Edudose News Diary brings you point-wise Important and latest news about India and World (National, International, Economy, Sports, etc.) along with Current Affairs Month-wise Questions and Answres-Online Test for all Competitive Exams and Current Affairs Quiz.

Kumar Anand  | Team Edudose

Current Affairs 2014-15 News Diary : Month-wise Most Important Facts

January 1      Himmat’, a mobile application of Delhi Police that will allow women to send a distress call to Police Control Room and their relatives in case of any emergency, is launched in Delhi by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

January 2      R.K Srivastava takes over as the new chairman of Airports Authority of India (AAI) replacing Sudheer Raheja.

January 3      Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu announces that Delhi will be developed into a “global city” and the country’s first ‘smart city’ will be set up here to decongest the national capital.

  • Renowned Bharatnatyam artist Leela Samson is honoured with the title of ‘Natya Kala Acharya’ at the ninth edition of dance festival in Chennai.

January 4      Madhu Kinnar wins the mayoral election in Raigarh in Chhattisgarh, becoming India’s first transgender mayor.

January 5      The Centre nominates former cricketer WS Laxman, badminton chief national coach Pullela Gopichand, chess player Koneru Humpy, eminent playback singer S P Balasubrahmanyam and other icons as brand ambassadors for the ‘Swachh Bharat’ campaign.

January 6      New Delhi-based Institute of Directors picks Terumo Penpol for special commendation for a ‘Golden Peacock Award for Corporate Social Responsibility’ for 2014.

  • Ivan Popov of Russia wins the Chennai International Open title on tie-break after eight players score 7.5 points and tie for first place at the end of the tenth and final round.

January 7      External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel launch the 13th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) in Gandhinagar.

  • Krishan Kant Paul is sworn in as the sixth Governor of Uttarakhand by Justice V.K. Bisht of the Uttarakhand High Court.
  • Commemorative Postage Stamps are released to mark 100 Years of Mahatma Gandhi’s Return to India.

January 9      ‘The Lunchbox’, starring Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, bags a nomination in the non-English best film category at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards.

  • Vistara airline starts domestic flight operation in India.
  • Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari presents Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards 2015 in Gandhinagar.

January 10    M.Y.S. Prasad. Director, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, is selected for the Vikram Sarabhai Memorial Award for 2014-15.

  • The Government appoints Sindhushree Khullar as the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of newly constituted NITI Aayog.

January 11    Australia’s Trade and Investment Minister Andrew Robb announce that Sam Walsh, CEO of Rio Tinto, and Gautam Adani, Chairman of India’s Adani Group, will be co-chair of the Australia-India CEO Forum.

  • Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley adopts four villages in Vadodara district of Gujarat under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana for MPs.

January 12    India’s first hi-speed rural broadband network— National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN)—is commissioned in Kerala’s high range Idukki district.

January 14    Sanskrit scholar Prabhu Nath Dwivedi from Uttar Pradesh wins the Sahitya Akademi Award for 2014 for his collection of 16 short stories, Kanakalochanaha.

January 15    Election Commissioner Hari Shankar Brahma is elevated as the Chief Election Commissioner.

January 16    The President Pranab Mukherjee appoints Kaptan Singh Solanki as the Governor of Punjab.

January 18    Hindi film producer Pahlaj Nihalani is appointed as the Chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).

January 20    Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi announces a Rs. 1-crore award for any innovative village attaining a balanced sex ratio.

January 21    The Centre launches the ambitious Rs. 500-crore project for reviving the heritage of 12 cities including Varanasi, Mathura, Gaya, Dwarka and Puri.

January 22    The Supreme Court of India bars Chennai Super Kings owner and BCCI president-in-exile N Srinivasan from contesting BCCI elections.

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches twin programmes of “Beti bachao. beti padhao” and “Sukanya Samriddhi account” in a bid to encourage birth and education of girls and tackle the abysmally low child sex ratio of 918 girls for 1000 boys.

January 23    Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog, Arvind Panagariya, announces that Rajasthan has come out ahead of many other states in terms of development and is no longer considered BIMARU.

January 24    Maharashtra government decides to buy a house in London where Bhim Rao Ambedkar stayed

January 25    BJP patriarch L.K. Advani, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and actors Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar are among the nine Padma Bibhushan awardees, the second highest civilian award the country.

  • Wing Commander Pooja Thakur becomes the first woman to lead the ceremonial tri-service guard of honour inspected by U.S. President Barack Obama at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

January 26    For the first time in the history of India’s Republic Day, women empowerment in the armed forces is showcased as an all-women contingent from the three forces — Army, Air Force and Navy — march down the majestic Rajpath.

  • US President Barack Obama becomes the first US President to attend India’s Republic Day parade.

January 27    K Durga Prasad is appointed as the Special Director-General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

January 28    The Supreme Court directs the Internet search engines Google, Yahoo and Microsoft (Bing) to neither advertise nor sponsor pre-natal sex determination advertisements.

January 29    S Jaishankar takes charge as Foreign Secretary, replacing Sujatha Singh whose tenure is abruptly “curtailed.”

  • Padma Shrl awardee music composer-singer-lyricist Shekhar Sen is appointed Chairman of the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi for a period of five years.

January 30    India successfully test-fires its indigenously developed, intercontinental surface-to-surface nuclear capable ballistic missile ‘Agni-5’, which has a strike range of over 5,000 km and can carry a nuclear warhead of over one tonne, from Wheeler’s Island off the Odisha coast.

  • The 35th National Games begins in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

22 December

  • Kazakhstan renewed its military cooperation with Ukraine, to which it promised vital supplies of coal, following a visit to Kiev by the Kazakh leader, Nursultan Nazarbayev.

21 December

  • Beji Cai’d Essebsi of the secularist Nidaa Tounes party won Tunisia’s presidential election.

20 December

  • The Union Government appointed Rajinder Khanna, a 1978 batch RAS officer, the new chief of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
  • Prakash Mishra, a 1978 IPS officer of Odisha cadre and presently special secretary (internal security) in the Union home ministry, was appointed the new DG of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
  • Indian-American Richard Rahul Verma was sworn in as the US Ambassador to India by Secretary of State John Kerry. 46-year-old Verma is the first ever Indian-American to be the top US diplomat in New Delhi.
  • Indian men’s and -women’s Kabaddi teams won the Kabaddi World Cup 2014 title. Men’s team clinched its 5th consecutive title, defeating Pakistan by 45-42, while women’s side bagged the crown for the 4th consecutive time, defeating New Zealand by 36-27.

19 December

  • Defence Research and Development Org (DRDO) successfully tested a 1000 kg glide bomb designed and developed by it.
  • Pakistan became an associate member of CERN, the world’s top particle physics lab for nuclear research, allowing the nuclear-armed country to have more access to the Swiss-based facility’s research.
  • The finance ministry ratified the Employee Provident Fund Organisation’s decision to retain interest rate on PF deposits at 8.75%, benefiting over five crore people.

18 December

  • Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched its biggest ever rocket including an unmanned capsule which could one day send astronauts into space, the latest accomplishment of its ramped-up space programme.
  • The United Nations Security Council extended the mandate of its mission in the Syrian Golan Heights until June 30, 2015.
  • Academician, journalist and political commentator Ghanta Chakrapani was appointed the first Chairman of the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC).
  • TVS company Chairman Venu Srinivasan was conferred the title of honorary citizen of Busan, the second largest city in Korea, in appreciation of his efforts to enhance friendship and cooperation between the Republic of Korea and India.

17 December

  • India’s woman boxer Laishram Santa Devi was slapped with a one-year ban by International Boxing Association (AIBA) for her refusal to accept a bronze medal during the Incheon Asian Games earlier this year in South Korea.
  • The United States and Cuba agreed to restore diplomatic ties that Washington severed more than 50 years ago.

1 6 December

  • At least 141 people, including 132 children, were killed in an attack by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on a military-run school in Peshawar in Pakistan’s northwest.
  • Indian-American Amit Priyavadan Mehta was confirmed by the US Senate as a federal judge in the District of Columbia, becoming the first Asian Pacific American to occupy this important position.
  • Country’s second-largest private lender, HDFC Bank launched mobile banking initiative ‘Bank Aap Ki Muththi Mein’ to offer round-the-clock banking facility.

15 December

  • Indian-origin Vasan Srinivasan was inducted in the six-member Australian Multicultural Council (AMC), a national body that advices the government on multicultural affairs and policy programmes.
  • The central government decided to give five years’ visa, instead of one-year, to minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
  • The 14th Finance Commission, headed by former RBI Governor Y.V. Reddy, submitted its report to the President of India.
  • 37-year-old Indian-American physician Vivek Hallegere Murthy was on confirmed as the 19th Surgeon General of America by U.S. Senate. He is youngest person and first person of Indian-origin to hold the post.

14 December

  • Miss South Africa, 22-year-old Rolene Strauss, was crowned Miss World 2014 at the contest’s glitzy final in London.
  • Former President and leader of the Alliance Lepep party, Anerood Jugnauth, who is of Indian origin, was officially appointed Mauritius’ new Prime Minister.
  • Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe won comfortable re-election in a snap poll he had billed as a referendum on his economic policies after early success faded into a recession.
  • 23-year-old Ruhi Singh won the Miss Universal Peace and Humanity 2014 in Lebanon, becaming first Indian ever to clinch this crown.
  • The 194 countries in Lima Climate Conference (COP20) reached agreement on key decisions that provide the foundation for a climate change pact in Paris in 2015.

13 December

  • Dineshwar Sharma, special director in the Intelligence Bureau, was appointed the agency’s new chief and will take charge on January 1 succeeding Syed Asif Ibrahim.

