01-02 July 2016

1) The Indian Air Force (IAF) inducted

two indigenously developed Tejas
Light Combat Aircrafts (LCAs) at its
Aircraft Systems & Test Establishment
in Bengaluru on 1 July 2016. The two
aircrafts will be part of the new
Squadron 45 Flying Daggers. Which
station has been chosen as the base
of this LCA squadron? Sulur (Tamil
Nadu)
Explanation: Air Marshal Jasbir
Walia, Air Officer Commanding-in
Chief, Southern Air Command,
formally inducted two LCAs into 45
Squadron (Flying Daggers) at the
Aircraft System Testing Establishment
(ACTE) in Bengaluru on 1 July 2016.
Sulur in Tamil Nadu has been
chosen as the base of this squadron.
However, the two LCAs will be
operated initially by the squadron at
Bengaluru for around two years.
The LCA project began in 1985 and
the IAF planned to induct it in 1994 to
replace the MiG-21s. After long delays,
the LCA achieved the first level of flight
worthiness or Initial Operational
Clearance in December 2013. The
Final Operational Clearance is
expected by this year-end.

2) What name is
given to the
latest version of
Googles
Android that was till now only known
as Android N? Nougat
Explanation: Android Nougat is the
nickname of the latest version of
Googles famous Android mobile
operating system. This announcement
was made by Google on 30 June
2016. Nougat will be the newest
addition to Androids long stable of
versions, the latest of which was
Marshmallow.
Nougat is based after a popular
dessert which originated in Europe.
Every Android version has been
named after a confectionary in
alphabetic order, starting with
Cupcake, which was followed by
Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread,
Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich,
Jelly Bean, KitKat, Lollipop and the
latest Marshmallow (Android 6.0).
At this years Google I/O developer
conference in May 2016, Google had
announced a contest to the upcoming
Android version that was dubbed
Android N.

3) Veena
Sahasrabuddhe, who
passed away at Pune
on 30 June 2016, was a
noted personality

associated with which field?

Hindustani classical singing
Explanation: Veena Sahasrabuddhe,
who passed away in Pune following a
prolonged illness on 30 June 2016,
was an acclaimed Hindustani classical
singer and exponent of the Gwalior
gharana.
Born in Kanpur on 14 September
1948, Sahasrabuddhe learnt music
from her father Pandit Shankar
Shripad Bodas, and her brother,
Pandit Kashinath Shankar Bodas.
Known for her Khayal and Bhajans,
Sahasrabuddhe, had a bachelor and
master degree in both vocal
performance and Sanskrit literature.

A research group from Oxford and

Durham universities in England,
working with a Norway-based heliumexploration company, discovered as
much as 54 billion cubic feet, or BCf,
of the gas in Tanzanias Rift Valley.
Global helium consumption is about
8 BCf per year and the US Federal
Helium Reserve, which is the worlds
largest supplier, has just 24.2 BCf.
Total known reserves in the US are
about 153 BCf.
Helium is critical to many things
including medical MRI scanners,
welding, industrial-leak detection and
nuclear energy and known reserves
are quickly running out.

4) Scientists recently discovered

deposits of Helium gas in an African
country, a discovery that is considered
game-changing as it is used in many
critical applications and has never
been found intentionally. In which
African country this important
discovery has been made?
Tanzania

5) What is the name given to the

teacher education portal for District
Institutes of Education and Training
(DIETs) that was launched by HRD
Minister Smriti Irani on 30 June 2016?
Prashikshak

Explanation: Scientists have

discovered helium reserves in
Tanzania that are a game-changer in
addressing a critical shortage of the
vital-yet-rare gas.
Until now, helium has never been
found intentionally and is usually
discovered accidentally in small
quantities during oil and gas drilling.

Explanation: The objective of

Prashikshak is to help DIETs make
informed decisions about their
institutes, compare the performance of
their institute against other DIETs in
the state/country. It will also help
aspiring teachers make informed
decisions about which institute to join.
The major users of Prashikshak will
be Pre-service teacher educators,
DIET principals and faculty, Policy
makers at District, State Government
and National Level, and the General
public.

 DIETs were created under the

Centrally Sponsored Scheme on
Teacher Education (CSSTE) for
offering pre-service and in-service
teacher training programmes for
Government elementary school
teachers.

6) Isak Chishi Swu, who

passed away during
June 2016, was the head
of which regional political-cultural
entity of north east India? National
Socialist Council of Nagalim (IsakMuivah)
Explanation: Isak Chishi Swu was the
Chairman of National Socialist Council
of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN (IM), the largest and most powerful
faction of Naga rebels.
He died on 28 June 2016 in a New
Delhi hospital, aged 87, after a lifetime
of battle to secure a future for the
Naga people.
Nagalim, the idealistic geography
proposed by him and NSCN (I-M),
includes, besides Naga homelands in
Myanmar, all of Nagaland, Naga
homelands in much of Manipur, and
slices of Arunachal Pradesh and
Assam.

03-04 July 2016

1) What is the name of the caf

establishment of Dhaka that was
attacked by armed terrorists in a huge
attack on 1-2 July 2016 that resulted in
the death of 28 people including 17
foreign nationals? Holey Artisan
Bakery
Explanation: Holey Artisan Bakery is
the name of a famous caf
establishment situated in Bangladeshi
capital Dhakas Gulshan neighborhood
and diplomatic area. It was attacked by
seven militants in the evening of 1 July
2016 as they fired and threw bombs in
the caf.
Many persons were taken hostage
and almost all of them were foreigners.
Later in the morning of 2 July 2016 a
rescue operation title Operation
Thunderbolt was ordered by
Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid. It
was led by 1st Para-commando
Battalion of Bangladesh Army.
13 hostages were rescued and six of
the attackers were killed in a gunfight
in the operation, while the seventh was
captured alive.
The responsibility for the attack was
taken by the Islamic State (IS). But this
was rejected by Bangladeshi Home

Ministry which claimed that

homegrown terrorist outfit Jamaat-ulMujahideen was involved in it. The
Ministry also claimed that Pakistani
intelligence agency Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI) is suspected to have
links with the attack.
(Photo Courtesy : Bdnews)

2) In a first-of-its-kind and landmark

initiative, President of India Pranab
Mukherjee inaugurated a smart model
village pilot project on 2 July 2016 at
Presidents Estate. Five villages of
which state were chosen under this
unique initiative? Haryana
Explanation: Dhaula, Alipur,
Harichandpur and Taj Nagar from
Gurgaon district and Rojka Meo from
Mewat district of Haryana will be
developed into smart villages under
this ambitious and unique pilot project.
During the launch of this project, the
President of India Pranab Mukherjee
for the first time interacted with the
sarpanches and village functionaries
as he laid great stress on opening of
Rashtrapati Bhavan to the masses.
The President also expressed
confidence that this initiative would not
remain confined to these five villages
but would spread to the entire country.

3) Indian Navy is participating in the

25th edition of the Rim of the Pacific
Exercise (RIMPAC), which is the
world largest maritime exercise. This
is the first time that India is taking part
in this exercise as an official
participant. Which naval ship of India
reached Hawaii to take part in this
prestigious event? INS Satpura
Explanation: Exercise RIMPAC is the
largest multilateral naval exercise in
the world and is held biennially in the
Western Pacific Ocean. It is hosted
and administered by the United States
Navys Pacific Fleet. The first edition of
RIMPAC was held in 1971.
Indian Navys association with
RIMPAC commenced with
participation as an Observer in 2006,
2010 and 2012. In 2014, Indian Naval
participation was enhanced with
deployment of INS Sahyadri in the
24th edition of the exercise.
Now India is taking part as a fullfledged participant in 25th edition of
RIMPAC that is being held from 30
June to 4 August 2016 off Hawaii
(USA). Almost 27 countries are
participating in this exercise. INS
Satpura reached Hawaii on 1 July
2016 to take part in the exercise.

4) What is Indias current place in

terms of money held by its citizens
with banks in Switzerland as per the
latest annual update on Swiss banks,
released by Switzerlands central bank
SNB on 3 July 2016? 75th

championship by him on 2 July 2016.

Querrey defeated Djokovic by 7-6
(8/6), 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5).

Explanation: India was ranked

75th with Swiss franc (CHF) 1.2 billion
(about Rs.8,392 crore), which is not
even 0.1% of the total foreign money
in Swiss banks and is the lowest for
the country in at least two decades.

The third round defeat also ended

Djokovics Open era record run of 30
successive wins at the majors and his
streak of having reached 28
consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals.

India was placed at 61st place last

year, while it used to among top-50
countries in terms of holdings in Swiss
banks till 2007. The country was
ranked highest at 37th place in the year
2004.
In terms of individual countries, the
UK accounted for the largest chunk at
about CHF 350 billion or almost 25%
of the total foreign money with Swiss
banks. The US came second with
nearly CHF 196 billion or about 14%.

5) Two-time defending champion

Novak Djokovic was sent crashing out
of the Wimbledon on 2 July 2016 in the
most dramatic exit of a top-seeded
player in recent times. Who defeated
Djokovic in third round? Sam
Querrey
Explanation: Sam Querrey of the US
created the biggest upset of 2016
Wimbledon as two-time defending
champion Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
was sent crashing out of the

This defeat thus shattered Djokovics

dream of securing the first calendar
Grand Slam in 47 years.

6) Who won the Austrian F1 Grand

Prix 2016 that concluded on 3 July
2016? Lewis Hamilton (UK)
Explanation: Lewis Hamilton (UK)
collided with Mercedes team-mate
Nico Rosberg (Germany) on the last
lap before passing him to win a thrilling
Austrian Grand Prix on 3 July 2016.
Rosberg was given a 10-second
penalty and two licence penalty points
by stewards for causing the collision.
This win reduced Hamiltons deficit to
Rosberg to 11 points in the title race.
Belgiums Max Verstappen of Red
Bull finished second while Finlands
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) took the third
place on the podium.

05-06 July 2016

The only minister who was promoted

from Independent Minister rank to that
of Cabinet Minister was Environment
and Forest Minister Prakash
Javadekar.
Portfolios allotted to 19 new
Ministers

1) How many new ministers were

inducted on 5 July 2016 by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in his Council
of Ministers as he expanded it for the
second time since 2014? 19
Explanation: Prime Minister Narendra
Modi expanded his Council of
Ministers on 5 July 2016 by inducting
19 new ministers. On the other hand
he also dropped 5 ministers from the
Council.
19 new ministers are Ajay Tamta,
Anil Madhav Dave, Anupriya Patel
(Apna Dal), Arjun Ram Meghwal, CR
Chaudhary, Dr. Subhash Bhamre,
Faggan Singh Kulaste, Jaswantsinh
Bhabhor, Krishna Raj, Mahendra Nath
Pandey, Mansukh L. Madaviya, M.J.
Akbar, P.P. Chaudhary, Parshottam
Rupala, Rajen Gohai, Ramdav
Athawale (RPI), Ramesh Chandappa
Jigajinagi, S.S. Ahluwalia and Vijay
Goel.
The five dropped from the Cabinet
are Minister of State for Chemicals and
Fertilizers Nihal Chand Meghwal, MoS
HRD Ram Shankar Katheria, MoS
Water Resources Sanwar Lal Jat, MoS
Tribal Affairs Manuskhbhai D. Vasva
and MoS Agriculture M.K. Kundariya.

Ministers of State (Independent

Charge):
Vijay Goel: Youth Affairs and Sports
Anil Madhav Dave: Environment,
Forest and Climate Change.
Ministers of State:
Ramesh Chandappa
Jigajinagi: Drinking Water and
Sanitation.
Rajen Gohain: Railways.
Parshottam Rupala: Agriculture and
Farmers Welfare, Panchayati Raj.
M.J. Akbar: External Affairs.
Faggan Singh Kulaste: Health and
Family Welfare
S.S. Ahluwalia: Agriculture and
Farmers Welfare, Parliamentary Affairs
Ramdas Athawale: Social Justice and
Empowerment.
Jasvantsinh Sumanbhai
Bhabhor: Tribal Affairs.
Arjun Ram Meghwal: Finance,
Corporate Affairs.
Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey: Human
Resource Development.
Ajay Tamta: Textiles.

Krishna Raj: Women and Child

Development.
Mansukh L. Mandaviya: Road
Transport and Highways, Shipping,
Chemicals and Fertilizers.
Anupriya Patel: Health and Family
Welfare.
R. Chaudhary: Consumer Affairs,
Food and Public Distribution.

Chaudhary Birender Singh was

shifted to the steel ministry from rural
development, which will now be
headed by Narendra Singh Tomar.
The new environment minister in
place of Javadekar is Anil Madhav
Dave.
..

P. Chaudhary: Law and Justice,

Electronics and Information
Technology.
Dr. Subhash Ramrao
Bhamre: Defence.
(Vijay Goel will also have Water
Resources, River Development and
Ganga Rejuvenation ministry as
Minister of State)
..
2) Who was allotted the important
portfolio of Human Resources
Development Ministry in the Cabinet
reshuffle in the Narendra Modi Govt.
on 5 July 2016? Prakash Javadekar
Explanation: Among the top ministers
whose portfolios witnessed dramatic
changes was Human Resource and
Development (HRD) minister Smriti
Irani who was replaced by Prakash
Javadekar. Irani will now oversee the
textile ministry.
Jayant Sinha was removed as
minister of state in the finance ministry
and moved to Civil Aviation Ministry.

