Gyanm general awareness_february_2016_issue

GENERAL AWARENESS – FEBRUARY 2016 1
GENERAL AWARENESS
FEBRUARY 2016
Vol. 4, Issue 08
A PUBLICATION OF GYANM EDUCATION &
TRAINING INSTITUTE PVT. LTD.
SCO 13-14-15, 2ND FLOOR, SEC 34-A, CHANDIGARH
Contents
CURRENT AFFAIRS
OCT TO DECEMBER 2015
01-40
BULLET NEWS
JULY TO SEPTEMBER 2015
41-59
LATEST 100 GK MCQs 60-66
SSC CORNER 67-75
6 MONTHS GK BYTES 76-104
FIGURES TO REMEMBER
REPO RATE (29.09.2015) 6.75%
REVERSE REPO RATE 5.75%
MARGINAL STANDING
FACILITY RATE
7.75%
STATUTORY LIQUIDITY RATIO 21.5%
CASH RESERVE RATIO 4.00%
BANK RATE 7.75%
BASE RATE(s)
(of various banks)
9.30 to
9.70%
INDIA’s RANK IN
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
Financial Secrecy Index 45th
Ease of Doing Business (World Bank) 130th
Number of Startups 03rd
Global Competitiveness Index, WEF 55th
Protection of Minority Investors 08th
Global Innovation Index 81st
Global Competitiveness 44th
In terms of Peace 143rd
Motherhood Index 140th
Environmental Democracy Index 24th
Human Capital Index 100th
Global Resilience Index 119th
Global E-Waste Monitor 5th
World Happiness Report 117th
Global Networked Readiness 89th
NATIONAL NEWS
DECEMBER 2015
MODI VISITS RUSSIA AND AFGHANISTAN
Prime Minister Modi visited Russia on Dec 23-24 to attend the 16th India-
Russia annual summit. President Vladimir Putin gifted him an 18th century
sword from Bengal and a page from Mahatma Gandhi's diary containing his
handwritten notes.
Russia and India signed 16 pacts.
The agreements include joint
manufacture of Kamov 226
multipurpose helicopters and
construction of 12 atomic
plants in India.
PM Modi visited Afghanistan
on Dec 25 to meet President Ashraf Ghani. He inaugurated the Parliament
building which has been constructed by India. He made a surprise brief halt in
Pakistan also to meet his counterpart Nawaz Sharif.
INDIA RANKS 130TH IN HDI
As per the Human Development Index (HDI) compiled by the UNDP, India
ranked a lowly 130th in the list of 188 nations. It is up by five ranks from last
year's 135, thanks to higher life expectancy and gross national
income. Stagnancy in education, women's empowerment and poverty continue
to drag India down. Norway topped the ranking.
HDI is a summary measure to assess long-term progress in three basic dimensions
of human development -a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent
standard of living.
INDIA 97TH IN ‘DOING BUSINESS’
India has ranked a low 97th out of 144 nations on Forbes' annual list of the best
countries for doing business in 2015, scoring poorly on issues like trade and
monetary freedom and response to challenges like corruption and
violence. Denmark topped the list. As per World Bank data, India ranks 130th.
MARGINAL IMPROVEMENT IN FOREST COVER
According to the India State of Forest
Report (ISFR) 2015, the total forest and
tree cover is 79.42 million hectare, which
is 24.16 percent of the total geographical
area, up from 24.01 per cent in 2013. Of
this, the forest cover is 7,01,673 sq km
covering 21.34 per cent area.
The total forest cover of the country has
increased by 3, 775 Square kilometre and the tree cover has gone up by 1,306
Square kilometre. The maximum increase in forest cover has been observed in
Tamil Nadu, followed by Kerala and Jammu & Kashmir.

WORLD BANK LOAN FOR SANITATION
The World Bank has approved a USD 1.5 billion loan for
the ambitious clean India campaign to support the
government in its efforts to ensure all citizens in rural
areas have access to improved sanitation and end the
practice of open defecation by 2019.
ACID VICTIMS TO BE UNDER DISABLED QUOTA
The Supreme Court has directed all the State and UT
Governments to consider acid-attack victims under the
disabled quota to enable them to get reservations in
government jobs as well as education benefits.
INDIANS HIGHLY IGNORANT - SURVEY
A survey conducted by a London-based market research
firm found people in Mexico and India were most
inaccurate in perceptions on issues such as obesity, non-
religious population, immigration, female employment,
rural living and Internet access. Survey in 33 countries
for ‘Index of Ignorance’ placed Mexico as most ignorant,
followed by India. People in South Korea were found to
be most accurate in their perceptions, followed by
Ireland.
 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a 3 day
visit to India. He attended Ganga Aarti at
Dasaswamedh Ghat, Varanasi.
 Panos Kammenos, Greek Defence Minister arrived in
India on a three day visit. The two countries decided
to enhance bilateral defence ties.
 National Veda Convention and Vedic Conference
held in Kozhikode, Kerala.
 The Lok Sabha passed the Bureau of Indian
Standards Bill, 2015 to establish the Bureau of Indian
Standards (BIS) as a National Standards Body.
 India and South Korea have inked a new MoU on
suspension of collection of taxes during pendency of
mutual agreement procedure.
 The ICT (information, communication and
technology) Development Index places India a lowly
131st among 167 countries. South Korea tops the
index.
NOVEMBER 2015
‘CONSTITUTION DAY’ ON NOV 26
The ‘Constitution Day’ of India was observed on 26th
November to spread awareness of Indian Constitution
and its architect Dr. B R Ambedkar, Chairman of the
Drafting Committee of Constituent Assembly. On this
day in 1949, Constitution of India was adopted which
came into force on January 26, 1950 marking the
beginning of a new era in the history of free India.
MODI VISITS UK
Prime Minister Mr. Modi visited England on November
12 for a three day trip. He became the first serving
Prime Minister of India to address the UK's Parliament.
India signed a civil nuclear pact with United Kingdom
during his visit. The two countries announced deals
worth 9-billion pound in the field of defence and cyber
security and railways. Britain announced 2017 as the
UK-India Year of Culture to mark the 70th Anniversary
of Indian Independence.
NUCLEAR DEAL FINALIZED WITH AUSTRALIA
India and Australia have announced the completion of
procedures for bringing the two-nation nuclear deal into
force. The announcement was made at the bilateral
meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi with
his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull in the G-20
Summit at Antalya in Turkey.
CHINESE VICE PRESIDENT VISITS INDIA
Li Yuanchao, the Vice-President of China visited India to
review cooperation on better river water management
and cultural exchanges. The two countries signed a
MoU on smooth sharing of hydrological data related to
the common Himalayan Rivers.
INDIA STANDS 7TH IN TERMS OF BRAND VALUE
As per the annual report on world's most valuable
nation brands compiled by Brand Finance, India has
moved up one position to become the world's seventh
most valued nation brand with an increase of 32 per
cent in its brand value to 2.1 billion dollars.
The US remains on the top with a valuation of 19.7 billion
dollars, followed by China and Germany at the second and
the third positions.

MODI IS 9TH MOST POWERFUL IN WORLD
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been ranked as the
world's ninth most powerful person by Forbes magazine
in a 2015 list which is topped by Russian President
Vladimir Putin. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is at
the second spot followed by US President Barack Obama
(3rd) and Pope Francis (4th) and Chinese President Xi
Jinping (5th).
INTERNET BOOM IN INDIA
According to a report by Internet and Mobile
Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB International,
the number of internet users in India is expected to
touch 402 million by December 2015, a 49 per cent
jump over last year, making India home to the second
largest online user base after China.
SALARY BONANZA FOR GOVT EMPLOYEES
7th Central Pay Commission headed by Justice AK
Mathur submitted its report to the Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley on Nov 19. It recommended 23.55 percent
hike in pay and allowances of government employees.
The pay will go up by 16 percent, allowances by 63
percent and pension by 24 percent. It has suggested a
minimum basic pay of 18 thousand and maximum of Rs
2.5 lakh per month. The pay revision will come into
effect from January 2016.
INDIA 99TH IN TERMS OF PROSPERITY
India has been ranked 99th in Legatum Prosperity Index
2015 out of 142 countries. The report is based on the
results of eight sub-indices - economy, entrepreneurship
and opportunity, governance, education, health, safety
and security, personal freedom, social capital.
INDIA FARES POORLY IN GENDER EQUALITY
The Global Gender Gap Report 2015 released by the
World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked 145 economies
according to how well they are leveraging their female
workforce. Iceland topped the list, followed by Norway
and Finland. India ranked low at 108th rank while
Pakistan was second last.
INDIA 6TH WORST HIT BY TERRORISM
As per the Global Terrorism Index 2015, India ranks 6th
in list of 162 nations most impacted by terrorism in
2014. Islamic State and Boko Haram are now jointly
responsible for more than half of all global fatalities
from terrorist attacks. The other top five countries
worst hit by terrorism are Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria,
Pakistan and Syria.
INDIA INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE FESTIVAL
First India International Science Festival, a joint event of
Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of
Earth Sciences, is being organized at Indian Institute of
Technology (IIT) Delhi from Dec 4 to 8. The festival
aims to provide a platform to young scientists from all
over the country to share and spread their scientific
ideas, achievements and inventions.
 46th International Film Festival of India, IFFI
began in Panaji, Goa with the screening of ‘The Man
Who Knew the Infinity’, a biopic based on the life of
mathematical wizard Srinivas Ramanujan, was the
opening film.
 Prime Minister Mr. Modi visted Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia to attend Asean-India meet, Asean summit
and the East Asian Summit.
 Prime Minister Mr. Modi visited Singapore for two
days, Nov 23-24 and signed 10 agreements on mutual
co-operation.
 Hamid Ansari, Vice President visited Indonesia on
Nov 2. Agreements in the field of cultural exchange
and renewable energy were signed with Indonesia.
 Francois Hollande, President of France will be the
chief guest at the 2016 Republic Day celebrations.
 Bhutan's Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay visited
India to preside over the 'India Ideas Conclave' in
Goa.
 The Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, ranked
99th in a list of top 100 institutions by the ‘Times
Higher Education Rankings for Engg. & Technology’.
 A report by global consultancy firm KPMG says that
India has emerged as the top country when it comes
to corporate responsibility reporting.
 India re-elected on the United Nations Commission on
International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) for a period of
six years.
 Seven Indian celebrities including Asha Bhosle, Sania
Mirza and veteran actress Kamini Kaushal have
made it to BBC's list of 100 most aspirational women.

