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INTERNATIONAL
Iran and P5+1 Reached Historic Nuclear Deal
Iran, the P5+1 and the European Union (EU) on 2 April conceded on a framework agreement called as
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) intended to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
The agreement was reached at Lausannes Beau-Rivage Palace hotel in Switzerland. The informal
framework agreement will be used as the basis for evolving the final draft of JCPOA by 30 June 2015.
These 6 world powers are collectively known as P5+1, or five permanent members of the UN Security
Council, namely China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, plus Germany.
Pakistan and Russia Agreed To Hold First Ever Joint Military Exercise
Pakistan and Russia have agreed to hold first-ever joint military exercises as part of their enhanced
defence cooperation. In this regard, an agreement was reached between both nations during a meeting
between Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Asif in Moscow
on 16 April 2015.
China and Pakistan Signed An Agreement On CPEC
China and Pakistan on 21 April signed an agreement on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) plan
worth 46 billion US dollars. The agreement was signed by Chinas President Xi Jinping and Pakistan
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. As part of the agreement, China will provide up to 37 billion US dollar in
investment for energy projects to generate 16400 MW of power. Concessional loans will cover nearly 10
billion US dollar of infrastructure projects.
Omar al-Bashir Re-elected As Sudan President
Sudans President Omar al-Bashir has won Presidential re-election by securing 94 per cent of the vote on
27 April. With this win, Omar al-Bashir extends his 25-year rule. Omar faces war crimes charges and is
wanted by the International Criminal Court. He is in power since 1989. In this election Omars National
Congress Party (NCP) also won 323 of 426 parliamentary seats.
cooperation in this sector was frozen over Indias nuclear programme. The agreement for uranium supply,
which came two years after protracted negotiations following the 2013 civil nuclear deal between India
and Canada, was signed after comprehensive talks Prime Minister Narendra Modi had with his Canadian
counterpart Stephen Harper. Canada is the third country to supply uranium to India after Russia and
Kazakhstan.
India Ranks 5th On Global E-Waste Monitor 2014 List
According to the Global E-Waste Monitor 2014compiled by United Nation(UN)s think tank United
Nations University (UNU), India is the fifth biggest producer of e-waste in the world, discarding 1.7 million
tonnes (Mt) of electronic and electrical equipment in 2014.India came in fifth, behind the US, China,
Japan and Germany.
NATIONAL
PM Narendra Modi Launched Indias First National Air Quality Index
The National Air Quality Index (NAQI) was launched for the first time in India by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on 6 April 2015 primarily for assessing the quality of air in major urban centres across the country on
a real-time basis. This National Air Quality Index will provide information on the quality of air in 10 major
cities in the country on a real-time basis.The ten cities where the quality of air can be monitored are Delhi,
Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Varanasi, Faridabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bangalore and Ahmedabad.
Union Government Notified NJAC 2014
The Union Government on 13 April 2015 notified the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC)
Act, 2014 and the Constitution (Ninety-ninth Amendment) Act, 2014. The NJAC Act and 99th Amendment
Act were notified in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 1 of the Act. With this
new law the collegium system to appoint members to the higher judiciary has come to an end. Now
President will appoint judges in the Supreme Court (SC) and 24 High Courts (HCs) in consultation with
the NJAC.
MHA renames Visa On Arrival Scheme To E-Tourist Visa
Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on 14 April decided to rename Tourist Visa on Arrival-Electronic
Travel Authorization (TVoA-ETA) scheme as e-Tourist Visa (eTV) scheme.
Rajya Sabha Passed Transgenders Rights Bill
The Rajya Sabha on 24 April passed a bill that seeks equal rights for the transgenders.The Rights of
Transgender Persons Bill 2014 was introduced by DMK MP Tiruchi Siva. It was the first private members
bill to be passed by the Upper House in 45 years. The last time the Lok Sabha passed a private
members bill was in 1970. In the Rajya Sabha a private members bill was passed in 1969.
Railways Launches Mobile App for Paperless Ticketing of Unreserved Category
The Railway Ministry has launched utsonmobile, a mobile application for paperless unreserved tickets.
The application service was launched by Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 22 April in New Delhi.
This application will allow its passenger to buy a ticket on the move and to board the train with the ticket
secured on his mobile phone in digital format, without any need for printing the ticket. Initially, it has been
launched as a pilot project and cover 15 stations in Southern Railway. Later on it will be extended to
entire country in phases.
