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1 Contents Union Budget : A Complete Analysis... 3 The Most Important 35 Points from the Economic Survey... 5 The Most Important Current Affairs for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO Exams... 7 Static Takeawys from January 2018 Current Affairs Static Take Aways December 2017 Current Affairs Static Take-Aways November 2017 Current Affairs Current Affairs Injections: 1st to 6th February Static Takeaways from February 2018 Current Affairs BANKING & FINANCIAL AWARENESS CURRENT AFFAIRS ECONOMY/FINANCIAL CURRENT AFFAIRS Static Takeaways from Banking & Economy Current Affairs BUSINESS NEWS (NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL) Static Takeaways from Business Current Affairs AGREEMENTS/MOU SIGNED NEW APPOINTMENTS: NATIONAL NEW APPOINTMENTS: INTERNATIONAL Countries Capital Currency Part Static Takeaways from New Appointments AWARDS CURRENT SUMMITS/EVENTS HELD (NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL) COMMITTEES IN NEWS NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS CURRENT AFFAIRS RELATED TO STATES IN INDIA ALL ABOUT THE STATES IN INDIA CM/GOVERNORS/WILDLIFE SANTUARIES/NATIONAL PARKS / POWER PLANTS IN INDIA Country & Currency in News OBITUARIES (NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL) LIST/INDEXES ANNOUNCED RECENTLY Static Takeaways: Index/Reports released by different Organisations IMPORTANT DAYS OBSERVED RECENTLY BOOKS & AUTHORS Adda247 App

2 DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS SPORTS CURRENT AFFAIRS International Organization In News Science & Technology (Nasa, Isro & Others) SCHEMES MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS Banking Awareness for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO HANDY NOTES BANKING: PRIORITY SECTOR LENDING Static Awareness Capsule for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO IMPORTANT AIRPORTS IN INDIA BOUNDARY LINES IMPORTANT DAMS IN INDIA IMPORTANT DAYS Adda247 App

3 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presents the Union Budget on 1st February In his speech he said that, "When our government took over, India was part of "fragile five," but now are now the fastest growing economy of the world. He also said that Indian economy is a $2.5 trillion economy. India is expected to become the fifth largest economy very soon. Agriculture & Rural Economy The government will set up a fund of Rs 2,000 crore for developing agricultural markets. MSP for Kharif cost will be 1.5 times the cost of production. The government will develop 22,000 Gramin agricultural markets. The cluster-model approach will be adopted for agricultural production. Allocation in food production sector doubled to Rs 1400 crore. Minimum Support Price shall be increased by 1.5 times. Operation Green will be launched for agriculture & the Minister allocates Rs500 crore for this. Agricultural corpus worth Rs 2000 crore will be set up. 470 APMCs have been connected to enam network, the rest to be connected by March A fund for the fishery, aquaculture development & animal husbandry will be set up with a total corpus to be Rs 10,000 crore. We will also allocate Rs 1290 crore for a bamboo mission, as it is green gold. In all, we are providing Rs 10 lakh crore to Rs 11 lakh crore as credit for agricultural activities. Ujjwala Yojana, the free LPG connection scheme expanded to eight crore households. Six crore toilets have been built already, & in the next year, two crore additional toilets will be constructed. The government will provide 4 crore electricity connections to the poor under Saubhagya Yojana. Kisan credit card to be extended to fisheries,animal husbandry farmers. The government will establish a dedicated affordable housing fund. Loans to self-help groups will increase to Rs75,000 crore. Govt. allocated Rs5,750 crore to National Livelihood Mission & Rs2,600 crore to the groundwater irrigation scheme. Education, Health & Social Protection Outlay on health, education & social protection will be 1.38 lakh crore. By 2022, every block with more than 50% ST population & at least 20,000 tribal people will have 'Ekalavya' school at par with Navodaya Vidyalas. Union Budget : A Complete Analysis A major initiative named Revitalising Infrastructure & Systems in Education (RISE) to be launched by 2022 with a total investment of Rs.1,00,000 crore in next four years. Government will launch the Prime Minister s Research Fellows (PMRF) Scheme this year. Allocation on National Social Assistance Programme this year has been kept at Rs crore. Govt. is launching a new national health protection scheme Rashtriya Samaj Beema Yojana. This will have 50 crore beneficiaries & 10 crore families will get 5 lakh per year for their families to cover secondary & tertiary hospital expenses. This is the world's largest government-funded healthcare program. A Rs 600 crore corpus is being set up to help Tuberculosis patients. This will build a new India in 2022 & enhance productivity & will also generate lakhs of jobs for women. PM Jeevan Beema Yojana benefitted more than 2 crore families. Jan Dhan Yojana will be extended to all 60 crore bank accounts. Rs 1200 crores allocated for the National Health Policy, 2017, which with 1.5 lakh Health & Wellness Centres will bring health care system closer to the homes of people. Government will be setting up 24 new Government Medical Colleges & Hospitals. All 4465 Ganga Grams villages on the bank of river - have been declared open defecation free. Medium, Small & Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) & Employment Rs crores provided for giving credit support, capital & interest subsidy & for innovations. Target of Rs.3 lakh crore for lending under MUDRA for Employment Generation Finance Minister cited an independent study as showing that 70 lakh formal jobs will be created this year. An outlay of Rs.7148 crore for the textile sector in EPF contribution has been reduced to 8% for the first 3 years of employment & 12% government contribution to EPF in sectors employing a large number of people, however, there will be no changes in employer contribution. Infrastructure & Financial Sector Development Increase of budgetary allocation on infrastructure for to Rs.5.97 lakh crore Adda247 App

4 Under the Bharatmala Pariyojana, about kms road construction in Phase-I at an estimated cost of Rs.5,35,000 crore has been approved. Railways Railways Capital Expenditure for the year has been pegged at Rs.1,48,528 crore. 600 railway stations to be redeveloped. Over 3600 km railway track renovation targeted in the current year. In Railways, 18,000 kms of doubling of tracks would eliminate capacity constraints. We are moving towards optimum electrification of the railway. Over 3,600 km of track renewal is being targeted in km additional suburban railway network at the cost of Rs. 40,000 cr. Rs 11,000 crore is being allocated for Mumbai Suburban Railways. Proposal for railway university in Vadodara. Rs. 17,000 crore is being set aside for Bengaluru Metro. Govt. to eliminate over 4,267 unmanned level crossings in the next two years. All railway stations & trains will have WiFi & 150 kilometres of additional suburban corridors in being planned. Air Transport Airport capacity to be hiked to handle 1 billion trips per year. UDAN will connect 56 unserved airports & 36 unserved heliports. As per the FM, The Airport Authority of India has 124 airports. Finance & Digital Economy Government will establish a unified authority for regulating all financial services in International Finance Service Centre (IFSCs) in India. NITI Aayog will initiate a national program to direct efforts in artificial intelligence. Department of Science & Technology will launch a Mission on Cyber Physical Systems Allocation on Digital India programme increased to Rs 3073 crore in Proposed to set up five lakh wi-fi hotspots to provide net connectivity to five crore rural citizens. Rs crores allocated in for creation & augmentation of Telecom infrastructure. Disinvestment Finance Minister announced that disinvestment target of Rs. 72,500 crores has been exceeded & expected receipts of Rs.1,00,000 crore. Disinvestment target of Rs. 80,000 crores for Three Public Sector Insurance companies- National Insurance Co. Ltd., United India Assurance Co. Ltd., & Oriental India insurance Co. Ltd., will be merged into a single insurance entity. A comprehensive Gold Policy will be formulated to develop gold as an asset class To celebrate the 150 Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi an amount of Rs.150 crore set aside for the activities leading to the commemoration programme. Fiscal Management, Direct & Indirect Taxes Budget Revised Estimates for expenditure in are Rs lakh crore (net of GST compensation transfers to the States) as against the Budget Estimates of Rs lakh crore. FM projected a Fiscal Deficit of 3.3% of GDP for the year Revised Fiscal Deficit estimates for were put at Rs lakh crore at 3.5% of GDP. Proposed acceptance of key recommendations of the Fiscal Reform & Budget Management Committee to bring down Central Government s Debt to GDP ratio to 40%. Growth of direct taxes in financial year was 12.6 percent, & for financial year (upto 15th Jan, 2018) is 18.7 percent. Buoyancy in personal income tax for financial year (RE) is Number of Effective Tax Payers has increased from 6.47 crore at the beginning of Financial year to 8.27 crore at the end of Proposed 100 percent deduction to companies registered as Farmer Producer Companies with an annual turnover upto Rs. 100 crores on profit derived from such activities, for a period of five years from financial year Payments exceeding Rs. 10,000 in cash made by trusts & institutions shall be disallowed & would be subject to tax. Long Term Capital Gains exceeding Rs. 1 lakh to be taxed at the rate of 10 percent, without allowing any indexation benefit. Proposed to introduce a tax on distributed income by equity oriented mutual funds at the rate of 10 percent Proposed to increase the cess on personal income tax & corporation tax to 4 percent from the present 3 percent. It will be called the Health & Education Cess. Increase customs duty on mobile phones from 15 percent to 20 percent, on some of their parts & accessories to 15 percent & on certain parts of televisions to 15 percent. Customs duty is proposed to be reduced on raw cashew from 5 percent to 2.5 percent, to help the cashew processing industry Adda247 App

5 Proposed to change the name of the Central Board of Excise & Customs (CBEC) to the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC). Deduction of 30 percent on emoluments paid to new employees Under Section 80-JJAA to be relaxed to 150 days for footwear & leather industry, to create more employment. No adjustment in respect of transactions in immovable property where Circle Rate value does not exceed 5 percent of consideration. Standard Deduction of Rs. 40,000 in place of present exemption for transport allowance & reimbursement of miscellaneous medical expenses. 2.5 crore salaried employees & pensioners to benefit. Introduce a tax on distributed income by equity oriented mutual fund at the rate of 10%. Relief to Senior Citizens proposed in the Budget Exemption of interest income on deposits with banks & post offices to be increased from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 50,000. Benefit also available for interest from all fixed deposit schemes & recurring deposit schemes. Hike in deduction limit for health insurance premium and/ or medical expenditure from Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 50,000 under section 80D. Increase in deduction limit for medical expenditure for certain critical illness from Rs. 60,000 (in case of senior citizens) & from Rs. 80,000 (in case of very senior citizens) to Rs. 1 lakh for all senior citizens, under section 80DDB. Proposed to extend Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana up to March, Current investment limit proposed to be increased to Rs. 15 lakhs from the existing limit of Rs. 7.5 lakh per senior citizen. Other Important Highlights from the Budget To make the villages open defecation free & improving the lives of villagers, FM announced the launch of Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBAR-DHAN) crore allocated under Prime Minister Krishi Sinchai Yojna to provide assured irrigation in 96 deprived irrigation districts Allocation of Rs 1,34,572 crore has been made for the transport sector while the efforts to develop disaster resilient infrastructure is being given a push with an allocation of Rs. 60 crores in Total earmarked allocation for SCs in 279 programmes increased to Rs. 56,619 crores & for STs in 305 programmesto Rs. 39,135 crores for Under the Smart City mission, 99 cities selected with the outlay of Rs lakh crores. The government announced AMRUT program to focus on water supply to all households in 500 cities. Water supply contracts for 494 projects worth 19,428 crores will be awarded. 24 Public Sector Units to be divested. The government will involve a scheme to assign every enterprise a unique ID just like Aadhaar. The Department of Investment & Public Asset Management will come up with debt Exchange Traded Fund. National Logistics Portal as a single online window will link all stakeholders, to be developed by Department of Commerce. Salaries of President, VP & Governors will be increased. Rs. 5 lakhs for President, Rs 4.0 lakh for VP & Rs 3.5 lakh for governors. Salaries of Members of Parliament will also be raised. A new law will be introduced that will automatically revise MPs' emoluments every five years, indexed to inflation. Government to set up two industrial defence industrial development corridors in Estimates 1.38 trillion rupees expenditure on health, education & social security. Railway capital expenditure set at 1.49 trillion rupees for 2018/19. The Most Important 35 Points from the Economic Survey Economic Survey is an annual document of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, & reviews the developments in the Indian economy over the previous 12 months, summarises the performance on major development programs, & highlights the policy initiatives of the government & the prospects of the economy in the short to medium term. Economic Survey tabled in Parliament on 29 th January 2018 by the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Shri Arun Jaitley. 1. The Economic Suvey was in pink colour to highlight the gender issues. 2. As per the Economic Survey, a series of major reforms undertaken over the past year will allow real GDP growth to reach 6.75 percent this fiscal & will rise to 7.0 to 7.5 percent in The Gross Value Added (GVA) at constant basic prices is expected to grow at the rate of 6.1 per cent in as compared to 6.6 per cent in Agriculture, industry & services sectors are expected to grow at the Adda247 App

6 rate of 2.1 per cent, 4.4 per cent, & 8.3 per cent respectively in Economic Survey draws attention to 10 new Economic facts on Indian Economy. Goods & Services Tax (GST) has given a new perceptive of the Indian economy & new data has emerged. There has been a fifty percent increase in the number of indirect taxpayers. 5. As per the survey, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu & Telangana account for 70% of India s exports. India s internal trade in goods & services is 60 percent of GDP. 6. Over the last years, India s performance improved on 14 out of 17 indicators of women s agency, attitudes, & outcomes. 7. The Gross Non-Performing Advances (GNPA) ratio of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) increased from 9.6 percent to 10.2 percent between March 2017 & September Non-Food Credit (NFC) grew at 8.85 percent Y-o-Y in November 2017 as compared to 4.75 per cent in November Bank credit lending to Services & Personal Loans (PL) segments continue to be the major contributor to overall NFC growth. The IBC mechanism is being used actively to resolve the NPA problem of the banking sector. A major factor behind the effectiveness of the new Code has been the adjudication by the Judiciary. 8. Consumer Price Index(CPI) based headline inflation averaged 3.3 percent during the period which is the lowest in the last six financial years. 9. As per the survey, the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) which is a volume index with base year , shows that the industrial output increased by 3.2 percent during April-November As per the survey, the Eight Core Infrastructure Supportive Industries, viz. Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Petroleum, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement & Electricity attained a cumulative growth of 3.9 percent during April-November, In (April September), the inflow of total FDI was to the quantum of USD billion. 10. Regarding Civil Aviation Sector, the Economic Survey says that in (April - September), domestic airlines carried 57.5 million passengers, showing a growth rate of 16% over the corresponding previous year period, with 10.3 percent domestic cargo handled. 11. Highlighting the initiatives & achievement in the Power Sector, the Survey mentions that All-India installed power generation capacity has reached 3,30,860.6 MW as on 30thNovember, 2017 & electrification in 15,183 villages has been completed. 12. As per the survey, with growing rural to urban migration by men, there is feminisation of agriculture sector, with increasing number of women in multiple roles as cultivators, entrepreneurs, & labourers. For Recognizing the critical role of women in agriculture, the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has declared 15th October of every year as Women Farmer s Day. 13. As per the survey, Rs.20,339 crores has been approved by the Government in to meet various obligations arising from interest subvention being provided to the farmers on short term crop loans, as also loans on post-harvest storages meets an important input requirement of the farmers in the country, especially small & marginal farmers who are the major borrowers. 14. The Survey says that the actual expenditure of Department of Agricultural Research & Education/Indian Council of Agricultural Research has increased from Rs.5393 crore in to Rs.6800 (BE) crore during According to the survey, on 30th November 2017, the share of renewable energy sources was 18 percent in the total installed capacity of electricity. 16. During the period April-September , growth in services exports & services imports were robust at 16.2 per cent & 17.4 per cent. To boost services exports, the Government in its mid-term Review of Foreign Trade Policy , has increased incentives under Services Exports from India Schemes (SEIS) by 2 per cent, leading to an additional annual incentive of Rs.1,140 crores 17. As per the Survey, out of the 32 States & Union Territories (UTs), in 15 states & UTs, the Services Sector is the dominant sector, contributing more than half of the Gross State Value Added (GSVA). The major services in most of the States are trade, hotels & restaurants, followed by real estate, ownership of dwellings & business services. 18. FDI equity inflows to the services sector grew by 15.0 percent during (April-October). At present, more than 90 per cent of FDI inflows are through automatic route. 19. The Services sector, with a share of 55.2 per cent in India s Gross Value Added (GVA), continued to be the key driver of India s economic growth contributing almost 72.5 per cent of GVA growth in , as per the Economic Survey The growth of Service Sector as a whole is expected to be at 8.3 per cent in , the growth in Services exports was 16.2 per cent in H1 of Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) during 2017 were 10.2 million, with a growth of 15.6 per cent, while Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEEs) from tourism were US$ 27.7 billion, with a growth of 20.8 per cent over India s gross expenditure on R&D has been at around 1 per cent of GDP. India ranks 60th out of 127 on the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2017, improving from 66th rank in Adda247 App

7 22. Foreign exchange earnings of India from export of satellite launch services increased noticeably in & to Rs 394 crore. 23. Expenditure on Social services stands at 6.6 per cent in (BE). 24. The Survey mentions that there has been highest ever budget allocation under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) during About 4.6 crore households were provided employment totaling crore person days during as on 14th January, Out of this, 54 per cent were generated by women, 22 per cent by Schedule Castes & 17 per cent by Schedule Tribes. 25. The Survey takes note of the National Health Policy 2017 which recommended increasing State sector health spending to more than 8 per cent of the States Government Budget by As per the survey, With the launch of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) on 2nd October, 2014, the sanitation coverage in rural India has increased substantially from 39 per cent in 2014 to 76 percent in January, The number of persons defecating in open in rural areas, which were 55 crore in October, 2014 declined to 25 crore in January, So far, 296 districts & 307,349 villages all over India have been declared Open Defecation Free (ODF). Eight states & two Union Territories. i.e., Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Daman & Diu & Chandigarh have been declared as ODF completely. 27. As per the survey, DEMONITISATION HAS HELPED SHARE OF FINANCIAL SAVING RISE 28. India s foreign exchange reserves reached US$ billion on end-december Foreign exchange reserves grew by 14.1 percent on a y-o-y basis from end December 2016 (US$ billion) to end December 2017 (US$ billion). Foreign exchange reserves increased further to US$ billion on January 12, India s CAD stood at US$7.2 billion (1.2 percent of GDP) in Q2 of , narrowing sharply from US$ 15.0 billion (2.5 percent of GDP) in the preceding quarter. 30. Economic Survey calls for Fiscal Federalism & accountability to avoid low equilibrium trap. 31. As India emerges as one of the world s largest economics, it needs to gradually move from being a net consumer of knowledge to becoming a net producer. This has been emphasized in the Economic Survey. 32. Current account deficit for expected to average between 1.5%-2% of GDP. 33. Personal income-tax collections to rise to 2.3% of GDP in As per the survey, India will need $4.5 trillion investment in infrastructure by As per the Survey, the policy agenda for next year is support agriculture, privatise Air India, finish bank recapitalization. The Most Important Current Affairs for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO Exams Padma Awards 2018 Announced: Full List of Recipients The President of India has approved the awards for 85 individuals, which includes 3 Padma Vibhushan, 9 Padma Bhushan & 73 Padma Shri. Fourteen of the awardees are women & 3 persons have been awarded posthumously. In sports personalities, former India cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni & multiple world champion cueist Pankaj Advani have been conferred with the third-highest civilian award, Padma Bhushan. The 2017 World Weightlifting Champion Saikhom Mirabai Chanu & former Asian Games gold medallist tennis player Somdev Devvarman have been conferred with the Padma Shri. The awards are announced on the eve of the Republic Day every year. Padma Vibhushan Awards (2nd highest civilian award) Winner Category Ilayaraja Art (Music) Ghulam Mustafa Khan Art (Music) Parameswaran Parameswaran Literature & Education Padma Bhushan Awards (3rd highest civilian award) Winner Category Pankaj Advani Sport (Billiards/Snooker) Adda247 App

8 Mahendra Singh Dhoni Alexander Kadakin (Foreigner/Posthumous) Ved Prakash Nanda Laxman Pai Arvind Parikh Sharda Sinha Philipose Mar Chrysostom Ramachandran Nagaswamy GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Sports (Cricket) Public Affairs Literature & Education Art (Painting) Art (Music) Art (Music) Others (Spiritualism) Others (Archaeology) And the Grammy 2018 award goes to The 60th Annual Grammy Awards were held at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the USA. James Corden was the host of the ceremony for the second year in a row. It was Bruno Mars' night at the Grammy Awards held in New York, with the three biggest wins - Album of The Year & Record of The Year for 24K Magic & Song of The Year for 'That's What I Like'. The list of winners is given below: Album of The Year: Bruno Mars Song of the Year: Bruno Mars', That's What I Like Record of The Year: Bruno Mars, 24K Magic Best Pop Solo Performance: Ed Sheeran, Shape of You Best Pop Vocal Album: Ed Sheeran, Divide Best Dance Recording: LCD Soundsystem, Tonite Best Music Film: The Defiant Ones Best Children's Album: Feel What U Feel, Lisa Loeb Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media: La La Land Producer of the Year, Classical: David Frost Complete list of Winners of Australian Open Category Winner Runner Up Men's Roger Federer Marin Cilic (Croatia) Singles (Switzerland) Women's Singles Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) Simona Halep (Romania) Men's Doubles Women's Doubles Oliver Marach (Austria) & Mate Pavic(Croatia) Kristina Mladenovic (France) & Tímea Babos (Hungary) Robert Farah & J. Cabal (Colombia) Elena Vesnina (Russia)& Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) Mixed Doubles Gabriela Dabrowski (Canada)& Mate Pavic (Croatia) Timea Babos (Hungary)& Rohan Bopanna (India) World Economic Forum Summit in Switzerland Concludes Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned home after concluding his visit to Davos, Switzerland. During the visit, he delivered a keynote address at the plenary session of the 48th annual meeting of World Economic Forum. He became the first Indian prime minister in two decades to join the world s top business leaders in the Swiss resort town of Davos. Mr Modi outlined climate change, terrorism & protectionism as three global threats. He also met his Canadian counterpart, Justin Trudeau. Both leaders discussed issues of mutual interest & reiterated their commitment to stand firm in combating terrorism. He also held a meeting with Queen Maxima of the Netherlands & discussed steps to deepen the bilateral relationship. He also interacted with top global CEOs at the International Business Council event. Note: Capital of Switzerland- Bern, Currency- Swiss franc Founder & Chairman of WEF- Klaus Schwab. Cabinet Approves Amendments in FDI Policy, Policies Further Liberalized The Cabinet chaired by PM Narendra Modi has approved amendments in FDI Policy & further liberalized few of the policies of FDI. Highlights of the Amendments- 100% FDI under automatic route for Single Brand Retail Roger Federer won the Australian Open 2018 Trading. The 2018 Australian Open was the 106th edition of the 100% FDI under automatic route in Construction tournament. Roger Federer was the defending champion Development. & successfully defended his title, defeating Marin Cilic in Foreign airlines allowed to invest up to 49% under the final. It was Federer's 20th Grand Slam title. In approval route in Air India. women's' single, Caroline Wozniacki became the first FIIs/FPIs allowed to invest in Power Exchanges through Danish player to win a Grand Slam singles title, defeating primary market. Simona Halep in the final. Definition of medical devices amended in the FDI Policy. a) Government approval no longer required for FDI in Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT): Extant FDI policy on SBRT allows 49% FDI under automatic route, & FDI beyond 49% & up to 100% through Government approval route. It has now been decided to permit 100% FDI under automatic route for SBRT. b) Civil Aviation: As per the extant policy, foreign airlines are allowed to invest under Government approval route in the capital of Indian companies operating scheduled & non-scheduled air transport services, up to the limit of 49% of their paid-up capital. However, this provision was presently not applicable to Air India, thereby implying that foreign airlines could not invest in Air India. It has now been decided to do away with this Adda247 App

9 restriction & allow foreign airlines to invest up to 49% under approval route in Air India. c) Construction Development: Townships, Housing, Built-up Infrastructure & Real Estate Broking Services: It has been decided to clarify that real-estate broking service does not amount to real estate business & is therefore, eligible for 100% FDI under automatic route. d) Power Exchanges: Extant policy provides for 49% FDI under automatic route in Power Exchanges registered under the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (Power Market) Regulations, It has now been decided to do away with this provision, thereby allowing FIIs/FPIs to invest in Power Exchanges through primary market as well. All You Need to Know About New Rs10 Banknote in Mahatma Gandhi Series a) Reserve Bank of India has announced to issue Rs10 denomination banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series, bearing the signature of Dr. Urjit R. Patel, Governor, RBI. b) The new denomination has motif of Sun Temple, Konark on the reverse, depicting the country's cultural heritage. c) The base colour of the note is Chocolate Brown. The dimension of the banknote will be 63 mm x 123 mm. a) The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched its 42nd Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)from the First Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. b) The PSLV-C40 is to place 31 satellites, originating from seven countries, across two orbits. c) Its primary payload was the fourth satellite in the advanced remote sensing Cartosat-2 series. The satellite's design life is five years. ISRO successfully sent up a rocket carrying India's 100th satellite along with 30 others. Important Facts About the Launched Satellite- The 30 other satellites include two other satellites from India & 28 satellites from six countries -Canada, Finland, France, Korea, the United Kingdom & the United States. This was done through what scientists call the "multiple burn technology" under which the rocket's engine is switched off & then switched on to control its height. The 710-kg earth observation satellite the PSLV is carrying the third in the Cartosat 2 series. The last satellite of the series had been launched successfully in June ISRO's workhorse PSLV rocket weighs nearly 320 tonnes & stands up to 44.4 meters, equivalent to a 15-storey building. And the 63rd Filmfare Awards 2018 goes to a) Bollywood came together to celebrate the industry's talent at 63rd Jio Filmfare Awards 2018, held in Mumbai. Superstar Shah Rukh Khan & filmmaker Karan Johar hosted the show. b) 'Hindi Medium' bagged honours in the categories of Best Film & Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) for Irrfan Obverse (Front): See through register with denominational Khan's impeccable performance. numeral 10, Denominational numeral 'Bharat' in c) Vidya Balan won her career's sixth Filmfare award for her Devnagari, Portrait of Mahatma Gandhi at the centre, passionate portrayal of a middle-aged homemaker who Guarantee Clause, Governor's signature with Promise turns into a radio jockey in 'Tumhari Sulu' as she claimed Clause & RBI emblem towards right of Mahatma Gandhi the Black Lady for the Best Actor in a Leading Role portrait, Ashoka Pillar emblem on the right, Mahatma (Female). Gandhi portrait & electrotype (10) watermarks, & Number panel with numerals growing from small to big on the top Complete list of winners of 63rd Filmfare Awards 2018 Category Winner left side & bottom right side. Best Film 'Hindi Medium' Critics' Award for Best 'Newton' Film Best Actor In A Vidya Balan for 'Tumhari Sulu' Leading Role (Female) Best Actor In A Irrfan Khan for 'Hindi Leading Role (Male) Medium' Reverse (Back): Year of printing of the note on the left, Critics' Award for Best Rajkummar Rao for 'Trapped' Swachh Bharat logo with slogan, Language panel, Motif of Actor (Male) Sun Temple, Konark, & Denominational numeral in Critics' Award for Best Zaira Wasim for 'Secret Devnagari. Actor (Female) Superstar' Best Director Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari for ISRO' successfully launched its 42nd PSLV named PSLV- 'Bareilly Ki Barfi' C40 Best Debut Director Konkona Sensharma for 'A Adda247 App

10 Best Actor In A Supporting Role (Male) Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female) Best Dialogue Best Screenplay Best Original Story Best Actor (Male) in a Short Film Best Actor (Female) in a Short Film People's Choice Award for Best Short Film Best Short Film (Fiction) Best Short Film (Non Fiction) Best Music Album Best Playback Singer (Male) GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Death in the Gunj' Rajkummar Rao for 'Bareilly Ki Barfi' Meher Vij for 'Secret Superstar' Hitesh Kewalya for 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan' Shubhashish Bhutiani for 'Mukti Bhavan' Amit Masurkar for 'Newton' Jackie Shroff for 'Khujli' Shefali Shah for 'Juice' 'Anahut' 'Juice' 'Invisible Wings' Pritam for 'Jagga Jasoos' Arijit Singh for 'Roke na ruke naina' - 'Badrinath Ki Dulhania' 2. ICC Men s Test Cricketer of the Year S. Smith (Aus) 3. ICC Men s ODI Cricketer of the Year - Virat Kohli 4. ICC Men s Emerging Cricketer of the Year - Hasan Ali (Pakistan) 5. ICC Men s Associate Cricketer of the Year - Rashid Khan (Afghanistan) 6. ICC Men s T20I Performance of the Year - Yuzvendra Chahal (6-25 v England) (India) 7. David Shepherd Trophy for ICC Umpire of the Year Marais Erasmus 8. ICC Spirit of Cricket - Anya Shrubsole (England) 9. ICC Fans Moment of the Year - Pakistan stuns India to win the ICC Champions Trophy Sushma Swaraj Embarked on Tour of 3 Southeast Asian Nations External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj left on a 5-day visit to three South East Asian countries Thailand, Indonesia & Singapore. On the first leg of the visit, Ms Swaraj will reach Thailand & will hold an official meeting with Thai Foreign Affairs Minister Don Pramudwinai. During the visit to Indonesia, Ms Swaraj will co-chair the 5th meeting of India-Indonesia Joint Commission. In Singapore, the External Affairs Minister will inaugurate the Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas of ASEAN countries. She will have bilateral meetings with the leaders in Singapore. Thailand Capital- Bangkok, Currency- Thai baht. Indonesia Capital- Jakarta, Currency- Indonesian rupiah. ICC Award Complete List of Winners Australia captain Steve Smith has been crowned the International Cricket Council's Test Player of the Yearfor a second time, while Indian captain Virat Kohli has been honoured twice in the ICC's annual awards. It's the first time since 2011 that the winner of the Test Player of the Year Award was not also crowned the Cricketer of the Year. Kohli was the fourth-highest run-scorer's in Tests in Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men s Cricketer of the Year - Virat Kohli (India) BJP wins absolute Majority in Gujarat & Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections 2017 BJP retained power in Gujarat for the 6th time in a row & swept the polls in Himachal Pradesh finishing just short of two-third majority. The party romped home again in Gujarat by winning 99 seats, seven seats more than the mark of absolute majority in the 182-member House. Congress won 77 seats & others 6. In Himachal Pradesh, BJP wrested power from Congress by winning 44 seats, two seats short of two-third majority, in the 68-member House. In Himachal Pradesh, Congress Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has won, while former BJP Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has lost. Jairam Thakur will be Himachal Pradesh s new CM while Vijay Rupani Remains Gujarat s CM State-Run Banks' NPAs Touched Rs 7.34 Lakh Crore- RBI Data Bad loans of Public sector banks (PSBs) stood at Rs 7.34 lakh crore by the end of second quarter this fiscal, a bulk of which came from corporate defaulters, private sector banks' NPAs were considerably low. Moreover, for the recovery of the bad loans, the network of Debt Recovery Tribunals have been Adda247 App

11 expanded to 39 at present, as compared to 33 in , as per data by by the RBI & the govt.. The gross non-performing assets of the public sector & private sector banks as on September 30, 2017, were Rs 7,33,974 crore & Rs 1,02,808 crore, respectively. Among the major govt.-owned banks, State Bank of India had the highest level of NPAs at over Rs 1.86 lakh crore, followed by Punjab National Bank (Rs 57,630 crore) & Bank of India (Rs 49,307 crore). Up to end-september, among private banks, ICICI Bank had the most amount of NPAs at Rs 44,237 crore, followed by Axis Bank (Rs 22,136 crore) & HDFC Bank (Rs 7,644 crore). Small Savings Schemes Interest Rates Cut by 20 bps Govt. slashed interest rates on small savings schemes, including National Savings Certificate (NSC) & Public Provident Fund (PPF), by 0.2 percentage point for the January-March period from the rates applicable in the previous quarter. This will prompt banks to lower deposit rates. Instrument Rate of Interest National Savings Certificate (NSC) 7.6% Sukanya Samriddhi Account 8.1% Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP) 7.3% Public Provident Fund (PPF) 7.6% Senior Citizens Savings Scheme 8.3% Savings Deposit 4% 5 Years Recurring Deposit 6.9% 11th WTO Ministerial Conference Held in Argentina Eleventh World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC11) took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The Conference was chaired by Minister Susana Malcorra of Argentina. Indian Delegation was led by Minister of Commerce & Industry Suresh Prabhu. Narendra Modi Inducts Scorpene-Class Submarine Kalvari into Indian Navy PM Narendra Modi commissioned India's first modern conventional submarine, INS Kalvari, into Navy's fleet in Mumbai, a first in almost two decades. Kalvari is the first of the six Scorpene-class submarines handed over by shipbuilder Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL). Key facts to know about Kalvari Submarine- 1. Dreaded Tiger shark- Kalvari is named after the dreaded tiger shark, a deadly deep-sea predator of the Indian Ocean. 2. French naval defense's design- The submarines, designed by French naval defense & energy company DCNS, are being built by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai as part of Project-75 of the Indian Navy. 3. Scorpene class submarine- The Navy is inducting six Scorpene-class submarines on a 3-billion dollar contract. Construction for the first submarine, designated as MDL Yard commenced in December Static Takeawys from January 2018 Current Affairs Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group- Jack Yun MA, Headquarters- Hangzhou, China. Axis Bank CEO & MD- Shikha Sharma, Head Office- Mumbai. Google CEO- Sundar Pichai, Parent organization- Alphabet Inc., Headquarters- The USA. Paytm Founder- Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Headquarters- Noida. MD & CEO of Indian Overseas Bank- R Subramaniakumar, Headquarters- Chennai. MD & CEO of the National Housing Bank- Sriram Kalyanaraman, Headquarters- New Delhi. HDFC Bank is the first lender to cross Rs5-lakh crore mark in market capitalisation. Ashu Suyash is the MD & CEO of CRISIL. Gurpreet Chhatwal President of CRISIL. It Headquarters in Mumbai. CRISIL- Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited. Atal Pension Yojana (APY): It was launched by PM Modi in It is the first ever guaranteed pension product, open to all citizens between the ages of 18 & 40 years. It provides a minimum guaranteed pension of Rs1,000 to Rs5,000 per month, after the age of 60 years, depending on the monthly contribution made by a subscriber. Managing Director of IMF- Christine Lagarde, Headquarters in- Washington DC, USA. Chairman & Managing Director of ONGC- Shashi Shanker, Headquarters- Uttarakhand. Chairman & Managing Director HPCL- M.K.Surana, Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra. Headquarters of UN- New York United Nations is an international organization founded in It is currently made up of 193 Member States. WEF was established in President of the World Economic Forum- Borge Brende. Chairman & MD of Capital First- V Vaidyanathan Headquarters of IDFC Bank- Mumbai Founder, MD & CEO of IDFC Bank- Rajiv Lall Indian Railways Finance Corporation: IRFC is a finance arm of the Indian Railway. S K Pattanayak is Managing Adda247 App

12 Director of IRFC. IRFC was set up on 12th December Invoicemart CEO & MD- Kalyan Basu. TReDS stands for Trade Receivables Discounting System. India Ratings is a subsidiary of Fitch Ratings. Brett Hemsley is Global Analytical Head for Fitch Ratings. MD & CEO of AU Small Finance Bank- Sanjay Agarwal, Headquarters- Jaipur, Rajasthan. Phone Pe Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Sameer Nigam. CEO of Freecharge- Sangram Singh, Owner- Axis bank. PNB Chairman- Sunil Mehta, Headquarters- New Delhi. World Bank's Prospects Group Director- Ayhan Kose. HSBC Headquarters in London, United Kingdom. Present CEO of HSBC- Stuart Gulliver. HDFC Bank- India s largest private bank by market capitalization HDFC Bank Chairman- Aditya Puri. NABARD-National Bank for Agriculture & Rural Development. NABARD Chairman- Harsh Kumar Bhanwala, Headquarters- Mumbai. Allahabad Bank MD & CEO- Usha Ananthasubramanian, Headquarters- Kolkata. Andhra Pradesh Grameena Vikas Bank Chairman- Narasi Reddy. MD & CEO of India Post Payments Bank- Suresh Sethi. DG & CEO of IICA- Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh. TIHCL s Advisor & Director- B Yerram Raju Paytm Payments Bank MD & CEO- Renu Satti. IndusInd Bank Chairman- R. Seshasayee, Headquarter- Mumbai, Owner- Hinduja Group. SAG aims at empowering out of school adolescent girls of 11 to 14 years by improving their nutritional & health status, upgrading their skills. Minister of Women & Child Development- Maneka Gandhi. Himachal Pradesh Governor- Acharya Dev Vrat. SC Jamir is the present Governor of Odisha. John Mathai was the first Railway Minister of Independent India. KVIC Chairman- V K Saxena. NDMC Chairman- Naresh Kumar. AYUSH- Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha & Homoeopathy. Andhra Pradesh Governor- ESL Narasimhan. Zurich is the capital of Canton of Zurich ASEAN Secretariat- Jakarta, Indonesia Secretary- General of ASEAN is H.E. Lim Jock Hoi. PM of Israel- Benjamin Netanyahu President of Israel- Reuven Rivlin. Israeli Shekel is the currency of Israel. Puducherry CM- V. Narayanasamy, Gov- Kiran Bedi Govt. of India has approved Rs 1,756 crore for a period of three years for the revamping of 'Khelo India'. Constituency of Rajyavardhan Rathore- Jaipur (Rural), Rajasthan. 1st Chief Election Commissioner of Independent India- Sukumar Sen. UIDAI Chief Executive Officer(CEO)- Ajay Bhushan Pandey, Headquarters- New Delhi. Transport Minister of Delhi- Kailash Gahlot Lieutenant Governor of Delhi- Anil Baijal. Myanmar State Counsellor- Aung San Suu Kyi, Capital- Naypyidaw. SAARC- South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. SAARC Secretariat is based in Kathmandu, Nepal. Arunachal Pradesh CM- Pema Khandu, Governor- Brigadier BD Mishra. FTII Pune Established in , Current Chairman - Anupam Kher. Governor of Rajasthan- Kalyan Singh. Chairman of Indian Oil- Sanjiv Singh. VSSC had a small beginning in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala on the south-west coast of India, in Sanjaya Baru is the Secretary General of FICCI. Facebook CEO- Mark Zuckerberg. The four mints operationalized in Idia are located in Kolkata, Noida, Hyderabad, & Mumbai. The first woman to be appointed as a judge of SC since independence was Justice M Fathima Beevi in IOA President- Narinder Dhruv Batra. WBCSD CEO & President- Peter Bakker. ISRO was established in Founder & 1st Chairman of ISRO- Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai, Headquarters in- Bengaluru, Karnataka. NPCI is an umbrella organisation for retail payment systems in India. NPCI's Registered Office is in Mumbai. Meghalaya CM- Mukul Sangma, Governor- Ganga Prasad. Sikkim Governor- Shriniwas Dadasaheb Patil. National Security Council is headed by the PM. It is the apex body on all internal & external security-related matters. Riva Ganguly Das is the Director General of ICCR. Valletta is the smallest capital in the European Union. It is located in a fortress & is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. SCO comprises of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India & Pakistan. India & Adda247 App

13 Pakistan were admitted in 2017 into the grouping in which China plays an influential role. South Korea President- Moon Jae-in, North Korea Supreme Leader- Kim Jong-un. Avtar Singh Cheema was the first Indian to climb Mount Everest successfully. Mount Everest is the tallest Mountain (by Elevation) in the world. UNESCO- United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organization. France's Audrey Azoulay- 11th DG of UNESCO, Headquarters- Paris, France. UAE Capital- Abu Dhabi, Currency- Dirham. Cochin Port Trust Chairman- P.Raveendran. Admiral Sunil Lanba is the present Chairman of Indian Navy. IATA's Director General & CEO- Alexandre de Juniac, Headquarters- Montreal, Canada. Karnataka CM- Siddaramaiah, Governor- Vajubhai Vala. Om Prakash Rawat has been appointed as the next (22nd) chief election commissioner (CEC) of India. Uttar Pradesh CM- Yogi Adityanath, Governor- Ram Naik. Sanjay Kumar is the Director General of NDRF. NDRF came into existence on 19th January Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) Minister- Giriraj Singh. Governor of Maharashtra- Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao. CM of Maharashtra- Devendra Fadnavis. V.P. Singh Badnore is the present Governor of Punjab. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman- India's fifteenth PM, Narendra Modi. 'Transport for London is a statutory body established under Greater London Authority Act, 1999 (UK) to improve public transport in India. Bihar Governor- Satya Pal Malik, CM- Nitish Kumar. This year a special regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas to commemorate 25 years of partnership between India & the Association of South East Asian Nations Submit (ASEAN) is being held in Singapore. Established in 2003, & sponsored by the Ministry of External Affairs of the Govt. of India, the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is held from 7-9 January every year. Research Designs & Standards Organisation headquartered in Lucknow. Dublin is the capital city of Ireland. Present DG of WTO- Roberto Azevedo. ICC Chief Executive- David Richardson, Headquarters- Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Sweden Capital- Stockholm, Currency- Swedish krona. Static Take Aways December 2017 Current Affairs K K Sharma, DG, BSF. HQ:- New Delhi. SIMBEX is the Joint Military Exercise between India & Singapore. Halimah Yacob named Singapore's first female president. Nagaland CM- T R Zeliang, Governor- Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya. Secretary-General of IMO- Kitack Lim, HQ:- London, UK Youth Olympics, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Gujarat CM- Vijaybhai R. Rupani, Governor- OP Kohli. Andhra Pradesh CM- Chandra Babu Naidu, Governor- ESL Narsimhan. HDFC Bank- India s largest private bank by market capitalization AYUSH- Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha & Homoeopathy. Minister- Shripad Yesso Naik. 21st FIFA World Cup in, 2018, in 11 Russian cities. Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations HQ: in Rome, Italy. CM, Kerala is Pinarayi Vijayan. M Venkaiah Naidu is the 13th VP if India. ISA, headquartered in India & its secretariat located in National Institute of Solar Energy, Gurgaon, Haryana. International Olympic Committee headquarter-lausanne, Switzerland. UNICEF Headquarter - New York, United States. BR Ambedkar- Independent India's first law minister. Passed Away: 6 December His Place of Birth: Mhow in Central Provinces (currently Madhya Pradesh). NITI- National Institution for Transforming India. Chairperson- Narendra Modi, Vice Chairperson- Dr. Rajiv Kumar. J. P. Nadda- Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare. Sriharsha Majety- CEO & Co-founder of Swiggy. Legislature or Parliament is headed by President of India. As per the World Bank, Financial inclusion means that individuals & businesses have access to useful & affordable financial products & services that meet their needs transactions, payments, savings, credit & insurance delivered in a responsible & sustainable way. PCA- Prompt Corrective Action. Corporation Bank Managing Director & CEO- Jai Kumar Garg, Headquarter- Mangalore, Karnataka. OBOPAY Established in- 2005, Chairman- D. Padmanabhan, Head Office- Bengaluru, Karnataka. BCCI President- Vinod Rai. BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council) India is an industry body set up to design, commission, supervise & own an accurate, reliable & timely television audience measurement system for India. BARC India CEO- Partho Dasgupta. CM of Tamil Nadu- Edappadi Palaniswami Adda247 App

