CURRENT AFFAIRS APRIL 2018 -...

CURRENT AFFAIRS APRIL 2018

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Basis your continuous demand for a Monthly PDF of most-trusted Current Affairs, the No.1 preparation platform OnlineTyari with 60 lakhs+ app downloads has come up the Current Affairs April 2018 PDF.

As we know Current Affairs, including related General Knowledge (GK), form a crucial component of any competitive exams including SSC, Banking, IAS|PCS and others. Now-a-days with increasing stagnancy in selecting questions from Static GK, the paper setters are harping on current affairs to increase the difficulty quotient of any paper. The lack of preparation for current affairs by the aspirants and candidates often is a main cause of their failure.

The Current Affairs April 2018 PDF covers the most important and exam-focused current affairs. The PDF has been designed basis the concept of complete Study Cycle, viz., Study ----> Revise ----> Test and thus has three parts: (i) Detailed Section-wise Current Affairs in bullet points; (ii) One Liners; and (iii) Current Affairs Questions with Explanation.

The Current Affairs PDF of April 2018 comes with one more value addition, that is, 5 Topics of the Month. These topics have been selected on the basis of their impact and will be very useful for subjective papers like IAS (Mains) Exam 2018.

Our experts have tried to put in their best efforts to make sure that the content provided remains in the mind of the candidate for a longer period of time and is perceived with its true meaning.

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Preface ............................................................................................................................. 2

Topics of the Month ..................................................................................................... 8

'Adopt a Heritage' Scheme Controversy .............................................................................................................. 8

Historic North-South Korea Summit: Will it Pay? .......................................................................................... 9

India-China Relations and PM Modi’s visit ...................................................................................................... 11

India and World Press Freedom Index 2018 .................................................................................................. 12

Commonwealth Games 2018 and India ............................................................................................................. 13

National ......................................................................................................................... 16

Declaration of Scheduled Areas in Rajasthan under Fifth Schedule ................................................. 16

UIDAI introduces updated QR code for offline Aadhaar verification ............................................... 16

BCCI should come under RTI Act, recommends Law Commission ..................................................... 17

Centre declares all protected areas 'plastic free zones' ........................................................................... 17

Union HRD Ministry Launches Unnat Bharat Abhiyan 2.0 ...................................................................... 17

Home Ministry relaxes Protected Area Permit regime in Three NE States ................................... 17

Restricted Area Permit regime in A&N and Lakshadweep islands relaxed .................................. 18

National Panchayati Raj Day: April 24 ............................................................................................................... 18

Armed Forces Special Power taken off in Meghalaya ................................................................................ 18

Justice Rajesh Bindal Committee submits report on Inter-country removal and retention of children ............................................................................................................................................................................... 19

29th Road Safety Week being observed ............................................................................................................ 19

Centre launches Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyaan .................................................................................... 20

president promulgates Ordinance for Death Penalty to Child Rapists ............................................ 20

President promulgates Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance....................................................... 20

Centre forms Defence Planning Committee .................................................................................................... 21

Supreme Court rules NCMEI has wide powers............................................................................................... 21

first health centre under Ayushman Bharat launched ............................................................................. 22

Union Home Minister launches e-FRRO scheme .......................................................................................... 22

NHAI signs agreement for its First International Project ........................................................................ 23

Chudasama Committee constituted on alleviating fear of Math among students ..................... 23

new NSG complex in Hyderabad inaugurated ............................................................................................... 23

India's first all-electric high-speed locomotive launched ....................................................................... 24

First-ever Van Dhan Vikas Kendra at Bijapur launche ............................................................................. 24

Tobacco, Cigarette packs to show helpline no from September 2018 ............................................. 24

Agreement between NPCIL and EDF of France .............................................................................................. 25



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Income ceiling of parents increased to Rs.2.5 lakh per annum for Pre-Matric scholarship 25

International ................................................................................................................ 26

World's oldest spider discovered in Australia .............................................................................................. 26

India, Pakistan to take part in war games ........................................................................................................ 26

Zimbabwe legalizes marijuana for medicinal, scientific uses ............................................................... 26

6 countries suspend membership in UNASUR regional bloc ................................................................. 27

World Earth Day: 22 April ......................................................................................................................................... 27

World Bank Endorse Transformative Capital Package ............................................................................ 27

IDA launched its first bond in 60 years.............................................................................................................. 27

Saudi Arabia unveils first new cinema ............................................................................................................... 28

World Liver Day: 19 April ......................................................................................................................................... 28

World Heritage Day: 18 April .................................................................................................................................. 28

First-ever India-Nordic Summit began in Sweden ...................................................................................... 29

CHOGM 2018 concludes in the UK ........................................................................................................................ 29

World's first long-distance electric bus line in Paris ................................................................................. 29

New Zealand bans all new offshore oil exploration.................................................................................... 30

US announces GSP eligibility review of India ................................................................................................. 30

8th 3R Forum concludes with adoption of INDORE 3R DECLARATION ........................................... 30

Bangladesh scrapped quota system in govt. jobs ......................................................................................... 31

11th World Hindi Conference to be held in Mauritius .............................................................................. 31

16th International Energy Forum Ministerial ............................................................................................... 31

US President Trump signs memorandum to end ‘catch and release’ policy ................................. 31

Qatar introduces national service for women ............................................................................................... 32

Mid-term NAM Summit begins in Baku .............................................................................................................. 32

Putin, Erdogan launch construction of Turkey's first nuclear power plant.................................. 32

Economy & Banking .................................................................................................. 33

Review underwriting rule: SAT to SEBI ............................................................................................................. 33

BIS grants first license for Liquid Chlorine on All India Basis .............................................................. 33

Leisang village becomes last village to be electrified ................................................................................ 33

34 technology firms sign Cybersecurity Tech Accord ............................................................................... 34

Centre proposes Plan for Accelerating Growth of Districts by 3% .................................................... 34

1st Regional Workshop on star rating of Garbage- Free Cities Inaugurated ................................ 34

Centre launches ‘Study in India’ to attract foreign students.................................................................. 35

RBI liberalises ECB norms ......................................................................................................................................... 35



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Cabinet approves increase in MSP for Raw Jute for 2018-19 season................................................ 35

India, World Bank sign Legal Agreement on National Biopharma Mission .................................. 36

TCS: first IT firm to cross $100 bn in market cap......................................................................................... 37

RBI revises its Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines ............................................................................ 37

235 districts to be covered under Phase-II of POSHAN Abhiyan ......................................................... 37

E-way bill rolled out in six more states.............................................................................................................. 38

Centre revises target to complete PM Gram Sadak Yojana ..................................................................... 38

Indian, MNC seed firms form new association ............................................................................................... 39

NABARD authorised capital increased to Rs 300 billion ......................................................................... 39

Phase-1 of FAME-India scheme extended by 6 months ............................................................................ 39

ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank repository participants for NERL ....................................................................... 40

RBI tightens norms for Liberalised Remittance Scheme ......................................................................... 40

Indian Consortium and Saudi Aramco Sign MoU for Ratnagiri Mega Refinery ........................... 40

Centre sets up committee to review the enforcement of CSR provisions ....................................... 41

NPA crisis: 11 public sector banks under RBI scanner ............................................................................. 41

RBI switches back to GDP model ........................................................................................................................... 41

RBI to set up Data Science lab for better forecasting ................................................................................. 42

TRAI moots Public Wi-Fi Access grid .................................................................................................................. 42

UTTAM APP for Coal Quality Monitoring launched .................................................................................... 42

Cabinet approves rightsizing the Competition Commission of India ............................................... 42

India becomes second largest producer of mobile phones .................................................................... 43

First US shale gas reaches at GAIL's Dabhol terminal................................................................................ 43

Science & Technology ............................................................................................... 44

Australia pledges half a billion dollars to restore Great Barrier Reef ............................................. 44

Scientists develop new method to 3D print food ......................................................................................... 44

Japan creates robot that transforms into car with men on-board ..................................................... 44

New technique to make drugs smarter developed ..................................................................................... 45

Western Ghats reveal world’s smallest land fern ........................................................................................ 45

NASA launches its newest planet-hunting spacecraft................................................................................ 45

Novel tool can spot potential child rapists ...................................................................................................... 46

India to get "normal" monsoon For third straight year............................................................................ 46

In a first, Alzheimer's gene neutralised in the human brain ................................................................. 46

Indian-origin scientist's microfactory might help tackle e-waste hazard ..................................... 47

Novel method to generate stem cells developed .......................................................................................... 47



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NASA set to build quiet supersonic planes ...................................................................................................... 47

RH300 sounding rocket launched for atmospheric studies................................................................... 48

Meet Icarus, the farthest star ever seen ............................................................................................................ 48

Sports ............................................................................................................................. 49

Rafael Nadal lifts 11th Barcelona Open tennis title .................................................................................... 49

Barcelona FC wins La Liga title ............................................................................................................................... 49

Indian women boxers 3 Gold at Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok .................................... 49

ICC to grant T20 International status to all its existing 104 members ............................................ 49

ICC converts Champions Trophy in India into World T20 ...................................................................... 50

8th South Asian Judo Championship ................................................................................................................... 50

Bengaluru FC wins Super Cup Football tournament .................................................................................. 50

Manika Batra recommended for Arjuna Award ........................................................................................... 51

shooting to be excluded from 2022 CWg Games .......................................................................................... 51

2 Indian athletes barred for breaching "no needles" policy .................................................................. 51

Ace shuttler Kidambi Srikanth becomes World No 1 ................................................................................ 51

Bayern coasts to sixth consecutive Bundesliga title................................................................................... 52

Badminton's new service rule not used at CWG 2018 ............................................................................... 52

Kerala lifts 72nd Santosh Trophy Football title ............................................................................................ 52

State ................................................................................................................................ 53

West Bengal: Best state in prevention of parent to child transmission of HIV/AIDS .............. 53

J&K cabinet gives nod to death penalty for child rapists ......................................................................... 53

Diu Smart City becomes first to run on 100% Renewable Energy ..................................................... 53

Vice President launches Atal Amrit Abhiyan in Assam ............................................................................. 54

Madhya Pradesh conferred most film Friendly state award ................................................................. 54

West Bengal to set up child protection committees at grassroot level ............................................ 54

88% Delhiites are Vitamin D-deficient: Report ............................................................................................ 54

First Meeting of the NITI Forum for North East held .................................................................................. 55

An initiative for tribal welfare 'Quest' launched in Maharashtra ....................................................... 55

Uttarakhand’s second Mega Food Park at Udham Singh Nagar inaugurated ............................... 55

Madhya Pradesh Kadaknath chicken gets Geographical Indication tag ......................................... 55

Person in News ............................................................................................................ 57

Awards ........................................................................................................................... 62

BCCI Lifetime Achievement Award ...................................................................................................................... 62



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AOC Order of Merit ........................................................................................................................................................ 62

2018 Martha Farrell award ...................................................................................................................................... 63

National Intellectual Property (IP) Award 2018 .......................................................................................... 63

2018 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize ................................................................................ 63

Pulitzer Prize 2018 ....................................................................................................................................................... 64

Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement award ......................................................................................................... 64

Shorenstein Journalism Award for 2017 .......................................................................................................... 65

Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2017 ............................................................................................................................. 65

Defence & Security ..................................................................................................... 66

LCA Tejas successfully fired Derby Air-to-Air BVRM ................................................................................. 66

DAC Approves Capital Acquisition Proposals worth Rs 3,687 Crore ................................................ 66

Exercise HARIMAU SHAKTI 2018: Indo-Malaysian Defence cooperation ...................................... 66

Landing Craft Utility (LCU) L53 commissioned ............................................................................................. 67

IAF Exercise Gaganshakti-2018 to begin on April 8 ................................................................................... 67

SAHYOG- HYEOBLYEOG 2018: Indian, Korean coast guards joint exercise................................... 67

10th edition of DefExpo held in Chennai .......................................................................................................... 67

Questions for Practice .............................................................................................. 69

Answers with Explanation ........................................................................................................................................ 73

One Liners of the Month ........................................................................................... 79

National ............................................................................................................................................................................... 79

Banking ................................................................................................................................................................ ................ 82

International ................................................................................................................................................................ .... 83

Sports .................................................................................................................................................................................... 85

Person in News ................................................................................................................................................................ 87

General Knowledge ....................................................................................................................................................... 89



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T O P I C S O F T H E M O N T H

'ADOPT A HERITAGE' SCHEME CONTROVERSY

On the occasion of World Tourism Day on September 27, 2017, the Union Ministry of Tourism had launched the “Adopt a Heritage: Apni Dharohar, Apni Pehchaan” Scheme to develop synergy among all partners to effectively promote “responsible tourism”.

Seven months past the launch of the scheme, 77-year old Dalmia Bharat Group became the first corporate house in India's history to adopt a historical monument, namely 17th Century built World Heritage Site Red Fort built by India’s fifth Mughal ruler Shah Jahan.

The Rs 250 million (Rs 25 crore) MoU to facelift Red Fort in a professional manner was signed between Tourism Ministry, Ministry of Culture, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Dalmia Group on April 9, 2018 but was made public on April 25, 2018. The contract has been signed for a period of five years.

Though the Red Fort is in desperate need for a facelift, this first ‘corporate adoption’ has raised more questions.

WHAT IS INSIDE THE MOU?

The Dalmias have agreed for certain time bound deliverables: tactile maps, upgraded toilets, illuminated pathways and bollards, a 1,000-sq-ft visitor facility centre, battery-operated vehicles, charging stations and a thematic cafeteria, in addition to carrying out restoration work and landscaping. In exchange, group would be able to use the ‘Dalmia’ brand name on souvenirs, banners during cultural events and all signage that it would install across Red Fort’s precincts.

This all will be offered to tourists at a charge but only after Dalmia receives due clearance from Tourism Ministry and Culture Ministry. Moreover, any revenue generated from through the activities planned by Dalmia Group will be ploughed back into the Fort’s development and maintenance.

Besides, to oversee these activities, there will be three committees, of which one, called the ‘Monument Committee’, will assist in implementing the facelift of the Red Fort and its operations and maintenance.

SIMILAR EXAMPLES FROM WORLD

The idea of outsourcing the maintenance of heritage structures to private companies is not novel idea. Some of Europe’s most iconic heritage structures have been restored by fashion brands.



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Luxury’s leather goods company Tod’s pledged $32 Million to restore the Colloseum. Similarly Diesel, Prada and Fendi have helped restore Venice’s Rialto Bridge, the Venetian palazzo Ca’Corner Della Regina and the Trevi Fountain, respectively.

However, this model of restoring ancient monuments has not always resulted in benefits as desired. In 2009, the Church of Santa Maria di Portosalvo in Naples signed a contract with restoration firm Grandi Progetti that allowed the firm to sell advertising space on its to scaffolding in exchange for restoration. Grandi Progetti profited with $3.8 million in advertising revenue, leaving the restoration in shambles.

Adopt a Heritage Scheme

The scheme is a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and State/UTs Governments. The Project aims to develop synergy among all partners to effectively promote “responsible tourism”.

It aims to involve public sector companies, private sector companies and corporate citizens/individuals to take up the responsibility for making our heritage and tourism more sustainable.

They would become ‘Monument Mitras’ through the innovative concept of “Vision Bidding”, where the agency with best vision for the heritage site will be given an opportunity to associate pride with their CSR activities.

So far, four MoU’s have been signed for development of these tourist sites, namely Mt. Stok Kangri in Ladakh; Trail to Gaumukh in Uttarakhand; Red Fort in Delhi; and Gandikota fort in Andhra Pradesh.

HISTORIC NORTH-SOUTH KOREA SUMMIT: WILL IT

PAY?

The historic summit between North Korea and South Korea, technically in a state of war since 1953 Korean Peninsula Armistice, took place in Panmunjom, a village in the joint security areas on the heavily militarised border between the two neighbours.

The two leaders, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in met each other on April 27, 2018 to bring about a formal truce and lay the groundwork for a Trump/Kim meeting. This is only the third time leaders from the two countries have met and the first since Kim took power in 2011 after the death of his father. Moreover, Kim became the first North Korean leader to set foot in South Korean soil since the 1950-53 Korean War.

The historic summit did not end without an agreement and it, in fact, set the tone for future peaceful engagements in the Korean peninsula. Both the leaders adopted the Panmunjon Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Unification of the Korean Peninsula at the end of Summit.



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HIGHLIGHTS OF PANMUNJON DECLARATION

I. Establishing a permanent and solid Peace regime Bring an end to the 1953 Armistice Agreement and establishing a robust peace

regime on the Korean peninsula. The 1953 agreement was not a peace treaty and hence both the countries were technically in a state of war always.

Both the leaders confirmed the common goal of realizing, through complete denuclearization, a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.

II. Eliminating the danger of war in peninsula Agreed to transform the demilitarized zone into a peace zone in a genuine sense by

ceasing as of May 1, 2018, all hostile acts and eliminating their means in the areas along the Military Demarcation Line.

Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

The DMZ, which snakes for 240 km (150 miles) along the 38th parallel, was drawn in the 1953 armistice that ended three years of bitter fighting. The zone is 4 km (2.5 miles) wide and has become an unlikely tourist attraction.

Agreed to devise a practical scheme to turn the areas around the Northern Limit

Line in the West Sea into a maritime peace zone in order to prevent accidental military clashes and guarantee safe fishing activities.

III. Facilitating Co-prosperity and Inter-Korean relations They agreed to establish a joint liaison office with resident representative of both

sides in the Gaeseong region to facilitate smooth exchanges and cooperation between the authorities and people.

The two sides agreed to jointly participating in international sports events such as the 2018 Asian Games.

They agreed to endeavor to swiftly resolve the humanitarian issues that resulted from the division of the nation.

Convene the inter-Korean Red Cross Meeting to discuss and solve various issues including the reunion of separated families. In this vein, both the countries agreed to proceed with reunion program for the separated families on the occasion of the National Liberation Day of August 15, 2018.

Agreed to actively implement the projects previously agreed in the 2007 October 4 Declaration, in order to promote balanced economic growth and co-prosperity of the nation.

WILL PERMANENT PEACE PREVAIL IN PENINSULA?

The Panmunjon Declaration sounds very optimistic and the changed situations in the region (a de facto nuclear North Korea under different leadership) compared to past declarations may warranty permanent peace in the region. However, the past experiences make the current peace deal skeptic.

Same aspirational languages were used in the declarations of 2000 and 2007, when the previous inter-Korean summits occurred, and of 1992, when the two countries declared their shared goal for denuclearization.



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Moreover, on complete denuclearisation, it is still not clear. On the one hand, it falls short of the explicit commitments to denuclearization, and on the other, Trump administration says there will be no reduction in pressure on Pyongyang until it has completely denuclearized.

To conclude, April 28 Meeting was certainly a positive development toward Korean peace, but one will have to wait for the Trump summit to see whether this chapter of the story will play out differently from its predecessors.

INDIA-CHINA RELATIONS AND PM MODI’S VISIT

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held an informal summit in China's Wuhan city from April 27 to 28 to explore a new paradigm for India-China relations for the next 15 years and find ways to address the contentious issues like the border dispute.

This Xi-Modi summit was conceived on the lines of the ice-breaking visit undertaken by late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1988 for far-reaching talks with China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, setting a new tone for the relations after the 1962 war.

It will be the fourth visit by Modi to China since he took over power in 2014 and a second bilateral visit. He made first bilateral visit in 2015 followed by a visit to Hangzhou to take part in the G-20 summit in 2016 and BRICS summit in Xiamen in 2017.

WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME?

Though there were no agreements or announcements but both the leaders

• Agreed to improve communication between the militaries of the two countries to maintain peace at the border.

• In a move that could upset Pakistan, the two leaders also agreed to undertake a joint India-China economic project in Afghanistan. Details of this project have not been shared so far.

• Underlined the common threat posed by terrorism and committed to cooperate further on counterterrorism.

• China also made it clear that while there were no fundamental differences with India on the issue of “inter-connectivity,” China won’t be “too hard” with India on the issue of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited the Chinese premier for a similar informal summit in India in 2019.

ANALYSIS

Relations between the world's two most populous countries had been on a downward spiral since April 2015 when China launched an economic corridor with Pakistan that crosses through



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Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Further, the standoff in 2017 over Doklam led to deterioration in relations.

