Current Affairs: January 2016

Current Affairs: January 2016:

 

NATIONAL Current Affairs


 

  • Lodha Committee submits recommendation
  • Why Setup: To look into IPL-2013 Spot fixing scandal.
  • Recommendations:
    • Policy of One State – One Member – One Vote
    • Delink IPL & BCCI
    • Three new positions—an ombudsman, an ethics officer and an electoral officer.
    • Bring BCCI under RTI
    • Legalize Betting
    • Form a players association.
  • President of India promulgated the Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Ordinance, 2016 to make amendments to the Enemy Property Act, 1968.
  • What is Enemy Property:
    • When partition happened in 1947, Union(Central) Government took control of all property/ Companies of such persons who had taken Pakistani nationality and labeled them as Enemy Property.
    • Hence, Central Government was vested as custodian of all such property.
  • Why Ordinance was required?
    • Ordinance was needed to ensure that law of succession does not apply to such property and they are vested permanently in government control.
  • What is an Ordinance & Why used?
    • Article 123 of the Constitution empowers President to promulgate (issue) Ordinance when Parliament is not in session (in recess).
    • Similarly, Article 214 of Constitution empowers Governor to promulgate Ordinances.
    • An Ordinance has same force & effect as Act passed by parliament/ State legislature.
    • Ordinance ceases to operate after 6 weeks reassembly of Parliament/ State legislature.
    • Ordinance are issued only on advice of Council of Ministers.
  • Government drafted new TRANSPORT AND ROAD SAFETY BILL, 2015 to reduce road accidents by at least 50%.
  • Aim:
    • To provide a scientifically planned and evolving framework for the safety of all road users in India, including vulnerable road users.
    • To enable development of a secure, efficient, cost-effective, sustainable and inclusive transport system for movement of passenger and freight in the country
  • Proposes:
    • Technology up gradation & increase in Funding – safety
    • Motor Vehicle Regulation & Road Safety Authority of India: Independent Authority accountable to Parliament of India.
    • Unified Driving License system based on Biomterics
    • Unfied Vehicle Registration System integrating all stakeholders like manufacturer, owner, transport authority, insurer, and enforcement agency.
    • Creation of National Road Transport & Multimodal Coordination Authority for improving quality of road transportation.
  • In NEWS: Road accidents occurring due to Black Spots
  • What are Black Spots: Road locations that have a record of large numbers of crashes. In simple terms in each area there are few locations where majority of accidents take place.
  • Reason for Black spots is noncompliance with Road Safety Norms during design, construction and operation of roads including National Highways. Example:
    • Very Sharp-turn at end of straight road.
    • Hidden-junction on fast road etc.
  • Step taken by Government: A website has been launched where citizens can also identify and submit location of such spots.
  • A NEW PORTALS LAUNCHED FOR BRINGING TRANSPARENCY IN ROAD PROJECTS
  • By NHIDCL: National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation is a fully owned company of the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, Government of India, setup to fast-track highways construction in border areas and tough terrains
    • INAM-PRO: Procurement of Cement etc.
    • e-PACE: Enable people to know about highway projects status, funding and other details.
    • INFRACON: all the information about individual consultants and consultation firms.
  • A Union government and the World Bank signed a $50-million credit agreement for Nai Manzil
    • Scheme aims at helping young people from minority communities complete their education and improve their employment opportunities.
    • Launched by the Ministry of Minority Affairs in August 2015
  • Centre urged state level and central board schools to consider Open Text Based Assessment (OTBA) at board level after the recommendation of eight-member committee.
  • Government has set up a panel headed by Shyam Benegal to suggest measures for the revamp of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).
    • About CBFC: is a statutory body regulating the public exhibition of films under the provisions of the Cinematograph Act, 1952.
  • Berlin based Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2015 released on Wednesday shows that India has ranked at 76th
    • Denmark, least corrupt.
  • The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has won the National Award on e-Governance 2015-16 for launching the Universal Account Number (UAN).
  • Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways inaugurated the River Information System (RIS) on 06th
    • RIS will facilitate safe and accurate navigation on National Waterway – 1 on the Ganges River.
  • In a major step towards digitization, the Indian Railways on Monday launched a web-based system to monitor track maintenance on a real-time basis by replacing more than a lakh registers related to it.
  • Union government launched Kilkari, a mobile voice message service.
