Daily Current Affairs: 18 January 2015

1) South Africa's AB de Villiers hits fastest-ever century in ODI: South Africa captain AB de Villiers smashed the fastest hundred in One Day Internationals - off just 31 balls - during the second match against West Indies at Johannesburg on 18 January 2015. De Villiers hit a record-equalling 16 sixes and nine fours during his thunderous knock, breaking New Zealander Corey Anderson's record of a 36-ball ton in 2014. The veteran wicket-keeper-batsman had earlier scored the fastest half-century off 16 balls. 

2) HDFC Bank & SBI among world's 50 most valued banks in 2014: Two Indian banks, HDFC Bank and State Bank of India (SBI), now figure in a list of the top 50 global banks in terms of market capitalisation. HDFC Bank, India’s second-largest private lender in terms of asset size, ranks 45th, with a market capitalisation of $39 billion, Bloomberg data show. With a market capitalisation of $38 billion, SBI is ranked 46th. ICICI Bank, ranked 53rd, is the only other Indian entity to figure in the list of the 100 most valued global banks.

3) Government launched scheme to support entrepreneurs from Scheduled Caste community:  In a bid to encourage budding and existing entrepreneurs from Scheduled Castes, the government on 16 January 2015 launched a scheme under which members of the reserved community will be offered concessional finance to start new business ventures. The scheme 'Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes' was launched by Union Social Justice Minister Thaawar Chand Gehlot.

4) Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Chairman R K Tyagi conferred JGBS excellence award: Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Chairman R K Tyagi has been conferred with 'JGBS-Top Rankers' Excellence Award for CEO of the year'. HAL was rated as 'Excellent' with a score of 1.08 for the year 2013-14 which is the best among all Defence Public Sector Undertakings.

5) Ministry of Water Resources to celebrate 2015-16 as Jal Kranti Varsh: The Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ms Uma Bharati on 17 January 2015 said that the Year 2015-16 will be celebrated as 'Jal Kranti Varsh (Year)' across the country. Delivering the valedictory address at the 3rd India Water Week, she said the programme will be celebrated in each district of the country and all efforts will be made to conserve and save water.

6) Egyptian iconic actress Faten Hamama passed away: Iconic Egyptian actress Faten Hamama died on 17 January 2015 after suffering a medical crisis. She was 83. She was one of Egypt's most prominent actresses from the 1950s to the early 70s.

7) Andhra Pradesh government inks pact with ICRISAT to boost sustainable farming: The Andhra Pradesh government has signed a pact with International Crop Research Institute for Semi-arid Tropics (ICRISAT) to provide assistance in making agriculture sustainable and profitable. The Memorandum of Agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu by Special Chief Secretary (Planning) S P Tucker and ICRISAT Director-General David Bergvinson.

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AB de Villiers re-writes century records

* South Africa batsman AB de Villiers hit a century off 31 balls to record the fastest ever one-day international ton. De Villiers, 30, set the new landmark during an innings of 149 against the West Indies in Johannesburg.

Here are the records born in the match:

1) Fastest Fifty: AB de Villiers by reaching his fifty (half century) in 16 balls, reset the world record in the name of Sanath Jayasuriya. Jayasuriya scored 50 off 17 balls against Pakistan in 1996.

2) Fastest International Hundred: AB de Villiers hit the century off just 31 balls. He bettered the previous ODI record of hundred in 36 balls by New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson against West Indies last year. (Chris Gayle's 100 from 30 balls in the Indian Premier League in April 2013 is the fastest century in cricket history).

3) Most Sixes in an ODI: AB de Villiers smashed 16 sixes in his innings of 149 off 44 balls. He equalled the record held by Rohit Sharma during his innings of 209 against Australia in 2013.

4) Most hundreds in an ODI innings: Three hundreds been scored in one ODI innings. Rilee Rossouw (128), Hashim Amla (153 not out) and AB de Villiers(149) have scored centuries in this match.

5) Second highest ODI score: South Africa’s 439-2 is the biggest score against a full member of the ICC. The overall record, 443 by Sri Lanka against the Netherlands (an associate member) in 2006.

6) Fastest Partnership: Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers added 192 runs off 67 balls for the second wicket, which is the fastest century partnership scored against a full ICC member.

