Current Affairs 28/10/12 to 3/11/12
Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2012 10:04 pm
1.BCCI awards 2011
BCCI will honor Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli with Polly Umrigar Award at its Annual Awards ceremony to be held on November 21, 2013 in Mumbai. Sachin will be honored for his 100th century while Virat will awarded for being India’s top international cricketer of 2011-12. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will be receiving the prestigious Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award.
2.“Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters” French honor to Aishwarya Rai
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was conferred the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres). The coveted honor was given in recognition of her invaluable contribution to the world of cinema and the development of Indo-French cooperation in cinema, art, and culture. Earlier Indian recipients include Shahrukh Khan, Raghu Rai, Nandita Das, late Habib Tanvir, and Upamanyu Chatterjee.
3.China irked by India-Japan-US meet
Strategic Analyst and media outlets of China have expressed chariness at the India, Japan and the U.S. trilateral meet held in New Delhi describing it as aimed at wielding pressure on China over its regional aspirations.
Why China is wary of this trilateral meet?
Strategic Analyst and media in China are of the view that this meet has been held to exert strategic pressure on China.
As per them, the US wants to suppress the economic rise of China and therefore it is looking for financial support from other countries.
They see Japan’s role in this meet is to put strategic pressure regarding ongoing tensions over the disputed Diaoyu or Senkaku islands in the East China Sea.
They view India as one who wants to gain from building further pressure so that China softens its stance over border issues with India.
4.Gulzar honored with Indira Gandhi National Integration award.
Famous lyricist, poet and film director, Gulzar has been conferred with the Indira Gandhi National Integration Award. The award was given to mark the 28th death anniversary of the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
5.ndian Women Cricket Team lifts ACC T20 Asia Cup 2012.
The Indian women’s cricket team is the winner of first Asian Cricket Council’s (ACC) Twenty20 Asia Cup 2012. They beat Pakistan in the final match held in Guangzhou city of People’s Republic of China. Harmanpreet Kaur played the role of skipper in the absence of Mithali Raj.
6.“European Golden Boot” to Lionel Messi.
Star footballer of Barcelona, Lionel Messi, bagged European Golden Boot Award. The award has been given to him in recognition to his record 50 goals scored in the Europe’s domestic football league. It is the second Golden Boot award for Messi.
7.Uttarakhand tops in “Environmental Performance Index (EPI)”
Uttarakhand (scored 0.8123) topped the list of best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental performance. As per the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) released by Planning Commission: · Uttarakhand is followed by Himachal Pradesh (0.7316), Chandigarh (0.7270), Sikkim (0.7149), and Andhra Pradesh (0.7147). · Best states in terms of air quality: Mizoram, Kerala, Goa, Sikkim, Tripura, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar (all with average score of 1) ·
8.Sistema issue: India hopes agreeable solution.
In reply to Russia’s comment to take the cancellation of 2G license of Sistema for international arbitration if it is not resolved in Indian courts, India has said that the matter is commercial and all parties are free to take legal recourse that they deem appropriate to meet their commercial goal.
9.India, U.K. amend convention on DTAA
India and the U.K. inked a protocol amending the 1993 bilateral convention on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion related to taxes on income and capital gains. Main features of this protocol: Streamlining the partnership and taxation of dividends provisions in both the countries. Provide tax stability to the residents of the two countries. Facilitate mutual economic cooperation besides stimulating flow of investment, technology and services .
10.Australian schools to teach Hindi; Australia releases the Asian Century White Paper\
Announcing that Asia’s rise is “unstoppable”, Australia brought out a challenging plan aimed at fortifying its links with India and other booming economies of the Asian region. The Australian plan includes teaching languages like Hindi and Mandarin in its schools. All Australian schools will engage with at least one school in Asia to support the teaching of a priority Asian language — Mandarin, Hindi, Indonesian or Japanese.
11.Superstorm Sandy (category 2)
Superstorm Sandy batters New Jersey coast of US Hurricane Sandy (also referred to as Superstorm Sandy) a tropical cyclone that severely affected portions of the Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States in late October 2012. Sandy developed from a tropical wave in the western Caribbean Sea on October 22, 2012 Superstorm Sandy hit the US East Coast with fierce winds and heavy rain, causing huge destruction.
12.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points from 4.5 to 4.25 percent.
Why this step?The reduction in the CRR is expected to infuse liquidity to the tune of around Rs. 17,500 crore into the banking system.By doing this RBI intends to preempt a prospective tightening of liquidity conditions, thereby keeping liquidity comfortable and supportive of growth.Other steps by RBI:RBI cut the growth projections for GDP growth for 2012-13 from 6.5 % to 5.8 %. This was done because of a weak global environment and a sluggish domestic market with low investment.The central bank also raised banks’ provisioning requirement to 2.75 % from the existing 2% on restructured standard loan accounts. This has been done because of the deteriorating asset quality.Highlights of the RBI Quarterly Monetary Policy Review:
• Repo rate remain unchanged at 8 percent
• CRR decreased by 0.5 Percent, coming down to 4.5 to 4.25 percent
• Reverse repo rate remain unchanged at 7 Percent
• GDP growth forecast cut down to 5.8 per cent for the current fiscal year 2012-13 from 6.5 percent.
