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Gyanm General Awareness August 2016 Issue..!!
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 1
BREXIT
HOW IT HAPPENED
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
After the devastation of World War II, European
countries were in state of shock and so serious efforts
were being made to find out the ways and means as to
how to ensure that conflicts do not raise their ugly
heads once again and how can a peaceful living be
ensured in future. As a result, a number of treatises
were signed in next several years among the European
countries for strengthening mutual interests.
 In 1948, Treaty of Brussels was signed by UK and
four other countries to form a combined defence to
counter communism.
 In 1957, Treaty of Rome was signed to form the
European Economic Community, forming basic
frame work of the future European Union.
 In 1992, Treaty of Maastricht was signed to form
European Community – EC, laying the foundation of
European Union and introduced ‘European
citzenship’.
 In 2002, common currency Euro was established.
 Finally, in 2007, Treaty of Lisbon was signed to give
the present structure and shape to the European
Union, having 28 members.
 Although EU with 28 member countries has only
7.3% of the world population, it contributes roughly
24% of global GDP.
 Almost all member countries rank very high
in Human Development Index.
 It has been so effective in its mission of peaceful
coexistence that it was awarded Nobel Peace Prize
in 2012.
PRESENT DEVELOPMENT - BREXIT
Due to a prolonged slowdown in the economy of UK in
recent years and increasing inflow of migrants – both
from smaller European countries and from West Asian
countries, the radical forces in UK, of late, have been
raising demand for a Britain independent of EU so that it
can survive on its own terms and conditions. The
movement was given the nick name ‘Brexit’ – Britain’s
exit from the EU.
 This compelled present Prime Minister David
Cameron to announce holding of a referendum on
June 23 to decide whether Britain wants to ‘Leave’
EU or it wants to ‘Remain’ in EU.
 Cameron lead the ‘Remain’ campaign but the results
of the referendum shocked the entire world and
gave a big jolt to European unity.
 51.9% voters supported ‘Leave’, leaving 48.1% with
idea of remaining with EU.
 It was also a massive victory for UKIP leader Nigel
Farage, who has campaigned for the UK to leave the
EU for a quarter century.
 Respecting the mandate of people, Cameron offered
to resign from the post of Prime Minister.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW?
 The British Pound plunged to the lowest since 1985
and global markets trembled with fear, leading to
crash of stock markets.
 The EU is in shock as till date no member has ever
left and so there is no precedence to follow or learn
from. Article 50 of the EU treaty, which sets out
how a state can exit the bloc, offers little detail
except that a two year notice period is required to
quit.
 An array of laws and EU entitlements will cease to
apply to British business and citizens, creating what
Brexit campaigners say will be opportunities for
more growth and more selective immigration.
 The result widens fissures in the UK by raising the
prospect of another push for Scottish independence.
 Beyond Britain’s shores, it will fan speculation that
more countries could withdraw from the EU
IMPACT ON INDIA
So far India is concerned, a statement by our Finance
Minster, Arun Jaitley sums up the situation.
“….. we are well prepared to deal with the short and
medium term consequences of Brexit. Our macro-
economic fundamentals are sound with a very
comfortable external position, a rock-solid commitment
to fiscal discipline, and declining inflation. Our aim will
be to smooth this volatility and minimize its impact on
the economy in the short term”.
EFFECTS ON INDIAN ECONOMY
 Rupee may depreciate because of the double effect
of foreign fund outflow and rise in dollar price
 This will increase petrol and diesel prices to an
extent
 Prices of gold, electronic goods, among others will
increase
 Cheaper Pound will benefit Indian exports,
including IT and ITeS.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 2
GENERAL AWARENESS
AUGUST 2016
Vol. 5, Issue 02
A PUBLICATION OF GYANM EDUCATION &
TRAINING INSTITUTE PVT. LTD.
SCO 13-14-15, 2ND FLOOR, SEC 34-A, CHANDIGARH
Contents
CURRENT AFFAIRS
APRIL TO JUNE 2016
01-34
BULLET NEWS
JAN 2016 TO MARCH 2016
35-58
LATEST 100 GK MCQs 59-64
SSC CORNER 65-71
FIVE MONTHS GK BYTES 72-100
FIGURES TO REMEMBER
REPO RATE (05.04.2016) 6.50%
REVERSE REPO RATE 6.00%
MARGINAL STANDING
FACILITY RATE
7.00%
STATUTORY LIQUIDITY RATIO 21.25%
CASH RESERVE RATIO 4.00%
BANK RATE 7.00%
BASE RATE(s)
(of various banks)
9.30 to
9.70%
INDIA’s RANK IN
Global Retail Development Index 02nd
Ranking in Total Wealth 07th
Ranking in Attracting FDI 10th
Global Peace Index 141st
Good Country Index 70th
Renewable Energy Index 3rd
World Press Freedom Index 133rd
Rank in Manufacturing Countries 6th
World Happiness Index 118th
Intellectual Property Index -2016 37th
Overall Growth Prospectus 5th
Global Talent Competitiveness Index 89th
Nuclear Security Index 21st
Ease of Doing Business (Forbes) 97th
Human Development Index 130th
ICT Development Index 131st
Rank in Brand Value 7th
Legatum Prosperity Index 99th
Global Terrorism Index 06th
NATIONAL NEWS
JUNE 2016
MODI MAKES FIVE NATION VISIT
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a five-nation visit to Afghanistan, Qatar,
Switzerland, the US and Mexico, starting from June 4. The visit aimed at
broadening bilateral trade, energy and security cooperation and push for
India's bid to become a member of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
In Afghanistan, he was conferred with Amir Amanullah Khan Award, country’s
highest civilian honour. He also inaugurated the Friendship Dam in Herat
province in Western Afghanistan.
In Qatar, seven MoUs were signed to promote assistance on matters pertaining
to customs administration through exchange of information and intelligence.
In USA he addressed the special session of Congress.
US APPLAUDS ‘MODI DOCTRINE’
US administration has termed the Prime Minister Modi’s vision of Indo-US ties
that has overcome the “hesitations of history” and working for the betterment
of the global good as “Modi Doctrine”. It envisages a joint effort by India and
USA in promoting peace, prosperity and stability from Asia to Africa, from the
Indian Ocean to the Pacific, including safety and freedom of navigation on the
seas.
PRESIDENT VISITS AFRICA
President Pranab Mukherjee made a six-day trip to Ghana, Ivory Coast and
Namibia to boost trade ties with these countries. The trip began with Ghana
where he signed three agreements for mutual cooperation.
In Cote D’Ivoirie (Ivory Coast), he was awarded the highest honour of that country
- Grand Cross National Order of the Republic of Cote D’Ivoirie.
MODI ATTENDS SCO SUMMIT
Prime Minister Modi visited Tashkent, Uzbekistan to attend the two-day
summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The summit approved
India and Pakistan’s case for the full membership of the SCO.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 3
ANSARI VISITS MOROCCO, TUNISIA
Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari visited
Morocco and Tunisia. He arrived in Rabat, capital of
Morocco on May 30. He launched the India-Morocco
Chamber of Commerce and Industry to promote trade
between two countries.
Later, he visited Marrakech, main economic center of
Morocco. He met King Mohammed VI and Prime
Minister Benkirane.
On June 2 he reached Tunis, capital of Tunisia, and met
Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid. He met President
Beji Caid El Sebsi on June 3. A number of MoUs were
signed on mutual cooperation between the two
countries.
INDIA JOINS MTCR GROUP
India has been admitted as the 35th member of the
elite 34 nations group on the Missile Technology Control
Regime (MTCR).
This would make it possible for India to buy and sell
missile technology to other nations, including the
supersonic Brahmos missile. It will also enable India to
buy the state-of-the-art surveillance drones, such as the
US predator.
MTCR is an anti-proliferation group of 34 nations that
aims to limit the spread of ballistic missiles and other
unmanned delivery systems that could be used for
chemical, biological, and nuclear attacks.
INDIA FAILS TO ENTER NSG, DESPITE SUPPORT
The plenary meeting of the 48-member Nuclear
Suppliers Group, NSG was held in Seoul, South Korea on
June 23. A large number of countries supported India’s
request for membership to NSG. However, the same
could not be approved as a few countries led by China
objected to India’s membership because she has not
signed the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty, NPT.
INDIA SECOND IN RETAIL DEVELOPMENT
According to 2016 Global Retail Development Index
(GRDI), which ranks top 30 developing countries for
retail investment worldwide, India has jumped 13
positions from last year to rank second, next only to
China. A pick-up in GDP growth and a better clarity
regarding FDI regulations have helped India achieve the
second ranking.
INDIA RANKS 7TH IN TOTAL WEALTH
According to the report by New World Wealth, India has
been ranked seventh in the list of top 10 wealthiest
countries in the world, with total individual wealth of
$5,200 billion. Total wealth is more because of large
population.
USA with total individual wealth of USD 48,700 billion is
at the top, followed by China and Japan.
INDIA 10TH IN ATTRACTING FDI
As per the World Investment Report 2016 by the United
Nations Conference for Trade and Development
(UNCTAD), India is the 10th largest receiver of FDI in the
world, with inflow of $44 billion in 2015. USA tops the
ranks by attracting $380 billion.
INDIA WORST IN HUMAN SLAVERY
According to the Global Slavery Index 2016 of 167
countries, India has largest number of people in modern
slavery, around 18.4 million people, accounting for
about 40 per cent of world’s slave population.
The modern slavery refers to practices like forced labour,
bonded labour, human trafficking, child labour and
exploitation of migrant workers in situations where a
person cannot leave because of threats, violence, coercion
and abuse of power or deception.
 General Prayut Chan-O-Cha, Prime Minister of
Thailand arrived in New Delhi for a three day visit to
India with a high level delegation.
 India signed two agreements with Thailand for
boosting cooperation in culture and educational
sectors.
 India and USA have signed an agreement for
exchange of terrorist screening information, in wake
of the recent terror attacks.
 A special commemorative silver coin was released by
the govt to mark the 300th martyrdom day of Sikh
General Banda Singh Bahadur.
 As a goodwill gesture, the US has returned over 200
stolen cultural artifacts to India, some dating back
2,000 years, valued at around $100 million.
 All India Radio celebrated completion of 80 years of
its existence on June 8. On this day in 1936, the
Indian State Broadcasting Service became All India
Radio.
 Ex-Cabinet Secretary T S R Subramanian submitted
its report on the New Education Policy to the Ministry
of HRD.
 Champaran Satyagrah Express train has been started
from Bapudham, Motihari (Bihar) to Anand Vihar,
Delhi.
 Gandhiji started his first Satyagrah in April 1917
from Champaran to support the cause of Indigo
growers of the region.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 4
 MoU signed with Switzerland for cooperation in the
fields of skills development and professional
education and training.
 Mumbai is the most expensive city in India though
ranked 82nd in world, according to the 2016 Cost of
Living Survey by Mercer of USA.
 Globally, Hong Kong topped the list of most
expensive cities.
MAY 2016
LODHA COMMITTEE TO REVIEW MCI
The Supreme Court has appointed a three-member
panel headed by former Chief Justice of India RM Lodha
to review the functions of the Medical Council of India -
the regulator of medical profession and education in
India.
SOLAR TRAIN TRIAL IN JODHPUR
The Indian Railways plans to conduct trial of its first
solar panel-powered train in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.
Though the train would be pulled by conventional
diesel-run engines, the solar energy will be used for
internal electricity gadgets.
INDIA HAS 248.8 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS
A latest release of the Census 2011 data shows that
there are total 248.8 million households in the country
of which 202.4 million are of Hindus, 31.2 million belong
to Muslims, 6.3 million belong to Christians, 4.1 million
of Sikhs and 1.9 million belong to Jains.
WORLD’s LARGEST AIRCRAFT LANDS IN INDIA
The world’s largest cargo aircraft, Ukraine’s Antonov AN
-225 Mriya — or the Dream, made its first landing in
India on May 13 at the Rajiv Gandhi International
Airport at Hyderabad. The wide body aircraft is
powered by six turbofan engines and is the longest and
heaviest airplane ever built, with a maximum takeoff
weight of 640 tonnes.
RAIL HUMSAFAR SAPTAAH
The Ministry of Railways launched Rail Humsafar
Saptaah from May 26 to June 1 to highlight significant
achievements made by Indian Railways in all spheres.
Every day of the week will be devoted to a particular
aspect of passenger service.
100 CR PENALTY FOR WRONG INDIA MAP
According to the draft 'The Geospatial Information
Regulation Bill 2016', wrong depiction of the map of
India could land the violators in jail with a maximum
term of seven years and fine up to Rs 100 crore.
4 INDIAN CITIES IN TOP 5 POLLUTED CITIES
Of the five cities in the world with the worst air
pollution, four are in India, says a report by the World
Health Organisation. These four cities are Ludhiana,
Khanna, Amritsar and Gobindgarh. The dirtiest air was
recorded at Zabol in Iran while Delhi was ranked at 9th
place.
 President Pranab Mukherjee visited China from May
24 to 27, starting his trip from the highly
industrialised Chinese city Guangzhou.
 President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena arrived in
New Delhi on May 13 for a two day visit.
 International Vichar Mahakumbh was held in Ujjain
in Madhya Pradesh from May 12 to 14.
 The H.R. Nagendra Committee on Yoga Education in
Universities has recommended seven programmes for
implementation in Indian universities.
 To mark the 155th birth anniversary of Rabindranath
Tagore, India organized a cultural festival in Cairo,
Egypt from May 8 to 12.
 A study by Assocham-KPMG shows that India is the
fifth largest producer of e-waste, discarding roughly
18.5 lakh metric tonnes of electronic waste each year.
 Govt has granted status of ‘classical language’ to six
languages - Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam,
Sanskrit and Odia.
APRIL 2016]
INDIA HOLDS MARITIME SUMMIT
The First Maritime India Summit was held in Goregaon,
Mumbai, from April 14 to 16 to focus on port based
economic growth of the country. India has a coastline of
over 7500 kms that offers vast opportunities for growth
oriented investment.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 5
AMBEDKAR JAYANTI AT UNO
For the first time, United Nations observed the birth
anniversary of Dr. B R Ambedkar on April 14 at its
headquarters in New York. It was organised by
Permanent Mission of India to the UN in association
with the Kalpana Saroj Foundation and Foundation for
Human Horizon to focus on the empowerment and
inclusion of excluded groups, reform of labour laws, and
promotion of education for all.
INDIA 6th IN MANUFACTURING
India has been ranked sixth among the world's Top-Ten
largest manufacturing countries. Previously, India was
9th rank in the United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO) report. China tops the list
followed by US, Japan, Germany and Korea. Indonesia
was at the bottom.
‘AADHAAR’ CROSSES HUNDRED CRORE MARK
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has
generated 100 crore Aadhaar numbers, touching a
“historic” milestone in a span of five-and-a-half years.
Aadhaar is now the largest digital platform in the world
for good governance and transparent delivery of
services of subsidies and services.
INDIA SIGNS PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT
India signed the historic Paris Climate Agreement at
United Nations in New York on April 22, along with 175
nations, marking a significant step ahead for combating
global warming.
In the agreement, all countries agreed to work to limit
global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius,
and to strive for 1.5 degrees Celsius.
RAJYA SABHA GETS 6 NEW MEMBERS
President nominated the six personalities from different
fields to the Rajya Sabha (House of Elders) following the
recommendations of the Central government. The six
persons include BJP leaders Subramanian Swamy and
Navjot Singh Sidhu and Narendra Jadhav, Malayalam
actor Suresh Gopi, journalist Swapan Dasgupta and
boxer Mary Kom.
President is empowered to nominate 12 prominent
persons from various walks of life to the Rajya Sabha.
INDIA SUFFERS HIGH TROJAN ATTACK
As per a report from the security solutions firm
Symantec, India ranks third among countries with high
number of financial Trojan infections, where
cybercriminals defraud customers of online banking
services.
Globally, the financial sector was the highest targeted
sector in January with 40.2 per cent of all spear-phishing
attacks.
GERMANY TO HELP IN ‘NAMAMI GANGE’
India has joined hands with Germany to attain pristine
status of Ganga by adopting river basin management
strategies used for cleansing German rivers like Rhine
and Danube, under the Indian mission ‘Namami Gange’.
APEX COURT ALLOWS NEET
The Supreme Court has allowed the holding of the
National Eligibility Entrance Test, NEET for medical
courses across the country. The top court set aside its
2013 order by which the common entrance test for
admissions to MBBS, BDS and PG courses in all medical
colleges was quashed.
TOP EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES OF INDIA
The HRD ministry released first-of-its-kind National
Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) for ranking the
higher education institutions in the country. Results of
the rankings are:
Top Management Institute: IIM Bangalore, followed
by IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta
Top Engineering Institute: IIT Chennai, followed by
IIT Mumbai and IIT Kharagpur.
Best University: The Indian Institute of Science,
Bangalore
Top Pharmacy Institute: Manipal College of Pharma-
ceutical Sciences, Manipal
W B LOAN FOR SWACHH BHARAT MISSION
World Bank has agreed to provide a $1.5 billion loan for
the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). SBM is the country's
largest-ever campaign to improve sanitation. It aims to
end open defecation and improve the management of
liquid and solid wastes.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 6
INDIA GETS FIRST LOAN FROM NDB
The newly started development bank by the global
group BRICS, New Development Bank – NDB has started
giving loans. India is among the first four countries to
get a loan. The $ 250 million loan will be routed through
the Canara Bank for a renewable energy project.
INDIA NOT SAFE FOR JOURNALISTS
A study of 180 countries by the Paris-based Reporters
Without Borders to study the functioning of journalists
has placed India at a lowly 133rdplace.
It says that media in India continues to be under stress
as the government is "indifferent" to threats against
scribes. They are attacked frequently for reports that
may not be palatable to particular groups. The 2016
‘World Press Freedom Index’ is topped by Finland,
followed by the Netherlands and Norway.
The index measures media pluralism, independence, the
legal framework and the safety of journalists in 180
countries.
MODI NOT IN WORLD TOP 100
RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, tennis star Sania Mirza,
actress Priyanka Chopra and founders of Flipkart Binny
Bansal and Sachin Bansal are the Indians that have been
named by Time magazine in its list of the '100 Most
Influential People in the World'. Surprisingly, Mr Modi
does not figure in the list.
 President Pranab Mukherjee went on a six-day trip to
Papua New Guinea and New Zealand on April 27.
 Britain’s Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton,
the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, visited India on
a week’s goodwill tour.
 India and France have launched a programme with
$1 trillion Potential Solar Programme under the
International Solar Alliance (ISA).
 India, Afghanistan and Iran have agreed for joint
work on development of Chabahar port in Iran.
 India and Mauritius have signed an MoU on
cooperation in the field of traditional system of
medicine and Homoeopathy.
 The first ever two day North East-ASEAN (Association
of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Summit was
inaugurated in Centre in Imphal, Manipur.
 3rd Asia Ministerial Conference on the Tiger
Conservation was held in New Delhi on April 12.
 First National Tribal Carnival held in Delhi from April
29 to May 02, 2016 to showcase and promote various
facets of tribal culture on a large scale.
 India and South Korea have signed a MoU for
cooperation and mutual assistance in port related
matters and their developments.
 India has signed an agreement with the Islamic
Development Bank for a $100 million line of credit to
facilitate exports to IDB's member countries.
 Govt has released a Commemorative Coin of 200
rupees and a Circulation Coin of 10 rupees to mark
the 200th Martyrdom Day of Tatya Tope, a war hero
of 1857 war of Independence.
 A statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh will be installed in
France's Saint-Tropez town in September this year.
The town is birth place of French General J F Allard
who served in the army of Maharaja.
NEWS FROM STATES
JUNE 2016
NAGPUR SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH JINAN
Nagpur and the Chinese city of Jinan (capital of
Shandong Province) have signed the agreement of
'sister cities' for the exchange of ideas and technology in
the field of education, urban planning, youth affairs, and
sports.
Kerala Tourism won four awards at ‘FilmAT’, one of
the biggest international film festivals dedicated to
tourism, art and ecology, held in Poland.
Andhra Pradesh has become the first State to have
obtained a telecom license from the Telecom Ministry.
Now the state can issue phone numbers starting with
the ‘797’ series from August this year.
Sikkim has become the first state in India to have an
open government data portal to facilitate free usage of
govt data by general public.
Maharashtra government has decided to celebrate the
21st of every month as Yoga Day across all schools,
colleges and universities in the state.
Odisha has become first state in the country to give
social welfare benefits - such as a pension, housing and
food grains to transgender people.
Lakshadweep has become first Union Territory in India
to assure 24x7 power to its residents.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 7
MAY 2016
5 STATES ELECT THEIR CHIEF MINISTER
Tamil Nadu: Jayalalitha reelected leading the AIADMK -
All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam.
West Bengal: Mamta Banerjee reelected leading the
Trinamool Congress.
Assam: Sarbananda Sonowal becomes the first BJP
Chief Minister.
Kerala: Pinarayi Vijayan of the CPI (M) led the left
democratic front – LDF to become the Chief Minister.
Puducherry: V. Narayanasamy of Congress elected as
the new Chief Minister.
The World’s largest Single Rooftop Solar Power
Plant with capacity of 11.5 MegaWatt (MW) has been
installed at Dera Baba Jaimal Singh of Radha Swamis at
Beas, in district Amritsar, Punjab.
 Madhya Pradesh Tourism has won the award for the
Best Indian Destination for Wildlife. The state has 25
wild life sanctuaries including nine National Parks.
 Rajasthan State Transport Corporation has launched
20 Nirbhaya buses with multiple safety measures to
better protect women passengers.
APRIL 2016
HOUSING SCHEME FOR WIDOWS
Jharkhand govt launched the Bhimrao Ambedkar Awas
Yojana for construction of houses for widows. The
beneficiaries will get Rs 75,000 support for constructing
houses in hilly areas and Rs. 70,000 in plain areas.
EDUCATION BAR FOR ULB SEATS
Any male person desiring to contest for Urban Local
Bodies in Haryana will now have to be matriculate and
have a functional toilet at home while a woman and a SC
candidate will be required to be at least 8th standard
pass. Minimum educational qualification for SC women
candidates will be 5th standard pass.
 The Uttar Pradesh government has directed all the
district magistrates for plantation of 5 crore trees at
6,500 sites in 24 hours on a date fixed in month of July
under the ‘Green UP - Clean UP’ programme.