3) What is the name of the spacecraft

of the US space agency NASA that
arrived at Jupiter on 4 July 2016 and
initiated its attempts to join its orbits?
Juno
Explanation: The unmanned Juno
spacecraft was launched aboard an
Atlas V551 rocket from Cape
Canaveral, Florida, on 5 August 2011.
IT reached Jupiters orbit on 4 July
2016 as per the schedule.
Juno stands for JUpiter Near-polar
Orbiter.
On arrival, Jupiters gravity pulled
Juno until the spacecraft reached a
speed over 250,000 kmph with respect
to Earth, making it one of the fastest
human-made objects ever.
Juno thus became the second
spacecraft to orbit Jupiter, after Galileo
probe which had orbited the planet
from 19952003.

 Once in Jupiters orbit, Juno will orbit

it 37 times across 20 months,
approaching 5,000 km above the cloud
tops. This is the first time a spacecraft
will orbit the poles of Jupiter, which
would help provide many more
answers about the planets
composition and origin.
..
4) Which port during July 2016
became countrys first port with the
facility of logistical data identification
tagging? Jawahar Lal Nehru Port
(Mumbai)
Explanation: Mumbais Jawahar Lal
Nehru Port (JNP) became Indias firstever port with the facility of logistical
data identification (LDID). Under this
facility the exporters and importers will
be able to easy identify their respective
consignments by using the logistical
data-bank service that have been
made available.
Under this initiative, every container
coming into the port will have a radio
frequency identification (RFID) tag.
This tag can be read by RFID readers
that have been installed at various
spots in the port.
The LDID facility will ease the
process of shipment and the complete
process of shipment could be
overseen by the exporters/importers.
This will also reduce shipment time
and pertaining costs.
..

5) Which footballer from

Mohali recently created
history by becoming the
first from India to feature in
a UEFA Europa League
match? Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
Explanation: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
made footballing history as during July
2016 he became the first from India to
play in a UEFA Europa League match.
He achieved this distinction as he
played he featured for his team
Staebak FC against Connahs Quah
Nomads in Flintshire, Wales.
Though Sandhu played for 28
minutes before suffering a wrist injury,
the Indian footballer did create history.
UEFA Europa League is an annual
football club competition organized by
UEFA since 1971 for eligible European
football clubs. Clubs qualify for the
competition based on their
performance in their national leagues
and cup competitions.
..
6) The second edition of BRICS Youth
Summit was held from 1 to 3 July
2016 in which Indian city? Guwahati
Explanation: The 3-day BRICS Youth
Summit started on 1 July 2016 in
Guwahati. It was inaugurated by
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda
Sonowal.
The theme of this event was Youth
as bridge for intra-BRICS exchanges.
The convention of youths focused on
enhanced people-to-people contacts of

BRICS members Brazil, Russia,

India, China and South Africa.
Over 50 foreign delegates, including
ministers and head of executive
authorities on youth affairs from
BRICS nations, participated in the
summit.
The first edition of BRICS Youth
Summit was held during July 2015 in
Russia primarily for creation of a
permanent platform for development of
youth cooperation activities for 5
BRICS nations.
..

07 July 2016

Former Cabinet Secretary K M

Chandrasekhar, Tamil Nadus former
Finance Secretary P V Rajaraman and
Centre for Policy Research Senior
Fellow Rajiv Kumar are the other
members of the committee. It will
submit its report by 31 December
2016.
It is worth mentioning that in 1984,
the LK Jha Committee, which was
constituted to assess a change in the
financial year, had recommended
migration to the calendar-year cycle.
The committee had said that changing
the financial year to start from January
would cushion the Budget from the
impact of southwest monsoon.
But the then Congress Govt. had not
accepted the recommendations of Jha
Committee.

1) The Union Government on 6 July

2016 constituted a four-member
committee to examine the desirability
and feasibility of having a new financial
year. Who is heading this committee?
Shankar Acharya (former Chief
Economic Adviser)
Explanation: The newly constituted
committee will primarily look into the
impact of having a new financial year
in relation to effect of different
agricultural crop periods, taxation
systems and procedures and impact
on businesses.

2) The Cabinet Committee on

Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 5 July
2016 approved to raise foreign stake in
which private sector bank to 74%?
Axis Bank
Explanation: The CCEA, chaired by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on 5
July 2016 approved increase in foreign
investment from the current approved
level of 62% to 74% of the total paid
up share capital of the Axis Bank.
It is expected that FDI to the tune of
Rs. 13,000 crore will be received in the
country through this increase in foreign
stake while around 6,000 to 7,000 new
jobs will be created.

 One of the first private sector banks

in India, Axis Bank started operations
in 1994 as UTI Bank and eventually
became Axis Bank. It was promoted by
Unit Trust of India (UTI), and Life
Insurance Corp.

3) The Union Cabinet on 5 July 2016

gave in-principle approval to set up
Enayam in Tamil Nadu as a new major
port that will act as a major container
port for Indian cargo. With this India
will have how many major ports
overall? 13
Explanation:On 5 July 2016 the
Centre gave its in-principle approval
to set up the countrys newest major
port at Enayam near Colachel in Tamil
Nadus Kanniyakumari district.
Enayam will be 13th major port of
India. India has 12 major ports at
present Kandla, Mumbai,
Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (Mumbai),
Marmugao, New Managlore, Cochin,
Chennai, Ennore, V.O. Chidambarnar,
Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata
(including Haldia).
Enayam port is expected to act as a
major gateway container port for cargo
and become a trans-shipment hub for
East-West trade route. A special

purpose vehicle (SPV) will be formed

for the development of this port.
Currently, all of Indias transshipment traffic gets handled in
Colombo, Singapore and other
international ports due to which the
Indian port industry loses out around
Rs.1,500 crore revenues each year.
The new port at Enayam will also
reduce the logistics cost for exporters
and importers in south India who
currently depend on trans-shipment in
Colombo or other ports leading to
additional port handling charges.

4) The Union Cabinet on 5 July 2016

approved signing a long-term MoU
with which African country under which
this country will produce Indian
varieties of pulses to meet Indias
growing demand? Mozambique
Explanation:Under the proposed
long-term Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) to be signed
with the Mozambique Government,
Indian varieties of pulses, mainly arhar
and urad will be grown in Mozambique
so that India will be able to double
imports of pulses from the present 1
lakh tonnes to 2 lakh tonnes by year
2020-21.
Indian Govt. will assist Mozambique
by providing high quality seeds and
technical assistance so that the pulses
grown their will taste absolutely like
Indian pulses. Pulses from
Mozambique will be imported through

private channels or government-togovernment agencies.

It is worth mentioning that total
pulses production in India during 201516 was 17 million tonnes while 5.79
million tonnes of pulses was imported
to meet the domestic demand.

5) A Spanish court on 6 July 2016

sentenced Argentine superstar Lionel
Messi footballer to 21 months in prison
for tax fraud. These tax frauds pertain
to which playing years of Messi? The
years between 2007 and 2009
Explanation: A court in Barcelona
gave Lionel Messi and his father Jorge
Messi 21 months prison terms on
charges of defrauding Spain of 4.1m
(3.5m; $4.5m) between 2007 and
2009. The father-son duo also faces
millions of Euros in fines for using tax
havens in Belize and Uruguay to
conceal earnings from image rights.
However, neither man is expected to
serve time in jail as under the Spanish
system, prison terms of under two
years can be served under probation.
Messi has been playing in different
levels Spanish football leagues since
2001. He is currently been associated
with the premier Barcelona FC.

08 July 2016
1) The ambitious
Namami Gange
programme was
officially launched
by the Union Govt.
on 7 July 2016
with the
simultaneous launch of 300 projects.
The projects worth Rs. 2,000 crore are
related to the construction of ghats,
crematoriums and sewage treatment
plants along the river. This launch
programme was held at which place?
Haridwar (Uttarakhand)
Explanation: The launch of Namami
Gange programme was done by
Union Water Resources Minister Uma
Bharti at Haridwar on 7 July 2016.
Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari,
Narendra Tomar and Mahesh Sharma
and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish
Rawat were also present.
On the other hand the other projects
were launched simultaneously from
over 104 locations in all five basin
States of the Ganga Uttarakhand,
Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and
West Bengal. Some projects were also
launched in Delhi and Haryana on the
Yamuna.
These projects primarily involve
modernisation and redevelopment of
Ganga ghats and crematoriums,
development of sewage infrastructure
and treatment, afforestation, tree

plantation, pilot drain project,

interceptor drain project, trash
skimmers and conservation of
biodiversity.

2) The long-awaited report of United

Kingdoms Iraq Inquiry was released
on 6 July 2016. The report delivered a
crushing verdict on former PM Tony
Blairs decision to join the US invasion.
Who has prepared this report? Sir
John Chilcot
Explanation: Sir John Chilcot is a
former British civil servant. His
appointment as chair of the inquiry into
the circumstances surrounding the
March 2003 invasion of Iraq and its
aftermath was announced in June
2009.
The report was released on 6 July
2016 as the highlights of the 6375page report were read by Sir John at
the Queen Elizabeth II Hall in
Westminster.
The report primarily presented a
damning indictment of the role of the
then Prime Minister Tony Blair in
leading the United Kingdom in alliance
with the United States into a war in
2003 before peaceful options for
disarmament had been exhausted.
The report states that he relied on

incorrect intelligence information to

take decision to jump in the war.

3) Which state during July 2016

became Indias first state to introduce
minimum wages for part-time workers?
Rajasthan
Explanation: As per a notification
issued by Rajasthans Labour
Department it has become mandatory
to pay 50% of the prescribed daily
minimum wage to a person who works
for less than four hours in a day.
Thus the state became countrys first
to introduce minimum wages for parttime workers as these workers have
now come under the Minimum Wages
Act 1948.

4) Which pharma company recently

came to news as it rolled out a first-ofits-kind new healthcare marketing
code covering doctors and its field
staff? GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
Explanation: In one of the first
attempts in India of a pharma company
trying to clean up its act in the field of
unethical marketing practices, GSK
has unveiled a new healthcare
marketing code covering doctors and
its field staff.
Under the policy, the company has
withdrawn target-linked incentives for
its 3,000 strong sales force, and
stopped direct payments to doctors for
speaking engagements.

 The code (or policy), for an industry

which faces charges of unethical
marketing practices and poor public
perception, was adopted by the
company globally last year.

The said-technology has been

developed at the Defence Metallurgical
Research Lab (DMRL), Hyderabad, a
premier DRDO lab on metallurgical
research domain.

5) The Defence Research and

Development Organisation (DRDO)
during July 2016 transferred its
indigenously developed CopperTitanium alloy technology to a private
entity that will enable the alloy to be
commercially produced for the first
time in India. Which entity is this?
Pahwa Metal Tech Private Limited

6) What is the line of the UEFA Euro

Cup 2016 finals that will be played on
10 July 2016? France Vs. Portugal

Explanation: Pune-based Pahwa

Metal Tech Private Limited came to
limelight as it received the DRDOdeveloped indigenous technology to
commercially produce CopperTitanium alloy.
Pahwa Metal Tech Private Limited is
a Pune-based startup founded by
industry veteran Lalit Kumar Pahwa.
This will be thus first instance of the
strategic alloy to be produce by a
private entity in India. The application
areas of the alloy are diverse and
range from industrial machinery to
aerospace.
This technology transfer was made
by the DRDO-FICCI Accelerated
Technology Assessment and
Commercialisation (ATAC) initiative,
coinciding with the launch of the
Startup India initiative by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi during January
2016.

Explanation: Hosts France and

Portugal will fight it out for the title of
UEFA Euro Cup on 10 July 2016.
France ousted the fancied German
team by turning out a sterling
performance in the second semi-final
on 7 July 2016. Antoine Griezmann
scored twice as hosts beat world
champions Germany 2-0 to seal a
place in the Euro 2016 final against
Portugal.
Earlier on 6 July 2016, Portugal
defeated Wales 2-0 to book their place
in the prestigious finals. Portuguese
superstar Ronaldo and Nani scored
one goal each.
The final will be played at Paris
Stade de France.

09-10 July 2016

1) Abdul Sattar Edhi of
Pakistan, who passed
away on 8 July 2016,
was an iconic figure
associated with which
field? Philanthropy
Explanation: 88-year

old Abdul Sattar Edhi had established

the Edhi Foundation, one of
Pakistans biggest welfare
organisations, and was revered as a
living saint by many in the country.
The Edhi Foundation runs a vast fleet
of ambulances, orphanages and
medical clinics across the country.
He was known as Angel of Mercy
and was considered Pakistans most
respected and legendary figure. He
was often described as Father
Teresa.
Edhi donated his eyes and had
asked his family to bury him in the
clothes he wore at the time of his
death. Tens of thousands of people
attended the state funeral for the
legendary philanthropist in Karachi
later on 9 July 2016.

