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Air Marshal NS Dhillon appointed as

new Strategic Forces Command chief

Air Marshal NS Dhillon was appointed new Commander in Chief of Strategic

Forces Command (SFC). He succeeded Jasbir Walia. SFC looks after the
strategic nuclear arsenal of the country.

Air Marshall NS Dhillon

He is alumni of National Defence Academy (NDA) in Khadakwasla, Pune. He
also attended Defence Services Staff College in Wellington and National
Defence College in New Delhi. He was born in 1961 in Dhand village near
Amritsar., Punjab.

Strategic Forces Command (SFC)

It is tri-Service command that forms part of India’s Nuclear Command
Authority (NCA)
It is responsible for management and administration of the country's tactical
and strategic nuclear weapons stockpile.
It was established January 2003 by executive order of Cabinet Committee on
Security (CCS) headed by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
It is headed by a Commander-in-Chief of rank of Air Marshal, who is a three-
star rank officer. The first commander-in-chief was Air Marshal Teja Mohan
Asthana.
Function: It has sole responsibility of initiating process of delivering nuclear
weapons and warheads, after acquiring explicit approval from NCA.
It manages and administers all strategic forces by exercising complete
command and control over nuclear assets. It also produces all contingency
plans as needed to fulfill required tasks.
It decides exact selection of the target area through calibrated, cumulative
process involving various levels of decision-making and with formal approval
by NCA.
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Vikram Patel wins John Dirks Canada

Gairdner Global Health Award 2019

Indian psychiatrist and professor Dr. Vikram Patel was awarded prestigious
John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award 2019 for his world leading
global research on raising global profile of mental health problems.

Vikram Patel
He is psychiatrist and professor of global health at Harvard Medical School.
 He is best known for his work on mental disability and child development in
low-resource settings.
He has done leading research generating knowledge on burden and
determinants of mental health problems in low and middle-income countries.
He has pioneered approaches that use community resources for prevention
and treatment of mental health problems in India with global impact.
Much of his work has been done in partnership with Sangath, an Indian NGO
co-founded by him in 1996. It is dedicated to research in areas of child
development, adolescent health, and mental health

John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award

It is awarded annually to world’s top scientists who have made outstanding
achievements in Global Health Research.
It was established in 2009. It is one of the world’s most prestigious awards
recognizing excellence in global health and biomedical research.
It also recongises contribution to health in the developing world. Its laureates
receive $100,000 cash honorarium.

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Zayed Medal: PM Narendra Modi

awarded UAE's top civilian honour

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been awarded Zayed Medal (Order of
Zayed), highest civilian honour of United Arab Emirates (UAE). He received this
honour in appreciation of PM Narendra Modi's role in consolidating long-
standing friendship and joint strategic cooperation between India and UAE. He
has played pivotal role in enhancing bilateral ties between both countries to
level of comprehensive strategic relations.

Zayed Medal (Order of Zayed)

It is highest decoration awarded by UAE to kings, presidents and heads of
states. It consists of collar cantered by medallion bearing name ‘Zayed’, the
founding father of UAE.
In the past, it has been given to leaders of several countries, including Chinese
President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Queen of United
Kingdom Elizabeth II, former President of Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf.

India-UAE during tenure of PM Modi

India and UAE share warm relations and it has received impetus after Prime
Minister Modi to the gulf nation in 2015. It was further strengthen after
Crown Prince visited India in 2017 as Chief Guest for Republic Day
celebrations in New Delhi on request of PM Modi. UAE is one of few countries
PM Modi has visited twice first in 2015 and later in February 2018.
Bilateral trade between both countries stood at about US $50 billion in 2017,
making India second largest trading partner of UAE. While,  UAE is India's
third largest trading partner (after China and US). Moreover, UAE is India's
second largest export destination, accounting for over US $31 billion for the
year 2016-17.

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Commercial relations between both countries are anchored by energy
cooperation, trade, investments by UAE in India and investments &
businesses driven by Indian expatriates in UAE.
UAE accounts for 8% of India's total oil imports and is fifth largest supplier
of crude oil to India. It is also part of International Solar Alliance (ISA),
which is headquartered in Gurugram, India.

Other awards received by PM Modi

King Abdulaziz Sash: Saudi Arabia’s highesh civilian award in 2016 for his
role in strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
Seoul Peace Prize for 2018: It was awarded for his contribution to
international cooperation and fostering global economic growth.

Notes

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Three women awarded CII foundation

award 2019

Three women leaders Bhimavva Chalwadi (education sector), Vanlalruati

(health sector) and Nilima Tigga (microentrepreneurship) were awarded
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Foundation Women Exemplar Award
2019. They all from marginalized community and were awarded for their
contribution in transforming the excluded and disadvantaged.

Bhimavva Chalwadi (Goa): She is daughter of rag picker and had became
Devadasi at the age of 15. She has counselled and prevented 2,500 girls
from joining Devadasi practice. She has provided rehabilitation support to
1,400 women rescued from sex work. She leads Swift Wash Laundry, a
unique social enterprise that has opened up jobs with dignity for 280 women
who were once engaged with sex work.

