Indore emerges as the Cleanest City of India

Indore, Bhopal, Visakhapatnam, Surat, Mysuru, Tiruchirapally, NDMC, Navi Mumbai,Vadodara, Chandigarh make the Top 10. Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand,Chattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana are the Movers and Shakers, says M.Venkaiah Naidu.
★ 12 Gujarat cities, 11 from MP, 8 from AP among the top 50 Clean Cities. Varanasi ranked 32 this year as against 418 in 2014.
★ Mysuru slipped to fifth rank this year but no decline in sanitation standards, says Minister.
★ Swachh Survekshan-2017 aimed at capturing the outcomes on ground of the ongoing efforts to make urban areas Open Defecation Free and to improve door-todoor collection, processing and disposal of Municipal Solid Waste.
★ Of the total score of 2,000, 900 marks were assigned for performance in respect of ODF and solid waste management, 600 marks for Citizen Feedbak and 500 marks for Independent Observation.

New Controller General of Accounts (CGA)

Mr. Anthony Lianzuala took over as the New Controller General of Accounts (CGA).
★ The Government of India had appointed Mr. Anthony Lianzuala, a 1982-batch Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS) Officer, as the new Controller General of Accounts (CGA), Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance with effect from May 1, 2017.
★ He is the First person from the North- Eastern Region to hold this position.
★ Controller General of Accounts (CGA), in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, is the Principal Accounting Adviser to Government of India and is responsible for establishing and maintaining a technically sound Management Accounting System.
Note: Controller General of Accounts (CGA) and Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) both are different institutions. Where CGA is a statutary post, CAG is a constitutional post under the Article - 148 of the Constitution.

CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE QUESTIONS FOR ALL BANK EXAMS

1. Every year National Maritime Day is observed in India on:
a) 5th February
b) 5th March
c) 5th April
d) 5th October

2. Recently, the Union Cabinet has approved closure of which of the following?
a) Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY)
b) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
c) National Literacy Mission Programme
d) National Social Assistance Scheme

3. Recently the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park has proposed to introduce ecotourism in the mangrove forest area of the park. The Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park was established in which year?
a) 1995
b) 1980
c) 1990
d) 1985

4. As per a doping violation report published by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for 2015, India ranks:
a) First
b) Second
c) Third
d) Fifth

5. Babri Masjid demolition case recently has been in the news, in which of the following years Babri Mosque was demolished?
a) 1992
b) 1993
c) 1999
d) 1996

6. The Union Government cleared the decks for setting up an independent rail regulator that will be responsible for recommending which of the following?
a) Passenger fares
b) Setting performance standards for rail operations
c) Creating level playing policy for private sector participation
d) All of the above

7. Who is the current Secretary General of Amnesty International?
a) Salil Shetty
b) Irene Zubaida Khan
c) Jackie Kay
d) Aruna Shetty

8. 'Khan Shaykhun' town is in the news for chemical attack on it. This town is located in which of the following countries?
a) Libya
b) Nigeria
c) Syria
d) Pakistan

9. With which of the following countries, India has announced a joint fund namely a Green Growth Equity Fund in April 2017?
 a) United Kingdom
b) USA
c) Russia
d) Japan

10. Which of the following companies rolled out the beta version of its new 'YouTube Go' application for India?
a) Microsoft
b) Apple
c) Google
d) Dell

11. Who has been named as Wisden's "Leading Cricketer in the World" for 2016?
a) SPD Smith
b) M.S.Dhoni
c) Virat Kohli
d) Joe Root

12. India has taken over full operational control of Unit 1 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP). This Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant is located in which of the following states of India?
a) Tamil Nadu
b) Karnataka
c) Andhra Pradesh
d) Gujarat

13. Recently, Twitter rolled out a "data friendly" version of the platform called ...... in India.
a) Twitter Lite
b) Twitter Saga
c) Twitter Devak
d) Twitter on Demand

14. Which leading company has announced $8.4 million (Rs.54.42 crore) in grants over the next two years to four Indian NGOs: Learning Equality, Million Sparks Foundation, Pratham Books - Story Weaver and Pratham Education Foundation?
a) Microsoft
b) Google.org
c) Twitter.org
d) Facebook.com

15. Recently the Park Street of New Delhi renamed with which of the following countries founder?
a) Nepal
b) Bhutan
c) Bangladesh
d) USA

16. Who among the following has been appointed as the Chairman of the Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT)?
a) Gagan Madhesiya
b) Samar Singh Bist
c) Shiva Kirti Singh
d) Ram Avtaar Gill

17. Which of the following countries military is developing a division of "super SEALs" using brain-stimulation technology to create warriors of the future who would be faster, smarter and more deadly?
a) Russia
b) USA
c) North Korea
d) China

18. What is the present rank of India in Global Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2017, prepared by World Economic Forum?
a) 12th
b) 19th
c) 28th
d) 40th

19. Teesta water sharing pact is between which of the following two countries?
a) India and Pakistan
b) India and China
c) India and Bangladesh
d) India and Nepal

20. Who was the winner of the Best Actor National Film Award 2017?
a) Akshay Kumar
b) Salman Khan
c) Amir Khan
d) Shah Rukh Khan

21. Astronomers have, for the first time, detected an atmosphere around an Earth-like planet known as:
a) GJ 1132b
b) SJ 1132a
c) EL 1132b
d) AE 1132b

22. Recently, the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017 in:
a) Vadodara
b) Udaipur
c) New Delhi
d) Kolkata

23. Recently, the Government of India and ....... signed a $175 million loan agreement to support construction of high voltage transmission systems to evacuate power generated from new mega solar parks to the interstate grid, and improve reliability of the national grid system.
a) Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)
b) Asian Development Bank (ADB)
c) World Bank
d) IMF

24. Which movies have been awarded as Best Feature Film and as Best Popular Film providing Wholesome Entertainment in 64th National Film Awards respectively?
a) Rustom and Sathamanam Bhavathi
b) Kasaav and Sathamanam Bhavathi
c) Dangal and Rustom
d) Sathamanam Bhavathi and Neerja

ANSWERS:
1) c 2) a 3) b 4) c 5) a 6) d 7) a 8) c 9) a 10) c
11) c 12) a 13) a 14) b 15) c 16) c 17) b 18) d 19) c 20) a
21) a 22) c 23) b 24) b 

CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE QUESTIONS FOR ALL BANK EXAMS

1. Cobra Gold military exercises, Asia's largest multinational drill started on February 14, 2017 at Sattahip, Thailand. Cobra Gold 2017 is the ........ iteration of the military exercise.
a) 30th
b) 32nd
c) 36th
d) 39th

2. 'Indian Panorama Film Festival', the five-day organized at ....
a) Port Blair
b) Majuli
c) Bhimpore
d) Panjim

3. In Kerala, Thanal, a city-based group has launched a helpline for providing technical support in treating organic waste and managing non-biodegradable solid wastes. It is launched at
a) Kochi
b) Kozhikode
c) Thiruvananthapuram
d) Kollam

4. 'Momentum Jharkhand', Global Investor Summit held at
a) Jamshedpur
b) Deoghar
c) Medininagar
d) Ranchi

