Exclusive Current Affairs Tonic (Part-II) for Syndicate ... · PDF fileAccording to latest All India Higher Education Survey ... India’s fastest supercomputer, Pratyush unveiled

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Exclusive Current Affairs Tonic (Part-II)

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RANKING & REPORTS

India becomes third largest producer of crude steel

According to the report published by World Steel Association (WSA), India has overtaken US to become the world’s

third largest steel producer in 2017.

China has remained world leader by producing 831.7 MT in 2017 followed by Japan.

World Steel Association (WSA), headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, is a non-profit organisation and one of the largest

industry associations in world.

India 6th wealthiest country in the world

According to a report by New World Wealth, India ranked sixth in the list of wealthiest countries with total wealth of

USD 8,230 billion, while the United States topped the chart.

China ranked second with USD 24,803 billion and Japan with USD 19,522 billion at third.

The report further noted that India was the best performing wealth market globally in 2017.

The report further noted that India, is home to 3,30,400 HNWIs and ranked 9th in this aspect globally while US topped.

India is also home to 20,730 multi-millionaires, 7th largest in the world.

India ranked 177 in Environmental Performance Index (EPI)

India has been ranked 177 among 180 countries in the 2018 Environmental Performance Index (EPI).

Environmental Performance Index (EPI) has been developed by Yale University and Columbia University in

collaboration with the World Economic Forum and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission.

Switzerland topped the list followed by France, Denmark, Malta and Sweden.

India ranked 81 on Global Index of Talent Competitiveness

India has been ranked 81 among 118 countries in 2017 Global index of talent competitiveness (GTI) list.

The index is released by global business school, INSEAD in partnership with Adecco Group and Human Capital

Leadership Institute (HCLI) of Singapore. Switzerland topped the list followed by Singapore and US.

India ranked 62nd in Inclusive Development Index (IDI-2018)

India ranked 62nd among emerging economies on an Inclusive Development Index (IDI-2018) released by World

Economic Forum (WEF). Norway remains the world’s most inclusive advanced economy, while Lithuania again tops the

list of emerging economies.

Govt launches Liveability Index to rate 116 Indian cities

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban affairs (MoHUA) has launched the Liveability index to rate 116 Indian cities.

It will be funded by the World Bank and ranking of these cities is expected to be ready by June 2018.

Gujarat tops logistics performance index chart

Gujarat has topped in the Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS) index, a perception-based index of mobility of

goods and efficiency of logistics chain, closely followed by Punjab and Andhra Pradesh.

Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS) index developed by the commerce and industry ministry along with

Deloitte.

HRD Ministry releases All India Higher Education Survey

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According to latest All India Higher Education Survey (AIHES), released by HRD Ministry, the Gross Enrolment Ratio

(GER) in higher education of Indian has registered an increase from 24.5% in 2015-16 to 25.2% in 2016-17.

The survey findings were based on responses of 795 universities, 34,193 colleges and 7,496 standalone institutions.

India is aiming to attain GER of 30% by 2020. Six states have registered GER higher than national average (25.2%).

Tamil Nadu with GER 46.9% leads the list followed by Himachal Pradesh (36.7%), Kerala (34.2%), Andhra Pradesh

(32.4%), Haryana (29%) and Punjab (28.6%).

Bihar has lowest GER with just 14.4% of its eligible population (in age group of 18 to 23 years) pursuing higher

education. India registered its best performance on the GPI in last seven years - 0.94 in 2016-17 from 0.86 in 2010-11.

India’s fastest supercomputer, Pratyush unveiled

India’s fastest and first multi-petaflops (PF) supercomputer named Pratyush was unveiled at Pune-based Indian Institute

of Tropical Meteorology (IITM). The supercomputer has been named as ‘Pratyush’ meaning Sun.

Pratyush is the fourth fastest supercomputer in the world dedicated for weather and climate research, and follows

machines in Japan, USA and the United Kingdom.

Pratyush has 6.8 PF computational power installed at two Govt Institutes. 4.0 Peta Flops HPC facility at IITM, Pune and

2.8 Peta Flops facility at NCMRWF, Noida. Peta Flops is a measure of a computer’s processing speed.

One petaflop is a million billion floating point operations per second and is a reflection of the computing capacity of a

system.

Governors’ committee submits report to President Kovind

The committee of governors submitted a report, titled ‘Rajyapal —Vikas Ke Rajdoot: Catalytic Role of Governors as

Agents for Change in Society’ on best practices to President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The five-member committee, which oversaw the drafting of the report, included ESL Narasimhan, governor of Andhra

Pradesh and Telangana; Banwarilal Purohit, governor of Tamil Nadu; Ram Naik, governor of Uttar Pradesh; Tathagata

Roy, governor of Tripura, and Acharya Devvrat, governor of Himachal Pradesh.

Cristiano Ronaldo named 2017 Globe Soccer’s Best Player

Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has been named Globe Soccer’s Best Player for the year 2017.

Real Madrid was named best club of the year and Zinedine Zidane was best coach.

Salman Khan tops Forbes India Celebrity 100 list

Bollywood star Salman Khan topped the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list for the second consecutive year followed by

Shah Rukh Khan and Virat Kohli.

Priyanka Chopra is the only female celebrity featuring in the top 10 list.

India ranks 100th in Legatum Prosperity Index 2017

India ranked 100th among 149 countries on the list of prosperous countries released as part of The Legatum Prosperity

Index 2017. Legatum Prosperity Index is an annual ranking developed by the London-based Legatum Institute.

Economic Quality- 56th rank, Business Environment- 65th, Governance- 41st, Education- 99th, Health- 109th, Safety &

Security- 134th, Personal Freedom-100th, Social Capital- 82nd and Natural Environment- 139th.

India ranks 109th in mobile internet speed and 76th in broadband space

India ranked 109th out of 122 countries in Mobile internet speed and 76th out of 133 countries in broadband space in

Nov 2017 Speedtest Global Index (SGI), released by popular internet speed testing service provider Ookla.

Norway (average speed of 62.66Mbps) topped the list in mobile internet speed followed by Netherlands (53.01Mbps) and

Iceland (52.78Mbps). Average speed of mobile data networks in India is 8.80Mbps.

Singapore (153.85Mbps) topped the list in Home broadband Countries followed by Iceland (147.51Mbps), and Hong

Kong (133.94Mbps).

Maruti Suzuki replaces SBI as 6th most valuable Indian firm

India’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki became India’s sixth most valued firm, crossing India’s largest lender SBI.

Reliance Industries is the country’s most valued company with a market value of ₹5.8 trillion, followed by TCS, HDFC

Bank, ITC and Hindustan Unilever.

Indian-American senator Kamala Harris tops global thinkers list





Indian-American California senator Kamala Harris has topped the prestigious Foreign Policy magazine’s 2017 list of ’50

Leading Global Thinkers’.

Raj Shah becomes first Indian-American to hold press gaggle aboard Air Force One

Raj Shah who holds a key position in the White House, gaggled with reporters on board US Presidential chopper Air

Force One, becoming the first Indian-American to enjoy the privilege.

Unesco recognizes KumbhMela as India’s cultural heritage

The KumbhMela has been recognized by UNESCO as an “intangible cultural heritage of humanity”.

The KumbhMela, held in Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik, represents a syncretic set of rituals related to worship

and cleansing in holy rivers.

CCMB-IIRR develop low Glycemic Index rice

The Hyderabad based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in association with Indian Institute of Rice

Research (IIRR) has developed Improved Samba Masuri (ISM) variety rice with low Glycemic Index (GI).

Rice with low GI is considered suitable for people with diabetes.

Mukesh Ambani becomes Asia's richest person

Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambanion overtook China’s Hui Ka Yan to become Asia’s richest person with a

total wealth of $42.1 billion. Globally, he stood at the 14th spot on Forbes’ real time billionaire’s list.

Chanda Kochhar, Priyanka Chopra among world's most powerful women

Five Indian women, led by ICICI Bank Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director (CEO & MD) Chanda Kochhar,

have been featured on Forbes’ world’s 100 most powerful women list.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel topped the list, followed by UK Prime Minister Theresa May, Bill & Melinda

Gates Foundation Co-chair Melinda Gates, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, and General Motors CEO Mary Barra.

India ranks 51 on IMD Talent Rankings

India ranked 51st among 63 countries on the IMD Talent Rankings in terms of

ability to attract, develop and retain talent.

Switzerland topped the list followed by Denmark and Belgium.

India was ranked 62nd (on investment and development), 43rd (appeal) and

29th (readiness) in three main categories.

S&P keeps India rating unchanged with stable outlook

Standard & Poor Global Ratings retained its BBB rating for India’s sovereign

with a ‘stable’ outlook, belying expectations that it may take a cue from rival

Moody’s Investor Services which upgraded the country’s credit rating last week

for the first time in 13 years. A BBB- rating denotes the lowest investment grade

rating for bonds.

Forbes crowns Beyonce 2017 World's Highest-Paid Woman in Music

American singer Beyonce ($105 mn) has been named the highest-paid woman

in music in 2017 by the Forbes followed by Adele ($69 mn), Taylor Swift ($44

mn), Celine Dion ($42 mn) and Jennifer Lopez ($38 mn).

India Youth Development Index and Report 2017 released

Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports (Independent Charge) Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore released the India

Youth Development Index and Report 2017.

India Sixth Most Vulnerable Country Facing Extreme Weather Events

India is the sixth most vulnerable country in the world in terms of facing extreme weather events with Haiti, Zimbabwe,

Fiji, Sri Lanka and Vietnam taking top five positions in the fresh list of nations facing climate risk.

India slips to 7th position in business optimism ranking

India has slipped in 'business optimism' index to the 7th position in the Sept quarter, from the 2nd slot in the previous

July-Sept quater, showing clear signs of lag in the economy.

The index was topped by Indonesia, followed by Finland and Netherlands.

India topped with 20 medals in Commonwealth shooting championship

Indian Shooting Team finished the Commonwealth Shooting Championship with the top spot of 20 medals in 2017.

India slips 21 slots on WEF Gender Gap index 2017

India slipped 21 places on the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Gender Gap index to 108, behind neighbours

China and Bangladesh, primarily due to less participation of women in the economy and low wages.

Iceland topped the Global Gender Gap Index followed by Norway and Finland.

India ranks at 100 in World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2018

India ranked 100 in World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business (DB) Report 2018 titled as ‘Doing Business 2018: Reforming

to Create Jobs’ as a range of government reforms put in place over the past four years started delivering results.

India has jumped over 30 ranks to attain 100th spot from 130th position in 2017 Ease of Doing Business Index.





Its score also increased from 56.05 in 2017 to 60.76 in Doing Business 2018.

India ranks 75 in Global Passport Power Rank 2017

India’s passport was ranked 75th among 94 countries in recently released Global Passport Power Rank 2017.

Singapore’s passport with a visa-free score of 159 become the world’s most powerful passport, making it first Asian

country to top it.

APPROVALS & MoUs

Govt of India and ADB sign $250 Million Loan

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Govt of India signed a 250 million dollar loan to finance the construction

of 6,254 kilometres all-weather rural roads in the States of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and West

Bengal under the Prime Minister’s Rural Roads Program (PMGSY).

The First Tranche Loan is part of the 500 million dollar Second Rural Connectivity Investment Program for India

approved by the ADB Board in December 2017.

India, Cambodia ink 4 pacts

India and Cambodia have signed four agreements after comprehensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and

his Cambodian counterpart Samdech Hun Sen in New Delhi to boost bilateral cooperation between both countries.

Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP): It seeks to promote cultural exchange and strengthen the friendly

relations between both countries.

Credit Line Agreement signed between India’s EXIM Bank Government of Cambodia for Line of Credit (LoC)

to finance Stung Sva Hab Water Resource Development Project for US$ 36.92 million.

Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters

MoU on Cooperation for Prevention of Human Trafficking

India-Japan Smart Grid Pilot Project inaugurated in Panipat

India-Japan Smart Grid Pilot Project was inaugurated by State Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in the presence of

Japanese Minister Keniko Sen Panipat, Haryana to solve the various complications faced by the power distribution

sector.

India, Lao PDR sign civil aviation cooperation agreement

India and Lao PDR have signed civil aviation cooperation agreement for providing SkyRev360, a comprehensive e-data

gathering, invoicing and collectionsystem.

The agreement was signed between Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Lao Air Traffic Management, Department of

Civil Aviation.