Theresa May, and Energy Minister

Andrea Leadsom.
In a vote among 330 Conservative
members of Parliament on 7 July
2016, May was on top with 199 votes
compared to 84 for Leadsom. A third
candidate, Justice Secretary Michael
Gove, was knocked out after securing
just 46 votes.
Either Leadsom or May will be
Britains first female prime minister
since Margaret Thatcher and the
second in British history. Thatcher had
led the country from 1979 to 1990.
Outgoing Prime Minister David
Cameron had announced his
resignation on 24 June 2016, just a
day after failing to persuade the
country to back the remain campaign
in a referendum on Britains EU
membership.

2) Britain will have first female Prime

Minister since Margaret Thatcher as
the race for countrys next Prime
Minister was whittled to two on 7 July
2016. Who are the two female
candidates in race for the post?
Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom
Explanation: The contest for the post
of British Prime Minister will be fought
between home affairs secretary,

3) The United States (U.S.) was hit by

huge string of racial violence and
gunfire resulting in the death of 5
police officers on 7 July 2016. The
shooting was the deadliest incident for
U.S. law enforcement since the
terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001.
This incident took place in which U.S.
city? Dallas
Explanation: The gunfire broke out in
the evening of 7 July 2016 while
hundreds of people were gathered in
the heart of Dallas to protest fatal
police shootings this week in Baton
Rouge, Louisiana, and suburban St.
Paul, Minnesota.

 Suddenly a sniper named Micah

Xavier Johnson fired on police officers
and hit 13 of them and two civilians.
This resulted in death of 5 police
officers. Johnson was later killed in the
early hours of 8 July by security forces.
He was an African-American Army
Reserve veteran who expressed his
hatred of white people.
Protests were also held in several
other cities across the US after a
Minnesota officer on 6 July 2016 fatally
shot Philando Castile while he was in a
car with a woman and a child.

4) What is the name of the officer of

Indian Merchant Navy who has
become the first woman in the world to
receive the Award for Exceptional
Bravery at Sea from the IMO?
Radhika Menon
Explanation: Radhika Menon became
the first woman in the world to receive
the Award for Exceptional Bravery at
Sea from the International Maritime
Organisation (IMO) for saving the lives
of seven fishermen, whose hopes of
survival were all but over.
She was at the helm of oil tanker
Sampurna Swarajya of Shipping
Corporation of India (SCI) in June
2015 when her team came across
fishing boat Durgamma. The boat

was caught in a storm and with its

engine having failed had drifted from
Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh all the
way to Gopalpur in Odisha.
These all fishermen were rescued
while fishermens families were
preparing for their last rites.
It is worth mentioning that 5 years
back Radhika Menon had become the
first woman captain of an Indian
Merchant Navy ship.

5) What is the name of the leading

commander and poster-boy of terrorist
group Hizbul Mujahideen who was
killed by security forces in a major
breakthrough on 8 July 2106?
Burhan Wani
Explanation: 22-year old Burhan
Wani was a Hizbul Mujahideen
commander and was tagged as the
poster boy on social media of militancy
in the Kashmir Valley.
Wani made the headlines in 2014 for
the photographs he had posted on
social media of himself and other
militants wearing army fatigues and
carrying Kalashnikovs. He was the
most high-profile militant operating in
the Valley.
He was killed by security forces and
police in Bumdoora village, 85 km
south of Srinagar on 8 July 2016.
His death resulted in widespread
protests across the Kashmir Valley as
Hurriyat chairman Syed Ali Geelani
and JKLF chairman Yasin Malik called

for a strike to protest the killing. 11

people were killed on 9 July 2016 and
nearly 200 injured in clashes in
Kashmir, a day after Wanis death.

11 July 2016

France, who had eliminated them in

the semi-finals at Euro 1984, Euro
2000 and the 2006 World Cup.
The Golden Boot was awarded to
Antoine Griezmann (France), who
scored highest 6 goals in the
tournament, one goal in the group
stage and five in the knockout phase.
(Photo Courtesy : goal.com)

1) Portugal achieved footballing glory

as it won the UEFA Euro Cup 2016 by
defeating hosts France 1-0 in extratime in the final on 10 July 2016. This
is Portugals first Euro Cup title. Who
scored the winning goal for Portugal?
Eder
Explanation: Lille striker Eder settled
the final match between Portugal and
France with a low 25-yard strike in
extra time to give Portugal its maiden
Euro title. The final was played at
Stade de France in Paris on 10 July
2016.
With this title win Portugal became
10th country to win the Euro title. Earlier
9 winners of this prestigious title are
Soviet Union, Spain, Italy, Germany,
Czechoslovakia, France, Netherlands,
Denmark and Greece. Spain and
Germany have won the title thrice
each.
The victory also ended Portugals
run of 10 straight defeats against

2) The Supreme Court of India (SCI)

gave which important order pertaining
to armed forces on 8 July 2016? It
ended impunity for armed forces
and called for enquiry into
encounter deaths in disturbed areas
Explanation: The Bench of Supreme
Court Justices Madan B. Lokur and
U.U. Lalit in its order of 8 July 2016
clearly said that every death caused by
the armed forces in a disturbed area,
whether the victim is a dreaded
criminal or a militant or a terrorist or an
insurgent, should be thoroughly
enquired into.
The SC also dealt a big blow to the
immunity enjoyed by security
personnel under the Armed Forces
(Special Powers) Act of 1958 (AFSPA)
against criminal action for acts
committed in disturbed areas. The
order said that there is no concept of

absolute immunity from trial by a

criminal court if an Army man has
committed an offence.
The judgment came on a plea by
hundreds of families in the northeastern State of Manipur for a probe
by a Special Investigation Team into
1,528 cases of alleged fake
encounters involving the Army and the
police.

restaurant chains in Kerala, including

global brands McDonalds, Burger
King, Pizza Hut, Dominos Pizza and
Subway.

3) In a first-of-its-kind of tax in India,

which state government during July
2016 imposed 14.6% tax on junk food
like pizzas, burgers, donuts etc.?
Kerala
Explanation: 14.5% tax on junk food
items like pizzas, burgers,
hamburgers, donuts, etc. sold in posh
restaurant and joints was imposed in
the Kerala Budget for year 2016-17
that was announced by Finance
Minister Thomas Isaac on 7 July 2016.
This was the first budget of newly
formed LDF government under Chief
Minister P.Vijayan.
The said tax has been called fat tax
and is first-of-its-kind of tax anywhere
in India.
It is worth mentioning that fat tax is a
reality in European countries such as
Denmark and Hungary but looks out of
place in Indian market barely
recovering from a six-quarter back-toback slump in eating out.
Industry estimates suggest there are
50-60 outlets of organised fast-food

4) Serena Williams equaled German

tennis ace Steffi Grafs record of 22
Grand Slam titles as she defeated
Angelique Kerber in the finals of the
womens singles final at Wimbledon on
9 July 2016. In whose name the record
for highest Grand Slam womens title
stands? Margaret Court
Explanation: Serena Williams (US)
and Steffi Graf now tally 22 Grand
Slams, the most in the Open Era of
professional tennis. However, the
record for highest number of womens
singles Grand Slam title is in the name
of Margaret Court (US) who won 24
titles during her illustrious career.
On 9 July 2016 Serena defeated
Angelique Kerber (Germany) by 7-5, 63 in the finals of Wimbledon womens
singles to pocket her historic 22nd title
to come on par with Steffi Graf.
It is worth mentioning that Serena
was deprived of her record 22nd title at
this years Australian and French
Opens as she lost in the finals of both.

5) Andy Murray won his second

Wimbledon singles title on 10 July
2016 to take his Grand Slam tally to
three. Whom he defeated in the final?
Milos Raonic
Explanation: Britains Andy Murray
defeated Milos Raonic (Canada) by 64, 7-6(3), 7-6(2) to win his second
Wimbledon mens singles title.
It was Murrays overall third Grand
Slam victory. The first had come at the
2012 US Open and he followed that up
with a triumph at Wimbledon in 2013.
It is worth mentioning that Murray
had lost eight out of 10 Grand Slam
finals, and all the defeats had come at
the hands of Roger Federer and
Novak Djokovic.

12 July 2016

Survey 2016 pertaining to

transparency in reporting standards of
100 companies in 15 emerging market
countries of the world. The survey
included all major emerging countries
like India, China, Brazil, Russia and
Mexico.
Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel
topped the list. The company took first
place with a score of 7.3 out of 10,
followed by six units of conglomerate
Tata and technology company Wipro.
The survey disclosed that while India
has the most transparent companies,
Chinese firms are the most opaque.
Thirty-seven Chinese companies were
evaluated, making them the surveys
biggest group, but they had the
weakest overall performance.
One reason Indian companies came
out on top is strict government
requirements for financial disclosures,
including operations in different
countries.
..

1) Which Indian company emerged as

the most transparent company in
Berlin-based Transparency
Internationals survey of the 100 most
transparent companies in 15 emerging
market countries that was released on
11 July 2016? Bharti Airtel
Explanation: The Berlin-based
watchdog Transparency International
on 11 July 2016 released the
Transparency In Corporate Reporting

2) Which entity on 11 July 2016

completed an agreement with
LafargeHolcim to purchase its cement
business in India at an enterprise
value of around $1.4 billion? Nirma
Limited
Explanation: Nirma Limited finalized
the agreement to purchase
LafargeHolcims cement business in
the country that comprises of 11
million tonne cement capacity. The
deal is valued at around $1.4 billion
(Rs. 9,400 crore).

 With this deal, Nirma will enter into

league of top 10 cement players in the
country.

approved the name of Karki who was

recommended by the Constitutional
Council on 10 April 2016.

LafargeHolcims India operation

operates three cement plants and two
grinding stations largely catering to the
eastern India. The company also
markets aggregates and is one of
Indias leading ready-mix concrete
manufacturers.

..

Headquartered in Gujarat, diversified

conglomerate Nirma has business
interest across industrial and
consumer products ranging from
soaps, detergents, salt, soda ash,
caustic soda, cement, packaging and
other household products.
..

3) Sushila Karki took over as the first

woman Chief Justice of which country
on 11 July 2016? Nepal
Explanation: Justice Sushila Karki
was administered the oath of office
and secrecy by Nepali President Bidya
Devi Bhandari on 11 July 2016 at a
special programme organised at the
Presidential Residence, Sheetal
Niwas. Justice Karki thus became the
first-ever woman Chief Justice of
Nepal.
The Parliamentary Hearing Special
Committee had on 10 July 2016

4) Who will become Britains second

female prime minister after Andrea
Leadsom, the only other candidate in
the race, withdrew her name on 11
July 2016? Theresa May
Explanation: 59-year old Theresa
May has served as Interior Minister for
the past six years. She is now set to
become Britains second female prime
minister after Margaret Thatcher.
Energy minister Andrea Leadsom
abruptly withdrew from the contest to
succeed David Cameron as Britains
prime minister on 11 July 2016,
leaving her rival Theresa May as the
only candidate.
Leadsom, who has no cabinet
experience, was barely known to the
British public until she emerged as a
prominent voice in the successful
campaign for Britain to leave the
European Union (EU).
..

5) Dr. Raghuveer Chaudhari was

conferred with the 51st Jnanpith Award
by President of India, Dr. Pranab
Mukherjee on 11 July 2016. Dr.
Chaudhari is a noted writer of which
language? Gujarati
Explanation: 77-year old Dr.
Raghuveer Chaudhari is a noted
novelist, poet and critic of Gujarati
language.
While his most significant
contributions have been in Gujarati
language but he has also written Hindi
articles. He received the Sahitya
Akademi Award in 1977, for his novel
trilogy Uparvas.
On 11 July 2016 he was conferred
with the Jnanpith Award, considered to
be Indias highest literary award, by
President Dr. Pranab Mukherjee.
Chaudhari thus became the 51st
recipient of this prestigious award.
..

13 July 2016

This case was brought to the court by

which country? The Philippines
Explanation: The case against China
was brought to the Permanent Court of
Arbitration by the Philippines which is
of the opinion that China had violated
its sovereign rights in the South China
Sea.
The ruling given by the Permanent
Court of Arbitration under the United
Nations Convention on the Law of the
Sea (UNCLOS), which both countries
have signed. The court said there was
no evidence that China had historically
exercised exclusive control over the
waters or resources.
China claims almost all of the South
China Sea, including reefs and islands
in the region. It called the ruling illfounded and says it will not be bound
by it.
The ruling is binding but the
Permanent Court of Arbitration has no
powers of enforcement.

2) The first dedicated base for Indian

Navys elite force MARCOS East,
was commissioned on 12 July 2016 in
the form of INS Karna. This base has
been established at which place?
Vishakhapatnam

1) The Permanent Court of Arbitration

in The Hague ruled against Chinese
claims to rights in the South China Sea
in its order on 12 July 2016. The court
said that China had caused severe
harm to the coral reef environment of
the sea by building artificial islands.

Explanation: Indian Navys long

pursued endeavour of establishing a
dedicated base for its Special
Operation Forces MARCOS East
(Marine Commandos East) was
fulfilled on 12 July 2016 as Chief of

Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba

commissioned INS Karna at
Vishakhapatnam.
This first base for MARCOS East will
have capability to operate in all three
dimensions of warfare air, land and
sea,
MARCOS East was raised on
October 26, 1992 and since then it has
been the primary special operations
unit in Eastern Naval Command
(ENC). The unit has been at the
forefront in various operations
undertaken by the Navy like Operation
Zabardast (Sri Lanka February 1993),
Operation Tasha (1990-2009),
Operation Leech (1998) and Operation
Sagittarius (anti-piracy operations in
Malacca Strait).

