www.BankJobsCoaching.

com Free Online Bank Exams/Jobs Coaching | Free Test Preparation

Current Affairs
- January - 2012

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |2 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs - January 2012

Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan received a Green Globe Award at the fourth edition of the Panasonic Green Globe Foundation Awards The Supreme Court on 31 January 2012 set aside the Delhi High Court order refusing to pass any direction to the Prime Minister for taking a decision on sanction of prosecution in 2G case Four-member committee headed by Justice D. M. Dharmadhikari submitted report on Air India and Indian Airlines merger to Civil Aviation Minister Union government revised economic growth rate for 2010-2011 to 8.4 percent in comparison to the previous estimate of 8.5 percent Bangalore artist Sheela Gowda, who uses unconventional materials to make sculptures was shortlisted for UKs contemporary art prize, Artes Mundi Freedom fighter and one of the doyens of Indian diplomacy, Ambassador A K Damodaran passed away in New Delhi on 31 January 2012 UN-DESA data showed that India & China are the only two countries in the world where female infant mortality is higher than male infant mortality The deficit between April and December 2011 at Rs 3.81 lakh crore reached 92.3% of the 201112 estimate The President of Mali, Amadou Toumani Toure visited India on 11-12 January 2012. India and Mali signed three agreements during this visit Kamla Persad Bissessar visited India from 5 January 2012 to 14 January 2012. Kamla PersadBissessar is the Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Net FII buying crossed the $2-billion mark in January 2012 making January the best month in terms of foreign fund flows since November 2010 India and Trinidad & Tobago on 6 January 2012 signed five agreements during the visit of Trinidad & Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar Telecom Commission decided to allow mobile phone companies to share spectrum. The Commission has however limited this facility to 2G airwaves alone Union finance ministry urged the department of industrial policy and promotion to design FDI policy for power exchanges on lines of commodity exchanges

www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |2 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |3 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation The President of Mali, Amadou Toumani Toure visited India on 11-12 January 2012. India and Mali signed 3 agreements during this visit Growth of these eight sectors during April-December 2011 was 4.4 per cent against 5.7 per cent during the corresponding period in 2010 Review Committee on the Delhi School Education Act and Rules 1973 chaired by former Delhi Chief Secretary Shailja Chandra submitted its report to CM Sheila Dikshit In the period from January to November 2011, Sri Lanka received just over 7.5 lakh tourists. Of this, over 1.5 lakh were Indians India's National Thermal Power Corporation(NTPC) signed an agreement with Bangladesh Power Development Board( BPDP), for setting up a joint venture 1320 MW thermal power plant A Amalraj won his maiden national title by defeating A Sharath Kamal in the final of the 73rd Senior National and Inter-State Table Tennis Championships SEBI decided to enhance the minimum investment amount per client managed by portfolio managers to Rs.25 lakh from Rs.5 lakh Pakistan's Supreme Court on 30 January 2012 granted two more months to the judicial commission probing the memo issue to complete its investigation Novak Djokovic emerged victorious in the mens single category while Victoria Azarenka lifted the trophy in the women category of the 2012 Australian Open Muslim brotherhoods the Freedom and Justice Party won 235 seats in the Egypt Parliamentary elections Rajasthan government decided to form Jaisalmer Fort Development Authority to resolve the vexed and inter-connected problems relating to constructions and encroachments within the Jaisalmer Fort India and Pakistan agreed in New Delhi to transit fee formula for Tapi gas pipeline project. On the Transit Fee, both nations agreed that the negotiations would be conducted in a transparent manner President conferred the Ashoka Chakra on Lt. Navdeep Singh (posthumous) on the occasion of the 63rd Republic Day Parade 2012 Environmental historian and political commentator Mahesh Rangarajan was selected and appointed as director of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Kerala governor and three-time Puducherry chief minister and MP, M O H Farook died in Chennai on 26 January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |3 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |4 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

