1) Nuclear capable Agni-IV missile
test-fired from Odisha: India on Monday successfully tested its long-range,
nuclear-capable, surface-to-surface Agni-IV missile from a military base in
Odisha. The new generation missile, which has the capability to hit targets
4,000 km away, was tested for its full range from the Wheeler Island off the
Odisha coast near Dhamra in Bhadrak district, about 200 km from state capital
Bhubaneswar.
2) National Police Academy gets first
woman director: Government has appointed senior police officer Aruna
Bahuguna as the new chief of the Hyderabad-based National Police Academy, alma
mater for IPS officers in the country. With this appointment, Bahuguna, a
1979-batch IPS officer, will be the first woman Director of the 65-year-old
institution also known as the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy
(SVPNPA) and is tasked with the training of police leaders after they are
recruited by the UPSC through the all-India civil services exam. Bahuguna (56),
who belongs to Andhra Pradesh cadre, is at present posted as the Special
Director General, CRPF, at its headquarters in the national capital.
3) Autopsy report says drug overdose
killed Sunanda: Hours after the autopsy report of Sunanda Pushkar was out
and given to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate Alok Sharma by All India Institute
of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) stating drug overdose may have caused her death,
Minister of State for Human Resource Development Shashi Tharoor got a clean
chit into the matter based on a witness testimony, police sources said.
4) Jain community granted minority
status: Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Jain community was on Monday
accorded minority status by the central government which will enable them to
avail of benefits in government schemes and programmes. The decision to grant
minority status to the community of about 50 lakh was taken at a meeting of
Union Cabinet here.
5) Gravity, 12 Years a Slave tie for
Producers Guild award: Oscar hopefuls Gravity and 12 Years a Slave tied for
the top prize at the Producers Guild of America Awards indicating that they
will present a tough challenge to American Hustle in the run-up to the Academy
Awards on March 2.
6) World’s 85 richest people own nearly
half of global wealth: Oxfam report -
A tiny elite comprising the richest 85 individuals hold wealth
equivalent to that owned by the bottom half of the world’s population, a report
says. The report by development organisation Oxfam, titled ‘Working For the
Few’, published ahead of the World Economic Forum meet in Davos, details the
impact that widening inequality is having in both developed and developing
nations.
7) Delhi CM, Ministers begin 10-day
dharna against Home Ministry: Delhi
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Ministers defied prohibitory orders and
sat on a 10-day dharna demanding suspension of five State police officers.
Kejriwal refused to accept the police’s request to move his dharna to Jantar
Mantar in view of the Republic Day parade rehearsal, and called upon the people
of Delhi to join his demand for police reforms. He was also seen clearing
official files from the dharna site.
8) Sachin Tendulkar set to mentor 11
emerging cricket stars: Indian
cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar will mentor 11 emerging players, including
Parveez Rasool and Unmukt Chand, as part of an initiative by sports apparel
giant Adidas. Adidas, which has already signed up Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and
Suresh Raina, added some more names to its roster. Tendulkar welcomed the
newest members of Team Adidas — Unmukt Chand, Parveez Rasool, Vijay Zol, Manan
Vohra, Manpreet Juneja, Rush Kalaria, Chirag Khurana, Akshdeep Nath, Vikas
Mishra, Sarfaraz Khan and Aparajith Baba.
9) Sudhir Gupta is new TRAI Secretary: Telecom regulator TRAI on Monday got a new
Secretary, Sudhir Gupta, ahead of it releasing the final guidelines of spectrum
trading and auction of CDMA radiowaves. Gupta, a principal adviser with TRAI,
has been elevated to the post of Secretary.
10) RBI Deputy Governor Anand Sinha
retired: With Anand Sinha
relinquished his charge as Deputy Governor on Monday, the Reserve Bank of India
has re-allocated his portfolios among the remaining three Deputy Governors —
K.C. Chakrabarty, H.R. Khan and Urjit Patel. Sinha was in-charge of eight
departments, including Departments of Banking Operations and Development, Risk
Management, Information Technology and Expenditure and Budgetary Control.
11) National Urban Health Mission
launched in Bangalore: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Gulam
Nabi Azad launched the National Urban Health Mission in Bangalore. The
programme aims at providing health security to urban poor. It envisages
creation of necessary health check up infrastructure and the manpower
requirement.
12) Abhishikta S Shetty of Karnataka won
Miss South India Pageant Title: Abhishikta S Shetty of Karnataka on 19 July
2014 was crowned as the Miss South India 2014 at the Le Meridien in Coimbatore.
13) Mitchell Johnson won Allan Border
Medal: Australian pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson won the coveted Allan
Border medal at an event in Sydney on Monday. The fast-bowler beat out
competition from captain Michael Clarke, who was the favourite to win the award
for a record fifth time. Johnson took 37 wickets and helped Australia complete
the Ashes whitewash. Clarke was declared the Test player of the year, finishing
above Steve Smith and Chris Rogers. George Bailey was the runaway winner of the
ODI player of the year.
14) Maria Sharapova crashed out of
Australian Open: In a sudden and second shock of Austraian Open, Dominika
Cibulková beat Sharapova 3-6,6-4, 6-1 in 4th round.
1) Which Australian cricketer won the
coveted Allan Border medal 2014 on 20 January 2014?