3) Which financial entity launched the

first sale of so-called masala bonds
from 12 July 2016 that is basically a
rupee-denominated bond sold
overseas? HDFC
Explanation: A masala bond is a
rupee-denominated bond sold
overseas. Such bonds allow an issuer
to raise funds in the overseas market
without taking on the currency risk
typically associated with foreigncurrency denominated bonds or loans.
HDFC thus became first Indian
public issuer of synthetic rupee notes.
The synthetic rupee notes are in the
nature of rupee denominated bonds as
per applicable Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) guidelines. The bonds will bear a

fixed coupon and will have a tenor of 3

years and 1 month.
The concept of masala bonds was
first spelt out by RBI in April 2015,
following which the central bank issued
guidelines for the securities in
September.
The primary idea was to allow Indian
companies to raise money through an
overseas debt instrument where the
currency risk lies with the investor
rather than the issuer.

4) IDFC Bank acquired which Tamil

Nadu-based microfinance institution
(MFI), as announced by it on 12 July
2016? Grama Vidiyal
Explanation: Grama Vidiyal is the
name of a Tamil Nadu based
microfinance institution (MFI) that has
a customer base of 1.2 million
customers with an asset base
of Rs.1,500 crore.
IDFC Bank has received approval
from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
for the transaction.
IDFC Bank started banking
operations on 1 October 2015,
converting itself from an infrastructure
focused lender into a universal bank.
IDFC was one of two entities that got a
banking licence from the RBI in 2014
along with Bandhan Bank.

5) Which state made a world record of

planting around 5 crore trees on a

single day on 11 July 2016? Uttar

Pradesh
Explanation: The Uttar Pradesh
Government on 11 July 2016
undertook the herculean task of
planting a whopping five crore trees in
24 hours, in a bit to create a new
Guinness record. The initiative was
part of the Green UP Clean UP
campaign that was launched on the
same day.
The current record for the most trees
planted in a day is 8,47,275 which was
accomplished in Pakistan in 2013.
More than 800,000 people, including
students, lawmakers, government
officials, housewives and volunteers of
UP participated in the wellorchestrated campaign to plant the
saplings at designated spots along
country roads and highways, rail tracks
and forest lands.

6) Which British oil exploration group

recently sought $ 5.6 billion in
compensation from the Indian
government for raising a retrospective
tax demand of Rs. 29,047 crore on it?
Cairns Energy
Explanation: Edinburgh (UK)-based
oil exploration group Cairns Energy
filed Statement of Claim with an
international arbitration panel on 28
June 2016 seeking withdrawal of a
retrospective tax demand of Rs.
29,047 crore made by the Indian
Government on 10-year old internal
reorganisation of its India unit.

The Income Tax Department had in

January 2014 slapped a draft tax
assessment of Rs. 10,247 crore on
Cairn Energy on alleged capital gain it
made when it in 2006 transferred its
India assets to a new subsidiary, Cairn
India and listed the firm.
This year, a final assessment order
was slapped on it that included a Rs.
18,800 crore of interest on top of Rs.
10,247 crore principal tax amount.

14 July 2016

1) In a historic decision the Supreme

Court on 13 July 2016 reinstated the
Congress Government in the north
eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh
saying that Governors decision
advancing Assembly session by a
month was complete violation of the
Constitution. Who once again took
over states Chief Minister after the
order? Nabam Tuki
Explanation: The Congress led by
Chief Minister Nabam Tuki had 47
MLAs seats in the 60-member
Assembly, but during December 2015
it suffered a jolt when 21 of its member
MLAs rebelled.
Later, in a dramatic happening rebel
Congress leader Kalikho Pul was

sworn in as the ninth Chief Minister of

Arunachal Pradesh with the support of
18 dissident Congress MLAs and two
independents and 11 BJP MLAs who
gave outside support.
But on 13 July 2016 the Supreme
Court in its order held that Arunachal
Governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowas
direction on conducting Assembly
proceedings was a violation of the
Constitution. The Court said all steps
and decision taken by the Legislative
Assembly pursuant to Governors 9
December 2015 order are
unsustainable and liable to be set
aside.
The apex court also said the verdict
in this case will not only have its effect
on Arunachal Pradesh, but affect every
State.
After the order Nabam Tuki took over
as states Chief Minister once again on
13 July in a ceremony held at
Arunachal Bhawan in New Delhi.
.
2) What is the name of the new
grouping of non-Congress parties of
northeastern states of the country that
was formally launched on 13 July 2016
in Guwahati? North East
Democratic Alliance (NEDA)
Explanation: North East Democratic
Alliance (NEDA), the grouping of nonCongress parties of northeastern
states of the country led by the BJP,
was launched in Guwahati on 13 July
2016.

NEDA, a pet project of BJP president

Amit Shah, was established on 24 May
2016. BJPs Himanta Biswa Sarma,
who played an important role in partys
victory in the recent Assam Assembly
elections, was made convener of the
NEDA.
Chief Ministers of Assam
Sarbananda Sonowal, Nagaland T.R.
Zeliang, Pawan Kumar Chamling
Sikkim and former CM of Arunchal
Pradesh Kalikho Pul took part in the
launch function.
According to Amit Shah, increasing
coordination among the states of the
region will be the primary objective of
NEDA. He identified development and
connectivity as two key solutions to the
woes of the region.
.
3) During July 2016 Hindustan
Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) entered into a
tie-up with which French entity to set
up a helicopter engines maintenance,
repair and overhaul (MRO) centre to
service Indian and foreign customers?
Safran Helicopter Engines (SHE)
Explanation: Under the agreement
HAL and Frances Safran Helicopter
Engines will jointly set up a helicopter
engines maintenance, repair and
overhaul (MRO) centre to service
Indian and foreign customers using
Safrans aero engines.
The centre will provide MRO
services for Safran TM333 and the codeveloped Shakti engines that are
used in helicopters built by HAL.

 About 1,000 Shakti engines are likely

to fly on Indian helicopters in the
coming years.
.

4) What is the name of the newly

launched mobile game that resulted in
almost $7.5 billion increase in Japans
Nintendo Co Limiteds valuation due to
huge popularity gained by the game?
Pokemon GO
Explanation: Pokemon GO is the
name of the long-awaited mobile
gaming venture of Japans Nintendo
Co Limited.
The game, which marries the classic
20-year old franchise Pokemon with
augmented reality, allows players to
walk around real-life neighborhoods
while seeking virtual Pokemon game
characters on their smartphone
screens.
It was launched in the United States
on 8 July 2016 and within two days
after its release it was installed on
more than 5% of Android devices in
the country. According to web
analytics firm SimilarWeb, Pokemon
GO is now on more Android phones
than dating app Tinder and its rate of
daily active users was neck and neck
with social network Twitter.
As the game took the U.S. by storm,
Nintendos shares surged by a quarter

in value on 11 July 2016 to their

highest level since November 2015.
.
5) Theresa May, who took over as the
new Prime Minister of Britain on 13
July 2016, was looking after which
Cabinet post till now? Home
Secretary
Explanation: Since 2010, May has
served as Home Secretary (also called
Secretary Home Affairs), the UKs top
social and domestic Cabinet post.
During her time in office, she has
repeatedly expressed vociferous
opposition to the UKs historically high
immigration levels.
She became the countrys new prime
minister on 13 July as incumbent
Prime Minister David Cameron
delivered on his promise to resign after
the Brexit vote.
May thus became the second
woman in the countrys history to take
the top UK job after Margaret Thatcher
(1979-90).
.

15 July 2016

1) What is the name given to the

operation launched by the Ministry of
External Affairs to evacuate Indian

nationals from war torn South Sudan

on 13 July 2016? Operation Sankat
Mochan
Explanation: Operation Sankat
Mochan was launched by the Ministry
of External Affairs (MEA) on 13 July
2016 to evacuate its citizens from
South Sudan which has been rocked
by violence that has claimed hundreds
of lives.
The operation has been overseen by
Union Minister VK Singh, who left for
South Sudan capital Juba on 14 July
2016. Under the operation two C-17
military transport aircrafts were sent
bring back Indians stranded in South
Sudan to Delhi.
According to the MEA, there are
around 600 Indians in South Sudan, of
them 450 are in Juba and nearly 150
are outside the capital.
The latest bout of violence in South
Sudan started after a localised
gunfight outside President Salva Kiirs
residence in Juba on 7 July 2016 when
he was holding a meeting with VicePresident Riek Machar.

.
2) Which Indian online travel agency
firm was acquired by the US-based
special purpose acquisition firm
Terrapin 3 Acquisition Corp. (TRTL)
that valued this travel firm at $218
million? Yatra Online
Explanation: The purpose acquisition
firm Terrapin 3 Acquisition Corp.

(TRTL) agreed to buy Indian online

travel agency firm Yatra Online, Inc. in
a multi-phased transaction that values
Yatra at an enterprise value of $218
million.
Yatra intends to be listed on the
NASDAQ stock market under the
symbol YTRA following completion of
the transaction
Launched in August 2006, Yatra
Online, through its yatra.com website,
is a one-stop online shop for all travelrelated services aimed at both leisure
and business travellers in India.
Yatra customers booked more than
2.8 million air travel reservations and
hotel stays with total transaction value
worth more than $900 million (at
current exchange rates) during the
fiscal year ended March 2016.

.
3) Who Moved My Interest Rate? is
the name of the book written by which
former Governor of the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) that was released on 15
July 2016? D. Subbarao
Explanation: Duvvuri Subbarao, was
Governor of the RBI between 2008
and 2013.
He has written about the experiences
of his 5-year RBI tenure in the book
titled Who moved my interest rate?
Leading the Reserve Bank of India
through Five Turbulent Years.
The book is replete with stories of
how finance ministers, during the time

he was in charge of the central bank

(P Chidambaram and Pranab
Mukherjee), often made public their
differences with the RBI on decisions
on the interest rate.

5) INS India, the Base Depot ship of

the Indian Navy in New Delhi,
completed how many years of its
establishment on 13 July 2016?
75th (Platinum Jubilee)

The book was released on 15 July

2016.

Explanation: Established as HMIS

India in 1941 during British rule, it was
rechristened as INS India on 26
January 1950.

.
4) During July 2016 who was
appointed the new CEO of National
Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), the
robust intelligence gathering
mechanism being set up to track terror
suspects and incidents? Ashok
Patnaik
Explanation: Senior Indian Police
Service (IPS) officer Ashok Patnaik
was on 13 July 2016 appointed the
new CEO of National Intelligence Grid
(NATGRID).
Patnaik is a 1983-batch Gujarat
cadre officer, who is currently serving
as additional director in the Intelligence
Bureau (IB). He is also the son-in-law
of former Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh.

Started as a small unit with a

complement of just a handful of
officers and sailors, INS India is now a
major establishment in New Delhi with
a plethora of duties and
responsibilities. In addition, the
establishment provides administrative
and logistics cover to all officers and
sailors borne in Naval Headquarters
and other units at Delhi.
The Base Depot ship, stone ship in
naval parlance, has the privilege of
being the Flagship of the Chief of the
Naval Staff.
.

16-18 July 2016

NATGRID is an ambitious counter

terrorism programme, which will utilise
technologies like Big Data and
analytics to study and analyse the
huge amounts of data from various
intelligence and enforcement agencies
to help track suspected terrorists and
prevent terrorist attacks.

1) Who took over as the new Chief

Minister of Arunachal Pradesh on 17
July 2016 to become the youngest-

ever Chief Minister in India? Pema

Khandu
Explanation: Pema Khandu was on
17 July 2017 sworn in as the ninth
Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh.
37-year old Khandu is the son of late
Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu and he
thus became the youngest Chief
Minister in the country. Chowna Mein
was sworn in as the Deputy Chief
Minister.
His swearing-in also marked the
culmination of fast-paced political
developments in the state.
It is worth mentioning that, hours
ahead of the scheduled floor test in the
Assembly on 16 July, the Congress
Legislature Party elected Pema
Khandu, in place of Nabam Tuki, who
was restored as Chief Minister a few
days earlier by the Supreme Court.
In the 60-member House with an
effective strength of 58, Congress now
claims the support of 47 MLAs,
including two independents.

2) Which ancient site of Bihar was

declared a World Heritage Site by the
UNESCO, as announced by it on 15
July 2016? The ruins of Nalanda
University

Explanation: UNESCO declared the

site of the ruins of Nalanda
Mahavihara as a World Heritage Site
on 15 July 2016. With the inclusion of
Nalanda, this would be the second
UNESCO Heritage Site in the state of
Bihar after Bodh Gayas Mahabodhi
temple.
Last year, the ruin of Nalanda
university was inspected by an expert
team from the Paris-based
International Council of Monuments
and Sites (ICOMOS).
Nalanda University, the ancient seat
of learning, was one of the worlds
oldest universities construction of
which began in 5th century AD. It
flourished under the Gupta rulers. It
came to an end in the 12th century
when it was destroyed in 1193 AD by
the invading Turkish army led by its
commander Bakhtiar Khilji.
It is a rare combination of
outstanding achievements in
institution-building, site-planning, art
and architecture.

