IN THE NEWS- September, 2013

APPOINTED

P. Sathasivam

P. Sathasivam on 29 June 2013 was appointed as the next Chief Justice of India after he justified the Collegiums System of appointment of Judges. The 64 year old Sathasivam will succeed the incumbent Chief Justice of India, Altamas Kabir, who will superannuate on 18 July 2013 from his office. Sathasivam will be the 40th Chief Justice of India (CJI) and his appointment to the post has been approved by Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India.

About P. Sathasivam

He was appointed as a Supreme Court judge on 21 August 2007. As the 40th CJI, he will serve the nation till his 26 April 2014. In January 1996, he joined Madras high court as a permanent judge. In April 2007, he was transferred to the Punjab and Haryana high court. He was born on 27 April 1949. He was enrolled as an advocate on 25 July 1973 at Madras.

He has practiced in all types of Writ, Civil and Criminal matters, Company Petition, Insolvency Petitions, Habeas Corpus Petitions both on Original and Appellate sides of the Madras High Court. He has served as Government Advocate, Additional Government Pleader, Special Government Pleader in the Madras High Court. He has also worked as Legal Adviser for several State owned Transport Corporations, Municipalities, Nationalized Banks and more

Nawaz Sharif

Nawaz Sharif on 5 June 2013 took oath to the office of the Prime Minister of Pakistan for his third term after formally being elected as the Prime Minister by the National Assembly. Sharif returned back to power almost after 14 years after he was forced to leave the office in a military coup and went into exile. He was sworn-in by the President Asif Ali Zardari at a function in an ornate hall at the Presidency.

During his oath ceremony, he pointed to work towards improvement of the falling economy, electricity blackouts and an end to American drone Strikes in the tribal areas.

Nawaz Sharif party PML-N made a landslide victory in the General Elections conducted in May 2013 by receiving 244 votes in favour of the 342 seat Parliament.

James Comey

Barack Obama, the US President on 21 June 2013 nominated James Comey as the next FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) Director. James Comey is a registered Republican and former Justice Department official under President George W. Bush. His nomination awaits confirmation from the US Senate.

On getting this confirmation for the post, the 52 year old Comey would succeed Robert Mueller. Robert Mueller held the post of FBI Director since 2001 and will retire after completing 12 years of his service to FBI as its Director. Comey is best known for his actions against White House officials over the legality of the warrantless-wiretapping program of the National Security Agency (NSA) in 2004.

Hassan Rohani

Hassan Rohani, the moderate cleric of Combatant Clergy Association party won the presidential election in Iran on 15 June 2013. He secured a little over 50 percent votes to win the election. He would succeed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He defeated Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf of Islamic Society of Engineers party. The presidential elections in Iran took place on 14 June 2013. Hassan Rohani had registered for the prestigious designation of the country on 7 May 2013. He would take the office on 3 August 2013. He would become the seventh different President of Iran.

About Hassan Rohani

• Hassan Rohani was born on 12 November 1948.

• He started his political activities when he followed Ayatollah Khomeini during beginning of Iranian Islamic movement.

• He has remained a member of Assembly of Experts since 1999. Assembly of Experts of Iran is also known as Council of Experts. It is the deliberative body of Islamic theologians, also called Mujtahids. The Assembly of Experts is the body that has charge of electing as well as removing Supreme Leader of Iran as well as supervising his activities.

• He also remained a member of Expediency Council since 1991. Expediency Council or Expediency Discernment Council of the System is the administrative assembly which is appointed by Supreme Leader of Iran. Originally, Expediency Council was established to resolve differences between Council of Guardians and the Majlis.

• Apart from this, he was the member of the Supreme National Security Council since 1989

• He was the head of the Center for Strategic Research since 1992.

• Hassan Rohani has remained the deputy speaker of the 4th and 5th terms of the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Majlis) and secretary of the Supreme National Security Council from 1989 to 2005.

• He also remained the head of former nuclear negotiating team of Iran. He was also the top negotiator of Iran with the EU three namely, Germany, UK and France, on the nuclear program of Iran.

• In the book titled, National Security and Nuclear Diplomacy, there is an autobiography of Hassan Rohani which describes about his experience as in-charge of Iran’s nuclear case as well as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.

Important facts about the Election of President of Iran, according to the Constitution of Ira

• According to Article 117 of the Constitution of Iran, the President is elected by an absolute majority of votes polled by the voters.

• According to Article 115 of the Constitution of Iran, the President must be elected from among religious and political personalities.

• According to Article 114 of the Constitution of Iran, the President is elected for a four-year term by the direct vote of the people. His re-election for a successive term is permissible only once.

