January 2013 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Palestinian Authority to be Named State of Palestine On 7 January Palestinian Authority

President Mahmoud Abbas has signed a decree changing the name of the Palestinian Authority to the State of Palestine," according to the organizations official news agency. Pakistani Supreme Court Orders Arrest of Prime Minister On 15 January 2013 Pakistans Supreme Court ordered the arrest of the prime minister in connection with a corruption case linked to power projects. The Supreme Court gave authorities 24 hours to arrest Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and 16 others.This is the first in the history of Pakistan to arrest a Prime Minister. The orders of the Court came following the allegations in connection with a corruption case linked to power projects, done during his office of the Water and Power Minister. Obama Signed 23 Executive Orders on Gun Safety On 16 January President Barack Obama announced 23 executive actions on gun control laws, making them stricter,which would come into effect immediately after his signatures. One of these measures include requiring the target shooters to keep their guns locked and also to ban military-style assault weapons, high capacity magazine as well as to make the background check mandatory.Obama announced that this was his attempt to keep children safe, keeping in view the massacre of Newtown where 20 first grade children along with six adults were killed. 140 Nations Agreed On Global Mercury Limits On 19 January , More than 140 nations have agreed on the first legally binding treaty to curb mercury pollution.Delegates at UN discussed in Geneva approved measures to control the use of the highly toxic metal, which is widely used in chemical production and small-scale mining, in order to limit mercury emissions.The governments agreed to ban the production, export and import of a range of products containing mercury by 2020.The treaty has been discussed for four years, but it is only now that the negotiators agreed over the final version of the document. The treaty, known as the Minamata Convention on Mercury, provides controls and reductions across a range of products and processes where mercury is used, released and emitted. Milos Zeman Elected as Czech Republic new President

On 25 January A leftist candidate Milos Zeman won the Czech Republics first presidential election decided by direct vote.Milos Zeman, a former prime minister and head of the Citizens Rights Party, won with 54.8% of the vote.He defeated Karel Schwarzenberg, an aristocratic foreign minister with the TOP09 party, who garnered 45.2%.Zeman replaces Vaclav Klaus, who must step down after serving the maximum of two terms.

INDIA & WORLD India Pakistan Exchanged Nuclear Units Lists On 1 January India and Pakistan exchanged their nuclear units lists , as it is customary since 20 years. The list which contains the names of nuclear units of two countries, are exchanged between India and Pakistan as a custom and part of an agreement which prevents them from aiming the nuclear installations of each others nations. Thousands of illegal Indian Migrants in UK According to a 2012 UK Home Office report, India has been named along with Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Vietnam, Brazil and Iran as the main sources of illegal immigration to Britain.What the report does not mention is how many of the 863,000 illegal migrants that it says are living in the UK are students. This is a contentious area because critics of the coalition government claim it is counting students among overall immigrants. World Economic Forums Global Risks Report According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) report , India ranks lowest among the worlds major economies for its preparedness to tackle global environmental risks and second-lowest for economic risks.Switzerland is best placed among the worlds 10 major economies for adapting to or recovering from global economic and environmental risks.While India is ranked 9th in terms of its ability to tackle global economic risks, it comes last at 10th position for environmental risks.However, India fared relatively better at 6th position in terms of the governments risk management effectiveness.The US and China were ranked fourth and fifth respectively. Indians Top the List of Working in Dream Jobs According to survey conducted by networking website LinkedIn,Indians have emerged at the top of the list of people working in their dream job.The dream job league table:1. India 44 percent 2. Indonesia 42 percent 3. United Arab Emirates 35.7

percent 4. Germany 33 percent 5. Brazil 32 percent 6. Austria 31 percent 7. Switzerland 30 percent 8. USA 29 percent 9. France, Canada, Sweden, South Africa 28 percent 13. Singapore, Hong Kong 27 percent 15. Australia 26 percent 16. New Zealand 25 percent 17. UK 21 percent India Vietnam Signed on Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises On 15 January India and Vietnam signed an MoU aimed at building capacity for developing institutional framework and identifying thrust areas and opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises in this country.The MoU was signed here between the Ministry of Planning and Investments of Vietnam and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) of India . India and Sri Lanka signed Anti-terror, Tax evasion Agreements On 22nd January India and Sri Lanka signed two separate agreements on combating international terrorism and avoidance of double taxation, eyeing elevation of robust bilateral ties to building of a special economic partnership.The two key accords were signed after the 8th India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission meeting held at New Delhi , both countries discussed enhanced cooperation in a range of areas including civil nuclear energy.At the meeting, the Indian side was led by External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid while the Lankans were led by his counterpart G.L. Peiris.During the meet, both the parties also decided setting up of the Special Economic Zone at Trincomali and a textile and pharmaceutical cluster in Sri Lanka. International Tea Producers Forum formed On 22 January India, along with five other tea producing countries, has formed the International Tea Producers Forum (ITPF) at Colombo.Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry D Purandesari signed the joint communique on behalf of India along with representatives of Kenya, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Rwanda and Malawi in Colombo.The ITPF will initially be an independent body but in future may get affiliated to Food & Agriculture Organisation of United Nations. India , Bangladesh Signed Extradition and Visa Agreements On 28 January Bangladesh and India signed an extradition treaty and struck a deal to relax business visa restrictions between the neighbouring countries. However, refusal provisions were incorporated into the extradition treaty.Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde signed the agreement with his Bangladeshi counterpart Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir at the end of their bilateral talks. India Dropped to 140th Rank in Press Freedom

According to the report Reporters Without Borders India has dropped nine places to the 140th rank in the list of 179 countries in the latest World Press Freedom Index.China (173rd, +1) shows no sign of improving. Its prisons still hold many journalists and netizens, while increasingly unpopular Internet censorship continues to be a major obstacle to access information.As last year, the list is topped by three European countries Finland, Netherlands and Norway.Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea continue to be at the bottom of the list as has been in the last three years.

NATIONAL Govt Launched Direct Cash Transfer Scheme in 20 Districts On 1 January 2013 The government launched its scaled down Cash Transfer Benefit (CBT) in 20 districts,but food, fertiliser and fuel subsidies will not be covered in the initial phase. All 26 schemes are ready for rollout. On 1 January 2013 the seven schemes in which payout is due in the (20 selected) districts, the money will be transferred through the direct benefit transfer system using the UIDAI platform.The scheme is going to be rolled out in 43 districts by 1 March 2013, 20 districts from January 1, 11 districts from February 1 and 12 districts from March 1. By end of 2013, the direct cash benefit transfer will be rolled out in all the districts of the country. PA Sangma launched National Peoples Party PA Sangma, who broke away with the NCP in 2012 to contest the presidential elections, though unsuccessfully, on 05 January 2013 launched National Peoples Party (NPP), and chosen a book as its symbol. Sangma has chosen to align his party with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). President Released Stamps on Swami Vivekananda On 12 January The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee released the Commemorative Postage Stamps, at the Commemoration of the 150th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, in New Delhi . Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012 On 17 January According to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012 report has found that learning levels have dipped to an all-time low. So, almost half the 6-7 year-olds (Class I) in India cannot read even one letter in any language, over 57% cannot read any English while almost 40% cannot recognize numbers between 1 and 9.The 12.8% children between Class I and V could not read a single letter while 10.7% could not recognize numbers 1 to 9. The number of children in Class V who

could read Class II text fell from 53.7% in 2010 to 46.8% in 2012. In 2010, seven out of 10 children could solve a two-digit subtraction problem with borrowing. This has come down to five out of 10 in 2012.

STATES Odisha Launched Public Service Delivery System On 2 January The Odisha government launched the much-sought after Public Service Delivery System for citizens under the Odisha Right to Public Service Act, 2012.Under the new act, people will get services like issue of driving license, birth and death certificates, passport and trade license within a stipulated time.Odisha is among the 12th state to implement the law. Haryana Government announced Kanyadan Scheme for Bride participants of Mass Marriages The Government of Haryana on 3 January 2012 announced its plan of launching a Kanyadan Scheme in the state for brides participating in the mass marriage ceremony, which would be organised by any of the registered NGO or the Red Cross Society. The scheme would carry an incentive amount of 11000 rupees and would come into effect from 1 April 2012. The incentive amount of 11000 rupees would be given to brides from all castes, creeds, race, religion and the income category to which the girl belongs. Arunachal Pradesh Collaborated with NSDL for Adoption of National Pension Scheme On 9 January The state of Arunachal Pradesh entered into an agreement with signing of MoU with National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL), permitting it to work as a Central Record Keeping Agency (CRA) for adoption of the National Pension System (NPS).National Pension Scheme NPS is an initiative of the Union Government of India and Arunachal Pradesh is the 26th State to adopt it. Gujarat Tops List of Indian States on Economic Freedom Policy According to the Economic Freedom of States in India report which was released by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor and present Rajya Sabha Member Bimal Jalan.The top state in India in (terms of) economic freedom in 2011 was western Indian state Gujarat. It displaced southern Indian state Tamil Nadu which had been at the top in 2009.Gujarat freedom index has been rising fast and estimated at 0.64 points. The biggest improvement has been registered by Madhya Pradesh with

freedom index score rose from 0.42 in 2009 to 0.56 in 2011 enabling it to move up from sixth to third position. Assembly polls in Tripura,Meghalaya and Nagaland on Febrauary Assembly elections in Tripura will be held on February 14 and in Meghalaya and Nagaland on February 23 and their results will be out on February 28, the Election Commission announced on 10 January 2013.The EC also announced byelections to nine assembly constituencies in Mizoram, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab on February 23 and in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra on February 24, but their results will be out together on February 28. Presidents Rule Imposed on Jharkhand On 18 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India imposed Presidents Rule in Jharkhand under Article 356(1) of the Constitution.The Presidents Rule for the third time since its formation 12 years ago.The decision came as a follow up of the recommendation made by the Union Cabinet of India and fall of the state machinery in form of Government on 8 January after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha the supporting party to BJP led Coalition Government withdrew its support from it. The state was placed under Presidents Rule in 2009 and 2010. Three New High Courts for North East The Centre has constituted three new High Courts in the northeast Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura taking the total number of High Courts in the country from 21 to 24.According to Law Ministry sources, the strength of judges in each High Court will be as follows: Tripura 4 (including the Chief Justice), and Meghalaya and Manipur: three each (including the Chief Justice).

CONFERENCES 100th Indian Science Congress held in Kolkata The 100th Indian Science Congress was held from 3 to 7 January in Kolkata (West Bengal) .The theme of the session is Science for Shaping the Future of India .The session was inaugurated by Pranab Mukherjee the President of India .In the session Prime Minister Manmohan Singh released The Science, Technology and Innovation Policy(STI) 2013 .On 4 January Former President Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam inaugurated a Children Science Congress as part of the 100th Indian Science Congress .The 100th Indian Science Congress (ISC 2013) is also organized a special programme Women empowerment for the development of the country to showcase the

contribution of women in science and technology.This is the 13th time the Indian Science Congress is being hosted by Kolkata 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) was held from 7- 9 January at Kochi (Kerala).Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag was the chief guest of this official inaugural session.2000 delegates from 40 countries attended the convention.The theme for this years Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is Engaging Diaspora the Indian Growth Story.On 7th January in the event they discussed on problems that people from Kerala face in the region.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will inaugurated the annual flagship event and released the postage stamp on Ghadar Movement on 8 January and President Pranab Mukherjee will delivered the valedictory address on January 9 and also presented the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards.Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on January 9 every year to mark the contribution of overseas Indian community in the development of India.The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, the first of its kind involving the Indian Diaspora, was held in 2003 at New Delhi. Fourth Meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Ministers held in Vientiane The Fourth meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Minister (4th M-ATM+ India) was held in Vientiane, Lao PDR from 21 to January in conjunction with the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2013 (ATF2013).The Meeting was jointly co-chaired by H.E. Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR, and H.E. Dr. K. Chiranjeevi, Minister for Tourism, Government of India.In the meeting Both the Ministers have signed the Protocol to amend the Memorandum of Understanding between ASEAN and India on Strengthening Tourism Cooperation. World Economic Forum Summit Held in Davos The 43rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting held from 23 27 January at DavosKlosters in Switzerland.The annual forum, which has been running for over 40 years, provides a platform for decision-makers in politics, non-governmental organisations and businesses to gather and to exchange views on the worlds most pressing problems.The World Economic Forum (WEF) unites international political leaders, business leaders and journalists from across the globe to discussed and shape global, regional and industrial agendas with regards to economics, health and the environment.The WEF was founded in 1971 as a non-profit organization by the German Klaus Schwab, a business professor at the University of Geneva.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Malala won 2012 Tipperary International Peace Award On 3 January Malala Yousafzai, the teenaged Pakistani school girl shot by a Taliban gunman last year , has been awarded the 2012 Tipperary International Peace Award from Ireland for her courage and determination to speak out in support of equal access to education for children.Malala is the second Pakistani to get the award. In 2007, it was given to late Benazir Bhutto. Malala honored with the French Simone de Beauvoir Prize On 9 January Malala Yousafzai (15), the schoolgirl from Pakistan shot by Taliban for campaigning girls education, received Frances Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Womens Freedom in Paris. Malalas father Ziaudin Yousafzai received the honour on her behalf. he award is accompanied with 2.5 million RupeTes honorarium. Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award 2013 On 9 January Pranab Mukherjee President of India presented the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Awards) 2013 to 14 people, included Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi and Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag, He was also the Chief Guest of 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2013. In accordance to Tradition, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Awards) 2013 have been given to notable Indians living abroad. The other awardees are Prof Dr Gurusharan Singh Chhatwal of Germany for science, Dr Rasik Vihari Joshi (Mexico) for Literature, Gilbert Canabady Moutien (Reunion Island) and Mohammed Rabeeh Karuvanthodi (Saudi Arabia) for business, Patricia Maria Rozario(UK) for Music, Dr Narendra Ramakrishna Kumar (USA) for Healthcare, Subash Razdan (USA) and Islmail Ebrahim (South Afrcia) for Public service. Dr Satendra Kumar Singh (New Zealand), Australia India Society of Victoria (Australia) and Bava Pandalingal (UAE), Ashok Shambhomal Vaswani (Guinea), Indian Doctors Forum, Kuwait for community service, Tan Sri Ravindran Menon from Malaysia for Community service, are among others on the list of awardees. Mamata Banerjee gets gift from PCB Overwhelmed by the hospitality at the Eden Gardens during India-Pakistan second ODI in Kolkata, the PCB sent the gift as a silver-coated Quran to the Cricket Association of Bengal who handed it over to the CM during a function at the Netaji Indoor in Kolkata on 10 January 2013. Mahaveer Golechha Bags Award for Alzheimers Drug

On 17 January The London-based Indian researcher Mahaveer Golechha, was selected to be felicitated for an award that includes his work on a drug that can be a potential cure of Alzheimers disease.In the study conducted by Golechha, he found discovered that naringin has essential anti-Alzheimer activity. 70th Golden Globe Awards 2013 On January 13 The 70th Golden Globe Awards honored the best in film and television of 2012, was presented in California . Best Film : Argo Best Actor : Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) Best Actress : Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) Best Director - Ben Affleck (Argo) Best Musical or Comedy -: Les Miserables Best Foreign Language Film : Amour Best Animated Feature Film -: Brave Krishi Karman Awards 2011- 2012 On 15 January President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Krishi Karman awards for the year 2011-12 at an award ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The awards were presented to the State Governments for their excellent performance in increasing the production of food grains in their respective states. Awards in Different Segments :- The Awards for Special Contribution to Total Food Grains Production - Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Manipur and Nagaland - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Rice Bihar - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Wheat - Haryana - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Pulses - Jharkhand - Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Coarse Cereals Uttar Pradesh

58th Filmfare Awards The 58th Filmfare Awards were held honoring the best films of 2012 from the Hindilanguage film industry (commonly known as Bollywood). The ceremony was held on January 20, 2013 at Mumbai. Best Movie :- Barfi!

Best Actor :- Ranbir Kapoor (Film -Barfi!) Best Actress :- Vidya Balan (Film Kahaani ) Best Director :- Sujoy Ghosh (Film Kahaani ) Lifetime Achievement Award :- Yash Chopra (After Death) Prof C N R Rao awarded by Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences was awarded Prof C N R Rao, National Research Professor and Honorary President of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCAR), the prestigious International Scientific Cooperation Award 2012. The award is designed to acknowledge outstanding scientists for their contribution to science and for promoting global networking of international science cooperation. Padma Awards 2013 President of India Approved the Conferment of 108 Padma Awards On 25 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of Union of India approved conferment of 108 Padma Awards. Four people have been conferred with Padma Vibhusan, twenty four are conferred with Padma Bhushan and 80 people would be receiving Padma Shree Awards. Out of all the awardees twenty-four are ladies and 11 people belong to categories like NRIs, PIOs, Foreigners and Posthumous awardees. Padma Vibhushan Raghunath Mohapatra, Art, Orissa S Haider Raza, Art, Delhi Prof Yash Pal, Science and Engineering, Uttar Pradesh Prof Roddam Narasimha, Science and Engineering, Karnataka

Padma Bhushan Sharmila Tagore, Art, Delhi Dr (Smt) Saroja Vaidyanathan, Art, Delhi Late Rajesh Khanna, Art, Maharashtra Late Jaspal Singh Bhatti, Art, Punjab Adi Burjor Godrej, Trade and Industry, Maharashtra Prof Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Literature & Education USA Rahul Dravid, Sports, Karnataka H Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom, Sports, Manipur Padma Shri Hosanagara Nagarajegowda Girisha, Sports, Karnataka , Subedar Major Vijay Kumar, Sports, Himachal Pradesh Yogeshwar Dutt, Sports, Haryana B Jayashree, Art, Karnataka Sridevi Kapoor, Art, Maharashtra Ramesh Gopaldas Sippy, Art, Maharashtra 359 Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced On 26 January President Pranab Mukherjee has approved awards of 359 Gallantry and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel and others on the eve of the 64th Republic Day Celebrations .This includes 01 Kirti Chakra, 11 Shaurya Chakra, 56 Sena Medal (Gallantry), 01 Bar to Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 03 Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 03 Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry), 28 Param Vishisht Seva Medal, 03 Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, 06 Bar to Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 44 Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 12 Yudh Seva Medal, 02 Bar to Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 37 Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 01 Bar to Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 07 Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 14 Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 04 Bar to Vishisht Seva Medal and 116 Vishisht Seva Medal..Major Abup J Manjali of the Rashtriya Rifles was

selected for the award of Kirti Chakra for his extraordinary bravery efforts in counterterrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir. Taiwan Business Magnate Launched Tang Prize (Asian Noble Prize) On 28 January Samuel Yin , A business magnate tycoon from Taiwan has launched the Tang Prize(Asian Noble prize) for outstanding achievements in natural and social sciences.He announced that he would establish Tang Prize Foundation which would have an initial donation of 103 million dollar.Tang Prize Foundation was decided that the prizes under the Tang Prize Foundation will be awarded every alternate year to the international leaders in sustainable development, biopharmaceutical science, the rule of law as well as the study of China.

SPORTS & GAMES Kohli is CEAT International Cricketer of the Year On 4 January Vice-captain of Indian Cricket team Virat Kohli was named the International Cricketer of the Year while Pakistan cricket team was named as the Best International Cricket Team in the 2011-2012 season at the CEAT cricket awards in New Delhi. Unmukt Chand, who led India to the U-19 World Cup win last year, got the inaugural Indian Youngster of the Year award.The Former Pakistan cricket captain Zaheer Abbas received the Lifetime Achievement Award. Uttarakhand won 63rd National Basketball Championship On 4 January Uttarakhand won 63rd National basketball championship mens title after defeated Punjab in the final at Ludhiana (Punjab).In the womens section, Railways won the title against by first-time finalist Tamil Nadu in the final. Tipsarevic won Chennai Open Tennis Title On 6 January Second-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia has won the ATP Chennai Open Title after defeated Roberto Bautista-Agut of Spain in the final at Chennai.Tipsarevic won the chennai open title for the first time in his career. Nicol David won World Series Squash Title On 6 January Nicol David won the World Series Squash Finals womens title after defeated Englands Laura Massaro in the final at London.In the mens final, Egypts Amr Shabana came from behind to beat Englands Nick Matthew .

Australia Won Test Against Sri Lanka Australia secured a five-wicket won in the third and final Test match against Sri Lanka on 6 January at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) . Brisbane International Tennis Winners 2013 Womens Singles :Serena Williams (USA) won the WTA Brisbane International womens singles title on 5 January with a straight sets demolition of Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Mens Singles : In the Mens singles Category Andy Murray from scotland won the title after defeated Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov . Womens Doubles : Sania Mirza and her partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands won the womens doubles trophy by winning against Kveta Peschke and Anna-Lena Groenefeld Mens Doubles : Marcelo Melo Tommy Robredo won the doubles title after defeated Eric Butorac Paul Hanley . Pakistan won the Three Match Series On 6 January Pakistan won the three-match series by 2-1 against India.With this win over Pakistan, India lost the three matches one day series .Nasir Jamshed of Paksitan was declared as the Player of the tournament.MS Dhoni was once again chosen as the Player of the match. Lionel Messi, the man of the four Golden Balls Lionel Messi became the first four-time winner of the FIFA Player of the Year award after shattering the world record with 91 goals last year(2012) for Barcelona and Argentina.His 91 goals topped Gerd Muellers mark of 85 for Bayern Munich and Germany in 1972. Bangar quits first-class cricket Former India player and Railways captain Sanjay Bangar announced his retirement from first-class cricket after guiding his team to a 122-run victory over Bengal in the final league game of the Ranji Trophy on 01 January 2013 in Kolkata.He played 165 first class matches amassing 8342 runs at an average of 33.35 and has 300 wickets to his credit. National Table Tennis Championship Winners

On 11 January Soumyajit Ghosh became the youngest national champion after he defeated six-time winner Achanta Sharath Kamal in the summit clash of the 74th National Table Tennis Championship mens singles final at Raipur.Shamini Kumaresan won the womens singles title.Sourav Chakraborty and Ganeshan Sathiyan won the doubles title.In the Women doubles category K. Spoorthy and Nikhat Banu (AP) defeated Madhurika Patkar and Pooja Sahasrabudhe in the final and got the title. Haryana girls retain U-20 hockey title Haryana defeated Uttar Pradesh 1-0 to retain their under-20 women hockey national championship at the Gachibowli Stadium on 16 January 2013. Kerala won 61st National Volleyball Championship Title On 16 January Kerala defeated Tamilnadu to retain the mens title in the 61st Senior National Volleyball Championship at the Sawai Man Singh Indoor Stadium in Jaipur.In the womens section, Railways defeated Kerala and won the title in the final. Malaysian Open Badminton Championship Winners Mens Singles: Lee Chong Wei (Indonesia) won the Mens singles title after defeated Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the final at Kuala Lumpur on 20 January. Mens Doubles: Mohd Ahsan (Indonesia) -Hendra Setiawan (China) defeated Ko Sung-hyun-Lee Yong-dae (Malaysia) in the final. Womens Singles: Tai Tzu-ying (Thailand) won the womens singles title after defeated Yao Xue (Korea) Womens Doubles: In the event Bao Yixin-Tian Qing (China) won the title after defeated Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi (Japan) Lalith Babu takes top honours Lalith Babu defeated Swapnil Dhopade in the final round to clinch the Chennai Super Kings International Grandmaster chess tournament that concluded at the Nehru Stadium in Chennai on 23 January 2013.Lalith Babu won Rs.200,000 and the trophy after becoming the first Indian player to claim the Chennai Open Australian Open Tennis Tournament 2013 Winners Womens Singles :- Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won the Womens Singles title of the Australian Open Tennis tournament after defeated Li Na of China in the final at Melbourne on 26 January .

Mens Singles:- Novak Djokovic (Serbia) has won the mens singles title after defeating Andy Murray (Britain) in four sets. This is Djokovics fourth Australian Open and over all six Grand Slam single title. Womens Doubles:- Top seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci won the title, defeating wild cards Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua in the final. Mens Doubles : Top seeded American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan won the mens doubles title. Americans Mike and Bob Bryan won their record 13th Grand Slam doubles title, defeating the Dutch team of Robin Haase and Igor Sijsling . Magnus Carlsen Won Tata Steel Chess Championship Magnus Carlsen won Tata Steel 2013 Chess tournament title in the final at Netherlands on 27 January .In the final round tournament, he scored 10 points , winning clear first ahead of second-place finisher Aronian (Armenia).World champion Viswanathan Anand at third position. Mumbai won 40th Ranji Trophy Title On 29 January Mumbai won its 40th Ranji Trophy title against Saurashtra by an inning and 125 runs in the final at Wankhede at Mumbai .Wasim Jaffar was declared Man of the Match. Ajit Agarkar was the captain of the winning team.

ECONOMY Philippines introduced sin tax A sin tax on cigarettes and alcohol was introduced in the Philippines on 01 January 2013, as part of a government bid to boost finances.Many stores started selling tobacco and drink at inflated prices before midnight , ahead of the official implementation of the tax hikes on January 01, hitting partygoers in the pocket.Tax on cigarettes will gradually be raised to 30 pesos ($0.72) per pack by 2017, roughly doubling the current price to around 52 pesos.Duty on alcohol will also increase gradually until 2017, increasing the price of a bottle of beer by 23.50 pesos, with varying levels for other drinks including wine and spirits. LIC Launched New Jeewan Nidhi & Flexi Plus Policies The Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India launched two new Insurence policies New Jeevan Nidhi, a pension scheme, and Flexi Plus on 3 January .New Jeewan Nidhi provides the facility of insurance coverage of full amount while the insured person

keeps depositing premiums.The Flexi policy is a unit linked insurance product. The plan not only provides a lump sum benefit on death but also maturity benefit irrespective of survival of the policy holder Mukesh Ambani 18th richest man in world Indian business magnate Mukesh Ambani is the 18th richest person in the world with a personal wealth of $24.7 billion in 2012, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a daily ranking of the worlds 100 wealthiest individuals. Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim remained the worlds richest person last year holding a personal fortune of more than $70 billion.Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the founder of fashion retailer Zara, Amancio Ortega, got a second and third places respectively. Indian Companies Top Globally in R&D Investment According to the European Commission report Indian companies have come on the top globally when it comes to growth in their research and development (R&D) investments, leaving their counterparts in the US and Europe far behind.Indian firms rank far below when it comes to absolute R&D investments made by them and the top-ranked company from the country.These are the only 14 Indian companies present in a list of top-1500 entities worldwide in terms of their annual R&D investments.The top-ranked Indian company is Infosys at 329th place and Japanese company Toyota Motor appears at the top of the ranking in the 2012 Scoreboard. IMF forecasted Indian Economic Growth Rate to be 5.9 percent in 2013 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 23 January 2013 pegged Indias economic growth rate in 2013 at 5.9 per cent and projected a higher growth of 6.4 per cent next year in line with the gradual strengthening of global expansion. World Banks Global Economic Prospects 2013 Report According to the World Bank Global Economic Prospects 2013 report , Indias growth is expected to inch closer to that of China in near future, in which the economies of developing countries like India, China and Brazil are projected to be recovering and higher growth rate.The World Bank expects that by 2015, the growth rate of China would be 7.9% and that of India 7%.While the growth of the world economy growth is projected to inch up from 2.3% in 2012 to 2.4% in 2013, with the high-income countries remaining at the same level of growth of 1.3% in both 2012 and 2013, it is the emerging markets like India, China and Brazil that would show significant signs of recovery.They are expecting a recovery in India from 5.1% growth in 2012 to 6.1% growth in 2013.

India 119th on Economic Freedom Index According to the Heritage Foundation 2013 Index of Economic Freedom survey report , India has been ranked as the 119th freest country in the world and Indias economic freedom score stood at 55.2, as its institutional shortcomings continue to undermine the foundations for long-term economic development.The top ten countries in the list include Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Switzarland, canada, Chili, Mauritius, Denmark and US. India second in steel production globally India is second only to China in terms of steel production. In the last 5 years Indias production grew by 33 percent, thus making it behind China among the top 5 steel producing nation. World Steel Association (WSA) data has revealed that C hinas production grew by 39 per cent during 2008-2012, Indias by 33 percent and Indias production grew constantly in the last five years from 57.8 MT in 2008 to 63.5 MT in 2009, 69 MT in 2010, 73.6 MT in 2011 and 76.7 MT in 2012 RBI cuts CRR, Repo Rates On 29 January The Reserve Bank of India slashed its key interest rates by 0.25 per cent and released 18000 crore rupees additional liquidity into the system to perk up growth through reduced cost of borrowing. RBI in its third quarter monetary policy review surprised the market by cutting short-term lending rate called repo, by 0.25 per cent to 7.75 per cent and Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by similar margin to 4 per cent.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY US approved First new Tuberculosis Drug On 1 January The US Food and Drug administration approved a Johnson & Johnson tuberculosis drug in 40 years .This is the first new medicine to fight the deadly infection in more than four decades.The disease is rare in the US, but kills about 1.4 million people a year worldwide. Spiral galaxy IC 2233 Astronomers had captured one of the flattest galaxies known in the universe, sitting like a silver needle in the haystack of space. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope produced a beautiful image of the spiral galaxy IC 2233, one of the flattest galaxies.

The IC 2233 is located about 40 million light-years away from Earth. This galaxy was earlier discovered by British astronomer Isaac Roberts in 1894. Immune system booster may hit cancer Japanese research where stem cells were used to clone and produce large numbers of a specialized type of white blood cell. These cells, known as cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), are produced by the immune system and are able to recognize specific markers on the surface of various tumour cells, causing them to launch an attack to kill the tumour cells.The researchers are succeeded in using stem cells to massproduce CTLs in laboratory conditions. Chinese Biologists Discovered Antibiotic In Panda Blood Chinese biologists have discovered that the blood of the endangered giant panda includes a compound called Cathelicidin-AM which acts as a natural antibiotic. The nature of the blood compound makes it an attractive treatment for so-called superbugs, those strains of disease that have become immune or resistant to traditional antibiotics. India to make worlds largest solar telescope India is likely to begin construction of the worlds largest solar telescope on the foothills of the Himalayas in Ladakh to understand the fundamental processes taking place on the Sun by year-end.A 2-metre class, state-of-the-art National Large Solar Telescope (NLST), built by Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), will permit Indian scientists to carry out cutting edge research aimed to study Suns atmosphere. Internet emits 830 mt of carbon dioxide annually According to Researchers from the Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications (CEET) and Bell Labs, Internet and other components of information communication and technology (ICT) industry annually produces more than 830 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas, and is expected to double by 2020 Lakshya Missile Successfully Tested Indias indigenously developed, Lakshya was sucessfully tested on 7 January .It was launched from the Integrated Test Range ITR, at Odisha .25 meters in length, 100 km away from the target to the missile . 17 billion Earth-sized planets in Milky Way

The Milky Way contains at least 17 billion planets the size of Earth.Astronomers using NASAs Kepler spacecraft found that about 17 percent of stars in our galaxy have a planet about the size of Earth in a close orbit.The Milky Way is known to host about 100 billion stars, meaning that about one of every six has an Earth-sized planet around it. Brahmos cruise missile test fired in successfully Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos scored once again in its 34th launch on 09 January 2013 off Visakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal, hitting a decommissioned vessel with accuracy.As it took off vertically from a naval warship, reached an altitude of 14 km, levelled out and started cruising at three times the speed of sound, it performed a double manoeuvre in S-form and hit the decommissioned ship, about 290 km away. Astronomers Found NGC 6872 Largest known Spiral Galaxy A team of astronomers from the United States, Chile and Brazil has crowned it the largest-known spiral galaxy, a spectacular behemoth five times bigger than our own Milky Way, based on archival data from NASAs Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALE X) mission.The title-holder is now NGC 6872, a barred spiral found 212 million light-years away in the southern constellation Pavo. The distance between NGC 6872s two huge spiral arms is 522,000 light-years, compared to about 100,000 light-years for the Milky Way. Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has been named after Sathees as SCR7 and a detailed account of it has been carried in the international scientific journal Cell".Scientists world over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences such as genome instability, and cancer. Largest Space structure in the Universe:Large Quasar Group An international team lead by astronomer Roger Clowes of the University of Central Lancashire in England discovered the largest known structure in the universe, a clump of active galactic cores that stretches 4 billion light-years from end to end.This is the largest Space structure in the Universe.This structure is known as a Large Quasar Group(LQG). Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment

A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has been named after Sathees as SCR7 and a detailed account of it has been carried in the international scientific journal Cell".Scientists world over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences such as genome instability, and cancer. Worlds First Global Renewable Energy Atlas Launched On 13 January Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) launched the worlds first clean energy atlas at IRENAS General Assembly , currently offers open-access information on solar and wind power throughout the world and the creators plan to expand to other renewable energy resources over the next two years.The atlas includes information on clean energy resources in 37 countries, including those which have no diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates.The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is working in partnership with the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) to build a qualitative and quantitative data framework for renewable energy in developing countries. Ancient River Found on Mars On 17 January The European Space Agency scientists have revealed a 1500 km long and 7 kilometre wide river that once ran across Mars.The images which were captured by the ESAs Mars Express showed Reull Vallis, the river-like structure, which is believed to have formed when water ran from the surface of Mars in distant past. The structure which surprised the astronomers stretches for around 900 miles or 1500 km across the Martian surface and also shows various tributaries. These structures, it is believed, were formed somewhere around 3.5 billion years ago. India Increased Rafale Fighter Jets Order India could buy up to 189 of the Rafale fighter jets currently being used by France to bomb Islamist militants in Mali, sources close to negotiations on the multi-billion dollar deal .The possibility of an additional 63 jets being added to an expected order for 126 was raised by India .The Indian press has estimated the value of the deal for 126 Rafales at $12 billion (nine billion euros).A 50 per cent increase in the number of planes ordered would take it to around $18 billion, in a huge boost for the French defence industry. Japan to replace Fukushima plant with worlds largest wind farm In the wake of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan had decided to build the worlds largest offshore wind farm to replace the crippled nuke plant.The country

plans to build a total of 143 wind turbines on platforms 16 kilometres off the coast of Fukushima by 2020, which is home to the stricken Daiichi nuclear reactor that hit the headlines in March 2011 when it was damaged by a severe earthquake and tsunami.The wind farm will generate 1 gigawatt of power once completed, and is part of a national plan to increase renewable energy resources following the post-tsunami shutdown of the countrys 54 nuclear reactors.The wind farm will surpass the 504 megawatts generated by the 140 turbines at the Greater Gabbard farm off the coast of Suffolk, UK currently the worlds largest farm. India, US finalise Rs 3,000 crore deal for jet engines India and the US have finalised a Rs 3000-crore deal for supplying 99 jet engines to be used in the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft Tejas being developed by the DRDO.Around two years ago, India had selected the American company General Electric over its rival European Eurojet 2000 for the LCA Mark II programme expected to be ready around 2014-15.The deal worth Rs 3,000 crore has been finalised with the US for procuring 99 engines for the LCA Tejas MkII.As per the contract, the order could be for 99 engines initially but India will have the option of ordering another 100 engines in the future. INS Saryu Inducted into Indian Navy On 21 January Air Marshal PK Roy, Commander-in-Chief, Andaman and Nicobar Command, commissioned INS Saryu into the Indian Navy at Goa .INS Saryu is the lead ship of the indigenous Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel (NOPV) Project designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited, the ship aptly demonstrates the immense potential of the countrys indigenous designing and ship building capabilities.Capable of carrying a helicopter (ALH) onboard, the ships weapon and sensor outfit includes a SRGM 76.2 mm gun with an electro-optic fire control system, two 30mm guns as close in weapon systems, latest navigational and early warning radars, chaff launchers for self protection and an integrated ESM system to undertake all assigned missions. MIT researchers Created Moisture Powered Polymer MIT ( Massachusetts Institute of Technology ) researchers have created a new polymer film that can generate electricity by drawing on a ubiquitous source: water vapor.The new material changes its shape after absorbing tiny amounts of evaporated water, allowing it to repeatedly curl up and down. Harnessing this continuous motion could drive robotic limbs or generate enough electricity to power micro- and nanoelectronic devices, such as environmental sensors. India Sucessfully Test Fired K-5 Ballistic Missile

On 27 January India successfully test fired medium range K-5 ballistic missile ,with a strike range of around 1500 kilometres, from an underwater platform in Bay of Bengal.K-5 is part of the family of underwater missiles being developed by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) for the Indian strategic forces underwater platforms. Iran successfully sent monkey into space Iran on 28 January 2013 announced that it had successfully send a monkey to the space.It also declared that the monkey come back to the Earth successfully.The rocket called Pishgam (meaning Pioneer) reached at a height of 120 km (75 miles) for a sub-orbital flight before returning its shipment intact. The first country to launch the primate into space was US.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) APPOINTMENTS Asif Ibrahim appointed as chief Intelligence Bureau Indian Police Service officer SA Ibrahim appointed as chief of the Intelligence Bureau on 01 January 2013 and he becoming the first from the countrys main minority community(Muslim Community) to hold the post. Ibrahim, an IPS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, has taken over as from Nehchal Sandhu who retired December 31. He will hold the post for two years. Urjit Patel appointed as RBI deputy governor On 02 January 2013 Urjit Patel, a consultant at Boston Consulting Group, had been appointed a deputy governor at the Reserve Bank of India, succeeding Subir Gokarn who was aiding the governor in shaping the monetary policy. YV Reddy to head 14th Finance Commission On 02 January 2013 former RBI governor YV Reddy was appointed chairman of the 14th finance commission to suggest principles of sharing of revenues between the Centre and the states and insulate pricing of public utilities like electricity, water and public transport from policy fluctuations. Ami Bera and Tulsi Gabbard Sworn In As US Lawmakers

On 4 January Indian American physician from California, Ami Bera, and the young Iraq war veteran from Hawaii, Tulsi Gabbard, created history after being sworn in as new members of the US House of Representatives.Bera is only the third Indian American have ever been elected to the House of Representatives.Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu ever to won the Congressional election. Malalas Father Appointed as Education Attache in Birmingham On 3 January Malalas father Ziauddin Yousafzai has been appointed as the education attache at the Pakistan consulate in Birmingham, England.The job is believed to be for up to three years. Indian American Srinivasan re-nominated as Federal Judge On 4 January Srikanth Srinivasan a brilliant Indian American legal mind has been renominated by US President Barack Obama to serve as Federal Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit.In June 2012 he was nominated by Obama to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Justice D K Jain appointed new Law Commission chief The Union Cabinet of India on 7 January 2013 appointed Justice D K Jain as Chairman of 20th Law Commission of India. He gives advice to the government on complex legal issues. Justice Jain, 64, will take over as the chief of the law panel on January 24 after retiring from the Supreme Court on the same day. John Brennan as a CIA director U.S. President Barack Obama announced on )7 January 2013 John Brennan wasnominated as director of the American Intelligence Agency(CIA) and Chuck Hagel as a Defense secretary. John Brennan played a key role in encounter the Osama Bin Laden. Indian-origin politician to be Singapores first woman speaker Indian-origin politician Halimah Yacob elected as the first woman Speaker of Singapores Parliament on 08 Janauary 2013.She take charges from 14 January 2013.Halimah, a former labour lawyer, is a member of Parliament from the ruling Peoples Action Party (PAP). Kulwant Singh Gill Took charge as new Commandant of NDA On 8 January Air Marshal Kulwant Singh Gill took charge as the new commandant of the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla, Pune.The NDA provides three-

year training in defence and academics to its cadets before they move on to their respective officers training academies for another one-year course and get commissioned into the armed forces. R.K. Dubey Took Charge as Canara Banks new CMD On 11 January R.K. Dubey has assumed charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of Canara Bank .Mr. Dubey was previously worked as a Punjab National Bank General Manager in 2008 and was appointed as Executive Director of Central Bank of India in 2010. Rajkumar Goyal Took Charge as Central Bank of India new ED On 11 January Rajkumar Goyal has took charge as Executive Director (ED) of Central Bank of India (CBI).He was previously with the bank of India as the General Manager of Human Resources Department Obama nominated Jack Lew as new Treasury Chief On 11 January President Barack Obama nominated his chief of staff, Jack Lew, to become the next Treasury secretary and succeed Timothy Geithner.Last year, Lew was named Obamas chief of staff, and before that he had served as the White House budget director. First Gujarati in UK cabinet Lord Dolar Popat has appointed a minister in the UK cabinet .He become the first Gujarati taking his place in the UK cabinet .Popat was appointed minister for business, innovation & skills and transport. Mohan Pieris assumes duties as 44th Chief Justice of Sri Lanka On 15 January 2013 ,Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed his cabinets legal advisor as the countrys new Chief Justice to succeed Shirani Bandaranayake. Rajapaksa sworn in new Chief Justice Mohan Peiris to replace Sri Lankas first woman chief justice who was impeached by the parliament in a controversial move.Peiris, a British qualified solicitor who retired in 2011 as the Attorney General was serving as the legal advisor to the Cabinet. Ved Prakash is UGC chairman Ved Prakash, serving as acting chairman of the University Grants Commission, had been appointed as its chairman on 18 January 2013.The chairmans post remained

vacant ever since S. Thorat retired in February 2011. Since then Mr. Prakash had been the acting chairman. Obama Sworn in as the US President for Second Term On 20 January US President Barack Obama Barack Obama was sworn in as the President of the country for a second four-year term.Obama as the 44th president of the United States and also he is the third consecutive president to win two terms, after Bush and Clinton. Joe Biden sworn-in for second term as US vice-president. Suchitra Ella, Founding Chairwoman of CIIs women wing Suchitra K. Ella, Joint Managing Director, Bharat Biotech International, had been nominated as the Founding Chairwoman of the Indian Women Network of CII. The network aims to provide a platform for working women to come together and discuss issues and opportunities and share best practices. She is currently the Chairperson of CII Andhra Pradesh State Council for 2012-13. She had earlier been elected to the CII Andhra Pradesh State Council. She has been awarded the International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge award 2007 by the Chamber of Commerce of Barcelona, the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce and the FLO GR8 Women Achievers Award 2008 for entrepreneurial excellence. B)RESIGNS Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda resigned Political uncertainty deepened in Jharkhand on 08 January 2013, with Chief Minister Arjun Munda submitted his resignation to Governor Syed Ahmed. On 07 January 2013, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) announced the withdrawal of its support to the BJP-led government. Rajapaksa Dismissed First Woman Chief Justice of the Country On 13 January Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President of Sri Lanka dismissed the first woman chief justice of the country, Shirani Bandarnayake after endorsing her impeachment by the Parliament that caught her guilty on the corruption charges.She appointed as a chief Justice on May 2011. C)DEATHS Violin maestro MSG passes away M.S. Gopalakrishnan legendary violinist known for his mastery of both the Carnatic and Hindustani systems of classical music passed away on 03 January 2013 in

Chennai.In his career spanning 75 years, he not only broke new ground as an accompanist, but also rose to become one of the best solo violinists in the country, along with Lalgudi G. Jayaraman and T.N. Krishnan. The three are considered the violin trinity of south Indian classical music.Despite enviable success and accolades that came in the form of national honours such as the Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri, and innumerable titles, including the Sangita Kalanidhi title awarded by The Music Academy, Chennai. Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum is no more Renowned Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum died on 19 January 2013.Mehnaz specialized in ghazal, thumri, dadra, khayal, drupad and reciting salam, noha and marsiya.Mehnaz was the daughter of popular sub-continental singer Kajjan Begum.She sang over 2,500 songs for radio television and films in a variety of genres like ghazal, thumri, dadra, khayal and drupad. D)VISITORS Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag Visited India Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag visited India from 3 10 January .During the visit Purryag met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pranab Mukherjee on 4 January in New Delhi. In Bihar , he visited his ancestral village , Bojeetpore near Patna.President Purryag also the chief guest of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas .He attended the 3 days event 11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi (Kerala). Vice President Hamid Ansari Visited Vietnam Vice President Hamid Ansari visited Vietnam from 14 to 17 January.During the visit Ansari met Vietnams Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh and discussed the both countries bilateral issues , signed several agreements .Ansari attended the closing ceremony of the celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the India-Vietnam diplomatic ties. Bhutan King Wangchuck Visited India The King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck visited India from 23-30 January.During the visit he attended the Indias Republic Day celebrations as a Chief Guest.Wangchuck met President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and the United Progressive Alliances Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi.This is the fou rth time since 1954 that a Bhutanese King will be a Chief Guest at Indias Republic Day celebrations. E)MISCELLANEOUS

Ex-Haryana CM Chautala, son get 10 years jail Former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala and his son Ajay had been sentenced to 10 years in jail in connection with a teachers recruitment scam.Special CBI Judge Vinod Kumar sentenced the Chautalas and seven others to 10 years in jail while one convict was given five years in jail and 45 others four years in jail. Swaminarayan sect opens $100-million quake-proof temple near Hollywood One of the biggest Hindu temples in the US, built at a whopping cost of $100 million near the Hollywood city in Los Angeles .The 68th Swaminarayan temple of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) had been built using 35,000 pieces of meticulously hand carved Italian Carrara marble and Indian Pink Sandstone. Premlata Conquers Summit of Mt Vinson in Antarctica On 17 January Premlata Agrawal, the oldest woman in India to have climbed Mt. Everest, has conquered Mt. Vinson in Antarctica in pursuit of the Mountaineering Challenge of climbing the Seven Summits.She completed her Mt. Vinson expedition on January .The person successful in conquering all the seven summits is considered a member of the Hall of Fame for mountaineers.Premlata will become the first Indian woman and one of the oldest in the world to conquer all seven summits. Ex-ISRO chairman Inducted in to Satellite Hall of Fame The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced its former chairman and Department of Space secretary Prof U R Rao by inducting him as the member of the prestigious Satellite Hall of Fame , Washington.Since 1987, the SSPI Hall of Fame has been recognising the invaluable contribution of the visionaries who have transformed life on planet earth for the better through satellite technology. Members of the Hall of Fame are recognised pioneers in communications, satellite related aerospace scientific research or development and delivery of applications for business, institutions and government via satellite. David Headley sentenced for 35 years for 26/11 role(Mumbai attacks) Pakistani-American Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist David Headley was on 24 January 2013 sentenced to 35 years in jail by a Chicago court for his unquestionable role in the massacre of 166 people in the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Forbes India Celebrity 100 List

According to the Forbes India Celebrity 100 List The Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, topped the inaugural Forbes India Celebrity 100 list.Forbes India estimates, the total earning of Shah Rukh from October 2011 and September 2012 was 202.8 crore Rupees.The ranking was given based on the popularity as well as income of the biggest entertainers of India. Second on the list was Salman Khan and MS Dhoni followed in the third position.The special edition of Forbes India judged in eight different categories directors, film actors, TV personailities, models, comedians, sports stars, authors and singers/musicians.The youngest celebrity in the list of Forbes India was Saina Nehwal, aged 23 years. Switzerland best place to be born, India 66th Switzerland has been called the best place in the world to be born in 2013 according to the The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a sister company of The Economist. The worst place for a baby to start life was violence-hit African country Nigeria. The survey included 80 nations and Australia ranked second followed by Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Singapore, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Canada and New Zealand were also ranked among top 10. India was ranked 66th place.The survey included significant parameters to judge the best country to be born and these factors included demography, geography, cultural and social characteristics, state of economy, future income per head as well as public policy.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong Quake in Indonesia On 22nd January A strong, shallow earthquake rocked parts of western Indonesia early killed 30 persons and panicking residents and ruining homes. Several other people were injured.Indonesias meteorology and geophysics agency put the preliminary magnitude at 6.0 and said the inland quake caused no tsunami. It was centered southwest of the city of Banda Aceh and 10 miles (6 kilometers) beneath the earths crust, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.. 233 People Killed in Brazil Night Club Fire Accident On 27 January The blaze in the university town of Santa Maria nightclub fire killed at least 233 people in southern Brazil .Most of those who died were suffocated by toxic fumes that rapidly filled the crowded club after sparks from pyrotechnics used by the band for visual effects set fire to soundproofing on the ceiling.

ABBREVIATIONS CBT-Cash Transfer Benefit EIUEconomist Intelligence Unit CBSCentral Bureau of Statistics NLST-National Large Solar Telescope CEET-Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications CIAAmerican Intelligence Agency WEF-World Economic Forum PBSPravasi Bhartiya Divas MSMEMinistry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises BWFBadminton World Federation

BOOKS IN NEWS Swami Vivekananda The Monk as Man Book Released The renowned Bengali writer Shankar wrote a The Monk as Man book on Swami Vivekananda ,who spread the message of Indias spiritual heritage across the world.In the book Shankar described Vivekananda used to emphasise greatly on physical strength and is known for the shocking statement Better to play football than read the Gita. McChrystal My Share of the Task: A Memoir Book Released General Stanley McChrystal, the former American commander in Afghanistan, wrote a My Share of the Task: A Memoir, book which was released on 7 January .In the book Chrystal explained that tensions between the White House and the Pentagon were evident in the Obama administration from its opening months in office.This book is not just for aficionados of military history or for students of American foreign policy . February 2013 Current Affairs Study Material

INTERNATIONAL UK, Afghan, Pakistan Leaders Hold Talks in Britain On 4 February The leaders of Britain, Afghanistan and Pakistan pushed for the Taliban to come to the table for peace talks to end Afghanistans protracted conflict and gave themselves a six-month deadline to get a deal.British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted Afghanistans President Hamid Karzai and Pakistans President Asif Zardari for trilateral talks on Afghanistans floundering peace and reconciliation process. UNICEF Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report On 8 February According to the UNICEF (United Nations Childrens Fund )Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report, The vaccination effort in collaboration with the Ministry of Health is well underway, with over 53,000 children receiving measles vaccinations, over 44,000 receiving vitamin A supplements, and over 10,000 polio doses administered. Pakistan to Renamed Sindh Province to Sind On 12 February 2013, the Sindh Assembly approved a bill to rename the southern Pakistani province as Sind.The assembly approved the Sindh Laws Amendment Bill of 2012, whereby the letter h will be removed from the name of the province. Russia Rejected U.S. Nuclear Warheads Proposals On 14 February Russia rejected U.S. president Barack Obama proposals , which deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including bombers, missile launchers and nuclear submarines a cut of about 60%.In 2010 Russia and the United States signed on New START agreement.The New Start treaty limits each side to no more than 800 deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including bombers, missile launchers and nuclear submarines a cut of about 50%. Rafael Correa Re-elected for 3rd term as Ecuadors President On 17 February Ecuadoreans president Rafael Correa has been re-elected for a third term with more than 50 percent of votes in his favour.As per the results, Rafael Correa got 56.7 percent while his closest competitor Guillermo could secure only 23.3 percent.Correa is a socialist leader who was first elected in 2006 December and he was sworn in on 15 January 2007 as the 56th president of Ecuador.Correa was reelected to a second term in 2009. Pakistan Hands Over Strategic Gwadar Port To China

On 18 February Pakistan and China signed an agreement to hand over control of the strategic Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea to a Chinese company.Under the agreement for transfer of concession rights, the deep sea port will remain the property of Pakistan while the Chinese company will share profits from its operation. China Overseas Port Holdings Limited will fully assume responsibility for Gwadar port in Balochistan province. Israels Netanyahu Announced Coalition Deal with Tzipi Livni On 19 Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has announced a coalition deal with former Foreign Minister and the rival centrist Hatnua Party Chairwomen Tzipi Livni, at Jerusalem. Under the deal agreement, Livni will serve as the new Justice Minister and will oversee the peace efforts with the Palestinians.Tzipi Livni is an Israeli Politician and the first women to be the leader of opposition in Israel. She is the leader of the new centrist party, Hatnuah. She served Israel as its Foreign Minister from 2006 to 2009. Russia and Brazil Signed on Defence Cooperation Agreements On 20 February Russia and Brazil signed a Defence, Energy and Agricultural agreements .Brazil agreed to negotiate the purchase of Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries on the condition that Russia transfer the technology to Brazilian defense companies without restrictions.The agreements are signed by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff . Nicos Anastasiades Elected as Cyprus New President On 24 February the centre-right DISY (the Democratic Rally) party leader Nicos Anastasiades, has won the presidential elections of Cyprus with 57.5 percent votes.Nicos Anastasiades had a very easy going victory over Communist-backed Stavros Malas who secured 42.5 percent votes in the election. Raul Castro re-elected for Second Term as Cubas President On 25 February Raul Castro has been re-elected as Cubas president officially to his last five-year term.The National Assembly of Peoples Power approved, in the capital Havana, Army General Raul Castro Ruz as president of the Council of State, and elected Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, as its first vice president.Raul Castro became interim president when his brother, revolution icon Fidel, took ill in 2006. He then formally became president in 2008.

INDIA & WORLD

India-Malaysia Double Taxation Agreement in Force On 2 February India and Malaysia signed on double-taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA). Dividends paid by Indian companies to Malaysian investors or entities will attract a lower withholding tax of 5 percent against 10 per cent earlier. The new agreement has also, in line with international practice, introduced a new article for taxing capital gains from alienation of property. India Failed To Curb Sexual Violence Against Women According to the Human Rights Watch (HRW) World Report 2013 India has been accused of failure to curb incidents of sexual violence against women and for restrictions on right to free speech, India has a thriving civil society, free media, and an independent judiciary, the city-based rights group said in its assessment of rights abuses in India. Six Indian Institutes in Global 150 Top Think-Tanks On 3 February Six Indian research institutes, including Centre for Civil Society (CCS), are among top 150 global think tanks in the annual list released by the University of Pennsylvania for the year 2012.The list was topped by Brookings Institution (United States) followed by Chatham House (United Kingdom) and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (United States).Other Indian think-tanks featured in the list are:Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis , Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations , The Energy and Resources Institute , Observer Research Foundation and Development Alternatives. India and Austria Signed a Social Security Agreement On 5 February India and Austria signed a social security agreement at Vienna, under which the Indian professionals working in Austria would be exempted from paying the social security contribution of the country, if such payments are already made in India. Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi and Austrian Minister for Labour and Social Security, Rudoulf Hundstorfer signed on the agreement. India Pledges $100m For Mali Reconstruction On 5 February India pledges $100m for Mali reconstruction .India has committed to giving $1 million for the upgrade of the Malian army with a pledge to ramp up contributions for reconstruction to $100 million after the situation stabilizes. India and China Tourists Triple Australian Visits

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics report , Chinese and Indian visitors, with tourist numbers from those countries tripled in the past decade.630,000 visits from Chinese tourists in 2012 compared with 190,000 in 2002. Indian visits went from 45,000 to 160,000 in the same period.Despite a high Australian dollar, Australias short-term visitor numbers were up by nearly five percent since 2011 with 6.1 million short trips made to Australia 270,000 more than in 2011. Special Purpose Vehicle Formed for TAPI Pipeline Project On 7 February The Union Cabinet gave its approval for formation of the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) Pipeline Project and to permit GAIL India Ltd. to join the SPV. The four countries involved in the TAPI Gas pipeline project, signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement along with a Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA).Turkmenistan and Pakistan agreed to the formation of TAPl Ltd. The 1,680 km pipeline will carry 90 million metric standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) of gas, and is scheduled to become operational in 2018. India and Japan to Strengthen Cooperation in Tourism Sector India and Japan have resolved to strengthen cooperation in tourism sector. This was decided at a meeting between the visiting Japanese Senior Vice-Minister of Tourism, Mr. Hiroshi Kajiyama and Union Tourism Minister Shri K Chiranjeevi in New Delhi on 12 February 2013. India and France Signed 22 Agreements On 14 February France and India have signed on 22 agreements after French President Francois Hollandes meetings with the Indian president and the prime minister in New Delhi.Both nations exchanged views on a number of bi-lateral, regional and multilateral issues and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in order to facilitate technical cooperation in Railways to each other.Chairman, Railway Board, India and Chairman and CEO SNCF from the French side signed this MoU.Both the nations also concluded negotiations on the short range surface to Air missile to be co-produced in India. They also agreed on the need to reinvigorate economic engagement between the two countries. India and Bangladesh Signed Land Boundary Agreement On 16 February India and Bangladesh held the second Joint Consultative Commission meeting in Dhaka .After the meeting , both countries exchanged one strip map as part of the process of the implementation of the agreement signed to resolve land boundary issues between them.In addition, two MOUs were also signed for the construction of a rail link to connect Akhaura in Bangladesh to Agartala in India and

for setting up a thinktank to be called Bangladesh-India Foundation.The IndiaBangladesh Joint Consultative Commission is an interministerial body of the two countries headed by the Minister of External Affairs of India and Foreign Minister of Bangladesh. CBI probe Ordered into Rs 3700 crore Italian Chopper Deal Scam In February 2010, India had inked the deal with Italain Finmeccanica to acquire the 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters from AgustaWestland for IAFs elite Communication Squadron ,which ferries around the President, PM and other VVIPs.The deal came under the scanner of Italian agencies after allegations of kickback given in India surfaced.The agencies arrested Giuseppe Orsi, the head of Italian defence and aerospace giant Finmeccanica as part of their probe related to international corruption.Around 50 million euros , about 10 per cent of the deal, were alleged to have been given as bribes to ensure that the company won the contract.On February The Defence Ministry has ordered CBI probe into alleged scam in a Rs 3600 crore defence helicopter deal after arrest of head of Italian firm Finmeccanica on charges of bribery. India and Britain Discussed on Nuclear Cooperation On 19 February Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Britain Prime Minister David Cameron discussed on regional and global issues ,which included key issues of nuclear energy cooperation, security, terrorism and trade .The two sides have also decided to commence negotiations on a bilateral Civil Nuclear Agreement.Britain has assured that it will extend all cooperation to any Indian probe into the multi-milliondollar helicopter scam which involves Italian defense giant Finmeccanicas UK-based subsidiary AgustaWestland.David Cameron announced that his country is going to introduce sameday visa service for Indian businessmen in a bid to accelerate the bilateral trade between the two sides. India won Kishanganga Case Against Pakistan On 18 February the Court of Arbitration at the Hague allowed India to go ahead with the Construction of the Kishanganga hydroelectric project in Gurez valley near Bandipura in North Kashmir, the court rejected the plea of Pakistan that the construction was a violation of 1960 Indus Water Treaty.The Court of Arbitration, chaired by Stephen M. Schwebel in its orders stated that India can move ahead with the diversion of water plans of Kishanganga that is a tributary of Jhelum, for generation of hydro-electric power. But it restrained India from adoption of the drawdown technique of flushing for clearing the sedimentation of the run-of-the river project that had been designed and asked it to adopt a different technique for generation of 330 MW power facilities.

NATIONAL President Gave Assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 On 3 February President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 which provides for, amongst other things, stricter punishment for crimes against women. The Ordinance was to be largely based on the recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee.However, the Ordinance will have to be passed by Parliament within six months otherwise the same shall lapse. All Juvenile Crimes 64% by 16-18 yr Old Age Group On 4 February According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data shows that most juvenile crimes are committed by those in the age group of 16-18 years.In 2011 the growth in rape by juveniles (34%) over 2010 was again among the highest.In 2011, 64% of all juvenile criminals fall in the age group of 16-18. In 2011, 33,887 juveniles were arrested for 25,178 instances of crime.All together make for over 50% of all rape cases by juveniles. Aero India 2013 Held in Bangalore The Asias biggest airshow Aero India 2013, a biennial air show and aviation exhibition held from 6 10th February at the Yelehanka Air Force Station in Bangalore .In the event displays magnificent aerobatic skills and belongings that created a chance of winning potential business tieups and networking. Defence Minister of India, A K Antony inaugurated the Air Show on 6 February .In the event 53 civil and military aircraft and 27 countries participated and 78 delegations attended from US, Israel and Russia.The first Edition of the show was organised for the first time in 1996.The next Aero India show is scheduled to be held from 18 February to 22 February 2015 at Bangalore. Cabinet Approved Rs.38500 cr Rural Road Development Plan On 7 February The Union Cabinet approved a Rs 38,500 crore rupees for road connectivity under the Prime Ministers Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).The schemes approved were mainly for connectivity to villages in tribal areas, desert and hilly areas, with a population of at least 250 each.In 82 areas hit by Naxalite violence, villages with less than 250 people are also to be connected under the scheme. Parliament Attack Case Convict Afzal Guru Hanged

On 9 February in a top secret operation , the 2001 Parliament attack case convict Mohammed Afzal Guru was hanged in Delhis Tihar jail.Afzal Guru was given the death sentence by the Supreme Court in 2004.The President rejected the Afzal Gurus mercy petition on 23 January 2013.The code name of the secret operation was Operation Three Star . Centre Notified Cauvery Dispute Tribunal Award After six years,on the directions of the Supreme Court, the Central Government of India has notified the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing the waters of the Cauvery system among the basin States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala and Union territory of Puducherry on 20 February.The Tribunal, comprising chairman Justice N.P. Singh and members N.S. Rao and Sudhir Narain, in a unanimous award in February, 2007 had determined the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (TMC) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site.In, what was then described as a balancing act, the Tribunal gave Tamil Nadu 419 TMC of water (as against the demand of 562 TMC); Karnataka 270 TMC (as against its demand of 465 TMC); Kerala 30 TMC and Puducherry 7 TMC.After the issuance of the notification, institutions like the Cauvery River Authority (CRA) chaired by the Prime Minister and the CMC will cease to exist.

STATES Sonia Gandhi Launched Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram Scheme On 6 February Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi launched Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK), a new children health care project initiative in Palghar, a tribal block in Thane district of Maharashtra.The Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram, is a part of the National Rural Health Mission of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The scheme is aimed at improving overall quality of life of children through early detection of birth defects, diseases and deficiencies, which are among key factors for child mortality. Maharashtra Promulgates Ordinance To Amend Cooperative Societies Act On 15 February the Maharashtra Government promulgated an ordinance to amend the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, which aims to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning, democratic control and professional management of co-operative societies.The ordinance is to amend the Act to make it in consonance with the 97th constitutional amendment by Parliament last year. Indias First Geothermal Plant in Chhattisgarh

On 17 February Chhattisgarh has signed an agreement with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to set up the countrys first geothermal power plant in its newlyformed Balrampur district.A memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project was signed between the NTPC and the Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Agency (CREDA). The plant will come up at Tata Pani in Balrampur, a district located in extreme northern region of the state. Rajasthan Constituted a Task Force to Check the Spread of Swine Flu in State On 19 February the State Government of Rajasthan decided to constitute a task force to control Swine Flu effectively. Chief Secretary of the State, CK Matthew was appointed as the head of the task force constituted.The state had witnessed 148 cases of death and 834 positive cases since April 2012. A central team that constitutes of five doctors and microbiologist is on the state visit and would pay a visit to Jodhpur, Ajmer and Bikaner, areas worst affected from the disease. Cabinet Approved NTPC Power Project in Jharkhand On 20 February the Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) approved the setting up of the 1,980 MW North Karanpura Super Thermal Power Plant in Jharkhand by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).The Cabinet committee of investment also agreed for restoring the original coal linkage for the project and declared that the project will be based on environment friendly super-critical technology. This supply will be made available in the 13th Five Year Plan. Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly Elections Results Northeastern states of Tripura ,Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly election was released on 28 February .The Assembly elections in the three states, having 60 seats each, were held February 14 and February 23.In Tripura the CPI-M on its own won 49 seats out of the total 60 seats and stormed back to power in Tripura for the fifth straight term.Chief Minister Manik Sarkar won from Dhanpur by a margin of around 5,000 votes. It was Sarkars sixth win.Meghalaya The Indian National Congress here has won 29 seats in the election to the 60-member Meghalaya Assembly with Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, winning with huge margins.Nagaland Ruling Naga Peoples Front combine returned to power with an absolute majority in Nagaland winning 39 seats in the 60-member Assembly.The ruling NPF-led Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN) alliance will form government for a third consecutive term.Congress managed to win eight seats. Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio won from Northern Angami II seat by defeating his nearest Congress rival Kevise Sogotsu of Congress by 12,671 votes. Desalination Plant in Tamil Nadu Commissioned

On 22 February J. Jayalalithaa, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu inaugurated a desalination plant at Nemmeli in Kanchipuram district of the state.The plant which will benefit over 15 lakh residents in Velachery, Pallipattu and Tiruvanmiyur areas of south Chennai has been set up with an investment of Rs 871 crore. About 265 million ltrs of water will be drawn from the sea to realise 100 million ltrs per day of drinking water through the plant spread over 40 acre.

