Study: Mangroves in Florida expanding poleward

January 3, 2014
According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sci
ences (PNAS) journal, Mangrove trees, which are highly sensitive to cold, have e
xpanded extremely on the pole ward side or on the Atlantic coast of Florida as t
he frequency of frosts has diminished.
Mangroves are restricted to the tropical areas as they cannot tolerate the extre
me cold events that are so very typical of the temperate zone. Thus, the massive
expansion of mangroves in the temperate zone of Florida during the last three d
ecades is a proof of climate change s role.
Over 28 years, the Florida coast, from Miami northwards, gained more than 3,000
acres of Mangroves.
The reason for this strange expansion/reduction in mangrove coverage boils down
to extreme cold events days colder than -4o C. The -4o C is the physiological te
mperature limit of mangrove survival.
Usefulness of Mangrove trees
They form a biomass of trees that tolerate salt in tidal areas near freshwater e
stuaries on tropical coastlines.
Support great biological diversity, including numerous species of crustaceans, f
ish, birds and molluscs.
Both salt marshes and mangroves help contain flooding, store atmospheric carbon
and contribute to the expansion of the land mass.
Note: At present, Mangrove forests face deforestation from carbon production, aq
uaculture and urbanization, and are threatened by drainage from sewers, while sa
lt marshes are threatened by waste-water pollution and rising sea levels.
Marijuana becomes legal in Colorado
January 3, 2014
The US State of Colorado became the first state to legally sell marijuana and op
en the retail spots for pot.
About Marijuana
Marijuana is a greenish-gray mixture of the dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds
and flowers of Cannabis sativa
the hemp plant. Most people smoke marijuana, tho
ugh it can also be used in other forms such as edibles, powders and oils.
In Colorado, both medical and recreational marijuana are legal. The drug used fo
r controlling pain for medical issues, like cancer, nervous system diseases, gla
ucoma, migraines, etc and also used to treat nausea and improve appetites for pe
ople with HIV or other chronic illnesses.
Research shows that daily use of marijuana during adolescent years results in im
paired learning, memory and decreased IQ.
The health effects of marijuana use
Short term effect - it can lead to a rapid heart rate, increase blood pressure,
red eyes, dry mouth, increased appetite and slowed reaction time.
Long-term effect- impaired thinking, memory problems, panic attacks and other ps
ychological issues. There have also been studies showing a weakened immune syste
m and, for those who smoke the drug, impaired lung function.
Union Ministry issued food safety guidelines for ICDS
January 3, 2014
The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development issued food safety and hygiene
guidelines to prevent contamination of supplementary nutrition provided to preg
nant women and children under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) s
cheme.

Operational Guidelines for Food Safety and Hygiene in ICDS

While cooking and serving food, the anganwadi workers and helpers are not allowe
d to wear wrist watches, rings, bangles, nail polish, artificial nails, etc, bec
ause these can carry foreign bodies and compromise hygiene. The fingernails must
be trimmed and cleaned.
Hair should be neatly tied up and covered and glass in any form is not allowed i
n the cooking areas.
An adequate precaution for cleanliness issued for the staffs to prevent the food
from getting contaminated during cleaning of rooms, utensils or any other equip
ment.
It has mentioned that before using any equipment, while cooking food should be w
ashed with water.
To make safe disposal of stool and wastes, the toilets must be clean all the tim
e.
The activity rooms should be well ventilated, spacious enough and should be clea
ned every day before the start of the functions in the morning.
Adequate space should be provided for the kitchen, it should be separate from ac
tivity/classrooms, preferably located at a safe, but accessible distance.
About Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme
The Government of India sponsored programme.
Launched: October 2,1975.
Aim: to improve the nutritional and health status of vulnerable groups including
pre-school children, pregnant women and nursing mothers.
Scheme: to tackle malnutrition and health problems in children below 6 years of
age and their mothers.
The Ministry of Women and Child Development is the nodal department for UNICEF,
which has provided essentials supplies to the ICDS Scheme since 1975.
China banned officials from smoking in public places
January 3, 2014
China s ruling Communist Party issued an order to ban officials from smoking in pu
blic places or while performing official duties.
According to the circular
Officials are not allowed to smoke in public places viz. schools, hospitals, off
ices, public transport, public venues, etc. where smoking is banned.
They can neither use public funds to buy cigarettes, nor are they permitted to s
moke or offer cigarettes when performing official duties.
The sale of tobacco products and advertisements will no longer be allowed in Par
ty and government offices.
Notices of smoking bans must be displayed in meeting rooms, reception offices, p
assageways, cafeterias and rest rooms.
It is an effort to cut the 1.4 million deaths linked to tobacco every year.
Note: China is the world s largest cigarette producer and consumer, with an estima
ted 300 million smokers. Smoking is one of the greatest health threats, which ca
use death of millions of people in China.Finance Minister called financial secto
r regulators to implement FSLRC proposals
January 3, 2014
The Union finance minister, P Chidambaram stated the regulators must implement p
roposals of the Finance Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC).
The FSLRC report contains 12 key proposals and these do not require legislative
changes. It also included a draft Indian Financial Code that is expected to repl
ace the current financial sector legislations but is unlikely to be tabled in Pa
rliament soon.
About FSLRC report

The financial sector regulators will take serious action with high penalties on
violators and time bound investigations that would act as deterrents and improve
consumer protection.
The proposals that called for penalties discourage the future violations as a mu
ltiple of the illegitimate gain of violations.
Regulators should also put in place internal manuals on conducting investigation
s. The investigating officer would be kept different from the officer who would
decide the penalty for the crime.
Note: The Financial Stability and Development Council on October 2013 decided to
finalize an action plan for implementation of all FSLRC principles on regulator
y governance, transparency and improved operational efficiency that do not requi
re legislative action.
Pakistan appoints a female judge to Sharia Court for the first time
January 3, 2014
Ms Ashraf Jehan (56) appointed as the first female judge of Shariah Court (Pakis
tan), which hears cases under the Islamic legislation. Ms Jehan was earlier serv
ing as an additional judge at the high court in Sindh.
Note: The Shariah Court was established in 1980 during the rule of military dict
ator Ziaul Haq as part of his policy towards Islamisation of Pakistan s institutio
ns. It examines the country s laws to check them for conformity with Islamic injun
ctions and hears appeals under religious legislation known as the Hudood Laws , whi
ch run parallel to the penal code.
PETA s Person of the Year: Dr Shashi Tharoor
January 3, 2014
Screenshot_1The Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development, Dr. Shas
hi Tharoor named as the Person of the Year by the animal rights body PETA (Peopl
e for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
India for taking steps to advance animal
protection. Mr. Tharoor recommended the National Council for Teacher Education
(NCERT) to ban the use of animals, viz. for dissection, etc, in training teacher
s.
By his initiative, in 2012, the Ministry of Environment and Forests issued a dir
ective instructing all the institutes or establishments associated with teaching
of medical, pharmacy and other courses in life sciences to follow UGC guideline
s for discontinuation of dissection and animal experimentation in universities a
nd colleges and introduce use of alternatives to animal experimentation.
About People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) - India
Based in Mumbai, launched in January 2000.
Operates under the simple principle that animals are not ours to eat, wear, expe
riment on or use for entertainment.
Focuses primarily on the areas in which the greatest numbers of animals suffer t
he most: in the food and leather industries, laboratories and the entertainment
industry.
Responsible for the ending of animal experiments by the West Bengal Board of Sec
ondary Education in 2008.
RBI eases gold dore import norms; allows refineries to import 15% of their annua
l requirements in first two months
January 3, 2014
In consultation with the Government of India, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) pa
rtially eased restrictions on import of gold dore after taking into account repr
esentations from refiners. As per the new norms -

Refineries are allowed to import dore up to 15% of their gross average feasible
quantity based on their license entitlement in the first two months for making t
his available to the exporters on First in First out (FIFO) basis. Following to
this, the quantum of gold dore to be imported should be determined lot-wise on t
he basis of export performance.
Before the next import, not more than 80% should be allowed to be sold domestica
lly.
The dore so imported shall be refined and shall be released based on FIFO basis
following 20:80 principle.
The imports will be allowed only up to 5 times the quantum for which proof of ex
port has been submitted.
Note: In August, the RBI had imposed curbs on gold imports and linked it with ex
ports. Consequently, 20% of every lot of gold imported had to be exclusively ma
de available for exports and the balance for domestic use.
What is Gold Dore?
Gold dor (pronounced gold doh-rey) is a bar of semi-purified gold (e.g. bullion).
After being mined, the first stage in the purification process of the gold ore
produces a cast bar (gold dore) that is approximately 90% gold. The other 10% is
mostly metals like silver and copper.
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CURRENT AFFAIRS
July 2014RBI: Banks to continue accepting scribbled notes
January 3, 2014
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stated that banks will continue to accept curren
cy notes with anything written on them and it has not issued any such instructio
ns regarding discontinuity of scribed notes.
Nevertheless, the central bank reiterated that writing or scribbling on banknote
s works against its clean note policy and sought co-operation from public, institu
tions and others in keeping the banknotes clean by not writing anything on them.
Note: This announcement came on the wake of rumours that RBI issued a notificati
on that from January 1, 2014, banks will not accept bank notes with scribbling.
FII inflow in Indian equities reaches Rs 1.13 lakh crore
January 3, 2014
The Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) are figured to have made a net inflow
of over Rs. 1.13 lakh crore in the Indian equity market in 2013. At gross level
, FIIs purchased stocks worth Rs 7.96 lakh crore in 2013 and sold equities to th
e tune of Rs 6.84 lakh crore; translating into a net inflow of Rs 1,13,136 crore
.
Nevertheless, overseas investors pulled out Rs 50,847 crore from the bond market
in 2013. This takes the overall investment by FIIs into the debt and equity mar
ket together to Rs 62,288 crore. Despite their unpredictable hot money investment,
these overseas entities are amongst the most important drivers of Indian stock
markets.
As per the experts, FIIs are looking forward to a stable government that can mov
e reforms process faster, irrespective of which political party comes to power a
t the Centre next year. Likewise, a strong performance by BJP in the recent asse
mbly elections has promoted the chances of a stable government at the Centre.
Lativa becomes the 18th state to join the Eurozone

January 1, 2014
The Baltic nation, Latvia joined the Euro Zone, with the expectation that the eu
ro will lower its borrowing costs and encourage investors by eliminating currenc
y risk. It became the 18th member of the European Union, which uses the Euro as
its currency and the fourth smallest economy in the euro zone after Malta, Eston
ia and Cyprus.
The euro switchover ceremony took place at a site where Latvia s crisis began
the
former headquarters of the collapsed Parex bank, now headquarters of state-owned
Citatele bank, which emerged from Parex s ruins. The official conversion rate is
1 EUR = 0.702804 LVL.
About the Euro
Established by the provisions in the 1992 Maastricht Treaty.
Central bank: European Central Bank.
Official currency of the Eurozone.
The Eurozone is an economic and monetary union (EMU) of 18 European Union (EU) m
ember states that have adopted the euro ( ) as their common currency and sole lega
l tender.
Member states: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gree
ce, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovak
ia, Slovenia and Spain.
Latvia joined the Eurozone on January 1, 2014.
Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government Okays 50% power subsidy
January 1, 2014
The Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government declared 50% subsidy on the power tarif
f to benefit approximately 28 lakh households, after announcing 667 litres of wa
ter free of charge to all households in the capital who have metered connections
.
Salient Features of the Power Tariff Subsidy
50 % subsidy would be provided to domestic electricity consumers, who consume up
to 400 units per unit. The decision will benefit 28 lakh consumers.
The subsidy will be available from Jan 1.
For up to 200 units, the cost of one unit would be Rs.1.95 against the actual ra
te of Rs.2.90. Right now, consumers are paying Rs.2.70 after the previous govern
ment introduced a subsidy.
For up to 400 units, the cost per unit would be Rs.2.90 against the actual rate
of Rs.5.80. Presently; consumers are paying Rs.5 after the previous government i
ntroduced subsidy.
No subsidy will be available to domestic consumers who cross the consumption lim
it of 400 units.
Additional requirement to provide this subsidy from January-March 2014 will be R
s.2 billion
Note: Delhi Chief Minister, Mr. Arvind Kejriwal is also in process to bring the
three power distribution companies
BSES Yamuna Power Ltd, BSES Rajdhani Power L
td and Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd under the purview of the Comptroller an
d Auditor General.Current Affairs December 2013
Millionaire Tax approved by the French constitutional council
January 1, 2014
The French Constitutional Council approved the government s controversial millionai
re tax proposal for companies to pay 75% tax on annual salaries exceeding 1 millio
n ($1.375 million USD), in line with President Francois Hollande s drive to limit
executive pay at a time of economic hardship. To reduce France s budget deficit,
the increase in tax raised discontent among the business leaders and the footbal

l clubs.
About Millionaire Tax
The super tax is one of the President Francois Hollande s signature policies, to p
ull out France from its economic crisis.
The tax will include a 50% levy on the portion of wages exceeding 1 million paid
in 2013 and 2014. It will be levied on companies, not the individual.
The tax, for earnings in 2013 and 2014, will hit around 470 companies and a doze
n football clubs. It is expected to raise 210 million a year.
Including social contributions, the rate will effectively remain about 75%, thou
gh the tax will be capped at 5% of a company s turnover.
Survey by Trend Micro: Bitcoin malware, India among top targets
January 1, 2014
As per a survey conducted by the IT security firm Trend Micro, Bitcoin mining ma
lware is infecting millions of computers globally and extending the threat of cy
ber security risks for users of the cyber currency. Thousands of computers, incl
uding in India, are being infected with malwares related to the virtual currency
. Bitcoin mining is resource-intensive and can slow down the system due to the i
ncreased CPU load. The infected computers will become very slow on system operat
ion, also appears heavy CPU and power consumption.
Major points related to the survey conducted by the IT security firm Trend Micro
Most of the countries of the Asia Pacific (APAC) region are affected by the Bitc
oin-mining malware. Japan is the most affected country, followed by Taiwan, Aust
ralia and India.
Bitcoin users have become the hot target for cyber criminals as bitcoin transact
ion is permanent and has no reversal of charges.
About 12,000 personal computers have been globally affected by malwares (related
to bitcoin) which were causing severe slowdown of computer systems making them v
irtual assets for the criminals
About Bitcoin
Bitcoin is a virtual currency that is unregulated by any central bank or governm
ent, but still works for purchasing goods and services from retailers willing to
accept it. It can also be traded on an open market that fluctuates much like a
stock market. Bitcoin is a distributed peer-to-peer digital currency that functi
ons without the inter-mediation of any central authority. Bitcoin is also called
a cryptocurrency since it is decentralized and uses cryptography to prevent doubl
e-spending, a significant challenge inherent to digital currencies.
RBI extends deadline to issue inflation-indexed bonds
January 1, 2014
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
xed National Savings Securities
bonds) by three months to March
an be closed earlier than March

extended the time for issuance of Inflation Inde

Cumulative (IINSS-C) bonds (or inflation linked
31, 2014, from December 31, 2013. The issuance c
31, 2014 with a prior notice.

Why RBI extended the deadline to issue inflation-indexed bonds?

The operational guidelines (internal to banks) for selling these certificates at
the branch level are still in the works.
Secondly, it will take time to create awareness among customers in relation to i
nflation linked bonds.
Inflation linked bonds
The limit for investment per applicant per annum: Rs 5,000 Rs 5 lakh.
Eligibility for subscription: Individuals, Hindu Undivided Family, charitable in
stitutions and universities.
The interest rate on these bonds would be linked to the Consumer Price Index (CP
I).

The interest rate would comprise two parts

a fixed rate of 1.5% per annum and in
flation rate based on CPI with a lag of three months. It would be compounded on
the principal on half-yearly basis and paid at the time of maturity.
For senior citizens (65 years and above of age), early repurchase will be allow
ed after one year from date of issue and other investors can redeem them after t
hree years but with penalty of 50 per cent of the last coupon paid.
RBI will act as a central depository, as these securities will be issued in the
form of Bonds Ledger Account (BLA) and held with RBI.
Distribution or sale of bonds would be through banks: SBI, nationalized banks an
d three private banks HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank and Stock Holding Cor
poration of India.
Note: Inflation linked bonds are launched as instruments that will protect savin
gs from inflation, especially the savings of the poor and middle classes.
RBI: political instability after LS elections will hit economy
January 1, 2014
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cautioned that any political instability after t
he Lok Sabha elections in 2014 will drag the besieged economy further down, exce
pt there is a stable new government at the centre. On the release of the 8th edi
tion of the RBI s Financial Stability Report 2013, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan sta
ted that any political instability after general elections will lead to erode in
vestor s confidence in the economy. A stable new government would be positive for
the economy.
Excerpts of the 8th edition of the RBI s Financial Stability Report 2013
The gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the system will rise to Rs. 2.29 lakh
crore by September 2014 from Rs. 1.67 lakh crore in September 2013.
External sector risks have been considerably reduced and the effect of the taper
ing on the economy is expected to be limited and short-lived.
The delay in the tapering of the $85 billion-a-month bond buyback programme by t
he US Fed till January 2014, has given the country time to replenish the forex r
eserves and rein in the high current account gap.
Realignment of global growth as well as high inflation differential between adva
nced economies (AEs) and Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs) is a
potential source of exchange rate volatility and may result in volatile cross-bo
rder flows with every reprising of risk.
Corporate performance continues to be weighed down by boom period expansions and
excess capacities, amid shifting asset composition towards financial investment
s.
Five sectors infrastructure, iron and steel, textiles, aviation and mining toget
her contribute 24 per cent of total advances of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs
) and account approx 53 % of their total stressed advances.
House prices and outstanding loans for housing by housing finance companies have
grown relatively faster during the last few years.
Inadequate social security coverage in India against a backdrop of changing demo
graphics will pose challenges for expanding the pension system given the fiscal
constraints. The National Pension System (NPS) created to serve Government emplo
yees and private sector workers.
Note: RBI publishes Financial Stability Report (FSR) in every six months. Its pur
pose is to create awareness about the vulnerabilities in the financial system an
d to inform about the resilience to stress of the financial institutions and to
generally serve as a health check on the financial system.ndia s e-commerce market
rose 88% in 2013: Survey
January 1, 2014
As per the survey, India s e-commerce market grew by 88% in 2013 to $16 billion. T
he increased internet penetration and availability of more payment options boost
ed the e-commerce industry in 2013. The survey was conducted by the Associated C
hambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).

Highlights of the survey conducted by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and In

dustry of India (ASSOCHAM)
Approximately 3,500 dealers and organized retailers participated from Delhi, Mum
bai, Chennai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Kolkata. Mumbai topped the list of online
shoppers followed by Delhi and Kolkata.
As per the age-wise analysis, 35% of online shoppers are aged between18-25 years
, 55 % between 26-35 years, 8 % between 36-45 years, while only 2 % are in the a
ge group of 45-60 years. In addition, 65 % of online shoppers are male while 35
% are female.
The online shopping arose at a rapid pace in 2013, owing to online discounts, hi
gh fuel prices and availability of abundant online options.
The products that are sold most are in the tech and fashion category, viz. mobil
e phones, I-pads, accessories, MP3 players, digital cameras, jwellery, etc.
Those who are unwilling to shop online quoted reasons viz. prefer research produ
cts and services online, find delivery cost too high, fear to share personal fin
ancial information online, lack of trust on whether products would be delivered
in good condition , people have no credit or debit card facility, etc.
As per the rising online retail, the survey forecasts the country s e-commerce mar
ket to reach $56 billion by 2023.
About the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM)
Represents the interests of trade and commerce in India, and acts as an interfac
e between industry, government and other relevant stakeholders on policy issues
and initiatives.
Founded: 1920
Headquarters : New Delhi, India
President: Dr. Rana Kapoor
Aim: To promote both domestic and international trade, and reduce trade barriers
while fostering conducive environment for the growth of trade and industry of I
ndia.
Mr. Pradeep Kumar: New MD (Corporate Banking) of SBI
January 1, 2014
The Country s biggest lender, State Bank of India (SBI) appointed Mr. P.Pradeep Ku
mar as its Managing Director and group executive in charge of corporate banking.
The seat was lying vacant as of Ms. Arundhati Bhattarcharya became the Chairman
of SBI in October 2013.
Previously, Mr. Kumar was the deputy managing director and group executive of th
e corporate banking group of SBI, which looks after corporate accounts and proje
ct finance of the bank. The other three managing directors are K Krishna Kumar
(national banking), Hemant Contractor (global banking) and A Vishwanathan (subsi
diaries and associates).
Note: The top management at SBI consists of a chairman, four managing directors,
over a dozen deputy managing directors and about 35 chief general managers.
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal announces free water
January 1, 2014
Screenshot_3Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal delivered on the AAP s promise of
its poll manifesto by announcing 20 kilo litres of free water a month to all me
tered households. The decision was questioned by Congress, saying every citizen
of Delhi must be provided 700 litres of free water per day.
However, there is a condition that those consuming above this limit will have to
pay as per tariff, increased by 10%, effective Jan 1, 2014. The promise of 700
litres of free water to every Delhi household was made in the AAP poll manifesto

. The cost of providing the free water would be borne by the Delhi Jal Board (DJ
B) for the first three months. Though AAP were to provide for 700 litres of wate
r per day to every household but the DJB in its final calculations arrived at th
e figure of 667 litres per day or 20 kilo litres a month to be provided to those
households with regular connections.
In another step, the AAP government, which had promised to go over the problems
of auto-rickshaw drivers, new Transport Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj decided to is
sue 5,500 inter-state permits for them to commute within the National Capital Re
gion.
Tamil Nadu government launches free CFL scheme
January 1, 2014
In a bid to promote power saving, Tamil Nadu government began the first phase of
distributing free Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs to over 14 lakh hut-dwe
llers in the state. The scheme is aimed at saving 40 mw of electricity.
The government will implement the scheme in phases. The first phase costing Rs 8
.77 crore will cover 7 lakh domestic consumers. The Chief Minister also unveiled
various sub-stations in the capacity of 230 kv, 110 kv and 33 kv, build in diff
erent parts of the state at an overall expense of Rs 509.88 crore.
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CURRENT AFFAIRS
July 2014
Current Affairs December 2013
Scientists discovered Phosphorous in remnants of Supernova
January 1, 2014
Astronomers have, for the first time, discovered phosphorous
one of the vital el
ements for life
in the cosmic remains from a supernova explosion.
It has been found that phosphorus is 100 times more abundant in the leftovers of
a supernova than elsewhere in the galaxy, affirming the hypothesis that massive
exploding stars are the churning factories of the element.
While researches have calculated the abundance of essential life elements like c
arbon, nitrogen, oxygen and sulphur in supernovae remains, supernova remnant Cas
siopeia A disclosed the first measurement of the relatively scarce phosphorus. T
he new observations of the object were made with a spectrograph positioned on a
5-meter telescope at Palomar Observatory at the California Institute of Technolo
gy.
What are Supernovae and Supernova remnant?
A supernova is a celestial event which happens when massive stars exhaust their
nuclear fuel and explode in a spectacular fashion. Being extremely luminous, the
y briefly outshine an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several days.
During a short period of some weeks or months, a supernova can radiate as much e
nergy as the Sun is expected to emit over its entire life span. Once it fades aw
ay, what remains is an expanding shell of gas and dust called a supernova remnan
t.
What is the scientific thought on the formation of essential life elements?
As per astronomers, these elements are formed in the stars and are dissipated th
roughout our galaxy when the star explodes, and they become part of other stars,
planets and ultimately, humans.

Scientists are of the view that when a star with mass several times the mass of
the Sun runs out of the hydrogen that it combusts to produce energy, the core of
the star goes through a sequence of collapses, synthesising heavier elements wi
th each collapse.
OIL signs pact with IRMA for studying the feasibility of Project

Kamdhenu

January 1, 2014
PSU (Public Sector Unit) Oil India Ltd. has inked an agreement with Institute of
Rural Management, Anand (IRMA) to conduct a feasibility study for the company f
or its plan to set up dairy production facility in Assam. The project which has
been named Kamdhenu aims to set up big milk production centre in Upper Assam.
Why OIL intends to enter dairy sector?
OIL wants to set up dairy production facility under its project Kamdhenu as part o
f a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. The project would seek to
boost milk production in Upper Assam by providing employment opportunity to the
people of the state. In future, the project aims to enhance the production to su
pply milk and dairy products in the whole North-East region. The project derives
inspiration from the Amul model which has been very successful in Gujarat.
What is the role of IRMA in this project?
As per the agreement with Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA) in Gujarat
, the institute has the task of conducting feasibility study and prepare a Detai
led Project Report (DPR) after the study in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts of
Assam where Oil India Ltd (OIL) has significant presence. The DPR will help the
company to devise a roadmap and a long-term broad vision plan for the project.
What is CSR?
As mentioned in the new Companies Act 2009, CSR or Corporate Social Responsibili
ty is the obligation of the companies to spend 2% of their net profit in philant
hropic activities every year.
The law was meant to be applicable for all companies with
a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more, or
a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore or more, or
a net profit of Rs 5 crore or more
Responding to the objections raised by corporate sector against this mandatory p
rovision, the government has recently diluted it. Now, if a company is unable to
do so, it will have to explain in its report as to why it could not fulfill its
CSR obligations.
Cabinet approves constitutional status for JAC
December 31, 2013
The Union Cabinet approved constitutional status to a proposed Judicial Appointm
ents Commission (JAC), for the appointment and transfer of judges to the higher
judiciary. In other words, the cabinet approved a constitution amendment bill to
make the appointment /transfer of judges more transparent. The status ensures t
hat the composition of the commission cannot be altered through an ordinary legi
slation and it would require an amendment in the Constitution to do so.
Presently, the composition of the proposed panel is defined in the JAC Bill, 201
3 which was introduced along with a separate constitutional amendment bill in Ra
jya Sabha during the monsoon session. There were demands that the composition as
well as the functions of the proposed JAC must be mentioned in the Constitution
as a precaution against future changes.
The JAC Bill defines the establishment of the proposed body to recommend appoint

ment and transfer of judges of the Supreme Court and the high courts. Excerpts o
f the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) Bill, 2013
The new Article 124 A of the Constitution will define the composition of the JAC
and Article 124 B will define its functions.
The JAC will be headed by the CJI and have five other members, including the Law
Minister and two eminent persons.
To appoint the two eminent persons for the appointments commission would be done
by the collegium that will include the Prime Minister of India, the Leader of O
pposition and the Chief Justice of India.
Functions viz. recommending names for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court
, Chief Justices of High Courts and judges of High Courts; recommending transfer
of Chief Justices of High Courts and judges of High Courts, etc.
Note: A parliamentary standing committee which examined the Judicial Appointment
s Commission (JAC) Bill, 2013 also made a similar recommendation.
J.N. Chaudhary appointed as new chief of NSG
December 31, 2013
Mr. Jayanta Narayan Chaudhary appointed as new chief of National Security Guard
(NSG). Mr. Chaudhary is the 1978 batch IPS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre and
is due to retire in May 2015. He succeeded Arvind Ranjan.
About National Security Guard (NSG)
Set up in 1984 as a Federal Contingency Deployment Force to tackle all facets of
terrorism in the country.
Operates under the oversight of the Ministry of Home Affairs and is headed by th
e Director General of the Indian Police Service (IPS).
The NSG members are also known as Black Cats because of the black drill cotton c
overalls and balaclavas or helmets they wear.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSCurrent Affairs December 2013
PNB opens first hi-tech branch of Punjab in Kharar
December 31, 2013
Punjab National Bank (PNB) which is India s second-largest bank opened its first h
i-tech branch at Kharar, Punjab.
Salient features of the first hi-tech branch
The self-services system of the branch would provide all services to all the cus
tomers from 7am to 11pm daily.
This would be done through automated machines for cash deposit, cheque deposit,
cash withdrawal and passbook updating machine.
To educate and aware the customers about the hi-tech systems and their usage, a
special counter has been established at the bank branch.
In order to ensure foolproof security of its ATMs, the bank has adopted these se
curities measure, which are under e-surveillance system.
Guardian

Microsoft launched new app for women s safety

December 31, 2013

Screenshot_1The technology giant Microsoft launched a new application (app) Guard
ian with safety features, exclusively for Windows phone users in India. It builds
up this app, chiefly to protect women from incidents such as Nirbhaya .
About the app Guardian
Uses Microsoft Windows Azure cloud solution and the Bing Maps API and allow anyo
ne we wish to track our movements. This can be done by switching on the track me f
eature.