Doklam Standoff

The 73-day Doklam standoff began on June 16, 2017 when India accused China of constructing a road in the disputed territory towards Doklam plateau, an objection that the Royal Bhutanese Army also raised. It ended on August 28,2018 just before the BRICS Summit.

The 269 square kilometres Doklam area falls between China and India on a Bhutanese plateau. In fact it is a tri-junction between India, Bhutan and China. For India, securing the Doklam Plateau is seen as essential to maintaining its control over a land corridor (Chicken Neck in Siliguri) that connects to its remote northeastern States..

The informal Xi-Modi summit may not be “a milestone in bilateral relations” as claimed by Chinese media, but it certainly has the potential of changing the trajectory of Sino-Indian relations in a positive direction.

Given the stakes that China and India have in each other’s stability and success, it is imperative that the top leadership of the two nations to be in regular touch with each other and not allow military commanders or a belligerent media to shape bilateral discourse.

At a time when the protectionist tendencies in the West are growing by the day, the need for India and China to work together in global governance becomes more imperative to establish an open and pluralist global economic order.

Moreover, at a time when China is yet to complete it’s restructuring of the domestic economy, it is important for Beijing to work together with New Delhi given the shared global economic climate.

CONCLUSION

This is certainly a moment for New Delhi to tap into and use this opportunity to its fullest. Prime Minister Modi’s visit to China is a welcome first step. But India will need to be aware that unless there is a real change on the ground in China’s policies towards India, this summitry, like past several ones, will soon be forgotten.

INDIA AND WORLD PRESS FREEDOM INDEX 2018

The 2018 World Press Freedom Index was released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in April 2018. The report, measuring the degree of press freedom in 180 countries, reveals a growing animosity towards journalists is among the worst threats to democracies.

In 2018, Norway has topped the index for the second time in row and North Korea has been ranked at the bottom in press freedom. When it comes to India, it has dropped from rank 136 to rank 138.



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MAIN HIGHLIGHTS

Even Nordic countries, traditionally referred to as press-friendly countries, have been affected by the overall decline.

More and more democratically-elected leaders no longer see the media as part of democracy’s essential underpinning, but as an adversary to which they openly display their aversion. For instance, the United States, fell from rank 43 last year to rank 45.

The index also reflected the growing influence of “strongmen” and rival models. For example, the report mentioned that "after stifling independent voices at home, Vladimir Putin’s Russia (148th) is extending its propaganda network by means of media outlets such as RT and Sputnik, while Xi Jinping’s China (176th) is exporting its tightly controlled news and information model in Asia".

The index also reveals that former Soviet countries and Turkey continue to lead the worldwide decline in press freedom. Almost two-thirds of the region’s countries are ranked somewhere near or below rank 150 in the index and most continue to fall further.

While, West Asian countries' struggle with war-reporting continues. The ongoing wars in Syria (117) and Yemen (down one at 167) and the terrorism charges still being used in Egypt (161), Saudi Arabia (down one at 169) and Bahrain (down two at 166) continue to make West Asia the most difficult and dangerous region for journalists to operate in.

PRESS FREEDOM IN INDIA

The report mentioned sharing of "hate speeches" targeting journalists by "troll armies" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a reason for low rank of 138. The report also mentioned "physical violence" against journalists, for example, the murder of Gauri Lankesh as another key reason.

As per the Index’s definition, the quality of press freedom in the country is bad. Of the 180 countries ranked, 9 percent had press freedom that could be qualified as good, 17 percent were fairly good, in 35 percent of the countries the situation was problematic, for 27 per cent of the countries including India the press freedom situation is bad and in 12 per cent of the nations, the pres freedom quality is very bad.

World Press Freedom Index

Published annually by RSF since 2002, the World Press Freedom Index measures the level of media freedom in 180 countries, including the level of pluralism, media independence, the environment and self-censorship, the legal framework, transparency, and the quality of the infrastructure that supports the production of news and information.

COMMONWEALTH GAMES 2018 AND INDIA

The 21st Commonwealth Games were held in Gold Coast, Australia from April 4 to April 15, 2018. India finished third in the medals tally at the Games with 66 medals (26 Gold, 20 Silver and 20 Bronze). Only Australia with 198 medals and England with 136



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were ahead. India's 26 Gold was also third, behind Australia (80) and England (45).

In fact, this was the third best performance put by Indian contingent at the Commonwealth Games. India first best performance was in Delhi Commonwealth Games in 2010 (101 medals, including 38 Gold), followed by Manchester Games in 2002 (69 medals).

However, India bettered its showing in Glasgow Games in 2014, where it finished fifth overall. In Glasgow, India claimed 15 Gold, 30 Silver and 19 Bronze.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF INDIA’S PERFORMANCE

• India's maximum medals came from shooting (16), followed by wrestling (12) and weightlifting (9).

• The 10-member Indian table tennis team secured 8 (3 Gold, 2 Silver and 3 Bronze) medals, which turned out to be their best-ever medal haul in the history of the Games.

• India’s first medal at the Games was won by Weightlifter P. Gururaja, who claimed Silver in the men’s 56kg category.

• India’s first Gold medal at the Games was won by Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, who claimed Gold in the women's 48 kg category. She broke three Games records in the ‘snatch’ section, the ‘clean and jerk’ and the overall Games record.

• Manika Batra won gold in table tennis women's singles, becoming the first Indian woman to do so. Moreover, she picked up medals in all events she competed in -- Singles Gold, Women's Doubles Gold, Women's Team Gold and rounding off the Games with Mixed Doubles Bronze.

• Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian javelin thrower to claim a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. His medal is only the fifth track-and-field Gold for India at the Commonwealth Games — the other four being Milkha Singh (1958), discus thrower Krishna Poonia (2010), the women’s 4x400m relay quartet of Manjeet Kaur, Sini Jose, Ashwini Akkunji and Mandeep Kaur (2010) and shot-putter Vikas Gowda (2014).

• M.C. Mary Kom won 45-48 kg category boxing event, claiming gold in her debut Commonwealth Games.

• The Indian mixed team badminton claimed gold for the first time in the Games' history. • In the women's table tennis event, the Indian team won its first ever Commonwealth gold

medal. • Teenager Deepak Lather from Haryana became the youngest Indian weightlifter to claim a

Commonwealth Games medal, clinching a bronze in the men’s 69kg category.



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• Indian shooter Anish Bhanwala, aged 15, created history by becoming the country’s youngest ever Gold medal winner in the Commonwealth Games, in the men's 25m rapid fire pistol.

• Saina Nehwal became the first Indian to win two singles Gold at the Games after defeating PV Sindhu. Saina had also won the title in 2010 in New Delhi.

WHY INDIA’S PERFORMANCE IN OLYMPICS COMPARED TO CWG IS LOW?

India has historically performed well in Commonwealth Games, but that success - both recent and historical - does not reflect in Asian Games or the Olympics.

In case of Olympics countries those are left behind India in CWG surge ahead in Olympics. For instance, in the 2012 Olympics, Australia, Canada, Kenya, South Africa, New Zealand and Jamaica were ranked ahead of India. India performed better than all these countries (in terms of medals) except Australia in the 2010 version of CWG.

This possible reason for this could be

(i) India loses out on medals in several sports because of the participation of countries such as China and Japan, while these other countries (such as Canada) do not lose as much.

(ii) Different set of sports in the two competitions. In 2010 CWG Games, India’s best performance in these games, there were around 13 sports that were not included in the 2010 version of CWG. The point being, had these sports been included in the 2010 CWG, countries behind India could have got more medals than they did.

(iii) Many top players do not participate in the CWG. For example, Usain Bolt (from Jamaica) did not participate in the 2010 CWG held in Delhi.

However, the above reasoning should not make us conclude that Indian athlete’s performance in overall sports is not improving. Taking Olympics for example; India’s contingent in the 2012 and 2016 Olympics included 81 and 112 athletes each. Both of these were the highest ever for India.

An athlete/team has to have a minimum competence level to be able to even compete in the Olympics. Increasing participation from India shows that more and more sportspersons from India are being able to meet these standards.

Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games are an international multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and has taken place every four years since then. The Commonwealth Games were known as the British Empire Games from 1930 to 1950, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970 to 1974.

It is the world's first multi-sport event which inducted equal number of women’s and men’s medal events and was implemented recently in the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

CWG creation was inspired by the Inter-Empire Championships, as a part of the Festival of Empire, which were held in London, United Kingdom in 1911. Melville Marks Robinson founded the games as the British Empire Games which were first hosted in Hamilton in 1930.



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N A T I O N A L

DECLARATION OF SCHEDULED AREAS IN RAJASTHAN UNDER FIFTH SCHEDULE

• The Union Cabinet Chaired has given approval to the declaration of Scheduled Areas in respect of Rajasthan under Fifth Schedule to the Constitution of India.

• The scheduled areas will now cover the entire districts of Banswara, Dungarpur, Pratapgarh, nine tehsils, one block and 46 gram panchayats covering 227 villages in Udaipur, Rajsamand, Chittorgarh, Pali and Sirohi districts.

• The Centre had in 1981 declared 5,034 villages of the southern part of Rajasthan having tribal population of more than 50% as scheduled areas..

Fifth Schedule to Indian Constitution

The Fifth Schedule being a very important provision of the constitution deals with the control and administration of the Schedule Areas. It deals with provision for the constitution of Tribes Advisory Council. It provides Governor with the power to make regulation for good governance and peace for the area.

Under Fifth Schedule, the most important institution is the Tribes Advisory Council. In the Tribes Advisory Council, Scheduled Tribe MLAs in the state consists of its three-fourth membership.

The Scheduled areas can be established under Article 244 and 5th Schedule of the Constitution in any state except Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

UIDAI INTRODUCES UPDATED QR CODE FOR OFFLINE AADHAAR VERIFICATION

• To provide an extra layer of privacy to Aadhaar, UIDAI has introduced an updated 'QR code'. It will hold non-sensitive details like name, address, photo, and date of birth, and can be used for offline user verification without the 12-digit ID number.

• With Aadhaar increasingly becoming the nationally-accepted ID for all kinds of work, the new QR code that now comes with a photo, can be used in offline mode in a way that will safeguard against any tempering of documents.

• Aadhaar holders can download and print their biometric ID with the QR code from the website of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) or its mobile app.

• A QR code is a form of barcode label which contains machine-readable information.



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BCCI SHOULD COME UNDER RTI ACT, RECOMMENDS LAW COMMISSION

• The 21st Law Commission of India headed by Justice (retd) Balbir Singh Chauhan recommended the central government to include the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) along with its constituent member cricketing associations under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

• Reflecting on Article 12 of the constitution, the commission stated that BCCI ought to be classified as 'state' within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution.

• Law Commission further added that BCCI exercises state like powers affecting the fundamental rights of the stakeholders, guaranteed under Part III of the Constitution.

• BCCI, though not a national sports federation, nominates cricketers for the Arjuna Awards. Parliament and state legislatures chose not to enact a legislation to govern the sport of cricket reflecting tacit recognition on the issue afforded to BCCI.

CENTRE DECLARES ALL PROTECTED AREAS 'PLASTIC FREE ZONES'

• Ahead of the World Environment Day on June 5, the environment ministry has banned plastics in all protected areas around the country, thus declaring them "plastic free zones".

• It has directed states and Union territories to organise awareness campaigns to sensitise people about the issue.

• Non-recyclable plastics have been banned. Various steps will be taken so that plastic is not allowed inside the protected areas

• India will host the World Environment Day 2018 with the theme ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’.

UNION HRD MINISTRY LAUNCHES UNNAT BHARAT ABHIYAN 2.0

• The HRD ministry launched the second edition of the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan under which students from 750 higher educational institutions from across the country will adopt villages and visit them to get acquainted with lifestyle of people there and the problems faced by them.

• The idea is to have a coordinated approach where the government and institutions work together to facilitate rural development.

• The key points include helping villages achieve 100% school results, creating 25 jobs each in four sectors in each village where work would take place, increasing rural incomes, providing drinking water and sanitation to villages, disposing village garbage, among other things.

HOME MINISTRY RELAXES PROTECTED AREA PERMIT REGIME IN THREE NE STATES

• The Union Home Ministry decided to relax the six-decade-old Protected Area Permit regime from Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur for five years.



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• Foreign tourists, except those from Pakistan, China and Afghanistan, will now be allowed to visit some of the most pristine locations of the country.

Protected Area Permit regime

Under the Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order, 1958, all areas falling between the ‘Inner line’, as defined in the said order, and the International Border of the State have been declared as a Protected Area.

RESTRICTED AREA PERMIT REGIME IN A&N AND LAKSHADWEEP ISLANDS RELAXED

• The Restricted Area Permit regime in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep will be relaxed for tourism promotion.

• This was decided during the third meeting of Island Development Agency chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi.

Restricted Area Permit regime

Following areas are declared as ‘Restricted Areas’ under the Foreigners (Restricted) Areas Order, 1963 : (1) Whole of Andaman & Nicobar islands (2) Parts of Sikkim (Part of the State) (Areas between the West Bengal – Sikkim border and the ‘Inner Line’ come under the Restricted Area).

NATIONAL PANCHAYATI RAJ DAY: APRIL 24

• Every year 24 April is observed as the National Panchayat raj day in India. It is also called as National Local Self-government day and is a national day of India.

• National Panchayat raj day was inaugurated in 2013 by then Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh.

• The major idea behind celebrating such a day is if Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) functioned properly and participated in the development process of the country then the threat of Maoist could be countered.

ARMED FORCES SPECIAL POWER TAKEN OFF IN MEGHALAYA

• 27 years after the AFSPA (Armed Forces Special Powers Act) was imposed in Meghalaya, the centre has withdrawn the act completely from the north-eastern state. The Act has also been withdrawn from eight police stations (out of 16) in Arunachal Pradesh.

• The Act was withdrawn from Tripura in May 2015 and with its withdrawal from Meghalaya, the number of states in India under AFSPA is only 6.

• With insurgency levels in Assam being record low, the state is expected to decide soon AFSPA withdrawal from some districts.

• Right now, apart from the state of Jammu and Kashmir, the Armed Forces Special Powers Act is in force in 5 north-eastern states, which are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland.



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Armed Forces Special Powers Act, 1958

The Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA gives extraordinary powers and immunity to the armed forces to bring back order in the disturbed areas. The army can arrest anyone without a warrant or stop and search any vehicle or vessel, with legal immunity to armed forces personnel for their actions.

JUSTICE RAJESH BINDAL COMMITTEE SUBMITS REPORT ON INTER-COUNTRY REMOVAL AND RETENTION OF CHILDREN

The Committee headed by Justice Rajesh Bindal, Judge, High Court of Punjab & Haryana, Chandigarh, submitted its report on legal issues related to inter country removal & retention of children.

MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS

• Stressing upon the need for mediation as the first step, the Committee has recommended that the Government may establish an Inter-Country Parental Child Removal Disputes Resolution Authority.

• The Authority may examine the inter country cases of removal and retention of children vis-a-vis the cultural context, merit of the case, and the best interest of the Child.

• Questioning one of the basic principles of the Hague Convention, the committee argued that the return of the child to his or her habitual residence may not necessarily be in the best interest of the child.

Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 1980

Hague Convention is multilateral treaty that seeks to protect children from harmful effects of abduction and retention across international boundaries by providing procedure to bring about their prompt return. 94 states are party to it. India is not signatory to it (as country has to have domestic law in place before it can become signatory). The convention is applicable to any child, up to age of 16 years who is habitual resident of any of contacting states.

29TH ROAD SAFETY WEEK BEING OBSERVED

• The Union Ministry of Road Transport And Highways observed the 29th Road Safety Week from April 23-30, 2018.

• The theme for the Road Safety Week for the 2018 is is 'Sadak Suraksha - Jeevan Raksha'. The accident prevention relies on 4Es - Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Emergency care.

• Motor vehicles' population is increasing at a rate of 10% every year. Rising traffic on roads and resultant accidents were one of the leading causes of death, disability and hospitalization among people.



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CENTRE LAUNCHES RASHTRIYA GRAM SWARAJ ABHIYAAN

• The Centre launched the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyaan (RGSA) on April 24, 2018 on the occasion of National Panchayati Raj Day from Mandla district in Madhya Pradesh.

• The restructured Centrally Sponsored Scheme will focus on training, building infrastructure and stepping up initiatives for e-governance under the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project

• The Scheme will be implemented during the period from April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2022 at the total cost of Rs. 7255.50 crore with the Central Share of Rs. 4500 crore (60%) and that of State Share of Rs. 2755.50 crore (40%).

• As part of this initiative, a mobile application, ActionSoft, was also launched for field-level reporting and monitoring of physical progress of the works undertaken by the panchayats.

PRESIDENT PROMULGATES ORDINANCE FOR DEATH PENALTY TO

CHILD RAPISTS

• The Union cabinet on April 21, 2018 approved the promulgation of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 for death penalty to those convicted of raping children below 12 years of age.

MAIN PROVISIONS

o The amendment provides for an increase in minimum imprisonment from 7 to 10 years in cases of rape of women.

o In case rape of a girl below 16 years of age, the imprisonment has been increased from 10 to 20 years.

o The punishment for gang-rape of a girl (irrespective of age) will invariably be imprisonment for rest of life of the convict.

o The Ordinance seeks corresponding amendments in the Cr.PC, PIC, POCSO Act and Evidence Act to ensure speedy trials and convictions of the accused in rape cases.

• This move comes in the backdrop of the nationwide outrage over the alleged rape and murder of an eight-year old girl in Kathua district of Jammu & Kashmir and the rape of another minor in Unnao.

PRESIDENT PROMULGATES FUGITIVE ECONOMIC OFFENDERS ORDINANCE

President Ram Nath Kovind on April 22, 2018 promulgated Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance to allow the government to confiscate properties and assets of loan defaulters who flee the country.

MAIN PROVISIONS



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• The ordinance seeks to confiscate properties of economic offenders like diamond merchant Nirav Modi, who have left the country to avoid facing criminal prosecution.

• The provisions of the ordinance will apply for economic offenders who refuse to return, persons against whom an arrest warrant has been issued for a scheduled offence as well as willful bank loan defaulters with outstanding of over Rs 100 crore.

• It provides for confiscating assets even without a conviction and paying off lenders by selling off the fugitive’s properties.

• Such economic offenders will be tried under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Who is a Fugitive Economic Offender?

The ordinance defines a fugitive economic offender as a person against whom an arrest warrant has been issued for committing offence like counterfeiting government stamps or currency, cheque dishonour for insufficiency of funds, money laundering, and transactions defrauding creditors.

A fugitive economic offender is one who has left the country to avoid facing prosecution, or refuses to return to face prosecution.

CENTRE FORMS DEFENCE PLANNING COMMITTEE

• The Centre has formed an overarching defence planning committee (DPC) to be headed by National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval.

• The DPC will be an addition to the existing policy groups such as the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) – a body of three chiefs. It will, for the first time, formalise a system to take policy and decision making of the Ministry of Defence outside the South Block.

• The DPC will comprise the three Service Chiefs and the defence, expenditure and foreign secretaries.

• The DPC will operate through four sub-committees: policy and strategy, plans and capability development, defence diplomacy and defence manufacturing ecosystem.

SUPREME COURT RULES NCMEI HAS WIDE POWERS

• The Supreme Court on 18 April held that the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI) has original jurisdiction to determine which institution should be granted minority status.

• A Bench of Justice A.K. Goel said the Constitution granted a fundamental right to all minorities, whether based on religion or language, to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.

• The wide power given to an independent forum like the NCMEI to declare an institution as a minority educational institution furthered the fundamental right guaranteed under Article 30.



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National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI)

The National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI) was established as welfare of the minorities mentioned in the national common minimum programme and government established the commission through an ordinance in November 2004.

The commission is headed by a Chairman who belongs to a minority community and has been a Judge of a High Court. Two members are nominated by Central Government. They too must belong to a minority community and must be "persons of eminence, ability and integrity."

FIRST HEALTH CENTRE UNDER AYUSHMAN BHARAT LAUNCHED

• On the birth Anniversary of BR Ambedkar on April 14, 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Bijapur in Chattisgarh to open the first health centre under Ayushman Bharat Scheme.

