national team on 19 November 2012. BBC appointed Tony Hall as new director general Royal Opera House chief executive Tony Hall had appointed as director general of the BBC on 22 November 2012,replacing George Entwistle who resigned earlier this month in a burgeoning scandal over the corporations reporting of sexual abuse. Ranjit Sinha appointed new CBI Director

Senior IPS officer Ranjit Sinha was appointed the Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation for two-year term on 22 November 2012. Barbosa sworn in as first non-white President of Brazils Supreme Court Joaquim Barbosa was sworn-in as Brazils Supreme Courts first nonWhite President on 23 November 2012 at a packed ceremony in the capital Brazilia . Barbosa, became famous in Brazil after overseeing one of the countrys biggest corruption trials involving key members of the former President Lula Da Silvas government. Alok Joshi new RAW chief The Haryana cadre IPS officer Alok Joshi was appointed head of Indias external intelligence gathering agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) on 27 November 2012. Alok Joshi will take charge from S.K. Tripathi on December 30, 2012. Luiz Felipe Scolari appointed new Brazil Football team coach Brazilian Football Confederation have appointed Luiz Felipe Scolari as the new coach for Brazil Football team on 29 November 2012. Mohan re-elected as vice president of IBSF Capt Mohan, the president of the Billiards and Snooker Federation of India, was re-elected as the vice president of the IBSF (International Billiard & Snooker Federation). The election took place at the Annual General Body meeting of International Billiards and Snooker Federation, at Sofia, Bulgaria on 29 November 2012. b) Resigns American CIA Director David Petraeus resigned American Central Intelligence Agency(CIA) Director David Petraeus resigned on 10th November 2012 due illegal affair with Broadwell that was proved by the FBI in investigation. BJP suspended Ram Jethmalani from party for indiscipline The BJP on 25 Novemebr 2012 suspended a Rajya Sabha member Ram Jethmalani from the party for gross indiscipline. He recently attacked the for for criticizing the appointment of the new CBI chief.

Ricky Ponting retired from international cricket Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has announced he will retire from international cricket at the end of the third Test against South Africa.He is the second highest run scorer in Test history behind Sachin Tendulkar.Ponting has scored 13,366 runs at an average of 52.21 in his career. Yeddyyurappa quits BJP, Assembly The former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S.Yeddyurappa quits the BJP and resigned to the Legislative Assembly on 30 November 2012. He started his political career when he was elected as President of the Shikaripura Taluk erstwhile Jana Sangha in 1972. He won his first Assembly election in 1983 as BJP candidate. He became the first BJP chief minister in South India. c) Deaths Yerram Naidu senior TDP leader dies in road accident K. Yerran Naidu, Telugu Desam Partys senior leader and former union minister for rural development died in a car accident in Andhra Pradeshs Srikakulam district on 2nd November 2012. Cartoonist,T.Samuel passes away Veteran cartoonist, T Samuel, a pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, passed away on 2 November 2012. He worked for the famous newspapers like Times of India ,Indian Express and Nav Bharat Times etc.. He became famous as the creator of pocket cartoon Babuji. BJP leader Kailashpati Mishra passes away Veteran BJP leader and former governor of Gujarat and Rajasthan Kailashpati Mishra died in Patna on 3rd November 2012. Veteran freedom fighter V P Murthy Raju passes away Freedom fighter and former Andhra Pradesh minister Ch V P Murthy Raju passed away in West Godavari district on 12th November 2012.Raju had been MLA for six terms and served as a minister when late P V Narasimha Rao was Chief Minister. Ex-Minister KC Pant passes away

Indias former defence minister and Planning Commission deputy chairman Krishna Chandra Pant died on 15 November 2012.Pant was Indias defence minister between 1987 and 1989, when the Congress party was in power under then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Shiv Sena Chief Balasaheb Thackeray died Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray died in Mumbai on 17 November 2012. Ajmal Kasab hanged, buried at Punes Yerwada Jail Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, the only terrorist caught alive during the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai, was hanged at Punes Yerwada Jail on 21 November 2012.Two secret codes are used the government with respect to Kasab to maintain secrecy 1. Operation X:-Hanging code named Operation X. X stood for execution 2. C-7096 :-C-7096, the number by which Kasab was identified officially. Nobel winner and organ transplant pioneer Joseph Murray passes away Dr. Joseph Murray, the surgeon who carried out the first successful kidney transplant and later won a Nobel Prize for his work in medicine and physiology, died on 26 November 2012 in Boston. Indias diplomatic politician and former PM IK Gujral passes away Former Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral passed away on 30 November 2012 in Gujral. Born on 4 December, 1919 in Jhelum.IK Gujral started as the Vice President in NDMC in the 1950s and later became a Union Minister. Later He became the Indias Ambassador to the USSR. Gujral, an intellectual who propounded the Gujral Doctrine of five principles for maintaining good neighbourly relations, left the Congress to join the Janata Dal in the late-1980s. In the 1989 elections, Gujral was elected from Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in Punjab and he became Minister for External Affairs, first under V P Singh (in December 1989) and then under Deve Gowda (in June 1996). Later he became the 12th Prime Minister of India in April 1997 for one year. d) Visitors William Hague on four day official visit to India

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of United Kingdom, Mr. William Hague will be on a four day official visit to India from 7th November 2012.During his visit Mr. Hague will discuss bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest with External Affairs Minister, Mr Salman Khurshid in New Delhi. Canadian Prime Minister visited India Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, visited the India from November 3rd to 9th, during his visit India and Canada signed several agreements including Civil Nuclear Deal, Social Security Agreement, a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in Information Technology and electronics and an agreement to boost bilateral cooperation in Defense Science and Technology. Hamid Karzai arrived to India on four day visit Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai arrived to India on 9th November 2012 on a four-day visit. Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Myanmars pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh In New Delhi on 14 November,2012 during her 6 day visit to India.She then visited Shantivan to pay tribute to Jawaharlal Nehru.Later in the day, she will deliver the Nehru Memorial Lecture on the occasion of the former PMs birth anniversary. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian summits Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. Barack Obama makes first US presidential visit to Burma Barack Obama became the first American president visited the Myanmar. He visited the Myanmar on 18 November 2012 and then went to Cambodia to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. e) Miscellaneous Sunita Williams embarks on record 7th space walk

Indian-American Sunita Williams along with Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide on 1st November 2012 ventured out of the International Space Station, adding to her record-setting space walking sojourns, to find an ammonia leak in the vital radiator system. China invites Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University China invited APJ Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University Irom Sharmila, the Iron Lady of Manipur completed 12 Years of Fast Iron Lady from Manipur, Irom Sharmila on 5 November 2012 completed 12 years of her fast demanding for cancellation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 (AFSPA). She blames AFPSA as the main cause for violence in the state of Manipur and other parts of Northeastern India. Life Ban on Mohammad Azharuddin Lifted by Andhra Pradesh High Court The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 8 November 2012 lifted the life ban from playing Cricket on Mohammad Azharuddin which was imposed by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in Year 2000. Ramanujans genius Proved by US Mathematician Ramanujans genius Proved to the world by Ken Ono of Emory University in Atlanta on the occasion 125th Birth Anniversary of Ramanujan.Ken Ono of Emory University proved the Ramanujans formula of outputs for the roots of 1 like the square root 1. Cancer charity drops Armstrong name Lance Armstrongs cancer charity removed the former cycling champion Lance Armstrongs name from its title. The Lance Armstrong Foundation now officially known as the Livestrong Foundation. Burmas Suu Kyi Named New UN Ambassador The United Nations announced Myanmars opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as an ambassador to its program on HIV/AIDS. Suu Kyi accepted the invitation to head the program during a meeting with UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidib.

PLACES IN NEWS Earthquake in Guatemala Guatemalans hit by A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4 on 8th November 2012. Mumbais Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah bans entry of women The management of Mumbais iconic Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah, which is visited by thousands of devotees every year, has restricted the entry of women. Strong Earthquake strikes Myanmar A strong earthquake with magnitude of 6.8 hit the Myanmar on 11th November 2012 . North Island New Zealand volcano Mt Tongariro erupts New Zealands Mount Tongariro volcano in the central North Island erupted on 21 November 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS AITA-All India Tennis Association. IOR-ARC Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation SAARC-South Asian Association For Regional Cooperation USAID-United States Agency for International Development IAAFInternational Amateur Athletic Federation.

BOOKS IN NEWS Vice President Releases Series of Books Granthavali

The Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari released a collection of writing and works -Granthavali of late Dr Dineshnandini Dalmia in New Delhi on 2nd November 2012. Saina Nehwal autobiography book released by Gagan Narang Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal , Ace shooter Gagan Narang and badminton player Parupalli Kashyap released book autobiography of Saina Nehwal Playing to win-My life on and off the court in Hyderabad on 7 November 2012. Yuvi book on Yuvraj released The book on Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh named Yuvi was released in third week of November 2012. Yuvi, the book on Yuvraj Singh is published by Harper Sport and written by Makarand Waingankar. The book illustrates the brilliance of cricket shown by Yuvraj Singh in his career as a cricketer and the way he recovered from Cancer. Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak Browne Releases Book Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak Browne Releases Book titled VICTORY INDIA A Key to Quality Military Leadership on 20 November 2012.The book is a collection of well written contributory articles by military experts.The book focuses on the process of identification, selection and training of our dynamic youth to mould them into inspiring effective quality military leaders. Amitav Ghosh, Jeet Thayil shortlisted for literature prize Six books including River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh, Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil and The Wandering by Pakistan-based author Jamil Ahmad, have been shortlisted for the DSC South Asian Literature Prize 2013.The finalist will be announced at the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival January 2013.

COMMITTEESS IN NEWS Pope Benedict XVI appoints six non-European cardinals for Pope selection committee

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed six priests from non-European countries to be cardinals, at a service in the Vaticans St Peters Basilica.From India Baselios Cleemis Thottumkal, head of the SyroMalankara Catholic Church was selected as a one of the Cardinal for the pope selection committee.

DAYS & DATES UN declared November 10th as Malala Day United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared November 10 as Malala Day Celebration of Water Conservation Day on 19th November 2012 National Integration Day is celebrated on 19th November to mark the birth anniversary of late Mrs Indira Gandhi, the 1st woman Prime Minister of India. On this occasion Union Ministry of Water Resources has decided to celebrate Water Conservation Day on 19th November 2012 to create awareness regarding concern about depleting water resources & its vision for the water underlining the Ministrys commitment to be an active contributor to the sustainability of this very important natural resource.

December 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Mahama Re-elected as Ghanas President On 10 December Ghanas incumbent President John Dramani Mahama of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has won the countrys presidential election.Mahama took 50.70 percent of the total valid votes cast, while his closest challenger, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) obtained 47.74 percent.With his reelection, Mahama becomes the fourth president to be elected under the Forth Republic.He had served as Ghanas vice president since 2009. UN, Pakistan Launched Malala Fund

Pakistan joined forces with the United Nations on 10 December 2012 to launch a fund aimed at boosting girls education throughout the world.The fund is named for Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old Pakistani girl. Pakistans President Asif Ali Zardari also announced a $10-million donation for a global war chest to educate all girls by 2015 set up in the name of Malala Yousafzai for campaigning for girls education. Shinzo Abe Elected As Japans New PM The former Prime Minister and the Leader of LDP Shinzo Abe elected as a Prime Minister with a clear victory over the Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic Party of Japan(DPJ) Yoshihiko Noda in the Parliamentary Elections on 26 December 2012.The lawmakers in Japan voted in favour of Abe by 328 votes. Opponent Banri Kaieda, the newly chosen leader of DPJ received merely 57 votes. Jacob Zuma re-elected as South Africas President South Africas ruling African National Congress on 18 December 2012 re-elected President Jacob Zuma as the party chief with a thumping majority. Mr.Zuma received the support of over 75 per cent of the total voting delegates at the ANC National Conference held in Bloemfontein. Juma was Deputy President of South Africa from 1999 to 2005 Park elected South Korean President Park Guen-hye, the daughter of former military dictator Park Chung-hee, beat her opponent on 19 December 2012 in the South Korean presidential elections. Park is the countrys first woman President. She is the former head of the ruling Conservative Saenuri Party, had secured the necessary votes and defeated Moon Jae-in, of the Democratic United Party. Pak Cleared Anti-terror Bill On 20 December Pakistans National Assembly passed a bill that will give intelligence and security agencies sweeping powers to conduct surveillance and collect data from SMSs and emails.The National Assembly or lower house of parliament approved the Fair Trial Bill 2012 after incorporating amendments proposed by the main opposition PML-N and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which is part of the ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Peoples Party. U.S. House Passed Defense Bill

On 20 December US (United States) House of Representatives passed the Defence Authorization Act of 2013. The bill authorizing 633.3 billion dollar in defense spending for 2013, easing limits on satellite exports and providing more Marines for embassy security. Napolitano Dissolved Italian Parliament On 22 December Italian President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved Parliament following the resignation of Prime Minister Mario Monti. Italian Government under the leadership of Mario Monti brought forward a series of austerity reforms backed by EU and business leaders. Morsi signed on Egypts New Constitution On 25 December Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi signed into law a new Islamist-drafted constitution. He signed a declaration enforcing the charter late after the official announcement of the result of a referendum approving the basic law. Two-thirds of the members of the 270-seat council were elected earlier this year in a vote in which only 12 per cent of registered voters participated. The remaining 90 were appointed by Mohamed Morsi, the Islamist president. Pakistan Recognised the Republic of Kosovo On 26 December Pakistan Government officially recognised Kosovo as an independent state, almost five years after it declared independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008. Pakistan is the 98th country among the 193 U.N-member states to recognise Kosovo .Kosovo is a small south east European state lies between Albania, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro.

INDIA & WORLD Nitish Kumar, Hazare, Malala Among Thinkers List The Top 100 Global

On 2 December According to the United States-based Foreign Policy magazine has released its list of the 100 Top Global Thinkers from 2012. The magazine has placed the Indians in the list include Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who features way below at the 77th place, Anna Hazare who has been placed at the 37th position for his anticorruption crusade in the country. 15-year-old Pakistani child rights

activist Malala Yousafzai at 6th position, Aung San Suu Kyi is ranked first in list. Bangladesh Agreed on Zero Line Fencing along Tripura Border On 2 December Bangladesh had agreed to set up barbed wire fencing along zero line in nine stretches on the Indo-Bangladesh border in Tripura. According to the MHA communique, fencing along zero line was to be allowed in 9 areas. India & Japan Signed Currency Swap Agreement India signed a bilateral swap arrangement (BSA) with the Bank of Japan to swap their local currencies for an amount of $15 billion for a three year period on 4 December 2012.The BSA will effect from 5 December 2012. India is Among Top Five Terror-Hit Nations The Australian think tank released The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) on 4 December 2012, according to this GTI, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan were among the nations most impacted by terrorism in 2011. In 2011, the Middle East, India, Pakistan and Russia were the areas most impacted by terrorism. Indias GTI rank was 4 out of the 159 countries surveyed. While Iraq stood at number1, Pakistan at number 2, Afghanistan at number 3 and Yemen was number 5. Bangalore Best Indian City To Live Bangalore ranks better than New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata amongst Indian cities in overall global quality of living index, according to a Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Survey.Bangalores overall quality of living rank went up from 141 in 2011 to 139 in 2012 and is highest amongst other Indian cities. India Ranked 94th Position in Corruption Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tied for the first place in watchdog Transparency Internationals 2012 index of the least corrupt countries. India is on 94th position in the Corruption Perceptions Index. Most corrupted nations are Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia in 174th positions. US Extends Exemptions For India to Iran Oil Sanctions

On 8 December the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has extended exemptions to India, China ,South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey and Taiwan from Iranian Sanctions Act mainly because of their significant reduction in oil import from Iran.The 9 countries have again qualified for an exception to sanctions outlined in Section 1245 of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012, based on additional reductions in the volume of their crude oil purchases from Iran.This is for the second time that countries including India has received waiver from US under the Iranian sanctions act. 3 Indian Projects among Strategic- Global Infrastructure Projects List Three Indian projects have placed in the new yorks Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum Top 100 Strategic Global Infrastructure Projects list. GIFT city (Gujarat International Financial Tech city), Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project (Maharashtra) and the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) project (Andhra Pradesh). India, Ukraine Signed on Five Agreements India and Ukraine on 10 December 2012 signed on five agreements in New Delhi to enhance cooperation including in areas of defence, Nuclear, Science and Technology and also to remove barriers in trade and commerce. Indians Largest Ethnic Minority Group in UK On 11 December According to the 2011 Britain population census record Indians are the largest ethnic minority group in the UK.With 1.5 percent of the Hindu religion became a third-largest religion in the nations. The Christian population in the country is also a drop in the statistics.. The Muslim community population in the countrys fastest growing increased by 3 percent to 4.8. India& Pak Signed on New Visa Agreement The new Visa Agreement between India and Pakistan on 14th December, 2012 at New Delhi. However, the Visa-on-Arrival will come into effect from 15th January, 2013. Shri Sushilkumar Shinde, Home Minister of India and Mr. A. Rehman Malik, Pakistan Interior Minister singed on the agreement.

Cell Phone Connections to exceed the World Population by 2014 The International Telecommunications Communication Union (ITU) to be designed and released Information Society 2012 Observe report on 11 December. According to the report number of cell phone connections exceeding the worlds population by 2014. Now 6 billion (hundreds of millions) cell phone connections they will reach 730 Millions by 2014 .Then the worlds population is 700 crore.Already in Russia 1.8 times cell phone accounts more than 25 million people. Indians now Live Longer but in Poor Health in Old Age According to the the prestigious British medical journal, The Lancet report the life expectancy (LE) at birth of an average Indian male has gone up by 15 years between 1970 and 2010. An average Chinese male is living 10 years longer than an Indian male, while a Chinese woman is living 11.5 years longer than her Indian counterpart. An average American lives nearly 13 years longer than an Indian. World Malaria Report 2012 According to the WHO World Malaria Report 2012 India, the country most affected by malaria in the South East Asian Region, is projected to see a decrease of 50-75 per cent in malaria case incidence by 2015.In South East Asia Region, Bhutan, Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand have registered decreases of 75 per cent or more in the incidence of microscopically confirmed malaria incidence rates between 2000 and 2011. Hinduism Third Largest Religion of World According to the Pew research survey report Hinduism is the third largest religion of the world after Christianity , Islam and 97 per cent of all Hindus live in the worlds three Hindu-majority countries (India, Mauritius and Nepal), and nearly nine-in-ten Christians (87 per cent) are found in the worlds 157 Christian majority countries.In the total world population 2.2 billion Christians (32 per cent of the worlds population), 1.6 billion Muslims (23 per cent) around the world as of 2010. India & Russia signed Rs 22,000 crore Defence Deals India and Russia signed defence deals worth around Rs. 22,000 crore ($4 billion) on 24 December. According to this pact Russia will sell India

71 military helicopters for $1.3 billion and technological kits to assemble 42 Sukhoi jet fighters for $1.6 billion.

