Current Affairs till 27/10/12

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1.Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) declined by 3 points from 47 to 44 infant deaths per 1000 live births during 2011. As per Sample Registration System (SRS) released by the Registrar General of India (RGI): IMR for rural areas has decreased by 3 points from 51 to 48 infant deaths per 1000 live births IMR in Urban registered at 29 from the previous 31/1000 Goa and Manipur have the lowest IMR.

2.India and Spain inked Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate in various domains which include Railways, Roads, Audio-Visual, and Defence. MoU signed b/w Indian Railways and RENFE-Operadora and ADIF (Spanish Railways Infrastructure Manager) of Spain on technical cooperation in the field of Railway sector. As per this MoU, both the nations will promote cooperation and information exchange in the areas of High Speed Railway, up gradation of speed of passenger trains etc.

3.Bo Xilai expelled from China’s Parliament, stripped of legal immunity China expelled disgraced Communist Party leader Bo Xilai’s from country’s Parliament and also stripped him of legal immunity to start legal proceedings into offences alleged on him. Bo faces a number of charges including, corruption, moral turpitude and attempts to protect his wife Gu Kailai from investigations into the murder of British Businessman Neil Heywood.

4.Govt. approves setting up of Aircraft Acquisition Committee
The government gave its nod for setting up a new committee which will consider, examine and make recommendations on allowing import or acquisition of aircraft for various purposes by airlines. After analyzing the proposals, the panel would make suggestions for operation of scheduled air transport services, regional scheduled air transport services and non-scheduled air transport services.
Members of the Committee:
Chairman: Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor in the Civil Aviation Ministry
Director General of Civil Aviation
Chairman of Airports Authority of India
Commissioner of Bureau of Civil Aviation Security
Former DGCA H S Kohla
Joint Secretary (Domestic Transport)

5.10 % disinvestment in NMDC approved.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave its nod to a 10% stake sale of the Centre’s equity holding in NMDC (National Mineral Development Corporation) through the ‘offer for sale’ route. The sale is expected to fetch about Rs.7,000 crore. The selling will be through ‘Offer for the sale through stock exchange’ (OFS) method, as per SEBI Rules and Regulations.

6.African Union (A.U.) readmitted Mali after a meeting of the A.U. Peace and Security Council [AUPSC]. Why Mali’s membership was annulled? Mali’s membership was suspended by the African Union after a coup in the country in March 2012 when a military junta seized power even as two thirds of Mali slipped into the control of a coalition of armed groups and organized gangs.

7.International Crop Science award to ICRISAT scientist Dr. C.L. Laxmipathi Gowda
The 2012 International Crop Science award was given to Dr. C.L. Laxmipathi Gowda, scientist of the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). It was given to recognize his contribution to agriculture in the dry land areas of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
Dr.Gowda has made significant contribution in the development of improved chickpea cultivars with high yield and resistance to pests and diseases.

8.Persons in News: Brahma Chellaney
Bernard Schwartz award to Brahma Chellaney Brahma Chellaney has been awarded with 2012 Asia Society Bernard Schwartz Book Award for his book Water: Asia’s New Battleground. Who is Brahma Chellaney? Brahma Chellaney is a Professor of Strategic Studies at the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research, an independent think-tank. Formerly a Member of the Policy Advisory Group headed by the External Affairs Minister of India.

9.Sun TV Network won the Hyderabad Franchise of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a sum of Rs 85.05 crore per annum. On September 15, the BCCI floated tenders for a new IPL franchise after terminating Deccan Chargers’ contract following payment default by the team owners DCHL. DCHL was unable to furnish bank guarantee of Rs 100 crore before October 12, 5 pm deadline.

10.Microsoft unveils Windows 8 in India Microsoft launched the latest version of its Operating System (OS) Windows 8 in India. Windows 8 is designed to work across PCs, tablets as well as for smart phones. Some KEY Differences b/w WINDOWS 7 and WINDOWS 8 (Features that make WINDOWS 8 better than WINDOWS 7).

11.Jaspal Bhatti dies in road accident Famous Indian satirist and film-maker Jaspal Bhatti died in a road accident. Bhatti was on the promotion of his upcoming movie “Power Cut”, which is based on frequent power cuts in Punjab. Before joining television, Bhatti was a cartoonist for The Tribune in Chandigarh. Bhatti was famous for his satirical take on the problems of the common man.

12.‘National Policy on Electronics’ (NPE) cleared by the Government The Union Cabinet cleared the National Policy on Electronics 2012. Objective: By 2020, make the Indian domestic electronic hardware manufacturing segment into a $ 400 billion industry.