3) The worlds first hospital on train

the Lifeline Express, completed how
many years of its launch on 16 July
2016? 25 years
Explanation: The Lifeline Express is
the flagship project of Impact India

Foundation. It was developed in

collaboration with the Indian Railways
and Health Ministry and has been
funded by Impact UK, international
charitable sources, Indian corporate
houses and individuals.
The train completed 25 years of its
launch on 16 July 2016.
Lifeline Express has the distinction of
being the first ever hospital-on-rails in
the world. This unique hospital is
equipped with state-of-the-art medical
facilities and equipment to cater to the
needs of the rural patients.
It was launched on 16 July 1991 with
an engine and three coaches with the
objective of providing medical facilities
to poor and rural people where there
were no hospitals available. It has
covered 173 projects in 18 state and
also covered two lakh kilometres
distance.
The train has medically served more
than 10,00,000 poor in rural India,
restoring sight, movement, hearing
and correction of cleft lips with dental
and neurological treatment and more,
completely free of cost.

of important government establishment

including Presidential residence and
state-owned television station.
The coup began with warplanes and
helicopters roaring over Ankara and
troops moving in to seal off the bridges
over the Bosphorus River that link
Europe and Asia in Istanbul.
For a few hours it looked as procoup forces had taken control of
airports a state-owned television
station.
Later the pro-government police and
security forces took control of the
situation as the United States declared
its firm backing for Erdogans
government.
A successful overthrow of PM
Erdogan, who has ruled Turkey since
2003, would have marked one of the
biggest shifts in the Middle East in
years, transforming one of the most
important U.S. allies while war rages
on its border.
Since the modern state of Turkey
was established in 1923, the Turkish
armed forced have staged coups three
times in 1960, 1971, 1980 and 1997.

4) Which important country of the

Middle-East witnessed a failed attempt
to ouster the government through a
coup on 15 July 2016? Turkey
Explanation: Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan survived a coup
attempt on 15 July 2016 as a faction of
the Turkish Army tried to take control

5) 84 people were killed and hundreds

other were injured as a Tunisian-born
French national deliberately drove a 19

ton cargo truck into a crowd

celebrating Bastille Day (French
National Day) on 14 July 2016. This
attack that shook the whole world, took
place at which resort city of France?
Nice
Explanation: France was hit by yet
another terrorist attack on 14 July
2016 as Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel,
a Tunisian resident of France mowed
hundreds of people by his 19 ton cargo
in the French Riviera city of Nice.
Thousands of people had assembled
to take part in the Bastille Day
celebrations, which is celebrated to
commemorate the storming of the
Bastille, an event that lead to the
French Revolution in 1789.
The dead included nationals of
different countries including France,
the US, Switzerland, UK, Germany,
Russia, Morocco, Algeria and
Armenia.
The incident was described as the
third major terrorist attack in France
since January 2015, following the lede-France attacks on 79 January
2015 and Paris attacks on 13
November 2015.

6) Who was named as the vicepresidential running mate by

Republican presidential candidate
Donald Trump on 15 July 2016?
Mike Pence
Explanation: Indiana Governor Mike
Pence was announced as the vice-

presidential running mate of

Republican presidential candidate
Donald Trump. This announcement
was made by Donald Trump on 15
July 2016.
Viewed as a safe pair of hands, 57year old Pence has diverging views
with Trump on his proposed Muslim
ban and trade and is more socially
conservative. But he could help unify a
divided party behind Trumps bid to
win the White House.

7) Indian professional boxer Vijender

Singh defeated which Australian boxer
on 16 July 2016 to become the WBO
Asia Pacific Super Middleweight
champion? Kerry Hope
Explanation: Professional boxing
made a rousing start in India on 16
July 2016 as Vijender Singh became
the WBO Asia Pacific Super
Middleweight champion with a
convincing win over Australian Kerry
Hope in an important bout held at
Delhis Thyagraj Stadium.
This was the seventh straight win in
Vijenders professional boxing career.
He won, this time by unanimous
decision, even though his reputation
as the Knockout King took a
backseat.
It was his toughest fight yet,
stretching to the maximum 10 rounds
at the end of which he was as drained
as his opponent.

 The win also saw Vijender climb to

15th in the world in his category.
On the other hand, Siddhartha
Verma defeated Dilbagh Thakran to lift
the IBC Super Welterweight
Championship Title fight and become
the countrys first-ever professional
boxing title holder.

19 July 2016

Though the services sector is the

main contributor to the countrys gross
domestic product and accounts for
nearly 60% of it, there is little official
data on economic activities by the
sector. At present, much of the data on
the services sector comes from the
RBI and private surveys.
The first round results of the survey
are expected in 2018 but detailed
results would be available later.
..

1) What is the special fact associated

with the National Sample Survey
Office (NSSOs) 74thround that started
from 1 July 2016? It is focussed on
service sector enterprises
Explanation: The National Sample
Survey Office (NSSO) has started
mapping all the service establishments
across the country under its 74thRound
of data collection that is being carried
out from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017.
It is solely concentrating on the
services establishment survey in this
round and will not work on other issues
in the period.
The establishment-focussed survey
on services sector could gradually
pave the way for an Annual Survey of
Services.

2) Which two new sites from India

were added in UNESCOs World
Heritage List on 17 July 2016? Le
Corbusiers Capitol Complex
(Chandigarh) and
Khangchendzonga National Park
(Sikkim)
Explanation: Capitol Complex in
Chandigarh was added as part of the
addition of architectural work of SwissFrench architecture pioneer Le
Corbusier to UNESCOs World
Heritage List. Thus a total of 17
buildings designed by Corbusier have
become UNESCO world heritage sites.
Khangchendzonga National Park of
Sikkim was also included in this
prestigious list. It includes a unique
diversity of plains, valleys, lakes,
glaciers and spectacular, snow-capped
mountains covered with ancient

forests, including the worlds third

highest peak, Mount
Khangchendzonga.
The approval for the above two sites
came two days after the ruins of
Nalanda University in Bihar earned the
elite tag at the 40th session of the
World Heritage Committee meet that
was held in Istanbul (Turkey).
..
3) Which state during July 2016
announced the establishment of
countrys first ever department of
happiness with the aim of providing
happiness based on Indian philosophy
to its citizens? Madhya Pradesh
Explanation: In a historic decision, the
Madhya Pradesh Government on 16
July 2016 announced establishment of
a first-of-its-kind department of
happiness in the state. This
department will be providing spiritual
happiness and happiness through
knowledge in accordance with the
Indian philosophy.
Though the happiness department
will initially work with other
departments like women and child
development, health, and sports, a
comprehensive plan will be floated
later.
The state has borrowed the idea of
the happiness department from
Bhutan, known as the happiest country
in the world. The Himalayan Kingdom
introduced the concept of a Gross
Happiness Index in 2010.

..
4) What is the name of the
Coimbatore-based low-cost airline
service that commenced its operations
from 18 July 2016? Air Carnival
Explanation: Air Carnival is a regional
airline promoted by the CMC group, a
Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) based
conglomerate. The maiden flight of this
airline was launched on 18 July 2016
as its first commercial flight took off
from Coimbatore Airport at 7.30 a.m.
and landed at Chennai airport around
9 a.m.
It charged Re. 1 for the first flight. It
plans to keep the tariff at Rs 999 for
the first three months. The airline plans
to focus on short haul services with its
ATR72-500 aircraft. The promoters are
infusing around $12 million to take
three aircraft on lease.
..
5) Japans SoftBank Group Corp. is
acquiring which UK-based smartphone
chip designing entity for $32.4 billion
as announced on 18 July 2016 that will
be SoftBanks biggest ever
acquisition? ARM Holdings Plc.
Explanation: According to media
reports of 18 July 2016, SoftBank
Group Corp. has agreed to buy
Cambridge, England-based-ARM
Holdings Plc. for $32.4 billion in cash,
a deal that would be the Japanese
companys biggest ever acquisition.
ARM has come to dominate the
design of smartphone chips and is

pushing into servers to challenge Intel

Corp. It has thus evolved from a very
small lab to a company whose designs
are found in 95% of smartphones.
On the other hand, SoftBank under
chairman Masayoshi Son has become
one of Japans most acquisitive
companies, with stakes in US wireless
carrier Sprint Corp. and Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd.
..

Bank (Rs.2,816 crore). Bank of India

received Rs.1,784 crore and Central
Bank of India Rs.1,729 crore, while
Allahabad Bank received the least
amount (Rs.44 crore).
It is worth mentioning that a part of
its Indradhanush plan to revitalise
state-owned lenders, the Finance
Ministry plans to infuse Rs.70,000
crore in the four-year period between
2015-16 and 2018-19.
.

20 July 2016
1) Union Government allocated how
much amount as capital infusion in 13
public sector banks for 2016-17 as
announced on 19 July 2016? Rs.
22,915 crore
Explanation: Rs. 22,915 crore will be
given during 2016-17 fiscal to 13 PSU
banks that are burdened with nonperforming loans, to help improve their
liquidity and support lending
operations.
According to Finance Ministry, of the
allocated amount for each bank, 75%
has been released for now to provide
liquidity support for lending operations
and enable them to raise funds from
the market. The balance amount is
linked to performance and would be
released later.
The countrys largest public sector
bank State Bank of India has received
the highest amount (Rs. 7,575 crore),
followed by Indian Overseas Bank
(Rs.3,101 crore) and Punjab National

2) Which noted Oxford

University economist
during July 2016 launched
his book titled Indias
Long Road: The Search for Prosperity
in which he has proposed the concept
of a basic income guarantee for all
citizens? Vijay Joshi
Explanation: Vijay Joshis new book
titled Indias Long Road: The Search
for Prosperity was released on 15 July
2016. During the launch, Joshi
advocated shifting to a universal basic
income, replacing all government
subsidies with a single cash transfer to
all citizens.
Joshi is of the view that income
distribution done through price
subsidies is a rather inefficient way of
helping the poor as much of the
benefits end up in the hands of the
undeserving.
.

 Justice Lokur is heading the eCommittee of the Supreme Court.

3) Mubarak Begum, who passed away

on 18 July 2016 in Mumbai, was a
renowned personality associated with
which field? Hindi playback singing
Explanation: 80-year old Mubarak
Begum was a legendary singer of
Hindi film industry and was best known
for crooning the title track of 1961
romantic-drama Hamari Yaad Aayegi.
She made her Bollywood singing
debut with 1949 film Aiye in which she
had a solo track. She gave scores of
Hindi film songs and ghazals, mainly
between the 1950s and 70s.
Kabhi Tanhaiyon Mein Hamari Yaad
Aayegi, the title song of Tanujastarrer Hamari Yaad Aayegi, remains
one of Begums most remembered
tracks. Neend Ud Jaaye Teri and
Mujh ko Apne Gale Lagalo with Asha
Bhosle are among her other famous
songs.
.
4) Indias first e-court was inaugurated
at which High Court on 17 July 2016?
Hyderabad
Explanation: Indias first e-court was
inaugurated at High Court of
Judicature at Hyderabad on 17 July
2016 by Supreme Court judge Justice
Madan B Lokur. This court is the
common high court for the states of
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

E-Court is basically a paperless

court with the primary objective of
ensuring speedy trials for the litigants.
The e-court process involves
digitisation of case records and
transmitting the digitised records to the
court hall electronically.
There will be an electronic cause list
before the judge which will
synchronise with the electronic case
records available in the database. The
electronic files will be opened on a
monitor placed before the judge and
he will access the files on it and make
digital notings.
.
5) At least eight CRPF commandos
were killed in a Naxal IED blast in
Bihar on 18 July 2016. This attack took
place in which district of state?
Aurangabad
Explanation: 8 CRPF commandos
belonging to its elite Commando
Battalion for Resolute Action (COBRA)
battalion were on 18 July 2016 killed in
a Naxal IED blast in the forests of
Bihars Aurangabad district.
The attack took place in
Chakarbanda forests of the district,
bordering Gaya. The jawans belonged
to the 205th COBRA battalion and were
deployed in the s for conducting antinaxal operations.
.

21 July 2016

1) The Union Government on 20 July

2016 created which new Ministry by
bifurcating Ministry of Communications
and Information Technology to
exclusively deal with Aadhaar,
promotion of internet and other related
services? Ministry of Electronics
and Information Technology

2) Indian Hockey legend Mohammed

Shahid passed away on 20 July 2016
at a Gurgaon hospital after being in
poor health for last many days.
Shahid, who was part of the gold
medal winning side of the 1980
Moscow Olympics, was famous all
over the world for which of his hockey
talents? Dribbling

Explanation: The newly formed

Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology will deal with all matters
related to Unique Identification
Authority of India (UIDAI) mandated
to issue Aadhaar numbers to all Indian
citizens.
The matters related to promotion of
internet, information technology
enabled services, initiative on bridging
the digital divide and National
Informatics Centre (NIC), among
others, will also be dealt by the new
ministry.
The new Ministry has been
established by bifurcating the Ministry
of Communications and Information
Technology. To carry out the change,
President Pranab Mukherjee has
approved changes in Government of
India (Allocation of Business) Rules,
1961.