 World’s maiden white tiger safari was opened up at
Mukundpur in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh. The
first whtite tiger was spotted in MP’s Vindhya region
in 1915. It is a rare breed of tiger, found only in India.
 Rajasthan has become the first state to pass land title
bill to verify land documents with landowners with
the state records.
 To promote the Swachh Bharat Mission, 20 ‘Namma’
toilets were established at different points in
Delhi. The mission targets to establish 2.56 lakh
public toilets by 2nd October 2017.
 Bihar has become the fourth state in the country to
ban sale and consumption of liquor. The other three
states are Mizoram, Nagaland and Gujarat.
 The European Investment Bank has agreed to give
Euro 450 million (Rs. 3,300 crore) towards
constructing a 23-km long Lucknow Metro rail line.
 Germany’s Development Bank KfW will provide loan
assistance of 3750 crore rupees for the development
of metro system for Nagpur city.
 Asian Development Bank has approved a project loan
of $300 million for upgradation of over 400 km of
major district roads in Uttar Pradesh.
GOVERNMENT
INITIATIVES
JUNE 2016
SMART CITY PROJECT LAUNCHED IN PUNE
Prime Minister Modi formally launched the ‘Smart City
Project’ in Pune Maharashtra. Total 69 Smart City
projects will be launched in 20 cities with a total
investment of about Rs. 1,770 crore.
These projects are related to solid waste management,
water supply projects, sewage treatment plants, housing
projects for urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas
Yojana.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 8
NEW AVIATION POLICY NOTIFIED
Government has approved the National Civil Aviation
Policy 2016, capping fares at Rs 2,500 for one-hour
flights and Rs 1200 for flights up to 30 minutes. It also
waived the 5/20 norm for new airlines to fly abroad.
The 5/20 Rule says that an airline can fly to international
destinations only if it has served within the country for
five years and has a 20-aircraft fleet.
AADHAAR TO BE LINKED WITH STUDENTS
Government has asked all state governments to link
Aadhaar number with caste and domicile certificates of
school students studying either in Class V or VIII. This is
to ensure that the scholarships to the SC/ST students
are granted in time without any harassment.
DLAMC TO MONITOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT
To promote people centric planning, execution and
monitoring of new urban development schemes, govt
has approved setting up of District Level Advisory and
Monitoring Committees with the elected representatives
of the people across the country. Senior most MP of the
area will head the committee.
‘VIDYANJALI’ TO SUPPORT GOVT SCHOOLS
To boost community participation in government
schools, HRD Ministry has launched Vidyanjali scheme
inviting volunteers to hold public speaking, storytelling,
acting sessions and participate in other co-scholastic
activities.
NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT PLAN
India’s first ever NDM plan, which aims to make the
country disaster resilient and reduce loss of lives was
released on June 1. The plan is based on the four priority
themes of the “Sendai Framework.”
PPF WITHDRAWAL ALLOWED AFTER 5 YEARS
The Finance Ministry has allowed the subscribers of the
Public Provident Fund (PPF) to prematurely close their
account after completing five years for reasons such as
higher education or expenditure towards medical
treatment.
THE UNION MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS has launched
three passenger service initiatives namely- a Janani
Sewa for mothers, optional catering in Rajdhani and
Shatabdi trains, and a children’s menu on trains.
DELEGATION POWERS OF MINISTERS HIKED
Making changes in the delegation of financial power
rules, 1978, the Finance Ministry has advised that now
the Ministers can approve non-plan expenditure
proposals of up to Rs. 500 crore as against the earlier
limit of Rs. 150 crore.
Proposals up to Rs. 75 crore can be approved by the
secretary of the administrative ministry or department.
Proposals beyond 500 crore and up to 1,000 crore rupees
shall be sanctioned jointly with Finance minister.
Proposals exceeding 1000 crore will be sanctioned by the
Union Cabinet.
‘SURYA MITRA’ APP FOR SOLAR ENERGY
Government has launched a GPS based mobile app
named ‘Surya Mitra’ developed by National Institute of
Solar Energy to facilitate repair and maintenance of
solar equipments, awareness about availability of solar
power capacities and other related issues. The app will
be supported by the trained ‘Surya Mitras’ to support
the users of the app.
IRCTC LAUNCHES ‘TIGER EXPRESS’
Indian Railway Catering
and Tourism Corporation –
IRCTC launched a special
tourist train - Tiger
Express to spread
awareness among people
regarding tiger
conservation. It will take
tourists to various Tiger Parks on a six day trip.
 TRAI has launched a mobile app for telecom
subscribers to register their complaints against pesky
calls and SMSs to tighten the noose on telemarketers.
 Govt has decided to enhance the age of retirement of
all doctors of the Central Health Service to 65 years
with immediate effect.
 Railway has started India's first timetabled freight
train, named ‘Cargo Express’, from Delhi to
Bengaluru.
 Government has launched a pilot programme to run
two-wheelers on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in
New Delhi to curb air pollution in cities.
 The government has exempted PF withdrawals of up
to Rs. 50,000 from tax deduction at source.
 Government has launched a campaign ‘Swachh Yug’
to make villages located along Ganga free from open
defecation by motivating people to achieve this goal.
 Govt plans to raise a new Indian Reserve Police
Battalion in Rajasthan named after Maharana
Pratap, the great Rajput warrior of Mewar region.
 Govt has sanctioned Rs. 10,000 crore 'Fund of Funds
for Startups' to boost self-employment in the country
by supporting the ‘Startup India Action Plan’.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 9
MAY 2016
MULTILINGUAL PORTAL ‘BHARATAVANI’
Ministry of HRD has launched the portal ‘Bharatavani’ -
the largest online repository of dictionaries in India. It
is a single point source for multiple language learning,
content and technology in 22 scheduled languages,
which eventually will be extended to 100 more
languages.
NATIONAL IPR POLICY ANNOUNCED
The govt has approved the National Intellectual
Property Rights (IPR) policy with a view to promoting
creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. The policy
aims to push IPRs as a marketable financial asset,
promote innovation and entrepreneurship.
‘UJJWALA’ TO GIVE LPG TO BPL FAMILIES
The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) was
formally launched by the Prime Minister at Ballia, Uttar
Pradesh. The scheme aims to provide cooking gas
connections to five crore below-poverty-line
beneficiaries over the next three years. The connections
will be given in the name of women beneficiary.
UJALA SCHEME LAUNCHED FOR LED BULBS
Union Minister of State for Energy and Coal Piyush
Goyal formally launched the energy-efficient LED bulbs
distribution scheme UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable
LEDs for All) at Bhopal for the state of Madhya Pradesh
and Maharashtra.
The scheme aims to replace all the conventional bulbs
with the LED bulbs for reducing drastically power
consumption and emission of carbon gasses.
PORTAL LAUNCHED FOR SCHOOL STUDENTS
The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development
(HRD) has decided to launch ASMITA, an online student
tracking system for 25 crore students of India from class
I to XII. ASMITA is acronym for All School Monitoring
Individual Tracing Analysis and shall be launched under
Shala Asmita Yojana (SAY).
COMMITTEE TO REVIEW FRBM
Govt has constituted a five Member Committee headed
by former Revenue and Expenditure Secretary N.K.
Singh to comprehensively review and give
recommendations on the Fiscal Responsibility and
Budget Management (FRBM) road map for the future.
NITI AAYOG TO LAUNCH 15 YEAR PLAN
Govt has decided to replace the five year plans with 15
year vision documents. The NITI Aayog has been
directed to prepare a vision document for this purpose.
It will be implemented after the 12th five year plan
which is ending in March, 2017.
UNIQUE BUSINESS IDENTIFICATION NUMBER
The Government plans to issue a UBIN for budding
entrepreneurs to start up their new businesses without
any delay. The number will be issued by the
Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion.
LOK SABHA PASSES BANKRUPTCY BILL
The Lok Sabha has passed the Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Code Bill 2016. The bill aims to improve
conditions for ‘Ease of Doing Business’.
Broadly speaking, Insolvency is a financial
situation where a person or business entity is not in a
position to repay its debts. When this status is confirmed
by courts, it is called Bankruptcy, a legal status.
SINGLE EMERGENCY NUMBER - 112
Govt has approved the single emergency number ‘112’
to help people access directly emergency services like
police, ambulance and fire fighting. The number will be
operational throughout India from January 1, 2017.
COMMITTEE FOR TAXI OPERATORS
The Union Government has constituted a committee
headed by Sanjay Mitra, Secretary of Union Ministry of
Road Transport & Highways to prepare a policy
framework for taxi and other transport operators.
 A Parliamentary Standing Committee headed by J C
Divakar Reddy, MP has been formed to tackle
misleading advertising as well as to fix liability
on endorsers/celebrities.
 Parliament has passed two Bills- The Appropriation
Acts (Repeal) Bill 2015 and The Repealing and
Amending (Third) Bill, 2015 to repeal outdated 1053
old laws which had become redundant legislations.
 The trial run of India's first ever Metro train equipped
to run in the driverless mode was conducted in New
Delhi on May 18 by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 10
 Union Cabinet has approved a national policy on
capital goods which aims at creating more than 2
crore new jobs and tripling the production of capital
goods to Rs 7.5 lakh crore by 2025.
 The Department of Empowerment of Persons with
Disabilities will now be known as 'Divyangjan'
Sashaktikaran Vibhag in Hindi, dropping the word
'viklangjan' from its previous nomenclature.
 Govt has constituted the Investor Education and
Protection Fund Authority to strengthen the
framework for safeguarding the interest of investors.
 The Income Tax department has launched an
electronic grievance redressal system named ‘e-
nivaran’ to fast track taxpayers’ complaints..
 Government has selected 13 more cities for the smart
cities mission. The list is topped by Lucknow. Already
20 cities have been selected for this mission.
 Moving towards environment friendly solutions,
Prime Minister Modi launched e-rickshaws and solar
powered boats in Varanasi.
 EPFO has decided to increase benefits under the
Employees' Deposit Linked Insurance scheme from Rs
3.60 lakh to Rs 6 lakh.
APRIL 2016
PROGRAMME FOR VILLAGE UPLIFTMENT
The ‘Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’ (Village Self
Governance Campaign) was launched on April 14, the
125th Birth anniversary of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar,
to strengthen Panchayati Raj in villages, empowerment
of women and upliftment of farmers. The
campaign concluded on April 24.
25 MINISTRIES JOIN IMPRINT INITIATIVE
25 Ministries and Departments of the Union
Government signed a MoU to join IMPacting Research
Innovation and Technology (IMPRINT) initiative. It was
launched on 5 November 2015 to establish a single
window mechanism to shortlist research projects by
leading research and technology institutes.
'VIDYUT PRAVAH' FOR 24X7 POWER SUPPLY
Govt has launched the mobile application 'Vidyut
Pravah' to empower common people to demand 24x7
power from the State. The app will provide the
highlights of the electricity availability in the country on
the real time basis.
INDIA’s FIRST SEMI-HIGH SPEED TRAIN
The Nizamuddin-Agra Gatimaan Express that started on
April 5 is the first semi-high speed train in India. It will
run at a speed of 160 kilometer per hour and is expected
to cover the 200 km distance between Delhi and Agra in
100 minutes.
COMMITTEE FOR DOUBLING OF FARM INCOMES
Govt has set up a committee headed by Ashok Dalwai,
Additional Secretary at the Agriculture Ministry to
suggest ways to double farm incomes by 2022. The
committee will focus on finding the means for
enhancing productivity and reducing costs of
cultivation.
STAND-UP INDIA LOAN SCHEME LAUNCHED
Govt has launched the Stand-up India scheme to give a
push to financial inclusion programme. Under the
scheme, 1.25 lakh bank branches will provide loans up
to 1 crore rupees to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs.
The scheme will help in creating 2.5 lakh entrepreneurs as
every bank branch will be required to provide two such
loans ranging from 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore without
collateral, for setting up a new enterprise.
3RD PHASE OF ‘MISSION INDRADHANUSH’
The Union Health Ministry launched third phase of
universal vaccination programme Mission
Indradhanush to cover 216 districts across several
States including Bihar, Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
Under the mission, the children are vaccinated against
seven preventable diseases.
‘PANIC BUTTON’ MUST FOR MOBILE PHONES
In a bid to improve women security, the government has
made it mandatory that no mobile can be sold
in India without an in-built panic button, starting
January 1, 2017. Besides, in-built GPS navigation system
would be mandatory for all phones with effect from
January 1, 2018.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 11
GOVT LAUNCHES ‘ANMOL’ AND ‘E-RAKTKOSH
Govt has launched a tablet-based application ‘ANMOL’
that allows ANMs (Auxiliary Nurse Midwife) to enter
and update data for the beneficiaries.
Another web-based mechanism launched is ‘E-
RaktKosh’ that interconnects all the Blood Banks of the
State into a single network.
E- MARKET LAUNCHED FOR FARM PRODUCE
To facilitate online trading of commodities in 21
markets from 8 states, an E-National Agriculture Market
was launched on April 14, 125th birth anniversary of Dr.
B R Ambedkar. The eight states are Haryana, UP, MP,
Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, HP and Telangana.
ISBN PORTAL LAUNCHED
The Union HRD Minster Smriti Irani launched a portal
for registration and allotment of International Standard
Book Number (ISBN) at a function held in New Delhi.
The portal will facilitate publishers and authors to
register for ISBN online. It is a 13 character
identification number allotted by International ISBN
Agency based in UK.
INDIA TO JOIN ‘SAWEN’
Union cabinet has approved India’s formal membership
of the regional group Sawen.
SAWEN (South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network) is a
regional network comprising of eight countries in South
Asia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives,
Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka for combating wildlife
crime and illegal trade in the region.
I P PORTAL LAUNCHED FOR SMEs
The government has launched a portal ‘The Indian IP
Panorama’ which will act as a single window interface
for information on intellectual property and provide
guidance on leveraging it for competitive advantage. It is
a customised version of IP Panorama Multimedia toolkit,
developed by World Intellectual Property Organisation
(WIPO).
The Indian IP Panorama has 5 modules: (i) Importance of
IP for SMEs, (ii) Trademark, (iii) Industrial design, (iv)
Invention and Patent and (v) Patent Information.
RULES FOR PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES
Union Government notified the Scheduled Castes (SC)
and the Scheduled Tribes (ST) (Prevention of Atrocities
(PoA)) Amendment Rules, 2016 to enlarge scope of
rules to cover several more violations against SC/ST
persons as cognizable offences.
 Govt has launched its first online interactive heritage
portal Sahapedia to serve as one point resource for
collaborative knowledge on the arts, culture and
heritage of India.
 The Department of Disinvestment has been renamed
as Department of Investment and Public Asset
Management or 'Dipam' under the Finance Ministry.
 Railways to create a 1 lakh crore rupees ‘Rashtriya
Rail Sanrakshan Kosh’ to strengthen safety measures
on the rail network to prevent accidents.
 Govt has launched a Twitter Seva Service, a special
Twitter cell to respond to queries from start-ups,
exporters and importer, within 48 to 72 hours.
 The ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ programme has been
extended to 61more districts with low Child Sex Ratio
across 11 States/UTs. Already there in 100 districts.
 Govt has decided to increase minimum wages of
contract workers to Rs 10,000 taking into
consideration the CPI and Dearness Allowance.
 Govt plans to construct five lakh ponds under
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana by next year.
 Govt has formed a committee headed by former
Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta to suggest ways to
improve protection along the Pakistan border.
 Union government plans to lay more emphasis on
promoting Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and
Events (MICE) tourism in India.
 Govt has launched a low cost micro solar
device, Surya Jyoti, to light up homes without
electricity and save millions of units of power.
 Govt has issued a new set of income tax return forms
that require people with an income of Rs 50 lakh and
above per annum to disclose their assets.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 12
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
JUNE 2016
GDP GROWTH RATE JUMPS TO 7.9%
Data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO)
shows that the economy grew at an accelerated pace of
7.9% in the fourth quarter of 2015-16, taking the overall
GDP growth to a five-year high of 7.6% for the year
ended March 31, 2016.
India’s per capita income rose by 7.4% to Rs 93,293 in
2015-16 from Rs 86,879 in 2014-15.
 The industrial production as measured by IIP
contracted 0.8% in April, dragged down by a sharp
plunge in production of capital goods and consumer
wares.
 Growth in the country's 8 core sectors surged to an
over four-year high of 8.5 per cent in April mainly due
to good growth in refinery products and electricity.
MAY 2016
INDIA POISED TO GROW BY 8%
In its latest Global Economic outlook, Fitch Ratings, USA
has said that it expects India's real GDP growth to rise to
8 percent by 2018-19, from 7.9 percent in 2017-18 and
7.7 percent in 2016-17 driven by the gradual
implementation of structural reforms, higher disposable
income and improvement in economic activity.
UN REPORT PUTS INDIA’S GROWTH AT 7.3%
A UN report ‘The World Economic Situation and
Prospect’ says that notwithstanding delays in domestic
policy reforms, India’s economy is “slowly gaining
momentum” and is projected to grow by 7.3 per cent
this year and is expected to achieve a growth of 7.5 per
cent in 2017.
IMF KEEPS INDIA’s GROWTH RATE AT 7.5%
The IMF has retained its growth forecast for India at
7.5% for the year 2016-17, largely driven by private
consumption even as weak exports and sluggish credit
growth weigh on the economy. It said structural
reforms, including GST and in areas like land and labour,
will be the key to boost India’s economic growth.
 Global rating agency, Moody's has forecast a growth
rate of about 7.5 percent for the Indian economy in
2016 and 2017, driven largely by private
consumption growth.
APRIL 2016
RBI MAINTAINS GROWTH RATE AT 7.6%
The Reserve Bank in its first policy review of the year
expects the economy to grow by 7.6 per cent in the
current fiscal on the back of favourable monsoon,
slightly lower than the upper end of government’s
projected rate of 7-7.75 per cent.
ADB PUTS INDIA’s GROWTH AT 7.6 %
With the failure of the government to push through the
Goods and Services Tax and the Land and Labour
Reforms, the Asian Development Bank has lowered
India’s growth forecast to 7.4 per cent from an earlier
estimate of 7.6 per cent for the financial year ending
March 31, 2017.
“NO BPL POPULATION BY 2032” - KANT
In a presentation made by Niti Aayog Chief Executive
Officer Amitabh Kant, it was stated that India will
achieve growth of 10% by 2032 to become a $10-trillion
economy, creating 175 million jobs and leading to zero
per cent of Below Poverty Line (BPL) population.
ECONOMY & INDUSTRY
JUNE 2016
MSP HIKED FOR KHARIF CROPS
On the recommendations of Commission for
Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), government has
hiked the minimum support price (MSP) of pulses by up
to Rs 425 per quintal for the coming season 2016-17,
effective from Oct 1, 2016.
Crop Rs/qtl hike
Paddy–common 1470 60
Paddy–grade A 1510 60
Jowar 1625 55
Bajra 1330 55
Maize 1365 40
Tuar daal 5050 425
Moong daal 5225 375
Urad 5000 375
Groundnut 4220 190
Sunflower 3950 150
Sesamum 5000 300
Cotton 3860 60
The MSP is the assured rate at which the government
buys the grain from farmers. Paddy is the main crop
grown in the kharif (summer) season.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 13
NEW AVENUES FOR 100% FDI
With an aim to give impetus to job creation and ease of
doing business in the country, Government has
approved 100 per cent FDI in Aviation, Defence and e-
commerce sectors under the government approval
route.
RAJASVA GYAN SANGAM HELD IN DELHI
A high level summit of the top brass of the two revenue
collection arms of the government—CBDT and CBEC
was held in New Delhi by the name ‘Rajasva Gyan
Sangam’. Addressing the summit, Prime Minster Modi
appealed the officers to widen the tax payers base to 10
crore.
WORLD BANK FUNDING FOR CITY TRANSPORT
The World Bank has agreed to provide a $ 9.2 million
grant for financing the Efficient and Sustainable City Bus
Service Project in selected Indian cities like Chandigarh,
Jaipur and Mira Bhayandar in Thane, Maharashtra.
PURCHASES OF OVER 2 LAKH TO ATTRACT TCS
Payment in cash for buying goods and services worth
more than Rs 2 lakh with the exception of jewellery will
attract 1 per cent tax collected at source (TCS) wef June
1. In case of jewellery, the cut off is at Rs 5 lakh and
over Rs 2 lakh for bullion.
SERVICES TO COST MORE WEF JUNE 1
The Krishi Kalyan Cess of 0.5 per cent on the service tax,
announced by Finance Minister in the current budget,
became effective from June 1. The consumers will now
have to pay an extra 50 paise per Rs 100 or Rs 5 per Rs
1,000 spent on any taxable item like various utility bills,
parlours, restaurants, AC rail tickets, etc.
TRIAL RUN OF HIGH SPEED TALGO TRAIN
Trial of the lighter and faster Spanish train Talgo, with
speed up to 115 km per hour, was conducted between
Bareilly and Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh as part of the
Railways' strategy to increase the speed of trains.
LOANS GRANTED BY ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK
Loan
amount
(in $
million)
Granted to Purpose
120 Odisha to improve irrigation and water
management infrastructure
100 Tamil
Nadu
to strengthen and improve water
management in the Vennar sub-
basin of Cauvery Delta
200 Jharkhand to upgrade 176-kms of rural roads
500 Bihar to build a 9.8 km long bridge
(longest in India) across the
Ganges River
 The Japan International Cooperation Agency has
granted a loan of Rs. 1,548 crore to Tamil Nadu for
improving the quality of urban healthcare services.
 Work has started on the 'Jal Marg Vikas' (National
Waterway-1) for developing a 1620 km waterway
between Allahabad and Haldia in West Bengal.
 Railways have started a new weekly train from
Kamakhya (Seat of Black Magic), Assam to Vaishno
Devi Katra (J&K), linking the prominent pilgrimage
centers.
 The Nuclear Power Corporation of India and the US
firm Westinghouse have agreed to begin engineering
work for six nuclear power plant reactors in India.
 India has surpassed Japan to become the world’s
third-largest oil consumer, consuming 4.1 million bpd
in 2015, after USA and China. Bpd= barrels per day
 To promote and facilitate South Korean Investments
in India, the two countries have launched a joint
forum named ‘Korea Plus’.
MAY 2016
WB LOAN FOR ROOFTOP SOLAR POWER
The World Bank has approved $625 million loan to
India to support the rooftop solar power generation
across the country. The project will be implemented
through the State Bank of India, which will on-lend the
funds to solar photovoltaic developers and end-users.
