Persons in News- March 2015

* Mufti Mohammad Sayeed - Sworn in as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

* Martin Crowe - Former New Zealand cricket captain, inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.

* Roger Federer - Won the ATP Tennis Championship Men’s single title held in Dubai.

* Jitan Ram Manjhi - Former Bihar chief minister, he launched Hindustani Awam Morcha.

* Jagmohan Dalmiya - He was unanimously elected the president of the BCCI.

* Bill Gates - He was named world's richest person again.

* Hifikepunye Pohamba - Namibian President, he won Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership.

* Rafael Nadal - He won Argentina Open tennis title.

* Mary Kom - (i) She was appointed as the brand ambassador of the Northeast (ii) She has decided to quit boxing after the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

* K.S. Lavkumar - Renowned ornithologist, he died.

* Rani Mukerji - She was was felicitated by Sreerupa Mitra Chaudhury who is the chairperson for the National Institute of Gender Justice for her contribution towards gender sensitization through her 2014 release Mardaani.

* Dadarao Danve - He resigned from the Union council of Ministers as he was made Maharasthra BJP president.

* Leslee Udwin - Director of the controversial BBC documentary film “India’s Daughter”.

* Narendra Modi - (i) Named among the 30 most influential people on the internet by Time magazine. (ii) He became first Indian PM to visit Sri Lanka in 28 years. (iii) He was named among the 50 greatest leaders in the world by Fortune magazine.

* Ram Sundar Das - Former Bihar Chief Minister, he passed away.

* G Karthikeyan - Kerala Assembly speaker, he passed away.

* Saina Nehwal - (i) She created history as she became the first Indian woman shuttler to attain the world number one ranking. (ii) Became the first Indian in 14 years to reach the final of the All England Open Badminton Championships (iii) She won Indian Open Super Series title.

* Ashwin Mittal - Walmart India has appointed him as chief operating officer.

* Vinod Mehta - Veteran journalist, he passed away.

* Kumar Sangakkara - (i) Heannounced retirement from Test cricket, (ii) He became the first player to score four successive one-day international centuries.

* Arun Singh - He was appointed as India’s ambassador to the U.S.

* Veerappa Moily - He was selected for Saraswati Samman 2014.

* MS Dhoni - (i) He registered most wins by an Indian captain in the history of the cricket World Cup. (ii) He Became first Indian captain to register 100 ODI wins.

* Dr. Manmohan Singh - He was accused of criminal conspiracy and breach of trust in the allocation of a coal mine by Special CBI Court.

* David Hale - He was nominated as next US ambassador to Pakistan.

* N. Sakthan - He was elected Kerala Assembly Speaker.

* Mohamed Nasheed - Former Maldives President,  he was sentenced to 13-year imprisonment.

Prepared by: www.currentaffairs4examz.com

* Dr. Alka Beotra - She was nominated to the Executive Board of WAADS (World Association of Anti Doping Scientists) from India.

* Bhaiyyaji Joshi - He was re-elected RSS general secretary.

* Sonakshi Sinha & Arjun Kapoor: They won Golden Kela awards (Worst offerings of Indian cinema).

* K. Srikanth - (i) He won Swiss Grand Prix Gold Badminton championship (ii) He won Indian Open Super Series title.

* Narayan Desai - Veteran Gandhian, he passed away.

* Lewis Hamilton - He won Australian Grand Prix 2015.

* Christine Lagarde - IMF chief, she visited India during March 2015.

* Paul van Ass - He took charge as chief coach of the Indian men’s hockey team.

* Bombay S Kamal - Veteran singer and music compose from Malayalam, he passed away.

* Ashu Suyash - Took charge as Crisil (Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited) CEO.

* Minoti Apate - Indian pancreatic cancer researcher in Australia and she has been named New South Wales Woman of the year 2015.

* Benjamin Netanyahu - His right-wing Likud party swept past its main rival in Israel's election.

* Kavinder Gupta - He was elected as the speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly.

* Air Marshal Sohail Aman - He was appointed as Chief of Pakistan Air Force.

* Smriti Irani - WEF named her as Young Global Leader from India.

* Ratan Tata - He was appointed as the head of an innovation council of Indian Railways called ‘Kayakalp’.

* Meira Kumar - Former Lok Sabha Meira Kumar’s book entitled “Indian Parliamentary Diplomacy – Speaker’s Perspective” was released.

* Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan - India-born Nobel laureate Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan has been confirmed as president elect of Britain's prestigious Royal Society.

* Justice Uma Nath Singh - Sworn in as new Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court.

* Lata Mangeshkar - She won the 'Laadli Voice of the Century' award.

* Shahir Krishnarao - Bard and Marathi folk legend, he passed away.

* Martin Guptill - He hit the highest ever World Cup score of 237.

* Rajendra Singh - Activist Rajendra Singh won Stockholm Water Prize 2015.

* Katherine Viner - She will be the next editor-in-chief of The Guardian & will be the first woman to run the newspaper in its 194-year history.

* Yusufali Kechery - Renowned Malayalam poet,  he passed away.

* Sarath Fonseka - He became Sri Lanka's first field marshal.

* Sania Mirza & Martina Hingis - They won BNP Paribas Open tennis title.

* Lee Kuan Yew - The founding father and first prime minister of Singapore. He passed away.

* Novak Djokovic - He won BNP Paribas Open final.

* Shashi Kapoor - Selected for Dadasaheb Phalke award 2014.

* Madhav Gadgil - Renowned ecologist, he won prestigious Tyler Prize 2015 for Environmental Achievement.

* Dolly Shivani Cherukuri - She became the youngest Archer to enter India Book of Records.

* Bharti Kher - She was conferred with the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France.

* KM Mani - Kerala Finance Minister, he was appointed chairman of the empowered committee of state finance ministers on Goods & Services Tax (GST).

* Akhil Sharma - Indian-American author, he won The Folio Prize 2015.

* Gopaldas Neeraj - Veteran poet, he was awarded inaugural National Kavi Pradeep Samman by Madhya Pradesh govt.

* Vikas Swarup - Noted novelist, he was appointed as the new official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs.

* Ruth Porat - Google Inc appointed Ruth Porat as its Chief Financial Officer.

* Justice Ashok Bhushan - He sworn in as the Chief Justice of Kerala High Court.

* Michel Platini - He was re-elected as the UEFA President.

* John F. Nash, Jr. and Louis Nirenberg - They shared Abel Prize 2015.

* Atal Bihari Vajpayee - Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was presented with the prestigious Bharat Ratna Award on 27 March 2015.

* Lieutenant Kiran Shekhawat - She became the first Indian woman officer to die in the line of duty.

* Poonam Mahajan - She became the first woman president of Basketball Federation of India.

* Aziz Qureshi - Mizoram Governor Aziz Qureshi sacked.

* Medha Patkar - Social activist Medha Patkar quits Aam Aadmi Party.

* Michael Clarke - Australia captain Michael Clarke announced retirement from ODIs.

* Aditi Arya - She was declared fbb Femina Miss India World 2015.

* Adoor Gopalakrishnan - He was honoured with Bishwaratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika International Solidarity Award.

* Mitchell Starc - He was named Player of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 tournament.

* Sebastian Vettel - He won Malaysian Grand Prix 2015.

* Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya - He was posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna Award & his family members received the award from President on 30 March 2015.

* Balbir Singh Senior - Renowned Hockey player, he was honoured with Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award.

* Daniel Vettori - New Zealand cricketer, he announced retirement from international cricket.

* Muhammadu Buhari - He was elected as President of Nigeria.

Current Affairs April 2015 (First Week)

1) Who won the fbb Femina Miss India 2015 title on 28 March 2015? - Aditi Arya

Note: She is from Delhi. The 52nd edition of the beauty contest held at Yash Raj Studio in Mumbai. The first runner-up was Aafreen Rachel Vaz of Mangaluru, Karnataka and the second runner-up was Vartika Singh of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

2) Which country won the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015? - Australia

Note: They defeated New Zealand by seven wickets in the final held at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Australia.

3) Andhra Pradesh Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on 1 April 2015 approved which city as the new capital of the state? - Amaravathi

Note: The capital will come up at Tullur in Vijayawada-Guntur region of the state. The name of Amaravathi as state capital was finalised in view of its historical, spiritual and mythological significance.

4) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 1 April 2015 sanctioned the scheme of amalgamation of ING Vysya Bank Ltd. with which bank? - Kotak Mahindra Bank

Note: With this sanction, all branches of ING Vysya Bank will function as branches of Kotak Mahindra Bank with effect from 1 April 2015.

