General Knowledge G.K. For IRMA, IIFT, SNAP, MAT, JMET, MBA, IAS, BANK Exam, All exams of India

For IRMA Exam

India - Some Basic Info

1)      Land – 32,87,263 sq km; 7th largest in the world

2)      Pop – 102 cr. (2001 Census); 2nd most populous

3)      28 states, 7 UTs including 1 NCR (Delhi)

4)      Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, & Uttarakhand - 3 new states in that order

5)      Land Frontier – 15,200 km

6)      Total length of coast line – 7,516.6 km

7)      Population Density – 324 / sq km

8)      Sex ratio – 933

9)      Literacy rate – 65.38

10)  2.4% of the world’s surface area & 16.7% of the world’s population

11)  Services hub-defies conventional logic

12)  Agriculture still main occupation

13)  One of the ancient civilisations in the world

14)  India has a heritage of democratic republics (Janapadas)

National Symbols

1)      Jana Gana Mana: adopted January 24, 1950, 1st sung on December 27, 1911, at INC, Calcutta, originally in Bengali

2)      Vande Mataram: 1st sung at 1896 INC session, originally in Sanskrit by Bankim C Chatterji

3)      Saka Era (AD 78), adopted on March 22, 1957

4)      Tiger, Peacock, Lotus

5)      National Flag adopted on July 22, 1947

6)      State emblem is an adaptation of Sarnath lion capital of Asokha adopted on January 26, 1950

7)      Flag code adopted in 2002

8)      Dolphin – National Aquatic Creature

9)      Satyameva Jayate – from Upanishads

10)  Traditional Indian calendar starts with Chaitra

Indian Economy : Classified in three Sector

1)      Primary – Agriculture & allied - 20-22%

2)      Secondary – Industrial, which includes mining & quarrying; manufacturing; electricity, gas & water supply, and construction - 22-24%

3)      Tertiary – Services, which includes trade, hotels, IT, transport & communication; financial services, and community, social & personal services - 57.2%

Major Hub of India

1)      Micro finance hub - Andhra Pradesh

2)      IT and Biotechnology hub - Bangalore

3)      Automobile hub - Tamil Nadu

4)      Pharma hub- Hyderabad

5)      Financial capital- Mumbai

Indian Economy at a glance

1)      GDP - $1.25 trillion (2009), world’s 11th largest economy

2)      At $3.13 trillion, 4th largest by PPP, after U.S., Japan, & China

3)      2nd fastest GDP growth among large economies

4)      India a services led economy. GDP growth rate was 7.5% in

2004-05, 9.5% in 2005-06, 9.7% in 2006-07, 9.2% in 2007-08, 6.7% in 2008-09, 7.4% in 2009-10

5)      India’s share in world trade has increased from 0.7% in 2003 to 1.1% in 2008. Export target $200 billion by March 2011.

6)      Latest poverty estimate of Tendulkar Panel is 8.3 crore households and 37.2%

7)      Parts of India are worse off in poverty levels than sub-Sahara Africa

8)      Principal commodities exported are ores and minerals, gems and jewelry chemical and allied products engineering goods petroleum products, agriculture and allied products

9)      Principal commodities imported are pearls, fertilizers, cereals, edible oils, newsprint and petroleum products

10)  Infrastructure and building up of social infrastructure - top priorities

11)  India was the second largest economy in the world before British era

12)  British rule destroyed Indian economy

13)  Shameful record of famines in British India – 1947 famine in Bengal

Agriculture

1)      About 64% of the population dependent on agriculture

2)      Contributes 20-22% to GDP

3)      3 harvesting seasons – Rabi, Kharif, & Zaid

a.       Major Rabi crops: wheat, barley, mustard

b.      Major Kharif crops: rice, jowar, bajra, cotton

c.       Major Zaid Crop:

4)      2008-09 – 4th Advance estimate 233.88 MT

5)      Net sown area – 1,412 lakh hectares (2000)

6)      Area under forests – 695.5 lakh hectares (2003-04)

1)      60% of area sown is dependent upon rainfall

2)      Agriculture, Animal husbandry and Fisheries contributed 5.3% to GDP in 2005-06

3)      Food grain cropping share comes down to 65 % of gross cropped area (2000)

4)      Estimated production of Rice in 2008-09 is 99.37 mt

5)      Estimated production of Wheat in 2008-09 is 77.63 mt

6)      India third largest producer and consumer of fertilizers

7)      India second largest producer of fruits and vegetable

8)      Land area under marginal holdings (less than 1 hectare) is 20% of Total Cultivated Area (2001-2002)

9)      High degree of land fragmentation

10)  Low level of mechanisation

11)  High level of disguised unemployment

12)  33% ideal forest cover

13)  Need for improved irrigation, better seeds & fertilizers, consolidation of land   holdings, land reforms, better access to credit, extension of marketing facilities, etc.

