1 October 2014 Current Affairs1)What is the name of the social network belonging to search engine Google whose operations were closed from 30 September 2014? OrkutExplanation:Orkut was Googles first foray into the social networking space, which failed to take off due to tough competition from rival services such as Facebook and Twitter. Orkut was started in 2004 and it initially caught the fancy of youth all over the world. While Orkut wasnt a big success across the world, it was very popular in India and Brazil. Google later launched another social network called Google+, which turned out to be far more popular than Orkut. Google stated that the growth of communities of YouTube, Blogger and Google+ outpaced Orkuts growth and hence it was decided to bid Orkut farewell.2)The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) presented its 4thBi-monthly Monetary Policy review on 30 September 2014. As was widely expected, RBI kept the major rates unchanged as the central bank kept its focus on tackling inflation. What are the major rates and projections coming out of this review?- GDP growth rate projected at 5.5% for current fiscal- The high growth rate during Q1 (Apr-June 2014) may not be sustained in Q2 and Q3- Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation projected to remain at 8% by Jan 2015 and 6% by Jan 2016- Repo rate (short term lending rate) unchanged at 8%- Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) unchanged at 4%- Statutory Liquidity Ratio (used for unlocking banking funds) retained at 22%- The liquidity rate under Export Credit Refinance (ECR) reduced from 32% to 15% (w.e.f. 10 October 2014)3)Which country is witnessing a civil disobedience movement named Occupy Central demanding electoral reforms in the country? Hong KongExplanation:The Occupy Central movement started in Hong Kong from 28 September 2014. The movement was the brainchild of Benny Tai Yiu-ting, an associate professor of law at the University of Hong Kong, who founded the movement in 2013. The primary demand of the movement is the implementation of universal suffrage for the chief executive election in 2017 and the Legislative Council elections in 2020 according to international standards. Thousands of protestors participated in the movement which paralysed Hong Kongs financial district through massive road blocks.4)What was the name of the 14-day India-US military exercise held in Uttarakhand that concluded on 30 September 2014? Yudh Abhyas 2014Explanation:Yudh Abhyas 2014 that commenced from 17 September 2014 was held with the objective of strengthening and broaden inter-operability and cooperation between Indian and the United States. The exercise was the 10thedition of Yudh Abhyas series, which started in 2004 under the US Army Pacific Partnership Programme. The exercise operations were held in Ranikhet and Chaubatia areas of Uttarakhand.5)What are the names of two Indian referees scripted Indian football history when they officiated in the Asian Games womens semifinal match featuring Womens World Champions Japan in Incheon on 30 September 2014? Maria Rebello Piedade and Uvena FernandesExplanation:This was the first time an Indian woman referee has officiated in a match featuring a current World champion. Maria adjudicated the match while Urvena was the assistant referee. Maria was the first-ever woman referee in the world to supervise a premier league match of any country when she officiated an I-League match held on 8 March 2014 between Pune and Shillong Lajong.6)Which Indian pharmaceutical company has emerged the worlds largest manufacturer of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine as announced by the company on 30 September 2014? Indian Immunologicals Ltd (IIL)Explanation:IIL is worlds largest vaccine manufacturing company and was established in 1983 by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). The company is renowned for developing veterinary and human vaccines for foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease, rabies, bacterial vaccines, canine vaccines, hepatitis, measles, MMR and DPT. The company currently meets the bulk of the vaccine requirement for the FMD control programme in India. It has supplied over a billion doses and is gearing up to meet the surge in demand due to the expansion of the programme in the coming years at a competitive price.2-3 October 2014 Current Affairs1)Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 2 October 2014 Indias biggest-ever cleanliness drive the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (Clean India Mission) on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti. What is the main objective of this huge mission on which around Rs.62,000 crore would be spent? To accomplish the vision of Clean India by 2 October 2019 (The 150thBirth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi)Explanation:The main programme of Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan was held with a public gathering at Rajpath (New Delhi) where Prime Minister administered oath to the public and dignitaries to pledge their role in keeping the country clean. On this occasion President Pranab Mukherjee asked every Indian citizen to spend 100 hours annually in this drive. The urban component of the Mission