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Current Affairs
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November 2014
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November Month Current Affairs NATIONAL
1. PM receives Patel memorabilia –Nov 1
i. Plates, cups, saucers and other items used by
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel were handed over by
Sheila Ghatate to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
2. One rank, one pension scheme pushes up
defence pension bill
i. The implementation of one rank, one pension has
pushed up the Centre‘s defence pension payments
by a record 40 per cent
ii. The Finance Ministry is revising upwards its Budget
estimate for the outgo on account of the scheme
that benefits nearly 24 lakh pensioners of the armed
forces.
3. Appointment of eight public sector bank heads
by month-end
i. The Narendra Modi-led government will begin a
fresh selection process for the selection of public
sector bank (PSB) heads
4. Modi govt. adds another national day
i. Mr. Modi announced that Sardar Vallabhbhai
Patel‘s birth anniversary would henceforth be
observed as ‗Ekta Diwas‘ (National Unity Day),
which appeared to rob November 19.
5. Amnesty demands to reopen 1984 riots cases –
Nov 2
i. Amnesty International has demanded that the
Union government reopen investigations into the
1984 anti-Sikh riot cases.
6. India forces U.N. to review peacekeeping
i. Under pressure from India over the safety of
United Nations Peacekeeping forces, U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has set up a 14-
member panel by Jose Ramos-Horta, the former
President of East Timor and will include Lt. General
Abhijit Guha, a retired Indian Army officer who now
holds a U.N. post
7. Yerawada prison papers stand testimony to
Gandhi-Patel bond
i. The yellowing pages of the prisoners records at
Yerawada Central Prison (YCP) would vouch that
Mahatma Gandhi, appears incomplete without
Sardar Patel, since Patel‘s sentences were in
context with calls for the national movement made
by Gandhi
8. Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav launches
nutrition mission
i. Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav
launched the State Nutrition Mission and hoped it
would make the state malnutrition free
9. India assures Mauritius on bilateral tax treaty
i. India today told Mauritius that it will not take any
decisions that will ―adversely impact‖ bilateral
relations while reassuring the country that
amendments to the bilateral tax treaty would be
made only after considering the legitimate interests
of both sides
10. Govt to form teams to identify source of Ganga
pollution
i. The Centre will constitute 25 special teams to
check the source of pollution for the project of
cleansing the holy river Ganga so that further
action could be taken accordingly.
11. Bangladesh grapples with nationwide blackout
i. Bangladesh has been struggling to restore power
hours after a transmission line bringing electricity
from neighbouring India failed, causing a
nationwide blackout
12 North elects more women MLAs –Nov 3
i. Haryana and Rajasthan have the highest
proportion of women MLAs in the country while
Nagaland, Mizoram and Karnakata bring up the
bottom
ii. Using 50 years of State elections data until 2012,
economists Mudit Kapoor and Shamika
Ravi of the Indian School of Business found the data
13. Manmohan Singh became 1st Indian to be
chosen for top national award by Japan
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i. Fomer PM Manmohan Singh will be awarded 'The
Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia
Flowers' for his contribution to India-Japan ties for 35
years
ii. Manmohan Singh is the first Indian recipient of this
Order
14. Madhya Pradesh to have country‟s first school
for children of labourers
i. The country's first 'Shramodaya School' for the
children of labourers named as the 'Deendayal
Shramodaya Vidyalala‘‘s foundation was laid by
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh
Chouhan
15. India to cooperate with Mauritius to safeguard
Indian Ocean
i. The Indian Navy is committed to ensuring the
safety and security of the strategically vital Indian
Ocean region in cooperation with the coast guards
of Mauritius, External Affairs Minister said
16. Nepal, India to start bus services between
Kathmandu and Delhi
i. The Motor Vehicle Agreement will be signed
during the forthcoming visit of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi to Nepal during the 18th SAARC
Summit which is taking place on November 25
ii. The agreement envisages regular bus services on
three routes, Kathmandu to New Delhi, Kathmandu
to Varanasi and Pokhara to New Delhi
17. Rajnath Singh to attend Interpol meet
i. Mr.Rajnath Singh will represent India at Interpol's
General Assembly beginning in Monaco and India
may seek a permanent berth in Interpol's General
Secretariat
ii. He would also visit Israel, to meet Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and it will be the first visit of an
Indian Home Minister to Israel since June 2000
18.NDMC painted road dividers pink and green
i. Under New Delhi Municipal Council, road
elements like kerbs,traffic dividers and roundabouts
have been painted pink and green which is in
violation of the international traffic guidelines
19. Pakistani hackers deface two Gujarat state
government websites
i. Pakistan-based hackers, who called themselves
'Pakistan Cyber Mafia Hackers', hacked two
Gujarat government websites as well as three other
websites in India
20. India calls for international action to strengthen
nuclear security –Nov 4
i. India has called for effective international
cooperation and responsible action by
governments to strengthen nuclear security
ii. First Secretary in the Permanent Mission of India to
the United Nations is Abhishek Singh
21. No question of demolishing Ramar Sethu –
Gadkari
i. Nitin Gadkari said there was no question of
demolishing ‗Ramar Sethu‘
ii. He said the Sethusamudram Shipping Channel
Project would be implemented without touching
the mythical bridge or harming the environment
22. Centre gives nod for dissolution of Delhi
Assembly
i. The Union Cabinet gave its nod to the proposal for
dissolution of the Delhi Assembly
ii. Delhi is under President‘s rule since February 2014
23. SC asks Centre, States to decide on taking RTI
online
i. The Supreme Court asked the Centre and the
States to decide on a plea to electronically provide
information to applicants under the Right to
Information (RTI) Act.
24. MEA welcomes Pentagon reports
i. Ministry of External Affairs welcomed Pentagon
reports on Pakistan using terrorists to counter Indian
Army
25. Focus on Fifth Gen fighter jets –Nov 5
i. The Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) being
jointly developed by India and Russia is once again
in focus
ii. India reaches a final agreement with Russia,
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and will
partner with Sukhoi in converting the T-50 into a Fifth
Gen Fighter
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iii. The Russian Deputy Prime Minister is Dmitry
Rogozin and Russian Foreign Minister is Sergey
Lavrov
26. Defence Ministry issues RFI for helicopters
i. The Defence Ministry has issued a Request for
Information (RFI) to domestic manufacturers for
surveillance helicopters for the Army Aviation Corps
(AAC) and the Indian Air Force (IAF)
27. Russian deputy PM in India
i. Mr. Rogozin will chair the 20th commission (IRIGC-
TEC) along with Ms. Swaraj
ii. President Vladimir Putin‘s visit to Delhi, is expected
in December for the annual India-Russia summit
iii. External Affairs Minister is Sushma Swaraj and
National Security Adviser is Ajit Doval
28. New Zealand defence team in India
i. Commodore Wayne Burroughs of the Royal New
Zealand Navy is the leader of the delegation
ii. The 65-member delegation is on a study tour in
India to enhance its military and strategic
understanding of the region
29. PM's Council on Climate Change reconstituted
i. Eminent environmental scientist R.K. Pachauri and
economist Nitin Desai have been included in the
newly re-constituted 18-member panel of Prime
Minister‘s Council on Climate Change
30. Modi among world‟s most powerful people:
Forbes –Nov 6
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his debut
among the world‘s most powerful people, ranked
15th on the Forbes list
ii. Forbes list has put Russian president as the world‘s
most powerful person, followed by U.S. President
Barack Obama and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
31. India tops in demand for blocking Facebook
posts
i. In the first six months of 2014, Facebook has
restricted access to nearly 5,000 pieces of
information from India on its website.
32. India Economic Summit from Nov 4-6
i. The World Economic Forum's India Economic
Summit is returning to India after and the theme for
this year's summit is, 'Redefining Public-Private
Cooperation for a New Beginning'.
33. Nepal to felicitate Indian Army Chief
i. Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag will
undertake his first visit to Nepal next week
34. Navy vessel sinks off Visakhapatnam coast –
Nov 7
i.A Torpedo Recovery Vessel (TRV) of Indian Navy
sunk off the Visakhapatnam coast
ii. Navy chief Admiral RK Dhowan took over as the
Chief of the Naval Staff on 17 April this year
35. President Mukherjee leaves on Bhutan state visit
i. Mukherjee is visiting Bhutan on the invitation of
Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
ii. Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose Bhutan for his
first visit abroad in June
36. Modi adopts Jayapur
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has adopted a
village Jayapur, under the Sansad Adarsh gram
Yojana scheme for MPs
37. Israel positive about „Make in India‟ campaign
i. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has responded
favourably to Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s ‗Make
in India‘ initiative.
ii. Indian Home Minister has also proposed exploring
jointly third country markets in Africa and Latin
America, where Indian industry has a strong
presence
38. Flight-tests of Agni, Prithvi missiles
i. The missile cluster of the Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO) and the
Strategic Forces Command (SFC) of the Services will
flight-test Agni-II, Agni-IV, Prithvi-II and Dhanush
missiles which are all surface-to-surface missiles,
capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
ii. Dhanush is a naval variant of Prithvi and
launched from ships.
iii. The first off the block will be Agni-II from a mobile
launcher on Wheeler Island, off the Odisha coast.
39. 60 Indians chosen for Australian research
scholarship
i. Australia has chosen sixty Indian scholars for its
prestigious Endeavour Scholarships and Fellowships
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for 2015, Australian High Commissioner Patrick
Suckling said
40. Information of working hours, hours of public
interaction on government websites
i. The Department of Personnel and Training has
ordered all the Ministries and departments to
upload the information of working hours, holiday list,
hours of public interaction on government websites
based on proposal by Commodore (retired) Lokesh
K. Batra
41. Mumbai will get a CEO to coordinate
development, says CM Devendra Fadnavis
i. Mumbai to get chief executive officer, at the rank
of additional chief secretary, just below the chief
secretary, as coordinator for Mumbai, chief minister
Devendra Fadnavis said
42. Exclusive drug controller to test Ayurvedic
medicines –Nov 8
i. India will soon have an exclusive drug control
department to facilitate testing of Ayurvedic drugs
ii. The Arogya Expo organised alongside the 6th
World Ayurveda Congress was held in New Delhi.
iii. A mission AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and
Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) was
created
43. Laxmikant Parsekar chosen Goa Chief Minister
i. Goa Health Minister Laxmikant Parsekar was
chosen to succeed Manohar Parrikar as the State‘s
Chief Minister
44. BJP patriarch L K Advani turned 87
i. BJP patriarch L K Advani turned 87 and received
greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi
45. „Visa-on-arrival for Russian businessmen‟
i. India will extend visa-on-arrival facility to Russian
businessmen at 18 airports in the country,
Commerce Minister has said
46. Activist calls for joint effort to fight child abuse
i. The time is right for the governments of India and
the United Kingdom to establish a MoU on the
investigation of child abuse in India, says Christine
Beddoe, adviser to the British Parliament on Child
Abuse
ii. ECPAT UK (End Child Prostitution, Child
Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual
Purposes)is the UK national representative of ECPAT
International, a global network of 80 children's rights
organisations in many countries
47. Cooling systems for Indian Scorpenes submarine
i. At the Nantes-Indret Centre of French Shipyard
DCNS, four neatly-packed cooling systems are kept
for delivery to Mazagon Dock for fitment on the
Indian Scorpenes under construction
ii. DCNS is a French industrial group specialising in
naval defence and energy
48. India can lead the world in achieving gender
equality: UN
i. UN Women's Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-
Ngcuka said,India has the potential to lead the
world in creating just and equitable societies
49. India gifts second fast attack craft to the
Seychelles - Nov 9
i. India has formally handed over the second fast
attack craft INS Tarasa to the Seychelles
Coastguard to boost the country's anti-piracy effort
and maritime security
ii. James Alix Michel, is the President and also
Commander in-Chief of the Seychelles defence
forces
50. Israel, Australia lend support to India‟s „Second
Green Revolution‟ quest
i. The Ananta Centre, in collaboration with Tel Aviv
University, Israel and Pratt Foundation from
Australia, would be launching an India - Australia -
Israel Track II Trilateral Dialogue, focusing on Food
and Water Security for India
ii. India's agricultural sector contributes 16 per cent
of total GDP & 10 per cent of export earnings in the
economy
51. Women representation in Modi ministry goes
upto 8
i. With inclusion of Uttar Pradesh MP Sadhvi Niranjan
Jyoti in Union Cabinet the Women representation in
Modi ministry goes upto 8
ii. Nirmala Sitharaman is a Minister of State with
Independent Charge
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iii. The Women Cabinet Ministers are Sushma Swaraj,
Uma Bharti, Najma Heptulla, Maneka Gandhi,
Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Smriti Irani
52. 21 new Ministers inducted into Modi Cabinet
i. 21 ministers, including four cabinet ministers, three
ministers of state (independent charge) and 14
ministers of state are now included in Modi‘s
cabinet
ii. The strength of the Union Council of Ministers is
now 66
53. Jaipur Rural MP Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore
was a silver medal Olympian –Nov 10
i. Jaipur Rural MP Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore,
retired as a colonel from the Grenadiers Regiment
of the Army has won a Silver for the Double Trap
shooting event at the Athens Olympics in 2004
54. Eminent citizens unite against death penalty
i. To repeal of the terrible legal provision of the
death penalty hundreds of eminent citizens,
including Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, actor Aamir
Khan, sociologist Andre Beteille, economist Jagdish
Bhagwati and author Vikram Seth have signed in a
statement ―We Oppose the Death Penalty‖
55. Researchers Gather in India to Discuss
Malnutrition‟s Links to Sanitation
i. Responding to new research that links childhood
malnutrition with poor sanitation, Unicef began a
conference in New Delhi to explore ways of
encouraging better hygiene
56. Gujarat first to make voting compulsory in local
body polls –Nov 11 - 14
i. Gujarat has become the first State to make voting
compulsory in local bodies after Governor O.P. Kohli
recently gave his sanction by signing the
controversial Gujarat Local Authorities Laws
(Amendment) Bill
57. Pass resolutions on MCC, MUDA name change:
govt.
i. The Mysore City Corporation (MCC) and the
Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) have
been asked to pass a resolution immediately to
alter their names to Mysuru City Corporation and
Mysuru Urban Development Authority
ii. The Karnataka State government issued a special
gazette notification for changing the names of 12
cities, including Mysuru
58. LRSAM flight-tested successfully in Israel
i. The Long Range Surface to Air Missile (LRSAM),
developed jointly by India and Israel through
Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) was
successfully flight-tested against a flying target in a
range in Israel
59. Armistice day events in Puducherry
i. A host of events was observed in Puducherry on
the occasion of the centenary of World War I and
Armistice Day on Nov 11
ii. City of Madras was attacked by German light
cruiser SMS Emden and the first ever victory of Royal
Australian Navy was when it defeated the Emden
iii. Sean Kelly is the Australian Consul-General to
South India
iv. French Consul General Philippe Janvier-
Kamiyama will lead the wreath laying ceremony on
the occasion of Armistice Day at the French War
memorial on Goubert Avenue
60. New building of ICCW, Vellore
i. District Collector and president of the Indian
Council for Child Welfare (ICCW), Vellore district R.
