GK - Current Affairs (December 2015)

The Yash Chopra Memorial Award was conferred upon Amitabh Bachchan with C Vidyasagar Rao, the Governor of Maharashtra.

Union Ministry of Consumers Affairs announced to set up Grahak Suvidha Kendras. The Kendras will provide counseling to consumers in redressal of their grievances and assist them in registering their complaints in the appropriate consumer forums.

India won gold in World Youth Under-16 Chess Olympiad held in Hungary.

Union Government observed 25 December 2014 as Good Governance Day.

The Union Govermnet conferred the Bharat Ratna on Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya.

Union Government set up Mathur committee to examine constitution of SIT on 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

South Indian filmmaker Kailasam Balachander died on 23 December 2014 following a heart attack.

India exported CGS Barracuda offshore patrol vessel (OPV) to Mauritius which is the first warship ordered by a foreign country from shipyard of India.

Section 309 Indian Penal Code (IPC) was in news recently as Union Home Ministry decided to remove 309 Section. According to the section, any person, who attempts suicide, will be treated as committing a criminal offence and any person charged with section 309 of IPC will face up to one year in prison and a fine.

Gujarat to host 13th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in January 2015.

Shiva Keshavan won Silver at 17th Asian Luge Championships

Sachin Tendulkar appointed as ambassador of Cricket World Cup 2015

Jyotsna Suri elected as the President of the FICCI

India observed National Mathematics Day on 22 December to commemorate birth anniversary of Srinivasa Ramanujan.

Surat Municipal Corporation partnered with Microsoft to transform Surat into smart city.

The Indian men’s Kabaddi team and women’s Kabaddi team won Kabaddi World Cup title, by defeating Pakistan and New Zealand, respectively.

Pakistan became Associate Member Sate of CERN

Veteran Gandhian and freedom fighter Chunibhai Vaidya passed away on 19 December 2014 at Ahmedabad, Gujarat following brief illness.

Anti Terrorism Court (ATC) in Pakistan bailed to Zaki ur Rehman Lakhvi, one of the main accused in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

The US Senate unanimously passed a resolution recognising Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai as symbol of peace.

Minorities Rights Day observed across the world on 18 December

Tashi and Nungshi became world’s 1st twins to climb the highest peaks on seven continents.

India’s heaviest GSLV Mark-III rocket and the human crew module successfully test-fired by ISRO.

Reverend Libby Lane was on 17 December 2014 appointed as the first female bishop of the Church of England. She will become the new Bishop of Stockport.

The Marathi film Kapus Kondyachi Goshta nominated in the best picture category of the 87th Academy Awards, Oscars.

Tehreek-e-Taliban militants attacked Army-run school of Peshawar, Pakistan and killed at least 141 people including 132 students.

Music composer A R Rahman nominated for Oscar Awards in Music Original Score Category. He was nominated for the films Million Dollar Arm, The Hundred-Foot Journey and Indian film Kochadaiiyaan.

Name of mascots of the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympics Games were revealed. They have been named as Vinicius and Tom.

Dineshwar Sharma, Special Director in the Intelligence Bureau, appointed as the Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB).

Viswanathan Anand defeated British Grandmaster Michael Adams to win his maiden London Classic title.

Vivek Hallegere Murthy was on 15 December 2014 appointed as the 19th Surgeon General of America. He will be the first Indian-American to hold the post.

Indian film Jal nominated for Oscar contenders of 2014 in two categories. The two categories are Best Picture and Best Original Score.

Sikkim CM Pawan Chamling became longest serving Chief Minister of India. He completed his 20 years in the office on 12 December 2014.

Miss South Africa Rolene Strauss crowned Miss World 2014 at the pageant's final in London. 2013 winner Megan Young of the Philippines crowned Strauss.

Germany won the 2014 Champions Trophy of Hockey after defeating Pakistan by 2-0 margin at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

Ruhi Singh of India won Miss Universal Peace & Humanity 2014 at Beirut, Lebanon.

Playback singer Asha Bhosle was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 11th Dubai International Film Festival held in Dubai.

Ebola fighters collectively were named as the TIME’s Person of the Year 2014 on 10 December 2014 by the TIME’s magazine for their tireless acts of courage and mercy..

Samsung appointed HyunChil Hong as President of Southwest Asia

Human Rights Day observed globally on 10 December

Richard Rahul Verma became first Indian-American to be appointed as US Ambassador to India

Samsung Electronics appointed Pranav Mistry as Global Vice President

India set Guinness Record for largest human formation of a national flag in world

Indian Blind Cricket team defeated Pakistan to win the fourth edition of the Blind Cricket World Cup (BCWC) in Cape Town, South Africa.

India observed Mahaparinirwan Diwas on 6 December 2014, death anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar.

UN declared 2015 as the International Year of Soils

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on 5 December 2014 named as the Asian of the Year 2014 by Singapore’s leading newspaper The Straits Times

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Follow Masterji's posts on various tips and tricks for Entrance Test Preparations

Age limit for Entrance Exams

Disclaimer: All views expressed here are in nature of an academic debate only

There is an upper age limit imposed by the exam committee of a certain national level entrance exam. Last year, this limit was challenged by a couple of students who had crossed the age limit. A court judgment was passed in favor of the students and they were allowed to appear for the exam. However, there have been media reports which claim that the judgment notwithstanding, the age limit rule might still be enforced this year.

