GYANM GENERAL AWARENESS ISSUE SEPTEMBER 2014

GENERAL AWARENESS – SEPTEMBER 2014 1
GENERAL AWARENESS
SEPTEMBER 2014
Year: 2014 Vol. 3, Issue 03
A PUBLICATION OF GYANM EDUCATION &
TRAINING INSTITUTE PVT. LTD.
SCO 13-14-15, 2ND FLOOR, SEC 34-A, CHANDIGARH
CONTENTS
CURRENT AFFAIRS
MAY TO JULY 2014
1-19
BUDGET SPECIAL 22-22
ISRAEL GAZA CONFLICT 23
BULLET NEWS
Feb 2014 to April 2014
24-33
BRICS BANK 34
600 SBI CLERK MCQs 35-63
IBPS PO MODEL TEST
PAPER
64-80
LATEST GK BYTES 81-96
FIGURES TO REMEMBER
REPO RATE 8.00%
REVERSE REPO RATE 7.00%
MARGINAL STANDING
FACILITY RATE
9.00%
STATUTORY LIQUIDITY
RATIO
22.5%
CASH RESERVE RATIO 4.00%
BANK RATE 9.00%
BASE RATE(s)
(of various banks)
9.80% –
10.25 %
INDIA’S RANK IN
Human Development Index 135th
Global Innovation Index 66th
Economic Confidence Index 01st
Choice for FDI 4th
Global Peace Index 143rd
Press Freedom Index 2014 78th
Ease of Doing Business (World Bank) 134th
Social Progress Index 102nd
World Press Freedom Index 140th
Environment Performance Index 155th
Index for Nuclear Safety 23rd
Index of Economic Freedom 120th
Rank in Energy Usage 69th
Ease of Doing Business (Forbes) 98th
Corruption Perception Index 94th
World Prosperity Index 106th
Global Hunger Index 2013 63rd
NATIONAL NEWS
JULY 2014
FOREST COVER CROSSES 24 PER CENT
As per India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2013
the total forest and tree cover of the country is
87.92 million hectare, 24.01 percent of the
geographical area of India.
Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover
of 77522 square kilometer, followed by
Arunachal Pradesh, 67321 square kilometer. In
terms of percentage, Mizoram has highest
cover at 90.38 percent, followed by
Lakshadweep-84.56 percent. Punjab retains
the ‘distinction’ of having the lowest area under
Forest cover with only 3.52% of its area under
forest cover while Haryana is a little better with
3.59% of its area under forest cover.
AREA
( MILLION HA)
AREA
(IN %)
Forest Cover 69.79 21.23
Tree Cover 9.13 2.78
Total 78.92 24.01
INDO–CHINA ENCYLOPEDIA RELEASED
India and China have jointly released the first encyclopedia on their age-old cultural
contacts, tracing back their history to over 2,000 years, starting from the visit of
Chinese scholar Huen Tsang to India in the 7th century to bring Buddhist scriptures
to China.
INDIA RATIFIES MARRAKESH TREATY
India has become the first country to ratify the Marrakesh Treaty to facilitate access
to published works for persons who are visually impaired, or otherwise print disabled.
The Treaty was adopted by 79 member countries of the World Intellectual Property
Organisation (WIPO) in June 27, 2013 at Marrakesh, Morocco.
INDIA RANKED 66th
IN INNOVATION
India has slipped two places in the Global Innovation Index 2013 to the 66th rank.
Switzerland topped the 142-nation list. The index ranks countries on innovation,
based on a survey done by INSEAD, Cornell University and the World Intellectual
Property Organisation (WIPO).
ULTRA RICH GROW FAST IN POOR INDIA
The number of ultra-high
networth individuals (UHNIs) in
Indiahaving an investible surplus
of over Rs 25 crore rose 16 per
cent to 1.17 lakh last fiscal, and
this is estimated to triple to 3.43
lakh in the next three years, says
a wealth report by the Kotak
group and Ernst & Young.

DELHI 2nd
MOST POPULOUS CITY IN WORLD
A recent UN study “World Urbanization Prospects” by U.N.
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) has
ranked Tokyo as the world’s most populous city with 38
million inhabitants, followed by Delhi with 25 million
inhabitants. The study has projected rapid urban growth in
India, China and Nigeria.
INDIA RANKS 135TH
IN HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
India’s ranking in the Human Development Index (HDI)
remained unchanged at 135 in 2013, reflecting little
improvement in the living standard of its people. The report
is topped by Norway, followed by Australia and Switzerland.
Countries at the bottom of index are Niger, Congo and
Central African Republic.
The HDI reflects long-term progress in three basic
dimensions of human lives - a long and healthy life, access
to knowledge and a decent standard of living. It covers 187
countries and is published annually by the United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP).
DILIP’S HOUSE IS NATIONAL HERITAGE SITE
Legendary actor Dilip Kumar’s
ancestral home at Mohalla
Khudadad in Peshawar, Pakistan
has been declared as a national
heritage monument by the Pak
government. After acquiring the
house, the government is plans
to convert it into a museum.
 World Bank Group President, Jim Yong Kim visits India.
JUNE 2014
PANJAB UNIVERSITY BEST IN INDIA
Panjab University, Chandigarh, is the highest ranked Indian
higher educational institution in the globally recognized
Times Higher Education’s Asia rankings. Placed 32nd in
Asia’s top 100 institutions, PU has outperformed IITs on all
ranking parameters. University of Tokyo tops the list.
INDIA SIGNS ‘WASHINGTON ACCORD’
Indian students with accredited technical education degrees
will now find it easy to get academic recognition and jobs in
17 major nations across the world, including the US, the UK,
Canada, Australia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore,
South Africa, Turkey and Russia as India has become a
permanent signatory to the Washington Accord (WA), a
global agreement that covers mutual recognition in respect
of tertiary-level engineering qualifications among the
signatory countries.
INDIA HOUSE TO 1.56 LAKH MILLIONAIRES
According to the World Wealth Report 2014, released by
Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management, there were
1,56,000 high net worth individuals in India in 2013, up
from 1,53,000 in 2012. India has been ranked 16th in the
list of countries with highest number of HNWI population,
the US topping the chart with 40,06,000 millionaires,
followed by Japan (23,27,000).
U N AWARD FOR ‘MOBILE SEVA’
'Mobile Seva', an initiative conceptualised by Indian
government’s Department of Electronics and Information
Technology for delivery of public services electronically
through the mobile platform has been awarded a United
Nations Public Service Award.
INDIA NO 1 IN ECONOMIC CONFIDENCE
In a 25 nation-list compiled by global research firm Ipsos,
India has been placed at number one rank in terms of
economic confidence of citizens. As many as 60 per cent
Indians surveyed have predicted that domestic economy
would be stronger in the next six months, making it the
most confident nation.
INDIA 4th
CHOICE OF MNCs FOR INVESTMENT
Unctad's annual World Investment Report 2014 shows that
China remained the first choice of MNCs, followed by the
US. But, Indonesia has overtaken India as the third most
preferred destination for 2014-16. A series of policy flip-
flops and harsh tax measures commonly referred to as "tax
terrorism", have dented India's image.
P M VISITS BHUTAN ON FIRST FOREIGN TRIP
Prime Minister Mr. Modi made his first overseas trip by
visiting Bhutan. He inaugurated the new Supreme Court
building at Thimpu, constructed with Indian assistance. He
also laid the foundation for a 600 megawatt hydroelectric
power station as part of an energy cooperation plan.
PROJECT ‘MAUSAM’ FOR INDIAN OCEAN
Union Ministry of Culture has launched the Project Mausam
at the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee held in
Doha, Qatar. The Project aims to explore the diversity of
cultural, commercial and religious interactions in the Indian
Ocean region.
AIR INDIA JOINS STAR ALLIANCE
National carrier Air India has joined Star Alliance - a group
of 26 (now 27) carriers with as many as 4,338 aircraft flying
to 1,328 destinations across 195 countries. It is an
agreement between member airlines to use each other’s
existing routes and facilities. For an Air India passenger it
means simpler transit through single booking across
multiple airlines to places where the national carrier does
not operate.

ANSARI VISITS CHINA
Vice-President Hamid Ansari
visited China to meet
President Xi Jinping and
Vice-President Li Yuanchao.
He unveiled the first jointly
compiled two - volume
encyclopaedia, chronicling a
2,000-year history of cultural
exchanges between India
and China.
TELANGANA, THE 29th
STATE OF INDIA
June 2, 2014 witnessed the birth of 29th
state of India –
Telangana. Formed by carving out 10 districts of erstwhile
Andhra Pradesh, the new state will have an area of 1.14
lakh sq kms and a population of over 3.5 crore. Telugu and
Urdu are the main languages in the region. City of
Hyderabad will continue to remain the joint capital of both –
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for next ten years.
Telangana Rashtra Samiti President K. Chandrasekhar Rao
(KCR) is the new Chief Minister of the state.
INDIA 143RD
IN TERMS OF PEACE
Global Peace Index (GPI) 2014 released by the Institute for
Economics and Peace released in London has placed India
at 143rd
place in list of 162 countries. Syria is the least
peaceful nation while Iceland is the most peaceful country
in the world.
 External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Dhaka,
capital of Bangladesh on her first solo overseas visit.
 The Narmada Control Authority gave its nod to Gujarat
for raising the height of the Narmada dam to a level of
138.72 metres from the present 121.92 metres.
MAY 2014
INDIA 2nd
BEST IN CONSUMER CONFIDENCE
As per the Nielsen global survey, Consumer confidence level
in India jumped to 121points in the first quarter of the
current fiscal, the highest optimism level since the fourth
quarter of 2012. India retains its position as the second
most-optimistic country in the survey. Indonesia leads the
global index with 124 points and the Philippines is in third
place with 116 points.
INDIA 3rd
IN GDP SIZE
Data released by the
international comparison
programme of the World
Bank group shows that
in a matter of six years,
India has emerged as
the world's third largest
economy (in terms of
PPP) in 2011, from being the 10th largest in 2005, moving
ahead of Japan, while the US remained the largest economy
closely followed by China. The world produced goods and
services worth over $90 trillion in 2011 and almost half of
this came from low and middle-income countries.
INDIAN CULTURAL FESTIVAL IN CHINA
India started its biggest year-long cultural festival,
“Glimpses of India” in China with a performance of classical
Indian dances in Shanghai by artists from Chennai-based
Kalakshetra cultural academy.
INDIA 134TH
IN ‘EASE OF DOING BUSINESS’
World Bank and International Finance Corporation have
released their annual report for “Doing Business” as per
which India ranks 134th
among 189 nations when it comes
to ease of doing business. Singapore ranked first in the list.
INDIAN EVMs TO BE USED IN NAMIBIA
Namibia has imported 3400
India - made Electronic
Voting Machines (EVMs) for
use in their Presidential
Election. Namibia is the
first African country to use
such machines in any of its
Polls. These EVMs are
manufactured by the public sector unit, Bharat Electronic
Limited (BEL) based in Bangaluru.
‘TITLI’ SCREENED AT CANNES
Indian film Titli (butterfly), directed by Kanu Behl and
produced by Aditya Chopra was screened at Cannes Film
Festival at Cannes, France. The film is story of a boy called
‘Titli’ who wants to escape from his oppressive brother.
INDIA 78TH
IN PRESS FREEDOM
Latest Press Freedom Index 2014 has placed India at 78th
place on the basis of freedom of media in the country.
Press freedom in India has deteriorated due to increased
"interference" by media owners ahead of the general
elections this year. Netherlands, Norway,
and Sweden topped the list, which included 197 countries.
W B AID FOR SARVA SHIKSHA ABHIYAN – III
World Bank has agreed to provide $ 1 billion assistance to
India to support its Sarva Shikhsa Abhiyan – III, the largest
school education programme in the world. Funds will be
deployed by the HRD Ministry over a period of three years.
S C BANS BULLS USE IN ‘JALLIKATTU’
The Supreme Court has prohibited use of bulls in Tamil
Nadu’s ‘Jallikattu’ festivals, holding that use of bulls in such
events severely harmed the animals and constituted an
offence under the Prevention of Cruelty to the Animals Act.