Vanlalruati (Mizoram): She was one of the first Mizo woman to publicly
declare her HIV positive status. She had founded Mizoram Positive Women’s
Network (MPWN) and has directly impacted 20,000 persons living with HIV in
state. She work has pushed for large-scale policy shifts, leading to
integration of persons with HIV in general healthcare system.

Nilima Tigga (Jharkhand): She has set up Shankhdhara Mahila Vikash

Mandal (SMVM), a federation of 1,030 SHGs in Lohardaga, Jharkhand, one of
most backward districts of India. Under her leadership, SMVM has created
significant income increase for 15,000 women and their families through
SHGs and 700 women through micro-entrepreneurship.

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CII foundation women exemplar award
It is part of the CII Foundation Woman Exemplar Program (WEP). It was
launched in 2005 by CII Foundation (CIIF). It carries cash reward of Rs
3,00,000.
It focuses on promoting women’s empowerment at community level by
discovering and recognizing those who chose to look beyond their
limitations and contributed significantly to positively impact the community.
It aims at celebrating Women Exemplar Collective with industry leaders, and
to spur dynamic learning and exchange among the women change makers.

Notes

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Vikram Kirloskar appointed as President

of CII

CMD of Kirloskar Systems Ltd and vice-chairman of Toyota Kirloskar Motor

Vikram Kirloskar was appointed as President of Confederation of Indian
Industry (CII) for 2019-20. He succeeds Rakesh Bharti Mittal, vice-chairman,
Bharti Enterprises. T.V. Narendran, CEO & MD of Tata Steel Limited was
appointed as CII vice-president for 2019-20. Uday Kotak, founder and MD &
CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, is President designate of CII for 2019-20.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)

It is non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed
business association/organization.
It works to create and sustain environment conducive to development of
India, partnering industry, Government, and civil society, through advisory
and consultative processes.
It was founded in 1895. It is headquatered in New Delhi.
It works with Government on policy issues. It also plays proactive role in
India's development process. It has been catalyst of change in India’s
economic policy reforms.
It is India's premier business association has around 9000 members, from
the private as well as public sectors, including SMEs and MNCs.
It has indirect membership of over 300,000 enterprises from around 276
national and regional sectoral industry bodies.

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Keshav Murugesh appointed as

Chairman of NASSCOM

WNS Global Services Group CEO Keshav Murugesh was appointed as

Chairman of IT industry body National Association of Software and Services
Companies (NASSCOM) for 2019-20. He will take over from his previous role
as vice-chairman of NASSCO and will succeed Rishad Premji (Wipro chief
strategy officer and board member). Bedsides,  NASSCOM also has
appointed Infosys COO U.B. Pravin Rao as its vice-chairman for 2019-20.

National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM)

It is global non-profit trade association (organisation) of Indian Information
Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry.
It is registered as society under Indian Societies Act, 1860. It facilitates
businesses and trade in software and services. It also encourages
advancement of research in software technology.
Its headquarters are in New Delhi. It has regional offices in Bengaluru,
Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune and
Thiruvananthapuram.
It has over 2000 members, of which over 250 are companies from the China,
EU, Japan, US and UK.
Its member companies are in business of software development, software
services, software products, IT-enabled/BPO services and e-commerce

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Nobel laureate Sydney Brenner

passes away

Nobel laureate and genetics expert Sydney Brenner passed away. He was 92.
He was South African born biologist who earned PhD from Oxford University.
He later became Singapore’s first honorary citizen. He was founding member
of European Molecular Biology Organization, EMBO in Heidelberg, Germany.

Scientific Contributions
He was known for his most notable achievement of turning Caenorhabditis
elegans (C. elegans) nematode worm into model system for human-disease
research in 1960s and 1970s For this, he shared Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine, 2002 with colleague biologists John Sulston and Robert Horvitz.
He had chosen worm because it was more complex than other well-
understood organisms (ex-bacteria) but simple enough to study in depth. C.
elegans are still widely used in biology today.
His findings had shed light that how specific genes regulate organ growth and
programmed cell death. It also had shed new light on development of
diseases like Aids, neurodegenerative diseases, cancer and strokes.
With Francis Crick (co-discoverer of DNA) and others, he had worked out that
genetic code of DNA is made up of series of triplets of nucleotides called
codons, which encode amino acids that make up a particular protein.
He also had co-discovered messenger RNA (the molecule that directs the
cell’s production of amino acids). These intermediary molecules convey cell’s
genetic code, which is written in DNA, to cellular machinery that translates
messenger RNA into protein.

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Tata Steel named as Global

Slag Company of the Year

Tata Steel has been named as 'Global Slag Company of the Year' at 14th
Global Slag Conference and Exhibition 2019. The award was presented to
Tata Steel for its innovative practices in development of new applications for
Steel by-products (Slag). It also demonstrates global recognition of Tata
Steels commitment towards sustainability and circular economy principles.

