cambodia capital: phnom penh currency: riel prime minister
TRANSCRIPT
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World's highest bridge opens in China
The world's highest
bridge has opened to
traffic in China,
connecting two
provinces in the
mountainous southwest
and reducing travel
times by as much as three-quarters.
The Beipanjiang Bridge soars 565 metres (1,854 feet)
above a river and connects the two mountainous
provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou.
UN Recognizes 2017 as Year of Sustainable Tourism for
Development
The United Nations (UN) has declared 2017 as a year to
recognize that tourism is important in fostering better
understanding among people.
International travel leads to greater awareness of the
heritage of other civilizations, and as a result an
appreciation of other countries.
According to the UN, this contributes to the
strengthening of world peace.
Finland trials basic income for unemployed
Finland has become the first country to pay its unemployed
citizens an unconditional monthly sum, in a social experiment.
Under the two-year, nationwide pilot scheme, which
began on 1 January, 2,000 unemployed Finns aged 25
to 58 will receive a guaranteed sum of €560).
The income will replace their existing social benefits
and will be paid even if they find work.
Festival of India will be Organized in Cambodia
A Festival of India is being
organized in Cambodia from
10th January to 16th February,
2017.
The activities of the
Festival include
Ramayana Performance, Rajasthani Folk Music &
Dance Group (Dance Group plus Manganiyar Group),
Classical Dance.
A Buddhist Mahotsav – Exhibition titled Dhamma
Darshana - to explore the life, teachings and important
events connected with Lord Buddha and Photo
Exhibition on Buddhist religious/heritage sites in
India will also be organized.
To complete the experience, a Food Festival will also
be held.
The Festival events are being showcased in three
cities of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Battambang in
Cambodia.
Cambodia
Capital: Phnom Penh
Currency: Riel
Prime Minister: Hun Sen
Japan to assist in making Chennai, Ahmedabad and
Varanasi Smart Cities
Japan has decided to be
associated with the
development of Chennai,
Ahmedabad and Varanasi as
smart cities.
This was conveyed by
Japan’s Ambassador to
India Kenji Hiramatsu during his meeting with
Minister of Urban Development M.Venkaiah Naidu.
Mr.Hiramatsu further said that Japan is quite
interested in urban development initiatives of the
Government of India and decided to be a partner.
High Commissioner of United Kingdom Mr.Dominic
Asquith also met Venkaiah Naidu and discussed
converting into action the MoU signed between the
two countries during the recent visit of British Prime
Minister to India Teresa May, on cooperation in urban
development sector.
He said institutionalizing Government to Government
cooperation for smart city development has huge
potential.
So far, leading countries have come forward to be
associated with development of 15 smart cities.
These include: United States Trade Development
Agency (USTDA) –Visakhapatnam, Ajmer and
Allahabad, UK-Pune, Amaravati(Andhra Pradesh)
and Indore, France-Chandigarh, Puducherry and
Nagpur and Germany –Bhubaneswar, Coimbattore
and Kochi.
Japan
Capital: Tokyo
Currency: Yen
Prime Minister: Shinzo Abe
China to set up world's highest altitude Gravitational Wave
telescopes in Tibet
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China is setting up the world's highest altitude gravitational
wave telescopes in a Tibet prefecture close to Line of Actual
Control with India with a budget of $18.8 million to detect
faintest echoes resonating from universe which may reveal
more about the Big Bang theory.
Construction has started for the first telescope, code-
named Ngari No 1, 30 km south of Shiquanhe Town
in Nagri Prefecture, said Yao Yongqiang chief
researcher with the National Astronomical
Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Parts of Nagri is last Tibetan prefecture at China's
border with India.
Norway to Become First Country to Switch Off FM Radio
Network
Norway will become the world’s first country to shut down its
FM network in an unpopular move designed to force the leap
to digital technology.
It is going to launch Digital Audio Broadcasting
(DAB) technique in place of FM radio.
Critics claim the switch off will leave citizens without
digital radios isolated and unable to listen to
emergency broadcasts.
World Hindi Day:10 January
The World Hindi Day is being observed annually on 10
January.
World Hindi Day was first observed on 10 January
2006.
It should be noted that World Hindi Day is the
promotion of the language at the global stage. While,
National Hindi Divas is being observed on 14
September across the country at national level.
Pakistan to renovate Katas Raj temple
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited the Katas Raj
Hindu temple in Chakwal district of Punjab to inaugurate its
renovation.
The work includes installation of a water filtration
plant in the Amrat Jal area.
Al-Biruni, Persian scholar and polymath, had
computed the earth’s circumference from here.
Festival of India to be Organised in Ghana
After Combodia, now a Festival of India is being organised in
Ghana from January 25 to March 16, 2017.
The activities of the Festival include amalgamation of
Indian classical dances, Sufi & Folk Music, and
Saptarang – confluence of seven classical dance forms
culminating in Vande Matram.
The Festival events are being showcased in four cities
of Accra, Kumasi, Cape Coast, Takoradi in Ghana.
Ghana
Capital: Accra
Currenty: Cedi
Ecuador takes chair of UN group of 134 developing
countries
Ecuador has taken over from Thailand as chair of the Group of
77 which promotes the interests of the 134 developing
countries it represents at the United Nations, including China.
Ecuador's President Rafael Correa told handover
ceremony that the group will continue promoting
"social and economic equality."
He said this can only be done if "poverty, inequality
and exclusion" are eradicated and people live with
"sovereignty, dignity and in peace."
Thailand's Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said
his country focused in 2016 on how to implement the
17 U.N. goals for 2030 to promote development and
good governance, and preserve the environment.
Obama lifts 20-year sanctions on Sudan
US President Barack
Obama is to lift some trade
and investments sanctions
against Africa's third
largest country.
But the country
will still remain a state sponsor of terrorism in
Washington's eyes.
Obama informed Congress that he will lift barriers
against the Khartoum government but only after a six-
month delay to ensure Sudan continues to improve its
human rights record.
India slips 3 places to 92nd rank on global talent
competitiveness
India has slipped 3 places to 92nd rank on the global index of
talent competitiveness that measures how countries grow,
attract and retain talent, a list topped by Switzerland.
India's ranking is worst among the five BRICS
countries. While China was ranked at the 54th place,
Russian Federation was placed at 56th, followed by
South Africa at 67th and Brazil 81st.
Switzerland topped the overall index, followed by
Singapore and the United Kingdom in second and
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third places respectively, in the list released by
INSEAD Produced in partnership with The Adecco
Group and the Human Capital Leadership Institute of
Singapore (HCLI).
India 60th in inclusive development index
India has been ranked 60th among 79 developing economies,
below neighbouring China and Pakistan, in the inclusive
development index, according to a WEF report.
Lithuania tops the list of 79 developing economies
that also features Azerbaijan and Hungary at second
and third positions, respectively.
While India is placed at the 60th spot, many of the
neighbouring nations are ahead in the rankings.
China is ranked at the 15th position, Nepal (27th),
Bangladesh (36th) and Pakistan (52nd).
Germany tops global passport index, India ranks 78th
The Passport Index
2017, ranks countries
based on the number
of nations their
citizens can visit
without a visa or on
arrival. India ranks a
low 78th position.
Germany stands at the top with a visa-free score of
157 while Singapore (topped in Asia) and Sweden are
on second and third place respectively.
India stands at 78th position with a visa-free score of
46, ahead of China and Pakistan which are ranked
58th and 94th on the list respectively.
Afghanistan’s is the least powerful passport with a
visa-free score of just 23.
2016 declared Earth's hottest year on record
2016 has been declared the world's warmest year since reliable
record keeping began in 1880, according to US scientists.
Globally-averaged temperatures in 2016 were 1.78
degrees Fahrenheit (0.99 degrees Celsius) warmer
than the mid-20th century mean.
This makes 2016 the third year in a row to set a new
record for global average surface temperatures.
India beats US, No. 1 in Google Play app usage
Mobile users in India downloaded the most number of apps
from Google Play app store in 2016.
With over 6 billion app downloads, India, which was
in the third position in 2015, surpassed the US,
according to a report by global app analytics firm App
Annie.
Brazil took the third spot with a little over 5 billion
downloads.
China is not part of the Google Play (Android)
rankings because the country has blocked Google.
However, it was Number one in iOS (Apple) app store
downloads.
UAE’s Khalifa Foundation Donates US$2 Million Medical
Equipment to AMU
The United Arab Emirates'' Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Foundation has announced that they will donate an Elekta
Synergy Digital Accelerator worth US$2 million to the Aligarh
Muslim University (AMU)'s Jawaharlal Nehru Medical
College.
The announcement coincides with the visit to India of
H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme
Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, as the chief
guest at the 68th Republic Day celebrations.
HH Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the
President of the UAE, had declared the year 2017 as
the ‘Year of Giving’, focusing on public-private
partnership in the field of humanitarian initiatives.
Hong Kong withdraws visa-free facility for Indians
In a setback to Indian travellers, Hong Kong, a special
administrative region of China, has withdrawn the visa-free
facility for Indians who will have to complete a pre-arrival
registration.
The Pre-arrival Registration for Indian Nationals will
be implemented on January 23.
Until now, Hong Kong has permitted Indians to enter
with valid passport for a period up to 14 days without
a visa.
A Pre-Arrival Registration is normally valid for a six
month period or until the expiry date of the Indian
passport linked to it, whichever is earlier.
China builds world's biggest solar Park
China has finished building the Longyangxia Dam Solar Park
in the western province of Qinghai, China.
Built at a cost of about 6bn yuan (£721.3m),
Longyangxia now has the capacity to produce a
massive 850MW of power – enough to supply up to
200,000 households.
Nepal launches 10-yr-plan to cut vegetable imports from
India
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Nepal government has launched
a 10-year-plan to cut
dependence on vegetable
imports from India and make
the land-locked country self-
reliant in food.
Vegetable imports from India have continued to
increase even despite the far-western region seeing a
rise in commercial vegetable farming, a local media
report has said.
According to the report, the region imports vegetables
worth 55 billion rupees every year from India.
Exports volume, however, was negligible.
Potatoes worth 370 million rupees was imported
annually.
India to become the fastest oil consumer by 2035
Having pipped Japan to become world's third largest oil
consumer, India's oil consumption growth will be the fastest
among all major economies by 2035, BP Statistical Review of
World Energy said.
India, Asia's second-biggest energy consumer since
2008, had in 2015 overtaken Japan as the world's
third-largest oil consuming country behind US and
China.
India, it said, will overtake China as the largest growth
market for energy in volume terms by 2030.
India ranked 79th in the Corruption Perception Index 2016
India has been ranked 79th among 176 countries in the
Corruption Perception Index 2016 released by the Berlin based
Transparency International organisation.
Its score marginally improved from 38 in 2015 to 40
in 2016.
The score runs from zero to 100. Belarus, Brazil, &
China shared the same ranks as India.
The list was topped by New Zealand and Denmark
with a score of 90 each.
Somalia was ranked the most corrupt country with a
score of 10.
India ranks sixth on eight great powers in 2017
India is ranked at the sixth spot, behind China and Japan, in a
list of eight great powers for the year 2017 by a leading
American foreign policy magazine.
The list is topped by the US, whereas China and Japan
are at tie for being on the second spot.
Russia (fourth) and Germany (fifth) are the other two
countries ahead of India.
Iran is ranked seventh and Israel is on the eighth spot.
India is the world's largest democracy, home to the
second-largest English-speaking population in the
world and boasting a diversified and rapidly growing
economy, it said.
World Leprosy Day: 30 January
World Leprosy Day is observed internationally on January 30
or its nearest Sunday to increase the public awareness of the
Leprosy or Hansen's Disease.
This day was chosen in commemoration of the death
of Gandhi, the leader of India who understood the
importance of leprosy.
Leprosy is one of the oldest recorded diseases in the
world.
It is an infectious chronic disease that targets the
nervous system, especially the nerves in the cooler
parts of the body - the hands, feet, and face.
Denmark to appoint world’s first ‘digital ambassador’
Denmark will become the first country in the world to appoint
a special “digital ambassador” to work on building ties with the
globe’s tech giants, according to the country’s foreign minister.
The purpose of the appointment is, on the one hand,
to be on the forefront of technological development
and the political and ethical issues that come with it,
and on the other, to make Denmark more attractive for
investment.
Abu Dhabi sets up Personal Status and Inheritance Court
for non Muslims
Sheikh Mansour bin
Zayed Al Nahyan,
Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister of
Presidential Affairs and
Chairman of Abu Dhabi
Judicial Department,
has issued a resolution setting up a Personal Status and
Inheritance Court for non Muslims in Abu Dhabi.
The move is in line with the strategic goals of the Abu
Dhabi Judicial Department to enhance the effectiveness
and sustainability of the judicial procedures and ensure
access to services for all segments of the society.
This will also ensure prompt justice and strengthen the
culture of tolerance and acceptance of others by creating
institutional infrastructure.
Ireland became the world's first country to stop investing
in fossil fuels
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Ireland has voted to be the world's first country to fully divest
public money from fossil fuels.
The Irish Parliament passed the historic legislation in a 90
to 53 vote in favour of dropping coal, oil and gas
investments from the 8bn (£6.8bn) Ireland Strategic
Investment Fund, part of the Republic's National Treasury
Management Agency.
6. Supreme Court sacks Anurag Thakur, Ajay Shirke from
BCCI
The Supreme Court has
sacked BCCI president
Anurag Thakur and
secretary Ajay Shirke and
asked all others, who were
disqualified to hold posts
under new court mandated norms, to step down.
The court also issued contempt notices to Thakur and
Shirke.
A board of administrators will be named soon to take
charge of the BCCI.
SC has appointed Fali Nariman and senior SC lawyer
Gopal Subramanium as Amicus Curiae to find out
who would be the BCCI officials.
Modi inaugurated Indian Science Congress
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the five-day 104th
Indian Science Congress at the Srinivasa Auditorium in Sri
Venkateswara University in Tirupati.
‘Science and Technology for National Development’
would be the focal theme of the Indian Science
Congress.
"By 2030 India will be among top three countries in
science and technology," PM Modi said.
Naidu launches Arogya Raksha for a healthy AP
Andhra Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has launched a
new health scheme christened Arogya Raksha offering medical
insurance to those who were not covered under any of the
existing health schemes of the state government.
To avail of the benefits of Arogya Raksha, all one
needs to do is pay `100 per month per head.
The health insurance cover is offered up to `2 lakh and
free treatment can be had for 1,044 listed health
ailments in any of the 432 corporate hospitals and 80
government hospitals in the state.
Government launches mobile app for Haj application
process
Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas
Naqvi has launched the Haj Committee of India’s mobile app.
The app would bring all Haj related information to the
fingertips of users.
People can apply for Haj, seek relevant information,
news and updates and can make e-payment through
the app, the Minister said.
Mori village in Andhra gets Smart Digital village tag
Mori, a tiny village under Sakhinetipalli mandal in East
Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, sealed its place on India's
digital map by transforming completely into a Smart Digital
Village, in every sense of the term.
All the 1189 households in the village with a
population of 4500 became fully digital as Chief
Minister N Chandrababu Naidu finally launched the
AP FiberNet project that will provide internet at a
speed of 15 mbps, WiFi, a telephone connection and
250 cable television channels (using a triple-play set-
top box) for a total price of Rs 149 per month.
The Rs 4000 worth set-top box is being provided for
a monthly installment of Rs 99.
Mori also recently bagged the Swachh Village award
at the national level after all the households got
individual sanitary latrines and became open
defecation-free.
The AP State Fiber Grid Corporation distributed 650
Android-based smartphones to the villagers to enable
them go for digital transactions post-demonetisation.
Gujarat CM dedicates India’s first laser technology-based
check-post
Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani
dedicated India's first laser
technology-based advanced AVMS
RTO check-post at Shamlaji of
Aravalli district.
The check-post is
equipped with advanced ray technology with a cost of
Rs 4.72 crore.
Agni-IV missile successfully test fired
Agni-IV, the Long Range Surface to Surface Ballistic Missile
with a range of 4,000 kms was successfully flight tested, once
again proving the reliability and efficacy of the weapon
system.
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The Missile was launched from Dr. Abdul Kalam
Island, Odisha at 1200 hrs.
All the radars, tracking systems and Range Stations
have tracked and monitored the flight performance.
All the mission objectives have been successfully
met.
Shripad Naik inaugurates International Conference on
Yoga for Diabetes
The three day International Conference on “Yoga for Diabetes”
was inaugurated by Minister of State for AYUSH (Independent
Charge), Shri Shripad Yesso Naik in New Delhi.
In his inaugural address, the Minister informed that
UNESCO, the world’s apex body for culture has
recently included yoga in its list of intangible cultural
heritage.
This conference aims to generate discussions on the
role of Yoga in the prevention and management of
Diabetes and to draw up a roadmap to be adopted for
the control of Diabetes through Yoga.
Diabetes is spreading at a very fast pace in India,
particularly in urban population. It is no more
restricted to the older population as younger
generation is also becoming prone to this disease.
Govt launches IPR Enforcement Toolkit for Police
The Commerce & Industry Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman
launched an IPR Enforcement Toolkit for Police.
The toolkit has been jointly prepared by Cell for IPR
Promotion and Management (CIPAM) and
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI).
This toolkit will be a ready reckoner for police
officials across the country in dealing with IP crimes,
specifically Trade Marks counterfeiting and
Copyrights piracy.
Assam Biotech Conclave begins in Guwahati
The two-day Assam Biotech Conclave has begun on 5 January
in Guwahati.
Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the
conclave in presence of Science and Technology
Minister Keshab Mahanta.
The conclave is being organized by Guwahati Biotech
Park in association with industry body FINER.
Assam
Capital: Dispur
Chief Minister: Sarbananda Sonowal
Governor: Banwarilal Purohit
Bengaluru set to host 14th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas from
January 7
The 14th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) convention will begin
on 7 January 2017 in Bengaluru.
The three-day event will kick start with the Youth
PBD.
The main convention will be inaugurated on 8th
January by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas has been held traditionally
every year on 9 January to commemorate the return of
Mahatma Gandhi as a Pravasi from South Africa to
India.
The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was launched by the Atal
Bihari Vajpayee-led NDA government in 2003.
Notes:
Theme of the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2017:
"Redefining engagement with Indian diaspora".
Theme of the Youth Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2017:
'Role of Diaspora Youth in the Transformation of
India'.
Chief Guest on Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2017: Prime
Minister of Portugal Dr Antonio Costa.
Chief Guest on Youth Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2017:
Mr. Michael Ashwin Satyandre Adhin, Vice President
of the Republic of Suriname.
Assistant State for 2017 edition: Karnataka
4th Assam International Agri-Horti show begins
Fourth Assam International Agri-
Horti show has begun in
Guwahati, Assam on 6 January.
State Chief Minister
Sarbananda Sonowal
inaugurated the show.
Assam Agriculture Minister Atul Bora informed that
10 foreign countries are also taking part in the show.
Centre declares Rs 1,782 cr grant for drought-hit
Karnataka
The Centre has approved a grant of about Rs 1,782 crore to
drought-affected Karnataka and Rs 209 crore to Uttarakhand
which had been hit by floods in 2013 under the National
Disaster Relief Fund.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the High
Level Committee chaired by Home Minister Rajnath
Singh.
The Committee examined the proposal based on the
reports of the Inter-Ministerial Central Team (IMCT)
which visited the states.
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Island Tourism Festival 2017 begins at Port Blair
The Island Tourism Festival 2017 began at Port Blair, capital
of Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
It was inaugurated by Lt. Governor Jagdish Mukhi at
ITF Ground.
The 10 day mega event will see performances by the
cultural troupes from mainland India to help the
Islanders renew their cultural ties with mainland.
An International Cultural Group from Kazakhstan
will also perform in this event.
New Delhi World Book Fair to begin from January 7
The much-awaited World Book Fair, the largest event of its
kind in the country, is going to be held from January 7 to 15 at
Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.
The 44th edition of the book fair will be inaugurated
by Minister of State for Human Resource
Development (Higher Education) Mahendra Nath
Pandey.
The theme of the fair would be Manushi focusing on
writings on and by women.
Eminent Odia writer and Jnanpith awardee Pratibha
Ray will be the guest of honour and Tomasz
Kozlowski, Ambassador of the Delegation of the
European Union to India will be the Special Guest on
the occasion.
20th National Conference on e-Governance inaugurated
The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public
Grievances (DARPG), Government of India, in association
with the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology,
Government of India and Government of Andhra Pradesh is
organizing the 20th National Conference on e-Governance on
January 9-10, 2017 in Vishakhapatnam.
Senior Government Officers, technical experts,
academicians and representatives of the industry and
NGOs will participate in the event.
National e-Governance Awards for the year 2016-17
will be presented in twelve categories concerning
various aspects of e-Governance during the event
comprising of Gold and Silver in each category.
PM Modi announces scheme to skill Indian youth seeking
jobs abroad
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government will
shortly launch the Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PKVY)
which is aimed at skilling Indians seeking employment abroad.