• Modi will be the first prime minister to visit tribal district Bijapur, one of the most backward regions of the country.

• Under the first pillar of Ayushman Bharat Scheme, the government will open 1.5 lakh health and wellness centre by 2022, which will be equipped to treat host of diseases, including blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and old age illness.

Ayushman Bharat Scheme

Ayushman Bharat is National Health Protection Scheme, which will cover over 10 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) providing coverage upto 5 lakh rupees per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization.

This entitlement based scheme will subsume the on-going centrally sponsored schemes - Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) and the Senior Citizen Health Insurance Scheme (SCHIS).

UNION HOME MINISTER LAUNCHES E-FRRO SCHEME

• The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh launched the web-based application 'e-FRRO' (e-Foreigners Regional Registration Office).

• The scheme is aimed at building a centralized, transparent online platform for the foreigners to avail visa related services and to provide Faceless, Cashless and Paperless services to the foreigners with user friendly experience.

• The e-FRRO scheme has been implemented on the IVFRT platform with negligible extra expenditure, taking a cue from the already successfully running e-Visa scheme.



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• Some of the salient features of the e-FRRO include online FRRO Service delivery mechanism without requirement of visiting FRRO/FRO Office barring exceptional cases.

NHAI SIGNS AGREEMENT FOR ITS FIRST INTERNATIONAL PROJECT

• The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has signed an agreement for upgradation of Yagyi - Kalewa section of highway (Milepost 40/0 to Milepost 115/5) in Myanmar.

• It is aimed to provide seamless vehicular movement for enhancing trade, business, health, education and tourism between Indian, Myanmar and Thailand.

• The project has been funded by Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India and would be executed on EPC mode at a cost of Rs.1177 crores.

• The project will have 3 new major bridges and 2 new minor bridges. 4 existing major bridges and 9 existing minor bridges will be repaired and strengthened and 6 existing minor bridges will be reconstructed.

CHUDASAMA COMMITTEE CONSTITUTED ON ALLEVIATING FEAR OF MATH AMONG STUDENTS

• Human Resource Development Ministry constituted the committee under the Chairmanship of Gujarat Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama to suggest the ways to make the Math subject easy.

• This decision was taken on the basis of National Assessment Survey to eliminate the fear of math among the students.

• HRD Minister was happy to announce that Government has received overwhelming response to reduce the burden of NCERT syllabus.

NEW NSG COMPLEX IN HYDERABAD INAUGURATED

• Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will inaugurate the regional hub complex of the elite anti-terror force National Security Guard (NSG), in Hyderabad.

• The construction of the state-of-the-art regional hub complex by the Central Public Works Department commenced in 2013 and the total project cost was Rs 157.84 crore.

• This regional hub of the NSG will take care of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chattisgarh and Odisha states.

• After the effective intervention by the NSG during ghastly 26/11 Mumbai attacks, a need was felt to enhance its pan India presence.



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• Consequently, the Centre decided to set up regional hubs at Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai to reduce the response time and reach the area of operation as quickly as possible.

National Security Guard (NSG)

NSG was raised in 1984, following Operation Blue Star and the assassination of Indira Gandhi. Its headquarters is in Manesar and its current DG is Sudeep Lakhtakia.

INDIA'S FIRST ALL-ELECTRIC HIGH-SPEED LOCOMOTIVE LAUNCHED

• It was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Madhepura, Bihar on April 10, 2018.

• It has been developed at Madhepura's Electric Locomotive Factory. • The train is the first big Make-in-India project completed by Alstom of France. • The electric locomotive, with a 12,000 horsepower (HP), has a speed of 120 km/hr. • With this, India jointed the elite list of countries, including Russia, China, Germany and

Sweden.

FIRST-EVER VAN DHAN VIKAS KENDRA AT BIJAPUR LAUNCHE

• The Ministry of Tribal affairs has approved establishment of the first multipurpose Van Dhan Vikas Kendra on pilot basis for establishment in Bijapur District of Chhattisgarh State.

• It has been setup for providing skill upgradation and capacity building training and setting up of primary processing and value addition facility.

• This Kendra to start with will have processing facility for Tamarind brick making, Mahua flower storage facility and chironjee cleaning and packaging.

TOBACCO, CIGARETTE PACKS TO SHOW HELPLINE NO FROM

SEPTEMBER 2018

• From September 2018, tobacco packs will carry toll-free helpline number along with new pictorial warnings.

• The packets will also carry text warnings like “tobacco causes painful death” and “tobacco causes cancer” in large capital letters in white against a red background.



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• The helpline number — 1800-11-2356 — would appear in white letters on a black background, the notification said. The pictorial warnings will also be more graphic, it said. Quit-line is a toll-free helpline number that was launched in 2016 to counsel smokers to quit.

• From April 2016, the Health Ministry implemented large pictorial health warnings, occupying 85 per cent on both sides of all packages of cigarettes, bidis and all forms of chewing tobacco products.

AGREEMENT BETWEEN NPCIL AND EDF OF FRANCE

• Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and Electricite de France (EDF) of France on March 10, 2018, signed an Industrial Way Forward Agreement.

• The agreement has been signed for implementation of six nuclear power reactor units at Jaitapur, Maharashtra. It will have a total capacity of 10000 MW.

• The nuclear power plant will be built with Evolutionary Pressurized Reactors (EPRs). It has been operation in Germany and France respectively for about two decades.

INCOME CEILING OF PARENTS INCREASED TO RS.2.5 LAKH PER ANNUM FOR PRE-MATRIC SCHOLARSHIP

• Central government has proposed to raise the income eligibility criteria for government scholarships given to Scheduled Caste (SC) students.

• Under the Top Class Education Scheme, the centre provides Scholarships to SC students who are pursuing higher education at IIMs, IITs, NITS and other reputed institutes. Under the proposed changes the eligibility criteria of their parents’ annual income limit has been raised to Rs. 6 lakh from previous Rs. 4.5 lakh.

• Similarly, for pre-matric scholarship for SC students, the annual income is proposed to be revised from Rs 2 lakh to Rs. 2.5 lakh on par with eligibility criteria for post-matric scholarships.

• Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) administers scholarships for SC, OBC and economically backward students.



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I N T E R N A T I O N A L

WORLD'S OLDEST SPIDER DISCOVERED IN AUSTRALIA

• Scientists have discovered the world’s oldest recorded spider – a 43-year-old arachnid in Australia.

• The death of Giaus Villosus trapdoor matriarch during a long-term population study outlived the previous world record holder, a 28-year old tarantula found in Mexico.

• The death also demonstrates that long-term research is essential to understand how different species live in the Australian environment.

INDIA, PAKISTAN TO TAKE PART IN WAR GAMES

• In a first, arch rivals India and Pakistan will be part of a multi-nation counter-terror exercise named ‘Peace Mission’ in Russia in September 2018, which will also be joined by China and several other countries.

• The military exercise will take place under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) a China-dominated security grouping which is increasingly seen as a counterweight to NATO.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the Presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India and Pakistan were admitted as observers of the grouping in 2005 and made full members in 2017.

ZIMBABWE LEGALIZES MARIJUANA FOR MEDICINAL, SCIENTIFIC USES

• Zimbabwe has become the second African country to legalize marijuana for medical and scientific purposes.

• Lesotho was the first African country to legalize marijuana in 2017 for medical purposes. • Production and possession of marijuana, known as mbanje or dagga in southern Africa, was

previously punishable by up to 12 years in jail. Recreational use will remain illegal. • Africa is second only to the Americas in terms of production and consumption of marijuana,

according to the United Nations' 2017 World Drug Report



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6 COUNTRIES SUSPEND MEMBERSHIP IN UNASUR REGIONAL BLOC

• The UNASUR stands for Union of South American Nations. These countries are Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru.

• They suspended the membership amid the differences over who should lead the group. • The UNASUR Constitutive Treaty was signed on May 23, 2008, at the Third Summit of Heads

of State, held in Brasília, Brazil.

WORLD EARTH DAY: 22 APRIL

• Earth Day is an annual event celebrated to demonstrate support for environmental protection. Earth Day 2018 is ‘End the Plastic Pollution’.

• First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day events in more than 193 countries are now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network.

WORLD BANK ENDORSE TRANSFORMATIVE CAPITAL PACKAGE

• This will increase the lending capacity of World Bank, curb loans and charge more for higher income countries like China.

• The agreement also increases shares and voting power of large emerging market countries like China.

• The increase provides an additional $13 billion in "paid in" capital: $7.5 billion to the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and $5.5 billion to the International Finance Corporation (IFC).

IDA LAUNCHED ITS FIRST BOND IN 60 YEARS

• World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) recently in launched its first bond in its nearly 60-year history.

• Global investors invested in the triple A-rated asset, raising $1.5 billion to address some of the most pressing development issues to support life-changing investments in the world’s poorest countries.

International Development Association (IDA)

The International Development Association (IDA) is an international financial institution which offers concessional loans and grants to the world's poorest developing countries. Thus, it is also called ‘soft loan window’ of World Bank. Established in 1960, it is headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States.



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SAUDI ARABIA UNVEILS FIRST NEW CINEMA

• Saudi Arabia unveiled its first cinema in over 35 years with a private screening of the blockbuster Black Panther, the first in a series of trial runs before movie theaters open to the wider public.

• The US giant AMC Entertainment has been granted the first license to operate movie theaters.

• The move to reopen cinemas is part of a modernization drive by reformist Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is seeking to balance unpopular subsidy cuts in an era of low oil prices with more entertainment options - despite opposition from hardliners.

WORLD LIVER DAY: 19 APRIL

• World Liver Day is observed to spread awareness regarding liver health and emerging liver diseases.

• Theme: The 2018 World Liver Day theme is “Riding New Waves in Liver Diagnosis, Staging & Treatment”.

• According to the World Health Organization (WHO), liver diseases are 10th most common causes of death in India.

• The liver is the second largest organ in the body, which takes part in a multitude of functions.

WORLD HERITAGE DAY: 18 APRIL

• Every year the world celebrates the World Heritage Day on April 18 with a different theme. The theme for the year 2018 is “Heritage of Generations”.

• In 1982, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) announced, 18 April as the "World Heritage Day".

• It was approved by the General Assembly of UNESCO in 1983, with the aim of enhancing awareness of the importance of the cultural heritage of humankind, and redouble efforts to protect and conserve the human heritage.

• At present, Italy leads with 53 sites followed by China with 52 sites. In India, there are 36 sites that have been declared as World Heritage.



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FIRST-EVER INDIA-NORDIC SUMMIT BEGAN IN SWEDEN

• First-ever India-Nordic Summit began on April 17, 2018 in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. The Summit was titled ‘India-Nordic Summit: Shared Values, Mutual Prosperity’.

• India was represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on two-day official visit to Sweden. This is the first bilateral visit by an Indian premier to the Nordic nation in 30 years.

• The summit was attended by the prime ministers of Finland, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. • During the Summit, five MoUs on cooperation in the field of sustainable and smart urban

development, animal husbandry and dairying, food safety cooperation, and agricultural research and education with Denmark, and on the establishment of an ICCR Chair for Hindi Language with Iceland.

CHOGM 2018 CONCLUDES IN THE UK

• The biennial event Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2018 was held in London, UK from April 16-20, 2018. It is the first time the event is held in the UK since 1997.

• There were 4 themes of the summit: A more sustainable future, A fairer future, A more secure future and A more prosperous future.

• At the CHOGM 2018, the UK government said it would provide an extra £8 million for climate action and mitigation projects around the world.

• Some £3.5 million will go towards extending the '2050 Calculator', technology which helps countries develop greenhouse gas strategies, while £1.2m will go to help Pacific countries cut their carbon emissions.

Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations, formerly (1931–1949) the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of 53 member states that are mostly former territories of the British Empire.

The current Commonwealth of Nations was formally constituted by the London Declaration in 1949, which modernised the community, and established the member states as "free and equal".

WORLD'S FIRST LONG-DISTANCE ELECTRIC BUS LINE IN PARIS

• The world's first long-distance electric bus line was inaugurated in Paris by the German low-cost company FlixBus at the foot of the Eiffel tower. It begun its daily service on April 12.



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• The bus has 49 seats, has all the advantages of an electric vehicle, zero emissions, quiet, and drives more smoothly than its fuel-powered counterpart.

• With a maximum range of 250 kilometres, the batteries can be fully charged in 5 hours or even just two with the use of a "super-charger".

NEW ZEALAND BANS ALL NEW OFFSHORE OIL EXPLORATION

• New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern announced a ban on all new offshore oil exploration, describing her decision as a transition towards a zero-carbon economy.

• The ban is applied with immediate effect to only new offshore oil exploration permits, and will not affect existing permits and onshore drilling.

• The policy will not lead to job losses in the country's oil industry, which currently employs at least 11,000 workers and generates about $1.8 billion per year.

US ANNOUNCES GSP ELIGIBILITY REVIEW OF INDIA

• Based on the market access concerns US has with India, the US announced eligibility review of India for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).

• US also announced eligibility review of other two countries; Indonesia and Kazakhstan, which it said was based on concerns about the countries compliance with the program.

• For India, the GSP country eligibility review is based on concerns related to its compliance with the GSP market access criterion.

Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)

The GSP is the largest and oldest US trade preference programme and is designed to promote economic development by allowing duty-free entry for thousands of products from designated beneficiary countries.

8TH 3R FORUM CONCLUDES WITH ADOPTION OF INDORE 3R DECLARATION

• The eighth 3R regional forum in Asia and Pacific was held in Indore from April 9-12, 2018. The forum concluded with the adoption of Indore 3R Declaration reaffirming the commitment to promoting the principles of 3R - Reduce, Reuse & Recycle.

• The 3R forum legacy was handed over to the delegation of the Govt. of Thailand - the host of the next 3R forum to be held in Bangkok, which extended invitation to all the participant nations.

• The theme of this edition of this forum was achieving clean water, clean land and clean air through 3R and resource efficiency.

• The Regional 3R Forum in Asia and the Pacific was launched in 2009 in Tokyo, Japan with the objective of integrating the 3Rs in policy, planning and development.



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BANGLADESH SCRAPPED QUOTA SYSTEM IN GOVT. JOBS

• Bangladesh has decided to scrap the quota system in government services after thousands of students marched across the country in protest against a controversial policy of setting aside jobs for special groups.

• The quota system was introduced in 1972. Currently, 44 percent are recruited on merit and 56 percent under various quotas.

• Of the 56 percent, 30 percent for freedom fighters' children and grandchildren, 10 percent for women, 10 percent for people of districts lagging behind, 5 percent for members of indigenous communities, and 1 percent for physically-challenged people.

11TH WORLD HINDI CONFERENCE TO BE HELD IN MAURITIUS

• The 11th World Hindi Conference at Swami Vivekananda International Conference Center in Port Louis in August 2018.

• Logo: Image of a ship struggling to keep sailing in the water is similar to what the difficulties Hindi is facing today.

• Theme: “Vaishvik Hindi Aur Bharity Sanskriti”. • The event is held once in three years, and in 2015 it was held in Bhopal. The first World

Hindi Conference was held in 1975 in Nagpur.

16TH INTERNATIONAL ENERGY FORUM MINISTERIAL

• The 16th International Energy Forum (IEF) ministerial was inaugurated in New Delhi on April 11, 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• It is being hosted by India for the first time and co-hosted by China and Korea. • IEF16 aims to focus on how global shifts, transition policies and new technologies influence

market stability and future investment in the energy sector • The meeting of ministers of the 72-member IEF "is the largest gathering of energy ministers

from across the globe”.

US PRESIDENT TRUMP SIGNS MEMORANDUM TO END ‘CATCH AND RELEASE’ POLICY

• The U.S. President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on April 6 ordering the end of a policy, known as ‘catch and release’ in which illegal immigrants are released from detention while awaiting a court hearing on their status.

• Among the measures outlined in the memo, Trump directed the departments of Defence and Homeland Security to produce a list of military facilities that could be used to detain illegal immigrants.



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• It will badly affect the immigrants crossing the border from Mexico. The human rights NGO have raised concerns as offenders may land up in jail because now it will be considered as felony.

QATAR INTRODUCES NATIONAL SERVICE FOR WOMEN

• Qatar government has introduced national service for women for the first time. • Women aged more than 18 years will be able to volunteer for national service under the

law. • Men aged between 18 to 35 years, now will serve a compulsory year instead of three

months in the national service as per the new guidelines. • The decision comes into the background of Qatar being diplomatically boycotted by Saudi

Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt since 5 June 2017. • Anyone caught trying to avoid military service could face up to three years in jail and a fine

of up to 50,000 Qatari riyals. It applies to men only.

MID-TERM NAM SUMMIT BEGINS IN BAKU

• External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj visited Azerbaijan to attend the Non Alignment Movement Ministerial Summit 2018 in Baku, Azerbaijan, which was held from April 5-6.

• The 2018 theme for this conference is "Promoting International Peace and Security for Sustainable Development".

• NAM has currently 120 states as members and 17 observers. Its head office is located in Jakarta, Indonesia. NAM’s first summit took place in Belgrade then part of Yugoslavia in 1961

PUTIN, ERDOGAN LAUNCH CONSTRUCTION OF TURKEY'S FIRST NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

• The leaders of the Russian and Turkey launched the start of the Turkey’s first nuclear power plant. It will be built on Mediterranean coast at Akkuyu, Turkey.

• The Akkuyu plant is being built by Russia's nuclear energy agency, Rosatom. The project is estimated to cost $20 billion.

• Turkey is also planning to purchase Russia's long-range S-400 missile defence system. • Turkey is a NATO ally and increasing close ties with Russia is seen with suspicion by other

NATO members.



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E C O N O M Y & B A N K I N G

REVIEW UNDERWRITING RULE: SAT TO SEBI

• The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) has asked the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to review the regulations for underwriting of a public issue.

• The model agreement for underwriting was framed in 1993 and has since been in operation.

• The underwriting clause, mandatory in all SME IPOs, ensures the issue does not fail due to low demand from investors.

What is underwriting?

Underwriting is the mechanism by which a merchant banker gives an undertaking that in the event of an initial public offer (IPO) remaining undersubscribed, the banker would subscribe to unsold shares.

BIS GRANTS FIRST LICENSE FOR LIQUID CHLORINE ON ALL

INDIA BASIS

• Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) granted First Licence to M/s Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Ltd for Liquid Chlorine on All India basis.

• This is the First Licence granted on All India basis. The licence has been made operative with effect from 12th April, 2018 for a period of one year.

• This product is in liquid form and stored in metal containers. It is usually used as a gas obtained by evaporating the liquid from the metal container.

• The move will facilitate industry to get a quality Liquid Chlorine with Standard Mark under BIS Certification Marks scheme.

• BIS is national Standards Body of India working under aegis of Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution. BIS was established on December 23, 1986 and Surina Rnajan is the DG of BIS.

LEISANG VILLAGE BECOMES LAST VILLAGE TO BE ELECTRIFIED

• Leisang in Manipur on April 28, 2018 became the last village in India to be added to the national power grid. The target has been achieved in 987 days, much ahead of its deadline.

• In his 2015 Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced to supply power to 18,452 census villages in 1000 days.



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• In India, a village is considered electrified “if 10% of its households, as well as public places, are connected”.

• In 2017, the Centre has launched Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) to ensure electrification of all willing households in the country in rural as well as urban areas.

34 TECHNOLOGY FIRMS SIGN CYBERSECURITY TECH ACCORD

• Top 34 global technology and securities firms, led by Microsoft and Facebook, have signed a "Cybersecurity Tech Accord" to defend people from malicious attacks by cybercriminals and nation-states.

• The watershed agreement will prevent them help governments launch cyber-attacks against innocent citizens and enterprises.

• It will also protect against tampering or exploitation of their products and services through every stage of technology development, design and distribution.

• The 34 companies include Cisco, HP, Nokia, Oracle, VMware, Dell, CA Technologies, Symantec, Bitdefender, F-Secure, RSA and Trend Micro, among others.

CENTRE PROPOSES PLAN FOR ACCELERATING GROWTH OF DISTRICTS BY 3%

• To involve the districts more actively in the growth of the Indian economy and to formulate a common development vision starting from the district level, it has been decided that a District Plan will be created for achieving this goal.