CONFERENCES 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) The 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) concluded on 2 February at NewDelhi.The theme of the summit is The Global Challenge of Resource Efficient Growth and Development.Among from 30 countries Heads of Governments , research institutions, policy-makers, NGOs and corporates attended the summit.The Summit organized annually since 2001 by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), is an international platform for exchange of knowledge on all nuances of sustainable development.

AWARDS & HONOURS Malala Yousafzai nominated for Nobel Peace Prize Malala Yousafzai, who was shoot by the Talibans against the girl education was nominated for this years Nobel Peace Prize, as the deadline expired on 01 February 2013. French, Canadian and Norwegian MPs have all separately nominated Malala.This years award will be announced in early October, but speculation was already underway as the deadline for nominations ran out on 1 February . L. N. Tallur won Skoda Art Prize 2012 On 1 February Karnataka artist L. N. Tallur, whose works depict majorly the underbelly of India, has won the Rs 1 million Skoda Prize 2012 for contemporary art, from among a shortlist of four artists including an artist collective. 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) Awards Sustainable Development Leadership Award :- The Seychelles President, Mr James Michel has been awarded the Sustainable Development Leadership Award at the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit . Georgescu roegen Award : The award is Kozo

Mayumi (Professor at Faculty of Integrated Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokushima). The co-winners of the Georgescu-Roegen Award (bioeconomic practice) are Accion Ecologica and Oilwatch. South Sudan Bishop Taban won UN Peace Award On 9 February A South Sudans Bishop Emeritus Paride Taban has won a coveted 2013 UN peace prize ( Sergio Viera de Mello Prize ) in recognition of his efforts to build trust among warring communities in the conflict-torn region.Vieira de Mello, the UNs former human rights chief, was killed in a bombing in Iraq in 2003. The annual prize in his honour is awarded to a person, community or institution that has made an exceptional contribution to reconciliation of communities or groups in conflict, and whose example can be duplicated elsewhere. Pandit Ravi Shankar honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy award Sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy award, which was jointly accepted by his daughters Anoushka Shankar and Norah Jones on 9 February 2013.He was posthumously awarded the best world music album trophy at the 55th Grammys, a day after being honoured with a Lifetime Achievement award by The Recording Academy.He got 55 Grammy award for his album The Living Room Sessions Part 1 . National e-Governance award for Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh had been conferred upon the prestigious National e-Governance Gold Award for 2012-13, for its Sparsh Abhiyan aimed towards the disabled and the aged. Amartya Sen honoured with Frances highest civilian award The French president Mr Francois Hollande honoured the Amartya Sen with the Frances highest civilian award, Commandeur de la Legion dHonneur (Legion of Honour) after delivering the Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on 15 February 2013.The prestigious honour is the reason for his enormous contribution to the field of economics and for his exchanges with French academic institutions would also be recognised. Paul Hansen Won 2012 World Press Photo Award On 15 February Swedish photographer Paul Hansen has won the 2012 World Press Photo award with a picture of two Palestinian children killed in an Israeli missile strike being carried to their funeral.The picture shows a group of men marching the dead bodies through a narrow street in Gaza City.World Press Photo, one of

photojournalisms most prestigious contests, issued awards in nine categories to 54 photographers of 32 nationalities. 63rd Berlin Film Festival Awards The awarding ceremony of the 63rd Berlinale ended on 16 February in Berlin.Romanian film Childs Pose won the Golden Bear, the top jury prize awarded to the best film in the Berlin International Film Festival. Best Film :- Childs Pose ( Romania ) Best Actor :- Nazif Mujic in Life of an Iron Picker (Bosnia/France/Slovenia) Best Actress :- Paulina Garcia in Gloria (Chile/Spain) Best Director :- David Gordon Green for Prince Avalanche (US) Best ScreenPlay :- Jafar Panahi for Parde (Closed Curtain) Iran. Ela Bhatt honoured with Indira Gandhi Peace Prize Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self Employed Womens Association (SEWA), was presented with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for the year 2011 by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on 18 February 2013.Ela Bhatt was honoured for her life time achievements in empowering women, promoting grassroot level entrepreneurship and for her contribution towards promoting equitable development and peace. Ratan Tata receives E&Y lifetime award Former Tata Group head Ratan Tata is this years recipient of the life time achievement award instituted by Ernst & Young, for asserting a greater role for Indian entrepreneurs on the global business landscape.The entrepreneur of the year (2012) award went to Godrej Group Chairman Adi Godrej.The entrepreneur of the year is the only business award to be based on self-nomination. Oscars Awards-2013 85th Oscar awards presentation ceremony held in Los Angels on 25 February 2013.In this ceremoney Life of Pi cinema got a 4 Oscar awards. Best Picture: Argo Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained) Best Supporting Actress:Anne Hathaway (Les Misrables) Best Directing: Ang Lee(Life of Pi) Best Adapted Screenplay:Chris Terrio( Argo) Best Original Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained) Best Documentary Feature: Searching for Sugar Man Best Original Song:Skyfall from Skyfall, music and lyrics by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth Best Original Score: Life of Pi Best Animated Feature: Brave Best Cinematography:Life of Pi Best Costume Design: Anna Karenina Best Documentary Short Subject:Inocente Best Film Editing:Argo Best Foreign Language Film:Amour (Austria) Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Les Misrables Best Production Design:Lincoln Best Short Film (Animated): Paperman Best Short Film (Live Action): Curfew Best Sound Editing: Skyfall (TIE), Zero Dark Thirty (TIE), Best Sound Mixing: Les Misrables Best Visual Effects: Life of Pi

SPORTS & GAMES Leander Paes, Jaideep Mukherjee Received Davis Cup Commitment Award On 2 February Indian tennis legends Leander Paes and Jaideep Mukherjee were felicitated by the All India Tennis Association (AITA) at the RK Khanna Tennis Stadium , when they were presented with the Davis Cup Commitment Trophy.Mukherjee made his Davis Cup debut in 1960 against Thailand and had a 62-35 win-loss record while Paes is currently playing his 49th Davis Cup tie here against South Korea. Graeme Smith Captains his 100th Test On 4 February South African test cricket team captain Graeme Smith has created a unique record by leading the side in 100th test.As the South African captain Graeme Smith stepped on the field against Pakistan, he became the only captain in the world to have led the team in 100 test matches.Earlier, the record for captaining in most number of test matches was held by former Australian skipper Allan Border. Allan Border led the Australian test cricket team in 93 test matches. Sourav Ganguly holds the record of captaining Indian test team in most number of test matches. Sourav played as skipper in 49 test matches. Now, Graeme Smith is the only cricketer to play as captain in 100 test matches. India Won Record 46 Medals in Special Olympics On 6 February Indias differently-abled athletes returned with the largest haul of medals in the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games at Pyeong Chang, South Korea.The Indians won 46 medals 13 gold, 17 silver and 16 bronze from among mentally-challenged 2200 athletes from over 120 nations in the Games .India doubled its medal tally from the World Winter Games 2009.The Games are being competed in eight sports . Sachin Equaled Sunil Gavaskars First Class Cricket Record On 8 February Sachin Tendulkar equaled the record of Sunil Gavaskar of 81 first class hundreds in first class cricket at Mumbai. He managed to equal Gavaskars record after scoring an unbeaten 140 runs in Irani Trophy against Rest of India in the first innings of the tournament of Mumbai team.When he reached 106, Tendulkar also completed 25,000 runs in first class cricket. Wrestling Dropped From 2020 Olympic Games List

On 12 February the International Olympic Committee (IOC) leaders dropped wrestling from the 2020 Olympic Games.Wrestling will be included at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.The IOC board acted after reviewing the 26 sports on the current Olympic program. Eliminating one sport allows the IOC to add a new sport to the program later this year.Wrestling will now join seven other sports in applying for inclusion in 2020. The others are a combined bid from baseball and softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu. They will be vying for a single opening in 2020.The last sports removed from the Olympics were baseball and softball, voted out by the IOC in 2005 and off the program since the 2008 Beijing Games. Golf and Rugby will be joining the program at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro. Victoria Azarenka won Qatar Open Tennis Title On 18 February Defending champion Victoria Azarenka from Belarus defeated Serena Williams (America) to won the Qatar Open tennis title in the final at Doha. Sania Mirza won Dubai Tennis Championship Title On 23 February Indias Sania Mirza and her American partner Bethanie-Mattek Sands won the Dubai Tennis Championship title. The Indo-American duo defeated the second seeded Russian-Slovenian combination of Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik. Sania bagged her second Doubles title of the season.

ECONOMY BHEL and GAIL Granted Maharatna Status On 1 February The Union Government of India granted Maharatna status to BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd ) and GAIL (Gas Authority of India Limited), a development which will provide them greater financial and functional autonomy and also ensure better valuation for shares of the two public sector undertakings.Ideally any Maharatna firm has a capacity to take investment decision of around 5000 crore Rupees without taking assistance from the government. On the other hand, forms with Navratna status have the capability of 1000 crore Rupees.For any company to qualify for Maharatna status, the annual turnover should be over 25000 crore Rupees in past three years, as per the guidelines issued by Department of Public Enterprises. Per capita Monthly Income Growth Eases to 14% in 2011-12 On 1 February According to the the revised data of national accounts the per capita monthly income, a measure to assess standard of living, grew at a slower rate of 13.7

per cent to Rs 5,130 in 2011-12 at current prices compared to Rs 4,513 in 2010-11.On the Gross Domestic Saving (GDS) front, the data revealed that the growth at current prices in 2011-12 slowed to 30.8 per cent of GDP at market prices against 34 per cent in the previous year.The gross domestic capital formation has increased from Rs 28,71,649 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 31,41,465 crore in 2011- 12 at current prices.It further revealed that the per capita private final consumption expenditure (PFCE) at current prices in 2011-12 is estimated at Rs 42,065 as against Rs 36,677 in the year 2010-11, showing an increase of 14.7 per cent against an increase of 15.7 per cent in the previous year. Argentina Censured by the IMF for Economic Data On 3 February The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has censured Argentina for the quality of its official inflation and GDP data.Inflation in Argentina is estimated by private economists to be at 25% a year and rising but the government reported it at 11% or less for last year.Argentina became the first country to be censured by the International Monetary Fund for not providing accurate data on inflation and economic growth under a procedure that can end in expulsion. Mumbai Is Worlds Cheapest City Mumbai shares the title of the worlds cheapest city with Karachi, in Pakistan, according to the Worldwide Cost of Living 2013 survey by the Economist Groups Economic Intelligence Unit.After Mumbai and Pakistan comes Delhi ,Algiers, Bucharest, Colombo and Panama City.According to the report, the five most expensive cities in the world are Tokyo and Osaka in Japan, Sydney, Oslo and Melbourne. Railway Budget 2013-14 On 26 February Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal presented the 2013-14 Railway Budget in the Loksabha . Railway Budget 2013-14 Highlights :2013-14 Railway Budget Estimates Rs.42,210 crores Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores in 2013-14 Good Earnings Rs.93,554 crores Good Traffic Receipts Rs.1,43,742 crores Total Revenue Receipts Rs.1,46,626 crores Ordinary Working Expenses Rs.96,500 crores

Operating Ratio to be 87.8%. A new Forged Wheel Factory at Rae Bareli, Coach Manufacturing Unit in Sonepat District (Haryana) ,Midlife Rehabilitation Workshop at Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh), new wagon maintenance workshop in Kalahandi (Odisha). Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores 5.2 per cent growth in passenger traffic expected in 2013-14 Freight loading of 1047 MT, 40 MT more than 2012-13. 67 new Express trains to be introduced.26 new passenger services, 8 DEMU services and 5 MEMU services to be introduced. Run of 57 trains to be extended. Frequency of 24 trains to be increased.22 new rail lines to be taken up in 2013-14 Proposal for setting up of Railway Tariff Regulatory Authority formulated and at interministerial consultation stage. Fuel Adjustment Component (FAC) linked revision for freight tariff to be implemented from 1st April 2013. 72 additional suburban services in Mumbai and 18 in Kolkata An independent Rail Tariff Authority has been formalised ndian Railways Institute of Financial Management to be set up at Secunderabad Recruitment to RPF with 10% vacancies reserved for women.Seek to fill 1.52 lakh vacancies in railways this year. 47000 vacancies for weaker sections and physically challenged to be filled up soon By end of 2013-14, 1,500 km of contracts to be awarded for two dedicated rail corridors Economic Survey of contracts to be awarded for two dedicated rail corridors. Union Budget 2013-14 On 28 February Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram Presented the Rs.16,65 279 Crore(Planed Expenditure Rs. 5,55,322 crore , Non Planed Expenditure Rs 11,09,975 crore) Union budget in the Lok Sabha for the financial year 2013-14.This is the 82nd Budget for India and 8th Budget for the Finance Minister P Chidambaram.In the past, former Prime Minister Morarji Desai presented the Union Budget 8 times as Finance Minister. The Highlights of Union Budget 2013-14: Total budget expenditure seen at 16.65 trillion rupees in 2013-14. on-plan expenditure estimated at about 11.1 trillion rupees in 2013-14.

Indias 2013-14 plan expenditure seen at 5.55 trillion rupees Revised estimate for total expenditure is 14.3 trillion rupees in 2012-13, which is 96 point of budget estimate Expect 133 billion rupees through direct tax proposals in 2013-14 Expect 47 billion rupees through indirect tax proposals in 2013-14 Target 558.14 billion rupees from stake sales in state-run firms in 2013-14 Expect revenue of 408.5 bln rupees from airwave surcharges, auction of telecom spectrum, licence fees in 2013-14 But will give some tax relief of Rs. 2000 for every person who has an annual income of up to Rs. 5 lakh RBI expected GDP growth of 5.5% for Financial Year 2013-14 Rs.1000-crore Nirbhaya Fund announced for the empowerment of women Rs.6,000 crore to be allocated for rural housing fund Defence allocation increased to Rs. 2.03 lakh crore Rs. 6,275 crore to ministry of science and technology, Rs. 5,880 crore to Department of Atomic Energy Rs.27,049 crore allocation to the Agriculture Ministry Rs. 37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Rs.110 crore to be allocated to the department of disability affairs Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare Rs.14000 crore will be provided for PSB recapitalization. He will constitute a panel on transaction costs, and financial policies. Rs.6,5867 crore for Education , an increase of 17 percent over RE for 2012- 13. Rs 6275 crore to Ministry of Technology Rs.2 trillion for defence sector

Rs.15,260 crore to be allocated to Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation. Rs.14,873 crore for JNNURM for urban transportation Rs.80,194 crore allocation for Ministry of Rural Development Rs.33,000 crore for MGNREGA Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. Rs.13215 crore for mid-day meal programme Rs.41,561 crore for SC plan and Rs 24,598 crore for tribal plan. 3511 crore allocation to minorities which is 12 per cent hike over budget estimates, 110 crore rupees allotted for welfare of disabled. 65867 crore rupees have been allocated to the Ministry of Human resources development which is 17 per cent hike over the revised estimates. A surcharge of 10 percent on persons (other than companies) whose taxable income exceeds Rs.1 crore have been levied. Relief of Rs. 2000 for the tax payers in the first bracket of 2 to 5 lakhs.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Iran launches new fighter jet Iran had unveiled a new home-made combat aircraft on 02 February 2013.Iran announced that this is the most Sophisticated aircraft in the world.The name of this aircraft was Qaher F313 (Dominant F313).Qaher F313 was designed using the Advanced Electro-Aviation System. Worlds Largest Prime Number Discovered with 17,425,170 digits Researchers from the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg discovered the largest prime number of the world, Contains 17 Million Digits. This is the 48th Mersenne prime found so far. However there are certain rare kinds of prime numbers called Mersenne primes which have the form 2 multiplied by itself p times minus 1, where p denotes a prime number. The new largest prime is 2 multiplied by itself 57885161 times minus 1.

First Complete Bionic Man Unveiled in U.K On 7 February The worlds first complete Bionic Man named Rex was unveiled at Londons Science Museum. The bionic man was created using 1 million US dollar limbs as well as organs.Rex has a human face with brown eyes and a height of 6.5 feet. It was designed jointly with assistance from 18 universities and companies. Rudra Inducted into the Army On 8 February The first indigenously built Weapon System Integrated Advanced Light Helicopter, Rudra was handed over to the Indian Army by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) .Rudra is the Mk-IV variant of the Advanced Light Helicopter designed and manufactured by HAL. The helicopter is fitted with weapons, targeting systems, warning and counter-measure systems and survivability features.This is the first of the 60 armed helicopters provided to the army by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) after the Defence Ministry handed over the control of all attack helicopters to the land force. Indian Coast Guard Ship Rajratan Commissioned On 11 February Indian Coast Guard ship Rajratan , the fifth in a series of eight Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPVs), was commissioned by Indian Coast Guard.The vessel has been indigenously built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata.The 50m long IPV can achieve a maximum speed of 34 knots, with an endurance of 1,500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 16 knots. North Korea conducted third nuclear test On 12 February 2013,North Korea successfully conducted a third underground nuclear test with the violation of United Nations sanctions.In the past North Korea two times conducted nuclear tests but this is most powerful than those tests.North Korea announced that,a miniaturised nuclear device had been detonated successfully at the test site.The test was reported to have taken place at a test site in the North Hamgyeong province, where the Punggye-ri nuclear complex that conducted tests in 2006 and 2009 is located. Asteroid 2012 DA14 Passed Very Near To Earth The small Asteroid named 2012 DA14 with an estimated diameter of 50 meters (160 ft) and an estimated mass of 190,000 metric tons passed within about 3.5 Earth radii of the Earths surface on February 15.During its 2013 close passage, the asteroid passed 27,700 km (17,200 mi) from the surface of Earth. Scientists at NASA estimated that an asteroid the size of 2012 DA14 flies this close to Earth about once every 40 years. A 2012 DA14-size asteroid impacts Earth once every 1,200 years, on average.

PSLV-C20 Successfully Launched SARAL and 6 Other Satellites On 25 February ISROs Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the Satish Dawan Space centre at SPSR Nellore in Sriharikota , launched the Indo-French satellite SARAL along with six commercial payloads from Austria, Britain, Canada and Denmark into a 785-km polar sunsynchronous orbit.It was the 23rd mission of PSLV, which has an impeccable record of 21 consecutive successful flights. About SARAL:- The Saral mission results from the common interest of both ISRO and CNES in studying the ocean from space. For instance, it can provide information on seasonal forecasting, study on animal migration, locating buoys and fishing vessels, collecting environmental data such as ocean temperature profiles and currents. Besides Saral, the PSLV-C20 has put into orbit two micro-satellites UniBRITE and BRITE (both from Austria), AAUSAT3 from Denmark and STRaND from UK. It also carried one micro-satellite (NEOSSat) and one mini-satellite (SAPPHIRE) from Canada.With a lift-off mass of 407 kg, Saral is the 56th satellite to be launched by PSLV.The six commercial payloads from abroad together have a lift-off mass of 259.5 km.PSLV-C20 is the ninth PSLV in core alone configuration (without solid strap-on motors).

PERSONS IN NEWS A) APPOINTMENTS Mo Yan and Jackie Chan Selected As Members of Chinese Parliament On 3 February Mo Yan, the winner of Nobel Prize for literature, 2012 and Jackie Chan, the movie star were given a political role in China by being selected as members of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference, one of the houses of Chinese parliament. Prachanda elected as Maoist president of ruling UCPN-Maoist party Prachanda, the powerful Maoist leader who became prime minister after toppling the 239-year-old monarchy in Nepal, was elected as the president of the ruling UCPNMaoist party on 08 February 2013.58-yearold Prachanda, whose real name is Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Indian American Subra Suresh Appointed as President of Carnegie Mellon

On 9 February US President Obamas top science official and Indian American Padma Shri awardee Dr Subra Suresh has been appointed as the new president of Carnegie Mellon University. He will succeed Dr. Jared L. Cohon, who led the university to unprecedented growth during his 16-year tenure. Dr Suresh will assume office on July 1 after Dr Cohon would step down on June 30, this year. Ratan Tata Elected To National Academy of Engineering On 9 February Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of the Tata Group, has been elected as a member of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering of the US along with 10 new foreign members.This is the highest professional distinction accorded to an engineer in the US.Ratan Tata has been selected for his outstanding contributions to industrial development in India and the world. B)RESIGNS D.C.Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi To Resign Indian American, Natwar M. Gandhi, Chief Financial officer (CFO) of Washington DC ,announced his resignation on 1 February.He will resign on 1 June 2013.Gandhi has held the office since 2000 and was appointed to a new, five-year term last year. Solicitor-General Rohinton Nariman resigns Solicitor-General of India Rohinton Nariman resigned 04 February 2013.Mr. Nariman was appointed as the second most senior law official of the country on July 23, 2011 following the resignation of Gopal Subramanium on July 14, 2011. Obamas Top Science Official Suresh Resigned On 6 February US President Barack Obamas top science official and Padma Shri awardee Subra Suresh has resigned from his current position to join the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University as its chief.As director of National Science Foundation (NSF) since 2010, Suresh was responsible for driving scientific research of the country.Suresh has co-authored more than 240 journal articles, registered 21 patents and written three widely used materials science books. Nagaland Home Minister resigns Nagaland Home Minister Imkong L. Imchen was resigned from the ruling Naga Peoples Front (NPF) government on 19 February 2013.Mr. Imchen put in his papers after the Election Commission authorities seized cash amounting to more than Rs.1 crore and weapons from his vehicle on 18 February by troopers of Assam Rifles at Sathupang area in Wokha district.

Pope Benedict XVI Resigned On 28 February Pope Benedict XVI a position in which he serves dual roles as Sovereign of the Vatican City State and leader of the Catholic Church resigned his post.Pope Benedict XVIs birth name is Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger.Benedict XVI was elected on 19 April 2005 in a papal conclave, celebrated his Papal Inauguration Mass on 24 April 2005, and took possession of his cathedral, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, on 7 May 2005. A native of Bavaria, he has both German and Vatican citizenship. C)DEATHS Former Puducherry CM Shanmugam passes away Former Chief Minister of Puducherry P. Shanmugam passed away at the Karaikal Government Hospital on 02 February 2013.A bachelor, Shanmugam was the chief minister of Puducherry from March 22, 2000 to Oct 27, 2001 and represented the union territory in the Lok Sabha between 1980-1991. Chinas Table Tennis Legend Zhuang Zedong Died On 10 February the chinas table tennis legend , Zhuang Zedong died in Beijing .Zhuang Zedong is a three-time world table tennis champion.Zhuang Zedong remained a crucial figure in ping-pong diplomacy of 1971 and is popularly also called the Architect of Ping-Pong Diplomacy. Pingpong diplomacy means exchange of the table tennis (ping-pong) players between China and US American Philosopher and Legal Scholar Dworkin Died Ronald Dworkin a renowned American philosopher and a Constitutional Law expert died on 14 February at London .He wrote books named A Matter of Principle, Laws Empire and Justice for Hedgehogs. Radhakishan Malviya former Union Minister died Former Union Minister and senior Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Radhakishan Malviya died on 19 February 2013 in Indore.Malviya was elected MLA from Sanver in Indore district in 1972. A three-time Rajya Sabha MP, he was Labour Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi government in mid-1980s. Malviya was Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president during 1998-2003 when Digvijay Singh was the chief minister. D)VISITORS Bhutan Prime Minister Jigmi Y. Thinley Visited India

Prime Minister of Bhutan Jigmi Y Thinley visited India from 7 9 February.During his three-days visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at NewDelhi and discussed on developmental issues of his country with the Indian leadership, and sought financial assistance for the 11th five year plan of his country. Frances President Francois Hollande Visited India Frances President Francois Hollande Visited India from 14th and 15th February.During the 2 day visit he met manmohan singh at NewDelhi and discussed the sale of Rafale fighter jets , bilateral issues , after signed the both nations on several agreements . Britains PM David Cameron Visited India David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland , visited India from 18 20 February.During the visit on 18 February he attended India Britain delegations meeting in Mumbai .On 19 February Cameron met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi and discussed bilateral and global issues.The British Prime Minister last visited India in July 2010. E)MISCELLANEOUS Three Year Old Girl Joins Mensa After Taking IQ Test in Russian A brainy 3 year old girl Clever Alice Amos has been unveiled as the youngest new member of Mensa with a higher IQ than Stephen Hawking.Amos has been granted full membership of the brain box society after scoring an incredible 162 on an IQ test she took in Russian.Her IQ of 162 ranks her higher than a list of the worlds greatest luminaries dead and living.Former US presidents Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin and Bill Clinton could only muster 128, 160 and 137 respectively. Mohamed Nasheed Took Refuge In Indian High Commission On 13 February the former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed took refuge in the Indian High Commission in Capital Male to evade arrest, a year after he was toppled.He turned up at the single-storey Indian mission around noon to evade arrest warrant issued by a court in a case concerning the detention of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court during his Presidency in January last year.The Indian government has permitted him to stay in Mission. Queen Elizabeth II named Britains Most Powerful According to the BBC power list of Britains most influential women, Que en Elizabeth II has been named the most powerful woman in Britain, while two Indian-origin

women also found a place in the list of UKs 100 most powerful women. Two Indian origin women who featured among the 100 most powerful British women were Kolkata-born Pinki Lilani, founder of the Asian Women of Achievement Awards in the UK, and human rights champion and director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti. Worlds oldest woman is Misao Ookawa Misao Ookawa,the oldest woman in the world receives a Guinness World Records certificate in Osaka, Japan,on 27 February 2013.She will ready to celebrate its 115th birth anniversary on 5 March 2013. The oldest man in the world,Jiroemon Kimura(115) also belongs to Japan.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong 6.6 Magnitude Quake Hits Solomon Islands On 6 February a strong 6.6-magnitude tremor struck the Solomon Islands , the latest in a series of aftershocks from a powerful earthquake that triggered a tsunami The quake hit 36 kilometres south-southwest of Lata, the main town on the remote island of Ndende.At least six people were confirmed dead and some 3,000 left homeless but the national disaster management office has been struggling to get a clear picture of the scale of destruction on the island, more than 600 kilometres from the capital Honiara.The Solomons are part of the Ring of Fire, a zone of tectonic activity around the Pacific that is subject to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Snow Storm Nemo Hits US and Canada On 8 February Seven people have been killed in the United States and Canada as the massive blizzard Winter Storm Nemo dumped nearly two feet of snow in New England and knocked out power to more than a half a million homes.Throughout the Northeast, more than 600,000 homes and businesses lost electricity. Airlines cancelled more than 5,300 flights today, and New York Citys three major airports and Bostons Logan Airport closed. Huge Meteorite Hits The Russia On 15 February A huge meteor hits the Russia, injuring more than 1000 people, many hurt by broken glass, and causing explosions.Fragments of the meteor fell in a thinly populated area of the Chelyabinsk region.The meteorite, which weighed about 10 metric tons and may have been made of iron, entered Earths atmosphere and broke apart 30-50 km (19-31 miles) above ground.The meteorite explosion, a very rare spectacle, also unleashed a sonic boom.The energy released when it entered the

Earths atmosphere was equivalent to a few kilotonnes, the power of a small atomic weapon exploding.

ABBREVIATIONS DSDS Delhi Sustainable Development Summit BHEL Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd GAIL Gas Authority of India Limited TERI The Energy and Resources Institute EIU Economist Intelligence Unit NSF National Science Foundation TAPI TurkmenistanAfghanistanPakistanIndia POTA Prevention of Terrorism Act IAEA International Atomic Energy Agency CAIR Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics CITU Centre of Indian Trade Unions FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation HDI Human Development Index UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees WIPO World Intellectual Property Organisation

BOOKS IN NEWS Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life Book Released On 2 February The indomitable Khushwant Singh has released a new book named Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life on his 98th birthday in which he writes

about his life, lessons it has taught him, politics, future of India and what religion means to him.The book, published by Penguin Books India, is dedicated to Kaur who is a close friend of the author.Khushwant Singh was a Member of Parliament from 1980 to 1986. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 but returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar by the Indian Army. In 2007, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Germany Book Released Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose new book named Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Germany released on 6 February.The First copy of the book by Professor Anita B. Pfaff was given to the President of India Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan at NewDelhi. The book was brought out by the Federation of Indo-German Societies in India.The book is a collection of the records shared by Professor Anita Pfaff as well as other known biographers and writers.The book portrayed some interesting facets of the life of Netaji and his extraordinary contribution to Indias freedom struggle.

COMMITTEES Padmanabhan Committee To Help Boost Bank Finance For Exports On 3 February The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) constituted a technical advisory committee to iron out existing issues and boost bank finance for exports.The committee will be headed by RBI Executive Director G Padmanabhan.The committee look into the issues related to exporters, we have decided to constitute a technical working group which will also look non-cost issues like transaction costs, accounting norms, documentation required, procedural difficulties. March 2013 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL UN Imposed New Sanctions on North Korea On 7 March The UN Security Council approved a new regimen of sanctions against North Korea for conducting an underground nuclear test recently, imposing penalties on North Korean banking, travel and trade in a unanimous vote that reflected the countrys increased international isolation. The resolution, which was drafted by the United States and China, was passed in a speedy vote hours after North Korea threatened for the first time to launch a pre-emptive nuclear strike against the United States and South Korea.

Obama Signed Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act 2013 On 8 March the US President, Barack Obama signed the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act 2013 on the eve of International Womens Day. The Violence Against Women Act was first passed in 1994. Reauthorised since then, the new Act offers support to the organisations which serve to the victims of domestic violence. Uhuru Kenyatta Won Kenya Presidential Election On 9 March In Kenya, Deputy Prime Minister Kenyatta has won presidential election with a slim margin of 50.03 percent of votes. He defeated his rival Raila Odinga. Japan & Ten EU Countries Exempted from US Iran Sanctions Act On 13 March The US has renewed the exemptions for Japan and ten European Union countries from tough American sanctions imposed on nations buying oil from Iran.The third six-monthly exemption to Japan, under the Iran Sanctions Act.The 10 European Union countries, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the UK, have also qualified for a renewal of the exemption from sanctions because they have not purchased Iranian oil since July , 2012. Pakistan Parliament Completes Full 5 Year Term On 16 March Pakistans Parliament has made history by becoming the first National Assembly in the countrys history to complete a full term of five years, with the conclusion of the Houses 50th session, setting the stage for the holding of elections.Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari announced that general elections would be held on 11 May 2013. Cyprus Gets New Bailout Deal Cyprus secured a 10 billion ($16.2 billion) bailout from its international creditors on 24 March 2013.Eurozone finance ministers had also approved a new bailout plan for Cyprus, putting an end to uncertainties over the fate of the Mediterranean island country in the euro area.The new bailout program includes deep restructuring of the countrys two biggest banks, Bank of Cyprus and Popular Bank of Cyprus.Under the new agreement, all bank deposits under 100,000 will be secured and guaranteed by the state. South Africa, China Sign Deals To Boost Cooperation

On 26 March South African President Jacob Zuma and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met in Pretoria ahead of the fifth BRICS Summit.The two leaders signed a number of agreements, focusing on trade, tourism, education and social cooperation.The two sides agreed on future collaboration on research and development initiatives, manufacturing, marketing and the construction of crossborder infrastructure throughout the continent. North Korea Declares State of War with South Korea On 29 March North Korea declared that it had formally entered a state of war with South Korea.The announcement was made in a joint statement attributed to all government bodies and institutions.The two Koreas have thus technically remained at war for decades.

INDIA & WORLD India, South Korea Hold Security Talks On 1 March 2013 India and South Korea hold discussions over emerging dynamics of global and regional security, cooperation in cyber security, defense and space sectors and reviewing bilateral ties. Arvind Gupta,Director General of IDSA, led the Indian side while Lt.G (retd.) Bang, Hyo-Bok president of KIDA and former vice army chief,represented the Korean side in the talks. India,UK Signed MOU To Strenghen Cooperation In Earth Sciences On March 1, India and UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen their cooperation in Earth Sciences and environmental research by sharing information on meteorology,hydrology and climate variability.The MoU between the Earth System Science Organisation of the Ministry of Earth Sciences and UKs Natural Environment Research Council was inked in New Delhi in the presence of Science and Technology Minister S Jaipal Reddy . India and Bhutan signed Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement On 4 March India and Bhutan signed the double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA), a move that will facilitate exchange of information on banking between the two nations and help check tax evasion.This is the first ever DTAA for Bhutan with any country. The treaty was signed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram and his Bhutanese counterpart Lyonpo Wangdi Norbum, on behalf of the Royal Government of Bhutan. India and Republic of Portugal Signed a Social Security Agreement

On 4 March A Social Security Agreement (SSA) was signed between India and Republic of Portugal ,after the both countries meeting end at NewDelhi.The agreement was signed by Vayalar Ravi, the Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs and Paulo Sacadura Cabral Portas, Minister of State of Foreign Affairs of Portugal. India Worlds Third Largest Spam Spewing Nation On 6 March According to statistics from SophosLabs ,India has been placed third on the list of the countries distributing spam across the world.US is still firmly on the top, distributing more spam than any other country in the world.China took the second spot and India the third, with 8.2 percent and 4.2 percent of the worlds spam. Indias Tourism Industry Competitiveness 65th in World According to the fifth Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report by the WEF, India has moved up by three notches to 65th out of 140 countries in terms of the competitiveness of the travel and tourism industry.India has been ranked in the 11th place in the region and 65th overall, gaining three positions since the last edition. India and Romania Signed Two Agreements On 8 March India and Romania signed on Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income.The agreement was signed after External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid held talks with his Romanian Foreign Minister Titus Corlatean on the entire gamut of bilateral relations, regional and international issues of mutual interest. India and Bhutan Signed $100m Currency Swap Agreement On 8 March India and Bhutan signed a currency swap agreement for up to $100 million to further economic co-operation between the two countries.The currency swap arrangement was signed between the Reserve Bank of India and the Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan (RMAB). Iran and Pakistan Launched Gas Pipeline Project On 11 March Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari was officially inaugurated the final construction phase of the multibilliondollar Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project.The 1,244-mile pipeline would each day transport more than 750 million cubic feet of natural gas to Pakistan from Irans South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf.This Project was started from Chabahar city in Iran to Karachi in Pakistan with $7.5 Billion. Initially they have an idea to extend this project to New Delhi in India but India was dropped from this project in 2009.

Britain & India Signed Agreement To Support R&D Projects On 13 March Britain and India have signed an agreement to launch a joint programme to encourage industry and business in the two countries to work together towards commercialisation of research leads in a range of key areas, including energy and health care.As part of the deal, Global Innovation and Technology Alliance (GITA) sponsored by the Indian governments Department of Science and Technology and UKs Technology Strategy Board (TSB) will support UK and Indian businesses and academics in joint R&D and innovation projects over a three-year period. India Ranks 136 in Human Development Index On 14 March According to the Human Development Report 2013 released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) ,India has been ranked 136 among 187 countries evaluated for human development index (HDI).Norway (1st rank), Australia (2nd rank) and the Netherlands (3rd rank) lead the Human Development Index (HDI).The other countries ranks are:- Netherlands (4th rank) , Japan (10th rank), Denmark (15th rank) , South Korea (12th rank). China Unveils 5-Point Formula To Improve Ties With India On 18 March Chinas new President Xi Jinping has unveiled a five -point formula to improve relations with India, and that the resolution of the boundary dispute between the two nations wont be easy and pending its final settlement peace and tranquility should be maintained on the border without affecting the overall ties. The Xi Jinping 5 Points are :- 1. First,to maintain strategic communication and keep bilateral relations on the right track. 2. Second, we should harness each others comparative s trength and expand win winwin cooperation in infrastructure, mutual investment and other areas. 3. Third, we should strengthen cultural ties and constantly increase mutual understanding and friendship between our peoples. 4. Fourth, we should expand coordination and collaboration in multilateral affairs to jointly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries and tackle global challenges. 5. Fifth, we should accommodate each others core concerns and properly handle problems and differences existing between the two countries. India Egypt Signed Seven Agreements On 19 March In a bid to deepen ties and strengthen economic bonds, India and Egypt signed 7 agreements after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy held bilateral talks in New Delhi.The seven agreements included a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the field of cyber security, cooperation in the field of protection of intellectual property rights and prevention of illicit traffic of antiquities besides others.The two leaders also agreed to enhance cooperation in Defence and in international forums like UN.

India Signed Social Security Agreements With 18 Countries On 20 March India has signed Social Security Agreements (SSAs) with Belgium,France, Germany (social insurance for posted workers only), Switzerland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Hungary, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Republic of Korea, Norway, Germany, Finland, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Austria and Portugal.Bilateral labour Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) have also been signed with United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Malaysia and Bahrain for ensuring protection and welfare of overseas Indian workers. India Votes Against Sri Lanka at UNHRC On 21 March India has voted for the resolution against Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva.The UN Human Rights Council adopted a USsponsored resolution on human rights violation in Sri Lanka.The 47-member Geneva forum adopted the resolution with 25 countries in favour, including India.13countries opposed it, including Pakistan. 8 abstained and one delegation was absent.The USbacked resolution that addresses alleged war crimes by Lankan forces during the countrys civil war with the Tamil Tigers.The 26-year civil war that ensued, which ended with the LTTEs military defeat in 2009. Japan Grants India $2.32 Billion Aid For Infrastructure Building On 27 March India and Japan have agreed to promote their bilateral strategic and global partnership especially in economic and security areas, with Tokyo granting a $2.32 billion aid for infrastructure building. Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida ,External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid discussed about both countries bilateral issues the meeting held at Tokyo .During the meeting Kishida unveiled a 220 billion yen (USD 2.32 billion) aid to India for infrastructure building and a 71-billion-yen loan ($753.17 million) for the subway project in Indias financial capital Mumbai.

NATIONAL Cabinet Approves Bill for Time-Bound Services to Citizens On 7 March the government gave its nod to a Bill aimed at providing time-bound delivery of services like passports, pensions and birth and death certificates, among others, to the citizens.The Right of Citizens for Time- Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011, was approved by the Union Cabinet at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh . President Released the Commemorative Postage Stamp on Sahir Ludhianvi

On 8 March the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee released the Commemorative Postage Stamp on Sahir Ludhianvi on occasion of his birth anniversary at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.Sahir Ludhianvi died on 25 October 1980 and was a renowned Urdu poet.He fought for recognition of lyric writers through the Film Writers Association. Indias First All-Women Post Office After announcing Indias all women public bank, the central government on 08 March 2013 started an all women post office in New Delhi on the occasion of the International Womens Day. Communications & Information Technology Minister Kapil Sibal inaugurated the post office at Shastri Bhawan the hub of central government offices in central Delhi. All the employees in these post office are women only. Cabinet Approved Electronic Delivery of Services Bill On 18 March the Union Cabinet approved a bill that aims to provide access to all central and state government services such as passport, ration card and driving licences electronically.The Bill requires public authorities to deliver all public services electronically within a maximum period of 8 years. Cabinet Approved Food Security Bill On 19 March the union cabinet has approved the National Food Security Bill which aims to give the right to food to around 67% of Indias 1.2 billion people.The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 2011 and had been sent to a parliamentary standing committee for further consideration.In the bill, the government had proposed 7 kg of grain per month per person to priority households and at least 3 kg of foodgrain at half the price for general households. Rajya Sabha Passed Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2013 On 21 March the Rajya Sabha passed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2013 that provides for capital punishment in cases of brutal rape, and also deals with several other crimes against women.On 19 March Lok Sabha passed the Bill with an aim of providing a strong deterrent against rapes and gang rapes, the Bill states that an offender can be sentenced to rigourous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than 20 years, but which may extend to life, meaning imprisonment for the remainder of that persons natural life and with a fine. Supreme Court upholds Death for Yakub Memon On 21 March the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of Yakub Abdul Razak Memon in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case that had claimed 257 lives and left 713

injured.The Supreme Court also upheld the conviction of actor Sanjay Dutt under the Arms Act in the terror attack and sent him to five years in prison.The capital punishment of the other 10 death row convicts was commuted to life sentence by a bench of justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan which also upheld the life term awarded to 16 out of 18 convicts. 68 million Indians Living in Slums On 21 March According to the first such census report on slum households prepared by the Registrar General of India, approximately 68 million Indians are living in slums. In all 1.73 crore census houses have been reported in houselisting blocks, categorised as slums in India, comprising 1.37 crore slum households.The report also noted that in 19 cities with million-plus population, 25 per cent of households live in slums.A majority-71 per cent- of these are located in six states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, west Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.90 per cent of slum households use electricity, 70 per cent slum households have television, 72.7 per cent have telephone facility while 10.4 per cent households have computer or laptop in their house.

STATES HPCL signed MoU for Rajasthan Refinery On 14 March Min of Petroleum & Natural Gas Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Rajasthan Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at Jaipur for setting up a Rs 37,320cr refinery-cum-petrochemical complex in Barmer, Rajasthan. The project will be a joint venture between HPCL and Rajasthan State Refinery Limited, apart from other equity partners.The MoU was signed by Subhash Pant, Secretary Mines and Petroleum, Government of Rajasthan and K.Murli, Director (Refineries) of HPCL. Madhya Pradesh Spice Park Inaugurated in Guna On 16 March In Madhya Pradesh, Union power ministry inaugurated a Spice Park in Mawan area of Guna district. This spice park has been built at a cost of fifty five crore rupees. Delhi Launched a Comprehensive Five-In-One Vaccine On 12 March the Chief Minister of Delhi,Sheila Dikshit launched a comprehensive fivein-one vaccine in order to provide protection to children against certain diseases such as tetanus, diphtheria and pertusis.The CM announced that instead of three injections,

now there will be a requirement of only one injection for providing protection against the diseases. Karnataka State Assembly Elections Schedule Released On March 20 The Election Commission of India has announced the dates for Karnataka Assembly Elections 2013.The elections will be a single-phase election and counting would take place on May 8.The Polls would be held on May 5. Three High Courts Opened in Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya Tripura, Meghalaya and Manipur on 23 March 2013 got their own High Courts. Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, Judge of Chhattisgarh High Court took oath as the first Chief Justice of Manipur High Court on 23 March 2013. Justice Deepak Gupta along with three other judges would be administered the oath to the High Court of Tripura .Justice Meena Kumari took oath as the first Chief Justice of Meghalaya. With the opening of the three high Courts in the North Eastern states of India, the total number of high Courts in India has gone up to 24 from previous 21. Arunachal Pradesh Became the First State to Introduce e-GPF Arunachal Pradesh became the first state to introduce e-GPF or electronic GPF.The state Finance Department facilitated the online access to 34000 GPF accounts through its redesigned Web site, which was launched by Chief Minister of Arunachal Pardesh Nabam Tuki. Housing stock, Amenities and Assets in Slums Report On 29 March Union Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation released the report on Housing stock, Amenities and Assets in slums based on Houselisting & House Census, 2011.Registrar General presented the important features of the report and outlined its importance.In all 1.73 Crore Census houses have been reported in the House listing Blocks categorized as Slums in India, comprising 1.37 Crore slum households.There are 19 cities with million plus population where more than 25% households live in slums.A majority (71%) of these are located in six States namely, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.Out of these 19 cities, five cities namely, Vishakhapatnam, Jabalpur, Mumbai, Vijayawada and Meerut have more than 40% slum households.Out of total slum houses, 92.7% are occupied and 7.3% are vacant.84.9% Census Houses are used for residence/residence-cum-other use.58.4% residential census houses are in good condition, 37.5% are livable and rest 4.0% are in dilapidated condition.70.2% Slum households are owned. Punjab, Haryana, Delhi Top in Well Being Index

According to the Tata Strategic Management Group Survey report , Punjab, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana have been ranked at the top of the Well Being Index,while southern states, Gujarat and most of the north-eastern states emerged as the most secure ones for women in the Female Security Index.The states of Punjab, Delhi, HP, Haryana and Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh were ranked at the top of the Well Being Index. On the Female Security Index, Chennai and Bangalore were at the top.

CONFERENCES 24th Arab League Summit Held in Doha The 24th summit was held in Doha (Qatar) from 21 to 26 March 2013.A total of 15 heads of state of Arab countries attended the summit.The Arab League currently consist of 21 countries, after Syria was suspended form the league due to excessive violence during the Arab Spring. However, the Syrian opposition umbrella organization, the Syrian National Coalition, will attend this years summit and will be offered a seat formerly occupied by Damascus.The Arab League summit called for an international conference in the framework of the United Nations for Syrias reconstruction. The Qatari leader meanwhile proposed a mini- Arab summit, led by Egypt and leaders of Fatah and Hamas, in Cairo as soon as possible to achieve Palestinian national reconciliation. He also called for Arab countries to establish a fund of 1 billion U.S.dollars to support the Palestinians, pledging that his country will offer a quarter of the amount. The Arab League was formed in 1945. 5th BRICS Summit Held in Durban The 5th BRICS Summit was held in Durban, South Africa from 26 to 27 March 2013. The summit an international relations conference attended by the head of states or heads of government of the five member states Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.Theme of the summit was , BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Development, Integration and Industrialisation.BRICS Leaders President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff ,Russian president Vladimir Putin,Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singhm,Chinese president Ji Xinping, South Africas president Jacob Zuma also discussed s wap arrangements among the national currencies as well as reserve pooling. BRICS nations have decided to establish a new development bank to finance infrastructure projects and to create a USD 100 bn contingency fund to tackle any financial crisis in emerging economies, in what is seen as a major win for Indias campaign to reform global financial architecture. BRICS Summit took place in South Africa for the first time. BRICS, originally BRIC before the inclusion of South Africa in 2010, is the title of an association of emerging national economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS).

AWARDS & HONOURS Indian-Origin Writer Anil Ananthaswamy Won British Physics Journalism Prize On 1 March Anil Ananthaswamy, a London based Indian origin writer, has won the inaugural Physics Journalism Prize sponsored by the Institute of Physics (IOP) and the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). The Edge of Physics, has won the prize for his article Hip Hip Array, which focuses on the Square Kilometre Array, an international project to design and build the largest radio telescope ever conceived. Pranab Mukherjee Honoured with the Bangladesh Liberation War Award On 4 March The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee was conferred with the Liberation War Honour Award by the President of Bangladesh, Zillur Rahman. The award was given away to Pranab Mukherjee for contributions to the Liberation War. Indian Women Selected For State Dept Award For Environment Awareness On 5 March Dr Shubhalaxmi Vaylure has been selected for the US State Departments International Exchange Alumni Member of the Month for March for her dedication to build greater environmental awareness in India. Shubhalaxmi first came to the US in 2003 as part of the Fulbright Indo-American Environmental Leadership Programme which took her to the University of Montana to study educational nature centers.Upon eturning from this programme, she drew inspiration from her Fulbright programme as she implemented innovative educational programs at the Mumbai Conservation Education Center. Arun Jaitley, Karan Singh, Sharad Yadav Best Parliamentarians On 6 March Senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley, Congress veteran Karan Singh and JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav have been selected for the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award.Jaitley, who is Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, gets the award for the year 2010, Karan Singh for 2011 and Sharad Yadav for 2012. The Indian Parliamentary Group had instituted the award in 1994 which is conferred each year. Tagore Award For Ravi Shankar President Pranab Mukherjee presented the first annual Tagore Award for Cultural Harmony to late Pandit Ravi Shankar at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 07 Marchi 2013.Sukanya Shankar, wife of Ravi Shankar, received the award.

Stree Shakti Award For Nirbhaya President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Stree Shakti award on International Womens Day( 08 March 2013) for Nirbhaya. Stree Shakti award as a tribute to her courage and strength.The award was recevied by her family members.As a measure of recognition of achievements in individual women in the field of social development, the government had instituted of 6 national awards which are called Stree Shakti Puraskar. The awards are in the name of the eminent women personali ties namely Devi Ahalya Bai Holkar, Kannagi, Mata Jajabai, Rani Gaidinliu Zeliang, Rani Lakshmi Bai and Rani Rudramma Devi (which is open to both men and women). Nirbhaya was honoured with the Sree Shakti award of Rani Lakshmi Bai.The Rani Rudramma Devi Award for the year 2012 was awarded to Smt. Pranita Talukdar from Assam. She was honoured for her commendable work for the overall development of women. US Bravery Award for Nirbhaya The Delhi gang-rape victim, Nirbhaya was honoured by the US government with an International Women of Courage Award for 2013.In this year this award was given to 10 women in Washington on March 8, which is also International Womens Day. National Tourism Award Winners 2011-12 National Annual Tourism Awards for 2011-12 was announced by Tourism Ministry on 12 March 2013. The Ministry announced 86 awards in 36 Categories. The awards presented by President of India on 18th March. Winners of National Tourism Awards for 2011-12 :Best State/ UT Comprehensive Development of Tourism (Rest of India): Andhra Pradesh (First Prize) Rajasthan (Second Prize) Gujarat (Third Prize) Best State/ UT Comprehensive Development of Tourism (North East, Jammu and Kashmir) Jammu & Kashmir Best Civic Management of a Destination Category B City Municipal Council of Mandav (Mandu),District Dhar, Madhya Pradesh Best Heritage City Warangal City, Andhra Pradesh Best Airport ( Class X Cities) Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad Best Airport (Rest of India) VishakhapatnamAirport, Vishakhapatnam The special National Tourism Awards for Yann Martel, author of the book, Life of Pi, for promoting the county (Puducherry and Munnar) through the film as well.

Tan Twan Eng Declared Winner of 2012 Man Asian Literary Prize Tan Twan Eng on 14 March 2013 was announced as a winner of the 2012 Man Asian Literary Prize. With this, he became the first Malaysian author to win the most prestigious literary prize of Asia.Tan Twan Eng won the 2012 Man Asian Literary Prize for his novel The Garden of Evening Mists. Poetess Sugathakumari Selected For Saraswati Samman Award On 17 March Sugathakumari, the Malayalam poetess was selected for the Saraswati Samman 2012 for the poetry collection Manalezhuthu, which means The Writing on the Sand in English. The Saraswati Samman is constituted by K. K. Birla Foundation. 60th National Film Awards On 18 March The prestigious 60th National Film Awards for the year 2012 were announced in New Delhi.Irrfan has won the Best Actor award for his powerful performance in Tigmanshu Dhulias Paan Singh Tomar and Marathi actress Usha Jadhav has won the Best Actress award for Dhag. The List of Award Winners :Best Feature Film: Paan Singh Tomar Best Actor: Irrfan for Paan Singh Tomar and Vikram Gokhale for Anumati (Marathi) Best Actress: Usha Jadhav for Marathi film Dhag Best Child Artist: Virendra Pratap for Dekh Indian Circus (Hindi) and Minon for 101 Chodiyangal (Malayalam) Best Popular Film for wholesome entertainment: Vicky Donor (Hindi), Ustad (Malayalam) Best Animation Film: Delhi Safari Best Childrens Film: Dekh Indian Circus Best Film on Social Issues: Spirit (Malayalam) Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film On National Integration: ThanichallaNjan (Malyalam)

Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director: Chittagong (Hindi) and 101 Chodiyangal (Malayalam) Best Special Effects: Eega (Telugu) Best Hindi Film: Filmistan Best Telugu Film: Eega Reliance Industries Bags Refiner of the Year Award On 23 March Reliance Industries has been awarded the prestigious Intern ational Refiner of the Year 2013 at HART Energys 27th World Refining & Fuel Conference at San Antonio, Texas, USA.This is the second time that RIL has received this Award for its Jamnagar Refinery, the first being in 2005. Indian Manish Kumar Among 28 Naturalised at White House Ceremony Manish Kapoor from India was one among the lucky 28 to be granted the American citizenship at the White House in the presence of the US President, Barack Obama.List of 28 service members, who were naturalised at the White House ceremony included three from South Asia Manish Kapoor, Nazo Raoufi from Afghanistan and Mohammed Hossain from Bangladesh. Paris Honours Nelson Mandela On 26 March the city of Paris made antiapartheid hero Nelson Mandela an honorary citizen, but refused to grant an honour to Venezuelas late leftist firebrand leader Hugo Chavez. 2013 Abel Prize To Belgian Pierre Deligne Belgian mathematician Pierre Deligne who is regarded as one of the most celebrated mathematicians of the 20th century, has been chosen for this years prestigious Abel Prize in Mathematics.Award is given to him for his seminal contributions to algebraic geometry and for their transformative impact on number theory, representation theory and related fields. Veteran Lensman Pranlal Patel Honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award On 28 March The 2nd National Photo Awards- 2011-12 were conferred by the Speaker, Lok Sabha, Ms. Meira Kumar to eminent photojournalists at a function held in Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.The Life-Time Achievement Awards were given to eminent photographers Shri Pranlal Patel, Shri T.S. Nagarajan and Shri T.N.A. Perumal.In the Professional Category, the Best Professional Photographer of the Year 2011-12 has been given to Shri Salil Bera.

SPORTS & GAMES Duty Free Dubai Tennis Championship-2013 Mens Singles: On 2 March Serbian Novak Djokovic won the ATP Dubai Open Tennis Mens singles title after defeated the Czech Republican Tomas Berdych in the final at Dubai . Womens Singles : This title was won by Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic). In final she defeated the Sara Errani(Italy). ATP Mexican Open 2013 Tennis Tournament Winners Mens Singles: Rafael Nadal won ATP Mexican Open 2013 Tennis Title after he defeated the top seed and defending champion David Ferrer on 2 March 2013 in the final. This is the 38th clay court title of Nadal. Womens singles : In the womens singles Italys Sara Errani won the title after defeated Carla Suarez-Navarro (Spain) in the final. Services Won Santosh Trophy Title On 3 March Services team won the final of the 67th Santosh Trophy in Kochi at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium by beating hosts Kerala .The Man of the Match title was clinched by Services striker Lalian Mawia. The Services team bagged their third Santosh Trophy title Delhi Won Vijay Hazare Trophy On 3 March Delhi team won Vijay Hazare Trophy after defeated Assam in the final at the ACA-VDCA stadium. All England Open Badminton Championship Winners Womens Singles : On 10 March Tine Baun (Denmark) won the womens singles title after defeated Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand in the All England Open Badminton Championship at Birmingham. Mens Singles : Chen Long won the singles title after defeating Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia at Mens singles final. Laureus World Sports Awards 2013

On 11 March Laureus World Sports Awards 2013 were organised in Rio de Janeiro.The Prestigious awards were claimed by sports stars- Jessica Ennis, Usain Bolt , Andy Murray and Sebastian Coe. The List of the Awardees :- Laureus World Sportsman of the Year -Usain Bolt Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Jessica Ennis Laureus World Team of the Year European Ryder Cup Team Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Andy Murray Laureus World Comeback of the Year Feliz Sanchez Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Felix Baumgartner Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Daniel Dias Ukrainian Women Won World Chess Championship On 13 March Womens chess team of Ukraine won the World Chess Team Championship. The second place went to team from China, and the third to the Russian , Fifth place to India. India Won Eight Medals in Asian Grand Prix Archery Championship On 14 March India won a total of eight medals in the inaugural Asian Grand Prix Archery Championship at Bangkok . India won two gold, two Silver and four bronze. Australia Won Azlan Shah Trophy On 17 March Australia, the World Champions won the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Tournament title for the seventh time after defeated defeated Malaysia in the final. Kimi Raikkonen Won Australian Grand Prix On 17 March Finlands Kimi Raikkonen won the Australian Formula One Grand Prix in Melbourne.It was the 20th Grand Prix win for Raikkonen, the 2007 world champion. Indian Wells Tennis Tournament Winners Mens Singles : On 18 March Rafael Nadal of spain won the Mens singles title after defeated Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina in the final at California .This is Nadals third Indian Wells ATP Masters title and first hard court title since 2010. Womens Singles :- Maria Sharapova defeated Caroline Wozniacki in the womens final in straight sets to win her second Indian Wells ATP Masters title. Swiss Open Badminton 2013 Winners

Mens Singles :- On 18 March Wang Zhengming from china won the Swiss Open Badminton Mens singles title after defeated Du Pengyu in the final at basel. Womens Singles:- In the Womens singles Wang Shixian from china got the title after defeating Ratchanok Inthanon (Thailand) in the final. West Zone Won Deodhar Trophy On 13 March Defending champion West Zone won the Prof. D.B. Deodhar Trophy for the 12th time after defeated North Zones challenge in the final at the Nehru Stadium. Neha Tripathi Won Sixth Leg of Hero Womens Pro Golf Tour 2013 Kolkatas Neha Tripathi won sixth leg of Hero Womens Pro Golf Tour 2013 in Panchkula on 21 March 2013. This is the third victory of Neha Tripathi in 2013 season. With this victory, Neha Tripathi overtook Smriti Mehra in the Hero Order of Merit 2013. Sebastian Vettel Won F1s Malaysian Grand Prix On 24 March Three-time world champion Sebastian Vettel won the Malaysian Grand Prix 2013 at the Sepang International Circuit.

