1st October, 2016
International day of Older Persons:
1st October
i. Every year 1st October is observed as
International day of Older Persons.
ii. The significance of Day is to raise
awareness about issues affecting the elderly and to appreciate the
contributions that older people make to society.
iii. This year, the theme is "Take a Stand Against Ageism.".
Arundhati Bhattacharya Gets Year-Long
Extension As SBI Chief
i. Arundhati Bhattacharya will remain
the chairperson of the State Bank of India (SBI) for another year.
ii. She will oversee the merger of 6
smaller commercial banks into the country's largest lender.
SAARC summit "postponed indefinitely"
i. Pakistan has officially postponed the
8-nation SAARC summit 2016, after 5 countries – India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan and Sri Lanka dropped out of it.
ii. The SAARC Summit was scheduled on
November 9 and 10 in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Somesh Sharma is INS President
i. Somesh Sharma of Rashtradoot Saptahik
has been elected President of The Indian Newspaper Society for the year
2016-17.
ii. He succeeds PV Chandran of
Grihalakshmi (Mathrubhumi Group).
IOB gets new executive director
i. The Centre has appointed R Subramania
Kumar as Executive Director (ED) of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB).
ii. Prior to this appointment, Kumar was
Executive Director of Indian Bank.
Aditya Birla Retail appoints Mohit
Kampani as CEO
i. Mohit Kampani, the former managing
director of Spencer’s Retail, will be joining Aditya Birla Retail as chief
executive officer.
ii. Aditya Birla Retail Limited is the
retail arm of Aditya Birla Group company.
EU ministers approve ratification
of Paris climate Agreement
i. The European Union (EU) ministers
have approved the ratification of Paris Agreement (on Climate Change).
iii. This decision brings the Paris
Agreement closer to entering into force.
ii. Once approved by the European
Parliament, the EU deposit its ratification instrument before national
ratification processes which are completed in each member state.
Government decides to raise EPFO
investment in ETF
i. The Government has decided to raise
the Employees Provident Fund ( EPF) investment in Exchange Traded Funds (ETF)
from present 5% to 10%.
ii. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, the
Minister of State (IC) for Labour and Employment announced that the decision
has been taken considering the good returns in ETF.
Tirupati Airport awarded as 'Best
Tourist Friendly Airport'
i. Airport Authority of India's Tirupati
Airport has been awarded as "Best Tourist Friendly Airport" under the
category for "State Annual Excellence Awards (2015-16)" by Andhra
Pradesh Tourism.
HCL and IBM enter 15-year
partnership
i. HCL and IBM have entered into a
15-year partnership for automation, development and operations.
ii. This partnership will enable the
both companies to focus their technical teams on native cloud and cognitive
solutions, as well as industry-specific opportunities.
Spiritual leader Indirabetiji
passes away
i. Vaishnavacharya Goswami Indirabetiji,
a proponent of Sanatan Dharma known for her devotion to social causes, passed
away. She was 78.
ii. She founded Shrimad Vallabh Acharya
Research Academy to spread her guru Vallabhacharyaji’s philosophy and theology
and authored several books on religion and philosophy.
2nd October, 2016
Nation pays homage to Mahatma
Gandhi & former PM Lal Bahadur Shastri on their birth anniversary
I. The nation pays homage to Father of
the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi on his 147th birth anniversary on 02nd October,
2016.
II. The nation also remembers the former
Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri on his birth anniversary. Born in 02nd
October 1904, he joined the Indian independence movement in the 1920s and held
several important portfolios in the Jawaharlal Nehru's government including
Railways and as Home Minister.
Arunachal CM flags off all-women Mt
Gorichen expedition
I. Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema
Khandu lagged off an all-women Mt Gorichen expedition in Itanagar.
II. This will be the first all women
team attempting to summit the second highest peak of the state, which is
considered as a technical peak and only seasoned climbers can make it to the
top (6,488 m).