FSSAI BANS USE OF POTASSIUM BROMATE
After the alert raised by the Centre for Science and
Environment (CSE) that 84 per cent of the 38 popular
brands of breads contained cancer-causing chemicals,
the Food Safety and Standards Association of India
(FSSAI) has recommended banning Potassium Bromate
as a food additive.
PRESIDENT HONOURS EXPORTERS
President Pranab Mukherjee presented Niryat Shree
and Niryat Bandhu Awards in New Delhi to honour
exporters for their excellent business achievements.
Both Awards were instituted by the Federation of Indian
Export Organization (FIEO) in the year 1995-96 with the
aim to motivate exporters.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 14
INDIA RANKS 9TH IN ‘CRONY CAPITALISM’
A study by the leading financial magazine, The
Economist shows that in terms of ‘crony capitalism’,
India is ranked at ninth position with crony sector
wealth accounting for 3.4 per cent of the GDP. Russia
tops the list where wealth from the country's crony
sectors amounts to 18 per cent of its GDP.
Crony capitalism is a kind of economy where success in
business depends on close relationships between business
people and government officials as the later shower
favours on the selected few corporates.
‘DHAN WAPSI’ SCHEME wef JUNE 1
The govt has announced The Income Declaration
Scheme, 2016 – ‘Dhan Wapsi’, an amnesty scheme for
declaring domestic black money, from June 1 till Sep 30.
Individuals willing to declare their black money in the
country will have to pay tax and a penalty, totalling 45
per cent.
INCOME TAX DATA MADE PUBLIC
In a landmark development towards greater
transparency, the income tax department has released
its key data, though after a lapse of 16 years. Taxpayers
account for just about one per cent of India's population.
Total income tax collections in 2015-16 were 2.86 lakh
crore rupees.
NEW DTAA SIGNED WITH MAURITIUS
India and Mauritius have signed a protocol amending
the double tax avoidance arrangement between the two
countries. Now India gets the right to tax capital gains
on investments routed through Mauritius, from April 1,
2017.
 MMTC has launched in collaboration with Swiss gold
company Pamp, a new gold coin ‘Tola’ of 11.6639
grams on the occasion of ‘Akshya Tritya’, May 9.
 World Bank has agreed to provide $ 100 million loan
to support ‘Karnataka Urban Water Supply
Modernization project’.
 The Tata Group has made a foray into the e-
commerce market through TataCLiQ.com to sell
apparel, electronics and footwear, etc.
 India and Slovenia have signed a protocol to amend
the double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA) to
include exchange of information to curb tax evasion.
 Union cabinet has approved Rs.1,983 crore package
for widening of the 19-km stretch between Delhi-
Uttar Pradesh border of the Delhi-Meerut
Expressway.
APRIL 2016
COMPANIES TO OBSERVE IFRS NORMS
Companies with a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more
will have to follow new Indian Accounting Standards
(Ind AS) from April 1. The new standards have been
converged with the globally followed International
Financial Reporting Standards - IFRS.
BLACKSTONE ENTERS INDIA
In one of the largest private equity deals in the IT
industry, Blackstone, the New York based MNC in
investment and financial services has signed a deal to
buy 60.5 per cent stake in Mphasis, a Bengaluru based
IT services major.
INDIA TOPS IN INWARD REMITTANCES
As per a recent World Bank report, India remained the
world's largest remittance recipient in 2015 despite
experiencing a one billion US dollar drop from the
previous year, attracting $69 billion, followed by China
at $64 billion.
 India has offered to invest up to $20 billion in new
petrochemicals, fertiliser and liquefied natural gas
(LNG) facilities in Iran and sought land and cheaper
natural gas for this.
 The Shan-E-Punjab Express, country’s first train with
CCTV cameras in all coaches, for safety of passengers,
started from Delhi for Amritsar.
 The Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd. has become the number
one coal producer in the country by producing a
record 137.90 million tonne of coal in 2015-16.
 The East Coast Railway has become the largest
Freight Loading Railway Zone in 2015-16 with
handling of 173.49 million tonnes of freight.
 The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has launched a
new index Nifty Mid Smallcap 400 representing 150
midcap and 250 small cap companies.
 Govt. has extended safeguard duty of 20 per cent on
steel imports till March 2018 to protect Indian
industry from cheap China steel
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 15
BANKING & FINANCE
JUNE 2016
CABINET NOD FOR INDIA POST BANK
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for setting up
the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) as a Public Ltd
Company under the Department of Posts.
Bank’s 100% equity will be held by the Government of
India. The Bank is likely to get license from RBI by March
2017 and plans to operationalise 650 branches by
September 2017.
RBI AIMS AT ‘LESS-CASH’ INDIA
RBI has released the ‘Payment and Settlement Systems
in India: Vision-2018’ that aims at building best of class
payment and settlement systems for a ‘less-cash’ India
and ensuring access of mobile banking services to even
basic phone users. The document focuses on 5 Cs -
coverage, convenience, confidence, convergence and
cost.
SCHEME FOR HIGH VALUE BAD LOANS
RBI has announced the Scheme for Sustainable
Structuring of Stressed Assets, S4A, to handle the high
value bad loans. Under the scheme, a portion of the debt
will be converted into equity under supervision of
Indian Banks Association. The scheme will be applicable
to those projects which have started commercial
operations and have outstanding loan of over 500 crore
rupees.
NRIs ALLOWED TO OPEN NPS ACCOUNTS
Government has allowed non resident Indians (NRIs) to
open National Pension Scheme (NPS) accounts online if
they have Aadhaar Card or PAN card. Till now, NRIs
could open NPS accounts only through paper
applications by approaching Bank offices.
SBI TO MERGE ASSOCIATE BANKS
The Union Cabinet has approved the merger of State
Bank of India (SBI) and its five subsidiaries — State
Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore,
State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Mysore and State
Bank of Hyderabad.
The merged entity will create a banking behemoth, which
can compete with the largest in the world with an asset
base of almost Rs 37 trillion, 22,500 branches and 58,000
ATMs as on December 2015.
AXIS BANK LAUNCHED ‘GREEN BONDS’
Axis Bank raised $500 million at the London Stock
Exchange after it launched India’s first internationally-
listed certified green bond to finance climate change
solutions around the world.
Green bonds are the one where funds raised are used
exclusively for renewable energy projects or some other
clean energy project.
 Latest RBI data shows that banking transactions
through mobile apps have increased seven-fold in
three years, between 2013 and 2016.
 RBI plans to put into circulation Rs.10 coins bearing
the portrait of Swami Chinmayananda to
commemorate his birth centenary.
MAY 2016
BANKS ASKED TO SHIFT TO EVM CARDS
The Reserve Bank of India has instructed banks to shift
from magnetic stripe based ATM and debit cards to EMV
chip and Pin based cards to ensure protection of cards
from cloning, skimming and other forms of frauds which
can happen on a magnetic strip.
WILFUL DEFAULTERS OWE Rs. 66,190 CRORE
As per a written statement made in Rajya Sabha by
Union Minister of state for Finance, there were 7,686
wilful defaulters owing Rs 66,190 crore to state-owned
banks as of December 2015.
The cumulative gross NPAs of 24 listed public sector
banks, including SBI group, stood at Rs.3,93,035 crore as
on 31 December 2015.
As per RBI, an asset becomes non-performing when it
ceases to generate income for the bank or the repayment
due is delayed for more than 90 days.
INDIA’s FIRST ‘MOBILE ONLY’ BANK
The DBS, Singapore's largest bank, has launched India’s
first mobile only bank named ‘digibank’. It uses
technologies such as bio metrics and artificial
intelligence, to enable paperless, signature less and
branch less banking.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 16
NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK SELECTS ICICI
The ICICI bank has become the first financial institution
in the country to be selected by the BRICS’s New
Development Bank to explore opportunities around
bond issuance, co-financing, treasury management and
human resources in India.
 Union Bank of India has launched e-SBTR (Electronic
Secured Bank Treasury Receipt), a single window
facility for payment of both - stamp duty and
registration fee for home purchase in Maharashtra
 Saudi Arabia based Islamic Development Bank has
announced to open its first branch in India at
Ahmadabad, Gujarat to offer interest free banking
services as per the Muslim law – Shariat.
 UK based banking giant, HSBC Holding Plc has
decided to close its 24 branches in India, out of total
50.
 The RBI has released ‘Draft Guidelines for on tap
Licensing of Universal Banks in the Private Sector’ to
receive comments / suggestions from the public.
 A commemorative coin of 100 rupees and a
circulation coin of ten rupees have been released on
the 475th birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap.
APRIL 2016
REPO RATE LOWERED TO 6.50%
The RBI announced a 25 basis cut in its policy interest
rate on April 5, lowering it to more than five-year low.
The new repo rate now stands at 6.50 per cent.
However, the reverse repo rate has been hiked by 25
basis points to 6 per cent. The new Marginal Standing
Facility and Bank Rate stand at 7.00 percent.
BANKS ADOPT MCLR FOR LOWER RATES
Short-term working capital loans are set to get cheaper
as banks start adopting the marginal cost of funds-based
lending rate (MCLR) from 1 April. The new framework
requires banks to set rates based on their marginal cost
of funds rather than their average cost of funds. MCLR is
expected to improve transmission of policy rate cuts to
bank loan rates.
INDIA’s FIRST PAYMENTS BANK
Airtel M Commerce Services Limited (AMSL), a
subsidiary of Bharti Airtel (Airtel) has been granted
the India’s first payments bank license by RBI. The
company already offers mobile money services under
the brand name ‘Airtel Money’.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 17
DEFENCE, SCIENCE
& TECHNOLOGY
JUNE 2016
FIRST WOMEN FIGHTER JET PILOTS
The Indian Air Force crossed another milestone on June
18 when for the first time three women fighter jet pilots
- Bhawana Kanth, Avani Chaturvedi and Mohana Singh -
were commissioned in the operations in Air Force.
DEAL OKAYED FOR 145 ARTILLERY GUNS
Ministry of Defence has approved the purchase of 145
artillery guns meant especially for deployment in the
Himalayas by the upcoming Mountain Strike Corps of
the Indian Army. The 155 MM, M777 ultra light
howitzer (ULH) will be supplied by The BAE systems of
USA and will be assembled in India in collaboration with
Mahindra Defence Systems.
BRAHMOS INTEGRATED WITH SUKHOI-30
BrahMos Aerospace successfully tested the integration
of the supersonic cruise missile system BRAHMOS on
the supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30. This is for the
first time in the world that a supersonic cruise missile
has been integrated with a supersonic fighter aircraft.
 Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 (HTT-40), the two-
seater basic trainer aircraft designed and developed
by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited made its
inaugural flight successfully.
 It will be used for the first-stage training for all flying
cadets of the three services.
 Govt has taken a considered decision to allow export
of 'Akaash' missile systems to 'certain' countries that
have friendly relationship with India.
 Exercise Desert Eagle II was held between Indian
Air Force and United Arab Emirates Air Force in Abu
Dhabi in last week of May.
 India has joined The Hague Code of Conduct against
Ballistic Missile Proliferation, a voluntary legally non-
binding multilateral body in Vienna, for preventing
the spread of ballistic missiles.
 A joint military exercise named ‘Malabar’ was held
between the naval forces of India, Japan and the US
off the Okinawa coast in Japan.
 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization members
and partners launched their biggest ever joint
military exercise in Poland, named Anaconda-16
Exercise.
 Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s largest annual security
meet held in Singapore to discuss the security issues
in the Asia-Pacific region.
ISRO LAUNCHES RECORD 20 SATELLITES
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) created
a record on June 22 by launching 20 satellites in one go,
including 17 foreign ones, using its flagship rocket Polar
Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C34 from the Satish
Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikotta.
NEW RICE VARIETIES DEVLOPED
Researchers at Assam Agricultural University have
developed two rice varieties, namely Ranjit Sub-1 and
Bahadur Sub-1 that can be grown successfully even in
submerged conditions that are frequent in Assam due to
common flash floods.
CHINA HAS WORLD’s FASTEST COMPUTER
Chinese supercomputer Sunway TaihuLight has been
declared as the world’s fastest supercomputer,
achieving a speed of up to 93 petaflop/second. The
selection was made by the International
Supercomputing Conference held in Frankfurt,
Germany.
MICROSOFT TO ACQUIRE ‘LINKEDIN’
In one of the largest acquisitions in the social media
space, Microsoft has announced to acquire professional
networking website LinkedIn for $26.2 billion. LinkedIn
with its over 430 million users will retain its distinct
brand, culture and independence.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 18
FIRST ANIMAL TO BE DECLARED ‘EXTINCT’
A small rodent (rat) named the Bramble Cay
Melomys found only on a single island off Australia
is the world's first mammal to be declared as extinct
as none of them has been sighted by the locals after
2009.
Main reason for this is the abnormal rise in sea level
due to global warming, submerging parts of Bramble
Cay Island
 China launched its 23rd satellite to support its global
navigation and positioning network- BeiDou
Navigation Satellite System.
 Google has tied up with Tata Trusts to launch
‘Internet Saathi’ programme to empower rural
women by enabling them to use Internet in their daily
lives.
 Russia launched the world’s biggest nuclear
icebreaker ship 22220 Arktika. It has a two-reactor
power unit of 175 MW with a displacement of 33,540
tonnes.
 US scientists team has created the world's first
microchip that has 1,000 processors and is thought to
be the fastest chip designed in a university lab.
 Asia’s largest technology trade show COMPUTEX
started in Taipei, capital of Taiwan on May 31. More
than 1,600 companies from 30 countries took part.
MAY 2016
NAVAL EXERCISE WITH ASEAN FORCES
The ADMM-Plus (ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting
Plus) Exercise on Maritime Security and Counter
Terrorism (Ex MS & CT) was held in Brunei. The nine
day naval exercise aims to strengthen the strong
bilateral ties and extensive maritime interactions
between India and ASEAN countries.
INDIA TEST FIRES ANTI-BALLASTIC MISSILE
India successfully test-fired its indigenously developed
supersonic interceptor missile, capable of
destroying any incoming hostile ballistic missile. The
Advance Air Defence (AAD) missile dubbed as Ashwin
was fired from the Adbul Kalam Island (formerly known
as Wheeler Island), off the Odisha coast.
IAF LAUNCHES E-MAINTENANCE SYSTEM
Indian Air Force launched an Electronic Maintenance
Management System (e-MMS), one of the biggest
automated military maintenance systems in the world,
at the Air Force Station in Pune. The system would
seamlessly connect all the squadrons, wings, commands
with the Air Headquarters, after its implementation.
PRITHVI II MISSILE TESTED BY DRDO
India successfully test fired its indigenously developed
nuclear weapon capable Prithvi-II missile from the
Abdul Kalam Island, off Odisha coast. It has a strike
range of 350 kilometer.
NAVY SAYS GOOD BYE TO ‘SEA HARRIERS’
The Indian Naval Air Squadron 300- ‘White Tigers,’ bid
farewell to the British Sea Harriers fighter aircrafts on
May 11. They will be replaced by the new generation
MiG 29K/Kub fighters. Sea Harriers joined the Indian
Navy in 1983.
 Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha became the first Chief of
Air Staff to fly the indigenously designed and
produced Light Combat Aircraft Tejas in Bengaluru.
 Indian Army conducted its major military training
exercise ‘Chakravyuh-II’ in Suratgarh, Rajasthan.
 INS Kalvari (sea tiger shark), the first of the six
indigenous Scorpene-class submarines set out for sea
trials off the Mumbai coast.
 India signed 4 MoUs for cooperation in defence sector
with Oman in Muscat.
 The indigenously built Offshore Petrol Vessel ICGS
Shaurya joined the Indian Coast guard at Vasco, Goa.
ICGS = Indian Coast Guard Ship
 Indigenously built Fast Patrol Vessel ICGS Arush
joined the Indian Coast Guard at Cochi, Kerala.
 The 27th edition of the India-Indonesian CORPAT
(Coordinated Patrol) between their navies was held
off the coast of Belawan, Indonesia.
 India’s first indigenously built fast attack waterjet
craft INS Tarmugli was inducted in Indian Navy at
Visakhapatnam.
 The Indian Navy has decided to decommission two of
its warships – INS Veer and INS Nipat.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 19
ISRO TESTS RE-USABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE
India successfully tested its first-ever indigenously built
space shuttle - the Re-Usable Launch Vehicle -
Technology Demonstrator or RLV-TD on May 23 from
Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. Re-usable technology
aims to help reduce the cost of launching satellites by 10
times.
WHO TO PROMOTE ‘AYUSH’
India and the World Health Organization have signed
an agreement in Geneva for cooperation in promoting
quality, safety and effectiveness of service provision in
traditional Indian systems of medicine, called AYUSH.
GOOGLE CHROME IS TOP BROWSER
As per a global market research, Google Chrome,
claiming 41.7 per cent of desktop browser share has
become the top Internet browser, ending the long reign
of Microsoft Internet Explorer. Mozilla’s Firefox browser
stands at third place.
 In the first global assessment of the world's flora by
the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (London), it is
estimated that there are about 390,900 plants.
 In a rare astronomical phenomenon, planet Mercury
was seen as a moving dot on the solar disc, from
various places of India, on May 9.
 University of Cambridge researchers have built the
world's smallest working engine. The device, powered
by light, is just millionths of a millimeter in size.
 China successfully launched its remote sensing
satellite ‘Yaogan-30’ into space atop a Long March
2D rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
APRIL 2016
ARMY RAISES NEW ‘GORKHA BATTALION’
The Army has raised a new Gorkha battalion comprising
entirely of Gorkha troops of Indian domicile. The new
battalion, the Sixth Battalion of the First Gorkha Rifles
(6/1GR), christened “Kanchi Paltan”, has been raised at
Sabathu in the Shivalik foothills near Shimla, that houses
the 14 Gorkha Training Centre.
DEAL FINALISED FOR 36 RAFALE JETS
India has finalised the deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter
jets from Dassault Aviation of France for 7.89 billion
euros (Rs. 59,000 crore). The Indian team managed to
bring down the deal price by 11 billion euros. The first
set of jets would be delivered within 18 to 20 months.
K-4 MISSILE TESTED SUCCESSFULLY
India has successfully tested its most ambitious weapon
system - a long range submarine-launched ballistic
missile, codenamed K-4, capable of striking targets upto
3,500 kilometres away. The missile was tested 40 kms
off the Vishakhapatnam coast.
INDIA MAKES FIRST SONAR DOME
India’s first indigenous composite sonar dome, a ship’s
underwater eyes and ears, was launched at Goa.
Designed and produced by DRDO, it is a rare
achievement as very few companies in the world have
technology to make sonar domes.
INDIA 4TH IN DEFENCE SPENDING
India has become the world’s fourth largest spender on
defence, following a 13.1% increase in its 2016-17
defence budget of Rs. 2,58,000 crore, according to US
research firm IHS Inc. USA is the largest spender in the
world, followed by China and Saudi Arabia.
INDIA – US TO SHARE MILITARY LOGISTICS
To counter the growing maritime assertiveness of China,
India and the United States have ‘agreed in principle’ to
share their military logistics.
IAF TO TAKE PART IN NATO EXCERCISE
12 IAF aircrafts will take part in the prestigious 'Red
Flag' air exercise alongside NATO forces from April 28
to May 13 in skies over Alaska. It is seen as a complex
and advanced network centric operation -- the toughest
test for flying machines and men.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 20
 ICGS Shoor, an offshore patrol vessel was inducted in
the Indian Coast Guard at it Mangalore base.
 The 11th Indo-Mongolia joint army training exercise,
titled ‘Nomadic Elephant - 2016’ commenced on 25
April in Mongolia to share skills for handling Counter
Insurgency and Counter Terrorism events.
 The 22nd Indo-Thai Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT)
was held from 19-27 April in the Andaman
Sea. Missile Corvette INS Karmuk and Dornier
Maritime Patrol Aircraft took part in this exercise.
 The Indian Army conducted its major war exercise
named ‘Shatrujeet’ (winning the enemy) in the Thar
Desert of Rajasthan.
SUPERCOMPUTER ‘PARAM KANCHENJUNGA’
The National Institute of Technology (NIT) Sikkim has
secured a rare distinction of having a supercomputer
named ‘Param Kanchenjunga’, which is said to be the
most powerful and fastest among all the 31 NITs.
LIGHTEST EVER SYNTHETIC MATERIAL
Scientists at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (of
ISRO), Thiruvananthapuram, have developed the
world's lightest ever synthetic material called ‘silica
aerogel’ or ‘blue air’ or ‘frozen smoke’. It has an
excellent thermal resistance and if used as filler in
uniforms, it can save many lives at the Siachen Glacier.
INDIA GETS ASIA's BIGGEST TELESCOPE
Asia's biggest telescope has been launched in India. Built
by the Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational
Sciences (ARIES) with the assistance of Belgium, the
telescope is located at a height of 2,500 metres at
Devasthal in Nainital district.
 The Airports Authority of India has signed an MoU
with ISRO to provide scientific parameters for
construction of airports across the country.
 India and the USA have signed an agreement for a
new Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave
Observatory (LIGO) project in India.
INTERNATIONAL
JUNE 2016
BRITAIN VOTES TO LEAVE EUROPEAN UNION
In the referendum held on June 23 in Britain to decide
whether Britain should remain with European Union or
leave it, British people voted to leave the European
Union to take greater control of its economy and its
borders, shattering the stability of the continental unity
forged after World War II.
The ‘Leave’ side secured 51.9 per cent votes as against
48.1 per cent vote for ‘Remain’.
Prime Minister David Cameron, a passionate supporter of
‘remain’ announced that as a measure of respect for the
“will of the people” he would be stepping down as prime
minister in October.
ICELAND IS THE MOST PEACEFUL COUNTRY
In a ranking of 163 countries in the Global Peace Index
compiled by Institute for Economics and Peace, Syria
has been named as the least peaceful country, followed
by South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia. On the
other hand, Iceland was ranked as the world’s most
peaceful country, followed by Denmark and Austria.
India ranks a low at 141.
SWISS REJECT FREE INCOME
In a referendum held in Switzerland, 77 per cent Swiss
voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to introduce
a guaranteed basic income for all. The proposal had
called for adults to be paid an unconditional monthly
income, whether they worked or not.
