GK Monthly Special - July 2014

GK Monthly Special - July 2014 Power Pack

APPOINTMENTS

Munesh Makhija has been appointed Managing Director, GE India Technology Center and Chief Technology Officer, GE India. Effective immediately, he takes over this role from Dr. Gopichand Katragadda who is leaving GE.

Telecom services operator Uninor today appointed Tanveer Mohammad as its Chief Operating Officer, replacing Ruza Sabanovic.

Kerala Government has appointed senior IAS officer A P M Mohammed Hanish as Nodal Officer for the matches likely to beld in Kochi during the 2017 FIFA under-17 world cup football.

Michelle Howard became the first female four-star admiral in US Navy. She is the first women admiral in 236 year old history of US Navy.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (M&M) has appointed Anish Shah as President of Group Special Projects effective August 1. He will also be inducted into the Group Executive Board.

NYSE-listed Lowe’s Companies has appointed Narayan Ram as managing director for India. He will report to Lowe’s Chief Financial Officer Robert F. Hull.

KB Nagendra Murthy, who took charge of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TNMB) in July 2012, demits office today. He is being succeeded by HS Upendra Kamath, who had served as the Chairman and Managing Director of Vijaya Bank.

Ram Naresh Yadav was sworn-in as Governor of Chhattisgarh at Raj Bhawan, Raipur on 2 July 2014. Ram Naresh Yadav, Governor of Madhya Pradesh, has been given the additional charge of Chhattisgarh.

President Pranab Mukherjee on 6 July 2014 appointed Governor for Mizoram and Nagaland. Governor of Gujarat, Kamla Beniwal was transferred and appointed as Governor of Mizoram for the remainder of her term. Vakkom Purushothaman, the Mizoram Governor, transferred and appointed as Governor of Nagaland for the remainder of his term. Vakkom will continue to hold the additional charge of the office of the Governor of Tripura.

M S Mehta was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Reliance Infrastructure on 7 July 2014. He took charge as CEO for a period of five years.

The Wadhwani Foundation today announced the appointment of Bhasker Sharma and Clark Quinn to key positions of Chief Technology Officer and Chief eLearning & eContent Officer respectively.

Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (RInfra), a part of the Reliance (Anil Ambani) Group, has appointed M S Mehta as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company with effect from July 7, 2014.

Raju Venkatraman, a serial entrepreneur running diagnostics company Medall Healthcare, has been elected President of Madras Management Association for the year 2014-15.

BJP leader Amit Shah and close aide of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the party's new President.

Emma Watson, the British Actress was appointed as the Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women.

Justice Arun Mishra, Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Rohington F Nariman were appointed as Supreme Court judges on 7 July 2014. The three judges were administered the oath of office by Chief Justice of India, R M Lodha. Justice Mishra and Justice Goel were the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court and the Orissa High Court, respectively. Justice Nariman was a senior advocate at the Supreme Court and has been elevated from the advocates bar.

The Telangana Government has appointed B Sreedhar, IAS, as the Director of e-Seva, the government-to-citizen services. J Shyamala Rao, IAS, as State Project Director of Rajiv Vidya Mission and Chief Executive Officer of the State Literacy Mission.

The Government appointed 1980 batch IAS officer Shankar Aggarwal Secretary in the Ministry of Urban Development.

New governors have been appointed in Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Gujarat and Nagaland.-

Ram Naik will be the new Governor of Uttar Pradesh
2. Balramji Dass Tandon, the Governor of Chhattisgarh.
3. Keshari Nath Tripathi, former UP Assembly speaker, has been appointed as the Governor of West Bengal
4. Om Prakash Kohli, former Delhi BJP chief, will be the new Governor of Gujarat.
5. Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya has been appointed as Nagaland Governor.

Note: The President has accepted the resignation of Vakkom Purushothaman, as Governor of Tripura and given additional charge to Mr. Acharya.

Emirates NBD has appointed Sharad Agarwal as the Chief Representative and Country Head for India.

Google Glass creator Babak Parviz joins Amazon. The developer behind Google Glass and other technologies has left Google to work for the online retailer Amazon, according to multiple media reports. Babak Parviz confirmed the move to Cnet.com. Over the week-end, he posted on his Google Plus account: “status: super excited! :)” — along with the Amazon logo.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has appointed Pradeep Hejmadi as Business Head-Zee TV.

Om Prakash Kohli took oath as the successor of State Governor Kamla Beniwal who has been transferred to Mizoram recently.