Users will be able to place a call for help through an SOS alert button and also c
onnect to security agencies, police and hospitals easily via this app in times o
f crisis.
Helps women in distress by alerting their friends, families, as well as it is av
ailable as an integrated solution for Police or security agencies, which can mon
itor distress SOS calls and provide help through a portal.
The app allows us to add multiple buddies who will be alerted in emergency situa
tions. It will let them opt out in case they re not so willing to take our SOS cal
l.
The SOS messages will continue to go out even if our phone is destroyed. The bes
t bit is that the SOS button can also send emails and post to private Facebook g
roups. The application is capable of one touch video recording that may be used
as evidence.
Note: The app developed by a group of Microsoft India employees in India inside
the Microsoft Garage. Microsoft Garage is a global employee innovation initiativ
e that gives Microsoft employees an outlet to explore ideas in their free time.
Related News:
Mobile makers should install SoS

button for women safety: Finance Minister

Veteran actor Farooq Sheikh passed away

December 31, 2013
Screenshot_4Noted veteran actor Farooq Sheikh (65) passed away in Dubai.
Farooq Sheikh:
Born: March 25, 1948
He started his career in acting in Bollywood in 1973 with the film Garm Hava and
gained accolades for his roles in movies like Shatranj Ke Khiladi, Chashme Budd
oor, Kissi Se Na Kehna, Noorie. He played the role of a father in Ranbir Kapoor
starring film Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani released this year (2013).
Last Film: Club 60 which released in December 2013
India, US sign $1billion contract for six

Super Hercules aircrafts

December 30, 2013

Screenshot_1India and the US have signed another mega defence deal worth $1.01 b
illion in which the US will supply six additional C-130J Super Hercules aircraft.
The letter of offer and acceptance for the six new four-engine C-130Js, which will
be delivered within 3 years, was inked under the US government s Foreign Military
Sales (FMS) programme.
The Indian Air Force already has six C-130Js tactical airlift aircraft, which ar
e based at the Hindon airbase on the outskirts of Delhi. The upcoming six new C
-130Js will be stationed at Panagarh in West Bengal.
India s first Mountain Strike Force: XVII Corps
India s new mountain strike corps which has been named XVII Corps will also have i
ts headquarters in Panagarh. The XVII Corps with a total of over 80,000 soldiers
, is being brought up by the Army in a project worth around Rs 90,000 crore. Thi
s new corps will fill operational voids along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Contro
l (LAC) as well as add to the Indian Army s ground offensive capabilities against
China for the first time.
Factbox: C-130J Super Hercules
Manufactured by the United States.

World s most advanced and tactical aircraft.

Primarily designed to support India s special operations requirement.
Equipped with an Infrared Detection Set (IDS), the aircraft can perform precisio
n low-level flying, airdrops and landing in blackout conditions.
Self-protection systems and other features are included to ensure aircraft survi
vability in hostile air defense environments. The aircraft also is equipped with
air-to-air receiver refueling capability for extended range operations.
Ideally suited to India s mission environment, which often involves operating out
of austere, high-elevation airstrips in hot conditions.
Powered by four Rolls Royce AE2100 engines and Dowty six bladed props which prov
ide the aircraft with tremendous power.
The aircraft has already demonstrated its responsiveness during the recent Uttar
akhand flood disaster and 2012 Sikkim earthquake where it played a major role in
relief operations.
The rugged aircraft demonstrated its agility when IAF landed it at the world s hig
hest airstrip in Daulat Beg Oldi, in J&K, the place where Indian and Chinese tro
ops had a stand-off recently. The aircraft showed that it can even land at a sma
ll forward airbase on a semi-prepared runway.Arvind Kejriwal takes oath as Chief
Minister of Delhi
December 30, 2013
Screenshot_3The top-most leader of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Arvind Kejriwal, sworn
-in as the new Chief Minister of Delhi. He was administered the oath by the Lieu
tenant Governor of the capital Najeeb Jung.
Along with Kejriwal, six others: Manish Sisodia, Girish Soni, Rakhi Birla, Satye
ndra Jain, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Somnath Bharti, took oath as ministers. The AAP
has come to power after winning 28 seats out of 70 in the recently held assembl
y polls in Delhi. Although it didn t have the majority, the Congress party extende
d its unconditional support to AAP for forming government. Now, Kejriwal governm
ent has the task to deliver on the promises they have made which include cutting
down electricity tarriff and improve water supply to all parts of the national
capital.
The new government has to prove majority in the assembly on January 2, 2014.
Arvind Kejriwal:
Born: August 16, 1968 in Siwani in Haryana
Education: Graduated in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur
Worked for the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) as a Joint Commissioner in the Incom
e Tax Department.
Instrumental in drafting a proposed Jan Lokpal Bill and his efforts to bring and
implement the Right to Information (RTI) Act at grassroots level.
2012: Launched Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which ousted the Shiela Dixit s regime of Con
gress after winning 2013 Assembly polls.
In the assembly elections he defeated his rival Shiela Dixit by a huge margin of
25, 864 votes.
Became the second youngest Chief Minister of Delhi. Chaudhry Brahm Prakash was t
he youngest Chief Minsiter at 34 when he took over in 1952.
US President signs budget bill into law to prevent government shutdown
December 30, 2013
US President Barack Obama has inked a two-party federal budget bill, preventing
the risk of a government shutdown for two years in the country.
The legislation was passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives a
fter a prolonged stand-off between the Democrats and the Republicans. The bill h
ad been drafted by a cross-party budget panel set up after October s 16-day govern
ment shutdown.
The Defence Bill, among others, provides $527 billion in base defence spending a

nd $80 billion for the war in Afghanistan, in addition to a crackdown on assault

* in military and relaxes restrictions on transferring detainees from the federa
l prison at Guantanamo Bay.
Why did the US government shutdown happen?
The US Congress failed to pass the government budget due to disagreement between
the Republicans, who have majority in the lower house
the House of Representati
ves and the Democrats, who control the upper house, the Senate.
Since President Barack Obama s election, the parties have never come to a resoluti
on on a US budget that extends further than a few months. They ve just negotiated
around the margins and come up with short-term fixes.
Now, the Republicans are using budget deadlines to gain political leverage over
contentious policies.
This time the issue was Mr. Obama s healthcare reform programme- the Patient Prote
ction and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) which continues to be very controversi
al for a range of reasons. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives th
ough approved budgets but eliminated funding of this programme or wanted it dela
yed by one year. The Senate rejected these demands. It led to a deadlock situati
on and no budget bill could be agreed by both houses, resulting into the shut do
wn.
China offers its Beidou Navigation System free of cost to neighbours
December 30, 2013
In a strategic move, China is ready to offer its neighbouring nations use of its
indigenously developed Beidou Satellite Navigation System (BDS) free of charge.
The offer has generated interest from a number of nations including Pakistan, S
ri Lanka, Bangladesh and Thailand.
As per the Chinese government, the country wants to expand the use of the BDS, w
hich already has 16 satellites operating for the Asia-Pacific and is being promo
ted as an alternative to the US Global Positioning System (GPS). China intends to
offer BDS to nations in the Asia-Pacific region, and particularly in South and
Southeast Asia, where the satellites can provide the highest accuracy.
Countries interested in Beidou Navigation System:
China has already reached agreement with Pakistan and Thailand on use of the Bei
dou network. It is in talks with Sri Lanka, for which it has already launched a
satellite, and Bangladesh, over cooperation on satellite use. In early2014, Thai
land will become the first country to set up a satellite station based on Beidou
, with both nations signing a $ 319 million deal.
What is Beidou Satellite Navigation System (BDS)?
Beidou Satellite Navigation System (BDS) is a Chinese satellite navigation syste
m. It consists of two separate satellite constellations:
Beidou-1: A limited test system that has been operating since 2000
Beidou-2 : A full-scale global navigation system which is also known as COMPASS
and is currently under construction as of January 2013 . Beidou-2 will have 35 s
atellites in its network.
Objective of Beidou Satellite Navigation System (BDS):
Initially, when the BDS was launched in 2011, it was serving only the government
and military. However, over the past year the navigation system is being widely
used for civilian purposes domestically. In China, around 80% of passenger buse
s and trucks use the BDS. Now China intends to expand its satellite navigation

services to Asia-Pacific and to South and South-East Asia regions.

Legal wing of CBI brought under agency director
December 29, 2013
In a bid to provide more autonomy to CBI, government has brought the agency s dire
ctorate of prosecution or the legal wing, which used to report to Law Ministry,
under the command of the CBI director, making his orders final in probes.
With this change, the agency director will not only oversee the promotions and p
ostings but also write the Annual Confidential Reports (ACRs), as done earlier b
y law ministry.
What is the responsibility of Directorate of Prosecution (DoP) in CBI?
The DoP in CBI is responsible for conducting and supervising cases pending trial
, appeal and revision in courts. It oversees and monitors the conduct of prosecu
tion in courts and gives advice to CBI officers on all legal matters of general
or specific importance and on issues coming up during probe or trial.
The DoP was the chief functionary of CBI s prosecution wing and was vested with po
wers of direction and control over prosecuting officers. Those powers have now b
een transferred to the CBI director.
How would placing the legal wing of CBI under the command of CBI director change
things?
It was observed that in a number of cases, the investigation by the CBI was over
turned by the DoP; but under the new structure the CBI director will have the au
thority to take a final view on probes and, subsequently, the charge sheets.
The Lokpal Bill, which has been passed by both Houses of Parliament, also provid
es for the DoP chaired by the DoP to be placed under the CBI director. As per th
e Lokpal Bill, the DoP will be appointed in consultation with the Lokpal and CVC
.Current Affairs December 2013
Deepika Kumari clinches 34th National Archery Championship
December 29, 2013
Screenshot_2Ace archer Deepika Kumari created history by clinching her sixth con
secutive title at the 34th National Archery Championships held at JRD Tata Stadi
um, Jamshedpur. With this achievement, Deepika now holds more individual titles
at the national meet than Dola Banerjee, who won 5 national titles. However, the
record of winning most individual titles is still held by Bengal archer Krishna
Ghatak, with seven consecutive titles between 1975 and 1982.
Top Achievers at the National Meet:
Jharkhand (Gold-10, Silver-2, Bronze-5. Total: 17)
SSCB (Gold-3, Silver-3, Bronze-4. Total: 9)
Punjab (Gold-1, Silver-3, Bronze-4. Total: 8)
Cabinet approves raising foreign investment to 62% in Axis Bank
December 29, 2013
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given nod to the proposal o
f Axis Bank for hiking foreign investment from 49% to 62% entailing an inflow of
about Rs 7,250 crore. It will be subject to the aggregate foreign institutional
investors holding not exceeding 49% of the paid up equity share capital of the
bank.
What would be the effect of the hike in foreign investment in Axis Bank?
As a result of the inflow and increase in stake by foreign investors, the bank w
ill turn into foreign-owned, whereby every future investment in seven subsidiari

es will be governed by the FDI (Foreign Direct Investment). According to the FD

I policy, downstream investment by an Indian company, which is not owned and/or
controlled by a resident entity/ies into another Indian company would be in acco
rdance or compliance with the relevant sectoral conditions on entry route. The b
ank s seven subsidiaries are Axis Capitals, Axis Finance Pvt Ltd, Axis Private Equ
ity ltd, Axis Trustee Services Ltd, Axis Asset Management Company, Axis Mutual F
und Trustee Ltd and Axis UK Ltd.
CCEA nod to continuation of National Scheme for Welfare of Fishermen during 12th
Plan
December 29, 2013
The National Scheme for Welfare of Fishermen
will continue during the 12th Plan P
eriod as the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved for the s
ame.
National Scheme for Welfare of Fishermen (NSWF):
Devised by: The Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, Ministry
of Agriculture.
Objectives: Provision of basic amenities like drinking water and sanitation in f
ishing villages, better living standards for fishermen and their families. It al
so envisages social security for active fishermen and their dependants, and stri
ves to ensure their economic security.
Key benefits to be provided under this scheme in 12th Plan Period:
Outlay: Rs 640 crore
Construction of additional 4,600 houses per year
Coverage of 3.5 lakh fishermen under saving-cum-relief every year
Additional coverage of 3 lakh fishermen under group accident insurance
Amount of assistance and compensation to fishermen for the cost of construction
of a house has been enhanced from Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000.
Cost of the construction of a tubewell has been increased to Rs 40,000 from Rs 3
0,000 for all states and Union territories, and Rs 45,000 from Rs 35,000 for Nor
th Eastern states.
59.4% of Indian rural households have no latrines: NSSO survey
December 29, 2013
As per a survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), 59.4% of
rural Indian households lack latrine facility. The survey throws light on key in
dicators of living conditions like drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and housi
ng condition in India.
The survey was done from July 2012 to December 2012 by National Sample Survey Of
fice (NSSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI
).
Key finding of the NSSO Survey:
Access to Drinking Water:
Around 88.5% rural households and 95.3% urban households improved source of drin
king water.
Condition in Kerala is poor where 29.5% of rural households have access to safe
drinking water whereas in Tamil Nadu it was 94%.
Access to safe drinking water in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan are above na
tional average.
In Bihar, 97.6% (rural) and 99.7% (urban) households improved source of drinking
water and in Uttar Pradesh with 96.6% and 99.2% of rural and urban households r
espectively.
85.8% of rural households and 89.6% of urban households had adequate drinking wa
ter.
In Nagaland only 16% rural households have sufficient drinking water throughout
year.

Sanitation & Housing Condition:

Around 62.3% of rural household and 16.7% of urban households lacked bathroom fa
cility.
59.4% and 8.8% households in rural India and urban India respectively lacked lat
rine facilities.
Only 31.9% and 63.9% households in rural India and urban India respectively had
access to latrine facility for its exclusive use.
38.8% and 89.6% households in rural and urban India respectively were found to h
ave access to improved type of latrine.
80% of rural households and 97.9 percent of urban households had electricity for
domestic use.
65.8% of rural households and 93.6% of urban households lived in a house with pu
cca structure whereas 24.6% of rural households and 5% of urban households lived
in a house with semi-pucca structure during 2012.
Only 26.3% and 47.1% households in rural India and urban India respectively had
good ventilation in their houses.
31.7% and 82.5% of rural and urban household respectively had improved drainage
facility in the environment of their dwelling units.
Around 32% of rural households and 75.8% of urban household s areas had some garba
ge disposal arrangement
Only 10.8% of urban dwelling units were situated in slum.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSAustralian school introduces world s first standing classroom to co
mbat childhood obesity
December 29, 2013
As part of a novel experiment, Mont Albert Primary School in Australia has launc
hed the world s first standing classroom which aims to combat the menace of childh
ood obesity. In this experiment being conducted by the researchers of Baker IDI
Heart and Diabetes Institute, a grade six class at this school has been fitted
with height-adjustable desks to allow the student to sit or stand.
The researchers will monitor the standing students with an objective to know if
being upright can improve their health, fitness, learning and memory. Pupils wil
l also be fitted with devices to measure how long they spend sitting, with lesso
n plans revised to reduce the time students are idle.
Why this experiment?
As per scientists, prolonged sitting during the school hours poses health risk b
y contributing to obesity in students as during these hours children perform les
s physical activity. Earlier studies have shown students spent two-thirds of a s
chool day sitting, and long hours of childhood sitting can contribute to the ons
et of such diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity.
In this experiment in which students are required to attend school hours standin
g they will engage more muscles that are likely to be of great benefit for keep
ing the blood flowing throughout their body and reducing the level of fatigue. I
f researchers find this exercise beneficial for the cardiovascular health, learn
ing and memory of the standing students compared to a traditional class, this pi
lot study would be expanded to a much larger trial to find if it can make an imp
act on lessons across Australia.
State civil services officers to face UPSC test for promotion to AIS
December 29, 2013
State civil services officers will have to face a Union Public Service Commissio
n (UPSC) test and interview for their promotion to the three All India Services
(AIS). The Ministry of Personnel recently changed the rules for promotion from s

tate services. The move was opposed by some states including Tamil Nadu.
The selection to IAS, IPS and IFoS from states services will be made through a 10
00 marks four-stage process including a written exam and interview.
The new norms are
A state civil services officer will have to face the written examination compris
ing two papers on aptitude test; and general studies in addition to state-specif
ic questions.
There will be a third written paper on essay, comprehension and precis type only
for non-state civil services officers in addition to two papers.
Successful candidates will face an interview and their Annual Confidential Repor
t (ACR) will be assessed by a board.
The final merit list will be based on the marks obtained in four components
writ
ten exam, length of service, assessment of ACR and interview.
No cap on the number of attempts.
The scheme might be reviewed after its implementation for 3 years.
Note: So far, the selection of state services officers into the three All-India
Services Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and In
dian Forest Service (IFoS)
was done on the basis of review of their seniority an
d ACRs.
SBI to act as lead bank for four newly-formed Meghalaya districts
December 29, 2013
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) designated SBI to act as the lead bank in four n
ewly constructed districts in Meghalaya. The central bank also assigned State Ba
nk of India (SBI), the district working codes for the purpose of Basic Statistic
al Returns (BSR) reporting. The four new districts of Meghalaya are North Garo H
ills, East Jaintia Hills, South West Khasi Hills and South West Garo Hills.
What is a Lead Bank Scheme (LBS)?
The RBI introduced Lead Bank Scheme in 1969, based on the recommendations of the G
adgil Study Group.
The basic idea was to have an area approach for targeted and focused banking.
Under the Scheme, each district had been assigned to different banks (public and
private) to act as a consortium leader to coordinate the efforts of banks in th
e district particularly in matters like branch expansion and credit planning.
The Lead Bank was to act as a consortium leader for coordinating the efforts of
all credit institutions in each of the allotted districts for expansion of branc
h banking facilities and for meeting the credit needs of the rural economy.
Indians consume double the recommended salt intake: Study
December 29, 2013
As per a study, the intake of salt by Indians is nearly twice the amount recomme
nded by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Indians consume about 3.7 grams of
sodium, corresponding to about 9.3 grams of salt per day. The positive thing is
that salt (or sodium) intake has decreased slightly in India between 1990 and 20
10.
As per the research by the University of Cambridge and Harvard School of Public
Health:
The global average salt consumption in 2010 was around 10 grams per person per d
ay, corresponding to 4 grams per day of sodium.
In 181 of 187 nations studied, national intakes exceeded the WHO recommended int
ake of 2 grams per day of sodium (about 5 grams per day of salt).
In 119 countries (88.3% of the world s adult population), the national intake exce
eded this recommended amount by more than 1 gram per day of sodium.

There are also major regional variations around this global average. Highest int
akes are found in regions lying along the old Silk Road
from East Asia, through
Central Asia to Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
Is excess consumption of Common Salt (NaCl) harmful?
Yes. Earlier sudies have found that high or low salt diets are both harmful. Th
e risk of heart attacks, strokes, congestive heart failure, and death from heart
disease, increases considerably when people consume more than 7 grams or less t
han 3 grams of sodium a day. A recent study by the US based Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) had found that there is no benefit of reducing salt
intake to below 2.3 g per day. The study could not find any consistent evidence
to support a link between sodium intake and either a beneficial or adverse effe
ct on health.Service Tax revenue grew over 300 times in past two decades
December 29, 2013
Finance Ministry is focusing on service tax revenue which has grown significantl
y by over 300 times in past about two decades. As per official data, the financ
e ministry has earned revenue of about Rs 1.32 lakh crore in 2012-13 (provisiona
l figures) compared to Rs 407 crore in 1994-95.
The ministry had set a target for 2012-13 to collect Rs 1,32,697 crore but the a
ctual realization was Rs 1,32,518 crore. The number of assessees have also incr
eased by over 400 times since 1994-95.
Revenue from service tax has witnessed such a tremendous growth on account of su
rge in number of services being covered which led to increase in number of asses
sees under service taxation. During 2012-13, there were about 17.12 lakh registe
red assessees for the levy compared to only 3,943 in 1994-95 when service tax wa
s brought in. The total number of taxable services has also increased from 3 in
1994 to 119 in 2012.
It is worth recalling that on July 1, 2012, the finance ministry had introduced
the concept of taxation of service tax based on the negative list which authorized
government to tax almost all the services mentioned in Section 66D of the Finan
ce Act.
Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme (VCES)
The Finance Ministry is implementing VCES which allows a service tax defaulter t
o pay dues without any penalty or late payment charges. Under VCES, an individu
al may make a declaration to the designated authority on or before December 31,
2013.
Why Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme (VCES)?
It has come to the notice of the government that of the 17 lakh people who volun
tarily registered themselves as service tax providers only 7 lakh actually paid
service tax, the remaining 10 lakh did not. Though these people have charged the
service tax from their customers but have not These non-payers are classified a
s no-filers or stop-filers. No-filers are those who have never filed service tax
whereas stop- filers are those who have paid for a year or two but later stoppe
d filing service tax. In order to make these evaders pay the due service tax the
government has chosen VCES path rather than forcing them through punitive actio
n.
The ministry has set an indirect tax collection target of Rs 5.65 lakh crore for
2013-14, through customs, excise and service tax. That figure is up from the Rs
4.73 lakh crore collected in the fiscal 2012-13.
M. Veerappa Moily is the new Environment and Forests Minister
December 28, 2013

Screenshot_1The current Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Marpadi Veerappa
Moily, has been assigned an additional charge of the Environment and Forests Mi
nistry after the exit of Jayanthi Natarajan.
Ministry of Environment & Forests ( MoEF)
The MoEF is the chief agency in the administrative framework of the Central Gove
rnment accountable for the planning, promotion, co-ordination and overseeing the
implementation of India s environmental and forestry policies and programmes.
The main concerns of MoEF are implementation of policies and programmes pertaini
ng to conservation of the country s natural resources including its lakes and rive
rs, its biodiversity, forests and wildlife, ensuring the welfare of animals, and
the prevention and abatement of pollution.
Fiscal deficit to be around 5.2% in FY14: CRISIL
December 28, 2013
As per ratings agency CRISIL, government will miss its 4.8% fiscal deficit targe
t by 0.40% this fiscal 2013-14 and suggested Public Sector Units (PSUs) should d
ip into their cash reserves to reduce the gap by paying extra dividends.
As per the rating agency, taking into account the current scenario, wherein the
front loading of expenditure has resulted in 84.4% of the budgeted fiscal defici
t target being hit by November 2013, the fiscal deficit is expected to touch 5.2
%. As per CRISIL, the government can narrow down its fiscal deficit by as much a
s Rs 20,000 crore this fiscal by using cash reserves of PSUs. The agency says th
at top 20 PSUs will have a cash reserve of Rs 1,60,000 crore by March 2014 and a
re comfortably placed to pay a special dividend of 40% of the corpus (Rs 64,000 cr
ore) without impacting growth plans. This amount will be Rs 27,000 crore more th
an the dividend paid by the companies in 2012 and after calculating the stake of
the government in the firms, will lead to excess revenue of Rs 20,000 crore. Th
is Rs 20,000 crore extra income would make around 20 basis points of the fiscal
deficit, which can help the government reach nearer to its stated fiscal deficit
target of 4.8%. The agency expressed concerns over the revenue collections from
the taxation and also about the Government not being able to reach its Rs 40,00
0 crore divestment target.
Year 2014 to bring 8.5 lakh new jobs: Report
December 28, 2013
As per a survey by recruitment platform year 2014 MyHiringClub.com augurs well
for job seekers as more than 8.5 lakh new jobs are expected across various secto
rs, including FMCG and healthcare. According to the survey based on a study cond
ucted among more than 5,600 firms across 12 industry sectors, the forecasted num
ber of new jobs in 2014 is higher than the estimated 7.9 lakh employment opportu
nities created in 2013.
All the employments have been projected in for the organised sector. Apart from
FMCG, more jobs are expected in healthcare, IT, retail and hospitality sectors.
Sectror-wise expected number of jobs:
FMCG: 1.5 lakh
Healthcare: 1.33 lakh
IT and ITeS: 1.21 lakh
Retail: 86,700
Hospitality: 83,400
Banking and Financial services: 61,400
Manufacturing and Engineering: 51,500
Education, Training and Consultancy: 42,900

Media and Entertainment: 42,800

Real estate: 38,700Current Affairs December 2013
SEBI made fund-raising easier for corporate India and tightened noose on fraudst
ers
December 28, 2013
In order to raise funds easier for companies through genuine equity or debt offe
rs, the market regulator SEBI approved new norms for its search and seizure oper
ations, settlement proceedings, refund to investors and crackdown on illicit mon
ey-pooling schemes.
The measures of new norms:To consider the Financial Portfolio Investors (FPIs) similar to Foreign Institut
ional Investors (FIIs) on tax purposes.
To raise funds through Initial Public Offer (IPO) of equity shares and allowed c
ompanies to file shelf prospectus for debt offers that would be valid for multip
le offers within a year.
To ensure faster refund of money to investors, essential checks are put in place
to avoid any misuse of its newly granted powers with regard to conduct of searc
h and seizure of fraudsters and market manipulators.
And detailed regulations have also been put in place for settlement of administr
ative and civil proceedings in a transparent manner, while ensuring that serious
offences like insider trading are kept out of settlement window.
These decisions are related to the promulgation of an ordinance by the governmen
t for grant of greater powers to SEBI to check mushrooming of illegal money-pool
ing schemes across the country and to take strict actions against fraudsters and
market manipulators.
SEBI: Foreign portfolio investors will be treated on par with FIIs on tax issues
December 28, 2013
In consultation with the Finance Ministry, Securities and Exchange Board of Indi
a (SEBI) decided to treat the three categories of Financial Portfolio Investors
(FPIs) uniformly for tax purposes. In other words, the new rule aims to bring al
l foreign investors under a common framework called the SEBI (Foreign Portfolio
Investors) Regulations, 2013.
The Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs), their sub-accounts and Qualified For
eign Investors (QFIs) will soon be merged into a single and new investor class,
called FPIs. As per their risk profiles, FPIs are divided into three categories.
These are as follows:Category I- the lowest risk entities comprises foreign government and government
-related foreign investors.
Category II
regulated entities such as university funds, university-related endo
wments and pension funds, etc.
Category III other entities viz. Qualified Foreign Investors (QFIs), etc.
Stock market regulator SEBI received a clear note from the Department of Economi
c Affairs in the Finance Ministry to consider the FPIs similar to Foreign Instit
utional Investors (FIIs) on tax purposes. The proposal was made by the K M Chand
rashekhar panel that reviewed various classes of foreign investors and suggested
to unify foreign investment norms met for the first time.
The clarity on tax treatment of FPIs is aimed at encouraging inflows into the do
mestic equity and debt markets.
Other than uniform tax zone for FPIs, the SEBI
Made grading of Initial Public Offering( IPO) voluntary to boost the dormant pri

mary market.
Allowed companies to issue debt through a shelf filing, along with regulations e
mpowered it to monitor investors call records and conduct searches at companies s
uspected of wrongdoing.
Note: Under the former system, tax treatment for FIIs was different from that fo
r sub-accounts and QFIs. Beneath the new FPI norms, all categories of FPIs would
be given similar tax treatment as currently available to FIIs.
Government sanctioned Quadricycle as a new vehicle
December 28, 2013
Screenshot_8The road transport and highways ministry sanctioned Quadricycle as a n
ew category of vehicle on Indian roads. These vehicles are safer than three-whee
lers as they have four wheels with fully enclosed body structure with hard top a
nd doors. After integrating suggestions and objections, transport minister Oscar
Fernandes approved the proposal that under this category, battery-powered or el
ectric four-wheelers will also be considered.
About Quadricycle Vehicle
It is a four-wheel vehicle with a small engine to be positioned between a threewheeler and a passenger car which does not meet the same safety and emission nor
ms of regular passenger cars and have their own set of regulations.
The vehicle will be of two types passenger carriers and goods carriers
with diff
erent maximum kerb weights and length.
It will be allowed to ply only on city roads as transport vehicles and not as pe
rsonal vehicles.
Passenger carriers will have a maximum weight of 450kg and a max length of 3 met
res, while goods carriers will have a maximum weight of 500kg and a length of 3.
7 metres.
It will be permitted to carry a maximum of four passengers or a maximum weight o
f up to 500kg.
Note: Kerb (Curb) weight is the total weight of an automobile with standard equi
pment, all necessary operating consumables (e.g., motor oil and coolant), and a
full tank of fuel, while not loaded with either passengers or cargo.
Andhra Pradesh High Court directs 2 Telugu actors to return Padma Shri
December 28, 2013
Screenshot_7The Andhra Pradesh High Court directed to Telugu actors Mohan Babu a
nd Brahmanandam Kanneganti to surrender Padam Shri to the President of India, as
they allegedly misused it. The HC gave its decision on the petition filed by t
he BJP senior leader N Indraseena Reddy.
Why High Court directed Telgu actors to return Padam Shri?
Tollywood actor-producer Mohan Babu bestowed the award in 2007 and comedian Brah
manandam in 2009, in acknowledgment of their services to the Telugu film industr
y.
They both used the title Padma Shri before their names for promoting the Telugu fe
ature film Denikaina Ready ( Ready for Anything , produced by Mr. Mohan Babu and starr
ing his son Vishnu).
The petitioner argued that as per the Article 18(1) of the Constitution, the nat
ional awards does not amount to a title and cannot be used as suffixes or prefix
es.
Aftermath, the Court took the serious note of the actors for prefixing the name
of the award to their names in the credits of the Telugu movie that was released
in 2012.
And raised objection for using Padma Shri in title cards in a wrong way (as if it
was their surname) and delivered judgment in the petitioner s favour. This will be
a lesson for the actors who misuse the honorary award.