SWEDEN IS THE BEST COUNTRY
According to the 'Good Country' Index 2015 which
surveyed 163 countries to measure how countries
contribute to the global good, Sweden is the world’s best
country, followed by Denmark and Netherlands. India
was placed at 70th spot.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 21
WORLD’s LONGEST RAIL TUNNEL
The world’s longest rail tunnel, Gotthard Base Tunnel,
57 kms long under the Alps Mountain in Switzerland,
was opened on June 1 for running of trains. Set of two
tunnels, it is also the deepest train tunnel of world,
going up to 2300 mts below the surface. It will reduce
the train journey from Zurich (Switzerland) to Milan in
northern Italy down to two hours and 40 minutes,
roughly an hour less than it currently takes.
STRAY SHOOTING KILLS 50 IN USA
A gunman armed with an assault rifle killed 50 persons
at a packed gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA in one
of the worst mass shootings in the US history. The
shooter, identified as Omar S Mateen (29), was killed by
the police on the spot.
AIIB APPROVES FIRST GLOBAL LOANS
Bangladesh has become one of the first countries to get
a loan from the China-led Asian Infrastructure
Investment Bank. The country will get $165 million for a
power distribution system upgrade and expansion
project. The other three borrowers are Pakistan,
Indonesia and Tajikistan.
PAK TOPS IN MALWARE THREATS
Malware Infection Index 2016 released by the Microsoft
Asia to identify the key malware threats in Asia Pacific
region has revealed Pakistan as the location with the
highest malware encounters followed by Indonesia,
Bangladesh. India stands at no. 8 in region.
 World Health Organisation has recognised Thailand,
Armenia, Belarus and Moldova for eliminating
mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis.
 The Forbes “100 Most Powerful Women” in the world
list 2016, topped by German Chancellor Angela
Merkel, includes SBI Chief Arundhati Bhattacharya at
25th rank.
 The World Bank has slashed its 2016 growth forecast
for the world by 0.5 per cent to 2.4 per cent, citing
disappointing growth in major emerging market
economies including China and Brazil.
 Global aircraft company Airbus has unveiled the
world's first 3D-printed aircraft THOR - Test of High-
tech Objectives in Reality.
 The World Health Organization on June 01 has
declared the end of Ebola virus transmission in
Guinea, one of the three West African countries
hardest hit by the epidemic in 2014.
 Norway has become the first country in world to
prohibit deforestation of rain forest to preserve the
balance of ecosystem.
 Colombia signed a historical ceasefire agreement
with the guerrilla organization FARC to put an end to
more than 50 years of bloodshed.
FARC: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
MAY 2016
KENYA DESTROYS HUGE STOCK OF IVORY
In one of the largest stockpile of elephant tusks (ivory)
destroyed in Africa, Kenya's president set fire to 105
tonnes of elephant ivory and more than one tonne of
rhino horn, seized from smugglers and poachers. The
ivory is reported to be worth over $150 million in the
open market and the rhino horn could raise as much as
$80 million.
WB LAUNCHES EMERGENCY FUND FOR ZIKA
World Bank Group has launched the Pandemic
Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) to protect and
support poorest countries against deadly pandemics
like Ebola, Zika. The PEF will ensure fast disbursement
of global financing.
ROYAL CAMPAIGN FOR MENTAL HEALTH
British Royals Prince William, Princess Kate and Prince
Harry launched the ‘Heads Together’ campaign in
London to spread and promote public awareness about
mental health and wellbeing.
 Heads of state from G-7 nations, USA, Britain, France,
Germany, Italy, Canada and host Japan held their
meet in the Japanese city of Ise Shima.
 Finance ministers and central bank governors meet
of G-7 nations held in Sendai, Japan.
 A two day International Buddhist conference was
held at the birth place of Lord Buddha, Lumbini,
Nepal to celebrate his 2,560th birth anniversary.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 22
 The first-ever World Humanitarian Summit was held
in Istanbul from 23 to 24th May.
 The First World Conference on Tourism for
Development was held in Beijing from May 18-21.
 Harmony of the Seas, world’s biggest-ever cruise ship,
capable of accommodating more than 8,000
passengers and crew in the most luxurious conditions,
was unveiled in France.
 USA decided to fully lift its embargo on sales of lethal
weapons to its one-time arch enemy, Vietnam, after a
gap of over 32 years.
 Kenya to close World's biggest refugee camp in
Dadaab, citing threat to internal security. About
3,28,000 refugees, mostly from Somalia are staying in
this camp.
 USA has approved selection of animal ‘Bison’ as the
first national mammal of the country. This is in
addition to the present national symbol - Bald Eagle’.
 The European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to stop
printing of the 500 euro banknote by the end of 2018
with a view to curb illicit activities.
 It is one of the highest value (Rs 380,000
roughly) circulating banknotes in the world.
 The International Bank Note Society has declared
New Zealand’s five-dollar note as the Banknote of the
Year for 2015 in a study of 40 notes from 20
countries.
APRIL 2016
WORLD’s WHO’s WHO IN PANAMA LEAK
A massive leak of 11.5 million documents from a law
firm in Panama reveals how the world's current rich
people, politicians and celebrities hide their money in
Panama. The documents, dubbed the Panama Papers,
were obtained by a Munich-based daily newspaper.
The names figuring in the leak included aides to Russian
President Vladimir Putin, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib
Razak's son Nazifuddin, family of Chinese President Xi
Jinping, Amitabh Bachchan.
USA TOPS IN ICT USAGE
A study of 50 nations by Chinese IT giant Huawei for
investment and deployment of Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) has placed USA at
top, followed by Singapore, Sweden. Huawei Global
Connectivity Index 2016 places India at 44th rank.
SAN JOSE - THE MOST FUTURE READY CITY
In a study of 50 cities conducted by the IT firm Dell -
‘Future-Ready Economies Model’, city of San Jose in
California, USA has been placed at top, followed by San
Francisco, Singapore.
From India, Delhi ranks at 44th place.
AUSTRALIA SUFFERS LOSS IN REEF TOURISM
Australian scientists have reported that over 90 per cent
of the Great Barrier Reef has been affected by mass
bleaching that is likely to destroy half the coral. Reef
tourism generates around $4 billion every year for
Australia.
Bleaching occurs when the water is too warm, forcing
coral to expel living algae and causing it to calcify and
turn white.
IMF & WB TO WORK FOR TAX IMPROVEMENT
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank
have joined hands with the United Nations and the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development, to form a new group which will work for
building effective tax systems in developing countries
and avoiding tax base erosion.
WTO LOWERS TRADE GROWTH TO 2.8%
The World Trade Organization has revised its 2016
global trade forecast downward by more than one
percentage point to 2.8 per cent, warning that a
slowdown in China and broad market volatility
continued to threaten growth.
In September last, the WTO estimated global trade to rise
by 3.9 per cent in 2016.
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ZERO - ICZ
ICZ was held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France
to promote the knowledge of Maths for greater global
good. A bronze bust of ancient Indian mathematician
and astronomer Aryabhatta was also unveiled there on
the occasion.
WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS
The World Bank released the 2016 edition of the World
Development Indicators (WDI). It includes 1400
indicators for over 200 economies to measure the 169
targets of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
set by UNO.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 23
TOP 'GLOBAL GAME CHANGERS'
American business magazine Forbes has ranked some of
the biggest names in business as the 'Global Game
Changers'. The selected 30 businessmen have exhibited
growth and innovation, and their examples have had
been adopted and copied by rivals the world over.
The list is topped by Marcs Benioff, CEO of
Salesforce.com, followed by Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com.
It includes three Indians - Rahul Bhatia of Inter Globe
Enterprises, Cyrus Poonawalla of Serum Institute of India,
and Sunny Varkey of GEMS Education at 3, 23 and 26
positions respectively.
 The annual Spring Meeting of IMF & WB was held at
Washington. Finance Ministers and Governors of
Central Banks from G-20 nations attended the meet.
 Heads of about 53 countries took part in the
4th Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington, USA.
 Nauru, the tiny South Pacific island nation has become
the 189th member of the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) and the World Bank.
 Summit of the foreign ministers of the G-7 countries
was held at Hiroshima, Japan on April 11.
 Japan has become fourth country in world to
successfully test its first stealth fighter jet – X 2, the
other three being USA, Russia and China.
 The latest World Malaria Report from WHO says that
Europe has become the world’s first region to wipe out
malaria with zero cases reported last year.
 The 13th Islamic Summit Conference was held in
Istanbul, Turkey. This year’s theme was Unity and
Solidarity for Justice and Peace.
 The world’s first public dengue vaccination
programme was launched in the Philippines.
 In UK, Britain's Royal Mail has launched a set of
special postage stamps to mark the 400th death
anniversary of the great playwright William
Shakespeare.
 Bangladesh’s top court has rejected a 28-year-old
petition to remove Islam as official religion of the
country, disappointing the activists who wanted the
country to remain secular.
 UNICEF launched a series of animated films, called
Unfairy Tales, to help frame positive perceptions
towards the millions of refugees.
 A US grand jury has slapped a $ 940 million fine on
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata America
International Corp. in a trade secret case.
 British Petroleum has agreed to pay over $20 billion to
the American government as damages over the 2010
oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
 Venezuela has ordered a two-day working week for
public sector workers as a temporary measure to help
it overcome a serious energy crisis.
PERSONS IN NEWS
JUNE 2016
NIKESH ARORA: One of the highest paid CEO of the
world heading the SoftBank Group Corp. was in news as
he resigned abruptly just after two years stay at the
corporation.
S. K. ROY: Chairman of public sector insurance giant
was in news as he resigned nearly two years ahead of
completion of his five-year term. Mr. Roy, who has been
with LIC since 1981, took charge as chairman in June
2013.
NITA AMBANI: The chairperson and founder of
Reliance Foundation, has become first Indian woman to
be nominated to the International Olympic Committee
(IOC), the governing body of the Olympic Movement.
HILLARY CLINTON
Democratic Party candidate
for US Presidential elections
created history by becoming
the first woman to lead a
major American political
party for President’s post in
the 240 years of democracy in
USA.
MAY 2016
UDAY KOTAK: Kotak Mahindra Bank Chief, is the only
Indian in Forbes' 'Money Masters: The Most Powerful
People in the Financial World' list of 40 persons.
Lt. Col. RANVEER JAMWAL: An officer in the Jat
regiment of Indian Army successfully completed his
third Everest expedition, the earlier ones being in 2012
and 2013.
YASH CHOPRA: A life size bronze statue of the late
film-maker was installed by the govt of Switzerland in
Kursaal area to honour the film maker who shot most of
his romantic dramas in the lush mountains of
Switzerland.
RISHI NAIR: A 6th grade Indian American student won
the prestigious National Geographic Bee competition
2016 at Washington DC, USA.
NIHAR JANGA & JAIRAM HATHWAR: Two Indian-
American students scripted history by becoming the
joint winner of the US Scripps National Spelling Bee
Contest. Nihar, a 5th grader, is the youngest winner of
the 91 year old contest while Jairam is in 7th grade. Each
will get a prize of $ 40,000.
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 24
FATMA SAMOURA: The Senegalese UN diplomat was
named as the first ever female Secretary General of the
international football body, FIFA.
DILMA ROUSSEFF: 68 years old Brazilian President
was suspended on May 12 after several weeks of
nationwide protests for her removal. Senate has
decided to initiate impeachment proceedings against
her on charges that she broke budget accounting laws.
CRAIG WRIGHT: The Australian entrepreneur has
publicly identified himself as creator of virtual
cash/currency – Bitcoin, under the fake name of Satoshi
Nakamoto.
LHAKPA SHERPA: A 42-year-old Nepalese woman of
USA climbed Mount Everest for the seventh time on May
20, creating a record for the most summits of the
world’s highest mountain by a woman.
APRIL 2016
SACHIN TENDULKAR: The Ministry for Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has named
cricket icon as brand ambassador of the 'Skill India'
campaign.
P SUSHEELA MOHAN: Renowned playback singer has
been recognized by the Guinness World Records for
singing the most number of songs in Indian languages -
17,695 solo, duet and chorus-backed songs in 12 Indian
languages.
NITA AMBANI: Reliance Foundation Chairperson has
been named the most powerful businesswoman in Asia
by Forbes, leading a list of 50 women leaders from the
region that includes only eight from India.
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE: A host of celebrations were
held in England and several other parts of the world to
observe 400th death anniversary of legendary
playwright, also known as The Bard of Avon. His
famous works include masterpieces like Othello,
Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II: The world’s oldest-serving
royal and the longest-reigning and longest-lived British
monarch turned 90 on April 21, receiving the greetings
of thousands of British citizens as well as wishes from
all over the world.
ARSENIY YATSENYUK: Ukrainian Prime Minister
announced his resignation in the wake of a month-long
political crisis that paralysed his government and frozen
the release of vital Western aid.
Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson: Iceland’s Prime
Minister resigned reportedly after his name figured in
the mushrooming worldwide scandal over hidden
offshore financial dealings exposed in the so-called
Panama Papers leak.
APPOINTMENTS
JUNE 2016
ASHOK LAVASA: Appointed as the new Union Finance
Secretary
Ms SUPRIYA SAHU: Appointed as the Director General
of Doordarshan
DIA MIRZA: Bollywood actress has been named the
ambassador for Swachh Bharat Mission's youth-based
'Swachh Saathi' (student internship) programme.
SUNIL MITTAL: Chairman of Bharti Enterprises
(Airtel), elected as the Chairman of International
Chamber of Commerce (ICC) based in Paris.
ANNE HATHAWAY: Famous US actress and singer has
been appointed as global Goodwill Ambassador for the
United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women.
PETER THOMSON: Permanent Representative of Fiji,
was elected as the President of the upcoming
71st session of UN General Assembly.
PEDRO PABLO KUCZYNSKI: Elected new President of
Peru
HANI Al MULQI: Appointed as new Prime Minister of
Jordan.
MAY 2016
3 NEW CHIEF MINISTERS
Sarbananda Sonowal: Assam, from BJP
Pinarayi Vijayan: Kerala, from CPI (M)
V. Narayanasamy: Puducherry, from Congress
KIRAN BEDI: Appointed as the new Lieutenant
Governor of Union Territory of Puducherry.
VICE ADMIRAL SUNIL LANBA: Appointed as the next
Chief of Indian Navy, in the rank of Admiral.
S K BHAGAT: Appointed as Director General of the
Railway Protection Force (RPF).
S K SHARMA: Renowned scientist has been appointed
the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Nuclear
Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL).
ANURAG THAKUR: The BJP M P from Hamirpur in
Himachal Pradesh, was elected as the President of the
Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 25
SHASHANK MANOHAR: Former BCCI President, who
resigned recently, was elected unopposed as the first
independent Chairman of International Cricket Council,
for two years.
ATMA RAM NADKARNI: Appointed as the Additional
Solicitor General in Supreme Court for a period of three
years.
BINALI YILDIRIM: Elected as the new Prime Minister
of Turkey.
Ms. TSAI ING-WEN: elected as the first women
President of Taiwan
BACIRO DJA: Appointed as the new Prime Minister of
Guinea Bissau, a small country in Western Africa.
RODRIGO DUTERTE: Elected as the New President of
the Philippines. He is the Mayor of Davao City in
Philippines. He is very popular and is known as ‘Digong’.
ENDA KENNY: Re elected as the Prime Minister of
Ireland
APRIL 2016
JUSTICE (retd.) PERMOD KOHLI: Appointed as the
new Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).
C P GURNANI: Elected as the new Chairman of the
National Association of Software and Services
Companies (Nasscom) for 2016-17. He is the MD & CEO
of Tech Mahindra.
MEHBOOBA MUFTI: Elected as the first woman Chief
Minister of Jammu and Kashmir
LOBSANG SANGAY: Re-elected as the Prime Minister
of the Tibetan government-in-exile in Dharmsala,
Himachal Pradesh.
CLEMENT MOUAMBA: Appointed as the new Prime
Minister of Republic of Congo.
IDRISS DEBY: Elected for the 5th time as the
President of Chad, a country in Central Africa.
BOUNNHANG VORACHIT: Elected as the new
President of Laos
THONGLOUN SISOULITH: Elected as the new Prime
Minister of Laos
VOLODYMYR GROYSMAN: Elected as the new Prime
Minister of Ukraine
SOORONBAI JEENBEKOV: New Prime Minister of
Kyrgyzstan.
HASHIM THACI: Elected as the President of Kosovo, a
small country in southeast Europe.
SIGURDUR INGI JOHANNSSON: Elected as the new
Prime Minister of Iceland after the earlier Prime
Minister resigned due to his name coming in ‘Panama
Leaks’.
NGUYEN XUAN PHUC: Elected as the new Prime
Minister of Vietnam.
TRAN DAI QUANG: Elected as the new President of
Vietnam.
FAUSTIN ARCHANGE TOUADERA: Elected as the new
President of Central African Republic.
Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr: Appointed as the new Prime
Minister of Yemen
AWARDS & HONOURS
JUNE 2016
INTERNATIONAL INDIAN FILM ACADEMY (IIFA)
awards festival held in Madrid, Spain on June 23.
Best Feature Film: Bajrangi Bhaijaan by Kabir Khan
Best Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali for Bajirao
Mastani
Best Actor: Ranvir Singh for Bajirao Mastani
Best Actress: Deepika Padukon for Piku
GD BIRLA AWARD FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH: won
by IIT-Kanpur professor Sanjay Mittal
INDIA BIODIVERSITY AWARD: Won by the Pakke
Tiger Reserve is in East Kameng district of Arunachal
Pradesh.
ASIA NEW TALENT AWARDS: ‘Thithi’, a Kannada film
won the best film award and best script writers award
at the19th Shanghai International Film Festival.
INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD: won
by Akhil Sharma for his novel 'family life'.
PEOPLE’s CHOICE PRIZE: Gold medal won by the
renowned Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik at the
world championship festival of sand sculpting in
Bulgaria.
FUKUOKA PRIZE: Awarded to renowned Indian music
composer A. R. Rahman for his outstanding contribution
towards creating, preserving and showcasing South
Asian traditional fusion music.
This prize is given by city of Fukuoka in Japan.
SCHOLASTIC ASIAN BOOK AWARD: won by Aditi
Krishnakumar for her manuscript “Love of Indian
History".
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 26
MAY 2016
‘ORDER OF THE RISING SUN, GOLD AND SILVER’:
Former bureaucrat and parliamentarian N. K. Singh was
selected for Japan’s highest civilian honour, for
promoting economic, educational and cultural ties
between India and Japan.
MAN BOOKER INTERNATIONAL PRIZE: South Korean
author, Han Kang, has won the prestigious prize for her
novel 'The Vegetarian'. The writer and her British
translator Deborah Smith will share the $72,000 prize
money.
This prize is given every year for the best book translated
in English and published in U K.
MILLENNIUM TECHNOLOGY PRIZE: US engineer
Frances Arnold has become first woman to win this
prize for pioneering directed evolution.
The award, given by the Technology Academy, Finland,
carries a cash prize of Euro one million.
Palme d'Or: Award for the best film at Cannes Film
Festival won by the film ‘I, Daniel Blake’ by British
director Ken Loach.
PEN’s LITERARY SERVICE AWARD: Won by British
author J.K. Rowling for her dedication to free speech and
social justice. The award is given by PEN, a USA based
NGO for excellence in promoting peace, harmony and
human rights through literature.
COMMONWEALTH SHORT STORY PRIZE: (for Asia
region) won by Prashar Kulkarni for his story ‘Cow and
Company’.
“NORTH STAR": Highest civilian award of Mongolia
conferred upon two noted Indian scholars-Lokesh
Chandra and Mansura Haider for their contribution to
Mongolian studies.
Sudarsan Pattnaik: Renowned sand artist won the gold
medal at the 9th Moscow Sand Sculpture Championship
in Russia.
APRIL 2016
SARASWATI SAMMAAN: Prestigious prize for
literature given to the Jammu-born poet and novelist
Padma Sachdev for her autobiography ‘Chitt-Chete’
written in Dogri language. The award carries award
money of 15 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque.
FBB FEMINA MISS INDIA WORLD 2016
Winner: Priyadarshini Chaterjee
First runners-up: Sushruthi Krishna
Second runners-up: Pankhuri Gidwani
DADASAHEB PHALKE AWARD: won by renowned
actor Manoj Bajpayee for the movie Aligarh.
Please note that this is NOT the national award
rather it is the regional award in Maharashtra, given
by Dada Saheb Phalke Foundation.
'Officier de l Ordre national de la Legion d
Honneur’: (Officer of the Legion of Honour), highest
French civilian honour conferred upon Former Army
Chief General (retd) J J Singh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conferred Saudi
Arabia’s highest civilian honour- the king Abdulaziz
Sash. The award is named after Abdulaziz Al Saud, the
founder of the modern Saudi state.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
JUNE 2016
Zindaginama by Krishna Sobti
Favourite Ghost Stories From Around The World by
Ruskin Bond.
Old History New Geography: Bifurcating Andhra
Pradesh by Jairam Ramesh
A Life in Diplomacy by M K Rasgotra
The Age of Genius: The Seventeenth Century and the
Birth of the Modern Mind by AC Grayling.
The Spy by Paulo Coelho
The Unseen Indira Gandhi by Dr. K P Mathur
Muslims Against Partition by Shamsul Islam.
The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf.
MAY 2016
Vanishing Shangri La by K N Raghavan.
The Drowned Detective by Neil Jordan,
Blood on my Hands: Confessions of Staged
Encounters by Kishalay Bhattacharjee
The Outside Lands by Hannah Kohler
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
APRIL 2016
An Economist in the Real World by Kaushik Basu,
Chief Economist at World Bank
Swimmer Among the Stars by Kanishk Tharoor
Mercedes-Benz - Winning by Adil Jal Darukhanawala
GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 27
Friends in Wild Places by Ruskin Bond.
Safeguarding India by NN Vohra.
The Making of India: The Untold Story of British
Enterprise by Kartar Lalvani
Advantage India — From Challenge to Opportunity by
APJ Abdul Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh.
A State in Denial by B G Verghese
The Kiss of Life by Imraan Hashmi
The Mountain of Shiva by Dr Karan Singh. He is a
member of Rajya Sabha.
OBITUARY
JUNE 2016
NEIL O'BRIEN: An Anglo-Indian community icon and
former Lok Sabha member, credited with pioneering the
quiz in the country, died in Kolkata. He was 82. His son
Derek O'Brien is also a famous quiz master.
MUDRARAKSHASA: Distinguished Hindi writer and
veteran intellectual passed away at the age of 82 in
Lucknow, following a prolonged illness.
INDER MALHOTRA: Veteran journalist passed away at
a Delhi hospital at the age of 68. He was associated with
‘The Statesman’ and ‘The Times of India’.