13.Persons in News: Pankaj Advani
Pankaj Advani clinches World Billiards Championship Pankaj Advani of India beat defending champion Mike Russell of England to win seventh World Billiards Championship 2012 title.
Joshna Chinnapa:Indian squash player Indian squash player Joshna Chinappa won the IJM Land Penang Open title 2012 after vanquishing top most squash player Siti Munirah Jusoh of Malaysia. In 2003, Joshna became the first Indian girl to win British Squash Championship title in the under 19 category.
14.OSART
OSART conducting safety review of Rawatbhata nuke plant OSART = Operational Safety Review Team A thorough safety review of 2 atomic power station units at Rawatbhata nuke plant is being carried out by OSART. More importantly, this is the first such review in India after the nuclear accident at Fukushima in Japan following the massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.
15.Railways launched online application provide exact geographical location of trains. Railways launched online application Rail Radar, which can provide exact geographical location of about 9,700 trains on a Google map on real time basis. There is a color code method which highlights a train in Blue if it is running on time and Red if it running late or behind schedule.
16.Sydney Sixers clinch CLT20
Sydney Sixers won CLT20 Championship by defeating Highveld Lions in the final match played at Johannesburg, South Africa. Award Winners: Man of the Match – Michael Lumb. Golden Bat – Michael Lumb. Golden Wicket – Mitchell Starc. Player of the Tournament – Mitchell Starc Champions League twenty 20 Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) is an enterprise of the BCCI, Cricket Australia and Cricket South Africa.
17.Persons in News: Silvio Berlusconi
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been sentenced to 4 years in jail and suspended him from public service for 3 years for tax fraud. What are the charges against Berlusconi? Berlusconi and other people involved in the case were accused of buying US film rights at inflated prices via two offshore companies under his control.
18.New Gene Therapy Method to prevent certain genetic diseases tested
Researchers have devised a method that will prevent certain genetic diseases from passing from mother to child. The technique prevents the transfer of defective DNA from the mitochondria of the mother egg cell to child.
19.Scientists oppose TECs recommendations of 10–year ban on field trials of GM crops
Scientists have opposed the recommendations made by the Technical Expert Committee (TEC) appointed by the Supreme Court of India which has recommended a moratorium of 10 years on all field trials of transgenic food crops and field trials of transgenics in those crops for which India is a centre of origin or diversity.
20.New Disease detection technique with naked eyes
Scientists have developed a new ultra-sensitive sensor test which is also 10 times cheaper to detect the early stages of several cancers and viruses, including HIV, with the naked eye.
What is the technique?
The new visual sensor technology detects biomarkers which are produced in the body when it is infected with certain disease. The sensor works by analyzing serum, derived from blood, in a disposable container. The color of the liquid changes to give either a positive or negative result. This change in color can be easily seen with naked eyes.How it can help?The test is 10 times cheaper that existing gold standard tests. It can detect onset of diseases like certain cancers and HIV in early stages.
21.Scientists discover that Resistin is main agent behind high cholesterol levels
Scientists have established a link b/w a protein “Resistin” and high levels of bad cholesterol. The have found that Resistin released by fat tissue causes elevated levels of "bad" cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein or LDL), which in turn increases the risk of heart ailments.
22.Pakistan, Afghanistan contend over Durand Line
The recent statement from U.S. that Durand Line is the international border b/w Pakistan and Afghanistan has sparked a flurry of arguments b/w the two neighbors, who already share a uncertain relationship. What is the stand of these two nations over Durand Line? Pakistan: It considers Durand Line as International Border. Afghanistan: It contends that the Durand Line Agreement — signed by the erstwhile governments of Afghanistan and India
Resistin is a cysteine-rich protein. It is also known as adipose tissue-specific secretory factor (ADSF) or C/EBP-epsilon-regulated myeloid-specific secreted cysteine-rich protein (XCP1). Resistin was discovered in 2001 by the group of Dr Mitchell A. Lazar from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. It was named "resistin" because it showed resistance to insulin when it was injected in mice.
23.Gujarat tops in private sector investments across India
As per an analysis titled ‘Composition of Outstanding Investments Across States,’ carried out by Assocham, Gujarat has the biggest share of 12.5% in total outstanding private sector investments ((including both domestic and foreign private sectors) across India as of June 2012. As per the analysis top 4 states are:
Gujarat (12.5%)
Odisha (10.7%)
Maharashtra (8.9%)
Andhra Pradesh (8%)
With a share of over Rs 82.9 lakh crore, the private sector accounts for over 59% of the total outstanding investments across India worth over Rs 140 lakh crore as of June 2012. Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Assam have the smallest share of less than 1%.
