VETRII IAS STUDY CIRCLE - Vetrii Group I Team Current Affairs... · Vetrii IAS Study Circle, 243 Cauvery Nagar, ... I. TAMIL NADU 7DPLO1DGX¶VIL UVW ... on pulses imported by four

VETRII IAS STUDY CIRCLE

CURRENT AFFAIRS

TNPSC

( SEPTEMBER - 2015)

Main Office at

Vetrii IAS Study Circle

F Block 37/38, 2nd Avenue main Road, Chinthamani, Anna Nagar(E),

Chennai – 102.

Phone: 044 – 26265326 / 9600124042 / 9500005522

Branch Office at:

Vetrii IAS Study Circle,

No:189/1, Meyanoor Road,

Near ARRS Multiplex,

Opp.Venkateshwara Complex,

Salem – 4

Phone: 0427 – 2330307 / 9442740307

Branch Office at:

Vetrii IAS Study Circle,

243 Cauvery Nagar,

Opp. New Housing Unit,

Thanjavur- 05.

Cell: 7871169099.

www.vetriias.com

TNPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS

www.vetriias.com Page 1

I. TAMIL NADU

Tamil Nadu’s first Global Investors Summit (TNGIM 2015)

Tamil Nadu‘s first Global Investors Summit (TNGIM 2015) has begun in Chennai to invest

in the state. TNGIM 2015 was officially inaugurated by state Chief Minister J.Jayalalithaa.

Nine countries have registered themselves as partner nations for the mega investment

event. State government is aiming to translate investments from this summit by signing

about 100 MoUs in the two-day summit to generate around 150,000 jobs over the next 3

years.

the state‘s first Global Investor Meet has exceeded the investment target of Rs.100,000

crore.the state has planned an investment of $250 billion in infrastructure under its

Vision Tamil Nadu 2023 plan.

―Tamil Nadu ranks first in terms of number of new micro, small and medium enterprise

(MSME) projects registered during 2013-14 with 1,16,393 new units accounting for 32.04

percent of the total new MSME units promoted all over India.

During 2014-15 the number of MSME units registered went up even further to 1,43,104,‖

she said.Jayalalithaa said the government has come out with Tamil Nadu Investment

Promotion Programme (TNIPP) with the assistance of the Japan International Co-

operation Agency.

Governor of Meghalaya V. Shanmuganathan gets additional charge of Manipur

President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed Governor of Meghalaya V. Shanmuganathan

to take the functions of the Governor of Manipur. V Shanmuganthan is a prolific writer

and had written three books related to culture and social aspects in Tamil

It should be noted that Article 153 of Constitution says that there shall be Governor for

each state. But the 7th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1956 has facilitated the

appointment of the same person as a governor for two or more states.

II. NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Over 300 cities identified for Housing for All scheme

The union government has identified over 300 cities and towns across nine states for

implementing its Housing for All scheme.

―Three hundred and five cities and towns have been identified in nine statesChhattisgarh

(36 cities/towns), Gujarat (30), Jammu and Kashmir (19), Jharkhand (15), Kerala (15),

Madhya Pradesh (74), Odisha (42), Rajasthan (40) and Telangana (34) for beginning

construction of houses for the urban poor,‖said a statement from the housing and urban

poverty alleviation ministry with assistance of over Rs.200,000 crore over the next six

years to enable two crore urban poor get their own houses in 2022

The states that have so far agreed to implement the mandatory reforms are Andhra

Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya

Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttarakhand.



Black money: Indians urged to use compliance window

Swiss and other European banks have asked Indian customers to avail the on-going one-

time compliance window granted by the tax department for disclosure of foreign assets.

The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of New Tax) Act, 2015, or the

black money act, for the first time allows levy of tax in India on assets kept abroad.

The ministry has notified September 30 as the expiry date of the compliance window,

while allowing those with undisclosed income and assets abroad time till December 31 to

pay the levies.Unlawful undisclosed income abroad is taxed at a rate of 30 percent with

an additional 30 percent penalty.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said the government has completed an assessment of

350 foreign accounts and tax evasion proceedings had been initiated against 60 account

holders.This move followed the Supreme Court last year giving a list of 628 entities in the

HSBC Geneva branch

.An unofficial estimate puts the sum somewherebetween $466 billion and $1.4 trillion.

Manipur assembly passes Protection of Manipur People Bill, 2015

Manipur Legislative Assembly has unanimously passed the Protection of Manipur People

Bill, 2015 along with other two amendment bills to protect indigenous people of state.

Other two bills are Manipur Shops and Establishments (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015

and Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2015.

The issue came into light after state assembly had passed the Manipur Regulation of

Visitors, Tenant and Migrants Workers Bill, 2015 to protect the interest outsiders in the

state. It should be noted that there is long standing demand for implementation of Inner

Line Permit (ILP) system in the state.

Manipur Union Government releases Rs 2,000 crore for Employees’ Pension

Scheme

Union Government has released 2,000 crore rupees to Employees‘ Pension Scheme

(EPS), 1995 as its contribution for the year 2015-16. This contribution is in addition to the

250 crore rupees contributed by the government as grant-in-aid in the EPS in order to

provide minimum pension of 1,000 rupees to pensioners under the scheme.

The contribution of Union government has been calculated at a rate of 1.16 per cent of the

monthly wages of the members contributing to the scheme.

Employers contribute nearly 8.33% of the monthly wages of the scheme members.

Approximately 28 lakh pensioners including five lakh widows will get benefit from this

scheme. (There are total 44 lakh pensioners).

Supreme Court stays Rajasthan High Court’s decision declaring ‘Santhara’ ritual

illegal

The Supreme Court (SC) of India has stayed Rajasthan High Court‘s order declaring

Santhara, a Jain ritual of voluntary and systematic fasting to death illegal. The stay order

was given by SC Bench comprising Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu and Justice Amitava

Roy.



What is Santhara? Santhara is a religious custom of Jain religion that embraces voluntary

death in order to purge oneself of bad ‗karma‘ and attain ‗moksha‘. The practitioners of this

custom take an oath to stop eating until they die of starvation. This oath is taken in consultation

with a guru and follows the most detailed of procedures.

Background Earlier in August 2015, Rajasthan High Court had banned the practice of

Santhara by declaring it as a criminal offence and mentioning it as illegal in the eyes of law.

The High Court in its ruling had made this religious practice a punishable offence under section

306 (abetment of suicide) and Section 309 (attempt to commit suicide) of the Indian Penal Code

(IPC). Constitutional Validity.

Article 25: The Rajasthan High Court in its ruling had mentioned that as per Article 25,

religious liberty and freedom is only limited to the scope of essential religious practices of

particular religion. So practice of Santhara is not essential religious practice of Jainism.

Article 21: The Rajasthan High Court also mentioned that Protection of life and personal liberty

does not include Right to die. So it is illegal from this point of view.

Maharashtra Government approves ordinance to amend MPDA Act,

Maharashtra Government has decided to take ordinance route to amend Maharashtra

Prevention of Dangerous Activities (MPDA) Act, 1981. Decision in this regard was taken

in State Cabinet meeting by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai.

Key provisions of ordinance Illegal sand mining has been made non bailable offence.

Sand smuggling as well as smugglers will be added in the section II of the Act. Culprits

arrested in illegal sand mining cases will not get bail for one year after their arrest.

Tampering of the public distribution system (PDS) mechanism and foodgrain mafias will

be brought under the ambit of this Act. Offences under it will be made non–bailable.

Union Cabinet approves MFP for Development of Hydrocarbon discoveries 2015

Union Cabinet has approved Marginal Fields Policy (MFP) to aunction small and

marginal unexploited hydrocarbon discoveries by state owned oil companies

Key facts about Marginal Fields Policy (MFP) 69 unexploited oil fields owned by Oil and

Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India Limited (OIL) will be opened for

competitive bidding to private and foeign companies based on revenue sharing model.

These discoveries for many years were not able to monetize due to isolated locations,

small size of reserves, technological constraints, high development costs and fiscal

regime.

Implication: To stimulate investment in oil exploration sector as well as increase

domestic oil and gas production. It will also help in monetizing 70,000 crore rupees

worth of resources form these unexploited oil fields Earlier.

UNESCO India to join UN’s Better Than Cash Alliance

UNESCO India to join UN‘s Better Than Cash Alliance to achieve financial inclusion,

India has decided with a view to reduce cash transactions in its economy and achieve

financial inclusion.



Better Than Cash Alliance is made up of Governments, international organizations and

companies. It accelerates the transition of economy from cash to digital payments in

order to reduce poverty and drive inclusive growth.

Smart National Common Mobility Card Model for Metro Travel.

Petroleum Sector Union Government frames Smart National Common Mobility Card

Model to enable metro travel.Union Ministry of Urban Development has come out with a

Smart National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) model to enable seamless metro travel,

shopping,

Key facts, Union Minister of Urban Development Venkaiah Naidu has approved the

EMV Open Loop Card with stored value. . It can be used for traveling by any means of

transport and also enables account based retail shopping applications, banking and

transit requirements

Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) will develop the specified

standards and hardware for Metro gates and validators along with related ecosystems for

making NCMC card model operational.

