4 February 2014 – Current Affairs

1) 101^st Indian Science Congress (ISC), which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on 3 February 2014, is being organized at – Jammu University, Jammu (The theme of ISC 2014 is “Innovations in Science and Technology for Inclusive Development”. The Congress would conclude on 7 February 2014)

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2) Price of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Piped Natural Gas (PNG) are expected to be reduced by around Rs. 15 and Rs. 5 per kg respectively following a rejig in the domestic gas supplies announced by the Union Government on 3 February 2014. What was done under this rejig? – Government raised domestic gas supplies to raise allocations to fuel retailers (Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas decided to raise the share of domestic gas to 100 % of the requirement for CNG (transport) and PNG (domestic). This would lead to reduction in price of CNG (transport) and PNG (domestic) across the country (except in those City Gas Distribution (CGD) entities which are already getting 100% domestic gas))

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3) President Pranab Mukherjee on 3 February 2014 launched the National Mission on Libraries (NML) to modernise and digitally link public libraries across the country. Creation of a National Virtual Library of India is one of the major component schemes of NML. NML is an initiative of which Ministry? – Union Ministry of Culture (Kolkata-based Raja Rammohun Roy Library Foundation (RRRLF) is the nodal agency for the implementation of NML. NML is a 10-member body headed by Prof. Deepak Pental, former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University. Approved by the government in November last year, NML was set up in pursuance of a report of the National Knowledge Commission, which recommended a total revamp of the Library and Information Service sector to serve the changing needs and expectations of the users and give a fillip to the library movement in the country)

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4) Social networking site Facebook completed how many years of its establishment on 4 February 2014? – 10 years (The site was launched by Mark Zuckerberg on 4 February 2004, from Harvard University. The site was conceived as a way to connect students, and let them build an online identity for themselves. The social networking site has since expanded to cover a large swath of the world, with more than 1.2 billion people using its site on a monthly basis)

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5) Who took over as Asian Development Bank’s new Country Director for India on 3 February 2014? - Teresa Kho (She was heading the Bangladesh Resident Mission of ADB and replaced Hun Kim, who is now Deputy Director General of ADB's South Asia Department in Manila)

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6) Who was appointed as the new CEO and Managing Director of MCX Stock Exchange (MCX-SX), the country's newest full-fledged stock exchange on 2 January 2014? – Saurabh Sarkar (He was appointed following a formal approval from market regulator SEBI. Sarkar, previously MD and CEO of United Stock Exchange of India Ltd, has also worked with global financial services giants like Credit Agricole, Standard Chartered and Calyon, and ANZ Grindlays Bank in the past)

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3 February 2014 – Current Affairs

1) India’s first monorail – Mumbai Monorail was opened for the general public on 2 February 2014 after being inaugurated on 1 February. Which authority owns and operates this monorail project? - Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) - The Rs. 3,000-crore Mumbai Monorail project is being implemented in two phases. The MMRDA has already spent Rs. 1,900 crore of Rs. 3,000 crore allocated for the project, including the civil work for the second phase. Commercial operations of the 8.9-km first phase connecting Wadala-Chembur stations on the northeastern fringe of Mumbai metropolis commenced on 2 February with the first train leaving the Wadala station at 7am. The Mumbai Monorail is not just the first in the country, but across the subcontinent. Monorails are in operation in China, Japan, Singapore, Australia, Dubai, Europe, and the Americas

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2) Indian Museum, Kolkata, which is the largest museum in India, completed how many years of its establishment on 2 February 2014? – 200 years (Indian Museum was founded on 2 February 1814 by the Asiatic Society of Bengal. It is known to be the oldest museum in Asia. Museum’s founder-curator was Dr. Nathaniel Wallich, a Dutch botanist. A special commemorative stamp was released by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on this occasion)

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3) Mount Sinabung, which started erupting again on 1 February 2014, is in which country? – Indonesia (16 persons died due to this eruption. Mount Sinabung erupted again on 1 February just a day after authorities allowed thousands of villagers who had been evacuated to return to its slopes, saying volcanic activity was decreasing. Sinabung in western Sumatra (Indonesia) has been erupting for four months)

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4) India completed a 5-0 rout of Chinese Taipei in the first round of their Asia/Oceania Group I Davis Cup tie at MPTA Complex, in Indore on 2 February 2014. India would now face which team in April 2014 to fight for a place in the World Group play-offs? – South Korea

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5) Which team won the Ranji Trophy for 2014 on 2 February 2014? – Karnataka (Karnataka defeated Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy finals at Hyderabad to claim their 7^th Ranji title. Chasing a modest victory target of 157 in little over two sessions, Karnataka batsmen reached the destination with ease as they knocked off the runs in 40.5 overs)

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6) Who took over as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of MCX on 1 February 2014? - Dr. Manoj Vaish (Prior to joining MCX, Vaish was the Managing Director & CEO of NSDL Database Management. His appointment was approved for a period of 3 years by the FMC)

2 February 2014 – Current Affairs

1) Asia’s first Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) was commissioned into the Indian Navy recently with which India joined the select league of just two countries – the United States and Ukraine. Where this SBTF has been established? - at INS Hansa in Panaji (Goa) – The SBTF is primarily used for flight testing of Naval aircraft that operate from aircraft carriers. The SBTF has two parts including the Take-off Area with a ski-jump facility and the Landing Area with arresting wire facility, both of which are a replica of INS Vikramaditya)

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2) Who was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Uttarakhand on 1 February 2014? – Harish Rawat (Rawat was the Union Water Resources Minister in Union Government and he succeeded Vijay Bahuguna who was asked by the Congress high command to step down in a bid to boost the party’s prospects ahead of the April-May Lok Sabha polls. Bahuguna relinquished his post on 31 January 2014. Rawat became the 8^th Chief Minister of the state)