 Telephone subscriber base in India reached 102.26
crore at the end of September while fixed line base
continued to fall, as per data compiled by TRAI.
 As per the global Financial Secrecy Index released by
Tax Justice Network of UK, India ranked 45th among
92 countries in terms of financial transparency.
 11th National Tribal Crafts Mela ‘Aadishilp’ held
in New Delhi.
 First international film festival for the persons
with disabilities (IFFPD) will be held in Delhi from 1
to 3 December 2015.
 Second World Congress on Disaster Management
was held in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, from 19
to 22 November.
 Global Cancer Summit held at the Indian Institute of
Science, Bengaluru from Nov 18 to 20.
 The 17th Asia Pacific Youth Forum meet was held
in Kozhikode, Kerala to share ideas for the
empowerment of youth to protect the Earth.
 9th Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (RPBD) was
held at Los Angeles, California, USA on the 14th and
15th November 2015.
 According to a global survey of 26 countries, India is
the fourth most vacation-deprived nation with 65%
saying they feel very or somewhat vacation-deprived.
 Militant outfit National Socialist Council of Nagaland
(Khaplang), declared as a terrorist organization
under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
 The National Milk Day was observed on 26
November to mark 94th birth anniversary of the
Father of the White Revolution - Dr Verghese Kurien.
 The British Government has selected Pune and
Amravati from Maharashtra and Indore from
Madhya Pradesh for developing them as 'Smart City'.
OCTOBER 2015
INDIA TOPS IN GLOBAL ENERGY LISTINGS
India has emerged as
the country with the
best representation on
the 2015 Platts Top 250
Global Energy Company
Rankings. The top three
Indian companies in the
list are Reliance
Industries-14th, ONGC-
17th and Coal India-38th.
THE 3RD INDIA-AFRICA FORUM SUMMIT
This summit was held in New Delhi from Oct 26 to 29.
Heads of States and Representatives of all 54 African
countries participated in it. India also announced a $ 10
billion Line of Credit at a concessional rate for Africa for
a period of five years for development related and
capacity building projects.
‘DOORDARSHAN’ IS MOST VIEWED CHANNEL
As per the All India viewership data released by the
Broadcast Audience Research Council, public
broadcaster Doordarshan has emerged as the most
watched Hindi channel in terms of time spent per
viewer, ahead of top General Entertainment Channels.
INDIA 130TH IN ‘EASE OF DOING BUSINESS’
India has improved its position to 130 from 142 in 2015
in the World Bank's 2016 rankings in terms of ease of
doing business. Improvement in two indicators, 'starting
a business and getting electricity' pushed India up the
ladder. However, it still takes 29 days and over 12
procedures to begin a new venture in India. Singapore
claimed the top rank.
1.85 LAC MILLIONAIRES IN INDIA
Global Wealth Report by The Credit Suisse Research
Institute shows that only 3% of India's adult population
falls into the middle class wealth band and the number
of millionaires, persons with surplus of one million
dollar or more, stands at 185,000.
INDIA RANKS 3RD IN NUMBER OF STARTUPS
India has emerged as the youngest startup nation in the
world where over 72 per cent of founders are less than
35 years old. With the presence of more than 4,200
startups, the country has also become the third largest
startup base, after the U.S. and the U.K.
PRESIDENT VISITS MIDDLE EAST
President Pranab Mukherjee made a six-day visit to
Jordan, Palestine and Israel from Oct 10 to15. He
became the first Indian President to visit Israel and
address their Parliament Knesset.
In Palestine he met President Mahmoud Abbas and
offered him a cheque for $ 5 million as budgetary support.
India also committed $17.79 million for five projects in
the Palestinian territory.
INDIA TO HOST 2018 G20 SUMMIT
The prestigious annual summit of Heads of G20 nations
for 2018 will be hosted by India in New Delhi. The 2016
summit will be hosted by China and the 2017 summit
will be hosted by Germany.
The G20 operates as a forum and not as an organisation.
Therefore, it does not have any permanent secretariat or
management and administrative structure. One of the
G20 countries is selected to hold the Chair in rotation, also
known as ‘G20 Presidency’.

GERMAN CHANCELLOR VISITS INDIA
Angela Merkel, German Chancellor, came to New Delhi
on an official visit to take part in the third Inter-
Governmental Consultations (IGC) between India and
Germany. 18 important MoUs were signed between the
two countries during the visit.
INDIA RANKS 55TH IN COMPETITIVENESS
India has moved up 16 positions, from 71st in 2014 to
55th place on the Global Competitiveness Index 2015-16
compiled by the World Economic Forum for the world’s
most competitive economies. Switzerland tops the index
for the 7th year.
INDIA RANKED 8TH FOR MINORITY INVESTORS
When it comes to protection of minority investors, India
ranks 8th, ahead of many developed economies including
the US, Germany and Japan, as per a study conducted by
the World Bank. It reflects the reforms carried out by
the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and
the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in Capital market.
S C ALLOWS LIMITED USE OF ‘AADHAAR’
The Supreme Court has allowed the use of Aadhaar
cards for all central and state schemes, including
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
Act (MNREGA), Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and
employee provident fund and pension schemes, on
voluntary basis.
NJAC ACT HELD NULL & VOID BY S C
The Supreme Court has rejected the National Judicial
Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act and the 99th
Constitutional Amendment which sought to give
politicians and civil society a final say in the
appointment of judges to the highest courts. It held that
the collegium system, as it existed before the NJAC,
would again become “operative.”
 The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Conference
2016 will be held in New Delhi from 8 to 10 January,
2016.
 The 19th International Children's Film Festival, India
is to be held in Hyderabad from November 14-20
 India and France signed a MoU to conserve, develop
and publicize written heritage at the National
Library in Kolkata.
 The Environment Ministry has approved annual plans
for Kerala, Mizoram, Manipur and Jharkhand under
the National Mission for a Green India (GIM).
 Portugal became the first European and 17th overall
country to sign the MoU on the establishment of
Nalanda University in Bihar.
 The Union Cabinet has approved Double Taxation
Avoidance Agreement with Israel and Vietnam.
 India signed Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement
with Israel.
NEWS FROM STATES
DECEMBER 2015
PER CAPITA INCOME HIGHEST IN DELHI
According to Delhi Government's Delhi Statistical Hand
Book, the state recorded the highest per capita income
among all the states in the country at Rs 2,40,849 during
financial year 2014-15. The Gross State Domestic
Product (GSDP) of Delhi, at current prices, in 2014-15
stood at Rs 4.51 lakh crore, up by 15.35 per cent over
the previous year.
DELHI IS MOST POLLUTED CITY IN WORLD
Green Peace India released a report on National Air
Quality Index (NAQI) for 17 countries, covering top 20
most polluted cities. As per the report, Delhi was the
most polluted city in the world, while 13 Indian cities
figured in the 20 most polluted cities in the world.
NO TO DIESEL VEHICLES IN DELHI
The National Green Tribunal has directed that no new or
old diesel vehicle be registered in Delhi till Jan. 6, with a
view to curb pollution in capital. It also directed all the
govt departments to not to purchase any new diesel
vehicle and make plans to phase out the existing ones.
 The Konark Festival, the five-day festival of classical
dances of India, was held in Konark, Odisha, in the
back drop of the famous Sun Temple. The
International Sand Art Festival 2015 was also held
along with.
 For the first time, two Indian cities, Varanasi and
Jaipur, have been selected in the Creative City
Network of the UNESCO in the categories - City of
Music and City of Crafts and Folk Art, respectively.
 The Maharashtra legislature becomes the first
legislature to launch an online mechanism for its
members to send questions and move different
motions in the House.
 The Odisha state launched Anwesha scheme to
provide free education to scheduled caste and
scheduled tribe students in the state.

 The Bihar government has banned 15-year-old diesel
vehicles from its capital's roads in a bid to control air
pollution.
 India’s fourth and North India’s first cable-stayed
bridge was inaugurated at Basohali in Kathua
district of Jammu and Kashmir, over river Ravi.
 West Bengal Government has approved formation of
five new districts in the state, bringing the total
districts to 25.
 Mumbai’s iconic boulevard Marine Drive, also called
the Queen’s Necklace completed 100 years on Dec 16.
 Maharashtra has started the country's biggest
Wildlife Rescue Centre at Gorewada near Nagpur to
take care of sick, injured and rescued animals.
 Losar, the biggest Tibetan Buddhist Festival began on
12 December 2015 in Ladakh, J&K. The festival marks
the beginning of New Year for Buddhists.
 Uttar Pradesh has launched International festival on
Birds in National Chambal Sanctuary to promote
state as an international bird-watching destination.
 Hornbill Festival celebrated in Kohima, Nagaland
from Dec 1 to 10 to highlight state’s rich cultural
heritage.
 Himachal Pradesh has become the first state to
launch Rotavirus vaccination for controlling the child
mortality rate (under 5 years of age) due to diarrhea.
NOVEMBER 2015
TAMIL NADU LASHED BY HEAVY RAINS
In Tamil Nadu, heavy rains by north east monsoon
claimed over 102 lives. The rains threw normal life out
of gear in almost all parts of the state with coastal and
northern districts bearing the brunt.
INDIA’s 1ST BLIND FRIENDLY RLY. STATION
Mysuru Railway Station in Karnataka has become the
first blind-friendly Railway Station in India. Train
schedules and over 400 metal signages have been
installed in Braille for the benefit of visually
handicapped persons.
S. AUSTRALIA TIES UP WITH RAJASTHAN
South Australia state has signed a historic 'sister-state
agreement' with Rajasthan to pave new ways to boost
export and investment opportunities between the two
states based on a two-way exchange of research and
technical capabilities.
CHHATH OBSERVED IN BIHAR-U P
Chhath festival was celebrated in different parts of the
country on Nov 17-18 with great religious fervour and
gaiety. Large number of devotees offered prayers to the
rising sun at the banks of rivers and other water bodies.
It is one of the most popular festivals of Bihar and
eastern Uttar Pradesh.
MIGRATORY GUESTS ARRIVE IN CHILKA
Migratory birds mostly from Northern Eurasia, the
Caspian region, Siberia, Kazakh and remote areas of
Russia and Southeast Asia have started arriving in
Chilka Lake, Odisha.
 Annual Hundred Drums Wangala Festival held near
Tura, Meghalaya. It is the thanksgiving post-harvest
festival of the Garo tribes of North East India.
 APJ Abdul Kalam Amrut Yojna launched in
Maharashtra to provide at least one cooked meal for
pregnant and lactating women in the tribal areas.
 The Thiruvananthapuram International Airport has
been adjudged the best-maintained international
airport in the country
 Northeast’s first exclusive hospital for elephants has
been established at the Kaziranga National Park,
Assam.
 Norway reopened its Consulate General office in
Mumbai after four decades of closure in 1973.
 Karnataka launched the ‘Tourist Mitra’, a 175-
member friendly force, to reinforce smooth and
secure experiences for tourists.
OCTOBER 2015
ALL POLICE STATIONS ON-LINE IN ODISHA
In Odisha, all the 531 police stations in the state have
been computerized to allow online filing of FIR from
anywhere in the state under its 'e-FIR' system under the
Centre-sponsored Crime and Criminal Tracking
Network and Systems (CCTNS) project.
 Mission ‘Abaas’ launched in Odisha to provide (EWS),
Low Income Groups (LIG) and slum dwellers.
 Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has been appointed
Maharashtra’s brand ambassador for Tigers
 District Court in Khunti, Jharkhand became county's
first solar powered district court.