About Padma Awards

Padma Awards, the country s highest civilian awards, are conferred in three Catego
ries viz. Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. The Awards are given in
all disciplines/ fields of activities, viz. art, social work, Public affairs, s
cience and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature And education,
sports, civil service, etc.
Padma Vibhushan
is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service;
Padma Bhushan for distinguished service of high order and
Padma Shri for distinguished service in any field.
The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year.
The Awards are conferred by the President of India at a function held at Rashtra
pati Bhawan sometime around March/ April.Current Affairs December 2013
Mr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar: Ambassador of USA
December 28, 2013
Screenshot_3Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar became the Ambassador of United States o
f America (USA) in December 2013. He succeeded Ms. Nirupama Rao and his position
in Beijing was taken by Ashok K. Kantha.
About Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar
An Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of the1977 batch.
Apart from serving as India s Ambassador to China, he also had postings in Singapo
re and CzechRepublic.
Played a key role in negotiation of US-India nuclear agreement.
Mr. Vinod Kumar Duggal appointed as the Governor of Manipur
December 27, 2013
Screenshot_2Mr. Vinod Kumar Duggal, the former Home Secretary has been appointed
the new Governor of Manipur.
About Vinod Kumar Duggal
An Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1968 batch, retired as uni
on home secretary in March 2007.
He will replace the present Governor of the state, Ashwani Kumar, who was given
an additional charge of Manipur, while being a Governor of Nagaland.
Previously, he was a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
, the apex body for disaster management in India, which is headed by Prime Minis
ter Manmohan Singh.
He also worked as municipal commissioner of Delhi from 1996 to 2000.
Mr. Sidharth Birla took charge as President of FICCI
December 27, 2013
Screenshot_1Mr. Sidharth Birla, Chairman of Xpro India Limited took the charge a
s the President of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI
) on December 21, 2013. He succeeded the HSBC India Country Head Naina Lal Kidwa
i.
Chairperson and MD of Bharat Hotels, Jyotsna Suri elected as Senior Vice-Preside
nt.
Chairman of Ambuja Neotia group, Harshavardhan Neotia elected as Vice-President
of FICCI.
About Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)
FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organization in India. ( a non-gov
ernment, not-for-profit organization)
Establish:1927
Headquarters:New Delhi

Mission: To enhance efficiency and global competitiveness of Indian industry and

to expand business opportunities both in domestic and foreign markets through a
range of specialized services and global linkages.
e-Inclusion: IT Training for Rural Sc/St/Women Beneficiaries

Project Launched

December 27, 2013

The Government of India launched e-inclusion project to make people e-literate.
On this occasion, Minister of Communication & IT, Mr. Kabil Sibal released the h
andbook titled e-Literacy: Towards Empowering Rural India bearing profiles of 50 b
eneficiaries who have successfully undertaken the basic IT training programme un
der the E-Inclusion project.
About e-Inclusion project
It s the initiative under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) for creating a tra
nsparent and accountable governance model for enabling service delivery at the d
oorstep of citizens.
Initially around 45 thousand people will be trained under the program.
Beneath the project, economically weaker sections of the society including rural
SC, ST and women will receive IT training.
It will make at least one individual in every household e-literate.
The project will improve the quality of life of people, especially those living
in rural India and will allow them to actively participate in knowledge based ac
tivities and also access financial, social and government services by using Inte
rnet.Defense Ministry clears procurement proposals worth over Rs 16000 cr
December 27, 2013
The Defense Ministry cleared procurement proposals worth over Rs.16, 000 crore i
ncluding that of Israeli Barak missiles. The Ministry had put on hold procuremen
t of Barak-I missiles because of a CBI probe in the case since 2006. The Defense
Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defense minister AK Antony approved the pro
posal. The proposal is for
Acquiring two deep submarine rescue vessels for the Navy while approving the ind
igenous construction of the 16 anti-submarine warfare shallow water craft at the
cost of Rs.13,000 crore.
262 Barak-I missiles worth Rs.880 crore, which are expected to be put on the air
craft carrier INS Virat and picked out air defense system for the new aircraft c
arrier INS Vikramaditya.
Aquiring 41 indigenously-built Advanced Light Helicopter Dhruvs, for the Army.
In the Rs.300 crore procurement, one of the choppers would be provided to the Na
vy.
Michiaki Takahasi: Developer of chickenpox vaccine passed away
December 27, 2013
Screenshot_1Dr. Michiaki Takahashi (85), a Japanese virologist, who developed a
vaccine for the chicken pox virus passed away. Dr. Takahashi developed his vacc
ine by growing live but weakened versions of the virus in animal and human cells
. The disease was not sourced by the vaccine, but the vaccine encouraged immune
system to create antibodies. Thus, it fools the immune system into thinking that
it has seen this disease before.
About Chicken Pox
Caused by the Varicella-Zoster Virus (VZV) which is a form of herpes.
Highly contagious disease that is spread via contact with infected person.
Symptoms: rashes in the body, fever, loss of appetite, headache and tiredness.
It s most common in kids under age 12, but anyone can get chickenpox.
Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, a form of herpes. If a perso

n contracts the virus, has an active infection and then recovers, the virus is n
ot actually gone from the body. It can hide in nerve cells for years or decades,
then emerge again to cause shingles, a painful condition that causes a skin ras
h and occurs mostly in adults.

e-Pramaan would make SMSs a valid documentary proof

December 26, 2013
Soon, SMSs will be acceptable as documentary proof
es ranging from making payments to registrations.

for a variety of citizen-servic

The Department of electronics and information technologY (DeitY), a part of the

ministry of Communication and Information Technology, is all set to flag off a n
ew online authentication project.
The Central Government launched a platform with about 241 applications for the p
ublic after completing pilot project of mobile governance with about 100 departm
ents and testing proof of concepts.
SMS authentication is part of the e-Pramaan project which has an overall outlay
of Rs 23 crore; it will become reality by June 2014.
The online authentication project of the Union government would enable SMSs to b
e used as documentary proof for various registrations and payments.
The applications relate to services will cover areas viz. Right to Information (
RTI), health, Aadhaar, education, directory services, etc.
Mr. Mikhail Kalashnikov: Designer of AK-47 ( Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947?) passed a
way
December 26, 2013
Screenshot_6Mikhail Kalashnikov (94), the Russian gun designer whose AK-47 rifle
became the weapon of choice for many national armies and guerrillas around the
world, passed away.
About AK- 47 ( Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947?)
Officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova 1947?.
47' from the year (1947) it went into production.
Screenshot_7
It is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.6239mm assault rifle and has a rate of fir
e of 600 rounds-a-minute. The AK-47 has only eight moving parts can be broken do
wn and reassembled in 30 seconds and will work in conditions that would render m
any other small arms inoperable. Invented by Mikhail Kalashnikov, who received n
umerous honors including the Hero of Socialist Labor and Order of Lenin and Stal
in Prize.First Ministerial Level Talk held for BCIM Trade Corridor
December 25, 2013
Screenshot_5India, China, Bangladesh and Myanmar held the first ever official-le
vel discussions on the ambitious BCIM economic corridor to link India and China
with Bangladesh and Myanmar.
The economic advantages of the BCIM trade corridor are:Approach to numerous markets in Southeast Asia,
Improvement of transportation infrastructure and
Creation of industrial zones

Currently, the four nations raised an ambitious proposal that included developin
g multi-modal transport, such as road, rail, waterways and airways, joint power
projects, telecommunication networks, etc. As a first step, they will identify r
ealistic and achievable infrastructure projects to boost physical connectivity.
Over the next six months, each country will come up with a joint study report pr
oposing concrete projects and financing modalities, before the next meeting of t
he four nations in June 2014, hosted by Bangladesh.
The linking of all four countries by road has strengthen the belief that this c
orridor would subsequently open up the whole of the northeastern region of India
to Southeast Asia and China and turn it into a significant channel of trade.
BCIM Trade Corridor
The Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor is a test case for c
ooperation between India and China in regional development as well as addressing
common challenges. It aims to connect Kolkata with China s Kunming city with a hi
ghway running through Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Cabinet approved FTA in trade and services with ASEAN
December 25, 2013
The Cabinet approved a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in trade and services with the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Objective: To promote the movement of Indian professionals in the 10-nation ASEA
N. The Agreement on Investment would protect, promote and increase foreign inves
tment flows into the country and also removes and barriers.
Note: The Comprehensive Economic Cooperation (CECA) between India and ASEAN was
signed in 2003. The Cabinet approved the Agreement on Trade Goods under the CECA
with the ASEAN in July 2009.
Govt allowed CIL to pump gas from CBM mines
December 25, 2013
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) allowed state-owned Coal India
Ltd (CIL) to pump methane gas trapped in coal beds of its existing mines. This m
ove will open a new revenue stream for the world s largest coal miner and help unl
ock several mines that have remained out of bounds because of the presence of th
e explosive gas that make mining unsafe.
Presently, rules and regulations prohibit mining firms from extracting Coal Bed
Methane (CBM) during mining as the policy does not allow for simultaneous extrac
tion of methane (CBM) and coal. Only those companies that successfully bid for m
ines with CBM are allowed to explore and produce such gas. The government auctio
ned 33 CBM blocks since 2001.
CIL holds at least 20% of the estimated 60 billion tones of coal resources in In
dia. It has many coal mines in eight States that are estimated to have CBM reser
ves of 3.5-4 trillion cubic feet.
CCEA allowed RIL Higher Gas Prices in Lieu of Bank Guarantee
December 25, 2013
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) allowed Reliance Industries Ltd
(RIL) to sell natural gas at the revised doubled price from April, 2014 provide
d the firm gave a bank guarantee.

The contractor would be allowed to sell D1 and D3 (fields) gas at revised prices
from April 1, 2014. The sale would be permitted on the basis of a bank guarante
e by RIL in favor of the government.
The bank guarantee (around $9 billion )will be encashed if it is proved that the
company stored gas or deliberately put down production at the main Dhirubhai-1
and 3 (D1 and D3) fields in the eastern offshore KG-D6 block.
Note: The new gas pricing formula will be applicable to all producers and all fo
rms of gas including Coal-Bed Methane (CBM) and shale gas.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSIndia-Venezuela: Signed Cultural Exchange Programme
December 24, 2013
Screenshot_2India and Venezuela signed a programme on cultural exchanges in the
fields of publication, film and media, image and space arts, stage and music art
s. The programme will last for three years and will be renewed automatically the
reafter.
Excerpts of the Programme of Cultural Exchange
To promote the exchange of bilingual publications (traditional and contemporary
stories).
To make an issue of the magazine
Actualidades (a CELARG publication) on the Republi
c of India or on Indian writers.
On a reciprocal basis, participation of India in the Venezuela s International Boo
k Fair.
To encourage the participation of Venezuelan and Indian poets and writers in the
literature festivals organized by both countries.
To encourage the participation of India in the Venezuela s World Festival of Poetr
y.
To boost the exchange of knowledge with specialists in the field of drawing tech
niques with natural pigments, specialists in dying with natural inks, as well as
the use of enzymes.
Participation of a Venezuelan theatre company in the New Delhi s Festival to diffu
se the Venezuelan theatre in the Republic of India.
Encourage the acquisition of Distribution Rights of Indian film works by the fil
m distributor Amazonia Films.
Encourage the institutional links between the Autonomous National Center of Film
Making of the BolivarianRepublic of Venezuela and the Institute of Cinema and T
elevision of the Republic of India.
Participation of one dancer or couple of dancers from India at the International
Dance Festivals Solos y Duetos (Solos & Duets).
Canara Bank got license to open a branch in New York
December 24, 2013
Screenshot_1To expand its global presence, the Canara Bank received a license fr
om the US regulators to open a branch in New York. As stated by the Chairman and
Managing Director of Canara Bank, R. K. Dubey, the Board of Governors of the US
Federal Reserve approved the proposal of the bank to open a branch in New York.
This is the first time that an Indian bank has secured an approval of the US re
gulators.
About Canara Bank
An Indian state-owned bank.
Headquarters: Bangalore, Karnataka.
Founded: 1906
Operates in four segments: treasury operations, retail banking operations, whole
sale banking operations and other banking operations.

SEBI sets out deposit norms for members in debt segment

December 24, 2013
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) sets out minimum deposit requi
rements for members in the debt segment of the stock exchanges.
As per the circular issued by SEBI
As per the norms for stock brokers and proprietary trading members, the base min
imum capital requirements will be applicable for the debt segment as well.
As per the profile of the members, the base minimum deposit requirements range f
rom Rs 10 lakh to Rs 50 lakh for members of stock exchanges having nation-wide t
rading terminals.
For Clearing Members (CM) and Self Clearing Members (SCM) the deposit shall be R
s 10 lakh. No exposure shall be granted against such deposit requirement of the
CM/SCM.
No deposit will required from members seeking registration in the debt segment i
f they are already members of another segment on the stock exchange.
No deposits would be applicable in case, the clearing members clears and settles
trades only on gross basis for both securities and funds, and where no settlemen
t guarantee is provided by the clearing corporation.
CCEA approved Rs 6,600 cr interest-free loans for sugar mills
December 24, 2013
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved Rs 6,600 Crore interes
t-free loans to cash-starved sugar mills in order to make payments to cane farme
rs. The interest subvention will be 12%, which will be borne by the Sugar Develo
pment Fund.
The loans provided by banks to sugar mills are solely for making payments to sug
arcane farmers, including arrears. The loans are equivalent to the excise duty p
aid by the mills in the past three years. Mills will have to repay the loans in
five years and can avail of a moratorium on repayment for the first two years.
The PM-constituted panel headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar recommended
for interest- free loans, to help millers to clear dues and make timely payment
in the current crushing season 2013-14 to cane growers.
Currently, sugar industry is facing a financial crisis due to higher cost of pro
duction and decline in the prices of sugar. This has led to Rs. 3400 crore cane
arrears from 2012-13 during the marketing year that ended in September 2013. Th
us, owing to liquidity crunch, the sugar mills demanded interest-free loans for
working capital requirement, hike in import duty, and export subsidies among oth
ers. This financial package will allow millers to pay money they owe to the farm
ers.Ms. Usha Sangwan: The first woman managing director of LIC
December 24, 2013
The Government of India appointed Ms Usha Sangwan as the first woman managing di
rector of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Vijay Kumar Sharma as an
MD and chief executive officer of LIC Housing Finance. With these appointments,
LIC is set to function at its full strength of four MDs. These are S B Mainak,
Sushobhan Sarkar, Usha Sangwan and V K Sharma.
As per the norms, LIC can have four MDs, and a chairman, as part of its top mana
gement.
About Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)
Indian state-owned insurance group and Investment Company.
Headquarters: Mumbai.
Founded: 1 September 1956.

Current Chairman: SK Roy

Offers a variety of insurance products to its customers such as insurance plans,
pension plans, unit-linked plans, special plans and group schemes.
First human artificial heart transplant executed in France
December 24, 2013
An artificial heart that can give patients up to five years of extra life has be
en successfully implanted for the first time, at Georges Pompidou Hospital in Pa
ris, France. The equipment designed to overcome the worldwide shortage of transp
lant donors was produce by French Biomedical firm Carmat, a start-up funded by t
he Dutch-based European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS).
About Artificial Heart
Powered by external, wearable Lithium-ion batteries.
Inside the heart, surfaces that come into contact with human blood are made part
ly from bovine tissue instead of synthetic materials such as plastic that can ca
use blood clots.
Uses a range of biomaterials , including bovine tissue, to reduce the likelihood of
the body rejecting it.
Weighs about 900g (around 2 lb)
nearly three times more than an average healthy
human heart. It is expected to cost 140,000 to 180,000 euros in Europe.
It mimics heart muscle contractions and contains sensors that adapt the blood fl
ow to the patient s moves.
Intended to replace a real heart for as many as five years, unlike previous ar
tificial hearts that were created mainly for temporary use.
Kirobo: World s first robot astronaut
December 22, 2013
Screenshot_2Kirobo, the world s first robot astronaut talks about Christmas in its
first chat with the Japanese commander of the International Space Station.
About the world s first robot astronaut Kirobo
Kirobo is Japan s first humanoid robot astronaut, developed by Tomotaka Takahashi,
to accompany Koichi Wakata, the first Japanese commander of the International S
pace Station.
Objective: To see how well robots and humans can interact.
A pint-sized android equipped with artificial intelligence and capable of learni
ng how to respond appropriately to humans.
Created jointly by advertising firm Dentsu, the University of Tokyo, robot devel
oper Robo Garage and Toyota.
The robot s capabilities include voice and speech recognition, natural language pr
ocessing, speech synthesis and telecommunications, as well as facial recognition
and video recording. Kirobo is specially designed to navigate zero-gravity envi
ronments and will assist Commander Wakata in various experiments.
RBI: Inflation linked bonds for sale from December 23, 2013
December 22, 2013
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will issue Inflation Indexed National Savings Se
curities Cumulative (IINSS-C) bonds (or inflation linked bonds) for retail inves
tors by opening the subscription on December 23, 2013 and close it on December 3
1, 2013.
Objective: The move will help to protect retail investors from price rise.
The IINSS-C bonds will offer investors a return i.e. 1.5% more than inflation ba

sed on the consumer price index. Interest will be compounded half yearly, enhanc
ing effective yield on investments.
Inflation linked bonds
The limit for investment per applicant per annum: Rs 5,000
Rs 5 lakh.
Eligibility for subscription: Individuals, Hindu Undivided Family, charitable in
stitutions and universities.
The interest rate on these bonds would be linked to the Consumer Price Index (CP
I).
The interest rate would comprise two parts a fixed rate of 1.5% per annum and in
flation rate based on CPI with a lag of three months. It would be compounded on
the principal on half-yearly basis and paid at the time of maturity.
For senior citizens (65 years and above of age), early repurchase will be allow
ed after one year from date of issue and other investors can redeem them after t
hree years but with penalty of 50 per cent of the last coupon paid.
RBI will act as a central depository, as these securities will be issued in the
form of Bonds Ledger Account (BLA) and held with RBI.
Distribution or sale of bonds would be through banks: SBI, nationalized banks an
d three private banks HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank and Stock Holding Cor
poration of India.Russia frees former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky
December 22, 2013
Screenshot_1Mikhail Khodorkovsky, an oil tycoon and political opponent of Vladim
ir Putin, released from prison after being pardoned by the Russian President. He
left for Germany where his mother is being treated for cancer He spent ten year
s in jail for tax fraud, embezzlements and money laundering.
President Putin signed a decree pardoning his former political opponent on human
itarian grounds.
Who is Mikhail Khodorkovsky?
He is a Russian businessman, an oligarch, a philanthropist, a public figure and
an author. He was once Russia s richest man as head of oil giant Yukos, spent 10 y
ears in custody for tax evasion and theft after funding opposition parties.
Western Ghats: Nod for farming activities by Ministry of Environment & Forests
December 22, 2013
The Environment Ministry, following the in principle acceptance of the Kasturirang
an panel report, issued a fresh order on easing norms on activities related to p
lantations and agriculture in Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA).
The Ministry elucidated that the recommendations made by the Kasturirangan panel
, neither put any fresh restrictions on land use in the ESA nor do they in any w
ay impact the continued occupation of land in possession of the local people and
affect their day to day activities or normal livelihood.
The new order cleared that the boundary of the ESA and the regulatory regime
an
emotive issue in some of the affected states would be finalized after the draft
notification for the same is placed in the public domain and comments on it from
all stakeholders including state governments are received.
What are the recommendations made by the Kasturirangan panel?
The key suggestions made by the K. Kasturirangan panel:
Promotion of Ecotourism; economically empower the local population, Incentives g
reen growth in the Western Ghats, etc.
Ban on mining, quarrying, sand mining, thermal power plants, building and constr
uction projects on areas that are 20,000 sq m or more, township and area develop
ment projects with an area of 50ha and above and red category of industries in E
SA.

Defined 37% of the Western Ghats landscape as ecologically sensitive.

India rolls out its First indigenous LCA
Tejas
December 21, 2013
Screenshot_3Tejas, India s first indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), which is
all set to replace the MiG-21 series, developed by the Defense Research and Deve
lopment Organization (DRDO) with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) as its prin
cipal partner.
Tejas is the smallest, light weight, single engine, single seat, supersonic, mul
tirole, combat aircraft, and best in its class in the world. It has many feature
s of stealth fighter aircraft. It will be used by both the Indian Air Force (IAF
) and the Navy.
This fourth generation combat aircraft has Carbon Composites, light weight/high
strength material for primary structures, quadruplex Digital Flight Control Syst
em; glass Cockpit and digital Avionics to give multirole capabilities with caref
ree maneuvering. These capabilities are further raised by several on-board Senso
rs, Communication and Navigation Systems that are supported by powerful Mission
Computers and Cockpit Display System.
This is for the first time an indigenously designed and developed military fight
er aircraft has certified for Indian Air Force
Features of stealth fighter aircraft
The aircraft has a totally digital fly-by-wire control system; the wings are mad
e entirely of composite structures.
Built by unstable configuration technique. It has open architecture software for
avionics. DRDO can update it as and when required.
It integrates a glass cockpit in which information is displayed real-time to the pil
ot.
What is the future planning of Defense Research and Development Organization (DR
DO)?
Plans to test fire the indigenous Astra missile and guns from the Tejas.
Working on MARK-II type Tejas aircraft, which has a better thrust and improved r
adar system than Mark-I type Tejas LCA (i.e. inducting in the Indian Air Force)
Working on the Combat variant, Trainer variant and Naval variants of Tejas.
DRDO developed a special facility in Goa, to notice the conditions for a Tejas f
or Navy landing, take-off and maneuver from an aircraft carrier.
Note: Stealth aircraft are designed to avoid detection using a variety of advanc
ed technologies that reduce reflection/emission of radar, infrared, visible ligh
t, Radio-Frequency (RF) spectrum, and audio, collectively known as stealth techn
ology.
Indian scientists discovered insulin pills for diabetics
December 21, 2013
Indian scientists have discovered a pill form of insulin treatment, so now diab
etes patients would be spared from the pain of jabbing themselves with a needle
every day.
The process to transform delivery of this therapy from a shot to a pill was a ch
allenge because body s digestive enzymes that are so good at breaking down food al
so break down insulin before it can get to work. Besides, insulin doesn t get easi
ly absorbed through the intestine into the bloodstream.
To overcome these hurdles, scientists combined two approaches to shield insulin
from the digestive enzymes and then get it into the blood.
They packaged insulin in tiny sacs made of lipids, or fats, called liposomes, wh
ich are already used in some treatments. Then, they wrapped the liposomes in lay

ers of protective molecules called polyelectrolytes.