    • This service will deliver weekly messages to families about pregnancy, family planning, nutrition, childbirth and maternal and child care.
  • The Department of Pension & Pensioner’s welfare has launched online software -‘Anubhav’.
    • It will showcase the outstanding work by retiring employee and sharing experience of working with the Government.
  • Union government has decided to scrap National Development Council.
    • Government also passed a resolution for transferring its powers to the Governing Council of the NITI Aayog.
  • Union Government has approved the merger of the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
    • The primary task of the MOIA was to connect the Indian diaspora with its motherland by initiating various programmes.
  • A The Drug Authentication and Verification Application (DAVA) project of The Department of Commerce has won the 2015 eASIA Award under Trade Facilitation category.
    • DAVA is an integrated platform for implementation of the Track and Trace system for exporters and domestic markets of Drugs and Pharmaceuticals.
    • Using it drugs can easily be identified and recalled due to traceability of stocks which in turn helps in prevention of black marketing which especially arises during epidemics.
  • India’s biggest state owned gas importer Petronet LNG has signed a revised contract with RasGas of Qatar to import gas.
    • New Price 6-7 $ per million British thermal units (mmBtu). Savings of 4000 Crore.
  • Union Government is going to roll out LPG-like Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme for kerosene from 1st April 2016.
    • In the initial phase will be implemented in selected 26 districts of eight states. These states are Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan.
  • Union Government has constituted a one member-committee comprising of Kamlesh Chandra to examine the wage structure, service conditions of the Gramin Dak Sevaks (GDS) in the Department of Posts (DoP).
    • Gramin Dak Sevaks: are extra-departmental agents recruited by the Department of Post to serve in rural areas.
    • Presently, DoP has around 2.6 lakh Gramin Dak Sevaks and they have been demanding pay and facilities at par with regular postal department employees.
  • Telangana became first state to to legally accept motor vehicle insurance policy in digital form, after state Government launched e-Vahan Bima Scheme to issue motor insurance policy in digital form.
    • 4th January: World Braille day, birth anniversary of Louis Braille, inventor of Braille script or Braille code.
  • NABARD- National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development has signed a MOU with Hyderabad-based National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) for web-based monitoring of watershed projects.
  • Union Government has signed loan agreement with World Bank for Neeranchal National Watershed Project
  • The loan credit will support the watershed activities of the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) in selected sites in 9 states. States include Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Odisha , Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh.
  • Neeranchal National Watershed Project
    • Project is implemented by the Union Ministry of Rural Development over a six-year period (2016-21) to achieve objectives PMKSY.
    • Support the PMKSY in hydrology and water management, agricultural production systems, capacity building and monitoring and evaluation.
    • Seeks to ensure access to irrigation to every farmland (Har Khet Ko Pani) and for efficient use of water (Per Drop More Crop).
  • Former Defence Secretary Radha Krishna Mathur has been sworn in as the 8th Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of the Central Information Commission.
    • CIC is appointed by President on recommendation selection committee consisting of PM, Leader of largest opposition Party Lok Sabha(Mallikaarjun Kharge), Union Finance Minister.
  • Abid Ali Z. Neemuchwala has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Member of the Board of WIPRO.
  • Reserve Bank of India has imposed a monetary penalty of one crore rupees on State Bank of Travancore, an SBI associate bank for violation in reporting of data to Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC).
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 103rd edition of the Indian Science Congress (ISC) on January 3, 2016 in Mysuru, Karnataka.
    • 2016 theme: “Science and Technology for Indigenous Development in India.”
    • In speech PM gave new mantra of 5E’s – “Economy, Environment, Energy, Empathy and Equity”.
  • To enhance women representation in Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), Union Government has reserved 33 per cent posts of Constables for women.
  • Fast growing, harmful species of snowflake coral (Carijoa riisei) were discovered off the coast of Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari. These can be threat to ecology of the region.
  • Jharkhand became first state MoU with Union Government on Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) scheme.
  • Reliance Capital Asset Management (RCAM) has received nod from Competition Commission of India (CCI) to acquire Goldman Sachs’s mutual funds and exchange-traded funds business in India.