7) Fastest Strike Rate: AB de Villiers had a strike rate of 338.63 in his innings. Nobody in ODIs had passed a hundred runs at a strike-rate above 300 before.

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Daily Current Affairs Updates: 17 January 2015

1) Defence Minister handed over first indigenously-built Tejas to Air Force: More than three decades after the project was sanctioned, home-grown Light Combat Aircraft Tejas was handed over on 18 January 2015 to Indian Air Force by Defence Minister Manohar Parikkar marking a major milestone in the country's military aviation. The ceremony was held at Bengaluru, Karanataka. The entire project by DRDO and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), including the final induction in the Air Force and Navy, is estimated to cost over Rs 30,000 crore. Tejas is outcome of India’s LCA programme, which began in the 1983 to replace country’s aging MiG-21 fighters.

2) Biopic movie on Stephen Hawking ‘The Theory of Everything’ released in India: Film 'The Theory of Everything’, was released in Indian theatres by Universal Pictures India on 16 January 2015. This film is based on the life of Stephen Hawking, the iconic physicist, and is based on a book on him written by his ex-wife Jane Hawking. It features Hawking’s romance with Jane and his struggle to live with motor neuron disease. The film is one of the front-runners for the Oscar nominations.

3) President launched Pulse Polio Immunization Programme: President Pranab Mukherjee launched the Pulse Polio Immunization Programme by administering polio drops to children aged below five years at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on 17 January 2015, on the eve of National Immunization Day. Lauding the efforts of nearly 23 lakh volunteers and 1.5 lakh supervisors for eradicating polio from India, Health Minister J P Nadda said that there has been no case of wild polio since January 13, 2011.

4) 24 Children, including 8 girls selected for National Bravery Awards: Twenty four children, including eight girls, have been selected for National Bravery Awards for 2014. Four of the awards have been given posthumously. The children will receive their awards from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the 24th of January, and will also participate in the Republic Day parade.

5) CCEA nod to maintain higher buffer stock of foodgrains: To avoid shortage of foodgrains once all states implement the food law, government on 16 January 2015 approved raising buffer stock and strategic reserve limits of Food Corporation of India for both wheat and rice. The government had last changed the buffer norms in 2005.

6) Tribal Food Festival-2015 began: The first of its kind grand Tribal Food Festival-2015 got a kick start by Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Shri Jual Oram in New Delhi on 16 January 2015. This unique festival is organised by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) on behalf of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India at Rajiv Gandhi Handicrafts Bhawan, New Delhi.

7) Ashok Srinivasan won The Hindu Prize 2014: Ashok Srinivasan won The Hindu Prize 2014 for his debut collection of 13 short stories, Book of Common Signs. The award was presented by the former Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court Justice Leila Seth.

8) Pankaj Advani won National Billiards title: Indian ace Pankaj Advani routed his PSPB colleague and ‘friend’ Dhruv Sitwala 5-0 in a flawless display of potting en route to his seventh Senior National Billiards Championship at the Bengal Rowing Club, in Kolkata on 17 January 2015.

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Current Affairs January 2015 PDF - First Week

Download as PDF- Click Here

1) Which player on 3 January 2015 became the fastest cricketer to reach 12000 Test runs? - Kumar Sangakkara

2) Which bank on 2 January 2015 launched Digital Village Project in Akodara Village of Gujarat? - ICICI Bank

Note: This was launched in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ICICI Bank MD and CEO Chanda Kochar.

3) IRDA was renamed recently as? - Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India

Note: Change in name came in to effect after the promulgation of Insurance Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2014, by the President of India on 26 December 2014.

4) Who was sworn-in as tenth Chief Minister of Jharkhand on 28 December 2014? - Raghubar Das

Note: Raghubar Das is the first non-tribal Chief Minister of Jharkhand since the state came into being on 15 November 2000.

5) BCCI on 28 December 2014 banned which left-arm spinner from bowling in competitive matches, after his bowling action was found illegal? - Pragyan Ojha

6) Who retired as the Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on 31 December 2014? - K Radhakrishnan

7) Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on 1 January 2015 launched integrated women safety mobile app called? – Himmat

8) Union Government on 1 January 2015 set up the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog to replace? - Planning Commission

9) Which state government on 1 January 2015 launched online Right to Information (RTI) application filing facility? – Maharashtra

10) Union Government on 2 January 2014 accepted the recommendations of the Bezbaruah committee on? -  Safety of North East people

Note: Bezbaruah committee of five members was set up under chairmanship of M P Bezbaruah in February 2014 to look into the concerns of the people of the North East living in other parts of the country.