12 December

  • Indian-origin Shriti Vadera was appointed the Chairman of Santander UK, becoming the first woman to head a major British bank.

11 December

  • India and Russia signed 16 agreements at the 15th annual Indo-Russian bilateral summit, including two concerning the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
  • UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania as new special representative and head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER).

10 December

  • The Union Cabinet cleared a proposal for setting up of a Rs. 500 crore Credit Guarantee Fund for Factoring for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) units.
  • Time magazine named its “Person of the Year 2014” the healthcare workers treating the Ebola epidemic, which has killed more than 6,300 people worldwide.

9 December

  • Former Indian Olympic Association (IOA) secretary general Randhir Singh was made the honorary member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

8 December

  • Bhutan became the 181st member of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the political risk insurance and credit enhancement arm of the World Bank Group.

7 December

  • India defeated two-time winner and defending champions Pakistan to win the 4th Blind Cricket World Cup in Cape Town.
  • India’s latest communication satellite GSAT-16 was successfully launched by Ariane 5 rocket from the space port of Kourou in French Guiana.

6 December

  • Gwladys Nocera of France won the Hero Women’s Indian Golf Open 2014 at the Delhi Golf Club.

5 December

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi was named ‘Asian of the Year’ for being development-focused leader of India by editors of Singapore’s leading daily, The Straits Times.
  • The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) declared 2015 as the International Year of Soils during the celebration of the first official UN World Soil Day.
  • Britain signed a landmark deal with Bahrain that will bolster the UK’s military presence in the Persian Gulf.

4 December

  • Arun Majumdar, a top Indian-American scientist from Stanford University, was appointed the Science Envoys of the US.

3 December

  • The Supreme Court set up a special Social Justice Bench’, comprising two judges devoted to the delivery of speedy justice in a range of social issues.
  • Relaxing norms for Pre-paid Payment Instruments (PPI), RBI doubled the card limit from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.
  • Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara became only the fourth batsman in history to surpass the 13,000-run mark in ODI.

2 December

  • The Centre appointed Anil Sinha the new chief of CBI.
  • The cabinet approved amendments to a law to strengthen the capital base and financial stability of Regional Rural Banks.
  • India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable strategic ballistic missile Agni-IV, with a strike range of about 4000 km.

1 December

  • Donald Tusk, the former Prime Minister of Poland, replaced Herman Van Rompuy as the President of the European Council.
  • A new generation navigation satellite Glonass-K was launched from the Plesetsk space centre in Russia’s north-western Arkhangelsk region.

November 2014

30 November

  • Two-time World Championship bronze medallist P V Sindhu defended her Macau Grand Prix Gold trophy.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the annual conference of state police chiefs in Guwahati and chief ministers of all North Eastern states.

29 November

  • China and Pakistan kicked off their multi-billion dollar Economic Corridor project that passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) as Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif laid the foundation of a fenced four-lane motorway.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi flaged off the first train from Mendipathar in North Garo Hills of Meghalaya to Dudhnoi in Goalpara district of Assam.

28 November

  • The Government nominated Finance Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi, as a Director on the Central Board of Directors of RBI.
  • India and Mozambique signed an MoU on co-operation in the field of oil and gas for five years.
  • Easing restrictions on gold imports, the Reserve Bank crapped the controversial 80:20 scheme.

27 November

  • 18th SAARC Summit was held in Kathmandu, Nepal on November 26-27, 2014.
  • Veteran BJP leader and West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi took additional charge of Governor of Bihar.
  • Retired Supreme Court judge Justice CK Prasad assumed charge as the chairman of the Press Council of India (PCI).
  • In line with the decision adopted in Bali Ministerial Conference, WTO members adopted Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).

26 November

  • Boxer Manoj Kumar received his Arjuna Award from Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal after winning a High Court case.
  • Kotak Mahindra Bank became the first bank to get the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) permission to set up a wholly-owned non-life insurance company.

25 November

  • Indian tennis star Sania Mirza was appointed the United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for the South Asian region by UN Women at an event held to mark the International Day to End Violence Against Women.

24 November

  • President Barack Obama accepts the resignation of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.
  • Indo-French Rail Seminar on “High- and Semi-High Speed, Multimodal Stations – Infrastructure and Financing” was inaugurated in New Delhi.

23 November

  • Roger Federer defeated Richard Gasquet of France 6-4 6-2 6-2 and won maiden Davis Cup title for Switzerland.
  • Norwegian chessplayer Magnus Carlsen defends his World Chess Championship title after defeating Viswanathan Anand in 11th game of their match in Sochi, Russia.
  • Britain’s Lewis Hamilton wins the 2014 Formula One world title after finishing first in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
  • Voters in Tunisia go to the polls Sunday in the first free presidential election since the Arab Spring’s Jasmine Revolution.
  • The Cabinet of Israel approves legislation defining it as the nation state of the Jewish people.

22 November

  • In football, Argentinian Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona sets a new goal scoring record in La Liga of 253 goals.
  • Voters in Bahrain go to the polls for the first parliamentary elections since the unsuccessful Pearl Revolution.

21 November

  • The United States House of Representatives files a lawsuit against’ President Barack Obama for executive actions undertaken in relation to the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.

20 November

  • South Indian cinema’s superstar Rajinikanth was bestowed with the Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality of the Year at the opening ceremony of the 45th IFFI at Panaji, Goa.
  • Jignesh Shah, the founder and promoter of Financial Technologies (FTIL), quit as the managing director & chief executive officer (MD & CEO) of the company.
  • In a setback for CBI director Ranjit Sinha, the Supreme Court directed him to recuse himself from investigations in the 2G spectrum scam case.
  • Pakistan and Russia signed a military co-operation agreement to deepen their defence ties and vowed to translate their relationship in “tangible” terms during the first visit of a Russian Defence Minister in 45 years.
  • 30 nations, meeting in Berlin in Pledging Conference, pledged $9.3 billion for a fund to help developing countries cut emissions and prepare for global warming, just shy of a $10 bn target.
  • The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved the launch of Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY).

19 November

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a day-long visit to Fiji, the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 33 years, during which he held bilateral talks with his counterpart Frank Bainimarama.
  • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) withdrew the recognition granted to Delhi Stock Exchange (DSE) upon finding ‘serious’ irregularities at the functioning of the exchange.

18 November

  • Former Foreign Minister Michel Kafando was sworn in as Burkina Faso’s transitional president.
  • Neha Gupta was awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize.
  • China and Australia inked a memorandum of understanding pledging to strengthen bilateral Antarctic co-operation.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott held talks and decided to establish a Framework for Security Co-operation,
  • India successfully test-fired its indigenously developed surface-to-air ‘Akash’ missile.

17 November

  • China and Australia sealed a landmark free trade agreement (China-Australia Free Trade Agreement -ChAFTA).
  • PM Narendra became the first Indian Prime Minister to address the Australian Parliament.
  • The government re-launched Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP). 1 6 November
  • German ethnic Klaus lohannis won the second round of Romania’s presidential election.
  • Novak Djokovic was won ATP World Tour finals title afte,r Roger Federer withdrew from the final match due to a back injury.
  • India completed a rare doubles in singles at the China Open Super Series tournament 2014 after Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth won the titles.

15 November

  • Two-day 9th G20 Summit of 20 major economies was started in Brisbane, Australia.

14 November

  • Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata was appointed to the board of Interpol Foundation.
  • UN Women appointed film actor Farhan Akhtar its South Asia Goodwill Ambassador.
  • Iraqi forces recaptured the strategic town of Baiji in a significant victory over the ISIS (IS).
  • Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Sanjay Gandhi launched the National Bal Swachhta Mission in New Delhi.
  • The FIPB cleared the long-pending proposal of HDFC Bank to hike foreign holding in the bank to 74 per cent.
  • India successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable Dhanush ballistic missile from a naval ship off the Odisha coast.
  • India successfully test-fired surface-to-surface Prithvi-ll missile from a military base in Odisha.

13 November

  • Rohit Sharma scored the highest ever individual score in an ODI and became the first player to score two career double centuries in ODI.
  • 25th summit of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was held on November 12-13, 2014 in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.
  • PM Narendra Modi attended the 9th East Asian Summit in Nay Pyi Taw.
  • India and the US resolved differences over public stockholding of foodgrains with the US agreeing to an indefinite “peace clause.”

12 November

  • The United States and China unveiled a secretly negotiated deal to reduce their greenhouse gas output.
  • PM Narendra Modi attended the 12th ASEAN-lndia Summit in Nay Pyi Taw.
  • European Space Agency’s unmanned spacecraft, called the Philae probe, landed on a comet, named 67P.

11 November

  • Russia struck a deal to build two more nuclear reactors in Iran to be possibly followed by another six.
  • The annual summit of Asia-Pacific Economic co-operation (APEC) countries was held in Beijing, China.
  • PM Narendra Modi reached Myanmar and held talks with Myanmarese President U Thein Sein with focus on connectivity, cultural contacts, and commercial ties.
  • The govt banned Kamatapur Liberation Organisation (KLO), a militant outfit which operates in West Bengal and Assam.

10 November

  • Indian-American Aditi Hardikar was appointed the Associate Director of Public Engagement in the Office of Public Engagement.
  • K C Reddy, a former UN security advisor for Syria, was appointed to the internal and independent United Nations Headquarters Board of Inquiry.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee conferred 49th Jnanpith award for the year 2013 on eminent Hindi poet Kedarnath Singh.
  • The leaders of China and Japan met for formal talks after more than two years of severe tension over a territorial dispute.
  • Prime Ministeri Narendra Modi launched “Jeevan Pramaan” – an “Aadhar-based Digital Life Certificate” for pensioners.

