17 DECEMBER
1) Cabinet approved GST Constitutional Amendment Bill: The Union Cabinet on 17 December 2014 approved the Constitutional Amendment Bill on Goods & Services Tax (GST), inching closer to the rollout of an ambitious indirect tax reform expected to raise revenues and boost growth. The government aims to implement GST by April 1, 2016 and has been working overtime to get states on board. The tax reform is a centrepiece of the Narendra Modi government's economic agenda. Sources said the government hopes to introduce the bill in the current session of Parliament.
2) AIBA banned boxer Sarita Devi for 1 year: India's woman boxer Laishram Sarita Devi was on 17 December 2014 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. Also, India's foreign coach BI Fernandez and Sarita's husband Thoiba Singh were banned for two years, but chief national coach GS Sandhu was not found guilty and hence his suspension was lifted. The boxer's personal coach Lenin has been banned for a year.
3) RBI fined ICICI, Bank of Baroda for violation of KYC: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty on ICICI Bank (Rs.50 lakh) and Bank of Baroda (Rs.25 lakh) for violation of its instructions on Know Your Customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) norms. It also cautioned State Bank of India, Axis Bank and State Bank of Patiala for these violations. The RBI said that some fraudsters had managed to open fictitious accounts in the name of a statutory organisation in these five banks and operated the accounts mainly for encashing cheques/demand drafts/postal orders, of which they were not the rightful owners, for periods ranging from one month to two years, without being detected by the banks.
4) U.S and Cuba agreed to re-establish diplomatic ties: The United States and Cuba made a historic breakthrough in their Cold War stand-off on Wednesday, moving to revive diplomatic ties and launch measures to ease a five-decade U.S. trade embargo. In the wake of a prisoner exchange, President Barack Obama said the United States was ready to review trade ties and to re-open its embassy in communist Cuba that has been closed since 1961.
5) Satyarthi’s school to be named after him: The government school in Vidisha, in which Kailash Satyarthi, winner of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize had his primary education, is set to be named after him. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced this at a function here to felicitate Mr. Satyarthi, who was on his first visit to the State after receiving the coveted prize.
6) PM to inaugurate Pravasi Bhartiya Divas on Jan 8 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar on January 8. "On the morning of January 8, the Prime Minister will first inaugurate the 'Salt Mound' structure near Mahatma Mandir before officially inaugurating the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. He will be accompanied by MoS for External Affairs, General (retd) V K Singh and many dignitaries," state Finance Minister Saurabh Patel told. The day is held to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community to the development of the country.
7) Indian-American Amit Priyavadan Mehta confirmed as a Federal judge by the US Senate: Indian-American Amit Priyavadan Mehta has been confirmed by the US Senate as a Federal judge in the District of Columbia, becoming the first Asian Pacific American to occupy this vital position. Nominated by the US President, Barack Obama in July this year, Mehta has been a partner at Zuckerman Spaeder since 2010, where he represents clients in civil and criminal matters before the State and Federal courts.
8) Jacqueline Fernandez and KS Radhakrishnan to get PETA India’s People of the Year award: Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez and former Supreme Court judge KS Radhakrishnan have been given PETA India’s People of the Year award for their contribution towards the protection of animals. The animal rights organisation named Ms. Fernandez as ‘Woman of the Year’ and justice (retd) Radhakrishnan as ‘Man of the Year’. “Justice (Retd) Radhakrishnan and Fernandez are role models who uphold this mandate for kindness to animals through the actions they take, as we all should,” PETA U.K. director Mimi Bekhechi, said.
18 DECEMBER
1) GSLV Mark-III-X successfully test fired: The first experimental flight of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) Mark III registered success as it lifted off from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on the dot at 9.30 a.m. on 18 December 2014, taking India much closer to realising the dream of manned space flight. GSLV Mark-III-X is the heaviest rocket (630 tonnes) of India, which was launched on an experimental mission along with human Crew module Atmospheric Reentry Experiment (CARE). It was launched with an aim to check its atmospheric stability with luggage of around four tonne and to study re-entry characteristics of the crew module.
2) Gabriel Garcia Marquez to feature on Colombia bank notes: Colombia will honour its most famous author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, by featuring his face on its banknotes. The House of Representatives passed a bill recently asking the central bank to print a series of notes featuring the Nobel Prize winner's face. Garcia Marquez, the author of One Hundred Years of Solitude and other popular works of magic realism, died in April in Mexico City.
3) Lord's set to stage record fifth ICC Cricket World Cup final: "Lord's Cricket Ground in London has been proposed as the venue for the ICC Cricket World Cup final when the tournament is staged in England and Wales in 2019 - and will also host the ICC Women's World Cup final in 2017," the England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement. Lord's staged the first three ICC Cricket World Cup finals in 1975, 1979 and 1983. The West Indies won the first two finals - their only World Cup successes - while India recorded the first of their two World Cup triumphs in 1983.
4) Minorities Rights Day observed: Minorities Rights Day on 18 December 2014 was observed across the world to create awareness on rights of minorities. On this day, governments and NGO’s conduct debates on the recent developments in policies and practices in Minority Rights both in India and at the global level.
5) Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic selected as ITF world champions: Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams were named as men's and women's World Champions for 2014 on 18 December 2014 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). It is the fourth time that Djokovic has taken the top award after he won Wimbledon, the ATP World Tour finals and finished the year ranked number one in the world by the ATP. The 27-year-old Serb is one of only four men to be named ITF World Champion four or more times, alongside Ivan Lendl, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. Williams won the US Open, the 18th Grand Slam title of her career, the WTA Tour Championship and was also ranked number one by the WTA. At 33 she is the oldest player ever to be named an ITF Singles World Champion.