is proposed to be implemented over 5 years in all 4,041 statutory towns. The total expected cost of the programme isRs.62,009 crore, out of which the proposed central assistance will be ofRs.14,623 crore. The Union Cabinet during September 2014 also decided to merge the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, a campaign for rural sanitation with Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan.2)Indian mens Hockey team moved one more step closer in regaining its lost glory by claiming the gold medal at 17thAsian Games at Incheon on 2 October 2014. India defeated arch-rivals Pakistan by 4-2 in a nerve-wracking shoot-out in the finals to earn a direct berth to the 2016 Rio Olympics. With this win India has now won how many gold medals in mens hockey at the Asian Games? ThreeExplanation:Prior to this India won only 2 gold medals in mens hockey event at Asian Games 3rdAsian Games 1966 (Bangkok) and 11thAsian Games 1998 (Bangkok). It is surprising that despite having 8 Olympic gold medals in mens hockey event, Indias performance has not been up to the mark in Asian Games. Pakistan has till now won 8 gold medals in this event while South Korea has won 4 gold medals. Hence this win was a big morale booster for the Indian side. South Korea defeated Malaysia by 3-2 to claim the bronze medal.3)Microsoft Corporation recently gave the first official look of the next version of its hugely popular Windows operating system (OS). What is the name of this latest upcoming OS that was also unveiled? Windows 10Explanation:Microsoft gave the world its first official look of the next version of Windows on 30 September 2014 at a press event held in San Francisco (US). The name of this new OS was a surprise because the company skipped over Windows 9 by naming this OS as Windows 10. Its last Windows OS was Windows 8. However, Windows 10 would be made available only in 2015. Some important features of this OS would be re-introduction of the popular Start menu, ability to scale from smartphones to giant data centres, improved capabilities for dealing with todays security threats and capability to run modern apps on the desktop just like other apps.4)Which two Union Territories of the Indian Union achieved a unique milestone of 100% banking coverage as revealed in a meeting of Finance Ministry on 1 October 2014? Puducherry and ChandigarhExplanation:Puducherry and Chandigarh achieved this milestone by providing all the households with at-least one account. This was revealed in the meeting that the Finance Ministry held with representatives of public and private sector banks to review the progress made in the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), the flagship financial inclusion programme launched on 28 August 2014.5)Indian womens team defeated which team in the finals to win the gold medal in womens Kabaddi at 17thAsian Games on 3 October 2014? IranExplanation:India defeated Iran by 31-21 to notch up its second successive gold medal at the Asian Games. This was Indias 10thgold medal in these games.6)Which countrys Parliament on 2 October 2014 voted to authorize the government to take military action in Iraq and Syria against the Islamic State (IS)? TurkeyExplanation:Turkey is a member of NATO but it was not clear whether Turkey would support the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group. On the other hand the fight for the Kurdish city of Kobane in Syria intensified as Islamic State militia was located just outside the city on 2 October.7)Legendary Indian boxer M.C. Mary Kom won a historic Asian Games gold medal on 1 October 2014 to become the first Indian woman boxer to win an Asian Games gold medal. She defeated Kazakhstans Zhaina Shekerbekova 2-0. Mary Kom won this gold in which weight category? Womens flyweight category (48-51kg)Explanation:M.C. Mary Kom is a 5-times world champion and her personal best was the bronze medal in the 2012 London Olympics.8)Indian womens relay team won gold medal in which event athletics event at 17thAsian Games on 2 October 2014? 4X400 m relay eventExplanation:The Indian quartet of Priyanka Panwar, Tintu Luka, Mandeep Kaur and M R Poovamma won an easy race in 3:28.68 to improve upon the earlier Games record of 3:29.02 which was also in the name of the gold-winning Indian team in 2010.Japan won the silver in 3:30.80 while China bagged the bronze in 3:32.02. India has traditionally been a strong performer in womens 4X400 m relay event and it was countrys fourth gold medal in this event. The country has been winning the event since the 2002 Busan Games.4 October 2014 Current Affairs1)The rates of the tatkal tickets of Indian Railways went up from October 2014 with the railways deciding to sell 50% of the quota tickets using dynamic fare system. The Premium Tatkal Ticket scheme became operational in how many trains from 1 October 2014? EightyExplanation:Under this scheme Railways had asked all zones to identify five popular trains in their respective zone. The passengers will have to pay normal tatkal fare for 50% of the total tickets available. But for subsequent 10% tickets, 20% more will be charged which means after selling 50% of tatkal tickets, the Indian Railways will keep increasing the fare with the sale of tickets. The railways described the scheme as a preventive measure to deal with the menace of touts. However, this move was opposed by a large segment of passengers who see the scheme tailor-made to increase railways earnings. The Railways is also running three Premium trains on dynamic fare system.2)The Indian contingent at 17thAsian Games concluded its campaign on 3 October 2014 as no Indian athletes would feature in any event on 4 October the last day of the games. How many total medals were won by Indian the Indian contingent? 