Gangtok conferred Cleanest Tourist
Destination honour
I. At a time when the Swachh Bharat
Mission is in full swing, the Union Ministry of Tourism has conferred the
Cleanest Tourist Destination on the Sikkim capital (Gangtok).
II. Chandigarh and Mysore were
felicitated for 'Clean Cities in million plus population category' and Gangtok
for 'Cleanest Tourism Destination'.
Rajeev Sharma takes over as Power
Finance CMD
I. Rajeev Sharma has taken over as the
Chairman and Managing Director of state-run Power Finance Corporation (PFC)
with effect from October 1st, 2016.
II. Sharma succeeds M K Goel who retired
on September 30, 2016 on attaining the age of superannuation.
International day for non violence:
2nd October
I. The International Day of Non-Violence
is marked on 2 October, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi, leader of the Indian
independence movement and pioneer of the philosophy and strategy of
non-violence.
II. According to General Assembly
resolution A/RES/61/271 of 15 June 2007, which established the commemoration,
the International Day is an occasion to "disseminate the message of
non-violence, including through education and public awareness".
Centre constitutes Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Board of India
I. The Centre has constituted a
four-member Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) under the
Chairmanship of M.S. Sahoo. The oath of office was administered by Finance and
Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi.
II. The members of the IBBI are Ajay
Tyagi, Additional Secretary, Finance Ministry; Amardeep Singh Bhatia, Joint
Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs; G.S. Yadav, Joint Secretary,
Department of Legal Affairs; and Unnikrishnan, Legal Advisor, Reserve Bank of
India.
Kieren Dsouza becomes the first
Indian to complete World's toughest race, Spartathlon
I. Bengaluru's Kieren Dsouza has become
the first Indian to complete the Spartathlon, widely described as the
"world's toughest race".
II. The 23-year old completed the 246.6
km distance in the 2016 edition, in 33 hours, one minute and 38 seconds. The
Spartathlon is an annual run between Athens and Sparta in Greece, with a
reported success rate of 50%.
Gujarat world heritage site: Rani
ki Vav bags ‘Cleanest Iconic Place’ award
I. Gujarat’s 900-year-old World Heritage
Site Rani ki Vav beat 10 other iconic heritage structures across the country to
bag an award for the “Cleanest Iconic Place” at the Indian Sanitation
Conference (INDOSAN) 2016 at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.
II. The Archaeological Survey of India
(ASI) has maintained the monument and its surroundings very well, offering
clean drinking water and proper sanitation, among other things, to tourists.
3rd October, 2016
Japan's Ohsumi wins Nobel Prize in
medicine
i. Japan's Yoshinori Ohsumi, a cell
biologist specialising in autophagy, has received the 2016 Noble Prize in
Medicine.
ii. He has received the award "for
his discoveries of mechanisms for autophagy".
Mohammad Bin Zayed chief guest for
Indian Republic Day
i. The Indian government has invited the
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to be the next
Chief Guest at India’s Republic Day parade of 2017.
ii. This is the first time that a leader
of the United Arab Emirates will be honoured with the invitation of being the
Chief Guest at India’s Republic Day parade.
India ratifies historic Paris
climate deal at UN
i. On 2 oct 2016 (The birth anniversary
of Mahatma Gandhi), India formally joined the Paris Climate Change Agreement by
submitting its instrument of ratification in New York (UN Headquarter).ii. India became the 62nd country to ratify the
agreement.
iii. COP22 will take place at Marrakech
in Morocco , 2016.
India's Gaganjeet Bhullar wins
Korea Open
i. Indian golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar won
his 6th Asian Tour title, winning the Korea Open 2016 in Incheon,South Korea.
ii. The 28-year-old, whose last Asian
title came in 2013, was awarded a cash prize of $196,000 for the win.