14th Global Slag Conference

It was held recently in Aachen, Germany. It was one of the largest global
annual slag event. It was attended by major steelmakers, steel mill service
providers & associated companies.

Tata Steel
It is Indian multinational steel-making company and subsidiary of Tata
Group. It has manufacturing operations in 26 countries.
It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is one of the top steel
producing companies globally and second largest steel company in India
after SAIL.
It was established in 1907 as Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO) was by
Jamsetji Tata.
Its largest plant is located in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. It had acquired the
UK-based steel maker Corus in 2007.

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VP awards Maharshi Badrayan

Vyas Samman to scholars

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu recently conferred around 100 President’s

Certificate of Honour and ‘Maharshi Badrayan Vyas Samman Awards to
scholars in Classical Languages. Both the awards are presented by Union
Ministry of Human Resources and Development.

Presidential Award of Certificate

It is certificate of honour awarded to scholars of Sanskrit, Arabic and
Persian Languages. It was introduced in 1958.
It is conferred on persons/ scholars over 60 years of age in recognition of
their outstanding contribution to various classical languages.
It was extended to cover Pali/Prakrit language in 1996. It also has been
extended to cover Classical Kannada, Classical Telugu, Classical Odiya,
Classical Tamil and Classical Malayalam

Maharshi Badrayan Vyas Samman

It is annual award is bestowed upon persons in recognition of their
substantial contribution in field of Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, Persian, Arabic,
Classical Oriya, Classical Kannada, Classical Telugu and Classical
Malayalam.
It was introduced by Government in 2002. It is named after great Indian
philosopher Maharshi Badrayan
It is awarded to selected young scholars in the age group of 30 to 45 years.
It carries certificate of honour, memento and one-time monetary prize of
Rs.1 lakh.

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Maharshi Badrayan
He is considered as founder of Vedanta system of philosophy. He is regarded
as main writer of basic text of Vedanta system of philosophy viz.
Vedantasutra or Brahmasutra. The exact date or era of Badarayana and his
text Brahma Sutras is uncertain and contested topic among scholars. Some
have dated Brahma Sutras during different time period ranging from 500
BCE to 450 BCE.
Notes

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Justice Pradeep Nandrajog sworn in as

Chief Justice of Bombay High Court

Justice Pradeep Nandrajog (61) was sworn in as new Chief Justice of the
Bombay High Court. He was administered the oath by Maharashtra Governor
C Vidyasagar Rao at Raj Bhavan in state capital Mumbai. He succeeds Justice
Naresh Patil who retired recently from the office.  Prior to this appointment,
he was serving as tChief Justice of Rajasthan High Court since March 2017,
following his transfer from the Delhi High Court.

Justice Pradeep Nandrajog

He had started his judicial career after he was enrolled as advocate with Bar
Council of Delhi in 1981. As a lawyer, he was specialised in arbitration,
commercial, service and company matters and also land revenue, elections,
etc. He served as counsel for Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for about
six years. He was elevated as additional judge of Delhi High Court in
December 2012. He was appointed Chief Justice of Rajasthan HC in April
2017.

High Courts in India

According to Article 214 of the constitution, each state of India shall have a
High Court. The Chief Justice of a High Court is appointed by President with
consultation of the Chief Justice of Supreme Court and Governor of the State.
The other judges are appointed by will of President, Governor of state and
Chief Justice of High Court.

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Dost Education wins Next Billion Edtech

Prize 2019

India’s education technology (ed-tech) startup Dost Education has won

$25,000 Next Billion Edtech Prize 2019. It shared this edtech prize with two
other winners-Bongo (Tanzania) and PraxiLabs (Egypt).

Dost Education
It was awarded for its ability to empower parents to take charge of their
child’s early education by creating short, user-friendly audio content that is
sent to them via their mobile phones.
Its Dost software, audio content, and toolkits make it easy, fun and addictive
for parents to boost their child’s early development, so low-income families
need no longer send their children to primary school behind and without a
chance to catch up.

Next Billion Edtech Prize

It is run by UK-based Varkey Foundation. It recognizes the most innovative
technology destined to have radical impact on education in low income and
emerging world countries. It also seeks highlights technology’s potential to
tackle societal problems that have proven too difficult for successive
generations of politicians to solve.

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Vikram Nath appointed as 1st Chief

Justice of Andhra Pradesh HC

Senior judge of Allahabad high court, Justice Vikram Nath (56) was
appointed as the first Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court. He was
appointment was recommended by collegium of Supreme Court comprising
Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and judges S A Bobde and N V Ramana.

