[PIN-Dec-2015] Part-1/2: Appointments, Awards, Committees, Dead in News, Miss world, Miss universe

• Retired IAS from Tripura cadre-Radha Krishna Mathur became the new chief information commissioner of India, replacing Vijai Sharma.
• Usually among the information Commissioner (IC), one guy gets “promoted” to CIC. But this time government brought in a new “fresh” CIC, who has not served as an IC.
• CIC term limit is 5 years or 65 age; not eligible for re-appointment.
• CIC is selected by a panel of PM, 1 union Cabinet Minister, leader of single largest opposition party.
• CIC is appointed by the President of India.

• India’s high Commissioner to Pakistan: Gautam H.Bambawale
• India’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia: IPS officer and ex-Mumbai police commissioner Ahmed Javed.

• Narayana Murthy committee on crowd funding for startup companies.
• Nandan Nilekani committee:  boosting mutual fund industry

• President gave assent.
• Now employers can change the nature of job of the employee without prior notice.
• Out of court settlement between employers and employees with paying some fee to govt.
• Changed the definition of contractor and Lifted the restriction on sacking of workers and payment of compensation.

• BJP MP Poonam Mahajan has moved a Private member Bill in the Lok Sabha seeking nomination of at least eight NRIs to the Lok Sabha.
• As of now, 2 Anglo-Indians are nominated in Lok Sabha because this community has no chance of winning a traditional election because of their small population.
• So Poonam Mahajan’s logic- NRIs too deserve similar treatment. Besides It is the centenary year of Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa.

• Aka Jewish Nobel, booty- US$ 1 million.
• Itzhak Perlman won, for his contribution to violin music, teaching and disability rights.

• German chancellor Angela Markel becomes time ‘Person of the year 2015’

For her leadership during Europe’s debt, refugee and migrant crises, as well as Russia’s intervention in Ukraine.

• Notable Runner ups- ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

• Karthik Sawhney (Blind, first blind science student to enroll in class-11).
• Neha Swain (NGO- Rubaroo)

• Prof. Rameskh K.Jain, Harvard Medical.
• He graduated from IIT-Kanpur, extensive research on tumors.

• Philippines’ Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach has won this beauty competition, held at Las Vegas in USA.
• Controversy erupted when Host Steve Jobs Harvey wrongfully declared Miss Columbia as winner butshe was only the 1^st runner up.
• India’s Urvashi Rautela couldn’t even reach top-15 due to lack of coaching.

• Spain’s Mireia Lalaguna Royo won this beauty competition held in Sanya, China.
• India’s Aditi Arya couldn’t even reach top-20 due to lack of xeroxed study material.

• International film Festival of India held at Goa
• Bestmovie: the embrace of the serpent (Rs.40 lakh award), its about Emma is on rainforest.
• Ilyaraja: This south Indian music maestro given Centenary Award

• Given Padma Vibhushan. As such it was announced on 26 January 2015 but he could not attend the ceremony because of illness.
• Real name: Muhammad Yusuf Khan, born in the Peshawar, Pak.
• Method actor, nominated Rajya Sabha member,
• Recipient of (1) dadasaheb Phalke (’94) (2)Pakistan’s highest civilian award Nishan-e-Imtiaz (1998)

• Economist, agriculturist and prominent farmer’s leader .
• He was founder of ‘Shetkari Sanghatana’- meant for onion, cotton and sugarcane farmers across Maharashtra.
• Gave the slogan; ‘Freedom of access to markets and to Technology.’
• He served in Indian Postal Services, UN and Rajya Sabha.
• He was the lone member of the Upper House to vote against the Women’s Reservation Bill in 2010.
• Shetkari Sanghatana and the Shetkari Mahila Aghadi, were the first in the country to propose 100 per cent women panels in the Panchayati Raj elections in Maharashtra.

• American author, political thinker and educationist
• Book: Modernity of Tradition: Political Development in India +
• She and her husband were given Padma Bhushan in 2014.

• Human rights activist + lawyer
• Home ministry has sent her notice for allegedly receiving foreign funds when she held the post of Additional Solicitor General

• British actor noted for his role in The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of Caribbean.
• Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister had invited him to promote tourism
• but Orlando Bloom was deported back before getting a chance to see UP’s Goonda raj, since his e-visa application was not approved when he landed India.
• E-visa approval can take anything from 72 hours to 4 days.
• Visa function falls under Home ministry and not External Affairs ministry.