Current Affairs November 2016 Ebook JAGRAN JOSH

Current Affairs September 2016 eBook 1
www.jagranjosh.com 1
Preface ..............................................................................................4
Pick of the Month ..............................................................................5
National ........................................................................................... 19
International .................................................................................... 33
Economy .......................................................................................... 52
Science & Technology ...................................................................... 71
Environment & Ecology .................................................................... 82
States .............................................................................................. 99
Report|Survey ............................................................................... 106
Summit and Conference ................................................................. 120
Corporate ...................................................................................... 123
Sports ............................................................................................ 129
Defence|Security ........................................................................... 149
At a Glance .................................................................................... 155
Committees | Commissions............................................................ 159
News Makers ................................................................................. 164
Awards|Honours ........................................................................... 169
Exam Boosters ............................................................................... 187
Quizzes .......................................................................................... 204
Latest Government Jobs Closing in November 2016 ........................ 214
PREFACE
The Current Affairs November 2016 eBook covers the current events that happened in the
month of October. Current Affairs is a crucial component of any competitive exams including
IAS|PCS, SSC, Banking and MBA.
The lack of preparation for current affairs by the aspirants and candidates often is the main
cause of their failure. Even though the candidates know it but they are often confused about
how to prepare the current affairs section of the different competitive exams. It is to clear such
doubts and confusion, Jagranjosh.com has come up with eBook concept.
The Current Affairs November 2016 eBook is divided into different section keeping in mind the
need of various exams. The sections covered are International, National, Economy, Ecology and
Environment, Science & Technology, Corporate, Sports, States and News Capsule. It covers
stories like BRICS summit, ASEAN summit, 2016 Noble Prizes, RBI notification on start-ups
among others.
Every news item in each section is arranged date wise with the most recent news being covered
first and so on. Although there might be some deviations but that is solely to give priority to the
most important current affairs in each section.
Presentation of the given current affairs has been planned in such a way that it remains in the
minds of readers for a longer duration. Wherever necessary each news item is presented along
with a background and analysis so as to help candidates contemplate all the important current
events at the time of exam in an effective way.
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PICK OF THE MONTH

BRICS SUMMIT CONCLUDED WITH ADOPTION OF GOA
DECLARATION
The eighth BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and
South Africa) summit was held from 15 to 16 October
2016 in Benaulim city of Goa, India. It was held under
the theme Building Responsive, Inclusive and
Collective Solutions.
The summit was attended by the Prime Minister

Narendra Modi, Brazilian President Michel Temer,
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President
Jacob Zuma.
At the end of the summit, Goa Declaration was released by the leaders saying it is the
responsibility of all states to prevent terrorist actions from their territories. In the 109 point
Declaration, the leaders called upon all nations to adopt a comprehensive approach in
combating terrorism. They condemned the recent attacks against some BRICS countries,
including the Uri terror attack in India.
HIGHLIGHTS OF 109 POINT GOA DECLARATION ADOPTED AT 2016 BRICS

SUMMIT
The leaders condemned terrorism in all its forms and stressed that there can be no
justification for such acts.
They acknowledged that international terrorism, especially the Islamic State, constitute an
unprecedented threat to international peace and security.
All five nations reaffirmed the commitment to increase effectiveness of the UN counter
terrorism framework.
The Goa Declaration called for the need for reforms of the UN, including its Security Council,
to increase representation of developing countries.
They also highlighted the importance of public and private investments in infrastructure,
including connectivity.
Apart from this, the leaders of BRICS nations appreciated the progress in the implementation of
the Strategy for BRICS Economic Partnership and emphasise the importance of the BRICS
Roadmap for Trade, Economic and Investment Cooperation until 2020.
BRICS leaders welcomed the signing of the MoU between the BRICS countries National
Development Banks and the New Development Bank.
The BRICS Grouping also welcomed the adoption of the landmark 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development and its Sustainable Development Goals. Saying that the global economic recovery
is progressing, they noted that the growth is weaker than expected with downside risks to the
global economy continuing to persist.
They reiterated determination to use all policy tools to achieve the goal of sustainable and
inclusive growth.
FOCUS OF THE SUMMIT

The summits focus was on enhancing people-to-people (P2P) contacts of BRICS member states,
especially youth. In this context, India conducted activities like U-17 Football Tournament,
Youth Summit, Young Diplomats Forum, and Film Festival among others.
The ninth BRICS Summit will be hosted by China in 2017. In 2015, the seventh BRICS summit
was held from 8 to 9 July in the Russian city of Ufa in Bashkortostan.
Besides, on the sidelines of the 2016 BRICS Summit, the leaders also held an outreach summit
with the Leaders of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic
Cooperation) member countries. The BIMSTEC countries comprises of Bangladesh, India,
Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.
During this outreach BRICS-BIMSTEC summit, the leaders planned to jointly explore possibilities
of expanding trade and commercial ties between the member nations of the two international
orgaisations. They Decision on investment cooperation between BRICS and BIMSTEC countries
was made, while advancing on the common goal of peace, democracy, development, and
prosperity.
BRICS CREDIT RATING AGENCY: A SHIFT TO INVESTOR-PAYS MODEL

FROM ISSUER-PAYS MODEL
In the BRICS Goa summit 2016, member countries agreed to establish a credit rating agency
based on market oriented principles. The BRICS gathering of the five biggest rising economies
Brazil, Russia, India, China and South African wants to challenge the current credit rating
framework through another credit rating agency where it is the forthcoming financial specialist
that will pay for the rating of an issuer of a debt instrument.
Under the present estimating model of rating organizations known as Issuer-pays Model, the
organization or foundation issuing securities pays the rating agency to be appraised. Whereas in
new BRICS rating agency, the speculator wants to put resources into the organization that will
pay for the rating of the organization an investor- pays display.
It was argued that it would further consolidate the global governance architecture. It is much
required change happening where the experts exploring the possibility of setting up an
independent BRICS Credit Rating Agency entirely based on market-oriented principles, in order
to further strengthen the world wide economic governance.
WHAT IS THE NEED OF BRICS CREDIT RATING AGENCY?
It is said that this a shift to investor-pays model from issuer-pays model, because there is a
moral hazard in the existing model. There is a moral issue. Before 1970s, ratings were
supported by the financial specialists, not the issuer.
In planning for the BRICS rating agency, Exim Bank had arranged an idea paper and rating
agency Crisil Ltd had led a study for India. Later, the idea paper was imparted to the next four
individuals from BRICS. "There was an information workshop in Mumbai where Securities and
Exchange Board of India (Sebi) which is the controller of rating organizations in India, was there.
Other members too presented their ideas.
Pretty much as the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) contributes new financing to existing
financing accessible through other multilateral organizations, the new rating agency will
likewise add to existing information of rating frameworks.
Presently, the rating is from one viewpoint, which is not a developing market point of view. The
granularity is not there. For instance, SBI (State Bank of India) is an AAA evaluated organisation,
yet when it brings securities up in the international market, it is capped at India's sovereign
rating, which is BBB short. India has never at any point defaulted how would you give India a
BBB short rating?
Therefore, the need of an independent credit agency was realized because it was observed that
the methodologies adopted by other top three global credit ratings were compelling growth in
emerging economies. The purpose of creating a new credit agency was to challenge the
hegemony of western credit rating agencies such as Moodys, Fitch and Standard & Poors.
These three agencies together account for 90 percent of the global credit rating market.
Emerging economies have been pointing out the double standards of the global rating agencies
and have partly blamed them to be responsible for the high cost of borrowings in developing
countries. In the methods of these credit rating agencies developing countries were rated lower
compared to western countries with poor macro-economic indicators. The new credit rating
agency would assess the economic growth in Asia and in non Western countries. With its own
credit agency BRICS would also be able to raise bonds in many countries.
CHALLENGES WITH BRICS CREDIT RATING AGENCY
Amidst all the talk and some exciting efforts from the member countries, it seems pretty certain
that the talk to establish the Credit rating agency is on and being discussed between members.
However, there are some issues with this agency. The reputation of credit rating agency is
massively hit by the event unfolded after Lehman Brothers collapse which was the first sign of
global financial crisis emerged in 2008-09.
Another challenge is that if established, in which member countries it will be located? The law
of the land will be applicable or not? To answer this some experts are of the opinion that it
should be located outside of the five member countries.
WHAT IS A CREDIT RATING AGENCY?
A credit rating agency (CRA, also called a ratings service) is a company/firm/organisation which
assigns credit ratings, by rating a debtor's ability to pay back debt, making timely interest
payments and the likelihood of default.
An agency may rate the creditworthiness of issuers of debt obligations, of debt instruments,
and in some cases, of the servicers of the underlying debt, but not of individual consumer.
NOBEL PRIZE 2016 ANNOUNCED

Nobel Prizes 2016 were announced by the Nobel Assembly from 3 October to 13 October 2015.
The prizes were announced in different sections, namely Physics, Chemistry, Physiology,
Literature, Peace and Economics.
2016 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE

Bob Dylan on 13 October 2016 won the 2016 Nobel Prize in
Literature.
Dylan was bestowed with the precious award for having

created new poetic expressions within the great American
song tradition.
WHO IS BOB DYLAN?
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, artist and

writer.
Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when his songs chronicled social
unrest, although he repudiated suggestions from journalists that he was a spokesman for his
generation.
His early songs such as Blowin' in the Wind and The Times They Are a-Changin became
anthems for the American civil rights and anti-war movements.
His lyrics have incorporated various political, social, philosophical and literary influences.
His accomplishments as a recording artist and performer have been central to his career, but
songwriting is considered his greatest contribution.
Since 1994, he has published six books of drawings and paintings, and his work has been
exhibited in major art galleries.
As a musician, he has sold more than 100 million records, making him one of the best-selling
artists of all time.
He has also received numerous awards including eleven Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe
Award, and an Academy Award.
The Pulitzer Prize jury in 2008 awarded him a special citation for his profound impact on
popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic
power.
He is the first American to win the prize since novelist Toni Morrison, in 1993.
ABOUT NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE
The Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who
has produced the most outstanding work in an ideal direction in the field of literature.
The Prize has been awarded since 1901.
It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895.
A Literature Nobel Prize laureate earns a gold medal, a diploma bearing a citation, and a sum
of money. The amount of money awarded depends on the income of the Nobel Foundation
that year.
In 2015, Svetlana Alexievich won the Nobel Prize in Literature "for her polyphonic writings, a
monument to suffering and courage in our time."
2016 SVERIGES RIKSBANK PRIZE IN ECONOMIC SCIENCES

Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmstrom were on 10 October 2016
awarded the 2016 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences
in Memory of Alfred Nobel for their contributions to contract
theory.
They have developed a contract theory, a comprehensive

framework for analysing many diverse issues in contractual
design, like performance-based pay for top executives,
deductibles and co-pays in insurance and the privatisation of
public-sector activities.
The new theoretical tools created by Hart and Holmstrom are valuable to the understanding of
real-life contracts and institutions, as well as potential pitfalls in contract design.
BENGT HOLMSTROM'S THEORY
In the late 1970s, Bengt Holmstrom demonstrated how a principal should design an optimal
contract for an agent, whose action is partly unobserved by the principal.
Holmstrms informativeness principle stated precisely how this contract should link the
agents pay to performance-relevant information.
Using the basic principal-agent model, he showed how the optimal contract carefully weighs
risks against incentives.
Later, Holmstrom generalised these results to more realistic settings, namely: when
employees are not only rewarded with pay, but also with potential promotion and when
individual members of a team can free-ride on the efforts of others.
OLIVER HART'S THEORY
In the mid-1980s, Oliver Hart made fundamental contributions to a new branch of contract
theory that deals with the important case of incomplete contracts.
Harts findings have shed new light on the ownership and control of businesses and have had
a vast impact on several fields of economics, as well as political science and law.
His research provides new theoretical tools for studying questions such as which kinds of
companies should merge, the proper mix of debt and equity financing, and when institutions
such as schools or prisons ought to be privately or publicly owned.
Oliver Hart is a Professor of Economics at Harvard University, Cambridge, USA. While, Bengt
Holmstrom is a Professor of Economics and Professor of Economics and Management at
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
WINS 2016 NOBEL PEACE PRIZE

The 2016 Nobel Peace Prize was on 7 October 2016 awarded to Colombian President Juan
Manuel Santos for his resolute efforts to bring the country's more than 50-year-long civil war to
an end, a war that took away the lives of at least 220000

Colombians and displaced nearly six million people.
After winning the award, President Santos said he will donate

the money from the Nobel Peace prize to help the victims of
the 52-year conflict in his country.
The civil war in Colombia is one of the longest civil wars in

modern times and the sole remaining armed conflict in the
Americas.
Earlier in August 2016, the Colombian government and the rebel group Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC) signed a peace accord to end more than five decades of conflict.
Later in October 2016, the deal was rejected by Colombian voters in a referendum.
PRESIDENT JUAN MANUEL SANTOS'S ROLE IN COLUMBIAN WAR
President Santos initiated the negotiations that culminated in the peace accord between the
Colombian government and the FARC guerrillas as he consistently sought to move the peace
process forward.
The accord was controversial; however he was instrumental in ensuring that Colombian
voters were able to voice their opinion concerning the peace accord in a referendum.
The outcome of the vote was not what President Santos wanted as a narrow majority of the
over 13 million Colombians voted against the accord.
Despite the "No" majority vote in the referendum, President Santos brought the bloody
conflict significantly closer to a peaceful solution.
His endeavours to promote peace thus fulfil the criteria and spirit of prize.
2016 NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY

The 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry on 5 October 2016 was awarded to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir
James Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa.
The trio was bestowed with the prestigious award for the design and synthesis of molecular
machines.
Jean-Pierre Sauvage is a French coordination chemist. Sir

James Fraser Stoddart is a Scottish chemist. He works in the
area of supramolecular chemistry and nanotechnology.
Bernard L Feringa is a synthetic organic chemist, specializing
in molecular nanotechnology and homogenous catalysis.
DEVELOPMENT OF WORLD'S SMALLEST MACHINES
Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir James Fraser Stoddart and Bernard

L Feringa have developed molecules with controllable movements, which can perform a task
when energy is added.
The first step towards a molecular machine was taken by Jean-Pierre Sauvage in 1983, when
he succeeded in linking two ring-shaped molecules together to form a chain, called a
catenane.
The second step was taken by Fraser Stoddart in 1991, when he developed a rotaxane. He
threaded a molecular ring onto a thin molecular axle and demonstrated that the ring was able
to move along the axle.
Bernard Feringa was the first person to develop a molecular motor. In 1999, he got a
molecular rotor blade to spin continually in the same direction. Using molecular motors, he has
rotated a glass cylinder that is 10000 times bigger than the motor and also designed a nanocar.
The 2016's Nobel Laureates in Chemistry have taken molecular systems out of equilibrium's
stalemate and into energy-filled states in which their movements can be controlled.
ABOUT NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
to scientists in the various fields of chemistry.
It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895.
The first Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded in 1901 to Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff for his
discovery of the laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2015 was awarded jointly to Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich and
Aziz Sancar for mechanistic studies of DNA repair.
2016 NOBEL PRIZE IN MEDICINE

The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet on 3 October 2016
decided to award the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
to Yoshinori Ohsumi.
Ohsumi is bestowed with the prize for his discoveries of

mechanisms for autophagy. He discovered and elucidated
mechanisms underlying autophagy, a fundamental process for
degrading and recycling cellular components.
WHAT IS AUTOPHAGY?
Autophagy is the natural, destructive mechanism that disassembles, through a regulated

process, unnecessary or dysfunctional cellular components.
It allows the orderly degradation and recycling of cellular components.
During this process, targeted cytoplasmic constituents are isolated from the rest of the cell
within a double-membraned vesicle known as an autophagosome.
The autophagosome then fuses with a lysosome and the contents are degraded and recycled.
Three different forms of autophagy are commonly described as macroautophagy,

microautophagy and chaperone-mediated autophagy.
The name autophagy was coined by Belgian biochemist Christian de Duve in 1963.
WHO IS YOSHINORI OHSUMI?
Yoshinori Ohsumi is a Japanese cell biologist specializing in autophagy.
He is a professor in Tokyo Institute of Technology's Frontier Research Center.
He received the Kyoto Prize for Basic Science in 2012.
ABOUT NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries
in the fields of life sciences and medicine.
It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the
inventor of dynamite, in his will.
As of 2015, 106 Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded to 198 men and
12 women.
The first Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded in 1901 to the German
physiologist Emil von Behring for his work on serum therapy and the development of a vaccine
against diphtheria.
The first woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was Gerty Cori, who
received it in 1947 for her role in elucidating the metabolism of glucose.
The 2015 Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded for discoveries concerning novel therapies
against river blindness, lymphatic filariasis and malaria to William C. Campbell, Satoshi
Omura and Youyou Tu.
2016 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS

The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics was on 4 October 2016 one
half awarded to David J Thouless and the other half jointly to F
Duncan M Haldane and J Michael Kosterlitz for theoretical
discoveries of topological phase transitions and topological
phases of matter.
David J Thouless is an Emeritus Professor at the University of

Washington, Seattle, USA. While, F. Duncan M. Haldane is the
Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics at Princeton University, USA and J Michael Kosterlitz is the
Harrison E. Farnsworth Professor of Physics at Brown University, USA.
All three will jointly share the 8 million Swedish kronor prize.
DISCOVERIES OF ALL THREE LAUREATES
All three Laureates used topological concepts in physics for their discoveries.
In the early 1970s, Michael Kosterlitz and David Thouless overturned the then current theory
that superconductivity or suprafluidity could not occur in thin layers.
They demonstrated that superconductivity could occur at low temperatures and also
explained the mechanism, phase transition, makes superconductivity disappear at higher
temperatures.
In the 1980s, Thouless was able to explain a previous experiment with very thin electrically
conducting layers in which conductance was precisely measured as integer steps.
At around the same time, Duncan Haldane discovered how topological concepts can be used
to understand the properties of chains of small magnets found in some materials.
INDIA, RUSSIA SIGNS 16 MOUS INCLUDING PROCUREMENT OF

THE S-400 AIR DEFENCE SYSTEM
India and Russia on 15 October 2016 signed 16 agreements during India-Russia Annual Summit
across multiple sectors.
The MoUs were signed in Goa during India-Russia Annual Summit co-chaired by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. President Putin is on a visit to India to
attend 2016 Goa BRICS summit.
LIST OF AGREEMENTS/MOUS EXCHANGED

Memorandum of Understanding proposed to be executed between EDB, Joint Stock Company
lexeevs Central Hydrofoil Design Bureau, Joint Stock Company Radar Mms, Joint Stock
Company Morinsis-AGAT and Elcom Systems Private Limited for developing the following:
(i) A single integrated Transport Logistics System
(ii) Concept of Smart city
(iii) Intellectual monitoring system for the areas of high responsibility, in the State of Andhra
Pradesh.
MoU on studying perspectives for cooperation in shipbuilding, implementation of

infrastructure projects, transfer of technologies and training foreign specialists: It was inked
between JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation and the Council for Economic Cooperation of
Andhra Pradesh.
MoU on Cooperation in the implementation of smart cities program in India with the use of
IT solutions of the Russian companies: It was inked between JSC "Rusinformexport and the
Ministry of Urban Development of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, State Company National
Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd., Government of Haryana.
MoU on the joint study of a gas pipeline to India and the other possible areas of
Cooperation: It was inked between Gazprom and Engineers India Limited.
Rosneft to purchase 98% Essar Oil: as per the decision a Russian consortium comprising
energy giant Rosneft Oil Company, commodities trader Trafigura and private investment group
United Capital Partners agreed to purchase 98 percent of Essar Oil for 10.9 billion dollars.
Cooperation Agreement in the area of Education and Training: It was inked between Rosneft
Oil Company and ONGC Videsh Limited.
MoU on setting up of Investment Fund: It was inked between NIIF and RDIF.
Signing of MoU for Cooperation in increasing the speed of trains between Nagpur-
Secundrabad/Hyderabad: It was inked between Indian and Russian railways.
Signing of the shareholder agreement for establishing a Joint Venture to manufacture Ka-
226T helicopter in India.
MoU on Mutual Allocation of Ground Measurement Gathering Stations for GLONASS AND
NAvIC: It was inked between ISRO and ROSCOSMOS.
MoU on expansion of Bilateral Trade and Economic Cooperation: it was inked between
Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation and the Union Ministry of
Commerce and Industry.
MoU between Department of Science & Technology (India) and FASO (Russia)
Programme of Cooperation in Oil and Gas Sector for the period 2017-18
Protocol for consultations between the Ministry of External Affairs & Ministry of Foreign
Affairs of Russia for the period 2017-18.
Agreement on cooperation in International Information Security
Signing of IGA to purchase/construct four additional 1135.6 frigates though partnership

between Russian and Indian shipyard
Signing of IGA for the procurement of S-400 Air Defence System.
They also decided to adopt a Roadmap of Events' to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the
establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Russian in 2017. They also released a
joint statement partnership for global peace and stability
Besides on 13 October 2016, the two nations also inked a bilateral agreement for cooperation
in the development of a network of integrated infrastructure irradiation centres. The
agreement was signed between the Indian Agricultural Association, Hindustan Agro Co-Op Ltd
(HACL) and United Innovation Corporation (UIC), a subsidiary of ROSATOM State Atomic Energy
Corporation of Russia.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AGREEMENT
It will be implemented through a Joint Venture and aims to set up 25 integrated irradiation
centres.
In the first phase, seven centres will be set up in Maharashtra, which will begin with the
upgradation of the current centre at Rahuri in Ahmednagar district.
The 7 centres are likely to be established in Sindhurg, Satara, Solapur, JNPT, Jalana, Napur and
Pune in the first phase.
UIC will be a technology partner and will help set up the irradiation centres in India.
BACKGROUND
In India, according to estimates, post-harvest losses in food and food grains are around 40-50
percent, primarily due to insect infestation, microbiological contamination, and poor shelf life.
In irradiation, food products are subjected to a low dosage of radiation to treat them for germs
and insects, increasing their longevity and shelf life. The use of irradiation will make it possible
to reduce the loss of food products in India.
Radiation treatment is carried out in dosage recommended by the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA). It neither reduces the nutritional value of food nor spoils their taste and
appearance.
NATIONAL
ARMED FORCES ARE ANSWERABLE TO GOVERNMENT: SC
The Supreme Court on 28 October 2016 said Armed forces are answerable to the government
otherwise there will be martial law in the country.
A bench of Justices Amitava Roy and U U Lalit made this observation while dismissing a plea
seeking action against Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar for allegedly interfering and claiming
credit for the surgical strikes conducted by the Indian Army in PoK.
Indian Army conducts surgical strikes across Line of Control
Advocate M L Sharma, who had filed the plea, said that Union Ministers including the Defence
Minister had been claiming credit for the surgical strikes carried out by the Indian Army, for
which they are not entitled to because as per the provisions of the Constitution, the President is
the head of the armed forces.
He alleged that the armed forces' action was being used for the personal interests of a few. The
court said the plea was not maintainable and hence dismissed.
UNION CABINET APPROVES ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL

ACADEMIC DEPOSITORY
The Union Cabinet on 27 October 2016 gave its green signal for establishment and
operationalisation of a National Academic Depository (NAD).
The National Academic Depository aims at bringing another dimension and enhancement of the
vision of Digital India.
The Budget Speech of 2016-17 of the Finance Benefit, Arun Jaitley, incorporated the
commitment to establish a Digital Depository for school learning certificates, degrees and other
academic awards of Higher Education Institutions, on the pattern of a Securities Depository.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIC DEPOSITORY

The NAD will be established and operationalised within the next three months.
It will be rolled out throughout the country in 2017-2018.
It will be operationalised by NSDL Database Management Limited (NDML) and CDSL Ventures,
Limited (CVL) - two of the wholly owned subsidiaries of the Depositories registered under
Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Act, 1992.
Academic institutions will be responsible for the authenticity of data digitally uploaded by
them into the system. The depositories will ensure the integrity of the data in the NAD.
The NAD will register educational institutions/boards/eligibility assessment bodies, students

and other users/verifying entities like banks, employer companies, government agencies and
academic institutions.
It will provide digital or a printed copy of the academic award with security features to the
students or other authorized users.
It will verify academic awards online on the same day of request initiated by any authorized
user.
It will maintain the authenticity, integrity and confidentiality of its database. It will also train
and facilitate academic institutions/boards/ eligibility assessment bodies to efficiently lodge
academic awards in the database.
UNION CABINET APPROVES AGREEMENT BETWEEN INDIA AND

ESTONIA ON THE TRANSFER OF SENTENCED PERSONS
The Union Cabinet on 27 October 2016 approved the signing and ratification of agreement
between India and Estonia on the transfer of sentenced persons.
The Agreement will facilitate the Indian prisoners imprisoned in Estonia or vice-versa to be near
to their families, for serving remaining part of their sentence and shall facilitate their social
rehabilitation.
BACKGROUND
Prior to 2004, there was no domestic Legislation under which foreign prisoners could be
transferred to the country of their origin to serve the remaining part of their sentence.
Hence, the Repatriation of Prisoners Act, 2003 was enacted for serving the above purpose.
For achieving the objectives of the Act, a Treaty/Agreement is required to be signed with
countries having mutual interest with India and later to the notified in the Official Gazette.
Union Government has so far signed bilateral Agreements on Transfer of Sentenced Persons
with UK, Mauritius, Bulgaria, France, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia,
Iran, Bangladesh, Brazil, Israel, Bosnia, UAE, Italy, Turkey, Maldives, Thailand, Russia, Kuwait
and few more.
So far, total 65 prisoners have been exchanged, out of which 55 were Indians.
WOMEN TO BE GRANTED ACCESS TO THE INNER SANCTORUM

OF THE SHRINE: HAJI ALI DARGAH TO SC
Haji Ali Dargah Trust on 24 October 2016 told Supreme Court (SC) that it will grant equal access
to women to the inner sanctorum of the Haji Ali shrine in Mumbai on a par with men. The
Dargah Trust sought four weeks time for making changes in the infrastructure.
A bench comprising Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justices D Y Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao
granted time to the trust and disposed off its appeal against the Bombay High Court order
asking it to give equal access to women also.
Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for the trust, filed an additional affidavit on
behalf of the Dargah trust to allow women inside the shrine.
The Supreme Court earlier on 17 October 2016 extended the stay granted by Bombay High
Court to facilitate an appeal against its decision to lift the ban on entry of women.
The bench remarked that if you are not allowing both men and women to go beyond a point,
there is no problem. But if you are allowing some to go beyond a point while others are not, it is
a problem.
BACKGROUND
The 15th century shrine located on a rocky outcrop in the Arabian Sea, 500m from the Mumbai
coastline, houses the tomb of Sufi saint Haji Ali. The trust had banned women from the inner
sanctum in 2012.
On 26 August 2016, the Bombay High Court lifted the ban after hearing the petition filed by
Noorjehan Fiaz and Zakia Soman, founders of the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA),
against the ban, calling it unconstitutional.
The High Court had held that the ban contravened Articles 14, 15 and 25 of the Indian
Constitution. It also held that the trust had no power to alter or modify the mode or manner of
religious practices of any individual or any group.
UNION GOVERNMENT HOLDS TRIPARTITE TALKS WITH

MANIPUR GOVERNMENT, KNO, UPF
The Union Government held tripartite talks with Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and United
People's Front (UPF) of Manipur to find an amicable solution to their long standing demand.
The second round of the tripartite talks was held on 19 October 2016 in New Delhi. During the
dialogue the KNO and the UPF indicated their demands in the presence of senior representative
of Manipur government. The first meeting was held in June 2016.
The talks were held in a cordial atmosphere and the next round of dialogue will be held in
consultation with Manipur government, KNO and UPF.
To find a permanent solution to their demand for homeland and political future, the Home
Ministry in June 2016 had decided to hold tripartite talks with government of Manipur, KNO
and UPF of Manipur.
KUKI NATIONAL ORGANISATION (KNO)

KNO and its armed Wing, Kuki National Army (KNA), were formed in 1988. Its first batch of
the cadres, under the command of Thangkholun Haokip, was trained by the Kachin
Independent Army (KIA) in Myanmar. Its objectives include
To bring together all the Kuki-inhabited areas separated by artificial boundary created in
1935, specifically in the Kabaw valley of Myanmar and the Kuki inhabited areas in the hill
districts of Manipur under one administrative unit called Zalengam (Land of freedom).
If such integration fails to materialise than, the organisation aims at the creation of two Kuki
states: one within Burma, named, Eastern Zalengam and the other within India, that is, Western
Zalengam.
Earlier between 1991 and 1999, KNA waged guerrilla warfare in Myanmar against the
Military Junta, mainly targeting patrol parties and also Steamers along the Chindwin River.
UNITED PEOPLE'S FRONT (UPF) OF MANIPUR

UPF is considered as one of the two umbrella bodies of Kuki militant groups and was raised
by the outfit during a recently held political dialogue with Central representatives at New Delhi.
As per reports, the front demands a separate and autonomous Hill State within the
territory of Manipur, by extending the provision of Article 244 A of the Constitution.
As per reports, both KNO and UPF in August 2008 signed Suspension of Operation (SoO) pact
with both the Union and Manipur Governments. After this, the Manipur Government set up
five designated camps in Churachandpur, Chandel and Senapati districts to lodge the cadres of
the ceasefire militant groups.
UNION GOVERNMENT TO ESTABLISH KRISHI VIGYAN KENDRA IN

EACH DISTRICT
Union Government in October 2016 decided to establish at least one Krishi Vigyan Kendra in
each of the districts in country. These Kendras will be developed to provide technical
assistance to farmers.
The decision was announced by the Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh while interacting
via video conference with all the Krishi Vigyan Kendra experts, district level officers associated
with agriculture development and progressive farmers of 12 States.
Besides, Singh also called upon the farmers to use the residual husk after paddy farming to
make organic fertilizer, in paper making and card-board industry and as animal feed. The
Minister said this will prevent the adverse effect of husk burning on the environment.
PM MODI LAUNCHES NATIONAL SC/ST HUB AND ZERO DEFECT

ZERO EFFECT SCHEME IN LUDHIANA
For the welfare of SC/ST entrepreneurs, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on 18 October 2016 launched national SC/ST
(Schedule Castes/Schedule Tribes) hub in Ludhiana. He also
launched the Zero Defect, Zero Effect (ZED) scheme for Micro,
Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Besides, he also gave away national awards to MSME

entrepreneurs. He distributed 500 spinning wheels (spinning
wheels) to women of weaker sections of Punjab to make them able to earn their livelihood.
NATIONAL SC/ST HUB

This hub has been set up under Prime Minister's Employment Generation scheme to provide
support to entrepreneurs from the SC/ST community.
It was started with an objective to provide professional support to entrepreneurs from the
SC/ST sections.
It aims at promoting entrepreneurship among the SC/ST population.
The hub with an initial outlay of 490 crore rupees will work towards strengthening market
access/linkage, monitoring, capacity building, leveraging financial support schemes and sharing
industry-best practices.
It will also enable central public sector enterprises to fulfill the procurement target set by the
government.
Setting of the national SC/ST Hub under the MSME Ministry was announced by the Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley in his budget speech.
THE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT POLICY 2012

This procurement policy specifies that 4 percent of procurement done by ministries,
departments and CPSEs should be done from enterprises owned by SC/ST entrepreneurs.
ZERO DEFECT, ZERO EFFECT (ZED) SCHEME

The scheme was first mentioned by PM Modi in his Independence Day speech in 2014.
ZED scheme denotes high quality manufacturing with a minimal negative impact on
environment.
It aims at raising quality levels in unregulated MSME sector.
It will support MSMEs across the nation in all Make in India sectors through quality control
cells constituted by government. These cells will rate them after carrying out annual
assessment of their products.
Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister visited Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, where he dedicated to
the nation three hydropower projects namely, Koldam, Parbati and Rampur.
UNION CABINET APPROVES SETTING UP OF IIM AT JAMMU

The Union Cabinet on 13 October 2016 approved the establishment of Indian Institute of
Management (IIM) at Jammu. The institute will from a temporary campus at Old Government
College of Engineering and Technology from academic year 2016-17.
The project will involve a cost of nearly 62 crore rupees for initial four years from 2016 to 2020.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
The student strength intake for this year in the Post Graduate Diploma Programme (PGDP) in
Management is 54 which will progressively go up to cumulative student strength of 120 in the
4th year.
The detailed project report for the permanent campuses is under preparation and thereafter
the process for setting up the campuses will start.
Meanwhile, steps would also be taken up for setting up campus at Jammu and an out-campus
in Kashmir region.
Besides, the Union Cabinet also approved the formation of an IIM Jammu Society under the
Societies Registration Act, 1860. IIM Jammu will be run and managed by the Society with a
Board of Governors (BOGs) to be constituted by the Government of India, which will administer
the Institute and would be responsible for establishment and operationalisation of the
Institute.
The decision is a part of Prime Ministers development package for Jammu and Kashmir. The
Institute coupled with opening of IIT at Jammu, modernization of NIT Srinagar and opening of
two new AIIMS institutions, one each in Kashmir and Jammu region will go a long way in
meeting the requirement of high quality living and education in the state.
BACKGROUND
Indian Institutes of Management are the countrys premier institutions imparting best quality
education in management on globally benchmarked processes of education and training in
management education and allied area of knowledge.
At present, there are nineteen IIMs. Out of these, thirteen IIMs are located at Ahmedabad,
Bengaluru, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, Kozhikode, Shillong, Ranchi, Raipur, Rohtak, Kashipur,
Trichy, and Udaipur. Another six IIMs which have been started in 2015 are located at Amritsar,
Sirmaur, Nagpur, Bodhgaya, Sambalpur and Vishakhapatnam.
HINDU HUSBAND CAN DIVORCE WIFE IF SHE TRIES TO

SEPARATE HIM FROM AGED PARENTS: SC
Supreme Court in its decision on 6 October 2016 held that a Hindu son can divorce his wife if
she tries to separate him from his elderly parents. The apex court held that it is 'pious
obligation' of a son to maintain his parents.
It held that a Hindu son cant separate himself from his parents on getting married at demand
of his wife, at least when he is the only earning member in the family.
The observation was made by a bench comprising Justice Anil R Dave and L Nageshwara Rao
while confirming the decree of divorce sought by a Karnataka-based man.
As reported, the apex court allowed the man to annul a 24-year old marriage, while setting
aside Karnataka High Court judgement which had dismissed the decree of divorce granted by a
Bangalore family court in 2001.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE OBSERVATION

A woman becomes part of the husbands family and thus she cannot seek to separate him
from his parents just to enjoy his income.
It held that insisting husband to live separately from his parents is a western thought which is
alien to our culture and ethos.
It held that a son who was brought up and given education by his parents has a moral and
legal obligation to take care and maintain his parents when they become old and when they
have either no income of have a meager income.
A woman, who becomes an integral part of husbands family after being married, should have
a justifiable reason to separate his husband from his family.
INDO-PAK BORDER TO BE COMPLETELY SEALED IN NEXT 2 YRS:

HOME MINISTER
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on 7 October 2016 said that Indo-Pak border will be
completely sealed by December 2018. The action was taken amid the rising tensions between
the two nations mainly after the army strike on militant bases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Singh informed about the decision after holding a meeting of states sharing border with
Pakistan in Jaisalmer. This sealing will be monitored at MHA level, BSF level and chief secretary
level.
Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje, Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab Sukhbir Singh
Badal, Gujarat's Minister of State for Home Pradeepsinh Jadeja and Jammu and Kashmir Chief
Secretary Brij Raj Sharma were the participants of the meeting to review security arrangements
at the border. The meeting is being held in the presence of senior BSF officials.
Besides, the Home Minister also asked the countrymen to trust the security forces and stand by
them.
Earlier on 7 October, Singh kicked off his two-day visit to the border districts of Jaisalmer and
Bermer in Rajasthan. On 8 October, he will visit Munabao BOP in Barmer district and also
interact with Army personnel there.
INDO-PAKISTAN BORDER
The India and Pakistan Border is an international border running between India and Pakistan
that demarcates the Indian states and the four provinces of Pakistan. The border's total length
is 2900 km. It is known as Line of Control (LoC).
UNION CABINET APPROVES SETTING UP OF INDIA'S FIRST

MEDIPARK IN TAMIL NADU
The Union Cabinet on 5 October 2016 approved setting up of a Medical Devices Manufacturing
Park (Medipark) at Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram District of Tamil Nadu through a special purpose
Vehicle.
For this purpose, HLL Lifecare Ltd, a Mini Ratna PSU under Union Ministry of Health & Family
Welfare, will sub-lease 330.10 acres of land at Chengalpattu. The shareholding of HLL in the
project will be above 50 percent.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MEDIPARK

The Medipark project will boost the local manufacturing of hi-end products at a significantly
lower cost, resulting in affordable healthcare delivery to a large section of people.
It will contribute to the development of medical devices and technology sector and allied
disciplines in the country.
HLL will sublease the land to investors, through a transparent bidding process to investors
desirous to set up manufacturing units for Medical equipment and devices.
It will be developed in phases, spread over seven years for completion.
In the first phase, physical infrastructure will be developed and plots will be leased from third
year onwards. In the initial phase, the land cost to the qualifying entrepreneurs from Medical
Device and Equipment, Manufacturing Industry will be at a subsidized rate.
Knowledge management center will be developed in the second phase, with grants and
assistance from departments, which funds similar initiatives.
It will reduce the dependence on imports and create a strong base for the growth of
indigenous and domestic industry by providing access to state of art infrastructure and
technology.
UNION CABINET APPROVES MoU BETWEEN INDIA AND AFRICAN

ASIAN RURAL DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION
The Union Cabinet on 5 October 2016 approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) between India and the African Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO) for
capacity building programmes in the field of rural development.
Under this MoU, capacity building programmes for AARDO member countries will be organized
every year at various Institutions of Excellence in India such as National Institute of Rural
Development & Panchayati Raj, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Indian Institute of
Management and others.
The duration of each training programme shall be of two to three weeks. The Post Graduate
Diploma in Rural Development Management Course at NIRD & PR under this scheme will be for
one year.
ABOUT AFRICAN ASIAN RURAL DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION (AARDO)

The AARDO has its headquarters in New Delhi.
It is an autonomous, inter-Governmental organization established in 1962 with the objective

of promoting cooperation among the countries of the African - Asian Region.
It works in the direction of eradicating thirst, hunger, illiteracy, disease and poverty in the
region.
India is one of the Founder Members of the Organization and is the largest contributor in
terms of membership contribution of 141100 US dollars.
Since the year 2009, India is continuing to provide an Additional Contribution of 600000 US
dollar to AARDO for each triennium to expand its scale and scope of the Capacity Building
Programmes.
UNION CABINET APPROVES MoU BETWEEN INDIA AND

EUROPEAN UNION ON WATER COOPERATION
The Union Cabinet on 5 October 2016 approved the signing of MoU between India and
European Union in the field of water resources.
The MoU envisages strengthening the technological, scientific and management capabilities of
India and the European Union in the field of water management on the basis of equality,
reciprocity and mutual benefit.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MOU

It provides technical exchange on water issues, including on integrated water resource
management plans within river basins and through study visits.
It aims to identify key environmental issues and approaches to sustainable development

where exchange of experiences could be beneficial to develop cooperation in the field of water
management.
It envisions a more sustainable management of water resources in India with an objective of

tackling the challenges posed by water management in the context of growing population,
competing water demands and a changing climate. A Joint Working Group shall be formed to
monitor the activities to be carried out in fulfillment of the MoU.
BACKGROUND
The Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has been
envisaging bilateral cooperation with other countries in water resources development through
sharing of policy and technical expertise, conducting of training courses, workshops, and study
tours.
Keeping in view the success of the European Union in distribution of water resources, water
pricing, water use efficiency to protect water resources and quality, such as switching to less
water-demanding crops, etc., it was decided to have an agreement with Israel to benefit from
their experience.
The EU States have already adopted water pricing policies to provide adequate incentives for
users to use water resources efficiently thereby contributing to environmental objectives.
UNION CABINET APPROVES AMENDMENTS TO HIV AND AIDS

(PREVENTION AND CONTROL) BILL, 2014
The Union Cabinet on 5 October 2016 approved the amendments to the HIV and AIDS
(Prevention and Control) Bill, 2014.
The HIV and AIDS Bill, 2014 was drafted to safeguard the rights of people living with HIV and
affected by HIV.
PROVISIONS OF THE BILL

It seeks to address HIV-related discrimination, strengthen the existing programme by bringing
in legal accountability and establish formal mechanisms for inquiring into complaints and
redressing grievances.
It seeks to prevent and control the spread of HIV and AIDS, prohibits discrimination against
persons with HIV and AIDS.
It seeks to provide for informed consent and confidentiality with regard to their treatment,
places obligations on establishments to safeguard rights of persons living with HIV.
It aims to enhance access to health care services by ensuring informed consent and
confidentiality for HIV-related testing, treatment and clinical research.
It lists various grounds on which discrimination against HIV positive persons and those living
with them is prohibited. These include the denial, termination, discontinuation or unfair
treatment with regard to employment, educational establishments, health care services,
provision of insurance, etc.
It prohibits any individual from publishing information or advocating feelings of hatred against
HIV positive persons and those living with them.
It provides for Guardianship for minors.
It requires that No person shall be compelled to disclose his HIV status except with his
informed consent, and if required by a court order.
It also asks Central and State governments to take measures to prevent the spread of HIV or
AIDS, provide anti-retroviral therapy, facilitate their access to welfare schemes, lay guidelines
for the care and treatment of children with HIV or AIDS.
It makes provision for appointment of an ombudsman by State Governments to inquire into

complaints related to the violation of the Act and penal actions in case of non-compliance.
There are no financial implications of the Bill.
KARNATAKA STARTS RELEASING CAUVERY WATER TO TAMIL NADU FOR

IRRIGATION PURPOSE
Karnataka on 3 October 2016 started releasing Cauvery water from Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS)
dam. It was released after the legislature passed a Resolution authorizing the state government
to take appropriate decisions to release water.
Resolution: The resolution states that the government will take an appropriate decision
regarding the release of water for irrigation purposes after ensuring the drinking water
requirements of the state.
The move comes after the Supreme Court asked Karnataka government to apprise it whether it
has released water to Tamil Nadu or not. On 30 September 2016, the Supreme Court directed
Karnataka to discharge 6000 cusecs water from 1 to 6 October 2016.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that about 1300 cusecs of water is flowing into
Tamil Nadu every day through seepage. If water is released to irrigation canals in the basin
region, then additional 3000 cusecs will flow down to the neighbouring state through seepage.
Besides, the Union Government informed the Supreme Court that it cant direct the
government on constitution of the Cauvery Water Management Board. It said the issue fell
under the domain of the legislature. Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi said that the government
is setting up a technical panel to assess the ground realities to defuse the wrangle between
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
Earlier, the Union Government moved to the apex court seeking modification of its order asking
it to constitute the Cauvery Water Management Board.
URBAN AREAS OF GUJARAT AND ANDHRA PRADESH DECLARED

OPEN DEFECATION FREE
Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh on 2 October 2016 became the first states to declare their urban
areas as Open Defecation Free (ODF) on the second anniversary of the Swachh Bharat Mission.
Other states that will soon declare all their urban centres as ODF are Kerala, Himachal Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Mizoram and a few other Northeast states. The mission launched by PM
Narendra Modi, with its urban and rural component handled by the respective ministries, aims
to make the country ODF by 2019.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
All 110 cities and towns in Andhra Pradesh were given the ODF tag by Chief Minister N
Chandrababu Naidu at an event in Tirupati.
Gujarat gave ODF status to each of its 180 cities and towns at a function in Porbandar
attended by Union Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation Narendra Singh Tomar and
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.
Gujarat also declared the entire district of Porbandar, the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi, as
ODF to commemorate the 147th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on 2 October 2016.
WHAT IS OPEN DEFECATION?