SULABHA DESHPANDE: Eminent actor and theatre
personality passed away in Mumbai. She was 79.
SURESH CHATWAL: Veteran TV and film actor passed
away in Mumbai after a brief illness.
MANOHAR AICH: India's first Mr. Universe (1952)
passed away in Kolkata at the age of 104. Famous as the
‘Pocket Hercules’ due to his short height – 4’ 11”, he was
a very popular figure in the world of body building.
RAZAK KHAN: Veteran comedy actor who worked in
films like “Hera Pheri”, “Raja Hindustani” and
“Baadshah” among others, died in Mumbai. He was 65.
MUHAMMAD ALI: The three-time world heavyweight
boxing champion who ruled the boxing world in late
sixties, died at the age of 74 in Phoenix, USA. Famous as
‘the greatest’, he was suffering from Parkinson disease.
Before accepting Islam, his name was Cassius Clay.
VIKTOR KORCHNOI: Four-time Soviet chess champion,
Grandmaster, died aged 85 in Switzerland where he had
lived since 1976 after defecting from the Soviet Union.
MAY 2016
BABA HARDEV SINGH: Spiritual leader and Head of
Nirankari Mission was killed in a road accident in
Montreal, Canada. He was 62.
BALRAJ MADHOK: Former President of Bharatiya Jan
Sangh (BJS) and veteran RSS leader died in Delhi. He
was 96.
TONY COZIER: Famous West Indian cricket writer,
commentator and journalist passed away at the age of
75.
APRIL 2016
POORNIMABEN PAKVASA: Great social worker from
Gujarat, known for her exceptional work towards
educating tribal girls, passed away at the age of 103.
SATYANAND MUNJAL: The co-founder of Hero Cycles
group, a great philanthropist, passed away in Ludhiana,
Punjab. He was 99.
PRATYUSHA BANERJEE: TV actress, known for her
role of Anandi in the popular serial “Balika Vadhu”,
allegedly committed suicide at her Kandivali residence
in Mumbai.
GUY HAMILTON: Veteran British movie director, who
directed four hugely popular James Bond films, passed
away at the age of 93.
ROGERS NELSON: Pop music superstar, popularly
known as Prince in USA, died aged 57. He won seven
Grammy Awards and earned 30 nominations.
VICTORIA WOOD: Popular comedian, singer and
writer from BBC in United Kingdom, died at 62 after “a
short but brave” battle with cancer.
DORIS ROBERTS: The popular TV actress from USA
who delighted audiences as the meddling mother next
door on the popular TV soap Everybody Loves
Raymond, died at the age of 90. She won the popular TV
award Emmy five times.
BILL CAMPBELL: Silicon Valley’s veteran adviser who
mentored technology heavyweights like former Apple
CEO late Steve Jobs and co-founder of Google, Larry
Page, died at age 75.
ZAHA HADID: Renowned Iraq-born British architect
passed away due to heart attack. She was 65. She was
world’s most famous female architect and was known
for her neofuturistic design which was her signature
architectural style.
IMRE KERTESZ: Hungarian author, 2002 Nobel
Literature Prize winner, died aged 86 in Budapest, after
a long illness.
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Gyanm General Awareness August 2016 Issue..!!

  • 2. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 1 BREXIT HOW IT HAPPENED HISTORICAL BACKGROUND After the devastation of World War II, European countries were in state of shock and so serious efforts were being made to find out the ways and means as to how to ensure that conflicts do not raise their ugly heads once again and how can a peaceful living be ensured in future. As a result, a number of treatises were signed in next several years among the European countries for strengthening mutual interests.  In 1948, Treaty of Brussels was signed by UK and four other countries to form a combined defence to counter communism.  In 1957, Treaty of Rome was signed to form the European Economic Community, forming basic frame work of the future European Union.  In 1992, Treaty of Maastricht was signed to form European Community – EC, laying the foundation of European Union and introduced ‘European citzenship’.  In 2002, common currency Euro was established.  Finally, in 2007, Treaty of Lisbon was signed to give the present structure and shape to the European Union, having 28 members.  Although EU with 28 member countries has only 7.3% of the world population, it contributes roughly 24% of global GDP.  Almost all member countries rank very high in Human Development Index.  It has been so effective in its mission of peaceful coexistence that it was awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 2012. PRESENT DEVELOPMENT - BREXIT Due to a prolonged slowdown in the economy of UK in recent years and increasing inflow of migrants – both from smaller European countries and from West Asian countries, the radical forces in UK, of late, have been raising demand for a Britain independent of EU so that it can survive on its own terms and conditions. The movement was given the nick name ‘Brexit’ – Britain’s exit from the EU.  This compelled present Prime Minister David Cameron to announce holding of a referendum on June 23 to decide whether Britain wants to ‘Leave’ EU or it wants to ‘Remain’ in EU.  Cameron lead the ‘Remain’ campaign but the results of the referendum shocked the entire world and gave a big jolt to European unity.  51.9% voters supported ‘Leave’, leaving 48.1% with idea of remaining with EU.  It was also a massive victory for UKIP leader Nigel Farage, who has campaigned for the UK to leave the EU for a quarter century.  Respecting the mandate of people, Cameron offered to resign from the post of Prime Minister. WHAT HAPPENS NOW?  The British Pound plunged to the lowest since 1985 and global markets trembled with fear, leading to crash of stock markets.  The EU is in shock as till date no member has ever left and so there is no precedence to follow or learn from. Article 50 of the EU treaty, which sets out how a state can exit the bloc, offers little detail except that a two year notice period is required to quit.  An array of laws and EU entitlements will cease to apply to British business and citizens, creating what Brexit campaigners say will be opportunities for more growth and more selective immigration.  The result widens fissures in the UK by raising the prospect of another push for Scottish independence.  Beyond Britain’s shores, it will fan speculation that more countries could withdraw from the EU IMPACT ON INDIA So far India is concerned, a statement by our Finance Minster, Arun Jaitley sums up the situation. “….. we are well prepared to deal with the short and medium term consequences of Brexit. Our macro- economic fundamentals are sound with a very comfortable external position, a rock-solid commitment to fiscal discipline, and declining inflation. Our aim will be to smooth this volatility and minimize its impact on the economy in the short term”. EFFECTS ON INDIAN ECONOMY  Rupee may depreciate because of the double effect of foreign fund outflow and rise in dollar price  This will increase petrol and diesel prices to an extent  Prices of gold, electronic goods, among others will increase  Cheaper Pound will benefit Indian exports, including IT and ITeS.
  • 3. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 2 GENERAL AWARENESS AUGUST 2016 Vol. 5, Issue 02 A PUBLICATION OF GYANM EDUCATION & TRAINING INSTITUTE PVT. LTD. SCO 13-14-15, 2ND FLOOR, SEC 34-A, CHANDIGARH Contents CURRENT AFFAIRS APRIL TO JUNE 2016 01-34 BULLET NEWS JAN 2016 TO MARCH 2016 35-58 LATEST 100 GK MCQs 59-64 SSC CORNER 65-71 FIVE MONTHS GK BYTES 72-100 FIGURES TO REMEMBER REPO RATE (05.04.2016) 6.50% REVERSE REPO RATE 6.00% MARGINAL STANDING FACILITY RATE 7.00% STATUTORY LIQUIDITY RATIO 21.25% CASH RESERVE RATIO 4.00% BANK RATE 7.00% BASE RATE(s) (of various banks) 9.30 to 9.70% INDIA’s RANK IN Global Retail Development Index 02nd Ranking in Total Wealth 07th Ranking in Attracting FDI 10th Global Peace Index 141st Good Country Index 70th Renewable Energy Index 3rd World Press Freedom Index 133rd Rank in Manufacturing Countries 6th World Happiness Index 118th Intellectual Property Index -2016 37th Overall Growth Prospectus 5th Global Talent Competitiveness Index 89th Nuclear Security Index 21st Ease of Doing Business (Forbes) 97th Human Development Index 130th ICT Development Index 131st Rank in Brand Value 7th Legatum Prosperity Index 99th Global Terrorism Index 06th NATIONAL NEWS JUNE 2016 MODI MAKES FIVE NATION VISIT Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a five-nation visit to Afghanistan, Qatar, Switzerland, the US and Mexico, starting from June 4. The visit aimed at broadening bilateral trade, energy and security cooperation and push for India's bid to become a member of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). In Afghanistan, he was conferred with Amir Amanullah Khan Award, country’s highest civilian honour. He also inaugurated the Friendship Dam in Herat province in Western Afghanistan. In Qatar, seven MoUs were signed to promote assistance on matters pertaining to customs administration through exchange of information and intelligence. In USA he addressed the special session of Congress. US APPLAUDS ‘MODI DOCTRINE’ US administration has termed the Prime Minister Modi’s vision of Indo-US ties that has overcome the “hesitations of history” and working for the betterment of the global good as “Modi Doctrine”. It envisages a joint effort by India and USA in promoting peace, prosperity and stability from Asia to Africa, from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific, including safety and freedom of navigation on the seas. PRESIDENT VISITS AFRICA President Pranab Mukherjee made a six-day trip to Ghana, Ivory Coast and Namibia to boost trade ties with these countries. The trip began with Ghana where he signed three agreements for mutual cooperation. In Cote D’Ivoirie (Ivory Coast), he was awarded the highest honour of that country - Grand Cross National Order of the Republic of Cote D’Ivoirie. MODI ATTENDS SCO SUMMIT Prime Minister Modi visited Tashkent, Uzbekistan to attend the two-day summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The summit approved India and Pakistan’s case for the full membership of the SCO.
  • 4. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 3 ANSARI VISITS MOROCCO, TUNISIA Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari visited Morocco and Tunisia. He arrived in Rabat, capital of Morocco on May 30. He launched the India-Morocco Chamber of Commerce and Industry to promote trade between two countries. Later, he visited Marrakech, main economic center of Morocco. He met King Mohammed VI and Prime Minister Benkirane. On June 2 he reached Tunis, capital of Tunisia, and met Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid. He met President Beji Caid El Sebsi on June 3. A number of MoUs were signed on mutual cooperation between the two countries. INDIA JOINS MTCR GROUP India has been admitted as the 35th member of the elite 34 nations group on the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). This would make it possible for India to buy and sell missile technology to other nations, including the supersonic Brahmos missile. It will also enable India to buy the state-of-the-art surveillance drones, such as the US predator. MTCR is an anti-proliferation group of 34 nations that aims to limit the spread of ballistic missiles and other unmanned delivery systems that could be used for chemical, biological, and nuclear attacks. INDIA FAILS TO ENTER NSG, DESPITE SUPPORT The plenary meeting of the 48-member Nuclear Suppliers Group, NSG was held in Seoul, South Korea on June 23. A large number of countries supported India’s request for membership to NSG. However, the same could not be approved as a few countries led by China objected to India’s membership because she has not signed the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty, NPT. INDIA SECOND IN RETAIL DEVELOPMENT According to 2016 Global Retail Development Index (GRDI), which ranks top 30 developing countries for retail investment worldwide, India has jumped 13 positions from last year to rank second, next only to China. A pick-up in GDP growth and a better clarity regarding FDI regulations have helped India achieve the second ranking. INDIA RANKS 7TH IN TOTAL WEALTH According to the report by New World Wealth, India has been ranked seventh in the list of top 10 wealthiest countries in the world, with total individual wealth of $5,200 billion. Total wealth is more because of large population. USA with total individual wealth of USD 48,700 billion is at the top, followed by China and Japan. INDIA 10TH IN ATTRACTING FDI As per the World Investment Report 2016 by the United Nations Conference for Trade and Development (UNCTAD), India is the 10th largest receiver of FDI in the world, with inflow of $44 billion in 2015. USA tops the ranks by attracting $380 billion. INDIA WORST IN HUMAN SLAVERY According to the Global Slavery Index 2016 of 167 countries, India has largest number of people in modern slavery, around 18.4 million people, accounting for about 40 per cent of world’s slave population. The modern slavery refers to practices like forced labour, bonded labour, human trafficking, child labour and exploitation of migrant workers in situations where a person cannot leave because of threats, violence, coercion and abuse of power or deception.  General Prayut Chan-O-Cha, Prime Minister of Thailand arrived in New Delhi for a three day visit to India with a high level delegation.  India signed two agreements with Thailand for boosting cooperation in culture and educational sectors.  India and USA have signed an agreement for exchange of terrorist screening information, in wake of the recent terror attacks.  A special commemorative silver coin was released by the govt to mark the 300th martyrdom day of Sikh General Banda Singh Bahadur.  As a goodwill gesture, the US has returned over 200 stolen cultural artifacts to India, some dating back 2,000 years, valued at around $100 million.  All India Radio celebrated completion of 80 years of its existence on June 8. On this day in 1936, the Indian State Broadcasting Service became All India Radio.  Ex-Cabinet Secretary T S R Subramanian submitted its report on the New Education Policy to the Ministry of HRD.  Champaran Satyagrah Express train has been started from Bapudham, Motihari (Bihar) to Anand Vihar, Delhi.  Gandhiji started his first Satyagrah in April 1917 from Champaran to support the cause of Indigo growers of the region.
  • 5. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 4  MoU signed with Switzerland for cooperation in the fields of skills development and professional education and training.  Mumbai is the most expensive city in India though ranked 82nd in world, according to the 2016 Cost of Living Survey by Mercer of USA.  Globally, Hong Kong topped the list of most expensive cities. MAY 2016 LODHA COMMITTEE TO REVIEW MCI The Supreme Court has appointed a three-member panel headed by former Chief Justice of India RM Lodha to review the functions of the Medical Council of India - the regulator of medical profession and education in India. SOLAR TRAIN TRIAL IN JODHPUR The Indian Railways plans to conduct trial of its first solar panel-powered train in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Though the train would be pulled by conventional diesel-run engines, the solar energy will be used for internal electricity gadgets. INDIA HAS 248.8 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS A latest release of the Census 2011 data shows that there are total 248.8 million households in the country of which 202.4 million are of Hindus, 31.2 million belong to Muslims, 6.3 million belong to Christians, 4.1 million of Sikhs and 1.9 million belong to Jains. WORLD’s LARGEST AIRCRAFT LANDS IN INDIA The world’s largest cargo aircraft, Ukraine’s Antonov AN -225 Mriya — or the Dream, made its first landing in India on May 13 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Hyderabad. The wide body aircraft is powered by six turbofan engines and is the longest and heaviest airplane ever built, with a maximum takeoff weight of 640 tonnes. RAIL HUMSAFAR SAPTAAH The Ministry of Railways launched Rail Humsafar Saptaah from May 26 to June 1 to highlight significant achievements made by Indian Railways in all spheres. Every day of the week will be devoted to a particular aspect of passenger service. 100 CR PENALTY FOR WRONG INDIA MAP According to the draft 'The Geospatial Information Regulation Bill 2016', wrong depiction of the map of India could land the violators in jail with a maximum term of seven years and fine up to Rs 100 crore. 4 INDIAN CITIES IN TOP 5 POLLUTED CITIES Of the five cities in the world with the worst air pollution, four are in India, says a report by the World Health Organisation. These four cities are Ludhiana, Khanna, Amritsar and Gobindgarh. The dirtiest air was recorded at Zabol in Iran while Delhi was ranked at 9th place.  President Pranab Mukherjee visited China from May 24 to 27, starting his trip from the highly industrialised Chinese city Guangzhou.  President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena arrived in New Delhi on May 13 for a two day visit.  International Vichar Mahakumbh was held in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh from May 12 to 14.  The H.R. Nagendra Committee on Yoga Education in Universities has recommended seven programmes for implementation in Indian universities.  To mark the 155th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, India organized a cultural festival in Cairo, Egypt from May 8 to 12.  A study by Assocham-KPMG shows that India is the fifth largest producer of e-waste, discarding roughly 18.5 lakh metric tonnes of electronic waste each year.  Govt has granted status of ‘classical language’ to six languages - Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Sanskrit and Odia. APRIL 2016] INDIA HOLDS MARITIME SUMMIT The First Maritime India Summit was held in Goregaon, Mumbai, from April 14 to 16 to focus on port based economic growth of the country. India has a coastline of over 7500 kms that offers vast opportunities for growth oriented investment.
  • 6. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 5 AMBEDKAR JAYANTI AT UNO For the first time, United Nations observed the birth anniversary of Dr. B R Ambedkar on April 14 at its headquarters in New York. It was organised by Permanent Mission of India to the UN in association with the Kalpana Saroj Foundation and Foundation for Human Horizon to focus on the empowerment and inclusion of excluded groups, reform of labour laws, and promotion of education for all. INDIA 6th IN MANUFACTURING India has been ranked sixth among the world's Top-Ten largest manufacturing countries. Previously, India was 9th rank in the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) report. China tops the list followed by US, Japan, Germany and Korea. Indonesia was at the bottom. ‘AADHAAR’ CROSSES HUNDRED CRORE MARK The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has generated 100 crore Aadhaar numbers, touching a “historic” milestone in a span of five-and-a-half years. Aadhaar is now the largest digital platform in the world for good governance and transparent delivery of services of subsidies and services. INDIA SIGNS PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT India signed the historic Paris Climate Agreement at United Nations in New York on April 22, along with 175 nations, marking a significant step ahead for combating global warming. In the agreement, all countries agreed to work to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and to strive for 1.5 degrees Celsius. RAJYA SABHA GETS 6 NEW MEMBERS President nominated the six personalities from different fields to the Rajya Sabha (House of Elders) following the recommendations of the Central government. The six persons include BJP leaders Subramanian Swamy and Navjot Singh Sidhu and Narendra Jadhav, Malayalam actor Suresh Gopi, journalist Swapan Dasgupta and boxer Mary Kom. President is empowered to nominate 12 prominent persons from various walks of life to the Rajya Sabha. INDIA SUFFERS HIGH TROJAN ATTACK As per a report from the security solutions firm Symantec, India ranks third among countries with high number of financial Trojan infections, where cybercriminals defraud customers of online banking services. Globally, the financial sector was the highest targeted sector in January with 40.2 per cent of all spear-phishing attacks. GERMANY TO HELP IN ‘NAMAMI GANGE’ India has joined hands with Germany to attain pristine status of Ganga by adopting river basin management strategies used for cleansing German rivers like Rhine and Danube, under the Indian mission ‘Namami Gange’. APEX COURT ALLOWS NEET The Supreme Court has allowed the holding of the National Eligibility Entrance Test, NEET for medical courses across the country. The top court set aside its 2013 order by which the common entrance test for admissions to MBBS, BDS and PG courses in all medical colleges was quashed. TOP EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES OF INDIA The HRD ministry released first-of-its-kind National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) for ranking the higher education institutions in the country. Results of the rankings are: Top Management Institute: IIM Bangalore, followed by IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta Top Engineering Institute: IIT Chennai, followed by IIT Mumbai and IIT Kharagpur. Best University: The Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore Top Pharmacy Institute: Manipal College of Pharma- ceutical Sciences, Manipal W B LOAN FOR SWACHH BHARAT MISSION World Bank has agreed to provide a $1.5 billion loan for the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). SBM is the country's largest-ever campaign to improve sanitation. It aims to end open defecation and improve the management of liquid and solid wastes.
  • 7. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 6 INDIA GETS FIRST LOAN FROM NDB The newly started development bank by the global group BRICS, New Development Bank – NDB has started giving loans. India is among the first four countries to get a loan. The $ 250 million loan will be routed through the Canara Bank for a renewable energy project. INDIA NOT SAFE FOR JOURNALISTS A study of 180 countries by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders to study the functioning of journalists has placed India at a lowly 133rdplace. It says that media in India continues to be under stress as the government is "indifferent" to threats against scribes. They are attacked frequently for reports that may not be palatable to particular groups. The 2016 ‘World Press Freedom Index’ is topped by Finland, followed by the Netherlands and Norway. The index measures media pluralism, independence, the legal framework and the safety of journalists in 180 countries. MODI NOT IN WORLD TOP 100 RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, tennis star Sania Mirza, actress Priyanka Chopra and founders of Flipkart Binny Bansal and Sachin Bansal are the Indians that have been named by Time magazine in its list of the '100 Most Influential People in the World'. Surprisingly, Mr Modi does not figure in the list.  President Pranab Mukherjee went on a six-day trip to Papua New Guinea and New Zealand on April 27.  Britain’s Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, visited India on a week’s goodwill tour.  India and France have launched a programme with $1 trillion Potential Solar Programme under the International Solar Alliance (ISA).  India, Afghanistan and Iran have agreed for joint work on development of Chabahar port in Iran.  India and Mauritius have signed an MoU on cooperation in the field of traditional system of medicine and Homoeopathy.  The first ever two day North East-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Summit was inaugurated in Centre in Imphal, Manipur.  3rd Asia Ministerial Conference on the Tiger Conservation was held in New Delhi on April 12.  First National Tribal Carnival held in Delhi from April 29 to May 02, 2016 to showcase and promote various facets of tribal culture on a large scale.  India and South Korea have signed a MoU for cooperation and mutual assistance in port related matters and their developments.  India has signed an agreement with the Islamic Development Bank for a $100 million line of credit to facilitate exports to IDB's member countries.  Govt has released a Commemorative Coin of 200 rupees and a Circulation Coin of 10 rupees to mark the 200th Martyrdom Day of Tatya Tope, a war hero of 1857 war of Independence.  A statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh will be installed in France's Saint-Tropez town in September this year. The town is birth place of French General J F Allard who served in the army of Maharaja. NEWS FROM STATES JUNE 2016 NAGPUR SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH JINAN Nagpur and the Chinese city of Jinan (capital of Shandong Province) have signed the agreement of 'sister cities' for the exchange of ideas and technology in the field of education, urban planning, youth affairs, and sports. Kerala Tourism won four awards at ‘FilmAT’, one of the biggest international film festivals dedicated to tourism, art and ecology, held in Poland. Andhra Pradesh has become the first State to have obtained a telecom license from the Telecom Ministry. Now the state can issue phone numbers starting with the ‘797’ series from August this year. Sikkim has become the first state in India to have an open government data portal to facilitate free usage of govt data by general public. Maharashtra government has decided to celebrate the 21st of every month as Yoga Day across all schools, colleges and universities in the state. Odisha has become first state in the country to give social welfare benefits - such as a pension, housing and food grains to transgender people. Lakshadweep has become first Union Territory in India to assure 24x7 power to its residents.