5. All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) of Delhi has won the first prize for maintaining high standards of sanitation and hygiene under the Government's Kayakalp awards. The Kayakalp awards were instituted the year...
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017

6. Khadi & Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has announced to make Khadi Gaon in each Indian state. Who is the Chairman of KVIC?
a) J. P. Toma
b) N. C. Borkataky
c) G. Chandramouli
d) V.K. Saxena

7. Science Express Climate Action Special (SECAS II) flagged off on 17th Feb, 2017 from Safdarjung Railway station in Delhi to embark upon its journey across the country. The SECAS II will run till 8th September 2017 and culminate its journey at
a) Ahemdabad
b) Gandhinagar
c) Surat
d) Bhavnagar

8. Name the Bollywood actor named to host the Hindi version of popular international show TED Talks.
a) Shah Rukh Khan
b) Salman Khan
c) Amir Khan
d) Ranbir Kapoor

9. What is India's rank in an annual index of Economic Freedom?
a) 140th
b) 143rd
c) 145th
d) 147th

10. Who has been honoured with an Honorary Doctorate Degree by Desh Bhagat University, a private educational institution in Amloh, Fatehgarh Sahib District of Punjab?
a) Manpreet Singh
b) Akashdeep Singh
c) Sandeep Singh
d) Parattu Raveendran Sreejesh

11. In which city the All India Tennis Association (AITA) has announced to host the second round of the Asia/Oceania Group 1 tie between India and Uzbekistan?
a) Bengaluru
b) New Delhi
c) Kochi
d) Lucknow

12. Who has been appointed as India's new High Commissioner to Canada?
a) Avani Kumar Varma
b) Brij Kishore Singh
c) Vikas Swarup
d) Vinay Luthra

13. Which State government has announced to constitute State Tourism Board for expansion of facilities at tourist spots and draw investment in the sector?
a) Madhya Pradesh
b) Goa
c) Telangana
d) Andhra Pradesh

14. Name the Canadian radio broadcaster, best known as the host of the CBC Radio program 'The Vinyl Cafe', passed away in February 2017.
a) Byron MacGregor
b) David Charles Wish
c) Bob Dawson
d) Andrew Stuart McLean

15. What is the maximum limit up to which the RBI has announced to lend gold to RRBs?
a) Rs.1.50 Lakhs
b) Rs.2.00 Lakhs
c) Rs.2.50 Lakhs
d) Rs.2.75 Lakhs

16. Which bank has launched instant chat services for customers logged in to Citibank Online (CBOL) in India?
a) IndusInd Bank
b) Kotak Mahindra Bank
c) Yes Bank
d) Citi Bank

17. Recently how many new judges were sworn in to the Supreme Court, taking their strength to a high of 28?
a) Two
b) Three
c) Five
d) Seven

18. Which two countries have decided to bring Agreement on Social Security (SSA) for workers' benefit into force in May 2017?
a) India and Norway
b) India and Turkey
c) India and Portugal
d) India and Japan

19. Which state assembly has undergone the motion of a trust vote for the first time in 29 years?
a) Telangana
b) Andhra Pradesh
c) Tamil Nadu
d) Maharashtra

20. For the past three years, Neralu has to be largest citizen-driven tree festival of:
a) Bengaluru
b) Hyderabad
c) Mysuru
d) Lucknow

21. Recently which state government has brought in an additional three lakh acre of agricultural land under its irrigation programme with the objective of helping farmers?
a) Bihar
b) West Bengal
c) Uttar Pradesh
d) Maharashtra

22. Who is to be the new chief of capital market regulator SEBI?
a) Prashant Thorbade
b) Anil Kushwaha
c) Ajay Tyagi
d) Rajan Vipul

23. Which bank has provided its customers access to the government's digital locker (DigiLocker) from within its net-banking application?
a) HDFC Bank
b) ICICI Bank
c) Kotak Mahindra Bank
d) SBI

24. Recently which company has become an integrated power company?
a) NTPC
b) BHEL
c) HPCL
d) OIL

25. Which agency is to create first-ever space technology research institutes?
a) ISRO
b) DRDO
c) BARC
d) NASA

26. Indian scientists have designed an insulin-like oral substance, nicknamed:
a) Rani
b) Tripti
c) Dimpi
d) Rajrani

27. Indian Navy inducts first all-women global circumnavigation vessel. Name the vessel.
a) Tarini
b) Shivalik
c) Kumbhir
d) Ashtradharani

28. India has won the silver medal at the women's Asian Rugby Sevens Trophy 2017 held at
a) Manila
b) Ipoh
c) Incheon
d) Vientiane

29. Who is the Chief of Naval Staff?
a) RK Dhowan
b) Surinder Pal Singh Cheema
c) Sunil Lamba
d) Arup Raha

30. Which bank has been awarded with ISO 27001: 2013 certification for its Information Security Management System (ISMS)?
a) South Indian Bank
b) Tamilnadu Mercantile Bank
c) Nainital Bank
d) Catholic Syrian Bank

31. Ecuador has been in news recently. The capital of Ecuador is....
a) Loja
b) Ibarra
c) Quito
d) Macas

32. Who is the 26th and current United States Secretary of Defense?
a) Jefferson Sessions
b) James Mattis
c) Steven Mnuchin
d) Michael T. Flynn

33. Recently the Assam Government has inaugurated Cancer Hospital in the state. The hospital is attached to which of the medical colleges?
a) Guwahati Medical College
b) Assam Medical College
c) Jorhat Medical College
d) Tezpur Medical College

ANSWERS:
1-c, 2-a, 3-c, 4-d, 5-b, 6-d, 7-b, 8-a, 9-b, 10-c
11-a, 12-c, 13-a, 14-d, 15-b, 16-d, 17-c, 18-c, 19-c, 20-a
21-b, 22-c, 23-c, 24-a, 25-d, 26-c, 27-a, 28-d, 29-c, 30-a, 31-c, 32-b, 33-a

Health Services in India

There are multiple factors including lifestyles that influence the burden of disease. The burden of communicable diseases has been declining. The focus of the Government is to provide accessible, affordable and accountable quality healthcare facilities to all sections of society especially the marginalized sections in the country.

While there are   multiple challenges, the availability of Primary Health Centres, human resources, number of medical colleges and medical seats, have been improving.

Public health and hospitals being a State subject, the primary responsibility to address healthcare challenges is that of State Governments. However, under National Health Mission (NHM), financial and technical support is provided to States/UTs to strengthen their healthcare systems including support for strengthening health infrastructure, deployment of medical personnel, ASHAs, creating awareness about health issues and lifestyles, and support movement towards Universal Health Coverage. 

The Central Government has enacted the Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 and also notified Clinical Establishments Rules 2012 to provide a legislative framework for the registration and regulation of clinical establishments in the country and also seeks to improve the quality health services by prescribing minimum standards of facilities and services which may be provided.

The Government has also taken steps for strengthening and upgrading district hospitals and making available tertiary health care services in the public sector through strengthening of hospitals, establishment of AIIMS institutions in the States and up-gradation of existing Government medical colleges across the country.