HIGHEST INFANT MORTALITY IN INDIA
More than seven lakh newborns die in India every year, the
highest number of such deaths globally, a new study has
claimed. Each year 5.5 million babies leave the world
without celebrating their first birth day.
SC NOD FOR PROBING SENIOR BUREAUCRATS
A three judge Supreme Court bench headed by the Chief
Justice of India has held as invalid the legal provision that
makes prior sanction mandatory for the Central Bureau of
Investigation to conduct a probe against senior bureaucrats
(joint secretary and above) in corruption cases under the
Prevention of Corruption Act as it violates the article 14
(equality before law) of the constitution.
INDIA TOPS IN ‘OPEN DEFECATION’
A UN report- ‘Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation,
2014 says that 82 per cent of the one billion people
practising open defecation in the world live in just 10
countries, topped by India having sixty per cent (597
million) of this population.
DELHI MOST POLLUTED CITY
WHO has stated that the quality of air in most cities
worldwide failed to meet the WHO standards for safe levels
of pollution. The release counted Delhi among one of the
most polluted city in the world in terms of air quality as it
has highest concentration of particulate matters less than
2.5 microns, which is considered most serious.
NEWS FROM STATES
JULY 2014
AMITABH BACHCHAN: The Indian Megastar was
appointed as Brand Ambassador of Maharashtra for
promoting horticulture sector of the state.
SANIA MIRZA: International tennis star was appointed
Brand Ambassador of the Telangana State
JUNE 2014
U K AWARD FOR BENGAL’s GIRL SCHEME
Kanyashree Prakalpa, a West Bengal government scheme
that provides scholarship to girls from economically-
backward backgrounds, has been given international
recognition jointly by the United Kingdom’s Department for
International Development and UNICEF.
‘GAURAVI’ TO HELP WOMEN IN STRESS
India’s first One Stop Crisis
Centre (OSCC) named Gauravi
was launched in Bhopal, Madhya
Pradesh on 16 June 2014. It was
launched by the Bollywood actor
Amir Khan. The centre is first of
its kind in India for women who
are victims of violence. It will
provide help and assistance to
rape survivors and victims of
dowry harassment, domestic
violence and other atrocities on women, all under one roof.
MUMBAI BECOMES 4TH
CITY TO GET METRO
Mumbai became the fourth city in the country to have Metro
rail operations, besides Kolkata, Delhi and Bangalore. The
11.4 km Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar section, connecting
western suburbs with eastern suburbs, will carry around 11
lakh passengers every day.
$100 MN WORLD BANK LOAN FOR HIMACHAL
World Bank will provide $ 100 million to Himachal Pradesh
for promoting development of sustainable hydropower,
adapt and mitigate the effects of climate change and
empower local communities to conserve their watersheds.
SIKKIM TO GIVE JOBS TO BPL CANDIDATES
Sikkim government has announced 12 per cent reservation
in all state government jobs and posts in public sector
undertakings for candidates of Sikkimese origin living below
poverty line, with immediate effect.
 Gujarat has become the first state in India to
implement 33 per cent reservation for women in the
police force, across all cadres.
MAY 2014
VIDHAN SABHA ELECTIONS IN 5 STATES
Along with the general elections, five states also elected
their new MLAs (member of legislative assembly). Following
were elected as the new Chief Ministers:
Naveen Patnaik (Biju Janata Dal) – Odisha, 4th
time
Pawan Chamling (Sikkim Democratic Fund) – Sikkim, 5th
time, becoming the longest serving C M in India.
Chandrababu Naidu (Telugu Desam Party)—Andhra
Pradesh
K Chandrasekhara Rao (Telangana Rastra Samithi) –
Telangana
Nabam Tuki (Congress) -- Arunachal Pradesh
Some other Chief Ministers were also changed:
Anandiben Patel (BJP): Elected as Chief Minister of
Gujarat in place of Narendra Modi.
Jitan Ram Manjhi became new Chief Minister of Bihar as
present CM Nitish Kumar resigned owing the responsibility
for poor performance of his party in general elections.
T R Zeliang (Naga People's Front): Elected as the new
Chief Minister of Nagaland following the resignation of
current C M Neiphiu Rio as he got elected as M P.

 A four-year ban which barred short messaging service
(SMS) on prepaid mobile phones in Jammu and Kashmir
has been lifted by the state government.
 Rajasthan has decided to open 325 Ma Bari centres in
tribal areas of the four districts to provide education to
the children of 6 to 12 age where there are no schools.
GOVERNMENT
INITIATIVES
JULY 2014
WEBSITE LAUNCHED FOR PUBLIC GOVERNANCE
Prime Minister has launched a website, mygov.nic.in to
help people contribute in governance of the country by
giving their views on important issues. Initially three
suggested topics include–
 Creative engagement with govt. departments
 Suggest ideas to boost girl child education
 Suggest a roadmap to clean the Ganga
FDI IN INSURANCE HIKED TO 49%
The Union Cabinet has hiked FDI cap in insurance sector
from 26 to 49 per cent, liberalizing foreign investments, a
move that will cheer foreign investors and facilitate funds’
flow. It will provide a boost for the pension sector also as
the FDI cap in pension has been linked to insurance.
GOVT TO LAUNCH 4 NEW VACCINES
Four new vaccines will be introduced in India as part of the
Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) to reduce child
mortality by two-thirds by next year and meet global polio
eradication targets. With these new vaccines added,
government will be providing free vaccines against 13 life
threatening diseases to 27 million children annually.
Vaccines against rotavirus, rubella and polio (injectable) will
collectively expedite India’s progress to reduce child
mortality by two-thirds by the year 2015.
Rs. 7060 CRORE FOR URBAN MODERNISATION
Government proposes an allocation of Rs 7,060 crore in this
financial year for developing 100 ‘smart cities' in the country
as satellite towns of larger cities and for modernising the
existing mid-sized cities. The new cities need to be
developed to accommodate the burgeoning number of
people, otherwise, the existing cities would soon become
unliveable.
PRADHAN MANTRI KRISHI SINCHAYEE YOJANA
The government plans to launch a nationwide rural
irrigation scheme to insulate farmers from excessive
dependence on monsoon. Rs 1,000 crore will be spent on
creating infrastructure for the ‘Pradhan Mantri Krishi
Sinchayee Yojana’ to provide assured water to farmers.
‘SOIL HEALTH CARD’ LAUNCHED FOR FARMERS
Govt plans to provide 'Soil Health Card' to all farmers for
optimum utilization of resources and right selection of crops.
The Card will give crop-wise recommendations of
nutrients/fertilizers required for a particular village to help
the farmers improve productivity by wise use of inputs.
‘KISAN TV’ FOR AGIRCULTURISTS
Government to launch ‘Kisan TV' dedicated to the interests
of agriculturists and allied sectors and has allocated Rs 100
crore for this purpose. The channel will provide real time
information on farming techniques, water conservation and
on new technologies to help the farmers.
SKILL DEVELOPMENT FOR 50 CRORE BY 2022
Government has set a target to develop skills of 50 crore
people by 2022 under the National Policy on Skill
Development (NPSD). This target will be distributed among
20 ministries and National Skill Development Corporation
(NSDC). Government has set up a National Skill
Development Agency (NSDA) to coordinate and harmonise
the skill development efforts of the government and the
private sector.
VALIDITY OF INDUSTRIAL LICENCES EXTENDED
The Government has extended the validity period of an
industrial licence to three years from present two years,
with a provision for further extension by two years. The
licence will, however, lapse automatically after five years, in
the absence of commencement of commercial production
PLAN TO MERGE 3 SOCIAL SECURITY SCHEMES
The Ministry of Labour and Employment plans to launch a
pilot in 20 districts from January 1, 2015 to enable
unorganised workers to avail benefits of the Rashtriya
Swastha Bima Yojana (RSBY), Aam Aadmi Bima Yojan
(AABY) and Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme
(IGNOAPS) via one single smart card. The pilot project
would be funded from the National Social Security Fund.
GOVT TO SET UP 660 NIRBHAYA CENTRES
Women and Child Development Ministry has advised that at
least 660 rape crisis centres will be established across the
country and named as Nirbhaya centres, as a tribute to the
victim of December 16, 2012 Delhi gangrape case.
The Nirbhaya Centres will act as one stop centre for
women victims of molestation, rape, sexual assault,
domestic violence and provide them medical assistance,
police assistance, psycho-social support and counselling,
legal aid and temporary shelter.
 To protect investors, the Cabinet has cleared the SEBI
Bill, to empower SEBI to initiate action against ponzi
schemes and investment frauds.

JUNE 2014
NO TRANSFERS FOR PARENTS OF DISABLED
Central government has decided that all the government
employees who have differently abled children to take care
of will be exempted from routine transfers and they will not
be asked to take voluntary retirement on refusing such
postings.
GOMs AND EGOMs SCRAPPED
With a view to improve accountability and responsibility,
govt has decided to abolish, with immediate effect, all the
Groups of Ministers (GoMs) and Empowered Groups of
Ministers (EGoMs) set up by the previous UPA-II govt.
FOOD BUDGET RAISED FOR POWER SPORTS
Govt has decided to increase the daily food supplement
budget from Rs 280 to Rs 750 for the power games which
include boxing, wrestling, weightlifting, judo and boxing.
The decision was taken keeping in mind the Commonwealth
Games & Asian Games this year and Rio Olympics in 2016.
12000 LABOUR CHARGES TO POOR FOR HOUSE
The Centre has decided to give Rs 12,000 per household as
labour charges to the poor for building their homes under
Indira Awaas Yojna-IAY. Govt. provides Rs. 75,000 for
construction of a house under IAY in hilly areas and Rs
70,000 in plains, of which 20% is the labour component.
MAY 2014
SIT FOR PROBING BLACK MONEY
The Supreme Court has reconstituted a Special Investigation
Team (SIT) under the chairmanship of retired judge MB
Shah to monitor the probe into the black money cases, both
inside and outside the country. Incidentally, this is also the
first major decision taken by the new Union Cabinet.
SECURITY PACT SIGNED WITH MYANMAR
India and Myanmar have inked a pact to enhance security
cooperation in combating the key issues of insurgency, arms
smuggling and human trafficking. The agreement was
signed at Nay Pyi Taw, capital of Myanmar.
 In a move that signals changed priorities, the ministry
of environment and forests has been renamed as the
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
JULY 2014
NOMURA PREDICTS 6% GROWTH FOR INDIA
According to the Japanese brokerage firm Nomura, India is
set to be Asia's biggest turnaround story and the country's
GDP growth is expected to rise to over 6 per cent in FY
2015 and over 7 per cent in FY 2016. The Indian economy
is starting to turn around as inflation is abating, the current
account deficit is narrowing, forex reserves are
accumulating and growth is just starting to rise.
ADB PUT INDIA’S GROWTH AT 5.5 %
Asian Development Bank has upgraded India’s economic
growth forecast to 6.3 per cent in 2015-16 on hopes of
speedy reform process. However, it has retained forecast
of 5.5 per cent growth for the current year.
FITCH PROJECTS 5.5 % GROWTH FOR INDIA
International rating agency Fitch has improved India's
economic growth forecast to 5.5 per cent this financial year
and 6.5 per cent in FY16 due to the clear mandate received
by the pro-reform Narendra Modi government.
The agency said there will be significant risks to growth if
the monsoon turns out to be much weaker than expected.
IIP JUMPS TO 4.7 PER CENT
The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) for the month of
May came in at 4.7 percent. The factory output in May is at
a 19-month high – highest since October 2012. Electricity
sector growth came in at 6.3 percent while manufacturing
sector growth jumped to 4.8 percent.
CORE SECTOR GROWTH SLIPS TO 2.3%
The core sector growth of eight core industries slowed to
2.3 per cent in May, from 5.9 per cent in May last year.
During the month, crude oil output shrank 0.3 per cent,
natural gas output declined by 2.2 per cent, refinery
products were down 2.3 per cent and steel production was
2 per cent lower.
TRADE DEFICIT JUMPS TO $11.76 BILLION
Taking benefit of improvement in global markets, India's
exports grew by 10.22 per cent to $26.4 billion in June this
year while imports stood at $38.24 billion, up by 8.33 per
cent, leaving a trade deficit of $11.76 billion, boosted by a
65 per cent annual rise in gold imports.
 India's foreign exchange reserves have risen by $813
million for week ended June 18 to reach $317.85 bn.
JUNE 2014
GDP GROWS @ 4.7% IN 2013-14
Latest data released by the Central Statistical Office (CSO)
has estimated value of India’s GDP at current market prices
at Rs. 113.55 lakh crore, achieving a growth rate of 4.7
percent in 2013-14 as against 4.5 percent achieved in 2012-
13. This is the first time in 26 years after 1987-88 that GDP
has grown at sub 5% in two successive years. The per
capita income at current prices during 2013-14 is estimated
to have attained a level of Rs.74,380.