  • Union Government has launched Ganga Gram Yojana to develop 1600 villages in Uttar Pradesh (UP) situated along the banks of Ganga River.
    • The villages shall be developed under the Sichewal model (Village in Punjab), which is based on cooperation of the villagers for water management and waste disposal.
  • Andhra Bank has launched Immediate Payment Service (IMPS to provide inter-bank electronic fund transfer service.
    • Maximum cap of 2 Lac and charges per transaction of Rs 5.
    • IMPS is a multi-channel, multi-dimensional inter-bank electronic fund transfer platform that allows customers to transfer money electronically.
    • IMPS is round-the-clock real time instant fund transfer system, a feature not available in NEFT.
  • Union Cabinet has approved the Stand Up India Scheme to promote entrepreneurship among Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) and Women entrepreneurs.
  • Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has decided to implement the stricter emission norms of Bharat Stage (BS) VI from 1st April 2020 in a bid to curb vehicular pollution.
    • Presently BS-IV auto fuels are being supplied in Northern India States including Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, parts of Rajasthan and Western UP.
    • Rest of the country is being supplied has BS-III grade fuel.
    • The deadline implementation for BS-IV auto fuels is 2017 across the country.
    • Government has decided to skip BS-V and shift directly to BS-VI.
  • Union Cabinet has approved creation of a Credit Guarantee Fund (CGF) for Micro Units Development Refinance Agency (MUDRA)
    • MUDRA, is a wholly owned subsidiary of SIDBI.
  • India’s largest private sector lender ICICI Bank has partnered with FINO PayTech to foray into the payments bank space.
  • RBI regulations allow universal banks to invest up to 30 per cent in payments bank
  • Payment Banks:
    • Based on recommendation Nachiket Mor
    • Licensed as payments banks under Section 22 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and registered as public limited company under the Companies Act, 2013.
    • Minimum Capital required 100 Crore.
    • Deposits by customers capped at 1,00,000 Rs.
    • Cannot undertake lending activities.
    • It can accept Utility Bills.
  • Union Government has appointed former IAS Devender Kumar Sikri as Chairman of Competition Commission of India (CCI).
  • CCI:
    • Statutory body established under The Competition Act of 2002.
    • Established in 2003 and became fully functional in 2009.
  • The 14th edition of Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) was held in New Delhi
    • It is held on 9th January to mark return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to India i.e. on 9 January, 1915.
  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan has been conferred with the Central Banker of the Year Award (Global and Asia Pacific) for year 2016.
    • Awared by The Banker, a monthly publication of Financial Times Group.
  • Union Government has reappointed Dr Urjit Patel as Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for a second three-year term.
  • Deputy Governors of RBI:
    • RBI has 4 Deputy Governors.
    • 2 are from outside, a commercial banker (S. Mundra) and an economist (Urjit Patel)
    • 2 others are promoted from within its ranks. ( Gandhi & R. Khan)
  • 10th January: World Hindi Day
  • It is in addition to present National Hindi Divas, which is observed annually on 14 September to mark the day 14 September 1949 on which the Constituent Assembly adopted Hindi written in Devanagari script as the Official Language of the Union. 
  • Poet Balkrishna Garg conferred with 2015 Harikrishna Devsare Baalsahitya Award
  • A Senior IAS officer Sailesh has been appointed as Registrar General and Census Commissioner (RGCC) of India.
  • RGCC:
    • Responsible for conducting the decennial Census.
    • Heads the Census Organization (mentioned in entry 69 of seventh schedule of Constitution) which functions under Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
  • Telangana has become the first State in the country to introduce compulsory gender education at the graduate level.
  • Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes (CIRB), Hisar, Haryana – successfully produced a cloned buffalo offspring named ‘Cirb Gaurav’.
    • 1st to do: National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) , Kamal, Haryana did same.
  • January 12: National Youth day
  • To mark birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda.
    • Swami Vivekananda was born on 12 January 1863 as Narendranath Dutta and died on 4 July 1902.
    • Gave inspiring speech in World’s Religions Parliament held at Chicago in 1893
    • Follower of Ramkrishna Paramhansa
    • Founder Ramakrishna Mission
  • Union Government constituted a committee under Arvind Panagariya, to fast track the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor.
    • Committee will speed up interaction with Japan, which has promised investment of 78000 Cr in the project.
  • IMD Changes definitions related to weather forecasting:
  • Standardization of key terms:
    • Severe Cold Wave: Minimum temperature is 2 degree C or lower.