• An addition of 3% growth at the district level will ensure that USD 5 trillion target for the Indian economy becomes achievable.

• The Plan will provide specific interventions taking into account resources, strengths of the districts, skilling initiatives, Ease of Doing Business, access to credit and convergence of existing efforts in public and private sectors.

• The initiative will begin with 6 districts, including Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Muzaffarpur in Bihar, Vishakapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Solan in Himachal Pradesh have been selected.

• An implementation committee is proposed at the District level to ensure implementation of the plan. The Committee will be headed by the District Collector/ District Magistrate.

1ST REGIONAL WORKSHOP ON STAR RATING OF GARBAGE- FREE CITIES INAUGURATED

• The 1st regional workshop on star rating of garbage- free cities, organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in collaboration with the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) was inaugurated.

• The day -long workshop was attended by over 250 Urban Local Body (ULB) officials,



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including Mayors and Commissioners, from New Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana and neighbouring ULBs of Uttar Pradesh.

• The workshop was held to familiarize and build the capacities of state and city officials and other relevant stakeholders about the newly launched Star Rating Protocol of Garbage- Free Cities by MoHUA, which is a holistic evaluation system for the entire solid waste management (SWM) value chain.

Star Rating Star Rating is designed to enable cities to gradually evolve into a model (7-star) city, with progressive improvements in their overall cleanliness.

CENTRE LAUNCHES ‘STUDY IN INDIA’ TO ATTRACT FOREIGN STUDENTS

• The Centre launched its flagship ‘Study in India’ program. It is aimed at attracting foreign students in 160 public and private universities which will offer 15,000 seats to them in the academic year 2018-19.

• About 55 percent of these seats will offer fee waivers to students from abroad. The program is an open invitation to students all over to come and study in our institutions of higher education.

• As per 2016-17 figures, a little over 47,000 students of foreign nationalities are studying in India. The government wants to take this number to two lakh by 2023.

RBI LIBERALISES ECB NORMS

• In a bid to facilitate cheaper access of overseas funds Reserve Bank of India (RBI) further liberalised External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) Policy by including more sectors in the window.

• With a view to harmonising the extant provisions of Foreign Currency and Rupee ECBs and Rupee Denominated Bonds, it has been decided to stipulate a uniform all-in-cost ceiling of 450 basis points over the benchmark rate.

• It has been decided to permit Housing Finance Companies and port trust can avail of ECBs under all tracks.

• Such entities should have a board approved risk management policy and should keep their ECB exposure hedged 100 per cent at all times for ECBs raised.

CABINET APPROVES INCREASE IN MSP FOR RAW JUTE FOR 2018-19 SEASON

• The MSP for Fair Average Quality (FAQ) of raw jute has been increased to Rs 3700 per quintal for 2018-19 season from Rs 3500 per quintal in 2017-18 season.

• The MSP would yield returns of 63.2 percent over the weighted average A2+FL cost of production.



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• Factors considered to decide MSP by Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) Cost of production Overall demand-supply Domestic and international prices Inter-crop price parity Terms of trade between agricultural and non-agricultural sectors Likely impact of MSP on the rest of the economy

• The Jute Corporation of India would continue to act as Central Nodal Agency to undertake price support operations.

MSP, Procurement Price & Issue Price

MSP: Incentives to farmers to boost production (Before sowing season). MSP first used in 1965 and it covers 24 crops.

Procurement Price: The price at which government procures from farmers. It is higher than MSP but lower than market price. (Post-Harvest season).

Issue price: The price at which governemnt issues foodgrains to weaker sections under PDS.

INDIA, WORLD BANK SIGN LEGAL AGREEMENT ON NATIONAL BIOPHARMA MISSION

• The govt. has signed an agreement with World Bank for flexible financing for biopharmaceuticals under National Biopharma Mission.

• The Mission has been approved at a total cost of US$250 million for five years with 50% funding through World Bank Loan, with an aim to make India a hub for design and development of novel, affordable and effective biopharmaceutical products.

• This mission will mark the beginning of a new partnership between DBT and World Bank. It is envisaged that this programme will revolutionize the Biotech market. It will help deliver 6-10 new products in the next five years.

National Biopharma Mission

The first ever Industry-Academia mission to accelerate biopharmaceutical development in India was launched in New Delhi on June 30, 2017. The program named Innovate in India (i3) will witness an investment of USD 250 million with USD 125 million as a loan from world Bank and is anticipated to be a game changer for the Indian Biopharmaceutical industry.

The National Biopharma Mission is being implemented by Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).



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TCS: FIRST IT FIRM TO CROSS $100 BN IN MARKET CAP

• India's largest software services exporter Tata Consultancy Services became the first listed Indian IT firm to cross the $100-billion market-capitalisation level.

• The feat gave the Tata Group flagship entry into the elite club of world's 100 most valued organisations, ranking at 97. There are 96 firms with over $100 billion market cap.

• TCS crossed the coveted mark within the first hour of trade, registering a market valuation of Rs 6.81 lakh crore.

• The achievement also helped TCS beat US-listed rival Accenture's market capitalisation of $98 billion, though Accenture ended financial year 2017-18 with revenues of $34.90 billion, far higher than TCS' $19.1 billion.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

The Mumbai-based Tata group flagship started trading in 2004 and became a $25-billion company in 2010. It is now the country's most valued firm followed by Reliance Industries. The current Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of TCS is Rajesh Gopinathan.

RBI REVISES ITS KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER (KYC) GUIDELINES

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made linking of national biometric ID Aadhaar to bank accounts mandatory as part of its updated 'Know Your Customer (KYC)' guidelines.

• It will be subject to the final decision of the Supreme Court on making of Aadhaar mandatory.

• Also, the use of “officially valid documents” to establish address and identity proof of customers has been restricted to cases where enrolment for Aadhaar is not possible.

235 DISTRICTS TO BE COVERED UNDER PHASE-II OF POSHAN ABHIYAN

• The Centre has decided to cover 235 districts in the second phase of its POSHAN Abhiyaan or National Nutrition Mission.

• 315 districts have already been covered under phase-I of the programme and 235 districts will be covered in the second phase



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• A pilot project will be conducted in 10 districts for conditional cash transfer (CCT) through direct benefit transfer and the states/UTs would continue their existing system of providing supplementary nutrition under Anganwadi services.

POSHAN Abhiyaan

POSHAN Abhiyaan was launched on March 8, 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Jhunjhunu. It aims to reduce stunting, under-nutrition, anaemia among children, women and adolescent girls along with reducing low birth weight in the country.

E-WAY BILL ROLLED OUT IN SIX MORE STATES

• E-way bill for intra-state movement of goods was rolled out on April 20, 2018 in six more states, namely Bihar, Jharkhand, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Tripura and Uttarakhand.

• With this, so far the e-way bill has been rolled out in 11 states, as earlier on April15, 2018 it was rolled out in five states, namely Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

• Karnataka was the first state to roll out the bill on April 1, 2018 – the day on which e-way bill came into force.

• Touted as an anti-evasion measure and would help boost tax collections by clamping down on trade that currently happens on cash basis, the e-way bill provision of the goods and services tax (GST) was first introduced on February 1.

CENTRE REVISES TARGET TO COMPLETE PM GRAM SADAK YOJANA

• The Centre has requested the State Government to expedite rural connectivity works to meet the revised target. The target date for completion of PMGSY-I has been preponed from 2022 to 2019.

• The State has completed construction of 3,363 km of roads under the flagship rural connectivity programme by December 2017 end against the annual target of 7,000 km.

• The scheme, since its inception in 2000, has been able to provide connectivity to more than One lakh 50 thousand habitations.

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana

Centre launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana on December 25, 2000 during the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime to provide all-weather access to unconnected habitations. The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) is a 100% Centrally Sponsored Scheme. 50% of the Cess on High Speed Diesel (HSD) is earmarked for this Programme.



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INDIAN, MNC SEED FIRMS FORM NEW ASSOCIATION

• Global and domestic seed companies like Monsanto, Syngenta, Rasi Seeds and Shriram Bioseeds have formed a new association 'Alliance for Agri Innovation' to take up the policy issues related to the sector and promote new farm technologies.

• The new association has been formed amid a legal battle between US biotech major Monsanto and Indian firm Nuziveedu Seeds Ltd over patent and royalty issues.

• The AAI would also work with all stakeholders to create an ecosystem which provides protection for Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).

NABARD AUTHORISED CAPITAL INCREASED TO RS 300 BILLION

• As part of the drive to double income of farmers by 2022, the government has raised the authorised capital of NABARD by six times to Rs 300 billion to help it increase its lending to the rural economy.

• This will help Nabard (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) to augment its business and enhance its activities.

• It will also facilitate promotion of integrated rural development and securing prosperity of rural areas, including generation of more employment.

NABARD

NABARD was set up on July 12, 1982 to promote sustainable and equitable agriculture and rural development through participative financial and non-financial interventions, innovations, technology and institutional development for securing prosperity. It was set up on the recommendations of B Sivaraman Committee set up by the RBI on March 30, 1979.

PHASE-1 OF FAME-INDIA SCHEME EXTENDED BY 6 MONTHS

• The Union Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises has extended Phase-1 of FAME India by another 6 months till Sept 2018.

• The extension of the scheme seeks to provide financial support to electric and hybrid vehicles. Earlier FAME India scheme was to be implemented initially for two years, viz., 2015-16 and 2016-17.

FAME India scheme

FAME India scheme stands for Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles. It was launched in 2015 under the National Electricity Mobility Mission (NEMM). It aims to provide eco-friendly vehicles in the country.



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ICICI BANK, HDFC BANK REPOSITORY PARTICIPANTS FOR NERL

• National E-Repository Limited (NERL) has brought in ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank on board as the repository participants for pledge finance.

• NERL has signed the agreement with both the banks where they will offer pledge finance against eNWRs created on NERL’s repository platform commodities stored in warehouses registered with Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA)

• ICICI Bank is already a key shareholder of NERL. Both the banks are now empaneled as repository participants pledge with NERL.

National E-Repository Limited (NERL)

NERL, one of the major participants providing services towards e-repository, has been promoted by leading agri commodity exchange National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard), ICICI Bank and SBI.

Its purpose is to help warehouse receipts become credible and marketable lending instruments for banks and thus improve the flow of capital to the commodity value-chain through electronic negotiable warehouse receipts.

RBI TIGHTENS NORMS FOR LIBERALISED REMITTANCE SCHEME

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tightened reporting norms for the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) under which an individual can transfer up to USD 2,50,000 abroad in a year.

• In order to improve monitoring and also to ensure compliance with the LRS limits, it has been decided to put in place a daily reporting system by AD banks of transactions undertaken by individuals under LRS, which will be accessible to all the other AD.

• Now banks will be required to upload daily transaction-wise information undertaken by them under LRS.

• The scheme was introduced on February 4, 2004, with a limit of USD 25,000. The LRS limit has been revised in stages consistent with prevailing macro and micro economic conditions.

INDIAN CONSORTIUM AND SAUDI ARAMCO SIGN MOU FOR

RATNAGIRI MEGA REFINERY

• An Indian Consortium and Saudi Aramco signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex, Ratnagiri Refinery Petrochemicals Ltd. (RRPCL) in the State of Maharashtra.



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• The refinery will be capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day. The project cost is estimated at around Rs.3 lakh crore (USD 44 billion).

• RRPCL will rank among the world’s largest refining petrochemicals projects and will be designed to meet India’s fast-growing fuels and petrochemicals demand.

CENTRE SETS UP COMMITTEE TO REVIEW THE ENFORCEMENT OF CSR PROVISIONS

• The Centre has set up a 12-member panel to review the enforcement of CSR provisions under the Companies Law as well as look at having a centralised scrutiny and prosecution mechanism to deal with violations.

• It will also look at methodologies for monitoring of compliance by companies with CSR norms for having an effective CSPM.

• The 12-member panel is headed by Regional Director (Western Region) Manmohan Juneja. Other members include Joint Director (Legal) Sanjay Shorey and Joint Director (Policy) N K Dua, while Deputy Director (CSR) Seema Rath will be the convener.

NPA CRISIS: 11 PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS UNDER RBI SCANNER

• Eleven public sector banks are under the radar of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) over the issue of non-performing assets.

• List of Banks: The 11 banks on the RBI’s watch-list include Allahabad Bank, United Bank of India, Corporation Bank, IDBI Bank, UCO Bank, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Dena Bank, Bank of Maharashtra. Five banks which could be brought under the PCA are Andhra Bank, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Union Bank and Punjab & Sind Bank.

• It has been predicted that if more state-owned banks are brought under PCA, it will impact the credit availability for the MSME segment.

Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) Framework

The PCA is triggered when banks breach certain regulatory requirements like minimum capital, return on asset and quantum of non-performing assets. It was initially used in the year 2002.

A bank being put under PCA framework means banks are not allowed to renew or access costly deposits or take steps to increase their fee-based income. They will also not be allowed to enter into new lines of business. RBI will also impose restrictions on the bank on borrowings from interbank market.

RBI SWITCHES BACK TO GDP MODEL

• The Reserve Bank of India has decided to use Gross Domestic Product (GDP), instead of Gross Value Added (GVA) to measure economic activity in the country for the financial year 2019.



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• GVA gives a picture of the state of economic activity from the producers' side or the supply side. GDP gives the picture from the consumers' side or the demand perspective.

• From January 2015, the government had started using the GVA method to analyse growth.

RBI TO SET UP DATA SCIENCE LAB FOR BETTER FORECASTING

• The RBI has announced setting up a Data Science Lab to better forecasting of Indian economy. The lab is expected to start working from December, 2018.

• RBI has now decided to harness the power of Big Data analytic which is used by many central banks around the globe.

• The lab will consist of professionals trained in Computer Science, Statistics, Economic, Computer Science and other related fields.

TRAI MOOTS PUBLIC WI-FI ACCESS GRID

• The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has submitted its report in Wi-Fi open pilot project to Telecom Ministry.

• According to the report, a concept of open architecture based public Wi-Fi grid has been proposed which may bring the cost of internet by 90%.

• Broadband proliferation across the country is an important pillar of Digital India. But Wi-Fi is the cheapest option, given low cost of equipment and free spectrum.

• It also mooted the idea of Public Data office Providers (PDOs) which is similar of yesterday’s PCO. The PDOs will be companies or even small merchants, interested in providing Wi-Fi hotspots to public using either free or paid model.

UTTAM APP FOR COAL QUALITY MONITORING LAUNCHED

• Union Minister for Railways and Coal Piyush Goyal on April 5, 2018, launched UTTAM App for Coal Quality Monitoring.

• UTTAM stands for Unlocking Transparency by Third Party Assessment of Mined Coal (uttam.coalindia.in).

• It aims to provide an App for all citizens and coal consumers to monitor the process of Third Party Sampling of coal across CIL subsidiaries.

CABINET APPROVES RIGHTSIZING THE COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA

• The size of CCI has been reduced from One Chairperson and Six Members (totaling seven) to One Chairperson and Three Members (totaling four).

• The proposal is in consonance with Governments objective of "Minimum Government - Maximum Governance".



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• CCI was established on 14 October 2003. It became fully functional in May 2009 with Dhanendra Kumar as its first Chairman. Devender Kumar Sikri is the current Chairperson of the CCI.

INDIA BECOMES SECOND LARGEST PRODUCER OF MOBILE PHONES

• According to data shared by the Indian Cellular Association (ICA), India accounted for 11% of global mobile production in 2017 compared to 3% in 2014.

• With the rise in mobile phone production, imports of the devices in the country also reduced to less than half in 2017-18.

• The fast track task force (FTTF), a body under Ministry of Electronics and IT, has set target to achieve around 500 million mobile phone production in India by 2019, with value estimated to be around $46 billion.

• The body has set the target to export 120 million mobile phone units with an estimated value of $1.5 million by the end of 2019.

FIRST US SHALE GAS REACHES AT GAIL'S DABHOL TERMINAL

• India’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from America landed at the GAIL Dabhol regasification terminal in Maharashtra on March 30.

• The shipment is a part of the deal signed in 2011 and 2013. GAIL signed 20 year LNG supply agreements worth $32 billion LNG exports from the Dominion Cove Point project in Maryland and Sabine Pass project in Louisiana in 2011 and 203 respectively.



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S C I E N C E & T E C H N O L O G Y

AUSTRALIA PLEDGES HALF A BILLION DOLLARS TO RESTORE

GREAT BARRIER REEF

• Australia pledged US $377 million to restore and protect the World Heritage-listed site Great Barrier Reef. The reef contributes 6.4 billion dollar a year to the Australian economy.

• The Great Barrier Reef is reeling from significant bouts of coral bleaching due to climate change. It is also facing threat from the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish, which has proliferated due to pollution and agricultural runoff.

• In early April 2018, scientists published a report chronicling the mass mortality of corals on the Great Barrier Reef. The report says that 30% of the reef’s corals died in a catastrophic nine-month marine heatwave of 2016.

Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Queensland in northeastern Australia, is the largest living thing on Earth, and even visible from outer space. The 2,300km-long ecosystem comprises thousands of reefs and hundreds of islands made of over 600 types of hard and soft coral. It is home to countless species of colourful fish, molluscs and starfish, plus turtles, dolphins and sharks.

SCIENTISTS DEVELOP NEW METHOD TO 3D PRINT FOOD

• Researchers from Ewha Womans University in South Korea have developed a new technique to 3D print food that can allow users to cook according to their preferences.

• 3D printing of food works much like 3D printing of other materials in which layers of raw material are deposited to build up a final product.

• In addition to offering customised food options, the ability to 3D print food at home or on an industrial scale could greatly reduce food waste and the cost involved with storage and transportation.

• It might also help meet the rapidly increasing food needs of a growing world population.

JAPAN CREATES ROBOT THAT TRANSFORMS INTO CAR WITH MEN ON-BOARD

• Japanese engineers unveiled a robot that transforms into a car that can actually carry people on board, it is the first-ever such accomplishment in the history of robots.



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• The 3.7-metre (12.1-feet)-tall two-seater robot "J-deite RIDE" can transform into a sportscar in a process that takes about a minute.

• It can technically walk at 30 km/h (18.6 mph) or run on its four wheels but developers said they've never really tested it outside the factory cargo bay area.

• The robot is an attempt to inspire others and broaden the human imagination. They will begin with utilizing the technology in entertainment industry, such as amusement park and street parades.

NEW TECHNIQUE TO MAKE DRUGS SMARTER DEVELOPED

• Scientists have developed a new method to make smarter drugs that are more effective at reaching their target.

• The researchers from the University of Lincoln in the UK devised a technique to decorate gold nanoparticles with a protein of choice so they can be used to tailor drug to more accurately target an area on the body, such as a cancer tumour.

• This method might help to design nanomedicines that do not need extensive chemical modification of a protein drug or a nano-carrier and therefore can be developed more easily and faster.

WESTERN GHATS REVEAL WORLD’S SMALLEST LAND FERN

• It was found hiding in the Ahwa forests of the Western Ghats in Gujarat. It is named Ophioglossum malviae.

• The fingernail-sized fern belongs to a group known as the adder’s-tongue ferns. It is named after their resemblance to a snake’s tongue.

• The size of the new Malvi’s adder’s-tongue fern is just one centimetre.

NASA LAUNCHES ITS NEWEST PLANET-HUNTING SPACECRAFT

• American space agency NASA on April 18, 2018 successfully launched another planet hunter spacecraft Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS).

• The TESS has been manufactured by Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

• It was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

• TESS will focus on stars between 30 and 300 light-years away and 30 to 100 times brighter than Kepler’s targets.



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NOVEL TOOL CAN SPOT POTENTIAL CHILD RAPISTS

• Scientists have developed an algorithm that can help identify potential sex offenders in online chatrooms, especially the ones who are most likely to set up face-to-face meetings with children.

• The Chat Analysis Triage Tool (CATT), developed by researchers at Purdue Polytechnic Institute in the US, allows officers to work through the volume of solicitations and use algorithms to examine the word usage and conversation patterns by a suspect.

• CATT algorithms examine only the conversation factors and do not take the sex of either suspect or victim into consideration, at this time.

