Current Affairs August 2014 First Week: PDF Download

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August 2014- First Week

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1) Where was the Commonwealth Games (CWG) 2014 held from 23 July to 3 August 2014?

Ans. Glasgow, Scotland

2) Where will the 21st Commonwealth Games be held in 2018?

Ans. Gold Coast in Australia

3) What was India's position in the Common Wealth Games 2014?

Ans. Fifth position

Note: India finished with a total of 64 medals (15 Gold, 30 silver and 19 Bronze).

4) In the closing ceremony of CWG 2014 who was the Indian contingent’s flag bearer?

Ans. Seema Punia

Note: She won won Silver in women's discus throw.

5) Who was the torch bearer for India in the opening ceremony of CWG 2014?

Ans. Shooter Vijay Kumar

6) Which coutries finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively in CWG 2014?

Ans. 1st- England with 58 Gold

2nd- Australia with 49 Gold

3rd- Canada with 32 Gold.

Note: Host Scotland finished 4th with 19 Gold.

7) Who became the first Indian woman gymnast and second person of the country (after Ashish Kumar, male who won in the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games) to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games?

Ans. Dipa Karmakar

8) Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the first week of August 2014 visited which neighboring country?

Ans. Nepal

Note: This was the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Nepal in 17 years.  In 1997, then Prime Minister I K Gujral had visited Nepal.

9) Who on 3 August 2014 became the third Indian to win Gold medal in Badminton at Commonwealth Games (CWG)?

Ans. Parupalli Kashyap

Note: He defeated Derek Wong of Singapore in the final.  Prakash Padukone won Gold for India in 1978 and Syed Modi in 1982.

10) Who was appointed as Deputy National Security Adviser (NSA) on 4 August 2014?Visit: www.currentaffairs4examz.com

Ans. Arvind Gupta

Note: Post of Deputy National Security Adviser fell vacant after the resignation of Nehchal Sandhu.

11) Name the eminent cartoonist who created the comic book character like Chacha Chaudhary and Sabu who died on 6 August 2014?

Ans. Pran Kumar Sharma

12) Name the anytime anywhere bill payment system for which Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 7 August 2014 issued draft guidelines?

Ans. Bharat Bill Payment System (BPPS)

13) Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan on 7 August 2014 appointed a committee under the chairmanship of former home secretary .......... to review Parliament security?

Ans. RK Singh

14) World Health Organization (WHO) has declared which disease as Global Health Emergency on 6 August 2014?

Ans. Ebola

15) Who was selected as the Chairperson of the Arjuna Awards Selection Committee on 7 August 2014?

Ans.  Kapil Dev

Note: This Committees will have 15 members which includes12 sportspersons and 3 officials.

16) The prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Awards for year 2014 was announced on 31 July 2014. Name the winners?

Ans. Hu Shuli (Chinese investigative journalist), Saur Marlina Manurung, Omara Khan Masoudi from Afghanistan, The Citizens Foundation from Pakistan, Wang Canfa from China and Randy Halasan for Emergent Leadership from the Philippines.

17) Union Government granted Navratna Status to which company on 23 July 2014?

Ans. Container Corporation of India Limited (CONCOR)

Note: It is the 17th Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) to achieve Navratna Status.

18) Name the Chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW) who demitted office on 1 August 2014?

Ans. Mamta Sharma

19) Which bank bagged the Core Banking System Initiative Award for the year 2014 at the Asian Banking and Finance - Retail Banking Awards 2014?

Ans. Bharatiya Mahila Bank Ltd

20) Name the Spanish midfielder who on 5 August 2014 announced his retirement from International football?Visit: www.currentaffairs4examz.com

Ans. Xavi Hernandez

21) Which country launched construction work of a new Suez Canal on 6 August 2014?

Ans. Egypt

22) Name the Governor of Mizoram who was removed from the post on 6 August 2014 by President of India?

Ans. Kamla Beniwal

23) Who took oath as the first woman Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court on 5 August 2014?

Ans. Justice Dr. Manjula Chellur

24) Who was selected as the Chairman of the Dronacharya Award Selection Committee on 7 August 2014?

Ans. Ajitpal Singh

Note: He was a three-time Olympian and former Hockey Captain

25) Who was given AIMA Business Leader of the Year’ Award 2014 on 6 August 2014?

