General Awareness :In the News December, 2014
(General Awareness For Bank's Exams) In the news
December - 2014
Tabare Vazquez
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Tabare Vazquez has won the second round of the presidential election in Uruguay and will be taking office on March 1, 2015.
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It will be the Left-wing Broad Front’s third consecutive term in government and also the largest margin of victory in a run-off.
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Meanwhile, outgoing president Jose Mujica, whose management had the approval of 65 per cent of the citizens according to a poll last week, said he would now have the task of being the coordinator within the ruling coalition.
Anil Kumar Sinha
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“Do your duty without fear and so far as integrity is concerned, it goes without saying that you all would uphold it,” was the first message from Anil Kumar Sinha to his officers, after he took over as Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation at the agency headquarters.
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Described as a soft-spoken officer by his junior colleagues, Mr. Sinha is said to have a “very simple” lifestyle. His son and daughter are both settled in the United States.
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The CBI Director holds an MA in Psychology and M.Phil in Strategic Studies. He has been the recipient of several awards.
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Mr. Sinha, who belongs to Bihar and was inducted as an IPS officer into his home cadre in 1979, is recipient of Police Medal for Meritorious Services in the year 2000 and President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Services in 2006.
Arun Majumdar
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A top Indian-American scientist from Stanford University has been appointed as one of the Science Envoys of the U.S.
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Arun Majumdar, a professor at the prestigious university, along with three others Peter Hotez, Jane Lubchenco and Geri Richmond would serve as U.S. Envoys beginning January next year, the State Department said.
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Like their nine predecessors, these distinguished scientists will engage internationally at the citizen and government levels to develop partnerships, improve collaboration, and forge mutually beneficial relationships between other nations and the U.S. to stimulate increased scientific cooperation and foster economic prosperity, the Department said in a statement.
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Science Envoys travel as private citizens and advice the White House, the Department of State, and the scientific community about potential opportunities for cooperation.
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This year the Department announced the first Science Envoy for the Ocean, building on the momentum created at the Ocean Conference held at the State Department in June.
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An IIT-Bombay alumnus, Mr. Majumdar is a material scientist, engineer, who was President Barack Obama’s nominee for the Under Secretary of Energy between November 30, 2011 and May 15, 2012.
Shinzo Abe
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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe won a comfortable re-election in a snap poll that he had billed as a referendum on his economic policies.
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But a low turnout from unenthusiastic voters beset by a heavy snowfall across much of the country could cast doubt on the endorsement he will claim for “Abenomics” — his signature plan to fix the country’s flaccid economy.
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Media exit polls shortly after voting showed his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior partner Komeito had swept the ballot, with an unassailable two-thirds majority in the lower house of parliament that will give them the power to override the upper house.
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“Voter turnout is likely to be a record low, but we still can call it a landslide victory for Prime Minister Abe,” said Masaru Kohno, a Politics Professor at Waseda University in Tokyo.
Anerood Jugnauth
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Mauritius President named veteran politician Sir Anerood Jugnauth as Prime Minister, after the 84-year-old won a landslide taking nearly three-quarters of the seats in Parliament.
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Mr. Jugnauth, a former President and Prime Minister, was handed his letter of appointment at a meeting at State House, a statement from the office of President Kailash Purryag said.
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Mr. Jugnauth’s centre-right Alliance Lepep swept 47 out of 62 seats in the Indian Ocean nation’s Parliament, after voters rejected the ruling party’s bid to boost presidential powers.
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The coalition of the outgoing ruling Labour Party and the former opposition Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) of ex-Prime Minister Paul Berenger took just 13 seats.
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Two other lawmakers from local parties on the small island of Rodrigues, some 560 kilometres to the east, usually support the government.
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Debate over constitutional reform — notably over a divisive proposal to strengthen presidential powers — made Wednesday’s poll one of the most crucial since the islands gained independence from Britain in 1968.
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Mr. Jugnauth, previously PM between 1982 and 1995 and again between 2000 and 2003, has promised he will boost the economy.
Richard Rahul Verma
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Indian-American Richard Rahul Verma has been sworn in as the US Ambassador to India by Secretary of State John Kerry. 46-year-old Verma is the first ever Indian-American to be the top US diplomat in New Delhi.
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He is scheduled to arrive in India ahead of Kerry’s visit to Delhi next month. US President Barack Obama will arrive in late January to attend the Republic Day Parade on January 26 as the Chief Guest.
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He was confirmed by the US Senate by a voice vote last week. Last week he met Obama at the White House.
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Verma, who quietly played an important role in the Congressional passage of civil nuclear deal with India, had advocated for strong Indo-US ties when in the administration and recently started “India 2020” project at Centre for American Progress — a top American-think tank.
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He will replace Nancy Powell, who resigned in March after a damaging row over the treatment of diplomat Devyani Khobragade over visa fraud charges.