ECONOMY Nine Indian Women in Forbes Asia Power Business Women List On 1 March ICICI Bank CEO and MD Chanda Kochchar, Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and film producer Ekta Kapoor are among the nine Indian women named in Forbes magazines inaugural Asia Power Businesswomen list.The list also includes Britannia Industries Managing Director Vinita Bali ; HT Media Chairman and Editorial Director Shobhana Bhartia ; AZB & Partners Founder and Senior Partner Zia Mody ; Axis Bank CEO and Managing Director Shikha Sharma ; and Tractors & Farm Equipment Chairman Mallika Srinivasa; Kapoor, TV and movie producer. Mukesh Ambani Is Richest Indian on Forbes list As per an annual ranking published on 4 March 2013 by business magazine Forbes,Mukesh Ambani has retained his title as Indias richest person for sixth year in a row,with networth of $ 21.5 billion.In the overall rich list of worlds billionaires, Mukesh Ambani is ranked 22nd, while the second-richest Indian Lakshmi Mittal is at 41st position with a networth of USD 16.5 billion.Mexican business tycoon Carlos Slim

has topped the rankings with a networth of USD 73 billion, followed by Bill Gates (USD 67 billion), Spains Amancio Ortega (USD 57 billion), Warren Buffett (USD 53.5 billion) and Larry Ellison (USD 43 billion) in top five. Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad Airports Among Top 5 in the World Airports of Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad are among the top five airports in the world providing international standard services.Airports Council International (ACI),a global body of airports, has adjudged Delhis Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport as second best after Seouls Incheon airport in the category of airports handling 25-40 million passengers per annum (MPPA) for their service quality for the year 2012.Mumbais Chhatrapati Shivaji International airport was adjudged the third best in this category.Hyderabads Rajiv Gandhi International airport (RGI) has bagged the second position for their service quality in the category of five to 15 MPPA. Japans Nagoya airport was adjudged the best in this category. Seouls Incheon ranked first, Singapores Changi second and Beijing was placed at the third spot. RBI to Launch Plastic Currency Notes in 5 Cities On 12 March The Union Government and RBI decided to introduce one billion pieces of 10 Rupees bank notes made of plastic on a field trial basis in five cities.A 10 Rupees note in polymer/plastic on a field trial basis will be introduced first; Minister of State for Finance .The field trail is supposed to be conducted in five cities of Kochi, Mysore, Jaipur, Bhubhaneswar and Shimla with varied geographical locations and climatic conditions.As per the RBI, the primary objective of introduction of polymer notes is to increase its life, it could also help in combating counterfeiting. Gujarat Tops in FMCG Consumption On 12 March According to the Evolution of Indian Rural Markets During 2004 -05 to 2009-10 report released by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) , Gujarat has garnered maximum growth in per capita food and non-food consumption expenditure across the country between FY05 and FY10 with growth rate of about 28% and 33% respectively. Besides registering a growth of about 24.69%, Gujarat has also topped in terms of household consumption of fast moving consumer goods (FMCGs) during the fiveyear period.West Bengal has seen least growth of just about 1.6% and about 8% in per-capita food and non-food consumption expenditure, respectively.The per capita food and non-food consumption expenditure across India has increased at over 14% and 17%, respectively, between FY05 and FY10. India Top Rice Exporter in FY 2011-12

On 13 March As the export price of Indian rice was more competitive than the Thai rice, India has displaced Thailand from the position of top exporter of rice during 2011-12, Minister of State Commerce and Industry was informed to Rajya Sabha.In 2010-11, the rice exports stood at 24.71 lakh tonnes from 21.56 lakh tonnes in the previous fiscal.Rice exports were at 74.67 lakh tonnes during April-December 2012 against 71.75 lakh tonnes in the full fiscal year of 2011-12. India 5th in World Billionaire Rich List According to the Knight Frank Wealth Report 2013, India stands 5th among the top 10 countries with the largest number of billionaires with 122 and the number is expected double by 2022.Mumbai has secured the 7th spot in the list of top global cities with a High Net Worth Individual HNWI population.Presently, the city has 2,105 HNWIs and is expected to touch 4,988 with a 137 per cent rise by 2022. Delhi is not too far behind Mumbai; it ranks 11th with a current HNWI population of 1,945 which is likely to grow by 120 per cent and reach 4,278 by 2022. In the cities that that matter to HNWIs , New York and London are the first two places in the list. India May Become 5th Largest Manufacturing Nation According to the Boston Consultancy Group (BCG) report titled People productivity Key to Indian manufacturing competitiveness, India may become the 5th largest manufacturing nation from 9th position at present, if the country is able to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25 per cent.The National Manufacturing Policy envisages that Indias manufacturing sector should increase its share of GDP from 15 percent at present to 25 percent by 2022, in line with global peers.It will help India become the fifth-largest manufacturing nation. Hindujas are Britains Richest Asians Leading NRI businessmen Srichand Hinduja and Gopi Hinduja, Chairman and CoChairman of the Hinduja Group, have emerged as the richest Asians in Britain in 2013.After playing second fiddle for years to steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, the Londonbased Hinduja brothers have come out top this year with net wealth assessed at 12.5 billion pounds up 3 billion pounds on the 2012 figure. Mumbai Falls to 66th Rank Among Leading Global Financial Hubs According to the latest Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI), Mumbai which is Indias financial capital has slipped to 66th rank in the list of leading financial centres around the world, with New Delhi failing to even make a mark.GFCI offers profiles,ratings and rankings for 79 financial centres around the world positioned Mumbai at the 66th place, which is down three places from last year when it was ranked 63rd on the much coveted list.Mumbai is the only Indian city on the list. London topped the list,

followed by New York ranking second in the list. Hong Kong and Singapore in the third and fourth place respectively. RBI Cuts Repo Rate by 25 Base Points On 19 March The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.5 per cent from 7.75 percent in its midquarter review of the monetary policy. Consequently, the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands adjusted to 6.5 per cent from the earlier 6.75 per cent and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate to 8.5 per cent with immediate effect.The Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) has been retained at 4 per cent.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Spinning Black Hole Observed for the First Time The Spinning black holes are first identified by Paranal Observatory astronomers in Chile.The enormous black hole at the center of the spiral galaxy NGC 1365 is spinning about 84 percent as fast as Einsteins general theory of relativity allows it to, researchers determined. NGC 1365, located about 56 million light-years from Earth. Pinaka Rockets Successfully Test-Fired On 1 March Indigenously developed Pinaka rockets were successfully test-fired by Indian army from a multi-barrel rocket launcher (MBRL) by an armament establishment from a base at Chandipur-on-sea, about 15 km from Balasore.Pinaka is an area weapon system with a range of 40 km.Pinaka system can fire a salvo of 12 rockets in 44 seconds ,adding that the battery of six launchers can neutralise at a time a target area of 3.9 sq km. Large Meteorite Found in Antarctica On 1 March the international group of researchers has discovered the18-kg meteorite in eastern Antarctica, the largest found in that area in 25 years. Astronomer Measured Exact Distance to Our Closest Neighbouring Galaxy On 7 March Astronomers have for the first time accurately measured the distance to one of the Milky Ways neighbouring galaxy and it is just 163,000 light-years away. Japan Pioneers Gas Extraction From Seafloor Methane Hydrate

On 12 March Japan has become the first country in the world to extract natural gas from frozen methane hydrate successfully off the central coast. According to the Japanese study, it was estimated that around 1.1tn cubic metres of methane hydrate existed in the offshore deposits. This is equal to the gas consumption of Japan in more than 10 years. Worlds Largest Telescope Inaugurated in Chile On 13 March The worlds largest radio telescope has been inaugurated in Chile on a mountain high above the Atacama Desert, wielding unprecedented power to peer into the remotest regions of the universe.The ceremony attended by President Sebastian Pinera and other dignitaries.The ALMA space observatory consists of 66 antennae creating a telescope array 16 kilometres in diameter. UAE Inaugurated Worlds Largest CSP Solar Power Plant On 17 March United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed AlNahyan inaugurated the 100-megawatt solar plant Shams 1 in the desert of Abu Dhabi,the worlds largest concentrated solar power plant in operation.Covering an area of 2.5 square km, the 600-million-U.S. dollars project incorporates the latest in parabolic trough technology and features more than 258,000 mirrors mounted on 768 tracking parabolic trough collectors, capable of delivering green electricity to 20,000 homes. India Successfully Test Fired Worlds First Underwater Supersonic Cruise Missile On 20 March India has successfully test fired its submarine-launched version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile of the over 290 km-range in the Bay of Bengal off the coast of the southern port city of Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).The launch of Missile is counted as the first test-firing of an underwater supersonic cruise missile anywhere in the world. The missile travelled its complete range of over 290 km. Big Bang Radiation Map Unveiled On 21 March The European Space Agency (ESA) has unveiled the most detailed map yet of relic radiation from the Big Bang,revealing new data it hopes will shed light on the creation and expansion of our Universe.The map results suggest the universe is expanding more slowly than scientists thought, and is 13.8 billion years old, 100 million years older than previous estimates. India and US Agreed for Future Cooperation in Moon and Mars Missions

On 23 March India and the US agreed for cooperation on future missions to the Moon and Mars after successful collaboration in Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission. The highly successful Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission which was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in October 2008 led to strong evidence of the presence of lunar water. Crew Reaches Space Station in Less than 6 Hours On 29 March An astronaut from the U. S.with three Russian cosmonauts took a short cut to reach space station and saved around 45 hours of journey. The crew took only 5 hours and 45 minutes to reach the space station from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.This is for the first time that any crew has used this express route to reach space station in the minimum possible time.Three members on this Russian Soyuz are Chris Cassidy from NASA, Alexander Misurkin and Pavel Vinogradov from Russia. NTPC Commissioned New Solar Power Project in Andaman & Nicobar On March 30,NTPC Ltd has commissioned a 5-MW solar photo-voltaic power project at Port Blair in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.It is the first grid-connected solar photovoltaic project in these islands and also the first greenfield renewable solar PV project of NTPC. New Indian Ship ASWC Kiltan Launched in Kolkata INS Kiltan is an anti-submarine warfare corvette of the Indian Navy built under Project-28. It is the third of four Kamorta class corvettes under various stages of induction with the Indian Navy. The ship was built by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata and launched on 26 March.The ship takes its name from the Kiltan island, a coral island that is part of Indias archipelagic Union Territory of Lakshadweep.The Kiltan is to be armed with a range of indigenously developed cutting edge weapons and sensors including a medium range gun, torpedo tube launchers, rocket launchers and a close-in weapon system.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) APPOINTMENTS Nagaland , Tripura , Meghalaya new CMs On 5 March Neiphiu Rio of Naga Peoples Front (NPF) party was sworn in as Chief Minister of Nagaland for the third straight term. On 5 March Mukul Manda Sangma

of Congress party was sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Meghalaya for the second term. On 6 March ManikSarkar of CPM party was sworn in as chief minister of Tripura for the fourth consecutive time . Panabaka Lakshmi Assumes Additional Charge of Textiles On 5 March Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Panabaka Lakshmi assumed additional charge as Union Minister of State for Textiles.Lakshmi was minister of state for textiles until she was shifted to petroleum and natural gas ministry in the same rank after the reshuffle in end October 2012. IAEA Chief Amano Wins Second Term The UN atomic agencys board of governors on 06 March 2013 approved giving Japanese director general Yukiya Amano a new four-year term without even resorting to a vote. Nicolas Maduro sworn in as Venezuelas Interim President On 8 March Venezuelan Vice- President Nicolas Maduro was sworn in as Venezuelas acting president, despite the Opposition resistance as it is being considered to the violation of the countrys constitution. New Governors For 5 States On 9 March President Pranab Mukherjee appointed new Governors for 5 states Former CBI Director, Ashwani Kumar appointed as Governor of Nagaland. Congress veteran SC Jamir appointed as Governor of Odhisa . Governor of Tripura DY Patil transferred to Bihar Bihar Governor Devanand Konwar shifted to Tripura Nikhil Kumar, who was serving as Governor of Nagaland, has been transferred and appointed as Governor of Kerala . Aung Suu Kyi Re-elected As Opposition NLD Leader On 10 March Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been re-elected head of the new executive board of the National League for Democracy at a landmark maiden party congress. Jorge Bergoglio Elected As 266th Pope On 13 March Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina is selected as the new leader for 120 crore Catholics across the world.George was the Buenos Aires Archbishop and he was chosen as the new Pope by 115 qcardinals.He changed his name as Francis- 1.He is the 266th Pope (head of the Roman Catholic Church).Francis-1 is the first Pope from

the Jesuit community. He is also the first pope from Latin America. He is also the first pope to be selected from a non European country in the modern history.There are five Indian also among the cardinal electors. Xi Jinping Took Over As Chinas New President On 14 March Xi was elected as President by 3000-strong National Peoples Congress, which also endorsed his appointment as the Chairman of the Military Commission. Chinas parliament formally elected Xi Jinping as president, four months after he took charge of the Communist Party. Khil Raj Regmi Sworn as Nepal PM On 14 March Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi was sworn-in as the new Prime Minister of Nepal .Khil Raj Regmi will be the head of interim government which will have its elections by 21 June 2013. This is the first time in Nepalese political history that a sitting Chief Justice is being named as the Head of the Government. Sundar Pichai To Take Over as Googles Android Chief Google on 13 March 2013 , announced that Andy Rubin, who was heading the companys Android division, is stepping down. He will be replaced by SundarPichai, an IITian, who also heads Googles Chrome division. Li Keqiang Appointed as Chinas new Prime Minister On 14 March Li Keqiang was appointed prime minister at the annual session of Chinas National Peoples Congress.Mr. Li is the latest Communist Party leader. He succeeds Wen Jiabao in a position that entails steering the economy and government operations through the State Council, or cabinet. Bobby Ghosh is Time International Editor Eminent Indian journalist Bobby Ghosh had been named the new editor of Time International. Ghosh was appointed on 15 March 2013 as the first non-American world editor in TIMEs history. Indian American Appointed Vice Chairman of Illinois Innovation Council On 18 March Indian-American politician Raja Krishnamurthy has been appointed vice chair of the Illinois Innovation Council by the Illinois Governor Pat Quinn. Krishnamurthyis currently the president of Sivanathan Laboratories. Mir Hazar Khan Khoso Sworn in as aretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan

On 25 March Justice Retd. Mir Hazar Khan Khoso took oath as the sixth caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan on 25 March 2013 in Islamabad. Renee Ramaswamy Nominated to the National Council of the Arts On 22 March Renee Ramaswamy, founder of the Ragamala Music and Dance Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has been nominated by President Barack Obama to the National Council of the Arts for a fiveyear term. Obama Appoints First Woman Secret Service Director On 26 March President Barack Obama chose veteran agent Julia Pierson as Secret Service director, the first woman to lead the male-dominated agency. Ralph Waters new World Cup 2015 Chairman Ralph Waters has been named new chairman of the local organizing committee for the 2015 World Cup hosted by Australia and New Zealand. Waters was previously the deputy chairman of the committee and succeeds James Strong, the previous chairman. B)RESIGNS UP minister Raja Bhaiya Resigned UPs food and civil supplies minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya, who is an accused in the murder of a deputy superintendent of police, on 04 March 2013 met chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and tendered his resignation. Odisha Law Minister Raghunath Mohanty Resigned A senior Odisha minister, Raghunath Mohanty, resigned on 16 Marchi 2013, after his daughter-in-law accused him of torturing her for dowry. Mukesh Ambani To Exit Board of Bank of America Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani will step down as the board of director of Bank of America He has served on the Bank of America board since March 2011 and became a director prior to the establishment of the global advisory council. Five Cabinet Ministers Resigned

On 20 March the 5 Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party Cabinet ministers resigned from the Union Council of Ministers, which were accepted by the Pranab Mukherjee President of India. Pranab Mukherjee, also allocated the charge of Chemicals and Fertilizers Ministry to Srikant Jena who is Minister of State in the same ministry.The five cabinet ministers are :- (i) M K Alagiri ( Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers) (ii) S S Palanimanickam (Minister of State (Finance) ) (iii) S. Gandhiselvan (Minister of state for Health and Family Welfare) (iv) S. Jagathrakshakan (Minister of State for Commerce & Industry) (v) D. Napoleon (Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment). Italy Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi Resigned Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi resigned on 26 March, over his governments decision to return two marines to India to face trial for the murder of local fishermen while on anti-piracy duty. C)DEATHS Venezuelan President Chavez Died On 5 March Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez died at Caracas .Hugo Chavez was the President of Venezuela from 1999 till his death in 2013. He Served as the President of Venezuela for three times.A coup attempt was made in Venezuela in April 2002 to overthrow Hugo Chavez from his office. Former West Bengal Governor Viren J Shah passed away in Jordan On March 9th,the former West Bengal Governor and industrialist Viren J Shah died in Jordan. He was also member of the Rajya Sabha twice from 1975 to 1981 and from 1990 to 1996. He was the Governor of West Bengal from 1999 to 2004. Bangladesh President Zillur Rahman Died On 20 March Bangladesh President Mohammad Zillur Rahman, died at Singapore .Rahman, was made the ceremonial head of the state in 2009 after Awami League was elected in the landmark December, 2008, general elections. Pietro Mennea, the Italian Athlete Died Pietro Mennea, the Italian athletics died in Rome on 21 March 2013. Pietro Mennea was the gold medal winner in the 200m at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Nigerian Author Chinua Achebe Died

On 22 March Renowned Nigerian author Chinua Achebe has died at the age of 82 .One of Africas best known authors, his 1958 debut novel Things Fall Apart, which dealt with the impact of colonialism in Africa, has sold more than 10 million copies. Two Time Pulitzer Winner Anthony Lewis Dies On 25 March Anthony Lewis, who has died aged 85, was a New York Times columnist and author who twice won a Pulitzer Prize, the highest award in American journalism.Anthony Lewis was a prominent public intellectual, who wrote for The New York Times op-ed page and The New York Review of Books, among other publications. Grammy Award Winning Producer and Engineer Phil Ramone Died On 30 March Phil Ramone, the Grammy Award-winning engineer and producer who applied his platinum touch to recordings with Ray Charles, Billy Joel and Paul Simon, has died at the age of 72.Ramone won 14 Grammy awards and worked with Frank Sinatra and Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney, Elton John and Tony Bennett. D)VISITORS President of India Visited Bangladesh President of India, Pranab Mukherjee visited Bangladesh from 3 5 March .During the visit he met with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina and discussed the Teesta and land border issues. President Mukherjee Visited Mauritius The President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, visited Mauritius from 11 to 13 March .During the visit he attended the Mauritius 45th Independence anniversary celebrations as a Chief Guest. He met the President of the Republic of Mauritius, Mr Rajkeswur Purryag , Prime Minister, Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam and discussed the bilateral double taxation avoidance convention. World Bank President Jim Yong Kim Visited India Jim Yong Kim the President of World Bank, visited India from 11th to 13th March.During the visit Jim Yong Kim met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P.Chidambaram and discussed Indias major initiatives aimed at fostering equitable growth. This is the Kims first visit to India after taking over as President of the World Bank Group 2012 July.

Egypts President Mohamed Morsi Visited India Egypts President Mohamed Morsi visited India from 18 to 20 March .During the visit Morsi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in NewDelhi and discussed the forge closer cooperation in economic and other fields. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Visited South Africa Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited South Africa from 25 to 28 March.During the visit he attended the BRICS Summit and met Russian president Vladimir Putin and discussed about the substantive progress being made on the other remaining phases of the joint nuclear energy programme between India and Russia at Kudankulam. Manmohan Singh also met China new president Xi Jinping and discussed the issue of Beijings proposal to construct three dams across the Brahmaputra river on its side. E)MISCELLANEOUS Salman Rushdie Named in Al-Qaidas Most-Wanted List Indian-origin British author Salman Rushdie had been named in the most-wanted list of Islam critics to kill released by al-Qaida in the new issue of its English online magazine. A fatwa was issued against Rushdie by Irans late leader Ayotollah Khomeini in 1989 over passages in his book The Satanic Verses. Maldives Ex-President Nasheed Arrested On March 5,Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed had been arrested, to face charges of abuse of power during his tenure, after he failed to appear for a hearing and evaded two arrest warrants. He is charged with illegally ordering the arrest of a senior judge, a move that led to his fall from power in 2012. Czech Senate Accuses President Vaclav Klaus of High Treason On 5 March Czech President Vaclav Klaus dismissed a decision by lawmakers to press high treason charges against him as politically motivated.The Senates actions were prompted by an amnesty granted by President Klaus , which will free over 6,000 prison inmates and halt the prosecution of prominent business executives and officials charged with asset stripping, bribes and fraud. 12 Year Old Neha Ramu has IQ Higher than Albert Einstein On 5 March Neha Ramu, 12-year-old Indianorigin girl in UK has stunned everyone after she scored an incredible 162 on her IQ test even higher than Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.The score puts the tween in the top one per cent of brightest

people in the UK and means she is more intelligent than physicist Hawking, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and scientist Albert Einstein, who are all thought to have an IQ of 160. Navneet Kaur Dhillon Crowned Femina Miss India 2013 On 24 March Navneet Kaur Dhillon was crowned Femina Miss India 2013 in a star studded grand finale of the 50th edition of the beauty pageant.The first and second runners-up were Sobhita Dhulipala and Zoya Afroz respectively.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong Earthquake in Taiwan On 27 March a strong earthquake struck central Taiwan , killing at one person and injuring 19 as it damaged buildings on the quake-prone island.The Central Weather Bureau said the magnitude-6.1 earthquake was felt throughout the island.The U.S. Geological Survey placed the magnitude at 6.0.Nantou is a rural county about 250 kilometres south of Taipei.

ABBREVIATIONS BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa NABARD - National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development AWACS - Airborne Warning And Control System CMIE - Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy OECD - Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development AICTE - All India Council for Technical Education NDMA - National Disaster Management Authority DTC - Direct Taxes Code AAPSO - Afro-Asian PeoplesSolidarity Organization TIEA - Tax Information and Exchange Agreement

DTAA - Double taxation Avoidance Agreement AFSPA - Armed Forces Special Powers Act NOIDA - New Okhla Industrial Development Authority IAAI - International Airports Authority of India. FBI - Federal Bureau of Investigation

BOOKS IN NEWS Vice President of India Released Walking With Lions: Tales from a Diplomatic Past The Vice President of India, M. Hamid Ansari released a book titled Walking with Lions: Tales from a Diplomatic Past, written by K. Natwar Singh, the former Union Minister for External Affairs on 1 March 2013. This was Published by Harper Collins India. Yuvraj Singh The Test of My Life Book Released On 19 March Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh launched his new memories Auto biography book The Test of My Life. The Test of My Life is a book that talks about Yuvraj Singhs battle with cancer and his love for cricket. The book was launched in Mumbai where all his fellow cricketers came to show their support. Taliban Shooting Victim Is Publishing A Memoir : I Am Malala Malala Yousafzai, the teenage girl shot by the Taliban for promoting girls education, is to tell her life story in a book due out later this year.In a deal reportedly worth around $3 million. The book will be entitled I Am Malala.

COMMITTEES Govt Appoints Mukul Mudgal Committee To Probe Wal-Mart Lobbying Activities On 5 March The union government has appointed a one-man Inquiry Committee, headed by former Chief Justice of Punjab & Haryana High Court Justice Mukul Mudgal,

to inquire into reports on the US lobbying activities of Wal-Mart for access to India market. The Committee has to submit its report within three months and it is being provided administrative and functional support by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in its probe.

IMPORTANT DAYS AND DATES May 1 International Labour Day May 3 World Press Freedom Day May 3 International Energy Day May 3 World Asthma Day May 4 Anti Tobacco Day May 4 World Athletics Day May 8 World Red Cross Day May 11 National Technology Day May 13 National Solidarity Day May 17 World Telecommunication Day May 20 World Metrology Day May 21 Anti Terrorism Day May 24 Commonwealth Day May 31 World No Tobacco Day December 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Mahama Re-elected as Ghanas President

On 10 December Ghanas incumbent President John Dramani Mahama of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has won the countrys presidential election.Mahama took 50.70 percent of the total valid votes cast, while his closest challenger, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) obtained 47.74 percent.With his re-election, Mahama becomes the fourth president to be elected under the Forth Republic.He had served as Ghanas vice president since 2009. UN, Pakistan Launched Malala Fund Pakistan joined forces with the United Nations on 10 December 2012 to launch a fund aimed at boosting girls education throughout the world.The fund is named for Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old Pakistani girl. Pakistans President Asif Ali Zardari also announced a $10-million donation for a global war chest to educate all girls by 2015 set up in the name of Malala Yousafzai for campaigning for girls education. Shinzo Abe Elected As Japans New PM The former Prime Minister and the Leader of LDP Shinzo Abe elected as a Prime Minister with a clear victory over the Prime Minister and leader of the Democratic Party of Japan(DPJ) Yoshihiko Noda in the Parliamentary Elections on 26 December 2012.The lawmakers in Japan voted in favour of Abe by 328 votes. Opponent Banri Kaieda, the newly chosen leader of DPJ received merely 57 votes. Jacob Zuma re-elected as South Africas President South Africas ruling African National Congress on 18 December 2012 re -elected President Jacob Zuma as the party chief with a thumping majority. Mr.Zuma received the support of over 75 per cent of the total voting delegates at the ANC National Conference held in Bloemfontein. Juma was Deputy President of South Africa from 1999 to 2005 Park elected South Korean President Park Guen-hye, the daughter of former military dictator Park Chung-hee, beat her opponent on 19 December 2012 in the South Korean presidential elections. Park is the countrys first woman President. She is the former head of the ruling Conserva tive Saenuri Party, had secured the necessary votes and defeated Moon Jae-in, of the Democratic United Party. Pak Cleared Anti-terror Bill On 20 December Pakistans National Assembly passed a bill that will give intelligence and security agencies sweeping powers to conduct surveillance and collect data from

SMSs and emails.The National Assembly or lower house of parliament approved the Fair Trial Bill 2012 after incorporating amendments proposed by the main opposition PML-N and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which is part of the ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Peoples Party. U.S. House Passed Defense Bill On 20 December US (United States) House of Representatives passed the Defence Authorization Act of 2013. The bill authorizing 633.3 billion dollar in defense spending for 2013, easing limits on satellite exports and providing more Marines for embassy security. Napolitano Dissolved Italian Parliament On 22 December Italian President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved Parliament following the resignation of Prime Minister Mario Monti. Italian Government under the leadership of Mario Monti brought forward a series of austerity reforms backed by EU and business leaders. Morsi signed on Egypts New Constitution On 25 December Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi signed into law a new Islamistdrafted constitution. He signed a declaration enforcing the charter late after the official announcement of the result of a referendum approving the basic law. Twothirds of the members of the 270-seat council were elected earlier this year in a vote in which only 12 per cent of registered voters participated. The remaining 90 were appointed by Mohamed Morsi, the Islamist president. Pakistan Recognised the Republic of Kosovo On 26 December Pakistan Government officially recognised Kosovo as an independent state, almost five years after it declared independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008. Pakistan is the 98th country among the 193 U.N-member states to recognise Kosovo .Kosovo is a small south east European state lies between Albania, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro.

INDIA & WORLD Nitish Kumar, Hazare, Malala Among The Top 100 Global Thinkers List On 2 December According to the United States-based Foreign Policy magazine has released its list of the 100 Top Global Thinkers from 2012. The magazine has

placed the Indians in the list include Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who features way below at the 77th place, Anna Hazare who has been placed at the 37th position for his anti-corruption crusade in the country. 15-year-old Pakistani child rights activist Malala Yousafzai at 6th position, Aung San Suu Kyi is ranked first in list. Bangladesh Agreed on Zero Line Fencing along Tripura Border On 2 December Bangladesh had agreed to set up barbed wire fencing along zero line in nine stretches on the Indo-Bangladesh border in Tripura. According to the MHA communique, fencing along zero line was to be allowed in 9 areas. India & Japan Signed Currency Swap Agreement India signed a bilateral swap arrangement (BSA) with the Bank of Japan to swap their local currencies for an amount of $15 billion for a three year period on 4 December 2012.The BSA will effect from 5 December 2012. India is Among Top Five Terror-Hit Nations The Australian think tank released The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) on 4 December 2012, according to this GTI, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan were among the nations most impacted by terrorism in 2011. In 2011, the Middle East, India, Pakistan and Russia were the areas most impacted by terrorism. Indias GTI rank was 4 out of the 159 countries surveyed. While Iraq stood at number1, Pakistan at number 2, Afghanistan at number 3 and Yemen was number 5. Bangalore Best Indian City To Live Bangalore ranks better than New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata amongst Indian cities in overall global quality of living index, according to a Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Survey.Bangalores overall quality of living rank went up from 141 in 2011 to 139 in 2012 and is highest amongst other Indian cities. India Ranked 94th Position in Corruption Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tied for the first place in watchdog Transparency Internationals 2012 index of the least corrupt countries. India is on 94th position in the Corruption Perceptions Index. Most corrupted nations are Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia in 174th positions. US Extends Exemptions For India to Iran Oil Sanctions On 8 December the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has extended exemptions to India, China ,South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey and

Taiwan from Iranian Sanctions Act mainly because of their significant reduction in oil import from Iran.The 9 countries have again qualified for an exception to sanctions outlined in Section 1245 of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012, based on additional reductions in the volume of their crude oil purchases from Iran.This is for the second time that countries including India has received waiver from US under the Iranian sanctions act. 3 Indian Projects among Strategic- Global Infrastructure Projects List Three Indian projects have placed in the new yorks Global Infrastructure Leadership Forum Top 100 Strategic Global Infrastructure Projects list. GIFT city (Gujarat International Financial Tech city), Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project (Maharashtra) and the Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) project (Andhra Pradesh). India, Ukraine Signed on Five Agreements India and Ukraine on 10 December 2012 signed on five agreements in New Delhi to enhance cooperation including in areas of defence, Nuclear, Science and Technology and also to remove barriers in trade and commerce. Indians Largest Ethnic Minority Group in UK On 11 December According to the 2011 Britain population census record Indians are the largest ethnic minority group in the UK.With 1.5 percent of the Hindu religion became a third-largest religion in the nations. The Christian population in the country is also a drop in the statistics.. The Muslim community population in the countrys fastest growing increased by 3 percent to 4.8. India& Pak Signed on New Visa Agreement The new Visa Agreement between India and Pakistan on 14th December, 2012 at New Delhi. However, the Visa-on-Arrival will come into effect from 15th January, 2013. Shri Sushilkumar Shinde, Home Minister of India and Mr. A. Rehman Malik, Pakistan Interior Minister singed on the agreement. Cell Phone Connections to exceed the World Population by 2014 The International Telecommunications Communication Union (ITU) to be designed and released Information Society 2012 Observe report on 11 December. According to the report number of cell phone connections exceeding the worlds population by 2014. Now 6 billion (hundreds of millions) cell phone connections they will reach 730 Millions by 2014 .Then the worlds population is 700 crore.Already in Russia 1.8 times cell phone accounts more than 25 million people.

Indians now Live Longer but in Poor Health in Old Age According to the the prestigious British medical journal, The Lancet report the life expectancy (LE) at birth of an average Indian male has gone up by 15 years between 1970 and 2010. An average Chinese male is living 10 years longer than an Indian male, while a Chinese woman is living 11.5 years longer than her Indian counterpart. An average American lives nearly 13 years longer than an Indian. World Malaria Report 2012 According to the WHO World Malaria Report 2012 India, the country most affected by malaria in the South East Asian Region, is projected to see a decrease of 50-75 per cent in malaria case incidence by 2015.In South East Asia Region, Bhutan, Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand have registered decreases of 75 per cent or more in the incidence of microscopically confirmed malaria incidence rates between 2000 and 2011. Hinduism Third Largest Religion of World According to the Pew research survey report Hinduism is the third largest religion of the world after Christianity , Islam and 97 per cent of all Hindus live in the worlds three Hindu-majority countries (India, Mauritius and Nepal), and nearly nine-in-ten Christians (87 per cent) are found in the worlds 157 Christian majority countries.In the total world population 2.2 billion Christians (32 per cent of the worlds population), 1.6 billion Muslims (23 per cent) around the world as of 2010. India & Russia signed Rs 22,000 crore Defence Deals India and Russia signed defence deals worth around Rs. 22,000 crore ($4 billion) on 24 December. According to this pact Russia will sell India 71 military helicopters for $1.3 billion and technological kits to assemble 42 Sukhoi jet fighters for $1.6 billion.

NATIONAL Sexual Assault a Gender-Neutral Offence Bill Passed by Lok Sabha The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, replacing the word rape by the phrase sexual assault and seeking to widen the scope of the offence passed by Lok Sabha on 4 December. Both men and women could soon be able to invoke the provisions of a criminal law in case of sexual assault .The amendment bill expands the definition so that cases of sexual assault where victims were male would fall under the same law along with cases where victims were women.

Cabinet Approved Naval Base Phase II of Project Seabird On 7 December The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) cleared a Rs 13,500 crore major expansion plan of the strategic Karwar naval base Phase II Alpha of the project Seabird in Karnataka is set to become the countrys biggest Naval base by 2025. The Karwar naval base is Indias third major naval base after Mumbai and Visakhapatnam on the east coast. Over 7 Crore Unemployed Youth in India According to the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) report an approximate 7 crore youth people in India are either unemployed or under-employed. The figures were revealed by Labour and Employment Minister Mallikarjun Kharge in Rajya Sabha.As per results of the latest survey conducted by NSSO during 2009-10, the number of unemployed or under-employed persons on usual status basis in the country was 95 lakhs and about six crore respectively. Rajya Sabha Passed SC/ST Quota Bill A Constitution 117th amendment bill providing for quota for SCs and STs in government job promotions was on December 17 passed by Rajya Sabha. Unlawful Activities Amendment Bill Passed by Rajya Sabha On 20 December Parliament passed a bill that makes economic offences, including circulation of high quality counterfeit currency, a terrorist act.The Rajya Sabha passed Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2012 by voice vote while several parties. The bill was already passed by Lok Sabha. LokSabha Approved Company Bill 2011 On 18 December Lok Sabha passed the Companies Bill 2011 paving the way for a new modern company law.The Bill is aimed at improving corporate governance. It contains provisions to strengthen regulations for corporate as well as auditing firms. Banking Bill passed by Lok Sabha The Banking Laws Amendment Bill, 2011, have been passed in the Lok Sabha on 20 December .The amendments pave the way for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to issue new bank licences, and also opens door for more foreign investment into the sector. Usha Mehra commission for Delhi incident victim Nirbhayas Case

A female physiotherapy intern student Nirbhaya beaten and gang raped in Delhi on 16 December and died on 29 December while undergoing emergency treatment in Singapore for brain and gastrointestinal damage from the assault.The government has formed a committee of enquiry under justice Usha Mehra to reconstruct the events leading to the incident identify lapses by police and other agencies and fix responsibility for the crime. Microsoft Launches 14 Innovation Centres in India Microsoft Corporation (India) Pvt. Ltd had launched 14 Microsoft Innovation Centres (MICs) in India. It has signed agreements with leading academic institutions across four States.As part of the global programme, which currently has 75 MICs, Microsoft aims to launch a 100 such centres in India in the next two years.

STATES Delhi Government Launched Delhi Annshri Yojna UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was launched a major food security programme of Delhi Government Delhi Annshri Yojna on 15 December 2012.under which a monthly cash subsidy of Rs. 600 will be transferred directly into Aadhaar-linked bank accounts of the senior-most female members of two lakh poor families. BJP Won in Gujarat Assembly Elections The BJP registered its fifth consecutive victory in Gujarat on 20 December 2012.This is the third victory under Modi leadership. BJP won the 115 seats. Congress won the 61 seats. Modi won by a landslide from Maninagar constituency in Gujarat, beating his nearest Congress party rival Shweta Bhatt by a margin of 86,373 votes. Congress has won Himachal Pradesh Elections The Congress returned to power in Himachal Pradesh after five years, defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Himachal Pradesh State Assembly elections conduced on 4 November 2012.The Congress secured 36 seats and the BJP 26 seats. The Congress Leader Virbhadra Singh won from Shimla (Rural) constituency and defeated the rival from BJP Ishwar Rohal by 19033 Votes. Meghalaya Passed Lokayukta Bill 2012 On 14 December the Meghalaya Lokayukta Bill, 2012 was passed in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly and replaced the existing Lokayukta Act, 2002 amidst opposition

from legislators. The new act under the lokayukta bill covered the chief minister, governor and all public servants, but allowed the state government through a clause to exclude the complaints by citing public interest. Madhya Pradesh Government Set Up a Senior Citizen Commission On 21 December the Madhya Pradesh Government has set up a Senior Citizen Commission to look into problems of the elderly in the State. Assam Government Announced Special Health Scheme On 12 December Assam government announced that 50 riverine public health centres would be set up in the state soon under the National Rural Health Mission.The public health centres would be located primarily in the districts of Barpeta, Dhubri, Goalpara and Darrang. 30% Reservation for Rural Candidates in Assam Govt. Jobs Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on 26 December 2012 announced that 30 per cent state government jobs will be reserved for candidates belonging to rural areas from 2013.

CONFERENCES UN Climate Change Conference (COP 18) The United Nations Climate Change Conference , which is the 18th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 18) and 8th session of the Conference of the Parties (serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol ) ends on 8 December in Qatar, Doha. United Nations climate talks in Doha had agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol through 2020. Poland will host the next round of 19th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) UN climate talks in 2013. World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12) The First ever World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT) from 3 -14 December held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.The conference reviewed the current International Telecommunication Regulations (ITRs).The 193 member states of the ambassadors are attended this conference.While 89 states have signed the UN International Telecommunications agreement and another 55 countries have refused the deal.The new agreement will come into effect in January 2015.

ASEAN India Commemorative Summit held in New Delhi India is hosted the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit held from December 20-21 in New Delhi to mark the 20th anniversary of the ASEAN India dialogue partnership and the 10th anniversary of ASEAN-India Summit-level partnership.The theme of the summit is ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace and Shared Prosperity. ASEAN and India have signed the awaited Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on comprehensive economic cooperation as foundations for the establishment of an ASEAN-India Trade and Investment Area.

AWARDS & HONOURS Katy Perry Honored With Billboards Woman of the Year Pop Singer Katy Perry was honored with Billboards Woman of the Year 2012 (The Star of the Women) award in New York. Shah Rukh Khan Conferred With Moroccos Medal of Honour Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan had given the prestigious Medal of Honour by the Prince of Morocco (Moulay Rachid) on 3 December 2012 in 12th Marrakech International Film Festival. DRDO Scientist Gets Top Award Brajnish Sitara scientist from Research Centre Imarat(RCI), a premier laboratory of DRDOs missile complex was conferred with INAE(Indian Nati onal Academy of Engineering)Young Engineer Award for 2012 at the academys annual conventionheld at Roorkee on 6 December 2012. Rajan and Sajan Mishra Conferred National Tansen Samman On 14 December 2012 noted vocalist duo of Rajan and Sajan Mishra will be awarded prestigious National Tansen Samman for year 2011-12 for their contribution to Hindustani classical music Stephen Hawking Won Yuri Milner Award A Russian billionaires foundation was awarded two special prizes of $3 million each to British cosmologist Stephen Hawking for his work on black holes and to seven scientists at the worlds biggest atom-smasher for their roles in the discovery of a new subatomic particle believed to be the long-sought Higgs boson. Yuri Milners

Fundamental Physics Prize Foundation announced the awards on 11 December 2012.Hawking is honored for his discovery of Hawking radiation from black holes and his deep contributions to quantum gravity and quantum aspects of the early universe. Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for Ravi Shankar Sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar will be honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously.He becomes the first Indian to get the prestigious award. The decision to honour Ravi Shankar, a three-time Grammy winner, was made before his death. Indian Journalists Association Honoured Sir Charles Wheeler On 16 December Indian Journalists Association has conferred its Lifetime Achievement Award for 2012 posthumously to former BBC correspondent Sir Charles Wheeler. Scientist Venkatesh Mannar honoured with Order of Canada Award A Chennai born scientist of Indian origin, M.G Venkatesh Mannar and President, Micronutrient Initiative, Canada was awarded with Canadas Highest Civilian Award the Order of Canada on December .US, was honoured with the award for his forty years long contribution working towards reduction of debilitating micronutrient deficiencies among the worlds most vulnerable. Arunachal CM Selected for IAEWP Award On 18 December Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki has been selected by the International Association of Educators for World Peace (IAEWP) for a Lifetime Achievement Award. IAEWP is a non-governmental organization affiliated to the United Nations and engaged in the promotion of world peace. Besides the individual award he would also receive the Green State of the Year Award on behalf of the Arunachal Pradesh Government for maintaining greenery in the state. Top Honour For 7-year-old South African Indian Rhino Campaigner A seven-year-old Indian-origin girl Afeefah Patel won a prestigious a wildlife conservation award in South Africa for writing a letter to President Jacob Zuma asking for his assistance in saving endangered rhinos. Afeefah Patel, who has just finished Grade One, became the youngest winner ever of SANParkss Corporate Contribution to Conservation Award in individual category at the 8th annual Kudu Awards. P.Chidambaram received Best Administrator Award

On 20 December Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram received Best Administrator in India award instituted by K. Karunakaran Foundation.The award was presented to him by Vice President of India, M. Hamid Ansari.The award is being offered in the memory of renowned Congress leader as well as the former Kerala Chief minister K.Karunakaran. First Karunakaran Foundation Award was given to Pranab Mukherjee. Archaeologist C.Govindarajanar Received Presidential Award President Pranab Mukherjee on 21 December 2012 conferred the Presidential Awards for Classical Tamil at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan. Prof. C. Govindarajanar was conferred Tolkappiyar Award for outstanding contribution in the field of Tamil studies. Top U.S. Innovation Award For Indian-American A renowned Indian-American inventor at IBM, Rangaswamy Srinivasan, was nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama for the prestigious National Medal of Technology and Innovation. He named the phenomenon Ablative Photo Decomposition (APD). He got this award for the discovery of APD. Shihab Ghanem the First Arab to receive Indias Tagore Peace Prize On 26 December The Asiatic society will award the Tagore Peace Prize to Emirati poet and translator Shihab Ghanem .Shihab Ghanem the first Arab to receive Indias Tagore Peace Prize.The peace prize is named after Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali creative talent and Indias first Nobel laureate. Pratibha Ray Won 2011 Jnanpith Award Leading Oriya novelist and academician Pratibha Ray, who has over 40 novels, travelogues and short stories to her credit, was named for the prestigious Jnanpith Award for the year 2011 on 27 December 2012. Astronautical Societys Aryabhatta award for Muthunayagam & Saraswat The former secretary of the Department of Ocean Development, A.E. Muthunayagam, will received the prestigious Aryabhatta award, instituted by the Astronautical Society of India (ASI), for 2010 and V.K. Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, will receive the award for 2011.They have been selected for their achievements in rocketry.

SPORTS & GAMES

Lalith Babu Top in Commonwealth Chess Championship Grandmasters M R Lalith Babu and Sergei Tiviakov scored final round victories to reached the top of the table with 9.5 points in the Commonwealth Chess Championship in Chennai on 01 December 2012. Lalith was crowned the Commonwealth Champion 2012 title. Rory McIlroy named PGA Tour Player of the Year On 2 December The PGA( Professional Golfers Association of America) Tour has announced Rory McIlroy as Tour Player of the Year after McIlroy won four times on Tour in 2012. McIlroy, becomes the youngest player to earn Player of the Year honors since Tiger Woods in 1998. Anna Ushenina is World Womens Chess Champion Anna Ushenina of Ukraine 02 December 2012 won the womens World Championship crown, defeating Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria in the first set of tie-break games. Air India Won Lal Bahadur Shastri Tournament Air India defeated Bharat Petroleum 3-1 to emerge champion in the 23rd Lal Bahadur Shastri hockey tournament at the Shivaji Stadium New Delhi on 4 December 2012. Jadeja Created History Hitting 3rd Tripleton in FC Cricket Ravindra Jadeja became first Indian and only eighth batsman in the First-Class (FC) cricket history of world to score three triple-centuries in the unbeaten 320 runs against Railways in the Ranji Trophy Group A match on 2 December 2012 in Rajkot. International Olympic Committee Suspended India The International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended Indias national Olympic committee on 4 December 2012 because of government interference in its election process. Australia Won 5th Consecutive Champions Trophy Hockey On 8 December Australia won fifth Consective Champions Trophy Hockey after defeated Netherlands in Melbourne.The bronze medal was claimed by Pakistan after they beated India on 9 december. Indian Wrestlers Won Nine Gold Medals in Copa Brasil Tournament

The Indian wrestling contingent finished with a haul of nine gold and four bronze medals in the recent Copa Brasil-2012 tournament held at Rio in December 2012. Magnus Carlsen won the 4th London Chess Classic Tournament On 10 Classic Anand Adams December Norways chess ace Magnus Carlsen won the 4th London Chess Tournament in London .Carlsen defeated the World Champion Viswanathan in the final round and claim the winners trophy.Kramnik is second place , and Hikaru Nakamura share the third place and Viswanathan Anand fifth place.

India Won Blind Cricket T20 World Cup India won the first T20 world cup for the Blind .In the final on 13 December 2012 India defeated the Pakistan by 29-runs.India did well to clinch the first ever blind cricket T20 World Cup on the home soil. India Won the World Cup Kabaddi Tournament 2012 India won the 3rd World Cup Kabaddi Tournament for the third consecutive time in the Mens category and second consecutive time in the Womens category on15 December 2012. Indian men defeated the Pakistan and India Women defeated the Malaysia in the finals held at the Guru Nanak Dev Stadium in Ludhiana. Jeev Honoured with Asia Pacific Lifetime Achievement Award Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh (in pic) won the Asia Pacific Lifetime Achievement award along with Jack Nicklaus and Colin Montgomerie on 15 December 2012. China Claimed All Titles at Junior World TT Championship On 16 December China claimed the all titles at Volkswagen 2012 World Junior Table Tennis Championship after it won girls as well as boys trophies. Girls Singles : Zhu Yuling, Girls Doubles: Gu Yuting and Zhu Yuling, Boys Singles : Fan Zhendong, Boys Doubles : Gu Ruochen and Lin Gaoyuan, Mixed Doubles : Zhendong and Liu Gaoyang. Federer & Nicola named Swiss Athletes of the Year 2012 Tennis star Roger Federer was named Swiss male athlete of the year at the 2012 Credit Suisse Sports Awards on 16 December in Zurich.Federer received the honour for the fifth time. The female Athlete of the year was Nicola Spirig, the Olympic triathlon champion of Switzerland. England Won Test Series

On 17 December The last test match between India and England of the Tournament England Tour to India ended up as a draw and with this India lost the four-test match cricket series against England .With this win England succeeded in ending a 28 year long wait of winning a test series on Indian Soil. Syed Rahim Nabi Named AIFF Player of the Year 2012 Syed Rahim Nabi has been named the AIFF (All India Football Federation) Player of the Year, 2012 on 20 December. Sachin Retired From One Day Cricket On 23 December Sachin Tendulkar announced retirement from one day cricket. Sachin scored 18426 runs in 463 one-day matches and also made 49 hundreds in the one-day format, including a double hundred which is the first in this form of cricket and 96 half centuries. He became the first cricketer to score a double century in the history of One Day international Cricket against South Africa in February 2010.Tendulkar scored his 100th international century on 16 March 2012 against Bangladesh, where he scored 114 runs. Kashyap Won First Grand Prix Title Kashyap Parupalli defeated Thailands Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk in a tight three game match to take his first Grand Prix title at the Shaheed Dr. KL Garg, Syed Modi India Grand Prix Gold 2012. Apurvi Chandela Won Air Rifle Gold On 24 December Apurvi Chandela of Rajasthan won Womens Air Rifle Gold in the Sahara 56th National Shooting Championship.Former champion and National record holder, Pournima clinched the bronze. Djokovic won World Tennis Championship On 29 December Spanish tennis player Novak Djokovic won World Tennis Championship final after defeated Nicolas Almagro in Abu Dhabi. Vijay Won Gold in National Shooting Championship London Olympics silver medallist Vijay Kumar 30 december 2012 clinched the gold medal in the mens rapid fire pistol event at the 56th National Shooting Championship in New Delhi. McGrath inducted into Hall of Fame

The ICC announced on 30 December 2012 that McGrath, who took more Test wickets (563) than any other fast bowler and holds the record for most wickets in World Cups (71), will be inducted as the 68th male player in the International Cricket Councils Hall of Fame.

ECONOMY The ADB cut Indias Growth Forecast to 5.4 percent The Asian Development Bank (ADB) cut Indias growth forecast to 5.4 per cent in 2012-13 fiscal, barely two months after it had made a projection of 5.6 per cent growth for the Asias third largest economy. Indias growth forecast is revised from 5.6 per cent to 5.4 per cent in fiscal year 2012 and from 6.7 per cent to 6.5 per cent in FY 2013. Rich Gulf Families Own Wealth Worth USD 1.2 Trillion According to the KFH-Research report said one million wealthy families in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries own investment assets worth about USD 1.2 trillion.The report about wealth and funds management said that the worlds population of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) grew by a marginal 0.8 per cent year on year to 11 million in 2011. India Economy Would Dominate the Economy of the World by 2030 US intelligence counsel was released report on 10 December 2012 declared that India would straddle international commerce and will also dominate the economy of the whole world by 2030. IOC Retains Top in Fortune 500 India List Government owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is ranked as the largest company in terms of revenue, the Fortune 500 list of Indian companies for 2012 . In this list Indian Oil Corporation got the first place with a full-year revenue of Rs 4,202 billion, Reliance Industries Limited got the second place with a full-year revenue of Rs 3,675 billion and Bharat Petroleum Corporation got the third place with a full -year revenue of Rs 2,148 billion Indias Lost $123 bn in Black Money According to the report of Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2001 2010, released by Global Financial Integrity (GFI) India lost $123 billion in black

money during 2001-2010. However Indias loss is far less than that of China, which according to the report suffered a loss of $ 2.74 trillion during the same period (2001 to 2010). India is the eighth largest victim of black money loses. India Lags Several Nations in Per Capita Income India is lagging behind several countries in per capita income due to different levels of development and various other factors, the central government was informed on 19 December. Indias per capita GDP on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis was $3,403 in 2010 and is estimated at $3,662.69 in 2011 and $3,851.31 in 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Canadian Scientists Created Artificial Brain Software engineers as well as neuroscientists at University of Waterloo, Canada claimed that they have developed a closest model of the functioning human brain, known as Spaun which is advanced enough for passing the basic IQ tests. This is the virtual brain which functions on the supercomputer and comprises of a digital eye, which can be used for visual input. It also has the robotic arm which can be used for drawing the response. Voyager 1 Drifts Into Unknown Region of Space NASAs Voyager 1 spacecraft has discovered a new layer of the solar system that scientists hadnt known was there, researchers announced on 4 December 2012. Voyager 1, in particular, has entered a new region of the heliosphere that scientists are calling a magnetic highway, which allows charged particles from inside the heliosphere to flow outward, and particles from the galaxy outside to come in. New Anti-HIV Gel for HIV Transmission Researchers led by Dereuddre-Bosquet from the European Combined Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Microbicides (CHAARM) Consortium describe the gels key ingredient, which are small peptides engineered to present a decoy to bind up the virus and prevent it from entering and infecting the body cells. Because this is a gel it can be topically applied and could represent a powerful preventative agent against sexual transmission of HIV. Bosquet and colleagues engineered peptides named miniCD4s because they mimic the CD4 receptor used by HIV to gain entry into immune cells of the body. NASA to Send New Rover to Mars in 2020

NASA was announced plans to send a new robotic explorer to the the Red Planet, Mars in 2020. 7 Planets Discovered In The Milky Way New York Scientists have been discovered Seven planets in the Milky Way outside our solar system that could potentially harbour life and researchers from an ambitious project to catalogue all habitable worlds claim. Russia Delivered MiG-29 Fighter Jets to India Russia on 10 December 2012 delivered the first three upgraded MiG-29UPG fighter jets to India under a USD 900 million contract to modernise the ageing fleet of MiG-29 aircraft with the IAF. Tata Group Developed new Artillery Gun On 11 December In a step towards developing the indigenous private sector defence industry, the Tata group has created a new Artillery Gun. The 155mm 52 calibre gun developed by the Tata group is likely to have a strike range of 52 kms, which would probably be the longest in the Indian inventory. India Successfully Test Fired Agni-I Ballistic Missile India on 12 December 2012 successfully test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile with a strike range of 700 km from a test range off Odisha coast. Weighing 12 tonnes, the 15-metre-long Agni-I, which is capable of carrying payloads up to 1000 kg and destroy the targets at a distance of 700 km. North Korea Launched Unha-3 Rocket On 12 December North Korea launched a long-range rocket Unha-3 despite international opposition and growing tensions in the region successfully delivering a scientific satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 into orbit.Unha-3 is the second version of satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 which is successfully lifted off from the Sohae Space Center by carrier rocket.The US and its allies view the launch as a disguised test of ballistic missile technology. NASAs Twin Probes Crashed Successfully onto Lunar Mountain Ebb and Flow, the gravity mapping satellites of NASA ended the successful mission to Moon by crashing on the rim of crater. Lunar surface on which Ebb and Flow crashed will be given a name after Sally Ride, the first woman of America in the space who died earlier in 2012.

Rocket with 3 Astronauts Takes off for ISS A Soyuz spacecraft carrying three astronauts took off atop a towering Russian rocket on 19 December 2012, headed for the International Space Station.It launched from Russias manned-space facility in the frigid steppes of Kazakhstan. American Tom Marshburn, Russian Roman Romanenko and Canadian Chris Hadfield are travelled in capsule. Prithvi-II Flight- Tested Successfully The Strategic Forces Command (SFC) successfully flight-tested nuclear weaponscapable Prithvi-II missile from Chandipur, off the Odisha coast on 20 December 2012. The surface-to-surface ballistic missile, was fired from a road mobile launcher and tested for its full range of 350 km.The single-stage, liquid propelled missile can carry a payload of 500 kg. Astra Missile Successfully Test-fired India on December 2012 test launched its indigenously developed beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air interceptor missile Astra at the interim test range(ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha.Astra which has the capability to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft at a supersonic speed can be fitted into any fighter aircraft. Considered as one of the best of its kind in the world, the 3.8 metre long missile which weighs about 160 kg can carry explosive loaded conventional warheads up to 15 kg. Scientists Discovered Mini Nile River on Saturns Moon Titan Nasa scientists had spotted the longest extraterrestrial river system ever on Saturns moon Titan and it appears to be a miniature version of Earths Nile river. Higgs Boson Tops Journal Sciences 2012 List The discovery of the Higgs Boson, an invisible particle that explains the mystery of mass, leads a list of the top 10 scientific advances of 2012 released by the US journal Science on 22 December . America Launched Reusable Rockets US California based SpaceXs industry successfully launched Grasshopper reusable rockets.The rocket took a giant leap for commercial space flight and when it rose 131 feet and landed safely back on Earth. Grasshopper rocket rose to a height of 131 feet around ten storeys and hovered before landing safely on its launch pad using closed loop thrust vector and throttle control.

Hot Spots For Worlds more Powerful Earthquakes Revealed The locations of where the worlds largest earthquakes are most likely to take place had pinpointed with greater accuracy than ever before, by researchers from the University of Sydney.The coasts of Southern Chile and Peru, Indonesias Sumatra Island, and several regions along the eastern Eurasian coastline, are some of the regions prone to great earthquakes.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) APPOINTMENTS Visually-challenged Indian-American in key US post On 1 December Obama administration was appointed a visually-challenged IndianAmerican Sachin Dev Pavithran as a Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board member. Ajit Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajith Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra deputy chief minister on 7 December. After getting the clean chit from the government on corruption in irrigation projects. Chautala Elected as IOA President Abhay Singh Chautala was on December 2012 unanimously elected president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) while Lalit Bhanot became the new secretary general. Parthasarathy Shome Appointed Adviser to Finance Minister The government of India appointed tax expert Parthasarthi Shome as adviser to Finance Minister P Chidambaram with minister of state rank, sending a strong signal that tax reforms may top its economic agenda in the remainder of the UPA governments second term. Malalas Father Ziauddin Yousufzai Appointed UN Education Adviser Ziauddin Yousufzai, the father of 15-year-old Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who was shot by the Taliban for advocating girls right to education, has been appointed as Special UN Adviser on Global Education on 10 December.

Vijay Kumar appointed Senior Security Adviser in Home Ministry The Union government had appointed the former Director-General of the Central Reserve Police Force, K. Vijay Kumar, as Senior Security Adviser in the Home Ministry where he will advise on security and development in the Naxal-affected States. Vinod Rai Re-elected as Chair of UN Auditors Panel Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai was re-elected Chair of the (UN) auditors Panel for the year 2013, while the CAG of the United Kingdom, Amyas Morse, was re-elected the vice-chair of the Panel. Naina Lal Kidwai Becomes First Woman President of FICCI Country Head of HSBC India, Naina Lal Kidwai, took over as President of FICCI on 15 December 2012. She become the first woman to head the leading industry body. Rita Singh Elected Federation of Indian Associations President Rita Singh, an Indian American businesswoman from Bihar was elected the first woman president of Chicago-based Federation of Indian Associations (FIA). Subhash Joshi Appointed As New BSF Chief Subhash Joshi was appointed as the new chief of Border Security Force (BSF) on 18 December 2012. Chadha, Special Secretary was appointed as Director General of ITBP(Indo-Tibetan Border Police). Obama Nominates John Kerry to be Secretary of State The senior senator John Kerry was nominated as Americas Foreign Minister by President Barack Obama on 21 December 2012.The John Kerry, who is the senior Senator from Massachusetts, now he became the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Smita Singh Appointed as member of Global Development Council On 22 December The Obama administration has appointed Indian-American Smita Singh as member of the presidents Global Development Council. Virbhadra Singh Sworn in as Himachal Pradeshs Chief Minister

On 25 December Former Union Minister Virbhadra Singh was sworn-in as Himachal Pradeshs chief minister for a record sixth term in Shimla. He was Chief Minister five times between 1983 and 1985; 1985 and 1990; 1993 and 1998 and 2003 and 2007. Narendra Modi Sworn in Gujarat CM for 4th time Narendra Modi sworn in as Gujarat chief minister for the fourth consecutive time on 26 December 2012. He was sworn in along with seven ministers of Cabinet rank and nine ministers of state. Cyrus Mistry took charge as Tata Group Chairman Cyrus Mistry, the new chairman of the Tata Group, took charge of his office on 31 December.Mistry is the sixth chairman of the Tata empire. b) RESIGNS Mali Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra Resigned On 11 December Malian Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra resigned and dissolved his government after he was arrested by the army in the West African nation.He was acting Prime Minister of Mali from April 2012 Singapore Parliament Speaker Resigned Singapores parliament speaker Michael Palmer announced his resignation on 12 December 2012 over an extramarital affair with a staff member of the Peoples Association, a statutory body leading efforts to reach out to members of the public. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Resigned Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman formally submitted his resignation on 16 December 2012 due to a pending indictment against him for fraud and breach of trust. Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Resigned On 16 December Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda resigned from his post to take responsibility for his Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) defeat in Lower House Election .He was formally appointed by the Emperor on 2 September 2011. c) DEATHS Geophysicist Devendra Lal Died

Devendra Lal, geophysicist and visiting professor at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) of the university of california, has died on 1 December in San Diego.He was conferred with Padma Shri in 1971. Devendra Lal also won NASA Group Achievement Award. Worlds Oldest Woman and Tallest Woman Both Died Besse Cooper, the woman listed as the worlds oldest person was died on 4 December 2012 in Georgia at the age of 116. Meanwhile, a Chinese woman, Yao Defen, was certified as the tallest in the world was also died. Mrs Cooper was declared the worlds oldest person in January 2011.Chinese woman Yao Defen was listed as the worlds tallest woman by Guinness World Records in 2010. Jazz Pianist & Composer Dave Brubeck Died On 5 December Legendary Jazz composer and pianist Dave Brubeck died in Norwalk. He had also won various awards during his career which spanned over six decades.The Library of Congress designated him as the Living Legend. British Astronomer Sir Patrick Moore Died British astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore on 9 December 2012 in Selsey, West Sussex.Sir Patrick presented the BBC programme The Sky At Night for over 50 years, making him the longest-running host of the same television show ever. Ex-Bangladesh President Ahmed Died Former Bangladeshi President and Bangladesh Nationalist Party(BNP) leader Iajuddin Ahmed passed away on 10 December 2012. Iajuddin Ahmed was the 13th president of Bangladeshserving from Sept. 6, 2002 until Feb. 12, 2009. Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar Died Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar, whose mastery over the sitar helped rejuvenate the classical instrumental tradition in India and popularise Indian music in the West through concerts and collaborations with well known artists, died in San Diego, U.S. on 11 December 2012. Former Ranji Cricketer Nimbalkar Died Former Ranji cricketer B B Nimbalkar was passes away on 11 December 2012. BB Nimbalkar, who made an unbeaten 443 runs for Maharashtra against Kathiawar in a Ranji Trophy match in 1948-49. Yet this is the Indias highest scorer in first-class cricket.

First CM of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami Passed Away The first Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami died at Dehra Dun on 12 December 2012.He worked as a first Chief Minister of Uttarakhand after dividing it from Uttar Pradesh in 2000. Barcode Co-inventor Woodland Died Norman Joseph Woodland, who co-created the barcode, was died on 9 December 2012 in New Jersey at the age of 91. Woodland was the co-inventor of bar code. He as well as his partner Bernard Silver (who died in 1963) patented this idea of bar code back in 1952. Guinness Worlds Oldest Person Dina Manfredini Died Dina Manfredini (115 Years) the worlds oldest person and a resident of Iowa, has died on 17 December in Johnston .Guinness World Records identified Manfredini as the worlds oldest person on December 5, a day after the death of 116 -year-old Besse Cooper of Georgia. Former India Volleyball Captain Tilakam Gopal Died Tilakam Gopal, former India captain died on 18 December 2012. Mr.Gopals achievements was being member of the silver medal winning Indian squad in the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games and even led India in the five-Test series against the visiting Russians in 1966 which later on helped him to continue be captain in the Bangkok ASIAD in 1966 where India stood fourth. Hockey Legend Leslie Claudius Died Legendary hockey player and one of Indias greatest Olympians Leslie Claudius, passed away in Kolkata on 20 December 2012. India won the silver medal in the Asian Games in 1978 in Bangkok, when he was the team manager.He got the Padma Shree award in 1971. Former England Cricket Team Captain Tony Greig Died Tony Greig, the South Africa-born cricketer who became England cricket team captain and later continued to make his mark on the game as a revered commentator in Australia, died on 29 December 2012.He played 58 tests for England and scored 3,599 runs at an average of 40.43 and took 141 wickets at 32.20. d) VISITORS

Palestinian Hamas leader Meshaal Visited Gaza The political leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal has visited Gaza on 6 December .He attended a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the founding of Hamas and a victory celebration .He visited southern Gaza strip through Egypts Rafah border crossing over for the first time in 45 years. Ukrainian President Yanukovych Visited India Viktor Yanukovych the President of Ukrainian visited India from 9th to 12th December. During this visit he signed 5 agreements .He met Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan and the both nations discussed ways to improve bilateral relations. Pak Minister Rehman Malik Visited India Pakistans Interior Minister Rehman Malik visited India from 14th to 16th December .During the visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and both nations signed on new visa agreement. Russian President Putin Visited India Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India on 24 December .During the visit he met Manmohan Singh in New Delhi and signed a series of pacts on defense cooperation and reached consensus to develop economic and trade relations.Putin last visited India as prime minister in 2010. e) MISCELLANEOUS China Launched First High Speed Train in Extremely Cold Areas The worlds first high-speed train in areas with extremely low temperature started operation in China 01 December 2012.This train move with a speed of 350 Kmph in the areas of minus 40 degrees temperature. This is the fastest train world in this areas. Forbes 2012 Most Powerful Persons List On 6 December 2012 Forbes Magazine released the most powerful persons list in the world. In that list AICC President Sonia Gandhi got the 12th place and Prime Minister of India Man Mohan Singh got the 20th place. As usually this year also American President Barack Obama got 1st place. German chancellor Angela Merkel got the 2nd place. The list also includes Russian President Vladimir Putin at number three, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates (4), Richest Person in India Mukesh Ambani (37).

Mumbai Among Worlds Dirtiest Cities Indias commercial capital, Mumbai, was named among the worlds dirtiest cities, ranking last in the cleanest streets category, a global survey of 40 key tourist cities has found. According to TripAdvisors Cities Survey, Tokyo grabbed the first place while Mumbai ranked last in the list of cleanest streets. Jiroemon Kimura named Worlds Oldest Person On 18 December Jiroemon Kimura (115 years) has been named the worlds oldest person after the death of his predecessor, an American woman named Dina Manfredini who died on 17 December after receiving the title of oldest person of the world.Jiroemon Kimura was born on 19 April 1897 and is just 15 days younger than the deceased Dina Manfredini. Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo (USA) Miss USA Olivia Culpo is crowned Miss Universe 2012 on 19 December 2012, on the Las Vegas. Miss Philippines, Janine Tugonon, came in second, while Miss Venezuela, Irene Sofia Esser Quintero, placed third. Obama is Times Person of the Year President Barack Obama had been named Time magazines Person of the Year for 2012 on 19 December 2012. Obama also received the honour in 2008. 8 Indians Among Worlds Best Performed CEOs Eight Indian CEOs have made it to the list of 100 best performing global chief executives, compiled by Harvard Business Review (HBR). Deveshwar was first among the Indian CEOs featured in this list, and cornered the seventh place overall.Former chairman and MD, ONGC Subir Raha (Rank 13).Chairman and CEO, Reliance Industries, Mukesh Ambani (Rank 28).Chairman and Managing Director, Larsen & Toubro, AM Naik (Rank 32). Former CMD, Bharat Heavy Electricals, AK Puri (Rank 38). Chairman, Bharti Airtel, Sunil Bharti Mittal (Rank 65). CEO, Jindal Steel & Power, Naveen Jindal (Rank 87). Former Chairman, SAIL,VS Jain (Rank 89). Former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs (Rank 1). CEO, Amazon.com CEO, Jeff Bezos (Rank 2). China Launched Worlds Longest High-Speed Rail China launched service on the worlds longest high-speed railway on 26 December 2012 with trains scheduled to run 2,298 kilometres between Beijing and Guangzhou in about eight hours.Travelling at an average speed of about 300 km per hour, the service would cut the journey time from more than 20 hours by conventional trains.

PLACES IN NEWS Typhoon Bopha Killed Hundreds in Philippines Bopha, the strongest typhoon hit the Philippines on 5 December 2012, was left at least 325 died. The typhoon with central winds of 115 kph and gusts of up to 145 kph was moved to west-northwest of the central Philippines on 6 December 2012. Powerful Earthquake in Japan The powerful earthquake had occurred in Japan on 7 December 2012.The magnitude of this earthquake was recorded as 7.3. This earthquake had occurred in 240 km beyond the Miyagi coast in the Pacific Oceanin a depth of 10m.