11) Sports Ministry on 2 January 2015 cleared the National Boxing Federations new name called? - Boxing India

12) Who took charge as new Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) on 2 January 2015? - R. Koteeswaran

13) Union Cabinet recently approved hike of government stake in Industrial Finance Corporation of India to? -  51 percent

14) Union Government on 29 December 2014 renamed the Department of Disability Affairs (Nishaktata Karya Vibhag) as? - Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Viklangjan Sashaktikaran Vibhag)

15) Mahendra Singh Dhoni on 30 December 2014 announced retirement from which format of International cricket? - Test Cricket

 Prepared by: www.currentaffairs4examz.com

16) Who was appointed as the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on 31 December 2014? - M Sathiyavathy

17) Tropical storm Jangmi made landfall in which country on 28 December 2014? – Philippines

18) Which Indian player on 29 December 2014 won the International Tennis Association (ITF) singles title of the World Tennis Association circuit held in Pune? - Ankita Raina

19) AirAsia flight number QZ8501 recently went missing (later confirmed as crash) with 162 people on board en route from? - Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore

20) Union Government in the recently decided to launch Operation All Out against Bodo militants in which state? – Assam

21) Who won the ATP World Tennis Championship at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi on 4 January 2015? - Andy Murray

22) Who took over as the new chairman of Airports Authority of India (AAI) on 2 January 2015? - R K Srivastava

23) Who was appointed as the Chairman of Railway Board on 31 December 2014? - A.K. Mittal

24) Who was elected as President of the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) for 2014-15 on 2 January 2015? - Kiran Bhai Vadodaria

25) President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 30 December 2014 appointed the Governors of Mizoram, Uttarakhand and Meghalaya. Name them?

Mizoram - Aziz Qureshi, Uttarakhand - Dr Krishan Kant Paul, Meghalaya - Keshari Nath Tripathi

26) RBI recently amended KYC norms for? - Non-Banking Financial Companies

27) Union Government recently launched Madan Mohan Malviya National Mission on? - Teachers and Teaching

28) Name the noted educationist and former Vice Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University who died on 29 December 2014? - Saiyid Hamid

29) Jaffna-Kankasanthurai rail track restored by IRCON was recently inaugurated in which country? - Sri Lanka

30) Who was sworn in as the President of Tunisia on 31 December 2014? - Beji Caid Essebsi

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NIACL Assistant Exam (Evening Shift) Questions: 18 January 2015

Friends.. Here are the evening shift GK/GA and Computer questions asked in today's (18 JAN 2015) New India Assurance Assistant Exam. These questions will be useful for those having exam tommorrow and 24th of this month. If anybody would like to share more questions, you can add it here as comment or can mail us at currentaffairs4examz@gmail.com.

Below questions were shared with us by: Harish Sharma from Indore, Parvathy Nair. Thank & wish them all the very best. 

1) Anirban Lahiri is related to which sports? - Golf

2) 19th National Youth Festival was recently held at? - Guwahati

3) John O´Keefe got Nobel Prize 2014 in which field? - Medicine

4) Name the Union Minister of Mines & Steel? - Narendra Singh Tomar

5) Viswanathan Anand defeated whom to win London Chess Classic recently? - Michael Adams

6) Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme (DBTL) for LPG has recently been renamed as? - PAHAL

7) Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary is situated at? - Goa

8) Required capital for setting up health Insurance? - Rs.100 crore

9)  Full form of CP? - Commercial Paper.

10) Government has decided to decriminalize "attempt to suicide" by deleting which section? - Section 309

11) Headquarters of United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)? - Nairobi, Kenya

12) Who regulate exchanges in India? - SEBI

13) Maximum saving account balance limit for payment banks?