State Bank of India (SBI) said it has appointed B Sriram and V G Kannan as Managing Directors and Group executives. Both come to SBI from group associates, where they held senior positions.

Sunil Gavaskar as the interim president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in charge of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2014 and said that he was free to take up any assignment.

IFS officer Sanjeev Kumar Singla has been appointed as Private Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, succeeding Vikram Misri, who is going to Spain as Ambassador.

Britain’s largest retailer Tesco plc announced appointment of Unilever executive and turnaround specialist Dave Lewis as the new CEO in place of incumbent Philip Clarke from October 1 as it warns of ‘challenging’ market sentiments.

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TIE) Hubli chapter’s governing body has appointed Vinay Pawar as the Executive Director of TiE Hubli.

Yellapragada Sudharshan Rao on 25 June 2014 was appointed as Chairman of Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR). He replaced Basudev Chatterjee. He would serve the council for a term of three years.

Royal Bank of Scotland has announced the appointment of Brijesh Mehra as Country Executive for India with immediate effect.

Arijit Basu, currently the Deputy Managing Director of State Bank of India, will take over as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of SBI Life Insurance in August.

Ram Naik on 22 July 2014 was sworn in as 27th Governor of Uttar Pradesh in Lucknow. He is a former Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Maharashtra.

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Hubli Chapter has appointed Vinay Pawar as its Executive Director. Pawar, an entrepreneur, has been an active member of TiE for the last three years and is currently a director of Cool Canopy Ltd.

Santanu Mukherjee has been appointed the Managing Director of State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH).

Keshari Nath Tripathi was sworn in as 22nd Governor of West Bengal on 24 July 2014. The Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court Asim Kumar Banerjee administered the oath of office to KN Tripathi in Raj Bhavan, Kolkata.

The Supreme Court on 25 July 2014 appointed R S Cheema as Special Public Prosecutor for trial in coal blocks allocation scam.

Senior BJP leader Balram Das Tandon was sworn-in as the fifth Governor of Chhattisgarh at a ceremony held at Raj Bhawan in Raipur.

Bollywood star Salman Khan has been appointed brand ambassador for plumbing pipe major Astral Poly Technik Ltd.

Sania Mirza: Brand Ambassador of Telangana. The Chief Minister of Telangana K. Chandrasekhara Rao bestowed the Brand Ambassadorship of the new State on India's tennis star Sania Mirza in Hyderabad.

Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul was today sworn in as Chief Justice of the Madras High Court by Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah at the Raj Bhavan.

Veteran BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Kaptan Singh Solanki was appointed the Governor of Haryana in place of Jagannath Pahadia.

The Comptroller & Auditor General of India, Shashi Kant Sharma assumed office as Member of the United Nations Board of Auditors for a term of six year upto June 2020. Shashi Kant Sharma took over the charge from Liu Jiayi, the Auditor General of the People’s Republic of China at the United Nations Headquarters at New York. He was elected to this position defeating Philippines by a margin of 62 votes in November 2013.

Amitabh Bachchan, the Indian Megastar was appointed as the horticulture ambassador of Maharashtra. With this appointment, he will start promoting the horticulture sector in Maharashtra.

Mahindra CIE Automotive in a communication to the stock exchange said that the Board of Directors of the company at its meeting on July 29 appointed Zhooben Bhiwandiwala as an Additional Director.

IAF chief, Arup Raha, today took over as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staffs Committee, from incumbent Gen Bikram Singh.

The Government has appointed SS Mundra, currently Chairman & Managing Director of Bank of Baroda, as Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India.

Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag has taken over as the new Army chief. He succeeded the incumbent General Bikram Singh.

V Narsi Reddy, Deputy General Manager, State Bank of India has been appointed Chairman of Andhra Pradesh Grameena Vikas Bank (APGVB), Warangal.

RESIGNATIONS/RETIREMENTS

MK Narayanan, the Governor of West Bengal on 30 June 2014 tendered his resignation to the President of India.

B V Wanchoo on Friday resigned as Governor of Goa as government went about finalizing its plans for replacing the Governors appointed during the previous UPA regime.

Nagaland Governor Vakkom B Purushothaman resigned from the post.

Amul to sponsor Indian contingent for Commonwealth, Asian Games. Amul has inked an agreement with the Indian Olympic Association to sponsor the Indian contingent for the upcoming Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games to be held later this year in South Korea. R S Sodhi, Managing Director, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul), said that the company is leveraging on the synergies of milk and sports through this partnership.

Former Sri Lanka Skipper Mahela Jayawardene has announced his retirement from Test Cricket following the home series against South Africa and Pakistan this year.