India, Vietnam sign two MoUs

India and Vietnam have signed two Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) to enhance cooperation in field of

information and broadcasting and space cooperation.

MoU to enhance cooperation in field of information and broadcasting

MoU on space cooperation

Govt inks MoU with IL&FS

The Union Road Transport & Highways Ministry inked MoU with IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd. for construction

of the 14.150 km long, 2-lane bi-directional Zojila Tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir with the total capital cost of Rs. 6808 cr.

Zojila Tunnel would be India’s longest road tunnel and longest bi-directional tunnel in Asia.

On completion, the tunnel will provide all weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil and Leh.

Govt announces 4 new schemes

The union Govt has announced four new schemes to promote young scientists and researchers in the country.





The four new schemes are Teacher Associateship for Research Excellence (TARE) Scheme, Overseas Visiting Doctoral

Fellowship, Distinguished Investigator Award (DIA) and AWSAR (Augmenting Writing Skills for Articulating

Research).

ONGC to acquire Govt’s entire 51.11% stake in HPCL

The Union Govt and state-run oil explorer ONGC clinched deal for acquisition of govt’s 51.11% stake in Hindustan

Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) for a consideration of Rs. 36,915 crore. The panel headed by finance minister Arun

Jaitley had approved price bid for acquisition.

The all-cash deal will help govt boost its non-debt capital receipts and meet disinvestment target (Rs 72,500 crore).

AP sign sister-state agreement with Zurich canton

The Andhra Pradesh govt has entered into a sister-state agreement with the Canton of Zurich.

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich and is very strong in technology and

innovation.

Maharashtra Govt approved Rs 4,000-crore Nanaji Deshmukh Krishi Sanjivani Yojna

Maharashtra Govt approved Rs 4,000-crore Nanaji Deshmukh Krishi Sanjivani Yojna project to promote climate-

resilient agriculture. It will be implemented in 5,142 villages across 15 districts.

About 70% of the project’s cost will be borne by the World Bank while the state will contribute 30% over six years.

Centre, CII ink MoU

The Department of Commerce signed MoU with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for setting-up institutional

mechanism for the development of Logistics sector in the country.

The Centre has decided to reduce the logistics cost from current 14 percent of GDP to less than 10 percent by 2022.

Dept. of Commerce and CII ink MoU

The Department of Commerce has signed MoU with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for setting-up institutional

mechanism for the development of Logistics sector in the country.

The Union Government has decided to reduce Logistics cost in country from the present 14% of GDP to less than 10%

by 2022.

Punjab govt signed MoU with IOC

The Punjab government has signed an MoU with the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to set up bio-gas and bio-CNG plants

in the state. The plants will be set up at a total investment of Rs 5,000 crore.

Sikkim allows people to forge fraternal ties with trees

Sikkim Govt has allowed people from state to forge fraternal ties with trees.

In this regard, State Forests, Department has issued notification titled Sikkim Forest Tree (Amity & Reverence) Rules

2017. The Govt of Sikkim came up with a unique way of preserving trees by encouraging people to forge a relationship

of brotherhood or sisterhood with trees through a practice locally known as Mith/Mit or Mitini.

The Sikkim Forest Tree (Amity & Reverence) Rules also prohibit felling or damage to any tree registered as Mith/Mit or

Mitini, adopted or smriti and points out that any such violation shall be treated as a forest offence.

GCCI signed MoU with South Korea

The Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) signed an MoU with South Korea for Business co-operation

with a focus on automobile, defence and textiles sectors.

The MoU aims to help Gujarat-based Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to explore opportunities through joint

ventures with South Korean firms, especially in areas of automobile, defence and textiles.

India, Sri Lanka sign four agreements

India and Sri Lanka signed four agreements for collaboration in Information and communication technology (ICT) sector

between both countries.

The MoU was signed by Union minister for Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad with his Sri Lankan

counterpart in Colombo. Sri Lanka became first country to be connected to NKN through Gigabyte (GB) optical fibre

network.

IndianOil signs LoI with 2 Israeli firms

Indian Oil Corporation has signed Letters of Intent (LoI) with Phinergy, an Israeli start-up company, and YEDA, a

technology spin-off company from Weizmann Research Institute, Israel.

The agreement with Phinergy will allow Indian Oil to work on adoption of advanced energy systems for the Indian

market both for mobility and stationary industrial applications.

The Letter of Intent signed with YEDA (Weizmann Institute) will allow research collaboration between both the

organisations for developing solar to green fuel technologies through concentrated solar thermal route.

India, Israel sign 9 agreements

India and Israel signed nine agreements to boost cooperation in the areas of space, cyber security and oil and gas between

both countries. The agreements were signed between Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and his Israeli counterpart

Benjamin Netanyahu in New Delhi.





Netanyahu is the first Israeli Prime Minister to visit India in span of last 15 years and second one overall.

Ariel Sharon was first and only Israeli Prime Minister to visit India in 2003.

Agreement on Film-co-production

Protocol on Amendments to Air Transport Agreement

MoU on Cyber Security Cooperation between India and Israel

Memorandum of Intent (MoI) between Invest India and Invest in Israel

Medical Centre on Cooperation in field of Research in Homeopathic Medicine

Letter of Intent (LoU) between IOCL and Phinergy Ltd.

MoU between the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and the Mnistry of Energy on Cooperation in Oil and

Gas Sector

LoI between IOCL and Yeda Research and Development Co Ltd for cooperation in the area of concentrated

solar thermal technologies

MoU between Central Council for Research in Homeopathy, Ministry of AYUSH and Centre

MoU between Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and Technion-Israel Institute of

Technology for cooperation in field of space

India, UK ink MoUs

India and United Kingdom (UK) have signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) dealing with return of

Indians residing in Britain as illegal migrants and sharing of criminal records and intelligence.

MoU on return of illegal Indian migrants.

MoU on criminal records exchange.

Water Resources Ministry ink MoU with Bihar & Jharkhand

The Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation inked Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU) with Bihar and Jharkhand for completion of balance works of North Koel reservoir project.

The project is situated on North Koel river, tributary on Sone River. The project is scheduled to be completed in 30

months at the estimated cost of Rs. 1622.27 crores, of which Rs. 1013.11 crores will be borne by Union Govt.

60% will be financed by Central Govt from LTIF and remaining 40% of cost will be borne by the States through loan

financed by NABARD.

Umesh Sinha Committee for considering social media expansion

The Election Commission (EC) has constituted 14 member committee headed by Umesh Sinha to suggest changes to

Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RP Act) in view of social media expansion.

Section 126 of RP Act, 1951 prohibits displaying any election matter by means of television or similar apparatus, during

the period of 48 hours before the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency.

Govt notifies the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2017

The govt has notified the Companies (Amendment) Act 2017, which is set to ease the implementation of the Insolvency

and Bankruptcy Code 2016. The Amendment Act amended some provisions of Companies Act, 2013.

Currently, Section 53 of the Companies Act 2013 prohibits the issuance of shares at a discount, something the new Act

has changed.

Similarly, Section 197 of the Companies Act 2013 requires the approval of the company in a general meeting for the

payment of managerial remuneration in excess of 11% of the net profits.

Section 247 of the Companies Act 2013 prohibits a registered valuer from undertaking valuation of assets in which he

has a direct or indirect interest.

Indian Navy signs MoU with Cochin Port Trust

The Indian Navy has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Cochin Port Trust (CPT) towards leasing

of 228 metres of berths, Q2 and Q3 at Mattancherry Wharf for a period of five years.

This is the first time such an agreement has been signed between the Navy and CPT.

Lok Sabha passes Bill to hike salaries of judges

The Lok Sabha has passed High Court and Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Amendment Bill,

2017 to hike the salaries of judges of the Supreme Court (SC) and High Courts (HCs).

The Bill will amend HC Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Act, 1954 and SC Judges (Salaries and Conditions

of Service) Act, 1958.

It proposes to hike the salary of Chief Justice of India (CJI) to Rs.2.80 lakh a month and that of judges of Supreme

Court and Chief Justices of High Courts to Rs. 2.5 lakh a month.

It increases salary of Judges of High Courts to Rs.2.25 lakh a month. The salary hike will come into force with effect

from Jan 01, 2016.

Railways, HRD and S&T Ministry ink MoU

Three Ministries of India viz. Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) and Ministry of

Science & Technology have signed an MoU for joint funding of Technology Mission for Indian Railways (TMIR).





The percentage division of the funding between the three ministries for Technology Mission for Indian Railways’ is

Ministry of Railways: 30%, Ministry of HRD: 25% and Department of Science & Technology: 25%.

Under the MoU, Ministry of HRD and Ministry of S&T have agreed to fund TMIR projects to the tune of Rs 75 cr each

while Railways and Industries would also be contributing to their respective shares.

Namami Gange projects worth Rs. 295 crore approved by NMCG

National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved five projects worth Rs. 295.01 crore.

Three projects pertain to sewage management in West Bengal at an estimated cost of Rs 278.6 crore, one relates to

sewage management in Uttarakhand at an estimated cost of Rs 4.68 crore and one project worth Rs 11.73 crore is related

to ghat improvement works in Varanasi.

Parliament passes NABARD (Amendment) Bill, 2017

The Parliament has passed the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD Amendment) Bill,

2017 with the approval of Rajya Sabha. The Bill seeks to amend National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development

(NABARD) Act, 1981.

The Bill allows Union Govt to increase capital of NABARD from Rs. 5000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore.

Further, it allows Union Govt to increase the capital more than Rs 30,000 crore in consultation with the Reserve Bank of

India (RBI), if necessary. The Bill provides that Union Govt alone must hold at least 51% capital share of NABARD.

Currently, RBI holds 0.4% of paid-up capital of NABARD and remaining 99.6% is held by Union govt and this causes

conflict in RBI’s role as banking regulator and shareholder in NABARD.

Parliament passes Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Amendment Bill, 2017

The Parliament has passed Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2017.

The Bill amends Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016 and replaces Ordinance promulgated in Nov 2017 to pave

way for tightening loopholes in existing code and make resolution process more effective.

Cabinet approves establishment of new AIIMS at Bilaspur

The Union Cabinet approved establishment of new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Bilaspur in

Himachal Pradesh under Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) with the cost of Rs.1351 cr.

The new AIIMS will be completed in a period of 48 months.

Under this scheme, AIIMS have been established in Bhubaneshwar, Bhopal, Raipur, Jodhpur, Rishikesh and Patna while

work of AIIMS Rae Bareli is in progress.

Also, three AIIMS in Nagpur (Maharashtra), Kalyani (West Bengal) and Mangalagiri in Guntur (Andhra Pradesh) have

been sanctioned in 2015, two AIIMS have been sanctioned at Bathinda and Gorakhpur in 2016 and an AIIMS in Kamrup

(Assam).

MHA exempts cruise tourists with e-visa from biometric enrolment till 2020

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has exempted the cruise tourists arriving with e-visa from the requirement of

biometric enrolment for a period of three years i.e. till 2020.

Cabinet approvals

The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its approval.

Approves amendments to FDI Policy

The Union Cabinet gave its approval to a number of amendments in the FDI Policy, aimed at liberalising and simplifying

the FDI policy in several sectors so as to provide ease of doing business in the country.

The liberalisation of the FDI policy, which includes allowing 100 per cent FDI under automatic route for Single Brand

Retail Trading, 100 per cent FDI under automatic route in Construction Development, allowing foreign airlines to invest

up to 49 per cent under approval route in Air India and allowing FIIs/FPIs to invest in Power Exchanges through primary

market.

While extant FDI policy on SBRT allows 49 per cent FDI under automatic route, and FDI beyond 49 per cent and up to

100 per cent through government approval route, it has now been decided to permit 100 per cent FDI under automatic

route for SBRT.

Approves fixed term for chairperson and members of National Trust

The Union Cabinet decided to fix three-year term of chairperson and the members of the board of the National Trust, an

autonomous body under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Approves MoU between India and Canada for cooperation in field of S&T

The Union Cabinet approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Canada for cooperation in field of Science &

Technology.

CCEA approves continuation of Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval to continuation of Members of Parliament

Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) till term of 14th Finance Commission i.e. Mar 31, 2020.

The continuation will entail annual allocation of Rs.3,950 crore and total outlay of Rs. 11,850 crores over next 3 years.

CCEA approves extension of norms for mandatory packaging in Jute Materials





The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved extension of mandatory packaging norms of

foodgrains and sugar in jute material for Jute Year 2017-18 (i.e. July 2017 to June 2018). The mandatory extension was

approved under the Jute Packaging Material (JPM) Act, 1987.