Andhra Pradesh High Court

New high court for Andhra Pradesh was created on January 1, 2019,
following the bifurcation of combined high court for AP and Telangana. It is
having total 16 judges including Chief Justice.
It was created through Presidential order notified under Article 214 of
Constitution. With this, total strength for high courts in India is now 25.
The separate HC for Andhra Pradesh was mandated under Section 30 of
Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 (which was enacted with view to
provide reorganisation of existing Andhra Pradesh).
At present, it is functioning from newly built interim judicial complex at
Nelapadu in Andhra Pradesh’s new capital city region of Amaravati.
State government is constructing an exclusive Justice City as part of
Amaravati for judiciary, which is expected to be completed in two years.
Once it is completed, the high court and all its subordinate courts would
move into the Justice City.

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Namami Gange gets global recognition

at Global Water Summit

India's flagship programme National Mission for Clean Ganga or Namami

Gange was awarded with 'Public Water Agency of the Year' award at Global
Water Summit held in London, United Kingdom.

Global Water Awards

They are presented by Global Water Intelligence at Global Water Summit, the
major business conference for the water industry worldwide. These award
recognise excellence across entire international water industry and reward
those initiatives in the water, wastewater, and desalination sectors which
bring remarkable improvements in the lives of people.

Namami Gange Mission

It is integrated mission for Ganga rejuvenation aimed at integrating various
efforts to clean and protect River Ganga in comprehensive manner.
Its objective is to provide comprehensive and sustainable solutions for major
pollution hot spots along stretch of river in right states covering 97 towns
and 4,465 villages on Ganga stem.
It has comprehensive multi-sectoral intervention with multi-stakeholder
involvement and adopts basin based approach which includes Ganga and its
tributaries.
Its main pillars are sewerage treatment infrastructure, river-surface
cleaning, bio-diversity, river-front development, afforestation, public
awareness, industrial effluent monitoring and ganga gram.
It also seeks to benefit vast population dependent on River Ganaga in terms of
improved livelihoods, job creation and health benefits.

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Alice G. Vaidyan awarded Freedom of the

City of London

Alice G. Vaidyan was awarded Freedom of the City of London in recognition

of her work to promote insurance ties between India and United Kingdom.
She is Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of India’s reinsurance major
General Insurance Corporation (GIC) of India. She was nominated for this
traditional honour by Lord Mayor of London Peter Estlin, and City of London
Corporation Policy Chair Catherine McGuinness.

Alice G. Vaidyan
She holds post graduate degree in English literature and has been trained
at Harvard Business School, Boston, US.
She is Fellow of Insurance Institute of India. She has over 30 years of
experience in Indian insurance and reinsurance industry.
She is first women officer to assume topmost post of CMD of General
Insurance Corporation of India.
She is also first women CMD in public-sector insurance industry (non-life)
under Union Ministry of Finance.
She has won several national and international awards. Business Today
recognized her as one of most powerful women in Indian business (2016).

Freedom of the City Freedom of London

It is honour awarded by City of London Corporation upon valued member of
community or upon visiting celebrity or dignitary.
It origin can be traced to the medieval time of around 1237. It seeks to
enabled its recipients to carry out their trade.
Since its establishment, this award has evolved into honour bestowed upon
individuals who make impact in financial hub of London, which is also
referred as City or the Square Mile.

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Najma Akhtar appointed as 1st women vice–

chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia University

Professor Najma Akhtar was appointed as vice–chancellor of Jamia Millia

Islamia University (JMI). With this she became first woman and overall 16th
Vice-Chancellor of JMI since its inception in 1920. Manipur Governor Najma
Heptulla is currently chancellor of JMI.
She has been appointed for a period of five years by President of India on
recommendation of Union Ministry of Human Resources and Development
(HRD). She succeeds Talat Ahmad, who is now serving as Vice-Chancellor of
the University of Kashmir (J&K).
Prior to this appointment, she was head of Department of Educational
Administration at National Institute of Educational Planning and
Administration (NIEPA), where she has worked for 15 years.

Jamia Millia Islamia University (JMI)

It is a public central University in New Delhi. IT was founded on October 29,
1920, by nationalist Muslim leaders during British rule in Aligarh in erstwhile
United Provinces (now in Uttar Pradesh). Ali brothers, Moulana Shoukat Ali,
Moulana Mohammad Ali Jouhar, Janab Hakim Ajmal Khan, Dr. Mukhtar
Ahmad Ansari, Janab Abdul Majeed Khwaja, and Dr. Zakir Hussain had played
major role in its establishment.  Dr.Zakir Hussain was its first Vice-
Chancellor. It was shifted from Aligarh to Karol Bagh,New Delhi in 1925. It
was made central university by an act of Parliament in 1988.

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Wa Lone, Kyaw Soe Oo awarded 2019 UNESCO/

Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize

Two Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were awarded 2019
UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize. They are jailed in Myanmar
over their reporting on killings of Rohingya Muslims and human rights
violations in the country. They will be awarded on May 2, 2018 at ceremony to
be held in Ethiopia on the eve of World Press Freedom Day.
They were arrested in December 2017 and sentenced seven years jail term
for possessing classified information regarding security operations in
Rakhine, from where an estimated 740,000 Rohingya fled during an army-led
crackdown, which UN has described as “ethnic cleansing”. At the time of their
arrest, they were probing extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya men at Inn Din
village in northern Rakhine state.

UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize

It was established in 1997 by UNESCO’s Executive Board in honour of
Colombian journalist Guillermo Cano Isaza.
It honours person, organization or institution for their outstanding
contribution to promotion and defence of freedom of press anywhere in the
world, especially achieved in the face of danger.
It carries cash prize (monetary award) of $25000. It is funded by Finland
based Helsingin Sanomat Foundation and Colombia based Cano Foundation.
Guillermo Cano Isaza was Colombian journalist who was assassinated on 17
December 1986 in front of the offices of his newspaper, El Espectador in
Bogota.

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Telugu poet K Siva Reddy wins

Saraswati Samman 2018

Renowned Telugu poet K Siva Reddy has won prestigious Saraswati Samman
2018 for his collection of poems titled Pakkaki Ottigilite (Turning Aside While
Lying Down). Pakkaki Ottigilite published in 2016 is anthology of 104 poems in
blank verse. It captures responses of poet over the years to social change,
the evolution of his own self and his dynamic relationship with the world.

K Siva Reddy
He was born in 1943 in farmer’s family in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh.
He is counted among most renowned modern poets in Telugu.
He produced 23 volumes of poetry. He has also published critical essays on
poetry. He has also taught English literature.

Saraswati Samman
It is annual literary award bestowed upon Indian citizen for his outstanding
literary work written in any 22 official Indian language mentioned in Schedule
VIII of Constitution and published during last 10 years.
It has been instituted by KK Birla Foundation in 1991 and named after Indian
goddess of learning Saraswati. It is considered one of the highest recognition
in the field of Indian literature,
It carries cash (monetary) prize of Rs. 15 lakh rupees, citation and plaque of
goddess Saraswati. Harivansh Rai Bachchan was its first recipient and was
awarded for his autobiography published in four volumes.
Some of its other recipients includes writers Vijay Tendulkar, Shamsur
Rahman Faruqi and Dr Indira Parthasarathy Ramanujar, among many others.
Note: It is one of the three awards instituted by KK Birla Foundation in the
field of literature. These are Vyas Samman (for Hindi) and Bihari Puraskar
(for Hindi and Rajasthani writers of Rajasthan).

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PM Narendra Modi awarded Russia’s

highest state honour

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conferred with Russia’s highest state
honour 'Order of St Andrew the Apostle' for exceptional services in
promoting special and privileged strategic partnership between Russia and
India. The award was extended on behalf of Russian President Vladimir
Putin. This is overall seventh international award that PM Modi has been
honoured with.

Order of St Andrew the Apostle

It is awarded by Russian Government to prominent statesmen and public
figures and representatives of science, culture, the arts and various
industries for their exceptional services in promoting the prosperity,
greatness and glory of Russia.
It is also awarded to foreign heads of state for outstanding services to
Russia.  It was established in 1698 by Tsar Peter the Great, in honour of
Saint Andrew, the first apostle of Jesus and patron saint of Russia.
Among the foreign awardees are President of China Xi Jinping, President of
Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of Azerbaijan Geydar Aliev.
The ceremony for award is usually held at St Andrew Hall of Grand Kremlin
Palace.
The most recent person who was decorated with this honous is Valentina
Matvienko, Chairperson of Federation Council of Federal Assembly of the
Russian Federation. She was awarded with this order in March 2019

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DRDO Scientist Dr A K Singh awarded

Lifetime Achievement Award

Director of Life Sciences-DRDO, Dr A K Singh was conferred with Lifetime

Achievement Award. He was honoured for his rich contribution in the field of
life sciences, aerospace and aeronautics. He was presented with award
during 4th APJ Abdul Kalam Innovation Conclave at Chandigarh University,
Mohali organized by university to mark World Creativity and Innovation Day
(observed on 21 April).

Dr A K Singh
He had joined DRDO in 1988 and worked on various R&D projects. He has
made key  contributions in the field of Infection Imaging and Internal
Decorporation of Fission Produced Radionuclides.
He has developed “Diagnobact” kit for detection of infectious lesion. He has
also introduced and nurtured pharmacosyntigraphy, i.e. application of
nuclear medicine imaging in drug research.
He has more than 18 patents and has contributed in more than 57 research
publications at an international and national level.

Notes

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Pulitzer Prize 2019 winners

The Pulitzer Prize 2019 winners in 21 categories in journalism and the arts
were announced by Pulitzer Administrator Dana Canedy at Columbia
University's Graduate School of Journalism, New York City. This year, Richard
Powers won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 2019 for his epic nature novel The
Overstory. This book also was shortlisted for Man Booker Prize 2018 and the
PEN/Faulkner Award. The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal were
awarded Pulitzer Prizes in journalism.