NATIONAL Sexual Assault a Gender-Neutral Offence Bill Passed by Lok Sabha The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, replacing the word rape by the phrase sexual assault and seeking to widen the scope of the offence passed by Lok Sabha on 4 December. Both men and women could soon be able to invoke the provisions of a criminal law in case of sexual assault .The amendment bill expands the definition so that cases of sexual assault where victims were male would fall under the same law along with cases where victims were women. Cabinet Approved Naval Base Phase II of Project Seabird On 7 December The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) cleared a Rs 13,500 crore major expansion plan of the strategic Karwar naval base Phase II Alpha of the project Seabird in Karnataka is set to become the countrys biggest Naval base by 2025. The Karwar naval base is Indias third major naval base after Mumbai and Visakhapatnam on the east coast. Over 7 Crore Unemployed Youth in India According to the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) report an approximate 7 crore youth people in India are either unemployed or under-employed. The figures were revealed by Labour and Employment Minister Mallikarjun Kharge in Rajya Sabha.As per results of the latest survey conducted by NSSO during 2009-10, the number of unemployed or under-employed persons on usual status basis in the country was 95 lakhs and about six crore respectively. Rajya Sabha Passed SC/ST Quota Bill A Constitution 117th amendment bill providing for quota for SCs and STs in government job promotions was on December 17 passed by Rajya Sabha. Unlawful Activities Amendment Bill Passed by Rajya Sabha

On 20 December Parliament passed a bill that makes economic offences, including circulation of high quality counterfeit currency, a terrorist act.The Rajya Sabha passed Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2012 by voice vote while several parties. The bill was already passed by Lok Sabha. LokSabha Approved Company Bill 2011 On 18 December Lok Sabha passed the Companies Bill 2011 paving the way for a new modern company law.The Bill is aimed at improving corporate governance. It contains provisions to strengthen regulations for corporate as well as auditing firms. Banking Bill passed by Lok Sabha The Banking Laws Amendment Bill, 2011, have been passed in the Lok Sabha on 20 December .The amendments pave the way for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to issue new bank licences, and also opens door for more foreign investment into the sector. Usha Mehra commission for Delhi incident victim Nirbhayas Case A female physiotherapy intern student Nirbhaya beaten and gang raped in Delhi on 16 December and died on 29 December while undergoing emergency treatment in Singapore for brain and gastrointestinal damage from the assault.The government has formed a committee of enquiry under justice Usha Mehra to reconstruct the events leading to the incident identify lapses by police and other agencies and fix responsibility for the crime. Microsoft Launches 14 Innovation Centres in India Microsoft Corporation (India) Pvt. Ltd had launched 14 Microsoft Innovation Centres (MICs) in India. It has signed agreements with leading academic institutions across four States.As part of the global programme, which currently has 75 MICs, Microsoft aims to launch a 100 such centres in India in the next two years.

STATES Delhi Government Launched Delhi Annshri Yojna

UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was launched a major food security programme of Delhi Government Delhi Annshri Yojna on 15 December 2012.under which a monthly cash subsidy of Rs. 600 will be transferred directly into Aadhaar-linked bank accounts of the senior-most female members of two lakh poor families. BJP Won in Gujarat Assembly Elections The BJP registered its fifth consecutive victory in Gujarat on 20 December 2012.This is the third victory under Modi leadership. BJP won the 115 seats. Congress won the 61 seats. Modi won by a landslide from Maninagar constituency in Gujarat, beating his nearest Congress party rival Shweta Bhatt by a margin of 86,373 votes. Congress has won Himachal Pradesh Elections The Congress returned to power in Himachal Pradesh after five years, defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Himachal Pradesh State Assembly elections conduced on 4 November 2012.The Congress secured 36 seats and the BJP 26 seats. The Congress Leader Virbhadra Singh won from Shimla (Rural) constituency and defeated the rival from BJP Ishwar Rohal by 19033 Votes. Meghalaya Passed Lokayukta Bill 2012 On 14 December the Meghalaya Lokayukta Bill, 2012 was passed in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly and replaced the existing Lokayukta Act, 2002 amidst opposition from legislators. The new act under the lokayukta bill covered the chief minister, governor and all public servants, but allowed the state government through a clause to exclude the complaints by citing public interest. Madhya Pradesh Government Set Up a Senior Citizen Commission On 21 December the Madhya Pradesh Government has set up a Senior Citizen Commission to look into problems of the elderly in the State. Assam Government Announced Special Health Scheme On 12 December Assam government announced that 50 riverine public health centres would be set up in the state soon under the National Rural Health Mission.The public health centres would be located primarily in the districts of Barpeta, Dhubri, Goalpara and Darrang.

30% Reservation for Rural Candidates in Assam Govt. Jobs Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on 26 December 2012 announced that 30 per cent state government jobs will be reserved for candidates belonging to rural areas from 2013.

CONFERENCE UN Climate Change Conference (COP 18) The United Nations Climate Change Conference , which is the 18th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 18) and 8th session of the Conference of the Parties (serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol ) ends on 8 December in Qatar, Doha. United Nations climate talks in Doha had agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol through 2020. Poland will host the next round of 19th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) UN climate talks in 2013. World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12) The First ever World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) from 3 -14 December held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.The conference reviewed the current International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs).The 193 member states of the ambassadors are attended this conference.While 89 states have signed the UN International Telecommunications agreement and another 55 countries have refused the deal.The new agreement will come into effect in January 2015. ASEAN India Commemorative Summit held in New Delhi India is hosted the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit held from December 20-21 in New Delhi to mark the 20th anniversary of the ASEAN India dialogue partnership and the 10th anniversary of ASEAN-India Summit-level partnership.The theme of the summit is ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace and Shared Prosperity. ASEAN and India have signed the awaited Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on comprehensive economic cooperation as foundations for the establishment of an ASEAN-India Trade and Investment Area.

AWARDS & HONOURS Katy Perry Honored With Billboards Woman of the Year Pop Singer Katy Perry was honored with Billboards Woman of the Year 2012 (The Star of the Women) award in New York. Shah Rukh Khan Conferred With Moroccos Medal of Honour Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan had given the prestigious Medal of Honour by the Prince of Morocco (Moulay Rachid) on 3 December 2012 in 12th Marrakech International Film Festival. DRDO Scientist Gets Top Award Brajnish Sitara scientist from Research Centre Imarat(RCI), a premier laboratory of DRDOs missile complex was conferred with INAE(Indian National Academy of Engineering)Young Engineer Award for 2012 at the academys annual conventionheld at Roorkee on 6 December 2012. Rajan and Sajan Mishra Conferred National Tansen Samman On 14 December 2012 noted vocalist duo of Rajan and Sajan Mishra will be awarded prestigious National Tansen Samman for year 2011-12 for their contribution to Hindustani classical music Stephen Hawking Won Yuri Milner Award A Russian billionaires foundation was awarded two special prizes of $3 million each to British cosmologist Stephen Hawking for his work on black holes and to seven scientists at the worlds biggest atom-smasher for their roles in the discovery of a new subatomic particle believed to be the long-sought Higgs boson. Yuri Milners Fundamental Physics Prize Foundation announced the awards on 11 December 2012.Hawking is honored for his discovery of Hawking radiation from black holes and his deep contributions to quantum gravity and quantum aspects of the early universe. Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for Ravi Shankar Sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar will be honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously.He becomes the first Indian to get the prestigious award. The decision to honour Ravi Shankar, a three-time Grammy winner, was made before his death.

Indian Journalists Association Honoured Sir Charles Wheeler On 16 December Indian Journalists Association has conferred its Lifetime Achievement Award for 2012 posthumously to former BBC correspondent Sir Charles Wheeler. Scientist Venkatesh Mannar honoured with Order of Canada Award A Chennai born scientist of Indian origin, M.G Venkatesh Mannar and President, Micronutrient Initiative, Canada was awarded with Canadas Highest Civilian Award the Order of Canada on December .US, was honoured with the award for his forty years long contribution working towards reduction of debilitating micronutrient deficiencies among the worlds most vulnerable. Arunachal CM Selected for IAEWP Award On 18 December Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki has been selected by the International Association of Educators for World Peace (IAEWP) for a Lifetime Achievement Award. IAEWP is a nongovernmental organization affiliated to the United Nations and engaged in the promotion of world peace. Besides the individual award he would also receive the Green State of the Year Award on behalf of the Arunachal Pradesh Government for maintaining greenery in the state. Top Honour For 7-year-old South African Indian Rhino Campaigner A seven-year-old Indian-origin girl Afeefah Patel won a prestigious a wildlife conservation award in South Africa for writing a letter to President Jacob Zuma asking for his assistance in saving endangered rhinos. Afeefah Patel, who has just finished Grade One, became the youngest winner ever of SANParkss Corporate Contribution to Conservation Award in individual category at the 8th annual Kudu Awards. P.Chidambaram received Best Administrator Award On 20 December Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram received Best Administrator in India award instituted by K. Karunakaran Foundation.The award was presented to him by Vice President of India, M. Hamid Ansari.The award is being offered in the memory of renowned Congress leader as well as the former Kerala Chief minister K.Karunakaran. First Karunakaran Foundation Award was given to Pranab Mukherjee.

Archaeologist C.Govindarajanar Received Presidential Award President Pranab Mukherjee on 21 December 2012 conferred the Presidential Awards for Classical Tamil at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan. Prof. C. Govindarajanar was conferred Tolkappiyar Award for outstanding contribution in the field of Tamil studies. Top U.S. Innovation Award For Indian-American A renowned Indian-American inventor at IBM, Rangaswamy Srinivasan, was nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama for the prestigious National Medal of Technology and Innovation. He named the phenomenon Ablative Photo Decomposition (APD). He got this award for the discovery of APD. Shihab Ghanem the First Arab to receive Indias Tagore Peace Prize On 26 December The Asiatic society will award the Tagore Peace Prize to Emirati poet and translator Shihab Ghanem .Shihab Ghanem the first Arab to receive Indias Tagore Peace Prize.The peace prize is named after Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali creative talent and Indias first Nobel laureate. Pratibha Ray Won 2011 Jnanpith Award Leading Oriya novelist and academician Pratibha Ray, who has over 40 novels, travelogues and short stories to her credit, was named for the prestigious Jnanpith Award for the year 2011 on 27 December 2012. Astronautical Societys Aryabhatta award for Muthunayagam & Saraswat The former secretary of the Department of Ocean Development, A.E. Muthunayagam, will received the prestigious Aryabhatta award, instituted by the Astronautical Society of India (ASI), for 2010 and V.K. Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, will receive the award for 2011.They have been selected for their achievements in rocketry.

SPORTS & GAMES

Lalith Babu Top in Commonwealth Chess Championship Grandmasters M R Lalith Babu and Sergei Tiviakov scored final round victories to reached the top of the table with 9.5 points in the Commonwealth Chess Championship in Chennai on 01 December 2012. Lalith was crowned the Commonwealth Champion 2012 title. Rory McIlroy named PGA Tour Player of the Year On 2 December The PGA( Professional Golfers Association of America) Tour has announced Rory McIlroy as Tour Player of the Year after McIlroy won four times on Tour in 2012. McIlroy, becomes the youngest player to earn Player of the Year honors since Tiger Woods in 1998. Anna Ushenina is World Womens Chess Champion Anna Ushenina of Ukraine 02 December 2012 won the womens World Championship crown, defeating Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria in the first set of tie-break games. Air India Won Lal Bahadur Shastri Tournament Air India defeated Bharat Petroleum 3-1 to emerge champion in the 23rd Lal Bahadur Shastri hockey tournament at the Shivaji Stadium New Delhi on 4 December 2012. Jadeja Created History Hitting 3rd Tripleton in FC Cricket Ravindra Jadeja became first Indian and only eighth batsman in the First-Class (FC) cricket history of world to score three triple-centuries in the unbeaten 320 runs against Railways in the Ranji Trophy Group A match on 2 December 2012 in Rajkot. International Olympic Committee Suspended India The International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended Indias national Olympic committee on 4 December 2012 because of government interference in its election process. Australia Won 5th Consecutive Champions Trophy Hockey On 8 December Australia won fifth Consective Champions Trophy Hockey after defeated Netherlands in Melbourne.The bronze medal was claimed by Pakistan after they beated India on 9 december.

Indian Wrestlers Won Nine Gold Medals in Copa Brasil Tournament The Indian wrestling contingent finished with a haul of nine gold and four bronze medals in the recent Copa Brasil-2012 tournament held at Rio in December 2012. Magnus Carlsen won the 4th London Chess Classic Tournament On 10 December Norways chess ace Magnus Carlsen won the 4th London Chess Classic Tournament in London .Carlsen defeated the World Champion Viswanathan Anand in the final round and claim the winners trophy.Kramnik is second place , Adams and Hikaru Nakamura share the third place and Viswanathan Anand fifth place. India Won Blind Cricket T20 World Cup India won the first T20 world cup for the Blind .In the final on 13 December 2012 India defeated the Pakistan by 29-runs.India did well to clinch the first ever blind cricket T20 World Cup on the home soil. India Won the World Cup Kabaddi Tournament 2012 India won the 3rd World Cup Kabaddi Tournament for the third consecutive time in the Mens category and second consecutive time in the Womens category on15 December 2012. Indian men defeated the Pakistan and India Women defeated the Malaysia in the finals held at the Guru Nanak Dev Stadium in Ludhiana. Jeev Honoured with Asia Pacific Lifetime Achievement Award Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh (in pic) won the Asia Pacific Lifetime Achievement award along with Jack Nicklaus and Colin Montgomerie on 15 December 2012. China Claimed All Titles at Junior World TT Championship On 16 December China claimed the all titles at Volkswagen 2012 World Junior Table Tennis Championship after it won girls as well as boys trophies. Girls Singles : Zhu Yuling, Girls Doubles: Gu Yuting and Zhu Yuling, Boys Singles : Fan Zhendong, Boys Doubles : Gu Ruochen and Lin Gaoyuan, Mixed Doubles : Zhendong and Liu Gaoyang. Federer & Nicola named Swiss Athletes of the Year 2012

Tennis star Roger Federer was named Swiss male athlete of the year at the 2012 Credit Suisse Sports Awards on 16 December in Zurich.Federer received the honour for the fifth time. The female Athlete of the year was Nicola Spirig, the Olympic triathlon champion of Switzerland. England Won Test Series On 17 December The last test match between India and England of the Tournament England Tour to India ended up as a draw and with this India lost the four-test match cricket series against England .With this win England succeeded in ending a 28 year long wait of winning a test series on Indian Soil. Syed Rahim Nabi Named AIFF Player of the Year 2012 Syed Rahim Nabi has been named the AIFF (All India Football Federation) Player of the Year, 2012 on 20 December. Sachin Retired From One Day Cricket On 23 December Sachin Tendulkar announced retirement from one day cricket. Sachin scored 18426 runs in 463 one-day matches and also made 49 hundreds in the one-day format, including a double hundred which is the first in this form of cricket and 96 half centuries. He became the first cricketer to score a double century in the history of One Day international Cricket against South Africa in February 2010.Tendulkar scored his 100th international century on 16 March 2012 against Bangladesh, where he scored 114 runs. Kashyap Won First Grand Prix Title Kashyap Parupalli defeated Thailands Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk in a tight three game match to take his first Grand Prix title at the Shaheed Dr. KL Garg, Syed Modi India Grand Prix Gold 2012. Apurvi Chandela Won Air Rifle Gold On 24 December Apurvi Chandela of Rajasthan won Womens Air Rifle Gold in the Sahara 56th National Shooting Championship.Former champion and National record holder, Pournima clinched the bronze. Djokovic won World Tennis Championship

On 29 December Spanish tennis player Novak Djokovic won World Tennis Championship final after defeated Nicolas Almagro in Abu Dhabi. Vijay Won Gold in National Shooting Championship London Olympics silver medallist Vijay Kumar 30 december 2012 clinched the gold medal in the mens rapid fire pistol event at the 56th National Shooting Championship in New Delhi. McGrath inducted into Hall of Fame The ICC announced on 30 December 2012 that McGrath, who took more Test wickets (563) than any other fast bowler and holds the record for most wickets in World Cups (71), will be inducted as the 68th male player in the International Cricket Councils Hall of Fame.