14)  The first Green Revolution achieved breakthrough in the production of wheat and rice

15)  No significant breakthrough in production of oil seeds & pulses M.S. Swaminathan, C. Subramaniam and Norman Borlaug key figures in Green Revolution

16)  National Food Security Mission

17)  Rotting foodgrains and malnutrition

18)  Contract farming and regulated markets - key areas of reforms

19)  Controversy over GM crops - GM cotton and Brinjal

20)  Organic farming a necessity not a fad (latest controversy of antibiotics in honey)

Agri & related institutes

1)      Central Institute for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants - Lucknow

2)      International Crop Research Institute for Semi-arid Tropics - Hyderabad

3)      National Fisheries Development Board - Hyderabad

4)      National Dairy Research Institute - Karnal

5)      Indian Council of Agricultural Research - Delhi

6)      Central Sheep Breeding Farm - Hissar

7)      National Institute of Agricultural Marketing - Jaipur

8)      National Institute of Rural Development - Hyderabad

9)      National Institute of Agriculture Research Management - Hyderabad

Dairy, Poultry and Fisheries

1)      NDDB – chairperson Dr. Amrita Patel

2)      AMUL started by Dr. Verghese Kurien, who also launched Operation Flood (White Revolution)

3)      105 MT of milk production (2008-09)

4)      UP – largest milk producer, also largest milch bovine pop

5)      485 million livestock population, World No.1

6)      Total egg production reached 50.7 billion in 2006-07

7)      India ranked sixth in poultry

8)      India 3rd largest producer of Fish

9)      Fisheries sector major contributor to exports

10)  Rs.8,357 crore valuation in 2008-09 of fisheries exports

11)  National Fisheries Development Board set up in Hyderabad

12)  Allied activities give good scope for income generation and employment

 Education - Fundamental Right  (86^th Amendment )

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan

1)      Launched in 2001, 75:25 exp sharing during 10th Plan between Centre & States

2)      All children in 6-14 yrs bracket in school

3)      Bridge all gender & social category gaps at primary stage by 2007 & elementary stage by 2010

4)      Universal retention by 2010

5)      Before 1976 education was the exclusive responsibility of the states

6)      Central Advisory Board for Education was first established in 1920

7)      National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education was launched in 1995

8)      NCERT set up in 1961

9)      National Literacy Mission was launched in 1988

10)  Navodaya Schools launched in 1985

11)  Mid-Day Meal Scheme – Launched 1995, aims to increase enrolment & retention in schools

12)  Operation Blackboard – Launched 1987-88, 2 large classrooms, 2 teachers, essential teaching material

13)  Lok Jumbish – Launched in Rajasthan with assistance from Sweden, aims for edu for all

14)  Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan

15)  Shiksha Karmi Project – aims at universalisation & qualitative improvement of primary edu in remote places of Rajasthan, special emphasis on girl child

16)  National Curriculum Framework was launched in 2005

17)  UGC set up in 1953

18)  IGNOU set up in 1985

19)  National Book Trust set up in 1957

20)  Govternment focus now on higher education

21)  RTE Act

22)  History books in schools – a sensitive political issue

Environment

1)      20.55% area under forest cover

2)      Forest Survey of India – HO at Dehra Dun

3)      15 Biosphere Reserves, 4 recognized by UNESCO viz., Nilgiri, Sunderbans, Gulf of Mannar and Nanda Devi

4)      Forest Policy – 1894, revised 1952 & 1988

5)      Project Tiger – 1973; 281 Tiger Reserves in 17 states

6)      Project Elephant – 1992; 14 reserves

7)      Eco-mark – to label environment-friendly consumer products

8)      Sunderlal Bahuguna of Chipko Movement awarded Padma Vibushan

9)      Sunita Narain Centre for Science and Environment Delhi

10)  Vandana Shiva, Maneka Gandhi and Amala – Blue Cross, Navadhanya

11)  Mining license of Vedanta revoked

12)  Many projects in Uttarakhand on Ganga put on hold

13)  Development vs Environment

14)  India’s good record in carbon emissions

15)  Low development responsible for low emissions?