Winners of 2019 Pulitzer Prize are

Journalism
Public service: Staff of South Florida Sun Sentinel
Investigative reporting: Matt Hamilton, Harriet Ryan and Paul Pringle (Los
Angeles Times).
Breaking news reporting: Staff of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Explanatory reporting: David Barstow, Susanne Craig and Russ Buettner
(New York Times).
Local reporting: Staff of Advocate
National reporting: Staff of Wall Street Journal
International reporting: Maggie Michael, Maad al-Zikry and Nariman El-Mofty
(Associated Press) and the staff of Reuters
Feature writing: Hannah Dreier (ProPublica).
Commentary: Tony Messenger (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Criticism: Carlos Lozada (Washington Post)
Editorial writing: Brent Staples (New York Times).
Editorial cartooning: Darrin Bell, a freelancer cartoonist

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Breaking news photography: Photography staff of Reuters
Feature photography: Lorenzo Tugnoli (Washington Post)
Special citation: Staff of Capital Gazette

Books, Drama and Music

Fiction: Richard Powers for The Overstory.
Drama: Fairview by Jackie Sibblies Drury
Nonfiction: Fracturing of America by Eliza Griswold and Amity and Prosperity:
One Family.
History: Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom by David W. Blight
Autobiography or Biography: The New Negro: The Life of Alain Locke by
Jeffrey C. Stewart
Poetry: Be With by Forrest Gander
Music: prism by Ellen Reid
Special citation: Aretha Franklin

Pulitzer Prize
It is awarded for achievements in newspaper, online journalism and
magazine,  literature, and musical composition in United States.
It was established in 1917 as per provisions in will of American (Hungarian-
born) Joseph Pulitzer who had made his fortune as newspaper publisher. It is
administered by Columbia University in New York City.
It is awarded yearly in 21 categories. In twenty of the categories, each winner
receives certificate and monetary award of US$15,000.
The winner in the public service category of journalism is awarded gold
medal.
Notes

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Cabinet approves creation of Deputy

CAG post

Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its
approval to create one post of Deputy Comptroller & Auditor General
(Coordination, Communication and Information System) in Office of
Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG). It will be in Pay Level-17 and
abolishes STS level post.
Currently there are 5 Deputy CAGs. Their scope of work includes
governments accounts, central revenue audit, railways and defence,
commercial and reports of central, communications and information
systems.

New Deputy CAG post

He/she will oversee coordination among State Audits, audit of
telecommunication and also coordinate the various Information Systems (IS)
initiatives within Indian Audit & Accounts Department (IA&AD).
Notes

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Israel to honour late Lt. Gen. JFR Jacob

Israel will honour late J.F.R Jacob, one of Indian heroes of 1971 Liberation
War of Bangladesh, as Jewish soldier who served with distinction in a
foreign army. He will be honoured by unveiling of wall plaque on Wall of
Honour at Jerusalem for soldiers who served with distinction in foreign
armies.
Lt. Gen. Jacob is known for negotiating surrender of Pakistani troops in
Dhaka in 1972 which ended 13-day war and led to creation of Bangladesh.
At that time, he was Major General and Chief of Staff of Kolkata-based
Eastern Army Command. He later went on to become Commander-in-Chief of
the eastern command.

About Jacob Farj Rafael Jacob

He was born in Calcutta in 1923 to Jewish parents from Iraq. His family had
originally come from Iraq and settled in Bengal in the mid-18th century. He
died in 2016.
He had joined Indian Army and served in World War II and Indo-Pakistani
War of 1965, Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
He retired from army in 1978 and later served as Governor of Goa (April
1999 to November 1999) and Punjab (1999 to 2003).
e has written two books- Surrender at Dacca: Birth of a Nation, An Odyssey
in War and Peace: An Autobiography Lt Gen. J.F.R. Jacob. He has been
awarded Commendation of Merit, Param Vishisht Seva Medal.

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Christina Koch to set world record for

longest single spaceflight by woman

NASA astronaut Christina Koch is going to set world record for longest
single spaceflight by a woman. She will achieve this feat after her mission
on International Space Station (ISS) extended to 328 days.  She had arrived
at ISS on March 14, 2019 and now is scheduled to remain in orbit until
February 2020.

Significance
Her extended mission will help scientists gather additional data about
effects of long-duration human spaceflight beyond those of normal six-
month station expedition. Such research is essential to support future
human space missions to Moon and Mars.

Previous Record
With this she will break, current world record set for longest single
spaceflight by woman of 288 days set by former NASA astronaut Peggy
Whitson in 2016-17. The longest single spaceflight by NASA astronaut is
340 days, set by former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly during his one-year
mission in 2015-16.

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150 Indian Peacekeepers

Awarded Medal Of Honour

150 Indian peacekeepers deployed at United Nations Mission in South Sudan

(UNMISS) were honoured with Medals of Honour for their supreme
dedication and sacrifices in Malakal, South Sudan.
Indian peacekeepers serving with UNMISS have undertaken numerous
training sessions of community animal health workers, providing value
addition training for farmers to help them make the most of their produce.
Besides, Indian Horizontal Mobility Engineering Company had completed
renovation of 145 km of roadway connecting Bentiu and Leer in South
Sudan, easing way for delivery humanitarian aid, trade and inter-communal
dialogue.