  • 8. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 7 MAY 2016 5 STATES ELECT THEIR CHIEF MINISTER Tamil Nadu: Jayalalitha reelected leading the AIADMK - All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam. West Bengal: Mamta Banerjee reelected leading the Trinamool Congress. Assam: Sarbananda Sonowal becomes the first BJP Chief Minister. Kerala: Pinarayi Vijayan of the CPI (M) led the left democratic front – LDF to become the Chief Minister. Puducherry: V. Narayanasamy of Congress elected as the new Chief Minister. The World’s largest Single Rooftop Solar Power Plant with capacity of 11.5 MegaWatt (MW) has been installed at Dera Baba Jaimal Singh of Radha Swamis at Beas, in district Amritsar, Punjab.  Madhya Pradesh Tourism has won the award for the Best Indian Destination for Wildlife. The state has 25 wild life sanctuaries including nine National Parks.  Rajasthan State Transport Corporation has launched 20 Nirbhaya buses with multiple safety measures to better protect women passengers. APRIL 2016 HOUSING SCHEME FOR WIDOWS Jharkhand govt launched the Bhimrao Ambedkar Awas Yojana for construction of houses for widows. The beneficiaries will get Rs 75,000 support for constructing houses in hilly areas and Rs. 70,000 in plain areas. EDUCATION BAR FOR ULB SEATS Any male person desiring to contest for Urban Local Bodies in Haryana will now have to be matriculate and have a functional toilet at home while a woman and a SC candidate will be required to be at least 8th standard pass. Minimum educational qualification for SC women candidates will be 5th standard pass.  The Uttar Pradesh government has directed all the district magistrates for plantation of 5 crore trees at 6,500 sites in 24 hours on a date fixed in month of July under the ‘Green UP - Clean UP’ programme.  World’s maiden white tiger safari was opened up at Mukundpur in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh. The first whtite tiger was spotted in MP’s Vindhya region in 1915. It is a rare breed of tiger, found only in India.  Rajasthan has become the first state to pass land title bill to verify land documents with landowners with the state records.  To promote the Swachh Bharat Mission, 20 ‘Namma’ toilets were established at different points in Delhi. The mission targets to establish 2.56 lakh public toilets by 2nd October 2017.  Bihar has become the fourth state in the country to ban sale and consumption of liquor. The other three states are Mizoram, Nagaland and Gujarat.  The European Investment Bank has agreed to give Euro 450 million (Rs. 3,300 crore) towards constructing a 23-km long Lucknow Metro rail line.  Germany’s Development Bank KfW will provide loan assistance of 3750 crore rupees for the development of metro system for Nagpur city.  Asian Development Bank has approved a project loan of $300 million for upgradation of over 400 km of major district roads in Uttar Pradesh. GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES JUNE 2016 SMART CITY PROJECT LAUNCHED IN PUNE Prime Minister Modi formally launched the ‘Smart City Project’ in Pune Maharashtra. Total 69 Smart City projects will be launched in 20 cities with a total investment of about Rs. 1,770 crore. These projects are related to solid waste management, water supply projects, sewage treatment plants, housing projects for urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.
  • 9. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 8 NEW AVIATION POLICY NOTIFIED Government has approved the National Civil Aviation Policy 2016, capping fares at Rs 2,500 for one-hour flights and Rs 1200 for flights up to 30 minutes. It also waived the 5/20 norm for new airlines to fly abroad. The 5/20 Rule says that an airline can fly to international destinations only if it has served within the country for five years and has a 20-aircraft fleet. AADHAAR TO BE LINKED WITH STUDENTS Government has asked all state governments to link Aadhaar number with caste and domicile certificates of school students studying either in Class V or VIII. This is to ensure that the scholarships to the SC/ST students are granted in time without any harassment. DLAMC TO MONITOR URBAN DEVELOPMENT To promote people centric planning, execution and monitoring of new urban development schemes, govt has approved setting up of District Level Advisory and Monitoring Committees with the elected representatives of the people across the country. Senior most MP of the area will head the committee. ‘VIDYANJALI’ TO SUPPORT GOVT SCHOOLS To boost community participation in government schools, HRD Ministry has launched Vidyanjali scheme inviting volunteers to hold public speaking, storytelling, acting sessions and participate in other co-scholastic activities. NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT PLAN India’s first ever NDM plan, which aims to make the country disaster resilient and reduce loss of lives was released on June 1. The plan is based on the four priority themes of the “Sendai Framework.” PPF WITHDRAWAL ALLOWED AFTER 5 YEARS The Finance Ministry has allowed the subscribers of the Public Provident Fund (PPF) to prematurely close their account after completing five years for reasons such as higher education or expenditure towards medical treatment. THE UNION MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS has launched three passenger service initiatives namely- a Janani Sewa for mothers, optional catering in Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains, and a children’s menu on trains. DELEGATION POWERS OF MINISTERS HIKED Making changes in the delegation of financial power rules, 1978, the Finance Ministry has advised that now the Ministers can approve non-plan expenditure proposals of up to Rs. 500 crore as against the earlier limit of Rs. 150 crore. Proposals up to Rs. 75 crore can be approved by the secretary of the administrative ministry or department. Proposals beyond 500 crore and up to 1,000 crore rupees shall be sanctioned jointly with Finance minister. Proposals exceeding 1000 crore will be sanctioned by the Union Cabinet. ‘SURYA MITRA’ APP FOR SOLAR ENERGY Government has launched a GPS based mobile app named ‘Surya Mitra’ developed by National Institute of Solar Energy to facilitate repair and maintenance of solar equipments, awareness about availability of solar power capacities and other related issues. The app will be supported by the trained ‘Surya Mitras’ to support the users of the app. IRCTC LAUNCHES ‘TIGER EXPRESS’ Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation – IRCTC launched a special tourist train - Tiger Express to spread awareness among people regarding tiger conservation. It will take tourists to various Tiger Parks on a six day trip.  TRAI has launched a mobile app for telecom subscribers to register their complaints against pesky calls and SMSs to tighten the noose on telemarketers.  Govt has decided to enhance the age of retirement of all doctors of the Central Health Service to 65 years with immediate effect.  Railway has started India's first timetabled freight train, named ‘Cargo Express’, from Delhi to Bengaluru.  Government has launched a pilot programme to run two-wheelers on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in New Delhi to curb air pollution in cities.  The government has exempted PF withdrawals of up to Rs. 50,000 from tax deduction at source.  Government has launched a campaign ‘Swachh Yug’ to make villages located along Ganga free from open defecation by motivating people to achieve this goal.  Govt plans to raise a new Indian Reserve Police Battalion in Rajasthan named after Maharana Pratap, the great Rajput warrior of Mewar region.  Govt has sanctioned Rs. 10,000 crore 'Fund of Funds for Startups' to boost self-employment in the country by supporting the ‘Startup India Action Plan’.
  • 10. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 9 MAY 2016 MULTILINGUAL PORTAL ‘BHARATAVANI’ Ministry of HRD has launched the portal ‘Bharatavani’ - the largest online repository of dictionaries in India. It is a single point source for multiple language learning, content and technology in 22 scheduled languages, which eventually will be extended to 100 more languages. NATIONAL IPR POLICY ANNOUNCED The govt has approved the National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) policy with a view to promoting creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. The policy aims to push IPRs as a marketable financial asset, promote innovation and entrepreneurship. ‘UJJWALA’ TO GIVE LPG TO BPL FAMILIES The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) was formally launched by the Prime Minister at Ballia, Uttar Pradesh. The scheme aims to provide cooking gas connections to five crore below-poverty-line beneficiaries over the next three years. The connections will be given in the name of women beneficiary. UJALA SCHEME LAUNCHED FOR LED BULBS Union Minister of State for Energy and Coal Piyush Goyal formally launched the energy-efficient LED bulbs distribution scheme UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) at Bhopal for the state of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. The scheme aims to replace all the conventional bulbs with the LED bulbs for reducing drastically power consumption and emission of carbon gasses. PORTAL LAUNCHED FOR SCHOOL STUDENTS The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) has decided to launch ASMITA, an online student tracking system for 25 crore students of India from class I to XII. ASMITA is acronym for All School Monitoring Individual Tracing Analysis and shall be launched under Shala Asmita Yojana (SAY). COMMITTEE TO REVIEW FRBM Govt has constituted a five Member Committee headed by former Revenue and Expenditure Secretary N.K. Singh to comprehensively review and give recommendations on the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) road map for the future. NITI AAYOG TO LAUNCH 15 YEAR PLAN Govt has decided to replace the five year plans with 15 year vision documents. The NITI Aayog has been directed to prepare a vision document for this purpose. It will be implemented after the 12th five year plan which is ending in March, 2017. UNIQUE BUSINESS IDENTIFICATION NUMBER The Government plans to issue a UBIN for budding entrepreneurs to start up their new businesses without any delay. The number will be issued by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. LOK SABHA PASSES BANKRUPTCY BILL The Lok Sabha has passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Bill 2016. The bill aims to improve conditions for ‘Ease of Doing Business’. Broadly speaking, Insolvency is a financial situation where a person or business entity is not in a position to repay its debts. When this status is confirmed by courts, it is called Bankruptcy, a legal status. SINGLE EMERGENCY NUMBER - 112 Govt has approved the single emergency number ‘112’ to help people access directly emergency services like police, ambulance and fire fighting. The number will be operational throughout India from January 1, 2017. COMMITTEE FOR TAXI OPERATORS The Union Government has constituted a committee headed by Sanjay Mitra, Secretary of Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to prepare a policy framework for taxi and other transport operators.  A Parliamentary Standing Committee headed by J C Divakar Reddy, MP has been formed to tackle misleading advertising as well as to fix liability on endorsers/celebrities.  Parliament has passed two Bills- The Appropriation Acts (Repeal) Bill 2015 and The Repealing and Amending (Third) Bill, 2015 to repeal outdated 1053 old laws which had become redundant legislations.  The trial run of India's first ever Metro train equipped to run in the driverless mode was conducted in New Delhi on May 18 by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
  • 11. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 10  Union Cabinet has approved a national policy on capital goods which aims at creating more than 2 crore new jobs and tripling the production of capital goods to Rs 7.5 lakh crore by 2025.  The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities will now be known as 'Divyangjan' Sashaktikaran Vibhag in Hindi, dropping the word 'viklangjan' from its previous nomenclature.  Govt has constituted the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority to strengthen the framework for safeguarding the interest of investors.  The Income Tax department has launched an electronic grievance redressal system named ‘e- nivaran’ to fast track taxpayers’ complaints..  Government has selected 13 more cities for the smart cities mission. The list is topped by Lucknow. Already 20 cities have been selected for this mission.  Moving towards environment friendly solutions, Prime Minister Modi launched e-rickshaws and solar powered boats in Varanasi.  EPFO has decided to increase benefits under the Employees' Deposit Linked Insurance scheme from Rs 3.60 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. APRIL 2016 PROGRAMME FOR VILLAGE UPLIFTMENT The ‘Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’ (Village Self Governance Campaign) was launched on April 14, the 125th Birth anniversary of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, to strengthen Panchayati Raj in villages, empowerment of women and upliftment of farmers. The campaign concluded on April 24. 25 MINISTRIES JOIN IMPRINT INITIATIVE 25 Ministries and Departments of the Union Government signed a MoU to join IMPacting Research Innovation and Technology (IMPRINT) initiative. It was launched on 5 November 2015 to establish a single window mechanism to shortlist research projects by leading research and technology institutes. 'VIDYUT PRAVAH' FOR 24X7 POWER SUPPLY Govt has launched the mobile application 'Vidyut Pravah' to empower common people to demand 24x7 power from the State. The app will provide the highlights of the electricity availability in the country on the real time basis. INDIA’s FIRST SEMI-HIGH SPEED TRAIN The Nizamuddin-Agra Gatimaan Express that started on April 5 is the first semi-high speed train in India. It will run at a speed of 160 kilometer per hour and is expected to cover the 200 km distance between Delhi and Agra in 100 minutes. COMMITTEE FOR DOUBLING OF FARM INCOMES Govt has set up a committee headed by Ashok Dalwai, Additional Secretary at the Agriculture Ministry to suggest ways to double farm incomes by 2022. The committee will focus on finding the means for enhancing productivity and reducing costs of cultivation. STAND-UP INDIA LOAN SCHEME LAUNCHED Govt has launched the Stand-up India scheme to give a push to financial inclusion programme. Under the scheme, 1.25 lakh bank branches will provide loans up to 1 crore rupees to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs. The scheme will help in creating 2.5 lakh entrepreneurs as every bank branch will be required to provide two such loans ranging from 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore without collateral, for setting up a new enterprise. 3RD PHASE OF ‘MISSION INDRADHANUSH’ The Union Health Ministry launched third phase of universal vaccination programme Mission Indradhanush to cover 216 districts across several States including Bihar, Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. Under the mission, the children are vaccinated against seven preventable diseases. ‘PANIC BUTTON’ MUST FOR MOBILE PHONES In a bid to improve women security, the government has made it mandatory that no mobile can be sold in India without an in-built panic button, starting January 1, 2017. Besides, in-built GPS navigation system would be mandatory for all phones with effect from January 1, 2018.
  • 12. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 11 GOVT LAUNCHES ‘ANMOL’ AND ‘E-RAKTKOSH Govt has launched a tablet-based application ‘ANMOL’ that allows ANMs (Auxiliary Nurse Midwife) to enter and update data for the beneficiaries. Another web-based mechanism launched is ‘E- RaktKosh’ that interconnects all the Blood Banks of the State into a single network. E- MARKET LAUNCHED FOR FARM PRODUCE To facilitate online trading of commodities in 21 markets from 8 states, an E-National Agriculture Market was launched on April 14, 125th birth anniversary of Dr. B R Ambedkar. The eight states are Haryana, UP, MP, Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, HP and Telangana. ISBN PORTAL LAUNCHED The Union HRD Minster Smriti Irani launched a portal for registration and allotment of International Standard Book Number (ISBN) at a function held in New Delhi. The portal will facilitate publishers and authors to register for ISBN online. It is a 13 character identification number allotted by International ISBN Agency based in UK. INDIA TO JOIN ‘SAWEN’ Union cabinet has approved India’s formal membership of the regional group Sawen. SAWEN (South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network) is a regional network comprising of eight countries in South Asia: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka for combating wildlife crime and illegal trade in the region. I P PORTAL LAUNCHED FOR SMEs The government has launched a portal ‘The Indian IP Panorama’ which will act as a single window interface for information on intellectual property and provide guidance on leveraging it for competitive advantage. It is a customised version of IP Panorama Multimedia toolkit, developed by World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). The Indian IP Panorama has 5 modules: (i) Importance of IP for SMEs, (ii) Trademark, (iii) Industrial design, (iv) Invention and Patent and (v) Patent Information. RULES FOR PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES Union Government notified the Scheduled Castes (SC) and the Scheduled Tribes (ST) (Prevention of Atrocities (PoA)) Amendment Rules, 2016 to enlarge scope of rules to cover several more violations against SC/ST persons as cognizable offences.  Govt has launched its first online interactive heritage portal Sahapedia to serve as one point resource for collaborative knowledge on the arts, culture and heritage of India.  The Department of Disinvestment has been renamed as Department of Investment and Public Asset Management or 'Dipam' under the Finance Ministry.  Railways to create a 1 lakh crore rupees ‘Rashtriya Rail Sanrakshan Kosh’ to strengthen safety measures on the rail network to prevent accidents.  Govt has launched a Twitter Seva Service, a special Twitter cell to respond to queries from start-ups, exporters and importer, within 48 to 72 hours.  The ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ programme has been extended to 61more districts with low Child Sex Ratio across 11 States/UTs. Already there in 100 districts.  Govt has decided to increase minimum wages of contract workers to Rs 10,000 taking into consideration the CPI and Dearness Allowance.  Govt plans to construct five lakh ponds under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana by next year.  Govt has formed a committee headed by former Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta to suggest ways to improve protection along the Pakistan border.  Union government plans to lay more emphasis on promoting Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events (MICE) tourism in India.  Govt has launched a low cost micro solar device, Surya Jyoti, to light up homes without electricity and save millions of units of power.  Govt has issued a new set of income tax return forms that require people with an income of Rs 50 lakh and above per annum to disclose their assets.
  • 13. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 12 ECONOMIC INDICATORS JUNE 2016 GDP GROWTH RATE JUMPS TO 7.9% Data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows that the economy grew at an accelerated pace of 7.9% in the fourth quarter of 2015-16, taking the overall GDP growth to a five-year high of 7.6% for the year ended March 31, 2016. India’s per capita income rose by 7.4% to Rs 93,293 in 2015-16 from Rs 86,879 in 2014-15.  The industrial production as measured by IIP contracted 0.8% in April, dragged down by a sharp plunge in production of capital goods and consumer wares.  Growth in the country's 8 core sectors surged to an over four-year high of 8.5 per cent in April mainly due to good growth in refinery products and electricity. MAY 2016 INDIA POISED TO GROW BY 8% In its latest Global Economic outlook, Fitch Ratings, USA has said that it expects India's real GDP growth to rise to 8 percent by 2018-19, from 7.9 percent in 2017-18 and 7.7 percent in 2016-17 driven by the gradual implementation of structural reforms, higher disposable income and improvement in economic activity. UN REPORT PUTS INDIA’S GROWTH AT 7.3% A UN report ‘The World Economic Situation and Prospect’ says that notwithstanding delays in domestic policy reforms, India’s economy is “slowly gaining momentum” and is projected to grow by 7.3 per cent this year and is expected to achieve a growth of 7.5 per cent in 2017. IMF KEEPS INDIA’s GROWTH RATE AT 7.5% The IMF has retained its growth forecast for India at 7.5% for the year 2016-17, largely driven by private consumption even as weak exports and sluggish credit growth weigh on the economy. It said structural reforms, including GST and in areas like land and labour, will be the key to boost India’s economic growth.  Global rating agency, Moody's has forecast a growth rate of about 7.5 percent for the Indian economy in 2016 and 2017, driven largely by private consumption growth. APRIL 2016 RBI MAINTAINS GROWTH RATE AT 7.6% The Reserve Bank in its first policy review of the year expects the economy to grow by 7.6 per cent in the current fiscal on the back of favourable monsoon, slightly lower than the upper end of government’s projected rate of 7-7.75 per cent. ADB PUTS INDIA’s GROWTH AT 7.6 % With the failure of the government to push through the Goods and Services Tax and the Land and Labour Reforms, the Asian Development Bank has lowered India’s growth forecast to 7.4 per cent from an earlier estimate of 7.6 per cent for the financial year ending March 31, 2017. “NO BPL POPULATION BY 2032” - KANT In a presentation made by Niti Aayog Chief Executive Officer Amitabh Kant, it was stated that India will achieve growth of 10% by 2032 to become a $10-trillion economy, creating 175 million jobs and leading to zero per cent of Below Poverty Line (BPL) population. ECONOMY & INDUSTRY JUNE 2016 MSP HIKED FOR KHARIF CROPS On the recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), government has hiked the minimum support price (MSP) of pulses by up to Rs 425 per quintal for the coming season 2016-17, effective from Oct 1, 2016. Crop Rs/qtl hike Paddy–common 1470 60 Paddy–grade A 1510 60 Jowar 1625 55 Bajra 1330 55 Maize 1365 40 Tuar daal 5050 425 Moong daal 5225 375 Urad 5000 375 Groundnut 4220 190 Sunflower 3950 150 Sesamum 5000 300 Cotton 3860 60 The MSP is the assured rate at which the government buys the grain from farmers. Paddy is the main crop grown in the kharif (summer) season.
  • 14. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 13 NEW AVENUES FOR 100% FDI With an aim to give impetus to job creation and ease of doing business in the country, Government has approved 100 per cent FDI in Aviation, Defence and e- commerce sectors under the government approval route. RAJASVA GYAN SANGAM HELD IN DELHI A high level summit of the top brass of the two revenue collection arms of the government—CBDT and CBEC was held in New Delhi by the name ‘Rajasva Gyan Sangam’. Addressing the summit, Prime Minster Modi appealed the officers to widen the tax payers base to 10 crore. WORLD BANK FUNDING FOR CITY TRANSPORT The World Bank has agreed to provide a $ 9.2 million grant for financing the Efficient and Sustainable City Bus Service Project in selected Indian cities like Chandigarh, Jaipur and Mira Bhayandar in Thane, Maharashtra. PURCHASES OF OVER 2 LAKH TO ATTRACT TCS Payment in cash for buying goods and services worth more than Rs 2 lakh with the exception of jewellery will attract 1 per cent tax collected at source (TCS) wef June 1. In case of jewellery, the cut off is at Rs 5 lakh and over Rs 2 lakh for bullion. SERVICES TO COST MORE WEF JUNE 1 The Krishi Kalyan Cess of 0.5 per cent on the service tax, announced by Finance Minister in the current budget, became effective from June 1. The consumers will now have to pay an extra 50 paise per Rs 100 or Rs 5 per Rs 1,000 spent on any taxable item like various utility bills, parlours, restaurants, AC rail tickets, etc. TRIAL RUN OF HIGH SPEED TALGO TRAIN Trial of the lighter and faster Spanish train Talgo, with speed up to 115 km per hour, was conducted between Bareilly and Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh as part of the Railways' strategy to increase the speed of trains. LOANS GRANTED BY ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Loan amount (in $ million) Granted to Purpose 120 Odisha to improve irrigation and water management infrastructure 100 Tamil Nadu to strengthen and improve water management in the Vennar sub- basin of Cauvery Delta 200 Jharkhand to upgrade 176-kms of rural roads 500 Bihar to build a 9.8 km long bridge (longest in India) across the Ganges River  The Japan International Cooperation Agency has granted a loan of Rs. 1,548 crore to Tamil Nadu for improving the quality of urban healthcare services.  Work has started on the 'Jal Marg Vikas' (National Waterway-1) for developing a 1620 km waterway between Allahabad and Haldia in West Bengal.  Railways have started a new weekly train from Kamakhya (Seat of Black Magic), Assam to Vaishno Devi Katra (J&K), linking the prominent pilgrimage centers.  The Nuclear Power Corporation of India and the US firm Westinghouse have agreed to begin engineering work for six nuclear power plant reactors in India.  India has surpassed Japan to become the world’s third-largest oil consumer, consuming 4.1 million bpd in 2015, after USA and China. Bpd= barrels per day  To promote and facilitate South Korean Investments in India, the two countries have launched a joint forum named ‘Korea Plus’. MAY 2016 WB LOAN FOR ROOFTOP SOLAR POWER The World Bank has approved $625 million loan to India to support the rooftop solar power generation across the country. The project will be implemented through the State Bank of India, which will on-lend the funds to solar photovoltaic developers and end-users. FSSAI BANS USE OF POTASSIUM BROMATE After the alert raised by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) that 84 per cent of the 38 popular brands of breads contained cancer-causing chemicals, the Food Safety and Standards Association of India (FSSAI) has recommended banning Potassium Bromate as a food additive. PRESIDENT HONOURS EXPORTERS President Pranab Mukherjee presented Niryat Shree and Niryat Bandhu Awards in New Delhi to honour exporters for their excellent business achievements. Both Awards were instituted by the Federation of Indian Export Organization (FIEO) in the year 1995-96 with the aim to motivate exporters.