    • Cold Wave: Temperatures less than 4.5 degree C above usual temperatures for the region.
    • Heat Wave: Temperatures greater than 4.5 degree C above usual temperatures for the region.
    • Severe Heat Wave: Temperatures greater than or equal to 47 degree C.
  • Classification of all-India rainfall into 5 categories:
    • Below normal: Rainfall lower than 10 per cent below average of the lpa.
    • Normal: ± 10 per cent of the long period average (lpa).
    • Above normal: Rainfall greater than 10 per cent above average of the lpa.
    • Deficient year: Rainfall deficit between 10 and 20 per cent up to 40 per cent of India’s spatial area.
    • Large deficient year: Rainfall deficit of over 10 per cent across more than 40 per cent of India’s area.
  • Criteria to classify seasonal rainfall
  • The rules have been changed to classify seasonal rainfall.
  • IMD has introduced 6 new categories replacing old four rainfall categories (excess, normal, deficient and scanty).
  • New categories are:
    • No Rain: 0 per cent.
    • Large deficient: below 60 per cent
    • Deficient: minus 20 per cent to minus 59 per cent.
    • Normal: minus 19 per cent to plus 19 per cent;
    • Excess: between 20 per cent and 59 per cent.
    • Large excess: 60 per cent and above.
  • Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has launched the high speed 4G (Fourth Generation) telecom services at Chandigarh in Punjab circle .
    • With this launch, BSNL became 5th telecom service provider in India to launch 4G service after Airtel (1st), Aircel (2nd), Vodafone (3rd) and Reliance Jio (4th).
  • Kerala has become the first Indian state to achieve 100 per cent primary education.
    • Scheme behind achievement: Athulyam Scheme.
  • Lt Gen JFR Jacob, 1971 India-Pakistan war hero passes away: wrote:
    • Books: Surrender at Dacca: Birth of a Nation, An Odyssey in War and Peace: An Autobiography Lt Gen. J.F.R. Jacob.
  • Union Cabinet has approved Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, a new crop insurance scheme to boost farming sector in the country.
    • Farmers need to pay 2% for Kharif & 1.5% for rabi crops.
    • Government will pay balance premium to provide full insurance amount to the farmers against crop loss on account of natural calamities.
    • The scheme will replace existing two schemes viz. National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS) and Modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (mNAIS)
  • India has decided to become member country of the International Energy Agency – Ocean Energy Systems (IEA-OES) to boost for country’s quest for tapping ocean energy sources.
  • A State Bank of India (SBI) has launched dedicated specialized branch for start-ups called ‘SBI InCube’ in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
  • Madhya Pradesh has been conferred the Union Government’s Krishi Karman Award in maximum food grains production category for year 2014-15 for the 4th consecutive year.
  • Expert Committee to simplify income tax laws headed by Justice (retired)V. Easwar has submitted its report to Union Finance Ministry.
  • Sikkim has formally become India’s first fully organic state after it successfully implemented organic farming practices on around 75,000 hectares of agricultural land.
  • National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 4: Phase I data released
  • The NFHS-4 is the fourth in a series of national surveys after 2005-06 (NFHS-3), 1998-99 (NFHS-2) and 1992-93 (NFHS-1). (Details shall be compiled in separate post)
  • Union Cabinet approved MOU between Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Kuwait Institute of Scientific Research (KISR) on cooperation in the exploration of outer space and use of outer space technology for peaceful purposes.
  • 19th edition of National Conference on e-Governance has begun on 21 January 2016 in Nagpur, Maharashtra.
  • 2016 Padma Awards given:
    • Separate Post (On Indian Awards)
  • 25th January: National Voters Day
  • Theme 2016: Inclusive and Qualitative Participation.
  • Foundation day of ECI
  • Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi also released the book titled Belief in the Ballot and presented the first copy to the President.
  • Union Government has launched Sahaj Scheme for online booking of LPG cylinders.
  • 2016: 150th birth anniversary of Lala Lajpat Rai
    • In 1921, he had founded Servants of the People Society, a non-profit welfare organisation, in Lahore.
    • He established the nationalistic Dayanand Anglo-Vedic School and became a follower of Dayanand Saraswati (founder of the Arya Samaj).
    • He was also associated with the foundation of Punjab National Bank in 1895 and later Lakshmi Insurance Company
    • Author of The Story of My Deportation (1908), Arya Samaj (1915), The United States of America: A Hindu’s Impression (1916), Unhappy India (1928)
    • He died on 17 November 1928 after sustaining serious injuries in lathi charge, in a non-violent protest against Simon Commission.
  • India has overtaken Thailand as the world’s largest rice exporter in the year 2015 by shipping (exporting) 10.23 million tonnes of rice.
  • Naresh Bedi has been conferred with the V Shantaram Life Time Acheivement Award at 14th edition of 2016 Mumbai International Festival (MIFF), Mumbai.

