Which country won the 35th Champions Trophy Hockey (Men’s) by winning the final held on 14 December 2014?
- Germany
Germany defeated Pakistan in the final by 2-0 to win their tenth Champions Trophy title. This edition of Champions Trophy was held at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar (Odisha) and eight teams took part in it. Australia has won Men’s Champions Trophy for the highest 13 times followed by Germany (10 times). Champions Trophy is one of the most prestigious tournaments of men’s hockey as all the top teams take part in it. It was founded by Pakistan’s Air Marshal Nur Khan in 1978.
What was India’s position in 35th Champions Trophy Hockey (Men’s) that concluded on 14 December 2014?
- Fourth
Australia defeated India by 2-1 in the classification match held for third and fourth position. India thus once again finished at fourth position, the same position it achieved in 2012 Champions Trophy held in Melbourne (Australia). India’s best performance in Champions Trophy is third position it got in the 4thedition held at Amstelveen (Netherlands) in 1982. The Netherlands finished at a disappointing fifth place followed by Argentina (sixth), England (seventh) and Belgium (eighth and last place).
Negotiators from over 190 countries, including India, on 14 December 2014 adopted a format for national pledges to cut global carbon emissions at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP20) held at Lima (Peru). This ended a deadlock between rich and poor countries to agree on a new ambitious and binding deal to be signed in Paris in 2015. The proposed climate control deal is to come into effect from which year?
- 2020
The deal, dubbed the Lima Call for Climate Action, paves the way for what is envisioned as the historic agreement in environmental history. The draft approved in the deal mentioned only that all pledges would be reviewed a month ahead of December 2015 Paris summit to assess their combined effect on climate change. Consistent with India and other developing countries push, a separate paragraph was added regarding differentiation – the principle of categorising countries based on their ability to pay for climate action measures. The last portion was lifted directly from the US-China climate agreement announced in November this year.
Which leading financial luminary of the country recently came to news for apparently rejecting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s highly ambitious ‘Make in India’ and suggesting ‘Make for India’ strategy instead?
- Raghuram Rajan, RBI Governor
Raghuram Rajan gave stress on ‘Make for India’ instead of ‘Make in India’ on the occasion of the Bharat Ram Memorial Seminar on ‘India’s Growth Trajectory in a Fractured World Economy: Opportunities and Challenges’, organised by FICCI in Delhi on 12 December 2014. He said that India should focus on domestic demand and create a unified market with a view to reducing transaction costs. His message was clear – what worked for China may not necessarily work for India too. He elaborated that when India pushes manufacturing exports, it will have to compete with China, and an export-led growth will not be as easy as it was for the East-Asian economies. We warned that the strategy of import substitution has been tried and it has not worked because it ended up reducing domestic competition, making producers inefficient, and increasing costs for consumers.
The Supreme Court-backed Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money lead by Justice M.B. Shah recently made what important recommendation pertaining to high value purchases?
- Quoting of permanent account number (PAN) in addition to submitting an identity proof such as Aadhaar should me made compulsory for purchases over Rs. 1 lakh
The SIT recommended that quoting of PAN and Aadhaar should be made mandatory for purchases over Rs. 1 lakh and should cover purchases made by cash as well as cheque. It further recommended that a central “Know Your Customer” (KYC) database be set up which captures details of PAN, passport number or driving licence number, which are often quoted for transactions. Other important SIT recommendation is that the amount of cash in possession should be capped at Rs 10 or 15 lakh and any amount beyond the threshold should be confiscated.
Russia has proposed to establish a manufacturing facility in India to produce as well as export which two helicopters during President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to India?
- Mi-17 and KA-226
Mi-17 is a medium lift helicopter (MLH) while KA-226 is light utility helicopter (LUH). The proposed manufacturing facility, to be put up in collaboration with an Indian partner, will also aim at exporting helicopters to other countries. The KA-226 had competed in the Indian military’s global LUH tender before the Indian Defence Ministry cancelled the process and decided to source the helicopters through the ‘Make in India’ project. India’s ambitious ‘Make in India’ campaign is expected to gain momentum with Russian decision to establish helicopter manufacturing unit in India.
The Union Home Ministry recently proposed to add a new category to the list of notified disasters eligible for assistance from national and state disaster relief funds. Which natural disaster is this?