24.Trade b/w India, China expected to touch $100 bn by 2015
India is expected to achieve the $100-billion bilateral trade target set with China by 2015. The bilateral trade b/w the two nations was recorded at $75.45 billion in 2011-12. While India’s exports were at $17.90 billion, imports stood at $57.55 billion brought India a trade deficit of $39.65 billion and favored China.
25.Koshik, An Elephant that can Speak Korean
Koshik, an Asian elephant is to believe that he can reproduce human speech. And the words are Korean in nature. Apparently, the researchers from an Austrian University seemed to have validated the news.Koshik can apparently match both pitch and timbre patterns, he also imitates human formants as well as the voice pitch of his trainers accurately.
26.The Union Government on 2 October 2012 announced a revised Minimum Support Price (MSP) for cotton and this would help in inducing stabilisation in cotton price. Cotton has witnessed a sharp decline in the past and remained operational round about its minimum support price.
After the review meet conducted on 2 October 2012, by the Union Textiles Minister, Anand Sharma the revisions were done. The decided minimum support price of medium staple cotton has gone up to 3600 rupees per quintal from initial rate of 2800 rupees. Similarly, the MSP for long staple cotton has gone up to 3900 per quintal from 3300 rupees. This rate is fixed for the fiscal year 2012-13.
27.Veteran Cartoonist and the pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, T Samuel died on 2 October 2012 at the age of 86. Samuel is now survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.
28.Sunita Williams Ventured on 7th Space Walk : Set New Record
Indian American astronaut Sunita Williams along with a fellow astronaut moved out of the International Space Station on 1 November 2012.
The Expedition Commander Williams and Aki Hoshide, Flight Engineer switched their space suits to batter power showing the start of the planned 6.5 hours excursion outside the Space Station.
29.Hironmoy Chatterjee, Secretary of the Bengal Tennis Association on 1 November 2012 was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The All India Tennis Association (AITA).
30.Indian Oil's Mathura Refinery was awarded the Platinum Award in the 13th Annual Greentech Environment Awards. The award was felicitated on 31 October 2012.
Mathura Refinery was awarded in regard to the company's outstanding achievements and contribution to apt implementation of environmental friendly technologies and methodologies.
Greentech Awards is a key component that values the need of environmental management in business sustainability.
31.China on 2 November 2012 invited Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the former President and Missile Man of India to teach at the Peking University of China. The nation also offered him the lab of his choice to work on with the students. The invitation came up during Dr. Kalam’s visit to the Beijing Forum by the Chairperson Zhu Shanlu of Peking University.
32.The Union Government body, Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 1 November 2012 lifted the export ban on milk products, especially on whole milk powder (WMP), dairy whitener, infant milk foods and other milk products till March 2013.
33.Indian Diplomat Pavan K. Varma in October 2012 resigned as India’s ambassador to Bhutan with an idea of entering into politics.
Ambassador Pavan Varma is set to join the Janata Dal-United (JDU). He asserted that he wants to contribute to clean politics and good governance in the country.
34.Pakistan’s Cabinet on 31 October 2012 ratified four recent agreements with India. The major of which is landmark visa pact aimed at facilitating restrictions on several categories of travellers, including senior citizens and businessmen.
The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister of Pakistan M Raja Pervez Ashraf who also ratified three other agreements that is going to promote trade between the Pakistan and India.
35.Anand Kumar, teacher and founder of Super 30 institute, which provides free residential coaching to students from economically backward families for IIT-JEE exams, named 'People's Hero' by People magazine of American Time Magazine Group.
36.Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli was chosen for the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) Polly Umrigar award for being India's top international cricketer in 2011-12.
With this Virat Kohli is going to be honoured with a trophy and cheque of 5 lakh Rupees at the Annual BCCI Awards Ceremony in Mumbai on 21 November 2012.
37.India and the United Kingdom on 30 October 2012 signed a protocol amending the 1993 bilateral convention on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion related to taxes on income and capital gains.The Protocol amends the pact or Convention that was originally assigned on 25 January 1993 in New Delhi.
The protocol was signed by India’s High Commissioner Jaimini Bhagwati and Exchequer Secretary to the U.K. Treasury, David Gauke.
38.Danish legend Baminton Player, Peter Gade on 30 October 2012 retired from international badminton after his three-game defeat against compatriot Jan Ø. Jørgensen of Denmark. Peter Grade is five-time European Champion in Year (1998, 2000, 2004, 2006 and 2010).
39.India, U.S. and Japan on its third trilateral meet on 29 October 2012 discussed trilateral cooperation in maritime security and a route through middle or north of Myanmar leading up to Hanoi.The other major area of discussion was on exchanging of proposals for doing projects together in Africa as well as cooperating on the economic side in Afghanistan.The three countries were on cycle of talk which they completed following this meet. The talk began with their first meeting in Washington in December 2011 which was followed by next meeting in Tokyo in April 2012.Talking of maritime security the three countries discussed some specific areas of cooperation which will be productive in the next cycle of talks that is going to begin after the U.S. Presidential elections and with the settling down of next US administration.Each side gave a strategic overview of the Asia Pacific. While Japan‘s Briefing was primarily focused on dispute with China over the Senkaku islands.India with discussing issues on Myanmar had taken up a trilateral connectivity initiative with Myanmar and Thailand that touched on a route through upper Myanmar that would lead into Vietnam.Also, US briefing was about its much-talked about policy of 'pivot to Asia', which is a move driven by the allure of emerging Asian economies, especially China and India.