K R Kamath

The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) announced on 6 June 2013 that K R Kamath, the chairman and managing director of Punjab National Bank (PNB) was re-elected as the Chairman of IBA for 2013-14 tenure. At the 66th annual general meeting, IBA also elected Aditya Puri, managing director and CEO of HDFC Bank, as its Deputy Chairman. Along with this, the Chairman of State Bank of India (SBI), Pratip Chaudhuri was elected as the Honorary Secretary.

The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA)

• Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) was formed on 26 September 1946.

• It is an association of Indian banks and financial institutions. It is based in Mumbai.

• IBA at present represents a total of 173 banking companies which are operating in India.

• The objective of the association is strengthening, development and coordination of the Indian banking. It also facilitates various member banks.

• Indian Banks’ Association is managed by the managing committee. The current managing committee of the IBA consists of a chairman, three deputy chairmen, one honorary secretary as well as 26 members.

Susan Elizabeth Rice

Susan Elizabeth Rice, the American ambassador to the United Nations was appointed as the National Security Adviser of US President Barack Obama on 5 June 2013. She replaced Tom Donilon. The announcement of her appointment was made by Obama in a ceremony at Rose Garden.

About Susan Elizabeth Rice

• She is the second youngest person to represent US at United Nations.

• She served as staff of National Security Council and as Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs during the second term of President Bill Clinton.

• She is said to be the first Jamaican-American woman to hold the office of UN ambassador.

• She was the principal and Managing Director at Intellibridge from 2001 to 2002.

• In the year 2002, she joined Brookings Institution as the senior fellow in the foreign policy program.

• She remained the foreign policy adviser to John Kerry during 2004 presidential campaign.

• She left Brookings Institution in the year 2008 to serve as senior foreign policy adviser to Senator Barack Obama in the presidential campaign.

• She is said to be the first high-profile foreign policy staffers that signed onto Obama’s campaign.

• She was named in the advisory board of the Obama–Biden Transition Project on 5 November 2008.

• Susan Elizabeth Rice received one of the Glamour Magazine Women of the Year Awards in the year 2009.

• In the year 2002, she was also indicted into Stanford’s Black Alumni Hall of Fame.

Rami Hamdallah

The President of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas on 2 June 2013 named Rami Hamdallah as his new Prime Minister. Rami Hamdallah replaced Western-favoured economist Salam Fayyad who had left the office of Prime Minister in April 2013 and formally quit now.

Background

On 27 April 2013, Mahmoud Abbas, the President had announced about the commencement of consultations for forming the unity government under his leadership. This had to be done in line with the reconciliation deal between rival Islamist movement Hamas and Fatah. Hamas, the controller of the Gaza strip, however termed Rami Hamdallah’s appointment as the PM, illegal.

Bimal Julka

Appointment of Bimal Julka as Secretary of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on 28 June 2013. Julka will succeed Uday Kumar Varma, who will retire from his office on 30 June 2013. Varma is an IAS officer of 1976 batch of Madhya Pradesh Cadre. Earlier he was serving as the Special Secretary and Financial Advisor to Ministry of External Affairs since January 2013. Bimal Julka is an IAS officer of 1979 batch of Madhya Pradesh cadre, with Identity No. 01MP031301. Julka has earlier served ministries like Civil Aviation, Defence, Finance and Human Resource Development . He also served at different positions in Madhya Pradesh Government

John Ashe

John William Ashe, the ambassador to the United Nations for Antigua and Barbuda in the month of June 2013 selected as the President of UN General Assembly for its 68th session. John William Ashe was chosen as the consensus candidate by all 33 GRULAC member states to be the president of the United Nations General Assembly thus not necessitating an election. As per John William Ashe the UN will soon launch an agenda for sustainable development for all, which may very well be the Strongest and most ambitious project that the United Nations has ever had to accomplish. With his appointment John Ashe stressed the importance of reflecting on new and emerging development challenges, with attention to two main goals: overcoming poverty and ensuring sustainable development. Also the New and revised partnerships are of vital importance in integrating economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainability.

Narayan Murthy

In a major top management re-shuffle, Infosys on 1 June 2013 appointed N R Narayana Murthy as executive chairman of the Board. He would serve as board chairman for 5 years. K V Kamath stepped down from his position as Chairman of the Board and took up the position of Lead Independent Director. In fact, Narayan Murthy was appointed as the chairman for the second time. Prior to this, he was the chairman from 2002 to 2011. The Board has taken this step keeping in mind the challenges that the technology industry and the company faces in the present day. Infosys increased the age limit for holding Chairman’s post to 75 years to facilitate the re-appointment of N R Narayana Murthy at the top position. Earlier the retirement age for Executive Chairman- which also included board members- was 60 years.

