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1 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 1-2, 2015

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2 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

leader Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on
1 March 2015 took over as the new
Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir
at an oath ceremony held at
Jammu. Which BJP leader took
over as states Deputy Chief
Minister? Nirmal Singh
Explanation: Mufti
Mohammad
Sayeeds accession to Chief
Ministers post became possible
after a historic deal between PDP
and the BJP. With this BJP became
part of the government in the State
for the first time. Sayeed became
J&K Chief Minister for the second

time. In 2002, he led a PDPCongress alliance and was Chief

Minister for three years. Separatistturned mainstream politician Sajjad
Lone also took oath as a Minister in
the government. Among others who
took oath as Ministers were Abdul
Rehman Veeri, Haseeb Drabu,
Naeem Akhtar, Basharat Bukhari
(all PDP), Lal Singh, Chander
Prakash, Sukhnandan Chowdhury
and Bali Bhagat (BJP). Priya Sethi
(BJP) and Aasiya Naqqash (PDP)
were the two women legislators
who took oath as Ministers.
2) Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar
left for his ambitious visit of SAARC
countries on 1 March 2015 and
reached Bhutanese capital Thimpu.
He is visiting how many SAARC
countries on this visit? Four
Explanation: S.
Jaishankar
is
visiting
Bhutan,
Bangladesh,
Pakistan and Afghanistan under
this visit, which has been given the
name SAARC Yatra by a few
media players. The visit to the
South
Asian
Association
for

Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

neighbours is part of Prime Minister
Narendra Modis emphasis on
neighbourhood outreach. During
the visit to the SAARC capitals, the
Foreign Secretary will review
various initiatives for the region,
including SAARC satellites and
regional
university,
as
were
proposed
by
Prime
Minister
Narendra Modi during his visit to
Nepal for SAARC Summit last year.

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3 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) The
proposed
merger
of
Forwards Markets Commission
(FMC) with SEBI as announced in
the Union Budget on 28 February
2015 is expected to sound a death
knell for the so-called dabba
trading. What is meant by dabba
trading? Illegal trading in
commodities market
Explanation: The so-called dabba
trading in commodities market is
widely prevalent across Gujarat and
many other parts of the country with
estimated turnover to the tune of
Rs. 50,000-1,00,000 crore a day.
While regulators and enforcement
agencies have been trying hard to
curb this menace for a long time,
the lack of a unified regulatory

mechanism has so far made it

difficult to fully control this problem.
In his Union Budget on 28
February, Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley proposed to merge the
commodity markets regulator FMC
(Forwards Markets Commission)
with the capital markets watchdog
SEBI (Securities and Exchange
Board of India). With this the efforts
to check this menace are likely to
get a major boost as SEBI already
enjoys greater powers including
those to conduct search and
seizure, impose penalties, order
arrests and take other strict actions
against wrongdoers.
4) Indian capital market regulator
SEBI has recently asked individual
investment
advisers
providing
opinion on securities or public offers
through TV channels or other media
platforms to get them registered
with it. This is being done with an
aim to safeguard Indian markets
from any manipulative research
reports. These individuals would be
registered in which capacity by
SEBI for the same? Research
Analysts

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4 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: Last
year,
the
Securities and Exchange Board of
India (SEBI) had ushered in norms
for Research Analysts. Individuals
(including journalists) who offer
opinion on securities and public
issues through the media, are also
required to obtain registration as
research analysts with SEBI.
Investment advice refers to advice
on investments in securities or
investment products in written, oral
or through any other means of
communication for the benefit of the
client
and
includes
financial
planning. However, the members of
the
Institute
of
Company
Secretaries of India (ICSI), Institute
of Chartered Accountants of India
(ICAI), Institute of Cost and Works
Accountants of India (ICWAI) who
provide investment advice to their
clients
incidental
to
their
professional services are exempted
from obtaining registration as
investment advisers.
5) Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan
Ram Manjhi on 28 February 2015
launched a new political front to
expose the real face of Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar. What is the

name given to this front which is

being seen as the first step to
counter Nitish Kumar and his JD(U)
ahead of the Assembly elections?
Hindustani
Awam
Morcha
(HAM)
Explanation: Manjhi, who was
made Chief Minister in May 2014,
resigned on 20 February 2015 after
a leadership row with Nitish Kumar.
Nitish Kumar later took over as
states Chief Minister for the fourth
time. Manjhis supporters mostly
belong to Mahadalits his caste
and
backward
and
extreme
backward castes.
6) Which city will host the 2022
Commonwealth Games (CWG) as it
is the lone contender for this
quadrennial sporting event?
Durban (South Africa)
Explanation: South Africa has
proposed a 12-day Games starting
from 18 July, birthday of late
president Nelson Mandela. Earlier
Canadian city Edmonton also
wanted to play host to the 2022
Games, but withdrew due to
financial
constraints.
Glasgow
(Scotland)
hosted
the
2014

Commonwealth Games and the

2018 edition is scheduled for the
Australian Gold Coast. South Africa
has
successfully
hosted
the
football, rugby union and cricket
World Cup tournaments. Bidding for
the Commonwealth event is seen
as a possible dress rehearsal for a
2024 or 2028 Olympics bid by
South Africa.
7) Which New Zealand cricketer
was inducted in the ICC Cricket Hall
of Fame on 28 February 2015 and
thus became the 3rd cricketer from
the country to find place in this
prestigious list? Martin Crowe

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5 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: Crowe became the

third New Zealander, after Sir
Richard Hadlee
and
Debbie
th
Hockley, and the 79 overall to be
inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of
Fame. The induction ceremony was
held during the innings break of the

New Zealand Australia match in

the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 at
Eden Park on 28 February which
was eventually won by New
Zealand.
Crowe
made
his
international debut against Australia
in Wellington in February 1982 at
the age of 19. He retired 13 years
later after playing 77 Tests, in which
he scored 5,444 runs at an average
of 45.36. This included 17
centuries, the most by a New
Zealand cricketer, while his 299
against Sri Lanka in Wellington in
January 1991 stood as a national
record until Brendon McCullum
scored 302 against India in
Wellington in February 2014. Crowe
also
played
143
One-Day
Internationals (ODIs) in which he
scored 4,704 runs at an average of
38.55, with four hundreds and 34
half-centuries. He was infected with
cancer in 2012 and is presently in
serious condition.

March 3, 2015
the 6% level for three consecutive
quarters during 2015-16 or if it
remains below 2% for three
consecutive quarters during the
year 2016-17. The bank will have to
explain to the government the
causes, and what steps it intends to
take to steer inflation back within a
given time if it misses the target.

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6 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) According
to
information
disclosed on 2 March 2015, an
agreement was signed between the
Centre and the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) during February 2015
that sets inflation target for the RBI.
What is this target? To bring
inflation down to 6% by January
2016
Explanation: The
agreement
formalised a policy the RBI had
been following since January 2014,
which is a significant development
in
Indias
monetary
policy
formulation
championed
by
Governor Raghuram Rajan. Under
this agreement the RBI will be
deemed to have missed its target if
consumer inflation remains above

2) Indias total carbon emission

during 2013 stood at 15.63 million
tonnes as compared to 15.39
million tonnes in 2012. This was
disclosed by the Union Govt. on 2
March 2015 in Lok Sabha. What
was the reason given for around
1.5% increase in carbon emission
in 2013? Introduction of new
routes for airlines and overall
increase in aircraft movement
Explanation: The
govt.
also
disclosed that though the overall
aircraft movement and passenger
growth have increased in 2013 in
comparison with 2012, an overall
decrease in carbon emission per
aircraft and carbon emission per

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7 CURRENT AFFAIRS

passenger have been observed. As

per the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol,
developing countries such as India
have no legal bindings in reducing
their carbon emissions. However,
DGCA has issued various aviation
environment circulars to address
aviation environmental issue.

3) Jagmohan Dalmiya made his

grand comeback in Board for
Control of Cricket in India (BCCI)
after he was unanimously elected
president of the BCCI on 2 March
2015. But the camp of former BCCI
President N. Srinivasan suffered a
major jolt as its candidate for the
post of Secretary lost to the
candidate from rival faction. Who
won the post of BCCI Secretary?
Anurag Thakur

Explanation: Anurag Thakur is

BJP Lok Sabha MP from Himachal
Pradesh and son of former
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister
Prem Kumar Dhumal. He is also
President of the Himachal Pradesh
Cricket
Association
(HPCA).
Barring Thakurs surprise win, ruling
camp loyalists swept the elections
for the other posts at the muchpostponed Annual General Meeting
(AGM) of BCCI that was held in
Chennai. The road for Jagmohan
Dalmiya becoming BCCI President
became clear after Sharad Pawar
failed to get a proposer from East
Zone, prompting him to pull out of
the race. This was East Zones turn
to nominate for the post of BCCI
President and Dalmiya had control
over two of the six votes in the
region.

4) Estonias ruling party scored an

important
victory
in
the
Parliamentary elections held in the

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8 CURRENT AFFAIRS

country on 1 March 2015. What is

the name of this party which will
form a coalition government in the
country? Reform Party
Explanation: The Reform Party is
led by Prime Minister Taavi Roivas,
who at just 35 years is the youngest
prime minister in Europe. His party
has won 30 seats in these
elections. The results, however,
came as a big blow to the Centre
Party, which was expected to do
very well in the elections. Reform
Party claimed 27.7% of the votes
down from 28.6% it won in last
Parliamentary elections held in
2011. On the other hand proRussian Centre Party took 24.8%
votes and got 27 seats, an increase
of one seat than 2011. Reforms
coalition partner Social Democrats
now hold 15 seats while IRL Party
won 14 seats. It is worth mentioning
that the Centre Party has close ties
with Russian President Vladimir
Putin. The elections in Estonia were
also overshadowed by security
concerns sparked by Russias role
in Ukraine. About a quarter of
Estonias 1.3 million population
comprises of ethnic Russians,

many of whom are believed to be

Centre Party supporters.
5) Who was named as the new
Indian Ambassador to the United
States to replace S.Jaishankar?
Arun Singh
Explanation: Arun Singh, Indias
Ambassador to France, was named
as Indias new Ambassador to the
United States. He will take place of
S. Jaishankar, who was appointed
as Indias New Foreign Secretary
during January 2015. Arun Singh is
a senior officer of the Indian
Foreign Service (IFS) and belongs
to its 1979-batch.

6) Ola, which is the market leader in

the personal transportation space in
India, announced acquiring which of
its competitors for $200 million on 2
March 2015? TaxiForSure
Explanation: TaxiForSure currently
operates in 47 cities with over
15,000 vehicles registered on its
platform while Ola has over 1-lakh

vehicles on its platform. The $200

million
deal
for
acquiring
TaxiForSure was a cash and equity
deal. Under the deal, all of the
1,700 employees shall continue to
work with TaxiForSure, with Arvind
Singhal (currently COO) being
appointed the CEO. TaxiForSure
founders A. Radhakrishna and G.
Raghunandan will contribute in an
advisory role for a certain period.

7) Who was appointed as the new

Chairman of the National Book
Trust (NBT) on 2 March 2015?
Baldev Sharma
Explanation: Baldev Sharma is a
former editor of Panchajanya
the mouthpiece of the RSS. His
appointment was done by cutting
short the tenure of incumbent A.
Sethumadhavan by 6 months. NBT
is an autonomous publishing house
run under the Ministry of Education
(Govt. of India) and was established
in 1957. It publishes low-cost books
on a variety of subjects.

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9 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 4, 2015

1) Union govt. on 3 March 2015

faced an embarrassment in the
Rajya Sabha when an amendment
moved by the Opposition to the

Presidents address over corruption

and black money was passed. It
was only the fourth time in Rajya
Sabhas history that an amendment
moved by the opposition to the
motion of thanks to the Presidents
address has been passed. This
movement was moved by which
leaders? Sitaram Yechury and
P. Rajeeve of CPI (M)

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10 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The
amendment
moved by these two leaders was
passed through division of votes
after the governments plea for
withdrawal of the step failed. This
was the fourth time in Rajya
Sabhas history that an amendment
moved by the opposition to the
motion of thanks to the Presidents
address has been passed. The
previous times such a thing
happened was on 30 January 1980,
during Janata Party rule, then on 29
December 1989, during V.P. Singhled National Front and third time on
12 March 2001 when Atal Bihari
Vajpayee-led NDA government was
in power.
2) What is the name of the
programme launched by the
Election Commission of India (ECI)
from 3 March 2015 with the aim of
bringing a totally error free and
authenticated electoral roll and
linking it with Aadhar data of
UIDAI? National Electoral Roll
Purification and Authentication
Programme NERPAP
Explanation: NERPAP will focus
on improving image quality of
electors along with sorting issues

like corrections of errors etc.

Electors have been provided the
facility to feed their respective
Aaadhar number through SMS,
email, mobile application and
National Voters Service Portal
(NVSP) using web services through
election commission website. The
programme will end on 15 August
2015.
3) A ban on slaughter of cows and
the sale and consumption of beef
was imposed in which state during
March 2015? Maharashtra
Explanation: Ban on beef in
Maharashtra became possible after
the President of India gave his
assent to the Maharashtra Animal
Preservation (Amendment) Bill.
Now, anyone found to be selling
beef or in possession of it can be
jailed for five years and fined Rs
10,000. This bill was first passed in
1995 by states BJP-Shiv Sena
government in 1995 and was sent
to the president for approval in
January 1996. The BJP, which
returned to power in the state last
year, once again pushed for it to be
signed into law. The bill was given
Presidential assent recently. The

slaughter of cows was previously

prohibited in the state under the
Maharashtra Animal Preservation
Act of 1976. However, the passage
of the new Act will ban the
slaughter of bulls as well as
bullocks, which was previously
allowed based on a fit-for-slaughter
certificate. The new Act will,
however, allow slaughter of water
buffaloes, which provides carabeef
generally seen as an inferior
quality meat that makes up only
25% of the total beef market in the
state.

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11 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) International
rating
agency
Moodys on 3 March 2015
downgraded the ratings of some
securities of which two public-sector
banks? Central Bank of India
and Indian Overseas Bank
Explanation: The
agency
downgraded to BA1 from BAA3 its
ratings on local and foreigncurrency deposits of Central Bank
of India and Indian Overseas Bank
(IOB). Apart from this IOBs senior
unsecured
debt
was
also
downgraded to BA1 from BAA3.
BAA3
rating
means
below
investment grade ratings. This

downgrade by Moodys is being

seen as possibly the start of similar
rating revisions for other weaker
public-sector banks by the agency.
However, Central Bank of India and
IOB continue to have standalone
ratings of B3 and B2, respectively,
from Moodys. Moodys action
reflects its assumption of a lower
level
of
support
from
the
Government.
5) The Villarrica volcano, which
started erupting on 3 March 2015,
is situated in which Latin American
country? Chile
Explanation: The
2840m-high
Villarrica Volcano is situated in
south Chile. It started erupting in
the early hours of 3 March and
spewed ash and lava up to 1,000m
(3,300ft) into the air. More than
3,000 people were evacuated from
the volcanos vicinity. This volcano
is an active volcano with a lava lake
in its crater. Its last major eruption
was in 1985. It is a popular
destination for hikers. Hundreds
climb the peak each summer to
peer inside the crater. More than
100 people are thought to have

died in mudflows on the slopes of

the volcano during the 20th century.

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12 CURRENT AFFAIRS

6) Who was chosen for the Mo

Ibrahim
Award
for
African
Leadership, which is considered the
Worlds most valuable individual
award? Namibian President
Hifikepunye Pohamba
Explanation: The $5m (3.2m) Mo
Ibrahim
Award
for
African
Leadership was instituted by Mo
Ibrahim, a British-Sudanese mobile
communications entrepreneur and
philanthropist who made billions
from investing in Africa. Hifikepunye
Pohamba is the outgoing President
of Namibia and is due to be
succeeded
by
President-elect,
Hage Geingob. He was a former
rebel and a founding member of the
South
West
Africa
Peoples
Organisation (Swapo), an armed
movement that waged a decadeslong campaign against South
African rule. He was first elected in
2004, and again in 2009.

