CURRENT AFFAIRS 25-26th Oct., 2014

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CURRENT AFFAIRS 26th Oct., 2014

1. The former Union Minister Jairam Ramesh was designated as the head of Future Earth Engagement Committee, a global research platform panel on sustainable development. The Committee was instituted by an alliance of organisations including the UNEP, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

2. Government has announced a new division in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and appointed a joint secretary for “Centre-State” relations to streamline foreign infrastructure investment. The new post will increase engagement between the MEA and State governments to coordinate State delegations visiting abroad.

3. India became the world’s fourth largest steel producer by delivering 62.41 Million Tonnes (MT) output from January 2014 to September 2014. India has been the world’s fourth largest steel maker since 2010.

4. Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will arrive in India for a two-day visit. India and Vietnam will sign three agreements, one an MoU on prospecting by OVL (ONGC Videsh Ltd.) in two more fields in the South China Sea.

5. Left-leaning former President Tabare Vazquez won the most votes in Uruguay’s presidential election. He fell short of the outright majority needed to avoid a Nov. 30 runoff exit polls.

CURRENT AFFAIRS 25th Oct., 2014

1. Government has constituted an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) think-tank to help draft a new National IPR Policy. The think-tank will be headed by Justice Prabha Sridevan and will advice centre on issues related to intellectual property, implications of demands placed by negotiating partners of proposed free trade pacts and other regional arrangements.

2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet chief executives of public sector banks (PSBs) to review their performance and would discuss issues relating to benefits of a rate cut, non-performing assets (NPAs) and restructured NPAs recovery, new projects/proposals, financial inclusion and Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana.

3. Kaushal Srivastava is set to become the new Chairman of the Central Board of Excise and Custom (CBEC), the apex policy making body of indirect taxes. He replaces JM Shanti Sundharam.

4. Alan Eustace broke the world altitude record for highest free-fall parachute jump set by Austrian Felix Baumgartner. 57-year-old Eustace is a senior Google vice-president who set the record of jumping from an altitude of 135908-feet.

5. Pankaj Advani outplayed former champion Peter Gilchrist in the World billiards championship final and won his 11th world title. Advani, 29, conquered the Singaporean cueist Gilchrist 6-2 in a high quality final of the shorter format of billiards.