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3) Which Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) was on 31 January 2014 elevated to the status of ISRO’s Propulsion Complex giving more autonomy to this centre? – Mahendragiri centre, at Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli (The Mahendragiri centre, which was functioning under LPSC in Valiyamala near Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, would henceforth directly report to the ISRO chairman. The Mahendragiri centre has been instrumental in assembling and testing as many as 125 engines made by ISRO so far. The elevation would be a challenge to the scientists working in the centre)

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4) In the first-ever move that would adversely affect flight operations to the US, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on 31 January 2014 downgraded India’s aviation safety ranking, bringing it below Pakistan and at par with countries like Ghana, Barbados and Bangladesh. Air passengers to and from the US may have to face the brunt as Indian airplanes would have to go through more engineering and other safety checks on the American soil. What would be the main effect of this downgrade on Indian airline companies?

• This downgrade would effectively bar Air India and Jet Airways from increasing flights to the US from the current level
• They would also not be able to enter into any new code-share relationships with any US airline

(The downgrade does not mean that these airlines are unsafe but shows that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA’s) safety oversight is not enough to properly monitor safety performance of Indian carriers. As per the FAA, the downgrade means that the DGCA does not meet the safety standards set by UN agency International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO))

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5) Which British nuclear power site came to news on 31 January 2014 after an alert was declared after discovering higher than usual levels of radioactivity, but later called it off, saying naturally occurring radon gas had triggered the alarm? – Sellafield (Sellafield is the largest nuclear site in Europe and is situated in northwest England. It is the site of Britain's worst nuclear accident in 1957 and once the producer of plutonium for nuclear bombs. The plant's operating company said there was nothing wrong with its operations, but for several hours the cause of the higher reading at an air monitor near a perimeter fence was unclear, raising fears of a radioactive leak)

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6) The Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I tie between India and Chinese Taipei started on 1 February 2014. This is the first time that a tie of the tennis’ prestigious Davis Cup was organized at a city of Madhya Pradesh (MP). Which centre is this? – Indore (The tie was held at Madhya Pradesh Tennis Association’s (MPTA’s) tennis facility at Indore. India won the tie on the first day itself by taking unassailable 3-0 lead. MPTA is one of the very few state associations which has its own tennis complex consisting of six synthetic flood courts, gym, swimming pool and medical facilities)

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1 February 2014 – Current Affairs

1 February 2014 – Current Affairs by Ravindra Agnihotri

1) What was the minimum tenure fixed for officers of the three premier services — IAS, IPS and IFoS according to new rules announced on 30 January 2014 aimed at checking political interference? – Two years (Under the new rules circulated by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) of the central government, a cadre officer, appointed to any cadre post, shall hold the office for at least two years unless he or she is promoted, retired or sent on deputation outside the state or for training exceeding two months. However, transfers and postings before two years will be done by a Civil Services Board to be constituted by states under the new rules. States have now been mandated to constitute a civil services board, which is to be headed by the chief secretary)

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2) Family of late Justice J.S. Verma recently refused to accept an award conferred on him posthumously by the Union Government. In a letter written to President Pranab Mukherjee his family mentioned that accepting it would be against his principles as he never hankered for any such honours. Which award was conferred on late Justice J.S. Verma recently? – Padma Bhushan (Late Justice J.S. Verma was one of the 25 winners of Padma Bhushan announced by the Union Government on 25 January 2014. Verma, who had headed the government committee to frame stricter laws and suggested legal reforms to deal with sexual assault cases in the wake of the 16 December Delhi gangrape case, died on 22 April 2013)

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3) What was the GDP growth rate figure for Indian economy for 2012-13 declared by the Union Government on 31 January 2014? – 4.5% (This GDP growth rate is 0.5% lower as compared with the earlier estimate of 5% on account of subdued performance in agriculture, mining and manufacturing. Growth in 2012-13 is the lowest in a decade, with the previous low of 4% recorded in 2002-03. The estimates for 2012-13 were released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation)

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4) A special court in Chittagong (Bangladesh) on 30 January 2014 awarded the death penalty to Paresh Barua, chief of the breakaway United Liberation Front of Asom faction. He was awarded this sentence along with 13 others, including two former Bangladesh Ministers. In which criminal offence they were involved? – In an arms haul in 2004 (The police had seized 10 trucks carrying weapons and ammunition from the state-owned Chittagong Urea Fertilizer Ltd. jetty while the arms were being offloaded from two fishing trawlers. Investigations revealed that the weapons were manufactured in China and were being shipped to the ULFA. Paresh Barua and the former Secretary of the Industries Ministry, Nurul Amin, have been absconding since the recovery, and the court sentenced them in absentia)

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5) Who was nominated as the new Director of the National Security Agency (NSA) by U.S. President Barack Obama on 31 January 2014? - Michael Rogers (He is the Vice Admiral of the U.S. Navy and would take over at a moment when the spy agency is under unprecedented pressure following leaks from ex-intelligence contractor Edward Snowden. Rogers would take over from Gen Keith Alexander at the helm of the NSA)

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6) Who on 30 January 2014 became the first woman to be appointed in an International Cricket Council (ICC) umpires panel? - Kathy Cross of New Zealand (Cross was named as an Associate and Affiliate panel of International umpires for 2014 following the annual review and selection process. The panel comprises 11 umpires that sits below the elite panel and these umpires officiate in ICC World Cricket League matches for teams ranked in divisions three to six and other associate and affiliate tournaments)

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