7) A Falcon 9 rocket of SpaceX

Company took off from Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station on 1
March 2015 carrying along two
satellites with it. What was special
feature of these satellites? They
were Worlds first all-electric
communications satellites being
launched into orbit
Explanation: The
all-electric
satellites are fitted with lightweight,
all-electric engines, rather than
conventional chemical propulsion
systems. The main benefit of an
electrical-propulsion is that it allows
the satellite operator to need much
less fuel than when the satellite has
chemical-propulsion. On the other
hand the primary disadvantage of
electric propulsion is that it will take
the satellites months, rather than
weeks, to reach their operational
orbits about 35,800 km above
Earth.

March 5-6, 2015

utilized for the plant while coal is
procured from the South Eastern
Coalfields Limited (SECL).

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13 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on

5 March 2015 inaugurated two units
each of 600 MW of Shree Singaji
Thermal Power Plant. This plant is
situated at which place in Madhya
Pradesh? Dongaliya (Khandwa)
Explanation: Shree
Singaji
Thermal Power Plant is a coal-fired
project located near Dongaliya
village in Khandwa. The project is
owned by the Madhya Pradesh
Power
Generating
Company
Limited (MPPGCL). Apart from
inaugurating these two units the
Prime Minister also laid the
foundation stone of two units each
of 660 MW of the same power
plant. The water from Indira Sagar
Reservoir at the Narmada River
flowing near this plant will be

2) What is the name of the U.S.

ambassador to South Korea who
was slashed in the face by a
Korean nationalist in an attack in
capital Seoul on 5 March 2015?
Mark Lippert
Explanation: The incident took
place when U.S. ambassador to
South Korea Mark Lippert was
taking part at a forum held in Seoul
to discuss Korean reunification. He
was attacked by a 55-year old
assailant, who was later identified
as Kim Ki-jong. He attacked Lippert
with a knife resulting in an 11-cm
gash on the right side of his face
and a puncture wound on his left
wrist. He later underwent two-anda-half hours of successful surgery

at Yonsei Universitys Severance

Hospital. It is worth mentioning that
the attacker Kim is a member of the
pro-Korean unification group that
hosted the event. In 2010, Kim tried
to attack the Japanese ambassador
to Seoul by throwing a piece of
concrete and was given a
suspended jail term.

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14 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) An agreement for developing the

first smart sub-city in East Delhi
was signed between National
Building Construction Corporation
Ltd (NBCC) and Delhi Development
Authority (DDA) on 4 March 2015.
What is the name of this city which
will be the first transit oriented
development (TOD) smart city in
Delhi? East Delhi Hub Project
Explanation: The East Delhi Hub
Project
will
come
up
at
Karkardooma in East Delhi. The
project, to be developed at a cost of
around Rs. 2,500-3,000 crore, will
include 4,800 houses, 80,000 sq m

of retail space, a 5 acre park, apart

from a laser park and a circular
skywalk. The sub-city will be
pedestrian-friendly, integrated by
multiple modes of transport, walk to
work concept, reducing the need to
travel for daily needs.
4) A documentary film made by
British director Leslee Udwin about
the fatal gang rape of the 23-year
old paramedic woman in New Delhi
in 2012 has been banned in the
country. This ban was imposed
over concerns that derogatory
comments made by one of the
rapists could create an atmosphere
of fear and tension. What is the
name
of
this
controversial
documentary?
Indias
Daughter
Explanation: Indias
Daughter
features conversations convicts
who raped and tortured a 23-yearold woman on a moving bus in
December
2012,
sparking
nationwide protests and forcing
India to toughen anti-rape laws.
Comments released to the media
during a last few days showed that
in the film, a convict MukeshSingh
blames the victim for the crime and

for resisting rape. He also says

women are more responsible than
men for rapes. The film was earlier
scheduled to be premiered in India
and several countries such as
Britain and Denmark on March 8 on
the occasion of International
Womens Day. However, BBC
broadcasted this documentary on 4
March 2015 despite ban imposed
by the Indian govt. This led to
faceoff with Indian government and
the BBC and is expected to
snowball into a diplomatic row
between India and the UK.

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15 CURRENT AFFAIRS

5) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

on 4 March 2015 lowered its policy
repo rate by 25 basis points. This
was the second cut this year on the
back of easing inflation and a
government commitment to fiscal
discipline. What is the new Repo
rate after this cut? 7.5%
Explanation: The Repo rate stood
at 7.75% before this cut. It is worth
mentioning that the RBI had
lowered interest rates by 25 bps on
15 January 2015. Another important
thing associated with rate cut is that
both the rate cuts this year have
taken place outside of the central

banks scheduled
meetings.

policy

review

6) The national executive of the

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on 4
March 2015 removed Yogendra
Yadav and Prashant Bhushan from
partys highest decision making
body. This was done after the two
leaders
had
questioned
the
functioning of party Convener and
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
What is the name of this body?
Political Affairs Committee
PAC
Explanation: AAPs
21-member
national executive met in Delhi on 4
March to decide the fate of
Yogendra Yadav and Prashant
Bhushan. In this important meeting
8 members voted in favour of
keeping Prashant Bhushan and
Yogendra Yadav in the PAC while
11 against them. This resulted in
their removal from PAC, which is
the most powerful decision-making
authority in AAP. It presently

comprises of Arvind Kejriwal,

Manish Sisodia, Gopal Rai, Sanjay
Singh, Kumar Vishwas, Ilias Azmi
and Pankaj Gupta.
7) The BSE Sensex touched which
landmark figure on 4 March 2015?
30,000 points
Explanation: On 4 March the
benchmark BSE Sensex rose as
much as 1.46% to mark its all-time
high of 30,024.74, surpassing the
psychologically important 30,000level for the first time. Its previous
record high was 29,844.16 that it hit

on 30 January 2015. The record

highs came after the RBI lowered
its policy repo rate by 25 basis
points, delivering its second cut this
year on the back of easing inflation
and a weaker economy. However,
the euphoria generated by the RBI
repo rate cut did not last even a full
day as the Sensex closed at
29,380.73. This was mainly due to
concerns
over
corporate
performance and the weakness
shown by European markets
unnerving investors.

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16 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 7, 2015
that costs under Rs. 10 lakh. What
relaxation is this? Stamp duty,
registration
and
other
documentation charges can be
added to the cost of the housing
unit

1) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

during March 2015 relaxed the
norms for giving loans for houses

Explanation: Under the relaxation

provided by the RBI, banks may
add stamp duty, registration and
other documentation charges to the

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17 CURRENT AFFAIRS

cost of the unit for the purpose of

calculating loan-to-value ratio. This
means, banks will now be able to
offer finance for paying stamp duty
and registration fee, which until now
had to be paid by the home buyer.
This relaxation will be application
for houses that cost less than Rs.
10 lakh and it is being seen as a
step to complement the Centres
thrust on affordable housing.
According to the RBI these
additional
charges
constitute
around 15% of the cost of the
house and place a burden on the
borrowers
from
economically
weaker sections and low-income
groups.

2) Apple Inc. will soon join the 30stock

Dow
Jones
Industrial
Average, which is the oldest U.S.
stock average. It will replace which
stock which has been part of Dow
Jones for around a century?
AT&T

Explanation: The
Dow
Jones
Industrial Average is the oldest U.S.
stock average, first published in
1896. It comprises of just 30 stocks.
Even
though
professional
managers generally use the S&P
500 for benchmarking, additions
and removals from the Dow are still
a big event on Wall Street. Apple
will replace AT&T in this average as
announced by Dow Jones. Apple
will join the average after the close
of trading on 18 March 2015. It is
worth mentioning that AT&T was
added to the Dow in 1916, the year
after the first-ever transcontinental
telephone call. The decision to
nudge aside AT&T leaves only one
telecommunication company in the
average Verizon.
3) The shocking incident of a mob
breaking into a jail, pulling out a
rape-accused and then lynching
him on streets took place in which
city of Nagaland on 5 March 2015?
Dimapur
Explanation: A
curfew
was
imposed in Dimapur after this
shocking lynching incident. A mob
comprising of thousands of people
on 5 March forced its way into the

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18 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Dimapur Central Jail, pulled out

rape accused Syed Farid Khan out
of the prison, paraded him and then
lynched him on the streets. Khan
had allegedly raped a Naga woman
several times before he was
arrested on February 25 February.
This lynching incident sent shocked
waves
across
the
state
administration with the state govt.
three officials including the SP and
the central jail chief on 6 March. A
judicial enquiry was also ordered in
the incident. Union Govt. also put
neighbouring Assam on high alert
following the incident as the
deceased rape accused is believed
to be from that state.

4) According to the data pertaining

to mutual fund industry released on
5 March 2015 the assets under
management for the mutual fund
industry crossed a milestone figure
for the first time during February
2015. What is this milestone figure?
Rs. 12 lakh crore

Explanation: The assets under

management (AUM) that stood at
Rs. 10.5 lakh crore at the end of
December 2014 rose to Rs. 11.81
crore in January 2015 and then to
Rs. 12.02 lakh crore at the end of
February 2015 registering a growth
of 14% over the past two months.
This is the highest ever AUM
registered by the industry that has
seen AUMs value rise by Rs.
3,76,956 crore or 46% since the
beginning of this financial year. This
means that domestic retail investors
have returned to the mutual fund
route in large numbers in the
current year. The year witnessed
strong participation from retail
investors into domestic equities
through mutual funds after the BJPled NDA gained a clear majority in
the 2014 general elections and in
anticipation of reform measures
promised by them.

5) What is the name of the ancient

Assyrian city in Iraq with some of

the worlds greatest archaeological

and cultural treasures which was
looted and bulldozed by the fighters
of the Islamic State (IS) recently as
disclosed by the Iraqi govt. on 6
March 2015? Nimrud
Explanation: Nimrud is a 3,000year-old city on the banks of the
Tigris River about 20 miles (30 km)
south of Mosul in Iraq. It was built
around 1250 BC. Four centuries
later it became capital of the neoAssyrian empire at the time the
most powerful state on Earth,
extending to modern-day Egypt,
Turkey and Iran. The IS fighters
recently destroyed this historic city

as they dismiss Iraqs pre-Islamic

heritage as idolatrous. Local tribes
residing around the area confirmed
that IS members came to the
Nimrud archaeological city and
looted the valuables in it and then
they proceeded to level the site to
the ground. Archaeologists have
compared the assault on Iraqs
cultural history to the Talibans
destruction of the Bamyan Buddhas
in 2001. But the damage wreaked
by the IS, not just on ancient
monuments but also on rival Muslim
places of worship, has been swift,
relentless and more wide-ranging.

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19 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 8-9, 2015

1) 50th anniversary of the brutal
repression of a peaceful protest of
African Americans in Alabama state
of the United States was observed
on 7 March 2015. Which town of
Alabama was associated with this
incident which led to the passing of
the historic Voting Rights Act?
Selma

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20 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The Selma incident is

often called as Bloody Sunday. It
took place on 7 March 1965 when
some 600 peaceful activists were
attacked by Alabama State troopers
with clubs and tear gas at the
Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.
This incident resulted in the then
President Lyndon Johnson passing
the Voting Rights Act that sought to
prevent
racist
officials
from
excluding African Americans from
the ballot. Thus Selma incident
became a seminal moment in
Americas
democracy.
US
President Barack Obama took part
in the 50thanniversary of this
incident on 7 March 2015. He paid
stirring tribute to the sacrifice of a
generation of activists who marched
so that black Americans could enjoy
civil rights and opened the road that
eventually led him to the White
House.

2) Renowned
journalist
Vinod
Mehta, who passed away on 8
March 2015, was founder of which
famous weekly magazine?
Outlook
Explanation: Mehta
was
a
distinguished
editor
who
successfully launched a number of
publications such as the Sunday
Observer, Indian
Post, The
Independent, The Pioneer (Delhi
edition) and, finally, Outlook in
1995. He was one of the most
distinguished commentators of
present times and was a popular
face in TV debates. Born in
Rawalpindi (now in Pakistan) in
1942, Mehta was known for his bold
journalism. He wrote the bestselling
autobiography Lucknow
Boy in 2011. He also authored
biography of Meena Kumari and
Sanjay Gandhi and published in
2001 a collection of his articles
under the title Mr. Editor, How
Close Are You to the PM?.
3) Which associate bank of the
State Bank Group on 8 March 2015
announced a 10 basis-point cut in
the base rate to 10.15% and with
thus became first major to come out

with a rate cut in the post-Budget

phase?
State
Bank
of
Travancore (SBT)

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21 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: State
Bank
of
Travancore (SBT) announced a 10
basis-point cut in the base rate to
10.15% effective from 16 March
2015. It became the first major bank
to announce rate cut after RBIs
second Repo rate cut of the year
was announced on March. It is
worth mentioning that the SBT has
sought to cut base rate at a time
when even market leader and
parent SBI was mulling its option.

4) What is the name of the

separatist leader of Jammu &
Kashmir who was released by the
state government on 7 March 2015,
a step which led to considerable
strain between the ruling coalition of
PDP and BJP? Masarat Alam

Explanation: Masarat Alam was

arrested during the 2010 unrest in
the Kashmir Valley. He was
accused of inciting youth during the
unrest in which at least 112 people
were killed in bloody clashes
between unruly mobs and security
forces. He belongs to the Muslim
League and is believed to be close
to hardline separatist leader Syed
Ali Geelani. It is worth mentioning
that Alam had evaded arrest for
months during the 2010 unrest and
his
arrest
was
done
after
considerable efforts by the security
forces. His release led to a lot of
discontent
between
PDP-BJP
coalition. On 8 March the BJP
made it clear that it was not
consulted on the issue of Alams
release. The party also registered
its complaint with Chief Minister
Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on the
issue.
5) Which New Zealand bowler
joined crickets exclusive 300 ODI
wickets club by claiming his
300th victim on 8 March 2015?
Daniel Vettori
Explanation: Daniel
Vettori
th
became the 12 player and first

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22 CURRENT AFFAIRS

New Zealander to complete 300

victims in one day internationals
(ODIs) when he claimed his
299th and 300th wickets in the World
Cup match against Afghanistan. 36year-old Vettori has played 291
ODIs since first selected in 1997
and his 300 wickets are at an
average 31.62.The ODI list of
leading bowlers is lead by Sri
Lankas Muttiah Muralitharan (534)
and Wasim Akram of Pakistan
(502), the only two players to have
breached the 500-wicket barrier.

6) Indian badminton ace Saina

Nehwals efforts to win her first All
England Championship went in vain
as she lost in the finals of this
prestigious championship on 8
March 2015. She was defeated by
which player? Carolina Marin
(Spain)
Explanation: Carolina Marin, the
reigning world champion and
present World No. 6, defeated

World No. 3 Saina Nehwal by 1621, 21-14, 21-7 in a nail biting final.
Saina lost the final even after
winning the first game and leading
in the second game by 6-1.
However, Marin made a strong
comeback to win the second and
third games to clinch this coveted
title. Only two Indians have won this
title Prakash Padukone (1980)
and P. Gopichand (2001). The All
England
Open
Badminton
Championships is one of the
Worlds oldest and most prestigious
badminton tournaments.
7) Sri Lankas Kumar Sangakkara
made which record when he scored
his century against Australia on 8
March 2015 in the ICC World Cup?
He became the first batsman to
score
hundreds
in
three
consecutive World Cup matches
Explanation: Kumar Sangakkara
achieved this record when he made
a brilliant run-a-ball century against
Australia in a Pool A match in
Sydney on 8 March. He made a
brilliant 104 against Australia,
although Sri Lanka lost the match.
This was his 24th ODI century in his
402nd match. This century also saw

him equal the overall ODI record for

consecutive hundreds held jointly
by the Pakistan pair of Zaheer
Abbas and Saeed Anwar, the South
African trio of Herschelle Gibbs, AB

de Villiers and Quinton de Kock and

New Zealands Ross Taylor.

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23 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 10, 2015

1) What is the name of the solarpowered plane that started its

historic 35,000-km round-the-world
journey from Abu Dhabi on 9 March
2015? Solar Impulse 2
Explanation: Solar Impulse-2 took
off from Abu Dhabi on its 5-month
long journey in which it will skip
from
continent
to
continent,
crossing both the Pacific and

Atlantic oceans in the process.