VK Duggal

VK Duggal, the former Union Home Secretary on 21 June 2013 was appointed as the nodal officer for relief and rescue operations in the rain-ravaged Uttrakhand by the Union Government of India. Duggal will operate from Dehradun. Duggal will help in establishing coordination between different agencies involved in relief and rescue operations and the centre, as lack of coordination between the agencies was hampering the mitigation efforts. The decision of VK Duggal’s appointment as nodal officer was taken after a review meet conducted by the Union Home Minister, Sushilkumar Shinde at New Delhi. The review meet was attended by the representatives of the Ministries of Home, Defence, Food, Surface Transport and National Disaster Management Authority.

Kushal Singh

The Ministry of Women and Child Development appointed Kushal Singh as the Chairperson of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). She was selected by the Committee which was headed by Krishna Tirath, Minister of Women and Child Development.

Avinash Chander

Avinash Chander, the principal architect of India’s long-range missile programmes on 31 May 2013 appointed Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) chief and scientific advisor to defence minister. Avinash Chander, will succeed V.K. Saraswat. He is an eminent missile scientist, who is considered the chief architect of the long-range Agni ballistic missile programme. As the Director-General of DRDO, Chander is supposed to hold the posts of Scientific Advisor to the Raksha Mantri (SA to RM); and Secretary, Defence R&D. He was also awarded with Padma Shri in 2013. Avinash Chander is a graduate of IIT-Delhi, who joined DRDO in 1972 and obtained MS in Spatial Information Technology from JNTU, Hyderabad.

Some Important work by Avinash Chander

• He was visionary behind evolving the strategies for long-range missiles and had led the design and development of Agni-1, Agni-2, Agni-3 and Agni-4

• He led to development of the of 5000 km range Agni-V missile propelling India to join the privileged club of five advanced nations.

• Avinash Chander created the infrastructure, industry base, production lines and integration facilities to produce different classes of Agni missile systems.

• Under him, DRDO laboratories have carried out extensive research and indigenously developed the critical technologies such as composite rocket motors and re-entry carbon composite heat shield.

• He has provided expertise thrust for programmes of national importance such as underwater missiles, BrahMos cruise missiles, Nag and the Air Defence Systems.

IN THE NEWS- September, 2013

DEATH

VC Shukla

Vidya Charan Shukla, a former Union Minister and Congress veteran from Chhattisgarh, died on 11 June 2013 of multiple organ failure. 84 years old VC Shukla was battling with injuries in Gurgaon Hospital after a Maoist attack on group of Party leaders on 25 May 2013. He was shot three times during the Maoist trap of a convoy of cars carrying top Congress leaders of the state coming from a rally in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar district.

A Brief Insight into VC Shukla’s Career

• VC Shukla belonged to an old Congress family and was one of the famous Shukla brothers of undivided Madhya Pradesh. His father, Ravi Shankar Shukla, was the first Chief Minister of reorganised Madhya Pradesh.

• At 28 years of age he won his first Lok Sabha election.

• He was elected to the Lok Sabha nine times.

• He first became a minister in 1966, when he was 37 years old, in Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s cabinet.

• He held many important portfolios in his long career span which includes Communications, Home, Defence, Finance, Planning, Information & Broadcasting, Civil Supplies, External Affairs, Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources.

Jiah Khan

Jiah Khan, the 25-year old Bollywood actress died on 3 June 2013 at her Juhu residence in Mumbai. She allegedly committed suicide. Jiah Khan’s real name was Nafisa Khan. She was born on 20 February 1988 in Chelsea, London. She debuted in Ram Gopal Varma’s Nishabd, opposite veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan in the year 2007. She also got the Filmfare Best Debutant Nomination for Nishabd. Jiah Khan also appeared with Aamir Khan in A R Murugadoss’s Ghajini. She also starred in Sajid Khan’s comedy film Housefull in 2010. Housefull was her last film. Jiah was raised in England and later moved to Mumbai to make a mark in Bollywood industry.

Manivannan

Tamil actor-director Manivannan passed away on 15 June 2013 at his residence in Chennai after a cardiac arrest. 59 Years old Manivannan started his career as an assistant with well known director Bharathi Raja. In year 1982 he directed his first movie Gopur-angal Saivathillai. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.

A Brief Insight Into Manivannan’s Career

• He started his showbiz career as a writer. He penned dialogues for projects like Tick Tick Tick and Kathal Ovium, Nizhalagal, and Alaigai Oivathillai.

• He has acted as a villain in Kodi Parakkuthu directed by Bharathi Raja, which had superstar Rajnikant playing hero

• His 50th and last directorial venture was Nagaraja Cholan MA, MLA,released in May 2013. The audio launch of the movie was his last public appearance.

• He played major roles in Tamil films such as Mudhalvan, Sangamam and Ullathai Allitha.

• Some of the films directed by Manivannan include Pudhu Manithan, Chinna Thambi Periya Thambi and Jalli Kattu.

• He was a political satirist, both on and off the screen and was a member of Naam Tamizhar (We Tamil) group and fought for the betterment of Sri Lankan Tamils.