14 The first finance minister of independent India was R. K. Shanmukham Chetty, who also presented its first Budget. National Informatics Centre (NIC) was established in Smt. Neeta Verma- Director-General of NIC, Headoffice- New Delhi. International Buddhist Confederation is the biggest religious Buddhist confederation, based in Delhi, India. SEBI- Securities & Exchange Board of India. Chairman- Ajay Tyagi, HQ:- Mumbai. Air India Founded: 15 October 1932 (as Tata Airlines), HQ:- Delhi Germany Capital- Berlin, Currency- Euro. Delhi CM- Arvind Kejriwal, Lt. Governor- Anil Baijal. Minister of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation- Nitin J Gadkari. Kacheguda Railway Station- Situated in Hyderabad. Wassenaar Arrangement Secretariat- Vienna, Austria. The current Head of Secretariat- Ambassador Philip Griffiths (New Zealand). NCDEX- National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange, Samir Shah- Managing Director, NCDEX. Arun Thukral- Managing Director, Axis Securities. WTO Director-General- Roberto Azevêdo, Established- 1 January 1995, HQ:- Geneva, Switzerland. IEA Executive Director- Fatih Birol, Established in- 1974, Secretariat- Paris, France. A.K. Panda- Secretary, MSME. BIMSTEC- The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical & Economic Cooperation. It came into being on 6 June BIMSTEC member states are India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka & Thailand. FIFA President- Gianna Infantino. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, & Vietnam. Mizoram CM- Lal Thanhawla, Governor- Lt. General (Retd.) Nirbhay Sharma XXIII Olympic Winter Games will be held from 9 to 25 February 2018 in PyeongChang, the Republic of Korea. CMD DishTV India Limited- Mr. Jawahar Goel. Syndicate Bank MD & CEO- Melwyn Rego, HQ:- Manipal. ICICI CEO- Chanda Kochhar, Headquarter- Mumbai. Goa CM- Manohar Parrikar, Governor- Mridula Sinha. Non-Executive Chairman & an Independent Director of ICRA- Arun Duggal, Static Take-Aways November 2017 Current Affairs The permanent members of the Security Council are USA, Russia, France, UK & China. International Court of Justice HQ: Hague, Netherlands. Haryana CM- Manohar Lal Khattar, Governor- Kaptan Singh Solanki. Minister of Drinking Water & Sanitation- Uma Bharati. Blue Revolution: Integrated Development & Management of Fisheries. Managing Director & CEO of Andhra Bank- Suresh N Patel. Headquarter- Hyderabad, Telangana. HQ: of United Nations- New York, USA. ICRA Limited (formerly Investment Information & Credit Rating Agency of India Limited) was set up in CEO of Ola- Bhavish Aggarwal, HQ:- Bengaluru. Lakshwadeep Administrator- Farooq Khan. The two main rivers of Assam are Brahmaputra & Barak. Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship- Anantkumar Hegde. IBRD- International Bank for Reconstruction & Development. Bank of India was founded on 7th September, Managing Director & CEO- Dinabandhu Mohapatra. Competition Commission of India (CCI) Chairperson- Ashok Chawla. AU Small Finance Bank HQ:- Jaipur, Rajasthan, Started in- 1996, Chairman- Mannil Venugopalan. YES Bank MD & Chief Executive- Rana Kapoor, HQ:- Mumbai. 1st Railway Minister of Independent India- John Mathai. Present Textile Minister of India- Smriti Zubin Irani. MD & CEO of United Bank of India- Pawan Kumar Bajaj, HQ:- Kolkata, West Bengal. Gold Coast, Australia, will host the next Commonwealth Games in Water Resources & Ganga Rejuvenation Minister- Nitin Gadkari. Srivatsa Krishna- Secretary, Coffee Board of Karnataka. Anil Bhandari- President, India Coffee Trust. D. Rajkumar- Chairman & Managing Director of BPCL. Founder & Executive Chairman of WEF- Klaus Schwab, HQ:- Geneva, Switzerland. Samsung is the Korean Based company. Dr. Oh-Hyun Kwon- Chief Executive Officer & Chairman of Samsung. IRDAI- Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority of India. T.S.Vijayan- Chairman of IRDAI. GIFT City- Gujarat International Finance-Tec City HAL Chairman & Managing Director (CMD)- T. Suvarna Raju. PETA is the largest animal rights organization in the world. Ingrid Newkirk- President, PETA. CM of West Bengal- Mamta Bannerjee, Governor- Keshari Nath Tripathi. IDBI MD & CEO- Mahesh Kumar Jain, Headquarter- Mumbai. BC Tripathi- Chairman & Managing Director of GAIL. Governor of Bihar- Satya Pal Malik President, EBRD- Suma Chakrabarti HQ: London,UK President of Sri Lanka- Maithripala Sirisena Western Naval Command (HQ: at Mumbai). The Eastern Naval Command (HQ: at Visakhapatnam). The Southern Naval Command (HQ: at Kochi). Chilika lake located in Odisha. Radha Mohan Singh is Union Agriculture Minister. Constituency - Purvi Champaran (Bihar). Secretary general of UN- Antonio Guterres. RBL Bank MD & CEO- Vishwavir Ahuja, Corporate Office- Mumbai, Maharashtra Adda247 App

15 Golden temple is in Amritsar, Punjab. CM of Punjab is Amarinder Singh. Current Governor of Punjab is V P Singh Badnore. Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog is Rajiv Kumar. HQ: of Coinome is located in Mumbai. CEO of Coinome is Vivek Steve Francis. HQ: of BOB is in Vadodara, Gujarat & Tagline is India s International Bank. Current MD & CEO of BOB is P S Jayakumar. ADB has its Headquarter in Mandaluyong, Philippines. President of ADB is Takehiko Nakao. Civil Aviation Secretary is R N ChoubeyMinister of Civil Aviation is Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati. Mridula Sinha is the Governor of Goa. HQ: of IOC- Lausanne, Switzerland. The 2020 Summer Olympics held in- Tokyo (Japan) in President of IOC- Thomas Bach. Smriti Irani is union Information & Broadcasting & Textiles Minister. Raman Singh is CM of Chhatisgarh. Balram Das Tandon is present Governor of Chhatisgarh. Dudhawa Dam located in Chhattisgarh across the Mahanadi river. AIBA HQ: is in Lausanne, Switzerland. NGT, HQ- New Delhi, Established- November IDFC Bank MD & CEO- Sunil Kakkar, HQ:- Mumbai. HDFC Bank CEO- Aditya Puri, Headquarter- Mumbai. Bank of China Chairman- Chen Siqing. State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor- Tariq Bajwa. Dharmendra Pradhan- Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship. Adani Power Chairman & Founder- Gautam Adani, Headoffice- Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Jharkhand CM- Raghubar Das, Governor- Droupadi Murmu. Federal Bank MD & CEO- Shyam Srinivasan. Kuwait Capital- Kuwait City, Currency- Kuwaiti Dinar (world's highest-valued currency unit). NDMA Chairman- PM Narendra Modi, Headquarter- New Delhi. Minister of Environment, Forest & Climate Change: Dr. Harsh Vardhan. Union Home Minister- Mr. Rajnath Singh. Urjit Patel- 24th Governor, RBI, Headquarter- Mumbai. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Est: 1989, HQ:- Singapore, Current Chairperson- Tran Dai Quang APEC held in- Lima, Peru. Menaka Gandhi- Cabinet Minister of Women & Child Development Softbank Chairman & CEO- Masayoshi Son, HQ:- Tokyo, Japan. PNB MetLife India Insurance MD & CEO- Ashish Srivastava, CPCB Chairman- S.P. Singh Parihar, Headquarter- New Delhi. AIFF President- Praful M Patel, Headquarter- Dwarka, New Delhi. Arjan Singh Bhullar- 1st Indian-origin fighter to be signed by the UFC. Communication Minister- Manoj Sinha, Electronics & IT Minister- Ravi Shankar Prasad. Air India CMD- Rajiv Bansal. MD & CEO of Bank of India- Dinabandhu Mohapatra, HQ:- Mumbai, Maharashtra. FIFA World Cup in Russia Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology- Ravi Shankar Prasad. APCERT- Asia Pacific Computer Emergency Response Team. ISA- International Solar Alliance. June 21- UN-designated- International Yoga Day- in Japan Capital- Tokyo, PM- Shinzo Abe. Home Minister of India- Rajnath Singh. Union Minister of State (I/C) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER): Dr. Jitendra Singh. Nagaland CM- T.R. Zeliang, Governor- P.B. Acharya. Jharkhand was created on the birthday of Birsa Munda who fought against the British. FSIAB- Financial Stability Institute Advisory Board. BIS- Bank of International Settlement. Maharashtra CM- Devendra Fadnavis, Governor- Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao. WHO Director-General- Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Headquarter- Geneva, Switzerland. WPO- World Packaging Organisation, Founded in- September 6, 1968 in Tokyo, Japan. WPO President- Mr. Thomas Schneider. Indira Gandhi was born on- 19th November 1917 Assassination- 31st October 1984 Shakti Sthal- Memorial to Indira Gandhi RBL Bank MD & CEO- Vishwavir Ahuja, Corporate Office- Mumbai, Maharashtra. General Bipin Rawat is the present & 27th Chief of Army Staff. COP 22 was held in Marrakesh, Morocco. Piyush Goyal is the Present Minister of Railways. Antonio Guterres is the Secretary general of United Nations. UN HQ: in New York, United Nations. S. Christopher is the present Chairman of DRDO. Irina Bokova is the Present Director-General of UNESCO. UNESCO HQ: in Paris, France. Majuli is a river island in the Brahmaputra River, Assam. It is India s first island district & world s largest river island. Natarajan Chandrasekaran is the Chairman of TATA Steels. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the Union Cabinet Minister of Food Processing Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is the WHO s Director General. WHO HQ: in Geneva, Switzerland. Jamsetji Tata was the founder of TATA Steels. It HQ: in Adda247 App

16 Mumbai, Maharashtra. Bharti AXA Life is a life Insurance player that was started in It brings together the Parisheadquartered AXA Group & Bharti Enterprises. Martina Hingis is from Switzerland. WEF, HQ: in Geneva, Switzerland. Klaus Schwab is the Founder & Executive Chairman of WEF. Siddaramaiah is the present CM of Karnataka. Vajubhai Vala is the present Governor of Karnataka. Krish Iyer is the President & CEO of Walmart India. ONGC stands for Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited. Shashi Shankar has been recently appointed CMD of ONGC. Lt Gen SK Shrivastava is the Director General Border Roads Organization. Sushil Chandra is the Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT). Boxing Federation of India (BFI) President- Ajay Singh. AIBA- Amateur International Boxing Association. AIBA President- Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, HQ:- Switzerland. Ambassador for AIBA Youth Women s World Boxing Championship Mary Kom. Twitter CEO- Jack Dorsey, HQ:- California, USA. Microsoft CEO- Satya Nadella. Apollo Munich Health Insurance, CEO- Antony Jacob. Current Affairs Injections: 1st to 6th February 2018 India has slipped to 42nd place on an annual Global Democracy Index as per the data compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). The top 5 Countries in the list are: Norway, Iceland, Sweden, New Zealand & Denmark. CSO revised the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for to 8.2% from the earlier estimates of 8% & kept the growth unchanged at 7.1%. The real GDP or GDP at constant ( ) prices for the years & stand at Rs trillion & Rs trillion respectively. In terms of real gross value added (GVA), it stated that the GVA at constant ( ) basic prices grew 7.1% in , as against a growth of 8.1% in The government & World Bank signed a $100 million (about Rs 6,40 crore) loan agreement to promote rural economy in selected blocks of Tamil Nadu across 26 districts, benefiting over 4 lakh people. Lt. Gen Anil Chauhan took charge as the new Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) of the Indian Army. He succeeds Lt General A K Bhatt. The world's oldest man Francisco Nunez Olivera has died just over a month after celebrating his 113th birthday. India has joined Ashgabat Agreement on the establishment of an International Transport & Transit Corridor between the Iran, Oman, Turkmenistan & Uzbekistan. BHIM- Bharat Interface for Money, UPI- Unified Payment Interface. Rajiv Kumar- Financial Services Secretary. Ajay Narayan Jha- Expenditure Secretary, Neeraj Kumar Gupta- Secretary, DIPAM. Subhash Chandra Garg- Economic Affairs Secretary. Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) & Joint Stock Company United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), Russia have signed an MoU to collaborate & engage in Design, Development & Execution of contemporary, State-of- Art vessels for Inland & Coastal Waterways. It will give a push to the Government s Make-in-India programme. The 7th India Energy Congress was held in New Delhi. The theme of the 7th edition of India Energy Congress is 'Energy 4.0: Energy Transition Towards 2030'. The 32nd Surajkund International Crafts Mela has begun in Faridabad, Haryana. The Mela is organized by the Surajkund Mela Authority & Haryana Tourism. This year Uttar Pradesh is the theme state & Kyrgyzstan is the Partner Nation. United Arab Emirates has made a record by opening the world's longest zip line, measuring 2.83 km in length. Guinness World Records officials certified the zip line in Ras al-khaimah. Rwanda become the first low-income country to provide universal eye care for its 12 million population. Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) has received Rs crore capital infusion from the government in the current fiscal. Indian Olympic Association (IOA) appointed its joint secretary Vikram Singh Sisodia as the Chef-de-Mission for the upcoming Commonwealth Games to be held in Gold Coast, Australia Adda247 App

17 Senior-most Indian Information Service (IIS) officer Neelam Kapur was appointed Director-General of Sports Authority of India (SAI). It is for the first time that an IIS officer has been appointed as SAI chief. Magahi writer Shesh Anand Madhukar, who has been working extensively for the development of the language, was honoured with this year's Sahitya Akademi Bhasha Samman award. The five-time World Champion MC Mary Kom claimed the gold medal in the India Open International Boxing tournament at Thyagraj Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. She defeated Josie Gabuco from the Philippines to grab the gold in the women's 48kg weight category. The first two-day Global Investment Summit has been organized in Assam. The summit emphasises on promoting investments in the state & the North East. The conference was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj has returned home after successful completion of the goodwill visit to Nepal. This was the first high-level visit from India after completion of historic three-tier elections in Nepal. In her first meeting, Swaraj held talks with CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda. Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Mr Arun Jaitley launched CriSidEx, India s first sentiment index for micro & small enterprises ( MSEs) developed jointly by CRISIL & SIDBI. CriSidEx is a composite index based on a diffusion index of 8 parameters & measures MSE business sentiment on a scale of 0 (extremely negative ) to 200 ( extremely positive). Alphabet has appointed John L. Hennessy as the new board chairman of the company. He has replaced Eric Schmidt. Shabnam Asthana was awarded the 'Times Power Women of the Year 2017'- Pune for Global PR. Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) committee has decided to bestow V. Shantaram lifetime achievement Award to veteran film producer & director Shyam Benegal. India has defeated Australia to lift the Under 19 World cup for the fourth time. The Men in Blue defeated the three-time champions Australia at Bay Oval, New Zealand. Manjot Kalra was the Hero of the match with his brilliant century. Manjot Kalra was declared Man of the Match. Shubman Gill was declared Player of the Tournament. Anukul Roy finished the 2018 edition with joint-highest 14 wickets. India s leading squash player, Saurav Ghosal jumped five places to No. 14 to become the highest ranked Indian in the latest Professional Squash Association (PSA) rankings. The First ever International Kala Mela was inaugurated by the VP, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi. Maharashtra govt. approved Ghodazari in Chandrapur district as a new wildlife sanctuary in the state. It will include 159 sq km of Brahmapuri forest. Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) signed a project agreement with World Bank for Jal Marg Vikas Project on river Ganga. World Bank entered into a USD 375 million loan agreement with the Department of Economic Affairs for Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP). The book penned down by PM Narendra Modi named 'Exam Warriors' was launched to reach out to the students across the country ahead of their exams. The book was released by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. World Cancer Day is observed on 4th February every year to raise awareness about cancer, its treatment & to encourage methods of its prevention. The theme for WCD is 'We can, I Can'. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched world s smallest rocket with the ability to put a tiny satellite into orbit. It carried a microsatellite TRICOM- 1R, a three-unit CubeSat weighing about 3 kilograms. Sri Lanka celebrated the 70th Independence Day on 4th February 2018 in Colombo. The theme of the ceremony was "One Nation". President of Bangladesh, Abdul Hamid appointed Syed Mahmud Hossain as the new Chief Justice of the country. Justice Hossain is the 22nd chief justice of Bangladesh. Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades has won reelection for a second term. India Open is a badminton event held annually at the Siri Fort Sports Complex, New Delhi. In women's singles Defending champion P V Sindhu was defeated by American Beiwen Zhang to finish runner-up at the India Open Super 500 tournament. Indian cricketers Jasprit Bumrah & Harmanpreet Kaur as well India women s hockey team goalkeeper Savita Punia & shooter Heena Sidhu are among Forbes India 30 Under 30 list. National News External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has left for her first official visit to Saudi Arabia. During her visit, she will meet with the Saudi leadership to discuss bilateral, regional & global issues of mutual interest. She will also participate in the National Heritage & Culture Festival Janadriyah. India successfully test-fired the indigenously developed short-range nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile. The missile was fired from the Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha coast. The range of Missile is 700 km. It was 18th version of Agni-I Adda247 App

18 Cab-hailing startup Ola & the Government of Assam signed an MoU to pilot an app-based river taxi service in Guwahati. The river taxis will be machine-operated boats & users will be able to book the rides through Ola's app. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International airport of Mumbai sets record with 980 flights in 24 hours or almost one flight every minute. With this, the Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International airport bettered its own feat of 974 flights in 24 hours, recorded in December While Gatwick, the U.K. s secondlargest airport, remains the most efficient single-runway airport in the world. Uttar Pradesh State government in association with UNICEF has launched massive door to door campaign DASTAK to eradicate deadly Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) & Japanise Encephalitis (JE) disease in the state. The war cry of DASTAK is 'Darwaja Khatkhatao, AES aur JE ko bhagao'. In DASTAK campaign, whole state machinery with the help of UNICEF will now literally go door to door in 38 JES & AE affected districts which mostly fall in the Tarai region. Sweden & the United Nations World Food Programme signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement committing an unprecedented $370 million dollars to WFP over the next four years. The contribution for the period is the biggest ever made by a donor within a WFP Strategic Partnership Agreement. Maldives president, Abdulla Yameen, has declared a state of emergency in the country as heavily armed troops stormed the country s top court & a former president Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed was arrested in a deepening political crisis. Jerome H Powell was sworn in as the 16th Chairman of the Federal Reserve for a four-year term. Mr Powell has succeeded Janet Yellen, the first woman to lead the US central bank in its 100-year history. Shubhankar Sharma has emerged as the best Indian golfer in the world, grabbing the 72nd position in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). Dustin Johnson from the USA is currently the World Number 1 in Official World Golf Ranking. Static Takeaways from February 2018 Current Affairs Kyrgyzstan Capital: Bishkek, Currency: Kyrgyzstani som. Iran Capital- Tehran, Currency- Iranian rial. Oman Capital- Muscat, Currency- Omani rial. Turkmenistan Capital- Ashgabat, Currency- Turkmenistan manat. Uzbekistan Capital - Tashkent, Currency- Uzbekistani som. Chairman & Managing Director, Cochin Shipyard Limited- Shri Madhu S Nair. United Shipbuilding Corporation President- Alexey Rakhmanov. Sagarmala Program aims to promote port-led development in the country. The concept of Sagarmala was approved by the Union Cabinet on 25th March UAE Capital- Abu Dhabi, Currency- UAE dirham. Rwanda Capital- Kigali, Currency- Rwandan franc, President- Paul Kagame. IOB MD & CEO- R. Subramaniakumar, Headquarters- Chennai. 21st Commonwealth Games will be held from April 4 to 15 in Gold Coast, the second largest city in Australia. Gregory Gaultier from France is currently at No. 1 Position in the Professional Squash Association (PSA) rankings. Minister of State for Culture (I/C) & Environment, Forest & Climate Change is Dr Mahesh Sharma. Maharashtra Governor- C V Rao. Jim Yong Kim is the 12th President of the World Bank Group. Cyprus Capital- Nicosia, Currency- Euro. The 15-metre-long Agni-I weighing 12 tonnes can carry payloads up to 1,000 kg. United Nations International Children's Education Fund (UNICEF) is a UN program headquartered in New York City, the USA. Henrietta H. Fore is the Executive Director of UNICEF. Sweden Capital- Stockholm, Currency- Swedish krona. Maldives Capital- Male, Currency- Maldivian rufiyaa. The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States. It was created on December 23, BANKING & FINANCIAL AWARENESS CURRENT AFFAIRS RBI in News Govt. announced 88,139 crore rupees capital infusion in 20 public sector banks, PSBs, during the current fiscal ending 31st March to boost lending & revive growth. IDBI Bank will get the most- Rs10,610 crore followed by State Bank of India 8,800 crore rupees. As per Finance Ministry, RBI Bonds Scheme has not been closed but the interest rate on such papers lowered to 7.75%. 8% Savings Bonds Scheme, also Adda247 App

19 known as RBI Bonds Scheme, is not being closed but is being replaced by 7.75% Savings Bonds Scheme. RBI initiated 'prompt corrective action' (PCA) against Allahabad Bank over its high bad loans. There are total 11 banks on which RBI has initiated PCA till date. RBI issued Rs10 denomination banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series. The new denomination has the motif of Sun Temple, Konark on the reverse. The base colour of the note is Chocolate Brown. The dimension of the banknote will be 63 mm x 123 mm. As per RBI, housing loans in up to Rs. 2 lakh slab had the highest level of non-performing assets (NPAs). RBI put Kolkata-based United Bank of India under the prompt corrective action (PCA) framework. RBI placed Bank of India under Prompt Corrective Action Framework. RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 5 crore on Syndicate Bank for non-compliance with its directions on "Cheque Purchase or Discounting, Bill Discounting, & KYC norms. As per the IT Ministry, govt. will bear the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charges on transactions up to Rs 2,000 made through debit cards, BHIM UPI or Aadhaar-enabled payment systems to promote digital transactions. RBI increased the limits for investment by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) for Jan-Mar 2018 quarter by Rs 6,400 crore in Central Govt. Securities (G-Secs) & Rs 5,800 crore in State development loans (SDLs) {Rs. 2,56,400 crores in G-Secs} RBI imposed Rs 3 crore penalty on IndusInd Bank for breaching rules on income classification norms. RBI has triggered prompt corrective action against Corporation Bank, in view of high non-performing loans & requirement to raise capital. OBOPAY announced that the company has secured a license for Prepaid Payment Instrument (PPI) from RBI to operate a semi-closed loop wallet in the country. RBI allowed Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) to hold more than 26% post conversion of debt into equity in companies undergoing restructuring. One rupee note turns 100 on 30th November The first one-rupee note was printed in India with the photo of King George V. Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) cannot outsource core management functions like internal audit, strategic & compliance functions for KYC norms, sanction of loans & management of investment portfolio. As per the notification, access to customer information by staff of the service provider shall be on 'need to know' basis i.e., limited to those areas where the information is required in order to perform the outsourced function. RBI reportedly rejected HDFC Bank's plea to declassify its parent Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited (HDFC) as a foreign institutional investor (FII). RBI Governor Urjit Patel appointed to the Financial Stability Institute Advisory Board of Bank of International Settlement (BIS). BIS is a global financial organization owned by major central banks from across the world. As per RBI, all the corporate borrowers having exposure of Rs. 5 crores & above mandatorily to obtain 20-digit Legal Entity Identifier (LEI). Banks also required to acquire LEI number from borrowers & submit it to Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC). RBI constituted a 10-member High Level Task Force on Public Credit Registry (PCR) for India, which will suggest a roadmap for developing a transparent, comprehensive & near-real-time PCR for India. The committee will be Headed by YM Deosthalee, ex-cmd, L&T Finance Holdings. Indian govt. announced an allocation of Rs 2.11 lakh crore over 2 years for the recapitalization of public sector banks. As part of the plan, the government will essentially issue bonds to banks worth Rs 1.35 lakh crore while Rs 76,000 crore will come through budgetary support. After making Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) mandatory for transactions in interest rate, forex & credit derivative market, RBI is set to make LEI compulsory for companies having aggregate fund-based & non-fund based exposure over Rs 5 crore. Banks will be required to capture this number in the Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC) database that captures details of loan above Rs 5 crore. The LEI number will help banks in monitoring the aggregate exposure of corporate borrowers. Firms can obtain their LEI code from Legal Entity Identifier India Ltd. (LEIL). RBI issued guidelines to banks to provide funds to women self help groups, SHGs, in rural areas at 7% under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) in the current fiscal ( ). Government made it mandatory for banks & financial institutions to check the original identification documents of individuals dealing in cash above Rs. 50,000, to weed out the use of forged or fake copies. RBI opened a branch in the Dehradun city to make transactions of the Uttarakhand State government more convenient. As per the direction by RBI, banks need to provide banking services to senior citizens of more than 70 years of age & differently-abled persons at doorstep Adda247 App

20 SBI IN NEWS SBI & NABARD signed an agreement with five NGOs in Bengal for the promotion of 2,500 joint liability groups (JLGs) in select districts of the State. JLGs are informal groups of 4-10 members engaged in similar economic activities & willing to jointly undertake the responsibility to repay loans taken by the group from a bank. A pilot scheme of credit cards for farmers is launched by SBI. With this, it will extend credit facility to farmers for 40 days just like regular credit card. As per SBI, its board has approved raising Rs 8,000 crore through various sources, including masala bonds, to meet Basel III capital norms. SBI introduced a loyalty program for its valued customers named as State Bank Rewardz, which gives the customers several opportunities to earn reward points & earn many times faster at Max Get More partner outlets. SBI launched a unified integrated app called YONO (You Need Only One) that would offer all kinds of financial & lifestyle products. SBI announced sanction of credit facilities amounting to Rs. 2,317 crores to corporates for financing Grid Connected Rooftop Solar projects under an SBI-World Bank program. SBI launched a new product to provide a short-term working capital demand loan to its MSME clients. The new initiative, called SME Assist, would offer loans to MSME customers on the basis of their input credit claims under Goods & Services Tax (GST). The loan processing fee under the scheme is Rs 2,000. Govt. named Rajnish Kumar as the new chairman of SBI, for 3-year term. Kumar will succeed Arundhati Bhattacharya. ALL OTHER PUBLIC-SECTOR BANKS CRISIL revised its outlook on 18 public sector banks (PSBs) from negative to stable after the Govt. announced bank-wise capital infusion & reform plans. Indian Overseas Bank signed an MoU with National Housing Bank for Rural Housing Interest Subsidy Scheme (RHISS). The aim is to provide subsidy for housing loans taken by those living in rural areas for construction & modifications of their dwelling units. Interest subsidy under the scheme is 3% for a loan amount of Rs2 lakh for 20-year tenure. Indian Overseas Bank become one of the first public sector banks to implement the scheme. PNB & National Scheduled Castes Finance & Development Corporation (NSFDC) tied up to provide financial assistance for economic empowerment of persons belonging to Scheduled Caste families living below Double Poverty Line (DPL). Bank of Baroda entered into MoU with POORTI Agri Services Pvt. Ltd to enable the farmers to purchase agricultural inputs such as fertilizers, pesticides, seeds etc. provided by POORTI. IDBI Bank received the capital infusion of Rs 2,729 crore from the govt. of India. Bank of India received capital infusion of Rs. 2,257 crores from the govt. Allahabad Bank entered into an agreement with staterun National e-governance Services Limited (NeSL) for utilizing the NeSL s Information Utility Services envisaged under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, Corporation Bank launched its RuPay Select & RuPay Platinum credit cards. Jai Kumar Garg, MD & CEO unveiled it. Andhra Bank launched a new scheme for self-help groups (SHGs) to encourage entrepreneurship. The scheme, Pattabhi Sitaramayya Self Business Group (PS-SBG), introduced to commemorate the 138th birth anniversary of its founder Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya, & the Silver Jubilee of the SHG-Bank linkage programme in the country. Under this, SHGs having five years of association with Andhra Bank & having successfully completed three credit rotations with good repayment record & an aptitude for entrepreneurship, will be eligible for a loan. Bank of Baroda launched digital Supply Chain Finance solution which aims to accelerate working capital loan opportunities for the small & medium enterprises & large corporate clients. Debt-laden Air India received a loan worth of Rs. 1,500 crore from Bank of India to meet urgent working capital needs. Union Bank of India launched an Android app, Union Sahyog, as part of its drive to digitise customer-facing banking services. Union Sahyog app is bilingual offering both English & Hindi language & packs in all mobile-based banking applications, missed call/sms-based services, Internet banking login & selfuser creation & other services. SMALL & PAYMENT BANKS IN NEWS Ministry of Finance announced that "Payments Banks & Small Finance Banks" will offer social security scheme Atal Pension Yojana (APY) to their subscribers. AU Small Finance Bank signed an MoU with LIC to offer Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY). Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) & India Post Payments Bank signed an agreement for the training of employees of the latter in the area of payment banking. Paytm Payments Bank has partnered Induslnd Bank to introduce a facility to create a fixed deposit (FD) when Adda247 App

21 the customer balance exceeds Rs. 1 lakh at the end of the day. AU Small Finance Bank announced signing an MoU with Sahaj e-village for extending its banking service in remote areas through Business Correspondent Agent (BC) model. Paytm Payments Bank rolled out Paytm FASTag to enable electronic toll fee collection on highways across the country. Paytm Payments Bank is the only bank providing zero balance accounts & zero charges on digital transactions. It unveiled 'Paytm Ka ATM' outlets that allows customers to open Saving A/c & deposit/withdraw money from their A/c. 'Paytm Payments Bank' formally launched at the hands of FM Jaitley. Currently, India has four Payments Bank which are Paytm Payments Bank, Airtel Payments Bank, India Post Payments Bank & Fino Payments Bank. AU Small Finance Bank received RBI approval to operate as Scheduled Commercial Bank. This bank's name has now been included in the Second Schedule of RBI Act, Paytm introduced payments using BHIM UPI on its platform, using which users can create their own Paytm BHIM UPI ID on the app, which will be issued by Paytm Payments Bank. AU Small Finance Bank tied up with SIDBI to launch a Rs. 200 crores fund for providing loans to micro, small & medium enterprises (MSMEs). The program will fund term loans in the Rs. 25 lakh to Rs. 2 crore ticket size. Fincare Small Finance Bank (previously known as Disha Microfin Limited) kick-started its banking operations with about 25 operational branches across Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka & Andhra Pradesh. Sunil Mittal-driven Airtel Payments Bank integrated the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) on its digital platform, allowing customer choice & convenience to facilitate secure digital payments. Fino Payments Bank launched its mobile banking app called BPay. Fino aims to make banking easy for millions of underbanked people in India. ICICI Bank in News Govt. engaged ICICI Bank to enable online payments at 470 mandis integrated with the national portal of electronic National Agriculture Market (e-nam). Paytm & ICICI Bank collaborated to announce an allnew initiative where users can get interest-free shortterm digital credit. Called Paytm-ICICI Bank Postpaid. ICICI Bank launched India's first voice-based international remittance service to enable non-resident Indians (NRIs) to send money to any bank in India. ICICI Bank announced a new home loan scheme that offers borrowers the benefit of 1% cashback on every EMI, for the entire tenure. ALL OTHER PRIVATE SECTOR BANKS in News Axis Bank launched the fourth edition of Evolve in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. It is an annual multi-city knowledge series for Bank s small & medium-sized enterprises (SME) customers. The current edition titled as Transform your Family Business into your dream company. Digital invoice discounting marketplace - Invoicemart tied up with Bank of Baroda to discount invoices for MSMEs. Invoicemart is a joint venture between Axis Bank Ltd & junction services ltd. Amplus Energy Solutions entered into a pact with Yes Bank for strategic tie-up to co-finance projects in the solar energy space in India. Federal Bank entered into a strategic partnership with Hedge Equities Ltd for providing Portfolio Investment Scheme (PIS) services to NRIs. IDFC Bank & Capital First approved merger of Capital First with IDFC Bank. IndusInd Bank & Dynamics Inc. at 2018 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) announced plans to introduce the first battery-powered, interactive payment cards to the Indian market in HDFC Bank has announced a partnership with Rajasthan Govt. to promote & nurture startups in the state. By selling India's first "Social Bonds", Indiabulls Housing Finance raised Rs crores. These bonds are the debt instrument, issued to raise funds which is to be used in social projects such as affordable housing, water supply etc. Yes Bank was the sole investor in this. Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved scheme of amalgamation between IndusInd Bank & Bharat Financial Inclusion. YES Bank & European Investment Bank will cofinance $400-million funding for renewable power generation in the country. Agri service solutions provider Sohan Lal Commodity Management (SLCM) having operations across India & Myanmar tied up with HDFC Bank & IndusInd Bank to provide collateral management services. Axis Bank launched an instant international payment services using Ripple s enterprise blockchain technology solution for retail & corporate customers. HDFC Bank launched its SmartUp Zone in Kochi, an exclusive area inside the branch dedicated for start-ups. From 1 st November 2017, HDFC Bank Ltd. made online transactions through RTGS & NEFT free of cost to promote a digital economy Adda247 App

22 IDFC Bank entered into a strategic alliance with MobiKwik to launch a co-branded virtual Visa prepaid card for customers of MobiKwik. Federal Bank obtained RBI approval to open representative offices at Kuwait & Singapore. Yes Bank signed an MoU with Innovation Centre Denmark India (ICDK India) to bring fintech innovations & startups from Denmark to India, & facilitate entry of Indian startups to the region. Yes Bank, unveiled a superior payment wallet service, BHIM Yes Pay by fully integrating the application with all the IndiaStack APIs & NPCI Products. Yes Bank signed an agreement with the government to provide Rs 1,000 crore financing for food processing projects. The funding will be provided to around 100 food processing projects with an average ticket size of Rs 10 crore each. RBL Bank set up an all women branch in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. HDFC Bank topped the list of the country s top 50 brands as per report released by WPP Plc & Kantar Millward Brown. Airtel is at 2nd spot & State Bank of India is at 3rd. RBI included HDFC Bank in the list of 'too big to fail' lenders, referred to as D-SIB or domestic systemically important bank. India's largest lender SBI & private sector major ICICI Bank were classified as D-SIBs in ALL OTHER BANKS/INSTITUTIONS in News NABARD sanctioned Rs crore loan assistance under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) to Odisha towards irrigation & rural bridge projects for the last quarter of this fiscal. Andhra Pradesh Grameena Vikas Bank (APGVB) operationalised its first desktop ATM in Telangana. The mini-atm within the branch premises will facilitate customers to withdraw small amounts. Telangana Industrial Health Clinic Ltd (TIHCL), a State Govt. initiative got RBI clearance to register & function as a non-banking finance company (NBFC). It will be the first State promoted & co-financing NBFC. Corporation Bank launched its RuPay Select & RuPay Platinum credit cards. Jai Kumar Garg, MD & CEO unveiled it. Sub-Committee of Financial Stability & Development Council (FSDC) headed by RBI Governor Urjit Patel discussed the setting up of the National Centre for Financial Education (NCFE), operationalisation of information utilities registered by the IBBI, sharing of data among regulators & the implementation status of Legal Entity Identifier (LEI). Indian online payments firm BillDesk-owned Hatio Innovations launched cryptocurrency exchange Coinome in India offering trading of Bitcoin & Bitcoin Cash. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) gathered momentum in some northern States post demonetisation. With its area & size of population, Uttar Pradesh tops in opening new PMJDY accounts. Insolvency & Bankruptcy Board of India registered National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL) as an Information Utility (IU) under the IBBI (Information Utilities) Regulations, With this, NeSL has become the first IU registered by the IBBI & the registration is valid for five years from the date of registration. Insurance Industry in News IRDAI issued regulations for insurance firms to carry out offshore business from GIFT International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). Under this, for the 1 st time in the country, foreign insurers are permitted to open IFSC Insurance Office (IIO) at GIFT IFSC. Life insurer PNB MetLife signed a corporate agency agreement with Bank of Bahrain & Kuwait B.S.C (BBK). Reliance General Insurance, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital signed comprehensive bancassurance-corporate agency agreement with YES Bank. HDFC Life Insurance Company launched 'Neo', a servicing bot for Twitter that uses artificial intelligence for customer service. This is the second bot after the launch of SPOK. HDFC Life Insurance & Apollo Munich Health come together to launch Click2Protect Health plan, which provides both life & health cover under a single plan. India s first ever insurance cover for individual victims of cyber crime was launched by Bajaj Allianz. Under this, insurance will be provided against online fraud, identity theft, cyber-stalking & extortion, phishing & malware attack. Sum insured for the policy is in range of Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1 crore. The first private Life Insurer to Implement e-nach (Electronic National Automated Clearing House) service of NPCI is ICICI Prudential Life. India s first-ever micro-insurance plan insurance khata was introduced by IndiaFirst Life. It is introduced for individuals of the informal sector & agricultural labourers with seasonal incomes. Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA) announced that the upper age limit for joining the National Pension Scheme (NPS) had been raised to 65 years, from the current 60. INTERNATIONAL BANKS US buyout giant KKR & Co become the first foreign investor to fully own an asset reconstruction company (ARC) in India as it received approval from RBI Adda247 App

23 Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced the creation of a new virtual currency named 'Petro' to ease the country's economic crisis. Bank of China formally launched its operations in Pakistan, with its first branch inaugurated in Karachi. American digital payments company PayPal launched domestic operations in India. India emerged as the fifth most attractive market for investments & the optimism over global economic growth is at a record level, as per the survey of CEOs by global consultancy PwC. US remains the top spot. Mauritius was the largest source of foreign investment in India, followed by the US & the UK, as per the census by RBI. Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE)'s India International Exchange listed the first bond on its Global Securities Market. The bonds issued by Indian Railways Finance Corporation (IRFC) are one of the highest credit rated bonds issued by an Indian corporate & has been IRFC's first foray into the Green Bond market. India emerged as a top borrower from AIIB with USD 1.5 billion worth of loans last year & USD three billion more in the pipeline. Indonesia has emerged as the second largest borrower with about USD 600 million loans. UIDAI launched 'Virtual ID', which an Aadhaar-card holder can generate from its website. The Virtual ID will be a random 16-digit number. 2.52% of paid-up capital of National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) successfully divested by the Central govt. India s First Agri-commodity Options in Guar Seed on National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX) platform was launched by the FM Arun Jaitley launched. Govt. lowered the additional borrowing requirement for the current fiscal year to Rs 20,000 crores from Rs. 50,000 crores. India s first home-grown high purity gold reference standard - Bharatiya Nirdeshak Dravya (BND-4201) - launched. BND-4201, is the reference material for gold of 9999 fineness (gold that is 99.99% pure), will be beneficial to the consumers & public at large to ensure purity of gold. SEBI stated that cross-holding in credit rating agencies (CRAs) will be capped at 10% & also decided to raise the minimum net worth requirement to Rs. 25 crores from the current Rs 5 crores. Cryptocurrency dealer 'Pluto Exchange' announced the launch of India s first mobile application for transacting in virtual currencies. ECONOMY/FINANCIAL CURRENT AFFAIRS HSBC has appointed John Flint as its next chief executive. He will take over from current chief executive Stuart Gulliver. The 1 st Canadian bank to be added to Financial Stability Board s (FSB) list of global systemically important banks (G-SIB) deemed too big to fail is Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). Note: Financial Stability Board (FSB) is in Basel, Switzerland. GST Council decided to implement the e-way bill mechanism throughout the country by June 1st after reviewing the readiness of the IT network. Axis Securities, a subsidiary of Axis Bank become the first-ever broking arm of a bank to take membership of a commodity exchange by registering itself with NCDEX. BSE's India International Exchange (India INX) received approval from SEBI for the listing of debt securities. This will enable Indian & foreign issuers to issue masala bonds, Eurobonds, & foreign currency bonds from India INX at International Financial Service Centre at GIFT for the first time. CBDT entered into 2 Bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements. These Agreements are the first ever Bilateral APAs with the Netherlands. With this, the total number of APAs by the CBDT has gone up to 186. This includes 171 Unilateral APAs & 15 Bilateral APAs. GOI increased the budget of Agricultural Education by 47.4% this year as compared to the financial year Commerce & Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu stated that the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) incentive rate will be raised by 2% across the board for labor-intensive/msme sectors. Cabinet approved the setting up of the 15th Finance Commission which will assess the tax resources of the nation & suggest a formula for their devolution among states. Its recommendations will have to be in place before April 1, 2020, it takes 2 years for FC to give its recommendations. New York based Standard & Poor s (S&P) kept its sovereign rating for India unchanged at BBB-, with outlook for the nation as stable. Asian Development Bank (ADB) increased annual funding to India to up to $4 billion from existing $2.7 billion from next year. 23rd GST Council Meet held in Guwahati. It was headed FM Jaitley. GST rate on 177 items reduced from 28% to 18%. Only 50 items will attract 28% GST rate. Bitcoin rose above the symbolic $10,000 threshold for the first time, bringing its rise for the year to date to more than 900% Adda247 App

