OCT 2013 curent affairs

INTERNATIONAL

1) Which European country recently announced its decision to exit the international bailout programme by December 2013 and seek funds from other outside sources?
Ans:- The Republic of Ireland

2) U.S. President Barack Obama on 17 October 2013 signed a bill into law to end the 16-day government shutdown.What is the name of this important law?
Ans:- The Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014

3) Which country on 18 October, 2013 rejected its seat in the UN Security Council just hours after it was selected as one of the 10 non-permanent members in the council?
Ans:- Saudi Arabia

4) Which country recently agreed on a deal with Romania for making use of Mihail Kogalniceanu air base, as a transit point for the American forces leaving Afghanistan ?
Ans:- US

5)  Which country and the EU have reached an agreement in principal on a comprehensive free trade agreement ?
Ans:- Canada

6)  Ethiopia’s parliament on 7 October 2013 elected ——— as the country’s new president for a six-year term?
Ans :- Mulatu Teshome

7) Which Southeast Asian country recently announced a new Islamic criminal law to be enforced within six months in the country, which could include penalties like amputation for theft and stoning for adultery?
Ans:- Brunei

8) What is the name of a new ordinance that was passed by the Pakistani President on 22 October, 2013 which gives more teeth to fight terror?
Ans :- Protection of Pakistan Ordinance, 2013

INDIA & WORLD

1)  What is the name of an American ship which was detained for carrying arms and buying diesel in an unauthorized manner near Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu on 12 October, 2013?
Ans:- MV Seaman Guard Ohio

2) According to the French Institute of Demographic Studies survey,what is the Indian populaion by 2050?
Ans:- 160 crore

3) The UK-based ‘ Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2013-14 ‘ report released on 2 October 2013.Which university got a first place in this list?
Ans:- Calfornia Institute of Technology

4) Which country and India signed the bilateral agreement for the promotion and development of traditional systems of medicine on 17 October 2013 ?
Ans:- Hungary

5) The Sixth India- Brazil Joint Commission Meeting was held in ——– on 14 -15 October 2013
Ans:- Brasilia

6) The members of the Africa – India Business council ,representing the voice of industry in Africa and India recently met in ————- ?
Ans:- Johannesburg

7) The 14th Annual India-Russia Summit was held on 21 October, 2013 on the occasion of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s official two-day visit to Russia. How many bilateral agreements were signed between the two countries in this summit?
Ans :- Five

8) Which country and China on 23 October 2013 signed the deal to further strengthen and deepen cooperation in the energy sector ?
Ans:- India

NATIONAL

1) Union government of India on 5 October 2013 launched the Inter Company ——- portability scheme in 24 cities across the country?
Ans:- LPG portability scheme

2) Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 3 October 2013 cleared Jet Airways proposed sale of 24 per cent equity to Abu Dhabi-based ——- Airways?
Ans:- Etihad

3) Ninth Formation Day of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) took place in New Delhi at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on 4 October 2013. What is the function of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)?
Ans:- NDMA is India’s apex body in the area of disaster management

4) Union Cabinet on 17 October, 2013 approved the Rs. 50 per quintal raise in the minimum support price (MSP) of wheat to encourage farmers to cover more area under the crop in the ongoing Rabi season.What is the MSP of wheat after this raise?
Ans:- Rs. 1,400 per quintal

5) Indira Gandhi International Airport in India and Birmingham Airport, UK on 7 October 2013 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)  to Become Sister Airports? Where is Indira Gandhi International Airport situated?
Ans :- New Delhi

6) The Union cabinet of India approved on 17 October 2013 the appointment of a three-member supervisory committee headed by a representative of the Central Water Commission on construction of  ———- issue ?
Ans:- Babhli Barrage

7)  Supreme Court of India on 8 October 2013 directed the Election Commission of India to introduce VVPAT in EVMs in phased manner for the next general elections in 2014. Expand VVPAT?
Ans :- Vote Verifier Paper Audit Trail

8) What is the name of a newly formed regional political federation which was formed by 10 regional parties of the North-East India on 20 October, 2013?
Ans:- North East Regional Political Front (NERPF)

9) The first meeting of the seven-member Tax Administration Reforms Commission (TARC) led by Parthasarathi Shome was held on 21 October, 2013 at Delhi. What is the tenure of TARC, which will act as an advisory body to the Finance Ministry?
Ans:- 18 months

