Current Affairs December 2013
31st December:
6th December:
- Ashraf Jehan sworn-in as the first female judge at Pakistan’s national sharia court.
- Union Minister Sashi Tharoor named as the Person of the Year by PETA – India.
30th December:
- The foreign investment regulator has approved 680 crore investment plan by Tesco.
- The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) cleared a decision on Vodafone Group Plc's around Rs. 10,000-crore plan to take full ownership of its local unit.
- Michael Schumacher in critical condition after he fell and hit his head on a rock while skiingw with severe bruising on his brain.
- India lost Test Series against South Africa 1-0.
29th December:
- A female suicide bomber killed at least 13 people at a train station in the Russian city of Volgograd.
- China's top legislature has formally adopted a resolution easing the country's one-child policy allowing couples to have two children if either parent is an only child.
- Gauhar Khan wins Big Boss 7.
28th December:
- Arvind Kejriwal takes oath as Delhi CM along with six others as ministers.
- 26 passengers were killed after a coach of a train caught fire en route from Bangalore to Nanded in Maharashtra.
- Bollywood actor Farooq Shaikh died at the age of 65 after heart attack in Dubai.
27th December:
- Himachal High Court bans food items packed in plastic.
- Former DGP of Assam Police J.N.Chaudhary got appointed as new head of National Security Guard (NSG).
- A metropolitan court in Ahmedabad rejected Zakia Jafri's petition against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in connection with a 2002 communal riots case.
- Government gave the go ahead to grant constitutional status to a proposed Commission for appointment and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary to ensure that its composition cannot be altered through an ordinary legislation.
- South Africa's all-rounder Jacques Kallis will retire from test and first-class cricket after the Boxing Day match against India in Durban.24th December:
- Former Gujrat Home Minister Amit Shah gets clean chit from CBI in Ishrat Jahan case.
- Mikhail Kalashnikov, the designer of the assault rifle AK47 died at the age of 94.
- Vinod Kumar Duggal appointed the new Governor of Manipur.
- Kidambi Srikanth and PV Sindhu won the men’s and women’s titles at the 78th Senior National Badminton Championship at New Delhi.
24th December:
- Former Gujrat Home Minister Amit Shah gets clean chit from CBI in Ishrat Jahan case.
- Mikhail Kalashnikov, the designer of the assault rifle AK47 died at the age of 94.
- Vinod Kumar Duggal appointed the new Governor of Manipur.
- Kidambi Srikanth and PV Sindhu won the men’s and women’s titles at the 78th Senior National Badminton Championship at New Delhi.
23rd December:
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) decided to form coalition Government in Delhi. Arvind Kejriwal will be the new Chief Minister.
- India today test-fired its nuclear-capable Agni-III ballistic missile with a strike range of over 3,000 km.
- India evacuated all its oil employees from South Sudan and shut down oilfields amid escalating violence.
- Subrahmanyam Jaishankar became the Ambassador of US.
22nd December:
- England spinner Graeme Swann announced retirement from international and first-class cricket.
- World's first artificial heart transplant done successfully by French doctors at Georges Pompidou Hospital in Paris. The artificial heart is designed by
- French biomedical firm Carmat.
- Zaheer Khan became the fourth and only the second Indian bowler pacer to take 300 wickets in Test matches.
21st December:
- Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jayanthi Natarajan resigned from her post. Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily has been given
- additional charge of the environment ministry.
- Usha Sangwan appointed first woman Managing Director of Life Insurance Corporation.
20th December:
- Two United Nations peacekeepers from India were killed and a third wounded in South Sudan.
- India's indigenously designed fighter aircraft Tejas get the second Initial Operational Clearance certificate.
19th December:
- Pakistan appointed Abdul Basit as its new high commissioner to India.
- Sahitya Akademi Award for 2013 announced. Bollywood lyricist Javed Akhtar, Bengali poet Subodh Sarkar and Bodo poet Anil Boro are among the
- winners.