India’s contributions towards UN peacekeeping

India has been one of the top contributors of troops to United Natios
peacekeeping missions. Presently, it is second largest contributor of troops,
with more than 2,400 personnel deployed as peacekeepers under the
UNMISS. Since inception of UN, over two lakh Indian military and police
personnel have served under the UN flag, while 168 valiant soldiers have
sacrificed their lives while at the UN service. Besides this, India is also
contributing to UN Peacebuilding Fund.

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London School of Economics set ups

Amartya Sen Chair in Inequality Studies

The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) has set
up Amartya Sen Chair in Inequality Studies to honour Nobel
laureate who was professor of economics at LSE between 1971 and
1982. Amartya Sen is recognized as one of the world’s great
thinkers on social equity. He is renowned for this theories of justice,
equity and well-being. He was awarded Noble Prize in the year 1998
for his works in Welfare Economics.

Amartya Sen Chair

It has been set up in recognition of contribution that Amartya Sen’s
writing which has helped in understanding of inequality.
Its holder will also serve as director of LSE International
Inequalities Institute, which facilitates interdisciplinary research
on issues related to inequality.
It will provide coordination and strategic leadership on t inter-
disciplinary analysis of inequalities at LSE.
Besides, it will connect research on inequalities across LSE, engage
with public and policy-makers, and develop and supports new
world-class research.

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Pakistani journalist Cyril Almeida wins

World Press Freedom Hero award

International Press Institute (IPI) has declared Dawn editor and columnist
Cyril Almeida from Pakistan as recipient of its 71st World Press Freedom
Hero award. He was awarded in recognition of his tenacious coverage of
Pakistani state’s patronage of militant groups. His work has made him and
Dawn a target especially from country’s rogue military establishment.
 Pakistan Government in 2016 had imposed travel ban on Almeida after he
reported on extraordinary verbal confrontation between the country’s
civilian government and military.

World Press Freedom Heroes

They are individuals who have been recognized by Vienna-based
International Press Institute (IPI) for significant contributions to
maintenance of press freedom and freedom of expression and indomitable
courage. The first 50 "heroes" were selected on occasion of 50th
anniversary of IPI in 2000, and awarded at its World Congress in Boston.
India’s Arun Shourie was one of them. Since then, 20 additional heroes have
been added to the list, several of them posthumously.

International Press Institute

It is global organisation dedicated to promotion and protection of press
freedom and improvement of journalism practices.  
It was founded in October 1950. It is headquartered in Vienna, Austria. It has
members in over 120 countries. Its membership is made up of editors and
media executives working for some of world's most respected media outlets.
It enjoys consultative status with UN, UNESCO and the Council of Europe.

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Rana Dasgupta awarded Rabindranath

Tagore Literary Prize 2019

The second edition of Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize was awarded to

author Rana Dasgupta for his novel "Solo".  The novel was published in
2010 and it is tale of estrangement and the ultimate failure of material
existence.  Besides, Rabindranath Tagore Prize for social achievement was
awarded to Yohei Sasakawa, the World Health Organization (WHO) Goodwill
Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination for "his incredible efforts to uproot
leprosy and great contribution to world peace".

Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize

It is awarded for one extraordinary piece of literally work, or as lifetime
achievement. It carries monetary award of $10,000, Tagore statue and
certificate for contribution to literature. It was launched in 2018 by
Maitreya Publishing Foundation. It is only awarded on Indian poets,
playwrights and novelists, who are writing either in languages or dialects of
the Indian subcontinent, or in English. The award is legacy to Rabindranath
Tagore, his contribution to Indian and world literature, as well as to the
educational and humanistic ideas he pursued throughout his life.

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Salim Khan awarded Deenanath

Mangeshkar Award 2019

Popular actor, producer and screenwriter Salim Khan was awarded

prestigious Lifetime Deenanath Mangeshkar Award. Besdies him, national
award-winning filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar and renowned actor Helen
 were also awarded in other categories

Awards 2019

Lifetime Award: It was bestowed upon actor, producer and screenwriter

Salim Khan. He is isfather of supersta Salman Khan.
Special Award: It was bestowed upon filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar for his
contribution to Indian cinema.
Special Award: It was bestowed upon yesteryear Actress Helen.
Music and Art: It was conferred to classical dancer Sucheta Bhide-Chapekar.

Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Awards

These awards are conferred to legends from the field of music, drama, art
and social work. They were instituted in 2011 by Master Deenanath
Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan in honour of music composer and singer
Hridaynath Mangeskar. Lifetime achievement award carries monetary award
of Rs 2 lakh and a memento.
Hridaynath Mangeskar was son of renowned musician Deenanath
Mangeshkar and is younger brother of Indian music legends Lata
Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle.
The previous recipients of Lifetime achievement award include eminent
personalities like Amitabh Bachchan, Hariprasad Chaurasia, A R Rahman etc.