Open defecation is the practice of people defecating outside and not into a designated
toilet. The term is widely used in literature about water, sanitation, and hygiene issues in
developing countries.
Open defecation causes public health problems in areas where people defecate in fields,
urban parks, rivers, and open trenches in close proximity to the living space of others.
High levels of open defecation in a country are usually correlated with high child mortality, as
well as high levels of undernutrition, high levels of poverty, and large disparities between rich
and poor.
About one billion people around the globe practice open defecation. India has the highest
number of people practicing open defecation (around 190 million people).
The other countries with the highest number of people openly defecating are Indonesia (54
million), followed by Pakistan (41 million), Nigeria (39 million), Ethiopia (34 million), and Sudan
(17 million).
INTERNATIONAL
INDIA, PALESTINE SIGNED MOU FOR SETTING UP OF TECHNO
PARK IN RAMALLAH
India and Palestine on 31 October 2016 signed a Memorandum of Understanding for setting up
of Palestine-India Techo Park in Ramallah. India has
announced grant of 12 million US dollars for setting up the
Park. Palestinian side has made the land available for the
project.
The announcement of the Techno Park was made during

President Pranab Mukherjee's visit to Palestine in 2015.
The Technopark will served as an IT hub in Palestine with complete IT faculties offering a one-
stop solution to all IT-related service requirements. It will also provide state-of-the-art
technology, host IT companies and foreign companies benefiting local business, universities and
other institutions.
The assistance is part of Indias strong commitment to support Palestinian cause. The project
will help job creation, business and other opportunities for young Palestinians.
INDIA, NEW ZEALAND SIGN THREE PACTS INCLUDING

AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION
India and New Zealand on 26 October 2016 signed three agreements in the areas of double
taxation avoidance, food security and sports.
The agreements were inked in New Delhi in presence of New Zealand Prime Minister John Key
and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. John Key was on a three-day (25 October to 27 October
2016) visit to India.
LIST OF AGREEMENTS INKED WERE

Arrangement regarding Food Safety Cooperation: It was inked between the Food Safety and
Standards Authority of India and the Ministry for Primary Industries of New Zealand.
MoU for cooperation in the field of Youth Affairs and Sports: It was inked between Union
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and Sport New Zealand of the Government of New
Zealand.
Third Protocol to the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of
Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income: It was inked between the Union Government
and the Government of New Zealand.
Apart from this, the two nations also agreed to establish a Bilateral Ministerial Dialogue
between two Foreign Ministries. They also agreed for establishment of Annual Foreign Ministry
Consultations at Senior Officials Level and cooperation and Dialogue on Cyber Issues.
Besides, the two nations also held delegation level talks. Subjects discussed during the
delegation level talks were
Ways to further boost trade and investments between the two countries.
The two sides agreed to continue to work closely towards an early conclusion of a balanced
and mutually beneficial Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).
The two sides discussed and also agreed to strengthen the security and intelligence
cooperation against terrorism and radicalization.
IRAQS PARLIAMENT PASSES LAW BANNING ALCOHOL

Iraqs Parliament on 22 October 2016 passed a law banning the sale, import and production of
alcohol in the country.
The law imposes a fine of up to 25 million Iraqi dinars for

anyone violating the ban. However, the law can be struck
down by the supreme court of Iraq.
This Iraqi law is unlikely to be enforced in the largely

autonomous Kurdish region, which is home to a sizeable
Christian community. The ban came as a shock for the
Christians who are earning through the liquor shops.
As per Iraq's Christian lawmaker Joseph Slaiwa, the ban was slipped into a draft law regulating
the income of municipal authorities without lawmakers being notified. Moreover, it violates the
constitution which guarantees the traditions of religious minorities such as Christians.
The original article only called for imposing taxes on liquor stores and restaurants serving
liquor.
BACKGROUND
The bill was proposed by Mahmoud al-Hassan, a judge and lawmaker from the State of Law
coalition, the largest bloc in Iraq's Parliament. He insisted that it was in keeping with Article 2 of
the Iraq's constitution which prohibits any legislation that goes against Islam.
Islam forbids the consumption of alcohol, but it has always been available in Iraqs larger cities,
mainly from the shops run by Christians. Those shops were currently closed because of the Shia
holy month of Muharram.
Iraqs parliament is dominated by Shia Islamist parties.
INDO-ITALY SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL COOPERATION

RE-LAUNCHED
The Indo-Italian Joint Committee established under the Scientific and Technological
Cooperation Agreement on 21 October 2016 re-launched the cooperation in the sectors of
science, technology and innovation. The original agreement was signed between Italy and India
in 2003.
The Indian delegation was led by Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, Department of Science and
Technology while the Italian delegation was led by Vincenzo De Luca, Director General for
Cultural and Economic Promotion and Innovation of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE INDO-ITALY SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL

COOPERATION
The Joint Committee approved several initiatives in bilateral scientific R&D projects of
significance with the aim of facilitating the mobility of researchers who will be jointly selected
within the framework of the 2017-2019 Indo-Italy Executive Programme of Scientific and
Technological Cooperation.
IT, energy, environment and sustainable agriculture, health care, biotechnology,

nanotechnology, physics and cultural and natural heritage are the areas for joint projects.
A new scientific and technological cooperation programme on applied science was launched
aiming at developing technologies and processes to be applied in industry.
Joint workshops will be alternatively held in Italy and India, starting from 2017.
An Indo-Italian Innovation Forum will be established to promote and connect the world of
research with the world of business and investment.
INDIA, MYANMAR SIGNED 3 MOUS INCLUDING COOPERATION

IN THE FIELD OF POWER SECTOR
India and Myanmar on 19 October 2016 signed three agreements
to boost the bilateral relations between the two nations. Keeping
in view the sensitivity of each others strategic interests, the two
nations also agreed for close security coordination in border
areas.
The MoUs were inked in New Delhi after delegation level talks
with the visiting State Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi was on a three day visit
to India. Agreements inked includes
MoU for designing an academic and professional building programme for insurance industry
of Myanmar. The MoU was signed between Financial Regulatory Department of Myanmar and
Insurance Institute of India.
MoU on Cooperation in the field of Power Sector: India has also offered to enhance power
supply from Moreh in Manipur to Tamu in Myanmar.
MoU on Banking Supervision between RBI and Central Bank of Myanmar.
Besides, the two countries also agreed to enhance engagement in several areas like to develop
a mutually beneficial arrangement for trade in pulses. India also said that the Archaeological
Survey of India will soon begin work on restoring two old temples and inscriptions of King
Mindon and King Baygyidaw in Bodh Gaya.
BANGLADESH, CHINA SIGN 26 AGREEMENTS IN VARIOUS FIELDS

Bangladesh and China on 14 October 2016 signed 26 agreements and Memorandum of
Understanding (MoUs) during the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The agreements and MoU include boosting cooperation in counter-terrorism, infrastructure

development and energy cooperation.
LIST OF MOUS SIGNED

MoU on One Belt One Road- Bangladesh formally joined Chinas One Belt One Road Initiative.
MoU to establish institutional cooperation in areas of maritime issues and counter-terrorism.
MoU to get a 1320 MW power plant constructed in Bangladesh by China.
China's TBEA signed a power grid deal worth 1.6 billion US dollars with Dhaka Power.
Agreement to enhance high-level exchanges, maintain frequent contacts between leaders of

the two countries on the sidelines of multilateral foray.
Framework Agreement for Developing Cooperation on Production Capacity between

Bangladesh and China.
Agreement to continue their cooperation on river management, including dredging with land
reclamation.
Agreement to start feasibility studies on the establishment of China-Bangladesh Free Trade

Area.
Agreement in which Beijing will train 500 Chinese-language teachers for Bangladesh, train 100
Bangladeshi cultural professionals and invite 600 Bangladeshi students to visit China from 2016
to 2020
They also jointly unveiled six projects, including multi-lane tunnel beneath the Karnaphuli
River in Chittagong.
Apart from this, both the sides also signed various agreements of cooperation in areas of
industrial capacity building, power and energy, information technology, investment, disaster
management and culture.
Both the countries also announced the year 2017 as the Year of Friendship and Exchanges
between China and Bangladesh.
INDIA, HUNGARY SIGN TWO AGREEMENTS INCLUDING CO-

OPERATION IN WATER RESOURCES
India and Hungary on 16 October 2016 signed two agreements to enhance the bilateral
relations between the two countries.
The first agreement is for cooperation in the field of water resources, including innovations in
irrigation technology. The second agreement is for promotion of co-operation between Indian
Council of World Affairs and its Hungarian counterpart.
The two agreements were inked in Budapest during Vice President, Mohammad Hamid Ansari's
visit to that country. Vice President is on a two-nation tour to Hungary and Algeria.
During the visit, Vice President had bilateral discussions with Hungary's Prime Minister Victor
Orban and other leaders. He also met the Hungarian President Janos Ader and the Speaker of
National assembly.
MALDIVES TO LEAVE COMMONWEALTH AFTER WARNINGS

OVER DEMOCRACY
Maldives government in October decided to leave the 53-member Commonwealth of Nations.
The decision was announced weeks after the organisation warned it of suspension by the
Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) if it failed to take further steps to promote
the rule of law and democracy.
Maldives had decided to leave the Commonwealth saying it was treated unjustly and unfairly by
the Commonwealth.
HIGHLIGHTS
The organisation also asked Maldives to encourage political dialogue and release its
opposition leaders and improve the democratic institutions.
The nation was put on CMAGs formal agenda on 23 September 2016 and cautioned that if it
fails to saw progress in the six identified priority areas, then it will be suspended from the
council of Commonwealth at its next meeting in 2017.
Maldives government decision to quit the Commonwealth has invited concern from several
quarters within and outside the country. Commonwealth Secretary General Patricia Scotland
expressed disappointment over the decision and hoped the move will be a temporary one.
RESPONSES TO MALDIVES ACTION

Maldives Opposition Party: The countrys main opposition party led by former President
Mohammed Nasheed, said the decision was taken unilaterally by the Cabinet and the
Executive, without consultation with the Parliament or the people of the Maldives. It said this is
a knee-jerk reaction to widespread international condemnation of the Governments continued

human rights violations.
The United Kingdom: British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said UK is disappointed that the
Maldives Government has decided to withdraw from the Commonwealth. He said the
Commonwealth is dedicated to developing free and democratic societies, and regretted that
Maldives has chosen to leave.
Amnesty International: Amnesty International said that Maldives authorities should address
their own human rights situation rather than lash out at legitimate criticism. It said human
rights have been in a complete free fall in the country over the past few years and the
government has led an unprecedented crackdown on independent media.
BACKGROUND
The country came under international scrutiny after its crackdown on opposition leaders mainly
after it jailed several members of different parties along with former President Mohamed
Nasheed. Nasheed who was released on a medical leave went to London where he was granted
asylum.
ISRAEL SUSPENDS COOPERATION WITH UNESCO AFTER IT

PASSED RESOLUTION ON JERUSALEM
Israel in October 2016 suspended co-operation with the UN's cultural agency, UNESCO,
accusing it of denying Judaism's connections to the religion's holiest sites.
It also notified the Israel National Commission of UNESCO to suspend all professional activities
with the international organisation.
The action came after UNESCO approved a draft resolution, which repeatedly used only the
Islamic name for a hilltop complex, which is also the holiest site in Judaism. The draft was
passed at committee state by 24 votes in favour, six against and 26 abstentions. Now, the draft
resolution will be sent to UNESCOs executive body which will decided via vote that it should be
adopted or not.
The hilltop complex is known to Jews as the Temple Mount and Haram al-Sharif to Muslims.
UNESCO'S DRAFT RESOLUTION

The resolution, sponsored by several Arab countries, refers to occupied Palestine. It seeks to
safeguard the Palestinian cultural heritage and the distinctive character of east Jerusalem.
It used the Islamic name, al-Haram al-Sharif/al-Aqsa Mosque, for the hilltop compound, which
includes the Western Wall. The wall is remnant of the biblical temple and the holiest site where
Jews can pray.
For Muslims, Haram al-Sharif is the place from where the Prophet Muhammad went to
Heaven. It is the third holiest site in Islam.
It also criticises Israels activities at holy places in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank.
Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett said a UNESCO draft decision concerning Jerusalem
denies history and encourages terror. He also said that UNSECO is aiding Islamist terror by
ignoring thousands of years of Jewish ties to Jerusalem.
East Jerusalem, with sites holy to Jews, Christians and Muslims, was captured by Israel during
the 1967 Mideast war.
RUSSIA VETOES UN RESOLUTION TO STOP BOMBING OF ALEPPO

Russia on 8 October 2016 vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution demanding an end to
the bombing of Aleppo city in Syria.
The draft text proposed by France and Spain won 11 votes in favor,
Russia and Venezuela voted against the resolution, while China and
Angola abstained. It was the fifth time that Moscow used its veto to
block the UN action to end the five year war in Syria.
UN estimates say, the Syrian conflict has driven more than 4.8
million refugees to neighbouring countries, hundreds of thousands
in Europe, and displaced 6.6 million people inside the Syria against a pre-war population of over
20 million. It says that the war had claimed at least 200000 lives.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault had urged the Security Council to take immediate
action to save Aleppo from being destroyed by the Russia-backed Syrian bombing campaign.
Earlier, Russia presented its own draft text that urged for a separation of moderate and
extremist forces in Syria but making no mention of a bombing halt in the besieged city of
Aleppo. The draft, put forward by Moscow failed to get the support of minimum nine votes.
This text received 4 votes in favour, 9 against (France, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Senegal,
Spain, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States), and 2 abstentions (Angola and Uruguay).
It is reported that Russia's introduction of a rival resolution yesterday took Western supporters
of the French draft by surprise. Several diplomats privately called it a brilliant move by Moscow
because it will force Western powers to veto as well.
MOROCCO: ABDELILAH BEKIRANE APPOINTED FOR ANOTHER

TERM AS PM
Abdelilah Bekirane, leader of Morocco's Islamic Justice and Development Party (PJD), was
appointed as country's Prime Minister on 10 October 2016. This will be his second term as
Prime Minister of Morocco.
Mohammed VI, the king of Morocco, made the announcement after Benkirane's PJD party
emerged with the most number of seats in the 395-seat lower house of parliament.
In the election held on 7 October 2016, the PJD party, which has been running a coalition
government since 2011, won 125 seats. The opposition Authenticity and Modernity Party came
second with 102 seats. The countrys oldest party Istiqlal (Independence) Party stood third with
46 seats.
Benkirane has been serving as Prime Minister in a coalition government since November 2011.
Benkirane and the PJD will now reach out to other parties to form a coalition government,
because the multi-party system in the kingdom makes it impossible for any political party to
win an absolute majority.
Of the 395 members of the lower house, 305 are elected in multi-seat constituencies from
electoral lists put together by the parties, while 60 seats of the remaining 90 are reserved for a
national list of women and the rest 30 seats are set aside for candidates under the age of 35.
US LIFTS ECONOMIC SANCTIONS ON MYANMAR

The U.S. on 7 October 2016 lifted sanctions against Myanmar that have been in place for nearly
two decades.
The move came after President Barack Obamas announcement that the US was ready to lift
sanctions on the Asian country during Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyis visit to
Washington in September 2016.
As a result of Obamas announcement, the Treasury Department stated that the economic and
financial sanctions administered by the Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets
Control were no longer in effect.
HOW THE LIFTING OF SANCTIONS WILL HELP MYANMAR?

Lifting economic and financial sanctions will support trade and economic growth in Myanmar.
Treasury will continue to work with Burma to implement a robust anti-money laundering
regime that will help to ensure the security of its financial system.
The step eased restrictions on Myanmars financial institutions, allowed certain transactions
related to US individuals living in the country, and removed seven state-owned enterprises and
three state-owned banks from the US blacklist.
BACKGROUND
The Government of Myanmar was under economic sanctions by the US Treasury Department
(31 CFR Part 537, 16 August 2005) and by Executive orders 13047 (1997), 13310 (2003), 13448
(2007), 13464 (2008), and the most recent 13619 (2012).
From May 2012 to February 2013, the United States began to lift its economic sanctions on
Myanmar in response to the historic reforms that have been taking place in that country.
However, sanctions remained in place for blocked banks and for any business entities that are
more than 50% owned by persons on OFAC's Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked
Persons list.
During her first official visit to Washington, D.C. in September 2016, Myanmar's State
Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi met with US President Barack Obama, who announced that long-
standing trade sanctions against Myanmar are to be lifted.
UNSC EXTENDS MEASURES TO CURB MIGRANT SMUGGLING OFF

LIBYAN COAST
UN Security Council adopted a resolution authorising the European Union and individual
countries to seize migrant smuggling vessels on the high seas off Libya for another year. The
resolution was adopted following continued loss of life due to migrant smuggling and human
trafficking off the coast of Libya.
The resolution, adopted on 6 October 2016 by a vote of 14-0 with Venezuela abstaining,
stressed that the council's aim is to disrupt the organized criminal enterprises engaged in
migrant smuggling and human trafficking and prevent loss of life.
By the terms of the text, the Council also urged States and regional organizations whose naval
vessels and aircraft operate on the high seas and airspace off the coast of Libya, to be vigilant
for migrant smuggling and human trafficking, encouraging them to increase and coordinate
their efforts to deter those acts, in cooperation with Libya.
The Council emphasized that all migrants, including asylum seekers, should be treated with
humanity and dignity and that their rights should be fully respected, and urged all States in this
regard to comply with their obligations under international law, including international human
rights law and international refugee law.
Further, the Council called on all States, with relevant jurisdiction under international law and
national legislation, to investigate and prosecute persons responsible for migrant smuggling
and human trafficking at sea, consistent with States' obligations under international law.
The Council called for Member States to consider ratifying or acceding to the Protocol against
the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, which supplements the UN Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime, as well as the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish
Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children. The State Parties to these protocols are
urged to implement them.
The Council requested States to update the Security Council every three months on the
progress of actions undertaken, and asked the Secretary-General to submit a report eleven
months after the adoption of this resolution on its implementation.
Britain's UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft said after the vote that he wanted to make clear that
the EU's Operation Sophia is only targeting smugglers and empty boats. He said migrants found
during the operation are taken to Europe.
Since the UN authorised the interdictions in October 2015, the Operation Sophia flotilla has
directly apprehended 90 suspected smugglers and has made over 300 smuggling vessels
unusable.
PAKISTAN PASSES LONG-AWAITED ANTI-HONOUR KILLING AND

ANTI-RAPE LEGISLATIONS
Pakistan Parliament in a joint sitting on 6 October 2016
unanimously passed two bills, one seeking to curb murders in the
name of honour and the other to punish rapists by use of modern
technology of DNA testing in probes involving rape cases.
The two bills are titled as, Criminal law amendment (offences in
the name or on the pretext of honour) bill, 2016 and Anti-rape
(criminal laws amendment) bill, 2016.
ABOUT ANTI-HONOUR KILLING BILL

The anti-honour killing bill states, relatives of the victim will be able to pardon the killer if
he/she is awarded capital punishment; however, the culprit will have to face mandatory life
sentence (25 years).
Under the existing laws, a close relative murdered a woman in the name of honour and was
promptly pardoned by another close family member. Thus the murderer would walk away
literally without any punishment.
ABOUT THE ANTI RAPE BILL

The legislation passed makes DNA test mandatory in investigations as part of the procedure.
Through another amendment enhanced punishment has been provided for rape in police
stations and rape of minors and mentally handicapped. Thus sex workers also get protection of
the law against rape.
A recent study had shown that conviction in rape cases was a mere 2 per cent which means
that 98 per cent rapists potentially got scot-free. This is largely because DNA test is not
compulsory in rape case under the existing law.
Both the bills, initially moved by former Senator Sughra Imam, were passed unanimously by the
Senate sometime back and subsequently moved in the Joint Sitting of the Parliament by
Senator Farhatullah Babar on the expiry of Imam's term in the Senate.
According to the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, nearly 1100 women were
killed by relatives in Pakistan in 2015, while many more cases go unreported.
INDIA, SINGAPORE SIGN THREE MOUS STRENGTHENING TIES

ON COUNTERING TERROR, SKILL DEVELOPMENT
India and Singapore on 4 October 2016 signed three Memoranda of Understandings (MoUs)
agreements during the visit of Singapore Premier Lee Hsien Loong to India.
MOUS INCLUDE
S.No Title of MoU Signed Between
1. MoU on collaboration in the field of Technical and National Skill Development

Vocational Education and Training. Corporation and ITEES Singapore.
2. MoU on collaboration in the field of Technical and Government of Assam and ITEES
Vocational Education and Training. Singapore.
3. MoU in the field of Industrial Property DIPP and Intellectual Property Office
Cooperation. Singapore.
INDIA-SINGAPORE BILATERAL RELATIONS

The close ties between India and Singapore have a history rooted in strong commercial, cultural
and people-to-people links. Singapore is not only an important trading partner in ASEAN but
also a major source of FDI inflows in India.
The robust relationship was elevated to a Strategic Partnership during the visit of PM Narendra
Modi to Singapore in 2015 who signed a Joint Declaration on a Strategic Partnership with
Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong. Later, Singapore's President Tony Tan Keng Yam undertook a
State Visit to India on 8-11 February 2015 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the
establishment of diplomatic relations.
India is Singapores eight largest investor. India-Singapore bilateral trade accelerated to USD
17.44 billion in 2010-11 from USD 14.04 percent in 2009-10.
FRANCE BECOMES FIRST COUNTRY TO BAN PLASTIC CUPS AND

PLATES
France has become the first country in the world to ban disposable plastic cups and plates.
The country has passed a law in September 2016 that will go into effect in January 2020. The
law will require all disposable tableware to be made from 50% biologically-sourced materials
that can be composted at home. That number will rise to 60% by January of 2025.
The measure is an addition to France's Energy Transition for Green Growth Act, a wide-
reaching law adopted in 2015 with the aim of mitigating the impact of climate change.
In July 2016, France imposed a total ban on the distribution of lightweight plastic bags at
supermarket checkouts.
WHY THE BAN?

As per the French Association of Health and Environment, ASEF One hundred and fifty single-
use cups are thrown away every second in France, which counts to 4.73 billion per year. Only 1
percent of the cups are recycled, largely because they are made of a mixture of polypropylene
and polystyrene.
ABOUT ENERGY TRANSITION FOR GREEN GROWTH ACT

France enacted its Energy Transition for Green Growth Bill on 17 August 2015 following an
initial presentation at the 2012 environmental conference and nation-wide public consultation
in 2013.
The Act lays out a roadmap for transforming France's energy model without hampering
growth.
Six objectives set by the Act are:
i. Reduce GHG emissions by 40% by 2030 from 1990 levels.

ii. Halve final energy consumption by 2050 from 2012 levels.
iii.Reduce fossil fuel consumption by 30% by 2030 from 2012 levels.
iv. Have renewable energies account for 32% of final energy consumption and 40% of
electricity generation by 2030.
v. Halve the amount of landfilled waste by 2025.
vi. Reduce the share of nuclear power in the energy mix to 50% by 2025.
KERSTI KALJULAID ELECTED AS FIRST FEMALE PRESIDENT OF

ESTONIA
Kersti Kaljulaid on 3 October 2016 was elected as the President of Estonia by the parliament.
With this, Kaljulaid will become Estonias first female president.
Kaljulaid won vote 81-0, with 20 members absent or abstaining. Her selection follows two failed
votes and weeks of heated debate.
ABOUT KERSTI KALJULAID

Kersti Kaljulaid is the President-elect of Estonia.
She is due to take office on 10 October 2016 as the country's fifth President.
She will be the first woman to become President of Estonia since the country declared
independence in 1918 and again in 1991.
She will also be the youngest person elected President, aged 46.
She graduated from Tallinn Secondary School no. 44 in 1987.
In 1992, she graduated from University of Tartu cum laude as a biologist.
In 2001, she graduated University of Tartu with an MBA in business management.
In 19961997, she worked as a sales manager in state-owned telecom Eesti Telefon.
In 19971998, she worked as a project manager in Hoiupanga Investeeringute AS.
In 19981999, she worked in the investment banking department of Hansapank Markets.
In 19992002, she worked as the economic advisor of Estonian Prime Minister Mart Laar.
Since May 2011, she has been the representative of Estonia in the European Court of
Auditors.
COLOMBIAN VOTERS REJECTED FARC PEACE PLAN IN A

REFERENDUM
Colombian voters in a referendum rejected the peace deal with Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia (FARC) rebels. With votes more than 99 per cent of polling stations counted, 50.2 per
cent opposed the accord while 49.8 per cent supported it - a difference of less than 63000 votes
out of 13 million ballots.
The deal was earlier signed by President Juan Manuel Santos and FARC leader Timoleon
Jimenez in fourth week of September 2016 after nearly four years of negotiations. But, it
needed to be ratified by Colombians in order to come into force.
FARC rebels had agreed to lay down their weapons after 52 years of conflict in order to join the
political process. President Santos had said that there is no plan B for ending the war.
The result is being seen as a major setback to President Santos, who since his election in 2010,
had pledged to end a conflict which has killed over 2 lakh 50000 people and displaced about
eight million.
BACKGROUND
The formal peace talks for the deal were started three years ago, in October 2012, in the Cuban
capital. Core area of Peace Talks
The peace talks between the government and the rebels were hosted by the Cuban president,
Raul Castro. Venezuela that had the observer status played an important role in encouraging
FARC to the negotiating table.
The core area of discussion focused on five main areas that is land reform, the rebels' future
role in political life, a definitive end of hostilities, fighting the illegal drug trade and the situation
of the victims.
ABOUT FARC
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of ColombiaPeople's Army (FARC-EP) is a left wing militant
organization established in 1964.
It is Colombia's largest rebel group and Latin America's oldest left-wing insurgency. It is active
in Colombia, Venezuela, Panama and Ecuador.
Like any left-wing militant organisation, its aim is to overthrow the government in power.
It was established as a communist-inspired peasant army fighting for land reform and to
reduce the gulf dividing rich and poor in the Andean country.
It resulted in killing of an estimated 2.2 lakh people and displaced almost seven million.
Timeline of Columbian Conflict
The 50+years of Columbian conflict between the government and leftwing guerrillas like
FARC and the National Liberation Army (ELN) started in 1964 with a group of nearly 50
guerrillas.
Slowly with time, the number of these guerrillas, who waged war on the state in the name of
revolution, turned up to be a strong fighting force of thousands. Here follows a timeline of
their being into existence and becoming strong.
May 1964: This historically rooted conflict of a group of communist guerrillas and peasants is
known as La Violencia, which was triggered in 1948 after assassination of populist political
leader Jorge Elicer Gaitn.
In the month of May 1964, a group of guerrillas that rose under the leadership of Manuel
Marulanda was attacked by the Colombian army in the tiny community of Marquetalia. This
gunning down helped them those who escaped the event to turn up to be a rebel fighting
force. They formed National Liberation Army (ELN) with an aim to replicate Cubas revolution.
May 1966: Marulanda along with other guerrilla leaders created the Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC). The aim behind creation of FARC was to call for land reforms and
militant resistance.
1970s: FARC, who earlier acted in some government roles, setting up training camps, medical
services and few more, began events like kidnappings for ransom, often targeting politicians
and wealthy landowners. This helped them in raising funds that in return helped them to pay
for its militant camps and ersatz social services.
1980s: To resist the actions of FARC rebels, rightwing paramilitary groups were created.
1982: FARC name was modified by addition of words Peoples Army to its name and planned
a ceasefire with an aim to reintegrate into society.
1986: FARCs political wing, the Patriotic Union, won a series of elections at local and federal
government levels. But the elected party members were attacked or killed by the rightwing
forces.
1997: United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) came into existence by three brothers
whose father was killed by FARC. Its formation allowed other paramilitaries under a banner.
In the first year of formation, the group killed thousands of FARC guerrillas along with its
sympathizers.
Rebel group FARC and ELN and the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia were declared
terrorists groups by the US state department.
1999: around 3000 people were kidnapped by the guerrillas during a war between the FARC
and Bogot. These kidnappings led to No Ms protests in cities around the country. This war
forced the government to come up with a plan of peace talks.
2000: Around 24 revel leaders were assassinated in a covert programme by the CIA and NSA.
The programme was started after US president George W Bush expanded Bill Clintons
military aid to Colombia in a 9 billion dollar package to bolster the army in its drug war.
February 2002-July 2008: Presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt was kidnapped by FARC,
and this kidnapping ended the peace talks. This action forced president, Alvaro Uribe to
began a new campaign against the group. This action that included modernized army and the
US aid resulted in decrease of the number of rebels to 8000 from 16000 in 2001.
Later, the FARC leader Marulanda due to heart attack after which Betancourt was freed along
with other hostages.
February 2012-2014: Programme of kidnappings was closed by the FARC and enters into the
peace talks again with Juan Manuel Santoss new administration. But it continued ceasefire
never came into effect.
June-September 2015: Unilateral ceasefire was declared by FARC and the talks continued in
Cuba under President Castro regime.
June 2016: The peace talks hosted by Castro resulted in signing of a bilateral ceasefire
between Colombian government and FARC leaders in Havana.
CHINA BLOCKS TRIBUTARY OF BRAHMAPUTRA IN TIBET

China blocked a tributary of the Brahmaputra River in Tibet. According to Chinese state run
Xinhua news agency, China is constructing a hydro project on Xiabuqu River, a tributary of
Brahmaputra in Xigaze in Tibet, closely located to Sikkim.
The blockade of the Brahmaputra river tributary may impact water flows into the lower riparian
countries like India and Bangladesh.
This blockade of the tributary comes at a time when India has decided to suspend talks with
Pakistan under Indus Water Treaty as part of its efforts to hit back at Pakistan in the aftermath
of the Uri attack. Like the Brahmaputra, the Indus also originates in the Tibetan plateau in
China.
Earlier in 2015, China operationalised its 1.5 billion dollar Zam Hydropower Station, the largest
in Tibet, built on the Brahmaputra River, which raised concerns in India.
The most important fact is that India and China have no water treaty similar to Indus water
treaty between India and Pakistan. But they have established an Expert Level Mechanism on
the trans-border Rivers. In October 2013, the two nations signed a memorandum of
understanding on strengthening cooperation on trans-border Rivers and as per the agreement;
Beijing will provide data on water flows to India.
CHINESE PROJECT
The Chinese Lalho Project in Xigaze of Tibet on the Xiabuqu river, which is a tributary of Yarlung
Zangbo (it is the Tibetan name for River Brahmaputra), involves an investment of 4.95 billion
Yuan (about 740 US dollars). The project that started in 2014 will be completed by 2019.
As per reports, China in its 12th five year plan has plans of three more hydropower projects on
the mainstream of Brahmaputra, which have been approved for implementation.
HOW CHINESE DAMS ON BRAHMAPUTRA WILL AFFECT INDIA?

Chinese ambitious efforts to redraw its water map will have its affect on India because the vast
densely populated region of North-east India depends on water from Brahmaputra and its
tributaries. The river is a lifeline of the region and blockade of water due to any cause will
adversely affect the environment as well as the economy of the region.
If in any situation, China blocks the water of Brahmaputra from flowing into India, then it may
lead to feminine in North-East states of India.
China will have its control on the water of the River after it completes its work of the dams on
River Brahmaputra. This means that this is direct attack on India by China, which is also a
violation of International norms of sharing river waters.
COMMENT
Although China says that it is constructing the dams just to generate power and these
constructions will not affect the flow of river but who knows it has a plan to use water as a
political weapon to blackmail India.
RIVER BRAHMAPUTRA
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river in Asia that originates in Angsi Glacier located on the
northern side of the Himalayas in Burang County of Tibet as the Yarlung Tsangpo River. It is also
one of the major rivers of Asia that cuts through 4 countries namely China, India, Bhutan and
Bangladesh. In Bangladesh it is known as Jamuna River. The Manas River that runs through
Bhutan joins it at Jogighopa in India.
In the vast Ganges Delta, it merges with the Padma, the popular name of the river Ganges in
Bangladesh, and finally the Meghna and from here it is known as Meghna before emptying into
the Bay of Bengal. It is the tenth largest river in the world by discharge, and the 29th longest.
River Brahmaputra, which flows about 1625 kilometers inside the Tibet Autonomous Region of
China enters India into Arunachal Pradesh from Xigaze and flows about 918 kilometers inside
India.
ECONOMY
STARTUPS CAN RAISE USD 3 MILLION VIA ECBS ANNUALLY: RBI
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 27 October 2016 permitted startups to raise external commercial
borrowings (ECBs) of up to USD 3 million in a financial year. Under this, Funds can be raised
with a minimum maturity of 3 years.
The move is aimed at boosting innovation and promoting job creation. The RBI said while
issuing norms for ECB route for startups that the borrowing should be denominated in any
freely convertible currency or in Indian Rupees (INR) or a combination thereof.
HIGHLIGHTS
In case of borrowing in INR, the non-resident lender, should mobilise INR through
swaps/outright sale undertaken through bank in India.
The regulator has not prescribed any cost-ceiling or restriction on the end use of the funds
raised. Such conditions are applicable to borrowings by companies across most other sectors.
The detailed rules would apply to startups looking to raise foreign borrowings, keeping
restrictions on such funds to a minimum.
WHO CAN BE A LENDER?