Nanthagopal inaugurated the new building of
ICCW, Vellore
61. Aerial surveys to check for uranium deposits
i. Eastern side of the Krishna, Badami town in
Karnataka being covered to find if valuable
deposits of uranium, thorium and osmium are in
these parts
62. SAMVAY launched
i. The Skill Assessment Matrix for Vocational
Advancement of Youth (SAMVAY) was launched to
mark National Education Day which is on nov 11
63. Wildlife institute nears completion in Tamilnadu
i. Reproductive biology, animal care sciences,
conservation ecology and a wildlife forensic lab will
form part of the advanced institute for wildlife
conservation which is nearing completion in
Vandalur, near the zoo
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64. Exhibition of digital prints of Tagore‟s art opens in
Serbia
i. A collection of 45 digital prints of paintings by
Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore has been
displayed at the National Library of Serbia in
Belgrade
ii. Tagore has a special connection with Serbia
Gurudev since he has visited Serbia (former
Yugoslavia) in 1926 and gave two lectures at
Belgrade University
65. Obama calls Modi „man of action‟
i. U.S. President Barack Obama called Prime Minister
Narendra Modi a ―man of action.‖
66. India, US reach pact to resolve WTO impasse
i.India and the United States settled a dispute that
had paralysed the World Trade Organization and
risked derailing a $1 trillion package of reforms of
global customs procedures.
ii. India had plunged the WTO into the deepest crisis
in its 20-year history in July by vetoing a deal on
streamlined customs rules due to a lack of progress
on its demands to be allowed to stockpile food
without observing the usual WTO rules on
agricultural subsidies.
67. Modi in Australia
i. Prime Minister Narendra Mod is the first Indian
Prime Minister to visit Australia since Rajiv Gandhi in
1986
68. India third largest passport issuing country
i. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said that
India is the third largest passport issuing country
after China and the US
ii. Meghalaya Chief Minister is Mukul Sangma
69. Putin, Rousseff Plunge in Bloomberg Poll While
Modi Soars
i. In a survey Fifty-six percent of respondents said
they are optimistic on the policies of Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, 61 percent pessimistic of
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff‘s policies and 87
percent said unfavourable the worst rating for
Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s policies
70. Ranade, the man who inspired Modi
i. Mr. Modi revealed his old association with Eknath
Ranade whose birth centenary falls on November
19, is supposed to be the man who inspired Modi,.
71. AFSPA doesn‟t give unlimited powers – Nov 15
i. Union Minister Gen (retd) V K Singh defended the
Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), saying it
did not come in the way of punishing erring soldiers
72. Modi meets Hollande, calls for common fight
against terror
i. PM Narendra Modi met French President Francois
Hollande on the margins of the G20 summit in
Brisbane and spoke of global cooperation against
terror and common strategy between states.
73. Rangarajan report on gas pricing no longer
valid: Centre
i. The Rangarajan panel report on natural gas
pricing will be no longer applicable as the Centre
has issued fresh guidelines increasing the rate from
$4.2 per mmBtu (million metric British thermal units)
to $5.61 per mmBtu from November 1
74. German taken off third language slot
i. The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sanghatan (KVS), which
runs 500 Central Schools across the country, has
decided to offer German as a ―foreign language‖
instead of third language since MoU with German
government‘s Goethe Institute which also provides
the KVS with 700 German teachers violates national
education policy said Human Resources
Development Minister Smriti Rani
75. Farhan is UN Women‟s first male Goodwill
Ambassador
i. Bollywood actor-director Farhan Akhtar has
become the first man in UN Women‘s history to be
appointed its Goodwill Ambassador for South Asia.
ii. The 40-year-old actor will serve as an advocate
for UN Women‘s newly-launched HeForShe initiative
for gender equality and women‘s empowerment.
76. Sachin to adopt village – Nov 16
i. Sachin Tendulkar visited the tiny village of
Puttamrajuvari Kandrika located in Gudur mandal
which he had decided to adopt under the Sansad
Adarsh Gram Yojana.
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77. Tax havens should provide information on black
money: Modi
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked every
country, to provide information for tax purposes
ii. He also expressed the hope that Base Erosion and
Profit Sharing (BEPS) system would fully address
concerns of developing and developed
economies.
iii. BEPS is a technical term referring to the effect of
tax avoidance strategies used by multinational
companies on countries‘ tax basis. BEPS is known
more commonly as ―Transfer pricing‖
78. Modi regales Obama, Abbott with tales of Griffin
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared with Tony
Abbott, and U.S. President Barack Obama the story
of Walter Burley Griffin who made a name in their
three nations, an American architect who designed
the Australian capital of Canberra and left behind
many works in India.
ii. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson is Syed
Akbaruddin
iii. Griffin, who died on February 11, 1937, at King
George‘s Hospital in Lucknow at the age of 61, was
a landscape architect.
iv. Griffin designed the library at the University of
Lucknow, University of Lucknow Student Union
building; a museum and library for the Raja of
Mahmudabad; a zenana (women‘s quarters) for
the Raja of Jahangirabad; Pioneer Press building; a
bank; and a memorial to King George V.
v. Griffin won complete design responsibility for the
1936-37 United Provinces Exhibition of Industry and
Agriculture.
79. Indian team gets Singapore funding for
language-learning app
i. The Singapore International Foundation (SIF)
Chairman Euleen Goh , has awarded seed fund to
four winning teams of social entrepreneurs including
'Jugnu' in India
80.India to take ideas from Barcelona
i. The Minister has already held discussions with
officials from Singapore and Seoul on the smart
cities project.
ii. Singapore has shown interest in partnering with
India for the development of a new smart satellite
city and a new capital for Andhra Pradesh.
iii. Netherlands and Canada too have offered their
expertise and are willing to partner with India
iv. India will next be looking at Barcelona to borrow
best practices for its own model
v. Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah
Naidu has been invited by the Mayor of Barcelona
to attend the Smart City World Conference to be
held between November 18 and 20.
81. Jurists seek Bharat Ratna for Krishna Iyer
i. The All India Association of Jurists (AIAJ) has
appealed to President Pranab Mukherjee and
Prime Minister Narendra Modi to confer the Bharat
Ratna on Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer, who turned 100
on November 15
82. Doubt of inclusion of 'Dhanush' for the Army
i. The Dhanush prototype suffered a barrel burst
during firing trials at Pokhran in August last year,
which has since been resolved but still there are
doubts will it be included in the army
83. British lawyer to walk 1260 kms for Indian widows
i. A 53-year old British lawyer Chris Parsons will
undertake a 1260 kms walk starting Gateway of
India in Mumbai to Bengaluru via Goa, Mangalore
and Mysore in 30 days to raise $1 million
(approximately Rs 6.1 crore) for improving the lives
of Indian widows and children.
ii. Mr Parsons is very close to British parliamentarian
of Indian origin Lord Raj Loomba and wanted to
support his, The Loomba Foundation which has
been working extensively for the uplift of poor
widows.
iii. There are about 42 million widows in India
84. Modi unveils Gandhi statue in Brisbane
i. Mr. Modi unveiled a bronze 2.5-metre tall statue of
the Mahatma at Roma Street Parkland in Brisbane.
ii. Gandhi was born On October 2 (1869) in
Porbandar
85. India-EU n-deal likely by next year
i. An agreement is expected to be signed between
the India‘s Department of Atomic Energy and Joint
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Research Centre of the European Union for civil
nuclear cooperation
ii. European Union‘s Ambassador to India is Joao
Cravinho
86. Government may not let Rajan go to BRICS bank
i. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan is on the list to
become President for BRICS but sources said it
might be difficult to send Dr Rajan
87. Vrindavan to be a hub of religious tourism
i. President Pranab Mukherjee lauded the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
(ISKCON) for undertaking the construction of a 210-
metre-high Chandrodaya Mandir (three times taller
than the Qutub Minar), stating it added a new
dimension to the government‘s initiative of making
Vrindavan a hub of religious tourism.
88. More youth in India than rest of the world: UN
report – nov 18
i. India has a larger proportion of youth population
than the rest of the world, according to the United
Nations Population Fund‘s (UNFPA) State of the
World‘s Population Report
89. Govt re-launches Kisan Vikas Patra
i. The government re-launched Kisan Vikas Patra
(KVP), an instrument which will provide trusted
option of investment to poor
ii. In the last 2-3 years, savings rate in country has
declined from a record high of 36.8 per cent to
below 30 per cent
90. Australia and India to push for free trade pact
i. Australia and India have pledged to push for a
major free trade deal, as Indian PM Narendra Modi
made a rare speech to lawmakers in Canberra.
91. Modi presents Man Singh Trophy to Abbott
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented the Man
Singh Trophy, a prized possession of Sikh regiment
battalions, to his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott
at the War Memorial in Canberra
92. ISRO chosen for Indira Gandhi prize for peace,
disarmament –Nov 19
i. Indian space agency ISRO will be conferred the
Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and
Development for 2014
93. “Army will become network-centric by 2020”
i. The Army will be network-enabled by 2017 and
fully network-centric by 2020, Lt. Gen. Philip
Campose, Vice-Chief of Army Staff said
94. China not to block Japan building Indian border
roads
i. China has signalled that it would not object to
Japanese involvement in specific border road
projects in India
ii. India had signed a contract with the Japan
International Corporation Agency to build 2,000 km
of road along the China-India border
95. PM gifts Rani of Jhansi's petition to Abbott
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted Australian PM
Tony Abbott, Australian lawyer John Lang‘s 1854
petition against the East India Company on behalf
of Rani Lakshmibai .
ii. Lang is generally regarded as Australia‘s first
native novelist and in 1854 he became the counsel
of Lakshmibai
iii. Modi gifted a memento to Australia signed by
him and World Cup winning Indian captainsiv. At
the iconic 161-year-old Melbourne Cricket Ground
(MCG) Abbott said Modi is like a ―brother.‖
96. Modi in Fiji
i. Modi addressed before the Fiji parliament, after
an invite by Fiji‘s President Voreqe Bainimarama
ii. Modi is the second Indian prime minister to visit Fiji,
despite Indians making up 40 percent of the
population, after Indira Gandhi in 1981
97. US has 450,000 illegal immigrants from India –
Nov 20
i. A new report said of the 11.2 million illegal
immigrants in the US, about 450,000 of them are
from India and India is the largest birth country of
unauthorised immigrants in New Hampshire
98. Modi's has over 25 mn followers on Facebook
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has crossed 25
million followers on Facebook and continues to
remain the second-most followed politician in the
world after US President Barack Obama, the social
networking website said
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99. 10 million child deaths attributed to global lack
of toilets
i. A health and development crisis claimed at least
10 million children under the age of five since 2000
because they have no access to a basic toilet,
according to a report by the international
development organization WaterAid.
ii. India accounts for about 60 percent of Earth‘s
residents without toilets, highest in the world
100. ISRO to consolidate its partnership with industry
i. India‘s Mars Orbitor Mission (MOM) had the
participation of 125 firms
ii. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is
looking at means to consolidate its partnership with
industry to produce launch vehicles and
operational communication satellites
iii. ISRO chairman is K. Radhakrishnan
101. Medileaks launched
i. Keshav Desiraju, is now the Secretary, Department
of Consumer Affairs
ii. Medileaks, a website that will allow stakeholders
to register complaints, point out irregularities in
healthcare and generate information about
malpractices in the medical care sector, was
launched in New Delhi
iii. The website‘s founders are Sunil Nandraj and
Alam Singh
102. Govt plans to use India Post's postmen to
educate people on schemes and policy
i. The government is planning to use India Post's
strong branch network to reach out to citizens in far
and backward areas and educate them about the
various policies, schemes and incentives.
ii. Modi has set up a Task Force to leverage the
postal network in India
iii. Former Cabinet Secretary TSR Subramanian is the
Chairman of the Task Force
iv.The world's largest postal network, India Post has
about 1.55 lakh post offices and on an average, a
post office serves an area of 21.21 sq km and a
population of 7,175 people
103. Cabinet clears 3 key pacts for SAARC meet –
Nov 21
i. Three key framework agreements with member-
countries to enhance rail and road connectivity
and to set up a regional power grid were cleared
by the Union Cabinet ahead of South Asian
Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)
summit to be held at Kathmandu on November 26 –
27
104. Key Aspect dropped in Beijing plus 20
i. A key aspect of the Beijing declaration and
platform for action adopted in 1995 on sexual rights
was left out after objections by some countries
ii. Roberta Clarke, regional director of UN Women,
said the objectives of the conference — to assess
and review the Beijing goals, recommit to the
centrality of gender equality and strengthen social
institutions — were achieved
105. India-Bhutan relations has good understanding
i. India-Bhutan relations had reached an
―unprecedented level of cooperation and
understanding‖, Bhutan‘s Prime Minister Tshering
Tobgay said
106. „Think in India‟ drive to complement the PM's
'Made in India' campaign
i. Union Minister for Human Resource Development
Smriti Irani said the HRD Ministry is planning to come
up with a ‗Think in India‘ drive to encourage
students and researchers to come up with
innovations and new ideas and to keep the talent
back home from leaving abroad.
107. India's Mangalyaan among best inventions of
2014
i. Mangalyaan has been named among the best
inventions of 2014 by Time magazine which
described it as a technological feat
ii. Time, called Mangalyaan, it is "The Supersmart
Spacecraft."
108. US for enhancing defence ties with India
i. The United States sought increased defence
cooperation with India.
ii. The world‘s top arms exporters is U.S and Asia‘s
third largest economy is India
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iii.Eric L. Hirschhorn, is the under secretary for the
Bureau of Industry and Security, US Department of
Commerce
109. SC kicks CBI Director Ranjit Sinha out of 2G
scam probe
i. The Supreme Court asked CBI Director Ranjit Sinha
to withdraw himself from overseeing the
investigation into the 2G scam case.
110. India to invest $4 billion to tackle power theft
i. India will spend 253 billion rupees ($4.1 billion) to
tackle rampant theft of electricity by rolling out
metering in cities and upgrading old distribution
networks, the power ministry said
ii. These projects will help cut technical and
commercial losses and improve collection
efficiency
111. Gender-based violence is an epidemic in
India: Kate Gilmore –Nov 22
i. UNFPA deputy executive director Kate Gilmore,
was in New Delhi for the Global Symposium 2014 on
Men and Boys for Gender Justice, held from 10-13
November, says that gender-based violence has
become an epidemic in India and worldwide.
112. Merit-based bureaucracy could add nearly a
percentage point to India‟s per capita growth
i. Investment bank Goldman Sachs has estimated
that civil service reforms that include a merit-based
rather than seniority-based, could add nearly a
percentage point annually to India‘s per capita
growth, which stood at 3.4 per cent last year.
ii. To arrive at its estimation, Goldman Sachs used
the World Bank‘s latest Worldwide Governance
Indicators (WGI) data released in September
iii. India‘s WGI ranking deteriorated from 55th
percentile in 2004 to the 47th percentile in 2013
iv. India‘s growth could increase by 0.28
percentage points for every one index point
change in effectiveness of government, according
to the Goldman Sachs results
113. IMAC will help Navy step up coastal
surveillance
i. The Information Management and Analysis Centre
(IMAC), located in Gurgaon ,the nerve centre of
the Navy for coastal surveillance and monitoring is
ready for commissioning
ii. It will function under the National Security Adviser
(NSA)
iii. The National Command Control Communication
and Intelligence System (NC3I) will eventually
become the backbone of National Maritime
Domain Awareness (NDMA)
iv. The NC3I will link 20 naval and 31 Coast Guard
monitoring stations
v. The network was built by Bharat Electronics
Limited (BEL) which has sourced customised
software from the U.S. Company Raytheon
vi. Agreement for data sharing with 24 countries in
the Indian Ocean region is awaiting clearance from
the Prime Minister-led Cabinet Committee on
Security (CCS)
114. India's first aircraft carrier Vikrant fades into
history
i. Vikrant built for the British Royal Navy as HMS
Hercules in 1943, acquired by India in 1957 was
auctioned to a ship-breaker Mumbai's IB
Commercials Pvt Ltd for Rs 63 crore
ii. Vikrant saw action during the India-Pakistan war
in 1971
115. Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS)
i. Launched on 2nd October 1975, today, ICDS
Scheme represents one of the world‘s largest and
most unique programmes for early childhood
development
ii. UNICEF acknowledged India‘s success in
improving lot of children in the, State of the World
Children Report 2015
116. Obama to be the chief guest at the Republic
Day
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited Mr. Obama
to be the chief guest at the Republic Day
celebrations, an invitation which has been
accepted by the American leader and this is the
first time a U.S. President is to attend Republic Day
celebrations
ii. U.S National Security Advisor is Susan Rice
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117. Bengal Governor to hold additional charge of
Bihar - Nov 23
i. West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi will
hold the additional charge of Bihar, the President‘s
Secretariat said since Bihar Governor Dr. D.Y. Patil
completes his tenure on November 26.