TM Soundararajan

Tamil playback singer T M Soundararajan died at his residence in Chennai on 25 May 2013 after a brief illness. He was 91 years old. He is survived by his wife and two sons. He had been awarded various honours including the Padmashri and the state government’s Kalaimani. He hailed from Madurai. He was a playback singer for nearly four decades in Tamil cinema. He almost sang for all the leading actors. He had rendered over 5000 cinema and devotional songs. He had last sung in the theme song of the world classical tamil conference in 2010, composed by AR Rahman. TMS also had sung devotional songs, especially on Lord Muruga, with his most famous ‘Ullam uruguthayya’ (The heart melts) instantly evoking devotion.

Ranjani Hebber Guruprasad

Carnatic vocalist Ranjani Hebbar Guruprasad died on 9 June 2013 in her hometown Udupi. She was suffering from cancer. She was only 31 years old. She was the daughter of Vasanthalakshmi and Aravinda Hebbar.

She performed at many leading sabhas which include prize-winning performances at the Music Academy. Ranjani was also the recipient of honours such as the Kalki Award and Isai Chudar. She is survived by her husband, Guruprasad who is a software engineer.

Satya Pal Dang

92 years old Veteran CPI leader Satya Pal Dang passed away in Amritsar on 15 June 2013. Satya Pal Dang was Born in 1920 in Gujranwala in Pakistan and had married to Vimla, another CPI leader, in 1952. Vimla died in 2009. The couple was known for their courage in raising their voices against terrorism in Punjab.

A Brief Insight into Satya Pal Dang’s Political Career

• Satya Pal Dang had contested his first Vidhan Sabha election in 1966-67 from Amritsar west constituency.

• He won that election after defeating then CM Gurmukh Singh Musafir. With the win he became food and civil supply minister in the coalition government.

• During his term he took some tough decisions to ensure that food items reached the poor through PDS.

• Dang faced his first defeat in 1980. Later, his seat was given to his wife Vimla, who won it back in 1992.

• At the time of terrorism in Punjab in 1980s, Dang was vocal and active against the forces of secession. It was he who had then given the slogan ‘Na Hindurashtra, na Khalistan, jug jug jiye Hindustan’ (neither a Hindu state, nor a separate Khalistan, long live India).

Bahukutumbi Raman

Bahukutumbi Raman, who was one of the founders of Indian intelligence agency called Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), passed away on 16 June 2013 in Chennai after a long fight with cancer. He was 77 years of age.

About Bahukutumbi Raman

• Bahukutumbi Raman was a 1961 Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer. He was selected by Rameshwar Nath Kao for joining Research and Analysis wing (RAW) right from the time when it was separated from Intelligence Bureau in September 1968.

• He also remained director of the Institute for Topical Studies, Chennai.

• B. Raman remained a critic of the foreign policy of India.

• He has authored various books which covered subjects like military issues of South Asia and India, counter-terrorism as well as security.

• He also authored a journal called Kao-boys of Research and Analysis Wing: Down Memory Lane, in which he wrote about his working experience with RAW.

ACCUSED/RESIGNED/CONTROVERSY

Adel el-Khayat

A member of an Egyptian Islamist group, Adel el-Khayat who was linked to the terrorist massacre of foreign holidaymakers in Luxor in 1997 had resigned his appointment on 22 June 2013 as governor of the city, subsequent to the outcry from locals and tourist chiefs. The decision of resignation was taken by Adel el-Khayat in order to stop protest and bloodshed following his appointment in third week of June 2013 which provoked violent clashes between his supporters and opponents outside his offices. It was Egypt’s new Islamist president, Mohammed Morsi who had selected Adel el-Khayat for the post of Governor and is now facing criticism of the public.

The appointment attracted condemnation from secularists, and outraged businessmen in Luxor, who feared it is going to threaten the city’s efforts to rebuild itself as a tourist centre, and lead to bans on selling alcohol. Adel el-Khayat Khayat belongs to the Construction and Development party, the political arm of Gamaa Islamiya which was blamed for a spate of attacks in the 1990s before it renounced violence which is considered as worst terrorist atrocities when its members opened fire on tourists at Luxor’s 3400-year-old Hatsheput Temple in November 1997.

Silvio Berlusconi

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was sentenced to seven years in prisons and a lifetime ban on holding public office by a lower court of Milan as he was found guilty of soliciting sex from a minor and abusing his powers to cover up his actions.