As per the RBI notification, lender/investor shall be a resident of a country who is either a
member of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) or a member of a FATF-Style Regional Bodies; and
shall not be from a country identified in the public statement of the FATF as:
A jurisdiction having a strategic Anti-Money Laundering or Combating the Financing of

Terrorism deficiencies to which counter measures apply.
A jurisdiction that has not made sufficient progress in addressing the deficiencies or has not
committed to an action plan developed with the Financial Action Task Force to address the
deficiencies.
Exclusion: Overseas branches/subsidiaries of Indian banks and overseas wholly owned

subsidiary/joint venture of an Indian company will, however, not be considered as recognized
lenders under this framework.
The directions for ECB were issued under section 10(4) and 11(2) of the Foreign Exchange
Management Act, 1999 (42 of 1999) and are without prejudice to permissions / approvals, if
any, required under any other law.
EXTERNAL COMMERCIAL BORROWINGS (ECB)

ECB is an instrument used to facilitate the access to foreign money by Indian corporations and
PSUs (public sector undertakings).
ECBs include commercial bank loans, buyers' credit, and suppliers credit, securitised
instruments such as floating rate notes and fixed rate bonds etc. credit from official export
credit agencies and commercial borrowings from the private sector window of multilateral
financial Institutions such as International Finance Corporation (Washington), ADB, AFIC, CDC,
etc.
ECBs cannot be used for investment in stock market or speculation in real estate.
The DEA (Department of Economic Affairs), Ministry of Finance, Government of India along
with Reserve Bank of India, monitors and regulates ECB guidelines and policies.
TRAI RECOMMENDS RS 3050 CRORE PENALTY ON AIRTEL,

VODAFONE & IDEA
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in October 2016 recommended imposition of 3050
crore rupees penalty on Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea cellular. The penalty was imposed for
allegedly denying interconnectivity to newcomer Reliance Jio.
TRAI, in its recommendation to the Department of Telecom, said it has found the three
companies to be non-compliant with licence conditions regarding giving interconnection to
Reliance Jio customers.
DETAIL OF PENALTIES RECOMMENDED

Airtel: Penalty amounts to 1050 crore rupees for 21 service areas (all, except Jammu and
Kashmir)
Vodafone: Penalty amounts to 1050 crore rupees for 21 service areas (all, except Jammu and
Kashmir)
Idea: Penalty amounts to 950 crore rupees for 19 service areas (all, except Jammu and
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and North-eastern States)
It also noted that denial of interconnection by these operators to Reliance Jio appears to be
with the ulterior motive to stifle competition and is anti-consumer.
The recommendation came on complaint by Reliance Jio that over 75 percent of calls on its
network are failing as incumbents were not giving sufficient points of interconnect that would
help complete calls.
UNION GOVERNMENT LAUNCHED UDAN FOR REGIONAL AIR

CONNECTIVITY
Union Government on 21 October 2016 unveiled the regional air connectivity scheme UDAN
(Ude Desh ka Aam naagrik), which seeks to get more people to fly in the smaller towns. The
Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju who launched the scheme in New Delhi said the
scheme is expected to be rolled out by January 2017.
The scheme UDAN envisages providing connectivity to un-served and under-served airports of
the country through revival of existing air-strips and airports. The scheme would be in
operation for a period of 10 years.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation took a major step today towards making flying a reality for the
small town common man.
ABOUT UDAN
It is a unique market-based mechanism to develop regional connectivity, under which Airlines
will bid for seat subsidies.
Airline operators will bid for up to 40 subsidised seats and minimum seats will be 9. There will
be 50 percent seats on market based pricing.
The scheme ensures affordability, connectivity, growth and development.
This first-of-its-kind scheme globally will create affordable yet economically viable and
profitable flights on regional routes so that flying becomes affordable to the common man even
in small towns.
UDAN aims to increase ticketing volume from 80 million to 300 million by 2022.
Under the scheme, airlines will have complete freedom to enter into code sharing with larger
airlines for connectivity and they will be exempted from various airport charges.
Airlines will get exclusive rights for three years to fly on a particular regional route.
Airfares will be capped at 2500 rupees for an hour's flight for regional flights.
On each such route, the minimum frequency would be three and maximum of seven
departures per week. Route networks would also be encouraged under the scheme to achieve
economies of scale and optimal usage of aircraft.
THIS WOULD BE ACHIEVED THROUGH

(1) A financial stimulus in the form of concessions from Central and State governments and
airport operators.
(2) Viability Gap Funding to the interested airlines to kick-off operations from such airports so
that the passenger fares are kept affordable.
WHAT IT CARRIES FOR AIRLINE AND HELICOPTER OPERATORS?

Under UDAN interested airline and helicopter operators can start operations on hitherto un-
connected routes by submitting proposals to the Implementing Agency.
They could seek a Viability Gap Funding (VGF) apart from getting various concessions.
All such route proposals would then be offered for competitive bidding through a reverse
bidding mechanism and the route would be awarded to the participant quoting the lowest VGF
per Seat.
The operator submitting the original proposal would have the Right of First Refusal on
matching the lowest bid in case his original bid is within 10% of the lowest bid.
The successful bidder would then have exclusive rights to operate the route for a period of
three years. Such support would be withdrawn after a three year period, as by that time, the
route is expected to become self-sustainable.
The selected airline operator would have to provide a minimum of 9 and a maximum of 40
UDAN Seats (subsidized rates) on the UDAN Flights for operations through fixed wing aircraft
and a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 13 Seats on the Flights for operations through
helicopters.
Airport operators shall not impose Landing and Parking charge and Terminal Navigation
Landing Charges in addition to discounts on Route Navigation Facility Charges.
A Regional Connectivity Fund (RCF) would be created to meet the viability gap funding
requirements under the scheme. The RCF levy per departure will be applied to certain domestic
flights.
ROLE OF STATES AND RESULTS

The States have a key role under the scheme. The selection of airports where UDAN operations
would start would be done in consultation with State Government and after confirmation of
their concessions. The scheme would also help in revival of the dysfunctional airports and
starting operations on un-served airports, this has been a long standing demand of most States.
Apart from this, the Union Government would provide concessions in the form of reduced
excise duty, service tax, permission to trade ASKMs for Non-RCS (UDAN) Seats and flexibility of
code sharing at the RCS (UDAN) airports. State governments will have to lower the VAT on ATF
to 1% or less, besides providing security and fire services free of cost and electricity, water and
other utilities at substantially concessional rates.
The partner State Governments (other than North Eastern States and Union Territories where
contribution will be 10 %) would contribute a 20% share to this fund. For balanced regional
growth, the allocations under the scheme would be equitably spread across the five
geographical regions of the country viz. North, West, South, East and North-east.
EXPECTED RESULTS
The UDAN is likely to a give a major fillip to tourism and employment generation in the
hinterland.
Through introduction of helicopters and small aircraft, it is also likely to significantly reduce
travel timings in remote and hilly regions, as well as islands and other areas of the country.
The state governments would reap the benefit of development of remote areas; enhance
trade and commerce and more tourism expansion.
MoS for civil aviation Jayant Sinha said the scheme is inspired by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi's vision to make air travel accessible to common people. The ministry wants to add 50
more airports and connect them to bigger cities and towns in next four years.
INDIA, WORLD BANK SIGN $650 MILLION AGREEMENT FOR

EASTERN DEDICATED FREIGHT CORRIDOR
India on 21 October 2016 signed a 650-million US dollar loan agreement with the World Bank
for the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor-III (EDFC-III) Project. The project will benefit
industries of Northern and Eastern India, which rely on railway network for transportation of
material inputs and exports.
These industries also depend on railway network for transportation for the distribution of bulk
processed and semi-processed commodities and consumer goods. Railway passengers will also
be benefitted through decongestion of the existing passenger lines.
The project is being developed by Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd. (DFCCIL).
It would also help in creating jobs in the northern and eastern regions of the country.
OBJECTIVE
The EDFC-III Project is to augment rail transport capacity, improve service quality and
enhance freight carriage throughput on the 401 km Ludhiana-Khurja section of the Eastern
Dedicated Freight Corridor
It seeks to develop institutional capacity of DFCCIL to build, maintain and operate the entire
DFC network.
The third loan agreement that the World Bank has signed for the Eastern Corridor, which is
about 1840 km long and extends from Ludhiana to Kolkata. EDFC is going to be a broad gauge
corridor. This will have double line and will be electrified. The corridor will also pass through
Dadri (The origin point of Western Dedicated Freight Corridor) which will serve as a junction.
This project is in continuation of Phase-I and II of the EDFC Projects being implemented by the
DFCCIL with the World Bank loan of US$ 975 million and US$ 1100 million respectively on the
Dadri-Khurja-Kanpur; and Kanpur-Mughal Sarai stretches of the Eastern Rail Corridor (Ludhiana-
Delhi-Kolkata).
RBI EASES NORMS FOR FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN STARTUPS

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 20 October 2016 notified the amended norms for foreign
investment in startups. For this, the bank amended the Foreign Exchange Management
(Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person Resident outside India) Regulations, 2000.
Investment in India by Foreign Venture Capital Investors (FVCI), registered with SEBI, is
governed by the provisions of Schedule 6 of the aforesaid Regulations.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NOTIFICATIONS

Any FVCI, registered with market regulator SEBI, will not require any approval from Reserve
Bank of India and can invest in unlisted Indian companies.
FVCI can invest in following sectors- Biotechnology, IT, Nanotechnology, Seed research and
development, pharmaceutical sector, Dairy industry, Poultry industry, Production of bio-fuels,
Hotel-cum-convention centres and Infrastructure sector.
FVCIs can also invest in Equity or equity linked instrument or debt instrument issued by an
Indian startup irrespective of the sector in which the startup is engaged.
FVCIs can invest in units of a Venture Capital Fund (VCF) registered under the SEBI or units of
a Scheme or of a fund set up by a VCF or by a Category I Alternative Investment Fund (Cat-I AIF).
The downstream investments by a VCF or a Cat-I AIF, which has received investment from
FVCI, shall have to comply with the provisions for downstream investment as laid down in
Schedule 11 of the Principal Regulations.
FVCI may open a foreign currency account or a rupee account with a designated branch of an
Authorised Dealer for the purpose of making transactions only and exclusively under this
Schedule.
There will be no restriction on transfer of any security/instrument held by the FVCI to any
person resident in or outside India.
An entity receiving investment directly from a registered FVCI will be required to report the
investment in form FCGPR.
DEFINITION OF STARTUP AS PER REGULATION

A startup means an entity (private limited company or a registered partnership firm or a limited
liability partnership) incorporated or registered in India not prior to five years, with an annual
turnover not exceeding 25 Crores rupees in any preceding financial year.
Startup should be working towards innovation, development, deployment or commercialization

of new products, processes or services driven by technology or intellectual property.
GST COUNCIL REACHED CONSENSUS ON STATE COMPENSATION

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on 18 October 2016 reached a consensus on the way
the states would be compensated for any loss of revenue after implementation of the new
indirect tax regime, GST from 1 April 2017.
During the meet, the GST Council also discussed the possible GST rates, including a four-slab
structure of 6, 12, 18 and 26 with lower rates for essential items and highest band for luxury
goods.
The three-day GST council meet was headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and included
representatives from all states. On the first day of meet, the council discussed five alternatives
of GST rate structure but no decision was taken on the same. The discussions would continue
on the second say of the meet.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CONSENSUS

Base year for calculating the revenue of a state would be 2015-16
Secular growth rate of 14 per cent would be taken for calculating the likely revenue of each
state in the first five years of implementation of the GST.
States getting lower revenue would be compensated by the Centre.
They reached at a consensus on definition of revenue to compensate states for revenue loss
due to GST implementation.
The rate structure should be such which do not lead to further inflation and both the States
and Centre have adequate funds to discharge their duties.
The rate should be revenue-neutral so that there is no need to burden consumers with
additional tax.
To keep the inflation under check, food items along with other 50 percent items of common
usage are proposed to be exempted from the tax.
The lower rates would be levied on essential items and the highest for luxury and demerit
goods.
UNION GOVERNMENT GRANTS BP PLC LICENCE TO SET UP

PETROL PUMPS IN INDIA
The Union Government in the second week of October 2016 has formally granted a licence to
BP Plc to set up 3500 petrol pumps in India.
The company was granted a formal licence on 14 October 2016. It was granted licence to
market Motor Spirit (petrol) and High Speed Diesel (diesel). With this, BP became the 10th
company to enter the fuel retailing sector.
ABOUT BP
BP plc is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England.
It was formerly known as British Petroleum.
It is one of the world's seven oil and gas supermajors, whose performance in 2012 made it the
world's sixth-largest oil and gas company, the sixth-largest energy company by market
capitalization and the company with the world's fifth-largest revenue (turnover).
It is a vertically integrated company operating in all areas of the oil and gas industry.
As of 31 December 2015, it had operations in more than 70 countries, produced around 3.3
million barrels per day of oil equivalent, and had total proved reserves of 17.18 billion barrels of
oil equivalent.
Its largest division is BP America in the United States.
On the other hand, the company has been directly involved in several major environmental
and safety incidents. Among them were the 2005 Texas City Refinery explosion, the wreck of
Torrey Canyon, the 2006 Prudhoe Bay oil spill and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill is the largest accidental release of oil into marine waters
in history. It resulted in severe environmental, health and economic consequences, and serious
legal and public relations repercussions for BP.
CCEA APPROVES REVISION OF ETHANOL PRICES FOR SUPPLY TO

PUBLIC SECTOR OIL MARKETING COMPANIES
Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 13 October 2016 approved the mechanism
for revision of ethanol price for supply to Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to
carry out the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme.
The administered price of ethanol for the Programme will be 39 rupees per litre for the next
sugar season from 1 December 2016 to 30 November 2017.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Charges will be paid to the ethanol suppliers as per actuals in case of Excise Duty and VAT or
GST and transportation charges as decided by the oil marketing companies.
The prices of ethanol will be reviewed and suitably revised by Government at any time during
the ethanol supply period depending upon the prevailing economic situation and other relevant
factors.
The revision in ethanol prices will facilitate Government in providing price stability and
remunerative prices for ethanol suppliers.
ETHANOL BLENDED PETROL (EBP) PROGRAMME

Union Government in 2003 launched the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme to promote
the use of alternative and environment friendly fuels. The programme also sought to reduce
import dependency for energy requirements.
However, since 2006, OMCs were not able to receive offers for the required quantity of ethanol
against the tenders floated by them due to various constraints like State Specific issues,
Supplier related issues including Pricing issues of ethanol.
DECISION TO AUGMENT THE SUPPLY OF ETHANOL
To end constraints and augment the supply of ethanol, government on 10 December 2014
placed a mechanism for pricing of ethanol under which the delivered price of ethanol at OMC
depots was fixed in the range of 48.50 rupees per litre to 49.50 rupees per litre including
Central/State Government taxes and transportation charges.
EFFECT OF THE DECISION
The decision helped in improving the supply of ethanol.
Ethanol supplies increased to 67.4 crore litres in 2014-15 and the projected supplies for
ethanol supply year 2015-16 are around 120 crore litres.
FADNAVIS INAUGURATES INDIAS FIRST INTERNATIONAL

ARBITRATION CENTRE IN MUMBAI
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on 8 October 2016 inaugurated Indias first
centre for international arbitration in Mumbai. Inaugurating the Mumbai Centre for
International Arbitration (MCIA), Fadnavis said that India will leave its benchmark worldwide in
business dispute redressal with the setting up of international arbitration centre in Mumbai.
The Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (MCIA) is located in Express towers, Nariman
Point. It is being headed by CEO Madhukeshwar Desai.
MUMBAI CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION (MCIA)

The MCIA will be governed by a 17-member governing council.
The Arbitration Centre is in sync with the Prime Minister's Make in India campaign.
The Centre would provide a time bound and cost-effective facility and reinforce investor
confidence.
MCIA will be helpful in development of the proposed International Financial Services Centre
(IFSC) in Mumbai. The state government has plans to develop IFSC in BKC.
It will feature arbitration rules that reflect international best practices.
The MCIA Council for Arbitration will have some of the leading arbitration practitioners from
India and around the world.
It will be a catalyst for business and investment into India.
It is the result of a joint effort between the domestic and international arbitration community,
the business community and the Government of Maharashtra.
In the absence of an international arbitration centre in the country, the majority of global
disputes earlier landed at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and London Court of
International Arbitration. A study conducted by the Singapore International Arbitration Centre
suggests that it handled about 30 percent of cases that involved Indian businesses.
RBI RELEASES REPORT OF IWG ON RATIONALISATION OF

BRANCH AUTHORISATION POLICY
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 6 October 2016 released the Report of the Internal Working
Group (IWG) on Rationalisation of Branch Authorisation Policy. The Group is chaired by Lily
Vadera, Chief General Manager, Department of Banking Regulation.
The thrust of the recommendations is to facilitate financial inclusion by ensuring availability of

banking services in all centers through low cost delivery channels and mapping the footprints of
various banking channels.
RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE IWG

In the first phase, the recommendations focus on broadening of the current framework to
include all banking outlets which are fixed point locations and bring them on par with branches.
A banking outlet is defined as a fixed point service delivery unit manned by banks staff or its
Business Correspondent where services of acceptance of deposits, encashment of
cheques/cash withdrawal or lending of money are provided for minimum 4 hours per day for at
least five days a week.
Banks need to open banking outlets to meet the 25 percent norms of opening banking outlets
in unbanked rural centres that do not have a CBS-enabled banking outlet of a Scheduled
Commercial Bank.
A part-time banking outlet opened in any Centre will be added to the denominator as well as
numerator on pro rata basis for computing the compliance with the norm of opening 25%
banking outlets.
A banking outlet opened in North-Eastern States, Sikkim and in Left-Wing Extremism Affected
Districts will be treated as a banking outlet/part-time banking outlet in an unbanked rural
centre.
Grandfathering of MFI/NBFC structures of Small Finance Banks to be provided to facilitate an

orderly transformation and to minimize the risk of transition. As regards their existing
NBFC/MFI branches, banks will be given a time period of 3 years to close or convert these into
banking outlets.
The Boards of the banks should set internal financial inclusion targets and compile the data to
monitor the transactions to ensure that target customers for financial inclusion are getting the
banking facilities in unbanked rural centres.
In the second phase, a new data system will be devised which is capable of capturing the
locations and transactions carried out by all banking outlets.
BACKGROUND
The opening of new branches and shifting of existing branches of banks is governed by the
provisions of Section 23 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
In the light of the rapid developments in technology and associated digital and telecom
revolution, banks are looking at alternative approaches to enlarge their footprints and reach
out to the unbanked and underserved centres in remote areas in a cost effective manner.
With a view to facilitate financial inclusion and provide operational flexibility, it was considered
necessary to redefine branches and permissible methods of outreach keeping in mind the
various attributes of the banks and the types of services that are sought to be provided.
An announcement to this effect was made in the first Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement
2016-17 in April 2016 and accordingly an Internal Working group was constituted for the
purpose.
CCEA APPROVES ACQUISITION OF 11% STAKE IN JSC

VANKORNEFT BY ONGC VIDESH
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 5 October 2016 gave its approval to an
acquisition by ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) for 11% stake in JSC Vankorneft from Rosneft Oil
Company (Rosneft), Russias national oil company.
The OVL will pay 930 million US dollar for acquiring 11 per cent in Vankorneft.
The acquisition is in line with ONGCs stated objective of adding high quality international
assets to India's exploration and production portfolio.
Earlier in May 2016, OVL completed the formalities for acquisition of 15% stake in Vankorneft
at a cost of 1.284 billion US dollar, which gave OVL 4.11 MMTOE.
BENEFITS
The acquisition of stake in Vankorneft will provide 3.2 Million Tonnes of Oil Equivalent
(MMTOE) to OVL by 2017.
It will also provide an opportunity to the Indian public sector oil and gas companies to acquire
new technologies from Rosneft.
ABOUT ONGC VIDESH LTD

ONGC Videsh Limited is the international arm of ONGC.
It was rechristened on 15 June 1989.
ONGC holds 100% stake in ONGC Videsh Limited.
It is a Miniratna Schedule A Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) of the Government of

India under the administrative control of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas.
In terms of reserves and production, ONGC Videsh is the second largest petroleum Company
of India, next only to its parent ONGC.
ABOUT ROSNEFT OIL COMPANY

Rosneft is an integrated oil company majority owned by the Government of Russia.
It is headquartered in Moscow's Balchug district near the Kremlin, across the Moskva River.
It became Russia's leading extraction and refinement company after purchasing assets of
former oil giant Yukos at state-run auctions.
NITIN GADKARI LAUNCHES INDIAN BRIDGE MANAGEMENT

SYSTEM
To make sure that the bridges across India remains safe, the Union Minister of Road Transport
and Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari on 4 October 2016 launched the Indian Bridge
Management System (IBMS) in New Delhi.
IBMS is being developed to create an inventory of all bridges in the country and rate their
structural condition so that timely repair and rehabilitation work can be carried out based on
the criticality of the structure.
MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS OF INDIAN BRIDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (IBMS)

IBMS is the largest platform in the world owned by a single owner, with database that could
exceed one lakh fifty thousand bridge structures.
So far one lakh and fifteen thousand bridges have been intventorized, of which eighty five
thousands are culverts and the rest are bridges.
At the time of creation, each bridge was assigned with a unique identification number or
National Identity Number based on the state, RTO zone and whether it is situated on a National
Highway, State Highway or is a district road.
The precise location of the bridge in terms of latitude-longitude was collected through GPS
and based on the same the bridge was assigned a Bridge Location Number.
It also noted the engineering characteristics like the design, materials, type of bridge, its age,
loading, traffic lane, length, width of carriage way and others, which will be used to assign a
Bridge Classification Number to the structure.
These bridges are provided a structural rating for each component of the structure on the
scale of 0 to 9.
In addition to the structural rating, the bridges are also being assigned Socio-Economic Bridge
Rating Number which will decide the importance of the structure in relation to its contribution
to daily socio-economic activity of the area in its vicinity.
Every bridge is also assigned a Structural Rating Number.
WHY IBMS IS REQUIRED?

Lack of any data on the bridges across India has led to a situation in which there is no clarity
about the exact number, location and condition of bridge. Bridges in poor conditions hampers
efficient transport and also leads to accidents and loss of lives on several occasions.
IBMS aims to fill this gap by preparing a data base of all bridges in the country. It will also detail
their structural condition, which will help the government to take a decision on repairing the
existing bridge or build new ones in their place.
UNION FINANCE MINISTRY SETS UP PUBLIC DEBT

MANAGEMENT CELL
Union Finance Ministry on 4 October constituted a Public Debt Management Cell (PDMC). The
cell was created to streamline government borrowings and better cash management with the
overall objective of deepening bond markets.
The Joint Secretary (Budget), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance would be the
overall in-charge of the ODMC.
As an interim arrangement, the PDMC will be housed at the RBI's Delhi office. In about two
years, the PDMC will be upgraded to a statutory Public Debt Management Agency (PDMA).
HIGHLIGHTS OF PDMC
The interim arrangement will allow separation of debt management functions from RBI to
PDMA in a gradual and seamless manner, without causing market disruptions.
It will have only advisory functions to avoid any conflict with the statutory functions of RBI.
It has been tasked to plan government borrowings, including market borrowings and other
borrowings, like Sovereign Gold Bond issuance.
It will also advise government on matters related to investment, capital market operations,
administration of interest rates on small savings among others.
The middle office of the Budget Division will be subsumed into PDMC with immediate effect.
The transition process from PDMC to PDMA would be implemented by a Joint Implementation
Committee (JIC), which will be chaired by Joint Secretary (Budget). Other members of the JIC
will be from Government and RBI.
As per the circular issued by the ministry, the JIC would operate under the supervision of the
Monitoring Group on Cash and Debt Management (MGCDM) with Secretary, Economic Affairs
and DG, RBI as co-chairpersons. The PDMC would be staffed by 15 debt managers from Budget
Division, RBI, current Middle Office and other government units.
BACKGROUND
To deepen Indian Bond market, the Finance Ministry Arun Jaitley proposed setting of a PDMA in
his Budget Speech 2016-17. He said that he intend to set up a PDMA which will bring both
India's external borrowings and domestic debt under one roof.
RBI RELEASES FOURTH BI-MONTHLY MONETARY POLICY

STATEMENT, 2016-17
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 4 October 2016 released the fourth Bi-Monthly Monetary
Policy Statement 2016-17. The key announcement under the policy was the interest cut of 25
basis points. This move may lead to banks in lowering EMIs for housing, car loan and corporate
borrowers.
This policy decision was not only RBI Governor Urjit Patels maiden policy announcement but
was also the first to be announced by the newly constituted Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
All the six members of MPC unanimously decided to cut repo rate by 0.25 per cent; bring in to a
nearly six-year low of 6.25 per cent. This was also the first interest rate cut in last six months.
According to the monetary policy statement, the decision to cut interest rates is consistent with
the aim of achieving a midterm inflation target of 4 percent within a band of plus or minus 2
percent.
Based on the assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation, the Monetary
Policy Committee (MPC) decided to:
Repo Rate: The policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) was reduced by
25 basis points from 6.5 per cent to 6.25 per cent with immediate effect.
Reverse Repo Rate: The reverse repo rate under the LAF stands adjusted to 5.75 per cent.
Marginal standing facility (MSF) Rate: The MSF rate was fixed at 6.75 per cent.
Bank Rate: The Bank Rate also stands at 6.75 per cent.
The decision of the MPC is consistent with an accommodative stance of monetary policy in
consonance with the objective of achieving consumer price index (CPI) inflation at 5 per cent by
Q4 of 2016-17 and the medium-term target of 4 per cent within a band of +/- 2 per cent, while
supporting growth. The main considerations underlying the decision are set out in the
statement below.
ASSESSMENT OF THE ECONOMY

Global growth has been slowing more than anticipated through 2016 so far, with weak
investment and trade damping aggregate demand.
Risks in the form of BREXIT, banking stress in Europe, rebalancing of debt-fuelled growth in
China, rising protectionism and diminishing confidence in monetary policy have slanted the
outlook to the downside.
World trade volume has contracted sharper than expected in the first half of 2016, and the
outlook has worsened with the recent falling off of imports by Advanced Economies (AEs) from
Emerging Market Economies (EMEs). Inflation remains subdued in AEs and has started to edge
down in EMEs.
International financial markets were overwhelmed by the BREXIT vote in Q2, with equity
markets losing valuations worldwide, currencies plunging and turning volatile, and investors
rushing for safe havens. Markets, however, recovered quickly and reclaimed lost ground in Q3,
with a return of risk appetite propelling capital flows back into EMEs.
Crude prices rose to a recent peak in Q2 of 2016, mostly on supply disruption in various parts
of the world, and again in late September as the OPEC announced intentions of cutting back on
supply; but, the upturn has been curbed by higher inventories.
ASSESSMENT ON THE DOMESTIC FRONT

Agriculture: The outlook for agricultural activity has brightened as the South West monsoon
ended the season with a cumulative deficit of only 3 per cent below the long period average,
with 85 per cent of the countrys geographical area having received normal to excess
precipitation.
Kharif: Kharif sowing has surpassed last years acreage, barring cotton, sugarcane and jute
and mesta. Accordingly, the first advance 2 estimates of kharif food grains production for 2016-
17 by the Ministry of Agriculture have been placed at a record level, and higher than the target
set for the year.
Industrial sector: The industrial sector, by contrast, suffered a manufacturing-driven

contraction in early fiscal year Q2, after a sequential deceleration in gross value added in Q1.
Even after trimming the statistical effects of the lumpy and order-driven contraction of
insulated rubber cables, industrial production as measured by the index of industrial production
(IIP) turned out to be slower than a year ago.
Steel: In August, steel production rose to a 37-month high and cement production maintained
momentum - auguring well for construction activity - even though the output of core industries
as a whole was weighed down by a decline in the production of coal, crude oil and natural gas
and deceleration in refinery products and electricity generation.
Nonetheless, business expectations polled in the Reserve Banks industrial outlook survey and
by other agencies remain expansionary in Q2 and Q3.
Roads, Railways And Inland Waterways: The strong public investment in roads, railways and
inland waterways, the recent efforts to unclog cash flows in large projects under arbitration,
and the boost to spending from the 7th Pay Commissions award, should improve the industrial
outlook.
Services Sector: The acceleration in the pace of activity in Q1 appears to have been sustained.
An increasing number of high frequency indicators are moving into positive territory,
construction is boosted by policy initiatives, and public administration, defence and other
services will be supported by the pay commission award.
Retail inflation: Measured by the headline CPI had been elevated by a sharp pick-up in the
momentum of food inflation overwhelming favourable base effects during April-July. In August,
however, the momentum of food inflation turned negative and surprised expectations;
consequently, base effects in that month came into full play and pulled down headline inflation
to an intra-year low. Fuel inflation has moderated steadily through the year so far. Inflation
excluding food and fuel (including petrol and diesel embedded in transportation) has been
sticky around 5 per cent, mainly in respect to education, medical and personal care services.
Liquidity conditions: It remained comfortable in Q3, with the Reserve Bank absorbing
liquidity on a net basis through variable rate reverse repo auctions of varying tenors. Liquidity
was injected through open market purchases of 200 billion rupees in line with the systems
requirements. As a result, the Weighted Average Call Money Rate (WACR) remained tightly
aligned with the policy repo rate and, in fact, traded with a soft bias. Interest rates on
commercial paper (CPs) and certificates of deposit (CD) also eased.
External Sector: Merchandise exports contracted in the first two months of Q2. Subdued
domestic demand was, however, reflected in a faster contraction in imports. Moreover, the still
soft crude prices pared off a fifth of the oil import bill and gold import volume slumped to a
fifth of its volume a year ago. As a result of the same, the merchandise trade deficit narrowed
by 10 billion US dollars in April-August on a year-on-year basis.
Foreign Direct Investment: The pace of foreign direct investment slowed compared to a year
ago, portfolio flows were stronger after the BREXIT vote, galvanised by a search for returns in
an expanding universe of negative yields. The level of foreign exchange reserves rose to 372
billion US dollars by 30 September 2016 an all-time high.
OUTLOOK
The food inflation outlook will improved due to strong improvement in sowing, along with
supply management measures.
Sharp drop in inflation reflects a downward shift in the momentum of food inflation, which
holds the key to future inflation outcomes, rather than merely the statistical effects of a
favourable base effect.
Governments measures to curb the food inflation would help in moderating the momentum
of food inflation in months ahead.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

CHINA'S SPACE LAB LAUNCHES MICRO-SATELLITE, BANXING-2
Tiangong-2, the experimental space lab of China, on 23 October 2016 successfully launched a
micro-satellite, Banxing-2 (the word means Companion Satellite). The micro-satellite is roughly
the size of a desktop printer.
At present, Tiangong-2 is orbiting the Earth with two astronauts on board.
ABOUT BANXING-2
Weighing 47 kilograms, the micro satellite has a series of visible light cameras, including
a 25 megapixel camera and wide-angle imagers.
Its mission is to take photographs of Tiangong-2 and the Shenzhou 11 spacecraft, which
docked with the lab on 19 October 2016.
The satellite, which the media has nicknamed "Selfie Stick", also has an infrared camera
that is temperature - sensitive.
With three solar panels, the satellite can also generate enough power to adjust its orbit
to shoot pictures of the lab and spacecraft.
The Shenzhou-11 spacecraft carried two astronauts into space on the 17 October 2016.
It docked with Tiangong-2 two days later.
In 2008, its predecessor, Banxing-1, did the same work for Shenzhou 7.
HITLER'S SECRET NAZI BASE DISCOVERED IN ARCTIC CIRCLE

A team of scientists in October 2016 discovered a secret Nazi base of German dictator Adolf
Hitler located 1000 kilometres from the North Pole.
For decades, this location of the mysterious site known as Schatzgraber or Treasure Hunter on
Alexandra Land in the Arctic Circle had remained unknown.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DISCOVERY

About 500 items of historical value were collected on the grounds of the former Treasure
Hunter German station that operated on the Alexandra Land island of Franz Josef Land.
The supposed weather station is believed to have been constructed on direct orders from
Hitler in 1942, a year after his invasion of Russia.
It was in service from 1943, before being abandoned in July 1944 when its crew was poisoned
after being forced to eat raw polar bear meat infected with roundworms while running low on
supplies.
Researchers exploring the isolated island, which is now a Russian Territory, discovered relics
including the ruins of bunkers, discarded petrol canisters and even paper documents dating
from the Second World War.
Researchers found bullets, scraps of tents and personal items such as shoes; many of which
appear to be dated and marked with the swastika.
IGKV CHHATTISGARH DEVELOPS PROTEIN-ENRICHED RICE

VARIETY
The researchers of the Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalay (IGKV) in Raipur developed a
protein-enriched rice variety.
The newly developed rice variety has over 10 per cent protein content, which is three per cent
more than what is found in any popular variety and has 30 PPM zinc content.
The researchers hope that it would serve as a boon for malnourished population, especially
children, in the tribal-dominated Chhattisgarh.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
The researchers worked for seven years to develop the variety of rice that is rich in protein
along with high zinc content.
The rice variety will play a crucial role in fighting protein deficiencies.
The rice variety will be sent to the states variety identification committee within six months
for final release following which it is likely to be ready for cultivation next year.
WHAT THE SURVEY SAYS?