Delhi Police launches mobile app
for senior citizens
i. The Delhi Police has launched a
mobile application for senior citizens to enable them to reach out to the
police quickly in emergency situations.
ii. The application 'Delhi Police Senior
Citizen' was launched by Delhi Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung and Police Commissioner
Alok Kumar Verma.
R Ravindra concurrently accredited
Ambassador to Guinea
i. Shri R Ravindra, presently Ambassador
of India to the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire, has been concurrently accredited as
the Ambassador of India to the Republic of Guinea.
ii. The Republic of Guinea is a country
on the West coast of Africa.
'Murga' wins first prize at Swachh
Bharat Short Film Festival
i. Young filmmaker Katyayan Shivpuri,
from Maharashtra, has won the first prize at the Swachh Bharat Short Film
Festival (SBSFF) for his work "Murga".
ii. The short film was directed by young
filmmaker Katyayan Shivpuri from Maharashtra.
Daniel Ricciardo wins 2016
Malaysian Grand Prix
i. Australian racing driver, Daniel
Ricciardo has won the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix held at the Sepang
International Circuit in Selangor, Malaysia.
ii. Max Verstappen finished second while
Nico Rosberg ended at the third position.
Indian-origin teen wins Google
Science Fair prize
i. A 16-year-old Indian-origin South
African teen has won a $50,000 scholarship, the grand prize at the annual
Google Science Fair for her work using orange peel to develop a cheaper
“super-absorbent material” that helps soil retain water.
4th October, 2016
RBI announces 4th Bi-monthly Policy
Statement
i. RBI's 24th Governor Urjit Patel, who
has been recently appointed, has announced his first and country's 4th
Bi-monthly Policy Statement for the year
2016-17.
ii. The RBI has reduced the policy Repo
Rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 25 basis points from 6.5%
to 6.25% with immediate effect.
Three researchers share 2016 Nobel
prize in physics
i. The Nobel Prize in Physics for 2016
has been awarded to scientists - David J Thouless, who receives half the prize,
and Duncan M. Haldane and J. Michael Kosterlitz, who share the other half.
ii. The three physicists discovered a
mathematical framework in the field of topography, to explain unexpected
properties of solid materials.
4–10 October: World Space Week
i. World Space Week is an annual event
that is observed from 4-10 October every year in various parts of the world
including Europe and Asia.
ii. World Space Week, 2016 is being
observed with the theme, Remote Sensing: Enabling our Future.
SBI becomes first domestic bank to
open branch in Yangon
i. The State Bank of India today
announced its entry into Myanmar by opening a branch in the capital city of
Yangon, becoming the first domestic lender to do so.
ii. The Yangon branch is the 54th
foreign branch of the nation's largest lender.
France confers knighthood on
elephant researcher
i. Film-maker and elephant researcher
Prajna Chowta has been appointed Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite
(Knight in the National Order of Merit), one of the highest civilian
recognitions of the French government.
ii. The appointment of Chowta by the
President of the French Republic comes in recognition of a life devoted to
caring for wild Asian elephants.
Reliance ties up with Dassault to
execute Rafale offsets
i. Dassault Aviation of France has
entered into a partnership with Reliance group to execute offsets for the
recently concluded deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets.
ii. This is the largest offset contract
to be executed by any defence company in India till date.
KJ Yesudas, the brand ambassador of
Kerala's Haritha Keralam project
i. Playback singer K J Yesudas has been
roped in by the Kerala' government as the brand ambassador of its ambitious
‘Haritha Keralam' project.
ii. ‘Haritha Keralam’ (Green Kerala)
project, a massive initiative envisaged for a garbage-free and clean state.
Jharkhand becomes first state to
launch Direct Benefit Transfer in Kerosene
i. Jharkhand has become the first state
in the country to implement Direct Benefit Transfer in Kerosene.
ii. The scheme is being implemented in
four identified districts of the State from October 1.
