Current Affairs Capsule March 2015 PDF Capsule

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Current Affairs Capsule: March 2015

AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

Ma ti C o e I du ted i to the I te atio al C i ket Cou il s C i ket Hall of Fa e

Former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe has been inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He

represented his country on ICC Cricket World Cup 1992. Martin Crowe became the third New Zealander

and 79th Cricketer to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Other New Zealanders include Sir

Richard Hadlee and Debbie Hockley. The induction ceremony was organized during the innings break of the

New Zealand-Australia match in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 at Eden Park.

Bollywood Actress Rani Mukerji Awarded

Famous Bollywood actress Rani Mukerji has been given the national award by the National Institute of

Gender Justice (NIGJ) for creating awareness about the child trafficking. She is the first personality from

the Cinema industry to be felicitated with this prestigious award. The award was presented to Rani by

Sreerupa Mitra Chaudhury, the chairperson NIGJ, in New Delhi.

Rani Mukherji, in her film Mardhaani, played a powerful role of cop, who prevents crime against women,

especially girl child trafficking. Apart from acting, Rani Mukerji is actively involving herself in humanitarian

causes, also gives her voice against child trafficking and exploitation of women.

Ti e s Most I flue tial People o the I te et

The Time Magazine has released a list of 30 most Influential People on the Internet. They were selected on

the basis of social-media followings, site traffic, and overall ability to drive news. The Magazine has named

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi among the 30 influential people on the internet. Modi has around 38

million total followers on Facebook and Twitter. Modi has been extensively using social media in the last

three years and this helps a lot in 2014 Lok Sabha Elections too.

Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba wins Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership 2014

Hifikepunye Pohamba, outgoing Namibian P eside t has o the o ld s ost alua le i di idual a a d-

Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership for year 2014. Hifikepunye Pohamba Pohamba was born in 1935 in

Na i ia a d as a fo e e el ho fought fo his ou t s i depe de e. He has se ed as Namibian

President two terms.

The Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership prize is given each year to an elected leader who has governed

well, raised living standards and then left office. It is named after Mo Ibrahim, a British-Sudanese mobile

communications entrepreneur and philanthropist who had made billions of fortune from investing in

Af i a. It is the o ld s ost alua le i di idual a a d a d a ies o eta a a d of illio dolla a d also $ 200,000 a year for life. The inaugural prize was awarded to Joaquim Chissano, former president of

Mozambique.

Kerala Tourism Department wins the Golden Gate Award

Kerala Tourism Department wins the silver prize of Golden Gate award for its global multimedia campaign

to promote the backwaters of Kerala. The award was presented at the Internationale Tourismus-Borse

Berlin (ITB-Berlin) 2015, Germany. The ITB-Be li is o side ed as the Wo ld s la gest tou is t ade fai . Kerala Tourism Secretary G Kamala Vardhana Rao and Joint Secretary in the Union Tourism Ministry Suman

Billa have received the prestigious award.

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This is the second consecutive time that the campaign has been recognized at ITB Berlin. In 2014, the

Kerala Tourism had won the Gold Prize in the print category. Goa Tourism has won the international award

i the Best Weddi g a d Ho e oo Desti atio atego . The a a d as gi e Pa ifi A ea T a el Writers Association.

TCS named Top Employer in Europe for Third Consecutive Time

An employers certification agency Top Employers Institute has named Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as

the top employer in Europe. The company is awarded for the third consecutive year. The award is given

based on the nine core human resources areas. TCS has been certified as the leading employer in eight

European countries. ie United Kingdom, Norway, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, and

Switzerland.

Veerappa Moily Chosen for Saraswati Samman Award

Former congress Minister, Veerappa Moily has been chosen for the prestigious Saraswati Samman 2014 for

his literary work Ramayana Mahanveshanam, which was released in 2007 and has been translated to

English, Telgu, and Hindi. The Saraswati Samman comprises a prize amount of 5 Lakh Rupees and honour.

The poe is di ided i to fi e olu es hi h e plo ed the ‘a aj a f o the ode ie poi t.

I dia s Wate Ma o fe ed ith “to khol Wate P ize

Environment activist of India Rajendra Singh has been conferred with Stockholm Water Prize to recognize

his enormous efforts for instilling life in the villages of Rajasthan through water. The award comprises a a

ash p ize of , , U“D a d it ll e p ese ted “ ede s Ki g Ca l Gusta .

Three South Asian women selected for International Women of Courage Award 2015

Three South Asian women have been selected for the prestigious International Women of Courage Award

for the year 2015 by the United States. They are,

Captain Niloofar Rahmani from Afghanistan Air Force

Nadia Sharmeen- Jou alist a d o e s ights a ti ist f o Ba gladesh

Tabassum Adnan- founder of Khwendo Jirga from Pakistan.

These women were selected for the award for their demonstrating exceptional courage and leadership in

advocating for peace, justice, human rights and gender equality.

Fourth National Photography Awards

A total of 13 outstanding photojournalists were conferred with the National Photography Awards, in New

Delhi. The Awards were presented by the Secretary of Information and Broadcasting, Bimal Julka.

The awards were given in 5 categories namely

Life-Time Achievement Award

Amateur Photographer of the Year

Professional Photographer of the Year

Special Mention Category in Amateur Segments

Special Mention Category in Professional segments

The colorful ceremony was organized by the Photo Division under the Ministry of Information and

Broadcasting. Renowned cinematographer, Santosh Sivan and Chairman of the Jury Committee, Anil Risal

Singh attended the ceremony.

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The theme for Professional Photographer category – Ha a a Bha at “ a hh Bha at

The theme for Amateur Category – Mothe a d Child

The Award Winners

Life-Time Achievement Award- Surendra R Patel

Best Professional Photographer of the Year- Swarup Duta

Best Amateur Photographer of the Year- Sasikumar.

Special Mention Award in Professional Category

Jayesh Navinchandra Shah

Atul Vasant Ghag

Pravin Rawat

Arvind Kumar Jain

Umesh Nikam

Special Mention Award in Amateur Category

Joydeep Mukherjee

Akhil Hardia

Nimai Chandra Ghosh

Mukesh J Thakkar

Tabeenah Anjum Qureshi

Lata Mangeshkar conferred with Voice of the Century Award

Lege da “i ge Lata Ma geshka as o th Ma h p ese ted the Laadli Voi e of the Ce tu award here during the sixth edition of the national Laadli Media and Advertising Awards for Gender

Sensitivity. The award, which was handed over by Mr. Fadnavis, was accepted by Mr. Bhimani on her

behalf.

Smriti Irani named as Young Global Leader by WEF

Union Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani has been named as Young Global Leader from

I dia the Wo ld E o o i Fo u WEF . The WEF des i ed I a i as ose f o s eepi g floo s i a fast food estau a t to e o e a top politi ia i I dia . The list o p isi g a total of You g Global Leaders

across the World. There were 18 young global leaders in South Asia, out of which 11 were from India.

Other than Smriti Irani, the Indians, who are named in the list are,

Gaurav Gogoi – MP and son of Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

Aditya Ghosh – IndiGo President

Ashish Goyal – Portfolio Manager at Bluecrest Capital

Kiran Kumar Grandhi – GMR Group

Krithi Karanth – Centre for Wildlife Studies

Neha Kirpal – Founder and Director of India Art Fair

Shalini Puchalapalli – CEO Lehar Foods (Pepsi)

Shweta Punj – Associate Editor India Today Group/Co-Founder at Whypoll

Prashant Sarin – Bain and Company

Ameera Shah – Managing Director and CEO Metropolis Healthcare.

Every year, the World Economic Forum releases a list of outstanding young leaders, who are aged below 40

years, from around the world.

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Minoti Apte named as Woman of the Year 2015 in New South Wales

Indian pancreatic cancer researcher in Australia, Minoti Apte has been named as New South Wales (NSW)

Woman of the year 2015 for her enormous contributions to medical research, tertiary education and the

Indian community. She received the award from NSW Premier Mike Baird and Minister for Women Pru

Goward.

No Indian University in Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings

Not a single I dia U i e sit is ega ded a ade i s i te atio all as ei g a o g the o ld s ost prestigious Times Higher Education world reputation Rankings released on 12th March 2015. According to

the 2015 list, Harvard ranks First, followed by University of Cambridge and university of Oxford. US takes

eight positio s i Top a d Top List a d UK has the se o d highest u e . Japa s U i e sit of Tokyo at No. 12th tops Asian list in global reputation league.

1. Harvard university in US

2. Cambridge university in UK

3. University of Oxford in UK

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

5. Stanford University in US

6. University of California,Berkeley in US

7. Princeton university in US

8. Yale University in US

9. California Institute of Technology in US

10. Colombia Institute of Technology in US

Ti es Highe edu atio o ld eputatio ‘a ki g e plo the o ld s la gest a ade i opi io su e to provide the definitive list of Top 100 most powerful universities brands.

Bha ti Khe o fe ed ith F a e s K ight of the O de of A ts a d Letters

Artist Bharti Kher of India on 23 March 2015 was conferred with the Knight of the Order of Arts and

Lette s. “he as a a ded fo he o t i utio i o te po a a t la ds ape. Khe s a t o ks spa se e al mediums like painting, sculpture and installation. The artist is renowned for her remarkable

experimentation with bindis that have over time come to be recognised as her signature style.

Veteran poet Gopaldas Neeraj conferred with National Kavi Pradeep Samman Award

Noted Hindi poet Gopaldas Neeraj has received the first National Kavi Pradeep Samman at a function held

in Bhopal. He was presented the award on 24th March 2015. He was presented the award by Madhya

Pradesh Culture Minister Surendra Patwa at a function held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. This award carries

a cash prize of Rs two lakh, a shawl and a citation. On the occasion, Neeraj mesmerised the audience by

reciting some of his select poems. The award has been instituted by the Madhya Pradesh government in

the memory of Kavi Pradeep.

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62nd National Film Awards : An Overview

The 62nd National Film Awards were announced at the National Media Centre, New Delhi. The awards

were announced by the jury chairpersons directors Bharathiraja, Kamal Swaroop and Govind Kumar. The

National Awards will be presented by President Pranab Mukherjee on 3rd of May in Vigyan Bhawan (New

Delhi).

Complete list of winners:

Best Hindi Film: Queen

Best Bengali Film: Nirbashito

Best Tamil Film: Kuttram Kadithal

Best Marathi Film: Killa

Best Kannada Film: Harivu

Best Konkani Film: Nachom – IA Kumpasar

Best Malayalam Film: Ain

Best Assamese Film: Othello

Best Odiya Film: Aadim Vichar

Best Punjabi Film: Punjab 1984

Best Telugu Film: Chandamama Kathalu

Best Rabha Film: Orong

Best Haryanvi Film: Pagdi The Honour

Best Music Direction:

Songs – Haider (Hindi)

Background Score – Nineteen Eighty Three (Malayalam)

Best Choreography: Bismil for Haider

Special Mention Ain (Malayalam)

Nachom – IA Kumpasar (Konkani)

Killa (Marathi)

Bhootnath Returns (Hindi)

Best Educational Film: Komal & Behind the Glass Wall

Best Exploration/Adventure: Film Life Force – I dia s Weste Ghats

Best Investigative Film: Phum Shang

Best Animation Film: Sound of Joy

Best Short Fiction Film: Mitraa

Best Film Critic: Tanul Thakur

Best Writing on Cinema : Silent Cinema: (1895-1930)- Pasupuleti

Purnachandra Rao

Best Writing on Cinema : G. Dhananjayan for Pride of Tamil Cinema

(Special Mention)

Best Costume Designer: Dolly Ahluwalia for Haider

Best Female Playback Singer Uttara Unnikrishanan for song Azhagu in Saivam (Tamil)

Best Male Playback Singer Sukhwinder Singh for song Bismil from Haider

Best Actress Kangana Ranaut for Queen

Best Supporting Actress: Baljinder Kaur for Pagdi The Honour (Haryanavi)

Best Supporting Actor: Bobby Simhaa for Jigarthanda (Tamil)

Best Actor: Vijay for Nanu Avanalla Avalu (Kannada)

Best Direction: Srijit Mukherji for Chotushkone (Bengali)

Best Film On Environment Conservation/ Preservation: Ottaal (Malayalam)

Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment: Mary Kom

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Indira Gandhi Award For Best Debut Film Of A Director: Asha Jaoar Majhe (Bengali)

Best Feature Film: Court (Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati & English)

Akhil Sharma wins Folio Prize for Fiction

The Indian-American writer Akhil Sharma has been named winner of the second Folio prize for fiction for a

o el hi h took hi lo g a d pai ful ea s to o plete, ha ti g o e e ig a t fa il s hea t wrenching search for the American dream. He won this prize for his second book, Family Life. Writing it

as a halle gi g task fo hi . I glad the ook e ists, I just ish I had t ee the gu ho ote it, he said. William Fiennes, who chaired the Judges, praised the novel, currently a bestseller in the U“, as lu id, o passio ate, uietl fu .

Stree Shakti Puraskar 2014

President Pranab Mukherjee awarded Stree Shakti Puraskar 2014 to six illustrious women on International

Wo e s Da fo thei disti guished se i es fo the uplift e t of o e . The award was given in six

categories named after eminent women personalities in the Indian history. They are Kannagi, Rani

Gaidinliu Zaliang, Rani Ahilyabai Holkar, Rani Lakshmibai, Rani Rudramma Devi and Mata Jijabai. These

women are famous for their personal courage and integrity.

Awardees of Stree Shakti Puraskar 2014

Rani Gaidinliu Zeliang Award: Sister Mariola (Rajasthan).

Rani Lakshmibai Award: Seema Prakash (Madhya Pradesh).

Rani Rudramma Devi Award: Astha Sansthan- NGO (Rajasthan).

Mata Jijabai Award: Chandraprabha Bokey (Maharashtra).

Kannagi Award: P. Bhanumati (Kerala). Devi Ahily

Amitav Ghosh shortlisted for Man Booker International Prize

A ita Ghosh o d Ma h e e ged as the o l I dia autho a o g fi alists fo this ea s Man Booker International Prize for his contribution to English language writing.

About Amitav Ghosh

Amitav Ghosh is a Bengali Indian author best known for his work in English fiction. His First job was in

Indian Express in New Delhi. Ghosh is the author of The Circle of Reason (his 1986 debut novel) which won

Prix Médicis étranger. He was awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian government in 2007.

About Man Booker International Prize

It is an international literary award given every two years to a living author of any nationality for a body of

work published in English or generally available in English translation. The introduction of the International

Prize was announced in June 2004. This Prize is sponsored by the Man Group. The award is worth £60,000

and an author can only win once. The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan won the 2014

Man Booker International Prize.

Bangladesh wins Women in Parliaments Award

Bangladesh has won the prestigious Women in Parliaments (WIP) Award for regional leadership in the

South and Southeast Asia category for closing the gender gap in politics. The award was presented by WIP

Glo al Fo u at a ual su it held i Addis A a a, Ethiopia. O ehalf of Ba gladesh s P i e Mi iste Sheikh Hasina, Minister of State (MoS) for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam received the award. Bangladesh is

only country in the world where the Prime Minister, Parliament speaker, Leader of the Opposition, Deputy

Leader of the house, and a major opposition leader are all women. In the World Economic Forum report it

has been placed among the top 10 countries in the world in reducing gender gap.

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Balbir Singh Senior awarded with Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award

Veteran hockey player Balbir Singh Senior was awarded Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award

by Hockey India. The award comprises a trophy along with a cheque of Rs 30 lakh was presented to Balbir

Singh at the inaugural Hockey India Annual Awards ceremony held at New Delhi.

In his hockey career, Balbir Singh Senior had represented Indian team in three Olympics games including

London Olympics (1948), Helsinki Olympics (1952) and Melbourne Olympics (1956). In all three Olympics

the team had won the gold medal. He was captain of Indian team during Melbourne Olympics. His record

of most goals (five) in an Olympic final in 1952 still remains unbeaten and he also figures in the list of 16

iconic Olympians of all-time.

Nobel Laureate Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan to head Royal Society in UK

India-born Nobel Prize Winner Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan has been confirmed as the President elect

of U ited Ki gdo s highl estee ed Royal Society. Venkatraman will assume the post on December 1,

2015. He will be the first Indian-origin scientist to hold the post. Ramakrishnan will replace Famous

GeneticistSir Paul Nurse, who is also a Nobel laureate.

Bollywood Actor Shashi Kapoor chosen for Dada Saheb Phalke Award

All time Charming Actor, Shashi Kapoor, has been chosen for Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2014. The Gem

of Bollywood Industry will be the 46th winner of this highly celebrated award. The Dada Saheb Phalke

Award is the highest award in Indian cinema. The award is presented every year at the National Film

Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals. The Dadasaheb Phalke Award comprises a Swarn

Kamal (Golden Lotus), a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh and a shawl.

President Pranab Mukherjee gives away Chakra Awards to Defence Personnel

Pranab Mukherjee conferred one Kirti Chakra award and 11 Shaurya Chakra awards on armed forces

personnel. Among these, 11 awardees three were conferred posthumously for gallantry.

Kirti Chakra is the second highest peace time gallantry award i.e. awarded for valour, courageous action or

self-sacrifice away from the field of battle.

Shaurya Chakra is the third highest peacetime gallantry award i.e. awarded for valour, courageous action

or self-sacrifice while not engaged in direct action with the enemy.

The Award Winners

Kirti Chakra

Captain Jaidev of Parachute Regiment.

Shaurya Chakra (Posthumously)

Subedar Prakash Chand

Lieutenant Commander Manoranjan Kumar

Major Abhijai of Corps of Engineers.

Shaurya Chakra

Major Mukul Sharma

Commander Gosavi Kaustubh Vijaykumar

Major R Vamshi Krishnan

Rifleman Manga Ram

Wing Commander Huvey Upadhyaya

Major Abhishek Kumar

Major Satnam Singh

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Naik Ansaigra Basumatary.

Dalal Street Investment Journal (DSIJ) presented its sixth Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) Awards

Dalal Street Investment Journal (DSIJ) presented its sixth Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) Awards on 24

March 2015 in New Delhi. The awards were given in recognition of performance excellence and their

contribution to the economy. Fifteen PSUs were selected under various categories based on their

performance in the year 2014.