- India team wins their first ever team titles in Asia-Pacific Junior Golf Championship.
- South India’s first high altitude cricket stadium inaugurated in Krishnagiri in Waynad district of Kerala.
18th December:
- Lokshabha passed the Lokpal and Lokayukta Bill that provides for formation of anti-graft ombudsman.
- Anna Hazare broke his nine-day fast shortly after Lok Sabha passed the Lokpal Bill.
- BCCI announced Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award for the year 2013 to Kapil Dev for his contribution to cricket.
17th December:
- Rajya Sabha passed Lokpal Bill.
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel was re-elected for a third term with a vote in the lower house of parliament.
- The Smt Chandaben Mohanbhai Patel Industrial Research Award for Women Scientists for the year 2011 has been conferred on Dr M Lakshmi
- Kantam, Director, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad.
16th December:
- Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung has recommended the imposition of President's rule in Delhi as one of the options to break the deadlock over
- formation of a new government, with no party ready yet to assume power.
- The star of the 1962 film epic “Lawrence of Arabia” Peter O’Toole died in a London hospital at the age of 81.
- The International Cricket Council suspended West Indies' off-spinner Shane Shillingford from bowling in international cricket for his illegal bowling
- action.
15th December:
- South Africa's first black President Nelson Mandela laid to rest with full state honours in his childhood village at Qunu in South Africa's Eastern Cape province.
- Union Labour Minister Sis Ram Ola died after a prolonged illness in Medanta Hospital in Gurgaon, Haryana.
- Irrfan Khan wins the best actor award at the 10th edition of Dubai International Film Festival for the film The Lunchbox .
14th December:
- Shivraj Chouhan sworn in as Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister for third consecutive times.
- Lal Thanhawla sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Mizoram for second successive term.
13th December:
- Vasundhara Raje sworn in as Chief Minister of Rajasthan.
- The anti-corruption Lokpal Bill introduced in the Rajya Sabha.
- Maharashtra assembly passed the anti-black magic Bill that seeks to curb black magic and other superstitious practices.
- Cheteshwar Pujara wins the 'Emerging Cricketer of the Year' trophy in the ICC annual awards.
12th December:
- Raman Singh sworn in as Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh.
- South Africa wins the three match ODI series 2-0 against India.
- Former Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist, and former Pakistan fast bowler Waqar Younis inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame.
11th December:
- Indian Air force ended the service of India’s first supersonic jet warplane Mig-21 FL.
- Uruguay became the first country to legalize the growing, sale and smoking of marijuana.
- Retired Gujarat high court judge DP Buch sworn in as the Gujrat's fourth Lokayukta.
- Time magazine named Pope Francis as its person of the year.
10th December:
- The Supreme Court ruled that red beacon be allowed to only Constitutional authorities which include the President, Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, governors, the Chief Justice of India, Supreme Court judges and the heads of both houses of Parliament to prevent its misuse by local politicians flaunting it as a status symbol.
- President Pranab Mukherjee arrived in Johannesburg to attend a memorial service in honour of South Africa's former President Nelson Mandela.
- Anna Hazare started indefinite hunger strike here to press the government for immediate passage of the Jan Lokpal Bill in winter session of Parliament.
- The former Foreign Secretary of India Ranjan Mathai took over as the India's High Commissioner to the UK.
- Lionel Messi, Franck Ribery and Cristiano Ronaldo were shortlisted for this year's Ballon d'Or Prize.
9th December:
- Congress wins the Mizoram State Assembly election with 31 seats.
- Lok Sabha adopted the 2G JPC report which blaming former telecom minister A. Raja for the faulty allocation of spectrum and exonerating Prime
- Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram of any wrongdoing.
8th December:
- BJP wins the Rajasthan State Assembly election with 162 seats. Congress wins 21 seats.
- In Madhya Pradesh State Assembly election, BJP gets clear majority with 164 seats.