Union Cabinet approves reimbursement to 4 government agencies for import of

pulses

The Union Cabinet has approved reimbursement of 113 crore rupees for incurring losses

on pulses imported by four government agencies between 2006- 2011 period. These four

government agencies are

i) National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED),

ii) Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India (MMTC),

iii) State Trading Corporation of India (STC) and

iv) PEC.

Government had asked these four PSUs to import and sell pulses in the open market with

subject to reimbursement of 15 per cent losses. The other scheme government was to distribute

these imported pulses via ration shops i.e. Publc distribution System (PDS) to poor people at a

fixed subsidy of 10 rupees per kg.

National Teachers Day

Every year in India 5th September is being observed as National Teachers Day.

Significance of Day: This day commemorates the birthday of India‘s first Vice

President and second President Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.

This year’s celebration: On occasion of National Teachers Day, Prime Minister

Narendra Modi releasesed commemorative coins of 125 rupees and 10 rupees

denomination in honour of former President S Radhakrishnan. About Dr Sarvepalli

Radhakrishnan was born on 5 September 1888 in Thiruttani in then Madras Presidency

of British India.

He was an Indian philosopher and statesman and one the best known scholars in the field

of comparative religion and philosophy in India in the 20th century. He had

tremendously contributed towards the new contemporary Hindu identity in the eyes of



the ill-informed Westeners. He held great respect for teachers and always believed that

teachers are real nation builders.

Important Posts: First Vice President of India (in office from 1952–1962),

Second President of India (in office from 1962 to 1967).

Awards: He was honoured with Bharat Ratna (1954), British Royal Order of Merit

(1963) etc.

Note: He was first recipient Bharat Ratna, India‘s highest civilian award along with politician C.

Rajagopalachari, scientist C. V. Raman.

Union governments nod on OROP

Union Government has given its nod to implement One Rank One Pension (OROP)

scheme for ex-servicemen. It was announced by Union Defence Minister Manohar

Parikkar in New Delhi.

Facts about OROPscheme will provide ex-servicemen of same rank and same length of

service uniform pension regardless of date of retirement. The benefit will be given with

effect from 1st of July 2014 and it will benefit all three services- Army, Navy and Air

Force.

Estimated cost to implement OROP scheme would be around 8000 crore rupees to

10,000 crore rupees at present and it will increase further in future.

Union Government also has decided to constitute one member Judicial Committee for

examination of interests of retirees of different periods and different ranks. The

Committee will also cover inter-service issues of the three forces and submit its report in

six months.

Government Schemes Delhi High Court allows permanent commission for women

in Indian Navy

Delhi High Court in its landmark judgment has allowed women to get permanent

commission in Indian Navy and allowed them to board on warships. The ruling was given

by a Division Bench of Delhi HC headed by Justice Kailash Gambhir on the writ petition

moved by a group of women naval officers both retired and serving.

The HC also ruled that, henceforth female naval officers will have full term service in the

Indian Navy and also enjoy retirement benefits same as their male counterparts.

Presently, Indian Army and Air Force allow permanent commission for female officers.

While, Indian Navy has limited the role of women officers serving in short service

commission of 14 years.

Implications: It will eliminate the gender discrimination and ensure the rights of

women officers in Indian Navy similar to their counterpart in other forcesl

Bodh Gaya to be developed into spiritual capital: Modi

Prime Minister announced that Bodh Gaya, which is considered the birthplace of

Buddhism, would be developed as a spiritual capital of the Buddhist world.―We want to

develop Bodh Gaya as a spiritual capital of the Buddhist world.

Modi circumambulated the Mahabodhi tree under which Lord Buddha is said to have

attained enlightenment 2,550 years ago.



India launched Women-20 (W20)

Group of Twenty (G-20), a forum of world‘s 20 largest economies, including India

launched Women-20 (W20), an engagement grouping of women leaders in order to push

for gender inclusive global economic growth.

It was launched in the on-going G-20 Summit of Finance Ministers and Central Bank

Governors in Ankara under the Turkish Presidency.. It would host its first summit in

October 2015 in Istanbul after all member countries appoint their respective nominees.

Gulden Turktan from Turkey has been appointed as the first President W20 forum.

About Group of Twenty ,G20 is the premier forum for global economic and financial

cooperation. Established in 1999 as a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank

Governors on member countries in the aftermath of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. It

brings together 20 nations that represent world‘s major advanced and emerging

economies, representing around 85 per cent of global GDP.

Presidency of the G20: It rotates annually among its members. Members: Brazil,

China, Russia, India, South Africa, Australia, Argentina, Canada, France, Indonesia,

Germany, Italy, Mexico, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, South Korea, United Kingdom

(UK), United States (US) and European Union (EU).

Delhi Metro rail being extended to Haryana cities

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, inaugurated a metro line connecting Badarpur in Delhi

and Faridabad in Haryana and said the metro connectivity would be extended up to

Ballabhgarh to link an important part of the state with the national capital.

A sum of Rs.700 crore would be spent on this project, he said while addressing a ‗Gati

Pragati‘ rally after inaugurating the Badarpur-Mujesar Metro link here .

The 13.8-km Badarpur-Mujesar Metro link, an extension of the violet line between the

ITO and Badarpur Metro stations, will have nine stations About 1.95 lakh passengers are

expected to use the new corridor every day by the year-end, which cost Rs.2,500 crore to

construct.

Haryana would be able to attract weekend tourists, which would in turn provide

employment to the local populace.The prime minister said auxiliary electricity

requirements of the metro stations on the stretch would be met by solar energy, the

panels for which have been set up at the stations.

New features, numbering system to check fake currency

To check the menace of fake Indian currency, new notes, especially the Rs.1,000 and

Rs.500 denominations, will have 7 new security features and a new numbering system,

official sources in New Delhi.

The Reserve Bank of India subsidiary Bhartiya Note Mudran Pvt Ltd (BRBNMPL) and the

state-run Security Printing and Minting Corp are both working to introduce the revised

number pattern in currency notes, the source said

Malaysia, Thailand and Oman have emerged as the new centres for stocking fake Indian

currency for onward circulation across India.

As per latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Gujarat tops

the list of five Indian states that are considered the ―safest‖ for circulating counterfeit



currency notes – allegedly pushed in by Pakistan‘s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)

agency.

Indo-Maldives joint Training Exercise, KUVERIN 2015

The sixth Indo-Maldives joint Training Exercise, KUVERIN 2015 has commenced at

Pangode Military Station in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala.

Aim of the Joint Exercise ,Total of 45 soldiers each from Indian Army (BIHAR

Regiment) and the Maldivian National Defence Force will take part which increase

understanding and interoperability between Armies of both countries

It should be noted that the sixth Indo-Maldives joint Training Exercise commenced on 31

August 2015 and it will conclude on 13 September 2015 with the closing ceremony

involving cultural events by various military display teams along with aerial acrobatics

display by Sarang Team of Indian Air force.

Andhra Pradesh launches e-Pragati:

Persons In News Andhra Pradesh State Enterprise Architecture (APSEA) launches e-

Pragati to bring all government services under one roof

Key facts The basic objective of e-Pragati is to provide an integrated One Governance that

will be citizen-centric, transparent and effective by moving away from the traditional

piecemeal approach.

It has been developed in association with Information Technology (IT) giant Wipro. The

project aims to bring together 745 government to businesses (G2B), government to

citizens (G2C), government to employees (G2E) and government to governments (G2G)

services offered by 33 departments of state and more than 300 government agencies.

As many as 72 projects of various departments have been grouped under 14 packages.

Haryana Government bans gutka, pan masala

Haryana government has completely banned the gutka, pan masala and other similar

products containing tobacco in the state for one year from September 3, 2015.

In this regard State Food and Drugs Administration has issued notification in the interest

of public health. The ban includes manufacturing, distribution, storage and sale of gutka,

pan masala, flavoured or scented tobacco, kharra and other similar products containing

tobacco.

The ban also includes mix of other ingredients such as heavy metals and anti-caking

agents. These substances were banned due to presence of Nicotine which already has

been added by state government in the list of poisons substances notified under Haryana

Poison Possession and Sales Rules, 1966.

33% reservation for women in paramilitary forces: Rajnath

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced 33 percent reservations would be

provided for women in all paramilitary forces, including Central Industrial Security Force

(CISF).―‖ he said at the passing-out parade here at National Industrial Security Academy

(NISA), a premier training centre of the CISF.



Noting that women share in the force stood at just 5.04 percent, he stressed on the need

to increase the number of women personnel up to one-third of the overall strength of the

force.

Rajnath Singh asked the CISF, which is actively involved in the developmental activities

at the areas affected by left-wing extremism, to also improve its core competence in newer

areas of crime such as dealing with cyber crimes.

Haryana Government sets minimum qualification for candidates in Panchayati

Raj polls

Haryana Assembly has passed Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2015 that

seeks to fix matriculation as minimum educational qualification for elections to

Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs). With this Haryana became second state in India after

Rajasthan to fix educational and other qualifications for the candidates contesting

Panchayat elections.

Key provisions of bill General candidates contesting the Panchayat elections should have

class X certificates i.e. matriculation as essential qualification. For Women (general) and

Scheduled Caste candidates‘, class VIII mark-sheet is mandatory. The educational

qualification for SC candidates for the post of ‗panch‘ is class V. Mandatory for the

candidates contesting PRI elections to have functional toilets and payment of power bills.