40.Bharti Airtel on 29 October 2012 announced the comeback of Worldspace Radio – iMusicSpace on Airtel Digital TV, the DTH Service of Bharti Airtel.
The service was launched on the DTH platform in association with Saregama and Timbre Media who will jointly provide the content for the application. The satellite functioning radio station in India had exited in 2009.
41.The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on 29 September 2012 awarded the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President Award for 2012 for its outstanding contribution to the development of human resources, society and economy of India and also for promoting mutual understanding between India and Japan.
42.The state of Uttarakhand on 29 October 2012 tops the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list of being best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental well-being released by Planning Commission.Uttarakhand is followed by Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Sikkim, and Andhra Pradesh on the Planning Commission’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list. Environmental well-being is one of the considerations for decentralization of funds to the States under the Gadgil formula.The State of Uttarakhand was given a cumulative score point of 0.8123 which is followed by Himachal Pradesh with score point of 0.7316, Chandigarh with 0.7270, Sikkim (0.7149), and Andhra Pradesh with 0.7147 of Score point.Mizoram, Kerala, Goa, Sikkim, Tripura, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar, with an average score of 1, were ranked as the best States in terms of air quality. Amazingly, except for Uttarakhand, all the States met the prescribed national ambient air quality standard in respect of the sulphur dioxide which is of 20 micrograms per cubic metre. In terms of Nitrogen oxide, the national standard set of 30 microgram per cubic metre was not met by more than 10 states. Also, in term of suspended particles no states met the 60 microgram per cubic metre national standard except state of Goa, Kerala, and Mizoram.
Water quality standards, of all the states indicated a very pathetic standard except for Himachal Pradesh, which has set up 100 per cent treatment capacity for sewage, the treatment capacity in the remaining States ranges from 0 (13 States) to less than 20 per cent (8 States) and more than 50 per cent in four States.Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Daman and Diu, and Puducherry extract more water than they recharge, but Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry are the only States which show a semblance of adherence to river water quality.Talking about forest conservation, Chandigarh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh are among the five best-performing States that have preserved forests as well as increased cover.
43.Joshna Chinappa, one of the top squash players of India claimed the IJM Land Penang Open after defeating top most squash player Siti Munirah Jusoh of Malaysia in straight games on 30 October 2012.
44.Scientists developed a near to 100 percent accurate test to detect schizophrenics, by simply checking their gaze.
Apparently schizophrenics can be checked just by implying some ‘simple viewing tests’ . The tests brought out ninety eight per cent accuracy in distinguishing between those with and without schizophrenia.
45.Delhi and Russian capital Moscow on 26 October 2012 signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation in 11 key areas including culture, healthcare, education, transport management, trade and housing.The MoU was signed by Sergey Cheremin, Minister in charge of the International Economic Relations of Moscow government, and Urban Development Minister of Delhi Government Arvinder Singh Lovely.The signing of the MoU between the two capital cities also commemorated the beginning of a three-day cultural celebration — Days of Moscow in Delhi — under which a series of cultural, academic and business events took place in the city.The MoU signed is going to facilitate cooperation between the Delhi government and Government of Moscow for next three years. The delegation from both cities will visit each other with aim to establish direct contact between the two cities in various areas.The collaboration is also going to help in addressing major issues related to urban development such as sewage management, transport management and most importantly in the area of affordable housing for urban poor in which Moscow has extensive experience and expertise.46.The Cabinet Reshuffle that took place on 28 October 2012 witnessed reshuffling of 5 ministers along with 17 new faces, which were inducted to take on the charge. All these 22 ministers would take the charge of their new offices, on 29 October 2012. Few of the most important names in this cabinet reshuffle was the lifting of the former Law Minister Salman Khurshid to External Affairs Minister of India, and Ajay Maken, who has been promoted to Cabinet Rank and got the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation.
47.The central government on 26 October 2012 signed a tripartite pact with 16 state and UT governments for laying digital highway and also formed a special purpose vehicle BBNL for facilitating connection to every gram Panchayat with broadband network.The states which signed the pact include Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerela, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura. Also, the three union territories Dadar and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Puducherry also signed the agreement.The Memorandum of Understanding was signed for around 140000 gram panchayats. It is Rs 20000 crore projects and entire fund is going to be provided by central government.
48.ed Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28 October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.
The rival Fernando Alonso of Ferrari kept the pressure on with finishing up for a second-place. The win put Vettel (240 points) 13 points clear of his rolling Ferrari rival Fernando Alonso.