Andre Borschberg and Bertrand
Piccard are the two pilots of this
mission. The plan is to stop off at
various locations around the globe,
to rest and to carry out
maintenance, and also to spread a
campaigning message about clean
technology. Solar Impulse is
claimed to be the first aircraft to fly
day and night without a drop of fuel,
propelled solely by the suns
energy. The 17,248 solar cells built
into the wing supply electric motors
with renewable energy. The solar
cells recharge four lithium polymer
batteries totalling 633 kg each,
which allow the aircraft to fly at
night and therefore have virtually

unlimited autonomy. The Solar

Impulse project has already set a
number of world records for solarpowered flight, including making a
high-profile transit of the United
States in 2013. But the round-theworld venture is altogether more
dramatic and daunting, and has
required the construction of an even
bigger plane than the prototype,
Solar Impulse-1.

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24 CURRENT AFFAIRS

2) Which country has overtaken

India to become the worlds biggest
weapons importer in 2014 as
disclosed by research company IHS
on 8 March 2015? Saudi Arabia
Explanation: IHS disclosed that
the top five importers in 2014 were
Saudi Arabia, India, China, the UAE
and Taiwan. The 2013 rankings
were India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE,
Taiwan and China. IHS claimed that
the defence imports from Saudi
Arabia rose 54% between 2013 and
2014, and based on planned
deliveries imports will grow 52% to

$9.8 billion in 2015. Saudi Arabia

and the United Arab Emirates
(UAE) are part of a U.S.-led
coalition involved in air strikes on
Islamist militants who have carved
out an Islamic State in Iraq and
Syria. The United States remained
the top defence exporter in 2014,
ahead of Russia, France, Britain
and Germany, a top-five ranking
unchanged from 2013.
3) What is the name of the first
indigenously
developed
and
manufactured rotavirus vaccine that
was launched by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on 9 March 2015?
ROTAVAC
Explanation: ROTAVAC is a threedose vaccine that has been
developed through collaboration
between India and the United
States. It is expected to help bring
about a significant reduction in the
100,000 infant deaths caused by
the rotavirus diarrhoea in India.
Every year, diarrhoea caused by
rotavirus results in up to 10 lakh
hospitalisations and kills nearly
80,000 children under the age of 5
in the country. The vaccine has
been
developed
under
an

innovative
public-private
partnership model. It involved a
partnership between the Ministry of
Science
and
Technology,
institutions of the U.S. government,
various government institutions and
NGOs in India, and has been
supported by the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation. Bharat Biotech
was involved in its development.

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25 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) BSEs Sensex and NSEs Nifty

fell over 2 per cent on 9 March
2015, their biggest single-day drop
in two months. What was the main
reason for this dramatic fall?
Expectation of a rate hike by US
Federal
Reserve
following
stronger-than-expected jobs data
Explanation: On 9 March the 30share BSE index Sensex plunged
604.17 points or 2.05% to
28,844.78 and the 50-share NSE
index Nifty dropped 181 points or
2.03% to 8,756.75. On 6 March
2015 the United States reported
5.5% unemployment rate for
February 2015, which is the lowest
rate in more than six years. Falling
unemployment rate led to fears that
the Federal Reserve may raise
interest
rates
sooner
than

previously thought. If interest rates

in the US go up, a lot of liquidity is
expected to flow into US bonds,
which will be negative for emerging
markets like India. Apart from this
selloff in banking stocks also
resulted in steep fall in stocks.
5) A German company named
named Khadi Natureprodukte GbR
came to news after it registered
Khadi as a trademark with the
European Union (EU). The Indian
Govt. has started the process of deregistering this Khadi trademark in
the EU by this company. The
Khadi trademark is registered with
which Indian entity? Khadi and
Village Industries Commission
(KVIC)
Explanation: KVIC is a statutory
body engaged in promoting and
developing khadi and village
industries. It gives the permission to
use the term Khadi for products
made by micro and small
enterprises after ensuring that
products have been produced
through
labour
intensive
manufacturing process and are
generally hand-made. The Union
Govt. told the Parliament on 9

March 2015 that it is working in

tandem with the KVIC to expedite
the process of de-registering Khadi
trademark in the EU by this German
company. On the other hand KVIC
has also initiated the process to
register Khadi trademark in India
and internationally. KVIC has filed
an application to register Khadi as
a word mark under IPR Authority in
Mumbai.

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26 CURRENT AFFAIRS

6) Who won the mens singles title

at the All-England Championships
for badminton on 8 March 2015?
Chen Long (China)
Explanation: World
champion
Chen Long captured the title for the
second time in three years as he
defeated
Jan
O
Jorgensen
(Denmark) by 15-21, 21-17, 21-15.
It was Chinas eighth mens singles
title in the event since 2005. Earlier
Saina Nehwal blew the chance to
become Indias first female winner
as she lost to Carolina Marin of
Spain in the womens singles final.

7) Which Indian company was

named as the top employer in
Europe for the third consecutive
year by Top Employers Institute,
the
renowned
employers
certification
agency?
Tata
Consultancy Services (TCS)
Explanation: TCS, the leading IT
services, consulting and business
solutions organisation, was named
as top employer in eight European
countries-the UK, Belgium, the
Netherlands,
Germany,
Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark and
Norway. The TCS was ranked as
the overall number one in a process
that assessed 688 organisations
across Europe. Only companies
that have been certified as a top
employer in at least five individual
countries in Europe are eligible for
the award. The Top Employers
Institute
is
an
independent
organisation that identifies top
performers in the field of Human
Resources worldwide.

March 11, 2015

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27 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) What
was
the
insurance
penetration in India during 2013 as
informed by the government in
Parliament on 10 March 2015?
3.9%
Explanation: The Parliament was
informed that the penetration for the
insurance sector as a whole in the
year 2013 was 3.9% in India, as
against world average of 6.3%.
Insurance penetration, measured
as the ratio of premium to Gross
Domestic Product (GDP), was 3.1%
of life insurance and 0.8% for
general insurance in 2013. The
level of insurance penetration
depends on a large number of
factors like level of economic
development of the country, the
extent of the savings in financial
instruments and the size and reach

of the insurance sector. In relation

to
BRICS
countries,
Indias
insurance penetration was better
than China and Russia but well
below South Africa and only a tad
lower than Brazil. The insurance
penetration of South Africa stands
at 15.4% (in 2013); China 3%;
Brazil 4% and Russia 1.3%.

2) In a bizarre incident, 10 people

including three top French sports
stars were killed when two
helicopters collided in Argentina on
9 March 2015 during the filming of a
reality TV show. The dead included
Olympic swimmer Camille Muffat,
yachtswoman Florence Arthaud
and boxer Alexis Vastine. This illfated shooting was being done for
which French reality show?
Dropped
Explanation: Dropped is a reality
show for private TV station TF1
which involves contestants being

left in the wilderness and using their

skills to find their way back to
civilisation. 25-year old Camille
Muffat had won the 400 metres
freestyle swimming gold at the 2012
London Olympics while 28-year old
Vastine won a boxing bronze at the
Beijing 2008 Olympics. 57-year old
Arthaud was one of the first women
to carve a place for herself in the
world of sailing and in 1990 secured
the record for the fastest solitary
crossing of the North Atlantic. The
other
victims
included
the
helicopters two pilots.

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28 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) Which former Union Minister

belonging to Congress was chosen
for the prestigious Saraswati
Samman for year 2014 as
announced on 9 March 2015? M.
Veerappa Moily
Explanation: He was chosen for
his 5-volume Kannada poem
Ramayana Mahanveshanam that
was published in 2007. In the
poem, Moily tried to explore the
Ramarajya or the true principle of
the ideal State from a secular and
modern point of view. This poem
has been translated into English,
Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. Saraswati

Samman was instituted by the K. K.

Birla Foundation in 1991 and is
given annually for an outstanding
literary work in any Indian language
mentioned in the Schedule VIII of
the Constitution. The award carries
a cash prize of Rs. 10 lakh, a
citation and a plaque. Apart from
being a former Union Minister in the
UPA governments, Moily is also a
former Chief Minister of Karnataka.
4) Which company is the largest in
India in terms of assets as
disclosed by the recent data
compiled by the Corporate Affairs
Ministry? Reliance Industries
Ltd (RIL)
Explanation: According to data
compiled by the Corporate Affairs
Ministry, RIL is the countrys largest
corporate
with
assets
worth Rs. 3.68 lakh crore, followed
by
state-owned
Indian
Oil
Corporation (IOC) and mortgage
lender
(Housing
Development
Finance Corp (HDFC). At the end of
March 2014, RILs assets stood
at Rs. 3.68 lakh crore, while that of
IOC and HDFC was at Rs. 2.52
lakh crore and Rs. 2.25 lakh crore,
respectively. Other entities in the

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29 CURRENT AFFAIRS

top ten are Power Finance Corp (4),

NTPC (5), Rural Electrification Corp
(6), Power Grid Corp (7), LIC
Housing
Finance
(8),
Steel
Authority of India (9) and Bharat
Sanchar Nigam Ltd (10). Power
Finance Corps assets stood
at Rs. 1.94 lakh crore, NTPC
(Rs. 1.80
lakh
crore),
Rural
Electrification Corp (Rs. 1.53 lakh
crore), Power Grid Corp (1.40 lakh
crore), LIC Housing Finance
(Rs. 95,777 crore), Steel Authority
of India (Rs. 91,962 crore) and
Bharat
Sanchar
Nigam
Ltd
(Rs. 89,333 crore). In the list of top
10 corporates in terms of assets,
RIL and HDFC were the only two
firms from the private sector. The
list is based on data from 4,15,886
companies which had filed their
balance sheets for the year 201314 till 30 November 2014.

5) Apple Inc.s Chief Executive Tim

Cook launched companys much
awaited watch (Apple Watch) on 9
March
2015.
What
is
the
significance of this launch for
Cook? This is the first new
device from Apple since Cook
became its CEO
Explanation: Apple Watch is the
first new product to be developed
by the company since Tim Cook
took over the reins of the company
in 2011. It is also the first new
product with Apples founder and
mentor Steve Jobs not around.
Apple Watch was announced for
the first time by Tim Cook in
September 2014. On 9 March he
took the curtains off the watch and
announced 24 April 2015 as the
date of its shipping in as many as
nine countries. The Apple Watch
incorporates fitness tracking and
health-oriented capabilities as well
as integration with iOS and other
Apple products and services. Its
price will start from $349 and will go
up to to $17,000 for the Edition
model.

March 12, 2015

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30 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) Indian Railways on 11 March

2015 signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) that will raise
Rs. 1.5 lakh crore worth of funds to
finance its infrastructure. This is the
largest-ever funding in Railways
history. This historic MoU was
signed with which financial entity?
Life Insurance Corporation of
India (LIC)
Explanation: Under this MoU, the
LIC will make available to the
Ministry of Railways/its entities a
financial assistance with a limit of
Rs. 1,50,000 crore over the next
five years for implementing its
infrastructure projects. The financial
assistance will be available from the
financial
year
2015-16.
The
railways will use the funds to

augment its capacity. LIC will invest

in bonds issued by various railway
entities such as Indian Railways
Finance
Corporation
(IRFC),
beginning next fiscal. There would
be a five-year moratorium in
interest and loan repayment. The
bonds will have a tenor of 30 years
and will be disbursed over the next
five years. In his Budget Speech,
Union Rail Minister Suresh Prabhu
had announced his intention of
meeting a part of the total Plan
Budget of Rs. 1,00,011 crore for the
financial year 2015-16, through
extra budgetary resources, such as
market borrowings by tapping low
cost long term funds.
2) According to the information
given by the govt. in Parliament on
11 March 2015, two public sector
undertakings (PSUs) were added to
the list of sick PSUs. There were as
many as 65 units in the list of sick
PSUs as on 31 March 2014. Which
two PSUs are these? Air India
and MTNL

Explanation: Air India and MTNL,

once market leaders in aviation and
mobile
telephony
sectors
respectively, were declared sick as
per the criteria for a PSU to be
declared as such, after they
incurred losses worth 50% or more
of their average net worth during
four preceding years. Govt. also
announced that it will close down 5
PSUs that include three HMT units
whose brand of watches and
tractors once ruled the market.
However, name of other PSUs to
be closed were not provided.

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31 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) In an important development, on
11 March 2015 former Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh was
summoned as an accused along
with five others in a case linked to
the coal scam. This case pertaining
to mining rights is associated with
which company? Hindalco
Explanation: Hindalco, a major
producer of aluminium, is a part of
the $40 billion Aditya Birla Group. A
special CBI court also named
Hindalco, its chairman Kumar
Mangalam Birla, and former Coal
Secretary PC Parakh among the six
accused. The case involves the

allocation of a coal field in Odishas

Talabira block in 2005 to Hindalco.
At that time the Coal Ministry was
under the direct charge of the then
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The scam dubbed Coal-Gate
surfaced after the CAG report in
2012 questioned the governments
practice of awarding coal mining
blocks at a concession to
companies without competitive
bidding.
4) Which cricketer was named as
the Greatest ODI (one day player)
player in an online poll conducted
by
ESPNcricinfos
magazine
Cricket Monthly? Sir Vivian
Richards (West Indies)
Explanation: This
poll
was
conducted
by
ESPNcricinfos
magazine Cricket Monthly during
March 2015. With an astonishing 29
of 50 jurors picking him as the best
ODI player of all time, Richards won
by a landslide in this poll. He was
way ahead of Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar narrowly beat former
Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram.
The last two positions in the top five
were taken by Australias Adam
Gilchrist and current Indian ODI

skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Through the late 70s and 80s,
Richards dominated the one-day
arena like no other cricketer, and
helped his side to two World Cup
victories in 1975 and 1979. The 50member jury included legendary
cricketers Ian Chappell, Clive Lloyd,
Rahul Dravid, Ponting and Graeme
Smith.
5) On 11 March 2015 who became
the first-ever batsman to score four
consecutive centuries in the history
of
ICC
World?
Kumar
Sangakkara (Sri Lanka)

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32 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: Kumar Sangakkara

achieved this feat in a World Cup
match against Scotland in Hobart
on 11 March. He had made 105 not
out against Bangladesh (26 Feb
2015), an unbeaten 117 in the
game with England (1 March 2015)
followed by 104 against Australia (8
March 2015). He also became the

first-ever player to do so in ODI

cricket history. He surpassed six
players who had scored three ODI
centuries in a row. They were
Zaheer Abbas and Saeed Anwar of
Pakistan, the South African trio of
Herschelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers
and Quinton de Kock, and Ross
Taylor of New Zealand.
6) Who was named as the next
U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan by
President Barack Obama on 10
March 2015? David Hale
Explanation: David
Hale
is
currently the U.S. Ambassador to
Lebanon, a position he has held
since 2013. If his nomination is
confirmed by the U.S. Senate he
would replace Cameron Munter.
Hale previously served as the
Special Envoy for Middle East
Peace from 2011 to 2013 and as
Deputy Special Envoy for Middle
East Peace from 2009 to 2011.

March 13, 2015

1) The
20th Law
Commission
th
submitted its 255 issue (pertaining
to electoral reforms) to the Union
Law Ministry on 12 March 2015.
What
are
the
important
recommendations made by the
Commission in this issue?
- Independent candidates should
be barred from contesting
elections

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33 CURRENT AFFAIRS

- Paid news be made an electoral

offence and should lead to
disqualification of the candidate
- Laws should be amended to
make it mandatory for political
parties to disclose all amounts
over Rs. 20,000 received by
them, even if from a single donor
- Companies must place their
plans to fund a political party
before shareholders for approval

Explanation: The
20th Law
Commission was established in
2013 under the Chairmanship of
Judge of Supreme Court D.K Jain.
Its tenure was fixed till 2015.The
terms
of
reference
of
the
Commission include review/repeal
obsolete law, examine the existing
laws, revise central acts of general
importance etc. In November 2013
the Centre appointed former Chief
Justice of Delhi High Court Justice
Ajit Prakash Shah as the new
chairman of the Commission as
Justice Jain took as president
National
Consumer
Disputes
Redressal Commission.
2) The NDA govt. led by Narendra
Modi was able to pass its first major
reform bill in the form of the
Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill,
2015 when it was passed by the
Rajya Sabha on 12 March 2015.
The lower house (Lok Sabha) had
already passed this bill. When the
insurance bill was first introduced in
the Parliament? 2008

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34 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The bill was first

introduced by the UPA govt. in
2008. It sought to raise the FDI cap
in insurance sector from 26% to
49%
among
several
other
provisions and was opposed by the
BJP then. Now with the passing of
the Insurance Laws (Amendment)
Bill, 2015, an earlier ordinance
issued in 2014 by the Narendra
Modi government will be replaced.
The legislation will shake up Indias
overcrowded life insurance sector,
allowing global insurers such as
Britains Prudential and others to
increase their Indian stakes. The
passage of the bill represents a rare
victory for Modi, who was elected
last May on a promise of jobs and
economic growth.

