Academy Awards

The 86th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS),
honored the actors, technical achievements, and films of 201 and too! place on March 2, 2014, at the Dolby
Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles
The ceremony "as scheduled one "ee! later than usual to avoid conflict "ith the broadcast of the 201# $inter
%lympics in Sochi, &ussia' (urin) the ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences "ill present
Academy A"ards of Merit (commonly referred to as %scars) in 24 categories
*omedian !llen De"eneres hosted the sho" for the second time' (e+eneres previously hosted the ,-th ceremony
in 200,'
Most a"ards . +ravity(,)
Most nominations . American /ustle and +ravity (10)
#$%%!&'(
)est *ict+re . 12 0ears a Slave
)est Actor in a Leading &ole . Matthe" Mc*onau)hey ((allas 1uyers *lub)
)est Actress in a Leading &ole . *ate 1lanchett (1lue 2asmine)
)est Actor in a '+,,orting &ole . 2ared 3eto ((allas 1uyers *lub)
)est Actress in a '+,,orting &ole . 3upita 4yon)5o (12 0ears a Slave)
)est Animated -eat+re . 6ro7en (*hris 1uc!, 2ennifer 3ee, Peter (el 8echo)
)est .inematogra,hy . +ravity (9mmanuel 3ube7!i)
)est .ost+me Design . The +reat +atsby (*atherine Martin)
)est Directing . +ravity (Alfonso *uar:n)
)est Doc+mentary -eat+re . 20 6eet from Stardom
)est Doc+mentary 'hort . The 3ady in 4umber ;< Music Saved My 3ife (Malcolm *lar!e, 4icholas
&eed)
)est -ilm !diting . +ravity (Alfonso *uar:n, Mar! San)er)
)est -oreign Lang+age -ilm . The +reat 1eauty (=taly)
)est Ma/e+, and Hairstyling . (allas 1uyers *lub (Adruitha 3ee, &obin Mathe"s)
)est 0riginal 'core . +ravity (Steven Price)
)est 0riginal 'ong . 3et =t +o . 6ro7en
)est *rod+ction Design . The +reat +atsby (*atherine Martin, 1everley (unn)
)est Animated 'hort -ilm . Mr' /ublot (3aurent $it7, Ale>andre 9spi)ares)
)est Li1e Action 'hort -ilm . /elium (Anders $alter, ?im Ma)nusson)
)est 'o+nd !diting . +ravity (+lenn 6reemantle)
)est 'o+nd Mi2ing . +ravity (S!ip 3ievsay, 4iv Adiri, *hristopher 1enstead, *hris Munro)
)est 3is+al !44ects . +ravity (Tim $ebber, *hris 3a"rence, (ave Shir!, 4eil *orbould)
)est Ada,ted 'creen,lay . 12 0ears a Slave (2ohn &idley)
1) )est 0riginal 'creen,lay . /er (Spi!e 2on7e)
CURRET AFFAIRS - MARCH 2014
1) Abdullah, the !in) of Saudi Arabia appointed his half.brother Mo@ren as the ne>t heir to the
throne'
2) Sunil +avas!ar "as appointed as the interim president of the 1oard of *ontrol for *ric!et in
=ndia (1**=) by the Supreme *ourt' Sunil +avas!ar replaced the present 1**= chief 4
Srinivasan'
) 2ens Stoltenber) "as appointed as the Secretary +eneral of 4orth Atlantic Treaty %r)anisation
(4AT%)' /e "ill replace the incumbent Secretary +eneral Anders 6o)h &asmussen'
#) +eneral Sed!i Sobhi "as s"orn.in as the ne" (efence Minister and Army *hief of 9)ypt'
A) &aBiv Ta!ru "as appointed as the &evenue Secretary' /e "ill succeed Sumit 1ose'
;) &a!esh Sethi "as appointed as *M( of Allahabad 1an!'