9 November

  • Virat Kohli became the quickest cricketer in history to reach 6000 One-Day International run mark.
  • China and Russia signed energy co-operation agreements on the sidelines of the annual APEC summit in Beijing.
  • In his first Cabinet expansion since taking oath in May this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inducted 21 news faces.
  • India test-fired its nuclear-capable Agni-ll strategic ballistic missile from a military base in Odisha.

8 November

  • BJP leader Laxmikant Parsekar was sworn in as Goa’s new chief minister.
  • Salgaocar FC scored a solitary goal win over Pune FC to emerge Durand Cup champions for the third time.

7 November

  • INTERPOL’S General Assembly unanimously elected Jurgen Stock the new Secretary General of the world’s largest police organization.

6 November

  • Gujarat became the first State to make voting compulsory in local bodies.
  • Suzlon Energy put into operation the world’s tallest hybrid wind generator turbine in Kutch.

5 November

  • Senior IRS officer Anita Kapur was appointed the new chairperson of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
  • Australian bowler Mitchell Johnson became second player to get Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Cricketer of the year award more than once.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee dissolved the Delhi legislative assembly.

4 November

  • Fabiola Gianotti, the Italian physicist who first revealed to the world that the Higgs boson exists, was appointed the next Director-General of CERN.
  • Hanumappa Sudarshan, founder of Karuna Trust, was presented the Indian Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2014 award.
  • The Republicans won control of the Senate in the US mid-term elections.

3 November

  • GS Sandhu was appointed the Chairman of National Authority for Chemical Weapons Convention.
  • Justice Mukul Mudgal panel submitted its final probe report in a sealed envelope on betting and fixing scandal in 2013 Indian Premier League to a special Supreme Court bench.
  • The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing a treaty on transfer of sentenced persons between India and Nigeria.

2 November

  • Central Zone won the 2014-15 Duleep Trophy title of cricket by defeating South Zone in the finals.

1 November

  • Narinder Batra, the Hockey India president, was included in the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Executive Board. Batra was also given FIH’s prestigious President’s Award.

October 2014

  • Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as Chief Minister of the first BJP government in Maharashtra.
  • Blaise Compaore, the president of Burkina Faso, was forced to leave power.
  • Nation observes Rashtriya Ekta Divas on Oct 31st to commemorate Birth Anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
  • All the IITs to adopt 10 villages each and help the govt to develop a model for their development as a part of the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan.
  • European Union EU lifts its decade-long economic sanctions on Zimbabwe.
  • Burkina Faso’s President Blaise Compaore declares a state of emergency after violent protests against his attempt to extend his 27-year-rule.
  • Countries like India, China and Korea will dominate new discoveries in future: George Smoot (Nobel laureate in Physics, 2006).
  • Pankaj Advani wins World Billiards Championship.
  • India re-elected to UN body on economic and social issues, garnering highest number of votes in Asia-Pacific group.
  • To boost real estate industry, govt relaxes rules for construction sector FDI. Reduces min built-up area, capital requirement, ease exit norms.
  • Govt hikes support price of wheat by Rs. 50 hike to Rs. 1,450 a quintal for this year.
  • AS Prakash joins as Prasar Bharti Chairman.
  • Jamaat-e-Islami chief Nizami sentenced to death for his role in killing of thousands during Bangladesh’s 1971 independence war.
  • India ranked 142 among 189 countries surveyed for latest #WorldBank’s “Ease of Doing Business” report.
  • Malala Yousafzai, youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate in history wins World’s Children’s Prize.
  • An unmanned NASA supply rocket Antares exploded upon launch in Virginia. There was no indicated loss of life.
  • India slips 13 spots to 114 in World Economic Forum’s gender equality index .
  • India ranks 114 out of 142 nations on World Economic Forum’s 2014 gender gap index report.
  • Oct 28: International Animation Day.
  • India’s GDP likely to grow by 5.6% in FY15: World Bank.
  • Patna traffic police armed with first aid box at five important posts to avoid loss of time in attending to the victims.
  • Brazil re-elects Dilma Rousseff as president for a second term.
  • Noted Odia writer Prafulla Das honoured with prestigious Sarala Award for 2014 for his contribution to literature.
  • Sania-Cara pair clinches WTA Finals doubles title.
  • Manohar Lal Khattar takes oath as Haryana’s first BJP Chief Minister.
  • India-born chief of Google’s Android unit, Sundar Pichai, to lead Google’s global products business.
  • Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Sahara group jointly buy Ranchi franchise of the Hockey India League.
  • India along with 20 other countries sign an agreement to become founding members of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
  • India’s first fish hospital to treat abnormalities and diseases in fish is set to come up in Kolkata by mid-2015.
  • Oct 24: United Nations Day.
  • After recent crash, India grounds Sukhoi30 fleet; safety checks on.
  • Indonesia grants one day Diwali holiday to all Indian nationals and Indonesians of Indian descent.
  • World Health Organisation declares Nigeria officially Ebola-free, after 42 days, without any new confirmed cases of the deadly virus.
  • Election Commission proposes debarring of candidates facing serious crimes charges & false affidavits to become ground for disqualification.
  • BJP gets majority in Haryana, wins 46 out of 90 seats.
  • NOTA (None of the Above) option secures third place in Naxal-hit Gadchiroli constituency during the Assembly election in Maharashtra.
  • Warren Anderson, who headed Union Carbide when a gas leak in its Bhopal pesticide plant killed thousands, is dead.
  • Australia Govt lifted ban on facial coverings in Public areas. It is seen as a move to force Muslim women who cover their faces to sit in a separate enclosed public gallery at Australia’s Parliament House.
  • NASA scientists have developed a tool that would help airlines minimise weather delays and save both flight time and fuel.
  • Australian Richard Flanagan wins 2014 Man Booker prize.
  • French economist Jean Tirole awarded 2014 Nobel Prize for Economics for his work on market power and regulation.
  • French Author Gets Nobel Prize For Literature. He has been awarded the prize “For the art of memory with which he has evoked the most ungraspable human destinies and uncovered the life-world of the occupation”.
  • Scientists John O’Keefe, May-Britt Moser and Edvard Moser who worked on ‘inner GPS’ awarded Nobel prize in medicine.
  • Indian child rights activist Kailash Satyarthi shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Pakistani teenager Malala Yousufzai who stood up to the Taliban and survived a near-fatal shooting.
  • India and Vietnam ramped up cooperation in exploring for oil and gas in the contested South China Sea, ignoring Chinese objections.
  • India to launch electronic toll collection at 350 highway plazas.
  • India retain Sultan of Johor Cup title Hockey tournament.
  • Indian woman boxer Sarita Devi, and her coaches Suspended By AIBA.Sarita Devi refused to accept 2014 Asian Games bronze after losing the semi-final bout over a controversial decision.
  • The government appointed US-based economist Arvind Subramanian as the chief economic advisor in the finance ministry .
  • Economy improving, 5.5 percent growth this year: RBI Governor.
  • Defence ministry clears Israeli anti-tank missile, six submarines.
  • India successfully test-fired its indigenously-developed nuclear-capable, sub-sonic long range cruise missile ‘Nirbhay’.