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The US Embassy in New Delhi is currently headed by a charge d’affaires, Kathleen Stephens. Verma’s association with Obama goes back to 2008 when he worked on presidential debate preparations for the then Illinois senator.
M.C. Sampath
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M.C. Sampath, retired Senior Associate Editor of The Hindu, passed away here on Saturday evening after suffering a massive cardiac arrest. He was 78.
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He retired from The Hindu in 2012 after serving the newspaper for 50 years, not counting the five years during which he was the part-time correspondent in Chengalpattu.
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Joining the organisation in June 1961 as a Staff Reporter, he rose to become an Editorial writer and a Senior Associate Editor. He was also in charge of the Book Reviews for some years. For long years, he was writing the Religion column in the newspaper.
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In his later years with the newspaper, as the seniormost member of the editorial team, Mr. Sampath assisted the Editor in managing the editorials for the day, finally seeing them off on the page after scrutiny.
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MCS was an old school journalist who was meticulous in his commitment to accuracy, contextualising and fairness.
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As an editorial writer, he was clear-headed, sceptical about big claims, nuanced, and able to deal with complexity skilfully and to present a persuasive argument with ease.
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But he never shied away from expressing a forthright opinion on issues that mattered. And as a coordinator of editorials, willing to put in long hours, he was considered the safest pair of hands any Editor could wish for.
S. Narayanan
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S. Narayanan (89), chairman of India Motor Parts & Accessories Ltd (IMPAL), part of the TVS group, passed away.
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He was a doyen of the automobile industry having spent over seven decades in it. He single-handedly nurtured the spare parts industry in the country and held top posts in many industry associations.
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Narayanan was on the Board of IMPAL since 1965, served as its managing director from 1969-79 and as Chairman from 2002. He was instrumental in the company’s expansion all over India.
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He is survived by wife Choodamani Narayanan and two sons — industrialist N. S. Ramji and N. Krishnan, Managing Director of IMPAL — and daughter-in-law Dr. Nalini Krishnan of The Hindu.
Dineshwar Sharma
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Dineshwar Sharma, a Bihar-born, Kerala-cadre Indian Police Service officer of the 1979 batch, will be the new chief of the Intelligence Bureau. Mr. Sharma, and Ashok Prasad, another Bihar-born IPS officer currently in the IB, were the front runners for the post.
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Mr. Sharma, who succeeds Syed Asif Ibrahim, who retires on December 31, has a wide range of experience — from handling separatism and insurgencies to domestic and regional politics.
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He has served in Nagaland, Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Lucknow in various capacities. The unassuming officer is known among his colleagues as “quiet, bright and savvy.”
M.C. Sampath
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M.C. Sampath, retired Senior Associate Editor of The Hindu, passed away here on Saturday evening after suffering a massive cardiac arrest. He was 78.
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He retired from The Hindu in 2012 after serving the newspaper for 50 years, not counting the five years during which he was the part-time correspondent in Chengalpattu.
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Joining the organisation in June 1961 as a Staff Reporter, he rose to become an Editorial writer and a Senior Associate Editor. He was also in charge of the Book Reviews for some years. For long years, he was writing the Religion column in the newspaper.
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In his later years with the newspaper, as the seniormost member of the editorial team, Mr. Sampath assisted the Editor in managing the editorials for the day, finally seeing them off on the page after scrutiny.
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MCS was an old school journalist who was meticulous in his commitment to accuracy, contextualising and fairness.
Dr. Radhakrishnan
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Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is one of the 2014 top ten scientists chosen by the prestigious journal Nature. This is the first time in the recent past that the journal has chosen an Indian working in India.
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He is listed along with other people like Andrea Accomazzo, the Rosetta flight operations director, European Space Agency. The reasons for choosing Dr. Radhakrishnan are pretty simple and straightforward.
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When India’s Mangalyaan successfully settled into Mars orbit on September 24, 2014, the country became the first and only nation to have done so on its maiden attempt. India also became the first Asian country to reach Mars.
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The space organisation crossed two other major milestones this year. In January, the space organisation achieved spectacular success with the spaceflight of an Indian cryogenic engine and stage.
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India has been striving hard for some years to indigenously develop a cryogenic engine to improve the reliability of GSLV rockets and to take the rocket to greater heights.
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The recent launch of the heaviest and tallest GSLV Mark III and the successful re-entry of the unmanned crew module were the other landmark achievements.
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“It’s recognition for executing a major technological mission by bringing in synergy of a large team,” said Dr. Radhakrishnan about Nature choosing him as one of the top ten scientists in the world. The team is as large as 16,000 members, with the younger generation alone accounting for 4,500.
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“ISRO is a wonderful and unique organisation. There is wonderful team spirit and openness,” is how he describes an organisation that he joined in 1971. He had worked in various major capacities before becoming Chairman.