To help these layersomes get absorbed into the bloodstream, they attached folic ac
id, a kind of vitamin B that has been shown to help transport liposomes across t
he intestinal wall into the blood.
About Diabetes
Diabetes suppresses the production or use of insulin, which is a hormone that he
lps blood glucose or blood sugar become absorbed into cells and gives them energ
y.
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body doesn t make enough insulin, and type 2 diabe
tes occurs when the body doesn t make or use insulin very well, causing glucose to
remain in the blood, which can lead to serious problems.UN lowered India s growth
forecast to 4.8% for 2013
December 21, 2013
United Nations lowered India s economic growth forecast for 2013 to 4.8% and warne
d emerging market economies of the possible negative impact of a tapering of the
US Federal Reserve s quantitative easing program.
The UN s World Economic Situation and Prospects 2014 report lowered India s economic
growth forecast by 1.3 % for 2013, while it pegged India s growth rate down 1.2 %
at 5.3 per cent in 2014. It projects India s economic growth at by 5.7 % in 2015.
As per the UN report:
China s growth was expected to maintain a pace of about 7.5 % over the next few ye
ars, though India s economy was forecast to grow by more than 5 %.
Global economy is expected to expand by 3.0 % in 2014 and by 3.3 % in 2015, comp
ared with estimated growth of 2.1 per cent for 2013.
The predictions are based on an end to the euro s protracted recession and somewha
t stronger growth in the United States.
UTIP Study: Kolkata ranked top in public transport among Indian cities
December 21, 2013
Screenshot_2As per a study conducted by the International Association of Public
Transport (UTIP), Kolkata (31) ranked top in the public transport among Indian c
ities. The other cities studied by the UTIP are Mumbai (41), Chennai (54), Hyder
abad (55), Bangalore (65) and Delhi (79).
About the UTIP study
Study entitled Future of Urban Mobility 2.0'
Data collected from 84 cities across the world
Released by Arthur D Little, a management consultant based in Boston and Interna
tional Association of Public Transport (UITP).
The best cities are Hong Kong, Stockholm and Amsterdam, while the worst are Bagh
dad, Hanoi and Atlanta.
Parameters taken into account: share of trips made in public transport, smart ca
rd penetration, road density, frequency of public transport and initiatives take
n in the public sector.
About International Association of Public Transport (UITP)
International organization for public transport authorities and operators, polic
y decision-makers, scientific institutes and the public transport supply and ser
vice industry.
Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium
Formation: 17 August 1885
It is a platform for worldwide cooperation, business development and the sharing
of know-how between its 3,400 members from 92 countries.
It is the global advocate of public transport and sustainable mobility, and the
promoter of innovations in the sector.
Sebi exempts govt from making open offer to IOB shareholders

December 21, 2013

Capital market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) exempted
the government from making an open offer to public shareholders for acquiring s
hares of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB). The order was issued after the Government p
lanned to raise its stake in IOB by 5% to 79 % by infusion of Rs 1,200 Crore. Af
ter the purchase government s stake in IOB will raise by little over 5% to 79.01%.
SEBI in its order has said that the minimum public shareholder level in IOB, whi
ch is 10% for public sector units, would be maintained even after the proposed h
ike in Government hike in the bank. There will be no change in the management co
ntrol of the bank.
Note: As per the rules, when entities holding 25% or more stake in a company acq
uire an additional 5% or more stake in the firm, they are required to make an op
en offer so as to provide an exit opportunity to the public shareholders.
Devyani Khobragade case: Government transfered diplomat to Indian permanent miss
ion to UN
December 21, 2013
Screenshot_6The Ministry of External Affairs transferred diplomat Ms Devyani Kho
bragade to India s Permanent Mission in the United Nations, giving her full diplom
atic immunity.
Why Ms Devyani Khobragade has been transferred to India s Permanent Mission in the
United Nations?
Ms. Devyani Khobragade, India s deputy consul general in New York, arrested in the
2nd week of December 2013 for an alleged case of visa fraud and to make false s
tatements in connection with the visa application for an Indian national employe
e who was domestic helper in her home.
Later on, she was released on a $250000 bond after she pleaded not guilty in a c
ourt. She will have to face a maximum of 15 years in jail if convicted on both m
atters.
The U.S. State Department clarified that Indian diplomat does not enjoy immunity
from US laws. It is firm about its policies in support of the domestic workers.
Under the Vienna convention on consular relations (VCCR), the Indian Deputy Cons
ul General enjoys immunity from the jurisdiction of US courts only with respect
to acts performed in the exercise of consular functions.
Due to the fear that Ms. Khobragade may be detained again, posted to UN. Here, s
he will enjoy full diplomatic immunity and US can t arrest her.Current Affairs Dec
ember 2013
RBI outlines action plan to tackle NPAs; discussion paper open for public commen
ts
December 19, 2013
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) outlined a corrective action plan to minimize ri
sing Non-performing assets (NPAs). The plan include three steps:To motivate early identification of problem cases.
To restructure the accounts timely , which are considered to be viable, and
Banks must take prompt actions for recovery or sale of unviable accounts.
As per the RBI discussion paper, Early recognition of Financial Distress, Prompt
Steps for Resolution and Fair Recovery for Lenders: Framework for Revitalizing D
istressed Assets in the Economy , which is open for public comments till January 1
, 2014, it would set up a Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CR
ILC) to collect, store, and disseminate credit data to lenders. The credit infor
mation will include all types of exposures as defined under RBI Circular on expo
sure norms, and will also include data on lenders investments in bonds/debentures
issued by the borrower/obligor.

Banks will have to furnish credit information to CRILC on all their borrowers ha
ving aggregate fund-based and non-fund based exposure of Rs.5 crore and above .
On the asset sales front, the RBI has shown readiness in allowing a lender to sp
read any loss over two years provided the loss is fully disclosed and allowing l
everage buyouts by specialized entities. It also suggests takeout financing/refi
nancing possible over a longer period and not construing it as restructuring. RB
I also proposed more expensive future borrowings for borrowers who do not cooper
ate with lenders in resolution.
What are Non performing Assets (NPA)?
Any asset, including a leasePDFd asset, becomes a non performing when it ceases
to generate income for the bank are called Non Performing Assets or Bad loans.
Note: RBI proposed these rules to help banks to recover bad debts in an effort t
o ease the financial stress on banks as the economy slows. This discussion comes
as there is fear of bad loans to gain a record high of around Rs. 2.9 trillion
by the end of the fiscal or 4.5 per cent of the total banking assets.
Link for Paper:
Early recognition of Financial Distress, Prompt Steps for Resolution and Fair Re
covery for Lenders: Framework for Revitalizing Distressed Assets in the Economy
Deterrence Stability and Escalation Control in South Asia
A study cautions nuclear
instability in South Asia
December 19, 2013
As per a study entitled Deterrence Stability and Escalation Control in South Asi
a released by a major think-tank in Washington has warned that in the fifteen ye
ars since India and Pakistan tested nuclear devices in 1998, both have introduce
d 17 new nuclear weapon-capable delivery systems and this has produced conditions
that could lead to uncontrolled escalation.
According to the experts contributing to the study, although India and Pakistan
were of the view after the 1998 tests that acquisition of nuclear capabilities w
ould be stabilizing and that it would facilitate more normal relations, it has n
ot worked out that way.
Key developments contributing to nuclear risk:
Pakistan s introduction of short-range, tactical delivery vehicles, or theatre nuke
s whose utility depends on their propinquity to battlefields.
India s Cold Start conventional military strategy as a risk factor that could prompt
a nuclear response and may have already driven Pakistan s interest in battlefield
nuclear arms.
Sub-conventional actions of violent groups can also trigger nuclear action. For
instance, Lashkar-e-Taiba s 26/11/2008 terror attack on Mumbai, and this unique si
tuation in terms of nuclear deterrence implies that the escalatory danger posed
by these groups is more likely than the threat of nuclear terrorism.
The progress in diplomatic efforts to cut nuclear risks has so far been insuffic
ient in comparison to nuclear weapon-related developments and doctrinal change.
Thus far, only four military-related Confidence-Building and Nuclear Risk Reduct
ion Measures have been negotiated between India and Pakistan since 1998, and no
new measures have been agreed since 2007.
What is Cold Start Doctrine?
Cold Start is a military doctrine developed by the Indian Armed Forces. It invol
ves the various branches of India s military conducting offensive operations as pa
rt of unified battle groups. The Cold Start doctrine is intended to allow India s
conventional forces to perform holding attacks in order to prevent a nuclear ret
aliation from Pakistan in case of a conflict. High levels of preparedness and ra

pid mobilization are the main aims of this doctrine.

Operation Parakram
Post December 13, 2001 Parliament attack, it took over 3 weeks for India s strike
corps to mobilize to border by Operation Parakram. In this backdrop, Indian army
announced a new limited war doctrine in 2004 that would allow it to mobilize qu
ickly and undertake retaliatory attacks in response to specific challenges posed
by Pakistan s proxy war in Kashmir. This doctrine aims to establish the capacity to
launch a retaliatory conventional strike against Pakistan that would inflict si
gnificant harm on the Pakistan Army before the international community could int
ercede, and at the same time, pursue narrow enough aims to deny Islamabad a just
ification to escalate the clash to the nuclear level. This was further strengthe
ned to fight with hidden war like 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
The Cold Start Doctrine emphasises on 3 main problems with India s erstwhile doctr
ine as identified to handle sudden tides across border of Pakistan quick deploym
ent and manoeuvre, lack of strategic surprise, holding corps lacks offensive pow
er. Though India has denied having a cold start treaty, yet in January 2011, whi
le speaking to the media in the run-up to Army Day, the then Army chief, General
V K Singh, came closer than any other government official, while describing the
widely speculated Indian war fighting doctrine popularly referred to as Cold Sta
rt . On the same goals and interest, On May 12, 2011, India launched Operation Vij
ayee Bhava defence exercise involving 50,000 troops in Bikaner and Suratgarh nea
r the Pakistan border in order to boost the synergy between the defence forces.
The main objective of the operation was to cut down mobilization time of militar
y, which took 27 days to mobilize during Operation Parakram.
The Indian Army confirmed that exercise was successful and it has reduced mobili
zation time drastically to 48 hours.
In July 2011, a new solid fuelled tactical ballistic missile Prahaar, of 150 km
range, was tested. Prahaar is designed to provide the Indian army s invading battl
e groups with lethal fire support.
During Oct-Dec, 2011 Indian army conducted its largest war game in the last two
decades, titled Operation Sudarshan Shakti under the Southern Command Headquarters
, to revalidate its cold start doctrine.
The entire doctrine has been built keeping in mind two factors, Rapid, Unpredict
able Response, Not crossing the nuclear threshold.
Analysis:
This Cold Start doctrine represents advancement in India s conventional capabiliti
es. The persistent disengagement of India s political leadership from security iss
ues is a cause for concern, for they may turn to a limited war strategy during t
he next crisis without having evaluated the potential consequences. At present,
Cold Start remains more of a concept than a reality. However, with favourable po
litical and diplomatic atmosphere of trade and talks, India s will to use it is un
der the cloud as it was not
put into use after the 26/11 attacks but its contemplated that India s traditional
ly risk averse political leadership has been unwilling to use it unless guarante
ed of sure results and of late seem to be a culmination of India s military capabi
lity to do so which has taken a long while to bring into effect the changes requ
ired to give effect to this plan and this has raised questions if India s politica
l leadership will be firmer in possibly authorizing its use in the future. Milit
ary operations of the type envisaged in Indian Army s new war doctrine incorporate
s swift, fluid and relentless offensive operations, without the luxury of pauses
and time duration spans of defensive operations to which Indian Army s higher ech
elons are so conditioned to today.
Hence, cold start doctrine is one of the punitive options short of war available
to India to raise Pakistan s cost in waging a proxy war and designed to avoid cro
ssing Pakistan s nuclear red lines through large-scale offensive operations with S

trike Corps deep into Pakistan.

EU bestows

GSP-Plus

status on Pakistan

December 19, 2013

The European Union (EU) has given GSP-Plus status to Pakistan, a move that is li
kely to encourage the textile and other industries as it grants exporters duty-f
ree access to 28 member nations of the EU group. Pakistan was in talks with seve
ral EU member countries to get the status.
Under this, 75 Pakistani products would have duty-free access to European market
s.
The status will facilitate Pakistan to export products worth over $ 1 billion to
international markets and the textile industry alone is expected to earn profit
s of more than Rs 1 trillion a year.
Experts are of the view that the EU trade concessions will benefit Pakistan s text
ile and clothing industry, mainly by enabling its products to compete with those
of regional competitors like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which already have dutyfree access to the bloc s markets. Currently, of Pakistan s total exports to the EU,
textile and clothing makes over 50% which is worth $ 9.5 billion.
What is EU s GSP system?
The EU s Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) allows developing country exporters
to pay lower duties on their exports to the EU. This gives them vital access to
EU markets and contributes to their economic growth. The GSP+ enhanced preference
s means full removal of tariffs on essentially the same product categories as th
ose covered by the general arrangement. These are granted to countries which rat
ify and implement international conventions relating to human and labour rights,
environment and good governance.
There are 3 key arrangements GSP scheme:
The standard GSP scheme, which offers generous tariff cuts to developing nations
. Practically, this means partial or entire removal of tariffs on 2/3rd of all p
roduct categories.
The GSP+ enhanced preferences means full removal of tariffs on essentially the sam
e product categories as those covered by the general arrangement. These are gran
ted to nations which ratify and implement international conventions relating to
human and labour rights, environment and good governance.
Everything but Arms (EBA) scheme for Least Developed Nations (LDCs), which grants
duty-free quota-free access to all products, except for arms and ammunitions.
Note: The EU has modified its GSP system which will come into effect from Januar
y 1, 2014.
West Bengal adopts Bill to tackle illegal activities of Chit Funds
December 19, 2013
With a view to tackle illegal activities of Chit Funds, the West Bengal Assembly
adopted a fresh Bill West Bengal Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financi
al Establishments Bill, 2013'.
The bill has arrived close on the heels of Sardha Chit Fund Scam which swindled
the investors of their money.
Under the provisions of the new Bill personal properties of a person, who has bo
rrowed money from defaulting Chit Fund Company will be attached besides, the pro
perties of the owner, partners, directors and employees of the Financial Institu
tions will also be impounded.
As per State Finance Minister, the Government has returned money to 2 lakhs 87 t
housand people thus far, who have been cheated by the Sardha Group. The Governme
nt has spent 165 crore rupees for this purpose till now.

There are vociferous demands for CBI investigations into the case and recompense
the duped investors by selling of the properties of those who were involved in
the scam.
What happened in Sardha Chit Fund Scam?
The Saradha Chit Fund Scam is a financial scam that was caused by the collapse o
f a Ponzi scheme run by Saradha Group, a syndicate of Indian firms that was thou
ght to be operating a wide range of collective investment schemes in Eastern Ind
ia. The group crumbled in April 2013, inflicting an estimated loss of Rs. 200 300
billion (US$4 6 billion)to over 1.7 million depositors.The state government of Wes
t Bengal set up an inquiry commission to investigate the collapseand also set up
a fund of Rs. 5 billion ($92 million) to ensure that low-income investors are n
ot bankrupted. The Union Government through the Income Tax Department also launc
hed a multi-agency investigation along with the CBI to probe the Saradha scam, a
s well as other similar Ponzi schemes.
Iran space mission sends monkey to space for second time
December 19, 2013
Iran has revealed that it has successfully sent a monkey into space for the seco
nd time in 2013 as part of a space mission aimed at manned space flight.
As per Iran s President Hassan Rouhani, the monkey
named Fargam, or Auspicious
e back from space in perfect health. For this programme, Iran used a liquid fuel
rocket technology for the first time. In January 2013, Iran had claimed to have
sent a monkey to an altitude of about 120km (75 miles) in a Pishgam rocket for
a sub-orbital flight before returning successfully to Earth. However, the succes
s of the first monkey flight was debated when a different animal was shown in im
ages released after the touchdown. But Iran rebuffed those debates explaining th
at the picture of another monkey was mistakenly which was undergoing suitability
tests.
Why the West apprehends Iran s space programme?
The Western nations have raised concerns over Iran s space programme as they fear
the technology could be used in ballistic missiles. Iran is already under intern
ational pressure to give up its alleged nuclear programme and is also under the
US imposed crude oil trade embargo for the same reason.
Peter O Toole of

Lawrence of Arabia

fame passed away

December 19, 2013

Screenshot_3Legendary actor Peter O Toole (81), applauded for his role in the clas
sic 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia, passed away in London.
Peter O Toole
He was an Irish actor who made his film debut in 1959. He rose to stardom playin
g T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) for which he was nominated for Aca
demy Award for the first time. He received seven further Oscar nominations
for B
ecket (1964), The Lion in Winter (1968), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969), The Ruling C
lass (1972), The Stunt Man (1980), My Favorite Year (1982) and Venus (2006)
and
holds the record for the most Academy Award acting nominations without a win. He
bagged four Golden Globes, a BAFTA and an Emmy, and was the recipient of an Hon
orary Academy Award in 2003. He bid adieu to his 50-year acting career in 2012.
Historic Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill passed
December 19, 2013
The parliament passed the historic Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, paving the way fo
r establishment of an ombudsman to fight against corruption in public offices an
d ensure accountability on the part of public officials, including the Prime Min

cam

ister, but with some safeguards. Welcoming the Bill s passage, 76-year-old social
activist Anna Hazare broke his fast, into its ninth day, in Ralegaon Siddhi, Mah
arashtra.
What is Lokpal Bill 2011?
The Lokpal Bill, 2011, also referred to as The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, 2011,
is an anti-corruption law in India which seeks to provide for the establishment
of the institution of Lokpal to inquire into allegations of corruption against c
ertain public functionaries and for matters connecting them. The bill was introd
uced in parliament following massive public protests led by anti-corruption crus
ader Anna Hazare and his associates.
Highlights of Lokpal and Lokayukta Bill 2011
The bill provides for the setting up of a Lokpal at the Centre and Lokayuktas at
the States.
The Lokpal consists of a Chairperson and a maximum of eight members of which 50%
shall be judicial members.The Chairperson may be either a serving or retired Ch
ief Justice of India, or a Judge of the Supreme Court or an eminent person. Fift
y per cent of the total members shall be from the higher judiciary.
The Chairperson and the members of the Lokpal shall be appointed by the Presiden
t on the recommendation of the Selection Committee consists of the Prime Ministe
r, Lok Sabha Speaker, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Chief Justice o
f India or a Supreme Court judge nominated by him. One eminent person recommende
d by the Selection committee and nominated by the President will be its fifth me
mber.
Lokpal will have the power of superintendence and direction over any investigati
on agency including CBI for cases referred to them by Lokpal.
A high powered Committee chaired by the Prime Minister will recommend selection
of the Director, CBI. Directorate of Prosecution headed by a Director of Prosecu
tion under the overall control of Director.
The appointment of the Director of Prosecution, CBI will be made on the recommen
dation of the Central Vigilance Commission.
Transfer of officers of CBI investigating cases referred by Lokpal with the appr
oval of Lokpal.
The Bill also mandates setting up of Lokayuktas through enactment of a law by th
e State Legislature within 365 days from the date of commencement of the Act.
South India s 1st high altitude cricket stadium inaugurated in Wayanad district, K
erala
December 19, 2013
South India s first high altitude cricket stadium built in Krishnagiri in the hill
y Wayanad district by Kerala Cricket Association, inaugurated by state Governor
Nikhil Kumar.
The stadium spreads over 4.4 hectares area and is situated at about 2800 feet ab
ove the sea level. The Kerala Cricket Association had invested 6.5 crore rupees
for construction of the stadium. The stadium has all amenities on par with inter
national standards and can accommodate about 10,000 spectators.
HPCA Stadium Stadium (Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium) in Dharamsha
la, Himachal Pradesh is situated at an altitude of 1,457 m (4,780 ft 2 in) above
sea level.Current Affairs December 2013
DRDO develops heavy drop system improving Army s para-dropping capacity
December 18, 2013
DRDO has developed a 16 ton capacity Heavy Drop System (HDS)
a-dropping capacity. The system (HDS) consists of a platform
ed system of parachutes to drop loads consisting of military
cles including BMP class, supplies and ammunition from IL-76

to improve Army s par

and a highly advanc
stores such as vehi
heavy lift aircraft

.
Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE), an Agra-based la
boratory of the DRDO designed and developed the three prototypes of the system.
These systems are re-usable type to provide drop practice to the troops during t
heir regular military training during peace time.
The bulk production of 146 numbers is being initiated at L&T for the mechanical
platform and OPF Kanpur for the parachute systems.
About Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
Formed in 1958, works under the Department of Defence Research and Development o
f Ministry of Defense.
Headquarters: New Delhi
Aim: To make India prosperous by establishing world-class science and technology
base and provide our Defence Services decisive edge by equipping them with inte
rnationally competitive systems and solutions.
Note: The system is extension of technology developed by DRDO for P-7 HDS , the 7-t
onne capacity Heavy Drop System developed earlier and already accepted by Indian
Army for induction
Mobile makers should install SoS

button for women safety: Finance Minister

December 18, 2013

On the first anniversary of December 16 brutal act that jolted the country, the
Centre approved several proposals for improving women s safety under the Nirbhaya
Fund.
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced that mobile handset makers will have t
o introduce an SoS alert button to ensure that women in distress can be reached
by the police in the minimum possible time.
Proposal from the Ministries of Home Affairs and Information Technology:
The police administration will be integrated with the mobile phone network to ra
pidly respond to distress calls. The scheme will be launched in 157 cities in tw
o phases (55 in phase I and 102 in phase II).
Proposal from the Road Transport Ministry:
A programme Security of women in road transport in the country will be launched in
32 towns, each with a population of over 1 million. The expected cost is about
Rs. 1,700 crore. Under this scheme, public transport vehicles will have GPS for
easy tracking, CCTVs and more women drivers and conductors, among others measure
s.
Proposal from the Railway Ministry:
It proposes to start a public scheme for establishing an SoS alert system in tra
ins in select zones. The facility will cover all service providers from all tele
com circles. It will have a call recording facility and a call centre.
What is Nirbhaya Fund?
Nirbhaya Fund is a Rs. 1000 crore fund was announced by Finance Minister P Chida
mbaram in Budget 2013-14. The fund is aimed at enhancing the safety and for empo
werment of women. It was named after Nirbhaya- the pseudonym given to the victim
of the incident to hide her identity.

What is SoS?
SOS is the widely used description for the International Morse Code distress sig
nal (
). Earlier, SOS was used as the maritime radio distress signal but from
it was replaced by the Global Maritime Distress Safety System. SOS is still rec
ognized as a visual distress signal.

What is the composition of SOS?

The SOS distress signal is a continuous sequence of three dits, three dahs, and
three dits, all run together without letter spacing. The three dits form the let
ter S, and three dahs make the letter O, so SOS became an easy way to remember the
order of the dits and dahs. SOS is the only 9-element signal in Morse code, mak
ing it more easily identifiable, as no other symbol uses more than 8 elements.
What is the full form of SOS?
It must be noted that SOS is not an abbreviation and there it does not stand for
anything. Although some phrases like save our ship , save our souls and send out succ
our were popularly associated with SOS, these may be regarded as mnemonics.
C.V.R Rajendran is new CMD of Andhra Bank
December 18, 2013
The Union Ministry of Finance, Government of India appointed C. V. R. Rajendran
as Andhra Bank Chairman and Managing Director. Previously, he was Executive Dire
ctor of Bank of Maharashtra. As CMD of Andhra Bank, Rajendran will have a 5-year
term or until superannuation, whichever is earlier.
Centre appoints Harsh Bhanwala as new NABARD Chairman
December 18, 2013
Harsh Kumar Bhanwala has been appointed as Chairman of the National Bank for Agr
iculture and Rural Development (NABARD) by the Centre. Bhanwala, succeeds Prakas
h Bakshi, who retired as NABARD Chairman. Previously, Bhanwala was an Executive
Director at India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL), a state-owned inf
rastructure lender.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSChina s Jade Rabbit makes soft landing on Moon
December 18, 2013
China s Chang e-3 lunar spacecraft which is carrying its first moon rover Yutu or Ja
de Rabbit rover made a soft landing on the moon since 1976. With this accomplishme
nt China has joined the elite club of the US and Russia to achieve this feat. Th
e probe touched down on an ancient 400-kilometre (250-mile) wide plain known in
Latin as Sinus Iridum, or The Bay of Rainbows.
What is Soft Landing?
Soft Landing is a landing by a spacecraft on the moon or a planet at a sufficien
tly low velocity for the equipment or occupants to remain unharmed.
About Chang e-3 lunar probe
China s first lunar rover mission aimed at exploring the Moon s surface and looking
for natural resources such as rare metals.
Launching Site: Xichang Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China s southwestern Si
chuan province
Launched on: December 2, 2013
Carrier: Long March-3B
Key Payload: Six-wheeled robotic rover called Yutu (or Jade Rabbit) and a landin
g module.
Landing Site: Sinus Iridum, or The Bay of Rainbows in the Moon s northern hemisphe
re.
Union Cabinet Okays fresh amendments to Code of Conduct for ministers
December 18, 2013
In a bid to curb the misuse of bureaucrats by ministers for political motives, b

oth at the Centre and in the states, the government approved fresh amendments to
a 50-year-old Code of Conduct for Ministers.
What are the approved amendments to the Code of Conduct for Ministers?
As a fresh amendment to the Code of Conduct for Ministers (CCM), a new clause ai
med at checking the political executive from misusing bureaucrats for political
purposes will be added to the CCM. As per Cabinet s proposal, it will also help ch
eck civil servants from cultivating political backing. The new Paragraph 2 (f) w
ill now read as: After taking office, and so long as he remains in office, the mi
nister shall:- uphold the political impartiality of the civil services and not a
sk the civil servants to act in any way which would conflict with the duties and
responsibilities of the civil servants.
Does Code of Conduct for Ministers have legal backing?
No. The CCM for Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and Ministers of the respective
state governments has no legal backing. However, the current proposal expects a
ll the ministers to adhere to the instructions mentioned in the document scrupul
ously. ,
When will the fresh CCM come into effect?
While the new clause will come into effect at the Centre immediately, it will be
sent to the state governments for their adoption.
Lieutenant Governor (LG) Najeeb Jung recommended imposition of President s rule in
Delhi
December 18, 2013
Lieutenant Governor (LG) Najeeb Jung has recommended imposition of President s rul
e in Delhi among other options as the impasse continued over formation of a new
government in Delhi after a suspended verdict with no party ready to assume powe
r.
In his report submitted to the President, Jung listed Central rule with the Asse
mbly being kept in suspended animation as one of the options. As per the report,
none of the party is in a position to form the government and so far there is n
o clarity on government formation. It also noted that AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal
sought more time for further consultations.
Hence, Jung has suggested that the President s rule should be imposed in Delhi by
keeping the Assembly under suspended animation till any government is formed. If
no party comes forward to stake claim to form the government, the President s rul
e can be imposed in the next two days.
What has happened so far?
In the recently held Assembly Elections in Delhi for 70 seats, no party could se
cure clear mandate of 36 seats. As per the results, BJP won 31 seats along with
its ally Akali Dal got 32 seats, AAP clinched 28 seats followed by Congress 8 se
ats. BJP has already refused to form the government citing lack of clear mandate .
At this point AAP has become a key player as its support to BJP or Congress can
facilitate in government formation. Though AAP is ready to support any of these
two parties but has some conditions. As a condition for its support, AAP s chief A
rvind Kejriwal made 18 suggestions to be implemented by the government forming p
arty in Delhi. Of 18 suggestions the Congress is ready to implement 16 but is op
posed to two of it. Hence, the stalemate persists.
India sticks to top position in ICC ODI rankings
December 18, 2013
Despite the dingy performance against South Africa, the Indian cricket team has

retained its top position in the latest ICC ODI rankings. India topped the ranki
ngs chart with 120 points, which is followed by Australia with 114 points.
Other latest ICC rankings:
A.B. Devilliers of South Africa replaced Virat Kohli as the World s number one Bat
sman.
Indian skipper, M.S. Dhoni was placed at number 6 and Shikhar Dhawan was placed
at 10 spot in the rankings table.
In the bowler s rankings, Pakistani spinner Saeed Ajmal, was ranked no. 1.
In the category of All Rounders, Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh retained his numb
er one position.
South Africa is no.1 Test team on the ICC test rankings chartCurrent Affairs Dec
ember 2013
Germany defeats France to lift Junior Men s Hockey World Cup
December 18, 2013
Germany registered a record sixth title win defeating France in the title clash
of the Hero Junior Men s Hockey World Cup held at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in
Delhi, India. Germany s Niklas Wellen stunned the opponent with a brilliant hat-t
rick to guide defending champions to victory.
Australia regains Ashes Test Series
December 18, 2013
Australia reclaimed the Ashes test series just four months after the last series
defeat in England with a 3rd Test victory on home soil.
The Ashes:
The Ashes is a conceptional prize in a Test cricket series played between Austra
lia and England. The Ashes are regarded as being held by the team that won the l
ast Test series between those sides or, if that series was drawn, by the team th
at last won such a series. Traditionally, Ashes series consists of 5 Tests playe
d biennially with England and Australia taking turns as host.
Why is it called the Ashes?
The association of the term the Ashes with England v/s Australia test series has a
story behind. In 1882, Australia defeated England for the first time in Test on
England s soil. Following this, a British newspaper, The Sporting Times, publishe
d a satirical obituary stating that the English cricket had died, and the body w
ill be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. The mythical ashes instantly b
ecame associated with the 1882 83 series played in Australia, before which the Eng
lish skipper Ivo Bligh had vowed to regain those ashes . The English media therefor
e called the tour the quest to regain the Ashes.
After England had won two of the three Tests of the series, a group of Melbourne
women presented a small urn to Bligh. Among those women was Florence Morphy, wh
om Bligh married within a year. The contents of the urn are reputed to be the as
hes of a wooden bail, and were amusingly described as the ashes of Australian cri
cket . There is ambiguity whether that tiny silver urn is the same as the small terr
acotta urn given to the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) by Bligh s widow after his d
emise in 1927.
The urn has never been the official trophy of the Ashes series, having been a pe
rsonal gift to Bligh. However, replicas of the urn are often held aloft by winni
ng teams as a symbol of their victory in an Ashes series.
Men s Hockey Champions Trophy 2014 to be held in Bhubaneswar
December 18, 2013