118. Shahi Imam picks son as successor
i. Jama Masjid Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari
anointed his son Shaban Bukhari as the Naib Imam
(deputy Imam) of the 17th century mosque at a
ceremony in New Delhi, while the High Court has
said that there is no legal sanctity for the move.
119. Terror activities rise in India by 70 per cent:
Global Index
i. According to the Global Terrorism Index 2014,
prepared by Institute for Economics and Peace
(IEP), the number of attacks in India has increased
by 70 per cent during 2012-2013 with 55 more
incidents in 2013 than in 2012.
ii. There were attacks by 43 terrorist groups who can
be categorised into three categories - Islamists,
separatists and Communists
120. Two beatified candidates from Kerala will be
conferred sainthood by Pope Francis
i. Two beatified candidates from Kerala Father
Kuriakose Elias Chavara(1805-1871) and Sister
Euphrasia (died in 1952) will be conferred
sainthood by Pope Francis at Vatican
121. DRDO to make unmanned combat systems –
Nov 24
i. Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) Director General Dr. Avinash
Chander said the DRDO is working on different
unmanned combat system projects for aerial,
underwater and surface applications
122. NSA Ajit Doval named for border talks with
China
i. The NDA government named National Security
Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval as its Special
Representative on boundary talks with China
123. Canada province offers uranium
i. Brad Wall, Premier of the Saskatchewan province
in Canada said the province is discussing sale of
uranium to India as well as partnering in agriculture
and clean coal technologies
124. Sale of loose cigarettes banned –Nov 25
i. The ministry has approved the recommendation
of an internal panel to ban sale of loose cigarettes
and raised the minimum age to buy tobacco
products to 25 years from 18 year at present
125. Swaraj meets Pak PM‟s Advisor on Foreign
Affairs and National Security Sartaj Aziz meet
i. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj interacted
with Pakistan Prime Minister‘s Advisor on Foreign
Affairs and National Security, Sartaj Aziz in the
SAARC Foreign Ministers meeting in Kathmandu
ii. India in August called off foreign secretary-level
talks with Pakistan after Pakistan High Commissioner
Abdul Basit held talks with Kashmiri separatists.
126. NGT bans cutting of trees across country
i. The National Green Tribunal banned cutting of
trees across the country
ii. The Green Bench issued the direction to restrain
people from cutting trees in forests illegally
iii. The Indian Institute of Sustainable Development
raised the issue of illegal cutting of trees
127. US „cautiously optimistic‟ about ties with India
i. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said
that despite positive developments such as the
easing of the FDI cap in the Defence sector, the
U.S. remained ―cautiously optimistic‖ about
relations with India as the Modi government had
raised tariffs
128. MoU to share best practices in the sanitation
sector
i. The World Toilet Organisation (WTO), WASTE and
the Financial Inclusion Improves Sanitation and
Health (FINISH) signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) to share best practices in the
sanitation sector and help millions of Indians gain
access to basic sanitation facilities
129. Mumbai terror attacks sixth anniversary – Nov
26
i. Horrific 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks sixth
anniversary is today
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130. U.S. raises IPR issues
i. The U.S. raised concern over the level of
protection India affords to its companies and the
intellectual property rights (IPR) regime in India.
ii. A joint India-US statement was issued after the
eighth ministerial-level meeting of the India-United
States Trade Policy Forum (TPF)
131. Army gets first BEL-upgraded air defence
system
i. The Army received the first of the upgraded
Schilka air defence weapon systems from Bharat
Electronics Ltd.
ii. Lt Gen V.K. Saxena is Director-General, Army Air
Defence and BEL Chairman and Managing Director
is S.K.Sharma
132. K Durga Prasad to no longer head SPG
i. K Durga Prasad will no longer hold the charge of
chief of the elite Special Protection Group
ii. The Special Protection Group guards the PM and
former PMs and their immediate family
iii. S S Chaturvedi, the next senior-most officer, will
look after the charge till the appointment of the
successor
133. Jaipur Literature Festival – Nov 27
i. The Jaipur Literature Festival is scheduled from
January 21 to 25
ii. Nearly 200 writers, both from India and abroad,
have confirmed participation.
Listed below are some information of various poets
who are to attend the festival
-Ruth Padel is a British poet and great-great-
granddaughter of Charles Darwin
-Hakan Nesser and Nils Nordberg are maestros of
Nordic noir
- Kai Bird is a Pulitzer-winning American biographer
-Helon Habila is one of the leading lights of Nigerian
literature
-Mark Gevisser from South Africa, wrote a
biography of the former South African President
Thabo Mbeki won him international acclaim.
-Pulitzer-winner is Vijay Seshadri Hindi poet
Kedarnath Singh is a Jnanpith award winner
134. The Hindu‟s photographers win prestigious
awards
i. Press Institute of India – International Committee of
the Red Cross (PII-ICRC) award 2014 in the category
‗Best Photograph on a Humanitarian Subject‘ was
awarded to Manob Chowdhury
ii. Media Foundation of India award in the arts and
culture category was given to K.R. Deepak, The
Hindu‘s photographer
135. Australia offers assistance for cleaning up the
Ganga
i. Australia will offer technical support and
assistance to India‘s mammoth undertaking of
cleaning up the Ganga, Australian High
Commissioner Patrick Suckling said
136. Parliament passes Apprentices Bill
i. The Apprentices (Amendment) Bill, 2014 was
passed by voice vote
ii. The Bill removes imprisonment as a punishment for
violating the provisions of the Act and allows
employers to fix the hours of work and leave
137. Ebola has claimed only one Indian life
i. The Ministry of External Affairs informed the Lok
Sabha that a single Indian employed in Liberia had
died of Ebola virus infection on September 7, 2014
138. Anoop Mishra new Lok Sabha Secretary-
General
i. Anoop Mishra, former Uttar Pradesh Chief
Secretary, will be the new Secretary-General of the
Lok Sabha
139. SAARC leaders reach last-minute energy deal
i. South Asian heads of state attending their first
summit in three years have reached a deal on
energy sharing but failed on two other economic
agreements
140. Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers to
export first warship to Mauritius –Nov 28
i. Defence PSU Garden Reach Shipbuilders and
Engineers (GRSE) would export its first warship to
Mauritius next month said Rear Admiral A K Verma,
chairman and managing director of GRSE
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141. No dilution of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Gurantee (MGNREGA) scheme
i. The government said MGNREGA scheme
launched during the previous UPA rule will not be
diluted
142. France to grant visas in 2 days
i. French Ambassador Francois Richier announced
that tourist and business visas would be processed
within two days of application
143. Pak. to have 200 nuclear warheads by 2020: US
think tank
i. Pakistan is likely to have enough fissile material to
build over 200 nuclear warheads by 2020,
according to the latest report by Council on
Foreign Relations (CFR), a US think tank.
ii. The CFR special report ―Strategic Stability in the
Second Nuclear Age‖, authored by Gregory
Koblentz from George Mason University details that
―Pakistan has deployed or is developing eleven
delivery systems for its nuclear warheads‖
144. Only beginner‟s level Sanskrit to be taught
i. Only beginner‘s level Sanskrit would be taught in
Classes 6 to 8 in Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan
145. Russia expresses interest in aircraft production
in India
i. Russia has expressed interest in production of civil
and light transport aircraft in India with their
technology
146. E-visa facility launched for 43 countries
i. The government rolled out the electronic-visa
system for visitors from 43 countries, including the
U.S., Australia, Brazil, Germany, Japan and Russia.
147. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State is Nisha Biswal
148. India Post order to boost Ricoh India business
i. Ricoh India, has got a Rs.1,370-crore order with
India Post which involves modernising 1.29 lakh rural
post offices, which would be automated
ii. Ricoh India Executive Vice President and Chief
Executive Officer Manoj Kumar
149. Improvements in child nutrition over the last
five years –Nov 29
i. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare released
data for the fourth round of the District Level Health
Survey (DLHS), which covers all of the country,
except the eight backward northern States known
as the Empowered Action Group (EAG) States and
Assam
ii. India‘s more developed States, especially
southern States, have seen improvements in child
nutrition over the last five years but have a patchy
record on immunisation, new official data shows
iii. A large sample survey was conducted by the
Mumbai-based International Institute for Population
Studies.
iv. The EAG states and Assam are being covered by
the Annual Health Survey conducted by the
Registrar General of India
v. IIPS director is Dr. Faujdar Ram
150. Rajya Sabha demanded birth anniversary of
Thiruvalluvar to be celebrated
i. The Rajya Sabha stood united in demanding a
national-level celebration next year of the birth
anniversary of Thiruvalluvar
151. India vulnerable to climate change; among
top 20 –Nov 30
i. India is among the top 20 countries in regions that
are at risk based on analysis of climate risk
ii. Mumbai and Kolkata will have the greatest
population and assets exposed to coastal flooding
in 2070
iii. Christiana Figueres is the Executive Secretary of
the UN Climate Convention
152. Planning Commission replacement likely in
December
i. A new institution to replace the 64-year old
Planning Commission may be unveiled this
December.
153. Make the police force of the country as
„SMART‟ police force - Modi
i. Prime Minister, Narendra Modi called for making
the police force of the country ‗SMART‘ police force
which is Strict and Sensitive, Modern and
Mobile, Alert and Accountable, Reliable
and Responsive; Techno-savvy and Trained.
ii. Modi addressed the 49th Annual Conference of
Directors General of Police / Inspectors General of
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Police and head of all central police organisations
in Guwhati
154. Aadhaar number through EPFO
i. Retirement fund body EPFO has decided to
become a registrar of the Unique Identification
Authority of India
ii. Employees‘ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO)
wants to seed over 4.2 crore portable Universal PF
Account Numbers issued by it, with the Aadhaar
number of subscribers
155. INTERNATIONAL
Washington tries to stop Hungary's deal with Russia –
Nov 1
i. The United States is mounting a diplomatic
offensive to stop Hungary selling a stake in a
Croatian energy firm to Russia
156. Test flight of Virgin Galactic spaceship ends in
fatal crash in California
i. A passenger spaceship being developed by
Richard Branson‘s Virgin Galactic company
crashed during a test flight near the Mojave Air and
Space Port in California
157.U.S. chides Russia over military flights in Europe
i. Stepped-up flights by Russian fighters, long-range
bombers and tanker aircraft are aggravating
security concerns in Europe
ii. NATO said it had conducted more than 100
intercepts of Russian aircraft this year and Britain
scrambled RAF fighter jets second time after a
Russian Bear bomber approached UK airspace
158. U.S. blacklists Aung Thang
i. The United States imposed sanctions on Aung
Thaung a prominent lawmaker and businessman
and now a member of Myanmar's lower house of
parliament in Myanmar
159. U.K. to repay 18th Century debts
i. Britain said it was paying back bonds issued in
1927 by then finance minister Winston Churchill to
cover debts from World War I
160. Burkina Faso President steps down
i. Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaore stepped
down after a 27-year rule
161. Drones over French nuclear plant
i. French authorities said that they had detected
drones over two nuclear power plants
ii. Green peace has denied its involvement in this
incident
162. UN climate change report to warn of 'severe,
pervasive' effects of global warming
ii. The UN Environment Program has launched a
report on climate change said emissions, mainly
from the burning of fossil fuels, may need to drop to
zero by the end of this century for the world to have
a decent chance of keeping the temperature rise
below a level that many consider dangerous
163. China, Russia block Antarctic protection
i. Two proposals for the protection of the Ross Sea
and East Antarctic coastal regions blocked by
China and Russia calls into question, The
Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic
Marine Living Resources‘ (CCAMLR) ability to deliver
on its conservation commitments
164. First lawsuit from relatives of MH370 victims filed
by 2 boys
i. Two Malaysian children sued Malaysia Airlines and
the government over the loss of their father on Flight
370, the first lawsuit filed in the country by
relatives at the Kuala Lumpur High Court
165. An Iranian-British woman detained for trying to
attend a men‟s volleyball game
i. An Iranian-British woman Ghoncheh Ghavami has
been detained while trying to attend a men's
volleyball game in Iran has been sentenced to one
year in prison
166. Spain imposes „Google Tax‟
i. The Spanish government has successfully passed a
new intellectual property law, known popularly as
the ―Google Tax‖ or by its initials LPI, will impose fees
for online content aggregators such as Google
News
167. Pro-Russian separatist Zakharchenko wins
Ukraine rebel vote –nov 3
i. Pro-Russian separatist Alexander Zakharchenko
has won rebel leadership election in eastern
Ukraine
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168. China to set up new anti-graft office
i. China will set up a anti-corruption bureau with top
prosecutor to streamline campaign against graft.
169. The United Nations launched a campaign for
stateless people
i. At least 10 million people are not recognised as
nationals by any country.
ii. The United Nations launched a campaign to end
statelessness within a decade
170. Air pollution slashes India's potential grain
yields by half
i. Air pollution seems to have a direct, negative
impact on grain production in India, a study
warned with recent increases in smog decreasing
projected yields by half
171. Thai junta appoints panel to draft new charter
i. Thailand's military government appointed a
committee to draft a new constitution
ii. Thai junta leader is General Prayuth Chan-ocha
and its former Prime Minister was Thaksin Shinawatra
172. Mongolian parliament votes to oust prime
minister –Nov 5
i. Mongolia's parliament voted to remove Prime
Minister Norov Altankhuyag
173. Russia absent in nuclear summit meetings
i. The White House said it regretted Russia's decision
not to attend preparatory meeting last week for the
2016 nuclear security summit
174. UK loathe to pressure China over Hong Kong
because of trade - former governor
i. Britain is not putting enough pressure on China
over an agreement on the transfer of Hong Kong's
sovereignty because it is worried about damaging
trade links -former Hong Kong governor Chris Patten
175. Libya top court rejects elected assembly - Nov 6
i. Libya's Supreme Court declared the
internationally recognised parliament as
unconstitutional
176. Canada's Harper heads to China
i. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper arrived in
China, facing the delicate task of improving
economic ties with Canada‘s second-largest
trading partner
177. Demolition of remaining Syria chemical arms
sites to begin soon
i. The demolition of a dozen remaining chemical
weapons production facilities in Syria to begin later
ii. Australian Ambassador to the United Nations is
Gary Francis Quinlan
178. Jordan-Israel relations in crisis over al-Aqsa
mosque strife
i. Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said
Amman (Jordans capital) withdrew its ambassador
because of the situation at the al-Aqsa mosque
compound.
