Daily Current Affairs 17/12/2013

• DMK rules out alliance with Congress for next year's Lok Sabha polls.

    •  Government confident of passing Lokpal Bill in the Rajya Sabha in the current session.

• Mortal remains of Sis Ram Ola to be consigned to flames with full state honours at his native village in Rajasthan today.

• At least 36 people killed in air raids in the Syrian city of Allepo.

• Vijay Diwas to commemorate India's victory over Pakistan in 1971 war being observed today.

• In Sports, Germany lift the Men's Junior Hockey World Cup for a record sixth time; Beat France, 5-2.

• National Games of Various Countries.

USA - Baseball.
Spain - Bull Fighting
Canada - Ice Hockey.
New Zealand - Rugby Union.
India - Hockey.
Pakistan - Hockey.
Bangladesh - Kabbadi.
Srilanka - Volley ball.
Russia - Football and Chess.
China - Table Tennis.
Brazil - Football.
France - Football
England - Cricket
Japan - Judo.
Australia - Cricket.
Malaysia - Badminton
Scotland - Rugby Football
Indonesia - Badminton
Bhutan - Archery.
Switzerland - Shooting and Gymnastics
Turkey - Wrestling and Jereed

Top 10 News 12/12/2013

1. The Union Road Transport and Highways (RTH) ministry has approved road construction of 6,418 km under Special Accelerated Road Development Project-North East for implementation of Phase A and the Arunachal Pradesh package of roads and highways. 

2. Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the government will not compromise on fiscal consolidation, and will contain fiscal deficit and bring it down to 3 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by the financial year 2016-17.

3. India's exports grew by 5.86 per cent in November to USD 24.6 billion, while imports dipped to the lowest level in more than two and a half years, helping narrow the trade deficit.

4. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe were named "Asians of the Year" for 2013 by Singapore's Straits Times, which urged them to reach out to each other to avert a conflict. 

5. First Trajectory Correction Manoeuvre of India's maiden mission to Mars was carried out successfully by ISRO scientists on spacecraft.

6. Nearly 230 million children under the age of five around the world have never had their birth registered, which often means they will be barred from education, health care and social security, the UN children's agency said. 

7. In a blow to gay rights activists, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of the penal provision making gay sex an offence punishable with upto life imprisonment.

8. Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani education activist who fearlessly took on the Taliban, has been conferred the 2013 UN Human Rights Prize.

9. The Reserve Bank said India's economy would grow about 5 per cent in this financial year while the current account deficit would be below 3 per cent of GDP.

10. Railways have carried 677.56 million tonnes (MT) of freight traffic during April-November, registering a growth of 4.72 per cent from the same period last year.

Top 10 news 9/12/2013

1. BJP inched towards wresting power in Delhi after 15 years with Congress pushed to the third position with a single digit tally by debutant AAP which has made a dent in strongholds of the ruling party.

2. Sheila Dikshit, Delhi's chief minister for 15 years, resigned after the Congress was routed in assembly elections, with she herself set to lose to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal.

3. To further ring-fence its jurisdiction from any attempts of round-tripping and money laundering activities, Mauritius has agreed to include a 'limitation of benefits (LOB)' clause in its revised tax treaty with India.

4. Clocking a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20 percent, India's health insurance premium is likely to cross Rs 32,038 crore by 2016-17, from Rs 13,092 crore recorded in 2011-12, on th back of rising income levels and health insurance premium, says an Assocham study.

5. US President Barack Obama warned that an "ideal" agreement to eliminate "every nut and bolt" of Iran's disputed nuclear programme was not a realistic goal.

6. The Law Ministry and the Planning Commission have backed an Oil Ministry proposal to allow Reliance Industries to almost double the price of gas from April.

7. State-owned Dena Bank plans to open its first overseas office in London by the end of this month.

8. Greece's parliament has approved a tough budget for next year, including further spending cuts of 3.1 billion euros (USD 4.2 billion), aimed at ending the country's deep recession.

9. Capital market regulator Sebi has ordered 33 entities to appear before it with regard to probes into various irregularities, after they were found untraceable.

10. The recent passage of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Act 2013 will spur growth potential of the investment corpus of the pension sector to over $1 trillion by the turn of 2025, according to a report by EY-CII.

Daily Current Affairs 9/12/2013

Miss Venezuela, Alyz Henrich became Miss Earth 2013

Alyz Henrich, the Miss Venezuela has been crowned with the pageant of Miss Earth 2013 at the Versailles Palace, Philippines.

Ali Osman Taha resigned as Vice President of Sudan

The Vice President of Sudan, Ali Osman Taha resigned from his office to pave way for the new Government.

Armed Forces Flag Day Observed Throughout the Country

Armed Forces Flag Day was observed across India on 7 December 2013. The day is observed on 7 December every year in India, since 1949.