As per a survey conducted in 2015, very high rate of malnutrition was found among pre-
school children in tribal areas showing conditions like being underweight and stunted growth,
which indicates a critical situation.
Over five lakh children in Chhattisgarh are underweight, with tribal districts like Bastar,
Dantewada, Kondagaon and Narayanpur having a comparatively higher rate of malnourishment
then other districts.
The Women and Child Development Department in September 2016 informed that
malnutrition rate in Chhattisgarh has declined to 29.8 per cent from 47.1 per cent registered in
the National Family Health Survey 2005-06 (weight-based).
TWEETCAST TO PREDICT VOTE IN UPCOMING US PRESIDENTIAL

ELECTIONS
An online tool, TweetCast, can predict whether citizens will vote for Donald Trump or Hilary
Clinton in the upcoming US Presidential elections has been developed. The tool was developed
by researchers of Northwestern University in the US.
TweetCast uses a machine-learning algorithm to examine words, hashtags, tagged usernames

and mentioned websites to uncover which terms are most predictive of voting preference.
TWEETCAST
The tool was designed by Larry Birnbaum, a professor of computer science in Northwesterns
McCormick School of Engineering and his students.
It can also predict which party will dominate a particular state in the November 8 elections.
As per the algorithm, tweet words "lying," "liberal," and "illegal" indicates a vote for
Republican candidate Trump.
On the other hand, using the words "single," "humanity," and "rights", predicts a vote for
Democratic rival Clinton.
The algorithm was trained on Twitter users who have publicly declared support for one of the
two candidates.
Researchers said that 'TweetCast' has a prediction accuracy of over 80 per cent.
MILK OF TASMANIAN DEVIL KILLS SEVERAL DRUG-RESISTANT

SUPERBUGS: STUDY
Scientists have discovered that Tasmanian devil milk contains an arsenal of antimicrobial
compounds that can kill some of the most deadly bacterial and fungal infections, including
golden staph.
The study was published in Scientific Reports.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE STUDY

As per the research, Tasmanian devils produce six different types of the antimicrobial
compounds that hold the power to kill several drug-resistant superbugs.
Scientists were able to successfully synthesise the antimicrobial compounds in the lab to test
their effectiveness against a number of drug-resistant bacterial and fungal pathogens.
When tested against 25 different bacterial and six fungal strains, the six varieties of
antimicrobial compounds were found to kill golden staph, responsible for food poisoning,
pneumonia, and toxic shock syndrome. They were also found to produce Enterococcus, which
can cause urinary tract infections and meningitis.
The compounds also killed Candida krusei, a rare yeast species associated with high mortality,
and the deadly and hyper-virulent airborne fungus called Cryptococcus gattii.
ABOUT TASMANIAN DEVIL

The Tasmanian devil is a carnivorous marsupial of the family Dasyuridae.
They are found in the wild only on the Australian island state of Tasmania.
It became the largest carnivorous marsupial in the world following the extinction of the
thylacine in 1936.
It is characterised by its stocky and muscular build, black fur, pungent odour, extremely loud
and disturbing screech, keen sense of smell and ferocity when feeding.
The Tasmanian devil's large head and neck allow it to generate among the strongest bites per
unit body mass of any extant mammal land predator.
Tasmanian devils are currently under serious threat from Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD),
a highly infectious parasitic facial cancer that has wiped out more than 70 percent of the
species.
CHINA SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHES LONGEST MANNED SPACE

MISSION
China on 17 October 2016 successfully launched a manned
spacecraft Shenzhou-11 carrying two astronauts. This was
Chinas longest-ever manned space mission.
The 'Shenzhou-11' spacecraft was put into orbit by a Long

March-2F carrier rocket after the launch. It was launched into
space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre near the Gobi
Desert in northwest China.
Wu Ping, Deputy Director of China's manned space engineering office said that the spacecraft
will dock with orbiting space lab Tiangong-2 in two days and the astronauts, namely Jing
Haipeng (50) and Chen Dong (38), will stay in the lab for 30 days.
Jing Haipeng had participated in the Shenzhou-7 and Shenzhou-9 missions, while this is the first
space mission for Chen Dong. Tiangong-2, launched into space on 15 September 2016, orbits
about 393 kilometers above Earth.
The space lab was launched in September 2016 as part of China's efforts to set up its own
manned space station by 2022, which will make it the only the country to have such a facility in
service as the present in-service International Space Station retires by 2024.
Till date, China had sent six manned spacecraft in the space.
MATERNAL OBESITY MAY AFFECT BIOLOGICAL AGE OF

CHILDREN: STUDY
A new study suggests that higher Body Mass Index (BMI) in women before pregnancy can lead
to shorter telomere length, a biomarker for biological age, in their newborns.
The study was conducted by the researchers at Hasselt University in Belgium. The study was
published in the journal BMC Medicine.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE STUDY

To conduct the study, the team examined 743 mothers, who were 17 to 44 years of age, and
their newborn babies.
Compared with newborns of mothers with a normal BMI, newborns of women with obesity
are older on a molecular level. It is because shortened telomere lengths mean that their cells
have shorter lifespans.
Telomere length, which is measured by the number of DNA base pairs they occupy, is directly
linked to the number of times a cell can divide in its lifetime.
Therefore, longer telomeres allow cells to divide more often, providing a link between
telomere length and biological age.
Telomere length in adults has been associated with age-related diseases such as
cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and increased mortality.
The research team found that for each one-point increase in the mothers' BMI, telomeres in
the babies were about 50 base pairs shorter.
The 50 base pair shortening of telomere length is equivalent to the length that people
normally lose in 1.1 - 1.6 years of adult life, which may increase the risk of chronic diseases in
adulthood.
WHAT IS TELOMERE?
Telomeres are structures at the ends of chromosomes which are vital in maintaining the
stability of a person's genome as they protect chromosomes from degradation.
During chromosome replication, the enzymes that duplicate DNA cannot continue their
duplication all the way to the end of a chromosome. Therefore, in each duplication, the end of
the chromosome is shortened.
The telomeres are disposable buffers at the ends of chromosomes which are truncated during
cell division.
Their presence protects the genes before them on the chromosome from being truncated
instead.
The telomeres themselves are protected by a complex of shelterin proteins, as well as by the
RNA that telomeric DNA encodes (TERRA).
NASA DEVELOPS ELECTROACTIVE BANDAGES FOR WOUND

HEALING
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) developed a high-tech electroactive
bandage. The bandage creates an electric charge to help promote the healing process of
wounds.
Electroactive material is so sensitive that a push or even a blow on it can create an electric
charge.
KEY FEATURES OF THE ELECTROACTIVE BANDAGES

The fibres of the guaze are made of electroactive material Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF).
The bandage is stimulated by the heat of the body and the pressure of cell growth. Therefore,
no external power source is required in order for the bandage to promote wound healing.
The device uses electrical activity to facilitate the wound healing process while protecting the
wound.
The bandage also minimises infection and related complications such as illness or amputation.
The bandage could be used by military personnel wounded in the field, patients who have
undergone surgery or who have suffered a serious wound and astronauts in space.
HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE DETECTS GREAT BALLS OF FIRE

NASAs Hubble Space Telescope in the first week of October 2016 detected Great Balls of Fire.
These superhot blobs of gas, each twice as big as the planet Mars, were being ejected near a
dying star.
These plasma balls are moving so fast through space that it would take only 30 minutes for
them to travel from Earth to the moon. The observations suggest that these balls of fire have
been appearing every 8.5 years for at least the last four centuries.
The gas balls were observed near a red giant called V Hydrae that is about 1200 light-years
away from Earth.
SIGNIFICANCE
If scientists can discover where these balls come from, it could also explain other weird shapes
seen in the cloud of gas around dying stars, some of which have been difficult for scientists to
explain.
ABOUT HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE

The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was launched into low Earth orbit in
1990. It remains in operation. It could last until 20302040.
It is one of the largest and most versatile vital research tool and a public relations boon for
astronomy.
It is named after the astronomer Edwin Hubble, and is one of NASA's Great Observatories,
along with the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory, the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the
Spitzer Space Telescope.
With a 2.4-meter mirror, its four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible and
near infrared spectra.
It was built by the United States space agency NASA, with contributions from the European
Space Agency.
The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) selects Hubble's targets and processes the
resulting data, while the Goddard Space Flight Center controls the spacecraft.
It is the only telescope designed to be serviced in space by astronauts.
Its scientific successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), is scheduled for launch in
2018.
APES CAN THINK LIKE HUMANS: STUDY

A new study suggests that apes have a human-like ability to guess what others are thinking,
even in cases when someone holds a mistaken belief.
The findings were published on 6 October 2016 in the journal Science.
THE STUDY
The study was led by Krupenye and Fumihiro Kano, a comparative psychologist at Kyoto
University.
The apes were shown the videos of a capering actor dressed in a King Kong suit.
The video featured an actor dressed as King Kong, who hits a man holding a long pole before
darting under one of two haystacks while the human looks on. In some scenarios, the King Kong
character switches haystack while the human disappears out of view behind a door. The man
then reappears and smacks the haystack he thinks his assailant is hidden under.
By using eye-tracking technology, the scientists showed that 17 out of 22 apes tested
switched their gaze to show they had correctly anticipated when the man would target the
wrong haystack.
WHAT ARE THE FINDINGS?

The findings, in chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans, are the first to clearly demonstrate
that apes can predict anothers beliefs, even when they know that presumption is false.
On a psychology experiment, the apes were able to correctly anticipate that someone would
look for a hidden item in a specific location, even if the apes knew that the item was no longer
there.
The ability to predict that someone holds a mistaken belief, which psychologists refer to as a
theory of mind, is seen as a landmark in cognitive development that children normally acquire
by the age of five.
ISROS COMMUNICATION SATELLITE GSAT-18 SUCCESSFULLY

LAUNCHED FROM FRENCH GUIANA
India on 6 October 2016 successfully launched the communication satellite GSAT-18. The
satellite was launched by a heavy duty rocket of Arianespace from
the spaceport of Kourou in French Guiana.
The European launcher Ariane-5 VA-231 injected GSAT-18 into a

Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) shortly after orbiting co-
passenger Sky Muster II satellite for Australian operator, National
Broadband Network.
After its injection into GTO, ISRO's Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan took control of
GSAT-18 and performed the initial orbit raising maneuvers using the Liquid Apogee Motor
(LAM) of the satellite, placing it in circular Geostationary Orbit.
GSAT-18
GSAT-18 is designed to provide continuity of services on operational satellites in C-band,
Extended C-band and Ku-bands.
Weighing 3404 kilograms at lift-off and having a mission life of about 15 years, GSAT-18 will
strengthen ISRO's current fleet of 14 operational telecommunication satellites.
It carries 48 communication transponders to provide services in Normal C-band, Upper

Extended C-band and Ku-bands of the frequency spectrum.
GSAT-18 carries Ku-band beacon as well to help in accurately pointing ground antennas
towards the satellite.
It will enable the continuity of the vital communication services in the country by replacing
the currently ageing satellites.
GSAT-18 is the 20th satellite from ISRO to be launched by the European space agency and the
mission is the 280th for Arianespace launcher family.
ISRO, which has been dependent on Ariane-5 rocket for carrying its heavier satellites, is
developing GSLV Mk III for this purpose.
GSAT-18's co-passenger Sky Muster II, built by Space Systems Loral in California, is aimed at
bridging the digital divide, especially in the rural and isolated regions of Australia.
Kourou is a French territory located in northeastern coast of South America. The launch, which
was originally scheduled for 5 October 2016, was deferred by 24 hours due to unfavourable
weather conditions at Kourou.
ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

WORLD'S LARGEST MARINE PROTECTED AREA DECLARED IN
ANTARCTICA
The Ross Sea, a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, was declared as worlds largest
Marine Protected Area (MPA) on 28 October 2016. With this, there will be a blanket ban on
commercial fishing across about three quarters of that area for 35 years.
It will be the world's largest marine protected area and covers 1.6 million square kilometers.
The deal was clinched after the meeting of Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic
Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) consisting of 24 countries and European Union in Hobart,
Australia. All the participant nations including the European Union unanimously agreed to
create the world's largest Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the ocean next to Antarctica.
The agreement comes after years of negotiations brokered by the UN's Commission for the
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. It also saw high-level talks between the US
and Russia, which was rejected in the past. Environmentalists have welcomed the move to
protect the Earth's most pristine marine ecosystem.
ROSS SEA
The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, between Victoria Land and
Marie Byrd Land.
It derives its name from the British explorer James Ross who visited this area in 1841.
To the west of the sea lies Ross Island and to the east Roosevelt Island, while the
southernmost part is covered by the Ross Ice Shelf, and is about 200 miles (320 km) from the
South Pole.
The nutrient-laden water supports an abundance of plankton and this encourages a rich
marine fauna.
At least ten mammal species, six bird species and 95 fish species are found here, as well as
many invertebrates, and the sea remains relatively unaffected by human activities.
Some species of birds that nest in and near the Ross Sea include the Adelie penguin, emperor
penguin, Antarctic petrel, snow petrel, and south polar skua.
Marine mammals in the Ross Sea include the Antarctic minke whale, killer whale, Weddell
seal, Crabeater seal, and leopard seal.
Antarctic toothfish, Antarctic silverfish, Antarctic krill, and crystal krill also swim in the cold
Antarctic water of the Ross Sea.
NEW SPECIES OF MILLIPEDE FOUND IN SEQUOIA NATIONAL

PARK, CALIFORNIA
A group of researchers discovered a tiny threadlike millipede in the unexplored dark marble
caves in Sequoia National Park in California.
The study was published in the open access journal ZooKeys.
The newly found millipede is recognised as the evolutionary cousin of the leggiest animal on the
planet, Illacme plenipes.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF NEWLY FOUND MILLIPEDE

The millipede is named Illacme tobini after cave biologist Ben Tobin of the National Park
Service.
It was discovered along with many spiders, pseudoscorpions and flies in Sequoia National
Park.
According to diplopodologists, the new species may possess 414 legs, compared to its
relatives 750 legs.
It has peculiar anatomical features, including a body armed with 200 poison glands, silk-
secreting hairs, and four penises.
The millipedes closest relative lives under giant sandstone boulders outside of San Juan
Bautista, California.
GLOBAL CO2 CONCENTRATION REACHES 400 PARTS PER

MILLION IN 2015: WMO
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on 24 October 2016 released annual
Greenhouse Gas Bulletin. As per the bulletin, the average level of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere across the globe passed 400 parts per million (ppm) in 2015.
The statistics released by WMO is a symbolic and worrying milestone in growth of manmade
climate change.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GREENHOUSE GAS BULLETIN

The WMO Greenhouse Gas Bulletin reports on atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse
gases.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) accounted for about 65% of radiative forcing by long-lived greenhouse
gases. The pre-industrial level of about 278 ppm represented a balance between the
atmosphere, the oceans and the biosphere.
Human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels has altered the natural balance and in
2015, globally averaged levels were 144% of pre-industrial levels.
In 2015, global annual average concentration of CO2 concentrations reached 400.0 ppm. The
increase of CO2 from 2014 to 2015 was larger than the previous year and the average over
the previous 10 years.
In addition to reducing the capacity of vegetation to absorb CO2 the powerful, El Nino also
led to an increase in CO2 emissions from forest fires.
Methane (CH4) is the second most important long-lived greenhouse gas and contributes to
about 17% of radiative forcing. Atmospheric methane reached a new high of about 1845 parts
per billion (ppb) in 2015 and is now 256% of the pre-industrial level.
Nitrous oxide (N2O) is emitted into the atmosphere from both natural (about 60%) and
anthropogenic sources (approximately 40%), including oceans, soil, biomass burning, fertilizer
use and various industrial processes. Its atmospheric concentration in 2015 was about 328
parts per billion. This is 121% of pre-industrial levels. It also plays an important role in the
destruction of the stratospheric ozone layer, which protects us from the harmful ultraviolet
rays of the sun.
ABOUT WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION

The World Meteorological Organization is an intergovernmental organization with a
membership of 191 Member States and Territories.
It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), which was founded in
1873.
It was established in 1950.
It became the specialised agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and
climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences.
It has its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
It is a member of the United Nations Development Group.
SMOOTH-COATED OTTER SIGHTED FOR FIRST TIME IN KRISHNA

WILDLIFE SANCTUARY
Smooth-coated otter was sighted for the first time in the mangrove forest adjacent to the
Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh.
Seven otters, including a family of four, were found in a playful mood. They were photographed
while preying on the fish in the brackish waters.
The forest authorities with the support of a local wetland researcher, A. Venkata Appa Rao,
have documented the presence of the Smooth-coated otter in the mangrove forests and
brackish water channels in Eelachetladibba and Lankevennedibba and other areas outside the
sanctuary.
As per the Wildlife Division of the Forest Department, Eluru, there was not a single sighting of
the otter in the Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary to document until now.
ABOUT SMOOTH-COATED OTTER

The smooth-coated otter is a species of otter, the only extant representative of the genus
Lutrogale.
The species is found in most of the Indian Subcontinent and eastwards to Southeast Asia. An
isolated population of the species is also found in the marshes of Iraq.
The fur of this species is smoother and shorter than that of other otters.
They weigh from 7 to 11 kg in weight and measure 59 to 64 cm in head-body length, with a

tail 37 to 43 cm long.
They may be distinguished from other species of otters by a more rounded head and a
hairless nose in the shape of a distorted diamond.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), conservation status
of the smooth-coated otter is vulnerable.
They predominantly prey on the fish but often eat shrimp and crab.
ABOUT KRISHNA WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary and estuary located in Andhra Pradesh.
It is one of the rarest eco-regions of the world owing to the fact that it harbours vast tracts of
pristine mangrove forests.
It is believed among conservationists as one of the last remaining tracts of thick primary
mangrove forests of South India, which is rapidly disappearing due to absence of protective
measures.
KASHMIR'S RED STAG TO GET IUCN'S CRITICALLY ENDANGERED

STATUS
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is all set to declare the Kashmiri Red
Stag, also known as Hangul, a Critically Endangered species.
As per Bombay Natural History Society, nearly 3000 to 5000 Hanguls existed around the 1940s.
At present, only about 150 of them survive in the Greater Dachigam Landscape of 1000 square
kilometeres. Even then, IUCN had categorised it as that of Least Concern by clubbing with
European and other 'red deer' species of the world.
ABOUT KASHMIR'S RED STAG

The Kashmir Stag is a subspecies of elk native to India.
It is found in dense riverine forests in the high valleys and mountains of the Kashmir Valley
and northern Chamba district in Himachal Pradesh.
In Kashmir, it's found in the Dachigam National Park where it receives protection but
elsewhere it is more at risk.
In the 1940s, the population was between 3000 and 5000 individuals. However, since then,
the habitat destruction, over-grazing by domestic livestock and poaching have greatly reduced
that dramatically.
Earlier believed to be a subspecies of red deer, a number of mitochondrial DNA genetic

studies have revealed that the Hangul is part of the Asian clade of the elk and has not been
evaluated by IUCN.
KIGALI AGREEMENT TO PHASE OUT HFCS REACHED

Envoys of more than 170 countries in Kigali, Rwanda on 15 October 2016 agreed to phase down
use and production of potent greenhouse gases, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 2045. The
agreement amends the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that depletes the Ozone Layer.
The Kigali Amendment is a timetable to phase-out production and consumption of the potent
greenhouse gases of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 2045. It was reached at the 28th Meeting of
the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (MOP28). It is
a move to prevent a potential 0.5 C rise in global temperature by 2050.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AGREEMENT

The agreement adds HFCs into the list of gases that is responsible for global warming and
results in destroying the ozone layer. These potent greenhouse gases are generally used in
refrigerators and air-conditioners.
Developed countries should reduce their use of HFCs by 10 percent by 2019 from 2011-2013
levels and then by 85 percent by 2036.
Developing Countries were segmented and their targets are
a) Developing countries like China and African nations will have to launch the transition in 2024.
These countries will have to reduce HFCs production by 10 percent by 2029 as compared to
2020-2022. It will have to extend the reduction of the same to 80 percent by 2045.
b) Developing countries like India, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Arab Gulf states will have to begin
the process of transition in 2028. They will have to reduce emissions by 10 percent by 2032
from 2024-2026 levels, and then by 85 percent by 2047.
Comment: Replacing HFCs, which is catastrophic for global warming, would prove a costly affair
for developing nations because of lack of alternatives along with technology.
Earlier on 13 October, India announced its decision to eliminate production and consumption of
HCF-23, a potent greenhouse gas, with Global Warming Potential of 14800. The gas is produced
during the manufacture of a common refrigerant gas, HCFC-22.
HYDROFLUOROCARBONS (HFCS)
It is a family of gases that are largely used in refrigerants in home and car air-conditioners.
They are the gases that substantially worsen global warming as they are 3830 times more
potent than CO2 with a lifetime of 14 years.
HFCs were the replacement of CFCs, which were replaced under the 1987 Montreal Protocol
to protect Earths fragile protective Ozone layer and heal the ozone hole over the Antarctica.
A study by the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development released in 2015 says
that elimination of HFCs could reduce global warming by 0.5 degrees by 2100.
INDIA DECIDED TO ELIMINATE POTENT GREENHOUSE GAS HFC-

23 BY 2030
India on 13 October 2016 announced its decision to eliminate the HCF-23 gas. The decision was
made in line to its commitment to combat the threat emanating from climate-damaging HFCs
(hydrofluorocarbons).
The announcement was made by Minister of State Environment, Forest and Climate Change
(MoEFCC), Anil Dave at Kigali, Rwanda, at a meeting of parties to the Montreal Protocol, where
final negotiations are taking place to substantially reduce the use of HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons)
by 2030.
HFC23 gas, a potent greenhouse gas, with Global Warming Potential of 14800, is produced
during the manufacture of a common refrigerant gas, HCFC-22. If vented out in environment, is
a threat to the environment. HCFC stands for hydrochloroflurocarbon.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Companies have to internalise the cost of this environmental externality and create sufficient
storage facility to take care of down time and run the incinerators to ensure and not release of
HFC23 in the atmosphere.
The move will potentially check emissions of HFC-23 equivalent to 100 million tonnes of CO2
over the next 15 years, Delhi-based think tank Centre for Science and Environment.
MONTREAL PROTOCOL
The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was designed to reduce the
production and consumption of ozone depleting substances in order to reduce their abundance
in the atmosphere, and thereby protect the earths fragile ozone Layer. The original Montreal
Protocol was agreed on 16 September 1987 and entered into force on 1 January 1989.
The Montreal Protocol includes a unique adjustment provision that enables the Parties to the
Protocol to respond quickly to new scientific information and agree to accelerate the
reductions required on chemicals already covered by the Protocol. These adjustments are then
automatically applicable to all countries that ratified the Protocol. It has been ratified by 197
parties.
HIMANSH, INDIAS REMOTE AND HIGH-ALTITUDE STATION

OPENED IN SPITI, HIMACHAL PRADESH
The National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) established a high altitude
research station in Himalaya called HIMANSH. The station is situated above 13500 feet at a
remote region in Spiti, Himachal Pradesh.
The station was unveiled by M. Rajeevan, Secretary to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, on 9
October 2016.
The ongoing initiatives by NCAOR will contribute to the integrated study the glaciers in the
upper Indus basin (Chandra basin) in Himachal Pradesh and their contribution to discharge.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF HIMANSH

The station houses many instruments to quantify the glacier melting and its relation to
changing climate.
Some of the instruments that are available at the research facility include, Automatic
Weather Stations for weather monitoring, water level recorder for quantifying the glacier melt,
ground penetrating radar to know the thickness of glaciers, geodetic GPS systems to study the
glacier movements, etc.
The researchers will use the station as a base for undertaking surveys using Terrestrial Laser
Scanners (TLS) and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV).
ABOUT NATIONAL CENTRE FOR ANTARCTIC AND OCEAN RESEARCH

The National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research is an Indian research and development
institution, situated in Vasco, Goa.
It was established on 25 May 1998, with Dr. P C Pandey as its founding director.
It is an autonomous Institution of the Department of Ocean Development (DOD), Government

of India.
It is responsible for administering the Indian Antarctic Program and maintains the Indian
Government's Antarctic research station, Maitri.
At present, NCAOR is an agency working under Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of

India since 2006, by the notification of the President of India.
NCAOR complex is a home to a special low-temperature laboratory and is setting up a

National Antarctic Data Centre and a Polar Museum.
NEW TERMITE SPECIES NAMED CHIRAHARITAE DISCOVERED

A new termite species, Glyptotermes Chiraharitae, was discovered at Kakkayam in the Malabar
Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala.
The species has been named Chiraharitae after the tropical evergreen forests of the Western
Ghats, where it was discovered.
The research paper describing the new species was published last week in Zoosystema, the
journal of Natural History Museum, Paris.
ABOUT THE NEWLY DISCOVERED SPECIES

Termites are of three types: damp wood, dry wood and subterranean. Glyptotermes
Chiraharitae species are of the damp wood category.
Chiraharitae infests parts of woods with high moisture content, the decaying or rotting areas
in particular.
They are exclusively wood dwelling and do not require any contact with soil.
The flying adults of this species are approximately 10 mm long, while the soldiers are around
9.5 mm long.
Its relatives are known to attack mango, sal, Rhododendron, banyan trees, Artocarpus, silver
oak, and jamun trees.
In India, there 285 species of termites and among them 61 are documented from Kerala.
ASI PROTECTED HISTORICAL MONUMENTS AND

ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES DECLARED POLYTHENE FREE ZONES
All Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) protected historical monuments and archaeological sites
on 6 October 2016 were declared Polythene Free Zones.
An advisory has been issued to all State Governments/UTs to support ASI in keeping
Monuments Polythene Free up to 300 meters from the protected boundaries of the
monuments.
In addition, Ministry of Culture sanctioned 350 crores rupees to provide facilities like Protected
Boundaries, Toilets and Disabled Friendly Access in all ASI Protected Monuments.
The ASI has ranked top 25 Adarsh Monuments on the basis of cleanliness parameters such as
amenities like toilets, green lawns, Polythene Free Zone, signage for awareness, disabilities
access, drinking water and provision for garbage bins and more.
A World Heritage site Rani ki Vav in Gujarat has been declared as the cleanest iconic place in
India.
ABOUT RANI KI VAV

Rani ki vav is an intricately constructed stepwell situated in the town of Patan in Gujarat.
It is located on the banks of Saraswati River.
It was built as a memorial to an 11th century AD king.
It was added to the list of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites on 22 June 2014.
It was built in the complex Maru-Gurjara architectural style with an inverted temple and
seven levels of stairs and holds more than 500 principle sculptures.
HURRICANE MATTHEW DEATH TOLL MOUNTS TO 300 IN HAITI

Hurricane Matthew after claiming lives of at least 300 people in the Caribbean nation Haiti
lashed Florida with winds of 125 mph on 7 October 2016.
More than two million people were evacuated from the coastal
areas of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. North Carolina
could also be affected as the storm moves north.
President Barack Obama on 6 October 2016 declared a federal

state of emergency in Florida as Hurricane Matthew's powerful
winds began to be felt along the state's southeast coast.
Hurricane Matthew that made its landfall in Haiti on 4 October 2016 with raging winds and
storm leveled 80 percent of buildings in the peninsulas main city, Jeremie. In Sud province
30000 homes were destroyed.
The region's strongest storm in almost a decade made landfall on Haiti's Tiburon Peninsula as a
Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 145 mph.
HAITI
Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, is already struggling to regain its footing
almost seven years after an earthquake and ensuing cholera epidemic ravaged the nation. It is
one of the most deforested countries in the world.
The country is located on the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the
Caribbean. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the
Dominican Republic.
With an estimated 10.6 million people, Haiti is the most populous country in the Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) and the second-most populous country in the Caribbean as a whole.
INDIA RATIFIES HISTORIC PARIS CLIMATE AGREEMENT

India on 2 October 2016 ratified historic Paris Agreement on climate change, giving a significant
push for the deal to enter into force by the end 2016. The agreement is expected to give
momentum to implementation of measures at international level to control global warming.
India, the world's fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounts for 4.1 per cent of the
emissions. China and the US is the biggest carbon emitter and are jointly responsible for around
40 per cent of the global carbon emissions.
With India's move, a total of 62 countries accounting for almost 52 per cent of emissions, have
ratified the accord. The pact will come into force after it has been ratified by at least 55
countries which account for 55 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Permanent Representative to the United Nations Syed Akbaruddin handed over the Instrument
of Ratification signed by President Pranab Mukherjee, to Santiago Villalpando, the Head of the
Treaties Division at the UN in a special ceremony in New York.
The ceremony was attended by top UN officials and senior diplomats to commemorate the
147th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhis birth anniversary is observed as an
International Day of Non-violence.
In total, the 62 countries that have ratified the Paris Agreement account for about 51.89 per
cent of the global gas emissions. This means for adoption, the agreement needs slightly more
than 3 percent to reach the 55 per cent threshold. UN says that at least 14 other countries that
together contribute about 12 per cent of global emissions have committed to ratify the pact
before end of 2016.
Earlier in September 2016, the US and China had formally ratified the Paris agreement, which
was adopted by 195 parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change last
December in Paris. On the other hand, it is expected that the European Union and Russia, the
other two among the top five emitters, will ratify the agreement soon.
PARIS AGREEMENT
It was adopted by more than 190 countries at the 21st Conference of Parties of UNFCCC (UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change) held in Paris in December 2015.
It seeks to encourage global action to reduce greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. This
would help in preventing catastrophic effects of climate change.
It seeks to give a momentum to actions being taken to adapt to the impacts of climate
change, and raise financial and technological resources to do so.
Initially, the Paris Agreement supposed to come into operation by 2020, the year when the
existing Kyoto Protocol, the international arrangement to deal with climate change, expires. But
later, the deadline was dropped and it will come into force after 30-days after the minimum
ratifications are over.
For few years, the Paris Agreement as well as the Kyoto Protocol would exist side by side.
NEW FROG SPECIES NAMED LITORIA BELLA DISCOVERED IN

AUSTRALIA
A new frog species named Cape York graceful tree frog, scientifically known as Litoria Bella, was
discovered recently in Australias largest virgin forest in Queensland. The study was published in
the journal Zootaxa on 27 September 2016.
The newly discovered species closely resembles the Graceful tree frog (Litoria Gracilenta).
The research and discovery was done by Dr Jodi Rowley, a curator of amphibian and reptile
conservation biology at the Australian Museum, along with scientists Keith McDonald, Stephen
Richards and Greta Frankham.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CAPE YORK GRACEFUL TREE FROG OR LITORIA

BELLA
The Cape York Graceful Treefrog is known from between Moa Island in the Torres Strait in the
north, to about 20 km south of Coen on the Cape York Peninsula in the south.
The southern-most location of the new species is separated by 220 km from the most
northern record of the Graceful Treefrog in the Endeavour Valley near Cooktown.
The Cape York Graceful frogs have a near-immaculate green dorsum, bright orange digits,
bluish purple thighs and white bones.
They also measure about four centimetres long, which is considered big for the species.
They spend most of their time in the tree canopy and come down to ponds when it rains or
during breeding season.
The species was thought to occur all the way from north-eastern New South Wales to
Northern Cape York Peninsula in Queensland.
THE STUDY
One of the researchers from the team Keith McDonald from the Queensland museum had
first laid eyes on this Cape York tree frog in 2000 during one of his field-work outings.
However, the frog was determined to be a new species on 27 September 2016 after
undergoing rigorous tests for a year.
By looking at differences in its appearance, as well as its advertisement call and DNA, it was
concluded that the Cape York Graceful Tree frog is a distinct species, bringing the number of
known frog species in Australia to 239.
NEW SPECIES OF PIKA DISCOVERED IN THE SIKKIM HIMALAYAS

Researchers at the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru have recently
identified a new species of Pika named Ochotona sikimaria high up in the Sikkim Himalayas.
The Findings were published in the journal Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution as a paper
titled Genetics, morphology and ecology reveal a cryptic Pika lineage in the Sikkim
Himalaya on 15 September 2016.
The team of researchers including Dr Uma Ramakrishnan and her collaborators probed the
genetic origins of the little mammal Pika to discover an entirely new lineage, with a unique
evolutionary past.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE STUDY

Researchers used genetic tools in order to understand the origin and evolution of the Pika
species commonly found in the Sikkim Himalayas and worked with Pika droppings to obtain
DNA samples.
By comparing DNA sequences from these samples with those of commonly known Pika
sequences from across the world, they concluded that there were clear differences.
Gaining a deeper understanding of the evolutionary history of this species, the researchers
chose to compare the Sikkim Pika to its close relatives in China.
This analysis confirmed the fact that the new species is indeed distinct and not merely a
subspecies of the Moupin Pika, as was previously believed.
Multiple lines of evidence, including genetics, ecology and morphometrics, were used clarify
the origins of the Sikkim Pika and to establish that it is indeed a distinct species.
ABOUT PIKAS
Pikas are members of the rabbit family and live either high up in the mountains or in cold
(temperate) places as they are highly cold-adapted.
This feature of their biology makes them sensitive to habitat loss from increasing global
temperature.
The majority of Pika species described to date are of Asian origin.
Pikas are particularly important because they are considered indicators of climate change
based on studies in North America.
Unlike other mammalian species inhabiting such harsh environments, Pikas do not hibernate.
They prepare for winter by collecting and storing hay piles for their winter food.
TAMIL NADU TOPS LIST OF ENDEMIC FLOWERING PLANTS

Botanical Survey of India (BSI) in the last week of September 2016 announced that almost one
of every four species of flowering plants found in India is endemic to the country. Of these,
Tamil Nadu garners the highest number of species with 410.
Tamil Nadu is followed by Kerala with 357 and Maharashtra with 278.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
As per scientific data in a recently released book, Endemic Vascular Plants of India, of the
18259 flowering plants reported in the country, 4303 are found only in India.
When it comes to the geographical distribution of endemic plants, the Western Ghats tops
the list with about 2116 species, followed by the Eastern Himalayas with 466 species.
At least 37 species of Black plum Syzyguim (Jamun), 10 varieties of Musa (banana), along with
274 species of orchids are found only in India.
Four different varieties of roses, two herbs and two climbers and 12 species of jasmines are
exclusively found in India.
When it comes to spices, 45 species belong to the common black pepper family, 19 species of
ginger and 13 different kinds of large cardamom.
There are also 40 species of bamboos, which are endemic to India.
Further some of these endemic species are restricted to only certain areas of the country, like
Nepenthes khasiana, an insectivorous plant only found in the Khasi hills of Meghalaya.
A total of 58 generea of flowering plants have been found to be endemic to India.
As far as endemism regarding vascular plants in India is concerned, the publication reveals
that of the 19635 vascular plants found in the country, 4381 are endemic. This includes 4303
angiosperms or flowering plants, 12 gymnosperms and 66 ferns and fern allies which come
under the group Pteridophytes.
Among the most widely exploited endemic plants in country is Pterocarpus santalinus,
commonly known as red sandal wood, which is found only in the southern parts of the Eastern
Ghats. This plant is classified as critically endangered under International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN) category.
ABOUT BOTANICAL SURVEY OF INDIA

The Botanical Survey of India is an institution set up by the Government of India in 1890 to
survey the plant resources of the Indian empire.
The Botanical Survey was formally instituted on 13 February 1890 under the direction of Sir
George King, who had been superintendent of Royal Botanic Garden, Calcutta since 1871.
King was the first ex-officio Director of BSI.
STATES
DELHI
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR NAJEEB JUNG DISSOLVES DELHI WAQF BOARD

Lieutenant-Governor (L-G) Najeeb Jung on 7 October 2016 dissolved the Delhi Waqf Board.
Jung referred the Boards constitution to a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe for
alleged corruption and procedural irregularities in functioning.
The L-G declared the reconstitution of the Board and announced the appointment of its Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) and members as illegal and void ab initio.
In view of the deliberate and persistent acts of illegality, violation of rules, allegations of
corruption, possibility of malafide, etc., the entire matter related to the Delhi Waqf Board is
referred to the CBI for investigation.
The L-G has further directed Divisional Commissioner A. Anbarasu to set up a committee to
review the legality and propriety of all decisions and action taken by the Board after its
constitution in March 2015, and submit a report within a month.
ABOUT WAQF
Waqf is a permanent dedication of movable or immovable properties for religious, pious or

charitable purposes as recognized by Muslim Law, given by philanthropists.
The grant is known as mushrut-ul-khidmat, while a person making such dedication is known
as Waqf.
The State Wakf Boards are established by the State Governments in view of the provisions of
section 13 & 14 of the Waqf Act, 1995. However, the Waqf Act 1995 is not applicable to Jammu
& Kashmir.
At present, there are 30 Wakf Boards across the country in twenty-nine states/Union
territories. The States like Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim and the UT
Daman & Dieu have no Waqf Board at present.
RAJASTHAN
RAJASTHAN HC DISSOLVES STATES OBC COMMISSION

Rajasthan High Court in October 2016 order dissolution of the State Other Backward Classes
(OBC) Commission. The court said, the commission was constituted without the State Assembly
enacting any legislation for it.
The Division Bench of the court directed the state government to appoint a new commission
backed by a statute by 15 January 2017. It also directed that no salary or allowance of the
members of this commission would be disbursed hereafter.
The order was passed by a division bench of court comprising Justice KS Jhaveri and Justice
Mahendra Maheshwari. The court was hearing a writ petition moved by Samata Andolan,
challenging the OBC Commission's establishment through an executive order.
UTTAR PRADESH
SAFE MOTHERHOOD WEEK HELD IN UTTAR PRADESH

Safe Motherhood Week was observed from 14 October to 21 October 2016 in Uttar Pradesh.
The main aim of the 'Safe Motherhood Week' was to decrease the 'Mother Mortality Rate'
(MMR) and 'Infant Mortality Rate' (IMR).
At present, the MMR in the state is 258 per lakh deliveries, which is above the national average
of 167. For this purpose, the state has decided to bring down the MMR to 200 till the end of
2016.
During the campaign, the expecting mothers will be provided with all necessary medical aid and
assistance to the pregnant women and to ensure safe delivery in the entire state.
HIGHLIGHTS OF SAFE MOTHERHOOD WEEK
The High Risk Pregnancies (HRPs) was identified and were provided special care.
Under the campaign, women with anemic conditions were provided special care.
As per principal secretary health and family welfare Arun Kumar Sinha nearly 50 per cent of
the expecting mothers are anemic in the state which is the single largest reason for Mother
Mortality.
Under NHM, the state has decided that in place of routine 100 iron folic tablets, 180 such
tablets will be given to expecting mothers to fight anemia. Anemia is rampant in most parts of
Uttar Pradesh.
To fight calcium deficiency, a total of 720 calcium tablets will be provided to the pregnant
women with 360 each before and after the delivery.
The state will organise a special counseling and planning camp on 24 and 25 October 2016 for
the women identified with HRP so that proper care can be planned for their safe delivery.
This is the second phase of the Safe Motherhood Week in the state. The first phase was
conducted in January 2016, under which nearly eighteen lakh pregnant women were identified
with a number of one lakh fourteen thousand HRPs.
MAHARASHTRA
MAHARASHTRA LAUNCHES KAUSHALYA SETU INITIATIVE

Maharashtra Government on 19 October 2016 launched Kaushalya SETU (Self-Employment and
Talent Utilisation) initiative. The initiative, which is a skill development programme for
students, is likely to generate employment for as many as 7.5 lakh people in state.
For the purpose of employing skilled people, the state also signed 22 MoUs with various
industries. The best part of the initiative is that it would help in bridging the gap between
education and employment.
HIGHLIGHTS OF KAUSHALYA SETU INITIATIVE
Students of Maharashtra State Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education, who fail to
clear Class X or SSC exam, would be accommodated in the skill development courses. This will
help in ensuring that these students do not lose a year.
The launch will play a leading role in fulfilling Prime Minister Narendra Modis Skill India
Mission-2020
It is a mechanism launched by the Union Government under NITI Aayog to support all aspects
of start up businesses and other self-employment activities, particularly in technology-driven
areas. SETU is a Techno-Financial, Incubation and Facilitation Programme.
HIMACHAL PRADESH
PM MODI INAUGURATES 3 HYDROPOWER PROJECTS IN HIMACHAL

PRADESH
Prime Minster Narendra Modi on 18 October 2016 inaugurated three hydropower projects of
1752 MW capacities in Himachal Pradesh. Inauguration of new hydropower projects will change
economic horizon of Himachal Pradesh. The three hydropower projects are
540 Megawatt generation capacity third phase of Parbati hydro power project of NHPC in
Kullu district
412 Megawatt Rampur project of Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd in Shimla
800 Megawatt Kol Dam power project in Bilaspur district
Himachal Pradesh Governor Acharya Devvrat, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Union Health
Minister JP Nadda and Power Minister Piyush Goyal were present on the occasion.
This was Modis maiden visit to the hill state after becoming Prime Minister.
The foundation stone of NTPC's Koldam hydro project was laid on 5 June 2000, by then Prime
Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
TELANGANA
TELANGANA REDRAWS ITS MAP BY ADDING 21 NEW DISTRICTS

Telangana on 11 October 2016, the auspicious occasion of Vijaya Dasami, had redrawn its map
by creating 21 new districts. With these, the total number of districts of the youngest state of
India went up to 31.
Telangana, which came into existence on 2 June 2014 as the 29th State of India, started out
with 10 districts. On an average, each district will have population of two to four lakh families,
except Hyderabad where the number is much large.
Reorganisation of districts has been taken up for better administration. Chief Minister
Chandrasekhar Rao inaugurated Siddipet district, carved out of Medak, his home turf. Other 20
districts were inaugurated by his cabinet colleagues.
The new districts are Siddipet, Mancheriyal, Vikarabad, Jagtial, Jangaon, Jayashankar, Warangal
(Rural), Mahabubabad, Kamareddy, Medak, Rajanna, Asifabad, Suryapet, Kothagudem, Nirmal,
Wanaparthy, Nagarkurnool, Yadadri, Peddapally, Jogulamba and Medchal/Malkajgiri.
Besides, the state government also created 25 new revenue divisions, 125 new mandals, four
new police commissionerates, 23 new police subdivisions, 28 new circles and 91 police stations.
BACKGROUND
Earlier on 22 August 2016, the state government released a draft notification on reorganization
of districts in the State. It notified creation of 17 new districts, which later turned up to 21 due
to strong demands from various sections.
JHARKHAND
JHARKHAND BECOMES FIRST STATE TO IMPLEMENT DIRECT BENEFIT