Ans. Adi Godrej, Godrej group Chairman

26) Name the Syndicate Bank Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) who was suspended by Union government on 4 August 2014 after he was arrested by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 2 August 2014 for accepting bribe?

Ans.  SK Jain

27) Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) on 3 August 2014 set up a four member committee to review the present status of Universities Grants Commission’s (UGC). Who will head the committee?

Ans. Hari Gautam, the former UGC chairman.

28) Prasar Bharati, India’s Public Service Broadcaster on 5 August 2014 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ....... for distribution of Doordarshan’s overseas India channel, DD India on a DTH platform?

Ans.  Deutsche Welle, the German public service broadcaster.

29) Union cabinet on 6 August 2014 approved the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014 to amend which act?

Ans. Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act, 2000

30) A book Strictly Personal, Manmohan and Gursharan published on 5 August 2014 was authored by?

Ans. Daman Singh

Note: Book is the untold story of Manmohan Singh, India’s thirteenth Prime Minister, and his wife.

31) Name the striker of Ivory Coast who announced his retirement from international football on 8 August 2014?

Ans. Didier Drogba

32) Union Cabinet on 6 August 2014 raised the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) limit in Defence sector from ...... percent to 49 percent?

Ans. 26

33) Defence procurements from which Italian company were put on hold by the Union Government on 5 August 2014?

Ans. Finmeccanica

34) The construction work of the world’s tallest railway bridge began on 28 July 2014 near Noney in which state?

Ans. Manipur

35) Name the senior advocate and former Solicitor-General who on 4 August 2014 withdrew as amicus curiae in Padmanabhaswamy Temple Case?

Ans. Gopal Subramanium

Note: The report on the condition of the temple and its assets in Thiruvananthapuram had created a storm.

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Daily Current Affairs: 19 August 2014

1) Speaker rules out leader of opposition post for Congress in Lok Sabha: Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Tuesday closed the chapter on a designated leader of opposition in the lower House of Parliament by rejecting Congress's demand for the post, writing back to the largest opposition party in reply to a letter from Sonia Gandhi. LoPs in both Houses of Parliament are posts that are at par with Cabinet ministers. "I have gone by rules and tradition," Mahajan told reporters on her decision not to recognize the Congress leader in Lok Sabha as the leader of opposition. Congress reacted strongly to the decision which was pretty much along expected lines.

2) Ravi Shastri appointed Director of Cricket for ODI series against England: n a damage-control move, the BCCI has appointed former Test all-rounder Ravi Shastri Director of Cricket in the Indian team for the five-match ODI series against England, beginning August 25. The Board’s dramatic action on Tuesday was a response to India’s disastrous 3-1 Test series defeat against England. The BCCI told India’s bowling and fielding coaches, Joe Dawes and Trevor Penny, to go on ‘leave.’ Bharat Arun and Sanjay Bangar, former India all-rounders, will be the assistant coaches for the period. Former Hyderabad left-arm spinner R. Sridhar is the fielding coach.

3) PM invites ideas from people on new plan body: Taking a step further towards scrapping the Planning Commission, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday invited ideas from the people on the new institution to replace the plan body. The government also announced creation of a special open forum on the website mygov.Nic.In for suggestions on the new institution. "We envision the proposed Institution as one that caters to the aspirations of 21st century India and strengthens participation of the States.... Let the ideas flow," the Prime Minister said in a statement.

4) Google buys travel guide app startup Jetpac:  Google confirmed it has bought the startup behind a Jetpac mobile application that creates insightful travel guides by analyzing pictures from social networks such as Instagram. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Jetpac said that its application would be removed from Apple's online App Store in the days ahead and that it would stop supporting the software in the middle of September.

5) 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games opens in Nanjing: The cauldron is lit up during the Opening Ceremony of the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province. The 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games opened in east China's Nanjing on Saturday evening with more than 3,700 athletes from around the world taking part in. During the 13-day-competition sports gala, the young athletes aged between 15-18 will compete in 28 sports in arenas and stadiums in Nanjing, the capital city of Jiangsu Province. Chinese President Xi Jinping declared open of the Games at the ceremony in the modern Olympic Sports Complex, where flags representing 203 National Olympic Committees paraded.