57Explanation:Indian aggregate tally of 57 medals included 11 gold medals, 10silver and 36 bronze. India was currently at 8thposition in the medals tally and its final position would be confirmed on 4 October. The aggregate tally was however lesser than the 65 medals India won in the last edition of Asian Games at Guangzhou in 2010. India won 14 gold medals, 17 silvers and 34 bronze to finish the games at 6thspot.3)More than 40 persons were killed and hundreds injured in a stampede in Bihars capital Patna on 3 October 2014. The accident took place after people were returning after watching the Ravan Vadh ceremony on the occasion of Dussehra. The accident took place in which historic ground of Patna? Gandhi MaidanExplanation:Lakhs of people were assembled at main Dussehra event held annually at Patnas famous Gandhi Maidan. Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manji was present at the place where people watched the effigy of Ravan consigned to flames. The accident took place after people were leaving the ground and allegedly some rumours were spread in the crowd.4)What is the name of the British hostage who was shown being beheaded in a video released on 3 October 2014 by Islamic State militants? Alan HenningExplanation:However the authenticity of this video could not be verified by agencies though it was released in the same manner as other Islamic State group videos. This is the fourth such video released by the Islamic State militants. The three persons who were beheaded in the same manner include American reporters James Foley and Steven Sotloff and British aid worker David Haines.5)Indian mens Kabaddi team won the gold medal at the 17thAsian Games on 3 October 2014 in a tough final against Iran. India defeated Iran by 27-25 despite the fact that it was trailing by 13-21 at half time. This was Indias consecutive gold medal in these games SeventhExplanation:India has won all the gold medals in Kabaddi since it was introduced in the 11thAsian Games at Beijing in 1990. Since then India has won the gold medals in the games held in 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010 and now in 2014. Earlier Indian womens team also won the gold in Kabaddi on the same day by defeating Iran and thus giving India the golden double.5-6 October 2014 Current Affairs1)Who was nominated as the next U.S. Ambassador to India recently? Richard Rahul VermaExplanation:Verma was the Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs, at the U.S. Department of State until March 2011. He was nominated as Americas next Ambassador to India by President Barack Obama during September 2014. He will take place of Nancy Powell whose tenure ended during March 2014.2)The 17thAsian Games concluded at Incheon (South Korea) on 4 October 2014 with a glittering closing ceremony. The next edition of Asian Games would be held in which city? Jakarta (Indonesia)Explanation:Indonesia was not the original host of 18thAsian Games to be held in 2018. The games were originally allotted to Hanoi (Vietnam). But Vietnam government expressed its inability to host these games due to financial constraints. The games were then allotted to Indonesia. Jakarta had hosted the 4thAsian Games in 1962. In 17thAsian Games China topped the medals tally with a total of 151 gold medals. It was followed by hosts South Korea (79 gold), Japan (47 gold), Kazakhstan (28 gold), Iran (21 gold), Thailand (12 gold), North Korea (11 gold), India (11 gold) and Chinese Taipei (10 gold).3)What is the name of the upgraded version of Chinas 10,000-km range missile which was successfully tested recently? Dongfeng-31BExplanation:The 10,000-km range Dongfeng-31B missile was tested by China on 25 September 2014 from the Wuzhai Missile and Space Test Centre (also called Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre) in Shanxi province. This missile is capable of reaching most of the US and European cities. Dongfeng-31B is an upgraded version of the DF-31A and the launch was at least the second time the PLAs Second Artillery Corps had tested a DF-31 missile in the past three months.4)Chennai Super Kings (CSK) won the Oppo Champions League T20 for 2014 by defeating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in a one-sided final on 4 October 2014. CSK has now won the Champions League T20 title how many times? Two timesExplanation:CSK won the Champions League T20 title for the first time in 2010. Mumbai Indians have also won this title twice. In the finals CSK thoroughly defeated KKR by 8-wickets, thanks to a 62-ball 109 unbeaten century by Suresh Raina. Champions League T20 is an annual international T20 cricket competition played between the top domestic teams from major cricketing nations.5)Who won the Japanese F1 Grand Prix on 5 October 2014? Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes teamExplanation:British driver Lewis Hamilton won the race to take 10 point lead over teammate Nico Rosberg (Germany). Rosberg finished the race at second spot while third place was taken by Red Bulls Sebastian Vettel (Germany). Only four races are left in 2014 F1 season and the fight between Hamilton and Rosberg has made the season very interesting.6)Who on 4 October 2013 became the first cricketer in the last 10 years to make it to the Indian national team without playing a single first-class (like Ranji Trophy) or list A match? Kuldeep YadavExplanation:Kuldeep Yadav, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, was the surprise inclusion and the lone new face in the squad, getting the nod ahead of experienced left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha. He is a Chinaman bowler and was rewarded for his performance in the ongoing Champions League T20 where he bagged seven wickets so far playing for Kolkata Knight Riders.7)Who on 4 October 2014 won the PGTI Eagleburg Masters held in Bangalore? Rashid KhanExplanation:Delhis Rashid Khan won the tournament with a total score of 269. C. Muniyappa emerged runner-up while Narendra Gupta was one stroke further behind at third place. PGTI Eagleburg Masters was the fourth Super Series event of the Indian golf season.Khan has now moved from second to first place in the Rolex Rankings having overtaken Chikkarangappa.7 October 2014 Current Affairs1)Norwegian couple May-Britt Moser and Edvard Moser and Anglo-American John OKeefe were announced as the winner of the 2014 Nobel Prize for Medicine on 6 October 2014. The three are being rewarded for which of their pioneering work associated with the human mind? They solved the mystery How does the brain create a map of the space surrounding us and how can we navigate our way through a complex environment?Explanation:The discovery of the trio pertains to the discovery that helped in solving a problem that has occupied philosophers and scientists for centuries of How does the brain create a map of the space surrounding us and how can we navigate our way through a complex environment? Their research helped in giving clues to how strokes and Alzheimers affect the brain. OKeefe (University College London) discovered the first component of the brains internal positioning system in 1971 when he found that a type of nerve cell in a brain region called the hippocampus was always activated when a rat was in a certain place in a room. Later May-Britt Moser and Edvard Moser (Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim) worked with OKeefe to learn how to record the activity of cells in the hippocampus..2)Hewlett-Packard Co (HP) on 6 October 2014 announced plans to split the company into two listed companies by separating its computer and printer businesses from its faster-growing corporate hardware and services operations. What would be the names of the two new companies to be established with this split? Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and HP Inc.Explanation:Hewlett-Packard Enterprise would include companys corporate hardware and services operations business whereas HP Inc. would include computer and printer business. Meg Whitman, the present CEO of HP, will lead the new Hewlett-Packard Enterprise while Dion Weisler will lead HP Inc. It is worth mentioning that many investors and analysts had called for a break-up of the company, or a sale of the PC business, so that HP could focus on the more profitable operations that sell computer servers and networking gear and data storage to businesses. Founded by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard in a Palo Alto, California garage in 1939, HP was one of the companies that shaped Silicon Valley and the PC revolution..3)India is among the 5 group of countries will start work on the worlds biggest telescope in the United States. This will enable to identify an object as small as coin from a distance of 500 km. The other four countries involved in this project include the U.S., Japan, China and Canada. Where this telescope will be established? Mauna Kea volcano in on Hawaii Island in U.S.Explanation:The diameter of this telescope will be a mammoth 30 meter. It will cost around $1.4 billion and the construction is expected to be completed by March 2022. Japan is expected to cover about a quarter of the construction costs. The telescope will be larger than Japans Subaru Telescope, one of the worlds biggest, which was also built on the summit of Mauna Kea and started observation in 1999. To mark the start of construction, 100 astronomers and officials from the five countries are scheduled to attend a ceremony on 7 October 2014 at a location 4,012 meters high on Mount Mauna Kea..4)What is the name of the phone application (app), the services of which were asked to be blocked by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) in a recent request made to the Department of Telecom (DoT)? We PhoneExplanation:We Phone is a phone and messaging application like Skype and Whatsapp and is freely available on Android Play Store and Apples application store. The IB claimed that the We Phone app facilitates spoofing of caller id and is difficult to identify to locate or identify actual caller. The application after verifying users phone number at the time of installation gives an option to disable the number to hide it. IB has told DoT that in free version of this application caller id on receiver screen starts with +1777 whereas in paid version any number can be set to display as caller id..5)Which Indian online retail company organised the Big Billion Day sale on 6 October 2014 with a target of $100 million sale in gross merchandise value (GMV)? FlipkartExplanation:Indias largest online retail company conducted its highly ambitious Big Billion Day sale on the day by offering a wide range of products at unprecedented discounted rates. The sale was on the day the company was founded in 2007. Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, the founders of Flipkart claimed that the sale achieved its target within 10 hours. On the other hand Flipkart site crashed on numerous occasions and was not able to process some transactions. Some buyers claimed that the discount were less than those offered by Flipkarts rivals..6)What is the name of the new mid-sized sedan car launched by Maruti Suzuki on 6 October 2014? CiazExplanation:Ciaz was introduced by the company on 3 September 2014 and is companys third foray in the mid-size segment after Baleno and SX4. The petrol variants of the sedan are priced between Rs.6,99,000 and Rs.9,34,000 while the diesel variants are priced between Rs.804,000 and Rs.980,000 (ex-showroom Delhi).8 October 2014 Current Affairs1)The Indian Air Force (IAF) is celebrating 8 October 2014 as its foundation day in the form of Air Force Day. The IAF completed how many years of its establishment on this day? 82 yearsExplanation:IAF was established on 8 October 1932 with formation of the No.1 Squadron. It was established as an auxiliary air force of the British Empire and the prefixRoyalwas added in 1945 in recognition of its services during World War II. The prefix was dropped in 1950 when India became a republic.2)On 7 October 2014 Japanese scientists Isamu Akasaki and Hiroshi Amano and American Shuji Nakamura were named as the winners of the 2014 Nobel Prize for Physics for inventing what? LED lightExplanation:The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in its statement said that As about one fourth of world electricity consumption is used for lighting purposes, the LEDs contribute to saving the Earths resources. LED (which stands for Light Emitting Diode) is seen responsible for a massive cut in electricity consumption sue to it being energy efficient as well as environment friendly. The three scientists during the early 1990s made the breakthrough to produce the blue diodes that are a crucial component in producing white light from LEDs. Isamu Akasaki is associated with Meijo University (Nagoya, Japan) while Hiroshi Amano is from Nagoya University (Nagoya, Japan). Japan-born U.S. scientist Shuji Nakamurais associated with the University of California, Santa Barbara.3)Birth Centenary celebrations of which noted Hindustani classical singer commenced from 7 October 2014? Begum AkhtarExplanation:Begum Akhtars real name was Akhtar Bai Faizabadi. She was famous for the renditions of Ghazal, Dadra and Thumri and was given the title of Mallika-e-Ghazal (Queen of Ghazals). She was born on 7 October 1914 and passed away on 30 October 1974. On the occasion of her birth centenary year-long programmes have been planned by the Union Govt. Commemorative coins of Rs.100 and Rs. 5 on Begum Akhtar were also released in a programme held in New Delhi.4)The new Monetary Policy Framework Agreement, which aims to change the monetary policy formulation and will also focus on inflation targeting, is proposed to be signed by which date as announced by the Finance Ministry recently? 1 February 2015Explanation:The proposed framework is based on a combination of recommendations by FSLRC (Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission) and the Urjit Patel Committee, along with inputs from the Rajan Panel on Financial Sector Reforms. The Finance Ministry is presently seeking the comments of the RBI on this framework. The proposal will then be placed in the public domain before finalising the agreement. The endeavour is to sign the agreement by 1 February 2015, to show that one of the key Budget announcements has been implemented. The establishment of a modern monetary policy framework was announced in the Union Budget 2014-15 presented by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on 10 July 2014.5)What is the new growth projection for India for 2014-15 as announced by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 7 October 2014? 