As per the announcement of International Hockey Federation (FIH), Bhubaneswar, c

apital of Odisha will host the 35th edition of the Champions Trophy men s hockey t
ournament to be held from December 13-21 in 2014.
The event will be held at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar which is currently
undergoing renovation. The event will be hosted by Hockey India in collaboration
with Orissa state government.
Hockey Champions Trophy
The Hockey Champions Trophy is an international field hockey tournament organize
d by the International Hockey Federation (since 1978).
Founder: Pakistan s Air Marshal Nur Khan in 1978
Initiator: Pakistan Hockey Federation as a men s tournament in 1978
Teams: 8 elite hockey teams compete in a round robin format of hockey.
Period: Initially, it was an annual event from 1980 for men and 1987 for women.
Later changed into a biennial event from the 2014 editions onward due to the int
roduction of the Hockey World League.
Achievers: Australia stands on top in men s event by winning the trophy 13 times f
ollowed by the Germans (9), and the Dutch (8). Pakistan is the only Asian champ
ion, with 3 titles. In the women s event both the Netherlands and Australia have w
on the trophy 6 times, while Argentina won 5 titles.
India has never won Hockey Champions Trophy
Winners of 2012: Men s Australia, Women s- Argentina
India defeats Pak to lift Men s Kabaddi World Cup
December 18, 2013
India clinched men s Kabaddi World Cup for the fourth time in row, defeating its a
rch rival Pakistan in the neck and neck final clash played at Guru Nanak Dev Sta
dium in Ludhiana, Punjab.
Men s World Cup Kabaddi 2013:
Organizer: Government of Punjab, India
Final Match: Guru Nanak Dev Stadium in Ludhiana, Punjab.
Teams Played: 11 Teams played representing their respective nations. The teams w
ere from Argentina, Canada, England, Denmark, Pakistan, India, Kenya, Scotland,
Sierra Leone, Spain, and the US
Winner: India defeated Pakistan
Key Players: India s Haravinder Singh Dulla was voted Best Raider and Balbir Singh
Best Stopper of the tournament.Current Affairs December 2013
India clinched Women s Kabaddi World Cup
December 18, 2013
Indian won women s Kabaddi World Cup 2013 championship for a third consecutive tim
e, vanquishing debutant New Zealand in the final match played at Guru Gobind Sin
gh sports complex in Jalandhar, Punjab.
Women s World Cup Kabaddi 2013:
Organizer: Government of Punjab, India
Final Match: Guru Gobind Singh sports complex in Jalandhar, Punjab.
Teams Played: 8 Teams viz. India, Pakistan, Denmark, England, Kenya, Mexico, New
Zealand, and United States

Winner: India defeated New Zealand

Key Players: India s Anu Rani declared Best Stopper and Ram Bateri was announced B
est Raider.
Indian Govt pulls up Army chief for accepting U.S. military honor
without its permission

Legion of Merit

December 17, 2013

Screenshot_5The Indian government pulled up the country s Army chief General Bikra
m Singh for accepting a Legion of Merit ,the sixth highest American military honor
, without its approval. The Indian Defense Ministry questioned that the bestowme
nt of the honor was not the part of General Singh s itinerary during his visit to
the U. S., then why he accepted the Legion of Merit , without prior clearance from
the government.
General Bikram Singh is the fifth Indian armed forces officer, to have received
the award after Field Marshal Kariappa and first Indian Chief of Army Staff Gen
Rajendra Singhji.
What is Legion of Merit?
It is the sixth highest American U.S. Military award which is awarded to both US
military personnel as well as to military and political figures of other nation
s for exceptionally meritorious conduct and services.
Note: As per the norms, any Indian defense forces official has to seek permissi
on from the government to accept foreign honors.
Unbreakable : The autobiography of Mary Kom unveiled
December 17, 2013
Screenshot_3Mary Kom, the legendary boxer from North East wrote her autobiograph
y titled Unbreakable . The book was inaugurated by Bollywood Megastar Amitabh Bachc
han at Mumbai. Mary decided to pen down her life s battles, so that she could insp
ire and motivate others to never loose hope and fight for their dream. The autob
iography details her rise to the top from a modest background; the book beautifu
lly brings out her long lasting spirit and is an inspirational story for everyon
e, especially for women.
About Mary Kom
Five-time World Boxing champion, and the only woman boxer to have won a medal in
each one of the six world championships.
First Indian women boxer to qualify and win a bronze medal at the London Olympic
s in the flyweight (51 kg) category.
Won lots of awards like Padma Bhushan (2013), Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award (200
9), Padma Shree (2006), Arjuna Award (2003), etc.
Appointed the International Boxing Association s Ambassador for Women s Boxing in 20
09.
India s Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade held in US on visa fraud charges
December 17, 2013
Screenshot_6India s Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade arrested in New York
for an alleged case of visa fraud and making false statements in connection with
the visa application for an Indian national employee who was domestic helper in
her home. Later on, she released on a $250000 bond after she pleaded not guilty
in a court.
The U.S. State Department clarified that Indian diplomat does not enjoy immunity
from US laws. It is firm about its policies in support of the domestic workers.

Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations(VCCR), the Indian Deputy Cons
ul General enjoys immunity from the jurisdiction of US courts only with respect
to acts performed in the exercise of consular functions.
Ms. Devyani is currently employed as the Deputy Consul General for Political, Ec
onomic, Commercial and Women s Affairs at the Consulate General of India in New Yo
rk.
Why was Ms. Devyani Khobragade arrested?
Indian diplomat Ms. Devyani was accused of paying her domestic assistant just a
few dollars an hour and lying on a visa application. The minimum wage paid to th
e employee in USA is $4,500 a month, but she was paying only $530 a month.
What is the reaction of Indian Embassy over the arrest of Indian Diplomat?
The Indian embassy pointed to Article 41 (section 3) of VCCR (Personal Inviolabi
lity of Consular Officers) which clearly says that proceedings against a consula
r officer shall be conducted with the respect due to him by reason of his officia
l position . The Indian Government has taken this issue forcefully with the US say
ing that the action by law authorities was in complete violation of this Article
and least expected from a friendly country.
Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963:
The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963 is an international treaty t
hat defines a framework for consular relations between independent countries. A
consul normally operates out of an embassy in another country, and performs two
functions:
protecting in the host country the interests of their countrymen, and
furthering the commercial and economic relations between the two countries.
While a consul is not a diplomat, they work out of the same premises, and under
this treaty they are afforded most of the same privileges, including a variation
of diplomatic immunity called consular immunity. The treaty has been ratified b
y 176 countries.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSIndia s trade deficit with China nears record $30 b
December 17, 2013
As per the data released by the China s General Administration of Customs, India s t
rade deficit with China after 11 months of this year has reached a record $29.5
billion, exceeding 2012 s annual figure. Towards the end of 2013, India s exports to
China reached only $14.87 billion out of total bilateral trade of $59.24 billio
n.
The numbers underline the sharp decline in once-burgeoning trade, which reached
$74 billion in 2011 when China became India s biggest trading partner.
In 2012, India s the trade deficit with China registered a 10% decline to reach 66
.50 billion dollar, even as both the countries announced an ambitious 100 billio
n trade target to be achieved by 2015. The decline was partly the result of 20%
slump in India s exports, largely on account of iron ore mining bans by China and
partly on account of global slowdown.
What is Trade deficit?
An economic measure of a negative balance of trade in which a country s imports ex
ceeds its exports. A trade deficit represents an outflow of domestic currency to
foreign markets.
NGT banned burning of plastic, rubber across the country

December 17, 2013

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned unregulated open burning of plastic, rubb
er or such other articles across the country. NGT directed all the municipal aut
horities to set up, operationalise and coordinate the waste management systems wi
thin their limits
All the plastic waste/scrap dealers and/or recyclers including the members of th
e PVC and Plastic Waste Dealers Association, respondent herein, shall be bounded
from carrying on their business of separatism of plastic waste and its eventual
transfer to recyclers or disposal contrary to and without registration under th
e Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011.
The NGT s judgment came on a plea alleging illegal burning of plastic, rubber and
related waste in various villages in North and North West Delhi.
About National Green Tribunal
National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (NGT) is a federal legislation enacted by the
Parliament of India, under India s constitutional provision of Article 21, which a
ssures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment. The tribunal it
self is a special fast-track court to handle the expeditious disposal of the cas
es pertaining to environmental issues.
Sergio Perez joined Sahara Force India with multi-year deal for 2014 F1 season
December 16, 2013
Screenshot_4Mexican Formula One driver Sergio Perez signed a multi-year contract
with the British-based team Sahara Force India. The 23-year-old Mexican complet
es Sahara Force India s 2014 line-up alongside Nico Hlkenberg and helps to create o
ne of the most exciting pairing on the grid.
The 2014 Formula 1 grid line up of many teams are taking shape, such as:
Red Bull: Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo,
Ferrari: Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen,
Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg,
McLaren: Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen,
Force India: Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez, etc.
About Sergio Perez
Member of the FerrariDriverAcademy till 2012 and took his first Formula One podi
um at the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix
Previous teams: McLaren, Sauber
In December 2013, Force India signed Perez in a 15million Euro deal.
Note: Sahara Force India Formula One Team is a Formula One racing team based in
Silverstone, United Kingdom which currently holds an Indian license. The team wa
s formed in October 2007 when a consortium led by Indian businessman Vijay Mally
a and Michiel Mol, bought the Spyker F1 team for
90 million.
GSP Plus: EU grants duty-free market access to Pakistani goods
December 16, 2013
European Parliament approved the Single Delegated Act under which ten countries
including Pakistan are privileged to Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP
Plus) Scheme. The Act will come into force from January 1, 2014.
The European Union being Pakistan s most important trading partner supports the in
tegration of Pakistan with the global economy by granting Pakistan s exports to th
e EU reduced tariffs under the EU s Generalized Scheme of Preferences.

How do Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP Plus) status helpful for Paki
stan?
The status provides Pakistan duty-free or preferential duty rate access for a to
tal of 3,500 products. It means there will be zero duties on over 90% of all pro
ducts that Islamabad exports to the bloc of 27 nations.
EU trade concessions will benefit the country s largest manufacturer and exporter,
the textile and clothing industry, the most by allowing its products to compete
with those of regional rivals like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, which already have
duty free access to the bloc s market.
About Generalized System of Preferences Plus (GSP Plus) Status
The EU s Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP) allows developing country exporters
to pay lower duties on their exports to the EU. This gives them vital access to
EU markets and contributes to their economic growth.
The GSP+ enhanced preference means full removal of tariffs on essentially the same
product categories as those covered by the general arrangement.
These are granted to countries which ratify and implement international conventi
ons relating to human and labor rights, environment and good governance.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSCurrent Affairs December 2013
Retired Justice DP Buch: Gujarat s fourth Lokayukta
December 16, 2013
Retired High Court Judge DP Buch was sworn as the fourth Lokayukta of the Gujara
t by Governor Kamla Beniwal, on the post that was lying vacant for a decade and
over which Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Governor Kamla Beniwal were on a col
lision course for three years.
What was the dispute between CM Narendra Modi and Governor, over the issue of ap
pointment of Lokayukta?
The issue triggered a major controversy when the Governor appointed Justice (ret
d) R.A. Mehta as Lokayukta on August 25, 2011, without consulting the state gove
rnment. This led to a long-drawn legal battle that reached the Supreme Court, wh
ich later on preserved the Governor s decision. But after wining the legal battle
over the appointment, Mr. Justice Mehta rejected to take charge of Lokayukta in
August, 2013 because the government didn t accept his objectivity and credibility.
About Lokayukta
Lokayukta is an anti-corruption investigator organization in the Indian states.
The institution of Lokayukta has been set up to inquire into the allegations aga
inst Public Functionaries in the State and for matters connected therewith.
Note: The anti-corruption investigator post of Gujarat was lying vacant since th
e last officer, Justice R M Soni s term expired in December 2003.
Israel, Jordan, Palestinians signed Water sharing Deal
December 16, 2013
Mid-East governments (Israel, Jordan and the Palestinians) signed a historic tri
lateral agreement at the World Bank in Washington, which outlines regional water
-sharing initiatives from the Red Sea to Dead Sea to relieve shortages in the wa
terless lands.
The Dead Sea has unique water properties like humans can float naturally on the
surface, etc. Owing to human intervention, the sea is depleting 1m (3.3ft) a yea
r. Thus, in order to save the Dead Sea, a pipeline will built on the Jordanian s
ide of the Aqaba Gulf to carry sea water from a desalination plant at the Red Se
a to the Dead Sea, while providing drinking water to the region.
The plan attributes the development of a desalination plant in Aqaba that will p

roduce water to be shared with Israel, increased water quotas to Jordan from Isr
ael s Sea of Galilee and the sale of waters made potable and salt-free from Israel
to the Palestinians.
The deal is an outcome of the cooperation since 2005 among Israel, Jordan, and t
he Palestinian Authority on the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Study Program.
Expected cost of the project is $250m-$400m.
The Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Study Program will help to save the Dead S
ea; supply water and develop hydro-electricity; and bring out strategic, politic
al and economic cooperation.
The coldest place on Earth is in East Antarctica
December 13, 2013
NASA satellites discovered a desolate and remote ice plateau in East Antarctica,
the coldest place on earth. The remote region plunged as low as minus 94.7oC (m
inus 135.8oF). This beat the previous record of -89.2 degrees Celsius measured a
t the Russian Vostok Research Station in East Antarctica on July 21, 1983.
The Scientists made the discovery while examining 32 years of global surface tem
peratures recorded by viz. remote sensing satellites, the new Landsat 8, a joint
project of NASA and the US Geological Survey (USGS), etc.
The super-cold temperatures are due to, air being caught and held for a while. I
f the skies are clear for a few days, the ground radiates remaining heat into sp
ace, creating a layer of super-chilled air above the snow.
Here, Antarctica air is dry, ground chilly, and the skies cloudless. The cold ai
r swoops down off a dome and gets trapped in a chilly lower spot. That s why, by c
ausing the air to be stationary for extended periods, while continuing to radiat
e more heat away into space, one can get the absolute lowest temperatures.
Can humans exist at minus 94.7oC?
The number of human activities becomes extremely difficult at such low temperatu
res.
The human skin does not keep the body warm at such temperatures. In the winters,
the thick snow and long hours of darkness considerably affect vision. In summer
s, the strong ultraviolet radiation from the hole in the ozone layer can cause g
reat damage to the eyes unless special protection is used.
It would become extremely difficult to pass urine in East Antarctica if the temp
erature was recorded 26 degrees Celsius lower, because the freezing point of uri
ne is minus 120 degrees Celsius. This should make it obvious why there is little
to no habitation of the region.
Note: Antarctica is Earth s southernmost continent, containing the geographic Sout
h Pole. It is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent, and has the highest a
verage elevation of all the continents.
Mr. Ranjan Mathai appointed India s High Commissioner to the UK
December 13, 2013
The External Affairs Ministry appointed former Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai a
s India s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. He succeeded Jaimini Bhagwati,
who retired recently.
About Mr. Ranjan Mathai
An IFS officer of 1974 batch, who retired as Foreign Secretary this year.
Played a critical role in the Indo-Bangla Ganges Water Sharing accord during She
ikh Hasina s first stint as the Prime Minister.

Apart from serving as India s Ambassador to France, he also had postings in Israel
and Qatar among other places.
Note: The Commonwealth of Nations is an intergovernmental organization of 53 mem
ber states that were mostly territories of the former British Empire. In them,
a High Commissioner is the senior diplomat (ranking as ambassador) in charge of
the diplomatic mission of one Commonwealth government to another. There are a fe
w technical differences, like Ambassadors present their diplomatic credentials t
o the host country s head of state; High Commissioners are recognized to the head
of government, etc.US and UK spying on virtual world, online games
December 13, 2013
As per the secret documents disclosed by whistle-blower Edward Snowden, in an ef
fort to identify terrorist threats, US and British spies have reportedly penetra
ted the massive communities playing video games such as World of War craft, etc.
Why are US and UK intelligence agencies fearing from online gaming platform?
US and British intelligence fear that the terrorists could use the hugely popula
r platform to plot attacks, as online gaming is a big business attracting tens o
f millions of users worldwide who inhabit their digital worlds as make-believe c
haracters, living and competing with the avatars of other players.
Why there are concerns on the spying of online games?
The US and UK spying agencies conducted operations illegally; not taking permiss
ion from the authorized owner of the online games. This has raised concerns over
the privacy of the online-gamers. It is however, unclear that how these agencie
s accessed the data, or how many communications were collected. It is also not c
lear how the NSA ensured that it was not monitoring innocent Americans whose ide
ntity and nationality may have been concealed and compromised behind their virtu
al avatar.
Supreme Court restricts the use of red beacon light on vehicles
December 13, 2013
The Supreme Court has banned the use of red beacon light with flashers on all ve
hicles except those used by high dignitaries holding constitutional post; also b
anned pressure horns, multiple sound emitting horns and musical horns in vehicle
s.
The court passed the order on a PIL filed by Uttar Pradesh resident Abhay Singh
on misuse of red beacon.
Why the Supreme Court restricted the use of red beacons?
The apex court stated that the red lights represent power and create an arrant d
ifference among those who are allowed to use it and the ones who are not. But a
large number of those using vehicles with red lights have neither respect for th
e laws of the country, nor they treat the ordinary citizens with respect. Even c
riminals were getting away using red lights because the police were too scared to
stop a car with a beacon. So, to avoid such practices, the court decided to rest
rict them.
As per the directions of Supreme Court:
The term high dignitaries used in proviso (iii) to Rule 108(1) of the 1989 Rules t
akes within its fold the holders of various posts, positions and offices specifi
ed in the Constitution.
The motor vehicles carrying high dignitaries specified by the Central Government a
nd their counterparts specified by the State Government may be fitted with red l
ights but the red lights with or without flasher can be used only while the spec
ified high dignitary is on duty and not otherwise.
The State Governments and Administration of Union Territories cannot enlarge the

scope of the term high

dignitaries beyond what is prescribed in cl
auses c and d of Notifications dated 11.1.2002 and 28.7.2005 issued by the Central
Government. Therefore, they shall amend
the relevant rules and notifica
tions to bring them in tune with the 1989 Rules and notifications dated 11.1.200
2 and 28.7.2002 issued by the Central Government. This exercise must be complete
d within a period of three months.
The men in uniform; operational agencies which require un-hindered access to th
e roads for performance of
their duty; those engaged in emergency
duties such as ambulance services, fire services, emergency maintenance etc, an
d police vehicles used as escorts or pilots or for law and order duties shall n
ot be entitled to have red lights but lights of other colours, e.g., blue, white
, multicoloured etc
No motor vehicles except those specified in Rule 119(3) of the 1989 Rules or si
milar provisions contained in the rules framed by the State Governments or the A
dministration of Union Territories shall be fitted with multi-toned horns giving
a succession of different notes or with any other sound
producing device
giving
an unduly harsh, shrill, loud or alarming noise.
The police officers and other authorities entrusted with the task of enforcing t
he provisions of the 1988 Act and the Rules framed thereunder must discharge the
ir duties without any fear or favour and should impose appropriate penalty on th
ose who violate the prohibition contained in Rule 108(1) and Rule 119 and simil
ar rules framed
by the
State Governments and the Administration o
f Union Territories. The owners/users of the vehicles fitted with multi- toned h
orns other than those allowed to use such horns under Rule 119(3) of the 1989 Ru
les or corresponding rules framed by the State Governments and the Administratio
n of the Union Territories shall, within a period of one month from today, remov
e the multi toned horns. The officers authorised to enforce the provisions of t
he 1988 Act and the rules framed thereunder by the Central Government, the State
Governments and the Administration of Union Territories shall also ensure that
multi-toned horns are removed from all the vehicles except those specified in ru
le 119(3) of the 1989 Rules or corresponding rules framed by the State Governmen
ts and the Administration of Union Territories.
The Chief Secretaries of all the States and the Administrators of Union Territor
ies shall cause a notice published in the newspapers having wide circulation in
their respective States and the Union Territories incorporating the directions c
ontained in this order.
VIPs who can use Red beacons while on duty:
LIST A: (With Flasher)
President; Vice President; Prime Minister; ex-Presidents; ex-PMs; deputy PM; CJI
and SC Judges; LS Speaker; Union Cabinet Ministers; plan panel deputy chairpers
on; leaders of opposition in LS and RS.
LIST B: (Without Flasher)
CEC; CAG; Union Mos & dy ministers; LS deputy speaker; RS dy chairman; plan pane
l members; AG; Cabinet secy; services chiefs & officiating chiefs of staff; head
s of CAT, UPSC, minorities commission, SC & ST commission.
PFBTA: Newly discovered greenhouse gas

7,000 times more potent than CO2'

December 13, 2013

Researchers at University of Toronto have discovered a new greenhouse gas that i
s 7,000 times more powerful than carbon dioxide to cause greenhouse effect which
causes warming of the Earth.
As per the scientists, the newly discovered gas, PerFluoroTriButylAmine (PFTBA),
has been in use by the electrical industry since the mid-20th century.
The discoverers have claimed that PFTBA which does not occur naturally has the h
ighest radiative efficiency of any molecule detected in the atmosphere up to now
.

The study showed that PFTBA was 7,100 times more powerful at warming the Earth o
ver a 100-year time period than CO2. This gas remains in the atmosphere for abou
t 500 years, and unlike CO2 which is absorbed by forests and oceans, there are n
o known natural sinks on Earth to absorb it.
Do we need to worry about PFTBA?
Not at current levels. The current concentration of PFTBA in the atmosphere is v
ery low as compared to CO2 so it does not displace the focus of our concerns fro
m the burning of fossil fuels such as oil and coal as the main drivers of climat
e change. However, higher concentration of the gas would contribute to a serious
global warming. So we need to ponder over using such compounds in large quantit
y without first understanding their impact on climate change.
RBI grants license to Doha Bank to start banking operations in India
December 13, 2013
Screenshot_3The Reserve Bank of India has granted license to Doha Bank to start
banking operations in India and has allowed it to open a branch in Mumbai to pro
vide full-scale banking services.
Doha Bank which is the largest commercial bank in the state of Qatar intends to
expand its operations at the local, regional and international levels. The bank
will soon start operations as a foreign bank branch in Mumbai and will offer who
lesale banking, retail banking, treasury and trade finance services to all custo
mers in India.
This licence will further boost the niche role Doha Bank is playing and facilita
ting the movement of trade between Qatar and India. Qatar-India bilateral annual
trade is about $16 billion and there are huge opportunities of growth available
in infrastructure and other sectors in India.
There is a large diaspora of Indian population in Qatar and various Indian compa
nies are active in infrastructure projects. As per Doha Bank, the licence will p
ave the way for the bank to support all expatriates with its solutions especiall
y remittance solutions.
1...1020...27Current Affairs December 2013
Raman Singh takes oath as Chhattisgarh CM
December 13, 2013
Raman Singh (61) of BJP was sworn in as Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh for the 3
rd term in row. Governor Shekhar Dutt administered Singh the oath of office and
secrecy during a grand swearing-in ceremony.
Raman Singh has retained the CM post as the BJP registered victory by winning 49
of the 90 seats. Congress could manage 39 seats in the 90-member Assembly while
the rest of the 2 seats were bagged by BSP and an Independent each.
With this, Singh has now joined the elite club of BJP chief ministers who have s
cored three consecutive terms in their respective states.
IOC ranked No.1 on India s Fortune 500 list
December 13, 2013
According to the latest annual list of Fortune 500 companies in India published
by business magazine Fortune, state-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC) is country s biggest
company in terms of annual revenue, followed by Mukesh Ambani-led private secto
r giant Reliance Industries at the second place.

Indian Oil Corp (IOC) was the biggest with annual revenue of Rs 4,75,867 crore,
followed by Reliance Industries (RIL) with a full-year revenue of Rs 4,09,883 cr
ore. This is followed by Bharat Petroleum (Rs 2,44,822 crore) at the third place
and Hindustan Petroleum (Rs 2,17,771 crore) at fourth.
As per Fortune 500, India Top 10 Companies are:
Rank
Company
1.
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC)
2.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)
3.
Bharat Petroleum
4.
Hindustan Petroleum
5.
State Bank of India
6.
Tata Motors
7.
ONGC
8.
Tata Steel
9.
Essar Oil
10.
Coal India
Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel join hands for sharing telecom infrastructure
December 13, 2013
Bharti Airtel, has inked an infrastructure-sharing agreement with the telecom su
bsidiary of Reliance Industries.
The deal will allow the telecom unit, Reliance Jio, to access Bharti s nationwide
infrastructure while Bharti will have in return access to the optic fibre capaci
ty established by Jio in future. As a result, RIL might be able to kick off tele
com and broadband services in the near future by utilizing Bharti s infrastructure
, much earlier than if it had to create its own infrastructure. It has slashed R
eliance Jio s time to market by several years.
Airtel will also benefit from the deal as its cash flows will be boosted by leas
e rentals from Jio.
The deal is also extended to jointly laying optic fibre and starting other forms
of infrastructure services.
This is the second infrastructure-sharing deal between the two companies. In Apr
il 2013, both had entered into an agreement under which Bharti has provided capa
city on its i2i submarine cable to Reliance Jio.
Uruguay becomes first country to legalize sale and production of marijuana
December 13, 2013
Uruguay has become the first nation in the world to make it legal to grow, sell
and consume marijuana. The country s parliament has passed the government-sponsore
d bill which allows registered Uruguayans over 18 to buy up to 40g (1,4oz) of th
e drug a month.
Though possession of the drug is not a crime in the country, but with this legis
lation coming into effect in April 2014, the price of marijuana will be set at 1
dollar per gram, aiming to undercut the current price of $1.40 in the illegal m
arket. A specialized body would be set up by the government to regulate the sale
and production of the drug and it will administer a database of adult citizens
registered to consume marijuana. The law would permit registered Uruguayans over
the age of 18 to buy up to 40 grams of marijuana from pharmacies every month an
d cultivate a maximum of 6 plants on their property a year. The legislation will
also permit for the creation of so-called cannabis clubs, composed of up to 45

members who will be able to grow a maximum of 99 plants a year.