The prime minister was speaking at the 14th Pravasi
Bharatiya Divas Convention in Bengaluru.
"The Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana is targeted at
Indian youth seeking overseas employment," Modi
said.
PKVY will train and certify Indians, who are keen on
overseas employment in select sectors, in line with
international standards.
Narendra Modi inaugurates India International Exchange
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi inaugurated the India
International Exchange
(INX) located at the
International Financial
Services Centre (IFSC),
GIFT City in Gandhinagar,
terming it as momentous occasion for the country's financial
sector.
The India INX is a wholly owned subsidiary of BSE
Ltd.It incorporates world’s advanced IT sale purchase
stage.
The securities and products that could be traded on the
India INX are equity shares, currency and interest rate
derivatives, index based derivatives and such other
securities that may be allowed.
PM Modi inaugurates Vibrant Gujarat Global Global
Summit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated 8th edition of
Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
An investment of around 30 lakh is expected by
signing 21,190 MoUs during the three days summit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also inaugurated
'Vibrant Gujarat Global Trade Show', where around
1,500 entities are participating from India and abroad.
Representatives of over 80 countries are also
participating in the 'Vibrant Gujarat Global Trade
Show' where more than 15 lakh people are expected
to visit over the course of five days.
11th blind challenge car rally held in Bhopal
11th Blind Challenge Car Rally was organised in Bhopal to
create awareness among the masses regarding the issues
concerning persons with visual impairment.
Indira Gandhi Museum and Arushi are organising car
rally, where the vehicle is driven by a sighted person
and the navigator is a blind person, who reads the
route given to them on the spot in Braille.
The rally covered 30 kms within Bhopal. First three
winners were awarded cash prices and trophies and
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mementos and certificates were given to all
participants.
Sex ratio in Haryana touches 900-mark for first time in 20
years
Sex ratio at birth (SRB) in
Haryana past year touched the
900-mark for the first time in
almost two decades.
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi launched the ambitious “Beti Bachao,
Beti Padhao” (B3P) campaign against female
foeticide in Panipat in January 2015.
Two years later, Haryana, notorious for its skewed sex
ratio and patriarchal mindset, saw a historic
turnaround.
Maharashtra govt launches ‘MumbaiWifi’
Maharashtra government has launched WiFi service
‘MumbaiWifi’ connecting 500 hotspots across Mumbai under
the smart city project with an aim to empower people digitally.
By May 1 next year, the government will launch 700
more hotspot services.
MumbaiWifi is India’s largest public Wifi service and
one of the largest globally too.
National Youth Festival to be held at Rhotak
Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports Shri Vijay Goel, in
a statement said that this year the 21st National Youth Festival
is being organised in Rohtak, Haryana from 12th to 16th
January, 2017.
Department of Youth Affairs of Union Ministry of
Youth Affairs and Sports, organizes every year the
National Youth Festival on the birth anniversary of
Swami Vivekananda, the greatest Youth Icon.
Goel further informed that this year the theme of the
Festival is ‘Youth for Digital India’.
Railway minister launches IRCTC rail connect to promote
digital ticketing
To promote ease of ticketing through digital transactions,
railway minister Suresh Prabhu has released the new passenger
mobile application named ‘IRCTC Rail Connect app’.
Rail Connect has been developed to bring the power
of next generation e-ticketing system like high
performance and enhanced security.
The new mobile-based application will replace the old
existing IRCTC connect app.
Delhi Airport first in world to adopt digital platform Arc
Delhi Airport
claimed it has
become the first
aerodrome in the
world to adopt unique
performance and
benchmarking digital
platform, Arc, which
helps in tracking and monitoring building performance.
This dynamic platform at T3 would be used by airport
operator to measure, manage and improve
performance of airport on resource consumption,
carbon emissions and quality of passenger space.
Delhi Airport's Terminal 3 had earned LEED Gold
certification in 2011 under the new construction
category.
BIS revises standard for hallmarking of gold jewellery
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) said it has revised Indian
Standard on gold hallmarking, which is effective from January
1 this year.
The hallmarked gold jewellery will now be available
in three grades of 14 carat, 18 carat and 22 carat.
The caratage will also be marked on jewellery in
addition to fineness for convenience of consumers,
that is for 22 carat jewellery 22K will be marked in
addition to 916 (22K916), for 18 carat jewellery 18K
will be marked in addition to 750 (18K750) and for
14 carat jewellery, 14K will be marked in addition to
585 (14K585), it added.
Measles-rubella vaccine to roll out in February
Three years after the national vaccine advisory body
recommended the introduction of the measles-rubella vaccine
(MR) in the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), the
vaccine is all set to be introduced from next month in five states
and Union territories.
In addition, from March, Pneumococcal conjugate
(pneumococcal pneumonia) vaccine will also become
a part of the UIP basket in three other states.
Both the new vaccines will be launched by Health
Minister J P Nadda in separate programmes.
Second Scorpene class submarine Khanderi launched
Khanderi, the second Scorpene class submarine that has
superior stealth and the ability to launch a crippling attack with
torpedoes as well as tube-launched anti-ship missiles whilst
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underwater or on surface, was launched at the Mazagon Dock
Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) here.
Union Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre
presided over the function to initiate the launch of
Khanderi (Yard 11876).
Khanderi is named after the Island fort of Maratha
forces, which played a vital role in ensuring their
supremacy at sea in the late 17th century. Khanderi is
also the name for Tiger Shark.
India’s first Madame Tussauds museum to open in Delhi
in June
The first wax museum
attraction Madame Tussauds
will debut in Delhi this June
with its operator Merlin
Entertainments foraying into
India with an investment
plan of 50 million pounds
over the next 10 years.
Merlin Entertainments will open its first Madame
Tussauds attraction in Delhi in June with 50 figures.
60 per cent of the figures will be local celebrities and
rest global.
UK-based Merlin Enterprises runs 116 attractions in
24 countries and the company will be foraying into
the Indian market with the launch of Madame
Tussauds in the national capital.
World’s first gender literature fest in Patna
The world’s first ‘Gender Literature Festival’ will be held in
Patna during 7th to 9th April 2017.
The Gender Resource Centre of Bihar’s Women
Development Corporation will be organising the
festival.
The objective of this initiative is to create a platform,
to exchange ideas, and to share and learn experiences
of renowned people in the field of gender literature.
Guided Pinaka successfully test fired at Odisha's
Chandipur
Guided Pinaka, which has been upgraded from Pinaka Rocket,
was successfully test fired from the Integrated Test Range at
Chandipur.
The Pinaka Rocket Mark-II, which evolved from
Pinaka Mark-I, is equipped with a navigation,
guidance and control kit and has been transformed to
a Guided Pinaka.
App named 'SEZ India' launched by Commerce Ministry
A Mobile app named “SEZ India” has been launched by the
Commerce Secretary.
SEZ Division, Department of Commerce under its
broader e-Governance initiative i.e. SEZ Online
System, has developed mobile app for Special
Economic Zones (SEZs).
Commerce Secretary launched the app and mentioned
that the App would help the SEZ Units and
Developers to find information easily and track their
transactions on SEZ Online System.
Now the SEZ Developers & Units can file all their
transactions digitally through SEZ Online system and
track the status on the go through the SEZ India
mobile app.
Petroleum Minister inaugurated month long awareness
programme “Saksham - 2017”
Minister of State
(Independent Charge) for
Petroleum & Natural Gas,
Dharmendra Pradhan
linaugurated a month long
awareness programme
“Saksham – 2017” on 16th
January, 2016 at Siri Fort Auditorium, New Delhi.
Saksham - 2017 (Sanrakshan Kshamta Mahotsav) is
aimed to create awareness amongst masses towards
judicious utilization and conservation of petroleum
products along with use of energy efficient appliances
and switching to cleaner fuels.
The programme is being organized by PCRA
(Petroleum Conservation Research Association) and
other Oil & Gas PSUs under the aegis of Ministry of
Petroleum & Natural Gas.
Digital Dakiya scheme inaugurated in MP
In Madhya Pradesh, Indore district witnessed inauguration of
first of its kind scheme of the country. Digital Dakiya, which
aims at encouraging cashless transactions.
“Digital Dakiya or Digital Postman will visit different
places to teach and encourage people about cashless
transactions and its benefits.
State Finance Minister Jayant Malliya inaugurated the
scheme at Indore. State government will provide
Identity cards to the volunteers deployed in this
programme.
Digital Dakiyas visit door to door and trained
households specially women and elderly people about
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digitized transactions. The scheme aimed at urban as
well as rural areas.
Central government employees to get Rs 9000 minimum
pension
The minimum pension has been increased to Rs 9,000 per
person for central government employees, union minister
Jitendra Singh said.
Addressing the 29th meeting of the Standing
Committee of Voluntary Agencies (Scova) in the city,
he said almost 88% of pension accounts have been
seeded to Aadhaar.
There are about 50-55 lakh pensioners in the country.
Kerala's first solar-powered boat launched
The Minister of State
for Power, Coal, New
and Renewable Energy
and Mines
(Independent Charge),
Piyush Goyal launching
the country’s first solar
boat at Vaikkom, in
Kerala.
The Chief Minister of Kerala, Shri Pinarayi Vijayan,
the Minister of State for Transport, Shri. A.K.
Saseendran and the MP, Shri Jose K. Mani are also
seen.
The solar boat, ADITYA, is a 75-passenger vessel
which runs on solar power.
69th Army Day: 15 January
Indian Army celebrated its 69th Army Day on 15 January 2017.
General Bipin Rawat, Chief of the Army Staff
reviewed the Army Day parade at Cariappa Parade
Ground, Delhi Cantonment.
Every year, Indian Army has been celebrates January
15 as Army Day to commemorate the day when
General (later Field Marshal) KM Carriappa took over
the command of Army from General Sir FRR Bucher,
the last British Commander-in- Chief in 1949.
BSF launches operation 'Sard Hawa' at Rajasthan border
Border Security Force (BSF) launched operation 'Sard Hawa'
at the western international border of Rajasthan.
The operation will continue till January 28.
The purpose of the operation is to keep a hawk's eye
on the international border, where vigil has been
beefed-up and officers have also been asked to be part
of operation to motivate jawans.
Government to provide free Wifi to more than 1000 gram
panchayats
In a bid to provide last mile connectivity in far-flung areas -the
biggest impediment towards a digital and cashless economy,
the government is embarking on an ambitious project to
provide free WiFi hotspots at more than 1,000 gram
panchayats.
Apart from providing internet connectivity for mass
use, the programme seeks to enable delivery of
services like health and education.
Called Digital Village, the pilot project will initially
be rolled out in as many as 1,050 gram panchayats.
Prasar Bharti hosts International Television Dance Festival
in Hyderabad
The first edition of Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU)
International Television Dance Festival was held in
Hyderabad; the city with royal patronage for arts, literature and
architecture, on January 15.
Prasar Bharati hosted the event.
The Dance Festival is conceptualised so as to bring
the cultural diversities from across the world into
limelight, by breaking cultural barriers.
Tamil Nadu Tourism launches mobile app to help tourists
Tamilnadu Tourism minister Vellamandi N. Natarajan
launched the mobile application named "Pinakin" in Tamil and
English.
The mobile app (compatible with Android and Apple
smartphones) is a part of its efforts to attract more
domestic and international visitors to explore the
state.
The mobile app will be helpful for both domestic and
international tourists with inbuilt audio facilities,
featuring information heritage tourist spots like
Mamallapuram, Thanjavur Big Temple and Gangai
Konda Cholapuram.
BHEL Commissions 500 MW Thermal Unit In West
Bengal
State-run power equipment maker
BHEL said it has commissioned
another 500 MW unit of Sagardighi
Thermal Power Station Phase II in
West Bengal.
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The unit was the second 500 MW set to be
commissioned at Sagardighi Thermal Power Station
(TPS) Phase II project in Murshidabad district of
West Bengal.
The first unit of the 1,000-MW project was
commissioned in December, 2015.
The project has been set up by West Bengal Power
Development Corporation (WBPDCL)
AIIMS signs three MoU
All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi
signed MoUs with NBCC (India) Limited, HSCC (India)
Limited and with HITES HLL Life Care Ltd to expand
infrastructure and other facilities.
The signing ceremony was presided over by Shri J P
Nadda, Hon’ble Union Minister of Health and Family
Welfare and Shri Venkaiah Naidu, Hon’ble Union
Minister for Urban Development, Urban Poverty
Alleviation, and Information & Broadcasting.
AIIMS signed an MOU worth Rs. 4441 crores with
NBCC (India) Limited, Rs.2500 crores with HSCC
(India) Limited and Rs. 729 crores with HITES HLL
Life Care Ltd, a cumulative net worth of Rs. 7670.
Minister of Railways Unveils Mission 41k
Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu unveiled
Mission 41k during the Roundtable Discussion with External
Stakeholders on Energy Initiatives of Indian Railways.
Shri Suresh Prabhu said that Ministry of Railways has
come up with Mission 41k to save Rs. 41000 crore in
the next decade in Railways’ energy costs.
To implement this comprehensive strategy with the
participation of various stakeholders, we shall take
advantage of regulatory frameworks, look at new
technologies.
He said that this is an opportunity to relook at
everything and determine an ideal baseline.
All electrification works done in the last decade
would be doubled and this would change the energy
mix of Indian Railways. Indian Railways has set a
target of 1000 MW of solar power and 200 MW of
wind energy.
Textiles Minister inaugurated 58th IIGF 2017
The Union Textiles Minister, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani has
inaugurated the 58th IIGF and unveiled the Fair Guide as well
in New Delhi which is to be held from January 18 - 20, 2017.
The 58th IIGF caters primarily to Autumn-
Winter 2017/18.
Organized by Apparel Export Promotion Council
(AEPC) India, the IIGF is one of the largest and most
popular platforms in Asia, from which overseas
garment buyers can source products and forge
business relationships with India’s finest players in
the apparel and fashion accessories domain.
Union HRD Minister launches ‘ShaGun’ web-portal
The Union HRD Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar launched a
dedicated web portal ‘ShaGun’ for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
at New Delhi.
‘ShaGun’ aims to capture and showcase innovations
and progress in Elementary Education sector of India
by continuous monitoring of the flagship scheme -
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA).
The Union HRD Minister also unveiled the ‘Toolkit
for Master Trainers in Preparing Teachers for
Inclusive Education for Children with Special Needs’,
which has been prepared by World Bank in
collaboration with Ministry of Human Resource
Development.
Cabinet approves India’s Membership in the International
Vaccine Institute
The Union Cabinet
chaired by the
Prime Minister Shri
Narendra Modi has
given its approval to the proposal for India’s taking full
membership of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI)
Governing Council.
The move involves payment of annual contribution of
US $ 5,00,000 to the International Vaccine Institute
(IVI), Seoul, South Korea.
International Vaccine Institute (IVI), Seoul, South
Korea, established in 1997 on the initiatives of the
UNDP, is an international organization devoted to
developing and introducing new and improved
vaccines to protect the people, especially children,
against deadly infectious diseases.
In the year 2007, with the approval of Cabinet, India
joined IVI. India is a long-term collaborator and
stake-holder of IVI.
Anandam Scheme Madhya Pradesh to Help Poor People
Madhya Pradesh became the first State of the country to launch
Aanandam programme to help the needy persons.
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Under it, government through volunteers will provide
help to the needy and economically sound citizens can
donate items for the needy persons.
This initiative is of MP Government’s Happiness
department, first of its kind in India.
Panel recommends quota for girl students in IITs
A panel under the chairmanship of professor Timothy
Gonsalves has recommended reservation for girl students in
IITs to address the issue of slump in the number of female
students entering the prestigious institutes.
The committee is learnt to have suggested creating up
to 20 per cent supernumerary seats for girls out of the
total number of seats.
Manipur’s Karang is India’s first cashless island
Karang, a small lake island in Manipur, has become the
country’s first cashless island.
The Union ministry of electronics and information
technology under its Digital India programme
announced Karang as the first cashless island in India.
The Karang island is located in the middle of Loktak,
the largest freshwater lake in Northeast India.
UNESCO recognises WB’s sitalpati as 'intangible cultural
heritage'
Sitalpati or cool mat from Cooch Behar district of West Bengal
has been recognised as an "intangible cultural heritage" by the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organisation (UNESCO).
These mats are used for sitting or to hang on doors or
windows during summer.
The mats are made up of weaved green cane slips of
murta plants which are indigenous to the region.
Karnataka allows sale of kerosene in open market
The Karnataka government has decided to allow the sale of
white kerosene in open market.
State Food and Civil Supplies Minister UT Khader
said that the government has issued an order this
effect.
Those interested in selling white kerosene in open
market can approach the office of the Food and Civil
Supplies in their districts, he said.
Bengaluru becomes the most dynamic city in the world
Bengaluru has emerged as the most dynamic city in Jones Lang
LaSalle's fourth annual City Momentum Index of cities around
the world, followed by Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam and
Silicon Valley in the U.S.
The Index tracks the speed of change of a city's
economy and commercial real estate market.
It covers 134 major established and emerging
business hubs.
Top 10 cities in the JLL index are Bengaluru, Ho Chi
Minh City, Silicon Valley, Shanghai, Hyderabad,
London, Austin, Hanoi, Boston and Nairobi.
22. PM Modi inaugurates 2nd edition of Raisina Dialogue
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
delivered the 2nd Raisina
Dialogue's inaugural address
in front of a global audience of
over 250 international leaders,
representatives and thinkers
from 65 countries in the
national capital.
Among other global figures, the raisina dialogue is
witnessing the participation of Nepalese Foreign
Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat, former Afghan
President Hamid Karzai, former Australia PM Kevin
Rudd and Bangladesh Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina's
International Affairs Advisor Gauhar Rizvi.
The theme of the 2nd edition is 'The New Normal:
Multilateralism and Multipolarity'.
The first edition was held in March last year by the
Ministry of External Affairs along with the Observer
Research Foundation.
'28th Dantan Gramin Mela' inaugrated by President
Mukherjee
President Pranab Mukherjee is on a tour in West Bengal.
Pranab Mukherjee is the guest of honor in 'Dantan Gramin
Mela' and inaugurated the auspicious fair of localities.
The amazing fair in the area of Midnapore in West
Bengal will display the different skills of rural
handicraft of the region.
Govt inks MoU to set up 1,000 'Janaushadhi Kendras'
The government has signed an agreement with the National
Yuva Cooperative Society to set up 1,000 'Janaushadhi
Kendras' across the country and targets to open such medical
stores in every block and gram panchayat to provide quality
medicines at an affordable price.
At present, 750 Janaushadhi Kendras, providing more
than 600 medicines and 150 medical devices, are
operational and the target is to open 3,000 by end of
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this fiscal for achieving health safety, Chemicals and
Fertilisers Minister Ananth Kumar today said.
The PMBJP scheme would drastically reduce the out
of pocket health expenditure for the common man and
give an impetus to the Make in India mission in the
pharma sector.
Indian Railways to set up $5 billion development fund
Indian Railways has circulated a draft cabinet note for setting
up a dedicated $5 billion Railways of India Development Fund
(RIDF).
The fund will to be anchored by the World Bank and
will serve as an institutional mechanism for the
national transporter to arrange fund from the market
for its investments.
According to a top railway official, the fund will be
managed independently by a non-government entity.
Mosapp, an app to map dengue outbreaks
A Kochi-based NGO, the Centre for Advancement of Global
Health, has developed a mobile application that can be used by
health workers to conduct local surveys, document
environmental issues and also to upload real-time images and
data into their servers for tracking mosquito-borne diseases.
The project, funded by the department of science and
technology (DST), is aimed at identifying factors that
could trigger diseases trasnmitted by mosquitoes and
also to help users get into a preventive mode.
The application, Mosapp, is part of a larger project to
predict and prevent dengue through community
engagement, which involves experts from different
countries.
Himachal Pradesh has highest ratings in reading and
maths: ASER 2016
The Annual Status Education Report (ASER) 2016 found that
Himachal Pradesh is doing well in many regards, on the
education front, as compared to the rest of the states.
It has the country’s highest reading and mathematics
learning levels, shooting past even Kerala, which has
an almost spotless track record of maintaining its
position as the most literate state.
Himachal Pradesh has the highest rate of children
who can read a standard II level of text in the country.
This stands at 47 per cent for standard III level of
learning, a 70.5 per cent for standard V and an 87.9
per cent for standard VIII.
Even in mathematics, the students of the state are
faring better than most of the nation.
Over 3.5 lakh people sing National Anthem in Gujarat to
set new world record
Over 3.5 lakh people has set a new world record by singing the
national anthem at an event at Kagvad in Rajkot district of
Gujarat.
The occasion was installation of idol of goddess
Khodiyar at a newly-built Khodal Dham temple in the
town.
Earlier, 2,54,537 people had sung the national anthem
in Bangladesh in 2014 and set a record.
Bihar: Thousands form human chain for de-addiction
Bihar claimed to have forged a world record as tens of
thousands of people came together in support of prohibition,
forming a chain for more than 11,000 kms across 38 districts.