With regard to increasing awareness about the health issues, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare regularly releases print advertisement and TV and radio spots in National/regional media for generating awareness among population about various Health and Family Welfare issues and programmes of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. These include Mission Indradhanush, World Health Day, World No Tobacco Day, Yoga Day, Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight, World Population Day, Breastfeeding, Tuberculosis, etc.

The Government has formulated the National Health Policy 2017 which has laid emphasis on the role of the Government in regulation, governance, and quality assurance, healthcare infrastructure and in leveraging information technology. The policy also envisages raising public health expenditure to 2.5% of the GDP in a time bound manner.

CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE MCQs FOR ALL BANK EXAMS

1) “Connectivity for Regional Prosperity” was the theme of which edition Economic Cooperation Organization Summit held in Islamabad recently?
a. 13th
b. 14th
 c. 15th
d. 12th

2) The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, in its meeting held , under the Chairmanship of the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, has approved the draft CGST Bill and the draft of which among the following bills?
a. CVST
b. IGST
c. TGST
d. All above

3) The President of India recently inaugurated the Centenary Celebrations of Women’s Indian Association recently at Adyar. In which state it is?
a. Lucknow,U.P.
b. Bhopal,MP
c. Chennai, Tamilnadu
d. Hyderabad, Telangana

4) Name the city , that has achieved 100% waste segregation?
a. Kochi
b. Palakkad
c. Jaisalmer
d. Tirunelveli

5) The world's oldest aircraft carrier in active service, , will be decommissioned on March 6 after serving the Indian Navy for nearly 30 years. Name it?
a. INS Viraat
b. INS Vikrant
c. INS Viraj
d. INS Viraam

6) India and which other country, have strengthened bilateral security ties , and decided to continue exchange programmes on hostage crisis, terror crime scene probe and cyber crime under ATA ( Anti
Terrorism Assistance) ?
a. Japan
b. USA
c. UK
d. Pakistan

7) Nuclear-armed North Korea fired how many ballistic missiles east of the peninsula on March 6, with Japan saying that some of them landed in its waters.?
a. 5
b. 6
c. 4
d. 7

8) Which country will organise the first mobile congress in September with a special focus on reaching out to South East Asian markets.?
a. Bangladesh
b. USA
c. UK
d. India

9) The Zero Discrimination Day was held on……………….?
a. March 1, 2017
b. March 2, 2017
c. March 3, 2017
d. March 7, 2017

10) Name the woman cricketer , who won the BCCI award for the first time?
a. Shantha rangaswamy
b. Shanthi subbarao
c. Mithali raj
d. Shanthi saxena

11) President of India, Pranab Mukherjee presented the Standard to 125 Helicopter Squadron and Colours to Mechanical Training Institute of Indian Air Force (March 3, 2017) at Air Force Station, Tambaram, Tamil Nadu. Which of the following statements are true about IAF Squadrons?
1. The Indian Air Force needs at least 42 squadrons of fighters to protect its western and northern borders with Pakistan and China
2. By 2019 -2020 it will lose another 14 squadrons of the vintage MiG 21s and MiG 27s
3. There are 16-18 planes in one squadron. The force now depends on Su-30 MKI and MiG 29s, the British-made Jaguar and French-made Mirage 2000s
4. After the air force de-commissioned three of the ageing Russian-made MiG 21 squadrons, bringing down the total number from 34 to 31 fighter squadrons, an additional squadron of the Russian-made Su-30 MKI has been raise
a. Only 1 & 2 are true
b. Only 2 & 3 are true
c. Only 3 & 4 are true
d. All 1,2,3 and 4 are true

12) Which among the following launched an exclusive data-led group term insurance plan in partnership with ET Money, the country’s first term insurance plan based on the spend pattern of the users?
a. Ing Vysya
b. HDFC Life
c. ICICI Life insurance
d. LIC

13) The number of ODF (Open Defecation Free) districts in the country has now crossed to ……………recently ?
a. 75
b. 80
c. 100
d. 90

14) On which day The World Hearing Day 2017 was observed globally ?
a. 3rd march 2017
b. 2nd march 2017
c. 4th march 2017
d. 5th march 2017

15) Which country is planning to build its first national underwater observatory in the disputed South China Sea (SCS)?
a. USA
b. China
c. Japan
d. North Korea

16) The “Napoleon of football” who helped the team win the European Cup three times, died March 3rd, 2017. Name him?
a. James madrid
b. Raymond Kopa
c. Adams grews
d. Nicholas crews

17) Jammu & kashmir and which another state, agreed on resumption of Shahpur Kandi Dam project?
a. Haryana
b. UP
c. Punjab
d. Rajasthan

18) Who was appointed Chairman and Managing Director of state-run telecom major Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL).?
a. PK Purwar
b. NK Singh
c. MK ajay bhatia
d. L. Sneha majumdar

19) For the first time, which country on March 1, 2017 succeeded in getting an official elected to the post of Secretary General for South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation?
a. Pakistan
b. South africa
c. Srilanka
d. Bangladesh

20) Which country for first time will host International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV2017)?
a. Bangladesh
b. India
c. Srilanka
d. Bhutan

21) The tourist town of Dharamshala, which is also the home of Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, has officially become the second capital of which state of India?
a. Tripura
b. Arunachal pradesh
c. Himachal pradesh
d. U.P.

22) Which day will be celebrated on 3rd March 2017 with the theme “Listen to the Young Voices.”?
a. World youth day
b. World adults day
c. World wildlife day
d. World environment day

23) Which country’s upper house, The House of Lords voted on 2 March 2017 to amend the Brexit Bill?
a. U.K.
b. USA
c. UAE
d. USSR

24) Name the state that will host its first river festival in March-April 2017?
a. U.P.
b. Assom
c. Bihar
d. Rajasthan

25) India Test captain Virat Kohli won the Polly Umrigar award, being the first cricketer to receive it how many times?
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
d. Four

26) South Korean and which country held largescale joint military exercise called Foal Eagle to test their defence readiness against the threat from North Korea.?
a. Japan
b. Israel
c. Iraq
d. USA

27) The national launch of 'Swachh Shakti Saptah' took place in which city recently?
a. Gurugram
b. Hissar
c. Kochi
d. Pune

28) Which country government recently approved the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) with the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.?
a. India
b. Bangladesh
c. Pakistan
d. Bhutan

29) India has proposed the name of Manjeev Singh Puri as its next Ambassador to which country, with the term of senior Indian diplomat Ranjit Rae coming to an end.?
a. Bhutan
b. Nepal
c. Pakistan
d. Israel

30) Which country announced recently that it will reintroduce compulsory military service starting this summer to respond to global security challenges, including from Russia?
a. Sweden
b. Switzerland
c. South korea
d. Cuba

ANSWERS
1. A 2. B 3.C 4.D 5.A 6.B 7.C 8.D 9.A 10.A
11.D 12.B 13.C 14.A 15.B 16.B 17.C 18.A 19.A 20.B
21.C 22.C 23.A 24.B 25.C 26.D 27.A 28.C 29.B 30.A

CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE QUESTIONS FOR ALL COMPETITIVE EXAMS

1) In which city, India's first hill station bicycle path was launched?
a. Darjeeling
b. Indore
c. Pune
d. Gangtok

2) On the occasion of Maha shivratri , PM Narendra Modi unveiled a 112-feet-tall Lord Shiva statue,that was made entirely of ………
a. Bronze
b. Steel
c. Gold
d. Silver

3) India’s first Gramin Khel Mahotsav will be conducted in which city from 25th to 31st March 2017.?
a. Hyderabad
b. Chennai
c. New delhi
d. Agra

4) Which country army has launched nationwide military operation named ‘Radd-ul-Fasaad’ to eliminate menace of terrorism and consolidate gains of its counter-terrorism operations?
a. Iran
b. Iraq
c. Russia
d. Pakistan

5) The ……editon BRICS Summit’s first Sherpas Meeting took place in Nanjing?
a. 9th
b. 10th
c. 8th
d. 7th

6) Government has announced to bring high-speed broadband connectivity to every village by which year?
a. 2018
b. 2019
c. 2020
d. 2021

7) Which series of Sovereign Gold Bonds in 2016-2017 has been issued by union finance ministry recently?
a. Series III
b. Series IV
c. Series V
d. Series VI

8) The state-owned Airport Authority of India (AAI) along with International Air Transport Association (IATA) launched, an e-billing solution for airport operators across the world. Name it?
a. SKYREV360
b. SKYREV260
c. SKYREV460
d. SKYREV560

9) Which country and India held detailed deliberations on the legal processes and procedures on Extradition and Mutual Legal Assistance held in New Delhi recently?
a. USSR
b. USA
c. UK
d. UAE

10) The Union Cabinet has approved signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and which country for promotion and development of coop - eration in civil aviation security?
a. Australia
b. Norway
c. Cuba
d. Cambodia

11) The PSU bank that has bagged two IBA Banking Technology awards is ……?
a. SBI
b. Andhra bank
c. Karnataka bank
d. Kerala bank

12) Hassan Ali Khaire is the new PM of which country , appointed on 23rd Feb 2017?
a. Somalia
b. Saudi arabia
c. Doha
d. Cuba

13) The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has launched a mobile application for Goods and Services Tax. Taxpayers can readily access a host of GST information. Which of the following statements are true about it?
1. Migration to GST-Approach and guidelines for migration
2. Draft Law-Model GST Law, IGST Law and GST Compensation law
3. Draft Rules-Rules related to Registration, Returns, Payment, Refund and Invoice
4. Various resources on GST such a videos, articles etc
5. Related website links, FAQs, Help desk/email contact
a. Only 1,2,3 are true
b. Only 2,3,4 are true
c. Only 3,4,5 are true
d. All 1,2,3,4 and 5 are true

14) Sampark is a …………..?
a. Business Idea challenge
b. Industry academia interface event
c. Both of the above
d. None of the above

15) As cyber attacks are increasing, the government through its Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in) on 21st Feb 2017 launched which among the following?
a. Cyber swachhtha kendra
b. Cyber forensic kendra
c. Cyber swatch kendra
d. None of the above

16) Telecom operator Bharti Airtel will acquire the business of which among the following company?
a. Vodafone
b. Telenor (India) Communications Private Limited
c. Telenor India
d. Both b & c

17) TATA Communications recently launched which iOT platform?
a. MOVE
b. PULL
c. PUSH
d. SPEED

18) Rate of retreat of Gangotri glacier has slowed down to how many metres since 2008 from the maximum of 35 metres recorded in 1974?
a. 11
b. 13
c. 14
d. 15

19) Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with which Bank for providing concessional finance to micro and small enterprises (MSEs)?
a. State bank of India
b. Vijaya bank
c. Axis bank
d. Yes bank

20) India’s first heliport, built by stateowned Pawan Hans will be set up at ?
a. Agra
b. Delhi
c. Hyderabad
d. Jaipur

21) Which Tata Steel's iron mine was felicitated with the Best Green Organ isation of the Year Award at the Global Green Future Leadership Awards in recognition of its environmental prot -
ection measures?
a. Katamati
b. Bokaro
c. Dhanbad
d. None

22) Shurhozelie Liezeitsu is the new Chief minister of which state in India?
a. Nagaland
b. Tripura
c. Mizoram
d. Meghalaya

23) The government on 22nd Feb 2017 approved a plan to double the capacity of solar parks and ultra-mega solar power projects (UMSPP) to how much MW from 20,000 mw?
a. 70,000
b. 40,000
c. 30,000
d. 35,000

24) The Impossibility Theorem was proposed by whom among the following, who died on 21st Feb 2017 in california?
a. John adems
b. John andrews
c. Kenneth J. Arrow
d.Kenneth K. James

25) Among the following, who is the largest G20 investor in India?
a. Britain
b. Japan
c. China
d. USA

26) On which day The International Mother language day was observed?
a. Feb 21
b. Feb 23
c. Feb 20
d. Feb 19

27) The South Asian Speakers Summit 2017 concluded on 20 February 2017 in which city?
a. Agra
b. Indore
c. Bhopal
d. Dispur

28) Identify the state that released digital road map?
a. AP
b. Telengana
c. Haryana
d. Punjab

29) Professor from Delhi University (DU) and his team discovered four new miniature species, and that the Frogman of India is …………?
a. SD Biju
b. SD Bilu
c. SD Biku
 d. SD Bibbu

30) Government is developing which among the following, to promote cashless economy?
a. Online platform for regulating cashless payments
b. Mobile app for regulating online transactions
c. Digital matrix to evaluate states for cashless economy
d. All above

ANSWERS:
1. A 2. B 3.C 4.D 5.A 6.A 7.B 8.A 9.C
10.A 11.C 12.A 13.D 14.C 15.A 16.D 17.A 18.A 19.B 20.B
21.A 22.A 23.B 24.C 25.A 26.C 27.B 28.C 29.A 30.C

Linking of Bank Account with Aadhaar

Banks are committed to seed savings bank accounts with the account holder’s Aadhaar number, based on the account holder’s consent. 

Aadhaar seeding will help accountholders to do fund transfer through the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) at Banking Correspondent points. Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) app also supports pay to Aadhaar number mode. Further, Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) can be made to eligible seeded accounts. 

As per reports received from public sector banks, Regional Rural Banks and 13 private sector banks, there are 110.03 crore individual, operative savings bank accounts (including Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana accounts) with Aadhaar number seeded in 52.95 crore accounts. 

The overreaching aim and objective of seeding is enabling delivery of basic financial services. 

National Foundation for Corporate Governance (NFCG)

With the objective of fostering a culture of good governance, the National Foundation for Corporate Governance (NFCG) has accredited forty Seven premier Indian Institutions/Organizations as National Centers for Corporate Governance. These centers conduct seminars, workshops conferences, directors’ orientation programmes etc. for promoting good corporate governance practices and also carry out research work in this field. More than 250 events have been organized and 30 research works completed under the aegis of NFCG, besides publication of compendium on corporate sector and inclusive growth. The research report of the foundation, which include subject such as the role of independent directors, CSR, corporate governance in energy sector, reforms in banking sector etc. have also been hosted on its website for the benefit of the Stakeholders.