Silvio Berlusconi was accused of paying for sex on several occasions with Moroccan-born Karima El-Mahroug, a then 17-year-old dancer and glamour girl nicknamed Ruby the Heart Stealer. The sentence will be suspended until all appeals process is going to be exhausted, which itself is likely to take several years. The three presiding judges, all women, handed 76 years old Berlusconi a seven-year sentence, tougher than the six years that prosecutors were demanding. There is a lenient guideline in Italy for people over the age of 70 so it is quite evident that Berlusconi will get some leniency in his jail term. The trial of Berlusconi relates to crimes committed in 2010 when Berlusconi was prime minister, and revolves around what prosecutors have described as erotic parties held at his luxury residence outside Milan.

Rajeev Shukla

Rajeev Shukla resigned as Chairman of IPL on 1 June 2013 in the wake of the raging spot-fixing scandal. The resignation of Shukla came on the eve of the emergency meeting of the BCCI working committee scheduled to be held in Chennai . Rajeev Shukla was an Indian journalist, political commentator, television host and the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and Planning, Government of India. He is a Member of Parliament since 2000. He serves as secretary of the All India Congress Committee. Rajiv Shukla was first appointed as the chief of IPL at the BCCI AGM held on 18 September 2011. Rajiv’s appointment came after Chirayu Amin’s decision to step down. He was reappointed as IPL chairman in 2012.

Ajay Maken and C P Joshi

CP Joshi and Ajay Maken on 15 June 2013 resigned from Union Cabinet of India. Before resignation, CP Joshi was handling the portfolio of Union Ministry of Railways as well as Transport and Highways Ministry and Ajay Maken was handling the portfolio of Union Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ministry. Their resignation was accepted by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee on 16 June 2013.

IN THE NEWS- September, 2013

VARIOUS

India has Second Largest Telephone Network in the World

The Indian telecom sector became the second largest telephone network in the world, after China by registering exceptional growth during last nine years. The reasons for growth of telecom sector were reform measures by the Government of India, active participation of the private sector as well as wireless technology. National Telecom Policy-2012 (NTP-2012) was announced with an objective to maximise public good by facilitating reliable, secure and affordable telecommunication as well as broadband services in India. When NTP 2012 was implemented, a range of telephonic connections increased considerably. The telephone connections in India till January 2013 were 893.14 million. The rural telephone connections increased by around 10 million in the year 2012. Overall, the teledensity was 73.07 percent till January 2013. Rural teledensity crossed the 40 percent mark. Comparatively, in March 2004, the overall teledensity was 7.04 percent while the rural teledensity was 1.7 percent. In case of mobile penetration, the preference of the use of wireless telephony increased considerably. As on 31 March 2012, the wireless telephones increased from 96.62 percent to 96.74 percent by June end 2012. The share of landline phones increased from 3.38 percent to 3.44 percent from April to December 2012. The wireless subscriber base also increased from 33.6 million in March 2004 to 864.72 million till December 2012. The average tariff for every outgoing call per minute for GSM services went down from 2.89 Rupees in March 2004 to 47 paisa in December 2012.

Syria

The United Nations committee, World Heritage Committee placed six world heritage sites of Syria on endangered list in light of ongoing conflicts in the country. These conflicts are posing threat to the cultural heritage of Syria.

The six world heritage sites of Syria placed on the list of World Heritage in Danger are:

• The Ancient City of Damascus

• Site of Palmyra

• Ancient City of Bosra

• Ancient City of Aleppo

• Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din

• Ancient Villages of northern Syria

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in its news release explained that danger listing aims at mobilising the support in order to safeguard these properties which are of universal value to humanity and are recognised by international community. The Syrian conflicts began in March 2011 and since then various cultural sites in Syria have been destroyed. In these conflicts over 93000 people have been killed and 6.8 million people are left for humanitarian assistance. Apart from all this, around 1.5 million people fled to neighbouring countries for protection and safety.

Sneha Singh

Sneha Singh a girl of Indian origin and Graduate from Avon High School, Connecticut got admission in the prestigious United States Military Academy at West Point. Sneha became the first Indian woman cadet to get entry to the United States Military Academy, in the Academy’s prestigious 211-year history. She will join the academy on 1 July 2013 to begin her 47 months journey that will help her to gain the Bachelor of Science degree and will be commissioned as the second lieutenant in the United States Army. A one week, summer programme offered by West Point to the top high school juniors of the country was a turning point for Sneha Singh. During this one weeks training camp, she got her first hand experience of Army Life. Sneha is a naturalized American Citizen born from parents of Indian-origin who migrated to United States of America.

Evaluation and selection process of United States Military Academy at West Point

Whole Person Concept is used for evaluating a candidate at West Point. To avail admissions in the west point, each candidate need to receive a nomination from his/her member of Congress or a Presidential nomination (for service related candidates). The process of nomination involves submissions of an extensive application package and a formal panel interview. Even after gaining the nominations, the candidate need to qualify academically, medically and a rigorous fitness assessment and demonstrate leadership skills. At the end they need to pass the background investigation through law enforcement. Sneha Singh received her nomination from United States Senator Joseph Lieberman and Connecticut 5th District Congressman Christopher Murphy.