6) Germany topped FIFA year end rankings: World champions Germany comfortably top the pile of the FIFA national team rankings revealed on 18 Dec 2014 despite a slump in form since their rampant campaign in Brazil. The top three remain unchanged since September with Lionel Messi's beaten World Cup finalists Argentina second and Colombia in third.
7) Micromax launched its YU brand: Yu, the new brand from domestic handset maker Micromax, on 18 December 2014 launched its first device named Yureka. The 4G device comes with Cyanogen operating system and is priced at Rs 8,999. The products launched under the ‘Yu’ brand will be sold through the online route, emulating Xiaomi's business model. Yureka, which is a dual SIM device, will be available for pre-registration on Amazon.in from December 19 and will be available from the second week of January.
8) 'The Lunchbox' named best first film by Toronto Film Critics: Ritesh Batra's much lauded epistolary romance drama 'The Lunchbox' has been named best first feature by Toronto Film Critics. The film, which won the Critics Week Viewers Choice Award at Cannes Film Festival in 2013, tells the nostalgic love story between a lonely housewife and an about to retire widower, who get connected through a wrongly delivered lunchbox. The Mumbai-set film starred Irrfan, Nimrat Kaur and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in key roles.
9) 'Clean India, Green India' theme of new Govt calendar: Clean India, Green India' is the theme of the new Government of India calendar 2015 which focuses on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative, the Swachh Bharat Mission. For the first time ever, a digital version of the calendar was also launched today in the form of a mobile phone app. PM Modi features on the first page of the calendar for the month of January wielding a broom to clean a roadside.
19 DECEMBER
1) R K Srivastava appointed new chairman of AAI: R K Srivastava, a 1984-batch Jharkhand-cadre IAS officer, was on 19 December 2014 appointed as the Chairman of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) for a five-year period. Civil Aviation Ministry issued an order to this effect. The selection board had interviewed 10 senior officials for the post of AAI chairman on September 25. The post of chairman was lying vacant after the superannuation of the then incumbent V P Agrawal.
2) Miss World swimsuit round cancelled after 63 years: The Miss World contest will no longer feature a swimsuit round, Julia Morley, chairwoman of the organisers, has said. Miss World was founded in 1951 by her late husband, Eric, and since then, the swimwear round had been a regular feature. But recently, she has come to feel that the round is unnecessary. Hence, the pageant has not been broadcasting it for some years. Rolene Strauss of South Africa was crowned the 64th Miss World in London on December 14 and the pageant was the last to include the swimwear round.
3) Ashley Westwood to take over as Indian football coach in June: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is heavily backing Ashley Westwood to take over as India's youngest football coach. The 38-year-old English coach who guided Bengaluru FC to an amazing I-League triumph on debut, and that too with a team of rejects, has won the vote of confidence from the AIFF and his appointment only needs to be stamped by the technical committee which meets in Mumbai on Sunday.
4) Vistara opened bookings: Vistara, the airline joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, has announced the launch of its operation in India from January 9 onwards. With Delhi as its hub, Vistara will initially offer flights to Mumbai and Ahmedabad. The fares are substantially higher than those of its full-service carrier rivals, Jet Airways and government-owned Air India (AI). It, however, will be the first in India to offer premium economy seating and a value-based frequent flyer programme, where bonus points would be given not on miles flown but on what you pay.
5) Pakistan beats India in race to become CERN associate member: Pakistan on 19 December 2014 beat India in the race to become an associate member of Cern (European Organization for Nuclear Research), the world's largest particle physics laboratory that recently found some evidence of "God particle". Being an associate member will allow Pakistan to participate in the governance of Cern, through attending the meetings of the Cern council. Moreover, it will allow Pakistani scientists to become members of the Cern staff, and to participate in CERN's training and career-development programmes.
6) DRDO successfully tested an indigenous 1000 kg glide bomb: India on 19 December 2014 tested an indigenously developed 1,000-kg glide bomb, with a top official saying the country can now launch heavy bombs for delivery up to 100 km away with high precision. The bomb designed and developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) was dropped by an Indian Air force aircraft in the Bay of Bengal off Odisha, an official statement said.
7) Refugiado won best film award in 19th IFFK: Argentinean film Refugiado directed by Diego Lerman, a drama on a mother and her young son fleeing from domestic violence, won the Suvarna Chakoram for the Best Feature Film at the 19th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK). Japanese director Hiroshi Toda won the Rajatha Chakoram for the Best Director for the film Summer, Kyoto and Iranian director Hossein Shahabi won the Rajatha Chakoram for the best debut film for The Bright Day. Kerala Governor P. Sathasivam presented the awards at the closing ceremony of the festival held at the Nishagandhi Auditorium on 19 December 2014.
8) Government approved 8.75% interest rate on provident fund deposits for 2014-15: Over five crore subscribers of the EPFO will get 8.75 per cent interest this fiscal on their provident fund deposits - the same rate as the previous year. "Finance ministry has ratified the decision of the EPFO's central board of trustees (CBT) to retain 8.75 per cent rate of interest for the current fiscal," said a source. The rate was same in the previous year, 2013-14, when it was raised from 8.5 per cent in the 2012-13 fiscal.
9) Haryanvi twins hit record by conquering Seven Summits: Two mountaineer sisters from Haryana achieved a unique world record on Tuesday. Nungshi and Tashi Singh Mallik became the first twins to climb Mt Vinson, the highest peak of Antarctica. In doing so, they created history by becoming the first siblings—and twins—to scale the tallest mountain peaks in all seven continents. They have also entered the hall of fame for mountaineers, the Seven Summit Club.