RBI PUTS GROWTH RATE AT 5-6 PER CENT
In its Second Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement, the
Reserve Bank has stated that economic growth is expected
to be between 5 and 6 per cent in 2014-15 even as
uncertainty over the monsoon clouds the forecast for
agriculture. India's economic growth stayed below 5 per
cent for the second year in a row at 4.7 per cent in 2013-
14, mainly due to a decline in manufacturing and mining
output.
INDIA TO GROW @ 5.5% - WORLD BANK
The World Bank has projected a 5.5% growth for India in
2014-15, estimating that this will accelerate to 6.3% in
2015-16 and 6.6% in 2016-17.
MAY 2014
UN PUTS INDIA’S GROWTH AT 5%
According to the UN World Economic Situation and
Prospects (WESP) 2014 report, Indian economy will grow 5
per cent in 2014 and record a slightly higher expansion of
5.5 per cent next year riding on stronger consumption and
investment.
ECONOMY TO GROW BY 4.9% - OECD
Latest economic outlook by the Paris-based think-tank-
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) says that India's economy is expected to grow up to
4.9% in calendar year 2014 from 4.5% a year earlier,
helped by a rebound in capital investments as well as a
pick-up in private consumption, but rising bad loans at its
banks threaten to choke the recovery.
ECONOMY
JULY 2014
RANGARAJAN PANEL REPORT ON POVERTY
As per Dr. C Rangarajan panel estimates, a person spending
less than Rs 1,407 a month (Rs 47/day) in urban areas and
Rs 972 a month (Rs 32/day) in rural areas would be
considered Below Poverty Line. The number of poor in India
stood at 36.3 crore (29.5%) in 2011-12, down from 45.4
crore (38.2%) in 2009-10, as per the Rangarajan panel
norms.
As per Tendulkar Committee, these figures were fixed at Rs
1,000 a month (Rs 33/day) in cities and Rs 816 a month (Rs
27/day) in villages.
INDIA HAS WORK FORCE OF OVER 47 CRORE
As per NSSO survey result for 2011-12, the estimated
workforce in India is 47.41 crore persons of which 82.7 per
cent is in unorganised sector and 17.3 percent is in
organised sector.
DISINVESTMENT TARGET - RS. 58,425 CRORE
The government has set a target of mopping Rs 43,425
crore from stake sale in PSU firms and an additional Rs
15,000 crore from sale in other entities such as SUUTI
(Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India). The bulk
of the Rs 15,000 crore would be from offloading shares in
Axis Bank
MSP FOR KHARIF CROPS 2014-15
CROP MSP PER QUINTAL
PADDY 1360
JOWAR 1530
BAJRA 1250
MAIZE 1310
GROUNDNUT 4000
TUAR AND URAD DAL 4350
MOONG 4600
SUNFLOWER 3750
SAHOO PANEL PROPOSES ‘BhDRs’
A government panel led by M S Sahoo has proposed a new
class of securities, 'Bharat Depository Receipts (BhDRs)', for
foreign firms to raise money in India, to provide more
choice to domestic investors. A BhDR would be a rupee
denominated instrument issued by domestic depository
against listed equities of a foreign company.
FDI IN DEFENCE, INSURANCE RAISED TO 49%
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in defence manufacturing
has been hiked from 26 per cent to 49 per cent. The
ownership of such joint ventures will stay with Indian
companies. FDI in insurance sector has also been hiked to
49 per cent from 26 per cent.
W B LOAN FOR ROAD CONNECTIVITY
World Bank has sanctioned $500 million loan for India’s
National Highways Inter-connectivity Improvement Project
(NHIIP) to improve the national highway network
connectivity to less-developed states.
INDIA SIGNS FATCA WITH USA
India and the US have agreed to implement Foreign
Accounts Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), a US law that
targets tax non-compliance by US taxpayers with foreign
accounts. As per FATCA, it is compulsory for US taxpayers
to report about their offshore assets and accounts.
Similarly, foreign financial institutions are required to report
about accounts held by US taxpayers.
INDUSTRIAL MoU SIGNED WITH CHINA
India and China have signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) that allows Chinese companies to
invest in industrial parks and zones in India. This way
Indian firms will get the benefit of learning economies of
scale and inventory management from the Chinese firms.

TCS REACHES MARKET CAP OF 5 TRILLION
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has become first Indian
company to achieve a market capitalization of Rs. 5 lakh
crore rupees. TCS is followed by Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation (ONGC) at 3.5 lakh crore rupees and Reliance
Industries at 3.3 lakh crore rupees.
 World Bank to provide $153 million (Rs 920 crore) loan
for the Odisha Disaster Recovery Project to restore and
improve housing and public services in Odisha.
 The ADB has approved a multi-tranche loan facility of
$300 million to help Assam continue its drive to
eliminate power sector inefficiencies.
 Britain has granted one billion pound ($1.68 billion)
credit line for investment in Indian infrastructure
projects.
 The government has granted Navratna status to
Container Corporation of India Limited (CONCOR).
JUNE 2014
SOLO EVENTS NOT PART OF CSR
The Corporate Affairs Ministry has clarified that one-off
events such as marathons / awards / charitable contribution
/advertisement / sponsorships of TV programmes etc would
not be qualified as part of Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) expenditure. Activities like housing for Economically
Weaker Sections, slum clearance, disaster management,
rural development, road safety, skill development of
agriculture labour can be considered under the CSR.
CSR rules are applicable to companies having at least Rs 5
crore net profit, or Rs 1,000 crore turnover or Rs 500 crore
net worth. As per CSR rules, such companies are required
to shell out at least two per cent of their three-year annual
average net profit towards CSR activities.
BAN ON MILK PRODUCTS FROM CHINA
The government has extended the ban on imports of milk
and its products from China for one more year till June
2015. The ban was first imposed in September 2008 due to
presence of melamine in milk products, a chemical used for
making plastics and fertilisers.
F I OF 10% TO BE TREATED AS FDI
Foreign investment of 10 per cent or more in a listed
company will now be treated as foreign direct investment
(FDI) as the government has accepted the Finance
Secretary Arvind Mayaram committee’s recommendations on
rationalising definitions of FDI and FII.
NEW SEBI NORMS FOR DEBT SECURITIES
SEBI has issued new norms for public issuance of debt
securities (debentures, bonds etc.) under which such offers
will have to be of minimum Rs 100 crore and the companies
will have to attain at least 75 per cent subscription.
ISRAEL TO HELP IN AGRICULTURE
Israel is planning to open two centres of excellence at
Nalanda and Vaishali in Bihar in the field of vegetables and
mango respectively to help cultivators increase their produc-
tivity. In these centres, Israeli agricultural experts along
with local farm scientists would impart knowhow of the
latest technology to growers to help them raise the
production level.
PSUs TO HAVE 25% PUBLIC HOLDING
SEBI has said that public sector undertakings listed on stock
exchanges to have should also adhere to the mandatory
25% public shareholding norms that are applicable to
private companies. At present, private sector companies
are compulsorily required to have at least 25% public
shareholding, while for government-owned companies,
minimum threshold level is only 10%.
 India has overtaken Germany and Italy to emerge as
the world's second largest textile exporter. But it lags
China, whose exports are nearly seven times higher.
 The World Bank has approved funding of USD 107
million (nearly Rs 650 crore) for a road project in
Mizoram, connecting Myanmar and Bangladesh.
MAY 2014
AGRI PRODUCTION TO CROSS 264 MN TON
The 3rd Advance Estimates of crop production in the 2013-
14 crop year (July-June) released by the Agriculture
Ministry says that India is likely to produce 264.38 million
tonnes of foodgrains during 2013-14 compared to 257.13
million tonnes last year, supported by higher production of
wheat and rice. The Agriculture Ministry comes out with
four estimates on foodgrains production at different stages
of crop harvesting.
INDIA IS CHEAPEST MAJOR ECONOMY
A report from German banking giant - Deutsche Bank says
that a weaker Indian rupee has allowed India to remain the
cheapest major economy in the world despite persistently
suffering the highest inflation rate. Australia is overall the
most expensive major economy, while the United States is
the cheapest developed country and Brazil most expensive
developing country.
TELECOM BASE TOUCHES 933 MILLIONS
India’s telecom industry
added over one million
users in March, taking
the total number of
subscribers to 933
million, as per latest data
released by Telecom
Regulatory Authority of
India (Trai). Rural India
is growing faster claiming
377.73 million
subscribers.
 Exim Bank has extended $ 100 million in line of credit
to Nigeria for building energy projects that will
eventually help boost Indian exports.
 FDI inflows from Singapore added up to nearly $6
billion in 2013-14, making it largest source of FDI in
India, followed by Mauritius at $4.9 billion.