The objectives of the National Foundation for Corporate Governance (NFCG) set up in 2003, as per the trust deed, are given as under.

(a)    To provide a platform to deliberate issues relating to good corporate governance as the key to sustainable wealth creation;

(b)   To sensitize corporate leaders on the importance of good corporate governance, self- regulation and directorial responsibilities- statutory, social and environmental;

(c)    To stimulate and to facilitate exchange of experiences and ideas between corporate leaders, policy makers, regulators, law enforcing agencies, non-government organizations and voluntary agencies with a view to developing a framework for corporate governance reforms in the context of liberalization and globalization;

(d)   To provide research, training, practice, building, standard setting, advocacy, rating, monitoring, recognition and related support in the field of corporate governance;

(e)    To provide financial or any other assistance directly or indirectly for activities which seek to promote corporate governance including research and training;

(f)    To develop strategies that enhance value for all stakeholders and ensure long term benefits to the shareholders and the society at large;

(g)   To establish and deepen links with organizations in various parts of the world which promote corporate governance for exchange of ideas and for collaborative actions, projects and programmes;

(h)   To institute national awards and recognitions for excellence in corporate governance and develop a system of corporate governance rating;

(i)     To collaborate and to support, directly or indirectly, the initiative of any individual, group, organization or institution in promoting corporate governance;

(j)     To develop a code of best practices for corporate governance taking into consideration the international examples and to promote its voluntary adoption by the corporate bodies;

(k)   To prepare, print and publish any papers, periodicals or newspapers, books or leaflets either on its own or in collaboration with other persons/ entities through print or other media and to contribute to any papers or periodicals to disseminate information and knowledge in the area of corporate governance;

(l)     To facilitate, promote, commend and collaborate on the proposals from individuals, associations and organizations for funding by national, international and multi- lateral organizations as also industry- associations, regulators and governments;

(m) To provide advice, consultancy and technical and managerial support to the beneficiaries of the Trust’s programmes through a network of advisors drawn from the industry and institutions of excellence; and

(n) Other related objects.

BHIM app

The Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) app has been launched on the iOS platform after its successful launch on android platform. On iOS it is currently supporting over 35 banks
and is currently available in Hindi and English BHIM app on iOS also has a limit of Rs 10, 000 per transaction and Rs20, 000 in a day for transfers through the bank account.

Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved 'Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan' (PMGDISHA) to make 6 crore rural households digitally literate.

PMGDISHA is expected to be one of the largest digital literacy programs in the world. Under the scheme, 25 lakh candidates will be trained in the FY 2016-17; 275 lakh in the FY 2017-18; and 300 lakh in the FY 2018-19. To ensure equitable geographical reach, each of the 250,000 Gram Panchayats would be expected to register an average of 200-300 candidates.

Digital Payment of Salaries

The Lok Sabha has passed the Payment of Wages (Amendment) Bill, 2017 on 7th Feb 2017, which allows for digital payment of salaries or through cheque. The bill will now go to Rajya Sabha and following its passage in the upper House, the amendments will be notified.

The move will enable employers to pay wages of less than Rs.18,000 a month by cheque or digitally to bank accounts, besides in cash, by doing away with the requirement of employees' written consent for the same.

TAMRA Portal

The Union Govt has launched TAMRA (Transparency, Auction Monitoring and Resource Augmentation) portal and Mobile Application on 10th February, 2017 with an objective to enhance transparency and accountability as a part of the Ease of Doing Business in the Mining sector.

National Testing Agency (NTA)

The Union Human Resource Development Ministry has announced to set up a National Testing Agency (NTA) department to conduct examinations for higher and secondary.
Note: 
Initially, examinations like IIT, NIT and even university exams will be conducted by the NTA. An open web-based platform 'SWAYAM' will be launched by next month. The two thousand courses will be run for students across the country through SWAYAM.

GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE QUESTIONS FOR ALL BANK EXAMS

1. Who has been appointed as new Chairman of Central Silkboard?
A) Anil Agarwal
B) Anand Mahindra
C) Achyuts Samanta
D) K.M. Hanumantarayappa
E) Rangarajan

2. Who was appointed as Managing Director of State Bank of India?
A) Dinesh Kumar Khara
B) Sandeep Kumar Khara
C) Dilip Sagvi
D) Ashok Soota
E) Laxmi Mittal

3. Who has been selected for the 23rd Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award 2016?
A) Singer Shubha Mudgal
B) C. Ajit Kumar
C) R Naveen
D) L. Samayasri
E) Priyarshini

4. The 2016 Kabaddi World Cup will be hosted by which country?
A) Nepal
B) Bhutan
C) Bangladesh
D) Pakistan
E) India

5. Which has announced a 0.05% reduction in its Marginal Cost of funds based Lending Rate (MCLR)?
A) Axis Bank
B) RBI
C) ICICI Bank
D) SBI
E) HSBC

6. World Bank has approved a ......... credit from the International Development Association (IDA) to support the Sri Lanka's economic reforms programme.
A) $10 million
B) $50 million
C) $100 million
D) $120 million
E) $80 million

7. ......... Bank tied up with a fintech start-up Fisdom for personal wealth management services.
A) Axis Bank
B) RBI
C) ICICI Bank
D) SBI
E) BOB

8. The main aim of SBI's certification program for officers who sanction loans to ...
A) Reduce NPA'S
B) Reach targets
C) Upgrade them
D) Increase the standards
E) None of these

9. 'Grassroots Innovation' book written by ......
A) Prof. Anil K. Gupta
B) Amitav Ghosh
C) Shashi Tharoor
D) Aravind Adiga
E) Vikram Seth

10. Nobel Laureate Ahmed Zewail has passed away recently. He belongs to which country?
A) Egypt
B) Spain
C) USA
D) China
E) India

11. Which payments company recently announced the partnership with IRCTC's food app?
A) Mobikwik
B) Paytm
C) Freecharge
D) Post payment
E) Quicker

12. ICICI Bank ties up with Apollo India Credit Opportunity Management LLC and AION Capital Management to form .........
A) Bank Accurance
B) Payment Bank
C) Joint Venture
D) NBFI
E) Asset Reconstruction Company

13. CBI has been made the nodal authority for banks to report high value frauds worth over ............ in public sector banks.
A) Rs.80 crore
B) Rs.50 crore
C) Rs.100 crore
D) Rs.55 crore
E) Rs.60 crore

14. IBM in partnership with ......... launched a global development hub called Garage for iOS apps
in Bengaluru.
A) APPLE
B) SAMSUNG
C) XIOMI
D) HTC
E) MICROMAX

15. Name the typhoon made its landfall near Dapeng Peninsula in China's Guangdong province?
A) Nida
B) Rina
C) Gert
D) Otto
E) Julia

