. Current Affairs week 52Pdf.

21 Dec 27Dec 2015

Best of Current Affairs Desk

28th December

IN THIS WEEK

WHAT'S NEW NIRDESHAK.COM

Place
IFFI - 2015
BANKING
ENVIRONMENT
SPORTS CRICKET,
ECONOMY - INDIAN
RAILWAYS

Dear Readers,
Nirdeshak.com has initiated all new Current
Affairs (BNCA) with weekly pdf update. In todays
competitive scenario, it has become most crucial
to read more analytical and absorbable content,
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competitive exams, for Banks, IBPS PO, SBI, IAS,
SSC and other exams.
In the week, many place, events and policy
remained important as India and world saw
many developments. Further know more about
key personalities of the week, banking news,
government policies and foreign relations with
neighbours.
Happy learning,

Warm regards

Editorial Team
Nirdeshak.com

Place
Raiwind Palace
Prime Minister Narendra Modi stunned the
diplomatic circle, his opponents and even his party
members by undertaking a surprise visit to Pakistan
and meeting Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif
on 25 December 2015. This impromptu meeting
was held at Sharifs residence near Lahore at
sprawling Palace spread over 5000 acres.
To Know: Raiwind Palace came to news after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif held their informal meeting here on 25
December. Modi had made a surprise visit to Pakistan while on his way from
Afghanistan to India.

The visit was Modis first visit to Pakistan, and the first trip by an Indian prime minister to
the country in 11 years.

Raiwind Palace is situated in the small town of Jati Umrah on the outskirts of Lahore.
This palace is spread over a 5000 acre estate. This palace is the palace of the Sharif
family which has huge business interests in various sectors. The palace was also
hosting the wedding ceremony of Nawaz Sharifs grand-daughter during Modis visit.

Basholi (Kathua, JK)

The cable-stayed bridge situated at Basholi (J&K) to provide close connectivity
between the three states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
To Know: The cable stayed-bridge is built on
River Ravi at Basholi in Kathua district of
Jammu and Kashmir. The Basohli Bridge is

fourth of its kind in India. The other three cable-stayed bridges are Hooghly Bridge
at Kolkata, Naini Bridge in Allahabad and Rajiv Gandhi Sea Link in Mumbai.

The work on this 592 m long cable-stay bridge was started in September 2011 on the
demand of people of Basohli where over 22 villages were submerged in water and
evacuated to other places after the construction of Ranjit Sagar dam.

It is a joint venture of Border Roads Organization (BRO), IRCON (a Railway Company)

and SP Singla Construction group.

Afghanistan
New Parliament complex, built by India, was inaugurated on 25 December 2015.
To Know: Afghanistans new parliament building was
dedicated to the nation on 25 December 2015 the
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the Indian PM
Narendra Modi. This inauguration function was held
on the occasion of Modis state visit to Afghanistan.

This complex has been built by financial and technical assistance from India and has
cost approximately Rs. 710 crore.

The parliament building, which was started in 2009, had missed its completion
deadlines at least 3 times since 2011.

The new Parliament building is located across from the now-ruined Darul Aman
Palace, the now-gutted palace of King Amanullah Khan. It is worth mentioning that at a
time it was proposed to covert Darul Aman Palace into Afghanistans new Parliament.
But the plan was shelved due to financial constraints and attacks on the palace by the
Taliban.

Defence
INS Godavari
The first indigenously designed and built warship of the Indian Navy
decommissioned on 23 December 2015.
To Know: INS Godavari, built by Mazagon Dock
Limited in Mumbai, was the first indigenously
designed and built guided-missile frigate of the
Indian Navy. It was the lead ship of her class
and was commissioned into the Indian Navy on
10 December 1983.

Deployed in numerous operations including Operation Jupiter 1988 (Sri Lanka),

Operation Shield and Operation Bolster 1994 (de-induction of Indian Army from
Somalia) and Patrol of Gulf of Aden (PoG) 2009 and 2011 (anti-piracy operations in
the Gulf of Aden). It came into limelight in an operation called Operation Cactus in
1988, in which India successfully thwarted a coup against Maldivian Government.

Banking
Tech Mahindra Ltd
IT Company Launched its mobile wallet called MoboMoney during December 2015.
To Know: Software services company Tech Mahindra Ltd, which
is among the 11 firms to get a payments bank licence, on 23
December 2015 launched a mobile wallet called MoboMoney.

MoboMoney will allow consumers to complete online as well

as offline transactions, including payments at grocery stores, tea vendors and

restaurants that accept only cash. The company claims the platform allows transactions
as low as Rs.1.

MoboMoney is run with the help of near-field communication (NFC) technology, where
merchants and customers are issued NFC tags. While the merchants would need a
point of sale (POS) device or a NFC-enabled smartphone for the transaction, the
customer would just need the NFC tag at the time of purchase.

Tech Mahindra claimed that it is Indias first commercial rollout of a contact-less

payment wallet.

Railways - Banking
Indian Railways tied up with ICICI Bank to sell rail tickets through its applications.
To Know: ICICI Bank, will introduce the facility to book rail tickets on
its mobile banking application and prepaid digital wallet. On 23
December the bank tied up with Railways e-ticketing platform Indian
Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to sell rail tickets through its
applications.

