General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2015

Aug 2015

Dec 28, 2021

Vikram Misri Appointed Deputy NSA

Vikram Misri, a 1989 batch Indian Foreign Service officer, who served as envoy in China amid the border dispute, was appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor in the National Security Council secretariat.
Misri, a seasoned diplomat, will report to national security adviser Ajit Doval. Vikram has served in various capacities at the headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) as well as in the Prime Minister's Office.

Himachal Pradesh's Renukaji Dam Project

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation of Renukaji Dam Project in Himachal Pradesh.
It is a Rs. 6,700-crore project on the Giri River in Sirmaur district.
The project, once completed, is likely to generate 200 million units of energy in a surface power house which have the installed capacity of 40 MW.
Storage capacity of the dam will be 498 million cubic meters.
It will fulfil around 40 per cent of the drinking water requirement of Delhi.
Construction of the dam was pending since the last three decades. It will finally took shape following cooperation on behalf of six states namely, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.

Former Mohali Mayor Kulwant Singh Joins AAP

Former Mohali mayor and realtor Kulwant Singh joined the Aam Aadmi Party ahead of the Punjab Assembly polls next year.
AAP's leader Raghav Chadha and state party chief Bhagwant Mann inducted him to the party fold.
Mann said that Kulwant Singh's familiarity with Mohali's issues and voters will help AAP a great deal.

Sanjay Kumar Singh Appointed Steel Secretary, V. Srinivas DARPG Secretary

Senior bureaucrat Sanjay Kumar Singh was appointed as Steel Secretary as part of a major top-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected by the Centre.
Singh, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, is currently Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Department of Pensions & Pensioners Welfare (DoPPW).
V. Srinivas, a 1989 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, will be Secretary, DARPG and DoPPW in place of Singh. He is currently Special Secretary in the DARPG.
Manoj Joshi, Special Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries was appointed as Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs.

Dinesh Mongia, Former India Cricketer, Joins BJP

Former India cricketer Dinesh Mongia joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections.
Mongia joined the ruling party at the Centre at a function in Delhi in the presence of Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
This is noteworthy that former left-hand batsman was a part of the 2003 World Cup team that managed to reach the final of the marquee event under the leadership of Sourav Ganguly.
Besides him, sitting Congress MLAs Fateh Singh Bajwa and Balwinder Singh Laddi also joined the BJP.

Dec 27, 2021

Kamlesh Gandhi is New Co-Chairman of FIDC

Finance Industry Development Council (FIDC) announced fresh appointments to its board of directors. Kamlesh Gandhi, CMD of MAS Financial Services was appointed as Co-Chairman, FIDC in addition to Umesh Revankar, CEO and MD of Shriram Transport Finance Group. Sanjay Chamria resigned as the Co-Chairman and Director, FIDC.
Finance Industry Development Council (FIDC), which is a representative body of asset and loan financing NBFCs, announced fresh appointments to its board of directors. Dinanath Dubhashi, MD and CEO, L&T Finance Holdings was appointed as an additional Director of FIDC. The appointments were approved at a board meeting of FIDC.

India and Russia Exchange 'Non-Paper' on Engagement in Central Asia

India and Russia have exchanged "Non-Paper" on how to increase engagement in central Asia, which has 5 countries--Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The 5 countries once formed part of the Soviet Union, have huge Russian influence.
The non-paper or white paper is basically a document that doesn't carry a governmental seal but aims to highlight key features of discussions.
The non-paper has pointed at several areas of engagement, one of which is defense as India aims to become a supplier of arms in that part of the world. These central Asian countries use Russian defense equipment and India can provide parts that are made in the country.

Tamil Nadu Government Launches CM Dashboard

The Tamil Nadu government launched the 'CM Dashboard 360' monitoring system that would enable Chief Minister M K Stalin to get real-time information on important matters including rainfall patterns, water storage levels in reservoirs and health-related among others.
M. K. Stalin launched the dashboard in Chennai

Gujarat Tops Good Governance Index 2021

Gujarat topped the composite ranking in the Good Governance Index (GGI), followed by Maharashtra and Goa while Uttar Pradesh showed an incremental growth of 8.9 per cent in the indicators launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the occasion of the Good Governance Day 2021.
As many as 20 states improved their composite GGI scores in 2021, according to the index.
The GGI 2021 was prepared by the Department of Administration Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG).

Panel Formed to Decide Withdrawal of AFSPA

The Union Home Ministry has decided to constitute a committee for taking a decision regarding withdrawal of disturbed area tag and the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, (AFSPA), 1958 from Nagaland amid growing anger against killings of 14 civilians.
This was decided in a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister, Amit Shah in New Delhi, which was convened to discuss the current situation in Nagaland following the killings in Oting village in Mon district. The meeting was attended by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Nagaland deputy Chief Minister Y. Patton and former Chief Minister TR Zeliang.
The five-member committee will be headed by Additional Secretary (Northeast) in the MHA, Chief Secretary and Director General of Police, Nagaland, Inspector General of Assam Rifles (Northeast) and representatives of CRPF.