Candidates should not have been charge-sheeted by any court of law and must not be

loan defaulters. State government has taken this decision to improve the quality of

leadership and governance in PRIs.

Union Cabinet cleared National Offshore Wind Energy Policy

Union Cabinet cleared National Offshore Wind Energy Policy to generate electricity from

offshore windmills located in areas within Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the country.

Under this policy, Offshore wind power projects and R&D activities will be carried in

waters up to the seaward distance of 200 Nautical Miles (EEZ of the country) from the

base line. Union Ministry of New & Renewable

Union Cabinet allows 100 per cent FDI under automatic route for white label

ATMs

The Union Cabinet has allowed 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) under the

automatic route for white label ATM operations (WLAO). Decision in this regard was

taken in Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.

This decision will expedite and ease FDI inflows in WLAO further giving a fillip to the

government‘s ambitious effort to promote financial inclusion in the country, including the

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY).

Prior this approval, foreign investment in WLAO was allowed through the government

approval route which required some processing time and projects were delayed. White

labeled ATMs Private non-bank companies that own and operate their own brand of

ATMs are termed as White labeled ATMs. As per RBI guidelines, it is mandatory to non-

bank companies owning white labelled ATMs to provide banking services to customers

based on cards (credit/debit/prepaid) issued by banks.



Renowned water policy expert Ramaswamy R. Iyer passed away

Renowned water policy expert Ramaswamy R. Iyer passed away in New Delhi following a

severe bout of viral fever. He was 86. He was instrumental in drafting India‘s first

National Water Policy in 1987.

Ramaswamy R. Iyer was born in October 1929 in Thakkalai district of Tamil Nadu. He

was best known for producing a rich body of commentary on water policy and

environmental issues. He was an officer of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service (IAAS)

and also had served as Secretary of Water Resources in the Union Government. His last

held position was that of an honorary research professor at the New Delhi based Centre

for Policy Research.

Union Cabinet gives nod to Constitution of 21st Law Commission of India

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval

to constitute the 21st Law Commission of India (LCI). The 21st LCI will have a period of 3

years with effect from 1 September 2015 to 31 August 2018. Composition Chairperson

(full-time), Four Members (full-time). It will include a Member-Secretary.

The first commission was constituted in 1955 and since then various commissions were

re-constituted every three years. The 20th LCI was headed by Justice A P Shah, Former

Chief Justice (CJ) of Delhi High Court and its tenure ended on 31 August, 2015.

world Hindi conference in Bhopal

The 10th World Hindi Conference (WHC), to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra

Modi, will have as its theme ―Hindi Jagat: Vistar evam Sambhavnai‖ (World of Hindi:

Expansion and Scope), Sushma Swaraj said while the earlier such events focused on

literature, or Hindi Shitya, this time the NDA government has decided to change the

―roop rekha‖ and focus it on the Hindi language.

The four main themes will be ―Videsh Niti mein Hindi‖ or the use of Hindi in India‘is

foreign policy, which will be chaired by Sushma Swaraj.

The previous World Hindi Conference was held in Johannesburg, South Africa in

September 2012.The first such conference was held in Nagpur in 1975 by then Prime

Minister Indira Gandhi . It was held from 10 to 12 January 1975. Since then every year

10th January is being observed as the World Hindi Day. It was held twice in Port Louis

(Mauritius), twice in India with the third edition held in New Delhi in October 1983.other

places it has been held include, Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago), London (Britain),

Paramaribo (Suriname) and New York (US.

Ninth edition of World Hindi Conference was held in Johannesburg, South Africa in

2012. ―.―Experts believe that in this field, three languages – English, Chinese and Hindi –

will dominate the digital field,‖ Modi said, and added that it is the responsibility of tech

experts to develop software to popularize Hindi and other Indian languages.

Modi also released a postal stamp to mark the 10th World Hindi Day during the

conference.



Professor Ramesh Chand appointed as full-time member of NITI Aayog

Renowned Agriculture expert Professor Ramesh Chand has been appointed as new full time

member of National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. With this appointment he

became third full-time member of NITI Aayog,

The task force is mandated to formulate strategies for reforms, innovation and technology

diffusion in agriculture sector and recommend strategies for re-invigorating agriculture in all its

aspects.

- Hindi will be among three to dominate digital world: Modi

Tourism Rajasthan first state to submit State Annual Action Plan under AMRUT

Rajasthan has become the first state in the country to submit State Annual Action Plan

under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). State

Government has submitted the action plan for approval by the Union Urban

Development Ministry for financial year 2015-16. The plan seeks to target two categories

of AMRUT projects in the state viz. universal coverage in respect of water supply

connections, sewerage connections and urban transport to all urban households.

DO YOU KNOW......

The Constitution of India recognizes 23 official languages, spoken in different parts

of the country, and two official classical languages, Sanskrit and Tamil.

Article 346 of the Indian Constitution recognizes Hindi in Devanāgarī script as the

official language of central government India.

.Article 345 provides constitutional recognition as "Official languages" of the union

to any language adopted by a state legislature as the official language of that state.

Indo-European whose branch Indo-Aryan is spoken by about 75 percent of the

population and Dravidian spoken by about 25 percent. Other languages spoken in

India come mainly from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman linguistic families.

DO YOU KNOW

National Institution for Transforming India Aayog ( niti aayog, Policy Commission) is a

Government of India policy think-tank established by Prime Minister Narendra Modi

after his having dissolved the Planning Commission,Union Government was

announced formation of NITI Aayog on 1 January 2015

AIM: Foster involvement and participation in the economic policy-making process by

state governments of India, a "bottom-up" approach in contrast to the Planning

Commission's tradition of "top-down" decision-making.

The Prime Minister heads the Aayog as its chairperson. Thus, while the Planning

Commission had no representation for state and Union Territories, the NITI Aayog

has.

First Planning commission was established in 1950



In this regard, state government has proposed projects under these two categories worth

1,087 crore rupees to be taken up in 13 of the 28 AMRUT cities in Rajasthan. These citites

include Beawar, Alwar and Nagaur: Both water supply and sewerage projects will be

taken up. Baran, Bhilwara, Bhiwar, Dhaulpur, Chittorgarh, Ganganagar City and

Sujangarh: Only water supply projects will be taken up Sikar, Bhiwadi and Udaipur: only

sewerage and septage management projects will be taken up.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES

Union Government has announced to extend e-Tourist Visa

Union Government has announced to extend e-Tourist Visa Scheme to 37 more countries

in order to attract maximum foreign tourists in the country. It was announced by

Secretary of Union Tourism Ministry Vinod Zuthsi while addressing a function of Indian

Association of Tour Operators in New Delhi.

With this extension, the total 150 countries will come under the ambit of e-Tourist Visa

Scheme from present 113 countries. By August 2015, more than 22,000 tourists have

used this scheme to visit India, compared to 2700 tourists in August, 2014. Before,Union

Government had launched e-Tourist Visa Scheme (as Tourist Visa on Arrival scheme) in

November 2014..

Classical dancer Kalamandalam Sathyabhama passes away

Kalamandalam Sathyabhama, doyen of classical dance form Mohiniyattam passed away

in Palakkad district of Kerala. She was 77.

About Kalamandalam Sathyabhama: Kalamandalam Sathyabhama was born at Shoranur

in 1937 and.

Awards and Honours: Padma Shri (2014), Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi Award

(1976), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1994), Kerala Government‘s Nruthya Natya

Puraskaram (2005), Kalamandalam Award (1988) etc.

Personal life: She was married to Kalamandalam Padmanabhan Nair (died in 2007)

who was widely regarded as the master of Kathakali grammar.

About Mohiniyattam dance: Mohiniyattam is a classical dance (dance of the

enchantress) form from Kerala and as solo recitals by women. It believed to have

originated in 16th century and is one of the eight Indian classical dance forms recognized

by the Sangeet Natak Akademi

UNEP Gujarat tops in ease of doing business in India: World Bank Report

Gujarat has been placed to top position in World Bank‘s first ever ranking of States on the

ease of doing business in India.

Top 5 States: Gujarat (71.14%), Andhra Pradesh (70.12%), Jharkhand (63.09%),

Chhattisgarh (62.45%) and Madhya Pradesh (62.00%). Bottom 5 states: Mizoram

(6.37%), Jammu and Kashmir (5.93%), Meghalaya (4.38%), Nagaland (3.41%) and

Arunachal Pradesh (1.23%). The largest recipients of foreign investments Maharashtra

and Tamil Nadu were placed at eighth and twelfth position with less than 50 per cent

scores.



Andhra Pradesh Government unveils‘New Tourism Policy-2015- 20’

Andhra Pradesh Government has unveiled ‗New Tourism Policy-2015-20‗ to boost

tourism sector in the state.The policy envisages attracting 10,000 crore rupees

investments in this sector, raising its contribution to 7 per cent of the state GDP and

generating five lakh additional jobs over the next five years in the tourism sector by 2020.

Greening of National Highway

Union Government has launched Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation,

Beautification & Maintenance) Policy-2015 to promote greening of National Highway

corridors across the country. The policy was unveiled by Union Road Transport and

Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi.

Aim of Green Highways Policy 2015 Promote greening and development eco-friendly

National

Highway corridors across the country with participation of farmers, private sector and

government institutions including Forest Department.