BCCI will honor Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli with Polly Umrigar Award at its Annual Awards ceremony to be held on November 21, 2013 in Mumbai. Sachin will be honored for his 100th century while Virat will awarded for being India’s top international cricketer of 2011-12. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will be receiving the prestigious Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award.
2.“Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters” French honor to Aishwarya Rai
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was conferred the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres). The coveted honor was given in recognition of her invaluable contribution to the world of cinema and the development of Indo-French cooperation in cinema, art, and culture. Earlier Indian recipients include Shahrukh Khan, Raghu Rai, Nandita Das, late Habib Tanvir, and Upamanyu Chatterjee.
3.China irked by India-Japan-US meet
Strategic Analyst and media outlets of China have expressed chariness at the India, Japan and the U.S. trilateral meet held in New Delhi describing it as aimed at wielding pressure on China over its regional aspirations.
Why China is wary of this trilateral meet?
Strategic Analyst and media in China are of the view that this meet has been held to exert strategic pressure on China.
As per them, the US wants to suppress the economic rise of China and therefore it is looking for financial support from other countries.
They see Japan’s role in this meet is to put strategic pressure regarding ongoing tensions over the disputed Diaoyu or Senkaku islands in the East China Sea.
They view India as one who wants to gain from building further pressure so that China softens its stance over border issues with India.
4.Gulzar honored with Indira Gandhi National Integration award.
Famous lyricist, poet and film director, Gulzar has been conferred with the Indira Gandhi National Integration Award. The award was given to mark the 28th death anniversary of the late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
5.ndian Women Cricket Team lifts ACC T20 Asia Cup 2012.
The Indian women’s cricket team is the winner of first Asian Cricket Council’s (ACC) Twenty20 Asia Cup 2012. They beat Pakistan in the final match held in Guangzhou city of People’s Republic of China. Harmanpreet Kaur played the role of skipper in the absence of Mithali Raj.
6.“European Golden Boot” to Lionel Messi.
Star footballer of Barcelona, Lionel Messi, bagged European Golden Boot Award. The award has been given to him in recognition to his record 50 goals scored in the Europe’s domestic football league. It is the second Golden Boot award for Messi.
7.Uttarakhand tops in “Environmental Performance Index (EPI)”
Uttarakhand (scored 0.8123) topped the list of best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental performance. As per the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) released by Planning Commission: · Uttarakhand is followed by Himachal Pradesh (0.7316), Chandigarh (0.7270), Sikkim (0.7149), and Andhra Pradesh (0.7147). · Best states in terms of air quality: Mizoram, Kerala, Goa, Sikkim, Tripura, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar (all with average score of 1) ·
8.Sistema issue: India hopes agreeable solution.
In reply to Russia’s comment to take the cancellation of 2G license of Sistema for international arbitration if it is not resolved in Indian courts, India has said that the matter is commercial and all parties are free to take legal recourse that they deem appropriate to meet their commercial goal.
9.India, U.K. amend convention on DTAA
India and the U.K. inked a protocol amending the 1993 bilateral convention on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion related to taxes on income and capital gains. Main features of this protocol: Streamlining the partnership and taxation of dividends provisions in both the countries. Provide tax stability to the residents of the two countries. Facilitate mutual economic cooperation besides stimulating flow of investment, technology and services .
10.Australian schools to teach Hindi; Australia releases the Asian Century White Paper\
Announcing that Asia’s rise is “unstoppable”, Australia brought out a challenging plan aimed at fortifying its links with India and other booming economies of the Asian region. The Australian plan includes teaching languages like Hindi and Mandarin in its schools. All Australian schools will engage with at least one school in Asia to support the teaching of a priority Asian language — Mandarin, Hindi, Indonesian or Japanese.
11.Superstorm Sandy (category 2)
Superstorm Sandy batters New Jersey coast of US Hurricane Sandy (also referred to as Superstorm Sandy) a tropical cyclone that severely affected portions of the Caribbean, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States in late October 2012. Sandy developed from a tropical wave in the western Caribbean Sea on October 22, 2012 Superstorm Sandy hit the US East Coast with fierce winds and heavy rain, causing huge destruction.
12.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points from 4.5 to 4.25 percent.
Why this step?The reduction in the CRR is expected to infuse liquidity to the tune of around Rs. 17,500 crore into the banking system.By doing this RBI intends to preempt a prospective tightening of liquidity conditions, thereby keeping liquidity comfortable and supportive of growth.Other steps by RBI:RBI cut the growth projections for GDP growth for 2012-13 from 6.5 % to 5.8 %. This was done because of a weak global environment and a sluggish domestic market with low investment.The central bank also raised banks’ provisioning requirement to 2.75 % from the existing 2% on restructured standard loan accounts. This has been done because of the deteriorating asset quality.Highlights of the RBI Quarterly Monetary Policy Review:
• Repo rate remain unchanged at 8 percent
• CRR decreased by 0.5 Percent, coming down to 4.5 to 4.25 percent
• Reverse repo rate remain unchanged at 7 Percent
• GDP growth forecast cut down to 5.8 per cent for the current fiscal year 2012-13 from 6.5 percent.