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Rajendra Kumar Nayak appointed

as 52nd CGDA

Rajendra Kumar Nayak took over as 52nd Controller General of Defence

Accounts (CGDA). Prior to this appointment, he was Additional Controller
General of Defence Accounts, Defence Accounts Department, Ministry of
Defence,

Rajendra Kumar Nayak

He is from the Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS) of 1983 batch.
During the career span of more than 35 years, he has held important
assignments in Defence Accounts Department and on deputation in Union
Government. He has vast and varied experience in handling Finance,
Personnel, Pay & Budget matters of Union Ministry of Defence.

Controller General of Defence Accounts(CGDA)

CGDA heads Defence Accounts Department (DAD), which is one of the
oldest government organisations in India. It operates under Union
Ministry of Defence.
Functions: It is responsible for financial advice, payments, accounting
and internal audit of the expenditure and receipts of defence services
and other defence-related organizations such as Indian Coast Guard
(IGC), Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and Canteen Stores Department.
CGDA is cadre controlling authority of the Indian Defence Accounts
Service. This is organised account cadre of Central Government,

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BCCI nominates four

cricketers for Arjuna award

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has recommended cricketers

Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Ravindra Jadeja and Poonam Yadav
for Arjuna award. Now these nominees will be considered by Ministry of
Youth Affairs. So far, total 53 cricketers have been awarded Arjuna
Award. Cricketer  Saleem Durani was its first recipient in 1961.

Arjuna Award
It is India’s second highest sporting award after Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna
Award. It was instituted in 1961 and given by Ministry of Youth Affairs
and Sports.
It aims to recognize outstanding achievements of sportspersons in the
field of sports at international level.
Criteria: It is awarded to sportsperson having had good performance
consistently for the previous four years at the international level with
excellence for year for which Award is recommended.
Besides, he/she should also have shown qualities of leadership,
sportsmanship. It will be not awarded second time to the same person. It
is also given posthumously if such an occasion arises.
Sports disciplines covered: Olympic Games/Word Championship/Asian
Games/Commonwealth Games/World Cup/disciplines and cricket or any
equivalent recognized international Tournament. It also covers
indigenous games and also sports for physically challenged.
Award: It carries bronze statuette of Arjuna, scroll and cash award of Rs.
5 lakh.

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Wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat

recommended for Rajeev Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) recommended Bajrang Punia and Vinesh

Phogat for Rajeev Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the country's highest sporting
honour. Their final selection will be made by Selection Committee constituted by
Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

Bajrang Punia: He is currently World No.1 in 65-kg weight category of freestyle

wrestling. He recently won gold medal at Asian Championship held in Xi'an, China
by in the men's 65kg freestyle event. He has won eight gold medals from his earlier
nine international tournaments including 2018  Commonwealth and 2018 Asian
Games.  

 Vinesh Phogat: She is first Indian woman to win gold medal at Asian Games. She
had achieved this feat in 2018 Jakarta Asian Games in 50 Kg weight category.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

It is India’s highest sporting award named after former Prime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi ( in office from 1984 to 1989).
It is given in recognition of spectacular and most outstanding performance of
sportsperson in the field of sports over a period of four years.
The awardee is selected by selection committee and chairperson nominated by the
Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports.
The award consists of cash amount of Rs. 7.5 lakh and one medal. This award
cannot be given for second time to the same person. It may be also given
posthumously,

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Six people awarded Goldman

Environmental Prize 2019

Six people from around world were selected for prestigious Goldman prize for
grassroots environmental activism for the year 2019. This year it is 30th
anniversary of prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize.

2019 Winners are Alfred Brownell (Liberia), Linda Garcia (US), Ana Colovic
Lesoska (North Macedonia), Bayarjargal Agvaantseren (Mongolia), Jacqueline
Evans (Cook Islands) and Alberto Curamil (Chile).

Goldman Environmental Prize

It is annual award that honous those grassroots environmentalists who risk their
lives to protect environment and empower those people who have most to lose
from industrial projects. It is also called Green Nobel Prize.
It honours grassroots environmental heroes from world’s six inhabited
continental regions: Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South & Central America,
and Islands & Island Nations.
It was instituted in 1989 by Philanthropists Richard and Rhoda Goldman. Since
then, it is awarded annually by US (San Francisco) based Goldman Environmental
Foundation. It carries monetary award of $200,000.
Its winners are selected from nominations made by environmental organisations
and others across the world. Generally, the winners are announced every April to
coincide with Earth Day (observed on 22 April).
Indians who have won this award are Medha Patkar (1992), M.C. Mehta (1996),
Rasheeda Bi and Champaran Shukla (2006), Ramesh Agrawal (2014) and Prafulla
Samantara (2017).

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