14) Who is the Vice Chairman of NITI Ayog? - Arvind Panagariya

15) Which country's stock exchange is Topix? - Japan

16) Government plans to cut stake in PSU banks to? - 52%

17) Who is maximum share holder of New India Assurance Company Ltd? - Government

18) UN climate change summit 2014 was held at? - Lima, Peru

19) Author of the book "One Life Is Not Enough An Autobiography"? - Natwar Singh

20) Headquarters of Bank for International Settlements (BIS)? - Basel, Switzerland

21) Navy Day was observed on? - December 4

22) Capital of Chile? - Santiago

23) Currency of Spain? - Euro

24) Who is the head of the committee set up by railways recently for recommending on the ways and means by which the railways can monetize its resources? - D.K. Mittal

25) Canada's central bank name? -  Bank of Canada

26) Minimum paid up capital for public company? -Rs.5 lakh

27) Which country accounts highest carbon dioxide emission? - China

28) Vistara Airlines recently operated its first flight from? - Delhi to Mumbai

29) Which is country's largest company in terms of revenue? - Indian Oil Corporation

30) Who among the following is not a regulator? - IBA

Check Morning Shift Questions: Click Here

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Today's (18 January 2015) NIACL Assistant Exam GA Questions: Morning Shift

Friends.. Here are the GK and Computer questions asked in today's (18 JAN 2015) New India Assurance Assistant Exam morning Shift. These questions will be useful for those having exam on 23rd Jan 2015. If anybody would like to share more questions, you can add it here as comment or can mail us at currentaffairs4examz@gmail.com.

Below questions were shared with us by: Santhosh Kumar, Nia Shukla, Rakesh Babu, Nidhya Krishna & Feyn. Thank you guys & wish you all the very best. 

1) Vienna is the capital of? - Austria

2) International Labour Organization (ILO) headquarters? - Geneva, Switzerland

3) Emmy awards are given in the field of? - Television industry

4) Union Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises? - Anant Geete

5) NITI Ayog chairman? - Prime Minister

6) Next NATO summit in 2016 will be held at? - Warsaw, Poland

7) Ankita Raina is related to which sport? - Tennis

8) Who won Abu Dabhi tennis championship recently? - Andy Murray

9) Name the scheme recently launched for welfare of Tribals by Union Government? - Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana (VKY)

10) Patrick Modiano got Nobel Prize 2014 in which field? - Literature

11) Population of females in India according to Census 2011? - 586.46 million (48.46%)

12) Mission Indradhanush covers how many diseases? - 7 (Diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B)

13) Minimum capital required to set-up white label ATMs? - Rs.100 crore

14) Vibrant Gujarat summit was recently held at? -  Gandhinagar, Gujarat

15) DICGC is a wholly owned subsidiary of? - Reserve Bank of India

16) Banking Codes and Standards Board of India (BCSBI) was established by? -

17) Name the brand ambassador of Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan? - Vidya Balan

18) Which bank recently launched credit card with an innovative transparent design? - ICICI Bank

19) NIACL majority share holder? - Union Government

20) Nifty is the index of which country? - India

21) Line between India and China? - Line of Actual Control

22) Mahatma Gandhi Setu connects? - Patna in the south to Hajipur in the north of Bihar

23) PIO full form? - Person of Indian Origin

24) Third Sunday of January in USA is celebrated as? - National Sanctity of Human Life Day

25) Commodity market regulator? - FMC

26) URL full form? - Uniform Resource Locator

27) Website first page is called? - Homepage

28) Who was selected Person of the year by fortune magazine? - Larry Page

29) Theme of Indian Science Congress 2015 held recently in Mumbai? - Science & Technology for Human Development
30) February 13 is celebrated as? - National Women's Day (Birth anniversary of Sarojini Naidu)

31) Ambassador for Andhra Pradesh health sector? - Amitabh Bachchan

32)  Bit is short form for? - Binary digit

Check Evening Shift Questions: Click Here

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IBPS Exam Calendar 2015: Two Tier Exam for PO/MT and Clerks from CWE-V

Friends.. as you have already noticed Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) has published its Calendar of Exams for 2015 with tentative dates on 16.01.2015. It was mentioned in the notice that they have decided to hold two-tier examinations for recruitment of PO/MT and Clerks from CWE-V onwards. That means a slight change in the exam pattern is also expected. Further details regarding the change will be out in few days. The notification published by IBPS read as follows:

RRBs CWE-IV Tentative dates: 05.09.2015, 06.09.2015, 12.09.2015, 13.09.2015, 19.09.2015, 20.09.2015, 26.09.2015 & 27.09.2015

PSBs – CWE PO/MT-V and CWE CLERK-V

It has been decided by the competent authority to hold two-tier examinations for recruitment of PO/MT and Clerks from CWE-V onwards. All the candidates who successfully register themselves under CWE PO/MT-V and CWE CLERK-V will be called for Preliminary Examinations. Based on the performance in the preliminary examination, certain number of candidates will be shortlisted for each of these examinations. The short listed candidates will then be called for Main Examinations. There will be fewer number of questions in the Preliminary Examination with shorter duration. The details with regard to both the Preliminary and Main examinations will be made available on IBPS website through the detailed notifications in due course. The marks obtained in the Preliminary examination will not be considered for preparing the final meritlist and the marks obtained in the Main Examination will only be considered for short listing for interview.

IBPS PO V Exam Dates

Preliminary Examination: 03.10.2015, 04.10.2015, 10.10.2015 &11.10.2015

Main Examination: 31.10.2015

IBPS Clerk V Exam Dates

Preliminary Examination: 05.12.2015, 06.12.2015, 12.12.2015, 13.12.2015, 19.12.2015 & 20.12.2015

Main Examination: 03.01.2016

IBPS Specialist Officers V dates: 30.01.2016 & 31.01.2016

View IBPS Exam Calendar 2015: Click Here

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Current Affairs Quiz: 17 January 2015

1) Who among the following resigned as Chairperson of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) on 16 January 2015?

(A) Shaji N Karun

(B) Leela Samson

(C) Ira Bhaskar

(D) Isha Sharwani

2) Anupam Shrivastava was recently appointed as the CMD of?

(A) BSNL

(B) Coal India Ltd

(C) Air India

(D) Niti Ayog 

3) Which state government has recently appointed Baba Ramdev as its brand ambassador?

(A) Gujarat

(B) Madhya Pradesh

(C) Jharkhand

(D) Haryana

4) What is the name of the world’s newest jetliner that took to the skies on 15 January 2015?

(A) Airbus A350

(B) Airbus A525

(C) Boeing 747

(D) None of these

5) Which Australian cricket player has announced his retirement from all the formats of game, ending a 20-year long career on 15 January 2015?

(A) Adam Gilchrist

(B) Ricky Ponting

(C) Brett Lee

(D) Shane Warne

6) RBI on 15 January 2015 decided to cut the benchmark interest rate (Repo Rate) by 0.25 per cent to ___ per cent with a view to boost growth?

(A) 8%

(B) 7.75%

(C) 7.50%

(D) 7%

7) Which state government on 15 January 2015 lifted the 17-year-old ban on consumption of liquor in the state?

(A) Kerala

(B) Karnataka

(C) Gujarat

(D) Mizoram

8) Microsoft on 15 January 2015 suspended "mainstream support" of its which popular operating system, meaning neither new features nor free help will be given to users using this OS?

(A) Widows 8

(B) Windows 7

(C) Windows Vista

(D) Windows XP

9) Army Day was recently observed on?

(A) 11 January

(B) 13 January

(C) 15 January

(D) 17 January

10) Controversial book on Sonia Gandhi 'The Red Saree' is set to be released in India by Roli Books soon. The book was first published in Spanish with the title 'El Sari Rojo' in which year?

(A) 2008

(B) 2010

(C) 2004

(D) 2014

Answers

1) Ans. (B) Leela Samson

2) Ans. (A) BSNL

3) Ans. (D) Haryana

4) Ans. (A) Airbus A350

5) Ans. (C) Brett Lee

6) Ans. (B) 7.75%

7) Ans. (D) Mizoram

8) Ans. (B) Windows 7

9) Ans. (C) 15 January

10) Ans. (A) 2008

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Daily Current Affairs: 16 January 2015

1) Stephen Constantine appointed Indian men's football head coach: Englishman Stephen Constantine was on 16 January 2015 appointed head coach of Indian men's football team, paving the way for his return at the helm of affairs for the second time. 52-year-old Constantine, who is also be the coach of the India Under-23 national team, is expected to take charge from the first week of next month. Constantine was India coach from 2002 till 2005, during which the national team won the LG Cup in Vietnam and finished runners-up in the Afro Asian Games. He was the head coach of the Rwanda national team before he was offered the India job. He will replace Wim Koevermans who left the job recently after a just over two-year stint. 