5) Who resigned from the post of President of International Cricket Council (ICC) on 1 April 2015? - Mustafa Kamal

6) Who was conferred with Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award on 28 March 2015? - Balbir Singh Senior

Note: Balbir Singh Senior was a member of three Olympic gold medal winning Indian team.

7) Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) 1-D satellite was launched successfully on 28 March 2015 by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) using? - Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-C27

8) Name the freedom fighter and educationist who was on 30 March 2015 conferred the highest civilian award of the country Bharat Ratna (posthumously)? - Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya

Note: His family members received the award from President Prabab Mukherjee at a function in the Ashoka hall of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

9) Name the Indian shuttlers won the women’s and men's singles titles of India Open Super Series Badminton title recently? - Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth

10) Name the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry who on 2 April 2015 unveiled the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2015-2020 at New Delhi? - Nirmala Sitharaman

11) Name the campaign launched on 27 March 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to exhort the better off sections of society to give away their LPG subsidy? - Give it Up campaign

12) Name the Poster girl of India's anti-tobacco campaign who died on 1 April 2015? - Sunita Tomar

Note: In 2014, she shot a 30-second video titled Sunita highlighting the devastating effect of smokeless tobacco.

13) Who won the Presidential Election of Nigeria on 31 March 2015? -General Muhammadu Buhari

14) Michael Rudenko, a committee member of the Minor Planet Center on 1 April 2015 officially named a minor planet in the name of which Indian sports person? - Vishwanathan Anand.

Note: The main-belt minor planet was discovered between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter by Kenzo Suzuki in Toyota in 1988. It remained unnamed since then and now it was named 4538 Vishyanand.

15) Name the scheme launched by Union Government on 1 April 2015 with an aim to boost sales of eco-friendly vehicles in the country? - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME)

 Prepared by: www.currentaffairs4examz.com

16) Who was on 1 April 2015 conferred with the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2014-15? - Brendon McCullum

Note: Sir Richard Hadlee Medal is the highest cricketing honour of New Zealand.

17) Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG) on 26 March 2015 announced that it will raise its stake in SBI General Insurance (SBIGI) from 26 percent to ___ percent? - 49 percent

18) Kyle Mills who on 31 March 2015 retired from all forms of International Cricket is from which country? - New Zealand

19) Union Government on 3 April 2015 extended the deadline for implementation of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) deadline by ____ months? - Six months

20) Who on 30 March 2015 appointed as the Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court (HC)? - Justice Sunil Kumar Sinha

Note: He was appointed by the President Pranab Mukherjee in accordance with the Article 217 (1) of the Constitution of India.

21) Renowned poet Kailash Vajpeyi who died on 1 April 2015 is famous in which language? – Hindi

22) Name the massive air and sea operation recently launched by India to evacuate over 4000 Indians from Yemen? - Operation Raahat

Note: In Yemen, military operation was launched by Saudi Arabia and 10 other countries against Houthi rebels.

23) Which e-commerce company recently acquired RupeePower to launch financial service? – Snapdeal

24) Which state on 31 March 2015 opened a women milk bank named Jeevan Dhara? – Rajasthan

25) Which state on 30 March 2015 launched part one of e-Vidhan Mobile app and thus becoming the first state assembly in the country to launch e-Vidhan Mobile app? - Himachal Pradesh

26) Name the 12-year-old Muslim girl who recently won the first position at the Shrimad Bhagwad Gita Champion League? - Mariyam Asif Siddiqui

27) Name the controversial anti-terrorism and organized crime bill passed by Gujarat Assembly recently? - Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime (GUJCOC) Bill

28) Who took over charge as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Naval Command on 30 March 2015? - Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba

29) Name the Indian-origin Singaporean nurse who was on 2 April 2015 named for the 2015 International Achievement Award by the Florence Nightingale International Foundation (FNIF) of the International Council of Nurses? - Dr Subadhra Devi Rai

30) What is India's rank in the Global Resilience Index 2015 released by FM Global recently? - 119th among 130 countries

Note: The 2015 FM Global Resilience Index has been topped by Norway.