This article aims to explore the need for such a rule. The contrary opinion has not been discussed here. Valid opinions against the one expressed here are welcome.

There are literally thousands of students who have just completed their school education and look forward to enter the education system in some of the premier institutions of this country. The average age of such aspirants would be in the 17-19 year range. Although there may be candidates who have completed 20 years of age, the numbers who would fall in this category would be minuscule.

Suppose the age limit is removed - what could happen? What is a large number of 20+ (age) candidates appear and crack the examination? With the merit-system in place, what if none (or a few) 12th pass outs get admissions? Wouldn't it be unfair for the younger aspirants?

In absence of an age limit (and no bar on number of attempts), what is to prevent a candidate from repeatedly trying his (her) luck till (s)he cracks the exam?

 While there may be legitimate reasons as to why an older candidate wishes to join the course, these must be taken on a case to case basis. Certain strict rules regarding the eligibility of candidates over a certain age can be added as exceptions to the age rule. One condition could be the number of attempts that such a candidate is allowed.

While no system is perfect, it is worth thinking about the rationale behind certain rules and how to deal with genuine cases where the rule reduces one's chances at a good future.

GK - Current Affairs (21 November 2014)

Sanskrit Bharati - an RSS outfit - wants the HRD ministry to make teaching of Sanskrit compulsory in CBSE-affiliated schools till Class 12.

India pushes for entry into elite nuclear groups Click here to read entire article

Sixty one India fishermen on board 11 boats were arrested by the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency Click here to read entire article

Mullaperiyar water level touches 142 feet for first time in 35 years Click here to read entire article

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe dissolved the lower house of Japan's parliament on Friday, paving the way for a general election next month. Click here to read entire article

The Supreme Court-appointed Special Public Prosecutor in 2G cases, Anand Grover, on Thursday said there was credibility in the allegations of the NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation, accusing the CBI Director Ranjit Sinha of shielding the accused in the 2G spectrum investigation. Click here to read entire article

Pakistan and Russia on Thursday signed a military cooperation agreement to deepen their defence ties and vowed to translate their relationship in “tangible” terms during the first visit of a Russian Defence Minister in 45 years. Click here to read entire article

N. Ram, former Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu and chairman of Kasturi and Sons, publishers of The Hindu, has been selected for the first N. Ramachandran Foundation Award. Click here to read entire article

Reading - for beginners

Some time back, on a public forum, a non-reader has asked for some good books to be recommended. In tune with my own tastes, I suggested a few authors. However, the person felt that the content of the books were - at times - explicit and hence, not suitable for young readers. Now, although I did not feel then, that Archer, Sheldon and Grisham were explicit authors, I understand the discomfiture that a person would feel in reading a 'single' line of 'such content' in a 500 page novel.

A few days back, one of the teachers at my organization recommended 'Enid Blyton' to some first time readers. And that switched on the light bulb in my head!

Of course! The count less hours of fun that I had (when I was 6-7 years old) with Malory Towers, The Famous Five and the Secret Seven was amazing. This was the right kind of content to be recommended to someone who was ultra-prudish about the 'morality' of the content of 'those English type books'.

What did I do next? Well, as anyone who knows me would predict, I logged on to my favorite e-commerce website (no free promos for them here) and ordered entire box sets of Malory Towers, The Famous Five, The Secret Seven and The Naughtiest Girl at School.

JFYI, I've been devouring these books at the rate of about 1.5 books per day!

Current Affairs (12 November 2014)

• Pizza Hut has announced a change in their brand and plans to unveil a new logo.
• Senior BJP legislator Haribhau Bagde has been elected as new Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on 12 November 2014.
• Public Service Broadcasting Day was observed across India on 12 November in memory of Gandhi’s visit to AIR to address refugees from Pakistan.
• National Education Day (NED) was observed on 11 November to mark of the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
• Kerala became the first state in the country to have 100 percent bank accounts for all families under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY).
• Salgaocar FC won Durand Cup on 8 November 2014. They are the Durand Cup champion for the third time.
• Long Range Surface-to-Air Missile (LRSAM) Barak 8 missile, the missile co-developed by India and Israel was successfully test fired in Israel.
• The Bar Council of India (BCI) re-elected Mannan Kumar Mishra and S. Prabakaran as Chairman and Co-chairman respectively.
• The US Navy SEAL, Robert O’Neill, who killed Osama bin Laden on 2 May 2011 during Operation Neptune Spear revealed his identity.
• President conferred the Jnanpith Award 2013 on eminent Hindi poet Kedarnath Singh for his outstanding contribution towards Indian literature.
• Hanumappa Sudarshan of Karuna Trust on 4 Novenber 2014 won the 10th India Social Entrepreneur of the Year 2014 award.
• China Unveils Mars Rover After India’s Successful Mangalyaan

Current Affairs (11 Nov 2014)

• Japanese Telecom Giant SOFTBANK to invest USD 627 Million in Snapdeal
• Appointment: 
• Surya Prakash as Chairman, Prasar Bharti Board
• D J Pandiyan as New Chief Secretary of Gujarat
• Devendra Fadnavis as Chief Minister of Maharashtra
• Rahiv Mehrishi as Union Finance Secretary
• Sundar Pichai as New Product Chief of Google
• Guy Scott as Acting President of Zambia (on death of President Michael Sata)
• Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare announces TB Mission 2020
• India re-elected to UN Economic and Social Council
• Pankaj Advani wins IBSF World Billiards Championship