13.Persons in News: Pankaj Advani
Pankaj Advani clinches World Billiards Championship Pankaj Advani of India beat defending champion Mike Russell of England to win seventh World Billiards Championship 2012 title.
Joshna Chinnapa:Indian squash player Indian squash player Joshna Chinappa won the IJM Land Penang Open title 2012 after vanquishing top most squash player Siti Munirah Jusoh of Malaysia. In 2003, Joshna became the first Indian girl to win British Squash Championship title in the under 19 category.
14.OSART
OSART conducting safety review of Rawatbhata nuke plant OSART = Operational Safety Review Team A thorough safety review of 2 atomic power station units at Rawatbhata nuke plant is being carried out by OSART. More importantly, this is the first such review in India after the nuclear accident at Fukushima in Japan following the massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.
15.Railways launched online application provide exact geographical location of trains. Railways launched online application Rail Radar, which can provide exact geographical location of about 9,700 trains on a Google map on real time basis. There is a color code method which highlights a train in Blue if it is running on time and Red if it running late or behind schedule.
16.Sydney Sixers clinch CLT20
Sydney Sixers won CLT20 Championship by defeating Highveld Lions in the final match played at Johannesburg, South Africa. Award Winners: Man of the Match – Michael Lumb. Golden Bat – Michael Lumb. Golden Wicket – Mitchell Starc. Player of the Tournament – Mitchell Starc Champions League twenty 20 Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) is an enterprise of the BCCI, Cricket Australia and Cricket South Africa.
17.Persons in News: Silvio Berlusconi
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been sentenced to 4 years in jail and suspended him from public service for 3 years for tax fraud. What are the charges against Berlusconi? Berlusconi and other people involved in the case were accused of buying US film rights at inflated prices via two offshore companies under his control.
18.New Gene Therapy Method to prevent certain genetic diseases tested
Researchers have devised a method that will prevent certain genetic diseases from passing from mother to child. The technique prevents the transfer of defective DNA from the mitochondria of the mother egg cell to child.
19.Scientists oppose TECs recommendations of 10–year ban on field trials of GM crops
Scientists have opposed the recommendations made by the Technical Expert Committee (TEC) appointed by the Supreme Court of India which has recommended a moratorium of 10 years on all field trials of transgenic food crops and field trials of transgenics in those crops for which India is a centre of origin or diversity.
20.New Disease detection technique with naked eyes
Scientists have developed a new ultra-sensitive sensor test which is also 10 times cheaper to detect the early stages of several cancers and viruses, including HIV, with the naked eye.
What is the technique?
The new visual sensor technology detects biomarkers which are produced in the body when it is infected with certain disease. The sensor works by analyzing serum, derived from blood, in a disposable container. The color of the liquid changes to give either a positive or negative result. This change in color can be easily seen with naked eyes.How it can help?The test is 10 times cheaper that existing gold standard tests. It can detect onset of diseases like certain cancers and HIV in early stages.
21.Scientists discover that Resistin is main agent behind high cholesterol levels
Scientists have established a link b/w a protein “Resistin” and high levels of bad cholesterol. The have found that Resistin released by fat tissue causes elevated levels of "bad" cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein or LDL), which in turn increases the risk of heart ailments.
22.Pakistan, Afghanistan contend over Durand Line
The recent statement from U.S. that Durand Line is the international border b/w Pakistan and Afghanistan has sparked a flurry of arguments b/w the two neighbors, who already share a uncertain relationship. What is the stand of these two nations over Durand Line? Pakistan: It considers Durand Line as International Border. Afghanistan: It contends that the Durand Line Agreement — signed by the erstwhile governments of Afghanistan and India
Resistin is a cysteine-rich protein. It is also known as adipose tissue-specific secretory factor (ADSF) or C/EBP-epsilon-regulated myeloid-specific secreted cysteine-rich protein (XCP1). Resistin was discovered in 2001 by the group of Dr Mitchell A. Lazar from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. It was named "resistin" because it showed resistance to insulin when it was injected in mice.
23.Gujarat tops in private sector investments across India
As per an analysis titled ‘Composition of Outstanding Investments Across States,’ carried out by Assocham, Gujarat has the biggest share of 12.5% in total outstanding private sector investments ((including both domestic and foreign private sectors) across India as of June 2012. As per the analysis top 4 states are:
Gujarat (12.5%)
Odisha (10.7%)
Maharashtra (8.9%)
Andhra Pradesh (8%)
With a share of over Rs 82.9 lakh crore, the private sector accounts for over 59% of the total outstanding investments across India worth over Rs 140 lakh crore as of June 2012. Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Assam have the smallest share of less than 1%.