Mahela Jayawardene, the former skipper of Sri Lankan cricket team, announced his retirement from Test cricket on 14 July 2014. He will retire from Test Cricket after the home series against Pakistan in August 2014.

Luiz Felipe Scolari, the football coach of Brazil on 14 July 2014 resigned after Brazil failed to win the 2014 FIFA World Cup. His resignation was confirmed by the Country’s Football Federation Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (CBF).

Google’s Chief Business Officer India-born Nikesh Arora, regarded as among the top lieutenants at the Internet search giant, is leaving the company after almost 10 years. Mr. Arora is moving to Japan’s SoftBank Corp as vice chairman, according to a post by Google CEO Larry Page on his social network site.

Philipp Lahm, the captain of Germany’s football team announced his retirement from international game on 18 July 2014.

Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has resigned after his governing coalition collapsed, plunging the former Soviet state into political limbo as it struggles to quell a deadly rebellion in the east.

N Ravi Shanker has quit as the Administrator of Universal Services Obligation (USO) fund to take over as Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms. Shanker was also the Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Broadband Network Ltd, the entity rolling out the National Optical Fibre Network.

Jacques Kallis, considered one of the greatest all-rounders of all times, announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket.

OBITUARIES

Former Haitian president Leslie Francois Manigat on 27 June 2014 died at the age of 83. He was elected as the President of Haiti in January 1988 but was overthrown by General Henri Namphy in June 1988.

Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner and American World War II veteran who survived two years as a prisoner of war, has died at the age of 97.

Eduard Shevardnadze, the former President of Georgia died on 7 July 2014. He died after prolong illness at the age of 86.

Alfredo Di Stefano, the legend of Real Madrid Football Club, died on 7 July 2014 at the General Universatario Gregorio Maranon Hospital in Madrid. He was 88. He died after suffering a heart attack.

Granville Austin, an eminent biographer of India’s Constitution and a Padma Shri awardee, has passed away in Washington at the age of 87.

Grand old lady of Bollywood Zohra Sehgal passes away at 102.

Senior journalist Jehangir Pocha passed away in Gurgaon following a cardiac arrest. Pocha was Editor-in-Chief when ‘News X’ channel was launched and was currently a senior editorial member of the ITV Group, which controls the channel.

Lorin Varencove Maazel, the American conductor of classical music, violinist and composer died on 13 July 2014 at his home in Castleton, Virginia. He died due to complications following pneumonia. He was 84 and is survived by four daughters, three sons and four grandchildren.

South African Nobel Prize-winning writer and anti-apartheid activist Nadine Gordimer, who became an icon through her unique insights into the country’s social agonies, has died at the age of 90.

Renowned Malayalam filmmaker J. Sasikumar (86), who holds the record of making 141 films in his career spanning over three decades, died.

American actor James Garner died at the age of 86 in Los Angeles on 19 July 2014. He was best known for playing a detective Jim Rockford in crime series Rockford Files and also famous for his role in western drama, Maverick.

Veteran Journalist Sundaram Sankaran died. He passed away at his residence in Kensington, Maryland in the US. He was 87.

Bir Bikrom UK Ching Marma, the well known Bangladeshi freedom fighter died on 25 July 2014. He was 76. He died at Chittagong Medical College Hospital due to brain stroke.

Sushilarani Patel, the renowned classical singer of India died at her Bandra home on 24 July 2014 due to heart attack. She was 96. She in 2002 became a Sangeet Natak Academy laureate.

Madhukar Singh, an eminent Hindi litterateur died at his residence in village Dharahara of Bhojpur district on 21 July 2014. He was 87.

AWARDS

Malala Yousafzai, the young Pakistani education advocate, on 30 June 2014 won the 2014 Liberty Medal given by the National Constitution Centre in Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, US.

Shah Rukh Khan was conferred with top French civilian award Knight of the Legion of Honor on 1 July 2014. The Knight of the Legion of Honor was presented to him by the French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in Mumbai. The award was presented for his outstanding contribution to cultural diversity across the world. Shahrukh Khan is the second Bollywood actor after Amitabh Bachchan to be honoured with Knight of the Legion of Honour. Amitabh Bachchan received the honour in 2007.

Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India on 1 July 2014 presented the National Awards for Handicrafts and Handlooms, Shilp Guru Awards and Sant Kabir Awards for the year 2011. The awards were given to weavers and artisans at a function at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.