Why Uruguay is legalizing marijuana trade?
The government of Uruguay intends to curb the market of illegal marijuana this n
ew legislation as its previous attempts and policies have failed. The law is an
experiment programme under which the government will sell the drug at a price lo
wer than that in the illegal markets to defeat them and push them out of this bu
siness. It will also be able to tax the revenue generated from it. The whole pro
gramme will be regulated and administered by the government.
Criticism:
The project has drawn national and international criticism. The International Na
rcotics Control Board (INCB) has warned that the law would be in complete contra
vention to the provisions of the international drug treaties to which Uruguay is
signatory. As per health experts, this move would encourage the drug market and
would cause social damage as marijuana is highly addictive and is 15 times more
carcinogenic than tobacco. It produces psychological disorders like depression,
anxiety and
for heavy consumers
schizophrenia.
What is International Narcotics Control Board (INCB)?
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) is an independent body of exper
ts established by the United Nations to monitor countries compliance with interna
tional drug treaties.
1...1020...2829Current Affairs December 2013
Oldest known human DNA decoded
December 13, 2013
The researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Lei
pzig, Germany have decoded the oldest DNA ever found. They have almost completel
y decoded the mitochondrial DNA (mt DNA) taken from four-lakh year old thigh bon
e of human family representative of the genus Homo.
The thigh bone was discovered at a burial site Sima de los Huesos (Bone Pit) tha
t was preserved in Spain s northern Sierra de Atapuerca highlands. The scientists
have found that the mitochondrial genome of Denisovans belongs to the extinct re
latives of Neanderthals in Asia.
What did the researchers find after decoding the oldest DNA?
This research has enhanced the knowledge of the human genetics by 300000 years a
nd also tells about the journey of human s evolution. After comparing the code wi
th the modern humans, apes, Neanderthals and their sister group, Denisovans, res
earchers found that the Spanish hominins were more closely related to the geogra
phically more distant Denisovans than to Neanderthals.
India permits unlisted companies to directly raise capital abroad
December 13, 2013
As per the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), India s FDI polic
y has been modified to allow unlisted firms to directly list on stock exchanges
abroad to raise capital for acquisitions or retiring overseas debts. This step m
ay help India in controlling high Current Account Deficit (CAD).
Unlisted companies are heretofore not allowed to directly list in overseas marke
ts without prior or subsequent listing in Indian markets. But following the chan
ges made in the Consolidated FDI Policy in this regard, they would be allowed to d
o so.

As per revised FDI Policy:

Unlisted firms are allowed to directly list abroad only on exchanges in Internat
ional Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)/ Financial Action Task Forc
e (FATF) compliant jurisdictions or those jurisdictions with which SEBI has sign
ed bilateral agreements.
The companies will be allowed to raise capital abroad and use the same for retir
ing outstanding overseas debt or for operations abroad including for acquisition
s.
If the funds raised are not utilised abroad, the company should repatriate the f
unds to India within 15 days and park it with a scheduled bank and may be used d
omestically.
The listing companies raising funds overseas would have to be fully compliant wi
th the FDI policy.
The listing firms would also have to abide by the guidelines on downstream inves
tment and the criteria of eligibility of who can raise funds through ADRs/GDRs w
ould be as prescribed by the government.
The scheme will be implemented on a pilot basis for a period of 2 years.
Why has the government allowed unlisted firms to raise capital abroad?
The government has set a target to slash the CAD to below $56 billion this fisca
l (2013-14), as against $88.2 billion in the last financial year. The value of R
upee versus US dollar has declined drastically because of high CAD and other glo
bal factors. The government s step to allow the unlisted companies to raise capita
l abroad would help in easing the pressure on CAD as the firms would not have to
buy or borrow the foreign currency (mainly dollars) from domestic markets which
puts strain on CAD. Besides, the step may also improve CAD if the unused capita
l is sent back home to a scheduled bank or utilized domestically.
Congress victorious in Mizoram Assembly polls 2013
December 13, 2013
Mizoram Assembly poll results are out and Congress has defeated its main rival M
izo National Front (MNF) by a huge margin. Although Congress faced debacle in th
e assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, it ha
s managed to save face in Mizoram by registering a second consecutive win in the
small Christian-dominated state that MNF once wanted to take out of the Indian
Union.
It is Congress fourth electoral win after Mizoram attained statehood in 1987, fol
lowing the signing of the historic 1986 Mizo Accord between the Centre and MNF l
ed by the legendary Laldenga.
Results:
Of the total 40 seats Congress clinched 33 seats limiting its opponent MNF to a
just 5 seats. Many give the credit of Congress triumph to Lal Thanhawla s popular
Congress New Land Use Policy (NLUP), which was evolved to tackle jhum or shiftin
g cultivation. Four-time chief minister Lal Thanhawla (71) has won from 2 seats
Serchhip and Hrangturzo. It is his 9th electoral win since Mizoram became a Unio
n territory in 1972 and a full-fledged state in 1987.
PepsiCo appointed D Shivakumar as head of Indian region
December 13, 2013
Beverages and food giant PepsiCo India appointed former Nokia senior executive D
. Shivakumar as the company s new chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) for t
he Indian region.
What type of responsibilities will D.Shivakumar look after?
Oversee all aspects in India, including the Pepsi-Cola, Lay s, Slice, Kurkure, Tro

picana, Quaker and NourishCo (a joint venture with Tata Global Beverages) brands
.
Responsible for deploying the Rs. 33,000 crore investments in India that P
epsiCo announced last month.
Also look after the franchise businesses in Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka
and the Maldives.
Note: He will succeed Gautham Mukkavilli, current General Manager for Pep
siCo India Beverages( who has been named the senior Vice-President , Bu
siness Transformation
AMEA at PepsiCo).India to Host 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup
December 13, 2013
India will host the 2017 Under-17 World Cup Football. This will be the first tim
e India will host an international football competition at world level.
The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup will be the 17th tournament of the FIFA U-17 World
Cup. It is the world championship of association football for male players under
the age of 17 organized by Fdration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)
.
After the meeting in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil, FIFA executive committee unveil
ed that By virtue of being the host country, India will take part in the 24-nati
on tournament for the first time in its history.
India hosted Asian Football Co federation s Youth Championships (Under-20) in 2006
and then the AFC Challenge Cup in 2008 but never any FIFA tournament.
Tournament will be held in 6 venues which are to be selected from eight cities
ew Delhi, Margao, Banglore, Pune , Mumbai, Kolkata, Kochi and Guwahati.

Note: The 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup was held in the United Arab Emirates and won
by Nigeria after defeating Mexico. Chile will be the host country for the 2015 e
dition.
FIFA awarded South Korea to host Under-20 World Cup in 2017, Jordan to host Wome
n s Under-17 World Cup in 2016 and South Africa to host 2016 FIFA Under 20 Women s W
orld Cup.
Miss Earth Venezuela Alyz Henrich wins the Miss Earth beauty pageant 2013
December 13, 2013
Screenshot_2 Miss Earth Venezuela Alyz Henrich won the 13th edition of the Miss Ear
th Pageant held at the Versailles Palace in Alabang, Muntilupa City, Philippines
. Miss Earth is an annual international beauty pageant promoting environmental a
wareness.
Eighty-eight contestants from all over the world competed and the winner was.
Alyz Henrich s cause for the pageant is to ensure water preservation.
The Venezuelan beauty chosen to keep waters of an island cleans as her environme
ntal advocacy.
Other winners are:
Miss Earth Fire:
Miss Korea Catharina Choi
Miss Earth Water:
Miss Thailand Punika Kulsoontornrut
Miss Earth Air:
Miss Austria Katia Wagner
India s participant for the pageant was Sobhita Dhulipala, who failed to make it i
n the list of top 16. She won the Miss Photogenic and the Miss Eco Beauty Title
contests.

About Miss Earth beauty pageant

Established in 2001 to uphold the advocacy to preserve and restore the environme
nt.
Headquarters are at Manila, Philippines
The title-holder serves as the ambassador for environmental protection campaigns
worldwide.
Nicole Faria is the first Indian contestant to have won the title in 2010.
Star India is now the official sponsor of Indian cricket team
December 12, 2013
Star India Pvt. Ltd., the television network, bags sponsorship rights of the Ind
ian cricket team covering BCCI events, International Cricket Council (ICC) event
s and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) events, from January 1, 2014 to March 31, 2017
. This brings to an end a 12-year partnership with Sahara, the existing team spo
nsor, whose contract expires on December 31,2013.
The BCCI fixed the base price for India s international matches at Rs. 1.5 crores
per match.
Star India bid Rs.1.92 crore per match for bilateral series, and Rs. 61 lakh per
match for ICC-sponsored tournaments.
Sahara bid Rs. 2.35 crore per BCCI match and Rs. 91 lakh for ICC games. The tota
l amount bid by them stood at Rs. 252 crore in contrast to Rs. 203 crore bid by
Star. ( Sahara s bid rejected on technical grounds)
The team sponsorship rights include the right to be called the official team spo
nsor, and to display a commercial logo on the men s, women s, Under-19 and A teams
ts.
Star now holds all three important rights: broadcasting, series title and team s
ponsorship.
Star is also the title sponsor for BCCI s international and domestic matches till
March 31, 2014, and holds the broadcast, internet and mobile rights to Indian cr
icket until March 2018.
Why Sahara India was disqualified, albeit its bid was higher ?
The reasons are not known, but there was a bone of contention among the Sahara
Group and the BCCI on the Indian Premier League Pune franchise. In October 201
3, the board terminated Sahara-sponsored IPL team Pune Warriors over franchise f
ees.
Miss Venezuela, Alyz Henrich crowned Miss Earth 2013
December 10, 2013
Miss Venezuela, Alyz Henrich was crowned Miss Earth 2013 title at a pageant orga
nized at Versailles Palace, Philippines. It is the second beauty pageant title f
or Venezuela this year. In November 2013, Gabriela Isler, of the same nation was
crowned Miss Universe 2013. India s contestant Shobita Dhulipala couldn t make it
to the top 16 of the event.
The Top 3 runners-up:
Miss Earth Fire 2013 Catharina Choi of Korea
Miss Earth water 2013 Punika Kulsoontornrut of Thailand
Miss Earth Air 2013 is Katia Wagner of Austria
About Miss Earth:
Miss Earth is an annual international beauty pageant promoting environmental awa
reness. The contest held its maiden edition in 2001 to promote the preservation
of the environment. Nicole Faria, who won in 2010, is the first Indian contestan
t to have won the title.Investment corpus of pensions sector to reach above $1 t
rillion by 2025: Report

ki

December 10, 2013

As per the report jointly prepared by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)
and global professional services firm Ernst & Young (EY), after the passage of
the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Act 2013, investme
nt corpus in the Indian pensions sector is likely to cross $1 trillion by 2025 a
s the sector moves forward to realize its full growth potential.
As per CII-CY report:
Pensions business offers a promising opportunity because of India s changing demog
raphics, an insufficient government-funded pensions system and the presence of a
vivacious insurance and funds management sector.
By 2030, 180 million Indians or 12% of the population will be in the age bracket
of 60-plus.
Pensions systems play a major role for the infrastructure sector, providing stab
ility in capital markets.
The government has set a funding target of $1 trillion for the infrastructure se
ctor for the 12th Plan (2012-16) period, while it expects the private sector to
contribute 45% of the targeted investment.
Private pension funds are likely to provide 24% of the total corpus by 2025, whi
le pensions and annuity products offered by life insurance companies are expecte
d to contribute around 16%.
Current Status:
At present, the retirement funds corpus is in range of Rs.12-15 trillion, of whi
ch the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) holds one-third of the total, while the Pu
blic Provident Fund (PPF) and NPS account for about 2.5% each.
Telugu film industry suffered 300 crores losses in 2013
December 10, 2013
Year 2013 proved ominous for Telugu film industry as among 170-odd films release
d till December 7, 2013, only 12 to 14 films were either blockbusters, hits and
average grossers, while more than 140-odd films were disasters and left more tha
n 70-odd producers battling for existence. The downslide caused the Telugu cinem
a industry hefty losses of around Rs 300 crore.
While films like Atharintiki Daredi bagged the spot of being most successful this
year with 85-crore plus, other films that touched 40 crore mark were-Mirchi, Bad
shah, Nayak, Seethamma Vakitlo, whereas Gundejari Gallanthaiyinde and Balupu cro
ssed 22 crores, while Prema Katha Chitram, grossed 15 crores and films like Tada
ka, touched 10 crore mark and even small movies like Swamy Ra Ra ( 7 crores) Anthak
amundhu Aa Tharvatha and Adda ( 3 to 4 crores) but industry sank deeply under the
heap of 100-odd flops.
However, dreary performance of few star films jolted the industry since their fi
lms could not even fetch their production cost by a big margin- Ramayya Vasthavay
ya ( 19 crores out of 35 crores), Shadow ( 12 crores out of 30 crores), Greekuve
erudu (10 out of 22 crores), Iddarammayilitho (22 out of 33 crores), Toofan (10
out of 60 crores), Masala (10 out of 24 crores), Bhai (12 cores out of 25 crores
) Sahasam (5 out of 11 crores) and the list goes on.
Major factors behind the debacle:
The failure of films and heavy losses can in 2013 can be attributed to certain f
actors like poor scripts, surging salaries of stars, technicians and rampant pir
acy and most significantly Telugu audience are not willing to digest crap in the
name of star movies and rejected new-age small movies, if they lacked novelty a
nd even the 60-days bandh in Seemandhra added to producer s woes as it hampered co
llections of many films.
Investments by FIIs in stock market cross Rs 1 lakh crore mark in 2013

December 10, 2013

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) equity investments in the Indian stock ma
rket have crossed Rs 1 lakh crore so far in 2013, while inflows are likely to bo
ost up further after state assembly poll results have improved the probability o
f a BJP-led government at the Centre.
As per SEBI information, FIIs, key investors in the Indian stock market, were gr
oss buyers of shares worth Rs 7,46,334 crore and sellers of equities worth Rs 6,
45,757 crore till December 6, 2013. This translates into a net inflow of Rs 1,00
,577 crore ($18 billion).
Since FIIs entry into the country s capital markets in 1992-93, net inflows have e
xceeded Rs 1 lakh crore only in 2010 and 2012. The overseas investors had net in
vested Rs 1,28,360 crore in 2012, while in 2010, they made a record net inflow o
f Rs 1,33,266 crore.
As per experts, fund inflow by FIIs will step up further in the coming months as
a major win for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in assembly elections has improved
the likelihood of the party coming to power at the Centre in 2014.
Noticeably, of the total net inflow, around Rs 37,000 crore flowed in during the
last 3 months, following the steps taken by the RBI to resurrect the weakening
rupee and revive economic growth.
EC declares AAP a state party
December 10, 2013
In the 2013 Delhi state assembly elections, AAP emerged as the second largest pa
rty in Delhi winning 28 seats in the assembly. After a remarkable performance in
the Delhi state assembly election Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is all set to be recogn
ized as a state party by the Election Commission.
About Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
Mr. Arvind Kejriwal launched AAP on November 26, 2012, who was the former member
of India Against Corruption (IAC) movement, founded by Anna Hazare.
Election symbol Broom Stick
Central manifesto to implement the Jan Lokapal Bill within 15 days of coming to
power.
The AAP led several protests like a campaign against an alleged nexus between go
vernment and private corporations relating to price rises for electricity and wa
ter in Delhi, etc.
How does EC recognizes a state party ?
As per the criteria of election commission, a party can be called as a state par
ty if all its candidates get minimum of 8 percent votes or secure minimum of 6%
of the total votes polled and one assembly seat for every 25 seats in the state.
After the announcement, the party will have the option of retaining its origina
l symbol or it may design an alternative symbol for its party.
Note: If a political party is recognized as a State Party
hen it will automatically become a national party.

in four or more States t

How much does recognition matter for any party? How does recognition of a Party
as a State Party helps that party ?
EC recognition of any party as a State Party will entail the party to participat
e in the all-party meetings convened by the EC/State/Central Government, get a p
ermanent common symbol for all their contestants, privilege to address the voter
s through the All India Radio and Doordarshan during poll.Current Affairs Decemb
er 2013

December 10 observed as Human Rights Day across the globe

December 10, 2013
December 10 was observed as Human Rights Day across the globe marking the Univer
sal Declaration of Human Rights. The theme chosen for the year 2013 is 20 Years W
orking for Your Rights .
What is the significance of Human Rights Day?
December 10 holds significance as it was on this day in 1948 when the United Nat
ions General Assembly (UNGA) adopted and proclaimed, the Universal Declaration o
f Human Rights (UDHR), the first global declaration of human rights and one of t
he first major achievements of the new United Nations. The formal establishment
of Human Rights Day occurred at the 317th Plenary Meeting of the General Assembl
y on December 4, 1950, when the General Assembly declared resolution 423(V), inv
iting all member states and any other interested organizations to celebrate the
December 10 as they saw fit.
In 1993, the UNGA adopted Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (VDPA) at t
he World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, Austria which led to the creatio
n of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights for the promotion and protection
of all human rights. Year 2013, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights marks 20 years since its establishment.
In addition, it is traditionally on December 10 that the five-yearly United Nati
ons Prize in the Field of Human Rights and Nobel Peace Prize are awarded.
Assembly polls verdict: BJP bags MP, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, AAP makes stunn
ing debut
December 10, 2013
The BJP clinched majority of seats in the
a Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The Aam Aadmi
elhi where it clinched 28 of 70 seats. In
number of seats (31) but it fell short of

Assembly Elections in Rajasthan, Madhy

Party (AAP) made remarkable debut in D
Delhi, though the BJP secured highest
5 seats for attaining the majority.

A glance at 2013 State Assembly Poll Results:

Party Seats Won in DELHI
BJP
31
165
162
Congress
8
58
AAP
28
BSP
0
4
3
Others 2
6
Independent
1
3

Madhya Pradesh Rajasthan

49
21
39
1
1

Chhattisgarh

South Korea to expand its ADIZ

December 10, 2013
The latest move in a regional struggle over airspace above the East China Sea ma
rks the South Korea s decision to expand its ADIZ.
China s new air defense zone over the
orld s most geo-politically sensitive
enkaku islands in the East China Sea,
med by China, and the submerged Leodo

East China Sea is creating tensions in the w

areas that includes the disputed Diaoyu or S
which are controlled by Japan and but clai
reef, which is under South Korea s control.

Why China s ADIZ is fueling tensions with Japan & S.Korea ?

The new aerial zone extends into international airspace east of China s territoria
l airspace into the East China Sea, and up to 130 km from Japan s territorial airs

pace. The Chinese ADIZ overlaps with the ADIZ that Japan has already established
in the region, with both zones covering the disputed Diaoyu or SenkakuIslands i
n the East China Sea.
The zone includes a rock 15 feet below the water s surface known internationally a
s Socotra. The formation lies within the economic zones of both China and South
Korea, and it has long been a point of modest contention between the neighbors.
The rock is controlled by South Korea, where it is known as Ieodo. Seoul uses th
e site as an oceanic research center, having constructed an orange tower of beam
s and a helipad atop the rock in 2003. The research center has solar panels, win
d monitors, barometric sensors and a solar radiation measurement system, and the
monitoring data are displayed in real time on a government Web site.
South Korea to expand its ADIZ:
The latest move in a regional struggle over airspace above the East China Sea ma
rks the South Korea s decision to expand its ADIZ, it s new zone includes two small
islands and a submerged rock that is the subject of a long-running dispute with
China. Korea s latest declaration is viewed as an attempt fortify its control over
parts of the East China Sea surrounding the Leodo reef, which, earlier, lay bey
ond the southern edge of its zone. The eastern and western limits of its ADIZ ha
ve not been expanded.
Note: Air Defense Identification Zones (ADIZ) are not territorial claims, but th
ey mark airspace that countries think it important to monitor.
Related Article(s)
China s air defense zone unacceptable by White House
LOB

Clause agreed between India and Mauritius

December 9, 2013
Mauritius and India agreed on the principle of including a Limitation Of Benefit
(LOB) or anti-treaty shopping law clause in the revised tax treaty to ring-fenc
e its jurisdiction from any attempts of round-tripping and money laundering acti
vities.
The LOB clause limits treaty benefits to those who meet certain conditions inclu
ding those related to business, residency and investment commitments of the enti
ty seeking benefit of a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA).
What is Limitation Of Benefit (LOB) provision ?
An anti-abuse provision that sets out where residents of the Contracting States
are entitled to the treaty s benefits
Purpose : Aimed at preventing treaty shopping or inappropriate use of tax pacts by
third-country investors.
To limit the ability of third country residents to obtain benefits under the sai
d treaty.
India s desire is to discourage Treaty shopping by the LOB policy.
What is Treaty shopping
?
The practice of structuring a multinational business in order to take advantage
of more favorable tax treaties available in certain jurisdictions. A business t
hat resides in a home country and not having a tax treaty with the source countr
y (from which it receives income), can establish an operation in a second source
country having a favorable tax treaty, in order to minimize its tax liability w
ith the home country.Current Affairs December 2013
Pad kid poured curd pulled cold
Psychologists reveal the world s most frustrating to
ngue twister
December 9, 2013
To shed light on the brain s speech-planning processes, a tongue twister study con

ducted by researchers at the annual meeting of the Acoustical Society of America

in San Francisco.
Psychologists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology asked the volunteers
to say the sentence 10 times in a row, at a fast lick.
The volunteers recorded different combinations of words (like the top cop saw a c
op top ) but the most challenging one was the phrase Pad kid poured curd pulled col
d , while saying it, many of them clammed up and stopped talking altogether.
The jumble of words Pad kid poured curd pulled cold sound nonsensical but it is th
e most tricky tongue twister ever, leaving tongue-tangling classics like Peter pi
per and his peck of pickled pepper and She sells seashells by the seashore in the d
ust.
Why scientists study tongue twisters?
Scientists study speech errors such as tongue twisters to understand how the bra
in processes and plans speech.
They study the two categories of tongue twisters: i) Simple lists of paired word
s. ii) Whole sentences.
This operation would assist in understanding that when things go wrong, how a ty
pical, error-free operation would go and when certain combinations of sounds are
spoken too quickly, people seem to lose control of their mouths.
All unfilled chemical munitions of Syria destructed: OPCW
December 8, 2013
As per Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), all of Syria s
unfilled munitions have been destroyed.
The United Nations and OPCW teams are working in tandem in Syria with an aim to
remove the most toxic chemicals from Syria by the end of the year for destructio
n at sea and destroy the entire program by mid-2014. The OPCW, which won the Nob
el Peace Prize 2013, has been instructed by the United Nations to supervise the
destruction of the Syrian government s chemical weapons stockpile.
Why destruction of Chemical weapons is going on in Syria?
The Syrian government under Bashar-al Assad was accused by the US and its Wester
n allies of using Chemical weapons (mainly Sarin gas) to crush the rebellion in
the country. Syria rejected the allegations and blamed the rebels for its use. T
he matter went to the extent that the US started contemplating military action a
gainst the country which was opposed by Russia. Later, on Russia s intervention, S
yria joined Chemical Weapons Convention which requires all parties to declare an
d destroy all of the chemical weapons they possess. Organisation for the Prohibi
tion of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has the job is to implement the Chemical Weapons
Convention. Syria joined the OPCW and agreed to dismantle its chemical arsenal
to avoid possible U.S. military strikes.
Jordan gets UNSC seat as its non-permanent member
December 8, 2013
Jordan has been elected as a non-permanent member of United Nations Security Cou
ncil (UNSC). Jordan has replaced Saudi Arabia which was recently elected for the
position but rejected the seat in protest at the UN council s failure to end the
war in Syria and act on other Middle East issues.
Which are the new members on UNSC?
Jordan is the latest entrant on the UNSC as its non-permanent member. Besides, L
ithuania, Chile, Nigeria and Chad will also join as new members of the council,
replacing Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Pakistan, Morocco and Togo. The other five temp
orary council members that will remain next year are Argentina, Australia, Luxem
bourg, South Korea and Rwanda.

Some key points about UNSC

The UNSC was established in 1946 as per Article 23 of Chapter V of United Nation
s Charter. The council has 15 members which are further categorized into 5 perma
nent and 10 non permanent members of the Council. The non-permanent members have
term of 2 years.
Permanent Members:
China
France
Russian Federation
The United Kingdom
The United States of America
What are the key responsibilities of the UNSC?
The UNSC is one of the six key organs of the United Nations and is entrusted wit
h the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers include the es
tablishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of international sanct
ions, and the authorization of military action through Security Council resoluti
ons; it is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions to m
ember states.
Tejas test-fires missile successfully
December 8, 2013
India s first indigenously designed and developed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Teja
s successfully launched an infrared seeking air-to-air missile that hit its targ
et with precision.
With the success achieved in the test, the plan to induct the aircraft in the In
dian Air Force has moved further.
About LCA Tejas
The LCA was christened Tejas (Radiance) by Prime Minister AB Vajpayee in June 20
04. The Indian Light Combat Aircraft (LCA
sometimes called Last Chance Aircraft)
is the world s smallest, light weight, multi-role combat aircraft.
The aircraft is designed to meet the requirements of Indian Air Force as its fro
ntline multi-mission single-seat tactical aircraft to replace the MiG-21 series
of aircraft. The delta wing configuration, with no tailplanes or foreplanes, fea
tures a single vertical fin. The LCA is constructed of aluminium-lithium alloys,
carbon-fibre composites, and titanium and it integrates modern design concepts
and the state-of-art technologies such as relaxed static stability, flyby-wire F
light Control System, Advanced Digital Cockpit, Multi-Mode Radar, Integrated Dig
ital Avionics System, Advanced Composite Material Structures and a Flat Rated En
gine.
The LCA program was launched in 1985. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is the
Principal Partner in the design and fabrication of LCA and its integration lead
ing to flight testing.
1...102030...333435Current Affairs December 2013
Union Government denies introduction of ILP in Meghalaya
December 8, 2013
The demand to create Inner Line Permit (ILP) system in Meghalaya has been reject
ed by the Union Government on grounds that the Constitution does not provide for
extending the special provision to new areas.
The Government clarified that it was bound by Article 19 (D) of the Constitution
which allows any Indian citizen to move freely throughout the territory of the

country.
What is Inner Line Permit (ILP)?
ILP is an official travel document issued by an empowered State government to pe
rmit inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected or restricted area for
a limited period. It is mandatory for Indian citizens from outside those specifi
c States to get permit for entering the protected State.
Why Inner Line Permit (ILP) is issued?
The ILP system empowers the government to regulate movement to certain areas loc
ated near the international borders. It is issued under the Bengal Eastern Front
ier Regulation, 1873. At present, ILP is active in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland a
nd Mizoram.
In context of Meghalaya, various organizations in the state have been demanding
ILP system claiming the demography of the State is changing due to the intense i
nflow of people.
Employing manual scavengers made an offence
December 8, 2013
Employing or engaging a person has become an offence now as Prohibition of Emplo
yment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013 comes into force ac
ross India except J&K. The law forbids the employment of manual scavengers, the
manual cleaning of sewers and septic tanks without protective equipment and the
construction of insanitary latrines.
The law also has provisions for rehabilitation of manual scavengers and providin
g them alternative employment. With the enactment of this law, the construction
and maintenance of the insanitary latrines has become an offence.
Key points of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehab
ilitation Act 2013:
1.) Prohibition of Insanitary and Employment or engagement as Manual Scavengers
It will be an offence to:
Construct or maintain an insanitary latrine
Engage or employ a person to work as the Manual Scavenger
Penalty against offenders:
First contravention is punishable with imprisonment up to 1 year or with the fin
e up to Rs 50,000 or both.
Any subsequent contravention is punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years or wi
th the fine up to Rs 5 lakh or both.
2.) Prohibition of person from engagement or employment for hazardous cleaning
of a sewer or a septic tank
Penalty:
First contravention is punishable with imprisonment up to two years or with a fi
ne up to two lakh rupees or with both
Any subsequent contravention is punishable with imprisonment up to five years or
with fine up to five lakh rupees or with both
3.) Under this Act, offences are cognizable and non-bail able
4.) Time bound survey of Manual Scavengers in Urban and rural areas
5.) Comprehensive Rehabilitation of the Manual Scavengers within a time bound f
ramework

Manual Scavengers will be issued Photo Identity card

Government will provide initial cash aid
Children of the Manual Scavengers will be provided scholarship
Residential plot with financial aid will be allocated for the construction of th
e house or a ready built house
Imparting Manual Scavengers livelihood skill
Providing concessional loan with subsidy for assuming alternative occupation
Extending any other legal or programmatic help
6.) Vigilance/ Monitoring Mechanism
The implementation of the Act will be under the following Vigilance/Monitoring p
anels at various levels of State and Centre.
Vigilance Committees
District level committees will be headed by District Magistrate
Sub-Division level committees will be headed by Sub Divisional Magistrate
Monitoring Committees
State level committees will be headed by Chief Minister
Centre level committees will be headed by Minister of Social Justice and Employm
ent
Mr. Ahmet Uzumcu re-appointed as OPCW Director General
December 8, 2013
At the 18th Session of the Conference of State Parties, Mr. Ahmet Uzumcu was reappointed as the OPCW Director General.
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
An independent, international body established in 1997.
Objective: To implement the Chemical Weapons Convention.
Has a working relationship with the UN.
Headquarters: The Hague, the Netherlands.
Conducts inspections of destruction procedures, as well as evaluating members
declarations, in order to examine that the convention is being followed.
About Ambassador Ahmet Uzumcu
Screenshot_5

own

Turkish career diplomat

Director-general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OP
CW) since 2010
Represented Turkey at the United Nations Office in 2006 and Conference on Disarm
ament in Geneva and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Council betwee
n 2002 and 2004
2013: Nobel Peace Prize went to OPCW headed by Ahmet Uzumcu.
OPCW is currently working in destroying Syria s chemical weapons stockpiles which
marks as the first time the OPCW is working in a war zone.
Stamps of India National Exhibition 2013 (SINE)
December 8, 2013
Screenshot_4The 4th Edition of Stamps of India National Exhibition 2013 (SINE) o
rganized by Bharatiya Daktikit Sangstha, Kolkata at NDMC Convention Centre, Parl
iament Street, New Delhi.
To celebrate 100 years of cinema in India, SINE acknowledges the contribution of
legendary yesteryear actors like Durga Khote, Dev Anand, Shammi Kapoor, Smita P
atil and queen of melody, Suraiya, It features a range of stamps and postcards o
n these iconic personalities.