It will address the issues that lie in the road of development and pave the way towards

sustainable development.

Objective: To reduce the impact of air pollution and dust by planting trees and shrubs

along the National Highways.

India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise MITRA SHAKTI 2015 begins in Pune

India-Sri Lanka joint military exercise MITRA SHAKTI 2015 has begun at Aundh Military

Station in Pune, Maharashtra. It is third edition of the joint training exercise between

both countries that seeks to build Military to Military co-operation and interoperability.

Aim of MITRA SHAKTI 2015 Exercise is to share the best military practices between

the two Armies and promote healthy military to military relations. It also seeks to develop

anti-terrorism operations and military skills including those under the UN mandate.

It should be noted that this Joint Military Exercise is considered as an important step to

uphold the values of Peace, Prosperity and Stability in the South Asia region.

Sourav Ganguly appointed CAB president

Former Indian Cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly has been appointed as President of

Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) nodal governing body. It was announced by West

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata in Kolkata. Sourav Ganguly will succeed Jagmohan

Dalmiya as the post fallen vacant following his death. Prior to this appointment, Ganguly

was the Joint-secretary of the CAB. Avishek Dalmiya, son of Jagmohan Dalmiya will now

succeed Ganguly as Joint-secretary of the CAB

IIT- Delhi, IISc figured in the top 200 World University Rankings

Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)

Delhi are two India institutes to figure in the top 200 in QS World University Rankings of

2015-16.



Union Government bans NSCN-K for 5 years

Union Government has banned Naga rebel group National Socialist Council of Nagaland-

Khaplang (NSCN-K) for five years. The organisation has been banned under the Unlawful

Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. Decision in this regard was taken at Union Cabinet

meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.

it was involved in brutal killing of 18 soldiers of 6 Dogra Regiment in an ambush in

Chandel district of Manipur.

Union Cabinet approves Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Rurban mission for rural

development

The Union Cabinet has approved Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Rurban mission (SPMRM)

for its ambitious bid to spur social, economic and infrastructure development in rural

areas. In this regard, Union Government has earmarked over 5,000 crore rupees for the

mission to develop 300 clusters over next three years across the country.

Godavari, Krishna Rivers formally interlinked in Andhra Pradesh

Godavari River was formally interlinked with the Krishna River at Ibrahim patnam near

Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh. Both rivers were interlinked after Chief Minister N

Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated a pylon at Ibrahimpatnam. State government has

named this historic occasion as ‗Krishna-Godavari Pavitra Sangamam‘ meaning holy

confluence in Telugu.

Nepal’s Parliament approves new Constitution

Nepal‘s Parliament has overwhelmingly approved a new constitution after seven years of

painstaking efforts and deliberations.

Union Government launches PMKKKY for mining affected people

Union Government has launched the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana

(PMKKKY) for the welfare of people affected by mining related operations. The new

scheme is meant to provide for the welfare of people and areas affected by mining related

operations by using the funds collected by District Mineral Foundations (DMFs). About

Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY)

Rajasthan Assembly passes Rajasthan Vexation Litigation Prevention Bill, 2015

Rajasthan Assembly passed the Rajasthan Vexation Litigation Prevention Bill, 2015 by

voice vote. It covers both civil and criminal cases in the high court and subordinate

courts.

With this Rajasthan became the fifth state in India after Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa and

Madhya Pradesh to pass such legislation.

First conference on contemporary relevance of Bhagvad Gita held in UK

A first of its kind conference on the contemporary relevance of the Bhagvad Gita was held

London, United Kingdom. The conference was organised by Indian Council of Cultural

Relations (ICCR) and High Commission of India. During this conference, Indian and

British experts came together for the understanding of Eastern mysticism.



Sale of DICLOFENAC in multidose banned

Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has banned the sale of DICLOFENAC in

multidose vial. Henceforth, it will be sold only in single-dose vial packaging for human

use. This ban was imposed on recommendation of Union Ministry of Environment,

Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in order to save and protect vultures from brink of

extinction.

Diclofenac and Vulture extinction Diclofenac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug

(NSAID) is administered as painkiller to cattle, is the chief cause of mass extinction of

vultures.

Union Cabinet approves 150 days employment under MGNREGA in the drought hit

areas

Union Cabinet has approved 150 days employment per household under Mahatma

Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in the drought hit areas

of the country. Decision in this regard was taken by Union Cabinet Meeting chaired by

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.

Additional 50 days of unskilled manual work under the MGNREGA scheme will benefit

people in drought-hit areas which are facing monsoon deficit affecting kharif crops and

rural income.

Mukesh Ambani Indias richest person for 9th consecutive year:Forbes

Industrialist Mukesh Ambani has been named as India‘s richest person for ninth

consecutive year in a row with a net worth of 18.9 billion dollars in the 2015 Forbes

magazine‘s India rich list. Presently, Mr. Ambani is the Chairman, Managing director

(MD) and largest shareholder of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). It should be noted

that RIL is India‘s second most valuable company by market value after Tata Consultancy

Services (TCS).

Key facts Top 10: Mukesh Ambani (18.9 billion dollars), Dilip Shanghvi (18 billion) of

Sun Pharma, Azim Premji (15.9 billion) of Wipro , Hinduja brothers (15.9 billion),

Pallonji Mistry (14.7 billion), Shiv Nadar (12.9 billion), Godrej family (11.4 billion),

Lakshmi Mittal (11.2 billion), Cyrus Poonawala (7.9 billion) and Kumar Mangalam Birla

(7.8 billion).

The combined wealth of India‘s 100 richest persons remained largely unchanged at 345

billion dollars in 2015 as compared to 346 billion dollars in 2014.

III. INTERNAL

Canada’s economy falls into a recession

Canada‘s economy has fallen into a recession for first time after global financial crisis of

2009. Statistics Canada, nodal national statistical agency of Canada has reported that its

economyfalls into a recession.

i.e. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has retreated at an annual pace of 0.5 per cent from

April through June 2015. In earlier quarter first three months of the year 2015, the

economic slowdown had appeared which had felled to 0.8 per cent. In recent situation,



Canada was dragged into the economic to slow down due to external pressure of falling

oil prices and economic troubles in China. In an effort to revive the economy, Bank of

Canada had cut interest rates twice in year 2015. Canada is the world‘s 11th-biggest

economy and the United States‘ (US) biggest trading partner.

The last time in 2008-09, Canada was in recession after the US housing market

meltdown had triggered a global credit crisis. But, Canadian economy suffered far less

damage from the financial crisis and great Recession compared to its southern neighbour.

US changed the name of tallest mountaine Denali to MCKinley

United States has changed the name of tallest mountain in North America Mount

McKinley to its original native name Denali to highlight the issue of climate change.

Key facts The summit elevation of Mount Denali is 6,190 m above sea level. It is located in

the Alaska Range and Denali National Park in the US state of Alaska. Till 1896, it was

named as Denali (meaning as High One or Great One) among the natives of Alaska.

Rafale deal gets Passing Nod and Projects worth Rs 13k crore cleared

A deal to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France was ―on course‖ and the Defence

Acquisition Council (DAC) has given its ‗go ahead‘ for further negotiations for the jets,The

council also cleared projects worth over Rs.13,000 crore.The DAC, chaired by Defence

Minister Manohar Parrikar,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s announced India will acquire 36 Rafale jets in fly-away

condition as quickly as possible, and an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) was signed

for supply of the aircraft.

The DAC also cleared several other proposals, including one for purchasing four

squadrons of Mi-17 V5 helicopters, to be bought off-the-shelf from Russia at Rs.6,966

crore.This will translate in around 48 helicopters.

Other proposals cleared include seven additional squadrons — 14 firing units — of Akash

missiles for Rs.4,790 crore.The army got clearance for 120 Trolls, which will be bought

from Russia and are used to blast mines ahead of tanks.

A proposal for DRDO-designed 10 metre Short Span Bridges, which will be vehicle

mounted, was also cleared at a cost of Rs.490 crore.Approvals for the Indian Navy

included eight Chetak helicopters from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited worth Rs.322

crore, nine tugboats worth Rs.300 crore, dockyard repair facility for Revathi radars and

electronic warfare systems, worth over Rs.235 crore, and Rs.61 crore for telemedicine

systems for naval ships.

The Indian Air Force also got approval for four ATC radars, worth Rs.228 crore.

Shaheen (Eagle) – 4’Air Drill

Women Empowerment China, Pakistan launch joint‗Shaheen (Eagle)–4‘Air Drill, China

and its strategic partner Pakistan have launched a joint air exercise called Shaheen

(Eagle)-4 in China. It is fourth edition of air exercise between the air forces of both

countries with military exchange programme.. In this edition of exercise, Chinese

contingent was represented by fighter jets, fighter bombers and early warning planes.

Pakistani counterpart included fighter jets and early warning planes.



Seven Indians figure in Forbes Asia’s new list of Philanthropists

Seven Indians are Infosys co-founders Nandan Nilekani, Senapathy Gopalakrishnan and

SD Shibulal have been featured in the list. Rohan Murthy, represented his father, Infosys

co-founder NR Narayana Murthy as a philanthropist in the list. He had donated US 5.2

million dollars to Harvard University Press for promoting ancient Indian literary classics

and Sunny Varkey Suresh,Ramakrishnan and Mahesh Ramakrishnan.