BANKING & FINANCE
JULY 2014
RBI ALLOWS PAYMENT BANK AND SMALL BANK
The Reserve Bank has issued guidelines for setting up of
Payment Bank and Small Banks. A minimum paid-up capital
of Rs.100 crore will be required for setting up of these
banks. Both the banks will have to comply with the CRR and
SLR requirements.
Payment Banks will be allowed only acceptance of
demand deposits and payments and remittances services to
migrant labour workforce, low-income households, small
businesses and other unorganised entities. They will not be
allowed to undertake lending activities.
Small Bank shall primarily undertake basic banking
activities of acceptance of deposits and lending to small
farmers, small businesses, micro and small industries and
unorganised sector entities. The area of operations of the
small bank will be restricted to contiguous districts in a
homogenous cluster of States
REVISED KYC NORMS FROM RBI
RBI has revised its "know your customer" guidelines where
a main change is that it has now specified "officially valid
documents" to be the Aadhaar card, voter ID card,
permanent account number (PAN) card, driving licence,
passport, or the NREGA card. The Ration Card has been
dropped from the list. Now, Banks are no more authorized
to accept any other document as proof of identity.
Rs. 5000 OD FOR NEW BANK ACCOUNT
To promote financial inclusion, govt proposes to sanction an
overdraft (OD) facility of Rs 5,000 by the bank to individuals
who open an account with them. But there is a caveat for
those availing of the OD: customers should be willing to
take financial literacy lessons from lenders. A Rs 1,000-crore
credit guarantee fund will be set up by NABARD for this
purpose. The OD offer is part of 'Sampoorn Viteeyea
Samveshan' (SVS) or Comprehensive Financial Inclusion to
ensure that every earning citizen opens a bank account.
Rs. 5000 CR LYING IN UNCLAIMED ACCOUNTS
Parliament has been advised that Banks had Rs 5,124 crore
in unclaimed deposits (accounts with no operations for 10
years) lying with them as of December 31, 2013. This
amount will be transferred to the Depositor Education and
Awareness Fund to be utilized for promotion of depositors'
interests.
The Reserve Bank has from time to time advised banks to
play a more pro-active role in finding the whereabouts of
the people whose accounts have remained inoperative.
Banks are required to transfer the unclaimed amount to
Reserve Bank of India every month.
RBI TO IDENTIFY ‘LARGE’ BANKS
The Reserve Bank has said that Banks having size equal to
or more than 2 per cent of GDP will be designated as
domestic systemically important banks (D-SIBs) and they
will be subject to higher capital requirements. Additionally,
five largest foreign banks, based on their size, will also be
added to the sample for identification of D-SIBs.
D-SIBs are perceived as banks that are ‘Too Big To Fail
(TBTF)’. This perception of TBTF creates an expectation of
government support for these banks at the time of distress.
Due to this perception, these banks enjoy certain
advantages in the funding markets.
PSBs TO ISSUE RUPAY CARDS
Govt has urged public sector banks to issue RuPay cards to
all existing customers who do not have debit cards as well
as to new clients. Banks have also been told to "encourage"
merchant establishments to install point of sale terminals for
RuPay cards. Already, 20 million cards have been issued.
GOVT PLANS UBI’s MERGER WITH IDBI
The government has asked IDBI Bank and Kolkata based
United Bank of India to prepare a consolidation plan in view
of poor performance of UBI. Govt also plans to approve the
merger plan of SBI and State Bank of Patiala.
SIX NEW DRTs TO BE SET UP
To expedite the process to recover bad bank loans, govt
proposes to set up six new Debt Recovery Tribunals. The
Government of India had constituted 33 Debts Recovery
Tribunals and five Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunals
across the country. These six additional tribunals will make
total number of tribunals to 39.
NO 60% CUT OFF FOR EDUCATION LOANS
The Madras High Court has ruled that banks cannot fix 60%
cut off of minimum marks in Plus Two as condition for
extending education loan to students joining engineering
courses. Once a candidate has been admitted in a course,
banks should consider his request for loan on genuine
grounds of need and not on basis of marks obtained at plus
two level.
RBI TO SWAP GOLD
RBI plans to swap some
of the old gold lying in
its Nagpur vault since
pre-Independence
times — and whose
quality is not exactly
top grade — with purer
gold. The operation
would "standardise the
gold available with RBI in India with respect to international
standards" and the gold acquired would be delivered to its
overseas custodian, the Bank of England.
MFIs CAN NOT CHARGE MORE THAN 27.75%
RBI has advised that the lending rate ceiling for micro
finance companies will continue at their present level - at
27.75% for the July to September quarter. This is the
highest rate MFIs can charge to their borrowers in the next
quarter. They may have to charge less if their cost of funds
is lower than 17.75%.
The Non Banking Finance Companies engaged in Micro
Finance are required to be registered with RBI as NBFC-
MFIs and have to follow the guidelines for maximum rate of
interest they can charge on loans.

BANK CREDIT GROWTH MORE THAN DEPOSITS
Bank deposits grew 13.24 per cent year-on-year to Rs
79,96,060 crore during the fortnight ended July 11 and
credit growth was 13.67 per cent reaching Rs 61,21,418
crore during the same period.
 The RBI has signed a Memorandum of Understanding
with the Monetary Authority of Hong Kong for exchange
of supervisory information of banking.
 The Reserve Bank will soon put to circulation Rs 10
denominated coins on the occasion of diamond jubilee
of Coir Board.
 RBI has allowed Non Banking Financial Companies
(NBFCs) to accept e-KYC service to verify identity and
address proof of customers to reduce risk of fraud.
JUNE 2014
RBI CUTS SLR DOWN TO 22.5 %
RBI in its second bimonthly policy statement reduced
statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) to 22.5% from 23%, freeing
almost Rs 40,000 crore of resources. Interest rates on home
and auto loans are unlikely to fall soon, but they could
gradually ease as the banks may lend more to companies
and individuals rather than buy government securities.
SLR is the mandatory provision for banks to block a certain
prescribed percent of their total deposits in government
securities.
INTEREST ON ‘UNCLAIMED’ DEPOSITS
RBI has advised that Interest on unclaimed deposits
transferred to a newly set up fund for educating depositors
shall be payable only from the date of their transfer to the
fund. Banks will transfer the accounts to the fund after
applying up-to-date accrued interest.
PROOF OF LOCAL ADDRESS NOT REQUIRED
RBI has advised that for opening of bank accounts, in case
the proof of address furnished by the customer is not the
local address or address where the customer is currently
residing, the bank may take a declaration of the local
address on which all correspondence will be made by the
bank with the customer. No proof is required for this local
address.
ECR REDUCED TO 32 PER CENT
The Reserve Bank has reduced the availability of funds
under the export credit refinance (ECR) window from 50 per
cent of export credit outstanding to 32 per cent with
immediate effect. To compensate for the resulting reduction
in liquidity, RBI has introduced a special term repo facility
up to 0.25 per cent of their net demand and time liabilities-
NDTL (total deposits).
RBI ALLOWS ENGAGING NBFCs AS BC
The Reserve Bank has permitted non-banking finance
companies -NBFCs to act as business correspondents (BCs)
of banks, allowing them to offer limited services with the
aim of spreading financial inclusion. The RBI said the
existing guidelines on the appointment of BCs were
reviewed taking into account recommendations of the
Nachiket Mor Committee.
LIMIT RAISED TO CARRY CURRENCY ABROAD
The Reserve Bank has permitted residents and non-
residents, except Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, to carry up to
Rs 25,000 in Indian currency notes while leaving the
country as against Rs 10,000 earlier. Till now, foreigners
were not allowed to carry Indian currency while leaving the
country.
 IndusInd Bank has launched ‘video branch’ - a unique
service allowing customers to interact face-to-face with
their bank branch using desktop, tablet or smartphone.
 Reserve Bank has raised the annual overseas
investment ceiling for individuals to $ 125,000 from
present $ 75,000.
 The Reserve Bank has asked banks to disclose sector
wise loans in their financial statements from 2014/15
onwards.
MAY 2014
NAYAK COMMITTEE SUBMIT ITS REPORT
P J Nayak Committee appointed by the RBI to review
Governance of Boards of Banks in India has recommended
that the government should cut its stake in public sector
banks to below 50 percent. All banks be incorporated under
the Companies Act and a Bank Investment Company (BIC)
be constituted to which the Government transfers its
holdings in banks. It has also said that RBI — and not the
finance ministry — should have the last word on regulation
of public sector banks which command 70% of the market
share.
NO PENALTY FOR TERM LOAN PREPAYMENT
RBI has asked banks to consider allowing their borrowers
the facility of prepaying all floating rate term loans without
any penalty. Earlier this facility was available on house loans
only. Some banks are charging pre-payment penalty of up
to 2 per cent of the outstanding loans.
NO PENALTY IN INOPERATIVE ACCOUNTS
RBI has asked banks not to levy penalties on customers
who don’t maintain a minimum balance in any inoperative
account, as part of a consumer protection initiative.
Already, Banks are not allowed to charge customers for
non-operation or activation of Basic Savings Bank deposit
accounts. However, Banks are permitted to recover charges
for non maintenance of minimum balance in normal savings
accounts.
INDEPENDENT SB ACCOUNTS FOR MINORS
RBI has advised that
banks are allowed to
open only savings
bank account in the
name of minors of
age above 10 years,
independently,
without the name of
their guardians.
However, it has been left to the banks to decide various
terms and conditions, including amount of withdrawal,
issuance of cheque book / debit cards.

RUPAY CARD LAUNCHED BY THE PRESIDENT
President of India formally launched India’s first indigenous
payment gateway, RuPay, to counter rival networks such as
Visa and Mastercard to work on ATMs and merchant outlets
and help in reducing cash transactions. Developed by the
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), it is the
seventh such payment gateway in the world.
LOK ADALATS FOR CHEQUE BOUNCE CASES
The Law ministry is working on amendments to the Legal
Services Authority Act that would allow leading banks to set
up permanent Lok Adalats on their premises for settlement
of all disputes related to cheque bouncing. Retired district
judges or additional district judges may be appointed as
chairpersons of such Lok Adalats.
CRYSTALLIZE INOPERATIVE FC ACCOUNTS-RBI
The Reserve Bank has directed banks to convert credit
balances in any inoperative foreign currency (FC)
denominated deposit into Indian rupee if the former
remains not in use for three years from the date of maturity
of deposit.
BANKS TO HAVE TALKING / BRAILLE ATMs
RBI has directed that all new ATMs to be installed by
commercial banks from July 2014 onwards would provide
audible instructions and Braille keypads to customers.
Later, all existing ATMs should also be converted as talking
ATMs with Braille keypads. RBI also asked banks to
provide the facilities of magnifying glasses at all bank
branches for the use of persons with low vision.
10 YEAR TERM LOANS FOR EXPORTERS
The Reserve Bank has allowed banks to provide long-term
loans of up to a maximum tenor of 10 years to exporters to
be utilised for execution of long-term supply contracts for
export of goods. Existing norms allow banks to give loans
for up to one year only.
BMB DECLARED AS SCHEDULED BANK
Bharatiya Mahila Bank, the country's first all-women lender,
has been included in the second schedule to the RBI Act.
This means that now it is eligible for loans from RBI on bank
rate and to acquire membership of clearing houses.
RBI TO LAUNCH PLASTIC CURRENCY
RBI has advised that one billion plastic notes of Rs.10
denomination will be introduced in a field trial to be
launched in the latter half of 2014 in five cities selected for
their geographical and climatic diversity. The selected cities
are Shimla, Kochi, Mysore, Jaipur, and Bhubaneswar. Plastic
notes have an average life span of about five years and are
difficult to imitate.
RBI DEFERS BIOMETRIC AUTHENTICATION
RBI has put on hold its order requiring all future credit card
swipe machines and ATMs to be capable of biometric
authentication. Instead, a pilot project will be launched
where issuers of prepaid cards will be allowed cash
withdrawals on the basis of biometric authentication.
DEFENCE, SCIENCE
& TECHNOLOGY
JULY 2014
INS KOLKATA JOINS INDIAN NAVY
The Indian Navy‘s largest ever destroyer – INS Kolkata was
inducted in to service on 10th
July. It is India’s first
domestically built guided missile destroyer to feature a
Western-style air search radar and stealth technology.
ADVANCED BRAHMOS TEST FIRED
An advanced version of the 290-km range Brahmos
supersonic cruise missile was successfully tested off the
coast of Odisha, giving the country the capability to hit
enemy targets hidden behind mountains or in a cluster of
buildings with “pinpoint accuracy”. The missile travelled its
full strike range of 290 km in 500 seconds.
INDIA LAUNCHES FIVE FOREIGN SATELLITES
India successfully launched five foreign satellites from four
countries on board PSLV-C23 rocket on June 30. The five
satellites, launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at
Sriharikota, included two from Germany, and one each from
France, Canada and Singapore.
PSLV: Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
HIGH SPEED DATA TRANSFER BY LI-FI
A Mexican software company has managed to transmit
audio, video and Internet data across the spectrum of light
emitted by LED lamps — at a data transfer rate of 10
gigabytes per second. The technology called Li-Fi or light
fidelity can illuminate a large work space, such as an office,
while providing full mobile Internet to every device that
comes into the range of the light spectrum.
OBJECTS SPOTTED BEYOND PLUTO
Scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope have
discovered two new objects beyond Pluto for NASA’s New
Horizons spacecraft to visit. New Horizons spacecraft,
launched in 2006, is on track to become the first probe to
visit Pluto in July 2015, some 4.7 billion miles from Earth in
the Kuiper Belt.
CARBON GEL – WORLD’s LIGHTEST MATERIAL
The world's lightest solid material - carbon aerogel - created
by Chinese scientists has fetched a staggering $1.6 million
at an auction. With a density of just 0.16 milligrams per
cubic centimeter, a sixth of air's density, the carbon aerogel
was developed by scientists at Zhejiang University last year.
NASA SATELLITE TO TRACK CO2
American space agency NASA has successfully launched a
satellite -Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2), designed
to track atmospheric Carbon Dioxide, a leading human-
produced greenhouse gas responsible for global warming.
 Warships, submarines, aircrafts and helicopters of
India, US and Japan participated in the trilateral
Malabar naval exercise from 24th
July in North Western
Pacific Ocean.