25 August to 30 September 2014

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his first official summit meeting with US President Barak Obama in the Oval Office of the White House during his official visit, his first, to USA from 26 September to 30 September, 2014.
  • Afghanistan and the United States signed a long-delayed security agreement to about 12,000 allow American troops to stay in the country after the end of this year.
  • A year after it was adopted, India signed the global mercury abatement agreement, Minamata Convention.
  • AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam was sworn in as Tamil Nadu chief minister.
  • Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai was sworn in as Afghanistan’s new President, replacing Hamid Karzai in the country’s first democratic transfer of power since the 2001 US-led invasion toppled the Taliban.
  • Bangladesh appointed veteran diplomat and former foreign secretary Syed Muazzem Ali its new High Commissioner to India.
  • Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed a material that comes very close to the “ideal” for converting solar energy to heat (for conversion to electricity).
  • Third annual update to the Ocean Health Index, which evaluates the state of the seas and the benefits they provide to people, was released.
  • Libya’s Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni and his cabinet took the oath of office after lawmakers approved the lineup.
  • Justice HL Dattu was sworn in as the Chief Justice of India.
  • President’s rule was imposed in Maharashtra after chief minister Prithviraj Chavan resigned following the break-up of 15-year-old Congress-NCP alliance in the state.
  • China successfully launched a scientific satellite into preset orbit to conduct experiments in space.
  • Anoop Jain, Founder of Humanure Power, was awarded with the 2014 Waislitz GlobaLCitizen Award, for his “exemplified values of a Global Citizen.”
  • Narendra Modi became second Indian PM, after Atal Bihari Vajpayee, to address the annual session of the United Nations General Assembly in Hindi.
  • A court in Bengaluru sentenced Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa to four years’jail term and slapped Rs.100 crore fine on her.
  • State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest lender, signed a line of credit (LoC) worth $500 million with the Export Import Bank of Korea, known as Korea Exim Bank.
  • Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan resigned, a day after NCP broke its 15-year-old alliance with Congress in the state, reducing his government to a minority.
  • Pakistan successfully test-fired short range surface-to-surface missile ‘Hatf IX’ that has a range of 60 kilometres and can cover parts of India.
  • Hong Kong’s ‘umbrella revolution’ was started, when hundreds of students gathered in a courtyard in Central Hong Kong, to challenge Beijing over restrictions on voting reforms.
  • Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) notified norms for listing of business trust structures, REITs and InvlTs.
  • Once the fourth-biggest lake in the world, the eastern basin of the south Aral Sea in central Asia is now completely dry, according to latest images released by NASA.
  • A unity government is to take control of the Gaza Strip, after a breakthrough in talks between Palestinian factions which could strengthen their hand in talks with Israel next month.
  • China test fired an upgraded version of its 10,000-km range Dongfeng missile which can reach most of the. US and European cities, demonstrating its nuclear capability.
  • Seeking to retain its manufacturing prowess, Chinese government launched a “Made in China” campaign with a host of tax concessions.
  • The third meeting of Culture Ministers from the SAARC countries was held in New Delhi underthe chairmanship of Shripad Naik, the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture.
  • The government declared September 25, the birthday of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, as ‘Antyodaya Diwas.’
  • The Supreme Court declared the National Tax Tribunal (NTT) unconstitutional. The tribunal was envisaged to function like National Green Tribunal (NGT) in the taxation field.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his flagship ‘Make in India’ campaign to put the country prominently on the global manufacturing map and, in turn, facilitate the inflow of new technology and capital, while creating millions of jobs.
  • With an aim to uplift the poor by enhancing livelihood opportunities through skill development, Government announced a Rs 500 crore ” Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana” and also urged the Industry to come forward to impart training to unemployed youth.
  • The Supreme Court pulls up the Centre on coal block allocation and declares all 218 allocations made from 1993 to 2011 illegal and arbitrary.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee appoints Kalyan Singh, Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala, Ch. Vidyasagar
  • Rao and Mridula Sinha Governors of Rajasthan, J Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa, respectively.
  • Sheila Dikshit quits as the Kerala Governor.
  • The Union Cabinet lifts the restriction of one LPG cylinder per month to a domestic consumer.
  • With an aim to bridge the digital divide and enhance the reach of “Internet to remote villages, communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launches domain name ‘.bharat’, covering eight languages including Hindi, Konkani and Marathi.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches the scheme of financial inclusion named ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana’. A record 1.5 crore bank accounts are opened across the country on a single
  • Top sportspersons from various disciplines-and eminent coaches are honoured by President Pranab Mukherjee at the 2014 National Sports Adventure Awards function. Tintu Luka, Jai Bhagwan, Heena Sidhu and Tom Joseph receive the Arjuna Award.
  • The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) names R N Ravi, current chairman of Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), as the new interlocutor in the Naga peace talks.
  • The Union Government appoints senior Indian Administrative Service officer Sunil Arora to head the newly-formed skills development and entrepreneurship department and V Somasundaran as the next civil aviation secretary.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe witness the signing
  • of a partner city affiliation agreement between Varanasi (Kashi) and Kyoto, which will see cooperation in the fields of heritage conservation, city modernisation and culture.
  • Historian Bipan Chandra, a left leaning expert in economic and political history of India, passes away in Gurgaon at the age of 86.
  • Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ch Vidyasagar Rao is sworn in as Maharashtra Governor.
  • Japan pledges to invest Rs. 2.1 lakh crore ($35.5 billion) in a wide spectrum of projects in India over five years. These include infrastructure, clean energy and skill development.
  • During the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Japan five agreements, including one in defence are signed between the two countries.
  • INS Sumitra, a new generation naval offshore patrol vessel (NOPV), built by Goa Shipyard Ltd., is commissioned by the Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Robin K Dhowan in Chennai.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee appoints former Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam Governor of Kerala. He succeeds Sheila Dikshit.
  • President Pranab Mukherjee clears the appointment of Justice H L Dattu, the senior-most judge in the Supreme Court, as the 42nd Chief Justice of India.
  • According to a report released by the World Health Organisation in Geneva, India recorded the highest number of suicides in Southeast Asian in 2012. The number of victims was 2,58,075 that year. Globally the number was 8,04,000.
  • India signs a civil nuclear cooperation agreement with Australia during the visit of Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot to India.
  • The flood situation in Jammu and Kashmir is declared a ‘national-level disaster’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and announces Rs. 1,000 crore assistance in addition to Rs. 1,100 crore already made available to the State Government through the State Disaster Relief Fund.
  • The Union Government approves share-sale plans in three major state owned companies – Coal India Limited, NHPC and ONGC – that can potentially earn the exchequer Rs. 44,000 crore.
  • Meghalaya Governor Krishan Kant Paul is given additional charge of Manipur and Mizoram.
  • Strategic Forces Command (SFC) test fires Agni-I, a surface-to-surface, nuclear weapons capable ballistic missile from the Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast.
  • The Lahore Sessions Court orders framing of murder charges against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his brother and Punjab Chief Minister, Shah-baz and 19 others over the June 2014 violence near Canada-based cleric Tahirul Qadri’s headquarters in Lahore, that killed 14 of his supporters.
  • Salman Rushdie receives the Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award, Denmark’s most important literature accolade.
  • Indian-origin South African academic Leila Patel is named the African country’s one of the top women researcher in the annual Women in Science Awards.
  • The Constitutional Court of Indonesia unanimously upholds the result of presidential election, held in July 2014, paving the way for Joko Widodo to take over as leader of the world’s third largest democracy.
  • British actor and director Richard Attenborough, whose dream project ‘Gandhi’ won acclaim and eight Oscars, passes away at the age of 90.
  • A long-term ceasefire agreed by Israel and the Palestinians comes into effect, ending 50 days of the deadliest violence in Gaza.
  • Libyan Prime Minister Abdullah Al-Thinni resigns with his Cabinet to pave the way to forming a new government.
  • A former American sailor John a Walker Jr., convicted during the cold war of leading a family spy ring for the Soviet Union dies at the age of 77.
  • The President of Iran Hassan Rouhani condemns a new round of American sanctions linked to his country’s nuclear activities.
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin calls for immediate talks on the future of war-torn east Ukraine, saying for the first-time that “statehood” shall be discussed.
  • Indonesia’s first female provincial leader Ratu Atut Chosiyah is jailed for four years for bribing a top judge over an election dispute.
  • Moroccan born Najat Vallaud-Belkacem becomes the first woman in French history to hold the office of Education Minister.
  • Two mentally impaired half-brothers – Henry Lee McCollum and Leon Brown – are freed after serving three decades in a United States prison for the rape and murder of an 11-year old child Sabrina Buie, that they did not commit.
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin calls on both Ukrainian rebels and government forces to cease fire and agree to the broad terms of a truce ending their four month war.
  • The Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko declares a ceasefire and orders government forces to stop hostilities following a protocol signed by representatives of Ukraine, Russia, the rebels and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
  • The United States and its nine allies announce the formation of an international coalition to fight ISIS, with the goal of destroying it, and not merely containing it.
  • The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) members announce the formation of a 4,000 strong rapid action force with a headquarters in Eastern Europe that can quickly mobilise if an alliance country in the region is attacked. Formation of ‘spearhead’ force is announced at the NATO summit at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, South Wales.
  • Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meets Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo. The two leaders agree to forge stronger maritime links between their two countries. Mr. Abe becomes the first Japanese leader in 24 years to visit Sri Lanka.
  • R Kamal Bawa, President of the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), India and Distinguished Professor, University of Massachusetts, Boston, is among the three winners of the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity, 2014.
  • United States President Barack Obama announces a raft of measures upping the ante against Islamic State (IS), the militant outfit that now controls large swathes of Iraq and Syria, including air strikes in Syria and 475 additional personnel to arrive soon in Iraq to serve as “military advisers”.
  • Indian women’s cricket team wins the Test match against England by six wickets in Wormsley. The women’s team achieves a remarkable feat by winning back-to-back Test series, having won the one-off Test at Taunton in 2006.
  • Indian cricket team loses its third match in a row and as India slid to an innings and 244-run
  • defeat against England in the fifth and final Test at the Oval, a series that began well for India, is squandered away with England winning it 3-1. Scores : India : 148 and 94
  • England : 486 Man-of-the Match : Joe Root Man-of-the Series : James Andersen and Bhuvaneshwar Kumar
  • Serena Williams of the United States wins her first Cincinnati tennis title with a victory over Ana Ivanovic.
  • Sri Lankan classic batsman Mahela Jayawardene ends his 17-year Test career in Colombo. He is one of only five batsmen to score more than 11,000 runs in both Test and ODI.
  • India opens its account in the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing as R V Rahul settles for the
  • 77kg weightlifting silver medal behind Hak b Mkrtchyan of Armenia.
  • Australian Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull wins the Belgian Grand Prix Formula One race at Spa ahead of Nico Rosberg of Mercedes.
  • Atul Verma wins India its first Olympic archery medal – a bronze – at the Youth Olympic Games at Nanjing.
  • P V Sindhu of India settles for a bronze medal, after succumbing to Carolina Marin of Spain in the semifinals of the World Badminton Championship in Copenhagen.
  • Chen Long of China and Carolina Marin of Spain surprise their opponents in their respective finals to clinch the men’s and women’s singles titles of the World Badminton Championships in Copenhagen.
  • Sania Mirza of India and Bruno Soares of Brazil beat Abigail Spears of USA and Santiago Gonzalez of Mexico to clinch the mixed doubles title at the US Open tennis championship.
  • Joe Root scores his first ODI century as England registers 41-run victory over India in the fifth and final ODI of the series in Leeds. India win the series 3-1.
  • Scores : England : 294 for 7; India : 253 Man-of-the Match : Joe Root Man-of-the Series : Suresh Raina
  • Lewis Hamilton of Britain wins the Italian Grand Prix Formula One race for Mercedes ahead of his teammate Nico Rosberg.
  • American twins Bob and Mike Bryan become the first doubles pair to win 100 titles together after they beat Spain’s Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez in the US Open Tennis.
  • Yoshihito Nishioka of Japan beats Somdev Devvarman of India in the final of the Challenger tennis tournament in Shanghai.
  • World No. 1 Serena Williams wins her 18th Grand Slam title overpowering Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark 6-3, 6-3 to capture her sixth US Open tennis women’s sigles title.
  • Yang Haoran of China wins – gold medal in the men’s air rifle event at the 51st World Shooting championship in Granada, Spain.
  • Marin Cilic of Croatia clinches his first Grand Slam title with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Kei Nish-ikori of Japan in the US Open tennis.
  • Jitu Rai of India wins the men’s 50-metre free pistol silver in the 51st World Shooting Cham-pionship in Granada, Spain. Jin Jingoh of Korea wins the gold medal in this event.
  • Rohan Bopanna receives the Davis Cup Commitment Award in Bangalore. The 34-year old from Karnataka is the ninth Indian to receive the award.