TRANSFER IN KEROSENE
Jharkhand on 1 October 2016 became Indias first state to implement Direct Benefit Transfer
(DBT) in Kerosene. The scheme is being implemented in four identified districts of the State
namely Chatra, Hazaribagh, Khunti and Jamtara.
In a statement, Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry said that under the DBT Scheme, PDS
kerosene is being sold at non-subsidised price and the subsidy is being transferred to
consumers directly into their bank accounts. This initiative is aimed at rationalising subsidy and
plugging the leakages.
Aim: The scheme aims at eliminating subsidised Kerosene from the supply chain for targeting
the beneficiaries and end pilferage and black-marketing. It also aims at cutting down
adulteration of cheap cooking and lighting fuel with diesel.
DBT SCHEME FOR KEROSENE
The government had plans to implement the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) in Kerosene in 33
districts identified by 9 State Governments by 1 April 2016. The identified states were namely,
Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab,

Rajasthan and Gujarat.
But the date of its implementation was pushed back due to problems like lack of bank accounts
and its seeding with Aadhaar number, which didnt allowed government in creating biometric
database of beneficiaries.
As a part of this scheme, implementing States will be given fiscal incentives equivalent to 75 %
of subsidy saved in the first two years, 50 % of subsidy saved in third year and 25 % of subsidy
saved in 4th year.
BIHAR
BIHAR GOVERNMENT NOTIFIED BIHAR PROHIBITION AND EXCISE ACT,

2016
Bihar government on 2 October 2016 notified Bihar Prohibition
and Excise Act, 2016. This new liquor ban could land drinkers in
jail for up to 7 years with a fine of at least 1 lakh rupees.
The notification came two days after the Patna High Court
quashed its order on banning alcohol consumption. The High
Court quashed it by terming its provisions as ultra vires of the
Constitution.
The decision of notification was taken in a special cabinet meeting which was chaired by Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar. Chief Minister said that after imposition of ban on liquor in the state
financial condition of the people has been strengthened and behavioural social change across
the state is being seen.
As per reports, the state government has decided to approach the Supreme Court against the
Patna High Courts order that quashed the states April 5 notification related to amendments in
the old Excise Act.
SOME PROVISIONS OF THE BIHAR PROHIBITION AND EXCISE ACT, 2016
The act creates a framework for the levy of excise duty and imposes a prohibition on alcohol
in Bihar.
Prohibition on the manufacture, sale, storage and consumption of alcohol was imposed in
Bihar earlier in 2016, by amending the Bihar Excise Act, 1915. The Bill replaces the 1915 Act
and the Bihar Prohibition Act, 1938.
It imposes a prohibition on the manufacture, bottling, distribution, transportation, collection,

storage, possession, sale and consumption of alcohol or any other intoxicant specified by the
state government. However, it also allows the state government to renew existing licenses, or
allow any state owned company to undertake any of these activities (such as manufacture,
distribution, etc.).
It calls for at least 10 years of imprisonment and a fine of at least one lakh rupees to the
family members and occupants of a land or a building as offenders.
CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS THAT SEEMS TO BE VIOLATED BY THE ACT ARE
The provisions of the Act violate Article 12 and Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
Article 14 talks of the equality before law. It protects individuals from any arbitrary actions of
the state. One may argue that imposition of criminal liability on family members and owner or
occupants of the building, for the action of another person is arbitrary in nature.
Article 21 talks of about the protection of life and personal liberty in which no person should be
deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. The
meaning of the same interpreted by the Courts is that any procedure established by law should
be fair and reasonable. It needs to be examined whether presuming that family members of an
offender, and owner or occupant of the building knew about the offence, and making them
criminally liable, is reasonable.
The interesting fact about the Act is that it calls for at least 10 years of imprisonment. But under
the Indian Penal Code, 1860 the imprisonment of at least 10 years is attracted in crimes such as
use of acid to cause injury, or trafficking of a minor. Other states where a prohibition is imposed
calls for a lower imprisonment terms for offences of alcohol. Gujarat calls for at least seven
years and Nagaland calls for maximum three years of imprisonment.
REPORT|SURVEY
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM RELEASED GLOBAL GENDER GAP
REPORT 2016
World Economic Forum (WEF) on 25 October 2016 released the
Global Gender Gap Report 2016. The 2016 report provides
Gender Gap scores for 144 countries compared to 145
countries included in 2015 report.
More than a decade of data has revealed that progress is still

too slow for realizing the full potential of one half of humanity
within our lifetimes. Out of the 144 countries surveyed, while
Iceland topped the Gender Gap Index for the eighth consecutive year in a row, India stood at
87th position, from the 108th position in 2015.
As per the report, the global gender gap across health, education, economic opportunity and
politics will take another 83 years across the 107 countries covered since the inception of the
Report to close this gap completely.
MAIN HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GLOBAL GENDER GAP REPORT 2016

Top ten countries with high gender equality are Iceland (1), Finland (2), Norway (3), Sweden
(4), Rwanda (5) Ireland (6), The Philippines (7), Slovenia (8), New Zeeland (9) and Nicaragua
(10).
Five countries with least gender equality are Yemen (144), Pakistan (143), Syria (142), Saudi
Arabia (141) and Chad (140).
The non-European nations in the top ten include Rwanda (5), The Philippines (7), New
Zeeland (9) and Nicaragua (10).
Out of the 142 countries covered by the Index both this year and last year, 68 countries have
increased their overall gender gap score compared to 2015, while 74 have seen it decrease.
No country in the world has fully closed its gender gap, but four out of the five Nordic
countries and, for the first time this year, Rwanda, have closed more than 80% of theirs.
Yemen, the lowest ranking country, has closed slightly less than 52% of its gender gap.
The Global Gender Gap Index reveals that all countries can do more to close the gender gap.
Across the Index, there are only five countries that have closed 80% of the gap or more.
In addition, there are 64 countries that have closed between 70% and 80% of their gender
gap.
A further 65 countries have closed between 60% and 70%, while 10 countries have closed
between 50% and 60%.
Report in context of India
India which was ranked at 87th position had succeeded in

closing the gender gap with regard to wage equality and
across all indicators of the Educational Attainment sub-index, fully closing its primary and
secondary education enrolment gender gaps.
However, it also sees some regression on womens estimated earned income and
continues to rank third-lowest in the world on Health and Survival, remaining the worlds
least-improved country on this sub-index over the past decade.
Economic Participation and Opportunity: India was ranked at 136th position with 0.408
score. In this segment, Indias performance was one of the lowest among the surveyed
countries. In 2015, India was placed at 139th position.
Educational attainment: India was ranked at 113rd position with 0.950 score.
Health and survival: India was ranked at 142nd position with 0.942 score.
Political empowerment: India was placed at 9th position with 0.433 score.
South Asia
With an average remaining gender gap of 33%, the South Asia region is the second-lowest
scoring on this years Global Gender Gap Index, ahead of the Middle East and North Africa and
behind the Sub-Saharan Africa region.
Bangladesh and India are the top-ranked countries in the region, having closed just under 70%
and 68% of their overall gender gap, respectively, while the lowest-ranked countries are Bhutan
and Pakistan, having closed 64% and 56% of their overall gender gap, respectively.
No country in the region has fully closed its Educational Attainment gender gap, and only one
country, Sri Lanka, has fully closed its Health and Survival gender gap.
However, the region is also home to one of the top five climbers over the past decade on the
overall Index and on Educational Attainment: Nepal.
India and BRICS Countries
The ranks of BRICS Countries in ascending order are: South Africa (15), Russia (75), Brazil (79),
China (99) and India (87).
India and SAARC Countries
The ranks of SAARC Countries in ascending order are: Bangladesh (72); Sri Lanka (78); India
(87); Nepal (110); Maldives (115); Bhutan (121) and Pakistan (143).
GLOBAL GENDER GAP INDEX

It was first published by World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2006 and the 2016 report was the
11th edition.
Through the Global Gender Gap Report, the World Economic Forum quantifies the magnitude
of gender disparities and tracks their progress over time, with a specific focus on the relative
gaps between women and men across four key areas, namely health, education, economy and
politics.
Economic Participation and Opportunity sub index and Political Empowerment sub index
display the full scale of 0.00 to 1.00 while the figures for the Health and Survival and
Educational Attainment sub indexes display the scale only from 0.50 to 1.00 for improving
visual clarity.
There are three basic concepts underlying the Global Gender Gap Index, forming the basis of
the choice of indicators, how the data is treated and the scale used.
a) First, it focuses on measuring gaps rather than levels.
b) Second, it captures gaps in outcome variables rather than gaps in input variables.
c) Third, it ranks countries according to gender equality rather than womens empowerment.
WORLD BANK RELEASES REPORT TITLED DOING BUSINESS 2017:

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL
The World Bank Group on 25 October 2016 released the report titled Doing Business 2017:
Equal Opportunity for All. It is the 14th report in a series of annual reports measuring the
regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it.
Data in Doing Business 2017 Report are current as of 1 June 2016. The indicators are used to
analyze economic outcomes and identify what reforms of business regulation have worked,
where and why.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REPORT

It finds that entrepreneurs in 137 economies saw improvements in their local regulatory
framework last year. Between June 2015 and June 2016, the report documented 283 business
reforms.
Reforms reducing the complexity and cost of regulatory processes in the area of starting a
business were the most common in 2015/16.
The next most common reforms were in the areas of paying taxes, getting credit and trading
across borders.
In its global country rankings of business efficiency, the report awarded its coveted top spot
to New Zealand, Singapore ranked second, followed by Denmark at third position.
Hong Kong SAR, China, Korea, Norway, United Kingdom, United States and Sweden were
among the top 10 countries in global country rankings.
Brunei Darussalam, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Belarus, Indonesia, Serbia, Georgia, Pakistan, the
United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain were the most improved economies in 2015/16. These 10
top improvers implemented 48 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business.
Economies in all regions implemented the reforms easing the process of doing business, but
Europe and Central Asia were the region with the highest share of economies implementing at
least one reform.
Developing countries carried out more than 75 percent of the 283 reforms in the past year,
with Sub-Saharan Africa accounting for over one-quarter of all reforms.
Starting a new business now takes an average of 21 days worldwide, compared with 46 days
10 years ago.
It also features expansions to the Paying Taxes indicator to cover post-filing processes such as
tax refunds, tax audits and administrative tax appeals to better understand the overall tax
environment.
It also studies procurement in 78 economies across five main areas: accessibility and
transparency, bid security, payment delays, incentives for small and medium enterprises and
complaints mechanisms.
Doing Business includes a gender dimension in four of the 11 topics sets- Starting a business,
registering property and enforcing contracts present a gender dimension for the first time this
year.
The report features six case studies in the areas of getting electricity, getting credit: legal
rights, getting credit: credit information, protecting minority investors, paying taxes and trading
across borders.
HIGHLIGHTS OF MAJOR REGIONS IN THE REPORT

East Asia and the Pacific is home to two of the worlds top 10 ranked economies- Singapore
and Hong Kong SAR, China, and two of the top 10 improvers- Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia.
The regions economies implemented a total of 45 reforms to improve the ease of doing
business.
The Europe and Central Asia region was also a major reformer during the past year, with
Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Serbia amongst the worlds top 10 improvers.
Business reform activity accelerated in Latin America and the Caribbean with over two-thirds
of the regions economies implementing a total of 32 reforms in the past year, compared with
24 reforms the previous year.
The Middle East and North Africa region saw the most reforms implemented in the past year
since 2009, with 35 reforms in 15 of the regions 20 economies. Among the reformers, the UAE
and Bahrain were among the worlds top 10 improvers.
In South Asia, five of the regions eight economies implemented a total of 11 reforms in the
past year, compared with nine the previous year. Pakistan, which was among the worlds top 10
improvers, implemented several reforms, as did India and Sri Lanka.
Sub-Saharan Africa economies stepped up the pace of reform activity, with 37 economies
undertaking a total of 80 business reforms. For the second consecutive year, Kenya was among
the worlds top 10 improvers.
INDIA IN DOING BUSINESS 2017 REPORT

India moved one rank up to the 130th position in the Report. This marginal improvement
came on the back of slight improvement in four indicators- getting electricity, enforcing
contracts, trading across borders and registering property.
In the 2017 rankings, the only major improvement for India was seen in the area of getting
electricity. The report recognised the efforts of Tata Power in Delhi to make it faster and
cheaper to obtain a connection.
In terms of starting a business, Indias ranking went down to 155th position from 151st last
year. This was also true for registering a property.
In terms of resolving insolvency, the countrys position slid a single rank to 136 from 135 last
year.
Indias ranking in trading across borders also fell by 10 spots to 143 though the World Bank
recognized Indias reforms in making imports and exports easier through the launch of the
ICEGATE portal.
For India, the ranking covers data from Delhi and Mumbai, with weights of 53 percent and 47
percent, respectively.
ABOUT DOING BUSINESS REPORT

The report presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of
property rights that can be compared across 190 economies from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe.
It measures regulations affecting 11 areas of the life of a business- starting a business, dealing
with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting
minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving
insolvency.
It also measures labour market regulation, which is not included in this years ranking.
WHO RELEASES GLOBAL TUBERCULOSIS REPORT 2016

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on 13 October 2016 released the Global Tuberculosis
Report 2016 highlighting that countries need to move much faster to prevent, detect and treat
Tuberculosis (TB) in order to meet global targets.
The report highlights the considerable inequalities among countries in enabling people with TB
to access existing cost-effective diagnosis and treatment interventions that can accelerate
decline in TB worldwide.

The report signals the need for bold political commitment and increased funding.
While efforts to respond to TB saved more than 3 million lives in 2015, however TB burden is
actually higher than previously estimated reflecting survey data from India.
In 2015, there were an estimated 10.4 million new TB cases worldwide.
Six countries accounted for 60 percent of the total burden, with India bearing the brunt,
followed by Indonesia, China, Nigeria, Pakistan and South Africa.
An estimated 1.8 million people died from TB in 2015, of whom 0.4 million were co-infected
with HIV.
Although global TB deaths fell by 22 percent between 2000 and 2015, the disease was one of
the top 10 causes of death worldwide in 2015.
Gaps in testing for TB and reporting new cases remain major challenges. Of the estimated
10.4 million new cases, only 6.1 million were detected and officially notified in 2015, leaving a
gap of 4.3 million.
In addition, the rate of reduction in TB cases remained static at 1.5 percent from 2014 to
2015. This needs to accelerate to 45% by 2020 as per World Health Assembly-approved End
TB Strategy.
Multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) remains a public health crisis. WHO estimated that 480000
people fell ill with MDR-TB in 2015.
Three countries carry the major burden of MDR-TB India, China, and the Russian Federation
which together account for nearly half of all cases globally.
In 2015, 22 percent of HIV-positive TB patients were not enrolled on antiretroviral therapy

(ART).
Around 84% of the financing available in low- and middle-income countries in 2016 was from
domestic sources, this was mostly accounted by BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South
Africa).
Other low- and middle- income countries continue to rely heavily on international donor
financing, with more than 75 percent coming from The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and
Malaria.
WHO estimates that at least an extra 1 billion US dollar per year is needed to accelerate the
development of new vaccines, diagnostics, and medicines.
INDIA UNDER-REPORTED TB FOR 15 YEARS

Inaccurate estimates of the tuberculosis burden in India between 2000 and 2015, has led the
World Health Organisation (WHO) to underestimate the global TB epidemic.
India had reported only 56 percent of its TB burden in 2014 and 59 percent in 2015.
Since India accounts for more than one quarter of the worlds TB cases and deaths, the
revisions in the estimates have had a major impact on global estimates.
The revised estimates put the incidence of TB in India at 217 per 100000 population in 2015
as against the previously estimated 127 per 100000.
BACKGROUND
Within the context of the Sustainable Development Goals, various governments have agreed on
targets to end the tuberculosis (TB) epidemic both at the World Health Assembly and at the
United Nations General Assembly.
The targets include 90 percent reduction in TB deaths and an 80 percent reduction in TB cases
by 2030 compared with 2015.
GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 2016 RELEASED: INDIA RANKED AT

97TH POSITION
The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) on 11 October 2016 released the 2016
Global Hunger Index (GHI).
It says if hunger declines at the same rate as it have since 1992, more than 45 countries
including India, Pakistan, Haiti, Yemen, and Afghanistan will still have moderate to alarming
hunger scores in 2030.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX

The Central African Republic, Chad, and Zambia had the highest levels of hunger in the report.
Seven countries had alarming levels of hunger, while 43 countries including high-population
countries like India, Nigeria and Indonesia had serious hunger levels.
The level of hunger in developing countries has fallen by 29 percent since 2000.
Twenty countries including Rwanda, Cambodia, and Myanmar have all reduced their GHI
scores by over 50 percent each since 2000. And no developing countries were in the extremely
alarming category.
Although the Latin America region has the lowest regional GHI score in the developing world,
but Haiti has the fourth highest GHI score at an alarming 36.9. Mexico has a low level of overall
hunger.
Armed conflict is a leading cause of hunger and under-nutrition in many of these countries
like Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, and the Syrian Arab Republic.
The GHI score for the developing world as a whole is 21.3, which is in the low end of the
serious category.
Regionally, Africa South of the Sahara has the highest hunger level, followed closely by South
Asia.
This years report hails a new paradigm of international development proposed in the United
Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which envisages Zero Hunger by 2030.
INDIA'S POSITION IN GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 2016

India is ranked at 97th and Pakistan at 107th. All other Asian neighbours did relatively better-
China (29), Nepal (72), Myanmar (75), Sri Lanka (84) and Bangladesh (90).
Indias GHI score of 28.5 is worse than the developing country average score of 21.3.
Although India runs two of the world's biggest children's nutrition programmes, the ICDS for
children under 6 years and the mid-day meal programme for school going kids up to the age of
14, still malnutrition continues to haunt India.
ABOUT GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX

GHI is a multidimensional statistical tool used to describe the state of countries' hunger
situation.
The GHI, now in its 11th year, ranks countries based on four key indicators:
undernourishment, child mortality, child wasting and child stunting.
The 2016 report ranked 118 countries in the developing world, almost half of which have
serious or alarming hunger levels.
IMF RELEASES WORLD ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

The International Monetary Fund on 4 October 2016 released World Economic Outlook (WEO)
October 2016. The report projects global growth at 3.1 per cent in 2016, with slight increase to
3.4 percent in 2017.
It says that the persistent stagnation, particularly in advanced economies, could further fuel
anti-trade sentiment, stifling growth.
Growth in emerging Asia, and especially India, continues to be resilient. Indias gross domestic
product is projected to expand 7.6 percent in 2016 and 2017, the fastest pace among the
worlds major economies. The IMF urged India to continue reform of its tax system and
eliminate subsidies to provide more resources for investments in infrastructure, education, and
health care.
ADVANCED ECONOMIES
It reports that the advanced economies will expand just 1.6 percent in 2016, less than 2.1
percent pace of 2015. The forecast is .2 percent below the July forecast which was 1.8 percent.
The United States: IMF marked down its forecast for 2016 to 1.6 percent from 2.2 percent
forecasted in July. It says that US growth is likely to pick up to 2.2 percent in 2017.
The United Kingdom: Following the Brexit referendum of June, IMF forecasted that UK
growth will slow to 1.8 percent in 2016 and to 1.1 percent in 2017.
European Union: The euro area will expand 1.7 percent in 2016 and 1.5 percent in 2017,
compared with 2 percent growth in 2015.
Japan: It said that the worlds number three economy is expected to remain subdued at 0.5
percent in 2016 and 0.6 percent in 2017.
Emerging Market
In emerging market and developing economies, growth will accelerate for the first time in six
years, to 4.2 percent, slightly higher than the July forecast of 4.1 percent. In 2017, emerging
economies are expected to grow 4.6 percent.
China: Chinas economy, the worlds second largest, is forecast to expand 6.6 percent in 2016
and 6.2 percent in 2017, down from growth of 6.9 percent last year.
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africas largest economies continue to struggle with lower commodity revenues,
weighing on growth in the region.
Nigerias economy will shrink to 1.7 percent in 2016, and South Africas will barely expand. By
contrast, several of the regions non-commodity exporters, including Cte dIvoire, Ethiopia,
Kenya, and Senegal, are expected to continue to grow at a robust pace of more than 5 percent
this year.
Latin America
Economic activity in the region slowed, as several countries are mired in recession, with
recovery expected to take hold in 2017. Venezuelas output is forecast to plunge 10 percent in
2016 and shrink another 4.5 percent in 2017. Brazil will see a contraction of 3.3 percent in
2016, but is expected to grow at 0.5 percent in 2017, on the assumption of declining political
and policy uncertainty and the waning effects of past economic shocks.
Middle East
Countries in the Middle East are confronting challenging conditions from subdued oil prices, as
well as civil conflict and terrorism.
NEARLY 69 MILLION NEW TEACHERS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE

GLOBAL EDUCATION GOALS: UNESCO REPORT
The United Nations Education, Science and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on 5 October 2016
released a report stating that nearly 69 million new teachers are needed to provide quality
universal primary and secondary education by 2030, the deadline of the UN Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs).
The report was prepared by UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). It was released on the
occasion of World Teacher's Day, held under the theme Valuing Teachers, Improving their
Status.

According to the UIS data, sub-Saharan Africa has the largest teacher gap and the region will
need about 17 million primary and secondary teachers by 2030.
More than 70 percent of the countries of sub-Saharan Africa region face acute shortages of
primary school teachers, 90 percent of them face serious shortages in secondary education.
Similarly, Southern Asia has the second-largest teacher gap, especially at the secondary level.
Only 65 percent of youth across the region are enrolled in secondary education.
The pupil-teacher ratio of Southern Asia is estimated at 29:1 (based on 2014 estimates), far
higher than the global average of 18:1. The region needs another 15 million teachers by 2030.
In Western Asia, persistent armed conflicts in a number of countries, including the Syrian
Arab Republic and Iraq, are causing chaos. Large parts of entire education systems have been
destroyed.
Number of pre-primary, primary and secondary schools in Syrian Arab Republic fell from
23000 to 15000 between 2012 and 2016, and the number of students from 5.6 million to 4.1
million.
In Northern Africa, 0.2 million teachers are needed to fill new positions to achieve universal
primary education by 2030. The countries facing the biggest teacher shortages in the region
are: Algeria (0.2 million) for primary education and Egypt (1.1 million) for secondary educatio.
India needs to recruit at least three million primary teachers and over eight million secondary
teachers in next 14 years to ensure that every child is in school and learning well.
THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHER QUALITY

Improving education quality requires far more than just having enough teachers in the
education system: teachers need to be trained, supported through professional development.
Unfortunately, in many developing countries, reliable information on teacher qualifications

and teacher training is hard to come by.
Many teachers have been recruited where primary education systems have expanded rapidly,
but they do not always meet national minimum qualifications and training standards.
According to UIS data, in 31 of the 96 countries with data after 2012, less than 80 percent of
primary school teachers were reportedly trained according to national standards in 2014.
In 30 out of 73 countries, less than 80 percent of secondary school teachers were trained
according to national standards in 2014. Most of these are in sub-Saharan Africa including
Burkina Faso, Burundi, Congo, Niger, Benin, and Madagascar.
BACKGROUND
Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) demands inclusive and equitable quality education for
all by 2030. SDG 4 includes a specific call for more qualified teachers, and more support from
the international community for teacher training in developing countries.
The needs are urgent as nearly 263 million children and youth are still out of primary and
secondary school globally.
SUMMIT AND CONFERENCE
NATIONAL SUMMIT ON FORTIFICATION OF FOOD INAUGURATED IN

NEW DELHI
Anupriya Patel, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, on 16 October 2016
inaugurated National Summit on Fortification of Food in New Delhi. The Summit was
inaugurated to address interventions in combating micronutrient malnutrition in the country.
The two day summit was co-hosted by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)
in partnership with related union ministries/departments and development partners. During
the Summit, Patel also released the standards on fortification of foods and launched the food
fortification logo.
WHAT IS FOOD FORTIFICATION?
Food fortification or enrichment is the process of adding micronutrients to food.
It may be a purely commercial choice to provide extra nutrients in a food. Other times, it is a
public health policy which aims to reduce the number of people with dietary deficiencies within
a population.
Sometimes the staple foods of a region can lack particular nutrients, due to the soil of the
region or because of the inherent inadequacy of the normal diet. Addition of micronutrients to
staples and condiments can prevent large-scale deficiency diseases in these cases.
As defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agricultural
Organization of the United Nations (FAO), fortification refers to "the practice of deliberately
increasing the content of an essential micronutrient, ie. vitamins and minerals (including trace
elements) in a food irrespective of whether the nutrients were originally in the food before
processing or not, so as to improve the nutritional quality of the food supply and to provide a
public health benefit with minimal risk to health."
Food fortification was identified as the second strategy of four by the WHO and FAO to begin
decreasing the incidence of nutrient deficiencies at the global level.
INDIA TO HOST ASIAN MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON DISASTER

RISK REDUCTION
India will host the Asian Ministerial Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) from 3
November to 5 November 2016.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the conference that will be held in New Delhi in
collaboration with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR). The
Conference will focus on partnership with governments and stakeholders to imbibe the
practices in the regions development narrative.
It will be the first AMCDRR after the introduction of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction (SFDRRR), adopted at the third UN World Conference in Sendai, Japan in March
2015. It will set the direction of Sendai Framework implementation in the region.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF THE CONFERENCE

The conference aims at transforming the commitments of governments and stakeholders
during the Sendai Conference into national and local action.
The meet will focus on collaboration, consultation and partnership with governments and
stakeholders to mainstream DRR in the regions development narrative.
The conference will adopt the Asian Regional Plan for Implementation of the Sendai
Framework endorsed by the Asian countries.
It will also consolidate the political commitment of governments towards preventing and
reducing risk as well as strengthening resilience in the form of a political declaration.
PREVIOUS ASIAN MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
First AMCDRR was held in China in 2005.
Second AMCDRR was held in India in 2007.
Third AMCDRR was held in Malaysia in 2008.
Fourth AMCDRR was held in Republic of Korea in 2010.
Fifth Asia Ministerial conference was held in Indonesia in 2012.
FIRST WORLD SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT

President Pranab Mukherjee on 6 October 2016 inaugurated the first edition of the World
Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) in New Delhi. The theme for the summit is Beyond
2015: People, Planet and Progress. The summit is being organized by The Energy and
Resources Institute (TERI).
ABOUT THE WORLD SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT

The World Sustainable Development Summit has evolved from the Delhi Sustainable
Development Summit, the annual event of TERI.
The WSDS brings together Nobel laureates, political leaders, decision-makers from bilateral
and multilateral institutions, among others, to deliberate on issues related to sustainable
development. It aims to provide long-term solutions for the benefit of the global community by
assembling the various stakeholders on a single platform.
COMPONENTS OF THE WSDS

World CEO Sustainability Summit: It is a platform for business leaders to define a path and
evolve a strategy to facilitate development whilst protecting the environment.
Thematic Tracks: It is a parallel breakaway sessions led by area experts that aim at providing
feasible solutions to challenges faced by local and global communities in maintaining the
balance between securing environmental sustainability and development.
Media Colloquium: It is a forum to sensitise mid-career journalists from around the world on
issues of sustainability and climate change.
Youth Leaders: The platform aims at engaging youth from around the globe in the sustainable
development discourse, record their experiences, and encourage positive action on their part.
Greenovation Exhibition: It provides an opportunity for global players to showcase

technologies in the areas of renewable energy, waste management, sustainable buildings,
sustainable transport, water management and financing for sustainable development and
energy efficiency.
CORPORATE
CYRUS MISTRY OUSTED AS TATA SONS CHIEF; RATAN TATA
RETURNS IN INTERIM
The board of Tata Sons Ltd on 23 October 2016 replaced Cyrus Mistry as Chairman of the Indias
largest conglomerate and named his predecessor Ratan Tata as the interim chairman for four
months.
No reason was given for removing Mistry, but it is believed there were differences over
management style and his approach of selling assets after writing them down.
Mistry, 48, who replaced Tata, 78, as chairman in December 2012, was only the sixth group
Chairman in nearly 15 decades and the first from outside the Tata family. He will remain a
director of the individual companies, though his tenure as Chairman is the shortest so far at the
group.
Besides, the board also named a five-member search committee, which includes Tata, to
choose a successor within four months. The other members of the committee include TVS
Group head Venu Srinivasan, Amit Chandra of Bain Capital, former diplomat Ronen Sen and
Lord Kumar Bhattacharya. All of them, except Bhattacharya, are on the board of Tata Sons.
The Committee has been constituted with a mandate to complete the process in four months.
Also, there will be no change at the level of CEOs in the operating company.
Tata will be interim head of the group while a Selection Committee appointed by the company
searches for a replacement.
AT&T INC AGREES TO BUY TIME WARNER INC FOR 85.4 BILLION
US DOLLARS
AT&T Inc on 22 October 2016 agreed to buy Time Warner Inc for 85.4 billion US dollars in a deal
that will transform the phone company into a media giant.
AT&T agreed to pay 107.50 US dollars a share, evenly split between cash and stock. The deal is
expected to close by the end of 2017.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DEAL

The new company will be headed by AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson.
Time Warner Chief Executive Jeff Bewkes will stay for an interim period following the close of
the deal.
AT&T will tap 40 billion US dollars in bridge loans with 25 billion US dollars coming from JP
Morgan Chase & Co and 15 billion US dollars from Bank of America Corp.
Time Warner agreed to pay a 1.7 billion US dollars breakup fee if another company outbids
AT&Ts offer. AT&T, meanwhile, would pay 500 million US dollars if the deal gets blocked.
Once the deal is completed, AT&T will rely on its entertainment business for more than 40
percent of its revenue, based on second-quarter financial results.
The combined business will pair AT&T's millions of wireless and pay-television subscribers with
Time Warners deep media lineup, which includes networks such as CNN, TNT, the prized HBO
channel and Warner Bros and TV studio.
BACKGROUND
The talks of this acquisition began in August 2016, when AT&T Chief Executive Stephenson
visited Time Warners New York office. Since then, both the sides continued discussing the
possibilities with each other.
For AT&T, the deal will help the carrier potentially find new areas of growth as its core wireless
business has become saturated. The carrier lost 268000 mainstream wireless phone customers
and its video business lost a net 3000 customers in the quarter.
The company lost almost 200000 video customers since buying satellite television provider
DirecTV last year.
SBI DECLARES SILCHAR AS ITS 5TH ZONE IN NORTH EAST INDIA

The State Bank of India (SBI) on 20 October 2016 declared Silchar as its 5th zone in North-East
India. This zone will cater to the banking needs of the people of Mizoram, Tripura and Manipur
along with the Barak Valley.
The other four zones of SBI in region are located in Guwahati, Shillong, Dibrugarh and Jorhat.
Earlier, Silchar was under Guwahati zone and it was tough on the part of the bank to address
the complaints and issues of the customers with such a difficult terrain. The bank has 736
branches across North East together with 3000 ATMs and 3000 customer service points for
customer facilitation.
Besides, SBI also opened its administrative office at Silchar. This office will facilitate banking
issues for the customers of the region.
ASHOK LEYLAND UNVEILS INDIA'S FIRST INDIGENOUS ELECTRIC

BUS
Ashok Leyland Ltd on 17 October 2016 unveiled its Circuit Series electric bus. They are Indias
first such indigenously made vehicle.
The buses are designed and engineered in India. They are specifically developed for Indian road
conditions.
The zero-emission vehicle will be offered on multiple platforms and enjoys a subsidy under the
governments Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles (FAME)
scheme. It can travel 150 km on a single charge.
ABOUT FAME-INDIA SHEME

The Union Government had launched Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and
Electric vehicles (FAME) India Scheme on 1 April 2015.
The scheme was launched with an aim to boost sales of eco-friendly vehicles in the country. It
is a part of the National Mission for Electric Mobility.
The scheme envisages providing 795 crore rupees support till 2020 for the manufacturing and
sale of electric and hybrid vehicles.
ABOUT ASHOK LEYLAND

Ashok Leyland is an Indian automobile manufacturing company headquartered in Chennai,
India.
It was founded in 1948.
It is the 2nd largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in India, 4th largest manufacturer of
buses in the world and 16th largest manufacturer of trucks globally.
It is the second largest commercial vehicle company in India in the medium and heavy
commercial vehicle segment.
STANDARD CHARTERED BANK TIES-UP WITH UBER TO OFFER

DISCOUNTS
Foreign lender Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) on 10 October 2016 tied-up with Uber under
which its credit cardholders will get a cash-back of up to 25 percent for hailing cabs from the
app across six countries.
In India, the cardholders will get a 20 percent cash-back on all Uber rides, subject to cashback
cap of 600 rupees per month. Additionally, first-time Uber users will get a discount of 50 rupees
for the first three rides.
The offer will be available to all SCB cardholders from October 2016 to 30 September 2017.
Apart from India, the partnership was activated in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam.
This is the first multi-market partnership for the two companies.
ABOUT STANDARD CHARTERED BANK

Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore is part of an international banking group with around
84000 employees and a 150-year history in some of the world's dynamic markets.
It opened its first branch in Singapore in 1859 and in October 1999, it was among the first
international banks to receive a Qualifying Full Bank (QFB) license.
The Bank transferred its Singapore Retail and SME business to a locally-incorporated
subsidiary, Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) Limited (SCBSL) on 7 October 2013.
After the transfer, all banking services particularly deposit taking, wealth management
services, personal loans, credit cards, auto financing, and mortgages are offered by SCBSL.
ASHISH VOHRA APPOINTED AS CEO OF RELIANCE NIPPON LIFE

INSURANCE LTD
Ashish Vohra was on 3 October 2016 appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Reliance
Nippon Life Insurance Ltd. The position of CEO of the company was lying vacant after Anup Rau
left the company in June 2016.
Prior to this appointment, Vohra was working at Max Life Insurance.
ABOUT ASHISH VOHRA

Vohra is a mechanical engineer from IIT BHU and an MBA from IIM Bangalore.
He has over 25-years of experience with various companies including Max Life Insurance,
Fullerton India Credit, Citibank and Eicher Motors.
He spent 8 years with Max Life Insurance and served as Senior Director and Chief Distribution
Officer.
Prior to joining Max Life, Ashish was Executive Vice President and Head of Commercial
Business at Fullerton India Credit Corporation.
He has also served a long stint with Eicher Motors earlier.
ABOUT RELIANCE NIPPON LIFE INSURANCE LTD

Reliance Life Nippon Life Insurance is a 51:49 joint venture between Anil Ambanis Reliance
Capital and Nippon Life Insurance of Japan, a Global Fortune 500 company.
It is one of the largest non-bank supported private life insurers with over 10 million policy
holders, a strong distribution network of over 800 branches and over 100000 advisors.
It is rated amongst the Top 3 Most Trusted Life Insurance Service Brands by Brand Equitys
Most Trusted Brands Survey 2015.
RAFALE DEAL: RELIANCE, DASSAULT AVIATION SET UP JOINT

VENTURE
In a major deal for India's private defence industry, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and Rafale
maker Dassault Aviation on 3 October 2016 announced a joint venture in India.
The companies in a joint statements said, the entity will be a key player in execution of offset
contract worth about 22000 crore rupees as part of the fighter jet deal. Purpose of the Joint
Venture is to focus on promoting Research and development projects under the IDDM program
(Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured), a new initiative of Indias Defence
Minister Manohar Parrikar.
This new joint venture called Dassault Reliance Aerospace will develop major Indian programs
with high levels of technology transfer to benefit the entire aerospace sector. The Joint Venture
was announced by Dassault Reliance Aerospace within days of India and France signed
agreement for 36 Rafale fighter jets value of 59,000 crore rupees (7.87 billion Euros). The
agreement on Rafale jets was inked on 23 September 2016.
The agreement includes a 50 per cent offset obligation, the largest-ever offset contract in the
history of India.
The main point of the offset agreement is 74 per cent of it has to be imported from India, which
means direct business worth around 22000 crore rupees. There is also a technology-sharing
component, which is being discussed with the Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO).
Other companies involved in the Rafale deal include French firms MBDA and Thales, besides
Safran, which too will be part of the overall offset obligation.
OIL INDIA LIMITED SIGNS MOU WITH UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Oil India Limited (OIL) on 5 October 2016 signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with
the University of Houston (USA), one of the leading universities on oil and gas of the world.
The MoU was signed by OIL with intent of augmenting its reserves base and maximising
recovery from its aging oilfields.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MOU

It is focused to collaborate in the fields of Improved Oil Recovery & Enhanced Oil Recovery for
production enhancement from matured fields & reservoir characterisation studies.
It will help OIL to further consolidate and upgrade the various initiatives the Company has
undertaken to improve production and contribute significantly to the energy security of the
country.
It will also contribute towards national obligation as set by Prime Minister to reduce import
dependency of oil and gas by 10% by 2022.
ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Located in the energy capital of the United States of America, University of Houston is home
to the leading Oil & Gas operating companies and service providers.
It is a premier institute involved in the quest of academic and translational excellence in the
field of Oil & Gas through its outstanding faculty and research staff.
It has also established well documented partnership with leading edge academia and industry
subject matter experts.
SPORTS
CRICKET
INDIA WINS FIVE-MATCH ODI SERIES AGAINST NEW ZEALAND, 3-2

India on 29 October 2016 won the five-match ODI series against New Zealand, 3-2. In the fifth
match played at Visakhapatnam, India defeated New Zealand by 190 runs.
In the final match, New Zealand was bowled out for 79 in 23.1 overs. It was New Zealands
lowest ODI total against India.
SERIES REPORT
1st Match: The match was played in Dharmasala, Himachal Pradesh on 16 October 2016. India
won by 6 wickets (with 101 balls remaining). Hardik Pandya (India), who played his debut ODI
match on the day, was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
2nd Match: The match was played in Delhi on 20 October 2016. New Zealand won by 6 runs.
Kane Williamson (New Zealand) was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
3rd Match: The match was played at Mohali, Chandigarh on 26 October 2016. India won by 7
wickets. Virat Kohli (India) was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
4th Match: The match was played at Ranchi, Jharkhand on 26 October 2016. New Zealand won
by 19 runs. Martin Guptill (New Zealand) was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
5th Match: The match was played at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on 29 October 2016. India
won by 190 wickets. Amit Mishra (India) was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
Player of the Series: Amit Mishra (India)
Indian teams jersey in the fifth and final ODI match was the most important highlight of the
five-match ODI series. In a gesture of respect towards women, the Indian cricketers were
wearing their mothers names on the back of their jerseys.
SC FREEZES BCCI'S FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS

Supreme Court on 21 October 2016 froze all financial transactions between the BCCI and state
cricket associations. The apex court directed the apex cricket body not to disburse any funds,
even for the match purposes, till BCCI resolved to abide by Justice RM Lodha panel
recommendations.
A bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur asked Lodha panel to appoint independent auditors
to scrutinize all BCCI accounts. The judgment also directed the Lodha panel to ask the auditors
to scrutinize the high-value contracts provided by BCCI.
Justice RM Lodha Committee submitted its report to Supreme Court
The apex court also directed BCCI president Anurag Thakur and Secretary Ajay Shirke to give
undertaking on affidavit, before the Lodha panel and apex court by 3 December 2016, stating
how much time they would need to implement reforms.
Highlights of the Decision
It directed the Lodha panel to ask the auditors to scrutinise the high-value contracts given by
BCCI and also fix a ceiling of high-value contracts involving media rights.
It asked the Ladha panels secretary to send a copy of the apex court order to the ICC
chairman Shashank Manohar.
VIRAT KOHLI PRESENTED WITH ICC TEST CHAMPIONSHIP MACE

Virat Kohli on 11 October 2016 was presented with the ICC Test
Championship mace for leading his team to the top of the Test
Team Rankings. On behalf, of ICC the mace was presented by
former India captain and ICC Cricket Hall of Famer Sunil
Gavaskar following the conclusion of the third and final Test
against New Zealand in Indore.
The achieved the number-one spot on the ICC Test Rankings

after it took a 2-0 lead in Kolkata, but the Test team rankings are only updated at the end of the
series. Thus on completion of the series, India formally replaced its arch rival Pakistan at the top
of the table at the end pf Indore Test. India won the Indore Test by 321 runs.
With this, Kohli became only the second India captain after Mahendra Singh Dhoni and 10th
overall to receive the mace, even though it is for the third time since Kohli took over as captain
that India has led the rankings table.
Earlier, India topped the rankings very briefly in January-February 2016 as well as in August
2016. Indias longest stint at the number-one position was from November 2009 to August
2011 under Dhoni.
The other captains to have received the mace are Steve Waugh, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke,
Steve Smith (all Australia), Andrew Strauss (England), Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla (both South
Africa), MS Dhoni (India) and Misbah-ul-Haq (Pakistan).
INDIA CLEAN-SWEEPS THREE MATCH TEST SERIES AGAINST NEW

ZEALAND
India on 11 October 2016 won the three-match test series against New Zealand, 3-0. In the
third and final test played at Holkar Stadium in Indore, India wrapped up the New Zealand
innings at 153 in 44.5 overs claiming a huge victory by 321 runs.
The entire second innings of the visitors folded in just one-and-a-half sessions on Day -4 with an
entire day remaining. The chief wrecker for India was R Ashwin who claimed 13 wickets in the
match with six wickets in first and seven in the second inning. It was also Ashwins sixth ten-
wicket haul in 39 Tests and 21st 5-wicket haul.
India wins historic 500th Test by 197 runs against New Zealand
SERIES REPORT
1st Match: The match was played at Green Park, Kanpur between 22 September and 26
September 2016. India won by an innings and 197 runs. Ravindra Jadeja (India) was declared
Man of the Match.
2nd Match: The match was played at Eden Gardens, Kolkata between 30 September and 4
October 2016. India won by an innings and 178 runs. Wriddhiman Saha (India) was declared
Man of the Match.
3rd Match: The match was played at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore between 8 October and 12
October 2016. India won by an innings and 178 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin (India) was declared
Man of the Match.
Player of the Series: Ravichandran Ashwin
The 3-0 series triumph was the third for India in their last four series at home, the earlier ones
achieved against Australia and West Indies. This win also stretched their enviable winning Test
record at home to 12 out of 13 encounters, including the 3-0 rout of South Africa last season.
After conclusion of the third and final match, Indian captain Virat Kohli was presented with the
ICC Test Championship mace for leading his team to the top of the Test Team Rankings.The
mace was presented by former India captain and ICC Cricket Hall of Famer Sunil Gavaskar at a
ceremony.
KABADDI
INDIA WINS 2016 KABADDI WORLD CUP

India on 22 October 2016 lifted the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup. Team India, under the captaincy
of Anup Kumar, defeated Iran 38-29 in the final held at the Arena By TransStadia in
Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
This was India's 3rd World Cup in the Standard Style version of Kabaddi.
About 2016 Kabaddi World Cup
The 2016 Kabaddi World Cup was an international kabaddi tournament governed by the
International Kabaddi Federation.
It was contested from 7 to 22 October 2016 in Ahmedabad, India.
Twelve countries had competed in the tournament.
The tournament was hosted at The Arena by TransStadia, a newly-constructed convertible

stadium in Ahmedabad.
The official emblem of the tournament was unveiled on 14 September 2016 by Minister of
Youth Affairs and Sports Vijay Goel. It incorporated a stylized lion, representing the Asiatic lions
of Girnar.
TENNIS
SOURABH VERMA WINS MEN'S SINGLES TITLE AT CHINESE TAIPEI OPEN

Indian shuttler Sourabh Verma on 16 October 2016 clinched
the men's singles title at the Chinese Taipei Open badminton.
In the summit clash of the 55000 dollar Grand Prix tournament
in Taipei City, Saurabh defeated Malaysia's Daren Liew, 12-10,
12-10, 3-3.
World No. 82 Verma rallied to grab the first two games 12-10 and 12-10 and emerged
victorious after his opponent World No. 106 Liew retired at 3-3 owing to a problematic
shoulder.
Verma, aged 23, who hails from Madhya Pradesh, was on a comeback trail after spending
almost a year on the sidelines due to elbow and knee injuries in 2015. His previous international
title came in 2014 after defeating Taiwan's Hsu Jen-hao at the Austrian International Challenge
2014.
Verma and Liew had previously clashed twice, having a head-to-head tally of 1-1. They last met
at the Li Ning China Masters in 2012 where Verma had defeated the Malaysian in the first
round.
ANDY MURRAY, AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA WINS 2016 CHINA OPEN

MEN'S & WOMENS SINGLES
Andy Murray and Agnieszka Radwanska on 9 October 2016 won the 2016 China Open Men's
and Womens Singles titles, respectively. The finals were played at the National Tennis Center in
Beijing, China.
In the final, World Number two Murray defeated Grigor Dimitrov by 64, 76. On the other
hand, Polands Radwanska defeated Johanna Konta 6-4, 6-2 to grab the title.
ABOUT ANDY MURRAY
He is a Scottish professional tennis player currently ranked world No. 2 in men's singles.
Murray represents Great Britain in his sporting activities and is a three-time Grand Slam
tournament winner, two-time Olympic champion and Davis Cup champion.
At the 2012 US Open, Murray became the first British player since 1977, and the first British
man since 1936, to win a Grand Slam singles tournament, when he defeated Novak Djokovic in
the final.
In July 2013, Murray won the 2013 Wimbledon Championships, becoming the first British
player to win a Wimbledon senior singles title since Virginia Wade in 1977, and the first British
man to win the men's singles title since Fred Perry, 77 years previously.
In 2016 he won his second Wimbledon title to become the first British man to win multiple
Wimbledon singles titles since Perry in 1935.
Murray is the men's singles 2012 and 2016 Olympic gold medallist, defeating Roger Federer in
the 2012 final and Juan Martn del Potro in the 2016 final.
He is the only tennis player, male or female, to have won two Olympic singles titles.
ABOUT AGNIESZKA RADWANSKA
Agnieszka Radwaska is a Polish professional tennis player.
She achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 in July 2012 and is currently ranked
world No. 3 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA).
She is the first Polish player in the Open Era to reach a Grand Slam singles final (the 2012
Wimbledon Championships), the first Polish to win the WTA Finals (in 2015), and the first Polish
to claim a WTA singles title (the 2007 Nordea Nordic Light Open).
ABOUT CHINA OPEN
The China Open is an annual professional tennis tournament held in Beijing, China.
The men's singles and doubles events were first held in 1993, as the ATP opened a series of
new tournaments in Asia.
In 1998, the tournament was dropped from the ATP tour calendar, but was reinstated in
2004.
In 2006, the China Open became the first tournament outside of the United States to use the
Hawk-Eye system in match play.
Novak Djokovic is the only player to have won the title six times. He also holds the record for
consecutive wins with four titles.
In doubles, the Bryan Brothers are the only doubles pair to have won consecutive titles.
Agnieszka Radwanska, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Serena Williams hold the record for most
titles won in the women's tournament, with two titles each.
Novak Djokovic was the winner of the 2015 China Open Men's Singles.
Garbine Muguruza was the winner of the 2015 China Open Women's Singles.
MARIA SHARAPOVA DRUGS BAN REDUCED FROM TWO YEARS

TO 15 MONTHS
Russian Tennis star Maria Sharapova's doping ban was reduced from two years to 15 months on
4 October 2016. The Court of Arbitration for Sport cut nine months off the suspension imposed
on Sharapova, who was tested positive for a banned substance - Meldonium - at the 2016
Australian Open in January 2016.
Earlier, the five-time Grand Slam winner was banned for two years by the International Tennis
Federation for two years after testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open.
Sharapova in a statement said that she had been taking the drug since 2006 for health related
problems but never tried it to enhance her performance.
Ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport means that Sharapova can come back in Tennis
court on 26 April 2017 and return to Grand Slam play at the French Open.
The CAS panel found that Sharapova bore some degree of fault for the positive test, saying a
15-month sanction was appropriate.
Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion, had appealed to CAS in June seeking to overturn
or reduce the suspension imposed by the International Tennis Federation.
WHAT IS MELDONIUM?
Meldonium is a heart disease drug also known as mildronate and was banned by World Anti-
Doping Agency's (Wada) on 1 January 2016.
SHOOTING
INDIAN RAILWAYS WINS WORLD RAILWAY SHOOTING CHAMPIONSHIP

CUP
Indian Railways in the second week of October 2016 won the World Railway Shooting
Championship Cup. The tournament was held at Saint Mandrier, France.
It is the first time that Indian Railways emerged victorious in this competition. In 2015, the
Indian Railways were the runners up team.
Indian Railways team won a total 10 medals, which include 5 Gold, 3 Silver and 2 Bronze, to bag
the Overall Championship at the 15th International Shooting World Championship (USIC). The
purpose of USIC is to encourage the practice of amateur sport among railway employees all
over the world.
The Western Railways members along with Coach Anuja Tere Jung represented Team India. The
team defeated Germany and France to win Gold in 50 Meter Rifle Event.
Swapnil Kusale and Tejaswini Muley won Gold and Silver medal respectively. In Air Rifle,
Ayonika Paul won Gold by defeating France and Norway while Suma Shirur won silver and Gurjit
won Bronze.
In Air Pistol, all three Indian shooters Jitendra Vibhute, Sumedh Devlaliwala and Vipin Rana
bagged Gold, Silver and Bronze respectively.
SHOOTER JITU RAI BAGS SILVER AT WORLD CUP IN ITALY

Indian shooter Jitu Rai on 6 October 2016 clinched a silver medal in the 50 meter pistol event of
the ISSF World Cup Final at Bologna, Italy. Jitu, 29, shot a score of 188.8 to finish behind China's
Wei Pang at 190.6. Italy's Giuseppe Giordano settled for the bronze.
In the process, Jitu also equalled his own national record score
in the qualification round, which was shot in 2014 at Maribor
World Cup.
Jitu, who was counted as India's best shooting medal hope in

Rio but had failed to deliver, had earlier won a Silver medal at
the ISSF World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan in the 10m Air Pistol
event. In 2016 Rio Olympics he finished at the eighth position
in the mens 10 meter pistol final.
The ISSF World Cup finals competition is the season-ending competition of the annual calendar.
GOLF
GAGANJEET BHULLAR WINS 2016 SHINHAN DONGHAE OPEN

Indias Ganganjeet Bhullar on 2 October 2016 won the 2016 Shinhan Donghae Open in South
Korea. It is his sixth title on the Asian Tour.
Bhullar carded a final round four-under-par 67 for a tournament total of 15-under 269 at the
Bears Best Cheongna Golf Club in Incheon.
Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe and South Koreas Kim Tae-woo finished a stroke behind.
The Shinhan Donghae Open is a men's professional golf tournament that has been held
annually in South Korea since 1981.
ABOUT GANGANJEET BHULLAR

Gaganjeet Singh Bhullar is an Indian professional golfer who plays on the Asian Tour.
He was India's number one amateur in 2004 and 2006 and was part of the Indian team that
won the silver medal at the 2006 Asian Games.
He turned professional in 2006.
He was awarded Arjuna Award in 2013.
FOOTBALL
PORTUGAL'S RENATO SANCHES WINS 2016 EUROPEAN GOLDEN BOY

AWARD
Portugals Renato Sanches on 24 October 2016 was awarded the 2016 European Golden Boy
award.
Sanches will be handed a trophy at a Monte Carlo ceremony. He defeated Manchester Uniteds
Marcus Rashford, Bayern's Kingsley Coman and AC Milan goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to
bag the prize.
Sanches was selected following a vote by journalists from 30 newspapers across Europe to
name the best player in 2016 under the age of 21.
ABOUT RENATO SANCHES
Renato Sanches is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for German
club Bayern Munich and the Portugal national team.
He began his career at Benfica, a Portuguese sports club.
Later, he agreed a move to Bayern Munich for an initial 35 million euro, the highest fee for a
Portuguese player leaving the domestic league.
He made his full international debut in March 2016.
He was chosen for UEFA Euro 2016 at the age of 18, making him the youngest Portuguese to
play in an international tournament. He scored one goal throughout the competition and won
the Young Player of the Tournament.
ABOUT GOLDEN BOY AWARD
The Golden Boy is an award that is given by sports journalists to a young football player
playing in Europe perceived to have been the most impressive during a calendar year.
All nominees must be under the age of 21 and play in a European nation's top tier.
The prize was established by Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport in 2003.
In 2015, the award was won by Frances Anthony Martial.
NORTH KOREA WINS 2016 FIFA U-17 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP

North Korea's women's U-17 team on 21 October 2016 won the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's
World Cup. The North Koreans defeated Japan in penalty kicks to grab the title.
This is North Korea's second U-17 Women's World Cup title. The country won the first ever U-
17 Women's World Cup in 2008.
The 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup was held in Jordan from 30 September to 21 October
2016.
ABOUT FIFA U-17 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP
The FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup is an international association football tournament for
female players under the age of 17.
It is organized by Fdration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA).
The tournament is held in even-numbered years, starting in 2008.
The official emblem of the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup was unveiled on 3 May 2015,
which was designed to showcase Jordan's most iconic symbols. Visual aspects of the Jordanian
culture can be seen on the emblem that has the traditional shape of the FIFA U-17 Womens
World Cup Trophy.
Aseela is an Arabian oryx, which is the national animal of Jordan, was the mascot of the 2016
FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.
INDIAN FOOTBALL TEAM ACHIEVES HIGHEST FIFA RANKING IN SIX

YEARS
The Indian football team on 20 October 2016 achieved its best FIFA ranking in over six years.
The team jumped 11 placed to be 137th in the latest list.
India, who defeated 114th ranked Puerto Rico in an International Friendly in Mumbai in
September 2016, garnered 230 points for the month.
In August 2010, India were ranked 137th which stayed Indias best ever FIFA Ranking since
then.
The Indian team was ranked 171st in February 2015 and slipped to 173rd in March 2015.
At present, Argentina tops the FIFA World Rankings, followed by Germany and Brazil.
ABOUT FIFA WORLD RANKINGS
The FIFA World Ranking is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football.
The teams of the member nations of FIFA are ranked based on their game results with the
most successful teams being ranked highest.
The rankings were introduced in December 1992, and eight teams (Argentina, Belgium, Brazil,
France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain) have held the top position, of which Brazil
have spent longest ranked first.
A points system is used, with points being awarded based on the results of all FIFA-recognised
full international matches.
The ranking system was most recently revamped after the 2006 World Cup, with the first
edition of the new series of rankings issued on 12 July 2006. The most significant change is that
the rankings are now based on results over the previous four years instead of the previous eight
years.
KOCHI BECOMES FIRST INDIAN CITY TO HOST FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP
Kochi on 19 October 2016 became the first Indian city
to be officially declared as one of the venues for
hosting the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. The tournament
will be hosted in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium of the
city.
A 23-member high-level delegation comprising experts

from FIFA and Local Organising Committee (LOC)
ratified Kochi as the venue for next year's mega event. Earlier, the delegation visited the
Jawarharlal Nehru International Stadium.
With this, the event also became the first FIFA event to be held in the subcontinent.
Tournament Director of the LOC, Javier Ceppi said that besides Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the
team also visited the prospective training grounds in Kochi -- Parade Ground, Fort Kochi Veli
Football Ground, Maharajas College Ground and Government Boys High School Panampilly
Nagar.
Other cities that received FIFAs nod after Kochi to host the tournament are Navi Mumbai, Goa
Guwahati, and New Delhi.
2017 FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP
The FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 will be held in India. This will be first time that the planets
second most populous country will host a FIFA event. Till date, India has successfully hosted a
wide range of sporting events like from the Asian Games to the Commonwealth Games and
world championships in sports like cricket and field hockey.
The tournament is slated to be held from September to October 2017.
INDIA IN FOOTBALL
Indian football team took part on the 1948 London Olympics, their first major international
tournament.
The nation qualified regularly for the Olympics until 1960.
The 1956 Melbourne Olympics saw the national football team finish a very respectable fourth.
The main success for Indian football came in that era with gold medals at the Asian Games in
New Delhi 1951 and Jakarta in 1962.
India was invited to participate in the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
Currently, football is one of the most followed sports in India and is only behind cricket in terms
of reputation and popularity. This has been the result of a series of initiatives and investments
in the future of the sport.
HISTORY OF FOOTBALL IN INDIA
India has been playing football since 19th century. Indias oldest and surviving clubs namely,
Mohammedan Sporting and Mohun Bagan were formed just three decades after the first club
in the world, Sheffield FC, was established. Indeed, Indias Durand Cup is the worlds third
oldest football competition.
BRAZIL WINS 1ST BRICS U-17 FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

Brazil on 15 October 2016 won the first BRICS U-17 football tournament. In the title clash
played at Nehru Stadium of Margo, Goa, Brazil defeated South Africa 5-1.
Brazils Paulo Henrique Samapaio Filho scored the very first goal of the match in 24th Minute.
Followed by Vinicius de Oliveira in the 34th minute, Victor de Oliveira scored a brace in the 40th
& 61st minute to give Brazil an upper hand.
South Africas Smiso Bophela scored the only goal for his team. The icing on Brazils cake was
set by Alan de Souza Guimaraes in the 6 minutes after the second half resulted the score in
favor of Brazil as 5-1.
Earlier in the match for the 3rd place between Russia and China, Russia defeated China 2-1.
Ten-day BRICS tournament transcends the traditional spheres of interaction and opens new
vistas in the field of sports. A first of its kind, the Tournament will be a harbinger for further
exchanges in other sports. The enthusiasm evoked by the scintillating display of skills will be an
inspiration for the youth of the country and spur Indias impetus towards Khelo India and
Mission 11 Million.
HOCKEY
INDIA BEATS PAKISTAN TO WIN ASIAN CHAMPIONS TROPHY

India on 30 October 2016 won the 4th edition of the Asian Hockey Champions Trophy for men.
India defeated Pakistan 3-2 to reclaim the Asian Champions Trophy title.
ABOUT ASIAN CHAMPIONS TROPHY
The Asian Hockey Champions Trophy is an event held annually by the Asian Hockey
Federation.
The tournament has been held since 2011.
It features the Asian Games top six field hockey teams (Pakistan, China, India, Japan, South
Korea and Malaysia) competing in a round robin format.
Pakistan and India are the most successful teams in Asian Hockey Champions Trophy. Both
the teams have won the trophy twice.
Japan is the defending champion of the Women's Trophy.
The 2016 Asian Men's Hockey Champions Trophy was held in Malaysia, Kuantan District.
BOXING
INDIAN BOXING COUNCIL INDUCTED INTO WBO WITH VOTING RIGHTS

The Indian Boxing Council (IBC) in the second week of October 2016 was inducted into the
World Boxing Organisation (WBO) with voting rights. The decision was taken at the WBO's
annual convention at Puerto Rico.
The Indian Boxing Council is a licensing body for the country's professional boxers.
ABOUT WORLD BOXING ORGANISATION
The World Boxing Organization is a sanctioning organization that recognizes professional

boxing world champions.
It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major
world championship groups. The other groups are the World Boxing Association (WBA), World
Boxing Council (WBC), and International Boxing Federation (IBF).
The WBO's headquarters are located in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The WBO started after a group of Puerto Rican and Dominican businessmen broke out of the
WBA's 1988 annual convention in Isla Margarita, Venezuela over disputes regarding what rules
should be applied.
Its first president was Ramon Pina Acevedo of the Dominican Republic.
FORMULA ONE
LEWIS HAMILTON WINS 2016 MEXICAN GRAND PRIX

Lewis Hamilton on 30 October 2016 outpaced Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg to win the
2016 Mexican Grand Prix.
Red Bulls Daniel Ricciardo ended on the third spot in the race.
ABOUT LEWIS HAMILTON
Lewis Hamilton is a British Formula One racing driver.
He currently races for the Mercedes AMG Petronas team.
He is the 2008, 2014 and 2015 Formula One World Champion.
In his first season in Formula One, Hamilton set numerous records while finishing second in
the 2007 Formula One Championship, just one point behind Kimi Raikkonen.
He won the World Championship the following season in dramatic fashion, becoming the
then-youngest Formula One world champion in history before Sebastian Vettel broke the
record two years later.
Following his second world title in 2014, he was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
In 2015, he became the first British driver in history to win consecutive F1 titles, and the
second British to win three titles after Jackie Stewart.
He is the only driver in the history of the sport to have won at least one race in each season
he has competed to date, with McLaren from 2007 until 2012, and with Mercedes since 2013.
ABOUT MEXICAN GRAND PRIX
The Mexican Grand Prix is an FIA-sanctioned auto race held at the Autdromo Hermanos
Rodrguez in Mexico City.
It first appeared as a non-championship event in 1962 before being held as a championship

event from 1963-1970 and 1986-1992.
The Grand Prix returned in 2015 at the Mexico City circuit.
LEWIS HAMILTON WINS 2016 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton on 23 October 2016 won the 2016 United States Grand Prix.
The race was held at the Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas, United States.
Nico Rosberg finished second while Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuers Daniel Ricciardo finished third
in the race.
With this, Hamilton has now won 50 races in his career, with only Alain Prost (51) and Michael
Schumacher (91) have won more than that number in the history of the sport.
UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX
The United States Grand Prix is a motor race, which has been held in the U.S. on and off since
1908.
The race was previously known as the American Grand Prize.
The race later became part of the Formula One World Championship.
Since 2012, it has been held at the Circuit of the Americas.
The 2016 edition of the race marked the forty-sixth running of the United States Grand Prix.
DANIEL RICCIARDO WINS 2016 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX

Daniel Ricciardo on 2 October 2016 won the 2016
Malaysian Grand Prix held at the Sepang International
Circuit in Selangor, Malaysia.
Max Verstappen finished second while Nico Rosberg

ended at the third position.
ABOUT MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX
The Malaysian Grand Prix is a round of the Formula One World Championship.
It has been held at the Sepang International Circuit since 1999.
The FIA-sanctioned racing in Malaysia has existed since the 1960s.
Since 2011, the race has been officially known as the Malaysia Grand Prix.
ABOUT DANIEL RICCIARDO
Daniel Ricciardo is an Australian racing driver who is currently competing in Formula One for
Red Bull Racing.
He won the British Formula 3 Championship in 2009.
After Mark Webber announced his retirement from Formula One, Ricciardo was confirmed as
his replacement at Red Bull Racing for 2014.
In his first season with Red Bull, he finished third in the championship with his first three
Formula One wins, in Canada, Hungary and Belgium.
MISCELLANEOUS
SAINA NEHWAL APPOINTED MEMBER OF IOC'S ATHLETES' COMMISSION

Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal was appointed as a member of the International Olympic
Committee's (IOC) Athletes' Commission. Saina received a letter to the effect from the IOC
President Thomas Bach on 17 October 2016.
The letter read it is great pleasure to appoint you in consultation with the Chair, as Member of
the Athletes Commission. This member can be termed as a rare honour for the Indian
sportsperson.
The Athletes' Commission is chaired by Angela Ruggiero and it comprises nine vice presidents
and 10 other members. Saina's appointment to the prestigious panel has come just when she is
set to resume practice after recovering from a knee injury.
INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE'S (IOC) ATHLETES' COMMISSION
The IOC Athletes' Commission is a body maintained by the International Olympic Committee for
the purpose of representing athletes. It was established in 1981 by the then-President of the
IOC, Juan Antonio Samaranch, and its creation was subsequently codified by the IOC in Rule 21
of the Olympic Charter.
The Commission is a consultative body whose function is to act as "the link between active
athletes and the IOC". It makes recommendations to the IOC's executive bodies, and its chair
serves as a member of the IOC Executive Board.
The Commission meets once or twice a year, and organises an Athletes' Forum once every two
years. It works in liaison with similar athletes' commissions of the Continental Associations,
individual National Olympic Committees and the International Sports Federations.
INDIAN WRESTLERS BAGGED FOUR MEDALS AT 2016 TAFISA WORLD

GAMES
Indian grapplers in October 2016 clinched four medals,
including a gold medal, at the sixth edition of the TAFISA
World Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Wrestler Dalmiya bagged the yellow metal in 60kg

category after outplaying Muhammad Sahan of Azerbaijan
4-1 in the summit clash.
b
OTHER GRAPPLERS TO WIN MEDAL WERE
Luv Singh He clinched silver medal in the 80 kg category. In the summit clash, Luv Singh
faced a 1-5 defeat by Muhammad Alim of Azerbaijan.
Naveen Kumar He clinched bronze medal in 90 Kg category. He defeated Oleg of Lithuania

5-2 to claim the bronze medal.
Josil He clinched bronze medal in the in the super heavyweight section. He defeated
Mustafa Sultani of Afghanistan 3-1 to win the bronze medal for the country.
Few other medals won by India are
Three gold medals were won by three women martial arts players from Thane. Aarti Chaudhari
(29), Vishruti Waghmare (16) and Siddhi Jadhav (10) won the gold medals in Jeet Kune-do, a
form of martial arts.
Aarti Chaudhari won her second gold in Kabaddi, while Vishruti Waghmare bagged a bronze in
the same event.
ABOUT TAFISA
The Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA) is the leading international Sport for All
organisation. Its vision and mission is to achieve an Active World by globally promoting and
facilitating access for every person to Sport for All and physical activity.
TAFISAs primary focus is on:
Lobbying internationally for Sport for All
Providing and coordinating programs and events
Providing networking and experience transfer platforms
THE 6TH TAFISA WORLD SPORT FOR ALL GAMES

The 6th TAFISA World Games Sports for All, Jakarta, Indonesia was held from 6-12 October
2016. The Games were held under the patronage of the IOC, UNESCO and ICSSPE and bore the
motto Unity in Diversity, standing for the inherent diversity of the Indonesian people
throughout the several hundreds of different cultures and languages that coexist within the
same country.
Some 84 participating countries joined the games and performed traditional sports and games
from their homeland in the various demonstrations, festivals and championships, bringing
together over 12000 participants to Ancol in North Jakarta.
BOXER NEERAJ GOYAT RETAINS WBC ASIA WELTERWEIGHT TITLE

Indian boxer Neeraj Goyat retained his welterweight
Asia title. In the final bout played in New Delhi on 14
October 2016, Goyat outpunched Australian Ben Kite
120-110, 119-109, 115-113.
The fight was organised by the Professional Boxing

Organisation of India.
The 24-year-old prevailed via unanimous decision in

the gruelling 12-round contest against his 26-year-old rival, who came in with an experience of
fighting 9 bouts. With this win, Neeraj has become the first Indian boxer to defend a pro title.
Neeraj is also all set to break into the WBC's world rankings which would be updated in three
weeks' time.
WINNERS IN UNDERCARD BOUTS THAT WAS FOUR-ROUND CONTESTS INCLUDE
Super Featherweight Division (59kg): Former Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist

Amandeep Singh won the title by defeating former Federation Cup champion Sunil Sharma.
Cruiserweight (91kg) category: Geetanand Singh won the title by defeating Multiple-time
national champion Kuldeep Singh.
Super welterweight (70kg) category: Deepak Tanwar won the title by defeating Dilbag
Thakran.
DEFENCE|SECURITY
INDO-SRI LANKA JOINT MILITARY EXERCISE MITRA SHAKTI 2016
BEGINS
The fourth edition of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise Mitra Shakti 2016 began on 24
October 2016 at Sinha Regimental Centre in Ambepussa, Sri Lanka. The exercise will continue
till 6 November 2016.
The main focus of this edition of the joint exercise is to enhance inter-operability while carrying
out Counter Insurgency (CI)/Counter Terrorism (CT) operations under the United Nations
Mandate.
HIGHLIGHTS OF MITRA SHAKTI 2016

The Indian Contingent is represented by a platoon from the Rajputana Rifles Regiment and
the Sri Lankan Army is represented by a platoon from the Sinha Regiment.
In the initial two stages, both armies will get familiar with the respective methodology of such
operations, each others arms and equipment and the command and control systems.
It will then graduate towards tactical understanding to enhance inter operability while
carrying out Counter Insurgency (CI)/Counter Terrorism (CT) operations.
Mitra Shakti series of bilateral exercises is one of the major bilateral defence cooperation
initiatives between India and Sri Lanka since 2013. The previous exercise with the Sri Lankan
Army was successfully conducted in September 2015 at Pune in India.
ICGS ARYAMAN AND ATULYA COMMISSIONED INTO INDIAN

COAST GUARD
The Indian Coast Guard Ships (ICGS) Aryaman and Atulya were commissioned on 21 October
2016 at Kochi by Sunil Kumar Kohli, Financial Advisor to Defence Services.
The ICGS Aryaman and Atulya are the eighteenth and nineteenth respectively in the series of
twenty Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs). They are designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Limited.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF ARYAMAN AND ATULYA

The ships have been christened ICGS Aryaman and Atulya.
Aryaman literally means Possessor of Greatness. It will be based at Kochi under the
administrative control of the Commander, Coast Guard Region (West).
Atulya means Unrivalled. It will be based at Visakhapatnam under the administrative control
of the Commander, Coast Guard Region (East).
ICGS Aryaman is commanded by Commandant Neeraj Singh and ICGS Atulya by Commandant
(JG) Shivprasad.
The ships have a complement of 5 officers and 33 enrolled personnel each.
The 50m long indigenous FPVs displace 317 tonnes of water and can achieve a maximum
speed of 33 knots with range of 1500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 13 knots.
They are equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry, advanced communication and

navigational equipment.
The ships are ideal platform for undertaking multifarious close-coast missions such as
surveillance, search and rescue and interdiction.
They include an Integrated Bridge Management System (IBMS) and Integrated Machinery
Control System (IMCS).
INDIAN NAVY COMMISSIONS FAST ATTACK CRAFT INS TIHAYU

India on 19 October 2016 commissioned fast attack craft 'INS Tihayu'. The ship is an improved
version of Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (WJFAC), earlier constructed by GRSE. Now, it will be
deployed along the eastern coast for patrolling.
The ship was commissioned by Vice Admiral HCS Bisht, AVSM, Flag Officer Commanding in
Chief, Eastern Naval Command. INS Tihayu is manned by a team of four officers and 41 sailors.
Commander Ajay Kashov has been appointed the commissioning Commanding Officer.
'INS TIHAYU'
It is the second ship of the four follow-on Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (FO-WJFAC), built by
Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE).
It is named after Tihayu Island (presently known as Katchal Island) in the Nicobar group of
islands.
The 320-tonne INS Tihayu measures 49 metres in length and can achieve speeds in excess of
35 knots.
The warship is fitted with advanced MTU engines, water-jet propulsion, and the latest
communication equipment.
It is capable of operating in shallow waters at high speeds and is equipped with enhanced
firepower.
Its armament comprises
a) A 30-mm CRN 91 gun manufactured by Ordnance Factory at Medak in Andhra Pradesh
b) An electronic day-night fire control system, namely Stabilised Optronic Pedestal (SOP)
manufactured by Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), controls the gun.
c) Two 12.7-mm heavy machine guns and multiple medium machine guns
d) Shoulder-launched Igla surface-to-air missiles to combat aerial threats
WHY IT WAS BUILT?

The production of Car Nicobar-class vessels designed and built by GRSE was fast-tracked after
the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. It was built for extended coastal and offshore surveillance and
patrol.
Car Nicobar-class vessels are built by GRSE for the Indian Navy and are the first water jet
propelled vessels of the Indian Navy. These vessels are designed as a cost-effective platform for
patrol, anti-piracy and rescue operations in India's Exclusive Economic Zone. The class and its
vessels are named for Indian islands.
INDIA COMPLETES NUCLEAR TRIAD WITH INS ARIHANT

India on 18 October 2016 completed its nuclear triad by inducting country's first indigenously-
constructed nuclear submarine INS Arihant into service.
INS Arihant was formally commissioned by Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba in August 2016.
ABOUT INS ARIHANT

INS Arihant is the lead ship of India's Arihant class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile
submarines.
The 6000 tonne vessel was built under the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project at the
Ship Building Centre in the port city of Visakhapatnam.
It was launched on 26 July 2009, the anniversary of Vijay Diwas (Kargil War Victory Day) by
the then Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh.
After fitting out and extensive sea trials, on 23 February 2016, Arihant was confirmed as ready
for operations, and was quietly commissioned in August 2016.
It first of the expected five in the class of submarines designed and constructed as a part of
the Indian Navy's secretive ATV project.
WHAT IS NUCLEAR TRIAD?