The performance assessment was based on a model developed by KPMG considering various financial

parameters such as

Productivity,

Efficiency

Efficacy

Profitability

Corporate social responsibility

Name of PSUs that were selected:

S. No Awards Name of the Company

1. Maharatna of the year – Manufacturing National Thermal power corporation

Limited (NTPC)

2. Most Efficient Maharatna – Manufacturing Bharat Heavy electrical Limited (BHEL)

3. Fastest Growing Navaratna of the year -Non

Manufacturing

Rural electrification Corporation

Limited(REC)

4. Best General Insurance Company of the year New India Assurance Company

5. Outstanding Performance in Mega Project

Implementation Steel Authority of India (SAIL)

6. Highest Wealth Creator among listed PSUs National Buildings Construction

Corporation Ltd. (NBCC)

7. Navratna of the year – Non-Manufacturing Power Finance Corporation Limited

(PFC)

8. Outstanding performer in Retail Banking Canara Bank

9. Most Consistent Performer of the year- General

Insurance United India Insurance Company

10. Maharatna of the year – Non-Manufacturing Oil and Natural gas Corporation

Limited (ONGC)

11. Biggest e-commerce portal in India Indian Railway Catering and Tourism

Corporation (IRCTC)

12. Most Efficient Miniratna of the year- Non-

Manufacturing

Container Corporation Of India Limited

(CONCOR)

13. Most Efficient Public Sector Bank Bank of Baroda

14. Most Efficient Navratna –Non- Manufacturing National Mineral Development

Corporation (NMDC)

15. Fastest Growing Maharatna – Non-Manufacturing COAL INDIA

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Government of India felicitated the winners of the Web Ratna Awards

Ravi Shankar Prasad, the Minister of Communications & IT, has presented the 2014 Web Ratna awards at a

ceremony held at Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The objective of this award is to

promote and uphold the use of World Wide Web (WWW) for enhancing the efficiency as well as the

transparency of Government Mechanism and encouraging its speedy transition towards Digital India.

The awards were given for 6 categories, which include Citizen Centric Service, Open Data Champion,

Outstanding Content, Innovative Use of Technology, Comprehensive Web Presence –Ministry and

Comprehensive Web P ese e‐ “tate/UT. List of Award and Awardees

Citizen Centric Service Category

• Plati u A a d: Passpo t “e a P oje t

• Gold A a d: Natio al “afai Ka ha i Fi a e De elop e t Co po atio

• “il e A a d: Natio al I stitute of Ope “ hooli g

Open Data Champion category

• Plati u A a d: Offi e of ‘egist a Ge e al & Ce sus Co issio e

• Gold A a d: Pla i g Co issio a d U io Mi ist of “tatisti s & P og a I ple e tatio

• “il e A a d: U io Mi ist of Wate ‘esou es

Outstanding Content category

• Plati u A a d: Mi ist of E te al Affai s. • Gold A a d: Mi ist of T i al Affai s a d Ke ala Tou is

• “il e A a d: Mi ist of De elop e t of No th Easte ‘egio

Innovative Use of Technology category

• Plati u A a d: MKisa -Government of India Portal for Farmer Centric Services

• Gold A a d: Madh a P adesh Co e ial Ta Depa t e t a d Depa t e t of Co e ial Ta , Ta il Nadu

• “il e A a d: E-Sahakar, an online Cooperative Society Process Management System of Maharashtra

Government

Comprehensive Web presence category

• Plati u A a d: Mi ist of I fo atio & B oad asti g

• Gold A a d: U io Mi ist of Health & Fa il Welfa e

• “il e A a d: Co t olle Ge e al of A ou ts

Comprehensive Web Presence State category

• Plati u A a d: Maha asht a

• Gold A a d: Ta il Nadu

• “il e A a d: Utta akha d

Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee conferred with Bharat Ratna

Honorable President Pranab Mukherjee has presented India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna to

former Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at his residence in Lutyen's Delhi. The event was

attended by Vice President Hamid Ansari, former President APJ Abdul Kalam, Prime Minister Narendra

Modi, senior leader LK Advani, Home Minister Rajnath Singh along with some close family members. The

event was completely kept away from the media.

Gandhi Peace Prize 2014 won by ISRO

Indian space agency, Indian Space Research Organization has been selected for the prestigious Gandhi

Peace Prize 2014. The grand award was chosen for ISRO by the jury under the chairmanship of the PM Shri

Narendra Modi.

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The year 2014 was the most successful year for ISRO. The agency successfully launched Mangalyaan or

Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) and at a very low cost of 450 crore rupees. The successful launch makes India

the fi st Asia ou t to e te the Ma tia sphe e of i flue e. The o t i utio of I“‘O fo the atio s development is very high. The agency provides satellite based education, health care and connectivity to

community activities for sustainable economic development.

Abel Prize 2015 jointly won by Nash and Nirenberg

American Mathematician Dr. John Forbes Nash and Canada-born American Louis Nirenberg have been

named as joint winners of the 2015 Abel Prize, which is considered as the Nobel Prize in Mathematics. The

Abel Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Academy of Sciences & Letters since 2003. The award is named in

the memory of famous Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel. The award comprises a cash reward of

US$750,000.

The press release states that Nash a d Ni e e g a e e og ized fo st iki g a d se i al o t i utio s to the theo of o li ea pa tial diffe e tial e uatio s a d its appli atio s to geo et i a al sis . Nash was conferred with Nobel Prize in economics in 1994 for his work in ga e theo . The fil A Beautiful Mi d as ased o Nash s life a d his ole as po t a ed a to ‘ussell C o e. The Mathematical giants will accept the prize from King Harald V of Norway during a ceremony in Oslo on May

19.

Adoor Gopalakrishnan honoured with Bishwaratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika International Solidarity Award

Acclaimed filmmaker Adoor Gopalakrishnan on 29 March 2015 was honoured with Bishwaratna Dr Bhupen

Hazarika International Solidarity Award. He was presented the award by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi

at the function held at Guwahati, Assam.

The Award is a biennial award instituted in 2013 and named in the memory of the cultural doyen Dr

Bhupen Hazarika. The award carries a memento, citation, collection of books and cheque of 5 lakh rupees.

The award was instituted by the Asam Sahitya Sabha and sponsored by the Numaligarh Refinery Limited

(NRL).

Aditi Arya Crowned Femina Miss India 2015

Aditi Arya from Gurgaon, the industrial and financial capital at the NCR (National Capital Region), Delhi was

crowned the Femina Miss India 2015. The 52 nd edition of the event was held at Yash Raj Studios, Mumbai

on March 28th 2015.

The outgoing Miss India 2014 Koyal Rana conferred the crown to Aditi Arya. Aafreen Rachel Vaz and

Vartika Singh followed her as the first and second runner-ups. It was contested by 21 contestants in the

final audition round.

Femina Miss India contest is conducted in India annually, as a national beauty pageant to conclude the

representatives of India for the International pageant events like Miss World, Miss International and Miss

Continental. Miss India is to represent India for the International beauty pageant Miss World 2015. The

first and second runner-ups will represent Miss International 2015 and Miss Continental 2015 respectively.

Thereby the Femina Miss India 2015 concluded with the Indian representatives for all the International

Beauty pageants which are as follows

Aditi Arya - Represents India for Miss World 2015

Aafreen Rachel Vaz - Represents India for Miss International 2015

Vartika Singh - Represents India for Miss Continental 2015

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Madan Mohan Malviya conferred with Bharat Ratna

Veteran freedom fighter and educationist Madan Mohan Malviya was conferred with Bharat Ratna

(posthumously), highest civilian award of the country. His family members received the award from

President Pranab Mukherjee at the glittering function held at Durbar hall of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New

Delhi.

ACTS AND BILLS

Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015

Lok Sabha unanimously passed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015 to amend Motor Vehicles Act,

1988, to help e-rickshaw ply in Delhi.

Here are key highlights below:

Date of passing: 3rd March 2015 by voice note.

The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015 introduced by Minister of State for Road Transport.

This bill seeks to amend the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988and replace the ordinance promulgated in this

regard in January.

The bill defines e-rickshaw and e-carts as special purpose battery powered vehicles with power up to

4000 watts.

If the bill will passes at Rajya Sabha, it will going to benefit 1 lakh e- rickshaw owners and drivers in the

capital. Road transport Minister Nitish Gadkari said while ensuring the livelihood of one lakh e-rickshaw

drivers, government will not compromise with the safety.

The driver of the vehicle will be owner and no one else will get the license.

An earlier Bill to regularize e-rickshaws was passed by the Lok Sabha in the Winter Session but as it was

stuck in the Rajya Sabha, the government issued the ordinance. The earlier bill was withdrawn.

The new rules provide that e-rickshaw will be allowed to carry four passengers and 40 kg

luggage whilee-carts would transport goods up to 310 kg.

The bill empowers Union Government to make the rules specifications, conditions and manner for

issuing driving license.

Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2015

Lok Sabha passed Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2015to amend Citizenship Act, 1955. The bill was

introduced in Lok Sabha on 27th February 2015. The bill, if enacted will be considered to come into effect

on 6th

January 2015. Here are key highlights below:

Date of passing: 2nd March 2015 by voice note

It allows the Union Government to relax the requirement of 12 months stay or service if special

circumstances exist in cases related to citizenship by registration and naturalization. Relaxation up to

30 daysmay be permitted by the government.

It provides additional grounds for registering an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card such as

o Minor children whose parent(s) are Indian citizens,

o spouse of an Indian citizen or OCI/ PIO cardholder subjected to certain conditions,

o great-grandchild of a person who is a citizen of another country ,but meets one of several

conditions of Citizenship Act, 1955

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A new provision is introduced, allowing the union government to register a person as an OCI

cardholdereven if he does not satisfy any of the listed qualifications.

It merges PIO and OCI cardholders.

It allows the union government to cancel the OCI card where it is obtained by the spouse of an Indian

citizen or Overseas Citizen of India cardholder,

o if the marriage is dissolved by a court, or

o The spouse enters into another marriage.

o It also says the government may shift a PIO cardholder, who enjoys fewer benefits, to be

OCI cardholders from a specified date.

Lok Sabha Passes Land Aquisition Bill

In the Lok Sabha, the new bill, the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition,

Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill 2015 was passed by Voice note after incorporating nine

amendments moved by governments. Arguing that Land Aquisition bill should not be sent in standing

committee, the congress walked out of Lok sabha.

Key Highlights of Bill are stated below

1. Date of Passing: 10th March 2015 by Voice note.

2. The bill was passed by incorporating Nine amendments.

3. Important Amendments are:

Land Acquisition only for industrial corridors set up by Government.Ordinance did not clarify the

inclusion of projects by private players.

Land acquired for industrial corridor cannot exceed 1 km on either side of designated rail line or road.

Compulsory employment for one member of affe ted fa la o e s fa il i the p oje t o i g up o land.

Court can take cognizance of offence by government employee

Ordinance had sought govt sanction for prosecution;now it would be easy to pull up an official below

the rank of Joint Secretary.

Local redressal of complaints on Compensation.

Social infrastructure projects not exempt from consent clause and social impact assessment.

No acquisition for schools and hospitals by private persons.

Redressal of grievances at district level and prescribe that state determine the acquisition is for bare

minimum.

The opposition moved 52 amendments which were either nullified or were not pressed by members. Later

Congress, SP, TMC left and others walked out to let the bill passed by voice note. The Akali Dal has insisted

to restore the Co se t lause e esto ed a d the Shiv Sena remain stuck not to vote for the bill.

Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015 gets Rajya Sabha Nod

Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015 gets final a nod from Upper House on 12th March 2015. Seven

Years after it was first introduced by UPA, with the help of Congress. A bill seeking to raise Foreign Direct

Investment (FDI) cap in insurance sector from 26% to 49% was approved by Rajya Sabha.

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Key Highlights of The Bill

The insurance laws (Amendment) Bill 2015 will replace the ordinance promulgated by government last

year.

The bill was passed on 12th March 2015 by Voice note.

It was first introduced in 2008.

The bill makes IRDA ( Insurance Regulatory Development Authority), the sole operator to impose

penalty, impose a ceiling on expense management or fix a remuneration etc..on insurance sector.

The FDI limit has been increased to 49% which may lead to inflow of $8 to $10 billion in insurance

sector.

It will also help in penetrating the insurance sector.

The bill was passed through voice note after a 3 hours debate which saw the left clashing with treasury

bench. the left parties, which has opposed the bill insisted that amendment they have moved be put to

electronic voting. Despite their opposition to bill, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Janata Dal

(United) walked out and making it convenient to pass the bill.

Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015

This bill amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957

Key highlights of bill

Date of passing: 3rd March 2015

The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 24 February 2015.

It replaces an ordinance promulgated in January.

It was passed even it was protested by members from TMC, BJD, and RSP.

Legislation, steel and mines minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that bill once enacted will increase the

o Transparency

o End discretion

o Increase production

o Benefit the local population.

The bill encourages spending of fixed percentage of revenue generated from mining on the

o development of local areas

o abolition of discretionary power enjoyed by governments, which in turn will decrease corruption

Addition of a new 4th Schedule in to parent Act in order to include bauxite, iron ore, limestone and

manganese ore as notified minerals.

It allows the union government to increase the area limits for mining, instead of providing additional

leases.

It creates a new category of mining license named, the prospecting license-cum-mining lease, which is

a two stage-concession for the purpose of undertaking prospecting operations (exploring or proving

mineral deposits) followed by mining operations.

It changes the lease period for all minerals other than;

o Coal

o Lignite and

o Atomic minerals.

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o Mining leases for minerals shall be granted for a period of 50 years.

On expiry of the lease, the leases shall be put up for auction, instead of being renewed.

The tenure of the mineral concession has been increased from the existing 30 years to 50 years.

It specifies that any lease granted before the commencement of the Bill, shall be extended

o up to 31 March 2030 for minerals used for captive purpose and up to 31 March 2020 for minerals

used for other than captive purpose or

o Till the completion of renewal period or

o for a period of 50 years from the date of grant of such lease,

Whichever is later.

It states that union government shall prescribe the terms and conditions and procedure for auction for

the selection of bidders.

For mining leases, the government may reserve particular mines for a specific end use and allow only

eligible end users to participate in the auction.

It states that the holder of a mining lease or prospecting license-cum-mining lease may transfer the

lease to any eligible person, with the approval of the state government and as specified by the Union

government.

The DMF (District Mineral Foundation) is to be established by the state government and NMET

(National Mineral Exploration Trust) shall be established by the union government for regional and

detailed mine exploration.

There is separate provision for contribution to the DMF not exceeding 1/3rd of the royalty rate in the

respective minerals.

This sector forms over two percent of total GDP.

This will also deters illegal miners as there are jail terms as well as special court and illegal mining bill

has a penalty of Rs 5 lakh per hectare instead of Rs 25000 earlier.

The Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015

Lok Sabha on 4th march 2015, Wednesday, passed theCoal Mines (special provisions) Bill, 2015 to allow e-

auction of coal blocks after supreme court cancelled their allocation leading to uncertainty in coal sector

amid by some oppositions.

key highlights:

Date of Passing: 4th March 2015 by voice note.

Date of introduction of bill: December 10, 2014 by the Minister of Coal, Piyush Goyal.

Some of the amendments were voted out, while some of the amendment were disapproved by voice

note, CPI M e e Bad uddoza Kha s a e d e t e e oted out. It seeks to amend the Coal Mines (Nationalization) Act, 1973 and the Mines and Minerals

(Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.

The Bill s main objective is to enable private companies to mine coal for sale in the open market.

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The Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015, would replace two ordinances issued by the government

o the first on October 21 last year and

o Second in December, after the apex court cancelled the allocation of 204 blocks

Categories of mines: The Bill creates three categories of mines:

Schedule I

(i) All the 204 coal mines cancelled by the Supreme Court in August 2014,

(ii) Any land acquired by the prior allottee in or around the coal mines, and

(iii) Mine infrastructure.

Schedule II

(i) 42 Schedule I mines that are currently under production or about to start production

Schedule III

Mines includes the 32 Schedule I mines that have been earmarked for a specified end-use.

A prior allottee shall not be eligible to participate in the auction process

if he has not paid the additional levy imposed by the Supreme Court, or

If he is convicted of an offence related to coal block allocation and sentenced to imprisonment for

more than three years.

Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal said that this ill ould e su e transparent and honest p o ess of auctioning of coal blocks. He warned that if the Bill is not passed, then there could be a crisis in the

coal sector with the closure of these mines.

e-auction has ensured open bidding and no monopoly in the process.

Adequate safeguards have been put in place to ensure the end-use restrictions and stop hoarding.

The Bill provides for allocation of coal mines and vesting of the right, title and interest in and over the

land and mine infrastructure together with mining leases to successful bidders and allottees through

atransparent bidding process.

Dipendra Hooda said all states have put money for development of coal mines over decades and if it is

now generating some money then they should get the share of the profits.

The e-Auction proceeds from the first lot of mines are over 1 Lakh crore and Auctioning of second

auction is in process.

The central government shall appoint a nominated authority who will be an officer of the rank of a

joint secretary in the government

Prior allottees shall be compensated for land and mine infrastructure. For the purpose of such

compensation, land shall be valued as per the registered sales deed together with 12% simple interest

from the date of purchase or acquisition, till the date of the execution of the vesting order. Mine

infrastructure shall be valued as per the audited balance sheet of the previous financial year. Prior

allottees shall not be entitled to compensation till the additional levy has been paid.

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Parliament passes bill to add some communities in SC list

Parliament passed a Bill to include certain communities in Scheduled Castes category in the states

of Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The Lok Sabha passed the Constitution

(Scheduled Castes) Orders (Amendment) Bill, 2015, by a voice vote. The Bill was cleared by the Rajya Sabha

on February 24′ 2015.

The Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawar Chand Gehlot said the Union Government is

well aware of the problems being faced by the Scheduled Castes (SC) in the country and is completely

ready to consider proposals received from states regarding the inclusion of any community in this

category.

The Union Government had set up a Rs 200 crore Venture Capital fund to provide soft loan to SC people

starting their own business.