GOVERNMENT
INITIATIVES
DECEMBER 2015
APPS LAUNCHED TO PROMOTE HEALTHCARE
Govt has launched 4 new Information Technology-based
initiatives to provide citizen-centric health services.
They include three applications:
 Kilkari:An audio-based mobile service that delivers
weekly audio messages to families about pregnancy,
child birth and child care.
 Mobile Academy: For providing training services
to 9 million ASHA workers.
 M-Cessation: Counselling helpline to help tobacco
users to quit tobacco.
 Toll free number 1800-11–6666 to provide round
the clock counselling and treatment support
services to TB patients
NO LPG SUBSIDY FOR THE RICH
Government has announced that taxpayers with an
annual income of more than Rs 10 lakh will not get
subsidised LPG cylinders from January, 2016. Over 20
lakh persons have reported annual income of over Rs.
10 lakh. At present, all households are entitled to 12
cylinders of 14.2-kg each at subsidised rate of Rs 419.26,
while the market price of each cylinder is Rs 608.
MOBILE APPS LAUNCHED FOR FARMERS
Govt. has launched two mobile apps for farmers. The
app - Crop Insurance - will help farmers find out
complete details about insurance cover available in their
area. The other app called Agri Market Mobile can be
used by farmers to get the market prices of crops in the
mandi within 50 km radius of the device.
‘STARTUP INDIA, STANDUP INDIA’
Prime Minister has announced that on January 16, 2016,
the government will launch the complete action plan of
the project ‘Startup India, Standup India’ in
collaboration with all the IIMs, IITs, NITs and Central
Universities.
6 NEW IITs & 5 NEW IISEs TO BE SET UP
The Union Cabinet has approved setting up of six new
Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) at an overall cost
of over Rs 1,400 crore in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Goa, Jammu, Kerala and Karnataka. Approval was also
given for setting up of five Indian Institutes of Science
Education and Research at Kolkata, Pune, Mohali,
Bhopal and Thiruvananthapuram.
‘AIM’ AND ‘SETU’ FOR ENTERPRENEURS
Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship is
developing an entrepreneurship development scheme
wherein entrepreneurship activities in innovative and
cutting edge technology areas will be aligned with
initiatives such as Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and
Self Employment Talent Utilisation (SETU).
INJECTABLE POLIO VACCINE LAUNCHED
The government has launched an injectable polio
vaccine – Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) – which will be
administered in addition to oral polio drops in the
routine immunization programme. IPV injection will be
given to children aged below one year along with the
third dose of the oral polio vaccine (OPV), free of cost to
double the immunity.
LOK SABHA NOD FOR 101 WATERWAYS
Lok Sabha passed a bill to develop 101 new
waterways across the country aimed at providing a
cheaper mode of transport and reducing traffic burden
on roads. At present, there are only five National
Waterways.
NEW GUIDELINES ON FRAUDS
Government has now made it mandatory for the
auditors to report any suspected corporate fraud
amounting to Rs 1 crore or more to the Corporate
Affairs Ministry with a view to effectively curb the
misdoings in corporate sector.

NEW DESIGNATION FOR GOVT CLERKS
Govt has decided to rename the posts of UDC (Upper
Division Clerk) and LDC (Lower Division Clerk) under
Central Secretariat Clerical Service (CSCS) as Senior
Secretariat Assistant and Junior Secretariat Assistant,
respectively.
NEW DATE FOR BS V-VI STANDARDS
The government has
advanced the date for
implementation of the
Bharat Stage (BS) V and
VI norms for emission
standards for four-
wheelers by 3 years to
April 1, 2019 and April
1, 2021, respectively.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of
Children) Bill, which provides for lowering the age for
trial of juvenile from 18 years to 16 years, has been
passed by Rajya Sabha. The bill was passed by Lok
Sabha earlier.
 Govt has asked the states and UTs to start Operation
Smile-II from 1 to 31 January 2016 to rehabilitate /
rescue the missing children.
 Global Initiative of Academic Networks Scheme
launched to boost the quality of higher education
through international collaboration.
 Central Board of Secondary Education has rolled out
its latest mobile application E-CBSE for providing e-
learning material for students and teachers.
 With a view to provide relief to 3.7 lakh jute mill
workers, the govt has approved mandatory use of jute
packaging material for foodgrains and sugar.
 Union govt. proposes to launch a $1-billion equity
fund, with seed capital from public sector units, to
support renewable energy companies.
NOVEMBER 2015
UDAY SCHEME TO HELPOUT DISCOMS
The government launched Ujjwal Discom Assurance
Yojna (UDAY) to improve the ability of power
distribution companies (DISCOMs) to procure power at
a much lower capital cost. The scheme allows DISCOMs
to convert their debt into state bonds and to launch
measures to improve efficiency at power plants.
10 SCHEMES FOR THE BENEFIT OF DISABLED
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment launched
10 schemes for the benefit of disabled persons. The
schemes are:
 DISHA: Early Intervention and School Readiness
Scheme
 VIKAAS: Day Care Scheme
 SAMARTH: Respite Care Scheme
 GHARAUNDA: Group Home for Adults Scheme
 NIRAMAYA: Health Insurance Scheme
 SAHYOGI: Caregiver training scheme
 GYAN PRABHA: Educational support Scheme
 PRERNA: Marketing Assistance Scheme
 SAMBHAV: Aids and Assisted Devices Scheme
 BADHTE KADAM: Awareness and Community
Interaction Scheme
FUND FOR TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
Government has launched the Technology Acquisition
and Development Fund (TADF) under the National
Manufacturing Policy, 2011 to facilitate acquisition of
clean, green and energy efficient technologies. It will
also catalyse the manufacturing growth in Micro, Small
& Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector with an aim to
contribute to ‘Make in India’ initiative. The scheme will
be implemented through Global Innovation and
Technology Alliance (GITA), a joint venture company.
GOVT TO IMPLEMENT CCTNS AND ICJS
With a view to revamp criminal justice system in the
country, the govt has approved implementation of two
systems - Crime and Criminals Tracking Network and
Systems (CCTNS) and Integrated Criminal Justice
System (ICJS) Project. The two systems aim at bringing
online all the police stations of the country and
integrating them with online judicial system to ensure
speedy settlement of offences and disputes.
ACCESSIBLE INDIA CAMPAIGN
The government has launched Accessible India
campaign under which 27 international airports and 75
railway stations in India will be surveyed to identify the
areas that need to be improved to make them disabled-
friendly.

ACTION PLANS APPROVED FOR 81 CITIES
Govt has approved State Annual Action Plans (SAAP) of
81 mission cities in 5 states-Tamil Nadu, Madhya
Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Mizoram under Atal
Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation
(AMRUT) for 2015-16. Earlier, SAAPs were approved
for 89 cities in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh
in October 2015.
SCHEME FOR INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS
The Union Ministry of Tourism launched the National
Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual
Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) and Swadesh Darshan
schemes to achieve 1% share of international tourist
arrivals by 2016-17 from the present 0.68 %.
USE OF PLASTIC WASTE ‘MUST’ IN ROADS
The government has made it mandatory for road
developers to use waste plastic along with bituminous
mixes for road construction to overcome the growing
problem of disposal of plastic waste in India's urban
centres. The rule will applyfor constructing bitumen
roads within 50 km of periphery of any city that has a
population of over five lakh.
‘AMRIT’ OUTLET AT AIIMS, NEW DELHI
Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has
launched the Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants
for Treatment (AMRIT) pharmacy outlet at the All India
Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi.
FIPB POWERS HIKED TO Rs 5,000 CRORE
To expedite FDI clearance process, the government has
enhanced the monetary limit to approve foreign
investment proposals of the Foreign Investment
Promotion Board – FIPB to Rs 5,000 crore, from Rs.
3,000 crore at present.
3 NEW EDUCATIONAL WEB PORTALS
Govt has launched three web portals / apps - e-
Pathshala for educational resources, Saaransh for
educational improvements and National Programme on
School Standards and Evaluation Framework (Shala
Siddhi) for online evaluations.
 The deadline for completion of Pradhan Mantri Gram
Sadak Yojana for rural connectivity through all-
weather roads, reduced from 2022 to 2019.
 Agriculture Ministry to launch ‘Blue Revolution:
Integrated Development and Management of
Fisheries’ for growth and development of fisheries.
 Govt has allowed German language to be taught as
additional foreign language in Kendriya Vidyalayas
as per the National Education Policy, 1986.
 From November 12, a railway ticket could be booked
online up to 30 minutes prior to the departure of a
train as Railways has modified their booking system.
 Govt to continue 90% central funding for the core
Centrally Sponsored Schemes in the 8 northeastern
states, while 10% will be borne by the states.
OCTOBER 2015
IITs WAIVE FEE FOR HANDICAPPED
The highest decision-making body of Indian Institutes of
Technology (IITs) – IIT Council has decided to waive full
fee (Rs. 90,000/- at present) for the physically
challenged students from the current academic session
in all the 15 IITs for all the semesters.
E-SAHYOG LAUNCHED FOR TAX PAYERS
Govt has launched an e-Sahyog pilot project of Income-
Tax Department aimed at reducing compliance cost,
especially for small taxpayers and provide an online
mechanism to resolve mismatches in Income-tax
returns of the assesses whose returns have been
selected for scrutiny.
A NEW FUND FOR VARIOUS VICTIMS
Government has launched Central Victim Compensation
Fund with an initial amount of 200 crore rupees to
support the victims of various attacks, such as rape,
acid attacks, human trafficking and women killed or
injured in the cross border firing.
‘CLIMATE CHANGE’ SPECIAL TRAIN LAUNCHED
Government has launched the 'Science Express Climate
Action Special' exhibition train from Delhi, aimed at
spreading awareness about the effects of climate change
and to make the science behind it easier to understand.
The train will run till May 7, 2016, covering 64 stations,
all over India.