Raghav Joneja

Raghav Joneja became the youngest Indian to scale the Mount Everest on 21 May 2013 when he along with his five schoolmates climbed the fifth highest peak in the world. Climbing at the age of 15 years and seven months Raghav Joneja broke the record set by Nameirakpam Chingkheinganba of Manipur’s, who climed the everest at the age 16 years seven months and 11 days. The group of boys who climbed with Raghav Joneja is all from Lawrence School, Sanawar. With this Lawrence became the first school in the world to send a team to the highest peak who joined the group from here to the base camp for 21 days to give them moral support. Apart from Raghav, Ajay Sohal (17) Prithvi Chahal (17) Shubham Kaushik (16), Fateh Brar (16) Guribadat Singh (17) climbed the peak while one of their teammate Hakikat Grewal had to draw back from 27600 ft as he faced some problems with his oxygen mask. All through the process, the team from one of Asia’s extant boarding schools, in Kasuali, became the youngest group and the first school team in the world to reach the top of the 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) mountain range. The team now is sheltering its aspirations to scale Seven Summits, which is the highest mountains of each of the seven continents, regarded as mountaineering challenge.

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey was named the most powerful celebrity on 26 June 2013 by Forbes, among the six women and four men who made up to the top 10. Singer Lady Gaga came in second, followed by director/producer Steven Spielberg and singers Beyonce and Madonna. 59 Years old Oprah Winfrey is said to have made 77 million earnings between June 2012 and June 2013. She was also credited for her prominence on TV, on social media and in the press. It is important here to note that Oprah Winfrey has topped the list on four previous occasions, and she is one of three celebrities who featured on the prestigious list every year since its inception in 1999, along with radio DJ Howard Stern and director Steven Spielberg. In year 2012 Jennifer Lopez, topped the list because of her public profile and earnings of 52 million dollars. Lincoln director Spielberg, ‘Grown Woman’ singer Beyonce and Madonna round out the top five, and Taylor Swift makes her debut on the annual list at number six.

Who is Oprah Winfrey?

Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer, and philanthropist. She is best known for her multi-award-winning talk show The Oprah Winfrey Show which was the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011. She has been ranked the richest African-American of the 20th century and the greatest black philanthropist in American history. She was also considered for a time the world’s only black billionaire. She is also, according to some assessments, the most influential woman in the world.

Ang Dami Sherpa

44 Years old Ang Dami Sherpa from Nepal won the Everest Marathon on 29 May 2013 in women’s category of Year 2013. Ang Dami Sherpa,won the women’s title in 11th Tenzing-Hillary Everest Marathon in a timeline of 6 hours, 2 minutes and 10 seconds. This win is counted as Sherpa’s second title at the 42.2-km race, as she already won another title in year 2006. The Everest Marathon is considered as one of the most strenuous marathon events, which starts at the Everest Base Camp at an altitude of 5364 m, and ends at Namche Bazaar at 3446 metres. Ang Dami’s received 50000 Nepalese Rupees (31250 Rupees) as the Prize Money. It is important here to note that the race was coincided with the diamond jubilee celebrations of the first ascent of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay. The oldest runner in the men’s section was Christopher Geiger of Switzerland and the youngest runner from the women’s section was 18-year-old Monyean Foote of Australia.

About Everest Marathon

The Everest Marathon is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the highest marathon in the world. The start line is at Gorak Shep 5184m (17000 feet)which is close to Everest Base Camp in Nepal. The finish line is at the Sherpa town of Namche Bazaar at 3446m (11300 feet) and the course is a measured 42 km (26.2 miles) over rough mountain trails. It is considered as the world’’s most spectacular race and has been held fourteen times since 1987. The race is a non-profit-making venture organised by Bufo Ventures Ltd with all profits put into the Everest Marathon Fund, a UK registered charity.

Mount Fuji

It was given world heritage status by the UNESCO World Heritage committee on 20 June 2013. Japan’s highest Mountain and famous landmark Mount Fuji on 20 June 2013 was given world heritage status by the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) World Heritage committee. The decision was taken at the annual 10-day UNESCO conference held in Cambodia. At 3776 metres, Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. Mount Fuji, which last erupted around 300 years ago, is the seventeenth site in Japan to be included on the list. Mount Fuji is located on Honshu Island. It lies about 100 kilometres south-west of Tokyo. It is one of Japan’s Three Holy Mountains along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku.