Prasar Bharati CEO Jawhar Sircar
resigns
i. Jawhar Sircar has resigned as the
Chief Executive Officer of Prasar Bharati Corporation.
ii. His resignation came 4 months ahead
of the end of his tenure which was about to end in February 2017.
5th October, 2016
World Teachers’ Day: 5 October
i. The World Teachers’ Day (WTD) 2016 is
being observed across the world on 5th October.
ii. The theme for the World Teachers’
Day 2016 is Valuing Teachers, Improving their Status.
Important Union Cabinet approvals
i. Cabinet approves India-EU MoU on
water cooperation
ii. Cabinet approves amendments to
HIV/AIDS bill
iii. Cabinet approves setting up of
country’s first Medipark
iv. Cabinet approves rural development
MoU with African-Asian Rural Development Organisation
v. CCEA gives a nod to the acquisition
of 11% stake in Russian oil company.
Tiny machines win chemistry Nobel
prize
i. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2016
has been awarded to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L.
Feringa for developing the molecular machine.
ii. The three scientists will equally
share the prize of 8 million Swedish kronor, or about $930,000.
India, Singapore sign three
agreements
i. India and Singapore have signed 3
agreements, including two in the area of skill development, following
delegation-level talks headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Singapore Premier
Lee Hsien Loong.
ii. A third MoU was signed in the field
of industrial property cooperation.
IMF revises India's economic growth
upwards to 7.6% for FY17 and 18
i. The International Monetary Fund has
raised projections for India's economic growth by 0.2 percentage points to 7.6%
for 2016-17 and 2017-18.
ii. The International Monetary Fund is
an international organization headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Sushil Chandra appointed CBDT
Chairman
i. The Government has appointed Indian
Revenue Service officer Sushil Chandra as the next chairman of the Central
Board of Direct Taxes.ii. He will take over from the current CBDT Chairperson
Rani Singh Nair, who will retire on October 31. Chandra is currently posted as
Member, CBDT.
Powerful typhoon Chaba to hit Japan
i. Powerful typhoon Chaba barrelled
toward Japan after it hit a South Korean resort island causing flight
cancellations and flooding streets.
Mohan Reddy appointed Hon. Consul
of Germany
i. Germany has appointed former Nasscom
Chairman B V R Mohan Reddy as an Honourary Consul of that country in Hyderabad.
ii. Mohan Reddy will be the Consul for
Germany in Telangana and Hyderabad.
6th October, 2016
ISRO successfully launches GSAT-18
from Kourou in French Guiana
i. India's latest communication
satellite GSAT-18 has been successfully launched by a heavy duty rocket of
Arianespace from the spaceport of Kourou in French Guiana.
ii. GSAT-18, built by the ISRO, aims at
providing telecommunications services for the country by strengthening ISRO's
current fleet of 14 operational telecommunication satellites.
J&K Bank appoints Parvez Ahmed
as Chairman & CEO
i. Jammu and Kashmir Bank today
appointed Parvez Ahmed as Chairman and CEO of the bank.
ii. He has been appointed Chairman for a
period of three years, Jammu and Kashmir Bank
iii. He replaces Mustaq Ahmad, who
completed his term on October 5.
New Solar Powered Guard Van of
Goods Train flagged off
i. Railways Minister Suresh Prabhakar
Prabhu flags off the newly manufactured Guard Van of Goods (Freight) Train, in
New Delhi.
ii. The newly manufactured Guard Van of
Goods Train has been equipped for the first time with Solar powered Light, Fan,
Mobile Charging Point along with the facility of Zero discharge Bio Toilet.
Finance Ministry to set up public
debt management cell
i. Union Finance Ministry has
constituted a Public Debt Management Cell (PDMC). The cell was created to
streamline government borrowings and better cash management with the overall
objective of deepening bond markets.
ii. The Joint Secretary (Budget),
Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance would be the overall
in-charge of the ODMC.