TRANSFER OF BLOOD ALLOWED
The Union Health Ministry has permitted transfer of
blood from one blood bank to another, a step that will
help in transferring blood to the hospitals that face
scarcity. Further, an exchange value of Rs 1600 per litre
of plasma has also been fixed to benefit the blood banks
with surplus plasma.
BONUS CEILING RAISED TO Rs 7,000
Govt has decided to raise the wage ceiling for calculating
bonus to Rs 7,000 for factory workers and
establishments with 20 or more workers. Further, all
industrial workers drawing a monthly salary up to Rs
21,000 will be eligible for bonus, as opposed to the
current ceiling of Rs 10,000.
DD TO TELECAST - HUNARBAAZ
National channel of Doordarshan will telecast a ten-
episode Programme on Apprenticeship Training Scheme
- Hunarbaaz, from Oct 18. The programme is aimed at
generating public awareness about Apprenticeship
Training Scheme and its utilities in building skill in the
country, especially for the youth.
‘NEERANCHAL’ LAUNCHED FOR IRRIGATION
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has
approved implementation of the World Bank assisted
National Watershed Management Project Neeranchal
with a total outlay 2142.30 crore rupees for promoting
effective irrigation in nine states.
APP FOR HAILSTORM CROP DAMAGE
To expedite payment of crop insurance claims to
farmers, the govt has launched a pilot programme -
Kisan, which will use satellite and drone-based imaging
and other geospatial technology to get timely and
accurate data on crop yields. Also, to access large-scale
damage to standing crops, it launched an Android-based
app for collection of data of hailstorm.
RULES NOTIFIED FOR MID-DAY MEALS
The Central Government has notified ‘Mid Day Meal
Rules, 2015’under the National Food Security Act, 2013
for improved administration and efficiency of the
scheme. New rules set nutritional standards of 450
calories and 12 gm of protein for primary and 700
calories and 20 gm protein for upper primary students
and provides for payment of food security allowance in
case food is not served due to any reason.
HEALTH INSURANCE FOR DISABLED
Govt has signed a MoU with the New India Assurance
Company to provide Swavlamban Health Insurance
Scheme, for the Persons with Disabilities in the age
group of 18 to 65 years with family annual income of
less than Rs. 3,00,000. It provides health insurance
cover up to Rs. 2,00,000 per annum as family floater.
ONLINE SUBMISSION OF FORM 15 G & H
The Central Board of Direct Taxes, CBDT has simplified
the format and procedure for self declaration by
individuals in 15G and 15H forms. These forms are filed
by persons whose incomes are below the taxable
threshold to seek exemption from TDS on interest.
GOVT GOES FOR GREENER HIGHWAYS
Government has launched Green Highways policy to
promote greening of Highway corridors with
participation of farmers, private sector and government
institutions for creating clean, green, and pollution free
India. One per cent of the total project cost of all
highways projects will be kept aside for the highway
plantation and its maintenance.
NIRF TO RANK EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
Government has unveiled ‘National Institutional
Ranking Framework’ (NIRF) -- a framework for annual
ranking of engineering and management institutes of
the country. It would enable parents, students, teachers,
educational institutions and other stakeholders to rank
institutions on the basis of a set of objective
parameters.
 Government has eased the penal provisions for
undeclared or mis-declared baggage that will attract
arrest or prosecution, from Rs 5 lac to Rs 20 lac.
 To enable Indians living abroad to access old age
income security, RBI has allowed NRIs to subscribe to
the National Pension System (NPS) of PFRDA
 India's first community reserve to protect the
endangered Gangetic River Dolphins will come up on
River Hooghly in West Bengal.
 Govt has approved setting up of three new AIIMS at
Nagpur in Maharashtra, Manglagiri in Andhra
Pradesh and at Kalyani in West Bengal
 Govt has launched Green Highways (Plantation,
Transplantation, Beautification & Maintenance)
Policy-2015 to promote greening of Highways.
 The Union cabinet has approved construction of a
National War Memorial and Museum near the famed
India Gate in the national capital.
 Govt plans to spend around 70,000crore rupees in 12
major ports in the next 5 years under Sagarmala
Project for port-led development in coastal areas.
 Govt has formed a Committee headed by Justice RV
Easwar, former Judge of Delhi High Court to suggest
simplifications in the Income Tax Act, 1961.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS
DECEMBER 2015
GDP GROWTH MOVES UP TO 7.4%
Data released by the Central Statistics Office
(CSO) shows that country’s economic growth increased
to 7.4 percent in the July-September quarter against 7
per cent achieved in the April-June quarter this year.
Though we overtook China as the fastest growing major
economy, yet, the growth rate is lower than the 8.3
achieved in the same quarter last year.
GDP GROWTH RATE LOWERED TO 7-7.5%
India lowered its GDP growth projection for the current
year to between 7 - 7.5 per cent against the earlier
forecast of 8.1 - 8.5 per cent. Lowering of rate was
necessitated due to slowing of GDP growth rate in the
first half of the year (from April to September) to 7.2 %
from 7.5 % in the corresponding period last year.
RBI RETAINS GROWTH RATE AT 7.4%
Considering areas of robust growth in manufacturing
such as capital goods and passenger cars and counter
effect of weak rural and external demand on overall
growth, RBI retained its projection of GDP growth rate
at 7.4 per cent for the current fiscal.
INDIA TO GROW BY 7.9% - GOLDMAN SACHS
Global financial analysts Goldman Sachs have said that
India’s GDP is expected to grow by 7.9 per cent next
fiscal driven by rising domestic demand and higher
capital spending by the government, even though the
global economy will remain anaemic.
INDIA TO GROW BY 7.4% - S&P
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services in its 'India Credit
Spotlight' newsletter has noted that India's economy
will grow at 7.4 per cent in the current fiscal, which will
further improve to over 8 per cent in 2016-17 as
significant reforms are required with Indian corporates
and banks currently facing a weak operating
environment.
INDIA TO GROW BY 7.3% - UN REPORT
The United Nations World Economic Situation and
Prospects (WESP) 2016 report says that India would
record a 7.3% growth in 2016 and 7.5% in 2017. It will
continue to be the fastest growing economy in the world
in 2016 and 2017 amid volatile global financial
conditions that will see diminished trade flows and
stagnant investment, the report said.
FITCH KEEPS INDIA AT ‘BBB’ GRADE
International ratings agency Fitch Ratings has
announced that India’s investment rating would remain
at ‘BBB-’ -- the lowest investment grade -- with a stable
outlook, saying that strong medium-term growth
outlook and favourable external finances will balance
out weak structural features, including its business
environment.
EXPORT IMPORT CONTINUE TO SHRINK
Contraction in exports continued for the 12th month in
a row in November as outward shipments shrank
24.43% to $20.01 billion amid a global demand
slowdown. Imports too declined 30.26% to $29.79
billion in November over the same month last year. Fall
in imports has impact on the trade balance as deficit fell
to $9.78 billion.
 India's foreign exchange reserves fell by $1.4 billion
to $351.106 billion in the week to Dec 18 on account
of fall in Foreign Currency Assets, as per the RBI data.
 The growth rate of eight core sectors industries
decreased to 3.2 percent in October on account of
decrease in crude oil and steel production.
 The industrial production as measured by the Index
of Industrial Production (IIP) grew by 9.8% in
October as compared to same month last year.

NOVEMBER 2015
 Moody's Investors Service has said that the Indian
economy would grow at 7.5 per cent in the current
fiscal and improve marginally in the following year.
 Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development has said that the Indian economy is
expected to grow by 7.2 per cent this fiscal.
OCTOBER 2015
INDIA TO GROW BY 7.5% - WORLD BANK
A latest report from the World Bank says that India is
expected to overcome the global slowdown and its GDP
growth is projected to increase to 7.5 per cent despite a
weak export recovery.
 The World Economic Outlook Update from the IMF
says that India's growth is expected to strengthen
from 7.3 per cent this year to 7.5 per cent next year.
ECONOMY & INDUSTRY
DECEMBER 2015
INDIA TO MAKE SHIPS FOR LNG
Cochin Shipyard has become the first shipyard in India
to get the nod to build LNG (liquefied natural gas)
transporting ships, making India fourth such country in
world, after South Korea, Japan and China. The most
critical part of an LNG ship is its cryogenic containment
and handling system as the LNG has to be carried at a
temperature of -163 degrees. LNG occupies 1/600th
space of gaseous form.
MORE TRANSACTIONS UNDER PAN
The government has made it mandatory to quote PAN
(permanent account number) for all transactions in
excess of Rs.2 lakh to curb black money. This includes
all payments made through cash, cheques or debit or
credit cards. The new rule, effective from January 1, will
cover purchases of all goods or services, such as say
gold jewellery or furniture.
JAPAN TO SUPPORT BULLET TRAIN
During recent visit of Japan’s Prime Minister, India and
Japan signed a number of pacts in key areas of defence
and nuclear energy as well as building of first bullet
train network between Mumbai- Ahmadabad at a cost of
about Rs 98,000 crore.
IMPROVEMENT IN ‘EASE OF DOING BUSINESS’
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has informed that as a
result of many steps taken to improve the ‘ease of doing
business’ in the country, the average number of days
taken for incorporation of a company has come down
significantly to 4.51 days in November 2015 from 9.57
days in December 2014.
CHANGI TO GUIDE A’BAD & JAIPUR AIRPORTS
Government has signed an agreement with Singapore
for using the services and expertise of the Singapore
airport developer Changi for taking up operations and
management of the Ahmadabad and Jaipur airports.
ONGC JOINS ‘ZERO ROUTINE FLARING’
The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd has become the
first oil company from India to join the global initiative
‘Zero Routine Flaring by 2030’ by World Bank to curb
routine gas flaring at oil production sites around the
world by 2030.
SEBI ISSUES GUIDELINES FOR ‘GREEN BONDS’
The SEBI has released concept paper for issuance of
Green Bonds. A green bond is like any other bond where
a debt instrument is issued by an entity for raising funds
from investors but the funds are 'ear-marked' for use
towards financing ‘green’ projects only.
INDIA TOPS IN INWARD REMITTANCES
World Bank has said that India is the largest recipient of
inward remittances receiving over 72 billion US dollars
in 2014, followed by China at 64 billion US dollars. Of
this, largest amount came from USA, $56 billion.
INDIA GOT MOST FDI FROM SINGAPORE
Singapore has replaced Mauritius as the top source of
foreign direct investment into India during the first half
of the current fiscal. During April to September period,
India attracted $6.69 billion FDI from Singapore while
from Mauritius, it received $3.66 billion only.

WORK BEGINS ON TAPI GAS PIPELINE
Leaders of four Asian countries met in Mary,
Turkmenistan to join hands for the beginning of
construction of 1800 kms long Turkmenistan-
Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project
which will provide energy-hungry India gas for its
power plants.
The pipeline will carry 90 million standard cubic metres a
day of natural gas from Turkmenistan of which India and
Pakistan will get 42 per cent each, while Afghanistan will
get the remaining 16 per cent.
PHRMA-OIL BARTER WITH VENEZUELA
The government is considering a 'medicines for oil'
barter system with Venezuela where Indian pharma
exporters are facing problems to repatriate their sales
proceeds due to restrictions imposed in that country.
Venezuela is the third largest country in terms of oil
imports into India.
RELIANCE LAUNCHES 4G SERVICES
Reliance Jio launched 4G telecom service providing data
services with a speed up to 1 gigabyte per second. It
offers a unique combination of telecom, high speed data,
digital commerce, media and payment services.
‘PROJECT LEAP’ FROM BHARTI AIRTEL
Country’s largest telecom services provider, Bharti
Airtel will invest Rs.60,000 crore over the next three-
years in ‘Project Leap’ to upgrade its networks to
provide quality services to meet increasing competition.
GOOGLE STARTS YOU TUBE SPACES IN INDIA
Google’s YouTube has
collaborated with Whistling
Woods International, a
production house owned by
Subhash Ghai, to open its first
video production studio
called YouTube Spaces in the
country.
 India received its first uranium consignment for its
nuclear power reactors from Canada, after a gap of
over four decades.
 The first Goa to Mumbai double-decker Shatabdi
train was flagged off from Panjim, Goa on Dec 6.
NOVEMBER 2015
MSP OF RABI CROPS HIKED
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has
approved a hike of Rs. 75 a quintal to Rs. 1575 per
quintal in the Minimum Support Price of wheat, the
main rabi crop for season 2015-16. A bonus of Rs 75
per quintal, over and above MSP, for the two dals has
also been approved.
Rs./Qtl
CROP MSP CROP MSP
Wheat 1525 Rapeseed / Mustard 3350
Barley 1225 Masoor 3325
Safflower 3300 Grams 3425
E-COMMERCE PORTAL FOR SMALL UNITS
The Confederation of All India Traders has launched an
e-commerce portal, ‘e-lala’ to promote interests of 5.77
crore small businesses in the context of rapid expansion
of e-commerce. It will enable physical stores to have
their own online stores to generate more business.
TRIM GENDER GAP TO BOOST GDP - IMF
As per a recent IMF study, India's GDP can expand by 27
per cent if the number of women workers increases to
the same level as that of men. The gender gap is around
50 per cent in India, compared with an average gap of
12 per cent in OECD countries.
0.5% SWACHH BHARAT CESS IMPOSED
Government has announced the levy of a Swachh Bharat
cess of 0.5% on all services liable for service tax (14%)
from November 15. This means a tax of 50 paisa on
every Rs 100 worth of taxable services like mobile bills,
eating out, saloon services etc.
 With Cotton production estimated at around 400
lakh bales, India is expected to emerge as the largest
cotton producer in the world in 2015-16.
 35th India International Trade Fair,IITF was held at
Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. The theme of the fair
this year is Make in India
 CCEA has approved 10% stake sale in Coal India Ltd
to mop up around Rs 20,000 crore. Govt has targeted
Rs 69,500 crore disinvestment in this fiscal.
 France has committed to invest over 2 billion Euros
for Smart City projects in India with special focus on
Chandigarh, Nagpur and Puducherry.
 India and Brazil have signed a MoU to cooperate for
raising productivity of cattle and buffaloes
 World Bank granted $75 million loan to the Andhra
Pradesh for its Rural Inclusive Growth project aimed
at enhancing agricultural incomes of small farmers.
 Asian Development Bank to give $ 273 loan for
improving rural roads in Assam, Chhattisgarh,
Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal.