3) Karnataka won the Ranji Trophy

title for 2015 by thrashing
opponents Tamil Nadu by an

innings and 217 runs on the last

day of the Ranji Trophy cricket
tournament final at the Wankhede
stadium in Mumbai on 12 March
2015. With this win Karnataka has
won this prestigious title how many
times? Eight
Explanation: By winning their eight
Ranji Trophy title, Karnataka went
past Delhi to become the secondmost successful side after Mumbai.
Mumbai has won the title record 40
times. Karnataka bundled out Tamil
Nadu for 134 in the first innings and
then amassed 762 runs, courtesy a
triple century by middle-order
batsman Karun Nair (338). Chasing
an imposing 628, Tamil Nadu were
shot out for 411 in 107.5 overs in
the final session of the fifth days
play on 12 March. Karun Nair was
awarded the man of the match title
for his triple century. Karnataka got
a cash prize of Rs. 2 crore while the
runners-up Tamil Nadu received a
cash prize of Rs. 1 crore. Ranji
Trophy is Indias premier domestic
first-class cricket championship
named
after
Kumar
Shri
Ranjitsinhji, who played for England
and Sussex. Karnataka has won
this prestigious title in 1974, 1978,

1983, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2014 and

now in 2015.

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35 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) The Union Govt. has formulated

a new programme for better
understanding of weather in the
mountainous States as announced
in the Parliament on 12 March
2015. This programme has been
formulated especially in view of
severe floods in Jammu & Kashmir
and cloudburst in Uttarakhand.
What is the name of this
programme?
Himalayan
Meteorology Programme
Explanation: Himalayan
Meteorology Programme (HMP)
has been designed by Earth
System Science Organisation-India
Meteorological
Department
to
augment observing systems by
deploying Doppler Weather Radars,
rain radars, automatic weather
stations (AWS), Automatic Rain
Gauges (ARGs). This programme
will
help
in
improving
the
forecasting very short range (up to

6 hours in advance) and predicting

severe weather phenomena up to
72 hours in advance. It will thus
lead to improved understanding of
Himalayan weather in general and
severe weather in particular.
5) Indias formal entry into the
global market for warships was
marked with the commissioning of
an India-built naval patrol vessel for
Mauritius by Prime Minister on 12
March 2015. What is the name of
this first warship to be exported
from India? Barracuda
Explanation: Barracuda
is
a
1,300-tonne patrol vessel made by
Kolkata-based
Garden
Reach
Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd
(GRSE) for the Mauritian National
Coast Guard. It was handed over to
Mauritius in December 2014 but
was commissioned by Indian Prime
Narendra Modi on his state visit to
Mauritius.

March 14, 2015

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36 CURRENT AFFAIRS

against EU accession since taking

power in 2013. Iceland tried to
withdraw its EU bid last January,
but canceled these plans following
massive public protests over the
decision being made without a
referendum.

1) Which European country on 12

March 2015 withdrew its bid to join
the European Union? Iceland

2) Indian
Naval
Ship
(INS)
Alleppey,
which
was
decommissioned from the Indian
Navy on 13 March 2015, was which
category of naval vessel?
Minesweeper

Explanation: Iceland, the country

situated in the North Atlantic, on 12
March announced that it is
withdrawing its application for a
membership in the 28-nation
European Union (EU) as its interest
could be served best while it
remains out of the EU. Iceland had
started its membership negotiations
in 2010 primarily to better anchor
itself to Europe two years after its
economy imploded amid a banking
collapse. The ruling center-right
coalition has been staunchly

Explanation: The
purpose
of
minesweeper vessels is for mine
detection and delineation, which is
essential to keep the harbours clear
of sea mines for safe passage of
ships.
INS
Alleppey
was
commissioned into the Indian Navy
on 10 June 1980. It was last of the
six
Pondicherry
Class
mineseweepers and has rendered
nearly 35 years of service to the
nation. With its decommissioning
the Navy is left with only 5
minesweeper
vessels.
Its

decommissioning ceremony took

place at Mumbai Naval Dockyard
and
was
attended
by
exCommanding Officers of the ship as
well as senior officers of the
Western Naval Command.

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37 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) Income Tax Department on 12

March 2015 slapped a Rs. 20,495
crore tax notice on which entity for
failing to deduct withholding tax on
alleged capital gains? Cairn India
Limited
Explanation: Cairn India Limited
(CIL) received an order from the
Income Tax Department for an
alleged failure to deduct withholding
tax on alleged capital gains arising
during 2006-07 in the hands of
Cairn UK Holdings Limited (CUHL),
which was the erstwhile parent
company of CIL. The notice for
Rs. 20,495 crore comprises of
approx Rs. 10,248
crore
and
interest of approx Rs. 10,247 crore.
It was in respect of the transaction
of CUHL transferring the shares of
Cairn India Holdings Ltd (CIHL) to
CIL as part of internal group
reorganisation in 2006-07 to
facilitate the IPO of CIL. CIL has,
however, not agreed to this tax

demand and will pursue all possible

options to protect its interest. CIL
thus became the latest to join a
slew of multinational firms, including
Vodafone Group Plc and Royal
Dutch Shell Plc, to face tax demand
owing to a retrospective tax law.
4) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
on 13 March 2015 entered into a
$1.5
billion
currency
swap
agreement with the central bank of
Sri Lanka. What is the primary
objective of this agreement? To
help keep the Sri Lankan rupee
stable
Explanation: Sri Lanka rupee has
been under pressure since January
2015 and fallen around 1.5% so far
this year despite the fact that the Sri
Lankan central bank defended it
with selling dollars.
5) The Communist Party of India
(Marxist) went in for a generational
shift in its West Bengal unit on 13
March 2015 with the legendary
Biman Bose stepping out as the
state CPI (M) chief. Who was
elected as the new chief to replace
him? Surjya Kanta Mishra

Explanation: Surjya Kanta Mishra

was appointed as the State
Secretary of West Bengal as the
septuagenarian
Biman
Bose
stepped down after holding this
post for last nine years. Bose was
elected State secretary in 2006
after the untimely death of party
stalwart Anil Biswas. This change
was announced at partys 4-day
State Conference at Kolkata. It is
worth mentioning that West Bengal
is to go to Assembly polls next year.

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38 CURRENT AFFAIRS

6) Islamic State (IS) accepted a

pledge of allegiance from Islamic
militant group Boko Haram as
revealed in an audio tape circulated
on 11 March 2015. Some days
back Boko Haram had posted a
message saying it wanted to join
ranks with IS. Boko Haram is
militant group of which African
country? Nigeria

Explanation: Boko Haram was

founded in 2002 primarily focused
on
opposing
Western-style
education. Later it began a military
campaign to impose Islamist rule in
northern Nigeria in 2009. The
conflict has since spread to
neighbouring states. On the other
hand, the IS aims to establish a
caliphate, a state ruled by a single
political and religious leader
according to Islamic law, or Sharia.
Its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is
known to his followers as Caliph
Ibrahim. It seized large swathes of
Iraq and Syria last year. It still
controls the key Iraqi cities of Tikrit
and Mosul, despite a major ongoing
Iraqi offensive on Tikrit. Boko
Haram had called for the expansion
of the Islamic caliphate to West
Africa some time ago and had
pledged it allegiance to the IS.

March 15-16, 2015

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39 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) In a historic event, a bronze

statue of Mahatma Gandhi was
unveiled at the Parliament Square
in London on 14 March 2015. What
is the significance of this statue for
India and Gandhi? With this
statue, Gandhi became the first
Indian and the only person never to
have been in a public office to be
honoured with a statue at the
Parliament Square
Explanation: This historic 9-foot
tall Mahatma Gandhi statue was
unveiled jointly by British Prime
Minister David Cameron and Indian
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and
stands adjacent to statues of iconic
leaders such as Britains war-time
Prime Minister Winston Churchill
and anti-apartheid icon Nelson
Mandela.
Bollywood
legend

Amitabh Bachchan and Mahatma

Gandhis grandson Gopalkrishna
Gandhi were also present in the
ceremony.
Quoting
some
of
Gandhis famous words, Cameron
highlighted how his teachings
remain as potent today. The statue,
created by Philip Jackson, was
inspired by a 1931 photo of Gandhi
at No. 10 Downing Street, where he
met the then prime minister
Ramsay MacDonald.
2) What is the quarter-final line of
the ICC World Cup 2015 after the
culmination of the league matches
on 15 March 2015? South Africa
Vs.
Sri
Lanka,
India
Vs.
Bangladesh,
Australia
Vs.
Pakistan and New Zealand Vs.
West Indies
Explanation: West
Indies
and
Pakistan defeated the UAE and
Ireland respectively in their last
Group B league matches on 15
March 2015 to make it to the
quarters. Following is the schedule
of the quarterfinals

1st Quarterfinal 18 March 2015:

South Africa Vs. Sri Lanka (Sydney
Cricket Ground)
2nd Quarterfinal 19 March 2015:
India Vs. Bangladesh (Melbourne
Cricket Ground)
3rd Quarterfinal 20 March 2015:
Australia Vs. Pakistan (Adelaide
Oval)
4th Quarterfinal 21 March 2015:
New Zealand Vs. West Indies
(Wellington Regional Stadium)

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40 CURRENT AFFAIRS

3) Union Govt. announced that it

will take several measures for
international
branding
and
promotion of the Puri Rath Yatra
Festival of 2015, which would be a
special event which comes every
19 years. What is the name given to
this
years
Rath
Yatra?

Nabakalebar Rath Yatra

Explanation: The
term
Nabakalebar associated with the
Rath Yatra of 2015 stands for the
periodical renewal of the wooden
images
of
Lord
Jagannath,
Bhalabhadara,
Subhadra
and
Sudarshan. Last Nabakalebar was
celebrated in 1996. This years

Yatra is to be held on 18 July 2015.

The Union Tourism Ministry in
coordination with the Petroleum
Ministry is planning to observe this
special event as an International
Tourism Event of the year. The
Ministry of Culture will bring out
Coffee Table Book and also make
special documentary on the Rath
Yatra. Coins and stamps will also
be issued to commemorate the
Yatra.
4) Who was chosen as the brand
ambassador of the Northeast by the
Union Government to showcase the
potential
of
the
region
as
announced on 13 March 2015?
MC Mary Kom
Explanation: MC Mary Kom is a
five-time World Amateur Boxing
champion and the only woman
boxer to have won a medal in each
of the six world championships. She
is from Manipur, one of the eight
northeastern States. Union Govt. on
13 March announced its decision to
have a brand ambassador for
Northeast. This announcement was
made at the 10th North East
Business Summit in New Delhi.
According to a global consultancy

EY report, released during the

Summit, Indias North East region
offers Rs 2.4 trillion opportunity,
with 45 million people looking to
consume goods and services. Mary
Kom is being roped in as the brand
ambassador to showcase the
various aspects of the region
including the cultural and business.

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41 CURRENT AFFAIRS

5) What is the name of the powerful

storm that hit the South Pacific
Ocean on 14 March 2015 to bring
heavy destruction in the island
nation of Vanuatu? Cyclone Pam
Explanation: Cyclone
Pam
is
considered one of the Pacific
Oceans most powerful ever storms
and it struck Vanuatu with winds up
to 340 kph (210 mph). Vanuatu is a
sprawling country of 83 islands and
260,000 people situated around
2,000 km northeast of the
Australian city of Brisbane. At least
8 persons were killed as the
cyclone tore-off roofs and uprooted
innumerable trees across the
country. Formerly known as the
New Hebrides, Vanuatu was jointly
ruled by France and Britain until
independence in 1980. It is among
the worlds poorest countries and

highly prone to natural disasters,

such as earthquakes, tsunamis and
storms.
6) Who won the Australian Grand
Prix first Formula 1 (F1) Grand
Prix of the season on 15 March
2015? Lewis Hamilton (Britain)
Explanation:
The
F1
2014
champion Lewis Hamilton of
Mercedes continued his dominance
by winning the Australian Grand
Prix at Albert Park racing arena at
Melbourne. He was followed by his
German teammate Nico Rosberg.
Former F1 champion Sebastian
Vettel (Germany) was third on his
Ferrari debut. He was earlier
associated with the Red Bull team.
7) What is the name of an open
source, free, online education portal
that was launched on 13 March
2015 by the Gujarat Chapter of
Code For India? Skill Up India
Explanation: Skill Up India (SUI)
is an online free educational
initiative promoted by the Gujarat
Chapter of Code For India, a U.S.based non-profit organisation of
techies from India. Under this

initiative numerous free online

courses are being provided through
a platform which is similar to the
concept of virtual university. There
are no criteria for subscribing to the
courses offered on SUI. Currently in
its initial stages, the portal is
working on collaborating with
institutes such as the Indian
Institute
of
Management,

Ahmedabad, and the

Indian
Institute
of
Technology
Gandhinagar to put up courses. In
addition, individuals willing to offer
any kind of knowledge can publish
a course. The SUI initiative is in
response
to
Prime
Minister
Narendra Modis call to Skill India.

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42 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 17, 2015

1) The Supreme Court on 16 March

2015 gave what important order
pertaining to Aadhaar cards? It
confirmed that Aadhaar cards are
not compulsory to avail of
government subsidies
Explanation: The Supreme Court
made it clear the Aadhaar cards,
issued by Unique Identification

Authority of India (UIDAI), are not

mandatory as far as availing the
subsidies
associated
with
numerous
govt.
schemes
is
concerned. The apex court issued a
stern warning to the government on
learning that many government
authorities still insist on Aadhaar for
providing government subsidies
and basic services to ordinary
citizens. It made it clear that
demands made by officials for
Aadhaar card is in clear violation of
the Supreme Courts interim order
of 23 September 2013. In that
order, the court had directed that

no person should suffer for not

getting the Aadhaar card, inspite of
the fact that some authority had
issued a circular making it
mandatory. It is worth mentioning
that over 750 million Aadhaar
numbers have already been
generated and the govt. is in the
process of linking all subsidy
schemes with Aadhaar numbers.

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43 CURRENT AFFAIRS

2) Countrys jewellers have put forth

its demand to the Union Govt. to
scrap the mandatory requirement of
Permanent Account Number (PAN)
Card during purchase of gold
ornaments. They feel that this step
announced in the Union Budget of
2015-16 would be impractical to
implement and hurt the jewellery
sector. What is the buying limit for
PAN cards? Above Rs. 1 lakh
Explanation: In the Union Budget
2015-16, the Finance Minister had
mandated that PAN card has to be
produced for purchase of gold
ornaments above Rs. 1 lakh. This
provision was announced to
prevent the circulation of black
money which easily gets converted
into gold bars or jewellery. The All
India Gems and Jewellery Trade

Federation (GJF), the national

federation of the gems & jewellery
sector, feels that this move would
discriminate against 70% of the
rural buyers who do not have PAN
cards and do not come under the
income tax net. According to
jewellers, the requirement of PAN
card would result in shifting of
business from law-abiding jewellers
to unscrupulous elements in the
trade.
3) Stockholm-based
think
tank
Stockholm International Peace
Research Institute (SIPRI) in its
report released on 16 March 2015
claimed that China raced ahead of
Germany to become the third
largest arms exporters in the world
after the U.S. and Russia.
According to this report which are
the three largest markets for
Chinese
arms?
Pakistan,
Bangladesh and Myanmar
Explanation: SIPRI in its report
claimed that exports of arms from
China grew 143% between 2010
and 2014. In the preceding five year
period China had ranked ninth
globally. It disclosed that more than
68% of Chinese exports went to

Pakistan,
Bangladesh
and
Myanmar. It is worth mentioning
that Chinese-made equipment has
found
eager
buyers
among
countries at odds with the United
States and its allies.