24 As per CBDT, farmers are not required show PAN for cash sale of their produce up to Rs. 2 lakh a day. As per Bank of America-Merrill Lynch stated that in the next decade, India will overtake Japan to become the third-largest economy. As per this, India is likely to become the world s fifth largest economy by Moody's Investors Service upgraded India's local & foreign currency issuer ratings to Baa2 from Baa3 & changed the outlook on the rating to stable from positive. Ministry of Finance increased maximum age of joining the National Pension System (NPS) from the existing 60 years to 65 years under NPS - Private Sector (i.e. all citizen & corporate model). Income Tax Department clarified that the cash sales of agricultural produce by a cultivator to a trader for less than 2 lakh rupees will not attract tax under the Income Tax Act. New Fund Offer (NFO) for BHARAT-22 Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) was launched by GOI. The target is to raise initial amount of about Rs crores as part of disinvestment programme for current fiscal. The NFO is managed by ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund. As per the NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar, the GDP is likely to grow at 6.9-7% this fiscal ( ) & 7.5% in The economic growth slowed to 7.1% in Loan/Finance from International Organizations India contributed USD 50,000 to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres's Office of Envoy on Youth to help with its mission of involving young people in the world body's goals. AIIB approved USD 2 million loan (Rs. 13,000 crores) for five projects in Andhra Pradesh. Static Takeaways from Banking & Economy Current Affairs Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs): ARC's are specialized financial institution that buys the NPAs or bad assets from banks & other financial institutions to clean up the balance sheets of Banks & FIs. LEI: Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) is a global reference number that uniquely identifies every legal entity or structure that is party to a financial transaction, in any jurisdiction. Andhra bank: HQ: Hyderabad CEO: Shri Suresh N Patel Where India Banks BOB: HQ: Vadodara CEO: P. S. Jayakumar India's International Bank Union Bank of India: HQ: Mumbai CEO: Rajkiran Rai G. Good People to bank with Vijaya Bank: HQ: Bengaluru CEO: R. A. Sankara Narayanan A Friend you can bank upon Federal Bank: HQ: Aluva, Kochi, Kerala: CEO: Shyam Srinivasan Your Perfect Banking Partner RBL Bank: HQ: Mumbai CEO: Vishwavir Ahuja Apno ka bank Kotak Mahindra Bank: HQ: Mumbai Founder: Uday Kotak IndusInd Bank: HQ: Mumbai CEO: Romesh Sobti Corporation Bank: HQ: Mangalore CEO: Jai Kumar Garg Bank of China: HQ: Beijing, China PayPal: American company CEO: Daniel Schulman HSBC: HQ: London, United Kingdom Foreign Exchange Reserves Foreign Exchange Reserves as on 26 th January 2018 Bn. US$ Mn. Total Reserves 26, , Foreign Currency Assets 24, , Gold 1, , SDRs , Reserve Position in the IMF ,079.8 Masala Bonds It refers to the rupee-denominated borrowings by Indian entities in overseas markets. Gross Value Added Adda247 App

25 It is a measure of total output & income in the economy. It provides the rupee value for the amount of goods & services produced in an economy after deducting the cost of inputs & raw materials that have gone into the production. GVA gives a picture of the state of economic activity from the producers side or supply side, the GDP gives the picture from the consumers side or demand perspective. PNB The Name you can Bank Upon New Delhi CEO: Sunil Mehta BSNL New Delhi CEO: Shri Anupam Shrivastava J&K Bank Serving to Empower Srinagar Parvez Ahmed (Chairman & CEO) Vijaya Bank A friend you can Bank Upon Bengaluru Shri. R A Sankara Narayanan (MD & CEO) IDBI Bank Bank aisa Dost jaisa Mumbai Mr. Mahesh Kumar Jain (MD & CEO) Syndicate Bank Faithful, Friendly Mr Melwyn Rego, Managing Director & CEO Canara Bank Together we can Shri. Rakesh Sharma, MD & CEO Indian Bank Your Own Bank Mr. Kishor Kharat, MD & CEO Corporation Bank Shri. Jai Kumar Garg: Managing Director & CEO Indian Overseas Bank Good People to Grow with Shri. R. Subramaniakumar: MD & CEO Union Bank of India Good People to Bank with Shri Rajkiran Rai G, Managing Director & CEO Fincare Small Finance Bank Bengaluru Pramod Kabra, Chairman Rajeev Yadav, MD& CEO Airtel Payment Bank Shashi Arora, MD & CEO Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Bengaluru, India Samit Ghosh, CEO & MD FINO Payment Bank Qadar Aapki Mehnat Ki Mumbai Rishi Gupta, MD & CEO ICICI Bank CEO: Chanda Kochhar Mumbai Industrial Credit & Investment Corporation of India HDFC Bank Bank aapki mutthi mein CEO: Aditya Puri Mumbai Karnataka Bank Your Family Bank Across India Shri Mahabaleshwara M. S., MD & CEO IndusInd Bank Mumbai R. Seshasayee, Chairman Romesh Sobti, MD & CEO Karur Vysya Bank Smart Way to Bank Karur, Tamil Nadu Shri P R Seshadri, MD & CEO IDFC Bank The Bank of Now Mumbai Dr. Rajiv Lall, FOUNDER MD & CEO Axis Bank CEO: Shikha Sharma Chairperson: Dr. Sanjiv Misra (Part Time) Mumbai Kotak Mahindra Bank Arvind Kathpalia, President Mumbai South Indian Bank Experience Next Generation Banking Thrissur, Kerala V.G. Mathew, MD & CEO Yes Bank Mumbai CEO: Rana Kapoor EXIM Bank 1982 under the Export-Import Bank of India Act, 1981 David Rasquinha, MD SIDBI Small Industries Development Bank of India April 2, 1990 Mohammad Mustafa,CMD NHB National Housing Bank Sriram Kalyanaraman, MD &CEO July 9, NHB Act, 1987 NHB is wholly owned by Reserve Bank of India, which contributed the entire paid-up capital. IBBI Insolvency & Bankruptcy Board of India was set up on 1st October 2016 under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (Code). It writes & enforces rules for transactions, namely, corporate insolvency resolution, corporate liquidation, individual insolvency resolution & individual bankruptcy under the Code. Dr. M. S. Sahoo is the Chairperson. NPCI National Payments Corporation of India, an umbrella organisation for operating retail payments & settlement systems in India. It is an initiative of RBI & Indian Banks Association (IBA) under the provisions of the Payment & Settlement Systems Act, 2007, for creating a robust Payment & Settlement Infrastructure in India. Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) & Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) REITs are listed entities that primarily invest in leased office & retail assets, allowing developers to raise funds by selling completed buildings to investors. InvITs are trusts that manage income-generating infrastructure assets, typically offering investors regular yield & a liquid method of investing in infrastructure projects. UIDAI Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is a statutory authority established under the provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016 on 12 July 2016 by the Govt. of India. Shri J Satyanarayana, Chairman(part-time), UIDAI Dr. Ajay Bhushan Pandey, CEO HQ: New Delhi Multi Commodity Exchange Ltd It is a state-of-the-art, commodity derivatives exchange that facilitates online trading, & clearing & settlement of commodity derivatives transactions, thereby providing a platform for risk management. Mr. Saurabh Chandra: Chairman Asian Development Bank (ADB) Philippines President: Takehiko Nakao 19 Dec countries World Bank President: Jim Yong Kim CEO: Kristalina Georgieva Washington, D.C., United States WTO Geneva, Switzerland 1 Jan countries (July 2016) Roberto Azevêdo (Director-General) Adda247 App

26 New Development Bank Shanghai, China President: K. V. Kamath 15 July 2014 NTPC: Gurdeep Singh, CMD BUSINESS NEWS (NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL) Companies Key Points Paytm & Alibaba Formed a joint venture to launch 'Gamepind' a gaming platform aimed at mobile users in Group-AGTech India. Holdings Ltd Reliance Industries Become the first Indian company to cross the Rs. 6-lakh crore mark in market capitalization. (RIL) Vodafone India To provide a range of entry-level smartphones at an effective price of Rs999. partnered with Flipkart Oil & Natural Gas Got the consent for acquiring controlling stake in fellow PSU Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Corporation Ltd (HPCL). As per ONGC, it has acquired 51.11% stake of HPCL. Indian Oil Corporation Signed Letters of Intent (LoI) with Phinergy & YEDA, a technology spin-off company from Israel. Agreement with Phinergy will allow Indian Oil to work on adoption of advanced energy systems. India s Tata Signed an over GBP 500 million (USD 690 million) deal with M&G Prudential, the UK & Consultancy Services European savings & investments business of Prudential plc. Paytm set up a new entity called Paytm Money Ltd that will offer investment & wealth management products India s most-valued Crossed Rs.5 trillion market capitalisation for the first time, making it only the third Indian lender HDFC Bank Ltd company to achieve this milestone. Flipkart s payments arm Partnered with FreeCharge to allow the latter s customers pay for transactions at PhonePe PhonePe s partner merchants. Airtel Payments Bank CEO Shashi Arora quit the company following the controversy of violation of rules on using Aadhaar for its e-kyc. SBI Card & Bharat Petroleum, launched the BPCL SBI Card most rewarding fuel co-branded credit card. HDFC Sold its realty brokerage business HDFC Realty & HDFC RED (Real Estate Destination) to online classifieds player Quikr. Bharti Airtel Ltd Signed Definitive agreement with Millicom International Cellular S.A., under which Airtel Rwanda Ltd will acquire 100% equity in Tigo Rwanda Ltd. Ola, operated by ANI Acquired food delivery start-up Foodpanda India Pvt. Ltd from its German parent Delivery Technologies Pvt. Ltd Hero AG Dish TV India Limited Received the final approval for closing of the merger of Videocon d2h with DishTV. Samsung India Tie-up with UNESCO for virtual reality content & 360-degree videos on Indian heritage. Maruti Suzuki Became India's sixth most valued firm, crossing SBI. Reliance Industries is the country's most valued company firm in India. Paytm Bought an undisclosed stake in Urja Money Pvt. Ltd, which evaluates creditworthiness of people seeking loans to buy two-wheelers. Moody's Investors Service has upgraded the ratings of infrastructure government-related issuers (GRIs) NTPC, NHPC, NHAI & GAIL to Baa2 in line with India's sovereign ratings. Walmart India Launched its first fulfilment centre in Mumbai. ONGC Got approval from the Department of Investment & Public Asset Management for acquiring the majority stake in HPCL. ONGC acquired 51.11% stake in HPCL. Tata Steel Established India s largest Coke Dry Quenching (CDQ) facility at Kalinganagar Industrial Complex in Jajpur district of Odisha. Ola With Microsoft, is building a new connected vehicle platform for car manufacturers worldwide. Reliance Received the final approval on its merger with Sistema from the Department of Communication Telecommunication (DoT). This merger will extend validity of RCom's spectrum portfolio in the highly valued 800 & 850 MHz band Adda247 App

27 Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited- HPCL Bharti Airtel Google Amazon Samsung Tencent Facebook Swedish Company IKEA Jet Airways & Air France-KLM Uber Technologies Inc. Amazon Web Services (AWS) & Microsoft GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Static Takeaways from Business Current Affairs ONGC: Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited Shashi Shanker, Chairman & Managing Director Reliance Communication: Chairman: Anil Dhirubhai Ambani HPCL: Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited: M.K.Surana, Chairman & Managing Director Tencent: Founded in November, 1998, Tencent is a leading provider of Internet value added services in China. NSDC: National Skill Development Corporation It aims to promote skill development by catalyzing creation of large, quality & for-profit vocational institutions. Britannia Industries: Nusli N Wadia, Chairman Varun Berry, Managing Director Flipkart Bengaluru Kalyan Krishnamurthy (CEO) Indian Oil Corporation: Shri Sanjiv Singh, Chairman Oil & Natural Gas Corp Ltd Shashi Shanker, Chairman & Managing Director Amazon Washington, U.S. Jeff Bezos (Chairman, President & CEO) Twitter San Francisco, California Jack Dorsey (CEO) Samsung Seoul, South Korea Lee Kun-hee (Chairman) Netflix California, United States Reed Hastings (Chairman, CEO) Microsoft Washington, U.S. John W. Thompson (Chairman) Satya Nadella (CEO) Google California, U.S. Sundar Pichai (CEO) Between Whom Asian Development Bank & the Indian Government India & Cambodia National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC) with SME Corporation Malaysia National Highways & Infrastructure become the first Oil Marketing Company (OMC) from India to mark its presence in the lubricant market in Myanmar. Received Ghana s National Communications Authority s approval for the merger between Bharti Ghana (Airtel) & Millicom Ghana (Tigo), subject to certain conditions. INTERNATIONAL COMPANIES Introduced app named "Bulletin" that allows anybody to submit stories for & about their communities. Bought an Andover, Massachusetts-based company 'Blink' that makes Internet-connected doorbells & security cameras. Launched its 'Bill Payments' on its flagship payments service, Samsung Pay in partnership with Axis Bank. become the first Chinese company to be valued at more than $500 billion in Asia. Expects to train about five lakh people in India on digital skills by 2020 & unveiled two programmes which are Facebook Digital Training & Facebook Startup Training Hubs. Launched its first experiential centre 'IKEA Hej HOME' in Hyderabad Come in partnership to route more traffic through Europe & on to North America. Approved SoftBank Group Corp. s offer to buy a multibillion-dollar stake in UBER. Teamed up to launch an open-source & deep learning interface 'Gluon' that will help developers to deploy machine learning models across several platforms. AGREEMENTS/MOU SIGNED MoU/Agreement Details 250-million-dollar loan agreement to finance the construction of over 6200 kilometres all-weather rural roads in 5 states viz Assam, Chhattisgarh, MP, Odisha & West Bengal under PMGSY. 4 agreements in the field of cultural exchange, an exchange line of credit of $26.9 million, cooperate in legal matter & on prevention of human trafficking. Signed b/w PM Modi & Cambodian PM Hun Sen. MoU for exchange of information & cooperation in areas such as policies to aid development of small & medium businesses (SMBs). MoU sigend for construction of km long 2-lane bi-directional Zojila Adda247 App

28 Development Corporation & M/S IL&FS Tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir. This will be India s longest road tunnel & Transportation Networks Ltd the longest bi-directional tunnel in Asia. GOI, Govt. of Uttarakhand & World Signed a $120 million Loan Agreement which will help increase access to Bank improved water supply services in peri-urban areas in UK state. National Investment & Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) made its First investment. It partnered with DP World to create an investment platform for ports, terminals, transportation & logistics businesses in India. Telangana Govt. with Clean Authority MoU in connection with municipal solid waste incineration in Hyderabad. of Tokyo India & Israel MoU to enhance co-operation in the areas of agriculture, science & technology & security. Punjab Govt. with Indian Oil Signed an MoU to set up bio-gas & bio-cng plants in the state. Corporation Cabinet approved signing & implementation of MoU between Ministry of Road Transport & Highways & Transport for London to improve public transport in the country. South Korea & the Gujarat Chamber of signed an MoU for co-operation between industries in Gujarat & the East Commerce & Industry (GCCI) Asian country, with a focus on automobile, defence & textiles sectors. Union Cabinet chaired by PM Modi approved: a) MoU between India & Canada for cooperation in the field of Science & Technology. The MoU will provide a mechanism & help to foster scientific cooperation between R&D & academic institutions of India & Canada. b) Implementation of CCEA decision on the closure of Tungabhadra Steel Products Limited. Uttar Pradesh govt. with South Korea MoU to enhance cooperation in the field of tourism, skill development, culture & farming. India & the World Bank Signed USD 40 Million IBRD Credit agreement for U.P. Pro-Poor Tourism Development Project India & Germany Signed Loan agreement for providing additional funding of EUR 20 million for Pare Hydroelectric Plant project, Arunachal Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh govt. with moonshot Agreement to bring Free Space Optical Communication (FSOC) factory of Alphabet X technology to provide internet through the govt. Fibergrid project. Skill Development Ministry & Maruti Suzuki signed an agreement to impart training to youth & enhance their employment potential. India & Myanmar MoU on Rakhine (Myanmar) State Devt. Programme & on Govt. to Govt. agreement on long-term socio-economic devt. of state. India & Singapore Agreement on enhancing the naval cooperation AIIB approved its first loan to China, its largest shareholder, to reduce its dependence on coal by over 600,000 tonnes annually by building a natural gas distribution network for villages. India & World bank USD 250 million Financing(Loan) Agreement for the Skills Acquisition & Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) Project. India & Morocco MoU for enhanced cooperation in the health sector India & Singapore Agreement on enhancing naval cooperation India with World Bank Signed Loan Agreement for USD 100 Million for Shared Infrastructure for Solar Parks Project India & Greece Signed Air Services Agreement (ASA) & MoU on Cooperation (MoC) in field of New & Renewable Energy. Delhi government with Seoul Signed a twin city agreement for strengthening cooperation in the fields of Metropolitan Government e-governance, transportation, climate change & smart city. Adani Power (Jharkhand) with Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) Nepal Electricity Authority with China Three Gorges Corporation (CTGC) Long-term pact to supply electricity from its upcoming 1,600 MW plant at Godda in Jharkhand to Bangladesh. Joint venture agreement to construct 750 MW West Seti Hydropower Project. CTGC will have 75% stake & NEA will have remaining 25%. National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) & the Tourism & Hospitality Sector Skill Council (THSC) signed a tripartite an MoU with Airbnb to provide hospitality skills training to hospitality micro-entrepreneurs in India Adda247 App

29 Assam government with Singapore Indiana, a State in the US, & Karnataka Odisha Skill Development Authority & Singapore s ITE Education Services (ITEES) Signed MoUs & Terms of Reference for skilling youth in Assam. Signed an agreement to establish sister-state ties for cooperation in economic, educational & cultural fields. Signed MoU for skill development in Odisha. Goa govt. signed a trilateral MoU with Department of Bio-Technology, Ministry of Science & Technology, GoI & Nobel Media, Sweden to hold Nobel Prize Series India 2018 (Science Impacts Life) to be held in Goa. Government of India (GoI) & Patanjali MoU of Rs 10, 000 Crores. Financing Agreement for IBRD loan of US$ 119 million for Odisha Higher Education Programme for Excellence & Equity (OHEPEE) Project signed with World Bank. NEW APPOINTMENTS: NATIONAL Designation/Post Who is Appointed? Constitutional & Other Posts nd Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat (replaced Achal Kumar Joti) 2. New Election Commissioner Ashok Lawasa 3. ' New governor of Madhya Pradesh Anandiben Patel (replaced Om Prakash Kohli) 4. New Director General (DG) of the 'black cats' commando force NSG Senior IPS officer Sudeep Lakhtakia (replaced S P Singh) 5. Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command Ajendra Bahadur Singh 6. First woman lawyer to be directly appointed as a Indu Malhotra judge of the Supreme Court of India. 7. Foreign secretary of India Vijay Keshav Gokhale (replaced S Jaishankar) 8. Deputy National Security Adviser (NSA) Rajinder Khanna 9. New CM of Himachal Pradesh Jairam Thakur 10. Director General of National Cadet Corps B S Sahrawat 11. Ambassador of India to the Republic of Peru. Shri M. Subbarayudu 12. Director General of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Senior IPS officer Abhay 13. CM of Gujarat Vijay Rupani 14. Deputy CM of Gujarat Nitin Patel 15. Officiating Chairperson, National Green Tribunal Justice U D Salvi 16. National Green Tribunal Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar retired after completing his 5-year tenure. 17. Ambassador of India to Turkmenistan Shri Azar A.H. Khan 18. Government appointed former revenue secretary NK Singh as the Chairman of the 15th Finance Commission (FC). Other members are Shaktikanta Das, Anoop Singh, Ashok Lahiri, & Ramesh Chand. Chand & Lahiri are part time members. FC to submit its report by Oct. 30, Private Secretary to President Ram Nath Kovind. Railway officer Vikram Singh 20. India s High commissioner to Pakistan. Ajay Bisaria 21. Karnataka s first woman Director General & Inspector General of Police. Neelmani N. Raju (replaced Rupak Kumar Dutta) 22. New Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia 23. Special director of the Central Bureau of Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana Investigation-CBI 24. Ambassador of India to Switzerland Sibi George (Replaced Smita Purushottam) 25. Additional Director General, CISF. Shri Alok Kumar Pateria 26. High Commissioner of India to Republic of Zambia N.J.Gangte 27. Vice Chief of Naval Staff (VCNS) Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar 28. India's new Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale (Replaced Vijay Gokhale) 29. Member (Staff) Railway Board & ex officio Secretary D.K. Gayen Adda247 App

30 to the Government of India 30. Member (Engineering) Railway Board & ex officio M K Gupta Secretary to the Government of India 31. Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit 32. High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Malta Rajesh Vaishnaw 33. Additional Director General of BSF Nasir Kamal 34. Ambassador of India to Ecuador Ravi Bangar 35. Ambassador of India to the Principality of Liechtenstein Sibi George 36. Solicitor-General of India Ranjit Kumar, the second highest ranking law officer of the government, resigned. 37. New Governor of Bihar Satya Pal Malik 38. New Governor of Assam Prof Jagdish Mukhi 39. New Lieutenant Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Admiral (Retd) Devendra Kumar Joshi 40. New Governor of Arunachal Pradesh Brigadier (Retd) BD Mishra 41. New Governor of Meghalaya Ganga Prasad 42. New Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG). Rajiv Mehrishi 43. New Election Commissioner Sunil Arora 44. Gautam Bambawale will head the Indian mission in China. CEO S/Chairman of Companies/Organizations/Banks/ Other Appointments 45. New director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre S Somanath (replaced K Sivan) 46. First woman chairman of Indian Banks Association Usha Ananthasubramanian, MD, Allahabad Bank 47. Deputy Chairman of IBA for the year Rajnish Kumar, Chairman, State Bank of India 48. Vice Chairman of the US-India Strategic & Indian-American Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen Partnership Forum. 49. Director General, Federation of Indian Chambers of Dilip Chenoy Commerce & Industry (FICCI) 50. MD & CEO of NCDEX Vijay Kumar 51. CMD of Security Printing & Minting Corporation of S Selvakumar (Replaced Anurag Agarwal) India Ltd (SPMCIL) 52. Chairman of the Finance Commission of the Indian Senior sports administrator Anil Khanna Olympic Association. 53. Chairman, Maritime Board V J Mathew 54. Chef De Mission for 23rd Winter Olympic Games, Harjinder Singh Pyeongchang, South Korea in th Chairman of ISRO Sivan K (replaced A.S. Kiran Kumar) 56. MD & CEO, National Payments Corporation of India Dilip Asbe (replaced AP Hota) 57. Brand Ambassador of Sikkim Music composer A R Rahman 58. National vice-president of the BJP, Vinay Sahasrabuddhe appointed the President of Indian Council of Cultural Relations. 59. MD, India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd Pankaj Jain 60. PETA's (People for Ethical Treatment of Animals) Person of the Year Actress Anushka Sharma 61. New Chairman, BARC India (Broadcast Audience Nakul Chopra (Replaced Sudhanshu Vats) Research Council) 62. Director, National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad. R Hemalatha 63. President of Para-Sports Foundation (PSF), India. Sarvesh Kumar Tiwari 64. New Executive Director (ED) of RBI Uma Shankar 65. Chairman & Managing Director of Air India Pradeep Singh Kharola (Replaced Rajiv Bansal) th President, Indian National Congress Rahul Gandhi 67. Secretary General, International Buddhist Buddhist monk Dhammapiya from Tripura Confederation (IBC) 68. Director General, Ordnance Factories (DGOF) & Shri Sunil Kumar Chourasia Adda247 App

31 Chairman, Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) 69. CEO & MD, Infosys Salil S. Parekh 70. Chairman of Prasar Bharati Board Veteran journalist A Surya Prakash 71. President of the National Restaurant Association of Rahul Singh India. 72. CEO, Online food delivery start-up Swiggy Vishal Bhatia 73. MD & CEO of Aegon Life Insurance. Vineet Arora (replace K S Gopalakrishnan) 74. Filmmaker Sujoy Ghosh resigned as Head of jury of Indian Panorama, 48th International Film Festival of India (IIFI). 75. Chairman of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sethurathnam Ravi (replaced D. Swarup) 76. Executive Director of SEBI. Anand Rajeshwar Baiwar 77. CEO & MD of Tata Steel globally T V Narendran 78. Executive Director & CFO of Tata Steel Koushik Chatterjee 79. CFO, Paytm Payments Bank Sudhanshu Jain 80. Honorary Consul General in Hyderabad Suresh Chukkapalli 81. CEO of Bharti AXA Life Insurance Vikas Seth st Woman Senior Deputy Director General, Tamil N Poonguzhali Nadu, Telecom Enforcement Resource Monitoring 83. MD & CEO of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) Mr. Suresh Sethi (Replaced A.P. Singh) 84. CEO, Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) NS Venkatesh 85. Vice-chairman of NITI Aayog Economist Rajiv Kumar (replaced Arvind Panagariya) 86. New Chairperson of Central Board of Secondary Anita Karwal (replaced Rajesh Kumar Chaturvedi) Education 87. MD & CEO of Vijaya Bank R A Sankara Narayanan 88. MD & CEO of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank. KV Rama Moorthy (replaced HS Upendra Kamath) 89. CMD of United India Insurance Co. Ltd M. Nagaraja Sarma 90. Chairman & Managing Director of NMDC Ltd. N Baijendra Kumar 91. Chairman of Press Trust of India Viveck Goenka (Replaced Riyad Mathew) 92. Ashish Kashyap resigned as the President & Co-founder of MakeMyTrip. 93. President of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers Force Motors Chairman Abhay Firodia NEW APPOINTMENTS: INTERNATIONAL Designation/Post Who is Appointed? President/PM/Heads of Countries/Organizations 1. Prime Minister of Mali Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga 2. Finland s President Sauli Niinistowon 3. New President of Liberia George Weah (Replaced Ellen Johnson Sirleaf) 4. New President of Chile Sebastian Pinera (replaced Michelle Bachelet) 5. Kenya s President Uhuru Kenyatta (Second 5-year term) 6. Pakistan's law minister Zahid Hamid resigned. 7. India s nominee to International Court of Justice (ICJ) Dalveer Bhandari was re-elected to the fifth & the last seat of the world court. 8. UNAIDS Special Ambassador for Adolescents & HIV. AIDS researcher Quarraisha Abdool Karim 9. President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa (Replaced R. Mugabe) nd Woman Director-General of UNESCO. Audrey Azoulay (succeeds Irina Bokova) 11. President of Slovenia Borut Pahor 12. New US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster (Replaced Richard Verma) 13. PM of New Zealand (Youngest NZ PM in 150 yrs) Jacinda Ardern th PM of Mongolia Ukhnaa Khurelsukh Adda247 App

32 15. 8th President of Singapore Halimah Yacob 16. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has sacked his deputy Tourism Minister Arundika Fernando. 17. Prime Minister of Peru Mercedes Araoz Fernandez 18. President of Peru Pedro Pablo Kuczynski 19. PM of Iceland Mr. Bjarni Benediktsson has resigned from the post. 20. Fourth term as chancellor in Germany Angela Merkel 21. Angola s New President Joao Lourenco Mayors/Member of Parliament/Envoy/Judges 22. UK s 'Minister for Loneliness' Tracey Crouch 23. Mayor of Yuba city in California Preet Didbal (first Sikh woman to hold the position in USA) 24. Resigned as International Development Secretary Priti Patel, Britain s first Indian-origin Cabinet Minister 25. Bangladesh Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha resigned. 26. U.S ambassador to India. Kenneth I. Juster Other Appointments 27. Facebook appointed Kenneth Chenault to its board, making him the first African-American to be on the board. 28. Chairman of the Geneva-based World Business Council Sunny Verghese for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) 29. UN Environment s Goodwill Ambassador for India. Former Miss Asia Pacific Dia Mirza 30. 'International Ambassador' who will be tasked with Noted Indian businessman Deepak Parekh championing the UK capital across the globe. 31. Global Goodwill Ambassador for UN Environment British singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding 32. President of 36th International Geological Congress (IGC) Scientist Vijay Prasad Dimri (replaced Shailesh Nayak) 33. Ambassador of World Packaging Organisation. Ecobliss India MD AVPS Chakravarthi 34. WHO s Deputy Director General for Programmes Soumya Swaminathan 35. WHO s Deputy Director General for Corporate Ms Jane Ellison Operations 36. Chief of Naval Staff of Pakistan Vice-Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi 37. Chairperson of World Hindu Congress, Chicago-2018 Tulsi Gabbard Countries Capital Currency Part 1 Singapore: Singapore dollar Capital: Singapore Greece: Athens Euro Ethiopia: Addis Ababa Ethiopian birr Afghanistan: Kabul Afghan afghani Norway: Oslo Norwegian krone Somalia: Mogadishu Somali shilling Iran: Tehran Iranian rial Sweden: Stockholm Swedish krona (SEK) Sri Lanka: Administrative Capital: Sri Jayewardenepura Commercial Capital: Colombo Rupee (SL) Bangladesh: Dhaka Bangladeshi taka Static Takeaways from New Appointments CISF: Central Industrial Security Force O.P. Singh, Director General Existence in 1969 Zambia: Lusaka Zambian kwacha Republic of Malta: Valletta Euro & Maltese scudo BSF: Border Security Force December 1, 1965 K K Sharma, Directore General Equador: Quito United States Dollar Principality of Liechtenstein: Vaduz Swiss franc NHPC: Shri Balraj Joshi, Chairman & Managing Director SAARC Kathmandu 8 members Secretary-General, Amjad Hussain B. Sial 1985 WHO 7 April 1948 Geneva, Switzerland Tedros Adhanom, Director-General CAG: Shri Rajiv Mehrishi. He is primarily entrusted with the responsibility to audit the accounts & related activities of the three tiers of Govt. Federal, Provincial & Local Adda247 App

33 NITI Aayog: National Institution for Transforming India, also called NITI Aayog, was formed via a resolution of the Union Cabinet on January 1, NITI Aayog is the premier policy Think Tank of the Govt. of India, providing both directional & policy inputs. Vice Chairperson: Dr. Rajiv Kumar b) Chief Executive Officer: Shri Amitabh Kant NHAI National Highways Authority of India Shri Deepak Kumar, Chairman BIMSTEC stands for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical & Economic Cooperation, includes namely Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka & Thailand. AWARDS Name of the Award Winner Awards for Literature/Journalism 1. Sahitya Akademi Award (English) Author Mamang Dai for The Black Hill 2. Sahitya Akademi Award (Hindi) Author Ramesh Kuntal Megh for Vishw Mithak Sarit Sagar 3. 31st Moortidevi Award for the year 2017 Eminent Bengali poet Joy Goswami 4. Big Little Book Award for 2017 in "Author in Bengali Language" category for her contribution to Sahitya Akademi awardee Bengali writer Nabaneeta Dev Sen the children's literature. 5. Ezhuthachan Puraskaram 2017 Noted Malayalam Poet & literary critic, K Satchidanandan (Kerala govt.'s highest literary honour) 6. 53rd Jnanpith Award for the year 2017 Renowned Hindi litterateur Krishna Sobti Man Booker Prize US author George Saunders 8. Saraswati Samman 2016 Konkani writer Mahabaleshwar Sail for 'Hawthan' Country s Highest Honour Given 9. Indian Parliamentary Group (IPG) headed by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan announced that five members of parliament (MPs) selected for the Outstanding Parliamentarian Awards. This includes, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad (2015), Trinamool Congress Dinesh Trivedi (2016), Manipur s governor Najma A Heptulla (2013), BJP s Lok Sabha member Hukumdev Narayan Yadav (2014) & five-time Rajya Sabha member Bhartruhari Mahatab of the Lok Biju Janata Dal (BJD) (2017). 10. Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan honoured with 24th Crystal Award atwef, Davos, Switzerland. He received Award for "his leadership in championing children's & women's rights in India". 11. President has approved the awards for 85 individuals, which includes 3 Padma Vibhushan, 9 Padma Bhushan & 73 Padma Shri. In sports personalities, Mahendra Singh Dhoni & multiple world champion cueist Pankaj Advani conferred with the 3 rd highest civilian award, Padma Bhushan World Weightlifting Champion Saikhom Mirabai Chanu & tennis player Somdev Devvarman conferred with the Padma Shri. 12. Veteran Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee received the Legion of Honour, the highest French civilian award for his contribution to cinema. 13. Natalie Portman awarded Israel s 2018 Genesis Prize in recognition of her commitment to social causes & deep connection to her Jewish & Israeli roots. It is also known as the Jewish Nobel Prize,. 14. Nicaraguan author & former politician Sergio Ramirez Mercado won the 2017 Cervantes Prize. It is the Spanishspeaking world's highest literary honor. Film/Music Awards 15. Bollywood playback singer Asha Bhosle will be given the 'Yash Chopra Memorial Award'. She will be the fifth winner of the award. 16. Janakavi P Sawlaram award Actor Sudhir Dalvi 17. In the 63rd Jio Filmfare Awards 2018, Vidya Balan won her career's sixth Filmfare award for 'Tumhari Sulu'. 18. Veteran singer K S Chitra selected for prestigious 'Harivarasanam' Award Golden Peacock award for best film at 48th International Robin Campillo s French film 120 Beats Per Minute Film Festival of India 20. 'Best Short Film Award' at the South Asian Film Festival of Montreal (SAFFM) Indian short film The School Bag. Directed by Dheeraj Jindal 21. Madhya Pradesh government's prestigious National Lata Mangeshkar Award. Alka Yagnik, Udit Narayan, Usha Khanna, Bappi Lahiri & Anu Malik Adda247 App

34 Other Awards Conferred 22. Best Central bank governor in Asia-Pacific for 2018 by UK-based magazine, The Banker. MD of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Ravi Menon, st Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Award for Probity in Public Life Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar 24. Ihsan Dogramaci Family Health Foundation Prize by WHO. Dr Vinod Paul, Member of NITI Aayog (Become the first Indian to receive this award) 25. Prestigious National Design Award Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri & DG, Missiles & Strategic Systems 26. Golden Peacock Innovation Management Award 2017 Joda East Iron Mine (JEIM) of Tata Steel 27. Ballon d'or Award 2017 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) (5 th time) 28. 'Yeraringan' Award Prof. M.S. Swaminathan 29. Miss Supranational 2017 (in Poland) Miss Korea Jenny Kim 30. Mr. India Pageant 2017 Jitesh Singh Deo from Lucknow 31. Mr. India Supranational 2017 Indian footballer Prathamesh Maulingkar 32. International Children's Peace Prize 16-year-old Mohamad Al Jounde from Syria 33. Asian Boxing Confederation s best youth boxer for 2017 Sachin Siwach year-old model & Miss Korea Jenny Kim bagged the title of Miss Supranational 2017 held in Poland year-old Mohamad Al Jounde from Syria awarded the International Children's Peace Prize for his efforts to ensure the rights of Syrian refugee children. 36. Ministry of Health & Family Welfare awarded Bronze Medal for its creative & informative display at the 37th India International Trade Fair 2017 being held at Pragati Maidan. 37. Veteran journalist Manik Banerjee presented with the 'Life Time Achievement Award' by the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF). 38. Rashtriya Bal Kalyan Award 2017 was given to Super 30 founder Anand Kumar for his contributions in the field of teaching & education by President Kovind. 39. In International Bosphorus Film Festival which held in Turkey, Ishaan Khattar won Best Actor award for Beyond the Clouds. It is directed by Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi. 40. Awarded Most visited place of the world by World The Golden Temple Book of Records (WBR), London. 41. Miss World 2017 India's Manushi Chhillar (From Haryana) 42. Miss Universe 2017 Miss South Africa Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters 43. 3rd Indian Council for Cultural Relations(ICCR) Professor Hiroshi Marui of Japan Distinguished Indologist Award 44. Mother Teresa Memorial Award for Social Justice, 2017 UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) 45. International award from Abu Dhabi in the category of social contribution in country value. Andhra Pradesh Mineral Development Corporation (APMDC) 46. Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament & Development Former PM Manmohan Singh 47. Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple of Srirangam in Tamil Nadu won UNESCO Asia Pacific Award of Merit 2017 for the cultural heritage conservation program. 48. Royal Opera House awarded the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation. International Gandhi Peace Prize: For contributions towards social, economic&political transformation through non-violence&other Gandhian methods. Bharat Ratna: Premier civilian award, to serve the nation. Padma Vibhushan: Ranking wise the second award is the Padma Vibhushan in the Indian Republic. It awarded people from various fields including Govt. service to distinguish extraordinary service for the country. Padma Bhushan: The Padma Bhushan is the highest civilian award third in rank in the Indian Republic. Static Takeaways from Awards & Recognition Padma Shri: It is awarded to citizens of India for their distinguished contribution in several fields including Education, Literature, Arts, Science, Industry, Social Service, Medicine, Sports&Public Affairs. Dronacharya Award: For brilliance in sports coaching. Dhyan Chand Award: Highest lifetime achievement award in sports&games in India Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna: Highest honor given for accomplishment in sports. Vyas Samman: For literary in the Hindi language Adda247 App

35 Saraswati Samman: For outstanding prose or poetry literary works in any Indian language listed in Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India. Param Vir Chakra: Highest decoration Awarded for the most conspicuous bravery or some daring or prominent act of valour or self-sacrifice in the presence of the enemy on land, sea or air. Maha Vir Chakra: Second highest decoration. It is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. Vir Chakra: It is the third in the order of awards for acts of gallantry in the face of the enemy on land, sea or air. Ashok Chakra: Awarded for the most conspicuous bravery or some daring act of valour or self-sacrifice on land, at sea or in the air. Academy (Oscar) Awards: Film (From 1929) Grammy Award: Music (From 1958) Ramon Magasaysay Award: Govt. (Public) Service, Social Service, Journalism, Literature, Communication&International Understanding Bourlog Award: Agriculture (From 1992) Grammy: Music Pulitzer: Journalism&Literature Arjun: Sports Bowelay: Agriculture Kalinga: Science Dhanwantri: Medical Science Nobel Prize: Peace, Literature, Economics, Physics, Chemistry, Medical Science Abel: Maths Man Booker: Literature Vachspati Samman: Sanskrit Literature CURRENT SUMMITS/EVENTS HELD (NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL) Name of the Summit Location/Held in SUMMITS HELD NATIONALLY 1. International bird festival to held in Dudhwa National Park, UP th International Energy Forum (IEF) Ministerial meeting to be held in New Delhi 3. 7th Asia Steel International Conference to be held in Bhubaneswar, Odisha 4. 'Kachra Mahotsav 2018' which is India's first Garbage Festival organized in Chhattisgarh 5. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu inaugurated 3rd edition of 'Raisina Dialogue'on the topic 'Managing Disruptive Transitions - Ideas, Institutions & Idioms' in New Delhi 6. 65th meeting of Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) held in New Delhi 7. International Workshop on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (IWDRI) held in New Delhi 8. 4 th edition of India International Science Festival held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. 9. Agriculture ministers of ASEAN countries met for the fourth sitting in New Delhi th Bilateral Technical Meeting on cooperation in the field of Traditional Systems New Delhi of Medicine between Govt. of India & Malaysia held in 11. International Dharma-Dhamma conference held in (Inaugurated by President) Rajgir in Bihar 12. PM Modi inaugurated the first Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) Parliamentary Conference in Delhi. Pravasi Bharatiya Divas observed on 9 th Jan. In the Conference, the biggest delegation was from Guyana. 13. Conference on Transformation of Aspirational Districts held in New Delhi 14. 4th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture & Forestry held in New Delhi 15. ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit to commemorate 25th Anniversary of New Delhi ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations held in th India International Coffee Festival (IICF) to be held in Bengaluru 17. International Coffee Organization s World Coffee Conference 2020 Bengaluru, India th session of the Indian History Congress Kolkata, West Bengal st International Conference on Sports Medicine & Sports Sciences SAICON 2017 Note: Inaugurated by MoS (I/C) Youth Affairs & Sports Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore. New Delhi 20. International Conference on Groundwater issues in India held in New Delhi Theme: Groundwater Vision Water Security, Challenges, & Climate Change Adaptation th Annual Conference of Indian Economic Association held at Acharya Nagarjuna University in Guntur of Andhra Pradesh. President inaugurated it. 22. New Delhi to host the Asean-India Connectivity Summit (AICS) on the theme "Powering Digital & Physical Linkages for Asia in the 21st Century". 23. India to host a meeting of WTO member countries in Feb-2018 to muster support for food security & other issues Adda247 App