OCTOBER 2015
INDIA NO. ONE IN ATTRACTING FDI
India has emerged as the top destination for foreign
direct investment (FDI) as compared with China and
United states in the first half of 2015. A report published
in London's Financial Times has mentioned that India
has attracted roughly 31 billion US dollar ahead of 28
billion dollar of china and 27 billion of United States.
INDIA BEST FOR MAKING INVESTMENTS
India has been ranked as the most attractive investment
destination in the world for the next three years,
followed by China, Southeast Asia and Brazil. This was
revealed in a survey released by Global consultancy
firm, Ernst and Young.
NEW GOLD COINS FOR INVESTMENT
Government plans to bring out 5 and 10 gram India Gold
Coins — which are being manufactured by Security
Printing and Minting Corporation of India. They will be
sold through banks, post offices and offices of MMTC at a
rate slightly lesser than the market rate.
PHONE SUBSCRIBER BASE CROSSES 101 CRORE
Data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of
India shows that the subscriber base has touched 101
crore (or 1,014.70 million) in August this year in the
country, driven by growth in mobile phone users,
increasing by 0.53 per cent over the July figure.
S C IMPOSES ENVIRONMENT CESSS
The Supreme Court has imposed 'Environment
Compensation Charge' of Rs 700 and Rs 1300 on
commercial vehicles entering Delhi from November 1
for 4 months. The money will be collected by toll
operators and handed over to the Delhi govt on every
Friday. The funds will be used to clean up Delhi's air.
MUMBAI CHEAPEST CITY FOR BUSINESS
A study by the Savills World Research shows that t
Mumbai has emerged as the world's cheapest city to live
and work in, among 12 top metropolitan cities of the
world. London, Hong Kong and New York are the
world's most expensive cities for companies to
accommodate their employees.
SIN TAX TO BE PART OF GST
Govt plans to include Sin Tax in the proposed Goods and
Services Tax (GST) law that will be effective from 1 April
2016. Sin tax is an excise tax levied on products and
services like alcohol, tobacco and gambling considered
bad for health or society.
GERMANY TO FINANCE GREEN CORRIDORS
India and Germany have signed two loan agreements
worth 125 million Euros for financing Green Energy
Corridor project in Himachal Pradesh and Andhra
Pradesh. The project seeks to facilitate the flow of
renewable energy into the national grid.
Anil Baijal committee submitted its report for
developing suitable methodologies for monitoring CSR
(Corporate Social Responsibility) provisions and
suggested measures for their evaluation.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has made it
mandatory for telecom operators to compensate
consumers by Rs.1 for call drops with effect from 1
January, 2016.
 Railways would soon start country's first-ever double
decker Shatabdi Express that would ply between
Mumbai and Goa.
 The Ministry of Environment has granted
environment clearance for the greenfield
international airport at Mopa in Goa.
 Railway plans to launch Vikalp scheme from 1st of
November to give passengers the option of journey by
another train if they decide to do so.
 National Green Tribunal has directed all trucks etc,
entering Delhi, to pay an environmental
compensation charge in addition to the toll tax.
 The Export Import Bank of India has extended a Line
of Creditof $87 million to Zimbabwe for renovation
and up-gradation of Bulawayo Thermal Power Plant.
 The World Bank has promised $30 billion financial
assistance to the Railways for its forthcoming
infrastructure projects.
 ADB has agreed to give a $123.51 million loan to
upgrade tourism infrastructure and services in
Punjab, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.
 Bajaj Auto has launched ‘Qute’, the quadricycle RE60
for export to 16 countries in Latin America, Africa,
Europe and Asia at price of around $2000.
 Future Group has entered into a partnership with
Baba Ramdev-promoted Patanjali Ayurved to sell the
latter's FMCG products through its Big Bazaar stores.
 Real estate developer Tata Housing has tied-up with
social networking firm Facebook to sell its affordable
homes online.

BANKING & FINANCE
DECEMBER 2015
BANKS TO HAVE UNIFORM BASE RATE
RBI has said that from April 1 next year, all banks will
have to follow a new and uniform methodology to
calculate base rate as per the marginal cost of funds. All
new loans and renewals will now be priced with
reference to the Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending
Rate (MCLR) which will be the internal benchmark for
such purposes.
Banks will have to publish MCLR of five maturities every
month - overnight rates, one month, three months, six
months and one year.
Like base rate, banks will not be allowed to lend below
MCLR, except for few categories, like loans against
deposits, loans to bank’s own employees.
RBI TO CUT SLR TO 20.50%
The RBI has decided to lower the banks’ investment in
government securities, also known as statutory liquidity
ratio (SLR), to 20.5% by January 2017 from 21.5% at
present. As per the new time table, SLR would be
reduced to by 25 basis points to 21.25% as on April 2,
2016; 21% by July 9, 2016, 20.75% by October 1, 2016
to 20.75% and the last round of reduction would be
January 1, 2017 to 20.50 per cent.
BANKS CAN’T DENY INFO ON BORROWERS-SC
The Supreme Court has ruled that the RBI and
commercial banks cannot hide routine information, such
as the names of top defaulters, the losses suffered by
banks and details of action taken against erring banks,
sought by the public under the Right to Information Act.
Till now, banks denied such information on the ground
that it was information held in a fiduciary capacity and
could not be revealed to the public at large.
PRIORITY LENDING NORMS HIKED FOR RRBs
RBI has hiked Priority Sector Lending (PSL) norms for
Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) from 60 per cent at
present to 75 per cent of their total lending with effect
from 1 January 2016. As on March 2015, there were 56
RRBs operating in the country with a network of 20059
branches.
SBI FIRST TO ISSUE EMV CARDS
State Bank of India
has become first
major bank in India
to issue EMV chip and
pin based debit cards
to its new customers
to ensure enhanced
secure transactions. EMV stands for Euro–Maestro–Visa.
YES BANK GETS BRITISH AWARD
Yes Bank, India's fifth largest private sector bank has
bagged the prestigious 'Bank of the Year' award
conferred by Britain’s 'The Banker' magazine. The
awards are widely regarded as the Oscars for the
banking Industry.
HSBC QUITS PRIVATE BANKING IN INDIA
Global banking major Britain’s HSBC (Hong Kong,
Shanghai Banking Corporation) announced shutting
down of its private banking business in India that offers
wealth management services, from first quarter of 2016.
They may continue their retail banking operations.
Tech Mahindra has launched ‘MoboMoney’, India’s
first ‘Tap N Pay’ contactless digital payment solution in
the form of a prepaid wallet based on NFC (Near Field
Communication) technology.
Axis Bank has partnered with e-Mudhra to introduce
‘eSign’ – an online electronic signature service which
facilitates an Aadhaar holder to digitally sign a
document at the click of a button.
 Announcing the 5th Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy
review on Dec 2, RBI Governor did not change any of
the key policy rates.
 RBI has granted in principle approval to the National
Payments Corporation of India to function as the
Central Unit for Bharat Bill Payment System.
 Banks opened a whopping 19.52 crore accounts
under the Prime Minister's Jan Dhan Yojana till the
first week of December, 2015.
 RBI has extended the deadline for exchanging pre-
2005 currency notes by another six months to June
30, 2016. It was to expire on Dec 31, 2015.
 RBI has asked banks to make changes in ATM
switches by March 31, 2016 to help customers
register for mobile banking services from the ATM
itself.
 Govt released two commemorative coins of Rs.125
and Rs.10 as part of the 125th birth anniversary year
celebrations of Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar.
 ICICI Bank has tied up with railway’s e-ticketing
platform IRCTC to sell rail tickets through its
website.

NOVEMBER 2015
3% INTEREST SUBVENTION ON EXPORT LOANS
With a view to boost exports, the government has
approved three per cent interest subvention scheme to
allow exporters to avail loans from banks at a lower
rate. The scheme will be applicable from April 1, 2015
for next five years.
RUPAY CARD USAGE CONDITION RELAXED
Government has extended RuPay card usage condition
of at least one transaction in 45 days to 90 days for filing
a claim under in-built accident insurance cover under
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana with effect from
November 25, 2015.
RBI RESTRICTS SHARE HOLDING IN BANKS
RBI has made it mandatory for individuals and
companies to take its prior approval before acquiring
shares or voting rights in a private bank for increasing
the aggregate holding to 5 percent or more. The decision
has been taken to ensure that only the genuine persons
enter the banking sector.
SBI LAUNCHES ‘NEEV’ FUND
State Bank of India launched the country's first low-
income state infrastructure equity partnership (or the
Neev fund) in London. The fund aims at providing
equity partnerships for small infrastructure
development in sectors like water and sanitation, clean
energy and urban infrastructure.
INDIAN CORPORATES’ ‘MASALA BONDS’
Some of the top rated companies like housing finance
major HDFC, state-owned NTPC and India Railways
Finance Corporation (IRFC) are firming up plans to raise
fund by issuing rupee-denominated ‘masala bonds’ in
foreign capital markets.
Masala bonds are Indian rupee denominated bonds issued
in overseas capital markets by Indian corporates.
SOVEREIGN GOLD BONDS ISSUE OPENED
Recently introduced Sovereign gold bonds were opened
for public subscription from November 5-30. Bonds will
earn interest at rate of 2.75 per cent. Investors will have
a choice to buy bonds worth 2 grams of gold, up to a
maximum of 500 grams.
COOP BANKS ALLOWED NET BANKING
RBI has allowed state and district central co-operative
banks to offer internet banking to its customers subject
to certain conditions. Only those cooperative banks that
have implemented Core Banking Solution and migrated
to Internet Protocol Version 6 will be allowed to offer
‘view only’ internet banking.
View only facility means the customers can only use
online services such as balance enquiry, balance viewing,
account statement download and request for supply of
cheque books.
TRADE RECEIVABLES DISCOUNTING SYSTEM
RBI has granted an "in-principle" approval to three
companies to set up and operate a new Trade
Receivables Discounting System (TReDS). This will
allow small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to post
their receivables on the system and get them financed,
bringing in much needed transparency to the trade
receivable system.
HDFC BANK FIRST TO USE MUSICAL LOGO
HDFC Bank has become the first Indian bank to launch
Sonic branding (Musical Logo) to be used across
multiple touch points like ATMs, phone banking, mobile
banking and the bank's website. It will help the bank to
create distinct brand imagery and recall among various
stakeholders
INDIA's BANKING ‘STABLE’ - MOODY's
Moody's Investors Service has upgraded its outlook for
India's banking system to 'stable' from 'negative' on
expectation that a gradual improvement in the
operating environment for lenders will lead to slow
down in bad loans in future
BARTER TO END ON MYANMAR BORDER
Indo-Myanmar border is perhaps one of the few places
on the earth where barter trade still exists. However,
with the improvement in banking presence in the
border, the RBI has now decided to officially stop the
barter system - trading of goods without exchange of
money, from December 1.