16)  Is environment clearance becoming politicized? Ex: Vedanta and Polavaram

17)  Bishnois – highly eco friendly community – Haryana, Rajasthan

Welfare Schemes

1. Annapurna Scheme (2000-01) – Poor over 65 yrs of age with no pension are eligible, 10 kg of rice per month
2. Antyodaya Anna Yojana (2000) – Poorest of the poor, 35 kg of foodgrain at highly subsidised rates (Rs.2 - rice, Rs.3 - wheat)
3. Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (2001) – Universal Food for Work scheme in all UTs / states, who are supplied with 50 lakh tonne food grain free of cost by MoRD
4. MGNREGS – Food for Work programme in 200 most backward districts; 100 days employment guarantee for ONE member of a poor household or else compensation provided; Minimum Wage at Rs.60 per day
5. Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship for scheduled caste and students launched in 2006. For higher studies like M.phil and P.hd
6. Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers launched in 2007
7. A central scheme for Primitive Tribal Groups launched in 1998-99
8. National Policy for older persons launched in 1999
9. Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act enacted in 2006
10. India ratified the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women in 1993
11. Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) launched in 1975
12. SABLA scheme for adolescent girls
13. Basic services for urban poor

Employment Scenario

1. Total labour force – Estimated 457.50 million. More than 86% in informal sector
2. Services – 23 per cent; Industry – 17-19 per cent
3. Unemployment for males in 2004 – Increases to 9% in rural areas (5.6% in 1993-94) and 8.1% in urban areas (6.7% in 1993-94)
4. Unemployment for females in 2004 – Increases to 9.3% in rural areas (5.6% in 1993-94) and 11.7% in urban areas (10.5% in 1993-94)
5. Disguised unemployment and underemployment feature of India. More than 50% of the workforce in Agriculture
6. India’s first Rural Employment Guarantee Programme in Maharashtra
7. 61st round of NSSO 2004-05 informal sector workers 395 million out of total of 457.50 million
8. About 62% of unemployment in rural areas and 38% unemployment in urban areas
9. Demographic dividend – 15 to 64 years age group was 62.9% in 2006 – to be 68.4% in 2026

Health Important Stats and facts

1. Population growth – 1.93% (annual)
2. Decadal growth – 21.34 (1991-2001)
3. Crude Birth Rate (CBR) – 25; CDR – 8.1
4. IMR – 64 (2002); MMR – 487
5. Total Fertility Rate (TFR) – 3.2
6. Life Expectancy at Birth – 63.8 yrs (M); 66.9 yrs (F)
7. Highest TFR – Bihar with 4.5
8. India first country to officially adopt family planning programme
9. Sale of non-iodated salt banned in 2006 to control Goitre
10. AYUSH programme for alternate medical systems (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy)
11. India has the largest number of Homeo practitioners
12. India has digitalized traditional knowledge of healing systems like Ayurveda Yoga and Siddha and registered with European patent office to prevent frivolous grant of patents
13. Small-pox officially “eliminated” in 1975
14. New disease - SARS / Dengue and Swine flu
15. Nation Rural Health Mission launched in 2005
16. Acute need for Health Insurance
17. Malnutrition acute problem
18. Fluoride ‘belts’ in the country
19. Recurrence of Brain Fever

National Health Policy 2002

Eliminate

1.                  Malaria, Yaws, & Leprosy - 2005

2.                  Kala Azar - 2010; Filariasis - 2015

3.                  Achieve zero level growth of HIV / AIDS - 2007

Reduce

1. IMR to 30 / 100 & MMR 100 / lakh by 2010
2. Prevalence of Blindness to 0.5% by 2010
3. Mortality by 50% on a/c of vector diseases like TB / Malaria

Health - Some more stats

India is home to

1. As per revised estimates carried out in 2006, the number of persons living with HIV in India is 2 to 3.1 million
2. Highest blind population
3. Highest polio-afflicted population specially in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar
4. Highest TB population (1/3rd of global TB pop)
5. Highest diabetic population (nearly 15%)
6. Highest projected population with cardiovascular diseases
7. Lifestyle diseases in urban, semi-urban areas