The classical music reality show of Doordarshan Naad Bhed-The Mystery of Sound will be featured in Limca Book of Records. This was revealed through a statement issued by Doordarshan on 21 July 2014.

Sanjita Khumukcham bags India's first gold in Glasgow. Sanjita Khumukcham and Mirabai Chanu Saikhom bagged a gold and silver, respectively, in women's 48kg weightlifting in a display of overwhelming domination to open India's medal account on the opening day of the competition in the 20th Commonwealth Games. Sanjita won with a total lift of 173kg (77+96) while Mirabai grabbed the silver with a cumulative effort of 170 (75+95) in the absence of other strong competitors.
III. Nigerai's Nkechi Opara was a distant third with 162 (70+92).

The Chennai-based Prince Jewellery won the ‘Best Campaign of the Year’ award at The Retail Jeweller Award 2014 for its ‘Antique Jewellery’ print campaign. The annual Gemfields & Nazraana Retail Jeweller India Awards has established itself as one of the coveted awards for the Indian retail jewellery industry. A press release from the jeweller, quoting its Chairman and Managing Director, Princeson Jose, attributed the victory to craftsmen and the creative agency responsible for the strategy.

Star marksman Abhinav Bindra stole the limelight by clinching a gold medal while unheralded teenager Malaika Goel bagged silver as shooters added two more medals to India’s kitty on the second day of competitions in the 20th Commonwealth Games.

Jitu Rai wins Gold in 50m Pistol event in CWG; Gurpal Singh bags Silver. Shooting brings two early medals on 5th day of Glasgow Commonwealth Games. In the 50m Pistol event, Jitu rai have secured Gold whereas his compatriot Gurpal Singh won the silver.

Rajwinder Kaur bagged a bronze in women's +78kg judo competition to add to the three medals the country won in the sport at the 20th Commonwealth Games.

Italian Vincenzo Nibali won the 101st edition of the Tour de France in cycling as he finished the final stage on the Champs Elysees in Paris safely in the peloton. Nibali is the sixth man to win all three Grand Tours, the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana.

RN Galla, Chairman, Amara Raja Batteries, was honoured with the “Lifetime Achievement Award” for his contribution to the Indian lead acid battery industry at the International Conference & Exhibition on Lead & Lead Batteries organised by the India Lead Zinc Development Association. He was awarded at a meeting held at Hotel Lalit, New Delhi.

Rai wins gold, silver for Narang; lifter Thakur bags silver. Pistol King’ Jitu Rai kept his reputation intact by clinching the gold medal before Gagan Narang and Gurpal Singh claimed a silver each to continue the shooters’ heroics while young Vikas Thakur overcame pain to bag silver in weightlifting on the fifth day of competitions in the 20th Commonwealth Games. The 26-year-old Rai, world number 4 in the event, gave ample display of his class by taking the honour in the men’s 50 m pistol event as the Indian shooters continued to dominate the ranges.

SPORTS

Sub-junior wrestling championship in Srinagar. As many as 900 wrestlers from 28 states is all set to be seen in action at the four-day 33rd boys and 17th girls sub-junior national wrestling championship. The championship, organised by J&K Wrestling Association in collaboration with State Sports Council, was inaugurated by Youth Services and Sports Minister Raman Bhalla at Indoor Stadium, an official spokesman said. The spokesman informed that besides 900 wrestlers, 250 officials are also taking part in the event.

Jitu Rai became World Number 1 pistol shooter in the men's 10m air pistol category. This was revealed by the latest rankings released by the International Shooting Federation (ISSF) on 1 July 2014.

Petra Kvitova of Czechslovakia on 5 July 2014 won the women’s single of Wimbledon Tennis Open of 2014. To win her second title, she defeated the Canadian Eugenie Bouchard 6-3, 6-0.

Serena Williams of the United States has retained top spot in the latest world rankings released by the WTA, while Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova moved up to fourth.

Two great players nudged each other to even greater heights to produce a Wimbledon final that will go down as one of the finest in its history. One of them, Novak Djokovic, would eventually lift the trophy having beaten his opponent Roger Federer in five close sets 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4.

Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon victory returned him to the top of the latest world rankings, released by the ATP .

Sania Mirza, the Indian tennis ace, along with her Zimbabwean doubles partner Cara Black on 7 July 2014 were ranked career-best fifth in the latest WTA Doubles rankings.