  • 15. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 14 INDIA RANKS 9TH IN ‘CRONY CAPITALISM’ A study by the leading financial magazine, The Economist shows that in terms of ‘crony capitalism’, India is ranked at ninth position with crony sector wealth accounting for 3.4 per cent of the GDP. Russia tops the list where wealth from the country's crony sectors amounts to 18 per cent of its GDP. Crony capitalism is a kind of economy where success in business depends on close relationships between business people and government officials as the later shower favours on the selected few corporates. ‘DHAN WAPSI’ SCHEME wef JUNE 1 The govt has announced The Income Declaration Scheme, 2016 – ‘Dhan Wapsi’, an amnesty scheme for declaring domestic black money, from June 1 till Sep 30. Individuals willing to declare their black money in the country will have to pay tax and a penalty, totalling 45 per cent. INCOME TAX DATA MADE PUBLIC In a landmark development towards greater transparency, the income tax department has released its key data, though after a lapse of 16 years. Taxpayers account for just about one per cent of India's population. Total income tax collections in 2015-16 were 2.86 lakh crore rupees. NEW DTAA SIGNED WITH MAURITIUS India and Mauritius have signed a protocol amending the double tax avoidance arrangement between the two countries. Now India gets the right to tax capital gains on investments routed through Mauritius, from April 1, 2017.  MMTC has launched in collaboration with Swiss gold company Pamp, a new gold coin ‘Tola’ of 11.6639 grams on the occasion of ‘Akshya Tritya’, May 9.  World Bank has agreed to provide $ 100 million loan to support ‘Karnataka Urban Water Supply Modernization project’.  The Tata Group has made a foray into the e- commerce market through TataCLiQ.com to sell apparel, electronics and footwear, etc.  India and Slovenia have signed a protocol to amend the double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA) to include exchange of information to curb tax evasion.  Union cabinet has approved Rs.1,983 crore package for widening of the 19-km stretch between Delhi- Uttar Pradesh border of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway. APRIL 2016 COMPANIES TO OBSERVE IFRS NORMS Companies with a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more will have to follow new Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS) from April 1. The new standards have been converged with the globally followed International Financial Reporting Standards - IFRS. BLACKSTONE ENTERS INDIA In one of the largest private equity deals in the IT industry, Blackstone, the New York based MNC in investment and financial services has signed a deal to buy 60.5 per cent stake in Mphasis, a Bengaluru based IT services major. INDIA TOPS IN INWARD REMITTANCES As per a recent World Bank report, India remained the world's largest remittance recipient in 2015 despite experiencing a one billion US dollar drop from the previous year, attracting $69 billion, followed by China at $64 billion.  India has offered to invest up to $20 billion in new petrochemicals, fertiliser and liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Iran and sought land and cheaper natural gas for this.  The Shan-E-Punjab Express, country’s first train with CCTV cameras in all coaches, for safety of passengers, started from Delhi for Amritsar.  The Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd. has become the number one coal producer in the country by producing a record 137.90 million tonne of coal in 2015-16.  The East Coast Railway has become the largest Freight Loading Railway Zone in 2015-16 with handling of 173.49 million tonnes of freight.  The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has launched a new index Nifty Mid Smallcap 400 representing 150 midcap and 250 small cap companies.  Govt. has extended safeguard duty of 20 per cent on steel imports till March 2018 to protect Indian industry from cheap China steel
  • 16. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 15 BANKING & FINANCE JUNE 2016 CABINET NOD FOR INDIA POST BANK The Union Cabinet has given its approval for setting up the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) as a Public Ltd Company under the Department of Posts. Bank’s 100% equity will be held by the Government of India. The Bank is likely to get license from RBI by March 2017 and plans to operationalise 650 branches by September 2017. RBI AIMS AT ‘LESS-CASH’ INDIA RBI has released the ‘Payment and Settlement Systems in India: Vision-2018’ that aims at building best of class payment and settlement systems for a ‘less-cash’ India and ensuring access of mobile banking services to even basic phone users. The document focuses on 5 Cs - coverage, convenience, confidence, convergence and cost. SCHEME FOR HIGH VALUE BAD LOANS RBI has announced the Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of Stressed Assets, S4A, to handle the high value bad loans. Under the scheme, a portion of the debt will be converted into equity under supervision of Indian Banks Association. The scheme will be applicable to those projects which have started commercial operations and have outstanding loan of over 500 crore rupees. NRIs ALLOWED TO OPEN NPS ACCOUNTS Government has allowed non resident Indians (NRIs) to open National Pension Scheme (NPS) accounts online if they have Aadhaar Card or PAN card. Till now, NRIs could open NPS accounts only through paper applications by approaching Bank offices. SBI TO MERGE ASSOCIATE BANKS The Union Cabinet has approved the merger of State Bank of India (SBI) and its five subsidiaries — State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, State Bank of Travancore, State Bank of Patiala, State Bank of Mysore and State Bank of Hyderabad. The merged entity will create a banking behemoth, which can compete with the largest in the world with an asset base of almost Rs 37 trillion, 22,500 branches and 58,000 ATMs as on December 2015. AXIS BANK LAUNCHED ‘GREEN BONDS’ Axis Bank raised $500 million at the London Stock Exchange after it launched India’s first internationally- listed certified green bond to finance climate change solutions around the world. Green bonds are the one where funds raised are used exclusively for renewable energy projects or some other clean energy project.  Latest RBI data shows that banking transactions through mobile apps have increased seven-fold in three years, between 2013 and 2016.  RBI plans to put into circulation Rs.10 coins bearing the portrait of Swami Chinmayananda to commemorate his birth centenary. MAY 2016 BANKS ASKED TO SHIFT TO EVM CARDS The Reserve Bank of India has instructed banks to shift from magnetic stripe based ATM and debit cards to EMV chip and Pin based cards to ensure protection of cards from cloning, skimming and other forms of frauds which can happen on a magnetic strip. WILFUL DEFAULTERS OWE Rs. 66,190 CRORE As per a written statement made in Rajya Sabha by Union Minister of state for Finance, there were 7,686 wilful defaulters owing Rs 66,190 crore to state-owned banks as of December 2015. The cumulative gross NPAs of 24 listed public sector banks, including SBI group, stood at Rs.3,93,035 crore as on 31 December 2015. As per RBI, an asset becomes non-performing when it ceases to generate income for the bank or the repayment due is delayed for more than 90 days. INDIA’s FIRST ‘MOBILE ONLY’ BANK The DBS, Singapore's largest bank, has launched India’s first mobile only bank named ‘digibank’. It uses technologies such as bio metrics and artificial intelligence, to enable paperless, signature less and branch less banking.
  • 17. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 16 NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK SELECTS ICICI The ICICI bank has become the first financial institution in the country to be selected by the BRICS’s New Development Bank to explore opportunities around bond issuance, co-financing, treasury management and human resources in India.  Union Bank of India has launched e-SBTR (Electronic Secured Bank Treasury Receipt), a single window facility for payment of both - stamp duty and registration fee for home purchase in Maharashtra  Saudi Arabia based Islamic Development Bank has announced to open its first branch in India at Ahmadabad, Gujarat to offer interest free banking services as per the Muslim law – Shariat.  UK based banking giant, HSBC Holding Plc has decided to close its 24 branches in India, out of total 50.  The RBI has released ‘Draft Guidelines for on tap Licensing of Universal Banks in the Private Sector’ to receive comments / suggestions from the public.  A commemorative coin of 100 rupees and a circulation coin of ten rupees have been released on the 475th birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap. APRIL 2016 REPO RATE LOWERED TO 6.50% The RBI announced a 25 basis cut in its policy interest rate on April 5, lowering it to more than five-year low. The new repo rate now stands at 6.50 per cent. However, the reverse repo rate has been hiked by 25 basis points to 6 per cent. The new Marginal Standing Facility and Bank Rate stand at 7.00 percent. BANKS ADOPT MCLR FOR LOWER RATES Short-term working capital loans are set to get cheaper as banks start adopting the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) from 1 April. The new framework requires banks to set rates based on their marginal cost of funds rather than their average cost of funds. MCLR is expected to improve transmission of policy rate cuts to bank loan rates. INDIA’s FIRST PAYMENTS BANK Airtel M Commerce Services Limited (AMSL), a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel (Airtel) has been granted the India’s first payments bank license by RBI. The company already offers mobile money services under the brand name ‘Airtel Money’.
  • 18. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 17 DEFENCE, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY JUNE 2016 FIRST WOMEN FIGHTER JET PILOTS The Indian Air Force crossed another milestone on June 18 when for the first time three women fighter jet pilots - Bhawana Kanth, Avani Chaturvedi and Mohana Singh - were commissioned in the operations in Air Force. DEAL OKAYED FOR 145 ARTILLERY GUNS Ministry of Defence has approved the purchase of 145 artillery guns meant especially for deployment in the Himalayas by the upcoming Mountain Strike Corps of the Indian Army. The 155 MM, M777 ultra light howitzer (ULH) will be supplied by The BAE systems of USA and will be assembled in India in collaboration with Mahindra Defence Systems. BRAHMOS INTEGRATED WITH SUKHOI-30 BrahMos Aerospace successfully tested the integration of the supersonic cruise missile system BRAHMOS on the supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30. This is for the first time in the world that a supersonic cruise missile has been integrated with a supersonic fighter aircraft.  Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 (HTT-40), the two- seater basic trainer aircraft designed and developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited made its inaugural flight successfully.  It will be used for the first-stage training for all flying cadets of the three services.  Govt has taken a considered decision to allow export of 'Akaash' missile systems to 'certain' countries that have friendly relationship with India.  Exercise Desert Eagle II was held between Indian Air Force and United Arab Emirates Air Force in Abu Dhabi in last week of May.  India has joined The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation, a voluntary legally non- binding multilateral body in Vienna, for preventing the spread of ballistic missiles.  A joint military exercise named ‘Malabar’ was held between the naval forces of India, Japan and the US off the Okinawa coast in Japan.  The North Atlantic Treaty Organization members and partners launched their biggest ever joint military exercise in Poland, named Anaconda-16 Exercise.  Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s largest annual security meet held in Singapore to discuss the security issues in the Asia-Pacific region. ISRO LAUNCHES RECORD 20 SATELLITES The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) created a record on June 22 by launching 20 satellites in one go, including 17 foreign ones, using its flagship rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C34 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikotta. NEW RICE VARIETIES DEVLOPED Researchers at Assam Agricultural University have developed two rice varieties, namely Ranjit Sub-1 and Bahadur Sub-1 that can be grown successfully even in submerged conditions that are frequent in Assam due to common flash floods. CHINA HAS WORLD’s FASTEST COMPUTER Chinese supercomputer Sunway TaihuLight has been declared as the world’s fastest supercomputer, achieving a speed of up to 93 petaflop/second. The selection was made by the International Supercomputing Conference held in Frankfurt, Germany. MICROSOFT TO ACQUIRE ‘LINKEDIN’ In one of the largest acquisitions in the social media space, Microsoft has announced to acquire professional networking website LinkedIn for $26.2 billion. LinkedIn with its over 430 million users will retain its distinct brand, culture and independence.
  • 19. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 18 FIRST ANIMAL TO BE DECLARED ‘EXTINCT’ A small rodent (rat) named the Bramble Cay Melomys found only on a single island off Australia is the world's first mammal to be declared as extinct as none of them has been sighted by the locals after 2009. Main reason for this is the abnormal rise in sea level due to global warming, submerging parts of Bramble Cay Island  China launched its 23rd satellite to support its global navigation and positioning network- BeiDou Navigation Satellite System.  Google has tied up with Tata Trusts to launch ‘Internet Saathi’ programme to empower rural women by enabling them to use Internet in their daily lives.  Russia launched the world’s biggest nuclear icebreaker ship 22220 Arktika. It has a two-reactor power unit of 175 MW with a displacement of 33,540 tonnes.  US scientists team has created the world's first microchip that has 1,000 processors and is thought to be the fastest chip designed in a university lab.  Asia’s largest technology trade show COMPUTEX started in Taipei, capital of Taiwan on May 31. More than 1,600 companies from 30 countries took part. MAY 2016 NAVAL EXERCISE WITH ASEAN FORCES The ADMM-Plus (ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus) Exercise on Maritime Security and Counter Terrorism (Ex MS & CT) was held in Brunei. The nine day naval exercise aims to strengthen the strong bilateral ties and extensive maritime interactions between India and ASEAN countries. INDIA TEST FIRES ANTI-BALLASTIC MISSILE India successfully test-fired its indigenously developed supersonic interceptor missile, capable of destroying any incoming hostile ballistic missile. The Advance Air Defence (AAD) missile dubbed as Ashwin was fired from the Adbul Kalam Island (formerly known as Wheeler Island), off the Odisha coast. IAF LAUNCHES E-MAINTENANCE SYSTEM Indian Air Force launched an Electronic Maintenance Management System (e-MMS), one of the biggest automated military maintenance systems in the world, at the Air Force Station in Pune. The system would seamlessly connect all the squadrons, wings, commands with the Air Headquarters, after its implementation. PRITHVI II MISSILE TESTED BY DRDO India successfully test fired its indigenously developed nuclear weapon capable Prithvi-II missile from the Abdul Kalam Island, off Odisha coast. It has a strike range of 350 kilometer. NAVY SAYS GOOD BYE TO ‘SEA HARRIERS’ The Indian Naval Air Squadron 300- ‘White Tigers,’ bid farewell to the British Sea Harriers fighter aircrafts on May 11. They will be replaced by the new generation MiG 29K/Kub fighters. Sea Harriers joined the Indian Navy in 1983.  Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha became the first Chief of Air Staff to fly the indigenously designed and produced Light Combat Aircraft Tejas in Bengaluru.  Indian Army conducted its major military training exercise ‘Chakravyuh-II’ in Suratgarh, Rajasthan.  INS Kalvari (sea tiger shark), the first of the six indigenous Scorpene-class submarines set out for sea trials off the Mumbai coast.  India signed 4 MoUs for cooperation in defence sector with Oman in Muscat.  The indigenously built Offshore Petrol Vessel ICGS Shaurya joined the Indian Coast guard at Vasco, Goa. ICGS = Indian Coast Guard Ship  Indigenously built Fast Patrol Vessel ICGS Arush joined the Indian Coast Guard at Cochi, Kerala.  The 27th edition of the India-Indonesian CORPAT (Coordinated Patrol) between their navies was held off the coast of Belawan, Indonesia.  India’s first indigenously built fast attack waterjet craft INS Tarmugli was inducted in Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam.  The Indian Navy has decided to decommission two of its warships – INS Veer and INS Nipat.
  • 20. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 19 ISRO TESTS RE-USABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE India successfully tested its first-ever indigenously built space shuttle - the Re-Usable Launch Vehicle - Technology Demonstrator or RLV-TD on May 23 from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. Re-usable technology aims to help reduce the cost of launching satellites by 10 times. WHO TO PROMOTE ‘AYUSH’ India and the World Health Organization have signed an agreement in Geneva for cooperation in promoting quality, safety and effectiveness of service provision in traditional Indian systems of medicine, called AYUSH. GOOGLE CHROME IS TOP BROWSER As per a global market research, Google Chrome, claiming 41.7 per cent of desktop browser share has become the top Internet browser, ending the long reign of Microsoft Internet Explorer. Mozilla’s Firefox browser stands at third place.  In the first global assessment of the world's flora by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (London), it is estimated that there are about 390,900 plants.  In a rare astronomical phenomenon, planet Mercury was seen as a moving dot on the solar disc, from various places of India, on May 9.  University of Cambridge researchers have built the world's smallest working engine. The device, powered by light, is just millionths of a millimeter in size.  China successfully launched its remote sensing satellite ‘Yaogan-30’ into space atop a Long March 2D rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. APRIL 2016 ARMY RAISES NEW ‘GORKHA BATTALION’ The Army has raised a new Gorkha battalion comprising entirely of Gorkha troops of Indian domicile. The new battalion, the Sixth Battalion of the First Gorkha Rifles (6/1GR), christened “Kanchi Paltan”, has been raised at Sabathu in the Shivalik foothills near Shimla, that houses the 14 Gorkha Training Centre. DEAL FINALISED FOR 36 RAFALE JETS India has finalised the deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter jets from Dassault Aviation of France for 7.89 billion euros (Rs. 59,000 crore). The Indian team managed to bring down the deal price by 11 billion euros. The first set of jets would be delivered within 18 to 20 months. K-4 MISSILE TESTED SUCCESSFULLY India has successfully tested its most ambitious weapon system - a long range submarine-launched ballistic missile, codenamed K-4, capable of striking targets upto 3,500 kilometres away. The missile was tested 40 kms off the Vishakhapatnam coast. INDIA MAKES FIRST SONAR DOME India’s first indigenous composite sonar dome, a ship’s underwater eyes and ears, was launched at Goa. Designed and produced by DRDO, it is a rare achievement as very few companies in the world have technology to make sonar domes. INDIA 4TH IN DEFENCE SPENDING India has become the world’s fourth largest spender on defence, following a 13.1% increase in its 2016-17 defence budget of Rs. 2,58,000 crore, according to US research firm IHS Inc. USA is the largest spender in the world, followed by China and Saudi Arabia. INDIA – US TO SHARE MILITARY LOGISTICS To counter the growing maritime assertiveness of China, India and the United States have ‘agreed in principle’ to share their military logistics. IAF TO TAKE PART IN NATO EXCERCISE 12 IAF aircrafts will take part in the prestigious 'Red Flag' air exercise alongside NATO forces from April 28 to May 13 in skies over Alaska. It is seen as a complex and advanced network centric operation -- the toughest test for flying machines and men.
  • 21. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 20  ICGS Shoor, an offshore patrol vessel was inducted in the Indian Coast Guard at it Mangalore base.  The 11th Indo-Mongolia joint army training exercise, titled ‘Nomadic Elephant - 2016’ commenced on 25 April in Mongolia to share skills for handling Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorism events.  The 22nd Indo-Thai Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) was held from 19-27 April in the Andaman Sea. Missile Corvette INS Karmuk and Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft took part in this exercise.  The Indian Army conducted its major war exercise named ‘Shatrujeet’ (winning the enemy) in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan. SUPERCOMPUTER ‘PARAM KANCHENJUNGA’ The National Institute of Technology (NIT) Sikkim has secured a rare distinction of having a supercomputer named ‘Param Kanchenjunga’, which is said to be the most powerful and fastest among all the 31 NITs. LIGHTEST EVER SYNTHETIC MATERIAL Scientists at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (of ISRO), Thiruvananthapuram, have developed the world's lightest ever synthetic material called ‘silica aerogel’ or ‘blue air’ or ‘frozen smoke’. It has an excellent thermal resistance and if used as filler in uniforms, it can save many lives at the Siachen Glacier. INDIA GETS ASIA's BIGGEST TELESCOPE Asia's biggest telescope has been launched in India. Built by the Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) with the assistance of Belgium, the telescope is located at a height of 2,500 metres at Devasthal in Nainital district.  The Airports Authority of India has signed an MoU with ISRO to provide scientific parameters for construction of airports across the country.  India and the USA have signed an agreement for a new Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) project in India. INTERNATIONAL JUNE 2016 BRITAIN VOTES TO LEAVE EUROPEAN UNION In the referendum held on June 23 in Britain to decide whether Britain should remain with European Union or leave it, British people voted to leave the European Union to take greater control of its economy and its borders, shattering the stability of the continental unity forged after World War II. The ‘Leave’ side secured 51.9 per cent votes as against 48.1 per cent vote for ‘Remain’. Prime Minister David Cameron, a passionate supporter of ‘remain’ announced that as a measure of respect for the “will of the people” he would be stepping down as prime minister in October. ICELAND IS THE MOST PEACEFUL COUNTRY In a ranking of 163 countries in the Global Peace Index compiled by Institute for Economics and Peace, Syria has been named as the least peaceful country, followed by South Sudan, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia. On the other hand, Iceland was ranked as the world’s most peaceful country, followed by Denmark and Austria. India ranks a low at 141. SWISS REJECT FREE INCOME In a referendum held in Switzerland, 77 per cent Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to introduce a guaranteed basic income for all. The proposal had called for adults to be paid an unconditional monthly income, whether they worked or not. SWEDEN IS THE BEST COUNTRY According to the 'Good Country' Index 2015 which surveyed 163 countries to measure how countries contribute to the global good, Sweden is the world’s best country, followed by Denmark and Netherlands. India was placed at 70th spot.