- Lightning
The Union Home Ministry has moved a proposal to the 14th Finance Commission, suggesting inclusion of lightning in the list of notified disasters eligible for assistance from national and state disaster relief funds. India accounts for an average 400 deaths due to lightening every year. India has unusually high death toll due to lightning every year, mostly during monsoon season. On an average, three people die in Britain each year due to lightning strikes, while in the US, an average 30 people die following these strikes.
What is the name of the warship manufactured in India that would soon become the first to be exported by the country?
- Coast Guard Ship Barracuda (CGS Barracuda)
CGS Barracuda has been designed and built by the Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders. It is currently on its way to be exported to Mauritius for Rs. 350 crore. It would thus become the first warship to be exported by India. The off-shore patrol vessel will be used to police Mauritian waters, spread over 1.9 million square km, against piracy, smuggling, illegal fishing and drug trafficking. It will also provide logistical support, including search and rescue operations. Unlike in the past, India no longer needs to look to foreign manufacturers for warships. All its boats are now being manufactured in Indian shipyards.
What is the name of the Indian-origin woman who is poised to become the first woman to head a major British bank, the Santander UK?
- Shriti Vadera
Shriti Vadera Vadera was a Labour minister in the Cabinet Office, Business Department and International Development Department from 2007 to 2009 and served in the House of Lords. She will join the board of Santander UK as joint deputy chairman in January 2014. She will also join a very exclusive club of just three FTSE 100 firms, listed on the London Stock Exchange with the highest market capitalisation, with women as their chair.
Who was chosen as the new Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) on 13 December 2014?
- Dineshwar Sharma
Dineshwar Sharma is presently Special Director in the Intelligence Bureau. He will take charge on 1 January 2014 succeeding Syed Asif Ibrahim. He is a 1979 batch IPS officer from Kerala cadre and will have two-year tenure. Sharma has served at various desks in IB since he was posted in the organisation in 1991 which includes Kashmir, Northeast besides stints in Lucknow.
International Organizations - Headquarters and Current Chiefs
Important (51)
Organization Name Headquarters Name of Current Chief United Nations UN General Assembly New York John Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda) UN Security Council Gary Quinlan (USA) UN Economic and Social Council Martin Sajdik UN Secretariat Ban Ki-moon (South Korea) International Court of Justice Ther Hague (Netherlands) Peter Tomka (Slovakia) Food and Agriculture Organization Rome (Italy) Jose Graziano da Silva International Labour Organization Geneva (Switzerland) Guy Ryder International Maritime Organization London (UK) Koji Sekimizu United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) New York (USA) Anthony Lake United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Paris (France) Irina Bokova United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Nairobi (Kenya) Achim Steiner World Health Organization Geneva (Switzerland) Margaret Chan World Intellectual Property Organization Geneva (Switzerland) Francis Gurry World Food Programme Rome (Italy) Ertharin Cousin World Tourism Organization Madrid (Spain) Taleb Rifai United Nations Development Programme New York (USA) Helen Clark United Nations Capital Development Fund New York (USA) Marc Bichler United Nations Industrial Development Organization Vienna (Austria) Li Yong Environmental International Union for Conservation of Nature Gland, Switzerland Julia Marton-Lefèvre (Director General), Zhang Xinsheng (President) Arms Control Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons The Hague, Netherlands Ahmet Uzumcu Energy International Energy Agency Paris (France) Maria van der Hoeven International Renewable Energy Agency Masdar City (United Arab Emirates) Adnan Amin Nuclear Energy Agency Paris (France) William D. Magwood, IV International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna (Austria) Yukiya Amano Economic Institutions International Monetary Fund Washington, D.C.( United States) Christine Lagarde Asian Development Bank Manila (Philippines) Takehiko Nakao International Fund for Agricultural Development Rome (Italy) Kanayo F. Nwanze African Development Bank Ivory Coast Donald Kaberuka Bank for International Settlements Basel, Switzerland Jaime Caruana Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Paris (France) Jose Angel Gurria Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Vienna (Austria) President - Diezani Alison-Madueke,Secretary General - Abdallah el-Badri World Bank Group International Bank for Reconstruction and Development Washington, D.C. (United States) Jim Yong Kim International Development Association Jim Yong Kim International Finance Corporation Jin-Yong Cai Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency Keiko Honda International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes Meg Kinnear Miscellaneous World Customs Organization Brussels (Belgium) Kunio Mikuriya World Trade Organization Geneva (Switzerland) Roberto Azevêdo International Criminal Court The Hague (Netherlands) Song Sang-Hyun European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker European Parliament Martin Schulz European Council Herman Van Rompuy Council of Europe Strasbourg (France) Thorbjorn Jagland European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) Meyrin (Switzerland) Rolf-Dieter Heuer European Space Agency Paris (France) Jean-Jacques Dordain Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Jakarta (Indonesia) Le Luong Minh South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Kathmandu (Nepal) Arjun Bahadur Thapa North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Brussels (Belgium) Jens Stoltenberg Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Singapore Alan Bollard African Union Commission Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma African Union Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz Semi-Important (34)
Organization Name Headquarters Name of Current Chief United Nations United Nations Development Fund for Women New York (USA) Inés Alberdi United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Geneva ( Switzerland) António Guterres Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS Geneva ( Switzerland) Michel Sidibé United Nations Population Fund New York (USA) Babatunde Osotimehin United Nations Human Settlements Programme Nairobi (Kenya) Joan Clos United Nations Volunteers Bonn (Germany) Richard Dictus United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women New York (USA) Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka United Nations University Japan David M. Malone Environmental World Wide Fund For Nature Gland, Switzerland Yolanda Kakabadse (President) Marco Lambertini (Director General) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Rajendra K. Pachauri Global Environment Facility Washington (USA) Naoko Ishii Migration International Organization for Migration Geneva, Switzerland William Lacy Swing Maritime International Hydrographic Organization Monaco Arms Control Nuclear Suppliers Group Czech Republic (Current Chair), Argentina will be next chair in 2014-2015 Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Vienna (Austria) Lamberto Zannier Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization Vienna, Austria Fisheries International Whaling Commission Impington (England) International Seabed Authority Kingston (Jamaica) Economic Institutions International Bureau of Weights and Measures Sevres (France) M.J.T. Milton African Development Bank Ivory Coast Donald Kaberuka Bank for International Settlements Basel, Switzerland Jaime Caruana Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Paris (France) Jose Angel Gurria Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Vienna (Austria) President - Diezani Alison-Madueke,Secretary General - Abdallah el-Badri Nordic Investment Bank Helsinki (Finland) Islamic Development Bank and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Jeddah(Saudi Arabia) Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al-Madani Miscellaneous Energy Community Vienna (Austria) Janez Kopac European Science Foundation Strasbourg, France Marja Makarow European Southern Observatory Garching (Germany) Tim de Zeeuw Collective Security Treaty Organization Moscow (Russia) Nikolai Bordyuzha Economic Cooperation Organization Tehran (Iran) Shamil Aleskerov Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) President - Desi Bouterse, Secretary General - Ernesto Samper Central American Parliament Guatemala Commonwealth of Nations UK SG - Kamalesh Sharma, Chairperson-in-Office - Mahinda Rajapaksa Arab League Cairo (Egypt) Nabil Elaraby Regular (21)
Organization Name Headquarters Name of Current Chief Migration International Centre for Migration Policy Development Vienna (Austria) Peter Widermann Maritime Antarctic Treaty Secretariat Buenos Aires, Argentina International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Copenhagen, Denmark Fisheries Asia-Pacific Fishery Commission Thailand Indian Ocean Tuna Commission Victoria (Seychelles) Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission California (USA) Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization Canada North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization UK Pacific Salmon Commission Columbia Susan Farlinger Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center Thailand Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission USA Charles Karnella Energy / Nuclear Energy International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis Vienna (Austria) Miscellaneous European Free Trade Association Geneva (Switzerland) Kristinn F. Arnason European Patent Organisation Munich (Germany) Council of the Baltic Sea States Stockholm (Sweden) Jan Lundin Southern African Development Community Gaborone (Botswana) Economic Community of West African States John Dramani Mahama Organization of American States Washington, D.C. José Miguel Insulza Caribbean Community Georgetown (Guyana) Secretary-General - Irwin LaRocque, Chairman Gaston Browne Association of Caribbean States Port-of-Spain (Trinidad) Alfonso Munera Cavadia Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States Saint Lucia Chairman - Roosevelt Skerrit, Director General - Didacus Jules
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