STATES

1) India’s largest forged-wheel factory for railways is proposed to be established at which place of Uttar Pradesh?
Ans:-  Lalganj in Raibareili

2) Central Board of Secondary Education’s (CBSE’s) first ever Career Counselling & Guidance Centre (CCGC) in the country was opened on 15 October, 2013 at which place?
Ans:- Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh

3) Which state Lokayukta Bill was received President of India Pranab Mukherjee assent on 17 October 2013 ?
Ans:- Uttarakhand

4) Where was the First Mega Food Park in Uttar Pradesh Established recently?
Ans :- Jagdishpur of Amethi district in Uttar Pradesh

5) The Union government on 19 October 2013 approved construction of roads and bridges worth 354 crore rupees in different parts of  —————– ?
Ans :- Maharashtra

6)  Which state has the highest proportion of Visitor Location Register (VLR) subscribers in India according to the latest telecom subscription data (as on 31st July 2013) released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recently?
Ans :- West Bengal

7)  Which dam completed 50 years of its establishment on 24 October, 2013?
Ans :- Bhakra dam

CONFERENCES

1) The 23rd ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) summit was held in ———— on 9 – 10 October 2013 ? (Ans:- Brunei Darussalam )

AWARDS & HONOURS

1) Who is the Indian Engineering student from the University of Nottingham  to be awarded the overall prize at a British government-backed entrepreneurial contest?
Ans:- Ashutosh Pathak

2) Who received the “2014 Leo Sziland Lectureship Award”?
Ans:- R.Rajaraman

3) Who was selected for IPI-India Award for Excellence in Journalism 2013?
Ans:- Karan Thapar

4) Who won the Man Booker Prize 2013 as announced on 15 October, 2013?
Ans:- Eleanor Catton for her novel ‘The Luminaries’

5) Who was named Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013 by the panel of international judges ?
Ans:- Greg du Toit

6) Who was conferred with European Union’s (EU) Sakharov human rights prize 2013 on 10 October 2013?
Ans:-  Malala Yousafzai

7) Who was awarded the first founders’ award from the Elton John AIDS Foundation in New York ?
Ans:- Hilary Clinton

SPORTS & GAMES

1) Name the Indian women who won bronze medal at the Judo tournament held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 5 October 2013?
Ans:- Kalapana Devi

2) India’s lawn tennis player Rohan Bopanna with French partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin won the Rakuten Japan Open tennis championship (Men’s Doubles) on 6 October 2013. Where was the event held?
Ans:- Tokyo, Japan

3) Which country qualified for the 2014 FIFA World Cup recently and with it earned its first berth as an independent nation?
Ans:- Bosnia-Herzegovina

4) Who won the Japanese F1 Grand Prix held on 13 October, 2013 at the Suzuka circuit?
Ans:-  Sebastian Vettel

5)  Who won the title of the Indian Open Snooker 2013, final of which was held on 19 October, 2013?
Ans:- Ding Junhui of China

6) Who won China Open Tennis Tournment title in Women’s singles?
Ans:- Serena Williams

ECONOMY
1) Who occupied the first place in the  list of “100 most powerful Indians” in Gulf published by GCC?
Ans:- Yusuff Ali

2) Name the International Money Transfer Service launched by India Post on 11 October 2013?
Ans:-  Instant Cash

3)  Which country passed USA to become world’s biggest oil importer in September 2013 as per the data released by US government in the first week of October 2013?
Ans :- China

4) Wholesale Price Index (WPI) for all commodities in the month of September 2013 stood at ———— percent as compared to 6.1percent in August 2013 ?
Ans:- 6.46 %

5) IFC on 7 October 2013 launched a ————– offshore bond programme to strengthen India’s capital markets and attract greater foreign investment ?
Ans:- 1 billion Dollars

6) What is the name of the Indonesian bank whose first branch in India was opened on 21 October, 2013 at Mumbai?
Ans:- Bank Internasional Indonesia – BII

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

1) India on 7 October 2013 successfully test-fired it’s indigenously developed nuclear-capable ——— missile with a strike range of 350 km from Chandipur Integrated test range in Odisha?
Ans:- Prithvi-II