As per the bill, the newly added communities are,

Kabirpanthi and Julaha – Haryana,

Bhovi, od, odde, Vaddar, Waddar – Karnatka

Dhoba, Dhobi, Dom, Dombo, Duria Dom, Katia, Kela, Nalua Kela, Khadala and Turi – Odisha

Chamar – Dadra and Nagar Haveli

Lok Sabha passes Warehousing Corporations (Amendment) Bill, 2015

Lok Sabha passes Warehousing Corporations (Amendment) Bill, 2015 on 18th March 2015.

The Wa ehousi g Co po atio s A e d e t Bill, seeks to do a a ith the Ce te s espo si ilit of being a financial guarantor to Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC). The bill was passed by Lok Sabha

with Customer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan ruling out any move to privatize the Mini-Ratna

Company.

The bill was brought by previous UPA government in Lok Sabha and cleared by Parliamentary Standing

Committee. However, it lapsed with the dissolution of 15th Lok Sabha.

Key Highlights of the bill

Date of Passing: 18th March 2015.

The Bill seeks to amend the Warehousing Corporations Act, 1962.

The bill put to e d the Ce t al Go e e t s espo si ilit of ei g a fi a ial gua a to to the CWC in

order to follow the criteria to be a Mini-Ratna enterprise status.

The government has also not given any guarantee besides the payment of minimum guaranteed

dividendas required under some provisions of the act.

The bill seeks to withdraw the guarantee of the government and absolves it of its responsibility of

being the guarantor,

The a ehousi g o po atio a e d e t ill has a li ited s ope a d as e essitated y a legal e ui e e t hi h said the go e e t ill ot e a gua a to fo a g ade o e i i-ratna company like

CWC , Paswan said.

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Union Cabinet Approves Black Money Bill

The Union Cabinet on 17th March 2015 cleared a stringent law proposed in the budget to curb black

money. The Black Money bill would be introduced in the Parliament in the current session. The Union

Cabinet also approved signing of a crucial accord with the US on exchange of financial information which

ill supple e t I dia s o effo ts to ta kle the e a e of la k o e .

Points to Remember:

Black Money bill makes concealing foreign assets and income from tax authorities a crime punishable

with a 10-year jail term and 300% fine on the tax evaded.

Bill empowers the government to notify a window when people with undisclosed foreign funds can

come clean.

The duration of this window along with the tax rate and penalty will be notified once Parliament clears

the bill.

The bill also provides for prosecution and penalty of individuals, banks or institutions for abatement if

they help anyone create or hide foreign assets.

The bill would be complemented by other legislation and measures, including a new Benami

Transactions (Prohibition) Bill that is in the process of being finalized

The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill cleared by cabinet also enables

enforcement agencies to attach and confiscate these assets under the Prevention of Money Laundering

Act.

The new bill announced by finance minister Arun Jaitley in his budget speech — requires people to declare

foreign assets and income, including the date of opening their foreign bank accounts.

Union cabinet clears 33% quota for women in Delhi police

Union Cabinet on 20th March 2015 clears 33% quota for women in Delhi and other six Union

Territories. The move aims at increasing representation of women in police and to make the force gender

sensitive. The ese atio ill e a aila le to o e agai st all su h a a ies e isti g o the date of issue of o de a d a a ies a isi g the eafte , the o de said.

Supreme Court strikes down section 66A of Information Technology act

In a verdict related to the freedom of speech on the Internet, the Supreme Court on 24th March

2015 scrapped Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, terming it as unconstitutional. The supreme

court said that section 66A is vague and violative of the fundamental right to freedom of speech.

Justices J Chelameswar and Rohinton F Nariman passing the judgement said that 66A the court cannot go

the go e e t s assu a es that the se tio ill ot e isused as that a ot e p ope l implemented because governments come and go but section 66A will exist forever.

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INDIAN AFFAIRS

Election Commission of India Launches NERPAP Nationwide

The Election Commission of India has launched NERPAP – National Electoral Roll Purification and

Authentication Programme, all over India with the objective of bringing a totally error free and

authenticated electoral roll.

The NERPAP programme include linking of Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) data with Aadhar data for

the purpose of authentication and also on improving image quality of electors along with sorting issues like

corrections of errors/mistakes etc.

Citizens who are eligible to vote can feed their respective Aadhar number via,

SMS

email

Mobile Application

National Voters Service Portal

By making a call at 1950 to state call centres

By submitting the details of Aadhar number and EPIC number in a hard copy

Akilesh Yadav has flagged off Varanasi – Kathmandu Bus Service

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akilesh Yadav has flagged off the Indo-Nepal friendship us se i e that will

link Kashi and Kathmandu directly with two buses. The Varanasi to Kathmandu Bus service is called the

Bharat-Nepal Maitri Bus Seva I dia-Nepal Friendship Bus Service). The Varanasi to Kathmandu AC bus

will depart Varanasi at 10.30 p.m. and reach Kathmandu at 10.30 a.m.the next day through Azamgarh,

Gorakhpur and Sonauli. The fare from Varanasi to Kathmandu is Rs. 1,333.

I dia ‘ail ay lau hed Go I dia “ a t Ca d

Indian Railways has launched a smart card scheme called Go I dia on a pilot basis on two sectors – New

Delhi-Mumbai and New Delhi-Howrah. The card currently enables the railway passengers to pay for

reserved and unreserved tickets that can be used at ticket counters. The scheme was announced by

Minister of State for Railways Shri Manoj Sinha.

The smart card can be used for issuing tickets at

Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS)

Passenger Reservation System (PRS) counters

Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs)

For the first time, a passenger should pay a minimum amount of Rs.70 to get a card. He will get Rs.20

balance. Then he can recharge the card for a minimum of Rs.20 or in multiple of Rs.50 upto Rs. 5000. The

Maximum limit on Go-India smart card is Ten thousand rupees.

The smart card has a validity of life time. If the card is kept unused for 6 months, it will be temporarily

deactivated which can be activated again by paying Rs.50. The main objective of this scheme is to reduce

the transaction time at the booking counters for the convenience of passengers.

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BBC Telecasts the Documentary on Nirbhaya – I dia s Daughte

The UK based British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has released the controversial documentary – I dia s Daughter, which is about the 16th December Delhi gang-rape despite Go e e t s a . The fil as due to be aired o I te atio al Wo e s Da ut as ought fo a d.

The Central Government has refused to allow it to be released in India because it objected to the film-

makers releasing it without their approval. The interview created uproar in Parliament. Union Home

Minister Rajnath Singh has asked the media not to broadcast the documentary.

The Delhi court has also stopped the media from publishing, broadcasting, telecasting or uploading the

controversial interview on the internet. The Union Home Ministry had asked BBC not to broadcast the

documentary anywhere. The BBC said that it would not telecast the documentary in India. But the

interview was released in UK on the night of March 4.

The Documentary has revealed the name of the victim ie Jyoti Singh.

The Documentary was Directed by Leslee Udwin.

The video went viral immediately after the release on YouTube and the Indian Government has

demanded YouTube to delete that video.

India Joins Hands with Spain for Defence Cooperation

India has signed an agreement with “pai o Mutual Protection of Classified Information to p o ide the framework for enhanced cooperation in the defence sector. The agreement was signed between Spanish

Defence Minister Pedro Moremes and Indian defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. The Spanish delegation

has showed their interest in participating in the Make-in-India initiative. Spain has expressed its interest

in P75I, a project under which India plans to build six conventional submarines.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Seychelles, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka

In a move to strengthen the relationship between India and other countries, Prime Minister Narendra

Modi is to begin a three nation visit to Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka from March 10th.

Modi will have bilateral discussions with Seychelles President James Alexis Michel to st e gthe I dia s maritime ties and enhance development cooperation.

On March 11-12th, the PM will have extensive meetings with Mauritius Prime Minister Sir

Anerood Jugnauth to enhance the special and unique relations between the two countries.

On March 13-14th, the Prime Minister will have meetings with the newly elected Sri Lankan President

Maithripala Sirisena and other senior leaders.

Indian Monuments and Sites Nominated for UNESCO Heritage sites

India has sent a revised list of Monuments and Sites across the country for inclusion in the United Nations

Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), catalogue of world Heritage sites.

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Ministry of states for culture and tourism Dr.Mahesh Sharma on 4th March, Wednesday informed the

Rajya sabha that the list contains 46 monuments and sites. On his written reply to Rajya Sabha, Dr.Sharma

told the house that the list had been sent in April 2014. In 2014 there were only 32 monuments and sites

which were included in UNESCO, Catalogue of World Heritage Sites.

Health Ministry Launched 3-day Ca paig fo Bette Wo e s Health

The Union Health Ministry has launched a three-day (March 8 to March 10) nationwide campaign for

ensuring better health for women on Inte atio al Wo e s Da (March 8). Under the program, special

health check-up camps will be held at all district hospitals, sub-district hospitals, and community health

centers.

The hospitals will screen and carry out necessary investigations and if needed, will also provide

treatment free of cost. All women aged 40-60 years will be screened for breast cancer and between 30-60

years for cervical cancer. Antenatal and postnatal care services will also be provided and Mother and Child

Protection cards will be issued to the women.

ISIS Demolishes Ancient Hatra site in Iraq

Islamic State Militants have demolished the 2000 year old ancient city of Hatra in Northern Iraq. United

Nations has condemned this as an act of Barbarism. Hatra is situated 110 km south of Mosul, the largest

city under ISIS control. Few days back the militants released a video of smashing statues and carvings in the

it s useu , ho e to p i eless Ass ia a d Helle isti a tefa ts dati g a k , ea s. The e ai s of theAssyrian city of Nimrud was bulldozed by the militants. Archaeologists have compared the assault on

I a s ultu al histo to the Tali a s dest u tio of theBamyan Buddhas in 2001.

NPCI has linked 15 Crore Bank Account with Aadhar Number

National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) said thatit has linked 15 crore bank accounts with Aadhaar

number, the unique identification number to the citizens of India.

National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI)

NPCI is the nodal agency for all retail payment systems under the Jan Dhan scheme. It has achieved a

milestone by successfully linking 15 crores bank Accounts with Aadhar Number. NPCI was incorporated in

2008 under the companies ACT 1956 as Section 25 Company.

First India-Nepal Friendship Motor Rally completes at India Gate

The first India-Nepal Friendship Motor Rallywas concluded at lawns of India Gate. The rally was flagged off

at Puri, Odisha on February 27. A total of twenty four teams and about 90 riders were participated from

both the countries. They covered a distance of 3060 Km during the ten-day rally. The objective of the rally

is to strengthen bilateral relations between India and Nepal and also to spread the message of road

safety. The rally covered religious places related to Hinduism and Buddhism in the two countries.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj congratulated the organizers for spreading the message of road

safety via the motor rally. Union Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways and Shipping, Shri Pon

Radhakrishnan, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, Shri Vijay Chhibber, Cha ge d affai es of Nepal in India, Shri Krishna Prasad Dhakal were present on the occasion.

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Government to close down the Five sick Public Sector Undertakings

The Union Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete said that Government has decided to close the 5 sick

Public Sector Undertakings that include HMT and its three units, and Hindustan Shipyard. He also added

that the employees, who are working in these PSUs will be provided with good VRS package.

Government has listed a total of 65 sick PSUs in India. The Minister did not name any other PSUs which are

slated to be closed down. Air India and MTNL were declared as sick PSUs, after they incurred huge losses

worth 50% or more of their average net worth during four preceding years.

Coal Scam : CBI court summons former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

The CBI court has summoned the former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over accusations of criminal

conspiracy and corruption in the illegal allocation of a coal field. Special CBI judge – Bharat

Parasharsummoned five other accused in the coal scam. They are Kumar Mangalam Birla, Hindalco, P C

Parakh, B Shubhendu Amitabh, and D Bhattacharya.

Union Government Launches Pharma Jan Samadhan Scheme to address consumers G ie a es

Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Ananth Kumarlaunched Pharma Jan Samadhan Scheme, which

is a web enabled system created by National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), for redressal of

o su e s g ie a es elati g to p i i g and availability of medicines.

This s ste is speed a d effe ti e ith espe t to add essi g the o su e s o plai ts. It ould definitely serve as a powerful e-go e a e tool fo p ote tio of o su e s i te ests th ough the implementation of the Drugs (Price Control) Order 2013. In case of any complaints, NPPA will initiate

action within 48 hrs of its receipt. The scheme would also prevent black-marketing, artificial medicines and

illegal drug practices.

The Minister has also released Compendium of Ceiling Prices of Essential Medicines 2015 prepared by

NPPA.

Delhi Government to ban Raw Chewable Tobacco Products soon

The newly elected Delhi government has decided to enforce ban on the storage, sale, and purchase of

all kinds of raw chewable tobacco products such asgutkha, khaini and zarda in the National Capital. The

Health Minister Satyendra Jain has taken a serious initiative for banning all kind of raw chewable products

in the National Capital and he has also finalized the proposal.

In Delhi, gutka is being supplied to retailers from neighboring states like Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The

last day of every month has been declared as a Dry Day for Tobacco by the Delhi government.

The Law Commission of India submits its report on electoral reforms

The Law Commission of India on 12th 2015 submitted its report on Electoral Reforms to the Union Ministry

of Law and Justice, proposing wide ranging reforms

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Following is the summary of the report:

1. Election Finance

The Law Commission has mentioned wide ranging reforms on the issue of

candidate expenditure limits

disclosure obligations of individual candidates

political parties

penalties on political parties

examining the issue of state funding of elections.

2. Regulation of Political Parties and Inner Party Democracy

The Commission recommend the requirement of accompanying memorandum/ rules/ regulations with

the pa t s appli atio . This a o pa i g do u e t, hate e a e it is alled, should also contain a specific provision stating that the party would shun violence for political gains, and would

avoid discrimination or distinction based on race, caste, creed, language or place of residence.

A new Chapter IVC should be inserted dealing with the ‘egulatio of Politi al Pa ties and

incorporating the Co issio s p e ious e o e datio s i its th ‘epo t ith e tai modifications. Thus, sections 29J to 29Q will deal with:-

o internal democracy,

o party Constitutions,

o party organisation,

o internal elections,

o candidate selection,

o voting procedures,

o the ECI s po e to de-register a party in certain cases of non-compliance.

Another section, section 29R should be inserted, providing for the de-registration of a political party for

failure to contest Parliamentary or State elections for ten consecutive years.

3. Proportional Representation

The Law Commission recommends that the findings of the 170th Law Commission Report on the

proportional system may be examined by the Government to determine whether its proposals can be

made workable in India at present.

4. Anti Defection Law in India

The Law Commission recommends a suitable amendment to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution,

which shall have the effect of vesting the power to decide on questions of disqualification on the

ground of defection with the President or the Governor, as the case may be, (instead of the Speaker or

the Chairman), who shall act on the advice of the ECI. This would help preserve the integrity of the

Nation.

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5. Strengthening the office of the Election Commission of India

The ECI should be strengthened by first, giving equal constitutional protection to all members of the

Commission in matters of

Removability;

Making the appointment process of the Election Commissioners

The CEC consultative

Creating a permanent, independent Secretariat for the ECI.

6. Paid News and Political Advertisements

In order to curb the practice of disguised political advertisement

o disclosure provisions should be made mandatory for all forms of media. T

o he purpose of disclosure is two fold

first, to help the public identify the nature of the content (paid content or editorial content)

to keep the track of transactions between the candidates and the media.

Thus, a new section 127C should be inserted in the RPA to deal with the non-disclosure of interests in

political advertising. The ECI can regulate the specifics of the disclosure required.

7. Opinion Polls

The regulation of opinion polls is necessary to ensure that

o the credentials of the organisations conducting the poll is made known to the public

o the public has a chance to assess the validity of the methods used in conducting the opinion poll

o the public is made adequately aware that opinion polls are in the nature of forecasts or predictions,

and as such are liable to error.

Consequently, new sections 126C and 126D should be inserted in the RPA.

8. Compulsory Voting

The Law Commission does not recommend the introduction of compulsory voting in India and in fact,

believes it to be highly undesirable for a variety of reasons described above such as

being undemocratic, illegitimate, expensive, unable to improve quality political participation and

awareness, and difficult to implement.

9. Election Petitions

The introduction of o e o o e ele tio e hes i ea h High Cou t, desig ated so the Chief Justice of the particular High Court, exercising jurisdiction over all election disputes under the RPA.

A single Judge shall ordinarily exercise such jurisdiction, although the Chief Justice can assign more

judges, if they so desire.

9. NOTA and the Right to Reject

The Law Commission currently rejects the extension of the NOTA principle to introduce a right to reject

the candidate and invalidate the election in cases where a majority of the votes have been polled in

favor of the NOTA option.

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This is premised on the fact that,

o the u de l i g p e ise of the “up e e Cou t s de isio i NOTA was the importance of

safeguarding the right to secrecy, this secrecy rationale does not pre-empt the right to reject.

o good governance, the motivating factor behind the right to reject, can be successfully achieved by

bringing about changes in political horizontal accountability, inner party democracy, and

decimalization However, the issue might be reconsidered again in the future.

10. The Right to Recall

The Law Commission is not in favour of introducing the right to recall in any form because

o it can lead to an excess of democracy

o undermines the independence of the elected candidates

o ignores minority interests

o increases instability and chaos

o increases chances of misuse and abuse

o is difficult and expensive to implement in practice, especially given that India follows the first past

the post system.

11. Totaliser for Counting of Votes

The Co issio eite ates a d e do ses the ECI s suggestio for introducing a totaliser for the

counting of votes recorded in electronic voting machines to prevent the harassment of voters in areas

where voting trends in each polling station can be determined.

Prior to the introduction of EVMs, ballot papers could be mixed under Rule 59A of the Election Rules,

although this was not permitted for EVMs. Using a totaliser would increase the secrecy of votes during

counting, thus preventing the disclosure of voting patterns and countering fears of intimidation and

victimisation.

Thus, similar to the existing Rule 59A, the Commission proposes to amend Rule 66A to empower the

ECI to decide when, and in which constituency and polling booths, to employ a totaliser, after taking

into consideration various factors and the overall context of the elections.

12. Restriction on Government Sponsored Advertisements

The Commission recommends regulating and restricting government sponsored advertisements six

months prior to the date of expiry of the House/Assembly to

o maintain the purity of elections

o prevent the use of public money for partisan interests of,inter alia

o highlighti g the go e e t s a hie e e ts

o ensure that the ruling party or candidate does not get an undue advantage over another in the

spirit of free and fair elections.