ECONOM The ADB cut Indias Growth Forecast to 5.4 percent The Asian Development Bank (ADB) cut Indias growth forecast to 5.4 per cent in 2012-13 fiscal, barely two months after it had made a projection of 5.6 per cent growth for the Asias third largest economy. Indias growth forecast is revised from 5.6 per cent to 5.4 per cent in fiscal year 2012 and from 6.7 per cent to 6.5 per cent in FY 2013. Rich Gulf Families Own Wealth Worth USD 1.2 Trillion According to the KFH-Research report said one million wealthy families in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries own investment assets worth about USD 1.2 trillion.The report about wealth and funds management said that the worlds population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) grew by a marginal 0.8 per cent year on year to 11 million in 2011. India Economy Would Dominate the Economy of the World by 2030 US intelligence counsel was released report on 10 December 2012 declared that India would straddle international commerce and will also dominate the economy of the whole world by 2030. IOC Retains Top in Fortune 500 India List

Government owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is ranked as the largest company in terms of revenue, the Fortune 500 list of Indian companies for 2012 . In this list Indian Oil Corporation got the first place with a fullyear revenue of Rs 4,202 billion, Reliance Industries Limited got the second place with a full-year revenue of Rs 3,675 billion and Bharat Petroleum Corporation got the third place with a full -year revenue of Rs 2,148 billion Indias Lost $123 bn in Black Money According to the report of Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 20012010, released by Global Financial Integrity (GFI) India lost $123 billion in black money during 2001-2010. However Indias loss is far less than that of China, which according to the report suffered a loss of $ 2.74 trillion during the same period (2001 to 2010). India is the eighth largest victim of black money loses. India Lags Several Nations in Per Capita Income India is lagging behind several countries in per capita income due to different levels of development and various other factors, the central government was informed on 19 December. Indias per capita GDP on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis was $3,403 in 2010 and is estimated at $3,662.69 in 2011 and $3,851.31 in 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Canadian Scientists Created Artificial Brain Software engineers as well as neuroscientists at University of Waterloo, Canada claimed that they have developed a closest model of the functioning human brain, known as Spaun which is advanced enough for passing the basic IQ tests. This is the virtual brain which functions on the supercomputer and comprises of a digital eye, which can be used for visual input. It also has the robotic arm which can be used for drawing the response. Voyager 1 Drifts Into Unknown Region of Space NASAs Voyager 1 spacecraft has discovered a new layer of the solar system that scientists hadnt known was there, researchers announced on 4 December 2012. Voyager 1, in particular, has entered a new region

of the heliosphere that scientists are calling a magnetic highway, which allows charged particles from inside the heliosphere to flow outward, and particles from the galaxy outside to come in. New Anti-HIV Gel for HIV Transmission Researchers led by Dereuddre-Bosquet from the European Combined Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Microbicides (CHAARM) Consortium describe the gels key ingredient, which are small peptides engineered to present a decoy to bind up the virus and prevent it from entering and infecting the body cells. Because this is a gel it can be topically applied and could represent a powerful preventative agent against sexual transmission of HIV. Bosquet and colleagues engineered peptides named miniCD4s because they mimic the CD4 receptor used by HIV to gain entry into immune cells of the body. NASA to Send New Rover to Mars in 2020 NASA was announced plans to send a new robotic explorer to the the Red Planet, Mars in 2020. 7 Planets Discovered In The Milky Way New York Scientists have been discovered Seven planets in the Milky Way outside our solar system that could potentially harbour life and researchers from an ambitious project to catalogue all habitable worlds claim. Russia Delivered MiG-29 Fighter Jets to India Russia on 10 December 2012 delivered the first three upgraded MiG29UPG fighter jets to India under a USD 900 million contract to modernise the ageing fleet of MiG-29 aircraft with the IAF. Tata Group Developed new Artillery Gun On 11 December In a step towards developing the indigenous private sector defence industry, the Tata group has created a new Artillery Gun. The 155mm 52 calibre gun developed by the Tata group is likely to have a strike range of 52 kms, which would probably be the longest in the Indian inventory. India Successfully Test Fired Agni-I Ballistic Missile

India on 12 December 2012 successfully test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile with a strike range of 700 km from a test range off Odisha coast. Weighing 12 tonnes, the 15metre-long Agni-I, which is capable of carrying payloads up to 1000 kg and destroy the targets at a distance of 700 km. North Korea Launched Unha-3 Rocket On 12 December North Korea launched a long-range rocket Unha-3 despite international opposition and growing tensions in the region successfully delivering a scientific satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 into orbit.Unha-3 is the second version of satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 which is successfully lifted off from the Sohae Space Center by carrier rocket.The US and its allies view the launch as a disguised test of ballistic missile technology. NASAs Twin Probes Crashed Successfully onto Lunar Mountain Ebb and Flow, the gravity mapping satellites of NASA ended the successful mission to Moon by crashing on the rim of crater. Lunar surface on which Ebb and Flow crashed will be given a name after Sally Ride, the first woman of America in the space who died earlier in 2012. Rocket with 3 Astronauts Takes off for ISS A Soyuz spacecraft carrying three astronauts took off atop a towering Russian rocket on 19 December 2012, headed for the International Space Station.It launched from Russias manned-space facility in the frigid steppes of Kazakhstan. American Tom Marshburn, Russian Roman Romanenko and Canadian Chris Hadfield are travelled in capsule. Prithvi-II Flight- Tested Successfully The Strategic Forces Command (SFC) successfully flight-tested nuclear weapons-capable Prithvi-II missile from Chandipur, off the Odisha coast on 20 December 2012. The surface-to-surface ballistic missile, was fired from a road mobile launcher and tested for its full range of 350 km.The single-stage, liquid propelled missile can carry a payload of 500 kg. Astra Missile Successfully Test-fired

India on December 2012 test launched its indigenously developed beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air interceptor missile Astra at the interim test range(ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha.Astra which has the capability to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft at a supersonic speed can be fitted into any fighter aircraft. Considered as one of the best of its kind in the world, the 3.8 metre long missile which weighs about 160 kg can carry explosive loaded conventional warheads up to 15 kg. Scientists Discovered Mini Nile River on Saturns Moon Titan Nasa scientists had spotted the longest extraterrestrial river system ever on Saturns moon Titan and it appears to be a miniature version of Earths Nile river. Higgs Boson Tops Journal Sciences 2012 List The discovery of the Higgs Boson, an invisible particle that explains the mystery of mass, leads a list of the top 10 scientific advances of 2012 released by the US journal Science on 22 December . America Launched Reusable Rockets US California based SpaceXs industry successfully launched Grasshopper reusable rockets.The rocket took a giant leap for commercial space flight and when it rose 131 feet and landed safely back on Earth. Grasshopper rocket rose to a height of 131 feet around ten storeys and hovered before landing safely on its launch pad using closed loop thrust vector and throttle control. Hot Spots For Worlds more Powerful Earthquakes Revealed The locations of where the worlds largest earthquakes are most likely to take place had pinpointed with greater accuracy than ever before, by researchers from the University of Sydney.The coasts of Southern Chile and Peru, Indonesias Sumatra Island, and several regions along the eastern Eurasian coastline, are some of the regions prone to great earthquakes.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) APPOINTMENTS

Visually-challenged Indian-American in key US post On 1 December Obama administration was appointed a visuallychallenged Indian-American Sachin Dev Pavithran as a Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board member. Ajit Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajith Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra deputy chief minister on 7 December. After getting the clean chit from the government on corruption in irrigation projects. Chautala Elected as IOA President Abhay Singh Chautala was on December 2012 unanimously elected president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) while Lalit Bhanot became the new secretary general. Parthasarathy Shome Appointed Adviser to Finance Minister The government of India appointed tax expert Parthasarthi Shome as adviser to Finance Minister P Chidambaram with minister of state rank, sending a strong signal that tax reforms may top its economic agenda in the remainder of the UPA governments second term. Malalas Father Ziauddin Yousufzai Appointed UN Education Adviser Ziauddin Yousufzai, the father of 15-year-old Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who was shot by the Taliban for advocating girls right to education, has been appointed as Special UN Adviser on Global Education on 10 December. Vijay Kumar appointed Senior Security Adviser in Home Ministry The Union government had appointed the former Director-General of the Central Reserve Police Force, K. Vijay Kumar, as Senior Security Adviser in the Home Ministry where he will advise on security and development in the Naxal-affected States. Vinod Rai Re-elected as Chair of UN Auditors Panel Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai was reelected Chair of the (UN) auditors Panel for the year 2013, while the

CAG of the United Kingdom, Amyas Morse, was re-elected the vicechair of the Panel. Naina Lal Kidwai Becomes First Woman President of FICCI Country Head of HSBC India, Naina Lal Kidwai, took over as President of FICCI on 15 December 2012. She become the first woman to head the leading industry body. Rita Singh Elected Federation of Indian Associations President Rita Singh, an Indian American businesswoman from Bihar was elected the first woman president of Chicago-based Federation of Indian Associations (FIA). Subhash Joshi Appointed As New BSF Chief Subhash Joshi was appointed as the new chief of Border Security Force (BSF) on 18 December 2012. Chadha, Special Secretary was appointed as Director General of ITBP(Indo-Tibetan Border Police). Obama Nominates John Kerry to be Secretary of State The senior senator John Kerry was nominated as Americas Foreign Minister by President Barack Obama on 21 December 2012.The John Kerry, who is the senior Senator from Massachusetts, now he became the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Smita Singh Appointed as member of Global Development Council On 22 December The Obama administration has appointed IndianAmerican Smita Singh as member of the presidents Global Development Council. Virbhadra Singh Sworn in as Himachal Pradeshs Chief Minister On 25 December Former Union Minister Virbhadra Singh was sworn-in as Himachal Pradeshs chief minister for a record sixth term in Shimla. He was Chief Minister five times between 1983 and 1985; 1985 and 1990; 1993 and 1998 and 2003 and 2007. Narendra Modi Sworn in Gujarat CM for 4th time

Narendra Modi sworn in as Gujarat chief minister for the fourth consecutive time on 26 December 2012. He was sworn in along with seven ministers of Cabinet rank and nine ministers of state. Cyrus Mistry took charge as Tata Group Chairman Cyrus Mistry, the new chairman of the Tata Group, took charge of his office on 31 December.Mistry is the sixth chairman of the Tata empire.

b) RESIGNS

Mali Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra Resigned On 11 December Malian Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra resigned and dissolved his government after he was arrested by the army in the West African nation.He was acting Prime Minister of Mali from April 2012 Singapore Parliament Speaker Resigned Singapores parliament speaker Michael Palmer announced his resignation on 12 December 2012 over an extramarital affair with a staff member of the Peoples Association, a statutory body leading efforts to reach out to members of the public. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Resigned Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman formally submitted his resignation on 16 December 2012 due to a pending indictment against him for fraud and breach of trust. Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Resigned On 16 December Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda resigned from his post to take responsibility for his Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) defeat in Lower House Election .He was formally appointed by the Emperor on 2 September 2011. c) DEATHS

Geophysicist Devendra Lal Died Devendra Lal, geophysicist and visiting professor at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) of the university of california, has died on 1 December in San Diego.He was conferred with Padma Shri in 1971. Devendra Lal also won NASA Group Achievement Award. Worlds Oldest Woman and Tallest Woman Both Died Besse Cooper, the woman listed as the worlds oldest person was died on 4 December 2012 in Georgia at the age of 116. Meanwhile, a Chinese woman, Yao Defen, was certified as the tallest in the world was also died. Mrs Cooper was declared the worlds oldest person in January 2011.Chinese woman Yao Defen was listed as the worlds tallest woman by Guinness World Records in 2010. Jazz Pianist & Composer Dave Brubeck Died On 5 December Legendary Jazz composer and pianist Dave Brubeck died in Norwalk. He had also won various awards during his career which spanned over six decades.The Library of Congress designated him as the Living Legend. British Astronomer Sir Patrick Moore Died British astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore on 9 December 2012 in Selsey, West Sussex.Sir Patrick presented the BBC programme The Sky At Night for over 50 years, making him the longest-running host of the same television show ever. Ex-Bangladesh President Ahmed Died Former Bangladeshi President and Bangladesh Nationalist Party(BNP) leader Iajuddin Ahmed passed away on 10 December 2012. Iajuddin Ahmed was the 13th president of Bangladeshserving from Sept. 6, 2002 until Feb. 12, 2009. Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar Died Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar, whose mastery over the sitar helped rejuvenate the classical instrumental tradition in India and popularise Indian music in the West through concerts and collaborations with well known artists, died in San Diego, U.S. on 11 December 2012.

Former Ranji Cricketer Nimbalkar Died Former Ranji cricketer B B Nimbalkar was passes away on 11 December 2012. BB Nimbalkar, who made an unbeaten 443 runs for Maharashtra against Kathiawar in a Ranji Trophy match in 1948-49. Yet this is the Indias highest scorer in first-class cricket. First CM of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami Passed Away The first Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami died at Dehra Dun on 12 December 2012.He worked as a first Chief Minister of Uttarakhand after dividing it from Uttar Pradesh in 2000. Barcode Co-inventor Woodland Died Norman Joseph Woodland, who co-created the barcode, was died on 9 December 2012 in New Jersey at the age of 91. Woodland was the coinventor of bar code. He as well as his partner Bernard Silver (who died in 1963) patented this idea of bar code back in 1952. Guinness Worlds Oldest Person Dina Manfredini Died Dina Manfredini (115 Years) the worlds oldest person and a resident of Iowa, has died on 17 December in Johnston .Guinness World Records identified Manfredini as the worlds oldest person on December 5, a day after the death of 116-year-old Besse Cooper of Georgia. Former India Volleyball Captain Tilakam Gopal Died Tilakam Gopal, former India captain died on 18 December 2012. Mr.Gopals achievements was being member of the silver medal winning Indian squad in the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games and even led India in the five-Test series against the visiting Russians in 1966 which later on helped him to continue be captain in the Bangkok ASIAD in 1966 where India stood fourth. Hockey Legend Leslie Claudius Died Legendary hockey player and one of Indias greatest Olympians Leslie Claudius, passed away in Kolkata on 20 December 2012. India won the silver medal in the Asian Games in 1978 in Bangkok, when he was the team manager.He got the Padma Shree award in 1971. Former England Cricket Team Captain Tony Greig Died

Tony Greig, the South Africa-born cricketer who became England cricket team captain and later continued to make his mark on the game as a revered commentator in Australia, died on 29 December 2012.He played 58 tests for England and scored 3,599 runs at an average of 40.43 and took 141 wickets at 32.20. d) VISITORS Palestinian Hamas leader Meshaal Visited Gaza The political leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal has visited Gaza on 6 December .He attended a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the founding of Hamas and a victory celebration .He visited southern Gaza strip through Egypts Rafah border crossing over for the first time in 45 years. Ukrainian President Yanukovych Visited India Viktor Yanukovych the President of Ukrainian visited India from 9th to 12th December. During this visit he signed 5 agreements .He met Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan and the both nations discussed ways to improve bilateral relations. Pak Minister Rehman Malik Visited India Pakistans Interior Minister Rehman Malik visited India from 14th to 16th December .During the visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and both nations signed on new visa agreement. Russian President Putin Visited India Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India on 24 December .During the visit he met Manmohan Singh in New Delhi and signed a series of pacts on defense cooperation and reached consensus to develop economic and trade relations.Putin last visited India as prime minister in 2010. e) MISCELLANEOUS China Launched First High Speed Train in Extremely Cold Areas The worlds first high-speed train in areas with extremely low temperature started operation in China 01 December 2012.This train

move with a speed of 350 Kmph in the areas of minus 40 degrees temperature. This is the fastest train world in this areas. Forbes 2012 Most Powerful Persons List On 6 December 2012 Forbes Magazine released the most powerful persons list in the world. In that list AICC President Sonia Gandhi got the 12th place and Prime Minister of India Man Mohan Singh got the 20th place. As usually this year also American President Barack Obama got 1st place. German chancellor Angela Merkel got the 2nd place. The list also includes Russian President Vladimir Putin at number three, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates (4), Richest Person in India Mukesh Ambani (37). Mumbai Among Worlds Dirtiest Cities Indias commercial capital, Mumbai, was named among the worlds dirtiest cities, ranking last in the cleanest streets category, a global survey of 40 key tourist cities has found. According to TripAdvisors Cities Survey, Tokyo grabbed the first place while Mumbai ranked last in the list of cleanest streets. Jiroemon Kimura named Worlds Oldest Person On 18 December Jiroemon Kimura (115 years) has been named the worlds oldest person after the death of his predecessor, an American woman named Dina Manfredini who died on 17 December after receiving the title of oldest person of the world.Jiroemon Kimura was born on 19 April 1897 and is just 15 days younger than the deceased Dina Manfredini. Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo (USA) Miss USA Olivia Culpo is crowned Miss Universe 2012 on 19 December 2012, on the Las Vegas. Miss Philippines, Janine Tugonon, came in second, while Miss Venezuela, Irene Sofia Esser Quintero, placed third. Obama is Times Person of the Year President Barack Obama had been named Time magazines Person of the Year for 2012 on 19 December 2012. Obama also received the honour in 2008. 8 Indians Among Worlds Best Performed CEOs

Eight Indian CEOs have made it to the list of 100 best performing global chief executives, compiled by Harvard Business Review (HBR). Deveshwar was first among the Indian CEOs featured in this list, and cornered the seventh place overall.Former chairman and MD, ONGC Subir Raha (Rank 13).Chairman and CEO, Reliance Industries, Mukesh Ambani (Rank 28).Chairman and Managing Director, Larsen & Toubro, AM Naik (Rank 32). Former CMD, Bharat Heavy Electricals, AK Puri (Rank 38). Chairman, Bharti Airtel, Sunil Bharti Mittal (Rank 65). CEO, Jindal Steel & Power, Naveen Jindal (Rank 87). Former Chairman, SAIL,VS Jain (Rank 89). Former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs (Rank 1). CEO, Amazon.com CEO, Jeff Bezos (Rank 2). China Launched Worlds Longest High-Speed Rail China launched service on the worlds longest high-speed railway on 26 December 2012 with trains scheduled to run 2,298 kilometres between Beijing and Guangzhou in about eight hours.Travelling at an average speed of about 300 km per hour, the service would cut the journey time from more than 20 hours by conventional trains.

PLACES IN NEWS Typhoon Bopha Killed Hundreds in Philippines Bopha, the strongest typhoon hit the Philippines on 5 December 2012, was left at least 325 died. The typhoon with central winds of 115 kph and gusts of up to 145 kph was moved to west-northwest of the central Philippines on 6 December 2012. Powerful Earthquake in Japan The powerful earthquake had occurred in Japan on 7 December 2012.The magnitude of this earthquake was recorded as 7.3. This earthquake had occurred in 240 km beyond the Miyagi coast in the Pacific Oceanin a depth of 10m.

ABBREVIATIONS UNFCCC - United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

WCCB TRAI SCI NSC OIL GAAR NCHRH IOA GCC NDAA INAE ITSMA GTI

Wildlife Crime Control Bureau Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Shipping Corporation of India National Security Council Oil India Limited General Anti Avoidance Rules National Council for Human Resources in Health Indian Olympic Association Gulf Cooperation Council National Defence Authorisation Act Indian National Academy of Engineering Information Technology Services Marketing Association

Global Terrorism Index

BOOKS IN NEWS The Peak Book Released on Sachin Tendulkar On 2 December Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh was launched Sachin Tendulkars new book named The Peak which is a unique photographed story on Tendulkar by photo-journalist Suman Chattopadhyay. The book captures some rare and memorable moments of Tendulkars life through Chattopadhyays lens and the stories behind them in the masters own words Pankaj, Bengals Forgotten Hero Book Released On 3 December Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar and former India captain Sourav Ganguly released a book on former India opener Late Pankaj Roy named Pankaj, Bengals Forgotten Hero has been written by Bengali sports journalist Gautam Bhattacharya. Pankaj Roy had

played 43 Tests for India in a span of 10 years scoring 2442 runs with five centuries. My Tryst with Justice Book Released On 12 December President Pranab Mukherjee released a book My Tryst with Justice which was written by Former Chief Justice P.N.Bhagwati .The book would be a prized possession for every Indian who wants to make a difference to the world and who aspires for a world more just, he added. M.S. Subbulakshmi Queen of Carnatic Music Book Launched The life story of carnatic music legend M.S. Subbulakshmi, the first musician to be conferred the Bharat Ratna, is now detailed in a graphic illustrated book launched on December. The story of the nightingale of carnatic music, fondly known as MS. It is being told through Amar Chitra Kathas new title M S Subbulakshmi Queen of Carnatic Music

COMMITTEES Usha Thorat Committee for NBFCs Indias majority of Non-Banking Finance companies (NBFCs) may be freed from the regulatory clutches provided Reserve Bank of India (RBI) implements one of the recommendations made by Usha Thorat Committee. The committee had submitted its recommendations to RBI. Currently, those recommendations are under RBIs consideration. Chandrashekhar Committee to Frame Rules for Foreign Investors On 13 December The market regulator Sebi has appointed a committee under ex-Cabinet secretary K M Chandrashekhar to frame a single set of guidelines for all types of foreign investors.The committee will suggest ways to simplify the investment process for all overseas entities like foreign institutional investors, foreign venture capital investors (FVCIs), qualified financial, institutional investors (QFIs)

IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES Feb 4 Feb 20 Feb 21 Feb 22 Feb 22 Feb 23 Feb 24 Feb 28 World Cancer Day World Day of Social Justice International Mother Tongue Day World Scout Day World Thinking Day World Peaces and Understanding Day Central Excise Tax Day National Science Day

January 2013 Current Affairs Study Material Palestinian Authority to be Named State of Palestine On 7 January Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has signed a decree changing the name of the Palestinian Authority to the State of Palestine," according to the organizations official news agency. Pakistani Supreme Court Orders Arrest of Prime Minister On 15 January 2013 Pakistans Supreme Court ordered the arrest of the prime minister in connection with a corruption case linked to power projects. The Supreme Court gave authorities 24 hours to arrest Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and 16 others.This is the first in the history of Pakistan to arrest a Prime Minister. The orders of the Court came following the allegations in connection with a corruption case linked to power projects, done during his office of the Water and Power Minister. Obama Signed 23 Executive Orders on Gun Safety On 16 January President Barack Obama announced 23 executive actions on gun control laws, making them stricter,which would come into effect immediately after his signatures. One of these measures include

requiring the target shooters to keep their guns locked and also to ban military-style assault weapons, high capacity magazine as well as to make the background check mandatory.Obama announced that this was his attempt to keep children safe, keeping in view the massacre of Newtown where 20 first grade children along with six adults were killed. 140 Nations Agreed On Global Mercury Limits On 19 January , More than 140 nations have agreed on the first legally binding treaty to curb mercury pollution.Delegates at UN discussed in Geneva approved measures to control the use of the highly toxic metal, which is widely used in chemical production and small-scale mining, in order to limit mercury emissions.The governments agreed to ban the production, export and import of a range of products containing mercury by 2020.The treaty has been discussed for four years, but it is only now that the negotiators agreed over the final version of the document. The treaty, known as the Minamata Convention on Mercury, provides controls and reductions across a range of products and processes where mercury is used, released and emitted. Milos Zeman Elected as Czech Republic new President On 25 January A leftist candidate Milos Zeman won the Czech Republics first presidential election decided by direct vote.Milos Zeman, a former prime minister and head of the Citizens Rights Party, won with 54.8% of the vote.He defeated Karel Schwarzenberg, an aristocratic foreign minister with the TOP09 party, who garnered 45.2%.Zeman replaces Vaclav Klaus, who must step down after serving the maximum of two terms.