Year 2013 is being celebrated as a centenary milestone to showcase the cinematic

heritage of the Indian film industry in the last 100 years.
1...102030...3435363738...Last
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Privacy & ShipCurrent Affairs December 2013
India contributes $1 million to UN women s body
December 8, 2013
To help global efforts to ensure gender equality and empowerment of women, India
contributed $1 million to the UN as the fourth installment of India s multi-year
pledge to provide USD 5 Mn to UN Women (United Nations entity for gender equalit
y and the empowerment of women).
India s Permanent Representative to the UN, Mr. Asoke K Mukerji urged UN Women to
focus on increasing the use of information and communication technology for empo
werment of women.
About UN Women
UN Women is a United Nations entity working for the empowerment of women and gir
ls.
Became operational in January 2011
Member of the United Nations Development Group
Headquarters at New York, USA
UN Women s Office based in New Delhi covers four countries: India, Bhutan, Maldive
s and Sri Lanka. In these countries, the organization strengthen women s rights by
working with women, men, feminists, women s networks, governments, local authorit
ies and civil society.
It stands behind women s equal participation in all aspects of life, focusing on m
any priority areas such as Ending violence against women, Promoting Leadership a
nd Participation, Economic Empowerment, national planning and budgeting for wome
n, etc.
Ministerial panel recommends bail out package to the sugar industry including fi
nancial assistance to sugar cane farmers
December 8, 2013
An informal group of ministers, headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar reco

mmended a number of incentives to cash-starved sugar mills including financial p

ackage to pay cane farmers.
Why the need for a financial package for sugar mills ?
Owing to an increase in prices of fuel and fertilizer, farmers are insisting tha
t mills pay Rs.280- Rs.300 per quintal for sugarcane. But millers hold that they
can afford to pay only Rs.225 per quintal.
At present, sugar industry is facing a financial crisis due to higher cost of pr
oduction and decline in the prices of sugar. This has led to 3400 crore rupees c
ane arrears from 2012-13 during the marketing year that ended in September 2013.
Thus, owing to liquidity crunch, the sugar mills demanded interest-free loans f
or working capital requirement, hike in import duty, export subsidies among othe
rs. This financial package will allow millers to pay money they owe to the farme
rs.
Recommendations of the Panel headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar:
To ensure timely payments to cane growers, the PM-constituted panel recommended
loan recasting for mills as per the RBI norms, incentives for production for raw
sugar of up to 4 million tonnes and setting up of buffer stock besides doubling
ethanol-blending in petrol to 10%.
The bailout includes 7200 crore rupees at 12 percent interest rate to sugar mill
s by the banks to pay off the arrears of the sugarcane growers.
The 12% interest on the financial support on the loan will be paid by Government
of India (GoI) and Sugar Development Fund (SDF). The GoI will pay 5% of the loa
n, while the 7% will be paid by the SDF. This makes the loan amount free of inte
rest for the sugar mills.
The mills will have to repay loans in 5 years, but can get a moratorium on repay
ment in the first two years.
To increase import duty on sugar (but at present there is no hike in import duty
).
An inter-departmental panel will be set up to coordinate with oil marketing comp
anies and sugar mills for ethanol blending.
Note:India is the second biggest sugar producer in the world after Brazil. Mahar
ashtra and Uttar Pradesh are the top sugar producing state of India.
RBI proposes new capital rules for D-SIBs (banks too-big-to-fail)
December 7, 2013
To safeguard the financial system from any possible crisis situation where large
financial institutions faltered due to loss of confidence in the financial syst
em, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the draft report to introduce incre
ased capital requirements by 2016 for banks regarded as too big to fail and make
them subject to greater regulatory oversight.
Key Elements of the RBI Report on D-SIBs (banks too-big-to-fail)
It outlines the methodology to be adopted for identifying the D-SIBs and regula
tory policies for them.
The sample of banks for D-SIBs will be selected when its size is more than 2 % of
GDP .
Banks classified as systemically important will be required to hold additional c
apital in the range of 0.2 % to 1 % of their risk weighted assets.
The banks designated as D-SIBs will be subjected to more intense supervision in
the form of higher frequency and higher intensity of off- and on-site monitoring
.
A D-SIB in lower bucket will attract lower capital charge and a D-SIB in higher
bucket will attract higher capital charge.
Large banks such as the State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Canara Bank
and Punjab National Bank were likely to fall under this category of systemically

important banks (D-SIBs) or too large to fail.

Domestic systemically important banks (D-SIBs)
These are large and highly interconnected financial institutions whose failures fa
ilure might trigger a financial crisis or can impact the orderly functioning of
the financial system and harm the economy.
Bali Ministerial of the World Trade Organisation 2013
December 7, 2013
What is WTO Ministerial Conference?
The WTO Ministerial Conference is the topmost decision-making body of the World
Trade Organization which regularly convenes every two years. It brings together
all members of the WTO, all of which are countries or customs unions. The Minist
erial Conference can take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral
trade agreements.
The conference has key issues to discuss viz. Trade facilitation, Agriculture n
egotiations, Cotton Least-developed countries Monitoring mechanism, Small and v
ulnerable economies, Yemen s accession, E-commerce Non-violation in intellectual pro
perty, etc.
What was India s stand at the Bali Ministerial of the World Trade Organisation 201
3 ?
India decided not to agree to the Peace Clause for agriculture subsidies that the
World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Roberto Azevedo has proposed for
Bali talks.
Here, India stands to seek safeguards for subsidies given to the farmers for foo
d security purposes by poor countries. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Shar
ma said that for India, food security is non-negotiable, it is an integral part
of the millennium development goals and the need for public stockholding of foo
d grains to ensure food security must be respected, and for this WTO rules must
be updated.
For this valuable cause, India got support from many WTO members like South Afr
ica, Nepal, Egypt, Uganda, Namibia, Argentina, Zimbabwe, Ecuador, Venezuela, Mau
ritius and Nicaragua, etc.
What is the Peace Clause under current context and why an issue over this Peace
Clause?
Under this Peace Clause , developing countries can provide WTO-prohibited subsidie
s to farmers without inviting any dispute under the Agreement on Agriculture, de
veloped countries will have the right to drag these countries to the WTO Dispute
s Settlement Body, under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.
This would render the peace clause null-and-void.
Note : Developed countries pressurizing India to accept a peace clause, which of
fers four years of immunity against penalties imposed for breaching the farm sub
sidy cap of 10 per cent under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA).
Outcome of the 9th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO)
Because of India s concern of Food security, WTO s Bali Ministerial Conference revis
ed draft decisions on a package of issues designed to streamline trade, allow de
veloping countries more options for providing food security, boost least develop
ed countries trade and help development more generally.
Other Related Article(s):
India declines WTO Peace Clause proposalCurrent Affairs December 2013
Malala wins UN Human Rights Prize 2013

December 7, 2013
Pakistani teen activist Malala Yousafzai, who survived bullet-injury inflicted b
y the Taliban for championing girls education has won the UN Human Rights Prize 2
013.
The winners of the prestigious United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights
for 2013 are Ms. Malala Yousafzai (student activist), Pakistan
Mr. Biram Dah Abeid (campaigner against slavery) from Mauritania
Ms. Hiljmnijeta Apuk (human rights activist and campaigner for rights of people
with disproportional restricted growth
short stature) from Kosovo
Ms. Liisa Kauppinen of Finland President emeritus of the World Federation of the
Deaf
Ms. Khadija Ryadi - former President of the Morocco Association for Human Right
s
Mexico s Supreme Court of Justice
the Constitutional Court
The twentieth anniversary of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Right
s and the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action are also organized with th
e Award Ceremony which would take place at United Nations Headquarters in New Y
ork on Human Rights Day (December 10).
What is the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights?
An honorary award given to individuals and organizations in recognition of outst
anding achievement in human rights in every five years.
The Laureates who won this award later are Amnesty International, Jimmy Carter,
Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Eleanor Roosevelt.
The Prize not only gives public recognition to the achievements of the recipien
ts themselves, but also sends a clear message to human rights defenders the worl
d over that the international community is grateful for, and supports, their tir
eless efforts to promote all human rights for all.
China s air defense zone unacceptable by White House
December 7, 2013
Screenshot_2China s new air defense zone over the East China Sea was not recognize
d by the United States. From this move of China, tensions will create in one of
the world s most geo-politically sensitive areas.
What s the issue?
China had set up an air defence zone that covered the international airspace ove
r parts of the disputed East China Sea and required all non-commercial air-craft
s to notify its authorities of their flight plans to avoid triggering a response
from air defence forces. The ADIZ is a predefined area over international airsp
ace within which the Chinese military will monitor and track aircraft.
The zone extends into international airspace east of China s territorial airspace
into the East China Sea, and up to 130 km from Japan s territorial airspace. The C
hinese ADIZ overlaps with the ADIZ that Japan has already established in the reg
ion, with both zones covering the disputed Diaoyu or Senkaku Islands in the East
China Sea. The move is likely to fuel tensions with Japan, coming at a time whe
n both countries have sparred over the disputed Senkaku or Diaoyu islands in the
East China Sea.
Anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela passed away
December 7, 2013
Screenshot_1Nelson Mandela (95), South African anti-apartheid icon passed away a
t his residence at Johannesburg. The death of the great statesman is being mourn
ed by his nation and the world with tributes flooding in from the leaders and pe

ople all over the globe.

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela:
Born: July 18, 1918 to the Thembu royal family belonging to Xhosa clan.Sobriquet
:The Father of the Nation (South Africa), Madiba, or as Tata ( Father ). He studied
law at Fort Hare University and the University of Witwatersrand. Joined anti-col
onial politics and the African National Congress (ANC) and became a founding mem
ber of its Youth League.
Politically he was a nationalist and democratic socialist.
In 1948, when the South African National Party came to power, he rose to promine
nce in the ANC s 1952 Defiance Campaign, was appointed superintendent of the organ
isation s Transvaal chapter and headed the 1955 Congress of the People.
Repeatedly arrested on the charges of sedition and, with the ANC leadership, was
unsuccessfully prosecuted in the Treason Trial from 1956 to 1961.
Arrested in 1962 and convicted of conspiracy to subvert the government, and sent
enced to life imprisonment in the Rivonia Trial.
Spent 27 years in prison, initially on Robben Island, and later in Pollsmoor Pri
son and Victor Verster Prison.
In 1990, he was released following escalating pressure from an international cam
paign for his release and growing civil tension.
Initiated talks with President F.W. de Klerk to abolish apartheid and establish
multiracial elections in 1994, in which he led the ANC to victory.
In 1994, he became South Africa s first black president and formed a Government of
National Unity in an attempt to defuse racial tension.
He also promulgated a new constitution and created the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission to investigate past human rights abuses.
His government took initiatives with liberal economic policy and took steps to p
romote land reforms, combat poverty, and expand healthcare services.
Served as the President of the ANC from 1991 to 1997.
Served Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement from 1998 to 1999.
Acted as mediator between Libya and the United Kingdom in the Pan Am Flight 103
bombing trial, and supervised military intervention in Lesotho.
He didn t contest for a second term, and subsequently became an elder statesman, f
ocusing on charitable work in fighting poverty and HIV/AIDS through the Nelson M
andela Foundation.
Awards and Honors:
Mandela was showered with several national and international honors from countri
es and organizations across the globe. He received more than 250 honours, includ
ing the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Soviet
Order of Lenin, and the Bharat Ratna.
Brazuca

: The new FIFA World Cup ball unveiled

December 7, 2013
Sports goods manufacturer Adidas unveiled the new ball for 2014 World Cup
called
the Brazuca, in honor of Brazil at a ceremony in Rio de Janeiro. Adidas has been
following the tradition of providing the official ball for every World Cup tourn
ament since 1970.
What does Brazuca mean?
The word Brazuca has a dual meaning, used as a term for Brazilians living overseas
including its many footballers
but also as slang used to describe national prid
e or anything Brazilianish . The ball is decorated with a ribbon design in shades
of blue, gold and green, which the manufacturer says represents the traditional w
ish bracelets worn in Brazil.
The ball will be introduced in the inaugural game of FIFA World Cup 2014 on June
12, 2014 in Sao Paulo, and will be played with until the final on July 13, 2014

in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

Previously, Adidas manufactured a ball named Jabulani
in held in South Africa.Current Affairs December 2013
India to host 2017 under-17 FIFA World Cup

for the FIFA World Cup 2010

December 7, 2013
The Under-17 FIFA World Cup 2017 tournament will be hosted by India. India bagge
d the landmark rights by beating other bidders like South Africa, Ireland and Uz
bekistan.
As a host nation India will get the opportunity to participate in the 24-nation
biennial mega event for the first time. This will be the biggest ever football t
ournament India will be hosting and the first FIFA event in the country s history.
Previously, India has hosted Asian Football Co federation s Youth Championships (
Under-20) in 2006 and then the AFC Challenge Cup in 2008 but never any FIFA tour
nament.
This year s (2013) tournament was hosted by the United Arab Emirates while Chile w
ill be the host country for the 2015 edition.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter supported India hosting the event and wants India to
build the required infrastructure and facilities.
Oxford researchers develop new malaria vaccine
December 7, 2013
In a major scientific development, scientists at Oxford University have develope
d a new malaria vaccine which can guard against the deadly mosquito-borne diseas
e.
The vaccine has shown promising results in the first clinical trial in which som
e of the adult volunteers were completely protected against malaria.
It s the first time that a vaccine has been shown to have a protective effect thro
ugh a sufficiently high immune response involving cells called CD8 T cells. It i
s CD8 immune cells that are seen to vanguard a protective response against malar
ia in similar studies in mice.
How this vaccine is different from existing vaccines?
At present, every vaccine in use generates antibodies. But there are two divisio
ns to the body s immune system for combating infection: antibodies and T cells. Th
e latest vaccine is different in a way that it aims to induce an immune response
involving T cells particularly CD8+ T cells. CD8 T cells are vital because they
are the main killer cells in the immune system. They can attack nearly all type
s of infected cells
in this case liver cells infected with the malaria parasite.
Bill for creation of Telangana gets assent of Union Cabinet
December 7, 2013
The Union Cabinet has approved for the creation of Telangana with 10 districts a
nd sketched the draft for carving out the India s 29th state from the current Andh
ra Pradesh.
The Cabinet chaired by PM Manmohan Singh gave its nod to a draft reorganization
bill based on the recommendations of Group of Ministers (GoM) and dropped a deba
table move to add two districts of Rayalaseema to Telangana.
What next?
Now, the bill will be sent to the President with a request to make a reference t
o Andhra Pradesh assembly to obtain its views. The government intends to bring t

he bill in the winter session of parliament but it depends on when the President
returns the bill after signing it.
Highlights of the Telangana Bill:
Telangana will have 10 districts and the rest of Andhra Pradesh 13 districts.
Both the states will have Hyderabad as their capital for a period not exceeding
10 years.
Governor of Telangana will have to bear a special responsibility for security of
life, liberty and property of all those who reside in the common capital area.
The Governor may be assisted by two advisors to be appointed by the Government o
f India (GoI).
Financial and other assistance to the creation of a new capital for the successo
r state of Andhra Pradesh will be provided by the Government of India. The capit
al will be recommended by an expert panel.
For proper management of water resources and projects on Krishna and Godavari ri
vers, institutional mechanism with full involvement and participation of governm
ent of India will be set up.
Polavaram will be declared as a national project and will be executed by the uni
on government following all environmental and R&R norms.
There are detailed provisions in the bill on matters relating to coal, power, oi
l and gas, division of assets and liabilities and allocation of government emplo
yees.
Article 371 D will continue for the both states to ensure equitable opportunitie
s for education and public employment.
Current admission quotas in higher technical and medical institutions will remai
n for a period not exceeding 5 years.
Microsoft mulls stronger encryption of Internet traffic
December 6, 2013
In the face of NSA syping, software giant Microsoft is eyeing a stronger encrypt
ion and it is taking steps to protect the privacy of online communications.
Why a need for encryption of Internet traffic ?
The move by Microsoft is in the wake of revelations of vast online surveillance
programs led by the US National Security Agency. Comparing US government surveil
lance to sophisticated malware and cyber attacks, the software giant will encry
pt Internet traffic traveling through its data centers. It is taking steps to en
sure that any government surveillance of the Internet is conducted legally rathe
r than by a technological subterfuge.
Technique used by Microsoft
Microsoft plans to switch over to stronger 2,048-bit encryption keys by the end
of next year
a technology that reportedly takes ten years to crack in real time
because of computing power constraints.Current Affairs December 2013
Gross NPAs touched Rs. 2.9 lakh crore by March: ICRA
December 6, 2013
Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency (ICRA) warned the banking indus
try that it may suffer more shocks due to the pile up of its gross bad assets whi
ch is set to touch 4.4 %, or Rs 2.9 trillion of total assets by this fiscal end.
Gross bad assets were 4 % of total assets at the end of the July-September quart
er. Net NPAs stood at 2 % or Rs 0.9 trillion in March and 2.7 per cent or in Q2
or Rs 1.25 trillion.
As per ICRA estimates, unamortized losses worth Rs. 6,000-7,000 crore would impa
ct banks profitability in the second half of FY14. It also said that the banking
system require Rs. 4.1-5.7 lakh crore by FY18 to meet the Basel III norms. It e
xpects net profit of state-run banks this fiscal year to be 30-40 % lower than F

Y13, which will pull down their return on equity to 6-8% from 9.7% in H1.
ICRA analyzed 26 public sector banks and 15 private sector banks. These 41 banks
collectively account for around 90 % of the total credit portfolio and deposits
as of the September quarter this fiscal year.
ICRA Limited , an Indian independent and professional investment information and
credit rating agency credit rating agency was set up in 1991. Its headquarters
are at Gurgaon.
India ranked 98th in Forbes doing business list 2013
December 6, 2013
India ranked 98th in the Forbes list of world s best countries for doing business
that has cited poverty, corruption and discrimination against girls among the ch
allenges facing the country. The rating of 145 nations was done on the several f
actors viz. property rights, innovation, taxes, technology, corruption, freedom
(personal, trade and monetary), red tape, investor protection, stock market perf
ormance, etc.
Ireland topped the Forbes doing business list, as it maintains an extremely pro-bu
siness environment which attracts investments from world s biggest companies. Irel
and was followed by New Zealand and Hong Kong.
The data for the report was collected from reports of various organizations viz.
Freedom House, Heritage Foundation, Property Rights Alliance, Transparency Inte
rnational, World Bank and World Economic Forum, etc.
Ms Sushma Singh will be the next Chief Information Commissioner of India
December 6, 2013
The senior most Information Commissioner Ms Sushma Singh will be the next Chief
Information Commissioner of India (CIC), she will succeed Ms Deepak Sandhu. The
decision to appoint Sushma Singh, a former IAS officer, as the next CIC was take
n unanimously by a panel consisting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Leader of
the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and Law Minister Kapil Sibal. She
will be the second woman to become CIC after Ms Deepak Sandhu whose term comes t
o an end later this month.
Sushma Singh
Former Secretary to the Government of India
She joined the IAS in 1972, Jharkhand cadre
Offices held earlier: Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,
Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and also
in the Ministry for the Development of the North Eastern Region (DONER).
Central Information Commission
The RTI act 2005 provides for establishment of Central and State info
rmation commissioner as a designated authority to receive and inquire into a com
plaint from any person.
26 October 2005: Mr. Wajahat Habibullah became India s first Chief Information Com
missioner.
Under the CIC, the Chief Information Commissioner enjoys complete financi
al and administrative powers of a Department of the Government of India exce
pt in matters relating to the creation of posts, re-appropriation and writi
ng-off losses for which it needs the specific concurrence of the Ministry of
Finance.
The Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners shall be
appointed by the President on the recommendation of a committee compris

ing
Prime Minister as Chairperson, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha; a
Union Cabinet Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister.
According to the RTI Act 2005, Chief Information Commissioner / Information C
ommissioner shall hold office for a term of 5 years or till he attains the age o
f 65 years.
The Chief Information Commissioner shall not be eligible for reappointment.
The general superintendence, direction and management of the affairs of
the Commission are vested in the Chief Information Commissioner, who is as
sisted by the Information Commissioners.
RBI relaxes ECB norms for infrastructure firms
December 5, 2013
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) relaxed External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) norm
s for companies raising foreign funds for infrastructure projects. As per the re
laxation given by the central bank, firms can now raise funds through the ECB ro
ute for their infrastructure projects through their holding companies or core in
vestment firms, which will facilitate them to arrange finances for these project
s expeditiously.
As per RBI, such funds should be used in Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for a s
pecific project. Currently, SPVs are permitted to raise ECB funds for infrastruc
ture projects, while there were restrictions for parent firms in doing so.
However, the central bank has stipulated a number of conditions to avail this fa
cility. For example, infrastructure projects are required to be executed by the
SPV set up exclusively for the project. The SPV should give an undertaking that
no other method of funding, such as trade credit, will be used for that portion
of fresh capital expenditure funded through ECB proceeds.
What is External Commercial Borrowing (ECB)?
Any money that has been borrowed from foreign sources for financing the commerci
al activities in India are called External Commercial Borrowings.
The Government of India permits ECBs as a source of finance for Indian Corporate
s for expansion of existing capacity as well as for fresh investment
The ECBs are defined as money borrowed from foreign resources including the foll
owing:
Commercial bank loans
Buyers credit and suppliers credit
Securitised instruments such as Floating Rate Notes and Fixed Rate Bonds etc.
Credit from official export credit agencies and commercial borrowings from the p
rivate sector window of Multilateral Financial Institutions such as Internationa
l Finance Corporation (Washington), ADB, AFIC, CDC, etc.
Objective of External Commercial Borrowing (ECB)
Government permits the ECBs as an additional source of financing for expanding t
he existing capacity as well as for fresh investments. The ECB policy of the Gov
ernment seeks to emphasize the priority of investing in the infrastructure and c
ore sectors such as Power, telecom, Railways, Roads, Urban infrastructure etc.
There is also emphasis on the need of capital for Small and Medium scale enterpr
ises.
How ECB is different from FDI?
It must be noted that ECB means any kind of funding other than Equity. If the fo
reign money is used to finance the Equity Capital, it would be termed as Foreign
Direct Investment.
The ECB should satisfy the ECB regulations stipulated by the Government or its a
gencies such as RBI. The Bonds, Credit notes, Asset Backed Securities, Mortgage
Backed Securities or anything of that nature are included in ECB.
The following are not included in the ECBs

Any Investment made towards core capital of an organization such as equity share
s, convertible preference shares or convertible debentures. We should note here
that those instruments which can be converted into equity are called convertible
. The convertible instruments are covered under the FDI Policy.
Any other direct capital is not allowed in ECB.Current Affairs December 2013
NASA discovers signs of water in atmosphere five distant planets
December 5, 2013
NASA scientists have found signs of water in the atmospheres of five distant pla
nets.
Though some previous studies have also reported the presence of atmospheric wate
r on a few exoplanets orbiting stars beyond the solar system, but this is the fi
rst study to conclusively measure and compare the profiles and intensities of th
ese signatures on multiple worlds.
Which are the five planets where NASA has found signs of water?
The five planets are:
WASP-17b
HD209458b
WASP-12b
WASP-19b
XO-1b e
Karnataka Assembly passes rigorous ESMA Bill
December 5, 2013
The Legislative Assembly of Karnataka passed a stringent Essential Services Main
tenance Bill (ESMA), 2013 which will render striking work a non-bailable offence
and empowers the police to arrest a striking employee without warrant.
Why Essential Services Maintenance Bill (ESMA), 2013?
The Essential Services Maintenance Bill (ESMA), 2013 aims to restrain employees
working in water, power, health, transport and service sectors from going on str
ikes, inconveniencing people. The bill defines Essential Services as any service
connected with the production, generation, storage, transmission, supply or dist
ribution of water or electricity and any transportation service for the carriage
of passengers or goods by motor vehicles. It empowers the government to declar
e even those services that the State has powers to make laws for under List II o
f the 7th Schedule of the Constitution, as essential services.
As per the bill, upon conviction, those who commence a strike or continue to go
on strike or take part in any strike will be penalized with a sentence up to 1 y
ear or with fine up to Rs 5,000 or both. Those inciting or funding strikes also
face the same punishment. Those giving financial aid to illegal strike also wil
l be booked under law.
The order will come into force for a period of 1 year from the date the governme
nt publishes the order. However, it can be extended up to 6 months.
India to be hub of oil demand growth after 2020: IEA
December 5, 2013
As per Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), India will become the larg
est single source of global oil demand growth after 2020.
Key predictions of IEA published in its World Energy Outlook:
The global oil demand is projected to touch 101 million barrels per day (mbpd) b
y year 2035 from today s around 87 mbpd.
The centre of energy demand is shifting decisively in favour of emerging economi

es, particularly China, India and the Middle East, which drive global energy use
33% higher.
India s oil consumption will exceed 8 mbpd by 2035, which is more than current con
sumption of Japan, Korea and Australia put together.
Currently, within Asia, China dominates the region, before India replaces it fro
m 2020 as the principal engine of oil demand growth.
India s energy demand are estimated to double by 2035 on back of economic growth a
nd population increase.
By 2035, India is likely to be the largest importer of coal and will be second l
argest importer of oil next to China and will be number four in importing gas af
ter European Union, China and Japan.
Although the energy demand will be two-fold, the consumption per capita in India
will still be 1/4th of the OECD average.
China is predicted to become the largest oil-importing country by replacing US a
nd India will become the largest importer of coal by the early 2020s.
India s coal imports will surge primarily because India uses the fossil fuel for g
eneration of electricity and 68% of electricity in India is generated from coal.
International Energy Agency (IEA)
The International Energy Agency was established by the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) as a response to the oil shock of 1973-74. I
EA advises its 24 member countries on issues related to energy security.
Government disinvest Power Grid Corp further with $1.1 billion FPO
December 5, 2013
Following its plan to achieve the Rs.40, 000 crore disinvestment target for this
fiscal, the government issued Follow-on-Public Offer (FPO) of Power Grid Corpor
ation which was fully subscribed.
The sale of 78.70 crore shares valuing $ 1.1 billion, or 17% stake, could fetch
around Rs 7,083 crore at the upper end of the price band. .
With this offer, the government holding in the company will come down to 57.89%
from the current level of 69.42%.
This is the second FPO from Power Grid, which sold a 10% stake along with a simi
lar stake divested by the government in November 2010. The company hit the capit
al market with IPO in October 2007. So far in the current fiscal, the government
has raised over Rs 1,300 crore through minority stake sale in PSUs. It has aims
to fetch Rs 40,000 crore from disinvestment in the current fiscal.Current Affai
rs December 2013
Indian diplomat Abhay Kumar writes anthem for SAARC
December 5, 2013
In a bid to foster regional consciousness and bring member states closer, Kathma
ndu-based Indian diplomat Abhay Kumar composed an anthem for the South Asian Ass
ociation for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). SAARC Anthem by Kumar will be transla
ted in Hindi, English, Nepali, Bengali, Pashto, Urdu, Sinhala, Dzongkha and Dhiv
ehi, languages spoken in the South Asian region.
Who is Abhay Kumar ?
Indian poet, artist and diplomat.
First secretary, Press, Information and Communication, Indian Embassy.
The Earth Anthem written, produced and directed by him in eight languages.
Wrote first ever South Asian Anthem
Honoured with the SAARC Literary Award for his contribution to contemporary Sout
h Asian Poetry and nominated for the Pushcart Prize 2013.
2011: Gov2. award on behalf of the Public Diplomacy Division, Ministry of Extern
al Affairs.
Note - ASEAN Way is ASEAN s anthem , the European Union use Beethoven s Symphony No 9 (