Explanation: Mohammed Shahid was

one of the greatest hockey players
India produced. Very few players come
near him when it came to dribbling the
hockey ball. People used to throng to
matches featuring him to watch his
talent.
He had formed a terrific pair with
fellow hockey player Zafar Iqbal in
forward position for around seven
years. This brilliant pair was
particularly dominant in the 1982 and
1986 Asian Games. His on-field
partnership with Zafar weaved a
majestic tapestry in Indian hockeys
history.
Shahid had captained India during
the 1985-86 season. He was honoured
with the Arjuna Award in 1981 and the
Padma Shri in 1986.

 He belonged to Varanasi (UP) and

was associated with the Indian
Railways till his death. He was 56.

3) Donald Trump captured the 2016

Republican presidential nomination
officially on 19 July 2016, almost 13
months after launching an up and
down bid for the White House. He won
support of as many as 1,725
republican delegates. Who was his
closest rival in this race? Ted Cruz
Explanation: Donald Trump won the
Republican nomination with 1,725
delegates, followed by US Senator
Ted Cruz of Texas with 475 delegates,
Ohio governor John Kasich with 120
and US Senator Marco Rubio of
Florida with 114. Three other
candidates emerged with a total of 12
delegates.
Trump needed support of just 1,237
Republican delegates to win the
nomination and to contest the 8
November US presidential election
against presumptive Democratic
nominee Hillary Clinton.

4) What is the name of the oldest

litigant in the Babri Masjid case who
died on 20 July 2016 at the age of 95?
Hashim Ansari

Explanation: 95-year old Hashim

Ansari has been associated with the
Babri Masjid case since 1949. He was
among the persons arrested for
breaching public peace after the
episode in which idols of Lord Ram
were planted in the mosque.
In 1952, he was sentenced to two
years in jail by a Faizabad court for
giving the azaan (call for namaz) in the
disputed mosque.
In 1961, he along with six others,
became the main plaintiff in the
Ayodhya title suit filed by the Sunni
Central Waqf Board in the court of
Faizabad civil judge. He was the lone
surviving litigant and considered the
main voice from the Muslim-end.

5) Who took over as the new

Chairman of Airports Authority of India
(AAI) on 19 July 2016?
Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra
Explanation: Dr. Guruprasad
Mohapatra, a 1986 batch IAS officer of
Gujarat cadre, on 19 July 2016 took
over as the new Chairman of Airports
Authority of India (AAI).
Prior to joining AAI, Mohapatra
worked as a Joint Secretary in the
Department of Commerce in
Government of India.
He took over from Sudhir Raheja
who is Member (Planning) in AAI and
was given the designations of AAI
Chairman as an additional charge. It is
worth mentioning that during March

2016, RK Srivastava was suddenly

removed from the post.

22 July 2016

AAI manages 125 airports of the

country, including 11 international
airports. It also provides Air Traffic
Management Services (ATMS) to the
airports.

6) On 19 July 2016 who became the

first-ever Indian to win the Mr. World
title? Rohit Khandelwal
Explanation: Model and actor Rohit
Khandelwal became the first Indian as
well as the first Asian to win the Mr.
World beauty pageant. He achieved
this achievement as the 2016 Mr.
World pageant that concluded on 19
July 2016 at Southport, UK.
Rohit competed with 46 contestants
and was awarded the title at the grand
finale on 19 July. The first Runner-up
was Mr. Puerto Rico while Mr. Mexico
won the 2nd Runner-up title. Rohit also
won Mr. World Multimedia Award at
the pageant.
The 12-day pageant comprised of 5
challenge events and included 47
participants from all over the world.

1) Seven Indian companies have

made it to the latest Fortune 500 list of
the worlds biggest corporations (in
terms of revenue) that was released
on 21 July 2016. Which private
company replaced ONGC to make its
debut in this prestigious list? Rajesh
Exports
Explanation: Private gems and
jewellery major Rajesh Exports made
its debut in the Fortune 500 list by
occupying 423rd place and replacing oil
exploration major ONGC from it.
Among the seven Indian companies,
four are from the public sector while
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is the
top-ranked among private sector firms,
followed by Tata Motors and Rajesh
Exports.
Indian Oil is ranked 161st with
revenue of $54.7 billion (down from
119th last year), while RIL is now at
215th (down from 158th). Bharat
Petroleum slipped from 280th to
358th this year and Hindustan
Petroleum is at 367th, down from 327th.
Tata Motors has taken the
226th position, up from 254th last year,

SBI is ranked 232nd, up from 260th last

year.
The overall list was topped by
Walmart with revenue of $482,130
million, followed by State Grid
(revenue of $329,601 million) and
China National Petroleum ($299,271
million) at the second and third place
respectively.
The worlds 500 largest companies
generated $27.6 trillion in revenues
and$1.5 trillion in profits in 2015.

2) Indias largest commercial bank SBI

during July 2016 signed an agreement
with which global alternative asset
manager to form a joint-venture to
invest in SBIs stressed assets?
Brookfield Asset Management Inc.
Explanation: In an effort to clean up
its balance sheet, State Bank of India
(SBI) during July 2016 signed an
agreement with Brookfield Asset
Management Inc. to form a joint
venture, which will invest in stressed
assets.
Under the proposed joint venture,
Brookfield will commit about Rs. 7,000
crore and SBI up to 5% of total
investments into stressed assets.
The joint venture will be in the nature
of an alternative investment fund. Such
funds are regulated by the capital
market regulator SEBI.
Brookfield is a global alternative
asset manager with $240 billion in
assets under management. It has an

over 100-year history of owning and

operating assets with a focus on
property, renewable power,
infrastructure and private equity.

3) The Court
of Arbitration
for Sport
(CAS) on 21
July 2016 ruled out that 68 Russian
athletes can take part in the 2016
Summer Olympics in Rio thus
effectively putting these athletes out of
the games. Why the ban on these
athletes was earlier imposed by the
International Association of Athletics
Federations (IAAF)? On charges of
a state-sponsored doping
programme in Russia
Explanation: It is worth mentioning
that during December 2014 German
broadcaster ARD had aired a
documentary alleging systematic
doping in Russian athletics. Later
WADA, the global doping watchdog,
set up an independent committee to
probe the charges.
WADAs report in November 2015
confirmed the charges and called for
an international ban of Russias track
and field team. The IAAF Council later
suspended the team.
The Russian Olympic Committee
(ROC) and 68 Russian athletes during
July 2016 attempted to overturn the
suspension in the Court of Arbitration

for Sport (CAS). But CAS on 21 July

ruled out that this ban can be lifted.

4) Which entity will become the first to

get debt relief under RBIs Scheme for
Sustainable Structuring of Stressed
Assets (S4A), as announced during
July 2016? HCC
Explanation: Construction and
infrastructure major HCC is poised to
become the first entity to get debt
under Reserve Bank of India (RBIs)
recently announced scheme for
restructuring of stressed assets of
companies.
The RBIs Scheme for Sustainable
Structuring of Stressed Assets (S4A)
allows banks to separate the total debt
of a stressed company into two. While
the company will service the
sustainable part of debt, the rest is
converted into equity.
According to a statement released
by HCC on 13 July 2016, the joint
lenders forum has agreed to consider
the recast of HCCs Rs. 12,000-crore
debt pile. Lenders get 90 days from
the reference date (12 July 2016) to
formulate a resolution plan and
implement it, along with necessary
internal approvals.

5) What is the name

of the worlds biggest
online piracy site accused of
distributing over $1 billion worth

illegally copied films, music and

content that was hit with US criminal
charges on 20 July 2016? Kickass
Torrents
Explanation: Kickass Torrents, a
popular source for links to torrent files,
which can be used to illegally
download music, movies, and TV
shows was founded by 30-year old
Ukrainian Artem Vaulim.
Kickass Torrents has recently
eclipsed Pirate Bay and others to
become the worlds biggest source of
pirated media.
Justice Department on 20 July
unveiled a criminal complaint against
Artem Vaulim and he was later
arrested from Poland. According to the
complaint, Kickass Torrents offers a
sophistication and user-friendly
environment in which its users are able
to search for and locate content which
is protected by copyright.

23 July 2016

1) According to the latest Bloomberg

Billionaires Index that was released on
21 July 2016, who overtook Warren
Buffet to become the third-richest
person on earth? Jeff Bezos
Explanation: Jeff Bezos, the founder
of Amazon.com Inc. became the third-

richest person on earth with a net

worth of $65.05 billion, topping
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. chairman
Warren Buffett by $32 million.

has been on alert for terrorism in the

wake of a string of attacks including
bombings in neighbouring France and
Belgium.

This means Bezos now lags only

Spains Amancio Ortega, the Inditex
SA founder who has a $73 billion
fortune, and Microsoft Inc.s Bill Gates,
the worlds richest person, with $89
billion.

..

Bezoss rise in the billionaire ranking

has been helped by Buffetts
philanthropy. Buffet donated about
$2.2 billion worth of stock this month in
his annual gift to the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation.

3) Who was appointed as the new

CEO of the Unique Identification
Authority of India (UIDAI) on 21 July
2016? Dr. Ajay Bhushan Pandey

..
2) Which German city was targeted in
a shooting spree by a German citizen
of Iranian origin on 22 July 2016
resulting in the death of at-least 15
people? Munich
Explanation: On 22 July 2016 a lone
gunman opened fire at a McDonalds
restaurant near OlympiaEinkaufszentrum (OEZ) shopping mall
in the Moosach district of Munich
(Germany).
At-least 15 persons were killed in the
shooting. Later German security
agencies identified the gunman as an
18-year-old German man of Iranian
descent who held both German and
Iranian citizenship.
Germany has so far escaped the
kind of large-scale jihadist attacks
seen in neighbouring France. Europe

Explanation: The Appointments

Committee of the Cabinet (ACC)
approved appointment of Dr. Ajay
Bhushan Pandey as Chief Executive
Officer (CEO), UIDAI, with effect from
21 July 2016.
A doctorate in computer science
from University of Minnesota
Minneapolis of US, Pandey is a
Maharashtra cadre IAS officer of 1984
batch.
He was till now posted as the DG
and Mission Director of UIDAI. It was
during his tenure as the UIDAI head
when Aadhaar allocation crossed 100
crore and a new Aadhaar Bill was
passed.
..
4) On 21 July 2016 Facebook Inc.
announced that it has completed a
successful test flight of a solarpowered drone that it hopes will help it
extend internet connectivity to every

corner of the planet. What is the name

of this lightweight aircraft? Aquila
Explanation: Aquila is the name of a
lightweight, high-altitude and solarpowered aircraft owned by socialmedia giant Facebook. According to
CEO Mark Zuckerbergs post in his
Facebook page, Aquila flew at a few
thousand feet for 96 minutes in Yuma,
Arizona.

Centres and scale-up support to

established incubation centres in
February 2016, under its Atal
Innovation Mission.
A total of 500 ATLs would be set up
across the country in schools and a
minimum of 25% of these laboratories
would be set up in schools managed
by the government.
..

Facebook has ambitious plans to

use such aircrafts to internet
connectivity all over the world.
Google parent Alphabet Inc. has also
poured money into delivering internet
access to under-served areas through
Project Loon.
..
5) During July 2016 NITI Aayog signed
a two-year statement of intent with
Intel India to set up and manage 10
innovation labs in schools. Students
would be encouraged to give shape to
their ideas and come up with
innovative experiments on their own in
these labs. These labs will be known
by which name? Atal Tinkering
Laboratories (ATLs)
Explanation: 10 Atal Tinkering
Laboratories (ATLs) will be established
as a part of the Atal Innovation Mission
(AIM) as inked in an agreement
between NITI Aayog and Intel India.
It is worth mentioning that NITI
Aayog had announced three
programmes creation of Atal
Tinkering Laboratories, Atal Incubation

6) Who was selected as the running

mate (Vice Presidential candidate) by
Democratic presidential candidate
Hillary Clinton on 22 July 2016? Tim
Kaine
Explanation: On 22 July 2016 Tim
Kaine, a moderate senator from
Virginia, was announced as the
running made by Hillary Clinton. Kaine
Kaine was a finalist to be Barack
Obamas running mate in 2008 and
served as Virginia governor before his
time in the Senate.
58-year old Kaine reportedly
opposes abortion and supports freetrade agreements.

24-25 July 2016

choices and reduced poverty

significantly.

1) 25 years of which landmark event

associated with the Indian economy
were completed on 24 July 2016?
Economic Liberalization and
Reforms
Explanation: 24 July 2016 marked 25
years of liberalization and reforms in
the country. The process of economic
reforms was unleashed officially on 24
July 1991 as the then Finance Minister
Manmohan Singh presented his
landmark budget on that day.
The Budget of 24 July 1991 brought
about sea change in liberalizing the
apparently protection-based Indian
economy which had concepts like
licence regime, state intervention in
business regulation and Soviet-style
planning. It did away with the so-called
Licence Raj, reduced tariffs and
interest rates and ended many public
monopolies, allowing automatic
approval of foreign direct investment
(FDI) in many sectors.
The economic reforms kick-started in
1991 brought about expansion of the
services sector helped largely by a
liberalized investment and trade
regime. They also increased consumer

2) Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on

24 July 2016 inaugurated Indias first
green rail corridor with zero toilet
discharge section. This green rail
corridor lies between which section of
the Indian Railway? RameswaramManmadurai
Explanation: The 114-km long
Rameswaram-Manmadurai section (in
Tamil Nadu) was inaugurated as
countrys first green rail corridor with
zero toilet discharge section on 24 July
2016. It was inaugurated by Railway
Minister Suresh Prabhu through videoconferencing at Chennai station.
10 passenger trains consisting of
286 coaches moving in the section
have been provided with biotoilets enabling the rail corridor free
from discharge of human waste on the
track.
The Rameswaram-Manmadurai
section was identified to make it green
train corridor free from human waste
discharge from trains as part of the
Swachh Bharat Mission.