INDIA & WORLD India Pakistan Exchanged Nuclear Units Lists On 1 January India and Pakistan exchanged their nuclear units lists , as it is customary since 20 years. The list which contains the names of nuclear units of two countries, are exchanged between India and Pakistan as a custom and part of an agreement which prevents them from aiming the nuclear installations of each others nations. Thousands of illegal Indian Migrants in UK

According to a 2012 UK Home Office report, India has been named along with Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Vietnam, Brazil and Iran as the main sources of illegal immigration to Britain.What the report does not mention is how many of the 863,000 illegal migrants that it says are living in the UK are students. This is a contentious area because critics of the coalition government claim it is counting students among overall immigrants. World Economic Forums Global Risks Report According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) report , India ranks lowest among the worlds major economies for its preparedness to tackle global environmental risks and second-lowest for economic risks.Switzerland is best placed among the worlds 10 major economies for adapting to or recovering from global economic and environmental risks.While India is ranked 9th in terms of its ability to tackle global economic risks, it comes last at 10th position for environmental risks.However, India fared relatively better at 6th position in terms of the governments risk management effectiveness.The US and China were ranked fourth and fifth respectively. Indians Top the List of Working in Dream Jobs According to survey conducted by networking website LinkedIn,Indians have emerged at the top of the list of people working in their dream job.The dream job league table:1. India 44 percent 2. Indonesia 42 percent 3. United Arab Emirates 35.7 percent 4. Germany 33 percent 5. Brazil 32 percent 6. Austria 31 percent 7. Switzerland 30 percent 8. USA 29 percent 9. France, Canada, Sweden, South Africa 28 percent 13. Singapore, Hong Kong 27 percent 15. Australia 26 percent 16. New Zealand 25 percent 17. UK 21 percent India Vietnam Signed on Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises On 15 January India and Vietnam signed an MoU aimed at building capacity for developing institutional framework and identifying thrust areas and opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises in this country.The MoU was signed here between the Ministry of Planning and Investments of Vietnam and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) of India . India and Sri Lanka signed Anti-terror, Tax evasion Agreements

On 22nd January India and Sri Lanka signed two separate agreements on combating international terrorism and avoidance of double taxation, eyeing elevation of robust bilateral ties to building of a special economic partnership.The two key accords were signed after the 8th India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission meeting held at New Delhi , both countries discussed enhanced cooperation in a range of areas including civil nuclear energy.At the meeting, the Indian side was led by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid while the Lankans were led by his counterpart G.L. Peiris.During the meet, both the parties also decided setting up of the Special Economic Zone at Trincomali and a textile and pharmaceutical cluster in Sri Lanka. International Tea Producers Forum formed On 22 January India, along with five other tea producing countries, has formed the International Tea Producers Forum (ITPF) at Colombo.Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry D Purandesari signed the joint communique on behalf of India along with representatives of Kenya, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Rwanda and Malawi in Colombo.The ITPF will initially be an independent body but in future may get affiliated to Food & Agriculture Organisation of United Nations. India , Bangladesh Signed Extradition and Visa Agreements On 28 January Bangladesh and India signed an extradition treaty and struck a deal to relax business visa restrictions between the neighbouring countries. However, refusal provisions were incorporated into the extradition treaty.Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde signed the agreement with his Bangladeshi counterpart Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir at the end of their bilateral talks. India Dropped to 140th Rank in Press Freedom According to the report Reporters Without Borders India has dropped nine places to the 140th rank in the list of 179 countries in the latest World Press Freedom Index.China (173rd, +1) shows no sign of improving. Its prisons still hold many journalists and netizens, while increasingly unpopular Internet censorship continues to be a major obstacle to access information.As last year, the list is topped by three European countries Finland, Netherlands and Norway.Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea continue to be at the bottom of the list as has been in the last three years.

NATIONAL Govt Launched Direct Cash Transfer Scheme in 20 Districts On 1 January 2013 The government launched its scaled down Cash Transfer Benefit (CBT) in 20 districts,but food, fertiliser and fuel subsidies will not be covered in the initial phase. All 26 schemes are ready for rollout. On 1 January 2013 the seven schemes in which payout is due in the (20 selected) districts, the money will be transferred through the direct benefit transfer system using the UIDAI platform.The scheme is going to be rolled out in 43 districts by 1 March 2013, 20 districts from January 1, 11 districts from February 1 and 12 districts from March 1. By end of 2013, the direct cash benefit transfer will be rolled out in all the districts of the country. PA Sangma launched National Peoples Party PA Sangma, who broke away with the NCP in 2012 to contest the presidential elections, though unsuccessfully, on 05 January 2013 launched National Peoples Party (NPP), and chosen a book as its symbol. Sangma has chosen to align his party with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). President Released Stamps on Swami Vivekananda On 12 January The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee released the Commemorative Postage Stamps, at the Commemoration of the 150th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, in New Delhi . Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012 On 17 January According to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012 report has found that learning levels have dipped to an alltime low. So, almost half the 6-7 year-olds (Class I) in India cannot read even one letter in any language, over 57% cannot read any English while almost 40% cannot recognize numbers between 1 and 9.The 12.8% children between Class I and V could not read a single letter while 10.7% could not recognize numbers 1 to 9. The number of children in Class V who could read Class II text fell from 53.7% in 2010 to 46.8% in 2012. In 2010, seven out of 10 children could solve a two-digit subtraction problem with borrowing. This has come down to five out of 10 in 2012. STATES

Odisha Launched Public Service Delivery System On 2 January The Odisha government launched the much-sought after Public Service Delivery System for citizens under the Odisha Right to Public Service Act, 2012.Under the new act, people will get services like issue of driving license, birth and death certificates, passport and trade license within a stipulated time.Odisha is among the 12th state to implement the law.

Haryana Government announced Kanyadan Scheme for Bride participants of Mass Marriages The Government of Haryana on 3 January 2012 announced its plan of launching a Kanyadan Scheme in the state for brides participating in the mass marriage ceremony, which would be organised by any of the registered NGO or the Red Cross Society. The scheme would carry an incentive amount of 11000 rupees and would come into effect from 1 April 2012. The incentive amount of 11000 rupees would be given to brides from all castes, creeds, race, religion and the income category to which the girl belongs. Arunachal Pradesh Collaborated with NSDL for Adoption of National Pension Scheme On 9 January The state of Arunachal Pradesh entered into an agreement with signing of MoU with National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL), permitting it to work as a Central Record Keeping Agency (CRA) for adoption of the National Pension System (NPS).National Pension Scheme NPS is an initiative of the Union Government of India and Arunachal Pradesh is the 26th State to adopt it. Gujarat Tops List of Indian States on Economic Freedom Policy According to the Economic Freedom of States in India report which was released by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor and present Rajya Sabha Member Bimal Jalan.The top state in India in (terms of) economic freedom in 2011 was western Indian state Gujarat. It displaced southern Indian state Tamil Nadu which had been at the top in 2009.Gujarat freedom index has been rising fast and estimated at 0.64 points. The biggest improvement has been registered by Madhya Pradesh with freedom index score rose from 0.42 in 2009 to 0.56 in 2011 enabling it to move up from sixth to third position.

Assembly polls in Tripura,Meghalaya and Nagaland on Febrauary Assembly elections in Tripura will be held on February 14 and in Meghalaya and Nagaland on February 23 and their results will be out on February 28, the Election Commission announced on 10 January 2013.The EC also announced byelections to nine assembly constituencies in Mizoram, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab on February 23 and in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra on February 24, but their results will be out together on February 28. Presidents Rule Imposed on Jharkhand On 18 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India imposed Presidents Rule in Jharkhand under Article 356(1) of the Constitution.The Presidents Rule for the third time since its formation 12 years ago.The decision came as a follow up of the recommendation made by the Union Cabinet of India and fall of the state machinery in form of Government on 8 January after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha the supporting party to BJP led Coalition Government withdrew its support from it. The state was placed under Presidents Rule in 2009 and 2010. Three New High Courts for North East The Centre has constituted three new High Courts in the northeast Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura taking the total number of High Courts in the country from 21 to 24.According to Law Ministry sources, the strength of judges in each High Court will be as follows: Tripura 4 (including the Chief Justice), and Meghalaya and Manipur: three each (including the Chief Justice).

CONFERENCES 100th Indian Science Congress held in Kolkata The 100th Indian Science Congress was held from 3 to 7 January in Kolkata (West Bengal) .The theme of the session is Science for Shaping the Future of India .The session was inaugurated by Pranab Mukherjee the President of India .In the session Prime Minister Manmohan Singh released The Science, Technology and Innovation Policy(STI) 2013 .On 4 January Former President Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam inaugurated a Children Science Congress as part of the 100th Indian Science Congress .The 100th Indian Science Congress

(ISC 2013) is also organized a special programme Women empowerment for the development of the country to showcase the contribution of women in science and technology.This is the 13th time the Indian Science Congress is being hosted by Kolkata 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) was held from 7- 9 January at Kochi (Kerala).Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag was the chief guest of this official inaugural session.2000 delegates from 40 countries attended the convention.The theme for this years Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is Engaging Diaspora the Indian Growth Story.On 7th January in the event they discussed on problems that people from Kerala face in the region.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will inaugurated the annual flagship event and released the postage stamp on Ghadar Movement on 8 January and President Pranab Mukherjee will delivered the valedictory address on January 9 and also presented the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards.Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on January 9 every year to mark the contribution of overseas Indian community in the development of India.The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, the first of its kind involving the Indian Diaspora, was held in 2003 at New Delhi. Fourth Meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Ministers held in Vientiane The Fourth meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Minister (4th M-ATM+ India) was held in Vientiane, Lao PDR from 21 to January in conjunction with the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2013 (ATF2013).The Meeting was jointly co-chaired by H.E. Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR, and H.E. Dr. K. Chiranjeevi, Minister for Tourism, Government of India.In the meeting Both the Ministers have signed the Protocol to amend the Memorandum of Understanding between ASEAN and India on Strengthening Tourism Cooperation. World Economic Forum Summit Held in Davos The 43rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting held from 23 27 January at Davos-Klosters in Switzerland.The annual forum, which has been running for over 40 years, provides a platform for decision-makers in politics, non-governmental organisations and businesses to gather and to exchange views on the worlds most pressing problems.The World Economic Forum (WEF) unites international political leaders,

business leaders and journalists from across the globe to discussed and shape global, regional and industrial agendas with regards to economics, health and the environment.The WEF was founded in 1971 as a non-profit organization by the German Klaus Schwab, a business professor at the University of Geneva.

AWARDS & HONOURS Malala won 2012 Tipperary International Peace Award On 3 January Malala Yousafzai, the teenaged Pakistani school girl shot by a Taliban gunman last year , has been awarded the 2012 Tipperary International Peace Award from Ireland for her courage and determination to speak out in support of equal access to education for children.Malala is the second Pakistani to get the award. In 2007, it was given to late Benazir Bhutto. Malala honored with the French Simone de Beauvoir Prize On 9 January Malala Yousafzai (15), the schoolgirl from Pakistan shot by Taliban for campaigning girls education, received Frances Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Womens Freedom in Paris. Malalas father Ziaudin Yousafzai received the honour on her behalf. he award is accompanied with 2.5 million RupeTes honorarium. Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award 2013 On 9 January Pranab Mukherjee President of India presented the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Awards) 2013 to 14 people, included Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi and Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag, He was also the Chief Guest of 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2013. In accordance to Tradition, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Awards) 2013 have been given to notable Indians living abroad. The other awardees are Prof Dr Gurusharan Singh Chhatwal of Germany for science, Dr Rasik Vihari Joshi (Mexico) for Literature, Gilbert Canabady Moutien (Reunion Island) and Mohammed Rabeeh Karuvanthodi (Saudi Arabia) for business, Patricia Maria Rozario(UK) for Music, Dr Narendra Ramakrishna Kumar (USA) for Healthcare, Subash Razdan (USA) and Islmail Ebrahim (South Afrcia) for Public service.

Dr Satendra Kumar Singh (New Zealand), Australia India Society of Victoria (Australia) and Bava Pandalingal (UAE), Ashok Shambhomal Vaswani (Guinea), Indian Doctors Forum, Kuwait for community service, Tan Sri Ravindran Menon from Malaysia for Community service, are among others on the list of awardees. Mamata Banerjee gets gift from PCB Overwhelmed by the hospitality at the Eden Gardens during IndiaPakistan second ODI in Kolkata, the PCB sent the gift as a silver-coated Quran to the Cricket Association of Bengal who handed it over to the CM during a function at the Netaji Indoor in Kolkata on 10 January 2013. Mahaveer Golechha Bags Award for Alzheimers Drug On 17 January The London-based Indian researcher Mahaveer Golechha, was selected to be felicitated for an award that includes his work on a drug that can be a potential cure of Alzheimers disease.In the study conducted by Golechha, he found discovered that naringin has essential anti-Alzheimer activity. 70th Golden Globe Awards 2013 On January 13 The 70th Golden Globe Awards honored the best in film and television of 2012, was presented in California . Best Film : Argo Best Actor : Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) Best Actress : Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) Best Director - Ben Affleck (Argo) Best Musical or Comedy -: Les Miserables Best Foreign Language Film : Amour Best Animated Feature Film -: Brave Krishi Karman Awards 2011- 2012 On 15 January President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Krishi Karman awards for the year 2011-12 at an award ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The awards were presented to the State

Governments for their excellent performance in increasing the production of food grains in their respective states. Awards in Different Segments :- The Awards for Special Contribution to Total Food Grains Production - Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Manipur and Nagaland - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Rice Bihar - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Wheat Haryana - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Pulses Jharkhand - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Coarse Cereals Uttar Pradesh 58th Filmfare Awards The 58th Filmfare Awards were held honoring the best films of 2012 from the Hindi-language film industry (commonly known as Bollywood). The ceremony was held on January 20, 2013 at Mumbai. Best Movie :- Barfi!

Best Actor :- Ranbir Kapoor (Film -Barfi!) Best Actress :- Vidya Balan (Film Kahaani ) Best Director :- Sujoy Ghosh (Film Kahaani ) Lifetime Achievement Award :- Yash Chopra (After Death) Prof C N R Rao awarded by Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences was awarded Prof C N R Rao, National Research Professor and Honorary President of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCAR), the prestigious International Scientific Cooperation Award 2012. The award is designed to acknowledge outstanding scientists for their contribution to science and for promoting global networking of international science cooperation.

Padma Awards 2013 President of India Approved the Conferment of 108 Padma Awards On 25 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of Union of India approved conferment of 108 Padma Awards. Four people have been conferred with Padma Vibhusan, twenty four are conferred with Padma Bhushan and 80 people would be receiving Padma Shree Awards. Out of all the awardees twenty-four are ladies and 11 people belong to categories like NRIs, PIOs, Foreigners and Posthumous awardees. Padma Vibhushan Raghunath Mohapatra, Art, Orissa S Haider Raza, Art, Delhi Prof Yash Pal, Science and Engineering, Uttar Pradesh Prof Roddam Narasimha, Science and Engineering, Karnataka Padma Bhushan Sharmila Tagore, Art, Delhi Dr (Smt) Saroja Vaidyanathan, Art, Delhi Late Rajesh Khanna, Art, Maharashtra Late Jaspal Singh Bhatti, Art, Punjab Adi Burjor Godrej, Trade and Industry, Maharashtra Prof Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Literature & Education USA Rahul Dravid, Sports, Karnataka H Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom, Sports, Manipur Padma Shri Hosanagara Nagarajegowda Girisha, Sports, Karnataka , Subedar Major Vijay Kumar, Sports, Himachal Pradesh

Yogeshwar Dutt, Sports, Haryana B Jayashree, Art, Karnataka Sridevi Kapoor, Art, Maharashtra Ramesh Gopaldas Sippy, Art, Maharashtra 359 Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced On 26 January President Pranab Mukherjee has approved awards of 359 Gallantry and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel and others on the eve of the 64th Republic Day Celebrations .This includes 01 Kirti Chakra, 11 Shaurya Chakra, 56 Sena Medal (Gallantry), 01 Bar to Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 03 Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 03 Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry), 28 Param Vishisht Seva Medal, 03 Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, 06 Bar to Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 44 Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 12 Yudh Seva Medal, 02 Bar to Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 37 Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 01 Bar to Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 07 Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 14 Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 04 Bar to Vishisht Seva Medal and 116 Vishisht Seva Medal..Major Abup J Manjali of the Rashtriya Rifles was selected for the award of Kirti Chakra for his extraordinary bravery efforts in counter- terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir. Taiwan Business Magnate Launched Tang Prize (Asian Noble Prize) On 28 January Samuel Yin , A business magnate tycoon from Taiwan has launched the Tang Prize(Asian Noble prize) for outstanding achievements in natural and social sciences.He announced that he would establish Tang Prize Foundation which would have an initial donation of 103 million dollar.Tang Prize Foundation was decided that the prizes under the Tang Prize Foundation will be awarded every alternate year to the international leaders in sustainable development, biopharmaceutical science, the rule of law as well as the study of China.