  • 22. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 21 WORLD’s LONGEST RAIL TUNNEL The world’s longest rail tunnel, Gotthard Base Tunnel, 57 kms long under the Alps Mountain in Switzerland, was opened on June 1 for running of trains. Set of two tunnels, it is also the deepest train tunnel of world, going up to 2300 mts below the surface. It will reduce the train journey from Zurich (Switzerland) to Milan in northern Italy down to two hours and 40 minutes, roughly an hour less than it currently takes. STRAY SHOOTING KILLS 50 IN USA A gunman armed with an assault rifle killed 50 persons at a packed gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, USA in one of the worst mass shootings in the US history. The shooter, identified as Omar S Mateen (29), was killed by the police on the spot. AIIB APPROVES FIRST GLOBAL LOANS Bangladesh has become one of the first countries to get a loan from the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The country will get $165 million for a power distribution system upgrade and expansion project. The other three borrowers are Pakistan, Indonesia and Tajikistan. PAK TOPS IN MALWARE THREATS Malware Infection Index 2016 released by the Microsoft Asia to identify the key malware threats in Asia Pacific region has revealed Pakistan as the location with the highest malware encounters followed by Indonesia, Bangladesh. India stands at no. 8 in region.  World Health Organisation has recognised Thailand, Armenia, Belarus and Moldova for eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis.  The Forbes “100 Most Powerful Women” in the world list 2016, topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, includes SBI Chief Arundhati Bhattacharya at 25th rank.  The World Bank has slashed its 2016 growth forecast for the world by 0.5 per cent to 2.4 per cent, citing disappointing growth in major emerging market economies including China and Brazil.  Global aircraft company Airbus has unveiled the world's first 3D-printed aircraft THOR - Test of High- tech Objectives in Reality.  The World Health Organization on June 01 has declared the end of Ebola virus transmission in Guinea, one of the three West African countries hardest hit by the epidemic in 2014.  Norway has become the first country in world to prohibit deforestation of rain forest to preserve the balance of ecosystem.  Colombia signed a historical ceasefire agreement with the guerrilla organization FARC to put an end to more than 50 years of bloodshed. FARC: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia MAY 2016 KENYA DESTROYS HUGE STOCK OF IVORY In one of the largest stockpile of elephant tusks (ivory) destroyed in Africa, Kenya's president set fire to 105 tonnes of elephant ivory and more than one tonne of rhino horn, seized from smugglers and poachers. The ivory is reported to be worth over $150 million in the open market and the rhino horn could raise as much as $80 million. WB LAUNCHES EMERGENCY FUND FOR ZIKA World Bank Group has launched the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) to protect and support poorest countries against deadly pandemics like Ebola, Zika. The PEF will ensure fast disbursement of global financing. ROYAL CAMPAIGN FOR MENTAL HEALTH British Royals Prince William, Princess Kate and Prince Harry launched the ‘Heads Together’ campaign in London to spread and promote public awareness about mental health and wellbeing.  Heads of state from G-7 nations, USA, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and host Japan held their meet in the Japanese city of Ise Shima.  Finance ministers and central bank governors meet of G-7 nations held in Sendai, Japan.  A two day International Buddhist conference was held at the birth place of Lord Buddha, Lumbini, Nepal to celebrate his 2,560th birth anniversary.
  • 23. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 22  The first-ever World Humanitarian Summit was held in Istanbul from 23 to 24th May.  The First World Conference on Tourism for Development was held in Beijing from May 18-21.  Harmony of the Seas, world’s biggest-ever cruise ship, capable of accommodating more than 8,000 passengers and crew in the most luxurious conditions, was unveiled in France.  USA decided to fully lift its embargo on sales of lethal weapons to its one-time arch enemy, Vietnam, after a gap of over 32 years.  Kenya to close World's biggest refugee camp in Dadaab, citing threat to internal security. About 3,28,000 refugees, mostly from Somalia are staying in this camp.  USA has approved selection of animal ‘Bison’ as the first national mammal of the country. This is in addition to the present national symbol - Bald Eagle’.  The European Central Bank (ECB) has decided to stop printing of the 500 euro banknote by the end of 2018 with a view to curb illicit activities.  It is one of the highest value (Rs 380,000 roughly) circulating banknotes in the world.  The International Bank Note Society has declared New Zealand’s five-dollar note as the Banknote of the Year for 2015 in a study of 40 notes from 20 countries. APRIL 2016 WORLD’s WHO’s WHO IN PANAMA LEAK A massive leak of 11.5 million documents from a law firm in Panama reveals how the world's current rich people, politicians and celebrities hide their money in Panama. The documents, dubbed the Panama Papers, were obtained by a Munich-based daily newspaper. The names figuring in the leak included aides to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's son Nazifuddin, family of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Amitabh Bachchan. USA TOPS IN ICT USAGE A study of 50 nations by Chinese IT giant Huawei for investment and deployment of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has placed USA at top, followed by Singapore, Sweden. Huawei Global Connectivity Index 2016 places India at 44th rank. SAN JOSE - THE MOST FUTURE READY CITY In a study of 50 cities conducted by the IT firm Dell - ‘Future-Ready Economies Model’, city of San Jose in California, USA has been placed at top, followed by San Francisco, Singapore. From India, Delhi ranks at 44th place. AUSTRALIA SUFFERS LOSS IN REEF TOURISM Australian scientists have reported that over 90 per cent of the Great Barrier Reef has been affected by mass bleaching that is likely to destroy half the coral. Reef tourism generates around $4 billion every year for Australia. Bleaching occurs when the water is too warm, forcing coral to expel living algae and causing it to calcify and turn white. IMF & WB TO WORK FOR TAX IMPROVEMENT The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have joined hands with the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, to form a new group which will work for building effective tax systems in developing countries and avoiding tax base erosion. WTO LOWERS TRADE GROWTH TO 2.8% The World Trade Organization has revised its 2016 global trade forecast downward by more than one percentage point to 2.8 per cent, warning that a slowdown in China and broad market volatility continued to threaten growth. In September last, the WTO estimated global trade to rise by 3.9 per cent in 2016. INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ZERO - ICZ ICZ was held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France to promote the knowledge of Maths for greater global good. A bronze bust of ancient Indian mathematician and astronomer Aryabhatta was also unveiled there on the occasion. WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS The World Bank released the 2016 edition of the World Development Indicators (WDI). It includes 1400 indicators for over 200 economies to measure the 169 targets of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by UNO.
  • 24. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 23 TOP 'GLOBAL GAME CHANGERS' American business magazine Forbes has ranked some of the biggest names in business as the 'Global Game Changers'. The selected 30 businessmen have exhibited growth and innovation, and their examples have had been adopted and copied by rivals the world over. The list is topped by Marcs Benioff, CEO of Salesforce.com, followed by Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com. It includes three Indians - Rahul Bhatia of Inter Globe Enterprises, Cyrus Poonawalla of Serum Institute of India, and Sunny Varkey of GEMS Education at 3, 23 and 26 positions respectively.  The annual Spring Meeting of IMF & WB was held at Washington. Finance Ministers and Governors of Central Banks from G-20 nations attended the meet.  Heads of about 53 countries took part in the 4th Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington, USA.  Nauru, the tiny South Pacific island nation has become the 189th member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.  Summit of the foreign ministers of the G-7 countries was held at Hiroshima, Japan on April 11.  Japan has become fourth country in world to successfully test its first stealth fighter jet – X 2, the other three being USA, Russia and China.  The latest World Malaria Report from WHO says that Europe has become the world’s first region to wipe out malaria with zero cases reported last year.  The 13th Islamic Summit Conference was held in Istanbul, Turkey. This year’s theme was Unity and Solidarity for Justice and Peace.  The world’s first public dengue vaccination programme was launched in the Philippines.  In UK, Britain's Royal Mail has launched a set of special postage stamps to mark the 400th death anniversary of the great playwright William Shakespeare.  Bangladesh’s top court has rejected a 28-year-old petition to remove Islam as official religion of the country, disappointing the activists who wanted the country to remain secular.  UNICEF launched a series of animated films, called Unfairy Tales, to help frame positive perceptions towards the millions of refugees.  A US grand jury has slapped a $ 940 million fine on Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata America International Corp. in a trade secret case.  British Petroleum has agreed to pay over $20 billion to the American government as damages over the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  Venezuela has ordered a two-day working week for public sector workers as a temporary measure to help it overcome a serious energy crisis. PERSONS IN NEWS JUNE 2016 NIKESH ARORA: One of the highest paid CEO of the world heading the SoftBank Group Corp. was in news as he resigned abruptly just after two years stay at the corporation. S. K. ROY: Chairman of public sector insurance giant was in news as he resigned nearly two years ahead of completion of his five-year term. Mr. Roy, who has been with LIC since 1981, took charge as chairman in June 2013. NITA AMBANI: The chairperson and founder of Reliance Foundation, has become first Indian woman to be nominated to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the governing body of the Olympic Movement. HILLARY CLINTON Democratic Party candidate for US Presidential elections created history by becoming the first woman to lead a major American political party for President’s post in the 240 years of democracy in USA. MAY 2016 UDAY KOTAK: Kotak Mahindra Bank Chief, is the only Indian in Forbes' 'Money Masters: The Most Powerful People in the Financial World' list of 40 persons. Lt. Col. RANVEER JAMWAL: An officer in the Jat regiment of Indian Army successfully completed his third Everest expedition, the earlier ones being in 2012 and 2013. YASH CHOPRA: A life size bronze statue of the late film-maker was installed by the govt of Switzerland in Kursaal area to honour the film maker who shot most of his romantic dramas in the lush mountains of Switzerland. RISHI NAIR: A 6th grade Indian American student won the prestigious National Geographic Bee competition 2016 at Washington DC, USA. NIHAR JANGA & JAIRAM HATHWAR: Two Indian- American students scripted history by becoming the joint winner of the US Scripps National Spelling Bee Contest. Nihar, a 5th grader, is the youngest winner of the 91 year old contest while Jairam is in 7th grade. Each will get a prize of $ 40,000.
  • 25. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 24 FATMA SAMOURA: The Senegalese UN diplomat was named as the first ever female Secretary General of the international football body, FIFA. DILMA ROUSSEFF: 68 years old Brazilian President was suspended on May 12 after several weeks of nationwide protests for her removal. Senate has decided to initiate impeachment proceedings against her on charges that she broke budget accounting laws. CRAIG WRIGHT: The Australian entrepreneur has publicly identified himself as creator of virtual cash/currency – Bitcoin, under the fake name of Satoshi Nakamoto. LHAKPA SHERPA: A 42-year-old Nepalese woman of USA climbed Mount Everest for the seventh time on May 20, creating a record for the most summits of the world’s highest mountain by a woman. APRIL 2016 SACHIN TENDULKAR: The Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has named cricket icon as brand ambassador of the 'Skill India' campaign. P SUSHEELA MOHAN: Renowned playback singer has been recognized by the Guinness World Records for singing the most number of songs in Indian languages - 17,695 solo, duet and chorus-backed songs in 12 Indian languages. NITA AMBANI: Reliance Foundation Chairperson has been named the most powerful businesswoman in Asia by Forbes, leading a list of 50 women leaders from the region that includes only eight from India. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE: A host of celebrations were held in England and several other parts of the world to observe 400th death anniversary of legendary playwright, also known as The Bard of Avon. His famous works include masterpieces like Othello, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet. QUEEN ELIZABETH II: The world’s oldest-serving royal and the longest-reigning and longest-lived British monarch turned 90 on April 21, receiving the greetings of thousands of British citizens as well as wishes from all over the world. ARSENIY YATSENYUK: Ukrainian Prime Minister announced his resignation in the wake of a month-long political crisis that paralysed his government and frozen the release of vital Western aid. Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson: Iceland’s Prime Minister resigned reportedly after his name figured in the mushrooming worldwide scandal over hidden offshore financial dealings exposed in the so-called Panama Papers leak. APPOINTMENTS JUNE 2016 ASHOK LAVASA: Appointed as the new Union Finance Secretary Ms SUPRIYA SAHU: Appointed as the Director General of Doordarshan DIA MIRZA: Bollywood actress has been named the ambassador for Swachh Bharat Mission's youth-based 'Swachh Saathi' (student internship) programme. SUNIL MITTAL: Chairman of Bharti Enterprises (Airtel), elected as the Chairman of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) based in Paris. ANNE HATHAWAY: Famous US actress and singer has been appointed as global Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. PETER THOMSON: Permanent Representative of Fiji, was elected as the President of the upcoming 71st session of UN General Assembly. PEDRO PABLO KUCZYNSKI: Elected new President of Peru HANI Al MULQI: Appointed as new Prime Minister of Jordan. MAY 2016 3 NEW CHIEF MINISTERS Sarbananda Sonowal: Assam, from BJP Pinarayi Vijayan: Kerala, from CPI (M) V. Narayanasamy: Puducherry, from Congress KIRAN BEDI: Appointed as the new Lieutenant Governor of Union Territory of Puducherry. VICE ADMIRAL SUNIL LANBA: Appointed as the next Chief of Indian Navy, in the rank of Admiral. S K BHAGAT: Appointed as Director General of the Railway Protection Force (RPF). S K SHARMA: Renowned scientist has been appointed the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL). ANURAG THAKUR: The BJP M P from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh, was elected as the President of the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).
  • 26. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 25 SHASHANK MANOHAR: Former BCCI President, who resigned recently, was elected unopposed as the first independent Chairman of International Cricket Council, for two years. ATMA RAM NADKARNI: Appointed as the Additional Solicitor General in Supreme Court for a period of three years. BINALI YILDIRIM: Elected as the new Prime Minister of Turkey. Ms. TSAI ING-WEN: elected as the first women President of Taiwan BACIRO DJA: Appointed as the new Prime Minister of Guinea Bissau, a small country in Western Africa. RODRIGO DUTERTE: Elected as the New President of the Philippines. He is the Mayor of Davao City in Philippines. He is very popular and is known as ‘Digong’. ENDA KENNY: Re elected as the Prime Minister of Ireland APRIL 2016 JUSTICE (retd.) PERMOD KOHLI: Appointed as the new Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT). C P GURNANI: Elected as the new Chairman of the National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) for 2016-17. He is the MD & CEO of Tech Mahindra. MEHBOOBA MUFTI: Elected as the first woman Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir LOBSANG SANGAY: Re-elected as the Prime Minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile in Dharmsala, Himachal Pradesh. CLEMENT MOUAMBA: Appointed as the new Prime Minister of Republic of Congo. IDRISS DEBY: Elected for the 5th time as the President of Chad, a country in Central Africa. BOUNNHANG VORACHIT: Elected as the new President of Laos THONGLOUN SISOULITH: Elected as the new Prime Minister of Laos VOLODYMYR GROYSMAN: Elected as the new Prime Minister of Ukraine SOORONBAI JEENBEKOV: New Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan. HASHIM THACI: Elected as the President of Kosovo, a small country in southeast Europe. SIGURDUR INGI JOHANNSSON: Elected as the new Prime Minister of Iceland after the earlier Prime Minister resigned due to his name coming in ‘Panama Leaks’. NGUYEN XUAN PHUC: Elected as the new Prime Minister of Vietnam. TRAN DAI QUANG: Elected as the new President of Vietnam. FAUSTIN ARCHANGE TOUADERA: Elected as the new President of Central African Republic. Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr: Appointed as the new Prime Minister of Yemen AWARDS & HONOURS JUNE 2016 INTERNATIONAL INDIAN FILM ACADEMY (IIFA) awards festival held in Madrid, Spain on June 23. Best Feature Film: Bajrangi Bhaijaan by Kabir Khan Best Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali for Bajirao Mastani Best Actor: Ranvir Singh for Bajirao Mastani Best Actress: Deepika Padukon for Piku GD BIRLA AWARD FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH: won by IIT-Kanpur professor Sanjay Mittal INDIA BIODIVERSITY AWARD: Won by the Pakke Tiger Reserve is in East Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh. ASIA NEW TALENT AWARDS: ‘Thithi’, a Kannada film won the best film award and best script writers award at the19th Shanghai International Film Festival. INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD: won by Akhil Sharma for his novel 'family life'. PEOPLE’s CHOICE PRIZE: Gold medal won by the renowned Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik at the world championship festival of sand sculpting in Bulgaria. FUKUOKA PRIZE: Awarded to renowned Indian music composer A. R. Rahman for his outstanding contribution towards creating, preserving and showcasing South Asian traditional fusion music. This prize is given by city of Fukuoka in Japan. SCHOLASTIC ASIAN BOOK AWARD: won by Aditi Krishnakumar for her manuscript “Love of Indian History".
  • 27. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 26 MAY 2016 ‘ORDER OF THE RISING SUN, GOLD AND SILVER’: Former bureaucrat and parliamentarian N. K. Singh was selected for Japan’s highest civilian honour, for promoting economic, educational and cultural ties between India and Japan. MAN BOOKER INTERNATIONAL PRIZE: South Korean author, Han Kang, has won the prestigious prize for her novel 'The Vegetarian'. The writer and her British translator Deborah Smith will share the $72,000 prize money. This prize is given every year for the best book translated in English and published in U K. MILLENNIUM TECHNOLOGY PRIZE: US engineer Frances Arnold has become first woman to win this prize for pioneering directed evolution. The award, given by the Technology Academy, Finland, carries a cash prize of Euro one million. Palme d'Or: Award for the best film at Cannes Film Festival won by the film ‘I, Daniel Blake’ by British director Ken Loach. PEN’s LITERARY SERVICE AWARD: Won by British author J.K. Rowling for her dedication to free speech and social justice. The award is given by PEN, a USA based NGO for excellence in promoting peace, harmony and human rights through literature. COMMONWEALTH SHORT STORY PRIZE: (for Asia region) won by Prashar Kulkarni for his story ‘Cow and Company’. “NORTH STAR": Highest civilian award of Mongolia conferred upon two noted Indian scholars-Lokesh Chandra and Mansura Haider for their contribution to Mongolian studies. Sudarsan Pattnaik: Renowned sand artist won the gold medal at the 9th Moscow Sand Sculpture Championship in Russia. APRIL 2016 SARASWATI SAMMAAN: Prestigious prize for literature given to the Jammu-born poet and novelist Padma Sachdev for her autobiography ‘Chitt-Chete’ written in Dogri language. The award carries award money of 15 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque. FBB FEMINA MISS INDIA WORLD 2016 Winner: Priyadarshini Chaterjee First runners-up: Sushruthi Krishna Second runners-up: Pankhuri Gidwani DADASAHEB PHALKE AWARD: won by renowned actor Manoj Bajpayee for the movie Aligarh. Please note that this is NOT the national award rather it is the regional award in Maharashtra, given by Dada Saheb Phalke Foundation. 'Officier de l Ordre national de la Legion d Honneur’: (Officer of the Legion of Honour), highest French civilian honour conferred upon Former Army Chief General (retd) J J Singh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conferred Saudi Arabia’s highest civilian honour- the king Abdulaziz Sash. The award is named after Abdulaziz Al Saud, the founder of the modern Saudi state. BOOKS & AUTHORS JUNE 2016 Zindaginama by Krishna Sobti Favourite Ghost Stories From Around The World by Ruskin Bond. Old History New Geography: Bifurcating Andhra Pradesh by Jairam Ramesh A Life in Diplomacy by M K Rasgotra The Age of Genius: The Seventeenth Century and the Birth of the Modern Mind by AC Grayling. The Spy by Paulo Coelho The Unseen Indira Gandhi by Dr. K P Mathur Muslims Against Partition by Shamsul Islam. The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf. MAY 2016 Vanishing Shangri La by K N Raghavan. The Drowned Detective by Neil Jordan, Blood on my Hands: Confessions of Staged Encounters by Kishalay Bhattacharjee The Outside Lands by Hannah Kohler A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman Me Before You by Jojo Moyes APRIL 2016 An Economist in the Real World by Kaushik Basu, Chief Economist at World Bank Swimmer Among the Stars by Kanishk Tharoor Mercedes-Benz - Winning by Adil Jal Darukhanawala
  • 28. GENERAL AWARENESS – AUGUST 2016 27 Friends in Wild Places by Ruskin Bond. Safeguarding India by NN Vohra. The Making of India: The Untold Story of British Enterprise by Kartar Lalvani Advantage India — From Challenge to Opportunity by APJ Abdul Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh. A State in Denial by B G Verghese The Kiss of Life by Imraan Hashmi The Mountain of Shiva by Dr Karan Singh. He is a member of Rajya Sabha. OBITUARY JUNE 2016 NEIL O'BRIEN: An Anglo-Indian community icon and former Lok Sabha member, credited with pioneering the quiz in the country, died in Kolkata. He was 82. His son Derek O'Brien is also a famous quiz master. MUDRARAKSHASA: Distinguished Hindi writer and veteran intellectual passed away at the age of 82 in Lucknow, following a prolonged illness. INDER MALHOTRA: Veteran journalist passed away at a Delhi hospital at the age of 68. He was associated with ‘The Statesman’ and ‘The Times of India’. SULABHA DESHPANDE: Eminent actor and theatre personality passed away in Mumbai. She was 79. SURESH CHATWAL: Veteran TV and film actor passed away in Mumbai after a brief illness. MANOHAR AICH: India's first Mr. Universe (1952) passed away in Kolkata at the age of 104. Famous as the ‘Pocket Hercules’ due to his short height – 4’ 11”, he was a very popular figure in the world of body building. RAZAK KHAN: Veteran comedy actor who worked in films like “Hera Pheri”, “Raja Hindustani” and “Baadshah” among others, died in Mumbai. He was 65. MUHAMMAD ALI: The three-time world heavyweight boxing champion who ruled the boxing world in late sixties, died at the age of 74 in Phoenix, USA. Famous as ‘the greatest’, he was suffering from Parkinson disease. Before accepting Islam, his name was Cassius Clay. VIKTOR KORCHNOI: Four-time Soviet chess champion, Grandmaster, died aged 85 in Switzerland where he had lived since 1976 after defecting from the Soviet Union. MAY 2016 BABA HARDEV SINGH: Spiritual leader and Head of Nirankari Mission was killed in a road accident in Montreal, Canada. He was 62. BALRAJ MADHOK: Former President of Bharatiya Jan Sangh (BJS) and veteran RSS leader died in Delhi. He was 96. TONY COZIER: Famous West Indian cricket writer, commentator and journalist passed away at the age of 75. APRIL 2016 POORNIMABEN PAKVASA: Great social worker from Gujarat, known for her exceptional work towards educating tribal girls, passed away at the age of 103. SATYANAND MUNJAL: The co-founder of Hero Cycles group, a great philanthropist, passed away in Ludhiana, Punjab. He was 99. PRATYUSHA BANERJEE: TV actress, known for her role of Anandi in the popular serial “Balika Vadhu”, allegedly committed suicide at her Kandivali residence in Mumbai. GUY HAMILTON: Veteran British movie director, who directed four hugely popular James Bond films, passed away at the age of 93. ROGERS NELSON: Pop music superstar, popularly known as Prince in USA, died aged 57. He won seven Grammy Awards and earned 30 nominations. VICTORIA WOOD: Popular comedian, singer and writer from BBC in United Kingdom, died at 62 after “a short but brave” battle with cancer. DORIS ROBERTS: The popular TV actress from USA who delighted audiences as the meddling mother next door on the popular TV soap Everybody Loves Raymond, died at the age of 90. She won the popular TV award Emmy five times. BILL CAMPBELL: Silicon Valley’s veteran adviser who mentored technology heavyweights like former Apple CEO late Steve Jobs and co-founder of Google, Larry Page, died at age 75. ZAHA HADID: Renowned Iraq-born British architect passed away due to heart attack. She was 65. She was world’s most famous female architect and was known for her neofuturistic design which was her signature architectural style. IMRE KERTESZ: Hungarian author, 2002 Nobel Literature Prize winner, died aged 86 in Budapest, after a long illness.