The Padma awards for the year 2012 were announced on the eve of Indias 63rd Republic Day. Padma Awards 2012 comprise 13 Padma Vibhushan, 31 Padma Bhushan and 84 Padma Shri Awards Ricky Ponting appointed an officer in the general division of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to cricket & the community C R Sundaramurti Committee report to finance minister Pranab Mukherjee suggested a complete overhaul of government accounting norms PFRDA changed the incentive structure for the distributors from a fixed sum to a percentage of the investment amount HDFC Life, private life insurance company from India launched its first international operations with the opening of its representative office in Dubai In Egypt, the military rulers declared partial lifting of emergency in the country The Supreme Court of India on 24 January 2012 criticized the Union government for total inaction in dealing with the prolonged imprisonment of several foreign nationals in Indian jails RBI cut the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points from 6 per cent to 5.5 per cent with effect from 28 January 2012 Sukumar Azhikode, award-winning Malayalam writer, scholar and one of the most influential Gandhian intellectual in Kerala, died on 24 January 2012 CCEA gave final approval to Vedanta Resources's acquisition of a majority stake in Cairn India Ltd for $8.48 billion The Union Cabinet of India on 24 January 2012 approved renaming of the Mana Airport at Raipur in Chattisgarh as the Swami Vivekanand Airport, Raipur In Himachal Pradesh, more than 1.20 lakh migratory birds from Siberia and Central Asian countries descended on Maharana Pratap Sagar, popularly known as Pong Dam Lake, in Kangra district Rajasthan won the 78th Ranji Trophy by defeating Tamil Nadu on 23 January 2012 at the MA Chidambaram stadium Syria on 23 January 2012 rejected the Arab League plan for President Bashar al-Assad to hand over the power to the Vice President International Labour Organization issued the annual report on global employment titled Global Employment Trends 2012: Preventing a deeper jobs crisis on 24 January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |4 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |5 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Senior congress leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh C. Jagannatha Rao died on 23 January 2012 Singapore-based Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka was awarded the DSC Prize for South Asia Literature 2012, at the Jaipur Literature Festival GJEPC reported 15%dip in gems and jewellery exports which went down to $3 billion in December 2011 Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) estimated Corporate Indias sales to grow 21.6% in 2011-12 Dutch teeager Laura Dekker on 21 January 2012 became the youngest sailor to complete a solo circumnavigation of the world Pakistani film actress Salma Mumtaz died in Lahore on22 January 2012 The Election Commission of India banned exit polls during the entire period when elections to the five state assemblies would be held The Controller and Auditor General, CAG indicted the Uttar Pradesh Government of anomalies in spending around 5000 crore rupees under the National Rural Health Mission(NRHM) The fifth edition of the World Future Energy Summit was held in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi. The four-day long summit brought together more than 60 top leaders from 50 countries India signed a multi-lateral agreement with economic powers like France and Germany to check both tax evasion and avoidance The activists formed the world's longest human chain all the way to the peak of the 12,352 feet Volcano de Agua known as Water Volcano in a protest against domestic violence The home ministry of India launched the first batch of RICs (Resident Identity Cards) at Porthrapur village in Andaman and Nicobar Islands Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago Kamla Persad Bissessar visited India from 5 January 2012 to 14 January 2012 A new gene, called Meg-1 was discovered in maize plants by the UK scientists. It could increase the crop yields Scientists rediscovered a large grey monkey-the Millers grizzled langur- in the dense jungles of Indonesia