,) Sheila (i!shit, the former chief minister of (elhi "as appointed as the 22nd +overnor of ?erala'
She "ill succeed 4i!hil ?umar'
C) =ndian.ori)in +opal &ao "on D? T"itter Pri7e'
-) 2apanese architect Shi)eru 1an "on the Prit7!er Architecture Pri7e 201#'
10) +ovind Mishra, the reno"ned /indi author "ill receive Sara"asti Samman for the year 201 for
his boo! (hool Paudho Par published in 200C'
11) The C;th Annual Academy %scar A"ards 201# . The best picture a"ard "as "on by 12 0ears A
Slave of Steve McEueen' 1est Actor F Matthe" Mc*onau)hey (6ilm.(allas 1uyers *lub), 1est
Actress . *ate 1lanchett (6ilm . 1lue 2asmine), 1est (irector . Alfonso *uaron (6ilm F +ravity)'
12) Physicist &aBesh +opa!umar "as selected for + ( 1irla A"ard for scientific research for the year
201'
1) The ne" *orporate &esponsibility &e)ulations notified recently "as not applicable to the State
1an! of =ndia, but it "ould comply voluntarily as S1= "as created under S1= Act'
1#) =ndian Bournalist Shubranshu *houdhary "on +oo)le di)ital activism a"ard for re)ional ne"s
service'
1A) Tomas /ali!, the *7ech priest "on the Templeton Pri7e for 201#'
1;) President Pranab Mu!herBee presented the President5s Standard and *olours A"ard to 112
/elicopter Dnit and President5s *olour to # 1ase &epair (epot (1&()'
1,) =ndian "riter Pan!aB Mishra "on $indham *ampbell 3iterature Pri7e 201# in non.fiction
cate)ory'
1C) DS honoured 3a>mi, an acid attac! victim "ith the presti)ious =nternational $omen of *oura)e
A"ard'
1-) *handi Prasad 1hatt, the noted +andhian environmentalist and social activist "on the +andhi
Peace Pri7e for the year 201' 1hatt "as one of the pioneers of the *hip!o movement'
20) Actor ArBun ?apoor "as named as the brand ambassador of the 9arth hour 201#' 9arth hour is an
initiative under "hich citi7ens are advised to s"itch off all electricity for an hour' =t is or)ani7ed
by the $orld $ide 6und for 4ature ($$6)'
21) +rand Bury of DS indicted =ndian diplomat (evyani ?hobra)ade, the person accused for visa
fraud and for under payin) her house!eeper' 9arlier, the virtually identical char)es a)ainst
(evyani "ere dropped by a court on the )round that she enBoyed diplomatic immunity'
22) Abdel 6attah Al.Sisi, the Army *hief of 9)ypt resi)ned to contest in Presidential election'
2) (r ?* *ha!rabarty, the (eputy +overnor of the &eserve 1an! of =ndia resi)ned' 9arlier, Anand
Sinha retired from the position of (eputy +overnor of &1='
2#) +? Pillai resi)ned as *hairman of M*G.SG on 1# March 201#' *onse@uently, current 8ice
*hairman and former 3=* *hairman, Thomas Mathe" T "as elected as ne" *hairman'
2A) 4andan 4ile!ani resi)ned as chairman of the Dni@ue =dentification Authority of =ndia (D=(A=)'
/e Boined the *on)ress Party to contest 3o! Sabha Polls from the 1an)alore South constituency'
2;) *hief 6inancial %fficer (*6%) of Apple =nc Peter %ppenheimer announced his retirement'
2,) 8eteran film actress of /indi and Marathi films, 4anda died'
2C) ?hush"ant Sin)h, the reno"ned author and Bournalist died'
2-) Ahmad TeBan ?abbah, the former President and leader of Sierra 3eone died'
0) South *hina Sea.Malaysia Airlines fli)ht M/,0 disappeared in the South *hina Sea'
1) Dnion Ministry of Minority Affairs launched 4alanda ProBect for Minorities /i)her 9ducational
=nstitutions'
2) Dnion Ministry of Minority Affairs launched a ne" initiative Maulana A7ad Sehat Scheme for
the "elfare of minorities'
) =ndia "as ran!ed fourth in a Microsoft report in the list of the countries sendin) out spam e.mails'
=ndia has follo"ed three nations namely DSA, *hina, D?'