16. German Engineering major Siemens Ltd. has received an order worth approximately Rs.217 crore for power project in which of the following country?
A) Pakistan
B) Myanmar
C) Nepal
D) Bangladesh
E) India

17. Which one of the following countries Cabinet approved a fresh economic stimulus package of worth more than $275 billions?
A) Canada
B) France
C) Norway
D) China
E) Japan

18. Which of the following country has assured India support for UNSC high seat?
A) Philippines
B) Vietnam
C) Malaysia
D) Indonesia
E) Thailand

19. Which state government has decided to recruit members of transgender community as warders in jails of the State?
A) Bihar
B) Kerala
C) Odisha
D) Maharashtra
E) Punjab

20. Central body approves .......... crore rupees for Ganga rejuvenation projects.
A) Rs.400 crore
B) Rs.425 crore
C) Rs.450 crore
D) Rs.475 crore
E) Rs.500 crore

21. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu recently lays foundation stone of broad-gage rail project in which state?
A) Mizoram
B) Nagaland
C) Haryana
D) Tripura
E) Meghalaya

22. Resolution for renaming of which high court passed recently by the state assembly?
A) Mumbai High Court
B) Kolkata High Court
C) Delhi High Court
D) Kerala High Court
E) Madras High Court

23. How many Jan Aushadhi Stores to be opened across India under Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Yojana?
A) 1500
B) 2500
C) 3500
D) 4500
E) 3000

24. Former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai has stepped down from which private sector lender?
A) AXIS
B) HDFC
C) ICICI
D) YES
E) IDFC

25. Yuriko Koike elected as ........ first female governor.
A) Moscow
B) Tokyo
C) Beijing
D) Shangai
E) None

26. Which state become the first state to approve sewage & waste water policy?
A) Nagaland
B) Rajasthan
C) Andhrapradesh
D) Gujarath
E) Odisa

27. Amazon launches fulfilment centre for prime deliveries in which city of india?
A) Pune
B) New Delhi
C) Bangalore
D) Chennai
E) Mumbai

28. Which university to perform world's CRISPR-Cas9 first genetic editing trial on humans aiming to cure lung cancer?
A) Sichuan University
B) Stanford University
C) Harvard University
D) University of Cambridge
E) University of Bristol

29. Which program is launched by the Minister of Communications Manoj Sinha for Telecom and Postal Service users can now file complaints with the government directly?
A) Twitter Sewa
B) Facebook Sewa
C) Twitter Jana
D) Facebook Jana
E) None

30. Which country has successfully launched its first mobile telecom satellite "Tiantong- 01"?
A) France
B) China
C) South Korea
D) Japan
E) Germany

31. Centre to organise 'Make in India' conference in which of the following city?
A) Bhubaneswar
B) Mumbai
C) Thiruvanthapuram
D) Bangalore
E) Nagpur

32. SAARC Immigration Authorities meeting held in which of the following city?
A) New Delhi
B) Islamabad
C) Kathmandu
D) Kabul
E) Dhaka

33. The National Handloom Day is celebrated on which day in India?
A) August 7
B) August 8
C) August 5
D) August 6
E) August 11

34. Who won the STAR Sports-ProKabaddi League 2016?
A) Patna Pirates
B) Telugu Titans
C) Jaipur Pink Panthers
D) Dabang Delhi
E) Bangalore Bulls

35. Vishu a Hindu festival celebrated in which of the following states?
A) Andhra Pradesh
B) Telangana
C) Kerala
D) Assam
E) Manipur


Answers:
1-D, 2-A, 3-A, 4-E, 5-C, 6-C, 7-E, 8-A, 9-A, 10-A
11-A, 12-E, 13-B, 14-A, 15-A, 16-D, 17-E, 18-B, 19-C, 20-A
21-B, 22-E, 23-E, 24-E, 25-B, 26-B, 27-D, 28-A, 29-A, 30-B
31-A, 32-B, 33-A, 34-A, 35-C

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act - The Journey of a Decade

The Mandate of the Act and Achievements

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) completes ten years of implementation on 2nd February 2016. The achievements of a decade are a cause of national pride and celebration. Since the start of the programme, the expenditure on the programme has amounted to Rs. 3,13,844.55 crore and out of this 71% has been spent on wage payments to workers.

Of the workers, the percentage of Scheduled Caste workers has consistently been about 20% and Scheduled Tribe workers has been about 17%. A total of 1,980.01 crore persondays have been generated, out of which the percentage worked by women has steadily increased much above the statutory minimum of 33%.

Sustainable assets have been created linked to conservation of natural resources and overall development of Gram Panchayats. More than 65% of the works taken up under the programme are linked to agriculture and allied activities.

Revival of the Programme

The past year, 2015-16, has seen a revival of the programme. The personday generation is the highest in the second quarter (45.88 crore) and third quarter (46.10 crore) than it has been in the last five years. The national personday generation to date at 146 crore is well above what this figure was at this time last year.

44% of all wage payments are being made on time. More than 64% of total expenditure is on agriculture and allied activities, the highest in three years. 57% of all workers are women, well above the statutory requirement of 33% and the highest in three years. 23% of all persondays are being done by SC workers, and 18% by ST workers, the highest in three years.

This revival has been achieved due to a slew of reforms undertaken by the Ministry of Rural Development. Most important of these has been the timely release of funds to states to provide work on demand. An electronic fund management system has been successfully instituted which allows for real time and transparent release of funds to implementing agencies and beneficiaries. There has been consistent coordination between banks and post offices and constant monitoring of pendency of payments has led to a reduction in wage delays.

The Ministry has reacted swiftly to the distress situation of droughts in nine states by declaring an additional 50 days of employment in the drought affected areas.

Way Forward

The focus for the upcoming years will be on simplification and strengthening of procedures for the implementation of the MGNREGA as an employment guarantee. A Master Circular is being issued today which consolidates all key instructions from the Central Government on the implementation of the Act. Beyond this, states are encouraged to innovate with flexibility.

The convergent planning exercise currently underway in 2569 backward blocks in the country will be consolidated in the State Rural Development Plan (SRDP) which will be the basis of implementation and monitoring for the coming year.

Concurrent social audits and community monitoring will be undertaken. There will be a renewed focus on sustainable individual assets to benefit the poor and vulnerable households with the following targets; 5 Lakh farm ponds and 10 Lakh Vermi and NADEP compost pits in the FY 2016-17.  There will be a continued focus on construction of Anganwadi Buildings and individual household latrines.

The Ministry will focus on imparting skills to workers. It will aim to train and place 10,000 Barefoot Technicians from worker households and through Project LIFE, skill and train workers for wages, for self-employment and livelihood upgradation.