It is the first time that IRCTC has tied up with a banking entity to sell tickets through the
various applications of the bank.

Users will have to first register on the website of IRCTC, where it primarily sells rail
tickets, and then do a one-time registration on the banks website to avail of the facility.

The facility is not limited to ICICI customers as any other banks customer can also use
the facility. The payments for the purchases can be made using the online banking
facility, debit or credit card of any bank.

Sports
Cricket
ICC Cricketer of the Year Steve Smith (Australia)
To Know: Australian batsman and present captain Steve
Smith was named the ICC Cricketer of the Year award for
2015 by the ICC in a list released by it on 23 December. Smith
also won ICC Test Cricketer of the Year award while South
African batting maestro AB De Villiers was named ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year.
The full list of ICC Award 2015:
ICC Cricketer of the Year (Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy) Steve Smith (Australia)
ICC Test Cricketer of the Year Steve Smith (Australia)
ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year AB de Villiers (South Africa)
ICC Womens ODI Cricketer of the Year Meg Lanning (Australia)
ICC Womens T20 Cricketer of the Year Stafanie Taylor (West Indies)
ICC T20 Performance of the Year Faf du Plessis (South Africa) (119, 56 balls,
114, 56 2nd T20I vs. West Indies, 11 January 2015, Johannesburg)
ICC Emerging Cricketer of the Year Josh Hazlewood (Australia)
ICC Associate/Affiliate Cricketer of the Year Khurram Khan (UAE)
ICC Spirit of Cricket Award Brendon McCullum (New Zealand)
ICC Umpire of the Year (David Shepherd Trophy) Richard Kettleborough
(England)

Corporate
Corporate

Public Sector - Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL)

IOCL, maintained its top spot in the List of Fortune 500 Indian companies (2015).
To Know: Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) topped the Fortune 500 List of Indian
companies for 2015 with an annual revenue of Rs. 4,51,911 crore. This was the sixth
consecutive time that IOC grabbed the top spot.

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) was second in the list with fullyear revenue of Rs. 3,82,565 crore. Tata Motors with a revenue of Rs. 2,67,025 crore
jumped to third slot from last years fifth place by replacing Bharat Petroleum (BPCL).
State Bank of India (SBI) moved to fourth position with an annual revenue of Rs.
2,57,289 crore, from sixth rank in 2014. Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) is ranked fifth with an
annual revenue of Rs. 2,40,367 crore. It had grabbed the third spot in last years
ranking.

The list, which has been compiled by global business magazine Fortunes Indian edition
since 2010, said the total revenue of firms has grown a merely 2.7% and profits fell
5.9% compared with 2014.

Airline
Rayani Air
Malaysias first Islamic airline launched.
To Know: Rayani Air is the name of Malaysias first Islamic airline
that offers Shariah compliant services including prayers before takeoff, no on-flight serving of alcohol or meals with pork and a strict dress
code for female flight attendants.

It was launched by its Indian origin couple Ravi Alagendrran and his wife Karthiyani
Govindan who promoted the airline.

Rayani Airs fleet has two Boeing 737-400 aircraft with a capacity of 188 passengers
each.

Corporate
Indulekha - Mosons Group
FMCG major Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) signed an agreement with Mosons
Group acquire its flagship brand Indulekha for Rs. 330 crore.
To Know: Mosons Group is the owner of Indulekha and Vayodha
brands. Indulekha was first launched in 2009 as a premium ayurvedic
hair oil. Over the years, Indulekha Bringha Oil has carved out a niche
for itself supported by endorsements and sustained investments in brand-building.

The brand, with a strong presence across Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and a
recent foray into Maharashtra, had a turnover of Rs.100 crores and an EBITDA margin
of around 30% for the year ending March 2015.

Automobile
FAME - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles
Leading automakers of the India Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Maruti
Suzuki recently joined hands to invest as well as develop components and systems
for electric and hybrid vehicles.
To Know: FAME or Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric
Vehicles in India scheme envisages Rs. 795 crore in incentives for two years as part
of the first phase of the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan. This scheme offers
cash incentives for those who want to buy hybrid and electric vehicles.

According to the scheme, the customer buying any form of hybrid or electric vehicle will
get the incentive in terms of lower cost, while the manufacturer can claim the incentive
from the government.

Health

AIIMS OPD Appointments System

The Central-Govt.-run All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi on 25
December 2015 launched an appointments system which aims to reduce the
waiting period from an average of six hours to two. This project has been
implemented by which entities? National Informatics Centre (NIC) and Tata
Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS)
Explanation: The new appointments system developed and implemented by the
governments National Informatics Centre and software services firm Tata
Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) has been envisaged to make AIIMSs out-patient
department (OPD) more patient-friendly.

While the National Informatics Centre developed the integration software, TCS helped
complete the system by developing processes for crowd management. The project was
envisaged in 2014 to improve accountability and transparency at AIIMSs OPD, making
it more patient-friendly.

AIIMS is facing tremendous hardships in managing the ever growing number of OPD
patients it receives from almost all parts of the country. It is expected that the new
system will reduce the long queues outside its OPD.