This can be achieved by inserting a new Chapter VIIB in Part V of the RPA prohibiting State/Central

government sponsored advertisements in the print or electronic media or by way of banners and

hoarders, six months prior to date of expiry of the term of the Lok Sabha/Vidhan Sabha.

Ho e e , a e eptio has ee a ed out fo ad e tise e ts highlighti g the go e e t s po e t alleviation programmes or any health related schemes

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13. Restriction on the Number of Seats from which a Candidate May Contest

The Commission recommends an amendment of section 33(7) of the RPA, which permits a candidate to

contest any election (parliamentary, assembly, biennial council, or bye-elections) from up to two

constituencies.

In view of the expenditure of time and effort; election fatigue; and the harassment caused to the

voters,section 33(7) should be amended to permit candidates to stand from only one constituency.

14. Independent Candidates

The Law Commission recommends that independent candidates be disbarred from contesting

electionsbecause the current regime allows a proliferation of independents, who are mostly

dummy/non-se ious a didates o those ho sta d ith the sa e a e o l to i ease the ote s confusion.

Thus, sections 4 and 5 of the RPA should be amended to provide for only political parties registered

with the ECI under section 11(4) to contest Lok Sabha or Vidhan Sabha elections.

15. Preparation and Use of Common Electoral Rolls

The La Co issio e do ses the ECI s suggestio s ega di g the i t odu tio of : o Common electoral rolls for Parliamentary

o Assembly and local body elections.

However, given that introducing common electoral rolls will require an amendment in the State laws

pertaining to the conduct of local body elections, the Central Government should write to the various

States in this regard. We hope that the States will consider amending their laws based on the

suggestions of the ECI and the Law Commission.

I di a Ga dhi I te atio al Ai po t to get I dia s fi st ody s a e

Ne Delhi s Indira Gandhi International (IGI Ai po t sterminal ID is all set to get I dia s fi st od scanner.United states Trade and Development Agency (USTDA)will be giving a illi ete a e s a e to

IGI Airport which will be installed in coming weeks. It will be thentested by Bureau of civil aviation security

(BCAS) which will look on health and privacy concern. These scanner is used globally including US.

SC Scraps OBC quota for Jats

The Supreme Court on 17th March 2015 struck down the center controversial decision to grant reservation

to Jats Community in jobs and educational institution terming it Negative and retrograde governance.

The Supreme Court has scrapped a year-old notification by the then-ruling Congress party-led United

Progressive Alliance (UPA) granting the status of a backward class to the Jat community.

This judgment will not have any bearing in the inclusion of the community in OBC lists notified by states.

Except Gujarat, Jats are included in the list of OBCs in all the states mentioned above.

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National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority keeps a check on prices of medicines in India

Union Government brought 52 new drugs under National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) control

to keep check on prices of essential medicines. The decision was notified by NPPA on 11 December 2014.

In an attempt to empower consumers and save them from paying more for medicines, the government is

set to make it mandatory for chemists to mention in the bill whether they are selling a price-controlled

product or not. Besides, the bill will also mention the price of the medicine as capped by the government.

The majority of the new drugs involve basic painkillers, antibiotics and medicines used for ailing skin

disorders and cancer. The price capping of the medicines was based on the average of the costs of all drugs

with over one per cent market share. With the move, the government ensures the improvement of

medicinal affordability.

Aadhar card is not mandatory: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of India has cleared all the doubts regarding the validity of Aadhar card to avail of

government subsidies. The SC has confirmed that the Aadhar card is not compulsory, and further, officials

who insist on them will be taken to task. This was headed byJustice Jasti Chelameswar. The court further

said that No pe so should e de ied a e efits o suffe fo ot ha i g the Aadhaa a ds issued U i ue Ide tifi atio Autho it of I dia.

Vividh Bharati Service in FM mode was inaugurated in Mumbai

Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore has inaugurated the Vividh

Bharati Service in FM mode of All India Radio in Mumbai on March 17, 2015. He was accompanied by

Actors Jackie Shroff and Vikram Gokhale. The Mi iste said that the All I dia ‘adio s FM “e vice could cover

the whole country in the next couple of years.

The Vividh Bharti Service continues to be available on short and medium waves. The FM Vividh Bharti

channel is available on Akashwani at 102.8 MHz. This service will serve around two crore people in and

around Mumbai.

The Minister has added that at present 40% of India is covered by the FM service and the government

aspires to take the remaining 60% in the next two-two and a half years. The officials conveyed that AIR is

all set to inaugurate the launch of Vividh Bharati service in FM mode in other metros, which

includes Delhi and Chennai. The Vividh Bharati service is already available in the FM mode in Kolkata.

Astra successfully test-fired from Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft

I dia s Ai to Air missile, ASTRA has been successfully test fired from a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft at the

Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, Odisha. Ast a is I dia s i dige ousl de eloped Beyond Visual

Range(BVR) missile. It is an all-weather, state-of-the-art missile developed by DRDO. Astra is 3.8 meter long

and it can engage and destroy enemy aircraft at supersonic speed. It is the smallest of the DRDO-

developed missiles and can be launched from different altitudes.

The last trial of Astra was conducted from a naval range on May 4, 2014, and it was also successful. It s expected that Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter aircraft and Mirage-2000 fighters of the Indian Air Force will be

armed with Astra missiles.

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Policy Portal launched by IT Minsiter Ravi Shankar Prasad

IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launched Bharatniti.in, a public policy portal that attempts to put into

pe spe ti e poli atte s usi g a a ie t et o te po a app oa h.

The launching ceremony was held on March 18 at the Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, Delhi. IT Minister Ravi

Shankar Prasad, National general Secretary of BJP Muralidhar Rao, Chairman of National Book Trust Baldev

Bhai Sharma, and Prasar Bharati Chairman A Suriyaprakash were present on the occasion.

In the official website, Bharatniti.in des i es itself as a endeavour, a platform to shape up the narrative

of contemporary India necessarily through what we believe are the intrinsic values soaked with centuries of

wisdom .

The portal comprises featured opinion pieces and comments on various topics such as economics, foreign

affairs, governance, education, religion and cultural, a d a poli that has a di e t i pa t o toda s India. Subject Experts, Leaders, scientists and senior journalists will share their expertise for the benefit of

the readers.

A ita h Ba h ha to lead I dia s fight agai st Hepatitis B

After Polio, the government has again roped Mr. Amitabh Bachchan to be the brand ambassador of its

campaign against Hepatitis B. According to latest World Health Organistion (WHO) data, hepatitis B is

responsible for 1.4 million deaths every year globally, as compared to 1.5 million deaths from AIDS and 1.2

million each from malaria and tuberculosis. The health ministry has finalized talks with Bachchan and is set

to launch the campaign in April.

ISRO is having talks with space agencies of United States, Russia, and France

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning to collaborate with other space agencies on inter-

planetary explorations. From this collaboration, India is likely to acquire the knowledge to minimize the cost

of launching complex missions and enhancing technological capabilities in spacecraft design. Currently,

ISRO is having talks with space agencies of the United States of America, Russia and France.

Mu ai s Gi gau Cho patty to e e a ed as “ a aj Bhoo i

The BJP government in Maharashtra has decided to rename the area at Girgaum Chowpatty as Swaraj

Bhoomi to honor the veteran freedom fighter Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Chief Minister Devendra

Fadnavishas accepted a proposal in this regard by the Mumbai Municipal Corporation.

Since 2014, the Lokmanya Tilak Gaurav Samiti, an Independent Organization was demanding to name the

little garden adjoining Girgau Cho patt as “ a aj Bhoo i as he as e ated the e.

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Government of India Unveils Grahak Suvidha Kendra to Lodge Complaints against Misleading

Advertisements

The Government of India launched a dedicated portal called G ahak “u idha Ke d a in Delhi, Ahmedabad,

Bangalore, Jaipur, Kolkata and Patna to help consumers register their grievances against misleading

advertisements (like particular medicine will help increasing height of a person or help bald person grow

hair). The portal was launched by Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

Grahak Suvidha Kendra

The complaints registered on the portal will be taken up by authorities in the state or the central

government and appropriate action would be taken on complaints.

Any consumer in any part of the country can register on the portal and can lodge a complaint against

misleading advertisements.

The portal will be linked to all state authorities.

The portal also enables consumers to be informed of the action taken.

This will provide a host of services to consumers under one roof.

The Kendras are being launched on a pilot basis in only 6 cities. Based on the performance of these pilot

centres, this scheme will be extended to other parts of the country.

Currently, the Central Government is running the National Consumer Helpline . The u e is 1800-11-

4000. Consumers can lodge telephonic complaints (24/7) regarding their grievances. It has also assisted 22

states to set up and run state help lines in regional languages.

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore inaugurated a Workshop on Still Photography and Videography

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore [MoS for Information and Broadcasting] inaugurated the first national

workshop on photography and videography at New Delhi. The Workshop was designed according to

pa a ete s of Go e e t of I dia s “kill I dia i itiati e . More than 25 organisations from across the

country have participated in the day-long workshop.

According to Minister, the workshop is a good attempt to sharpen the skills of government personnel

associated with photography and videography.

The day-long workshop was organised by the I&B ministry. The Workshop has been designed to cover four

sessions covering the twin themes of Photography and Videography. Renowned Cinematographer Santosh

Sivan and Rajesh Bedi, the winner of Lifetime Achievement Award in the 3rd National Photography Awards

shared their experiences at the workshop.

‘ata Tata to head I dia ‘ail ays Kaya Kalp Cou il

I dust ialist ‘ata Tata ill head Kaya Kalp , a e i o ati e ouncil of Indian Railways, which is formed

to turn around the ailing state-run rail network. The Kaya Kalp council will also have two railway union

leaders – Shiv Gopal Mishra and M Raghuvaiah. The main purpose of the council is to recommend

innovative methods and processes for the improvement, betterment and transformation of railways.

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Officials from Railway ministry said former Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai is likely to join the

Kaya Kalp council as a member.

While Presenting the Railway Budget (on Feb 26), the Railway minister Suresh Prabhakar

Prabhu announced about the i o atio ou il Ka akalp , hi h ill pla the ai ole i usi ess e-

Engineering and also in introducing a spirit of innovation in Indian Railways.

Union Cabinet approves Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana

The Union Cabinet of India gave its approval to thePradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), which

will be implemented by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship through theNational Skill

Development Corporation (NSDC). The total fund allocated for PMKVY is Rs. 1500 Crores.

International Conference on Counter Terrorism

I dia s fi st o fe e e o Counter-Terrorism was held in Jaipur, Rajasthan for three days (March 19 to

March 21). The conference was named as International Counter-Terrorism Conference 2015and it was

organised by India Foundation in association with the Sardar Patel University of Police Security and

Criminal Justice-Jodhpur. The central theme of the Conference is Integrated Approach to Counter-

Terrorism.

Health Minister launches Media Campaign to educate public on Immunization

The Union Government of India launched 15 day multi-media campaign to educate the public about the

importance of Immunization, ahead of implementing the health p og a e Mission Indradhanush i April. The ambitious mission aims to cover all children in India who are either unvaccinated or are partially

vaccinated against seven vaccine preventable diseases by 2020. The diseases are tetanus, hepatitis B,

diphtheria, whooping cough, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B, and Polio.

The campaign was launched by Union Health Minister JP Nadda in New Delhi. The mission Indra Dhanush

will also provide vaccination against Japanese Encephalitis and Haemophilus influenza Type B in selected

districts. The purposeful campaign involves advertisements, workshops, and other activities to reach out

the people and also to create awareness about the benefits of immunisation.

Andhra Pradesh to name New Capital City as Amaravathi

I dia s southe state of A dh a P adesh has ee looki g fo a e apital it afte it as di ided i t o to create the new state of Telangana last year.

According to state government officials it is likely to choose Amaravathi – a famous pilgrimage center for

Hindus and Buddhists.

Points to Remember:

The actual site earmarked for the new capital is 22 miles away Amaravathi town.

Nearly 33,000 acres of land has been procured by the state government for the new capital,

The construction work will commence by the end of June and be completed in the next three years.

A Singapore firm has been assigned the job of preparing a design for the new city.

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He said the fou datio sto e fo the e apital ould e laid o a auspi ious da . Hyderabad is the joint capital of both the states, but only for a period of 10 years

Phase I of the new capital city would comprise 31 villages (including some hamlets) in three mandals

viz., Mangalagiri, Thullur and Tadepalle mandals.

Indian Railways Launched Ru-Pay pre-paid debit card

IRCTC launched the debit card service on 24th March 2015. Railway passengers can now book their tickets,

do shopping and pay service bills using RuPay pre-paid cards.

Points to remember

The service was launched by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) in

collaboration with the Union Bank of India and the National Payment Corporation of India.

‘uPa is I dia s o a d pa e t gate a et o k like Visa a d Maste Ca d, a d p o ides a alternative system for banks to provide a debit card service.

A K Manocha said the card is a first-of-its-kind in the market as both virtual as well as physical cards

are being issued to customers in two variants.

Cards can be made available from UBI offices or through IRCTC online. Initially the service will be

available for booking tickets and later on shopping and bill payments will be added.

‘uPa s a d holde ill get f ee ‘s lakh a ide t i su a e o e age as pa t of the e efits to customers.

One can have the card with a loading limit of ‘s , ith pa tial K o You Custo e KYC detail or Rs 50,000 loading limit with full KYC.

The first five transactions per card every month done on IRCTC for purchase of train tickets will be

free and no transaction charges will be levied to customers for six months only.

For every subsequent transaction post the free usage, customer will be charged Rs 10 per

transaction.

The transaction charge would be Rs 10 per ticket for booking a ticket through the card on the IRCTC

portal.

Government of I dia lau hes T itte “a ad fo di e t o u i atio et ee Go e e t a d citizens.

The Government of India launched Twitter Samvad, a new platform to facilitate direct communication

between leaders and citizens. It is launched in association with social networking service Twitter. The

Twitter Samvad is based on the platform provided byZipDial, which is an Indian company recently acquired

T itte , aki g this the o pa s fi st I dia se i e lau hed usi g i dige ous te h olog .

Rishi Jaitly, Twitte s Ma ket Di e to fo I dia a d “outheast Asia, said: We are proud to have launched a

service here that is for the people and of the people. This can eventually give every political leader and

every government organization a mobile microphone to connect with each Indian, whether in Imphal or in

Diu or in Leh or in Pudducherry.

Ministry of Railways constituted Ajay Shankar Committee to review PPP Cell functioning

The Ministry of Railways appointed Ajay Shankar committee on 25 March 2015 to review the performance

of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) cell functioning under the Railway Board.

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Points to Remember

The Committee will recommend measures to make the cell more effective, customer friendly and

result oriented.

The Infrastructure Directorate of Railway Board will be the Nodal Directorate for functioning of the

Committee and Executive Director/Traffic (PPP) Railway Board will be the Secretary to the Committee.

During the Rail budget speech in February 2015, Union Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu had promised

to revamp the existing PPP cell in the Railways in order to make it more result oriented.

Government also had unveiled its plan to invest Rs.8.5 trillion in the railways in next 5 years.

By channelizing PPP, railways is seeking to improve its freight business and investment in its

infrastructure.

Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved the National Super Computing Mission

Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA)chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved

theNational Super Computing Mission on 25 March 2015.

Points to Remember

National Super Computing Mission aims at bringing the High Performance Computing (HPC)

facilities within the reach of the scientific community by indigenous super computing infrastructure.

The mission will be implemented at an estimated cost of 4500 crore rupees over a period of seven

years.

The mission will be jointly implemented by

o the Department of Science and Technology (DST)

o Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) through the Centre for

Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC)

o The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore .

A vast super computing grid comprising of more than 70 High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities

will be established in national academic and Research and Development (R&D) Institutions across the

county.

The grid will be connected with the computing infrastructure set up under the National Knowledge

Network (NKN).

Advanced HPC facilities will be developed using indigenous resources to make the intended super

computing grid operational.

The above two components are in tune with Digital India and Make in India initiatives of the Union

government.

The mission also intends to develop applications of national relevance by using these new facilities

Spectrum Auction : Idea emerges largest cross-spectrum bidder

The government on 26th march 2015 announced the results of the biggest auction of 2G and 3G air waves

after Supreme Court lifted its ban. On February 26, the apex court allowed the government to go ahead

with the auction of spectrum of bands 800, 900, 1800 and 2100 for all States from March 4. However, it

said the result of the auction should not be finalised without its permission.

Points To Remeber

Idea Cellula , the ou t s thi d la gest ope ato , bid a maximum of Rs.30,306.98 crore to buy

spectrum in the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2,100 MHz bands.

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Airtel bid Rs.29,130.20 crore in the same bands.

Vodafone bid Rs.29,959.74 crore in the same bands.

Mukesh Ambani-run Reliance Jio and Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communication bid bought spectrum in

800 MHz and 1800 MHz bands for Rs.10,077.53 crore and Rs.4,299.13 crore, respectively.

Tata Teleservices will shell out Rs.7,851.33 crore for radiowaves in 800 MHz and 1800 MHz.

Aircel will pay Rs.2,250 crore for spectrum in 1800 MHz band.

No a s Tele or was the only company participant not to win any spectrum.

First goods train flagged off from Lumding to Silchar by Railway Minister

The Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 27 March 2015 flagged off the first goods train from Lumding to

Silchar in Assam.

Points to Remember

Suresh prabhu, Railway Minister, flagged off first good train on 27th March 2015.

He flagged off the train through video conferencing at a function in New Delhi.

He announced a cash award for those involved in the Lumding-Silchar gauge conversion project which

will give result to better rail connectivity in North Eastern states.

The gauge conversion of 210 kilometer Lumding-Silchar section in Assam connects Barak valley of

Assam with the rest of the country.

the gauge was completed at a cost of 3500 crore rupees.

The broad gauge line comrpises of 21 tunnels (with the longest of 3.23 kilometer length), 79 major

bridges and 340 minor bridges, 28 stations and four halt stations.

Lumding is a town and a municipal board in Nagaon district in Assam.