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44 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) A series of peace marches were

held across more than 150 cities of
Brazil
on
15
March
2015
demanding the impeachment of
President Dilma Rousseff for her
alleged role in a corruption case
involving a state-run oil company.
Which company is this?
Petrobras
Explanation: Petrobras is a semipublic multi-national company of
Brazil engaged primarily in oil
exploration, refining and marketing.
It is the largest company in Brazil
with annual revenue of over $130
billion during 2013. The company
has been mired in a corruption case
which is alleged to be the biggest
corruption scandal ever uncovered
in Brazil. Under this at least $800
million was paid in bribes and other
funds by it in exchange for inflated
contracts. The protests held on 15
March
were
held
on
the
th
30 anniversary of Brazils return to

democracy after a long military

regime. The protestors were
claiming that the corruption case in
Petrobras was sponsored by the
Brazilian govt. led by President
Dilma Rousseff and demanded her
impeachment. She won a narrow
re-election held in October 2014.
5) What important power for
President Nicolas Maduro was
approved by the Venezuelan
Parliament on 15 March 2015 in
wake of new U.S. sanctions
announced against the country?
The power to govern by decree
until 31 December 2015
Explanation: The troubled South
American
country
Venezuela
witnessed another political turmoil
when countrys Parliament the
National Assembly provided special
powers to President Nicolas
Maduro which grants Maduro
powers to issue direct orders in
matters of public security and
defence without getting approval of
the Parliament. The President
made it clear that this was being
done to deal with the fresh threats
posed by the United States.
However, the move was criticized

by the opposition parties who claim

that this was being done to provide
unlimited powers to President
Maduro to use against those who
disagree with him. A few days back
the relations between Venezuela
and the U.S. suffered a new blow
as President Barack Obama issued
an executive order freezing the
assets of seven Venezuelan
officials and banning them from
entering America. New powers to
Venezuelan President were granted
in view of this development.

6) Which country won the Hero

womens Hockey World League
Round 2, the final of which was
held on 15 March 2015? India
Explanation: In the final held at the
Major Dhyan Chand National
Stadium in New Delhi, India
defeated Poland by 3-1 to claim the
title. Malaysia was placed third in
the tournament and was followed
by Thailand, Russia, Kazakhstan,
Ghana and Singapore.

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45 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 18, 2015

1) The foreign direct investment

(FDI) in India during January 2015
stood at $4.48 billion as disclosed

by the Department of Industrial

Policy and Promotion (DIPP) on 18
March 2015. This was the highest
FDI inflow in the country since
September 2012. During the AprilJanuary period of the current fiscal,
the foreign inflows grew by 36% to
reach $25.52 billion. Which sector
received the highest FDI during this
period Telecom
Explanation: Amongst the top 10
sectors, telecom received the

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46 CURRENT AFFAIRS

maximum FDI of $2.83 billion in the

10-month period, followed by
services ($2.64 billion), automobiles
($2.04 billion), computer software
and hardware ($1.30 billion) and
pharmaceuticals ($1.25 billion). It is
worth mentioning that the total FDI
inflow during January 2015 was the
highest inflow in last 29 months. In
January 2014, the country had
received $2.18 billion in FDI. It was
in September 2012 that India had
attracted FDI that was worth $4.67
billion. India is estimated to require
around $1 trillion over five years to
overhaul its infrastructure sector,
including
ports, airports
and
highways to boost growth. On its
part the Union Govt. has relaxed
FDI norms in sectors including
insurance, railways and medical
devices.
2) Which country contributed the
highest FDI during the AprilJanuary period of the current fiscal
as disclosed by the DIPP on 18
March 2015? Mauritius
Explanation: During
(April-January), India
maximum FDI from
$7.66 billion, followed

the period
received the
Mauritius at
by Singapore

($5.26 billion), the Netherlands

($3.13 billion), Japan ($1.61 billion)
and the US ($1.58 billion).
3) In an important ruling the
Supreme Court on 18 March 2015
struck down the erstwhile UPA
governments decision to include
the Jat community in the list of
other backward castes (OBCs).
Their inclusion on the OBC list
entitled Jats to 27.5% quota in jobs
and admissions in educational
institutions in nine states. Which
nine states are these? Delhi,
Punjab,
Haryana,
UP,
Uttarakhand,
Rajasthan,
MP,
Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat
Explanation: Jats are a major
political force in these 9 states. The
Jat reservation was introduced by
the UPA govt. in March 2014. The
Narendra Modi govt. had also
supported this reservation. The
Supreme Court bench comprising
Justices Ranjan Gogoi and RF
Nariman rejected the then UPA
governments grounds to justify the
inclusion of Jats on the central list
of OBCs.

4) What was the gross nonperforming assets (NPAs) of public

sector banks as on December 2014
as disclosed by the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) recently? Rs.
2,60,531 crore

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47 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: While the gross NPA

of public sectors banks stood at Rs.
2,60,531 crore at the end of
December 2014, the contribution of
top 30 defaulters in this amount
was as high as Rs. 95,122 crore,
which is more than one-third of the
entire NPA. In terms of percentage
it amounts to 36.5%. As per the
data made available by the RBI, the
total number of NPA borrowers
having Rs. 10 crore and above at
the end of September 2014 stood at
2,897 with outstanding amount of
Rs. 1,60,164 crore.
5) Which company recently became
the private company in the Indian
life insurance industry to cross Rs.
1 lakh crore mark in Assets Under
Management (AUM) as announced
during
March
2015?
ICICI
Prudential
Life
Insurance
Company

Explanation: ICICI Prudential Life

Insurance Company had started its
operations in India in December
2000 shortly after the insurance
sector in the country was opened
for
the
private
companies.
Companys AUM recently crossed
the figure of Rs. 1 lakh crore and
thus became the first private
company in the Indian life insurance
industry to achieve the milestone.
ICICI Prudential is now the largest
private player in countrys life
insurance space. The AUM for a life
insurer qualitatively symbolizes the
amount of trust placed by
policyholders in the company.
6) An IAS officer of Karnataka died
mysteriously on 16 March 2015
leading to a spontaneous bandh in
the entire Kolar region of the state.
What is the name of this officer
whose had fought the sand mining
and land mafia during his tenure as
Deputy Commissioner of Kolar?
D.K. Ravi
Explanation: D.K. Ravi was the
Deputy Commissioner of Kolar from
August 2013 to October 2014.
During this tenure he was known for
his uncompromising stand and firm

actions against the mafia. He had

fought tooth and nail against the
sand mining and land mafia. He
died
under
mysterious
circumstances in state capital
Bengaluru on 16 March. Hundreds
of people gathered at the Deputy

Commissioners office premises in

Kolar to demand that Ravis body
should be brought to the district for
people to pay their last respects.

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48 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 19, 2015

1) Which north African country was

hit by a terror attack on 18 March
2015 in which gunmen stormed
countrys national museum and
killed 19 persons including 17
foreigners? Tunisia
Explanation: Tunisia was hit by a
huge terror attack as gunmen

wearing military uniforms stormed

Tunisias national museum (Barbo
Museum) on Wednesday, killing 17
foreign tourists and two Tunisians.
Five Japanese as well as visitors
from Italy, Poland and Spain were
among the dead in the attack which
was claimed as one of the worst
terror attack in countrys history.
The attack on such a high-profile
target is a blow for Tunisia as it
relies heavily on European tourism.
It is worth mentioning that the
country was successful in avoiding
major militant violence since its
2011 uprising to oust autocrat
President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali.
Several Islamist militant groups
have emerged in Tunisia since the

uprising, and authorities estimate

about 3,000 Tunisians have also
joined the Islamic State (IS) fighters
in Iraq and Syria.

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49 CURRENT AFFAIRS

2) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu scored an unexpected
win in countrys Parliamentary
election as his party won 30 seats
in 120-member Israeli Knesst as
announced on 18 March 2015.
What is the name of this party?
Likud Party
Explanation: 12th elections for 120member Israeli Knesst were held on
17 March 2015 and the results for
the same were announced on 18
March. The early elections were
called after disagreements within
the
Likud
party-led
coalition
emerged leading to the dissolution
of the government in December
2014. In the elections Likud Party
scored a resounding victory by
winning 30 seats and was in a
position to be able to build a
coalition government with its rightwing and religious allies with
relative ease. Recent opinion polls
indicated Netanyahu was in trouble,
giving chief rival Isaac Herzog of
the opposition Zionist Union a slight

lead. However, Zionist Union

wound up with just 24 seats. The
election was widely seen as a
referendum on Netanyahu, who has
governed the country for the past
six years.
3) The Union Govt. on 18 March
2015 launched a Rs. 200 crore
scheme to set up a network of
technology and incubation centres
to accelerate entrepreneurship and
promote start-ups for innovation
and entrepreneurship in agroindustry. Which entity would provide
financial aid under this scheme?
Small Industries Development
Bank of India (SIDBI)
Explanation: This scheme was
launched by the Micro, Small and
Medium
Enterprises
(MSME)
Ministry. In order to ensure that
credit is available for start-ups, the
MSME Ministry has created a fund
of Rs. 60 crore which will be
channelised through SIDBI. The
scheme is designed to provide
necessary skill set for setting up
business enterprises in the agro
sector. The primary focus of the
scheme is to provide a platform on
which multiple stakeholders can

work together and address the

employment needs of rural areas.
For successful commercialisation
and mentoring, a grant of Rs. 1 lakh
per year for three years subject to a
maximum of Rs. 3 lakh would be
given.

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50 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) Which noted scientist resigned

as the Chairman of Board of
Governors of IIT Bombay recently
as reported on 18 March 2015?
Anil Kakodkar
Explanation: Anil Kakodkar, who is
a former chairman of Atomic
Energy Commission, resigned as
the Chairman of the Board of
Governors
of
IIT
Bombay
apparently because of differences
with the HRD ministry over
selection of some IIT directors.
Significantly, his move came ahead
of a crucial meeting of search-cumselection committee to select the
directors
of
IIT
Patna,
Bhubaneshwar and Ropar. The
issue of his resignation was raised
in the Parliament by the Opposition,
with Congress alleging government
interference in the institution and
wanting a clarification. However,
later the HRD Ministry claimed that

Kakodkar has
resignation.

withdrawn

his

5) South Africa stormed into the

ICC World Cup semi-finals with a
comprehensive nine-wicket victory
over Sri Lanka at the Sydney
Cricket Ground on 18 March 2015.
Who became the first South African
to take a hat-trick in the World Cup
during this match? JP Duminy
Explanation: South African allrounder JP Duminy became the
9th player to claim a hat-trick in the
history of the World Cup. He
dismissed Angelo Mathews (19)
with the final ball of the 33rd over
and returned to send back Nuwan
Kulasekara (1) and debutant
Tharindu Kaushal (0) with the first
two deliveries of the 35th. Helped
by this hat-trick and brilliant bowling
by Imran Tahir (4 for 26), South
Africa bundled out Sri Lankans for
133 runs off 37.2 overs. Then they
scored the requisite runs for the
loss of lone wicket of Hashim Amla
to march into the semi-finals.
6) Two Sri Lankan cricketers retired
after the quarter-final match against

South Africa in the ICC World Cup

on 18 March 2015. Who are these?
Mahela
Jayawardene
and
Kumar Sangakkara
Explanation: Mahela Jayawardene
retired after playing 448 ODIs and
accumulating 12,650 runs while
Kumar Sangakkara scored 14,234

runs in 404 ODIs. Sangakkara

ended on a high after scoring 541
runs in 7 matches of this edition of
ICC World Cup. He thus became the
sixth player to score 500 runs in the
World Cup.

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51 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 20-21, 2015

1) The Railway Minister Suresh
Prabhu on 19 March 2015
constituted the Kayakalp Council,
which will recommend innovative
methods and processes for the
improvement,
betterment
and
transformation
of
the
Indian
Railways. Who was appointed as
the Chairman of this council?
Ratan Tata
Explanation: The constitution of
the
Kayakalp
Council
was
announced by Suresh Prabhu in the
Railway Budget presented by him
on 26 February 2015. This council

will be a standing body and will

interact with all stakeholders and
other interested parties. Apart from
noted industrialist Ratan Tata as its
head, the Council will initially also
have Shiv Gopal Mishra, General
Secretary, All Indian Railwaymens
Federation and M. Raghavaiah,
General
Secretary,
National
Federation of Indian Railwaymen,
the two recognised federations
representing the railway employees
as members. It is for the first time
that
two
key
employee
representatives have been included
in such Council. The other

members of the Council will be

announced in due course.

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52 CURRENT AFFAIRS

2) The Union Govt. on 19 March

2015 disclosed that it has approved
the closure of seven terminally ill
central public sector enterprises
(CPSEs). Which 7 CPSEs are
these whose accumulated losses
stood at around Rs. 3,139 crore
over a period of time? HMT
Bearings, Tungabhadra Steel
Products, Hindustan Photo Films
Manufacturing Co, HMT Watches,
HMT
Chinnar
Watches,
Hindustan Cables and Spices
Trading Corporation Ltd.
Explanation: In a written reply to
the Rajya Sabha, the Ministry for
Heavy
Industries
&
Public
Enterprises disclosed that out of 55
central public sector enterprises
(CPSEs)
examined
by
the
Government, revival or restructuring
for 46 units and closure of nine
units were approved. While 2
CPSEs Bharat Opthalmic Glass
and Bharat Yantra Nigam have
already shut down their units, the
above mentioned 7 CPSEs closure
is
in
the
process.
Among
these, Hindustan
Photo
Films

Manufacturing Co. had incurred the

highest loss at Rs. 1,561 crore in
2012-13, followed by Hindustan
Cables at Rs. 885 crore during the
same period. On the other hand,
the public sector units that have
been approved for revival through
joint venture or disinvestment route
include Scooters India, Tyre
Corporation of India, National
Textiles Corporation and Hindustan
Antibiotics, among others.
3) What is the name of the bill
passed by the Rajya Sabha on 20
March 2015 that, for the first time,
will facilitate the auction of mines
that supply minerals like iron ore
and
bauxite?
Mines
and
Minerals
Development
and
Regulation Bill, 2015
Explanation: This bill was passed
by the Rajya Sabha on 20 March
2015. The passage of the Mines
and Minerals Development and
Regulation Bill by the Rajya Sabha
was crucial for Prime Minister
Narendra Modi because the ruling
BJP lacks a majority in this house.
The bill will now be taken up by the
Lok Sabha, where BJP enjoys an
overwhelming majority. The passing

of this bill came as major relief for

Modis bid to kick-start an industry
that has languished for years. The
mining sector in India has been
mired in controversy over the illegal
allocation of resources, causing a
near standstill in granting permits to
open new mines for international
firms.