Health - National Programmes

1. National Malaria Control Programme (1953)
2. National Filaria Control Programme (1955)
3. National TB Control Programme (1962)
4. National Leprosy Control Programme (1955)
5. National Programme for Control of Blindness (1953)
6. National AIDS Control Programme (1987)
7. National Goitre Control Programme (1962)
8. National Mental Health Programme (1955)
9. National Surveillance Programme for Communicable Diseases (1997-98)
10. The Universal Immumisation Programme aims at preventing TB, Diphtheria, Pertusis, Tetanus Polio and Measles
11. The pulse polio programme was launched in 1995-96

Transport

1. Railways modest beginning in 1853
2. 6909 stations over total track kms of 1,09,996; 41% of total track electrified
3. 16 Railway Zones; 11 International Airports
4. 12 Major Ports incl. one at Ennore (TN) – India’s first coporatised port
5. 200 non-major ports
6. 219 National Highways; longest NH 7 between Kanya Kumari & Varanasi; shortest is NH 47A between Willingdon Island & Kochi (Kerala)
7. Cochin largest shipyard in country
8. Golden Quadrilateral – 5,486 km (D-M-C-K)
9. North-South Corridor & East-West Corridor – 7,300 km
10. Hyderabad and Bangalore International Airports are greenfield airports
11. India 33 lakh kms of roads
12. NHDP largest highway project in the country
13. India has largest merchant shipping fleet in developing countries
14. Railways largest employer
15. Railway still a monopoly of public sector
16. Dedicated Railway freight corridor proposed

Some Miscellaneous Facts

1.      Biggest constituent of UPA after Congress is Trinamool Congress

2.      Agatha Sangma aged 28 is the youngest Cabinet Minister

3.      Pranab Mukherjee is Finance Minster – heads many GOMs

4.      Hamidullah Syed Basheer, age 27 is the youngest Member of Parliament from Lakshwadweep

5.      The chairman of the National Identification Authority is Nandan Nilekani

6.      The chairman of the PMEAC is C. Rangarajan

7.      Bindeswari Pathak receives the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize

8.      Vandana Shiva awarded Sydney Peace Prize

9.      Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley – leaders of opposition

Five Year Plans

1.      First plan – 1951-56 Highest Priority to agriculture, irrigation and power

2.      Second plan – 1956 to 1961 Highest Priority to Heavy Industries

3.      Third plan – 1961-1966 Self sustaining growth

4.      1967 to 1969 plan Holiday three annual plans

5.      Fourth plan – 1969-74 Equality and Social Justice

6.      Fifth plan – 1974-79 Self Reliance

7.      Sixth plan – 1980-85 Removal of Poverty

8.      Seventh plan – 1985-90 Increased employment

9.      1991, 1992 – Annual plans

10.  Eighth plan – 1992-97 Faster economic growth

11.  Ninth plan – 1997-2002 accelerating growth rate with stable prices

12.  Tenth plan – 2002-07 Growth with enhanced quality of life

13.  Eleventh plan – 2007-2012 Faster and inclusive growth

14.  NDC approves plans

15.  Planning Commission is advisory body

Important Government Programmes

1. SGSY launched in 1999
2. PURA is a concept of Abdul Kalam
3. Maharashtra first state to launch Food for Work Programme
4. NREGA rechristened as Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Act
5. Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana launched in 2000
6. Indira Awaas Yojana launched in 1985
7. National Drinking Water Mission launched in 1986
8. Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana launched in 2001
9. Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) aims at urban development
10. VAMBAY is a programme aimed at rehabilitation of slum households
11. Integrated Child Development Services launched in 1975

Some important Statutory and Autonomous Organisations

1)      National Commission for Minorities, 1993

2)      National Commission for Women, 1992

3)      National Commission for Protection of Rights of Children, 2007

4)      Rashtriya Mahila Kosh, 1993 to facilitate credit support to poor women

5)      National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation

6)      Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO) Kanpur a public sector unit

7)      Rehabilitation Council of India, 1992

8)      National Trust for Welfare of Persons with Autism Cereberal Palsy Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities

9)      National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation

10)  National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, 2005

11)  National Commission for Scheduled Castes

12)  National Commission for Safai Karamchari’s

13)  National Commission for Backward Classes, 1993

14)  National Commission for Human Rights

15)  Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA), 1990

16)  National Commission on Population, 2000

17)  National Knowledge Commission

18)  Council for Advancement of People Action and Rural Technology (CAPART), 1986