JUNE 2014
INS KAMORTA TO JOIN INDIAN NAVY
India’s first indige-
nously - built anti
submarine warfare
corvette INS Kamorta
will be commissioned
into the Indian Navy
next month. Built by
the Garden Reach
Shipbuilders &
Engineers Ltd (GRSE), Kolkata, it will be the first warship
armed with an indigenous rocket launcher for anti
submarine warfare.
BRAHMOS MISSILE TEST FIRED
Indian-Russian joint venture Brahmos Aerospace test-fired
its 290-km range supersonic missile from the stealth
destroyer INS Kolkata off India's west coast near Karnataka.
GARUDA-V: AIR EXERCISE WITH FRANCE
The fifth Indo-French bilateral air exercise — Garuda-V was
held at the Jodhpur Air Base. It is aimed at enhancing
operational cooperation and validating capabilities. During
the war games, both the Air Forces will practice aerial
warfare, including manoeuvres to carry out surgical strikes.
NASA TO BUILD WORLD’s LARGEST TELESCOPE
NASA plans to build world’s most powerful telescope -
Advanced Technology Large Aperture Space Telescope
(ATLAST) to analyse the environment of other planets and
ability to track existence of aliens life. It will be able to track
life which is as far as thirty light years away.
EARTH’s LARGEST WATER RESERVOIR FOUND
Researchers at Northwestern University and the University
of New Mexico believe they have found the Earth's largest
water reservoir around 643 km underneath North America,
inside mantle rock. Though not in the familiar liquid form -
the ingredients for water are bound up in rock deep in the
Earth's mantle.
‘KEPLER 10 C’ – NEW GIANT PLANET
A huge Earth-like planet found by US astronomers has
changed the perception of planet formation. The newly
discovered Kepler-10c planet has been dubbed ‘Mega-Earth’
thanks to its diameter of 29,000 kilometers and an
estimated weight 17 times greater than Earth, which has a
diameter of 12,742 kilometers. This makes Kepler-10c the
biggest rocky planet ever discovered.
MAY 2014
NANO FINGERPRINTS FOR CURRENCY / CARDS
Scientists have developed invisible nano 'finger-prints' that
could be embedded into gadgets, banknotes and credit
cards, making it impossible to counterfeit the objects.
Unique patterns made from tiny, randomly scattered silver
nanowires have been created in an attempt to authenticate
goods and tackle the growing problem of counterfeiting.
NEW ANTIBIOTICS DISCOVERED
In a breakthrough, scientists have discovered a new class of
antibiotics to fight deadly bacteria such as methicillin-
resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and other drug-
resistant bacteria that threaten public health.
The new class, called oxadiazoles, was discovered by
University of Notre Dame, USA.
JOINT NAVAL DRILL WITH SINGAPORE
Singapore Indian Maritime Bilateral Exercise - SIMBEX 14,
the 2014 series of annual bilateral naval exercises between
the Indian Navy and Singapore Navy was conducted in the
Andaman Sea from 22 May to 28 May 14 to enhance inter-
operability and mutual understanding between two navies.
UN WARNS AGAINST ‘EL NINO’ EFFECT
The UN weather agency-World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) has warned that there is strong possibility of an "El
Nino" climate phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean this year,
bringing droughts and heavy rainfall to the rest of the
world, including India.
The El Nino phenomenon occurs every two to seven years,
when the prevailing trade winds that circulate surface water
in the tropical Pacific start to weaken.
ARMY HOLDS WAR PRACTICE IN RAJASTHAN
Indian Army conducted the “Sarvada Vijay” exercise in West
Rajasthan as part of regular training with a large army
formation for practising and honing war fighting skills in
tough desert conditions.
‘NABHRATNA’ TO TEST RADAR SYSTEMS
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has delivered a
Dornier light-weight aircraft named Nabhratna to the
Defence Research and Development Organization to carry
out testing of its under-development radar systems.
ASTRA MISSILE TEST FIRED
India’s first indigenously developed beyond visual range
(BVR) air to air missile successfully test fired from a
Russian-built Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jet. It has a range of
60 kilometers.
SINO INDIA JOINT MILITARY EXERCISE
India and China have decided to conduct a joint military
exercise at Bathinda, Punjab, less than 100 kms from
Pakistan. Bathinda is the base of the Indian Army’s 10 Corps
and has a big airbase also.
 The DRDO has successfully test-fired the surface to air
Akash air defence missiles off the coast of Balasore in
Odisha.
 Pakistan successfully test-fired its surface-to-surface
ballistic missile Hataf-III - Ghaznavi capable of
carrying nuclear weapons up to 290 kilometers.

INTERNATIONAL
JULY 2014
6TH
BRICS SUMMIT HELD AT FORTALEZA, BRAZIL
Prime Minister Mr. Modi visited Fortaleza, Brazil to attend
the 6th
BRICS Summit. The five countries decided to
establish the New Development Bank with an initial
authorised capital of USD 50 billion which will be equally
shared by the founding members to prevent domination by
any one member. The Bank will work for funding
infrastructure and “sustainable development” projects in the
BRICS countries. India will have the first Presidency of the
NDB for six years with headquarters in China
Agreement was also reached on establishing a
Contingency Reserve Arrangement with an initial size
of USD 100 billion to provide additional liquidity protection
to member-nations during balance of payments problems.
Funding of CRA is 41 per cent by China, 18 per cent each
from Brazil, India, and Russia, and 5 per cent from South
Africa.
The 7th
BRICS Summit will be held in the Russian city
of Ufa.
ISRAEL OPENS WAR WITH GAZA
Israel Defence Forces (IDF) launched “Operation Protective
Edge” against Hamas militants in Gaza strip for their alleged
kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers. In over a month
long conflict, Israeli forces have killed over one thousand
persons in Gaza strip through attack by ground and air
strikes. (See the specil)
MALAYSIAN PLANE SHOT DOWN, KILLING 298
A Malaysian aircraft, flight MH 17 flying from Amsterdam to
Kuala Lumpur was shot down by terrorist using a Russian
Buk missile when it was flying above 33,000 feet over
eastern Ukraine on July 17, killing all 295 people aboard.
The disaster is clouded in mystery as both Russia and
Ukraine claim that their forces have not shot the plane.
UKRAINE MOVES TOWARDS EUROPEAN UNION
Ukraine signed a landmark economic trade pact with the
European Union June 27. The Association Agreement is
expected to boost Ukraine’s exports to the European Union
but has attracted strong negative reaction from the Russia.
It was a refusal to sign this pact last year by Mr
Poroshenko’s predecessor, Viktor Yanukovych, which
triggered popular protests in Ukraine, leading to Russia’s
annexation of the Crimea peninsula
 India will host the 7th IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa)
summit in 2015.
JUNE 2014
ISIS LAUNCHES FIERCE ATTACK IN IRAQ
Sunni militants, led by jihadists from the Islamic State of
Iraq and Syria (ISIS) have since the beginning of June,
killed thousands of civilians and army personnel in Iraq in
their bid to dethrone the present Shia government led by
Premier Nouri al-Malikii. They have been successful in
gaining control of some major cities like Tikrit and Mosul.
ISIS militants are supporters of Saddam Hussein, ex
president of Iraq who was sentenced to death in 2012.
The rift between the two major Islamic communities –
Sunnis and Shias, runs like a tectonic fault-line. The division
between Sunni and Shia Muslims is the oldest in the Middle
East — and yet it is one which seems increasingly to be
shaping the destiny of this troubled region.
The rift goes right back to the beginning — and a row over
who should succeed the Prophet Mohamed as leader of the
emerging Islamic community when he died in the early 7th
century.
The majority of his followers thought his closest associate,
Abu Bakr, should take over. They became the ‘Sunnis’. But a
minority thought the Prophet’s closest relative, his son-in-
law and nephew Ali, should succeed. This minority came to
be known as ‘Shias’. Word Shia is an abbreviation of Shiat
Ali “the party of Ali”.
Intrigues and violence followed. Eventually Ali was killed, as
was his son Hussein, and persecution and martyrdom
became ingrained in the Shia psyche. The two sides agreed
on the Quran but had different views on hadith, the
traditions recorded by the Prophet’s followers about what he
had said and done in his life. From time to time, however,
violence has flared in which the Shia, in the main, have
been brutally and even genocidally persecuted.
There are around one and a half billion Muslims in the
world. Of these, somewhere between 10 and 20 per cent —
estimates vary considerably — are Shia. In most countries
Shias are minority in a Sunni homeland. But in Iraq, Iran,
Bahrain and Azerbaijan, Shias are in majority.
For past several years, Shia majority of Iraq was ruled by
Sunni warlord – Saddam Hussein, until the invasion of Iraq
by US forces that ended with hanging of Saddam in 2012.
Afterwards, when elections took place, Shias came in to
power. Since then, Sunni supporters of Saddam have been
waging a war against the elected govt. They got together to
form the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria – ISIS with the sole
objective of regaining the lost power.

USA FIRST CHOICE FOR FDI
A survey by global consulting firm A T Kearney has shown
that the USA is the top destination in the world for foreign
direct investment. India has slipped to its lowest position;
seventh, in over a decade.
 China plans to shut down over 2,000 small coal mines
by next year to eliminate outdated capacity and
improve work safety and address pollution concerns.
 G7 meet of industrialized nations held at Brussels,
Belgium
MAY 2014
RUSSIA, CHINA VETO AGAINST SYRIA
Russia and China on 22 May 2014 exercised their veto
power in UN Security Council against a draft resolution
which was intended to refer the Syrian civil war to the
International Criminal Court (ICC). Of the total 15 votes in
Security Council, the resolution received 13 votes in favour
but was double vetoed by the Russia and China for the
fourth time.
VIETNAM PROTESTS AGAINST CHINA
Widespread violent protests against China spread in
Vietnam over the South China Sea dispute as thousands of
angry Vietnamese torched several Chinese projects to
protest attempts by a Chinese oil rig to drill in the disputed
waters.
US TROOPS TO STAY IN AFGHANISTAN
USA has said that
America will withdraw its
troops from Afghanistan
completely by 2016. The
current 32,000-strong US
deployment in
Afghanistan will be
reduced to around 9,800
by the start of 2015 and
to bare minimal by end of 2016.
OVER 200 GIRLS ABDUCTED BY BOKO HARAM
Suspected Boko Haram Islamist militants abducted more
than 200 school girls aged between 12 and 15 from north-
eastern Nigeria to pressurize Nigerian government for
release of their ally militants. USA and several other
countries have condemned this ghastly act and offered all
possible help to Nigeria for locating the girls. Boko Haram
literally means ‘Western education is forbidden’.
E EU FORMED LED BY RUSSIA
The leaders of Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus have signed
a treaty in Astana on the creation of a Russian-led Eurasian
Economic Union (EEU) to create a territory for unified
customs tariffs beginning on January 1, 2015.
WORLD ECONOMY TO GROW BY 2.8% - U N
The United Nations has lowered its forecasts for global
economic growth in 2014 and 2015 to 2.8 per cent and 3.2
percent respectively, for reasons such as the exceptionally
cold winter in the United States, the escalating political crisis
in Ukraine, and financial turbulence earlier this year.
WHO WARNS AGAINST POLIO
The World Health Organisation has warned that polio has
reemerged as public health emergency, as new cases of this
crippling disease have been noticed in countries like Syria
and Pakistan.
UNO AND IOC TO PROMOTE SPORTS
The United Nations and the International Olympic
Committee have signed a historic agreement to use the
power of sports to promote peace and economic
development, a move that strengthens collaboration
between two of the world's major organizations.
TRAIN TUNNEL AT AN ALTITUDE OF 3.6 KMS
The world's highest tunnel for high-speed trains became
operational in northwest China on May 1 passing through
the Qilian Mountains at an altitude of 3,607.4 metres (11835
feet). The 16.3-km-long tunnel links the Gansu and Xinjiang
provinces of China.
MOLDOVA AND GEORGIA JOIN HAND WITH E U
Two former Soviet republic countries-Moldova and Georgia
have signed the European Union (EU) Association
Agreement to strengthen their trade and political ties with
EU. The accord will also help them defend from threats by
Russia which opposes the EU's eastward expansion.
ISLAMIC BANKING IN AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan's Central Bank, Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) has
signed an agreement with a non-profit independent
organization 'Harkat' for implementing the Sharia compliant
banking system in the country. The Islamic banking or
Sharia compliant banking is a system based on the
principles of Islam which prohibit payment/charging of
interest on deposit/loans, respectively.
 Bhutan is likely to become the first country in the world
to go wholly organic in its food production, totally
avoiding usage of chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
 Royal Navy Submarine Service of United Kingdom for
the first time in its 110-year history has appointed
female submariners.
 Spain has suspended the 12th bull fight festival (called
San Isidro festival in Spain) after matadors got injured
by bulls.
 Brazil released two postage stamps to pay tribute to the
100 years of Indian cinema.
 Saudi Arabia has decided to ban the import of Indian
chilies due to presence of high pesticide residues.