14 July to 24 August 2014

  • Swiss drugmaker Hoffmann-La Roche agrees to acquire American drugmaker InterMune for $8.3 billion.
  • British actor, director, producer, and entrepreneur Richard Attenborough dies, aged 90.
  • Defence Minister Arun Jaitley formally inducted the first fully ingeniously built stealth anti-submarine warfare Corvette (ASW), INS Kamorta, into the Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam.
  • Renowned Kannada writer and literary critic U.R. Ananthamurthy died. He was 82.
  • Thailand’s junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha was named the new prime minister of the southeast Asian nation.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of ambitious Metro Rail Project in Nagpur.
  • T M Bhasin, chairman and managing director of Indian Bank, was elected the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) Chairman for 2014-15.
  • World-renowned yoga guru and founder of the Iyengar School of Yoga B K S Iyengar died. He was 95.
  • A court in Imphal ordered the state government to release human rights activist Irom Sharmila Chanu, who has been on indefinite fast for 13 years demanding revoking of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, (AFSPA).
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Seenchayi Yojana (PMKSY) to meet the irrigation needs of all farmers across the country.
  • India called off the scheduled foreign secretary-level talks with Pakistan, to be held in Islamabad on 25 August, objecting to its envoy meeting Kashmir separatists on the eve of the dialogue.
  • Roger Federer won his 80th career title and sixth at the Cincinnati Masters 2014 and became the third oldest winner to win Cincinnati Open after Ken Rosewall (35 in 1970), Andre Agassi (34 in 2004).
  • Rajni Razdan was sworn in as the new Chairman of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi inducted India’s largest indigenously-built warship INS Kolkata into the Navy.
  • India celebrated its 68th independence day.
  • Chinese President Xi Jinping inaugurated its second railway line in Tibet close to the Indian border in Sikkim.
  • A landmark bill to replace the collegium system of judges choosing judges was passed in the Rajya Sabha.
  • Finance minister Arun Jaitley re-launched Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY), that will provide monthly pension ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000.
  • AIADMK leader M Thambidurai was unanimously elected the deputy speaker of the Lok Sabha.
  • India successfully conducted trial of its indigenously developed surface-to-air Akash’ missile, from a test range in Odisha as part of a user trial by the Air Force.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated two hydroelectric power projects at Leh and Kargil districts in Jammu & Kashmir.
  • The Andhra Pradesh government decided to have an ad hoc capital at Vijayawada until the needed infrastructure and other
  • projects for the new capital are completed.
  • Dr Haider Al-Abadi, previously a spokesman for current Prime Minister Noori Al-Maliki, was appointed the Prime Minister of Iraq by newly-elected President Fouad Massoum.
  • Tata-SI A Airlines announced that its proposed airline will be called Vistara.
  • Deepika Kumari-led Indian team clinched the recurve team gold after routing Mexico 6-0 in the final in the Archery World Cup Stage IV in Wroclaw, Poland.
  • Paving the way for Rs 1 lakh crore fund inflows from foreign and dornestic investors, SEBI cleared new norms for setting up and listing of Real Estate and Infrastructure Investment Trusts.
  • An Egyptian court dissolved the Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood.
  • India-ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting was held on in Nai Pyi Taw, Myanmar.
  • The US launched an air strike against militants from the Islamic State (IS) group in northern Iraq.
  • The World Health Organization declared the world’s worst outbreak of Ebola an international health emergency.
  • The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued draft guidelines for the implementation of “anytime anywhere” bill payment system, officially called Bharat Bill Payment System (BPPS).
  • Mizoram governor Kamla Beniwal was sacked just two months before her tenure comes to an end.
  • The union cabinet approved a proposal to raise the FDI ceiling in defence sector to 49 percent from the present 26 percent.
  • The union cabinet approved foreign investment in the Railways for the first time to raise funds for expansion of the Railways.
  • Justice Dr Manjula Chellur was sworn in as the first woman Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court — the oldest high court in the country.
  • US President Barack Obama signed a bill granting an additional $225 million in emergency funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system.
  • The closing ceremony of 20th Commonwealth Games was held at Glasgow, Scotland. England topped the medal tally. India finished fifth.
  • Parupalli Kashyap bagged a gold to become the first Indian male shuttler in 32 years to win the singles title in Commonwealth Games after Syed Modi in 1982.
  • The fifth Indo-US strategic dialogue was held in New Delhi on 31 July-1 August, 2014.
  • Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag took over as the head of the 13 million strong Indian Army, succeeding General Bikram Singh.
  • The World Trade Organization failed to reach a deal in Geneva to standardise customs rules.
  • IAF chief Arup Raha took over as the chairman, chiefs of staffs committee from incumbent Gen Bikram Singh.
  • Veteran South Africa cricketer Jacques Kallis announced his retirement from all formats of cricket.
  • Germany’s Sabine Lisicki hit the fastest recorded serve in the history of women’s tennis at 131 mph during a first-round loss in Stanford, USA.
  • Argentina defaulted for the second time in 12 years after last-ditch talks with US hedge fund creditors what it called “vulture” failed.
  • The world’s largest online retailer Amazon announced to invest $2 billion into the India market.
  • The trilateral Malabar naval exercise of India, US and Japan was held in the north-western Pacific from 24 July to 30 July, 2014.
  • The European Union approved dramatically tougher economic sanctions against Russia, including an arms embargo and restrictions on state-owned banks. The US also expanded the penalties.
  • E-.commerce biggie Flipkart announced to raise the massive one-billion dollar of fresh funds.
  • The Centre announced a nationwide scheme – ‘Rashtriya Gokul Mission’ – to protect the “indigenous breed” of cows and set aside Rs 150 crore for it during the current financial year.
  • State-owned International Coal Ventures (ICVL) signed a pact to buy Rio Tinto’s 65% stake in Benga and 100% each in Zambeze and Tete East coal assets in Mozambique.
  • The Australian government approved Indian firm Adani Mining Pty Ltd’s A$16.5 billion ($15.5 billion) Carmichael coal and rail project in Queensland, subject to strict conditions to protect groundwater.
  • The Indian Air Force received its sixth C-17 Globemaster heavylift transport aircraft which also carried a World War II vintage ‘Harvard’ aircraft in its belly.
  • Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan was appointed Maharashtra’s horticulture ambassador.
  • Anil Ambani-led Reliance Power proved to be the proverbial dark horse, signing exclusive agreements to acquire the 1,800 MW hydroelectric power assets of Manoj Gaur-led Jaypee Group in a deal estimated at Rs 12,000 crore.
  • Punjab’s Navjeet Kaur Dhillon became only the second Indian to win a medal in the World Junior Athletics Championships when she won a bronze in women’s discus throw in Eugene,
  • USA-
  • The third meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Commission at the foreign minstry-level started in Kathmandu after a 23-year hiatus.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a Web platform –mygov.in – to crowd source governance ideas from citizens, especially the youth.
  • The Lok Sabha passed the Finance Bill, 2014 by a voice vote with which the legislative proposals notably on direct and indirect taxes proposed in the national budget for this fiscal can now become effective formally.
  • The Tamil Nadu government instituted an award in the name of Ilango Adigal, the author of “Silappathikaram,” one of the five great epics in Tamil literature, to honour scholars who have done pioneering work in the field of literature.
  • Norway topped the 2014 Human Development Report (HDR) released by UNDP. India ranked 135th.
  • The Cabinet set up a panel under Suresh Prabhu to suggest new gas pricing mechanism.
  • The Cabinet approved 49% foreign investment in insurance companies from 26% through the FIPB route ensuring management control in the hands of Indian promoters.
  • The government approved sale of 10 million tonnes of wheat from FCI stock in the open market via Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) in order to boost domestic supply and check prices.
  • The European Council adopted a decision allowing Lithuania to adopt the euro as its currency from 1 January, 2015.
  • India voted in favor of a resolution, passed in the United Nations Human Rights Council, condemning Israel’s “military operations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”.
  • The Reserve Bank of India said the FII limit for investment in government securities has been increased by $5 billion within the total cap of $30 billion.
  • The Department of Public Enterprises granted Navratna status to Container Corporation of India Limited (CONCOR).
  • Outsourcing giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) crossed the Rs 5 lakh crore mark in market capitalization, becoming the second most valuable IT services company in the world ahead of Ireland’s Accenture but behind US’s IBM.
  • A major milestone in India’s scientific endeavors in the Arctic region was achieved when a team of scientists successfully deployed India’s first Sub-Surface Ocean Moored Observatory in the Arctic.
  • Joko Widodo was elected the seventh President of Indonesia.
  • Nico Rosberg become the first German to win German Grand Prix since Michel Schumacher won 2006.
  • Boilivia become the first country in the world to legalise child labour.
  • Brazil, on 15-16 July, 2014, hosted the 6th summit of Heads of State and of Government of BRICS, held in Fortaleza and Brasilia
  • Former Indian Cricketer Rahul Dravid was elected the newest member of Laureue World Sports Academy.
  • Former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-claude Juncker was elected the President of the European Commission.
  • President Pranab Mukharjee honoured noted environmentalist Chandi Prasad Bhatt with 2013 Gandhi Peace Prize.
  • PM Narendra Modi visits Nepal, first bilateral trip by an Indian Prime Minister to Nepal in 17 years.
  • PM says India will extend $1 billion as Line of Credit to Nepal to be used according to Nepal’s priorities.
  • PM Narendra Modi’s H.I.T. mantra for Nepal: Highways, Infoways and Transways; Promises India’s support
  • Scientists turn mouse transparent by pumping detergent through its veins, an advance that will allow them to see rodent’s body and brain
  • General Dalbir Singh Suhag takes over as new Army chief; Gen Suhag will have tenure of 30 months as 26th Army Chief.
  • HC directs Delhi govt to stop E-rickshaw from plying.
  • Jul 29: International Tiger Day
  • Jul 28: World Hepatitis Day
  • India has over 40 million Hepatitis B infected patients, second only to China and most people with chronic Hepatitis B or C are unaware of it.
  • President appoints Kaptan Singh Solanki, as Governor of Haryana.
  • CCEA raises FDI cap to 49% from 26% in insurance sector.
  • UNDP: India has alot to catch upto as HDI ranking remains unchanged at 135 in 2013, reflecting little improvement in standard of living.
  • Cabinet clears SEBI amendment bill.
  • Commonwealth Games2014 begin with zest & fervor in Glasgow.
  • A M Naik sworn-in as 27th Governor of UttarPradesh.
  • India among 29 countries who vote in support of a UN Human Rights Council resolution on Gaza.
  • PM tells World Bank President Jim Yong Kim that India requires ideas, knowledge and expertise “rather than dollars”.
  • World Bank to provide USD 15-18 billion credit to India over the next 3 years: World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.
  • POLICE-PUBLIC RATIO: Strength of police personnel (all-India) per one lakh population is 136.42 as against sanctioned strength of 181.47
  • Indian airline industry suffered a total operating loss of over Rs 5,840 crore, including over Rs 3,159 crore of Air India, in 2012-13: Govt
  • Govt to set up special Rs 2,000 crore fund in NABARD for development of food parks: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
  • One third of the extreme poor global population reside in India which has also recorded the highest number of under-five deaths in the world the latest UN Millennium Development Goals report has said.
  • India will hold the presidency of a new bank launched by the BRICS group of emerging powers for six years after the financial institution becomes operations around 2016-17.
  • Government launched Rashtriya Gokul Mission to promote conservation and development of indegenous breeds in a focused and scientific manner.