#) =ndiaHs import of "eapon systems is three times more than Pa!istan and *hina' The report
published by as S"edish Thin! Tan!, Stoc!holm =nternational Peace &esearch =nstitute (S=P&=)
has claimed that =ndia continues to be the lar)est buyer of arms in the "orld'
A) Mumbai "as the least e>pensive maBor city for e>patriates amon) the maBor cities of the "orld'
This "as revealed in a report released by the 9conomist =ntelli)ence Dnit (9=D)' After Mumbai,
?arachi and 4e" (elhi are the least e>pensive city in the "orld' Sin)apore "as ran!ed as the
most e>pensive city'
;) The Third 4uclear Security Summit "as held in The /a)ue, 4etherlands from 2# to 2A March
201#'
,) A non.profit )roup 8andana 6oundation launched AEDATM in Mumbai' The AEDATM is a
"ater vendin) machine from "hich "ater can be purchased'
C) A multi.pron)ed 4ational campai)n on (en)ue, 5 6 Me Against Deng+e, "as launched to
eradicate den)ue across si> =ndian cities "ith public private partnership'
-) Dnion (efence Ministry ordered a *1= investi)ation into the purchase of Bet fi)hter en)ines from
1ritainHs &olls.&oyce that "orth 10000 crore rupees'
#0) =ndian 4avy successfully completed Theatre 3evel %perational &eadiness 9>ercise (T&%P9G),
one of its lar)est "ar drills spread over =ndian %cean, Arabian Sea and 1ay of 1en)al re)ion'
#1) =ndia and 4epal started a Boint military e>ercise at SalBhandi in &upandehi district of 4epal' The
t"o "ee! e>ercise named 9>.Surya ?iran (rills 8='
#2) Third 1=MST9* (1ay of 1en)al =nitiative for Multi.Sectoral Technical and 9conomic
*ooperation) Summit "as held from 1 March to # March 201# in 4ay Pyi Ta", Myanmar' =ndian
Prime Minster visited Myanmar'
#) Sumith 4a!andala "as appointed as the first Secretary +eneral of 1=MST9*'
##) The Dnion *abinet )ave its approval for the settin) up of A# ?endriya 8idyalayas, four 4ational
=nstitutes of (esi)n (4=(s), and ,A00 model schools at the bloc! level in 9ducationally
1ac!"ard 1loc!s (911s)' The proposal to set up ne" ?8s durin) the 12th 6ive 0ear Plan
period'
#A) 8arious *entral a)encies cleared seven maBor 4ational /i)h"ay proBects, includin) the (elhi.
Meerut 9>press"ay, pertainin) mostly to Dttar Pradesh, (elhi, /aryana and PunBab and
&aBasthan'
#;) The *entre assailed the 2anuary 21 Supreme *ourt verdict commutin) the death sentence of 1A
convicts to life term, sayin) the PresidentHs decision in disposin) of a mercy petition "as beyond
Budicial revie"'
#,) $ith a vie" to promotin) affordable and effective )eneric dru)s, the *entre has as!ed the States
to provide space in )overnment hospitals for their sale so that more 2an Aushadhi Stores could be
opened'
#C) President Pranab Mu!herBee )ave his assent to the Andhra Pradesh &eor)anisation 1ill, 201# that
"ould pave "ay for the creation of the State of Telan)ana, and approved the *abinetHs
recommendation to impose *entral rule in the State'
#-) &ussiaHs Parliament has approved the use of armed force in D!raine, even as the $est "arned
Mosco" not to intervene in the troubled post.Soviet state'
A0) 3ieutenant.+overnor 4aBeeb 2un) approved a proposal to brin) bac! trams in *handni *ho"!