SPORTS & GAMES Kohli is CEAT International Cricketer of the Year

On 4 January Vice-captain of Indian Cricket team Virat Kohli was named the International Cricketer of the Year while Pakistan cricket team was named as the Best International Cricket Team in the 20112012 season at the CEAT cricket awards in New Delhi. Unmukt Chand, who led India to the U-19 World Cup win last year, got the inaugural Indian Youngster of the Year award.The Former Pakistan cricket captain Zaheer Abbas received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Uttarakhand won 63rd National Basketball Championship On 4 January Uttarakhand won 63rd National basketball championship mens title after defeated Punjab in the final at Ludhiana (Punjab).In the womens section, Railways won the title against by first-time finalist Tamil Nadu in the final. Tipsarevic won Chennai Open Tennis Title On 6 January Second-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia has won the ATP Chennai Open Title after defeated Roberto Bautista-Agut of Spain in the final at Chennai.Tipsarevic won the chennai open title for the first time in his career. Nicol David won World Series Squash Title On 6 January Nicol David won the World Series Squash Finals womens title after defeated Englands Laura Massaro in the final at London.In the mens final, Egypts Amr Shabana came from behind to beat Englands Nick Matthew . Australia Won Test Against Sri Lanka Australia secured a five-wicket won in the third and final Test match against Sri Lanka on 6 January at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) . Brisbane International Tennis Winners 2013 Womens Singles :Serena Williams (USA) won the WTA Brisbane International womens singles title on 5 January with a straight sets demolition of Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Mens Singles : In the Mens singles Category Andy Murray from scotland won the title after defeated Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov .

Womens Doubles : Sania Mirza and her partner Bethanie MattekSands won the womens doubles trophy by winning against Kveta Peschke and Anna-Lena Groenefeld Mens Doubles : Marcelo Melo Tommy Robredo won the doubles title after defeated Eric Butorac Paul Hanley . Pakistan won the Three Match Series On 6 January Pakistan won the three-match series by 2-1 against India.With this win over Pakistan, India lost the three matches one day series .Nasir Jamshed of Paksitan was declared as the Player of the tournament.MS Dhoni was once again chosen as the Player of the match. Lionel Messi, the man of the four Golden Balls Lionel Messi became the first four-time winner of the FIFA Player of the Year award after shattering the world record with 91 goals last year(2012) for Barcelona and Argentina.His 91 goals topped Gerd Muellers mark of 85 for Bayern Munich and Germany in 1972. Bangar quits first-class cricket Former India player and Railways captain Sanjay Bangar announced his retirement from first-class cricket after guiding his team to a 122-run victory over Bengal in the final league game of the Ranji Trophy on 01 January 2013 in Kolkata.He played 165 first class matches amassing 8342 runs at an average of 33.35 and has 300 wickets to his credit. National Table Tennis Championship Winners On 11 January Soumyajit Ghosh became the youngest national champion after he defeated six-time winner Achanta Sharath Kamal in the summit clash of the 74th National Table Tennis Championship mens singles final at Raipur.Shamini Kumaresan won the womens singles title.Sourav Chakraborty and Ganeshan Sathiyan won the doubles title.In the Women doubles category K. Spoorthy and Nikhat Banu (AP) defeated Madhurika Patkar and Pooja Sahasrabudhe in the final and got the title. Haryana girls retain U-20 hockey title

Haryana defeated Uttar Pradesh 1-0 to retain their under-20 women hockey national championship at the Gachibowli Stadium on 16 January 2013. Kerala won 61st National Volleyball Championship Title On 16 January Kerala defeated Tamilnadu to retain the mens title in the 61st Senior National Volleyball Championship at the Sawai Man Singh Indoor Stadium in Jaipur.In the womens section, Railways defeated Kerala and won the title in the final. Malaysian Open Badminton Championship Winners Mens Singles: Lee Chong Wei (Indonesia) won the Mens singles title after defeated Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the final at Kuala Lumpur on 20 January. Mens Doubles: Mohd Ahsan (Indonesia) -Hendra Setiawan (China) defeated Ko Sung-hyun-Lee Yong-dae (Malaysia) in the final. Womens Singles: Tai Tzu-ying (Thailand) won the womens singles title after defeated Yao Xue (Korea) Womens Doubles: In the event Bao Yixin-Tian Qing (China) won the title after defeated Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi (Japan) Lalith Babu takes top honours Lalith Babu defeated Swapnil Dhopade in the final round to clinch the Chennai Super Kings International Grandmaster chess tournament that concluded at the Nehru Stadium in Chennai on 23 January 2013.Lalith Babu won Rs.200,000 and the trophy after becoming the first Indian player to claim the Chennai Open Australian Open Tennis Tournament 2013 Winners Womens Singles :- Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won the Womens Singles title of the Australian Open Tennis tournament after defeated Li Na of China in the final at Melbourne on 26 January . Mens Singles:- Novak Djokovic (Serbia) has won the mens singles title after defeating Andy Murray (Britain) in four sets. This is Djokovics fourth Australian Open and over all six Grand Slam single title.

Womens Doubles:- Top seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci won the title, defeating wild cards Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua in the final. Mens Doubles : Top seeded American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan won the mens doubles title. Americans Mike and Bob Bryan won their record 13th Grand Slam doubles title, defeating the Dutch team of Robin Haase and Igor Sijsling . Magnus Carlsen Won Tata Steel Chess Championship Magnus Carlsen won Tata Steel 2013 Chess tournament title in the final at Netherlands on 27 January .In the final round tournament, he scored 10 points , winning clear first ahead of second-place finisher Aronian (Armenia).World champion Viswanathan Anand at third position. Mumbai won 40th Ranji Trophy Title On 29 January Mumbai won its 40th Ranji Trophy title against Saurashtra by an inning and 125 runs in the final at Wankhede at Mumbai .Wasim Jaffar was declared Man of the Match. Ajit Agarkar was the captain of the winning team.

ECONOMY Philippines introduced sin tax A sin tax on cigarettes and alcohol was introduced in the Philippines on 01 January 2013, as part of a government bid to boost finances.Many stores started selling tobacco and drink at inflated prices before midnight , ahead of the official implementation of the tax hikes on January 01, hitting partygoers in the pocket.Tax on cigarettes will gradually be raised to 30 pesos ($0.72) per pack by 2017, roughly doubling the current price to around 52 pesos.Duty on alcohol will also increase gradually until 2017, increasing the price of a bottle of beer by 23.50 pesos, with varying levels for other drinks including wine and spirits. LIC Launched New Jeewan Nidhi & Flexi Plus Policies The Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India launched two new Insurence policies New Jeevan Nidhi, a pension scheme, and Flexi Plus on 3 January .New Jeewan Nidhi provides the facility of insurance

coverage of full amount while the insured person keeps depositing premiums.The Flexi policy is a unit linked insurance product. The plan not only provides a lump sum benefit on death but also maturity benefit irrespective of survival of the policy holder Mukesh Ambani 18th richest man in world Indian business magnate Mukesh Ambani is the 18th richest person in the world with a personal wealth of $24.7 billion in 2012, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a daily ranking of the worlds 100 wealthiest individuals. Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim remained the worlds richest person last year holding a personal fortune of more than $70 billion.Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the founder of fashion retailer Zara, Amancio Ortega, got a second and third places respectively.

Indian Companies Top Globally in R&D Investment According to the European Commission report Indian companies have come on the top globally when it comes to growth in their research and development (R&D) investments, leaving their counterparts in the US and Europe far behind.Indian firms rank far below when it comes to absolute R&D investments made by them and the top-ranked company from the country.These are the only 14 Indian companies present in a list of top-1500 entities worldwide in terms of their annual R&D investments.The top-ranked Indian company is Infosys at 329th place and Japanese company Toyota Motor appears at the top of the ranking in the 2012 Scoreboard. IMF forecasted Indian Economic Growth Rate to be 5.9 percent in 2013 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 23 January 2013 pegged Indias economic growth rate in 2013 at 5.9 per cent and projected a higher growth of 6.4 per cent next year in line with the gradual strengthening of global expansion. World Banks Global Economic Prospects 2013 Report

According to the World Bank Global Economic Prospects 2013 report , Indias growth is expected to inch closer to that of China in near future, in which the economies of developing countries like India, China and Brazil are projected to be recovering and higher growth rate.The World Bank expects that by 2015, the growth rate of China would be 7.9% and that of India 7%.While the growth of the world economy growth is projected to inch up from 2.3% in 2012 to 2.4% in 2013, with the highincome countries remaining at the same level of growth of 1.3% in both 2012 and 2013, it is the emerging markets like India, China and Brazil that would show significant signs of recovery.They are expecting a recovery in India from 5.1% growth in 2012 to 6.1% growth in 2013. India 119th on Economic Freedom Index According to the Heritage Foundation 2013 Index of Economic Freedom survey report , India has been ranked as the 119th freest country in the world and Indias economic freedom score stood at 55.2, as its institutional shortcomings continue to undermine the foundations for long-term economic development.The top ten countries in the list include Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Switzarland, canada, Chili, Mauritius, Denmark and US. India second in steel production globally India is second only to China in terms of steel production. In the last 5 years Indias production grew by 33 percent, thus making it behind China among the top 5 steel producing nation. World Steel Association (WSA) data has revealed that Chinas production grew by 39 per cent during 2008-2012, Indias by 33 percent and Indias production grew constantly in the last five years from 57.8 MT in 2008 to 63.5 MT in 2009, 69 MT in 2010, 73.6 MT in 2011 and 76.7 MT in 2012 RBI cuts CRR, Repo Rates On 29 January The Reserve Bank of India slashed its key interest rates by 0.25 per cent and released 18000 crore rupees additional liquidity into the system to perk up growth through reduced cost of borrowing. RBI in its third quarter monetary policy review surprised the market by cutting short-term lending rate called repo, by 0.25 per cent to 7.75 per cent and Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by similar margin to 4 per cent.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

US approved First new Tuberculosis Drug On 1 January The US Food and Drug administration approved a Johnson & Johnson tuberculosis drug in 40 years .This is the first new medicine to fight the deadly infection in more than four decades.The disease is rare in the US, but kills about 1.4 million people a year worldwide. Spiral galaxy IC 2233 Astronomers had captured one of the flattest galaxies known in the universe, sitting like a silver needle in the haystack of space. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope produced a beautiful image of the spiral galaxy IC 2233, one of the flattest galaxies. The IC 2233 is located about 40 million light-years away from Earth. This galaxy was earlier discovered by British astronomer Isaac Roberts in 1894. Immune system booster may hit cancer Japanese research where stem cells were used to clone and produce large numbers of a specialized type of white blood cell. These cells, known as cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), are produced by the immune system and are able to recognize specific markers on the surface of various tumour cells, causing them to launch an attack to kill the tumour cells.The researchers are succeeded in using stem cells to massproduce CTLs in laboratory conditions. Chinese Biologists Discovered Antibiotic In Panda Blood Chinese biologists have discovered that the blood of the endangered giant panda includes a compound called Cathelicidin-AM which acts as a natural antibiotic. The nature of the blood compound makes it an attractive treatment for so-called superbugs, those strains of disease that have become immune or resistant to traditional antibiotics. India to make worlds largest solar telescope India is likely to begin construction of the worlds largest solar telescope on the foothills of the Himalayas in Ladakh to understand the fundamental processes taking place on the Sun by year-end.A 2-metre class, state-of-the-art National Large Solar Telescope (NLST), built by Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), will permit Indian scientists to carry out cutting edge research aimed to study Suns atmosphere.

Internet emits 830 mt of carbon dioxide annually According to Researchers from the Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications (CEET) and Bell Labs, Internet and other components of information communication and technology (ICT) industry annually produces more than 830 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas, and is expected to double by 2020 Lakshya Missile Successfully Tested Indias indigenously developed, Lakshya was sucessfully tested on 7 January .It was launched from the Integrated Test Range ITR, at Odisha .25 meters in length, 100 km away from the target to the missile . 17 billion Earth-sized planets in Milky Way The Milky Way contains at least 17 billion planets the size of Earth.Astronomers using NASAs Kepler spacecraft found that about 17 percent of stars in our galaxy have a planet about the size of Earth in a close orbit.The Milky Way is known to host about 100 billion stars, meaning that about one of every six has an Earth-sized planet around it. Brahmos cruise missile test fired in successfully Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos scored once again in its 34th launch on 09 January 2013 off Visakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal, hitting a decommissioned vessel with accuracy.As it took off vertically from a naval warship, reached an altitude of 14 km, levelled out and started cruising at three times the speed of sound, it performed a double manoeuvre in S-form and hit the decommissioned ship, about 290 km away. Astronomers Found NGC 6872 Largest known Spiral Galaxy A team of astronomers from the United States, Chile and Brazil has crowned it the largest-known spiral galaxy, a spectacular behemoth five times bigger than our own Milky Way, based on archival data from NASAs Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) mission.The title-holder is now NGC 6872, a barred spiral found 212 million light-years away in the southern constellation Pavo. The distance between NGC 6872s two huge spiral arms is 522,000 light-years, compared to about 100,000 light-years for the Milky Way. Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment

A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has been named after Sathees as SCR7 and a detailed account of it has been carried in the international scientific journal Cell".Scientists world over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences such as genome instability, and cancer. Largest Space structure in the Universe:Large Quasar Group An international team lead by astronomer Roger Clowes of the University of Central Lancashire in England discovered the largest known structure in the universe, a clump of active galactic cores that stretches 4 billion light-years from end to end.This is the largest Space structure in the Universe.This structure is known as a Large Quasar Group(LQG). Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has been named after Sathees as SCR7 and a detailed account of it has been carried in the international scientific journal Cell".Scientists world over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences such as genome instability, and cancer. Worlds First Global Renewable Energy Atlas Launched On 13 January Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) launched the worlds first clean energy atlas at IRENAS General Assembly , currently offers open-access information on solar and wind power throughout the world and the creators plan to expand to other renewable energy resources over the next two years.The atlas includes information on clean energy resources in 37 countries, including those which have no diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates.The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is working in partnership with the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) to build a qualitative and quantitative data framework for renewable energy in developing countries.

Ancient River Found on Mars On 17 January The European Space Agency scientists have revealed a 1500 km long and 7 kilometre wide river that once ran across Mars.The images which were captured by the ESAs Mars Express showed Reull Vallis, the river-like structure, which is believed to have formed when water ran from the surface of Mars in distant past. The structure which surprised the astronomers stretches for around 900 miles or 1500 km across the Martian surface and also shows various tributaries. These structures, it is believed, were formed somewhere around 3.5 billion years ago. India Increased Rafale Fighter Jets Order India could buy up to 189 of the Rafale fighter jets currently being used by France to bomb Islamist militants in Mali, sources close to negotiations on the multi-billion dollar deal .The possibility of an additional 63 jets being added to an expected order for 126 was raised by India .The Indian press has estimated the value of the deal for 126 Rafales at $12 billion (nine billion euros).A 50 per cent increase in the number of planes ordered would take it to around $18 billion, in a huge boost for the French defence industry. Japan to replace Fukushima plant with worlds largest wind farm In the wake of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan had decided to build the worlds largest offshore wind farm to replace the crippled nuke plant.The country plans to build a total of 143 wind turbines on platforms 16 kilometres off the coast of Fukushima by 2020, which is home to the stricken Daiichi nuclear reactor that hit the headlines in March 2011 when it was damaged by a severe earthquake and tsunami.The wind farm will generate 1 gigawatt of power once completed, and is part of a national plan to increase renewable energy resources following the post-tsunami shutdown of the countrys 54 nuclear reactors.The wind farm will surpass the 504 megawatts generated by the 140 turbines at the Greater Gabbard farm off the coast of Suffolk, UK currently the worlds largest farm. India, US finalise Rs 3,000 crore deal for jet engines India and the US have finalised a Rs 3000-crore deal for supplying 99 jet engines to be used in the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas being developed by the DRDO.Around two years ago, India had selected the American company General Electric over its rival European Eurojet 2000

for the LCA Mark II programme expected to be ready around 201415.The deal worth Rs 3,000 crore has been finalised with the US for procuring 99 engines for the LCA Tejas MkII.As per the contract, the order could be for 99 engines initially but India will have the option of ordering another 100 engines in the future. INS Saryu Inducted into Indian Navy On 21 January Air Marshal PK Roy, Commander-in-Chief, Andaman and Nicobar Command, commissioned INS Saryu into the Indian Navy at Goa .INS Saryu is the lead ship of the indigenous Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel (NOPV) Project designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited, the ship aptly demonstrates the immense potential of the countrys indigenous designing and ship building capabilities.Capable of carrying a helicopter (ALH) onboard, the ships weapon and sensor outfit includes a SRGM 76.2 mm gun with an electro-optic fire control system, two 30mm guns as close in weapon systems, latest navigational and early warning radars, chaff launchers for self protection and an integrated ESM system to undertake all assigned missions. MIT researchers Created Moisture Powered Polymer MIT ( Massachusetts Institute of Technology ) researchers have created a new polymer film that can generate electricity by drawing on a ubiquitous source: water vapor.The new material changes its shape after absorbing tiny amounts of evaporated water, allowing it to repeatedly curl up and down. Harnessing this continuous motion could drive robotic limbs or generate enough electricity to power micro- and nanoelectronic devices, such as environmental sensors. India Sucessfully Test Fired K-5 Ballistic Missile On 27 January India successfully test fired medium range K-5 ballistic missile ,with a strike range of around 1500 kilometres, from an underwater platform in Bay of Bengal.K-5 is part of the family of underwater missiles being developed by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) for the Indian strategic forces underwater platforms. Iran successfully sent monkey into space Iran on 28 January 2013 announced that it had successfully send a monkey to the space.It also declared that the monkey come back to the Earth successfully.The rocket called Pishgam (meaning Pioneer)

reached at a height of 120 km (75 miles) for a sub-orbital flight before returning its shipment intact. The first country to launch the primate into space was US.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) APPOINTMENTS Asif Ibrahim appointed as chief Intelligence Bureau Indian Police Service officer SA Ibrahim appointed as chief of the Intelligence Bureau on 01 January 2013 and he becoming the first from the countrys main minority community(Muslim Community) to hold the post. Ibrahim, an IPS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, has taken over as from Nehchal Sandhu who retired December 31. He will hold the post for two years. Urjit Patel appointed as RBI deputy governor On 02 January 2013 Urjit Patel, a consultant at Boston Consulting Group, had been appointed a deputy governor at the Reserve Bank of India, succeeding Subir Gokarn who was aiding the governor in shaping the monetary policy. YV Reddy to head 14th Finance Commission On 02 January 2013 former RBI governor YV Reddy was appointed chairman of the 14th finance commission to suggest principles of sharing of revenues between the Centre and the states and insulate pricing of public utilities like electricity, water and public transport from policy fluctuations. Ami Bera and Tulsi Gabbard Sworn In As US Lawmakers On 4 January Indian American physician from California, Ami Bera, and the young Iraq war veteran from Hawaii, Tulsi Gabbard, created history after being sworn in as new members of the US House of Representatives.Bera is only the third Indian American have ever been elected to the House of Representatives.Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu ever to won the Congressional election. Malalas Father Appointed as Education Attache in Birmingham