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53 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) 34 persons were killed when the

engine and two coaches of the
Dehradun-Varanasi Janata Express
derailed in Uttar Pradesh on 20
March 2015. This accident took
place at which place? near
Bachrawan Railway Station
Explanation: Bachrawan Railway
Station is around 50 km from Uttar
Pradesh capital Lucknow. The
locomotive driver of the Janata
Express apparently overshot the
signal and as a result, the engine
and two adjoining coaches derailed.
The accident took place around
9.30 a.m.
5) The Inland Waterways Authority
of India (IWAI) on 19 March 2015
signed an agreement (MoU) with
which entity for creation of logistic

hubs with rail connectivity at

Varanasi and other places on
National Waterways? Dedicated
Freight Corridor Corporation of
India (DFCCIL)
Explanation: As per the MoU, IWAI
and DFCCIL will collaborate for the
project and also facilitate business
development in the hinterland and
its feeder routes. To begin with,
IWAI and DFCCIL will work jointly
to provide rail connectivity to the
proposed inland waterway terminal
at Varanasi to make it a logistics
hub, with the vision of developing
similar facilities at other strategic
locations on the other National
Waterways and dedicated Freight
Corridors. It is expected that the
synergy between the Ministries of
Railways and Shipping would
provide a boost to the development
of multi-modal logistics terminals
along National Waterways. The
Shipping and Road Transport &
Highways Ministry has taken up an
ambitious initiative to convert 101
rivers into inland waterways.
6) As India stormed into the semifinals of the ICC World Cup by
trouncing Bangladesh by 109 runs

on 19 March 2015, Indian skipper

M.S.
Dhoni
achieved
which
milestone for him? He became
just the third captain, and the
first Indian, to lead his country to
100 ODI wins

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54 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: As India defeated

Bangladesh in the second quarterfinal at the Melbourne Cricket
Ground (MCG), Indian captain M.S.
Dhoni joined the Australian pair of
Ricky Ponting and Allan Border to
become the third player to captain
his team to 100 ODI victory. He
surpassed South Africas late
Hansie Cronje who had guided his
team to 99 ODI victories. Since
taking over from Rahul Dravid in
2007, Dhoni has led India to every
major title in world cricket, including
the World Cup, the Twenty20 World
Cup and the ICC Champions
Trophy.
7) What is the name of the Indianborn Nobel Laureate who was
named as the head of Britains
prestigious Royal Society?
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan
Explanation: Venkatraman
Ramakrishnan
is
an
Indian-

American
scientist
whose
pioneering work in molecular
biology won him the 2009 Nobel
Prize in Chemistry. He will now
head the Royal Society, a
communion of the many of the
worlds
most
distinguished
scientists. His selection for this
prestigious post was through a
ballot held among the fellows of the
Royal Society. Ramakrishnan will
take up the post on 1 December
2015. The Royal Society dates
back to 1660 and its president is a
key advocate for science in the UK
and the world. Previous presidents
of the Royal Society have included
Isaac Newton, Christopher Wren,
Samuel Pepys, Joseph Banks,
Humphry
Davy,
and
Ernest
Rutherford. Dr. Ramakrishnan will
succeed geneticist Sir Paul Nurse,
also a Nobel laureate.
8) Malcolm Fraser, who passed
away on 20 March 2015, was a
former Prime Minister of which
country? Australia
Explanation: Malcolm Fraser led
Australia from 1975 to 1983 as its
Prime
Minister.
He
became
countrys Prime Minister under

controversial circumstances, after

the unprecedented dismissal of PM
Gough Whitlam. However, Fraser
continued some of the reforms
begun by Whitlam, including the
introduction of legislation that
returned
land
to
Indigenous

Australians
in
the
Northern
Territory.
Other
achievements
during his three terms of office
included the creation of Australias
family court.

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March 22-23, 2015

1) Lee Kuan Yew, who passed

away on 23 March 2015, was the
architect and the first Prime Minister
of which Asian country?
Singapore
Explanation: Lee Kuan Yew was
the legendary leader of Singapore
who contributed incredibly in
transforming the tiny Southeast
Asian city-state of Singapore from a
British tropical outpost to global

trade and financial centre. He took

over as Singapores first Prime
Minister in 1959 and held onto
power for over three decades. He
co-founded the Peoples Action
Party (PAP), which has ruled
Singapore since 1959 and led the
newly born country when it was
separated from Malaysia in 1965.
He passed away at the age of 91 at
the Singapore General Hospital in
the early hours of 23 March.
2) The Securities and Exchange
Board of India (SEBI) on 22 March
2015 came up with guidelines for
which category of bonds which will
help the Union Govt. in its Smart
Cities plan? Municipal Bonds

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Page

Explanation: The SEBI on 22

March approved a new set of norms
for listing and trading of municipal
bonds
on
stock
exchanges.
Municipal bonds, also to be known
as Muni Bonds, would allow
authorities to raise funds including
for setting up of smart cities, by
raising funds from the public and
from the institutional investors. The
municipal authorities, desiring of
issuing these bonds, would need to
have a strong financial track record
and such bonds would be listed on
the stock exchanges. In December
2014, SEBI had floated draft norms
for Issue and Listing of Debt
Securities by Municipality and had
sought public comments till 30
January 2015. These bonds
products are very popular among
investors in many developed
nations, especially the United
States, where they have attracted
investments totalling over $500
billion and are among preferred
avenues for household savings.
3) The Union Govt. on 20 March
2015 gave its approval for a
flagship skill development scheme
to cover 24 lakh persons and to

replace the earlier STAR Scheme

of the UPA era. What is the name
of this new scheme? Pradhan
Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana
(PMKVY)
Explanation: The Pradhan Mantri
Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY),
started with Rs. 1,500 crore, aims
to provide monetary reward of Rs.
8,000 to trainees on successful
completion and certification of skill
training course. It would cover 24
lakh persons that would include 14
lakh youth who would be skilled and
10 lakh workers who would be
given recognition for prior learning.
A special focus of the scheme
would be Class X and Class XII
dropouts. It would thus replace the
earlier STAR Scheme that was
implemented through the National
Skill
Development
Corporation
(NSDC).
4) The Nuclear Power Corporation
of India Limited (NPCIL) got a big
boost when the Ministry of
Environment, Forests & Climate
Change (MoEFCC) gave coastal
regulatory zone (CRZ) approval to
the 6,000-MW Mithivirdi Nuclear

Power Plant. This plant is proposed

in which state? Gujarat

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57 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The
6,000-MW
Mithivirdi Nuclear Power Plant, to
be established at Mithivirdi, a
coastal hamlet some 40 km from
Bhavnagar
(Gujarat),
was
announced way back in 2009. The
MoEFCC
recently
gave
its
clearance for setting up of intake
and outfall facility for this plant that
has already been facing severe
opposition from local farmers and
social activists. The clearance has
been granted for constructing an
intake channel that will be 100
metre wide and 10 metre deep and
a discharge facility comprising of
Condenser
Cooling
Water
Discharge tunnels of eight-metre
diameter and six km. in length (for
two units) and a total of 18 km. (for
units).
5) In an important development, the
Shiite rebels backed by supporters
of former President Ali Abdullah
Saleh on 22 March 2015 seized
Yemens third largest city. What is
the name of this city? Taiz

Explanation: Taiz is the capital of

Yemens most populous province
and is located between the capital
Sanaa and the southern city of
Aden. It is also the third largest city
after Sanaa and Aden. Yemen has
been in political limbo over the past
few months, since Shiite rebels
(also known as the Houthi rebels)
took over the capital in September
2014 and President Abdrabbuh
Mansour Hadi fled to the southern
port city of Aden. The rebels now
control nine of the countrys 21
provinces. These rebels had
declared a new government in
February 2015 and had announced
that a transitional five-member
presidential council would replace
President Hadi. However, the
declaration
has
not
been
recognised by Sunni and southern
leaders.
6) Indian Navy recently decided to
decommission its aircraft carrier
INS Viraat in February 2016. This
naval carrier is one of the longest
serving warships in the world.
When it was initially commissioned
in the Royal British Navy? 1957

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Explanation: INS Viraat is a

British-build aircraft carrier and was
first as HMS Hermes in the Royal
British Navy in 1957. It took part in
the famous Falklands War of 1982
between Britain and Argentina. It
was inducted into the Indian Navy
in 1987. Between 1987 and 1995,
the warship served alongside INS
Vikrant Indias first aircraft carrier.
INS Viraat went through five refits
and mid-life upgrades since 1987.
Indian
Navy
decided
to
decommission it as yet another
major refit and upgrade to extend
its life was not expected to be cost
effective. For at least two years
(from 2016 to 2018) the Indian
Navy will have to depend only on
the 44,000 ton refurbished Russian
Admiral Gorshkov, which has been
rechristened INS Vikramaditya. The
first indigenously built aircraft
carrier that will be named INS
Vikrant is expected to join the
Indian Navy only in 2018-19.
7) Two open-cast coal mines
Makardhokra and Bhanegaon, were
dedicated to the nation on 21 March
2015. These mines are situated in
which state? Maharashtra

Explanation: The two open-cast

coal mines at Makardhokra and
Bhanegaon, having a capacity of 2million tonne and one million tonne
respectively,
were
formally
dedicated to the nation on 21 March
by Union Power Minister Piyush
Goyal. Apart from this the largest
open cast project in the Western
Coalfields
Limited
(WCL)
at
Penganga with a production
capacity of four-million tonne per
year was also inaugurated. About
60 lakh tonnes of coal from these
projects will be supplied to power
plants for generation of electricity
and about 10 lakh tonnes of coal
will be supplied to other consumers
in Maharashtra.
8) Who became the highest run
scorer in an ICC World Cup match
by scoring an unbeaten 237 runs on
21 March 2015? Martin Guptill
(New Zealand)
Explanation: Guptill scored 237
not out against the West Indies at
Wellington in the 4th quarter-final of
the ICC World Cup 2015 to make
highest runs in a World Cup
innings. He broke the record made
by West Indian Chris Gayle (215)

against Zimbabwe on 24 February

2015. This knock by Guptill is the
second-highest in all one-day
internationals after Rohit Sharmas
264. New Zealand easily defeated
West Indies in this match to make it

to the World Cup semi-finals to

meet South Africa. In the other
semi-final, hosts Australia would
take on defending champions India.

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59 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 24, 2015

1) Which film personality was

chosen for the Dadasaheb Phalke
Award for the year 2014 as
announced by the Union Govt. on
23 March 2015? Shashi Kapoor
Explanation: Shashi Kapoor, the
veteran actor and producer was
chosen for the 46thedition of the
Dadasaheb Phalke Award, which is

the most prestigious film award in

India. This award is conferred by
the Government of India for
outstanding contribution to the
growth and development of Indian
Cinema. The award consists of a
Swarn Kamal (Golden Lotus), a
cash prize of Rs. 10 lakh and a
shawl. Shashi Kumar, the son of
Prithviraj Kapoor and younger
brother of Raj Kapoor and Shammi
Kapoor, started acting in films as a
child in the late 1940s. His best
known performances as child artist
were in Aag (1948) and Awaara
(1951). He is also known for his
performances in films like Jab Jab
Phool Khile, Deewar and Kabhi
Kabhie. He was one of Indias first
actors to go international. He is

60 CURRENT AFFAIRS
Page

known internationally for starring in

many British and American films,
notably Merchant Ivory Productions
run by Ismail Merchant and James
Ivory. He also produced acclaimed
films such Junoon (1978), Kalyug
(1981), 36 Chowringhee Lane
(1981), Vijeta (1982) and Utsav
(1984).

statement warning of the threat to

Islamic fundamentalists bent on
destroying the country. Pakistans
Republic of the so-called Pakistan
Day commemorates 23 March
1940, when the Muslim League
demanded the establishment of
separate nations to protect Muslims
in the then British colony of India.

2) Pakistans military celebrated its

Republic Day on 23 March 2015
with symbolic show of strength of its
military might and aerial military
expertise. What was special
significance of this Republic Day
celebrations? This was the first
Republic Day celebration in last 7
years

3) The Securities and Exchange

Board of India (SEBI) on 22 March
2015 made it easier for domestic
funds to manage offshore pooled
assets by dropping the so-called
20-25 Rule. What were the
provisions under the 20-25 Rule?
It required a minimum of 20
investors and a cap of 25% on
investment by an individual, for
funds from low-risk foreign
investors

Explanation: The symbolic military

parade on Republic Day was held
for the last time in 2008. It was later
discontinued following an escalation
in the militarys conflict with the
Pakistani Taliban. Pakistani troops
have boasted recent successes
against the Taliban, who aim to
topple the state and establish strict
Islamic rule. The Republic Day
Parade held at capital Islamabad
was attended by Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif, who issued a strong

Explanation: As per the existing

norms, a fund manager who is
managing a domestic scheme, is
allowed to manage an offshore fund
subject to three specific conditions.
The first requires the investment
objective and asset allocation of the
domestic scheme and of the
offshore fund to be the same. The
second condition requires at least

70% of the portfolio to be replicated

across both the domestic scheme
and the offshore fund. The third
condition,
which
was
being
considered as the most stringent by
the industry, requires that the
offshore fund should be broadbased with at least 20 investors
with no single investor holding more
than 25% of the fund corpus. This
was also known as the 20-25 Rule.
SEBI has now dropped this
contentious clause.

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61 CURRENT AFFAIRS

4) The Securities and Exchange

Board of India (SEBI) on 22 March
2015 gave what relaxation primarily
to PSU banks on non-performing
assets? It relaxed the norms for
conversion of the distressed
loans of listed companies into
equity by banks and financial
institutions
Explanation: The SEBI on 22
March decided to adopt a fair price
mechanism for conversion of
distressed loans in place of the
current market pricing formula.
SEBI will prescribe how the fair
value will be decided. The new rule
will be applied only when banks
acquire at least 51% of the equity.

Bad debts or non-performing assets

of all public sector banks rose to
5.64% of advances at the end of
December 2014, which is the
highest after the 5.73% recorded in
2004-05.
5) The SEBI on 22 March 2015
approved guidelines to govern
international
financial
services
centres (IFSC). Which centre is
expected to be Indias first such
IFSC? Gujarat International
Finance Tec-City (GIFT City)
Explanation: The GIFT City is
being established near Ahmedabad
in Gujarat. The new norms for
IFSCs approved by SEBI on 22
March aims to ease the setting up
of stock exchanges and capital
market infrastructure in such
centres. A stock exchange can be
set up with Rs. 25 crore capital,
against the normal requirement of
Rs. 100 crore. However, this will
have to be raised to Rs. 100 crore
within three years. For a clearing
corporation, the initial capital
requirement will be Rs. 50 crore,
against the norm of Rs. 300 crore,
which will have to be achieved in
three years.

6) According to the news reports

appearing in a section of media on
23 March 2015, the Andhra
Pradesh Government is considering
naming the proposed new capital
city of the state as Amaravathi. This
name is derived from an ancient
temple situated between Guntur
and Vijayawada. Which temple is
this?
Amareswara
Swamy
Temple

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62 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The
Amareswara
Swamy Temple is located on the
banks of River Krishna and is at a
distance of 35 km away from
Guntur and 40 km from Vijayawada.
This place was once the seat of
power
during
the
rule
of
Satavahana, who ruled during
2nd century BCE and 3rd century
BCE.

7) What is the name of the

Republican
Senator
who
announced his candidature for US
Presidential elections on 22 March
2015 to become the first major
candidate for the White House?
Ted Cruz
Explanation: Ted Cruz is the
Republican Senator from Texas
and his announcement made him
the first major candidate for the post
of U.S. president to be held in 2016.
He was elected for the first time just
three years ago, when he defeated
an establishment figure in Texas
politics with decades of experience
in office. Cruz is of Hispanic origin
with his father being a Cuban-born
US citizen.

March 25, 2015

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1) In an important development the

Supreme Court on 24 March 2015
declared Section 66A of the
Information
and
Technology
Act as unconstitutional. What was
the objective of this section? This
section gave the police powers
to arrest those who post
objectionable content online and
also provided for a three-year jail
term
Explanation: Section 66 A of the IT
Act is one of the most controversial
issues regarding the freedom of
expression on social media in India.
The IT Act was introduced in year
2000 and had this section which
was seen as a major infringement
of the freedom of speech online
because it allowed the arrest of a
person
for
posting
offensive

content. A bench of justices J.

Chelameswar and R.F. Nariman
had on 26 February reserved its
judgement on this section. The
verdict was reserved after the
government
concluded
its
arguments contending that section
66A of the IT Act cannot be
declared unconstitutional merely
because of the possibility of its
abuse. The first PIL on the issue
was filed in 2012 by a law student
Shreya Singhal, who sought
amendment in Section 66A of the
Act, after two girls Rinu Shrinivasan
and Shaheen Dhada were arrested
in Palghar in Thane district as one
of them posted a comment against
the shutdown in Mumbai following
Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackerays
death and the other liked it.

2) Union Rail Minister Suresh

Prabhu on 24 March 2015
inaugurated
the
first-ever
Perishable Cargo Centre (PCC) of
Container Corporation of India
(CONCOR) which will help the

farmers to get a good price and

good market for their product. This
first-of-its-kind PCC is situated in
which place? Adarsh Nagar
station near Azadpur Sabzi
Mandi, Delhi

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64 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The
Perishable
Cargo Centre (PCC) of CONCOR
will help reducing the wastages that
Indian agriculture is suffering from
because of absence of proper cold
chain facilities. This centre will be
using
latest
state-of-the-art
technology for ripening bananas in
the first stage and mangoes
thereafter in the healthier fashion
based on healthier non-toxic
ethylene technology for which
CONCOR has provided specialised
chambers. This PCC facility will be
operated by CONCOR as a part of
its cold chain initiative.