19)  Unique Identification Authority

20)  National Innovation Council

21)  Investment Commission

Important Initiatives of Government and Corporates

1. The Tata Group was an active supporter of India’s family planning programme
2. Aadhaar Godrej’s rural initiative
3. e-choupal ITC’s rural initiative
4. e-seva is the e-governance initiative of Andhra Pradesh
5. Bhumi is the e-governance initiative of Karnataka dealing with land records
6. MCA-21 is the e-governance initiative related to Union Ministry for Corporate Affairs
7. Irani committee recommendations deal with changes in company law
8. Direct Tax Code (DTC) proposed from 2012
9. Goods and Services Tax (GST) from 2011
10. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRs) proposed from 2011
11. Unique Identification Authority of India established
12. Financial Inclusion
13. Skill Development Initiatives 3 initiatives –

1.      PMs National Council on Skill Development,

2.      National Skill Development Board, and

3.      National Skill Development Corporation

14. 150 million to be trained by 2022 under National Skill Development Policy

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General Knowledge for IIFT Exam

World Trade Organisation

1)      Successor to the GATT

2)      Established on January 1, 1995

3)      WTO HQ – Geneva, Switzerland

4)      DG – Pascal Lamy (France)

5)      WTO has 153 members

6)      Vietnam is 150^th member

7)      Russia is yet to become a member of WTO

International Institutions / Groupings

1)      World Bank – HO at Washington, Prez - Robert Zoellick (US)

2)      IMF – HO at Washington, MD – Dominique Strauss Kahn (Germany)

3)      ADB – HO at Manila, Prez – Haruhiko Kuroda (Japan)

4)      European Commission – HO at Brussels

5)      WEF – Founder Chairman Klaus Schwabb (Germany)

6)      OECD – Hqrs Paris

7)      ASEAN – Hqrs Bangkok

8)      SAARC – Secretariat Kathmandu

9)      Organisation of Islamic Conference based in Riyadh

10)  OPEC – Vienna

International - Who’s Who

1)      Ban Ki-moon (S.Korea’s foreign minister) succeeds Kofi Annan (Ghana) as new Secretary General of the UN

2)      Margaret Chan (China) is new DG of WHO

3)      Barack Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

4)      Science fiction writer Arthur Clarke passes away

5)      Deep Joshi wins Magsaysay Award

6)      Indra Nooyi – PepsiCo CEO, also ranked world’s most powerful business woman

7)      Shashi Tharoor – former UN Under Secretary General for Communications & Public Information and now a former Union Minister of State for External Affairs

8)      Tharoor – author of The Great Indian Novel, Riot – A Novel, India: From Midnight to the Millennium, Bookless in Baghdad, & Show Business

9)      Vandana Shiva – Sydney Peace Prize

Business - Facts & Figures

1)      IOC – India’s largest company by revenue

2)      Toyota – largest auto company

3)      Intel – largest chip-maker

4)      Diageo – largest spirits company (owns Smirnoff, JW)

5)      McDonald’s – largest fast food chain

6)      Vodafone – largest mobile company by revenue in world

7)      Bharti Airtel – crosses 11 crore subscribers in India

8)      Tata No.1 by market capitalisation in India

9)      Vedanta Resources in News

10)  Wal-Mart – largest retailer in world

11)  BP – credibility crisis

12)  Nokia largest hand-set maker

Important Government Programmes

1)      National Highway Development Programme (NHDP), largest Highway Development Programme ever in India

2)      National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGP) target group the rural poor

3)      Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas (PURA) proposed by former President Abdul Kalam 

4)      Swarna Jayanti Gramin Swarojgar Yojana (SJSY) replaces Integrated Rural Development Programme

5)      Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) 1985 covers Diphteria, Pertusis, Tetanus, Polio, & Tuberculosis

6)      Integrated Child Development Programme (ICDP)

7)      Bharat Nirman – Rural infrastructure

8)      Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) – Urban infrastructure

9)      Ultra Mega Power Projects (UMPP) big boost to power production

10)  AIDP

11)  RTE

12)  RTI

13)  SABLA

Economy / Business

1)      Vedanta to acquire Cairn

2)      1.6 million employed in IT in India (2007)

3)      Mobile number portability to be introduced

4)      Provident fund companies can invest 15% of their corpus in shares

5)      New Pension Scheme (NPS) launched in April 2009

6)      Natco and Strides Arcolab are permitted to manufacture generic version of Tamiflu

7)      Roche holds patent on Tamiflu

8)      G-20 accounts for 90% of global output

9)      NCDEX largest agricultural commodity exchange by volume

10)  International Finance Reporting Standards to be implemented by companies by April 2011