36 24. UN Women in collaboration with Facebook inaugurated event in Mumbai titled 'We the Women' to empower & recognise the magnificent contribution of women in our society. 25. Bodhi Parva: BIMSTEC Festival of Buddhist Heritage New Delhi 26. Trilateral meeting of Foreign Ministers of Russia, India, & China (RIC) held in New Delhi 27. 3rd Annual Meet of Board of Governors of AIIB for 2018 Mumbai, India Theme: Mobilizing Finance for Infrastructure: Innovation & Collaboration th Inclusive Finance India Summit held in New Delhi 29. 4th India-Australia-Japan Trilateral Dialogue held in New Delhi 30. Shared Value Summit 2017 with the theme Equity & Empowerment held in New Delhi (Minister of Industry & Commerce, Suresh Prabhu was the chief guest) th Finance Commission first meeting under the Chairmanship of Shri N.K. New Delhi Singh & other members held in st International exhibition & Conference on AYUSH & Wellness sector- New Delhi AROGYA 2017 with the theme 'Enhancing the global potential of Ayush' held in 33. 6th International Tourism Mart-2017 Guwahati, Assam 34. VP M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated 12th Annual convention of central information commission in New Delhi. 35. a) First South-Asian edition of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES), organised by NITI Aayog in partnership with government of USA held in Hyderabad, Telangana. b) U.S. President Trump s Adviser & daughter Ivanka Trump lead the US delegation. c) The theme of the Summit was "Women First, Prosperity for All" th Global Conference on Cyber Space inaugurated by PM Modi held in New Delhi 37. International Gita Mahotsav 2017 inaugurated by President Kovind held in (Mauritius was partner country & Uttar Pradesh was partner state) Kurukshetra, Haryana 38. Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) based at Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) conducted Multi-State Mega Mock Exercise of Tsunami for East Coast of India th meeting of Standing Committee of Inter-State Council (ISC) held in New Delhi (It was chaired by Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh) 40. Korea festival showcasing Korea's rich art, culture & heritage inaugurated at Ambience Mall, Haryana st edition of International Symposium to Promote Innovation & Research in Energy Efficiency (INSPIRE 2017) held in Jaipur, Rajasthan 42. Nordic-Baltic embassies will host the first ever youth film festival of the European nations in Delhi. 43. India Disaster Response Summit held in New Delhi 44. Ministry of Women & Child Development celebrated the Child Rights Week by hosting Hausala 2017 festival. The nation celebrates Children s Day on 14 Nov. & International Child Rights Day on 20 Nov st World Congress of Mental Health New Delhi th India International Trade Fair (IITF) at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. Organised by India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO). The theme was Startup India Standup India. Vietnam was Partner Country Kyrgyzstan was Focus Country Jharkhand was Partner State th Annual conference of Asian Bankers Association (ABA) with the theme 'Asia's Mumbai turn to transform' to be held in th Asia Pacific Computer Emergency Response Team (APCERT) Conference with In New Delhi the theme "Building Trust in the Digital Economy" held in 49. India s first Tribal Entrepreneurship Summit jointly organized by NITI Aayog & Dantewada, Chhattisgarh govt. of USA held in 50. Three-day AP AgTech Summit-2017 held in Visakhapatnam th North-East Business Summit to explore the scope for business opportunities In New Delhi in the North-Eastern region of India. 52. Ninth edition of CMS Vatavaran - an international film festival on environment & New Delhi. wildlife with the theme Conservation 4 Water" held in 53. World Food India 2017 food Event held in New Delhi SUMMITS HELD INTERNATIONALLY 54. An informal WTO ministerial gathering held in Davos, Switzerland Adda247 App

37 55. PM Modi returned home his visit to Davos, Switzerland. He delivered a keynote address at the plenary session of the 48th annual meeting of World Economic Forum. He also met his Canadian counterpart, Justin Trudeau. He also held a meeting with Queen Maxima of the Netherlands nd UN World Tourism Organization/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism & Culture held in Muscat, Oman. Note: MoS for Culture (IC) & Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Mahesh Sharma led Indian delegation 57. International Conference on Climate Change, 'Resilient Hindu Kush Himalaya: Nepal Developing Solutions towards a Sustainable Future for Asia' inaugurated by Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari held in 58. 3rd Dialogue b/w NITI Aayog & Development Research Council of China, co Beijing chaired by VC Dr. Rajiv Kumar, & Mr Li Wei, President (Minister), DRC held in 59. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting 2017 with Da Nang, Vietnam the theme Creating New Dynamism, Fostering a Shared Future held in Note: APEC summit 2018 to be held in Papua New Guinea th South Asia Economic Summit (SAES) with the theme Deepening Economic Kathmandu, Nepal Integration for Inclusive & Sustainable Development in South Asia st ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit with the theme Manila, Philippines. "Partnering for Change, Engaging the World" held in Note: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte chaired the summit. 62. A Curtain Raiser Event for the Founding Ceremony of the International Solar Bonn, Germany Alliance (ISA) was held in UN Peacekeeping Defence Ministerial Conference held in Vancouver, Canada 64. IV Global Conference on the Sustained Eradication of Child Labour Buenos Aires(Argentina) 65. WHO Global Ministerial Conference Ending TB in the Sustainable Development Era: A Multisectoral Response held in Moscow, Russia COMMITTEES IN NEWS Purpose for which Committee is formed Headed by member inter-ministerial committee to look for changes in the existing B.R. Sharma law of playing of the national anthem in cinema halls & public places member panel to study the usage of social media & other digital Umesh Sinha platforms before elections 3. High-level committee set upby the Govt. to address the problem of stressed assets in India's power sector. Headed by NITI Aayog chief executive Amitabh Kant 4. 7-member committee formed by Union Environment Ministry to formulate measures to solve the problem of air pollution in Delhi-NCR region. Environment Secretary C.K. Mishra 5. Govt. set up a ministerial panel to consider & oversee mergers among the FM Arun Jaitley country s 21 state-run banks. 6. Govt. constituted task force for redrafting the 50-year old income tax law in sync with the economic needs of the country. Arbind Modi, CBDT Member (Legislation) as the Convener 7. Panel formed by RBI for hedging commodities in global markets Chandan Sinha 8. Economic Advisory Council to PM (EAC-PM) held its first meeting in New Delhi to deliberate upon & lay out a roadmap to give a leg up to the Indian EAC-PM is chaired by Dr. Bibey Debroy economy in the short term. 9. Inter-State Council (investigates & advises on disputes between states) has PM Modi is the Chairman been reconstituted 10. Committee formed for the review of the laws governing Goods & Services M Vinod Kumar Tax (GST). 11. Panel for by the Govt. to study merger of District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) with Maharashtra State Cooperative (MSC) Bank Yashwant Thorat 12. Group of ministers (GoM) on making the GST composition scheme more attractive held its first meeting in New Delhi. Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Adda247 App

38 The 5-member GoM, led by: member committee formed to select the candidate for the post of editorin-chief of Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV). 14. President Kovind appointed a five-member Committee to examine subcategorization of OBCs under Article 340 of the Constitution. 15. Govt.'s Committee on Haj Policy has recommended phasing out of subsidy for Haj pilgrims & allowing women devotees above 45 years of age to travel in a group of at least four without a male 16. Centre has set up a high-level committee for proper management of water resources in the North-Eastern region to be head by INDIA & WORLD On the eve of ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit to celebrate 25 years of India-ASEAN partnership, PM Modi held bilateral meetings with leaders of three ASEAN nations - Myanmar, Vietnam & Philippines in New Delhi. PM met his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc, he met Philipino President Rodrigo Duterte & then he met the Myanmar's State Councillor Aung San Suu Kyi. India celebrated its 69th Republic Day on 26th January in Rajpath, New Delhi. Heads of ten ASEAN countries are chief guests at Republic Day. The family members of Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala (Posthumous) of IAF, who died fighting militants in Kashmir valley, received India s highest peacetime gallantry award, Ashok Chakra. India & Vietnam released first ever set of commemorative postage stamps to mark the long-term friendly bilateral relationships between two countries. PM Modi visited Davos, Switzerland to attend the 48th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum. The theme of the meet is 'Creating a shared future in a fractured world'. India-ASEAN business & investment conference held in New Delhi. India & Israel signed nine documents to further the cooperation. It includes cooperation in; Cybersecurity, Petroleum & natural gas, film co-production, homoeopathy medicines, space science, boosting investment, metal-air batteries & solar thermal technology & document for the amendment to the air transport agreement. Bangladesh, India & Nepal given nod to operating procedures for movement of passenger vehicles in the sub-region under Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal (BBIN) motor vehicles agreement. It was signed in 2015 in Thimphu, Bhutan for seamless flow of passenger & cargo traffic in the region. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu also visited Mumbai during his visit to India. He addressed the India-Israel Business Summit & attended the Shalom NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS Prasar Bharati Chairman A Surya Prakash Headed by Delhi High Court's former Chief Justice G Rohini Headed by Afzal Amanullah NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar Bollywood. He also launched a monthly magazine titled Namaste Shalom. PM Modi & PM Benjamin Netanyahu inaugurated the 'icreate Centre' at Deo Dholera in Ahmedabad. icreate paves way for the two nations to jointly script new stories of success through innovation. India joined the Australia Group export control regime & has become the 43rd Member of that Group. It is an informal forum which seeks to ensure that exports do not contribute to the development of chemical or biological weapons. Cabinet approved agreement between India & Myanmar on Land Border Crossing. This will facilitate movement of people on the basis of valid passports & visas which will enhance economic & social interaction between the two countries. India excluded Pakistan from the list of SAARC member countries with which it will be connecting its state-of-the-art National Knowledge Network (NKN) for sharing scientific databases & remote access to advanced research facilities. NKN is a multi-gigabit pan-india network which facilitates the development of India's communications infrastructure, stimulates research & creates next-generation applications & services. As per the Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Saudi Arabia has given the green signal for India s decision to revive the option of sending Haj pilgrims through sea route also. For the first time, Muslim women from India will go to Haj without Mehram (male companion). Indian Government to set up a $ 350 million solar development fund for financing solar projects. PM Modi stated that Republic Day celebration in 2018 would be "remembered through the ages" because the govt. for the first time in India's history would host leaders of 10 ASEAN countries as chief guests on 26th January India is set to jump Britain & France in 2018 to become the world s fifth-largest economy in dollar terms, as the Centre for Economics & Business Adda247 App

39 Research (CEBR) consultancy s 2018 World Economic League Table. The Top 3 Economies of the world as per World Economic Forum are- USA, China, & Japan. Govt. of India, Govt. of Tamil Nadu & the World Bank signed a $318 million loan agreement for the Tamil Nadu Irrigated Agriculture Modernization Project to promote climate resilient agriculture technologies, improve water management practices, & increase market opportunities for small & marginal farmers. World Bank committed $125 million (around Rs. 800 crores) loan to India for STRIVE project for skill development. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj & her Jordanian counterpart Ayman Al Safadi held a bilateral meeting in New Delhi & discussed deepening bilateral ties across multiple sectors. In a move aimed at combating black money stashed abroad, India signed an agreement with Switzerland that would allow automatic sharing of tax-related information. India re-elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organisation under Category B. Indian High Commissioner to the UK Y K Sinha represented India at the assembly. Govt. to Govt. Umbrella Agreement between India & Germany concerning Financial Cooperation in 2016 (II) signed to formalize an amount up to Euro 200 million for Financial Cooperation in form of loan for the project Climate Friendly Urban Mobility III & Euro 11 million accompanying measures in form of grant for four projects. India & Cuba signed MoU for enhanced cooperation in the health sector. Union Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh with H.E Maurizio Martina, Italian Minister for Agriculture Food & Forestry Policies have signed a new MoU for cooperation in Agriculture & Phytosanitary issues. India re-elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organisation under Category B. Indian High Commissioner to the UK Y K Sinha represented India at the assembly. The government of India will assist Mauritius to develop & set up digital locker services, on the sidelines of Global Conference on Cyber Space Russia will assist India to set up a national crisis management centre in the country to handle disaster & other emergency situations. PM Modi & his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina jointly inaugurated the long-awaited direct trainservice between Kolkata & Khulna. The new train service is called Bandhan Express. Govt. notified the third protocol between India & New Zealand for avoidance of double taxation & prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. India re-elected as the member of the UNESCO s executive board. The election held at the 39th session of the General Conference of the UNESCO in Paris, France. 4 agreements signed by India & Philippines in areas including Defence Cooperation & Logistics, agriculture, Micro, Medium & Small Enterprises-MSME & forging closer relations between the Indian Council of World Affairs & the Philippines Foreign Service Institute. India, the United States, Japan & Australia held their first official-level talks in Manila, Philippines with a focus on keeping the India-Pacific region "free & open". India & France agreed to deepen security cooperation, bilaterally & in the multilateral fora, & strengthen strong commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms & manifestations. India & Tunisia agreed to jointly combat terrorism & extremism while ramping up cooperation in the field of security. This was signed at the 12th India- Tunisia Joint Commission Meeting. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj co-chaired with her Tunisian counterpart Khemaies Jhinaoui. Six agreements in the fields of judicial cooperation, cooperation in youth issues, information & communications technology, trade & business, were also signed. India pledged an additional amount of USD 100 million towards the UN partnership fund, scaling up its support to sustainable development projects across the developing world. OTHER NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS Marking the 69th Republic Day celebrations, Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) & New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) have launched the first ever 'Khadi Haat' in the country Adda247 App

40 The I4Fund Call for Proposal was announced by the two PMs (Narendra Modi & Benjamin Netanyahu). The "India-Israel Industrial R&D & Technological Innovation Fund (I4F)" was announced in Under this, Department of Science & Technology, India & National Innovation Authority of Israel established a 40 million US dollar Fund. Election Commission of India announced dates for elections to the Assemblies of Meghalaya, Tripura & Nagaland. Polling for legislative assembly elections in Tripura on 18 February, while Meghalaya & Nagaland will go to vote on 27 February. All the three states have 60 seats each in their assembly. As per the Power Minister RK Singh, India will set up a $350-million fund to finance solar projects as the country steps up efforts to achieve its ambitious target of adding 175 gigawatts (GW) in renewable energy by Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) introduced a concept of 'Virtual ID' to further strengthen privacy & security of Aadhaar number holders. The Aadhaar number holder can use 'Virtual ID' in place of an Aadhaar number whenever authentication or KYC services are performed. PM Modi will become the first PM in 20 years to attend the World Economic Forum s (WEF) annual celebration of the global elite. The meeting will be held in Davos town of Switzerland. India is all set to get its first runway on a sea bridge, as the Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been given a nod to extend Lakshadweep s Agatti Airport. Lok Sabha passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriages) Bill 2017 making instant triple talaq illegal with up to three years in jail for the husband. India's first & only design university, 'World University of Design' opened its campus at Sonipat, Haryana. Elite export control regime Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) decided to admit India as its new member. India declared free from infectious Trachoma which is a contagious bacterial infection of the eye. It causes inflamed granulation on the inner surface of the lids. Half a billion people have gained access to electricity in India since 2000, almost doubling the country s electrification rate, as per the World Energy Access report released by the International Energy Agency. PM Modi inaugurated the BR Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi. He also unveiled two statues of the Dalit icon at the center in Janpath. Union Cabinet chaired by PM Modi has approved setting up of National Nutrition Mission (NNM) with a 3-year budget of Rs crore commencing from The program through the targets will strive to reduce the level of stunting, under-nutrition, anemia & low birth weight babies. Combining the production of all types of fisheries (capture & culture), the total fish production has reached at about million tonnes in & India has become the second largest fish producing country in the world. Union Cabinet chaired by PM Modi has approved India's Membership for European Bank for Reconstruction & Development (EBRD). Minister of Women & Child Development, Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi launched an intensive training program for Elected Women Representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions & Master Trainers, in New Delhi. Govt. embarked upon a major policy initiative for the rapid transformation of 115 backward districts across the country by Senior level government officials, at the rank of Additional Secretary & Joint Secretary, have been nominated as Prabhari officers for each district. A detailed briefing of these officials was held under the chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary P.K. Sinha. Union Home Ministry formed two new divisions to exclusively deal with emerging security challenges such as radicalization & cyber crime. The two divisions called Counter-Terrorism & Counter-Radicalization (CTCR) & the Cyber & Information Security (CIS). CTCR wing is basically modified version of the Home Ministry s internal security-ii division. CIS division will monitor online crimes & threats, including cyber fraud & hacking. Centre given an in-principle approval to provide an assistance of Rs 10,000 crore to fund 107 irrigation projects in drought-hit Vidarbha & Maratha regions of Maharashtra. India topped the list of seven countries, accounting for 64% of 10.4 million new tuberculosis (TB) cases worldwide in 2016, as per report by the World Health Organisation. An estimated 1.7 million people died from TB in SC ruled that technical education cannot be provided through correspondence courses. The Apex Court restrained educational institutions from providing courses in technical education like engineering. India Pavilion at Conference of Parties (COP) 23 inaugurated by Union Minister of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan at Bonn in Germany. The 23rd United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held at the Bonn, Germany. India s theme for COP 23 is Conserving Now, Preserving Future. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh along with Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas & Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated India's first Pradhan Mantri Adda247 App

41 Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) for Skilling in Smart Cities, in collaboration with New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC). Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh announced that former Director IB Dineshwar Sharma was handpicked by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to hold a dialogue with stakeholders of Jammu & Kashmir. A sustained dialogue will be initiated with all shades of opinion in Kashmir Valley. Union Cabinet approved the biggest ever highway project to develop & expand approximately 83,000 km of roads at an investment of Rs 6.9 lakh crore by The project also includes the new 28,400 km Bharatmala Iceland become first country in the world to legalise equal pay among men & women. Romania's left-wing PM Mihai Tudose resigned after losing the backing of his party due to internal power struggles. India & Sri Lanka signed four agreements for collaboration in the Information & communication technology (ICT) sector, setting up of an e-office system & connecting of National Knowledge Network (NKN) for collaboration among universities & academics. With this, Sri Lanka become the first country to be connected to India s NKN. India, for the first time, took part in meeting of the international military cooperation departments of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Beijing, China. Valletta, the capital of Malta, was officially named European Capital of Culture India signed an MoU with the United Kingdom to enable the return of illegal Indian migrants within a month of their detection by authorities abroad. China became Nepal s second internet service provider, breaking India s monopoly in providing internet access to Nepal. UN Environment & the World Health Organization agreed a new, wide-ranging collaboration to accelerate action to curb environmental health risks that cause an estimated 12.6 million deaths a year. World s largest Ice Festival 'International Ice & Snow Festival' was held in Harbin, China. It is the 34th annual Ice Festival in Harbin, north-east China. Nepal has banned solo climbers from scaling its mountains, including Mount Everest, in a bid to reduce accidents. Israel filed notice to withdraw from the UNESCO alongside the United States. Israel was the member of UNESCO since Both Israel & the US have filed its own withdrawal notice in October INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS highway program connecting border areas, improving international, port & coastal connectivity. India overtakes the US to become the world s secondlargest smartphone market, trailing only China, as per Canalys. Union Cabinet approved over Rs 7,000 crore for construction of permanent campuses of six new Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) across the country. Each of the permanent campuses to be established at Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh), Palakkad (Kerala), Dharwad (Karnataka), Jammu (Jammu & Kashmir), Bhilai (Chhattisgarh) & Goa will have a facility for housing 1,200 students from the academic year Saudi Arabia & the United Arab Emirates (UAE) introduced value-added tax (VAT). These are the first two countries in the Gulf which have introduced the VAT system. The 5% levy is being applied to the majority of goods & services. Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kuwait, Peru, Poland & the Netherlands formally joined the ranks of the non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to make a difference. The unusual & very efficient whistle language commonly called "bird language" used as a means of communication by villagers in remote northern Turkey entered the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Pakistan allowed Chinese currency Yuan for exports & financing transactions. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj co-chaired the fifth meeting of the India-Indonesia Joint Commission with her Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi. Himalayan Hydro Expo 2018 held at Kathmandu, the capital Nepal. President of Nepal Bidya Devi Bhandari inaugurated the exhibition. Prince Harry has been named the president of African Parks, a conservation group that manages a dozen wildlife areas across the continent. US President Trump signed into law a sweeping overhaul of the US tax code. Congress passed the 1.5 trillion dollars overhaul, set to impact every corner of the economy through dramatic tax cuts for corporations & temporary reductions for individuals. World Health Organisation has declared Gabon a "polio-free country", given the lack of new reported or suspected cases in the central African country. France's parliament approved a law banning all exploration & production of oil & natural gas by 2040 within the country & its overseas territories Adda247 App

42 Washington resident Shree Saini has been crowned Miss India USA Iraq has overtaken Saudi Arabia for the first time to become India's top crude oil supplier in the current fiscal, according to the Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. President of USA Donald Trump announced that the US now recognizes Jerusalem as Israel's capital, overturning decades of official US policy. China Three Gorges New Energy Co. is building a 1 billion yuan ($151 million) floating solar power plant, the world s biggest, in the nation s eastern province of Anhui. Mount Hope, in the British Atlantic Territory, recently re-measured & found to be 377 metres taller & thus Becomes UK's New Highest Mountain. Saudi Arabia will have its first public cinemas in more than 35 years after the govt. announced the lifting of the ban on movie theatres. Google announced that it will open a research lab focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Beijing, China. It will be its first such center in Asia. Norway became the world's first country to shut down national broadcasts of its FM network by completing its transition to digital radio. IMF approved a new USD 88 billion credit line for Mexico which will boosts Mexico s ability to immediately deal with a potential need for liquidity. Raj Shah who holds a key position in the White House, gaggled with reporters on board US Presidential chopper Air Force One, becoming the first Indian- American to enjoy the privilege. The first phase of Chabahar port inaugurated by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. The port, located in Iran s southeastern Sistan-Baluchestan Province. ADB Board of Directors has approved debt financing & partial risk guarantees totaling $583 million to develop the Reliance Bangladesh Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) & Power Project. Australia s parliament legislated for marriage equality, passing a bill almost unanimously to allow two people, regardless of sex, to marry. Australia becomes the 25th country to recognize same-sex marriage. US President Donald Trump & Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to support the U.N. effort to "peacefully resolve" the nearly seven-year-long Syrian civil war. Robert Mugabe resigned as President of Zimbabwe with immediate effect after 37 years in power. Scientists developed the world s first artificial intelligence politician that can answer a person s queries regarding local issues such as policies around housing, education & immigration. The virtual politician, called SAM, was created by Nick Gerritsen, a 49-year-old entrepreneur in New Zealand. Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi stripped of the Freedom of Oxford award over her "inaction" in handling the raging Rohingya refugee crisis & turning a "blind eye to violence" in the country that forced over 600,000 people to flee to Bangladesh. European Union Election Observation Mission officially launched to monitor the general & provincial polls in Nepal which are scheduled for November 26 & December 7. Saudi Arabian government approved the practice of yoga as a sports activity, claimed a social media post of Nouf Marwaai, founder of the Arab Yoga Foundation in the Saudi kingdom. Typhoon Damrey arrived in Vietnam. It was the strongest cyclone in 16 years. China launched world's first all-electric ship that can travel up to 80 km with 2000-tonnes cargo after a twohour charge. The 70.5-metre-long ship, which weighs about 600 tonnes, was launched in Guangzhou in South China's Guangdong Province. As per UN report, Syria has officially signed up to the Paris Agreement, leaving the United States as the only country to reject the global climate-rescue pact. Syria became 169th of 196 countries that are members of the UN climate convention. Food & Drug Administration approved the first drug in the United States with a digital ingestion tracking system, in an unprecedented move to ensure that patients with mental illness take the medicine prescribed for them. With more than 1.5 million book titles & 1,650 publishing houses from 60 countries, Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) opened its doors to public & trade visitors. It is the third largest book fair in the world. The book fair was held under the theme A World in My Book. China unveiled Asia's largest artificial island-building ship. The 140-metre-long vessel has been dubbed as "magic island maker". It is capable of digging 6,000 cubic metres an hour, which is equivalent to three standard swimming pools. The boat named Tian Kun Hao is equivalent of three standard swimming pools. As per the govt. of Kazakhstan, the name of this Central Asian Country will change to Qazaqstan by PM Modi visited International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Los Banos, Philippines & inaugurated Shri Narendra Modi Resilient Rice Field Laboratory there. DMRC with Embassy of Sweden jointly inaugurated Nobel Memorial Wall at the Rajiv Chowk Metro station, Delhi. Lebanese PM Saad al-hariri resigned from his post Adda247 App

43 Countries Capital Currency Part 2 International Maritime Organization: HQ: London, UK Head: Kitack Lim UNESCO: United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organization HQ: Paris, France Cuba: Havana Cuban convertible peso, Cuban peso Tunisia: Tunis Tunisian dinar Myanmar: Naypyidaw Burmese kyat Iran: Tehran Iranian rial Libya: Tripoli Libyan dinar Yemen: Sana'a Yemeni rial Chad: N'Djamena Central African CFA franc Lebanese: Beirut Lebanese pound Nicargua: Managua Nicaraguan córdoba Burundi: Bujumbura Burundian franc Cyprus: Nicosia Euro, Cypriot pound San Marino: San Marino Euro Peru: Lima Sol Iceland: Reykjavik Icelandic króna Angola: Luanda Angolan kwanza Serbia: Belgrade Serbian dinar Papua New Guinea: Port Moresby Papua New Guinean kina Uzbekistan: Tashkent Uzbekistani soʻm Iraq: Baghdad Iraqi dinar Norway: Oslo Norwegian krone Malta: Valletta Euro Bolivia: Sucre Bolivian bolivian CURRENT AFFAIRS RELATED TO STATES IN INDIA NORTHERN STATES Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal launched a common card for rides on public buses & the metro. Delhi is the first city in the country to have a common mobility card. 24X7 'Gudiya helpline' was set up by Himachal Pradesh CM, Jai Ram Thakur for reporting crimes against women. Gudiya is a nickname given to the 16- year-old victim of rape & murder. BJP Chief Amit Shah launched "Yuva Udghosh programme" in Varanasi, UP. Senior BJP leader Jai Ram Thakur took oath as the 6th CM of Himachal Pradesh. He has replaced Virbhadra Singh. UP's Shamli district included in the National Capital Region (NCR), taking the total number of districts in the NCR to 23. Uttar Pradesh becomes the first state to endorse the Centre's draft bill that makes instant triple talaq a cognizable & non-bailable offense. As per the draft law, its three years' imprisonment & a fine to a Muslim man trying to divorce his wife by uttering "talaq" three times. The world's biggest toilet pot model unveiled at Marora, popularly known as "Trump village", in Haryana on World Toilet Day (19 November) in a bid to create awareness towards sanitation & use of toilets. Haryana government signed initial pacts worth Rs. 2,069 crores with 44 agro-based & food processing enterprises & establishments that will provide employment to 5,012 persons. Haryana emerged as the first state in the country to treat Hepatitis-C patients through oral medicine. Haryana Govt. announced lifetime monthly pension of Rs 10,000 for 'Hindi Satyagrahis' & those from the state who were jailed during the Emergency. Uttar Pradesh cabinet decided to make India's first conservation reserve for blackbuck in Allahabad's Meja. Border Roads Organisation (BRO) built the world's highest motorable road at a height of over 19,300 feet. The road constructed in the Ladakh region of J&K. 86- kilometre road constructed under 'Project Himank' of the BRO. EASTERN STATES Kolkata become the first Indian Metro to get a Floating Market. The market will be located on a water-body with boats doubling up as shops. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee unveiled the official emblem which highlights the Ashoka emblem on the top with the theme of "Biswa Bangla" at the centre. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar laid foundation stones for more than 100 projects worth Rs. 700 crores in Nalanda district as part of his state-wide "Vikas Samiksha Yatra". Oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated eastern India s first compressed natural gas (CNG) stations for scooters in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Nagaland is all set to celebrate the 54th Statehood Day & the 18th Hornbill festival 2017 at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama. NORTH-EASTERN STATES Arunachal Pradesh declared open defecation free ahead of the national deadline of October 2, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, & Haryana were declared open defecation free states in October Minister of State (I/C) of Ministry of Devt. of North Eastern Region Jitendra Singh announced that Arunachal Pradesh would get its first Film & Adda247 App

44 Television Institute. This would be the second one after Pune. The citizen of Assam witnessed the release of the first draft of National Register of Citizens (NRC) containing the first batch of 19 million names of genuine Indian citizens in compliance with the Supreme Court 's orders. Registrar General of India Sailesh released the document. Assam is the only state in the state that has an NRC. Assam Assembly is to introduce digital budget in its upcoming session. PM Modi inaugurated the 60-megawatt Tuirial hydroelectric power project in Aizawl. Assam govt. has signed an MoU with Isha Foundation to conserve & rejuvenate the rivers of Assam. Nagaland is all set to celebrate the 54th Statehood Day & the 18th Hornbill festival 2017 at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama. Nagaland became the first State in the Northeast to launch Point of Sale (POS) facility for electricity bill payment, where the mode of payment will be cashless. It was launched at Kohima. A group of ministers (GoM) set up under Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to make the composition scheme more attractive & also revisit GST rates on restaurants. Tripura become the first state in the country to set up family welfare district committees to examine the complaints of women against their husbands & in-laws & find an amicable solution. Tripura High Court is the first high court among 24 high courts of the country that has constituted the family welfare district committees. WESTERN STATES PM Modi inaugurated the project commencement of Rajasthan Refinery at Pachpadra in Barmer district. This is the first oil refinery in the state. The 43,000 crores rupee project is a joint venture between HPCL & the Rajasthan Govt. The first state in India to completely implement doorto-door garbage collection in all areas under urban bodies is Madhya Pradesh. Vijay Rupani was sworn as the CM of Gujarat state. Governor Om Prakash Kohli administered the Oath of Office & Secrecy to 21 ministers including Mr Rupani & his deputy Nitin Patel. Rajasthan become the first state in the country to launch free addresses in Hindi (in Devanagari script) for its residents. PM Modi inaugurated unique world-class hospital at Swaminarayan Gurukul Vidyapeeth Pratisthanam in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. This world-class hospital aims at providing top of the line medical & health care on subsidized rates. Gujarat s commercial capital Ahmedabad formally accorded the status of India s first World Heritage City by UNESCO. The Kandla Port, one of the top 12 major ports in the country, has been renamed as Deendayal Port in the name of Hindutva icon Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. CENTRAL STATES 'Pradhan Mantri LPG Panchayat' was launched by CM of Jharkhand Raghubar Das at Balijore village, in Dumka district of Jharkhand. As per him, Jharkhand is the first state in India, where beneficiaries are provided stoves along with gas connections. MP Assembly unanimously passed a Bill awarding death to those found guilty of raping girls aged 12 & below. With this, Madhya Pradesh becomes the first State where those convicted of such rapes will face the gallows. Chhattisgarh Government imposed a ban on the bursting of firecrackers in six of its cities, including the state capital Raipur, ahead of the wedding season. Madhya Pradesh has won the Best Tourism State national award for the third consecutive year. President Ram Nath Kovind handed over the award, named as Hall of Fame Award, to Minister of State for Tourism Surendra Patwa. SOUTHERN STATES The first Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) of Puducherry was inaugurated at Karaikal.It is the 60th POPSK to become functional & first POPSK to become operational in the UT of Puducherry. Andhra Pradesh Govt. & the Canton of Zurich signed a letter of intent, to promote mutual prosperity & development. Minister of State (IC), for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik laid the foundation stone for Central Research Institute (CRI) in Jaipur, Rajasthan. This will be the third CRI under the aegis of Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH). Maharashtra become the first state in the country that has come out with a public cloud policy, virtually mandating its departments to shift their data storage onto the cloud. The govt. of Tamil Nadu has launched an e- governance policy to help public, government & commercial establishments avail all services through digital medium. India's first National Park for differently abled people was inaugurated by Telangana govt. in Hyderabad. Maharashtra State s tableau has been adjudged as the Best Tableau at 69th Republic Day parade Adda247 App

45 Mumbai got India's first ever AC suburban local train as Christmas gift. The first service of the 12-coach EMU will commence between Borivali & Churchgate. Karnataka's capital city Bengaluru has become the first Indian city to have its own logo after the state govt. launched it. Nirmala Sitharaman launched a start-up incubation centre called the Centre for Entrepreneurship Opportunities & Learning (CEOL) in Mangaluru, Karnataka. President Kovind, dedicated to the people of Andhra Pradesh four projects of the State Govt. The Projects were AP Fibregrid Project, AP Surveillance Project, Drone Project; & Free Space Optical Communication (FSOC) system. He focused on the 24/7 hyperconnected world & the online presence of the govt. Andhra Pradesh Cabinet approved scheme to provide a pension of Rs 1500 to transgenders above 18 years in the state. Under this, transgenders will be provided ration cards, plots, & scholarships, also skill development for financial stability. Andhra Pradesh assembly unanimously passed the Kapu reservation bill which will provide the community with a 5% quota in education & employment in the state. Kacheguda Railway Station in Hyderabad under South Central Railway (SCR) earned the unique distinction of being the first Energy Efficient A1 Category Railway Station on Indian Railways. It achieved 100% energy efficiency by replacing 1,312 conventional lights with light-emitting diode (LED) lighting, among other steps. Telangana sgovt. s prestigious Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) finally got the Green Nod from central govt. Kerala govt. lead by Left Democratic Front (LDF) decided to raise the legal drinking age from 21 to 23 years. Goa has celebrated its 56th Liberation Day on 19th December. Air Force & Coast Guard have launched a massive rescue operation off the Kerala coast to save hundreds of fishermen stranded in the rough sea hit by Cyclone Ockhi. Telugu would be implemented as a compulsory subject in the CBSE & ICSE schools, from the next academic year in Telangana. Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao declared Urdu as the state's second official language. Every office in the state will now have an Urdu speaking officer. Govt. given go-ahead for setting up India s first mega coastal economic zone (CEZ) at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra as part of a plan to develop 14 such industrial clusters to spur manufacturing & generate jobs. Kerala government inked an MoU with Intel & UST Global for exploring the possibility of transforming the state into an electronic hardware manufacturing hub. 15 th International Film Festival for Documentary, Short & Animation films to be hosted by Mumbai in Jan-Feb ALL ABOUT THE STATES IN INDIA CM/GOVERNORS/WILDLIFE SANTUARIES/NATIONAL PARKS / POWER PLANTS IN INDIA States National Parks(NP) Wild Life Sanctuaries Power Plants J&K CM : Mehbooba Mufti Governor: Narendra Vohra Capital: Jammu(Winter) Srinagar(Summer) Dachigam National Park Hemis National Park Kishtwar National Park Salim Ali National Park Gulmarg WLS Limber WLS Nandini WLS - Himachal Pradesh CM: Jairam Thakur Governor: Acharya Dev Vrat Capital: Shimla Punjab CM: Captain Amarinder Singh Governor: V P Singh Badnore Capital: Chandigarh Pin Valley National Park Great Himalayan National Park Inderkilla National Park Khirganga National Park Simbalbara National Park Bandli WLS Daranghati WLS Dhauladhar WLS Nargu WLS Pong Dam Lake WLS Shilli WLS Talra WLS Abohar WLS Harike Lake WLS Jhajjar Bacholi WLS Girinagar Hydel Project Binwa Hydel Project Rangtong Hydel Project Baner&Neugal Project Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Power Plant Adda247 App

46 Haryana CM: Manohar Lal Khattar Governor: Kaptain Solanki Capital: Chandigarh UP CM: Yogi Adityanath Governor: Ram Naik Capital: Lucknow Bihar CM: Nitish Kumar Governor: Satya Pal Malik Capital: Patna Chattisgarh CM: Raman Singh Governor: Balram Tandon Capital: Raipur Jharkhand CM: Raghuvar Das Governor: Draupadi Murmu Capital: Ranchi Andhra Pradesh CM: N. Chandrababu Naidu Governor: E.S.L Narasimhan Capital: Amravathi [*Hyderabad initially] Telangana CM: K. Chandrashekar Rao Governor: E. S. L. Narasimhan Capital: Hyderabad Assam CM: Sarbananda Sonowal Governor: Jagdish Mukhi Capital: Dispur Goa CM: Manohar Parrikar Governor: Mridula Sinha Capital: Panaji Gujarat GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Kalesar National Park Sultanpur National Park Dudhwa National Park Valmiki National Park Indravati National Park Kanger Valley National Park Guru Ghasi Das (Sanjay) Betla National Park Sri Venkateswara National Park Mrugavani National Park Dibru-Saikhowa NP Kaziranga National Park Manas National Park Nameri National Park Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park Bhagwan Mahavir (Mollem) National Park Blackbuck National Park, Velavadar Bhindawas WLS Kalesar WLS Khaparwas WLS Hastinapur WLS Ranipur WLS Sohagibarwa WLS Sur Sarovar WLS Chandraprabha WLS National Chambal WLS Gautam Budha WLS Kaimur WLS Pant (Rajgir) WLS Valmiki WLS Badalkhol WLS Bhairamgarh WLS Bhoramdev WLS Udanti Wild Buffalo WLS Lawalong WLS Palkot WLS Parasnath WLS Coringa WLS Kolleru WLS Nellapattu WLS Pulicat Lake WLS Rajiv Gandhi (Nagarjuna Sagar- Srisailam) WLS Rollapadu WLS Kawal WLS Amchang WLS Chakrashila WLS Dihing Patkai WLS East Karbi Anglong WLS North Karbi Anglong WLS Nambor WLS Bondla WLS Madei WLS Bhagwan Mahavir (Mollem) WLS Netravali WLS Jambugodha WLS Jessore WLS Gorakhpur Atomic Power Station Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram TPS Rajiv Gandhi TPS Narora Atomic Power Station Rihand Thermal Power Station Anpara Thermal Power Station Kahalgaon Super Thermal Power Station Barauni TPS Sipat Thermal Power Plant Hasdeo TPS Bhilai Expansion Power Plant Chandrapura TPS Koderma Thermal Power Station Bokaro TPS Simhadri Super Thermal Power Plant Sri Damodaram Sanjeevaiah Thermal Power Station Bongaigaon Thermal Power Plant Adda247 App - Mundra Thermal Power Station

47 CM: Vijay Rupani Governor: O.P.Kohli Capital: Gandhinagar Karnataka CM: Siddaramaiah Governor: Vajubhai R. Vala Capital: Bangalore Kerala CM: Pinarayi Vijayan Governor: P. Sathashivam Capital: Trivandampuram MP CM: Shivraj Singh Chouhan Governor: Anandiben Patel Capital: Bhopal Maharashtra CM: Devendra Fadnavis Governor: C. Vidyasagar Rao Capital: Mumbai GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Gir Forest National Park Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutch Bansda National Park Bandipur National Park Bannerghatta National Park Kudremukh National Park Nagarhole National Park Anshi national park Eravikulam National Park Mathikettan Shola National Park Periyar National Park Silent Valley National Park Anamudi Shola National Park Pampadum Shola NP Kanha National Park Madhav National Park Mandla Plant Fossils National Park Panna National Park Pench National Park Sanjay National Park Satpura National Park Van Vihar National park Chandoli National Park Navegaon National Park Tadoba National Park Gugamal national park Kutch Desert WLS Mitiyala WLS Porbandar Lake WLS Rampara Vidi WLS Ratanmahal WLS Shoolpaneswar (Dhumkhal) WLS Thol Lake WLS Wild Ass WLS Arabithittu WLS Attiveri WLS Bhadra WLS Bhimgad WLS Brahmagiri WLS Cauvery WLS Nugu WLS Pushpagiri WLS Ranganathittu Bird WLS Sharavathi Valley WLS Someshwara WLS Aralam WLS Chimmony WLS Idukki WLS Malabar WLS Mangalavanam Bird WLS Neyyar WLS Periyar WLS Thattekad Bird WLS Bori WLS Gandhi Sagar WLS Ghatigaon WLS Ken Gharial WLS Narsighgarh WLS National Chambal WLS Orcha WLS Kuno WLS Sardarpur WLS Son Gharial WLS Aner Dam WLS Bhamragarh WLS Bhimashankar WLS Great Indian Bustard WLS Jaikwadi WLS Koyana WLS Nagzira WLS Painganga WLS Radhanagari WLS Sagareshwar WLS Tipeshwar WLS Ukai Thermal Power Station Akrimota Thermal Power Station Kakrapar Nuclear Power Plant Raichur Thermal Power Station Udupi Thermal Power Plant Bellary Thermal Power Station Brahmapuram Power Station Kayamkulam Power Station Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station Sant Singaji Thermal Power Plant Satpura Thermal Power Station Amarkantak TPS Sasan Ultra Mega Power Project Tarapur Atomic Power Station Tirora Thermal Power Station Amravati Thermal Power Plant Adda247 App

48 Manipur CM: N Biren Singh Governor: Najma A Heptulla Capital: Imphal Meghalaya CM: Mukul Sangma Governor: Ganga Prasad Capital: Shillong Mizoram CM: Lal Thanhawla Governor: Nirbhaya Sharma Capital: Aizawl Nagaland CM: T.R. Zeliang Governor: P.B.Acharya Capital: Kohima Odisha CM: Naveen Patnaik Governor: S.C. Jamir Capital: Bhubaneshawer Rajasthan CM: Vasundhara Raje Governor: Kalyan Singh Capital: Jaipur Sikkim CM: Pawan Kumar Chamling Governor: Srinivas Patel Capital: Gangtok Tamil Nadu CM: Edapaddi Palaniswami Governor: Banwaril Lal Purohit Capital: Chennai Tripura CM: Manik Sarkar Governor: Tathagata Roy GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Keibul Lamjao National Park Balphakram National Park Nokrek National Park Murlen National Park Phawngpui Blue National Park Mountain National Park Tungareshwar WLS Yangoupokpi- Lokchao WLS Baghmara Pitcher Plant WLS Nongkhyllem WLS Siju WLS Dampa WLS (TR) Ngengpui WLS Pualreng WLS Tokalo WLS Intanki National Park Fakim WLS Puliebadze WLS Rangapahar WLS Bhitarkanika National Park Simlipal National Park Sariska National Park Ranthambore National Park Darrah National Park Desert National Park Keoladeo National Park Khangchendzonga National Park Mudumalai National Park Mukurthi National Park Indira Gandhi (Annamalai) National Park Guindy National Park Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park Bison( Rajbari ) National Park Clouded Leopard Badrama WLS Baisipalli WLS Chilika (Nalaban) WLS Hadgarh WLS Khalasuni WLS Satkosia Gorge WLS Bundh Baratha WLS Darrah WLS Jawahar Sagar WLS Kailadevi WLS Mount Abu WLS Ramsagar WLS Sariska WLS Sawai Man Singh WLS Shergarh WLS Sitamata WLS Fambong Lho WLS Kitam WLS (Bird) Maenam WLS Pangolakha WLS Indira Gandhi (Annamalai) WLS Kalakad WLS Karaivetti WLS Karikili WLS Mudumalai WLS Pulicat Lake WLS Vaduvoor WLS Vedanthangal WLS Vettangudi WLS Gumti WLS Rowa WLS Sepahijala WLS Adda247 App Dikhu Hydro Electric Power Plant Talcher Super Thermal Power Station Chhabra Thermal Power Station Suratgarh Power Station Rangit Hydro Electric Power Prject Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant Neyveli Thermal Tuticorin Thermal Power Station Palatana Thermal Power Plant