179. Indian-origin UK Cabinet minister Sajid Javid
tops influential Asian list –Nov 7
i. Britain's first Indian-origin cabinet minister Sajid
Javid has topped a list of the most influential Asians
in the country
ii. The 'Power 101 Britain's Most Influential Asians
2015' included Indian-origin Labour MP Keith Vaz at
the third, Indian steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal and
Hinduja brothers at the fourth and fifth positions
respectively.
iii. The Power 101, also has NRI industrialist Lord Swraj
Paul and son Angad, chairman and CEO of
Caparo Group of Industries, curry king Lord Gulam
Noon and Deutsche Bank's Indian-origin CEO Anshu
Jain
180. China paper calls Obama a banal leader
i. China's state-run media decried Barack Obama
as a banal leader who has done an "insipid job"
181. U.N.'s Zeid questions Sri Lanka's integrity over
war crimes probe
i. Sri Lankan attempts to "sabotage" a war crimes
enquiry are an affront to the U.N. body that set it
up, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid
Ra'ad al-Hussein said
182. West African leaders name Togo's president to
lead Ebola response
i. West African leaders appointed Togolese
President Faure Gnassingbe to supervise the
region's efforts to contain the deadly Ebola
epidemic, which has killed nearly 5,000 people
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183. U.S. Army to deactivate long-serving 'Iron
Brigade' in S.Korea
i. An Army combat brigade that has anchored the
U.S. military presence in South Korea for nearly 50
years will be deactivated and replaced with a
rotational unit
184. China to establish $40 billion Silk Road
infrastructure fund –Nov 8
i. Chinese President Xi Jinping today committed
USD 40 billion to give a push to the country‘s mega
plan aimed at reviving the ancient Silk Road and
―break the connectivity bottleneck‖ in Asia.
185. U.S. urges Europe, Asia to do more for U.N.
peacekeeping
i. The United States is urging countries in Europe,
Latin America and Asia to commit more to U.N.
peacekeeping operations around the world
186. Ukrainian PM‟s party wins parliamentary
election
i. The People‘s Front Party, led by Ukrainian Prime
Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk won the country‘s
parliamentary election, the Central Election
Commission (CEC) said
187. Germany marks 25 years since Berlin Wall's
fall - Nov 9
i. Germany celebrates the 25th anniversary of the
night the Berlin Wall fell
188. Israel ready to share aviation security
technology with India
i. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said
Israel was "ready and willing" to share technology
with India in areas such as aviation security, border
protection and water harvesting
189. Narendra Modi paving 'third revolution' in
India: Shimon Peres
i. Nobel Prize winner and former president of Israel
Shimon Peres lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi
saying he is paving the 'third revolution' in India by
combining tradition with the right technology
190. Despite strong support, no timeline for Asia
trade pact – Nov 10
i. There was strong support among international
leaders to reach a deal on an Asia-Pacific trade
pact called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in
coming months, but no timeline has been set
191. Catalan independence hopes high after
symbolic vote on split from Spain
i. Millions of Catalans voted in a symbolic
referendum on independence from Spain that
supporters hope will propel the issue further despite
opposition from Madrid
192. Iranian-built copy of U.S. drone takes first flight
i. An Iranian copy of a U.S. reconnaissance drone
captured in 2011 has taken its first flight
193. U.S., China to extend visa validity to boost
trade, tourism
i. China and the US have agreed to significantly
extend the terms of short-term visas, a deal which
would improve trade and business ties between the
world's two largest economies.
194. China unveils sophisticated stealth fighter
aircraft –Nov 11 - 14
i. China unveiled a new stealth fighter jet J-31
developed by the Aviation Industry Corp of China
(Avic)
195. Google to rent historic airfield from NASA
i. Three hangars a 1,000-acre site part of former
Moffett Field Naval Air Station on the San Francisco
Peninsula will be renovated and used for projects
involving aviation, space exploration and robotics
196. U.N. chief names retired Dutch general to head
Gaza war inquiry
i. Patrick Cammaert, a retired Dutch general and
former force commander of the U.N.
peacekeeping mission in eastern Democratic
Republic of the Congo, will head the investigation
into attacks on UN facilities during Israel‘s recent
war against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip
197. UK PM Cameron‟s Conservatives take largest
poll lead in 4 years
i. Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives
have taken their largest Ipsos-MORI poll lead over
the opposition Labour party in four years, according
to the latest survey published
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198. Malala Yousafzai denounced by Pakistani
schools group
i. Group of Pakistani private schools denounced
Nobel peace laureate and girls' education
champion Malala Yousafzai as disrespectful to
Pakistan and to Islam.
199. U.S. says Myanmar should draft plan to give
Rohingya citizenship
i. The US urged Myanmar to draft a new plan to
allow the ethnic Rohingya minority to become
citizens and to scrap a proposed plan to send them
to detention camps if they decline to identify as
Bengalis
200. Enough evidence to hold N.Korea's Kim
accountable - U.N. official
i. A U.N. investigator said there was enough
evidence to hold North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
accountable for "massive" human rights atrocities
committed by the state.
201. U.S. using fake cellphone towers on planes to
gather data
i. The program run by the U.S. Marshals Service
began operations in 2007 and uses Cessna
planes in gathering data from thousands of cell
phones, including criminal suspects, by using fake
communications towers on airplanes
202. North Korea's Kim to send special envoy to
Russia
i. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is to send a
personal envoy to Russia Choe Ryong Hae, a high-
ranking member of the ruling Workers' Party as it
fends off accusations of crimes against humanity.
203. China identifies “dozens” of Uighurs in Thailand
i. Chinese officials in Thailand have identified
"dozens" of Uighurs from the Chinese region of
Xinjiang who were rescued by Thai police from a
human-smuggling camp
204. Myanmar law on presidential candidates
makes no sense
i. U.S. President Barack Obama, visiting Myanmar's
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said a provision
in the Southeast Asian nation's constitution that
prevents candidates from running for president
because of their children's nationality made no
sense
205. Taiwanese president says relations with China
should get back
i. Taiwanese president Ma Ying-jeou said relations
with China should quickly get back on track
ii. Taiwan‘s parliament building was occupied from
March for weeks by hundreds of protesters angry at
a pending trade pact that would open 80 of
China‘s service sectors to Taiwan, and 64 Taiwan
sectors to China, as part of the Economic
Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA).
206. Sweden‟s Saab has submitted bid to upgrade
Australia‟s submarine fleet
i. Swedish defence firm Saab has submitted a bid to
build new submarines for the Australian defence
207. Zen anti-Vietnam war leader suffers brain
haemorrhage in France
i. Internationally renowned Zen monk Thich Nhat
Hanh, who in the 1960s came to prominence as an
opponent of the Vietnam War, is in intensive care in
France after suffering a brain haemorrhage
208. 6.4 million Newborns do not get measles
vaccine every year: WHO – Nov 15
i. The WHO Weekly Epidemiological Report and the
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention‘s
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report reveals an
overall increase in the number of deaths from
measles and nearly 6.4 million newborns are still not
being immunized annually
209. First Muslim prayers at National Cathedral
i. The first Muslim prayer service was hosted at the
National Cathedral, a landmark Christian church in
the U.S. capital
210. Let's use first names, Abbott tells G20 leaders
i. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott asked G20
leaders in Brisbane to use first names to show
―personal warmth‖ and to ―speak from the heart,
not from notes‖
211. Putin left G20 –Nov 16
i. Russian President Vladimir Putin left the G20
summit in Brisbane early
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212. Australian PM says G20 signs off on growth goal
package
i. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the
Group of 20 leading economies had signed off on
package of measures to add an extra 2.1
percentage points to global growth over five years,
with progress to be reviewed by the IMF and OECD
213. Microsoft leapfrogs Exxon to become second
largest firm
i. Energy giant Exxon has ceded its position as the
world's second-largest public company to tech firm
Microsoft, after concerns about the falling price of
oil drove its shares down
214. Klaus Iohannis won elections in Romania –Nov
17
i. German ethnic Klaus Iohannis, the mayor of Sibiu –
one of Romania‘s largest cities, won the presidential
elections in Romania
215. India urges higher pay for millions of Gulf
workers
i. India is pressing rich countries in the Gulf to raise
the wages of millions of Indians working there, in a
drive that could secure it billions of dollars in fresh
income
216. Australia and China in joint effort to combat
climate change
i. China and Australia agreed to work jointly to
combat climate change by sharing technology
aimed at improving the efficiency of coal usage
217. Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain end rift with
Qatar
i. Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain agreed at the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to return their
ambassadors to Qatar, signalling an end to an
eight-month rift over Doha's support for Islamist
groups
218. G20 pledges lift Green Climate Fund towards
$10 billion
i. The United Nations has set an informal target of
raising $10 billion this year.
ii. Christiania Figueres, head of the U.N. Climate
Change Secretariat
iii. Hela Cheikhrouhou, executive director of the
GCF
219. Japan cuts Antarctic whale hunt target –Nov 18
i. Japan has cut by two-thirds the number of whales
it plans to catch each year in the Antarctic under
its controversial whaling programme
ii. Japan signed the 1986 global whaling
moratorium but continues to hunt
220. Czechs mark Velvet Revolution
i. Czechs marched through Prague to mark the the
25th anniversary of the fall of communism
ii. A memorial was unveiled by President Milos
Zeman at the site where the "Velvet Revolution"
began in November 1989
221. Iran uses China bank to transfer funds to Quds
i. A Western intelligence report says several
companies in China that receives money from Iran
through Chinese bank transfers the amount to
finance international operations of the Islamic
Revolutionary Guards Corps' elite Quds Force
222. Plans for rare Paris skyscraper fall into legal
limbo
i. Paris city councillors voted against plans for
French capital's first modern skyscraper in more
than 40 years
ii. Skyscrapers have faced deep opposition in Paris
ever since the 300-metre high Eiffel Tower is there
223. Australia wants to be source of energy,
resource, food security for India
i. Australia wants to be a dependable source of
energy, resource and food security for India, Prime
Minister Tony Abbott said
224. U.N. panel calls for N.Korea referral to
international court –Nov 19
i. The U.N. General Assembly committee dealing
with human rights called for the U.N. Security
Council to consider referring North Korea to the
International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against
humanity
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225. UN says fast-track plan can end global AIDS
threat by 2030
i. A five-year, fast-track battle against HIV could
end the global threat of the AIDS epidemic by 2030,
the United Nations said
ii. Michel Sidibe is the UNAIDS executive director
227. Modi pledges $70 million credit for Fiji sugar
industry
i. India will provide a $70 million line of credit to
build a co-generation power plant at a sugar mill in
Fiji
228. Under Modi, Israel and India forge deeper
business ties
i. In October, India closed a $520 million deal to buy
Israeli anti-tank missiles.
ii. A jointly developed aerial defence system passed
a major trial, which India called a "milestone".
iii. Naftali Bennett is Israel's economy minister and a
member of Netanyahu's inner cabinet,
iv. India is now the largest buyer of Israeli military
equipment, while Israel is India's largest customer
after Russia.
229. Kids still a target for marketers of sugary drinks
i. Children and teens are seeing fewer ads for
sugary drinks on television, but they remain a prime
target for marketers - Yale Rudd Center for Food
Policy and Obesity
230. Russian Space Object Sparks Worries –Nov 20
i. Russian object that was put into orbit along with
three military communication satellites six months
ago sparks worries that the craft is conducting a
test run for anti-satellite warfare.
231. 400 feminist women activists working on
women‟s rights met in Bangkok
i. Over 400 feminist women activists working on
women‘s rights met in Bangkok at the Asia-Pacific
CSO Forum on Beijing+20 (APCSOB20) to discuss
what‘s done for gender equality and
empowerment
ii. The standards of Development Priorities, already
agreed upon, were mentioned in Beijing Platform
for Action (BPfA) and the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women (CEDAW)
iii. Union Minister for Women and Child
Development Maneka Gandhi participated in the
meeting
232. Britain‟s last governor in Hong Kong to address
U.S. China commission
i. The last British governor of Hong Kong, Chris
Patten, is to address a U.S. government commission
on prospects for democracy in the territory.
233. Burkina Faso names army colonel Zida as
prime minister
i. Burkina Faso named Lieutenant Colonel Isaac
Zida as prime minister
ii. Neither Kafando, a former foreign minister and
ambassador to the UN is the interime president
234. Non-Muslim sworn in as Jakarta governor
i. Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, better known by his
nickname "Ahok" has become Jakarta's first
Christian ethnic Chinese governor in nearly 50 years
235. Nearly 30% of world population is overweight –
nov 21
i. More than 2.1 billion people globally or nearly 30
percent of the world's population are now
overweight or obese, with the figure set to rise
further by 2030, according to a study published by
consultants in McKinsey Global Institute
ii. Obesity now costs the global economy $2 trillion
in healthcare and lost productivity or 2.8 percent of
global GDP
236. Nuclear delays pose threat to China‟s climate
goals
i. China's efforts to curtail coal consumption and
bring spiralling greenhouse gas emissions under
control by 2030 could be stymied by the slow pace
of its nuclear reactor programme
237. Obama unveils U.S. immigration reform
i. President Barack Obama imposed the most
sweeping immigration reform in a generation,
easing the threat of deportation for some 4.7 million
undocumented immigrants
ii. Administration officials described Obama's
actions as the biggest shift in immigration policy
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since 1986 changes enacted during President
Ronald Reagan's administration.
238. UN to spin off its humanitarian news service IRIN
i. The United Nations will spin off its humanitarian
news service IRIN as an independent Swiss-based
foundation after getting a $25 million 15-year
investment from a Hong Kong-based philanthropist.
239. U.N. Green Fund
i. The U.N. Green Climate Fund (GCF) is a major part
of a plan agreed in 2009 whereby rich countries
agreed to give $100 billion a year from both public
and private sources from 2020
240. Sri Lankan health minister to run for president
i. Sri Lankan Health Minister Mithripala Sirisena
resigned and said he would run as an opposition
candidate against President Mahinda Rajapaksa in
a snap election in January.
241. Saudi Arabia tackles MERS virus, still hunting
source
i. Saudi Arabia has not yet traced the source of a
mysterious camel virus called Middle East
Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in people, leaving
many questions about a disease that has killed 346
people there
242. Martial law to stay in Thailand
i. Thailand's martial law imposed in May will not be
lifted for the foreseeable future, the justice minister
said
ii. The tourism sector accounts for nearly 10 percent
of GDP in Thailand
243. i. U.S. Vice-President is Joe Biden
244. UK troops in largest armoured deployment –
Nov 22
i. Britain is carrying out its largest armoured
deployment in Eastern Europe for six years, in a joint
exercise with Poland
245. Ebola death toll rises to 5,459
i. The death toll in the Ebola epidemic has risen to
5,459 out of 15,351 cases identified in eight
countries by the end of Nov. 18, the World Health
Organization (WHO) said
246. Intensive Dutch animal farms seen vulnerable
to disease
i. A highly infectious strain of bird flu found at a
Dutch farm has made Netherlands vulnerable to
disease since it has the highest concentration of
farms in the world
247. The biggest advertising billboard in Times
Square
i. The biggest advertising billboard in Times Square
history at Marriott Marquis Hotel is longer than a
football field and eight stories high
ii. The world's largest high-definition video display
has nearly 24 million LED pixels
iii. Google has signed a deal for an undisclosed
amount for an ad campaign that runs through the
New Year in this billboard
248. New auction world record for a female artist -
Nov 23
i. A painting by late American artist Georgia
O‘Keeffe, titled ‗Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1‘
has sold for more than $44.4 million in New York,
which Sotheby‘s called a new auction world record
for any female artist.
ii. Previous auction record by a female artist was
$11.9 million, by U.S. painter Joan Mitchell‘s Untitled
249. Watercolour painted by a young Adolf Hitler at
an auction house
i. A watercolour painted by a young Adolf Hitler a
century ago went under the hammer for 130,000
euros (USD 161,000) at an auction house Weidler in
the southern German city of Nuremberg.