A nuclear triad refers to the nuclear weapons delivery of a strategic nuclear arsenal which
consists of three components: strategic bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and
submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).
The purpose of having a three-branched nuclear capability is to significantly reduce the

possibility that an enemy could destroy all of a nation's nuclear forces in a first-strike attack.
The triad also ensures a credible threat of a second strike, and thus increases a nation's
nuclear deterrence.
84TH AIR FORCE DAY OBSERVED ACROSS INDIA
8 October: Indian Air Force Day
The Air Force Day 2016 was on 8 October 2016 observed across India. This is the 84th
celebration of the Day that began in 1932.
On this day, the most renowned aerobatics display teams, Red Arrows of the Royal Air Force
(RAF), enthralled audience at Indian Air Force Day celebrations in New Delhi. They flew Hawk
jets, which are single-engine advanced trainer aircraft.
Besides, the Indian Air Force air displayed various aircrafts at Air Force Station Hindan in Uttar
Pradesh.
BACKGROUND
The Air Force Day was officially celebrated for the first time on 8 October in the year 1932 as
an auxiliary air force of Indian Empire.
The day was observed to increase the awareness about the importance of Indian air force in
any organization of the national security by both officially and publicly.
THE INDIAN AIR FORCE HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN THE FOLLOWING OPERATIONS AND
WARS:
World War II
Sino-Indian War
Operation Cactus
Operation Vijay
Kargil War
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Congo Crisis
Operation Poomalai
Operation Pawan
AT A GLANCE
DAYS|WEEK|YEAR
31 October: World Cities Day. The day was observed on 31 October 2016 with theme Inclusive
Cities, Shared Development. The years theme highlights the important role of urbanization as a
source of global development and social inclusion.
31 October: Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National Unity Day). The day was introduced and
inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014. The intent is to pay tribute to
Vallabhbhai Patel, who was instrumental in keeping India united. It is to be celebrated on 31
October every year as annual commemoration of the birthday of the Iron Man of India Sardar
Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the founding leaders of Republic of India.
2430 October: Disarmament Week. The annual observation of the Week starts on the
anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, which is observed as the United Nations Day.
On the occasion, the United Nations invites states to highlight the danger of the arms race,
propagate the need for its cessation and increase public understanding of the urgent tasks of
disarmament.
24 October: United Nations Day. The day marks the anniversary of the entry into force of
the UN Charter (the founding document of UNO) in 1945. In 2016, UN Day will be used to
highlight concrete actions people can take to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
24 October: World Development Information Day. The day is annually observed to draw
attention of world public opinion to development problems and the need to strengthen
international cooperation to solve them.
21 October: Police Commemoration Day. The day commemorates the sacrifices of ten
policemen while defending the borders with China in 1959.
17 October: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The day was observed with
theme Moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: Ending poverty in all its forms.
2016 theme of the day highlights how important it is to recognize and address the humiliation
and exclusion endured by many people living in poverty. Apart from this, fighting poverty
remains at the core of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the development of the
post-2015 development agenda.
16 October: World Food Day. The day was observed across the world with the theme Climate
is changing. Food and agriculture must too. Growing food in a sustainable way means adopting
practices that produce more with less in the same area of land. The day is celebrated every year
on 16 October in honor of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) of the United Nations in 1945.
Second Thursday of October: World Sight Day (WSD). The day was observed across the world
on 13 October 2016 with theme Stronger Together. The Day is an annual day of awareness held
on the second Thursday of October, to focus global attention on blindness and vision
impairment. The day was originally initiated by the SightFirstCampaign of Lions Club
International Foundation in 2000. WSD is co-ordinated by International Agency for the
Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) in cooperation with the World Health Organization under
the VISION 2020 Global Initiative.
15 October: International Day of Rural Women. It was observed with theme Climate is
changing. Food and agriculture must too. The first International Day of Rural Women was
observed on 15 October 2008. This international day, established by the United Nations
General Assembly in its resolution 62/136 of 18 December 2007, recognizes the critical role and
contribution of rural women, including indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural
development, improving food security and eradicating rural poverty.
13 October: International Day for Disaster Reduction. It was observed with theme Live to Tell:
Raising Awareness, Reducing Mortality. The 2016 edition marks the launch of the new "Sendai
Seven" campaign by UNISDR, centred on the seven targets of the Sendai Framework, the first of
which is reducing disaster mortality. The campaign seeks to create a wave of awareness about
actions taken to reduce mortality around the world. The Sendai Seven Campaign is an
opportunity for all, including governments, local governments, community groups, civil society
organisations, the private sector, international organisations and the UN family, to promote
best practices at the international, regional and national level across all sectors, to reduce
disaster risk and disaster losses.
October 11: International Day of the Girl Child. It was observed with the theme Girls' Progress =
Goals' Progress: What Counts for Girls. The theme for the 2016 IDGC asks for a call for action
for increased investment in collecting and analyzing girl-focused, girl-relevant and sex-
disaggregated data.
10 October: World Mental Health Day. It was observed with the theme Psychological First Aid.
The years theme focuses on basic pragmatic psychological support by people who find
themselves in a helping role whether they are health staff, teachers, firemen, community
workers, or police officers. The day is annually observed with an aim to raise awareness about
mental health issues around the world and mobilising efforts in support of mental health.
9 October: World Post Day. It was observed across the world with the theme Innovation,
Integration and Inclusion. The purpose of World Post Day is to bring awareness to the Post's
role in the everyday lives of people and businesses, as well as its contribution to global social
and economic development.
8 October: Indian Air Force Day. This was the 84th celebration of the Day that began in 1932.
The Air Force Day was officially celebrated for the first time on 8 October in the year 1932 as an
auxiliary air force of Indian Empire. The day was observed to increase the awareness about the
importance of Indian air force in any organization of the national security by both officially and
publicly.
5 October: World Teachers Day. The theme for the World Teachers Day 2016 was Valuing
Teachers, Improving their Status. The theme for the 2016 WTD embodies the fundamental
principles of the fifty-year-old Recommendation. It also throws light on the need to support
teachers as reflected in the agendas Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A specific
education goal, SDG4, pledges to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote
lifelong learning opportunities for all.
First Monday of October: World Habitat Day. The day was observed across the world with the
theme Housing at the Centre. The 2016 World Habitat Day campaign aims to raise awareness
about the need for affordable housing for all in urban areas, towns and cities
2 October: International Day of Non-Violence. The date marks the birthday of Mahatma
Gandhi, which is referred as Gandhi Jayanti in India. Gandhi was the leader of the Indian
independence movement and pioneer of the philosophy and strategy of non-violence.
1 October: International Day of Older Persons. It was observed across the world with the
theme Take a Stand against Ageism. The theme for the 2016 IDOP draws attention to and
challenges negative stereotypes and misconceptions about older persons and ageing. Ageism is
a widely prevalent and prejudicial attitude that stems from the assumption that age
discrimination, and sometimes neglect and abuse of older persons is a social norm and
therefore, acceptable.
BOOKS|AUTHORS
The Adivasi Will Not Dance authored by Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar
The Sleepwalker's Dream authored by Dhrubajyoti Borah
All the Kremlin's Men: Inside the Court of Vladimir Putin authored by Mikhail Zygar
Modis Midas Touch in Foreign Policy authored by Surendra Kumar
One Indian Girl Paperback authored by Chetan Bhagat
The Ministry of Utmost Happiness authored by Arundhati Roy
COMMITTEES | COMMISSIONS
UNION GOVERNMENT CONSTITUTES MUNIALAPPA COMMITTEE
TO MONITOR BIRD FLU SITUATION
The Union Agricultural Ministry on 26 October 2016 constituted a High-Level Committee to
monitor the bird flu situation and help state governments take steps to contain the disease.
The Committee will be headed by Munialappa, Joint Commissioner in the Department of

Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries (DADF).
TERMS OF REFERENCE OF THE COMMITTEE

Munialappa will be the nodal officer and will be available to provide advice and help round
the clock.
A control room, with telephone numbers 011-23384190 and 09448324121, will provide
advice and help round the clock.
Besides monitoring the situation, the committee will assist the state governments in taking
steps to contain the spread of avian influenza.
The committee will have representatives from Ministry of Health, Ministry of Environment,
Forests and Climate Change, Department of Agriculture Research and Extension (DARE) and the
Delhi government.
National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), Indian Veterinary Research
Institute and four regional laboratories will assist the state governments and will get samples
tested in an emergency response manner.
AVIAN INFLUENZA IN INDIA

Avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, is an infectious viral disease of birds. Most avian
influenza viruses do not infect humans but some of them can cause serious infections in people.
Birds in Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala have tested positive for avian influenza AH5N8,
which according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is considered less risky of being
transmitted to humans.
KS VALDIYA LED EXPERT COMMITTEE FINDS SARASWATI RIVER

DID EXIST
Report on Palaeo Channel of North West India: Review & Assessment by Expert Committee was
released by Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
Uma Bharati on 15 October 2016.
The report prepared by a seven-member committee headed by Prof KS Valdiya, eminent

Geologist suggests that the Saraswati River was not mythical and it existed.

The report is based on the study of the land texture of states of North-West India including-
Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab.
It is based on the account of the geological changes that had occurred in the past.
The report is an assertion of the assumption that River Saraswati originated from Adibadri in
Himalaya to culminate in the Arabian Sea through the Runn of Kutch.
It was approximately 4000 km in length of which about 3000 kilometer fell in India while the
remaining 1000 kilometer fell in present-day Pakistan.
It had two branches, namely
a) Western Branch: It is represented by the Himalayan-born Satluj River of the past that flowed
through the channels of present-day Ghaggar-Patialiwali rivulets.
b) Eastern Branch: Sarsuti and Markanda rivulets in Haryana represented the western branch of
River, known as Tons-Yamuna.
In the six-month research, the committee came across a Palaeo channel - a path abandoned
by river when it changes its course related to present Ghaggar, Sarsuti, Hakra and Nara Rivers.
It suggested that nearly 1700 small and big villages and towns were located around the
palaeo channel (during Harappa Civilisation).
Now, the report will be studied by the Central Ground Water Board as well as the Experts in
Ministry of Water Resources for its optimum use. The report will be submitted before the
Cabinet also for further action.
PLACES IN NEWS
Pampore, Jammu and Kashmir: It came in news after Entrepreneurship Development Institute
(EDI) complex located in the area was attacked by two militants. Pampore, a town situated on
the eastern side of river Jehlum on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway in Jammu and Kashmir. It
is worldwide famous for its Saffron and is known as "Saffron Town of Kashmir".
Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh: It came in news due to stampede in which at least 25 people including
14 women were killed near Rajghat Bridge on the border of Varanasi and Chandauli districts on
15 October 2016.
Spiti, Himachal Pradesh: The National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR)
established a high altitude research station in Himalaya called HIMANSH. The station is situated
above 13500 feet at a remote region in Spiti, Himachal Pradesh.
Mumbai, Maharashtra: Indias first centre for international arbitration center was opened in
Express towers, Nariman Point. Due to availablilty of an international arbitration centre in the
country, the majority of global disputes earlier landed at the Singapore International Arbitration
Centre and London Court of International Arbitration.
PLAN | PROGRAMME
DHARMENDRA PRADHAN LAUNCHES NATIONAL SEISMIC PROGRAMME

IN MAHANADI BASIN
Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State (with Independent charge) for Petroleum and Natural
Gas, on 12 October 2016 launched the National Seismic Programme (NSP) on Mahanadi basin
(onshore) in Odisha.
The Programme was launched to carry out assessment of unappraised areas across the country
for potential oil and natural gas reserves.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF NATIONAL SEISMIC PROGRAMME
The massive 2D seismic survey will cost the government more than 5000 crore rupees.
ONGC will carry out the National Seismic Programme in most parts of the country.
Oil India Ltd will undertake the project in north-eastern states.
NSP will cover an estimated 48243 line kilometre, covering 26 sedimentary basins divided into
11 units.
The presence of gas has been established about 30 km offshore of Dhamra in a discovery by
Reliance in the past.
ONGC has sought time from the government to pursue further exploration at two deep water
blocks that the company has not surrendered.
ONGC, which has already begun survey in Saurashtra, aims to have three-fourths of the total
area in the country to be appraised by 2020.
In Odisha, the survey will be carried out in about 2500 line kilometres divided into the
Bhadrak-Jajpur area and the smaller Chilika Lake area at a cost 79.57 crore rupees.
MISCELLANEOUS
AIYOH, AIYAH WORDS ADDED TO OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY

The words Aiyoh and Aiyah were on 4 October 2016 added to the Oxford English Dictionary
(OED). They are credited to Mandarin and Cantonese dialects of Chinese.
The words aiyah and aiyoh are interchangeable. Like many Indian words, Aiyoh and Aiyah can
mean many things depending on context and tone like irritation, disgust, surprise, dismay, pain,
lament, disappointment.
The variants are also there in Tamil, Sinhalese and are widely used in many South East Asian
countries, especially Singapore and Malaysia.
ABOUT OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is 150 years old and has up to 600000 entries and its
publisher is the Oxford University Press.
The OED is considered as the Bible of correct English for many children in the English-speaking
world. It is widely regarded as the accepted authority and guide on the English language.
It makes four updates every year in the Dictionary.
NEWS MAKERS
PERSON APPOINTED
Bilal Nazki: The former Chief Justice of Orissa High Court was appointed as the chairperson of
the Jammu and Kashmir Human Rights Commission. He retired as Chief Justice of Orissa High
Court in November 2009. His tenure as a Chief Justice four days is the shortest tenure in the
history of the Indian judicial system. Later, he was appointed as the chairperson of Human
Rights Commission of Bihar. He also headed the committee set up by the Union Government to
review the functioning of the Haj Committee of India and its state units in 2013.
Vice Admiral S V Bhokare: He assumed office as the Commandant of the Indian Naval Academy
at Ezhimala in Kerala. With this, Bhokare became the first officer from the submarine arm of
the Indian Navy to take over the charge of the Indian Naval Academy.
Morinari Watanabe: Japan's Watanabe was elected the new President of the International
Gymnastics Federation (FIG). He emerged victorious in the election after defeating rival
candidate Georges Guelzec of France by a huge margin in a vote at the governing body's
Congress.
SP Yadav: He was elected as the new President of the North Zone of Urology Society of India
(NZUSI). His tenure would begin from October 2017 for a period of one year.
Amandeep Singh Gill: The Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of 1992 batch was appointed as
the Ambassador of India to the UN Conference on Disarmament, Geneva. His diplomatic career
includes assignments in Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Iran, and the Permanent Mission of India to the
UN.
Ajay Kumar Bhalla: The 1984 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre was appointed as the
Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). He succeeds Anup Wadhawan, who was appointed as
Additional Secretary in the commerce ministry.
Antonio Guterres: The former Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Guterres was appointed as
the next Secretary-General of the United Nations by the General Assembly. The 193 member
states of the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution by acclamation, appointing Guterres as
the ninth U.N. Secretary-General. Guterres, who succeeds Ban Ki-moon, will assume his new
role on 1 January 2017 for a five-year term that can be renewed by member states for an
additional five years.
Gurumoorthy Mahalingam: Reserve Bank's Executive Director Mahalingam was appointed as a

Whole-Time Member of market regulator SEBI. His appointment was approved by the Union
Finance Ministry for a period of five years or till he attains the age of 65 years, whichever is
earlier.
Renu Pall: The former Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Renu Pall was appointed as the
Ambassador of India to Austria. Her appointment was announced by the Union Ministry of
External Affairs. She will succeed Rajiva Misra in Austria. Currently, Pall is serving as the
Ambassador of India to the Czech Republic.
Luo Zhaohui: He was appointed as China's Ambassador to India, in accordance with a decision
of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the top legislature of China. His
appointment was approved by Chinese President Xi Jinping. He succeeds former Chinese
Ambassador to India Le Yucheng, who left the position in April 2016.
PV Sindhu: The Badminton champion and Rio silver medallist Sindhu was appointed as the
Brand Ambassador of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited which is also popularly known as Vizag
Steel. The company will have its brand logo on Sindhu's playing jersey in international and
domestic tournaments under the aegis of Badminton World Federation and Badminton
Association of India.
Shami Chakrabarti: The Indian-origin barrister was appointed to the UKs shadow cabinet by
Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition. Baroness
Chakrabartis appointment as a member of the Lords was met with criticism from prominent
Jews and Labour MPs. She is a member of the British House of Lords and a British Labour Party
politician.
The Shadow Cabinet is a feature of the Westminster system of government. It consists of a

senior group of opposition spokespeople who, under the leadership of the Leader of the
Opposition, form an alternative cabinet to that of the government.
BVR Mohan Reddy: The Founder and Executive Chairman of Cyient Ltd was appointed as the
Honorary Consul of Germany in Hyderabad. His appointment was announced by German
Ambassador to India Martin Ney. As a Honorary Consul, Mohan Reddy will work towards
further strengthening the collaboration between the two nations; promoting culture, industry
and commerce, facilitating investments, educational exchange and enhancing goodwill.
Sushil Chandra: The Indian Revenue Service officer was appointed as the Chairman of the
Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). He took over the charge from Rani Singh Nair, who retired
on 31 October 2016.
MS Sahoo: He assumed charge as Chairman of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI).
The oath of the office was administered by Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Arun
Jaitley. He will serve the office will 2021.
PERSON RESIGNED
Jawhar Sircar: He resigned as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Prasar Bharati Corporation.
His resignation came four months ahead of the end of his tenure which was about to end in
February 2017. Sircar was appointed as Prasar Bharati CEO in 2012 during the rule of the United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.
PERSON DIED
Kigeli V Ndahindurwa: The last king of Rwanda passed away in Virginia, U.S. He was 80. King
Kigeli V came to power in 1959 but was only king of Rwanda until 1961, when the monarchy
was abolished and he was forced into exile. King Kigeli V eventually settled in the United States
where he set up a charity helping Rwandan refugees and orphans.
Bhumibol Adulyadej: Thailands King Adulyadej passed away on 13 October 2016 at Bangkok,
Thailand. He was 88. He was the worlds longest reigning monarch. He was the ninth monarch
of Thailand from the Chakri Dynasty as Rama IX. After the demise of the Thai King, 63-year old
Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn is expected to become the new king.
Heisnam Kanhailal: The Manipur-based theatre legend Heisnam Kanhailal passed away
following a brief illness in Imphal. He was 75. Kanhailal had contributed to the field of
experimental theatre for more than 40 years. He was most famous for his production Tamnalai
(The Hunting Spirit), Kabui-Keioiba (Half Man, Half Tiger) and Draupadi. He had bagged several
awards including Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1985, Natya Ratna in 1997 from the
Manipuri Sahitya Parishad and the Sangeet Natak Akademi fellowship in 2011. He was also
awarded the Padma Shri civilian award in 2004 and the Padma Bhushan civilian award in 2016
by the Union Government.
Yusuf Arakkal: Noted contemporary artist Yusuf Arakkal passed away at the age of 71. He was a
Malayali painter based in Bengaluru. Recently, he released a book called Faces of Creativity,
which is a comprehensive collection of portraits of fellow artists. It was the first time that an
Indian artist had done portraits of other artists.
He was a recipient of the prestigious Lorenzo De Medici Gold Medal, at Florence Internazionale
Biennale, in Florence, Italy for his work Bacons Man with the Child and Priest. Other awards
conferred on him were Karnataka Lalithkala Academy award in 1979 and 1981, a national
award in 1983, a special award at the third Asian Art Biennale Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1986 and
the Karnataka Lalithkala Academy honour in 1989.
PERSON IN NEWS
Turki bin Saud al-Kabir: The Saudi Arabian Prince al-Kabir was executed in October 2016 for
shooting a man, Adel al-Mohaimeed, dead. He Prince shot the man during a brawl three years
ago in the capital Riyadh. This incident is a rare example where a royal family member was
executed after being subjected to the death penalty. One of the most well-known cases of
execution of the ruling family member was of Faisal bin Musaid al Saud, who assassinated his
uncle, King Faisal, in 1975.
Irom Sharmila: The Human rights activist who ended her 16-year-long hunger strike announced
the formation of her political party named Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA). The
announcement was made with a promise to fight for justice and peace among the people.
While launching the party, the Iron Lady of Manipur said that she is entering electoral battle to
fight against injustice after ending her nearly 16-year long hunger strike.
Arjun Vajpai: The professional Indian mountaineer scaled the world's sixth highest mountain
Cho Oyu. He reached the summit before dawn along with his Sherpas, Pasang Norbu Sherpa
and Lakpa Sherpa, after leaving from Camp 3 in mid-night.
The mountain is located on the China-Nepal border at an altitude of 8188 meters above the sea
level.
Arjun also holds the world records as the youngest summiteer on Mount Lhotse, Mount
Manaslu and Mount Makalu. He is also the third youngest Indian to scale the Mount Everest.
He scaled the highest mountain of the world in 2010 at the age of 16 years, 11 months and 18
days.
Mahatma Gandhi: India on 2 October 2016 paid homage to Father of the Nation, Mahatma
Gandhi on his 147th birth anniversary. Born on 2 October 1869 in Porbandar, Gujarat, Gandhi
preached the principles of tolerance and non-violence. He taught the value of harmonious co-
existence and mutual respect and his ideals of non-violence, freedom, equality and religious
tolerance have eternal value.
Lal Bahadur Shastri: The former Prime Minster was remembered on 2 October 2016. Born on 2
October 1904, Shastri joined the Indian independence movement in the 1920s and held several
important portfolios in the Jawaharlal Nehru's government including Railways and as Home
Minister. Lal Bahadur Shastri led the country during the Indo-Pak War of 1965 and gave the
slogan of "Jai Jawan Jai Kisan" which became very popular and is remembered even today.
Arundhati Bhattacharya: Union Government gave a year extension to Arundhati Bhattacharya

as the Chairman of State Bank of India (SBI), first time in the history of the country's largest
lender. The extension came into effect on 7 October 2016. The extension will help in smooth
transition at a time when SBI's consolidation with its associate banks is underway.
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan: The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi will be the Chief Guest
at the Republic Day celebrations on 26 January 2017. The Crown Prince has accepted the Indian
invitation. His visit will give a strong boost to the bilateral ties between the two nations in key
areas like trade and security. This is his second visit to India, earlier he came on a three-day-visit
in February 2016.
AWARDS|HONOURS
54 EMINENT PERSONALITIES SELECTED FOR UP'S YASH BHARTI
AWARDS 2016
The Uttar Pradesh government on 23 October 2016 declared the list of Yash Bharati awardees
2016. 54 personalities were selected for the coveted award for the year 2016-17.
Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah, PayTM CEO Vijay Shekhar, Paralympic athlete Varun
Kumar, Qawwaali singers Aftab and Hashim (Sabri Brothers), film director Saurabh Shukla and
Atul Tiwari were some of the prominent names.
DETAILS OF SOME PROMINENT AWARDEES

Apart from this, the list included the names of Swaroop Kumari Bakshi for literature and
Beghum Habibullah for social service.
Lieutenant General Anil Chait, who was also the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, has
been given the award for Military Service.
Cricketers Gyanendra Pandey, Bhuwaneshwar Kumar, Praveen Kumar and Piyush Chawla
(Cricketer) also figure in the list of awardees.
Some of the other prominent awardees are Rajendra Singh (Water Conservationist), Anil
Rastogi (Theatre and acting in films), Suman Yadav (Sports), Syed Mohd Basheer Badr
(Literature & Education), Swaroop Kumari Bakshi (Literature) and Anubhav Sinha (Film
Director).
Pandit Vishwanath (Classical Music), Ustad Gulfam (classical music), Kashinath Yadav (Birha
Folk Music), Mohd Aslam Warsi (Sufi Music), Kewal Kumar (Music Direction & Singing) were
from the field of Music.
Sabiha Anwar (Education & Literature), Yogesh Mishra (Journalism & Literature), Rajkrishna
Mishra (Literature), Manendra Kumar Mishra (Writer), Maheshwar Tiwari (Literature), Sarvesh
Asthana (Literature), Oma Dapak (Literature) were some of awardees from field of literature.
Prof Rakesh Kapoor, Deepak Agarwal, Dr Ramratan Banerjee, Syed Muhammed Hassan were
awarded in the field of medicine.
The other winners are Ashok Nigam (Journalist), Arjun Bajpai (Mountaineer), Gargi Yadav
(Wrestling), Dr Ramakant Yadav (Medical University Saifai), Atma Prakash Mishra (Doordarshan
Lucknow) and Gaurdas Chaudhary (Doctor).
ABOUT YASH BHARTI AWARDS

Yash Bharti Awards was instituted by Mulayam Singh Yadav Government in 1994.
The award is conferred by the Uttar Pradesh Government for excellence in literature, fine
arts, folk and classical music and sports.
The award carries cash prize of 11 lakh rupees, a citation and a shawl.
The award was discontinued by the Bahujan Samaj Party Government from 2007-2013, but
later it was revived after a gap of six years.
DOCTORS FROM AIIMS AND SGRH CHOSEN FOR DR BC ROY

AWARD
Two doctors each from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and the Sir Ganga
Ram Hospital (SGRH) in the third week of October 2016 were selected for the prestigious Dr
Bidhan Chandra Roy Award for excellence in the field of medicine.
Randeep Guleria, Head of Pulmonology, and CS Yadav of Department of Orthopaedics from the
All India Institute of Medical Sciences were selected for the award.
Chairman of Board of Management at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital D S Rana and Arvind
Kumarwere also chosen for the coveted award.
The awards will be presented by the President in July 2017.
ABOUT THE BIDHAN CHANDRA ROY AWARD

The Bidhan Chandra Roy Award was instituted in 1976 by Medical Council of India.
It was instituted in the memory of renowned physician and freedom fighter B C Roy.
The Award is given annually in each of the following categories: Statesmanship of the Highest
Order in India, Medical man-cum-Statesman, Eminent Medical Person, Eminent person in
Philosophy, Eminent person in Science and Eminent person in Arts.
It is presented by the President of India in New Delhi on 1 July, National Doctors' Day.
MILAN CONFERS HONORARY CITIZENSHIP ON DALAI LAMA

The Milan city council on 20 October 2016 bestowed
honorary citizenship on the Dalai Lama. However, China
has strongly opposed another award given to him.
Lamberto Bertole, Chairman of the Council of Milan,

honoured the Dalai Lama with the Milan Honorary
Citizenship award at a ceremony held at the Arcimboldi
Theatre in Milan, Italy.
ABOUT DALAI LAMA

The 14th Dalai Lama is the current Dalai Lama.
Dalai Lamas are important monks of the Gelug school, the newest school of Tibetan
Buddhism, which is nominally headed by the Ganden Tripas.
From the time of the 5th Dalai Lama to 1959, the central government of Tibet, the Ganden
Phodrang, invested the position of Dalai Lama with temporal duties.
The 14th Dalai Lama was born in Taktser village, Amdo, Tibet.
He was selected as the tulku of the 13th Dalai Lama in 1937 and formally recognized as the
14th Dalai Lama at a public declaration near the town of Bumchen in 1939.
His enthronement ceremony as the Dalai Lama was held in Lhasa on 22 February 1940.
He eventually assumed full temporal duties on 17 November 1950, at the age of 15, after
China's invasion of Tibet.
During the 1959 Tibetan uprising, the Dalai Lama fled to India, where he currently lives as a
refugee.
The 14th Dalai Lama received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.
ROBERT DE NIRO TO BE HONOURED WITH CHAPLIN AWARD BY

FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER
The Film Society of Lincoln Center in the second week of October 2016 announced Robert De
Niro as the recipient of the 44th Chaplin Award.
De Niro will be presented with the award at an award gala on 8 May 2017.
ABOUT ROBERT DE NIRO

Robert Anthony De Niro is an Italian-American actor and producer.
He has starred in over 100 films.
He was cast as the young Vito Corleone in the 1974 film The Godfather Part II, for which he
won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Jake La Motta in the 1980
film Raging Bull.
He received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2003 and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille
Award in 2010.
ABOUT FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER

The Film Society of Lincoln Center is one of the world's most prominent film presentation
organizations.
It was founded in 1969 by three Lincoln Center executives: William F. May, Martin E. Segal
and Schuyler G. Chapin.
The film society highlights American Independent cinema and World Cinema, and recognizes
and supports new filmmakers.
Each year the organization presents its annual Gala Tribute, known as Chaplin Award Gala,
honouring legendary stars and industry leaders.
In 2016, the award was won by Morgan Freeman.
C RADHAKRISHNAN CHOSEN FOR MATHRUBHUMI LITERARY

AWARD 2016
Eminent writer C Radhakrishnan was on 15 October 2016 selected for the Mathrubhumi
Literary Award 2016 in recognition of his contribution to the field of literature.
Radhakrishnan was selected by a panel chaired by novelist M Mukundan with Sethu and Sarah
Joseph being the other members of the jury.
The award carries a cash prize of 2 lakh rupees, a citation and a statuette.
ABOUT C RADHAKRISHNAN
He is the editor of Malayalam magazine Piravi, published by the School Of Bhagavad Gita.
He was the former chief editor of Madhyamam daily from 16 August 1999 to 1 September
2001.
He has been honoured by both the National Literary Academy of India (1989) and the Kerala
Literary Academy (1962).
He has been conferred with various awards including the Vayalar Award (1990), Mooloor
Award, Abudhabi Malayali Samajam Award (1988), Lalithambika Award (2004), etc.
He was awarded the Moortidevi Award for the year 2013 for his novel Theekkadal Katanhu
Thirumadhuram.
He was born in Chamravattom in Ponnani taluk in Malappuram district in February 1939.
KIRTIRAJ KUNDLIK GAIKWAD AWARDED WITH IAFP YOUNG

SCIENTIST SCHOLARSHIP AWARD 2016
Kirtiraj Kundlik Gaikwad, an Indian scientist, was on 12 October 2016 awarded with the
prestigious IAFP Young scientist scholarship award 2016 for his research work on development
of novel oxygen absorbing package in the field of active packaging for oxygen sensitive food
products.
The award worth 2000 US dollars and an award plaque was presented to him in the annual
meeting of International Association of Food Protection (IAFP) held in St Louise, USA by The
IAFP Foundation, USA.
ABOUT KIRTIRAJ KUNDLIK GAIKWAD

Kirtiraj received his MS (Packaging) from Michigan State University, USA in 2013 and MTech
(Food safety & standards) from Allahabad Agriculture University, India in 2011.
He has authored and co-authored 15 research papers in reputed international journals.
He developed this novel oxygen scavenging package from the natural source. The feature of
this package is that it can extend the shelf life of food. Moreover, it is suitable for microwave,
liquid food packaging like juices and metal detector friendly at processing line.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FOOD PROTECTION (IAFP)

The International Association for Food Protection recognizes young researchers from around
the world that are the future leaders in the field of food safety.
The IAFP Foundation has been dedicated to enhance the career potential of exceptional
researchers through the annual IAFP Scholarship Program, which provides full funding for the
annual meeting.
IAFP members, representing more than 50 countries, help the association achieve its mission
through networking, educational programs, journals, and career opportunities.
SPRINTER SRABANI NANDA WINS 24TH EKALABYA AWARD

Sprinter Srabani Nanda on 8 October 2016 won the 24th Ekalabya Award for the year 2016 in
recognition of her sporting excellence. With this, she will get a cash price of 5 lakh rupees along
with a citation at the Ekalabya Award function.
Athlete Dutee Chand won the award in the year 2015.
ABOUT SRABANI NANDA

Nanda is an Indian woman sprint runner athlete from Odisha specialized in 4x100m relay, 100
metre and 200 metre sprint events. She belongs to Kandhamal District of Odisha.
She made it to Rio Olympics 2016 in the women's 200m category.
Srabani won gold in 200m, silver in 100m and 4x100m relay in 12th South Asian Games held
in Guwahati in February 2016.
She had also won bronze in 100m and 4x100m relay in Asian Grand Prix Athletics in Thailand
in June 2015.
ABOUT EKALABYA AWARD

Ekalabya Award was instituted in the year 1993 by Indian Metals Public Charitable Trust
(IMPaCT) of IMFA group of companies.
It is given every year to young sportspersons of Odisha in recognition of their outstanding

performance in the preceding two years.
It was instituted to promote, encourage and recognise Odia Sports personalities in the State.
PAWAN CHAMLING HONOURED WITH SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT LEADERSHIP AWARD
Pawan Chamling, the Chief Minister of Sikkim, on 6 October 2016 was conferred the prestigious
2016 Sustainable Development Leadership Award.
President Pranab Mukherjee presented the award to Chamling during the World Sustainable
Development Summit organized by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in New Delhi.
The award was presented to Chamling in recognition of his vision and leadership in
environment and sustainable development leading to the establishment of Sikkim as the first
and only organic state in the country.
INITIATIVES TAKEN BY PAWAN CHAMLING

Sikkim is known as the Land of Flower and holds a population of around six lakhs.
Around 75000 hectares of land has been converted into certified organic farms over the years
following the guidelines as prescribed by National Programme for Organic Production.
Sikkim contributes around 80000 million tonnes organic production out of total 1.24 million
tonnes of organic production recorded in India.
On the initiative of Chamling, a historic declaration was made through a Resolution in the
Sikkim Legislative Assembly on 24 February 2003 for transforming Sikkim into a Total Organic
State.
The Sikkim State Organic Board was constituted on 16 September 2003 for outlining policy
issues and strategic plans, as well as developing standards and regulations.
The state government stopped procuring chemical fertilizers and chemical pesticides from
2004 onwards and also eliminated the existing subsidy to farmers for procurement of chemical
pesticides.
The state government created category-wise organic farming schemes and organic action
plans to set the targets of conversion.
Chamling has also taken various green initiatives under which ban on pan masala/gutka was
enforced in the entire state in the year 1995.
In 1997, the state government passed an Act on prohibition of throwing of non-degradable

garbage in public drains and sewerage.
The state also passed a law for prohibition of smoking in places of public work or in public
service vehicles in the state in 1997.
On 14 August 1998, Sikkim became the first state in the country to impose a ban on plastics
and non-degradable materials and the tourists were also prohibited from carrying plastic bags
and containers in under the rules.
The state government imposed complete ban on collection of medicinal plants and non-
timber forest produce for commercial purposes and framed Statutory Rules for mandatory
planting of ten saplings in lieu of one tree felled in private holdings implemented in 2001.
On 25 June 2009, Chamling started a unique programme called 10 Minutes under which all
the citizens of the state plant one sapling each during a pre-announced 10 minutes.
The State Government imposed a ban on the use of diclofenac sodium and burning of
agricultural wastes in 2015 and all the old trees in government forests were identified as Sikkim
State Heritage Trees in 2016.
The state government imposed a ban on use of Styrofoam products and a ban on the use of
Plastic Bottled drinking water in state government functions and also banned tyre fires in 2016
IGIA'S T3 BECOMES FIRST PLATINUM RATED GREEN AIRPORT

TERMINAL BUILDING IN INDIA
Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) announced on 6
October 2016 that the Terminal 3 of Indira Gandhi
International Airport (IGIA) achieved Platinum rating from
Indian Green Building Council (IGBC).
The plaque and certificate for the achievement was handed

over by IGBC to Douglas Webster, COO-DIAL and Roy
Sebastian, VP- Project and Engineering, during the 14th Green Building Congress, 2016
organized by IGBC in Mumbai.
With this, the state-of-the-art Terminal 3 of IGIA has become the first Platinum rated green
terminal building under Green Existing Building O&M Rating System by IGBC. This is another
significant environmental achievement by IGIA, after being accredited as the first Carbon
Neutral airport in Asia Pacific recently by Airports Council International (ACI).
ABOUT INDIAN GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL

The Indian Green Building Council, part of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), was
formed in 2001.
The vision of the council is to enable a sustainable built environment for all and facilitate India
to be one of the global leaders in the sustainable built environment by 2025.
The council offers a wide array of services, which include developing new green building
rating programmes, certification services and green building training programmes.
The council also organises Green Building Congress, its annual flagship event on green
buildings.
The council is committee-based, member-driven and consensus-focused.
FORMER ISRO CHIEF U R RAO BECOMES FIRST INDIAN TO BE

INDUCTED INTO IAF HALL OF FAME
Former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman Udupi Ramachandra Rao,
popularly known as U. R. Rao, was inducted into the 2016 IAF Hall of Fame on 30 September
2016 by the International Aeronautical Federation (IAF).
With this, Rao became the first Indian to be inducted into IAF Hall of Fame.
WHO IS UDUPI RAMACHANDRA RAO?

U. R. Rao is the former chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation.
At present, he is the Chairman of the Governing Council of the Physical Research Laboratory
at Ahmedabad.
He is also the chancellor of Indian Institute for Space Science and Technology (IIST) at
Thiruvananthapuram.
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1976.
On 19 March 2013, he was inducted into the Satellite Hall of Fame, Washington at a
ceremony organised by the Society of Satellite Professionals International. He was the first
Indian to be inducted.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL ASTRONAUTICAL FEDERATION

The International Astronautical Federation is an international space advocacy organisation
based in Paris.
It was founded in 1951 as a non-governmental organization to establish a dialogue between

scientists around the world.
It has over 300 members from 66 countries across the world.
It is linked with the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and the International
Institute of Space Law (IISL) with whom the IAF organises the annual International Astronautical
Congress.
The IAF Hall of Fame consists of a permanent gallery of honoured personalities, a citation,
biographical information and a picture on the IAF website.
SANGEET NATAK AKADEMI FELLOWSHIPS AND AWARDS FOR

THE YEAR-2015 PRESENTED
President Pranab Mukherjee on 4 October 2016 presented the Sangeet Natak Akademi
Fellowships (Akademi Ratna) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskars) for the
Year-2015. The awards were presented at a function in Rashtrapati Bhawan.
C V Chandrasekhar, an eminent personality in the field of performing arts, was conferred with
the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellow (Akademi Ratna). The Fellowship of the Akademi is the most
prestigious and rare honour, which is restricted to 40 numbers at any given time. Presently
there are only 40 Fellows of the Sangeet Natak Akademi.
Forty three artists from field of Music, Dance, Theatre, Traditional/Folk/Tribal

Music/Dance/Theatre and Puppetry and Overall contribution/scholarship in Performing Arts for
the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the year 2015. These forty-three
(43) artists include two joint awards. The awardees are
Field Winners
In field of Music 2015 Akademi Award in field of Music was conferred on eleven
artists and they are
Krishna Bisht and Mashkoor Ali Khan for Hindustani Vocal

Music
Kartik Kumar for Hindustani Instrumental MusicSitar
Brij Narayan for Hindustani Instrumental MusicSarod
R N Thyagarajan and R N Tharanathan (joint award) for
Carnatic Vocal Music
Suguna Varadhachari for Carnatic Vocal Music,
Lalgudi G J R Krishnan for Carnatic Instrumental Music

Violin, Mambalam M K S Siva for Carnatic Instrumental
Music-Nagaswaram
Bhupinder Singh, Hridyanath Mangeshkar and Prafulla

Kar for Other Major Traditions of MusicSugam Sangeet
In field of Dance 2015 Akademi Award in field of Dance was conferred on nine
Ranganayaki Jayaraman for Bharatanatyam
K Kunhiraman Nair for Kathakali
G Padmaja Reddy for Kuchipudi
Aloka Kanungo for Odissi
Sharodi Saikia for Sattriya Dance
Mandakini Trivedi for Mohiniattam
Sadashiva Pradhan for Chhau Dance
W Lokendrajit Singh for Contemporary/Experimental

Dance
Rajkumar Bharathi for Music for Dance
In field of Theatre 2015 Akademi Award in field of Theatre was conferred on nine
Nand Kishore Acharya and Shafaat Khan for Playwriting
Parvez Akhtar and Mushtaq Kak for Direction
Manoj N Joshi and Himani Shivpuri for Acting
Pradeep Mulye for Allied Theatre ArtsScenic Design
Sarojini Nangiar for Other Major Traditions of Theatre

Kutiyattam
Rani Balbir Kaur for Overall Contribution in Theatre
In field of 2015 Akademi Award in field of Theatre was conferred on ten

Traditional/Folk/Tribal artists and they are
Music/Dance/Theatre and
Khuman Lal Sao for Folk Music of Chhattisgarh
Puppetry
Ramchandra Singh for Folk Theatre of Bihar
Khem Raj for Folk Music of Jammu and Kashmir
S R D Prasad for Martial Art of Kerala
Chhaya and Maya Khutegaonkar joint award for Folk

Dance of Maharashtra-Lavani
Gangmei Aluna Kabuini for Traditional Dance and Music

of Manipur
Paramjit Singh Sidhu for Folk Music of Punjab
Sayeed Sabri Jaipuri for Qawwali, Rajasthan
K K Ramachandra Pulavar and T N Sankaranathan for

Puppetry
In the field of Overall Shanta Gokhale and Chaman Ahuja were conferred with
Contribution/Scholarship the 2015 Akademi Award
to Performing Arts
The honour of Akademi Fellow has been conferred since 1954 and Akademi Award since 1952.
These honours not only symbolize the highest standard of excellence and achievements, but
also recognize sustained individual work and contribution. The honour of Akademi Fellow
carries purse money of 3 lakh Rupees and Akademi Award carries one lakh Rupees, besides a
Tamrapatra and Angavastram.
NAYANJOT LAHIRI WINS 2016 JOHN F RICHARDS PRIZE

Nayanjot Lahiri, Professor of History at the Ashoka University, was on 4 October 2016 awarded
with the 2016 John F. Richards Prize for her book Ashoka in Ancient India.
The prize will be awarded to her at the Associations 131st Annual Meeting in January, 2017.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BOOK ASHOKA IN ANCIENT INDIA

The book has been critically acclaimed for its enthralling account of an emperor who spoke to
his people through his edicts; his victories and loss that left a legacy that surpassed him.
It is the innovative interface of Emperor Ashokas words which invite and enable a
biographical narrative, with the archaeological landscapes where they can still be read.
The Book adjudicates between archaeological, textual, and geographical evidence to offer a
dazzling interpretation of a remarkable figure of the ancient world and a deep history of ancient
society.
ABOUT NAYANJOT LAHIRI

Nayanjot Lahiri is an eminent historian and archaeologist of ancient India.
Currently, she is teaching at the newly created Ashoka University.
She has several research papers and publications to her credit. H
Her research interests mostly include Indian archaeology, heritage studies, archeological
theory and ancient India.
For her work in archaeology, she was bestowed with the 2013 Infosys Prize in the humanities.
ABOUT JOHN F. RICHARDS PRIZE

The Richards Prize is awarded annually by the American Historical Association (AHA) to the
best book in South Asian history.
The award has been named after John F. Richards (November 1938 to August 2007) who was
eminent historian of South Asia and in particular of the Mughal Empire.
It recognizes the most distinguished work of scholarship or book on South Asian history
published in English.
INDIAN-AMERICAN VINAYA MANCHAIAH NAMED FUTURE

LEADER OF AUDIOLOGY
Vinaya Manchaiah, an Indian-American associate professor at Lamar University in Texas, in the
first week of October 2016 was named to the 2016 class of the Jerger Future Leaders of
Audiology by the American Academy of Audiology.
Manchaiah is one of only a dozen individuals selected nationwide for the honour.
WHO IS VINAYA MANCHAIAH?