 The RBI has allowed foreign investors to buy default
non-convertible debentures and bonds provided their
maturity is for three years or more.
 RBI has decided that a foreign bank in India can
deploy a maximum of four expatriates for each
branch and not more than six for their Head Office
functions.
OCTOBER 2015
FINANCIAL INCLUSION FUND BY RBI
The RBI has decided to create a new Financial Inclusion
Fund- FIF with a corpus of 2,000 crore rupees by
merger of two different funds - Financial Inclusion Fund
and Financial Inclusion Technology Fund into a single
Fund to support 'developmental and promotional
activities' of banking services. The new Fund will be
maintained by the National Bank for Agriculture and
Rural Development - NABARD.
CHEAPER LOANS FOR SC COMMUNITY
RBI has advised that the condition of up to only 4 per
cent variance between minimum and maximum interest
rates on loans given by micro finance lenders will not be
applicable on sections belonging to scheduled castes
living below double poverty line (i.e. annual income
below Rs. 40,000/- in rural areas and Rs. 55,000/- in
urban areas)
MOVE TO CURB NPAs
With a view to curb the incidence of non-performing
assets (NPAs) in banks, the government has made it
mandatory for all financial institutions to obtain an
affidavit from auditors who sign balance sheets of
companies applying for loans.
100% FDI ALLOWED IN WLAs
Govt has decided to allow foreign investment up to 100
per cent in White Label ATM operations under the
automatic route to promote financial inclusion.
The Reserve Bank has revised downwards its real GDP
forecast for 2015-16 to 7.4 per cent from earlier
expectation of 7.6 per cent, saying that growth is
expected to pick up in the latter part of the fiscal.
QR CODE BASED PAYMENTS BY ICICI BANK
ICICI Bank has become the first bank in the world to
launch mVisa - a card-less and device-less payment
solution. It has incorporated the mVisa application in its
Pockets app, which allows payments to be made by
scanning a static QR code and entering the amount.
UCO BANK WORSE IN NPAs
Recent RBI data shows that among public sector banks,
the UCO Bank had highest ratio of NPAs at 8.5 per cent
of its loans in 2014-15, followed by Indian Overseas
Bank (8.30) and Bank of Maharashtra (6.18).
State Bank of India has received in principle approval
from the RBI to set up a subsidiary to frame and
implement a uniform policy for all the real estate
properties owned or rented by the bank.
Schedule commercial banks' credit increased by
9.54% to Rs 67.8 billion while deposits increased by
11.25% to Rs 91.6 billion in the fortnight ended October
16, according to RBI data.
 RBI has said that the banks will be free to set interest
rate on Gold Deposit Schemes and principal and
interest of the deposit will be denominated in gold.
 Reserve Bank of India has opened its sub-office in
Imphal in Manipur.
 The RBI has granted permission to the Indian
corporate to issue rupee bonds outside India. These
bonds would be exempted from capital gains tax.
 The Reserve Bank has signed a MoU with Bangladesh
Bank for exchange of supervisory information.
 The government plans to bring down its stake in the
IDBI Bank to 49 per cent, from 76.5 per cent at
present with a view to make it more efficient.
 HDFC Bank has automated its personal loan
approvals through their ATMs that would track the
customer's history and authorize a loan accordingly.
 HDFC Bank has been rated 27th safest bank in the
world, according to the Bank Safety Ranking done by
the international financial magazine 'The Banker’.

DEFENCE, SCIENCE
& TECHNOLOGY
DECEMBER 2015
DEF. SERVICES MEET ON INS VIKRAMADITYA
An annual Defence Services event called Unified
Commanders Conference, chaired by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi was held on board Navy’s aircraft
carrier - INS Vikramaditya, about 50 kms off Kochi coast.
This is for the first time when the conference was held
outside New Delhi.
The 8th edition of INDRA NAVY-15, a bilateral
maritime joint naval exercise between the Indian and
Russian navies, started off the coast of Visakhapatnam
in the Bay of Bengal.
NEW ‘ISLAMIC MILITARY ALLIANCE’ FORMED
34 Islamic nations have agreed to form a new “Islamic
military alliance” led by Saudi Arabia to fight terrorism
with a joint operations center based in Riyadh, capital of
Saudi Arabia. Alliance includes a number of African
countries but does not include Iran, Iraq and Syria.
 INS Godavari, the country's first indigenously
designed and built warship was decommissioned at
Mumbai on Dec 24 after 32 years of service.
 Israeli military has successfully tested from a ship an
advanced surface-to-air supersonic missile – Barak 8,
co-developed with India. It has a range of 100 kms.
 Govt has approved the purchase of S-400 Triumf air
defence missile systems from Russia.
 Cochin Shipyard Ltd launched the Fast Patrol Vessel
‘ICGS Atulya’ for induction in Indian Coast Guard.
 Indian Coast Guard has commissioned interceptor
boat ‘ICGS C-422’ to further enhance its vigil along
Pondicherry and South Tamil Nadu coast.
 India test-fired the indigenously built nuclear-
capable Agni-I missile having a hitting range of 700
km, from a test range off the Odisha coast.
 Pakistan successfully test-fired nuclear capable
ballistic missile Shaheen 1A with a range of 900
kilometres & Shaheen-III which can carry nuclear
warheads up to 2,750 kms
PSLV – C29 LAUNCHED SUCCESSFULLY
The ISRO successfully demonstrated its ability to launch
multiple payloads in vastly different altitudes using a
single flight of the rocket when it launched PSLV-C29
rocket carrying six satellites of Singapore. They included
main satellite TeLEOS-1 and five mini satellites that
were placed at an altitude of 550 kms.
FALCON 9 LANDS ON EARTH
US space company SpaceX created history on Dec 21
when its powerful Falcon 9 rocket landed back on earth
within 10 minutes of its launch from the Cape Canaveral
in Florida, after placing 11 satellites in orbit. This
means that now it is possible to make rockets as
reusable as airplanes, leading to huge savings in costs of
sending satellites in space.
ATLAS V CARRIES SUPPLIES TO ISS
The Atlas V rocket of NASA, carrying much needed US
supplies blasted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station, USA, toward the International Space Station.
The Cygnus capsule carried by the rocket contained
more than 3,500kg of food, clothing, computer gear,
spacewalk equipment and other supplies.
 Scientists of the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) have
discovered a new species of eel named Bengal moray
eel along the Digha coast in West Bengal.
 China launched its first space telescope- the Dark
Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) Satellite to study
the mysterious dark matter.
 China has approved commercial production of its first
domestically developed electricity-powered aircraft
known as RX 1E.
NOVEMBER 2015
LRSAM SUCCESSFULLY TESTED BY DRDO
The Long Range Surface to Air Missile (LRSAM), jointly
developed by the Israel Aerospace Industry and Defence
Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), was
successfully flight tested from the Israel Naval Platform
for the first time on Nov 26.

‘DHANUSH’ TESTED SUCCESSFULLY
The nuclear-capable ballistic missile Dhanush was
successfully test fired from warship INS Subhadra, off
the Puri coast of Odisha in the Bay of Bengal. It is the
naval variant of the Prithvi – II missile, having a strike
range of 350 kilometres.
ARMY TESTS ‘BRAHMOS’ SUCCESSFULLY
Indian Army successfully test-fired the land attack
variant of the 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise
missile at the Pokhran test range in Rajasthan.
BrahMos, a joint effort between India and Russia, is the
fastest and only supersonic cruise missile in the world
capable of flying at 2.8 times the speed of sound and can
be launched from land, sea and air.
 Agni-IV, the nuclear-capable ballistic missile, tested
for a range of 4,000 kms from Abdul Kalam Island
(formerly Wheeler Island), off the Odisha coast.
 India test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear
capable Prithvi-II missile, which has a strike range of
350 kms from the test range off the Odisha coast.
 The DRDO test-fired an Advanced Air Defence (AAD)
interceptor missile from Abdul Kalam Island in
Odisha’s Balasore district.
 DRDO has developed Advanced Torpedo Defence
System “Maareech” and “Vaarunaastra” for use by
the Indian Navy
 INS Kadmatt, the second of the four indigenously
built stealth Anti-Submarine Warfare corvette, was
formally handed over to the Navy on Nov 26.
 INS Vishwakarma, a premier training establishment
of the Indian Navy for the shipwrights commissioned
in Vishakhapatnam.
 ICGS Arinjay, a Fast Patrol Vessel was commissioned
in Indian Navy at Kochi. ICGS – Indian Coast Guard
Ship
 ‘Indra-2015’, the seventh edition India-Russia Joint
Military Exercise held in Bikaner district of
Rajasthan.
 China has displayed its strongest combat and
reconnaissance drone CH – 5 that can fly with a
weight of 3,000 kg and carry 900 kg of equipment
and weapons.
GSAT-15 TO AUGMENT COMMUNICATIONS
India’s latest communication satellite GSAT-15 was
successfully launched by the European Ariane rocket
from Kourou in French Guiana. It will augment
telecommunication, Direct-to-Home and radio
navigation services. The satellite will be navigated and
controlled by the ISRO’s Master Control Facility at
Hassan in Karnataka.
GOOGLE TO LAUNCH ‘PROJECT LOON’ IN INDIA
Google is working with the Indian government on a pilot
project for providing Internet connectivity by using
large balloons. Under its ‘Project Loon’, Google is using
big balloons floating at a height of 20 kilometres above
earth surface for transmission of Internet services.
EARLY WARNING SATELLITE BY RUSSIA
Russia has launched its first early warning system
satellite named EKS or Integrated Space System. Its
official name is Kosmos 2510 (Tundra 11L). It is
designed to restore Moscow's capability to identify and
track worldwide missile launches from space.
WORLD’s FASTEST SUPERCOMPUTER
China’s Tianhe-2 supercomputer has emerged as the
world’s most powerful supercomputer system for the
sixth consecutive time, performing calculations with
processing speed of 33.86 petaflops per second. Second
on list is Titan of the USA, performing @ 17.59 Pflop/s.
FIRST EVER ‘POROUS’ LIQUID DISCOVERED
In a breakthrough, scientists in U K have developed the
world's first 'porous' liquid that can potentially be used
to capture and dissolve unusually large amounts of
harmful carbon gas emissions to prevent its absorption
in the Earth's atmosphere.
 Facebook has partnered with Bharat Sanchar Nigam
Ltd. (BSNL) to create 100 Wi-Fi hotspots in rural
areas of western and southern India.
 A new species of the Dracula ant, likely to be of
Stigmatomma group of predaceous ants, was
discovered by scientists in the Western Ghats of
Kerala.