STATES
Gujarat Launched Industrial Tourism To Showcase Development
Gujarat government has on 12 April launched industrial tourism package to promote its development by
showcasing its major industrial installations which have earned global acclaim for state. It is a first of its
kind initiative India, offered by Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) in collaboration with
Ahmedabad based Akshar Travels Pvt Ltd. The tour package is called as Industrial Tour of Gujarat will
cover some of the major industrial attractions of the state.
Indian Army Conducts AkramanII Defense Exercise In Rajasthan
Indian Army on 26 April conducted a major exercise Akraman-II in Rajasthan. The exercise was
conducted by the Chetak Corps, a part of South Western Command based in Bhatinda, Punjab. The
exercise aimed to test a new generation of weaponry and platforms which are employed in the desert
region to provide real time battle and situational awareness to its commanders.
Kerala Govt Launched Subodham Project To End Liquor Abuse
State Government of Kerala on 19 April 2015 launched Subodham project, to help people in the state to
overcome addiction to liquor.The project was launched by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Art of
Living Foundation founder Sri Sri Ravishankar in Kochi.
BHEL commissioned 600 MW thermal Unit In Chhattisgarh
State-owned power equipment-maker Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) on 13 April commissioned
a 600 MW thermal unit at Dhabra in Janjgir Champa District of Chhattisgarh for the Dainik Bhaskar Power
Limited.This is the second unit of 2 600 MW power project, commissioned by BHEL. The first 600 MW
Unit was commissioned in 2014.
CONFERENCES
5th SAARC Health Ministers Meeting Held In New Delhi
The 5th meeting of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Health Ministers was held
on 8 April 2015 in New Delhi. The meet ended with the adoption of Delhi Declaration on Public Health
Challenges.The declaration focuses on issues common to member nations of South Asia Association for
Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
ECONOMY
Union Government Unveiled new FTP
Union Minister of Commerce & Industry on 2 April unveiled Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2015-2020. The
new trade policy will incorporate government ambitious initiatives such as Make in India, Digital India
mission, Skill India programme, ease of business in order to boost jobs and take Indias exports to 900
billion dollars by 2020. In the new policy FTP2015-20, two new schemes Merchandise Exports From India
Scheme (MEIS) and Services Exports From India Scheme (SEIS) were introduced.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Launched MUDRA Bank
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 8 April launched the Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency
Ltd. (MUDRA) Bank in New Delhi.The bank will provide credit of up to 10 lakh rupees to small
entrepreneurs and act as a regulator for Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs). The Pradhan Mantri MUDRA
Yojana will be the main support system for the bank and will be the part of Small Industries Development
Bank of India (SIDBI). MUDRA Bank has been started with an initial corpus of Rs. 20,000 crore. Apart
from this, Rs. 3,000 crore has been earmarked as credit guarantee corpus.
India Ranks 125th In the World For Fixed Broadband Penetration
According to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) latest report, India ranks 125th in the world for
fixed broadband penetration with only 1.2 per 100 inhabitants and the global average is 9.4 per 100
inhabitants.This rating puts India behind Sri Lanka and Bhutan. In the wireless or mobile broadband
segment, India is ranked at 113th with a penetration of 3.2 per 100 inhabitants.
India Fourth Largest Supplier of Generic Medicines To US
India has emerged as the fourth largest supplier of generic medicines to the United States. It was
announced by Minister of State (MoS) for Chemicals and Fertilizers Hansraj Ahir gave this information in
the Rajya Sabha in reply to a question. Indias generic medicines exports have touched over US 4 billion
dollars in 2013-14 in spite of stringent regulatory measures imposed by US. Union Government also
announced that Indian pharmaceutical companies are already exporting generic medicines to Africa, West
Asia and European countries.
designed to achieve speed of more than 30 knots at displacement of around 7300 tonnes.INS
Vishakapatnam will also be fitted with supersonic surface to surface missile system.
NASA develops First 3-D Printed Copper Rocket Engine Part
NASA engineers have developed the first full-scale three dimensional (3-D) printed copper rocket engine
part. The part developed was a combustion chamber liner that operates at extreme temperatures and
pressures using additive manufacturing technique.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A) APPOINTMENTS
Nasim Zaidi Takes Over as new CEC
Nasim Zaidi took over as the 20th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India on 19 April.He is Indias
20th CEC and succeeded Hari Shankar Brahma, who had retired on April 18, 2015.