area'
A1) 2ustice +' &ohini is set to become the first "oman *hief 2ustice of the (elhi /i)h *ourt'
A2) T"o fund houses of S1= and A>is have filed papers "ith the Securities and 9>chan)e 1oard of
=ndia (S91=) to start mutual fund schemes lin!ed to inflation.inde>ed bonds'
A) 6ormer Telecom &e)ulatory Authority of =ndia (T&A=) *hairman 2' S' Sarma, an advocate of
telecom sector reforms, has passed a"ay'
A#) The Dnion )overnment has raised by 10 to 20 basis points the interest rates on select fi>ed
deposit schemes offered by post offices' The rate hi!e "ill come into effect from April 1, 201#'
The rate hi!e decision is in line "ith the recommendations of the Shyamala +opinath *ommittee'
AA) $ith the provisional e>clusion of the =ndian 1o>in) 6ederation (=16), the =nternational 1o>in)
Association (A=1A) has su))ested that a ne" national federation be floated to revive the
countryHs relations "ith the international bo>in) community' The A=1A, "hich suspended the
=16 on (ecember ;, 2012 due to alle)ed irre)ularities in its elections held that year'
A;) &1= decided to allo" forei)n in"ard remittances received under money transfer service scheme
(MTSS) directly into the ban! account of the beneficiary throu)h electronic modes such as
national electronic funds transfer (496T) and immediate payment service (=MPS)'
A,) The elections for the 1;th 3o! Sabha, alon) "ith the Assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, %disha
and Si!!im, "ill be held on nine different dates' The first date is April , and the last is May 12'
*ountin) of votes "ill be held on May 1;' *hief 9lection *ommissioner 8'S' Sampath,
accompanied by 9lection *ommissioners /'S' 1rahma and S'4'A' Iaidi, said 1ihar and Dttar
Pradesh "ould have the ma>imum of si> pollin) dates each'
AC) The 4ational /uman &i)hts *ommission (4/&*) has ur)ed the Dttar Pradesh )overnment to
ta!e immediate action to end the stri!e by )overnment doctors "hich has resulted in Jviolation of
peopleHs ri)ht to health and life'K
A-) =ndiaHs current account deficit (*A() narro"ed sharply to L#'2 billion (0'- per cent of )ross
domestic product (+(P)) in the third @uarter of the current financial year'
;0) Telecom subscribers across the country can no" re)ister complaints by diallin) a special toll free
number 10;'
;1) At +raphic 9ra Dniversity in (ehradun as Arvind Mishra, a youn) assistant professor of
Mechanical 9n)ineerin), bro!e the +uinness record of 121 hours in the non.stop lecturin)
cate)ory'
;2) 6or the first time candidates "ill have the option of e.filin) their affidavits in the comin) 3o!
Sabha and Assembly polls' The mandatory affidavits (6orm 2;), to be submitted at the time of
filin) nomination papers, include information on the candidateHs assets (movable and immovable
property), property and accounts abroad, liabilities, educational @ualifications and criminal
antecedents, if any, and the name of the spouse and dependents'
;) 1haratiya Mahila 1an! (1M1) "ill celebrate =nternational $omen5s (ay by or)anisin) financial
literacy camps for "omen' All the 12 branches of the ban! "ill or)anise financial literacy camps
on March C'
;#) *hina announced its bi))est hi!e in military spendin) in three years, "ith its defence bud)et set
to cross L10 billion in the comin) year'
;A) Tata Motors said it had tied up "ith 1haratiya Mahila 1an! to provide retail finance to its
passen)er vehicle customers'
;;) 1ihar is =ndiaHs fastest )ro"in) State "ith its +ross State (omestic Product (+S(P) )ro"in) at
1A'0A per cent durin) 2012.1' Accordin) to the *S% data, +uBarat )re" at ,'-; per cent, ran!ed
si>th, behind 1ihar, Madhya Pradesh (-'C- per cent), +oa (C'#, per cent), ?erala (C'2# per cent)
and %disha (C'0- per cent)' The all.=ndia economic )ro"th in 2012.1 "as #'#, per cent'
;,) A hi)h.po"er committee under the 6inancial Stability and (evelopment *ouncil (6S(*) has
been set up to find "ays for the ban!in) sector to comply "ith 1asel.=== capital norms' The
decision "as ta!en at a sub.committee meetin) of 6S(* chaired by &eserve 1an! of =ndia (&1=)
+overnor &a)huram &aBan'