The approval mandates that 90% of food grains and 20% of sugar products shall be mandatorily packed in jute bags.

Cabinet approvals

Approves implementation of Jal Marg Vikas Project on NW-1

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by PM Modi approved implementation of Jal Marg Vikas

Project (JMVP) for capacity augmentation of navigation on 1,380-km Haldia-Varanasi stretch of National Waterway-1

(NW1) on Ganga River.

The project, which is expected to be completed by March, 2023, will be implemented at a cost of over Rs. 5,370 crore

rupees with the technical assistance and investment support of the World Bank.

Nod to India, UK pact to improve public transport

The Union Cabinet has approved the signing and implementation of the MoU between Ministry of Road Transport and

Highways and 'Transport for London', a statutory body established under the Greater London Authority Act, 1999 (UK)

to improve public transport in India.

Approves Indo-Myanmar agreement on land border crossing

The Union Cabinet approved agreement between India and Myanmar on Land Border Crossing for movement of people

across border of both counties.

Approves construction of bi-directional Zojila tunnel in J&K

The Union Cabinet has approved construction, operation and maintenance of 2-lane bi-directional Zojila Tunnel on

Srinagar--Leh section connecting NH-1A in Jammu & Kashmir at estimated cost of Rs 6,089 crore.

The tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity to strategically important Leh region. After the completion, it will be

Asia’s largest 2-lane bi-directional tunnel.

Approves India and Israel MoU on Cooperation in Oil and Gas Sector

The Union Cabinet has approved the signing of MoU between India and Israel on cooperation in the Oil and Gas Sector. Allahabad Bank Ties Up With NeSL

Allahabad Bank entered into an agreement with state-run National e-Governance Services Limited (NeSL) for utilizing

the latter's Information Utility Services envisaged under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

Lok Sabha passes Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code Amendment Bill, 2017

The Lok Sabha passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill 2017 to pave the way for tightening

loopholes in existing code and to make resolution process more effective.

The bill seeks to replace an ordinance which was promulgated in November to prevent unscrupulous persons from

misusing or vitiating the provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

Parliament passes Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Amendment Bill, 2017

The Parliament has passed National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Amendment Bill, 2017.

The Bill extends deadline up to Dec 31, 2020 for relocating slum dwellers and Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters, regulating street

vendors, regularising unauthorised colonies, village abadi areas in NCT Delhi and calls for creating policy for farm

houses constructed beyond permissible limits.

Lok Sabha passes GST (Compensation to States) Amendment Bill, 2017

The Lok Sabha has passed the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Amendment Bill, 2017 paving the way

for an increase in the maximum rate.

The amendment bill increases maximum rate at which Compensation Cess can be levied from 15 to 25% on motor

vehicle which carry not more than 13 persons (mostly luxury vehicles), including the driver and motor vehicles falling

under mentioned sub-headings.

Parliament passes Indian Institute of Petroleum & Energy Bill, 2017

The Parliament passed The Indian Institute of Petroleum and Energy (IIPE) Bill, 2017 after the Rajya Sabha adoption.

The Bill establishes the IIPE at Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh as an institution of national importance.

SLCM ties up with HDFC, IndusInd bank for post-harvest credit

Agri service solutions provider Sohan Lal Commodity Management (SLCM) having operations across India and

Myanmar has tied up with HDFC Bank and IndusInd to provide collateral management services.

Amazon Buys Maker of Wireless Security Cameras Blink

Amazon, the Seattle, Washington-based eCommerce giant, has inked a deal to acquire Blink, the wireless security

camera company that launched in early 2016.

Samsung, Axis Bank tie-up to offer 'Bill Payments' on Samsung Pay

Smartphone manufacturer Samsung launched its 'Bill Payments' on its flagship payments service, Samsung Pay in

partnership with Axis Bank.

MHA directs NGOs to open account in designated banks integrated with PMFS





The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed all NGOs, individuals and business entities receiving foreign

funds to open accounts in any of 32 designated banks, including one foreign, within a month.

The MHA order comes in exercise of the powers conferred under Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010.

Govt frame action plans for backward district programme

The Union Govt has drawn up action plans for backward district programme to improve socio-economic profiles of 115

identified “most-backward” districts including 35 affected by left-wing extremism.

Jharkhand with 19 has highest number of districts under this programme, followed by Bihar (13) Chattisgarh (10) and 8

each in Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.

Govt to roll out Condonation of delay scheme

The Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) will roll out the Condonation of Delay Scheme to provide a three-

month window for defaulting companies and their director to submit their annual filings, operational from Jan 1-Mar 31,

2018.

UP govt signs MoU with South Korea

The Uttar Pradesh govt has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with South Korea to enhance cooperation in

the field of tourism, skill development, culture and farming.

India and Switzerland ink deal for Information Exchange

India signed an agreement with Switzerland that would allow automatic sharing of tax-related information from January

1, 2018. It aims to combat black money stashed abroad.

The agreement was signed by CBDT chairman Sushil Chandra and Swiss Ambassador to India Andreas Baum.

India & Germany signed agreement for Pare Hydroelectric Plant Project

A loan agreement was signed for providing additional funding of Euro 20 million for the Pare Hydroelectric Plant

project, under the Indo-German Bilateral Development Cooperation.

Parliament passes Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017

The Parliament passed Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) Bill, 2017 to extend greater autonomy to IIMs by

restricting government’s role in their functioning.

Lok Sabha passes Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017

The Lok Sabha passed Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017 to make it easier

for govt to acquire immovable property for “national security and defence purpose”.

The Bill amends the Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act, 1952 and changes rules for payment of

compensation.

Cabinet extends term of Commission to examine the issue of sub-categorization of OBCs

The Union Cabinet approved extension of term of Commission, headed by retired CJ of Delhi High Court G. Rohini, to

examine the issue of sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes (OBCs), by 12 weeks i.e. upto 2 April, 2018.

Lok Sabha passes Central Road Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2017

The Lok Sabha passed Central Road Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which amend the Central Road Fund (CRF) Act,

2000.

India, Myanmar ink pact for socio-eco development of Rakhine State

India and Myanmar inked an agreement on restoration of normalcy and development of the Rakhine State, from where

thousands of Rohingya Muslims recently fled following incidents of violence against the community.

Parliament passes The Companies Amendment Bill, 2017

The Parliament passed The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2017 to strengthen corporate governance standards, initiate

strict action against defaulting companies and help improve ease of doing business in the country.

The bill provides for more than 40 amendments to Companies Act, 2013.

NITI Aayog to set up Methanol Economy Fund

The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog has planned to set up Methanol Economy Fund worth Rs

4,000-5,000 crore to promote production and use of the clean fuel.

Assam signs MoU with Isha Foundation to rejuvenate its rivers

Assam became the sixth state in the country to sign MoU with non-profit making and spiritual organisation, the Isha

foundation. The MoU with Isha Foundation aims to conserve and rejuvenate the rivers of Assam.

MMRDA signs MOU with DMRC for developing metro 6 corridor

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) ) has signed an agreement with Delhi Metro Rail

Corporation (DMRC) on Dec 20 to execute the Swami Samarth Nagar-Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Metro VI corridor with the

cost of ₹5,490 cr.

Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) in Telangana gets environmental clearance

The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) of Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) have

accorded environmental clearance for Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) in Telangana.

Govt inks MoU with Maruti Suzuki





The Union Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Maruti Suzuki India Limited have signed a

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support Skill India Mission in automobile industry.

Andhra Pradesh inks MoU with Alphabet InC.’s X

Andhra Pradesh govt has signed an MoU with Alphabet InC.’s X (Google X) to bring Free Space Optical

Communication (FSOC) technology to India.

Samsung, UNESCO partner for videos on Indian heritage sites

Samsung India has entered into a partnership with UNESCO MGIEP (Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace

and Sustainable Development) to launch 360-degree videos and virtual reality (VR) content of two magnificent Indian

heritage sites, the Sun Temple in Konark, Odisha and Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh.

AP Cabinet approves pension for state's transgenders

The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet approved a scheme to provide a pension of Rs 1500 to transgenders above 18 years of age

in the state.

After Kerala and Odisha, Andhra Pradesh becomes the next state to sanction pension scheme for the transgender

community.

Govt. approves Dish TV merger with Videocond2h

Dish TV India Limited (Dishtv), Asia Pacific’s largest direct-to-home (DTH) company and part of the Essel Group has

received the final approval for closing of the merger of Videocon d2h with DishTV.

Dish TV andVideocon d2h (Vd2h) reported separate revenue and EBITDA numbers which at a pro-forma level add up to

₹60,862 million and ₹19,909 million for FY17.

NGT bans plastic items along banks of Ganga

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has imposed complete blanket ban on use, sale, purchase and storage of plastic

items such as carry bags, plates and spoons in towns of Haridwar and Rishikesh till upper areas of Uttarkashi along the

Ganga River in Uttarakhand.

It has also imposed Rs 5,000 fine on those violating order and also held that

action will be taken against erring officials too.

Union Cabinet approvals

Approves North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme

The Union Cabinet has approved new Central Sector Scheme of North East

Special Infrastructure Development Scheme” (NESIDS) from 2017-18.

It will be 100% funded by Central Govt to fill up gaps in creation of

infrastructure in specified sectors in North east till March, 2020.

Approves National Medical Commission Bill

Union Cabinet has approved National Medical Commission Bill, 2017.

The bill will replace the Medical Council, 1956 Act and enable a forward

movement in medical education reform.

Approves Agreement with UNESCO on establishment of ITCOO in Hyderabad

The Union Cabinet has approved the establishment of International Training

Centre for Operational Oceanography (ITCOO), as a Category-2 Centre (C2C)

of UNESCO, in Hyderabad, Telangana.

Approves continuation of National AYUSH Mission

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for continuation of centrally

sponsored scheme of National AYUSH Mission (NAM) from April 2017 to Mar 2020 with an outlay of Rs. 2400 crore

over 3 year period to provide cost effective AYUSH services.

Approves capital investment subsidy to industrial units located in North Eastern Region

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved Capital Investment Subsidy amounting to Rs.264.67

crore to four industrial units located in North Eastern Region (NER) including Sikkim.

Approves auctioning of 680 FM channels under Phase III

The Union cabinet approved auction of 683 private FM radio frequencies in 236 cities across country under Phase III of

FM radio privatization.

Approves Scheme for Capacity Building in Textiles Sector

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector

(SCBTS) in order to ensure steady supply of skilled manpower in the labour-intensive textile sector.

It will remain operational for three years ending in 2019-20 with an outlay of Rs. 1300 crore.

GAIL awards major contracts for Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga

The State-run Gas (India) Limited (GAIL) has placed orders for another 400-km natural gas pipeline project under

ambitious Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga (PMUG).

The ambitious 2,655 km long JHBDPL project also known as ‘Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga’ project originates at

Jagdishpur (Uttar Pradesh). The main trunk of pipeline ends to Haldia (West Bengal) and Dhamra (Odisha).





The pipeline passes through Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha.

Cabinet clears bill criminalising instant triple talaq

The Union Cabinet cleared a bill that criminalises the Islamic practice of instant triple talaq, ahead of it being taken up in

the Winter Session of Parliament.

Instant triple talaq, or Talaq-e-biddat involves Muslim men divorcing their wives by mentioning the word ‘talaq

(divorce)’ three times in one go, sometimes over email, WhatsApp messages or letters.

The bill is titled the ‘Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017’.

India, Morocco ink four agreements

India and Morocco have signed four agreements for cooperation in Water Resources, Road and Marine Sectors.

MoU on cooperation in the field of Water Resources;

Agreement to establish cooperation between Indian Maritime University (IMU) and Higher Institute of

Maritime Studies (ISEM) of Morocco.

Framework Agreement for Cooperation in Training between National Ports Agency (NPA) of Morocco and

Indian Maritime University (IMU).

Cooperation Framework Agreement between Institute of Training in Engines and Road Maintenance of

Morocco (IFEER) and Indian Academy of Highway Engineers (IAHE).

Govt planning to club two phases of Ken-Betwa River linking project

The Union Govt is planning to club phase I and phase II of its ambitious Ken-Betwa inter linking river (ILR) project.

The phases will be clubbed after Madhya Pradesh, one of the two beneficiary states, asked for such. Uttar Pradesh is the

beneficiary states. The costs for first phase was estimated at Rs. 18,000 crore and second phase was Rs. 8000 crore.