11)  Successful IPO of SKS microfinance

12)  Discussion paper on new banks by RBI

13)  New BPL norms of Tendulkar Commission

14)  Cloud computing

15)  Direct Taxcode

16)  BP Oil spill

17)  Base rate mechanism

18)  Financial inclusion

Agriculture

1)      India second largest producer of pepper

2)      No.1 in milk production

3)      Among the world top producer of Tea

4)      Largest coconut producer in world is India

5)      Second largest producer of fish

6)      Green Revolution a success in rice and wheat

7)      India lags behind in production of pulses, oil seeds

8)      11^th plan aims at 4% GDP growth rate in agriculture

9)      Agriculture sector neglected in economic reforms

10)  GM crops in focus

11)  NFSM

12)  Organic Farming

13)  Unsustainable agriculture sector

14)  Percentage of people in agricultural sector

15)  Farmers suicides

16)  Is shift of population the answer?

Famous Personalities

1)      Nandan Nilekani Chairman of Unique Identification Authority (UIA)

2)      C. Rangarajan Chairman of Prime Ministers Economic Advisory Council

3)      Angela Markel re-elected Chancellor of Germany

4)      Mohan Bhagwat new chief of RSS

5)      Iran’s President Md. Ahmedinejad denies truth of Holocaust

6)      President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela wins referendum

7)      Ramesh Pokhariyal new Chief Minister of Uttarakhand

8)      R. K. Pachauri head of TERI and IGPCC

9)      Christian Wulff new President Germany

10)  Centenary of Mother Teresa

11)  Julian Assange

Awards

1)      Nobel Prize – Chemistry for Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (Indian American)

2)      Nobel Literature – Herta Muller (Romania)

3)      Deep Joshi – Magsaysay Award, 2009

4)      2009 Man Booker Prize – Hilary Mantel, (UK)

5)      2009 Man Booker International Prize – Alice Munro (Canada)

6)      2009 Indira Gandhi Prize – Sheikh Hasina

7)      2006 Jnanpith Award – Satyavrat Shastry - Sanskirt, Ravindra Kelekar - Konkani

8)      2010 Sydney Peace Prize – Vandana Shiva

Sports

1)      Castrol 2009 Cricket of Year – Gautam Gambhir

2)      2016 Olympics – Rio De Janiero

3)      2010 FIFA World Cup – South Africa

4)      2014 FIFA World Cup – Brazil

5)      2012 Olympics – London

6)      2011 World Cup Cricket – India / Sri Lanka / Bangladesh

7)      2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games

8)      2010 Delhi World Cup Hockey

9)      Arjun Atwal – Golf - Prestigious Golf Trophy

10)  Vishwanathan Anand - World Chess Championship - Sophia

World Review

USA - 300 million pop

1)      Democrats win control of H of R & Senate

2)      Barack Obama first Afro-American to be President

3)      Robert Gates is new defence secretary

4)      Hillary Clinton new Secretary of State

5)      Largest exporter & importer – overall; biggest seller of military equipment

6)      Ben Bernanke – new Federal Reserve chief

7)      Refuses to sign Kyoto Protocol & shuns International Criminal Court

8)      Sarbanes-Oxley Act – for corporate governance

9)      Fence built on USA border with Mexico to curb illegal immigration & drugs trade

10)  Anti-outsourcing stand of USA

11)  USA and China are G-2

12)  Ground Zero Mosque issue

13)  Landmark civil nuclear deal and civil nuclear liability bill – USA, India link

14)  2008 global financial crisis roots in USA

 Japan - Land of the Rising Sun

1)      Naoto Kan – new PM

2)      Kuril Islands – source of dispute with Russia

3)      Was world’s second and Asia’s largest economy but well ahead of China in per capita income

4)      Oldest still ruling Royal House in the world

5)      Monarch sits on Chrysanthemum Throne

6)      No standing army

7)      No manufacture, supply or storing of nuclear weapons

8)      Okinawa issue with USA

9)      [China overtakes Japan as second largest economy]

China - 3^rd Largest by Area

1)      Hu Jintao – President; Wen Jiabao – PM

2)      Is building GWADAR port in Pakistan, also Karakoram Highway to Pakistan – Port in Sri Lanka

3)      World’s largest FOREX reserves – more than $1 trillion

4)      Built THREE GORGES DAM on Yangtze River, world’s largest hydro-electric dam

5)      Built world’s highest railway – linking Lhasa in Tibet with Golmund; nicknamed Qing-1

6)      Manufacturing hub of world

7)      Third largest economy – [China now second largest]