3) What is the name of the Indian

javelin thrower who created sporting
history by breaking the junior World
record on way to the gold in the IAAF
World under-20 athletics championship
and thus becoming Indias first-ever
gold in any World athletics
championships? Neeraj Chopra
Explanation: Indian javelin thrower
Neeraj Chopra earned a sporting glory
for the country on 23 July 2016 as he
broke the junior World record on way
to win the gold medal in the IAAF
World under-20 athletics championship
at Bydgoszcz, Poland.
His effort of 86.48m brought Indias
first World record and the countrys
first-ever gold in any World athletics
championships.
It is worth mentioning that two Indian
women discus throwers, Seema Antil
(bronze, 2002) and Navjeet Kaur
Dhillon (bronze, 2014) had won
medals in the World junior
championship earlier.
Long jumper Anju Bobby George is
the only Indian to have won a medal in
the senior World championship, with a
bronze in 2003.

was an iconic personality associated

with which field? Modern art and
painting
Explanation: Syed Haider Raza (S.H.
Raza) was an iconic personality in the
field of Indian modern art and
paintings. He was known to have
popularised globally the Indian art
concepts and iconography and built a
towering legacy of modern art.
Born in 1922 in Babaria in Madala
district of Madhya Pradesh to a forest
ranger father, Raza took to drawing at
the age of 12. After high school, he
enrolled at the Nagpur School of Art
(193943), followed by the J J School
of Art in Mumbai (194347), before
moving to Paris to study (1950-1953).
He travelled across Europe, and
continued to exhibit his work in France,
where he went on to live for six
decades.
In 2010, his seminal work
Saurashtra was sold at a Christies
auction for a whopping Rs.16.42 crore.
In 2014, La Terre was sold for
Rs.18.61 crore.
Raza was awarded the Padma Shri
and fellowship of the Lalit Kala
Akademi in 1981, the Padma Bhushan
in 2007 and the Padma Vibhushan in
2013.

4) Syed Haider Raza, who passed

away at the age of 94 on 23 July 2016,

5) Mitribah town of Kuwait came to

news during July 2016. Why? It
recorded temperature of 54 C
which is probably the hottest

temperature ever reliably measured

outside of Death Valley
Explanation: Kuwaits Mitribah on 21
July 2016 recorded temperature of 54
C (129.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
According to leading weather
historians and scientists this could be
Earths hottest temperature ever
reliably measured outside of Death
Valley, California.
The worlds all-time hottest
temperature was recorded at 134
degrees in Death Valley in 1913. But
that recording has been questioned
many times on the grounds that it was
not done in a very scientific manner.
It is also worth mentioning that on 20
July 2016 temperatures soared up to
51 C (123.8 Fahrenheit) in Iraqi
capital Baghdad and as much as 53
C (127.4 Fahrenheit) in Basra, another
Iraqi city.

26 July 2016

Explanation: Verizon
Communications Inc. officially
announced plans to acquire Yahoo
Inc.s core assets for about $4.83
billion.
The reported price tag for the deal is
well below the firms $125bn market
value at the height of the dot.com
boom.
The deal would thus seal the fate of
the iconic web pioneer after months of
speculation and pressure from
investors.
Yahoo was originally created as a
directory of websites by Stanford
graduates Jerry Yang and David Filo in
1995. Then it quickly got into search,
email, shopping and news before
losing its way to the likes of Google
and Facebook.
The deal will add Yahoo and its
millions of daily users to Verizons
growing stable of media properties.
Verizon is expected to merge Yahoo
with AOL, to create a digital group
capable of taking on the likes of
Google and Facebook.
It is also likely to end the reign of
Yahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer,
who tried and failed to re-invent Yahoo
as an independent company.

1) Which US telecom giant on 25 July

2016 officially announced that it will
acquire Yahoos search and
advertising operations in a cash deal
worth 4.83 billion? Verizon
Communications

2) The Solar Impulse -2 on 25 July

2016 became the first solar-powered
aircraft in the world to circle the globe
successfully. This epic flight ended at
which place from where it had initiated
its journey last year on 9 March 2015?
Abu Dhabi
Explanation: Solar Impulse 2 created
aviation history as it completed its epic
circular voyage of the globe by landing
successfully at Abu Dhabi on 25 July
2016. It thus brought to an end an
epic, 17-leg voyage that began in Abu
Dhabi on 9 March 2015.
The journey took in four continents,
three seas and two oceans. The last
leg of its voyage was between Cairo
(Egypt) and Abu Dhabi (UAE).
Two pilots associated with this
historic voyage are Bertrand Piccard
and Andre Borschberg. Piccard piloted
the plane for the last leg.
Solar Impulse 2 is no heavier than a
car, but has the wingspan of a Boeing
747. It is powered by 17,000 solar
cells.

3) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on

25 July 2016 imposed Rs. 5 crore fine
on which PSU bank for failing in a few
internal control mechanisms in respect
of certain anti-money laundering
provisions? Bank of Baroda (BoB)
Explanation: Penalty of Rs. 5 crore
was imposed on Bank of Baroda (BoB)
by the RBI for numerous instances of

slackness in banks anti-money

laundering measures.
The RBI stated that BoB has
reported weaknesses and failures in
internal control mechanisms in respect
of certain AML (anti-money laundering)
provisions such as monitoring of
transactions, timely reporting to FIU
(Financial Intelligence Unit), and
assigning of UCIC (unique customer
identification code) to customers.
It is worth mentioning that BoB was
entangled in a prominent overseas
remittances case in which around Rs.
6,000 crore worth of foreign exchange
was remitted overseas in an illegal &
irregular manner in violation of
established banking norms.

4) What is the name of one of the

worlds largest amphibious aircraft that
was unveiled by China on 23 July
2016 after 7 years of construction?
AG600
Explanation: AG600 is the name of
the one of the worlds largest
amphibious aircraft that looks like half
boat and half airplane and was
unveiled by China on 23 July 2016.
This mammoth aircraft was unveiled in
Zhuhai in the southern Guangdong
province.

 AG600 has been developed by the

Aviation Industry Corporation of China
(AVIC), the state aircraft maker. It is
capable of taking-off with a staggering
weight of 53 tonnes and can pick up
12 tonnes of water in an impressive 20
seconds.
Testing is expected to commence in
the coming months with its creators
claiming it can travel non-stop for
4,500km (2,796 miles). This range
might prove useful in Chinas bid for
control of disputed islands in the South
China Sea.

5) The Union Govt. during July 2016

constituted a committee to prepare
guidelines for desilting the Ganga
River from Bhimgauda in Uttarakhand
to Farakka in West Bengal. Who was
appointed as the Chairman of this
committee? Madhav Chitale
Explanation: Madhav Chitale, a
member of the National Ganga River
Basin Authority, was appointed the
Chairman of the committee that will
prepare the desiltation plan for Ganga
River.
The committee will primarily will try
to establish difference between
desilting and sand mining and also to
establish need for de-silting for
ecology and free flow of the Ganga.
The committee has been asked to
submit its detailed report within three
months.

27 July 2016

1) Indias Oil Ministry and the US

Geological Survey (USGS) recently
made discovery of which first-of-itskind natural resource in the Indian
Ocean region, as disclosed by the
USGS on 26 July 2016? Natural gas
hydrates
Explanation: According to the
statement released by the US
Geological Survey (USGS) on 26 July
2016, a large discovery of natural gas
hydrates has been made in the Indian
Ocean following a joint expedition by
Indias Oil Ministry and the USGS. This
discovery, being made in the KrishnaGodavari Basin area, is the first
instance of natural gas hydrates being
discovered in India.
Natural gas hydrates are a naturally
occurring, ice-like combination of
natural gas and water found in oceans
and polar-regions. This discovery is
the result of the most comprehensive
gas hydrate field venture in the world
to date, comprising of scientists from
India, Japan and the United States.
Gas hydrate resources in India are
estimated at 1,894 trillion cubic meters
and these deposits occur in Western,
Eastern and Andaman offshore areas.

 This is the first discovery of its kind

in the Indian Ocean that has the
potential to be producible.
.

2) Which e-commerce entity acquired

Indian online fashion marketplace
Jabong for $70 million, as announced
on 26 July 2016? Flipkart
Explanation: Indias No.1 ecommerce marketplace Flipkart
Limited acquired Jabong through its
unit Myntra for $70 million.
Jabong offers more than 1,500
international high-street brands, sports
labels, Indian ethnic and designer
labels and over 150,000 styles from
more than 1,000 sellers.
Flipkart, which beat other Jabong
suitors such as Snapdeal, will pay
cash for the acquisition, according to a
statement by Global Fashion Group
(GFG), which owns Jabong.
The sale marks one of the most
dramatic declines in Indias online
retail business. At the end of 2013,
Jabong was worth as much $508
million. In that financial year Jabong
reported sales of Rs. 438 crore. Even
though its sales increased to Rs. 869
crore in the last financial year,
Jabongs value collapsed because of a
combination of leadership issues,

market share losses and a funding

crunch.
For Flipkart-Myntra, the acquisition
of Jabong is expected to boost sales at
a time when Flipkart is struggling to
revive growth, and struggling to protect
its leadership in a market where
Amazon has made rapid strides.
.

3) Former Indian diplomat Arundhati

Ghose, who passed away on 25 July
2016, was known prominently for her
role in which important diplomatic
event? Heading the Indian
delegation at the Conference on
Disarmament in Geneva in 1996
Explanation: Arundhati Ghose was a
leading Indian diplomat. She was the
Ambassador of India to the
Conference on Disarmament (CD),
Geneva, where India faced exceptional
pressure to sign CTBT during the mid1990s.
She defended Indias decision to
oppose the Comprehensive Test Ban
Treaty (CTBT). On 8 August 1996, in
an assertive speech, Arundhati
conveyed Indias opposition to the
CTBT.
Having served in all the key
episodes of Indian diplomacy like the
1971 war, and Indias nuclear
diplomacy, Arundhati Ghose knew

every twist and turn of Indian foreign

policy and over the years had become
an institution in herself. She also
served as Indias permanent
representative in the United Nations
(UN).
.
4) Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra
Mahajan on 25 July 2016 set up a
nine-member committee to probe into
the issue of filming and uploading of a
video of Parliament on the social
media by AAP Lok Sabha member
Bhagwant Mann. Mann was also
advised not to attend the Monsoon
session till the committee submits it
report. Who was made head of this
probe committee? Kirit Somaiya
Explanation: The probe committee
has been tasked with looking into the
security implications and related
aspects germane to and arising out of
the conduct of audio-visual recording
around Parliament House by
Bhagwant Mann.
The probe committee will be headed
by BJP member Kirit Somaiya. The
other members are Meenakshi Lekhi
and Satyapal Singh (BJP), Anandrao
Adsul (Shiv Sena), Bhartuhari Mahtab
(BJD), Ratna De (Trinamool
Congress), Thota Narasimham (TDP),
KC Venugopal (Congress) and P
Venugopal (AIADMK).
In the nearly 12-minute video,
apparently shot on 21 July 2016, Mann
gives a running commentary as his
vehicle crosses security barricades

and enters Parliament. He then enters

a room where questions to be taken up
inside Parliament are being sorted and
describes the process.
.
5) In Japans worst mass killing in
decades, 19 people were killed and 25
wounded after an attack by a knifewielding man at a facility for the
disabled in central Japan early on 26
July 2016. This shocking attack took
place at which place? Sagamihara
Explanation: A disabled facility in
Sagamihara (Kanagawa Prefecture),
about 40km southwest of Tokyo, came
to news after Satoshi Uematsu, a 26year-old former employee of the
facility, carried out a stabbing-attack in
the early hours on 26 July 2016. He
killed 19 people and injured 25 others.
The dead ranged in age from 18 to
70 and included nine males and 10
females. The 3-hectare (7.6 acre)
facility, established by the local
government and nestled on the
wooded bank of the Sagami River,
cares for people with a wide range of
disabilities.
.

28 July 2016

journey across 30 states to mobilize

the public against manual scavenging.
T.M. Krishna was born in 1976 to a
privileged, Brahmin family in Chennai
and was trained from the age of six in
the aristocratic Carnatic music under
masters of the form.