49 Capital: Agartala National Park Trishna WLS UK CM: Trivendra Singh Rawat Governor: K.K. Paul Capital: Dehradun Gangotri National Park Jim Corbett National Park Valley of Flowers National Park Askot Musk Deer WLS Binsar WLS Govind Pashu Vihar WLS Kedarnath WLS Sonanadi WLS WB CM: Mamata Banerjee Governor: Keshari Nath Tripathi Capital: Kolkata Arunachal Pradesh CM: Pema Khandu Governor: BD Mishra Buxa National Park Neora Valley NationalPark Singalila National Park Sundarbans National Park Namdapha National Park Mouling National Park Israel Capital- Jerusalem, Currency- Israeli new shekel, President- Reuven Rivlin. Bangladesh Capital- Dhaka, Currency- Taka. Russia Capital- Moscow, President- Vladimir Putin. Capital of Syria: Damascus, President: Bashar al- Assad, Currency: Syrian pound Capital of Ukraine- Kiev, Currency: Ukrainian hryvnia, Capital of Zimbabwe- Harare Capital of Sri Lanka- Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte Currency of Sri Lanka- Sri Lankan rupee PM of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern. Capital of China is Beijing Seoul is the capital of the Republic of Korea (ROK), also known as South Korea. Capital of South Africa is Cape Town. Capital of Iran is Tehran. The capital of Japan is Tokyo. New Zealand Capital- Wellington, Currency- New Zealand dollar. Estonia Capital- Tallinn, Latvia Capital- Riga, Lithuania Capital- Vilnius. South Korea Capital- Seoul, Currency- South Korean won. UK PM- Theresa May, Capital- London, Currency- Pound.sterling. Nepal PM- Sher Bahadur Deuba, President- Bidhya Devi Bhandari. Pakistan PM- Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, President- Mamnoon Hussain. Philippines Capital- Manila, Currency- Philippine peso, President- Rodrigo Duterte. Ballavpur WLS Chintamani Kar Bird Sanctuary Haliday Island WLS Lothian Island WLS Mahananda WLS Country & Currency in News Chibro Power Plant Khodri Power Plant Chilla Power Plant Mejia Thermal Power Station Farakka Super Thermal Power Station Kolaghat Thermal Power Station Bakreshwar Thermal Power Station Durgapur Steel Thermal Power Station Canada Capital- Ottawa, Currency- Canadian Dollar. PM- Justin Trudeau. Bahrain Capital- Manama, Currency- Bahraini dinar. Vietnam Capital- Hanoi, Currency- Vietnamese dong. Italy Capital- Rome, Currency- Euro Qatar Capital- Doha, Currency- Qatari riyal. Slovenia Capital- Ljubljana. Poland Capital- Warsaw. Belarus Capital- Minsk. Argentina Capital- Buenos Aires, Currency- Argentine peso France Capital- Paris, Currency- Euro, President- Emmanuel Macron PM: Edouard Philippe Russia Capital- Moscow, President- Vladimir Putin. Spain Capital- Madrid, Currency- Euro. Malaysia Capital- Kuala Lumpur, Currency- Malaysian ringgit Capital of Lebanon is Beirut. Its Currency is Lebanese pound. Cairo is the capital of Egypt. Egyptian pound is the currency of Egypt. Tunis is the capital of Tunisia. Beji Caid Essebsi jas is the present President of Tunisia. Thimphu is the capital of Bhutan. Dzongkha is the official language of Bhutan. Astana is the Capital of Kazakhstan. Kazakhstani tenge is the currency of Kazakhstan. Guinea Capital- Conakry, Currency- Guinean Franc. Yerevan is the Capital of Armenia. Its currency is Armenian dram. Mexico- a Country in North America, Capital- Mexico City. Kenya Capital- Nairobi, Currency- Kenyan shilling Adda247 App

50 Germany Capital- Berlin, Chancellor- Angela Merkel. Venezuela Capital- Caracas, Currency- Venezuelan bolivar. UAE Capital- Abu Dhabi, Currency- UAE dirham Saudi Arabia Capital- Riyadh, Currency- Saudi riyal. Afghanistan Capital- Kabul, President- Ashraf Ghani. Cuba Capital- Havana, Currency- Cuban peso. Australia Capital- Canberra, Currency- Australian dollar. Capital of Morocco- Rabat, Currency- Moroccan dirham. Norway Capital- Oslo, Currency- Norwegian krone. Oman Capital- Muscat, Currency- Omani rial. Turkmenistan Capital- Ashgabat, Currency- Turkmenistan manat Mexico Capital: Mexico City, Currency: Mexican peso Kuwait Capital- Kuwait City, Currency- Kuwaiti dinar. Libreville is the capital city of Gabon, a country on the coast of Central Africa. Ali Bongo Ondimba is a President of Gabon. Chile Capital- Santiago, Currency- Chilean peso. Rwanda Capital- Kigali, Currency- Rwandan franc. Myanmar PM- Aung San Suu Kyi, Capital- Naypyidaw. Switzerland Capital- Bern, President- Doris Leuthard. Peru Capital- Lima, Currency- Sol. Kazakhstan Capital- Astana, Currency- Kazakhstani tenge. Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia- Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia Capital- Riyadh, Currency- Saudi riyal. Maldives Capital- Male, Currency- Maldivian rufiyaa. OBITUARIES (NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL) King of Jordan- Abdullah II. Jordan Capital- Amman, Currency- Jordanian dinar. Liberia Capital- Monrovia, Currency- Liberian dollar. Mauritius Capital- Port Louis, Currency- Mauritian rupee. Myanmar Capital- Naypyidaw Vietnam Capital- Hanoi Philippines Capital- Manila. Capital of Romania- Bucharest. Romanian leu is the currency of Romania. President of Romania- Klaus Iohannis. Iceland Capital- Reykjavik, President- Guoni Th. Johannsson. Cambodian Capital- Phnom Penh, Currency- Cambodian riel. Indonesia Capital- Jakarta, Currency- Indonesian rupiah. Person Died Profession/Famous In? Politician (National-International) 1. Raghunath Jha Senior Rashtriya Janata Dal leader & former Union Minister 2. Dinesh Nandan Sahay Chhattisgarh's first Governor 3. Roy Bennett Zimbabwean opposition leader 4. Kirti Nidhi Bista Former PM of Nepal 5. Purushottam Lal Kaushik Former Union minister & socialist leader Singer/Musician (National-International) 6. Hugh Masekela Trumpeter, & Singer, known as the 'father of South African jazz' 7. Jatileswar Mukhopadhyay Acclaimed Bengali Singer 8. Robbie Malinga Legendary South African musician 9. Johnny Hallyday France's biggest rock star 10. Jagdish Mohan Renowned Hindustani vocalist of Kirana Gharana 11. Girija Devi Eminent classical singer & Padma Vibhushan awardee. Also known as "Queen of Thumri" & fondly called Appa Ji. Actor/Director/Producer (National-International) 12. Supriya Devi Veteran Bengali film actress Adda247 App

51 13. Charu Rohatgi TV actress 14. Partha Mukhopadhyay Famed Bengali film Actor 15. Shashi Kapoor Veteran actor 16. Neeraj Vora Bollywood actor, writer, & filmmaker 17. I V Sasi Veteran Malayalam director 18. Roy Dotrice Veteran British actor, died in London. 19. Kundan Shah Veteran director Author/Journalist/Activist/Painter (National-International) 20. Ursula K. Le Guin Science fiction & fantasy writer 21. Anwar Jalalpuri Noted Urdu poet 22. Sukharanjan Sengupta Veteran journalist 23. Manu Sharma Noted author & Padma Shri awardee 24. Kunwar Narayan Eminent Hindi poet & Jnanpith awardee 25. Punathil Kunjabdulla Renowned Malayalam writer 26. Satish Chandra Veteran & one of India s eminent historian Sportsmen/Sportswomen (National-International) 27. Jo Jo White Basketball Hall of Famer 28. Saksham Yadav Powerlifting World Champion 29. Shamsher Khan India's first Olympic swimmer 30. A G Milkha Singh Former Test cricketer 31. Daniel Hegarty British Motorcycle Racer 32. Naim Suleymanoglu Turkish weightlifter 33. Violet Mosse-Brown (Jamaica) The world's oldest person has died at the age of Arjan Singh The sole Marshal of the Indian Air Force 35. Dr. KS Chugh Father of nephrology in India 36. Dina Wadia Only child of Pakistan s Muhammad Ali Jinnah Others (National-International) 37. Chandi Lahiri Famous Cartoonist 38. Baldev Raj Renowned administrator of nuclear power technologies 39. Peter Sutherland 1 st Director-General of WTO 40. John Young Legendary astronaut 41. Bob Givens One of the animators designing characters Bugs Bunny & Elmer Fudd 42. Lalji Singh Pioneer of DNA fingerprinting technology in India 43. LIST/INDEXES ANNOUNCED RECENTLY Name of the Index/List Rank of India Topped By? WEF s Global Manufacturing Index ( Readiness India ranked at 30th Japan topped the index for future of production report ) Logistics index chart released by Union Minister for Commerce & Industry Suresh Prabhu Gujarat topped the index. From Hilly states, Tripura topped Among the UT s, Daman & Diu topped the index. India overtaken US to become the world s third-largest steel producer. Birender Singh is Union Minister of Steel. List of wealthiest countries released by New World Wealth India ranked sixth with the total wealth of $ 8,230 billion Topped by the United States of America As per the survey by GoBankingRates, India is ranked second only to South Africa as the cheapest country to live or retire. The top most expensive country in the survey was Bermuda (ranked 112). WEF s Inclusive Development Index India ranked at the 62nd Norway: World s most inclusive advanced economy, while Adda247 App

52 Lithuania again tops the list of emerging economies Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2018 by India ranked 177 Switzerland leads the list Yale & Columbia Universities along with WEF Global Index of Talent Competitiveness India ranked at 81 st Switzerland topped the list India's domestic air passenger traffic grew by 16.4% in November 2017, topping the growth chart worldwide, as per the global aviation body, International Air Transport Association (IATA). As per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Jeff Bezos, founder & CEO of Amazon has become the richest man in the history. As per the All India Higher Education Survey (AIHES), India s Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education registered an increase from 24.5% in to 25.2% in Tamil Nadu has the highest GER in the country at 46.9%. Bihar has the least GER of 14.9%. In the Economist Intelligence Unit's (EIU) Global Democracy Index 2017, India ranked 42nd. As per data collected through National Family & Health Survey (NFHS-4) conducted among more than 6 lakh households in , Delhi is the richest state while Bihar is the poorest. As per the survey of Gallup International, PM Modi at 3rd rank among world leaders. French president Emmanuel Macron ranked at first. As per the Forbes List of Top-grossing actor 2017 Vin Diesel topped the List. - Report by CARE (Credit Analysis & Research Ltd) Ratings on Highest Level of NPA s Topped by Greece India (Highest level of NPA among BRICS) ranked 5 th Forbes' Rankings of Best countries in the world United Kingdom topped India was ranked 62nd for business in 2018 Most expensive premium office locations in the World Report by JLL India (real estate services) Top spot is taken by Hong Kong Delhi Ranked 7 th & Mumbai ranked 16 th Global Innovation Index (GII) 2017 List topped by Switzerland India ranked 60 th Forbes India Celebrity 100 list 2017 topped by Actor Salman Khan (Second consecutive year) As per World Inequality Lab in its World Inequality Report 2018, Since 1980, India led to substantial increase in inequality so much that top 0.1% of earners continued to capture more growth than all those in bottom 50% combined. Time magazine s Person of the Year was given to The Silence Breakers, the vanguard of a global movement by millions of women to share their stories of sexual harassment & abuse. As per the survey by TripAdvisor, Taj Mahal in Agra, is the second-best UNESCO world heritage site in the world, after Cambodia's Angkor Wat. Waste management system implemented in Kerala's coastal town of Alappuzha, recognized by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for fighting the pollution menace. It listed in the UNEP environment report entitled, 'Solid approach to waste: how five cities are beating pollution'. As per the Forbes List, Michael Jordan named as the highest-paid athletes of all time. Forbes Annual World s highest-paid musician Musician Diddy topped the list. list As per World Migration Report 2018 published by International Organisation for Migration. Indian diaspora is largest in the world, with over 15 million World's 3 largest diasporas- India, Mexico & Russia. Note: US remained the top destination for migrants in the world in 2015 migrants from India living abroad The Legatum Prosperity Index 2017 Norway topped the Index India ranked at 100 th Fortune s Businessperson of the Year 2017 Aditya Puri, MD of HDFC Bank ranked at 18 th Topped by Nvidia s Mr. Jensen Huang Foreign Policy magazine's 2017 list of '50 Leading Indian-American senator Kamala Harris Global Thinkers' Time magazine readers Person of the Year Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman IMD World Talent Ranking India Ranked 51 Switzerland topped the list Global University Employability Ranking 2017 by Times Higher Education Indian Institute of Science (IISc) ranked 29th in 150 Universities IIT Delhi ranked 145th & IIT Bombay ranked 148th. Forbes Highest-paid woman in Music in 2017 American singer Beyonce topped the List. Adele came second & Taylor Swift ranked third Adda247 App

53 Grant Thornton's International Business Report 'Business Optimism' Index India ranked 7 th in the Sept. Quarter Indonesia is at the top As per Euromonitor International, Hong Kong remains the world's most visited city by international travelers. The Top 3 Countries in the list are- 1. Hong Kong. 2. Bangkok. 3. London. As per the report by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) among the 42 cities Holy city Varanasi is most polluted It is followed by Gurugram & Delhi. World Bank s Doing Business 2018 Reforming to Create Jobs India ranked at 100 (Ease of Doing Business rankings) New Zealand topped the list. As per the Global Climate Risk Index (CRI) 2018 by Germanwatch, India is the 6 th most vulnerable country in the world in terms of facing extreme weather events. The list is topped by Haiti followed by Zimbabwe & Fiji. India s Ambani family topped the Forbes list of Asia s Richest Families for 1 st time with net worth $44.8 billion. Binge watching in public is the new trend in India, & Indians are the second-highest public bingers in the world behind Mexico, according to a survey released by online streaming platform Netflix. As pet the report of IMF, Qatar named the world's richest country. The per capita GDP of Qatar is over Rs. 81 lakhs. Macao ranked at second & Luxembourg at third. As per the report India's GDP per capita was $7,170 (Rs 4.66 lakh) in 2017 & ranked at 126. Forbes list of top-earning dead celebrities Michael Jackson topped (for the 5 th straight year) Golf legend Arnold Palmer at 2 nd & Peanuts creator Charles Schulz at 3 rd. Bihar least-safest for girls. Gender Vulnerability Index (GVI) by NGO Plan Goa is safest for girls. India World Economic Forum s Global Gender Gap India ranked at 108 Topped by Iceland index Five Indian women featured on the list of the World s 100 most powerful women compiled by Forbes. Topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the list ranked Chanda Kochhar (32); Roshni Malhotra (57), Ed & CEO of HCL Enterprise; Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (64), CMD of Biocon; Shobhana Bhartia (92), Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd & Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra at cities from 44 countries designated as UNESCO Creative Cities by Director-General, Irina Bokova. Chennai is the third Indian city on the list of UNESCO Creative Cities list after Jaipur & Varanasi. India's Silicon Valley - 'Bengaluru' - is the best host among 45 cities worldwide, as per Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU). San Francisco came in second followed by two other Indian cities, Mumbai & New Delhi. Static Takeaways: Index/Reports released by different Organisations Report title Organisation Asian Development Outlook ADB (Asian Development bank) Global Money Laundering Report FATF (Financial Action Task Force) Nuclear Technology Review IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Ease of Doing Business IBRD (World Bank) World Development Report IBRD (World Bank) Safety Reports ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) Global Hunger Index report IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute) World Employment & Social Outlook ILO (International Labour Organization) World of Work Report ILO (International Labour Organization) World Economic Outlook IMF (International Monetary Fund) Global Innovation Index Cornell University INSEAD & the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) World Energy Outlook (WEO) International Energy Agency World Oil Outlook OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries ) World Happiness Report Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) Global Corruption Report (GCR) Transparency International Levels & Trends in Child Mortality Report UN Inter-agency Group World Investment Report UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade & Development) Actions on Air Quality UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme ) Adda247 App

54 Global Environment Outlook UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme ) Global education monitoring Report UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organization) World Cities Report UN-Habitat The Global Report UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ) Report on Regular Resources UNICEF (United Nations Children s Emergency Fund ) Industrial Development Report UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) World Drug Report UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime) Global Information Technology Report WEF (World Economic Forum) Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report WEF (World Economic Forum) Global Competitiveness Report (GCR) WEF (World Economic Forum) World Intellectual Property Report (WIPR) WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) IMPORTANT DAYS OBSERVED RECENTLY Date Day Theme 25 th January 8th National Voters Day 24 th January Uttar Pradesh Diwas 15 th January 70th Army Day: To commemorate the day when General (later Field Marshal) K.M Carriappa took over the command of Army 19 th January National Disaster Response Force s 13th Raising Day 12 th January National Youth Day 10 th January World Hindi Day 1 st December World AIDS day 'Right to health' 1 st December BSF Raising Day - 3 rd December International Day of Disabled Persons Transformation towards sustainable & resilient society for all 4 th December Indian Navy Day 5 th December World Soil Day Caring for the Planet starts from the Ground 7 th December Armed Forces Flag Day (To honor the martyrs & the men in uniform who valiantly fought on our borders to safeguard the country's honor) 10 th December Human Rights Day Campaign named as #standup4humanrights 14 th December National Energy Conservation Day - 16 th December Vijay Diwas - 18 th December International Migrants Day 'Safe Migration in a World on the Move' 22 nd December National Mathematics Day Mathematician Ramanujan s birth anniversary 23 rd December Kisan Diwas (Farmer's Day) Note: Birth anniversary of the fifth PM of India Chaudhary Charan Singh 25 th December Good Governance Day Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee s birthday 20 th November United Nations Universal Children's Day Theme of UCD 2017 is 'Kids Take Over' 21st November World Fisheries Day Theme is 2022 Ka Hai Sapna Kisan Ki Aay Ho Dugna - Sankalp Se Siddhi 26 th November Constitution Day 14 November World Diabetes Day (WDD) 'Women & diabetes - Our right to a healthy future' 16 th November National Press Day To commemorate establishment of Press Council of India. 19 th November National Integration Day. It is observed to foster & reinforce the spirit of communal harmony & national Integration 19 November World Toilet Day Wastewater 5 th November World Tsunami Awareness Day 'Reduce the Number of Affected People'. 31 October Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National UnityDay) Birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel 24 th October United Nations Day 72nd anniversary of the UN Charter 27 th October World Day for Audiovisual Heritage "Discover, remember & share" Adda247 App

55 13 th October International Day for Disaster Reduction Home Safe Home: Reducing Exposure, Reducing Displacement. 17 th October International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (IDEP) Answering the Call of October 17 to end poverty: A path toward peaceful & inclusive societies. 17 th October 2nd Ayurveda Day in New Delhi Note: PM Modi was the Chief Guest & inaugurated country's first All India Institute of Ayurveda 16 th October World Food Day "Change the future of migration. Invest in food security & rural development" 20 th October World Statistics Day 15 th October International Day of Rural Women Challenges & opportunities in climate-resilient agriculture for gender equality & the empowerment of rural women & girls" 21 st October National Police Commemoration Day BOOKS & AUTHORS Former President Pranab Mukherjee released the third part of his memoir The Coalition Years: , speaking candidly about believing he could have been the Congress choice for the PM s post. Rajasthan CM V. Raje launched e-book titled 'India 2017 Yearbook', compiled by present CAG Rajiv Mehrishi. "Dreamnation: Uniting a Country with Handwritten Dreams" Co-authored by Saji Mathew & Jubie John 'Bollywood: The Films! The Songs! The Stars!' S.M.M. Ausaja, Karan Bali, Rajesh Devraj & Tanul Thakur Former President Pranab Mukherjee released the third part of his memoir The Coalition Years: Journey of Women Law Reforms & The Law Commission of India Dr. Pavan Sharma. Some Insights 'India 2017 Yearbook' Compiled by present CAG Rajiv Mehrishi Dreamnation: Uniting a Country with Handwritten Dreams" Saji Mathew & Jubie John. Hema Malini's biography 'Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl' Ram Kamal Mukherjee What Happened Hillary Clinton Democracy s XI: The Great Indian Cricket Story Rajdeep Sardesai Smritichitre Lakshmibai Tilak The Crisis Within: On Knowledge & Education in India G.N. Devy Political Violence in Ancient India Upinder Singh A Life of My Own Claire Tomalin 'Unstoppable: My Life So Far' Maria Sharapova How India Sees the World: Kautilya to the 21st Century Shyam Saran Biography of Capt. Vikram Batra "The Shershah of Kargil" Deepak Surana "Future of Indian Universities: Comparative & International Compiled by Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar. Perspectives" PM Modi released a photo book titled "President Pranab Mukherjee - A Statesman" Cryptocurrency for Beginners Amit Bhardwaj Book on PM Modi s Life named Making of A Legend : Compiled by Bindeshwar Pathak Dalhousie...Through My Eyes Kiran Chadha President s Lady (Pranaber Preyosi) on Pranab Mukherjee s Wife Sangeeta Ghosh Late Smt. Suvra Mukherjee Playing with Fire Katie Price The Trees of Medley Gardens (Red Turtle) Ranjit Lal Watercolours: A Story from Auschwitz Lidia Ostalowska Touched by God: How We Won the Mexico 86 World Cup Diego Armando Maradona with Daniel Arcucci The People Next Door: The Curious History of India s Relations T.C.A. Raghavan with Pakistan From Chanakya to Modi: The Evolution of India s Foreign Policy Aparna Pande A Bonsai Tree: An Autobiography Narendra Luther Turtles All the Way Down John Green Adda247 App

56 Partition: The Story of Indian Independence & the Creation of Barney White-Spunner Pakistan in 1947 Balanced Constitutionalism: Courts & Legislatures in India & UK Chintan Chandrachud The Empress: The Dramatic Life of A Powerful & Enigmatic Leader Kalyani Shanka The War is in the Mountains Judith Matloff Demonetisation Decoded: A Critique of India s Currency Experiment Jayati Ghosh, C.P. Chandrasekhar & Prabhat Patnaik Behind Bars: Prison Tales of India s Most Famous Sunetra Choudhury Kandhamal: Introspection of Initiative for Justice Vrinda Grover & Saumya Uma Dialogue of the Deaf T. C. A. Srinivasa-Raghavan The Decline of Civilization Ramin Jahanbegloo Sanjay Manjrekar launched his autobiography named Imperfect. New Delhi, Roopa A from Puducherry & Sakthi Maya S from Kerala, created history by becoming the President Kovind unveiled a book titled 'The country s first women officers at the Naval Armament Heartfulness Way'. Kamlesh D. Patel is the author of this book. Joshua Pollock is the second author of this book. Dilli Meri Dilli: Before & After 1998?, pictorial book by former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit released. Majuli: Resources & Challenges edited by Sanjib Kumar Borkakoti. The book, The Way I See It - a Gauri Lankesh Reader, has been edited by writer & sociologist Chandan Gowda. Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan launched a book based on Indian cinema. It is titled 'Bollywood: The Films! The Songs! The Stars!', is a coffee table book, co-authored by S.M.M. Ausaja, Karan Bali, Inspectorate (NAI) branch of the Navy. Defence Minister Sitharaman elected as President of the Institute for Defence Studies & Analysis (IDSA). Indian Air Force launched an innovative health mobile App named `MedWatch' on the occasion of its 85th anniversary. It was launched by Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa during the Air Force Commanders' Conference in New Delhi. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman flagged off the Navika Sagar Parikrama by an all-women crew of Indian Navy aboard Indian Naval Sailing Vessel (INSV) Tarini from INS Mandovi jetty in Goa. Navika Sagar Parikrama is the first attempt by an Indian all-women crew to circumnavigate the globe. Rajesh Devraj & Tanul Thakur. DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS Indian Defence Forces Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) allowed Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) manufactured Dornier 228 to be used for civilian flights. The 19-seater aircraft has, till now, been used by defence forces & is the first plane to be made in the country for commercial flights. Indian Army's Southern Command conducted exercise 'Hamesha Vijayee' in the deserts of Rajasthan to evaluate the capability of the armed forces to strike deep into the enemy territory in an integrated air-land battle. Indian Navy in collaboration with its Sri Lankan counterpart successfully completed the second phase of the joint oceanographic survey conducted off the South- Western Coast of Sri Lanka. Conference of all Commanders of Eastern Air Command held at Shillong in Meghalaya. Shubhangi Swaroop has been inducted as a pilot in the Indian Navy for the first time. She is from Uttar Pradesh & will soon be flying Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft. Three other women cadets, Astha Segal from INS Missile Device Inducted/ Decommissioned Indian Navy launched 'INS Karanj', the third of the six indigenous Scorpene-class submarines. It is equipped with superior stealth features & precision-guided weapons, has been built at Mumbai's Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited. It has an overall length of 67.5 meters & a height of about 12.3 metres. India test-fired its nuclear-capable Agni-V intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which has a strike range of over 5,000km from Abdul Kalam island off the coast of the eastern state of Odisha. Indian Naval Ship Vikramaditya, the Indian Navy's largest ship & its sole aircraft carrier was formally affiliated to the Indian Army's highly-decorated & battle-hardened Bihar Regiment & the Indian Air Force's No 6 Squadron. Charlie-435, a state-of-the-art patrol vessel of Indian Coast Guard commissioned at Karaikal in Puducherry. India successfully test-fired its indigenously developed Advanced Air Defence (AAD) supersonic interceptor missile, capable of destroying any incoming ballistic missile at low altitude, from a test range in Odisha. Surface to Air Missile AKASH with indigenous radio frequency seeker against target Banshee has been Adda247 App

57 successfully launched from the Launch Complex-III at ITR Chandipur, Odisha. Brahmos, the world s fastest supersonic cruise missile created history as it was successfully flight-tested first time from the Indian Air Force s (IAF) frontline fighter aircraft Sukhoi-30MKI. Indian Air Force, along with DRDO successfully tested an indigenously developed lightweight Glide bomb in Chandipur in Odisha. It is Named SAAW (Smart Anti Airfield Weapon). Indian Army launched an independent & fullyintegrated Joint Training Node (JTN) at Umroi cantonment in Shillong, Meghalaya. It will pave a way for projecting the states of Meghalaya & Assam on the world map of foreign armies. India conducted a flight test of its indigenously designed & developed long-range sub-sonic cruise missile Nirbhay. It can carry warheads of up to 300 kg from a test range at Chandipur along the Odisha coast. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman commissioned an indigenously-built anti-submarine warfare stealth corvette INS Kiltan into the Indian Navy at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam. India's indigenously developed third generation antitank guided missile (ATGM) Nag successfully flight tested by DRDO in deserts of Rajasthan, marking the completion of development trials. Final development trials of indigenous beyond visual range air-to-air missile Astra successfully concluded into the Indian Air Force. An indigenous artillery gun, Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS), being developed by DRDO has set a new world record in range by hitting targets at a distance of 48 km. ATAGS is a 155mm, 52 calibers towed artillery gun. The first of the Scorpene class submarines, INS Kalvari, was delivered to the Indian Navy by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL). INS Tarasa, a Water Jet Fast Attack Craft intended for extended coastal & offshore surveillance & patrolling, was commissioned into the Indian Navy. The vessel has been built in Kolkata. International Defence Forces South Korea & USA launched their largest-ever joint aerial drills called Vigilant Ace. UAE Armed Forces along with the UK, US & French armies are participating in joint exercises in Abu Dhabi. The drill code is named as Flag4. Russia launched world's largest nuclear-powered icebreaker ship in a bid to expand its strategic presence in the resource-rich, terrain of the Arctic. The massive vessel, named Sibir (Siberia). US Army & the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) inaugurated a permanent base In Israel. This is the first time that a permanent American base has been opened in the Middle Eastern country. Defence Exercises/Operations Conducted Armies of India & Vietnam participated in the joint military exercise in Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. It is named as VINBAX is the first military exercise between the two countries. American & Japanese military forces launched joint exercise named Iron Fist. 13th annual Iron It was held in the U.S. western state of California. Indian Naval Ships Trikand & Teg are deployed to Oman for 11 th bilateral exercise Naseem Al Bahr or Sea Breeze. 8 th edition of the Indo-Maldives joint military exercise, Ekuverin, came to an end at Belagavi, Karnataka. South Korea & USA launched their largest-ever joint aerial drills called Vigilant Ace. UAE Armed Forces along with the UK, US & French armies are participating in joint exercises in Abu Dhabi. The drill code is named as Flag4. Defence of Andaman & Nicobar Islands Exercise (DANX) was conducted under the aegis of Andaman & Nicobar Command. International Multilateral Maritime Search & Rescue Exercise 2017 (IMMSAREX 2017) held in Cox Bazar, Bangladesh. Admiral Sunil Lanba, Chief of the Naval Staff of Indian Navy, is attending the exercise. Joint Indo-Russia Tri-Services Exercise INDRA-2017 successfully conducted at Vladivostok in Russia. The theme was Preparation & Conduct of Operations by a Joint Force for Suppression of International Terror Activity at the request of a host country under UN mandate. 45-member contingent of the Indian Air Force left for Israel to participate in exercise Blue Flag-17. Blue Flag is a bi-annual multilateral exercise which aims to strengthen military cooperation amongst participating nations. 14-day joint training exercise PRABAL DOSTYK 2017 between the Indian Army & the Kazakhstan Army held at Bakloh, Himachal Pradesh. The training contingents comprise of platoon strength from the 11th Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army & a similar strength of the Kazakhstan Army. The joint coastal security exercise between Odisha & West Bengal named as Sagar Kavach to be held along the 630-km long coastline. Vigilant Ace, the joint drill between the air forces of South Korea & USA will be conducted in December Army personnel of India & Bangladesh are going to take part in a joint training exercise 'Sampriti-7' in Meghalaya & Mizoram. This is the 7th edition of the joint training exercise ADDA247 THE APP

58 Indian Navy Ship Sukanya under the command of Commander SA Deodhar arrived at Belawan Indonesia to participate in the 30th CORPAT (Coordinated Patrol) & 3rd Bilateral exercise between the Indian Navy & the Indonesian Navy. The exercise is aimed to foster closer maritime ties with countries located on the rim of the Indian Ocean Navies of India & Japan began anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Indian Ocean region to deepen their operational coordination in the strategically important sea lanes around the two countries. The fifth India-Sri Lanka Joint Training Exercise (JTE) MITRA SHAKTI 2017 held conducted at Aundh Military Station, Pune. The exercise is based on Counter Terrorist Operations & an Infantry company from both the countries is participating in the same. 12th India-Nepal joint military exercise- Surya Kiran XII heldin Saljhandi, Nepal. A joint military training, Exercise Yudh Abhyas-2017 conducted at Washington, USA between India & USA. Indian Navy & Sri Lankan Navy conducted the 2017 Sri Lanka-India Exercise (SLINEX) at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The air forces of China & Pakistan conducted joint training exercise named "Shaheen VI" & deployed their latest fighter jets & AWACS aircraft. US & UAE's ground forces conducted a joint military exercise in Abu Dhabi, as part of efforts to consolidate their bilateral relations & exchange training & military expertise. Code-named Iron Union 5, the drill is an extension of a series of Iron Claw exercises. The joint exercise DRUZBA 2017 between special forces of Pakistan & Russia Armies conducted in Minralney Vody, Russia. Defence Agreements Signed/Defence Summits Held Defence Ministry cleared contracts worth 2,420 crore rupees for Navy & Army which includes the procurement of P-8I Training Solution & Low- Intensity Conflict Electronic Warfare System (LICEWS). Indian Navy inked an MoU with Cochin Port Trust (CPT), Kerala towards leasing of 228 metres of berths at Mattancherry Wharf for a period of five years. A Defence Innovation Centre to be set up by CODISSIA, Coimbatore, to assist small industries in manufacturing components for the defence sector. Note: Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) is a trade organization based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. Def-Expo India 2018 to be held in Chennai. It is the largest event of India s defence sector. Ministry of Defence (MoD) decided to cancel the $500 million deal for Spike ATGM with Israel. MoD has asked DRDO to indigenously develop & produce a Man-Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) for the Army. Navies of India & Japan began anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Indian Ocean region to deepen their operational coordination in the strategically important sea lanes around the two countries. Two indigenously built Indian Naval ships INS Satpura & INS Kadmatt reached Vladivostok Port & were given a traditional ceremonial welcome. The Indian contingent for the Exercise is led by the Task Force Commander Major General ND Prasad. India & France agreed to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation as a key Pillar of strategic partnership between the two countries. Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman & French Minister for the Armed Forces, Ms. Florence Parly discussed a range of measures to expand military to military ties. The joint Naval exercise named the VARUNA is scheduled in early 2018 between the two countries. SPORTS CURRENT AFFAIRS Cricket {National Game of: Australia, Bermuda, England, Jamaica No. of Players: 11 Important Terms associated: Arm ball, Beamer, Bottom hand, Bouncer, Cameo, Carrom ball, Chinaman, Flick, Free hit, Glance, Googly, Hat-trick, Hit wicket, Leg bye, Nelson, Night watchman, Pinch hitter, Sweep, Upper Cut.} Melbourne Cricket Ground will host the final of both the men s & women s World Twenty20 when the tournaments come to Australia in Sandeep Lamichhane became the first cricketer from Nepal to land a deal an IPL contract. He was picked by Delhi Daredevils in the player's auction. International Cricket Council (ICC) announced, the 2018 edition of the Women s World T20 will be hosted by West Indies. India beat Pakistan by two wickets to win the Blind Cricket World Cup 2018 for the second time. Sunil Ramesh was declared the man of the match. Vidarbha created history by winning the Ranji Trophy for the first time in history with a thumping nine-wicket win over Delhi at the Holkar stadium in Indore. Rajneesh Gurbani was declared player of the Match. India to host the 2023 World Cup, the global cricketing event s 13th edition. India will also host Champions Trophy in ICC World Cup 2019 will be held in England & Wales. Former India wicketkeeper Saba Karim has appointed as General Manager (Cricket Operations) of the BCCI. He will report to CEO Rahul Johri. India become the first-ever team to register 300+ totals 100 times in ODIs, after posting 392/4 against Sri Lanka in Mohali ADDA247 THE APP

59 BCCI decided to lift the ban on the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) provided former IPL chief Lalit Modi stays away from its functioning, the Board decided in its Special General Meeting (SGM). Virat Kohli surpasses Brian Lara for Most Double Centuries as Captain by scoring his 6 th Double Century in Delhi. Mumbai's Prithvi Shaw named captain of Indian Under-19 team for the 2018 U-19 World Cup to be held in New Zealand. Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh will be promoting a UNICEF sports initiative for youngsters in South Asia. He launched the "Power of Sports to Shape the Future of Adolescents" campaign in South Asia. Mujeeb Zadran From Afghanistan Becomes First Cricketer to Born in 21st Century. 16-year-old offspinner, became the youngest ever from Afghanistan to play International cricket. Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. Afghanistan defeated Pakistan to clinch their maiden Under-19 Asia Cup title, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Ikram Ali khil was the man of the match. Football {National Game of: Brazil, Italy, Germany, Israel, Mauritius, Poland No. of Players: 11 Important Terms Associated: Back Pass, Corner Kick, Free Kick, Dribble, Futsal, Header, Kick off, Banana Kick, Toe Poke, Throw-in, Bicycle Kick} Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldinho formally confirmed his retirement from football. Team Liverpool sold Brazilian football player Philippe Coutinho to Team Barcelona for 160 million Euros ($192 million). With this, transfer of Philippe Coutinho has become the 2nd Most Expensive transfer in World Soccer History. Lionel Messi, the star forward of Barcelona, received La Liga s top scorer & best player awards for football season. Former AC Milan & Real Madrid midfielder Kaka, who lifted the 2002 World Cup with Brazil, announced his retirement from football. Real Madrid earned the honor of being able to wear the official FIFA World Champions Badge on their competition jerseys for the duration of 2018 by defeating Gremio in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup UAE FIFA, lifted a two-year suspension against Kuwait s football association that has prevented the country from participating in international tournaments. The final draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup was held in the Russian capital of Moscow. The ceremony was held at the State Kremlin Palace, in Moscow, Russia. Lionel Messi wins fourth European Golden Shoe Award. Supreme Court appointed former football captain Bhaskar Ganguly as ombudsman as per All India Football Federation (AIFF). It also appointed S Y Quraishi as the ombudsmen to formulate the AIFF Constitution. In Football, Italy has failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup for the first time since The four-time champions failed to make the cut after they lost the World Cup Qualifying European play-off against Sweden, 0-1. Cristiano Ronaldo is the richest sports personality in the world, according to the latest Forbes' Rich List. Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo beaten Lionel Messi & Neymar to win the Best FIFA Men's Player award for the second year running. Ronaldo was presented the award at The Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony in London, UK. Netherlands' Lieke Martens won The Best FIFA Women's Player award. Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane was named the Best FIFA Men's Coach. England scripted a dramatic turnaround in Kolkata to win the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cup for the very first time after a 5-2 win over European U17 champions Spain. Netherlands captain Arjen Robben announced the end of his international career after his country failed to reach the 2018 World Cup finals despite a 2-0 win over Sweden. Indian football team has qualified for the 2019 Asian Cup after they had a convincing 4-1 win over Macau with two matches still to go in the qualifying round. This is the third time the country has qualified for the continental showpiece. Switzerland's Esther Staubli become the first female referee to officiate a match at the FIFA U-17 World Cup. She was the referee in the match between Japan & New Caledonia in the final round group E match. Jackson Singh Thounaojam created history at Delhi s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium by scoring India s first goal in a FIFA U-17 World Cup during India s match against Colombia. Maidan heavyweights Mohun Bagan won the 37th All India Governor's Gold Cup football tournament for the 10th time by defeating Partha Chakra. Hockey {National Game of: India, Pakistan No. of Players: 11 Important Terms Associated: Advancing, Bully, Center Pass, Dribble, Drive, Flagrant Foul, Flick, Free Hit, Striker, Tackle, Undercutting, Dodge, Drag Flick, Grip, Hacking, Penalty Corner, Wall Pass} India defeated Germany 2-1 in Hockey World League Final to grab bronze medal at the event, in Bhubaneswar, Odisha ADDA247 THE APP

60 Australia beat Argentina 2-1 in the final of the Hockey World League Final (HWLF) to win gold at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, Odisha. India defeated China 5-4 via shootout to win the women s Asia Cup hockey title With this, India also qualified for World Cup 2018 as Continental champion. Savita Punia was adjudged Goalkeeper-ofthe-Tournament while Monica won the Woman-of-the- Match award. The Championship was held in Kakamigahara, Japan. Logo & mascot of Hockey World Cup 2018 have been unveiled at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar by Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik. Odisha had successfully hosted the Asian Athletics Championships recently. India beats Malaysia to win the 2017 Asia Cup Hockey tournament held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This was India's third continental title. Lalit Upadhyay won goal of the match award while Akashdeep Singh adjudged the Man of the match. Indian Junior Men s Hockey team beat hosts Malaysia in the Bronze medal match of the 7th Sultan of Johor Cup 2017 at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium, in Malaysia. Current Affairs related to Tennis Gilles Simon of France lifted the inaugural Tata Open Maharashtra Tennis trophy. Switzerland won their third Hopman Cup as Roger Federer & Belinda Bencic beat Germany's Alexander Zverev & Angelique Kerber in the finals. Elina Svitolina secured her first WTA title in Australia with a straight-sets victory in the Brisbane International final. ATP World Tour Awards presented by Moet & Chandon honours the season's best players & tournaments. Roger Federer s 2017 season recognized with three ATP World Tour Awards. He has been selected by fans as ATPWorldTour.com Fans Favourite for a 15th straight year, & winner of the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award & Comeback Player of the Year. Neville Godwin chosen as the winner of Coach of the Year in the 2017 ATP World Tour Awards. Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan have been voted by fans as the ATPWorldTour.com Fans Favourite. Indian tennis duo of Leander Paes & Purav Raja lifted the Knoxville Challenger title after clinching a fighting win in the finals of the men's doubles event in Tennessee. India's tennis star Yuki Bhambri clinched his first title of the 2017 season on the ATP Challenger Tour by winning the KPIT-MSLTA Challenger in Pune. Martina Hingis, one of only six women's players to hold the No. 1 ranking in both singles & doubles at the same time, will retire after the WTA Finals. Current Affairs related to Grand Prixes Valtteri Bottas won the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel won the Brazilian Grand Prix. Mercedes Lewis Hamilton won the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, in Singapore. Hamilton s rival Sebastian Vettel withdrew in the middle of the race due to his damaged Ferrari car. Badminton World no.1 Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan defeated Saina Nehwal in the finals of the Indonesia Masters in Jakarta. Young Indian shuttler Siddharth Pratap Singh secured his maiden international title, bagging the Swedish Open Junior International Series by defeating Denmark s Mads Christophersen in the finals in Uppsala in Sweden. India s top-ranked junior shuttler Aakarshi Kashyap won U-17 & U-19 singles titles at Badminton Junior Nationals in Guwahati, Assam. Top Indian shuttler P V Sindhu won the Silver medal in women s singles summit clash of the Dubai World Super Series Final in Dubai. She was defeated by World No. 2 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan. India has won the first-ever South Asian Regional Badminton Team Championship. In the title clash played in Guwahati, India defeated Nepal, 3-0. Indian contingent to BWF Para-Badminton World Championships in Ulsan, South Korea clinched 10 medals, including two golds. India s Parul Parmar defeated Thailand s Wannaphatdee Kamtam in the women s singles Standing Lower (SL3). Other gold was also won by Parul Parmar, who paired with Japan s Akiko Sugino in women s doubles. World number 11 Saina Nehwal became the national champion for the third time, defeating world number 2 PV Sindhu in the women's singles final of Senior National Badminton Championships, in Nagpur, Maharashtra. H.S Prannoy defeated World No 2 Kidambi Srikanth in a thrilling finale to claim the men s singles title at the 82nd Senior National Championship, in Nagpur, Maharashtra ADDA247 THE APP