29 June to 13 July 2014

  • To make unemployed women independent, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) opens canteen ‘Urja’ by women inspired by Mumbai tiffin service.
  • Rajnath Singh will be deputy leader of BJP Parliamentary Party in Lok Sabha, Arun Jaitley in Rajya Sabha while Venkaiah Naidu named govt’s Chief Whip.
  • PM Narendra Modi named leader of reconstituted BJP Parliamentary Party in both Houses of Parliament.
  • Delhi has become world’s second most populous city in 2014 after Tokyo, more than doubling its population since 1990 to 25 million: UN report.
  • India’s first fully indigenously built major warship, INS Kamorta to be handed over to Indian Navy.
  • Medical students pursuing PG courses to be posted in rural areas; Identified 184 districts in 18 states: Government
  • IIP grows to 19-month high of 4.7% in May.
  • Vakkom B Purushothaman resigns as Nagaland Governor.
  • Veteran actress Zohra Sehgal passes away at 102.
  • July 11: World Population Day.
  • I&B has granted permission for 795 channels till date.
  • 25% more children are developing TB than WHO had estimated, with India having highest childhood TB among 22 worst affected countries.
  • Amit Shah becomes new BJP President.
  • Real Madrid legend Alfredo di Stefano dies at 88.
  • TRAI notifies minimum broadband speed to 512 kbps from the earlier 256 kbps.
  • SC rules Sharia Court has no legal sanctity.
  • Justices Arun Mishra, Adarsh Goel & lawyer Rohinton Nariman appointed SC judges taking the total no. of judges to 27.
  • Smt. Kamla, transferred & appointed Mizoram Governor; Smt. Margaret Alva, Rajasthan Governor given additional charge of Gujarat.
  • Agusta Westland: ED slaps money laundering case against former IAF chief S P Tyagi & 20 others to probe alleged kickbacks of Rs. 360 crore.
  • Goa Governor B V Wanchoo being quizzed as witness by CBI in connection with Agusta Westland VVIP helicopter deal.
  • PM Narendra Modi flags off 25-km long Udhampur-Katra railway line. Pilgrims can now directly reach Katra, base camp of Vaishno Devi shrine. Estimated cost of project- Rs.1,132.75 crore.
  • 660 Nirbhaya Centres for women violence victims to be established across country.
  • Four new vaccines to be introduced as part of govt programme to reduce child mortality by two-thirds by next year.
  • Now no automatic arrest under anti-dowry law; police must record reason: Supreme Court.
  • Indian railways held trial run of a train at 160 Kmph on Delhi-Agra route; will launch a semi-high speed service between two destinations.
  • NASA successfully launches satellite designed to track atmospheric carbon dioxide.
  • To improve domestic supply of Onion Government further hikes minimum export price to USD 500 per tonne.
  • July 1: On Doctor’s Day
  • Orkut, Google’s first social networking site launched 10 years ago, will cease to exist after September this year.
  • Week-long annual tree-planting festival ‘National Van Mahotsav’ begins to spread awareness about importance of trees.
  • ‘Awara’, ‘Pyasa’, ‘Mother India’ & rare newsreels to be screened at Italian film fest.
  • Novak Djokovic claimed a second Wimbledon title after winning an extraordinary battle against seven-times winner Roger Federer, triumphing 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4. Novak Djokovic replaces Rafael Nadal at top after Wimbledon win.
  • Czech sixth seed Petra Kvitova lifted her second women`s singles Wimbledon title after defeating Canadian 13th seed Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets in the final.

HIGHLIGHTS OF UNION BUDGET 2014-15

  • Income tax exemption limit raised by Rs 50,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh and for senior citizens to Rs 3 lakh.
  • Exemption limit for investment in financial instruments under 80C raised to Rs 1.5 lakh from Rs 1 lakh.
  • Investment limit in PPF raised to Rs 1.5 lakh from Rs 1 lakh.
  • Deduction limit on interest on loan for self-occupied house raised to Rs 2 lakh from Rs 1.5 lakh.
  • Kisan Vikas Patra to be reintroduced, National Savings Certificate with insurance cover to be launched.
  • Long term capial gain tax for mutual funds doubled to 20% ; lock-in period increased to 3 years.
  • Mandatory wage ceiling of subscription to EPS (Employee Pension Scheme) raised from Rs 6,500 to Rs 15,000.
  •  Deduction limit on interest on loan for self-occupied house raised to Rs 2 lakh from Rs 1.5 lakh
  • Minimum pension increased to Rs 1,000 per month.
  • LCD, LED TV become cheaper.
  • Cigarettes, pan masala, tobacco, aerated drinks become costlier.
  • Five IIMs to be opened in HP, Punjab, Bihar, Odisha and Rajasthan.
  • Five more IITs in Jammu, Chattisgarh, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala.
  • Four more AIIMS like institutions to come up in Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Vidarbha in Maharashtra and Poorvanchal in Uttar Pradesh.
  • Govt proposes to launch ‘Digital India’ programme to ensure broad band connectivity at village level.
  • Kisan TV for farmers, Arun Prabha TV for northeast to be launched.
  • * National Rural Internet and Technology Mission for services in villages and schools, training in IT skills proposed.
  • Govt proposes Ultra Modern Super Critical Coal Based Thermal Power Technology.
  • A project on the river Ganga called ‘Jal Marg Vikas’ for inland waterways between Allahabad and Haldia; Rs 4,200 crore set aside for the purpose.
  • EPFO to launch the “Uniform Account Number” Service for contributing members.
  • New programme “Neeranchal” to give impetus to watershed development in the country with an initial outlay of Rs. 2142 crores.
  • Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Yojana to generate awareness and help in improving the efficiency of delivery of welfare services meant for women.
  • Free Drug Service and Free Diagnosis Service to achieve “ Health For All”.
  • Two National Institutes of Ageing to be set up at AIIMS, New Delhi and Madras Medical College, Chennai.
  • Rs 100 crore to support about 600 new and existing Community Radio Stations.
  • Swachh Bharat Abhiyan to cover every household with sanitation facility by the year 2019.
  • Rs 100 crore for metro projects in Lucknow and Ahmedabad.
  • Rs 2,037 crore set aside for Integrated Ganga Conservation Mission called ‘Namami Gange’.
  • Rs 150 crore allocated for increasing safety of women in large cities.
  • Rs. 7,060 crore for the project of developing 100 Smart Cities.
  • Set aside Rs 11,200 crore for PSU banks capitalisation.
  • Govt provides Rs 500 crore for rehabilitation of displaced Kashmiri migrants.
  • 1000 crore provided for “Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojna” for assured irrigation.
  • Rs. 50,548 crore under the SC Plan and Rs. 32,387 crore under TSP. Rs. 7,060 crore for the project of developing 100 Smart Cities.
  • Composite cap of foreign investment to be raised to 49 per cent in Defence and Insurance sectors.
  • Requirement of the built up area and capital conditions for FDI reduced to 20,000 square metres and USD 5 million respectively for development of smart cities.
  • Manufacturing can sell its products through retail including e-commerce platforms.
  • Requirement to infuse Rs.2,40,000 crore as equity by 2018 in our banks to be in line with Basel-III norms PSUs will invest through capital investment a total sum of Rs. 2,47,941 crores.
  • Rs 4,000 cr set aside to increase flow of cheaper credit for affordable housing to the urban poor/EWS/LIG segment.
  • Govt in favour of consolidation of PSU banks.
  • Govt considering giving greater autonomy to PSU banks while making them accountable.
  • Government expects Rs 9.77 lakh crore revenue crore from taxes.
  • Plan expenditure pegged at Rs 5.75 lakh crore and non-plan at Rs 12.19 lakh crore.
  • Fiscal deficit target retained at 4.1 pc of GDP for current fiscal and 3.6 pc in FY 16.
  • Disinvestment target fixed at Rs 58,425 crore.
  • Gross borrowings pegged at Rs 6 lakh crore.
  • Contours of GST to be finalised this fiscal; Govt to look into DTC proposal.
  • Plan expenditure pegged at Rs 5.75 lakh crore and non-plan at Rs 12.19 lakh crore.
  • Committee to look into all fresh tax demands for indirect transfer of assets in wake of retrospective tax amendments of 2012.
  • Expenditure management commission to be setup; will look into food and fertilizer subsides.
  • Legislative and administrative changes to sort out pending tax demands of more than Rs. 4 lakh crore under dispute and litigation.
  • New Urea Policy would be formulated.
  • More productive, asset creating and with linkages to agriculture and allied activities wage employment would to be provided under MGNREGA.
  • A committee will to examine and recommend how unclaimed amounts with PPF, Post Office, saving schemes etc. can be used to protect and further financial interests of the senior citizens.
  • Slum development to be included in the list of Corporate Social Responsibility.
  • An institution to provide support to mainstreaming PPPPs called 4PIndia to be set up with a corpus of Rs. 500 crores.