1) Two Indians were named as

winners of the Ramon Magsaysay
Award 2016 that were announced on
27 July 2016. What are their names?
Bezwada Wilson and T.M. Krishna
Explanation: Bezwada Wilson and
T.M. Krishna of India were among the
six winners of year 2016s Ramon
Magsaysay Award. Four other winners
of these prestigious awards are
Japan Overseas Cooperation
Volunteers (Japan), Dompet Dhuafa
(Indonesia), Conchita Carpio-Morales
(The Philippines) and Vientiane
Rescue (Laos).
Bezwada Wilson was born to a dalit
family in Kolar Gold Fields township in
Karnataka state. He is associated with
the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA),
being its Convener. SKA, launched in
1993, is a peoples movement of
manual scavengers and their children.
In 2004-2005, SKA undertook a
mass latrine demolition drive across
the state of Andhra Pradesh; exposed
the occupational violence faced by
female scavengers. In 2010, SKA led
an India-wide march for the total
eradication of scavenging, and again
in 2015 undertook a 125-day bus

He saw that his was a castedominated art that fostered an unjust,

hierarchic order by effectively
excluding the lower classes from
sharing in a vital part of Indias cultural
legacy. He questioned the politics of
art; widened his knowledge about the
arts of the dalits (untouchables) and
non-Brahmin communities; and
declared he would no longer sing in
ticketed events at a famous, annual
music festival in Chennai to protest the
lack of inclusiveness.
Other 4 winners of 2016 Magsaysay
Prize include three organisations
Japan Overseas Cooperation
Volunteers (Japan), Dompet
Dhuafa (Indonesia) and Vientiane
Rescue (Laos), and one individual
Conchita Carpio-Morales(The
Philippines).
The awards will be presented on 31
August 2016 in Manila (The
Philippines).
For More details Click Here

2) The Union Govt. on 26 July 2016

constituted a committee to look into
possible alternatives to pellet guns as
non-lethal weapons. This was done

after widespread criticism of the use of

brutal force of pellet guns after the
recent Kashmir violence. Who is
heading this committee? TVSN
Prasad

the laying of the foundation stone for

the same here on 27 July 2016.

Explanation: TVSN Prasad, Joint

Secretary, Police Modernisation in
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), has
been appointed the Chairman of the
committee that will look into possible
alternatives to pellet guns as nonlethal weapons.

Kalam passed away on 27 July 2015

after he suffered a massive cardiac
arrest while delivering a lecture at IIMShillong in Meghalaya.

More than 3600 civilians and security

forces have been hurt in clashes after
death of Hizbul Commander Burhan
Wani. At least 150 people have
suffered serious injuries in the eyes
due to fire from pellet guns.
The Union Govt. has been severely
criticized to allow the use of pellet
guns by security forces deployed in the
Kashmir Valley.

3) The foundation
stone for a grand
museum of Dr.
APJ Abdul Kalam was laid at which
place on the occasion of his first death
anniversary on 27 July 2016?
Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu)
Explanation: Former President Dr.
APJ Abdul Kalams memorial will be
established at his birthplace
Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu). The first
step for this memorial was taken with

A life-size bronze statue of former

President was also inaugurated by
Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu.

4) The first-ever meeting of BRICS

Employment Working Group (BEWG)
to shape the agenda for labour and
employment track in the five-nation
grouping started from 27 July 2016 at
which Indian city? Hyderabad
Explanation: The 2-day meeting of
BRICS Employment Working Group
(BEWG) started in Hyderabad on 27
July 2016. The meeting is essentially a
meeting of senior officials from the 5
BRICS member states.
The meeting was inaugurated by
Bandaru Dattaraya, Union Minister of
State for Labour and Employment,
who addressed the opening session.
The meeting is a prelude to the BRICS
Labour and Employment Ministerial
Meeting scheduled on 27-28
September 2016 at Agra.
Brazil, Russia, India, China, South
Africa are the BRICS countries
comprising 43% of the world
population, 37% of the global GDP and
17% share in the international trade.

5) What is the name of the globally

popular membership programme of
worlds largest online retailer Amazon
that was launched in India from 26 July
2016? Amazon Prime
Explanation: Amazon Prime is the
name of a globally popular
membership programme of Amazon
that was launched in India from 26
July.
With this programme, Indian
customers in over 100 cities can enjoy
unlimited free one-day and two-day
delivery on lakhs of eligible products
from Indias largest online shopping
selection.

29 July 2016
1) Democratic
Party leader
Hillary Clinton
created which
American history
on 26 July 2016? She became the
first-ever woman candidate of a
major party for the post of the US
President
Explanation: Hillary Clinton was
formally chosen as the Democratic
Party candidate for the post of the US
President on 26 July 2016 at the
Democratic National Convention in
Philadelphia.

She thus became the first-ever

woman candidate for this post in 227
years of American democratic history.
She will have a showdown with
Donald Trump on 8 November 2016
for worlds most powerful post.
.

2) Iconic Bangla
writer and social
activist Mahasweta
Devi passed away on
28 July 2016 in a
private hospital in Kolkata. In which
year she was awarded the Jnanapith
Award, Indias most prestigious literary
award? 1996
Explanation: 91-year-old Mahasweta
Devi was one of the most respected
Bangla writers of all time. She was
awarded the prestigious Jnanpith
Award in 1996 for her iconic creation
Hajar Churashir Maa (Mother of
1084).
Among her other notable works
are Aranyer Adhikar, for which she
bagged the Sahitya Akademi Award in
1979, The Queen of Jhansi,
Agnigarbha, Bashai Tudu, Rudali
and Imaginary Maps.
In her elaborate Bengali fiction, she
often depicted the brutal oppression of
tribal peoples and the untouchables by
potent, authoritarian upper-caste
landlords, lenders, and venal
government officials.

 She was closely associated with

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee and this alignment happened
when the land agitation movements in
Nandigram and Singur were at its
peak.
She was the wife of late Bijon
Bhattacharya, one of Bengals most
prolific playwrights and litterateurs.
Filmmaker Ritwick Ghatak was her
uncle.
In 1997, Mahasweta Devi, won the
Magsaysay award for journalism,
literature and creative communication.
She was awarded the Padma
Vibhushan, Indias second highest
civilian award in 2006.

launched into space in March 2004,

riding piggyback on Rosetta. The
mission cost stood at around $1.4billion. The pair travelled some 6.5
billion km (four billion miles), aided by
gravity boosts from Earth and Mars,
before entering 67Ps orbit in August
2014.
Philae, after sending huge amount of
information, went silent on 9 July 2016.
The ESA scientists on 27 July 2016
sent final goodbye to it by ending the
server linkage with it. However, its
mothership Rosetta will remain in orbit
around the comet for another two
months.
.

3) Scientists of the
European Space
Agency (ESA) on
27 July 2016 bid a
final farewell to
which robotic lab, which had sent
pioneering probe from comet during its
historic mission? Philae
Explanation: Philae was the name of
a robotic lab mission that was the first
to land on a comet (Comet
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko). It sent
home reams of data garnered from
sniffing, tasting and prodding its new
alien home hundreds of millions of
kilometres (miles) from Earth.
It was the part of ESAs orbiting
mothership Rosetta. Philae was

4) India on 27 July
2016 signed an
agreement with the
United States worth around $1 billion
for the purchase of four more longrange maritime surveillance and antisubmarine warfare aircraft. Which
aircraft is involved in this deal?
Poseidon-8I
Explanation: The contract signed on
27 July is a follow-up order to the eight
P-81 planes already bought by India in
a direct deal with Boeings Indian
subsidiary worth $2.1 billion in 2009.
The P-8I fleet is based at naval air
station Rajali, in Arakkonam town of
Tamil Nadu.
The P-8I is a long-range antisubmarine warfare, anti-surface
warfare, intelligence, surveillance and

reconnaissance aircraft capable of

broad area, maritime and littoral
operations.
The acquisition of additional P-8I
aircraft will give the Indian Navy muchneeded punch as India builds up its
naval surveillance capabilities.
.

Super Carry will be available in

diesel fuel option. MSIL has invested
about Rs.300 crore to develop the
product. It has a payload of 740kg in
all terrains.
.

30-31 July 2016

5) The Union Cabinet on 27 July 2016

decided to raise the cap for individual
foreign investors in Indian stock
exchanges to 15%. What was this cap
till now? 5%
Explanation: Individual foreign
investors can now hold up to 15%
stake in Indian stock exchanges, up
from the earlier 5%. This happened
after a decision to this effect was taken
by the Union Cabinet on 27 July 2016.
It is worth mentioning that currently
foreign investors, in aggregate, can
hold up to 49 per cent stake in any
stock or commodity exchange.
.
6) Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) on
27 July 2016 announced that it will
start selling its first-ever light
commercial vehicle (LCV) from August
2016 on a pilot basis. What is the
name of this LCV? Super Carry
Explanation: MSIL will start selling its
first-ever light commercial vehicle
(LCV) Super Carry on pilot basis in
Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Ludhiana
towards the end of August 2016.

1) Karnataka was shut down on 30

July 2016 over the order of the
Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal
(MWDT) that rejected the states plea
for diversion of 7.6 thousand million
cubic feet (tmcft) of water from the
river to the Malaprabha Basin.
Karnataka has dispute over water
sharing of Mahadayi River with which
state? Goa
Explanation: Karnataka, which has
locked horns with neighbouring Goa
on the larger issue of sharing of the
Mahadayi river waters between both
states, had petitioned the Mahadayi
Water Disputes Tribunal (MWDT)
seeking release of 7.56 tmcft of water
for Kalasa-Banduri Nala project.
But the MWDT, headed by Justice
J.N. Panchal, on 27 July 2016 rejected
the states petition, citing various
grounds, including ecological damage
the project might cause. To protest

against this order all commercial

establishments, schools, colleges and
government offices in Karnataka
remained closed on 30 July 2016.
As the 77 km-long Mahadayi flows
into Goa from Karnataka on the west
coast into the Arabian Sea, the former
has been objecting over sharing its
water, as 52 km of its stretch is in its
state and is a lifeline for its people.

2) All the nine important unions of the

banking industry under the umbrella
organisation of the United Forum of
Bank Unions (UFBU) observed oneday strike across almost all banks in
the country on 29 July 2016. What is
the primary reason for observing this
strike? To voice against the
proposed merger of State Bank
associate banks with SBI
Explanation: The United Forum of
Banks Unions (UFBU), an umbrella
organisation of nine bank employees
and officers unions representing 8 lakh
staffers, went ahead with the strike on
29 July 2016, thus affecting services
like cheque clearances, cash deposit
and withdrawal at branches and other
facilities.
The bank unions are protesting
against the proposed merger of State
Bank associate banks with SBI, under
which four associate banks of SBI will
be merged with the parent group.
The bank employees are also
protesting against privatisation of IDBI
and other banking reforms that the

government has initiated. The unions

are opposing the move to privatise
regional rural banks and co-operative
banks, and consolidate and merge
banks.

3) In the largest bancassurance

partnership in the country, Life
Insurance Corporation of India (LIC of
India) during July 2016 signed an
agreement with which banking entity to
sell its life insurance policies? Axis
Bank
Explanation: During July 2016 Axis
Bank signed an agreement with Life
Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to
distribute policies through its banking
channels. This is the largest
bancassurance partnership after the
insurance regulator IRDAI allowed
banks to sell policies of more than one
company.
It is worth mentioning that
bancassurance is the selling of life
insurance and other insurance
products and services by banking
institutions. Banks in India have
increased their role in Insurance
distribution with bancassurance being
the biggest contributor.
Axis Bank already had a distribution
arrangement with Max Life Insurance
where it also holds a small stake.
LIC is also a promoter of Axis Bank
is the second largest shareholder with
a 12% stake.

4) Who was selected for the

important and challenging
job of leading the exit negotiations with
the United Kingdom (UK) on 27 July
2017? Michel Barnier (France)
Explanation: Former EU
commissioner and French cabinet
minister Michel Barnier was on 27 July
2016 selected by the European Union
(EU) as the in-charge (Chief
Negotiator) to lead the exit
negotiations with the UK.
Barnier will take up his post on 1
October 2016.
As internal markets and services
commissioner from 2010 to 2014,
Barnier was in charge of the key
financial services portfolio, leading the
blocs attempts to contain the
eurozone debt crisis and establish its
new banking union.

5) Pandit Lacchu Maharaj,

who passed away on 28
July 2016, was a maestro
of which musical
instrument? Tabla
Explanation: Pandit Lacchu Maharaj
was a one of the frontline tabla players
in the world. Other than his
professional performances all over the
world, he played the tabla in many
Bollywood films.
He belonged to Varanasi and kept
floating the unique heritage of
Varanasis rich classical music.

It is worth mentioning that there was

also a famous Kathak dance exponent
by the same name (Pandit Lacchu
Maharaj), who had iconic presence in
field of Indian performing arts. He died
in 1978.

6) What is the name of the Lok Sabha

MP of the BJP from Bihar whose Lok
Sabha membership was suspended on
28 July 2016 as the Patna High Court
set aside his election for concealing
facts in his election affidavit filed
during the 2014 general election?
Chhedi Paswan
Explanation: The Patna high court on
29 July 2016 set aside the election of
BJP MP Chhedi Paswan for
concealing facts in his election affidavit
filed during the 2014 general election.
He had won from Sasaram Lok Sabha
seat by defeating former Lok Sabha
Speaker Meira Kumar by over 63,000
votes.
The order was passed by a single
bench of Justice Kishore K Mandal on
an election petition filed by advocate
Ganga Prasad Mishra. The petition
alleged Paswan did not make any
mention in his election affidavit about
three cases lodged against him.
The court invoked Section 145 of the
IPC (joining or continuing in unlawful
assembly), which is punishable with
two-year imprisonment or fine or both.