Three Isro satellites, four trainer aircraft, choppers
and 40 drones filmed the entire event played out over
3,000 km of National Highways and 8,285 km of state
highways and roads.
The chain was billed as a social message against
addiction, and specifically in favour of prohibition.
National Girl Child Day: 24 January
The National Girl Child Day is celebrated on 24 January at a
special function organized by the Ministry of Women & Child
Development in New Delhi in the light of exemplary
achievements by nation’s daughters during 2016.
With a commendable performance at the Olympics
and Paralympics and a historic induction of the first
female fighter pilots into the Indian Air Force, it has
truly been a proud year for India.
The occasion was marked by felicitating 10 districts
under the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao scheme for their
exemplary performance.
Kerala CM Vijayan inaugurates ‘Jyothirmaya’
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has inaugurated the 4
lakh square feet latest IT building, ‘Jyothirmaya’ at the
Infopark in Kochi.
Dedicating the 9-storeyed building, constructed over
six acres of land, he said 80,000 job opportunities will
be created when the buildings constructed during
second phase of development at Infopark become
fully operational.
At present, 15 companies have taken up space in the
new building.
In a first, postal ballots to be sent via electronic mode in
Goa
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Goa will become the first state in the country to opt for
electronic transmission of postal ballot to service voters in the
upcoming Assembly polls, Chief Election Commissioner
(CEC) Syed Nasim Zaidi said.
He said sending ballot papers through electronic
means will cut down the time in transmission of postal
ballot to the service voters.
Goa has 822 service voters who are either in the
defence, para-military forces or on diplomatic
missions.
Govt approves Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana – 2017
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri
Narendra Modi has given its post-facto approval for launching
of Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana 2017 (VPBY 2017).
It is a part of Government’s commitment for financial
inclusion and social security.
The scheme will be implemented through Life
Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) during the
current financial year to provide social security
during old age and protect elderly persons aged 60
years and above against a future fall in their interest
income due to uncertain market conditions.
The scheme will provide an assured pension based on
a guaranteed rate of return of 8% per annum for ten
years, with an option to opt for pension on a monthly
/ quarterly / halfyearly and annual basis.
The differential return, i.e., the difference between the
return generated by LIC and the assured return of 8%
per annum would be borne by Government of India as
subsidy on an annual basis.
Cabinet approves Indian Institute of Management Bill,
2017
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri
Narendra Modi has approved the Indian Institute of
Management(IIM) Bill, 2017, under which the IIMswould be
declared as Institutions of National Importance which will
enable them to grant degrees to their students.
Following are the salient features of the Bill:
IIMs can grant degrees to their students
The Bill provides for complete autonomy to the
Institutions, combined with adequate accountability.
Management of these Institutions would be Board
driven, with the Chairperson and Director of an
Institution which will be selected by the Board.
A greater participation of experts and alumni in the
Board is amongst other important features of the Bill.
Provision has also been made for inclusion of women
and members from Scheduled Castes/Tribes in the
Board.
The Bill also provides for periodic review of the
performance of Institutions by independent agencies,
and placing the results of the same on public domain.
The Annual Report of the Institutions will be placed
in the Parliament and CAG will be auditing their
accounts.
There is also a provision of Coordination Forum of
IIMs as an advisory body.
Election Commission hosts International Seminar
Election Commission of
India (ECI) hosted an
International Seminar on
‘Strategies for Empowering
Young and Future Voters’
on 24th January 2017, in
partnership with UNDP
India.
ECI signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the
following Election Management Bodies at the Seminar:
Australian Electoral Commission
Central Election Commission of Bosnia-Herzegovina
Fijian Elections Office
Election Commission of Nepal
National Voters Day: 25 January
Election commission of India will
celebrate 7th National Voters
Day on 25th January 2017.
Then President, Pratibha
Patil inaugurated the day
on the occasion of 61st
foundation day of
Election Commission of
India on 25th January 2011. ECI was established on
25th January 1950.
There were two themes for organising the
day,’Inclusive and Qualitative Participation’ and ‘No
Voter to be left behind’
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List of agreements signed between India and UAE
The crown prince of UAE Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
was on a visit to India recently as a Chief guest on the occasion
of 68th Republic day of India.
During his visit, following MoUs were signed between both the
countries:
Agreement on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership
between the Republic of India and the UAE.
MoU on cooperation in the field of Defence Industry.
MoU on Institutional Cooperation on Maritime
Transport.
MOU on Mutual Recognition of Certificates of
Competency as per the provisions of the Standards of
Training, Certification and Watch-keeping
Convention (STCW78) and amendments thereof.
MoU on Bilateral Cooperation in the Road Transport
and Highways Sector.
MOU on cooperation in prevention and combating of
human trafficking.
MoU for the cooperation in the field of Small and
Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and innovation
MoU in agriculture and Allied sectors.
MOU on mutual exemption of entry visa requirements
to the holders of Diplomatic, special and Official
Passports.
MoU for cooperation in programme exchange.
MoU on trade remedial measures to promote
cooperation in areas of mutual interest.
Agreement on Oil Storage And Management.
MOU between National Productivity Council and Al
Etihad Energy Services Co. LLC.
MOU between National Security Council Secretariat
of India & National Electronic Security Authority of
the UAE.
UK experts launch project to tackle Delhi air
pollution risks
Indian and British experts are joining hands on a project to help
tackle health problems associated with air pollution in Delhi,
which affect some 46 million people in and around the
country’s capital city.
With air pollution levels at times up to 30 times
greater than those found in the UK, Delhi was rated
the most polluted city in the world for ambient air
pollution by World Health Organisation (WHO) in
2014.
Led by the University of Birmingham, the team
involves experts from the Indian Institute of
Technology Delhi, the Indian National Physical
Laboratory and the University of Surrey.
Arunachal launches scheme to check infant mortality
Arunachal Pradesh launched 'Dulari Kanya', a special scheme
to check infant mortality in the state, on the occasion of the
68th Republic Day.
Governor V Shanmuganathan launched the scheme,
under which the government will deposit Rs 20,000 in
the bank account of a girl child, born in any
government hospital.
It would be paid along with the accrued interest after
she attains 18 years of her age.
Madhya Pradesh to ban polythene bags from May 1
Madhya Pradesh Chief
Minister Shivraj Singh
Chouhan announced a total
ban on polythene bags in the
state from May 1.
"Instead of
polythene which is
harmful for the environment, paper and cloth will be
used.
The state government has also resolved to free the
region from open defecation.
DU becomes first public varsity with 'monumental' flag
Eleven months after all Central university vice-chancellors
resolved to install the national flag "prominently and proudly"
on their campuses, Delhi University has hoisted its first
monumental flag.
According to the Flag Foundation of India, DU is the
first public university in the country to get a
monumental flagpole.
The resolution to install the national flag on campuses
was adopted on February 18 last year at a meeting
chaired by then HRD Minister Smriti Irani with an
aim of "instilling nationalism and pride" in students.
Meghalaya Governor V. Shanmuganathan resigns
Facing sexual harassment charges, Meghalaya Governor V
Shanmuganathan resigned after a section of Raj Bhavan
employees demanded his removal for “seriously
compromising” the dignity of the gubernatorial office.
Mr. Shanmuganathan, who took over as the Governor
of Meghalaya in May 2015, attended a Republic Day
celebration in Arunachal Pradesh, whose additional
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charge he holds since November last year following
the removal of Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa.
Mysuru gets India’s 1st post office passport kendra
Mysuru got India's first Post Office Passport Seva Kendra
(POPSK), which will offer all passport related services on the
lines of PSKs.
The service will soon be expanded to neighbouring
districts too.
It has been named as POPSK because the ministry of
external affairs (MEA) has tied up with the postal
department to offer passport related services through
a network of post offices.
A similar service was launched at Dahod in Gujarat
the same day.
President launches pulse polio immunization programme
President Pranab Mukherjee today launched the pulse polio
programme for 2017 by administering polio drops to children
aged below five years at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Mukherjee launched the countrywide programme on
the eve of the National Immunization Day.
Health minister J P Nadda and Ministers of State for
Health Anupriya Patel and Faggan Singh Kulaste
were present during the event.
National Immunization Day 2017 was observed on 29
January.
Union Textiles Minister inaugurates 1st North East
Investors’ Summit in Shillong
The Union Textiles Minister Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani
inaugurated the 1st North East Investors’ Summit, organized
jointly by the Ministry of Textiles and the Ministry of DoNER,
at the State Convention Centre, in Shillong.
Focussed on manufacturing in textiles and allied
sectors, the theme of the Summit is “Exploring
Opportunities in North East Region”.
The summit aims to showcase the NER as a global
destination for investment, and to explore the
possibility of bringing in convergence of efforts of
various central Ministries and North Eastern States to
attract investment in NER.
IMD plans weather stations in 660 districts
Keeping farm activities in mind, the India Meteorological
Department (IMD) has decided to set up weather stations in
660 districts of the country, a plan which will be further taken
up to the blocks level.
In the first phase, the IMD plans to set up the system
in 130 districts which have already been short-listed.
The IMD has also tied up with the Ministry of
Agriculture to use the Krishi Vigyan Kendras
(KVKs), under the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR) in the districts, to use them as
weather forecasting observatories.
Weather forecasts will be issued four days a week
between Monday and Thursday.
India’s inter-service military exercise ‘Tropex’ kicks off
The navy’s annual
Theatre Readiness
Operational Exercise
(TROPEX) got
underway on January 24.
The month-
long exercise
will have ships and aircraft of both the Western and
Eastern Naval Commands, as also assets from the
Indian Air Force, Indian Army and the Indian Coast
Guard exercising together.
The last edition of the exercise was conducted in
January 2015.
Nitin Gadkari declares 1,253 km road in Assam as National
Highways
The Centre will
invest Rs 15,000
crores to develop
1,253 kilometres
of roads in Assam
into National
Highways over the
next few years,
Union Minister Nitin Jairam Gadkari said.
Gadkari said the National Highways and Infrastructure
Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) will spend Rs
8,000 crores over the next two years for developing 143
kilometres of road, including a few bridges over
Brahmaputra.
He informed that Rs 1,00,000 crore worth of works for
developing road infrastructure in Assam will be carried out
by the end of the five-year tenure of the Central
government.
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Mother Dairy unveils Aadhar-enabled payment
To promote cash less
transactions, Mother
Dairy Fruit &
Vegetable Pvt. Ltd.
introduced Aadhar-
Enabled Payment
System (AEPS) in more
than 1,000 milk booths and ’Safal’ retail stores.
This service would now be available in addition to the
existing modes like e-wallets and SmartChange
Cards.
The service was commissioned in association with
CSC e-Governance Service India Ltd. under the aegis
of Department of Electronics and Information
Technology (Deity).
RBI allows NRIs to exchange defunct notes up to June 30
The Reserve Bank of India has allowed non-resident Indians to
exchange scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes till June 30.
This facility will be available through RBI offices in
Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata and Nagpur.
The banking regulator said that resident Indian
citizens who failed to deposit old notes and were
abroad between November 9 and December 30, 2016
can avail themselves of this facility up to March 31,
2017, and NRI citizens, who were abroad during this
period, can exchange their defunct notes up to June
30, 2017.
Centre permits 12 PSU banks to raise Rs. 3,000 crore
In a bid to strengthen the capital base of public sector banks
(PSBs), the Centre has allowed 12 lenders to raise close to Rs.
3,000 crore via preferential shares over and above the Rs.
22,915 crore capital support committed to them in July last
year.
The Finance Ministry granted approval to 12 PSBs to
raise a sum of Rs. 2,914.038 crore through
preferential allotment and permission was given to
raise Rs. 200 crore by United Bank of India through
the QIP mode.
The Centre had already infused a sum of Rs. 25,000
crore in 19 PSBs during FY16. \
Seventy-five per cent of the Rs. 22,915 crore has been
allotted and the rest will be based on performance.
Bank of Baroda ties up with CNX Corporation
Public sector lender Bank of
Baroda has entered into a
partnership with CNX
Corporation (CNX) with an
objective to provide collateral
management services towards
the loans against warehouse receipt sanctioned to the farmers
through the network of the bank's branches across the country.
CNX is engaged in providing warehouse management
services relating to commodities and inventories
which include collateral management services, field
warehousing arrangements, inventory audit services,
storage and preservation services, procurement
services, testing and certification services, inspection
services, monitoring services.
Paytm gets RBI approval for payments bank
Paytm said it has received final approval of the Reserve Bank
to formally launch its payments bank and it expects to start
operations next month.
Payments banks can accept deposits from individuals
and small businesses of up to Rs 1 lakh per account.
In 2015, RBI had awarded 'in-principle' approval to
Paytm to set up a Payments Bank along with 10
others.
AIIMS Delhi Partners With MobiKwik to go Cashless
AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) Delhi, India’s
premier medical institution has partnered with mobile wallet
company MobiKwik to convert all its payment facilities
cashless.
To commence with resident doctors, staff and visitors
can pay with MobiKwik in the institution’s cafeteria.
Payment of doctor’s consultation, tests and other
services will be made cashless by the first week of
January 2017.
EPFO launches a campaign to enrol more workers
Encouraging firms to enrol their workers under schemes run by
retirement fund body Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
(EPFO), a 3-month campaign has been launched beginning
January 1 where employers will get amnesty and pay just Re 1
as damages for not registering their employees earlier.
To be called 'Enrollment and Establishment coverage
campaign 2017', EPFO will hold meetings with the
stakeholders -- employer and employee associations
and states.
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The campaign will give wide publicity to the benefits
the Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana
(PMRPY) and the Pradhan Mantri Paridhan Rojgar
Protsahan Yojana (PMPRPY).
Droom Partners with Axis Bank for quick sanction of loans
Online automobile
marketplace Droom as
tied up with Axis Bank,
India’s third largest
private sector bank, to
provide quick sanction of
loans on both new as well
as used cars.
Loans will be provided for up to 85% of the value of
the car with a tenure of 1-5 years.
Furthermore, loans on Used Cars can be availed on
vehicles upto the age of 10 years at the end of the loan
tenure.
Google launches tools for small businesses in India
Google India has announced key initiatives for the small and
medium businesses in India, including a new tool ‘My
Business’ that would help them create an online presence,
besides a digital training programme.
Google My Business would help small businesses set
up website from their mobile devices. All they need is
a smartphone.
The tech giant also launched Digital Unlocked, an
education programme in association with industry
body FICCI and Indian School of Business.
The programme will impart mobile and online courses
to help small businesses.
SBI to launch its own version of digital only bank soon
The country's largest lender
State Bank of India will take
the lead among state-run
lenders to launch branch less
banking called SBI Digi Bank.
The Digi Bank will have a financial superstore, a
market place, and end-to-end digitisation for all
products and services.
The digital-only bank will use the Aadhar
infrastructure for not only on-board customers but
also provide them services online.
Karnataka Bank launches KBL Suraksha campaign
City based private sector bank - Karnataka Bank has launched
a month long campaign under KBL Suraksha.
This will be open up to January 31.
KBL Suraksha is a unique group personal accident
insurance Scheme extended by the Bank to its savings
bank account holders, in association with M/s
Universal Sompo General Insurance Co. Ltd.
The scheme provides coverage against all types of
accidental death.
All the Bank's SB account customers in the age group
of 18 to 70 years can subscribe to this scheme by
paying a nominal annual premium of Rs 100 for Rs
10 lakh and Rs 50 for Rs 5 lakh coverage.
The policy can be renewed up to the age limit of 75
years.
Axis Bank retains top slot in debt investment banking
Axis Bank has left behind large foreign banks, known for their
investment banking skills, as it has retained the top investment
banking rank in the past 10 consecutive years.
HDFC Bank and State Bank of India were other top
two banks in the Bloomberg 2016 league table beating
global biggies.
SIDBI ties up with LIC for capital support to enterprises
Small Industries Development
Bank of India (SIDBI) has tied up
with Life Insurance Corporation
of India (LIC) for augmenting
capital support to enterprises in
the country.
The idea behind tying up
with the state-run
insurance behemoth is to
give a boost to the venture capital ecosystem for
MSMEs.
Under fund of funds operations, SIDBI handles
various schemes, namely India Aspiration Fund
(corpus of Rs 2,000 crore, ASPIRE Fund (Rs 60
crore) and Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) (Rs
10,000 crore).
Axis Bank becomes third lender to offer block chain service
Private sector Axis bank has become the third lender in the
country to announce usage of block chain solutions for its
operations, after its peers ICICI Bank and Yes Bank.
The Shikha Sharma-led bank, the third largest private
sector lender, will be using the upcoming technology
for cross-border remittances.
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HDFC Bank launched Humanoid Ira
The private lender HDFC Bank has launched a `humanoid' in
the domestic banking space.
The bank showcased human-sized robot Ira,
developed in association with Kochi-based Asimov
Robotics, and said it will be deployed at a Mumbai
branch within a fortnight.
City Union Bank last year introduced robot
`Lakshmi', which uses artificial intelligence to handle
125 topics.
SBI waives MDR charges for small merchants for one year
Country's largest lender SBI has waived Merchant Discount
Rate (MDR) on debit card transactions for all small merchants
with annual turnover of up to Rs 20 lakh for one year.
SBI further said the move is targeted primarily
towards a segment of population and small merchants,
who have not yet experienced the convenience of
Card Payments.
SNL to connect 1500 gram panchayats through OFC in
2017
BSNL plans to connect 1,518 gram panchayats with Optical
Fibre Cable (OFC) this year in Assam to ensure rural
connectivity.
We have emphasised on rural connectivity and 5,200
kms of OFC will be laid this year to cover 1,518 gram
panchayats, which accounts 70 per cent of the total
gram panchayats in the state,” BSNL Chief General
Manager M.K. Seth.
Seth said that Kshetri Gaon Panchayat in Kamrup
district is likely to become the first digital gram
panchayat of the country.
BSNL will provide three thousand hot spots at
important places and has already initiated steps for
automatic hook up points through wireless network,
he said.
Following demonetisation, BSNL has tied-up with
SBI and will soon launch an e-wallet called Mobicash.
World Bank cuts India’s FY17 growth forecast to 7%
The World Bank has lowered its growth forecast for India to 7
per cent from 7.6 per cent in 2016-17, citing a slowdown in
consumption and manufacturing due to demonetisation and an
ongoing decline in private investment and credit constraints
due to impaired bank balance sheets.
The World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects
January 2017 report added that the Indian economy is
subsequently set to recover its growth momentum,
with growth rising to 7.6 per cent in FY18 and further
strengthening to 7.8 per cent in FY20.
HDFC Bank helps TN temples to go digital
HDFC Bank has reportedly helped
five temples in Kanyakumari
district in southern Tamil Nadu to
introduce digital wallets and point
of sale (PoS) to enable their
devotees pay donations.
The Bank has opened five
new government accounts for collecting donations
from the devotees using their debit or credit cards.
The temples that have introduced digital mode include
Arulmighu Thanumalaya Swamy Temple,
Suchindrum; Arulmighu Bhagavathi Amman
Temple, Kanyakumari; Arulmighu Nagaraja
Temple,Nagercoil; Arulmighu Bhagavathi Amman
Temple, Mondaikadu; and Arulmighu Kumaraswamy
Temple, Velimalai.
Government to sell 51% stake in Pawan Hans
Moving ahead with the strategic sale of Pawan Hans, the
government said it will sell its entire 51 per cent stake and
transfer the management control of the helicopter service
operator.
Pawan Hans is a joint venture where state-owned
ONGC holds 49 per cent.
The government has sought applications from entities
to act as transaction advisor for the proposed
disinvestment of its stake in the company.
“The government of India intends to divest its entire
shareholding of 51 per cent in Pawan Hans Ltd,
through strategic disinvestment with transfer of
management control,” a public notice said.
Sebi cuts brokers’ turnover fee by 25%
To bring down the overall cost of transaction in the stock
market, markets regulator Sebi reduced its turnover fees by
25% to Rs 15 per Rs 1 crore worth of turnover from Rs 20
earlier.
The Sebi decision could lead to lower trading costs for
large institutional investors like insurance companies,
foreign investors and mutual funds, and also high
networth investors.
Sebi's turnover fees is part of the fee that investors pay
to the exchanges through their brokers for trading on
their platforms and the exchanges in turn pass it on to
the regulator.
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It also charges a Rs 50,000 annual fee from the
brokers.
GST roll out likely from July 1
India will likely be able to
roll out the goods and
services tax (GST) from
July 1 following a
breakthrough over the
seemingly intractable issue
of tax administration after
the Centre accommodated states' concerns.
Under the proposed tax regime, 90% of all assessees
with a turnover of Rs 1.5 crore or less will be assessed
for scrutiny and audit by state authorities, the
remaining 10% by the Centre.
Above that limit, Centre and states will assess in a
50:50 ratio.
Central & SBI Card launch premium co-branded card
Future Group's fashion and lifestyle departmental store Central
and SBI Card announced the launch of a co-branded credit
card, to offer benefits to consumers in the premium lifestyle
and fashion space.