;C) Myanmar received the a"ard of $orldHs 1est Tourist (estination for 201# by the 9uropean
Dnion *ouncil on Tourism and Trade'
;-) To e>pedite proceedin)s a)ainst sittin) MPs and M3As in criminal cases, the Supreme *ourt
as!ed lo"er courts to complete trial "ithin a year of framin) of char)es'
,0) T"o &ussian cosmonauts and an American astronaut landed bac! on 9arth in ?a7a!hstan after a
stay of more than half a year aboard the =nternational Space Station (=SS)'
,1) *hina said it "ould allo", for the first time, the settin) up of five private ban!s on a trial basis'
,2) 1haratiya Mahila 1an! 3imited, the first "omenHs ban! and a "holly.o"ned )overnment
institution, proposes to open AA more branches in Tier #, Tier.A and Tier.; cities in 201#.1A'
,) +old and silver imports declined by ,1'# per cent to L1'; billion in 6ebruary mainly due to
restrictions imposed by the )overnment'
,#) The Supreme *ourt declined to revie" its 2anuary 21 verdict, commutin) the death sentence of
1A convicts to life term because of inordinate delay on the part of the President in disposin) of
their mercy petitions'
,A) &a!esh Sethi too! over as *hairman and Mana)in) (irector of Allahabad 1an!'
,;) The D'S' financial re)ulator "arned consumers that usin) the online currency 1itcoin "as frau)ht
"ith ris!s, includin) theft by hac!in) and fraud'
,,) The (irector +eneral of *ivil Aviation has come out "ith ne" detailed )uidelines for the
physically challen)ed travellin) by air, ma!in) it clear that no airline can refuse to fly them'
,C) =ndia and 1an)ladesh are !een to increase business relations by settin) up inland "ater"ays for
hassle.free movement of car)o'
,-) Sin)aporeHs central ban! said it "ould re)ulate MintermediariesH for the 1itcoin virtual currency to
prevent them from bein) used for money launderin) and terrorist financin)'
C0) =ndiaHs forei)n e>chan)e reserves Bumped by L1'0CC billion to touch L2-A'#A billion durin) the
"ee! ended March ,, 201#'
C1) *rimea declared independence from D!raine and applied to reBoin &ussia' 4early -, percent of
voters said NyesK to revert to &ussia'
C2) (esi)ned and built usin) a L,,,,000 )rant from the 1ill O Melinda +ates 6oundation, the self.
contained, "aterless toilet "ith its innovative technolo)y converts human "aste to biochar, a
hi)hly porous charcoal' =t aims to provide an eco.friendly solution to help some of the 2'A billion
people around the "orld lac!in) safe sanitation'
C) 6aceboo! chief Mar! Iuc!erber) said he had called President 1arac! %bama to complain that the
D'S' )overnment is underminin) confidence in the =nternet "ith vast, secret surveillance
pro)rammes'
C#) $holesale Price =nde> =nflation slipped to a nine.month lo" of #';C per cent in 6ebruary'
CA) +oldman Sachs Asset Mana)ement (=ndia) has announced the launch of *PS9.9T6 (*entral
Public Sector 9nterprise 9>chan)e Traded 6und) ne" fund offer, "hich trac!s the central public
sector enterprises (*PS9) inde>' Throu)h this fund, investors can invest in Maharatnas,
4avratnas and Miniratnas companies'
C;) The Andhra Pradesh State )overnment has in principle decided for the &s' 1,000.crore Missile
Test 3aunch 6acility proBect proposed by the (efence &esearch and (evelopment %r)anisation
((&(%) in 4a)ayalan!a mandal of ?rishna district'
C,) 6or the first time, a lar)e section of the still classified /enderson 1roo!s &eport, "hich details a
comprehensive operational revie" of =ndiaHs military debacle in =ndia *hina "ar 1-;2, has been
made public'
CC) 9l SalvadorHs election officials declared Sanche7 *eren the "inner in presidential election'
C-) 3udhiana and ?anpur are amon) the 10 most polluted cities in the "orld, says the $orld /ealth
%r)anisation' 3udhiana made it to the fourth position alon) "ith Euetta in Pa!istan' ?anpur
made it to the ninth position' The most polluted city in the "orld is Ahva7 in =ran'
-0) The 9lection *ommission has directed content mana)ers of social net"or!in) sites to ma!e sure
that candidates do not post anythin) violative of the model code of conduct' The )uidelines "ill
be applicable to a ran)e of =nternet.based social media includin) T"itter, 0ouTube, 6aceboo!