250. China building South China Sea island big
enough for airstrip
i. Satellite images show China is building an island
on a reef in the disputed Spratly Islands large
enough to accommodate what could be its first
offshore airstrip in the South China Sea
251. France's Sarkozy wants EU to lose half its
powers
i. The European Union must hand back half of its
powers, former French president Nicolas
Sarkozy said
ii. French have long been among the strongest
backers of Europe
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iii. The anti-Europe, far-right party National Front
won EU parliament elections in the country this year
252. Lawyer for bin Laden son-in-law
i. A prominent New York defence lawyer Stanley
Cohen represented the son-in-law of Bin Laden
253. Obama signs order expanding U.S. Afghanistan
role
i. Obama has signed a secret order authorizing a
broader military mission in Afghanistan in 2015
254. UK faces biggest threat to its security since 9/11
- Interior Minister –Nov 24
i. Britain faces a bigger threat to its security from
terrorism than at any time before or since the Sept.
11 2001 attacks on the United States, Home
Secretary Theresa May said
255. Multi-national crew reaches space station
i. A Russian Soyuz rocket blasted off from the
Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazahkstan to deliver
three new crew members, incoming station
commander Terry Virts from U.S. space agency
NASA, Soyuz commander Anton Shkaplerov from
the Russian Federal Space Agency and Italy‘s first
female astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of the
European Space Agency
256. European Parliament may propose Google
break-up
i. The European Parliament is preparing a non-
binding resolution that proposes splitting Google
Inc‘s search engine operations in Europe from the
rest of its business
257. Dutch complete recovery of MH17 wreckage
i. A week long operation to clear the wreckage
from the crash site of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in
Ukraine has been completed
258. Tunisians vote for first freely elected president
i. Tunisians voted for their first directly elected
president, as the final step to full democracy after
the 2011 revolution that ended the rule of Zine el-
Abidine Ben Ali.
259. Video streaming service Aereo files for
bankruptcy
i. Aereo Inc, the online video streaming company
backed by media mogul Barry Diller, has filed for
bankruptcy protection.
260. 56 countries seek carbon capture
incentives in next climate deal – Nov 25
i. Fiscal incentives for carbon capture should be
part of the global climate change agreement that
replaces the Kyoto Protocol, 56 countries belonging
to the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe
(UNECE) said
ii. The U.N. Framework Convention on Climate
Change is to be held in Paris in December 2015
iii. The UNECE recommendation says that
commercial development of carbon capture and
storage (CCS) does not have enough political
support
iv. A post-Kyoto international agreement should
accept a broad array of fiscal instruments to
encourage CCS/CCUS (carbon capture utilisation
and storage)
261. China considers tougher tobacco controls
i. China, the world's biggest tobacco market, is
considering a draft regulation that would ban
indoor smoking, limit outdoor smoking and end
tobacco advertising
262. Extreme El Nino weather stunted growth of
Peruvian children
i. The study of 2,095 children born between 1991
and 2001 in villages around Tumbes in northern Peru
found that those born during or just after the El Nino
weather system suffered stunted growth
263. Putin strengthens ties with Georgia breakaway
region
i. President Vladimir Putin signed a "strategic
partnership" agreement with Georgia's breakaway
region of Abkhazia
ii. NATO Secretary-General is Jens Stoltenberg
iii. Georgia's Foreign Minister is Tamar Beruchashvili
iv. EU foreign policy chief is Federica Mogherini
264. UN to miss Dec 1 Ebola target
i. The U.N. Ebola Emergency Response Mission will
not fully meet its Dec. 1 target for containing the
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virus due to escalating numbers of cases in Sierra
Leone, Anthony Banbury, the head of UNMEER, said
265. Iran nuclear talks extended through end of
June
i. Iran and six world powers will extend through the
end of June 2015 talks on Tehran's nuclear
programme after failing to clinch a final agreement
that could end a 12-year atomic dispute, British
Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said
266. Bank on poor women and phones to drive
growth in Africa
i. Mobile phone technology can help to bring
financial services to the 80 percent of African
women who do not have a bank account Nigeria's
finance minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said
267. Australia working on new drift modelling for
MH370 wreckage – Nov 26
i. Australia is working on new drift modelling to
expand the geographical area in which wreckage
from missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 may
come ashore
268. Fat to blame for half a million cancers a year -
WHO agency
i. Some half a million cases of cancer a year are
due to people being overweight or obese, and the
problem is particularly acute in North America, the
World Health Organization's cancer research
agency , International Agency for Research on
Cancer (IARC) said
269. Kazakhstan on brink of WTO membership deal,
Afghanistan in line
i. The 160-member World Trade Organization is in
active discussions with 10 countries aiming to
become members, including Kazakhstan and
Afghanistan, WTO Director General Roberto
Azevedo said
ii. Seychelles is set to take the 161st spot
270. Sudan shuts U.N. peacekeepers‟ Darfur rights
office in Khartoum
i. Sudan has shut the human rights office of the joint
United Nations-African Union (UNAMID)
peacekeeping mission, in Darfur
ii. UNAMID is currently the largest peacekeeping
mission in the world
271. Tunisian secularist wins first presidential round
i. Tunisian secularist leader Beji Caid Essebsi beat
President Moncef Marzouki in first round of election
272. Young sister of North Korean leader takes
senior party post – Nov 27
i. Kim Yo Jong ,The younger sister of North Korean
leader Kim Jong Un has assumed a senior position in
the ruling Workers' Party
273. British lawmakers urge EU to stop Sri Lanka
trade perks if UN probe not given access
i. Leading British lawmakers urged the European
Union to remove preferential trade tariffs from Sri
Lanka if it fails to address human rights concerns
274. Sao Tome ex-president's son returns to prime
minister's job
i. Patrice Trovoada, the son of Sao Tome and
Principe‘s former President Miguel Trovoada, has
been reappointed prime minister of the tiny island
nation
275. Former deputy PM Groysman elected as
speaker of Ukrainian parliament
i. The Ukrainian parliament elected former deputy
prime minister Volodymyr Groysman to the post of
speaker
ii. Under Ukrainian law, the speaker is the first to
stand in for the president if the head of state is
unable to fulfill his duties
276. Thai election pushed back to 2016
i.A military coup was led by Prime Minister Prayuth
Chan-ocha in May and now Deputy Prime Minister
Prawit Wongsuwan, who is also defense minister,
said elections will take place in 2016
277. Japan military chief urges early 'crisis
management' pact with China –Nov 28
i. Japan's highest-ranking military officer urged an
early start to a "crisis management" mechanism with
China amid conflicting claims to a group of tiny
East China Sea islands.
ii. Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano is the chief of the
Japanese Self-Defense Forces' Joint Staff
278. Risk British‟s EU exit: UK's Cameron
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i. Britain's continued membership of the European
Union is contingent upon it being allowed to stop
migrants into U.K or U.K may exit exit EU said
Cameron
ii. wants EU migrants in work have to wait four years
before they can access welfare benefits and
unemployed EU migrants will not to be eligible for
any help from the British state at all
279. Western media websites hacked by Syrian
Electronic Army
i. British, North American media
organizations,retailer Wal-Mart's Canadian unit
websites were hacked and its suspected the Syrian
Electronic Army, that supports Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad did it
280. Europe‟s space-based, laser-powered data
highway passes early test–Nov 29
i. A European satellite beamed images to earth
using new laser-based communications technology
for uninterrupted and near instantaneous viewing of
natural disasters being sent to governments and
relief agencies
ii. European Data Relay Satellite (EDRS), will allow
faster and more secure transmission
iii. Josef Aschbacher is the head of the European
Space Agency's (ESA) Earth Observation
Programme Planning & Coordination Service
281. EU imposes sanctions on Ukraine rebel vote
organisers
i. The European Union has imposed sanctions on the
organisers of rebel elections in eastern Ukraine
ii. EU governments decided to add 13 Ukrainian
separatists and five of their political organisations to
a sanctions list that already covers 119 people and
23 entities
282. Modi in second spot in TIME‟s latest poll reports
–Nov 30
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has slipped to the
second place in the Time magazine‘s ‗Person of the
Year‘ poll . Till November 26, Mr. Modi was leading
the polls with 11.1 %
ii. Joshua Wong, face of the Hong Kong pro-
democracy movement, is placed third
iii. Malala Yousafzai fourth and Russian President
Vladimir Putin at fifth
iv. U.S. President Barack Obama is placed at a
distant 11th position
283. Greenland's ruling party to seek coalition after
election win
i. Greenland‘s ruling Siumut Party narrowly won a
snap election, but its new leader Kim Kielsen will
need to build a coalition to form a government
284. BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
RBS sets aside $639 million for currency probe –Nov
1
i. Royal Bank of Scotland, in the U.K has set aside
400 million pound to cover potential fines arising
from international investigations into alleged
manipulation of foreign currency trading
285. World Bank to create 300 new posts in India
i. The World Bank plans to slash 500 jobs in the next
three years globally, even as it looks to create up to
300 new positions in India to meet business needs.
286. China's October official PMI edges down to
50.8
i. The official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI)
eased to 50.8 in October from September's 51.1, but
above the 50-point level that separates growth
from contraction on a monthly basis
287. India‟s aviation downgrade by US FAA set to be
revoked soon
i. India‘s embarrassing downgrade by the US
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) earlier this
year could be revoked, with the FAA team slated to
carry out another inspection on December 8 this
year.
288. Nokia shuts down its India plant in Chennai,
over 8000 workers lose job
i. Nokia, once an iconic mobile handset maker, is
shutting down its India plant on november1
289. Sept infrastructure output growth slows to 1.9%
y/y
i. India‘s annual infrastructure output growth slowed
to 1.9% in September
290. US body probes India‟s trade policies under
Modi
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i. The US International Trade Commission (USITC) has
launched an investigation to examine "significant
changes" to India's trade and investment policies
291. Bangalore City railway station becomes the
first station in India to have Wi-Fi –Nov 2
i. Bangalore City railway station has become the
first station in the country to have Wi-Fi facility for
providing high speed internet to passengers
292. Finance panel gets two-month extension
i. The term of the Fourteenth Finance Commission
has been extended by a period of two months to
carry out financial projections and consultations for
the new states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
293. ECB moves to new domicile
i. The European Central Bank is constructing its new
premises on the former Grossmarkthalle (wholesale
market) site in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
294. Publicis to buy U.S.-based Sapient for $3.7
billion – Nov 3
i. Publicis, the world's third-largest advertising
agency, has agreed to buy digital ad specialist
Sapient for $3.7 billion in cash
295. China Oct PMIs point to cooling economic
momentum, growth target at risk
i. China's economy lost further momentum heading
into the fourth quarter as a cooling property market
weighed on activity and export demand softened,
surveys showed
296. Vijay Kelkar new NIPFP chairperson
i. Thirteenth Finance Commission Chairman Vijay
Laxman Kelkar has been appointed as Chairperson
of the Finance Ministry‘s think-tank National Institute
of Public Finance & Policy (NIPFP)
297. Maruti Suzuki Swift, Nissan Datsun Go fail crash
tests – Nov 4
i. Hatchbacks Maruti Suzuki Swift , Maruti Alto 800,
Tata Nano, Ford Figo, Hyundai i10 and Volkswagen
Polo and Datsun Go of Nissan have failed crash
tests conducted by Global NCAP
ii. Global NCAP(New Car Assessment Programme)
chairman is Max Mosley and Nissan India
Operations President is Guillaume Sicard
298. Discussions to implement “Wall Street reforms”
i. President Barack Obama and Federal Reserve
Chair Janet Yellen discussed the outlook for the U.S.
and global economies and the implementation of
Wall Street reforms
299. U.S. factory activity back at 3-1/2-year high
i. The Institute for Supply Management said its index
of national factory activity rose to 59 last month
from 56.6 in September.
ii. The index is now within spitting distance of its
cycle high of 59.3 reached in February 2011
300. EU cuts growth forecasts as big economies
falter
i. The official forecast for growth this year in the 18-
country eurozone was cut to 0.8 per cent from a
prediction of 1.2 per cent made in the spring
ii. E.U. Vice-President is Jyrki Katainen, European
Commissioner for economic and financial affairs is
Pierre Moscovici and the E.U. Commission
headquarters is in Brussels, Belgium
301. NCAER lowers India GDP growth forecast to 5%
i. The National Council of Applied Economic
Research(NCAER) has lowered India‘s GDP growth
forecast to 5 per cent in the current financial
302. Baring Asia in talks to buy major stake in CMS –
Nov 5
i. Baring Private Equity (Asia) is in advanced talks
with Blackstone Group LP to buy a controlling stake
in Indian cash management services firm CMS Info
Systems
303. India completes $900 mln payment to Iran
under interim deal
i. Indian refiners completed payment of $900 million
in frozen oil revenues to Iran under an interim deal
that eased some sanctions against Tehran over its
disputed nuclear work
303. RIL says considering divestment of Eagle Ford
midstream business
i. Reliance Industries Inc said it had agreed to
consider the divestment of its Eagle Ford Shale
midstream joint venture with partner Pioneer
Natural Resources Co
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304. India opens to privatisation of loss-making firms
i. India is open to privatisation of certain loss-making
public sector companies, Arun Jaitley said
305. Services growth stalls in October at six-month
low
i. The HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI),
compiled by Markit, fell to 50.0 in October from
September's 51.6, the lowest in six months and right
on the break-even point between growth and
contraction
306. Sweden asylum seekers to hit two-decade high
i. The number of asylum seekers arriving in Sweden
may reach its highest in two decades because of
people fleeing Syria and Iraq, whose arrival could
push immigration costs close to 1 percent of GDP
307. APEC set to launch study on China –backed
free trade area –Nov 6
i. Leaders will agree to launch a study on a China-
backed free trade area at Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation meeting in Beijing
ii. China is pushing the Free Trade Area of the Asia-
Pacific (FTAAP) at APEC
iii. The proposal is seen as a way to divert attention
from the more comprehensive U.S.-backed Trans-
Pacific Partnership (TPP)
308. For India, China-backed lender may be
answer to coal investment
i. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB),
sponsored by China, is expected to allow funding
of coal-fired power plants in India that the World
Bank has almost totally blocked.
309. Key concerns of leaders: World economic
forum (WEF) –Nov 7
i. According to the Outlook on the Global Agenda,
income inequality and jobless growth head the top
10 trends for 2015
ii. The trends are based on a survey of almost 1,800
experts from the Forum's network of global agenda
councils
310. Home Ministry may soon give nod to allowing
Aadhar card as e-KYC for entry at airports
i.A passenger having an Aadhaar number can
place his fingerprint on a biometric kiosk at airport
entry gate in Bengaluru starting January for entry in
to the airport.