 

SPORTS Current Affairs:


  • India won the 2015-South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) championship by beating Afghanistan.
  • India’s star amputee mountaineer Arunima Sinha has successfully scaled Mount Aconcagua in Argentina as part of her Mission 7 Summits.
  • 4 already climbed include: Everest (Asia), Mt. Kilimanjaro (Africa), Mt. Elbrus (Europe), Mt.Kosizko (Australia)
  • Former Cricketer Syed Kirmani was honoured with the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award in Mumbai (Maharashtra) for his contribution to Indian cricket.
    • Cottari Kanakaiya Nayudu was country’s first Test captain.
  • Indian ace shooter Apurvi Chandela has set a new world record in the women’s 10 metre air rifle event at the 2015 Swedish Cup Grand Prix.
  • Ace Indian tennis player Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis have won the 2016 WTA Brisbane International Tennis trophy in the women’s doubles category.
  • The first female F1 (Formula One) driver Maria Teresa de Filippis passed away on 8 January 2016 in Italy.
  • Barcelona FC forward Lionel Messi from Argentina has won the 2016 FIFA Ballon d’Or Award.

 
 

DEFENCE & SCIENCE Current Affairs:


  • Anti-submarine warfare (ASW) corvette INS Kadmatt has been commission in the Indian Navy by Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral R K Dhowan at naval dockyard in Visakhapatnam
    • It is the second ship of Project 28 (P28) class ASW corvettes and is the latest ship after Shivalik class, Kolkata class and INS Kamorta.
  • India and France have started their eight-day counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency bilateral military exercise Shakti-2016 in Rajasthan.
  • Bilateral exercise by the Indian Coast Guard and its Japanese counterpart titled ‘Sahayog-Kaijin 2016’ began off the coast of Chennai, Tamil Nadu in the Bay of Bengal.
  • The indigenously-built 3rd generation anti-tank missile Nag was successfully test fired at Mahajan Field Firing Range in Rajasthan.
    • Range: 500m to 4km (Land version), 7-10km (Air-launched).
    • Guidance system: Incorporated with advance Active Imaging infra-red (IIR) seeker.
  • 15th January: Indian Army day
  • Significance:
    • In 1949, on this day, Lt. General (later Field Marshal) Kodandera Madappa Cariappa became the first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army
  • ISRO launched India’s fifth navigation Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) 1E satellite.
  • Launched on board of PSLV-C31 rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR), Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
  • Indian Regional Navigation Satellite system (IRNSS)
    • Constellation of 7 satellites of which 3 are geostationary and 4 are non-geostationary.
    • Alternative to GPS system, presently used for navigation.
  • Scientists have discovered a new bird species named Himalayan Forest Thrush in northeastern India and adjacent parts of China.
  • Ace Indian Shuttler Pusarla Venkata Sindhu (World No.12) has won the 2016 Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold Badminton
  • Marvin Minsky, the pioneer of artificial intelligence passed away on 24 January 2016 in Boston, United States due to cerebral hemorrhage. He was 88.
  • Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has signed cyber security agreement with its counterparts in Malaysia, Singapore and Japan.
    • CERT-In is nodal department under Union Ministry of Communications and Information Technology that deals with cyber security threats like hacking and phishing in India. Headquarters: New Delhi.

 

INTERNATIONAL Current Affairs:


  • An Indian-origin cancer research expert Harpal Singh Kumar was honoured with a Knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II for his influential work on prevention and treatment of cancer.
  • India and Pakistan exchanged the list of their nuclear installations and facilities as part of the Agreement on the Prohibition of Attack against Nuclear installations. This exchange is done on 1st of January every year and prohibits them from attaching each other’s nuclear facilities.
  • A friendship bus service between India and Nepal was flagged off via Champawat district in Uttarakhand after a gap of 27 years.
    • Why was service suspended: Bus Service was suspended 27 years back in the wake of the Indo-Nepal Trade and Transit Treaty.
  • Union cabinet has approved MOU with Bangladesh for Mode of Operation of Border Haats on India-Bangladesh Border signed in 2010.
    • Border Haats: Small rural market along border.
  • United Nations (UN) official Filippo Grandi from Italy has taken the charge as new UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
  • UNHCR is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees. It is a member of the United Nations Development Group.
    • Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
    • Established: December 14, 1950.
  • Union Cabinet has approved MOU between India and Singapore on cooperation in the field of civil aviation.
  • The British writer, Kate Atkinson has won the 2015 Costa novel award for her novel “A God in Ruins”.
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping has formally opened Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in Beijing (HQ).
    • AIIB is backed by China and is seen as rival to World Bank & Asian Development Bank.
    • 57 members, of which 37 are regional and 20 non-regional Prospective Founding Members (PFM).
    • Authorized Capital: 100 Billion US dollars.
    • China Largest, India 2nd
    • India’s Dinesh Sharma has been elected to the board of directors of the China-sponsored Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
  • Important note: BRICS bank is different, New Development Bank. – its HQ is Shanghai, China.
  • Pro-Independence Opposition candidate of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Tsai Ing-wen (59) has been elected as first female and 14th President of Taiwan.
  • Indian writer Anuradha Roy has won the on the prestigious $50,000 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature for her novel ‘Sleeping on Jupiter’.
  • United States removed a wide range of nuclear sanctions against Iran after it has meet its commitments to roll back its nuclear programme.
    • These sanctions were lifted after International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that Iran has met its commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) or Vienna agreement with P5+1 countries signed in July 2015.
  • India ranked 89th globally in Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) 2015-16 list of 106 assessed countries in terms of talent competitiveness of its human capital.
    • INSEAD business school, in partnership with Adecco and Human Capital Leadership Institute of Singapore (HCLI), compiled the GTCI list.
  • Union Cabinet approved MOU between India and United Kingdom for Cooperation in the field Public Administration and Governance Reforms.
  • The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting was held in Swiss resort of Davos, Switzerland
    • WEF established in 1971, HQ: Geneva , Switzerland
  • The first Ministerial Meeting of Arab-India Cooperation Forum was held Manama, capital city of Bahrain.

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