61 Boxing/ Wrestling/Weightlifting Lifter Rakhi Halder created a new national record in clean & jerk to a gold medal in the 63kg women s category in the 33rd Women Senior National Weightlifting Championships, in Mangaluru, Karnataka. Indian boxers claimed three gold, a silver, & a bronze medal at Galym Zharylgapov Boxing Tournament in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. The country s Gold Medal winners were K Shyam Kumar in 49kg, Naman Tanwar in 91kg & Satish Kumar in the 91kg category. 19-year-old Naman Tanwar was also adjudged the best boxer of the tournament. Vijender Singh defended his WBO Oriental & Asia Pacific super middleweight titles against Ghana s Ernest Amuzu at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Sushil Kumar was wanted by all the teams ahead of the new season of Pro Wrestling League (PWL) & the bidding war created history in New Delhi. Indian junior boxers had clinched total 11 Medals (six gold, four silver & a bronze medal) at the fifth International Sven Lange Memorial Tournament, to finish as overall champions in the German city of Schwerin. Double Olympic medalist Sushil Kumar clinched a gold medal at the Commonwealth Wrestling Championships in South Africa. He defeated New Zealand's Akash Khullar. Ritu Phogat clinched silver medal in Under-23 Senior World Wrestling Championship at Poland. She lost against Turkish Wrestler Demirhan. India won 5 gold medals at the AIBA World Women s Youth Boxing Championships, in Guwahati. Nitu (48kg), Jyoti Gulia (51kg), Sakshi choudhury (54kg), Shashi Chopra (57kg) & Ankushita Boro (64kg) won gold medals for India in the finals. Jyoti Gulia also qualified for next year s Youth Olympic Games in Argentina. Ankushita named boxer of tournament. Boxing Federation of India (BFI) was recognised as a national body by the Indian Olympic Association, which removed the terminated Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF) as its affiliate after months of indecision. Sushil Kumar & Geeta Phogat won gold medals at the 62nd National Wrestling championship held in Indore. Bharat Khandare became the first India-born fighter to be signed by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as the Mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. Five-time world champion & Olympic bronze medalist MC Mary Kom named as the ambassador of the upcoming AIBA Women's Youth World Championships. M.C. Mary Kom (48kg) notched up her fifth gold medal at the Asian Women s Boxing Championships in Vietnam. She has defeated North Korea s Kim Hyang Mi. This is Mary Kom s sixth medal in the Asian Women s Boxing Championships & fifth gold medal. Assam's famed one-horned rhino unveiled as the official mascot of the 2017 AIBA Youth Women's World Boxing Championship in Guwahati, Assam. The official mascot, named Guppy, is a female version of Assam's one-horned rhino. The World Championship's official anthem is 'Make Some Noise'. It is composed by Shaan & rendered by renowned singer Sunidhi Chauhan. Other Sports Current Affairs PM Modi launched the first Khelo India School Games at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. Sharath Kamal defeated Anthony Amalraj to win the men singles title for the eighth time, in the 79th 11Even Sports Senior Nationals in Ranchi, Jharkhand. Suthirta Mukherjee from West Bengal emerged the new women champion. North & South Korea agreed to march together under a single unified Korea flag at Winter Olympics. The Games will take place in February 2018 in Pyeongchang in South Korea. Professional player Aditya Mehta won Kolkata Open 2018 International Invitation Snooker Championship. He defeated Englishman Professional Player Alfie Burden. Aanchal Thakur made history as she won India's first ever international medal in skiing. She clinched bronze in the coveted Alpine Ejder 3200 Cup. It was organised by the Federation Internationale de Ski (skiing's international governing body) in Erzurum, Turkey. Indian golfer Shiv Kapur won the Royal Cup at Pattaya, which is his third Asian Tour title of G Sathiyan become India s highest-ranked player in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings. He surpasses his compatriot the legendary Sharath Kamal. The current ranking of Sathiyan is 49. Meghalaya signed the Host City Contract with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for hosting the 39th National Games in India s ace chess player Viswanathan Anand won World Rapid Chess tournament title in Saudi Arabia by beating Russia s Vladimir Fedoseev. Saudi Arabia hosted the world chess tournament for the first time. The women s title was won by China s Ju Wenjun. Haryana shooter Anisa Sayyed won the women s 25m pistol gold with a new record at the ongoing 61st National Shooting Championship Competitions (61st NSCC), in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala ADDA247 THE APP

62 The emblems of the Beijing 2022 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games have been named Winter Dream & Flight. Central English city of Birmingham will host the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia, will host the next Commonwealth Games in World 10,000m champion Sir Mo Farah has been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year He becomes the first long-distance runner to win the Sports Personality award since Paula Radcliffe in Nagpur s Kanchanmala Pande created history as she became the first Indian to secure pole position at the World Para-Swimming Championship in Mexico. She won gold in 200-meter medley event in the S-11 category & was also the only Indian to qualify for the women s category. Indian Diving Team won 1 Gold, 3 Silver & 2 Bronze Medals in Indonesia Open Aquatic Championship It was concluded in Indonesia's Jakarta. India's Saurabh Chaudhary qualified for the Youth Olympics Games with a gold medal & a junior world record in 10m air pistol at the ongoing Asia Youth Olympics Games qualification tournament in Wako City, Japan. Pistol aces Jitu Rai & Heena Sidhu bagged bronze at the 10th Asian Championship 10m Rifle/Pistol in Wako City, Japan. Jitu won an individual bronze in the men's 10m Air Pistol while Heena claimed an individual bronze in the women's 10m Air Pistol. 21-year-old Indian Golfer Shubhankar Sharma claimed his maiden European Tour victory in the Joburg Open, in South Africa. Indian archers produced an impressive performance, grabbed three gold, four silver & two bronze medals at the Asian Championships in Dhaka, Bangladesh. India's Winter Olympian Shiva Keshavan won gold medal at Asian Luge Championships at Altenberg, Germany. India s Deepika Kumari won bronze medal at the Indoor Archery World Cup Stage 2 held in Bangkok, Thailand. Russia was banned from the 2018 Winter Games by the International Olympic Committee over its stateorchestrated doping programme. Gopi Thonakal created history by becoming first Indian man to win Asian Marathon Championship in China. Indian men s & women s kabaddi teams were crowned the champions of Asia after beating Pakistan & South Korea in Gorgan, Iran. 7th International military games will be held in Wuhan city in the central China's Hubei Province. Mascot is Bing Bing. Five more Russian competitors from the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, including two gold medallists, banned for life over anti-doping rule violations by International Olympic Committee (IOC). Dmitrii Trunenkov & Aleksei Negodailo, both in the goldmedal winning four-man bobsleigh team, plus biathlon relay silver medalists Yana Romanova & Olga Vilukhina, who also won silver in the 7.5 kilometers event. Sergei Chudinov, who came fifth in the men's individual skeleton, was also disqualified for doping breaches. Mirabai Chanu became the first Indian in over two decades to claim a gold medal at the World Weightlifting Championship in Anaheim, USA. Ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani lifts the IBSF World Billiards Championship by defeating Mike Russell. Pankaj Advani clinched his 17th world title at Doha, Qatar. Aditi Ashok qualified for the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship on the LPGA, becoming the first from the country to play in the prestigious meet. France will host the 2023 Rugby World Cup to stage one of the world s best attended & lucrative sporting events. Shagun Chowdhary bagged a National Champion Crown when she won the women's trap event at the 61st National Shooting Championship. Chowdhary is the first Indian woman trap shooter to win an Olympic berth. Ethiopians Birhanu Legese & Almaz Ayana won the Delhi Half Marathon, In the Men's section, Legese clocked 59 minutes 46 seconds to claim the first spot. In the Women's section, Almaz Ayana finishing at the top of the podium. Olympic bronze-medallist Gagan Narang won a silver medal in the men s 50m rifle prone event at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships in Australia. Annu Raj Singh won bronze medal in women s 50m pistol competition. 19-Year old Indian golfer Aditi Ashok made her return to the Ladies European Tour by clinching the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Open in Abu Dhabi. It is Aditi's third LET win in less than 12 months. Shiv Kapur clinched his first Asian Tour title in India, bagging the Panasonic Open at the Delhi Golf Club. Indian shooting contingent finished the Commonwealth Shooting Championship 2017 at top with the best tally of 20 medals. Indian shooters won a total of six gold, seven silver & seven bronze medals in the competition. Satyendra Singh & Sanjeev Rajput won a gold & a silver respectively in the men's 50m rifle three positions ADDA247 THE APP

63 Bills passed/proposed in the Parliament Union Cabinet cleared the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017, or the Triple Talaq bill, which makes the practice a non-bailable offense. It proposes a three-year jail term for men who practice instant Triple Talaq. International Organization In News International Solar Alliance (ISA) has now become a treaty-based international intergovt.al organization. ISA is India's global initiative & was jointly launched by PM Modi & president of France in November 2015 in Paris. UNESCO inscribed 'Kumbh Mela' on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Ministry of Finance appointed former economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das as India s G20 Sherpa for the Development Track of the grouping. UNESCO s executive board chose former French Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay to be the UN cultural agency s next leader. He succeeds outgoing Director-General Irina Bokova of Bulgaria. Joint Polar Satellite System-1 (JPSS-1) for the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was launched by NASA. It is launched for improving the accuracy of weather forecasts & Earth observations from California, US. As per ISRO Satellite Centre Director M. Annadurai, India will launch Aditya-L1, the first Indian mission to study the Sun, by Space Kingdom of Asgardia launched its first satellite. This so-called virtual nation is the pet project of Russian scientist & billionaire Igor Ashurbeyli. The Asgardia-1 satellite contains half a terabyte of data. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will set up a research centre in Guwahati, Assam for startups, academicians, environmentalists & entrepreneurs. SCHEMES POWER PLANTS ESTABLISHED The largest-ever floating solar power plant in India inaugurated by state power minister MM Man at the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad, Kerala. The solar power plant that floats on the surface of the water has a capacity of 500 kilowatts. The largest-ever floating solar power plant in India inaugurated by state power minister MM Man at the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad, Kerala. The solar power plant that floats on the surface of the water has a capacity of 500 kilowatts. Science & Technology (Nasa, Isro & Others) Pratyush, India s fastest multi-petaflops supercomputer was inaugurated by Union Minister for Science & Technology, Harsh Vardhan. China successfully launched remote sensing satellites designed to conduct electromagnetic probes & other experiments. India's first wave-powered navigational buoy, developed by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), to guide ships in & out of ports, was launched in Chennai, Tamil Nadu at Ennore Kamarajar Port, in Chennai. Schemes launched by Union Govt. Centre sanctioned projects over 10,000 crore rupees in the North East for better network connectivity. 2 MoUs have been signed to cover the uncovered areas in the North East including Assam & Arunachal Pradesh. Union Housing & Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced the list of nine new Smart Cities, which have emerged winners in Round 4. These nine cities are, Silvassa in Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Erode in Tamil Nadu, Diu in Daman & Diu, Bihar Sharif in Bihar, Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh, Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh, Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh & Kavaratti in Lakshadweep. Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Arun Jaitley launched the National CSR Data Portal & Corporate Data Portal in Delhi. This initiative is a significant step towards driving accountability & transparency for corporate India. The portals easy accessibility to the general public will ensure a high level of compliance & will help in institutionalising & consolidating the CSR activities. What is the Electoral Bonds Scheme? a) Centre unveiled the Electoral Bonds scheme, which seeks to ensure the flow of clean money to political parties, without revealing the donors names ADDA247 THE APP

64 b) As per Jaitley, the electoral bonds will be a bearer instrument in the nature of a Promissory Note & an interest-free banking instrument. c) A citizen of India or a body incorporated in India will be eligible to purchase the bond from specified branches of the State Bank of India. d) The bonds can be purchased for any value in multiples of Rs1,000; Rs10,000; Rs1 lakh; Rs10 lakh; & Rs1 crore. Namami Gange Projects Worth Rs. 295 crores approved by NMCG i.e. National Mission for Clean Ganga. Three projects pertain to sewage management in West Bengal at an estimated cost of Rs crore, one relates to sewage management in Uttarakhand at an estimated cost of Rs 4.68 crore & one project worth Rs crore is related to ghat improvement works in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Govt. formally launched the Ganga Gram project at the Ganga Gram Swachata Sammelan in New Delhi. It is an integrated approach for the holistic development of villages situated on the banks of the holy river with the active participation of villagers. With an aim to bring the foreign policy to the masses, External Affairs Ministry come up with an initiative called SAMEEP - 'Students & MEA Engagement Programme'. Under this, MEA official will talk to students to help them better understand foreign policy. The main objective is to take Indian foreign policy & its global engagements to students across the country. Union Cabinet chaired by PM Modi approved the Ministry of Railways' transformative initiative to set up India's first ever National Rail & Transport University (NRTU) in Vadodara, Gujarat to skill its human resources & build capability. CCEA given its approval for a new skill development scheme covering the entire value chain of the textile sector excluding Spinning & Weaving in organized Sector, titled "Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector (SCBTS)" from to with an outlay of Rs crore. It will have National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) compliant training courses. President Kovind, laid the foundation stone of the 'Nyaya Gram project' of the High Court of Allahabad in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. 'Nyaya Gram' is a residential & training complex of Allahabad High Court. A Public Procurement Portal named MSME Sambandh launched by Shri Giriraj Singh, MoS (IC) for MSME in New Delhi. The objective is to monitor the implementation of Public Procurement from MSEs by C-PSE. On 2nd Anniversary of Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY), Government of India signed four MoUs under the Scheme with the State of Nagaland & with Union Territories (UTs) of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadra & Nagar Haveli & Daman & Diu for operational improvements. PM Modi launched Umang mobile application, an integrated platform for government to citizen services. Umang- an acronym for "unified mobile app for new age" e-governance - currently hosts around 162 services from 33 government departments of central & state governments. It is developed by Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MEITY). Centre approved setting up of 'Pradhan Mantri Mahila Shakti Kendras' across 115 most backward districts of the country through a new scheme for reaching out to rural women & facilitating skill development, employment, digital literacy, health & nutrition. Govt. also approved expanding Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme from 161 districts to 640 districts in the country, as well as 150 additional 'one stop centres' for the survivors of sexual violence along with seven other programmes that are part of the umbrella scheme -- the National Mission for Empowerment of Women. The financial outlay for these schemes from 2017 to 2020 will be Rs 3, crore. To provide high-speed broadband service in all Gram Panchayats by March 2019, govt. launched its second & final phase of BharatNet project. It will be implemented at an outlay of Rs. 34 thousand crores. Govt. launched the Bharat 22 exchange traded fund (ETF) managed by ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, targeting an initial amount of about Rs. 8,000 crores. Cabined chaired by PM Modi approved the proposal for creation of National Testing Agency (NTA) for conducting various entrance examinations. Manyata was launched by FOGSI (Federation of Obstetric & Gynecological Societies of India). Manyata is a nationwide movement which is emphasising the need for quality care for mothers during & immediately after childbirth. India Hypertension Management Initiative (IHMI) was launched by Health Ministry & ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research). The objective of this initiative is to reduce morbidity & mortality due to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) by controlling high blood pressure. It is a collaborative project of ICMR, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), WHO & State Govts. Minister of State Health & Family Welfare Anupriya Patel launched a nationwide health campaign to sensitise women about the early screening & the preventive care for cancer. Themed 'Nurturing the Nurturer', the campaign was launched by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) in partnership with the Apollo Hospitals group. PM Modi launched Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana or Saubhagya, to supply 24/7 electricity supply to poor households. The government stated that states will be ADDA247 THE APP

65 required to complete the household electrification by March 31, The total outlay for the Saubhagya scheme will be Rs 16,320 crore. PM Modi launched - Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana Saubhagya to provide electricity connections to over 4 crore families in rural & urban areas by December India will achieve the target of power for all by December 2018, while all villages will be electrified by the end of Schemes launched by State Govt. CM of Himachal Pradesh, Jai Ram Thakur launched the Shakti app for women s safety in the state. It is developed by National Informatics Centre (NIC) of HP govt. The main objective is to fight crimes against women in the state. Punjab CM Amarinder Singh launched the release of benefits under 'Mahatma Gandhi Sarbat Vikas Yojana' (MGSVY) aimed at the inclusive growth of the distressed sections of the society. Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik launched the Mukhyamantri Kalakar Sahayata Jojana (MMKSJ) an assistance scheme for Artists in the state. Govt. has decided to give Rs 1,200 per month as artist assistance. Under this, a male artist can avail assistance after attaining the age of 50 years instead of the existing 60 years & for female artists it is reduced to 40 years. Haryana become the first state in the country to launch High-Risk Pregnancy (HRP) Portal. This portal not only helps in early identification of high-risk pregnant cases up to the grass-roots level but also ensures their timely referral to the civil hospitals for further management & delivery by specialists. The state cabinet of UP launched Mukhya Mantri Awas Yojna Grameen, a new scheme to construct houses in rural areas. Under this, Rs 1.30 lakh financial aid (for constructing houses) will be given to people residing in Naxal-affected areas of UP & Rs 1.20 lakh to selected beneficiaries. Uttar Pradesh launched a free household power connection scheme for the poor in the state to mark former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee s birth anniversary. The scheme is driven by govt. s motto Prakash hai to Vikas hai (the barometer of development is light). The govt. also introduced Kisan Uday Yojana, a novel scheme for farmers. Jammu & Kashmir Bank launched a special financial scheme for journalists of the state. The scheme "J&K Bank Sahafat Finance Scheme" was launched by the bank's chairman & CEO Parvez Ahmad. Odisha government launched a scheme named 'Fish Pond Yojana' to boost fish production in the state with a budgetary provision of Rs 96 crore. It aims to create additional 2,200 hectare of fresh water aquaculture farming with 50% financial assistance to farmers. Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (SAUBHAGYA) launched in Manipur, by Union Minister of State (IC) for Power & New & Renewable Energy, R.K. Singh & N. Biren Singh, CM, Manipur. Kerala government launched She Pad, a scheme to distribute free sanitary napkins to girl students from classes VI to XII in government & aided private schools affiliated to the state school board. President Kovind launched various schemes entailing total expenditure of Rs 3,455 crore in Jharkhand to coincide with the state's 17th Foundation Day. He launched Rs. 636-crores 'Mukhyamantri Health Insurance Scheme'. He also launched JOHAR (Jharkhand's Opportunities for Harnessing Rural Development) schemes entailing the expenditure of Rs 1,500 crore to help tribal & Dalit families double their incomes in four years. Goa CM Parrikar launched Jai Kisaan App, a farmer engagement app containing features & functions to fulfill the needs of the farmer community in India. It is a one-stop solution on agricultural information & cultivation, covering crop nutrition, protection, seeds, & diagnostic services. Rajasthan Govt. launched Dishari, an educational mobile application that provides free study materials for youths preparing for competitive examinations. Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal rolled out 647 schemes entailing an investment of Rs crore for development of world's largest river island Majuli. Out of these, 448 schemes under MGNREGA involved Rs crore & 199 schemes under 14th Finance Commission have an outlay of Rs 2.67 crore, it added. Odisha Government launched Sampurna (Sishu Abond Matru Mrityuhara Purna Nirakaran Abhijan) Yojna scheme for pregnant women, in Odisha. Under the scheme, Odisha government will provide Rs. 1,000 as transport cost for pregnant women to travel to the hospital. Schemes launched by Ministries Environment Minister Harshvardhan launched a 2.8 PetaFlop capacity high-performance computer system Mihir in Noida. It will help the department in predicting severe climate-related calamities & warnings for fishermen. Secretary, Ministry of Women & Child Development (MWCD), Mr Rakesh Srivastava launched Phase -1 i.e. the beneficiary module of Rapid Reporting System (RSS) for the Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG) on 24th January. It is a web-based online monitoring for the Scheme for Adolescent Girls in New Delhi. Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), announced the 'Cyber Surakshit Bharat' initiative in association with National e-governance Division (NeGD) & industry partners. It is the first ADDA247 THE APP

66 public-private partnership of its kind & will leverage the expertise of the IT industry in cybersecurity. Saksham (Sanrakshan Kshamta Mahotsav) is an annual flagship event of Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) under the aegis of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas. It focuses the active involvement of the Oil & Gas PSUs along with other stakeholders for creating focused attention on fuel conservation through people-centric activities. Ministry of Railways launched Smart Freight Operation Optimisation & Real Time Information (SFOORTI) App for Freight Managers which provides features for monitoring & managing freight business using Geographic Information System (GIS) Views & Dashboard. It will help them plan the traffic flows & optimize freight operations. Union Minister of State (I/C) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Dr Jitendra Singh launched the electronic-human Resource Management System (e-hrms) in New Delhi. Union Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh has launched Livestock Disease Forewarning Mobile Application (LDF-Mobile App). The app is developed by ICAR-National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology & Disease Informatics (ICAR-NIVEDI), Bengaluru. To enhance standards of cleanliness on beaches, the environment ministry has launched a pilot project 'Blue Flag' for its clean-up & development. With the prime objective of enhancing standards of cleanliness, upkeep & basic amenities at beaches, the ministry has launched a pilot project, also striving for the 'Blue Flag' certification for such identified beaches. Minister of Communications Manoj Sinha launched DARPAN- Digital Advancement of Rural Post Office for A New India Project to improve the quality of service, add value to services & achieve 'financial inclusion' of the unbanked rural population. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Kiren Rijiju, inaugurated the first national-level training of trainers program to sensitize various Central Ministries & Departments on the utilization of Sendai Monitor for developing action plans for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in New Delhi. Electronics & Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launched first NIC-CERT (Computer Emergency Response Teams), a setup of National Informatics Centre to prevent & predict cyber-attacks on govt. utilities. Shri R.K. Singh, Minister of State (IC) for Power & New & Renewable Energy, launched the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana Saubhagya Web Portal. It can be accessed at Minister of Communications Shri Manoj Sinha launched a Pan India scholarship program for school children called Deen Dayal SPARSH Yojana to increase the reach of Philately. Note: SPARSH (Scholarship for Promotion of Aptitude & Research in Stamps as a Hobby). Under this govt proposed to award annual scholarships to children of Standard VI to IX having good academic record & also pursuing Philately as a hobby. The amount of Scholarship will be Rs. 6000/- per Rs. 500/- per month. Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Railways & Coal has launched Grahak Sadak Koyla Vitaran App benefitting customers of Coal India Limited (CIL) lifting coal through road mode. Union Ministries of Power & Textiles jointly launched an initiative 'SAATHI' (Sustainable & Accelerated Adoption of efficient Textile technologies to Help small Industries). Under this initiative, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a public sector entity under the Union Ministry of Power, will acquire energy efficient Powerlooms, motors & Rapier kits in bulk & provide them to the small & medium powerloom units. Salient features of SFOORTI Application a) With this application, movement of freight trains on Geographic Information System (GIS) view can be tracked. b) Both passenger & freight trains can be tracked over Zones/Divisions/ Sections in single GIS View. c) Comparative Analysis of Zonal/Divisional Traffic. d) This app provides a Bird s eye view of all Freight Assets in a single window. Union Minister of Earth Sciences Dr. Harsh Vardhan dedicated India s fastest & first multipetaflops supercomputer named Pratyush to the nation in Pune. It is established at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune. It will be a national facility for improving weather & climate forecasts & services under the umbrella of the Ministry of Earth Sciences. Women & Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi inaugurated an online portal NARI in New Delhi for the empowerment of women. It stands for National Repository of Information for Women. The portal will provide women with easy access to information on Govt. schemes & initiatives for women. The portal summarises over 350 Govt. schemes & other important information. Assamese & Manipuri language versions of PM s Official website- were launched. Now the PM INDIA website is available in 11 regional languages ADDA247 THE APP

67 MISCELLANEOUS TOPICS INDIAN RAILWAYS/ METRO in India Matunga suburban station on the Central Railway (CR) found its way into the Limca Book of Records for having an all-woman staff. Matunga station is situated in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The first railway station in the country to have Sanitary napkin Vending Machine is Bhopal station. Indian Railways launched the main arch of the world's highest bridge on the River Chenab in Jammu & Kashmir's Reasi district which will provide direct connectivity to the Kashmir Valley. PM Modi, West Bengal CM Mamta Banerjee & Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina jointly flagged off Bandhan Express, a passenger train between Kolkata & Bangladesh s city of Khulna. It will cover 172 kms distance between Kolkata & Khulna in four hours. Railways plans to equip all trains with Bio-Toilets by December Asia s largest Solid-State Interlocking (SSI) system was installed in Kharagpur by the Indian Railways. This will enable station masters to set 800 different routes for trains in a matter of minutes. OPERATIONS LAUNCHED GOI commenced Swachh Survekshan It is called as the world s largest cleanliness survey. Under this, all 4041 cities & towns in India will be rated & ranked on various parameters of sanitation & cleanliness. Cyber Surakshit Bharat initiative was launched with the objective to spread awareness about cybercrime & to train & prepare all Chief Information Security Officers & staff. INDIA S GDP REPORTS As per IMF, India is projected to grow at 7.4% in 2018 as against China s 6.8%, making it the fastest growing country among the emerging economies. In 2017, India s growth rate dropped to 6.7%. For 2019, it has projected 7.8%. India Ratings & Research projected the country s economic growth to improve to 7.1% in from 6.5% in World Bank projected India s growth rate at 7.3 percent in 2018 & 7.5 for the next two years. India s economy is estimated to have grown at 6.7 percent in As per the HSBC report, India's growth rate is expected to accelerate at around 6.5 percent in & is likely to improve further to 7.6 percent by Indian economy will expand by 6.5% in , as per the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The economy had grown by 6.3% in the September quarter. The Indian economy grew at 7.1% in Indian economy is expected to witness cyclical growth recovery, with real GDP growth likely to accelerate from 6.4 % this year to 7.5% in 2018 & further 7.7% in 2019, as per report of Morgan Stanley. Indian economy is likely to grow by 7.2% in 2018 & 7.4% in 2019 as per the World Economic Situation & Prospects 2018 report by United Nations Department of Economic & Social Affairs (UN DESA). ADB lowered India s GDP forecast for the current fiscal by 0.3% to 6.7 %. & 7.3% from March As per Finance Minister, India has recorded an average growth of 7.5% from to OTHERS Oxford Dictionaries has chosen Aadhaar as the Hindi word of The word gained popularity due to Aadhaar card, which was in news in Research Designs & Standards Organisation (RDSO), the research arm of Ministry of Railways, has launched New Online Vendor Registration System. Uttarayan festival is celebrated in Gujarat. As per GAIL, India s second largest rooftop solar power plant to be installed at Pata, Uttar Pradesh. Government has launched MyGov platform to get suggestions from citizens of India from all walks of life. Central Government declared year 2018 as the national year of millets. VP Naidu inaugurated the Centenary celebrations of the Yoga Institute in Mumbai. Frenchman Francois Gabart smashed the world record for the fastest non-stop solo navigation of the globe, completing the mammoth feat in 42 days, 16 hours, 40 minutes & 35 seconds. UNESCO inscribed 'Kumbh Mela' on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The largest-ever floating solar power plant in India inaugurated by state power minister MM Man at the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad, Kerala. The solar power plant that floats on the surface of the water has a capacity of 500 kilowatts. The word 'populism' announced as Cambridge Dictionary's Word of the Year The Nation on 3 rd December 2017 remembered India's first President Rajendra Prasad on his 133rd birthday. India's first Madame Tussauds wax museum has been opened in New Delhi. President Kovind cleared an ordinance amending the Indian Forest Act, It omits bamboo grown in non-forest areas from the definition of trees, thereby exempting it from requiring permits for felling or transportation. Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh has sent a proposal to United Nations for declaring 2018 as "International Year of Millets" to raise awareness ADDA247 THE APP

68 among consumers, policy makers, industry & research sector. President Kovind inaugurated International Ambedkar Conclave, organised by the Forum of SC & ST Legislators & Parliamentarians, in New Delhi. World's first Sanskrit 3D film 'Anurakthi among the main attraction in 3D category at the International Film Festival of India in Panaji in Goa. The iconic Trump Tower comprising 140 ultra-luxury apartments has been launched in Kolkata. A grateful nation is paying homage to former PM Indira Gandhi on her 100th birth anniversary on 19th November metre-high statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj received environmental clearance, making it the world s tallest statue, once built. Fake news, a term popularised by U.S. President Donald Trump, has been named the word of the year by Collins dictionary due to its widespread use around the world. The annual Balijatra festival was inaugurated by Health & Law Minister Pratap Jena at Gadagadia ghat in Odisha on the banks of river Mahanadi. Person on Visit Russia s Deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin arrived in New Delhi. He will co-chair the meeting of India-Russia Inter-Govt.al Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological & Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC). PM Modi visited Ockhi affected Lakshwadeep, Tamil Nadu & Kerala to take stock of the situation, meets affected people. He announced the relief package of Rs 325 crore for all 3 states & ex-gratia assistance of Rs. 2 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased. Commerce & Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu is in Buenos Aires, Argentina to attend the 11th Ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Singapore Defence minister Ng Eng Hen was in India & signed the agreement with Defence Minister Seetharaman. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit at Sochi in Russia. PM Modi met Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickremesinghe. Sri Lankan PM, who arrived in India on a four-day visit, will hold bilateral talks with PM Modi & will also call upon President Ram Nath Kovind. PM Narendra Modi reached the Philippines capital Manila. He will be attending the 31st ASEAN, the East Asia & the India-ASEAN annual Summits. King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck arrived in New Delhi. He was accompanied by his wife, Queen Gyaltsuen Jetsun Pema Wangchuck. President of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan arrived in New Delhi. He attended the World Food India Conference Minister of State (IC) Youth Affairs & Sports Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore visited Egypt to attend World Youth Forum at Sharam El Shiekh. It was inaugurated by the President of Egypt Mr Abdelfateh El Sisi. Prince of Wales, Charles Philip Arthur George arrived in New Delhi. This visit is a part of their 10-day tour to Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei & India. The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral relations between the two nations. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj held a meeting with Guinea s Foreign Minister, Mamady Toure, during the course of which the latter handed over his country s instrument accession to the Indiainitiated International Solar Alliance (ISA). Banking Awareness for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO 2018 List of Mergers in the Indian Banking Industry The Bank which acquired The Bank which got Merged Year of Merger State Bank of 5 SBI s Associate 2017 India Banks & Bharatiya Mahila Bank Kotak Mahindra Bank ING Vysya Bank 2016 ICICI Bank Bank of Rajasthan 2010 State Bank of State Bank of Indore 2009 India State Bank of State Bank of 2008 India Saurashtra HDFC Bank Centurion Bank of 2008 Punjab Centurion Bank Lord Krishna Bank ADDA247 THE APP

69 of Punjab Indian Overseas Bharat Overseas 2007 Bank Bank IDBI Bank United Western 2006 Bank Ltd. Federal Bank Ganesh Bank of 2006 Kurundwad Centurion Bank Bank of Punjab 2005 (BoP) IDBI Bank IDBI Limited 2005 Limited Oriental Bank of Global Trust Bank 2004 Commerce (GTB) Punjab National Nedungadi Bank 2003 Bank Bank of Baroda Benares State Bank 2002 ICICI Bank ICICI Limited 2002 Limited ICICI Bank Bank of Madura 2001 HDFC Bank Times Bank 2000 Union Bank of Sikkim Bank 1999 India State Bank of Kashinath State 1995 India Bank Bank of India Bank of Karad 1994 Punjab National Bank New Bank of 1993 India State bank of Bank of Cochin 1985 India Canara Bank Lakshmi Commercial Bank 1985 Head Office of Small Finance Banks Au Financiers (India) Ltd., Jaipur Capital Local Area Bank Ltd., Jalandhar Disha Microfin Private Ltd., Ahmedabad Equitas Holdings P Limited, Chennai ESAF Microfinance & Investments Private Ltd., Registered Office- Chennai, Corporate Office- Thrissur (Kerala) Janalakshmi Financial Services Private Limited, Bengaluru RGVN (North East) Microfinance Limited, Guwahati Suryoday Micro Finance Private Ltd., Navi Mumbai Ujjivan Financial Services Private Ltd., Bengaluru Utkarsh Micro Finance Private Ltd., Varanasi Head Office Payment Banks Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited- Veraval, Gujarat Airtel M Commerce Services Limited- Registered Office- New Delhi, Corporate Office- Gurugram, Haryana Cholamandalam Distribution Services Limited- Chennai Department of Posts (IPPB)- New Delhi Fino PayTech Limited- Navi Mumbai National Securities Depository Limited- Mumbai Reliance Industries- Mumbai Vodafone m-pesa Limited- Mumbai A Brief on NPCI National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is an umbrella organization for all retail payments system in India. It was incorporated in December 2008&the Certificate of Commencement of Business was issued in April The authorized capital was pegged at Rs 300 crore&paid up capital was Rs 100 crore. B.Sambamurthy- Interim Chairman. A Brief on BHIM Bharat Interface for Money is an app that lets you make simple, easy&quick payment transactions using Unified Payments Interface (UPI). This can be done using just Mobile number or Virtual Payment Address (VPA). Currently it is available in 12 languages. Virtual Payment Address (VPA) is a unique identifier which you can use to send&receive money on UPI. Amount of money that can be sent using BHIM is uptors 10,000 per transaction&a maximum of Rs 20,000 per day for one bank account. A Brief on UPI Unified Payments Interface is an instant payment system developed by NPCI. UPI is built over the IMPS infrastructure&allows you to instantly transfer money between any two parties' bank accounts. UPI-PIN is a 4-6 digit pass code you create/set during first time registration with this App. The upper limit per UPI transaction is Rs. 1 Lakh. Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) It was launchedin IMPS offers an instant, 24X7, interbank electronic fund transfer service through mobile phones. Overview of *99# Service *99# service launched by NPCI, which works on Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) channel. This service was launched in Banking customers can avail the service by dialing *99#, a Common number across all Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) on their mobile phone&transact through an interactive menu displayed on the mobile screen. Overview of *99*99# Service *99*99# is a USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) based value added service from NPCI that facilitates the customers to check the status of his/her Aadhaar Adda247 App

70 number seeding/linking in the bank account. The service works across all GSM service providers&brings together the diverse ecosystem partners such as Banks & TSPs (Telecom Service Providers). MMID MMID stands for Mobile Money Identifier. MMID is a 7- digit code issued by the bank to their customers for availing IMPS. A Brief on QSAM *99*99# service, is alternatively known as QSAM (Query Service on Aadhaar Mapper). Using this service, a person can check the Aadhaar seeding/linking status in his/her bank account. A Brief on NACH NPCI implemented National Automated Clearing House (NACH) for Banks, Financial Institutions, Corporates&Govt., is a web based solution to facilitate interbank, high volume, electronic transactions which are repetitive&periodic in nature. NACH System can be used for making bulk transactions towards distribution of subsidies, dividends, interest, salary, pension etc. for bulk transactions towards collection of payments pertaining to telephone, electricity, water, loans, investments in mutual funds, insurance premium etc. NACH s Aadhaar Payment Bridge (APB) System, developed by NPCI has been helping the Govt.&Govt. Agencies in making the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme a success. BBPS Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) will function as a tiered structure for operating the bill payment system in the country under a single brand image. NPCI will function as the authorized Bharat Bill Payment Central Unit (BBPCU), which will be responsible for setting business standards, rules&procedures for technical&business requirements for all the participants. Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSLCs) These are a mechanism to enable banks to achieve the priority sector lending target&sub-targets by purchase of these instruments in the event of shortfall. This also incentivizes surplus banks as it allows them to sell their excess achievement over targets thereby enhancing lending to the categories under priority sector. All PSLCs will be valid till March 31st&will expire on April 1st. There are only four eligible categories of PSLCs i.e. PSLC General, PSLC Small&Marginal Farmer, PSLC Agriculture & PSLC Micro Enterprises. A brief on ACU Asian Clearing Union (ACU) was established with its head-quarters at Tehran, Iran, on December 9, The Central Banks&the Monetary Authorities of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan&Sri Lanka are currently the members of the ACU. Asian Monetary Units (AMUs) is the common unit of account of ACU&is denominated as ACU Dollar & ACU Euro. All instruments of payments under ACU have to be denominated in AMUs. Rupee Denominated Bonds Any corporate (entity registered as a company under the Companies Act, 1956/ 2013) or body corporate (entity specially created out of a specific act of the Parliament) &Indian banks are eligible to issue Rupee denominated bonds overseas. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)&Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) coming under the regulatory jurisdiction of SEBI are also eligible. The minimum maturity period for such bonds will be 3 years. Risk in Banking Sector Banking risk can be defined as exposure to the uncertainty of outcome. It is applicable to full-service banks like SBI, PNB & Others. Types of bank risks 1. Credit risk 4. Market risk 2. Operational risk 5. Liquidity risk 3. Business risk 6. Reputational risk Credit risk: It usually occurs because of inadequate income or business failure. Credit risk signifies a decline in the credit assets values before default that arises from the deterioration in a portfolio or an individual s credit quality. Market risk: Basel Committee on Banking Supervision defines market risk as the risk of losses in on- or offbalance sheet positions that arise from movement in market prices. Market risk is the most prominent for banks present in investment banking. Operational risk: Basel Committee on Banking Supervision defines operational risk as the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people&systems or from external events. Operational risk, the risk in all banking transactions Liquidity risk: Liquidity risk is the risk of a bank not being able to have enough cash to carry out its day-to-day operations. Reputational risk when banks lose the public s trust It is the risk of damage to a bank s image&public standing that occurs due to some dubious actions taken by the bank Adda247 App

71 Business Risk: Business risk is the risk arising from a bank s long-term business strategy. It deals with a bank not being able to keep up with changing competition dynamics, losing market share over time, & being closed or acquired. Sectors in the Indian Economy Indian Economy is normally categorized into three sectors namely - 1. Primary Sector 2. Secondary Sector 3. Tertiary Sector 1. Primary Sector Primary Sector is directly dependent on environment for manufacture&production. For example, agriculture, mining, farming etc. 2. Secondary Sector Secondary Sector adds value to the proud by transforming raw materials into valuable products. For example, processing & construction industries. 3. Tertiary Sector/Service Sector Tertiary Sector is involved in production&exchange of services. For example, transportation, communication, & other services of such kind. Tertiary Sector is also known as Services Sector as it facilitates the production&exchanges of services. National Institute of Bank Management (NIBM) It was established in 1969 by RBI, in consultation with the Govt. of India, as an autonomous apex institution for research, training, education&consultancy in bank management. Its mandate is to play a proactive role of think-tank of the banking system. The Governor of RBI is the Chairman of the Governing Board. It is situated at Pune, Maharashtra. Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS) EFTPOS is the method for paying for goods or services without needing to carry cash. Small Finance Banks The objective is to further financial inclusion by (a) provision of savings vehicles,(b) supply of credit to small business units; small&marginal farmers; micro&small industries;&other unorganised sector entities, through high technology-low cost operations. It shall primarily undertake basic banking activities of acceptance of deposits&lending to unserved & underserved sections including small business units, small&marginal farmers, micro&small industries &unorganised sector entities. The minimum paid-up equity capital is Rs. 100 crores. The promoter's minimum initial contribution to the paid-up equity capital of such small finance bank shall at least be 40 %&gradually brought down to 26 % within 12 years from the date of commencement of business of the bank. Payments Banks The objective is to further financial inclusion by providing (i) small savings accounts(ii) payments/remittance services to migrant labour workforce, low income households, small businesses, other unorganised sector entities&other users. Scope of activities: Acceptance of demand deposits. It will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of Rs. 100,000 per individual customer. It cannot undertake lending activities. Apart from amounts maintained as CRR on its outside demand& time liabilities, it will be required to invest minimum 75% of its "demand deposit balances" in SLR eligible. The minimum paid-up equity capital shall be Rs. 100 crore. The promoter's minimum initial contribution to the paid-up equity capital of such payments bank shall at least be 40 % for the first five years from the commencement of its business. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) i. RBI established on April 1, 1935 under RBI Act 1934 (recommendations of John Hilton Young Commission 1926 called Royal Commission on Indian Currency&Finance), is the central bank of the country&wasnationalisedw.e.f Jan 01,1949. ii. Originally it was a shareholders bank which was taken over by the Central Govt. under Reserve Bank (Transfer of Public Ownership) Act 1948 (paid up capital Rs. 5 cr). iii. RBI s central office is in Mumbai. Functions of RBI: Issuance of currency: RBI is the authority in India to issue currency notes (called bank notes) under signatures of Governor. (One rupee note called currency note is issued by the Central Govt.&signed by Finance Secretary). The stock of currency is distributed with the help of currency chests spread all over the country. Banker to Govt.: RBI transacts govt. business&manages public debt. SBI or any other bank is appointed Agent where RBI does not have office. It provides Ways & Means advances to Govt. Bankers bank: It keeps a part of deposits of commercial banks (as CRR) & acts as lender of last resort by providing financial assistance to banks. It provides export credit refinance, Liquidity Adjustment Facility&MSF. Controller of Banks: An entity which is to conduct banking business in India has to obtain license from RBI. It acts as controller of banks by including the banks in 2nd Schedule of the Act. It issues directions, carries inspection (on-site as well as off-site) &exercises management control Adda247 App