PADMA AWARDS 2016

President Pranab Mukherjee has announced the names of Recipients of this year’s Padma awards. He approved conferment of 112 Padma Awards. Following is the list of the recipients—

Padma Vibhushan Awardees 2016
1. Ms. Yamini Krishnamurthi – Art- Classical dance (Delhi)
2. Shri Rajinikanth – Art-Cinema (Tamil Nadu)
3. Smt. Girija Devi – Art-Classical Vocal (West Bengal)
4. Shri Ramoji Rao – Literature and Education Journalism (Andhra Pradesh) 
5. Dr. Viswanathan Shanta – Medicine- Oncology (Tamil Nadu)
6. Shri Shri Ravi Shankar – Others-Spiritualism (Karnataka)
7. Shri Jagmohan – Public Affairs (Delhi)
8. Dr.Vasudev Kalkunte Aatre – Science and Engineering (Karnataka)
9. Shri Avinash Dixit (Foreigner) – Literature and Education (USA)
10. Late Shri Dhiru Bhai Ambani (Posthumous) – Trade and Industry (Maharashtra) 

Padma Bhushan Awardees 2016
11. Shri Anupam Kher – Art-Cinema (Maharashtra)
12. Shri Udit Narayan Jha – Art-Playback Singing (Maharashtra)
13. Shri Ram V. Sutar – Art-Sculpture (Uttar Pradesh)
14. Shri Heisnam Kanhailal – Art-Theatre (Manipur)
15. Shri Vinod Rai – Civil Service (Kerala)
16. Dr. Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad – Literature and Education (Andhra Pradesh)
17. Prof. N. S. Ramanuja Tatacharya – Literature and Education (Maharashtra )
18. Dr. Barjinder Singh Hamdard – Literature and Education - Journalism (Punjab)
19. Prof. D. Nageshwar Reddy – Medicine-Gastroenterology (Telangana)
20. Swami Tejomayananda – Other-Spiritualism (Maharashtra)
21. Shri Hafeez Contractor – Others-Architecture (Maharashtra)
22. Shri Ravindra Chandra Bhargava – Public Affairs (Uttar Pradesh)
23. Dr.Venkata Rama Rao Alla – Science and Engineering (Andhra Pradesh)
24. Ms. Saina Nehwal – Sports-Badminton (Telangana)
25. Ms. Sania Mirza – Sports-Tennis (Telangana)
26. Ms. Indu Jain – Trade and Industry (Delhi)
27. Late Swami Dayanand Sarawasati (Posthumous) – Others-Spiritualism (Uttarakhand)
28. Shri Robert Blackwill (Foreigner) – Public Affairs (USA)
29. Shri Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry (NRI/PIO) – Trade and Industry (Ireland)

Padma Shri Awardees 2016
30. Smt. Prathibha Prahlad – Art- Classical Dance (Delhi)
31. Shri Bhikhudan Gadhvi – Art- Folk Music (Gujarat)
32. Shri Sribhas Chandra Supakar – Art- Textile Designing (Uttar Pradesh)
33. Shri Ajay Devgn – Art-Cinema (Maharashtra)
34. Ms. Priyanka Chopra – Art-Cinema (Maharashtra)
35. Pt. Tulsidas Borkar – Art-Classical Music (Goa)
36. Dr. Soma Ghosh – Art-Classical Vocal (Uttar Pradesh)
37. Shri Nila Madhab Panda – Art-Film Direction and Production (Delhi)
38. Shri S.S. Rajamouli – Art-Film Direction and Production (Karnataka)
39. Shri Madhur Bhandarkar – Art-Film Direction and Production (Maharashtra)
40. Prof. M. Venkatesh Kumar – Art-Folk Artist (Karnataka)
41. Ms. Gulabi Sapera – Art-Folk Dance (Rajasthan)
42. Smt. Mamta Chandrakar – Art-Folk Music (Chhattisgarh)
43. Ms. Malini Awasthi – Art-Folk Music (Uttar Pradesh)
44. Shri Jai Prakash Lekhiwal – Art-Miniature Painting (Delhi)
45. Shri K. Laxma Goud – Art-Painting (Telangana)
46. Shri Bhalchandra Dattatray Mondhe – Art-Photography (Madhya Pradesh) 
47. Shri Naresh Chander Lal – Art-Theatre and Cinema (Andaman and Nicobar)
48. Shri Dhirendra Nath Bezbaruah – Literature and Education (Assam)
49. Shri Prahlad Chandra Tasa – Literature and Education (Assam)
50. Dr.Ravindra Nagar – Literature and Education (Delhi)
51. Shri Dahyabhai Shastri – Literature and Education (Gujarat)
52. Dr.Santeshivara Bhyrappa – Literature and Education (Karnataka)
53. Shri Haldar Nag – Literature and Education (Odisha)
54. Shri Kameshwaram Brahma – Literature and Education - Journalism (Assam)
55. Prof. Pushpesh Pant – Literature and Education Journalism (Delhi)
56. Shri Jawaharlal Kaul – Literature and Education Journalism (Jammu and Kashmir)
57. Shri Ashok Malik – Literature andEducation (Delhi)
58. Dr.Mannam Gopi Chand – Medicine-Cardio Thoracic Surgery (Telangana)
59. Prof. Ravi Kant – Medicine-Surgery (Uttar Pradesh)
60. Prof. Ram Harsh Singh – Medicine- Ayurveda (Uttar Pradesh)
61. Prof. Shiv Narain Kureel – Medicine- Paediatric Surgery (Uttar Pradesh)
62. Dr.Sabya Sachi Sarkar – Medicine –Radiology (Uttar Pradesh)
63. Dr. Alla Gopala Krishna Gokhale – Medicine-Cardiac Surgery (Andhra Pradesh)
64. Prof. T.K. Lahiri – Medicine-Cardio Thoracic Surgery (Uttar Pradesh)
65. Dr. Praveen Chandra – Medicine-Cardiology (Delhi)
66. Prof. (Dr) Daljeet Singh Gambhir – Medicine-Cardiology (Uttar Pradesh)
67. Dr.Chandrasekar Shesadri Thoguluva – Medicine Gastroenterology (Tamil Nadu)
68. Dr. (Mrs.) Anil Kumari Malhotra – Medicine-Homeopathy (Delhi)
69. Prof. M.V. Padma Srivastava – Medicine-Neurology (Delhi)
70. Dr. Sudhir V. Shah – Medicine-Neurology (Gujarat)
71. Dr. M. M. Joshi – Medicine-Ophthalmology (Karnataka)
72. Prof. (Dr) John Ebnezar – Medicine-Orthopaedic Surgery (Karnataka)
73. Dr. Nayudamma Yarlagadda – Medicine-Paediatric Surgery (Andhra Pradesh)
74. Shri Simon Oraon – Other Environment Conservation (Jharkhand)
75. Shri Imitiaz Qureshi – Other-Culinary (Delhi)
76. Shri Piyush Pandey – Others-Advertising and Communication (Maharashtra)
77. Shri Subhash Palekar – Others-Farming (Maharashtra)
78. Shri Ravinder Kumar Sinha – Others-Wildlife Conservation (Bihar)
79. Dr. H.R. Nagendra – Others-Yoga (Karnataka)
80. Shri M. C. Mehta – Public Affairs (Delhi)
81. Shri M. N. Krishna Mani – Public Affairs (Delhi)
82. Shri Ujjwal Nikam – Public Affairs (Maharashtra)
83. Shri Tokheho Sema – Public Affairs (Nagaland)
84. Dr. Satish Kumar – Science and Engineering (Delhi)
85. Dr.Mylswamy Annadurai – Science and Engineering (Karnataka)
86. Prof. Dipankar Chatterji – Science and Engineering (Karnataka)
87. Prof.(Dr.) Ganapati Dadasaheb Yadav – Science and Engineering (Maharashtra) 
88. Smt. (Prof.) Veena Tandon – Science and Engineering (Meghalaya)
89. Shri Onkar Nath Srivastava – Science and Engineering Uttar Pradesh
90. Ms. Sunita Krishnan – Social Work (Andhra Pradesh)
91. Shri Ajoy Kumar Dutta – Social Work (Assam)
92. Shri M. Pandit Dasa – Social Work (Karnataka)
93. Shri P. P. Gopinathan Nair – Social Work (Kerala)
94. Smt. Madeleine Herman de Blic – Social Work (Puducherry)
95. Shri Srinivasan Damal Kandalai – Social work (Tamil Nadu)
96. Shri Sudhakar Olwe – Social Work (Maharashtra)
97. Dr. T.V. Narayana – Social Work (Telangana)
98. Shri Arunachalam Murugantham – Social Work (Tamil Nadu)
99. Ms. Deepika Kumari – Sports-Archery (Jharkhand)
100. Shri Sushil Doshi – Sports-commentary (Madhya Pradesh)
101. Shri Mahesh Sharma – Trade and Industry (Delhi)
102. Shri Saurabh Srivastava – Trade and Industry (Delhi)
103. Sh Dilip Sanghvi – Trade and Industry (Maharashtra)
104. Dr. Keki Hormusji Gharda – Trade and Industry (Maharashtra)
105. Late Shri Prakash Chand Surana (Posthumous) – Art -Classical Music (Rajasthan)
106. Late Shri Saeed Jaffrey (NRI/PIO/Posthumous) – Art-Cinema (UK)
107. Shri Michael Postel (Foreigner) – Art-Archaeology (France)
108. Shri Salman Amin Sal Khan (NRI/PIO) – Literature and Education (USA)
109. Smt. Hui Lan Zhang (Foreigner) – Others-Yoga (China) 
110. Shri Predrag K. Nikic (Foreigner) Others-Yoga (Serbia) 
111. Dr.Sundar Aditya Menon (NRI/PIO) Social Work (UAE)
112. Shri Ajaypal Singh Banga (NRI/PIO) Trade and Industry (USA)