On 3 January Malalas father Ziauddin Yousafzai has been appointed as the education attache at the Pakistan consulate in Birmingham, England.The job is believed to be for up to three years. Indian American Srinivasan re-nominated as Federal Judge On 4 January Srikanth Srinivasan a brilliant Indian American legal mind has been re-nominated by US President Barack Obama to serve as Federal Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit.In June 2012 he was nominated by Obama to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Justice D K Jain appointed new Law Commission chief The Union Cabinet of India on 7 January 2013 appointed Justice D K Jain as Chairman of 20th Law Commission of India. He gives advice to the government on complex legal issues. Justice Jain, 64, will take over as the chief of the law panel on January 24 after retiring from the Supreme Court on the same day. John Brennan as a CIA director U.S. President Barack Obama announced on )7 January 2013 John Brennan wasnominated as director of the American Intelligence Agency(CIA) and Chuck Hagel as a Defense secretary. John Brennan played a key role in encounter the Osama Bin Laden. Indian-origin politician to be Singapores first woman speaker Indian-origin politician Halimah Yacob elected as the first woman Speaker of Singapores Parliament on 08 Janauary 2013.She take charges from 14 January 2013.Halimah, a former labour lawyer, is a member of Parliament from the ruling Peoples Action Party (PAP). Kulwant Singh Gill Took charge as new Commandant of NDA On 8 January Air Marshal Kulwant Singh Gill took charge as the new commandant of the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla, Pune.The NDA provides three-year training in defence and academics to its cadets before they move on to their respective officers training academies for another one-year course and get commissioned into the armed forces. R.K. Dubey Took Charge as Canara Banks new CMD

On 11 January R.K. Dubey has assumed charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of Canara Bank .Mr. Dubey was previously worked as a Punjab National Bank General Manager in 2008 and was appointed as Executive Director of Central Bank of India in 2010. Rajkumar Goyal Took Charge as Central Bank of India new ED On 11 January Rajkumar Goyal has took charge as Executive Director (ED) of Central Bank of India (CBI).He was previously with the bank of India as the General Manager of Human Resources Department Obama nominated Jack Lew as new Treasury Chief On 11 January President Barack Obama nominated his chief of staff, Jack Lew, to become the next Treasury secretary and succeed Timothy Geithner.Last year, Lew was named Obamas chief of staff, and before that he had served as the White House budget director. First Gujarati in UK cabinet Lord Dolar Popat has appointed a minister in the UK cabinet .He become the first Gujarati taking his place in the UK cabinet .Popat was appointed minister for business, innovation & skills and transport. Mohan Pieris assumes duties as 44th Chief Justice of Sri Lanka On 15 January 2013 ,Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed his cabinets legal advisor as the countrys new Chief Justice to succeed Shirani Bandaranayake. Rajapaksa sworn in new Chief Justice Mohan Peiris to replace Sri Lankas first woman chief justice who was impeached by the parliament in a controversial move.Peiris, a British qualified solicitor who retired in 2011 as the Attorney General was serving as the legal advisor to the Cabinet. Ved Prakash is UGC chairman Ved Prakash, serving as acting chairman of the University Grants Commission, had been appointed as its chairman on 18 January 2013.The chairmans post remained vacant ever since S. Thorat retired in February 2011. Since then Mr. Prakash had been the acting chairman. Obama Sworn in as the US President for Second Term

On 20 January US President Barack Obama Barack Obama was sworn in as the President of the country for a second four-year term.Obama as the 44th president of the United States and also he is the third consecutive president to win two terms, after Bush and Clinton. Joe Biden sworn-in for second term as US vice-president. Suchitra Ella, Founding Chairwoman of CIIs women wing Suchitra K. Ella, Joint Managing Director, Bharat Biotech International, had been nominated as the Founding Chairwoman of the Indian Women Network of CII. The network aims to provide a platform for working women to come together and discuss issues and opportunities and share best practices. She is currently the Chairperson of CII Andhra Pradesh State Council for 2012-13. She had earlier been elected to the CII Andhra Pradesh State Council. She has been awarded the International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge award 2007 by the Chamber of Commerce of Barcelona, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce and the FLO GR8 Women Achievers Award 2008 for entrepreneurial excellence. B)RESIGNS Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda resigned Political uncertainty deepened in Jharkhand on 08 January 2013, with Chief Minister Arjun Munda submitted his resignation to Governor Syed Ahmed. On 07 January 2013, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) announced the withdrawal of its support to the BJP-led government. Rajapaksa Dismissed First Woman Chief Justice of the Country On 13 January Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President of Sri Lanka dismissed the first woman chief justice of the country, Shirani Bandarnayake after endorsing her impeachment by the Parliament that caught her guilty on the corruption charges.She appointed as a chief Justice on May 2011. C)DEATHS Violin maestro MSG passes away M.S. Gopalakrishnan legendary violinist known for his mastery of both the Carnatic and Hindustani systems of classical music passed away on 03 January 2013 in Chennai.In his career spanning 75 years, he not

only broke new ground as an accompanist, but also rose to become one of the best solo violinists in the country, along with Lalgudi G. Jayaraman and T.N. Krishnan. The three are considered the violin trinity of south Indian classical music.Despite enviable success and accolades that came in the form of national honours such as the Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri, and innumerable titles, including the Sangita Kalanidhi title awarded by The Music Academy, Chennai. Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum is no more Renowned Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum died on 19 January 2013.Mehnaz specialized in ghazal, thumri, dadra, khayal, drupad and reciting salam, noha and marsiya.Mehnaz was the daughter of popular sub-continental singer Kajjan Begum.She sang over 2,500 songs for radio television and films in a variety of genres like ghazal, thumri, dadra, khayal and drupad.

D)VISITORS Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag Visited India Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag visited India from 3 10 January .During the visit Purryag met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pranab Mukherjee on 4 January in New Delhi. In Bihar , he visited his ancestral village , Bojeetpore near Patna.President Purryag also the chief guest of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas .He attended the 3 days event 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi (Kerala). Vice President Hamid Ansari Visited Vietnam Vice President Hamid Ansari visited Vietnam from 14 to 17 January.During the visit Ansari met Vietnams Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh and discussed the both countries bilateral issues , signed several agreements .Ansari attended the closing ceremony of the celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the India-Vietnam diplomatic ties. Bhutan King Wangchuck Visited India

The King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck visited India from 23-30 January.During the visit he attended the Indias Republic Day celebrations as a Chief Guest.Wangchuck met President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and the United Progressive Alliances Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi.This is the fourth time since 1954 that a Bhutanese King will be a Chief Guest at Indias Republic Day celebrations. E)MISCELLANEOUS Ex-Haryana CM Chautala, son get 10 years jail Former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala and his son Ajay had been sentenced to 10 years in jail in connection with a teachers recruitment scam.Special CBI Judge Vinod Kumar sentenced the Chautalas and seven others to 10 years in jail while one convict was given five years in jail and 45 others four years in jail. Swaminarayan sect opens $100-million quake-proof temple near Hollywood One of the biggest Hindu temples in the US, built at a whopping cost of $100 million near the Hollywood city in Los Angeles .The 68th Swaminarayan temple of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) had been built using 35,000 pieces of meticulously hand carved Italian Carrara marble and Indian Pink Sandstone. Premlata Conquers Summit of Mt Vinson in Antarctica On 17 January Premlata Agrawal, the oldest woman in India to have climbed Mt. Everest, has conquered Mt. Vinson in Antarctica in pursuit of the Mountaineering Challenge of climbing the Seven Summits.She completed her Mt. Vinson expedition on January .The person successful in conquering all the seven summits is considered a member of the Hall of Fame for mountaineers.Premlata will become the first Indian woman and one of the oldest in the world to conquer all seven summits. Ex-ISRO chairman Inducted in to Satellite Hall of Fame The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced its former chairman and Department of Space secretary Prof U R Rao by inducting him as the member of the prestigious Satellite Hall of Fame , Washington.Since 1987, the SSPI Hall of Fame has been recognising

the invaluable contribution of the visionaries who have transformed life on planet earth for the better through satellite technology. Members of the Hall of Fame are recognised pioneers in communications, satellite related aerospace scientific research or development and delivery of applications for business, institutions and government via satellite. David Headley sentenced for 35 years for 26/11 role(Mumbai attacks) Pakistani-American Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist David Headley was on 24 January 2013 sentenced to 35 years in jail by a Chicago court for his unquestionable role in the massacre of 166 people in the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Forbes India Celebrity 100 List According to the Forbes India Celebrity 100 List The Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, topped the inaugural Forbes India Celebrity 100 list.Forbes India estimates, the total earning of Shah Rukh from October 2011 and September 2012 was 202.8 crore Rupees.The ranking was given based on the popularity as well as income of the biggest entertainers of India. Second on the list was Salman Khan and MS Dhoni followed in the third position.The special edition of Forbes India judged in eight different categories directors, film actors, TV personailities, models, comedians, sports stars, authors and singers/musicians.The youngest celebrity in the list of Forbes India was Saina Nehwal, aged 23 years. Switzerland best place to be born, India 66th Switzerland has been called the best place in the world to be born in 2013 according to the The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a sister company of The Economist. The worst place for a baby to start life was violence-hit African country Nigeria. The survey included 80 nations and Australia ranked second followed by Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Singapore, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Canada and New Zealand were also ranked among top 10. India was ranked 66th place.The survey included significant parameters to judge the best country to be born and these factors included demography, geography, cultural and social characteristics, state of economy, future income per head as well as public policy.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong Quake in Indonesia On 22nd January A strong, shallow earthquake rocked parts of western Indonesia early killed 30 persons and panicking residents and ruining homes. Several other people were injured.Indonesias meteorology and geophysics agency put the preliminary magnitude at 6.0 and said the inland quake caused no tsunami. It was centered southwest of the city of Banda Aceh and 10 miles (6 kilometers) beneath the earths crust, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.. 233 People Killed in Brazil Night Club Fire Accident On 27 January The blaze in the university town of Santa Maria nightclub fire killed at least 233 people in southern Brazil .Most of those who died were suffocated by toxic fumes that rapidly filled the crowded club after sparks from pyrotechnics used by the band for visual effects set fire to soundproofing on the ceiling.

ABBREVIATIONS CBT-Cash Transfer Benefit EIUEconomist Intelligence Unit CBSCentral Bureau of Statistics NLST-National Large Solar Telescope CEET-Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications CIAAmerican Intelligence Agency WEF-World Economic Forum PBSPravasi Bhartiya Divas MSMEMinistry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises BWFBadminton World Federation

BOOKS IN NEWS Swami Vivekananda The Monk as Man Book Released The renowned Bengali writer Shankar wrote a The Monk as Man book on Swami Vivekananda ,who spread the message of Indias spiritual heritage across the world.In the book Shankar described Vivekananda used to emphasise greatly on physical strength and is known for the shocking statement Better to play football than read the Gita. McChrystal My Share of the Task: A Memoir Book Released General Stanley McChrystal, the former American commander in Afghanistan, wrote a My Share of the Task: A Memoir, book which was released on 7 January .In the book Chrystal explained that tensions between the White House and the Pentagon were evident in the Obama administration from its opening months in office.This book is not just for aficionados of military history or for students of American foreign policy .

COMMITTEES Vijay Kelkar Committee for Fiscal Consolidation The Vijay Kelkar Committee, which was appointed by Finance Ministry to suggest a roadmap for fiscal consolidation, has suggested immediate hike in fuel prices and complete deregulation of diesel prices by start of 2014-15 fiscal.It also suggested raising kerosene and LPG rates.Now the Kelkar committee recommendation is still at proposal stage. Justice Verma Committee Submitted Report On 23 January The three-member committee included former Chief Justice of India, J S Verma, who headed the committee, Justice (Retd.) Leila Seth, former Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court and Gopal Subramanian, former Solicitor General of India , set up to suggest ways to make rape laws stronger in the country, has submitted its report with recommendations to enhance and amend existing laws dealing with cases of sexual crime.The Justice Verma panel recognised failure of governance as primary cause of sexual crimes.The Panel suggested Trafficking should be made punishable with imprisonment ranging from not less than 7 years to 10 years .There was a need for the separate Bill

of Rights for women that will make sure that women would have their own rights for having sexual autonomy. February 2013 Current Affairs Study Material UK, Afghan, Pakistan Leaders Hold Talks in Britain On 4 February The leaders of Britain, Afghanistan and Pakistan pushed for the Taliban to come to the table for peace talks to end Afghanistans protracted conflict and gave themselves a six-month deadline to get a deal.British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted Afghanistans President Hamid Karzai and Pakistans President Asif Zardari for trilateral talks on Afghanistans floundering peace and reconciliation process. UNICEF Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report On 8 February According to the UNICEF (United Nations Childrens Fund )Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report, The vaccination effort in collaboration with the Ministry of Health is well underway, with over 53,000 children receiving measles vaccinations, over 44,000 receiving vitamin A supplements, and over 10,000 polio doses administered. Pakistan to Renamed Sindh Province to Sind On 12 February 2013, the Sindh Assembly approved a bill to rename the southern Pakistani province as Sind.The assembly approved the Sindh Laws Amendment Bill of 2012, whereby the letter h will be removed from the name of the province. Russia Rejected U.S. Nuclear Warheads Proposals On 14 February Russia rejected U.S. president Barack Obama proposals , which deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including bombers, missile launchers and nuclear submarines a cut of about 60%.In 2010 Russia and the United States signed on New START agreement.The New Start treaty limits each side to no more than 800 deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including bombers, missile launchers and nuclear submarines a cut of about 50%.

Rafael Correa Re-elected for 3rd term as Ecuadors President

On 17 February Ecuadoreans president Rafael Correa has been reelected for a third term with more than 50 percent of votes in his favour.As per the results, Rafael Correa got 56.7 percent while his closest competitor Guillermo could secure only 23.3 percent.Correa is a socialist leader who was first elected in 2006 December and he was sworn in on 15 January 2007 as the 56th president of Ecuador.Correa was re-elected to a second term in 2009. Pakistan Hands Over Strategic Gwadar Port To China On 18 February Pakistan and China signed an agreement to hand over control of the strategic Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea to a Chinese company.Under the agreement for transfer of concession rights, the deep sea port will remain the property of Pakistan while the Chinese company will share profits from its operation. China Overseas Port Holdings Limited will fully assume responsibility for Gwadar port in Balochistan province. Israels Netanyahu Announced Coalition Deal with Tzipi Livni On 19 Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has announced a coalition deal with former Foreign Minister and the rival centrist Hatnua Party Chairwomen Tzipi Livni, at Jerusalem. Under the deal agreement, Livni will serve as the new Justice Minister and will oversee the peace efforts with the Palestinians.Tzipi Livni is an Israeli Politician and the first women to be the leader of opposition in Israel. She is the leader of the new centrist party, Hatnuah. She served Israel as its Foreign Minister from 2006 to 2009. Russia and Brazil Signed on Defence Cooperation Agreements On 20 February Russia and Brazil signed a Defence, Energy and Agricultural agreements .Brazil agreed to negotiate the purchase of Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries on the condition that Russia transfer the technology to Brazilian defense companies without restrictions.The agreements are signed by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff . Nicos Anastasiades Elected as Cyprus New President On 24 February the centre-right DISY (the Democratic Rally) party leader Nicos Anastasiades, has won the presidential elections of Cyprus with 57.5 percent votes.Nicos Anastasiades had a very easy going

victory over Communist-backed Stavros Malas who secured 42.5 percent votes in the election. Raul Castro re-elected for Second Term as Cubas President On 25 February Raul Castro has been re-elected as Cubas president officially to his last five-year term.The National Assembly of Peoples Power approved, in the capital Havana, Army General Raul Castro Ruz as president of the Council of State, and elected Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, as its first vice president.Raul Castro became interim president when his brother, revolution icon Fidel, took ill in 2006. He then formally became president in 2008.

INDIA & WORLD India-Malaysia Double Taxation Agreement in Force On 2 February India and Malaysia signed on double-taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA). Dividends paid by Indian companies to Malaysian investors or entities will attract a lower withholding tax of 5 percent against 10 per cent earlier. The new agreement has also, in line with international practice, introduced a new article for taxing capital gains from alienation of property. India Failed To Curb Sexual Violence Against Women According to the Human Rights Watch (HRW) World Report 2013 India has been accused of failure to curb incidents of sexual violence against women and for restrictions on right to free speech, India has a thriving civil society, free media, and an independent judiciary, the citybased rights group said in its assessment of rights abuses in India. Six Indian Institutes in Global 150 Top Think-Tanks On 3 February Six Indian research institutes, including Centre for Civil Society (CCS), are among top 150 global think tanks in the annual list released by the University of Pennsylvania for the year 2012.The list was topped by Brookings Institution (United States) followed by Chatham House (United Kingdom) and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (United States).Other Indian think-tanks featured in the list are:- Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis , Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations , The Energy and

Resources Institute , Observer Research Foundation and Development Alternatives. India and Austria Signed a Social Security Agreement On 5 February India and Austria signed a social security agreement at Vienna, under which the Indian professionals working in Austria would be exempted from paying the social security contribution of the country, if such payments are already made in India. Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi and Austrian Minister for Labour and Social Security, Rudoulf Hundstorfer signed on the agreement. India Pledges $100m For Mali Reconstruction On 5 February India pledges $100m for Mali reconstruction .India has committed to giving $1 million for the upgrade of the Malian army with a pledge to ramp up contributions for reconstruction to $100 million after the situation stabilizes. India and China Tourists Triple Australian Visits According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics report , Chinese and Indian visitors, with tourist numbers from those countries tripled in the past decade.630,000 visits from Chinese tourists in 2012 compared with 190,000 in 2002. Indian visits went from 45,000 to 160,000 in the same period.Despite a high Australian dollar, Australias short-term visitor numbers were up by nearly five percent since 2011 with 6.1 million short trips made to Australia 270,000 more than in 2011. Special Purpose Vehicle Formed for TAPI Pipeline Project On 7 February The Union Cabinet gave its approval for formation of the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the Turkmenistan-AfghanistanPakistan-India (TAPI) Pipeline Project and to permit GAIL India Ltd. to join the SPV. The four countries involved in the TAPI Gas pipeline project, signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement along with a Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA).Turkmenistan and Pakistan agreed to the formation of TAPl Ltd. The 1,680 km pipeline will carry 90 million metric standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) of gas, and is scheduled to become operational in 2018. India and Japan to Strengthen Cooperation in Tourism Sector