The Central SBI co-brand Card is the second by SBI
Card and Future Group, after fbb SBI StyleUp Card
introduced earlier in partnership with Big Bazaar.
The Central SBI SELECT and SELECT+ Cards offer
an accelerated reward points structure, where
cardholders earn 20 reward points for every Rs 100
spent in Central stores.
Yes Bank launches customisable savings account
Mid-sized private sector lender Yes Bank claimed to have
launched the industry’s first customisable savings account
which will protect customers from "unwanted charges" levied
in current offerings.
Customers can choose from options like debit cards,
alternatives to minimum balance requirements, and
banking benefits such as ATM usage, digital banking
products, branch banking and family grouping.
India inks financing pact with World Bank for $48 million
Multilateral lending agency World Bank and India signed a
financing agreement for IDA credit of USD 48 million
(equivalent) for the 'Nagaland Health Project'.
The objectives of the project are to improve health
services and increase their utilization by communities
in targeted locations in Nagaland.
According to the statement, the project will directly
benefit about 6,00,000 people.
The closing date of Nagaland health Project is March
31, 2023.
IMF cuts India's growth rate to 6.6% from 7.6%
The IMF cut India's growth rate for the current fiscal year to
6.6 per cent from its previous estimate of 7.6 per cent due to
the "temporary negative consumption shock" of
demonetisation, days after the World Bank also decelerated
India's growth estimates.
The IMF said that after a lacklustre outturn in 2016,
economic activity is projected to pick up pace in 2017
and 2018, especially in emerging market and
developing economies.
The global growth for 2016 is now estimated at 3.1
per cent, in line with the October 2016 forecast.
Indian economy projected to grow by 7.7% in FY 2017: UN
report
The United Nations World Economic Situation and Prospects
(WESP) 2017 report said India's economy is projected to grow
by 7.7 per cent in fiscal year 2017 and 7.6 per cent in 2018,
benefiting from strong private consumption.
It however cautioned that low capacity utilisation and
stressed balance sheets of banks and businesses will
prevent a strong investment revival in the short term.
China's growth on the other hand is projected to
remain stable at 6.5 per cent for fiscal years 2017 and
2018.
RBI imposes Rs 75 lakh penalty on Bombay Mercantile Co-
operative Bank
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a Rs 75 lakh
penalty on Bombay Mercantile Co-operative Bank Ltd.,
Mumbai for violations of Know Your Customer/Anti-Money
Laundering (KYC/AML) directives.
"RBI had issued a show cause notice to the bank, in
response to which the bank submitted a written reply
and also made oral submissions thereon.
Lloyd's gets final approval from IRDAI to open branch in
India
Lloyd's, specialist insurance and reinsurance company, has got
final regulatory approval from the Insurance Regulatory
Development Authority of India (Irda) to set up branch in
India.
Lloyd's will open a reinsurance branch in India, in
time for the April major reinsurance renewals.
21 WiFiStudy.com
This will enable Lloyd's syndicates to offer specialist
reinsurance in a variety of classes from a Lloyd's India
branch in Mumbai.
World Bank sanctions Rs 1,376 crore for Tripura power
upgradation
The World Bank has
sanctioned Rs 1,376 crore for
complete upgradation and
improvement of the power
system network in Tripura,
Power Minister Manik Dey
said.
The total project cost
sanctioned by World Bank is Rs 1,376 crore and the
project is divided into five phases.
SPML Infra Ltd has got contract of the first phase.
In the first phase, Rs 461 crore would be spent.
Large number of 132 KV and 33 KV substations will
be constructed and upgraded under the project.
PNB, India Post Bank team up
Punjab National Bank and India Post Payments Bank have
signed a memorandum of understanding, whereby PNB will
provide technology platform for pilot launch of IPPB on receipt
of regulatory nod from the Reserve Bank of India.
IPPB has been incorporated under the Department of
Posts with 100 per cent government equity.
30 more countries interested to join AIIB: China
Thirty more countries have applied for joining the China-
sponsored Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank, in which India
is the second largest shareholder.
Apart from 57 founding members, 30 more countries
have applied to join the Beijing-based bank, Foreign
Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told.
The AIIB was officially established late last year with
57 founding members and with authorised capital of
$100 billion.
China is the largest shareholder with 26.6% voting
shares. India is the second largest shareholder with
7.5% followed by Russia 5.93% and Germany with
4.5%.
Kwality partners Bank of Baroda for Rs 4000 crore loan to
farmers
Dairy firm Kwality Ltd said it has signed an agreement with
Bank of Baroda for providing Rs 4,000 crore loans to the
former's one lakh farmers from whom the company procures
milk.
The company has a network of about 3.25 lakh across
about 4,500 villages in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and
Rajasthan which are amongst the largest milk
producing states of India.
Kwality Ltd would cover the remaining farmers in
subsequent phases over a period of time.
The scheme is aimed at providing financial assistance
to improve socio-economic lives of farmers and steer
them towards digitisation.
Farmers would get loans up to Rs 4 lakh at less than 9
per cent interest rates.
Coop. banks cannot accept deposits under PMGKY
The government has announced that cooperative banks will not
be authorised to accept deposits under the Pradhan Mantry
Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme.
Under the scheme, all those who are declaring
previously undisclosed income under the Scheme
have to place 25% of the amount being declared in an
interest-free fixed deposit with a lock-in period of
four years.
Alibaba becomes worldwide Olympic partner through
2028
Chinese online giant Alibaba has became the worldwide
Olympic partner through 2028 after signing the first long-term
partnership with International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Alibaba will become the official cloud services and e-
commerce platform services partner as well as the
founding partner of the Olympic Channel, Alibaba
Founder and Executive Chairman Jack Ma announced
at a press conference here on the sidelines of WEF
Annual Meeting 2017.
IOC President Thomas Bach said Alibaba will help
the organisation move ahead in the new digital era.
INS Vikramaditya: First to be installed with ATM
INS Vikramaditya will soon to have an ATM onboard. The
cash dispensing machine will operate via a satellite
communication link.
Vikramaditya will be the first ever warship to have
such facility. Earlier, INS VIRAAT was equipped
with a telephone link based ATM with limited access.
Around 2000 people Posted on the warship will now
enjoy the benefit.
State Bank of India will launch the ATM facility
onboard premier warship.
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KGB to propagate financial literacy among school children
Kerala Gramin Bank (KGB) is launching a ‘FI@School’
programme to propagate financial literacy among school
children.
Financial literacy clubs would be be formed at every
school identified under the programme, being
implemented jointly with NABARD and Child and
Youth Finance International (CYFI), Amsterdam.
The 602 branches of the bank have identified at least
one school in their locality for implementation of the
programme and seasoned bankers have been engaged
to conduct the classes.
Russian Railways to help India get trains faster
The Russian Railways will undertake a feasibility study aimed
at upgrading train speeds on the 575 kilometre long Nagpur-
Secunderabad route as part of a “government to government”
agreement between the two countries.
RZD International, a special purpose engineering
company established within the Russian Railways,
will carry out the study that aims to increase the top
train speed on the route from 120 kmph to 200 kmph.
At present, the Gatimaan Express – with a top speed
of 160 kmph – is India’s only semi-high speed train
that is operational on the Delhi-Agra route.
Apple named most innovative company of 2016
Nearly 70 percent of the world's most innovative companies in
2016 were American, according to a new survey of global
executives.
Apple, Google, Tesla, Microsoft, Amazon and Netflix
took the top six spots respectively in the annual poll
of 50 companies conducted by Boston Consulting
Group (BCG.
Apple topped BCG's list for the 11th straight year,
which is not surprising given the massive amount it
spends on research and development (R&D).
BSE IPO is open now
BSE has hitted the capital market with its much-awaited initial
public offer, the first by a domestic stock exchange, to raise up
to Rs 1,243 crore.
The IPO opens on January 23 and closes on January
25. The stock exchange aims to raise up to Rs 1,243
crore from the IPO, which is priced at Rs 805-806 per
share.
It will be country’s first stock exchange to be listed in
share market.
BSE is the world's largest exchange by number of
listed companies. It is India's largest and the world's
10th largest exchange by market capitalisation.
PNB launches Contactless Credit Card
In another digitalisation initiative, Punjab National Bank
(PNB) has launched a Contactless Credit Card.
This new credit card, which has been named PNB
Wave N Pay --Contactless Card, was launched by
Usha Ananthasubramanian, Managing Director &
Chief Executive Officer, PNB in the capital.
This card could be used by just waving it across the
terminal and the transaction will be through. There is
no need to enter any PIN for transactions up to Rs.
2,000.
This contactless credit card has been launched on Visa
Platinum platform.
2017 World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting Held
in Davos, Switzerland
The World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2017 was held
in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland from January 17-20, 2017.
The theme of 47th World Economic Forum Annual
Meeting 2017 was ‘Responsive and Responsible
Leadership’.
A funding of $460-million to develop vaccines
against 3 emerging highly-contagious and fatal
diseases namely Middle East respiratory syndrome
(MERS)-coronavirus, Lassa fever, and Nipah virus
was launched.
IRDAI okays Swiss Re move to open Mumbai branch
Wholesale reinsurance provider Swiss Re said it has received
approval from the Insurance Regulatory and Development
Authority of India (IRDAI) to open a branch in Mumbai.
With the composite branch licence, Swiss Re will be
able to operate in India and offer both non-life and life
and health reinsurance solutions directly to clients and
brokers in the country, the company said.
Rescheduled Education Loan will not be Considered for
Computing NPAs:RBI
In order to encourage banks to
provide education loans, the
Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
has said rescheduling of
payment period of such loans
due to unemployment of
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borrower will not be treated as restructured accounts for
computing NPAs.
The RBI’s response was on a clarification sought by
the IBA whether the education loans with extended
repayment period be treated as restructured loans.
Uber to launch food delivery app in India
Uber is soon going to launch its on-demand food delivery app
UberEATS in India.
UberEATS was launched as a delivery pilot in Los
Angeles in 2014. Since then, it has expanded to 58
cities. the service also exists in Bangkok, Singapore,
Tokyo, Hong Kong and Taipei.
Uber is currently looking to set up a network of
restaurants, restaurant partners and delivery partners
in India, before the service goes live.
Suryoday Small Finance Bank Limited commences
operations
Suryoday Small Finance Bank Limited has commenced its
operations as a small finance bank with effect from January 23,
2017.
The Reserve Bank has issued a licence to the bank
under Section 22 (1) of the Banking Regulation Act,
1949 to carry on the business of small finance bank in
India.
Suryoday Micro Finance Private Limited, Navi
Mumbai was one of the 10 applicants which were
issued in-principle approval for setting up a small
finance bank.
Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Limited commences
operations
Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Limited has commenced its
operations as a small finance bank with effect from January 23,
2017.
The Reserve Bank has issued a licence to the bank
under Section 22 (1) of the Banking Regulation Act,
1949 to carry on the business of small finance bank in
India.
Utkarsh Micro Finance Private Limited, Varanasi was
one of the 10 applicants which were issued in-
principle approval for setting up a small finance bank.
RBI prohibits investments in 'non-cooperative countries'
Reserve Bank has prohibited Indian entities from making direct
investments in any entity located in 'non co-operative countries
and territories', as identified by the inter-governmental body
FATF.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) currently
comprises two regional organisations and 35 member
jurisdictions, including India, US, UK, China and the
European Commission.
The prohibition on investment is "in order to align"
instructions under FEMA with the objectives of the
FATF.
‘GDP growth to slow to 6% in Oct-Dec 2016’: Nomura
Demonetisation has stymied India's GDP growth and the
October-December quarter show is likely to be around 6 per
cent, while for January-March it could climb down to 5.7 per
cent, forecasts a Nomura report.
According to the Japanese financial services major,
the consumption and services, which were the fastest
growing segments pre-demonetisation, were the
worst-hit.
However a V shaped recovery is expected from the
second half of 2017, it said.
Earlier, Nomura had said in a report last November,
that demonetisation could slow India's GDP growth to
6.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2016 against its
estimate of 7.3 per cent and to 7.5 per cent in the first
quarter of 2017 from 7.9 per cent.
Gujarat ranks first among states in moving towards
cashless economy
When it comes to moving towards a cashless economy after
demonetisation, a latest analysis based on data from over 5
million users of a personal finance app shows that Gujarat takes
the top spot among states. It is followed by Telangana and
Haryana.
One of the most industrialised states in the country,
Maharashtra ranks 10th on the list, while Delhi stands
fifth.
A personal finance management app called Walnut
has created a scorecard comparing how each state is
moving towards a cashless economy post-
demonetisation.
Karnataka Bank, Tirth Agro Technology sign Mou on
agricultural mechanization
private sector bank -
Karnataka Bank Ltd
entered into a
memorandum of
understanding with
the leading
agricultural
24 WiFiStudy.com
equipment/implements manufacturer M/s Tirth Agro
Technology Pvt Ltd, Rajkot, to finance farmers for agri
mechanisation.
The MoU aims to establish platform to form a relation
on co-operation between the two in identifying
farmers buying agricultural implements/equipment
and financing them by the bank on its terms.
HDFC Bank to deploy 20 humanoids in its branches in next
2 years
India's second largest private sector lender HDFC bank will
deploy atleast 20 humanoids in its branches in the next two
years.
A fortnight ago the bank had announced that it will
soon introduce a humanoid IRA - intelligent robotic
assistant to help its branch staff in servicing
customers.
Developed using Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
technologies, IRA will be positioned near the
Welcome Desk, where it will greet customers and
guide them to the relevant counter in the branch such
as Cash Deposit, Foreign Exchange, Loans, among
others in the first phase.
SBI wealth management product launched in Kochi
State Bank of India (SBI) has
launched ‘SBI Exclusif,’ its wealth
management offering, in Kochi. It
will be rolled out in other cities in the
state during the course of the year.
Launching the product, S Venkataraman, Chief
General Manager, SBI, Kerala Circle, said that wealth
management has been one of the strategic priorities of
the bank.
SBI Exclusif is targeted at the fast-growing affluent
segment and was launched in Bengaluru and Delhi
last year.
GAAR ready to take off on April 1
India made clear that the General Anti-Avoidance Rule (Gaar)
will come into effect on April 1 as previously announced but
sought to alleviate concerns of foreign investors about the
fairness of its implementation.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) issued a
set of clarifications in the form of questions and
answers toward this end in response to representations
by industry.
Gaar aims to deny tax benefits to an entity that
exploits an investment avenue solely for the purpose
of avoiding payment of taxes in India.
India's largest start-up incubator to be set up at Hubballi
The Deshpande Foundation entrepreneur Gururaj ‘Desh’
Deshpande, will launch the country’s largest start-up
incubation centre at Hubblli, alongside the new campus of
information technology giant Infosys.
The foundation aims to promote entrepreneurship in
India’s tier-II and tier-III cities.
It is investing Rs 30 crore in the centre, to be opened
this September and able to seat 1,200 people at any
point.
HPCL, GAIL ink pact with Andhra Pradesh govt for Rs
40k-crore project
Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) and GAIL India has signed
an agreement with the Andhra Pradesh government for setting
up a Rs 40,000-crore petrochemical plant in the state.
The 50:50 joint venture will set up a 1.5-million
tonnes ethylene derivatives plant, which will produce
a wide range of petrochemical raw materials for the
manufacture of detergents, paints and coatings,
cosmetics, textiles and adhesives.
The plant will be set up at the Petroleum, Chemical
and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) sites
identified by the state government at Kakinada.
Alibaba's financial arm acquires MoneyGram
Ant Financial, e-commerce giant Alibaba's financial arm, has
reached an agreement to acquire American money-transfer
major MoneyGram for $880 million, in a deal that will expand
the firm's business in the US after India and Thailand.
The transaction will connect MoneyGram's money
transfer network of 2.4 billion bank and mobile
accounts and 350,000 physical locations with Ant
Financial's users, according.
MoneyGram will remain headquartered in Dallas and
continue to operate under its existing brand.
REC inks pacts with Andhra Pradesh for Rs 60,000 crore
funding
State-owned Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd has inked
three pacts to extend financial assistance of around Rs 60,000
crore to Andhra Pradesh.
The financial assistance comprises Rs 40,000 crore to
Andhra Pradesh Power Generation Corp, Rs 10,000 to
25 WiFiStudy.com
Transmission Corporation of Andhra Pradesh and Rs
10,000 crore to AP DISCOMSs.
David R. Syiemlieh to perform duties of Chairman, UPSC
The President has
appointed Prof. David R.
Syiemlieh, Member,
Union Public Service
Commission, to perform
the duties of the post of
Chairman, Union Public
Service Commission,
with effect from the forenoon of January 4, 2017 until further
orders or until completion of his term as member on
21.01.2018, whichever is earlier.
Prior to the fresh appointment, Syiemlieh was
functioning as a UPSC member from June 25, 2012,
till date.
Archana Nigam is new Controller General of Accounts
The Centre has appointed Archana Nigam as the next
Controller General of Accounts in the Finance Ministry.
Prior to this appointment, Nigam was involved in the
critical task of setting up of the accounting framework
for the GST regime to be launched by Government in
next financial year.
Nigam, who assumed charge as CGA on 2 January
2017, has been appointed in the place of M.J.Joseph,
who has superannuated on 31 December 2016.
Indian-Origin Appointed To Top Military Post In
Kyrgyzstan
An Indian-origin Saudi-based
entrepreneur has been
appointed Major General of
Kyrgyzstan, a rare military
position occupied by an Indian
in the Central Asian country.
Shaikh Rafik Mohammed, who hails from Kerala,
was appointed Major General of Kyrgyzstan by Ali
Mirza, Defence Minister of Kyrgyzstan at an official
ceremony held in the country.
Mr Rafik holds Kyrgyzstan nationality conferred by
its former President Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev
whom he casually met while working in Iran.
Air Marshal SB Deo takes over as Vice Chief of Indian Air
Force
Air Marshal SB Deo paid homage at Amar Jawan Jyoti, India
Gate this morning before taking over as Vice Chief of the Air
Staff (VCAS) at Air HQ.
Air Marshal SB Deo was commissioned as a fighter
pilot in the IAF on 15 Jun 79.
He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy
and the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington.
He is a FCL (Fighter Combat Leader) and a “Cat A”
Qualified Flying Instructor with over 3800 hours of
operational and training flying.
Jagdish Singh Khehar sworn in as Chief Justice of India
Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar has sworn in as 44th Chief
Justice of India.
Justice Khehar will be the first Chief Justice from the
Sikh community.
Justice Khehar will have a tenure for over seven
months till August 28, 2017.
He assumed office as a judge of the Supreme Court
on September 13, 2011.
RBI appoints Surekha Marandi as Executive Director
The Reserve Bank of India has appointed Surekha Marandi as
its Executive Director (ED) in place of U S Paliwal, who retired
on December 31 last year.
Marandi will look after Consumer Education and
Protection Department, Financial Inclusion and
Development Department, and Secretary's
Department.
Rajeev Sethi named CCO of Airtel Africa
Bharti Airtel has appointed Rajeev Sethi as the chief
commercial officer (CCO) for its Africa operations.
In his new role, Sethi will be responsible for
formulation and implementation of customercentric
commercial strategies across the 15 African countries
where Airtel operates.
He will report to Airtel Africa CEO Raghunath
Mandava.
Tata Power appoints S Padmanabhan as chairman
Tata Power Co has appointed S Padmanabhan as its chairman,
in place of Cyrus Mistry who resigned last month.
In December, Tata Power brought back S
Padmanabhan, who was executive director of
operations at the company until 2014, as an additional
director on the board.
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He is also the executive chairman of the Tata Business
Excellence Group and has recently been appointed as
Tata Sons’ group head for human resources.
Jovenel Moise elected as the President of Haiti
Jovenel Moise has been elected as the President of Haiti. The
electoral tribunal officially declared the winner on 3 January
2017.
Jude Celestin remained at the second spot in the race
of Presidential election with only 19.5% votes.
Mr. Moise will take over from the interim president
Jocelerme Privert who took the position in February
2016 after the former president Michel Martelly left
the position without announcing his successor.
Committee to Study the Existing Sports Governance
Frame Work
The Government has decided
to constitute a Committee to
study the existing sports
governance frame work.
It will also look after
issues relating to
sports governance in
the country, recent developments related to sports
governance, including court judgments &
international best practices and make
recommendations on bringing out a comprehensive
National Sports Development Code across sports
disciplines.
The nine member committee will be headed by Injeti
Srinivas.
Kumar Sharadindu appointed as MD & CEO of SBI
Pension Funds
SBI Pension Funds, a subsidiary of State Bank of India, has
appointed Kumar Sharadindu as its managing director and
chief executive.
SBI Pension Funds is one of the three pension fund
managers appointed by the regulator PFRDA to
manage the pension corpus of employees enrolled
under the National Pension System for government
employees.
Prior to this assignment, Sharadindu was a general
manager at SBI Corporate Centre, Mumbai.