ABBREVIATIONS UNFCCC WCCB TRAI SCI NSC OIL GAAR NCHRH IOA GCC NDAA INAE ITSMA - United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Wildlife Crime Control Bureau Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Shipping Corporation of India National Security Council Oil India Limited General Anti Avoidance Rules National Council for Human Resources in Health Indian Olympic Association Gulf Cooperation Council National Defence Authorisation Act Indian National Academy of Engineering Information Technology Services Marketing Association

GTI

Global Terrorism Index

BOOKS IN NEWS The Peak Book Released on Sachin Tendulkar On 2 December Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh was launched Sachin Tendulkars new book named The Peak which is a unique photographed story on Tendulkar by photojournalist Suman Chattopadhyay. The book captures some rare and memorable moments of Tendulkars life through Chattopadhyays lens and the stories behind them in the masters own words Pankaj, Bengals Forgotten Hero Book Released On 3 December Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar and former India captain Sourav Ganguly released a book on former India opener Late Pankaj Roy named Pankaj, Bengals Forgotten Hero has been written by Bengali sports journalist Gautam Bhattacharya. Pankaj Roy had played 43 Tests for India in a span of 10 years scoring 2442 runs with five centuries. My Tryst with Justice Book Released On 12 December President Pranab Mukherjee released a book My Tryst with Justice which was written by Former Chief Justice P.N.Bhagwati .The book would be a prized possession for every Indian who wants to make a difference to the world and who aspires for a world more just, he added. M.S. Subbulakshmi Queen of Carnatic Music Book Launched The life story of carnatic music legend M.S. Subbulakshmi, the first musician to be conferred the Bharat Ratna, is now detailed in a graphic illustrated book launched on December. The story of the nightingale of carnatic music, fondly known as MS. It is being told through Amar Chitra Kathas new title M S Subbulakshmi Queen of Carnatic Music

COMMITTEES Usha Thorat Committee for NBFCs

Indias majority of Non-Banking Finance companies (NBFCs) may be freed from the regulatory clutches provided Reserve Bank of India (RBI) implements one of the recommendations made by Usha Thorat Committee. The committee had submitted its recommendations to RBI. Currently, those recommendations are under RBIs consideration. Chandrashekhar Committee to Frame Rules for Foreign Investors On 13 December The market regulator Sebi has appointed a committee under exCabinet secretary K M Chandrashekhar to frame a single set of guidelines for all types of foreign investors.The committee will suggest ways to simplify the investment process for all overseas entities like foreign institutional investors, foreign venture capital investors (FVCIs), qualified financial, institutional investors (QFIs)

IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES Feb 4 Feb 20 Feb 21 Feb 22 Feb 22 Feb 23 Feb 24 Feb 28 World Cancer Day World Day of Social Justice International Mother Tongue Day World Scout Day World Thinking Day World Peaces and Understanding Day Central Excise Tax Day National Science Day

November 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Barack Obama re-elected as President of US Barack Obama re-elected as President of US with a clear victory over Republican challenger Mitt Romney on 7th November 2012.

Hindu-American elected to US Congress for the first time Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu-American elected as the US House of Representative from Hawaii in November 2012 elections. Nepal elected to UN ECOSOC board Nepal elected a board member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for a three-year term starting in January 2013. Nepal along with 17 other countries were elected board members of ECOSOC 8th November 2012 by the UN General Assembly. Israel fires into Syria Israel was drawn into the fighting in neighboring Syria for the first time on 11th November 2012, firing warning shots across the border after an errant mortar shell landed near an Israeli military installation in the Golan Heights. Chinas Communist Party selects new leadership China elects the new President as Xi Jinping and Prime Minister as Li Keqiang on 14 November 2012. Japan to go to polls on 16 December 2012 Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda dissolved the Lower House of Parliament on 16 November 2012 ,paving the way for elections in which his ruling party will likely give way to a weak coalition government divided over how to solve Japans myriad problems. Elections were set for 16 December 2012. U.N. approves Palestinian observer state bid The United Nations General Assembly on 30 November 2012 endorsed an upgraded U.N. status for the Palestinian Authority, despite intense opposition from the United States and Israel.The vote was 138 delegates in favor of the measure including India, nine against including America, Brazil and Canada and 41 abstentions including Britain.

INDIA & WORLD The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) lift export ban on some milk products

Amid surplus availability of milk powder in the country, the government is likely to decide on 1st November 2012 on lifting ban on export of milk products, especially whole milk powder, dairy whitener and infant milk foods. US included as dialogue partner of Indian Ocean countries The US was inducted as a sixth dialogue partner in the 20-nation Indian Ocean RimAssociation for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) grouping on 3rd November 2012.The ministers of countries which are members of IOR-ARC decided unanimously to give the US the same status that they had earlier accorded to the United Kingdom, France, Egypt and Japan. Agreement with World Bank for Assam road project India has signed a 320-million dollar loan agreement with the World Bank for road projects in Assam on 5th November 2012. Canada to allow civil nuclear trade with India India and Canada signed an agreement on 6th November 2012 in New Delhi for bilateral Cooperation in civil nuclear trade. So, India imports Uranium from canada for civil nuclear reactors. DRDO ties up with York University, Canada Defence Research and Development Organisation and York University, Canada signed a memorandum of understanding for doing collaborative defence research in the areas of advanced materials, nanotechnology, life sciences, bio-informatics, chemical and biological defence, sensors, and others. Indian-origin CEO of Datawind and MIT professor among Forbes top 15 education innovators list Indian-origin CEO of Datawind, the maker of Indias low-cost tablet Aakash, Suneet Singh Tuli and Massachusettes Institute of Technology professor Anant Agarwal named by Forbes magazine among the 15 classroom revolutionaries who are using innovative technologies to reinvent education for students and teachers globally. Mahatma Gandhi Grandson elected to Kansas State Assembly Mahatma Gandhi grandson Shanti Gandhi elected to a State Assembly in the United States from Kansass 52nd Assembly District as a Republican Party cand idate during the general elections held on 6 November 2012.

India and Afghanistan signed four agreements India and Afghanistan signed four agreements to cooperate in areas of social welfare, fertilizer, coal mining and youth affairs on 12th November 2012. Dr Ami Bera is the third Indian-American elected to the US House of Representatives An Indian-American physician from California became only the third person of Indianorigin to be elected to the US House of Representatives by defeating Republican Dan Lungren with just 184 votes lead. Japan signs pact to import rare earths from India India and Japan on 16 November 2012 inked a strategic agreement on Tokyo to import rare earth minerals from India. Maldivian Airlines inks pact with Apollo Hospitals Maldivian Airlines on 19 November 2012 had signed a pact with the Chennaiheadquartered Apollo Hospitals to give discounts to each others clients. For example, Apollo Hospitals will give a discount on its service charges for those who fly the airline, and the airline will give similar discounts to the hospitals patients on the airfare. India adds 22 items in the list of border trade with Myanmar India had notified 22 additional items including agricultural tools, bicycles, coal and garments in the list of items for border trade with Myanmar.According to a study conducted by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), bilateral trade between India and Myanmar is expected to double by 2015 from $1.3 billion, on the back of free trade agreement between New Delhi and ASEAN region. India votes against UN resolution on death penalty ban India was among the 39 countries that voted against a UN General Assembly draft resolution which called for abolishing the death penalty, saying every nation had the sovereign right to determine its own legal system. India, China joint economic strategy held at New Delhi The Second India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue was held in New Delhi on 26 November 2012. In this meeting China and India discussed several topics including greater cooperation at the global level, strengthening communication on

macroeconomic policies, deepening and expanding trade and investment and promoting bilateral cooperation in the financial and infrastructure sectors. The bilateral trade between these two countries enhanced from $74 billion to $100 billion. India- Maldives joint military training exercises held at Belgaum The fourth joint military training exercises between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) EKUVERIN 2012 was held in Belgaum from 12 to 25 November 2012.

NATIONAL President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage stamp on late Ramgopal Maheshwari President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage stamp on late Ramgopal Maheshwari on 20 November 2012. Arvind Kejriwal launches Aam Admi Party Arvind Kejriwal announced the name for his newly launched party as Aam Admi Party on 24 November 2012 in New Delhi. Bangalore among top polluted megacities in the world Indias silicone valley Bangalore was rated among top polluted megacities in the world, claims a new study, using data collected by NASAs high -tech satellites.Scientists at Tel Aviv University tracked pollution trends for 189 megacities, including Mumbai, New York City and Tokyo, by analysing eight years worth of data from three of NASAs high-tech aerosol monitoring satellites.

STATES 50% reservation for women in Assam Panchayat Elections The Assam State Election Commission has announced 50 per cent reservation of seats for women in the forthcoming panchayat polls as stated by State Election Commissioner Biren Dutta on 9th November 2012 Chain of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra Pradesh

Union Minister of State for Defence Jitendra Kumar inaugurated a chain of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra Pradesh at a programme organised at the Coast Guard district headquarters Visakhapatnam on 23 November 2012.This will improve surveillance along coast. Ban on plastic bags comes into force in New Delhi The ban on manufacture, sale and use of most types of plastic bags in the Capital came into force on on 23 November 2012.

CONFERENCES SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians Conference held at Islamabad The sixth conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians held in Islamabad on 4th November 2012.From India, Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and Deputy Chairman Rajya Sabha Professor P. J. Kurien are participated the conference.In this conference they discussed the role of women parliamentarians for social justice and the strengthening of democracy in South Asia. Countries G20 finance ministers and central bankers summit held in Mexico The G20 countries finance ministers and central bankers summit held in Mexico on 4th November 2012.In this summit the Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the Indias economy should grow by 5.5 percent to 6.0 percent in the year 2012 and return to 7 percent growth in 2013. E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi on 9th and 10th November 2012.The E-9 countries are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria and Mexico . Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian summits Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. Bangladesh Opted out of D-8 Summit Scheduled to be Held in Pakistan

Bangladesh opted out of the key summit known as D-8 Summit in Pakistan which is scheduled to be held later in November, 2012. Bangladesh opted out because Pakistan refused to apologise for the deeds committed during 1971 war which eventually led to Bangladeshs independence. The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on counter terrorism The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on counter terrorism was held on 20 November 2012 in New Delhi.

AWARDS & HONOURS Aishwarya Rai was honoured with French Civilian Award Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachan was honoured with the second highest French civilian award Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by French government for her contribution in promoting Indo-French cooperation in Cinema on 1st November 2012. Tata Literature Live! First Book Award Banker and New York based author Ruchir Sharma was awarded the Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for his Breakout Nations:In Pursuit of the Next Economic Miracles at the Mumbai Lit-fest on 4 November 2012. Durgabai Deshmukh Awards for Womens Development Presented by President of India President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 5 November 2012 presented the Durgabai Deshmukh awards for womens development for the years 2005, 2006 and 2007 at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.The eighth Award for 2005 was jointly given to two winners, Mizoram Hmeithai (Widows) Association and Peoples Forum, Bhubaneswar. The ninth Award for the year 2006 was awarded to Sumangali Seva Ashram of Bangalore.The tenth Award for the year 2007 was awarded to the Snehalaya of Ahmednagar. Germany honoured the Baba Kalyani The chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge, Babasaheb N. Kalyani honoured with Cross of Order of Merit by Germany. This is the highest honour awarded to individuals for their services to the country in Germany.

Madhav Chavan wins education Nobel prize Dr Madhav Chavan has won the WISE Prize, which has been likened to a Nobel prize for education.The award, announced on 13 November,2012 at the WISE summit in Qatar, recognises his education work in the slums of Mumbai. Bitter Seeds won 18 international awards Bitter Seeds, a documentary film produced by US-based filmmaker Micha Peled on the agrarian crisis of cotton growers and their plight was being shown in Vidarbha region. Every 30 minutes, a farmer in the country kills himself in despair because he no longer provide anything for his family. The film has won 18 international awards. Urdu Scholar Gopi Chand Narang Awarded Moortidevi Award for 2010 The Vice President of India Hamid Ansari presented the Moortidevi Award for 2010 to eminent Urdu scholar Gopi Chand Narang for his outstanding work on Urdu Ghazal aur Hindustani Zehan wa Tehzeeb at a function organized by Bhartiya Jnanpith. Chinese movie `11 Flowers` wins award at Kolkata Film Fest Chinese movie 11 Flowers, directed by acclaimed filmmaker Wang Xiaoshuai has won the prestigious NETPAC (Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema) award at the 18th Kolkata International Film festival (KIFF), which ended on 17 November 2012. Liberian President got the Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012 President of the Republic of Liberia Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf got the Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012 for her Excellency, Peace,Disarmament and Development. Malala chosen for bravery award Malala Yousafzai,who became the face of Pakistans struggle against the Taliban was honoured with bravery award by the Peace and Prosperity Foundation Chairman Prince Ali Khan, at the Cholmondeley Room of the House of Lords on 19 November 2012. Gavaskar conferred with CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar was on 21 November 2012 conferred with BCCIs prestigious Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award. Indian Origin Autar Kaw is U.S. Professor of the Year

Autar Kaw, an Indian born professor of mechanical engineering at the University of South Florida was received the award of 2012 US Professor of the Year . Indira Gandhi Peace Prize presented to former Brazilian President Lula Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the former President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, was conferred the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 22 November 2012. Punjabi film Andhey Ghorey Da Daan bags Golden Peacock Award 2012 in 43rd IFFI Goa Andhey Ghorey Da Daan a Punjabi film directed by Gurvinder Singh and produced by National Film Development Cooperation was bagged the Golden Peacock award of the International Film Festival of India, IFFI. The award carries a Golden Peacock with a cash prize of 20 lakhs prize of20 lakh rupeex.

SPORTS & GAMES Kimi Raikkonen won Abu Dhabi GP Kimi Raikkonen won an Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 4th November 2012. Mahesh Bhupathi-Rohan Bopanna win Paris Masters Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna clinched the Paris Masters, their second title of the year, after scoring a hard-fought win over Aisam-ul-haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer in Paries on 4th November 2012. Czech Republic lifted Fed Cup The Czech Republic got the Fed Cup title after beating Serbia in the final on 4 November 2012. National Anti-Doping Disciplinary panel suspendes 11 athletes for two years The National Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (NADDP) suspended all the 11 athletes for two years, who were tested positive with methyl hexane amine (MHA) in the run-up of the last Commonwealth Games.The suspended 11 athletes are :Two athletes, Saurabh Vij and Akash Antil; Six wrestlers, all of them internationals, Arjuna awardee

Rajeev Tomar, Joginder Singh, Sumit Sehrawat, Rahul Maan, Gursharanpreet Kaur and Khatri; and three swimmers, Amar Muralidharan, Jyotsana Pansare and Richa Pakistan won Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 Pakistan won the Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 against India on 6th November 2012. Gaganjeet Bhullar, Youngest Indian on Elite Golfers League Gaganjeet Bhullar, 24, became the youngest Indian to make it to the elite group of the worlds top-100 players in the latest rankings. Hanoi to host 2019 Asian Games Vietnams capital Hanoi will host the 2019 Asian Games. India bags four medals in 14th Asian Youth (boys & girls) weightlifting championships India won four medals on the opening day of the 14th Asian Youth (boys & girls) weightlifting championships at Yangon, Myanmar, on 8th November 2012.Santa won a bronze in snatch with a lift of 95 kg before securing a gold each in clean and jerk and total lift with efforts of 126 kg and 221 kg respectively. The other medal of the day for the Indians was won by Chandrika Tarafdar in youth girls 44 kg category. She won a silver with a total lift of 132 kg. Rahul bags 3 more golds for India in Asian Youth Weightlifting Ragala Venkat Rahul won three gold medals to help India increase their medals tally to seven on the second day of the 14th Asian Youth (Boys & Girls) Weightlifting Championships at Yangon, Myanmar on 9th November 2012.Competing in the 77kg weight category, Rahul secured the yellow metals in snatch, clean and jerk and overall with a total lift of 280 kgs. International news agencies boycott India-England Test series International news agencies on 15 November 2012 decided to boycott the high-profile Test series between India and England which began in Ahmedabad to protest against the restrictions imposed by the BCCI on some photo agencies covering the tour. Saina Nehwal retains 3rd place in Badminton World Federation womens rankings

London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal retained her third place in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) womens rankings released on 16 November,2012. Priyanka is Asian under-10 champion Asian under-10 girls chess champion Nuthaki Priyanka bagged the world youth chess championship at Maribor, Slovenia on 18 November 2012. She completed with 9.5 points of 11 rounds. McLarens Lewis Hamilton won United States Grand Prix 2012 McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 2012 United States Grand Prix race at Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas. It was the first F1 race in United States since 2007. Usain Bolt, Allyson Felix named IAAF world athletes of the year Usain Bolt won the IAAF(International Amateur Athletic Federation) World male Athlete of the Year award for the fourth time and United States sprinter Allyson Felix won the womens World Athlete of the Year award on 24 November 2012. Sebastian Vettel won third Formula One world title Sebastian Vettel became the youngest triple champion in Formula One history on 25 November 2012.He stood sixth position in Brazilian Grand Prix with 8 points.But overall he got F1 world title for this season with 281 points. This is the third time consecutively he got the F1 title. India to hold 3rd World cup Kabaddi in December Punjab would host 3rd World Kabaddi Cup from 1 to 15 December 2012. 23 countries are participating in this world cup.The prize money for this world cup is Rs.4.54crores.

ECONOMY Rs 6,000-cr fine on Tata Steel for illegal mining The Odisha government imposed a fine Rs 6,000 crore on Tata Steel for its alleged involvement in illegal and excess mining at its captive mines.

India signs loan agreement with World Bank for USD 70 million India signed a 70-million US Dollar loan agreement with World Bank for financing the Karnataka Health Systems Development as well as Reform Project on 22 November 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Indian diamond fetches 16.9 million euros at auction A 76-carat flawless diamond from Indias famous Golconda mines broke world record by fetching a whooping 16.9 million euros (Rs 1,18,16,98,700) at an auction in Geneva on 14 November 2012. Scientists Created a Paper-thin material that can stop bullets A team of mechanical engineering and materials scientists from Rice University and MIT has created special nanomaterials that were able to stop bullets in the lab. The type of material, called a structured polymer composite, can actually self-assemble into alternating glassy and rubbery layers. Solar Systems largest planet discovered A team of astrophysicists had discovered an enormous gaseous planet that is 13 times more massive than Jupiter, earning the name Super-Jupiter and is the largest planet in our own solar system. India successfully test fires supersonic interceptor missile India successfully test-fired an indigenously developed supersonic interceptor missile, capable of destroying a hostile ballistic missile, from a test range off the Odisha coast on 23 November 2012. Drug that can halt cancer spread Scientists was developed a new drug called Aflibercept, for stop the cancer cells from multiplying. Pakistan tests nuclear-capable ballistic missile Pakistan successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable ballistic missile called Hatf-V(Ghauri) on 28 November 2012 that can hit targets up to 1,300 km (807 miles) away.

Astronomers Discovered Giant black hole in tiny galaxy Astronomers claim to have discovered the most massive black hole ever known in a small galaxy about 250 million light-years from Earth, holding a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.The super-massive black hole is located inside the galaxy NGC 1277 in the constellation Perseus.It makes up about 14 per cent of its host galaxys mass, compared with the 0.1 per cent a normal black hole would represent, scientists said, adding that it has a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) Appointments Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive director on IMF board Former RBI Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive director on the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). VK Malhotra re-elected Archery Association President Vijay Kumar Malhotra was on 9th November 2012 re-elected as President of the Archery Association of India after beating Assam unit vice-president BVP Rao in Archery Association presidents elections. Obama appoints Indian-American Rajiv Shah to head USAID Indian-Americans won one of their highest-ever appointments in the US government when President Obama on 13 November 2012 nominated Dr Rajiv Shah as administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Anil Dev Singh appointed new chief of IOA election panel Anil Dev Singh, retired Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, appointed as the new Chairman of The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on 19 November 2012. Scott Flemming named Indias basketball coach The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) had appointed Scott Flemming, who brings along with him over 30 years of collegiate and professional experience in the United States, as the head coach of the mens national team on 19 November 2012. BBC appointed Tony Hall as new director general

Royal Opera House chief executive Tony Hall had appointed as director general of the BBC on 22 November 2012,replacing George Entwistle who resigned earlier this month in a burgeoning scandal over the corporations reporting of sexual abuse. Ranjit Sinha appointed new CBI Director Senior IPS officer Ranjit Sinha was appointed the Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation for two-year term on 22 November 2012. Barbosa sworn in as first non-white President of Brazils Supreme Court Joaquim Barbosa was sworn-in as Brazils Supreme Courts first non-White President on 23 November 2012 at a packed ceremony in the capital Brazilia . Barbosa, became famous in Brazil after overseeing one of the countrys biggest corruption trials involving key members of the former President Lula Da Silvas government. Alok Joshi new RAW chief The Haryana cadre IPS officer Alok Joshi was appointed head of Indias external intelligence gathering agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) on 27 November 2012. Alok Joshi will take charge from S.K. Tripathi on December 30, 2012. Luiz Felipe Scolari appointed new Brazil Football team coach Brazilian Football Confederation have appointed Luiz Felipe Scolari as the new coach for Brazil Football team on 29 November 2012. Mohan re-elected as vice president of IBSF Capt Mohan, the president of the Billiards and Snooker Federation of India, was reelected as the vice president of the IBSF (International Billiard & Snooker Federation). The election took place at the Annual General Body meeting of International Billiards and Snooker Federation, at Sofia, Bulgaria on 29 November 2012. b) Resigns American CIA Director David Petraeus resigned American Central Intelligence Agency(CIA) Director David Petraeus resigned on 10th November 2012 due illegal affair with Broadwell that was proved by the FBI in investigation. BJP suspended Ram Jethmalani from party for indiscipline

The BJP on 25 Novemebr 2012 suspended a Rajya Sabha member Ram Jethmalani from the party for gross indiscipline. He recently attacked the for for criticizing the appointment of the new CBI chief. Ricky Ponting retired from international cricket Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has announced he will retire from international cricket at the end of the third Test against South Africa.He is the second highest run scorer in Test history behind Sachin Tendulkar.Ponting has scored 13,366 runs at an average of 52.21 in his career. Yeddyyurappa quits BJP, Assembly The former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S.Yeddyurappa quits the BJP and resigned to the Legislative Assembly on 30 November 2012. He started his political career when he was elected as President of the Shikaripura Taluk erstwhile Jana Sangha in 1972. He won his first Assembly election in 1983 as BJP candidate. He became the first BJP chief minister in South India. c) Deaths Yerram Naidu senior TDP leader dies in road accident K. Yerran Naidu, Telugu Desam Partys senior leader and former union minister for rural development died in a car accident in Andhra Pradeshs Srikakulam district on 2nd November 2012. Cartoonist,T.Samuel passes away Veteran cartoonist, T Samuel, a pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, passed away on 2 November 2012. He worked for the famous newspapers like Times of India ,Indian Express and Nav Bharat Times etc.. He became famous as the creator of pocket cartoon Babuji. BJP leader Kailashpati Mishra passes away Veteran BJP leader and former governor of Gujarat and Rajasthan Kailashpati Mishra died in Patna on 3rd November 2012. Veteran freedom fighter V P Murthy Raju passes away Freedom fighter and former Andhra Pradesh minister Ch V P Murthy Raju passed away in West Godavari district on 12th November 2012.Raju had been MLA for six terms and served as a minister when late P V Narasimha Rao was Chief Minister.

Ex-Minister KC Pant passes away Indias former defence minister and Planning Commission deputy chairman Krishna Chandra Pant died on 15 November 2012.Pant was Indias defence minister between 1987 and 1989, when the Congress party was in power under then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Shiv Sena Chief Balasaheb Thackeray died Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray died in Mumbai on 17 November 2012. Ajmal Kasab hanged, buried at Punes Yerwada Jail Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, the only terrorist caught alive during the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai, was hanged at Punes Yerwada Jail on 21 November 2012.Two secret codes are used the government with respect to Kasab to maintain secrecy 1. Operation X:-Hanging code named Operation X. X stood for execution 2. C-7096 :-C7096, the number by which Kasab was identified officially. Nobel winner and organ transplant pioneer Joseph Murray passes away Dr. Joseph Murray, the surgeon who carried out the first successful kidney transplant and later won a Nobel Prize for his work in medicine and physiology, died on 26 November 2012 in Boston. Indias diplomatic politician and former PM IK Gujral passes away Former Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral passed away on 30 November 2012 in Gujral. Born on 4 December, 1919 in Jhelum.IK Gujral started as the Vice President in NDMC in the 1950s and later became a Union Minister. Later He became the Indias Ambassador to the USSR. Gujral, an intellectual who propounded the Gujral Doctrine of five principles for maintaining good neighbourly relations, left the Congress to join the Janata Dal in the late-1980s. In the 1989 elections, Gujral was elected from Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in Punjab and he became Minister for External Affairs, first under V P Singh (in December 1989) and then under Deve Gowda (in June 1996). Later he became the 12th Prime Minister of India in April 1997 for one year. d) Visitors William Hague on four day official visit to India The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of United Kingdom, Mr. William Hague will be on a four day official visit to India from 7th November

2012.During his visit Mr. Hague will discuss bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest with External Affairs Minister, Mr Salman Khurshid in New Delhi. Canadian Prime Minister visited India Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, visited the India from November 3rd to 9th, during his visit India and Canada signed several agreements including Civil Nuclear Deal, Social Security Agreement, a Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in Information Technology and electronics and an agreement to boost bilateral cooperation in Defense Science and Technology. Hamid Karzai arrived to India on four day visit Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai arrived to India on 9th November 2012 on a fourday visit. Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Myanmars pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh In New Delhi on 14 November,2012 during her 6 day visit to India.She then visited Shantivan to pay tribute to Jawaharlal Nehru.Later in the day, she will deliver the Nehru Memorial Lecture on the occasion of the former PMs birth anniversary. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian summits Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. Barack Obama makes first US presidential visit to Burma Barack Obama became the first American president visited the Myanmar. He visited the Myanmar on 18 November 2012 and then went to Cambodia to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits. e) Miscellaneous Sunita Williams embarks on record 7th space walk Indian-American Sunita Williams along with Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide on 1st November 2012 ventured out of the International Space Station, adding to her recordsetting space walking sojourns, to find an ammonia leak in the vital radiator system. China invites Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University

China invited APJ Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University Irom Sharmila, the Iron Lady of Manipur completed 12 Years of Fast Iron Lady from Manipur, Irom Sharmila on 5 November 2012 completed 12 years of her fast demanding for cancellation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958 (AFSPA). She blames AFPSA as the main cause for violence in the state of Manipur and other parts of Northeastern India. Life Ban on Mohammad Azharuddin Lifted by Andhra Pradesh High Court The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 8 November 2012 lifted the life ban from playing Cricket on Mohammad Azharuddin which was imposed by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in Year 2000. Ramanujans genius Proved by US Mathematician Ramanujans genius Proved to the world by Ken Ono of Emory University in Atlanta on the occasion 125th Birth Anniversary of Ramanujan.Ken Ono of Emory University proved the Ramanujans formula of outputs for the roots of 1 like the square root 1. Cancer charity drops Armstrong name Lance Armstrongs cancer charity removed the former cycling champion Lance Armstrongs name from its title. The Lance Armstrong Foundation now officially known as the Livestrong Foundation. Burmas Suu Kyi Named New UN Ambassador The United Nations announced Myanmars opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as an ambassador to its program on HIV/AIDS. Suu Kyi accepted the invitation to head the program during a meeting with UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidib.

PLACES IN NEWS Earthquake in Guatemala Guatemalans hit by A powerful earthquake with a magnitude November 2012. Mumbais Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah bans entry of women of 7.4 on 8th

The management of Mumbais iconic Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah, which is visited by thousands of devotees every year, has restricted the entry of women. Strong Earthquake strikes Myanmar A strong earthquake with magnitude of 6.8 hit the Myanmar on 11th November 2012 . North Island New Zealand volcano Mt Tongariro erupts New Zealands Mount Tongariro volcano in the central North Island erupted on 21 November 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS AITA-All India Tennis Association. IOR-ARC Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation SAARC-South Asian Association For Regional Cooperation USAID-United States Agency for International Development IAAFInternational Amateur Athletic Federation.

BOOKS IN NEWS Vice President Releases Series of Books Granthavali The Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari released a collection of writing and works -Granthavali of late Dr Dineshnandini Dalmia in New Delhi on 2nd November 2012. Saina Nehwal autobiography book released by Gagan Narang Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal , Ace shooter Gagan Narang and badminton player Parupalli Kashyap released book autobiography of Saina Nehwal Playing to win-My life on and off the court in Hyderabad on 7 November 2012. Yuvi book on Yuvraj released

The book on Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh named Yuvi was released in third week of November 2012. Yuvi, the book on Yuvraj Singh is published by Harper Sport and written by Makarand Waingankar. The book illustrates the brilliance of cricket shown by Yuvraj Singh in his career as a cricketer and the way he recovered from Cancer. Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak Browne Releases Book Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak Browne Releases Book titled VICTORY INDIA A Key to Quality Military Leadership on 20 November 2012.The book is a collection of well written contributory articles by military experts.The book focuses on the process of identification, selection and training of our dynamic youth to mould them into inspiring effective quality military leaders. Amitav Ghosh, Jeet Thayil shortlisted for literature prize Six books including River of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh, Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil and The Wandering by Pakistan-based author Jamil Ahmad, have been shortlisted for the DSC South Asian Literature Prize 2013.The finalist will be announced at the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival January 2013.

COMMITTEESS IN NEWS Pope Benedict XVI appoints six non-European cardinals for Pope selection committee Pope Benedict XVI has appointed six priests from non-European countries to be cardinals, at a service in the Vaticans St Peters Basilica.From India Baselios Cleemis Thottumkal, head of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church was selected as a one of the Cardinal for the pope selection committee.

DAYS & DATES UN declared November 10th as Malala Day United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared November 10 as Malala Day Celebration of Water Conservation Day on 19th November 2012

National Integration Day is celebrated on 19th November to mark the birth anniversary of late Mrs Indira Gandhi, the 1st woman Prime Minister of India. On this occasion Union Ministry of Water Resources has decided to celebrate Water Conservation Day on 19th November 2012 to create awareness regarding concern about depleting water resources & its vision for the water underlining the Ministrys commitment to be an active contributor to the sustainability of this very important natural resource. October 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Imran Khan on anti-drone peace march to tribal belt Imran Khan on 6th October 2012 set off on a motorcade peace march to the terrorists-riddled South Waziristan to protest US drone strikes in the tribal belt. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Re-Elected for fourth term Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been re-elected for the third term. Mr Chavez defeated opposition leader Henrique Capriles. Mr Chavez garnered 54.42 per cent of the vote while his rival bagged 44 per cent votes. Pakistani youth support Malala Yousufzai Pakistani teenaged rights campaigner, Malala Yousafzai, who was on 14th October 2012 shot by the Taliban for publicly opposing them against the girl education.She got the support from all over the world. Ali Zidan elected Libya PM Libyas 200-member General National Congress has elected a former congressman and human rights lawyer Ali Zidan as the countrys new Prime Minister on 14th October 2012. Austrian skydiver breaks sound barrier Austrian national Felix Baumgartner, who jumped from a height of 39 km, became the first skydiver to record the highest ever freefall and also the first human to go faster than the speed of sound. Five New Non-Permanent Member Countries Elected to UN Security Council

UN General Assembly elected five new non-permanent members to the Security Council. The New Members are South Korea, Luxembourg, Argentina, Australia and Rwanda. Iran bans export of 50 basic foods to preserve supplies Iran has banned the export of around 50 basic goods in order to preserve supplies of essential items in the wake of tightening Western sanctions.

INDIA & WORLD India, Australia signs MoU to strengthen bilateral cooperation India and Austrlia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 1st October 2012 for strengthening long-term relationship and bilateral Cooperation on Road and Rail Infrastructure.The agreement was signed between the Minister of Railways and Road Transport and Highways, Dr. C.P.Joshi and visiting Federal Minister of Transport, Innovation and Technology of Austrlia, Mrs. Doris Burse in New Delhi. India, Austrlia tie up to develop smart cities India tie up with Austrlia to develop two smart cities in all states with a host of modern features like intelligent transport and carbon neutral status in each of the states in the second phase of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal mission.Initially half a million to one million population cities will be developed as smart cities with the help of Austrian Institute of Technology who is expertise in this field. India gets $500 mn World Bank fund for secondary education World Bank, the multilateral lending agency, and the government of India 5th October signed a loan agreement worth $ 500 million for Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) in the country. India lags behind China, Pak in reducing hunger level India lags behind neighbouring China, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in reducing hunger level, says the 2012 Global Hunger Index (GHI) released by US-based International Food Policy and Research Institute.India is ranked 65th out of 79 countries in GHI, behind China at 2nd place, Pakistan at 57 and Sri Lanka at 37. IOC signs MoU with Korea Gas

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), on 17th October 2012, entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Korea Gas Corporation (Kogas) for jointly exploring opportunities in exploration of oil and gas and LNG business. Cabinet clears Rs 8,000cr missile purchase for armed forces Proposals worth over Rs 8,000 crore for procuring around 10,000 Invar missiles from Russia for the Armys T-90 tanks and over 200 air-launched versions of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles for the IAF were cleared on 18th October 2012 by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS). India and Australia Sign Four Agreements of Cooperation India and Australia agreed to expand cooperation in security and Defence including fight against terrorism.They also agreed to begin negotiations for an agreement on Civil Nuclear Energy Cooperation which will precede actual cooperation. Both the countries also signed four agreements in the field of space science technology and education, cooperation in student mobility and welfare, skill development and textiles. Iran to complete gas pipeline work by year-end Iran has said it was for India and Pakistan to sort out issues related to the proposed Indo-Iran gas pipeline, even as it committed itself to complete its part of 800 km of gas pipeline to India till Irani boundaries by the end of this year. India, New Zealand sign five pacts to cooperate in field of education India and New Zealand signed five Memoranda of Understanding in the different fields of education on 19th October 2012. India, Switzerland to cooperate in Transport sector India and Switzerland on 19th October 2012 discussed ways and means for enhancing cooperation in the field of Transport sector including roads and Railways. India & Pakistan may introduce a common currency called Papee After taking into consideration the decade long success of Euro, and due to increasing demands of businessmen of India (and terrorists of Pakistan), both countries ruling leaders (i.e. Indias UPA, and Pakistans Military) are thinking about introducing a common currency for India and Pakistan.The name with the highest votes , is a word derived by adding pa from Pakistan and pee from Indian Rupee i.e. Papee Hyderabad is worlds 3rd best city to visit in 2013

Hyderabad has been named as one of the best cities in the world to visit in 2013 by travel guide book Lonely Planet published on 22nd October 2012.The top 10 cities according to Lonely Planet to visit in 2013 are San Francisco, Amsterdam, Hyderabad, Derry/Londonderry, Beijing, Christchurch, Hobart, Montreal, Addis Ababa and Puerto Iguazu. India, Japan focus on expanding defence cooperation India and Japan on 22nd October 2012 discussed ways to expand their security and defence cooperation at a meeting of their foreign and defence secretaries in Tokyo. Super 30 ties up with Tokyo University The Super 30 programme for training students of the backward sections for the IIT JEE tied up on 24th October 2012 with the University of Tokyo, which will sponsor study of its students in Japan.This agreement is a follow-up of the Japanese Government Program named Global 30, of engagement with Super 30 for increasing the flow of Indian Students to Japan. 7th SAFF begins in Goa The Seventh South Asia Film Festival (SAFF)-2012 held at Panaji in Goa from. India-US-Japan trilateral meet The US pivot-to-Asia policy, Iran, China-Japan maritime dispute and South China Sea will be among the issues to be discussed during the 3rd round of India-US-Japan Trilateral dialogue in New Delhi on 29th October 2012. The meet will also focus on finding areas of cooperation between the three countries. India to give financial assistance to Nepals Palpa District India is to provide an assistance of four crore and thirty-three lakh Nepali rupees for Palpa District in Western Nepal on 31st October 2012.

NATIONAL FICCI urges Centre to ban bauxite exports Trade body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) has urged the Union ministry of commerce and industry to ban bauxite exports fearing

closure of alumina refineries for shortage of the key raw material required to produce alumina. Supreme Court directs Centre and states to provide basic facilities to students The Supreme Court on 3rd October 2012 directed all schools across the country to provide basic infrastructure facilities like drinking water and toilets to school children within six months and failure to implement will be viewed seriously. The order was passed on a petition filed by an NGO Environmental and Consumer Protection Foundation. Kejriwal forms political party, promises to change the system Social activist Arvind Kejriwal added a new dimension to his movement against corruption as he formally launched his political party and said it belonged to the people of the nation. Ministry of Rural Development Launched Nirmal Bharat Yatra Ministry of rural development on 3 October 2012 started a campaign named Nirmal Bharat Yatra which focuses on making the country free from open defecation.The yatra will begin from Wardha District of Maharashtra from 3 october 2012 and will go through Indore, Kota, Gwalior, and Gorakhpur and end up in Bettiah district of Bihar on November 17, covering about 2000 km of distance. SC orders new survey to identify bonded labour The Supreme Court on 15th October 2012 directed all states and Union Territories to conduct fresh surveys to identify bonded labour problems in the country and regretted that a large number of children continue to work as domestic help even after the enactment of the Right to Education Act. Centre to launch Aadhaar based delivery system The much awaited Aadhaar enabled system for direct cash transfer to beneficiaries under social schemes such as MNREGA and pension will be launched on 19th October 2012 by PM Manmohan Singh at Dudu, Rajasthan. Indias infant mortality rate drops Indias infant mortality rate (IMR) has come down by three points from 47 to 44 deaths per 1,000 live births during 2011.

Centre, states sign MoU for broadband linking of villages The Central government has signed a tripartite agreement with 16 states and union territories and a special purpose vehicle Bharat Broadband Network Ltd (BBNL) has been launched to expedite the mission of connecting every gram panchayat with broadband network. Reshuffling of Central Cabinet Cabinet Ministers M. Veeerappa Moily S. Jaipal Reddy Kamal Nath Vayalar Ravi Kapil Sibal C.P. Joshi Kumar Selja Pawan Kumar Bansal Salman Khursheed Jairam Ramesh K. Rahman Khan Dinsha J. Patel Ajay Maken M.M. Pallam Raju Ashwani Kumar Harish Rawat Chandresh Kumar Katoch Ministers of State with Independent Charge Jyotiraditya Madharao Scindia K.H. Muniappa Sachin Pilot Jitendra Singh Manish Tewari K. Chiranjeevi Ministers of State E. Ahamed D. Purandeswari Portfolio Petroleum & Natural Gas Science & Technology and Earth Science Urban Development & Parliamentary Affairs Overseas Indian Affairs Communications & Information Technology Road Transport & Highways Social Justice & Empowerment Railways External Affairs Rural Development Minority Affairs Mines Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation Human Resource Development Law & Justice Water Resources Culture Portfolio Power Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Corporate Affairs Youth Affairs & Sports Information & Broadcasting Tourism Portfolio External Affairs Commerce & Industry

Jitin Prasada S. Jagathrakshakan R.P.N. Singh K.C. Venugopal Rajeev Shukla Shashi Tharoor Kodikunni Suresh Tariq Anwar K.J. Surya Prakash Reddy Ranee Narah Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury A.H. Khan Choudhury Sarvey Sathyanarayana Ninong Ering Deepa Dasmunsi Porika Balram Naik Kruparani Killi Lalchand Kataria Resigned Cabinet Ministers S.M. Krishna Ambika Soni Mukul Wasnik Mahadev Khandela

Defence & Human Resource Development New & Renewable Energy Home Civil Aviation Parliamentary Affairs & Planning Human Resource Development Labour & Employment Agriculture & Food Processing Industries Railways Tribal Affairs Railways Health & Family Welfare Road Transport & Highways Minority Affairs Urban Development Social Justice & Empowerment Communication & Inforamtion Technology Defence Portfolio External Affairs Information and Broadcasting Tourism Minister of State Justice and Empowerment

STATES Door-to-door cancer campaign in Punjab Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal sanctioned the biggest ever door-to-door campaign for a symptoms-based early detection and awareness about cancer.At least

50,000 personnel and volunteers would visit 54 lakh households in 12,603 villages and 217 census towns, for the exercise that begins in Faridkot district on October 2. In Goa Housewives with family income less than Rs 3 lakh to get Rs 1000 to fight inflation Housewives in Goa just got a breather from rising inflation, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition government on 2nd October 2012 launched a scheme to provide an allowance of Rs 1,000 a month to housewives in households whose annual incomes are less than Rs 3 lakh. EC announces dates for assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh The Election Commission on 3rd October 2012 announced dates for Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections. While Gujarat will have elections in two phases December 13 and 17, Himachal Pradesh will vote on November 4. The counting for both the assembly elections will take place on December 20. UP government announces ban on gutka industry from April 2013 On 3rd October 2012 Uttar Pradesh government decided to impose a ban on gutka industry in the state with effect from April 2013. Supreme Court bans mining activities in Goa In Goa, the Supreme Court imposed a complete ban on the mining activities as well as transportation of iron and manganese ore on 5th October 2012. Arvind Kejriwal launches bijli-paani satyagraha in Delhi Activist Arvind Kejriwal on 6th Octomber 2012 launched a bijli-paani satyagraha in Delhi to protest against inflated power and water bills and hike in tariffs by restoring electricity connection to the household of a labourer which was disconnected for nonpayment of bills. EC fiat to Himachal Pradesh On 7th October 2012 The Election Commission (EC) stopped the BJP government in Himachal Pradesh from distributing free PDS bags carrying photographs of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Maharashtra tribals demand ban on alcohol

Tribal women from Maharashtras Chandrapur have sent 80,000 postcards to Chief Miniter Prithviraj Chavan asking to make the district liquor-free. UPRVUNL, NLC to set up thermal plant at Ghatampur The UP Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (UPRVUNL) and the central government PSU Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd (NLCL) signed a joint venture agreement (JVA) to set up a 2,000 MW thermal power plant at Ghatampur (Kanpur) on 7th October 2012 . Union Government ruled out the decision of Cauvery River Authority Decision of the Cauvery River Authority was ruled out by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 8 October 2012. The Prime Minister ordered Karnataka to release 9000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu every day, till 20 October 2012. Railways put 400 CCTVs at 10 stations to improve security system The Delhi division of Northern Railway authorities have completed the installation of 400 CCTVs at 10 stations with Rs. 20 crore to ensure better security and mobility at its stations.Only in the New Delhi Railway station they installed more than 100 CCTV cameras as part of an integrated security system (ISS). Presidents son Abhijit Mukherjee wins Jangipur Lok Sabha by-poll Abhijit Mukherjee, son of President Pranab Mukherjee and Congress candidate, on 13th October 2012 won the Jangipur Lok Sabha by-election by 2,536 votes defeating the CPI-M rival Muzaffar Hussain. Union Power Ministry gave its Nod to Implement Islanding Scheme in Delhi The Union Power Minister Veerapa Moily on 17 October 2012 announced the implementation of Islanding Scheme for Delhi by January 2013 to protect it from massive disruptions caused due to grid failures in power supply. The scheme of Delhi is different to that of the existing ones in cities like Mumbai and Kolkata because the transmission lines of different states is routed through Delhi. Haryana to give Rs.11,000 to couples at mass weddings The Haryana Government has announced on 20th October 2012 that it will give Rs.11,000 to each newly wedding couple at a mass marriage. Uttarakhand Named best Performing States in terms of Environmental standards

The state of Uttarakhand on 29 October 2012 tops the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list of being best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental well-being released by Planning Commission.

CONFERENCES The international biodiversity meet in Hyderabad The XI Conference of Parties (CoP-11) on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) being hosted by India at Hyderabad starts on 1st October 2012. Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit held in Kuwait Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit has given a call for stronger co-operation among member nations and to work for the improvement of living conditions.Leaders from 32 countries pledged to focus on key areas to fulfill the aspirations of the people. These include sustainable energy and development, economic growth, food security, trade and commerce, health care, climate change and co-operation in financial and education sectors. South Korea to host next UN biodiversity meet in 2014 South Korea will host the 12th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2014, it was announced in Hyderabad on 19th October 2012. Third Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit The 3rd Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit organized by EastWest Institute, a New York based think-and-do tank, kick-started in the New Delhi on 30th October 2012.

AWARDS & HONOURS President Confers Shastri awards to ISRO scientist Tessy Thomas On 1st October 2012 President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the prestigious Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award 2012 to ISRO scientist Tessy Thomas at an award function in Rashtrapati Bhawan. Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award is conferred every year for doing excellent work in the field of Public Administration, Academics and Management.

Banaras Hindu University VC wins MV Pylee award for best academician Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice chancellor and renowned molecular biology scientist Dr Lalji Singh has won the 7th MV Pylee award for the best academician. The MV Pylee award was constituted in year 1996 in honour of Cochin Universitys former vice chancellor MV Pylee. The award includes Rs 2 lakh, a memento and citation for excellence in teaching and research and contribution to academic community. It is awarded once every three years.

S.No Department

1.

PHYSICS

Name of the Person/ Organization Serge Haroche and

Country

Field of Research

France

For ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems For studies of G-Proteincoupled receptors For the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent For the theory of stable allocations and the practice of market design Who with hallucinatory realism merges folk tales, history and the contemporary For over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation. Democracy and human rights in Europe.

2.

CHEMISTRY

3.

PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE

David J. Wineland America Robert J. Lefkowitz America and Brain K. Kobilka America Sir John B. Gurdon and Britan

4.

ECONOMIC SCIENCES

Shinya Yamanaka Alvin E. Roth and

Japan America

5.

LITERATURE

Lioyd S. Shapley Mo Yan

America China

6.

PEACE PRIZE

European Union (EU)

Europe

Sachin Tendulkar to be made member of Order of Australia Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard made the announcement on 16th October 2012 that the first Indian sportsperson Tendulkar to be conferred with the Membership of the Order of Australia, an honour rarely bestowed on non-Australians. First-ever India Biodiversity Awards presented The women who led the ecological restoration of Gundlaba village in Odishas Puri district after the 1999 super cyclone are among the four winners of the first India Biodiversity Awards. The awards, instituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP). Vijay Kumar honoured with Services Best Sportsman London Olympics silver medallist shooter Vijay Kumar was named as the Ser vices Best Sportsman award for 2012 at the Army Headquarters in New Delhi.The award is given to best sportsman from out of all the three services-Army, Air Force Navy. Bangladesh honours fifty-two Indians Bangladesh has honoured foreign friends who contributed to achieve the nations independence from Pakistan in 1971.Of the 61 recipients of the award in the third phase, 52 are from India and the rest are from Nepal, the United States, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, Australia, Sweden, and Italy.The former Indian Prime Minister, I.K. Gujral, and the former Nepalese Prime Minister, the late Girija Prasad Koirala, received the Bangladesh Muktijuddho Sammanana. Singham Bravery Award Posthumously given to IAS and Security Personnel Narendra Kumar the IPS officer who was brutally killed by illegal mining mafia in Madhya Pradesh and many other Security Personnel who had laid down their life for fighting against Maoists and anti Social element on 21 October 2012 were awarded with Singham Bravery Awards. Bangladesh honours Babu Jagjivan Ram Former Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of India, late Babu Jagjivan Ram has been awarded with the Friends of Liberation War Honour by the Government of Bangladesh for his contribution in the 1971 War. Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover Medal

IT giant Infosys founder, N.R. Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover Medal for promoting science at Global Humanitarian Technology Conference in Washington. Gavaskar to receive BCCIs lifetime achievement award Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will be conferred the Col C K Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award at the annual BCCI awards function on 25th October 2012. Amitabh Bachchan gets best TV host award for Kaun Banega Crorepati Amitabh Bachchan has won the best television host award for the popular game show Kaun Banega Crorepati. Lord Indarjit Singh conferred Punjab Ratan Award Lord Indarjit Singh, the first member of the House of Lords to wear a turban, has been presented with the Punjab Ratan (Jewel of Punjab) award by the Worl d Punjabi Organisation, in recognition of his contribution to promoting Punjabi culture, heritage and inter-faith services. Delhi Metro bags JICA President Award The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was awarded the prestigious Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Presidents Award 2012 on 29th October 2012. Noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar presented with Indira Gandhi award for National Integration The Indira Gandhi award for National Integration for 2011 has been given to noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar in recognition of his contribution to national integration.

SPORTS & GAMES Indian judokas win 2 silver, 3 bronze in Asian Championship Indian judokas bagged two silver and three bronze in the Asian Youth and Junior Championships held in Chinese Taipei.In the Youth Championships, Vijay Kumar Yadav and Besto Rani Devi won a silver each in boys 60kg and girls 48kg categories respectively.Preety and Mongjam Kabita Devi won a bronze each in gilrs 40kg and 44kg respectively in the September 28-30 event.Khaidem Rashi Devi bagged a bronze

in 70kg category in the junior section.Indian judokas had won one gold, four silver and two bronze in the Asian Youth and Junior Championships in Lebanon last year. India move up to 2nd spot in T20 rankings India might have failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing ICC World Twenty20, but four wins out of five matches have pushed the India by one place to the second spot in the latest T20 International team rankings released on 3rd October 2012.India now trail Sri Lanka (129) by nine points and are followed by Pakistan (118) and England (118). India 168th in FIFA rankings Indian football team moved a place up to be 168th in the latest FIFA rankings, India, who last month won a hat-trick of Nehru Cup titles, have 114 points. Red Bull driver Vettel wins Japanese Grand Prix Sebastian Vettel ,the driver Red Bull won the Japanese Grand Prix 2012 on 7th Ocober 2012. Australia retain womens World Twenty20 title The Australian Women Cricket team on 7 October 2012 defeated England by four runs to retain the Women T-20 world cup title. West Indies won the ICC World Twenty20 Tournament West Indies 7th October 2012 clinched the ICC World Twenty20 crown with a comfortable 36-run victory over Sri Lanka. Kaltenborn becomes first female F1 team principal India born Monisha Kalterborn is set to become Formula 1s first woman team principal after she takes charges from founder of Sauber chief Peter Sauber on 12th October 2012. Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions in the Fenesta Open national tennis championship at the RK Khanna Stadium in New Delhi on 13th October 2012. Hat-trick for Vettel

Sebastian Vettel has claimed his third successive victory at the Korean GP on 14h October 2012.He is already won the Singapore and Japan GP titles. Novak Djokovic beats Andy Murray to win Shanghai Masters Novak Djokovic beated British Tennis Player Andy Murray, on 14 October 2012 saving five match points to seal a stunning 5- 7, 7- 6 ( 13/ 11), 6- 3 victory in the Shanghai Rolex Masters final. Bhullar wins Macau Open golf Indias Gaganjeet Bhullar completed a commanding start-to-finish victory at the Venetian Macau Open golf on 14th October 2012. Indias Saina Nehwal win Denmark Open Badminton Title Indian badminton player and Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal has won the Denmark Open Super Series Premier trophy on 21st October 2012. Martin Guptill wins NZ top cricket award Opening batsman of New Zealand Cricket team Martin Guptill on 18 October 2012 claimed the top honour at the New Zealand Cricket Awards in Auckland, winning the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2011-12. Martin Guptill was also named ODI and Twenty20 player of the year, based on performances between 1 September 2011 and 31 August 2012. Anaka Alankamony clinches her second WISPA title Asian junior gold medallist Anaka Alankamony today claimed her second title and first one abroad in the womens professional squash tour when she beaten the top seed Kylie Lindsay of New Zealand in the final of the Ipswich Open in Queensland. Lance Armstrong stripped of his 7 Tour de France titles, banned for life Cyclings governing body agreed on 22nd October 2012 to strip Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and ban him for life, following a report from the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that accused him of leading a massive doping program on his teams. Womens Indian Golf Open from November 30 The creme-de-la-creme of Indian womens golf will be up against a strong international field, including the likes of Laura Davies and defending champion

Caroline Hedwall, when the tri-sanctioned Hero Womens Golf Open tees off from November 30. Sun TV Network Acquired Hyderabad IPL Franchise Chennai based SUN TV Network acquired the Indian Premier League (IPL) Hyderabad franchise on 25 October 2012 for an enormous amount of 85.05 crore Rupees per year. Sebastian Vettel won F1 Second Indian Grand Prix Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28 October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.This is his fourth consecutive success in this year. Pankaj Advani defeats Championship title Russell, clinches seventh World Billiards

India`s Pankaj Advani won his seventh World billiards title when he outclassed defending champion Mike Russell 1,895-1,216 in the final on 28th October 2012. Joshna Chinappa wins Penang Open squash title Indias top squash player Joshna Chinappa claimed the IJM Land Penang Open, defeating top seed and local favourite Siti Munirah Jusoh in straight games on 28th October 2012. India retains third spot in ICC ODI ranking India retains the third spot in the ICC ODI ranking after England and South Africa. England has retained the top spot in the latest ODI rankings with 121 points followed by South Africa. The latest ICC rankings were released in Dubai on 30th October 2012. India lifts the Asian at Guangzhou in China Cricket Council Womens Twenty-20 trophy

Indian women lifted the title of Asian Cricket Council Womens Twenty -20 Asia Cup cricket tournament by defeatingthe Pakistan by 18 runs in the final match at Guangzhou in China.

ECONOMY

Govt approves 49% FDI in insurance & pension sectors On 4th October 2012 The Cabinet has cleared proposals to allow more Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in the insurance and pension sectors.In both the sectors government approves 49% of FDIs. Govt approves 12th Five-Year Plan On 4th October 2012 Government approved the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) document that aims to achieve annual average economic growth rate of 8.2 per cent, down from 9 per cent envisaged earlier, in view of fragile global recovery. HDFC Bank partners Indian Oil Corporation to offer rural banking services HDFC Bank has partnered Indian Oil Corporation to provide banking services in the rural areas where IOCs petrol pump outlets Kisan Seva Kendras will act as the business correspondents for the banks. IMF cuts Indias Growth Forecast for 2012 to 4.9 Percent The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed Indias growth forecast to 4.9 per cent for 2012 due to low business confidence and sluggish structural reforms. India-US trade to touch $100 bn Bilateral trade between India and the US is expected to touch USD 100 billion in the coming years on increasing economic engagement between the countries. Rangarajan lowers FY13 GDP growth forecast to 6% Prime Ministers key advisor C Rangarajan 25th October 2012 lowered the growth projection for the current fiscal to 6 per cent from 6.7 per cent estimated earlier.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Scientists discover bacteria that can produce 24-carat gold Scientists have discovered a bacteria that has the ability to withstand incredible amounts of toxicity and can be the key to creating 24-carat gold.Researchers from the Michigan State University have found that the metal-tolerant bacteria Cupriavidus metallidurans can grow on massive concentrations of gold chloride or liquid gold, a toxic chemical compound found in nature.

India sucessfully test-fires Prithvi-II ballistic missile On 4th October 2012 India sucessfully test-fired surface-to-surface Prithvi-II ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur of Balasore district off Odisha coast. India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile A day after the launch of Prithvi-II, India successfully test-fired nuclear-capable Dhanush ballistic missile for its full range of 350 km from a naval ship off Odisha on 5th October 2012. Australia launches worlds fastest radio telescope In the remote Australian outback, scientists have launched the worlds fastest radio telescope which will exponentially increase astronomers ability to survey the universe, mapping black holes and shedding new light on the origins of galaxies.The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), located near the region of Murchison about 650 kilometres north of Perth, was officially opened 5th October 2012 by Science Minister Chris Evans. Indian navy successfully test-fires BrahMos supersonic cruise missile The Indian Navy on 7th October 2012 successfully test-fired the 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, capable of carrying a conventional warhead of 300 kg, from a warship off the Goa coast. The Barcode Turns 60 Years Old October 7, 2012 marks the 60th anniversary of the registration of the first bar code patent. The original patent for what we know today as the modern barcode was granted on October 7, 1952 to Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver, its inventors. New planet discovered in Earths backyard Astronomers have found a new planet called exoplanet in Alpha Centauri , the closest yet outside our solar system and just an astronomical stones throw away at four light years.Alpha Centauri is a three-star system consisting of two stars similar to our sun and a faint red star called Proxima Centauriand another one is the Alpha Centauri B.The Exoplanet orbits Alpha Centauri B.

PERSONS IN NEWS a) Appointments Congress selects Raja, Suresh Kalmadi and Kanimozhi as members of standing committee The congress on 3 October 2012 nominated the former Union Minister, A. Raja, Kanimozhi and Suresh Kalmadi as the members of the Parliamentary Standing Committees on Energy, Home Affairs and External Affairs respectively.Raja was arrested in the 2G scam case on February 2 last year and is on bail since 15 May 2012. Suresh Kalmadi, who was accused in the Commonwealth Games scam case, spent about nine months in jail and was released on bail on 19 January 2012. DMK MP Kanimozhi, also an accused in some cases related to the 2G spectrum allocation, was nominated to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs. Ajit Saran Appointed as Secretary in National Commission for Women Senior IAS officer Ajit M Sharan was appointed as Member Secretary in National Commission for Women (NCW). Ajit Sharan is a 1979 batch officer of Haryana cadre. Vivek Rae appointed new MSME secretary On 5th October 2012 the government appointed Vivek Rae as secretary, ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises. Rae, a 1978 batch IAS officer of the UT cadre, is currently director general, acquisition, defence ministry. He will take over from RK Mathur. Anil Kumble appointed chairman of ICC Cricket Committee Former India captain Anil Kumble was unanimously appointed chairman of ICC`s Cricket Committee by the game`s governing body, replacing West Indies great Clive Lloyd on 11th October 2012. Jaspal Rana appointed junior pistol chief coach Multiple Asian Games gold medallist, Jaspal Rana, has been appointed chief coach for junior pistol shooters by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) on 16th October 2012. Ashok Kumar appointed Indias ambassador to Brazil Mr. Ashok Tomar has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Brazil on 31st October 2012.

b). Resigns Michael Schumacher announces retirement from Formula One Michael Schumacher has announced that he will retire from Formula One at the end of the season.Schumachers announcement follows news last week that he will be replaced at Mercedes by Lewis Hamilton in 2013. UP revenue minister resigns due involved in CMO abduction UP revenue minister Vinod Singh was forced to resign on 12th October 2012 for his alleged involvement in the abduction of Gonda chief medical officer (CMO) SP Singh. External Affairs Minister S M Krishna resigned External Affairs Minister SM Krishna has resigned from his post ahead of on 28th October 2012 cabinet reshuffle. Badminton Player Peter Gade Retired From International Career Danish legend Baminton Player, Peter Gade on 30 October 2012 retired from international badminton. c). Deaths Historian Eric Hobsbawm dies, aged 95 Eric Hobsbawm, one of Britains most eminent historians, has died at the age of 95, on 1st October 2012 at the Royal Free Hospital in London .Mr Hobsbawm, a historian in the Marxist tradition, wrote more than 30 books.He published his final book, How to Change the World, in 2011. Freedom fighter, ex-Governor Satyanarayana is dead Freedom fighter and former governor of Uttar Pradesh B Satyanarayana Reddy died at a hospital in Hyderabad on 6th October 2012. Zimbabwe cricket coach Kevin Curran passes away Kevin Curran, the former Zimbabwean all rounder and coach, has died in Mutare on 10th Ocober 2012. Cambodia ex-king Sihanouk dies

Cambodias former king Norodom Sihanouk died on 15th October 2012 in China at Beijing. Bandya Kakade dead Bandya Kakade, former India football goalkeeper, passed away here on 18th October 2012 evening. Kakade and Kuppuswami Sampath (MEG, Bangalore) were the two goalkeepers of the Indian team that won the bronze medal at the 1970 Bangkok Asian Games. Kakade was also part of the Indian team Yash Chopra, the King of Romance passes away Yash Chopra, one of Bollywoods most well-known filmmakers, died of dengue fever on 21st October 2012. Eminent litterateur Sunil Gangopadhyay passes away Eminent litterateur and Sahitya Akademi President Sunil Gangopadhyay died at his South Kolkata residence on 23rd October 2012 following a massive heart attack. d). Visitors U.S. Treasury Secretary Geithner to visit India on Oct. 9 U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner visit India on 9th October 2012 to participate in the third annual meeting of the U.S.-India Economic and Financial Partnership with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. Australia PM Julia Gillard begins India visit Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has begun a three-day visit to India.The two countries are expected to announce negotiations on civil nuclear co-operation during Ms Gillards visit. Suu Kyi to visit India next month After 40 years, Myanmars Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will travel to India on November 13. She will deliver the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on November 14. Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, New Zealand visited India

Hon. Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, New Zealand visited the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi on 18th October 2012. Ex-Bangladeshi PM Khaleda Zia to meet PM Manmohan Singh Bangladeshs former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader Begum Khaleda Zia, who is on a week-long trip to India, will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singhin New Delhi on 28th October 2012. e). Miscellaneous Pakistan spinner Rehman hit with ban after failed drug test Pakistans Abdur Rehman has been banned from cricket for 12 weeks after testing positive for cannabis during his recent stint with Somerset. Mukesh Ambani richest Indian The China-based research firm Hurun releases a report on 10th October 2012 declared Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani is the richest person in India. Hyderabads last Nizam named all-time richest Indian Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam (or ruler) of Hyderabad is Indias all -time richest person.According to a new inflation-adjusted list of the worlds richest people of all time, the Nizam, who ruled Hyderabad between 1886-1967, was ranked sixth with $ 236 billion. Mukesh Ambani tops Forbes India rich list Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian for the fifth year in a row with a net worth of $21 billion, according to the Forbes India rich list. Manju Seth appointed as next Ambassador of India to Madagascar Ms Manju Seth has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Madagascar.She is presently Consul General of India in Reunion Island, which is a French-administered territory in the Indian Ocean between Mauritius and Madagaskar.

PLACES IN NEWS

Shadman Chowk renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore Pakistan government has finally renamed Shadman Chowk as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore as a mark of respect to the martyr and an acknowledgement of his role in the struggle against British rule. Mercedes-Benz rolls out M-Class luxury SUV from Pune facility Mercedes-Benz India has rolled out its first locally manufactured M-Class luxury SUV from its facility in Chakan, Pune. The company has also declared the start of operations of its paint shop at the same location.India is the only country outside of the USA where the German luxury car maker has begun production out of the new ML-Class. 44 killed in Syrian air strikes At least 44 people were killed in air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held town of Maaret alNuman on 18th October 2012. 5.5 magnitude earthquake hits off Taiwan A 5.5-magnitude earthquake struck off southern Taiwan on 25th October 2012, the islands Seismology Center said, but there were no reports of any damage or casualties. Earthquake in Canada triggers tsunami in Hawaii A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake rattled the west coast of Canada, triggering tsunami warnings for Hawaii on 28th October 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS Abbreviation of FICCI Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Abbreviate JNNURM Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal mission Abbreviate NCM

National Commission for Women Abbreviate IOC Indian Oil Corporation Abbreviate ASKAP The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder Abbreviate ISS Integrated Security System Abbreviate LPN Liquefied Natural Petroleum Abbreviate WISPA Womens International Squash Players Association

BOOKS IN NEWS Hilary Mantel wins Booker Prize for Tudor saga British writer Hilary Mantel won the prestigious Booker literary prize for a second time on 16th October 2012 with her blood-soaked Tudor saga. Ms Mantel, who took the 50,000 pound ($82,000) award in 2009 for Wolf Hall, is the first British author, and the first woman, to achieve a Booker double. The Folded Earth and A Free Man won the 11th Economist Crossword Book Award The Folded Earth written by Anuradha Roy and A Free Man by Aman Sethi won the 11th Economist Crossword Book Award that was declared at Mumbai. Governor releases Ek Thhi Kusum by former Speaker Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi on 22nd October 2012 released Ek Thhi Kusum, a short stories collection authored by former State Assembly Speaker Prakash Pant.

COMMITTEES IN NEWS Rangarajan panel for total decontrol of sugar industry Rangarajan Committee has recommended deregulation of the sugar sector, by giving freedom to mills to sell sugar in the open market.The Millers should sell the 10%of sugar to government below the market price,for running the ration shops ,remaining should sell in the open market.