India, Russia to set up expert group on counter terrorism

India and Russia will form an ―expert group‖ on cyber security and counter-terrorism to

jointly fight terrorism, particularly in the Islamic State, an official statement said.The

decision was made at a meeting between Home Minister Rajnath Singh and his visiting

Russian counterpart Vladimir Kolokoltsev.

The agreement, signed in 1993, on cooperation and interaction between Russia‘s ministry

of security and India‘s home ministry is being revised and a fresh agreement is being

formulated for consideration of Russia, said Rajnath Singh

India, Belarus set trade target of 1 billion dollar by 2018

India and Belarus have set the bilateral trade target of one billion dollar by 2018. The

decision was taken at the Seventh Session of the India-Belarus Intergovernmental

Commission held in Minsk, Belarus.

The meeting was co-chaired by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala

Sitharaman and her Belarusian counterpart Minister for Industry Vitali Mikhailovich

Vovk. Cooperation in pharmaceuticals, machinery, energy, fertilizer, mining and

tourism,investment flows. presently the bilateral trade between both countries is around

400 million dollars.

Queen Elizabeth II becomes Britain’s longest-reigning Monarch

Queen Elizabeth II on 9th September 2015 became the longest-reigning Monarch of

Britain and the longest-reigning female monarch in history. She surpassed the previous

record held by her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria who had reigned thousand-

year-old dynastical institution of Britain for more than 63 years and 7 months. It should

be noted that, presently Queen Elizabeth II (88 years old) is world‘s oldest living

monarch. About Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II was born as Elizabeth Alexandra

Mary on 21 April 1926.

Presently, she is Queen of 16 member states in the Commonwealth of Nations which

overall consists of overall 53 member states including India. She is also Head of the

Commonwealth and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. In 1945, she had

actively joined World War II as a driver in the Women‘s Auxiliary Territorial Service

(WATS).

Indonesia sign pact to cooperate on criminal matters

India and Indonesia have signed a pact for repatriation of wanted prisoners and cooperate

in all criminal matters, including gathering evidence. In this regard Union Ministry of

Home Affairs has issued an official gazette notification for service or execution of



summons or warrant in relation to criminal matters in both countries. Under the

agreement India will execute summons to an accused person (or any person) requiring to

produce documents and attend or a search-warrant issued by an Indonesian court.

South Africa, India, Pakistan agree to maintain peace along border after DG level

talks

India and Pakistan have started a three-day Director General (DG)-level border dialogue

in New Delhi. Director General (DG) Border Security Force (BSF) D K Pathak is leading 23

member Indian delegation and his counterpart Major General Umar Farooq Burki, DG of

Pakistan Rangers (Punjab) is leading a 16 members Pakistani delegation.

In this dialogue both sides have Decided to devise new strategies along the International

Border in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) to put an end to incidents of ceasefire violations.

Agreed maintenance of peace and tranquility on the border is the most important issue

and this needs to be implemented on the ground..

UN General Assembly adopts of text-based negotiations on UN Security Council

reforms

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted text-based negotiations on UN

Security Council (UNSC) reforms. It will set the stage for talks on the UNSC reforms issue

at its 70th session. The draft text-based negotiations include questions on equitable

representation and increase in the membership of UNSC.

Tony Abbott ousted as Australian Prime Minister

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was ousted from power as leader of the ruling

centre-right Liberal Party by challenger Malcolm Turnbull.

Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina wins UN Award for Leadership on Climate Change

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been selected for the United Nations

Champions of the Earth award to address climate change. UNEP has noted Bangladesh as

one of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. In recent years natural

disasters like cyclones, floods and droughts have intensified in the country due to climate

change.

Climate Change Mitigation Strategies of Bangladesh Bangladesh is first developing

country to have a Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan which was prepared in 2009.

It is also the first country to set up its own Climate Change Trust Fund which is supported

by nearly 300 million US dollars from 2009-2012. In 2011, Bangladesh‘s Constitution was

amended in order to include a constitutional directive to the State to protect the

environment and natural resources for current and future generations..

Taliban captures northern Afghan city of Kunduz

Taliban militants have captured the strategic northern Afghan city of Kunduz in a massive

assault involving hundreds of fighters.



Strategic Importance: Kunduz province is strategically important as it is considered a

gateway to Afghanistan‘s Northern provinces and Central Asia as it shares a border with

Tajikistan.

G-4 countries issue Joint Statement on UNSC Reforms

G-4 countries viz Brazil, Germany, India and Japan have issued a Joint Statement on

United Nations Security Council Reforms (UNSC). It was issued after G-4 meeting held in

New York,US which was called by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel and Prime

Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe. G-4 leaders in meeting Stressed on more legitimate,

representative and effective UNSC reforms to address the global conflicts and crises

which have spiralled in recent years.

EU imposes anti-dumping duty on Indian steel pipes

European Union (EU) has imposed a provisional anti-dumping duty of up to 31.2 per cent

on imports of sewage and water steel pipes from India for six months to protect its

domestic industry. Indian export had significantly increased by over 22 per cent in terms

of volume. It should be noted that countries initiate anti-dumping probes to check if

domestic industry has been hurt because of a surge in below cost (cheap) imports. Anti-

dumping duty is imposed as a counter-measure to protect domestic industry under the

multilateral World Trade Organisation (WTO) regime.

United Kingdom Indian-American Swetha Prabakaran selected for Champions of

Change award in US

A 15-year-old Indian-American girl Swetha Prabakaran has been selected by the White

House for the prestigious Champions of Change award. She was chosen for the award in

recognition of her efforts for empowering the community by imparting education of

Internet coding through her non-profit Organisation.

Malcolm Turnbull sworn in as Australia’s new Prime

Malcolm Turnbull has sworn-in as Australia‘s new Prime Minister. He became the 29th

Prime Minister of the country and was administered oath to the office by Governor-

General Peter Cosgrove. Turnbull succeeded Tony Abbott after defeating him in internal

party leadership ballot of the ruling centre-right Liberal Party.

Hungary Declares state of Emergency over Refugee Influx

Hungarian Government has declared a state of emergency in its two regions of Csongrad

and Bacs-Kiskun to cope with the influx of refugees. It was declared by Hungarian Prime

Minister Viktor Orban.

Hangzhou City of China chosen to host 2022 Asian Games

Capital city of Zhejiang Province Hangzhou in East China has been chosen by the Olympic

Council of Asia (OCA) to host the 2022 Asian Games. Hangzhou was the only candidate

city for the 2022 Asian Games i.e. XIX edition of games.



It was first held in 1951 in New Delhi, India under the aegis of Asian Games Federation

(AGF). 46 member countries affiliated to the OCA are eligible to take part in the Games.

It is often described as the second largest multi-sport event after the Olympic Games.

Incheon, South Korean city had hosted last Asian Games in 2014, while Indonesia‘s

Jakarta is going to host in 2018 Asian.

India, Cambodia ink 2 MoUs for bilateral cooperation in Tourism, Mekong Ganga

Project

India and Cambodia have signed two Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) to boost

bilateral cooperation in the field of Tourism and another related to umbrella projects

under Mekong Ganga Cooperation initiative.

projects under Mekong Ganga Cooperation initiative covers five Quick Impact Projects

including 2 projects in Health care. 1 project on Agriculture. 1 project in Women‘s

Empowerment through Information and Communications Technology (ICT).

Established: in 2000 at Vientiane at the First MGC Ministerial Meeting.

Members: It comprises six member countries viz. India, Myanmar, Thailand,

Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

Central Chile hit by 8.3 magnitude earthquake

Earthquake of 8.3-magnitude on Richter scale has hit off Chile‘s coast in Illapel, the

capital of Choapa Province in central Coquimbo Region of Chile.

US Geological Survey has noted its epicenter at a depth of 12.5 kilometers off Chile‘s coast

in Illapel. After the initial earthquake, two aftershock quakes of magnitudes 6.2 and 6.4

occurred west of Illapel. Tsunami Warning The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC)

has issued tsunami warnings for Chile,

VI. AWARDS

Punjab Government wins award for achievement in rooftop solar power output

Punjab Government has won first award in the category of highest capacity addition in

grid connected solar rooftop power in the country during the financial year 2014-15.

It is one of 5 awards won by Punjab New and Renewable Energy Department (PNRED)

for outstanding performance in the various fields of Renewable Energy and Power

Generation.. Achieving highest capacity addition in grid connected solar power in the

country.



India wins UNESCO Award for conserving Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple in

Kerala,

India has won the UNESCO prize ‗Award of Excellence‘ 2015 for the conservation efforts

of the Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple in Kerala. The top award was given in the Asia

Pacific Heritage Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation. This award recognises

architecture and constructions. It should be noted that, UNESCO‘s ―Award of Merit‖ in

Heritage Award was bestowed upon 150-year-old Sino-Portuguese former residence of a

Thai aristocrat, which now has been converted into a local museum and historic inn.

About Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple It is an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva

located in Thrissur district of Kerala. It has monumental towers on all four sides and also

has a Kuttambalam displaying vignettes carved in wood. It is a classic example of the

architectural style of Kerala and has Mural paintings depicting various episodes from

Mahabharata. The temple along with its mural paintings has been declared as a National

Monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act,

1958.