Silchar is the headquarters of Cachar district of Assam and lies 343 kilometres south east of Guwahati.

Hi a hal P adesh asse ly lau hes I dia s fi st E-Vidhan Mobile apps

Himachal Pradesh Government launched part one of E-Vidhan Mobile apps, that will enable all 68

members of state assembly to get the entire House business on their smartphones and tablets, laid in the

House 45 minutes before the beginning of the daily proceedings. With this Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha

became the first state assembly in the country to launch this app to facilitate smart-working.

India will host the seventh Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) in 2016

The Asian ministerial conference is set to endorse a regional implementation plan of the new post-2015

framework for disaster risk reduction. This will form a key element of the initial global effort to implement

the new framework.

Points to Remember

Asian Ministerial Conference was announced on 17 March 2015.

Asian Ministerial Conference was announced by Home Minister of India Rajnath at the Third UN World

Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held in Sendai, Japan.

This will be the first AMCDRR to be hosted by India in the post-2015 framework for Disaster Risk

Reduction, though India had hosted the Second AMCDRR in 2007.

The conference in 2016 will be held in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk

Reduction (UNISDR).

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The Sixth Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction was held in Thailand from 23 June to

26 June 2014.

India becomes the Third Largest Steel Producer in the World

India has become the third-largest steel producer in the world by overtaking United States (US) in first two

months of year 2015.

According to the data Reveled by world steel association (WSA), India has produced 14.56 million tonnes of

steel in the first two months of ea a d eat the U ited “tates to e o e the o ld s thi d-largest

producing country.

Two interceptor boats, FPV commissioned into Indian Coast Guard s Easte Fleet

Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) named Anagh and Two Interceptor Boats named C-430 and C-417 were

o issio ed i to I dia Coast Gua d s Easte Fleet. The e e o issio ed Lieute a t Ge e al Ajay Kumar Singh (retd), Lt Governor of Puducherry in a traditional ceremony with full military honours in

Che ai. These o issio ed ships ill e ha e Coast Gua d s apa ilit i fu the i g its a date of maritime safety and security, environmental protection. It will also enhance the coastal security capability

and add more teeth to its existing fleet on the Eastern Sea Board.

Delhi High Court bars Glenmark from making anti-diabetes drugs

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has been barred by the Delhi High Court (HC) from making, marketing or selling

its anti-diabetes medicines on the ground that it had prima facie infringed the patent of US drug giant

Merck Sharp and Dohme (MSD).

Gle a k s medicines, Zita and Zita-Met, cost pe e t less tha M“D s Ja u ia a d Ja u et, which is

due to the customs duty paid by the US firm, the court said adding no allegation has been made that MSD

sells its drugs at a relatively high price that hinders access to the drug.

A Bench of Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and Najmi Waziri, while granting an interim injunction in favour of

MSD, also said that the price difference between the drugs of the two companies is not so startling as to

compel the court to infer that allowing Glenmark to sell the drug at depressed prices would result in

increased access.

Andhra Pradesh, University of Singapore to ink MoU to promote ease of doing business

Andhra Pradesh government, National University of Singapore (NUS) and Confederation of Indian Industry

(CII) have signed MoU to work on Ease of Doing Business in the state. It was signed for cooperation in

elatio to Maste pla o Ease of Doi g Busi ess i A dh a P adesh MEDBAP : Visio ′. The tripartite

MoU will be effective from April 1, 2015 and valid for three years i.e. upto March 31, 2018

BJP e o es the o ld s la gest politi al pa ty i the world

The ruling BJP has become the largest political party in the world in the past five months taking its

membership to 8.80 crore.

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Current Affairs Capsule: March 2015

Points to Remember

The Communist Party of China was until now considered the largest party with about 8.60 crore members.

The party hit the 8.80 crore mark on 29th March 2015. BJP expects its membership to cross 10 crore by the

end of the march.

Party president Amit Shah will announce the final figure at the national executive to be held in Bangalore

on 3-4 April 2015. Enrollment through missed calls is a huge improvement. The membership drive will

officially come to an end on March 31 but there are chances that it may be extended in a few states like

Maharashtra.

BANKING AND FINANCE

IMF aises I dia s g o th fo e ast to 7.2% for current fiscal

India has recovered its economy as IMF (International Monetary Fund) has termed India a ‘Bright spot’ on

the global economic landscape. IMF on 11th March 2015 has raised its forecast to 7.2% for current Fiscal.

The new forecasts have taken into account a revised methodology adopted by India earlier this year for

al ulati g the GDP figu es, a out hi h IMF said that the ou t has i p o ed the a it easu es e o o i output . Chief Ad ise A i d “u a a ia a d ‘BI Go e o ‘aghuram Rajan have termed new

Methodolog Puzzli g . Both Arvind Subramanian and RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan have been in IMF in the past. Last year IMF

had forecasted a growth rate of 5.6% percent for current fiscal and 6.4% for the next. IMF said that India

has become the fastest growing economy in the big emerging market and the growth rate would further

accelerate to 7.5%.

IAG to raise stake in Indian joint venture with SBI to 49%

Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG) has decided to raise its stake in SBI General Insurance, a joint venture

with the State Bank of India, from 26% to 49%. The IAG has made this decision within few days of

Parliament clearing the Insurance Bill. SBI General, a 74:26 joint venture between SBI and IAG of Australia,

began its operation in 2010. Now the SBI will dilute its stake in SBI General Insurance from 76 percent to 51

percent.

Max Bupa, a health insurer, is a joint venture between Max India (with 74% stake) and U.K.-based global

healthcare group Bupa (26%). In January, Bupa Insurance had said that it would raise stake to 49 per cent

from the current 26 per cent. This company also commenced its operations in 2010.

Some other Indian banks that have insurance joint ventures with foreign partners may also look at diluting

stake in the future, but not immediately.

‘elia e I dust ies Li ited is I dia s la gest o pa y i te s of assets

‘elia e I dust ies Li ited has e o e the I dia s la gest o pa i te s of asset ith the asset o th Rs. 3.68 Lakh Crore. This offer is given by corporate Affairs Minister, Arun Jaitely by a written reply to Rajya

sabha. The list is based on data from 4,15,886 companies which had filed their balance sheets for the year

2013-14 till November 30, 2014.

The total alue of all the assets of the 4,15,886 companies amounts to Rs.117.08 lakh crore and the share

of top te o pa ies i the total alue of assets as . pe e t o Ma h , , M Jaitle said. 1. Reliance Industries Limited – Rs. 3.68 Lakh Crore

2. Indian Oil Corp – Rs. 2.52 lakh crore

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3. Housing Development Finance Corp – Rs. 2.25 lakh crore

4. Power Finance Corp – Rs 1.94 lakh crore

5. National Thermal Power Corporation – Rs. 1.80 lakh crore

6. Rural Electrification Corp – Rs. 1.53 lakh crore

7. Power Grid Corp – Rs. 1.40 lakh crore

8. Life Insurance Corporation Housing Finance – Rs. 95,777 crore

9. Steel Authority of India – Rs. 91,962 crore

10. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limted – Rs. 89,333 crore

In the list of top 10 Corporate in terms of assets, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Housing

Development Finance Corp (HDFC) are the only two firms from the private sector.

Reserve Bank of India has Eased the norms for Home Loans

In a striking move, the Reserve Bank of India has eased the norms for home loans for up to 10 lakh

rupees by authorizing the banks to include stamp duty, registration, and other documentation charges to

the cost of a unit. Usually these charges from around 15 per cent of the cost of the house and place a huge

burden on people. Right now, the banks do not include stamp duty, registration and other documentation

charges in the cost of housing property.

The Reserve Bank India has also said that in case government projects, banks may pay out the loans as per

the payment stages prescribed by authorities. The RBI has also notified that the payments sought from

house buyers are not linked to the stages of construction.

Reserve Bank of India to put One Rupee note in Circulation

After a long gap of 20 years, one rupee notes are all set to come back into circulation. The Reserve Bank of

India said the notes to be issued would be legal tender as provided in The Coinage Act 2011. The official

statement – The ‘BI ill soo put i i ulatio u e otes i o e upee de o i atio . The otes ill e p i ted the Go e e t of I dia .

Details

Dimensions – 9.7 by 6.3 cm

Made of – 100 per cent cotton rag content.

Weight – 90 grams per sq meter

Thickness of 110 microns.

Bear Ashoka Pillar symbol as Watermark

Carry a hidden numeral in the center

Hidden word Bharat (in Hindi) will be on the right hand side of the note.

Colour – Pink Green

Note carries the signature of Finance Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi.

The currency note will contain words Bharat Sarkar and Government of India.

Also carries the rupee symbol of 2015 with Sataymev Jayate words printed on it.

The surrounding design will consist of the picture of Sagar Samart.

The printing of one rupee note was discontinued in November 1994. Printing Two Rupee and Five Rupee

notes were stopped in 1995. Only coins have been issued for this denominations and older notes are still in

circulation.

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RBI barred Macau and Hong Kong citizens from buying property in India

The Reserve Bank of India has barred Macau and Hong Kong, the two special administrative regions of

China, from acquiring or transferring immovable properties in India.

The countries which are previously barred from acquiring or transferring immovable properties in India

without permission from the RBI under the Foreign Exchange Management (Acquisition and Transfer of

immovable property in India) Regulations, 2000 are

Pakistan

Bangladesh

Sri Lanka

Afghanistan

China

Iran

Nepal

Bhutan

HDFC Bank launched mobile app Chillr to instantly transfer money to any person in India

HDFC Bank announced the launch of Chillr, a mobile app which allows users to instantly transfer money to

any contact in their phone book. Chillr is a first of its kind application that is linked directly to the

usto e s a k a ou t, so the e is o eed to o a out filli g up a p epaid allet

Life Insurance Corporation of India to invest Rs.1.5 Lakh Crore in Railways

I dia s iggest i su e , the Life Insurance Corporation has committed to invest Rs 1.5 lakh crore in Indian

railways over the next five years. The MoU was signed between Financial Commissioner (Railways)

Rajalakshmi Ravikumar and LIC Chairman SK Roy and it was witnessed by Union Finance Minister Arun

Jaitley and the Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu.

LIC will invest in bonds issued by various railway entities such as Indian Railways Finance Corporation.

There will be a 5 year moratorium in interest and loan repayment. The rate will be linked to 10-year

benchmark plus 10 basis points. The bonds will have a tenor of 30 years and will be disbursed over the next

five years.

Insurance companies in India are mandated to invest the total premium collected in a fiscal in different

sectors. i.e.,

50% – Government-approved securities

35% – Equities and other instruments

15% – Infrastructure.

Swachh Bharat may add 1% extra service tax to 5-star Bills

The government has identified five high e d se i es ,bills in four and five star hotels for one which will

attract additional service tax to fund PM Modi s “ a hh Bha at Ca paig , leaving a big dent in your

pocket. The government is expected to notify an additional 1% levy asagainst enabling provision of levying

upto 2% cess over Service tax.

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The government aims to raise 14,000 crores annually for the Swachh Bharat kosh, which include 1% cess

on the five services. Levy of 200 tonn on coal, Details on other four services are not available.

The move to impose additional service tax is expected to fetch 2000 crore a year while coal is expected to

generate around 6000 crore.

Reserve Bank of India cuts Repo Rate by 25 Basis Points

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points, from 7.75 percent to 7.5

percent. The reverse repo rate moved down to 6.5 percent consequently. The cash-reserve ratio is kept

unchanged at 4 percent. It is the II change in repo rate since January 2015.

The reasons behind this cut, according to RBI governor Raghuram Rajan include better Fiscal Consolidation

and less combined fiscal deficit due to transfer of more funds to states from the center.

Bank shares are in a high demand after the announcement of new repo rate.

Current Reserve Rates

Bank rate 8.5%

CRR 4%

SLR 21.5%

Repo rate 7.5%

Reverse repo rate 6.5%

Marginal Standing

facility rate

8.5%

Na e d a Modi Fo alizes I dia s I flatio Ta get ith ‘ese e Ba k of I dia

The Government of India and the Reserve Bank of India have signed a monetary policy agreement that will

fix a target for consumer price inflation of 4% for the 2016/17 fiscal year. As per the agreement, the RBI

will aim to bring retail inflation below 6 percent by January 2016. This is the biggest change in the

Monetary Policy of India, since the 1991 Financial Reforms.

RBI signs $400 million currency swap pact with Sri Lanka

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has signed a US $400 million currency swap agreement with the Central

Bank of Sri Lanka. The currency swap agreement will allow central banks of both nations to make

withdrawals of US Dollar or Euro in multiple tranches up to a maximum of USD 400 million or its

equivalent. The agreement will be valid for a period of three years and further economic co-operation

between the two countries. It will also bring in more financial stability in the region.

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Union Government approves 10 FDI proposals worth Rs.2857.83 crore

Union Government has approved 10 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals worth 2857.83 crore

rupees. These FDI proposals were approved by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

Important Proposals

Ai Wo ks I dia E gi ee i g P i ate Li ited s proposal to increase foreign equity investment at Rs

40 crore.

Ost o E e g s p oposal to i est ‘s. , o e o e e t fou -five years in wind energy assets in

India via downstream investment.

IPCA La o ato ies p oposal fo FII i est e t up to per cent i.e. Rs 900 crore.

Reckitt Benckiser (India) proposal to acquire 24.88 per cent stake in Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare

India from its foreign investor. This deal will result in a foreign fund outflow of Rs 750 crore.

“ ge e I te atio al s p oposal to inject 380 crore rupees through 10 per cent foreign equity

participation into the company.

Ambuja Cements proposal for acquisition of 24 per cent shares in its holding company Holcim

(India) for a share swap worth Rs 3,500 crore has been referred to the Cabinet Committee on

Economic Affairs (CCEA).

SEBI sets norms to govern international financial centres

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) approved guidelines to govern international financial

services centres (IFSC). These guidelines were approved by SEBI board meeting on 22 March 2015. The

news guidelines relax the norms for Stock exchanges and clearing corporations to set up IFSC. It also

relaxes norms and allows existing exchanges to set up their subsidiaries in the IFSC.

GOI approves 17 Mega Food Parks for food processing across the country

Government of India has approved 17 mega food parks for food processing across the country. It was

announced by Union Cabinet Minister of Food Processing Harsimrat Kaur Badal. Out of these 17 food

parks, 7 parks have been allotted to state agencies whereas 10 to private players in 11 states. The Mega

Food Park scheme aims at facilitating the establishment of a strong food processing industry in the

country. It will be backed by an efficient supply chain, which includes collection centres, central processing

center (CPC) and cold chain infrastructure.

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IMPORTANT APPOINTMENTS

Mufti Mohammed Sayeed sworn in as the CM of Jammu and Kashmir

Mufti Mohammed Sayeed of People s De o ati Party (PDP) sworn in as the Chief Minister of Jammu

and Kashmir for the second time. The PDP has collaborated with Bharatiya Janata Party to form a new

oalitio go e e t a d e ded the da s of Go e o s ule i the state.

Nirmal Singh of BJP, sworn in as the new Deputy Chief Minister of the state. Totally thirteen MLAs

including Sayeed from the PDP and Twelve MLAs from BJP and Peoples Conference combine were sworn-in

as ministers. The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, L K Advani, Murli

Manohar Joshi, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Party Secretary Amit Shah and General

Secretary Ram Madhav.

Jagmohan Dalmiya set to come back as BCCI President

Former International Cricket Council (ICC)President Jagmohan Dalmiya is all set to come back as

the Boa d fo Co t ol fo C i ket i I dia s BCCI p eside t. Dalmiya will be replacing N Srinivasan, in the

oa d s a ual ge e al eeti g. The path for Dalmiya was cleared after another former president Sharad Pawar failed to get a proposer

from East zone.

Arun Singh: New Indian Ambassador to United States of America

A u “i gh, I dia s A assado to F a e, has ee a ed as the I dia A assado to U ited “tates. He ill epla e Jaisha ka “u ah a a , I dia s Fo eign Secretary. Indian Government has already sent an

agreement to the Government of United States, regarding Singh as its next Ambassador and was awaiting a

response from them. However, according to the reports, the new shuffling will be only done after Modi s proposed visit to Paris in April.

Baldev Sharma Appointed as the Chairman of National Book Trust

Human Resource and Development Minister Smriti Irani has appointed the former editor of Panchajanya,

Baldev Sharma as the new chairman of National Book Trust. Panchajanya is one of the Rashtriya

“ a a se ak “a gh s ‘““ pu li atio s. The post as p e iousl held “ethu adha a , ho has a e long literary career of nearly five decades. He authored more than 15 novels and 20 collections of short

stories.

Obama re-nominates Sunil Sabharwal as Alternate Executive Director of IMF

United States President Barack Obama has re-nominated Indian-American Investor Sunil Sabharwal as

Alternate Executive Director at theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF). He was previously nominated in

April 2014 to the same position. Mr Sabharwal has been an independent investor in the payments sector

since 2006.

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RM Vishaka appointed as MD & CEO of IndiaFirst Life Insurance

R M Vishakha has been appointed as theManaging Director and Chief Executive Officer of IndiaFirst Life

Insurance. She is the first woman to lead the company. She has more than 25 years of experience in the

financial services industry including that of working with life and non-life insurers. Previously Vishakha held

the post of Chief Business Officer at IndiaFirst Life. Vishaka has replaced Dr. P. Nandagopal as MD & CEO.

Kewal K Sharma assumed charge as Chief Secretary of Delhi

Home Minister Rajnath Singh approved the appointment of Kewal K Sharma as the Chief Secretary of

Delhi. Shri Kewal Sharma, a 1983 batch Senior IAS officer, was appointed as the Chief secretary of Delhi

on 3rd March 2015. Sharma assumed charge as Chief Secretary on 9th March 2015.

Previously, he had been serving as the Chief Secretary of Goa. Sharma had rendered service in many parts

of the country, which includes Delhi, Goa, Lakshadweep, Arunachal Pradesh, and Chandigarh. He was

posted in Delhi as the principal secretary of PWD from 2011 to 2014 and has also been the Commissioner

(housing), DDA and the project Director of Dwarka sub-city.