3) 62nd National
Awards
were
declared on 24 March 2015. Which
film bagged the prestigious Best
Feature Film Award? Court
Explanation: The coveted Best
Feature Film Award was given to
Chaitanya Tamhanes multi-lingual
debut feature Court, which has

previously won 17 international

awards and has travelled to film
festivals around the world. A salient
feature of this film is that it has
been made in 4 languages
Marathi, Gujarati, Hindi and English
languages. According to the citation
for Court Court is a powerful
and stark depiction of the
mundaneness of judicial procedure
revealed brilliantly by the films form
forcing us to reflect on the heartwrenching insensitivity of
institutional structures. Kannada
actor Vijay was adjudged Best
Actor for his performance in the film
Nan
Avanalla
Avalu
while
Kangana Ranaut won the Best
Actress award for Hindi film
Queen.
Click here for complete list of
National Film Award

4) An Airbus A320 belonging to

Lufthansa Germanwings budget
airline crashed in Alps mountains in
southern France resulting in death
of all 142 passengers and 6 crew
members on 24 March 2015. This
ill-fated aircraft was on a regular
flight between which two cities?

From Barcelona (Spain)

Duesseldorf (Germany)

to

Explanation: Germanwings is the

budget airline of German national
airline Lufthansa. An Airbus plane
operated by Germanwings crashed
at Meolans-Revels in southern Alps
region of France on 24 March after
taking off from Barcelona airport.
The crashed Airbus A320 aircraft
was 24 years old and was with the
parent Lufthansa group since 1991.
According to primary investigations,
the aircraft climbed to 38,000ft,
started descending and then lost
signal at 6,800ft.

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5) Which three African countries on

23 March 2015 signed an initial
agreement on sharing water from
the Nile River? Egypt, Ethiopia
and Sudan
Explanation: The Nile River runs
through these 3 countries and a
major water-sharing controversy
has been going on in the region
after Ethiopia announced that it will
go ahead with the construction of a
massive new dam on the river. The
dam has been a possible issue of
contention among the three nations,

threatening to reduce Egypts share

of the Nile. This was also expected
to
challenge
a
colonial-era
agreement that had given the rights
to exploit the rivers water just to
Egypt and Sudan. The agreement
signed on 23 March outlines
principles by which Egypt, Ethiopia
and Sudan will cooperate to use the
water fairly and resolve any
potential
disputes
peacefully,
leaving the details on specific
procedures to be determined later
after the release of joint, expert
studies. Until recently, Ethiopia had
abided
by
the
colonial-era
agreement that gives downstream
Egypt and Sudan rights to the Niles
water, with Egypt taking 55.5 billion
cubic meters and Sudan 18.5 billion
cubic meters of the total of 84 billion
cubic meters, with 10 billion lost to
evaporation.

6) New Zealand made it to the

finals of the ICC World Cup 2015 by
defeating South Africa in a nailbiting first semi-final on 24 March
2015. This was the first time that
New Zealand made it to the World
Cup finals. Before this, New

Zealand had been into World Cup

semi-finals without qualifying for the
finals how many times? Six
Explanation: Grant Elliott (84 not
out) and Corey Anderson (58)
produced a superbly timed 103-run
partnership to take New Zealand
into their first cricket World Cup
final with a tense four-wicket win
over South Africa at Eden Park
(Auckland) on 24 March 2015. New
Zealand have made into the semifinals of the cricket World Cup six
times prior to this World Cup.
However, they were unable to make
it into the finals on all 6 times. As

New Zealand defeated South Africa

in a cliffhanger, it made its first
entry into ICC World Cup finals.
Grant Elliott was adjudged man of
the match as New Zealand went
past the revised target of 298 runs
with a ball to spare. Earlier South
Africa made an imposing 281 for
five in 43 overs after almost two
hours of play was lost due to the
rain. South Africa was once again
unable to go past the semi-final
stage. This was their fourth entry
into semi-finals without making it to
the finals.

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66 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 26, 2015

1) An ambitious multi-purpose and

multi-modal platform PRAGATI was
launched
by
Prime
Minister

Narendra Modi on 25 March 2015.

The main objective of this platform
is to address the grievances of the
common man and simultaneously
monitoring and reviewing important
government
programmes
and
projects. What is full-form of
PRAGATI?
Pro-Active
Governance
and
Timely
Implementation

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67 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: The
PRAGATI
platform integrates three latest
technologies

digital
data
management,
video-conferencing
and geo-spatial technology. It also
offers a unique combination in the
direction of cooperative federalism
since it brings on one stage the
Secretaries of Government of India
and the Chief Secretaries of the
States. It will be interactive as well
as integrative. From now on the
fourth Wednesday of every month
will be known as PRAGATI Day and
it will feature the Prime Minister
interacting with the Government of
India
Secretaries,
and
Chief
Secretaries
through
Videoconferencing enabled by the
PRAGATI platform. The PRAGATI
platform has been designed inhouse by the PMO team with the
help of National Informatics Center
(NIC).
2) Indian Railways on 23 March
2015 launched its RuPay pre-paid
debit card service for the benefit of
railway passengers. Passengers
would be able to book railway
tickets and make online payments
through this debit card launched by

the IRCTC. Which PSU bank is

collaborating with the National
Payment Corporation of India
(NPCI) and IRCTC in this service?
Union Bank of India (UBI)
Explanation: The RuPay pre-paid
debit card of railway will be made
available from the branches of
Union Bank of India (UBI) or
through IRCTC for free. This card is
the first of its kind in the market
where both virtual as well as
physical cards are being issued to
the customer in two variants
Partial KYC with a loading limit of
Rs.10,000 and full KYC with a
loading limit of Rs.50,000. The first
5 transactions per card every
month done on IRCTC for purchase
of railways tickets will be FREE (no
transaction
charges)
to
the
customer for the first 6 months
only.
For
every
subsequent
transaction post the free usage,
customer will be charged Rs.10/per transaction.
3) Which two food and beverages
companies have decided to merge
their operations to create the fifth
largest food and drink firm in the
world as announced on 25 March

2015? Kraft Foods Group Inc.

and H.J. Heinz Co.

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68 CURRENT AFFAIRS

Explanation: Kraft Foods Group

Inc. is the maker of Velveeta
cheese and Oscar Mayer meats and
it will merge with ketchup maker
H.J. Heinz Co., which is owned by
the Brazilian investment firm 3G
Capital and billionaire investor
Warren
Buffetts
Berkshire
Hathaway. The combined company
will have revenue of about $28
billion and will be called Kraft Heinz
Company.
It
will
be
coheadquartered in Pittsburgh and
the Chicago area. The combined
company expects to make $1.5bn
(1bn) cost savings per year by the
end of 2017.
4) A tweet-powered service under
Prime Minister Narendra Modis
Digital India initiative was launched
on 25 March 2015 that will provide
political content in real time on
mobile devices. What is the name
of this service which is part of
Twitters strategy to become more
accessible to Indian users?
Twitter Samvad

Explanation: Twitter Samvad is

based on the ZipDial platform under
which users can give a missed call
and get curated tweets from the
official accounts of the Prime
Minister, Chief Ministers, and
ministries such as External Affairs
and Railways. ZipDial, is an Indian
platform based on the missed-call
model which was acquired by
Twitter some time back.
5) Japan took the delivery of a 248metre-long warship named Izumo
on 25 March 2015. What is a
special relevance of this warship for
Japan? It is the biggest
warship in the country since
the Second World War
Explanation: Japans
Maritime
Self-Defence Force took delivery of
warship Izumo, which is designated
as a helicopter destroyer, a label
that allows Japan to keep within the
bounds of a constitutional ban on
owning the means to wage war.
The vessel can serve in a wide
range of roles, including peace
keeping operations, international
disaster relief and aid. Japan is also
adding longer-range patrol aircraft
and military cargo planes to its

defence capability, and buying

Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets,
amphibious assault vehicles and
Boeings Osprey troop carrier,
which can operate from the Izumo.
6) What is the name of the
Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief who was
booked under Unlawful Activities
Prevention Act (UAPA) on 25 March
2015 for allegedly hoisting Pakistani
flag on its national day? Syed
Aasiya Andrabi
Explanation: Syed Aasiya Andrabi
is a Kashmiri woman separatist

political figure who heads the

separatist organisation Dukhtarane-Millat (Daughters of the Nation)
which she had founded. She had
allegedly hoisted the flag of
Pakistan and sung its national
anthem on its national day on 23
March 2015 in Kashmir. It is worth
mentioning that her husband Dr.
Ashiq Husaain Faktoo has been in
the jail since 1992. Dr. Faktoo was
a founding member of terror group
Hizbul Mujahideen which wants
separation of Kashmir from India.

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69 CURRENT AFFAIRS

March 27, 2015

approved the establishment of a
mission to enable India to leapfrog
to the league of world class
computing power nations. What is
the name given to this mission?
National
Supercomputing
Mission

1) The Prime Minister-led Cabinet

Committee on Economic Affairs
(CCEA) on 25 March 2015

Explanation: National
Supercomputing Mission (NSM)
would be implemented and steered
jointly by the Department of

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Page

Science and Technology (DST) and

Department of Electronics and
Information Technology (DeitY) at
an estimated cost of Rs.4500 crore
over
a
period
of
seven
years. Currently,
in
the
top
Supercomputing machines in the
world, a major share is taken from
advanced countries such as the
US, Japan, China and the
European Union (EU). The mission
envisages India to be in the select
league of such nations. The NSM
envisages empowering countrys
academic and R&D institutions by
installing a vast supercomputing
grid comprising of more than 70
high-performance
computing
facilities. These supercomputers
will also be networked on the
National Supercomputing grid over
the National Knowledge Network
(NKN). The NKN is another
programme of the government
which
connects
academic
institutions and R&D labs over a
high speed network.
2) Which entity became the firstever public sector undertaking
(PSU) to issue bonus debentures

as done by it on 26 March 2015?

NTPC Ltd.
Explanation: NTPC on 26 March
issued
bonus
debentures
amounting to Rs. 7725.76 crore to
Government of India by virtue of its
74.96% shareholding in NTPC. In
addition to the bonus debentures,
the Government of India has also
received Rs. 2060.75 crore as
dividend distribution tax on the
debentures. This thus became the
first-ever instance of a PSU issuing
bonus debenture issues. Under this
bonus issue, NTPC issued one fully
paid-up, secured debenture of Rs.
12.50 each, for every one fully paidup equity share of Rs. 10 each held
by its members. The issue size of
the bonus debenture thus stood at
Rs. 10306.83 crore which is the
biggest issue of its kind in the
country and also the first ever by
any PSU.

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3) Who was appointed as the

Chairman of the Empowered
Committee of State Finance
Ministers on the Goods and
Services Tax (GST) as announced
by the government on 25 March
2015? K.M. Mani (Finance
Minister of Kerala)
Explanation: The post of the
Chairman of the Empowered
Committee of State Finance
Ministers on the GST fell vacant
when Abdul Rahim Rather quit
following
defeat
of
National
Conference in the Jammu and
Kashmir elections. Kerala Finance
Minister K.M. Mani was appointed
for this post as announced by the
Finance Ministry on 25 March. The
chairman of the committee has
generally been from an opposition
ruled state. Mani represents the
Kerala
Congress
(M).
His
appointment
could
help
the
government garner support from
the opposition when Parliament
takes
up
the
Constitution
amendment bill for GST. The GST,
a much-awaited reform to replace
multiple indirect taxes with one levy,
is proposed to be rolled out from
April 2016.

4) Which country on 25 March 2015

launched military operations in
Yemen by carrying out a series of
air strikes in association with a 10country coalition against the Houthi
militia forces in the country?
Saudi Arabia
Explanation: The
Saudi
Ambassador in the U.S. Adel alJubeir on 25 March announced in
Washington that Gulf Arab allies
and other countries had joined
Saudi Arabia in the military
campaign against the Houthi rebels
in Yemen in a bid to protect and
defend the legitimate government of
Yemen
President
Abd-Rabbu
Mansour Hadi.
It is
worth
mentioning that Houthis are Shia
Muslims and are being backed by
Shiite Iran while Saudi Arabia and
its associates belong to the Sunni
faith. Thus this Saudi-led offensive
is expected to spiral into a proxy
war between Shia and Sunni-

backed powers. In a related

development Houthi militia forces
and allied army units seized Aden
airport and a nearby air base on 25
March, tightening their grip on the
outskirts of the southern Yemeni
city.

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5) India was ousted from the ICC

World Cup as it lost to hosts
Australia by 95 runs in the second
semi-final held at the Sydney
Cricket Ground (SCG) on 26 March
2015. With this, both the host
nations Australia and New Zealand
have reached the final of the World
Cup, to be played on 29 March
2015. Australia will feature in a
cricket World Cup final for which
time on 29 March? Seventh
Explanation: Four time champion
Australia rode on Steve Smiths
classy 105 to post an imposing
328/7 before bundling out India for
233 in 46.5 overs to set up a
summit clash with New Zealand.
Australia has been the most
successful team as far as one day
internationals
(ODIs)
are
concerned. It has made it to the
ODI World Cup finals as many as
seven times out of eleven. It made

it into the finals in the inaugural

edition of World Cup in 1975,
followed by 1987, 1996, 1999,
2003, 2007 and now in 2015. It won
the World Cup four times in 1987,
1999, 2003 and 2007. Australia will
meet its neighbour and co-hosts
New Zealand in the World Cup final
on 29 March 2015 at the Melbourne
Cricket Ground (MCG). New
Zealand has reached the finals for
the first time.

6) The sale of mobile phone

airwaves (spectrum auction) ended
on 25 March 2015 after 19 days of
fierce bidding between telecom
operators. What amount was raised
by the Union Govt. through this
auction as announced by Union
Telecommunications Minister Ravi
Shankar Prasad on 26 March
2015? Rs. 109,874 crore
Explanation: The details pertaining
to the spectrum auction were

revealed after the Supreme Court,

which is hearing a host of petitions
on the issue of spectrum, allowed
the government on 26 March to go
ahead and finalise the bids and
name the winners, but take a
decision only after its order on that
matter. This sale was the largestever spectrum auction in India. The
numbers
revealed
by
the
communications minister suggest
that the latest tranch of auction has
come as a windfall for the
government,
surpassing
the
previous high of Rs. 106,200 crore
that the government had received in
the 2010 auction, spread over 34
days with 183 rounds of bidding.

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7) Which
telecom
company
emerged as the largest spender in
the telecom spectrum auctions that

concluded on 25 March 2015?

Idea Cellular Limited
Explanation: Idea Cellular Limited
spent Rs. 30,300 crore or $4.84
billion to buy mobile airwaves in the
countrys spectrum auctions that
concluded on 25 March. This was
announced
by
Union
Telecommunications Minister Ravi
Shankar Prasad on 26 March 2015.
Idea Cellular is Indias third-biggest
mobile operator by market share.
Bharti Airtel committed the secondhighest amount of Rs. 29,310 crore.
The total amount spent on by Idea,
Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Group
Plcs India unit on spectrum
purchase stood at Rs. 85,575 crore,
or about 78% of the total airwaves
sold during this 19-day long
auction.

March 28, 2015

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74 CURRENT AFFAIRS

1) Former Prime Minister and

veteran parliamentarian Atal Bihari
Vajpayee was conferred with the
Bharat Ratna, Indias highest
civilian honour, on 27 March 2015.
This award was conferred on him
by President Pranab Mukherjee,
who in a departure from protocol,
drove to Vajpayees residence in
New Delhi to give the honour. Atal
Bihari Vajpayee became the
.awardee of the Bharat
Ratna 44th
Explanation: Atal Bihari Vajpayee
was chosen for this prestigious
honour along with Late Madan
Mohan Malviya, the founder of the
Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in
Varanasi. However, Malviya will be
conferred with the award on a later

date and thus Vajpayee became

the 44th winner of Bharat Ratna. Atal
Bihari Vajpayee is the founding
member of the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP). He is held in high
esteem
across
the
political
spectrum and has been often
described as the moderate face of
BJP. He was Indias Prime Minister
from 1998 to 2004. He is also
known for taking some bold political
decisions notable among them
being the historic bus journey to
Lahore in 1999 when he signed the
landmark Lahore Declaration with
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and
conducting the nuclear tests in May
1998. In a departure from protocol,
President Pranab Mukherjee drove
to Vajpayees residence at Krishna
Memon marg in Lutyens Delhi and
presented the honour in a brief
programme attended by Vice
President Hamid Ansari, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, the Union
Cabinet and some close family
members. Vajpayee has faded from
public life due to age-related illness.