Nik Wallenda

Nik Wallenda, said to be the 7th generation high-wire artist on 23 June 2013 successfully completed walking the 2-inch thick cable across Little Colorado River Gorge near the Grand Canyon. He finished this walk in merely 23 minutes. With this, he became the first man to cross Grand Canyon on the tightrope. The tightrope was stretched 1500 feet above the gorge floor. He completed the 1400 foot long televised walk without any safety harness or net. Nik Wallenda, in the meanwhile, also declared that his next tightrope walk would be between the Empire State building and the Chrysler building in New York. The location of his attempt was a site in the Navajo Nation, which is 10 miles southeast of the Grand Canyon in northwest Arizona. Discovery channel telecasted his gorge walk. In the year 2012, he made this kind of walk across the Niagara Falls as well.

Amol Rajan

Amol Rajan, the 29-year-year-old Indian origin journalist became the Editor of UK national paper, The Independent, on 17 June 2013. He became the first non-white editor of The Independent. Amol Rajan replaced Chris Blackhurst. Earlier, Amol Rajan was the comment editor of the newspaper.

Kedarnath Temple

The Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Vijay Bahuguna announced on 19 June 2013 that the Kedarnath shrine situated in the Himalayan ranges will remain shut down for a minimum period of one year, following devastation because of early Monsoon rains. Though the shrine is safe, but it has suffered heavy slush. Debris in huge quantity is lying around the shrine which is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The debris will take one year time period to be cleared up completely. Situated in the hills of Himalayas, the Kedarnath temple is one of the holiest shrines of the Hindus. It is one of the Char Dham of Hindus. It is situated at a height of 3584 meters near the Chorabari glacier. It is a popular destination for Hindu pilgrims from all across the world and attracts lakhs of tourists. In the year 2012, 548166 tourists visited Kedarnath Pilgrimage. In 2013, the number of tourists was expected to be somewhere around 6 lakh. Uttarakhand experienced heavy floods because of incessant rains in the second week of June 2013 which left more than 150 people dead, thousands missing and stranded.

Thanjavur

Union Defence Minister AK Antony on 27 May 2013 dedicated to the nation the New Air Force Station at Thanjavur at a brief function held to mark the occasion. The operationalisation of the Air Force Station, Thanjavur is directed towards strengthening the air defence capabilities of the Indian Air Force in general and the Southern Command, in particular.

The Station will play a vital role in protecting the various sensitive, strategic, industrial, aerospace and economic assets coming up in the Southern Peninsula the Station will also help protect our island territories and Sea Lines of Communication in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). In the emerging security scenario, the presence of Fighter Planes in Thanjavur helps in guarding our interests and also giving a feeling of safety to our neighbours.

Kanji Ram

Kanji Ram became only the second Hindu to be part of the Pakistan’s Punjab assembly after Seth Bharta Ram who was elected a lawmaker in 1997. Kanji Ram is scheduled to take oath on 17 June 2013. Moreover, Saradar Ramesh Singh Arora on 1 June 2013 became the first ever Sikh to be elected as the member of the House since Pakistan’s creation in 1947. Ram and Sikh representative Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora were both nominated by the PML-N to seats in the Punjab Assembly reserved for non-Muslims. Ram hails from Sadiqabad in Rahim Yar Khan district, located 450 km away from Lahore, while Arora belongs to Narowal, a border district located 80 km from Lahore. Arora took oath during the first session of the assembly on 1 June 2013. A sizeable number of Hindus reside in Rahim Yar Khan and Ram believes his elevation as a legislator will help in addressing the problems faced by his community.

Jiroemon Kimura

The oldest person of the world, Jiroemon Kimura, 116 years Japanese man became the last male of the 19th century in the world. Jiroemon Kimura was given the title of last male alive to be born in the 19th century after the death of Barbados in the third week of May 2013 at the age of 113 years and 90 days. Gerontolgy Research Group at University of California, Los Angeles found out that as far as female were concerned, there are in all 21 women born before 1 January 1901 and they are still alive. Most of these 19th century women are in Japan and US, while others are in Canada and Europe. But amongst the male, Jiroemon Kimura is the only alive person of 19th century. Jiroemon Kimura was born on 19 April 1897. He has lived to witness the reigns of four kings as well as 61 Japanese prime ministers. In the year 1962, i.e., at the age of 65 years, he retired from the Japanese post office after serving 45 years in the office. At present, he lives in Kyotango. The oldest living woman of the world, Misao Okawa, 115 years old is also from Japan.

Nyoma

The highest Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) of India will be set-up at Nyoma, Leh district of Jammu and Kashmir at an altitude of about 14000 feet. The main aim of the KVK center in the location is to improve fodder production of the region and provide fine health care to roaming animals in the area. It also aims towards introducing vegetable production under protected environment and impart training to women on animal care. The Nyoma Krishi Vigyan Kendra is expected to bring up substantial change in the lives of the people of nearby areas. Most of the people living in the region are nomads and rear pashmina goats. Promoting stable agriculture in the region is a challenge because of the extreme cold and dry weather here.