2) An international team of scientists in the month of October 2013 discovered a new species of dragon tree (Dracaena Kaweesakii) in ——— ?
Ans:- Thailand

3) Which country Scientists recently developed  Li-Fi Tech -a new cheaper way of getting connected to internet by using signals sent through light bulbs ?
Ans:- China

4) Samsung Electronics on 9 October 2013 became the first manufacturer to launch the first curved screen smartphone of the world. What is the name of the phone?
Ans :- Galaxy Round

5) Union Minister for Mines Dinsha J. Patel dedicated state of art Geo-scientific research vessel ———- to the nation at Kandla Port of Gujarat on 12 October 2013?
Ans:- RV Samudra Ratnakar

PERSONS IN NEWS

A) APPOINTMENTS

1) The Union Government on 7 October, 2013 cleared the elevation of Arundhati Bhattacharya as the new Chairperson of SBI. She will become the first woman to head SBI, which is India’s largest bank. Bhattacharya will become —— head of SBI
Ans:-  24th

2) Who took over as the first Chief Minister of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province on 7 October, 2013?
Ans:- C.V. Wigneswaran

3) Who was appointed as a Assistant Secretary and Direcor General of the U.S.on 5 October 2013?
Ans:- Arun M.Kumar

4) Who was appointed as the new Chairman of the Railway Board on 16 October, 2013 by the Indian Railways?
Ans:- Arunendra Kumar

5) Who was appointed as head of the joint mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the United Nations ?
Ans:- Sigrid Kaag

6) Who was appointed as the Chairperson of the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) on 17 October 2013 ?
Ans:- Gireesh B. Pradhan

7) On 18 October, 2013 who was nominated by US President Barack Obama to head the Department of Homeland Security?
Ans:-  Jeh Johnson

B)RESIGNS

Who is the Goa Lokayukta chairman resigned from his post on 16 October 2013 ?
Ans:- Justice B Sudarshan Reddy

C) DEATHS

1) Name the nine-times Prime Minister of Belgium and who led the European Union’s Christian Democrat group who died on 9 October 2013 at 77 in Lokeren, in East Flanders?
Ans :- Wilfried Martens

2) Who is the Cuban-American writer died on 13 October 2013 in New York City ?
Ans:- Oscar Hijuelos

3)  Dr. Ravuri Bharadwaja, who passed away on 18 October, 2013, was a renowned personality associated with which field?
Ans:- Literature

D) VISITORS

1) Which country Prime Minister Viktor Orban visited India from 16 – 19 October 2013 ?
Ans:- Viktor Orban

E) MISCELLANEOUS

1) Who was selected as the first Miss Universe contestant to represent Myanmar in more than 50 years time in history of the country on 3 October 2013?
Ans:- Moe Set Wine

PLACES IN NEWS

1) Over 100 people, around half of which were women and children, were killed in a stampede on 13 October, 2013 during Navratri festivities in a temple in Madhya Pradesh. This incident took place at which place?
Ans:- In Datia’s Ratangarh Mata Temple

2) Name the cyclonic storm which hit the Andaman and Nicobar islands and moved northwestwards 800 km South East of Paradip in Odisha on 10 October 2013?
Ans :- Phailin

3) Name the Typhoon which slammed into Southeastern China on 7 October 2013 with powerful winds and heavy rains?
Ans :- Typhoon Fitow

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS

1) What is the full form of  ‘OPEC ‘ ——————— ?
Ans:-  Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries

BOOKS IN NEWS

1) What is the title of a newly-released coffee table book on the great Brazilian footballer Pele, which weighs 15 kg and is worth $1,700?
Ans:- ‘1283’

2) The Third Curve: The End of Growth as We Know It, a Book Written by Film Director Mansoor Khan was released at the India International Centre in New Delhi on  11 October 2013. Which famous Bollywood actor has released the book?
Ans. Aamir Khan

COMMITTEES IN NEWS

1) Supreme Court of India proposed a three-member committee on 7 October 2013 to examine the IPL spot-fixing scandal. Who is the head of the committee ?
Ans:- Mukul Mudgal (former Punjab and Haryana Chief Justice)

DAYS & DATES

1) The United Nations Day was observed across the world on ————- ?
Ans:- 24 October