• The exploratory study examined more than 4,300 messages in 107 online chat sessions involving arrested sex offenders, identifying different trends in word usage and self-disclosure by fantasy and contact sex offenders using statistical discourse analysis.

INDIA TO GET "NORMAL" MONSOON FOR THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR

• The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that India is expected to get normal monsoon this year. This is for the third consecutive year that India will be having a normal monsoon.

• The monsoon seasonal rainfall is likely to be 97 per cent of the average with an error of 5 percent. There is very less probability of a deficit monsoon.

• This, in parlance, means rainfall between 96 per cent and 104 percent of the 50-year average (89 cm) during the four-month season, which runs from June to September.

IN A FIRST, ALZHEIMER'S GENE NEUTRALISED IN THE HUMAN BRAIN

• Researchers from the Gladstone Institutes in the US have identified and successfully erased the effects of a key gene that significantly increases the risk for Alzheimer's disease.

• The protein associated with the high risk apoE4 gene damages the human neuron cells. Having one copy of the apoE4 gene more than doubles a person's likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease.

• This discovery indicates that the presence of apoE4 - and not the absence of apoE3 - promotes the disease. The apoE4 protein differs from the apoE3 protein at only one point, but that single change is enough to alter its main structure and, thus, its function.

• The study could open the door to a potential new drug capable of halting the disease. Alzheimer is the most common type of dementia.



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INDIAN-ORIGIN SCIENTIST'S MICROFACTORY MIGHT HELP TACKLE E-WASTE HAZARD

• The world's first microfactory has been launched by Indian-Origin Australian scientist Veena Sahajwalla.

• Veena is a professor at the University of New South Wales. • It can transform the components from electronic waste items such as smartphones and

laptops into valuable materials for re-use. • A microfactory is one or a series of small machines and devices that uses patented

technology to perform one or more functions in the reforming of waste products into new and usable resources.

NOVEL METHOD TO GENERATE STEM CELLS DEVELOPED

• Chinese scientists have developed a novel method by mixing two chemicals that help generate stem cells which can self-renew or multiply while maintaining the potential to develop into other types of cells and be used to treat a wide range of ailments.

• Somatic cells are any cell of a living organism other than the reproductive cells, while stem cells can self-renew or multiply while maintaining the potential to develop into other types of cells.

• They can become cells of the blood, heart, bones, skin, muscle, brain or other body parts. The study will help understanding of the fate of cells and could be applied to regenerative medicine, said lead researcher Pei Duanqing from the varsity's Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health.

NASA SET TO BUILD QUIET SUPERSONIC PLANES

• The ‘experimental plane’ (X-plane) named Low-Boom Flight Demonstrator (LBFD), is designed to fly faster than the speed of sound without producing sonic booms.

• The X-plane’s mission is to provide crucial data that could enable commercial supersonic passenger air travel over land.

• NASA has awarded a $247.5 million (Rs 1600 crore) contract to U.S.-based Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company for this.

• The LBFD aircraft will be 94 feet (29 meters) long, or about the size of a small business jet. It will fly at a cruising altitude of about 55,000 feet (17,000 meters). It can reach a speed of 1.4 times the speed of sound (about 1,000 mph, or 1,600 km/h).



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RH300 SOUNDING ROCKET LAUNCHED FOR ATMOSPHERIC STUDIES

• The RH-300 MKII sounding rocket was successfully launched from Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching station (TERLS) in Thiruvananthpuram, Kerala.

• The RH-300 MKII sounding rocket has been developed by IRSO’s Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC)

• The rocket was launched by VSSC under Sounding Rocket Experiment (SOUREX) programme for atmospheric studies.

• It utilises this rocket to study Equatorial E and lower ionosphere regions of atmosphere. It was overall 21st launch of RH300 sounding rocket.

MEET ICARUS, THE FARTHEST STAR EVER SEEN

• An enormous blue star nicknamed Icarus is the farthest individual star ever seen. It is so far away that its light has taken 9 billion years to reach Earth.

• Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope were able to pinpoint this faraway star and set a new distance record.

• It is up to a million times more luminious and about twice as hot as our sun.



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S P O R T S

RAFAEL NADAL LIFTS 11TH BARCELONA OPEN TENNIS TITLE

• World number one Rafael Nadal lifted his 11th Barcelona Open tennis title with a 6-2 6-1 win over Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas.

• It was the 77th title overall for Nadal and 55th career clay-court title.

• Nadal is now level with John McEnroe on 77 career titles with only Jimmy Connors (109), Roger Federer (97) and Ivan Lendl (94) ahead of him.

BARCELONA FC WINS LA LIGA TITLE

• Barcelona won this season's Spanish La Liga title after beating Deportivo La Coruna 4-2 in the final.

• Barcelona bagged the league title with three matches to spare. In total, the club has won the La Liga title 25 times.

• Barcelona raised its points to 86 in the league table and is guaranteed to win the title since Atletico Madrid, who were in the second spot, have 75 points.

INDIAN WOMEN BOXERS 3 GOLD AT ASIAN YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS IN BANGKOK

• Indian women boxers dominated the Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok claiming three gold medals.

• World champion Nitu Ghanghas in 48kg category led the charge, out-punching local favourite Nillada Meekoon to claim the first gold for India. Manisha in 64kg category and Lalita in 69kg category finished at the top in the tournament.

• Overall, the Indians signed off with three gold, four silver and four bronze medals in the event, which was also a qualifying tournament for the Youth Olympics to be held in Buenos Aires in late 2018.

ICC TO GRANT T20 INTERNATIONAL STATUS TO ALL ITS EXISTING 104 MEMBERS

• The ICC has decided to grant T20 International status to all its existing 104 members in a bid to popularize the game across the globe.

• The move will effectively mean that a T20 match between Argentina and Papua New Guinea will have international status from now on.



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• All member women's teams will be awarded T20I status on July 1, 2018 whilst all member men's teams will be awarded T20I status on January 1, 2019 following the cut-off point for qualification to the ICC World T20 2020.

ICC CONVERTS CHAMPIONS TROPHY IN INDIA INTO WORLD T20

• The ICC decided to convert the 2021 Champions Trophy scheduled in India into a World T20 event, finally scrapping the eight-team ODI tournament.

• The next edition of the tournament in 2021 will be converted into a World T20. It would be a 16-team event in the shortest format.

• This means that only for the second time ever, two ICC World T20 events will take place in two years.

• The 2020 edition will be held in Australia and the 2021 edition will be held in India. The first time it happened was 2009 (England) and 2010 (West Indies).

• There will be a 2019 and 2023 ODI World Cup, effectively scrapping the very concept of Champions Trophy, a tournament which was described as irrelevant by several critics given the presence of a full-fledged quadrennial World Cup.

8TH SOUTH ASIAN JUDO CHAMPIONSHIP

• The 8th South Asian Judo Championship was held in Lalitpur, Nepal. India topped the medal tally.

• India won 10 Gold and 3 Bronze medals in the individual category followed by Nepal and Pakistan at 2nd and 3rd place respectively.

• Indian women grabbed all 7 gold medals in the individual category while men bagged 3 gold and 3 bronze medals. Besides, Indian women and men also won the respective team events.

BENGALURU FC WINS SUPER CUP FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

• Bengaluru FC has won the inaugural edition of Super Cup Football tournament. In the final at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, they defeated Kolkata football giants East Bengal by a convincing margin of 4-1.

• Bengaluru thus maintained their record of winning a trophy in each of the five seasons they have been in existence.



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• They have won five trophies during the brief period they have been in existence, which include two I-League titles and an equal number of Federation Cup crowns apart from the inaugural edition of the Super Cup.

MANIKA BATRA RECOMMENDED FOR ARJUNA AWARD

• The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) has recommended Manika Batra, the country's only quadruple medallist at the 21st Commonwealth Games, for the prestigious Arjuna Award.

• Batra created history in Gold Coast, single-handedly taking India to a maiden team gold before winning a singles gold, another first.

SHOOTING TO BE EXCLUDED FROM 2022 CWG GAMES

• The Birmingham Organising Committee of CWG has decided to exclude shooting from the 2022 Games, citing logistical issues.

• Durban was to originally host the 2022 CWG but it later expressed its inability to host the Games due to financial problems. The Commonwealth Games Federation later awarded the 2022 CWG to Birmingham.

• Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra has said dropping of shooting from 2022 games will be a huge setback for India, especially for its young shooters.

2 INDIAN ATHLETES BARRED FOR BREACHING "NO NEEDLES" POLICY

• Two Indian athletes were ordered out of the Commonwealth Games for breaching the 'no needle policy'.

• Race walker KT Irfan and Triple Jumper V Rakesh Babu were ordered to return home after they failed to explain the presence of needles in their bedroom at the Games Village.

• Athletics Federation of India Secretary CK Valson said, there will be an inquiry after the Games and it will be time-bound.

ACE SHUTTLER KIDAMBI SRIKANTH BECOMES WORLD NO 1

• Ace Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth became World number 1 in men’s singles category. He overtook World Champion Viktor Axelsen at the top of rankings with 76,895 points.

• Srikanth has now become the first Indian male shuttler to achieve the feat in modern ranking system. He joins Saina Nehwal to become only the second Indian to achieve the feat.



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BAYERN COASTS TO SIXTH CONSECUTIVE BUNDESLIGA TITLE

• Bayern Munich won the Bundesliga champions for the 6th time on April 7 by defeating Augsburg. Bayern Munich has now become league champion for the 28th time in its history.

• Bundesliga is a professional football league in Germany and the football league with the highest average stadium attendance worldwide.

BADMINTON'S NEW SERVICE RULE NOT USED AT CWG 2018

• The Commonwealth Games Federation decided to not apply the new experimental service rule of Badminton World Federation’s for the 2018 edition.

• The new service rule, which mandates that the shuttle be exactly at 1.15 meters above the ground at the time of service, was tried at the prestigious All England Championships in March.

KERALA LIFTS 72ND SANTOSH TROPHY FOOTBALL TITLE

• To lift 72nd edition of Santosh Trophy, Kerala defeated 32-time winners West Bengal 4-2 in the final. The final was played on April 1, 2018 at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.

• The Santosh Trophy, started in 1941, is a football knock-out competition held under AIFF

• The tournament is named after the president of the Indian Football Association (West Bengal's football association) at the time, Sir Manmatha Nath Roy Chowdhary of Santosh.



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S T A T E

WEST BENGAL: BEST STATE IN PREVENTION OF PARENT TO CHILD TRANSMISSION OF HIV/AIDS

• West Bengal has been adjudged the best State in the country in the prevention of parent-to-child transmission of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), which leads to AIDS.

• The State Government has enabled 16.5 lakh pregnant women from Bengal in preventing the transmission of HIV to their newborn children.

• For those adults and children found HIV positive, the Government provides free treatment through Anti-Retroviral Therapy Centres situated in sub-divisional, district and medical college hospitals.

National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO)

The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), is a Central Government agency under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. It has played an important role in controlling the spread of HIV and the treatment of AIDS since the early 1990s.

J&K CABINET GIVES NOD TO DEATH PENALTY FOR CHILD RAPISTS

• The Jammu and Kashmir Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 and the Jammu and Kashmir Protection of Children from Sexual Violence Ordinance, 2018 were cleared by the State Cabinet.

• According to the Ordinance, raping children less than 12 years of age has been made punishable with death sentence.

• Further, if the rape victim is above 12 and below 16 years, the offence has been made punishable with rigorous imprisonment of 20 years and may extend to life sentence.

DIU SMART CITY BECOMES FIRST TO RUN ON 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY

• Diu, part of union territory of Daman and Diu has become the first city in India that runs on 100 per cent renewable energy during the daytime, setting a bench-mark for other cities to follow.

• Diu had been importing 73 per cent of its power from Gujarat till last year. Diu also offers its residents a subsidy of Rs 10, 000-50,000 for installing 1-5 -KW rooftop solar panels. The city is saving about 13,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.

• On other smart cities, Bengaluru Smart City is working on implementation of solution to improve traffic management, while Jaipur Smart City Ltd (JSCL) has planned to develop night bazaar at Chaura Rasta, in the heart of Pink city.



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VICE PRESIDENT LAUNCHES ATAL AMRIT ABHIYAN IN ASSAM

• Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu, launched the cashless mode of Atal-Amrit Abhiyan (AAA), an ambitious health assurance scheme of government of Assam, at a function held at international convention centre of Srimanta Sankardev Kalakshetra in Assam.

• The cashless facility will greatly benefit the poor sections of the society, who have been covered under Atal Amrit Abhiyan to ensure affordable medical care for all.

• Stressing on need to improve healthcare facilities in the rural areas, Naidu urged the state government to make rural posting compulsory for all doctors.

MADHYA PRADESH CONFERRED MOST FILM FRIENDLY STATE AWARD

• Madhya Pradesh has bagged the Most Film Friendly State Award given by the central government for its efforts to ease filming in the state by creating a well-structured website, film friendly infrastructure and more.

• The jury constituted to select the Most Film Friendly Award was chaired by acclaimed film maker Ramesh Sippy.

• Uttarakhand was given a Special Mention Certificate to recognize the efforts made by the State towards creating a film friendly environment.

WEST BENGAL TO SET UP CHILD PROTECTION COMMITTEES AT GRASSROOT LEVEL

• The West Bengal government has plans to set up child protection committees at the villages to protect children from being abused.

• According to The National Crime Records Bureau report on crimes in India for 2016; 106,958 cases of crimes against children were recorded in 2016.

88% DELHIITES ARE VITAMIN D-DEFICIENT: REPORT

• According to a survey conducted by Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM); approximately 88% of the people have Vitamin D deficiency in Delhi-NCR.

• Vitamin D deficiency causes chronic muscle pain, spasms, low energy levels and depression. • Vitamin D deficiency can also lead to bone mineralization, leading to bone softening

diseases as rickets in children and osteomalacia and osteoporosis in adults. • Rickets is a skeletal disorder that is caused by lack of Vitamin D, Calcium and Phosphate.



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FIRST MEETING OF THE NITI FORUM FOR NORTH EAST HELD

• The first meeting of the newly constituted NITI Forum for North East was held in Agartala, Tripura on 10 April 2018.

• The meeting has outlined five development missions for promoting sectors like horticulture, tourism and food processing in the region.

• The focus of development projects in the region will be based on the concept of "HIRA" which stands for Highways, Internet ways, Railways and Airways.

NITI Forum for North East

The NITI Forum for North East was constituted in February 2018 with an aim to ensure sustainable economic growth of the North Eastern Region (NER) of the country and periodically review the development status in NER.

AN INITIATIVE FOR TRIBAL WELFARE 'QUEST' LAUNCHED IN MAHARASHTRA

• The Maharashtra government set up an institution to evaluate and quantify special development budget allocations and their impact on tribal development.

• It wants to bring greater accountability in spending and management of dedicated funds allocated for tribal welfare.

• The state has taken the first initiative in the country to ensure every rupee awarded is not only accounted for but the development in lives of tribal people through the projects undertaken is also quantified.

UTTARAKHAND’S SECOND MEGA FOOD PARK AT UDHAM SINGH NAGAR INAUGURATED

• Union Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated the second Mega Food Park in Uttarakhand at Mahuakhera Ganj on April 8, 2018.

• The food park is being set up at a cost of Rs 99.96 crore and expected to benefit around 25,000 farmers.

• Himalayan Mega Food Park - is being set up in an area of 50.14 acres, would have a central processing center as well as well as three Primary Processing Centers (PPCs) at Ram Nagar, Ramgarh and Kaladungi.

MADHYA PRADESH KADAKNATH CHICKEN GETS GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION TAG

• Kadaknath is a chicken breed whose black meat is in demand and is native to Jhabua, Alirajpur and parts of Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh.



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• Chennai-based GI Registry accepted the application of Gramik Vikas Trust, Jhabua, which was filed in 2012.

Geographical indication (GI)

A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on certain products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g. a town, region, or country).

India, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 and it came into force on September 15, 2003.

Darjeeling tea became the first GI tagged product in India, in 2004-05.



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P E R S O N I N N E W S

PAWAN CHAMLING

• The Chief Minister of Sikkim and the founder of Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) Pawan Kumar Chamling on April 29, 2018 became the longest serving Chief Minister of India.

• Prior to him the record of longest-serving Chief Minister was held by former Chief Minister of West Bengal late Jyoti Basu. Basu held the office of CM of Bengal for 23 long years.

• Chamling was sworn in as Sikkim Chief Minister for the record fifth consecutive time on May 21, 2014. He was sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Sikkim for the first time in 1993.

CHRISTINE SCHRANER BURGENER

• United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced the appointment of Christine Schraner Burgener of Switzerland as his new Special Envoy on Myanmar.

• Ms. Burgener was the Ambassador of Switzerland to Germany since 2015. From 2009 to 2015, she served as Ambassador to Thailand and led efforts to mediate between the two sides in the violence that erupted in Thailand in 2010.

INDU MALHOTRA

• The Union Law Ministry approved the recommendation of the Supreme Court's (SC) collegium to appoint the senior lawyer Indu Malhotra as SC Judge.

• With this, she became the first woman lawyer to be directly appointed as a Supreme Court judge.

• In 2007, Malhotra became the second woman lawyer to be appointed as senior advocate by the Supreme Court. First was, Leila Seth (1977).

• She is the seventh woman judge since independence to make it to the Supreme Court. At present, Justice R. Banumathi is the lone woman judge in the apex court.

• The first woman to be appointed as Supreme Court judge was Justice M. Fathima Beevi in 1989.

ABDO BENITEZ

• Conservative former senator Mario Abdo Benitez has been elected president of Paraguay. He beat his closest rival, Efrain Alegre from the liberal opposition alliance, by four percentage points.

• With almost all of the ballots counted, he won 46.46% of the vote compared to 42.73% for Alegre.



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BOOKS & AUHTORS

Adi Shankaracharya: Hinduism’s Greatest Thinker written by Pavan Varma

Winning like Sachin: Think & Succeed like Tendulkar authored by Devendra Prabhudesai

MUKHAMMEDKALIY ABYLGAZIYEV

• Kyrgyzstan's Parliament named Mukhammedkaliy Abylgaziyev Prime Minister after his nomination by the Social Democratic party which leads the ruling coalition.

• Abylgaziyev, previously chief of staff in President Sooronbai Jeenbekov's office, replaced Sapar Isakov whose cabinet lost a no-confidence vote.

MIGUEL DIAZ-CANEL

• Cuba's new President Miguel Diaz-Canel, who was named as Raul Castro's successor, vowed to keep the Caribbean island on the path of "revolution" but also on the path of economic reform.

• The 57-year-old, who has spent years climbing the party ranks, was named the sole candidate for the presidency and was formally named to a five-year term, taking the helm a day before his 58th birthday.

LT GEN PP MALHOTRA

• Lieutenant General P P Malhotra has assumed charge as the new Director General of the National Cadet Corps (NCC).

• Prior to assuming his present appointment, he was chief engineer of the Indian Army's Northern Command.

National Cadet Corps (NCC)

The NCC is the largest uniformed youth organisation in the world. It is the Indian military cadet corps with its Headquarters at New Delhi, India.

The NCC in India was formed with the National Cadet Corps Act of 1948. It was raised on 15 July 1948.

The origin of NCC can be traced back to the ‘University Corps’, which was created under the Indian Defence Act 1917, with the objective to make up the shortage of the Army. In 1920, when the Indian Territorial Act was passed, the ‘University Corps’ was replaced by the University Training Corps (UTC).



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BHANU PRATAP SHARMA

• Former senior bureaucrat Bhanu Pratap Sharma is the new Banks Board Bureau (BBB) chairman. He replaced Vinod Rai, whose term ended on March 31, 2018.

• Sharma is a retired IAS officer, Bihar cadre, 1981 batch. He is presently chairman of the recruitment and assessment centre at the Defence Research and Development Organisation. (DRDO).

Banks Board Bureau (BBB)

The BBB was set up on the recommendations of a committee headed by banker P J Nayak. Its mandate is to improve PSB governance, recommend on selection of chiefs of government-owned banks and financial institutions and to help banks in developing strategies and capital raising plans. It is based in Mumbai, at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

RISHAD PREMJI

• Rishad Premji, chief strategy officer and board member of Wipro Ltd, is appointed as chairman of IT industry body Nasscom (National Association of Software and Service Companies) for 2018-19.