31) Earth Hour 2015 was observed globally on 28 March 2015 from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm with tagline as? - Change Climate Change

32) What was India's rank in the Open Government Index 2015 Report released by World Justice Project (WJP) recently? - 37^th

33) Daniel Vettori who on 30 March 2015 retired from all forms of International Cricket is from which country? - New Zealand

34) Which state government on 1 April 2015 launched a cheap meal scheme Aahar for providing subsidised food to urban poor? – Odisha

35) Michael Clarke, the Australian cricketer, on 29 March 2015 retired from which form of the cricket? - One Day Internationals (ODI)

CURRENT AFFAIRS - MARCH 2015

1.              Retirement fund body EPFO (Employees' Provident Fund Organisatio) raised age limit for vesting (Means to Avail Benefits) of pension by to 60 from 58 Years.

2.             10 Mar, 2015- 46th Foundation day of Central Industrial Security Force.

3.             100th year of Albert Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity celebrated across the world on 20-03-2015.

4.             11 Mar, 2015 - 30th Foundation day National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

5.             12 Mar - Independence Day of Mauritius. Indian PM Narendra Modi Visited Mauritius on this occasion.

6.             12 March - World Kidney Day (Second Thursday of March).

7.             14th Finance Commission Report -

1.             Main Suggestions Include -

1.             Rising share of states in central taxes from 32% to 42% to allow greater fiscal policy space to states, even at the cost of leaving less revenue for centr's schemes and programmes.

2.             Tax Devolution to be based on Area, Populcation, Demography, Income Distance & Forest Cover

1.             50 % weight is to be given to distance from highest per capita income district, followed by population (1971 census) at 17.5 %, demography (2011 census) at 10 %, area at 15 % and forest cover at 7.5 %

3.             Fiscal deficit should come down to 3.6 % of GDP in 2015-16 from projected 4.1 % in 2014-15 and then 3 % in following year and kept at that for three more years.

4.             Centre's debt To come down from 45.4 % of GDP in FY15 to 43.6 % in FY16 and 36.3 % by FY20.

5.             States should empower local bodies to impose Advertisement tax to augment their revenues

6.             States be taken away from operation of NSSF with effect from next financial year.

8.             15 March - World Consumer Day. Theme for the WCRD 2015 is Helping consumers choose healthy diets.

9.             15th African Ministerial Conference on Environment held in Cairo (Egypt)

10.          15th National Para-Athletic championships held in Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh).

11.          18th round of Boundary issues talks between India and China on held in New Delhi with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval representing India and China represented by Yang Jiechi, State Councellor of China.

12.          1998 Asian Games gold-medallist Dingko Singh included in National Boxing Selection panel. Arjuna awardee Gopal N Devang will be head of the 10-member selection panel that will remain in office till 2016.

13.          1st Counter-Terrorism Conference held in Jaipur (Rajasthan), organised by India Foundation and Sardar Patel University of Police Security and Criminal Justice. Conference's Central theme was Integrated Approach to Counter-Terrorism and CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear) Terrorism was one of the sub-themes.

14.          20 March - Iran celebrated start of new year’s festival of Iran Caleld Nowruz, a holiday having its roots in pre-Islamic traditions.

15.          20 March - World Oral Health Day.

16.          20 March - World Sparrow Day.  Theme for 2015 is I Love Sparrows.

17.          21 March - International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

18.          21 March - International Day of Forests. 2015 theme is Forests and Climate Change.

19.          21 March - World Forestry Day. 2015 theme is Forests and Climate Change.

20.          21 March - World Poetry Day. It and was declared by UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 1999.

21.          22 March - Formation day of State of Bihar. On this day British carved out bihar state from Bengal Presidency in 1912.

22.          22 March - World Water Day.

23.          24 March - World TB (Tuberculosis) Day.

24.          26 March - Independence Day of Bangladesh.

25.          29th India Carpet Expo inaugurated in Pragati Maidan (Delhi).

26.          3 -year-old archer Dolly Shivani Cherukuri of Andhra Pradesh entered Indian Book of Records by scoring 388 points in the recurve segment in seven and five meters distances. 

27.          3 March - World Wildlife Day.

28.          3 March -National Day of Bulgaria (Southeast European Country).

1.             Mar 3, 1878 - Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman Empire.

29.          30th Aahar International Fair 2014 organized by ITPO (Indian Trade Promotion Organization) started in Pragati Maidan, Delhi.

30.          3rd United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction summit held in Japan From March 14-18, 2015. Home Minister Rajnath Singh to attend on India's Behalf.