13.National Committee on Direct Cash Transfers, constituted by the Prime Minister.
This coordination committee will act as a mechanism to coordinate action for the introduction of direct cash transfers to individuals under the various government schemes and programmes.
Chairman of the Committee on Direct Cash Transfers: Prime Minister.
Other Members:
11 Cabinet Ministers
2 Ministers of State with independent charge
The Deputy Chairman Planning Commission
The Chairman UIDAI
The Cabinet Secretary with the Principal Secretary to the PM as the convenor.

14.France will provide carmaker Peugeot Citroen, a €7 billion ($9.1 billion) bailout package. Why this move? The government in France wants to rein in rising unemployment. In return of this rescue package the government is expected to demand a reduction in layoffs. The car-making sector is also critical to the French economy.

15.NR Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys, was honored with prestigious 2012 Hoover Medal at the Global Humanitarian Technology Conference in Seattle, Washington. The medal was given to recognize Murthy for establishing a foundation that forges outstanding improvements in healthcare, social rehabilitation, rural uplift and education.

16.An Italian court sentenced six scientists and a government official 6-year imprisonment on the charges of manslaughter. The scientists were accused of not being able to give adequate warning of an earthquake that killed more than 300 people in L’Aquila in 2009. All the convicts who were member of National Commission for the Forecast and Prevention of Major Risks, were accused of negligence and malpractice in assessing the danger.

17.Two-year jail term to Rajat Gupta A U.S. court sentenced Rajat Gupta (63), the former Goldman Sachs Director and McKinsey and Company Managing Partner a 2 year jail term.

18.Bangladesh awarded Jagjivan Ram with “Friends of Liberation War Honour”
Bangladesh awarded Former Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of India Jagjivan Ram, “Friends of Liberation War Honour” posthumously in recognition to his contribution to the 1971 war.

19.The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) will establish a national data base for tigers, and each one of the big cats will have a unique identification number and code. The initiatives of providing UID will aid in better bio-monitoring of tigers. OBJECTIVE: Providing UID will enhance monitoring and also give the exact estimate of the tiger population in the country.

20.E-Eye Project: A pilot surveillance project being piloted in Corbett National Park in which live electronic surveillance is done with the help of cameras with video recording facility mounted on towers.
The project will help in tracking the movement of animals, human interference and checking poaching.
These cameras will generate alerts to the control room in the park and the NTCA office located at Delhi, as the tigers cross the boundary. These cameras capture thermal and normal image of body mass regardless of forest density and severe weather conditions and therefore, can monitor the area during night or day.

21.The 5-member, Technical Expert Committee appointed on the directions of Supreme Court, has recommended a 10-year moratorium on field trials of all Genetically Modified (GM) food crops. The panel, in its interim report, suggested that the field trials should not be done till an independent committee of experts and stakeholders examines and assesses the potential hazard of herbicide tolerant crops and their suitability to India.

22.Iran is ready to negotiate over the issue of its uranium enrichment programme. It has offered that it can put a 20% on uranium enrichment if it is assured a regular supply of nuclear fuel for its medical reactor that manufactures isotopes to treat cancer.

23.The RBI has given permission to domestic companies to make payments to units in Special Economic Zones in foreign currency for the services delivered by them. Earlier, this facility was allowed only for payments made for goods. To promote software exports, RBI has simplified procedure for exporting goods and services by all Software Technology Parks of India.

24.India, Russia put off meet by two months to resolve issues.
India and Russia have postponed their high-level engagement planned for November 1, 2012 by almost two months in order to reach conformity on some debatable military and civil issues.

25.International Cycling Union (UCI), the governing body of cycling, stripped Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and banned him for life. The decision came following a report from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that has accused him of leading a massive doping programme on his teams.

26.India and Japan decided to enhance cooperation key bilateral areas, including maritime, cyber, outer space security and also deliberated on regional and international security situation. It was second India-Japan 2+2 Dialogue held in Tokyo which involved discussions on foreign policy issues and security. Both the nations reviewed bilateral security and defence cooperation and discussed ways to expand these ties further.

27.The Election Commission put a ban on the publication/broadcast kind of opinion poll during the period of assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. As per EC there will be complete ban on display of any election matter like opinion poll or any other poll survey, in any electronic media, during the period of 48 hours till the conclusion of poll.

28.Eminent Bengali writer and poet Sunil Gangopadhyay passed away. He was Sahitya Akademi President. Known for his poems and novels in both West Bengal and Bangladesh. Used the pen names Nil Lohit, Sanatan Pathak, and Nil Upadhyay First poem: ‘Ekti Chithi’ (A letter) First novel: ‘Atmaprakash’ (Emergence) Other significant works: ‘Pratham Alo’ (‘First Light’), and ‘Purbo-Paschim’ His wrote thriller ‘Kakababu’ series which became very popular among children and teenagers.

