NATIONAL SYMBOLS:

    National Animal - Tiger

    National Tree – Banyan.

    National bird – Peacock

    National Flower – Lotus

    National Fruit – Mango

    National River – Ganga

    National Aquatic animal – Dolphin.

  The President nominates 2 Anglo-Indians to Lok sabha and 12

members to Rajya Sabha.

  The Governor of a state nominates 1 Anglo-Indian to Assembly and

1/6th members to legislative council.

  Tenure of CAG is 6 years or till he attains the age of 65 years

whichever is earlier.

  Tenure of Chairman and members of UPSC is 6 years or till he

attains the age of 65 years whichever is earlier.

  Tenure of Chairman and members of State Public Service

Commission or JPSC is 6 years or till he attains the age of 62 years

whichever is earlier.

  The tenure of a service Chief (Army, Air Force and Navy) is 3 years

or till the age of 62 years whichever is earlier.

  Article 52.  There shall be a President.

  Article 153. There shall be a Governor for each state.

  The President of India is elected by the elected members of Lok

Sabha, Elected members of Rajya Sabha and the elected

members of State Assemblies including that of Delhi and

Pondicherry.

  The Governor is appointed by the President.

  Air Force One (Rajdoot, Rajhans & Rajkamal) fleet. This is modeled

on US Presidents Air Force One. Indian President traveled on

Rajdoot to Assam.

  B-Complex and C Vitamins are water soluble and A, D, E and K are

the fat soluble vitamins.

  Vitamins B and C are water soluble.

  B and C dissolve in water and are not stored. Hence needed in

daily diet.

  Excess A, D, E and K are stored in liver. They are not needed every

day in diet.

  The right of suffrage (Voting) for Lok sabha and assemblies is

mentioned under Article 326 of the Indian Constitution. In the

original Constitution the minimum age to vote was 21 and

through 61 st amendment in the year 1989 it was reduced to 18

years.

  Articles 15, 16 and 19 belong only to citizens. Remaining articles

under Fundamental rights are applicable to citizens and aliens

equally.

  Yuri Gagarin (USSR) was the first Cosmonaut to go into space in

the year 1961 in a space craft called Vostok-1.

  Valentina Tereshkova (USSR) is the first woman to go into space in

the year 1963. She travelled through Vostok-6.

  Neil Armstrong (US) along with Edwin Aldrin was the first to land on

Moon on July 20, 1969. They travelled through Apollo-11(Eagle)

landed on sea of Tranquility on Moon.

  Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian to go into space in the year

1984. He went in a space craft called Soyuz T-11.

  Kalpana Chawla died in the crash of space shuttle Columbia STS-

107 on February 1, 2003. India's 1st meteorological satellite

METSAT renamed as Kalpana-1.

  The Sankranti festival is the festival of the Sun god who is

regarded as the symbol of divinity and wisdom.

  The Sankranti marks the Sun’s transition from Dhanur rasi

(Sagittarius) to Makara rasi (Capricorn). This also means that the

Suns is on its northwards journey or Uttarayan bringing it closer to

the northern hemisphere.

  The Sankranti festival is called Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Lohri

(Punjab), Bhogali Bihu (Assam).

  First Lok Sabha was constituted in May 1952. Mavalankar was the

first speaker and M Ananthasayanam Ayyangar was the first

deputy Speaker of Lok sabha.

  Parliament means Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and the President.

  The Lok Sabha is also called lower house or House of people.

  The Rajya Sabha is also called Upper House or Council of states.

  State Legislature means Legislative Assembly, Legislative Council

and the Governor.

  Central Hindu College at Banaras was founded by Dr Annie Besant

in the year 1898. It was developed into Banaras Hindu University

by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya. 

  Annie Besant was the first woman President of INC in 1917

during Calcutta session.

  Sarojini Naidu was the first Indian woman President of INC in

1925 during Kanpur session.

  Mahatma Gandhi was the President of INC only once in the year

1924 during Belgaum session.

  Justice Sinha of Allahabad High Court delivered judgment against

Indira Gandhi in the year 1975 for the malpractices of 1971

elections. The petition was filed by Raj Narain.

  Theosophical society was founded in New York in the year 1975 by

Madam Elena Blavatsky. Later it is moved to Adyar (Chennai).

  Vijaya lakshmi Pandit was the first Indian elected as the President

of the 8th United Nations General Assembly in 1953. 

  Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was the first woman cabinet Minister in

India. She was the Minister for Local self Government and Health

in the congress ministry of UP from 1937 to 1939. She was the

first Indian woman ambassador to erstwhile USSR from 1947 to

1949.

  In 1901 Kadambini Ganguly became the first woman to address

INC during Calcutta session. 

  INC was founded by A O Hume in Bombay in the year 1885. WC

Bennerjee was the first President of INC.

  First woman Governor in India Sarojini Naidu for the state of UP in

the year 1949.

  First woman CM in India Sucheta Kripalani for the state of Uttar

Pradesh (1963 – 1967).

  Rajkumari Amrit Kaur was the first woman Cabinet Minister in India

up to the year 1957. She held the Ministry of Health portfolio.

  Indira Gandhi was the first Prime Minster to get defeated in the

elections. She was defeated in the 1977 election by Janata Party

candidate Raj Narain.

  Leila Seth-1st woman Chief Justice  of High Court(HP).

  National environmental engineering institute was established in

Nagpur in the year 1958.

  Cape Verde is the 153rd nation in WTO (World Trade Organization).

WTO head Quarters Geneva, Switzerland. WTO Director-General

Pascal Lamy. In April 2009 he was reappointed for a term of 4

years.

  Russia is not a member of WTO.

  TEMPLE Trees: This is the official residence of the President of Sri

Lanka.

  Food& Agriculture organization HQ Rome. Director General Jacques

Doiuf.

  MNP (Mobile number Portability). MNP was first introduced in

Haryana in the year 2010. On January 20, 2011 it was extended to

the entire country.

  The Wagah border lies on the Grand Trunk road connecting

Amritsar and Lahore.

  The towns of Baarle-Nassau in Netherlands and Baarle-Hertog in

Belgium are so deeply intertwined that it is very common to find

the white crosses the divide the 2 countries running through a

road, a restaurant or even a house.

  The citizens of Australia and New Zealand can work and live in

either country without restrictions.

  India shares open border policy with Nepal.

  The smallest sea island ‘Market Island’ is shared by Sweden and

Finland.

  The Berlin wall that separated East and West Germany epitomized

as the Iron Curtain, a boundary between the ‘Free World’ and the

Communist World.

  As per Schengen agreement one does not require any special

travel documents to cross over to another European country.   

  International Monitory Fund and International Bank for

Reconstruction and Development or World Bank, both put

together is called Bretton Woods twins.

  International Monitory Fund and World Bank both Head quarters

located in Washington. Both were set up in the year 1945

  Pluto lost the status of a planet.

  Venus is the nearest planet to the earth.  Venus is the hottest

planet in the solar system. This is called Morning star/Evening

star.

  Mercury is nearest to the Sun.

  All planets rotate up on their axis from west to East. Venus and

Uranus rotate from east to West.  Asteroids are present between

Mars and Jupiter.

  In Supreme Court there is a Chief Justice of India and 30 other

judges. All are appointed by the President. Once appointed retire

at the age of 65.

  SC and HC judges are appointed by the President.  Both Submit

resignation letter to the President.