DAYS & DATES UP cancels holiday on Kanshi Rams death anniversary The Samajwadi Party (SP) government on 6th October 2012 cancelled the October 9 public holiday on the death anniversary of BSP founder Kanshi Ram, which had been announced by the Mayawati government in May 2007. World Food Day Celebrated worldwide on 16 October 2012 World Food Day is celebrated every year across the globe on 16 October in honour of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945.The aim of this World Food Day is to raise awareness on global food problems and to create a sense of solidarity in the fight against poverty, hunger and malnutrition. September 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL China to shut hundreds of coal mines this year The State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS) said the country(China) aims to close another 625 small coal mines this year in an attempt to reduce the number of deadly accidents, as the death toll in latest coal mine explosion mounted to 43, raising concerns over safety Smita Shah first Indian-American to serve as DNC parliamentarian Smita Shah a close supporter of US President Barack Obama, is vice-chair of the Chicago Plan Commission, become the first Indian-American to serve as a Democratic National Convention parliamentarian on 5th September 2012.As per the publically

available documents, Smita has been an applauded donor to the campaign of the Democratic Party and Obama. US strikes Nepal Maoists from terror blacklist On 06th September 2012 US has lifted sanctions and removed the Communist party of Nepal(Maoists) Organization of Nepal from the list of designated terrorist organisation,years after the rebels abandoned their named struggle and entered open politics and signed a peace treaty. U.S. designates Haqqani network a terrorist group The United States said on 7th September 2012 it is designating the Pakistan-based Haqqani network a terrorist organization, triggering sanctions against a group American officials blame for high-profile attacks in Afghanistan, and which they say has ties to the Pakistani state. Army in Egypt reports 32 deaths in Sinai crackdown Egyptian armed forces have killed 32 criminal elements since launching an operation against Islamist militants in Sinai on 8th September 2012. Canada cuts diplomatic ties with Iran John Baird,Foreign minister Canada said: [Iran] is among the worlds worst violators of human rights; and it shelters and materially supports terrorist groups, requiring the government of Canada to formally list Iran as a state sponsor of terrorism under the Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act.Canada cuts diplomatic ties with Iran.So, Canada has closed its embassy in Tehran and ordered the expulsion of Iranian diplomats from Ottawa, partly because of the countrys backing of the Syrian regime. Somalia gets a new president Somalias parliament elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as the new leader for the African nation on 10th September 2012. Japan to buy disputed East China Sea islands The uninhabited islands, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, have long been a source of friction. Japan and China have competing territorial claims to the islets and surrounding fishing areas and potentially rich gas deposits.The Japanese government will buy the islets for 2.05 billion yen ($26.15 million) and the owners will sign a contract soon.

Biggest Fire Accident in Karachi 290 Members Die At least 290 people have been confirmed dead in a fire that broke out in a garment factory in Karachi on 11th September 2012 night. Worldwide protests against the film Innocence of Muslims The attacks will be continued on 14th September 2012 also in several countries, including Egypt, Iran, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia due the release of the film Innocence of Muslims.UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has denounced as hateful an antiIslam movie produced in the United States. Russia to mine super hard diamonds Russia has declassified a huge deposit of unique super hard diamonds that dwarf the global reserves of the precious stone and can meet the worldwide demand for another 3,000 years.The deposit, located in an asteroid crater 120 km in diameter, has been kept under wraps for nearly 40 decades as the Soviet Union mined enough diamonds elsewhere and also produced synthetic diamonds. Bill Gates remains the richest in U.S.: Forbes Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has retained his position as the richest person in America for the 19th year in a row this year, according to Forbes annual ranking of the nations 400 super rich people who have a combined net worth of $1.7 trillion.Five Indian-Americans, including Silicon Valley venture capitalist Vinod Khosla and founder of IT major Syntel, Bharat Desai (ranked 239),Founder and Chairman of the Symphony Technology Group Romesh Wadhwani(ranked 250), Google board member and shareholder Kavitark Ram Shriram (ranked 298),Founder and CEO of the popular energy drink 5-hour energy Manoj Bhargava(ranked 311). Zardari, Hillary discuss India-Pak trade ties Improving trade ties between Pakistan and India, terrorism and violent anti-U.S. protests were among a host of issues that Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari discussed with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when they met NewYork on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly session on 25th September 2012. Buddhist temples attacked in Bangladesh Thousands of Bangladeshi Muslims set fire to at least 10 Buddhist temples and 40 homes in Ramu town and its adjoining villages some 350 km from Dhaka in anger over a Facebook photo of a burned Quran on 30th September 2012.

32 killed in blasts across Iraq A wave of bombings and shootings in Iraq on 30th September 2012 killed at least 32 people and wounded 104 .The violence was centred in Baghdad and the surrounding areas of Taji, Madain and Tarmiyah.

INDIA & WORLD America Court Summons to Parkash Singh Badal Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, who was served summons by a US court last month in a case of alleged custodial torture and extra judicial killings of Sikhs, has sought dismissal of the motion against him or additional time of 90 days to defend the charges.The US District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin had issued Summons against Badal on August 8 when he was in Wisconsin on a private visit to attend a marriage ceremony. No mobile connection for more than 3 months to any foreign tourist: Government To check misuse of SIM cards, the government has asked Telecom Service Providers not to provide mobile connection for more than three months to any foreign tourist visiting India.According to the fresh guidelines, which have come into effect recently, the Department of Telecom (DoT) has told the service providers that the proof for issuance of a mobile connection to any foreigner would be the passport having a valid visa. India, Pakistan to ink 3 pacts to boost economic activity Hoping that the forthcoming visit of External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna would lead to a liberal visa regime agreement, Commerce and Industry Minister, Anand Sharma, on 04th September 2012, said India and Pakistan would soon ink three agreements in the areas of customs co-operation, mutual recognition of standards and redressal of trade issues to give a fillip to economic activity. India, China to resume joint military exercises India and China announced on 04th September 2012 they would resume joint military exercises after a four-year gap, a move designed to build trust in the often prickly relationship between the worlds two most populous nations. Five Indian firms in Forbes list of worlds most innovative companies

Five Indian companies including Larsen & Toubro, Hindustan Unilever and Infosys are ranked on Forbes magazines list of The Worlds Most Innovative Companies topped by four US companies.Larsen & Toubro got the ninth rank,Hindustan Unilever got the 12th rank, Infosys got 19th rank,Tata Consultancy Services got 29th rank and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries got 38th rank.Four US companies- Cloud computing king Salesforce.com, drug major Alexion Pharmaceuticals, internet retail giant Amazon.com and open source software leader Red Hat took the top four places. India, Pakistan ink visa agreement Pakistan and India have announced on 8th September 2012 that they will ease tough visa restrictions, an important step forward in improving relations between the nuclear armed neighbours. ECIL to supply converters to international science centre Public sector electronic manufacturing firm, Electronic Corporation of India Limited (ECIL), has been selected to supply power converters to the Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR), an international science centre at Darmstadt near Frankfurt in Germany.ECIL signed a bilateral contract for supply of convertors with Bose Institute, designated nodal agency to coordinate between various departments involved in the project.Accordingly, ECIL would be involved in design, development, manufacturing and supply of around 500 ultra stable power converters that cost around 7.5 million Euros (about Rs. 50 crore) of the total Indian contribution of around 36 million Euros. Onno Ruhl appointed World Bank country director for India The World Bank has appointed Onno Ruhl as the country director for India. He will replace Roberto Zagha, who retires in October. Ruhl, a Dutch national, was previously the director for operation services and quality in the South Asia region of the World Bank, the multi-lateral funding agency. Saudi Arabia, India hold talks on defence ties The first meeting of the India-Saudi Arabia joint committee on defence cooperation was held on 10th September 2012 at New Delhi and both sides discussed proposals for exchange of high-level visits, training and functional exchanges in various areas. India pledges $10-million for Palestine The Prime Minister Manmohan 11th September 2012 announced to an assistance of $10 million to Palestines budget for this year to help address its financial requirements.Prime Minister made this announcement after signing three bilateral

pacts the areas of information and communication technology, vocational training and education with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is at present in New Delhi for his three-day long state visit. India, Pakistan trade bodies sign Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) The Islamabad Womens Chamber of Commerce and Industry(IWCCI)and the Punjab, Haryana and Delhi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) on 12th September 2012 signed an MoU to promote trade and investment and improve linkages between business communities of the two countries. Highest under-5 deaths in India In the Child Mortality Estimates Report 2012 published by United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF), India was placed at the top position in the chart of 10 countries that topped on the chart. The other countries with their names on the chart are Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, China, Pakistan, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Delhi, Mumbai among least expensive cities around world A report released Friday by the Swiss bank UBS, covering 72 cities in 58 countries Capital Delhi and financial hub Mumbai are the least expensive cities and Tokyo is the most expensive city for food in the world. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation won work in Jakarta Metro Rail Project Delhi Metro has bagged the work of Management Consulting Services for building the Phase- I of Jakarta Mass Rapid System in Indonesia.This is the first time that Delhi Metro has got a project outside the country since its inception in 1997. Afghanistan, US, India hold first trilateral meeting India, Afghanistan and the US held their first trilateral meeting in New York on 25th September 2012.The major point of discussion was on the situation in Afghanistan along with the issue of terrorism. India ranks lower than China in global food security index India has been ranked 66, much lower than neighbouring China, in the 2012 Global Food Security Index released by the American chemical company DuPont on 26th September 2012.India is ranked 66 , China (ranked 39) , Sri Lanka (ranked 62),Pakistan (ranked 75) and Bangladesh ( ranked 81) in the list of 105 countries.

NATIONAL Sebi plans investor website in 13 Indian languages Market regulator Sebi is planning to soon offer its investor website in as many as 13 Indian languages, besides the existing one in English, to spread awareness among investors and to help resolve their grievances. Supreme Court lifts ban on iron ore mining in Karnataka Supreme Court partially lifts ban on iron ore mining in Karnataka on 3rd September 2012, on the basis of the recommendations of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC). CEC divides the leases of iron ore mines in three categories A,B,C.marginal irregularities and no irregularities of leases come under A category, most irregularities in leases come under C category,moderate irregularities come under B category.The Supreme Court has lifted the banwould only be effective in 18 category A mines, subject to their compliance with statutory clearances.The ban will continued on the remaining leases. Lok Sabha passed two Bills on 3rd September 2012 Lok Sabha passed two bills on 3rd September 2012 They are 1.Sexual harassment may mean loss of business licence:Non-compliance with the provisions of the law will be punishable with a fine of up to Rs 50,000. Repeated violations may lead to higher penalties and cancellation of licence or registration to do business.2.National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) expansion bill passed 4.6 magnitude quake rocks Ladakh, no impact in Kashmir A 4.6 magnitude quake rock Ladakh region in Jammu and Kashmir on 4th September 2012 afternoon. However, it was not felt in the Kashmir valley.Its epicentre was in Southern Xinjiang China, located at a distance of 327 km from Leh. MGNREGA work days raised to 150, crop loans cut to 7% Empowered Group of Ministers(EGoM) on drought headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar decided to increase the number of guaranteed work days under Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGA) to 150 days and cut interest rates on crop loans to 7 percent for one year for the farmers in drought-affected states.

Women and Child Development Ministry launched a Web Portal named Track Child The Union Women and Child Development Ministry on 18 September 2012 decided to launch a web portal named Track Child, which will serve as a central database of all those children who have gone missing in different parts of the country. The portal will act as a coordination mechanism between child homes, police departments and state governments. Govt launches Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme The Finance Minister P Chidambaram on 21st September 2012 cut withholding tax on overseas borrowings to 5 percent from 20 percent and approved the Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme (RGESS).While the RGESS is aimed at encouraging first time retail investors to invest in stock markets through tax concessions, the cut in withholding tax to 5 percent seeks to lower the cost of foreign borrowings by the Indian companies.The RGESS will give tax benefits to new investors who invest up to Rs 50,000 and whose annual income is below Rs 10 lakh. C P Joshi given additional charge of Railways Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways C P Joshi has been assigned the additional charge of the Ministry of Railways in place of Mr Mukul Roy, who was among the six Ministers who resigned from the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government 22nd September 2012. Election Commission Ban the usage of animal and birds in poll campaign The Election Commission of India (ECI) on 26th September 2012 issued an order banning the use of animals and birds by political parties during campaigns. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India said that following repeated requests by animal activist, the Election Commission asked political parties and candidates to refrain from using animals for their campaigns.

STATES HC(High Court) fixes quota in local bodies at 50 percent The AP High Court on 04 September 2012 ruled that the combined reservations for Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Panchayat Raj local bodies should not exceed the upper ceiling of 50 per cent.The court directed the state to cut the quota for BCs and bring the cumulative figure down to 50 per cent.

Bill for special status for six districts in Hyderabad-Karnataka region introduced In the Lok Sabha on 7th September 2012 ,Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde introduced a Bill to amend the Constitution and thus provide a special status to the Hyderabad-Karnataka region , under a new Article 371(J).Once it is approved by Parliament the Hyderabad-Karnataka region covering six backwards districts Bidar, Gulbarga, Koppal, Yadgir, Raichur and Bellary will get more central funds for development and will be on par with the Telananga region of Andhra Pradesh. Besides, there will be reservation in jobs and education for the locals. Supreme Court issues notice to Tamil Nadu government on 69 per cent reservation The Supreme Court 10th September 2012 issued a notice to Tamil Nadu government on a petition challenging the constitutional validity of the 69 per cent reservation by the state government in employment and educational institutions. The petition, filed by students, challenged the governments decision to exceed the 50 per cent limit in reservation mandated by the Mandal Commission judgement.The ten student petitioners from Tamil Nadu had approached the Court after failing to secure admission to the Medical College despite having secured 198/200. Punjab government amends Canal and Drainage Act The offence of theft of canal water can now attract both fine and 6 months imprisonment after an amendment in the law relating to canals and drainage.Punjab Irrigation Minister, Janmeja Singh Sekhon informed that the Punjab government has amended section 70 of the Act for this. NHRC issues notice to Maharashtra over farm suicides The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a reply from the Maharashtra government over seven farm suicides that took place last week within a span of 72 hours in the states Vidarbha regi on.A total of 528 farmers have committed suicide in the Vidarbha region between Jan 1 and Sep 2 this year. Ban on gutka in Delhi comes into effect A blanket ban on manufacturing, sale, storage and display of all gutka products in the national capital came into effect from 13th September 2012. States like Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Kerala, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar have already announced ban on gutka products. A similar comprehensive ban came into effect in Gujarat from 12th September 2012.

Haryana government institute awards for women Haryana government has instituted four state-level awards to felicitate women who have done outstanding work in different fields. These are 1.Indira Gandhi Mahila Shakti Award(given to those engaged in promoting self help groups or women empowerment initiatives, established their own business or industry and have contributed to development of women besides entrepreneurship and done exemplary work in public service.) 2.Kalpna Chawla Shaurya Award(who perform acts of bravery and meritorious services) 3.Bahin Shano Devi Panchayti Raj Award(exemplary work in promoting female literacy, health and nutrition, universalisation of education, sanitation, water, hygiene and other health determinants) and 4.Life time Achievers Award( given to woman of 60 years of age or above, who has excelled in administrative skills, career or profession, leadership quality, courage and creative work) and Women Outstanding Achievers Award(women who have done commendable work in their respective fields)

CONFERENCES APEC Russia 2012 Summit The APEC Russia 2012 Summit is the 24th annual gathering of APEC leaders of 21 countries.Leaders from the member economics are currently meeting on Russky Island off the Coast of Vladivostok, Russia from September 2-9 ,2012 . Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) is a forum for Rim Countries(formally member Economics) that seeks to promote free trade and Economics throughout the AsiaPecific region established in 1989. Indian National Science Academy Summit In the last day of the summit conducted from 7th to 9th September 2012 in New Delhi,Scientists across South Asia decided to work closely in research initiatives and advise decision makers in offering solutions to problems ranging from healthcare to energy security.The three-day meeting saw participation from the Science Academies of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. Emerging Kerala investment meet to see 51 nations taking part 51 countries with 2,500 registered delegates and around 300 VIPs comprising ambassadors, high commissioners and ministers have confirmed their participation in the Emerging Kerala 2012 investment meet to be held in Kochi from Sep 12 14.KSIDC is the nodal agency for the event which will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.The main aim of this event is highlight investment

opportunities available in Kerala and advertise to the the world its state of readiness to receive the investors. 9th World Hindi Conference To held in Johannesburg The 9th World Hindi Conference to be held in Johannesburg ,South Africa from 22-24 September 2012.The first world Hindi Conference was held in Nagapur from 10-12 January 1975 under aegis of RashtrabhashaPracharaSamiti ,Wardha.The main theme of the conference is Bhasha Ki Asmita Aur Hindi Ka Vaishvik Sandarbh.

AWARDS & HONOURS Dr. M.V. Reddy get the Bharat Jyoti Award The Director, Department of Animal Husbandry,Dr. M.V.Reddy got the Bharat Jyoti Award .This award was presented by the India International Friendship Society. Three National awards for State Literacy Mission the Andhra Pradesh State Literacy Mission Authority (SLMA) has received awards for its work in Vizianagaram district and one gram panchayat P Yeleru of Anantapur district. Andhra Pradesh is the only State which received the Saakshar Bharat Award in the entire Country. The Awards comprising a trophy and a certificate which will be given by the Vice-President of India Hamid Ansari on the occasion of International Literacy Day to be celebrated on September 8 at Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. Apollo Hospitals bags 4 awards The Apollo Hospitals Group has bagged the Asian Hospital Management Awards ( AHMA) 2012 in four categories.It received awards for customer service, corporate social responsibility, cost reduction and patient safety. AHMA 2012 garnered 363 entries representing 89 hospitals from 12 countries. Aung San Suu Kyi Receives US Congressional Gold Medal Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has received the Congressional Gold Medal the highest honor Congress can bestow, at a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on 19th September 2012. Members of the U.S. Congress from both chambers and both major political parties gathered to pay tribute to Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was first awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2008, while she was under 15 years of house arrest in Burma.

Barfi! makes it to the Oscars Ranbir Kapoor starrer Barfi! has been nominated as Indias entry to the Oscars next year in the foreign film category. Iran to boycott 2013 Oscars in wake of anti-Islam film The Iran government will boycott the 2013 Oscars in the wake of the anti-Islam video made in the United States that denigrates the Prophet Muhammad. T.S. Subramanian among winners of nuclear societys awards T.S. Subramanian, Associate Editor, Frontline, Chennai, and R.K. Singh, Head, Media Relations and Public Awareness Section, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, have been selected for the Indian Nuclear Societys INS Outstanding Service Award for 2011 for Science Communication.The awards will be presented on November 7 during the inaugural function of the 23 annual conference of the INS to be held in Mumbai. Waheeda Rehman to get lifetime achievement award Veteran actress Waheeda Rehman will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the forthcoming 14th Mumbai Film Festival, which starts on October 18. Mumbai Academy of Moving Image(MAMI) is organising the film festival. Ebrahim Alkazi awarded top French honour Ebrahim Alkazi, the grand old man of Indian theatre has been conferred Frances highest cultural award for his contribution in nurturing and presenting modern theatre in India and preserving the treasures of photography and other art forms for posterity.Alkazi, was awarded Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans lOrdre des Arts et des Lettres) on 29th September 2012. DRDO scientist G. Satheesh Reddy received IETE Award G. Satheesh Reddy, outstanding scientist and associate director, Research Centre Imarat, a premier laboratory of the Defence Research and Development Organisations (DRDO) Missile complex, was given IETE B.V. Baliga Memorial Award on 30th September 2012 at Bangalore.

SPORTS & GAMES

India beat Cameroon to lift Nehru Cup for the third consecutive time India beat Cameroon in a thrilling penalty shoot-out to lift the Nehru Cup 2012 football tournament. This is Indias third consecutive Nehru Cup title, infact they have just won the three. Indias Girisha Paralympics Hosanagara Nagarajegowda wins silver in London

The Girisha Hosanagaara Nagarajegowda won Indias first medal at the London 2012 paralympic Games.The Karnataka athlete bagged the silver with a 1.74m effort in the mens high jump F42 event on 03 September 2012. India slips to 169th in world rankings The world football governing body FIFA released the latest FIFA World Rankings on 5th September 2012 in which India has lost one spot to be now ranked 169th amongst the 209 ranked nations and territories, while within Asia India remains 32nd amongst 46 nations in the rankings. USA wins third FIFA U-20 womens World Cup United States of America beat former champion Germany 1-0 in Tokyo to claim its third FIFA U-20 womens World Cup crown on 8th September 2012. Oscar Pistorius Wins Paralympics Gold In 400 Meters The Blade Runner of South Africa ,Oscar Pistorius successfully completed 400m -T44 event in 46.68 sec in Paralympics and won the gold medal. Serena clinches fourth US Open title Serena Williams captured her 15th Grand Slam title and fourth career US Open crown with a 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 victory over World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka on 9th September 2012. Andy Murray first Britisher to win Grand Slam men`s singles title in 76 years Andy Murray has overpowered Serbias Novak Djokovic in five gruelling sets in a classic US Open final to become the first Britisher to win a Grand Slam mens singles title in 76 years. Armadillo to be 2014 FIFA World Cup mascot

A rare species of armadillo is set to be the official mascot for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil on 12 September 2012.In the previous FIFA World Cup the mascots were: FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa- Zakumi the green-haired leopard FIFA 2006 World Cup in Germany- Goleo named lion Dhoni named captain of ICC ODI team, Kohli, Gambhir in XI Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been named captain of ICCs ODI Team of the Year which also includes Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir.This is for the fifth consecutive year in a row that Dhoni has been selected in ICCs ODI Team of the Year.ICC awards are announced in Colombo on 15th September 2012. Virat Kohli named ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year Indias Virat Kohli was on15 September 2012 rewarded with ODI Cricketer of the Year.at the ICC annual awards function in Colombo. Indian Womens football defeated Nepal And Clinch 2012 SAFF Womens Championship Defending champions India have won the SAFF(South Asian Football Federation) Womens Championship 2012 defeating Nepal in the finals played on 16th September 2012. Saina signs up 40-crore deal with Rhiti Sports The London Olympics bronze-medallist in badminton Saina Nehwal has signed up a 40-crore deal with Rhiti Sports Management company, making her the countrys highest paid sportsperson outside cricket. Lifter Chandrika first Indian to win medal in Youth Worlds Chandrika Tarafdar on 19th September 2012 became the first Indian to win a medal in Youth World Weightlifting Championships after she bagged two bronze in the girls 44kg category on the opening day at Kosice, Slovakia.Tarafdar won a bronze each in clean and jerk and total lift. She lifted 55kg in snatch, 74kg in clean and jerk for a total effort of 129kg. Deepika Kumari won Silver at Recurve World Cup Deepika Kumari won Silver at Recurve World Cup on 23 September 2012 in Tokyo. In the finals of the tournament, she lost against the Korean double Olympic gold medalist, Ki Bo-Bae.

India got 3rd position in ICC T20 rankings India got the third position in Reliance ICC T20 Championship table released by ICC on 26th September 2012 .South Africa and England got the 1st and 2nd positions respectively. Indian wrestler Babita wins world championship bronze Babita Kumari (51kg) became the second Indian female wrestler to win a World Championships medal after she clinched a bronze in Edmonton, Canada. Humpy wins Ankara Grand Prix-2012 Grandmaster Koneru Humpy won gold medal in FIDE Grand Prix in Turkey at Ankara on 28th September 2012

ECONOMY Indias GDP to remain below 6% for 2012-13 CII(Confederation of Indian Industry) survey indicated that the GDP growth during 2012-13 is expected to remain below 6 percent Planning Commission for cut in 12th Plan annual GDP growth target to 8.2% Planning Commission is proposing to lower annual average growth target for the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17) to 8.2 per cent from its earlier projection of 9 per cent in view of uncertain global environment and sluggish performance of the manufacturing sector at home. CRR cut to inject Rs.17,000 crore The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on 17th September 2012, retained the indicative policy rates at the current level while cutting the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points to 4.50 per cent, injecting a liquidity of around Rs.17,000 crore into the banking system. Naveen Jindal tops executive pay chart with Rs 73.4 crore package The Chairperson and Managing Director of Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL),Naveen Jindal has topped the executive pay charts for listed companies in the country with a

package of Rs 73.42 crore for the last fiscal 2011-12, which grew by over Rs six crore from previous year.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY China developing new class of guided missile destroyer The Chinese Navy is developing a brand new class of guided-missile destroyer, a new type of naval warship with upgraded air-defence missiles, anti-ship and antisubmarine missiles.The new destroyers are equipped with two 32-unit vertical launch systems capable of launching HQ-9B air-defence missiles, anti-ship and antisubmarine missiles.The new destroyer is comparable to the Aegis equipped destroyers of the US Navy which use powerful computers and radars to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets Gliese 163C: New Earth-Like Planet Might Sustain Life Dubbed Gliese 163C, the planet is about seven times the mass of Earth and orbits a red dwarf, or a small, relatively cool star. Gliese 163C is 49 light years away. Its thought to be composed of mostly rock and water and gets 40 percent more light from its parent star than Earth gets from the sun, making it hotter with a surface temperature of 60 degrees Celsius. Air Indias first Dreamliner landing at IGI Airport After a four-year delay and subsequent acrimony, the first of Air Indias advanced Boeing B-787 Dreamliner landing at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on 08th September 2012.It is capable of flying over 15,000 km non-stop. For AI, the plane has been configured to have 256 seats 18 full-flat business class seats and 238 in economy.Air India, which ordered 27 Dreamliners six years ago, will get two more in the next few weeks. A total of eight will arrive by March 2013. PSLV-C21 delivers two satellites into their intended Orbits The Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO) successfully put into orbit two foreign satellites( French SPOT 6(712kgs) and Japanese micro Satellite(15kgs)) marking Indian space agencys 100th mission since the launch of the first satellite,Aryabhata,in 1975 by Russian rocket. ISRO to launch SARAL satellite on 12 Dec 2012

Indo-French satellite SARAL would be launched onboard PSLV-C20 from the spaceport of Sriharikota on 12 December 2012 Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman K Radhakrishnan said at the Bangalore Space Expo 2012 on 12th September 2012. U.S.-Russian space crew lands safely in Kazakhstan A Russian Soyuz capsule landed on the Kazakh steppe on 17th September 2012, delivering a trio of astronauts from a four-month stint on the International Space Station. India tests Agni-IV n-missile India successfully tested its nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Agni-IV missile from a military base in Odisha on 19th September 2012.The new generation missile, which has the capability to hit targets at about 4,000 km. India test-fires N-capable Agni-III missile successfully India on 21st September 2012 successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable Agni-III surface-to-air missile with a strike range of over 3000 km and capable of carrying a warhead of 1.5 tonnes from the Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast. China launches its first aircraft carrier China launched its first aircraft carrier on 25th September 2012. The 60,000 tonne carrier, a former Soviet ship brought from Ukraine and later refurbished locally is named Liaoning, after a Chinese province liberated from Japanese occupation in 1945, in what can be seen as another symbolic warning to Tokyo. The 300m long Liaoning carrier has the capacity to bring 33 airoplanes. NASA says Curiosity rover finds evidence of water on Mars NASA scientist say the Curiosity rover has found evidence of a vigorous thousand year water flow on the surface of Mars. Indias heaviest satellite, GSAT-10 launched from Kourou launch pad in French Guiana Indias advanced communication satellite GSAT-10 was successfully launched on board Ariane-5 rocket from Europes spaceport in French Guiana on 29th September 2012.This is the Indias heaviest satellite of 3,400kg weight.

PERSONS IN NEWS A)Appointments Obama appoints IIT graduate to admin post U.S. President Barack Obama has announced to appoint eminent Indian-American, Romesh Wadhwani, to a key administration post by making him board of trustees of the prestigious John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Browne is new chairman of chiefs of staff IAF chief Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne, who has become the senior most among the three Service chiefs after Admiral Nirmal Verma retired on 31st August 2012, has taken over as the new chairman of the chiefs of staff committee (CoSC) on 1st September 2012. Chief Justice of India names Justice Kabir as his successor Chief Justice of India S H Kapadia, who retires 28th September 2012, has recommended the name of seniormost Supreme Court judge Justice Altamas Kabir as his successor, setting in motion the process of change of guard in the apex court. Deveshwar appointed on RBI board The government has appointed ITC chairman Y.C. Deveshwar as a director on the central board of directors of the Reserve Bank of India. Kaushik Basu World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu appointed as chief economist and Senior Vice President of World Bank by World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim on 05th September 2012.He take charges from 1st October 2012. Sachin Pilot commissioned as Territorial Army officer Sachin Pilot 06th September 2012 became the first Union minister to be commissioned as a regular officer in the Territorial Army, fulfilling his desire to follow his fathers footsteps to be in the armed forces. Indian-American elected to Royal Society of Canada

Ponisseril Somasundaran, an Indian American member of the faculty of Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science, has been chosen as the sole foreign fellow of the prestigious Royal Society of Canada. K N Tilak Kumar elected president of INS K N Tilak Kumar of Deccan Herald and Prajavani was on 13th September 2012 elected president of The Indian Newspaper Society (INS) for 2012-13 at its 73rd annual general meeting held at Bangalore. He succeeds Ashish Bagga of India Today. BCCI joint secretary Anurag Thakur becomes member of Asian Cricket Council BCCI joint secretary and Hamirpur BJP MP, Anurag Thakur has been inducted as member of executive board of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).BCCI chief N Srinivasan is also the president of ACC. Mary Kom brand ambassador of Raj Kundras SFL Actress Shilpa Shetty Monday named Olympic bronze medal-winning boxer Mary Kom as the brand ambassador of Super Fight League (SFL).Shilpas husband, Britain-based businessman Raj Kundra, has collaborated with actor Sanjay Dutt for SFL, Indias first professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) event. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan appointed as International Goodwill Ambassador. The United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has appointed Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as its International Goodwill Ambassador.She will raise global awareness on protecting children from HIV infection and increasing access to antiretroviral treatment. Ramesh Abhishek is FMC chairman Ramesh Abhishek, an IAS officer of 1982 Bihar cadre, appointed as chairman of Forward Markets Commission (FMC) on 24th September 2012 Woman of Pakistani origin becomes minister in Norway Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg has appointed a Pakistani Muslim woman, Hadia Tajik as Norways culture minister. Sandeep Patil appointed as the Chief for BCCI Senior Selection Committee

Former Cricketer and all-rounder, Sandeep Patil was appointed as the Chairman of the five member senior selection committee of BCCI on 27 September 2012. The other four members of the committee include Saba Karim, Roger Binny, Vikram Rathour and Rajinder Singh Hans. Altamas Kabir sworn in as new Chief Justice of India Justice Altamas Kabir, seniormost Judge of the Supreme Court, was sworn in as the 39th Chief Justice of India on 29th September 2012. B)Resigns Australian Cricketer, Matthew Hayden retired from all formats of the game Former Australia Test opener Matthew Hayden has decided to retire from all forms of cricket, adding the Twenty20 version of the game to the Test and international oneday formats he stopped playing in 2010.Hayden played 103 Tests for Australia, hitting 30 centuries with a top score of 380 and an average of 50.73. Ajit Pawar resigns as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar resigns as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister on 25th September 2012 due the allegations of an irrigation scam when he was the states water resource minister. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, S.H. Kapadia, retired. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, S.H. Kapadia, retired on 28th September 2012. C) Deaths Dr. Verghese Kurien, father of Indias White Revolution passes away Dr. Verghese Kurien, the Father of the White Revolution, passed away on 9th September 2012 after a brief illness. Dr. Kurien was the architect of Indias White Revolution, which helped India emerge as the largest milk producer in the world. Iraq vice president sentenced to death A Baghdad court sentenced in absentia Iraqs vice president, Tariq al -Hashemi, to death on hanging for the murder of a woman lawyer and terrorism charges . U.S. ambassador to Libya killed in mob attack

The ambassador of the United States to Libya, Christopher Stevens, has been killed during an armed mob attack in Benghazi on the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.Mr. Stevens is the second U.S. ambassador to be killed during an outstation posting since the death of Adolph Dubs in 1979 during his tenure in Afghanistan. Ex-CJI Ranganath Misra passes away Former Chief Justice of India Ranganath Mishra died at a private hospital in Bhubaneshwar on 13th September 2012.Misra, served as the Chief Justice from September 25, 1990, till November 24, 1991. He was also the first chairman of the NHRC. Veteran actor-director Dinesh Thakur passes away Veteran theatre actor-director Dinesh Thakur, known for his character roles in Hindi films of the 70s, passed awayin Mumbai on 20th September 2012 after prolonged illness. Freedom fighter, Telangana leader Bapuji dies Eminent freedom fighter and a well-known figure in the Telangana movement, Konda Lakshman Bapuji died in Hyderabad on 21st September 2012. He earned the nickname Bapuji for his participation in the Quit India Movement. Popular Malayalam film actor Thilakan passes away Thilakan, who had acted in around 200 films and had won the national award for the best actor in a supporting role, died in Thiruvananthapuram on 24th September 2012. Former National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra dead Brajesh Mishra, the countrys first National Security Adviser who played a key role in foreign policy matters and pushed for deeper engagement with the US, died in New Delhi on 28th September 2012 following a heart ailment. D) Visitors India, Tajikistan upgrade ties, sign four pacts India and Tajikistan, the energy-rich Central Asian nation, 03rd September 2012 decided to upgrade their ties to the level of strategic partnership and signed four pacts in areas of education, health, sports and culture.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on a wide range of bilateral,

regional and global issues and decided to upgrade their growing ties to the level of a strategic partnership. Antony opens army hospital in Male Defence Minister A.K. Antony, on a three-day visit to the Maldives, on 16th September 2012 opened SENAHIYA, a Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) hospital, established in Male with Indian assistance.Maldives Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim thanked India for its assistance to his country in all areas of development and said the enduring friendship between the two countries would improve and expand, irrespective of political changes. E)Miscellaneous Washington Post calls PM a tragic figure Soon after Time magazine labelled Prime Minister Manmohan Singh an Underachiever, the noted American news daily, Washington Post, has referred to him as a tragic figure.The Washington Post said Singhs image is of a dithering ineffectual bureaucrat presiding over a deeply corrupt government. Sunita Williams takes over command at International Space Station Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams has taken over command of the International Space Station (ISS), yet another feather in her cap as she already holds three records for female space travellers including a new record for total cumulative spacewalk time by a female astronaut. Space Triathlon Completed By Sunita Williams Williams became the first person in history to complete a triathlon in space.Williams, who is currently aboard the International Space Station finished her half mile swim, 18 mile bike ride, and four mile run in one hour, 48 minutes, and 33 seconds. Pakistani Government Relents in Judicial Standoff Over Zardari Corruption Case Pakistans government relented on 18th September 2012 to judicial demands that it agree to write a letter to the authorities in Switzerland regarding corruption charges against President Asif Ali Zardari. Nivedita Bhasin becomes first woman B-787 Dreamliner pilot

Senior Air India pilot Capt Nivedita Bhasin has become the first woman to command the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner.She is presently the only women pilot for the B-787s commercial flight in the world. $1,00,000 cash reward for the death of an anti-Islam film producer A Pakistani government Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour has offered a $100,000 (61,616) reward for the death of the maker of an anti-Islam film produced in the US.

PLACES IN NEWS 37 killed in Sivakasi cracker unit blast 37 people have been killed and at least 60 have been injured in a huge fire at a Om Siva Sakthi Crackers in Mudalipetti, near Sivakasi, in Tamil Nadu. Two Same magnitude earthquake in China at Yunnan and Guizhou 80 people were died , more than 730 people were injured,twenty thousand homes were destroyed and nearly one hundred thousand persons have been evacuated after the two earthquakes at a magnitude of 5.6 hit Yunnan and Guizhou provinces in China on 07th September 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS Abbreviate GITEX Gulf Information Technology Exhibition Abbreviate CTS(hint Cheque) Cheque Truncation System Abbreviate DCGI(hint Drug) Drug Controller General of India Abbreviation of FIFA International Federation of Football Association.

Abbreviation of WEF World Economic Forums Abbreviation of APEC Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Abbrivate MGNREG Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee IWCCI Abbreviation Islamabad Womens Chamber of Commerce and Industry PHDCCI Abbreviation Punjab, Haryana and Delhi Chamber of Commerce and Industry Abbreviation of UNICEF United Nations Childrens Fund

BOOKS IN NEWS Vice President Releases the Book Muslims in Indian Cities Vice President after releasing the book entitled Muslims in Indian Cities edited by Laurent Gayer and Christoph Jafferlot on 10th September 2012 at New Delhi, Shri Ansari has said that Muslims have lived in Indias religiously plural society for over a thousand years, at times as rulers, at others as subjects and now as citizens. They are not homogenous in racial or linguistic terms and bear the impact of local cultural surroundings, in manners and customs, in varying degrees. 800-year-old Chinese encyclopaedia on display in Taiwan Taiwan (AP) An 800-year-old Chinese encyclopaedia is on display at a book fair in Taipei. The rare publication was recently purchased by a Chinese publishing house for US$33 million (S$40.5 million) at an auction in Beijing. Salman Rushdie released his Book Joseph Anton

Joseph Anton the 633 page book depicts a memoir of Salman Rushdie during his 10 years long run to protect himself from the Fatwa issued by his name was released on 18 September 2012.

COMMITTEES IN NEWS Rangarajan panel for total decontrol of sugar industry The Rangarajan panel will submit the report on decontrol of sugar industry within two weeks.

DAYS & DATES Aishwarya Rai Bachchan recites Om Shanti to convey message of peace at United Nations On the eve of International Day of Peace Aishwarya Rai Bachchan recited the Sanskrit mantra Om Shanti to convey her message of peace at the United Nations, where she addressed students and urged them to set aside their egos and individual desires to find peace within themselves. August 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Pakistan Supreme Court annulled New Law Protecting the Prime Minister Supreme Court of Pakistan on 3 August 2012 annulled the new law called Contempt of Court Act 2012(COCA 2012). Pakistans Supreme Court 3 August 2012 struck down a law designed to protect the new prime minister from being charged with contempt and thrown out of office like his predecessor. The court ousted the previous prime minister, Yousuf Raza Gilani, from office in June by charging him with contempt of court for failing to reopen corruption proceedings against President Asif Zardari. OIC suspended Syria The Organisation Islamic Cooperation(OIC) suspended Syria on 16th August 2012 saying the muslim world can no longer accept a government that massacres its people,further isolating the embattled regime.

Senkaku Islands became the Bone of Contention between China and Japan Ten Japanese on 23 August 2012, made an unauthorized landing on Uotsuri, which is known in Japan as the Senkaku Islands and in China as the Diaoyu Islands. The uninhabited islands surrounded by rich fishing grounds are controlled by Japan but also claimed by China and Taiwan.The Senkaku Islands dispute engulfs in itself a territorial dispute on a group of uninhabited islands. Of the ten Japanese people who visited the island, five were apparently conservative local assembly members.The Senkaku Islands are located in the East China Sea between Japan, and the Republic of China. The archipelago contains five uninhabited islands. Somalia Assembly Passes the Endorses Draft Constitution Somalia Constitution on 1 august 2012 endorsed a draft constitution billed a key step to ending the decades of the civil war. The Horn of Africa countrys outgoing government hailed the end of an eight-year interim period. Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali expressed happy and announced that Somalia has from now, left the transitional period. The special assembly chosen by traditional elders in a U.N.-backed process took eight days to debate and vote on the new Constitution, as the graftriddled government approaches the end of its mandate on August 20.

Myanmar abolished Direct Media Censorship Myanmar on 20 august 2012 he latest dramatic reform by its quasi-civilian regime, but journalists face other formidable restrictions including a ban on private daily newspapers and a pervasive culture of self-censorship. Under the new acts journalists no longer have to submit reports to state censors before publication, ending a practice strictly enforced during nearly half a century of military rule that ended in March last year. Previously, every song, book, cartoon, news report and planned piece of art required approval by teams of censors rooting out political messages and criticisms of one of Asias most repressive governments.

INDIA & WORLD EC signs MoU with South Korean counterpart The Election Commission of India on 01 August 2012 signed an MoU with its South Korean counterpart to help each other in strengthening the electoral processes and political culture. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Chief Election Commissioner of India V S Sampath on behalf of the poll panel and by Justice

Nung Hwan Kim of the Republic of Korea at a brief ceremony. This is the 13th MoU signed by ECI with other countries and international election panels. India-Israel Sign MoU on research programme India and Israel on 02 August 2012 entered into a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for launching a programme that would promote collaborative research across a wide range of disciplines from medical and information technology to social sciences, humanities and arts. The programme, which will run for five years will provide support up to $1,00,000 a research project for three years .The MoU was signed by Chairman of the Israel science Foundation professor Benjamin Geiger and Chairman of University Grants Commission ved Prakash. India, Monaco ink tax information exchange agreement Tata Communications payment solutions providing arm has bagged an exclusive order to install and manage nearly 14,000 ATMs for all public sector banks in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal,Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands by 201314.Government of India and Government of Principality of Monaco have signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) on 02.August 2012. India, Iran & Afghanistan to expand trade,transit through Chabahar port India, Iran and Afghanistan have moved one step closer to expand their trade and economic ties. At a trilateral meeting in Teheran, they agreed to work for expanding trade, investment and transit cooperation through Chabahar port in Iran. A joint working group consisting of the representatives of the three countries will meet within the next three months in Chabahar to expedite the process. India to help Sri Lanka set up SEZs India will help Sri Lanka establish a special economic zone to manufacture auto components in Trincomaee, commerce minister Anand Sharma said in colombo on 03 August 2012. The SEZ would promote exports to the production chains in India. Indian Scientist , Amitabh Ghosh in NASA team helped choose Curiositys landing site An Indian scientist, Amitabh Ghosh part of the NASA team which had identified the landing site of the Curiosity rover on Mars on 6August 2012 described the Spot as very exciting and holding great promise. Pakistan asked India to register Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) with Pakistan State Oil In the wake of New Del his decision to allow pakistani investments, Islamabad has asked India to register its oil marketing

companies(OMCs) with Pakistani State Oil to take part in spot tenders for supply of petroleum products such as petrol,diesel, furnace oil and petcoke. India Ranked Second in Search Queries for Education on Google Indian Ranked second in education queries on Google.After the US, Indian people from IIT Delhi and IIM Ahmadabad were the most searched in their respective categories. India was Ranked 8th in 2008, at present it is behind only to the US. TB screening for Indians seeking UK visa From August 16, Indians planning to travel to UK for more than six months will be screened for tuberculosis before they are given a visa under a pre-entry TB screening programme extended to India. However, the screening will not be required for those travelling for six months or less.The Home Office announced that all such applicants would be required to submit a certificate from a local clinic approved by the British Government to show that they are TB-free. There will be a fee of Rs 1500 for screening, to be borne by the applicant. India gets first Embraer jet with Indian airborne radar tech India, with taking the delivery of the first Embraer 145 Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) in Brazil on 17 August 2012, moved one more step ahead in aerial security.India and Brazil signed a deal reportedly worth $ 210 million for the supply of three aircraft by 2014. This includes a comprehensive logistic package that entails training, technical support, supply of spare parts and ground support equipment. Government extends ban on import of milk, milk products from China The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recommended the extension of the ban till June 2013 or until further orders.The banned milk products include chocolate, chocolate products, candies, confectionery, food preparations with milk or milk solids as ingredient. Sonia is Sixth in Forbes list of 100 most powerful Women The Forbes magazine on 22nd August 2012 ranked united progressive Alliance(UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi the sixth most powerful woman in the world in the list of 100women.Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel got the first place. United States Secretary Hillary Clinton got the second place and Michelle Obama got the 7th Place. Ranking by World Bank

As per the World Bank Report, India has been ranked at 132 amongst the sample 183 Countries.Recognising the need for Reforming the Regulatory Environment for doing business in India, a Committee under the Chairmanship of Shri. M.Damodaran has been constituted on 23 August 2012 by this ministry to extensively examine different areas of root functioning such as financial reforms, governance reforms, liberalized policy framework,process reforms etc, and to suggest a roadmap for improving business climate in India. Pak hails Indias move to allow FDI Pakistan 01 August 2012 welcomed Indias decision to allow Pakistani Foreign Direct Investment, saying the move will create goodwill and give a boost to efforts to normalise bilateral relations. Foreign Office spokesman Moazzam Khan welcomed the Indian governments decision to allow Pakistani investments in all areas except defence, space and atomic energy. Pakistan can explore sectors like cement, textiles and sports for investments in India. Besides, the FDI proposals from Pakistan need to be cleared from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

NATIONAL Ban on SIMI upheld by Tribunal A special tribunal has upheld the ban imposed by the Centre on Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), which has links with Pakistan-based terrorist outfits including Lashkar-e-Taiba and its front, Indian Mujahideen. The Home Ministry on February 3 extended the ban on SIMI by two more years. India is the second-largest mobile phone user in world India is the second-largest mobile phone user with over 900 million users in the world said Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in London on 03 August 2012. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) announced that the mobile users in India are increased to 93.4 crore. Hamid Ansari re-elected as Indias 14th Vice President Hamid Ansari has been re-elected as the 14th Vice President of India.He received 490 votes in his favour.His rival, BJP nominee Jaswant Singh polled 238 voted.He became the only person after Dr.Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan to get a second term. PSCC recommends declaration of tea as national drink

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce (PSCC) headed by BJP Rajya Sabha member Shanta Kumar has recommended declaration of tea as a national drink.Stating this at Palampur on Friday, Kumar said the 102nd report of the Committee on the Tea Industry had placed in both houses of the Parliament that 96 percent to 99 percent people in both Urban and Rural areas of the country consume tea and as such it has already acquired the status of a national drink. NRHM to be expanded to towns also The government will expand the scope of the NRHM(National Rural Health Mission) to all towns and cities, by converting it into a National Health Mission(NHM). Mobile base Station radiation limit will be cut from September 1 The Union government has told parliament that exposure limit of radio frequency fields(base station emissions) will be brought down to one-tenth of the existing level from 1st September 2012,because they receive petitions in High Courts and Supreme Court on fears of health hazards like cancer from mobile tower radiations.RF signals produced by base stations are caused for short and long term health effects. Complete ban on child labour below 14 approved by Cabinet The Union Cabinet on 28th August 2012 approved a proposal for amending the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, to ban employment of children aged up to 14 in any form of industry. It will be an offence to employ such children not only in factories or industries but also in homes or on farms, if their labour is meant to serve any commercial interest. Supreme court upholds death sentence for Kasab The Supreme court has upheld the death sentence for pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab in the 26/11/2008 Mumbai terror attack. 2% Reservation to Sports Persons Youth Services and Sports Sports Policy -Incentives to Sports Persons Extension of Sports Reservation to Two (2%) to meritorious sports persons in direct recruitment in Government Departments / Undertaking / Grant in Aid Institutions at all levels Instructions and Guidelines Notification Orders Issued.

STATES

Orissa is the first state to provide e-payment facility for government employees Orissa became the First Indian state to provide epayment facility for government employees from 1 August 2012.Now, the government employees in the state will receive their salaries and pensions through the online Portal of Reserve Bank of India.Employees received their salaries and pensions directly to their bank account. Keshubhai Patel launched Gujarat Parivartan (GPP) Party Former Chief Minister of Gujarat, Keshubhai Patel launched Gujarat Parivartan (GPP) Party on 6 August 2012. Keshubhai Patel and the former union textile minister Kanshiram Rana resigned from Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) on 4 August 2012. This Party would contest all the 182 seats in Gujarat assembly elections which will be held by the end of 2012. Himachal Bagged top slot in Environment Index Environment Performance Index(EPI)-2012 compiled on July Month.According to the Survey Report conducted across all 28 states and 7 Union territories, the EPI is an Indication of the Environmental well-being of a state. Himachal bagged first and Andhra Pradesh bagged Second. The rankings, the report added, have been decided based on five broad parameters: air pollution, forests, water quality, waste management and climate change. MJP merges with Keshubhai party The anti-Narendra Modi factions in the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP)in Gujarat under one umbrella, the Mahagujarat Janata Party(MJP), formed five years ago, was on 8 August 2012 merged with the Gujarat Parivartan Party(GPP) formed by the former Chief Minister and Mr. Modis arch rival Keshubhai Patel. Maharashtra bans Bt cotton seeds The Maharashtra government has banned the sale and distribution of the genetically modified Bt cotton seeds of Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company (Mahyco), a partner of US multinational Monsanto, in the state with immediate effect for supplying inferior quality seeds. The government has banned the Mahyco company with immediate effect, agriculture commissioner Umakant Dangat told IANS(Indo-Asia News Service) 9 August 2012, when asked about the canceling of the companys license. Haryana to ban food articles containing Nicotine and Tobacco

Haryana government will impose a complete banon food articles containing nicotine and tobacco from 2012 August 15. House Sparrow declared State Bird of Delhi The good old house sparrow, which is becoming rarer by the day, has been declared State Bird of Delhi by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit as part of a new campaign to save the species and enhance awareness about their life and habitat.High court imposed a fine of Rs.5000 rupees to State Government for the appointment of DGP The State Government challenged the Central Administrative Tribunal(CAT) order in the High Court. Ironically for the State, the High Court imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on the government, while declaring the appointment of Dinesh Reddy in the post of DGP as invalid. Drug Trial Related Deaths Highest in Maharastra According to data released by the Drug Controller General of India Maharastra has recorded the maximum deaths number of deaths due to serious adverse events (SAEs) during drug trials, while Madhya Pradesh saw the least number of such deaths.During the 49 months period (January 2008 to January 2012) , the country had recorded the 2,061 drug trial related deaths. while maharastra recorded maximum number of deaths 268 deaths to stand first among top five states.It is followed by Andhra Pradesh (153), Delhi/National Capital Region (97), Gujarat (87) and Karnataka (78). The number of deaths in Maharashtra was over 10 times that of Madhya Pradesh, which is the lowest among the top 10 States. Delhi launched the Kerosene-free Delhi scheme Delhi Government set to launch an ambitious scheme(Kerosene-free Delhi scheme ) on 21st August 2012 under which 3.56 lakh households will get LPG cylinder and a gas stove free of cost. Punjab Approves Rs.93crore Milk Production Scheme The Punjab Government has started a special programme to increase the milk production in the state by spending Rs.93crore during 2012-13. This was announced by Dairy Development Minister Gulzar Singh Ranike. Punjab government has bought 3 lakh doses of foreign semen from America and Canada for improvement of cow breeds in the state. Uttarakhand Cabinet increases age limit for jobs

Uttarakhand Cabinet the maximum age limit for government jobs had been increased from 35 to 40 years for general category candidates from 21 August 2012 onwords.Candidates belonging to other categories would also get the benefit of the decision accordingly. Odisha tops in FDI proposals; Andhra, Gujarat next Odisha attracted the largest value of investments from foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals filed in 2011-12, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.Odisha garnered 27 per cent of the total investments (worth about Rs 49,527 crore), though barely 17 FDI proposals were filed for the State. Andhra Pradesh ranked second with a share of about 19 per cent through about 70 proposals, attracting investment worth about Rs 33,936 crore.Gujarat, which received 131 FDI proposals, ranked third with a share of over 11 per cent attracting proposed investment worth Rs 20,258 crore. Jaane Apna Rajasthan scheme for NRIs The Rajasthan Government on 27 Aug launched a scheme aimed at making the young non-resident Indians(NRIs) familiar, with the culture and traditions of the state under the Jaane Apna Rajasthan(Know your Rjasthan)scheme announced by the chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. According to this scheme the NRIs who visit Rajasthan will be taken around historical places, tourist attractions,sanctuaries,famous educational institutions, ancestral villages and major Industrial projects will be shown to them .

CONFERENCES Cairns in Australia to host G20 financeministers meet in 2014 The Prime Minister Gillard announced on 05 August 2012, the tropical northen Australian city of Cairns will host a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors in 2014. The eleventh Energy Efficient Summit The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Summit held in HICC, Novotel Hyderabad. The summit was held between 22 August 2012 to 25 August 2012.The objective of the summit was to facilitate the Indian industry to improve energy efficiency on a continuous basis and help them in achieving the target set as part of Perform Achieve and Trade under the National Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency. It was ended on 31st August 2012.

16th Non Alignment Movement in Iran The Two-day meet of the 120 grouping of nations takes place at Tehran in Iran. The key issues like the worsening situation of Syria, Irans nuclear programme and other matters of global are main agenda of this NAM summit which opened on 30 Aug 2012. Prime Minister Manmohan singh is leading the Indian delegation to the summit, which is being attended by over 30 Heads of state and government. This summit ended on 31 August, 2012.

AWARDS & HONOURS Ashok sen received Yuri Milner award Ashok Sen who is working in Harish chandra research institute as scientist in physics got Yuri Milner Fundamental Physics prize of worth Rs 16.7Crore(USD $3 million) on 1st August 2012.This Fundamental Physics prize has been established by Russian Business man Yuri Milner , which is three times more than Noble prize. He has been recognised for his work on String Theory. NASI- Reliance Industries Platinum Jubilee Award 2012 for Bhadra Dr. Manik Pal Bandra, Principal scientist of chemical biology division,CSIR Indian Institute of Chemical Technology Hyderabad, has been selected for the NASIReliance Industries Platinum Jubilee award 2012. Dr.Bhadra was nominated for the award by the National Academy of science for significant contribution in the area of applications of orientedinnovations in biological sciences for 2012. He was given this for his involvement in the synthesizing or orally administered next generation nano particles to deliver material like DNA an RNA for effective gene therapy. This award will be presented on November 29,2012 at New Delhi. Sastra Ramanujan Prize to Zhiwei Yun The 2012 sastra Ramanujan prize will be given to the Professor Zhiwei on December 22, The birth anniversary of mathematical genius Ramanujan, in New Delhi. The award will be given away during the closing ceremony of the International conference in the legacy of Ramanujan, organized by the National Board of Higher Mathematics of India & co-sponsored by sastra University and Delhi University. prof.Zhiwei Yun has made fundamental contributions to sevaral areas that lie at the interface of representation theory. This Prize will be given to under 32 age, at the same age as Ramanujan died.

Rajiv Gandhi Sadbhavana award for D.R.Mehta Renowned social worker DR Mehta, founder and chief patron of the organization that popularized the Jaipur Foot, has been selected for the Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award for the year 2012. D.R. Mehta will present the 20th Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavna Award at a function New Delhi on 20 Aug 2012.The award, which carries a citation and cash of Rs 5 lakh, is being given to Mehta, a former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India, for his outstanding contribution towards promotion of communal harmony, peace and goodwill.Former recipients of the award include Mother Teresa, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Lata Mangeshkar, Sunil Dutt, S.N. Subbarao and Dilip Kumar. NRI heart surgeon Dr Mukesh Hariawala chosen for Indias Most Admired Surgeonaward India born internationally acclaimed NRI HeartSurgeon and Research Scientist from the famed Harvard University, Dr Mukesh Hariawala, has been unanimously selected by the National Healthcare jury to be honored with the prestigious Indias Most Admired Surgeon 2012 Award. NASI awarded for IICT Scientist Dr.SuryaPrakash Singh ,Scientist of Inorganic and Physical Division, CSIR Indian Institute of Chemical Technology in Hyderabad has been selected for NASI(National Academy of Science,India)-Young Scientist PlatinumAward 2012. Jaipur Bags JRD TATa Award for Health schemes Odishas Jaipur district has bagged the coveted fifthJRD Tata Memorial Award 2011 for Population reproductive health and Family planning programme. The award was presented by the Nobel Laureate Amartyasen at JRD Tata memorial Award and Oration Function held in New Delhi. Indian Urdu Literature to get Rare Pakistanis Honour An Urdu literature Professor Gopi Chand Marangs name figures in the list of Civilian honours announced by Pakistan on its Independence day. He has been conferedSitara-i-Imtiaz(Star of excellence) the third highest civilian honour bestowed by the nation.He received the Padma Bhushan. It was great that an Indian selected for Pakistans highest honour for his selfless work for urdu. eminent poet Josh Mahihabadi also selected for Hilal -iImtiaz. P.K.B Pattnaik Honoured with Damien -Dutton Award

State Leprosy Officer P.K.B. Pattnaik, has been selected for the coveted Damiendutton award for the year2012 for his work in the field of leprosy eradication. Mother Teresa, Babu Amte and Dr.Dharmendra has given this award. He is an Odisha doctor. He said thatWe have been able to treat 12 lakh leprosy patients, rehabited 40,000 patients with leprosy and performed surgical defromitry correction on 3,500 patients. Gruber cosmology Prize 2012 to Charles L Bennett Johns Hopkins University professor Charles L. Bennett and members of the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) space mission that he led will receive the Gruber Foundations 2012 Cosmology Prize in Beijing, China.Bennett and the 26-member WMAP team will share the $500,000 prize and are being recognized by the foundation for their transformative study of an ancient light dating back to the infant universe. The Best Story Award for Indo-American Indian American Rajan Gangahar has won the Best Story award for the movie Kushiyaan at the Punjabi International film Academy Award (PIFAA) held in Toronto. New york based Rajan was presented with the award at a function held in Toronto. His first film as a story writer, Rajan wrote dialogue and scree play for Khushiyaan, made by another Indo-American Trilok Malik. Pakistans Highest Civilian Award to Saadat Hasan Manto The Writer Saadat Hasan Manto Posthumously received the Pakistans Highest awardNisan-i- Imtiaz. He died at 42 in 1955, Manto is best known for his short stories, especially he explored the impact of the partition of the subcontinent into India & Pakistan in 1947. along with Manto, renowned singer Mehdi Hassan was also Posthumously honoured with Nishan-i-Imtiaz Hassan Popularly known as the Shahenshah-e-Ghazil who died in June 2012 at the age of 84. Delhi Scientist Aditi Mukherji won Morman Baorlaug award A Delhi based scientist, Aditi Mukherji has won the worlds most prestigious award for young researchers in food and water management, named after the father of Indias Green revolution Norman Borlaug on 29 Aug 2012. The World food prize Foundation started by Borlaug has picked Mukherji for the first ever Norman Borlaug award for his application of work in transforming access to water for thousands of farmers in west Bengla. The award comes with $10,000 prize. It will present to Mukherji on October 17 in Dea Moines , lawa US. Indian American selected as Presidential Innovation Fellow

Indian American entrepreneur Karl Mehta has been selected among the 18 Presidential Innovation Fellows who will work on five high-impact projects in the US capital.Selected from an applicant pool of nearly 700 innovators from across the country, the Fellows would spend six months in Washington DC to work on five high-impact projects aimed at upporting entrepreneurs, small businesses and the economy, while significantly improving how the Federal Government serves the American people. Utsa Patnaik gets V.V. Giri award The V.V. Giri Memorial Award 2011 for outstanding contribution to labour studies was conferred on Utsa Patnaik, Professor in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi on 29 August 2012. The award, instituted by the V.V Giri National Labour Institute, was conferred by Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge, who stressed on the importance of systematic and sound research to understand the nature and characteristics of the emerging labour landscape. University of Calicut to honour Montek, M.S. Swaminathan, Fathima Beevi University of Calicut will confer honorary Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) degrees on noted agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan, economist and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and jurist and former Supreme Court judge Fathima Beevi. Young woman In Science Award for Indian Origin Sorojini Nadar Indian Origin has been selected for a prestigious science award in south Africa for her contribution to the avancement of science and building the knowledge base.Sarojini Nadar has been named the winner of the Distinguished Young Women in Science Award, which was announced by Naledi Pandor, South African Minister of Science and Technology. Eight Sporting Coaches received Dronacharya Award for 2012 Dronacharya Award is an award presented by the government of India for excellence in sports coaching. Eight Sporting Coaches selected for the Dronacharya Award for 2012 are Wrestling coach Yashvir Singh, Boxing Coach BI Fernandez, Athletics Coaches Virender Poonia, J.N.Bhatia, Kabaddi Coach Sunil Davas, Parathletics Coach Dr. Satyapaul , Hockey Coach Harinder Singh, Table Tennis Coach Bhavani Mukherjee,.Fernandez will become the first foreign coach to be awarded the the Dronacharya Award Arjuna Awards:

Deepika Kumari , Laishram Bombayla Devi (archery), Sudha Singh , Kavita Ramdas Raut (athletics), Ashwani Ponnappa , Parupalli Kashyap (badminton), Aditya S Mehta (billiards and Snooker), Vikas Krishan (boxing), Yuvraj Singh (cricket), Sardar Singh (hockey), Yashpal Solanki (judo), Anup Kumar (kabaddi), Samir Suhag (polo), Annu Raj Singh, Omkar Singh, Joydeep Karmakar (shooting), Deepika Pallikal (squash), Sandeep Sejwal (swimming), Ng. Sonia Chanu (weightlifting), Narsingh Yadav , Rajinder Kumar , Geeta Phogat (wrestling), M. Bimoljit Singh (wushu), Deepa Mallick, Ramkaran Singh (athletics, Paralympics). Four Sports persons receive Dhyan Chand Award-2012 Dhyan Chand Award is Indias highest award for lifetime achievement in sports and games, given by the Government of India. Four persons selected for the Dhyan Chand Award-2012 are Jagrajsinghman (Athletics), Gundeep Kumar(Hockey), Vinod Kumar (wrestling), Sukhbeer Singh Tokan (para sports). 9 Indian- Americans Awarded for Enhancing Indo-US Ties 9 Indian- Americans were awarded by Indo American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) for their contribution towards enhancing relationships

between India & US. The 2012 Excellence Award, was presented to Suresh Khator. RK Chopra was awarded International Business Advocate of the Year. Woman entrepreneur of the year award was presented to Vijay Dhingra and Pushpa Shenoy.