HIGHLIGHTS OF RAILWAY BUDGET 2014-15

  • Proposal to restructure Railway Board.
  • Aim to become the largest freight carrier in the world.
  • To complete all ongoing projects Trains, Fare & Tracks.
  • FY15 passenger fare revenue pegged at Rs 44,600 crore.
  • To introduce 6 AC, 27 Express trains in FY15.
  • First bullet trains to run between Mumbai and Ahmedabad sector.
  • Mumbai to get 864 additional state-of-the-art EMUs in 2 years.
  • Allocated Rs 100 crore for high-speed rail network.
  • To increase speed of some trains to 160-200 km/hr.
  • Investments To have diamond quadrilateral network for high-speed trains.
  • Rs 5,116 crore earmarked for projects in Northeast this Fiscal Propose Railways modernising via PPP projects.
  • To allot Rs 1,780 crore to eliminate unmanned level crossings Lifts, escalators via PPP route at all major stations.
  • Railways need Rs 50,000 cr every year for 10 years.
  • CCTV in all stations to monitor cleanliness Proposal to set up food courts at stations.
  • To recruit 4,000 Women RPF constables To encourage corporate houses to adopt stations.
  • To talk to industry to attract investment under PPP, BOT modes.

HIGHLIGHTS OF ECONOMIC SURVEY 2014-15

  • The GDP projected at 5.4-5.9% for 2014-14 but says the growth could be on the lower side of the projections.
  • India’s current account deficit has improved dramatically from 4.7% of GDP in 2012-13 to 1.7% in 2013-14.
  • India’s foreign exchange reserves increased from US $ 292.0 billion at the end of March 2013 to US $ 304.2 billion at the end March, 2014​.
  • The service industry consisted of 57% of GDP in 2013-14, up by 6 percentage points in 2001. India has the second fastest growing services sector with its Compound Annual Growth Rate at 9.0 per cent, just below China’s 10.9 per cent, during 2001 to 2012. However, the industry grew by just 1.0 per cent in 2012-13 and slowed further in 2013-14, posting a modest increase of 0.4 percent.
  • India’s external debt stock at the end of March 2013 stood at US $ 404.9 billion (Rs 2,200,410 crore), recording an increase of US$ 44.1 billion (12.2 per cent) over the previous year’s level of US $ 360.8 billion (Rs 1,844,167 crore).
  • Fiscal deficit being contained at 4.5% of GDP.
  • The report has selected 5 sectors as most stressed: infrastructure, iron and steel, textiles, aviation, and mining. The survey has thrown caution over the banking system as bad debts have gone up and the quality of loans of the banks have also deteriorated.
  • High inflation, particularly food inflation, was the result of structural as well as seasonal factors. IMF projects most global commodity prices are expected to remain flat during 2014-15.
  • According to the Human Development Report 2013, India has slipped down in HDI with its overall global ranking at 136 (out of the 186 countries) as against 134 (out of 187 countries) as per HDR 2012. It is still in the medium human development category. The poverty ratio (based on the MPCE of `816 for rural areas and `1000 for urban areas in 2011-12 at all India level), has declined from 37.2 percent in 2004-05 to 21.9 per cent in 2011-12. In absolute terms, the number of poor declined from 407.1 million in 2004-05 to 269.3 million in 2011-12 with an average annual decline of 2.2 percentage points during 2004-05 to 2011-12. During 2004-05 to 2011-12, employment growth [CAGR] was only 0.5 per cent, compared to 2.8 per cent during 1999-2000 to 2004-05 as per usual status.
  • Record food grains and oilseeds production of 264.4 million tonnes (mt) and 32.4 mt is estimated in 2013-14. Due to higher procurement, stocks of foodgrains in the Central Pool have increased to 69.84 million tonnes as on June 1, 2014. The net availability of foodgrains increased to 229.1 million tonnes and that of edible oils to 12.7 kg per year in 2013.

22 June to 29 June 2014

  • Vice President Hamid Ansari visits Beijing to attend 60th anniversary of Panchsheel.
  • Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approves hike in paddy MSP (grade A) by Rs 55 to Rs 1,400 per quintal for this crop year.
  • Sushma Sawarj visits Bangladesh, her first solo trip as minister.
  • Great Himalayan National Park named as World Heritage Site by UNESCO; List includes 31 Indian sites.
  • India’s first indigenously-built anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta ready to be commissioned into Indian Navy.
  • Air India inducted into Star Alliance, a club of 26 global airlines. It will enable travel for airline’s passengers to over 1,300 destinations.
  • Gujarat CM Anandi Patel announces 33% reservation for women in police force.
  • Aziz Qureshi takes oath as Uttar Pradesh Governor.
  • Moving to a time defined process, RBI has fixed schedules for various regulatory approvals, including grant of private bank license.
  • Government decides to provide additional interest-free loan of up to Rs 4,400 crore to sugar mills and hike import duty on sweetener.
  • ‘Mobile Seva’, a nationwide initiative conceptualized, funded and implemented by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY), wins 2014 UN Public Service Awards.
  • Railway hikes fare, freight charges. Passenger fare hiked by 14.2%, freights up 6.5%
  • Govt hikes import duty on sugar to 40%; to extend sugar export subsidy of Rs 3,300 per tonne till September this year.
  • UGC orders Delhi University and all its colleges to conduct admission only under 3-year under-graduate programme and not under FYUP for coming session.
  • Chinese e-commerce Alibaba to list on New York Stock Exchange under the trading symbol ‘BABA’.
  • Worlds first nuclear power plant ‘Obninsk plant’ turns 60; Launched on June 26, 1954. Then PM Nehru, Indira Gandhi visited Obninsk plant.
  • UK’s firm East India Company honours SachinTendulkar with exclusive gold coin worth £12,000, or about Rs 12 lakh.
  • NASA successfully launches saucer-shaped vehicle to test future Mars landing technologies.
  • Jean-Claude Juncker has been named as the next President of European Commission.
  • Saina Nehwal wins Australian Open Super Series, beats Spain’s Carolina Marin.
  • Indian cueist Pankaj Advani creates history, pockets IBSF World 6-Red snooker Championship. Advani becomes first player in the world to win world titles in long and short formats of both billiards and snooker.

15 June to 22 June 2014

  • Govt to launch encephalitis immunization campaign.
  • Govt is working on a new crop insurance scheme to help farmers tackle flood, drought & plant diseases in a better manner.
  • Railway passenger fare to rise by 14.2% and freight charges by 6.5%. Increased Railway fare will come into effect from 25th June.
  • Eminent Hindi poet Sh Kedarnath Singh to get 49th Jnanpith Award. His creations include Abhi Bilkul Abhi, Zameen pak Rahi Hai, Yahan se Dekho etc.
  • Salman Rushdie named winner of this year’s prestigious Pen Pinter prize for his outstanding literary output.
  • Kodela Sivaprasada Rao has been unanimously elected as the first Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh post bifurcation.
  • Jun 20: World Refugee Day.
  • Govt to bring broad changes in MNREGA by proposing at least Rs 25,000 crore of investment into agriculture alone.
  • Six cabinet committees reconstituted: Security, Political Affairs, Parl Affairs, Eco Affairs, Accommodation and Appointments.
  • PM Narendra Modi likely to visit Japan after budget session of Parliament.
  • SEBI approves hiking of public holding in PSUs to 25% within 3 years. New regulations for research analysts; ESOP regulations to be revamped.
  • Amazon joins global phone war with the unveiling of its first smartphone called as Fire Phone.
  • Chhattisgarh Governor Shekhar Dutt has resigned from his post.
  • India-born scientist Sanjaya Rajaram named winner of World Food Prize for contribution in increasing wheat production.
  • India 143rd in global peace rankings; among 20 most violent places in the world: Global Peace Index.
  • Akash missile ready for induction into army: DRDO
  • 40 Indians in Musul in Iraq have been kidnapped.
  • Water ATMs in Delhi, which will supplement water supply in areas that are facing crisis.
  • Govt imposes minimum export price (MEP) of USD 300 per tonne on onion exports to check prices.
  • World’s first auto-follow action sports drone ‘AirDog’ developed. It follows you and records while you take part in extreme sports.
  • Uttar Pradesh Governor BL Joshi resigns.
  • India to assist Fiji in conduct of its general elections, will include providing indelible ink and imparting training to officials.
  • India plans to create an e-library network in Bhutan & we would double scholarships being given to students of Bhutan.
  • Michael Schumacher out of coma, leaves hospital but to continue his long phase of rehabilitation.