Twenty-two Farm Bodies in Punjab Announce Political Front

Twenty-two farm organisations in Punjab that were part of the protest against three central farm laws formed a political front and announced they would contest the upcoming state assembly polls to give a "political change".
The decision in this regard was taken by representatives of these organisations.

Dec 26, 2021

State General Category Commission in Punjab

Punjab Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, has approved to set up "State General Category Commission" for unreserved classes.
The Commission would safeguard interests of unreserved classes and help in effective implementation of several welfare schemes.
Commission would work for the welfare of poor belonging to unreserved classes.
Apart from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have set up "State General Category Commission".

TMC's Firhad Hakim Named Next Mayor of Kolkata

The Trinamool Congress named Firhad Hakim as the next mayor of Kolkata after a meeting of the newly-elected councillors of the city civic body.
Hakim, who won the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) election from ward 82, is the former mayor of the city and was appointed the civic body's administrator after the earlier board's term expired in 2020 but elections could not be held due to the pandemic.
Hakim, who is also an MLA from the Kolkata Port assembly segment, holds the Transport and Housing portfolios in the state Cabinet.

Nitin Gadkari Launches India's First 'Intelligent Transport System'

Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari launched India's first "Intelligent Transport System" (ITS) on Eastern Peripheral Expressway at Dasna, Ghaziabad.
This system was developed in a bid to minimize traffic woes and enhance safety of commuters.
On the occasion, minister noted that, India needs to improve its road engineering, because every year, around 1.5 lakh people are killed in 5 lakh accidents in India.
ITS is a revolutionary state-of-the-art technology. It will achieve traffic efficiency by prompting efficient infrastructure usage, minimizing traffic problems, enriching users with prior information on traffic, reducing travel time and enhancing safety & comfort of commuters.
This system can detect any accident and receive alerts for ensuring that ambulance reaches the accident spot within 10-15 minutes.
The Kundli–Ghaziabad–Palwal Expressway is dubbed as "Eastern Peripheral Expressway". It is a 135 km long, 6-lane wide expressway which passes through Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. It starts from Western Peripheral Expressway at Kundli in Sonipat and passes through Baghpat, Ghaziabad & Noida in Uttar Pradesh and Faridabad district in Haryana. It finally rejoin the Western Peripheral Expressway near Dholagarh in Palwal. In March 2006, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway was declared as National Expressway 2 (NE-2).

Dec 25, 2021

Congress Wins Polls Held in 15 Urban Bodies in Chhattisgarh

The ruling Congress won in polls held in 15 urban bodies in Chhattisgarh winning 174 wards and beating the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which could manage 89 wards.
The results were declared by the State Election Commission for 300 of the total 370 wards for which election was held.
The results showed Congress candidates victorious in 174 wards, BJP in 89, Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J) in 6 while independent contestants won in 31 wards.
Results for the remaining 70 wards, which fall under the Bhilai Municipal Corporation of Durg district were yet to be officially declared.

Shehzad Poonawalla is IT and Social Media Head of Delhi BJP

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala was appointed as the in-charge of social media and IT cell of party's Delhi's unit. Poonawala replaced Vineet Goenka, who will now serve as a spokesperson of the Delhi BJP.
The reshuffling in the state unit was done by its state chief Adesh Gupta. The appointments came into force with immediate effect.

Govt. signs 140 mn Euro Loan Agreement with KfW for Energy Sector Reforms

The Government of India (GoI) and the German development bank KfW signed agreements for a Euro 140 million reduced interest loan and Euro 2 million grant for an energy reform programme in Madhya Pradesh.
The project will contribute to a more stable, secure and climate and environmentally friendly energy supply in India by upgrading and strengthening distribution networks in Madhya Pradesh.
The project comprises two components -- implementation of smart meters and Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI); and separation of agriculture and non-agriculture feeders.

Maharashtra Assembly to Elect New Speaker

Election for the Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly will be held on December 28, the last day of the ongoing winter session.
The decision was taken in a cabinet meeting here, said an official from the Chief Minister's Office. The seat fell vacant in February this year after Nana Patole stepped down and took over as the state Congress chief. The Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition along with the Shiv Sena and NCP, will nominate another MLA for the election of new Speaker. The new Speaker will effectively start functioning from the Budget session.

Dec 24, 2021

Goyal, Australian Trade Minister Holds Talk to Expedite FTA Negotiations

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his Australian counterpart Dan Tehan held talks to expedite talks for the proposed free trade agreement, which aimed at enhancing economic ties between the countries.
The ministers appreciated the progress made in various rounds of talks between the chief negotiators of both sides and discussed the way forward for an early conclusion of interim agreement.
Both sides also directed the officials to speed up the negotiations to pave the way for a comprehensive agreement, which is officially dubbed as Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

August GK, July GK, June GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services And Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26