Govt inks $250 million Loan Agreement with World Bank for SANKALP Project

The Union Govt signed US $250 mn loan agreement with World Bank for “Skills Acquisition and Knowledge

Awareness for Livelihood Promotion” (SANKALP) Project to support livelihood.

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), World Bank’s financing arm will provide the loan. The

project will run till Mar 31, 2023.

Govt to set up 12 Special Courts to deal with cases against tainted lawmakers

The Union Govt has framed a scheme to set up 12 Special Courts for a year to fast-track the trial of criminal cases

against 1,581 MPs and MLAs.

India, Australia call for ‘open’ Asia-Pacific zone

India and Australia hold their first ‘2+2 dialogue’ in New Delhi. The dialogue highlighted need to maintain Asia-Pacific

region as a “free” and “open” zone. The 2+2 dialogue model between both countries include foreign and defence

secretaries.

DCI and NHAI ink MoU to facilitate supply of sand for highways construction work

The Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) have signed an MoU for

facilitating the supply of sand for highways construction work.

ADB approves $346 million loan to upgrade Karnataka highways

Multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved $346 million loan for highways upgradation

project in Karnataka.

Govt signs pact with German firm for sustainable urban

The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry (MoHUA ) has signed an agreement with German firm GIZ for technical

cooperation in the implementation of transport projects in Coimbatore, Bhubaneshwar and Kochi.

Health Ministry and Rotary India ink MoU for achieving immunization target

The Union Health Ministry and Rotary International India National PolioPlus signed Memorandum of Understanding

(MoU) for intensive efforts towards achieving the immunization target.

George Kurien committee to look into Minority status for Hindus

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has set up three members committee under the chairmanship of George

Kurien to study the matter to give minority status to Hindus in 7 states and one UT where their population is less than

50%.

According to 2011 Census, Hindus are in monitory in Mizoram (2.75%), Nagaland (8.75%), Meghalaya (11.53%), J&K

(28.44%), Arunachal Pradesh (29%), Manipur (31.39%), Punjab (38.40%) and one UT Lakshadweep (2.5%).

Govt sets up panel to address NPAs in the power sector

The govt has set up a high-level committee headed by NITI Aayog chief executive Amitabh Kant to address the problem

of stressed assets in India's power sector.

India and Cuba ink MoU for enhanced cooperation in Health Sector

India and Cuba signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for enhanced cooperation in the health sector.

Centre passes notification, allows NGT to form one-member benches





The Union Environment Ministry has allowed NGT Chairperson to “constitute a single-member bench” in “exceptional

circumstances”.

MP passes bill awarding death for rape of girls aged 12 or less

The Madhya Pradesh Assembly has unanimously passed DandVidhi (Madhya Pradesh Sanshodhan) Vidheyak, 2017 that

will see rapists of girls 12 years or below being hanged till death.

With this, Madhya Pradesh becomes first state where those convicted of such rapes will face the gallows.

The bill proposes death penalty or a minimum term of 14-year rigorous imprisonment or life imprisonment till death for

raping girls aged 12 or less.

Govt to constitute committee for drug pricing, new launches

The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP), Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers will constitute multi-disciplinary

committee of experts for consultation on matters pertaining to implementation of drug price control order (DPCO)

including technicalities involved in pricing and new launches.

CBDT signs two Advance Pricing Agreements

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has signed two Bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) in November

2017. The two agreements are first ever Bilateral APAs with Netherlands.

Cabinet approves National Nutrition Mission

The Union cabinet has approved Rs. 9,046 cr National Nutrition Mission (NNM) to address stunting and under-nutrition

among children below the age group of three.

It will be rolled out in 162 backward districts in six States including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Chhatisgarh initially,

expanding further to 315 districts in the current financial year itself.

India and Italy ink MoU for enhanced cooperation in the health sector

India and Italy have signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for enhanced cooperation in health sector.

The main areas of cooperation include:

Exchange & training of medical doctors, officials, other health professionals and experts;

Assistance in development of human resources and setting up of health care facilities;

Short term training of human resources in health;

Regulation of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and cosmetics and exchange of information thereon;

Promotion of business development opportunities in pharmaceuticals;

Procurement of generic and essential drugs and assistance in sourcing of drug supplies;

Procurement of health equipment and pharmaceutical products;

Collaboration in the prevention of NCDs of mutual interest

Collaboration in the field of climate change impact on communicable diseases and vector borne diseases;

Nutritional aspects of food intake, including malnutrition (over-nutrition and under-nutrition) in the light of the

SDG2 and organization of nutritional services;

Safety of production, transformation, distribution and food delivery;

Research and training of food industry operators;

Information and communication to citizens on hygiene and food safety and healthy eating habits; and

Any other area of cooperation as may be mutually decided upon.

Jet Airways in ‘metal-neutral’ pact with Air France-KLM

Jet Airways has deepened its partnership with Air France-KLM beyond codeshare to create a “metal-neutral” agreement

between the three airlines.

Cabinet Approves setting up of 15th Finance Commission

The Union Cabinet under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved setting up of 15th Finance

Commission (FC).

15th Finance Commission recommendations' will cover five years commencing on April 1, 2020.

It is a constitutional obligation to set up FC under Article 280 (1) of the Constitution.

The 14th Finance Commission, headed by former RBI Governor YV Reddy, was set up in January 2013 to make

recommendations covering period of five years commencing on April, 2015 to March 2020. The 14th FC had submitted

its report in December, 2014. The recommendations of 14th FC are valid upto the financial year 2019-20.

Cabinet approvals

Approves continuation of scheme on Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs

The Union Cabinet has approved continuation of scheme on Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) for another three

financial years (FYs 2017-18 to 2019-20). IICA will now be self-sustainable by the end of FY 2019-20.

Approves agreement on co-operation in customs matters between India and Philippines

The Union Cabinet approved signing and ratifying of Agreement between India and Philippines on co-operation and

mutual assistance in customs matters.

Approves revised salaries and pension for Judges of Supreme Court and High Courts





The Union Cabinet has approved revision in salaries, gratuity, allowances, pension etc. of Judges of Supreme Court and

High Courts and retired Judges of Supreme Court and High Courts.

Approves India-Russia Agreement on cooperation in combating terrorism

The Union Cabinet approved signing an Agreement on Cooperation between India and Russia in field of combating all

forms of terrorism and organized crime.

Approves India’s membership for EBRD

The Union Cabinet has approved India’s Membership for European Bank for Reconstruction & Development (EBRD).

Govt sets up seven-member panel to draft new Income Tax law

The Union Finance Ministry has constituted task force, headed by Arbind Modi, Member (legislation), CBDT.

Chief Economic Adviser Dr. Arvind Subramanian will be its permanent Special Invitee.

Govt inks Loan Agreement with World Bank for Shared Infrastructure for Solar Parks Project

The Union Govt has signed a guarantee agreement for IBRD/CTF loan of US $98 million and Grant Agreement for US

$2 million for Shared Infrastructure for Solar Parks Project with World Bank.

It will help to establish large-scale solar parks and support government’s plan to install 100 Gigawatts (GW) of solar

power out of total renewable-energy target of 175 GW by 2022.

PNB MetLife in distribution pact with Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait

Life insurer PNB MetLife has signed a corporate agency agreement with Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait B.S.C (BBK).

BBK, which is one of the largest commercial banks in Bahrain, has branches at Mumbai, Hyderabad, Aluva and New

Delhi.

Centre okays Rs 10,000 cr for 107 Maharashtra irrigation projects

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis informed that the Centre has given an in-principle approval of 10,000

crore rupees assistance to 107 irrigation projects in drought-hit Vidarbha and Marathwada regions of the state.

Yes Fintech Collaborates With Innovation Centre Denmark India (Icdk India)

India’s fifth largest private sector bank, Yes Bank has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Innovation

Centre Denmark India (ICDK India), a partnership between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark and the Danish

Ministry of Higher Education and Science.

Reliance General Insurance inks bancassurance pact with YES Bank

Reliance General Insurance, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital, has signed a comprehensive bancassurance-corporate

agency agreement with YES Bank.

Union Cabinet approvals

Approves setting up National Anti-profiteering Authority

The Union Cabinet approved setting up of National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA), an apex body with an

overarching mandate under Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime so as to ensure the benefit of tax reaches consumers.

Increases carpet area of houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

The Union Cabinet has approved increase in carpet area of houses eligible for interest subsidy under Credit Linked

Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) for Middle Income Group (MIG) under Pradhan Mantri AwasYojana (Urban).

Approves continuation of four programmes under Integrated Child Development Services

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved four sub-schemes under Umbrella Scheme

Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS).

Approves MoU between India and Poland for Civil Aviation Cooperation

The Union Cabinet has approved signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Poland for

Promotion of Civil Aviation Cooperation.

Approves Scientific and Technological Cooperation agreement between India and Belarus

The Union Cabinet had approved agreement between India and Belarus on Scientific and Technological Cooperation for

mutual benefit in the areas of science, technology, agriculture, etc.

Approves appointment of 2nd National Judicial Pay Commission

The Union Cabinet approved appointment of Second National Judicial Pay Commission (SNJPC) for subordinate

judiciary in country.

It will be headed by Justice (Retd) J P.Venkatrama Reddi, former Judge of Supreme Court. R Basant, former Judge of

Kerala High Court will be its member.

Approves Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement with Hong Kong

The Union Cabinet approved Agreement between India and Hong Kong, special administrative region of China for

Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to taxes on income.

Approves MoU with Philippines on agriculture and related fields

The Union Cabinet approved signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Philippines in field of

agriculture and related fields.

Approves creation of National Testing Agency





The Union Cabinet approved creation of National Testing Agency (NTA) as an autonomous and self-sustained premier

testing organization to conduct entrance examinations for higher educational institutions.

Approves protocol amending DTAA between India and Kyrgyz

The Union Cabinet approved protocol amending Agreement between India and Kyrgyz for avoidance of double taxation

and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.

Approves Joint Interpretative Declaration between India and Colombia

The Union Cabinet approved signing of Joint Interpretative Declaration (JID) between India and Colombia regarding

existing Agreement for Promotion and Protection of Investments.

Nod for introduction of Bill to amend NCTE Act

The Union Cabinet has approved for introduction of a Bill in Parliament to amend the National Council for Teacher

Education Act, 1993, namely the National Council for Teacher Education (Amendment) Act, 2017.

Approves extension of renamed RKVY for 3 years

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved the continuation of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana

(RKVY) for three years i.e; 2017-18 to 2019-20, renaming it as Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana-Remunerative

Approaches for Agriculture and Allied sector Rejuvenation (RKVY-RAFTAAR). The financial allocation of the scheme

will be ₹15,722.

Approves Special Banking Arrangement SBA for payment of outstanding subsidy

The Cabinet has accorded the ex-post facto approval for implementation of Special Banking Arrangement (SBA) for Rs.

10,000 crore for payment of outstanding claims on account of fertilizer subsidy in the year 2016-17.

Approves signing an Agreement between India and Armenia

The Union Cabinet approved signing and ratifying agreement between India and Armenia on cooperation and mutual

assistance in customs matters.

Approves revised price of ethanol

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the revision in the price of ethanol under Ethanol Blended

Petrol (EBP) Programme for supply to the Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies.

The revised price was fixed at Rs. 40.85 per litre under EBP and will be applicable for forthcoming sugar season 2017-

18.

Assam signs MoUs with Singapore for skilling state’s youth

Assam govt signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) and Terms of Reference (ToR) with Singapore for skilling

youth of the state.

Kerala govt ink pact with Intel, UST Global

The Kerala govt inked an MOU with Intel and UST Global for exploring the possibility of transforming the state into an

electronic hardware manufacturing hub.

Banaganapalle mangoes, six others get GI tag

Famous Banaganapalle mangoes of Andhra Pradesh and Tulapanji rice of West Bengal are among the seven commodities

that have been granted Geographical Indications this fiscal year by the Indian patent office.

The other five products which have received this tag this year include Pochampally Ikat of Telangana; Gobindobhog

Rice of West Bengal; Durgi Stone Carvings and Etikoppaka Toys of Andhra Pradesh; and Chakshesang Shawl of

Nagaland, according to the Indian patent office website.

Govt reconstitutes Multi-Agency Group probe into Paradise Papers revelation

The Union Govt has reconstituted Multi-Agency Group (MAG) to investigate cases relating to ‘Paradise Papers’ data

disclosure which is also probing the Panama Papers leak.