24.Trade b/w India, China expected to touch $100 bn by 2015
India is expected to achieve the $100-billion bilateral trade target set with China by 2015. The bilateral trade b/w the two nations was recorded at $75.45 billion in 2011-12. While India’s exports were at $17.90 billion, imports stood at $57.55 billion brought India a trade deficit of $39.65 billion and favored China.
25.Koshik, An Elephant that can Speak Korean
Koshik, an Asian elephant is to believe that he can reproduce human speech. And the words are Korean in nature. Apparently, the researchers from an Austrian University seemed to have validated the news.Koshik can apparently match both pitch and timbre patterns, he also imitates human formants as well as the voice pitch of his trainers accurately.
26.The Union Government on 2 October 2012 announced a revised Minimum Support Price (MSP) for cotton and this would help in inducing stabilisation in cotton price. Cotton has witnessed a sharp decline in the past and remained operational round about its minimum support price.
After the review meet conducted on 2 October 2012, by the Union Textiles Minister, Anand Sharma the revisions were done. The decided minimum support price of medium staple cotton has gone up to 3600 rupees per quintal from initial rate of 2800 rupees. Similarly, the MSP for long staple cotton has gone up to 3900 per quintal from 3300 rupees. This rate is fixed for the fiscal year 2012-13.
27.Veteran Cartoonist and the pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, T Samuel died on 2 October 2012 at the age of 86. Samuel is now survived by his wife, two daughters and a son.
28.Sunita Williams Ventured on 7th Space Walk : Set New Record
Indian American astronaut Sunita Williams along with a fellow astronaut moved out of the International Space Station on 1 November 2012.
The Expedition Commander Williams and Aki Hoshide, Flight Engineer switched their space suits to batter power showing the start of the planned 6.5 hours excursion outside the Space Station.
29.Hironmoy Chatterjee, Secretary of the Bengal Tennis Association on 1 November 2012 was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The All India Tennis Association (AITA).
30.Indian Oil's Mathura Refinery was awarded the Platinum Award in the 13th Annual Greentech Environment Awards. The award was felicitated on 31 October 2012.
Mathura Refinery was awarded in regard to the company's outstanding achievements and contribution to apt implementation of environmental friendly technologies and methodologies.
Greentech Awards is a key component that values the need of environmental management in business sustainability.
31.China on 2 November 2012 invited Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the former President and Missile Man of India to teach at the Peking University of China. The nation also offered him the lab of his choice to work on with the students. The invitation came up during Dr. Kalam’s visit to the Beijing Forum by the Chairperson Zhu Shanlu of Peking University.
32.The Union Government body, Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 1 November 2012 lifted the export ban on milk products, especially on whole milk powder (WMP), dairy whitener, infant milk foods and other milk products till March 2013.
33.Indian Diplomat Pavan K. Varma in October 2012 resigned as India’s ambassador to Bhutan with an idea of entering into politics.
Ambassador Pavan Varma is set to join the Janata Dal-United (JDU). He asserted that he wants to contribute to clean politics and good governance in the country.
34.Pakistan’s Cabinet on 31 October 2012 ratified four recent agreements with India. The major of which is landmark visa pact aimed at facilitating restrictions on several categories of travellers, including senior citizens and businessmen.
The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister of Pakistan M Raja Pervez Ashraf who also ratified three other agreements that is going to promote trade between the Pakistan and India.
35.Anand Kumar, teacher and founder of Super 30 institute, which provides free residential coaching to students from economically backward families for IIT-JEE exams, named 'People's Hero' by People magazine of American Time Magazine Group.
36.Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli was chosen for the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) Polly Umrigar award for being India's top international cricketer in 2011-12.
With this Virat Kohli is going to be honoured with a trophy and cheque of 5 lakh Rupees at the Annual BCCI Awards Ceremony in Mumbai on 21 November 2012.
37.India and the United Kingdom on 30 October 2012 signed a protocol amending the 1993 bilateral convention on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion related to taxes on income and capital gains.The Protocol amends the pact or Convention that was originally assigned on 25 January 1993 in New Delhi.
The protocol was signed by India’s High Commissioner Jaimini Bhagwati and Exchequer Secretary to the U.K. Treasury, David Gauke.
38.Danish legend Baminton Player, Peter Gade on 30 October 2012 retired from international badminton after his three-game defeat against compatriot Jan Ø. Jørgensen of Denmark. Peter Grade is five-time European Champion in Year (1998, 2000, 2004, 2006 and 2010).
39.India, U.S. and Japan on its third trilateral meet on 29 October 2012 discussed trilateral cooperation in maritime security and a route through middle or north of Myanmar leading up to Hanoi.The other major area of discussion was on exchanging of proposals for doing projects together in Africa as well as cooperating on the economic side in Afghanistan.The three countries were on cycle of talk which they completed following this meet. The talk began with their first meeting in Washington in December 2011 which was followed by next meeting in Tokyo in April 2012.Talking of maritime security the three countries discussed some specific areas of cooperation which will be productive in the next cycle of talks that is going to begin after the U.S. Presidential elections and with the settling down of next US administration.Each side gave a strategic overview of the Asia Pacific. While Japan‘s Briefing was primarily focused on dispute with China over the Senkaku islands.India with discussing issues on Myanmar had taken up a trilateral connectivity initiative with Myanmar and Thailand that touched on a route through upper Myanmar that would lead into Vietnam.Also, US briefing was about its much-talked about policy of 'pivot to Asia', which is a move driven by the allure of emerging Asian economies, especially China and India.