Loretta Lynch Sworn In As U.S. Attorney General
Loretta Lynch on 27 April 2015 was sworn-in as the United States 83rd Attorney General, the first AfricanAmerican woman to serve as the nations top law enforcement official. She succeeded former attorney
general Eric Holder, who left the position on 24 April 2015 after serving as Attorney General for six years.
B)RESIGNS
ICC president Mustafa Kamal Resigned
International Cricket Council (ICC) President A.H.M. Mustafa Kamal resigned from his post on 1
April.Mustafa Kamal is a Bangladeshi politician and cricket official. Apart from being the President of the
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), he was also functioning as the President of ICC since 2014. He
resigned from this post as he was apparently hurt at not being given the opportunity to hand out the World
Cup trophy to champions Australia.
C)DEATHS
Nobel Laureate German Novelist Gunter Grass Died
German Nobel laureate novelist Guenter Grass was died on 13 April in Luebeck, Germany. He was 87.
He was a novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor and recipient of the 1999 Nobel
Prize in Literature. His writings mainly focused on the Nazi era, the horrors of the war and the destruction
and guilt that remained after defeat of Germany.
D)VISITORS
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Visited France
Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited France from 9-11 April 2015. During the visit, Narendra Modi met
with French President Francois Hollande and had talks with business leaders of select French companies
in defence and infrastructure sectors. India and France signed 17 agreements in various fields.These
included deals on Rafale fighter jets, Jaitapur nuclear reactor, renewable sources of energy, railways,
smart city and several others. Among other agreements signed between India and France , an important
agreement was struck on both the countries proceeding forward on the stalled nuclear project in Jaitapur
in Maharashtra.Narendra Modi visited the CNES (National Centre for Space Studies) and the Airbus A
380 Assembly Line Facility in Toulouse, France. He gifted a painting titled Tree of Life, reflecting
traditional societal respect for nature in India to the French President Francois Hollande.
E)MISCELLANEOUS
Minor Planet Named as 4538 Vishyanand
Michael Rudenko, a committee member of the Minor Planet Center on 1 April officially named a minor
planet as 4538 Vishyanand, to honour Indias first chess grandmaster, Vishwanathan Anand.The mainbelt minor planet was discovered between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter by Kenzo Suzuki in Toyota, Aichi
Prefecture, Japan, on 10 October 1988. Since its discovery, the planet remained unnamed.
PLACES IN NEWS
Thane Named As National Earth Hour Capital 2015 By WWF
Thane in Mumbai, Maharashtra was named as the National Earth Hour Capital 2015 on 9 April 2015.
Thane city won the bid among the three finalists Thane, Pune and Rajkot in the Earth Hour City
Challenge (EHCC) 2015 conducted by World Wide Fund. Seoul city, the capital and largest metropolis of
South Korea, on 9 April 2015 was awarded the title of Global Earth hour Capital 2015 after it won the
Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) of World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
ABBREVIATIONS
IFCI Industrial Finance Corporation of India
IFSC International Financial Services Centre
UN ECOSOC - United Nations Economic and Social Council
IRENA - International Renewable Energy Agency
SDRF State Disaster Response Fund
BOOKS IN NEWS
Historical Documents Testify The Sovereignty of Senkaku Authored By Tadayoshi Murata
The book entitled Historical Documents Testify the Sovereignty of Senkakuauthored by Tadayoshi
Murata, an honorary professor at Japans Yokohama National University. The book describes how the
Japanese government illegally occupied the Chinese Diaoyu Islands step by step in the 1890s. Japan has
recently intensified its propaganda to claim several uninhabited islands disputed with its neighbor in the
East China Sea, but a Japanese historian refuted the claim and questioned Tokyos reliability since it has
manipulated evidence to mislead the rest of the world on the territorial issue.
COMMITTEES
Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry Constituted Ajay Shankar committee To Simplify
Clearances
The Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry on 8 April formed an expert committee under the
chairmanship of Ajay Shankar to suggest simplified compliance for establishing new industries. He is a
former Secretary to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP). The Expert Committee has
been constituted for examining the possibility of replacing multiple prior permissions with pre-existing
regulatory mechanism and to prepare draft legislation for this purpose.