8)      Claims Arunachal, disputes Sikkim

9)      Economy capitalist, polity communist

10)  Promoting civilian nuclear deal with Pakistan

11)  Google exits China over censorship

12)  China views Kashmir as disputed territory

Europe in a nutshell

1)      Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, is ranked World’s Most Powerful Woman by Forbes

2)      Hungary PM Viktor Orban

3)      Romania & Bulgaria join EU (EU membership - 27)

4)      Silvio Berlusconi is the PM of Italy

5)      Italy hosted G-8 summit in July 09

6)      NATO’s 60 years observed

7)      Schengen Visa – EU Constitution

8)      Financial crisis – PIGS

9)      Germany largest economy in Europe

10)  European Union – backgrounder

Pakistan - First Islamic Republic

1)      Asif Ali Zardari – Prez; Yusuf Raza Gilani – PM

2)      Balochistan leader, Akbar Khan Bugti, killed by Pak military

3)      Benazir assassinated

4)      Pakistan, India fighting proxy war in Afghanistan

5)      Proposed Iran gas pipeline to India via Pakistan

6)      NWFP – stronghold of al-Qaeda & Taliban

7)      Sri Lankan cricket team attacked

8)      Epicenter of terrorism

9)      Unprecedented floods

10)  Low intensity conflict with India

11)  Theocratic state

12)  Army calls the shots

Afghanistan

1)      Hamid Karzai – Prez elect

2)      NATO forces battling resurgent Taliban in the south

3)      Taliban headed by Mullah Omar

4)      Durand Line – boundary line with Pak is source of dispute

5)      Afg-Pak focus for USA

6)      Afghanistan Taliban vs Pak Taliban

7)      USA fighting a losing battle?

8)      India helping in building infrastructure

9)      Vast mineral resources in Afghanistan – Pentagon study

IRAN

1)      Mahmoud Ahmedinejad – Prez

2)      Ayotallah Khameini – Spiritual Head

3)      Secret nuclear weapons programme?

4)      World’s 2^nd largest gas producer & 4^th largest oil exporter

5)      Has developed missiles like HOOT, a torpedo; Shahab, Fajr, and Shaegah series

6)      Confrontation with west over nuclear power programme

7)      Islamic Revolution – 1979

8)      Denial of Holocaust

9)      Parsis migrated from Iran

Iraq – Mesopotamia

1)      Jalal Talabani – Prez; Nuri al-Maliki – PM

2)      Saddam gets death penalty for Dujail Massacre (1982)

3)      Abu Ayyub al-Masri, al-Qaeda chief in Iraq, successor to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi

4)      Moqtada al-Sadr – head of Mahdi Army, Shiite militia group

5)      USA to withdraw from Iraq

6)      The Suni-Shia divide

7)      Iran – Iraq war

8)      Iraq is Arab, Iran is not

Israel - World’s first Jewish State

1)      Tel Aviv – capital; Knesset – parliament

2)      Benjamin Netanyahu  – PM

3)      Mossad – secret service

4)      Owns Barak missile system, supplied to India

5)      Is building a Barrier Wall to separate it from Palestinian areas

6)      Tripartite talks in USA

7)      Blockade of Gaza strip to punish Hamas

8)      Major defence supplier to India

9)      Expertise in agriculture ex. drip irrigation

10)  Jewish island in sea of Arab Countries

Lebanon                                   

1)      Nicknamed Switzerland of the Middle East

2)      Michel Suleiman – Prez; Saad Hariri – PM

3)      Beirut – Capital; Nicknamed Paris of the Middle East

4)      Was a French Colony

5)      Base for Hezbollah

6)      Multi-religious country – Muslim / Christian

7)      Arab but westernised

Jordan

1)      Hashemite Kingdom

2)      King Abdullah II – HoS

3)      Lost West Bank to Israel in 1967 War

4)      Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, slain al-Qaeda leader in Iraq, belonged to Jordan

5)      Ally of USA

6)      Monarchy

Syria                    

1)      Bashar al-Assad – Prez

2)      Accused of interference in Lebanon & Iraq

3)      Indicted by UN in killing of former Lebanese PM, Rafiq Hariri

4)      Part of new “Axis of Evil”