David Rudisha named ambassador of Mumbai Marathon
Olympic and world 800m champion, David Rudisha from
Kenya, is named the international event ambassador for the
14th Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon 2017.
The marathon will be held on January 15.
Rudisha, the 28-year-old middle-distance ace,
retained his Olympic 800m title with an power-
packed run at Rio Olympics, clocking 1:42.16.
He was timed at 1:40.91 four years ago in London
2012, a world record performance.
Flipkart appoints Kalyan Krishnamurthy as new CEO
Flipkart has promoted former
Tiger Global Management
executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy
as the new chief executive to run
the operations of India's largest
online retailer.
Mr.Krishnamurthy is replacing co-founder Binny
Bansal, who has been elevated to the position of
Group CEO.
Mr. Krishnamurthy joined Flipkart in June last year as
head of ‘category design organisation.’
He was hired from Flipkart’s largest investor Tiger
Global, a New York-based investment firm.
Gionee signs up Virat Kohli as brand ambassador
Mobile handset brand Gionee has roped in Indian captain Virat
Kohli as the brand ambassador.
The poster boy for Indian cricket will be joining
Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt who was roped in a few
months ago.
The announcement of Kohli's appointment was made
alongside the announcement of Gionee clocking 1.2
crore customers in India.
Daniel Ortega Sworn in Nicaragua’s President
Daniel Ortega has been sworn in for a third consecutive term
as Nicaragua's president, with his wife Rosario Murillo as the
new vice president.
Ortega, a 71-year-old former rebel fighter, took the
oath in Managua with the presidents of Venezuela,
Bolivia and Taiwan in attendance.
Ortega was firstly elected in 2007.
Nicaragua
Capital: Managua
Currency: Cordoba
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Dr. Ausaf Sayeed to be the next HC of India to the Republic
of Seychelles
Dr. Ausaf Sayeed has been
appointed as the next High
Commissioner of India to the
Republic of Seychelles.
Ausaf is currently working
as the Consul
General,Consulate
General of India, Chicago.
Seychelles
Capital: Victoria
Currency: Rupee
FIH makes Sreejesh member of Athletes' Committee
The Indian men's hockey team captain PR Sreejesh has became
a member of International Hockey Federation (FIH) Athletes'
Committee.
FIH Athletes' Committee comprises a total of eight
current and former hockey players who have the
responsibility to act as a liaison between the FIH and
the athletes to make sure the players have voice in the
FIH decision making process.
While Sreejesh's role will be to seek and provide
feedback to the FIH on behalf of all athletes, the
Committee also gets to interact with the current
athletes in a number of ways including post event
surveys.
Lt General Sarath Chand appointed new Vice Chief of
Army Staff
Lieutenant General Sarath Chand, Army Commander of
Jaipur-based South Western Command, was appointed as the
new Vice Chief of Army Staff.
Lt Gen Sarath Chand was commissioned into the
Garhwal Rifles in June 1979 and has had an
outstanding professional career spanning over 38
years.
He has had a very fruitful tenure as the Army
Commander of South Western Command.
N Chandrasekaran is new chairman of Tata Sons
Tata Sons has appointed Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)
Chief Executive Natarajan Chandrasekaran as its new
chairman. He will take over as the executive chairman from
Feb. 21
The decision came about three months after the
Company in October ousted Cyrus Mistry and
appointed Ratan Tata as its interim chairman,
sparking a bitter public spat.
At TCS, Chandrasekaran would be succeeded by
Rajesh Gopinathan, currently the company's chief
financial officer.
Rajeev Singh to be interim CEO at Prasar Bharati
Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati has named Rajeev Singh,
member (finance) as interim chief executive officer (CEO) at
its board meeting in Hyderabad.
Prasar Bharati runs Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Singh will replace Suresh Chandra Panda who has
been serving as interim CEO since November 2016,
after full time chief Jawhar Sircar put in his papers in
October.
Panda was formerly member (personnel) of Prasar
Bharati and is scheduled to retire on 4 February.
IRDAI forms panel to review life insurance product norms
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India
(IRDAI) has constituted a committee to review life insurance
product regulations.
Amitabh Chaudhry, Chief Executive officer, HDFC
Standard Life Insurance Company, has been
appointed as chairman of the eight-member panel.
The members of the committee include K S
Gopalakrishnan, CEO, Aegon Religare Life
Insurance, Sai Srinivas, Appointed Actuary, Bajaj
Allianz Life Insurance and Sandeep Bakshi, CEO,
ICICI Prudential Life.
Former Italian Air Force officer elected President of the
European Parliament
A former Italian Air Force officer Antonio Tajani has been
elected the new president of the European Parliament.
After four rounds of voting Antonio Tajani was
victorious, receiving 351 votes and beating his fellow
countryman Gianni Pittella who achieved a total of
202.
Donald Tusk is the President of European Council
while Jean-Claude-Juncker is the president of the
European Commission.
Delhi Police Chief Alok Verma Appointed New CBI
Director
Delhi Police chief Alok Verma was appointed the next director
of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
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The post of CBI director had been lying vacant for
over one month following Anil Sinha's retirement on
December 2.
At present, Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana
is the interim director of the investigating agency.
Verma’s name was cleared by a three-member
selection panel headed by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi and comprising Chief Justice of India Jagdish
Singh Khehar and Congress leader in Lok Sabha
Mallikarjun Kharge as members.
As CBI chief, Verma will have a fixed two-year
tenure.
Verma, a 1979 batch IPS officer of Arunachal
Pradesh- Goa-Mizoram and Union Territories
(AGMUT) cadre, took over as Delhi Police
Commissioner on February 29, 2016.
Sanjeev Srinivasan appointed as CEO-MD, Bharti AXA
General Insurance
Bharti AXA General
Insurance, a joint venture of
Bharti Enterprises and AXA,
has appointed Sanjeev
Srinivasan as its Chief
Executive Officer and
Managing Director.
Srinivasan joined
Bharti AXA General Insurance in August 2016, as
Chief Commercial and Principal Officer, and now
takes over the role of CEO and MD.
His main focus will be to drive Bharti AXA’s go-to-
market strategy of creating a balanced portfolio,
driving new distribution tie-ups, and creating a
customer-centric brand to drive profitable growth.
Adama Barrow sworn in as Gambia's president
Adama Barrow, the man who won The Gambia's disputed
election, has been sworn in as president.
He took the oath at the country's embassy in Senegal,
ordering Gambian soldiers to remain in their barracks.
But incumbent President Yahya Jammeh has refused
to quit and is backed by parliament.
West African leaders have threatened to remove him
by force. The UN Security Council backed their
efforts to ensure Mr Barrow assumed power.
Special Task Force for women safety reconstituted
A special task force (STF) for women safety has been
reconstituted under the Chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor
(L-G) Anil Baijal with his approval, the Delhi government’s
Home Department said in a communication sent to the Delhi
High Court.
The L-G will be chairperson of the special task force
and including him there will be 17 members in it.
The task force will conduct a meeting in every 15
days.
Earlier, the special task force made under the
leadership of Central Home Secretary was dissolved
in 2016.
Anurag Thakur elected Himachal Pradesh Olympic
Association president
Ousted as BCCI president following a Supreme Court order,
Anurag Thakur was unanimously elected head of the Himachal
Pradesh Olympic Association (HPOA) for a four-year term.
Thakur was elected at the HPOA's Annual General
Meeting.
Virender Kanwar was elected senior vice-president,
while Rajesh Bhandari, who is a vice president in the
Boxing Federation of India, was elected general
secretary.
Pravind Kumar jugnauth sworn in as PM of Mauritius
New Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth who
assumed office after his father Anerood Jugnauth, 86, stepped
down from the post.
Anerood Jugnauth, who has been in his post since
2014, announced that he was resigning in favour of a
"younger and more dynamic leader".
Pravind Jugnauth, 55, is the leader of the main
political party Militant Socialist Movement (MSM),
and had already formed his ministerial cabinet after
receiving an appointment letter from President
Ameenah Gurib-Fakim.
PepsiCo executive Vishal Kaul appointed as Ola COO
Transportation app Ola said it has appointed former PepsiCo
executive Vishal Kaul as its Chief Operating Officer (COO).
He succeeds Pranay Jivrajka, Ola's first employee.
Jivrajka has now been appointed as Founding Partner
and will continue to work closely with Bhavish
Aggarwal, Ola co-founder and CEO.
Foreign Secretary Jaishankar gets one-year extension
Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, whose tenure was scheduled
to end on January 28, has been given a second extension of his
term by one year, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
said in a notification.
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According to the notification, Jaishankar's term has
been extended from January 29, 2017 until January
28, 2018.
Economic Secretary Shaktikanta Das has also got an
extension of three months till May 31.
UN appoints Director of UNIC in New Delhi
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed a senior
Dutch official as head of the world bodys information centre in
New Delhi, covering India and Bhutan.
Derk Segaar of the Netherlands has been appointed
Director of the United Nations Information Centre
(UNIC) in New Delhi.
He assumed his duties on January 20.
Sports Minister Vijay Goel reconstitutes TOP committee
The Union Minister of State (I/C) for Youth Affairs and Sports
Shri Vijay Goel has reconstituted TOP committee with the
objective of identifying and supporting potential medal
prospects for 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games under the “Target
Olympic Podium” scheme.
The committee will select elite athletes to provided
financial assistance for their customized training at
Institutes having world class facilities and other
necessary support.
The 10 member committee will be headed by Beijing
Olympic Gold Medalist Abhinav Bindra.
Banwarilal Purohit sworn in as acting governor of
Meghalaya
Assam Governor Banwarilal Purohit was sworn in as the acting
Governor of Meghalaya by Shillong High Court Chief Justice
Dinesh Maheshwari at Raj Bhavan.
The post had become vacant after V Shanmuganathan
resigned following charges of inappropriate
behaviour against him. He also held an additional
charge as the governor of Arunachal Pradesh.
Nagaland Governor Padmanabha Balakrishna
Acharya has been sworn in and now given the
additional charge of Arunachal Pradesh.
Dr Bhatkar appointed new VC Nalanda University
Vijay Pandurang Bhatkar, a technocrat who is considered the
father of the Indian Supercomputer, has been appointed the
new Vice-Chancellor of Nalanda University, Rajgir, in Bihar.
President Pranab Mukherjee, in his capacity as Visitor
to Nalanda University, named Bhatkar for the post
with effect from January 25.
He will hold the office for a three-year period from
the date of his appointment as per the Nalanda
University Act, Sec 11(3).
Bhatkar, 70, replaces Gopa Sabharwal who resigned
on November 24 last year, followed by the resignation
of Chancellor George Yeo.
Tokyo Olympics unveils Goku from Dragonball Z as a
brand ambassador
Tokyo Olympic Committee has now announced that Son Goku,
a cult anime character from Dragonball Z, will serve as one of
its brand ambassadors.
Goku will have Naruto, Shin Chan, Sailor Moon,
Petty Cure, Luffy and Astroboy for company in the
ambassadorial role with their faces plastered over the
official merchandises.
Tokyo was announced as the host in 2013 and the
Games are scheduled to be held from July 24 to
August 9 2020.
AP Singh is interim head of Postal Bank
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB), floated by the postal
department, has received Reserve Bank of India’s final nod to
commence commercial operations.
The Centre has appointed AP Singh, who was earlier
Joint Secretary in the Department of Investment and
Public Asset Management, as the interim Managing
Director and CEO of IPPB.
Singh was also in the founding team of the Unique
Identification Authority of India.
Amulya Patnaik appointed new police chief
Amulya Patnaik, a 1985-batch IPS
officer, has been appointed as Delhi
Police Commissioner.
He will have one of the longest
tenures as Delhi Police chief. He
is set to retire in January 2020.
He has been serving as the Special Commissioner of
Police (Vigilance and administration) in Delhi Police
He will take charge from commissioner Alok Verma who
is now CBI director.
His order of appointment was released by the ministry of
home affairs.
UN Appointed Ashok Amritraj as India Goodwill
Ambassador
Award-winning Hollywood film producer and Wimbledon
tennis player, Ashok Amritraj has been appointed by the
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United Nations as India Goodwill Ambassador for the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Chairman and CEO of the Hyde Park Entertainment
Group, Mr. Amritraj is the first Ambassador for the UN in
India.
Ashok Amritraj has made over 100 films during the span
of his 30-year extraordinary career.
He has been a pioneering force in bridging India and
Hollywood through film and media.
SC appoints Vinod Rai to head BCCI interim panel
The Supreme Court has appointed Vinod Rai as the head of the
administration panel to oversee the affairs of the Board of
Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Rai, the former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG),
will be heading a four-member panel that will consist of
noted historian and writer Ramachandra Guha, former
women's cricket team captain Diana Edulji and Vikram
Limay.
The members are:
Vinod Rai
Vinod Rai served as the 11th Comptroller and Auditor
General of India from 2008 to 2013.
He was known for raising the profile of the office of CAG
and is credited for reporting the allocation of License of
2G spectrum which resulted in the revelation of a massive
scam.
Currently, he's chairman of United Nations Panel of
External Auditors.
Ramachandra Guha
Ramchandra Guha is a noted historian, columnist and
cricket writer who is based in Bangalore.
He's known for his work in environmental history and has
authored award-winning books including India after
Gandhi and A Corner of a Foreign Field which talks about
Indian cricket history.
Diana Edulji
The lone sportsperson in the panel, Diana Edulji is a
former India women cricket team captain with a 17-year
long international career.
For her sporting achievement, she received the Arjuna
Award in 1983 and Padma Shri in 2002 - India's fourth
highest civilian award.
Vikram Limaye
Vikram Limaye is the Managing Director and CEO of
Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited
(IDFC).
He's a qualified Chartered Accountant and holds an MBA
degree from the United States of America.
British-Indian professor knighted in New Year's honours
Shankar Balasubramanian,
an Indian-origin British
professor of chemistry and
DNA expert at Cambridge
University, has received a
Knighthood by Queen
Elizabeth II.
Olympic stars Andy Murray and Mo Farah were
among others awarded for their contributions.
Balasubramanian, 50, Herchel Smith Professor of
Medicinal Chemistry at Cambridge University, has
been recognised for his work as a co-inventor of Next
Generation DNA sequencing.
Shah Rukh Khan chosen for Yash Chopra Memorial
Award
Shahrukh Khan will receive the fourth National Yash Chopra
Memorial Award, the award jury, comprising Chopra’s wife
Pamela, filmmaker Boney Kapoor, Simi Garewal, Padmini
Kohlapuri, Subbarami Reddy, Any and Shashi Ranjan,
announced.
The award - whose previous recipients were Lata
Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha - will be
presented on February 25.
Golden Globe Awards 2017
Best Motion picture, drama: 'Moonlight'
Best picture, comedy or musical: 'La La Land'
Best Actor, drama: Casey Affleck, 'Manchester by the
Sea'
Best Actress, drama: Isabelle Huppert, 'Elle'
Best Actress, comedy or musical: Emma Stone, 'La La
Land'
Best Actor, comedy or musical: Ryan Gosling, 'La La
Land'
Best Supporting actress: Viola Davis, 'Fences'
Best Supporting actor: Aaron Taylor-Johnson,
'Nocturnal Animals'
Best Director: Damien Chazelle, 'La La Land'
Best Screenplay: Damien Chazelle, 'La La Land'
Best Original Score: La La Land
Best Original Song: City of stars, La La Land
Best Animation Film: Zootopia
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Best Foreign Language Film: Elle, France
Cecil B. De Mille Award: Meryl Streep
Barai, Shivangi received Pravasi Bharatiya Samaan Award
Indian-Americans Dr Bharat Barai and Dr Sampat Shivangi
have been selected for the prestigious Pravasi Bharatiya
Samman Award, the highest civilian award given to overseas
Indians and people of Indian origin.
They received the award from President Pranab
Mukherjee in Bengaluru on January 9, the last day of
the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas conclave.
The award was established in 2003 by Ministry of
External Affairs. So far, 28 overseas Indians from the
US have received the award.
Cristiano Ronaldo wins FIFA best player award for 4th
time
Portugal and Real Madrid FC Captain Cristiano Ronaldo has
won his fourth FIFA best player award.
Ronaldo beat great rival Lionel Messi and Antoine
Griezmann to complete a sweep of top individual
awards.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino presented the award
to Ronaldo in a Function.
His 34.54 percent of total voting points in a 23-
candidate ballot was clearly better than Messi's 26.42
percent. Griezmann got 7.53 percent.
Ronaldo has earlier clinched the award in 2008, 2013
and 2014. He was also conferred Ballon d’or award
last December.
Amitabh Bachchan presented with US embassy award for
fight against TB
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan was given an award by the US
Embassy in appreciation for his invaluable contributions to the
US-India partnership on tuberculosis.
The award was presented on January 8 by US
Ambassador to India Richard R. Verma to the
legendary actor who is also a tuberculosis survivor
and brand ambassador for the initiative.
Amitabh Bachchan is the brand ambassador of the
campaign.
20th Good Governance Awards Announced
The two day National Conference on e-Governance concluded
in Visakhapatnam.
On the occasion, Union Minister of State for
Electronics and Information Technology and Law &
Justice Shri P.P. Chaudhary gave away the awards to
the winners.
National Awards for e-Governance 2016-17 were
presented in two types of awards for each
category. Out of 20 awards, 09 are Gold and 11
Silver.
Category –I: Excellence in Government Process Re-
engineering
Gold : Chief Commissioners for Land Administration
Vijaywada for Loan Charge Creation Module.
Silver : Government of Madhya Pradesh for Madhya
Pradesh Shram Seva Portal
Category- II: Outstanding performance in citizen centric
service delivery
Gold :Department of Consumer Affairs, Food and
Civil Supplies, Hyderabad for Aadhaar enabled
Public Distribution System
Silver :Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Shastri
Bhavan, New Delhi for SAHAJ – Online LPG
connection and Cylinder e-payment
Category III Innovative use of technology in e-Governance
Gold :Social Justice and Disabled Welfare,
Government of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal for State
Pension Portal Online Social Security Schemes
Management system (OSSSMS)
Silver :DM, Rudraprayag for Setting up of wireless
LAN in Kedar valley
Category IV Incremental Innovations in existing projects
Gold :Ministry of Rural Development, Krishi
Bhawan New Delhi for NREGA Software
Silver :Directorate of Income Tax, CBDT New Delhi
for E-Filing Project of Income Tax
Category V Best District level initiative incitizen-centric
service delivery through ICT
Silver :Collector, Junagadh for SUGAM
COLLECTORATE
Category VI Innovative use of GIS Technology in e-
Governance
Gold : DC, Gurgaon, Haryana for G Triangulation
Silver : Commissioner, Muglisara SMC for
Implementation of GIS app along with GIS database
at Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC)
Category VII Innovative use of Mobile Technology in e-
Governance.
Gold :Inspector of Police, Hyderabad for Hawk Eye
Mobile App Hyderabad City Police
Category VIII Sectoral Award: Digital Transformation
towards transforming India.
Gold :CEO, My Gov, MeitY for MyGov
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Category IX Innovative use of ICT by Central Government
PSUs.
Gold :ED, Rural Electrification CorporationLtd, New
Delhi for Village Electrification Mission
Silver : Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant for Gyan Era-
Online Learning Management System
Category X Innovative use of ICT by State Government
Gold :Managing Director KSRTC for Nation’s First
Intelligent Transport System with Mobile App at
Mysore City
Silver : Development Corporation (TNHDC),
Chennai for Transformation of TNHDC using
Information Technology
Category XI: Outstanding e-Governance initiative by
Academic and Research institutions
Silver : Associate Director, Research & Nodal
Officer, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishvavidyalaya
(IGKV), Raipur for Indira Gandhi Information
Management System (IGMIS)
Category XII Use of ICT for Development by Non-
Government Institutions
Silver : Six Sigma High Altitude Medical Services,
Delhi for SIX SIGMA Star Health Services
Silver : Managing Director, Club Infotech, Pathankot
for SAMRTH (Supply Accounting Management &
Reporting Tech Hub)
Filmfare Short Films Awards 2017
People's Choice Award for Best Film – Khamakha
Best Short Film in Fiction – Chutney
Best Short Film in Non Fiction - Matitali Kusti
Best Actor Female - Tisca Chopra For Chutney
Best Actor Male - Manoj Bajpai for Taandav
62nd Filmfare Awards 2017
Best Actor (Male): Aamir Khan for 'Dangal'
Best Actor (Female): Alia Bhatt for 'Udta Punjab'
Best Film: 'Dangal'
Best Director: Nitesh Tiwari for 'Dangal'
Filmfare Critics Award for Best Film: 'Neerja'
Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor (Male): Shahid
Kapoor for 'Udta Punjab' and Manoj Bajpayee for
'Aligarh'
Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor (Female):
Sonam Kapoor for 'Neerja'
Best Debut Director: Ashwini Iyer Tiwari for 'Nil
Battey Sannata'
Best Male Debut: Diljit Dosanjh for 'Udta Punjab'
Best Female Debut: Ritika Singh for 'Saala Khadoos'
Best Dialogue: Ritesh Shah for 'Pink'
Best Screenplay: Shakun Batra and Ayesha Devitre
Dhillon for 'Kapoor & Sons (Since 1921)'
Best Story: Shakun Batra and Ayesha Devitre Dhillon
for 'Kapoor & Sons
Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male): Rishi Kapoor
for 'Kapoor & Sons (Since 1921)'
Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female): Shabana
Azmi for 'Neerja'
Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award: Shatrughan
Sinha
Best Music Album: Pritam for 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'
Best Lyricist: Amitabh Bhattacharya for 'Channa
Mereya' from 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'
Best Playback Singer (Male): Arijit Singh for 'Ae dil
hai mushkil' from 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'
Best Playback Singer (Female): Neha Bhasin for 'Jag
Ghoomeya' from 'Sultan'
Filmfare RD Burman Award for New Music Talent:
Amit Mishra for 'Bulleya' from 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'
·Best Visual Effects: Red Chillies for 'Fan'
Best Editing: Monisha Baldawa for 'Neerja'
Best Costume: Payal Saluja for 'Udta Punjab'
Best Action: Shyam Kaushal for 'Dangal'
25 children win National Bravery Awards
Twenty five children,
including 12 girls and
13 boys, have been
selected for the
National Bravery
Awards 2016. Four of
the awards have been
given posthumously.