and $i!ipedia'
-1) The All =ndia 1an! 9mployeesH Association has sou)ht the immediate intervention of *hief
9lection *ommissioner 8'S' Sampath to dis@ualify top loan defaulters from enterin) the poll
fray
-2) The /ome Ministry has ta!en action a)ainst about 1-,000 non.)overnment or)anisations "hich
did not file returns "ithin the stipulated time period'
-) &eserve 1an! of =ndia has "arned all domestic ban!s to ta!e steps before Microsoft ends its
$indo"s GP soft"are support from April C, 201#'
-#) A city court directed Tamil 4adu *hief Minister 2ayalalithaa and her close aide 4' Sasi!ala to
appear before it on April to face trial in cases pertainin) to alle)ed failure to file =ncome Ta>
returns'
-A) The *entral +overnment "ill sell #'2 crore shares or - per cent sta!e in A>is 1an!' The
)overnment holds about 20',2 per cent of the shares of the third lar)est =ndian private sector ban!
throu)h the Specified Dnderta!in) of DT= (Dnit trust of =ndia)'
-;) The 9D "elcomed D!raine into the $estern fold, si)nin) the political provisions of a landmar!
accord' 9uropean Dnion leaders a)reed sanctions a)ainst top &ussian politicians and stepped up
efforts to cut the blocHs debilitatin) ener)y dependence on &ussia'
-,) The &eserve 1an! of =ndia (&1=) +overnor &a)huram &aBan said that the central ban! "as yet to
ta!e a decision on DrBit Patel committee report "hich had su))ested an inflation tar)et and "as
still in discussion "ith the )overnment on the subBect'
-C) 1ritish retail maBor Tesco announced that it "as formin) an e@ual Boint venture "ith Trent 3td', a
part of the Tata +roup, by pic!in) up A0 per cent sta!e in Trent /ypermar!et 3td (T/3) for
about &s'CA0 crore'
--) 4orth ?orea test.fired 0 short.ran)e missiles into the sea' The missiles are estimated to have
flo"n about ;0 !m'
100) M1oo! your o"n coachH F is the latest initiative rolled out by the (elhi Metro &ail
*orporation ((M&*) for the benefit of forei)n travellers, tourists and students'
101) The 1haratiya Mahila 1an! (1M1) "ill open three more branches in three capital cities
of the northeastern States . A)artala (Tripura), Shillon) (Me)halaya) and =tana)ar (Arunachal
Pradesh)'
102) Prime Minister Muhammed 4a"a7 Sharif said that Pa!istan had postponed )ivin) =ndia
the Most 6avoured 4ation (M64) status'
10) The 9lection *ommission of =ndia (9*=) has clarified that poll campai)n.related ne"s
appearin) in ne"spapers and channels o"ned by political parties "ill fall under the purvie" of
paid ne"s'
10#) 1an! of =ndia launched =MT (=nstant Money Transfer), "hich allo"s cardless cash
"ithdra"al at its =MT.enabled ATMs, a first.of.its.!ind initiative by any public sector ban!' The
facility can be initiated by the ban!Hs customer over ban!Hs ATM and retail =nternet ban!in)' The
sender initiates =MT by providin) receiverHs mobile number, four di)its sender code and the =MT
amount' Monthly "ithdra"al limit prescribed for =MT transaction is &s'2A,000 for receiver, and
per transaction limit of &s'10,000' =MT, once issued, is valid for 1# days'
10A) The 9lection *ommission (9*) has directed the )overnment to defer notification of the