Sodexo ties up with Goodbox to enable seamless food ordering

Sodexo, the employee motivation and benefits services privider, has tied up with the Bengaluru-based startup, Goodbox.

Ola teams up with Microsoft for connected vehicle platform

Ride hailing app Ola announced a global partnership with tech giant Microsoft for building a new-age ‘connected vehicle

platform’ for car manufacturers worldwide.

Rs 10,000 Crore MoU signed between Govt of India & Patanjali

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) of Rs 10, 000 Crore was signed between the Govt of India (GoI) and Patanjali

at the World Food India 2017.

ISA, EBRD ink pact on solar energy

The International Solar Alliance (ISA) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have signed

Joint Financial Partnership Declaration for cooperation on renewable energy projects around the world.

CBDT signs 7 more unilateral APAs with taxpayers

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has signed seven more advance pricing agreements (APAs) with Indian

taxpayers as it looks to reduce litigation by providing certainty in transfer pricing.

The seven APAs signed over the last month pertain to sectors like FMCG, semi-conductor, information technology,

travel and leisure, office furniture and engineering.





Odisha signs MoU with Singapore-based education services

Odisha Skill Development Authority (OSDA) and Singapore-based ITE Education Services (ITEES) signed a

memorandum of understanding (MoU) for skill development in the State.

ITEES is a subsidiary of Singapore’s prestigious Institute of Technical Education (ITE).

Etikoppaka toys from Andhra Pradesh get GI tag

The Geographical Indication Registry (GIR) has given Geographical Indication (GI) tag traditional Etikoppaka toys

(Etikoppaka Bommalu) from Andhra Pradesh.

Cabinet approves trade Agreement between India and Ethiopia

The Union Cabinet has approved trade Agreement between India and Ethiopia for strengthening and promoting trade and

economic co-operation.

US approves $1 billion deal to service Qatar’s F-15 fighter jets

US has approved $1.1 billion contract to service Qatar’s F-15 fighter jets despite diplomatic stand-off between Gulf

emirate and its neighbours.

India, Philippines ink four agreements in various fields

India and Philippines have signed four agreements in areas of Defence Cooperation and Logistics, agriculture, Micro,

Medium and Small Enterprises-MSME and forging closer relations between the Indian Council of World Affairs and the

Philippines Foreign Service Institute.

Air India gets Rs. 1,500 crore BoI loan

Air India has received a loan worth Rs. 1,500 crore from Bank of India to meet urgent working capital needs less than a

month after floating a tender in this regard.

Karnataka inks pacts with Chinese firms

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the sixth China-India Forum meet being jointly hosted by the

Government of China, Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), China-India

Friendship Association (CIFA), and Podar Enterprise.

MoUs were signed at the Forum:

Semiconductor Alliance of China and Beijing Construction & Highway Development Group presented EoI

letters to the Karnataka government.

Podar Enterprise signed strategic cooperation MoU with Hebei Provincial Government.

Podar Advisory and Consulting Enterprise signed tri-party MoU of cooperation with Baoding City Government

and Hebei Information Investment Group.

Fortune Plus, China, signed MoU for setting up electric vehicle hub with Imperator Autocorp Pvt Ltd.

Podar Holding International Pte Ltd signed MoU for cooperation in education with Yigcal University,

Shandong.

Adani Power inks power purchase agreement with Bangladesh Power Development Board

Adani Power (Jharkhand) has inked long-term pact with Bangladesh Power Development Board to supply electricity

from its upcoming 1,600 MW plant at Godda in Jharkhand.

AppointmentS

Appointments Appointee 1st Woman Chairman of Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) Usha Ananthasubramanian

Director of ISRO’s Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre Dr V Narayanan

Director General of FICCI Dilip Chenoy

Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) S Somanath

DG of National Security Guard (NSG) Sudeep Lakhtakia

New Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat

New Foreign Secretary of India Vijay Keshav Gokhale

Chef-de-Mission for the 21st Commonwealth Games 2018 Vikram Singh Sisodia

Secretary (Economic Relations) in External Affairs

Ministry

T S Tirumurti

Best Central Bank Governor Ravi Menon

Governor of Madhya Pradesh Anandiben Patel

MD & CEO of NCDEX (National Commodity &

Derivatives Exchange Limited)

Vijay Kumar





Chairman of Kerala Maritime Board (KMB) V J Mathew

CMD of SPMCIL (Security Printing and Minting

Corporation of India Ltd)

S Selvakumar

Chairman of Finance Commission by IOA ( Indian

Olympic Association)

Anil Khanna

Deputy of National Security Advisor (NSA) Rajinder Khanna

ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations) Chief Vinay Sahasrabuddhe

MD of India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) Pankaj Jain

First Woman Lawyer to be directly promoted as SC Judge Indu Malhotra

Chairman of ISRO K. Sivan

Chairman of the Geneva-based World Business Council for

Sustainable Development (WBCSD)

Sunny Verghese

MD and CEO of NPCI Dilip Asbe

Brand Ambassador of Sikkim AR Rahman

General Manager of BCCI Saba Karim

Director General of National Cadet Corps (NCC) Lt Gen B S Sahrawat

Acting Chairperson of NGT Justice U D Salvi

Joint Secretary in Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory

Council (PMEAC)

Sumita Misra

Director of Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) Amardeep Singh Bhatia

CM of Himachal Pradesh Jai Ram Thakur

Chief Minister of Gujarat Vijay Rupani

President of African Conservation Group Prince Harry

President of ICCR (Indian Council of Cultural Relations) Vinay Sahasrabuddhe

President of Liberia George Weah

DG of Narcotics Control Bureau Abhay

Aegon Life Insurance MD & CEO Vineet Arora

India’s G 20 Sherpa Shaktikanta Das

Chairman of National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) Badri Narain Sharma

Madras HC judge Justice Satrughana Pujahari

Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa

UNAIDS Special Ambassador for Adolescents and HIV Quarraisha Abdool Karim

SEBI Executive Director Anand Rajeshwar Baiwar

First Woman President of NASSCOM in 2018 Debjani Ghosh

First Woman Sr DDG in TERM, DoT N Poonguzhali

UNESCO New Chief France’s Audrey Azoulay

Chairman of Bombay Stock Exchange Sethurathnam Ravi

All India Football Federation (AIFF) Ombudsman Bhaskar Ganguly

India’s High Commissioner to Pakistan Ajay Bisaria

NIA Chief YC Modi

Karnataka’s First Woman Police Chief Neelamani N. Raju

Resignations

Resignation of Chairman of Railway Board Ashok Mittal

Retirement of Former England’s Football team Captain Wayne Rooney

Resignation of Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog Arvind Panagariya

Resignation of the CEO & of Infosys Vishal Sikka

Resignation of Sri Lankan Selection Committee Head SanathJayasuriya

Resignation of India’s first ever foreign coach for women

boxers

Stephane Cottalorda

Resignation of BCCI’s General Manager Dr. M.V. Sridhar





Awards

‘Kailash’ won Award at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival

The documentary ‘Kailash’ has won the US Documentary Grand Jury Award at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival at Park

City in Utah. The documentary is directed by Derek Doneen.

It depicts the journey of Indian Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi and his efforts to eliminate child trafficking and child

labour. The film has been produced by Davis Guggenheim and Sarah Anthony, and co-produced by Purnima Raghunath.

Govt announces five Outstanding Parliamentarian Awards

The Indian Parliamentary Group has announced Outstanding Parliamentarian Awards to five Members of Parliament.

BJD MP Bhartruhari Mahtab will be conferred the award for 2017.

Dinesh Trivedi, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and Hukumdev Narayan Yadav have been chosen for the award for

2016, 2015 and 2014 respectively. Manipur Governor Najma A Heptulla was selected for this award for the year 2013.

Asha Bhosle selected for fifth Yash Chopra Memorial Award

Legendary playback singer Asha Bhosle was chosen for fifth edition of Yash Chopra Memorial Award for her

outstanding contribution to the Hindi film industry.

IAF Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala posthumously conferred with Ashok Chakra

President Ram Nath Kovind awarded India’s highest peacetime military decoration Ashok Chakra posthumously to

Indian Air Force (IAF) Garud commando Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala on Jan 26, 2018. He had laid down his life after

gunning down two terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir.

He is the third Ashok Chakra winner for the IAF and its first for ground combat.

Other two winners of IAF officers are Rakesh Sharma (first and still only Indian citizen to go to space) and Flying

Officer Nirmaljit Singh Sekhon posthumously decorated with the Param Vir Chakra in 1972.

Ashoka Chakra is India’s highest peacetime military decoration awarded for valor, courageous action or self-sacrifice

away from the battlefield.

Govt announces PM’s Shram Awards

The Ministry of Labour & Employment announced Prime Minister’s Shram Awards for the year 2016 to 50 workers

including 3 women employed in Departmental Undertakings & Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) of Central/ State

Govts and Private Sector Units employing 500 or more workers. In 2016, 34 workers are from PSUs and 16 workers are

from Private Sectors.

Shram Ratna Award: No nomination was found suitable for it.

Shram Bhushan: 12 workers from SAIL, BHEL and TATA Steel Ltd.

Shram Vir/Shram Veerangana Award: 18 workers from Naval Dockyard, Ordinance Factory, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam,

TATA Steel, Hindalco Industries, Paradeep Phosphates Ltd., Brahmos Aerospace

Shram Shree/Shram Devi Award: 20 workers from Cement Corporation of India, Naval Ship Repair Yard, , TATA

Motors, Surat Lignite Power Plant, Larsen & Toubro Ltd. etc

Eighteen Brave Hearts Bag National Bravery Awards-2017

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had presented 18 National Bravery Awards to the proud winners for their courageous

feats on 24 Jan, 2018. Three of them have been decorated with the award posthumously. National Bravery Award-

winning boys and girls on 26 Jan 2017 drew applause from the audience at the Republic Day parade for saving human

lives in dangerous situations

Bharat Award, the highest of the National Bravery Awards - 18 year old Kumari Nazia of Uttar Pradesh

Geeta Chopra Award - Posthumously conferred on 14 years old late Ms. Netrawati M. Chavan

Sanjay Chopra Award - 17½ year old Master Karanbeer Singh of Punjab

Bapu Gaidhani Awards - Master Betshwajohn Peinlang (14 years) of Meghalaya, Km. Mamata Dalai (7 ½ years)

of Odisha, and Master Sebastian Vincent (13½ years) of Kerala

The other recipients are Km. Laxmi Yadav (Chhattisgarh), Km. Mansha N, Master N. Shangpon Konyak, Master

Yoaknei, Master Chingai Wangsa (all from Nagaland), Km. Samridhi Sushil Sharma (Gujarat), Master

Zonuntluanga, Late Master F. Lalchhandama (both from Mizoram), Master Pankaj Semwal (Uttarakhand), Master

Nadaf Ejaj Abdul Rauf (Maharashtra), Late Km. Loukrakpam Rajeshwori Chanu (Manipur) and Master Pankaj

Kumar Mahanta (Odisha).

2018 Padma Awards

President Ram Nath Kovind has announced names of recipients of 2018 Padma awards, one of the highest civilian

Awards of the country, are conferred in three categories, in the order of their matrix namely, Padma Vibhushan, Padma

Bhushan and Padma Shri.





This year the President of India has approved conferment of 85 Padma Awards, comprises 3 Padma Vibhushan, 9 Padma

Bhushan and 73 Padma Shri Awards, including two duo cases (in a duo case, the award is counted as one) as per list

below.

14 of the awardees are women and the list also includes 16 persons from the category of Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI and 3

Posthumous awardees.