5.6%Explanation:In its report IMF clearly stated that Indias economy has recovered from a slump and better exports and investment prospects are visible. The IMFs year-on-year forecast for Indias financial year to March 2015 represents a 0.2 percentage-point uptick from its April 2014 projection. Indias economy posted two years of sub-five-per cent growth, the longest slowdown in a quarter century.6)Indias largest ferris wheel was inaugurated on 2 October 2014 at Kalindi Kunj in Delhi. This 200-feet high offers panoramic view of the city of Delhi. What is the name given to this giant wheel? Delhi EyeExplanation:At 200 feet, the giant wheel is the tallest in the country. It has 36 air-conditioned cabins that can seat six people each. Soft music plays throughout the ride, which lasts 20 minutes in all. The glass bottom in the cabin offers magnificent views of the city. It is constructed on the lines of the famous such flyers in London and Singapore. In fact, the same Dutch company which created the Singapore Flyer, was hired to construct the Delhi Eye.9 October 2014 Current Affairs1)What is the name given to the tropical cyclonic storm building over the north Andaman Sea which is expected to hit the coast of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha on sheer intensity on 12 October 2014? Hud HudExplanation:The name Hud Hud was given by the Indian Met Department (IMD) according to international cyclonic naming conventions. This cyclone is moving in from the Bay of Bengal and is forecast to bring gales of up to 140 kmph with heavy rains and storm when it hits the coast of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha on 12 October. Hud Hud is expected to hit land between the port city of Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and the resort town of Gopalpur in Odisha.2)What is the name of the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States who died on 8 October 2014 thus raising enormous anxiety in the country? Thomas Eric DuncanExplanation:Thomas Eric Duncan arrived in a Dallas apartment on 20 September 2014 after having spent years a refugee from his native country Liberia. He contact the deadly Ebola virus in Liberia, which is in the midst of a huge Ebola scar along with its West African neighbours Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.3)American scientists Eric Betzig and William Moerner and Germanys Stefan Hell were announced as the 3 winners of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry on 8 October 2014. They have been honoured for their contribution in which field of Chemistry? Optical MicroscopyExplanation:The trio of Betzig, Moerner and Hell were conferred for their contribution in the area of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy which helped in bringing optical microscopy into the nano-dimension. This helped to study molecular processes in real time. Betzig is associated with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (U.S.) while Moerner is at Stanford University. Hell is Director of the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Germany.4)33 years after founding Infosys, two of its founders bade farewell to the company on 8 October 2014. Who are these two persons? NR Narayana Murthy and S GopalakrishnanExplanation:NR Narayana Murthy and S Gopalakrishnan along with six other persons (Nandan Nilekani, N. S. Raghavan, S. D. Shibulal, K. Dinesh, Venugopal and Ashok Arora) laid the foundation of Infosys in 1981. Infosys is now a $8 billion multi-national IT company and the third largest in India. On 1 June 2013, Narayana Murthy, companys long time CEO, returned from his retirement to assume office in Infosys as its Executive Chairman. Murthy had the longest run of about 21 years as CEO before passing the baton to Nandan Nilekani and then Gopalakrishnan and S D Shibulal respectively. He will be designated as Chairman Emeritus from 11 October 2014. In August this year, Infosys appointed former SAP board member Vishal Sikka as its CEO and Managing Director.5)According to media reports, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has ordered its supervision team to monitor trading in debt markets by companies. This is the strongest expression of concern shown by the RBI on this issue. What is the primary reason for this move of the RBI? Reports that many companies are building large trading positions in debt and currency marketsExplanation:Trading in debt markets by companies could pose risks to financial market stability as it exposes the companies to greater price volatility. However, some companies indulge in this trading as this can be a lucrative extra source of profits for them. Companies are legally allowed to invest in markets in India, but it has seldom raised RBIs concerns until recently, when they have become much more active players.6)During October 2014 the American Congress has initiated a probe against how many generic drug makers for price escalation of generic drugs that includes top Indian drug companies Sun Pharma, Dr. Reddys Lab and Cadila Healthcare? 14Explanation:On 2 October 2014 the U.S. Congress initiated a probe and wrote to these firms, seeking details about recent hikes in prices of several generic products available in the U.S. market. Apart from the three Indian companies, the investigation includes Teva, Mylan, Actavis, Apotex, Endo, Global Pharmaceuticals, Heritage Pharmaceuticals, Lannett Company, Marathon Pharmaceuticals, PAR Pharmaceutical Companies Inc and West Ward Pharmaceutical Corp. This development is significant, especially against the backdrop of a continuing tussle between India and the US over issues related to intellectual property rights (IPR) and the American regulator increasing enforcements on Indian firms. However, industry officials maintain there is no provision under law by which the Congress could conduct such investigation.