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Daily Current Affairs Updates: 17 and 18 August 2014

1) Janmashtami celebrated across nation: Janmashtami, the celebration of the birthday of Lord Krishna was celebrated countrywide with much religious fervor and enthusiasm. The President, Vice President and Prime Minister have greeted the people on the occasion.. In his message, President Pranab Mukherjee said that Lord Krishna's message of righteous conduct and action inspires everyone to strengthen moral foundations of the society and strive selflessly to take the country to new heights.

2) India lost test series against England: England inflicted yet another humiliating defeat upon India as they won the fifth and final Test at The Oval by an innings and 244 runs on Sunday to complete a 3-1 series win. The only disappointment for the hosts was that spearhead seamer James Anderson was left three short of equalling Ian Botham's England record of 383 Test wickets. James Anderson was named man-of-the-series for England after snaring 25 wickets despite being in the middle of a storm, involving Ravindra Jadeja.

3) Combined India-Nepal military exercise began: A combined military exercise between Indian and Nepalese armies commenced at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand on Monday with a top army commander saying both the armies have to learn much from each other, especially in handling modern-day challenges of insurgency and terrorism. Over 300 personnel, comprising one infantry battalion from each country, are taking part in the 7th edition of the exercise named Surya Kiran VII which begen as part of military cooperation between the two neighbours in 2011.

4) India cancelled planned talks With Pakistan: In a strong message to Islamabad, the Narendra Modi government on Monday called off the Foreign Secretary-level talks with Pakistan, an hour after Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit met Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Shah. Two other separatist leaders — Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Yasin Malik — are scheduled to meet Pakistan High Commission officials on Tuesday. This is a serious setback to the efforts to restart the dialogue process, which have been stalled since January 2013. Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh was scheduled to travel to Islamabad for talks with her Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhary on August 25. The last meeting between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries took place in Islamabad in September 2012.

5) Roger Federer Clinches 6th Title in Cincinnati Masters: Roger Federer has clinched his sixth title in the 2014 Western & Southern Open or the Cincinnati Masters after defeating Spain's David Ferrer in the finals, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. Federer fell in the second set but held his nerve to beat Ferrer in the three-set thriller at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio.

6) Retirement age of state govt staff raised to 60 years in Haryana: With assembly poll dates likely to announced any time now, Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda who has been power for the past about nine years, on Saturday announced to raise the retirement age of the state government employees from 58 to 60 years, 25% hike in dearness allowance and full pension after 20 years of service, besides various other benefits.

7) Jayawardene ends test career in near-perfect style: Mahela Jayawardene ended his illustrious 17-year test career in near perfect style in the whitewash win for Sri Lanka against Pakistan on Monday. A half-century at his home ground, another century stand with his friend and favourite batting partner Kumar Sangakkara, capped with his teammates carrying him off the field on their shoulders.

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Result of SSC CGL Re-Exam (Tier-1) 2014 Published

Friends...Staff Selection Commission has published the results of 2013 CGL Tier-1 re-exam held on 27 April 2014, 20 July 2014 and 16 August 2014. As per the release of SSC, a total of 4,95,376 candidates appeared for the exam among which 1,14,921 candidates have qualified. Tier-2 exam for qualified candidates will be held on 20 and 21 September 2014. You can check result from the following link.

List of qualified candidates: Click Here

Read Write Up/ Cut Off: Click Here

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Employment News: 16 August to 22 August 2014

1. Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (HQ), New Delhi

Name of Posts – Principal, Technical Officer, Assistant, UDC, LDC etc.

No. Of Vacancies- 669

Last Date- 15.09.2014

2. Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board, New Delhi

Name of Posts – Assistants

No. Of Vacancies- 268

Last Date- 15.09.2014

3. Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram

Name of Posts – Technical Assistant, Scientific Assistant, Library Assistant etc.

No. Of Vacancies- 37

Last Date- 03.09.2014

4. PGDAV College, New Delhi

Name of Posts – Administrative Officer, Librarian, Section Officer (Account) , Assistant etc.

No. Of Vacancies- 15

Last Date- 21 days from the date of Publication

5. Rural Electrification Corporation Limited, New Delhi

Name of Posts –Engineer, Manager, Assistant and Rajbhasha Officer

No. Of Vacancies- 17

Last Date- 15.09.2014

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Daily Current Affairs Updates: 16 August 2014

1) PM Narendra Modi inducts largest indigenously built INS Kolkata, says no country will dare to challenge India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 16 Aug 2014commissioned country’s largest indigenously built warship INS Kolkata. INS Kolkata, a part of the Kolkata Class destroyers of the Indian Navy, has been built at the Mumbai-based Mazgaon Docks, a defence Public Sector Unit. Terming military might as the biggest deterrent to war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the defence forces will be modernised to ensure that “nobody casts an evil eye” on the nation. 

Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral RK Dhowan were present at the ceremony held at the Naval dockyard. The warship, constructed by the Mazagon Dockyards Limited, has been designed by Navy’s design bureau. The 6,800 tonne warship is a technology demonstrator and will showcase a giant leap in shipbuilding technology in the country. The Prime Minister had dedicated India’s largest warship INS Vikramaditya to the nation in June in his first outing after taking charge.

2) Rajni Razdan takes over as new UPSC chief: Rajni Razdan on 16 August 2014 took over as new chairman of Union Public Service Commission, which conducts the prestigious civil services examination to select IAS, IFS and IPS officers among others. Razdan was administered the oath as UPSC chief by the outgoing chairperson D P Agrawal, whose tenure ended. Her new charge comes at a time when the Commission is facing a controversy due to the demand for change in the pattern of the examination from a section of aspirants. The UPSC is headed by a chairman and 10 members.

3) 26 killed as rains wreak havoc in U'khand : Twenty-six people were killed in rain-related incidents in Uttarakhand and six people died in Himachal Pradesh as heavy showers wreaked havoc in the hill states since Friday. The Chardham yatra came to a close on Saturday as massive landslides resulted in all routes leading to the four temples getting blocked.

4) BJP Chief Amit Shah announced his new team of party office bearer: BJP president Amit Shah constituted his new team, inducting former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa as Vice President and new RSS pointsman Ram Madhav as General Secretary. A week after his formal anointment as party President, Shah announced his new team of party office bearers that includes 11 Vice Presidents, eight General Secretaries and 14 Secretaries. The new team also includes 10 party Spokespersons, five of them are new.

5) PM laid foundation stone of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation for a multi-crore SEZ and port connectivity project in Navi Mumbai on 16 Aug 2014. The states will soon be allowed to form their own Export Promotion Councils, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said as he underscored the need for the Centre and tates to work in tandem to give a fresh thrust to exports. He also stressed upon the need for swift removal of obstacles stalling the Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

6) Finance Minister relaunched Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana: The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY) will benefit the vulnerable section of society with limited resources as it will provide monthly pension ranging from Rs 500/ to Rs 5,000/ per month to senior citizens of the country. The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley was speaking after re-launching the Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana (VPBY) on the eve of the 68th Independence Day of the country.

Some key features of the scheme are:

* Available to citizens aged 60 years and above.

* Pension would be on immediate annuity basis in monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annual mode, varying, respectively, between Rs. 500 to 5000 (monthly), Rs. 1500 to 15,000 (quarterly), Rs. 3000 to Rs. 30,000 (half-yearly) and from Rs. 6,000 to Rs. 60,000 (annually), depending on the amount subscribed and the option exercised.

* The payout implies an assured return of 9% on monthly payment basis, which amounts to an annualized return of 9.38%.

* Loan (up to 75% of subscribed amount) can be availed after 3 years from the Date of Commencement. * On death, the full purchase price will be refunded to nominee.

* Exit/surrender would be allowed after 15 years or earlier in special circumstances like critical / terminal illness of self or spouse.

* Payment will be through ECS or NEFT.

7) Bypoll on Sept 13 to seats vacated by Modi, Mulayam: Bypolls to the Lok Sabha seats vacated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav will be held on September 13, the Election Commission on Saturday announced. Bypoll will also be held to Medak Lok Sabha seat vacated by TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao after he became the first Chief Minister of Telangana. While Modi had retained Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, he vacated Vadodra in Gujarat. Similarly, Yadav had vacated Mainpuri and retained Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh. While bypolls will be held on September 13, the countintg will be held on September 16.

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Multiple Choice latest Current Affairs Questions: 11 & 12 August 2014

1) Name the German Striker who announced his retirement From International Football on 11 August 2014?

(A) Philip Lahm

(B) Thomas Muller

(C) Miroslav Klose

(D) FRank Ribery

2) Tata Sons-Singapore Airlines joint venture on 11 August 2014 unveiled the brand name of its new airline as?

(A) Vistara

(B) Flyhigh

(C) Megha

(D) Varuna 

3) National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014, and the 121st Constitution Amendment Bill (Insertion of new articles 124A, 124B and 124C) were introduced in the Lok Sabha on 11 August 2014 by Law Minister?