72 Controller of credit: RBI can fix interest rates (including Bank Rate)&exercise selective credit controls. Various tools such as change in cash reserve ratio, stipulation of margin on securities, directed credit guidelines etc. are used for this purpose. It also carries sale&purchase of securities which are known as open market operations. Maintenance of external value: RBI is responsible also for maintaining external value of Indian currency as well as the internal value. Foreign exchange reserves are held by RBI&it has a wide power to regulate foreign exchange transactions under Foreign Exchange Management Act. BANKING REGULATION ACT 1949 a) Passed as the Banking Companies Act 1949 (came into force wef &changed to Banking Regulation Act 1949 w.e.f , it was made applicable to J & K in 1956 (and now applicable throughout India). b) The Act is not applicable to primary agricultural credit societies, cooperative land mortgage banks&nonagricultural primary credit societies. SCHEDULED BANK a) As per Sec 2 (e) of RBI Act, a scheduled bank means a bank who is included in 2 nd schedule of RBI Act b) A scheduled bank should satisfy the conditions which include paid-up capital&reserves requirement of not less than Rs. 5 lac, satisfaction of RBI that the affairs will not be conducted by the bank in a way to jeopardize the interests of the depositor. (Commercial, Rural&many State Coop Banks are classified as Scheduled Banks). c) A bank that is not included in the 2 nd Schedule of RBI is called Non-scheduled Bank. Total No. of Banks (As per IBA Website) Total PSBs: 22 (IPPB is 100% Equaty of GoI) Total Private Sector Banks: 24, If we include Payment & Small Bank (7) then it is 31. RRB s: 56 Foreign Banks: 46 Cooperative Banks: 42 IMPORTANT POINTS ON RBI RBI is not expected to perform the function of accepting deposits from the general public. Prime lending rate is decided by the individual banks. RBI decides the following rates namely; Bank rate, repo rate, reverse repo rate&cash reserve ratio. The quantitative instruments of RBI are bank rate policy, cash reserve ratio&statutory liquidity ratio. The objective of monetary policy is to control inflation; discourage hoarding of commodities&encourage flow of credit into neglected sector. When RBI is lender of the last resort, it means that RBI advances credit against eligible securities. GOI decides the quantity of coins to be minted. The method which is used currently in India to issue currency note minimum reserve system. For issuing notes, RBI is required to hold the minimum reserves of Rs. 200 crore of which note less than Rs. 115 crore is to be held in gold. POLICY RATES Current Reserve Ratios & Policy Rates Bank Rate 6.25% Repo Rate 6.00% Reverse Repo Rate 5.75% CRR 4.00% SLR 19.50% MSF 6.25% Repo Rate Repo rate is the rate of interest which is levied on Short- Term loans taken by commercial banks from RBI. Whenever the banks have any shortage of funds they can borrow it from RBI. Reverse Repo Rate This is exact opposite of Repo rate. Reverse repo rate is the rate at which commercial banks charge on their surplus funds with RBI. RBI uses this tool when it feels there is too much money floating in the banking system. SLR Rate Statutory Liquidity Ratio is the amount a commercial bank needs to maintain in the form of cash, or gold or Govt. approved securities (Bonds) before providing credit to its customers. It is determined as the %age of total Net Demand&Time Liabilities (NDTL). Bank Rate It is defined in Sec 49 of RBI Act 1934 as the standard rate at which RBI is prepared to buy or rediscount bills of exchange or other commercial papers eligible for purchase under this act. CASH RESERVE RATIO CRR refers to the ratio of bank s cash reserve balances with RBI with reference to the bank s net demand&time liabilities to ensure the liquidity&solvency of the scheduled banks. ACCOUNTS IN A BANK a) Savings Bank Account b) Current Deposit Account c) Fixed Deposit Account d) Recurring Deposit a/c Savings Bank Account The rate of interest on savings bank account varies from bank to bank&also changes from time to time. Interest rate is paid to the account holders on daily balance basis. Current Deposit Account This account is mainly for big businessmen, companies&institutions, since there are no restrictions on number of withdrawals from this type of account Adda247 App

73 From this withdrawal can be made any number of times. For the convenience of the account holders banks also allow withdrawal of amounts in excess of the balance of deposit. This facility is known as overdraft facility. Fixed Deposit Account (also Term Deposit Account) Money is deposited in a fixed deposit account to earn interest at a higher rate. Recurring Deposit Account The rate of interest allowed on the deposits in this account is higher than that on a savings bank deposit but lower than the rate allowed on a fixed deposit for the same period. Important points to remember a) Minimum age to open a bank account is now 10 years. b) Maximum Interest rate is given on FD A/c. c) The maximum period of an FD is 10 years & for RD is 10 years. INTEREST RATE ON BANK ACOUNTS A) Some points related to Interest Rates on Bank Accounts {Differential rate of interest (DRI)} Interest on Savings A/c is calculated on daily balance basis. Now, All SCBs (Excluding RRBs) have the discretion to offer differential interest rates based on whether the term deposits are with or without-prematurewithdrawal-facility, subject to the following guidelines: a) All term deposits of individuals (held singly or jointly) of Rs.15 lakh&below should, necessarily, have premature withdrawal facility. b) For all term deposits other than (i) above, banks can offer deposits without the option of premature withdrawal as well. c) Banks should disclose in advance the schedule of interest rates payable on deposits i.e. all deposits mobilized by banks should be strictly in conformity with the published schedule. B) Taxation of Savings Bank Interest rates: Unlike interest on fixed deposits, interest earned on savings bank accounts is not subject to Tax Deduction at Source. However, this does not mean the interest earned on Savings accounts is completely tax free. It is exempt uptors. 10,000 in a year,&if the interest you earn from Savings accounts crosses this threshold, it becomes subject to tax. Inoperative & Dormant Accounts RBI clarified on that SB account can be treated as inoperative account only after 2 years from the date of the last credit entry of interest on Fixed Deposit account, where FD interest is being credited to SB account or where dividend on shares is being credited). TERMS RELATING TO DEPOSITS Unclaimed Deposits: The banks are to furnish to RBI a statutory annual return (penalty for delay) for unclaimed accounts which have not been operated for a period of 10 years or more in December every year u/s 26 of RBI Act. Demand liabilities Current deposits, Demand liabilities portion of saving deposits, margins held against LC/LG, Balances in overdue FD, cash certificate&rd, Outstanding TTs, MTs & DDs, Unclaimed deposits, Credit balance in CC a/c & Deposits held as security for loan payable on demand. Time liabilities FDs, cash certificate, cumulative & RDs, time liabilities portion of saving bank deposits, staff security deposits, margins against LC not payable on demand, deposit held as securities for advances&india Dev Bonds. NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENTS ACT 1881 In India the Negotiable Instruments Act was passed during 1881 which came into force wef March 01, CHEQUE A cheque is (a) a bill of exchange (b) drawn on a specified bank&(c) not expressed to be payable otherwise than on demand. It includes electronic image of a truncated cheque&also an electronic cheque. AMOUNT OF A CHEQUE Where amount of a cheque differs in words&figures, as per Section 18, amount written in words should be paid irrespective of the fact, which amount is less or more. Types of Cheque 1. Bearer Cheque or open Cheque When the words "or bearer" appearing on the face of the cheque are not cancelled, the cheque is called a bearer cheque. The bearer cheque is payable to the person specified therein or to any other else who presents it to the bank for payment. 2. Order Cheque When the word "bearer" appearing on the face of a cheque is cancelled & when in its place the word "or order" is written on the face of the cheque, the cheque is called an order cheque. Such a cheque is payable to the person specified therein as the payee, or to any one else to whom it is endorsed (transferred). 3. Crossed Cheque Crossing of cheque means drawing two parallel lines on the face of the cheque with or without additional words like "& CO." or "Account Payee" or "Not Negotiable". A crossed cheque cannot be encashed at the cash counter of a bank but it can only be credited to the payee's account Adda247 App

74 4. Ante-Dated Cheque If a cheque bears a date earlier than the date on which it is presented to the bank, it is called as "ante-dated cheque". Such a cheque is valid upto 3 months from the date of the cheque. 5. Post-Dated Cheque If a cheque bears a date which is yet to come (future date) then it is known as post-dated cheque. A post dated cheque cannot be honoured earlier than the date on the cheque. 6. Stale Cheque If a cheque is presented for payment after 3 months from the date of the cheque it is called stale cheque. A stale cheque is not honoured by the bank. 7. A self cheque A self cheque is written by the account holder as pay self to receive the money in the physical form from the branch where he holds his account. 8. A truncated cheque means a cheque which is truncated during the course of a clearing cycle, either by the clearing house or by the bank whether paying or receiving payment, immediately on generation of an electronic image for transmission. The expression clearing house means the clearing house managed by the RBI or a clearing house recognised as such by the RBI. Parties of a Cheque: There are three parties to the cheque Drawer or Maker The bank - on whom the cheque is drawn (i.e. the bank with whom the account is maintained by the drawer) Payee Payee is the person whose name is mentioned on the chequeto whom or to whose order the money is directed to be paid. ENDORSEMENT As per Section 15, endorsing means signing on the face or backside of an instrument (or even on a paper called Allonge or stamped paper), for the purpose of negotiating (transferring to next person) a negotiable instrument. Endorsement in full If an endorser signs his name&adds a direction to pay the amount mentioned in the instrument to, or to order of, a specified person, the endorsement is said to be in full. Blank endorsements can be converted into full. Restrictive endorsement Where an endorsement prohibits & restricts further negotiability of the instrument, it is called restricted endorsement. The words Pay to Ashish only or Pay to Ashish for my use or Pay to Ashish for account of B, are the cases of restrictive endorsement. Crossing Crossing of a cheque means two parallel transverse lines on the face with or without words, such as & Co, notnegotiable, payee s account only etc. The words without lines will not constitute crossing. Such instruments should not be paid as drawer s mandate is not clear. Crossing is applicable in case of cheques & demand draftonly & does not cover BOE or promissory note. TYPES OF CROSSING General crossing (sec 123) General crossing is where a cheque bears across its face two parallel transverse lines (with or without words such as & co or any abbreviation. (Words not important, lines are). Special crossing (sec 124) Where a cheque bears across its face, name of bank, either with or without the words not-negotiable (lines are not important, the addition of name of the bank is important), that addition shall be deemed as special crossing & the cheque be considered to be crossed specially to banker. Special Crossing in favour more than one bank As per Section 127, if a cheque is crossed specially to more than one bank (unless one bank is acting as collecting agent to another), the payment shall be refused. A cheque crossed to two or more branches of the same bank is considered to be crossed to one bank only. Not negotiable crossing As per Section 130, a person taking a cheque crossed generally or specially bearing the words not negotiable shall not have not be capable of giving a better title to the cheque than that, which ther p erson from whom he took it, had. Demand Drafts Demand draft is defined as per Section 85 (a) of NI Act 1881 as an order to pay money drawn by one office of a bank upon another office of the same bank for a sum of money payable to order on demand. Important features of a demand draft are: It is payable to order on demand (85-A NI Act). It cannot be issued as payable to bearer (Sec. 31 RBI Act). If a bank fails to honour a bank draft, it renders itself liable for damages. Similarly, omission of signatures or wrong signatures can also make the bank liable Adda247 App

75 By prior arrangement, the paying bank could be a different bank also. BANKING OMBUDSMAN SCHEME 2006 The Scheme enables a bank customer for filing of complaints relating to certain services rendered by banks. 1) The Banking Ombudsman is a senior official appointed by the Reserve Bank of India to redress customer complaints against deficiency in certain banking services. 2) All Scheduled Commercial Banks, Regional Rural Banks&Scheduled Primary Co-operative Banks are covered under the Scheme. 3) The Banking Ombudsman does not charge any fee for filing&resolving customers complaints. 4) The maximum compensation which a BO can help a complainant to get is Rs. 20 lakhs. 5) If a complaint is not settled by an agreement within a period of one month, the BO proceeds further to pass an award. Before passing an award, the BO provides reasonable opportunity to the complainant&the bank, to present their case. 6) If one is not satisfied with the decision passed by the BO, one can approach the appellate authority who is the Deputy Governor of the RBI. FINANCIAL INCLUSION Financial inclusion involves 1) Give formal banking services to poor people in urban & rural areas. 2) Promote habit of money-savings, insurance, pensioninvestment among poor-people. 3) Help them get loans at reasonable rates from normal banks. So they don t become victims in the hands of local moneylender. Some Important initiatives for Financial Inclusion Lead banking scheme (LBS). No frills account. BSBDA Business Correspondents (BC) system. Swabhiman Campaign PMJDY district. Accordingly, all the districts in the country have been allotted to various banks. The lead bank acts as a leader for coordinating the efforts of all credit institutions in the allotted districts. No Frill Account 'No Frills 'account is a basic banking account. Such account requires either nil minimum balance or very low minimum balance. Charges applicable to such accounts are low. The RBI in called upon Indian banks to design a no frills account a no precondition, low minimum balance maintenance account with simplified KYC (Know Your Customer) norms. But all the existing No-frills accounts opened were converted into BSBDA in compliance with the guidelines issued by RBI in BSBDA In 2012, RBI introduced BSBDA. Some important points are: This account shall not have the requirement of any minimum balance. The services available in the account will include: deposit&withdrawal of cash at bank branch as well as ATMs; receipt/credit of money through electronic payment channels or by means of deposit/collection of cheques drawn by Central/State Govt. agencies & departments; While there will be no limit on the number of deposits that can be made in a month, account holders will be allowed a maximum of four withdrawals in a month, including ATM withdrawals. Facility of ATM card or ATM-cum-Debit Card. Business Correspondent BCs are bank representatives. They personally go to area allotted to them&carry out banking. They help villagers to open bank accounts, in banking transactions etc. Business Correspondents get commission from bank for every new account opened, every transaction made via them, every loan-application processed etc. Lead Bank Scheme Lead Bank Scheme, introduced towards the end of 1969, envisages assignment of lead roles to individual banks (both in public sector&private sector) for the districts allotted to them. A bank having a relatively large network of branches in the rural areas of a given district&endowed with adequate financial&manpower resources has generally been entrusted with the lead responsibility for that LENDING RATES Base Rate RBI decided that banks should switch over to Base Rate system w.e.f Banks may determine their actual lending rates w.r.t. Base Rate. No loan can be sanctioned below base rate. Exempted accounts: The following loans could be priced without reference to Base Rate: (a) DRI loans (b) Adda247 App

76 loans to banks own employees (c) loans to banks depositors against their own deposits. Marginal Cost Based Lending Rate RBI introduced MCLR w.e.f to determine Base Rate by banks to improve the efficiency of monetary policy transmission. All rupee loans sanctioned&credit limits renewed w.e.f to be priced w.r.t. MCLR. It will be internal benchmark. The MCLR comprises of (a) Marginal cost of funds; (b) Negative carry on account of CRR; (c) operating costs; (d) Tenor premium. Marginal Cost of funds (MCF): It has 2 components (a) Marginal cost of borrowings (b) return on networth. By using MCF, it will be calculated as: Required CRR (marginal cost) / (1-CRR) Exemptions from MCLR loans under schemes of Govt. of India wherein banks have to charge interest rate as per the scheme. Working Capital Term Loan, Funded Interest Term Loan etc. as part of rectification/restructuring package. Loans under various refinance schemes of Govt. of India or any Govt. Undertaking wherein banks charge interest at the rates prescribed under the schemes. The following loans can be priced without being linked to MCLR : a) Loan to depositors against their own deposits. b) Loan to banks employees&chief Executive Officer/Whole Time Directors. c) Loans linked to a market determined external benchmark. d) Fixed rate loans. In case of hybrid loans where the interest rates are partly fixed&partly floating, interest rate on the floating portion should adhere to the MCLR guidelines. HANDY NOTES BANKING: PRIORITY SECTOR LENDING It means provide credit to the needy sectors of the society. The sectors are: Agriculture Micro&Small Enterprises Education Housing Export Weaker Sections Social Infrastructure Renewable Energy Targets under PSL Agriculture: 18% of ANBC (Adjusted Net Bank Credit). Out of this 18%, a target of 8% of ANBC is for Small & Marginal Farmers, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e., 7% by March 2016 & 8% by March Weaker Sections: 10 % of ANBC. Micro Enterprises: 7.5% of ANBC has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7% by March 2016 & 7.5% by March Overall PSL Target for Domestic Bank/Foreign Bank with more than 20 Branches: 40% of ANBC. Overall PSL Target for Foreign Bank with less than 20 Branches: 40% of ANBC to be achieved in phased manner Categorization of MSME according to MSME ACT 2006 Manufacturing Sector (Goods) Enterprises Investment in plant&machinery Micro Does not exceed twenty five lakh rupees Enterprises Small More than twenty five lakh rupees but Enterprises does not exceed five crore rupees Medium More than five crore rupees but does not Enterprises exceed ten crore rupees Service Sector Enterprises Investment in equipment Micro Enterprises Does not exceed ten lakh rupees Small Enterprises More than ten lakh rupees but does not exceed two crore rupees Medium Enterprises More than two crore rupees but does not exceed five crore rupees Other Targets under PSL Farmers with landholding of up to 1 hectare are considered as Marginal Farmers. Farmers with a landholding of more than 1 hectare & upto 2 hectares are considered as Small Farmers. SCB having any shortfall in lending to priority sector shall be allocated amounts for contribution to Rural Infrastructure Development Fund with NABARD. For Renewable Energy, bank loans up to a limit of Rs.15 crore to borrowers for purposes like solar based power generators, etc. For individual households, the loan limit will be Rs.10 lakh per borrower. For Housing, banks can provide loans to individuals up to Rs. 28 lakh in metropolitan centres (with population of ten lakh&above) & loans up to Rs. 20 lakh in other centres for purchase/construction of a dwelling unit per family. Export credit will be allowed up to 32% of ANBC for Foreign banks with less than 20 branches in India. For Education, banks can provide loans to individuals for educational purposes including vocational courses uptors. 10 lakh for studies in India&Rs. 20 lakh for studies abroad Adda247 App

77 Limits under Social infrastructure Bank loans up to a limit of Rs.5 crore per borrower for building social infrastructure for activities namely schools, health care facilities, drinking water facilities&sanitation facilities in Tier II to Tier VI centres. Monitoring of Priority Sector Lending targets To ensure continuous flow of credit to priority sector, there will be more frequent monitoring of priority sector lending compliance of banks on quarterly basis instead of annual basis as of now. Non-achievement of Priority Sector targets Scheduled Commercial Banks having any shortfall in lending to priority sector shall be allocated amounts for contribution to RIDF established with NABARD&other Funds with NABARD/NHB/SIDBI, as decided by the Reserve Bank from time to time. The interest rates on banks contribution to RIDF or any other Funds, tenure of deposits, etc. shall be fixed by Reserve Bank of India from time to time. NO REPAYMENT is required as long as the borrower lives, Borrower should pay all taxes relating to the house&maintain the property as his primary residence. The amount of loan is based on several factors: Borrower s age, Value of the property Current interest rates & The specific plan chosen. As per the scheme formulated by National Housing Bank (NHB), the maximum period of the loan period is 15 years. The residual life of the property should be at least 20 years. Where the borrower lives longer than 15 years, periodic payments will not be made by lender. However, the borrower can continue to occupy. MONEY MARKET It is a market for short-term debt securities, such as commercial paper, repos, negotiable certificates of deposit,&treasury Bills with a maturity of one year or less. RBI revises priority sector lending norms for RRBs Salient features of the guidelines:- Targets: 75 % of total outstanding to the sectors eligible for classification as priority sector lending. Categories of the Priority Sector: Medium Enterprises, Social Infrastructure&Renewable Energy will form part of the Priority Sector, in addition to the existing categories, with a cap of 15% of total outstanding. Agriculture: 18% of total outstanding should be advanced to activities mentioned under Agriculture. Small & Marginal Farmers: A target of 8% of total outstanding has been prescribed for Small&Marginal Farmers within Agriculture. Micro Enterprises: A target of 7.5 % of total outstanding has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises. Weaker Sectors: A target of 15 % of total outstanding has been prescribed for Weaker Sections. Monitoring: Priority Sector Lending will be monitored on a quarterly as well as annual basis. Note: The revised guidelines will be operational with effect from Jan REVERSE MORTGAGE LOAN The scheme of reverse mortgage has been introduced for the benefit of senior citizens owning a house but having inadequate income to meet their needs. Some important features of reverse mortgage are: A homeowner who is above 60 years of age is eligible for reverse mortgage loan. It allows him to turn the equity in his home into one lump sum or periodic payments mutually agreed by the borrower&the banker. CAPITAL MARKETS IN INDIA It is the market for long term funds. It refers to all the facilities & institutional arrangements for borrowing & lending medium & long term funds. Money Market VS Capital Market Money Market Capital Market Market for short term Market for long term financial assets financial assets Maturity period less than Maturity period beyond one year one year Deals over the counter Deals at stock exchange No. of players limited No. of players unlimited Regulated by RBI Regulated by SEBI Major money market Instruments Certificate of Deposit (CD) Commercial Paper (CP) Inter Bank Participation Certificates Inter Bank term Money Treasury Bills Bill Rediscounting Call/Notice Money Terms relating to Money Market Call Money Money lent or borrowed for one day Notice Money Money lent or borrowed for a period of 2-14 days. Term Money Money lent or borrowed for 15 daysto 1 year. Yield to Expected rate of return on an existing maturity security purchased for the market. Coupon Rate Specified interest rate on a fixed Adda247 App

78 maturity security fixed at the time of issue. the issue, interest payment & repaymentof principal at maturity. CALL/NOTICE MONEY MARKET OPERATIONS Under call money market, funds are transacted on overnight basis & under notice money market, for 2 days to 14 days. Participants include banks (excluding RRBs) & Primary Dealers (PDs), both as borrowers & lenders. Non-bank institutions are not permitted in the call/notice money market with effect from August 6, Calculation of interest payable is based on FIMMDA s (Fixed Income Money Market & Derivatives Association of India) Handbook of Market Practices. WAYS & MEANS ADVANCES (WMAs) WMAs were introduced as per an agreement between RBI & Govt. WMAs are temporary overdrafts by RBI to govt. (Central & State) under Section 17(5) of RBI Act. WMSs replaced the earlier ad hoc T-Bills system. WMAs bridge the time interval of mismatch between govt. expenditure&receipts. Duration: 10 consecutive working days for Central Govt.&14 days for State Govt. OTHER MONEY MARKET INSTRUMENTS INSTRUMENT OF GOVT. BORROWING To meet the temporary receipt & expenditure mismatch, govt. obtains over draft from RBI under Ways & Means Advances. For short term liquidity, it issues cash management bills, treasury bills of 91 days, 182 days & 364 days maturity. For long term funds, it uses dated securities in the form of bonds/long term loans. TREASURY BILLS These are the instruments (in the form of promissory notes) of short term borrowing by the Central govt., first issued in India in TBs can be purchased by any one (including individuals) except State govt. Minimum amount of face value Rs & in multiples thereof. Maturity: 91 days, 182 days & 364 days. Treasury bills are zero coupon securities. They are issued at a discount&redeemed at face value at maturity. Cash Management Bills (CMB) CMB introduced on , is a short-term security to be sold by Govt. of India to raise temporary money for cash management needs. The tenure is less than 91 daysbut the notified amount&date of issue depends upon the temporary cash requirement of the Govt. It is issued at discount to the face value through auctions, as in the case of the Treasury Bills. DATED SECURITIES These are long term securities & carry a fixed or floating coupon (interest rate) paid on the face value, payable at fixed time periods (half-yearly). The tenor of dated securities can be up to 40 years. Public Debt Office of RBI acts as the registry/depository of Govt. securities & deals with CERTIFICATE OF DEPOSIT This scheme was introduced in July 1989, to enable the banking system to mobilize bulk deposits from the market, which they can attract at competitive rates of interest. Who can issue CRR/SLR Investors Maturity Amount Int. Rate Loan Nature Scheduled commercial banks (except RRBs) & All India Financial Institutions within their Umbrella limit. Applicable on the issue price in case of banks Individuals (other than minor), corporations, companies, trusts, funds, associations etc. Min: 7 daysmax : 12 Months (in case of FIs minimum 1 year&maximum 3 years). Min: Rs. 1 lac, beyond which in multiple of Rs. 1 lac Market related. Fixed or floating Against collateral of CD not permitted Usance Promissory note. Can be issued in Dematerialisation form only wef June 30, 2002 COMMERCIAL PAPER i. CP introduced during 1990, is a short term money market instrument issued as an unsecured usance promissory note&privately placed. ii. Who can issue Commercial paper (CP): Companies, primary dealers (PDs)&all-India financial institutions (FIs). iii. A company is eligible to issue CP if: (a) Its tangible net worth, as per latest audited balance sheet, is not less than Rs. 4 crore. (b) Sanctioned working capital limit by bank/s or all-india financial institution/s; (c) The borrower accounts are classified as a Standard Asset by financing bank/s/ institution/s& (d) Minimum credit rating from SEBI approved credit rating agency (CRA) is A3. iv. Maturity: Min 7 days & max upto one year v. Amount: Min Rs. 5 lakh or multiples thereof Adda247 App

79 MERCHANT BANKING Merchant banking stands for providing various services relation to capital market&financing the corporate sector. The Merchant Bankers provide consultancy to the corporate sector on the issues like finance, capital structure&investment, mergers, takeover&amalgamations, establishing coordination between the Govt.&the corporate sector. CAPITAL MARKETS IN INDIA a) It refers to all the facilities & institutional arrangements for borrowing&lendingmedium & long-term funds. b) It is segregated into (i) gilt edged market&(ii) the industrial securities market. c) The gilt edged marketrefers to the market for govt. & semi-govt. securities which are traded in the market in stable value&are sought after by banks&other institutions. d) The industrial securities market refers to the market for shares&debentures of old as well as new companies. This market is further divided as primary market&secondary market. The primary market refers to the setup which helps the industry to raise funds by issuing different types of securities, which are issued directly to the investors, both individual&institutions. The secondary market refers to the network for subsequent sale&purchase of securities, after these are issued. INDIAN DEPOSITORY RECEIPTS (IDRs) IDR is an instrument in the form of a Depository Receipt created by the Indian depository in India against the underlying equity shares of the issuing company. In an IDR, foreign companies would issue shares, to an Indian companies would issue shares, to an Indian Depository which would in turn issue depository receipts to investors in India. Open ended scheme: A scheme is the one which continuously offers its units&buys them back from investors. DICGC (Deposit Insurance & Credit Guarantee Corporation of India) 1. Which banks are insured by the DICGC? All commercial banks including branches of foreign banks functioning in India, local area banks&regional rural banks are insured by the DICGC. 2. What does the DICGC insure? It insures all deposits such as savings, fixed, current, recurring, etc. except the following types of deposits. (i) Deposits of foreign Govt.s; (ii) Deposits of Central/State Govt.s; (iii) Inter-bank deposits; (iv) Deposits of the State Land Development Banks with the State co-operative bank; (v) Any amount due on account of any deposit received outside India (vi) Any amount, which has been specifically exempted by the corporation with the previous approval of Reserve Bank of India. 3. What is the maximum deposit amount insured by the DICGC? Each depositor in a bank is insured upto a maximum of Rs.1,00,000 for both principal & interest amount held by him in the same capacity. 4. HQ: Mumbai Chairman: NS Vishwanathan MUTUAL FUND TERMS Asset Management Company: A company formed & registered under the Companies Act 1956 & approved as such by the SEBI to manage the funds of a mutual fund. Under an agreement (with the trustees of the Mutual Fund), an AMC undertakes to formulated mutual funds schemes, distribute income as per agreement. Close-ended scheme: A scheme where funds are raised for a fixed period. The scheme is wound up after that period&funds are returned with capital appreciation to unit holders. Normally, a close-ended scheme is listed on a stock exchange. Net asset value: The price of value of one share of a fund. It is calculated by summing the quoted values of all the securities held by the fund, adding in cash & any accrued income & subtracting liabilities & dividing the result by the number of shares outstanding. NPA-Non-Performing Asset & SARFAESI It means once the borrower has failed to make interest or principal payments for 90 days, the loan is considered to be a non-performing asset. Criteria for classification of loan as NPA Farm Credit within Agriculture loans: A loan will be treated as an NPA if installment of the principal or Adda247 App

80 interest remains unpaid beyond the due date for (a) two crop seasons in case of short duration crops (maturing within one year)&(b) one crop season for long duration crops (maturing after one year). This would also be applicable, mutatis mutandis, to agricultural term loans. In other agriculture loans, the 90 days norm would be applicable. SARFAESI Act & Rules SARFAESI Act (The Securitization&Reconstruction of Financial Assets & Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002) was enacted to regulate securitization & reconstruction of financial assets & enforcement of security interest created in respect of Financial Assets to enable realization of such assets. The Act provides for the manner for enforcement of security interests by a secured creditor without the intervention of a court or tribunal. If any borrower fails to discharge his liability in repayment of any secured debt within 60 days of notice from the date of notice by the secured creditor, the secured creditor is conferred with powers under the SARFAESI Act to a) Takes possession of the secured assets of the borrower, including transfer by way of lease, assignment or sale, for realizing the secured assets b) Takeover of the management of the business of the borrower including the right to transferby way of lease, assignment or sale for realizing the secured assets, c) Appoint any person to manage the secured assets possession of which is taken by thesecured creditor, and d) Require any person, who has acquired any of the secured assets from the borrower andfrom whom money is due to the borrower, to pay the secured creditor so much of the money as if sufficient to pay the secured debt. The assets portfolio of the banks is required to be classified as (1) standard assets (2) sub-standard assets (3) doubtful assets (4) loss assets. Standard asset is one that does not disclose any problems&which does not carry more than normal risk attached to the business. An asset which has been classified as NPA for a period not exceeding 12 months is considered as sub-standard asset. Doubtful asset is one which has remained NPA for a period exceeding 12 months. An asset which is considered uncollectible&loss has been identified by the bank or internal or external auditors or the RBI inspection&the loss has not been written off is regarded as loss asset. What is pledge: U/s 172 of Indian Contracts Act, pledge is bailment (delivery) of goods as security for payment of a loan. Only goods (movable assets excluding actionable claims (Sec 2(7) of Sales of Goods Act) can be pledged. HYPOTHECATION/PLEDGE-DISTINCTION Hypothecation Pledge Defined in SARFAESI Act 2002 (Sec 2 n) Indian Contract Act 1872 (section 172) Definition Charge on movable Bailment of goods property in favour as security for of secured creditor without delivery of possession payment of a debt or performance of promise Parties: -Borrower -Bank Nature of securities Possession Hypothecator Hypothecate Movable assets such as stocks, machinery, vehicles Borrower (in trust for bank). Bank cannot take possession without consent of the borrower. On taking possession bank gets rights of pledge&can sell the assets without intervention. Pledger / pawner Pledger / pawnee Goods Possession with bank till repayment of the loan. Bank has to preserve the goods carefully&return the same, if loan is repaid. MORTGAGE As per section 58 of Transfer of Property Act 1882, mortgage is transfer of interest in specific immovable property for the purpose of securing the payment of money advanced or to be advanced by way of loan, an existing or future debt or the performance of an engagement which may give rise to pecuniary liability. ATM Q.1 What is an Automated Teller Machine (ATM)? Ans. Automated Teller Machine is a computerized machine that provides the customers of banks the facility of accessing their account for dispensing cash&to carry out other financial & non-financial transactions without the need to actually visit their bank branch. Q.2 What is White Label ATMs (WLAs)? Ans. ATMs set up, owned&operated by non-banks are called White Label ATMs. Non-bank ATM operators are authorized under Payment & Settlement Systems Act, 2007 by the Reserve Bank of India Adda247 App

81 Q.3. Is there any time limit for the card issuing banks for recrediting the customers account for a failed ATM/WLA transaction? Ans. As per the RBI instructions, banks have been mandated to resolve customer complaints by re-crediting the customer s account within 7 working days from the date of complaint. Q.4. Are the customers eligible for compensation for delays beyond 7 working days? Ans. Yes. Effective from July 1, 2011, banks have to pay compensation of Rs. 100/- per day for delays in recrediting the amount beyond 7 working days from the date of receipt of complaint for failed ATM transactions. The compensation has to be credited to the account of the customer without any claim being made by the customer. If the complaint is not lodged within 30 days of transaction, the customer is not entitled for any compensation for delay in resolving his / her complaint. CURRENCY IN INDIA Money as a means of payment consists of coins, paper money & withdrawable bank deposits. Legal tender: As per provisions of coinage Act 1906, bank notes, currency notes&coins (Rs. 1&above) are legal tender for unlimited amount. The subsidiary coins (below Re 1) are legal tenders for sum not exceeding Re 1. Issue of 1, 2&3 paise coins discontinued wef Sep 16, What do you know by currency chest? Currency chests are operated by RBI so that they can provide good quality currency notes to the public. However, RBI has appointed commercial banks to open&monitor currency chests on behalf of RBI. The cash kept in currency chests is considered to be kept in RBI. What is a small coin depot? The bank branches are also authorised to establish Small Coin Depots to stock small coins. The Small Coin Depots also distribute small coins to other bank branches in their area of operation. What are soiled, mutilated&imperfect banknotes? "Soiled note" means a note which, has become dirty due to usage & also includes a two piece note pasted together wherein both the pieces presented belong to the same note, & form the entire note. Mutilated banknote is a banknote, of which a portion is missing or which is composed of more than two pieces. Imperfect banknote means any banknote, which is wholly or partially, obliterated, shrunk, washed, altered or indecipherable but does not include a mutilated banknote. Pre-2005 series Banknotes The banknotes issued before 2005 MG series are called pre series banknotes, which do not have the year of printing on the reverse side. On Jan 23, 2014, RBI decided to withdraw, from circulation, these notes as they have fewer security features. 1. These notes shall continue to be legal tender. The notes are only being withdrawn from circulation. 2. These notes can be exchanged at select bank branch till NATIONALISATION OF BANKS Nationalisation of Imperial Bank of India&its conversion into State Bank of India in July Conversion of 8 major State-associated banks into subsidiary banks of SBI in Nationalisation of 14 Indian scheduled banks in July Nationalisation of 6 more banks in April 1980 & New Bank of India merged into Punjab National Bank. TRANSFER SYSTEM IN BANKING SECTOR Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) RTGS implemented w.e.f is a centralized payment system operated by RBI. In RTGS inter-bank payment instructions are processed & settled, on gross basis in a real time environment. It uses Indian Financial Network (INFINET) & SFMS platforms. RTGS is regulated by RTGS System Regulations, National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) RBI operationalisedneftsystem in Nov It facilitates transfer of funds from any bank branch to any other bank branch. Amount: There is no lower/upper value limit. Bank account: NEFT is an account to account transfer system. The remitter&beneficiary should have a bank account. Processing Charges/Service Charges 1. Banks cannot levy any charges for inward NEFT, 2. For outward NEFT: Up to Rs = Rs. 2.50, above Rs to Rs. 1 lac = Rs. 5. Above Rs. 1 lac to Rs. 2 lac = Max Rs. 15&above Rs. 2 lac = Max Rs. 25 (w.e.f ). CENTRALIZED FUNDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (CFMS) CFMS was operated & maintained by RBI to enable operations on current accounts maintained at various offices of the RBI, through standard message formats in a secure manner Adda247 App

82 NEPAL REMITTANCE SCHEME It is a cross-border one-way remittance facility scheme, for remittance from India to Nepal. Amount: Up to Indian Rs. 50,000 from NEFT branches. Beneficiary will receive funds in Nepalese rupees. CORE BANKING SOLUTIONS Core Banking Solutions (CBS) or Centralised Banking Solutions is the process which is completed in a centralized environment i.e. under which the information related to the customer s account (i.e. financial dealings, profession, income, etc.) is stored in the Central Server of the bank (that is available to all networked branches) instead of the branch server. Accounts for Foreign (Currency/Person) in India a) NRO A/c (Foreign Tourist) Foreign tourists during their short visit to India can open a Non-Resident (Ordinary) Rupee (NRO) account (Current / Savings) with any Authorised Dealer bank dealing in foreign exchange. Can be opened up to a maximum period of 6 months. All payments to residents exceeding INR 50,000 can be made only by means of cheques / pay orders / DDs. b) EEFC A/c Exchange Earners' Foreign Currency Account (EEFC) is an a/c maintained in foreign currency with Authorised Dealer. It is a facility provided to foreign exchange earners, including exporters, to credit 100% of their foreign exchange earnings to the a/c, so that the account holders do not have to convert foreign exchange into Rupees, thereby minimizing the transaction costs. All categories of foreign exchange earners, such as individuals, companies, etc. who are resident in India, may open EEFC accounts. It can be held only in the form of a current account. No interest is payable on EEFC accounts. ACCOUNTS FOR NRI/PIO Non-Resident Ordinary Rupee Account (NRO Account) NRO accounts may be opened / maintained in the form of current, savings, recurring or fixed deposit accounts. Interest rates offered by banks on NRO deposits cannot be higher than those offered by them on comparable domestic rupee deposits. Account should be denominated in Indian Rupees. NRI/PIO may remit from the balances held in NRO account an amount not exceeding USD one million per financial year, subject to payment of applicable taxes. The limit of USD 1 million per financial year includes sale proceeds of immovable properties held by NRIs/PIOs. Non-Resident (External) Rupee Account (NRE Account) NRE account may be in the form of savings, current, recurring or fixed deposit accounts. Account will be maintained in Indian Rupees. Accrued interest income&balances held in NRE accounts are exempt from Income tax. Authorised dealers/authorised banks at their discretion allow for a period not more than two weeks, overdrawings in NRE savings bank accounts, up to a limit of Rs. 50,000. Loans up to Rs.100 lakh can be extended against security of funds held in NRE Account either to the depositors or third parties. Foreign Currency Non-Resident (Bank) Account FCNR (B) Account FCNR (B) accounts are only in the form of term deposits of 1 to 5 years Account can be in any freely convertible currency. Loans up to Rs.100 lakh can be extended against security of funds held in FCNR (B) deposit either to the depositors or third parties. The interest rates are stipulated by the Department of Banking Operations & Development, RBI. How Ranting done to Banks in India RATING OF BANKS RBI s 1995 working group headed by Sh. S. Padmanabhan suggested method for rating. RBI rates the banks on a 5 point scale of A to E, widely on the lines of international CAMELS rating model for domestic banks&calcs model for foreign banks. CAMELS Rating for Domestic Banks Capital adequacy ratio Asset quality Management Effectiveness Earning (i.e. profitability) Liquidity (asset-liability management) System&controls Adda247 App C A M E L S C A L C S Rating parameters for foreign banks Capital adequacy ratio Asset quality Liquidity Compliance System&controls BASEL-3 NORMS Basel Committee is the primary global standard-setter for the prudential regulation of banks & provides a forum for cooperation on banking supervisory matters.