PERSONS IN NEWS
JULY 2014
ARSENIY YATSENYUK: Ukraine’s Prime Minister was in
news as he resigned in a shock move to protest the
disbanding of the ruling parliamentary coalition, plunging
the strife-torn nation into political uncertainty.
AKHOURI SINHA: In a rare honour, the USA has named a
mountain in Antarctica after this eminent Indian-American
scientist whose pioneering biological research expedition to
Antarctica has provided vital data about animal populations
in that area.
NEYMAR: Ace striker of Brazil’s football team was in news
as he suffered a back bone fracture after being hit by the
Colombian defender Juan Zuniga. Brazil’s bid to win a sixth
World Cup suffered a devastating blow as Neymar was ruled
out of the rest of the tournament.
JUNE 2014
ARUNADHATI BHATTACHARYA: Chairperson of State
Bank of India has been ranked as most powerful women in
India by the Forbes Magazine. She stood at 36th
rank.
KIRAN MAZUMDAR-SHAW: India's biotechnology queen,
Chairperson of Biocon Industries, has been awarded the
coveted Global Economy Prize for business by the Kiel
Institute in Germany during its centenary celebrations. The
annual prize is awarded to three individuals - a high-ranking
policy maker, a renowned economist and an outstanding
entrepreneur.
IROM SHARMILA CHANU: A local court in Imphal,
Manipur has ruled that there is prima facie evidence of
attempt to commit suicide against Manipur social activist
who has been on fast for the past 13 years demanding
withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA)
from the State.
MICHAEL SCHUMACHER: 45 year old
German Formula One champion was in
news as he emerged out of coma after
almost five and a half months, following
his devastating ski accident in
December, 2013.
ANGELA MERKEL: Chancellor of Germany, she has been
declared as most powerful women in the world by Forbes
Magazine.
BOWE BERGDAHL: An US sergeant was in news as he
was released by his Taliban captors in Afghanistan on May
31 to American forces in exchange for five Taliban detainees
from Guantanamo Bay prison in USA.
JUAN CARLOS: Spain's King, who led Spain's transition
from dictatorship to democracy, was in news as he
announced his abdication in favour of his son, Prince
Felipe, making way for a "new generation”.
MAY 2014
YINGLUCK SHINAWATRA:
Prime Minister of Thailand
was removed from office by
a Constitutional Court as she
was found guilty of abusing
her power when she
transferred a civil servant to
another post more than three
years ago. The court ordered
her to step down
immediately along with all
members of her cabinet who were in office at that time.
Later the army imposed martial law in the country.
RAMARNI WILFRED: An 11-year-old boy in the UK has
achieved the highest possible score of 162 on a Mensa IQ
test, making him brainier than physicist Albert Einstein.
ALENKA BRATUSEK: First lady Prime Minister of Slovenia
submitted her resignation as she lost the majority in her
own party.
APPOINTMENTS
JULY 2014
NEW GOVERNORS APPOINTED
Ram Naik Uttar Pradesh.
Kesri Nath Tripathi West Bengal
Om Prakash Kohli Gujarat
Balramji Dass Tandon Chhattisgarh.
Padmanabha Acharya Nagaland.
Kaptan Singh Solanki Haryana
Margaret Alva Goa (Add. Charge)
PINKY ANAND: Additional Solicitor-General
FUAD MASUM: President of Iraq
JOKO WIDODO (JOKOWI): President of Indonesia
JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER: President of the European
Commission
JUNE 2014
RANJIT KUMAR: Solicitor General of India
Dr. AJIT KUMAR DOVAL: National Security Adviser, Govt
of India
ARUN JAITLEY: The Union Finance Minister has been
appointed as India's Governor on the Board of Governors of
the Asian Development Bank.
MADHURI DIXIT: The Bollywood celebrity has been
appointed as UNICEF's 'celebrity advocate for child rights'.
VISHAL SIKKA: Chief Executive Officer, Infosys
SUMITRA MAHAJAN: Speaker, Lok Sabha
DR. SUDHIR KUMAR MISHRA: CEO & MD, BrahMos
Aerospace Corporation
Arun Mishra, Adarsh Kumar Goel and Rohinton
Nariman: Judge in Supreme Court

N. SRINIVASAN: First Chairman of International Cricket
Council, Dubai
JUSTICE VK RAJAH: Attorney General of Singapore, he is
an Indian-origin judge.
ALEXANDER STUBB: Prime Minister of Finland
REUVEN RIVLIN: President of Israel, from Likud party
BASHAR AL-ASSAD: Elected as President of Syria, for the
third time successively.
PRINCE FELIPE: New King of Spain
ABDUL FATTAH AL-SISI: President of Egypt
MAY 2014
MUKUL ROHATGI: 14th Attorney-General of India
RAJIV MATHUR: Chief Information Commissioner
Lt Gen D S SUHAG: Chief of Army Staff (28th)
RAJEEV SURI: President and CEO of Finnish tele-
communications equipment maker Nokia.
AHMED MAITEEQ: Prime Minister of Libya
DALIA GRYBAUSKAITE: President of Lithuania, popular
as ‘Iron Lady’ of Lithuania
PETRO POROSHENKO: President of Ukraine
JACOB ZUMA: President of South Africa, from African
National Congress party
LUIS GUILLERMO SOLIS: President of Costa Rica
AWARDS & HONOURS
JULY 2014
PREM BHATIA AWARD for Journalism:
SMITA GUPTA, Associate Editor with The Hindu, for
political reporting.
NITIN SETHI, Associate Editor, Business Standard, for
excellence in environmental and development reporting
JUNE 2014
49TH
JNANPITH AWARD – 2013: Noted Hindi poet
Kedarnath Singh. The award includes Rs 11 lakh as cash.
27TH MOORTIDEVI AWARD – 2013: Renowned
scientist-turned- Malyalam writer C Radhakrishna for his
book 'Theekkadal Katanhu Thirumadhuram'
Bailey’s Women’s Prize for Fiction: Eimear McBride for
her first novel ‘A girl is a Half-Formed Thing’
'LEGION OF FRANCE': Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan
for his contribution to Cinema. It is one of its highest
civilian awards conferred by France.
TANG PRIZE 2014 DECLARED
Dr. Samuel Yin, a business tycoon from Taiwan established
the Tang Prizes in December 2012 in four major fields of
Sustainable Development, Biopharmaceutical Science,
Sinology, Rule of Law to encourage research in these fields.
They are given once in two years.
FIELD NAME CONTRIBUTION
Sinology Yu Ying-shih Research in Chinese
cultural, intellectual and
political history
Sustainable
Development
Gro Harlem
Brundtland, Ex.
PM of Norway.
innovation, leadership
and implementation of
sustainable
development
Rule of Law Albie Sachs fight against apartheid
Bio-pharma-
ceutical science
Dr. Tasuku
Honjo & James
Allison
fight against cancer
WORLD FOOD PRIZE: won by
Sanjaya Rajaram, India born
veteran plant scientist from
Mexico, for his contribution in
increasing the wheat production
in world. The Prize, carrying a
cash prize of $ 250,000, would be
presented during the U.N. World
Food Day on October 16.
DAG HAMMARSKJOLD Medal: Gallantry award given by
UNO to eight Indian soldiers on 29th
May - International Day
of UN peacekeepers.
Two Indian-Americans Sriram J Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe
jointly won the prestigious Scripps National Spelling Bee
at National Harbour, Maryland (USA).
MAY 2014
GOLD MEDAL FOR INDIAN DOCUMENTARY
“Silent Screams — India’s Fight Against Rape” a
documentary film directed by Pria Somiah won a Gold World
Medal for ‘Best Investigative Report’ as well as Bronze
Medals each in the ‘Current Affairs’ and ‘Human Concerns’
sections respectively at the 2014 New York Festivals
International TV and Film Awards.
NEW FRONTIERS AWARD 2014 FOR INDIA
Arabian Travel Market (ATM) awarded this award to India
for its outstanding contribution to rebuild physical
infrastructure and its rural tourism economy in the wake of
the June 2013 floods, landslides in the northern state of
Uttarakhand and the devastation wreaked by tropical
Cyclone Phailin.
PALME D’OR: The top prize for best
picture at the Cannes Film Festival
won by Turkey’s Winter Sleep directed
by Nuri Bilge Ceylan
National Florence Nightingale
Awards 2014 conferred on 35 nursing personnel by
President of India for their meritorious services.

BOOKS & AUTHORS
JULY 2014
The Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee
Finding Neema by Juliet Reynolds
Half a Rupee Stories by Gulzar
The Substance and The Shadow by Udaya Tara Nayar, a
biography of veteran actor Dilip Kumar
Innovation in India by Shyama V. Ramani
JUNE 2014
Blood Feud: The Clintons vs. The Obamas by Edward Klein
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – Americanah
Hannah Kent – Burial Rites
Audrey Magee – The Undertaking
Eimear McBride – A Girl Is a Half-Formed Thing
Donna Tartt – The Goldfinch
MAY 2014
Post Haste: Quintessential India by B.G. Verghese
Hard Choices by Hillary Clinton
India Junction – A Window to the Nation brought out
by Public Relations Directorate, Railway Board.
A Stamp is Born by C. R. Pakrashi
Arctic Summer by Damon Galgut
Capital in The Twenty First Century by Thomas Piketty
My Years with Rajiv and Sonia by R.D.Pradhan
Shivaji, the Real Hero: A pictorial book by the artist
Brijesh Mogre, released in Parliament of UK.
OBITUARY
JULY 2014
ZOHRA SEHGAL: Legendary actress from Hindi theatre
and cinema, aged over 102 years.
NADINE GORDIMER: South African Nobel Prize-winning
author, one of the most powerful voices against the
injustice of apartheid
JUNE 2014
SULTAN AZLAN SHAH: Known as the 'Father of Malaysian
Hockey' for his colossal contribution to the international
hockey for over 41 years -- both as a player and as an
administrator. He was Sultan of Perak, Malaysia.
GOPINATH MUNDE: Union Minister for Rural
Development and Panchayati Raj, Prominent BJP leader
from Maharashtra.
MAY 2014
RUSSY MODI: Noted corporate personality, Ex Chairman
and Managing Director of Tata Steel
MADHAV MANTRI: India's oldest Test cricketer, maternal
uncle of the legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar
GARY BECKER: Nobel Laureate economist from Chicago,
USA.
PLACES IN NEWS
JULY 2014
NEOGURI: Name of powerful typhoon that lashed Japan's
southern Okinawa islands on 8th
July, forcing over half a
million people to seek shelter, as the typhoon damaged
buildings, downed trees and brought air/sea traffic to a halt.
JUNE 2014
INDIRA GANDHI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT: The
airport in Delhi was declared second best in service quality
in world and sixth best airport in the world.
MEHRANGIR: Name of the bungalow of Late J. J. Bhabha,
a pioneer nuclear scientist, at Malabar Hills, Mumbai that
was auctioned for a record price of Rs. 372 crore. Sh.
Bhabha wanted that auction money may be used for the
development and the upkeep of the National Centre for the
Performing Arts- NCPA, a non-profit organization. However,
the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) has appealed to
the govt to acquire the property and to maintain it as a
monument.
RANI-KI-VAV, PATAN:
The 11th
century step
well at district Patan of
Gujarat has been
approved as a World
Heritage site by
UNESCO, describing it as
an “exceptional example
of technological
development” in utilising ground water resources. Rani-ki-
Vav (queen’s step well) is a particularly large and complex
example of a stepwell with seven storeys of ornamented
panels and relief representing the height of the Maru-
Gurjara style.
GHNP, KULLU: The Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP)
in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh has been accorded the
UNESCO World Heritage Site status for its “exceptional
natural beauty and conservation of biological diversity.”
Some other Indian World Heritage Sites (WHS) include the
Taj Mahal, Ellora Caves, Kaziranga National Park, Keoladeo
National Park, Manas National Park, Nandadevi Biosphere
Reserve and the Sunderbans.
THALOT/ LARJI: place about 40 km from Mandi in
Himachal Pradesh was in news as 24 engineering students,
including six girls, were washed away in River Beas due to
sudden release of water from the reservoir of Larji
hydropower project on river Beas, some five kilometers
away from the accident site. The students were from a
Hyderabad engineering college on an educational trip. The
accident took place when they were taking photographs on
the bank of the river.
GARIPHEMA: Village in Nagaland was in news as it has
been declared the country’s first tobacco-free village on the
occasion of World No Tobacco Day on May 31.