India and Japan have resolved to strengthen cooperation in tourism sector. This was decided at a meeting between the visiting Japanese Senior Vice-Minister of Tourism, Mr. Hiroshi Kajiyama and Union Tourism Minister Shri K Chiranjeevi in New Delhi on 12 February 2013. India and France Signed 22 Agreements On 14 February France and India have signed on 22 agreements after French President Francois Hollandes meetings with the Indian president and the prime minister in New Delhi.Both nations exchanged views on a number of bi-lateral, regional and multilateral issues and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in order to facilitate technical cooperation in Railways to each other.Chairman, Railway Board, India and Chairman and CEO SNCF from the French side signed this MoU.Both the nations also concluded negotiations on the short range surface to Air missile to be co-produced in India. They also agreed on the need to reinvigorate economic engagement between the two countries. India and Bangladesh Signed Land Boundary Agreement On 16 February India and Bangladesh held the second Joint Consultative Commission meeting in Dhaka .After the meeting , both countries exchanged one strip map as part of the process of the implementation of the agreement signed to resolve land boundary issues between them.In addition, two MOUs were also signed for the construction of a rail link to connect Akhaura in Bangladesh to Agartala in India and for setting up a thinktank to be called Bangladesh-India Foundation.The India-Bangladesh Joint Consultative Commission is an interministerial body of the two countries headed by the Minister of External Affairs of India and Foreign Minister of Bangladesh. CBI probe Ordered into Rs 3700 crore Italian Chopper Deal Scam In February 2010, India had inked the deal with Italain Finmeccanica to acquire the 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters from AgustaWestland for IAFs elite Communication Squadron ,which ferries around the President, PM and other VVIPs.The deal came under the scanner of Italian agencies after allegations of kickback given in India surfaced.The agencies arrested Giuseppe Orsi, the head of Italian defence and aerospace giant Finmeccanica as part of their probe related to international corruption.Around 50 million euros , about 10 per cent of the deal, were alleged to have been given as bribes to ensure that the company won the contract.On February The Defence Ministry has

ordered CBI probe into alleged scam in a Rs 3600 crore defence helicopter deal after arrest of head of Italian firm Finmeccanica on charges of bribery. India and Britain Discussed on Nuclear Cooperation On 19 February Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Britain Prime Minister David Cameron discussed on regional and global issues ,which included key issues of nuclear energy cooperation, security, terrorism and trade .The two sides have also decided to commence negotiations on a bilateral Civil Nuclear Agreement.Britain has assured that it will extend all cooperation to any Indian probe into the multimillion-dollar helicopter scam which involves Italian defense giant Finmeccanicas UK-based subsidiary AgustaWestland.David Cameron announced that his country is going to introduce sameday visa service for Indian businessmen in a bid to accelerate the bilateral trade between the two sides. India won Kishanganga Case Against Pakistan On 18 February the Court of Arbitration at the Hague allowed India to go ahead with the Construction of the Kishanganga hydroelectric project in Gurez valley near Bandipura in North Kashmir, the court rejected the plea of Pakistan that the construction was a violation of 1960 Indus Water Treaty.The Court of Arbitration, chaired by Stephen M. Schwebel in its orders stated that India can move ahead with the diversion of water plans of Kishanganga that is a tributary of Jhelum, for generation of hydro-electric power. But it restrained India from adoption of the drawdown technique of flushing for clearing the sedimentation of the run-of-the river project that had been designed and asked it to adopt a different technique for generation of 330 MW power facilities.

NATIONAL President Gave Ordinance, 2013 Assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment)

On 3 February President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 which provides for, amongst other things, stricter punishment for crimes against women. The Ordinance was to be largely based on the recommendations of the

Justice Verma Committee.However, the Ordinance will have to be passed by Parliament within six months otherwise the same shall lapse. All Juvenile Crimes 64% by 16-18 yr Old Age Group On 4 February According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data shows that most juvenile crimes are committed by those in the age group of 16-18 years.In 2011 the growth in rape by juveniles (34%) over 2010 was again among the highest.In 2011, 64% of all juvenile criminals fall in the age group of 16-18. In 2011, 33,887 juveniles were arrested for 25,178 instances of crime.All together make for over 50% of all rape cases by juveniles. Aero India 2013 Held in Bangalore The Asias biggest airshow Aero India 2013, a biennial air show and aviation exhibition held from 6 10th February at the Yelehanka Air Force Station in Bangalore .In the event displays magnificent aerobatic skills and belongings that created a chance of winning potential business tieups and networking. Defence Minister of India, A K Antony inaugurated the Air Show on 6 February .In the event 53 civil and military aircraft and 27 countries participated and 78 delegations attended from US, Israel and Russia.The first Edition of the show was organised for the first time in 1996.The next Aero India show is scheduled to be held from 18 February to 22 February 2015 at Bangalore. Cabinet Approved Rs.38500 cr Rural Road Development Plan On 7 February The Union Cabinet approved a Rs 38,500 crore rupees for road connectivity under the Prime Ministers Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).The schemes approved were mainly for connectivity to villages in tribal areas, desert and hilly areas, with a population of at least 250 each.In 82 areas hit by Naxalite violence, villages with less than 250 people are also to be connected under the scheme. Parliament Attack Case Convict Afzal Guru Hanged On 9 February in a top secret operation , the 2001 Parliament attack case convict Mohammed Afzal Guru was hanged in Delhis Tihar jail.Afzal Guru was given the death sentence by the Supreme Court in 2004.The President rejected the Afzal Gurus mercy petition on 23 January 2013.The code name of the secret operation was Operation Three Star .

Centre Notified Cauvery Dispute Tribunal Award After six years,on the directions of the Supreme Court, the Central Government of India has notified the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing the waters of the Cauvery system among the basin States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala and Union territory of Puducherry on 20 February.The Tribunal, comprising chairman Justice N.P. Singh and members N.S. Rao and Sudhir Narain, in a unanimous award in February, 2007 had determined the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (TMC) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site.In, what was then described as a balancing act, the Tribunal gave Tamil Nadu 419 TMC of water (as against the demand of 562 TMC); Karnataka 270 TMC (as against its demand of 465 TMC); Kerala 30 TMC and Puducherry 7 TMC.After the issuance of the notification, institutions like the Cauvery River Authority (CRA) chaired by the Prime Minister and the CMC will cease to exist.

STATES Sonia Gandhi Launched Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram Scheme On 6 February Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi launched Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK), a new children health care project initiative in Palghar, a tribal block in Thane district of Maharashtra.The Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram, is a part of the National Rural Health Mission of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The scheme is aimed at improving overall quality of life of children through early detection of birth defects, diseases and deficiencies, which are among key factors for child mortality. Maharashtra Promulgates Ordinance To Amend Cooperative Societies Act On 15 February the Maharashtra Government promulgated an ordinance to amend the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, which aims to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning, democratic control and professional management of co-operative societies.The ordinance is to amend the Act to make it in consonance with the 97th constitutional amendment by Parliament last year.

Indias First Geothermal Plant in Chhattisgarh On 17 February Chhattisgarh has signed an agreement with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to set up the countrys first geothermal power plant in its newlyformed Balrampur district.A memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project was signed between the NTPC and the Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Agency (CREDA). The plant will come up at Tata Pani in Balrampur, a district located in extreme northern region of the state. Rajasthan Constituted a Task Force to Check the Spread of Swine Flu in State On 19 February the State Government of Rajasthan decided to constitute a task force to control Swine Flu effectively. Chief Secretary of the State, CK Matthew was appointed as the head of the task force constituted.The state had witnessed 148 cases of death and 834 positive cases since April 2012. A central team that constitutes of five doctors and microbiologist is on the state visit and would pay a visit to Jodhpur, Ajmer and Bikaner, areas worst affected from the disease. Cabinet Approved NTPC Power Project in Jharkhand On 20 February the Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) approved the setting up of the 1,980 MW North Karanpura Super Thermal Power Plant in Jharkhand by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).The Cabinet committee of investment also agreed for restoring the original coal linkage for the project and declared that the project will be based on environment friendly super-critical technology. This supply will be made available in the 13th Five Year Plan. Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly Elections Results Northeastern states of Tripura ,Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly election was released on 28 February .The Assembly elections in the three states, having 60 seats each, were held February 14 and February 23.In Tripura the CPI-M on its own won 49 seats out of the total 60 seats and stormed back to power in Tripura for the fifth straight term.Chief Minister Manik Sarkar won from Dhanpur by a margin of around 5,000 votes. It was Sarkars sixth win.Meghalaya The Indian National Congress here has won 29 seats in the election to the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly with Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, winning with huge margins.Nagaland Ruling Naga Peoples Front combine returned to power with an absolute majority in Nagaland winning 39 seats in the

60-member Assembly.The ruling NPF-led Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) alliance will form government for a third consecutive term.Congress managed to win eight seats. Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio won from Northern Angami II seat by defeating his nearest Congress rival Kevise Sogotsu of Congress by 12,671 votes. Desalination Plant in Tamil Nadu Commissioned On 22 February J. Jayalalithaa, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu inaugurated a desalination plant at Nemmeli in Kanchipuram district of the state.The plant which will benefit over 15 lakh residents in Velachery, Pallipattu and Tiruvanmiyur areas of south Chennai has been set up with an investment of Rs 871 crore. About 265 million ltrs of water will be drawn from the sea to realise 100 million ltrs per day of drinking water through the plant spread over 40 acre.

CONFERENCES 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) The 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) concluded on 2 February at NewDelhi.The theme of the summit is The Global Challenge of Resource Efficient Growth and Development.Among from 30 countries Heads of Governments , research institutions, policymakers, NGOs and corporates attended the summit.The Summit organized annually since 2001 by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), is an international platform for exchange of knowledge on all nuances of sustainable development.

AWARDS & HONOURS Malala Yousafzai nominated for Nobel Peace Prize Malala Yousafzai, who was shoot by the Talibans against the girl education was nominated for this years Nobel Peace Prize, as the deadline expired on 01 February 2013. French, Canadian and Norwegian MPs have all separately nominated Malala.This years award

will be announced in early October, but speculation was already underway as the deadline for nominations ran out on 1 February . L. N. Tallur won Skoda Art Prize 2012 On 1 February Karnataka artist L. N. Tallur, whose works depict majorly the underbelly of India, has won the Rs 1 million Skoda Prize 2012 for contemporary art, from among a shortlist of four artists including an artist collective. 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) Awards Sustainable Development Leadership Award :- The Seychelles President, Mr James Michel has been awarded the Sustainable Development Leadership Award at the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit . Georgescu roegen Award : The award is Kozo Mayumi (Professor at Faculty of Integrated Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokushima). The co-winners of the Georgescu-Roegen Award (bioeconomic practice) are Accion Ecologica and Oilwatch. South Sudan Bishop Taban won UN Peace Award On 9 February A South Sudans Bishop Emeritus Paride Taban has won a coveted 2013 UN peace prize ( Sergio Viera de Mello Prize ) in recognition of his efforts to build trust among warring communities in the conflict-torn region.Vieira de Mello, the UNs former human rights chief, was killed in a bombing in Iraq in 2003. The annual prize in his honour is awarded to a person, community or institution that has made an exceptional contribution to reconciliation of communities or groups in conflict, and whose example can be duplicated elsewhere. Pandit Ravi Shankar honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy award Sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy award, which was jointly accepted by his daughters Anoushka Shankar and Norah Jones on 9 February 2013.He was posthumously awarded the best world music album trophy at the 55th Grammys, a day after being honoured with a Lifetime Achievement award by The Recording Academy.He got 55 Grammy award for his album The Living Room Sessions Part 1 . National e-Governance award for Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh had been conferred upon the prestigious National eGovernance Gold Award for 2012-13, for its Sparsh Abhiyan aimed towards the disabled and the aged. Amartya Sen honoured with Frances highest civilian award The French president Mr Francois Hollande honoured the Amartya Sen with the Frances highest civilian award, Commandeur de la Legion dHonneur (Legion of Honour) after delivering the Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on 15 February 2013.The prestigious honour is the reason for his enormous contribution to the field of economics and for his exchanges with French academic institutions would also be recognised. Paul Hansen Won 2012 World Press Photo Award On 15 February Swedish photographer Paul Hansen has won the 2012 World Press Photo award with a picture of two Palestinian children killed in an Israeli missile strike being carried to their funeral.The picture shows a group of men marching the dead bodies through a narrow street in Gaza City.World Press Photo, one of photojournalisms most prestigious contests, issued awards in nine categories to 54 photographers of 32 nationalities. 63rd Berlin Film Festival Awards The awarding ceremony of the 63rd Berlinale ended on 16 February in Berlin.Romanian film Childs Pose won the Golden Bear, the top jury prize awarded to the best film in the Berlin International Film Festival. Best Film :- Childs Pose ( Romania ) Best Actor :- Nazif (Bosnia/France/Slovenia) Mujic in Life of an Iron Picker

Best Actress :- Paulina Garcia in Gloria (Chile/Spain) Best Director :- David Gordon Green for Prince Avalanche (US) Best ScreenPlay :- Jafar Panahi for Parde (Closed Curtain) Iran. Ela Bhatt honoured with Indira Gandhi Peace Prize Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self Employed Womens Association (SEWA), was presented with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and

Development for the year 2011 by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on 18 February 2013.Ela Bhatt was honoured for her life time achievements in empowering women, promoting grassroot level entrepreneurship and for her contribution towards promoting equitable development and peace. Ratan Tata receives E&Y lifetime award Former Tata Group head Ratan Tata is this years recipient of the life time achievement award instituted by Ernst & Young, for asserting a greater role for Indian entrepreneurs on the global business landscape.The entrepreneur of the year (2012) award went to Godrej Group Chairman Adi Godrej.The entrepreneur of the year is the only business award to be based on self-nomination. Oscars Awards-2013 85th Oscar awards presentation ceremony held in Los Angels on 25 February 2013.In this ceremoney Life of Pi cinema got a 4 Oscar awards. Best Picture: Argo Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained) Best Supporting Actress:Anne Hathaway (Les Misrables) Best Directing: Ang Lee(Life of Pi) Best Adapted Screenplay:Chris Terrio( Argo) Best Original Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained) Best Documentary Feature: Searching for Sugar Man Best Original Song:Skyfall from Skyfall, music and lyrics by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth Best Original Score: Life of Pi Best Animated Feature: Brave

Best Cinematography:Life of Pi Best Costume Design: Anna Karenina Best Documentary Short Subject:Inocente Best Film Editing:Argo Best Foreign Language Film:Amour (Austria) Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Les Misrables Best Production Design:Lincoln Best Short Film (Animated): Paperman Best Short Film (Live Action): Curfew Best Sound Editing: Skyfall (TIE), Zero Dark Thirty (TIE), Best Sound Mixing: Les Misrables Best Visual Effects: Life of Pi

SPORTS & GAMES Leander Paes, Jaideep Commitment Award Mukherjee Received Davis Cup

On 2 February Indian tennis legends Leander Paes and Jaideep Mukherjee were felicitated by the All India Tennis Association (AITA) at the RK Khanna Tennis Stadium , when they were presented with the Davis Cup Commitment Trophy.Mukherjee made his Davis Cup debut in 1960 against Thailand and had a 62-35 win-loss record while Paes is currently playing his 49th Davis Cup tie here against South Korea. Graeme Smith Captains his 100th Test On 4 February South African test cricket team captain Graeme Smith has created a unique record by leading the side in 100th test.As the South African captain Graeme Smith stepped on the field against Pakistan, he became the only captain in the world to have led the team in 100 test matches.Earlier, the record for captaining in most number of

test matches was held by former Australian skipper Allan Border. Allan Border led the Australian test cricket team in 93 test matches. Sourav Ganguly holds the record of captaining Indian test team in most number of test matches. Sourav played as skipper in 49 test matches. Now, Graeme Smith is the only cricketer to play as captain in 100 test matches. India Won Record 46 Medals in Special Olympics On 6 February Indias differently-abled athletes returned with the largest haul of medals in the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games at Pyeong Chang, South Korea.The Indians won 46 medals 13 gold, 17 silver and 16 bronze from among mentally-challenged 2200 athletes from over 120 nations in the Games .India doubled its medal tally from the World Winter Games 2009.The Games are being competed in eight sports . Sachin Equaled Sunil Gavaskars First Class Cricket Record On 8 February Sachin Tendulkar equaled the record of Sunil Gavaskar of 81 first class hundreds in first class cricket at Mumbai. He managed to equal Gavaskars record after scoring an unbeaten 140 runs in Irani Trophy against Rest of India in the first innings of the tournament of Mumbai team.When he reached 106, Tendulkar also completed 25,000 runs in first class cricket. Wrestling Dropped From 2020 Olympic Games List On 12 February the International Olympic Committee (IOC) leaders dropped wrestling from the 2020 Olympic Games.Wrestling will be included at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.The IOC board acted after reviewing the 26 sports on the current Olympic program. Eliminating one sport allows the IOC to add a new sport to the program later this year.Wrestling will now join seven other sports in applying for inclusion in 2020. The others are a combined bid from baseball and softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu. They will be vying for a single opening in 2020.The last sports removed from the Olympics were baseball and softball, voted out by the IOC in 2005 and off the program since the 2008 Beijing Games. Golf and Rugby will be joining the program at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. Victoria Azarenka won Qatar Open Tennis Title

On 18 February Defending champion Victoria Azarenka from Belarus defeated Serena Williams (America) to won the Qatar Open tennis title in the final at Doha. Sania Mirza won Dubai Tennis Championship Title On 23 February Indias Sania Mirza and her American partner BethanieMattek Sands won the Dubai Tennis Championship title. The IndoAmerican duo defeated the second seeded Russian-Slovenian combination of Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik. Sania bagged her second Doubles title of the season.