Jhumpa Lahiri selected for 2014 National Humanities Medal,

Indian-American Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri has been selected for the

prestigious 2014 National Humanities Medal of White House. She has been selected for

this award for enlarging the human story and will be presented with it by US President

Barack Obama. The award also recognizes her fictional works. About Jhumpa Lahiri Her

original name is Nilanjana Sudeshna.

Contributions: Her debut short story collection Interpreter of Maladies (1999) has won

the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Her first novel was Namesake (2003). About National

Humanities Medal It is an annual award given by US President.

Indian boxer Vikas Krishan wins silver medal in 75 kg category in Asia

Championships

Indian boxer Vikas Krishan has won the silver medal in the Asian Championships held in

Bangkok, Thailand. In the final match of 75kg weight category, he was defeated by

DO YOU KNOW......

India's theoretical solar power potential, is about 5,000 trillion kilowatt-hours (kWh)

per year (or 5 EWh/yr).

The solar energy available in a year exceeds that of all fossil fuel energy reserves in

India.

On 16 May 2011, India‘s first 5 MW of installed capacity solar power project was

registered under the Clean Development Mechanism. The project is in Sivagangai

Village, Sivaganga district, Tamil Nadu.

In January 2015, the Indian government significantly expanded its solar plans,

targeting US$100 billion of investment and 100 GW of solar capacity by 2022.



Uzbekistan‘s Bektemir Melikuziev by 0-2 score. In this edition of Asian Championships,

Vikas only has won silver medal for India.

Shiva Thapa (56kg), Devendro Singh (49kg) and Satish Kumar (+91kg) won bronze medal

each in their respective category. Besides, six Indians also qualified for World

Championships which is to be held in October 2015 and will be the first qualifying event

for the 2016 Rio Olympics Games.

Anirban Lahiri becomes 1st Indian golfer to qualify for President’s Cup

Ace Indian Golfer Anirban Lahiri has become the first Indian to qualify for the prestigious

President‘s Cup of Golf. World No.40, Lahiri qualified to this prestigious cup through

automatic qualifications as team member of the International Team. The International

team is set to take on United States team in the biennial Presidents Cup 2015 to be held at

Incheon, South Korea. In season 2015, he has won 2 European Tour, 7 Asian Tour

including the Hero Indian Open in 2015 and Malaysian Open.

So far, he has won 11 National titles in India including Ahmedabad Masters and Haryana

Open. Union Government has bestowed Arjuna Award on him in 2014.

President’s Cup of Golf: The biennial Cup is a series of men‘s golf matches between a

team representing United States (US) and an International Team representing the rest of

the world excluding Europe. In case of European counterparts, the matches are played for

the Ryder Cup which older than President‘s Cup.

Renewable Energy Gandhi Peace Prize 2014 conferred on ISRO, 2015

President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2014 on

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). ISRO Chairman A S Kiran Kumar on behalf

of the organisation received the prize at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New

Delhi.

ISRO was chosen for the prestigious award in March 2015 for its contribution in

development of space technology and satellite-based services, making space technology a

catalyst of development of India and bringing societal transformation and provided the

service to the common man and nation.

About Gandhi Peace Prize Instituted in 1995 by Union Government as a part of the 125th

birth anniversary celebration of Mahatma Gandhi. Awarded annually to individuals and

institutions for their contributions towards social, economic and political transformation

through non-violence and other Gandhian methods. The prize carries an award of one

crore rupees, a plaque and a citation.

Previous recipients: Julius Nyerere (the first President of Tanzania) was the first recipient

of the prize (1995). Other important recipients are Ramakrishna Mission, Baba Amte,

Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Grameen Bank, Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and others.

Silver Medal Dr. G Satheesh Reddy, an eminent missile scientist of DRDO

Dr. G Satheesh Reddy, an eminent missile scientist of DRDO has been conferred with

prestigious Silver Medal by London based Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS). He was

bestowed with this medal in recognition of his pioneering contributions as one of the

leading navigation and avionics experts and for promoting Aerospace and Aeronautics in



India. Under his leadership, India has developed state-of-the-art advanced avionics

systems and sensors for key national strategic programmes and other defence

applications.

About Royal Aeronautical Society Established: It is oldest aeronautical society in

the world. It is British founded multidisciplinary professional institution dedicated to the

global aerospace community.

Medals: its prestigious Gold, Silver and Bronze medals. Since 1909, these medals are

awarded to outstanding achievers in the aeronautical research and development industry.

M.R. Poovamma and Babita Kumari conferred Arjuna Award 2015 in the field of

Wrestling.

M.R. Poovamma and Babita Kumari have been conferred with prestigious Arjuna Award

2015 for their individual achievements in sports. The award was presented to them by

Union Minister of State (MoS) for Youth affairs and Sports Sarbananda Sonowal in New

Delhi. M.R. Poovamma has been conferred with this award for her contributions in

Athletics and Babita Kumari in the field of Wrestling.

About Arjuna Award: It was instituted in 1961. Given by Union Ministry of Youth

Affairs and Sports to sportsperson in recognition of their outstanding achievement in

National sports.

Award carries: Bronze statuette of Arjuna, a scroll and a monetary award of 5 lakh

rupees.

Pankaj Advani wins 2015 IBSF World Billiards Championship

India‘s ace cueist Pankaj Advani has won 2015 IBSF World Billiards Championship (Time

Format) in Adelaide, Australia. It was his overall 14th World title. He won 2015 IBSF

World title by defeating Peter Gilchrist of Singapore by 1168 points. Advani is 14-time

World Billiards and Snooker Champion. He is only player in the world to win world titles

in all formats of both, Billiards and Snooker. He is the first cueist in the world to win the

Grand double three times in 2005 and 2008 respectively.

In recognition of his achievements in sports, Union Government has bestowed several

awards upon him including Arjuna Award (2004), Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna (2006),

Padma Shri (2009).

2015 EPFO gets Skoch Awards for Smart Governance Initiatives

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has been awarded SKOCH Award

for Smart Governance. It has been bestowed with this award for its initiatives on UAN

Programme and Transformation of Social Security Agenda in India. It is the 5th Award

won by EPFO in the last two years for its initiatives for the welfare of various

stakeholders.

About Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) EPFO is a statutory body of Union

Government that comes under the aegis of Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Headquarters: New Delhi.

Functions: Administers a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme (1952),

Pension Scheme (1995) and an Insurance Scheme (1976). It is one of the largest social



security organisations in India in terms volume of financial transactions undertaken and

number of covered beneficiaries

Vyaas Samman conferred

24th Vyaas Samman conferred on eminent Hindi writer Dr Kamal Kishore Goenka for

year 2014

Global Leadership Award.

Indra Nooyi, Shobhana Bhartia awarded 2015 Global Leadership Award.

Hindustan Times Group chairperson Shobhana Bharatia and PepsiCo Chairman Indra

Nooyi have been awarded 2015 Global Leadership Award of the US-India Business

Council (USIBC).

Indian Air Force Marathi film ‘Court’ selected as India’s official entry to Oscars

Critically acclaimed Marathi film ‗Court‘ has been selected as India‘s official entry to the

Best Foreign Language category of the 88th Academy Awards 2016 (popularly known as

Oscars).

Indian-origin author Sunjeev Sahota shortlisted for 2015 Man Booker Prize for

Fiction

Indian-origin author Sunjeev Sahota has been short-listed for the prestigious 2015 Man

Booker Prize for Fiction. Sunjeev Sahota‘s novel The Year of the Runaways has been

shortlisted .

Sunjeev Sahota was born in 1981.

His debut novel Ours Are the Streets was published in 2011.

The Year of the Runaways is his second novel which was published in June 2015.

About Man Booker Prize for Fiction The literary prize since 2013 to the writers of

any nationality for their best original novel written in the English language and published

in United Kingdom.

It was first was awarded in 1969 and is sponsored by the Man Group. The prize carries

50,000 pounds.

Afghan refugee teacher Aqeela Asifi named for 2015 UNHCR Nansen Refugee

Award

Afghan refugee teacher Aqeela Asifi has won the 2015 United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Nansen Refugee Award.she has been recognised

for her tireless and brave dedication to educate Afghan refugee girls

UNHCR‘s Nansen Refugee Award Established: in 1954 by UNHCR.

Award carries: Commemorative medal and monetary prize of 100,000 US dollars.

2015 Asian Air Gun Championship

Indias ace shooter Gurpreet Singh has won silver medal at 2015, she stand second in The

Asian Air Gun Championship held in New Delhi.

India‘s Jitu Rai finished at third position wining bronze medal in this event.

Earlier, Abhinav Bindra from tamil nadu had clinched the gold in the Mens Air Rifle

event while Ayonika Pual won the bronze in the Womens.



V. ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

In News Antarctic Ocean’s carbon dioxide absorption increased

As per a new study Antarctic Ocean has been absorbing increasing levels of Carbon

Dioxide (CO2) , a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) over the past decade. The research study

was published in journal Science and was undertaken by an international research team

led by Nicolas Gruber, a professor at ETH Zurich. Key facts The study dispels fears that

Antarctic Ocean‘s (also known as the Southern Ocean) carbon sink might have begun to

saturate due to increase in CO2 absorbing levels. Antarctic Ocean accounts for 40 per

cent of the global oceanic uptake of that man-made carbon dioxide.