Ode to Joy)
nion.
Dabhol

and

Let s All Unite and Celebrate Together

is the anthem of the African U

Bangalore gas pipeline launched

December 5, 2013
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh dedicated to the Nation GAIL India Ltd s 1,000 km lo
ng natural gas pipeline from Dabhol to Bangalore during the inaugural ceremony o
f the 8th Asia Gas Partnership Summit (AGPS).
About Dabhol-Banglore Gas Pipeline:
Constructed in a period of 19 months
Investment of 4500 crore (US$690 million)
Design capacity of 16 MMSCMD of natural gas which can produce 3,000 MW of clean
energy
Starts at Dabhol in Maharashtra and passes through Belgaum, Dharwad, Gadag, Bell
ary, Devanagere, Chitradurga, Tumkur, Ramanagaram, Bangalore Rural and Bangalore
Urban districts.
Connects South India to the national gas grid for the first time.
Traverses via 18 National Highways, 382 roads, 20 railway tracks, 11 major river
s and 276 water bodies, including Asia s largest river crossing in the rocky terra
in at Ghatprabha.
Construction involved pipeline laying in some of the world s steepest slopes of 60
to 70 degrees and sharp elevations of upto 700 meters in a 3.5 km stretch.
India s CAD improves to $ 5.2 billion in second quarter
December 5, 2013
India s Current Account Deficit (CAD) has improved significantly to $ 5.2 billion
(1.2% of GDP) in the second quarter (July-September) of this fiscal mainly due t
o decrease in gold imports and increase in exports.
As per the RBI, the (CAD), the difference between outflow and inflow of foreign
exchange, stood at $ 21 billion, or 5% of the GDP, in the second quarter of last
fiscal. On a Balance of Payment (BoP) basis, there was a narrowing of foreign e
xchange reserves of $10.4 billion in second quarter as compared to that of USD 0
.2 billion in the same period of last fiscal.
Improvement in trade deficit combined with a surge in net invisibles receipts re
sulted in a reduction of the CAD to $26.9 billion (3.1% of GDP) in H1 of 2013-14
from $37.9 billion (4.5% of GDP) in H1 of 2012-13.
The government has set a target to contain the CAD at $70 billion or 3.7% of GDP
and the fiscal deficit at 4.8% of the GDP this fiscal (2013-14). At present, b
oth the government and RBI are expecting the CAD to be below $56 billion in the
current fiscal compared to the record high of USD 88.2 billion, or 4.8% of the G
DP last fiscal.
In addition to rise in exports, a number of steps taken by the RBI paid off in i
mproving the CAD. The central bank reduced the import of gold by hiking the impo
rt duty to 10% and restricting import of gold bars and medallions. During the pe
riod when rupee was depreciating, it took measures to boost exports.
As
in
st
of

a result, gold imports have declined from 142 tonnes in April and 162 tonnes
May to 23.5 tonnes in October, 11.16 tonnes in September, 3.38 tonnes in Augu
and 47.75 tonnes in July. In 2012-13, India imported an estimated 835 tonnes
gold, a key reason for the record CAD of $88.2 billion, or 4.8% of GDP.

India Post offers Express Parcel and Business Parcel services

December 5, 2013

India s Department of Post (DoP) has launched two new parcel services namely Expres
s Parcel and Business Parcel . India Post aims to generate revenue of Rs 100 crore f
rom these services.
Express Parcel: It is an air mail service for retail and bulk customers under wh
ich parcel will be shipped through airlines. India Post has fixed service charge
for Express Parcels in the range of Rs.30 (local service) to Rs.80 (for deliver
y in other state) for items weighing up to Rs.500 gram. It will charge Rs. 8 to
Rs.20 for additional 500 gram up to 5 kg and Rs.10 to Rs.22 for every additional
500 gm thereafter. This service will be initially available between 20 identifi
ed cities Agra, Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Delhi NCR, Patna, Guwahati, Hyde
rabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jammu, Kolkata, Lucknow, Ludhiana, Mumbai, Pune, Parwanoo
, Shillong, Surat and Thiruvananthapuram.
Business Parcel: It is a contractual service, designed to suit requirement of bu
siness customers for an economical and reliable distribution solution. It will p
rovide an economical distribution solution to its customers using surface transm
ission modes. Customers will have to pay in the range of Rs.45 to Rs.115 for ite
ms weighing up to 2 kg, Rs.12 to Rs.30 for additional 1 kg up to 5 kg and Rs.14
to Rs.32 thereafter for every 1 kg. This service will have nationwide coverage.
Parcels booked under both the services will be delivered at most in 72 hours.Cur
rent Affairs December 2013
India successfully test-fired nuke-capable Prithvi II missile
December 5, 2013
India s Strategic Forces Command (SFC) successfully test-fired nuclear capable Pri
thvi II missile as part of a regular training exercise. The indigenously develop
ed ballistic missile with a maximum range of 350 km was fired from Integrated Te
st Range at Chandipur in Balasore district, about 230 km from Bhubaneswar.
Prithvi-II
First missile developed by DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development
Program (IGMDP)
Medium: Surface-to-surface
Fuel Type: Single-stage liquid fuelled
Payload capacity: 500 to 1000 kg
Range: 350km
Variants: Prithvi I for Army, Prithvi II for Air Force and; Dhanush for the Nav
y
Inducted into the SFC in 2003
India at 94th spot on Corruption Perception Index: Transparency International
December 5, 2013
According to a survey by corruption watchdog Transparency International, India i
s positioned at 94th place on corruption index which ranked 177 countries. Afgha
nistan, North Korea and Somalia are viewed as the world s most corrupt countries w
hile Denmark and New Zealand have scored the best.
As per Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2013:
India, with a score of 36 out of 100, ranked 94 on the index, above Pakistan at
rank 127 but below China which stood at the 80th position.
Globally, almost 70% of countries are found to have a serious problem with public
servants on the take, and none of the 177 countries surveyed this year achieved
a perfect score.
Performance of countries like Syria, Libya and Mali which are ridden with war an
d conflicts deteriorated the most on the index.
Bhutan ranked 31st, Sri Lanka 91, Nepal 116, Pakistan 127 and Bangladesh 136.
In 2012, Bhutan was ranked 33rd, Sri Lanka at 79, Nepal 139, Pakistan 139 and Ba
ngladesh 144.
India remained stagnant at the same 94th spot both in 2013 and 2012.

Among BRICS group, India is behind China (80th), South Africa and Brazil (both 7
2nd). It is, however, better than Russia (127th).
Denmark and New Zealand have scored the best on the index.
Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia are categorized as the world s most corrupt.
Top 10 least corrupt countries in the world, according to the CPI 2013:
Denmark
New Zealand (tied with Denmark for No. 1)
Finland
Sweden (tied with Finland for No. 3)
Norway
Singapore (tied with Norway for No. 5)
Switzerland
Netherlands
Australia
Canada (tied with Australia for No. 9)
President inaugurates Hornbill Festival of Nagaland
December 5, 2013
President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated Nagaland s famous Hornbill Festival. Hornbi
ll (name of a bird) Festival, considered one of the biggest events in the state,
puts on display the rich tradition and cultural heritage of the Naga people. Na
galand is also observing the golden jubilee (50 years) of its formation as a sta
te.
Hornbill Festival
Hornbill Festival is a festival celebrated in Nagaland every year in the first w
eek of December. The festival showcases rich culture of Naga tribes which includ
es shows of music and dance. The festival is organized by the State Tourism and
Art & Culture Departments, at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama which is about 12 km
from Kohima the state capital.
The Hornbill Festival provides a colourful mixture of dances, performances, craf
ts, parades, games, sports, food fairs and religious ceremonies. The festival bo
th exposes the culture and tradition of tribal peoples, and reinforces Nagaland s
identity as a unique state in India s federal union.
RBI makes punching PIN mandatory for debit card transactions done every time
December 2, 2013
With an aim to minimize frauds, RBI has made it mandatory for debit card holders
to punch in their PIN numbers every time they use the card. In June 2013, the c
entral bank had extended the deadline for implementation of mandatory PIN punchi
ng at Point-of-Sales (PoS) and merchant outlets till November 30, 2013 following
representation of banks.
Why this step by the RBI to make punching PIN mandatory for debit card transacti
ons done every time?
The PIN functions as another layer of security for the debit card which reduces
the chances of fraud. While using it at PoS, merchants will first swipe the card
s at a PIN enabled PoS terminal and punch in the transaction amount. That will b
e followed by customers punching their PINs to complete the transaction.
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CURRENT AFFAIRSRBI permits banks to pay interest at shorter intervals
December 2, 2013
RBI has decided allow banks decide on the periodicity of interest payment on rup
ee savings and term deposits keeping in view that the banks are functioning on c
ore banking platform.

Banks are now allowed to pay interest on rupee savings and term deposits at inte
rvals shorter than quarterly intervals. The step may trigger intense competition
among banks to attract deposits.
The central bank has also extended the period for banks to exercise freedom to o
ffer interest rates on incremental NRE (Non-Resident External) deposits with mat
urity of 3 years and above without any ceiling in order to pass on the benefit o
f exemption provided on such deposits from CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) and SLR (Sta
tutory Liquidity Ratio) requirements. The banks could have this freedom till Jan
uary 31, 2014.
Chang e-3: China s lunar probe carrying

Jade Rabbit

moon buggy lifts off

December 2, 2013
In an attempt to carry out its first ever soft landing on moon, China launched its
lunar mission-Chang e-3 which is carrying country s first moon rover marking a majo
r milestone for China s space programme.
Soft Landing: A landing by a spacecraft on the moon or a planet at a sufficientl
y low velocity for the equipment or occupants to remain unharmed.
About Chang e-3 lunar probe
China s first lunar rover mission aimed at exploring the Moon s surface and looking
for natural resources such as rare metals.
Launching Site: Xichang Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China s southwestern Si
chuan province
Launched on: December 2, 2013
Carrier: Long March-3B
Key Payload: Six-wheeled robotic rover called Yutu (or Jade Rabbit) and a landin
g module.
Expected landing: In the Moon s northern hemisphere in mid-December.
Note: If the lunar mission is successful, China will become the third country, a
fter the United States and the former Soviet Union, to soft-land on the moon.
India among countries exempted from Iranian oil sanctions by the US
December 2, 2013
As stated by the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, India is once again among a
small list of countries that qualifies for an exemption from unilateral sanctio
ns imposed by the US on countries importing oil from Iran.
Under Section 1245 of the U.S. 2012 National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA), th
e exception granted to India, along with China, South Korea, Malaysia, South Afr
ica, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Turkey and Taiwan, was based on India s additional sign
ificant reductions in the volume of their purchases of Iranian crude oil. It is
the fourth time when India has qualified for a NDAA exception.
Though, a major breakthrough interim deal was struck during the recent talks bet
ween P5+1 and Iran on limiting Iran s nuclear programme but the US has cautioned t
hat this would not offer relief from sanctions with respect to any increases in
Iranian crude oil purchases by existing customers or any purchases by new custom
ers, and the sanctions will continue to be enforced over the next six months.
MOM enters Mars trajectory: ISRO
December 2, 2013
In a historic development, India s first Mars mission- the Mars Orbiter Mission s (M
OM) spacecraft s was propelled into the Mars Transfer Trajectory freeing it from t
he influence of Earth s gravity. ISRO successfully conducted the Trans Mars Inject

ion (TMI) operations to put MOM on course to

cecraft s 440 Newton liquid engine which was
a velocity increment of 648 metres/second to
h orbiting phase of the spacecraft ended and

the Red Planet with the help of spa

fired for about 22 minutes providing
the spacecraft. With this, the Eart
is now on path to Mars.

The spacecraft is being continuously monitored from the Spacecraft Control Centr
e at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bangalore with sup
port from Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) antennae at Byalalu.
About India s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) Mangalyan :
The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) has been named Mangalyan
Launched onboard PSLV C25 on November 5, 2013 at 14:38 hours from the first laun
ch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre atSriharikota.
India s first interplanetary mission to planet Mars with an orbiter craft designed
to orbit Mars in an elliptical orbit.
It will reach Martian transfer trajectory in September 2014. Subsequently, it is
planned to enter into a 372 km by 80000 km elliptical orbit around Mars.
Objectives of India s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) Mangalyan :
To showcase India s technological prowess to send a satellite to orbit around Mars
and conduct important experiments such as looking for signs of life, take pictu
res of the red planet and study Martian environment.
To develop the technologies required for design, planning, management and operat
ions of an interplanetary mission.
Design and realisation of a Mars orbiter with a capability to survive and perfor
m Earth bound manoeuvres, cruise phase of 300 days, Mars orbit insertion or capt
ure.
Deep space communication, navigation, mission planning and management.
Incorporate autonomous features to handle contingency situations.
Exploration of Mars surface features, morphology, mineralogy and Martian atmosph
ere by indigenous scientific instruments.
Key Payloads on PSLV C25:
Lyman Alpha Photometer (LAP)
Methane Sensor for Mars (MSM)
Mars Exospheric Neutral Composition Analyser (MENCA)
Mars Colour Camera (MCC)
Thermal Infrared Imaging Spectrometre (TIS)nother Tiger Reserve to come up in Ma
harashtra
December 2, 2013
Maharashtra will have its fifth tiger reserve in Nagzira as the National Tiger C
onservation Authority has given nod to the development of the conservation zone.
The tiger reserve will be set up between Bhandara and Gondia districts.
The Nagzira-Navegaon tiger reserve will be established to conserve tigers wander
ing outside the Tadoba reserve territory. The Nagzira sanctuary, which was of 15
0 square kilometer and the Navegaon National Park, was of 130 square kilometer,
which has been increased to 700 square kilometer to form a new tiger reserve.
Where are the other four tiger reserves in Maharashtra?
The other four tiger reserves in Maharashtra are in:
Melghat
Tadoba
Pench
Sahyadri
About National Tiger Conservation Authority:
The Centrally Sponsored Scheme Project Tiger was launched in April, 1973 with the
objective to ensure maintenance of a viable population of Tigers in India for sci
entific, economic, aesthetic, cultural and ecological values, and to preserve fo
r all times, areas of biological importance as a national heritage for the benef

it, education and enjoyment of the people.

The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 was amended keeping in view the needs of th
e Project Tiger for providing enabling provisions for constitution of the Nation
al Tiger Conservation Authority and the Tiger and Other Endangered Species Crime
Control Bureau.
So, the National Tiger Conservation Authority was constituted from September 4,
2006 to strengthen tiger conservation. The functions are as follows:
Ensuring normative standards in tiger reserve management
Preparation of reserve specific tiger conservation plan
Lay down annual/ audit report before Parliament
Instituting State level Steering Committees under the Chairmanship of Chief Mini
ster and establishment of Tiger Conservation Foundation.
According approval for declaring new Tiger Reserves.
The NTCA has constituted a multidisciplinary Tiger and Other Endangered Species
Crime Control Bureau (Wildlife Crime Control Bureau) with effect from 6.6.2007.
The WCCB comprises the officers from Police, Forest, Customs and other enforceme
nt agencies to effectively control illegal trade in wildlife.
Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF)
The announcement for creation of Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) was annou
nced by the Finance Minister in Budget speech of 2008. A onetime grant of Rs. 50
Crore was provided to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for rais
ing, arming and deploying a Special Tiger Protection Force for 13 tiger reserves
. The rest of the reserves were taken up later.
Satyananda Mishra is the new chairman of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX)
December 2, 2013
Ex- Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) Satyananda Mishra has been appointed as
the chairman of Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX) board.
The Forward Markets Commission (FMC) also approved the appointment of Satyananda
Mishra as the independent Director of MCX s board.
The position of the chairman was vacant since previous chairman, Venkat Chary, r
esigned in August 2013 on account of the new guidelines of Forward Markets Commi
ssion (FMC) which stated that the age limit of people on the board should not be
more than 70 years.
About Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX)
The MCX is country s first listed commodity futures exchange that facilitates onli
ne trading, and clearing and settlement of commodity futures transactions, there
by roviding a platform for risk management. It began functioning in November 200
3 and operates within the regulatory framework of the Forward Contracts Regulati
on Act, 1952 (FCRA, 1952).
Panipat gets India s first Synthetic Rubber Plant
December 2, 2013
India s first Synthetic Rubber Plant was unveiled at Panipat in Haryana.
The plant has been set up by Indian Synthetic Rubber Ltd (ISRL) which is a joint
venture promoted by Indian Oil, TSRC Corporation, Taiwan, and Marubeni Corporat
ion, Japan.
The plant will be the country s first unit to produce e-SBR (Styrene Butadiene Rub
ber) whose output will be 120 kilo tonnes synthetic rubber annually. The rubber
produced would be used in industrial units for manufacturing automobile and dail

y need products. The project, which is estimated to cost Rs. 958 crore, has bee
n financed through debt raised from Japan Bank for International Cooperation and
Mizuho Corporation Bank.
What is SBR (Styrene-butadiene or Styrene-Butadiene Rubber)?
Styrene-butadiene or Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR) describes families of synthe
tic rubbers derived from styrene and butadiene. These materials have good abrasi
on resistance and good aging stability when protected by additives. About 50% of
car tires are made from various types of SBR.
Raheel Sharif becomes chief of Pakistan Army
December 1, 2013
Screenshot_5Lt General Raheel Sharif promoted and appointed as the new chief of
Pakistan army.
As per official announcement, President Mamnoon Hussain on the advice of Prime M
inister Mr. Nawaz Sharif named General Sharif as chief of army staff and General
Rashad Mehmood as Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee(CJCSC). The retiring
chief of army staff General Ashfaque Parvez Kayani handed over the charge to th
e new chief on November 29, 2013.Current Affairs December 2013
Rory McIlroy clinches Emirates Australian Open Golf Tournament
December 1, 2013
Irish golfer Rory McIlroy defeated his contender Adam Scott at the Emirates Aust
ralian Open Golf Tournament , winning for the first time in 2013. He snatched th
e title from Scott who was trying to be only the second player after compatriot
Robert Allenby in 2005 to win Australia s triple crown by claiming the Australian
Open, Masters and PGA titles in the same season.
Suwannapura bags India Open golf tournament
December 1, 2013
Thailand s Thidapa Suwannapura won the Women s Indian Open golf tournament played at
the Delhi Golf Club. The win also made Suwannapura the second Thai to win the t
itle, after three-time winner and defending champion Phatlum Pornanong.
India s Gauri Monga was tied fifth

the best show by an Indian in the tournament.

P.V. Sindhu clinches Macau Grand Prix

December 1, 2013
India s rising badminton star P.V. Sindhu achieved another feat as she lifted the
Macau Open Grand Prix Gold title by defeating Canada s Michelle Li in the final cl
ash, in Macau.
This is her second Grand Prix Gold title after the Malaysia Open in May 2013. Si
ndhu was recently conferred with the Arjuna award this year for her remarkable p
erformances in badminton.
Direct cash transfer better option than other anti-poverty schemes: Planning Com
mission
December 1, 2013
According to a study by the Planning Commission, the cost of bringing all househ
olds above the poverty line would have been Rs. 55,744 crore during 2011-12 if c
ash transfers were used instead of anti-poverty schemes. This would have been s
ufficient to plug the poverty gap and would be just a fraction of annual anti-po
verty budget instead of initiating new anti-poverty schemes.

As per the analysis by the Planning Commission:

Of Rs. 55,744, Rs 42,932 crore would have had to be transferred to the below pov
erty line households in rural areas and the rest Rs 12,812 crore to those in urb
an areas.
In 2011-12, the UPA government had spent Rs 72,822.07 crore on food subsidy. The
expenditure in the same year on the UPA s seven flagship schemes was Rs. 1,09,379
crore.
This cost is likely to increase as the annual cost of implementing the Food Secu
rity Law alone is estimated at Rs 1.2 lakh crore.
The anti-poverty programmes in our country have leakages and is inefficient.
What is Poverty Gap?
Poverty gap is the amount of cash required for a household to lift it above the
poverty line. It is the difference in the level of consumption of the households
below the poverty line and those on the line.
As per the Tendulkar Committee report, a household of five people in India subsi
sts with a monthly consumption of Rs. 874.50which is the Poverty Line. This pove
rty line is in proximity to the World Bank Poverty Line of an income of $1.25 a
day (on a Purchasing Power Parity basis).Cyber Coalition 2013: NATO s largest-ever
cyber-security exercise held in Estonia
December 1, 2013
Screenshot_2NATO held Cyber Coalition 2013: Largest-ever cyber-exercises to prac
tise averting large-scale, simultaneous cyber attacks on member states and their
allies. The drill was hosted by National Defence College training center in Tar
tu, Estonia.
Objective: Cyber Coalition an exercise with technical components to give its par
ticipants a good learning about NATO s Cyber Defence capabilities, identify areas
for improvement within the NATO-wide Cyber Defence community. It also aims to be
tter the capability, cooperation and information sharing between NATO and NATO n
ations and partners in cyber defence via mode of education, research and develop
ment, lessons learnt.
Who all participated in Cyber Coalition 2013?
Representatives of 27 nations and NATO partners from Switzerland, Austria, Swede
n, Ireland and Finland participated in the drill. New Zealand and the European U
nion took part as observers. A total of 400 people participated, including gover
nment, legal and IT experts. Participants put their skills to the test to show h
ow they would respond to a cyber attack.
About Cyber Defence Exercises
Objective: Cyber defence exercises allows its participants to learn and test the
skills needed to fend off a real attack.
First exercise: 2008, a joint between Swedish and Estonian universities.
Second Exercise: Baltic Cyber Shield (2010), organised by Swedish National Defen
ce College (SNDC), various Swedish institutions and the Estonian Cyber Defence L
eague.
Since 2012, the exercise series is called Locked Shields.
Locked Shields 2013
Took place in the end on April 2013
Blue Teams were part of an international coalition forces in unstable country ca
lled Boolea.
Locked Shields (CDx) is a real-time network defence exercise
CDx has a game-based approach which means that no organisation will play their r
eal-life role and the scenario is fictional.
Exercise organised by NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence togeth
er with its partners.

Technical support by Cisco, Clarified Networks, Clarified Security and Bytelife.

Medium enterprises to be included under priority sector: RBI
December 1, 2013
As per the Reserve Bank of India, the incremental bank loans to medium service e
nterprises (as defined in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Ac
t, 2006) provided after November 13, 2013, up to the credit limit of Rs 10 crore
, would qualify as priority sector advances. This dispensation would remain in f
orce up to March 31, 2013.
How would RBI s step to treat medium enterprises under priority sector help?
The medium-sized units across various sectors are feeling the heat of ongoing sl
owdown, as payments from large companies are not being made timely. These enterp
rises have limited bargaining power and can t endure dues for long. With lending t
o medium-sized units set to be treated as priority sector lending, banks would l
ook to give loans to viable units which will in turn help banks in meeting prior
ity sector lending targets.
Status of Priority Sector Credit
As per a recent report by RBI, priority sector credit had increased in 2012-13,
against a decline in overall growth. However, growth in priority sector credit w
as lower than the growth in overall credit. In 2012-13, credit to priority secto
rs by public and private sector banks was at 36.3% and 37.5% respectively, again
st the overall target of 40%.
For micro and small industries, dues were at Rs 2.84 lakh crore, as of March 201
3, growth of 20.3% compared to 2012.
No capital gains tax or stamp duty on foreign banks converting to WoS
December 1, 2013
As per a notification by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the conversion of exis
ting foreign bank branches into Wholly-owned Subsidiaries (WoS) in India will no
t be liable to capital gains tax or stamp duty.
The central bank clarified that Government of India has inserted, by the Finance
Act, 2012, a new Chapter XII-BB titled Special Provisions relating to Conversion
of Indian Branch of a foreign bank into a subsidiary company in Income Tax Act,
1961, inter alia, exempting capital gains arising from such conversion from capi
tal gains tax, with effect from April 1, 2013.
It further added that a new section 8E had been inserted in Indian Stamp Act, 1899
vide Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2012, exempting from stamp duty on any conve
rsion of a branch of a foreign bank into wholly-owned subsidiary or transfer of
shareholding of a bank to a holding company in terms of the scheme or guidelines
of RBI.
As per RBI, foreign banks with complex structures and which did not provide adeq
uate disclosures would have to operate in India only through WoS in order to reg
ulate and avoid 2008-type crisis.
Although RBI has allowed foreign banks
tock exchanges, it has also prescribed
r net worth for a WoS would be Rs. 500
in India before August 2010 have been
ions in branch model.

to list their subsidiaries in the local s

that the minimum paid-up equity capital o
crore. However, foreign banks functioning
given the option to continue their operat

Some Facts:
State-run banks in the country control about 2/3rd of the aggregate assets of th

e Indian banking system, whereas, foreign banks manage around 4.3% of total depo
sits.
Citibank is the largest foreign bank operating in India in terms of asset base.
Other key foreign banks are StanChart, which has 100 branches, HSBC 50, Deutsche
Bank 17 and DBS 12 branches.
As of March 2013, there were 43 foreign banks in India with 333 branches.