The coveted Bharat Award has been conferred on
eight-year-old Late Km. Tarh Peeju of Arunachal
Pradesh, who sacrificed her life in an attempt to save
two of her friends from drowning.
The prestigious Geeta Chopra Award has been
conferred on 18-year-old Tejasweeta Pradhan and 17-
year-old Shivani Gond both from West Bengal, who
showed immense courage in fearlessly helping the
police and the NGO in uncovering an International
sex racket leading to the arrest of the mastermind in
Delhi.
The Sanjay Chopra Award has been given to 15-year-
old Master Sumit Mamgain of Uttarakhand, who
33 WiFiStudy.com
displayed outstanding bravery in fighting a leopard to
save his cousin.
Late Km. Roluahpuii (13 years) of Mizoram, Master
Tushar Verma (15 years) of Chhattisgarh and Late
Km. H Lalhriatpuii (14 years) of Mizoram have been
given the Bapu Gaidhani Award.
Priyanka bags second People's Choice Award
Indian actress Priyanka Chopra has emerged winner of the
favourite dramatic TV actress trophy for her role in "Quantico"
at the 2017 People's Choice Awards.
This is the 34-year-old actress' second People's
Choice win, having been named the favourite actress
in a new TV series last year.
Priyanka was not the only Indian-origin star to be
feted at the ceremony. Lilly Singh was named
favourite YouTube star.
Kapil Dev inducted into Legends Club Hall of Fame
Cricket icon Kapil Dev was inducted into Legends Club 'Hall
of Fame' in presence of former India captains Ajit Wadekar,
Sunil Gavaskar and Nari Contractor at the Cricket Club of
India.
He was presented with a citation by former India
player and Legends Club President Madhav Apte.
Dev was the first Indian to take 400 Test wickets.
He was the captain of the 1983 world cup winning
team.
Himachali film awarded at US film festival
For the first time, a film made in a Himachali dialect "Saanjh"
gets international recognition by grabbing best feature film
award at international Borrego Springs Film Festival held in
California, US.
The film emerged winner beating 750 other
nominated films from across the globe.
Film director and producer Ajay Saklani hails from
Mandi district.
Warner wins Allan Border Medal for second year in
succession
David Warner, the Australia cricket team opener, has been
named the country's best cricketer of the year, securing the
Allan Border medal for the second year in succession.
He joined an exclusive list of Australian cricketers
who have won the medal more than once, becoming
only the fourth player to do so.
Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and while Shane
Watson have also achieved the feat twice or more.
Warner was also named the ODI cricketer of the Year.
The Belinda Clark award for the best women's
cricketer of the year went to Meg Lanning, the
Australia captain.
Meanwhile, Mitchell Starc was named Australia's
Test cricketer of the year.
Shane Watson was named the T20I cricketer of the
year.
Veteran allrounder Cameron White was named the
domestic player of the year.
Hilton Cartwright and Sophie Molineux were named
the male and female young cricketers of the year
respectively.
Sakshi, Sindhu, Dipa honoured with special stamp cover
In a rare honour for sporting personalities in the country,
Olympian gymnast Dipa Karmakar has found a proud place on
a special cover released by India Post.
The Indian postal department released a special cover
featuring the Olympian during a district-level
philatelic exhibition in Agartala.
The special cover titled "Golden girls of India - Pride
of Nation" features Dipa along with shuttler PV Sindu
and wrestler Sakshi Malik, all of whom have been
awarded the nation's highest sports award Rajiv
Gandhi Khel Ratna last year.
Delhi International Airport wins Golden Peacock award
The Delhi International Airport (Private) Limited (DIAL) has
won the ‘Golden Peacock Award for Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) in the transportation sector under the
Aviation category for the year 2016.
The award has been given to the dial by the Institute
of Directors during 11th International Conference on
Corporate Social Responsibility.
Golden Peacock Award was established in 1991 by
The Institute of Directors. It is considered the
benchmark for corporate excellence area.
DVC gets NTPC award
Damodar Valley Corporation said
it received NTPC award 2015-16
from Union Power Minister of
Piyush Goyal.
DVC chairman Andrew
WK Langstieh, received
the prize by Goyal
amongst the power sectors
under for implementation of Official Language.
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Padma awards 2017 announced
Padma Vibhushan
1. Sharad Pawar
2. MM Joshi
3. Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev
4. KJ Yesudas
5. Udupi Ramachandra Rao
6. Sunder Lal Patwa (posthumous)
7. PA Sangma (posthumous)
Padma Bhushan
1. Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt
2. Prof Devi Prasad Dwivedi
3. DR. Tehemtn Irc Udvadia
4. Mr. Ratna Sundar Maharaj
5. NAND Niranjan Saraswati
6. Cho. Ramaswamy (posthumous)
7. Mahachakri Sirindhorn
Padma Shri award 2017 was awarded to 75 personalities from
various sectors.
Three Indian-origin conferred with Australia's highest
civilian award
Three Indian-origin persons have been awarded Australia's
highest civilian honour this year for their contributions in the
field of medicine and work towards the community.
Purushottam Sawrikar, a Sydney-based medical
practitioner, received Order of Australia medal for the
year 2017 announced on the Australia Day in General
division category for his service to medicine, and to
the Indian community.
Makhan Singh Khangure from Perth was given the
award for his for significant service to medicine in the
field of neuroradiology, to education, and to a range
of professional medical associations.
Vijay Kumar, a nuclear medicine specialist and a
researcher, was given the award for his significant
service to medical research in the disciplines of
nuclear medicine and biology, to professional
organisations, and to the community.
National Geoscience Award for Keshav Krishna
A. Keshav Krishna, a scientist at the National Geophysical
Research Institute (NGRI) has been selected for the National
Geoscience Award for 2016.
The award given by the Union Ministry of Mines is in
recognition of his work in the field of geo-
environmental studies.
Krishna is presently involved in studies on
environmental risk assessment related heavy metal
contamination in soil.
66. Iris Mittenaere of France Crowned Miss Universe 2016
Iris Mittenaere of France bags the Miss Universe 2016 pageant
held in the Philippines.
The finalists who advanced to top 3 hailed from Haiti,
France, and Colombia.
Eighty-six candidates were vying for the coveted
crown, which was last held by Miss Philippines Pia
Wurtzbach from the Philippines.
India's Roshmitha Harimurthy could not make it to the
final 13 list of the pageant.
Bollywood actress Sushmita Sen, who won her Miss
Universe pageant in the year 1994 at Manila, was also
on the judges panel this year.
Somdev announces retirement from professional tennis
Ravaged by injuries,
India’s star singles
player Somdev
Devvarman
announced his
retirement from
professional tennis,
bringing an abrupt end to what was once a promising career.
The 31-year-old’s career was hampered by a recurring
shoulder injury in 2012.
He was conferred the Arjuna award — the country’s
second highest sporting honour — in 2011.
Lionel Messi named the best playmaker of 2016 by IFFHS
Lionel Messi has won the Best Playmaker of 2016 award for
his overall contribution to club and country by the International
Federation of Football, History and Statistics.
IFFHS started this award in 2006 and it has been
completely dominated by La Liga players ever since.
35 WiFiStudy.com
Zinedine Zidane, the current Real Madrid manager
was the first recipient of this accolade back in 2006
followed by Kaka who won it the following year.
This award is decided by votes from 56 countries from
five different continents.
Table tennis Grand Slam champion Li Xiaoxia announces
retirement
China's table tennis Grand Slam champion Li Xiaoxia
announced her retirement through social media in Beijing.
Li helped China win the team gold medal at the Rio
Olympic Games in 2016 when she also finished the
runner-up in the singles event.
India win 4th straight SAFF Women's Championship title
A dominant India defeated Bangladesh 3-1 to win their fourth
consecutive SAFF Women's Football Championship title at the
Kanchenjunga Stadium, Siliguri.
The Indian eves are now unbeaten in 19 matches
having won 18 and drawn one.
Australian legend Arthur Morris inducted into the ICC
Cricket Hall of Fame
Former Australia cricketer Arthur Morris was inducted into the
International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Hall of Fame by ex-
skipper Steve Waugh.
Morris, who became the 82nd player to be inducted
into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame, was given the
honour posthumously.
Sunil Gavaskar, Bishan Bedi, Kapil Dev and Anil
Kumble are the Indian cricketers who are part of the
elite list.
Bopanna and Jeevan bag the Chennai Open doubles title
Rohan Bopanna and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan beat Purav Raja
and Divij Sharan 6-3, 6-4 in the first-ever all-Indian doubles
final at the Aircel Chennai Open to secure their maiden ATP
title as a pair.
This is Rohan Bopanna’s 15th career title.This is the
first title for Jeevan at ATP world tour level.
Roberto Bautista Agut downs young Daniil
Medevedev 6-3, 6-4 to lift Men’s Singles title.
Sania - Sands lift Brisbane women's doubles title
Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza picked up her first title of the
season, combining with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands to
lift the Brisbane International women's doubles title.
The top-seeded Indo-American duo triumphed 6-2, 6-
3 against the second-seeded Russian team of
Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina in the final.
The trophy, however, ended Sania's 91-week reign as
the world No.1 doubles player in the WTA rankings.
That position was taken over by Bethanie.
Novak Djokovic beats Andy Murray to win Qatar Open
Novak Djokovic gained revenge over world No 1 Andy Murray
to claim the first title of the ATP season with a victory in the
Qatar Open final.
However, Murray remains world No. 1 after losing
Serbian Djokovic 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in the final match.
FIFA agrees to expand World Cup to 48 teams
Football’s governing body, FIFA, voted to expand the World
Cup to 48 teams from its current 32.
The new format, to be introduced in 2026, will feature
a first round of 16 groups of three teams, with the top
two in each qualifying for a round of 32. From then
on, it would be a straightforward knockout contest.
The new-look tournament will increase the number of
matches from 64 to 80.
Sarita to be the first Indian female boxer to go professional
Former world champion L Sarita Devi will become the first
ever woman boxer from India to step into the world of
professional boxing.
She will make her professional debut against Zsofia
Bedo of Hungary in the Indian Boxing Council’s
January 29 fight night to be held in her hometown of
Imphal.
The 31-year-old Sarita is honing her skills under the
tutelage of American coach Joe Clough.
Nadia Petrova retires from tennis
Former world No.3 women's
player Nadia Petrova of
Russia has ended her tennis
career in the wake of long
injury trouble.
Petrova, 34, had
not played since
the end of 2013 and several comeback attempts failed.
The 1998 French Open junior champion, Petrova won
13 WTA singles titles and reached the No.3 spot in
May 2006.
She was also successful in doubles with 24 titles. She
also won Olympic doubles bronze in 2012.
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Parthiv guided Gujarat to maiden Ranji title
Parthiv Patel scored a precious century (143, 196b, 24 x 4s)
and scripted a most memorable maiden Ranji Trophy
victory against Mumbai at the Holkar Stadium.
Having set a 312-run target on the final day, Gujarat
chase down the target losing five wickets.
This was the second time Gujarat had reached the
Ranji final but they had lost to the Holkar team in
1941 at the same stadium.
Gujarat is the 16th team to lift Ranji title.
Now, Gujarat have won the domestic titles in T20,
one-day and Ranji. They are only the fourth team
to achieve this feat.
Sports Minister Shri Vijay Goel inaugurates Khelo India
National Level Competitions
Khelo India National level Competitions under aegis of
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports would be organized from
15th Jan, 2017 to 21st Jan, 2017 in Swimming, Cycling and
Wrestling.
Minister of State (I/C) Youth Affairs & Sports Shri
Vijay Goel inaugurated the Competitions at Dr.
Syama Prasad Mukherjee Swimming Pool Complex,
New Delhi.
More than 25 states/Union territories are expected to
participate in the National Competitions.
Approximately 1000 participants are expected to
participate in the Khelo India National Competitions
being organized by SAI.
Amonatov wins Delhi International Chess meet
Top seeded Grandmaster
Farrukh Amonatov of
Tajikistan won the 15th
edition of the Delhi
International Chess
tournament after settling
for a draw with
Grandmaster Diptayan Ghosh in the 10th and final round.
Scoring 8.5 points out of a possible ten, Amanotov
stayed a half point ahead of Ghosh and Dzhumaev
Marat of Uzbekistan
Pro Wrestling League: NCR Punjab Royals crowned
champions of season 2
NCR Punjab Royals were crowned the champions of the
Patanjali Powervita Pro Wrestling League Season 2 as they
triumphed over two-time finalists Haryana Hammers 5-4 in an
action packed game at the K D Jadhav Indoor Stadium.
The winners were presented with the Champions
trophy along with a prize money of whopping 1 crore
and 90 lacs.
The runners up took home a prize money of 1 crore
and 10 lacs.
Malaysia Masters 2017: Saina Nehwal Wins Grand Prix
Gold
Indian badminton ace Saina Nehwal notched up her first title
after a career-threatening injury by claiming the Malaysia
Masters Grand Prix Gold with a hard-fought victory in the
summit clash.
Up against 18-year-old Thai Pornpawee
Chochuwong, the top-seeded London Olympics
bronze-medallist triumphed 22-20 22-20 in a 46-
minute clash.
This was her 23rd title overall and the first after last
year's Australian Open.
Wriddhiman Saha’s double century helps Rest of India
clinch Irani Trophy
Wriddhiman Saha of Bengal scored an unbeaten 203 and his
316-run stand with Cheteshwar Pujara (116 not out) helped
Rest of India clinch the Irani Trophy against Ranji Trophy
champions Gujarat in Mumbai.
Rest of India won by six wickets even after Gujarat
took the first innings lead.
Wriddhiman Saha was adjudged the Man of the
Match
Rest of India won the Irani Trophy for the 15th time.
Dhruva Sunish wins ITF Juniors title
Dhruv Sunish finally got the taste of ITF Juniors title when he
won the boys singles crown downing Kazakhstan's Dostanbek
Tashbulatov at the Dakshin Kalikata Sansad clay courts.
The under-18 India number two, who had lost in the
finals of the Chandigarh Grade 3 ITF Juniors in the
first week of 2017 and 2 ITF Juniors in 2016, played
flawless to drub the Kazakh 6-2 6-3.
Bolt loses relay gold after Jamaica's Carter tests positive
Jamaica's Usain Bolt has lost one of his nine Olympic gold
medals and his perfect triple treble of Games' sprint victories
after team mate Nesta Carter was found guilty of doping at the
2008 Beijing Olympics.
Carter was found in re-tests of his sample to have
taken the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine, the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) said,
37 WiFiStudy.com
meaning Jamaica's 4x100 metres relay team must give
back their gold medals.
PV Sindhu, Sameer Verma claim Syed Modi International
GP titles
PV Sindhu eased to her
first title of 2017 at the
Syed Modi International
Grand Prix badminton
championships, with
Sameer Verma
emerging victorious in the men’s section.
Rio Olympics silver medalist Sindhu outplayed
unseeded Indonesian Gregoria Mariska 21-13, 21-14,
claiming her sixth career Grand Prix gold title.
Verma had to go some extra miles before beating
compatriot and ninth seed Sai Praneet 21-19, 21-16
for his maiden GP gold title.
In the mixed doubles final, an all-Indian affair,
Ashwini pairing with B Sumeeth Reddy went down to
second seeds Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Sikki Reddy
20-22, 10-21.
Australian Open 2017
Australian open tennis tournament 2017 was concluded on
29th January 2017. It is the first Grand Slam tournament of the
year.
Category Winner Runner Up
Men’s
Singles
Roger Federer
(Switzerland) Rafael Nadal (Spain)
Women’s
Singles Serena Williams (USA) Venus Williams (USA)
Men’s
Doubles J Peers and H Kontinen
Bob Bryan (USA)and
Mike Bryan (USA)
Women’s
Doubles
Bathenie Mattek Sands
(USA) and Lucie Safarova
(Czech Republic)
A. Hlaváčková (Czech
Republic) and S. Peng
(China)
Mixed
Doubles
Abigail Spears (USA) and
J Cabal (Colombia)
Sania Mirza (India) and
Ivan Dodig (Croatia)
Sachin & Sourav inaugurates India's first multi-sport
museum
Former Team India cricket captains Sachin Tendulkar and
Sourav Ganguly has inaugurated India's first multi-sport
museum.
Named ‘Fanattic Sports Museum’, this is a joint
venture of sports historian Boria Majumdar and
industrialist Harshavardhan Neotia.
Abul Hossain wins Kolkata Marathon
Siliguri lad Abul Hossain won the Kolkata Marathon as
amateur runners from north Bengal and Northeast India
dominated the first edition of the meet.
Hossain won the race with a timing of two hours 34
minutes and two seconds to leave Kolkata lad Biswanath
Pal second, five minutes behind.
Sikkim's Mangali Tamang won the women's half marathon
with a timing of one hour 31 minutes and 13 seconds.
Pak's oldest living Test player Imtiaz Ahmed passes away
Pakistan cricket
has lost its oldest
living Test player
Imtiaz Ahmed after
he passed away in
Lahore following a
protracted illness.
The death of Imtiaz leaves former batsman Waqar
Hasan, who now lives in London, as the lone survivor
from the Pakistan team's first Test tour.
Imtiaz was a member of the Pakistan squad that went
on a maiden Test tour to India.
He went on to play in 41 Tests as wicketkeeper-
batsman, scoring 2079 runs that included 209 against
New Zealand in 1955 at Goddard stadium in Lahore.
John Berger, renowned art critic & author, dies at 90
John Berger, a Booker award winner, the intellectual and
prodigious author died. He was 90.
The author of criticism, novels, poetry, screenplays
and many less classifiable books, Berger had
considerable influence as a late 20th-century thinker.
Veteran actor Om Puri passes away at 66
Veteran actor Om Puri passed away at the age of 66 due to a
severe cardiac arrest.
Born on 18 October 1950, the actor was known for his
outstanding performances in not just Indian but also
Pakistani, British, and Hollywood movies.
He had been awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth
highest civilian award of India.
Sitar Maestro Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan passes away
Renowned sitar player Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan, - the last
survivor of the 'Sitar Trinity' of India along with the late Pandit
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Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan - died in Mumbai. He
was 88.
Conferred with the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and
Sangeet Natak Akademi awards, Mr Khan hailed
from the Indore Gharana and is credited for
innovating the unique music style of 'Jafferkhani
Baaj'.
He, during his music career spanning over six
decades, played the sitar for various Bollywood films,
including "Mughal-E-Azam", "Kohinoor", "Goonj
Uthi Shehnai" and "Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje",
among many others.
Former President of Portugal Mario Alberto Nobre Lopes
Soares passes away
Portugal's former president Mario Soares, widely seen as the
father of the country's modern-day democracy, died aged 92.
He was president from 1986 to 1996 after serving as
foreign minister and prime minister, and later became
a European lawmaker.
Iran’s ex-President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani dead
Former Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a
pugnacious political survivor despite his support for
moderates, died after suffering a heart attack.
Mr. Rafsanjani, who was 82, was a pivotal figure in
the foundation of the Islamic Republic in 1979, and
served as President from 1989 to 1997.
Former German President Roman Herzog Dies Aged 82
Roman Herzog, who as German president was a powerful
advocate of economic reforms in the 1990s, has died. He was
82.
Herzog was a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's
conservative Christian Democratic Union.
He served as the chief justice of Germany's highest
court before being elected to a five-year term as
president in 1994, four years after reunification.
Clare Hollingworth: British war correspondent dies aged
105
Clare Hollingworth, the veteran British war correspondent who
broke the news of the Nazi invasion of Poland, has died in
Hong Kong at the age of 105.
Hollingworth, who was born in Leicester in 1911, was
the first to report on the invasion that triggered the
outbreak of World War Two.