Vinaya Manchaiah is originally from South India.
He holds a PhD in disability research from Linkoping University, Sweden.
He also holds a number of degrees including an MBA from Swansea University, United
Kingdom, Doctor of Audiology from Nova Southeastern University, MS in Audiology from the
University of Southampton, and a Bachelors of Science in Speech and Hearing from the
University of Mysore, India.
He is the co-founder and director for strategic planning for the non-profit non-governmental
organisation Audiology India, for which he served as president from 2011 to 2015. The
organisation seeks to foster ear and hearing health care in India.
ABOUT AMERICAN ACADEMY OF AUDIOLOGY

The American Academy of Audiology is the worlds largest professional organisation of
audiologists.
The members look to provide hearing care services through education, research and
increased public awareness of hearing and balance disorders.
WILDLIFE FILM-MAKER PRAJNA CHOWTA CONFERRED

KNIGHTHOOD BY FRANCE
Film-maker and elephant researcher Prajna Chowta was recently appointed Chevalier de
l'Ordre National du Mrite (Knight in the National Order of Merit) by the French Government.
The official ceremony is expected to be held later in 2016 in Bengaluru.
The appointment of Chowta by the President of the French Republic comes in recognition of a
life devoted to caring for wild Asian elephants.
WHO IS PRAJNA CHOWTA?

Chowta is the founder of Aane Mane Foundation.
The Foundation has been researching and conserving wild Asian elephants.
She has also authored the Elephant Code Book on captive elephant management as well as
the French book Enfant dElephant (Elephants Child) in 2014. The book is based on the
sketches of tribals and their relationship with elephants.
As a researcher, she was also instrumental in developing an online monitoring system and
one of the first GPS collars for elephants in India.
She is among the few Indian women to be appointed a Knight.
Earlier in 2016, businesswoman Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and actor Kamal Hassan were
recognised under the French governments Legion of Honour award.
ABOUT NATIONAL ORDER OF MERIT

The National Order of Merit is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the
President of the French Republic.
It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle.
The reason for the orders establishment was twofold: to replace the large number of
ministerial orders previously awarded by the ministries; and to create an award that can be
awarded at a lower level than the Legion of Honour, which is generally reserved for French
citizens.
INDIAN-ORIGIN KIARA NIRGHIN WINS GOOGLE SCIENCE FAIR

PRIZE 2016
Indian-origin South African girl Kiara Nirghin on 1 October
2016 won the Google Science Fair prize 2016. She won this
grand prize of 50000 US dollars scholarship for using orange
peel to develop a cheaper super-absorbent material that
helps soil retain water.
Kiara Nirghin is a Grade 11 student at St Martins private

school. She did a project titled No More Thirsty Crops which
was aimed at tackling the severe drought plaguing South Africa. Her solution to the problem of
drought uses orange and avocado fruit peel, which are normally discarded.
The Google Science Fair is a programme for budding scientists between the ages of 13 to 18,
who are invited to solve the worlds biggest challenges using science and technology.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NIRGHIN'S PROJECT

The fruit peel serves perfect alternative to super-absorbent polymers (SAPs), which absorb
and carry about 300 times their weight in liquid relative to their own mass.
These SAPs are not biodegradable, are costly and full of acrylic acid, sodium hydroxide and
other chemicals.
It was after 45 days of experimentation that Nirghin was successful in creating a low-cost
super-absorbent polymer, made out of waste products from the juice manufacturing industry.
This polymer can retain large amounts of water, keep soil moist and improve crop growth
without regular water supplements.
EXAM BOOSTERS
He became the first US author to win the Man Booker Prize - Paul Beatty
Paul Beatty won 2016 Man Booker Prize for his racial satire - 'The Sellout'
The High Court of the state ordered a complete ban on the sale of whitener in the state -
Uttarakhand
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 2016 National Tribal Carnival at - Indira Gandhi
Indoor Stadium in New Delhi
The animal character chosen as the Official Mascot for the 2018 FIFA World Cup is a wolf
Legendary footballer Carlos Alberto passed away recently. He belonged to - Brazil
A group of researchers recently discovered a tiny threadlike millipede in the unexplored

dark marble caves in - Sequoia National Park in California
The former Olympic and World Cup umpire who was recently appointed as the Chief
Executive Officer of International Hockey Federation is - Jason McCracken
The company that recently agreed to acquire Time Warner Inc. is - AT&T
Country that topped the list of global country rankings of business efficiency in World Bank's
Doing Business 2017: Equal Opportunity for All- New Zealand
Rank secured by India in the World Bank's Doing Business 2017: Equal Opportunity for All
report- 130th
India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise that began recently- Mitra Shakti 2016
Person appointed as the Commissioner of Police of Mysuru City recently- AS Rao
Dam that recently won World Banks Award of Excellence for best utilisation of funds for
renovation to enhance the strength of the dam- Almatti Dam
Inspired by the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Akshat Prakash, student of DPS Indirapuram has
started a challenge to involve schools in the national mission towards cleanliness. The challenge
is coded as - Bagit challenge
Anti-Vietnam War activist who authored Port Huron statement and died recently- Tom
Hayden
Campaign launched by PM Narendra Modi through which people can send their Diwali
greetings and messages to the soldiers- #Sandesh2Soldiers
Shrine that recently granted equal access to women in entering the complete premises-
Mumbai's Haji Ali Dargah
Company that launched its first cybersecurity engagement center in India- Microsoft
Recently, a team of scientists discovered a secret Nazi base of German dictator Adolf Hitler at-
Arctic Circle
The winner of the Mr Asia 2016 title at the 5th Phil-Asia bodybuilding championships held in
the Philippines is - G Balakrishna
The winner of the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup is - North Korea
As per the World Meteorological Organization, average level of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere across the globe passed - 400 parts per million in 2015
The winner of the 2016 Mark Twain Prize for American Humour is - Bill Murray
The winner of the 2016 European Golden Boy Award is - Renato Sanches
He was appointed as the interim chairman of Tata Group after the board of Tata Sons ltd
sacked Cyrus Mistry as its Chairman Ratan Tata
World Development Information Day was observed on - 24 October 2016
Disarmament Week is an annual event that is observed from - 24 October to 30 October
He was appointed as the chairperson of Jammu and Kashmir Human Rights Commission - Bilal
Nazki, the former Chief Justice of Orissa High Court
Indian Immunologicals Ltd recently unveiled a vaccine to fight against tapeworms in pigs. The
name of the vaccine is CYSVAX
The theme of the 2016 World Osteoporosis Day is - Love Your Bones: Perfect Your Future
The country defeated by India to win the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup is Iran
The Formula One driver who won the 2016 United States Grand Prix is - Lewis Hamilton
Two Indian Coast Guard Ships were recently commissioned into Indian Coast Guard. They are
christened as - ICGS Aryaman and Atulya
Two doctors each from the AIIMS and the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital were selected for the
prestigious Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy Award for excellence in the field of medicine. The award
was instituted in the year 1976
The United Nations Day was recently celebrated on - 24 October 2016
Smooth-coated otter was sighted for first time in Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary, which is located
in- Andhra Pradesh
Bollywood actor selected for the Yash Bharti Awards 2016- Naseeruddin Shah
State that organises the Yash Bharti Awards that are conferred for excellence in literature,
fine arts, folk and classical music and sports- Uttar Pradesh
AT&T Inc recently agreed to acquire- Time Warner
India in October 2016 re-launched the scientific and technological cooperation with- Italy
Country that recently passed a law banning the sale, import and production of alcohol- Iraq
Bank that recently declared Silchar as its 5th zone in North East- State Bank of India
State that launched Kaushalya SETU (Self-Employment and Talent Utilisation) initiative-
Maharashtra
India on 21 October 2016 signed a 650-million US dollar loan agreement with the World Bank
for - the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor-III (EDFC-III) Project
Union Government unveiled a Regional air connectivity scheme - UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam
Naagrik)
Union Government has held tripartite talks with Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and United
People's Front (UPF) of Manipur to find - an amicable solution to their long standing demand
The Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope that tracked the landing of a European Space Agency's
spacecraft on a Mars mission is located at - Khodad near Pune
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the state of art international terminal at Harni
airport in - Vadodara
The country that formally begun the process of withdrawing from the International Criminal
Court (ICC) is - South Africa
Indias rank in the FIFA ranking that was released on 20 October 2016 is - 137
Country that will posthumously pardon thousands of gay and bisexual men is - The United
Kingdom
An online tool that was developed by scientists that can predict whether citizens will vote
for Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton in the upcoming US Presidential elections is - 'Tweetcast'
The Police Commemoration Day is observed on - 21 October
Vice Admiral S V Bhokare was recently appointed as the Commandant of the -Indian Naval
Academy at Ezhimala in Kerala
The secretary-general of Japan Gymnastics Association elected as the President of the

International Gymnastics Federation is - Morinari Watanabe
The city that recently bestowed honorary citizenship on Dalai Lama is - Milan
The well-known Gandhian activist, who passed away recently, is - Mewa Ramgobin
The author of the book titled The Adivasi Will Not Dance is - Hansda Sowendra Shekhar
Satyadev Katare recently passed away. He was - Leader of the Opposition in the Madhya
Pradesh Assembly
He is the authored the book Andhere Se Ujale Ki Aur that - Arun Jaitley
The country that along with the United States imposed sanctions on alleged Hezbollah
members and financial backers is Saudi Arabia
Author of the book, The Sleepwalker's Dream is - Dhrubajyoti Borah, the President of Asam
Sahitya Sabha
The State Bank of India (SBI) on 20 October 2016 declared Silchar as its 5th zone in North-
East India to cater to the banking needs of the people of - Mizoram, Tripura and Manipur along
with the Barak Valley
The first ever global conference to strengthen Arbitration and Enforcement in India began in
- New Delhi
Typhoon that killed at least four people in Philippines after lashing the country is - Super
Typhoon Haima
The statistician honoured with the inaugural International Prize in Statistics is - David Cox
The team that won the World Railway Shooting Championship Cup is - Indian Railways
The Indian Boxing Council was recently inducted into the World Boxing Organisation with
voting rights. The headquarters of World Boxing Organisation are located at - San Juan, Puerto
Rico
The Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways made it mandatory for all automobile
manufacturers to provide emission and noise pollution details for every vehicle they produce.
In this regard, the ministry has notified amendment of - Form 22 under the Central Motor
Vehicles Act
The state that has increased the retirement age of doctors to 65 years is - Haryana
The VoICE.NET, which launched at first ever Global Conference on Voter Education, is a
Global Knowledge Network on voter education
Sino India Cooperation 2016, a joint tactical exercise, between Indian and China was
recently held in - Ladakh
In a bid to make the North East a power surplus region, the company that will commission
two power projects of 710 megawatt in Arunachal Pradesh is 2917 is - North Eastern Electric
Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO)
The domestic air passengers grew by 23.17 percent during Jan-Sept 2016 as the airlines
carried 726.98 lakhs passengers as against - 590.21 lakhs during the corresponding period of
previous year
He was appointed as the Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of Odisha - Retired

bureaucrat Sunil Kumar Mishra
The city that became the first Indian city to be officially declared as one of the venues for
hosting the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup is - Kochi
Scientists at the Delhis National Physical Laboratory (NPL) successfully devised a procedure
to produces electricity from water at room temperature without using - Any external energy
The skill development initiative that was launched by Maharashtra Government for students
is - Kaushalya SETU (Self-Employment and Talent Utilisation)
The state government that cancelled affiliation of 68 intermediate colleges of the state for
not fulfilling its criterion is - Bihar
The noted urologist elected as the President of the North Zone of Urology Society of India is
- S P Yadav
The wrestler appointed as the DSP in Haryana Police is - Geeta Phogat
Kigeli V Ndahindurwa who passed away recently was the last king of - Rwanda
The oil and gas company that was recently granted a licence to BP Plc to set up 3500 petrol
pumps in India is - BP
The International Union for Conservation of Nature is all set to declare the Kashmiri Red
Stag, also known as, Hangul to declare it as - a Critically Endangered species
The mammal whose milk contains an arsenal of antimicrobial compounds, as per a recent
research, that can kill several drug-resistant superbugs is - Tasmanian devil
A country that agreed for close security coordination with India in border areas keeping in
view the sensitivity of each others strategic interests is - Myanmar
The Election Commissions first ever International Conference on Voter Education was held
in - New Delhi
The World Bank has pledged 2 billion US dollars aid to tackle climate change to - Bangladesh
To boost the bilateral relations between the two nations, India signed three agreements
with Myanmar
The country that recently executed a Prince for shooting a man during a brawl is Saudi
Arabia
Human rights activist Irom Sharmila on 18 October 2016 announced the formation of her
political party named - Peoples Resurgence and Justice Alliance (PRJA)
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council reached a consensus on the way the states would
be compensated for any loss of revenue after implementation of - the new indirect tax regime,
GST from 1 April 2017
United Nations Security Council has agreed that a new UN mission of the country could
continue to monitor a ceasefire despite a referendum vote rejecting the peace deal. The
country is - Colombia
The actor who will be awarded with the 44th Chaplin Award for the year 2016 by Film
Society of Lincoln Center is - Robert De Niro
India completed its nuclear triad by inducting country's first indigenously-constructed

nuclear submarine named - INS Arihant into service
The company that recently launched Indias first indigenous electric bus is - Ashok Leyland
The country that will host the fresh round of peace talks on Syria crisis is Britain
Person appointed as India's Ambassador to UN Conference on Disarmament, Geneva

recently- Amandeep Singh Gill
Country ranked as the safest place as per Global Travel and Terrorism Report 2016 of World
Economic Forum- Finland
Cricket team of which country recently became the world first team to play 900 ODIs- India
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the national SC/ST hub and zero effect on
environment scheme for MSME sector in - Ludhiana, Punjab
In an honour for an Indian sportsperson, who was appointed as a member of the

International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Athletes' Commission is - Saina Nehwal
Prime Minster Narendra Modi today inaugurated three hydropower projects of 1,752 MW
capacities in - Himachal Pradesh
Indian grapplers clinched four medals, including gold, at the just-concluded sixth edition of
the TAFISA World Games in Jakarta, Indonesia
State government that will roll out biometrics authentication for receiving food grains for
beneficiaries of National Food Security Act (NFSA) from January 2017 in the state is - Odisha
Kigali Agreement that was reached by more than 170 countries in October seeks to 1987
Kyoto Protocol
China successfully launched a manned spacecraft that carried carrying two astronauts into
the space is - Shenzhou-11
Anupriya Patel, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, recently inaugurated
National Summit on Fortification of Food in - New Delhi
Person selected for the Mathrubhumi Literary Award 2016- C Radhakrishnan
China in October 2016 signed 26 agreements and MoUs in fields of power and energy,
information technology, investment, disaster management and culture with- Bangladesh
Russia's Rosneft Oil Company and its partners in October 2016 acquired- Essar Oil Limited
Recently, around 25 people were killed and various were injured in a stampede near Rajghat
bridge in- Varanasi
Theme of World Food Day 2016- Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too
Player appointed Brand Ambassador of Valvoline Cummins India- Virat Kohli
Theme of 2016 World Standards Day- Standards Build Trust
The theme for 2016 BRICS Summit was - Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective
Solutions
The 2016 BRICS Summit concluded with adoption of Goa Declaration that says - it is the
responsibility of all states to prevent terrorist actions from their territories
The ninth BRICS Summit will be hosted by China in - 2017
Government constituted seven-member expert committee that said that the Saraswati River
was not mythical and it existed was headed by Professor K.S. Valdiya
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was observed on 17 October 2016 with
theme - Moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: ending poverty in all its
forms
India signed agreement for cooperation in the field of water resources, including innovations
in irrigation technology with Hungary
Indian boxer who retained his welterweight Asia title by outpunching Australian Ben Kite in
New Delhi is - Neeraj Goyat
Indian shuttler who clinched the men's singles title at the Chinese Taipei Open badminton is -
Sourabh Verma
The country that formally joined China's One-Belt One Road Initiative and has elevated its
bilateral relationship with China to Strategic Partnership agreeing to co-operate in all regional
and international issues - Bangladesh
The theme for the 2016 International Day of Rural Women is - Climate is changing. Food and
agriculture must too
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 14 October 2016 inaugurated 'Shaurya Smarak', the war
memorial in - Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
The potent greenhouse gas with Global Warming Potential of 14800 whose production will be
eliminated in India by 2030 is - HCF-23 gas
The state that is observing the Safe Motherhood Week from 14 October to 21 October 2016
to decrease the 'Mother Mortality Rate' (MMR) and 'Infant Mortality Rate' (IMR) is - Uttar
Pradesh
Government of the country decided to quit the Commonwealth is - Maldives
The country that has frozen its co-operation with the UN's cultural agency, UNESCO, accusing
it of denying Judaism's connections to the religion's holiest sites Israel
Person awarded with the prestigious IAFP Young scientist scholarship award 2016- Kirtiraj
Kundlik Gaikwad
India recently signed a bilateral agreement for development of a network of Agro irradiation
centres with- Russia
Person appointed as the Director General of Foreign Trade recently- Ajay Kumar Bhalla
Person appointed as the Whole-Time Member of SEBI recently- Gurumoorthy Mahalingam
Author of the book titled The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad- Twinkle Khanna
CCEA approved the mechanism for revision of ethanol price for supply to Public Sector Oil
Marketing Companies (OMCs) to carry out - the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme
The draft bill of Union Government that seeks to resolve the inter-state disputes over river
water sharing is - National Water Framework Bill, 2016
Theme for 2016 World Sight Day that was observed on 13 October 2016 is - Stronger
Together
The Union Cabinet approved signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between

India and Hungary on cooperation in the field of - Water Management
Author of the book, Jihad in My Saffron Garden is Dr. Roxy Arora
The theme for the World Sight Day 2016 is - Stronger Together
Worlds longest reigning monarch Bhumibol Adulyadej recently died at the age of 88. He was
the King of - Thailand
The name of the new book that was recently announced by Arundhati Roy is - The Ministry of
Utmost Happiness
Antonio Guterres who was appointed as the next Secretary-General of the United Nations by
the General Assembly is the former Prime Minister of Portugal
The researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research used human hair to
produce cost-effective, metal-free cathodes for use in - Solar cells
He won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature - Bob Dylan
The First World Tsunami Awareness Day will be celebrated at the Asian Ministerial
Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction 2016 on - 5 November 2016
The National Seismic Programme was recently launched on Mahanadi basin in Odisha to -
carry out assessment of unappraised areas across the country for potential oil and natural gas
reserves
The National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research recently established a high altitude
research station in Himalaya called HIMANSH. It is located in - Spiti, Himachal Pradesh
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration developed a high-tech electroactive

bandage. It is made of - Polyvinylidene Flouride
The amount to be invested by the Union Government in order to increase the capacity of
Panipat Refinery from existing 15 million tonnes to 25 million tonnes is - 15000 crore rupees
Person appointed as Prime Minister of Morocco recently- Abdelilah Benkirane
Rank secured by India in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2016- 97th
Philanthropist and wife of Godrej group chairman Adi Godrej who passed away-
Parmeshwar Godrej
Actor who won the UK Theatre Awards 2016 for his individual contributions to British
theatre- Sir Ian McKellen
Bank that tied-up with Uber for cash-back of up to 25 percent for hailing cabs from the app-
Standard Chartered Bank
Indian off-spinner who reclaimed the number one spot in Test rankings for bowlers is -
Ravichandran Ashwin
The first Indian Cricket Captain under whom India received the ICC Test Championship mace
is - Mahendra Singh Dhoni
He handed the ICC Test Championship mace to Indian Test captain Virat Kohli for leading his
team to the top of the Test Team Rankings - Sunil Gavaskar
City of Jammu and Kashmir in which Entrepreneurship Development Institute (EDI) is

located that was attacked by Terrorists in October 2016 is - Pampore
Theme of International Day for Disaster Reduction that was observed on 13 October 2016 is
- Live to Tell: Raising Awareness, Reducing Mortality
The winner of the 2016 China Open Men's Singles title is - Andy Murray
The winner of the 2016 China Open Women's Singles title is - Agnieszka Radwanska
A new termite species named Glyptotermes Chiraharitae was recently discovered at - Kerala
NASAs Hubble Space Telescope recently detected Great Balls of Fire near - V Hydrae
The theme for the 2016 International Day of the Girl Child is - Girls' Progress = Goals'
Progress: What Counts for Girls
Sports personality appointed as the Brand Ambassador of Vizag Steel recently- P V Sindhu
Person who won the 24th Ekalabya Award for the year 2016- Srabani Nanda
Person appointed as China's Ambassador to India recently- Luo Zhaohui
Winners of 2016 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel-
Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmstrom
Supreme Court in its decision held that a Hindu son can divorce his wife if she tries to
separate him from his elderly parents as - It is 'pious obligation' of a son to maintain his
parents
Russia on 8 October 2016 vetoed a UN Security Council draft resolution demanding an end
to the bombing of - Aleppo city in Syria
Indias first centre for international arbitration was launched by Maharashtra Chief Minister
Devendra Fadnavis in - Mumbai
She clinched the women's singles of the Russian Open Grand Prix at Vladivostok - Ruthvika
Shivani Gadde
They clinched the mixed doubles titles of the Russian Open Grand Prix at Vladivostok - N
Sikki Reddy and Pranaav Chopra
The Indian-origin investment veteran appointed as the President and Chief Executive Officer
of Harvard Management Company is - N P Narvekar
The 2016 BRICS Science & Technology Senior Official Meeting was held in Jaipur
The sportsperson awarded the Player of the Tournament for UEFA EURO 2016 is - Antoine
Griezmann
Dharmendra Pradhan recently launched LPG the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in
Maharashtra
The committee constituted to assess ground situation at Cauvery basin is - GS Jha Committee
The Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting 2016 was held in - Washington DC
The author of the book titled The Ministry of Utmost Happiness is - Arundhati Roy
The Indian Air Force Day was recently observed across India. It was first observed in - 1932
The United States of America recently lifted economic sanctions on - Myanmar
The Delhi Waqf Board has recently been dissolved by Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung for -
alleged corruption and procedural irregularities in functioning
The person of Indian origin who was recently appointed to the UK shadow cabinet is - Shami
Chakrabarti
2016 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to- Juan Manuel Santos
Manipur-based theatre legend who died recently- Heisnam Kanhailal
Theme of World Post Day 2016- Innovation, Integration and Inclusion
Person appointed as Honorary Consul of Germany in Hyderabad recently- BVR Mohan Reddy
Person appointed as acting Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court recently- Justice Pradip
Kumar Mohanty
Indian shooter who clinched a silver medal in the 50 meter pistol event of the ISSF World Cup
Final at Bologna, Italy is - Jitu Rai
Country that passed a bill that seeks to curb murders in the name of honour is Pakistan
Country that passed a bill that seeks to punish rapists by use of modern technology of DNA
testing in probes involving rape cases is Pakistan
IMF in its 2016 October World Economic Outlook (WEO) projected the global growth in 2016
at - 3.1 percent
IMF in its 2016 October World Economic Outlook (WEO) projected the Indias growth in 2016
at - 7.6 percent
The organiser of the first edition of the World Sustainable Development Summit is - The
Energy and Resources Institute
The theme of the first edition of the World Sustainable Development Summit that was
inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee is - Beyond 2015: People, Planet and Progress
The person honoured with the 2016 Sustainable Development Leadership Award is - Pawan
Chamling
The terminal of the Indira Gandhi International Airport declared first Platinum rated green
airport terminal building in India is - Terminal 3
The World Heritage site declared as the cleanest iconic place in India is - Rani ki Vav, Gujarat
Oil India Limited recently signed MoU with which University to augment its reserves base and
maximise recovery from its aging oilfields- University of Houston
As per the recent report of UNESCO, what number of new teachers is needed to provide
quality universal primary and secondary education by 2030- 69 million
The Union Cabinet recently approved setting up of a Medical Devices Manufacturing Park
(Medipark) in- Tamil Nadu
New frog species recently discovered in Australias largest virgin forest in Queensland- Cape
York graceful tree frog or Litoria Bella
Person appointed as Brand Ambassador of Keralas Haritha Keralam project- K J Yesudas
Indias the communication satellite that was launched by a heavy duty rocket of Arianespace
from the spaceport of Kourou in French Guiana is - GSAT-18
To streamline government borrowings and better cash management with the overall
objective of deepening bond markets, the Union Finance Ministry has set up - Public Debt
Management Cell (PDMC)
Professional Indian mountaineer who scaled the world's sixth highest mountain Cho Oyu is-
Arjun Vajpai
He was conferred with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellow (Akademi Ratna) by President
Pranab Mukherjee - C V Chandrasekhar, an eminent personality in the field of performing arts
The system that was launched to make sure that the bridges across India remains safe by
Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari - Indian Bridge
Management System (IBMS)
The Union Government on appointed Indian Revenue Service officer Sushil Chandra as the
Chairman of - the Central Board of Direct Taxes
The former Portuguese Prime Minister recently selected by the UN Security Council as the
next UN Secretary-General is - Antonio Guterres
M. Venkaiah Naidu recently released the book titled Modis Midas Touch in Foreign Policy,
which is authored by - Surendra Kumar
The winner of the 2016 Shinhan Donghae Open is- Gaganjeet Bhullar
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, who will be the chief guest at the 2017 Republic Day parade of
India- Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
The noted contemporary artist, who had recently released a book called Faces of Creativity,
who died recently is - Yusuf Arakkal
Former ISRO Chairman who was recently inducted into the 2016 IAF Hall of Fame by the
International Aeronautical Federation is - U R Rao
The country that recently became the first in the world to ban disposable plastic cups and
plates is - France
The theme of the 2016 World Teachers' Day is - Valuing Teachers, Improving their Status
The winners of the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry are- Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir James Fraser
Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa
RBI in its 4th Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement 2016-17 reduced the Repo rate to- 6.25
percent
RBI in its 4th Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement 2016-17 adjusted the Reverse Repo rate
to- 5.75 percent
The Union Cabinet recently approved the amendments to- HIV and AIDS (Prevention and
Control) Bill, 2014
Union Cabinet recently approved the signing of MoU between India and which group of
countries in the field of water resources- European Union
Indian who won the 2016 John F Richards Prize of American Historical Association- Nayanjot
Lahiri
India recently signed three MoUs with Singapore to- strengthen ties on countering terrorism
and skill development
Taxi-booking app that launched the offline taxi booking feature recently- Ola
The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics was won by- David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and Michael
Kosterlitz
The first-ever BRICS trade fair will be held in- New Delhi
Person appointed as CMD of Power Finance Corporation recently- Rajeev Sharma
2016 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to- David J. Thouless along with F. Duncan M.
Haldane and J. Michael Kosterlitz
CEO of Prasar Bharati Corporation who resigned recently- Jawhar Sircar
Indian Bank that became the first to open a branch in the capital city of Yangon, Myanmar-
State Bank of India
Person appointed as the CEO of Reliance Nippon Life Insurance Ltd recently- Ashish Vohra
In a major deal for India's private defence industry, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and
Rafale maker Dassault Aviation announced - a joint venture
Number wise India is 62nd nation to ratify - the Paris Agreement on climate change
The state that became Indias first state to implement Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) in
Kerosene is Jharkhand
World Space Week is being observed from 4-10 October with theme - Remote Sensing:
Enabling our Future
Person elected as president of Indian Newspaper Society (INS) recently- Somesh Sharma
Short film that won the first prize at the Swachh Bharat Short Film Festival- Murga
Yoshinori Ohsumi won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discoveries of mechanisms
for autophagy
Kersti Kaljulaid was recently elected as the first woman President of - Estonia
The Indian-American who was named as the 2016 class of the Jerger Future Leaders of
Audiology by the American Academy of Audiology is - Vinaya Manchaiah
The National Mission on Bioeconomy was launched in - Shillong, Meghalaya
The Indian wildlife film-maker who was recently appointed Chevalier de l'Ordre National du
Mrite (Knight in the National Order of Merit) by the French Government is - Prajna Chowta
He will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations on 26 January 2017 Crown
Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Colombian voters in a referendum rejected the peace deal with - Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels
Bihar government notified Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 under which a drunker could
land in jail for at least 7 years with a fine of at least 1 lakh rupees
Chairman of State Bank of India (SBI) who was given a years extension by Union Government
is - Arundhati Bhattacharya
Tributary of River Brahmaputra that was blocked by China for building a dam is - Xiabuqu
River
Person recently appointed as the Chairman of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board- MS Sahoo
The new species of Pika named Ochotona sikimaria was recently discovered in- Sikkim
Indian-origin teenager who won the Google Science Fair prize 2016- Kiara Nirghin
The winner of the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix is - Daniel Ricciardo
The state that topped the list of endemic flowering plants, as announced by the Botanical
Survey of India is - Tamil Nadu
The India Sanitation Conference (INDOSAN) was recently inaugurated by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi at - New Delhi
S. Sivakumar was recently appointed as a full-time member of - the 21st Law Commission of
India
The theme of the World Habitat Day 2016 - Housing at the Centre
QUIZZES
1. World Space Week is being observed from 4-10 October with theme
a) Exploring the Universe
b) Mysteries of the Cosmos
c) Space for Education
d) Remote Sensing: Enabling our Future
Ans. (d) Remote Sensing: Enabling our Future
2. Union Government launched the Indian Bridge Management System (IBMS) in New
Delhi. Consider the following statements in context of the system .
I. IBMS is being developed to create an inventory of all bridges in the country .
II. It will rate structural condition of bridges except J&K .
III. It will help in timely repair and rehabilitation work on the bridges .
Which is/are correct?
a) Only II
b) Only I and II
c) Only I and III
d) I, II and III
Ans. (c) Only I and III
3. Name ISROs communication satellite that was launched from the spaceport of Kourou
in French Guiana?
a) INSAT-4CR
b) GSAT-18
c) GSAT-15
d) HAMSAT
Ans. (b) GSAT-18
4. Who won the 2016 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred
Nobel?
a) Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmstrom
b) David J Thouless and F Duncan
c) Jean-Pierre and J Fraser Stoddart
d) Peter Englund and Seamus Heaney
Ans. (a) Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmstrom
Explanation: The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2016
was awarded jointly to Oliver Hart and Bengt Holmstrm for their contributions to contract
theory.
5. Yoshinori Ohsumi won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Medicine for?
a) Discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy
b) Discoveries concerning novel therapies against river blindness
c) Discoveries concerning novel therapies against lymphatic filariasis
d) Elucidating the metabolism of glucose
Ans. (a) Discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy
6. The 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to
a) Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir James Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa
b) Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff
c) Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich and Aziz Sancar
d) Paul Modrich
Ans. (a) Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir James Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L Feringa
7. Who won the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize?
a) National Dialogue Quartet
b) European Union (EU)
c) Juan Manuel Santos
d) Liu Xiaobo
Ans. (c) Juan Manuel Santos
8. Who of the following won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature?
a) Bob Dylan
b) Svetlana Alexievich
c) Patrick Modiano
d) Alice Munro
Ans.(a) Bob Dylan
9. Juan Manuel Santos was bestowed with the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. He is the President
of which country?
a) Venezuela
b) Suriname
c) Colombia
d) Aruba
Ans. (c) Colombia
10. India has decided to eliminate production of a potent greenhouse gas with Global
Warming Potential of 14800 by 2030. Name it.
a) HCF-23
b) CCL2F2
c) SF6
d) N2O
Ans. (a) HCF-23
11. What is the theme for the 2016 International Day of Rural Women?
a) Moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: Ending poverty in all its forms
b) Pledge for Parity
c) Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality
d) Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too
Ans. (d) Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too
12. Name the country that in October 2016 formally joined China's One-Belt One Road
Initiative.
a) India
b) Pakistan
c) Myanmar
d) Bangladesh
Ans. (d) Bangladesh
13. What is the theme for World Food Day that will be observed on 16 October 2016?
a) Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too.
b) Family Farming: Feeding the world, caring for the earth
c) Social Protection and Agriculture: Breaking the Cycle of Rural Poverty
d) Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition
Ans. (a) Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too.
14. India and New Zealand signed three agreements during official visit of New Zealand
Prime Minister John Key to India. Consider the following statements in context to the
project 
I. Arrangement regarding Food Safety Cooperation was signed.
II. MoU for cooperation in the field of Youth Affairs and Sports was signed
III. MoU on Defence cooperation was signed.
a) Only II
b) Only I and II
c) Only I and III
d) I, II and III
Ans. (b) Only I and II
15. Name the country that topped the list of 2016 Global Gender Gap Report that was
released by World Economic Forum (WEF).
a) Rwanda
b) Iceland
c) Finland
d) Norway
Ans. (b) Iceland
16. Which rank was secured by India in the list of 2016 Global Gender Gap Report that was
released by World Economic Forum (WEF)?
a) 69
b) 71
c) 87
d) 115
Ans. (c) 87
17. Union Government amended the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 to enable service
voters including armed forces personnel, to cast their votes in elections through e-postal
ballot. Consider the following statements in context to the amendment
I. It amended Rule 23 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961
II. It also amended Rule 25 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961
III. Under this system a blank postal ballot paper would be transmitted to them
electronically to cast his/her vote and send back by post.
a) Only III
b) Only I and II
c) Only I and III
d) I, II and III
Ans. (c) Only I and III
18. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council reached a consensus during first day of three-
day meeting. Consider the following statements in context to the consensus and
discussion that was reached on the day.
I. The states would be compensated for any loss of revenue after implementation of the
new indirect tax regime
II. Base year for calculating the revenue of a state would be 2015-16
III. The council discussed possible GST rates, including a five-slab structure
a) Only I
b) Only I and II
c) Only I and III
d) I, II and III
Ans. (b) Only I and II
19. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the national SC/ST hub and zero effect on
environment scheme for MSME sector in
a) Pune, Maharashtra
b) Jaipur, Rajasthan
c) Ludhiana, Punjab
d) None of the above
Ans. (c) Ludhiana, Punjab
20. Name the actor who will be awarded with the 44th Chaplin Award for the year 2016 by
Film Society of Lincoln Center.
a) Morgan Freeman
b) Robert De Niro
c) Arnold Schwarzenegger
d) Robert Downey Jr.
Ans. (b) Robert De Niro
21. Name the actor who will be awarded with the 44th Chaplin Award for the year 2016 by
Film Society of Lincoln Center.
a) Morgan Freeman
b) Robert De Niro
c) Arnold Schwarzenegger
d) Robert Downey Jr.
Ans. (b) Robert De Niro
22. Which country is the safest place in the world as per World Economic Forum 2016
report?
a) Norway
b) Sweden
c) Qatar
d) Finland
Ans. (d) Finland
23. Which company recently launched Indias first indigenous electric bus?
a) Tata Motors
b) Mahindra & Mahindra
c) Ashok Leyland
d) Hindustan Motors
Ans. (c) Ashok Leyland
24. Name the grappler from India who clinched gold medal in 60kg category at the sixth
edition of the TAFISA World Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.
a) Naveen Kumar
b) Muhammad Alim
c) Luv Singh
d) Dalmiya
Ans. (d) Dalmiya
25. Name the manned spacecraft of China that was launched carrying two astronauts in
October 2016.
a) Shenzhou-10
b) Shenzhou-11
c) Long March-2F
d) Tiangong-2
Ans. (b) Shenzhou-11
26. Which country won the first BRICS U-17 football tournament?
a) Brazil
b) South Africa
c) Russia
d) China
Ans. (a) Brazil
27. Who of the following was appointed as member of IOC's Athletes' Commission?
a) Sania Mirza
b) Saina Nehwal
c) PV Sindhu
d) Pullela Gopichand
Ans. (b) Saina Nehwal
28. Name the ethnic tribes of India that in October 2016 called for an end to the custom of
Ravan effigy burning on Dussera.
a) Baiga
b) Gond
c) Tabo
d) Kondareddis
Ans. (c) Gond
29. Milk of which the following mammals contains an arsenal of antimicrobial compounds,
as per a recent research, that can kill several drug-resistant superbugs?
a) Red kangaroo
b) Tasmanian devil
c) Sugar glider
d) Eastern grey kangaroo
Ans. (b) Tasmanian devil
30. Name the Sikh-American actor after whom a day was named in New York.
a) Babaji Singh
b) Dharma Singh Khalsa
c) Waris Ahluwalia
d) Vikram Kaur Khalsa
Ans. (c) Waris Ahluwalia
LATEST GOVERNMENT JOBS CLOSING IN

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Current Affairs September 2016 eBook 1

Pick of the Month ..............................................................................5

Science & Technology ...................................................................... 71

Environment & Ecology .................................................................... 82

Report|Survey ............................................................................... 106

Summit and Conference ................................................................. 120

Corporate ...................................................................................... 123

Sports ............................................................................................ 129

Defence|Security ........................................................................... 149

At a Glance .................................................................................... 155

Committees | Commissions............................................................ 159

News Makers ................................................................................. 164

Awards|Honours ........................................................................... 169

Exam Boosters ............................................................................... 187

Quizzes .......................................................................................... 204

Latest Government Jobs Closing in November 2016 ........................ 214

PICK OF THE MONTH

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CHALLENGES WITH BRICS CREDIT RATING AGENCY

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