Gallantry awards 2016

President Pranab Mukherjee has conferred the country’s highest peacetime gallantry award Ashok Chakra to Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami posthumously. On the eve of 67th Republic Day celebrations President has approved 365 Gallantry awards and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel and others. It includes one Ashoka Chakra, 4 Kirti Chakras and 11 Shaurya Chakras. 

Ashok Chakra: 
Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami (Posthumous). He belonged to 9 PARA (Special Force) and laid down his life while fighting LeT militants in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir. 

Kirti Chakra: 
Subedar Mahendra Singh of 9 PARA (Special Force). 
Sepoy Jagdish Chand (Posthumous) of 546 DSC Platoon. 

Shaurya Chakra: 
Colonel Santosh Mahadik (Posthumous) of 41 Rashtriya Rifle (PARA). 
Major Praphul Kumar Bhardwaj of 12 PARA (Special Force). 
Major Sandip Yadav of 55 Rashtriya Rifle (Armed). 
Major Anurag Kumar of 9 PARA (Special Force). 
Lieutenant Harjinder Singh of 3 KUMAON. 
Naik Satish Kumar (Posthumous) of 21 Rashtriya Rifle (Guards). 
Naik Kheem Singh Mehra of 21 KUMAON. 
Sepoy Dharma Ram (Posthumous) of 1 Rashtriya Rifle (MAHAR). 

Kirti Chakra is the second highest peace time gallantry award i.e. awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. Shaurya Chakra is third highest peace time gallantry award generally awarded for counterinsurgency operations and actions against the enemy during peace-time.

4th India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference begins in New Delhi

The fourth edition of India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference (IAHC) has begun on January 21, 2016 in New Delhi. The two day conference aims at enhancing greater cooperation between India and African continent in the field of Hydrocarbons. It also seeks to explore opportunities, bridge boundaries and boost bilateral trade between India and Africa. 
4th India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference (IAHC):

• 22 African nations have participated of which 9 are represented by their Ministers. 
• These 9 countries are Morocco, Algeria, Liberia, Mauritius, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, Equatorial Guinea and Senegal. 
• Provide a global forum and common platform to African Countries to share their vision and chart out the road map for extended energy cooperation. 
• Bring together African leaders in and also CEOs from India and abroad to exchange expert insights and develop strategies for enhancing energy cooperation. 

India-Africa Relations for Energy Security: 

• India and African nations have common colonial past and enjoyed political and cultural ties. However, energy security stands as one of the major focus area of the bilateral ties. 
• Presently, India is importing close to 75 per cent of its crude oil and is seeking to diversifying import basket to meet its energy requirements. 
• Oil imports from Africa play a significant role in meeting the demands of India. In June 2015, Nigeria had stood as the second largest supplier of oil to India. 
• Though Africa has huge hydrocarbon resources, it lacks capital, technology and ability, experience and manpower to exploit these resources for future growth. 
• This can serve as the catalyst to encourage proper cooperation in the hydrocarbon energy sector as India can provide investment capital for development needs of African countries.

India submits first Biennial Update Report to UNFCCC

India has submitted its first Biennial Update Report (BUR) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) towards fulfillment of the reporting obligation. The BUR has been submitted as per the provisions of the UNFCCC Convention which is obligatory on countries to periodically provide national information. 
Key highlights of BUR 
BUR has been prepared by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (UNFCC) under its NATCOM project funded by Global Environment Facility (GEF). 
Contains national inventory of Green House Gases (GHG) for 2010 and has been prepared in accordance with the guidelines of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 
6 GHGs in Inventory: Carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Perfluorocarbons (PFCs), Nitrous Oxide (N2O), Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6) and Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). 
Five categories: It covers agriculture, waste and Land-use, Land-use, Change and Forestry (LULUCF), energy, industrial processes and product use (IPPU),. 
India’s emissions: India has emitted around 2,137 million tonnes (mt) of CO2 equivalent GHGs in 2010. About 12% of emissions were offset by carbon sink action of croplands and forests. Thus, total of 1,884.31 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent GHGs were emitted. In 2010, India’s per capita GHG emission was less than one- third of the world’s per capita emissions. It is far below many developed and developing countries. 
Category wise Emissions: Energy sector was the prime contributor to emissions with 71%. While, agriculture contributed 18 % and IPPU 8% to the national GHG inventory. 
Background 
In the conference of Parties (COP)-16 of UNFCCC held in Cancun (Mexico) in 2010 it was decided that the developing countries will submit updates in the form of BUR. The scope of a BUR is to provide an update to the latest National Communication submitted by the country to the UNFCCC. Accordingly, India’s first BUR is an update to the Second National Communication which was submitted in 2012. India had submitted its first national communication in 2004.