Ex-Punjab CM Surjit Singh Barnala passes away
Former Punjab chief minister Surjit Singh Barnala died in
Chandigarh. He was 91.
Barnala served as Punjab CM from September 29,
1985, to June 11, 1987, when militancy in the state
was high.
Along with then SAD president Harchand Singh
Longowal, Barnala played the pivotal role in signing
the Punjab accord in 1985 with Rajiv Gandhi. He
became the CM after signing the accord.
C.V. Vishveshwara, the ‘black hole man of India’, no more
Professor C.V. Vishveshwara,
a pioneer in research on black
holes, passed away in
Bengaluru after a period of
illness.He was 78.
In the 1970s, while at
Chicago University, he was among the first to study
“black holes” even before they had been so named so.
Filmmaker Deepak Roy passes away
Deepak Roy, known for his movie "Limit to Freedom" which
won him a National award in 1996 under the category of best
investigative film, has passed away at the age of 67.
He started his career as a film critic in 1974 and
ventured into direction in 1982. Roy helmed more
than 90 documentary films, which he produced under
his banner "Angik Films".
His best work includes "Limit to Freedom", which
depicted the miserable plight of women prisoners of
Tihar Jail and their bleak protests for any future.
Veteran Actress Gita Sen Passes Away
Veteran film and stage actor Gita Sen, wife of film maker
Mrinal Sen, died at her South Kolkata residence. She was 86.
Sen had acted in several films including Kolkata 71
(1971) and Akaler Sandhane (1980).
She had also been part of the theatre movement.
P.K.K. Nair passes away
Noted scientist P.K.K. Nair, often referred to as the `Father of
Indian Palynology’ (study of pollen grains), passed away at his
residence in Bengaluru.
Nair was the founder Director and Emeritus Chairman
of the Environmental Resources Research Centre,
Thiruvananthapuram, devoted to research and
development in tropical biology, ecology and
sustainable development.
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Urdu poet and lyricist Naqsh Lyallpuri passes away
Renowned Urdu poet and lyricist Jaswant Rai Sharma, known
to the world by his pen name Naqsh Lyallpuri, died. He was
89.
Though he got his first break in 1952 as a song writer,
real success eluded him till the early 1970s.
Saddened by later day demands to infuse crude lyrics
for songs, Lyallpuri retired from Bollywood in the late
1990s and penned songs for television.
He made a brief comeback in 2005-06 penning songs
for the films 'Taj Mahal' with Naushad and 'Yatra'
with Khayyam.
Russian ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin dies
Russian Ambassador
Alexander Kadakin, a
fluent Hindi-speaking
career diplomat considered
a great friend of India,
passed away a brief illness.
He was 67.
Kadakin, who
was serving as the Ambassador here since 2009, was
credited with playing a significant role in promotion
of relations between India and Russia.
This was his second stint as the Ambassador, having
served one between 1999 and 2004.
US actress Mary Tyler Moore passes away
Legendary actress Mary Tyler Moore, who delighted a
generation of Americans with her energetic comic
performances, died after suffering years of ill health. She was
80.
Moore's eponymous sitcom ran for seven seasons in
the 1970s and was cited as one of 17 shows that
'changed television.'
“The People’s President: Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam” released
A book on the former President A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam was released in New
Delhi by the Vice President, Shri M.
Hamid Ansari.
The book titled, ‘The
People’s President A.P.J.
Abdul Kalam’ has been
written by S.M. Khan who
served as the Press Secretary to President Kalam.
Akhada: Biography of Mahavir Singh Phogat
Akhada is the authorized biography of Mahavir Singh Phogat,
a former wrestler and a coach who has made India proud.
The book, Akhada by Saurabh Duggal, traces
Mahavir Phogat’s journey with his daughters and
nieces hailing from a small village in Haryana to
winning the medals for the country.
Mahavir’s daughters, Babita and Geeta, has won
medals at Olympics, World Wrestling Championship
and Commonwealth Games.
Book on new age alphabets launched at book fair
Cyber Pathshala, a book on cyber schooling for the
demonetisation era, authored by Tarun Vijay was released by
Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash
Javadekar at the World Book Fair on January 10.
According to Tarun Vijay, demonetisation has
changed our language, style and idioms and this book
was to familiarise people of all ages with the new
vocabulary of the new normal.
An Unsuitable Boy': Karan Johar’s Biography
Shah Rukh Khan was
present to launch the much
talked about biography on
the filmmaker Karan
Johar's life.
The book
captures details
from Karan's life,
starting right from his childhood to his entry into the
film industry with a blockbuster of a debut.
‘Khullam Khulla’: Rishi Kapoor’s Biography
The actor Rishi Kapoor launched
his biography with wife Neetu
Kapoor in Delhi.
Rishi talks about the
relationships with his
father Raj Kapoor and
his son Ranbir Kapoor,
his career etcetera.
The book is co-authored
by Meena Iyer.
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Current Affairs Question 1. World’s highest bridge was recently opened in which
country?
(A) China
(B) Sweden
(C) Australia
(D) USA
(E) None of these
2. The Supreme Court has sacked BCCI president _____ and secretary Ajay Shirke.
(A) Kishan Rungata
(B) Sharad Panwar
(C) Shashank Manohar
(D) Anurag Thakur
(E) None of these
3. Which dairy has recently unveiled Aadhar-enabled
payment system?
(A) Amul Dairy
(B) Mother Dairy
(C) Lotus Dairy
(D) Vaishali Dairy (E) None of these
4. Who has been appointed as new Union Public Service
Commission chairman?
(A) David R. Syiemlieh
(B) Manu Augustine
(C) RK Batra
(D) Shankar Sharma
(E) None of these
5. Who has been appointed as new Controller General of
Accounts?
(A) Preity Sanyaal (B) Archana Nigam
(C) Sulochana Sharma
(D) Aarti Bhardwaj
(E) None of these
6. What is the last date for NRIs to exchange defunct notes?
(A) 31 March 2017
(B) 31 July 2017
(C) 30 June 2017
(D) 31 December 2017
(E) None of these
7. Shaikh Rafik Mohammed has been appointed Major
General of _____? (A) Tajikistan
(B) Mauritius
(C) Kyrgyzstan
(D) Ecuador
(E) None of these
8. Knighthood honour is related to which country?
(A) France
(B) USA
(C) India
(D) Britain
(E) None of these
9. Which of the following has announced retirement from
professional tennis recently?
(A) Leander Paes
(B) Mahesh Bhupathi
(C) Somdev Devbarman
(D) Yuki Bhambhri (E) None of these
10. Imtiaz Ahmed passed away recently. He was a cricketer
from___ ?
(A) South Africa
(B) Pakistan
(C) Bangladesh
(D) Australia
(E) None of these
11. Which city is hosting 104th Indian Science Congress?
(A) Hyderabad
(B) Tirupati (C) Mysore
(D) Bengaluru
(E) None of these
12. Which state has launched Arogya Raksha scheme?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Assam
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
(E) None of these
13. Mori village, which has acquired smart digital village
status, is in___?
(A) Gujarat (B) Assam
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
(E) None of these
14. Which state has launched India’s first laser technology-
based check-post?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Tamilnadu
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
(E) None of these 15. Agni-IV missile was recently launched from___?
(A) Andhra Pradesh
(B) Rajasthan
(C) Tamilnadu
(D) Odisha
(E) None of these
16. Which bank has tied up with CNX Corporation?
(A) Bank of Baroda
(B) Punjab National Bank
(C) State Bank of India
(D) Canara Bank (E) None of these
17. Payments banks can accept deposits from individuals and
small businesses of up to Rs ___ per account?
(A) 2 lakh
(B) 1 lakh
(C) 5 lakh
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(D) 10 lakh
(E) None of these
18. AIIMS Delhi has collaborated with ____ to go Cashless
transactions.
(A) MobiKwik
(B) Paytm (C) Freecharge
(D) Flipkart
(E) None of these
19. Who has been appointed as Vice Chief of Indian Air
Force?
(A) BS Dhanoa
(B) Bipin Rawat
(C) SB Deo
(D) Rajiv Jain
(E) None of these
20. Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar has sworn in as ___ Chief Justice of India.
(A) 42nd
(B) 45th
(C) 43rd
(D) 44th
(E) None of these
21. The United Nations has declared 2017 as a year of___
(A) Sustainable Tourism for Development
(B) Poverty Elimination
(C) Scientific Developments
(D) Global Peace
(E) None of these 22. Which is the first country to pay its unemployed citizens
an unconditional monthly sum?
(A) Sweden
(B) Norway
(C) Switzerland
(D) Finland
(E) None of these
23. Which city is hosting International Conference on Yoga
for Diabetes?
(A) Bengaluru
(B) New Delhi (C) Bhopal
(D) Mumbai
(E) None of these
24. Which company has collaborated with Axis Bank for
quick sanction of vehicle loans?
(A) Droom
(B) Mobikwik
(C) Bajaj
(D) Yamaha
(E) None of these
25. Which company has launched ‘My Business’ tool? (A) Infosys
(B) Facebook
(C) Microsoft
(D) Google
(E) None of these
26. Who has been appointed as chief commercial officer of
Airtel Africa?
(A) S Padmanabhan
(B) Rajeev Sethi
(C) Mukul Sharma
(D) Rounak Jain (E) None of these
27. Who has been appointed as Chairman of Tata Power?
(A) S Padmanabhan
(B) Rajeev Sethi
(C) AK Bhatt
(D) Ishaak Hussain
(E) None of these
28. Jovenel Moise has been elected as the President of___
(A) Turkey
(B) Ireland
(C) Haiti (D) Zimbabwe
(E) None of these
29. What is the full form of EPFO?
(A) Employees' Provident Future Organisation
(B) Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
(C) Employers' Provident Fund Organisation
(D) Employees' Pension Fund Organisation
(E) None of these
30. What is the currency of Haiti?
(A) Nuevo Sol
(B) Lira
(C) Renminbi (D) Gourde
(E) None of these
31. Which country will organize ‘Festival of India’starting
from 10th January?
(A) Japan
(B) Namibia
(C) Germany
(D) Cambodia
(E) None of these
32. Which country will assist India to develop Chennai,
Ahmadabad and Varanasi as smart cities? (A) Japan
(B) Namibia
(C) Germany
(D) Cambodia
(E) None of these
33. Which bank will launch digital only bank?
State Bank of India
(A) ICICI Bank
(B) Karnataka Bank
(C) Canara Bank
(D) None of these 34. Who is the Chairman of the Committee to study the
existing sports governance framework?
(A) Ajay Maakan
(B) Pawan Goyal
(C) Madhukar Gupta
(D) Injeti Srinivas
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(E) None of these
35. Who has been chosen for the 4th Yash Chopra Memorial
Award?
(A) Rekha
(B) Lata Mangeshkar
(C) Shahrukh Khan (D) Amitabh Bachchan
(E) None of these
36. With which sport, SAFF games are associated?
(A) Hockey
(B) Football
(C) Cricket
(D) Volleyball
(E) None of these
37. With Arthur Morris, how many players have been
inducted into the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Hall of Fame so far?
(A) 58
(B) 89
(C) 82
(D) 94
(E) None of these
38. Om Puri passed away recently. Who he was?
(A) Actor
(B) Singer
(C) Musician
(D) Journalist
(E) None of these 39. Who is the author of the book titled, ‘The People’s
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’?
(A) Hamid Ansari
(B) Meghna Pant
(C) Akshay Mukul
(D) SM Khan
(E) None of these
40. Kanchenjunga Stadium is in which city?
(A) Silchar
(B) Dispur
(C) Siliguri (D) Ladakh
(E) None of these
41. Which country’s Prime Minister is a chief guest on
Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2017?
(A) Mauritius
(B) Guyana
(C) Portugal
(D) South Africa
(E) None of these
42. Which edition of Pravasi Bhartiya Divas is being held in
Bengaluru this year? (A) 13th
(B) 14th
(C) 15th
(D) 16th
(E) None of these
43. Which city is hosting Assam International Agri-Horti
show?
(A) Guwahati
(B) Dibrugarh
(C) Gwalior
(D) Dispur (E) None of these
44. The Centre has approved a grant of about Rs ____ crore to
drought-affected Karnataka?
(A) 1565
(B) 2082
(C) 1814
(D) 1782
(E) None of these
45. Which Union Territory is hosting Island Tourism Festival
2017?
(A) Andaman and Nicobar (B) Lakshadweep
(C) Dadra and Nagar Haveli
(D) Puducherry
(E) None of these
46. What is the theme of World Book Fair 2017?
(A) Maanvata
(B) Apeksha
(C) Manjusha
(D) Manushi
(E) None of these
47. Which bank has topped in debt investment banking?
(A) HDFC Bank (B) ICICI Bank
(C) State Bank of India
(D) Axis Bank
(E) None of these
48. Small Industries Development Bank of India has tied up
with ______ for augmenting capital support to
enterprises in the country.
(A) Life Insurance Corporation of India
(B) Reserve Bank of India
(C) Security and Exchange Board of India
(D) NABARD (E) None of these
49. Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan passed away recently. Who he
was?
(A) Guitar Player
(B) Piano Player
(C) Sitar Player
(D) Flute Player
(E) None of these
50. What is the currency of Portugal?
(A) Dollar
(B) Euro (C) Peso
(D) Franc
(E) None of these
51. Which country is setting up the world's highest altitude
gravitational wave telescopes in a Tibet?
(A) China
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(B) Indonesia
(C) India
(D) South Korea
(E) None of these
52. Which will become the world’s first country to shut down
its FM network? (A) Denmark
(B) Switzerland
(C) Sweden
(D) Norway
(E) None of these
53 .Which city is hosting 20th National Conference on e-
Governance?
(A) Guwahati
(B) Raipur
(C) Hyderabad
(D) Vishakhapatnam (E) None of these
54. Which film has won Golden globe award for Best Motion
picture in drama category?
(A) La La Land
(B) Moonlight
(C) Zootopia
(D) Fences
(E) None of these
55. Pravasi Bharatiya Samaan Award was started in which
year?
(A) 2014
(B) 2003 (C) 1998
(D) 2007
(E) None of these
56. Who is the new world No.1 doubles player in the WTA
rankings?
(A) Sania Mirza
(B) Bethanie Mattek-Sands
(C) Ekaterina Makarova
(D) Elena Vesnina
(E) None of these
57. Mario Alberto Nobre Lopes Soares passed away recently. He was the former President of which country?
(A) Libya
(B) Lebanon
(C) Portugal
(D) Iran
(E) None of these
58. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani passed away recently. He was
the former President of which country?
(A) Libya
(B) Lebanon
(C) Portugal (D) Iran
(E) None of these
59. In which state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
inaugurated the country’s first India International
Exchange?
(A) Karnataka
(B) Jharkhand
(C) Gujarat
(D) Maharashtra
(E) None of these
60. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated _______
edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
(A) 8th
(B) 7th
(C) 9th
(D) 10th
(E) None of these
61. Which city has hosted 11th blind challenge car rally?
(A) Jaipur
(B) Raipur
(C) Bhopal
(D) Indore (E) None of these
62. Sex ratio in ____ has touched 900-mark for first time in
20 years ?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Assam
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Haryana
(E) None of these
63. Which bank has become the third lender in the country to
announce usage of block chain solutions for its
operations?
(A) ICICI Bank (B) Yes Bank
(C) HDFC Bank
(D) Axis Bank
(E) None of these
64. Which bank has launched ‘Ira’ Robot?
(A) ICICI Bank
(B) Yes Bank
(C) HDFC Bank
(D) Axis Bank
(E) None of these
65. Who has been appointed as ambassador of Mumbai Marathon?
(A) Ussain Bolt
(B) David Rudisha
(C) Asafa Powell
(D) Tyson Gay
(E) None of these
66. Which of the following has won FIFA best player of the
year award 2017?
(A) Lional Messi
(B) Neymar
(C) Christiano Ronaldo (D) Antoine Griezmann
(E) None of these
67. World Hindi Day is observed annually on which date?
(A) 14 September
(B) 10 January
(C) 14 January
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(D) 5 September
(E) None of these
68. Which free WiFi service has been launched recently by
Maharashtra government?
(A) Mumbai WiFi
(B) Maha WiFi (C) Free WiFi
(D) BMC WiFi
(E) None of these
69. Which app has been launched by Indian railways to
promote digital ticketing?
(A) IRCTC Connect
(B) IRCTC Rail
(C) IRCTC rail connect
(D) Rail Mitra
(E) None of these
70. Which is the first Airport in the world to adopt digital platform Arc?
(A) Delhi Airport
(B) Hyderabad Airport
(C) Mumbai Airport
(D) Kochi Airport
(E) None of these
71. BSNL will connect 1,518 gram panchayats with Optical
Fibre Cable (OFC) this year in ____ to ensure rural
connectivity?
(A) Maharashtra
(B) Assam
(C) West Bengal (D) Haryana
(E) None of these
72. Who has been appointed as brand ambassador of Gionee
Mobile?
(A) Virat Kohli
(B) PV Sindhu
(C) MS Dhoni
(D) Sania Mirza
(E) None of these
73. Which district collector has won Good Governance silver
award for SUGAM Collectorate? (A) Hyderabad
(B) Bhopal
(C) Rohtak
(D) Junagadh
(E) None of these
74. Roman Herzog has passed away recently. He was the
former President of which country?
(A) Italy
(B) Germany
(C) France (D) Portugal
(E) None of these
75. Revised Indian Standard on gold hallmarking will be
effective from___?
(A) 1 January 2017
(B) 1 April 2017
(C) 1 March 2017
(D) 31 March 2017
(E) None of these
76. What is the name of second Scorpene class submarine,
launched recently?
(A) Tihayu (B) Sarthi
(C) Khanderi
(D) Marmugao
(E) None of these
77. What is India’s growth forecast for the financial year
2016-17, according to World Bank?
(A) 7.0%
(B) 7.1%
(C) 7.4%
(D) 7.6%
(E) None of these 78. Daniel Ortega has sworn in as the President of____?
(A) Seychelles
(B) Nicaragua
(C) Nigeria
(D) Cuba
(E) None of these
79. Dr. Ausaf Sayeed has been appointed as the next High
Commissioner of India to____?
(A) Seychelles
(B) Nicaragua
(C) Nigeria
(D) Cuba (E) None of these
80. Who is the author of the book titled ‘Akhada’?
(A) Bharti Pradhan
(B) Vijay Lokapally
(C) Saurabh Duggal
(D) Tarun Vijay
(E) None of these
81. Akhada’ is the biography of____?
(A) Geeta Phogat
(B) Babita Phogat
(C) Vinesh Phogat (D) Mahavir Phogat
(E) None of these
82. Who is the author of the book titled ‘Cyber Pathshala’?
(A) Bharti Pradhan
(B) Vijay Lokapally
(C) Saurabh Duggal
(D) Tarun Vijay
(E) None of these
83. India’s first Madame Tussauds museum will open in
which city?
(A) Mumbai (B) Kolkata
(C) Patna
(D) New Delhi
(E) None of these
84. Which city will organize world’s first gender literature
festival?
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(A) Mumbai
(B) Jaipur
(C) Patna
(D) Guwahati
(E) None of these
85. Which Bank has helped five temples in Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu to introduce digital wallets and
point of sale?
(A) ICICI Bank
(B) Axis Bank
(C) Yes Bank
(D) HDFC Bank
(E) None of these
86. Who has been appointed as a member of International
Hockey Federation (FIH) Athletes' Committee?
(A) Sandeep Singh
(B) PR Shrijesh (C) Raghunath
(D) Dhanraj Pillai
(E) None of these
87. Who has been appointed as new Vice Chief of Army
Staff?
(A) Sarath Chand
(B) Bipin Rawat
(C) Rajiv Jain
(D) BS Dhanoa
(E) None of these
88. Who has been appointed as new chairman of Tata Sons?
(A) Rajesh Gopinathan (B) Ishaak Hussain
(C) Ratan Tata
(D) N Chandrasekaran
(E) None of these
89. Who has been awarded as Best Actor (Male) in Filmfare
short film awards 2017?
(A) Nawajuddin Siddiqui
(B) Manoj Bajpai
(C) Nasiruddin Shah
(D) Anupam Kher
(E) None of these 90. Who is the first ever woman boxer from India to step into
the world of professional boxing?
(A) MC Mary Kom
(B) L Sarita Devi
(C) Pinki Rani
(D) Kavita Goyat
(E) None of these
90. Which country will chair the Group of 77?
(A) Palestine
(B) Israel
(C) Ecuador (D) Thailand
(E) None of these
92. US President Barack Obama has announced to lift some
trade and investments sanctions against____?
(A) India
(B) Pakistan
(C) Afghanistan
(D) Sudan
(E) None of these
93. National Army day is observed on which date?
(A) 15 September
(B) 7 September (C) 15 January
(D) 7 January
(E) None of these
94. What is India’s rank in global talent competitiveness
index 2017?