 China's first lunar rover, Yutu, set a record for the
longest stay on the Moon by completing almost two
years stay, landing on moon on Dec 14, 2013.
 Japan conducted its first commercial satellite launch
on August 24, with an H-IIA rocket carrying a
Canadian communications spacecraft, Telstar 12V,
into orbit.
 China launched a civil communication satellite
ChinaSat-2C from the Xichang space center in
Sichuan province.
OCTOBER 2015
INS KALVARI RELEASED FOR SEA TRIALS
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders released the first Scorpene
category submarine INS 'Kalvari' for sea trails at the
Naval Dockyard Mumbai. After successful completion of
all the rigorous trials and tests, it will be formally
inducted in Indian Navy later in 2016.
JOINT NAVAL OPERATION – MALABAR
The navies of India, United States and Japan began a
five-day joint operation-'Malabar exercise' on October
14 on the eastern coast in Bay of Bengal, in which
several warships, aircraft carriers and fast attack
submarine participated.
INDIA SRI LANKA CONDUCT ‘SLINEX’
The Indian and Sri Lankan Navies conducted the 4th
edition of Sri Lanka-India Exercise (SLINEX) in Bay of
Bengal, off the Trincomalee coast in Sri Lanka, from
October 27 to November 1.
‘MITRA SHAKTI’ HELD WITH SRI LANKA
A 14-day joint training exercise 'Mitra Shakti 2015',
involving military contingents from India and Sri Lanka,
was held in Pune from Sep 29 to Oct 12 to secure a
better understanding of the modern day warfare
requirements.
MICRO-LIGHT AIRCRAFTS FROM SLOVENIA
India has signed a deal with Slovenia for supply of 194
Pipistrel micro-light aircraft to be used by Indian Air
Force, the Navy and the National Cadet Corps (NCC). The
Indian version of the aircraft will be renamed as Garud.
 Indigenously built naval warship INS Kochi, the
stealth guided missile destroyer, was inducted in
the Indian Navy on Sep 30.
 The Defence Ministry has approved the induction of
women officers into the combat stream of IAF,
allowing them for first time, to fly fighter aircrafts.
 The Indo-Tibetan Border Police, for the first time, has
decided to deploy women in combat duties at its high-
altitude posts along the Indo-China border.
 Fast patrol Vessel (FPV) ICGS Anmol was inducted
in the Coast Guard Region (North East) in Kolkata.
 India’s first indigenously built torpedo launch and
recovery vessel - INS Astradharini, inducted in Indian
Navy on Oct 6 at Vishakhaptnam.
 5th Indo-China Joint Military Training Exercise-
HAND-IN-HAND conducted at Kunming Military
Academy, Yunnan, China from 12 to 23 October.
 A joint maritime exercise of naval patrol vessels -
Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) between India and
Indonesia began on 3 Oct in the Andaman Sea.
ISRO PLACES ASTROSAT IN ORBIT
India’s first dedicated astronomy research satellite
Astrosat was successfully launched on Sep 28 by the
Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C30 from Sriharikota. The
satellite weighing 1531 kg was placed in an equatorial
orbit at about 650 kilometre height. With this launch,
India has joined a select league of nations having their
observatories in space.
INDIA SETS NEW CLIMATE TARGETS
In a climate-change policy statement released ahead of a
UN climate summit in Paris in December, 2015, India
has decided to cut the carbon produced per unit of GDP
growth by 33-35 per cent by 2030 from what it was in
2005. It also committed to generate 40 percent of
cumulative installed power capacity from non-fossil fuel
sources by 2030. India is the world's third-largest
emitter of greenhouse gases.

‘CIPS’ LAUNCHED TO PROMOTE YUAN
China has launched the first phase of “China
International Payment System (CIPS)” to promote
Yuan’s global usage and furthering cross-border
clearing of its currency from the Chinese mainland
instead of offshore centres abroad.
‘MAGIC CUBE’ – CHINA’s SUPER OMPUTER
China plans to employ a special $ 14 million "magic
cube" super computer as tall as a two-storey building in
its quest to know the earth's future and calculate the
potential changes to the climate and biological systems.
MICROSOFT AND GOOGLE BURY THE HATCHET
Microsoft Corp and Google Inc have agreed to bury all
patent infringement litigation against each other,
settling 18 cases in the United States and Germany. In
another sign of the winding down of the global smart
phone wars, the companies said the deal puts an end to
court fights involving a variety of technologies, including
mobile phones, wi-fi and patents used in Microsoft's
Xbox game consoles and other Windows products.
 NASA scientists claimed to have found the strongest
ever evidence of liquid water on Planet Mars that
could help sustain future manned missions.
INTERNATIONAL
DECEMBER 2015
THE 10th WTO MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
The 10th WTO (World Trade Organisation) Ministerial
Conference was held in Nairobi, Kenya from Dec 15 to
19. The meet adopted the Nairobi Package containing
six issues aimed at benefitting organization’s poorest
members. India was represented by the Union
Commerce & Industry Minister, Ms. Nirmala
Sitharaman.
Afghanistan was admitted as WTO’s 163rd member.
Director-General: Roberto Azevêdo ,
HQ: Geneva, Switzerland
ASIAN INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT BANK
China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
(AIIB) in which India holds 8.52 % share, along with
other 56 countries, was formally established in Beijing
on Dec 25. With an authorised capital of $100 billion
and subscribed capital of $50 billion, the bank will
invest in sectors like energy, transportation, urban
construction, education and healthcare.
ZIMBABWE TO ADOPT YUAN AS ITS CURRENCY
Zimbabwe plans to adopt the Chinese Yuan as its
currency with a view to cancel the debt worth 40 million
dollars from China. Zimbabwe dumped its own currency
in 2009 due to deep recession. China has become the
largest investor in Zimbabwe, which has been shunned
by the West over its human rights record
OIL PRICES CRASH TO 11 YEARS LOW
Global crude oil prices fell to an over 11-year low to
around $ 36 a barrel. Oil prices have halved over the
past year. One main reason behind the fall is higher
exports from USA as half of their fuel needs are now
being met by shale gas. Lifting of sanctions from Iran
has led to increase in its oil exports. Overall, global
slowdown has reduced the demand for oil.
US LIFTS OIL EXPORT BAN
United States has lifted a 40-year ban on oil exports,
marking a historic shift for the booming US oil industry.
The ban was first imposed in 1975 as the United States
was reeling from the 1973-1974 Arab oil embargo.
‘STAR WARS’ CREATES BOX OFFICE RECORD
In the United States and Canada, the newest film in the
Star Wars series has set a box office record collecting
over $ 238 million in first week, breaking previous
record of $208 million by Jurassic World.
UNSC RESOLVES AGAINST ISIS
The UN Security Council (UNSC) has adopted a
resolution to increase sanctions against the Islamic State
in Syria and Iraq (ISIS) group and other terrorist groups.
The resolution seeks to cut off revenue flows including
ransom payments to these groups, by all means.
WOMEN ALLOWED VOTING IN SAUDI ARABIA
In Saudi Arabia, at
least 20 women won
municipal council
seats (roughly 1
percent of total) in
the historic local
elections in which
females were
allowed to cast votes and run for office for the first time
in the country's history.

PARIS CLIMATE SUMMIT
200 NATIONS SIGN ‘PARIS AGREEMENT’
Nearly 200 nations adopted the first global pact to fight
climate change on Dec 12 at COP 21 meet by UNFCCC at
Le Bourget, France, calling on the world to collectively
cut and then eliminate greenhouse gas pollution but
imposing no sanctions on countries that don't.
COP - Conference of the Parties
UNFCCC - United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change
 The nations agreed on following issues: A long-
term goal of keeping the increase in global average
temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial
levels;
 Aim to limit the increase to 1.5°C, since this would
significantly reduce risks and the impacts of climate
change.
 To undertake rapid reductions in emission levels in
accordance with the best available scientific methods.
 Developed countries to continue their existing
collective goal to mobilise USD 100 billion per year
until 2025 when a new collective goal will be set.
NEW CLIMATE INITIATIVE BY UNO
The United Nations has launched a new initiative titled
Anticipate, Absorb, Reshape to build climate resilience
in the world’s most vulnerable countries. It will
strengthen the ability of countries to anticipate hazards,
absorb shocks, and reshape development to reduce
climate risks.
INDIA COMMITS LOWER EMISSIONS
Outlining India's initiatives and stand on climate issues
at Paris climate meet, Prime Minister Modi said that
India will reduce its emissions intensity by 33 percent of
its GDP by 2030, on the basis of 2005 levels and 40
percent of country’s installed power capacity would be
by non fossil fuels by 2022.
INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE LAUNCHED
At the Climate Summit in Paris, Prime Minister Modi
initiated the idea of the international solar alliance to
harness solar power as a major step to mitigate carbon
gas emissions. This also aims at achieving the objective
of keeping global warming below 2 degree Celsius
between now and 2100. India has already submitted its
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC)
in which India has committed to generate 100 giga watt
solar power by 2022.
PARIS PACT ON WATER AND CLIMATE CHANGE
A wide geographic coalition of national and cross-
border river basin organisations, governments, funding
agencies, local governments, companies and civil society
have adopted the Paris Pact on Water and Climate
Change Adaptation in Paris. It encompasses individual
commitments to implement adaptation plans,
strengthening water monitoring and measurement
systems in river basins and promoting financial
sustainability and new investment in water systems
management.
'MISSION INNOVATION' FOR CLEAN ENERGY
World leaders from 20 countries, including India and
global investors lead by Bill Gates, launched Mission
Innovation at the COP21 in Paris for accelerating clean
energy revolution across the world and to promote the
use of renewable energy resources.
SOME CLIMATE CHANGE RELATED NEWS
SOUTH AMERICA REELS UNDER EL NINO
The El Nino weather phenomenon in South Atlantic
Ocean caused very heavy downpour in countries like
Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, leading to
massive flooding their major rivers, forcing lakhs of
persons to flee from their homes.
 In the Chinese Capital, Beijing, the government has
issued its first red alert on pollution, the highest level
in the system, ordering schools to close for four days
due to hazardous air quality.
 Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes
in northern England hit by “unprecedented” flooding.
Army was called in to support local authorities.
 A string of powerful tornado storms wreaked havoc
across southern United States, killing scores of
persons and causing extensive damage to houses and
vehicles.
----

BRAZIL SLIPS INTO DEEP RECESSION
Brazil's economy shrank by 1.7% in the third quarter of
the year compared with the second quarter, deepening
the country's worst recession in 25 years. Compared
with a year ago, the economy is 4.5% smaller. The drop
in economic activity was largely due to a drop in
investment, which fell by 15% compared with a year
ago, leading to massive unemployment.
US FED HIKES RATES AFTER A DECADE
The Federal Reserve of USA hiked interest rates by 25
basis points to 0.50 on Dec 16, for the first time since
2006, reflecting its confidence in the stable growth of
U.S. economy. The Fed strongly believes that the US
economy had largely overcome the wounds of the 2007-
2009 financial crisis. It also raised its projection for its
economic growth next year slightly, from 2.3 percent to
2.4 percent.
Rates in the US have been at near-zero since 2008. Shortly
after the Fed's announcement, major banks began
announcing that they were raising their prime lending
rate from 3.25 percent to 3.50 percent.
FACEBOOK CEO DONATES 99% SHARES
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg while announcing the
birth of his first child pledged to give away 99 per cent
of his company shares, currently worth a whopping $45
billion, to make the world a “better place” for daughter
Maxima and other children.
YUAN APPROVED AS SDR CURRENCY
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has decided to
include the Chinese currency, the Yuan, in its Special
Drawing Rights (SDR) basket effective from October 1,
2016, besides the US dollar, the euro, the Japanese
yen and the British pound.
WORLD TSUNAMI AWARENESS DAY – NOV 5
The United Nations General Assembly adopted a
resolution to observe November 5 every year as World
Tsunami Awareness Day for raising awareness about
the dangers of tsunami and the importance of early
warning systems for minimising damage.
 The World AIDS Day was observed on 1 December
2015 across the world with the theme “Getting to
zero, End AIDS by 2030”.
 Mexico has approved the use of the first-ever vaccine
against dengue fever - Dengvaxia, manufactured by
French pharma major Sanofi Pasteur.
 The Philippines became the first Asian country to
approve the sale of the world's first-ever dengue
vaccine, Dengvaxia.
 Gambia, a tiny West African country has decided to
become an Islamic republic because Islam is the
religion of the majority of its citizens.
 The first media summit of countries belonging to the
Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS)
grouping held at Beijing on Dec 1.
 Food and Agriculture Organization of UNO launched
International Year of Pulses on 10 November with the
theme ‘nutritious seeds for a sustainable future’.
 2nd World Internet Conference was held at Wuzen in
Eastern China from Dec 16 to 18.
 New Zealanders chose a new flag design featuring
silver fern and red stars on a black and blue
background. The new design will be confirmed by
vote in March.
NOVEMBER 2015
ISIS MILITANTS ATTACK PARIS
In one of the worst gruesome terrorist attacks, over 129
people were killed and more than 300 were wounded in
multiple ISIS terrorists’ shootings in Paris and
explosions outside the national stadium - Stade de
France. Nations around the world have joined hands to
fight back ISIS.
UNSC ADOPTS RESOLUTION AGAINST ISIS
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
unanimously adopted a France sponsored resolution
calling all nations to take all necessary measures to
prevent and suppress the terrorist acts of Islamic State
of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and other extremist groups.
NEPAL REELS UNDER MADHESI AGITATION
Several persons, including policemen have been killed in
Terai region of Nepal due to ongoing Madhesi agitation.
The violence comes as the landlocked country, heavily
dependent on India for supplies of essential goods,
continues to reel under acute shortage of fuels,
medicines and other items for over two months now,
due to roads blocked by Madhesis.
Madhesis, the Indian-origin inhabitants of the Terai
region, have been protesting against division of their
ancestral homeland in the new Constitution. They are also
demanding proportionate representation in government
mechanism, allocation of Parliament seats on the basis of
population and re-demarcation of the federal provinces.