Saif Ali Khan to promote an India-centric tourist campaign for Britain

The atio al tou is age of E gla d, Visit Britain sig ed Boll ood a to a d P odu e Saif Ali

Khan to promote an India-centric British campaign. The actor was signed for the Bolly ood Ca paig o 10th March 2015. The promotional campaign is likely to include locations like London, Oxford,

Cardiff which are popular with Indian tourists.

Mary Kom Appointed as Ambassador for North East

The Union Government has decided to appoint Olympic medallist boxer MC Mary Kom as thebrand

ambassador for north-east India to promote the region all over India and also in other countries. The

official announcement has been made by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Development of North

East Region (DoNER) Jitendra Singh while addressing the 10th North East Business Summit in New Delhi.

Central Government appointed Nine Executive Directors in Public Sector Banks

The Union Government of India has appointed a total of nine Executive Directors in Public Sector Banks on

11th march 2015. The Appointments Committee has approved the appointments of these Executive

Directors. Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan headed a selection panel for these

appointments.

LIST OF APPOINTMENTS

1. Charan Singh – UCO Bank

2. K Venkata Rama Moorthy – Bank of Baroda

3. RP Marathe – Bank of India

4. Harideesh Kumar B – Canara Bank

5. NK Sahoo – Allahabad Bank

6. Pawan Kumar Bajaj – Indian Overseas Bank

7. Ravi Shankar Pandey – Syndicate Bank

8. Kishore Piraji Kharat – Union Bank of India

9. RC Lodha – Central Bank of India

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Ashu Suyash Appointed as the new MD & CEO of CRISIL

Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited(CRisiL) has appointed Ashu Suyash, a mutual fund

i dust ete a , as it s e Ma agi g Di e to a d Chief E e uti g Offi e . “he ill e epla i gRoopa

Kudva from 1st of June. At present Suyash is the CEO of Larsen & Toubro Investment Management. She

had also worked with the Citigroup. Suyash has more than 26 years experience in the Indian financial

services industry.

Abid Ali Neemuchwala appointed as the Group President and Chief Operating Officer of Wipro

Wipro has appointed a Chief Operating Officer (COO), former TCS BPO head Abid Ali Neelmuchwala. Abid

Ali Neelmuchwala, 48, will be group president and COO with effect from April 1, 2015. As Wipro COO

Neemuchwala will head most service lines, he will head business operations, geographies comprising

continental Europe, Africa and Latinm America, and Startegic Engagements.

Ruth Porat appointed as Chief Financial Officer of Google Inc

Google Inc appointed Ruth Porat as it s e Chief Financial Officer (CFO). She replaced Patrick

Pichette who announced his retirement on 10 March 2015. She will report to Google CEO and Co-Founder

Larry Page. Currently Ruth Porat is working as Chief Financial Officer at Morgan Stanley, an American

multinational financial services corporation.

Google s sha es ose . % afte Po at s appoi t e t. It is also eleased that Google will be paying more

than $70 million a year, putting her among the highest-paid CFOs in the World.

Vikas Swarup to succeed Syed Akbaruddin as MEA spokesman

Senior diplomat Vikas Swarup has been appointed as Spokesperson in the External Affairs Ministry.

Swarup was a 1986 IFS-batch officer currently holding the charge of Joint Secretary (United Nations-

Political) in the External Affairs Ministry. Swarup will succeed Syed Akbaruddin, who has been promoted as

Additional Secretary in the External Affairs Ministry.

It should be noted that Vikas Swarup is the author of world-wide acclaimed novel Q & A which was made

i to “lu dog Millio ai e . The o el Q & A has ee t a slated i to la guages. “warup is expected

to take over the position from April 18th, after PM Modi Ji returns from his nine-day trip to Europe and

Canada beginning April 9th.

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INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Mi osoft s Paul Alle Dis o e ed Japa s WW II Wa “hip Musashi

US multi-billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allenhas discovered the famous War ship of World War

II – Japa s Musashi a d it s siste ship Yamato in Sibuyan Sea, a seabed of Philippines. Musashi was sunk

by American forces during the war, 70 years ago. It is one of the largest battleships in history.

Musashi was designed to take on multiple enemy ships simultaneously. It was launched in November 1940.

Musashi weighed 73,000 tonnes fully laden and carried a crew of 2,500. It could reach speeds of up to 27

knots.

The thi g hi h eated fea i e e ies a out Musashi as it s a a e t, hi h i luded the largest-

calibre guns ever fitted to a warship. A 18.1 inch cannon was mounted in three triple turrets, each capable

of firing up to two 1,460 kg armour-piercing shells a minute over a range of 26 miles.

Forbes Billionaire list 2015

The Forbes world Billionaire list is the A ual a ki g of o ld s Wealthiest people, compiled and

published by an American Magazine called Forbes every year inMarch since 1987. The Microsoft owner, Bill

gates is the richest person, a title which he has been holding for 16 of the past 21 years.

In the 29th annual List of global billionaires, a record 1,826 billionaires were named with an aggregated net

worth of $7.05 trillion which is $6.4 trillion more than last year.

Below are the Top 5 Wealthiest persons ranked by Forbes

S.No. Name Country Net worth Age Source

1. Bill Gates U.S. $ 79.2 B 59 Microsoft

2. Carlos Slim Helu Mexico $77.1 B 75 telecom

3. Warren Buffett U.S. $72.7 B 84 Berkshire Hathaway

4. Amancio Ortega Spain $64.5 B 78 Zara

5. Larry Ellison U.S. $ 54.3 B 70 Orcale

Boko Haram pledges Allegiance to Islamic State

Nige ia s te o g oup Boko Haram has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in a new audio message. In

the recording, a man claiming to be Abubakar Shekau, leader of Boko Haram that has killed thousands,

vowed to follow Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

“hekau said We a ou e ou allegia e to the Caliph of the Musli s … a d ill hea a d obey in times of

difficulty and prosperity, in hardship and ease, and to endure being discriminated against, and not to

dispute about rule with those in power, except in case of evident infidelity regarding that which there is a

proof from Allah. We call on Muslims everywhere to pledge allegiance to the caliph .

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Wo ld s Fi st “ola Po e ed Ai aft “ola I pulse To Visit I dia

Switzerland based Solar Impulse, Wo ld s fi st da a d ight sola po e ed odied pla e ill ake a stop on Ahmedabad on Tuesday, 10th March 2015. The plane, powered only by the sun, is attempting to be the

first such aircraft to fly around the world. On 9th March 2015, it completed a 13-hour flight from Abu

Dhabi.

After landing in Ahmedabad, The solar powered Aircraft founders and Pilots Andre Borschberg and Betrand

Piccard are likely to stay in city for 2 days and thereafter will leave for Varanasi.

India and Seychelles signed Four pacts to boost security cooperation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a Three-nation tour, held talks with the President of

Seychelles James Alix Michel. Modi is the first Prime Minister to visit Seychelles in the last 34 years. Late

premier Indira Gandhi had visited Seychelles in 1981. Foreign SecretarySubrahmanyam Jaishankar and

National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval were part of the Indian delegates, who take part in discussion

President James Alix Michel.

The leaders have witnessed the signing of four agreements between India and Seychelles

1. Cooperation in hydrography

2. Cooperation in renewable energy

3. Cooperation in infrastructure development

4. Cooperation in sale of navigation charts and electronic navigational charts

United States declares Venezuela a National Security Threat

The United States of America has declared Venezuela (officially called the Bolivarian Republic of

Venezuela) a national security threat. The US has ordered sanctions against seven officials from the oil-rich

country in the worst bilateral diplomatic dispute since socialistPresident Nicolas Maduro took office in

2013. US President Barack Obama signed and issued the executive order, which senior administration

offi ials said did ot ta get Ve ezuela s e e g se to o oade e o o .

Japan to host United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction Meeting

‘D WO‘LD CONFERENCE ON DISASTER RISK REDUCTION (WCDRR) HAS BEEN PROPOSED TO TAKE PLACE

IN SENDAI, JAPAN FROM 14- 8 MA‘CH 5

ABOUT THE THIRD UN WORLD CONFERENCE

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution will hold a meeting on disaster risk reduction this

weekend (14-18 March), with policymakers gathering in Japan. The conference will open in the

northeastern city of Sendai on Saturday (14th March 2015).

Ban, who will attend the gathering, has highlighted the rise in extreme weather as global warming has

a ele ated o e the past ea s. Disaster risk reduction is a front-line defense against climate change

and it is essential for sustainable development, he said i Ne Yo k on Wednesday.

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India and Mauritius signed Five agreements

Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, who is on Three-Nations tour, reached Mauritius and signed five

agreements with the Prime Minister of Mauritius Anerood Jugnauth atPort Louis on 12th March

2015. India also offered $500 million concessional Line of Credit to Mauritius for key infrastructure

projects.

The Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement between India and Mauritius is being revised amid concerns

that Mauritius is being used for round-tripping of funds into India. Mauritius has been one of the biggest

sources ofForeign Direct Investment into India.

The agreements include,

MoU between India and Mauritius in the field of Ocean Economy.

Programme for Cultural Cooperation between India and Mauritius for the year 2015-18.

Protocol between the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture of

Republic of India and the Ministry of Agro-Industry and Food Security of Mauritius for

the importation of fresh mangoes from India.

MoU for the Improvement in Sea and Air Transportation Facilities at Agalega Island of Mauritius.

MoU on Cooperation in the field of Traditional System of Medicine and Homeopathy.

UAE to host AFC Asian Cup 2019

The United Arab Emirates won the bid on an unanimous vote to host AFC Asian Cup 2019 on 9th March

2015. The UAE o the ight u a i ousl , AFC chief Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa Quoted.

Some key points to remember:

The UAE bid proposed to organise the tournament in three cities —

o Abu Dhabi,

o Dubai

o Al-Ain all of which have stadiums that could host the games.

A new stadium in Dubai with a capacity for 25,000 fans is also promised to be built for the

tournament.

The AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Asian Cup 2019 will be the 17th edition of the games.

It is the second time that UAE will hold the tournament since 1996.

For the first time tournament will have the 24 teams as against the 16 team format that had been

used since 2004.

The announcement was made by the AFC Executive Committee in a meeting at Manama, Bahrain.

Four Important Pacts signed between India and Sri Lanka

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on Three-Nations tour reached Sri Lanka on 13th of March

2015. He was received by Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Foreign Minister Mangala

Samaraweeraand Port Minister Arjuna Ranatunga at Colombo Airport. Sri Lankan President Maithripala

Sirisenawelcomed Narendra Modi at the P eside t s “e eta iat. Na e d a Modi s isit to the isla d country is the first stand alone bilateral visit by an Indian PM since 1987.

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In this historical meeting, four pacts are signed between India and Sri Lanka on

Visa.

Customs.

Youth Development.

Building Rabindranath Tagore memorial in Sri Lanka.

PM Na e d a Modi said We believe that early and full implementation of the 13th Amendment and going

beyond it would contribute to this process .

Defence Pact Signed between Japan and France

Japan and France signed an important defence pactregarding the transfer of military equipment and

technology. In last two years Japan had signed similar deals with Britain and Australia. The agreement with

France encourages mutual defence cooperation by confirming that transferred technology and equipment

will not be provided to a third country without the permission of the country of origin.

The two countries have agreed to work toward concluding an acquisition and cross-servicing agreement,

which provides a framework for logistic cooperation between armed forces. Japan already has signed such

agreement with the United States and Australia.

Japan is pushing to reform the United Nations Security Council as a member of the Group of Four nations

along with Germany, Brazil and India.

Maldi es s Fo e P eside t Moha ed Nasheed se te ed to yea s of i p iso e t

Maldi es Fo e P eside t Mr Mohamed Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison after being found

guilty of terrorism. Nasheed ordered the arrest of a Chief judge when he was in power in 2012. He was

Maldi es first democratically elected leader and he ended the autocratic 30- ea ule of Ya ee s half-brother,Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Countries including India and the United States have expressed concern

a out Nasheed s t eat e t a d t ial.

The verdict is likely to increase the political instability in the world famous luxury tourist destination and

appears likely to provoke street violence. Maldives is a string of more than 1,100 coral islands popular as a

holiday paradise.

Modi flagged off the first train from Thalaimannar to Madhu Road in North Sri Lanka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has flagged off a train service from Thalaimannar to Madhu

Road in Northern Sri Lanka. Modi was accompanied by the Sri Lankan President Maithiripala Sirisena. Modi

also unveiled a plaque inaugurating Talaimannar 1650 Pier Railway station.

The Madhu Road to Talaimannar track is 63-km long and it is the last segment of the 265-km Northern

Railway Line Reconstruction Project, which is being executed by Indian Railways Construction Company

Ltd(IRCON).

This train service has fulfilled the long-cherished dream lakhs of Tamil people, who wanted direct rail

connectivity to Colombo.

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Mahata a Ga dhi s statue has ee u eiled i Lo do s Pa lia e t “ ua e

A statue has been unveiled of Mahatma Gandhi i Lo do s Pa lia e t “ ua e o th Ma h . The Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust raised more than £1m for the o k hi h as des i ed as a ag ifi e t t i ute . The statue as u eiled I dia fi a e i iste , “h i A u Jaitel alo g ith “h i A ita h Ba ha , i a e e o hi h also i ol ed Ga dhi s g a dso , Gopalk ish a Ga dhi.

Mahatama Gandhi ji was known for his use of non-violent protest and undertook various hunger strikes to

p otest agai st the opp essio of I dia s poo est lasses.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: This statue is a ag ifi e t t i ute to o e of the ost to e i g figures in the history of world politics and by putting Mahatma Gandhi in this famous square we are giving

hi a ete al ho e i ou ou t y.

Pakistan Test fired its Armed Drone and Laser Guided Missile

Pakistan successfully test fired its first indigenous all-weather armed drone Burraq and a laser guided

missileBarq. The test fire was witnessed by the Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif. The drone Burraq

has the ability to fly in all kinds of weather conditions and strike its targets with pinpoint accuracy.

Pakistan i du ted t o u a ed ae ial ehi les UAVs i the e e t ea s. The a e Bu a a d “hahpa . The i lusio of these t o ehi les i the Pakista A a d Ai Fo e is seen as a historic

event. Burraq and Shahpar were the first surveillance drones, which are indigenously developed.

Chi a has also epo tedl offe ed it s armed drone CH-3 to Pakistan. The CH-3 is very advancd and it is

capable of carrying two laser-guided missiles or bombs.

Facebook acquires shopping search engine TheFind.com

Facebook has acquired the shopping search engine TheFind. The acquisition aims to improve Facebook ads

experience and lift its digital advertising business. Soon the company will be merging with facebook in

order to make ads more better and relevant for consumer.

With the acquisition of TheFind, Facebook will be able to add additional shopping tools to its service. The

terms of the deal were not disclosed and its unclear how Facebook will ulti ately i teg ate TheFi d s technology into its system.

It s likel that the so ial et o k ill le e age TheFi d s e o e datio s ste to ette ta get ads o the site.

India and Kyrgyzstan sign a pact on textile sector cooperation

The Union Government of India and the Central Asian Republic of Kyrgyzstan have signed a pact on

cooperation in the textiles sector to strengthen bilateral cooperation in three fields:

Textiles and clothing

Silk and Sericulture

Fashion

The MoU was witnessed by I dia s Textiles MinisterSantosh Kumar Gangwar a d the isiti g K g zsta s Minister of Energy and Industry Kubanychbek Turdubaevin New Delhi.

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China becomes the Third Largest Exporter of Arms in the World

The “to khol I te atio al Pea e ‘esea h I stitute s report showed that Chi a s share of the global

arms market rose by 143 per cent from 2010 to 2014, taking its total share to five per cent.

The o ld s t o la gest e po te s: the US accounts for 31 per cent of the share of global exports, while

Russia holds 2 pe e t. Chi a s pe e t of the a ket e ai s s all o pa ed to the o i ed percent of exports from the US and Russia

Israel Elections : Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Wins

Is ael s P i e Mi iste Benjamin Netanyahu wins the election by defeating his main rival, Isaac Herzog, and

assured himself a fourth term. Neta ahu s Likud Partyhad won 30 seats to the )io ist U io s 24.

In his campaign, Netanyahu mainly focused issues related to security. His opponents focosed on issues

such as high cost of living and also accused the Netanyahu fo ei g out of tou h ith pu li . Neta ahu s return to power for a fourth term may spells trouble for Middle-East peace efforts and could further

escalate tensions with the United States.

Netanyahu opposes the creation of a Palestinian state, which is a key policy goal of the White House and

the international community. He also committed to expand the border in Jewish areas of east Jerusalem,

which is claimed by the Palestinians as their capital.

India ranks 37/102 in Government Transparency Index

According to Wo ld Justi e P oje t s WJP epo t, India has been ranked 37 out of 102

countries in Government Transparency Index. The index easu es the go e e t s ope ess ased o the ge e al pu li s e pe ie es a d i sights. I dia s overall score is 0.57/1 and it is followed by Brazil,

which is at the 38th place.

The WJP Open government index analyze four categories to measure government openness. They

categories and the score of India are,

Publicized laws and government data – 0.54

Right to information – 0.50

Civic participation – 0.65

Complaint mechanisms – 0.58

The top three rankers in WJP Open Government Index 2015 are

Sweden – First

New Zealand – Second

Norway – Third

The bottom three are

Myanmar – 100th Rank

Uzbekistan – 101st Rank

Zimbabwe – 102nd Rank

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India and Qatar signed six pacts to boost trade and investment

India and energy-rich Qatar signed six important agreements.

Key Highlights:

One MoU will provide one on transfer of sentenced prisoners as the two countries sought to inject a

fresh momentum in their bilateral ties.

The other five MoUs will provide for cooperation in areas like information and communication

technology, atmospheric and ocean sciences and media.

The MoU in the field of information and communication technology would provide

enhanced business opportunities for Indian IT industry in Qatar.

Another MoU was signed between Ministry of Earth Sciences and Qatar Meteorological

Department for cooperation in the field of atmospheric and ocean sciences.

The pacts were signed after Emir of Qatar Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani held deep discussion with

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during which both the leaders discussed a lot of issues including

enhancing cooperation in energy sector and boosting trade and investment.

According to official figure, 96 Indians are currently languishing in various jails in Qatar which is

home to around 600,000 Indians.