order on )as price hi!e till the end of the )eneral election in the third "ee! of May'
10;) After havin) launched its first ATM a year a)o, Tata *ommunications Payment Solutions
3imited (T*PS3) "hich is the first non.ban!in) firm to launch its ATM net"or! or "hite label
ATMs said it plans to roll out 1A,000 ATMs across =ndia by 2une 201;'
10,) The +C )roup of top economic po"ers have suspended &ussia for anne>in) *rimea, and
has threatened to impose far.reachin) sanctions if Mosco" continued its incursion into D!raine'
The D'S' and si> other economic po"ers also scrapped the +C summit to be hosted by &ussia in
Sochi in 2une'
10C) More than a year after the shoc!in) (elhi )an) rape, the =ndian %rdinance factory
launched a li)ht."ei)ht revolver, N4irbhee!,K desi)ned especially for "omen to defend
themselves from assault'
10-) Shi)eru 1an, 2apanese architect !no"n for his creative and ine>pensive desi)ns for
disaster relief shelters, has "on the 201# Prit7!er Architecture Pri7e'
110) The death sentence passed by an 9)yptian court a)ainst A2- supporters of ousted
9)yptian President Mohamed Morsy has tri))ered an outcry amon) a "ide cross section of the
le)al community'
111) The &eserve 1an! of =ndia simplified forei)n portfolio investment norms' The portfolio
investor re)istered in accordance "ith the Securities and 9>chan)e 1oard of =ndia (S91=)
)uidelines shall be called &e)istered 6orei)n Portfolio =nvestor (&6P=)' The e>istin) portfolio
investor class, namely, 6orei)n =nstitutional =nvestor (6==) and Eualified 6orei)n =nvestor (E6=)
re)istered "ith S91= shall be subsumed under &6P='
112) *reatin) a ne" +uinness "orld record, over t"o.and.half la!h 1an)ladeshis performed a
chorus of their national anthem at the national parade )round to mar! the countryHs #rd
=ndependence (ay'
11) 9uropean Dnion member states decided to ban the import of five types of fruits and
ve)etables from =ndia'
11#) The D'4' /uman &i)hts *ouncil launched an in@uiry into alle)ed "ar crimes in Sri
3an!a, despite *olomboHs fierce efforts to bloc! an investi)ation' =n a 2.12 vote, the council
bac!ed a $estern.sponsored resolution to investi)ate into alle)ed serious violations and abuses
of human ri)hts' =ndia, for the first time, abstained from votin)'
11A) The discovery of t"o more mounds in 2anuary at the /arappan site of &a!hi)arhi in
/isar district, /aryana, has led to archaeolo)ists establishin) it as the bi))est /arappan
civilisation site'
11;) Supreme *ourt directed all the States to abolish manual scaven)in) and ta!e steps for
rehabilitation of such "or!ers'
11,) The $orld /ealth %r)anisation ($/%) South.9ast Asia &e)ion, home to a @uarter of the
"orldHs population, "as certified polio.free by an independent commission under the $/%
certification process'
11C) &ussian mathematician 0a!ov +ri)orevich Sinai, one of the most influential
mathematicians of the 20th *entury, has been chosen for the 201# Abel Pri7e by the 4or"e)ian
Academy of Science 3etters'
11-) The D'4' +eneral Assembly adopted a $estern.bac!ed resolution declarin) *rimeaHs
referendum ille)itimate and refusin) to reco)nise &ussiaHs anne>ation of the peninsula' The non.