First BRICS U – 17 Football
Tournament kicked off in Goa
i. The first BRICS Under-17 football
tournament kicked off in Goa.
ii. The initiative of the Government of
India aims at taking the ongoing interaction and cohesion amongst the BRICS
nations.
Former Portugal PM, Antonio
Guterres set to become next UNSC
i. Former Prime Minister of Portugal,
Antonio Guterres is poised to become the next Secretary-General of the United
Nations after the Security Council declared him to be the unanimous choice in
the sixth straw poll.
Election Commission of India
collaborates with Facebook to register young voters
i. Social networking site Facebook is
collaborating with the Election Commission of India in five states ,which are
going to polls next year, to run a voter registration drive aimed at
encouraging youth to participate in the democratic exercise.
IAF inducts renowned space
scientist UR Rao in Hall of Fame
i. The International Astronautical
Federation's renowned space scientist U.R. Rao has been inducted into its Hall
of Fame for his contribution to development of India's space technology.
ii. Rao, 84, is the Chairman of the
space agency's Physical Research Laboratory at Ahmedabad in Gujarat.
Arundhati Roy’s next novel to be
out in 2017
i. Nearly, 20 years after her Booker
prize-winning novel 'The God of Small Things' was published.
ii. Arundhati Roy has announced the
release of her next novel titled "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness"
in June 2017.
7th October, 2016
Nobel Peace Prize for Colombia's
Juan Manuel Santos
i. Colombian President Juan Manuel
Santos has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the
52-year conflict with left-wing rebels.
ii. The Nobel committee in Norway
praised him for his peace agreement with FARC rebels, signed last month after
four years of negotiations.
Sikkim CM Pawan Chamling honoured
for development leadership
i. Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Chamling
has been honoured with prestigious "Sustainable Development Leadership
Award" by President Pranab Mukherjee.
ii. Chamling has been recognised for his
efforts to convert Sikkim into the first and only organic state in the country.
3 agreements between India &
Switzerland on Mutual Visa Exemption Return
i. Agreements are:
1. Mutual Visa Exemption Agreement for
Holders of Diplomatic Passports.
2. Technical Arrangements on
Identification and Return of Illegal Migrants and Arrangement for Dependent
Person of Diplomatic, Consular, Technical andIndia & Switzerland.
3. Administrative Staff of Diplomatic
and Consular Mission to Perform Gainful Employment.
Government integrates 250 mandis in
10 states with e-agriculture market in 1st phase
i. The government has integrated 250
mandis in 10 states with the electronic national agriculture market (e-NAM) in
the first phase.
ii. In April, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi launched the e-NAM on a pilot basis with 22 mandis in eight states.
Jitu Rai bags silver medal at ISSF
World Cup Final in Italy
i. Indian shooter Jitu Rai on 6 October
2016 clinched a silver medal in the 50-meter pistol event of the ISSF World Cup
Final at Bologna, Italy.
Arjun Vajpai scales Mt. Cho Oyu
i. Arjun Vajpai, a 23-year-old
professional mountaineer from Noida, became the youngest in the world to scale
the Mount Cho Oyu, the 6th highest mountain peak in the world at 8,188 metres
above sea level.
ii. This was Vajpai’s second attempt to
climb Cho Oyu after he was paralysed midway in 2012.
New frog species discovered in
Australia
i. A new frog species, which closely
resembles the Graceful tree frog (Litoria Gracilenta), was discovered in
Australia’s largest virgin forest in Queensland.
ii. The newly discovered species closely
resembles the Graceful tree frog (Litoria Gracilenta).
Freedom fighter Ramesh Kulkarni
passed away
i. Freedom fighter and Congress leader
Ramesh Kulkarni passed away on 6 October 2016 in Thane following a brief
illness.
ii. Kulkarni was 87 years old and is
survived by a son and two daughters.
Manipur theatre legend Kanhailal
passed away
i. Manipur-based theatre legend Heisnam
Kanhailal passed away on 6 October 2016 following a brief illness in Imphal. He
was 75.
ii. Kanhailal had contributed to the
field of experimental theatre for more than 40 years.