83 Its mandate is to strengthen the regulation, supervision & practices of banks worldwide with the purpose of enhancing financial stability. Stefan Ingves, Governor of Sveriges Riks bank (SWEDEN), is the Chairman of the Basel Committee. Basel III or Basel 3 released in December, 2010 is the third in the series of Basel Accords. These accords deal with risk management aspects for the banking sector. According to Basel Committee on Banking Supervision "Basel III is a comprehensive set of reform measures, developed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, to strengthen the regulation, supervision&risk management of the banking sector". Basel 3 measures aim to: a) Improve the banking sector's ability to absorb shocks arising from financial & economic stress, whatever the source b) Improve risk management & governance c) Strengthen banks' transparency & disclosures. Three Pillars of Basel 3 Difference between BANK & NBFC: NBFCs lend & makeinvestments & hence their activities are akin to that of banks; however there are a few differences as given below: i. NBFC cannot accept demand deposits; ii. NBFCs do not form part of the payment &settlementsystem&cannot issue cheques drawn on itself; iii. Deposit insurance facility of Deposit Insurance & Credit Guarantee Corporation is not available to depositors of NBFCs, unlike in case of banks. Register with RBI: A company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956&desirous of commencing business of non-banking financial institution as defined under Section 45 I(a) of the RBI Act, 1934 should comply with the following: a) It should be a company registered under Section 3 of the companies Act, 1954 b) It should have a minimum net owned fund of Rs 200 lakh. Pillar 1: Minimum Regulatory Capital Requirements based on Risk Weighted Assets (RWAs): Maintaining capital calculated through credit, market&operational risk areas (mainly that capital which can absorb risk.) Pillar 2: Supervisory Review Process: Regulating tools&frameworks for dealing with peripheral risks that bank face. Pillar 3: Market Discipline: Increasing the disclosures that banks must provide to increase the transparency of banks Important Facts related to BASEL 3 Minimum Ratio of Total Capital To RWAs % Minimum Ratio of Common Equity to RWAs--4.50% to 7.00% Tier I capital to RWAs--6.00% Core Tier I capital to RWAs--5.00% Capital Conservation Buffers to RWAs--2.50% Leverage Ratio--3.00% Countercyclical Buffer--0% to 2.50% NBFC Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) is a company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 engaged in the business of loans & advances, acquisition of shares/stocks/bonds/debentures/securities issued by Govt. or local authority or other marketable securities of a like nature, leasing, hire-purchase, insurance business, chit fund business. Deposits in NBFC: a) Presently, the maximum rate of interest an NBFC can offer is 12.5%. The interest may be paid or compounded at rests not shorter than monthly rests. b) NBFCs are allowed to accept / renew public deposits for a minimum period of 12 months & maximum period of 60 months. They cannot accept deposits repayable on demand. c) The deposits with NBFCs are not insured. d) The repayment of deposits by NBFCs is not guaranteed by RBI. TYPES OF MONEY Commodity Money - Commodity money value is derived from the commodity out of which it is made. The commodity itself represents money, & the money is the commodity. Representative Money - is money that includes token coins, or any other physical tokens like certificates, that can be reliably exchanged for a fixed amount/quantity of a commodity like gold or silver. Fiat Money - Fiat money, also known as fiat currency is the money whose value is not derived from any intrinsic value or any guarantee that it can be converted into valuable commodity (like gold). Instead, it derives value only based On Govt. order (fiat) Commercial Bank Money - Commercial bank money or the demand deposits are claims against financial institutions which can be used for purchasing goods & services. Reserve Money (M 0) Adda247 App

84 Currency in circulation + Bankers deposits with the RBI + Other deposits with the RBI = Net RBI credit to the Govt. + RBI credit to the commercial sector + RBI's claims on banks + RBI's net is foreign assets + Govemment s currency liabilities to the public - RBI's net non-monetary liabilities. M1=Currency with the public + Demand deposits with the banking system + 'Other' deposits with the RBI M2=M1 + Savings deposits of office savings banks. M3=M1+ Time deposits with the banking system = Net bank credit to the Govt. M4=M3 +All deposits with post office savings banks (excluding National Savings Certificates) Note: Bhartiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Limited (BRBNMPL) RBI established BRBNMPL in February 1995 as a whollyowned subsidiary to augment the production of bank notes in India&to enable bridging of the gap between supply&demand for bank notes in the country. BANKING ABBREVIATIONS 1. PSBs: Public Sector Banks 2. SNBCs: Schedule Non- Commercial Banks 3. SENSEX: Sensitive Index of Stock Exchange 4. KYC: Know Your Customer 5. RTGS: Real Time Gross Settlement 6. NEFT: National Electronic Fund Transfer 7. EFT: Electronic Fund Transfer 8. CBS: Core Banking Solutions 9. LIBOR: London Interbank Offered Rate 10. MIBOR: Mumbai Interbank Offered Rate 11. MIBID: Mumbai Interbank Bid Rate 12. SARFAESI: Securitisation & Reconstruction of Financial Assets & Enforcement Of Security Interest 13. CAR: Capital Adequecy Ratio 14. FIIs: Foreign Institutional Investments 15. MICR: Magnetic Ink Character Recognition 16. BIRD: Bankers Institute of Rural Development 17. IBA: Indian Bank Association 18. BPLR: Benchmark Prime Lending Rate 19. SWOT: Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities&Threats 20. SWIFT: Society For Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication 21. FERA: Foreign Exchange Regulatory Act 22. FEMA: Foreign Exchange Management Act 23. CASA: Current&Saving Account 24. NDTL: Net Demand&Time Liabilities 25. NASDAQ: National Association For Securities Dealers Automated Quotations 26. CRISIL: Credit Rating&Investment Services India Limited 27. CIBIL: Credit Information Bureau Of India Limited 28. NAV: Net Asset Value 29. ICRA: Indian Credit Rating Agency 30. CARE: Credit Analysis & Research Limited 31. WMAs: Ways & Means Advances 32. ALM: Asset Liability Management 33. INFINET Indian Financial Network 34. OLTAS - On-line Tax Accounting System (OLTAS) for Direct Taxes 35. TIN - Tax Information Network (TIN) 36. IMPS - Interbank Mobile Payment Service (IMPS) or Immediate Payment Service 37. CDR- Corporate Debt Restructuring 38. CAD- Capital Account Deficit 39. REITs: Real Estate Investment Trusts 40. InvITs: Infrastructure Investment Trusts 41. ALM- Asset Liability Management 42. ASBA: Application Supported by Blocked Amount 43. PIN: Personal Identification Number 44. CECA: Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement 45. CEPA: Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreemeny 46. DTAA Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement 47. EFSF European Financial Stability Facility 48. FINO- Financial Inclusion Network Operation 49. FIPB Foreign Investment Promotion board 50. FSLRC Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission 51. CRAR: Capital to Risk-weighted Assets Ratio 52. LCR: Liquidity Coverage Ratio 53. TARC - Tax Administration Reform Commission 54. GIRO - Govt. Internal Revenue Order 55. FRBMA: Fiscal Responsibility&Budget Management Act 56. AMFI- Association of Mutual Fund in India. 57. TIEA Tax Information exchange Agreement 58. GAAR - General anti avoidance rule 59. GSLV - Geo-Synchronous Launch Vehicle 60. PPP Public Private Partnership & Purchasing Power parity 61. PSLV Polar Satellite Launch vehicle 62. TAPI - Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India. 63. QFI -Qualified Foreign Investors 64. AD-Authorized Dealer. 65. ASSOCHAM-Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India. 66. BCSBI-Banking Codes & Standards Board of India. 67. BIS-Bank for International Settlements. 68. CDS-Credit Default Swap. 69. CEPA-Comprehensive Economic Partnership Management. 70. FIMMDA-Fixed Income Money MARKETS & Derivatives Association. 71. FPI-Foreign Portfolio Investment Adda247 App

85 72. IBRD-International Bank for Reconstruction & Development. 73. UIDAI-Unique Identification Development Authority of India. 74. PMGSY- Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana 75. PMEGP- PM's Employment Generation Programme 76. NRDWP- National Rural Drinking Water Programme 77. PMKK- Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras 78. SANKALP- Skill Acquisition & Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion programme 79. STRIVE- Skill Strengthening for Industrial Value Enhancement 80. NTA- National Testing Agency 81. ICDS- Integrated Child Development Services 82. TIES- Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme 83. FIPB- Foreign Investment Promotion Board 84. CERT-Fin- Computer Emergency Response Team for our Financial Sector 85. IRFC- Indian Railway Finance Corporation Limited 86. FFO- Further Fund Offering IMPORTANT BANKING TERMS Moral Suasion: Moral Suasion is just as a request by the RBI to the commercial banks to take so & so action & measures in so & so trend of economy. RBI may request commercial banks not to give loans for unproductive purpose which does not add to economic growth but increases inflation. Bouncing of a cheque: Where an account does not have sufficient balance to honour the cheque issued by the customer, the cheque is returned by the bank with the reason "funds insufficient" or "Exceeds arrangement". This is known as 'Bouncing of a cheque'. Demat Account: The term "demat", in India, refers to a dematerialised account for individual Indian citizens to trade in listed stocks or debentures. Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR): Capital adequacy ratio measures the amount of a bank s capital expressed as a %age of its credit exposure. Globally, the capital adequacy ratio has been developed to ensure banks can absorb a reasonable level of losses before becoming insolvent. Indian banks are expected to maintain a minimum capital adequacy ratio of 9 % (Rs 9 as capital for every Rs 100 in loan or asset) IMPORTANT BANKING CONCEPTS 1) What is Balance of Trade? The value of a country s exports minus the value of its imports. Unless specified as the balance of merchandise trade, it normally incorporates trade in services, including earnings (interest, dividends, etc.) on financial assets. 2) What is Balance of Payments? A list of all of a country s international transactions for a given time period, usually one year. 3) What is NOSTRO Account? A Nostro account is maintained by an Indian Bank in the foreign countries. 4) What is VOSTRO Account? A Vostro account is maintained by a foreign bank in India with their corresponding bank. 5) What is BCBS? Basel Committee on Banking Supervision is an institution created by the Central Bank governors of the Group of Ten nations. 6) What is LIBOR? London InterBank Offered Rate. An interest rate at which banks can borrow funds, in marketable size, from other banks in the London interbank market. 7) What is STRIPS? Separate Trading for Registered Interest & Principal Securities. 8) What do you mean by term CASA related to bank? CASA stands for Current Account Savings Account. The CASA ratio shows how much deposit a bank has in the form of current&saving account deposits in the total deposit. A higher CASA ratio means better operating efficiency of the bank. Note: The CORE word in CBS stands for Centralized Online Realtime Exchange. IMPORTANT CODES USED IN BANKING IFSC (Indian Financial System Code) Indian Financial System Code is an alpha-numeric code that uniquely identifies a bank-branch participating in the NEFT system. This is an 11 digit code with the first 4 alpha characters representing the bank, The 5th character is 0 (zero) & the last 6 characters representing the bank branch. For ex: PNBN : First 4 character PNBN refers to Punjab National Bank. 0 is a control number. Last six characters (014976) represents the branch MICR Magnetic ink character Recognition MICR is 9-digit numeric code that uniquely identifies a bank branch participating in electronic clearing scheme. Used to identify the location of a bank branch. City (3) Bank (3) Branch (3) It is allotted to a bank branch is printed on the MICR band of cheques. MICR used for electronic credit system. SWIFT Code: Society for Worldwide Interbank financial tele-communication India was 74th Nation to join SWIFT Network. SWIFT Code is a standard format of bank Identifier code. This code is used particularly in International transfer of money between banks Adda247 App

86 A majority of FOREX related message are sent to correspondent banks abroad through SWIFT. SWIFT Code consist 8 or 11 character when code is 8 digit, It is referred to primary office. 4 bank code 2 country code 2 location code 3 branch code (optional) HQ: of NATIONALIZED/PSBs BANKS Allahabad Bank-Kolkata Bank of India -Mumbai Bank of Maharashtra -Pune Canara Bank -Bangalore Central Bank of India -Mumbai Corporation Bank -Mangalore Dena Bank -Mumbai Indian Bank- Chennai Indian Overseas Bank- Chennai Oriental Bank of Commerce- Gurgaon Punjab National Bank- New Delhi Punjab & Sind Bank- New Delhi State Bank of India- Mumbai Syndicate Bank- Manipal UCO Bank- Kolkata Union Bank of India- Mumbai United Bank of India- Kolkata Vijaya Bank- Bangalore Andhra Bank- Hyderabad Bank of Baroda- Vadodra IDBI Bank- Mumbai IPPB- New Delhi FINANCIAL REGULATORS Chit Funds Insurance companies Housing Finance Companies Venture Capital Fund / Merchant Banking companies Stock broking companies Nidhi Companies Respective State Govt.s IRDA NHB SEBI SEBI SEBI Ministry of corporate affairs, Govt. of India TYPES OF BANKING Para banking- When Bank provides banking services except the general banking facility. Narrow Banking- When banks invest its money in Govt. securities instead investing in market to avoid risk. Offshore Banking- Bank which accept currency of all countries. Green banking- Promoting environmental-friendly practices&reducing your carbon footprint from your banking activities. Retail Banking- Retail banking refers to the division of a bank that deals directly with retail customers. Wholesale banking-wholesale banking is the provision of services by banks to organisations such as Mortgage Brokers, large corporate clients, mid-sized companies, sreal estate developers&investors, international trade finance businesses etc. Universal Banking R H Khan committee & recommended the concept of Universal Banking. It means allowing Fls& banks to undertake all types of banking or development financing activity, subject to compliance of statutory&other requirements of RBI, Govt.& related legal Acts. Islamic Banking: An Islamic bank is a deposit-taking banking institution whose scope of activities excluding borrowing&lendingon the basis of interest. FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS National Bank for Agriculture&Rural Development Established on 12th July 1982 on the recommendation of CRAFICARD committee (also called as SivaramanComittee) For Agricultural finance, It is the apex organization. Chairman: Dr. Harsha Kumar Bhanwala Head Quarters: Mumbai Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) is operated by NABARD, instead in April NABARD is the "Micro-Finance Regulatory Authority" Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI in short) was established in the year 1990 (Date: 2nd April 1990) under the Small Industries Development Bank of India Act 1989 as a subsidiary of Industrial Development Bank of India. Chairman- Mohammad Mustafa Head Quarters: Lucknow Securities&Exchange Board of India (SEBI) It is theregulator for the securitiesmarket in India. SEBI was initiallyestablished as a non statutory body in April 1988, to regulate theworking of stock exchange. Later itwas given a statutory status onapril 1992 via SEBI Act, 1992with the following objectives. Chairman- Ajay Tyagi Adda247 App

87 Head Quarters : Mumbai REGIONAL RURAL BANK (RRB): Regional Rural Bank Were Set Up By An Ordinance In 1975, Later Replaced By Rrbs Act, 1976 As Pre Banking Commission Recommendation In Father Of Rrb Is M.Swaminathan. The Govt. Of India Had Appointed A Working Group On Rural Banks Under The Chairmanship Of Mr. M. Narasimham In First Rrbs Were Set Up On 2nd Oct. Share Holder Contribution: Govt. Of India 50% Sponsor Bank 35% State Govt. 15%. EXIM BANK: Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of India is the principal financial institution in India for coordinating the working of institutions engaged in financing export&import trade. It is a statutory corporation wholly owned by the Govt. of India. It was established on January 1, 1982 for the purpose of financing, facilitating&promoting foreign trade of India. Chairman- David Rasquinha Headquarters : Mumbai NATIONAL HOUSING BANK(NHB) It is the apex institution of housing finance in India, was set up as wholly owned subsidiary of RBI. The bank started its operations from July NHB is a subsidiary bank of Reserve Bank of India. National Housing Bank was established under section 6 of National Housing Bank Act (1987). The HQ: of NHB is in New Delhi. Chairman: Shri Sriram Kalyanaraman ECGC Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India. This organisation provides risk as well as insurance cover to the Indian exporters. Chairman- Geetha Muralidhar Head Quarters : Mumbai A brief on Financial Terms 1. Cross Selling Cross-selling stands for offering to the existing&new customers, some additional banking products, with a view to expand banking business, reduce the per customer cost of operations&provide more satisfaction&value to the customer. 2. Credit Card Business Issue of cards (a) Banks having net worth of Rs. 100 cr or above only can undertake the credit card business. (b) RBI permission is not required to undertake credit card issue business. LIQUIDITY ADJUSTMENT FACILITY Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) was introduced by RBI during June, 2000 in phases, to ensure smooth transition&keeping pace with technological upgradation. Tenor: Reverse Repo auctions (for absorption of liquidity) & Repo auctions (for injection of liquidity) are conducted on a daily basis (except Saturdays). Cap: 0.25% of NDTL w.e.f Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) MSF was introduced w.e.f. May 09, 2011, by RBI. Eligibility: Scheduled Commercial Banks having Current Account & SGL Account with RBI. Amount: 1% of NDTL CLEARING CORPORATION OF INDIA Clearing Corporation of India Limited (CCIL) was incorporated on 30 th April 2001, as the country s first clearing house for the Govt. securities, forex&other related market segments. It commenced operations from Feb 15, It provides a system for efficient clearing of money, Govt. securities & foreign exchange market transactions. CollateralisedBorrowing&Lending Obligation (CBLO) CBLO, an RBI approved money market instrument, is developed by CCIL for the benefit of the entities phased out from interbank call money market or given restricted participation in terms of ceiling on call borrowing& lending transactions & who do not have access to the call money market. It is a discounted instrument available in electronic book entry form for the maturity period ranging from 7 days to 90 Days (can be up to one year as per RBI guidelines). ASSET SECURITISATION Securitisation of assets is an additional channel for recycling of funds by business entities including banks. Securitisation is process through which the future receivables (say rent, installment of a term loan due in future) of an organization (say bank), are converted into debt instruments (such as bonds with a fixed rate of return)&then sold. BANKING CODES & STANDARDS BOARD OF INDIA Banking Codes & Standards Board of India (BCSBI) was set up on the lines of a similar set up in UK to oversee the Fair Practice Code evolved by the Bankers. Members: The Board was set up as a Society, under the Societies Registration Act, Commercial banks, RRBs & Urban Coop Banks are its members Adda247 App

88 A Governing council of the BCSBI looks after its financial affairs&managerial policies. The tenure of the Council is 5 years&the appointment of the Council after 5 years would be with the concurrence of the RBI. KISAN VIKAS PATRA KPV are regulated by KVP Rules 2014, Scheme is available through Post Offices&those banks that are authorized to operate PPF scheme. Denomination: Rs.1000, Rs.5000, Rs.10000&Rs Types of certificates: Category Single, Joint A-Type&Joint B-Type (E/S). Maturity period: 115 Months Rate of Interest: 7.5%. Rate of interest: Rs.1000 becomes double during the maturity period. 1. Nomination facility, 2. Pledge for loan facility& 3. premature payment after 2 years & 6 months subject to certain conditions, is eligible. MUDRA BANK MUDRA, which stands for Micro Units Development & Refinance Agency Ltd, is a financial institution being set up by Govt. of India for development&refinancing micro units enterprises. Under the aegis of Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), MUDRA has already created its initial products/schemes. The interventions have been named Shishu, Kishor & Tarun to signify the stage of growth/development&funding needs of the beneficiary micro unit / entrepreneur&also to provide a reference point for the next phase of graduation / growth to look forward to. The financial limit for these schemes is:- (a) Shishu: covering loans up to 50,000/- (b) Kishor: covering loans above 50,000/-&up to 5 lakh (c)tarun: covering loans above 5 lakh to 10 lakh Indian Banks' Association (IBA) Indian Banks' Association (IBA) set up in 1946 with 22 members to discuss issues of common interests. Over the years, IBA emerged as the Voice of Indian Banking Industry. IBA adopts a consultative approach to give its views on any issue pertaining to banking sector. As on December 28, 2015 the total Membership of the Association is 237. Ordinary: 139 Associate: 98 Total: 237 Rajeev Rishi is present Chairman of IBA & it s headquarter is in Mumbai. Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) To ensure that banks don't go bust, RBI has put in place some trigger points to assess, monitor, control & take corrective actions on banks which are weak & troubled. The process or mechanism under which such actions are taken is known as Prompt Corrective Action, or PCA. What is PCA as per RBI? All Misconceptions Cleared RBI clarified that the PCA framework is not intended to constrain normal operations of the banks for the general public. Under RBI's supervisory framework, it uses various measures/tools to maintain sound financial health of banks. PCA framework is one of such supervisory tools. It involves monitoring of certain performance indicators of the banks as an early warning exercise & is initiated once such thresholds as relating to capital, asset quality etc. are breached. Its objective is to facilitate the banks to take corrective measures including those prescribed by the Reserve Bank, in a timely manner, in order to restore their financial health. It provides an opportunity to the Reserve Bank to pay focussed attention on such banks by engaging with the management more closely in those areas. The PCA framework is, thus, intended to encourage banks to eschew certain riskier activities & focus on conserving capital so that their balance sheets can become stronger. Salient Features of revised PCA Framework for Banks A. Capital, asset quality & profitability continue to be the key areas for monitoring in the revised framework. B. Indicators to be tracked for Capital, asset quality & profitability would be: a) CRAR/ Common Equity Tier I ratio CET ratio the percentage of core equity capital, net of regulatory adjustments, to total risk weighted assets as defined in RBI Basel III guidelines b) Net NPA ratio NNPA ratio the percentage of net NPAs to net advances c) Return on Assets ROA the percentage of profit after tax to average total assets C. Leverage would be monitored additionally as part of the PCA framework. D. Breach of any risk threshold (as detailed under) would result in invocation of PCA. E. The PCA framework would apply without exception to all banks operating in India including small banks & foreign banks operating through branches or subsidiaries based on breach of risk thresholds of identified indicators. F. A bank will be placed under PCA framework based on the audited Annual Financial Results & the Supervisory Assessment made by RBI. Currency Quick Facts Den. Letter Colour Motif Dimension 50 - Fluorescent Hampi 66 mm x Blue with Chariot 135 mm 200 H Bright Yellow Sanchi Stupa 66 mm 146 mm Adda247 App

89 500 - Stone Grey Red Fort 66mm x 150mm Magenta Mangalyaan 66mm x 166mm Static Awareness Capsule for Syndicate & Canara Bank PO 2018 List of Schemes & Apps launched by Banks Airtel money AXIS BANK + AIRTEL Asha Home loan AXIS BANK BOUTIQUE FINANCING SCHEME State Bank of India Branch on Wheel ICICI Bank in Odisha Chillar HDFC Bank China s first online Banking webank Tancet Holdings DDA Housing Scheme 2014 HDFC Bank Digital Banking POCKET ICICI Bank Digital Village Project in Akodara Village of Gujarat ICICI Bank eforex State Bank of India E-KYC State Bank of India EMI ON DEBIT CARD ICICI Bank E-Wallet IRCTC Bank Facebook-based funds transfer platform KayPay Kotak Mahindra Bank First home grown INDEX COMPOSITE INDEX State Bank of India I-Mobile app for windows phone ICICI Bank India s first transparent credit card in association with American Express ICICI Bank ICICI Apathon App ICICI Bank launches ICICI Appathon, a Mobile App Development Challenge India s first credit card exclusively for GOLF LOVERS RBL Bank Instant money transfer Bank of India Instant Money Transfer (IMT) Bank of India Kisan card AXIS BANK Maha Millionaire, Maha Lakhpati Bank of Maharashtra M-Pesa ICICI Bank+Vodafone M-Wallet Canara Bank State Bank Freedom App State Bank of India Student Travel Card ICICI Bank TAB BANKING FACILITY State Bank of India Tap & pay ICICI Bank Twitter Handle account State Bank of India Video conferencing IndusInd & federal bank Youth for India State Bank of India First home grown INDEX COMPOSITE INDEX State Bank of India I Mobile app for windows phone ICICI Bank India s first transparent credit card in association with American Express ICICI Bank India s first credit card exclusively for GOLF RBL Bank Instant money transfer Bank of India Kotak Bharat mobile banking app - Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB) Saral Rural Housing Loan Scheme - ICICI Bank Awareness initiative Dhanchayat - HDFC Bank UPI App That Turns Your Smartphone into a Bank for Easy Transfers RBI SBI launches State Bank of India No Queue Mobile App State Bank of India ICICI Bank launches ICICI Appathon, a Mobile App ICICI Bank Lakshmi Vilas Bank launches LVB Mobile app Laxmi Vilas Bank IMT APP -(Instant Money transfer ) Launched By State Bank Of India Ananya Project launched By Syndicate Bank UcoPay wallet - UCO Bank LIME App - Axis Bank PAYZAPP App - HDFC Bank List of Union Cabinet Ministers & their Constituency Cabinet Ministers Portfolio Constituency Shri Raj Nath Lucknow, Uttar Home Affairs Singh Pradesh Vidisha, Smt. Sushma External Affairs Madhya Swaraj Pradesh Finance & Gujarat Rajaya Shri Arun Jaitley Corporate Affairs Sabha Shri Nitin Jairam Gadkari Road Transport & Highways Shipping, Water Nagpur, Maharashtra Adda247 App

90 Shri Suresh Prabhu Shri D. V. Sadananda Gowda Sushri Uma Bharati Shri Ramvilas Paswan Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi Shri Ananthkumar Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad Shri Jagat Prakash Nadda Shri Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati Shri Anant Geete Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal Shri Narendra Singh Tomar Shri Chaudhary Birender Singh Shri Jual Oram Shri Radha Mohan Singh Shri Thawar Chand Gehlot Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani Dr. Harsh Vardhan GA Power Capsule for Syndicate & Canara PO Exam 2018 Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation Commerce & Industry Statistics & Programme Implementation Drinking Water & Sanitation Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Women & Child Development Chemicals & Fertilizers Parliamentary Affairs Law & Justice Electronics & Information Technology Health & Family Welfare Civil Aviation Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises Food Processing Industries Rural Development Panchayati Raj Mines Steel Tribal Affairs Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Social Justice & Empowerment Information & Broadcasting and Textiles Science & Technology Andhra Pradesh, Rajya Sabha Bangalore North, Karnataka Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh Hajipuri, Bihar Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh Bangalore South, Karnataka Bihar Rajya Sabha Himachal Pradesh, Rajya Sabha Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh Raigad, Maharashtra Bathinda, Punjab Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh Haryana, Rajya Sabha Sundargarh, Odisha Purvi Champaran, Bihar Madhya Pradesh, Rajya Sabha Gujarat, Rajya Sabha Chandni Chowk, Delhi Shri Prakash Javadekar Shri Dharmendra Pradhan Shri Piyush Goyal Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi Earth Sciences, Environm ent, Forest & Climate Change Human Resource Development Petroleum & Natural Gas Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Railways Coal Defence Minority Affairs Important Sport Evets Madhya Pradesh, Rajya Sabha Deogarh Maharashtra Rajya Sabha Karnataka Jharkhand Summer Olympics Japan (2020); Paris (2024), Los Angles (2028) Winer Olympics Pyeong Chang, South Korea (2018); Beijing China (2022) Common Wealth Queensland, Australia (2018); Games London (2022) Asian Games Indonesia (2018); Hangzohu, China (2022) FIFA Russia (2018); Qatar (2022) Common Wealth Brahmas (2017); Belfast (2021) Youth Games Common Wealth Lima, Peru (2018) Weightlifting Championship Men Hockey World Cup Women Hockey World Cup ICC Women Cricket World Cup ICC Men Cricket World Cup FIFA (Women) World Cup ITTF Table Tennis World Cup 2018 (India) 2018 (London) 2021 (New Zealand) 2019 (England); 2023 (India) 2019 (France) Dare to Shine 2018 (London) Quick Facts Related to International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) It is a coalition of non-govt.al organizations in one hundred countries promoting adherence to & implementation of the United Nations nuclear weapon ban treaty Adda247 App

91 ICAN began in Australia & was officially launched in Vienna, Austria in ICAN s HQ: is in Geneva, Switzerland. Beatrice Fihn is the Executive Director of ICAN. Venues for the upcoming Tournaments Hockey World Cup 2018 Venue: 1. Men s Hockey World Cup India 2. Women s Hockey World Cup - England ICC World Cup Cricket Venue: ODI: (One day International): 1. England India 2023 T20 World Cup: 1. Australia FIFA (Football) World Cup venue : Russia : Qatar Commonwealth Games venues: Glasgow (Scotland) Gold Coast (Australia) : Birmingham (England) Olympics Games venues: winter: Sochi (Russia) Summer: Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) winter: Pyeongchang (South Korea) summer: Tokyo (Japan) Winter: Beijing (China) Summer: Paris (France) Asian Games host cities: : Incheon (South Korea) (Note: 2010 Asain Games held in Guangzhou, China) : Jakarta, Indonesia : Hangzhou, China United Nations HQ: International Organizations UNO (United Nations Org) UNICEF UNCTAD WHO (World Health Org) ILO (International Labour Org) WMO (World Meteorological Org) World Intellectual Property Org International Standards Org. IMF World Bank UNESCO OECD UNIDO (United Nations HQ: New York New York Geneva Geneva Geneva Geneva Geneva Geneva Washington DC Washington DC Paris Paris Vienna Industrial Dev. Org) IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) OPEC Amnesty International Commonwealth of Nations International Maritime Organization ICJ (International Court of Justice) Food&Agricultural Organization NATO Transparency International SAARC ASEAN APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Forum) Organization of Islamic Cooperation Vienna Vienna London London London The Hague Rome Brussels Berlin Kathmandu Jakarta Singapore Jeddah Revolutions in the field of agriculture in India: Black Revolution - Petroleum Production Blue Revolution - Fish Production Brown Revolution - Leather/Non-conventional (India)/Cocoa production Golden Fiber Revolution - Jute Production Golden Revolution - Fruits/Overall Horticulture development/honey Production Green Revolution - Food grains Grey Revolution - Fertilizer Pink Revolution - Onion production/pharmaceutical (India)/ Prawn production Red Revolution - Meat & Tomato Production Round Revolution - Potato Silver Fiber Revolution - Cotton Silver Revolution - Egg/Poultry Production White Revolution (In India: Operation Flood) - Milk/Dairy production Yellow Revolution - Oil Seeds production Evergreen Revolution - Overall development of Agriculture. CENSUS 1) The population of the country as per the provisional figures of Census 2011 is million of which million (51.54%) are males& million (48.46%) are females. The major highlights of the Census 2011 (Provisional figures) are as under: *The population of India has increased by more than 181 million during the decade ) %age growth in is 17.64; males 17.19&females Adda247 App

92 3) *Uttar Pradesh (199.5 million) is the most populous State in the country followed by Maharashtra with 112 million. Some of the highlights Slogan - Our census, Our Future India's 1st Census Census is - 15th Census Total Population - 1,21,01,93,422 India's Rank in population - 2nd with 17.5% (1st China with 19%) Most Populous State - Uttar Pradesh Least Populous State - Sikkim Most Literate State - Kerala (93.9%) Least Literate State - Bihar (63.82%) National Sex Ratio - Female : Male (940 : 1000) Highest Sex Ratio (State) - Kerala (1084 : 1000) Lowest Sex Ratio (State) - Haryana Highest Sex Ratio (UT) - Puducherry Least Sex Ratio (UT) - Damn & Dayyu (61 : 1000) Literacy of Male % Literacy of Female % Population Growth Rate % Highest fertility Rate - Meghalaya Most literate union territory - Lakshadweep (92.2%) Least literate Union Territory - Dadra Nagar & Haweli Most Literate District - Serechhip (Mizoram) Least Literate District - Dadra Naga & Haveli Highest Density of Population - Bihar (1102 sq.km) Lowest Density of Population - Arunachal Pradesh (17) Total number of districts Highest Populous District - Thane (Mumbai) 100% Literacy District - Palakkad (Kerala) 100% Banking State - Kerala 100% Banking District - Palakkad (Kerala) Density of Population in India sq. km Increase in population (during ) million Who s who? Important National Officials Designation Name Chairperson, CBDT Suhsil Chandra Chairperson, National Nand Kumar Sai Commission for Scheduled Tribes Chairperson, UGC V.S Chauhan Chairman, ISRO AS Kiran Kumar Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission Shekhar Basu Chairperson, TRAI Ram Sevak Sharma Chairperson, NHAI Deepak Kumar Chairman, National Cadet Hemant M Nerurkar Corps Chairperson, Central Anita Karwal Board of Secondary Education Chairperson, IRDAI Chairperson, Press Council of India Director General, BSF Director General, SSB Director General, CRPF Director General, ITBP Solicitor General Attorney General Chairperson, National Green Tribunal Director, NCERT President, ASSOCHAM Chairperson, NASSCOM Chairman, Press Trust of India Bureaucrats Designation National Security Advisor Chairman, Railway Board Director, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Chief, Intelligence Bureau (IB) Chief, Research&Analysis Wing (RAW) Director General, NIA TS Vijayan CK Prasad K K Sharma Rajni Kant Mishra Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar RK Pachnada Ranjit Kumar resigned KK Venugopal Justice Swatantra Kumar Hrushikesh Senapaty Sandeep Jajodia Raman Roy Vivek Goenka Name Ajit Kumar Doval Ashwani Lohani Alok Verma Rajiv Jain Anil Dhasmana YC Modi Important Dignitaries Post Name Chief Justice, Supreme Court Deepak Misra(45 th ) Speaker, Lok Sabha Sumitra Mahajan Deputy Speaker, Lok Sabha M. Thambidurai Comptroller&Auditor General Rajiv Mehrishi of India Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat Chairman, Union Public Service David R. Syiemlieh Commission Deputy Chairman, Rajya Sabha PJ Kurien Important International Officials Designation Secretary-General, United Nations Organisation Managing Director, International Monetary Fund President, World Bank Director-General, World Trade Organisation DG, UNESCO Name Antonio Guterres Christine Lagarde Jim Yong Kim Roberto Azevedo Audrey Azoulay Adda247 App

93 President, UN General Assembly Director-General, WHO President, International Court of Justice President, Asian Development Bank President, International Olympic Committee Director-General, International Atomic Energy Agency Secretary-General, NATO Secretary-General, ASEAN Secretary-General, SAARC Secretary-General, Commonwealth President, FIFA Chairman, International Cricket Council Port Kolkata Paradip Vishakhapatnam Chennai Ennore Tuticorin Cochin New Mangalore Mormugao Jawaharlal Nehru Mumbai Kandla The 12 Major Ports are Miroslav Lajcak Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus Ronny Abraham Takehiko Nakao Thomas Bach Yukiya Amano Jens Stoltenberg Lee Luang Minh Amjad Hussain B Sial Patricia Scotland Gianni Infantino Shashank Manohar State West Bengal Orissa Andhra Pradesh Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu Kerala Karnataka Goa Maharashtra Maharashtra Gujarat Stock Exchanges around the World New York Stock Exchange (NYSE): HQ in New York City NASDAQ OMX: HQ in New York City. Tokyo Stock Exchange: HQ in Tokyo London Stock Exchange: HQ in London. Shanghai Stock Exchange: HQ in Shanghai. Hong Kong Stock Exchange: HQ in Hong Kong. Toronto Stock Exchange: HQ in Toronto. BM&F Bovespa: HQ in Sao Paul Australian Securities Exchange: HQ in Sydney Deutsche Börse: HQ in Frankfurt. Taiwan Stock Exchange HQ in the city of Taipei JSE Limited HQ in Johannesburg, South Africa. American Stock Exchange (AMEX) HQ in New York, USA Borsa Italia HQ in Milan, Italy London International Financial Futures&Options Exchange (LIFFE) HQ in London, Great Britain Montreal Exchange (MSE) HQ in Montreal, Canada Nordic: Baltic market (OMX) HQ in Stockholm, Sweden Bolsa de Madrid (Madrid Stock Exchange) HQ in Madrid, Spain Afghanistan Stock Exchange HQ in Kabul Chittagong Stock Exchange HQ in Chittagong Royal Securities Exchange of Bhutan HQ inthimphu Maldives Stock Exchange HQ in Malé Nepal Stock Exchange HQ in Kathmandu Sialkot Stock Exchange HQ in Sialkot Colombo Stock Exchange HQ in Colombo Famous Temples in India Badrinath Temple: Chamoli district, Uttarakhand The Konark Sun Temple: Puri district of Odisha Brihadeeswara Temple: Thanjavur city of Tamil Nadu Somnath Temple: Saurashtra (Gujarat) Kedarnath Temple: Garhwal area (Uttarakhand) Sanchi Stupa: Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh Ramanathaswamy Temple: Tamil Nadu Vaishno Devi Mandir: J&K, near Katra. Siddhivinayak Temple: Prabha Devi, Mumbai Gangotri Temple: Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand Golden Temple or Sri Harmandir Sahib: Amritsar Kashi Vishwanath Temple: Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) Lord Jagannath Temple: Puri (Orissa) Yamunotri Temple: Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand Meenakshi Temple: Madurai (Tamil Nadu) Amarnath Cave Temple: State of J&K Lingaraja Temple: Orissa Tirupati Balaji: Tirumala (Andhra Pradesh) Kanchipuram Temples: Tamil Nadu Khajuraho Temple: Madhya Pradesh Virupaksha Temple: Hampi, Bellary, Karnataka Akshardham Temple: Delhi Shri Digambar Jain Lal Mandir: Oldest Jain temple in Delhi Gomateshwara Temple: Shravanabelagola town of Karnataka Ranakpur Temple: Pali district of Rajasthan Shirdi Sai Baba Temple: Shirdi town of Maharashtra Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple : Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala Dwarkadhish Temple: Dwarka city (Gujarat) Laxminarayan Temple: In Delhi IMPORTANT AIRPORTS IN INDIA Airport City State/UT Kempegowda Bangalore Karnataka International Adda247 App

94 Airport Netaji Subhash Kolkata West Bengal Chandra Bose International Airport Rajiv Gandhi Hyderabad Telangana International Airport Sardar Vallabhbhai Ahmedabad Gujarat Patel International Airport Chaudhary Charan Lucknow Uttar Pradesh Singh International Airport Lokpriya Gopinath Guwahati Assam Bordoloi International Airport Srinagar Airport Srinagar J&K Biju Patnaik Bhubaneswar Odisha International Airport Visakhapatnam Visakhapatna Andhra Pradesh Airport m Devi Ahilyabai Indore Madhya Pradesh Holkar Airport Dr. Babasaheb Nagpur Maharashtra Ambedkar International Airport Lok Nayak Patna Bihar Jayaprakash Airport Sri Guru Ram Dass Amritsar Punjab Jee International Airport Swami Raipur Chhattisgarh Vivekananda Airport Bagdogra Airport Bagdogra West Bengal Veer Savarkar International Airport Birsa Munda Airport Maharana Pratap Airport Raja Bhoj International Airport Port Blair Ranchi Udaipur Bhopal andaman&nicoba r Islands Jharkhand Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh Jolly Grant Airport Dehradun Uttrakhand Rajahmundry Rajahmundry Andhra Pradesh Airport Silchar Airport Silchar Assam Lengpui Airport Aizwal Mizoram Zaruki Shillong Meghalaya International Airport Daporijo Airport Daporijo Arunachal Pradesh Tezu Airport Tezu Arunachal Pradesh Kandla Airport Kandla Gujarat Sonari Airport Jamshedpur Jharkhand Birsa Munda Ranchi Jharkhand Airport Agatti Aerodrome Agatti Lakshadweep BOUNDARY LINES Durand Line: Afghanistan & Pakistan Hindenburg Line: Germany & Poland. Mason-dixon Line: Line of demarcation between four states in the United States. Mannerheim Line: Russia-Finland border. Macmahon Line: India & China Medicine Line: Canada & the United States. Order-neisse Line: Poland & Germany Radcliffe Line: India & Pakistan. Siegfried Line: Germany on its border with France. 17th Parallel: North Vietnam & South Vietnam 26th Parallel south: Africa, Australia & South America. 30TH PARALLEL Equator & the North Pole. 38th Parallel: Separates North Korea&South Korea. 39th Parallel north is an imaginary circle of latitude that is 39 degrees north of the Earth s equatorial plane. 40th Parallel north: formed the original northern boundary of the British Colony of Maryland. 42nd Parallel north: New York - Pennsylania Border. The Parallel 440 north is an imaginary circle of latitude that is 44 degrees north of the Earth s equatorial plane. 45th Parallel north is often called the halfway point between the Equator&the North Pole. 45th parallel makes up most of the boundary between Montana&Wyoming. 49th Parallel is the boundary between USA&Canada IMPORTANT DAMS IN INDIA Dam River State Tehri Dam Bhagirathi Uttarakhand Lakhwar Dam Yamuna Uttarakhand Idukki (Eb)/Idukki Periyar Kerala Arch Dam Bhakra Dam Satluj Himachal Pradesh Pakal Dul Dam Marusudar J&K Sardar Sarover Gujarat Dam Narmada Gujarat Adda247 App

95 Srisailam Krishna Andhra Pradesh (N.S.R.S.P) Dam Ranjit Sagar Dam Ravi Punjab Baglihar Dam CHENAB J&K Pong Dam Beas Himachal Pradesh Nagarjuna Sagar Krishna Telangana Dam Salal (Rockfill& Chenab J&K Concrete) Dam Supa Dam Kali Nadi Karnataka Koteshwar Dam Bhagirathi Uttarakhand Rihand Dam Rihand Uttar Pradesh Indira Sagar Narmada Madhya Pradesh (NHDC) Dam Pillur Dam Bhavani Tamil Nadu Madupetty (Eb) Palar Kerala Dam Parbati II Dam Parbati Himachal Pradesh Chakra Dam Chakra Karnataka Ukai Dam Tapi Gujarat CLASSICAL DANCES&FOLK DANCES IN INDIA Indian Classical Dances Bharatnatyam: Tamil Nadu & Karnataka Kathak: North India Kathakali: Kerala. Kuchipudi: Andhra Pradesh. Manipuri: Manipur Mohiniattam: Kerala. Odissi: Orissa state. Gaudiya Nritya: West Bengal Sattriya: Assam Ghoomar: Rajasthan Thang Ta: Manipur Important Days: April 2 April - World Autism Awareness Day 5 April - National Maritime Day 7 April - World Health Day 10 April - World Homoeopathy Day 11 April - National Safe Motherhood Day 18 April - World Heritage Day 22 April - World Earth Day 24 April - National Panchayati Day 25 April - World Malaria Day 26 April - World Intellectual Property Day 29 April - International Dance Day Important Days: May 1 May - International Labours day IMPORTANT DAYS Folk dances in India Gaur dance: Folk dance of Madhya Pradesh Bihu: Folk dance of Assam Dumhal: Popular dance of Kashmir Padayani: Southern Kerala. Dollu Kunitha: Karnataka state. Dandiya: Popular folk dance of Gujarat. Bathukamma: Flower & Cultural Festival of Telangana Changu: Odissa & Andhra Pradesh. Dhaman: Punjab & Andhra Pradesh Gair: Rajasthan Garba: Gujarat Gatka: Punjab Karagam: Tamil Nadu. Raas: Gujarat Dumhal: A folk dance of Kashmir. Chau: Orissa, Bihar & West Bengal Important Days: October First Monday of October-World Habitat Day 5th October- World Teachers Day 9th October- World Post Day 10th October- World Mental Health Day 11th October- International Day of the Girl Child 13th October- International Day for Disaster Reduction 15th October- International Day of Rural Women 16th October- World Food Day 17th October- International Day for Eradication of Poverty 21st October- Police Commemoration Day 24th October- United Nations Day, World Polio Day, 31st October- Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National Unity Day) Adda247 App