Fresh draft on Western Ghats to prevent lapse: Javadekar

Fresh draft notification on eco-sensitive zones for the Western Ghats was issued to avoid

its lapse as two state governments were yet to submit their reports, Environment Minister

Prakash Javadekar said.

Eco-sensitive zones of the Western Ghats region cover six states — Gujarat, Maharashtra,

Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. the government has received reports from four

states — Gujarat, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala — while Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have

not submitted the reports yet.

About 50 million people live in the eco-sensitive zone of the Western Ghats.The fresh

draft notification has been issued in supersession of the notification dated March 10,

2014.The earlier draft notification was issued under the provisions of the Environment

(Protection) Act, 1986.

VI. SPORTS

Union Government recognizes Yoga as Sports discipline

Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has decided to recognize Yoga as a sports

discipline and place it in the Priority category. This decision was taken by Ministry while

reviewing and revising the categorization of various Sports disciplines.

The scale of financial assistance admissible to each category was conveyed to IOC and all

recognized National Sports Federations on 23rd March, 2015. This category will have

sports disciplines which have been included in mega events like Olympics/Asian

Games/Common Wealth Games (CWG) etc.



VII. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

National NASA’s SERVIR-Mekong project to help monitor environment in

Southeast Asia

NASA and US Agency for International Development (USAID) have started the SERVIR-

Mekong project, to strengthen the environmental monitoring in Southeast Asia region. It

has been launched in the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center in Bangkok, Thailand to

serve the 5 countries of the Mekong River Basin viz. Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos

and Vietnam.

Key facts The focus of this project is to host vital issues in the Mekong river basin region in

the five countries which is often called as rice bowl of Asia. It will enable these countries

better address issues of natural resource and disaster management and support climate

resilience studies including reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The project will help these Governments incorporate Earth observations and geospatial

technologies in improving management of water and natural resources. Provide early

warning of dramatic changes in regional water, weather, land cover and land use and

climate and food security.

About SERVIR project It was initiated in 2005 by researchers at NASA‘s Marshall

Space Flight Centre in Alabama. It name SERVIR is has been derived from Spanish which

means to serve. It has been developed by an alliance of more than 90 nations and

organisations which are collaborating to build a global Earth-observing system to benefit

society‘s needs.

2015 GSAT-6 Satellite successfully positioned in orbital

India-Maldives GSAT-6 Satellite successfully positioned in orbital slot of 83 Degree East

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully positioned India‘s latest

communication satellite GSAT-6 into its orbital slot. It was positioned in its orbital slot

83 Degree east after carrying out four drift arresting maneuvers. It has been allocated

with other four communication satellites INSAT-4A, IRNSS1C, GSAT 12 and GSAT 10.

About GSAT-6 satellite GSAT-6 satellite was carrying S-Band and C-Band

transponders meant for public and strategic purposes. It weighs 2117 kg and has mission

life of nine years. The satellite is having S-Band Unfurlable Antenna (UFA) of 6 m

diameter. This is the largest antenna ever made by ISRO for a satellite. This antenna is

utilized for five spot beams over the Indian mainland to exploit the frequency reuse

scheme and to increase frequency spectrum utilization efficiency in India. GSAT-6 is the

25th geostationary communication satellite of India and 12th in the GSAT series.

Application:It will provide S-band multimedia communication and broadcasting

services across the country.C-Band is for strategic purpose and it will provide national

security and law enforcement agencies a secured satellite telephony services. Background

ISRO had successfully launched GSAT-6 from an indigenous cryogenic engine GSLV-D6

rocket from Sriharikota on 27 August 2015. ISRO had performed successive orbit raising

operation of the satellite and had deployed the UFA successfully after the launch.



New species of human relative discovered in South

Scientists have discovered a new ancestral species in the human family tree dubbed as

Homonaledi in South Africa. Naledi The new discovered species which means star in

Sesotho, a local South African language.The species has been classified in the genus

Homo to which modern humans belong.

Discovery: It was made inside the Rising Star Cave in the Cradle of Humankind World

Heritage Site in South Africa by team of scientists led by Lee Berger, professor at

University of the Witwatersrand. They have discovered a huge haul of fossilised bones of

these species which is the largest fossil hominin found on the African continent.

Characteristic of Homonaledi species These species are among the first of our kind (genus

Homo) and could have lived in Africa up to 3 million years ago. They have a tiny brain, a

primitive pelvis and shoulders. They have more progressive human like body shape of its

skull and have relatively small modern-looking teeth, primitive fingers, modern-looking

feet and characteristic long legs

INS Kochi commissioned into Indian Navy

Indian Navy has commissioned INS Kochi a Kolkata-class Guided Missile Destroyer in its

contingent to showcase Indias indigenous efforts in the field of underwater warfare.

The ship was commissioned by Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar in Mumbai. It

is a second ship of the three ships Kolkata-class Guided Missile Destroyer to be inducted.

Earlier in 2014, Prime Minister

Dimensions: Spans over 164 meters in length and 17 meters at the bean. Weighs over

7500 tonnes. Engine: It is propelled by 4 gas turbines and designed to achieve maximum

speeds in excess of 30 knots.

Weapons: It is loaded with state-of-the-art weapons, sensors and advanced stealth

features including long-range BrahMos surface-to- surface missile. It has AK 630 Close In

Weapon System (CIWS) and 76 mm Super Rapid Gun Mount (SRGM) designed to take

on air and surface targets. Its anti-submarine arsenal consists of indigenously built Twin-

tube Torpedo Launchers (ITTL), Indigenous Rocket Launchers (IRL) and bow-mounted

new generation HUMSA Sonar Dome. INS Kochi is also equipped to operate 2 Sea King

or Chetak helicopters. It should be noted that destroyers are second only to aircraft

carriers to have raw combat power on the high seas.

Google to provide Wi-Fi in 400 Indian railway stations

Search engine giant Google has announced to provide high-speed public Wi-Fi in 400

Indian railway stations. To set up public Wi-Fi hotspots, Google is working with the

Indian Railways and RailTel, a government-owned provider of telecommunications

infrastructure to the railways. The project will be implemented in phased manner and

initially it will cover 100 of the busiest stations in India before the end of 2016. The first

stations are expected to come online by end of October 2015. Once this project is

implemented successfully it will benefit around 21 million passengers of Indian Railways.

Presently, India has about 300 million people online or having internet connectivity.



Indias 1st satellite (PSLV-C30) for astronomy launched

India‘s first dedicated satellite for astronomy research Astrosat has been successfully

launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikotta. It was launched along with 6

foreign satellites by the ISROs work horse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C30 (PSLV-

C30).

Six foreign satellites are: UltraViolet Imaging Telescope (UVIT), Soft X-ray imaging

Telescope (SXT), LAXPC Instrument, Cadmium Zinc Telluride Imager (CZTI), Scanning

Sky Monitor (SSM) and Charged Particle Monitor (CPM).

These instruments have been jointly developed by ISRO, Tata Institute of Fundamental

Research (TIFR) and Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA).

Its is one of the major scientific mission of ISRO after the highly acclaimed Chandrayaan-I

and Mangalyaan.

Functions: As a space observatory it has ability to observe celestial bodies like cosmic X-

Ray sources and distant stars in different wavelengths simultaneously. It will observe the

universe through ultraviolet, optical, low and high energy X-ray components of the

electromagnetic spectrum.

Payloads: scientific payloads having six key instruments with total mass of 750 kg. It

includes telescopes, sky monitors, mirrors and special imager. it was carrying total

payload weight of 1631 kg

Orbit: Astrosat will be placed at low earth equatorial orbit at altitude of 650 km. Ground

Command and Control Centre: It will be located at ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC),

Bangalore, Karnataka.

Mission life: It has science research mission life of five years and will operate as a space

observatory. With the successful launch of this space observatory, India became member

of select group of nations after the US, Japan, Russia and Europe having its own space

observatory.

MOM completes one year of mission life around Mars

India‘s globally acclaimed Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) spacecraft also known as

Mangalyaan has completed one year of the mission life around Mars on 24 September

2015.

To mark first anniversary of MOM, Ahmedabad based Space Applications Centre (SAC) of

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) released Mar Atlas mobile application. Mar

Atlas contains compilation of photos taken at varying spatial resolutions by the Mars

Colour Camera (MCC) fitted on board of the spacecraft. It also contains results obtained

by other payload results in a form of scientific atlas.

About Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) Mangalyaan is indigenously designed, built and

launched by ISRO in record period of less than two years. The spacecraft has five

instruments mounted on it for collecting scientific data of Mars morphology, atmospheric

processes, surface temperature, surface geology and atmospheric escape process.

These five instruments are Lyman-Alpha Photometer (LAP), Methane Sensor for Mars

(MSM), Mars Exospheric Neutral Composition Analyser (MENCA), Thermal Infrared

Imaging Spectrometer (TIS) and Mars Colour Camera (MCC).



Launch Details The MOM spacecraft had entered into the orbit of Mars on the night of

23 September 2014 after it was launched on 5 November 2013 from Satish Dhawan Space

Centre using a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket C25. It had reached the red

planet just two days after NASA‘s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution probe

(MAVEN) reached Mars orbit. Records In September 2014, India created a space history

by becoming first nation in the world to successfully launch interplanetary mission to

Mars in maiden attempt. ISRO also become first Asian and fourth space agency in the

world to reach Mars orbit after the Roscosmos of Russia, NASA and European Space

Agency.