To Read More: CLICK HERE

Padma Vibhushan

Sl. No Name Field State

1. Shri Illaiyaraja Art-Music Tamil Nadu

2. Shri Ghulam Mustafa Khan Art-Music Maharashtra

3. Shri Parameswaran Parameswaran Literature and Education Kerala

Padma Bhushan


4. Shri Pankaj Advani Sports- Billiards/Snooker Karnataka

5. Shri Philipose Mar Chrysostom Others-Spiritualism Kerala

6. Shri Mahendra Singh Dhoni Sports-Cricket Jharkhand

7. Shri Alexander Kadakin

(Foreigner/Posthumous)

Public Affairs Russia

8. Shri Ramachandran Nagaswamy Others-Archaeology Tamil Nadu

9. Shri Ved Prakash Nanda (OCI) Literature and Education USA

10. Shri Laxman Pai Art-Painting Goa

11. Shri Arvind Parikh Art-Music Maharashtra

12. Ms. Sharda Sinha Art-Music Bihar

Padma Shri


13. Shri Abhay Bang (Duo) Medicine Maharashtra

Ms. Rani Bang (Duo) Medicine Maharashtra

14. Shri Damodar Ganesh Bapat Social Work Chhattisgarh

15. Shri Prafulla Govinda Baruah Literature and Education-

Journalism

Assam

16. Shri Mohan Swaroop Bhatia Art-Folk Music Uttar Pradesh

17. Shri Sudhanshu Biswas Social Work West Bengal

18. Ms. Saikhom Mirabai Chanu Sports-Weightlifting Manipur

19. Shri Pandit Shyamlal Chaturvedi Literature and Education-

Journalism

Chhattisgarh

20. Shri Jose Ma Joey Concepcion

III (Foreigner)

Trade & Industry Philippines

21. Ms. Langpoklakpam Subadani Devi Art-Weaving Manipur

22. Shri Somdev Devvarman Sports-Tennis Tripura

23. Shri Yeshi Dhoden Medicine Himachal Pradesh

24. Shri Arup Kumar Dutta Literature and Education Assam

25. Shri Doddarange Gowda Art-Lyrics Karnataka

26. Shri Arvind Gupta Literature and Education Maharashtra

27. Shri Digamber Hansda Literature and Education Jharkhand

28. Shri Ramli Bin Ibrahim (Foreigner) Art-Dance Malaysia

29. Shri Anwar Jalalpuri (Posthumous) Literature and Education Uttar Pradesh

30. Shri Piyong Temjen Jamir Literature and Education Nagaland

31. Ms. Sitavva Joddati Social Work Karnataka

32. Ms. Malti Joshi Literature and Education Madhya Pradesh

33. Shri Manoj Joshi Art-Acting Maharashtra

34. Shri Rameshwarlal Kabra Trade & Industry Maharashtra

35. Shri Pran Kishore Kaul Art Jammu and

Kashmir

36. Shri Bounlap Keokangna (Foreigner) Others-Architecture Laos




https://bsc4success.com/padma-awards-2018/


37. Shri Vijay Kichlu Art-Music West Bengal

38. Shri Tommy Koh (Foreigner) Public Affairs Singapore

39. Ms. Lakshmikutty Medicine-Traditional Kerala

40. Ms. Joyshree Goswami Literature and Assam

Mahanta Education

41. Shri Narayan Das Maharaj Others-Spiritualism Rajasthan

42. Shri Pravakara Maharana Art-Sculpture Odisha

43. Shri Hun Many (Foreigner) Public Affairs Cambodia

44. Ms. Nouf Marwaai (Foreigner) Others- Yoga Saudi Arabia

45. Shri Zaverilal Mehta Literature and Education-

Journalism

Gujarat

46. Shri Krishna Bihari Mishra Literature and Education West Bengal

47. Shri Sisir Purushottam Mishra Art-Cinema Maharashtra

48. Ms. Subhasini Mistry Social Work West Bengal

49. Shri Tomio Mizokami (Foreigner) Literature and Education Japan

50. Shri Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong

(Foreigner)

Others-Spiritualism Thailand

51. Shri Keshav Rao Musalgaonkar Literature and Education Madhya Pradesh

52. Dr Thant Myint – U (Foreigner) Public Affairs Myanmar

53. Ms. V Nanammal Others-Yoga Tamil Nadu

54. Ms. Sulagitti Narasamma Social Work Karnataka

55. Ms. Vijayalakshmi Navaneethakrishnan Art-Folk Music Tamil Nadu

56. Shri I Nyoman Nuarta (Foreigner) Art- Sculpture Indonesia

57. Shri Malai Haji Abdullah Bin Malai Haji

Othman (Foreigner)

Social Work Brunei Darussalam

58. Shri Gobaradhan Panika Art-Weaving Odisha

59. Shri Bhabani Charan Pattanaik Public Affairs Odisha

60. Shri Murlikant Petkar Sports-Swimming Maharashtra

61. Shri Habibullo Rajabov (Foreigner) Literature and Education Tajikistan

62. Shri M R Rajagopal Medicine-Palliative Care Kerala

63. Shri Sampat Ramteke (Posthumous) Social Work Maharashtra

64. Shri Chandra Sekhar Rath Literature and Education Odisha

65. Shri S S Rathore Civil Service Gujarat

66. Shri Amitava Roy Science and Engineering West Bengal

67. Shri Sanduk Ruit (Foreigner) Medicine- Ophthalmology Nepal

68. Shri R Sathyanarayana Art-Music Karnataka

69. Shri Pankaj M Shah Medicine-Oncology Gujarat

70. Shri Bhajju Shyam Art-Painting Madhya Pradesh

71. Shri Maharao Raghuveer Singh Literature and Education Rajasthan

72. Shri Kidambi Srikanth Sports-Badminton Andhra Pradesh

73. Shri Ibrahim Sutar Art-Music Karnataka

74. Shri Siddeshwara Swamiji Others-Spiritualism Karnataka

75. Ms. Lentina Ao Thakkar Social Work Nagaland

76. Shri Vikram Chandra Thakur Science and Engineering Uttarakhand

77. Shri Rudrapatnam Narayanaswamy

Tharanathan (Duo)

Art-Music Karnataka

Shri Rudrapatnam Narayanaswamy

Thyagarajan (Duo)

Art-Music Karnataka

78. Shri Nguyen Tien Thien (Foreigner) Others-Spiritualism Vietnam

79. Shri Bhagirath Prasad Tripathi Literature and Education Uttar Pradesh

80. Shri Rajagopalan Vasudevan Science and Engineering Tamil Nadu

81. Shri Manas Bihari Verma Science and Engineering Bihar

82. Shri Panatawane Gangadhar Vithobaji Literature and Education Maharashtra

83. Shri Romulus Whitaker Others-Wildlife Conservation Tamil Nadu

84. Shri Baba Yogendra Art Madhya Pradesh

85. Shri A Zakia Literature and Education Mizoram

President felicitates 112 first ladies





President Ram Nath Kovind felicitated 112 exceptional women achievers at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi.

The women achievers ‘FIRST LADIES’ are those who are first to set milestone of achievement in their respective fields.

This ‘First Ladies’ is second leg of the ‘100 Women Achievers’ campaign of the Ministry.

They are those who have been first in any field like first woman judge, first woman porter, first woman to head missile

project, first para-trooper, first Olympian among others.

Their felicitation aims to inspire other women to break the glass ceiling and do women of India proud.

Bachendri Pal: first Indian woman to reach the Mount Everest summit

Deepa Malik: first woman to win a medal at the Paralympics

Priya Jhingan: First Lady Cadet to join the Indian Army

P V Sindhu: Olympic silver medallist

Nicole Faria: winner of the Miss earth title

Karnam Malleswari: Olympic medal winning weightlifter Karnam Malleswari

Anshu Jamsenpa: First Indian woman to scale Mt Everest for fifth time

Chhavi Rajawat: India’s first woman Sarpanch

Diana Edulji: First ODI captain of the first ever Indian Women’s

Cricket Team

Mangalajodi Ecotourism Trust of Odisha wins prestigious UNWTO Award

Mangalajodi Ecotourism Trust in Odisha won prestigious United Nations

World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Award for Innovation in Tourism

Enterprise at 14th UNWTO Awards ceremony held in Madrid, Spain.

President presents 2016 Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards

President Ram Nath Kovind has presented Sangeet Natak Akademi’s

Fellowships (Akademi Ratna) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi

Puraskar) for the year 2016 at function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.

Shah Rukh Khan honoured with Crystal Award at World Economic Forum

Shah Rukh Khan was honoured with the 24th Crystal Award at the World

Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland for "his leadership in championing

children's and women's rights in India". Shahrukh received the award alongside

Elton John and Hollywood actress Cate Blanchett.

Aishwarya Tipnis conferred France’s top cultural award

The Delhi-based conservation architect, Aishwarya Tipnis has been conferred France’s top cultural award "Chevalier de

l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres" for her outstanding commitment to preservation of French heritage in India in Kolkata.

Sudhir Dalvi honoured with Janakavi P Sawlaram award

Actor Sudhir Dalvi has been honoured with the Janakavi P Sawlaram award in Mumbai.

Well-known dancer Jaishree T was bestowed with the Ganga Jamuna award, which is instituted in memory of a popular

song written by Sawlaram.

Soumitra Chattopadhyay conferred with the France’s highest order of merit ‘Legion of Honour'

Soumitra Chattopadhyay, the legendary film and theatre actor, will be conferred with the France’s highest order of merit

‘Legion of Honour at the 42nd International Kolkata Book Fair 2018.

75th Annual Golden Globe Awards

The 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards has been awarded honoring the best in film and American television of 2017.

The ceremony was organized at Beverly Hills, California, United States (US).

The Golden Globe Awards are the annual awards that honour the best in Motion Pictures and American Television for

the previous year.

Best Motion Picture Drama: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Best Motion Picture Musical/Comedy: Lady Bird.

Best Director in Motion Picture-Drama: Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water).

Best Actor in Motion Picture-Drama: Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour) as Winston Churchill.

Best Actress iMotion Picture-Drama: Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) as

Mildred Hayes.

Best Original Song: “This Is Me” (Benj Pasek and Justin Paul) – The Greatest Showman Best Animated Feature

Film: Coco.

Best Foreign Language Film: In the Fade (Germany/France).

Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award: Oprah Winfrey

K S Chitra bags 'Harivarasanam' award

Veteran singer K S Chitra has been selected for this year's prestigious 'Harivarasanam' award.

'Harivarasanam' award was instituted by the Kerala govt.





Mamang Dai, Ramesh Kuntal win Sahitya Akademi award

Authors Mamang Dai and Ramesh Kuntal Megh have won 2017 Sahitya Akademi award for their work The Black Hill, a

novel, and Vishw Mithak Sarit Sagar, a work of literary criticism, in English and Hindi, respectively.

Bengali poet Joy Goswami to get 31st Moortidevi Award

Eminent Bengali poet Joy Goswami will be given the 31st Moortidevi Award for the year 2017 for his poetry collection

titled 'Du Dondo Phowara Matro'.

Tata Steel Joda Mine gets Golden Peacock Innovation Award

Joda East Iron Mine (JEIM) of Tata Steel has been honoured with the prestigious Golden Peacock Innovation

Management Award for the year 2017 for driving innovation in mines.

Mo Farah wins BBC's Sports Personality of the Year award

Sir Mo Farah was named the winner of the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year award.

Satheesh Reddy conferred with national design award

G. Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri and Director General, Missiles and Strategic Systems, has been

conferred with the prestigious National Design Award.

Anushka Sharma is PETA’s ‘Person of the Year’

Anushka Sharma has been named PETA’s Person of the Year by animal rights organisation People for Ethical Treatment

of Animals (PETA).

Shree Saini crowned Miss India USA 2017

Shree Saini, a resident of Washington state and a student at the University of Washington, has been crowned Miss India

USA 2017.

Prachi Singh, a 22-year-old medical student from Connecticut was declared the first runner-up, while North Carolina’s

Fareena became the second runner-up at Miss India USA 2017 pageant.

At the beauty pageant, cancer surgeon Kavita Malhotra Pattani from Florida was declared Mrs India USA 2017.

Prerna was the first runner-up while Ishwarya was declared the second runner-up for this title.

Swapna Mannam, 17, from New Jersey was crowned with Miss Teen India USA 2017.

Lucknow's Jitesh Singh Deo wins Mr. India World 2017 title

Jitesh Singh Deo from Lucknow bagged the Mr. India World 2017 title.

Abhi Khajuria from Chandigarh was the first runner-up and Mumbai's Pavan Rao, an actor, dancer and model, was

named the second runner-up.

Prathamesh Maulingkar, a model and entrepreneur from Goa, won the Mr India Supranatural 2017 title.

Vice President Confers Yeraringan Award to M.S. Swaminathan

The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu conferred 'Yeraringan' Award to Prof. M.S. Swaminathan, in Chennai.

Hindi writer MamtaKalia chosen for Vyas Samman 2017

Renowned Hindi scholar and writer MamtaKalia was chosen for Vyas Samman 2017 for her novel “DukkhamSukkham”.

Syrian boy wins Children’s Peace Prize

Mohamad Al Jounde from Syria has been awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize for his efforts to ensure rights

of Syrian refugee children Al Jounde set up a school together with his family in a Lebanese refugee camp that currently

provides 200 children with education.