40.Bharti Airtel on 29 October 2012 announced the comeback of Worldspace Radio – iMusicSpace on Airtel Digital TV, the DTH Service of Bharti Airtel.
The service was launched on the DTH platform in association with Saregama and Timbre Media who will jointly provide the content for the application. The satellite functioning radio station in India had exited in 2009.
41.The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on 29 September 2012 awarded the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President Award for 2012 for its outstanding contribution to the development of human resources, society and economy of India and also for promoting mutual understanding between India and Japan.
42.The state of Uttarakhand on 29 October 2012 tops the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list of being best-performing States and Union territories in terms of environmental well-being released by Planning Commission.Uttarakhand is followed by Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Sikkim, and Andhra Pradesh on the Planning Commission’s Environmental Performance Index (EPI) list. Environmental well-being is one of the considerations for decentralization of funds to the States under the Gadgil formula.The State of Uttarakhand was given a cumulative score point of 0.8123 which is followed by Himachal Pradesh with score point of 0.7316, Chandigarh with 0.7270, Sikkim (0.7149), and Andhra Pradesh with 0.7147 of Score point.Mizoram, Kerala, Goa, Sikkim, Tripura, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar, with an average score of 1, were ranked as the best States in terms of air quality. Amazingly, except for Uttarakhand, all the States met the prescribed national ambient air quality standard in respect of the sulphur dioxide which is of 20 micrograms per cubic metre. In terms of Nitrogen oxide, the national standard set of 30 microgram per cubic metre was not met by more than 10 states. Also, in term of suspended particles no states met the 60 microgram per cubic metre national standard except state of Goa, Kerala, and Mizoram.
Water quality standards, of all the states indicated a very pathetic standard except for Himachal Pradesh, which has set up 100 per cent treatment capacity for sewage, the treatment capacity in the remaining States ranges from 0 (13 States) to less than 20 per cent (8 States) and more than 50 per cent in four States.Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Daman and Diu, and Puducherry extract more water than they recharge, but Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry are the only States which show a semblance of adherence to river water quality.Talking about forest conservation, Chandigarh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh are among the five best-performing States that have preserved forests as well as increased cover.
43.Joshna Chinappa, one of the top squash players of India claimed the IJM Land Penang Open after defeating top most squash player Siti Munirah Jusoh of Malaysia in straight games on 30 October 2012.
44.Scientists developed a near to 100 percent accurate test to detect schizophrenics, by simply checking their gaze.
Apparently schizophrenics can be checked just by implying some ‘simple viewing tests’ . The tests brought out ninety eight per cent accuracy in distinguishing between those with and without schizophrenia.
45.Delhi and Russian capital Moscow on 26 October 2012 signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation in 11 key areas including culture, healthcare, education, transport management, trade and housing.The MoU was signed by Sergey Cheremin, Minister in charge of the International Economic Relations of Moscow government, and Urban Development Minister of Delhi Government Arvinder Singh Lovely.The signing of the MoU between the two capital cities also commemorated the beginning of a three-day cultural celebration — Days of Moscow in Delhi — under which a series of cultural, academic and business events took place in the city.The MoU signed is going to facilitate cooperation between the Delhi government and Government of Moscow for next three years. The delegation from both cities will visit each other with aim to establish direct contact between the two cities in various areas.The collaboration is also going to help in addressing major issues related to urban development such as sewage management, transport management and most importantly in the area of affordable housing for urban poor in which Moscow has extensive experience and expertise.46.The Cabinet Reshuffle that took place on 28 October 2012 witnessed reshuffling of 5 ministers along with 17 new faces, which were inducted to take on the charge. All these 22 ministers would take the charge of their new offices, on 29 October 2012. Few of the most important names in this cabinet reshuffle was the lifting of the former Law Minister Salman Khurshid to External Affairs Minister of India, and Ajay Maken, who has been promoted to Cabinet Rank and got the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation.
47.The central government on 26 October 2012 signed a tripartite pact with 16 state and UT governments for laying digital highway and also formed a special purpose vehicle BBNL for facilitating connection to every gram Panchayat with broadband network.The states which signed the pact include Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerela, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura. Also, the three union territories Dadar and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Puducherry also signed the agreement.The Memorandum of Understanding was signed for around 140000 gram panchayats. It is Rs 20000 crore projects and entire fund is going to be provided by central government.
48.ed Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28 October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.
The rival Fernando Alonso of Ferrari kept the pressure on with finishing up for a second-place. The win put Vettel (240 points) 13 points clear of his rolling Ferrari rival Fernando Alonso.