• He succeeds Raman Roy, Chairman and Managing Director, Quatrro Global Services, who served as Chairman of NASSCOM for the year 2017-18.

BALRAM BHARGAVA

• AIIMS professor Balram Bhargava was appointed as the Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Secretary of the Department of Health Research.

• He has been appointed to the post for a period of three years or until attainment of age of 60 years.

• Swaroop, currently senior adviser in the same department, has been appointed to the post for a period of two years or until she attains 60 years of age.

RAKESH BHARTI MITTAL

• Bharti Enterprises Vice-Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal assumed office of the President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for 2018-19 year.

• He takes over from Shobana Kamineni, Executive Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd.

• Uday Kotak, Founder and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank took over as President-Designate, whereas Vikram Kirloskar is the new Vice-President of CII.

• CII is a non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed organization, which was founded in 1895.



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LIONEL MESSI

• The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has appointed FC Barcelona’s Argentine star Lionel Messi as an ambassador to promote responsible tourism.

• The UN body defines “responsible tourism” as tourism that “helps maximise the sector’s benefits while minimising its potentially negative impact on the environment, cultural heritage and societies across the globe”.

• UNWTO is based in Madrid and its chief is chief Zurab Pololikashvili. It was founded in the year 1975.

JULIUS MAADA BIO

• Julius Maada Bio has been elected as the new president of Sierra Leone on April 4. Bio is a former soldier who briefly led a military junta more than two decades ago.

• He won 51.81% of ballots in last month’s election. He beat incumbent Samura Kamara, who secured 48.19% of the vote.

DEBJANI GHOSH

• Former managing director of Intel South Asia, Debjani Ghosh has been chosen as the new president of NASSCOM.

• She will succeed R. Chandrashekhar upon completion of his term. Ms. Ghosh was the first woman to lead Intel India.

• National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) is a trade association of Indian information technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry. NASSCOM is headquartered in Delhi.

ROSEMARY DICARLO

• American diplomat Rosemary DiCarlo was appointed to become the first woman to head UN political affairs, one of the most high-profile positions at the world body.

• DiCarlo will replace Jeffrey Feltman, another American who held the post of under-secretary-general for political affairs since 2012.

• DiCarlo has been president of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, an organization dedicated to conflict resolution.

VINEET JOSHI

• Senior bureaucrat Vineet Joshi was appointed as the Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA).

• NTA will conduct the entrance examinations for higher educational institutions organised by the CBSE, AICTE and



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other bodies. • Joshi, a 1992-batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, was appointed to the post for five

years. • Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had, in his budget speech of 2017-18, announced the

setting up of the NTA.

CARLOS ALVARADO

• Carlos Alvarado, the candidate for Costa Rica's center-left ruling party, was elected as the next president of Costa Rica.

• Alvarado, a 38-year-old former labor minister, won 60.66 percent of the ballots, against 39.33 per cent for his ultra-conservative rival, Fabricio Alvarado (no relation).



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A W A R D S

BCCI LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

• A three-man BCCI panel has recommended former Indian opener late Pankaj Roy and three others for the prestigious Ck Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award for the year 2016-17 and 2017-18.

CK NAYUDU LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Pankaj Roy (posthumously) and Diana Edulji for 2016-17

Anshuman Gaekwad and Sudha Shah for 2017-18

BCCI SPECIAL AWARD

Naren Tamhane and Abbas Ali Baig (2016-17) Budhi Kunderan (2017-18).

• Edulji had played 20 Tests and 34 ODIs in a career spanning over 17 years, taking 63 and 46 wickets respectively.

• Pankaj Roy who held Test cricket’s world record opening partnership of 413 with Vinoo Mankad for a little over 51 years.

• The cash prize for the Lifetime Achievement is Rs 25 lakh each and Special Award is Rs 15 lakh each.

AOC ORDER OF MERIT

• The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) honoured the Olympian Peter Norman with its highest award the ‘Order of Merit’ posthumously.

• The Australian sprinter shared the podium with Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos and backed their Black Power salutes at the 1968 Mexico City Games.

• Norman won the silver medal in the 200 meters at the Mexico City Games and his time of 20.06 seconds remains an Australian national record.



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2018 MARTHA FARRELL AWARD

• Nadiya Shafi, a video reporter from Srinagar, has won 2018 Martha Farrell Award for Excellence in Women's Empowerment.

• The award is in recognition of Nadiya's commitment towards gender equality and leading gender discussions clubs in her hometown defying patriarchal norms.

Martha Farrell Award

The Martha Farrell Award for Excellence in Women’s Empowerment has been instituted to honour Dr. Farrell and her ideals. Launched in October 2016, it is a first-of-its-kind initiative to discover, recognise and honour mid-career individuals and committed institutions, which have made valuable contributions in the areas of women’s empowerment, gender equality or feminism in everyday life.

NATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (IP) AWARD 2018

• The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has been awarded the National Intellectual Property Award, 2018 in the category “Top R&D Institution for Patents and Commercialization”.

• The award was given by Indian Intellectual Property Office on World IP Day on April 26, 2018.

• The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research was established in 1942. It runs 38 laboratories and 39 field stations throughout the nation, with a collective staff of over 12,000 scientists and scientific and technical personnel

2018 UNESCO/GUILLERMO CANO PRESS FREEDOM PRIZE

Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid, known as Shawkan, has been selected by an independent international jury of media professionals as the laureate of the 2018 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize.

The choice of Mahmoud Abu Zeid pays tribute to his courage, resistance and commitment to freedom of expression.

The Prize will be awarded on May 3, 2018 on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, celebrated in Ghana this year and whose theme is Keeping Power in Check: Media, Justice and The Rule of Law.

Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize

The Prize recognizes a person, organization or institution that has made an outstanding contribution to the defence or promotion of press freedom especially in the face of danger. It is named in honour of Guillermo Cano Isaza, the Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper El Espectador in Bogota, Colombia, on 17 December 1986.



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PULITZER PRIZE 2018

• The Pulitzer Prize 2018, the biggest prize in US journalism, was announced on April 16, 2018. The prize celebrates the persistence of reporters and commenters.

• The 2018 Pulitzer Prize winners will be given in 14 journalism and seven letters, drama and music categories.

• List of Winners I. Journalism

Public Service: The New York Times and The New Yorker For breaking the Harvey Weinstein scandal with reporting that galvanized the #MeToo movement and set off a national reckoning over sexual misconduct in the workplace.

Investigative Reporting: Staff of The Washington Post For purposeful and relentless reporting that changed the course of a Senate race in Alabama by revealing a candidate’s alleged past sexual harassment of teenage girls and subsequent efforts to undermine the journalism that exposed it.

II. Letters, Drama and Music Fiction: Less, by Andrew Sean Greer (Lee Boudreaux Books/Little, Brown

and Company) Drama: Cost of Living, by Martyna Majok History: The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea, by Jack E. Davis Biography: Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder, by

Caroline Fraser Poetry: Half-light: Collected Poems 1965-2016, by Frank Bidart Music: DAMN., by Kendrick Lamar

Pulitzer Prize

The Pulitzer Prize, awarded for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature and musical composition in the United States was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of American Joseph Pulitzer who had made his fortune as a newspaper published.

Prizes are awarded yearly in 21 categories. In 20 of these, each winner receives a certificate and USD 15,000 cash, while the winner in the public service category of the journalism competition is awarded a gold medal.

RAJ KAPOOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

• The Maharashtra Government announced the prestigious Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement Award. The awards will be given away at the 55th Maharashtra State Marathi Film Festival.

• Winners



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o Raj Kapoor Lifetime Achievement Award: Veteran actor Dharmendra o Raj Kapoor Special Contribution Award: Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani o Chitrapati V Shantaram Jivangaurav Puraskar: Veteran actor Vijay Chavhan o Chitrapati V Shantaram Vishesh Yogdaan Puraskar: Actress-director Mrinal Kulkarni

Nature of the Award

Both the lifetime achievement awards carry a citation and cash reward of Rs 5,00,000, while the special contribution awards carry a citation and Rs 3,00,000 cash prize each.

SHORENSTEIN JOURNALISM AWARD FOR 2017

• Siddharth Varadarajan, founding editor of ‘The Wire’ has been named the 2017 recipient of the Shorenstein Journalism Award.

• The award, given annually by Stanford University’s Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC), is conferred upon a journalist who has produced outstanding reporting on Asia and has contributed significantly to Western understanding of the region.

DADASAHEB PHALKE AWARD 2017

• Actor Vinod Khanna who passed away in 2017, was honoured with the the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest cinema honour in India, posthumously.

• Vinod Khanna, an iconic movie legend, also won awards like Filmfare Best Supporting Actor award (1975 film Haath Ki Safai) and the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award (2000) on the resume.

• Debuted in Man Ka Meet (1968), Khanna was primarily known for his work as an actor in Hindi films during the 1970s. He took a brief break from the films (1982–1987) and joined politics in 1997.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award

The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India's highest award in cinema. It is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals. The award comprises a Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) medallion, a shawl, and a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh. The first recepient of the award was noted film actress Devika Rani in 1969.



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D E F E N C E & S E C U R I T Y

LCA TEJAS SUCCESSFULLY FIRED DERBY AIR-TO-AIR BVRM

• Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas successfully tested by firing the Israeli Derby Air-to-Air Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile for the second time.

• Indian Air Force recently conducted the Gagan Shakti 2018 to test the war-waging capabilities in a possible two-front scenario.

• Tejas had on May 12, 2017, fired the Derby Air-to-Air BVR missile for the first time in RADAR guided mode at the Interim Test Range (ITR), Chandipur in Odisha.

Derby BVR Missile

Derby BVR Missile is a short to medium range BVR Air-to-Air missile. It has been developed jointly by Israeli armament development agency Rafael and Israel Aircraft Industries MBT. It has a maximum effective range of about 50 km.

DAC APPROVES CAPITAL ACQUISITION PROPOSALS WORTH RS 3,687 CRORE

• The Defence Acquisition Council accorded approval to capital acquisition proposals worth over Rs 3,687 crore.

• The DAC approved procurement of Defence Research and Development Organisation’s designed and developed NAG Missile System (NAMIS) at the cost of Rs 524 crore.

• The DAC also approved procurement of thirteen 127 mm calibre guns for the Navy. • These guns with an engagement range of 24 kilometres will be procured from BAE Systems

of the US at a cost of Rs 3000c crore.

EXERCISE HARIMAU SHAKTI 2018: INDO-MALAYSIAN DEFENCE COOPERATION

• Joint training exercise Harimau Shakti, which is a part of ongoing Indian-Malaysian defence cooperation, started in the dense forests of Malaysia's Sengai Perdik on April 30, 2018. It will continue till May 13, 2018.

• The exercise is aimed at bolstering cooperation and coordination between armed forces of both the nations and to share the expertise of both the contingents in conduct of counter-insurgency operations in jungle terrain.



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• This is the first instance wherein a joint training exercise of this magnitude involving Indian and Malaysian soldiers is being organised on Malaysian soil.

LANDING CRAFT UTILITY (LCU) L53 COMMISSIONED

• The third ship of the Landing Craft Utility (LCU) Mk-IV project was inducted into the Indian Navy at Port Blair.

• LCU MK-IV ship is an amphibious ship with a displacement of 830 Tons and is capable of transporting combat equipment such as Main Battle Tanks Arjun, T72 and other Armoured Vehicles.

• The ship is fitted with state-of-the-art equipment and advanced systems such as the Integrated Bridge System (IBS) and the Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS).

• The vessel has been built and designed by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata for Navy. The first ship of the series was commissioned in 2016.

IAF EXERCISE GAGANSHAKTI-2018 TO BEGIN ON APRIL 8

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) will conduct its Gaganshakti combat exercise from April10 to April 23.

• IAF will mobilise more than 1100 combat, transport and rotary wing (helicopter) aircraft in order to practice the real time scenario.

• The exercise will be conducted on the Western areas bordering Pakistan and along China border in the Northern areas.

• It is similar to mobilizing troops during the war that’s why there is a protocol to notify the bordering countries. Pakistan and Chinese authorities have been notified.

SAHYOG- HYEOBLYEOG 2018: INDIAN, KOREAN COAST GUARDS JOINT EXERCISE

• Indian and Korean Coast Guards held joint ant-piracy, search and rescue exercise at the Chennai coast on April 5. The Indo-Korean exercise is called SAHYOG-HYEOBLYEOG 2018.

• Indian Coast Guard deployed a Dornier aircraft to carry out sea-air coordinated search along with ICG Shaurya, Rani Abbakka, C-423, and C-431 in the exercise drill.

10TH EDITION OF DEFEXPO HELD IN CHENNAI

• The 10th edition of the international defence expo was held at Kanchipuram, (Tamil Nadu) from April 11 to 14, 2018. The defence expo is held once in two years.



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• The tagline for the Expo is ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’. More than 40 countries will showcase their defence prowess during the expo.

• The expo showcased India as an emerging major defense production hub in line with Make in India.



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Q U E S T I O N S F O R P R A C T I C E 1. Which among the following football

club has won La Liga title? a) Barcelona FC b) Real Madrid c) Leganes d) Bayern 2. What is the name of the multi-nation

exercise in which armies of India and Pakistan will be taking part for the first time?

a) Mission Sadbhavna b) Mission Hand-in-Hand c) Mission Peace d) Mission Cobra 3. Pawan Chamling became the longest-

serving chief minister of India in April 2018. He is the chief Minister of which state?

a) Manipur b) Sikkim c) Karnataka d) Assam 4. In which country World’s oldest

spider has been discovered? a) China b) India c) Australia d) South Africa 5. Which African country has recently

legalized the marijuana for medical purposes?

a) Namibia b) Nigeria c) South Sudan d) Zimbabwe 6. Which one of the following countries

is neither a member nor an observer state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)?

a) Mongolia b) Iran c) Pakistan d) Turkmenistan 7. Who among the following has been

awarded with the Australian Olympic

Committee’s (AOC) Order of Merit? a) Peter Norman b) Scotty James c) David Morris d) Edwin Flack 8. International Buddhist Conference

2018 was held in which city? a) Lumbini (Nepal) b) Kathmandu (Nepal) c) Gaya (India) d) Banaras (India) 9. Which among the following has

emerged as Best State in the country in the prevention of parent-to-child transmission of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus)?

a) Haryana b) Tamil Nadu c) Kerala d) West Bengal 10. Which former Indian women’s cricket

captain has been recommended for the prestigious CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award?

a) Diana Edulji b) Anju Jain c) Mamtha Maben d) Sandhya Agarwal 11. What is the theme of the 2018 World

Intellectual Property Day? a) Cheating the Future today b) Think, imagine, create c) Innovation improving lives d) Powering Change: women in

innovation and creativity 12. What is the rank of India in 2018

World Press Freedom Index? a) 138th b) 136th c) 110th d) 142nd 13. Which country has created robot that

transforms into car with men on-board?

a) Japan



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b) China c) India d) Russia 14. Where was the Asian Youth

Championships held in April 2018? a) Buenos Aires b) Beijing c) Bangkok d) New Delhi 15. Which country is hosting the World

Environment Day for the year 2018? a) China b) India c) Russia d) Sri Lanka 16. What is the name of the scholarship

announced for people of Indian Origin who did Exemplary work for Development Journalism?

a) Deen Dayal Upadhyay Scholarship b) Arya Samaj Scholarship c) Sahajanand Saraswati Scholarship d) Ambedkar Scholarship 17. Name the Video reporter from

Srinagar who has won the 2018 Martha farewell Award for excellence in Women’s empowerment

a) Nadiya Shafi b) Rifat Abdullah c) Sheikh Mehran Aslam d) None of the above 18. Which country is hosting the world’s

first ever female foreign ministers meeting?

a) South Africa b) China c) Canada d) India 19. In which country world’s only tropical

polar bear died at the age of 27 years? a) Singapore b) Russia c) Japan d) South Africa 20. Which among the following

organization has developed first indigenous bulletproof vest?

a) Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR)

b) Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC)

c) Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership (GCNEP)

d) Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

21. Who has been approved as the new Secretary of State by the US Senate?

a) Mike Pompeo b) Bernie Sanders c) Paul Ryan d) Ted Cruz 22. Name the American actor who will be

honoured with the 32nd American Cinematheque Award

a) Johnny Depp b) Matt Damon c) Denzel Washington d) Bradley Cooper 23. At which place the third ship of the

Landing Craft Utility (LCU) Mk-IV project was commissioned?

a) Port Blair b) Panaji c) Nagercoil d) Chennai 24. What is the name of Joint Indian-

Malaysian defence exercise to be conducted in the dense forests of Malaysia's Sengai Perdik?

a) Garuda Shakt b) Mitra Shakti c) Yudh Abhyas d) Harimau Shakti 25. Name the first woman judge to be

appointed to the top post directly from the bar.

a) Indu Malhotra b) Chitra Sharma c) Anamika Khanna d) Sujata V. Manohar 26. Which telecom service provider

merged with Indus Towers, to make it world’s largest towers company?

a) Essar Telecom b) Bharti Infratel c) Reliance Infratel d) Aster Infrastructure 27. Name the person selected for 2018



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UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize

a) Dawit Isaak b) Khadija Ismayilova c) Mahmoud Abu Zeid d) Mazen Darwish 28. In part of which state, Indian

researchers have discovered the world’s smallest land fern?

a) Kerala b) Tamil Nadu c) Gujarat d) Goa 29. Which among the following countries

suspended suspend membership in UNASUR regional bloc? I. Argentina II. Brazil III. Chile IV. Colombia V. Paraguay VI. Peru

a) I, II, III and V b) II, III, V and VI c) II, III, IV, V and VI d) All of the above 30. Which state government approved an

ordinance providing death penalty for the rape of children below 12 years of age in April 2018?

a) Maharashtra b) Gujarat c) Punjab d) J&K 31. In which off the following area, govt.

has relaxed Restricted Area Permit regime? I. Daman and Diu II. Andaman and Nicobar III. Lakshadweep

a) I and II b) II and III c) I and III d) All of the above 32. In which of the following states, Home

ministry has allowed foreigners to travel without a permit? I. Nagaland II. Manipur

III. Mizoram a) I and II b) II and III c) I and III d) All of the above 33. Which among the following IT firms

becomes first Indian IT firm to cross $100 bn in market cap?

a) TCS b) HCL c) Wipro d) Infosys 34. Name the northeast state from which

the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) was withdrawn in April 2018.

a) Meghalaya b) Arunachal Pradesh c) Assam d) Manipur 35. Every 24 April in India is observed as

the National Panchayati Raj Day. In which year the day was first celebrated?

a) 2010 b) 2013 c) 2008 d) 2014 36. From which state PM Narendra Modi

launched the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan?

a) Maharashtra b) Madhya Pradesh c) Uttar Pradesh d) Assam 37. Which city in India has become the

first to run on 100% Renewable Energy?

a) Diu b) Jaipur c) Amritsar d) Chennai 38. India’s first Metrino project will be

launched in which city? a) Mumbai b) Bengaluru c) Delhi d) Hyderabad 39. Name the Indian Golf Player who has



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clinched the Panasonic Open title. a) Anirban Lahiri b) Jeev Milkha Singh c) Rahil Gangjee d) Jyoti Randhawa 40. What is the theme of the 29th Road

Safety Week? a) Sadak Suraksha Jeevan Raksha b) Savdhani Hatti Durghatna ghati c) Alert today, Alive tomorrow d) Best drivers are aware that they must

be beware 41. As per the revised RBI’s Know Your

Customer (KYC) guidelines which document has been made mandatory?

a) Aadhaar b) Voting Identity Card c) PAN d) Driving License 42. 8th South Asian Judo Championship is

being held in which country? a) India b) Pakistan c) Nepal d) Bangladesh 43. The Fugitive Economic Offenders

Ordinance aims to curb the defaulters of bank loan. Which of the following economic offenders will be prosecuted under this bill?

a) Corporate offenders refusing to return to India to avoid investigation by Indian authorities.

b) Bank Loan Defaulters who remain in India

c) Economic offenders who bypass the Indian law but remain in India

d) All of them 44. Who is the writer of the book ‘Adi

Shankaracharya: Hinduism’s Greatest Thinker’?

a) Hunusagahalli Jayadeva b) Shankar Parashtekar c) David Camp d) Pavan Varma 45. Who among the following is Cuba's

new president? a) Ramiro Valdes b) Raul Castro c) Miguel Diaz-Canel d) Ricardo Alarcon 46. For which sports, the Birmingham

Organising Committee of CWG has decided to exclude from the 2022 Games?

a) Shooting b) Badminton c) Basketball d) Boxing 47. Which team has won the inaugural

Super Cup Football tournament 2018? a) Bengaluru FC b) East Bengal c) Kolkata d) Mumbai 48. How many technology firms have

signed Cybersecurity Tech Accord? a) 30 b) 11 c) 25 d) 34 49. Who will head the recently formed

Defence Planning Committee (DPC)? a) National Security Adviser (NSA), Ajit

Doval b) Chief Naval Staff, Sunil Lanba c) Chief of the Army Staff (COAS),

General Bipin Rawat d) None of the above 50. In which city 16th Federation Cup Jr

National athletics championship began in April 2018?

a) Guwahati b) Amritsar c) Pune d) Coimbatore 51. Which state has been conferred Most

Film Friendly state Award? a) Maharashtra b) Madhya Pradesh c) Assam d) Gujarat



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ANSWERS WITH EXPLANATION

1. 2. (a)

Explanation: Barcelona won this season's Spanish La Liga title after beating Deportivo La Coruna, 4-2.Barcelona bagged the league title with three matches to spare. In total, the club has won the La Liga title 25 times.