(A) 89
(B) 92
(C) 112
(D) 90
(E) None of these
95. Which country has topped in global talent competitiveness index 2017?
(A) Switzerland
(B) Singapore
(C) Iceland
(D) New Zealand
(E) None of these
96. What is the full form of SEZ?
(A) Special Economical Zones
(B) Standard Economic Zones
(C) Span of Economic Zones
(D) Special Economic Zones
(E) None of these 97. Which programme has been launched to create awareness
amongst masses towards judicious utilization and
conservation of petroleum products?
(A) SANRAKSHAN
(B) SAKSHAM
(C) SAMANVAY
(D) SACHET
(E) None of these
98. Which state has launched Digital Dakiya scheme?
(A) Madhya Pradesh
(B) Telangana (C) Maharashtra
(D) Uttar Pradesh
(E) None of these
99. Retired Central government employees will get Rs ___ as
minimum pension?
(A) 8000
(B) 1000
(C) 5000
(D) 9000
(E) None of these
100. ‘Aditya’ Solar boat has been launched in which state? (A) Goa
(B) Assam
(C) Kerala
(D) Maharashtra
(E) None of these
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101. Border Security Force has launched operation 'Sard
Hawa' in which state?
(A) Jammu and Kashmir
(B) Chhattisgarh
(C) Arunachal Pradesh
(D) Rajasthan (E) None of these
102. Which film has won Filmfare award 2017 for the best
film?
(A) Udta Punjab
(B) Sultan
(C) Dangal
(D) Pink
(E) None of these
103. Who has won Filmfare best actor award 2017?
(A) Aamir Khan
(B) Salman Khan (C) Shahrukh Khan
(D) Amitabh Bachchan
(E) None of these
104. Which team has won Ranji Trophy 2017?
(A) Mumbai
(B) Gujarat
(C) Uttar Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
(E) None of these
105. Which city has recently hosted International Television
Dance Festival?
(A) New Delhi (B) Chennai
(C) Hyderabad
(D) Mumbai
(E) None of these
106. Which state has launched mobile application "Pinakin"
for tourists?
(A) Kerala
(B) Tamilnadu
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Assam
(E) None of these 107. Who is the head of IRDAI committee to review life
insurance product regulations?
(A) Amitabh Chaudhry
(B) Amitabh Kant
(C) Arvind Pangadiya
(D) Ratan Wattal
(E) None of these
108. Who is known as ‘black hole man of India’?
(A) C.V. Vishveshwara
(B) C.V. Raman
(C) Abdul Kalam (D) J.C. Basu
(E) None of these
109. What is India’s rank in inclusive development index
2017?
(A) 78
(B) 62
(C) 60
(D) 92
(E) None of these
110. What is India’s rank in global passport index 2017?
(A) 78
(B) 62 (C) 60
(D) 92
(E) None of these
111. Which ministry has launched Mission 41k?
(A) Ministry of Railway
(B) Ministry of Women and Child Development
(C) HRD Ministry
(D) Ministry of Finance
(E) None of these
112. Which city is hosting India International Garment Fair
2017? (A) New Delhi
(B) Chennai
(C) Hyderabad
(D) Mumbai
(E) None of these
113. Which bank has launched country’s first customisable
savings account?
(A) ICICI Bank
(B) Axis Bank
(C) Yes Bank
(D) HDFC Bank
(E) None of these 114. World Bank and India signed a financing agreement for
IDA credit of ____ million for the 'Nagaland Health
Project'.
(A) USD 48
(B) USD 58
(C) USD 65
(D) USD 45
(E) None of these
115. According to IMF, what is India's expected growth rate
for the current fiscal year?
(A) 7.6% (B) 6.5%
(C) 6.8%
(D) 6.6%
(E) None of these
116. ‘Khullam Khulla’ is a biography of__
(A) Shashi Kapoor
(B) Karan Johar
(C) Rishi Kapoor
(D) Yash Johar
(E) None of these
117. Which web portal has been launched by HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan?
(A) Saakshar
(B) Sampark
(C) Shagun
(D) Shiksha
(E) None of these
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118. Which committee has suggested creating up to 20 per
cent supernumerary seats for girls in IITs?
(A) Timothy Gonsalves Committee
(B) Gourang Desai Committee
(C) Ajit Vashistha Committee
(D) Divakar Sen Committee (E) None of these
119. India’s first cashless island ‘Karang’ is in which state?
(A) Meghalaya
(B) Assam
(C) West Bengal
(D) Manipur
(E) None of these
120. Sitalpati, which has been recognised as an "intangible
cultural heritage" by the UNESCO, is related to___?
(A) Gujarat
(B) West Bengal (C) Karnataka
(D) Assam
(E) None of these
121. Which state has recently allowed sale of kerosene in
open market?
(A) Gujarat
(B) West Bengal
(C) Karnataka
(D) Jharkhand
(E) None of these
122. According to UN report, what is India's expected growth
rate for the current fiscal year? (A) 7.6%
(B) 7.7%
(C) 6.8%
(D) 6.6%
(E) None of these
123. Which is the most dynamic city in the world?
(A) Silicon Valley
(B) New York
(C) Nairobi
(D) Bengaluru
(E) None of these 124. Who has been elected as President of the European
Parliament?
(A) Antonio Tajani
(B) Donald Tusk
(C) Gianni Pittella
(D) Jean-Claude-Juncker
(E) None of these
125. Which year has been declared the world's warmest year?
(A) 2013
(B) 2014
(C) 2015 (D) 2016
(E) None of these
126. Dantan Gramin Mela is related to which state?
(A) West Bengal
(B) Meghalaya
(C) Manipur
(D) Uttar Pradesh
(E) None of these
127. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a Rs
______ penalty on Bombay Mercantile Co-operative
Bank Ltd., Mumbai for violations of Know Your
Customer directives. (A) 50 lakh
(B) 25 lakh
(C) 75 lakh
(D) 60 lakh
(E) None of these
128. Which company has got final approval from IRDAI to
open branch in India?
(A) Goldline
(B) Lloyd
(C) Kennings
(D) Lord’s (E) None of these
129. The World Bank has sanctioned Rs 1,376 crore for
complete upgradation and improvement of the power
system network in_____
(A) Tripura
(B) Assam
(C) Meghalaya
(D) Jharkhand
(E) None of these
130. Which bank has tied up with India Post Payments Bank
to provide technology platform for pilot launch of IPPB?
(A) Canara Bank (B) Bank of Baroda
(C) Punjab National Bank
(D) UCO Bank
(E) None of these
131. Which of the following was recently inducted into
Legends Club 'Hall of Fame'?
(A) Kapil Dev
(B) Rahul Dravid
(C) Dilip Vengsarkar
(D) Syed Kirmani
(E) None of these 132. Who has been appointed as New CBI Director?
(A) Rakesh Asthana
(B) Anil Sinha
(C) Alok Verma
(D) Ravi Jain
(E) None of these
133. Which country has downloaded the most number of apps
from Google Play app store in 2016?
(A) USA
(B) India
(C) Brazil (D) China
134. Which state has launched ‘Mosapp’ for dengue
detection?
(A) West Bengal
(B) Tamilnadu
(C) Kerala
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(D) Uttar Pradesh
(E) None of these
135. Which bank has tied up with Kwality ltd for providing
Rs 4000 crore loan to farmers?
(A) Canara Bank
(B) Bank of Baroda (C) Punjab National Bank
(D) UCO Bank
(E) None of these
136. Which banks cannot accept deposits under the Pradhan
Mantry Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme?
(A) Co-Operative Banks
(B) Scheduled Banks
(C) RBI
(D) Nationalised Banks
(E) None of these
137. Which company has become worldwide Olympic partner through 2028?
(A) Hyundai
(B) Pepsi
(C) Amazon
(D) Alibaba
(E) None of these
138. Which bank will install an ATM at INS Vikramaditya?
(A) Canara Bank
(B) ICICI Bank
(C) SBI
(D) Axis Bank
(E) None of these 139. Adama Barrow has sworn in as the president of which
country?
(A) Gambia
(B) Senegal
(C) Jamaica
(D) Cuba
(E) None of these
140. Which Indian film has been awarded at international
Borrego Springs Film Festival?
(A) Parched
(B) Sunrise (C) Masaan
(D) Saanjh
(E) None of these
141. The United Arab Emirates'' Khalifa Bin Zayed Al
Nahyan Foundation has announced to donate medical
equipment worth US$2 million to_____?
(A) Aligarh Muslim University
(B) Banaras Hindu University
(C) Dr Rajendra Prasad University
(D) Delhi University
(E) None of these 142. Which country has recently withdrawn visa-free facility
for Indians?
(A) Germany
(B) France
(C) Hong Kong
(D) Sri Lanka
(E) None of these
143. Which state has has highest ratings in reading and
mathematics?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Himachal Pradesh
(C) Kerala (D) Tamilnadu
(E) None of these
144. Which state has has set a new world record by over 3.5
lakh people singing the national anthem?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Himachal Pradesh
(C) Kerala
(D) Tamilnadu
(E) None of these
145. In which state, people have recently formed a chain for
more than 11,000 kms against addictions? (A) Punjab
(B) Jharkhand
(C) Tamilnadu
(D) Bihar
(E) None of these
146. Which bank has launched ‘FI@School’ programme to
propagate financial literacy among school children?
(A) Karnataka Gramin Bank
(B) Kerala Gramin Bank
(C) Punjab National Bank
(D) Bank of Baroda
(E) None of these 147. What is the name of recently launched PNB contactless
Credit card?
(A) PNB Wave N Tap
(B) PNB Tap N Pay
(C) PNB Tap N Wave
(D) PNB Wave N Pay
(E) None of these
148. Which country is helping India in getting trains on
Nagpur-Secunderabad faster?
(A) Japan
(B) Russia (C) France
(D) Germany
(E) None of these
149. Which is the most innovative company of 2016?
(A) Microsoft
(B) Tesla
(C) Apple
(D) Google
(E) None of these
150. Who is the head of Special Task Force for women
safety? (A) Najeeb Jung
(B) Anil Baijal
(C) Kiran Bedi
(D) Girija Vyas
(E) None of these
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151. National Girl Child day 2017 was observed on which
date?
(A) 21 January
(B) 22 January
(C) 23 January
(D) 24 January (E) None of these
152. Which state has inaugurated IT building ‘Jyothirmaya’?
(A) Kerala
(B) Tamilnadu
(C) Andhra Pradesh
(D) Karnataka
(E) None of these
153. 2017 World Economic Forum annual meeting was held
in which city?
(A) Basel
(B) The Hague (C) Davos
(D) Berne
(E) None of these
154. Pravind Kumar Jugnauth sworn in as Prime Minister
of___
(A) Guyana
(B) Jamaica
(C) Thailand
(D) Mauritius
(E) None of these
155. Naqsh Lyallpuri has passed away recently. Who he was?
(A) Politician (B) Singer
(C) Journalist
(D) Lyricist
(E) None of these
156. Who has won Allan Border Medal 2017 for best
Australian cricketer of the year?
(A) Steve Smith
(B) Mitchell Stark
(C) David Warner
(D) Glen Maxwell
(E) None of these 157. Which country has built world's biggest solar Park?
(A) Malaysia
(B) India
(C) China
(D) Germany
(E) None of these
158. Which country has launched a 10-yr-plan to cut
vegetable imports from India?
(A) Nepal
(B) Bhutan
(C) Sri Lanka (D) Pakistan
(E) None of these
159. Which of the following Election Management Body has
signed a MoU with ECI?
(A) Australian Electoral Commission
(B) Central Election Commission of Bosnia Herzegovina
(C) Fijian Elections Office
(D) Election Commission of Nepal
(E) All of the above
160. Uber is soon going to launch its on-demand food
delivery app ____ in India.
(A) UberFood (B) UberEATS
(C) UberTreat
(D) UberLunch
(E) None of these
161. Under Section of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, the
Reserve Bank issues licence to small finance bank in
India?
(A) 22(1)
(B) 28(1)
(C) 28
(D) 35 (1) (E) None of these
162. Which airport has won the Golden Peacock Award 2016
for Corporate Social Responsibility?
(A) Hyderabad Airport
(B) Mumbai Airport
(C) Delhi Airport
(D) Chennai Airport
(E) None of these
163. Which state has launched 'Dulari Kanya’ scheme?
(A) Kerala
(B) Tamilnadu
(C) Arunachal Pradesh (D) Andhra Pradesh
(E) None of these
164. Which of the following has received NTPC award
20015-16?
(A) Damodar Valley Corporation
(B) Bharat Earth Movers Ltd
(C) Steel Authority of India Ltd
(D) Kota Super Thermal Power Station
(E) None of these
165. Which of the following has been chosen for the Padma
Vibhushan award this year? (A) Udupi Ramachandra Rao
(B) Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt
(C) Prof Devi Prasad Dwivedi
(D) Cho Ramaswamy
(E) All of the above
166. Alexander Kadakin passed away recently. He was
Russian ambassador to___
(A) Pakistan
(B) Syria
(C) India
(D) China (E) None of these
167. Which country will become the fastest oil consumer by
the year 2035?
(A) Japan
(B) India
(C) China
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(D) Russia
(E) None of these
168. V. Shanmuganathan resigned recently from the Governor
post of ____
(A) Manipur
(B) Meghalaya (C) Tripura
(D) West Bengal
(E) None of these
169. Which country has topped Corruption Perception Index
2016?
(A) Iceland
(B) Germany
(C) New Zealand
(D) Denmark
(E) Both C and D
170. What is India’s rank in Corruption Perception Index 2016?
(A) 78
(B) 76
(C) 79
(D) 77
(E) None of these
171. What is India’s rank in eight great powers for the year
2017?
(A) 6
(B) 4
(C) 5
(D) 3 (E) None of these
172. Which bank has signed a MoU with Tirth Agro
Technology on agricultural mechanisation?
(A) HDFC Bank
(B) Karnataka Bank
(C) Kerala Bank
(D) State Bank of India
(E) None of these
173. Which bank will deploy around 20 robots in next 2
years?
(A) HDFC Bank (B) Punjab National Bank
(C) ICICI Bank
(D) State Bank of India
(E) None of these
174. What is the name of the wealth management product
launched by SBI in Kochi?
(A) SBI Exclusive
(B) SBI Mingle
(C) SBI SELECT
(D) SBI Exclusif
(E) None of these 175. Who is the Chairman of the recently reconstituted Target
Olympic Podium committee?
(A) PT Usha
(B) Karnam Malleshwari
(C) Abhinav Bindra
(D) Rajyavardhan Singh
(E) None of these
176. Who has been conferred with National Geoscience
Award 2016?
(A) Keshav Krishna
(B) Aakash Malviya
(C) Tarun Sahni (D) Rajesh Sen
(E) None of these
177. National Immunization Day 2017 was observed on
which date?
(A) 27 January
(B) 28 January
(C) 29 January
(D) 30 January
(E) None of these
178. Which city is hosting 1st North East Investors’ Summit?
(A) Shillong (B) Gangtok
(C) Guwahati
(D) Dispur
(E) None of these
179. Expand the term TROPEX with reference to Indian
Navy?
(A) Target Readiness Operational Exercise
(B) Theatre Readiness Overseas Exercise
(C) Traditional Recurrence Operational Exercise
(D) Theatre Readiness Operational Exercise
(E) None of these
180. Which state has signed a pact with oil companies for ethylene derivatives plant?
(A) Rajasthan
(B) Andhra Pradesh
(C) Gujarat
(D) Assam
(E) None of these
181. Who has been appointed as acting governor of
Meghalaya?
(A) Banwari lal Purohit
(B) JP Rajakhova
(C) Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya (D) Najma Heptulla
(E) None of these
182. Who has been appointed as acting governor of
Arunachal Pradesh?
(A) Banwari lal Purohit
(B) JP Rajakhova
(C) Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya
(D) Najma Heptulla
(E) None of these
183. Who has been appointed as Vice Chancellor of Nalanda
University? (A) Amritya Sen
(B) Gopa Sabharwal
(C) George Yeo
(D) Vijay Pandurang Bhatkar
(E) None of these
184. Which country will host 2020 Olympics?
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(A) Brazil
(B) France
(C) Russia
(D) Japan
(E) None of these
185. World Leprosy Day is observed in the memory of__ (A) Abraham Lincoln
(B) Nelson Mandela
(C) Mother Teresa
(D) Mahatma Gandhi
(E) None of these
186. Which country will appoint world’s first ‘digital
ambassador’?
(A) Denmark
(B) Portugal
(C) Sweden
(D) Italy (E) None of these
187. Which company has acquired MoneyGram?
(A) Cruze Finance
(B) Ant Financial
(C) Bitcoin
(D) Verizon
(E) None of these
188. Who has been appointed as interim head of Postal Bank?
(A) AP Singh
(B) Alok Sharma
(C) Nayan Chandra
(D) Rakesh Sen (E) None of these
189. Iris Mittenaere of______ bags the Miss Universe 2016
pageant held in the Philippines.
(A) France
(B) Colombia
(C) Haiti
(D) Philippines
(E) None of these
190. Who has won Syed Modi International GP men’s title?
(A) Sai Praneet
(B) Sameer Verma (C) Sumeeth Reddy
(D) Pranav Chopra
(E) None of these
191. Who has won Australian open Women’s singles title
2017?
(A) Venus Williams
(B) Angelique Kerber
(C) Serena Williams
(D) Simon Halep
(E) None of these
192. India's first multi-sport museum has been opened in which city?
(A) New Delhi
(B) Kolkata
(C) Mumbai
(D) Chennai
(E) None of these
193. Which city has set up Personal Status and Inheritance
Court for non Muslims?
(A) Abu Dhabi
(B) Muscat
(C) Dubai
(D) Damascus (E) None of these
194. Which is the world's first country to stop investing in
fossil fuels?
(A) Denmark
(B) Ireland
(C) Iceland
(D) Sweden
(E) None of these
195. The Centre will invest Rs 15,000 crores to develop 1,253
kilometres of roads in ____ into National Highways over
the next few years. (A) Uttar Pradesh
(B) Andhra Pradesh
(C) West Bengal
(D) Assam
(E) None of these
196. Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd has inked three
pacts to extend financial assistance of around Rs 60,000
crore to____
(A) Uttar Pradesh
(B) Andhra Pradesh
(C) West Bengal
(D) Assam (E) None of these
197. UN has appointed ____ as india goodwill ambassador
for sustainable development goals.
(A) Ashok amritraj
(B) Priyanka Chopra
(C) Rajesh Sabharwal
(D) Rajendra Shinde
(E) None of these
198. Who has been appointed as Delhi police commissioner?
(A) Alok Verma
(B) Anil Dhasmana (C) Amulya Patnaik
(D) Rakesh Goel
(E) None of these
199. Who has been appointed as the head of BCCI interim
panel?
(A) Ramachandra Guha
(B) Diana Edulji
(C) Vinod Rai
(D) Vikram Limaye
(E) None of these
200. Which of the following is not a deputy governor of Reserve bank of India?
(A) R Gandhi
(B) Nachiket Mor
(C) SS Mundra
(D) NS Vishwanathan
(E) Viral Acharya
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Answer Key
1. A 2. D 3. B 4. A 5. B 6. C 7. C 8. D 9. C 10. B
11. B 12. C 13. C 14. A 15. D 16. A 17. B 18. A 19. C 20. D
21. A 22. D 23. B 24. A 25. D 26. B 27. A 28. C 29. B 30. D
31. D 32. A 33. A 34. D 35. C 36. B 37. C 38. A 39. D 40. C
41. C 42. B 43. A 44. D 45. A 46. D 47. D 48. A 49. C 50. B
51. A 52. D 53. D 54. B 55. B 56. B 57. C 58. D 59. C 60. A
61. C 62. D 63. D 64. C 65. B 66. C 67. B 68. A 69. C 70. A
71. B 72. A 73. D 74. B 75. A 76. C 77. A 78. B 79. A 80. C
81. D 82. D 83. D 84. C 85. D 86. B 87. A 88. D 89. B 90. B
91. C 92. D 93. C 94. B 95. A 96. D 97. B 98. A 99. D 100. C
101. D 102. C 103. A 104. B 105. C 106. B 107. A 108. A 109. C 110. A
111. A 112. A 113. C 114. A 115. D 116. C 117. C 118. A 119. D 120. B
121. C 122. B 123. D 124. A 125. D 126. A 127. C 128. B 129. A 130. C
131. A 132. C 133. B 134. C 135. B 136. A 137. D 138. C 139. A 140. D
141. A 142. C 143. B 144. A 145. D 146. B 147. D 148. B 149. C 150. B
151. D 152. A 153. C 154. D 155. D 156. C 157. C 158. A 159. E 160. B
161. A 162. C 163. C 164. A 165. A 166. C 167. B 168. B 169. E 170. C
171. A 172. B 173. A 174. D 175. C 176. A 177. C 178. A 179. D 180. B
181. A 182. C 183. D 184. D 185. D 186. A 187. B 188. A 189. A 190. B
191. C 192. B 193. A 194. B 195. D 196. B 197. A 198. C 199. C 200. B