29.As per the ‘Scoreboard’ report by analyst firm Wireless Intelligence, Bharti Airtel with over 250 million mobile subscribers is world’s fourth-largest operator in terms of subscribers. Airtel overtook Telefónica of Spain to reach this position. Top 4 Mobile Operators Rankings China Mobile Vodafone Group American Movil Group Bharti Airtel.

30.The Union Government unveiled a new Aadhaar-enabled service delivery system that will provide a reliable mechanism of direct cash transfer to beneficiaries in a transparent manner. Objective: To eliminate fraud, black-marketing, pilferage in schemes and bribery in the delivery of government services. What is Aadhaar? A 12-digit unique number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Provided to all citizens of India.

31.Renowned filmmaker Yash Chopra(80) passed away. Yash Chopra Born: 27 September 1932 Lahore, British India Directorial debut with Dhool Ka Phool in 1959 Famous Films: Waqt, Ittefaq, Daag, Diwar, Silsila, Kabhie Kabhie, Darr, Dharmaputra, Kala Pathhar, Lamhe Awards and honors: As a producer he received National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment for Dil to Pagal Hai and Veer Zara in the year 1998 and 2005 respectively.

32.Indian Squash player Ms Anaka Alankamony clinched Ipswich Open women’s title after defeating top seed Kylie Lindsay of New Zealand.

33.Kateri Tekakwitha, famous as “Lily of the Mohawks”, who for centuries has been a symbol of hope for the long-oppressed American Indians, was canonized in St Peter’s Square by Pope Benedict XVI .

34.Mars’ Valles Marineris is the largest canyon in our solar system. It is over 4000 km long and 200 km wide, and with a depth of 10 km. This size makes it some ten times longer and five times deeper than Earth’s Grand Canyon.

35.The Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) Review Committee to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants approved the assessment of 100 chemical alternatives to insecticide and acaricide Endosulfan. The committee also suggested its non-chemical alternatives.
Which of the approved alternatives are used in India?
Among the approved alternatives which are used in India, some are:-
Malathion
Aldicarb
Carbofuran
Cabaryl
Fipronil
Methyl parathion
Pyrethrin

36.India’s Badminton star Saina Nehwal has won Denmark Open Super Series Premier Badminton trophy. She defeated Germany’s Juliane Schenk in the finals.

37.India has distanced itself from any model that promulgates governments control over internet.

38.The UN General Assembly elected five new non-permanent members to the Security Council. The New Members are: 1. South Korea 2. Luxembourg 3. Argentina 4. Australia 5. Rwanda The newly elected member countries will have 2-year term in UN body that will begin on January 1, 2013. The members which will be replaced are Colombia, Germany, India, Portugal and South Africa, whose term ends on December 31, 2012

39.Arabic language was officially included in the list of the Languages at Pope Benedict’s weekly general audiences. The move is an attempt of Vatican to expand its reach to Christians and Muslims in Middle East. Vatican is concerned about the mass departure of the Christians from Middle East who fear their safety over there.

40.A new planet which is called PH1 has been discovered by researchers. Six times larger than the Earth Located at 5,000 light years distance from the Earth Present in the constellation of Cygnus Its sky is illuminated by 4 stars It is the seventh planet to be found orbiting binary stars, and the first to have four stars.

41.New Chairman of ICC Cricket Committee Former India cricketer and captain Anil Kumble was appointed as the new head of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) cricket committee. He replaced former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd. About ICC Cricket Committee: ICC is a 16-member committee which meets twice a year to consult on playing matters and offer suggestions to the ICC on technical aspects and rules of International Cricket.

42.New Prime Minister of Libya Ali Zidan elected as the new Prime Minister of Libya. He beat a candidate supported by the Justice and Construction party which is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.

43.First woman chief of African Union Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini-Zuma became the first woman to take office as the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) at the A.U. headquarters in Addis Ababa. She is a South African politician and former anti-apartheid activist. She became the first woman to lead the organization (including its predecessor, the Organization of African Unity).

44.First Woman Team Principal in Formula one Monisha Kaltenborn of Indian origin became the First Woman Team Principal in Formula one after taking the hold of team Sauber, a swiss Formula one team. Monisha took the place of Peter Sauber, the founder of the Sauber team, who stepped down from the position.

45.Malala Yousafzai: A school student and education activist from the town of Mingora in the Swat District of Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province. She is famous for her education and women’s rights activism in the Swat Valley, where the Taliban has at times opposed girls from attending school. Yousafzai gained prominence by giving interviews in print and on television. She was appointed as chairperson of the District Child Assembly Swat.