3. (c)

Explanation: In a first, arch rivals India and Pakistan will be part of a multi-nation counter-terror exercise named ‘Mission Peace’ in Russia in September, which will also be joined by China and several other countries. The military exercise will take place under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

4. (b)

Explanation: Sikkim Chief Minister and Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) founder Pawan Kumar Chamling surpassed the record of former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu by becoming the longest serving Chief Minister of any Indian state.

5. (c)

Explanation: Scientists have discovered, the world’s oldest recorded spider – a 43-year-old arachnid in Australia. The Giaus Villosus trapdoor matriarch, which recently died during a long-term population study, had outlived the previous world record holder, a 28-year old tarantula found in Mexico.

6. (d)

Explanation: Zimbabwe has become the second African country to legalize

marijuana for medical and scientific purposes.

7. (d)

Explanation: The SCO comprises eight member states, namely the Republic of India, the Republic of Kazakhstan, China, Kirgizstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The SCO counts four observer status namely, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia.

8. (a)

Explanation: Peter Norman, the Australian sprinter who shared the podium with Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos and backed their Black Power salutes at the 1968 Mexico City Games, was posthumously given his country's highest Olympic award on April 28 for his "brave stand" 50 years ago.

9. (a)

Explanation: The International Buddhist Conference was organized in Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha. Around 300 participants from 24 nations, including archaeologists, historians, Buddhist gurus and scholars, participated in the 2 day event.

10. (b)

Explanation: Bengal has been adjudged the best State in the country in the prevention of parent-to-child transmission of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), which leads to AIDS.

11. (a)



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Explanation: A three-man BCCI panel has recommended former India women’s team captain and current CoA member, Diana Edulji, for the prestigious CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award. Along with Edulji, former India opener, late Pankaj Roy, will also be awarded posthumously.

12. (d)

Explanation: The World Intellectual day is observed on the April 26, to highlight the role of intellectual property rights such as patents, trademarks, industrial designs, and copyright, in spurring innovation and creativity. The theme of 2018 for this day is “Powering Change: Women in innovation and creativity”.

13. (a)

Explanation: India has been ranked 138th out of 180 countries in the 2018 World Press Freedom index, which is compiled by reporters without borders.

14. (a)

Explanation: Japanese engineers unveiled a robot that transforms into a car that can actually carry people on board, it is the first-ever such accomplishment in the history of robots. The 3.7-metre (12.1-feet)-tall two-seater robot "J-deite RIDE" can transform into a sportscar in a process that takes about a minute.

15. (c)

Explanation: Indian women boxers dominated the Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok on Friday, claiming three gold medals. Overall, the Indians signed off with three gold, four silver and four bronze medals in the event, which was also a qualifying

tournament for the Youth Olympics to be held in Buenos Aires in Argentina in late 2018.

16. (b)

Explanation: Ahead of the World Environment Day on June 5, the environment ministry in India has banned plastics in all protected areas around the country, thus declaring them "plastic free zones. India will host the World Environment Day this year.

17. (a)

Explanation: At the 69th Valedictory session of Development Journalism Course at Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi Smriti Irani announced a scholarship for Rs.25000/- in commemoration of Deen Dayal Upadhyay for people of Indian Origin who did exemplary work in development journalism.

18. (a)

Explanation: Nadiya Shafi, a video reporter from Srinagar, has won this year's ' Martha Farrell Award for Excellence in Women's Empowerment ', carrying a cash prize of Rs 1.50 lakh. The award is in recognition of Nadiya's commitment towards gender equality and leading gender discussions clubs in her hometown defying patriarchal norms.

19. (c)

Explanation: Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland says Canada and the European Union will host the world's first female foreign ministers' meeting in September 2018.

20. (a)



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Explanation: Inuka meaning "forbidden strength", the first polar bear to be born at Singapore Zoo was died on April 25. He was 27 years old, which is equal to more than 70 human years.

21. (b)

Explanation: A new economical and light in weight bulletproof jacket has been developed by Bhabha Atomic Reseach Centre (BARC) for the Indian armed force. The jacket named “Bhabha Kavach” weighs just 6.6 kg in comparison to the 17-kg jackets in use, and has passed over 30 tests carried out by certified agencies.

22. (a)

Explanation: The US Senate voted to approve former CIA director Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, after a bruising battle by Democrats against President Donald Trump's nominee. The approval came in time for Pompeo to lead the US delegation to NATO foreign minister talks in Brussels.

23. (d)

Explanation: Four-time Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper will receive the 32nd annual American Cinematheque Award. The actor will receive the award during a gala on November 29 at the Beverly Hilton.

24. (a)

Explanation: The third ship of the Landing Craft Utility (LCU) Mk-IV project was inducted into the Indian Navy at Port Blair. LCU MK-IV ship is an amphibious ship with a displacement of 830 Tons and is capable of transporting combat equipment such as Main Battle Tanks Arjun, T72 and other Armoured Vehicles.

25. (d)

Explanation: Joint training exercise Harimau Shakti, which is a part of ongoing Indian-Malaysian defence cooperation, will be conducted in the dense forests of Malaysia's Sengai Perdik from April 30 to May 13.

26. (a)

Explanation: The government has cleared the appointment of senior advocate Indu Malhotra as a Supreme Court Judge. She is the first woman judge to be appointed to the top post directly from the bar.

27. (b)

Explanation: Sunil Bharti Mittal-led Bharti Airtel has decided to merge Indus Towers with its tower arm Bharti Infratel, making the combined company to be the worlds largest tower company outside China. In India, the merger will create a pan-India tower company, with over 1,63,000 towers.

28. (c)

Explanation: Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abu Zeid, known as Shawkan, has been selected by an independent international jury of media professionals as the laureate of the 2018 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize.

29. (c)

Explanation: Indian researchers have discovered the world’s smallest land fern hiding in the Ahwa forests of the Western Ghats in Gujarat. The fingernail-sized fern belongs to a group known as the adder’s-tongue ferns, named after their resemblance to a snake’s tongue.

30. (d)



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Explanation: All of the above. A South American bloc created a decade ago to counter US influence in the region has temporarily lost half its members after six countries suspended their memberships amid differences over who should lead the group. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru had decided to temporarily leave the Union of South American Nations, or UNASUR.

31. (d)

Explanation: The Jammu and Kashmir government has approved an ordinance providing death penalty for the rape of children below 12 years of age. The Jammu and Kashmir Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 and the Jammu and Kashmir Protection of Children from Sexual Violence Ordinance, 2018 were cleared by the State Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti in Jammu.

32. (b)

Explanation: II and III, The Restricted Area Permit regime in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep will be relaxed for tourism promotion. This was decided during the third meeting of Island Development Agency chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi.

33. (b)

Explanation: The Home Ministry has decided to relax the six-decade-old Protected Area Permit regime from Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur for five years. Foreign tourists, except those from Pakistan, China and Afghanistan, will now be allowed to visit some of the most pristine locations of the country which, so far, were out of bounds for them without a special permit.

34. (a)

Explanation: India's largest software services exporter Tata Consultancy Services made history on Monday by becoming the first listed Indian IT firm to cross the $100-billion market-capitalisation.

35. (a)

Explanation: 27 years after the AFSPA (Armed Forces Special Powers Act) was imposed in Meghalaya, the Centre has withdrawn the act completely from the north-eastern state. With this, AFSPA has been left in six states only.

36. (a)

Explanation: Every year 24 April is observed as the National Panchayat raj day in India. It is also called as National Local Self-government day and is a national day of India. National Panchayat raj day was inaugurated in 2010 by then Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh.

37. (b)

Explanation: On the occasion of National Panchayati Raj Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan from Madhya Pradesh's Mandla district. The scheme will focus on training, building infrastructure and stepping up initiatives for e-governance under the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project.

38. (a)

Explanation: Diu, part of union territory of Daman and Diu has become the first city in India that runs on 100 per cent renewable energy during the daytime, setting a bench-mark for other cities to follow. Diu had been importing 73 per



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cent of its power from Gujarat till last year.

39. (c)

Explanation: The country's first Metrino project is coming up in New Delhi. The project, on the pattern of a ropeway, will cover a 70-km stretch from the Dhaula Kuan intersection in Delhi to Manesar, near Gurgaon, in Haryana.

40. (c)

Explanation: Indian golfer Rahil Gangjee clinched the Panasonic Open title in style by hitting a birdie in the last hole to end a 14-year-long title drought. The 39-year-old Gangjee was tied with Korea’s Hyungsung Kim on 13-under going into the 18th and the final hole. Gangjee had won his maiden Asian Tour title in China way back in 2004.

41. (a)

Explanation: The Union ministry of road transport and highways will observe the 29th road safety week from April 23-30 2018. The theme for the road safety week for the 2018 is is 'Sadak Suraksha - Jeevan Raksha'. The accident prevention relies on 4Es - Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Emergency care.

42. (a)

Explanation: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made linking of national biometric ID Aadhaar to bank accounts mandatory as part of its updated 'Know Your Customer (KYC)' guidelines. However, it will be subject to the final decision of the Supreme Court on making of Aadhaar mandatory.

43. (c)

Explanation: 8th South Asian Judo Championship was held in Lalitpur, Nepal. Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka participated in a 3 day championship.

44. (a)

Explanation: The Union Cabinet on April 21 approved to promulgate an Ordinance to crack down on corporate defaulters who refuse to return to India to avoid investigation by Indian authorities. The Bill was intended to lay down measures to deter economic offenders from evading the process of Indian law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts.

45. (d)

Explanation: On April 21, Indian President received the first copy of “Adi Shankaracharya: Hinduism’s Greatest Thinker” from the author Pavan Varma.

46. (c)

Explanation: Cuba's new President Miguel Diaz-Canel, who was named as Raul Castro's successor, vowed to keep the Caribbean island on the path of "revolution" but also on the path of economic reform.

47. (a)

Explanation: The Birmingham Organising Committee of CWG has decided to exclude shooting from the 2022 Games, citing logistical issues. The Commonwealth Games Federation has awarded the 2022 CWG to Birmingham.

48. (a)

Explanation: Bengaluru FC has won the inaugural edition of Super Cup Football tournament. In the final at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar today, they



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defeated Kolkata football giants East Bengal by a convincing margin of 4-1.

49. (d)

Explanation: Top 34 global technology and securities firms, led by Microsoft and Facebook, have signed a "Cybersecurity Tech Accord" to defend people from malicious attacks by cybercriminals and nation-states.

50. (a)

Explanation: The government has formed an overarching defence planning committee (DPC) to be headed by National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval. The DPC will be an addition to the existing policy groups such as the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) – a body of three chiefs.

51. (d)

Explanation: Over 800 athletes from 32 states across the country will take part in the 16th Federation Cup Junior National athletics championship, beginning at Coimbatore on 20 April 20, 2018. The meet will serve as the selections trials for the 18th Asian Junior Athletic Meet to be held at Gifu, Japan, in June.

52. (b)

Explanation: Madhya Pradesh has bagged the Most Film Friendly State Award given by the central government for its efforts to ease filming in the state by creating a well-structured website, film friendly infrastructure and more.



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O N E L I N E R S O F T H E M O N T H

NATIONAL

• The theme for the road safety week for the 2018 is - 'Sadak Suraksha - Jeevan Raksha'.

• Taipei World Trade Centre (TWTC) launched its office in – Delhi

• It has become the first to run on 100% Renewable Energy – Diu

• On the occasion of National Panchayati Raj Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Madhya Pradesh to launch the - Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan

• The northeast state from which the Armed Forces Special Powers Act has been taken off – Meghalaya

• This Aircraft would be inducted shortly into the Vintage Aircraft Flight of the Indian Air Force - Dakota DC-3

• First ever International SME Convention was held in – New Delhi

• The Restricted Area Permit regime will be relaxed for tourism promotion in the - Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep

• The state govt. has approved an ordinance providing death penalty for the rape of children below 12 years of age – J&K

• Indian researchers have discovered the world’s smallest land fern hiding in the Ahwa forests of the Western Ghats in – Gujarat

• This telecom service provider merges with Indus Towers, makes it world’s largest towers company – Bharti Infratel

• Cabinet approves increase in MSP for 2018-19 season for - Raw Jute

• The Union Cabinet Chaired has given approval to the declaration of Scheduled Areas under Fifth Schedule

to the Constitution of India in – Rajasthan

• The HRD ministry launched the second edition of the - Unnat Bharat Abhiyan

• PM releases commemorative postage stamp on - Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna

• The organization has bagged bags National Intellectual Property (IP) Award 2018 - The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research

• The Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of the NITI Aayog announced to launch - The Atal New India Challenges

• Scientists have identified a new species of frog called Fejervarya goemchi in – Goa

• A new economical and light in weight bulletproof jacket has been developed for the Indian armed force by - Bhabha Atomic Reseach Centre (BARC)

• A first of its kind Israeli Modern Art Exhibition is inaugurated in – New Delhi

• Smriti Irani inaugurated National Media Faculty Development Center Indian Journalism in – New Delhi

• The city to host India’s first ever nationwide food archaeology conference “ ArchaeoBroma” - Mumbai

• Prime Minister to launch first health centre under Ayushman Bharat in – Bijapur, Chattisgarh

• India is going to organize second Edition of The India Mobile Congress 2018 in – New Delhi

• World's Largest Solar Park to Come Up in – Gujarat



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• PM inaugurated Dr. Ambedkar National Memorial in - New Delhi

• AIIB decided to improve Rural Connectivity in India by investing - $ 140 M

• The eighth 3R regional forum in Asia and pacific was held in – Indore

• The state is hosting the 10th edition of a Biennial exhibition of weapons and Military hardware “ Defexpo India -2018” – Tamil Nadu

• Chudasama Committee constituted on alleviating fear among students of the subject – Maths

• An Indian Consortium and Saudi Aramco signed a MoU to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex, Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd. (RRPCL) in – Maharashtra

• India has ranked in Index of economic freedom at – 130th position

• The First Meeting of the ‘NITI Forum for North East’ was held in – Agartala

• The e-way Bill system for intra-state movement of goods will be implemented in five states Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Telengana and Uttar Pradesh from – April 15

• 8th Regional 3R Forum in Asia and the Pacific will be held in - Madhya Pradesh

• Union home minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the regional hub complex of the elite anti-terror force National Security Guard in – Hyderabad

• The state has launched an initiative for tribal welfare 'Quest' – Maharashtra

• The Airlines opts out of Air India disinvestment process - Jet Airways

• The two-day Spring Festival began at the Manas National Park at – Assam

• Home minister inaugurated new NSG complex in - Hyderabad

• The 8th Theatre Olympics was concluded in – Mumbai

• The first state in the North East to implement the state component of PMKVY through Directorate of Skill Development (DSD) – Tripura

• State govt. forms committee to commemorate 100 years of Bengali cinema - West Bengal

• From this district of Haryana, the Centre will launch the GOBAR-Dhan Yojana – Karnal

• Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) successfully launched the RH300 sounding rocket from this city of Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

• In this city Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched the PM Ujwala Yojana on April 7, 2018 – Delhi

• This Indian state will provide free chemotherapy treatment for cancer patients from June 2018 – Maharashtra

• This India city has topped in 4G connectivity among 20 largest cities, according to a report – Patna

• This southern Indian state has launched a mobile app named Uzhavan for farmers – Tamil Nadu

• On this date the GST e-way bill system came into effect – April 1, 2018

• This state celebrated its 82nd foundation day on April 1, 2018 – Odisha

• The first Indian city to run on ultra-clean Euro-VI grade petrol and diesel – Delhi

• First US shale gas reached at this terminal of Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) – Dabhol terminal

• This state got the Geographical Indication (GI) tag for Kadaknath chicken – Madhya Pradesh

• Hmar People’s Convention (Democratic) signed a peace accord with this state on April 2, 2018 – Mizoram



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• This maharatna company has set 20 GW solar power generation target in next 10 years – Coal India Ltd

• A Multi Modal Logistics Park was inaugurated at this station near Madgaon in Goa – Balli Station

• This Navratna Company has crossed Rs 10000 crore landmark in turnover – Bharat Electricals Limited (BEL)

• This Indian archipelago has become open defecation free ahead of target date – Andaman Nicobar Islands

• A new plant species named Fimbristylis agasthyamalaensis was discovered by researchers in this biosphere reserve – Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve

• The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment increased the income ceiling of parents for the purpose of Pre-Matric scholarship given to SC students to - Rs.2.5 lakh per annum

• The trial run of the first container train to Dhaka was flagged off on April 3, 2018 from – Kolkata

• The institution to top the INDIA RANKINGS 2018 for Higher Educational Institutions in overall category – Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru

• The institution to top the INDIA RANKINGS 2018 for Higher Educational Institutions in college category – Miranda House, Delhi

• Cabinet approved the closure of this loss making Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) –Burn Standard Company Limited

• Cabinet approved rightsizing the Competition Commission of India (CCI) from present seven members to – Four members (1 Chairman + 3 Members)

• This Ministry is implementing the Project JATAN for creating an online

digital repository of museum collections – Ministry of Culture

• 10th edition of Defence Expo 2018 will be held in this city – Chennai

• The Protection of Human Rights (Amendments) Bill, 2018 seeks to amend the Protection of Human Rights Act of this year – 1993

• From this district of Haryana, the Centre will launch the GOBAR-Dhan Yojana – Karnal

• Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) successfully launched the RH300 sounding rocket from this city of Kerala – Thiruvananthapuram

• In this city Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched the PM Ujwala Yojana on April 7, 2018 – Delhi

• This Indian state will provide free chemotherapy treatment for cancer patients from June 2018 – Maharashtra

• This India city has topped in 4G connectivity among 20 largest cities, according to a report – Patna

• This southern Indian state has launched a mobile app named Uzhavan for farmers – Tamil Nadu

• In this Indian state Ganga Hariteema Yojana was launched in its 27 district – Uttar Pradesh

• The largest exercise of Indian Air Force began on April 8, 2018 - Exercise Gaganshakti

• India, World Bank signed US$420 million project to aid Small and Marginal Farmers in this state – Maharashtra

• Uttarakhand’s second Mega Food Park was inaugurated at his place – Udham Singh

• Union Government has banned the imports of this hormone - Oxytocin



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BANKING

• The Bank has tied up with Zoho, to offer solutions to enhance corporate banking experience – Standard Chartered Bank

• The bank has got approval from the Reserve Bank of India to open two international representative offices – Yes bank

• The Financial institutions has agreed in principle to give an aid of Rs 1,700 crore to Uttarakhand for infrastructure development – Asian Development Bank

• The Bank entered into an agreement for information utility services with the National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL) – Indian Overseas bank

• The Bank has entered into an agreement with National E-Governance Services (NeSL) for information utility (IU) arrangement under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) – Bank of India

• The Bank appointed new COO in ongoing management reshuffle – Deutsche Bank

• With the aim to promote water conservation in urban areas, a regional rural bank has launched a loan scheme named Green Loan - Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank

• The Bank has slapped a notice on Gitanjali Gems Ltd and Gitanjali Exports Corporation Ltd under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act 2002, to recover about ₹195 crore – Canara Bank

• The bank celebrated its 154th Foundation Day on April 24 by organising blood donation camps – Allahabad Bank

• In a bid to facilitate cheaper access of overseas funds Reserve Bank of India (RBI) further liberalised ECB Policy,

ECB here stands for - External Commercial Borrowings

• Two banks have been brought in on board as the repository participants for pledge finance by NERL –ICICI and HDFC Bank

• The bank has signed an MoU with Indian Army on the defence salary Package – Axis bank

• The Reserve Bank tightened reporting norms for the LRS under which an individual can transfer up to USD 2,50,000 abroad in a year, here LRS stands for - Liberalised Remittance Scheme.