MAY 2014
HERAT: City in Afghanistan was in news as militants armed
with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades attacked
the Indian Consulate. The Indian diplomatic staff escaped
unharmed, while all four attackers were killed.
MANISA: Place in the western Turkey was in news as over
300 people were killed and hundreds more remained
trapped underground after an explosion and fire in a coal
mine took place.
AAB BAREEK: A village in Badakhshan province of
Afghanistan was in news as several hundreds of persons
were killed when their village was swept away due to a
heavy mud slide.
SPORTS WORLD
JULY 2014
20TH
C’WEALTH GAMES START IN GLASGOW
The 2014 Commonwealth Games (officially the 20th
Commonwealth Games) will be held in Glasgow, Scotland,
from 23 July to 3 August 2014. Mascot for the games has
been named ‘Clyde’ after the famous Clyde river of
Scotland. It is in the shape of a thistle plant, not an animal.
Shooter Vijay Kumar led Indian Contingent as flag bearer.
INDIA’S GOLD MEDAL WINNER AT
COMMONWEALTH GAMES (UPTO 30TH
JULY)
SR. NO. SPORTS PERSON SPORTS
1 K Sanjita Chanu Weight lifting
2 Sukhen Dev Weight lifting
3 Satish Sivalingam Weight lifting
4 Abhinav Bindra Shooting, 10 m rifle
5 Apurvi Chandela Shooting, 10 m rifle
6 Jitu Rai Shooting, 50 m pistol
7 Rahi Sanorbat Shooting, 25 m pistol
8 Sushil Kumar Wrestling
9 Amit Kumar Wrestling
10 Vinesh Phogat Wrestling
*For more news on medals won, please check latest news
SAINA NEHWAL: Indian shuttler lifted her first Super
Series title in two years, clinching the $ 750,000 Star
Australian Open after outplaying Spain's Carolina Marin at
Sydney, Australia.
PANKAJ ADVANI won his 9th
world title beating Poland’s
Kacper Flilpiak in the IBSF World 6-Red snooker
championship at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
Ritu Rani to captain India’s women hockey team for the
Commonwealth Games, Glasgow.
GERMANY LIFTS FIFA WORLD CUP 2014
Mario Gotze scored the winning goal for Germany in the
22nd minute of extra time as Germany became the football
world champions when they beat Argentina 1-0 in the final
at Rio-de Janeiro. Germany, who had made the final for the
fourth time in a row, won their first title after 1990.
AWARDS FOR FIFA WORLD CUP 2014
GOLDEN BALL
Player of the Tournament- Lionel Messi, Argentina
GOLDEN BOOT
Highest Goal Scorer (6) –: James Rodriguez, Colombia
GOLDEN GLOVE
Best Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer, Germany
The Indian men's football team has been ranked 151th in
the FIFA world rankings, which is topped by recently-
crowned world champions Germany.
Wimbledon Tennis Open, London: Novak Djokovic of
Serbia won the Men’s title defeating Roger Federer of
Switzerland.
Women’s title was won by Petra Kvitova of Czechslovakia by
defeating Eugenie Bouchard of Canada
VINCENZO NIBALI of Italy won the world famous three
week cycling marathon - Tour de France.
SIM BHULLAR has become the first player of Indian origin
to be a part of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in
USA after joining the Sacramento Kings team. The 21-year-
old is 7.5 feet tall and hails from Kapurthala in Punjab.
India clinched their first Test win against England at the
historic Lord's ground in London in nearly three decades.
JUNE 2014
Jitu Rai became first Indian shooter to win three medals in
successive ISSF Shooting World Cup. Also, by winning his
first-ever Gold medal and one Silver at the ongoing ISSF
World Cup in Maribor, Slovenia, he became the first Indian
shooter to win two medals at the same World Cup.
Abhishek Verma has become the first Indian archer to win
three gold medals in a single international tournament after
a silver medal he won last year was converted to gold.
Abhishek won a silver in the compound men’s event at the
Asian Archery Championship in Chinese Taipei in October-
November last year.
Yogeshwar Dutt and Sushil won the gold medal and
silver medal respectively, in wrestling in International
Competition in Sassari city, Italy.
Indian Premier League – 7: Kolkata Knight Riders won
the IPL title beating Kings Eleven Punjab at the final played
at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.
Viswanathan Anand won the bronze medal at the World
Rapid Chess Championship held at Dubai.

National Games: The 35th edition of these will be held in
Kerala in Jan– Feb, 2015. Sachin Tendulkar has been
appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for these games.
FRENCH OPEN TENNIS at Roland Garros, Paris
Rafael Nadal of Spain won the men’s title for the ninth time,
and the fifth time in a row, beating Novak Djokovic of
Serbia, Women’s title was won by Maria Sharapova of
Russia, defeating Romania's Simona Halep.
Hockey World Cup (men) Australia defeated The
Netherlands to win the cup at The Hague, Netherland.
Women’s cup was lifted by The Netherland defeating
Australia
16th Asian Junior Athletics Championship: India won
2 Gold, 5 Silver and 5 Bronze medals to finish 5th in final
medal tally at Taipei City, China from 12 June to 15 June
2014.
MAY 2014
Uber Cup for women’s badminton: China beats Japan in
the final played at New Delhi. Indian team lead by Saina
Nehwal won the bronze medal for the first time in Uber Cup.
Thomas Cup: (men’s badminton) Japan beats Malaysia to
lift their maiden trophy in the final played at New Delhi.
National Football Championship (women’s): Manipur
beats Odisha to clinch the title at Golaghat, Assam.
Virat Kohli was ranked no 1 in the latest ICC list of One
Day International (ODI) rankings.
Malavath Purna: The 13 year old
school girl from Khammam district of
Andhra Pradesh created history by
becoming the youngest female to
scale the Mount Everest.
Ronnie O'Sullivan: Snooker player from UK named World
Snooker's ‘player of the year’
World Snooker Championship 2014: won by Mark
Selby of England at Sheffield, England, beating the
defending champion Ronnie O Sullivan.
EUROPEAN CUP (football): Real Madrid won the cup
beating Atletico Madrid in the finals played at Lisbon, Spain
WTA Portugal Open 2014: Sania Mirza of India and Cara
Black of Zimbabwe won women’s doubles title held in
Oeiras, Portugal.
ATP World Tour Masters Tennis: Men’s title won by
Rafael Nadal (Spain) at Mutua Madrid, Spain. Women’s
title was won by Maria Sharapova of Russia.
FIFA WORLD CUP TO USE ‘BRAZUCA’ BALLS
In the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Brazil in June 2014,
technology will get a new meaning as the ‘Brazuca’ balls to
be used in the mega event will come with six in-built
HD cameras capturing 360 degree view of the on-field
action. These footballs have been specially manufactured by
the global sports company Adidas. The word Brazuca
meaning the Brazilian way of life was chosen by over one
million football fans.
Barcelona Club to retain Football player Lionel Messi on
net annual salary of 20 million Euros ($27.4 million) making
him world’s highest paid player
India has slid down two places to the 147th spot in the
latest FIFA Rankings of Football playing countries.
DAYS & DATES
AUGUST
World Breast – Feeding Week August 1-07
Friendship Day August 05
Hiroshima Day August 06
August Kranti Divas August 09
Nagasaki Day August 09
Dengue Prevention Day August 10
International Youth Day August 12
National Independence Day August 15
World Photography Day August 19
Sanskrit Day August 24
Women’s Equality Day August 26
National Sports Day August 29
JULY
Architecture day, Doctor’s day July 01
World Sports Journalists Day July 02
Free 4th
of July July 04
World Zonnosis Day July 06
International day of Co-Operatives July 07
World Population Day July 11
Man Walks on the Moon July 20
Kargil Vijay Divas July 26
JUNE
International Children’s Day June 01
World Naturist Day June 03
World Environment Day June 05
Father’s Day June 16
World Refugee Day June 20
International Olympic Day June 23
International Widows Day June 23
International Anti-Drugs day June 26
World Diabetes Day June 27
THE SECRET IN EDUCATION
LIES IN RESPECTING THE
STUDENT
ALL THE NEWS ITEMS IN THIS MAGAZINE HAVE BEEN SOURCED
FROM VARIOUS NEWS PAPERS AND GOVT. PRESS RELEASES

BUDGET 2014-15 : HIGHLIGHTS
INCOME TAX SAVINGS
Individual taxpayers
Income Rate Savings
Up to Rs. 250000 Nil Rs. 5000
Rs. 250001 to Rs. 500000 10% Rs. 5000
Rs. 500001 to Rs. 1000000 20% Rs. 5000
Above Rs. 1000000 30% Rs. 5000
For senior citizens
Income Rate Savings
UP to Rs. 300000 Nil Rs. 5000
Rs. 300001 to Rs. 500000 10% Rs. 5000
Rs. 500001 to Rs. 1000000 20% Rs. 5000
Above Rs. 1000000 30% Rs. 5000
TAXES & INTERESTS
 Income tax exemption limit raised from Rs. 2 lakh
to Rs. 2.5 lakh
 Deduction limit under Section 80 C raised to Rs.
1.5 lakh
 Annual PPF ceiling hiked to Rs. 1.5 lakh
 No tax for income up to Rs. 3 lakh for senior
citizens
 Housing loan interest deduction limit raised from
Rs. 1.5 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh
 AIM: Big relief to a large number of
taxpayers
WOMEN’S SAFETY
 Rs. 50 cr for ‘Safety’ for Women
 Rs. 150 crore for security net in large cities
 Crisis Management Centres to come up in Delhi
 Rs. 100 crore for ‘Beti Padhao, Beti Bachao
Yojana’
 AIM: To instill a sense of security amongst
women by curbing the crime against women
which jumped by 26.7% in 2013.
POWER & ENERGY
 Rs.500 crore Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti
Yojana for providing 24 x 7 power supply to all
homes in rural areas
 Rs. 100 cr for “Ultra-Modern Super Critical Coal
Based Thermal Power Technology
 Rs. 200 cr for power reforms in Delhi
 Rs. 500 cr for solar power projects
 Rs. 400 crore scheme for financing solar-power-
driven agricultural pump sets and water pumping
stations.
 AIM: For meeting ever-growing demand for
electricity. Villages and rural areas to
benefit most
AGRICULTURE
 Rs. 8 lakh crore for agriculture credit by banks
 Farmers to get loans at 7% interest rate
 Rs. 100 cr Agri- infrastructure fund
 Rs. 50 cr for indigenous cattle breeding
 Rs. 500 cr for price stabilization fund
 Rs. 100 cr for Kisan Television
 AIM: To encourage R & D in agriculture and
rationalize fertilizer prices to boost rural
economy
RURAL DEVELOPMENT
 Rs. 14389 cr for Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak
Yojana
 Initial sum of Rs. 100 cr for Village
Entrepreneurship Programme
 Swatch Bharat Abhiyaan targeting total sanitation
by 2019
 AIM: To provide Self-employment
opportunities in rural areas
TOURISM
 E-visas to be allowed at nine airports,
 Rs. 500 cr for 5 new tourism circuits
 National Heritage City Development and
Augmentation Yojana to be launched
 Rs.100 crore for the preservation of
archaeological sites
 AIM: Promotion of tourism to attract more
revenue and foreign currency. Govt aims to
achieve an average annual growth of 8%
per year in tourism.
INFRASTRUCTURE
 Rs. 37850 crore allocated for road building plan
via NHAI, including Rs. 3000 cr for the North East
 Rs. 11635 crore to develop existing ports &
harbrours
 Schemes for development of airports in tier-I and
II cities via AAI and PPP
 Rs. 7060 cr for 100 smart cities
 AIM: Clear highways sector from the maze
of clearances