SPORTS & GAMES Olympics 2012 The 30th Olympics 2012 held at London on 27 July and ended on 12 August. This is a 17 days Festival of Five Rings. There are 204 countries and more than 10,000 athletes participated in 300 events. US secured top place in medals of acquiring 104 medals in total, 46 gold, 29 silver and 29 bronze. the next place occupied by China of 99 medals. Britain stood at 3rd place of acquiring 65 medals in total. India stood at 55th place by acquiring 6 medals in total, 2 silver and 4 bronze. India got 6 medals among 81 athletes who participated in London Olympics. The next Olympics will be host by Rio De Janeiro on 2016. The Winter Olympics 2014 will be host by Russia, Sochi. The name of the Indian Medalists are 1. Gagan Narang won the bronze Medal in the event of Mens 10m. Air Rifle shooting. 2. Vijay Kumar won the Silver Medal in the event of individual 25 metre rapid fire pistol. He was awarded Khel Ratna by the Government of India of his performance inLondon Olympics 2012. 3. Saina Nehwal won the Bronze medal in the Event of Badminton Womens Singles. 4. Mary Kom won the bronze medal in the event of Womens Fly 51kg. Boxing. 5. Yogeswar Dutt won the bronze medal in the event of Mens 60kg. Free style wrestling. He was awarded Khel Ratna by the Government of India of his performance in London Olympics 2012. 6. Sushil kumar who is an Indian Flag Bearer and also won Silver Medal in the event of Mens 66kg. Free style wrestling. London Olympics world Records: Name Dong Hyun Im Rebecca Soni Event World Record Archery 699 Points Swimming Breast Stroke 2:19.59 hr:mm:ss

Xiaojun Xiaojun Lu Lulu Zhou Ilya Ilyin Ilya Ilyin Zulfiya Chinshanlo Un Guk Kim Usian Bolt Rudisha Jason Kenny Sergei Martynov Leuris Pupo Jessica Rossi Alexei Klimov Shiwen Ye Missy Franklin Dana Vollmer

Weight Lifting 379 kgs Weight Lifting 175 kg Weight Lifting 333 kg Weight Lifting 418kg Weight Lifting 233kg Weight Lifting 131kg Weight Lifting 327kg Runner 100m race 9.63 seconds Runner 800m race 1:40.91 Cycling 9.713 seconds (Track)Individual Shooting 50 m Rifle 705.5points Prone Shooting 25m rapid 34 points fire pistol Trap 99 points Shooting rapid fire pistol 592 points Swimming (400m 4:28:43 hr:mm:ss Individual Medley) Swimming Back stroke 2:04:06 hr:mm:ss Swimming (100m 55.98 secs Butterfly)

List of Countries ranking by gold Medal: Rank 1 Country United states of America Peoples Republic of China Great Britain Russian federation Republic of Korea India Gold 46 Silver 29 Bronze 29 Totla Medals 104

38

27

23

88

3 4 5 55

29 24 13 0

17 26 8 2

19 32 7 4

65 82 28 6

Highest Medals in Olympics won by Individuals: Country USA USA USA Jamaica USA Athlete Gold name PHELPS 4 MICHAEL FRANJKLIN 4 MISSY SCHMITT 3 ALLISON BOLT USAIN 3 FELIX 3 ALLYSON Silver 2 0 1 0 0 Bronze 0 1 1 0 0 Total 6 5 5 3 3

Gold Medalists: Andrian Clinhes Gold by a Finger Tip Nathan Andrian clinched the Olympic 100 m free style gold by a fingertip on 1 August 2012 to become the first American to hold the title since 1988. Serena Williams Wins Olympic Gold Serena Williams secured her first ever gold medal victory in the womens singles with 6-0, 6-1 win over the Russian beauty, Maria Sharapova at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in Wimbledon on 4 August 2012.Serena becomes the second women to win the Olympic gold medal in addition to all four different Grand Slam titles. she also set the record of being the only female professional to attain the number one spot in both singles and doubles category. Ben Ainslie Claims a Record Britains Ben Ainslie became the most successful Olympic sailor on 5 August 2012 won a gold medal in the single handed finn class to claim a record breaking fifth consecutive medal. Murray Won Olympic Gold Britains Andy Murray demolished Roger Federer 6-2,6-1,6-4 in the mens final on 5 Aug 2012 to wins first gold medal ad avenge his Wimbledon final defeat against the world no1. Roger Federer bagged Olympic Silver , Juan Martin del potro bagged copper. Serena and Venus Williams won Olympics Gold in Womens Doubles

Serena and Venus Williams teamed to win womens doubles title at the Olympics on 5 August 2012. The third time the dynamic duo taken Home the gold medal. Lin Defends Olympic Badminton Gold Chinas Lin Dan over hauled Lee Chong Wei in the final to win Olympic mens badminton singles on 5 August 2012. Salimikordasiabi Won Olympic Gold Inrans Beh Salmi Kordasiabi won gold in the event of weightlifting competition at London to claim the title of Strongest man at the Olympics. He lifted 455 kg in total.silver for sajjad Anoushiravani. He is from Iran. Bronze for Russias Rulsan ALbegor with 448kg. Sally Pearson Won 100m Hurdled Olympic Gold Sally Pearson an Australian Won 100m hurdles Olympic Gold. She made an Olympic record time of 12.35seconds at Olympic Stadium, London. The Victory margin record time of 12.37 seconds made by Joanna Hayes of US in Athens. Decathlon Gold for Ashton eaton Decathlon is the toughest event in the Olympics. which consists of 10 events as one event.On 10 Aug America based Ashton eaton who is an Olympic Gold winner of Decathlon of total of 8,869 points made at London. Previously he made a World Record by acquiring 9,026 points at U.S. Olympic trials. Yodisha Won Womens Wrestling Title Japans saori Yodish won a third Olympic 55 kg womens free style Wrestling title on 9 August 2012. Womens Soccer Won By America The U. S Womens Football team won its third straight Olympic medal on 9 August 2012 by beating Japan of 2-1.The midfielder Carli Lloyd, who made critical 2 goals to Americas victory. Oscar Pistorius South African athlete Oscar Pistorius made a history when he became the first double amputee to participate in an athletics event of 400meters at the Olympics on 04 August 2012.

Olympic Swimming: Power Ranking Michael Phelps 18 Gold Medal Performances Michael Phelps is an American swimmer who has won 22 Olympic medals (18 Gold, 2 Silver, & 2 Bronze). He is an Olympic legend who broke the record for most medals while participating at the London 2012 games. Michael Phelps swam in four Olympic Games. He broke 39 world records. He beat the record of Larisa Latynina Soviet Union gymnast. Nicola Adams wins first ever women boxing gold Britains Nicola Adams became the first ever Olympic womens boxing champion with a 16-7 flyweight final win over Chinas world champion Ren Cancan on 9 August 2012. Lysenko bags Gold World champion Tatyana Lysenko of Russia added the Olympic gold to her collections with an Olympic record 78.18m in womens hammer throw at the Olympic stadium on 10 August 2012. Roger Federer and Lina were Crowned the Cincinnati Masters Tennis Championship World No.1 Tennis player Roger Federer won a record fifth Western and Southern open title (Cincinnati Masters) at Cincinnati on 19 August 2012. Federer beat second seeded Novak Djokovic 6-0, 7-6. This was the first time when top seeded mens players clashed in the final. India beat Australia to win Under-19 World Cup India won their third Under-19 World Cup title as captain Unmukt Chand saved his best for last, coming up with a crucial, unbeaten ton in the final against Australia on 26 August 2012. New Heaven Open title to Czench star Petra kvitova beat Maria Kirilenko on 25 Aug to win the New Haven Open, the Czech stars second WTA tournament title. South Africas Hashim Amla becomes fasters players to 3,000 ODI runs South Africas Hashim Amla became the fastest player to 3,000 one-day international runs during the course of his 150 that set up the Proteas 80- run win over England at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.

Lydia Ko won CN Canadian Womens Open LPGA Golf Lydia Ko Won CN Canadian Womens Open LPGA Golf on 26 Aug to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour History and only the fifth amateur championship. she is 15-year-old . US PGA Golf champion is Rory Mccllroy Rory Mallory won US PGA Golf Championship at kaiwah Island on 12 August 2012.This is his second major title with a record setting eight shot victory. The Northern Irishman,23, hit a six-under 66 to finish 13 under and return to world number one. Dhoni named Castrol Indian cricketer of the year The Castrol Awards for Cricketing Excellence are the premier cricketing awards recognizing outstanding performances by Indian cricketers past, present and future. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was declared the Castrol Indian Cricketer of the Year 2011 whilst Ajit Wadekar received the Castrol Lifetime Achievement Award and Indias Under 19 World Cup winning Captain Unmukt Chand was awarded the Castrol Junior Cricketer of the Year Award. V.V.S. Laxman retired from international cricket V.V.S. Laxman retired from international cricket on 18 August 2012. He played 134 tests, amazing 8781 runs and an coverage of 45.97 and hitting 17 hundreds. He played 86 ODI for an aggregate of 2338 runs at an average of 30.76. Life Long Ban on Lance Armstrong The U.S. anti doping agency 14 years of Lance Armstrong strong career on 24 Aug , including his record of seven tour de France Titles and banned him for life from the sport. He was cyclist who retired an year ago. He would no longer challenge USDA and declined to exercise his last option by entering arbitration. He denied again that he ever took banned substances in his career, called USADAs Investigation a witch hunt without any physical evidence.

ECONOMY Chinas millionaire number crosses million mark The number of millionaires in China crossed a million mark for the first in the Communist nation, putting it in the elite club of the wealthy nations like US and Japan. The elite millionaires group includes 63,500 billionaires, according to Hurun

Report, a Chinese event and publishing group which compiled the Chinas list of the rich.The number of Chinese worth more than 10 million yuan (USD 1.6 million) broke the million mark in 2011 for the first time, with 1.02 million people now in this elite group. Of these million-plus wealthy individuals, 84 per cent are concentrated in the eastern, northern and southern regions of China, with Beijing home to the greatest number, at 1.79 lakh millionaires. Crisil Research cuts 2012-13 GDP growth forecast to 5.5% Crisil Research has cut Indias real GDP growth forecast for 2012-13 from 6.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent. This downward revision in GDP is due to deficient monsoon and worsening of the Euro Zone economic outlook. CIBIL working on Risk Index to help banks Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd (CIBIL) is planning to introduce a risk index that will help the countrys banks take quicker decisions on extending loans to corporates and business houses. The index follows the credit information firms TransUnion score for individual borrowers being used by financial institutions and banks to take decisions in respect of credit cards and home loans. Any individual with over 750 score can be considered as good. P.M.s Economic Panel Lowers the Indian Growth Estimate to 6.7% for 2012-13 Prime Ministers economic advisory panel on 17 August 2012 pegged GDP growth for the current financial year to 6.7 percent. This is mainly due to poor Monsoon which will pull down the agriculture growth rate to 0.5 percent from 2.8 percent last year. Economy will grow at 6.7 percent in 2012- 13, Prime Ministers economic Advisory council (PMEAC) chairman C.Rangarajan said that while releasing Economic outlook for 2012 -13. He asked the government to open multi brand retail to foreign investment and raise diesel prices in one (or) more steps to contain the subsidy bill. India has registered 6.5% growth in the fiscal year 2011- 12. Which was the lowest in the past nine years. Government Detected Rs.49,325 crore Black Money in India Government said that Rs.49,325 crore has been detected in the country in the last three years while tax evasion of Rs.600 crore found on input from abroad under multiprolonged efforts to heck black money menance. this information has been contained in a 13 page fact-sheet released by the Finance Ministry.The fact-sheet say the Central Board of Direct Taxes(CBDT) has detected undisclosed income of over Rs.32,000 crore besides seizing assets valued at over Rs 2,600 crores. 17,325 crore income detected in survey. Government also disclosed that under Double Avoidance

agreement(DTAA), investigation of information from German and France has led to detection of tax evasion of Rs.600 crore and realization of Rs.200 crore in taxes. Union Finance Minister Approved the Proposal FDI raise up to 49% The Union Finance Minister P.Chidambaram approved the raise of FDI in Insurance and Pension sector up to 49%. Earlier the limit of FDI was up to 26%. This Proposal of 49% raise of FDI was made during the tenure of Pranab mukherjee. It was delayed because of resistance from the cronies. ISC directs Sahara Group to refund Rs 17,400 crore to investors In a major setback to the Sahara Group, the Supreme Court on 31st August 2012 directed two of its companies to refund around Rs 17,400 crore to their investors within three months with 15 percent interest.A bench of justices K S Radhakrishnan and J S Khehar directed SEBI to take action against the companies, Sahara India Real Estate Corporation and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation, if they fail to refund the money. India, China joint panel to address trade concerns India and China have agreed to establish a joint working group to address all traderelated issues, including the widening trade balance between the countries. The decision was taken at a meeting between trade minister Anand Sharma and his Chinese counterpart Chen Deming in New Delhi on 27th August 2012.Trade between the countries was $75.4 billion in 2011-12, against $59 billion in 2010- 11. In 201112, exports to China stood at $17.9 billion while imports from there stood at $57.5 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of $39.6 billion.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY SPOT6 reached to SHAR The Satish Dawan Space Centre in Nellore district at Sriharikota will launching PSLV C21 rocket(100th rocket) with French satellite SPOT6(800kg) and a small Japanese satellite weighing around 15kg in the month of September.This is the hundredth rocket in the 49 years of ISRO history. Cabinet Clears Mars mission The Union Cabinet on 03 August 2012 cleared the Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO) mission to Mars next year November The project envisages putting a spacecraft in the red planets orbit to study its atmosphere with the help of the polar Satellite launch vehicle. India joins the United states , Russia, Europe,

Japan and China in undertaking such an effort. The spacecraft will have a scientific payload of 25 kg and its proposed to be placed in an orbit of 500 x 80,000 km around the planet.The mission is estimated to cost about Rs $450 crore. Curiosity Landed on Red Planet The Robotic Explorer Curiosity blazed through the pink skies of mars, steering itself to gentle landing inside again crater for the most ambitious dig yet into the red planet. It was NASAs seventh landing on earths Neighbor.In November 2011 American Space Research Centre NASA Launched the curiosity into the space. On 6 Aug 2012 the Curiosity landed safely on the Mars.The Voyage to Mars took more than eight months and spanned 352m million miles(566 million kilometers). It sliced through Martian atmosphere ay 13,000mph(21,000kph). The first of what scientists predict will be enormous amounts of Information, Including a possible answer to whether Mars ever supported conditions for Organic life, to find evidence of life itself,alive or fossilized-its raft of 10 scientific instruments will hunt for carbon based compounds considered essential to microbial life. It stays 2 years in Mars to collect all these Information. This is the next space mission of NASA after 1970. Ashwini, Indo-American scientist involved in this mission. NASA picks 3 firms to develop space taxis NASA picks 3 firms to develop space taxis,the companies are the Boeing Co,Space Exploration Technologies called SpaceX, and Sierra Nvada Corp. A new oxidant in the atmosphere identified Scientists have found for the first time unequivocal evidence of another oxidant playing a vital role in the formation of gaseous sulphuric acid in the atmosphere. Until now, it was thought that the combination of OH (hydroxyl radical) oxidant with sulphur dioxide (SO) was the dominant way by which gaseous sulphuric acid is formed in the atmosphere. They found the new oxidant has significant capacity to oxidise sulphur dioxide. Largest 3D Map of Galaxies Astronomers have unveiled the largest ever 3D map of the sky, encompassing massive galaxies and distance black holes, based on sloan digital sky survey III(SDSSIII). These galaxies are captures by a 2.5 meter wide -angle telescope located at the Apache Point observatory in New Mexico.The release Includes of 200 million galaxies and spectra of 1.35 million galaxies, according to a Harvardsmith soniam statement with SDSS-III. Agni-II Test Fired Successfully Surface to Surface missile Agni-II soared to a successfully test fired on 9 august 2012 at Wheeler Island of the Odisha. It have a height of 20km and weighted as 17 tonnes

and have the capacity to carry a nuclear war head of weighing one ton. The missile Ranging Agni-I 700km , Agni-II 2,000 km , Agni- III-3,300km. The future projects are Agni 4 andAgni 5 to launch. Print High Resolution Images Without Ink aNew Technology Developed The team of scientists with Indian origin has developed a new technology of printing high resolution images without ink. The Institute of materials research and Engineering in Singapore has demonstrated that 1,00,000 dots per inch(dpi) can produce sharp and full spectrum color images.Which can be applicable in reflect colour displays , anti-counterfeiting, and high density optical recording.Karthik Kumar says that size and spacing of the nanodots is critical to the final image quality. The closer the dots are together and because of their small size, the higher the resolution of the image. Nanotechnology for Solar panel efficiency A University of Houston researchers has developed a nano particle coating for solar panel that makes it easier to keep them clean. This helps in keeping them efficient and cuts maintains cost. NASA spies cosmic supermom Scientists have found a cosmic supermom, a galaxy that gives birth to more stars in a day than Earths does in a year. Astronomers used NASAs Chandra X-ray telescope to spot this distant gigantic galaxy creating about 740 new stars a year. By comparison, our Milky Way Galaxy spawns just about one new star each year. Prithvi-II missile test, a Success The strategic Forces Command, which is in charge of nuclear weapons, successfully fired the surface to surface Prithvi-II missile from Chandipur in Odishas Balasore district on 25th August 2012, confirming yet again that the armed forces are capable of launching nuclear missiles independently. China Military test fires 14,000km range missile The china central television(CCTV) reported that the chinas military had successfully tested the new 14,000 rang Dong feng-41 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). It have the capacity to carry 10 nuclear war heads. Blue moon on 31st August 2012 When a full moon appears in the night sky for the second time in a calendar month ,it is called a blue oon.The next blue moon will occur on July 31,2015. In US, Indias First C-17 transport aircraft takes shape Now the Indian Air Force is planned to introduce a C-17 Globemaster III heavy lift military planes in place of old Cargo planes for the next year June. So India made deal with Boeing for $410 crores in the last year.C-17 has the capacity to fill oil in the air.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) Appointments Sushil Kumar Shinde as the new Leader in house of Lok Sabha Sushile Kumar Shinde has been appointed as the new Leader in the House of Lok Sabha taking the place of Pranab Mukherjee who has now become the President on 3 August 2012. Hyderabadi Advocate becomes a Vice-Chairman of ABA Hyderabad based lawyer Mr.JLN Murthy has been appointed to the Vice-Chairman of the AmericanBar Association Section of International Law, Europe Committee, for the year 2012-13.The main aim of this association is to focus on several international legal issues. Nasim Ahmad Zaidi is new election commissioner Former civil aviation secretary Syed Nasim Ahmad Zaidi was 7 August 2012, appointed an election commissioner by President Pranab Mukherjee.The former EC V.S. Sampath took charge as CEC(Chief Election Commissioner. Dimple Yadav and M. Raja Mohan Reddy takes oath as Lok Sabha member Dimple Yadav, the wife of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, 8 August 2012 took oath as a Lok Sabha member from Kannauj. She had won the by-election, caused by her husbands resignation, unopposed in June.Along with Yadav, M. Raja Mohan Reddy, the newly-elected MP from Nellore in Andhra Pradesh, also took oath. Reddy is from the YSR Congress. Raghuram Rajan is chief economic advisor The government has issued formal orders to appoint Raghuram Rajan, former International Monetary Fund chief economist, as the chief economic advisor in the finance ministry. The economist, who is currently a professor at Chicago Universitys Booth School of Business, is not expected to take charge for the next few weeks due to academic commitments. Rajan will take over at a time when the government is trying to combat a hostile economic climate. Cabinet nod for Customs first-ever woman chief The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has given its nod for Praveen Mahajan to be a full-fledged Chairperson of the Central Board of Excise and Customs(CBEC). She is the first lady ever to head the highest policy-making body on indirect taxes.Prior to this elevation, she was Member (Personnel and Vigilance) in the CBEC from August 2011.

Ansari takes oath for second term Hamid Ansari became the second Vice-President of India to take oath of office for second consecutive terms in New Delhi on 11 August 2012 Ansari, a former diplomat, followed Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan who served two successive terms as Vice-President. Indian origin Sanjay Reddy, appointed as the director of new York Universitys Centre New Yorks leading University, the new school, has named an Indian -origin academician as director of its center of trans-regional study, which is focused on research on the relations between India, china and U.S. He associate Professor of Economics,has been named academic director of the new schools India, China Institute(ICI) along with Mark Frazier, Professor of Politics on 16 August 2012. New Envoy to Syria is Lakhdar Brahimi The United Nations on 17 August, 2012 confirmed that Veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi will replace the former UN Secretary general Kofi Annan as the International mediator on Syria as the 17 month old conflict slides deeper into civil war. Brahimi, who served as Algerias foreign minister from 1991 to 1993 and joined UN in 1994 and served various high profile positions until he retired in 2005. P.J. Kurien is Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien is unanimously elected as Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha on 21 August 2012. Poonam Kishore Saxena appointed as Chairman of CBDT The government appointed Dr.Poonam Kishore Saxena,a 1975 batch IRS officer as the Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on 22nd August 2012. P. M. Nair Appointed as Director General,NDRF & CD Shri P. M. Nair, IPS has been appointed as Director General, National Disaster Response Force & Civil Defence (NDRF & CD), Ministry of Home Affairs.Shri Nair is presently working as Special Director General, Central Reserve Police Force. Admiral D K Joshi takes charge as new Navy chief Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi took over as the new Indian Navy chief on 31st August 2012.Admiral Joshi is the 21st Chief of Naval Staff of independent India and the 19th Indian to command the Indian Navy. New President Of Libya is Mohammad Magarief National Assembly of Libya elected their former Opposition leader Mohammed Magarief as its New President. Mr.Magarief seen as a Moderate Islamist, will head the 200-member congress. The 72-year-old Magarief who is the head of National front party. An economist and former Libyan ambassador to India who had lived in

exile since the 1980s, Magarief was a leading figure in Libyas oldest movement opposition movement. Magarief won 113 votes versus independent Alli zindan who secured 85 votes. New Jammu Varsity Chancellor is Vohra Jammu & Kashmir governor N.N.Vohra has been appointed the first chancellor of the Central University of Jammu. Pranab Mukharjee on his visit to that University appointed Mr. Vohra the chancellor if the University for a period of five years. B) Resigns Gopal Goyal Kand Home Minster of Haryana Quits Haryana Minster of state for home, Goyal Kanda resigned on 5 August 2012 night after a 23-year old farmer air hosters named him in a suicide note before hanging herself. Kofi A.Annan Resigns as Syria Peace Envoy FreeJobAlert.com Current Affairs 20 Kofi A.Annan resigned as the UN Peace envoy to Syria on 2 August 2012 by complaining the international community had not done enough to support his bid to persuade Bashar al-Assad to accept a peace plan. His term as UN peace interlocutor was set to expire on 31 August 2012. Annan was appointed the UN-Arab League Peace envoy to Syria in February 2012. Indo American Fareed Zakaria resigned from Yale Government Board After a long association with Yale University the noted Indo American Writer and and journalist Fareed Zakaria has resigned from its governing body to focus on journalistic career.Zakaria, who received his bachelors degree from the university, was associated with the Yale Corporation for past six years. The decision of Zakaria to shed some of his non-journalistic responsibilities has come close on the heels of accusations of plagiarism against him. Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi Quit as Iraq communication Minister Iraqi Communications minister Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi quit his post in 27 Aug accusing Prime Minister Nuri Maliki of Political Interference in his ministry. Allawis resignation is the first by a cabinet member since Iraqs national unity government was formed in December 2010. C)Deaths Contrarian Author Gore Vidal Dies Writer Gore Vidal, who filler his novels and essays with acerbic observation on politics,sex and American culture. While carrying on feuds with bigname literary

rivals,died on 1 August 2012 at home in Los angels of complications from pneumonia,age 86. His historical novels was Burr, 18762 .Lincoln,The Golden Age. Vilasrao Deshmukh passes away The Union Minister for science and Technology and Ex. chief Minister of Maharashtra Vilasrao Deshmukh ,who was suffering from sclerosis of the liver, passed away at a chennai hospital on 2012 August 14th. Hindi cinematographer Ashok Mehta Passed away The ace cinematograoher Ashok Mehta, who lost the battle with lung cancer at a mumbai hospital on 15 August 2012.The man who worked with best in the business, raging from the highly accomplished shyam benegal, Girish Karnad and shekhar Kapur, hugely populared Sunhash Ghai. He did films like Utsav, Mandi,36 chowsinghee Lane. Science Friction Writer Harry Harrison Passed Away American Author Harry Harrison has died in Britain on 16 august 2012 at 87. He was best known for hisThe Stainless Steel rat series. His 1966, Make room! Make Room!- a Science Friction take on the horrors of over population. The Other works included anthologies, collections and childrens stories-including one particularity goofs tale about an Intergalactic force of Mutant pigs. Philippine Minister Jesse Robredo died in Plane Crash The most powerful minister of Philippine died in plane crash on 19 August 2012. The Interior secretary Jesse Robredo. This crash was held at the central island of Masbate. Prime Minister of Ethipio Meles Zenavi passed away Meles Zenavi, the Ethiopian Prime Minister, passed away on 20 August 2012 following prolonged illness. He was 57 Ethiopios foreign minister will assume the change as the acting P.M. of the country. US Astronaut Neil Alden Armstrong passed away US Astronaut , Armstrong, as the commander of the Apollo 11 mission, became the first human to land on the moon on 20 July 1969,passed away on 25th August 2012. Veteran actor Hangal Passed away Actor A.K.Hangal, who had the rare ability to imbue the smallest and the most ordinary of roles with quality and dignity, passed away on 26 Aug at Mumbai followed Health complications caused by a recent hip fracture. D) Visitors Fijian President calls on Pranab Fijian President Ratu Epeli Nailatikaw called on his Indian counter part Pranab

Mukherjiee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on 7 August 2012 and discussed the scope for expanding trade and bilateral ties.Mr. Mukherjiee also granted Fiji for joining the Non-Alignment movement. Chinese defence minister to visit India India and China are expected to discuss ways of strengthening defence ties during the three-day visit of Chinese defence minister General Liang Guanglie starting September 2 in Mumbai. E)Miscellaneous Miss China Crowned Miss World Chainas Wen Xia Yu was on 18 August 2012 crowned Miss world-2012 the competitions are conducted in China at Innar Mangolia Erina. Wales Sophie Moulds was first runner up and the second runner up position to Jessica. Kahawaty of Australia. Indian beauty Vanya Mishra on the 6th position by winning two awards in miss world competition. The multimedia award and social networking skin & beauty. Student Prafull Sharma Discovers SOHO A Delhi boy has discovered a new comet using data from NASA and European Space Agency;s Space Craft-based observatory SOHO that studies the sun. Prafull sharma, is a XII class student of Ahlcon public school, the new comet SOHO-2333 is a fragment believed to have separated from a relatively larger comet Machholz when it last came close to the sun in 2007. sharma, who has been associated with Delhi-based NGO science. Popularization Association of Communicators and educators (SPACE), ia apart of a world wide team os comet hunters. Who scour through images of the sun transmitted back to earth by Solar and Heliosphere Observatory(SOHO). Zakaria suspended by CNN/TIME Magazine Indo American Journalist and author Fareed Zakaria has been suspended by his employers and Time Magazine because he copied some Portions of an article he wrote on Gun Control for Time, from the New Yorker Magazine. He suspended for one month. Ex-Prez Pratibha Patil spent 140Cr on air Travel According to RIT report Indias ex-President visited 18 Countries in 10 trips from November 2008 to October 2011.Indias former president Pratibha Patil sets a new record by spending 140 Cr travel expenses alone. Patil was the most frequent flyer using IAF planes 255 times as compared to PM ManMohan(108) abd Vice President Ansari(106). As A.P.J.Abdul Kalam visited 17 Countries in 7 trips and K.R.Narayana covered 10 Countries in 6 trips. S.D.Shrama covered 16 Nations in 4 trips.

Himachal Hotel Gets Heritage Status The Castel Magar, Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporations prime hotel in the picturesque, Kullu Valley was notified under the heritage status by the Union tourism ministry on 23 August 2012. Maggar was the capital of the erst while kullu state for about 1460 years. The Castle was built by Raja Sidhi Singh in the 16th century. Amir Khan on the Cover Page of Time Magazine The most successful Tv show Satyamev Jayate made Amir Khan features in the cover page of the Time Magazine.Aamir Khan is featured on the cover of Time with the caption Khans Quest. Bollywood actors who have featured before on Time cover are Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Parveen Babi. Parveen Babi became the cover girl of Times July 1976 issue, after acting in super hit flick Deewar. The cover story was titled Asias Frenetic Film Scene.On one of 2003 issues, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was called New Face Of Film. The magazine mentioned: Aishwarya Rai leads the invasion as Bollywood goes global and becomes hip. 9 IAF personnel killed in mid-air copter collision Nine IAF personnel, including five officers, were killed when two Mi-17 medium-lift utility helicopters collided in mid-air while on a live firing exercise at the Sarmat field range near the Jamnagar airbase in Gujarat on 30 August 20112.

PLACES IN NEWS Death toll in Irans twin earthquakes is over 250 Two strong earthquakes that struck north-west Iran on 11th August 2012 killed more than 250 people and left grieving survivors buffeted by repeated aftershocks in a state of trauma.The first quake, of magnitude 6.2, jolted the Ahar area around 1600 hours local time, Fars News Agency (FNA) reported. Almost an hour later, a quake of 6 magnitude rocked the city of Varzaqan and its surroundings in the same province.Thousands of people, rattled by at least 35 aftershocks, fled from their homes. Many families spent the night in parks, braving chilly conditions that prevail in the mountainous province. Typhoon Haikui Hit East Coast China Typhoon Haikui hit to the east coast china on 8 August 2012. By hitting hard the area around the business metropolis of shanghai with heavy wind and rain. The storms winds were at Severe typhoon. It made land fall in the Province of Zhejiang, about 225 kilometers(140 miles) south of Shanghai. The wind speed in between 150 and 184 kilometers per hour. Chinese officials had relocated 374.000 people from shanghai and 250,000 from zhejiang.

BOOKS IN NEWS Mission That Killed Osama Bin Laden: A New Book released No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission that Killed Osama Bin Laden was written by a Navy SEAL under the pseudonym Mark Owen with co-author Kevin Maurer and is to be released next month on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. This book has claimed that Abbottabad house where al-Qaeda chief lived was carved outfrom Pakistan Military Academy compound and its powerful army chief may have been briefed beforehand on the Kill Osama Mission.

COMMITTEES Pak Prez Formed a Panel to Talk with Pak Hindus Pakistan President Asif Ali zardari has set up a three member committee of Parliamentarians to meet and reassure Hindus in sindh of their security after their families decided to flee their homes. Zardari has taken serious notes of reports of the Sense of Insecurity among hindus families in sindh and directed authorities to address their unfair treatment and report to him. This panel consists of senator Hari Ram, National Assembly member Lal Chand and Federal Minister Moula Bakhsh Chandio. Panel to Examine Western Ghats Report Environment Ministry has constituted a high level working panel to headed by eminent space scientist and panning commission member K Kasturirangan to examine the Western Ghats ecology expert panel report in a holistic and multidisciplinary fashion. The nine member group will examine the the Madhav Gadgil committee report released recently in a holistic and multidisciplinary fashion keeping in view the comments received from the concerned state governments, central ministries, stakeholders.It will also study the effects and challenges of climate change in the ecologically significant Western Ghats region, the implications of the UNESCO heritage site recognition of some parts of the Western Ghats and the constitutional implications of Centre-State relations regarding the conservation and sustainable development of the region. It is also expected to recommend further course of action regarding the report within two months. Two Member Panel to Study on Universal Health coverage The National Advisory council has set up a two member working group to study the report on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) prepared by the high level expert scope of

the National rural health Mission(NRHM) and convert it into a National Health Mission. The Two-member group, comprising Mirai chatterjee and A.K.Shiva kumar,will work closely with the Ministry of Health and Family welfare and the planning commission to resolve any possible issues arising on health. SL Committee pulled up for diluting civilnuclear Liability Rules The subordinate legislation committee of the lok sabha has pulled up the department of atomic energy for diluting the civil. liability for clear Damage(CLND)Act. The committee monitors whether the rules tabled in parliament are in tune with the act passed by parliament. This is 15 member panel has represented from all parties.

ABBREVIATIONS EPT NASI SPSS SFC DRDO DTAA CBDT SPACE SOHO Environment Performance Index National Academy of Science, India Sloan Digital Sky Survey Strategic Forces Command Defense Research and development Organization Double Taxation of direct Agreement Central Board of Direct Taxes Science Popularization Association of Communicators and educators Solar and HelioSpheric Observatory

DAYS & DATES August 1 World Breast-feeding Week August 3 Friendship Day August 6 Anti Nuclear Day August 6 Hiroshima Day August 9 Nagasaki Day August 9 International Day of the Worlds Indigenous People August 12 International Youth Day

August 13 World Left Handers Day August 15 International Mourning Day August 19 World Humanitarian Day August 19 World Photography Day August 20 World Mosquito Day August 23 International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition August 20 -Namibia Day July 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL Leung Chun-ying Sworn In As Hong Kongs New Leader Leung Chun-ying, a millionaire property consultant seen as close to Chinas communist rulers, was sworn in as Hong Kongs new chief executive on 1July 2012 . Cyprus takes Over EU Presidency Cyprus takes over the European Unions rotating presidency for the first time on 1 July 2012, amid concerns about the countrys ability to cope with its own economic problems and help steer Europe out of its financial crisis. Cyprus, which joined the European Union in 2004, is taking over the six-month rotating presidency from Denmark. GSK to pay $3b For Health Fraud Glaxo smith kline(GSK) would pay $3 billion and plead guilty to promoting two popular drugs for unapproved uses and to failing to report important safety data about a diabetes drug to the Food and Drug Administration, the justice department said on 2 July 2012. Government officials say its the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S history. Mexico Declares National H7N3 (bird flu)Animal Health Emergency The Mexican government declared a national animal health emergency on 2 July 2012 in the face of an aggressive bird flu epidemic that has infected nearly 1.7 million

poultry. More than half the infected birds have died or been culled, the agriculture ministry said of an epidemic that was confirmed on 28 June 2012 by the UNs Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). They activated a national animal health emergency with the goal of diagnosing, preventing, controlling and eradicating the Type A, sub-type H7N3 bird flu virus. PRI Leader Enrique Pena Nieto Elected as the New President of Mexico The institutional Revolutionary Party leader Enrique Pena Nieto was elected as the new president of Mexico on 2 July 2012. In the presidential election held on 1 July 2012, Enrique Pena Nieto beat party of the Democratic Revolution candidate Andres Manual Lopez obrador of the total 98% votes counted , Pena Nieto bagged 38% votes, while former Mexico city Mayor Andres Manual Lopez obrador got 31% votes. Nieto succeeded felipe calderon on the top most position of the country. Fukushima Was Man-Made Diasater ;Japanese Probe Last years Fukushima nuclear accident was a man made disaster just the tsunami that hit the plant, adamning parliamentary report said on 5 July 2012.Ingrained collusion between plant operator Tokyo Electric Power, the government and regulatory, combined with a lack of any effective oversight led directly to the worst nuclear accident in a generation, the report said. Pak parliament passes bill to protect leaders from contempt Pakistan President on Thursday signed into law a bill aimed at giving blanket immunity to top government leaders from contempt of court proceedings and countering the Supreme Courts efforts to pressure the premier to revive graft cases against Asif Ali Zardari. Zardari gave his assent to the Contempt of Court Bill of 2012 after it was passed by the Senate and the National Assembly, the two houses of Parliament. China, US Avoid Rocking The Boat On South China Sea The United states and China on 12 July pledged to ease strains in their relationship emerging amid renewed disputes over the south china sea and Chinese concerns over Washingtons pivoy to Asia . U.S.Secretary of state hillary clinton, who met chinese foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on the side lines of the ASEAN. Regional forum meeting in Phnom Penh on 12 July 2012. United Nations Millennium Development Goal Report 2012 United Nations Secretary General Ban ki-moon released, United Nations Millennium Development Goal 2012. Report on 2 July 2012. The report noted that three important targets on poverty, slums and water have already been met three years

ahead of 2015, the target year. The target of providing clean drinking water to a substantial population of the world. In developing world the share of urban population living in slums came down to 33 per cent in 2000 from 39 per cent in 2000. The millennium development goal asserted that the developing countries. AIDS control, the developing countries have achieved tremendous fate as at the end of 2012 nearly 6.5 million people in the developing countries were receiving the antiretroviral therapy for HIV AIDS. Thomas Lubanga Imprisoned for 14 years International Criminal Court (ICC), located at The Hague has awarded Thomas Lubanga, a Congolese warlord, 14-year imprisonment on 10 July 2012. Lubanga had led the Union of Congolese Patriots, an ethnic militia in the violent struggle in the Ituri region and its main town of Bunia. The conflict, which began in 1999, claimed the life of about 60000 people in the country. Lubanga, who had used children as the soldiers during the violent struggle in Congos eastern Ituri region in 2002 -2003 was convicted for war crime. First Ever Resolution To Protect the Online Human Rights of Global Citizens. United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), the Geneva based human rights wing of UN, on 5th July 2012, adopted a first ever resolution to protect the online human rights of global citizens. The resolution adopted by consensus, stated that citizens of the world are as much entitled to the human rights online as they are offline. The resolution noted that there can be no double standard with regard to peoples right of fundamental freedom and since internet makes a major part of present worlds communication process, all governments must endeavour to protect the online rights of its citizens. The landmark resolution was sponsored by Sweden and co-sponsored by over 80 countries, that includes United States, Brazil, Turkey, Nigeria, and Tunisia. Global CO2 Emission Increased by 3% in 2011 According to the report Trends in global CO2 emission, global CO2 emission increased by 3% in 2011. The 3% increase in CO2 took the total amount if CO2 in air at an all time high of 34 billion tonnes. The report was released by the Europe commissions joint research centre (JSC) and the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency. The United states with 17.3 tonnes per capita remains one of the top CO2 emitters, while china , the worlds most popular country, has 7.2 tones per capita. $650 m cut in U.S. military aid to Pakistan

Latest jab at Pakistan by the U.S., the House of Representatives has unanimously voted to cut American military aid to Islamabad by $650 million as Republicans sought to tamp down demands for deeper reductions. The amendment to cut the aid, which was proposed by Republican Congressman Ted Poe, passed on the floor in a voice vote. Mr. Poe had demanded a $1.3 billion cut, but settled for the $650 million cut. It will now go to Senate for approval. Pakistan is the Benedict Arnold to America in the war on terror. Putin signs Russia Into WTO President Vladimir Putin on 21 July 2012 singed the bill ratifying Russias entry to the world trade Organization after 18 years of often acrimonious negotiations , economists have long argued that Russia needed to join the WTO as it was the only major economy outside the body. The measure making Russia the 156th WTO member will become law within 30 days . Pakistan and US sign MoU for transporting supplies to Afghan Pakistan and the US on 31 July 2012 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on transporting supplies for NATO forces in Afghanistan through Pakistani territory after weeks of intense negotiations. The MoU states arms and ammunition for foreign troops in Afghanistan cannot be transported through Pakistan and that all cargo will be scanned in the port city of Karachi and at the border crossing points of Chaman and Torkham. The MOU will replace existing arrangements for transporting NATO supplies through Pakistani territory, which were reportedly based on a verbal understanding. Rajkeshwur Purryag is Mauritius Fifth President Rajkeshwur Purryag became the fifth president of Mauritius on 21 July. His predecessor Anerood Jugnauth resigned in March following open conflict with Prime Minister Navin Chandra Ramgoolam. Mahama sworn as Ghanas new president John Dramani Mahama was sworn as Ghanas new president on 24 July 2012.After John Atta Mills, the countrys leader, unexpectedly died at hospital in the capital, Accra. Mahama was forever changed by his boyhood experiences during 1966 military coup.The 53-year-old who had been vice president was born in Bole Bamboi in northern Ghana and holds degrees in history and communications, according to Ghanian media.

INDIA & WORLD U.N.: India likely to miss MDG on maternal health With one maternal death reported every 10 minutes, India is likely to miss the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) related to maternal health, a latest United Nations report says. While there is an improvement from maternal death in every six minutes in 2010 to 10 minutes now, the MDG target in this respect is unlikely to be met, the report said. At present, the Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) of India is 212 per one lakh live births, whereas the countrys target is 109 per one lakh live births by 2015.The MDG Report 2012 points out that an estimated 2,87,000 maternal deaths occurred in 2010 worldwide. This represents a decline of 47 per cent from 1990 when the MDGs were set. Indo-Pak foreign secretary-level talks Pakistan remains defiant on state actors behind the Mumbai terror attacks, but sought more information on the revelations made by 26/11 handler Abu Jundal. Speaking at a joint press conference after 4,5 July 2012 a two-day talks that concluded at Hyderabad House in New Delhi , Indias Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai stressed that relations between two countries have to be normalized despite serious differences over the terror issue. India 3rd Most Attractive , says UN Report India emerged as the third most attractive investment destination after china & US for global companies , a UN report said on 5 July 2012 . Foreign direst Investment flows into India increased by 30% to $32 billion in 2011. While china attracted $124 billion last year. Brazil & Russia attracted $67 billion and $53 billion, Mauritius Offers India 2 Islands In Its Bid To Preserve Tax Treaty Mauritius foreign affairs and trade minister Arvin Boolell said that it was up to India to use the Islands to its advantage. Blue Economy had great potential . India could use north & South Agalega Islands(which are located 1.100 km north of Mauritius and have an official total area of 70 sq km, for setting up hotels and tourist resorts , for trade, marine studies , or for building strategic presence in the Indian ocean. Sri Lanka, Indian navies hold maritime boundary talks India and Sri Lanka discussed maritime matters, including the issue of fishermen straying in each others territorial waters, as they held a crucial annual meeting aimed at strengthening naval relationship. The 21st International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) meeting between SriLanka and India was held onboard the Sri Lanka Naval

Ship Sagara at the Indo-Sri Lanka Maritime Boundary Line off Kankasanthurai on 7 July 2012, EU Carbon Tax: Us Invites India For Initiative To Create Global Consensus India is among the 16 countries that have been invited to attend a US-led initiative to decide on what action should be taken at the global against the imposition of European Union-emission trading system. Under the system , which came into effect from January 1 , 27 member. European Union asked all International airlines flying in and out of the region to meet specific carbon emission requirement , failing which they would have to pay tax. India Aims To Double Trade with West Africa Indian has set up a target of $40 billion trade turnover with the West African Nations from the present $20 billion. Mr.Sharma. along with Ghanas trade & Industry Minister Hanna Tettch, inaugurated the India show ACCRA (GHANA) on 9 July 2012. Mr.shrama said that India had also set a target of $90 billion trade with Africa by 2015.The total trade between India & Africa was around 450 billion till last year. Singapore Prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong visited India Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Loong visited India on a three day trip. India and Singapore signed three key bilateral agreements and a Memorandum of understanding(MOU) on 11 July. The two countries are working on deepening economic relations even outside south-east Asia, building linkages with companies where India and Singapore were associated. Singapore is not only an important trading partner in ASEAN but also a major source of FDI in flows in India. India is Singapores eight largest investor . India Singapore bilateral trade accelerated to USD 17.44 billion from USD 14.04 in2009-10 . The holistic agreement turned out to be fruitful and both the countries expect to achieve better milestones together. UK bans Indian Mujahideen The UK has banned Indian Mujahideen, citing the indiscriminate mass casualty attacks" carried out by the Lashkar-e-Tayiba-linked terror group in India and the threat it posed to British nationals there.British MPs voted unanimously last night to ban IM, placing it on the list of 47 organisations that have been banned from functioning in the UK. India Draws U.S Ire Over Nexavar Row The U.S administration has accused India of violating WTO norms by allowing Hyderabad based Natco Pharma to make a generic version of cancer drug Nexavar, In

march this year, for the first time India had invoked a law permitting natco Pharma to manufacture and sell cancer treatment drug Nexavar at a price, over 30 times lower than charged y its patent holder bayer corporation under compulsory licensing , the government had allowed . Natco to sell the drug at a price not exceeding Rs.8.880 for a pack of 120 tablets compared to the whopping Rs.2.80 lakh per month charged by Bayer for its patented Nexavar Drug. 8 Indian companies in Fortune 500 List Eight Indian companies have made the cut in the list of the worlds 500 largest companies compiled by fortune Magazine, with Indian oil & Reliance Industries finding a place in the top 100.American companies have covered 132 places in the list, followed by china 73 seats and Japan 68 seats. Australia to restart uranium supply to India Months after reversing its policy of not selling uranium to India, Australia on 11th July, said it was in the process of working out internal arrangements to ensure supply of the yellowcake (Uranium) to New Delhi. In December last year, Australias ruling Labor led by Prime Minister Julia Gillard cleared the way for the Australian uranium to be exported to India after a strong debate on the floor of the partys 46th national conference. Australia has the worlds largest reserves of uranium and its ores are considered to be of superior quality among those found elsewhere across the globe. Currently, Australia exports uranium to China, Japan, Taiwan and the United States. However, it had earlier declined sale to India citing a policy that barred nuclear trade with countries that were not signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Russia, china Votes resolution on Syria , India Votes in favour Russia and China today vetoed a new UN Security Council resolution that would have slapped new sanctions against President Bashar Al Assads regime, while India was among the 11 countries that voted in favour. Pakistan and south Africa abstained. India Fares Poorly In Child welfare India fares poorly among middle-income countries when it comes to overall well-being of children even as the world witnessed significant progress in child health, education and nutrition during the last decade. India has slipped by 12 ranks since 1995 and is placed 112th in the global Child Development Index released by Save the Children, the worlds leading independent NGO that works for child rights. According to the report, Japan is at present the best place in the world for a child, followed by Spain, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, Switzerland, UK and Norway. The US is ranked 24 in the Index, while Australia is at 16th place and China is at 29th. Somalia is at the bottom.

India bans US-sanctioned Iranian ships to enter its water India has prohibited US-sanctioned Iranian ships from entering its water as it is hampering crude oil imports from Iran. In early July, the government had allowed crude oil import from Iran in ships arranged by Tehran after European sanctions evaporated insurance cover to domestic shippers. However, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) and other state refiners are allowed to import oil from Iran on cost, insurance and freight (CIF ) basis wherein Tehran was to arrange for ships and insurance. We were to import four tankers or cargoes of about 90,000 tonne each from Iran in July. But we could only get one as the CIF approval was withdrawn, MRPL Managing Director PP Upadhya. US has sanctioned National Iranian Tanker Co and its 58 vessels some of which have been reflagged in other nations to put off international sanctions.

NATIONAL Western Ghats Now In World Heritage List The Western Ghats has made it to the coveted list of world Heritage sites. The world Heritage committee, meeting in st.Petersburg, Russia, late on Sunday 1 July 2012 , decided to inscribe 39 serial sites of the western Ghats of India on the world Heritage list. The Western Ghats was inscribed under criteria 9 and 10 of the operational Guidelines of the world Heritage convention. Vinod B. Mathur, Dean of the Wild Life institute of India told from Russia . To explain it clearly, Western Ghats are those properties which contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding Universal value from the point of science conservations. Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2011 Every four minutes, one person takes his own life in this country and one in every five suicides is that of a housewife. This and other startling figures are part of a government report Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2011 released here recently. According to the report, the number of suicides have increased in 2011 by 0.7 per cent to touch 1,35,585 compared to 1,34,599 in the previous year. West Bengal has reported the highest number of suicides (16,492) accounting for 12.2 per cent followed by Tamil Nadu (15,963), Maharashtra (15,947), Andhra Pradesh (15,077) and Karnataka (12,622). These 5 States together accounted for 56.2 per cent of the total suicides reported in the country. Cabinet clears Rs.25 Crore Plan To Airlift Bhopal Waste

Almost three decades after deadly gasses spread out of the Union carbide plant in Bhopal, the union cabinet has finally approved the proposal to airlift 350 tonnes of toxic waste from the defunct pesticide factory site to Germany for sale disposal. The central government will pay rs.25Lakh to German firm G12 to remove the waste. Crime Report 2011 from NCRB National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) releases its data of crime happen in India for the year 2011. The report made public shows alarming situation of crime in India. Highlights of this reports given below. The report shows crimes under IPC has registered a 2.5%rise in 2011 over previous year; while crimes under special and local laws -such as Arms Act and Gambling Act have declined by 7.4%.Total number of crimes reported in India in 2011 are 62.5 lakh. Delhi, Kanpur, Mumbai and Bengaluru accounted for 9.9% , 7.3%, 6.7% and 6.3% of criminal activities, respectively. Andhra Pradesh accounting for nearly 7% of the population of the country recorded 12.4% of the total crimes against women in India. Free Medicines For All Scheme Centers $5.4 b plan to benefit makers of generics. India has put in a place a 4 5.4 billion policy to provide. Free medicine to its people, a decision that could change the lives of hundreds of millions, but a ban on branded drugs stands to cut Big pharma out of the wind fall. This policy to be implemented by the end of 2012 and rolled out nation wide in 2 years, is expected to provide 52 percent of the population with free drugs by April 2017. Union Government Of India Unveiled New Free Drug Policy The Union Government of India unveiled the 5.4 billion dollar free drug to benefit countrys 120 crore population. Under the new policy, every citizen of the country will be provided free medicines in all public health centers spreaded across the country. As the Ministry of Health and Family welfare kept branded drugs out of this policy, the patients will be given only generic drugs. The policy which will remain effective over the next five years will provide a much needed support to nearly 40% people of the country, which spends 1.25 dollar or less a day on health. States Advised To Give Preferences To Drinking Water & Irrigation Supply An Alarming depletion in the water levels (at 57 percent of last years stage ) of important reservoirs, owing to the delayed and weak south west monsoon, has prompted the central government to issue an advisory to the states on 9 July 2012 to make Judicious and regulated releases. The states have been told to enhance ground water use, Deficient storage in all major dams, expect those in central India.

Least UN-Employed States Indias jobless rate stood at 3.8 percent last fiscal, with Daman & Diu and Gujarat topping the list of least un-employment among states and Union territories. Indias un-employment is better than other countries like US, Spain and South Africa. The latest report for the year 2011-12 released by the labour bureau . Daman & Diu and Gujarath had un-employment rates of 0.6% and 1% respectively. Chhhattisgardh stood at 3rd , Rajasthan stood at 4th and Punjab stood in 5th place. Delhi is Indias most competitive city, Mumbai next Delhi has emerged the most competitive city in the country for the third straight time with the commercial hub of Mumbai retaining the second spot, according to a report by an international think tank released on 11 July 2012.Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata, in that order, make up the top five in rankings of the India City Competitiveness Report-2012, compiled by the Institute for Competitiveness (IFC) that conducts studies in this area for use by businesses and governments. Centre Ask States To Video Graph Gram sabha Proceedings Aiming to strengthen the functioning if panchayat Raj institutions, center has advised state governments to video graph Gramsabha proceedings, besides introducing a slew of schemes for improving their set up. For strengthening Gramsabhas with the help of IT- enabled measures, four software including a web portal have been launches by the Ministry and states are being encourages to adopt it, Union HRD Ministry Granted Two Central Universities In Bihar Conceding to the demand of Bihar chief minster Nitish kumar, the Union human Resource Development Ministry agreed to set up two central Universities in the state. The Union Governments nod for two central universities also put an end to the 3-year long impasse over the location of the University . There are 41 central Universities functioning in India at present , with Delhi and up have a maximum of 4 Universities each. Chandrayaan-II Awaits Government Nod Indian Space Research Organization chairman k.Radha Krishna said chandrayaan-II , the countrys second mission to Moon, was in the last phase of security approval from the Government and a decision was likely to be announced soon. presenting an overview of the forthcoming missions, Dr,Radha Krishnan said chandrayaan-II was slated for 2012 launch. LTTEs Strong Anti-India Posture Continues; Govt Extends Ban

Government has extended the ban on LTTE declaring that it continues to adopt a strong anti- India posture and pose a grave threat to the security of its citizens. LTTE was banned in India in the aftermath of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.In a notification, the Home Ministry said the activities of LTTE are detrimental to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India and there is a continuing strong need to control all such separatist activities by all possible means. LTTE continues to adopt a strong anti-India posture as also continues to pose a grave threat to the security of Indian nationals, it is necessary to declare LTTE as an unlawful association with immediate effect, Home minister said. Tribal Reserve in Andaman and Nicobar Islands The Supreme Court of India on 3 July 2012 declared the area within a five-kilometre radius around the Jarawa Tribal Reserve in Andaman and Nicobar Islands as no go zone. The Apex Court banned all commercial and tourism activities near the Jarawa habitat. The courts verdict came following a news report which showed some tourists throwing money, food and bananas at the tribal people. The news report had forced the government to order an inquiry. Jarawas are one of the oldest living indigenous people in the world. The tribe has their home in the forests of the Andaman Islands in India. The present number of Jarawa tribe is estimated to be about 250-400. Jarawas have been living in the forests of the Andaman Islands for past thousands of years. INS Sahyadri Adds Teeth To Blue water Navy In the salty sea breeze of an overcast Mumbai monsoon day, the countrys latest warship, the INS Sahyadri, joined the Indian Navy on 21 July 2012. The tricolour and the naval ensign were hoisted, the national anthem played, and AK Antony, the defence minister, formally commissioned the bristling 5,600-tonne warship, urging the crew to promote peace and stability in the Indian Ocean Region. the Sahyadri is the Indian Navys 134th ship. Another 46 vessels are under construction, 43 of these in India including three 6,800 tonne destroyers under Project 15A; four similar warships under Project 15B; four 2,500 tonne corvettes under Project 28; and six Scorpene submarine sunder Project 75. Pranab Mukherjee 13th President of India Pranab Kumar Mukherjee, 76, was declared elected the 13th president on 22 July 2012. The UPA nominee defeated the former Lok sabha speaker, P.A.Sangama, by 3,97,776 value voter. While Mr. Mukherjee polled 3,095 votes(value 7,13,763) Mr.Sangama got 1483 votes (3.15.987). Mr.Mukherjee who will be sworn in by chief justice of India S.H.Kapadia New Delhi on 23 July 2012. Secured 68.12% of the total 10,47,971 valued votes cast by 4.659 members of the state/Territorial Assemblies and parliament. Only the former president, K.R.Narayanan,secured the maximum value

votes of 9,56,290(94.97%) When he won in the 1997 election against the former chief election commissioner, T.N.Seshan. Uttar Pradesh Government renames Eight Districts in the State Uttar Pradesh government on 23 July 2012 rechristened eight districts in the state, which had been given a new name by erstwhile BSP government. The UP governments decision to restore the early name of the districts, which were named after the dalit and OBC icons by the previous Mayawati led government, was taken in a cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Nagar was rechristened as Amethi, while Rambai Nagar was named Kanpur Dehat. The districts namely Bheem Nagar, Prabuddha Nagar and Panchseel Nagar will now be known as Sambhal, Shamli and Hapur respectively. Similarly, Kanshiram Nagar, Mahamaya Nagar and JP Nagar will be known as Kasganj, Hathras and Amroha respectively. Supreme Court allowed Tamil Nadu to carry out Small Maintenance Works on the Mullaperiyar Dam The Supreme Court of India on 23 July 2012 allowed Tamil Nadu government to carry out repair and maintenance works on the Mullaperiyar dam. However, the court instructed that the repairing and maintenance work is to be carried out in the presence of the Superintending Engineer of Kerala and an independent member nominated by the Chairman of the Central Water Commission. Changes in Union Cabinet Congress on 31 July 2012 saw as natural the changes in the Union Cabinet that has witnessed P Chidambaram moving to Finance and Sushilkumar Shinde to Home. This is Prime Ministers prerogative after Pranab Mukherjees election as President. Naturally there was a vacancy in the Finance Ministry. Chidambaram was today made the Finance Minister as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh effected a minor reshuffle in portfolios in the Union Cabinet, Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde is the new Home Minister in place of Chidambaram, Corporate Affairs Minister M Veerappa Moily was given the additional charge of Power Ministry.

STATES Jandhyala In Now Chief I-T Commissioner

Suresh jandhyala took charge as chief income -tax commissioner Hyderabad. An IPS officer of 1979 batch, he will also hold the additional charge of chief commissioner of I-T III , Hyderabad . Bibadh Dutta , an IRS officer of 1978 batch, assumed charge as director general (Investigation),Hyderabad. J.K.Hota , an IPS officer of 1970 batch charge as chief commissioner I-T II, Hyderabad. Madhya Pradesh Stood Firsts at Implementing Employment Guarantee Scheme Madhya pradesh has been performing excellent in the implementation of centers flagship Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, MNREGA. According to Union governments latest delivery monitoring unit (DMU) report, M.P has performed better than several other states and stood first in implementing MNREGA scheme among other states. Goa Scheme To Empower Women With an aim to curb female foelicide in Goa, chief minister, Mr . Manohar parrikar launched the Ladli LaxmI scheme on 6 July 2012, under which women can avail Rs.1 lakh to meet wedding expenses. The Government has set aside Rs.150crore for the scheme, which was first announced in the state Budget. Highest crime against women in West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh have earned the dubious distinction of leading a list of states where crime against women in 2011 was highest.With 7.5 percent share of the countrys population, West Bengal accounted for nearly 12.7 percent of total crime against women by reporting 29,133 cases.The National Crime Records Bureau figures show that Andhra Pradesh, accounting for nearly 7 percent of the countrys population, recorded 12.4 percent of total crime against women with 28,246 cases. Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project among most innovative projects in world The Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project to develop the Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad, is named among the most innovative projects in the world. According to KPMG, worlds top advisory firm, the project is an urban regeneration and environmental improvement initiative. Jagadish Shettar , Sworn As CM of karnataka Jagadish shettar , a Lingayat leader backed by BJP leader B.S.Yedyurappa , was on 11 July 2012 sworn in as CM of Karnataka , along with a full- fledged 33 member ministerial team that included 11 new faces and two Deputy chief minister,state unit

BJP President K.S.Eshwarappa and R.Ashoka, who were members of the D.V.sadananda Gowda cabinet,were sworn in as deputy CM by governor H.R.Bharadwaj who administered the oath of office to the new ministers at a ceremony at the Raj Bhavan. 50% Quota For Women In Orissa Local Bodies Orissa chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on 13 July 2012 announced increase in the representation of women in Urban Local Bodies (ULBS) from 33 percent to 50 percent, this claiming credit one of the first states in the country to give 50 percent seats to female folk. U.P , Bihar , Rajastan has a high Total Fertility rate(TER) Even as the Total Fertility rate (TER) the average number of children born to a woman during her reproductive years has gone down substantially in the country, the recent survey revealed that Uttar pradesh, Bihar , Rajasthan and Jharkhand have high TFR on an average a woman gives birth to move than 3 children. The highest of 5.9 children has been reported in shrawasti district of U.P. The TFR is 3.6 for U.P and 3.7 for Bihar. Delhi Government Decided To Increase the Number of Districts in Delhi from 9 to11 To Facilitate the speedy justice and efficient administration, the Delhi government decide in- principle to divide into 11 sessions and revenue districts. The existing number of districts in 9 that includes, Central, North, South , East, Northeast, South west, New Delhi, Northwest and west Delhi. Five new districts namely seelampur, Gandhinagar, saraswati vihar, Najafgarh and kalkaji will come into existence.

CONFERENCES 7th ASEAN Education Minister Meeting(ASED) in Indonesia 7th ASEAN education Ministers meeting on July 4 with the 1st Asean plus three education Minister Meeting and the 1st East Asia Summit Education Minister meeting from July4-5 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The 1st East Asia Meeting was attended by delegates from Asean member countries Australia, china ,India ,Japan, republic of South Korea , New zealand and the United states of America.Indias Representative is Educational Minister puradareswari . Tokyo Conference Pledges $16 billion to Afghanistan

International donors on 8 July 2012 pledged $16 billion in badly needed development aid for Afghanistan over the next 4 years. The major donors conference, attended by about 70 countries and organizations, is aimed at setting aid levels for the crucial period through and beyond 2014,when most NATO led foreign troops will leave and the wartorn country will assume responsibility for most of its own security. Afghanistan president Humid Karzai urged the international community not to abandon his country. South Africa to host first World Hindi Conference The first World Hindi Conference (WHC) will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa from September 22-24. The first World Hindi Conference in September will see experts hold a range of serious scholarly discussions. Jointly organized by the Indian Government, the Hindi Shiksha Sangh of South Africa (HSS) and the Indian Cultural Centre here, the event will be held from September 22 to 24. A large delegation from India comprising around 500 to 600 participants, in addition to about 300 from South Africa will join various other international delegates. NASA Includes Two Indian Innovators On Waste Management NASA, the US space agency has included two Indian innovates for its conference on waste management. Nitin Gupta from Attero Recycling and Anshu Gonj from Goonj are among nine innovators from across the globe that made it to the NASA conference on waste management, which started on 20 July 2012. Gupta from Attero Recycling is Indias leading provider of end to end electronic and electrical goods e waste management services, while Goonj is a grass roots NGO focused on transforming and revaluing clothing and textiles waste by working on these issues directly at the community level. US hosts 19th International AIDS Conference The worlds largest meeting on HIV/AIDS opened on 22nd July in Washington with calls to speed up the global response to the three-decade-long epidemic that killed 1.5 million people last year.The 19th International AIDS Conference drew around 25,000 people, including politicians, scientists and activists, as well as some of the estimated 34 million people living with HIV who will tell their stories.