8 June to 15 June 2014

  • June 8: World Oceans Day.
  • CM Prithviraj Chavan inaugurates metro rail on 11.4 KM Versova-Ghatkopar stretch in Mumbai.
  • Taj Mahal to get ‘mud-pack treatment’ to restore the natural sheen: ASI
  • Brazil: 2014 FIFA World Cup kicks off.
  • June 12: World Day Against Child Labour.
  • Egypt: Abdel Fattah el-Sisi sworn-in as country’s new President after winning by a landslide.
  • Ghulam Nabi Azad appointed leader of Congress in Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma as Deputy Leader.
  • Bibek Debroy’s book- ‘Getting India Back On Track’ launched.
  • Himachal Pradesh: 25 engineering students from Hyderabad washed away in flash flood in Beas river, in Mandi.
  • Chandrababu Naidu takes oath as first CM of new Andhra Pradesh.
  • Rafael Nadal wins French Open title for 9th time.
  • Sania Mirza achieves career-best ranking, becomes World No. 6 in doubles.
  • Spanish archaeologists discover tomb dating back to 11th dynasty of ancient Egypt in Luxor.
  • Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits New Delhi.
  • Telangana Rashtra Samiti MLA S Madhusudanachari assumes charge as Speaker of Telangana Legislative Assembly.
  • Reuven Rivlin, member of Israel’s ruling Likud party, elected as the nation’s 10th President to replace Shimon Peres.
  • Militants attack ASF camp at Pakistan’s Karachi airport.
  • Angelina Jolie launches four-day global summit in London to end sexual violence in war.
  • Dalbir Singh Suhag to become next Army Chief.
  • Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni in Forbes list of world’s highest paid athletes.
  • Gas leakage in Bhilai Steel Plant; 5 dead, 18 injured.
  • Indian scientist Rasik Ravindra unanimously elected as member of the UN’s body focussed on oceans and law of the sea.
  • First batch of women constables of 9th India Reserve Battalion of Manipur Armed Police takes oath.
  • PM Narendra Modi dedicates largest warship INS Vikramaditya to nation, promises to set up National War Memorial.
  • June 14: World Blood Donor.
  • Preity Zinta files molestation case against Ness Wadia.
  • Haryana Govt: Solar power generation mandatory in homes, malls.
  • In his first foreign tour, PM Narendra Modi visits Bhutan.
  • Parvez Rasool becomes first J&K player to play for India.

1 June to 8 June 2014

  • Union Rural Development Minister Gopinath Munde dies in a road accident in Delhi.
  • Sumitra Mahajan unanimously elected as Speaker of Lok Sabha.
  • Mallikarjun Kharge will be Congress leader of opposition in Lok Sabha.
  • Congress appoints Captain Amrinder Singh as its deputy leader; Jyotiraditya Scindia as Chief Whip in Lok Sabha.
  • Chandrababu Naidu takes over as CM of Andhra Pradesh.
  • Telangana born as 29th state, TRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao beomes first CM.
  • Narendra Modi Govt likely to change name of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) as Pakistan-Occupied Jammu-Kashmir.
  • Mumbai metro starts operations.
  • American soldier held for nearly five years in Afghanistan freed from Taliban captivity in exchange for release of five Afghan detainees.
  • Jun 1: World Milk Day.
  • Jun 5: World Environment Day.
  • Gariphema village in Nagaland declared as the country’s first “tobacco-free village”.
  • Veteran Hindi journalist and writer H Y Narayan Dutt passes away at a hospital in Bangalore.
  • Kolkata Knight Riders wins IPL 7 defeating Kings XI Punjab in the IPL final match at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore.
  • Former World number one Maria Sharapova lifted her second French Open Trophy. Maria Sharapova beat Simona Halep of Romania 6-4, 6-7, 6-4 to win 5th Grand Slam title.
  • Syria: Bashar al-Assad re-elected as President for another seven year term.
  • Iran and six world powers resume fresh round of expert level talks over Tehran’s Nuclear Energy program in Vienna.
  • Egypt: Former military chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi to be sworn-in as President on Sunday.
  • Ukraine: Petro Poroshenko sworn-in as President of the country.

25 May to 1 June 2014

  • Narendra Modi took oath as the 15th Prime Minister of India on May 26 at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The ceremony was attended by the Who’s Who of the nation including political leaders, business honchos, celebrities and religious leaders as well as leaders of neighbouring countries.
  • Among the foreign leaders who attended the ceremony at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan were Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Also present were Mauritius Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay of Bhutan and Bangladesh parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury.
  • A council of ministers, numbering around 45, also took oath.
  • Najma Heptulla is the oldest member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s council of ministers, while Smriti Irani is the youngest.
  • Ajit Doval has been appointed as National Security Advisor.
  • Former chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Nripendra Misra appointed as principal secretary to the Prime Minister after promulgating an ordinance to clear the way for him to take over the post.
  • Noted and senior Supreme Court lawyer Mukul Rohatgi has been appointed as the new attorney general of India.
  • The first Cabinet meeting of the Modi government decided to constitute a special investigative team (SIT) to dig out black money. The SIT will be headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, M B Shah. The decision on the SIT is in compliance with the Supreme Court directive on black money.
  • Government has begun work on allowing up to 100% foreign investment in defence production.
  • Government may not allow FDI in retail.
  • I &B minister Prakash Javadekar says Govt. is mulling to allow news broadcast on private FMs. His ministry is also seeking inputs from various stakeholders on whether to allow 100 per cent FDI in news media.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi axes all GOMs, EGOMs for fast decisions, accountability.
  • Irom Sharmila Chanu, who is on a fast for the last 13 years seeking repeal of the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act Manipur’s was flown to New Delhi in connection with a pending case against her for staging a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in 2006.
  • She has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to help her break her hunger strike by repealing the ‘draconian’ Act.
  • Narendra Modi vacated the Vadodara Lok Sabha seat. He will retain Varanasi seat.

List of ministers in Narendra Modi’s Government:

Prime Minister: Narendra Modi: Personnel, public grievances and pensions, department of atomic energy, department of space, all important policy issues and other portfolios not allocated to any minister.

Cabinet ministers:
  • Rajnath Singh: Home affairs
  • Sushma Swaraj: External affairs, overseas Indian affairs
  • Arun Jaitley: Finance, corporate affairs, defence
  • M Venkaiah Naidu: Urban development, housing and urban poverty alleviation, parliamentary affairs
  • Nitin Gadkari: Road transport and highways, shipping
  • D V Sadananda Gowda: Railways
  • Uma Bharati: Water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation
  • Najma A Heptulla: Minority affairs
  • Gopinathrao Munde: Rural development, panchayati raj, drinking water and sanitation
  • Ram Vilas Paswan: Consumer affairs, food and public distribution
  • Kalraj Mishra: Micro, small and medium enterprises
  • Maneka Gandhi: Women and child development
  • Ananth Kumar: Chemicals and fertilizers
  • Ravi Shankar Prasad: Communications and information technology, law and justice
  • Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati: Civil aviation
  • Anant Geete: Heavy industries and public enterprises
  • Harsimrat Kaur Badal: Food processing industries
  • Narendra Singh Tomar: Mines, steel, labour and employment
  • Jual Oram: Tribal affairs
  • Radha Mohan Singh: Agriculture
  • Thaawar Chand Gehlot: Social justice and empowerment
  • Smriti Irani: Human resource development
  • Harsh Vardhan: Health and family welfare
Minister of states:
  • V K Singh: Development of northeastern region (independent charge), external affairs, overseas Indian affairs
  • Inderjit Singh Rao: Planning (independent charge), statistics and programme implementation (independent charge), defence
  • Santosh Kumar Gangwar: Textiles (independent charge), parliamentary affairs, water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation
  • Shripad Yesso Naik: Culture (independent charge), tourism (independent charge)
  • Dharmendra Pradhan: Petroleum and natural gas (independent charge)
  • Sarbananda Sonowal: Skill development, entrepreneurship, youth affairs and sports (independent charge)
  • Prakash Javadekar: Information and broadcasting (independent charge), environment, forest and climate change (independent charge), parliamentary affairs
  • Piyush Goyal: Power (independent charge), coal (independent charge), new and renewable energy (independent charge)
  • Jitendra Singh: Science and technology (independent charge), earth sciences (independent charge), Prime Minister office, personnel, public grievances and pensions, department of atomic energy, department of space
  • Nirmala Sitharaman: Commerce and industry (independent charge), finance, corporate affairs
  • G M Siddeshwara: Civil aviation
  • Manoj Sinha: Railways
  • Nihalchand: Chemicals and fertilizers
  • Upendra Kushwaha: Rural development, panchayati raj, drinking water and sanitation
  • P Radhakrishnan: Heavy industries and public enterprises
  • Kiren Rijiju: Home affairs
  • Krishan Pal: Road transport and highways, shipping
  • Sanjeev Kumar Balyan: Agriculture, food processing industries
  • Mansukhbhai Dhanjibhai Vasava: Tribal affairs
  • Raosaheb Dadarao Danve: Consumer affairs, food and public distribution
  • Vishnu Deo Sai: Mines, steel, labour and employment
  • Sudarshan Bhagat: Social justice and empowerment
Current Affairs Questions (सामयिक प्रश्न)

Most Important Questions | हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी माध्यम में

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