Miss Korea Jenny Kim crowned Miss Supranational 2017

Jenny Kim, a South Korean beauty pageant titleholder, has been crowned Miss Supranational 2017 in Krynica-Zdroj,

Poland on December 1, 2017.

48th International Film Festival of India held in Goa

The 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) was held in Panji in Goa.

Legendary Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan was honoured with the Indian film personality of 2017 award.

Acclaimed Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan was honoured with the lifetime achievement award.

Best film award: 120 Beats Per Minute (French movie) directed by Robin Campullo.

Best director award: Vivian Qu for Angels Wear White (China)

Special Jury Award: Take-off (Malayalam film-India).

Best Actor (Female) award: Parvathy.

Best Actor (Male) award: Nahuel Perez Biscayart for his performance in 120 Beats Per Minute.

Best Debut Feature Film Director award: Kiro Russo for film Dark Skull (Spanish)

ICFT-UNESCO Gandhi Medal: Kshitij-A Horizon (Marathi movie) directed by Manouj Kadamh

Professor Hiroshi Marui conferred with 3rd ICCR Distinguished Indologist Award

The third Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) Distinguished Indologist Award 2017 was awarded to Professor

Hiroshi Marui of Japan.

Nabaneeta Dev Sen presented Big Little Book Award





Sahitya Akademi awardee Bengali writer Nabaneeta Dev Sen has been declared winner of the Big Little Book Award

this year in the "Author in Bengali Language" category for her contribution to the children's literature.

Veteran journalist Manik Banerjee gets IMF award

Veteran journalist Manik Banerjee, who is also an acclaimed mountaineer, was presented with the 'Life Time

Achievement Award' by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF).

Ethiopians Almaz Ayana, Berhanu Legese win women's and men's event in Delhi Half Marathon

Current woman world athlete of the year Almaz Ayana of Ethiopia clinched gold in her debut race while compatriot

Berhanu Legese won the men's event in the Delhi Half Marathon, 2017.

In the Men’s section, Legese clocked 59 minutes 46 seconds to claim the first spot, while his countryman Andahmlak

Belihu finished second and Kenyan-American Leonard Korir came third.

India’s Nitendra Rawat finished 10th.

Former PM Manmohan Singh to get Indira Gandhi peace prize

Former PM Manmohan Singh will receive the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development this year

for his leadership of the country between 2004 and 2014 and for enhancing India's stature globally.

Manushi Chhillar wins Miss World 2017 title

India’s Manushi Chhillar was crowned coveted Miss World crown for the year 2017.

The win comes 17 years after Priyanka Chopra brought home coveted title in the year 2000.

The winner of 2016 title, Puerto Rico’s Stephanie Del Valle passed on her crown to Ms Chhillar at a grand event held in

Sanya in China.

Reita Faria was first Indian woman to claim title back in 1966, followed by Aishwariya Rai Bachchan (1994), Diana

Haydon (1997), Yukta Mookhey (1999) and Priyanka Chopra (2000).

Nicaragua’s Sergio Ramirez wins Spain’s Cervantes prize

Nicaraguan author and former politician Sergio Ramirez Mercado has won the 2017 Cervantes Prize, the Spanish-

speaking world’s highest literary honor.

Shagun Chowdhary crowned National Women's Trap champion

Shagun Chowdhary bagged a national champion crown after winning the women's trap event at the 61st National

Shooting Championship.

Representing ONGC, Chowdhary, the first Indian woman trap shooter to win an Olympic berth, overcame the challenge

from Punjab's Rajeshwari Kumari to prevail 41-38 in the final.

Abu Dhabi award for APMDC

The Andhra Pradesh Mineral Development Corporation (APMDC) has bagged an international award from Abu Dhabi.

The ADI PEC (Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference) Excellence in Energy Awards 2017 had

adjudged the APMDC as the winner for the second position in the category of “social contribution in country value.”

UNHCR to receive Mother Teresa Award 2017 for social justice

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) was named as the recipient of Harmony Foundation’s

Mother Teresa Memorial Award for Social Justice 2017 for its exceptional work worldwide.

Harmony Foundation’s 2017 theme is ‘Compassion Beyond Borders’ and UNHCR efforts aptly fit into this theme.

Indian Short Film "The School Bag" Wins Award in Montreal

Indian short film ‘The School Bag’, which tells a story based in Pakistan, has won the Best Short Film Award at the

South Asian Film Festival of Montreal (SAFFM). The movie is directed by Dheeraj Jindal. Actress Rasika Dugal plays

the mother in the short film.

Tamil Nadu’s Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple wins UNESCO award

The Sri Ranganathaswamy temple at Srirangam in Tamil Nadu becomes the first temple from Tamil Nadu to win the

UNESCO Asia-Pacific award for cultural heritage conservation programme in the Awards of Merit category.

Hindi Writer Krishna Sobti awarded Jnanpith award 2017

Eminent Hindi Litterateur Krishna Sobti was awarded the 53rd Jnanpith Award for the year 2017 for her path-breaking

contribution to Indian literature.

Mumbai’s Royal Opera House bags UNESCO heritage award

The restored Royal Opera House, located at Mumbai's Charni Road, has received the Award of Merit from the 2017

UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation.

Girish Karnad to be honoured with Tata Literature Lifetime Achievement Award 2017

Versatile actor and playwright Girish Karnad will be honoured with Tata Literature Live Lifetime Achievement Award

2017 on 19 November 2017.

K Satchidanandan selected for Ezhuthachan Puraskaram

Ezhuthachan Puraskaram — the top literary prize of the State government — for 2017 has been given to poet-critic K.

Satchidanandan. The award carries a cash prize of ₹5 lakh and would be given away at a date to be finalised later.





Sports

Vikram Singh Sisodia appointed the Chef-de-Mission for the 21st Commonwealth Games 2018

The joint secretary of Indian Olympic Association (IOA), Vikram Singh Sisodia has been appointed the Chef-de-Mission

for the 21st Commonwealth Games 2018, which is scheduled to be held in Gold Coast, Australia from April 4 to 15.

Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan has won the 2018 women’s singles Indonesia Masters

Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan won the 2018 women’s singles Indonesia Masters badminton tournament by defeating Saina

Nehwal in the final by 9-21, 13-21 in Jakarta.

Sandeep Lamichhane become the first cricketer from Nepal to sign for an IPL team

Sandeep Lamichhane has become the first cricketer from Nepal to sign for an IPL team. The leg-spinner was bought by

Delhi Daredevils for his base price of Rs 20 lakh.

Iconic MCG to Host Final of Men's & Women's 2020 World T20

Melbourne Cricket Ground will host the final of both the men's and women's World Twenty20.

The women's tournament, made up of 10 teams, will be held from Feb 21 to Mar 8 before 16 men's teams play from Oct

18 to Nov 15.

Sharath Kamal wins Table Tennis Nationals Championship

Sharath Kamal beat top-seeded Anthony Amalraj to win the men singles title for the eighth time, equalling the feat of

Kamlesh Mehta in the 79th edition of the 11Even Sports Senior Nationals in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

Suthirta Mukherjee from West Bengal emerged the new women champion, beating Hyderabad Nationals winner Manika

Batra.

Men's Doubles: Soumyajit Ghosh-Jubin Kumar of Haryana beat Mohit Verma-Sourav Saha of Haryana.

Women's Doubles: Mousumi Paul-Krittwika Sinha Roy of West Bengal beat Mouma Das-Archana Kamath.

Mixed Doubles: Raj Mondal-Akula Sreeja (RBI) beat Akaash Nath-Ankita Das (NB).

Australian Open 2018

Swiss tennis player Roger Federer has retained Men’s Singles title by winning 2018 Australian Open.

He defeated Croatia’s Marin Cilic in five sets 6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in the summit clash played at Melbourne.

It was Federer’s sixth Australian Open Crown (earlier won in 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010 and 2017) and overall 20th Grand

Slam singles titles.

Women’s Singles: Caroline Wozniacki from Denmark won women’s Singles title in 2018 Australian Open by defeating

Simona Halep (Romania).

Men’s Doubles: Oliver Marach (Austria) and Mate Pavić (Croatia) duo won the title by defeating Juan Colombian pair

of Sebastián Cabal and Robert Farah.

Women’s Doubles: Tímea Babos (Hungary) and Kristina Mladenovic (France) pair won the title by defeating Russian

pair of Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina.

Mixed Doubles: Gabriela Dabrowski (Canada) and Mate Pavić (Croatia) pair won the title by defeating Tímea Babos

(Hungary) and Rohan Bopanna (India).

Soloman Deksisa won the 15th edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon

Soloman Deksisa from Ethiopia won the 15th edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon in men’s category.

It is the richest race in India with prize money worth 4 lakh 5,000 dollars.

Another Ethiopian, Shumit Akalnaw became the first runner-up, while Joshua Kipkorir from Kenya came second.

Meanwhile, Indian Olympic athlete T Gopi won the Mumbai Marathon in the Indian Elite category and Sudha Singh of

Central Railways won in the Indian Elite Women category.

Siddharth Singh wins Swedish Open Junior title

Young Indian shuttler Siddharth Pratap Singh secured his maiden international title, bagging the Swedish Open Junior

International Series with a straight-game victory over Denmark's Mads Christophersen in the finals.

West Indies to host 2018 Women’s World T20

The 2018 edition of the Women’s World T20 will be hosted by Antigua and Barbuda, Guyana and St Lucia in West

Indies from Nov 9-24.

India won the 5th edition of Blind Cricket World Cup 2018

Indian cricket team won the 5th edition of Blind Cricket World Cup 2018 by defeating Pakistan at Sharjah in United

Arab Emirates (UAE). With this, India has retained the World Cup for the Blind.

Virat Kohli named the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy 2017

Indian captain Virat Kohli named the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for Cricketer of the Year 2017.

He also bagged the top honour for ODI players in the ICC annual awards at the 2017 ICC annual awards announced in

Dubai on Jan 18, 2018.





He has also been named as the captain of both the ICC Men’s ODI Team of the Year and ICC Men’s Test Team of the

Year. Off-spinner R Ashwin had claimed the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for year 2016.

Australian captain Steve Smith claimed the 2017 Test Player of the Year honour.

Sarjubala Devi won the gold in 2018 National Women’s Boxing Championships

Former world silver medallist Sarjubala Devi from Manipur claimed the gold in 48kg category in the 2018 National

Women’s Boxing Championships in Rohtak. She was also given the best boxer trophy.

Former world and Asian champion L Sarita Devi representing the All India Police, AIP picked up a gold medal in the 60

kg category.

The other gold winners were Sonia Lather representing Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) in 57 kg category,

Meena Kumari of AIP in 54 kg category and Rajesh Narwal from RSPB in 48 kg category.

RSPB emerged as the overall champions.

Aditya Mehta won 2018 Kolkata Open International Invitation Snooker Championship

Aditya Mehta, an Indian professional snooker player & Asian Games medallist, won the 2018 Kolkata Open

International Invitation Snooker Championship in Kolkata, West Bengal.

Aanchal Thakur becomes the first Indian to register an International Medal in Skiing

Aanchal Thakur, a 21-year-old from Himachal Pradesh, becomes the first Indian to register an international medal in

skiing. She clinched bronze in the slalom race category at Alpine Ejder 3200 Cup.

Alpine Ejder 3200 Cup was organised by Skiing’s international governing body, Federation International de Ski (FIS) at

the Palandoken Ski Centre, in Erzurum in Turkey.

Federer-Bencic lead Switzerland to Hopman Cup title

Switzerland won their third Hopman Cup as Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic beat Germany's Alexander Zverev and

Angelique Kerber 4-3(3) 4-2 in the deciding mixed doubles to secure a 2-1 victory in the final at the Perth Arena.

It was Federer's second Hopman Cup triumph after victory in 2001 alongside then world number one Martina Hingis.

Gilles Simon won the Tata Open Maharashtra Tennis trophy

Gilles Simon of France has won the Tata Open Maharashtra Tennis trophy at Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune.

In the summit clash, the unseeded French player humbled big-serving second seeded Kevin Anderson in straight sets 7-6,

6-2. The tournament is India’s only ATP event.

Elina Svitolina wins Brisbane International for 10th WTA title

Elina Svitolina got the perfect boost ahead of the Australian Open by lifting the Brisbane International title with a 6-2 6-1

win over qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich.

Vidarbha wins 2017 Ranji Trophy tournament

Vidarbha cricket team won 2017 Ranji Trophy tournament. With this Vidarbha won his first Ranji Trophy title.