(A) Sadananda Gowda

(B) Ashok Gajapathi Raju

(C) Ram Vilas Paswan

(D) Ravi Shankar Prasad

4) Recently which Indian became the world's No.1 Test all-rounder?

(A) Ravindra Jadeja

(B) Ravichandran Ashwin

(C) Stuart Binny

(D) Bhuvneshwar Kumar

5) Who defeated Roger Federer to win Rogers Cup 2014 on 10 August 2014?

(A) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

(B) Radael Nadal

(C) Novak Djokovic

(D) Stanslas Wawrinka

6) Which automobile company launched Elite i20, the all-new version of its premium compact car i20, on 11 August 2014?

(A) Maruti Suzuki

(B) Tata Motors

(C) Hyundai Motor India

(D) None of these

7) Name the Oscar Winning veteran actor who was found dead on 12 August 2014?

(A) Jeremy Irons

(B) Tom Cruise

(C) Jack Nicholson

(D) Robin Williams

8) 3rd World Elephant Day 2014 was observed on?

(A) 10 August

(B) 11 August

(C) 12 August

(D) 13 August

9) Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated two hydro power projects in Leh and Kargil to nation on 12 Aug 2014. Both these power projects are in which state?

(A) Punjab

(B) Jammu and Kashmir

(C) Sikkim

(D) Arunachal Pradesh

10) Which country finished third in FIFA 2014 World Cup?

(A) Argentina

(B) Barzil

(C) Germany

(D) Netherlands

Answers

1) Ans. (C) Miroslav Klose

2) Ans. (A) Vistara

3) Ans. (D) Ravi Shankar Prasad

4) Ans. (B) Ravichandran Ashwin

5) Ans. (A) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

6) Ans. (C) Hyundai Motor India

7) Ans. (D) Robin Williams

8) Ans. (C) 12 August

9) Ans. (B) Jammu and Kashmir

10) Ans. (D) Netherlands

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GK Questions asked in Previous SSC Examinations

1) Who among the following was the First Viceroy of India?

(A) Lord Ripon

(B) Lord Curzon

(C) Lord Mountbatten

(D) Lord Canning

2) Which one of the following though called a garden is infact, not a garden?

(A) Vrindavan Garden of Mysore

(B) Hanging Garden of Mumbai

(C) Eden Garden of Kolkata

(D) Shalimar Garden of Kashmir

3) Which one of the following committee is associated with banking sector reforms in India?

 (A) L.C. Gupta

(B) Narasimham

(C) Chakravarty

(D) Kelkar

4) The 13th Five Year Plan will be operative for the period

(A) 2010 – 2015

(B) 2011 – 2016

(C) 2012 – 2017

(D) 2013 – 2018

5) The Constitutional Amendment Act that has introduced safeguards against the misuse of proclamation of national emergency is the

(A) 42nd Amendment Act

(B) 43rd Amendment Act

(C) 44th Amendment Act

(D) 45th Amendment Act

6)   A retired Judge of a High Court is not permitted to practice as a lawyer in

(A) Supreme Court

(B) Any Court in India

(C) High Courts

(D) Except the High Court where he retired

7) Who among the following first propounded the idea of Basic Education?

(A) Jawahar Lal Nehru

(B) Raja Ram Mohan Roy

(C) Mahatma Gandhi

(D) Daynand Saraswati

8) The earth is at its maximum distance from the Sun on

(A) January 30th

(B) December 22nd

(C) September 22nd

(D) July 4th

9)  A form of condensation that reduces visibility and causes breathing problems is

(A) Dew

(B) Frost

(C) Smog

(D) Mist

10) Which of the following is a fungal disease?

(A) Leucoderma

(B) Eczema

(C) Ringworm

(D) Elephantiasis

Answers

1) Ans. (D) Lord Canning.  Lord Mountbatten was the First Governor General of Independent India.

2) Ans. (C) Eden Garden of Kolkata

3) Ans. (B) Narasimham

4) Ans. (C) 2012 – 2017

5) Ans. (C) 44th Amendment Act

6) Ans. (B) Any Court in India

7) Ans. (C) Mahatma Gandhi

8) Ans. (D) July 4th

9) Ans. (C) Smog

10) Ans. (C) Ringworm

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