5)      Baath socialism

6)      Secular but authoritarian

7)      Ban on full veils

Turkey

1)      Recep T Erdogan – PM

2)      Nicknamed Sickman of Europe

3)      Controversy over Armenian Genocide

4)      Occupies part of Cyprus

5)      Kemal Ataturk made Turkey a fiercely secular country

6)      Sought membership of EU

7)      Strained relationship with Israel

8)      Bridge between Asia and Europe

9)      India’s Khilafat Movement – link to Turkey

Sudan - Largest African Nation

1)      Prez Omar al-Bashir

2)      Darfur Genocide – 4 lakh dead over 4 years

3)      Janjaweed, Govt-backed Arab Muslim militia against non-Arab Muslims

4)      Civil war in the south between Arab Muslims & Christians – Africa’s oldest still running civil war

5)      Warrant against President by International Criminal Court

South Africa - Rainbow Nation

1)      Jacob Zuma new President

2)      Second largest HIV infected population after India

3)      Desmond Tutu, recipient of Gandhi Peace Prize (’06)

4)      Launched centenary of Gandhiji’s launching of Satyagraha Movement in that country

5)      3 capitals – Pretoria (administrative), Bloemfontein (judicial), and Cape Town (legislative)

6)      Name of Pretoria changed to Tshwane

7)      South Africa is venue for World Cup Soccer 2010

8)      Successful conduct of FIFA 2010

9)      Africa’s largest economy

10)  Home to Apartheid movement

Africa in a nutshell

1)      African Union – HQ at Addis Ababa, 53 members

2)      Uganda – Prez is Yoweri Museveni, accused of genocide against Acholi Tribe

3)      Operation Atlanta anti-piracy operation off the coast of Somalia

4)      15^th NAM summit in Egypt in July 2009

5)      Libya Muammar Gaddafi’s marathon speech in UNO in September 2009

6)      Constitutional reforms in Kenya

7)      Poverty in sub-Sahara Africa

8)      Tribal and religious conflicts

9)      Poor governance a problem

Brazil - 5^th largest country by area

1)      Luiz Inacio LULA da Silva is Brazil prez again

2)      Largest ETHANOL producer

3)      Member of BRIC & IBSA

4)      Brasilia – Capital (named after a wood type)

5)      Rio Di Janeiro to host 2016 Olympics

6)      Lula da Silva in focus

7)      Home to massive Amazon Forest belt

8)      South America’s largest Catholic Country

South America in a nutshell

1)      Venezuela reelected Hugo Chavez as prez

2)      Eva Morales is elected Bolivia prez

3)      Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) – Marxist militant group in Peru

4)      Peru’s prez is Alan Garcia

5)      Sebastian Pinera is president of Chile

6)      Alberto Fujimori, former President of Peru, sentenced to jail term on charges of corruption

7)      Leftist Presidents / PMs in South America

8)      Spanish / Portuguese colonisation

9)      Home to ancient civilisations

Central America in a nutshell

1)      Panama agrees to a new wider Panama Canal

2)      Felipe Calderon is prez of Mexico

3)      Daniel Ortega, former Marxist leader, prez of Nicaragua

4)      Cuban prez Fidel Castro handed over power to Raul Castro (his brother)

5)      Sugar Bowl of the World

6)      Illegal immigration to USA

7)      Mexico emerging economy

Thailand

1)      King Bhumibol Adulyadej completes 60 years in power, world’s longest reigning monarch

2)      Thaksin Shinawatra deposed as PM in a military coup

3)      Abhisit Vejjajiva new PM

4)      Bangkok – capital, Baht – currency

5)      Never colonised

6)      Red Shirts protest

7)      Hindu heritage of Thailand

Myanmar – Stratocracy

1)      General Than Shwe – Leader No.1, visited India in 2006

2)      Aung San Suu Kyi – pro-democracy leader under house arrest since 1990

3)      Capital moved from Yangon to Pyinmana (aka Naypyidaw)

4)      32.7%  BPL population

5)      Ruled by army since 1948

6)      Secret nuclear programme?

7)      Previously famous as Rice Bowl of the East

Sri Lanka / Bhutan

1)      Mahinda Rajapakse – Prez

2)      Peace talks between SL government and the LTTE were brokered by NORWAY

3)      Bhutan – world’s first no-smoking country

4)      King Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck is the Chief of State since December 2006

5)      First democratic elections held in Bhutan in March 2008

6)      Prime Minister Jigme Thinley of Bhutan since April 2008

7)      LTTE defeated by Lankan Army

8)      Sanath Foneska in limelight

9)      Port build with assistance of China

10)  Bhutan is semi-independent country

11)  Special links with India of Bhutan