AWARDS & HONOURS Nayudamma Award for TCS Rajanna

V.Rajanna , President of the IT and ITES Industry Association of AP(ITsAP) and global head of TCSs Telecom Technology Business unit , Hyderabad , has been chosen for the Nayudamma Award for the year 2012 .The Nellore based Nayudamma centre for development Alternatives (NCDA) Chosen MR.Rajanna in recognition of his outstanding contribution in ITA communications. Award for Golden Rock Railway workshop The Golden Rock Railway workshop at Trichi over hauls diesel locomotives and coaches , manufactures steam locomotives and wagons and also exports locomotives. During 2011-12, the workshop released 138 diesel locomotives from periodical over hauling against the target of 79 set by the Railway Board. In recognition of this achievement, the chief Mechanical engineer, southern Railway, Mr s.J.sood , awarded a shield to the workshop, as Railway week celebrations. Samsung Announces cash Award for Olympic medal Samsung India announced cash award of rs.20 lakh to any of the countys sports persons winning a gold medal in the forth coming Olympic games to be held in London. Osmania University Awards Doctorate To APCC Secretary Srungarapati Ananda Babu, APCC Secretary and Babu Jagjivan ram All Indias samta movement president , has been awarded doctorate by Osmania University. Manipal University Was The Golden Peacock Environment Management Award 2012 Manipal University won the Golden Peacock Environment management Award 2012 . The main theme of this meet was driving sustainable business through economy. The Award was given by karan singh on the 14th world congress meet an Environment Management . The ceremony was held in the Le Meridian Hotel, New Delhi. Major Award for TMI Chairman The Hyderabad Management Association has awarded T.Muralidaran, the fonder and chairman the TMI Group the Entrepreneur of the year Award 2012. small scale for his exemplary contribution in the field of human resources and skill management on 11 July 2012. Dr. Kutikuppala Surya Rao Selected for Award of FRCP (London)

Dr. Kutikuppala Surya Rao has been selected for the award of Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians (FRCP) (London). FRCP is given in recognition of particular professional merit. The President of India awarded Padma Sri, the prestigious civilian award in India to Dr. Kutikuppala Surya Rao in 2008 for his contribution in the field of medicine and medical service to the people at large. Lanco Infratech Bags Award Lanco Infratech Ltd (LITL) has won the In house communication excellence award 2012, where their journal was adjudges the best in cover design category. Lanco won the award where in 685 entries from various public and private sector organizations were assessed. NMDC Director Gets Mining Engineer Award Narendra kumar nanda, director of the countrys largest iron ore producer NMDC , was conferred with Abheraj Baldota Memorial Award Mining Engineer of the year for 2012-11 by the Mining engineers Association of India. The Award is given every year in recognition of meritorious contribution to the mining industry by a mining engineer. Golden Peacock Award Lanco Kondapalli Power Ltd, a subsidiary of the power and infrastructure company Lanco Infra tech Ltd, has won Golden Peacock Award for its environment, health and safety management . The Golden peacock awards is instituted by the World Environment foundation. It also won the Green tech safety award: in the golden category for the plants priority to work place health and safety philosophy. Sundarsham Patnaik Championship 2012 Won Gold medal in World Sand Sculpture

Indian Sand Artist Saundaram sham patnaik won Peoples Choice Medal Award in Moscow . It was the second world sand sculpture championship. Artists from 11 countries took part in the championship. Sundarsham Sculpted the copy of the face of The showman of the millennium Raj Kapoor. His interpretation of the Raj kapoor was highly praised by the visitors. His Sculpture symbolizes Indo- Russian Friendship. Sundarsham Patnaik has also won Berlin World championship 2008. His sand sculpture was based on the awareness about global warming. 4India-American Scientists Receive US Presidential Award US President barrack Obama has named four Indian American scientists among 96 researchers as recipients of the prestigious presidential early career Awards for

scientists and Engineers. The four researchers are sridevi Vedula sarma, pawan sinha, Parag A Pathak, and Biju Parekkadan. This is the highest honour given by the Us Government to science & Engineering professional in the early stages of their independent research career. Fukuoka Prize for Vadana shiva Well Known Environment activist vadana Shiva has been named the winner of the prestigious Fukuoka prize awarded by the Fukuoka city government in Japan to people who contributes to academia , arts , and culture in Asia. And Shiva was presented with official notification of the award at a ceremony held in Delhi on 23 July 2012. ONGC was awarded Gold Trophy in Safety Management Award 2012 Greentech Foundation awarded Gold Trophy in Safety Management Award 2012 on 24 July 2012 to Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). The conference was held in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. The Application of the Company was short listed by the award committee. ONGC was selected in Corporate Category for the gold trophy of safety management award. A.K.Hazarika and Anoop Kumar are the Director and ED-Chief HSE of ONGC. Kulandei francis Got Magsaysay Award Kulandei francis has been chosen for the Ramon Magsaysay Award for the year2012, for economic empowerment of thousands of women and their families in rural India. Mr.Francis is a director of the krishnagiri based BGO integrated village development Program(IVD). He was invited by Foundation to receive the award at Manila on august 31. Jeet Thayil, Long Listed for Booker Prize Jeet Thayil, noted kerala- born post and novelist, has been long -listed for the 2012. Man Booker Prize for his debut novel Narcopolis Mr.Thayil is among 12 writers longlisted for the 50,000 Prize. A Short list of six will be announced in September, and the winner at Londons Guildhall on October 16. If Mr.Thayil goes on to win, he will join a select band of India or India-born writer such as salman Rushdie, kiran desai and Aravind Adiga who have won a Booker. NMDC Director(finance ) bags Award Mrs. Thiagarajan, National Mineral Development cooperations Director(finance),received the Icon of the Accounting Profession award for the Institute of public enterprises of Hyderabad. The award is in recognition of his

contributes to NMDCs recent acquisition of Legancy Iron ore Mine & on -going setting up of a steel plant. Innovation Awards For Gigachi, Yegna Manohanvam Innovation award for MSMEs, Promoted by the foundation for MSME clusters in association with the commissionerate of Industries, were bagged by sigachi & Yegna manojavaram Drugs & Chemicals Ltd, for 2011.

SPORTS & GAMES Asia Cup Final ends In A Thrilling Tie Indian colts lost wickets in a heap towards the end of the innings as the under -19. Asia cup final against Pakistan ended in a thrilling tie, with both countries sharing honours at the Kinrara Academy oval, Kulalumpur on 1 July 2012. Sandeep wins 1500m Gold sandeep Karan singh won the 1500metres in the Asian all stars meet that concluded in Almaty, Kazakhstan on 1 July 2012. Clinical West Indies Win T20 series Chris Gayle smashed his second successive fifty and spinner sunil Narine claimed 4-12 as west Inides to a 61-run victory over new zealand to win2-0 in the twenty series in Florida. Woods Triumphs AT&T Golf Tournament Tiger Woods won the storm hit AT & t National on 1 July 2012 for his 74th career title to pass Jack Nicklaus for second place all -time on the PGA Tour list. Spain Won UEFA Euro Cup FootBall Championship 2012 Spain beat Italy 4-0 in the final to win UEFA (Union of European football Associations) Euro cup Football championship 2012 at the Olympic stadium in kiev, Ukraine , on 1July 2012. Spain has set up a record by becoming the first team to claim two consecutive titles in tournaments 52-year long history Iker casillas was the captain of Spain team.The four goals hit by David Silva, Jordi Alba, fermando Torres and Jvan Mata hed the Spain team to a remarkable victory. Spain midfielder andres Inierta of Spain was declared as the mass of the match given the golden boot as he scored

three goals in the Spains title winning campaign.Torres also became to score in two separate European championship finals. Kolkata To Host Richest Domestic Golf Kolkata will host the richest domestic event in the country with the inaugural Rs.1.25 Crore Russel Tour championship Race to RCGC , in December. Abhijeet wins US Event , GM title for Venkatesh National Champion Abhijeet Gupta beat IM dean Ippolito of United states to won the Philadelphia International chess Tournament, while MR Venkatesh became Indias 28th grand Master at the event,Philadelphia(USA). Ayaz Wins Title Asias highest ranked match racing skipper Ayaz shaik, who is also the reign ing national champion and top seed at the on going Monsoon Regatta, won the title in the omega class match racing championship at the , Hussain sagar lake in Hyderabad. Ex-England Batsman Mark Ramprakash Announced Retirement From Cricket Previous England Batsman Mark Ramparakash on 5 July 2012 announced his retirement from cricket after being told by survey that he was not figured in the selection plans. He was the most prolific and stylish batsman in the England Cricket team.He scored 13000 runs in limited over cricket and 35689 runs in 461 first class matches. He is one in 25 players in the history of the sport who have scored 100 first class centuries. Sindhu Bags Asian Youth Title PV sindhu created history by becoming the first Indian to win girls singles Badminton title in the Asian Youth under-10 championship at Gimcheon, korea .In the final on 7 July 2012, sindhu rallied to beat okuhura nozomi of Japan. Wimbledon 2012 Wimbledon 2012 was a 14 day sporting even commenced on 25 June 2012 & concluded on 8 July 2012. Womens single won by Serena

Srena Williams of US beat Agnieszka Radwanka of poland to claim Ladies Singles Title.it was her fifth Wimbledon and 14th Grand Slam Singles Title. Roger Federer Won Wimbledon Title 2012 Roger Federer regained the Wimbledon crown when he beat Andy Murray in four sets in the final on 1 July 2012. The victory was his 17th major title. He had won 7 Wimbledon titles yet and equaled the pete sampras record. The master also equaled the Americanss record of 286 weeks at the top, starting on 9 July 2012. Womens doubles won by serena and venus williams In Ladies doubles, Serena Williams and Venus Williams emerged victorious as they defeated Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka. Mixed doubles won by Brayan and Lisa The mixed doubles Title was grabbed by Mike Brayan and Lisa Raymond by defeating Leander Paes and Eleba vesnina. Mens Doubles won by Marry and Nielson The Mens Doubles title was grabbed by Jonatham Marray and Frederick Nielson. Webber pips Alonso In British Grand Prix Mark webber claimed the ninth win of his career on 8 July 2012. when he swept to dramatic and perfectly -judged victory in an incident filled British Grand Prix Sarvanan Takes The Honours National champion Vishu sravanan of CESC won the title in the optimist category with eight wins from ten races as the Monsoon Regatta sailing championship which concluded at the Hussain sagar lake Hyderabad 8 July 2012 . Title High For Choi At US Open South Koreas Na Yeon Choi won the US Womens open on 8 Jul y 2012, showing a champions resolve in the face of adversity to claim her first major title. Choi 24, fired a one over 73 at Black Wolf run for a seven- under. Total of 281 and a four shot victory over another south Korean, amy yang. Indian Wrestlers Win 19 Medals

Indian Wrestlers Won 19 medals , Including five golds in the Asian cadet championships at Bishkek(Kygyzkan), Besides five gold , the Indian also won four silver & 10 Bronze medals. Mark Boucher Announces Retirement South Africa wicket keeper Mark Boucher had retires from international cricket after suffering server eye injury during his countrys tour match against somerset.Boucher had to undergo 3 hrs surgery. Boucher has been a mainstay of the south Africa side for 15 years, appearing in 147 tests and becoming the first wicket keeper to take 500 catches in Test Cricket, where he has also scored five hundred. London Olympic Games would Be The Most Dope Tested In History : WADA The London Olympics is all set to go down in history as the most dope tested games with more than 6,000 Agency(WADA) said. Brett Lee Retired From International Cricket Cricket Australia paid rich tribute to pace man Brett Lee, who announced his International retirement. The 35 year old Lee retired after a 13-year international career that included 76 tests, 221 ODIs and 25 twenty twenty internationals .He is the second Highest ODI wicket- taker (380) for Australia behind Glenn Mc Grat ch ( seventh all-time ) and one of only four Australians to take more than 300 test wickets. Two women athletes represent Saudi Arabia in London Olympics The London Olympics will be the first ever to include women athletes from every competing nation after Saudi Arabia agreed to send female athletes. According to The Guardian, Wodjan Ali Seraj Abdulrahim Shahrkhani in judo and 800-metre runner Sarah Attar will take part in the Olympics. Jayaveena sets Yet Another National Record A.V,Jayaveena set her second National record in as many days as she won the 50m break stroke event in 35.42 seconds in 39th Junior aquatics championships, Chennai on 12 July 2012 Sushil Kumar Named Indias Flag -Bearer World Champion and Olympic Bronze medalist . wrestler Sushil kumar , was chosen as the flag bearer of the Indian contingent at the opening ceremony of the Olympics in London on July 27.

David Ferrer wins Swedish Open David Ferrer won his second Swedish Open title after defeating fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 6-2, 6-2. The No. 5-ranked Ferrer was never challenged during the clay-court match, which was his 11th career victory over Almagro. It was his second Swedish Open tennis title. Windies Clinch ODI series Against New zealand West Indies to a 24 run win over N\ew Zealand in the fourth one-day international which clinched the five match series. China won the junior women hockey championship China won the junior women hockey championship by defeating India, The tournaments final was held in Bangkok on 7 July. Second Straight Win Humpy Koneru Humpy posted her second straight win in the FIDE womens Grand prix chess tournament at Jermuk (Armenia) on 18 July 2012. Amla Scores Triple Hashim Amla became the first South Africa batsman to score 300 in a test match when he reached the landmark against on the fourth day of the first test at The oval on 22 July 2012. Amla was on 311 not out. The triple century scored by Amla in tests is a record in South Africa cricket. Alson Wins Controversial german Grand Prix Fernando Alonsa led from pole position to chequered flag to win the German Grand Prix Ferrari on 22 July 2012 while Gemans world champion Sebastian vettal was stripped of second place for an overtaking infringement. Dramatic Win For Els After Late Scott Collapse South African Erine Els won the British golf open by one stroke from Adanscott on 21 July 2012, after the Australian suffered an extraordinary late collapse in an incident packed final day . Bradley Wiggins won the 99th Edition of Tour de France Bicycle Race

Bradley Wiggins of Britain became the first cyclist of the country, to win the coveted Tour de France Cycling race on 22 July 2012. Team Sky rider Wiggins is the first cyclist to have won both the Tour and an Olympic track cycling gold. His Sky teammate and fellow Briton, Froom Christopher came second. Their teammate and fellow country man Mark Cavendish was declared the days winner as he won the final stage of the race. Dinda named Bengals Player of the year The Cricket association of Bengal on 23 July 2012 honoured ex- India foot ball captain chuni Goswami with the kartrick Bose lifetime achievement award, while Laxmi Ratna Shukla and Ashok Dinda were jointly given the best players of the season 2011-12 honours. Cibulkova Triumphs Dominika cibulkova beat to seeded Marion Bartoli on 22 July 2012 to win the WTA Carksbad Crown. This is second tennis title in her career. London Olympics 2012 The London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony took place at 9pm on 27 July 2012. Titled Isles of Wonder, the Ceremony welcomed the finest athletes from more than 200 nations for the start of the London 2012 Olympic Games, marking an historic third time the capital has hosted the worlds biggest and most important sporting event.The Opening Ceremony reflected the key themes and priorities of the London 2012 Games, based on sport, inspiration, youth and urban transformation. It was a Ceremony for everyone and celebrated contributions the UK has made to the world through innovation and revolution, as well as the creativity and exuberance of British people. The spectacular finale of the event saw the Olympic Cauldron, formed of 205 copper petals representing the competing nations coming together in London for the Games, ignited by seven young Torchbearers nominated by Britains past and present Olympic and sporting greats. Siling Shots Down First Gold Chinas world number one YI Siling won the first gold of the London Olympics in the womens 10 air rifle competition at Londons Royal Artilley Barracks on 28 July 2012. Hungarian Grand Prix Won by Hamilton Mc.larens lewis Hamilton delivered a flawless performance from the pole position to the chequered flag to win the Hungarian Grand Prix on 29 July 2012. Hamiltons win was his second of the year and the 19th of his career.

Chinshanlo Won Gold in Olympics kazakhstans zulfiya chinshanlo set a world record in clean & jerk as she powered to Olympic gold in the womens 53 kg on 29 July 2012 and claimed a cash bonus from her countrys president. Gagan Narang Fetches First Medal For India Shooter Gagan Narang provided the spark to Indias Olympic campaign by c linching the bronze medal in the mens 10 m air rifle event on the fourth day of Olympics at he Royal Artilery London on 30 July 2012.Narang, 29, participating in his third Games, had a total score of 701.1 (598 qualifying, 103.1 final) to finish third at the Royal Artillery Barracks range, triggering celebrations among the Indian diaspora here and the countrymen back home. It was third time when Gagan Narang was participating in Olympics.

ECONOMY Tata AIG becomes Tata AIA life Tata AIG life insurance has been rechistened as Tata AIA life Insurance company following the exit of amrican International group(AIG) from the Hong-kong based AIA Group. RBI Lunches Online Facilities For G-Secs Trading The Reserve Bank of India has taken one more step to widen investor participation in secondary market,Trading in government securities. The RBI has introduced a web based system for online trading by gilt account holders. This facility is operational from June 29. ICIC Bank Sells Its Debt In Kingfisher to Srei Arm ICIC Bank sold its entire debt of Rs. 430crore in the crisis -ridden Kinfisher to Srei venture capital Ltd,a group company of srei infrastructure Finance Ltd. Kingfisher airlines owned by liquor baron vijay Mallaya was launched in 2005 and has not reported profits since.The airlines has a total debt of a round Rs.7500crore.Banks which had given loans to kingfisher Airlines include SBI(Rs.1400 crore),PNB(around 700 crore), Bank of Baroda (around Rs.500Crore) and ICICI bank(around Rs.450 crore). Government To Setup Rs.2000 Crore venture Fund For R&d in Pharma

The central Government has decided to setup with a venture capital of Rs.2000 Crore which will promote research and development(R&D) in the pharmaceutical sector. India is the third largest producer of pharma products by volume, and the industry in growing at 15-20 percent annually. India Emerged as the 3rd Most Preferred FDI Destination: UNCTAD report 2012 According to the world investment report 2012 released by united nations conference on trade & development(UNCTAD) on 5 July 2012, India emerged as the third most preferred Foreign Direct Investment(FDI)destination in the world. The first position was occupied by china followed by US. The report noted that FDI inflows to had increased by 33%in 2011 to 31.66 billion. china Cuts Interest Rates Again chinas Central Bank cut interest rates for the second time in 2 months on 5 July 2012 in the latest attempt to bolster slowing growth in the worlds second largest economy. Rs.4,575 Plan To Revive Five PSUs Plans to nurse bock five public sector units (PSUs) at a total investment of Rs.4575 crore are under active consideration of the government which will also revive Lucknow based scooters India without inducting any strategic partner. Old time blue chip PSUsHMT, HMT bearings,HMT watches, news print maker NEPA and Nagaland pulp and paper will be revived through the induction of funds by the government. SEBI Permitted MCX Stock Exchange(MCX-SX) to Operate As A FullFledged Stock Exchange Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on 10 July 2012 permitted MCX stock exchange (MCX-SX) to operate as a full -fledged stock exchange there by ending nearly four-year-long wait of the bourse. with the grant of the permission MCX-SX will from here on be able to offer additional asset classes such as equity and equity FAO, internet rate futures and whole sale debt segments. ADB Gives $800m To Build 9,000 km Of Rural Roads This is first tranche of $1.2 billion programme covering 5 stets. A Loan of $800 million from the Asia Development Bank(ADB) will held build 9,00 km of rural road in five states. The investment is part of a larger $1.2 billion programme to connect villages in Assam, chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa & West Bengal with all -weather by the end of 2017.

Coal India To Invest Rs 7,500 cr On Rail Infrastructure In 3 states Public sector miner coal India Ltd has lined up on Investment of Rs 7,500 crore to development railway tracks and related infrastructure to evacuate coal from chattisgarh, Jarkhand and Odisha . This would help the company to evacuate around 100 million tonnes(mt) of additional coal from each of states. IMF Lowers Indias Growth Forecast The International Monetary Fund on 16 July 2012 lowered Indias growth forecast for 2012 calendar year, citing weakening domestic demand and difficult external environment, and said the country faced financial stability concerns because of the depreciating rupee and large fiscal deficit. The fund expects Indias economy to expand only 6.1% in 2012 against its April estimate of 6.8%. Moreover, it does not see any meaningful recovery in 2013, pegging GDP growth at only 6.5%, down from 7.2% estimated earlier. Planning Commission Sanctioned 57800 crore Rupees As Annual Plan For UP Making an increase of whopping 23% annual financial allocation for UP, the planning commission of India allocated 57800 crore rupees to the state for fiscal year 2012-13. Besides, it also approved a 20,crore rupees additional funding for centre sponsored schemes in the state. The planning commission had sanctioned 47000 crore rupees to up during financial year 2011-12 . The decision over the financial allocation for the state came following the meeting held between up chief minister Akhilesh yadav and planning commission chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia in New Delhi on 18 July 2012. Government Clears Dis Investment of 10.82 pc stake In SAIL The government on 19 July 2012 approved the sale of 10.82 percent of its stake in steel authority of India (SAIL),Which may fetch the exchequer over Rs 4,000 crore. The cabinet committee on Economic affairs (CCEA), headed by PM Manmohan singh has cleared SAIL public offer. The government currently holds 85.82% stake in SAIL. No need to file income tax returns if salary not exceeding Rs 5 lakh Salaried employees earning up to Rs 5 lakh a year need nod file income tax returns from this year, the Finance Ministry said on 20 July 2012.The exemption from filing IT returns is applicable only if the total income of the employee does not exceed Rs 5 lakh (and) the annual interest earned from savings bank account is less than Rs 10,000 for assessment year 2012-13.At present, income of Rs 2-5 lakh attracts 10 percent tax, Rs 5-10 lakh 20 percent and above Rs 10 lakh, 30 percent.

13 trillion stashed in offshore tax havens A new report by tax researchers estimates the amount of black money deposited by a global super-rich elite in offshore accounts at 13 trillion equivalent of the combined GDP of the US and Japan. The report by Tax Justice Network released to The Observer is said to be the most detailed estimates yet of the size of the offshore economy. In the report, Mr James Henry, former chief economist at consultancy McKinsey and an expert on tax havens, shows that at least 13 trillion perhaps up to 20 trillion has leaked out of scores of countries into secretive jurisdictions such as Switzerland and the Cayman Islands with the help of private banks. No Service Tax on remittances from abroad Setting at rest concerns expressed in various quarters, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), on 10th July,, clarified that remittances from abroad would not attract service tax.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY In Japan, First Reactor Is Restarted Since Quake A two-month shutdown of Japans nuclear power plants ended on Sunday when officials at a western plant reactivated a reactor for the first time since the disaster last year in Fukushima.The restarting of reactor No. 3 at the Ohi nuclear plant was ordered by Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, in a decision that has spurred growing public protests. Zebra Fish Research Facility Opened at CCMB A state of the art research facility on Zebrafish, an important animal model to study modern biology and human diseases, was inaugurated at the center for cellular and Molecular Biology(CCMB).The genome of Zebrafish was similar to the genome of humans and this has prompted CCMB to deal exclusively with their ti investigate development biology invertebrates. UK To Test Worlds first Pilotless Fighter By 2013 Pilotless fighter planes have come a step closer to reality as British Aerospace revealed that it would test such a new fighter jet next year.The company is set to unveil a new super-fighter which can fly on its own for 24 hours with no cockpit and no human on board, according to a media reported.If all goes as planned the artificial

intelligence could mean the end of fighter pilots in the UK and bring down the curtain on conventional aircraft like the F-35. Iran tests fires Missile, says Israel Target Iran on 3 July 2012 said it had successfully tested medium rang missiles capable of hitting Israel in response to threats of military action against country. Worlds Smallest fly Discovered Scientists have discovered what they say is the worlds smallest known fly which feeds on tiny ants, probably decapitating them and using their head casings as its home. with a length of Just 0.4mm. the fly called Euryplatea nanaknihali, is five times smaller than a fruit fly and tinier than a grain salt, the researcher said. Amniotic fluid An Alternative stem Cell Source Stem cells taken from amniotic fluid can be transformed into a move versatile state similar to embryonic stem cells and may offer an alternative to the medically valuable but controversial cells , scientists said on 3 July 2012.British researchers said . They had succeeded in reprogramming amniotic fluid cells without having to introduce extra genes. This suggests the possibility that stem cells derived from amniotic fluid could be stored in banks and used for medical therapies and i research. God of all particles found ! British researches from the large Hadron collider at CERN(european organization for Nuclear research) said here on 4 July 2012 they have found a new subatomic particle consistent with the elusive Higgs boson, which is thought to give mass to elementary particles. These results mark a significant break through in our understanding of the fundamental laws that govern the Universe, said prof.john Womersley , CEO of the science & Technology facilities Council. The particle was proposed in 1964 by three groups of physicists, including Britains peter Higgs, after whom it was named. The results were labelled as preliminary, based on data collected in 2011 and 2012 data still under analysis. But scientists are 99.99% sure the new particle is Higgs Boson, or the God Particleas it better Known. Home HIV Test Wins FDA Nod After decades of controversy, the food and Drug administration, or FDA on 3July 2012 approved a new HIV test that for the first time maker it possible to learn in the privacy of their homes easy to use as a home pregnancy kit. The OraQuick Test,by Orasure Technologies, uses a mouth swab and gives results in 20-40 minutes.

Yahoo! India RAD Sets Up Lab at IIT Madras Yahoo ! India RAD has entered into an agreement with IIT, Madras, to support its faculty and students in closed computing research. Yahoo has setup a grid computing lab Madras on IIT Campus, consisting of a cluster of high-end server running its open source Hadoop software, which will provide the infrastructure necessary to conduct research on bid data and cloud computing systems. The lab, which costs over Rs.50 lakh to build. will be accessible to students who have cloud computing courses and doctoral candidates. Dark Matter Found Between Galaxies For the first time. astronomers have discovered a giant string of invisible dark matter across the universe between a pair of galaxy clusters. The Universe is thought to be filled with such strings of dark matter, a mysterious substance that cannot be seen, only sensed through its gravitational pull. DNS Changer Virus Tens of Thousand of people around the world whose computers were infected with malware known as DNS Changer away lose their internet access on 9 July 2012 after the expiry of a US government fix. The virus was created by a gang of cyber criminals to redirect Internet traffic by hijacking the domain name systems of web browsers. The ring behind the DNS changer virus, discovered in 2007, was shut down last year by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI): Estonian police and other law enforcement agencies. Because the virus controlled spo much internet traffic, authorities obtained a court order to allow the FBI to operate replacement servers which allow traffic to flow normally , even from infected computers. Hubble Discovers Fifth And Tiniest Pluto Moon US astronomers using the Hubble space Telescope have discovered a fifth and tiniest moon yet orbiting the icy dwarf planet Pluto. The mini-moon is estimated to be irregular in shape and between 10km and 25 km across. It is visible as a speck of light in Hubble images, NASA said. The newly discovered moon, provisionally named s/2012[134340]1 until it gets a proper name, could help reveal more on how the Pluto system came into existence and evolved ever since. Plutos largest moon, charon,which is about 1000 Km across, was discovered in 1978. Hubble observations in 2006 uncovered two additional small moons, Nix and Hydra. India Successfully Test Fires nuclear Capable Agni-I Missile India successfully test fired domestically Agni-I ballistic missile.The missile was launched from a test range at wheeler island off Odisha coast. Agni-I was developed

under the join of work of advanced systems Laboratory, the missile development laboratory of the DRDO, DRDL and Research centre Imarat, while it was integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad. Russian Soyuz Space Craft blasted -off From The Baikonour Cosmodrome In Kazakhstan A Russian Soyuz TMA -o5 M Space craft carrying three astronauts including sunita Williams, the Indian American astronaut, took off for the International space station on 15 July 2012 from Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Soyuz launch marked that opened the door to US- Russian cooperation in space science. Asian Space Powers gear For More Moon Missions The three major Asian space powers China , Japan & india are entering the next phase of their lunar exploration. Now, all three want to send an orbiter that will circle. The Moon as well as lander that will gently settle on its surface and release, a rover that will roam about. Chinese space officials says that the Change-3 could leave for the moon in 2012. Indias chandrayaan-2 mission could be on its way in 2014. Japan plans to send selene-2 landing mission to Mon by Tatasuaki okda. south korea plans an orbiter lander mission to Moon around 2023. Iran on 3 July 2012, test-fired a medium range ballistic missile Shahab-3 The Shahab-3 has a range of up to 2000 kilometres. The Shahab-1 and Shahab-2, the two short-range missiles, with ranges of 300 to 500 kilometres, were also launched. The missile launch was the part of Irans Great Prophet 7 exercise. Great Prophet 7 exercise was announced by Iran on 1 July 2012 in the wake of latest European Union sanctions on Iran. The exercise, which involved test of dozens of missiles and domestically-built drones came following European Unions decision to ban the purchase of Iranian crude oil. The EUs decision is the clear repercussion of failed dialogue held between Iran and world powers on Irans ambitious nuclear programme. Scientists identified First Radio Waves from Middleweight Black Hole HLX-1 A team of scientists at the University of Sydney on 10 July 2012 discovered the first radio emissions from the middle weight black hole HLX-1, that lies in a galaxy about 300 million light-years away. The research team had used Compact Array radio telescope from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO). HLX-1 (hyper-luminous X-ray source 1), lies in a galaxy called ESO 243-49 about 300 million light-years away. As per the new study, the size of HLX-1 is around 20000 times the mass of our sun which makes it an intermediate mass black hole.

U.S Approves Anti HIV Drug The U. S Food and Drug administration(FDA) gave its first ever nod for an anti- HIV drug, Truvada , to pharmaceutical firm Gilead Sciences, Truvada is known chemically as fixed dose, daily intake combination of emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fume rate. India Set TO launch Astrosat Next Year Astrosat along Journey for a national space observatory. Next year, India is to launch Astrosat, the countrys first satellite dedicated to astronomy, which will gaze out at the Universe in x-ray, U.V and visible light bands . The data its instruments supply help scientists to have better under standing of the ways of the cosmos. TIFR, Mumbai will be responsible for developing three of Astrosats five instruments . India pitches for BrahMos induction in Russian naval fleet India 17July 2012 asked Russia to induct the 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile in its Navy to strengthen the joint venture between two countries. This was conveyed to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin here by head of the BrahMos joint venture A Sivathanu Pillai. BrahMos missile has been inducted in all the three wings of the Indian armed forces but the Russian side has not yet done so. Stephen Hawking Launches Supercomputer Renowned theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking has launched the most powerful shared-memory supercomputer in Europe. Hawking anticipates that the COSMOS supercomputer, manufactured by SGI and the first system of its kind, will open up new windows on the universe, a university. During the launch, which is part of the Numerical Cosmology 2012 workshop at the Centre for Mathematical Sciences at the University of Cambridge, Cosmology is now a precision science, so we need machines like COSMOS to reach out and touch the real universe, to investigate whether our mathematical models are correct. Worlds smallest semiconductor laser created Scientists have developed the worlds smallest semiconductor laser, a breakthrough that they say will lead to the development of faster, smaller and lower energy photonbased technologies for treating and studying diseases. Physicists at The University of Texas in collaboration with colleagues in Taiwan and China, have developed the worlds smallest semiconductor laser, a technology for emerging photonic technology with applications from computing to medicine, according to a report published in the journal Science. The device is constructed of a gallium nitride nano rod that is partially filled with indium gallium nitride. Both alloys are semiconductors used

commonly in LEDs. The nano laser is too small to be visible to the naked eye and when fired, it emits a green light. Army Conducts Successful User Trail of Brahmos Balasor ( Odisha) On July 29,2012. India on 29 July 2012 successfully test fired Brahmos supersonic cruise missile from the integrated test range at chandipur of odisha coast. The missile with a flight range of up to 29 km is capable of carrying conventional war head if 300 kg. This is a surface to surface army version was test fixed as a part of user trial by the Army. This was test fired from ground mobile launcher from launch complex-3 of ITR. China Tests Career Rocket Engine China on 29 July 2012. It has successfully tested a new 120 tones thrust liquid oxygen(LOX) and kerosene engine for its new generation carrier rocket, the Lon March-5 for future space launches. The LOX/Kerosene engine under went a test of a high rotational speed of nearly 20,000 revolutions per minute. NASAs Newest Mars Rover Faces a Tricky Landing The US space agencys most ambitious and expensive Mars mission yet, and it begins with the red planet arrival on 29 July 2012 of the smartest interplanetary rover ever built. NASA designed for the Curiosity rover is so risky its been described as seven minutes of terror the time it takes to go from 13,000 mph (20,920 kph) to a complete stop. The future direction of Mars exploration is hanging on the outcome of this USD 2.5 billion science project to determine whether the environment was once suitable for microbes to live. Previous missions have found ice and signs that water once flowed. Curiosity will drill into rocks and soil in search of carbon and other elements.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) Appointments Jawahar Thakur assumed the Charge as the controller General of Accounts Jawahar Thakur, a 1979 batch Indian civil accounts service officer took over as the new controller General of Accounts (CGA) of India, the past earlier held by c.R.Sundaramurti, Prior to his appointment as the CGA,Thakur was the principal chief controller of Accounts in the central board of Direct Taxes(CBDT) under the department of Revenue in the Finance Ministry.

Chidambaram Appointed Head of EGOM Home minister P.Chidambaram was on 6 July 2012 appointed the head of the Empowered Group of Minister(EGOM)on spectrum auction that was reconstituted after Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar declined the job fearing controversies.Chidambaram,will head the 7 member group that also includes Defense Minister A.K.Antony, Telecom Minister Kapil sibal, IAB minister Anbika soni, Law minister Salman Khurshid, Minister of state in PMs office V.Narayana swamy and Planning commission deputy chairman Montek singh Ahluwalia. Jayarama Bhat Gets Second Term as Karnataka Bank Chief The RBI has approved the reappointment of Mr. P. Jayarama Bhat as MD and CEO of Karnataka Bank for the second term. Mr. Bhat first term in office will be completed by July 13.The RBI has conveyed its approval for the reappointment of R. Bhat for further period three years with effect from July 14. SEBI Appoints Muralidhar Rao as ED Mr. S.V. Muralidhar Rao has been appointed as executive Director with SEBI .The appointment of Mr Rao as ED comes after the vacancy created by the exit of Ms. Usha Narayanan. Bhusan Now In Steel Ministry Civil Aviation additional secretary and former DGCA E.K.Bharat Bhushan was shunted out of the civil aviation Ministry on 13 July 2012 and posted as additional secretary and financial adviser in the ministry of steel. Seema Modi Named Heinzs First Woman MD In India US Food Company Heinz had appointed seema Modi as its India Managing director , helping has become the third woman to become the India head of a global consumer products firm in the last 2 years. Yahoo! Names Googles Mayer as New CEO yahoo! named 37 year-old Marissa Mayer , a key Google ream member ,a s its chief executive making her among the most prominent women in Technology and corporate America. At Google. Mayer was responsible for local and geographical products including Google Maps, Google Earth, Zagat, Street view, and local search for desktop and mobile. she joined Google in 1999 as its 20 th employee and led efforts for many of Googles most recognizable products, including the development of its flagship search product and iconic home page for over 10 years.

Styam Retains Manoharan As Director Stayam Services retained Mr. T. N Manoharan, the former President of Institute of charted Accountants of India , as a director of the company. Mr. T.N.Manoharan, the Government appointed director on the scam-hit firm. ceased to be the director two days ago long with Mr.Ashok Kacker, conforming to the company Law Boards 2009 order. Sachin Tendulkar, Rekha Included In Parliamentary Panels Rajya Sabha MP Sachin Tendulkar was made a member of a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information and Technology on 19 July 2012 The 31-member panel is currently examining the Cable Television Networks(Regulation) Second Amendment Bill, 2011. Bollywood actor and another Rajya Sabha member Rekha has been included in the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution. The panel, with 31 members, is examining the Bureau of Indian Standards (Amendment) Bill, 2012, the Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2011,the National Food Security Bill, 2011 and the Warehousing Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2011. Amartya Sen Appointed As First Chancellor of Nalanda University Nobel laureate Amartya Sen was on 19 July 2012 appointed as the first chancellor of the upcoming Nalanda International University in Bihar. Pawar Heads GoM on Coal Minning Agriculture Minister sharad Pawar has been named as head of the Group of Ministers on coal mining, position earlier held by pranab Mukherjee. The 12 member GoM on coal-mining was constituted by the prime minister in February 2011 to iron out issues impeding the sector, Which is vita; for meeting energy requirement if the economy. Hesham Kandil Named Egypt Prime Minister By President Mohammed Morsi Egypts newly-elected President Mohamed Mursi has appointed Hisham Kandil, irrigation minister, head of the new government, assigned to turn the nations economy and internal security around after 17 months of instability and protests.Kandil was born in 1962 which makes him Egypts youngest prime minister to date. He is also the countrys first bearded premier. Ali Mamluk appointed as New Security Chief of Syria General Ali Mamluk, who was appointed on 22 July 2012 as the new head of Syrias National Security office, is a career intelligence officer. General Ali Mamluk, who was

head of state security, is becoming the head of the Bureau of National Security, with the rank of minister, overseeing the entire security apparatus. Mamluk is a Sunni Muslim from Damascus, who has been a central figure of Syrian security for decades although most of the top echelons belong to the minority Alawite sect from which the Assads hail. Pranab Mukherjee sworn as 13th President of India Pranab Mukherjee was on 22 July 2012 sworn in as the countrys 13th President at an impressive ceremony in the packed and historic Central Hall of Parliament. a familiar place for the 76-year-old Congress veteran who has spent over four decades in politics, Mukherjee took the oath of office as President, in the name of God, to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and law. Omita Paul is appointed as the secretary of the president Appointment committee of the Cabinet (ACC) appointed Omita Paul as the secretary of the president. She was replaced christy L Fernadez. Omita is a retrieved officer from Indian Information service(IIS) from 1973 batch.She is the wife of K.K.Paul, the former Delhi police Commissioner. Anil K. Agarawal is New ESIC Chief Mr. Anil agarwal has taken over as the Director General of Employees state Insurance corporation (ESIC) under Ministry of Labour and employment. Mr. Agarwal is an IAS officer of the 1981 batch. before this he was serving as additional chief secretary , Animal Resources Development department, Government of west Bengal. Nasir Ali as the new Joint Managing Director of Air India Civil aviation Ministry on 11 July, appointed Nasir Ali as the new joint managing director. He was dealing with human resource issue related to the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines. He is the second managerial executive posted in airline by civil aviation ministry after Rohit Nandan who was appointed as the chairperson and managing director of the airline in 2011. First Female Head of the AU Union Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma African Union (AU) on 15 July 2012 elected South Africas home affairs minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma as its new head, making her the first female head of the union.Dlamini-Zuma beat incumbent Jean Ping of Gabon 37-17. Dlamini-Zuma, wife of the former South African President Jacob Zuma, African Union, the successor to Organization of African Unity, came into existence in 2002 at Durban summit in South Africa. The Union is headquartered at Addis Ababa Ethiopia. A pan-African

organization, AU aims at promoting unity and cooperation among African nations. The association also strives to spread democracy and good governance in the continent. At present the African Union has a total of 54 members. Morocco is the only African country which is not the part of the Union. The new President of Mexico is Enrique Pena Nieto The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) leader, was elected as the new President of Mexico on 2 July 2012. The Institutional Revolutionary Party had ruled Mexico for nearly 71 years, before being voted out of power in 2000 presidential elections. Under the Mexican Constitution, the president is the head of both the state and the government. He is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces. B. Surender Mohan was appointed as the new Chairman of Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) B. Surender Mohan was appointed as the new Chairman and Managing Director of Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) on 1 July 2012.A R Ansari was the former Managing Director of Neyveli Lignite Corporation. Neyveli Lignite Corporation is the government organization and the leading company in mining, thermal power plants and innovative researches. Mohan is 56 years old. He served as the Mines Director in his earlier stage of life. He started his career from Rourkela Steel Plant and he was the Deputy General Manager at Rashtriya Ispat Nigam in the year 1998. B) Resigns Pawar Quits as Tele GOM Within days of his appointments,Agriculture Mnister sharad pawar on 2 July 2012 rescued himself from heading the Empowered group of Minister(EGOM) on telecom. The Agriculture minister was named the head of the EGOM that was to decide on the pricing and auction of telecom spectrum after pranab mukharjee quit as Finance Minister to contest Presidential elections. Attempts have been made in the past to unnecessarily drag me in the controversy on 2G spectrum. These allegations are false and ill -motivated which one have firmly refuted, MR.Powar said in his letter to PM, As such one thoughts it will be appropriate for me to rescue myself from the position of chairman of EGOM Mr Powar added. CEO Diamond Quits Barclays Barclays chief executive diamond resigned on 3 June , followed a few hours later by the banks chief operating officer, in a deepening scandal over the rigging of a key global interest rate. The latest resignations took to three the number of senior

Barclays executives have to quit in the last two days. Mr.diamond and COO Jerry del Missier stepped down the day after Barclays chairman Marcu Ahius resigned on 2 June 2012 and amid an intense London financial sector. Sadananda Gowda resigns as Karnataka CM Ending his 11-month tenure, DV Sadananda Gowda on Wednesday resigned as Karnataka Chief Minister, paving the way for Jagadish Shettar to take over Rehman Malik resigns from Pakistan Senate after SC order In the wake of Pakistan Supreme Courts order suspending his membership of Senate, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader and the countrys Interior Affairs in charge, Rehman Malik, on 10July 2012 tendered his resignation from Senate. C)Deaths Assamese Poet Hiren Bhattacharyya Died Popular Assamese poet and Winner of the Sahitya Academy Award and several honours for Hiren Bhattacharyya who passed away at a private hospital on 4 July 2012.He had been undergoing treatment for long and urinary infection since June 14. He was 80 . popularly known as Hiruda, Bhattacharyya was widely known for using single words in his poems. Floral Tributes Paid To Jagjivan Ram on Death Anniversary Floral Tributes were, on 6 July 2012 Paid to freedom fighter and former deputy PM Babu Jagjivan Ram at his memorial santa sthal in New Delhi on the occasion of his 26th death anniversary Darasingh Passed Away Wrestler -turned -actor Dara Singh , who was battling for life since the last five days , passed away early on 12 July 2012. A childhood hero to may for his wrestling prowess, 83-year old singh , who played Hanuman in epic Teleserial Ramayan and also dabbled in politics, passed away at 7.30 Am on 12 July 2012 at his residence. Tamil Languages Computing Championship Anto Peter Passed away Tamil Language computing champion Anto peter passed away on 12 July 2012.He was 45 year old. He was awarded with the Best Author Award in the year 2007 by the union government of India. He won Best book government Awardin the year 2004. Anto peter was the member of Tamil software development fund,semmozeh

conference,12th five year plan committee which was represented by the government of Tamilnadu. Czech Drug Developer Dead Czech scientist Antonin Holy, who played an important role in creating drugs to treat HIV and AIDS , died at the age of 75, the CZECH Academy of sciences said. Mr. Holy died on 16 July 2012 the day U.S Health regulators for the first time approved using truvada, a drug that he helped develop, to prevent infection in people who face a high risk of contracting the virus that causes AIDS. Mr. Holy also helped develop the drug vestide, used for the treatment of retinitis in AIDS patients, and Heprera to treat hepatitis B. Veteran socialist Mrinal Gore, the Paniwali Bai passes away Veteran socialist leader Mrinal Gore, who earned the sobriquet Paniwali Bai for her efforts in bringing drinking water supply to Goregaon, a Mumbai suburb. passed away on 17 July 2012. She died at 84 .Gore led a rally of hundreds of women brandishing rolling pins from Church gate to Azad Maidan in South Mumbai. The first time she held a similar protest on the issue was in 1972. Rajesh Khanna Passed Away Rajesh Khanna , Indias first superstar, died of liver failure at his home on 18 Jul y 2012 . Rajesh Khanna , 69, was battling liver and kidney problems for a long time . He is survived by wife Dimple kapadia and daughters twinkle and Rinke. Announcing the death, his son-in-law,actor Akshay kumar expressed his condolences. His debut film was Aakhri khat (1966).His first superhit film was Aaradhana opposite Sharmila Tagore. The actor appeared in 163 films, including 15 consecutive super hits between 1962 and 1972, an unbroken record. Syrian Defence Minister Died A suicide bomber struck the National Security building in the Syrian capital on Wednesday, killing the defence minister and President Bashar Assads brother -in-law the harshest blow to the Syrian regime since the uprising began.Defence minister Dawoud Rajha, 65, a former army general, was the most senior government official to be killed in the Syrian civil war as rebels battle to oust Assad. Indira Gandhis Advisor P.N.Dhar Dead Prithvi Nath Dhar, an eminent economist who served as principal secretary to the late M Indira Gandhi in the 1970s,died in new Delhi on 19 July 2012. He was 94 and died

of age related problems. A Professor of economics in Delhi University for many years, Dhar was one of the founder of the Delhi school of Economics. Freedom Fighter, Doctor, comunist Lakshmik sehgal Passed Away Lakshmi sehgal, who is a close aid of Subhash Chandra bose was passed away on 23 July 2012. She was part of subhash chandra boses Indian national Army. she took role as head of the womens regiment of INA, which was called the Rani of Tansi regiment. She contested the Presidential election as a left parties candidate in 2002 and defeated by A.P.J Abdul Kalam. She was the principle member of ALL India Democratic Womens Association(AIDWA) Sally Ride, First US Woman to travel into Space, passed away Sally Ride, the first US woman to travel into space died in La Jolla, California on 23 July 2012. She was 61. She was suffering from pancreatic cancer.Ride set off for space in the US space shuttle Challenger in June 1983. Sally Ride was, however, not the first woman to travel into space, as Valentina Tereshkova of erstwhile USSR had visited space in June 1963. President Of Ghana , John Atta Mills Passed Away President of Ghana, John Atta Mills, who won international praise for a stable model democracy in Africa, he was passed away. He was a lawyers and taxation expert. John Dramani Mahama succeeded John Atta Mills, John Dramani Mahama sworn in as president of Ghana. Kuchipudi Guru Vempati Passed Away Renowned kuchipudi expert vempati chinna satyam , a dance guru of the stars, died at his home in Chennai on 29 July 2012. He was 83 and had been ailing for more than six months due to age related aliments. D) Visitors S.M.Krishna Visit to Tajikistan Giving a push to Indias connect central Asia policy external affairs minister S.M. Krishna visited the Tajik capital to hold talks with the resource rich countrys top leadership on bilateral issues on trade. Indian envoy in Tibet after 10 years

The Indian envoy to china, s.Jaishankar , is on a rare visit to Tibet where he is touring mount kailash and Manasarovar. Hillary Clintons surprise visit to Afghanistan before conference US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Kabul on 7 July 2012 on a previously unannounced visit. Clinton made the surprise visit a day before a key conference on the insurgency hit country to be held in Tokyo. Pak PM Visit To Saudi Arabia Pakistan Prime minister Raja parvez Ashraf on 15 July 2012 for a two day official visit to Saudi Arabia his first foreign trip since he assumed office in June. Hillary Clintons 13 day Visit To Asia Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state , visited Israel on 16 July as the last halt of her 13 -day long visit of eight Asian countries including Afghanistan, Japan ,Mongolia , Vietnam , Laos , Combodia, Egypt and Israel. Singaporean prime minister,Lee Hsien Loong visited India Singaporean Prime Minister,Lee Hsien Loong visited India on a three day trip in July 2012. Where India and Singapore signed three key bilateral agreements and a Memorandum of Understanding(MOU) on 11 July 2012, New Delhi. E)Miscellaneous Ice Land Prez Wins Record 5th Term Ice Lands President Olafur Rognar Frinsson is set for a record Fifth term in office with 100 percent of votes counted from 30 June poll , the socialist Grimmson won 52.78%. While his main rival Thora Arnors dottir came in second with 33.16 percent. Oldest Meteror Impact Crater Found Scientist has discovered a giant crater in green land , which they believe might be the result of a massive asteroid or comet impact 3 billion years ago, i.e the oldest known impact crater on earth. Philippine crocodile Is Largest In captivity Guinness world Records has declared , that a huge crocodile blamed for deadly attacks in the southern Philippines is the largest in captivity in the world. the giant

reptile has ought pride, fear, tourism revenues and attention to the previously little known town where it was captured last year. Guinness spokesman Anne-lise Rouse says the salt water crocodile nicknamed Lolong measured 20.24 feet and weighed more than a ton. Russia unveils worlds longest cable-stayed bridge Russia on 2 July 2012 unveiled the worlds longest cable-stayed bridge as it put the finishing touches on a troubled multi-billion investment aimed at revitalising the countrys distant Far East.Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev opened the 1,104 -metre (3,622-foot) link from Vladivostok to Russky Island. Europes Tallest Building To Open With Laser Slow Europes Tallest Building the Shard, officially unveiled on 5 July evening with a spectacular laser display performed to music by the Lon Philharmonic Orchestra.The Shard designed by Italian Architect Renzo Piano, is the tallest building in Britain at 310 meters (1.016 feet). It consists of 72 fully occupy-able floors and 15 extra levels of which six can be used and nine are just part of the design. Kazakhstan unveils Central Asias largest mosque The largest mosque in Central Asia has opened in Kazakhstan, just six months after the building was damaged in a fire during which a construction worker died.President Nursultan Nazarbayev attended the opening of the mosque in the capital, Astana, today timed to coincide with the 14th anniversary of the citys foundation. The mosque spans an area of 17,500 square metres, and is topped by a 51-metre central dome and eight smaller domes. Hillary Clinton sets record with 102 countries, 843,839 miles US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has broken all travel records by visiting more countries than any other U.S. Secretary of State did in the past. The former first lady completed an epic 13-day journey of 27,000 miles about 2,000 miles more than the circumference of the Earth through land over Europe to Asia and then doubling back to the Middle East. Since becoming secretary of state in 2009, Clinton has logged 351 days on the road, traveled to 102 countries and flown a whopping 843,839 miles, according to the State Department. Derek OBrain Became the First Anglo- Indian To Vote in Presidential Election

Derek OBrain , the Rajya sabha MP from West Bengal became the first Anglo Indian to vote in Presidential elections in India. Brian, a trinamool congress MP, cast his vote in Kolkatta on 19 July 2012. Americas Oldest Store Shuts Down After 224 years Americas oldest general store, opened one year before George Washington was sworn in as the first president of the United States, has shut down after serving the community for 224 years. Grays Store in the small village of Adamsville in Rhode Island opened in 1788, selling penny candy, cigars and a small selection of groceries, as well as antiques and collectible knick-knacks.

PLACES IN NEWS Strong 6.3Quake Strikes Off Vanuatu: USGS A strong 6.3 magnitude quake struck off the Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu on 6 July 2012, the US Geological survey said.The tremor hit about 358km northwest of the capital port vila at a depth of about 180km,USGS said. Flood in Southern Russia Flash floods in Russias southern Krasnodar region have killed at least 78 people and affected nearly 13,000 in the areas worst natural disaster in decades, officials said on 7 July 2012. Gelendzhik alone received five months worth of rain in 24 hours, a major blow to the resort at the height of the tourist season, the regional administration said. 5.8 earthquake In Afghanistan, Tremors Felt In Punjab, Kashmir A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck northern India on Thursday evening. Tremors were felt in parts of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir reportedly. The epicentre of the quake was in Hindukush region.Press Trust of India (PTI) reported that the powerful earthquake also jolted parts of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa provinces of Pakistan though there were no reports of casualties or damage to property.

BOOKS IN NEWS A Book on sachin

Sachin : Born to Bat by veterian Journalist Khalid A-H Ansari and edited by clayton Murzello ia a unique ade to contemporary crickets finest batsman. This book is about sachin how he entered in to the cricket e.t.c.. Rahul Dravid: The Timeless Steel Legendary cricketer Rahul Dravid, together with Sanjay Manjrekar and Harsha Bhogle today launched a collection of stories about Dravids amazing playing and Test career in Mumbai. Titled Timeless Steel, the 256-page book portrays a cricketer who embodies the finest tradition and values of the game. Disney Publishing has a long tradition of telling great stories and it is a pleasure to be launching this book on Rahul Dravid, together with ESPN cricinfo. Timeless Steel, is a celebration of a truly gifted cricketer and an Indian legend of sport, said Roshini Bakshi, A Book on P.V.Narsimha Rao Contrary to the claims of veteran journalist Kuldeep Nayar in his soon-to-be published book Beyond The Lines, Kunal,who was the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the Union Home Ministry on the Ayodhya issue, said, the factual position is that Rao was neither worshiping nor sleeping at the time of demolition of the Babri Mosque on the fateful day. A Book On Saina Nehwals Inspirational Story Saina Nehwals phenomenal success as an international badminton player is one of the most inspiring stories of Indian sports. Author TS Sudhirs book, Saina Nehwal: An Inspirational Biography, is an account of her rise as a champion with the selfless support of her. parents Dr Harvir Singh, an agricultural scientist, and Usha Rani and the dedication of her coaches. Book Written By Shashi Tharoor Released Chief Minister Oommen Chandy released Pax Indica: India and the World of the 21st Century, the new book by Shashi Tharoor. Tharoor, a former UN diplomat, was speaking after the release of his 13th book Pax Indica: India and the World of the 21st Century which deals with Indias foreign policies and the countrys role in the multi-aligned 21st century world.This book was released on 16 July 2012.

COMMITTEES No Alternatives To dredging ram Sethu : Panchuripanel

The PM appointed R.K.Panchauri Expert committee on 2 July 2012 said the alternative route for sethu samudram shipping channel, suggest by the supreme court to avoid damage to Ram sethu. Which still has mythological significance to a large section of Indians, was both economically and ecologically unviable. Cartoonists outraged By Throat Panels Suggestion to Remove cartoons from NCERT text Books A six Member committee called throat committee has been appointed by kapil sibal to analyse the cartoons in NCERT text books. The throat committees report has come critical for recommending the removal of many Government related cartoons. Cartoonists have been left outraged at they recommended removal of their works from NCERT text books. The S.K. Throat committees suggestions on the removal of the cartoons is nothing but a reflection of the growing intolerance among the countrys political class, the cartoonists says . These works have be en deemed Educationally in appropriate for school students. Kris Gopalakrishna To Head Govts Cloud Computing Panel The Government has set up a committee to recommended the framework for cloud computing services under the chairmanship of Infosys executive co-chairman, Mr Kris Gopalakrishna. The committee has been set up following instructions from the IT and telecom Minister Kapil Sibal . Indian Computer emergency Response Teams Director, Mr Gulshan Rai, also member of the committee. PM Panel To Take The Bite Out Of GAAR In a bid to bring great clarity on GAAR (General Anti- Avoiding Rules) and prepare its implementation, prime minister. constituted an expert committee to prepare and finalize guidelines for the hitherto controversial tax provision. The PM has approved the constitution of an expert committee on GAAR to undertake stake holder guidelines for GAAR. This committee would manage the consultation process and finalize the draft GAAR Guidelines. Panel set up to look into pay- related issues defence personnel Nearly a forth night after the new army chief , General Bikram singh, listed welfare of Ex. servicemen and war widows as his to priority, the government on 13 July 2012 announced the setting up a 5-member committee, to be headed by cabinet secretary Ajit seth, to look into pay and pension related issues of defense services personnel and ex-servicemen.

ABBREVIATIONS TFR GAAR NABARD FAO MNREGS Scheme DMU ISS PCPNDT ECBs NCERT ICRISAT NAC TDSAT NBFC IFC DICCI CCIL FCCB CBFC FICCI ECOWAS IIP WADA FBI EGoM FDI UNCTAD CBDT CCMB UEFA SSTCG General National Bank for Mahatma Gandhi Fertility Rate Anti Avoidance Rules Agricultural And Rural Development Food and Agricultural Organization National Rural Employment Guarantee Total

Delivery Monitoring Unit International Space Station Preconception Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques External Commercial Borrowings National council of Educational Research and Training International Crop Research Institute for semi- arid Tropics National Advisory Council Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal Non Banking finance Company International Finance Corporation Dalit Indian Chamber Of Commerce and Industry Clearing Corporation of India Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds Central Board of Excise and Customs Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Economic Community and West Africa States Index of Industrial Production World Anti Doping Agency FEderal Bureau of Investigation Empowered Group ofMinister Foreign Direct Investment United Nations Conference on Trade and Development Central Board of Direct Taxes Cellular and Molecular Biology Union of European Foot Ball Association Strategic Security Technology Coordination Group

DAYS & DATES July 1 International Jokes Day July 1 Doctors Day July 1 State Bank of India Foundation Day

July 2 World Sports Journalists Day July 3 International Day of Cooperatives July 4 Independence Day of America July 8- Writers Day July 11 World Population Day July 20 Special Olympics Day July 25- Parents Day July 26- Kargil Day July 28 World Nature conservation Day July 28- World hepatitis Day July 29 International Tiger day June 2012 Current Affairs Study Material INTERNATIONAL India Joins 41 Nations In Condemning Syria Killings India on 1 June joined 41 other countries at united nations human rights council (UNHRC) in Geneva to vote for a resolution strongly condemning the recent El houleh incident, which resulted in the death over a hundred civilians including women and children. Egypts Ex-President Hosni Mubarak Sentenced To Life In Prison Hosni Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison on 2nd June for failing to stop the killing of protesters during the uprising that forced him from power last year .And also given life term for the killings was Mubaraks former Interior Minister Habibal-Adly, while six former police commanders were acquitted. Malik Suspended From Senate Over Dual Nationality The supreme court on 4 June suspended interior minister Rehman Malik from the senate (the upper house of parliament) for failing to produce the necessary documents to establish that he had given up his British nationality.

Google Buying Meebo To Help Social Networking Push Google is buying silicon valley start-up Meebo to help expand its social networking service.The acquisition announced on 4 June will bring more tools to google plus,an alternative to facebook.Google has spent more than $16billion buying 140 companies since the end of 2009.The biggest deal in Googles history of 14 years is buying $12.5 billion cellphone maker motorola. 1st Intercontinental Solar Flight Takes Off A Swiss adventure soared above sun -splashed spanish valleys toward Maorocco on 5 June 2012 on the worlds first Intercontinental flight in a solar p owered plane .This aircraft has 12,000 solar cells in the wings turning four electrical motors. piccard gradually piloted the place to an altitude of about 3,800 metres as he headed toward spains southern coast some 50 kilometres per hour. Nobel Slashes Cash Prize The prize money given to Nobel laureates is to be cut by a fifth, the foundation behind the prestigious awards said on 11 June.currently prize money is 10 million crowns and it would fall to 8 million Swedish crowns ($1.12 million). The Nobel Foundation said the money for the awards, given for excellence in the fields of science, literature and peace. The capital that forms the base for the awards was donated in the will of dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel and is managed by the foundation, which was set up in 1900. Gandhi Kallenbach Letters Go Under Sothe by Hammer In one of the most significant auctions of Gandhi memorabilia,sothebys London in going to put honourable of letters,papers,and photograph which shed light on the life of mahatma, under the hammer on July 10.The archieve comprises five decades of correspondence.much of it previously unpublished,between gandhiand hermon kallenbach, a german-Jewish body builder and architect who became Gandhis closest friend after they met in Johomnesburg in 1904.one batch of letters between Gandhi and kallenbach had come up for sale in 1986 and the Indian government paid $140,000(rs.1.2 crore) for it.The papers are now with the national Archieves, and were published in Gandhis collected works in 1994. Pak Taliban Not To Allow Anti-Polio Campaign In N. Waziristan Over 16,000 children below the age of five will miss their polio vaccines in North Waziristan tribal region of Pakistan due to a ban on vaccination campaigns by a powerful Taliban commander.Hafiz Gul Bahadur, the alleged host of the Haqqani network in North Waziristan Agency,militants had decided to ban the vaccination drive

as long as US drone strikes continued in the region. This ban is because the vaccination campaign was a cover for American spies. The ban will seriously impact polio eradication efforts in Pakistan, which is among three countries where polio is still prevalent. Suu Kyi Accepts Nobel Peace Prize 21 years late Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi finally accepted her 1991 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo on 16 June after spending a total of 15 years under house arrest and said full political freedom in her country was still a long way off. Prince Salman In The Saudi Arabian Prince Saudi Arabian ruling family named defense minister prince Salman bin abdul Aziz in the new crown prince on 18 June 2012 .Prince Nayef who died last week in Geneva and was the crown prince only since November.The death of prince Nyef lead to appointment of new prince salman as the new saudi Arabian prince. Supreme Court Of Pakistan Debarred Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raja Gilani From Office The Supreme Court of Pakistan on 19 June 2012, debarred Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raja Gilani from his office. The courts ruling also disqualified Gilani as the member of the National Assembly, the lower house of the Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament). Gilani was convicted for violating the article 63(1) of the constitution of Pakistan on 26 April 2012 by the Supreme Court. The courts verdict came following Gilanis refusal to probe cases of corruption against Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari. Pak Ranks 13th In Failed States Index Pakistan, a country which is run by military obsessed with Indian and by a civilian elite that steals all it can and pay almost no taxes. so it has been raked 13th in the latest ranking of failed states.The unique ranking compiled by the prestigious foreign policy magazine is topped by Africa countries Somalia(114.9points) ,Congo(111.2), Sudan(109.4),chad(107.6), Zimbabwe(106.3) . Antonis Samara Sworn In As The Prime Minister Of Greece The New Democracy Party leader Antonis Samara sworn in as the Prime Minister of Greece on 20 June 2012. Samarass centre-right New Democracy party bagged 129 seats of 300 in the parliamentary elections held on 17 June 2012. Oxford Honours Suu Kyi By Presenting Honorary Doctorate To Her

Paying fulsome tributes, the University of Oxford on Wednesday honoured Myanmars democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi by presenting her with an honorary doctorate in Civil Law in a traditional ceremony telecast live. Oracle CEO Buys Hawaiis Sixth Largest Island Billionaire Oracle CEO Larry Ellison bought 98 percent of Hawaiis sixth-largest island, Lanai, the states governor announced on 20 June. Ellison, ranked in 2012 as Americas third-richest man, is purchasing the property from fellow billionaire David Murdock. PPP Loyalist Ashraf Elected Pakistan Prime Minister Pakistan on 21June evening got its new prime minister in Pakistan peoples party(PPP) loyalist Raja Parez Ashraf,who enters he office with a corruption case, already in the supreme court,that earned him the nickname Raja Rental. $163 Billion EU Growth Plan The leaders of France, Germany, Italy & Spain agreed to push for a growth package worth up to $163 billion at a key EU summit next week aimed to kick starting the economy and safe guarding the currency bloc. Islamist Morsi Wins Egyptian Presidency Islamist Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was elected president of Egypt with 51.7 percent of last weekends run-off vote, defeating former general Ahmed Shafik, the state election committee said on 24 June 2012. UNEP Released Its Global Food Security Report Avoiding Future Faminer The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) released its food security report Avoiding future Faminer : strengthening the Ecological basis of food security through sustainable development in Riode Janeirio ,Brazil on 20 Juen2012.The report noted that food security must be at the top of the priority list of countrys policy if the world has to provide food to its 7billion population. Muses Survival In The London 2012 Olympics Song The British rock trio Muse has the official song for the 2012 London games.The song,survivalis a Humdering rock anthem that was broad casted for the first t ime on 28 June 2012 on BBC radio.The song will be played during the July 27- August 12 games as athletes enter the venue and before medal ceremonies.

Afghanistan And Norway Finalized The Draft Of The Strategic Partnership Agreement Afghanistan and Norway on 27 June 2012 finalized the draft of the strategic partnership agreement between the two countries.The two countries will the draft in September 2012. Norwegian Afghanistan.The strategic partnership agreement provides the long term framework after the with drawl of forces .Afghanistan and Norway after the withdrawal of forces.Afghanistan has already signed strategic partnership agreement with the US,Britain,India Germany,France and Italy. Russia, France To Jointly Build Armoured Vehicle Russia and France will jointly build a new armoured infantry vehicle, Russian arms export monopoly Rosoboron export said. The vehicle should appear in the near future, around 18 months. We have a draft design and a model has been made, he said. France was also interested in co-production with Russia of an armoured personnel carrier to be sold to third countries. India-South Korea For Second Foreign policy And Security Dialogue In New Delhi India and south korea decided t cooperate in the areas of civil nuclear energy and space, including the lauch of Korean satellites by India.Both of them met in New delhi on 28 June 2012 during their second foreign policy and security dialogue. The Indian delegation was led by sanjay singh,secretory(east)external affairs ministry, while the korean side was led by hu Ho-Young, first vice minister of foreign affairs a trade. US Supreme Court Held US Health Care Law Constitutional The US supreme court on 28 June 2012 , upheld the US president BARACK obamas most ambitious social legislations the Health care Law(The patient protection and Affordable care act). The Court verdict came in the favor of legislation,made it mandatory for all American citizen to have health insurance or pay a penalty. The health care legislation mainly aims at covering more than 30 millions who have not been insured. The 9-judge US Apex court headed by chief justice John Robert held the ruling as constitutional in 5-4 ruling. White House Encouraged By Eurozone Summit The White House on 30 June 2012 welcomed the decisions taken by European leaders to boost flagging economies,saying these are encouraging signs, even as it acknowledged that the challenges will not be resolved overnight. Syria Gets New Prime Minister

Syria President , Bashra-al-Assad, appointed Riyad Hijab as the prime Minister of Syria on June 6,2012 to form a new government. He replaced Adel safar,who was appointed in April,2011. Russia And China Sign 10 Agreements Russias president Vladimir Putin and President if china Hu Jintao on June 5,2012 signed agreements to establish nuclear reactor in china and for the development of aircrafts and helicopters.Russia will establish two nuclear reactors in china and both the nations will cooperate with each other in the fields of energy, tourism and electricity. Global peace Index The Global peace Index (GPI) for 158 countries released on June 12,2012. The study was conducted by Australia and Usbased Institute for Economic and Peace (IEP).Most peaceful countries in the world are Ice Land, Denmark and New Zealand.Rajasthan Electronics and Instruments Limited(REIL), Known for its electronic milk testing instruments and solar lighting technology has been chosen for the best PSU Award 2012, in the Mini category. George Bush voted Most Unpopular former US President George W.Bush has been voted the most unpopular living former president of the US. Bush was the 43rd President of the Us from 2001 to 2009.According to a CN poll, just 43 percent of people questioned said they have a good opinion of Bush, while 54 percent said the opposite. Zine El Abidine Ben Ali imprisoned for life time Tunisian court sentenced former President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to life imprisonment on June 13 ,2012 for presiding over the bloody protest crackdown that ignited Arab spring. He faced countless charges including drug trafficking and embezzlement. He had exiled to Saudi Arabia in January2011.