Awards ISRO for its enormous success was conferred 2014 Indira Gandhi Peace Prize

for Peace, Disarmament and Develeopment.. Mars Orbiter programme team based in

Bengaluru, Karnataka which is headed by eminent ISRO scientist Mylswamy Annadurai

was presented with this award for achieving the rare feat of entering Mars orbit in maiden

attempt.

Anti-Tank guided Amogha-I Missile test fired

An indigenously developed second generation anti-tank guided missile, Amogha-I was

successfully test fired.

Test: Test firing was carried out on September 10, 2015 at Babina Army Range, Madhya

Pradesh. About Amogha-I Missile Indigenously developed by state owned Bharat

Dynamics Limited (BDL).It has maximum target range of 2.8 kms. The missiles will be

inducted into Indian Army after due qualification and validation trials.

6.6 magnitude earthquake hits off east Indonesia

A powerful earthquake magnitude 6.6 on Richter scale has hit Indonesia‘s eastern region

of Papua. As per US Geological Survey (USGS), the epicentre of earthquake was centred

28 kilometers north of Sorong. This underwater quake had no potential of generating

tsunami waves along nearby coasts.

Indonesia which is the world‘s largest archipelago falls in so called region of Pacific Ring

of Fire, In 2004, huge undersea earthquake off the shores of Aceh (Sumaratan province)

in Indonesia had triggered a giant tsunami which had killed 230,000 people in a dozen

countries including India with coasts on the Indian Ocean

Marine population declined since 1970: Study

As per recently released study, populations of marine mammals, fish, birds and reptiles

have declined by 49% since 1970. The study report was prepared by the World Wildlife

Fund (WWF) and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL). In this study more than 1,200

species of marine creatures were analysed in the past 45 years.

Marine declining activites of overfishing, marine habitat destruction and excess

absorption of climate change.

Two Indian Coast Guard ships Apoorva & C-421 commissioned

Indian Coast Guard has commissioned two new ships named

Fast Patrol Vessel ICGS Apoorva: It is the 14th fast patrol vessel in a series of 20.



The ship has been indigenously designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd at Surat,

Gujarat. Interceptor Boat C-421: It is 27th in the series of interceptor boats of Indian

Coast Guard. It had been designed and constructed by Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Limited. It

is water jet propelled vessel and can achieve a maximum speed of 45 Knots. The ships

were commissioned in Western Naval dockyard in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

VIII. ECONOMICS

MAT on foreign institutional investors FIIs.

Union Government has accepted Justice AP Shah Committee report on the Minimum

Alternative Tax (MAT) on foreign institutional investors (FIIs). By accepting the

recommendations, Government will not impose levy on FIIs prior to 1st April 2015 i.e.

retrospectively. In the meantime, government has ordered Central Board of Direct

Taxation (CBDT) field officers not to pursue cases against FIIs on the issues related to

MAT.

Background Union Finance Ministry in May 2015 had appointed this 3 member

Committee : A P Shah (Chairman), Dr. Girish Ahuja and Dr. Ashok Lahiri.

The Union Cabinet approved introduction of Gold Monetization Schemes (GMS)

The Union Cabinet approved schemes are Gold Deposit Scheme (GDS) and the Gold Metal

Loan (GML) Scheme which were announced by Government in 2015-16 budget.

Objectives of schemes To make the existing GMSs schemes more effective and to put the

gold into productive use held by households and institutions in the country rather than

only mobilising it. The long-term objective is to reduce the import of gold to meet

domestic demand. GMS would benefit the Indian gems and jewellery sector which is a

major contributor to country‘s exports by accounting 12 per cent of total exports. It would

enable depositors to earn interest on their gold accounts.

RBI, Nepal Rastra Bank ink MoU for supervisory information exchange

The MoU was signed by RBI‘s Executive Director Meena Hemchandra and Nepal Rastra

Bank‘s Executive Director Narayan Prasad Paudel in New Delhi.

By signing the MoU, RBI is seeking to promote greater co-operation and share supervisory

information among the authorities. So far RBI has signed 27 such MoUs, one Letter for

Supervisory Co-operation (LSC) and one Statement of Co-operation (SoC) in this regard.

India signs Loan Agreement with ADB for upgrading Tourism Infrastructure and

Services

Union Government has inked a loan agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB) for

US 123.51 million dollars for Infrastructure Development Investment Program. The 3

tranche loan will be used for upgrading tourism infrastructure and services in three states

Punjab, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. The loan will be used For conservation and

development of places of tourist attractions. upgrade tourism infrastructure like

provisioning of drinking water, street lighting, drainage, solid waste management, eco-

parks and improvements to approach roads.



RBI lowers repo rate by 50 basis points to 6.75 per cent

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has redced the policy repo rate under the liquidity

adjustment facility (LAF) by 50 basis points from 7.25 per cent to 6.75 per cent with

immediate effect.

LAF is a monetary policy tool which allows banks to borrow money through repurchase

agreements. LAF is used to aid banks in adjusting the day to day mismatches in liquidity.

LAF consists of repo rate and reverse repo rate.

cash reserve ratio (CRR):is the specified minimum fraction of the total deposits of

customer,with commercial banks to hold as reserves either in cash or as deposits with the

central bank.

Repo rate is rate at which central bank lends money to commercial banks in the event of

any shortfall of funds.

RBI approves 10 entities to set up Small Finance Banks

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted in principle approval to 10 entities to set up

small finance banks to provide basic banking services to small farmers and micro

industries. The in-principle approval will enable these entities comply with the

guidelines on Small Finance Banks and will be valid for 18 months.

XI. PERSONALITIES

Frank D Gilroy, Pulitzer prize-winning playwright passes away

Renowned American playwright, screenwriter and film producer and director Frank D

Gilroy passed away in Monroe, New York. He was 89. In 1965.

He has won prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play The Subject Was Roses. He

also had received the Tony Award for Best Play for The Subject Was Roses in 1965. Gilroy

was born on October 13, 1925 in New York City, United States. He had served in the army

from 1943 to 1946.

Former Goa Chief Minister Dr Wilfred de Souza passes away

Former Chief Minister of Goa Dr Wilfred de Souza passed away in Panaji. He was 88. He

had served as Goa CM for three times and was known for his combative brand of politics.

He was key politician to bring Congress to power in Goa in 1980.

About Dr Wilfred de Souza Dr Wilfred de Souza was born on 23 April 1927 in Kampala,

Uganda. By profession he was Doctor/surgeon and was one of Goa‘s most skilled

surgeons. He was double Fellow of Royal College of Surgeons of Britain.

Awards: He has received Dr B C Roy award for best medical man-cum-statesman

(1996), Portuguese Government‘s Commander, Grand Cross of the Order of Dom Infante

Henriques, Indira Gandhi Solidarity Award, Rajiv Gandhi Excellence Award (1992) etc.

BCCI President Jagmohan Dalmiya passes away

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Jagmohan Dalmiya passed away in

in Kolkata, West Bengal. He was 75.

For the first time, he became BCCI president in 2001 and continued till 2004. For second

time, in March 2015.



Dalmiya also had served as President of the International Cricket Council (ICC) from

1997 to 2000.

He was first Indian and first Asian to head the ICC. He was also instrumental in

organising cricket World Cups to the Indian sub-continent in 1987 and 1996.

Former England fast bowler Frank Tyson passes away

Former England fast bowler Frank Tyson passed away in Australia. He was 85. He was

renowned as one of the quickest to have ever played in the game of cricket. He was

nicknamed as ‗Typhoon‘ for his extreme pace. He had retired from the game at the age of

30 in 1960 and turned to journalism and cricket commendatory after he emigrated to

Australia.

Sherif Ismail has sworn-in as the new Prime Minister of Egypt.

He will succeed Ibrahim Mehleb who had resigned from office following a corruption

scandal involving his cabinet minister.

X. IMPORTANT DAYS

World Tourism Day

Every year World Tourism Day (WTD) is observed on September 27 to raise awareness

about the importance of tourism. Theme for 2015: ―One Billion Tourists, One Billion

Opportunities―.

This year‘s theme emphasizes the impact of the tourism sector on economic growth, job

creation and development.

Observations in India: To mark 2015 WTD, Union Ministry of State for Tourism and

Culture established a Medical Tourism and Wellness Board. It is observed annually since

1980. The day marks adaptation of Statutes of the UNWTO on September 27, 1970. The

purpose of this day is to raise awareness on the role of tourism within the international

community. It also seeks to demonstrate the impact of tourism sector on social, cultural,

political and economic values worldwide.

International Day of Peace

Every year September 21 is being observed as International Day of Peace across the

world. The theme for the year 2015 is Partnerships for Peace- Dignity for All. Also strived

to end conflict and promote peace.

About International Day of Peace The International Day of Peace was established in 1981

by a passage of resolution 36/67 of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

The first Peace Day was observed in September 1982.

This day coincides with its opening session of UNGA which usually held annually on the

third Tuesday of September.

In 2001, UNGA had unanimously voted to adopted resolution for established 21

September as an annual day of non-violence and cease-fire.

Documents

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