311. India wants steps at G20 summit to cut costs on
remittances
i. India, which is world's largest recipient of
remittances with $71 billion sent last year, will urge
the upcoming G20 summit in Brisbane to work on
steps to reduce costs in sending money home from
abroad.
ii. Former Union Minister Suresh Prabhu, was
appointed as PM Modi's 'sherpa' for the
deliberations
312. Singapore expressed its keen desire in the
development of 100 new smart cities in India
i. Singapore expressed its keen desire in the
development of 100 new smart cities in India
including a new capital for the state of Andhra
Pradesh.
ii. AP Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah
Naidu had earlier spoken to Singapore's Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong and former Prime Minister
and Emeritus Minister Goh Chok Tong
313. Launch of the Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG
(DBTL) scheme on Nov 15
i. Oil Minister has reviewed preparedness, for the
launch in nov 15 of the Direct Benefit Transfer for
LPG (DBTL) scheme, in four of the 54 districts
314. '10.9% salary hike in 2015, third-highest in Asia'
i. Employees in India will see their salaries increase
by an average of 10.9 per cent in 2015, the third-
highest pay rise in Asia after Pakistan and Vietnam,
says an ECA International report
315. OECD trims India's growth forecast to 5.4%
i. Revising its forecast downwards, Paris-based think
tank Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) projected a 5.4% growth for
the Indian economy
ii. OECD secretary-general is Angel Gurría
316. Britain owes £1.7bn EU bill; the highest
i. EU finance ministers discuss a £1.7bn budget
payment demanded by Brussels to Britain
ii. The surcharge follows an annual review of the
economic performance of EU member states since
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1995, which showed Britain had done better than
previously though
317. South India emerges as property hotspot –Nov 8
i. South India from January to September has almost
50 percent of new office space deals, especially
struck in Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
318. U.S. fast food chain Burger King tests India
waters, starts with 12 outlets
i. U.S. Burger King Worldwide announced last year a
tie-up with the Everstone Group to develop the
Burger King brand presence in India and will now
open about 12 outlets here over the next 60-90
days
319. APEC countries agree to establish network to
curb corruption
i. The APEC Network of Anti-Corruption Authorities
and Law Enforcement Agencies (ACT-NET), led by
China but also pushed forward by the United
States, is the first network that members of the Asia-
Pacific Economic Cooperation group had worked
to set up to share intelligence on graft.
320. United States and China have reached an
"understanding" in ITA
i. President Barack Obama says the United States
and China have reached an "understanding" in
negotiations to eliminate tariffs on high-tech goods.
ii. The Information Technology Agreement (ITA)
would mark the first major tariff reduction
agreement by the WTO in 17 years
321. Centre will revamp FCI, crop insurance - Nov 9
i. The Centre will formulate a new farm insurance
scheme and finalise reconstitution of the Food
Corporation of India by March 31, Union Agriculture
Minister Radha Mohan Singh said
322. U.S. rules out major Trans-Pacific trade
announcement at APEC
i. There will be no "major announcement" on a
Washington-backed Asia-Pacific free trade deal
during a meeting of leaders in Beijing, U.S. Trade
Representative Michael Froman said
323. Chinese, Canadian central banks agree to 200
bln yuan currency swap
i. The central banks of China and Canada have
agreed to a currency swap worth 200 billion yuan
($32.67 billion), according to a Canadian
government statement at a meeting of Asia Pacific
nations
324. Hong Kong leader expects economic growth
of around 2-3 percent this year
i. Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said
that Hong Kong's economy would grow around 2-3
percent this year.
325. Euro zone risks self-fulfilling loss of momentum:
ECB's Coeure
i. The euro zone economy is at risk of slipping into a
self-fulfilling loss of growth momentum, European
Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit
Coeure said
326. U.S. energy major Chevron says yet to finish
Romanian shale gas assessment- Nov 10
i. Chevron has yet to complete an assessment of
Romania‘s natural gas potential from shale
327. New rules proposed to put an end „too big to
fail‟ banks
i. Global regulators proposed new rules to ensure
that bank creditors rather than taxpayers pick up
the bill when a big lender collapses
ii. Mark Carney, chairman of the Financial Stability
Board and Bank of England governor, said the
plans would end banks that are too big to be
allowed to fail.
328. Time Warner eyes $588 million bid for
Australia's Ten Network
i. U.S. media giant Time Warner Inc has
approached struggling Australian broadcaster Ten
Network Holdings Ltd about a A$680 million ($588
million) takeover bid
329. Detroit gets court‟s nod to exit bankruptcy
i. Detroit won U.S. Bankruptcy Court approval for a
road map to end its fiscal free fall and revitalise a
city huge debt load and dysfunctional
government.
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330. Siemens should keep majority if healthcare unit
floated
i. Siemens has agreed to keep its healthcare unit as
a ―part of its long-term, strategic core portfolio‖
and must strive for majority ownership even if the
unit is listed on the stock market, according to trade
union IG Metall.
331. South Africa suffers another credit rating
downgrade
i.The ratings agency Moody's has downgraded
South Africa's sovereign debt rating.
ii. The move comes after similar downgrades from
Fitch and Standard and Poor‘s.
332. Danish ship fuel supplier OW Bunker goes
bankrupt
i. The world's largest ship fuel supplier, OW Bunker,
has filed for bankruptcy after alleged fraud.
ii. OW Bunker is Denmark's third-largest company
and supplies 7% of the world's bunker fuel, used in
shipping
333. U.S. urges IMF to cancel debt of Ebola-stricken
countries – Nov 11-14
i. The United States proposed that the International
Monetary Fund write off some $100 million in debt it
is owed by Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to free
up more resources for those countries
334. RBI tightens rules for “shadow banks” as
business grows
i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised the
minimum capital requirement for so-called shadow
banks and tightened rules on deposits and bad
loans to avoid any potential risk to the economy
335. Indian iron ore imports surge to record
i. India‘s iron ore imports jumped to a record 5
million tonnes in April-October, industry data
showed, as a deepening shortage at home forces
steelmakers to turn overseas for the raw material.
336. India‟s slowing profits growth
i. Indian corporate earnings are growing at the
weakest pace in nearly six years, but stock markets
hovering near record highs since the May election
337. Food ministry recommends raising edible oil
import taxes
i. Ministry has recommended increasing the duty to
5 percent on crude oils and 15 percent on refined
oils
ii. India imports nearly 60 percent of its 18-19 million
tonnes annual demand, mostly as palm oil from top
producers Indonesia and Malaysia.
338. Iranian stake hurts CPCL‟s revival plan
i. Indian Oil Corp the country's biggest refiner, is
exploring options including a merger to save loss-
making unit Chennai Petroleum Corp (CPCL), its
chairman B. Ashok told
339. Tata Steel sees more pain ahead in Europe
i. Tata Steel Ltd said it did not see improvements
coming swiftly in Europe, where steel demand has
languished since the financial crisis and clients have
turned to cheaper Chinese imports.
340. Essar opens Geneva trading office, expands
Europe footprint
i. Essar Group has set up an office in Geneva to
trade crude oil, refined petroleum products, coal,
iron ore and steel, the head of the company told
341. Retail inflation slowed to 5.52 percent in
October
i. Retail inflation, which the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) tracks in setting lending rates, slowed to 5.52
percent in October from a multi-year low of 6.46
percent a month earlier
342. Big economy growth stable, but Germany
weakening
i. The world's major economies show stable
economic momentum but the euro zone continues
to lose steam, notably in Germany and Italy, while
Japan and Britain may be faltering too, the OECD
said
343. Aurobindo to buy U.S. nutritional supplements
i. Generic drugmaker Aurobindo Pharma Ltd said
its U.S. unit won a bankruptcy auction to buy
nutritional supplements maker Natrol Inc for $132.5
million
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344. FDA warns Cadila Pharma over drug
production processes
i. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has
warned privately owned drug maker Cadila
Pharmaceuticals Ltd that it was not following quality
and manufacturing standards at one of its plants
345. India to raise 60 billion rupees from hike in
excise duty on fuel
i. India expects to raise around 60 billion rupees
($975 million) from a hike in excise duties on petrol
and diesel and the money will partly cover a
shortfall in revenue collection
346. Sesa Sterlite to invest $782 million for zinc
deposits in Africa
i. Sesa Sterlite Ltd said it would invest $782 million
over a three-year period in southern Africa to tap
the region's large undeveloped deposits of the
metal
347. Indian Oil defers Koyali units' shutdown to
March-Apr
i. Indian Oil Corp has deferred a planned shutdown
of key units at its Koyali refinery in Gujarat to March-
April 2015 from around October this year to
capitalize on sliding crude prices
348. India's liquidity expected to go back into
deficit
i. India's liquidity is expected to go into its normal
state of deficit from current surplus
349. India flow tide has turned decisively - Citi
Research
i. India flow tide has turned decisively, said Citi
Research, a unit of Citigroup Global Markets Inc
ii. Year-to-date foreign debt inflows are ahead of
equity flows for the first time, says Citi Research
350. Inflation drops to 5-year low
i. Continuing decline in food prices, including
vegetables, pulled wholesale price inflation to a
five-year low of 1.77 per cent in October.
ii. The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation
was at 2.38 per cent in September and 7.24 per
cent in October 2013.
351. India‟s GDP to grow at 6.3% in 2015: Morgan
Stanley
i. India would have the fastest economic expansion
among Asian countries and its gross domestic
product is expected to grow by 6.3 per cent in 2015
said Morgan Stanley forecasts of global economies
352. Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway buys P&G's
Duracell
i. Berkshire Hathaway Inc has agreed to acquire
Procter & Gamble Co's Duracell battery unit
ii. Berkshire Chairman is Warren Buffett
353. Brent stays near 4-year low above $77
i. Brent has dropped eight weeks in a row, its
longest weekly losing streak since records began in
1988
354. Slowing WPI, CPI inflation builds case for rate
cut
i. The wholesale price index rose an annual 1.77
percent last month, its slowest since September
2009, compared with the 2.20 percent forecast by
economists in a poll.
ii. The RBI is meeting on Dec. 2 to review policy,
having kept its key repo rate steady at 8.0 percent
since January.
355. S&P says it will be tough for China to revive
debt-laden corporates
i. Debt levels at China's 200 biggest companies
increased by five times between 2007 and 2013
and financial pressures on them will likely intensify as
the economy continues to cool - Standard & Poor's
356. Glencore to shut Australia coal mines for 3
weeks
i. Glencore Plc, the world's largest exporter of
thermal coal, plans to shut its Australian mines for
three weeks to help attack a crippling global supply
glut that has pushed prices to 5-1/2 year lows
357. Brazil, China and India still offer long-term
investment value
i. Mark Wiseman, Canada Pension Plan Investment
Board‘s (CPPIB) chief executive, said he's optimistic
about North American assets and longer-term plays
in Brazil, China and India, where economic growth
looks set to continue
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358. China, Myanmar sign $7.8 bln of deals – Nov 15
i. China and Myanmar signed deals worth $7.8
billion for energy, agriculture, telecommunications,
infrastructure and finance during Chinese Premier Li
Keqiang's visit to the Southeast Asian country
359. Infosys ties up with DreamWorks for new
engineering solutions
i. Software major Infosys has entered into a strategic
partnership with DreamWorks Animation SKG to
develop new engineering solutions
ii. Infosys chief executive is Vishal Sikka and
DreamWorks chief executive is Jeffrey Katzenberg
360. Modi Made a strong pitch for speeding up the
creation of a BRICS development bank
i. India hopes to ratify the agreement over the
financial institution by year-end and 2016 should be
set as the target for its inauguration.
ii. India will hold the Presidency of the USD 100 billion
New Development Bank for the first six years.
iii. The bank will be based in Shanghai, China‘s
financial hub.
iv. India‘s presidency will be followed by Brazil and
Russia who will have five years term each under an
agreement reached among the five country-
grouping BRICS —— Brazil, Russia, India, China and
South Africa.
v. The decision to set up the bank and a USD 100
billion Currency Reserve Arrangement (CRA) that
will help countries to deal with short-term liquidity
pressures was made at the 6th BRICS Summit held in
the Brazilian city of Fortaleza in July.
361. Ratan Tata invests in Urban Ladder
i.Tata Sons Chairman Ratan Tata has made a
personal investment in Bengaluru-based online
furniture company Urban Ladder.
ii. This is the third personal investment by Mr. Tata in
online business after an investment in online
jewellery retailer Bluestone and in Snapdeal.com.
362. Reliance Entertainment plans to acquire
Western game studios
i. Reliance Entertainment plans to begin acquiring
North American and European mobile game
studios starting in early 2015
363. BlaBlaCar eyes global ride-share push
ii. The online company, A fast-growing French firm is
a pioneer in connecting drivers with passengers to
cover the costs of long-distance trips is planning to
globalise
iii. The latest investment round in the company was
led by Index Ventures and joined by existing
investors Accel Partners, ISAI and Lead Edge
Capital
364. Canada's Niko Resources says evaluating
plans for India assets
i. Canada's Niko Resources Ltd which owns 10
percent in the D6 Block, off the eastern coast of
India and Hazira field in western India said it was
evaluating plans for its oil and gas assets in India
ii. BP Plc has a 30-percent stake in the block, while
the rest is owned by India's Reliance Industries Ltd.
365. Bank's deposit grows at 12.3% to Rs 81 lakh
crore in Q2 FY15 –Nov 16
i. Bank deposits grew by 12.3 per cent to Rs 81.14
lakh crore in the second quarter of the current
fiscal.
ii. The credit grew at 9.4 per cent to Rs 61.57 lakh
crore during the July-September quarter of 2014-15
iii. Bank deposits growth was 11.5 per cent (Rs 72.26
lakh crore) in the corresponding July-September
quarter of 2013-14.
iv. The credit-deposit (CD) ratio for all banks was
75.9 per cent as on end-September 2014, led by
metropolitan branches.
366. India among top 5 revenue generators for us:
Coursera
i. Online education firm Coursera is in talks with
educational institutes and companies in the
country as it looks to further expand presence in the
Indian market, one of its top-five revenue
generators.
367. FPI inflows in stocks hit $1.5 billion in November;
total crosses $15 billion
i. Since the beginning of the year, foreign investors
have made a net investment of $15.3 billion (Rs
91,780) crore into the country's equity market.
ii. The debt market has also seen similar trends with
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overseas fund inflows of $23 billion (Rs 1.4 lakh
crore) since January
368. Australia, China deepen ties with landmark
free trade deal –Nov 17
i. China and Australia sealed a landmark free trade
agreement , more than a decade in the making,
significantly expanding ties between the world's
second largest economy and one of Washington's
closest allies in Asia
369. China says FTA with S.Korea may be effective
in 2015
i. The free trade agreement between China and
South Korea to be effective in second-half of next
year
369. Japan slips into recession
i. Japan's economy unexpectedly shrank for the
second consecutive quarter, leaving the world's
third largest economy in technical recession
ii. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is widely expected to
delay an increase in the sales tax to 10%, scheduled
for 2015 which was legislated by the previous
government in 2012 to curb Japan's huge public
debt, which is the highest among developed
nations.
370. Trade deficit narrows to $13.35 bln in October
i. India's trade deficit narrowed to $13.35 billion in
October on lower oil imports, government data
showed
371. Merkel urges Europeans to speed up TTIP trade
talks with U.S
i. German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged
European nations to speed up their negotiations
with the United States over a Transatlantic Trade
and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement
between the U.S. and EU
372. Adani group‟s Australian mine project cleared
i. The Adani group‘s proposed plan to build a 7
billion dollar coal mine in the Galilee basin was
cleared by Australia‘s Queensland state
ii. Adani is the proponent of the North Galilee Basin
Rail (NGBR), Queensland‘s first standard gauge line
373. GST will likely result in higher tax revenues –
Nov 18
i. Government may introduce the bill for goods and
services tax (GST) reform, in winter session of the
parliament
ii. GST will likely result in higher tax revenues of over 1
pct of GDP.
iii. GST implementation likely only in 2016, and in
phases
374. $1 bn. SBI loan for Adani to build Australian
coal mine
Adani Enterprises won support from the State Bank
of India (SBI) and an Australian state to help it build
a $7 billion coal mine
375. Mindtree to open new delivery centre in
Europe
i. Mindtree which started operations of its first
delivery centre in Europe at Belgium in 2012 is now
planning to strengthen its presence in the European
market by opening a second delivery centre.