INDIA & WORLD Ties With China Is Indias Top Priority India on 6 June told china that is sees improving bilateral ties as a priority of its foreign policy and expresses desire to expand strategic cooperation.

India Allowed Foreign Direct Investment From Pakistan India on 8 June 2012 announced to allow foreign direct investment from Pakistan. The move is aimed at strengthening the bilateral economic relations between the two countries. The decision will also facilitate the economic integration in the South Asian region. Indian-American Picked For 2nd Highest US Court US president Barrack Obama on 11 June nominated Indian-born legal nominated luminary Srikanth Srinivasan to the Federal Court of Appeals, the highest ever judicial appointment of an Indian-American in the US. There are 13 Court of Appeals across the US with 179 judges, and the Washington DC Appeals Court to which Srinivasan has been nominated is considered particularly influential, with Obama himself calling it the nations second highest court". Dhoni Ranked 31st In The Forbes List Of Worlds 100 Richest Sports Persons In the latest list of worlds 100 richest sports persons list released by Forbes magazine, Indian Cricket Captain M.S.Dhoni achieve 31st position.He moved ahead in the list, while Tendulkar ranked 78th. Boxing champion Floyd May weather topped the list with a total earnings of $85million while pugilist manny pacquiao and golf legend tiger woods on the 2nd and 3rd . BRICS Pledger $75billion to IMFs Bailout Fund India and four other countries of the five nation BRICS bloc has given a big boost to IMFs 430 billion US dollars bailout fund for the debt rocked 17 Nation Eurozone pledging to contribute 75billion us dollars with New Delhis contribution being 10 billion US dollars.the pledge was made at an informal meeting of Brics leaders presided by PM Manmoham singh ahead of the opening of the 7th G-20 summit. Indian Population Booms In Australia: Census Data Latest official census data in Australia has found a boom in Indian population especially with number of Punjabi speaking people rising by over 200 percent.This is the 16th census taken in Australia over the past 100 years with about 9.8 million households surveyed on August 9 last year.The data revealed Australias population rose to 21,507,719, up almost two million or more than 8 percent -in the past five years, and the median age of the growing population rose from 37 in 2006 to 38 when the census was counted last year. The United Kingdom stood as the leading country of birth for the overseas-born population at 20.8 percent and was followed by New Zealand(9.1 percent), China (6.0 percent) and India (5.6 percent)people of

Indian origin have seen the largest growth increase at more than 14 percent since 2006, or up almost 150,000. IKEA To Invest Rs.10k-cr In India Amidst a slew of rating downgrade by the international agencies Swedish home furnishing major IKEA on June 22 approached the government with a proposal to invest 1.5billion euros(Rs.10,500 crores) to set up 25 stores in the country under single brand retail FDI. Coca-Cola Bets On India , Plans To Invest $3b More In a Major Thumbs up to India , beverage major coca-cola said on 26June . That it will increase its investment in the country and now put in $5billion by 2020.

NATIONAL Indi Stood At No.3 In Reality Rate Hike Even as first time buyers are exhaustion their saving to by a home, reality rates in India are going to roof .Property prices increased by 12% ,propelling India to their position among 53 countries. The Global Index Survey by Knight Frank, property consultants , shows that Brazil recorded the strongest annual growth (23.5%) in the past years ,followed by estonia with a growth rate of (13.9%). India May Become 1st Fallen Angel In BRIC S&P warns India may lose Investment grade Rating . Global rating agency standard &poors on 11 June cautioned that India seriously risks losing its investmen t grade rating. Maruti Suzuki India Ltd Decided To Merge With Suzuki Power train India Ltd Maruti Suzuki India Ltd decided to get into a merger with Suzuki Power train India Ltd .This initiative will help them prepare and meet the increasing demand for diesel vehicles. Zakir Hussain Calls Off Israel Visit Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain has called off a series of performances scheduled to be held in Israel later this month, in the wake of an appeal made by 85 artistes, writers

and activists. The Indian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (INCACBI) had appealed to Mr. Hussain as an artiste of conscience to cancel the scheduled performance since it would lend a stamp of approval to Israeli policies of colonialism, apartheid and occupation. Aptech Creates Countrys First 3D Ad Film Aptechs education brand Arena multimedia has created the first 3D commercial to became future ready, the leader in animation training is targeting the forth coming 3D movie releases in multiplexes with its latest ad. Censorship cases In India Up To 49% says Google As part of its Transparency report Google on 18 June said that it had received 101 content removal requests from Indian authorities to between July & December last year, asking it to delete 255 items from its websites of these Just 5 requests were made by courts. Calcutta High Court Scrapped The Singur Land Rehabilitation And Development Act, 2011 The Calcutta High Court on 22 June 2012, held the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act, 2011 as unconstitutional and void. The legislation enabled the government to recover the disputed Singur land from Tata Motors, who was leased 997 acre of land at Singur in Hooghly district by previous left front government in the state. Free Madicines For All Scheme To Be Rolled Out From October Schemes outlay pegged at Rs.28.500 Cr. center to bear 75% of the cost.facility to be available at all govt hospitals. Indias Ambitious polices to provide free medicines to all patients attending a government health facility across the country will be rolled out from October. Sunita Williams To Embark On Space Mission Again Indian-American astronaut Sunita Williams is all set to return to the International Space Station, where she spent a record six months in 2006. Delhi Most Competitive City In India EIU Report Delhi has been named the most competitive city in India for its demonstrated ability to attract capital, business, talent and tourists by a new Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) research report.Delhi has been named the most competitive city in India for its

demonstrated ability to attract capital, business, talent and tourists by a new Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) research report.The national Capital has edged out financial hub of Mumbai, which ranked70th in the index, followed by Bangalore, Indias Silicon Valley, at 79th rank, Pune at 97, Chennai at 105 and Kolkata at 106. Sam Mittal To Continue As NASSCOM President Sam Mittal will remain as the president of National Association of Software and services companies(NASSCOM).Until early 2014.Mittal took over as NASSCOM president in Jan 2008 and was set to step down by the end if this year. NASSCOM is the 1200 member trae association that represented Indian $100 billion IT industry. Government Secures Kallenbach- Gandhi letters Just Days Before Auction The Indian Government and the family of Herman Kallenbench have struck a deal for papers relating to the Germans correspondence with Mahatma Gandhi some 13 days before the historical material was due to go under the hammer in London .Archive comprises Thousands of letters written over 3 decades.Gandhi and German -Jewish body builder A Architect Hermann kallenbach were friends since 1904. US Federal Court Absolved Carbide Corporation In Bhopal Gas Tragedy Case In What came as a major disappointment for the Bhopal gas tragedy victims, a US federal court on 27 June 2012 absolved Union Carbide corporation and its former chairman Warren Anderson of the Bhopal gas tragedy case.I his ruling US district court Judge John F.Keenam concluded that UCC is neither directly nor as an agent of union carbide India Limited (UCIL) liable for mishap. India & Brazil Set Trade target of $ 15 Billion India on June 14 ,2012 sought investments from Brazil mainly in infrastructure sector for which it needs US$1 trillion over the next five years. The two countries name set a bilateral trade target of US $ 115 billion by the year 2012. India Signed Agreement with Bharain for exchange of Information with Respect to taxes India signed an Agreement with the Government of the kingdom of Bharain for the exchange of Information with respect to taxes(TIEA) . The agreement was signed by Namo Narain meena, Minister of state for Finance(Expenditure and Financial Affairs)on behalf of Government of India and H.E. Kamal ahmad, Minister for transportation and Acting CEO of The economic Development of Bhrain on behalf of Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain.The agreement is based on international standards of transparency and exchange of Information. It incorporates provision for

effective exchange of information including banking information between tax authorities of the two countries, It has been provided that the Exchange of Information shall be on request and without regard to the domestic interest. The agreement will enhance mutual cooperation between the two countries by having effective exchange of information in tax matters. MoU signed between India & Canada on Infrastructure development, Operation & Maintanance of Roads Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between India and Canada during the visit of Dr.C.P. Joshi, the Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways to Canada on the invitation from dnis Label, Minister of transport, Infrastructure & communication, Government of Canada from 10-13 June,2012.The MoU will facilitate sharing and exchange of knowledge and technical expertise in the areas of infrastructure development, operation and maintenance of roads, Intelligent Transport system etc. US Exempt India form Iran Oil sanctions The US has exempted India and six other nations from its tough Iran oil sanctions. Besides India, Malaysia, South Korea, South Africa, SriLanka. Turkey and Taiwan too have been added to the exemption list, leaving china and Singapore, the top two buyers of Iranian crude.India and South Korea, exempted, were the third and fourthlargest buyers of Iranian oil in the first half of lat year, according to the US Department of energy. India Worst Place for Women Among top 19 Countries Indias Women are discriminated against, abused and even killed on a scale unparalleled in the top 19 economies of the world, according to a new poll by the Thomson Reuters Foundation.The Survey, Polling 370 gender specialists, found Canada to be the best place to be an woman among G-20 nations, excluding the European Union economic grouping. Saudi Arabia was the second worst, after India.The poll results-based on parameters such as quality of health services, threat of Physical and sexual violence, level of political voice, and access to property and land rights jars with the modern-day image of India. Social security agreement between India and Finland signed India and the republic of Finland signed an agreement on Social security. This agreement will enhance cooperation on social security between the two countries. For short term contract up to 5 years, no social security contribution would need to be paid under the finish law by the detached workers provided they continue to make social security payment in India, The self employed Indians in Republic of Finland

would also be entitled to export of social security benefit on their relocation to India There are about 5.000 Indians in the republic of Finland most of whom are working as professionals and self-employed.

STATES Andhra Pradesh Population Census The official census 2011 of Andhra Pradesh has been conducted by Directorate of Census Operations in Andhra Pradesh.As per details from Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh has population of 8.46 Crore, an increase from figure of 7.62 Crore in 2001 census. Total population of Andhra Pradesh as per 2011 census is 84,665,533 of which male and female are 42,509,881 and 42,155,652 respectively. In 2001, total population was 76,210,007 in which males were 38,527,413 while females were 37,682,594.The total population growth in this decade was 11.10 percent while in previous decade it was 13.86 percent. The population of Andhra Pradesh forms 7.00 percent of India in 2011. In 2001, the figure was 7.41 percent. State AP Registers Drop in Sex Ratio The future demographic profile of the state looks bleak as the child sex ratio has fallen to 943 from 961 in 2001, released on 7 June 2012.The figures for rural (942) and urban(946). Dimple Yadav Declared Elected Chief Minister Akilesh yadavs wife ,Dimple yadav on 9 June became the first women elected unopposed in a Lok Sabha by election from uttar pradesh and second candidate in the entire state after Purshottam Das Tundons election from Allahabad west in 1952. Assam Government Released Vision Document For Women And Children Assam government on 12 June 2012 released the vision document for the states women and children. The government in the vision document announced to come out with various measures to address the issues like high Maternal Mortality Rate and Infant Mortality Rate in the state.The document talks of reducing Infant mortality rate from 58 to 38 per 1000 live births, reduction in maternal mortality rate (MMR) to 210 per 100000 live birth, reduction of total fertility rate to2.1 per cent, improving child sex ratio, reduction in percentage of anemia in children and women and reducing the percentage of underweight children (0-5 years) by 30 per cent.

Arunachal Gets Countrys Fourth Buddhist Centre Arunachal Pradesh, where around 13 percent of the population follows Buddhism, has got its first full-fledged Buddhist centre after Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. The Central Institute of Himalayan Culture Studies at Dahung in West Kameng district, where a majority of the people follow Tibetan Buddhism, is now a full-fledged central institute, according to its founder Tsona Gontse Rinpoche. Five Northeastern States and Himachal Pradesh Appraised As Most Environmentally Sustainable States The Environmental Sustainable Index (ESI) 2011 released on 14 June 2012, appraised five northeastern states (Tripura, Sikkim, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh) and Himachal Pradesh as the most environmentally sustainable states in the country. The index was released by Centre for Development Finance (CDF), affiliated to Institute for Financial Management and Research.Among larger states, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal performed poorly on maximum of environmental indicators while Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka received high ratings. States with rich natural resources like Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar were rated moderate in the chart. YSR Congress Party Won In By-Election In the by-election in A.P for 18 Assembly seats and ! Lok sabha seat, YSR congress party won 15 assembly seat and 1 Lok sabha seat.The ruling party congress won 2 seats .TRS won 1 seat .Drawing a blank , the Telugu Desam suffered the dubious distinction of not having won a single seat in 41 successive by-elections since 2009. Indias First River-lake link project launched In Bundelkhand The Madhya Pradesh government claims to have launched the countrys first ever river-lake linking project in the water-scarce Bundelkhand region. The Harpura irrigation and river-lake link project, launched in the Tikamgarh district, will be implemented under the Centers Rs.7266 crore Bundelkhand package. It will link the perennial Jamni river to the nearby lakes and water bodies built during the Chandel era. Under the project, an additional 1,980 hectares of land are expected to come under irrigation. Rajasthan Un Employment Dole for Graduates The Rajasthan government on 20 June announced an unemployment allowances scheme, with effect from July 1 , for educated youth registered with employment exchanges for more than a year.It provides for an allowance of Rs.500 a month to the eligible candidate

CONFERNCES Indian Science Congress Associatio Meeting At kolkata Dr.Man Maoham singh on 2 June inaugurated the Indian science congress annual session.Man moham addressed that this year is year of science. India To Host Alternative International AIDS conference World meet in U.S from 22 to 27 . When stake holders from across the world. coverage at Washington next month to participate in the International AIDS conference (IAC) to shre their experience evaluations. This type of event will be organized in Kolkata by Durban Mahila Samanway samiti (DMSS) an umbrella organization of over 65,00 sex workers of west Bengal i collaboration with the Global Network of sex work project (NSWP) India To Host Alternative International AIDS conference The Union Finance Minister,Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, on 11 June inaugurated the 28th Annual conference of chief commissioners and Directors General of Income Tax in the Capital Delhi. G20 Los Cabos Summit 2012 The 2012 Mexico Summit was the seventh meeting of G-20 heads.It was held in Los cabos,Baja California sur, from June 18-19 2012.The moto is to Committing to fight economic slowdown and combat corruption, the G-20 leaders have expressed confidence that USD 450 billion firepower of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would help in safeguarding financial stability and preventing global crisis. Rio+20 Earth Summit The Rio+20 Conference, world leaders, along with thousands of participants from governments.took place in Brazil on 20-22 June 2012 to mark the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), in Rio de Janeiro, and the 10th anniversary of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg.The Conference focused on two themes: (a) a green economy in the context of sustainable development poverty eradication and (b) the institutional framework for sustainable development. Interntional Labour Conference

101 st session of International Labour Conference organized by International Labour Organization(ILO), concluded on June 14 ,2012 in Geneva. A New International labour standard was adopted at the conference which requested countries ti establish national social protection floors.The Recommendation called for providing people with essential health care benefits as well as basic income security. The countries which cannot affords social protection measures could seek International cooperation and support to complement their own efforts. International Conference In Kabul A One day International conference in Kabul took place on June 14,2012 to discuss ways to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan and boost regional cooperation.Delegates from 30 countries gathered in Kabul including Iran, Russia ,China ,Turkey as well as International Organizations such as NATO, the European Union, the shanghai cooperation Organization and United Nations. The Conference focused on the security transfer after US-led troops withdrawal in 2014,regional strategies to tackle natural disasters and strengthening of trade and economic relations. SCO Summit 2012 The Shanghai cooperation organization(SCO) summit was held in Beijing from June 67 ,2012. It was the 12th SCO summit.The Important decisions and discussion held in meeting are as follows :The SCO decided to grant Afghanistan as observer status and accept Turkey as dialogue partner.Member states agreed to facilitate trade and investment in order to tap economic potential within the bloc.Member states had agreed to enhance cooperation in Finance, Transportation, Telecommunications, Energy & Agricultural sectors.

SPORTS & GAMES Karnataka Holds Off TN ToTriumph Karanataka secured a nail-biting draw against Tamilnadu to win the south zone senior mens hockey championship at the KSHA stadium on 1st june. Sri ram Balaji Arun prakash Triumph N.Sriram Balaji and Arun Prakash Rajagopalan , the top seeds playing together for thr first time, clinched the mens doubles title in the prem sugar sponsored IIF Mandya open $10000 futures four at the PET stadium on 1 June. Saket Myneni Bags ITF Mens Future Tennis Title

Myneni, the 24-year-old from Hyderabad , won the title in the $10000 prem sugars ITF mens future tennis tournament in Karnataka, Mandya on 1 June 2012 by defeating top seed vijayant mallik in the final. New Zealand Beat Argentina 1-0 To Win Sultan Azaln Shah Cup Hockey Tournament at Ioh, Malaysia on 3 June 2012 Andy Hayward scored the only goal for New Zealand in the summit clash, Which prevented Argentina, the 2008 winner, to reclaim the trophy. Awards Fairplay trophy was given to Great Britain. sardar singh of India was awarded with the trophy of the Best player of Tournament. Kyle Pontifex of new Zealand was chosen the Best goal keeper for the tournament. Kyle Pontifex of new Zealandwas awarded with the Man of the final Trophy. Ashkey Jackson of great Britain emerged the top scorer of the Tournament. Krishna Poonia Wins Silver Medal At Portland Event Indian discus thrower Krishna poonia bagged the silver medal at the post pree elite womens event in the united states Portland on June 4 2012. Poonia finished second with a throw of 62.34 metre, while the gold went to Russian Darya Pischalnikova recording 66.38 metres in her fifth attempt. Tiger woods Claimed Memorial Tournament, Won His 73rd PGA Tour Title Former world no.1 golfer Tiger woods defeated Spencer Levin and Rory sabbatini to win his 73rd PGA tour tittle by two shorts at the memorial tournament on 4 June 2012.The memorial tournament victory is woods second PGA tour victory in the current season . sanjita Chanu Claims Gold K.Sanjita Chanu claimed the womens 48 kg gold medal in the common wealth weight lifting championships at Apia, Somoa sanjita liftes a total of 154 kg to lift the title . Bhupati -Sania Won French Open Tittle Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupati of India won their second Grand slam tittle and First french open trophy together after crushing K laudia Jons lahnacik and santiago Gonzakez 7-6(3),6-1 in the mixed doubles final . Double Delight For India

Srinath ,Ivana wins Asian Junior Titles .Narayana Srikanth and Ivana Maria Furtado completed a grand double for India in Tashkent on 7 June 2012 in the Asian Junior Chess Championship by winning the open boys and girls titles respectively. Sharapova Won The French Open Womens Single Title Russias Maria Sharapova became the 10th woman in tennis history to win all four Grand Slam titles on 9 June when she defeated Italys Sara Errani 6-3, 6-2 in the French Open final. Sharapova won the French Open Womens single title on 9 June at Roland Garros stadium in Paris. Vishu Vardham Emerges The Champion Second seed P.Vishu Vardhan defeated seventh seeded sriram balaji in the final to take the title Zuari Garden city ITF $10,000 tennis tournament ,Mysore on 9 June 2012. Saina Nehwal clinched Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold Title Ace Indian Badminton player Saina Nehwal clinched her 16th career title as she defeated Thailands Ratchanok Inathon in the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold title in Bangkok on 10 June 2012. The Thailand Open Grand Prix is Sainas second title in the year 2012. Earlier, in April 2012 she had won the Swiss Open Title. Ross Rides Handsome Falcon To Victory Mr.N.Anantarams Handsome ridden by Ross won the Ambur plate, the feature event of the races held out udhagamandalam on 10 June 2012. Tejaswni Settles For Bronze Tejaswini Muley clinchin towards gold slipped midway throufh the final and ended up with junior womens 50m rifle 3- position bronze as the 22nd meeting of shooting hopes championship concluded at plzen in the czench Republic on 10 June 2012. West Wood Claims Tittle World no.3 Lee west wood completed his buid up to nexr US open with a convincing five shut win at the scandinavian open in stockholm on 9 June . Rudisha Runs Blistering 800 Race Yohan Blake and fellow Jamacian olympic champion shelly Ann franser pryce won the 100 meter sprints, while Kenyas David Rudisha scored a sensational victory in the 800

meters at 9 June 2012. Diamond league meet .He ran alone from half way point to win with a time of one minute 41.74 seconds for the fastest time ever registered in the united states and best time in the world in this season. Rafael Nadal Won His Seventh French Open Singles Title Spaniard Rafael Nadal on 11 June 2012 defeated Serbian Novak Djokovic to clinch his seventh French Open Singles Title 2012.He is the first man to win a record of 7th french open title.Legend Bjorn Borgs 6 title feat surpassed by Rafael Nadal. Nadal received La Coupedes Mousquetairer(Musketeers cup). Indu Chaudhary and Sakshi Malik Won Gold Medals In Asian Junior Wrestling Championship 2012 Indu Chaudhary and Sakshi Malik won gold Medals in Asian Junior Wrestling Championship 2012 at Almaty, Kazakhstan on 13 June 2012. Indu Chaudhay and Sakshi Malik are from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana respectively. The former won the gold medal in 44 Kg and latter in 63 kg. Double For Anusha K.Anusha bagges a double winning both the girls under-14 and 16 singles respectively in the NCK Tennis Academy Talent series Tournment on 15 June 2012. Saina Wins Third Indonesian Open Title Saina Nehwals romance with the Indonesian Open continued as the champion shuttler from India quelled a spirited challenge from Chinese Li Xuerui to record a 1321, 22-20,21-19 in the 64-minute final to clinch her third title in four final appearances in Jakarta on 17 June Mahendra Singh Dhoni Appointed As A Brand Ambassador Of Nepal Cricket Association Mahendra Singh Dhoni was appointed as a brand ambassador of Nepal Cricket Association, Nepal on 17 June 2012.The announcement was made by Posta Bahadur Bogati, Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation of Nepal. Tejaswini Mule Won Silver medal at International Junior Shooting Championship Tejaswini Mule won Silver medal at International Junior Shooting Championship in Suhl, Germany on 17 June 2012. She won the silver medal in the 50 meter rifle prone womens event.

Harmeet Desai won Under- 21 Mens Final Brazil Open Table Tennis Harmeet Desai won Under- 21 Mens Final Brazil Open Table Tennis on 17 June 2012. He had defeated Belgian Cedric Nuytin by 4-2 and won gold medal. He became first Indian to achieve such an accomplishment. Seema Antil Triumps Dusus Thrower seema Antil won the Title in the last chance.trail meet at the mac wilkins academy at portland, oregon,USA, on 16 June with athrow of 61.10 metres. Series Win For Srilanka Srilanka helped itself to a series win over pakistan in the final match ODI cricket series at the R.premadasa stadium, colombo on 18 June. Oudin Wins Maiden WTA Title American Nelanie Oudin defeated serbian Jelana Jankonic in straight sets to win her first Tennis WTA tour tittle,Bismingham on 18 June. Simpson Wins U.S. Open Webb Simpson of the united states came from four shots back to win the U.S.Open Golf on 17 June overtaking a bunch a big names to win his first major title. Thingalaya Rewrites His National Record Sidhanth Tingalaya clocked a national record of 13.65 in finishing second in the Belgium national championships in Brussels on 17 June but found himself 0.5 short of meeting the olympic qualification standard. Indian Hockey Goalkeeper DSouza Suspended For 1 Year Indian Hockey Goalkeeper Adrin DSouza was suspended on 18 June 2012 for his anti doping rule violation during World Series Hockey (WSH) tournament 2012.The sample was collected on 21 March 2012 after WSH match in between Mumbai Marines and Sher-E-Punjab at Jalandhar. He was the captain of Mumbai Marines. In the test, DSouza was tested positive for tetra hydrocannabinol (THC) Humpy Emerges Joint Winner Indias koneru Hamoy and Anna Muzychuk of sloveria shared the title in the FIDE womens grand Pix chess at Kazan, Russia on 22june .

Jwala -Diju Duo Crashes out Olympic -bound shuttlers G.Jwala & V. Diju on 22 June , crashed out of the singapore open super series their last torunment before London olympics. India Wins Kabaddi Gold Indian women won the gold in kabaddi by defeating Thailand in the final of the Third Asian Beach Games being held in Haiyang(china). Miami Heat Crowed Champion The King is celebrating his first coronation and the Miami Het is NBA champion again.Le BrongKing James collected a triple- double by scorinf 26 points and Miami heat sominated the visiting oklahoma city .Thunder on 21 June to win the championchip series 4-1. Double Title For Krishna Priya M.Krishna Priya of Lal Bahaddur stadium bagged a double,winning both in singles and doubles titles in the girls under-15 category of the Hyderabad district badminton championship at the Madhuranagar Indoor stadium,Hyderabad on 23 June 2012. Anaka, Kush Claim Titles Anaka Alankamony of India clinched the girls under-19 title in Asian Junior squash Championship in Kish Island on 23 June. Ankita Down Prerna For Maiden Title Ankita Raina played with Intensity and confidence to beat prerna Bhambri in the final of the ONGC $10,000 ITF womens tennis tournment at the DLTA complex,New Delhi on 23 June. Ferrer Is Champion Top-seeded david ferrer beeat unseeded philipp petzschner on 23 June to win the unicef open grass tournment for the second time . Alonso Wins Thrilled Ferraris Fernando Alonso won thrilling European grand pix valencia on 24 Jun e to become the first repeat winner of the season that had seen seven different winners from the seven previous races.

Saudi Women To Participate In 2012 Olympics Saudi Arabia will enter women athletes in the Olympics for the first time in London this summer , the kingdoms London embassy said.The ultra conservative Muslim nation in one of three countries which never included women in their Olympic teams along with Qatar & Brunei. Oscar Pistorius Attempts To Became The First Amputee runner to compete at Olympics Oscar Pistorius, born without fibulos and had his lower kegs amputated. He is a south African Athlete who attempts to became the first amputee runner to compete at the Olympic gaver.Pistorius, who has a personal best of 45.07,won the 100 metres,200 metres ,300 metres and 400 metres gold first amputee to compete at the athletics world championships where he ran in Daegu, south Korea last year.

ECONOMY Bihar Topped In Gross With 13.1 Percent Growth In 2012 State Domestic Product

Acoording to data released by Ministry of statistics of India on 1 June 2012, Bihar emerged as the state with highest economic growth rate in the country. No-Penality On Pre-Closure of Home Loan The reserve bank of India (RBI) on 5 June said that banks would not be permitted to charge force closure of charges/pre-payment penalities on home loans on floating interest rate basis,with immediate effect. CII Spells Out 10-Point Agenda For Economic Revival The confederation of Indian industry on 5 June announced a 10-poit agenda foe economic revival and out linked key areas of concern. points are -Cut repo rate by 100 basis points -Cut CRR by 100 bps -Alow accelerated depreciation for investmebts in plant & machinery. -25% weightted tax deduction on expenditure on companies going green. -Increase FDI limits in civil aviatioin and defence: allow FDI in multi brand retail. -provide interest subvention of 2% to export credit for six months . Clear 50 large projects in next 30 days .

-Announce clean plan for fiscal consolidation. Allow direct access to inporters to stockly items for their forex requirement. World Bank projected Indian Economy to grow by 6.9 Per Cent in the Financial Year 2012-13 The World Bank in its report named Global Economic Prospects released on 12 June 2012, projected Indian economy to grow by 6.9% in the financial year 2012-13. The World Bank report predicted Indias growth increasing to 6.9 per cent, 7.2 per cent and 7.4 per cent in fiscal years 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15, respectively. SBH Cuts Interest On Retail Loans By Upto 175 bps SBH has reduced interest rates on retail loans by upto 175 bps with effect from 17 June 2012 for housing loans, the interest rate was reduced by 25 points to 11-11.50 percent .which on car loans it would be 11.50 percent against exisiting 12.25 percent. SBI Cuts Lending Rates by 50-350 bps For Small Units, Farm Sector Countrys largest public sector lender SBI has cut lending rates any 50 to 350 bps for SMEs (Small & medium enterprises) and agricultural segments. Multi Level TDS on Software To Go From July 1 The Finance Ministry has done away the Tax deduction at source obligation at each of the software distribution chain a TDs level of 10 percent was applicable at each level of the software distribution chain.The TDs exemption would be available only when the software is acquired in subsequent transfer, without any modification.This could mean that the benefit of TDS exemption will not be available for un branded software (or) customized software. India Ranks 55th On Foreign Money In Swiss Banks Indians money in Swiss banks may have risen for the first time in five years, but they account for a meagre 0.14 per cent of total foreign wealth deposited there putting India at 55th place globally for such funds.The total overseas funds in Switzerlands banking system stood at 1.53 trillion Swiss francs (about Rs. 90 trillion) at the end of 2011, which included 2.18 billion Swiss francs (Rs. 12,700 crore) belonging to Indian individuals and entities.While India accounted for only 0.14 per cent of total foreign money in Swiss banks, the U.K. accounted for the largest share of little over 20 per cent, followed closely by the U.S. with about 18 per cent. SBI TO Risk Up To $2 b via Overseas Bond Sale

The country;s largest lender state bank of indi will raise up to $2 billion through an overseason bond sale ion the nect three months. Credit Rating Agency Fitch Downgraded Indias Credit Outlook Rating International credit rating agency Fitch revised the credit outlook of India to negativ e on 18 June 2012.The rating agency, however, maintained the Indias sovereign rating at BBB-.Fitch also downgraded the credit outlook of seven PSUs namely NTPC, SAIL, IOC, PFC, GAIL, REC and NHPC. The agency downgraded the credit outlook after considering a broad range of factors, such as, macro economic policy, economy, public finances. Negative credit rating means that over the next 12-24 months there is a possibility that Indias rating could be downgraded. 14 More services Come Under Tax- Exempt Negative List The Government on 20 June,Included 14 more services in the Negative list to exempt that from the payment of service tax under the new dispensation that will come into effect on July 1.Among the new services that would now be exempted from the negative list-bared system of tax on services are advocate providing services to entities with a turnover of up to Rs.10 lakh,companies engaged in construction of metro projects, law firms & entities provideing public conveniences. Moodys Cut Rating Of 15 Top Global Banks Rating agency Moodys downgrades 15 of the worlds biggest banks on 21 June lowering credit rating by one to three notches ti reflect the risk they faced from volatile capital market activists. Margan staley, Bank of America corp & citi group, Goldman sochs group, swizerlands central bank e.t.c are in this list. RBI Hiked Foreign Investment Limit In Government Bonds By 5Million Dollars In a moved aimed at arresting the unrelenting fall of Indian rupee,Indias central bank the Reserve Bank of India on 25 June 2012 hiked the limit of foreign investment in government bonds by 5 million dollar to 20 billion dollar.The bank also raised the limit of external commercial borrowing (ECB)to 10 billion dollar. E-Voting Made Mandatory By SEBI For Top 500 Listed Companies Of BSE ANSE The capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)on 26June 2012 made it mandatory for top 500 listed companies to hold e-voting with an objective ti widen share holder participation in key decisions.

Indias Fiscal Deficit For April -May Period Stood At 1.41 Lakh Core Rupees. As Per the latest data released ny the controller General of Accounts (CGA), indias fiscal deficit during the April- May, the first of the fiscal year 2012-13 stood at 1.41 lakh croer rupees,27%of the budget estimates. IRDA Fined 1.47 Crore Rupees On HDFC Life Insurance The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority(IRDA) on 28 June 2012 fined 1.47crore rupees on HDFC Life insurance against disobedience of number of regulatory provisions.It was the highest five on any insurer.IRDA tested HDFC Life Insurance from 26 July 2010 to 30 July 2010. Before HDFC Life, IRDA had dined on ICICI prudential Life Insurance of Rs.1.18 crore for violations that include paying agents and brokers commissions exceeding the permissible limits on May 2012.ICICI prudential penalty is the second highest impared penalty by the regulator after HDFC Life.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Scientists Successfully Sequenced The Genome of Tomoto Sciencetists at the tomoto genome consortium(TGM) successfully sequenced the genome of tomato.It took 7years for the scientists to creck the genome.It will increase the vegetables production world wide and decrease its price .Indian scientists were also the part of research. Pakistan Tests % 5th N-Capable Missle Pakistan on 5 June tested its fifth nuclear -capable Cruise missile with a 700 km range that can deliver a one -ton nuclear war head. Pakistan Test Fired Hatf-vII(Babur) Pakistan Test fired successfully the indigenously developed Hatf-vII(Babur) cruire missile on 15 June 2012.Earlier on 29May 2012 pakistan had successfully carried out the test of indegenously developed slort range surface to surface multi tube Missile Hatf IX(NASR)followed by the test of nuclear capable cruire missile HatfVIII(Raad)whose test was conducted on 31 May 2012. World IPv6 Launch Day Organized By Internet Society World IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) Launch Day held globally on 6 June 2012. All the major Internet Service Providers, networking equipment manufacturers and web

companies around the world came together on the occasion, to permanently enable IPv6 for their products and services. The day, organized by Internet Society, represents a major milestone in the global deployment of IPv6.World IPv6 Day 2012 was an event sponsored and organized by the Internet. The Solar Transit Of Venus Presented A Spectacular Show In The Space In a rare space event, Venus, the second closest planet from the sun, passed in front of the sun on 6 June 2012.The view at the time the Venus was crossing though the Sun was incredible, as a tiny black dot appeared on the solar surface.Venus is 100th of the diameter of the sun so while moving across from one side to the other, just a black spot placed over on the disc of the sun. The celestial phenomenon which repeats itself in more than 100 year, will now be rewitnessed only in 2117. Largest Database Of Martian Impact Craters A University of Colorado Boulder team recently finished counting, outlining and cataloguing 635,000 impact craters on Mars the single largest database ever compiled of impacts on a planet in our solar system. March 7 Solar Flare Is Strongest Eruption Yet The powerful March 7 flare, which earned a classification of X5.4 based on the peak intensity of its X-rays, is the strongest eruption so far observed by Fermis Large Area Telescope (LAT). China launched Its Fourth Human Spaceflight Shenzhou-9 Into Space China on 16 June 2012 launched its fourth human spaceflight Shenzhou-9 from the Jiuquan satellite launch centre in north-western Gansu state. The 30.3 feet long and 9.1 feet diameter, Shenzhou -9 spacecraft will conduct the first manned docking mission and set the foundation for Chinese plans to build a space station by 2020. China Sent Its First Woman Astronaut Liu Yang Into Space Shenzhou-9 space mission also holds significance as its crew members comprise three astronauts including Chinas first woman astronaut Liu Yang.Liu Yang, a cargo pilot in the Peoples Liberation Army air force, is the first Chinese female astronaut, who has been sent on the space mission. Aerial Microwave Machilipatnnam Radar Gauge Installed At Channel Mouth At

To predict cyclones and Tsunamis Aerial Microwave Radar Gauge was installed at channel mouth at Machilipatanm.Though a collabarative project jointly implemented by DMS-SVH college os engineering, is association with Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) abd National Institute of Ocean Graphy(NIO),Goa,Downward looking Aerial Microwave Radar Gauge was installed to measure accurate sea level.The sea level gets influenced by atmospheric pressure,wind etc. Following the depression there us a rise in the sea level.Under the Indo-Franch collaborative project of the ISRO, the NIO ,Goa has established a network of sea leve;; gauge across the Indian coast and islands. Scientists Create Bone From Fat Cell For the first time , scientists have developed new bone from fresh an purified fat stem cell. The new procedure carried out on an animal model, is also hoped to be applied to produce other tissuess, including heart,skin and castilage, a break through which they may say one day eliminate the need for painful bone grabts that use material taken from the patient. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species The red list of threatened species, prepares by the International union for conservation of nature (IUNC) has listed 132 species of plants and animals as critically Endangered, he most threatened category, from India. Indian Scientist gets U.S Patent For Cancer Treatment A Scientist hailing from Hyderabad and his colleagues have invented a system in which nano particles carrier the payload of anti cancer drug releases it only in the cancerous cells around.The cutting edge research done in the united states has been patented recently.The nano technologist Rao papineni their to correspondent on phone from U.S. German Research House For Research And Innovation To Be Launched in New Delhi The German research foundation (DFG) newdelhi will, on October 26 and 27, launch the German research house for research and innovation(DWIH) that will serve as a one stop for the Indian science community to know about research and science organizations in Germany and funding opportunities available to carry out research there.with their, India will become the 5th country to have the science house,U.S, Russia, Japan and BRazil already have such facilities.THe first German house was started in2009 in the U.S. Japan to Restart Of 2 N Reactors

Japan on June 16,2012 approved the resumption of nuclear power operations at two reactors despite mass public opposition, he first to come back on line after they were all shut down following the fukushima crisis .Prime minister Yoshihiko Noda announced the governments decision at a meeting with keep ministers, giving the goahead to two reactors operated by kansai Electrical Power co in western Japan. Scientists Grow New Vein from Girls Stem Cell For the first rime, Scientist led by an Indian origin researcher have successfully replaced a major blood vessel in a 10 year old girl with a vein grown in a lab using her own stem cells. The pioneering transplant, published in The lancet, marks a further advance in growing body parts in laboratory and offers hopes for patients who lack suitable veins for dialysis or bypass surgery.In the landmark research, a team from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden took a vein from a dead man, stripped of its own cells and then bathed in stem cells from girl, who was suffering from portal vein obstruction.There was a striking improvement in her transplantation. This is the future for tissue engineering where we can make tailor-made organs in the lab. India Installed Nuclear Submarine India has successfully installed nuclear reactor in the indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant on 17 June 2012 followed by trails. With the launched of INS arihant, India has already joined the league of those six nations who operate nuclear submarines US, Russia ,china ,France and Britain. India has , for the firsts time, built a miniature nuclear reactor.

AWARDS & HONOURS 19 NRIs honourned With Light Of India Awards Columbia University professor and economist Jagdish Bhagwati and noted author anitav ghosh are among 19 persons winning the Light of India awards recognizing excellence and exemplary achievement of Indians living abroad. PetroFed Awards for 2011 The annual PetroFed Oil & Gas Industry Awards for 2011 for excellence in performance in various categories were presented by the Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas, S Jaipal Reddy here on 8June 2012. The awards for performance during fiscal 2010-11 were in 11 categories. The leading PetroFed award winners were Indian Oil and ONGC. Indian Oil bagged the Leading Oil & Gas Corporate of the Year award,the Oil & Gas Marketing Company of the Year award and the one forProject Management . ONGC won the awards for Human Resources

Management, Environmental Sustainability and the Innovator of the Year award by their team. IIFA Awards 2012 13th IIFA Awards 2012 schedule from 7th Jun to 9th Jun, 2012 as held in the beautiful city of Singapore . The list of winners has just been announced and as expected, Ranbir Kapoor and Vidya Balan have once again won the Best Actor and Best Actress award respectively. The Best movie and director too have been predictable this year, as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, which swept the IIFA 2012 technical awards, has won in both categories. Winners of IIFA Awards 2012 Best Actor Ranbir Kapoor (Rockstar) Best Actress Vidya Balan (The Dirty Picture) Best Movie Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara Best Director Zoya Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara) Best Story Zoya Akhtar and Reema Katgi (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara) Best Music A R Rahman ( Rockstar) Sachin Tendulkar Honoured By Wisden India Sachin Tendulkar won Wisden India maiden Outstanding Achievement award for completing a century of 100 international hundreds, in Dubai on 11 June 2012. he is the first recipent of the Wisden India Outstanding Achievement award.The legendary batsman was presented a trophy at an event organised by FidelisWorld. The trophy was made from crystal, it resembles a cricket ball resting on the open pages of a book. Israeli Micro-Irrigation Innovation Wins World Food Prize This years winner of world Food Prize(WFP)in israeli scientist Daniel Hillel has pioneered a method of bringing water to crops in arid and dry-land regions.Dr.Hillel was gven the prestigeous award, established in 1987 by NObel Peace Prize winner Noruran Borlaug. Ogilvy Mumbai Wins Effie Award Ogilvy Mumbai has been declares the most effective Agency office Globally, in the 2012 Effie effectiveness Index at the Cannes advertising festival currently being held in France.At the same time Vodafone & Ogilvy has also won bronze in the Direct Lions category for I FOLD Vodafone India saving paper. The Index was launched in June last year and is led by Effie world wide.This gives Ranks the marketing communication Industrys most effective agencies. advertisers, and brands by analysis finalist and winner data from Effie world wide competitions.

R.K.Pachauri Gets Mexican Honour The Director General of the energy and Resources Institute(TERI) Dr.R.K.Pachauri, has been conferred the Mexican order of the Aztec Eagle by the Mexican president, during the G-20 summit in Los Cabos.He was honoured along with MS.Margaret chan, Director General of the world health organization. Yarlagadda Presented Award For Promoting Hindi Chairman of Andhra Pradesh Hindi Academy Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad was honoures with Ganga sharan Singh Award by President Pratibha singh patil in New Delhi on 20 June 2012.The President also gave away the award,instituted by centers kendriya Hindi Santhan,at a gli-hering ceremony at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan to Girish karnad,Shyam Benagal and Madhur Bahndarkar,among others their contribution to the promotion of the national language ITC Bags Award For BIZ Development Diversified Business firm ITC ltd on 21 June said it has received the 2012 World Business & Development Award at the on going Rio+20 united nations summit in Brazil.The award has been given for the transformational rural initiatives in social & farm forestry programmes in India , undertaken by the company. Kolkata Solar Physicist Wins Prestigious US Prize Dibyendu Nandi of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata has been awarded the prestigious Karen Harvey Prize for 2012 by the American Astronomical Society (AAS).The first scientist from the Asia Pacific to get the prize, Nandy was awarded for his advances in the use of kinematic dynamo models to elucidate the typical and atypical solar cycle, and for his outstanding leadership within the solar physics and space climate communities. G20 Challenge Award for Medicare Initiative The Apollo Hospitals Group initiative to provide quality tertiary health care in semi urban and rural areas has won the G20 challenge on Inclusive Business Innovation Ratan Tata Gets LifeTime Achievement Award b the Prestigious Rockefeller Foundation Tata sons chairman,Ratan Tata, has been awarded a lifetime Achievement Award by the Rockfeller Foundationa in New York for his innovation in philonthropy.The foundation, celebrating 100 years of global innovation, honoured individuals and institutiona with in second annual innovation wasrds on 26 June 2012 .Last years

receipient of the Roche feller foundations Life time Achievement Award was former US president Bill Clinton. Tata Power Jojobera Unit Wins Award Tata powers Jojobera thermal power station at Jamshedpur in Jharkhand won the golden peacock environment Management award for 2012 . The award will be presented in New Delhi during the 14th world congress on environment Management on 7-8 July. City Firm Bags Global Packaging Awards Ecoblis, a Hyderabad based firm engaged in making innovative packaging products, bagged three awards at the international packaging excellence awards competition held in Croatia. The jury consisted of 33 country representatives and a representative from the international packaging press organization Entrepreneur Of The Year Award 2012 K.Ravi, Managing director,NCL industries , has won the Hyderabad Management AssociationsEntrepreneur of the year award 2012. Civil supplier minister D.sridhar babu presented the award to him at a function organized by the HMA here.A Hyderabad based company,NCL induction in engaged in the manufacture of cement, ready concrete, cement particle board etc. Life Time Achievement Award Eminent Write Ruskin Bond, renowned Sarod exponent Ustad Amjad Ali khan and noted classical singer Girija Devi were conferred Life Time Achievement Awards for the year 2011 -2012 by Delhi government at a function in New Delhi on June 22,2012. Eklavya Award The Government of Gujarat of June 5,2012 presented Eklavya Award of the year 2010-11 to Indian Cricketer Yusuf Pathan in Vododara. Munaf patel also received the award. Eklavya Award is highest award resented by Gujarat Government in the area id sports. Both recipients received cheque of Rs.1 lakh and a trophy. Benjamin Franklin Award US based India chief Vikas Khannas cookbook is among the winners of Americas prestigious Benjamin Franklin Awards on June 7,2012 , Pakistani civil servant Irfan Hussain also received the award for his book Fatal Faultlines in Politics and current

affairs category while vikas khannas book was Flavours First: An Indian Chefs Culinary Journey. International Peace Award Two India human rights activists Binayak sen and Bulu Imam will be honoured with the International peace Award given by Gandhi Foundation at the House of Lords. The award was instituted in 1998 by Suruv Hoda and Diana Schumacher with support of the foundations President Lord Attenborough. Common Wealth Literary Prize Writers from Srilanka and New Aealand on June 8,2012 won the common wealth Foundations literary Prizes for 2012.shehan karunatilaka from srilanka picked up the common wealth short story prize was won by Newzealnda Emma Martin for Two Girls in a Boat. USIBC Leader ship Award The chairman and Managing Director of Mahindra & Mahindra , Anand Mahindra received the UDIBC leadership award along with Fors Motor President and CEO, Alan Mulally on June 12, 2012 at the 37th Annual gala of the US India Business council. USIBs is the largest bilateral trade organization based in Washington and Premier business advocacy organization advancing the US- India commercial and trade ties.

PERSONS IN NEWS A) Appointments Arup Raha Takes Over As IAFs Western Command Chief Air Marchal Arup Raha, an ace combat pilot, on 1st june took over as the chief of Delhi based western Air command. Dinesh Kumar Mehrotra Appointed as LIC chairman Dinesh kumar mehrotra has taken over as the chairman of the countrys loges t insurer.Life Insurance corporation of India on 1 june 2012. Sachin Tendulkar Takes Oath As Rajyasabha MP

Master blaster sachin Tendulkar started his new innings on 4 June taking oath as Rjya sabha member in the chambers of RS chairperson and vice-president Hamid Ansari. Sachin is the first active sports person and cricketer to have been nominated to the Rajya sabha under the prominent Quota. D.K.Joshi-Next Navy Chief Vice admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi,flag officer commanding-in-chief(Foc-in-C)of the Western naval command will be the next cheif of the navy.Vice admiral Nirmal retire on 31 August.D.K Joshi will hold the post for 3years. R.N.choubey Is The New Head Of DGH The centre has appointed Rajiv Naraya Choubey, a senior bureaucrat,Mr.Chobey ,a 1981 batch DAS officer of Tamilnadu cadre will be the first bureaucrat to head the highly Technical arm of the oil Ministry .Which has been marred by control versies in the past few years. Sampath Appointed As New CEC(cheif election commissions) Senior most Election commissioner veeravalli sundaram sampath was appointed as the chief election commissioner.He replaces S.Y.Qureshi,who retire on June 10,2012.He will carryout his term till June 16,2015-either for six years in the commission or till age of 65 which ever comer earlier. Dr K.C. Chakrabarty Has Re-Appointed As Governor Of RBI The central government, on 13 June appointed Dr K.C. Chakrabarty as deputy governor of RBI, for a further period of 3 months beyond June 14,2012,or until further orders,which ever is earlier .the RBI said in a release. Mr.Chakrabarty was appointed as Deputy governor in 2009 for 3 years and took charge as deputy governor of RBI on June 15,2009,it added. Fatou Bensouda Appointed As The Chief Prosecutor Of The International Criminal Court Gambian lawyer Fatou Bensouda was sworn in on 15 June 2012 as the International Criminal Courts new chief prosecutor. Bensouda was elected at the latest session of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute (ASP) in December 2011 for a nine-year term. Indian-American Appointed To Top Yale Position

The prestigious Yale University on Sunday announced the appointment of IndianAmerican academician Anjani Jain to a top university position.Beginning July 1, 2012 Mr. Jain will join the Yale School of Management (SOM) as senior associate dean for the full-time MBA programme.Mr. Jain has served in multiple leadership roles at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, including 10 years as vice dean of its full-time MBA programme.His appointment comes at a time of important expansion and opportunity for Yale SOM. Alok Misra Is IBA Chairman The Indian Bank Association(IBA), on 18 June said Bank of India chairman and Managing director Alok Misra has been elected of the bankers body for the current fiscal. Sekhar Basu Taken Charge On BARC Director Sekhar Basu,who played a key role in the development of atomic reactor for indias indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant, on 19 June took charge as director of Bhabha Atomic Reasearch Centre(BARC).Mr.Basu succeeds R.K.Simha, who has been elevated as chairman of the Atomic energy commission and secretorydepartment of Atomic energy in May. New MD For Sony India Japanese electronics major Sony , on 20 June, announced the appointment of Kenishiro Hibi as Managing Director with effect from July 1 for India operations. Harish Bhat Is New CEO Of Tata Global Harish Bhat has been appointed as chief executive officer and managing Director of the company. He will take over from percy poria, who returns on June 30,2012 FAI Souths New Chairman K.Rahul Rahu, managing director of Nagarjuna fertilizers and chemicals Ltd, has been unanimously elected chairman of fertilizer Association of India(FAI) southern Regional committee for the year 2012-13. Pakistan gets Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as its Deputy Prime Minister haudhry Pervaiz Elahi, a top leader of the ruling PPPs key ally PML-Q, has been appointed as Pakistans Deputy Prime Minister. Isaac Takes Over as ICC Chief

Sharad Powers reign as the president of the International cricket council(ICC) ended on 28 June as Newzealander Alan Isaac took charge from him for a two-year-term at the ICC annual conference . The 60 Year old Isaac, a former New zealand cricket chief, became the eight president of the ICC, while former South Africa wicketkeeper David Richardson was confirmed as the new chief executive of the world body,taking over from country man Haroon Lorgat. Neeraj Kumar Was Appointed As The New Commission Of Delhi Police Neeraj Kumar, the 1976 batch Indian police service(IPS) officer, was appointed as the new commissioner of Delhi police on 28 June 2012 . Neeraj Kumar will succeed B.K.Gupta who is getting his tenure as the Delhi police commissioner completed on 30 June 2012. Neeraj Kumar, who is servicing as the Director General of Tihar jail, will assume the new charge on 1July 2012. US Appoints Envoy To Myanmar For the first time in 22 years, the US has appointed its ambassador to Myanmar as part of efforts to upgrade ties with the country which has launched a slew of democratic reforms after five decades of authoritarian rule. The appointment of veteran diplomat Derek Mitchell, who was till now the Special US Representative and Policy Coordinator for Myanmar, was confirmed by the Senate on 29 June 2012 and he is expected to leave for that country soon. V. K . Duggal appointed as member of NDMA Former Union home secretary V.K Duggal has been appointed as one of the members of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on June 21 2012 . Shreyans Kumar Jain headed the WANO Shreyans Kumar Jain, Former chief of (NPCIL) has been elected as head of Tokyo centre of world Associations Nuclear operators (WANO). Jean Marc Ayrault PM of France Frances President Francois Hollande reappointed ,Prime Minister Jean Marc Ayrault on June 18,2012 . Who resigned earlier. Hollandes socialist party won the absolute majority in French , Parliamentary elections. R.K .Singh appointed as the chairman of NHAI

R.K. Singh has been appointed as regular chairman of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) on June 11, 2012 . The position for the full time chairman at NHAI fell vacant in August 2012 after the retirement of Brijeshwar singh. Rupak Kumar Dutta appointed as aditional director of CBI Rupak Kumar Dutta has been appointed as the additional Director in the central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) on June 11,2012, He had previously held several posts in CBI from 1988 to 96 and 2000 to 2006. Gokul Chandra Pati Gokul Chandra pati has been appointed as officer of Animal Husbandary,Darirying and Fisheries. He will replace Rudhra Gangadharan as new secretary, who reties , on June 30 2012. Shiv RamKrishna Rajan Indian Scientist, Shiv Ram kirshna Rajan, has been appointed as member of the United Nations Commission on limits of the Continental Shelf(CLCS). He was the representative of India for CLCS elections. His tenure ends in 2017. Madan Bhimrao Lokur Justice Madan Bhimrao Lokur sworn in as a Judge of the Supreme Court on June 4,2012, Prior to this, Lokur was chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court. Indian American appointed to Key Texas board A prominent Indian American community leader has been appointed to a key body of engineering professionals in Texas. Texas Governor Rick Perry appointed sockalingam sam Kannappan and Edward to the Texas board of Professional engineers for terms to expire in September 26,2017. B) Resigns Commerce Secretary Resigns John E. Bryson announced his resignation as President Obamas commerce secretary on 21 June 2012, citing medical reasons after an episode in which he had a seizure and was involved in a sequence of car crashes. Virbhadra Singh Resigns

Union Minister for micro,small and medium enterprises resigned in 26 June 2012 after a Himachal Pradesh court framed corruption charges against him.The president, as advised by the PM, has accepted the resignation of Virbhadra singh from the union council of Ministers,with immediate effect. Pranab Quits As Finance Minister Finance Minister Pranab Mukharjee resigned on 26 June as he has been elected as the presidential candidate by congress government. Manmohan singh took charge of the finance ministry until a cabinet reshuffle is effected after the presidential election. C)Deaths A.V.S Reddy Passes Away A.V.s reddy retired IAS officer and former state election commissioner, who earned kudos for his rescue and relief work during the 1977 diviseema cyclone, passed away after a brief illness Hyderabad on June 4 2012. Ex-Director Of Institute Of Astrophysics Passes Away The former Director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics(IIA) J.C.Bhattacharya, passed away in the New Delhi on 4 June after prolonged illness. First Women To Win Nobel In Economics Died Indiana University professor Elinor Ostrom, the first and only woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences,died on 13 June due to cancer.she was 78 years old . Legendary Cuban Boxer Teofilo Stevensan Died At The Age Of 60 Legendary Cuban Boxer Teofilo Stevensan Died of heart attack on 13 June 2012 at the age of 60. stebenson,won his first gold at the 1972 Munich games,and went on to win two more golds at the 1976 Montreal and 1980 Moscow games,ruled the game for nearly 14 years.He was the first fighter to win the olympic gold medal in the same division three times. Ghazal King Mehdi Hassam Passes Away Indian born Ghazal legend Mehdi hassan, the melodian voice behind evergreen hits like ,patta patta,boota boota and kabke bichare,died on 13 June following multiple organ failure at the age of 84.

Saudi Crown Prince Nayef Dies Crown Prince Nayef, the hardline interior minister who spearheaded Saudi Arabias fierce crackdown crushing Al Qaedas branch in the country after the 9/11 attacks in the United States and then rose to become next in line to the throne, has died. He was in his late 70s. Former RS Member Dipankar Mukherjee Passes Away Dipankar Mukherjee, an engineer- turned-trade unionist and former Rajya Sabha member, died at a hospital on 18 June morning after battling pancreatic cancer. Mukherjee, 69, a former CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member from West Bengal and a senior leader of the CITU. NIA Chief Radha Vinod Raju Passes Away Radha Vinod Raju, founding Director-General of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and key member of the special investigation team which probed Rajiv Gandhi assassination, died in Kochi on 21 June 2012. Abid Hussain Dead Abid Hussain who was among those who helped break mental barrier after the end of the cold war,passed away in London on 21 June morning after a massive heart attack, He was 85 years old.The normal career progression of an Indian Administrative service(IAS) cadre office.which wound up in the commerce Ministry, Dr.Hussain was one of the key persons who set ball rolling for Indias economic liberalization. Roy Burman Passes Away Renowned anthropologist and social scientist B.K.Raoy Burman 90 passed away.New delhi on 26 June morining .A former visiting professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University and professor of visva Bharathi University and Ex-officio Director of the council of social Developement, prof.Burman also served as a visiting senior fellow at the centre for the study developing societies. Radha Vinod Raju Radha Vinod Rahu, founder director general of the national Investigation Agency(NIA) and a police official renowned as one of the best in India, passed away on June 21,2012. He had undertaken several challenging assignments including the investigation into the 1999 hijack of an Indian Airlines plane to kandahar. Balu Sankaran

Renowned orthopedic surgeon , Balu sankaran , who was formerly Director General of Health Services and Director of the WHO (191-87) in Geneva passed away on June 20,2012. He was also honoured with Padam sri in 1972 and Padma Vibhushan in 2007. Author Ray Bradury Science fiction author Ray Bradhury, famous for books such as Fahrenheit 451, passed away at the age of 91 on June 5, 2012. Bradhury broke through in 1950 with The Martian Chronicles destroying an idyllic martian civilization prophesied the banning of books, especially works of fantasy, a theme Bradbury would take on fully in the 1953 release, fahrenheit451. G K Kumaravel G K Kuamaravel, a senior scientist involved in the development of arjun main battle tank,died in an accident in Rajastahan on June 11, 2012. Kumaravel was head of the Arjun Main battle Tank(MBT) Mark 1 and 2 programmes at the cambat vehicles Research Development Establishment (CVRDE), avadi. He was on his way to Pokhran to participate in user trials of Arjun MBT Mark-2 when the accident occurred . D) Visitors U.S Defence Secretary Leon Pnetta Visited India U.S defense secretary Leon Pnetta arrived india on a two-day visit on 5 june 2012.The visit was aimed at strengthening bilateral strategic and defence cooperation between the two nations,discuss chinas growing assertiveness,especially in the contentions south china sea,and the volatile Af-Pak region. PM Manmohan Singh departed For G-20, Rio+20 summits Singh attended the seventh summit of the Group of 20 developed and developing countries (G-20) started in the Mexican resort town of Los Cabos on June 18 and the Rio+20 Summit in Rio De Janeiro. Australian high commissioner Visits Uttar Pradesh Australian High Commissioner Peter Varghese on 22 June paid a courtesy visit to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and expressed interest in cooperation and technology transfer between his country and the state for river cleaning, energy sector and agriculture. PM Manmohan Singh Visits Pretoria

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived on 22 June midnight a visit to Mexico and Brazil for attending two international summits.He was on overnight stay in this South African city before leaving for New Delhi on 24 June. E)Miscellaneous Britain Marks Diamond Jubliee Of Queen Elizabeth-II Britain on 2 June kicks off four days of celebrations to mark Queen ElizabethIIs Diamond Jubilee, including a 1000-bad river pageant and a star-studded concert.These celebrations were held at Thames in London.The most spectacular nautical parade in 350 years, the pagenant wasthe centre piece of 4 day diamond jubilee. Worlds Oldest Pearl Discovered In UAE The Oldest Pearl in history which dates back to the Neolithic age. some 7,500 years old -has been found in the UAE.The French National Center for Scientific Reasearch has announced that gems believed that the oldest pearl known goes back to 3000 BC. and was found at an antiquity site in Japan. Climbs Worlds 14 Tallest Peaks A Japanese Mountaineer who was nearly killed by an avalanche in 2007 finished a climb in Nepal last month that made him countreys first person to scale the worlds 14 tallest mountains. Hisotoka Takeuchi said on 11 June in kathmandu tops 14 peaks including everest,k2 and kanchanjanga are in the Himalaya or kara koram ranges od Asia . He is the 30th person to climb all 14 and first climber from Japan. Class IX Bengaluru Girl Wins Indian Spell Bee Belligerent was one of the words that samvida venkatesh spelt right at the Indian Spell Bees grand finale.THe class IX student from Bengaluru won the HDFC life Spell Bee- India spells 2012, poweres by the Times of India, in association with Horlicks. Across The Niagara Falls On A Tightrope Daredevil Nik Wallenda completes historic high-wire walk, braving blustering winds, heavy spray A daredevil American, Nik Wallenda, became first person in the world to walk on a tightrope across the roaring Niagara Falls, separating U.S. and Canada. Chenab Rail Bridge Promises To Be An Engineering Wonder

The worlds highest rail bridge being constructed over chenab river in Jammu & Kashmirs Reasi district will be ready by December 2015 coming up at kauri, it will be 359metres above the river bed 5 times the height of QutubMinar and 35 metres taller than Eiffel Tower. Erotic Books Beats Potter Record An erotic book dubbed as mummy porn has beaten the J.K Rowling authores Harry potters record in the U.K book sales chart, becoming fastest selling paper back of al time in just one week.The nook Fifty Shades of Grey has became the fatest sell ing paper back since records began. Erika Mitchell, who writes with the pen name EL James beat Rowling and Davinci code author Dan Brown. Global Second Warmest May On Record The Globally averaged temperature for May 2012 marked the second warmest May since 1880.The temperatures were measured over global land and ocean surfaces.

PLACES IN NEWS A 5.6 Magnitude Earthquake Stuck Off Indonesias Sumatra Island On June 4 5.6 Magnitude earth quake strikes Indonesias most populated western Java at a depth of 67 kilometers. Costa Rica Is The Happiest Place On Earth In the Economics Foundations Happy planet Index , cost Rica, The central American country was listed as worlds number one happiest place on earth. Costa Rica.means Rich coast,is a popular ecotourism destination known for its beautiful beaches ,rain forests and diverse plants and wildlife.The next happiest places are vietnam and colombia. CMs Office Gutted In Mantralaya fire A devastating fire in the Maharashtra government secretariat, including offices of the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister, on 21 June . left two persons dead and 16 injured and destroyed large number of files, raising questions on whether any sabotage was the cause.

COMMITTEES Committee Recommends Just Five Mouzas GJM Threatens To Re-launch Agitation Darjeeling is likely to be violent again as the high-power committee set up by Mamata Banerjee has recommended inclusion of just five mouzas under the proposed Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) sabha against Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM)s demand for inclusion of 398 mouzas.high-power committee headed by retired justice Shyamal Sen and said that the committee has recommended inclusion of three mouzas from Darjeeling district and two from Jalpaiguri district into the proposed GTA Sabha.

BOOKS IN NEWS A Book Released on L.K.Advani BJP National president Nitin Gadkari and Leader of opposition in Lok sabha Sushma swaraj released the book Those were the Day and then-The Life & Times of Lal Krishna Advani written by Mira Govind Advani(R) in New Delhi on June 12, 2012. APJ Abdul Kalams New Book Turning Points kalams sequel to his bestseller Wings of fire gives a picture of his uneasy relationship with UPA government from May 2004, till his term as president expired in July 2007. The book,published by Hapercollins is yet to be released .Turning points takes up the incredible kalam story from where wings of fire left off. It brings together details from his career and presidency that are generally kn own as he speaks for the first time on certain points of controversy. turning point:A Journey through challenges.

Abbrevations IAC DMSS CII PNGRB International AIDS conference Durban mahila Samnway Samiti Confederation of Indian Industry The petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board

IIA UNEP CITU

Indian Institute of Astrophysics United nations for conservation of Nature Centre of Indian Trade Union

INCACBI Indian Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel ESI WEP UEFA Environmental sustainability Index World Food Prize Union of European Foot ball Association