International Civil Aviation Day observed on 7 December

International Civil Aviation Day was observed on 7 December 2013 to highlight the importance of civil aviation for social and economic development.

Jordan elected to UN Security Council as a Non-Permanent Member

UN General Assembly elected Jordan to the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member on 6 December 2013 to replace Saudi Arabia.

Ahmet Uzumcu re-appointed as OPCW Director General

Ambassador Ahmet Uzumcu was re-appointed as the OPCW Director-General at the 18th Session of the Conference of State Part.

All unfilled munitions by Syrian Government have been destroyed: OPCW

The Joint Mission has now verified that all Category 3 (unfilled) munitions declared by the Syrian Arab Republic have been destroyed.

Government of India Modified FDI Policy for unlisted Companies

The Government of India on 6 December 2013 modified the FDI policy allowing unlisted companies to directly list on stock exchanges abroad.

South Korea and US agreed to join hands to denuclearize North Korea

Vice President of US and the President of South Korea agreed to join hands to denuclearize North Korea.

Ministerial Panel recommended bailout package to Sugar Industry

A ministerial panel has recommended a bailout of 7200 crore rupees to sugar mills. The loan will be provided to pay off the arrears of cane grower.

9th WTO Ministerial Conference concluded at Bali, Indonesia

The 9th WTO Ministerial Conference was concluded on 6 December 2013 at Bali, Indonesia by agreeing the revised draft of Bali Package.

Sri Lanka to set up 8 economic zones across country

Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment has announced plans to start eight export processing and industrial zones across the country.

WTO revises Bali draft to address India's concern on Food Security

The World Trade Organization on 6 December 2013 agreed to allow countries to provide subsidy on staple food crops without any threat of punitive action.

8th Asia Gas Partnership Summit held at New Delhi

The 8th Asia Gas Partnership Summit (AGPS) was held from 3 to 4 December 2013 at New Delhi.

New Word A Day 9/12/2013

Que: Is the word "Enigma", an enigma?

MALINGER

Pronounced:

Ma-leen-ger

Synonyms:

Shirk; loaf; dodge

Definition:

Pretending to be sick to get out of doing work.

Sentence:

I knew he would malinger because he pretended to sneeze.

Memory Trick:

Mal - linger

Mal (reminds of) mal or bad

Linger (reminds of) linger or to hang around

We pretend to be mal because we want to linger.

MAL LINGER

 

Ans: It is, if you did not know what Enigma means. An enigma is a riddle. "The pyramids are an enigma. No one knows how they were made."

New Word A Day 8/12/2013

The zenith is the highest point. ZENITH Pronounced: Zee-nif Synonyms: Crest; climax; apex; Definition: Peaking at the highest point. Sentence: The zenith of your career is getting praise from your peers. Memory Trick: Zen - ith Zen (reminds of) Zen Zen is the highest state. ZEN There is a canon, in your house. You tell me, not to leave towels, on the floor. I take a shower. Why do I, follow your orders A canon is a collection of rules. Your rule is to pick up towels, after a shower.

Daily Current Affairs 7/12/2013

1. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserted that the Congress party would approach the 2014 Lok Sabha polls with self-confidence, irrespective of the poll projections of the just concluded elections in five states.

2. Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first elected black president and a global anti-apartheid icon died, at his home in the suburb of Houghton in Johannesburg, following a lengthy illness. He was 95.

3. Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, who survived a Taliban assassination attempt last year, has been awarded the 2013 UN Human Rights Prize, an honour previously given to icons like late Nelson Mandela in recognition of outstanding achievement in human rights. 

4. Centre decided to release the first tranche of assistance of Rs 300 crore towards relief and rehabilitation of the people hit by severe cyclonic storm Phailin in Odisha, a day after CPI(M) attacked the UPA government for not disbursing a single paisa so far.

5. Narendra Kothari, currently CEO of SAIL’s Burnpur plant, will take over as the new Chairman and Managing Director of State-run iron ore producer NMDC, which has been running without a full-time head for the last two years.

6. Investors are no longer required to pay stamp duty relating to agreements on demat account under the new guidelines introduced by market regulator SEBI, a move that will help save costs during registration with the securities market.

7. The Supreme Court agreed to hear CBI’s plea challenging the Gauhati High Court order declaring the agency as “unconstitutional”.

8. Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment has announced plans to start eight export processing and industrial zones across the country.

9. Kenyan politicians have adopted amendments to a controversial media Bill despite an opposition walk out and international concern about press freedom.

10. The Election Commission, in preparation for the 16th Lok Sabha polls due in April-May 2014, has asked Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of all States to update the necessary data and electoral rolls, officials in Agartala said.