8th October, 2016
Indian Air Force Day: 8 October
i. The Air Force Day 2016 is observed annually on 8 October across India.
This year is the 84th celebration of the Day which began in 1932.
ii. On this day, the most renowned
aerobatics display teams, Red Arrows of the Royal Air Force, enthral audience
at Indian Air Force Day celebrations in New Delhi.
Maharashtra becomes 17th state to
join UDAY Scheme
i. Maharashtra became the 17th state to
Central Government’s Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojna (UDAY) scheme.
ii. It will help Maharashtra to reap
benefits worth Rs 9,725 crore by way of cheaper funds, transmission losses,
energy efficiency and coal reforms during the period of the turnaround.
Women can also be prosecuted under
domestic violence law: SC
i. Not only men but women can also be
prosecuted under the Protection of Women against Domestic Violence (DV) Act.
ii. The Supreme Court has struck down
the words “adult male” from the pertinent provision in the DV Act to lay down
that a woman can also file a complaint against another woman, accusing her of
domestic violence.
Forex reserves touch record high of
$372 billion
i. India's foreign exchange reserves
scaled a new high of USD 371.99 billion. The reserves had risen by USD 1.166
billion to USD 370.766 billion.
ii. Previously, they had touched a high
of USD 371.279.
Pound crashes 6% in 2 minutes
i. The pound saw a sudden collapse in
intra-day trade on 08 October 2016, plunging over 6% to $1.1841 in two minutes,
to hit a fresh 31-year-low.
ii. This reportedly followed a 'flash
crash' driven by a technical glitch that created a lot of computer-driven
orders.
Rs.114 cr approved for HRIDAY
projects
i. The Union Ministry of Urban
Development has approved projects worth Rs.114 crore under HRIDAY scheme for
improving infrastructure facilities around core heritage sites in five cities.
ii. These five cities are: Varanasi
(Uttar Pradesh), Amritsar (Punjab), Dwaraka (Gujarat), Puri (Odisha) and
Warangal (Telangana).
India to host conference on
Disaster Risk Reduction
i. India will host the Asian Ministerial
Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) next month.
ii. The three-day conference, to be held
from November 3, is being organised in collaboration with the UN Office for
Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)
Doordarshan, IGNOU sign agreement
for telecast of Gyan Darshan channels
i. Doordarshan and Indira Gandhi
National Open University (IGNOU) have entered into an agreement for
transmission of four Gyan Darshan educational channels.
ii. Gyan Darshan ran successfully till
June 2, 2014, but was shut down by ISRO to facilitate its migration from INSAT
3C to GSAT-10.
9th October, 2016
India’s first international
arbitration centre inaugrated by Devendra Fadnavis
i. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis
inaugurated India’s first centre for international arbitration in Mumbai.
ii. The MCIA will be governed by a
17-member governing council.
iii. The Mumbai Centre for International
Arbitration (MCIA) will initially be located at Express Towers.
Harika Dronavalli Beats Hou Yifan
At International Chess Meet
i. India's Harika Dronavalli defeated
World No. 1 Hou Yifan of China to be at joint fourth position in the Isle of
Man international Chess tournament.
ii. This tournament was took place from
October 1st to 9th, 2016.
iii. Harika is now with five points
after seven rounds, just one and a half points behind the championship leader
Eljanov Pavel of Ukraine.
Bathukamma Event Enters Guinness
Book of World Records
i.The Telangana government on Saturday
organised the traditional state festival of 'Bathukamma' on at the Lal Bahadur
stadium in Hyderabad.
ii. The event, attended by about ten
thousand women, found a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.
iii. The Telangana government has
declared 'Bathukamma' as a state festival.
Luo Zhaohui, China’s new ambassador
to India
i. China's President Xi Jinping
appointed Luo Zhaohu