A separate MoU as i ked et ee Diplo ati I stitute of Qata s Fo eig Mi ist a d Fo eig Service Institute of External Affairs Ministry to facilitate exchange of faculty members and experts.

The two sides also finalised a pact to encourage regular exchange of radio and TV programmes and

content between Prasar Bharati and Qatar Media Cooperation.

Katsushi Inoue appointed as President & CEO of Honda Cars India Ltd

Katsushi Inoue was appointed as President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Honda Cars India Ltd (HCIL).

He will assume charge on 1 April 2015 and succeed Hironori Kanayama who is due to retire. Inoue was

associated with Honda Motor Co for past 29 years. In his last assignment he was serving as General

Manager in Marketing Planning office in Japan headquarters.

Stephen Hawking joins the Trademark Club

“tephe Ha ki g, the o ld s ost fa ous theoretical physicist, has become the latest — and most

unexpected — celebrity to apply for a trademark of their name. Brian Cox, a popular U.K. physicist and TV

p ese te , Ha ki g applied fo a t ade a k ea lie this o th, th ough the UK s I telle tual P operty

Office.

The two main reasons given as to why Hawking wants this trademark,

To prevent any exploitation of his name on inappropriate products

For charitable and educational purposes.

The t ade a k is fo ha ita le pu poses , hi h ould e a le Stephen Hawking to set up his own

foundation, dedicated to motor-neurone disease, which Hawking was diagnosed with (ALS) in 1963. If

successful, Stephen Hawking can decide how his name is used on goods, from postcards to educational

books, according to the official document.

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OBITUARY

Former Bihar Chief Minister Ram Sundar Das dies

Former Chief Minister of Bihar and senior JD(U) leaderRam Sundar Das has passed away at the age of 95 in

Patna due to age-related problems. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has announced a state funeral for

Ram Sundar Das. Ram Sundar Das se ed as Biha s Chief Mi iste i . I Lok “a ha Ele tio , Das had defeated Ram Vilas Paswan in Hajipur, but in the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections, Das had lost to Paswan.

Pioneer of Israeli cinema Lia van Leer passes away

Lia van Leer, pioneer of Israeli cinema passed away in Jerusalem, Israel. She was 90. She was the founder of

Israel Film Archive, Jerusalem Cinematheque, Haifa Cinematheque and the Jerusalem Film Festival.

Veteran Journalist Vinod Mehta is Dead

Veteran Journalist and former Editor of Outlook, Vinod Mehta, passed away after a prolonged illness at the

age of 73. He has died of multiple-organ failure at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Mehta

was born inRawalpindi (now in Pakistan) in 1942 and he was known for his bold journalism.

Mr. Mehta was served as the editor of several publications such as The Pioneer, The Sunday Observer, The

Independent and The Indian Post. He has authored a biography of Meena Kumari and Sanjay Gandhi.

Mehta s Lucknow Boy: A memoir received varied comments from the critics and it was published in 2011.

Veteran singer Bombay S Kamal passes away

Veteran singer and music composer Bombay S. Kamal passed away on 17 March 2015 in

Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala at the age of 85. He was suffering from respiratory ailments. In past six

decades, he had active presence in the field of music especially in Malayalam film music.

Former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov Shot Dead

Former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov, has been shot dead in Moscow. He was a leading

Russian Opposition Politician. He was shot four times while crossing a bridge by an unidentified shooter

from a car. Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama have condemned this brutal

murder.

Boris Nemtsov

Nemtsov was a Russian Scientist and a Liberal Politician. Played a major role in introducing Capitalism in

Russian Economy. After Chernobyl disaster, he organized a protest movement, which effectively stopped

the construction of new nuclear plant. Nemtsov was considered as a bridge between Russia and Ukraine.

Popular Fantasy Author Sir Terry Pratchett passed away

Fa tas autho “i Te P at hett has died aged at the age of due to Alzhei e s disease in London, UK.

The author was very famous for his Discworld fantasy series. Terry penned more than 70 books during his

career and completed his final book during last summer.

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Terry was born on April 28, 1948 in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire to David and Eileen Pratchett. The

Ca pet People as his de ut o el, hi h as pu lished i . The Colo of Magi as Te s Fi st Discworld novel, which was published in 1983.

Sir Terry was knighted by the Queen in 2009. At the turn of the century, Terry was B itai s se o d ost-

read author, surpassed only by JK Rowling. He was also awarded the World Fantasy Award for Life

Achievement in 2010.

Veteran Sports Journalist K Baskaran passed away

Veteran Sports Journalist K Baskaran died at the age of 80 on March 11, 2015, after a prolonged illness in

Mumbai. Baskaran will be remembered as one of the top sports journalists of the country.

He has worked with the Free Press Journal

Indian Express, Newsday (defunct)

The Times of India.

Most part of his career spent at The Times of India where he worked for some 25 years - before being

superannuated. Shri K Baskaran has reported on various sports. He has widely reported in Indian

football for four decades. He was also admired for his coverage in basketball.

Renowned ornithologist K.S. Lavkumar Khachar passes away

Renowned ornithologist and environmentalist K.S. Lavkumar Khachar passed away in Rajkot, Gujarat. He

was 84. As environmentalist he had a long association with the environmental conservation intuitions like

Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) India.

Leonard Nimoy, famous Star Trek Actor, dies aged 83

Leonard Nimoy, who played the human-alien philosopher and first officer Mr Spock in the Original Star

Trek series, has died in Los Angeles. He was 83 years old and was suffering from end-stage chronic

obstructive pulmonary disease.

The Unites States Preside t Ba a k O a a said Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard

Nimoy. I loved Spock .

Bard of Maharashtra Shahir Krishnarao Sable passes away

Bard and Marathi folk legend Krishnarao Ganpatrao Sable passed away on 20 March 2015 in Mumbai,

Maharasht a. He as . He had ought Maha asht a s folk si gi g a d theat e t aditio s to the e t e stage a d his so gs e i hed Maha asht a s ultu e.

Founder of Modern Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew passes away

Lee Kuan Yew, the founder of modern Singapore, who was both feared for his authoritarian tactics and

admired worldwide fo tu i g the ity state i to o e of the Wo ld s i hest atio s while in power for 31

years, died on 23rd march at the age of 91.

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About Lee Kuan Yew

He was the First Prime minister of Singapore.

He has ee des i ed as the fou di g fathe a d a hite t of ode “i gapo e. He was one of the most influential political figures in Asia

Lee was admitted to Singapore general Hospital on February 5, 2015.

He was suffering from severe pneumonia and was later put on life support.

Veteran Gandhian Narayan Desai Passed Away

Veteraian Gandhian Narayan Desai, an Indian Gandhian and Author, Passed away on 15th March 2015 in

Surat at the age of 90. His demise is a great loss to the Nation. He will be remembered for his lecture series

on Gandhi Ji known as Ga dhi Katha , which he took to all over the world and received acclaim for it.

Narayanbhai Desai will be remembered as a scholarly personality who brought Gandhi ji closer to the

masses. Sad to hear of his demise. RIP , the Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in a condolence message

on Twitter.

Desai has several awards to his credit including the Sahitya Akademi Award for Gujarati in 1993 and the

Jamnalal Bajaj Award in 1999 and the UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and

Non-Violence in 1998. He was also associated with anti-nuclear activism.

Former CM of Mizoram Brigadier (Retd) Thenphunga Sailo passes away

Former Chief Minister (CM) of Mizoram Brigadier (Retd) Thenphunga Sailo passed away in Aizawl,

Mizo a . He as o e of the p o i e t oi es agai st the hu a ights iolatio the a ed fo es i 1970s in the insurgency-hit Mizo hills.

Famous Malayalam Poet Yusuf Ali Kechery died

Veteran poet and film personality Yusuf Ali Kechery passed away at a private hospital on 21st March 2015

afte a lo g ill ess. He as . “i e the egi i g of this ea , Yusuf Ali Ke he s health as deteriorating and was in the hospital for long. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy des i ed Ke he s death as a loss for the state.

Yusuf Ali Kechery was a poet, film lyricist, film producer and director from Kerala. He was one of the

leading poets of the modern era Malayalam poetry and has won numerous awards. He had served the post

of Assistant Secretary and Executive Member of the Kerala Sangeeta Nataka Academy and Advisory

Committee Member of All India Radio, Thrissur. He has also served as the president of the Kerala Sathiya

Academy.

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SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Scientists found out a No el ay to u e Alzhei e s disease

‘esea he s ha e fou d out a o el a to t eat Alzhei e s disease. O e of the iggest halle ges i t eati g Alzhei e s disease is the lood-brain barrier. A Research Team led by Jurgen Gotz of Queensland

Brain Institute, Australia, was able to send a drug across the blood-brain barrier using a combination of

microbubbles and ultrasound waves. They tested the method on mice.

Alzhei e s disease AD i ol es the fo atio of pla ues of eta-amyloid in the brain. In case of other

parts, it can be treated easily by sending drugs through the blood stream. But when it comes to AD, this is

not possible because of blood-brain barrier, which is a group of closely packed cells that normally protects

the brain.

Dr. Hynynen had used a novel method to temporarily open the blood-brain barrier by injecting

i o u les i to the ai s lood st ea . These u les iggle agai st the lood-vessel walls

temporarily dislodging the barrier when ultrasound waves excite them. Thus the blood can then leak into

the p o le ati a ea, helpi g i t eati g Alzhei e s.

Usi g D . H e s st ateg , D . Gotz a d his tea i je ted i os opi u les i to i e ith Alzhei e s. It as fou d that the i e hose lood-brain barrier had been made permeable showed

marked improvement in memory. Several types of beta-a loid tissue i the i e s ai s had edu ed i size.

Wo ld s fi st ele t i satellites su essfully lifted off y “pa eX o ket

Wo ld s fi st ele t i satellites e e su essfull lifted off by a Space Exploration (SpaceX) Technologies

o ket f o Cape Ca a e al Ai Fo e “tatio , U ited “tates. The o ket as a i g Boei g s t o all-electric commercial satellites. The satellites are owned by the French satellite provider Eutelsat and Asia

B oad ast “atellite AB“ . Eutelsat s satellite is pa t of its -member commercial network. It will provide

services like mobile, internet, video and other communications services to expand its reach into the

Americas. While, ABS new satellite will serve its customers in Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

Prime Minister launches Vaccine for Rotavirus – Rotavac

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the vaccine called Rotavac, the first indigenously developed

and manufactured Rotavirus vaccine. The vaccine is developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and

the Department of Biotechnology (DBT). It will be available for sale from next week in India.

The vaccine development process has taken 15 years and around 300 scientists have worked very hard for

the successful completion of the project. Foreign companies currently sell Rotavirus vaccines in India

at Rs.1,100 per dose. Bharat Biotech has proposed to sell Rotavac for just Rs.63 per dose to the GOI and

other low income countries. The company has filed four global patents around the technology of Rotavac

in more than 20 countries.

In India, every year, diarrhea caused by rotavirus causes up to 10 lakh hospitalizations and kills around one

lakh children under the age of 5 years. Globally this virus causes 4.5 lakhs deaths per year.

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People with Blood group A are more vulnerable to Malaria

Malaria, the dreadful mosquito-born infectious disease infects more than 200 million people a year fatally.

Malaria is transmitted by an infected female Anopheles mosquito. The mosquito bite introduces the

pa asites i to a pe so s lood, hi h t a el i side the od a d ea hes li e , he e the atu e a d reproduce. A total of five species of Plasmodium can infect humans. Of this 5, most deaths are caused by P.

falciparum. The other species P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae generally cause a milder form of malaria.

The species P. knowlesi rarely causes disease in humans.

Recently, in a research, it was found that, the protein (RIFIN) produced by some strains of the malarial

parasite can cause red blood cells to form clumps. These clumps increases the severity of disease,

especially in people with Blood Group A. These clumps are formed due to sticking of one cell to the other

cell and also to the walls of blood vessels. They obstruct the blood flow, damage the tissues, and leads to

death.

In another research it was found that, the protein produced by the strains of the malarial parasite bound

weakly to the people with Blood Group O. And it does not affect these people as serious as it affects

people with blood group A.

Union Government gives nod to AWACS project

Union Government gave its approval to build core strategic project of next-generation Airborne Warning

and Control Systems (AWACS). The decision was taken by Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by

Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. DAC gave its nod for two AWACS, which includes buying two

Airbus A330s, worth 5,113 crore rupees. Airbus was the lone bidder for the programme.

NA“A s Hu le teles ope spots o ea o Jupite s oo Ga y ede

NA“A s Hu le “pa e Teles ope has spotted assi e salt ate o ea u de the i ust of Jupite s largest moon Ganymede. Scientists believe that this finding could potentially support life. Hubble Space

Teles ope s fi di g was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics. The finding was

ased o the esults o tai ed afte a al zi g Ga ede s ag eti field a d au o ae eated a d o t olled it a d its i te a tio ith Jupite s ag eti field. NA“A s Galileo mission also had provided

first evidence of ocean in Ganymede after measuring its magnetic field in 2002.

Astronomers from the Cambridge University discovered nine Dwarf planets orbiting around Milkyway

Astronomers from the University of Cambridge have discovered Nine Dwarf planet orbiting around the

milky way in the northern Hemisphere. It is the largest number ever discovered at once. The Nine Satellites

includes 3 minute galaxies. These nine galaxies were found near the large and small Magnetic cloud in orbit

around the Milkyway.

These newly discovered objects are,

a billion times dimmer than the Milky Way

a million times less massive.

Since they contain up to 99 percent dark matter and just one percent observable matter, dwarf galaxies

are ideal for testing whether existing dark matter models are correct. Dark matter — which makes up 25

percent of all matter and energy in our universe — is invisible, and only makes its presence known through

its gravitational pull.

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The closest is about 95,000 light years away, while the most distant is more than a million light years away.

NA“A s Da “pa e P o e ea hes o it a ou d D a f Pla et

Natio al Ae o auti s a d “pa e Ad i ist atio s NA“A Da “pa e P o e a i ed at Ce es o th Ma h 2015 and become the first spacecraft ever to circle a Dwarf planet, as well as the first to orbit two bodies

beyond the Earth-moon system. Previously Dawn studied the protoplanet Vesta up close from July 2011

through September 2012. Dawn is still in move and will be there for 6 more weeks.

NA“A s Cu iosity ‘o e dis o e s useful Nit oge o Ma s

A tea usi g the “a ple A al sis at Ma s “AM i st u e t suite a oa d NA“A s Cu iosit o e has ade the first detection of nitrogen on the surface of Mars from release during heating of Martian sediments.

The nitrogen was detected in the form of nitric oxide, and could be released from the breakdown of

nitrates during heating. Nitrates are a class of molecules that contain nitrogen in a form that can be used

by living organisms.

The discovery adds to the evidence that ancient Mars was habitable for life. Scientists believe that the

detected nitrogen in the form of nitric oxide could be released from the breakdown of nitrates during

heating of sediments from Mars. However, there is no evidence suggesting that the discovered nitrogen

molecules found by the rover was created by life on the red planet.

It should be noted that Nitrogen is essential part for all known forms of life as it used in the building basic

blocks of larger molecules like DNA and RNA that encode the genetic instructions for life. It is also essential

in proteins that is used to build structures like hair and nails in living organisms.

Cipla launches generic version of drug Sofosbuvir in India

Cipla Ltd on 25th Ma h said it ill i t odu e a ge e i e sio of Gilead “ ie e s lo k uste Hepatitis C d ug “o aldi. The d ug ill e sold i I dia Cipla u de the a d a e Hep i .

The announcement follows a non-exclusive licensing agreement between Cipla and Gilead in September. It

is estimated that 12-18 million people in India are infected by the virus.

Under the non-exclusive licensing agreement, Cipla is allowed to set its own price for its version of the

drug, and will pay a royalty on sales to Gilead.

Sovaldi, whose generic name is Sofosbuvir, was introduced in the US in December. Cipla is one of the seven

Indian pharmaceutical companies that have been allowed by US-based Gilead Sciences to manufacture and

market generic of drug Sofosbuvir.

I dia s first Polar Remotely Operated Vehicle (PROVe) successfully operationalised in North Antarctica

by NIOT

I dia s Pola ‘e otel Ope ated Vehi le P‘OVe , i dige ousl uilt Natio al I stitute of O ea Technology, was operationalised for research on 25th March 2015 in North Antarctica after 2 month of

rigorous research.

PROVe has been indigenously built by National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) under the Union

Ministry of Earth Sciences. With the help of PROVe, Monsoon prediction and reading of pattern will

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become easier in the future.It will measure parameters like ocean currents, temperature and salinity in the

Arctic.

Leukemia cells can be converted into Immune cells

Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered a method that can change the

dangerous leukemia cells in the lab to mature into harmless immune cells called macrophages that may

help fight cancer.

Ravi Majeti of Stanford University and his team members collected leukemia cells from a patient and they

were keeping the cells alive in a culture plate. They noted that some of the cancer cells in culture were

changing macrophages. When the early B-cell mouse progenitor cells are exposed to certain transcription

factors, this change occurs.

Majeti and his team members hope that when the cancer cells become macrophages they will not only be

neutralized, but may actually assist in fighting the cancer.

The esea he s e t step is to fi d a d ug that is apa le of p o pti g the sa e ea tio . If the fou d the drug successfully, it may serve as the basis for a therapy for the leukemia.

ISRO successfully launches fourth navigation satellite IRNSS 1D

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully launched fourth navigation satellite Indian

Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS)-1D. It was launched by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-

27 into the orbit from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. The satellite is similar

to, and follows the IRNSS 1A, 1B and 1C which were launched in April 2013, July 2014 and October

2014respectively. IRNSS-1D will be launched into a sub Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (sub GTO). It weighs

1,425 kg and carries a navigation payload and CDMA ranging payload in addition with a laser retro-

reflector.

Applications of IRNSS

Terrestrial, Aerial and Marine Navigation.

Disaster Management.

Vehicle tracking and fleet management.

Integration with mobile phones.

Precise Timing.

Mapping and Geodetic data capture.

Terrestrial navigation aid for hikers and travellers.

Visual and voice navigation for drivers.