G-20 SUMMIT HELD IN ANTALAYA
A two day summit of
Heads of G-20
nations was held in
Antalaya, Turkey to
dwell on inclusive
economic growth
and climate change.
A special resolution
was also passed to
condemn the
gruesome terrorist attack in Paris and make united
efforts to eliminate terrorism across the globe. Prime
Minister Modi represented India at the meet.
APEC SUMMIT HELD IN MANILA
Leaders of economies which account for nearly half of
the world's trade and about 57 per cent of global gross
domestic product met in Manila for the Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. This year, the
theme of the summit is Building Inclusive Economies,
Building a Better World.
ASEAN DECLARES FORMATION OF AEC
Leaders of the ASEAN group of nations have declared
the establishment of an EU-style regional economic bloc,
ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), a single market
with a free flow of goods, capital and skilled labour in
the region. It will integrate Southeast Asia's diverse
economies, a region with 620 million people and a
combined gross domestic product of $2.6 trillion.
MYANMAR VOTES TO END MILITARY RULE
Free General elections were held in Myanmar after a gap
of almost 25 years. Voters came out in very heavy
numbers to exercise their right. The pro-democracy
party National League for Democracy, led by its
charismatic leader Aung San Suu Kyi is expected to form
the government after a decades-long struggle against
army dictatorship.
WORLD’s SECOND BIGGEST DIAMOND FOUND
The world's second-largest gem quality diamond has
been discovered in Botswana in southern Africa. It is
the biggest diamond to be found in more than a century.
The 1,111 carat gem is only second in size to the 3,106
carat Cullinan diamond, which was unearthed in South
Africa in 1905.
AN EMOJI IS 2015 WORD OF THE YEAR
For the first time, Oxford Dictionary has chosen an emoji
pictograph, commonly referred to as an emoticon, as its
2015 Word of the Year after it made history due to its
popularity on social media and instant messaging. This
was the most commonly used emoji in 2015.
ISIS MILITANTS DOWN RUSSIAN PLANE
Russia suspended all its flights to Egypt after one of its
aircraft suffered mid-air bomb blast soon after take-off
from Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, killing all 224 people on
board. It is suspected that a bomb blast in the aircraft
caused the crash.
The International Day for Tolerance observed
globally on 16 November with an aim to educate people
about the need for tolerance in society and help them
understand the negative effects of intolerance.
WIDESPREAD DOPING IN RUSSIA
A report from the World
Anti-Doping Agency
(WADA) outlined
systematic doping in
Russian athletics. As a
result, Russia was
provisi-onally suspended
from all international
track and field events by
International Association
of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
 27th ASEAN summit (Association of Southeast Asian
Nations) was held in Kuala Lumpur on November 21.
 The 10th East Asia Summit was held in Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia on Nov 22, under the theme Our
People, Our Community, Our Vision.
 UNESCO rejected Kosovo's bid for membership as it
failed to receive the support of two-thirds of the
UNESCO’s member nations.
 Islamist militants laid siege to the Radisson Blue
Hotel in Bamako, capital of Mali killing at least 27
persons from different nations.
 The World Health Organisation on 16 November
2015 launched the World Antibiotic Awareness Week
with the theme Antibiotics: handle with care.
 Operation Inherent Resolve is the name of US
military operation against the Islamic State of Iraq
and Syria (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria.
 The World Meteorological Organisation has said that
global average temperatures this year are likely to be
the warmest on record.
 Young supporters of Hong Kong's democracy
movement, known as 'Umbrella Soldiers', won few
seats in the elections dominated by pro-Beijing forces.
 Sierra Leone has been declared Ebola-free by the
WHO, prompting nationwide celebrations tinged with
sadness over the loss of 4,000 victims to the disease.
 Global pharma major Pfizer and Botox maker
Allergan have entered into a $ 160 billion merger
agreement, the biggest ever deal in pharma sector.
 China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba created a new
record in online sales netting $14.33 billion on the
annual Singles Day on Nov 13.

OCTOBER 2015
POORS’ POPULATION TO BE LESS THAN 10 %
As per the latest World Bank report on global poverty,
the number of people living in extreme poverty is likely
to fall for the first time below 10% of the world’s
population in 2015.
 Around 702 million people or 9.6% of the world’s
population will be living in extreme poverty in
2015, down from 902 million or 12.8% in 2012.
 India had largest number of poor in 2012, but its
poverty rate at 21.2 per cent is one of the lowest
among developing countries.
 The World Bank has revised its benchmark poverty
from living on or below $1.25 a day to $1.90 a day.
OPERATION SOPHIA BY EU TO NAB REFUGEES
The European Union has started a new operation
termed Operation Sophia to actively intercept boats
smuggling refugees. Now the EU officials will be able to
board, search, seize and divert vessels suspected of
being used for human smuggling or trafficking on the
high seas, in line with international law.
PAK-AFGHANISTAN HIT BY EARTHQUAKE
A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed over 400
persons in Pakistan and Afghanistan and left over 1600
as injured. The epicentre of the earthquake was near
Jurm in northeast Afghanistan.
V-20 GROUP OF NATIONS FORMED
Finance Ministers of 20 nations vulnerable to climate
change launched the V-20 Group on 8 October 2015 in
Lima, Peru. The Group aims to pool resources for their
fight against the impact of global warming and is a
counterpoint to the G20 group of leading industrialised
and emerging economies.
UNO CELEBRATES 70TH ANNIVERSARY
To commemorate the 70th anniversary of the United
Nations on October 24, more than 200 landmark monu-
ments in 60 countries from the Pyramids in Egypt to the
Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Empire State Building in
New York will be lit up in blue- the official colour of
UNO.
INDIA RECEIVED OVER $70 BILLION IN 2014
A report from the World Bank says that the remittances
to India are projected to increase by 2.5 per cent this
year even as weak economies in Europe, especially
Russia, are slowing the growth of remittance flows. In
2014, India is estimated to have received remittances
worth $70.3 billion.
NATO CONDUCTS ‘TRIDENT JUNCTURE – 2015’
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) forces
conducted their massive field exercise TRIDENT
JUNCTURE 2015 from October 3 to November 6 in 16
locations across Italy, Spain and Portugal to train,
exercise and learn from one another. Over 36.000
troops – from air, land and maritime forces – from more
than 30 Allied and Partner Nations took part.
UNCTAD PUTS WORLD GROWTH RATE @2.5%
The Trade and Development Report 2015 by the United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) says that the growth rate for world in 2015 is
expected to remain more or less unchanged from last
year, at 2.5 per cent. However, India’s GDP is expected
to grow at 7.5% in 2015 compared to China’s 6.9%.
USA SIGNS TRADE DEAL WITH 11 COUNTRIES
11 Pacific Rim nations, including Canada and Chile to
Japan and Australia have agreed to sign with USA, the
largest regional trade accord in history, The Trans-
Pacific Partnership for global commerce and worker
standards, forming over 40 per cent of the world’s
economy.
INTERNATIONAL DAY OF OLDER PERSONS
This day was observed on October 1 to raise awareness
about issues affecting the elderly and to appreciate the
contributions that older people make to society. The
theme this year is, 'Sustainability and Age Inclusiveness
in the Urban Environment'.

WORLD’S HIGHEST HYDRO POWER STATION
China has operationalised the world’s highest mega
hydropower station at Zam in Tibet, built on
Brahmaputra River which has raised concerns in India
over the likelihood of disrupting water supplies of River.
 China has announced the end of its hugely
controversial 45 years old one-child policy. Now, all
couples would be allowed to have two children.
 China's GDP decelerated to 6.9 per cent in the third
quarter of this year, posting its worst growth since
the 2009 global financial crisis
 China successfully launched the Tianhui-1C mapping
satellite into its designated orbit from Jiuquan
satellite launch centre
 Senior executives of IMF and World Bank Group held
their annual three-day meeting in Lima, Peru to
address current challenges facing the world economy.
 The World Trade Organization, WTO, has lowered
2015 global trade forecast to 2.8 percent in the face
of a slowdown in the economies of emerging
countries.
PERSONS IN NEWS
DECEMBER 2015
SHAH RUKH KHAN: Bollywood megastar has been
ranked as the country’s top-earning celebrity with
estimated earnings of Rs. 257.5 crore this year, pushing
Salman Khan to the second position (202.75 crore) in
the latest Forbes India Celebrity List for 2015.
KATY PERRY: Global pop singer from USA is on top of
Forbes magazine's list of highest-paid musicians of
2015, with $135 million in earnings.
ANGELA MERKEL: German Chancellor has been named
as the "Person of the Year" by the Times Magazine for
her role in Europe's crises over migration and Greek
debt.
LAIMDOTA STRAUJUMA: Latvia’s first female Prime
Minister announced her resignation after political
squabbles within her center-right ruling coalition and
dissatisfaction about her leadership.
NOVEMBER 2015
PAWAN MUNJAL: Managing Director of Hero MotoCorp,
was the highest paid director with a remuneration of
Rs.43.91 crore during the 2014-15 financial year.
ARUNDHATI BHATTACHARYA: Chairperson of
country's largest bank SBI remains the most powerful
woman in the Indian business sector, according to
Fortune India’s latest rankings of Indian business
women. ICICI Bank's Chanda Kochhar and Shikha
Sharma of Axis Bank follow at the second and third
place, respectively.
LIONEL MESSI: International iconic Football star has
been picked up by the Tata Motors as their global brand
ambassador for their passenger vehicles.
VICTOR PONTA: Romanian Prime Minister was in news
as he announced his resignation bearing moral
responsibility for a nightclub blaze that killed 32 people.
OCTOBER 2015
NAYANTARA SAHGAL, ASHOK VAJPAYEE: Several
noted writers returned their Sahitya Akademi Awards in
protest against what they called the “vanishing space”
for diversity. It was with reference to the recent killings
of rationalists and writers M.M. Kalburgi, Narendra
Dabholkar and Govind Pansare and of Dadri resident
Mohammad Akhlaq, who was lynched on suspicion of
consuming beef.
NAINA LAL KIDWAI: Chairperson of HSBC India since
2009 will retire by the end of this year, having
completed 58 years of age.
JERRY SEINFELD: He has been named as the world’s
highest paid comedian by Forbes. The 61-year-old
comedian earned $ 36 million between June 1, 2014 and
June 1, 2015.
APPOINTMENTS
DECEMBER 2015
R.K. MATHUR: Appointed the Chief Information
Commissioner (CIC), breaking away from the
convention of appointing the head from among the
serving information commissioners. He is former union
defence secretary.
GAUTAM H BAMBAWALE: Appointed as the High
Commissioner of India to the Pakistan
ARUN KUMAR JAIN: Appointed Chairman of Central
Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).

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