MARKET & BANKING
 PSU banks to raise Rs. 2.40 lakh cr capital by
2018
 Introduction of uniform KYC norms
 One single operating DMAT account
 Two bank accounts in each household to be
opened to promote financial inclusion
 AIM: To ensure Banking facilities for all
households
EDUCATION
 5 new IITs and an equal number of IIMs, 4 new
AIIMS to be opened
 Rs. 28635 cr for Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
 Rs. 4966 for Rasthtriya Madhyamik Shiksha
Abhiyan
 AIM: To check high school dropouts and
boost higher education
DEFENCE
 Highest ever allocation of Rs. 2.29 lakh crore,
 one rank one pension adopted
 FDI limit in defence sector raised from 26% to
49%
 Rs. 1000 cr for border area rail network
 Additional Rs. 5000 cr for the modernization of
armed forces
 Aim: To provide for India’s need for state-
of-the-art weapons and capability to deploy
troops swiftly in border areas.
INFO TECHNOLOGY
 All govt depts, ministries to be integrated through
e-platform
 Tax benefits for IT industry restored
 FDI in e-commerce sector to boost to the online
retail industry
 Biotech clusters to be set up in Bangaluru and
Faridabad
 Aim: To promote new technology and
integration of technology across sectors
CUSTOMS & EXCISE
 Colour picture tubes exempted from basic
customs duty
 Basic customs duty on LCD, LED panels below 19
inches reduced
 More proposals to cut excise on food processing
and footwear
 Cigarettes, tobacco products, aerated water
containing sugar to become expensive
 AIM: To curb use of tobacco products as
smoking results in 1 million deaths every
year and 20% of the total deaths in the
country.
KEY BUDGET FIGURES – 2014-15
BUDGET HEAD Rs in Cr
1 Revenue Receipts (2+3) 1189763
2 Tax Revenue (net to centre) 977258
3 Non-Tax Revenue 212505
4 Capital Receipts (5+6+7) 605129
5 Recoveries of Loans 10527
6 Other Receipts 63425
7 Borrowings and other liabilities 531177
8 Total Receipts (1+4) $
1794892
9 Non-Plan Expenditure (10+12) 1219892
10 On Revenue Account - of which, 1114609
11 Interest Payments 427011
12 On Capital Account 105283
13 Plan Expenditure (14+15) 575000
14 On Revenue Account 453503
15 On Capital Account 121497
16 Total Expenditure (9+13)(Budget Size) 1794892
17 Revenue Expenditure (10+14) 1568111
18 Of Which, Grants for creation of
Capital Assets
168104
19 Capital Expenditure (12+15) 226781
20 Revenue Deficit (17-1) 2.9% of GDP 378348
21 Effective Revenue Deficit (20-18) 1.6% of
GDP
210244
22 Fiscal Deficit {16-(1+5+6)} 4.1% of
GDP*
531177
23 Primary Deficit (22-11) 0.8% of GDP* 104166
*–GDP for 2014-2015 has been projected at
` 128.77 trillion
GOVT HOUSE KEEPING (In %)
Rupee Comes From Rupee Goes To
Borrowings 24 Central Plan Outlay 11
Corporate Tax 21 Plan Asst. to State / UTs 15
Income Tax 13
Non Plan expenditure
State/UTs
03
Custom Duty 09 Non-Plan Expenditure 11
Excise Duty 10 States Share of Taxes 18
Service Tax 10 Interest Payments 20
Non-Tax Revenue 10 Defence 10
Non Debt Capital
Receipts
03 Subsidies 12
Total 100 Total 100

ECONOMIC SURVEY
2014 – 15
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on 9 July 2014
presented Economic Survey of India 2013-14 in the Lok
Sabha.
The Economic Survey is presented every year, just before
the Union Budget and after the Railway Budget. It is an
annual document of the Union Ministry of Finance,
Government of India and it reviews the developments in the
Indian economy of previous 12 months (fiscal year).
It summarizes the performance on major development
programmes, and highlights the policy initiatives of the
government and the prospects of the economy in the short
to medium term.
HIGHLIGHTS
 Economy to grow in the range of 5.4 – 5.9 per cent in
2014-15 overcoming sub-5 percent growth.
 Aided by favourable monsoons, agricultural and allied
sector registered a growth of 4.7 per cent in 2013-14.
 RBI has indentified five sectors -- infrastructure, iron
and steel, textiles, aviation and mining as the stressed
sectors.
 Public sector banks (PSBs) have high exposures to the
‘industry’ sector in general and to such ‘stressed’
sectors in particular.
 The India’s balance-of-payments position improved
dramatically in 2013-14 with current account deficit at
US $ 32.4 billion as against US$ 88.2 billion in 2012-13.
 India’s foreign exchange reserves increased from US$
292.0 billion at end March 2013 to US$ 304.2 billion at
end march 2014.
 In 2013-14, FDI inflows to the services sector (top five
sectors including construction) declined sharply by 37.6
per cent to US$ 6.4 billion compared to an overall
growth in FDI inflows at 6.1 per cent resulting in the
share of the top five services in total FDI falling to
nearly one-sixth.
 Record food grains and oilseeds production of 264.4
million tonnes (mt) and 32.4 mt is estimated in 2013-
14.
 Horticulture production estimated at 265 mt in 2012-13
has exceeded the production of foodgrains and oilseeds
for the first time.
Industry grew by just 1.0 per cent in 2012-13 and slowed
further in 2013-14 to just 0.4 per cent.
 India has the second fastest growing services sector
with its CAGR at 9.0 per cent and ranked 12th
in world.
The NHAI constructed 2844 km length in 2012-13, its
highest ever annual achievement. During 2013-14 a
total of 1901 km of road construction was completed.
 The cumulative costs of India’s low carbon strategies
have been estimated at around USD 834 billion at 2011
prices, between 2010 and 2030.
 According to Human Development Report 2013, India
has slipped down in HDI to 136th
rank as against 134 in
2012. It is still in the medium human development
category.
 The poverty ratio (based on the MPCE of 816 for rural
areas and 1000 for urban areas in 2011-12 at all India
level), has declined from 37.2 per cent in 2004-05 to
21.9 per cent in 2011-12.
 During 2004-05 to 2011-12, employment growth was
only 0.5 per cent, compared to 2.8 per cent during
1999-2000 to 2004-05 as per usual status.
RAILWAY BUDGET
2014 – 15
HIGHLIGHTS
 No new increase in passenger fares and freight
charges.
 Bullet train to start on Mumbai-Ahmedabad sector.
 Diamond quadrilateral to be developed for high speed
trains connecting the four metros.
 Plan to hike speed of trains to 160-200 km/hr in 9
sectors.
 Online booking to support 7,200 tickets/minute; to
allow 1.2 lakh users log in simultaneously.
 Seat reservation system to be revamped, ticket-booking
through mobile phones, post offices to be popularized.
 Platform and unreserved tickets to be available online
 Tourist trains to connect pilgrim centres.
 Combo parking-cum-platform tickets at stations.
 Women RPF Constables to escort ladies coaches; 4,000
women constables to be inducted.
 Retiring room facility to be extended to all stations.
 Feedback services through IVRS on quality of food.
 Battery operated cars for differently abled and senior
citizens at major stations.
 Food can be ordered through SMS, phone; Food courts
at major stations.
 Cleanliness budget up by 40 per cent over last year.
 CCTVs to be used at stations for monitoring cleanliness.
 RO drinking water at stations and trains.
 Provision of automatic door closing in mainline and sub-
urban coaches.
 FDI to be allowed in railway projects but not in
operations.

ISRAEL GAZA CONFLICT
For past two months Israeli forces have been pounding the
areas in Gaza strip controlled by Hamas militants, killing
hundreds of innocent Palestinians in retaliation to the
sporadic rocket attacks by the Hamas militants. This is not
the first time that armed conflict has erupted between Israel
and Palestine. The conflict between Arabs led by
Palestinians and Israel has its roots in the late 19th and
early 20th century.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: After the First World War,
the Britain took the control of the then Palestine,
comprising of present day area of Gaza, West bank, Jordan
and the Israel. In 1930s, Britain captured Syria also leading
to protests by Arabs. This conflict continues till date.
Later, during the Second World War when German Nazi
forces committed genocide of Jews to punish them for
support to Britishers, demand for a separate homeland for
Jews grew strong.
BIRTH OF ISRAEL: On November 29, 1947, the U N
General Assembly adopted a resolution recommending the
partition of the then Palestine into an Arab state called
Palestine and a Jewish state called Israel and UN controlled
Jerusalem. The state of Palestine had two geographically
separate parts - West Bank and Gaza strip.
The Israel was declared an independent country on 14th
May 1948. Palestinians, obviously, protested partition of
their homeland and vowed to get the area evicted of the
‘illegal occupants’ (Israelis).
Israel on its part never accepted Palestine as independent
country and demanded that Gaza Strip and West Bank
should be merged with adjoining Egypt and Jordan,
respectively.
The attempts by Palestinians supported by Arabs of Egypt,
Syria and Jordan to evict Israel from Palestine led to four
wars between them:
1948 War of Independence
1956 Sinai War
1967 Six Day War
1973 Yom Kippur War
In all these wars, the Arabs were defeated by the Israelis
backed as they were by US, Britain and France.
PEACE PROCESS
In 1978, USA and its allies attempted to brokerage peace
between Israel and Egypt, one of the main player in the
region. Known as Camp David Accord, it was the first such
agreement between Israel and any Arab country. They
agreed to recognize existence of each other. However, no
peace could be brought between the two warring sides and
frequent armed conflict continued, killing numerous people
on both sides.
Another major breakthrough came in the shape of the Oslo
Accord 1993 and 1995 when Israel recognised the Palestine
Liberation Organisation led by Yasser Arafat.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
However, peace could never be achieved in reality and
armed skirmishes continue till date. The area in West Bank
is presently controlled by militant group called Al-Fateh and
the Gaza Strip is controlled by another militant group called
Hamas. Israel controls borders of Gaza and has put it under
a under a military siege.
CURRENT PROVOCATIONIN GAZA
The present strife is result of alleged killing of three Israeli
youth by Palestinians. Israel has retaliated by firing its own
rockets and air strikes killing hundreds of Gaza inhabitants.
FUTURE PROSPECTS
There does not seem to be any solution in sight as Hamas
refuses to accept Israel and Israel refuses to accept the
existence of Palestine.

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