2) Leela Samson resigned as Chairperson of Central Board of Film Certification: Leela Samson has resigned as the censor board chief on 16 January 2015. She resigned after Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) cleared the controversial film 'MSG' Messenger of God featuring Dera Saccha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in lead role. The Censor Board headed by Ms. Samson had earlier denied the clearance certificate to the film saying that the movie depicts Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh as a God. Samson has headed the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), a statutory body under the information and broadcasting ministry, since 2011. It regulates the public exhibition of films under the Cinematograph Act, 1952.

3) Kiran Bedi joined BJP: In a development which could turn Delhi polls into a presidential-style face- off, BJP on 15 January 2015 inducted Kiran Bedi amid strong indication that it could project the country's first woman IPS officer as its CM candidate.

4) Petrol price cut by Rs 2.42 per litre, diesel Rs 2.25 per litre: Petrol price was on Friday cut by Rs 2.42 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.25 a litre after an excise duty hike limited the benefit of global crude prices slumping to six-year low. The reduction would have been almost double but for the government also raising excise duty by Rs 2 per litre on both petrol and diesel on 16 Jan 2015.

5) Sania Mirza, Bethanie Mattek-Sands won Sydney doubles title: India's Sania Mirza won her first title of the season and 23rd of her career when she and Bethanie Mattek-Sands shocked top-seeded Americans Abigail Spears and Raquel Kops-Jones in the summit clash of the Sydney International on 16 January 2015. It was fifth WTA title for Sania and Bethanie together.

6) Phase III of Radion FM auctions get Cabinet nod: The proposal for auctioning for phase III of FM channels was given a go ahead by the government on 16 Jan 2015. The exchequer stands to add an estimated revenue of over Rs 550 crore from the process. The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also approved migration (renewal) of private FM Radio licenses from Phase-II to Phase-III in 69 existing cities for 135 channels on payment of migration fee according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI’s) recommendations.

7) Controversial book on Sonia Gandhi 'The Red Saree' to be released in India: Spanish writer Javier Moro's 'The Red Sari', controversial, unauthorized biography of Congress President Sonia Gandhi was set to be released by Roli Books in India. The book's English version was not allowed to be released in India in 2010. This was the time when the Congress-led UPA was in power and Sonia Gandhi, the widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, was considered as one of the world's most powerful private leaders.

8) Shashi Tharoor’s latest book released: Author-politician Shashi Tharoor said it was the Bharatiya Janata Party’s overwhelming victory in last year’s Lok Sabha polls that inspired him to write his latest book, the last in his trilogy on India. ‘India Shastra: Reflections on the Nation in Our Time’, was released on 15 January 2015 at the Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival (AKLF), is a portrait of under-transformation contemporary India. It contains 99 essays on various contemporary subjects.

9) HS Brahma took charge as Chief Election Commissioner: Hari Shankar Brahma, took over as the 19th Chief Election Commissioner or CEC on 16 January 2015. Senior-most Election Commissioner HS Brahma was elevated as Chief Election commissioner after V S Sampath demitted office on 15 Jan 2015 on attaining the age of 65 years. Brahma will have a tenure of slightly over three months till April 19.

10) Jammu and Kashmir gets National Award for e-Governance: Jammu and Kashmir has bagged the National Award for e-Governance for the best district-level initiative in the country. The Department of Administrative Reforms, Ministry of Personnel and the PMO have selected Jammu and Kashmir for National Award e-Governance 2014-15 for the best district- level initiative in the country, an official spokesman said.

11) Britain's missing spacecraft found on Mars: Britain's infamous "Beagle 2" spacecraft, once dubbed "a heroic failure" by the nation's Astronomer Royal, has been found on Mars -- 11 years after it went missing searching for extraterrestrial life. Beagle 2, part of the European Space Agency's Mars Express mission, had been due to land on Mars on Christmas Day 2003, but went missing on December 19, 2003. Until now, nothing had been heard from it since then.

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