- In Delhi State Assembly election BJP wins 32 seats while Aam Aadmi Party wins 28 seats.
- In Chhattisgarh State Assembly election, BJP gets 49 and Congress gets 39 seats.
- Indian Olympic Association (IOA) amended its constitution to bar charge-framed persons from contesting elections in an act of compliance to get the country's Olympic ban overturned.
7th December:
- FIFA declares 2014 FIFA World Cup football draw to be held in Brazil.
- Late sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar received a posthumous nomination in the 56th Annual Grammy Awards for his album "The Living Room Sessions Part 2" in the World Music Album category.
- Miss Venezuela Alyz Henrich wins Miss Earth, 2013 at the Versailles Palace, Philippines.
6th December:
- India approved the draft of a multilateral trade reforms package at the World Trade Organization, clearing the way for the first global trade deal in almost two decades.
- MS Dhoni becomes India's highest scoring ODI captain leaving behind former captain Mohammad Azharuddin's tally of 5239 in 174 matches. Dhoni reached 5278 runs in his 152nd ODI.
- India will host the Under-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017.
- South African anti-apartheid hero and former President Nelson Mandela died at the aged 95 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
- The winter session of Parliament will begins.
- A parliamentary bill for the creation of a new Telangana state, with 10 districts, has been cleared by the Union Cabinet.
- European Union (EU) imposed ban on all airlines from Nepal from flying into the 28-nation bloc under EU air safety list for unsafe carriers.
- India has been ranked 98th in the Forbes list of world's best countries for doing business.
- India becomes the highest run scoring team in ODI history while Australia are currently second team with 1,82,881 runs.
- Around 66 per cent polling recorded in the Delhi Assembly election.
- India successfully test fired its surface to surface ballistic missile Prithvi-ll from Chandipur in the Balesore district, Odisha.
- Seven policemen were killed in a landmine blast in Bihar.
- Mahendra Singh Dhoni named captain of ICC's one-day international team and England captain Alastair Cook named skipper of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) test team of the year. Mahendra Singh Dhoni also wins the International Cricket Council (ICC) People’s Choice Award for the year 2013.
- The Supreme Court issued notice to the centre on a petition seeking to strike down the provisions of Juvenile Justice Act that bars criminal courts from trying juvenile offenders.
- India's current account deficit falls to $5.2 billion in July-September quarter.
- Gaganjeet Bhullar wins his fifth Asian Tour victory by winning Indonesia Open.
- Indian shuttler PV Sindhu wins the women's singles title at the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold Tournament after defeating Li Michelle of Canada 21-15, 21-12.
- Actor Paul Walker, best known for his roles in the "Fast and the Furious" action movies, died in a car crash in Southern California.
Current Affairs November 2013
30th November:
- India's Mars orbiter craft leave the Earth's sphere of influence (SOI) and begin the 300-day voyage in deep space to the Mars.
29th November:
- India's economy grows 4.8 per cent in the three months through September.
28th November:
- Nepali Congress emerged as the largest party in Nepal's Constituent Assembly polls having topped in both the direct and proportionate voting systems.
- Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar became UNICEF's first brand ambassador for South Asia and will work in promoting hygiene and sanitation in the region.
27th November:
- Pakistan appoints Lieutenant General Raheel Sharif as new army chief.
- India beat the West Indies in the three-match cricket series 2-1.
- A book of psalms from 1640 has become the world's most expensive printed book as it was auctioned in New York for $14.2m.
26th November:
- Rajesh and Nupur Talwar were sentenced to life in prison by a CBI court for the twin murders of their daughter Aarushi and their domestic help Hemraj in 2008.
- Apple has topped the 'World's Most Valuable List' compiled by Forbes magazine with a brand value of $104.3 billion.
25th November:
- A CBI court in Delhi convicted Parents Rajesh and Nupur Talwar in the case of murder of their young daughter, Aarushi and their domestic help,Hemraj in 2008.
- Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram ended peacefully with polling percentage of 71 and 82 respectively.
24th November:
- Afghanistan's Loya Jirga assembly voted in favor of a deal with the United States that would pave the way for U.S. troops to remain in the country after 2014.
- Iran and P5+1 (United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia) group of Nations reached a breakthrough deal on 24 November 2013 to curb Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for limited sanctions relief.
23rd November:
- Supreme Court Chief Justice P Sathasivam inaugurated a day-long National Lok Adalat where for the first time 39 lakh pending cases are being taken up simultaneously all over the country for settlement. The Lok Adalats are taking place in the Supreme Court, 24 high courts and all the district courts of the country.
22nd November:
- Cyclonic storm Helen hits in Andhra Pradesh.
- Norway's Magnus Carlsen becomes world chess champion after defeating Five-time title-holder Viswanathan Anand in World Chess Championship match in Chennai.
21st November:
- Election Commission announced that voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) is to be used on a large-scale for the first time in the country in Mizoram State Election.
- Virat Kohli became the fastest batsman to score 5000 runs in one-day internationals when he scored 86 against the West Indies. Kohli achieved the feat in just 120 matches and 114 innings.
- The 44th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) began at Panaji in Goa.
- Former Olympic gold medalist V Baskaran as Coach of the Senior Men Hockey Team.
20th November:
- India's first women's bank, the Bharatiya Mahila Bank has been inaugurated in Mumbai at the Air India building in Nariman Point.
- 14-year-old Prithvi Pankaj Shaw from Rizvi Springfield, Mumbai scores 546 in 330 balls in prestigious Elite Division Harris Shield Under-16 cricket tournament. He has broken the earlier Mumbai schools cricket record of Armaan Jaffer who had scored 498 in Giles Shield semi-final in 2010-11.
19th November:
- Chhattisgarh recorded 74.70 per cent voter turnout in 72 Assembly constituencies in the second phase of polling.
- A motion laid in the House of Commons, England congratulating Sachin Tendulkar on a magnificent career and for being an ambassador for the game.
- German Chancellor Angela Merkel selected for Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for the year 2013.
18th November:
- India successfully test-fired the advanced BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Pokhran, Rajasthan.
- The Czech Republic retained their Davis Cup title after Radek Stepanek defeats Dusan Lajovic in the decisive match to seal a 3-2 final victory over Serbia.
- 27-year-old Jamaican Usain Bolt has been named male World Athlete of the Year for a fifth time. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce selected for the Women's Athlete of the Year award.
17th November:
- Malta will host the next Commonwealth summit in 2015.
- Abdulla Yameen sworn in as new Maldives President.
- Actress Waheeda Rehman will receive the inaugural Centenary Award for the Indian Film Personality of the Year, a special honor to commemorate the 100 years of Indian cinema.
16th November:
- The Prime Minister's Office announced that Indian Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and highly regarded scientist CNR Rao will be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's biggest civilian award. Sachin Tendulkar become the first sportsperson to received Bharat Ratna.
- The super aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya formally joined the Indian Navy.
- The 22nd Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, CHOGM began in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
- Indian wins the Test Series 2-0 against West Indies. Rohit Sharma elected as Man of the Series. This is the last Test Match of Sachin Tendulkar.
15th November:
- Maldives President Mohamed Waheed has stepped down from the post on the eve of the second round of the country's presidential polls.
- BCCI excludes Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh in new contract list for the 2013-14 seasons.
14th November:
- Children’s Day and World Diabetes Day observed across India.
- India's first fully privately funded Rapid Metro Gurgaon starts of its commercial operations.
- The last Test Match of Sachin Tendulkar's cricketing life starts in Mumbai.
13th November:
- Usha Anathasubramaniam appointed as the first Chairperson and Managing Director of Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB), the first all-women bank of India.