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2) Which organisation was selected

for the Gandhi Peace Prize for 2014
as announced on 27 March 2015?
Indian
Space
Research
Organisation (ISRO)
Explanation: ISRO was selected
for its contribution to the countrys
development
through
space
technology and
satellite-based
services. The Gandhi Peace Prize
for social, economic and political
transformation
through
nonviolence was instituted in 1995. The
prize comprises of Rs. 1 crore and
a citation. The jury for the prize was
led by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi as its Chairman and its
prominent other members are Chief
Justice of India H L Dattu, leader of
the single largest Opposition Party
in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge,
senior Member of Parliament L K
Advani and Gopalkrishna Gandhi.
Nelson Mandela, Vaclav Havel,
Julius K Nyerere, Baba Amte,
Archbishop
Desmond
Tutu,
Grameen Bank of Bangladesh,
Bharatiya Vidya Bhawan and
Ramkrishna Mission are some
prominent previous winners of this
prestigious prize.

3) How many Mega Food Parks

(MFPs) were sanctioned by the
Union Govt. during March 2015 for
which an investment of Rs. 2330
crore will be incurred? 17
Explanation: These 17 Mega Food
Parks (MFPs) are spread across 11
states and out of these 6 have been
sanctioned for the State Govt.
authorities and 11 to private sector.
5 state governments Andhra
Pradesh, Haryana, Odisha, Punjab
and
Telangana
have
been
sanctioned one MFP each while
Kerala have been allocated two.
Adani Ports and Special Economic
Zone, Jain Agro Trading Company
and Ruchi Acroni Industries are
among the private players who
have been allocated MFPs. A mega
food park provides various facilities
to food processors, farmers,
retailers and exporters, helping
achieve faster growth of food
processing industries. With this the

total number of MFPs in the country

would go to 42 as work is already
on for establishment of 25 MFPs.
Out of these 2 have already been
inaugurated and 3 more are
expected to be opened by middle of
this year.

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4) In order to de-congest and

streamline huge litigation in the
Income
Tax
Department
(IT
Department) and the Central Board
of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the
Finance Ministry during March 2015
launched an ambitious electronic
national database of judicial orders
and appeals. What is the name
given to this judicial repository
which was conceived about 3 years
back?
National
Judicial
Reference System (NJRS)
Explanation: The establishment of
the National Judicial Reference
System (NJRS) was envisaged
about three years back for the IT
Department, which is one of the
largest litigant among government
departments. According to available
data, tax demand of more than Rs
3.5 lakh crore is under dispute and
litigation before various courts and
appellate authorities under the

direct taxes category. The limited

edition (beta version) of NJRS was
launched by the CBDT. It has
records of over 2.5 lakh appeals
and more than 1.45 lakh orders and
judgements. The facility will be
maintained
by
the
National
Securities Depository Limiteds
(NSDL) e-governance wing.

5) What is the name of the

deceased woman officer of the
Indian Navy who was killed in the
crash of the Naval Dornier aircraft
on 24 March 2015 and thus
became the first Indian woman
officer to die in the line of duty?
Lieutenant Kiran Shekhawat
Explanation: Lieutenant
Kiran
Shekhawat died in the crash of the
Dornier aircraft belonging to the
Indian Navy. This accident took
place in the evening of 24 March
south-west off the Goa coast in
Arabian sea. Her body was found
on 26 March from the accident spot.
She was commissioned into the

Navy in 2010. She was training to

be an Observer an officer in
charge of all sensors on board a
surveillance and reconnaissance
aircraft. She became the first-ever
Indian woman officer to die in the
line of duty. Lieutenant Shekhawat
was also part of the Navy Woman
Officer Contingent the first ever
all-woman officer contingent that
participated in this years Republic
Day Parade.
6) On 25 March 2015 a committee
was constituted by the Ministry of
Railways to review the functioning
of the public private partnership cell
working under the Railway Board.

This newly constituted committee

will recommend steps to improve
the functioning of the PPP cell. Who
is heading this committee? Ajay
Shankar
Explanation: Ajay Shankar is a
former Secretary, Department of
Industrial Policy and Promotion
(DIPP) under the Ministry of
Commerce
&
Industry.
The
committee will function under the
Infrastructure Directorate of Railway
Board as its nodal directorate. It is
worth mentioning that Union Rail
Minister Suresh Prabhu had
announced constitution of such
committee in his Rail Budget
presentation on 26 February 2015.

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March 29-30, 2015

1) Australia lifted the ICC World
Cup 2015 on 29 March 2015 by
defeating New Zealand in the final
by 7 wickets at the Melbourne
Cricket Ground (MCG). This was
the 5th ODI cricket World Cup title
for Australia thus further cementing
its reputation of being the most

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78 CURRENT AFFAIRS

dominant team in ODI cricket. Who

was chosen as the Player of
Tournament this edition of the
World Cup? Mitchell Starc
(Australia)
Explanation: Australia fast bowler
Mitchell Starc was named the
Player of the Tournament who
finished with a figure of 22 wickets
in the tournament. He was tied with
New Zealand left-arm seamer Trent
Boult for taking highest wickets in
the tournament. Starcs best
bowling display came in Australias
pool stage loss against New
Zealand in Auckland when he
almost won his team the match with
figures of 6/28. On the other hand
Australian
all-rounder
James
Faulkner was named man-of-thematch for his devastating spell
which helped set up a seven-wicket
victory for Australia. In the final,
New Zealand made a paltry 183 all
out after winning the toss and
batting first. The team was looking
poised for a healthy score at one
stage with 150 for 3 wickets. But
James Faulkner struck on the first
ball of the second powerplay in the
36th over to end a 111-run fourthwicket partnership between Ross

Taylor and Grant Elliott by

dismissing the former with a slower
delivery. He then removed the
dangerous Corey Anderson in the
same over for a second-ball duck
with a fast full-length delivery and
later removed Elliott for 83 and
finished with figures of three for 36
from nine overs. Australia chased
town the target in the 34th over for
loss of 3 wickets to take the Cricket
World Cup of 2015.
2) Indian
Space
Research
Organisation (ISRO) on 28 March
2015 successfully launched the
IRNSS-1D
navigation
satellite
through its Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle the PSLV-C27. This was
the . satellite under the
Indian Regional Navigation Satellite
System (IRNSS) series. Fourth
Explanation: IRNSS
is
an
independent regional navigation
satellite system designed to provide
position information in the Indian
region and 1500 km around the
Indian
mainland.
ISRO
has
proposed to place 7 satellites under
the IRNSS series and has now
placed the 4th satellite of the series.
IRNSS-1D will provide navigation,

tracking and mapping service and

will have a mission life of 10 years.
This was the twenty eighth
consecutively successful mission of
the PSLV rocket series of ISRO and
was executed from Satish Dhawan
Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota.

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3) The Union Govt. during March

2015 established a fund with a
corpus of Rs. 500 crore which
seeks to keep prices of perishable
farm commodities under control
through
suitable
market
interventions. What is the name of
this fund? Price Stabilization
Fund (PSF)
Explanation: The
Price
Stabilization Fund (PSF) will be
used to advance interest free loans
to state governments and central
agencies to support their working
capital and other expenses on
procurement
and
distribution
interventions for such commodities.
It has initially been proposed for
onion and potato. The fund has
been set up as a follow-up of a
budget announcement made by
finance minister Arun Jaitley on 28
February 2015. According to
operational details of the fund, the

states will set up a revolving fund

for adequate market interventions.
The Centre and state will contribute
equally (50:50) for the revolving
fund. The ratio of Centre-state
contribution to the state level
corpus in respect of north-east
states will be 75:25. Apart from this
an eight-member price stabilization
fund management committee has
been set up under the chairmanship
of additional secretary in agriculture
ministry to manage the fund at the
Centre and monitor revolving funds
in each state.
4) Which state became the first
state in India to make minimum
educational
qualification
an
eligibility for Panchayat elections by
passing the requisite bill on 27
March 2015?- Rajasthan
Explanation: The Rajasthan Govt.
on 27 March passed the Rajasthan
Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill,
2015 that seeks to fix a minimum
educational
qualification
for
contesting
elections
to
the
Panchayati Raj institution in the
state. The said bill amended the
Rajasthan Panchayat Raj Act,
1994. The newly passed bill

stipulates a minimum qualification

of Class X pass from a recognized
board for contesting election for the
post of member of Zila Parishad or
Panchayat Samiti while minimum
qualification of class VIII pass has
been stipulated for the post of
Sarpanch (village head). This
makes Rajasthan the first state in
the country to stipulate a minimum
educational
qualification
for
Panchayat elections.

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5) The opposition parties of Tamil

Nadu observed a bandh over the
Mekadatu Reservoir issue on 28
March 2015. This reservoir is being
constructed over which river in
Karnataka which has been opposed
by numerous political parties in
Tamil Nadu? Cauvery
Explanation: The
bandh
was
called to press the Centre to rein in
Karnataka from going ahead with its
plan to build a dam across the
Cauvery River at Mekedatu.
Mekedatu is situated in Kanakpura
Taluka of Karnataka where the
state govt. has proposed to
construct a reservoir for storing
water from the river. The said
reservoir is expected to reduce the

amount of water that Tamil Nadu

receives through the Cauvery River.
6) Who won the womens and
mens title of India Open badminton
championship that concluded at the
Siri Fort Sports Complex in New
Delhi on 29 March 2015? Saina
Nehwal and K. Srikanth (Both
from India)
Explanation: Saina Nehwal and K.
Srikanth, respectively, won the
womens
and
mens
title
of $275,000 India Open badminton
championship. The newly crowned
World No. 1 Saina Nehwal defeated
former World Champion Ratchanok
Intanon (Thailand) by 21-16, 21-14
to won her maiden India Open title.
Second-seeded K. Srikanth, on the
other hand, defeated World No. 6

Viktor Axelsen (Denmark ) by 1821, 21-13, 21-12 to win the mens

title. The title win of both these
Indian players this reinforced their
status among the strongest nonChinese players in the world.
7) Who won the Malaysian Grand
Prix, the second F1 GP race of

2015 season on 29 March 2015?

Sebastian Vettel (Germany)
Explanation: Ferrari
teams
Sebastian Vettel ended Mercedes
long Formula One winning streak
by winning the Malaysian Grand
Prix
held
at
the
Sepang
International Circuit. Lewis Hamilton
(Britain) of Mercedes took second
place while his German teammate

Nico Rosberg was third. Mercedes

had won the previous eight races
dating back to last season and had
been expected to dominate through
2015. It was Ferraris first victory
since the 2013 Spanish Grand Prix.

March 31, 2015

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81 CURRENT AFFAIRS

any one of the ports in Yemen to

Djibouti, from where they would be
flown to India. What are the names
of the ships pressed into this
emergency
service?
M.V.
Kawarati and M.V. Coral

1) Indian Government on 30 March

2015 sent two ships from Kochi for
Djibouti to rescue Indians stranded
in strife-torn Yemen. The ships
would ferry the Indian citizens from

Explanation: M.V. Kawarati and

M.V. Coral usually ply passengers
between Kochi and Lakshadweep.
The two ships were stocked with
enough provisions apart from
medical teams. They would take 7
days to reach Yemen. Indians

working in war-ravaged Yemen

have started registering their names
with Indian Embassy in order to exit
that country after war between
Houthi rebels and govt. forces
escalated recently.

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2) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

on 30 March 2015 relaxed
provisioning rules against bad loans
by allowing banks to set aside up to
50% of floating provisions. What
was the present rule for the same?
Till now RBI allowed up to 33%
of floating provisions against
bad loans
Explanation: These
provisioning
rules broadly refer to the specific
amount that banks need to set
aside in good times above the
mandatory provisioning requirement
as prescribed by RBI. Banks have
started building such reserves since
2010. In February 2014, RBI had
allowed to utilise up to 33% of
countercyclical
provisioning
buffer/floating provisions held by
them as on 31 March 2013.
Mounting bad loans have been a
concern for the RBI and this
relaxation may help banks provide
for such loans thereby reducing the

hit banks may face on their

profitability due to the bad loans.
3) What was the total number of
world famous one-horned rhinos in
Assams Kaziranga National Park
as disclosed in the latest Rhino
Census conducted in the park
during March 2015? 2,401
Explanation: The Rhino Census
conducted by Assams forest
department, counted 2,401 rhinos,
which indicated increase of 71
rhinos in the park in the past two
years. The Census was conducted
from 24 March and it concluded on
27 March 2015. Although the last
census was carried out in 2012, the
State government conducted a
special census of the rhinos in 2013
after a large number of rhinos had
been poached in the park. While
the 2012 census confirmed 2,290
rhinos in the park, the special
census next in 2013 confirmed that
there were 2,329 rhinos in the park.
4) The National Executive of the
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on 29
March 2015 reconstituted its
internal Lokpal panel by making a

3-member body instead of the

earlier one member body. Former
IPS officer N. Dilip, former CISF
DIG and lawyer Rakesh Sinha and
educationist S.P. Verma were the
three members of this newly reconstituted body. Who headed
partys Lokpal panel earlier and was
dropped as head of this panel?
Admiral Ramdas

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Explanation: Former Naval chief

Admiral Ramdas was sacked as the
head of AAPs internal Lokpal
panel, which is the highest
disciplinary committee in the party.
This panel is entrusted the task of
undertaking internal inquiries in
alleged cases of corruption and
graft charges. Admiral Ramdas was
considered being close to Yogendra
Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, who
were sacked from partys National
Executive a day before on 28
March.
5) Which politician was indicted by
the
Justice
R.C.
Gandhi
Commission that inquired into the
communal riots that left three dead
and over 80 injured in Kishtwar in
Jammu & Kashmir in 2013?
Sajjad Ahmad Kitchloo

Explanation: Sajjad
Ahmad
Kitchloo is a former Minister of
State for Home and a sitting
National Conference legislator in
the Upper House of the Jammu and
Kashmir legislature. The infamous
2013 riots of Kishtwar took place on
the Eid day on 9 August 2013. A
commission headed by retired High
Court Justice R.C. Gandhi was
constituted for probing this incident.
The
interim
report
of
the
Commission was released in
December 2013 in which National
Conference legislator Sajjad Ahmad
Kitchloo was exonerated. But he
was indicted in the final report of
the
Commission
which
was
released during March 2015. His
indictment thus resulted in a major
controversy on 29 March with the
National Conference as well as the
Congress raising questions on the
credibility of the Commission and
demanded an impartial probe.
6) Who won the Femina Miss India
World 2015 title on 28 March 2015?
Aditi Arya
Explanation: Delhis Aditi Arya was
crowned new Miss India at the 52nd
FBB Femina Miss India held at the

Yashraj Studios in Mumbai on 28

March 2015. Afreen Racheal Vaz
was adjudged first runner-up while
Vartika Singh second runner-up.
Aditi will represent the country at
the Miss World pageant and the
runners-up Afreen and Vartika will
compete
for
various
other
international titles. The event was
judged by eminent personalities
from the industry like John
Abraham, Manisha Koirala, Sonu
Nigam,
Anil
Kapoor,
Firoz
Nadiadwala, Abu Jani and Sandeep
Khosla, Shilpa Shetty, Sonali
Bendre, Shiamak Davar and
Chitrangada Singh.

Explanation: The BJP claimed that

as on 29 March the total number of
members
for
Chinas
ruling
Communist Party of China (CPC)
stood at 8.6 crore while BJPs
strength stood at over 8.8 crore.
BJPs members swelled after Prime
Minister Narendra Modi launched
its new membership drive from
November 2014 to enroll members
through mobile apps and by dialing
a mobile phone number. The party
had set 10 crore member target for
this drive.

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7) The Bharatiya Janata Party

(BJP) became the largest political

party in the world with number of its

registered members crossing the
figure of 8.8 crore on 29 March
2015. It overtook which party in
sheer numbers? Communist
Party of China

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