FIFA suspended Nigeria’s team from International football competitions. FIFA suspended Nigeria from all international football competitions with immediate effect. Nigeria was suspended on account of government interference in running Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). The Statement released by FIFA includes that during the period of suspension, the NFF may not be represented in any regional, continental or international competitions, including at club level, or in friendly matches. Nigeria reached the second round of the World Cup 2014 in Brazil and this is the third time to reach second round of World Cup in their history (earlier in 1994 and 1998).

Sim Bhullar has become the first player of Indian origin to be a part of the National Basketball Association (NBA) after he signed a summer contract with the Sacramento Kings, a professional basketball team in the US.

Germany Win FIFA World Cup 2014 title. Germany's Mario Götze kicks in second half of extra time to win 1-0 against Argentina in final of the FIFA World Cup 2014. Germany is the first side from Europe to win a World Cup in the Americas, determined that a golden generation will finally get its reward after a string of near-misses. Messi was declared as the Player of the tournament and awarded Golden Ball. Germany won their fourth World Cup after a 24-year wait. Incidentally, this is the first World Cup for unified Germany, the previous three having been won by West Germany in 1954, 1974 and 1990.

India’s boxing coaches at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games have been barred from occupying ringside seats during bouts due to the country’s termination from the International Boxing Association (AIBA).

Indian cricket legend captain Rahul Dravid on 16 July 2014 was elected as the member of Laureus World Sports Academy. He is the 47th member of the Academy.

World Cup winners Germany have been named number one in the latest rankings released by football governing body FIFA. Joachim Loew’s side, fresh from their triumph in Rio de Janeiro, now top the standings on 1,724 points with Argentina, World Cup runners-up, second on 1,606. The Netherlands leapt 12 places to third as a result of their third-place finish in Brazil while Colombia and Belgium also benefited, moving up four and six spots to fourth and fifth respectively. World Cup hosts Brazil dropped to seventh and former number-one Spain sank to eighth. Uruguay are sixth while Switzerland and France complete the top 10. Despite a disappointing World Cup, Japan move up a spot to become the best team in Asia at 45.

Hero MotoCorp named title sponsor of ISL. Renowned two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp Ltd was on Friday named as the title sponsor of the much-anticipated Indian Super League -- the first-of-its-kind franchise-based football league in the country.

14 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow,Scotland. The 20th edition of the Games, to be held in Glasgow, Scotland , will witness more than 4,000 athletes competing in 17 sports and 261 medal events. A record 22 para-sport events will be contested in five different sports, with para-track cycling set to be held for the first time. India is fielding their second largest ever contingent of 215 athletes. The biggest squad of 41 will be in Athletics, while there will be no Indians in three disciplines -- netball, rugby sevens and triathlon.

Irishman Rory McIlroy won the British Golf Open Championship 2014 held at Royal Liverpool Golf course in Holyake, United Kingdom on 20 July 2014. Spain's Sergio Garcia (L) and US golfer Rickie Fowler finished two strokes behind McIlory to finish at second position. Rory McIlory has so far not won the US Masters Tournament, the only Major that eludes him in completing a Career Grand Slam. The Majors won by him are: US Open in 2011, USPGA Championship in 2012 and the British Open in 2014.

The Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy clinched his first Open Championship in Golf and third major title with a two shot victory over Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler on a thrilling final day at Hoylake.

India wins Lord's Test against England by 95 runs. India beat England by 95 runs in the second cricket test at Lord's to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. Ishant Sharma claimed 7 wickets to bowl India to their first overseas win since 2011. It was also India's second victory and the first since 1986 at Lord's. Ishant Sharma, who finished with career-best figures of 7 for 74, was declared Man of the Match.

South African Tim Clark clinched his second PGA Tour title when he sank a six-foot par putt to beat American Jim Furyk by one stroke at the Canadian Open.

German Sabine Lisicki created a record of fastest serve in the women’s tennis. The world No 29 Lisicki set the record by serving at 131 miles per hour during the first-round loss in the Bank of the West Classic Stanford, USA. However, she lost the game played against Ana Ivanovic 7-6 (7-2) 6-1.

RELEASED BOOKS

A coffee-table book titled First Citizen: Pranab Mukherjee in Rashtrapati Bhavan was released on 2 July 2014 at a function in Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. The book’s first copy was received by Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India.

The Vijay Mallya Story written by K Giriprakash was published by Penguin Books Limited in 2014. K. Giriprakash is the Chief of Bureau, The Hindu Business Line.

The Lives of Others authored by Neel Mukherjee was shortlisted for Man Booker Prize 2014 in the fourth week of July 2014. Neel Mukherjee is a Kolkata-born British Indian writer and this is his second novel.

IMPORTANT DAYS