376. UK grocery sales fall for 1st time in 20 years
i. A price war, led by German-based discounters,
has pushed Britain's grocery market into its first sales
decline in 20 years
377. Botox maker bought for $66 billion in biggest
deal of 2014
i. Allergan, the company behind Botox, agreed to
be acquired for $66 billion by pharmaceutical giant
Actavis, which is the biggest deal so far in 2014
378. IBM launches new email service „Verse‟ –Nov
19
i. IBM has launched a new e-mail application
‗Verse‘ for enterprises that integrates social media,
file sharing and analytics to help increase
productivity
ii. It is the first messaging system to feature ‗faceted
search‘
iii.IBM‘s current enterprise mail services is known as
Notes
379. Infosys co-founders float new venture
i. Infosys co-founders Kris Gopalakrishnan and S. D.
Shibulal have joined to set up business incubator
Axilor Ventures
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380. Nokia bounces back with launch of Android
tablet N1
i. Nokia of Finland launched a new brand-licensed
tablet computer N1 which is due to be in stores in
China in the first quarter of next year
ii. Taiwan‘s Foxconn will handle the manufacturing,
distribution and sales of N1
iii. Sebastian Nystrom is the head of products at
Nokia‘s Technologies unit
381. OECD raises India growth outlook
i. India's economy will accelerate and would grow
by 6.6 percent in 2015/16 , the Organisation for
Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) said
ii. It also added Growth would edge higher to 6.8
percent in 2016/17
382. RBI chief Rajan wants focus on sustainable
growth
i. India will focus on sustainable economic growth
and developed economies should do the same,
Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan
said
383. Banks chase trading cheats with 'fuzzy'
surveillance
i. Six global banks agreed to pay $4.3 billion to settle
claims they failed to stop traders from trying to rig
foreign exchange markets
ii. The world's big banks are planning to use 'fuzzy
logic' tools such as relationship mapping and
behavioural analytics to read the minds of would-
be cheats among their traders
384. China's Xiaomi says invests $300 million in
online video firm iQiyi – Nov 20
i. Xiaomi Technology Co Ltd said it has made $300
million investment in online video provider iQiyi.
ii. The investment in iQiyi followed a separate stake
purchase deal Xiaomi announced in China's largest
video streaming site Youku Tudou Inc.
385. Zomato gets $60 million more in funding, now
valued at $660 million
i. Restaurant search and discovery service Zomato
has got a fresh round of funding of $60 million. With
this the total funding has gone up to $113 million
and the post-money valuation $660 million.
386. Mobile transaction users to surpass 2 bln by
2017
i. Over two billion mobile phone or tablet users will
make some form of mobile commerce transaction
globally by the end of 2017, up from 1.6 billion this
year, a report by Juniper Research said
387. Indian e-tailing market to reach $15 billion by
2016: Google report
i. According to Google's annual online shopping
growth trends report, done in collaboration with
Forrester Research, the online shopper base in India
will reach 100 million by 2016.
ii. Rajan Anandan, is the MD, Google India.
388. Royal Bank of Scotland fined for IT failure: British
financial regulators
i. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fined state-
owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) £42 million
while the Prudential Regulation Authority, which is
overseen by the Bank of England, imposed a
penalty £14 million, a combined £56 million for a
series of IT failures that left customers unable to
access services
389. India axes licence requirement for ammonium
nitrate fuel oil explosives
i. India has scrapped the need for obtaining
licences for the production of ammonium nitrate
fuel oil (ANFO) explosives
390. S&P sounds warning on Chinese property
sector, Russian banks
i. Credit rating agency Standard and Poor's said
that China's over-priced and over-supplied
property market and capital-starved Russian banks
were likely to face further downgrades in the
coming years
391. Pro-gender policies could bring up Indian
economy: OECD
i. OECD estimates that annual growth of the
economy could be up to 2.4 percentage points
higher if India implements a package of pro-growth
and pro-gender policies.
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ii. OECD Chief Economist is Catherine L. Mann
393. eBay partners ShopYourWorld for 'Black Friday'
sale in India – Nov 21
i. eBay India has partnered with shopyourworld.com
to introduce 'Black Friday' sale in India that will go
on from nov 21- nov 30, 2014.
ii. Black Friday is the Friday following Thanksgiving
Day in the US
394. Rs 6,000 crore collected under Dhan Yojana
i. Under Dhan Yojana people deposited about Rs
6,000 crore in total and about 70 million new bank
accounts were opened
395. Hard to hit tax revenue target in India this fiscal
year
i. It would be hard to hit tax revenue targets in this
fiscal year, with weak credit demand
ii. Finance ministry source said that economic
growth in the fiscal year to March was likely to
come in near the lower end of the 5.4-5.9 per cent
forecast range in the budget, while tax receipts
may fall short by 70,000 crore rupees ($11 billion).
396. Bharti Airtel appoints Titus Naikuni as new
chairman for Kenya operations
i. Sunil Mittal-driven Bharti Airtel appointed Titus
Naikuni, former permanent secretary to the Ministry
of Information, Transport and Communications and
a member of the Board of Kenya Airways as the
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Airtel Kenya.
ii. Christian de Faria is the CEO of Airtel Africa
397. World‟s adult population controls nearly $30
trillion in assets
i. A bare 0.004 per cent of the world's adult
population controls nearly $30 trillion in assets, 13
per cent of the world's total wealth, according to a
new study by the Swiss bank UBS and luxury industry
consultant Wealth-X
398. Alibaba made jumbo deal without China
premium
i. Alibaba Group Holding sold the largest bond by
an Asian company via a US$8bn six-tranche
offering which many believed would have
occurred without paying a Chinese premium
399. GMR claims $803 million from Maldivian
government for termination of Male Airport
contract
i. GMR Male' International Airport Private Limited
(GMIAL), a subsidiary of GMR Infrastructure Limited
(GMR), has claimed $803 million (around Rs 4,987
crore) from the Maldivian government for
'wrongfully' terminating the international airport
contract in that country's capital.
400. FDI limit in the insurance sector may increase
by insurance bill
i. Long-pending insurance bill, may propose to
increase foreign direct investment limit in the
insurance sector to 49 per cent from the current 26
per cent
401. India Post inland letter tracking service
i. India Post new service called 'Nanyatha' will track
movement of inland letters in any post box
identified by the department, until its delivery in
vijayawada
ii. The service is available for 173 post boxes in city
out of 183 post boxes and is already in Hyderabad
402. UK troops in largest armoured deployment –
Nov 22
i. Britain is carrying out its largest armoured
deployment in Eastern Europe for six years, in a joint
exercise with Poland
403. Ebola death toll rises to 5,459
i. The death toll in the Ebola epidemic has risen to
5,459 out of 15,351 cases identified in eight
countries by the end of Nov. 18, the World Health
Organization (WHO) said
404. Intensive Dutch animal farms seen vulnerable
to disease
i. A highly infectious strain of bird flu found at a
Dutch farm has made Netherlands vulnerable to
disease since it has the highest concentration of
farms in the world
405. The biggest advertising billboard in Times
Square
i. The biggest advertising billboard and the world's
largest high-definition video display with nearly 24
million LED pixels, in Times Square history is at
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Marriott Marquis Hotel and it is longer than a
football field and eight stories high
iii. Google has signed a deal for an ad campaign
that runs through the New Year in this billboard
406. RBI says overseas borrowed funds can be
parked with banks in India
i. The RBI allowed external commercial borrowings
to be parked with banks in the country as term
deposits for up to six months pending their utilisation
407. China commits $45.6 billion for economic
corridor with Pakistan
i. The Chinese government and banks will finance
Chinese companies to build $45.6 billion worth of
energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan over
the next six years
ii. The project is dubbed as China-Pak Economic
Corridor (CPEC).
408. India monitors foreign flows into debt funds,
may tighten rules
i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) could take action
if foreign investors pour excessive amounts into
mutual funds to bypass limits on ownership of
government debt
ii. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have almost
reached their $25 billion limit on direct holdings of
government debt, but have begun raising their
exposure by investing through debt-focused
domestic mutual funds
409. Kotak acquires ING Vysya Bank
i. Kotak has agreed to buy ING Vysya Bank in
record $2.4 billion share deal.
ii. It will create India‘s fourth largest private sector
bank by branch network
410. China rolled out a surprise interest rate cut -
Nov 23
i. China rolled out a surprise interest rate cut and
the European Central Bank indicated it would step
up asset purchases to boost the euro zone
economy.
411. VW unveils multi-billion auto
investments through next five years
i. Volkswagen AG is to invest 85.6 billion euros ($106
billion) in its automotive operations over the next
five years
412. Government asks France to 'open shops' in
India for railway projects –Nov 24
i. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu invited France to
"open shops" in the country to execute Railway
projects and sought co-operation in areas of safety,
customer service and high-speed train service while
addressing Indo-French Rail seminar in New Delhi
413. India targets private cash to build railways to its
ports, eyes $1 billion investment by 2017
i. India is targeting up to $1 billion of private
investment by 2017 to build rail lines linking ports
and national networks
414. China ready to cut rates again on fears of
deflation
i. China's leadership and central bank are ready to
cut interest rates again and also loosen lending
restrictions since Economic growth has slowed to
7.3 percent in third quarter
415. Reserve Bank planning more measures for
NBFCs
i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is considering more
measures for non-banking financial companies
(NBFCs), Deputy Governor R. Gandhi said
416. RBI ready to give more flexibility in recasting
distressed loans: Raghuram Rajan – Nov 25
i. Government is considering giving banks more
flexibility when restructuring distressed loans in a bid
to help cash-strapped projects to get funding from
lenders, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor
Raghuram Rajan said
417. India needs to grow at 7-8% a year
i. India has no choice but to grow at a higher rate
of 7-8 pct a year, the country's junior Finance
Minister Jayant Sinha told
418. Indian Railways team in China for Delhi-
Chennai bullet train
i. An Indian Railways team is in China to chalk out
plans for conducting feasibility study to build the
1,754 km-long Delhi-Chennai high-speed train
corridor, world's second largest bullet train line
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ii. Japan is conducting feasibility study for the Bullet
train project in Mumbai-Ahemdabad corridor
419. GDP to grow 6.4% in 2015: Nomura
i. Indian economy is set for a 'goldilocks' period --
used to describe a timeframe of high growth and
low inflation -- while it can become Asia's fastest
growing economy in 2016, Japanese financial
major Nomura said and It estimated the GDP
growth for 2015 at 6.4 per cent
420. Electronic toll system can help save Rs 86,000
crore annually
i. The country is expected to save at least Rs 86,000
crore annually after electronic toll collection (ETC)
system becomes operational pan-India by
December
421. MTS to offer Wi-Fi services at 3 railway stations
i. Russia's Sistema JFSC that operates under the MTS
brand in India has partnered with the Indian
Railways to create Wi-Fi hotspots at Agra,
Ahmedabad and Varanasi railways stations
422. Air pollution costs EU up to 189 billion euros: EU
agency
i. Air pollution, chiefly from coal-fired power plants,
cost society up to 189 billion euros ($235 billion) in
2012 the European Environment Agency (EEA) said
423. Thomas Cook says CEO Harriet Green to step
down – Nov 26
i. British holiday company Thomas Cook chief
executive Harriet Green is stepping down and
would be replaced by chief operating officer Peter
Fankhauser
424. Carl Icahn raises stake in car rental company
Hertz
i. Activist investor Carl Icahn raised his stake in U.S.
car rental company Hertz Global Holdings Inc
425. Germany to introduce legal quotas for women
on company boards
i. Chancellor Angela Merkel‘s coalition parties
agreed to draft a law that would force Germany‘s
leading companies to allocate 30 percent of seats
on non-executive boards to women from 2016
426. RBI may punish lenders who violate foreign
debt rules
i. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said it could
penalise lenders that help domestic companies
raise debt abroad if that fundraising violates
external commercial borrowing rules when
repatriated to India
427. India, U.S. hold first trade dialogue in four years
i. The United States and India held their first round of
formal trade talks in four years
428. China to offer aid for India high-speed rail
study
i. China will conduct and pay for a feasibility study
in India for a high-speed rail line to link Delhi with
the southeast city of Chennai
429. Nepal gives Indian firm $1 billion hydroelectric
plant
i. Nepal has given an Indian company , Satluj Jal
Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) Limited, permission to build a
900 megawatt hydropower plant in the Arun River
which provides Nepal with free electricity and India
energy
ii. The two countries will sign an agreement for the
$1.04 billion project Nepal's Law Minister Narahari
Acharya told
430. State Bank of India to launch Islamic equity
fund
i. The Securities and Exchange Board of India
allowed the government-owned State Bank of India
and three mutual funds to launch Sharia funds , an
Islamic equity fund
ii. India is only the second country outside the
Islamic world where a state-owned bank is offering
a Sharia-compliant fund
iii. Charging and receiving interest is considered
usury and is not allowed under Islamic law known as
Sharia and India's stock exchanges have between
600 and 700 companies that are Sharia-compliant.
431. India to give business visa for 3-5 years for
SAARC
i. Modi said India will give business visa for three to
five years for Saarc countries
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432. WGC, IIM-A set up gold policy centre – Nov 27
i. The World Gold Council (WGC) along with the
Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad
(IIMA), has set up ‗India Gold Policy Centre‘ to
conduct research on all aspects of the domestic
gold industry
433. OPEC meeting keeps world on the edge
i. Oil ministers of the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) meet in Vienna to press
for a one million barrels a day production cut to
support falling Brent crude oil prices
434. EU's Juncker survives no confidence vote in
European parliament
i. European Commission President Jean-Claude
Juncker survived a confidence vote in the
Parliament
435. Indonesia's Lion Group buying ATR planes
i. Indonesia's Lion Group is buying an additional 40
aircraft from ATR for $1 billion
ii. ATR is co-owned by Airbus group and Italian
industrial conglomerate Finmeccanica
436. Corporation Bank allows unlimited ATM
transactions –Nov 28
i. Corporation Bank allowed unlimited free
transactions on its ATMs for SB account holders of
the bank
437. France, Italy, Belgium may break budget rules,
EU to revisit in March
i. The European Commission will tell France, Italy
and Belgium their 2015 budgets risk breaking EU
rules, but it will defer decisions on any action until
early March
ii. At that point, France could face a multi-billion
euro fine and Italy and Belgium be put on a
disciplinary program.
438. Saudis block OPEC output cut
i. Saudi Arabia blocked calls from poorer members
of the OPEC oil exporter group for production cuts
to arrest a slide in global prices of oil
ii. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries accounts for a third of global oil output
439. WTO clinches first global trade deal in its history
i. The World Trade Organization adopted the first
worldwide trade reform in its history, after years of
stalemate, deadlock and a final days delayed
objection.
ii. The agreement means the WTO will introduce
new standards for customs checks and border
procedures.
iii. Proponents say streamlining the flow of trade will
add as much as $1 trillion and 21 million jobs to the
world economy
440. Subdued food price inflation in Europe
i. Prices paid in Europe for fast-moving consumer
goods rose at their slowest pace since 2010 in the
third quarter, and fell in Spain, France and Italy,
according to consumer data firm Nielsen
441. SABMiller, Coca-Cola and local firm to create
African bottler
i. SABMiller Plc, The Coca-Cola Company and
Gutsche Family Investments (GFI) are combining
their soft drinks bottling operations in South and East
Africa to create a group with $2.9 billion in revenue
442. India Post takes up 5,000 crore investment
project to utilize e-commerce based opportunity
i. India Post is taking up a connectivity revamping
project worth Rs 7000 Crore to utilize e- commerce
opportunity and add up vehicles to its nationwide
fleet to ensure 'delivery on time
443. Defence equipment worth over Rs 1800 crore
exported since 2011
i. India has exported defence equipment to the
tune of Rs 1,812.17 crore since 2011 and the exports
are undertaken by Defence Public Sector
Undertakings (DPSUs), Ordinance Factory Board
(OFB) and Private Industry
444. BSE ranks at top-10 largest exchanges of the
world with Rs 100-trillion market cap
i. The BSE ranks at 10th position globally with a
market cap of over $1.6 trillion, crossing Rs 100-
trillion mark in the rupee terms for the first time ever.
ii. It is the largest exchange in the world in terms of
number of listed companies.