Vidarbha thumped 9-wicket win over Delhi in the final match held at Holkar stadium in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

Indian Golfer Shiv Kapur Wins Royal Cup

Indian golfer Shiv Kapur won the Royal Cup at Pattaya, which is his third Asian Tour title of 2017.

Harjinder Singh appointed as the Chef De Mission for WOG-2018

The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has appointed Harjinder Singh as the Chef De Mission for the 23rd Winter

Olympic Games (WOG-2018) to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea on Feb 2018.

Viswanathan Anand wins World rapid championship

Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand has regained the World Rapid Chess

Championship after defeating Russia's Vladimir Fedoseev in the tie-break play-off.

Anisa wins gold with new national record

Experienced Haryan shooter Anisa Sayyed won the women’s 25m pistol gold with a

new record at the ongoing 61st National Shooting Championship.

Saudi Arabia hosts world chess games

Saudi Arabia is hosting a world chess tournament for the first time nearly two years

after the country’s top cleric issued a religious edict against playing the board game.

Vijender Singh wins WBO Asia Pacific, Oriental titles

The legend of Vijender Singh continued to grow as the Indian boxing star outslugged

his Chinese opponent Zulpikar Maimaitiali in a close bout to retain the WBO Asia

Pacific Super Middleweight title here on Saturday.

P V Sindhu won silver medal at the 2017 women’s singles at Dubai Badminton Super

Series

Olympic silver medalist P V Sindhu has won silver medal at the 2017 women’s singles Dubai World Badminton Super

Series tournament.

Aakarshi Kashyap Wins U-17 & U-19 Badminton Singles Titles





India’s top-ranked junior shuttler Aakarshi Kashyap won U-17 and U-19 singles titles at Badminton junior Nationals in

Guwahati, Assam.

In Under-17 category, 16-year-old from Bhilai defeated Malvika Bansod in the final.

In Under 19 categories final, Kashyap has beaten Vaidehi Choudhari.

Sushil Kumar, Sakshi Malik Clinch Gold at Commonwealth Wrestling Championships

Double Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar clinched the gold medal at the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship in

Johannesburg.

Another Olympic medallist, Sakshi Malik, who won a bronze in the 2016 Rio Games, also clinched a gold medal in the

championship.

2002 World Cup winner Kaka retires from football

Former AC Milan and Real Madrid midfielder Kaka, who lifted the 2002 World Cup with Brazil, announced his

retirement from football.

Real Madrid presented with the FIFA World Champions Badge

Real Madrid, made history once more, became the first ever five-time FIFA world champions in Japan.

SachinSiwach named ABC’s best youth boxer

World youth champion SachinSiwach was named the Asian Boxing Confederation’s best youth boxer of the year after

winning an online poll conducted by the continental body.

India Wins 9 Medals in Asian Archery Championships

Indian archers produced an impressive performance, grabbed three gold, four silver and two bronze medals at the Asian

Championships in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

MirabaiChanu wins gold at World Weightlifting Championships

India’s Saikhom Mirabai Chanu won gold medal at World Weightlifting Championships held in Anaheim, United States.

With this victory, Mirabai Chanu became first Indian in over two decades to win the medal at the Championships.

IOA formally recognises Boxing Federation of India

The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) was recognised as a national body by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA),

which removed the terminated Indian Amateur Boxing Federation(IABF) as its affiliate after months of indecision.

BCCI Lifts Ban on Rajasthan Cricket Association

The Board of Control for Cricket in India decided to lift the ban on the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA).It has

provision of keeping away the former IPL chief Lalit Modi from its functioning.

Shubhankar Sharma Wins Joburg Open

Indian Golfer Shubhankar Sharma claimed European Tour victory in the Joburg Open, in South Africa.

Saurabh Chaudhary claims Youth Olympics Games spot with gold

India's Saurabh Chaudhary qualified for the Youth Olympics Games with a gold medal and a junior world record in 10m

air pistol at the ongoing Asia Youth Olympics Games qualification tournament in Wako City, Japan.

Jitu Rai AndHeena Sidhu Win Medals at Asian Championships

Pistol aces Jitu Rai and Heena Sidhu bagged a bronze each to continue India's medal charge at the 10th Asian

Championship 10m Rifle/Pistol in Wako City, Japan.

Australia beat Argentina 2-1 to win gold in Hockey World League Final

Australia beat Argentina 2-1 in the final of the Hockey World League Final (HWLF) to win gold in Bhubaneswar,

Odisha.Argentina beat India (who won bronze earlier) in the semifinals.

Hockey World League Final: India beat Germany 2-1 to win bronze

India defeated Germany 2-1 in the Hockey World League Final to grab the bronze medal at the event, in Bhubaneswar,

Odisha.

Kanchanmala Pande becomes First Indian to Win Gold at World Para Swimming Championship

Visually impaired swimmer Kanchanmala Pande scripted history as she became the first Indian to win gold at the World

Para Swimming Championship, taking place in Mexico.

Cristiano Ronaldo wins fifth Ballon d’Or to equal Lionel Messi’s record

Cristiano Ronaldo has won the Ballon d'Or for a fifth time to move level with rival Lionel Messi.

The Real Madrid forward was named the winner of France Football's prestigious award at a ceremony in Paris.He

previously won the award in 2008, 2013, 2014 and 2016.

Yuvraj Singh launches UNICEF-ICC's adolescent campaign

Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh will be promoting a UNICEF sports initiative for youngsters in South Asia, which will also

have the ICC's backing.

MujeebZadran becomes the first male International cricketer from the 21st century

Mujeeb-ur-RehmanZadran, a 16-year-old off-spinner from Afghanistanm, becomes the first male cricketer born in the

21st century to play on the International stage.





Serene Valtteri Bottas Wins Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Valtteri Bottas won the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from pole position, beating his Mercedes teammate Lewis

Hamilton as Formula One’s season finale petered out into a procession.

South African Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters wins Miss Universe 2017 crown

South African Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters was crowned Miss Universe at pageant held at The AXIS at Planet Hollywood in

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States.

The runner-up of Miss Universe 2017 was Miss Colombia Laura Gonzalez, while second runner-up was Miss Jamaica

Davina Bennett.

Gopi Thonakal becomes 1st Indian man to win Asian Marathon Championship

Gopi Thonakal created history by becoming first Indian man to win Asian Marathon Championship held at Dongguan in

China. Uzbekistan’s Andrey Petrov won silver medal while Byambalev Tseveenravdan of Mongolia won bronze medal.

Messi wins fourth European Golden Shoe award

Lionel Messi insisted he was getting better with age after receiving the European Golden Shoe award for the fourth time.

Messi succeeds his Barcelona team-mate Luis Suarez, the 2016 winner who handed over the trophy.

Ritu Phogat wins Silver in Under-23 Senior World Wrestling Championship

India’s Ritu Phogat has won Silver medal in 48 kg category in Under-23 Senior World Wrestling held in Poland.

Grigor Dimitrov lifts ATP Finals Title

The sixth-seeded Bulgarian, Grigor Dimitrov claimed the title at the season-ending ATP Finals, prevailing on his fifth

match point to beat David Goffin 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in the final.

Dimitrov claimed his first Master's title in Cincinnati in August and has risen to a career-high No. 3-ranking with victory

in London.

Afghanistan wins maiden Under-19 Asia Cup

Afghanistan thrashed Pakistan by 185 runs to clinch their maiden Under-19 Asia Cup title at the Kinrara Academy Oval

in Kuala Lumpur.

Ikram Ali khil was the man of the match against Pakistan U19 in the ACC U19 Youth Asia Cup Final for his 107 not out

and Mujeeb Zadran was man of series for his 20 wickets in the tournament.

Pankaj Advani wins IBSF World Billiards Championship

Ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani won 2017 IBSF World Billiards Championship held at Doha.

Advani clinched his 17th world title after thrashing his arch-rival Mike Russell of England 6-2 to defend the 150-up

format title which he won in Bengaluru last year.

India unveiled logo, mascot and song for Boxing Youth World C'ship

Assam's famed one-horned rhino was unveiled as the official mascot of the 2017 AIBA Youth Women's World Boxing

Championship.

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Boxing Federation of India (BFI) president Ajay Singh also released the

championship's official logo and anthem, to mark the countdown for India's first youth world boxing championship from

Nov 19 to 26.

The official mascot, named Guppy, is a female version of Assam's one-horned rhino.

The logo infuses two key elements-- the strength of an Indian woman in the form of a female boxer and the culture

of Assam through the 'gamosa', a much-cherished hand-woven piece of cloth in the state.

It has cleverly integrated the national flag's three main hues - saffron, green and white - too.

The World Championship official anthem, 'Make Some Noise', proved to be an instant hit with those present, including

the entire Indian contingent, its Performance Director Bergamasco Raffaele and head Coach Bhaskar Bhatt.

Mary Kom strikes gold at Asian Women’s Boxing Championships

Indian sporting legend and five time world champion Mary Kom won gold medal in Asian Women’s Boxing

Championships in Light Flyweight (48 kg) category.

Saina Nehwal & HS Prannoy win national titles

H.S. Prannoy and Saina Nehwal claimed the titles in the 82nd senior National badminton championship by defeating

World No. 2s K. Srikanth and P.V. Sindhu respectively.

The mixed doubles title was won by Satwik Sai Raj R and Ashwini Ponnappa by defeating Pranaav Jerry Chopra and N

Sikki Reddy pair by 21-9, 20-22, 21-17 score.

Indian women win Asia Cup, qualify for Hockey World Cup

Indian women’s hockey team won the 2017 Asia Cup hockey title.

In the final match held at Kakamigahara in Japan, India defeated China by 5-4 goals in penalty shootout.

Mary Kom named Youth World Championships ambassador

Five-time world champion MC Mary Kom was named ambassador of the AIBA Women's Youth World

Championships to be held in Guwahati from November 19 to 26.

Aditi Ashok wins in Abu Dhabi for her third LET title





Young Indian golfer Aditi Ashok made a triumphant return to the Ladies European Tour by clinching the Fatima Bint

Mubarak Ladies Open after surviving a few anxious moments in the closing stages.

Shiv Kapur wins a long-awaited title at the DCA

Shiv Kapur’s articulate assessment of the triumph matched his golfing eloquence as he celebrated the $400,000

Panasonic Open Golf crown.

Gagan Narang wins silver medal at Commonwealth Shooting Championships

Olympic bronze-medallist Gagan Narang won a silver medal in the men’s 50m rifle prone event of the Commonwealth

Shooting Championships in Brisbane. In women’s 25m pistol final, India’s Snuraj Singh won the bronze.

National Sports Awards – 2017





Obituary

Veteran Bengali film Actress and Padmashri Awardee Supriya Devi

NASA Astronaut John Young

Award-winning science fiction and American author Ursula K. Le Guin

Famous Urdu Poet Anwar Jalalpuri

Former Director-General and first Chief of World

Trade Organization (WTO)

Peter Sutherland

Famous Story Writer Doodhnath Singh

The renowned Sarod Maestro Pt Buddhadev Dasgupta

Kannada film Actor, Director and Producer Kashinath

Hindi Writer, Critic and Poet Doodhnath Singh

Indian Actress Charu Rohatgi

Veteran Journalist NK Trikha

Kerala MLA K.K. Ramachandran Nair

Noted agricultural Scientist & pioneer of India’s Green

Revolution

Gurcharan Singh Kalkat

Father of South African Jazz Hugh Masekela

Iconic Cartoonist Chandi Lahiri

An American Professional Basketball Player Joseph Henry (JoJo) White

Hindustani classical music exponent Pandit Narayanrao Bodas

France’s biggest rock star Johnny Hallyday

Veteran Bollywood Actor Shashi Kapoor

Actor, writer and filmmaker Neeraj Vora

Veteran journalist Sukharanjan Sengupta

Eminent scientist and ‘father of DNA fingerprinting in

India’

Lalji Singh

Renowned Bengali singer Jatileswar Mukhopadhyay

American author Sue Grafton

South African musician Robbie Malinga

Bugs Bunny animator Bob Givens

Veteran Bengali film actor Partha Mukhopadhyay

Former BCCI GM M.V. Sridhar

Renowned Malayalam Writer PunathilKunjabdulla

Veteran British Actor Roy Dotrice

India’s first Olympic Swimmer Shamsher Khan

Writer & Journalist H. M. Marathe

All the BEST !!




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