• The bank has set up 60 digital branches across the country, To provide audio-visual experience and ability to print, scan and share documents – State bank of India

• The Bank has launched a special financing scheme named 'Add-on Working Capital GST' for Industrial units – Jammu and Kashmir bank

• The Bank will be investing a total of Rs 80 billion in the Arun III hydropower project of Nepal – State bank of India

• The bank launched UK Subsidiary With 225 mn Pounds Capital – State Bank of India

• The Bank has partnered with Euronet India to modernise the bank’s core payment infrastructure - Yes bank

• He is elected as the New CEO of Deutsche Bank- Christian Sewing

• No. of Public sector banks under the radar of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) over the issue of non-performing assets – Eleven

• Banks have been brought under the central bank’s PCA framework with an aim to check NPAs, here PCA stands for - Prompt Corrective Action



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• This bank has launched IoT-based customer service app as part of its ‘Customer First’ initiative – Indian Overseas Bank

• This public sector bank has called off move to divest stake in Canfin Homes – Canara Bank

• Canara Bank was established at Mangalore in – 1906

• The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of state-owned Canara Bank is – Rakesh Sharma

• Aeries Financial Technologies, a fintech firm that owns digital lending app CASHe, has appointed this person as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) - Ketan Patel

• This organisation has predicted that Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) will peak mid-way in FY19 – CRISIL

• The President of Standard & Poor's (S&P) has been appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of CRISIL Ltd (CRISIL) – Deven Sharma

• This financial institution celebrated its foundation day on April 2, 2018 – SIDBI

• The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and headquarter of SIDBI is – Dr Kshatrapati Shivaji & Lucknow

• SIDBI on its foundation day launched a ‘Bankability Kit’ in partnership with these banks – Bank of Baroda and IDBI

• This foreign bank has set up its third branch in India in Chennai – Doha Bank

• This Private sector lender has received RBI’s approval to buy the securities services arm of IL&FS – IndusInd Bank

• Centre has mandated banks to route all student loans through this portal maintained by NSDL – Vidya Lakshmi portal

• Fintech platform Rubique has appointed this former YES Bank Senior President and Chief Financial Inclusion Officer as its Chief Operating Officer (COO) - Ajay Desai

• India’s first live blockchain implementation in the enterprise financial segment has been designed by this US-based company – MonetaGo

• SBI Life Insurance has appointed this person as its new Managing Director and CEO – Sanjeev Nautiyal

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has barred banks from supporting this form of currency – Bitcoin

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its Monetary Policy announcement on April 5, 2018 has kept the repo rate unchanged at – 6 percent

• This bank has launched IoT-based customer service app as part of its ‘Customer First’ initiative – Indian Overseas Bank

INTERNATIONAL

• The 6th edition of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium is being hosted in – Iran

• Political party in Germany has elected its first woman leader – Social Democratic Party

• The country’s National Assembly has passed the controversial immigration law – France

• The country has officially changed its name to the kingdom of eSwatni – Swaziland

• The country is hosting the meeting of the Council of foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization - China

• The 15th SCO Defence Ministers meeting was held in – China



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• Number of countries suspended suspend membership in UNASUR regional bloc – Six

• The country has banned banks from using crypto currencies - Iran

• Joint training exercise Harimau Shakti, which is a part of ongoing Indian-Malaysian defence cooperation, will be conducted in the dense forests of – Malaysia

• India has signed Legal Agreement on National Biopharma Mission with – 1

• The World’s only ‘tropical polar bear’ died at the age of 27 in – Singapore

• The country to host the world’s first ever female foreign ministers meeting – Canada

• The country on the top as per the World Press Freedom Index Report - Norway

• This Country will host the World Environment Day this year – India

• The country has created robot that transforms into car with men on-board – Japan

• 3rd India-Russia Military Industrial Conference is held in – Thiruvidanthai (South Chennai)

• The country has announced a ban on all new offshore oil exploration- a decision as a transition towards a zero-carbon economy - New Zealand

• US announced eligibility review for the Generalized System of Preferences of India, Indonesia and – Kazakhstan

• At least 5 people were killed and dozens injured in a bomb attack in - Somalia

• India has signed 4 Agreements to strengthen bilateral ties with – Zambia

• The country has decided to scrap quota system in govt. jobs - Bangladesh

• India has signed MoU to Promote Mineral Exploration with – Morocco

• The country is hosting the 11th World Hindi Conference to be held in august this year - Mauritius

• This country has signed participant contract for its pavilion in the prestigious World Expo 2020 Dubai held once in 5 years – India

• The country launched the first group of Yaogan-31 remote sensing satellites into space – China

• The Country is hosting the 2018 International Conference on Human Rights in South Asia - Nepal

• The country hosted 16th International Energy Forum Ministerial –India

• India signed two MoUs to strengthen bilateral relations with – Swaziland

• The country has launched the first group of China's Yaogan-31 remote sensing satellites into space - China

• The country has banned exports to North Korea of 32 dual-use items that can be applied in the development of weapons of mass destruction – China

• The country is organizing a three day event of Conference on Water, Environment and Climate Change – Nepal

• The country has developed Novel method to generate stem cells developed - China

• India has agreed with this country for cooperation in key infrastructure and agriculture projects – Nepal

• This space telescope of NASA has precisely measured the distance to ancient star cluster – Hubble Space Telescope

• Scientists have discovered a new metabolic process in the body that can switch off inflammation. It is named – Itaconate

• Neuro physical therapist Dr Asha J Gunmadi , the winner of National Geographic Chasing Genius Challenge in the US, developed this web application for helping patients with



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home exercise programmes in their native language – Therax Portal

• This country is the largest producer of mobile phones in the world in 2017 – China

• Carlos Alvarado has been elected the new president of this Central American country – Costa Rica

• This space station of China burned up over South Pacific Ocean - Tiangong-1

• It is an American immigration policy that allows some individuals, under restrictive conditions, who entered the country as minors to receive a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation – Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

• China increased tariffs on these many American goods by up to 25% - 128

• The United States (US) added Hafiz Saeed's political front to terrorist list – Milli Muslim League

• The theme of International Mine Awareness Day observed on April 4, 2018 is – Advancing Protection, Peace and Development

• This place will host the two-day mid-term ministerial conference of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) – Baku

• The phenomenon used to spot the farthest star ‘Icarus’ located 9.3 billion light years away from the Earth – Gravitational Lensing

• This country has declared an emergency around a Balikpapan port

on Borneo Island after a large oil spill and fire – Indonesia

• Turkey's first nuclear power plant, for which construction was launched recently, will be built at – Akkuyu (Mediterranean coast)

• This country’s military is rolling out a line of maternity uniform for pregnant soldiers following successful field tests last year - Germany

• This place hosted the 9th tripartite talks between India, Japan and the United States – New Delhi

• The name of the quiet supersonic plane being developed by the American space agency NASA – Low-Boom Flight Demonstrator (LBFD)

• These three countries held the tripartite talks in Ankara to discuss the peace roadmap for Syria – Russia, Iran and Turkey

• First cinema theatre in over 3 decades will open in this country – Saudi Arabia

• India has agreed with this country for cooperation in key infrastructure and agriculture projects – Nepal

• This space telescope of NASA has precisely measured the distance to ancient star cluster – Hubble Space Telescope

• The theme of World Health Day observed on April 7, 2018 is – Universal health coverage: everyone, everywhere

• The slogan of the World Health Day 2018 is – Health for All

SPORTS

• Indian golfer clinched the Panasonic Open title - Rahil Gangjee

• This has been declared as the official mascot of the FIBA Basketball world cup 2019 – Chinese Dragon ‘Son of dreams’

• He has won the 11th Monte Carlo Masters title by defeating Japan's Kei Nishikori in final – Rafael Nadal

• The Indian player who claimed India's first medal at the ongoing World Cup at Changwon - Shahzar Rizvi



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• The Male Indian cricketer has been nominated for Arjuna Award by the BCCI – Shikhar Dhawan

• The Female Indian cricketer has been nominated for Arjuna Award by the BCCI - Smriti Mandhana

• Indian athlete broke two national records to win a silver and a bronze medal at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championship at Urgench, Uzbekistan - Jeremy Lalrinnunga

• The organization converted Champions Trophy in India into World T20 - The International Criket Council

• Gold medals India bagged at the Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok - Three

• She has won in gold medal in 48kg category, the Asian Youth Championships in Bangkok - Nitu Ghanghas

• No. of gold medals India has bagged in CWG 2018 – Eighteen

• Indian player won the gold medal in her maiden Commonwealth Games appearance in Gold Coast – MC Mary Kom

• Two Indian athletes Race walker KT Irfan and Triple Jumper V Rakesh Babu were ordered out of the Commonwealth Games for breaching the - 'No Needle Policy'

• The Ace Indian shuttler became World number 1 in men’s singles category - Kidambi Srikanth

• Indian player who has won the women's double trap gold medal in the 21st Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast –Shreyasi Singh

• Indian shooter smashed Games record to clinch Gold for India in Women’s 25-meter Pistol in the final – Heena Sindhu

• Asia Cup Cricket tournament shifted from India to - UAE

• This country has won first mixed team badminton gold at any edition of the CWG - India

• The third Indian woman tennis player to breach the top-200 rankings in singles – Ankita Raina

• The country on the top of the medal tally of Common Wealth Games 2018 – Australia

• The India Player has claimed the gold medal in men's 10 meter air pistol event at the Common Wealth Games 2018 – Jitu Rai

• This Indian tennis player became the most successful doubles player in the history of Davis Cup – Leander Paes

• This 16-year old girl from India won the Gold medal in the women’s 10-m air pistol event at the Commonwealth Games 2018 – Manu Bhaker

• She won the Gold of 69-kg women weightlifting at the 2018 Commonwealth Games – Punam Yadav

• This football club has won the Bundesliga title for the sixth consecutive time – Bayern Munich

• Indian women's cricket team captain was adjudged 'Sportsperson of the Year' at the Telangana Sports Journalists Association annual awards for 2017 – Mithali Raj

• This ace shuttler bagged the best senior male award at the Telangana Sports Journalists Association annual awards for 2017 – Kidambi Srikanth

• This ace shuttler bagged the best senior female award at the Telangana Sports Journalists Association annual awards for 2017 – P V Sindhu

• This American tennis player defeated Latvian Jelena Ostapenko to win the Miami title – Sloane Stephens

• Kerala defeated this team to win the 72nd edition of Santosh Trophy Football title – West Bengal



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• The country of origin of John Isner who won the men’s singles title of Miami Open – United States (US)

• This American pair won the men’s doubles title of the Miami Open tennis tournament – Mike and Bob Bryan

• This Spaniard tennis player reclaimed the World No 1 rank in latest ATP rankings – Rafael Nadal

• The new service rules in Badminton allows the shuttle to be kept exactly at this height above the ground at the time of service – 1.15 metres

• The new service rules in Badminton was first tried at this championship in March 2018 – All England Badminton Championship

• The opening ceremony of 21st Commonwealth Games was held on April 4, 2018 at this stadium in Gold Coast city, Australia – Carrara stadium

• She won the first Gold medal for India at the ongoing 2018 Commonwealth Games – Mirabai Chanu

• He won the first medal for India at the ongoing 2018 Commonwealth Games – P Gururaja

• This women boxer from Australia has been assured of first medal of 2018 Commonwealth Games – Taylah Robertson

• This Indian tennis player became the most successful doubles player in the history of Davis Cup – Leander Paes

• This 16-year old girl from India won the Gold medal in the women’s 10-m air pistol event at the Commonwealth Games 2018 – Manu Bhaker

• She won the Gold of 69-kg women weightlifting at the 2018 Commonwealth Games – Punam Yadav

• This football club has won the Bundesliga title for the sixth consecutive time – Bayern Munich

PERSON IN NEWS

• The first woman leader elected of the 155-year-old party, Social Democratic Party in Germany - Andrea Nahles

• He has won the Paraguay presidential poll - Abdo Benitez

• The Noted Telugu poet-composer, musicologist and artist died in Vijayawada recently, at the age of 98 - Balantrapu Rajanikantha Rao

• The chief editor of leading Malayalam daily ‘Kerala Kaumadi’ passed away recently in Thiruvananthapuram – MS Ravi

• One of the world’s biggest dance music star passed away in Muscat – Tim Bergling

• She has been conferred with the All India Management Association’s annual award for the lifetime contribution to media – Indu Jain

• The world's oldest person, a 117-year-old Japanese woman passed away - Nabi Tajima

• 'The French Connection' producer dies at 89 - Philip D'Antoni

• He has been selected for 2018 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Press Freedom Prize - Mahmoud Abu Zeid

• The first woman judge to be appointed to the top post directly from the bar – Indu Malhotra

• Renowned Pakistani playwright and director passed away recently at the age of 62 - Madeeha Gauha

• The American actor who will be honoured with the 32nd American Cinematheque Award - Bradley Cooper

• He has been approved as the Secretary of State by the US Senate - Mike Pompeo



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• She has been appointed as special envoy on Myanmar - Christine Schraner Burgener

• He has been appointed as the new chairman of Bank Board Bureau - Bhanu Pratap Sharma

• He has become the India’s youngest-ever gold medallist at the Common Wealth games – Anish Bhanwala

• He will head task force constituted for fast roll out of UAV technology -Jayant Sinha

• She has won the best Actress Award in 65th National Film Awards 2018 – Sri Devi

• He bagged the Dada Saheb Phalke Award in 65th National Film Awards 2018 – Vinod Khanna

• He has been appointed as the new Nasscom chairman – Rishad Premji

• She has taken charge as the new secretary of the Press Council of India – Anupama Bhatnagar

• He has been appointed as the Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) – Balram Bhargava

• He has been elected as the new chairman of Boao forum for Asia – Ban Ki -moon

• He has assumed office of the President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for 2018-19 year – Rakesh Bharti Mittal

• He has been conferred with Order of the Lion, King Mswati III of Swaziland – Ram Nath Kovind

• UN World tourism has appointed him as an ambassador to promote responsible tourism - Lionel Messi

• The First-ever Indian head to visit Equatorial Guinea – Ram Nath Kovind

• He will head the Panel for to commemorate 100 years of Bengali cinema - Goutam Ghose

• This person has been given the additional charge of chairman of

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) – Rakesh Kumar Vats

• This noted film maker from Assam passed away at the age of 72 on April 7, 2018 – Munin Barua

• He has been appointed as the protem chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi – M L Srivastava

• This Indian-American entrepreneur has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based software that helps read and comprehend any material in English – Venkat Srinivasan

• She became the first female head of UN political affairs department – Rosemary DiCarlo

• He has been appointed as the first Director General (DG) of the National Testing Agency (NTA) – Vineet Joshi

• This folk singer from Bihar was conferred with the Padma Bhushan by President Ram Nath Kovind – Sharda Sinha

• The name of the new President of NASSCOM is – Debjani Gosh

• Google doodle celebrated the 115th birth anniversary of this social reformer dubbed as the "culture queen of India" – Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay

• South African anti-apartheid campaigner and former first lady died at the age of 81 on April 2, 2018 – Winnie Madikizela-Mandela

• The chairman of the panel constituted by the Union Human Resource Development Ministry to examine the process of conducting exam by CBSE – VS Oberoi

• Chocolate and confectionery firm Hershey India has appointed this person as its new Managing Director – Herjit S Bhalla

• This person won the presidential election of Sierra Leone – Julius Maada Bio



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• This person has been given the additional charge of chairman of National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) – Rakesh Kumar Vats

• This noted film maker from Assam passed away at the age of 72 on April 7, 2018 – Munin Barua

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE

• Every year 23 April is observed as the – English Language day

• The first BRICS Film Festival was held in - New Delhi, India

• Every year 24 April in India is observed as the - National Panchayati Raj Day

• The Mumbai-based Tata group flagship started trading in - 2004

• Every year the world Book and Copyright Day is observed on – 23 April

• Every year World Malaria Day is observed on – 25th April

• The currency used in Papua New Guinea - Papua New Guinean kina

• First-of-its-kind initiative to discover and honour mid-career individuals and committed institutions, which have made valuable contributions in the areas of women’s empowerment, Martha Farrell Award was launched in – October 2016

• Every year 26th April is observed as the - World Intellectual Property Day

• It is India's highest award in cinema. The recipient is honoured for their outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema – Dadasaheb Phalke Award

• A data bank that seeks to preserve and promote a country’s natural resources data, particularly data related to the petroleum exploration and production (E&P) sector – National Data Repository

• It is the largest and oldest US trade preference program and is designed

to promote economic development by allowing duty-free entry for thousands of products from designated beneficiary countries - Generalized System of Preferences

• The country is known for being one of the oldest democracies with an uninterrupted and peaceful transition of power - Zambia

• The Regional 3R Forum in Asia and the Pacific was launched with the objective of integrating the 3Rs in policy, planning and development in 2009 in - Tokyo, Japan

• Every year World Homoeopathy Day is observed on - 10 April

• Capital of Equatorial Guinea - Malabo • Cells that can self-renew or multiply

while maintaining the potential to develop into other types of cells – Stem Cells

• Every year International Roma Day is celebrated on - April 8

• In May 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Prime Minister Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) from this city – Ballia

• By this year, Union Government seeks to provide LPG Connections to 8 crore households under PM Ujjwala Yojana – 2020

• He is known as the Father of Indian Space Programme – Vikram Sarabhai

• In this year , the men’s team event championship known by name Davis Cup was started – 1900

• Lalit Kala Akaedmi was established by the Government of India in this year – 1954



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• The first state to be formed on linguistic basis in 1936 was – Odisha

• The Bharat Stage (BS) fuel standards first introduced in 2000 were based on – European regulations

• The Geographical Indications (GI) registry is based at – Chennai

• In this year the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 came into force – 2003 (15 September)

• This product was the first in India to be given Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2004-05 – Darjeeling Tea

• In this year the Santosh Trophy was started as a premier football tournament – 1941

• The formation of National Testing Agency (NTA) was announced in this year’s budget – 2017-18

• The capital of Central American country Costa Rica is – San Jose

• The Chairman and Managing Director of Coal India Limited is – Gopal Singh

• It is a trade association of Indian information technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry – NASSCOM

• The third highest civilian award in India is – Padma Bhushan

• In this year, the UN General Assembly declared that 4 April of each year shall be observed as the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action – 2005

• The first Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit was held in 1961 in – Belgrade

• The present presidency of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is with – Venezuela

• Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve is spread over these two states – Kerala and Tamil Nadu

• The Commonwealth Games, held every four years, was first held in 1930 in this city of England – Hamilton

• In 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, India had won these many medals – 64

• This island is third largest island in the world and largest in Asia – Borneo Island

• In this year the first tripartite talks between India, Japan and the United States was held – 2011

• The capital of West African nation Sierra Leone is – Freetown

• The capital of war-torn country Syria is – Damascus

• Burn Standard Company Limited (BSCL) is a company that functions under this Ministry – Ministry of Railways

• The first Chairman of Competition Commission of India was – Dhanendra Kumar

• In May 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Prime Minister Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) from this city – Ballia

• By this year, Union Government seeks to provide LPG Connections to 8 crore households under PM Ujjwala Yojana – 2020

• He is known as the Father of Indian Space Programme – Vikram Sarabhai

• In this year , the men’s team event championship known by name Davis Cup was started – 1900


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