- The Supreme Court said that it is mandatory for the police to register FIR if a complainant approaches it for the registration of a cognizable offence.
- The first office tower at Ground Zero site opened after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
12th November:
- The annual consumer price inflation increases to 10.09 percent in October from 9.84 percent in September.
- UP Lokayukta has given a clean chit to BSP chief Mayawati in the alleged Noida farmhouse scam.
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Etihad's $325 million (Rs. 2,000 crore) deal to buy a 24 percent stake in Jet Airways.
11th November:
- 1st phase of voting in Chhattisgarh begins with high security.
- Woman shooter Heena Sidhu created history by becoming the third pistol exponent from India after Anjali Bhagwat (2003) and Gagan Narang (2008) to win a gold medal at the ISSF World Cup finals in Munich, Germany.
- Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) formally renamed the Kandivili ground as the Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana Club.
10th November:
- Death toll increases to 10,000 in the typhoon hit Philippines.
- Miss Venezuela Gabriela Isler becomes Miss Universe 2013 in a ceremony in Crocus City Hall in Moscow.
9th November:
- At least 1,200 died in super typhoon Haiyan in Philippines.
- The Supreme Court put a stay order till 6th December, 2013 on Gauhati High court verdict which had declared the setting up of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as unconstitutional.
- Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh decides not to attend CHOGM Summit to be held in Sri Lanka next week. India's External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid will head the Indian delegation at the Summit.
- World chess championship game starts in Chennai between World champion Viswanathan Anand and world number one Magnus Carlsen of Norway.
- UN has conferred the 'UN Frontline Workers Global Leadership Award' to Martha Dodray from Darbhanga district of Bihar for her commitment and dedication in eradicating polio in India.
8th November:
- The Indian Mars spacecraft successfully completed the second of the six orbit raising maneuvers for the Mars Orbiter.
- India successfully test fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Agni-I missile from Odisha.
- 2018 men's hockey World Cup will be held on India.
- India wins by an innings and 51 runs against West Indies in the 1st test at Kolkata.
7th November:
- Allahabad High Court ordered Uttar Pradesh government to withdraw unauthorized security provided to 830 people and recover money spent on them within 15 days.
- According to the Wealth-X-UBS billionaire census report 2013, India has 103 billionaires. Mumbai among the top five 'billionaire cities' globally with 30 billionaires.
6th November:
- Celebrity chef Tarla Dalal passes away in Mumbai at the age of 76.
- A R Rahman has been conferred an honor by Canada as a Canadian street in Markham, Ontario has been named after him.
- Piramal Enterprises Ltd. has acquired over-the-counter (OTC) brand Caladryl in India from Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.
5th November:
- India's first Mars orbiter Mangalyaan took off successfully from the PSLV-C25 launch vehicle at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh. It completed its first stage of its journey successfully when entered the Earth's orbit around 44 minutes after blastoff. Mangalyaan will enter Mars orbit in September 2014.
- A court in Bangladesh has sentenced 152 people to death for their actions in a 2009 border guard mutiny in which 74 people were killed.
- China sets up station at the Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO) sector in Ladakh near the Line of Actual Control, to monitor Indian planes.
- Yuki Bhambri wins his first ATP Challenger level singles title of the season and second of his career after defeating American Bradely Klahn in the summit clash of the Traralgon event in Australia.
- India celebrates Diwali.
- The 56 and-a-half hour countdown for the launch of India's first space mission to Mars, PSLV C25 slated for November 5, commenced at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
- Famous Pakistani folk singer Reshma dies due to throat cancer in Lahore.
- India wins the seven matches ODI series against Australia 3-2.
- Rohit Sharma makes record of most sixes in an ODI match with 16 sixes in his 209 run innings against Australia.
- The election process in Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram initiated with the issue of gazette notification by the respective Governors of the two States.
- Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) clears launch of India's maiden mission to Mars on November 5.
- Pakistan Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud killed in drone strike.
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