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SPORTS

Dubai ATP Tennis Championship 2015

The 2015 Dubai Tennis Championships is also called 2015 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. This

tournament was inaugurated in 1993. The winners of 2015 Championship are,

Me s “i gles

“ itze la d s Roger Federer defeated “e ia sNovak Djokovic, 6–3, 7– . It is ‘oge s “e e th Du ai C o .

Wo e s “i gles

‘o a ia s Simona Halep defeated Czech Republic Karolína Plíško á, 6–4, 7–6(7–4)

Me s Dou les

I dia s Rohan Bopanna a d Ca ada s Daniel Nestor defeated Pakista s Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and

“e ia s Ne ad )i o jić, 6–4, 6–1

Wo e s Dou les

Hu ga s Tímea Babos and France Kristina Mladenovic defeated “pai s Garbiñe Muguruza andCarla

Suárez Navarro, 6–3, 6–2

Argentina Open 2015 : Rafael Nadal wins the Title

“pai s sta Tennis player Rafael Nadal has won the 2015 Argentina Open by defeating Juan Monaco of

Argentina with a score of 6-4, 6- . It is Nadal s th title in clay and first title of 2015. Nadal, the World

Nu e Pla e , is efe ed as The King of Clay .

He has won a total of,

14 Grand Slam singles titles

27 ATP World Tour Masters 1000

15 ATP World Tour 500

2008 Olympic gold medal in singles

This is Nadal s th title i a d it akes hi to o e up to the V position in the Open Era for the most

titles. He now stands behind,

Jimmy Connors – 109 wins

Ivan Lendl – 94 wins

Roger Federer – 84 wins

John McEnroe – 77 wins

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Kumar Sangakkara : The Second Cricketer to Cross 14K ODI Runs

Sri Lankan cricketer Kumar Sangakkara became the second batsman to cross 14,000 runs in One Day

International (ODI) cricket after the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. Till now Sangakkara scored 14,065 runs in

402 ODIs (Sachin Tendulkar – 18,426 runs – 463 ODIs). He became the first Sri Lankan batsman to reach

14,000 runs in ODIs. He is also the first batsman to score three consecutive hundreds in World Cup

matches. Sangakkara scored his 23rd ODI century against England in just 70 balls.

Sangakkara announced that he will retire from test cricket by the end of August 2015 (After India-Sri Lanka

3 match test series). He has already announced his retirement from ODIs and Twenty20 Internationals. He

will quit ODI cricket post the ongoing World Cup.

All England Badminton Championship: Saina Nehwal Loses to Carolina Marin

Ol pi o ze edallist a d I dia s sta pla e “ai a Neh al s has lost to “pai s Ca oli a Ma i i the All England Badminton Championship 21-16 14-21 7-21. Saina made a fantastic start, but Marin bounced back

e st o gl a d left “ai a i di e st aits. I the Me s si gle ha pio ship, Che Lo g of Chi a defeated De a k s Ja Jo ge se -21 21-17 21-15.

World Cup 2015: Kumar Sangakkara slams Fourth Consecutive Ton

Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara slams his fourth consecutive ton in the World Cup 2015 series and

he also becomes the first batsman to score 4 consecutive centuries in One Day Internationals. Sangakkara

has achieved this feat in a World Cup Pool A at h agai st “ otla d u s . “a gakka a s Ce tu sp ee in the World Cup 2015 includes,

105 – Bangladesh

117 – England

104 – Australia

Indian Women wins the Hero Hockey World League Round 2

I dia o e s Ho ke Tea o the p estigious He o Hockey World League Round 2 by defeating

Poland 3-1 in a nail-biting final at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, New Delhi. Indian star Player

Deepika as de la ed as the pla e of the at h a d Pola d s skippe Ma le a ‘ a ha has a olade ith the player of the tournament award. From Indian side, the goals are scored by Vandana Katariya, Rani, and

Ritu Rani. The lonely goal scorer from Poland was Oriana Walasek.

Services lifts the 2015 Santosh Trophy

Services won the 69th Santosh Trophy Football title by defeating Punjab 5-4 tie-breaker in a nail-biting

match at Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhina, Punjab. This is the fourth time that Services lifting the trophy.

Previously the Services team had won in year 1961, 2012, 2013.

Kidambi Srikanth wins Swiss Grand Prix Championship

I dia s ou g shuttle Kida i “ ika th has su essfull o the p estigious “ iss G a d P i Gold ha pio ship title, defeati g De a k s Vikto A elso in a tough final. Srikanth, the world number 4

player showed his extra ordinary skill to prevail over World number six Axelson, 21-15, 12-21, 21-14 in the

nail-biting summit clash of the $120,000 event that lasted for 47 minutes.

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Kidambi Srikanth was the first Indian to win a Grand Prix Gold title (Thailand) in June 2013. Injuries slowed

do “ ika th s p og ess a d the ai fe e i Jul , al ost killed hi . His e tal a d ph si al strength as well as the hard work rewarded him.

Lewis Hamilton wins the Australian Grand Prix

British Driver Lewis Hamilton completely dominated the Australian Grand Prix by defeating his rival Nico

Rosberg. It was the 34th career victory for two-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and underlined the

continued dominance of Mercedes as he and Nico Rosberg pulled well clears of their nearest challengers.

After the victory Lewis was congratulated Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was in town for the Arnold Classic

bodybuilding competition.

Michael White wins first ranking title at Indian Open

Michael White defeated Ricky Walden 5-0 in the final of the 300,000 pounds Indian Open World ranking

snooker tournament in just 57 minutes in Mumbai.

Michael White is a Welsh professional snooker player from Neatherlands. At the age of nine he became

the youngest player to have made a century break in competitive play and he was the world amateur

champion by 14. Currently he has won his first ranking event title at 2015 Indian Open.

Karnataka Defeated Tamilnadu to Retain the Ranji Trophy

Karnataka defended the Ranji Trophy by defeatingTamil Nadu by an innings and 217 runs in the final

match played at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. With this victory, Karnataka clinched a total of eight

Ranji titles. The a of the at h a a d as gi e to Ka ataka s Karun Nair, who had scored 338 runs. In

Last season, Karnataka defeated Mumbai in the finals.

Saina Nehwal – First Indian Woman to become World Number One

I dia s sta shuttle “ai a Neh al e o es the fi st I dia o a to ea h Wo ld u e o e a ki g after defeating her Japanese opponent Yui Hashimoto in the India Open Super series semifinal match in

New Delhi. Saina defeated Hashimoto 21-15, 21-11 in a 43 minutes match. Saina is the second Indian

player to reach world number one after legendary Prakash Padukone. In 2010, Nehwal ranked second and

she has been a top-10 player since 2009.

Two-year-old archer Cherukuli Dalli Shivani enters her name into India Book of Records

A two-year-old girl archery prodigy Cherukuli Dalli Shivani from Vijaywada achieved a stunning feat by

setting a new record and entering her name into the India Book of Records.

Shivani is the sister of late Indian coach and international archer Cherukuri Lenin who died in a road

accident soon after 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. She became the youngest Indian to shot 36 arrows

each from five metres and seven metres to score 388 points.

“hi a i s fathe , Che uku i “at a a a a a, ho u s the a ade i e o of his late so Le i , said that her daughter will now attempt to enter her name into the Guinness Book of World Records.

Reports said that Shivani was conceived through surrogacy after the death of her brother Lenin. She was

trained at the Volga Archery Institute run by her father Ch Satyanarayana.

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Title Winners of 2015 BNP Paribas Open

The Indian Wells Masters is also known as BNP Paribas Open, which is an annual tennis tournament held

in Indian Wells, California, United States. The tournament is played on hard courts. The tournament was

founded by Charlie Pasarell and Raymond Moore i . The tou a e t is also alled Grand Slam of

the West .

The Winners of 2015 BNP Paribas Open are,

Me s “i gles Title

“e ia s Novak Djokovic defeated “ itze la d s Roger Federer by 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 score.

With this win Novak Djokovic has won his fourth Indian Wells Open title and overall 50th tour-level

title.

Wome s “i gles Title

‘o a ia s Simona Halep defeated “e ia s Jelena Jankovic by 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 score.

It is Halep s thi d WTA titles i apa t f o “he zhe Ope a d Du ai Ope .

Me s Dou le Title

Vasek Pospisil (Canada) and Jack Sock (US) pair defeated Italian pair Simone Bolelli and Fabio

Fognini 6–4, 6–7 (3), 10–7 score.

Wo e s Dou le Title

Sania Mirza (India) and Martina Hingis (Switzerland) defeated Russian pair Ekaterina

Makarova and Elena Vesnina by 6-3, 6-4 score.

It is “a ia Mi za s se o d title of the season 2015 and 24th overall.

FIFA 2022 World Cup to be played in November/December in Quatar

The International Federation of Football Association (FIFA) World Cup 2022 will be held in Qatar in the

months of November and December. The finals of the game will be held on December 18, 2022, which is

also the ou t s atio al da .

Important Announcements from FIFA

The FIFA 2022 World cup will be played over for only 28 days instead of the traditional 32 days.

As summer temperature in Qatar exceeds 110 degrees, the FIFA World Cup 2022 will be conducted

during November/December.

The venues for some important matches in 2018 FIFA World World Cup was announced.

The bidding process to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup will kick off in 2015.

Ne )eala d s Ma ti Guptill e o es highest s o e i Wo ld Cup histo y

New Zealand cricketer Martin Guptill scored 237 runs against West Indies in a semi-final qualifying match

and becomes the highest scorer in the World Cup history. Guptill is the first New Zealander to hit a double

century in a One Day International (ODI) cricket format. At the end of the innings, Guptill scored 237* from

just alls. Guptill s i i gs i lude si es a d fou s. The Ne )eala d team scored a massive total

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of u s i o e s a d lost o l i kets. The West I dies i i gs e ded ith just u s i overs.

Australia wins ICC Cricket World Cup for V time

Australia won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 for the record fifth time. In the final match Australia

defeated co-hosts of the tournament, New Zealand by 7 wickets played at the iconic Melbourne Cricket

Ground (MCG), Australia. In the final match, New Zealand had won the toss and had chosen to bat first.

They had set the target of 183 runs to Australia after losing all wickets in the 45th over. Australian team

easily overhauled the target in the 34th over with 7 wickets in hand.

Australia had won the Cricket World Cup in 1987, 1999, 2003 and 2007. It was first time of New Zealand to

e te fi al of C i ket Wo ld Cup. I the p e ious o ld up s the e e defeated fo si ti es i the se i-finals.

Man of the Series Award – Mitchell Starc (Australia)

Most Runs – Martin Guptill (New Zealand)

Most Wickets – Mitchell Starc (22) and Trent Boult (22) (New Zealand)

Man of the Match – James Faulkner (Australia)

India Open Super Series Badminton 2015 Title Winners

Me s “i gles Title

I dia s “ ika th Kida i defeated De a k s Vikto A else i th ee ga es -21, 21-13 and 21-12.

Me s Dou les Title

Chi a s Chai Biao a d Ho g Wei pai defeated De a k s Co ad-Petersen Mads and Pieler Kolding Mads

pair by 21-18, 21-14 score.

Wo e s “i gles 5 Title

“ai a Neh al defeated Thaila d s ‘at ha ok I ta o i the fi al at h pla ed at “iri Fort Indoor Complex

in New Delhi in straight sets 21-16, 21-14.

Wo e s Dou les Title

Number one ranked Japanese pair of Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi has defeated Chinese pair

Japanese pair by 21-19, 21-19 score.

Mixed Doubles Title

Second-ranked Chinese pair of Yixin Bao and Cheng Liu number one ranked Danish pair of Christinna

Pedersen and Joachim Fischer Nielsen by score 21-19 21-19.

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Australian cricketer Michael Clarke retires from ODI cricket

Australian cricketer Michael Clarke has announced his retirement from One Day Internationals (ODI)

cricket format. However, he will continue to represent Australia in the Test matches. He made his last ODI

appearance in the final World Cup match against New Zealand. In this match he was captain of team and

had scored 74 runs which and helped Australia win the 2015 World Cup by 7 wickets for fifth time.

Michael Clarke had started his ODI cricket career in 2003 and test career in 2004. In his ODI career, he had

played 245 matches and had scored 7981 runs. His highest score was 130 runs. He had bowled in 106

innings and had taken 57 wickets.

New Zealand cricketer Daniel Vettori announces retirement from international cricket

New Zealand cricketer and former captain Daniel Vettori has announced his retirement from international

cricket. He made this announcement after playing last match in ICC World Cup 2015 Final against Australia.

He had started his international cricket career in 1996–97 at the age of 18. He was the youngest player to

ep ese t Ne )eala d i Test i ket. He as o side ed as Ne )eala d s ost-capped test cricketer.

In his ODI career he had played 295 matches and scored 2253 runs in ODIs. He also had bowled in 277 ODI

innings and took 305 wickets. In his test career, Vettori has scored 4531 runs. His highest score was 140. In

test career, he had bowled in 187 innings and took 362 wickets.

Zimbabwe's Brendan Taylor retiring from international cricket

Taylor, who stood in as captain for Zimbabwe's last World Cup clash with Ireland, has scored 1,493 from his

23 Tests at an average of 34.72 since debuting against Sri Lanka as an 18-year-old in 2004.

Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene retire from ODIs

Both the batsmen had revealed their retirement plans that the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 will be their last

match in Sri Lankan ODI jersey. Jayawardene chose to retire from all forms of international cricket, but

would play franchise-based format, while Sangakkara chose to hang his boots from the limited-overs

format but will continue to play Tests for Sri Lanka.

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IMPORTANT DAYS

March 01 2015

Remembered Day: Zero Discrimination Day

Purpose: To create awareness to people from all corners of the world, about the evil consequences of

discrimination, to celebrate diversity, and to reject discrimination.

Theme: Open Up, Reach Out.

March 03 2015

Remembered Day: World Wildlife Day

Purpose: To aise a a e ess of the Wo ld s flo a a d fau a. Theme: Wildlife C i e is se ious, let s get se ious a out ildlife i e .

Remembered Day: National Defence Day

March 04 2015

Remembered Day: National Security Day (Rashtriya Suraksha Diwas)

Purpose: To praise the work of security forces, who plays a major role in maintaining peace

and security of the people in India.

Remembered Day: World Day of Fight Against Sexual Exploitation.

Purpose: To create awareness against sexual exploitation, which overwhelmingly involves women and

Children.

March 08 2015

Remembered Day: Wo ld Wo e s Da

Purpose: To celebrate the achievements of women while calling for greater equality.

Theme: Empowering Women, Empowering Humanity: Picture it!

March 10 2015

Remembered Day: Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Raising Day

Purpose: CISF is a dedicated force which provides security to a wide range of critical infrastructure assets

of India.

March 12 2015

Remembered Day: World Kidney Day

Purpose: To create awareness among the people globally, about the importance of the kidneys and also to

reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health issues.

Theme: Kidney Health For All

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March 13 2015

Remembered Day: World Rotaract Day

Purpose: To recognize the services offered by the Rotaractors through out the World.

March 14 2015

Remembered Day: Pi Day

Purpose: Students, mathematicians and math enthusiasts all around the world celebrate Pi Day by

participating in pi themed activities and contests that include making and eating pies, converting numbers

such as the time or one's age using pi, and reciting the digits of pi.

March 15 2015

Remembered Day: World Consumer Rights Day

Purpose: to promote the basic rights of all the consumers, to demand that those rights are respected and

protected.

Theme: Helping consumers choose healthy diets.

March 18 2015

Remembered Day: O d a e Fa to ies Da

Purpose: The day is celebrated by displaying the rifles, guns, artillery, ammunition..etc in exhibitions all

over India.

March 20 2015

Remembered Day: International Day of Happiness

Theme: "Your happiness is part of something bigger"

Remembered Day: World Day of Theatre for Children and Young People

Purpose: Celebrated and promoted by professionals making work for young audiences all over the world.

Remembered Day: World Sparrow Day

Purpose: To create awareness of the house sparrows and other birds to the rapidly changing

environments, and of threats to their populations.

March 21 2015

Remembered Day: International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Purpose: Ai s to e i d people of a ial dis i i atio s egati e o se ue es. It also e ou ages people to remember their obligation and determination to combat racial discrimination.

Theme: "Learning from historical tragedies to combat racial discrimination today"

Remembered Day: World Poetry Day

Purpose: To promote the reading, writing, publishing and teaching of poetry throughout the world

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Remembered Day: International Day of Nowruz

Purpose: To celebrates the start of the Persian spring festival March 21 ever year. It occurs on or around

the time of the March equinox.

Remembered Day: World Down Syndrome Day

Purpose: To raise public awareness and create a single global voice for advocating for the rights, inclusion

and well being of people with Down syndrome.

Remembered Day: International Day of Forests

Purpose: To raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests and of trees outside forests.

Theme: Fo ests a d Cli ate Cha ge

March 22 2015

Remembered Day: World Water Day

Purpose: To create awareness among the people about the importance of conservation of this valuable

finite resource for the future generations.

Theme: Water and Sustainable Development

March 23 2015

Remembered Day: World Meteorological Day

Purpose: To support the all the countries by providing meteorological services related to natural disasters,

climate and water.

Theme: Cli ate k o ledge fo li ate a tio

March 24 2015

Remembered Day: World Tuberculosis Day

Purpose: To create awareness to the public about the dreadful tuberculosis (TB) and efforts to eliminate

the disease.

Theme: Reach, Treat, Cure Everyone.

Remembered Day: International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations

and for the Dignity of Victims

Purpose: To promote the importance of the right to truth and justice.

Remembered Day: International Day for Achievers

March 25 2015

Remembered Day: International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave

Trade

Purpose: It honors the lives of those who died as a result of slavery or experienced the horrors of the

transatlantic slave trade. It is also an occasion to raise awareness about the dangers of racism and

prejudice.

Theme: Women and Slavery

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Remembered Day: International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members

Purpose: Date is the anniversary of the abduction of Alec Collett, a journalist who died while working for

the UN.

March 27 2015

Remembered Day: World Theatre Day

March 29 2015

Remembered Day: Earth Hour

Purpose: To create awareness for global warming and Earth Hour is a global campaign with a simple

message to switch off non-essential lights for one hour

GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR EXAMS!!!

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