ECONOMY BHEL and GAIL Granted Maharatna Status On 1 February The Union Government of India granted Maharatna status to BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd ) and GAIL (Gas Authority of India Limited), a development which will provide them greater financial and functional autonomy and also ensure better valuation for shares of the two public sector undertakings.Ideally any Maharatna firm has a capacity to take investment decision of around 5000 crore Rupees without taking assistance from the government. On the other hand, forms with Navratna status have the capability of 1000 crore Rupees.For any company to qualify for Maharatna status, the annual turnover should be over 25000 crore Rupees in past three years, as per the guidelines issued by Department of Public Enterprises. Per capita Monthly Income Growth Eases to 14% in 2011-12 On 1 February According to the the revised data of national accounts the per capita monthly income, a measure to assess standard of living, grew at a slower rate of 13.7 per cent to Rs 5,130 in 2011-12 at current prices compared to Rs 4,513 in 2010-11.On the Gross Domestic Saving (GDS) front, the data revealed that the growth at current prices in 2011-12 slowed to 30.8 per cent of GDP at market prices against 34 per cent in the previous year.The gross domestic capital formation has increased from Rs 28,71,649 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 31,41,465 crore in 2011- 12 at current prices.It further revealed that the per capita private final consumption expenditure (PFCE) at current prices in 2011-12 is estimated at Rs 42,065 as against Rs 36,677 in the year 2010-11,

showing an increase of 14.7 per cent against an increase of 15.7 per cent in the previous year. Argentina Censured by the IMF for Economic Data On 3 February The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has censured Argentina for the quality of its official inflation and GDP data.Inflation in Argentina is estimated by private economists to be at 25% a year and rising but the government reported it at 11% or less for last year.Argentina became the first country to be censured by the International Monetary Fund for not providing accurate data on inflation and economic growth under a procedure that can end in expulsion. Mumbai Is Worlds Cheapest City Mumbai shares the title of the worlds cheapest city with Karachi, in Pakistan, according to the Worldwide Cost of Living 2013 survey by the Economist Groups Economic Intelligence Unit.After Mumbai and Pakistan comes Delhi ,Algiers, Bucharest, Colombo and Panama City.According to the report, the five most expensive cities in the world are Tokyo and Osaka in Japan, Sydney, Oslo and Melbourne. Railway Budget 2013-14 On 26 February Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal presented the 2013-14 Railway Budget in the Loksabha . Railway Budget 2013-14 Highlights :2013-14 Railway Budget Estimates Rs.42,210 crores Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores in 2013-14 Good Earnings Rs.93,554 crores Good Traffic Receipts Rs.1,43,742 crores Total Revenue Receipts Rs.1,46,626 crores Ordinary Working Expenses Rs.96,500 crores Operating Ratio to be 87.8%. A new Forged Wheel Factory at Rae Bareli, Coach Manufacturing Unit in Sonepat District (Haryana) ,Midlife Rehabilitation Workshop at Kurnool

(Andhra Pradesh), new wagon maintenance workshop in Kalahandi (Odisha). Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores 5.2 per cent growth in passenger traffic expected in 2013-14 Freight loading of 1047 MT, 40 MT more than 2012-13. 67 new Express trains to be introduced.26 new passenger services, 8 DEMU services and 5 MEMU services to be introduced. Run of 57 trains to be extended. Frequency of 24 trains to be increased.22 new rail lines to be taken up in 2013-14 Proposal for setting up of Railway Tariff Regulatory Authority formulated and at inter-ministerial consultation stage. Fuel Adjustment Component (FAC) linked revision for freight tariff to be implemented from 1st April 2013. 72 additional suburban services in Mumbai and 18 in Kolkata An independent Rail Tariff Authority has been formalised ndian Railways Institute of Financial Management to be set up at Secunderabad Recruitment to RPF with 10% vacancies reserved for women.Seek to fill 1.52 lakh vacancies in railways this year. 47000 vacancies for weaker sections and physically challenged to be filled up soon By end of 2013-14, 1,500 km of contracts to be awarded for two dedicated rail corridors Economic Survey of contracts to be awarded for two dedicated rail corridors. Union Budget 2013-14 On 28 February Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram Presented the Rs.16,65 279 Crore(Planed Expenditure Rs. 5,55,322 crore , Non Planed Expenditure Rs 11,09,975 crore) Union budget in the Lok Sabha for the financial year 2013-14.This is the 82nd Budget for India and 8th Budget for the Finance Minister P Chidambaram.In the past, former Prime Minister Morarji Desai presented the Union Budget 8 times as Finance Minister. The Highlights of Union Budget 2013-14: Total budget expenditure seen at 16.65 trillion rupees in 2013-14.

on-plan expenditure estimated at about 11.1 trillion rupees in 2013-14. Indias 2013-14 plan expenditure seen at 5.55 trillion rupees Revised estimate for total expenditure is 14.3 trillion rupees in 2012-13, which is 96 point of budget estimate Expect 133 billion rupees through direct tax proposals in 2013-14 Expect 47 billion rupees through indirect tax proposals in 2013-14 Target 558.14 billion rupees from stake sales in state-run firms in 201314 Expect revenue of 408.5 bln rupees from airwave surcharges, auction of telecom spectrum, licence fees in 2013-14 But will give some tax relief of Rs. 2000 for every person who has an annual income of up to Rs. 5 lakh RBI expected GDP growth of 5.5% for Financial Year 2013-14 Rs.1000-crore Nirbhaya Fund announced for the empowerment of women Rs.6,000 crore to be allocated for rural housing fund Defence allocation increased to Rs. 2.03 lakh crore Rs. 6,275 crore to ministry of science and technology, Rs. 5,880 crore to Department of Atomic Energy Rs.27,049 crore allocation to the Agriculture Ministry Rs. 37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Rs.110 crore to be allocated to the department of disability affairs Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Rs.14000 crore will be provided for PSB recapitalization. He will constitute a panel on transaction costs, and financial policies. Rs.6,5867 crore for Education , an increase of 17 percent over RE for 2012- 13.

Rs 6275 crore to Ministry of Technology Rs.2 trillion for defence sector Rs.15,260 crore to be allocated to Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation. Rs.14,873 crore for JNNURM for urban transportation Rs.80,194 crore allocation for Ministry of Rural Development Rs.33,000 crore for MGNREGA Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Rs.13215 crore for mid-day meal programme Rs.41,561 crore for SC plan and Rs 24,598 crore for tribal plan. 3511 crore allocation to minorities which is 12 per cent hike over budget estimates, 110 crore rupees allotted for welfare of disabled. 65867 crore rupees have been allocated to the Ministry of Human resources development which is 17 per cent hike over the revised estimates. A surcharge of 10 percent on persons (other than companies) whose taxable income exceeds Rs.1 crore have been levied. Relief of Rs. 2000 for the tax payers in the first bracket of 2 to 5 lakhs.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Iran launches new fighter jet Iran had unveiled a new home-made combat aircraft on 02 February 2013.Iran announced that this is the most Sophisticated aircraft in the world.The name of this aircraft was Qaher F313 (Dominant F313).Qaher F313 was designed using the Advanced Electro-Aviation System. Worlds Largest Prime Number Discovered with 17,425,170 digits

Researchers from the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg discovered the largest prime number of the world, Contains 17 Million Digits. This is the 48th Mersenne prime found so far. However there are certain rare kinds of prime numbers called Mersenne primes which have the form 2 multiplied by itself p times minus 1, where p denotes a prime number. The new largest prime is 2 multiplied by itself 57885161 times minus 1. First Complete Bionic Man Unveiled in U.K On 7 February The worlds first complete Bionic Man named Rex was unveiled at Londons Science Museum. The bionic man was created using 1 million US dollar limbs as well as organs.Rex has a human face with brown eyes and a height of 6.5 feet. It was designed jointly with assistance from 18 universities and companies. Rudra Inducted into the Army On 8 February The first indigenously built Weapon System Integrated Advanced Light Helicopter, Rudra was handed over to the Indian Army by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) .Rudra is the Mk-IV variant of the Advanced Light Helicopter designed and manufactured by HAL. The helicopter is fitted with weapons, targeting systems, warning and counter-measure systems and survivability features.This is the first of the 60 armed helicopters provided to the army by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) after the Defence Ministry handed over the control of all attack helicopters to the land force. Indian Coast Guard Ship Rajratan Commissioned On 11 February Indian Coast Guard ship Rajratan , the fifth in a series of eight Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPVs), was commissioned by Indian Coast Guard.The vessel has been indigenously built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata.The 50m long IPV can achieve a maximum speed of 34 knots, with an endurance of 1,500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 16 knots. North Korea conducted third nuclear test On 12 February 2013,North Korea successfully conducted a third underground nuclear test with the violation of United Nations sanctions.In the past North Korea two times conducted nuclear tests but this is most powerful than those tests.North Korea announced that,a miniaturised nuclear device had been detonated successfully at the test

site.The test was reported to have taken place at a test site in the North Hamgyeong province, where the Punggye-ri nuclear complex that conducted tests in 2006 and 2009 is located. Asteroid 2012 DA14 Passed Very Near To Earth The small Asteroid named 2012 DA14 with an estimated diameter of 50 meters (160 ft) and an estimated mass of 190,000 metric tons passed within about 3.5 Earth radii of the Earths surface on February 15.During its 2013 close passage, the asteroid passed 27,700 km (17,200 mi) from the surface of Earth. Scientists at NASA estimated that an asteroid the size of 2012 DA14 flies this close to Earth about once every 40 years. A 2012 DA14-size asteroid impacts Earth once every 1,200 years, on average. PSLV-C20 Successfully Launched SARAL and 6 Other Satellites On 25 February ISROs Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the Satish Dawan Space centre at SPSR Nellore in Sriharikota , launched the Indo-French satellite SARAL along with six commercial payloads from Austria, Britain, Canada and Denmark into a 785-km polar sunsynchronous orbit.It was the 23rd mission of PSLV, which has an impeccable record of 21 consecutive successful flights. About SARAL:- The Saral mission results from the common interest of both ISRO and CNES in studying the ocean from space. For instance, it can provide information on seasonal forecasting, study on animal migration, locating buoys and fishing vessels, collecting environmental data such as ocean temperature profiles and currents. Besides Saral, the PSLV-C20 has put into orbit two micro-satellites UniBRITE and BRITE (both from Austria), AAUSAT3 from Denmark and STRaND from UK. It also carried one micro-satellite (NEOSSat) and one mini-satellite (SAPPHIRE) from Canada.With a lift-off mass of 407 kg, Saral is the 56th satellite to be launched by PSLV.The six commercial payloads from abroad together have a lift-off mass of 259.5 km.PSLVC20 is the ninth PSLV in core alone configuration (without solid strapon motors).

PERSONS IN NEWS A) APPOINTMENTS

Mo Yan and Jackie Chan Selected As Members of Chinese Parliament On 3 February Mo Yan, the winner of Nobel Prize for literature, 2012 and Jackie Chan, the movie star were given a political role in China by being selected as members of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference, one of the houses of Chinese parliament. Prachanda elected as Maoist president of ruling UCPN-Maoist party Prachanda, the powerful Maoist leader who became prime minister after toppling the 239-year-old monarchy in Nepal, was elected as the president of the ruling UCPNMaoist party on 08 February 2013.58yearold Prachanda, whose real name is Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Indian American Subra Suresh Appointed as President of Carnegie Mellon On 9 February US President Obamas top science official and Indian American Padma Shri awardee Dr Subra Suresh has been appointed as the new president of Carnegie Mellon University. He will succeed Dr. Jared L. Cohon, who led the university to unprecedented growth during his 16-year tenure. Dr Suresh will assume office on July 1 after Dr Cohon would step down on June 30, this year. Ratan Tata Elected To National Academy of Engineering On 9 February Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of the Tata Group, has been elected as a member of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering of the US along with 10 new foreign members.This is the highest professional distinction accorded to an engineer in the US.Ratan Tata has been selected for his outstanding contributions to industrial development in India and the world. B)RESIGNS D.C.Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi To Resign Indian American, Natwar M. Gandhi, Chief Financial officer (CFO) of Washington DC ,announced his resignation on 1 February.He will resign on 1 June 2013.Gandhi has held the office since 2000 and was appointed to a new, five-year term last year. Solicitor-General Rohinton Nariman resigns

Solicitor-General of India Rohinton Nariman resigned 04 February 2013.Mr. Nariman was appointed as the second most senior law official of the country on July 23, 2011 following the resignation of Gopal Subramanium on July 14, 2011. Obamas Top Science Official Suresh Resigned On 6 February US President Barack Obamas top science official and Padma Shri awardee Subra Suresh has resigned from his current position to join the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University as its chief.As director of National Science Foundation (NSF) since 2010, Suresh was responsible for driving scientific research of the country.Suresh has coauthored more than 240 journal articles, registered 21 patents and written three widely used materials science books. Nagaland Home Minister resigns Nagaland Home Minister Imkong L. Imchen was resigned from the ruling Naga Peoples Front (NPF) government on 19 February 2013.Mr. Imchen put in his papers after the Election Commission authorities seized cash amounting to more than Rs.1 crore and weapons from his vehicle on 18 February by troopers of Assam Rifles at Sathupang area in Wokha district. Pope Benedict XVI Resigned On 28 February Pope Benedict XVI a position in which he serves dual roles as Sovereign of the Vatican City State and leader of the Catholic Church resigned his post.Pope Benedict XVIs birth name is Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger.Benedict XVI was elected on 19 April 2005 in a papal conclave, celebrated his Papal Inauguration Mass on 24 April 2005, and took possession of his cathedral, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, on 7 May 2005. A native of Bavaria, he has both German and Vatican citizenship. C)DEATHS Former Puducherry CM Shanmugam passes away Former Chief Minister of Puducherry P. Shanmugam passed away at the Karaikal Government Hospital on 02 February 2013.A bachelor, Shanmugam was the chief minister of Puducherry from March 22, 2000 to Oct 27, 2001 and represented the union territory in the Lok Sabha between 1980-1991.

Chinas Table Tennis Legend Zhuang Zedong Died On 10 February the chinas table tennis legend , Zhuang Zedong died in Beijing .Zhuang Zedong is a three-time world table tennis champion.Zhuang Zedong remained a crucial figure in ping-pong diplomacy of 1971 and is popularly also called the Architect of PingPong Diplomacy. Pingpong diplomacy means exchange of the table tennis (ping-pong) players between China and US American Philosopher and Legal Scholar Dworkin Died Ronald Dworkin a renowned American philosopher and a Constitutional Law expert died on 14 February at London .He wrote books named A Matter of Principle, Laws Empire and Justice for Hedgehogs. Radhakishan Malviya former Union Minister died Former Union Minister and senior Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Radhakishan Malviya died on 19 February 2013 in Indore.Malviya was elected MLA from Sanver in Indore district in 1972. A three-time Rajya Sabha MP, he was Labour Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi government in mid-1980s. Malviya was Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president during 1998-2003 when Digvijay Singh was the chief minister. D)VISITORS Bhutan Prime Minister Jigmi Y. Thinley Visited India Prime Minister of Bhutan Jigmi Y Thinley visited India from 7 9 February.During his three-days visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at NewDelhi and discussed on developmental issues of his country with the Indian leadership, and sought financial assistance for the 11th five year plan of his country. Frances President Francois Hollande Visited India Frances President Francois Hollande Visited India from 14th and 15th February.During the 2 day visit he met manmohan singh at NewDelhi and discussed the sale of Rafale fighter jets , bilateral issues , after signed the both nations on several agreements . Britains PM David Cameron Visited India

David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , visited India from 18 20 February.During the visit on 18 February he attended India Britain delegations meeting in Mumbai .On 19 February Cameron met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi and discussed bilateral and global issues.The British Prime Minister last visited India in July 2010. E)MISCELLANEOUS Three Year Old Girl Joins Mensa After Taking IQ Test in Russian A brainy 3 year old girl Clever Alice Amos has been unveiled as the youngest new member of Mensa with a higher IQ than Stephen Hawking.Amos has been granted full membership of the brain box society after scoring an incredible 162 on an IQ test she took in Russian.Her IQ of 162 ranks her higher than a list of the worlds greatest luminaries dead and living.Former US presidents Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin and Bill Clinton could only muster 128, 160 and 137 respectively. Mohamed Nasheed Took Refuge In Indian High Commission On 13 February the former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed took refuge in the Indian High Commission in Capital Male to evade arrest, a year after he was toppled.He turned up at the single-storey Indian mission around noon to evade arrest warrant issued by a court in a case concerning the detention of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court during his Presidency in January last year.The Indian government has permitted him to stay in Mission. Queen Elizabeth II named Britains Most Powerful According to the BBC power list of Britains most influential women, Queen Elizabeth II has been named the most powerful woman in Britain, while two Indian-origin women also found a place in the list of UKs 100 most powerful women. Two Indian-origin women who featured among the 100 most powerful British women were Kolkata-born Pinki Lilani, founder of the Asian Women of Achievement Awards in the UK, and human rights champion and director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti. Worlds oldest woman is Misao Ookawa Misao Ookawa,the oldest woman in the world receives a Guinness World Records certificate in Osaka, Japan,on 27 February 2013.She will

ready to celebrate its 115th birth anniversary on 5 March 2013. The oldest man in the world,Jiroemon Kimura(115) also belongs to Japan.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong 6.6 Magnitude Quake Hits Solomon Islands On 6 February a strong 6.6-magnitude tremor struck the Solomon Islands , the latest in a series of aftershocks from a powerful earthquake that triggered a tsunami The quake hit 36 kilometres south-southwest of Lata, the main town on the remote island of Ndende.At least six people were confirmed dead and some 3,000 left homeless but the national disaster management office has been struggling to get a clear picture of the scale of destruction on the island, more than 600 kilometres from the capital Honiara.The Solomons are part of the Ring of Fire, a zone of tectonic activity around the Pacific that is subject to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Snow Storm Nemo Hits US and Canada On 8 February Seven people have been killed in the United States and Canada as the massive blizzard Winter Storm Nemo dumped nearly two feet of snow in New England and knocked out power to more than a half a million homes.Throughout the Northeast, more than 600,000 homes and businesses lost electricity. Airlines cancelled more than 5,300 flights today, and New York Citys three major airports and Bostons Logan Airport closed. Huge Meteorite Hits The Russia On 15 February A huge meteor hits the Russia, injuring more than 1000 people, many hurt by broken glass, and causing explosions.Fragments of the meteor fell in a thinly populated area of the Chelyabinsk region.The meteorite, which weighed about 10 metric tons and may have been made of iron, entered Earths atmosphere and broke apart 30-50 km (19-31 miles) above ground.The meteorite explosion, a very rare spectacle, also unleashed a sonic boom.The energy released when it entered the Earths atmosphere was equivalent to a few kilotonnes, the power of a small atomic weapon exploding.

ABBREVIATIONS DSDS Delhi Sustainable Development Summit BHEL Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd GAIL Gas Authority of India Limited TERI The Energy and Resources Institute EIU Economist Intelligence Unit NSF National Science Foundation TAPI TurkmenistanAfghanistanPakistanIndia POTA Prevention of Terrorism Act IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency CAIR Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics CITU Centre of Indian Trade Unions FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation HDI Human Development Index UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees WIPO World Intellectual Property Organisation

BOOKS IN NEWS Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life Book Released On 2 February The indomitable Khushwant Singh has released a new book named Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life on his 98th birthday in which he writes about his life, lessons it has taught him, politics, future of India and what religion means to him.The book, published by Penguin Books India, is dedicated to Kaur who is a close friend of the author.Khushwant Singh was a Member of Parliament from 1980 to 1986. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 but

returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by the Indian Army. In 2007, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Germany Book Released Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose new book named Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Germany released on 6 February.The First copy of the book by Professor Anita B. Pfaff was given to the President of India Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan at NewDelhi. The book was brought out by the Federation of Indo-German Societies in India.The book is a collection of the records shared by Professor Anita Pfaff as well as other known biographers and writers.The book portrayed some interesting facets of the life of Netaji and his extraordinary contribution to Indias freedom struggle.

COMMITTEES Padmanabhan Committee To Help Boost Bank Finance For Exports On 3 February The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) constituted a technical advisory committee to iron out existing issues and boost bank finance for exports.The committee will be headed by RBI Executive Director G Padmanabhan.The committee look into the issues related to exporters, we have decided to constitute a technical working group which will also look non-cost issues like transaction costs, accounting norms, documentation required, procedural difficulties.