46.First Skydiver to break Sound barrier Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner: 1) The first skydiver to go faster than the speed of sound, reaching a maximum velocity of 1,342 km/h. 2) He also broke the record for the highest ever freefall, after he jumped from a balloon 39 kilometers above New Mexico.

47.Supreme Court of Pakistan on 19 October 2012 ordered the government to take legal action against former army chief General Mirza Aslam Beg and former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Asad Durrani for distributing millions of rupees among politicians to manipulate the 1990 general election

48.The country of Japan on 19 October 2012 in a step to testimony the fact that security situation in Jammu and Kashmir is improved, relaxed the travel restriction to the state for its nationals. The move to ease restrictions is valid for Srinagar and adjoining areas like Gulmarg.

49.Films Division Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India on 16 October 2012 announced its plan of establishing a National Museum of Indian Cinema (NMIC). The Museum would be located in the Films Division Complex, Dr. G. Deshmukh Marg, Mumbai and is predicted to come up by June 2013. The development of the museum was planned to mark the occasion of Indian Cinema that will complete its 100 years of journey from the day of first screening of Raja Harishchandra in 1913.

50.The German Ambassador to India, Michael Steiner on 19 October 2012 announced the event named Indo-German Urban Mela scheduled to start from 27 October 2012 at Delhi. The celebrations are the part of Germany and India 2011-2012: Infinite Opportunities.

The nine-day cultural extravaganza that is scheduled to be held at Indraprastha Millenium Park that is meant for commemorating the sixty years of German and Indian ties.

51.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 20 October 2012 launched Aadhaar Enabled Service Delivery in Dudu district of Rajasthan to mark the 2nd anniversary of Aadhaar.

Also marking the second anniversary, the 21st crore Aadhaar number was given to a local resident of Kurawar, district of Udaipur.

With this launch of delivery system the government is going to start out Aadhaar Enabled Service Delivery initiatives in 51 districts across the country

Now, the services will be linked to various government schemes such as MNREGA wage payments, PDS distribution, payment of social security benefits such as old-age payments, distribution of LPG cylinders, etc.


52.London Olympic Shooter and silver medalist Vijay Kumar on 19 October 2012 was honoured with the Services Best Sportsman award for 2012 at the Army Headquarters in New Delhi

53.The Indian Filmmaker Yash Chopra died on 21 October 2012, nine days after being diagnosed with Dengue. He passed away at the age of 80 at Lilavati Hospital at Bandra due to dengue and multiple organ failure. Also termed as the King of Romance, Yash Chopra had by his name Six National Film Awards, Eleven Filmfare Awards out of which four was Filmfare Award for Best Director.

54.The High Court of Madhya Pradesh on 19 October 2012 dismissed the petition filed by Dow Chemicals that challenged the orders of the trial court pronounced in 2005 in form of a show-cause notice against the 1984 Bhopal Gas Leak Tragedy.

55.Narendra Kumar the IPS officer who was brutally killed by illegal mining mafia in Madhya Pradesh and many other Security Personnel who had laid down their life for fighting against Maoists and anti Social element on 20 October 2012 were awarded with Singham Bravery Awards.

The awards were handed over to the family members of the police officers by reel life 'Singham' Ajay Devgan,who is also the brand ambassador of Maharashtra police ,actor Sunil Shetty and former CRPF Director General K Vijay Kumar.

56.Nokia India on 22 October 2012 signed a deal with Futbol Club (FC) Barcelona making the company a regional partner of the club. It was a step taken Nokia India for capitalising on the huge fan following for European football in the country.

57.The newly-appointed Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court, Justice Yatindra Singh, took the oath of office in Chattisgarh on 22 October 2012.

58.The City of Hyderabad was named as World Third best city to visit in 2013 by Travel guide book Lonely Planet published on 22 October 2012.


59.Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) in the Month of October had successfully deployed space grade solar panels on the GSAT-10 satellite of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

BHEL had supplied four solar panels for GSAT-10, that have an area of 5.36 square metre each and comprise multi-junction solar cells in series and parallel combinations, with a total power capacity of 4000 watts.


60. Congress candidate Abhijeet Mukherjee on 13 October 2012 won a seat from Jangipur District in West Bengal in Lok Sabha By-Poll. Abhijeet Mukherjee is the son of President Pranab Mukherjee

61.RailRadar, the new online application was launched by the Indian Railways on 10 October 2012, to find out the location of 6500 trains on real-time basis on Google Map

62.World bank and the Government of India on 5 October 2012 signed a loan agreement of 500 Million US Dollar for Secondary Education Project named Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan(RMSA).