bindin) resolution "as passed in the 1-.member body, "ith 100 votes in favour and 11 a)ainst'
120) %ut)oin) 6inance Minister P' *hidambaram has threatened action by =ndia a)ainst
S"it7erland at )lobal forums such as +20 for its persistent denial to share information on =ndians
stashin) money in its ban!s' =ndian ta> authorities have sou)ht information on =ndians "ith
accounts in S"iss ban!s under the (ouble Ta>ation Avoidance A)reement ((TAA)'
121) Srei =nfrastructure 6inance is plannin) to start roll.out of its "hile label ATMs ($3As)
bet"een 2uly and September startin) "ith a pilot of 200 Tier.=== to"ns in Dttar Pradesh and
1ihar'
122) The &eserve 1an! of =ndia e>tended the transitional period for ban!s to complete the full
implementation of 1asel.=== capital re)ulations up to March 1, 201-, instead of March 1, 201C'
12) +overnment has set up a Ta> Administration &eform *ommission comprisin) officials
from public and private sector a)encies' Parthasarathi Shome is the chairman this *ommission'
12#) The *ompetition *ommission of =ndia (**=) imposed a penalty of &s 1 crore on +oo)le
for failin) to provide information related to an investi)ation into its alle)ed unfair trade practices
in =ndia'
12A) Tata +roup and Sin)apore Airlines received the mandatory security clearance' $hile
both partners "ill initially invest L100 million, Tata Sons "ill be the maBority partner "ith A1P
sta!e' S=A "ill hold #-P'
12;) =ndian e>ports "ill fall short of the DS( 2A billion tar)et envisa)ed in the current fiscal'
6or the April.6ebruary period, the country5s merchandise e>ports "ere up #',- per cent to DS(
2C2', billion' =mports durin) the 11.month period fell C';A per cent to DS( #10'C; billion' The
trade deficit durin) this period "as DS( 12C billion'
12,) The Supreme *ourt restrained the *entre and the Dni@ue =dentification Authority of =ndia
from sharin) the vast biometric database of Aadhaar cards "ith any third party or a)ency "ithout
the consent of the re)istered person' =t also ruled that people cannot be denied any service or
benefit for not havin) an Aadhaar card'
12C) *onsumer Price =nde> =nflation declined to C'1 per cent'
12-) 6orei)n direct investment (6(=) into the services sector declined by about ;0 per cent to
DS( 1'A- billion in the first nine months of this financial year'
10) The (epartment of =ndustrial Policy and Promotion had proposed rela>ation of 6(=
norms in the construction sector and 100 per cent 6(= in the rail"ay sector'
11) =ndia and the Dnited States have decided to enhance cooperation for automatic e>chan)e
of information on ta> evasion and detection of financial crimes, shorin) up efforts to crac!do"n
on blac! money cases involvin) economic channels of the t"o countries'
12) *hina has emer)ed =ndiaHs bi))est tradin) partner in the current fiscal replacin) the DA9'
1) ?ota! Mahindra 1an! announced the launch of 2ifi, a first.of.its.!ind fully inte)rated
social ban! account that transcends normal di)ital ban!in) by seamlessly incorporatin) social
net"or!in) platforms li!e T"itter and 6aceboo! "ith mainstream ban!in)'
1#) *ountry5s lar)est lender the State 1an! of =ndia (S1=) "ill sell bad loans amountin) to &s
,000 crore in the last @uarter of the on)oin) fiscal to the Asset &econstruction *ompanies'
1A) &1= has decided to "ithdra" the pre.200A currency notes from circulation and as!ed the
holders of such currency to e>chan)e them by 2anuary 1, 201A' The earlier deadline "as 2une 0'
Thereafter, people "ould have had to produce identity proof to e>chan)e more than 10 notes of
&s A00 and &s 1,000' Mean"hile, ban!s have been advised to stop re.issue of the pre.200A series
notes over the countersQthrou)h ATMs'
1;) *entral 1an! of =ndia has sold its entire sta!e in credit information provider *=1=3 to
Transunion =nternational =nc' *entral 1an! had a A per cent sta!e in *=1=3 "hile Transunion is
the maBority shareholder in *=1=3 at 2,'A per cent'