Harminder Dua

The Scientists from University of Nottingham in UK, in the second week of June 2013 discovered a new layer in the Cornea and named it Dua’s Layer after the name of an Indian Researcher, the person responsible for the discovery. The new layer has been named after the name of the professor Harminder Dua. This discovery can help the surgeons to improve the results of treatment of patients who undergo corneal grafts and transplants. Earlier scientists believed that the cornea consists of five layers namely Descemet’s Membrane Corneal Epithelium, Corneal Stroma, Bowman’s Layer and Corneal Endothelium. The newsly discovered layer is located between the Corneal Stroma and Descemet’s membrane. Cornea is a protective lens in the eyes that allows light to enter into the eyes.

Kochi

The Chief Minister of Kerala along with officials of the World Economic Forum announced on 18 June 2013 that the 29th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (India chapter) scheduled for 8 November 2013 and 9 November 2013 will be hosted by Kochi, Kerala.

It is important to note that this is the second time that annual meeting of World Economic Forum (India chapter) was being hosted by a state other than Delhi. Earlier, 27 Meetings of World Economic Forum were held in New Delhi and once in Mumbai, Maharashtra. This is the first time that World Economic Forum (India chapter) event was being planned for South India. The World Economic Forum (India chapter) is an international event which will attract around 300 delegates. The annual meet would be attended by 96 Chief Executive Officers with various regional heads of MNCs. Apart from this; industry leaders, young global leaders as well as the heads of NGOs will also attend the meet. First World Economic Forum (India chapter) meeting was held in the year 1984.

Arvind Mahankali

Indian-American Arvind Mahankali, after years of close calls, won the Scripps National Spelling Bee on 30 May 2013. It was the 86th version of the competition. Arvind who hails from Bayside Hills, New York correctly spelled knaidel, a German-derived Yiddish word for a small mass of leavened dough to win the competition.

The bee tested brain power, composure and, for the first time, knowledge of vocabulary. Arvind finished in third place in both 2011 and 2012, and both times, he was eliminated on German-derived words.This time, he got two German-derived words in the finals, including the winning word, eliciting groans and laughter from the crowd. He spelled both with ease. Thirteen-year-old Pranav Sivakumar of Tower Lakes, Illinois, finished second. The Scripps National Spelling Bee (formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and commonly called the National Spelling Bee) is an annual spelling bee in the United States, with participants from the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, New Zealand, Ghana and The Bahamas. The National Spelling Bee was formed in 1925.

Connaught Place

Connaught Place, the marketplace located in Delhi has been ranked fifth in the list of world’s most expensive office market due to its strong demand amid limited supply as per the CBRE report. The reason of Connaught place being one of the most expensive markets is the Strong demand coupled with Connaught Place’s central location, excellent access to key regional markets and limited availability of prime office space.

The top three Expensive markets are:

1. Hong Kong (Central) with annual occupancy costs of 235.23 dollars per sq ft topped the most expensive list for the third consecutive time.

2. London’s West End, Beijing’s Finance Street

3. Beijing’s Jianguomen.

Connaught Place – the Central Business District (CBD) is placed at the 5th position with an overall occupancy cost of 178.96 dollars per sq ft per annum. Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) and Nariman Point of Mumbai are placed at 11th and 26th positions, respectively. CBRE came to this result wit tracking of the occupancy costs for prime office space in 127 markets around the globe in its semi-annual Prime Office Occupancy Costs survey. The most important thing that came into light is that despite a softening in the commercial office space segment in key cities in India, occupancy costs continue to remain high in prime locations. CBRE also concluded that gap in office occupancy cost between the Central Business District CBDs such as Connaught Place and a suburb such as Gurgaon is massive. The point is supported from the fact that while Delhi is placed at 5th place, Gurgaon is at the 72nd place in the same list.

The Other Asia-Pacific markets in the top 10 include:

• Hong Kong-West Kowloon (6th),Moscow (7th), Tokyo (Marunouchi/Otemachi) (8th) London’s City (9th).

• New York’s Midtown Manhattan (10th) returned to the top ten markets for the first time since early 2012.

Infinity Tower

The world’s tallest twisted tower, the Infinity Tower was launched in Dubai Marina on 10 June 2013. The Infinity tower features, its unique ability of twisting to 90 degrees and the shape of the tower being aesthetically unique also allows reduction of the wind forces on the tower because of its twisted shape.

Every floor of the tower is designed in the same way and is like a pile of books with each book twisted slightly to get the twist and the rectangular floors of the tower is surrounded by a cylindrical shaft that contains lifts.

Built over a period of eight years, the Infinity tower has 570 residential units, which includes 495 apartments, with one to four bedrooms, and penthouses. It also has retail spaces and a spa. The 75 storey 307 meter tall Infinity Tower has been developed by the makers of the tallest tower of the world, Burj Khalifa

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