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445. Mauritius inks Rs 100 crore deal with Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited for Dornier aircraft
i. The Mauritius government has signed a contract
worth nearly Rs 100 crore with aerospace major
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to acquire its
Dornier aircraft for maritime surveillance
446. Government plans to cut stake in state lenders
to raise $14.4 billion –Nov 29
i. The government plans to raise about 891.2 billion
rupees ($14.4 billion) by reducing its stakes in state-
run banks to 52 percent
447. Essar's plans oil-for-steel deal in Iran
i. Essar Group, a $39 billion conglomerate, is looking
to tap frozen Iranian oil revenues to pay for its steel
exports to Tehran
448. April-October fiscal deficit nears 90 pct of full-
year target
i. India's fiscal deficit was 4.76 trillion rupees ($76.77
billion) during April-October, or 89.6 percent of the
full-year target
449. i. RBI raises FII limit in Just Dial, allowing
overseas investors to buy up to 75 percent in the
company
450. Rosneft‟s Sechin says oil could fall below
$60/barrel next year
i. Russia's most powerful oil official Igor Sechin said
oil prices could fall below $60 by mid-way through
next year
451. IMF lauds World Trade Organization decisions
on TFA, food security
i. The IMF has said that the WTO decisions on the
trade facilitation agreement and public stock
holding for food security purposes would provide an
opportunity for advancing multilateral trade
negotiations in other areas which is essential for
global growth
452. India overtakes China in corporate
governance rankings
i. India is at par with Malaysia and Australia ranking
4th across 25 markets globally and is at the 2nd spot
in the Europe-Middle East-Asia (EMA) market
category, said the study jointly conducted by
KPMG and ACCA
453. Germany‟s Gabriel says sees Berlin backing
EU-Canada trade deal –Nov 30
i. German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel said he
expected his Social Democrat party (SPD) would
back Europe's free trade agreement with Canada
(CETA)
ii. It is widely seen as a template for a larger trade
pact between the EU and the United States
454. Indian economic growth slows to 5.3%
i. India's economy grew by 5.3% in the July-to-
September period from a year earlier, down from a
rate of 5.7% in the previous quarter
SPORTS 455. i. The National under-19 women‟s cricket
championship began at four venues in Kerala on
nov 1
456. Nico Rosberg heads Lewis Hamilton in Japan
practice
i. Nico Rosberg beat Mercedes team-mate and title
rival Lewis Hamilton to set the fastest time in first
practice at the Japanese Grand Prix
457. Misbah sets fastest Test fifty record –Nov 2
i. Pakistan skipper Misbah-ul Haq set a new world
record for the fastest Test half-century, reaching 50
off just 21 balls beating previous record by South
Africa's Jacques Kallis
458. Lewis Hamilton wins the United States Grand
Prix 2014 – Nov 3
i. Lewis Hamilton won the United States Grand Prix
at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas
ii. Hamilton now leads Rosberg by 24 points in the
world championship race with two venues
remaining
459. World Chess Championship – Nov 5
i. The World Chess Championship will be held in
Sochi from November 7 to 28
460. Sachin Tendulkar‟s autobiography
i. The first copy of Sachin Tendulkar‘s much
autobiography -- ‗Playing It My Way‘ -- was
presented to his mother Rajni Tendulkar
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461. Sachin says yes to „standardised‟ DRS- Nov 9
i. Former captain Sachin Tendulkar wants the sport
to embrace the Decision Review System (DRS) if the
same technology is used everywhere
462. Fernando Alonso will be the highest paid in F1
History
i. Fernando Alonso‘s contract with McLaren-Honda
for a highest salary will reportedly be the ‗biggest in
F1 history‘
463. Panel to look into Walsh‟s demands – Nov 11-
14
i. The Sports Authority of India (SAI) has formed a six-
member committee, including well-known hockey
players Ajitpal Singh, Ashok Kumar and Zafar Iqbal,
to look into the demands of National team chief
coach Terry Walsh.
464. FIFA clears Russia, Qatar to host World Cup
i. Russia and Qatar were cleared by a FIFA judge of
corruption in their winning bids for the 2018 and
2022 World Cups
465. AIBA grants permanent membership to Boxing
India
i. AIBA unanimously gave permanent membership
to the recently-elected Boxing India during its
quadrennial congress in Jeju Islands, Korea
ii. Boxing India president is Sandeep Jajodia
466. Indian company reviews Aussie debacle
i. Cricket Australia has engaged a Chennai-based
Indian company to review the recent Test debacle
of Michael Clarke‘s men in the UAE
467. Johnson named ICC Cricketer of the Year
i. Mitchell Johnson the Australian fast bowler was
declared ICC Cricketer of the Year as well as the
ICC Test cricketer of the Year.
ii. The 33-year-old has won the coveted Cricketer of
the Year award for the second time in his career
while he is only third Australian after Ricky Ponting
(2006) and Michael Clarke (2013) to win the Test
Cricketer of the Year award
468. Saina, Srikanth lift China Open –Nov 16
i. first time an Indian shuttler K Srikanth clinched his
maiden Super Series title since the Super Series and
Premier tournaments were introduced
ii. Saina won the women's singles title , which was
her third title as she had won the Australian Super
Series in June, besides clinching the Syed Modi
International Grand Prix Gold early in the year
469. Expectations high on Indians at World Snooker
Championship –Nov 18
i. India is hosting the World Snooker Championship
for the fifth time
ii. The 29-year-old Advani, holder of 12 World titles
and fellow-Bengalurean Vidya Pillai, the reigning
women's national champion, are among title
favourites
470. Srikanth breaks into top 10 in badminton
ranking –Nov 20
i. K. Srikanth climbed up six places to achieve a
career-best 10th in the men‘s singles category of
the latest Badminton World Federation (BWF)
rankings released
471. Boxer Manoj to receive Arjuna Award –Nov 21
i. Boxer Manoj Kumar, a 2010 Commonwealth
Games gold-medallist will be bestowed the Arjuna
Award by Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal in
New Delhi on November 26
472. Lionel Messi set a La Liga scoring record of 253
goals – Nov 23
i. Lionel Messi set a La Liga scoring record of 253
goals, surpassing the previous record of 251 set by
former Athletic Bilbao forward Telmo Zarra six
decades ago
473. Deborah signs off with two more golds–Nov 24
i. Deborah finished her campaign in style by
securing two more gold medals in the Track Asia
Cup cycling event, which concluded at the Indira
Gandhi velodrome
474. Indian women beach kabaddi team wins gold
i. Indian women‘s beach kabaddi team grabbed
the gold and finished 20th in the overall medal tally
in the Asian Beach Games in Phuket , Thailand
475. Davis Cup final
i. The 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer
beat Richard Gasquet to seal Switzerland's first
Davis Cup triumph
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476. The World Chess Championship Match –Nov 28
i. Magnus Carlsen won The World Chess
Championship Match with Challenger Viswanathan
Anand that took place in Sochi, Russia
from November 7–28, 2014
ii. 2016 World Chess Championship will take place in
the US
477. New Records at Jio 30th National Junior
Athletic championship at Indira Gandhi Municipal
stadium
i. Uttar Pradesh‘s Priyanka created a national and
new meet record in the 10,000 metre walk event
ii. Kerala‘s Sreenith Mohan cleared a height of
2.18m thus creating new national and meet record
478. Shuttler PV Sindhu won Macau Open title –Nov 30
i. Two-time World Championship bronze medallist
P.V. Sindhu won Macau Grand Prix Gold trophy in
the women‘s singles finals, in Macau
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
479. Iraqi child gets stem cell treatment in Chennai
hospital –Nov 1
i. A seven-year-old girl from Iraq underwent stem
cell treatment for a heart ailment at Frontier Lifeline
Hospital in Chennai
480. New species of frog found in NY
i. A team of scientists has identified the unique
critter, dubbed the Atlantic Coast leopard frog, in
the marshes of Staten Island -- beside New York
Harbour
481. California hospital explores genetics-aided
cancer treatment –Nov 6
i. The University of California said it is working on a
new project with Silicon Valley start-up Syapse to
build a store of genetic data about various
metastatic cancer cases hoping to break new
ground in a fledgling field of genomic medicine
482. Sensor Fish –Nov 7
i. To find out the kind of struggles by a fish that live
near hydroelectric power plants face, scientists at
the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)
have designed "sensor fish" — plastic tubes filled
with technology that can measure the stresses and
strains put on salmon swimming through dam
machinery.
483. Insect family tree devised
i. An international research team unveiled what it
called the most comprehensive insect family tree
ever devised
ii. The scientists analyzed 1,478 genes from 144
species covering all the major insect groups
484. Tiny robotic scallops can swim through blood
and eyeball fluid to fix you up- Nov 8
i. Scientists have developed microscopic robots ,
known as micro-robo-scallops that move back and
forth to swim through blood, eyeball fluids and
other liquids inside our body to repair the body
485. Scientists scour the genomes of people who
live past 110 – Nov 11 to 14
i. Scientists have sequenced the genomes of 17
people ages 110 to 116 to try to determine whether
they possess genetic traits that may account for
extreme longevity
486. Probe landed successfully on comet
i. The European Space Agency landed a probe
named Philae on a comet.
ii. Rosetta has become the first spacecraft to orbit a
comet rather than just flying past to take pictures
iii. The Cometary Sampling and Composition
(COSAC) gas analysing instrument on Philae was
able to detect the first organic
molecules containing carbon elements
487. Warming climate may fuel more lightning
i. Rising global temperatures may cause a big jolt in
the number of lightning strikes in the United States
over the rest of the 21st century scientists say.
488. Studies of brain during smoking may offer clues
on smoking addiction
i. British scientists say they have found the best way
yet to analyse the effects of smoking on the brain --
by taking functional magnetic resonance imaging
(fMRI) scans of people while they puff on e-
cigarettes
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489. “Star-gazing” shrimp discovered in South Africa
–Nov 21
i. A tiny shrimp equipped with large, candy-striped
eyes to ward off predators has been discovered in
South African waters, the University of Cape Town
said
490. "Back boost" could help future-proof flu
vaccines
i. The scientists found that when flu re-infects, the
immune system responds not just to the infecting
strain, but also to all the strains it has encountered in
the past -- a phenomenon the researchers termed
"back-boost" and this phenomenon may make it
possible to make seasonal and future-proof flu
vaccines
491. Cheap e-cigarette may have malware - Nov
23
i. A cheap e-cigarette from an untrustworthy
supplier gains physical access to a device when
plugged into a computer‘s USB port and infects the
system through malware hardcoded into the
charger
492. Symantec uncovers stealth virus
i. An advanced malicious software application
(known also as Regin) that since 2008 was used to
spy in 10 countries has been uncovered, antivirus-
software-maker Symantec Corp said
493. IIT-Madras joins CERN experiment
i. IIT-Madras has been accepted as a full member
of the The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS)
experiment, which is part of the Large Hadron
Collider at CERN
ii. Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai,
and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre have long
been members, as also Delhi and Punjab
Universities
494. Two New Subatomic Particles Found Using
Large Hadron Collider
i.The new particles found, known as the Xi_b'- and
Xi_b*-are six times as large as the proton and are
members of the baryon family, which also includes
protons and neutrons
495. Diabetes: new drug target found –Nov 28
i. A team of scientists led by Satish Kumar, Chief
Scientist and Group Leader at Centre for Cellular
and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has genetically
deleted Wdr13 gene in a mouse afflicted severely
with Type 2 diabetes and demonstrated that the
absence of the gene corrects the pathology of the
disease
496. APPOINTMENTS, AWARDS AND RESIGNATIONS
a. Hindustan Zinc, CEO Akhilesh Joshi has been
appointed as the vice-chairman of the Brussels-
based International Zinc Association–Nov 5
b. The IPI India Award for Excellence in Journalism,
2014, has been awarded jointly to Hindustan Times
and The Week for “outstanding journalistic work”
during 2013.
c. Eminent Jurist Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer has been
chosen for this year‟s K.R. Narayanan award for his
services to the nation.The award was instituted by
the K.R. Narayanan Foundation in memory of the
late President – Nov 15
d . Former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar has been
chosen as the recipient of this year's Col. C K
Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award instituted by
the BCCI–Nov 18
e. Venu Srinivasan who also serves as the Honorary
Consul General of the Republic of Korea, has been
appointed as Honorary Commanding Officer of
Korean Naval Vessel, ROKS Choi Young (DDH-981)
f.The 45th edition of the International Film Festival of
India (IFFI) is held in Goa –Nov 20
i. Film star Rajinikanth will be bestowed the
Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality of the
Year
ii. Actor Waheeda Rehman was the first recipient of
the award.
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iii.. Chinese film-maker Wong Kar Wai will receive
the Lifetime Achievement Award
g. Mongolia‟s parliament has appointed Chimed
Saikhanbileg as prime minister
h. U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel resigned
i. Ukraine's parliament approved Arseny Yatseniuk
for a new term as prime minister
500. BIRTHDAYS AND DEATHS
Social scientist Pandian dead
i. M.S.S. Pandian, an eminent social scientist who
has written for national newspapers and the
'Economic and Political Weekly' and one of the
finest authorities on the Dravidian Movement has
died
Duchess of Alba, the world's most titled aristocrat,
died - Nov 20
i. Spain's 18th Duchess of Alba known to friends as
'Cayetana', named by Guinness World Records as
the world's most titled person and one of Europe's
wealthiest and most titled aristocrats died
German who created Noah‟s Ark for the Western
Ghats is dead
i. Wolfgang Theuerkauf, a German who dedicated
his life to the conservation of plants of southern
India, created a sanctuary as a Noah‘s Ark for
endemic plants passed away in Wayanad, Kerala
ii. The International Union for the Conservation of
Nature has named the Gurukula as one of the 25
global centres of biodiversity
iii. In 2006, he won the Whitley Award, the highest
environment honour in the U.K., for the most
effective conservation effort across the world.
a. India‟s longest serving Petroleum Minister, Senior
Congress leader and former Union Minister Murli
Deora died –Nov 24
b. Australia Test batsman Phillip Hughes aged 25
has died – Nov 27
c. Hillel Oscar an umpire and former captain of
Israel‟s national cricket team died after being hit in
the jaw by a ball –Nov 30
IMPORTANT DAYS IN NOVEMBER
2 November International Day to End
Impunity for Crimes against Journalists
6 November International Day for
Preventing the Exploitation of the
Environment in War and Armed Conflict
10 November World Science Day for Peace
and Development
14 November World Diabetes Day
16 November International Day for
Tolerance
16 November (Third Sunday in November)
World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic
Victims
19 November World Toilet Day
20 November Universal Children‘s Day
20 November (Third Thursday in November)
World Philosophy Day
21 November World Television Day
22 November Africa Industrialization Day
25 November International Day for the
Elimination of Violence against Women
29 November International Day of Solidarity
with the Palestinian People