www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |5 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |6 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation Three time Grammy winner influential 1950s rhythm-and-blues singer, Etta James, best known for her show-stopping hit At Last, died on 20 January 2012 Inter-ministerial committee for tourism sector decided to extend Visa-on-Arrival facility to Goa, Hyderabad, Kochi & Bangaluru airports to help double the foreign tourist arrivals The Supreme Court of India on 20 January 2012 dismissed a PIL seeking a direction to the government to restore the Army Chief Gen V K Singh's date of birth as 10 May 1951 Noted Times of India film critic, Nikhat Kazmi who had been suffering from s breast cancer died on 20 January 2012 Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on 20 January 2012 asked telecom companies to block bulk international SMS HUL appointed Hemant Bakshi, Executive Director of Sales and Customer Development as Executive Director-Home & Personal Care The Bangladesh army foiled a planned coup attempt to topple the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina A team of scientists in the second week of January 2012 identified a group of cancer cells that play a main role in preventing the development of the disease India was ranked the sixth most innovative country in the world in GE's Annual Global Innovation Barometer published on 18 January 2012 ADB(Asian Development Bank) on 18 January 2012 signed an agreement with Union government of India to give a loan of 24.3 million US dollars to boost investment in Maharashtra Agribusiness Infrastructure Planning commission od India approved investment clearance for the scheme, Rudrasagar Drainage Development Scheme, Tripura The Government of India and the World Bank on 20 January 2012 signed an IDA credit of 130 million US dollars to finance the project called NERLP (North East Rural Livelihoods Project) 132-year-old Photography Pioneer Eastman Kodak Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 19 January 2012 Senior television journalist Pankaj Pachauri as was appointed as Communication Advisor in the Prime Ministers Office on 19 January 2012 The Law Commission of India on 18 January 2012 recommended the dilution of Anti-Dowry law to make it less stringent www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |6 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |7 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation Harish Khare resigned as media advisor to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after Pankaj Pachauri was appointed as Communication Advisor in the PMO India on 18 January 2012 announced a substantial increase in educational assistance, being given to Sri Lanka RBI allowed banks to grant permission to listed and unlisted companies to hedge price risk in commodities other than precious metals Indian rupee rose to a two-month high and shares climbed on 18 January 2012 as a result of revival of US dollar flows US beverage maker Coca Cola retained its top position in Interbrand's list of the top 100 global brands in 2011 Scientists claimed that a meteorite, which fell in Morocco in July 2011 was from Mars. This event happened for the first time in 50 years Cheaper food items, including fruit and vegetables, pulled down the Consumer Price Index (CPI) by 0.44 per cent month-on-month in December 2011 N. Ram stepped down as Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of The Hindu , Business Line , Frontline , and Sportstar Anthony Prabhu Gonsalves, India's first music arranger died on 18 January 2012 Himachal Tourism Department signed a pact with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation for managing its establishments in the hill State India and China on 17 January 2012 agreed to establish a working mechanism on consultation and coordination on border affairs between the two countries Union Ministry for Human Resource Development announced that there would be a Grievance Redressal mechanisms in higher educational institutions The memogate scandal is related to a memo delivered by Pakistani-American businessman, Mansoor Ijaz to the Pentagon asking for U.S. help to thwart a feared coup The UK scientists discovered a new gene in maize plants, called Meg 1 Pioneers J Gopikrishnan & CNBC-TV18s Udayan Mukherjee were adjudged Journalist of the Year at the 5th Ramnath Goenka Awards for Excellence in Journalism Telecom Regulatory Authority of India roposed a fee of Rs.20 crore for a national-level unified licence under the new regime www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |7 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |8 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation The Artist, the French-made black-and-white silent movie directed by Michel Hazanavicius won three awards at the 69th annual Golden Globes Awards Union government nearly doubled the import duty on gold and silver by changing the customs and excise duty structure on precious metals India's exports recorded a subdued growth of 6.7 per cent year-on-year in December 2011 on account of poor demand in Europe and the US As per the WPI published by the government , reduced food prices caused the inflation to dip to a year low at 7.47% in December 2011 Tamil Nadu government decided to start an integrated Urban Development Scheme at a cost of 6653 crore rupees with the objective of improving basic infrastructure facilities in cities and urban areas in the state Pakistan's Supreme Court on 16 January 2012 issued a contempt of court notice to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for failing to re-open graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari India extended for five years anti-dumping duty on import of four Chinese products in the face of widening trade gap with China Market regulator SEBI unveiled rules for direct investment in stocks by foreign investors, including individuals Foreign exchange reserves fell to a 15-month low. Reserves dipped $3.2 billion to $293.5 billion as on 6 January 2012 RBI issued guidelines on compensation of wholetime directors, chief executive officers and other risk takers in private and foreign banks US fast food chain McDonald's in January 2012 extended its global sponsorship agreement with the International Olympic Committee until 2020 Indias first woman photo-journalist Homai Vyarawala popularly known as Dalda 13died on 15 January 2012 in Vadodara, Gujarat The 10th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas was held in the pink city of Jaipur, Rajasthan. The event is held annually between 7th to 9th January The Union government of India on 14 January 2012 directed all the states to tighten norms in granting licences to open new medical institutes Indian Meteorological Department installed C-Band Polarimetric Doppler Radar system at Mausam Bhawan, New Delhi www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |8 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |9 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation Industrial production bounced back with a growth of 5.9 per cent in November 2011, marking a five-month high Total number of family planning acceptors in India increased by 3.5 per cent between 2010 and 2011 Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on 11 January 2012 launched the signature tune of the Indian Customs, Pragati ki Dhadkan in New Delhi B K Batra appointed as Deputy Managing Director of IDBI Bank India and Japan agreed to enhance their cooperation in the infrastructure sector. The decision was taken at a meeting between Road Transport and Highways Minister CP Joshi and his Japnese counterpart Takeshi Maeda in New Delhi The Ministry of Rural Development sanctioned 3 road projects using latest Polymer-based technologies, under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in Chhattisgarh Diplomat Pavan K. Varma's new book, When Loss is Gain launched in the New Delhi by Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, the Queen Mother of Bhutan Daniel Ortega was on 10 January 2012 inaugurated as Nicaraguan president for a second consecutive term Archaeologist discovered remains of Shiva temple supposed to have been built during the Gupta period near Bundi district town in Rajasthan India signed MoU with ASEAN at Manado, Indonesia on 12 January 2012 The Union Cabinet of India on 12 January 2012 approved the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) policy The UN nuclear watchdog, IAEA on 12 January 2012 confirmed that Iran started enriching uranium to 20 percent The Cabinet Committee on Security approved the setting up of a National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) to counter terrorism effectively Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan & IASS jointly organised 15th World Sanskrit conference from 5 to 10 January 2012 in New Delhi The Union Ministry of Animal Husbandry directed the Odisha Government to kill all the birds in order to prevent the spread of bird flu to other areas The researchers identified a new species of earthworm in Port Blair, the capital of Andaman and Nicobar islands. The species was named Moniligaster ivaniosi www.BankJobsCoaching.com Page |9 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 10 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

The 10th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) was held on 7-9 January, 2012 at Birla Auditorium, Jaipur Commerce Ministry lowered the minimum export price of onions by $100 a tonne to $150 a tonne to boost exports Kerala men defeated Uttarakhand to win the National title for the fourth time, in the 60th senior National volleyball championship The Election Commission of India asked the government to with hold 4.5 per cent sub-quota for minorities in five poll bound states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur for now PMO directed cash-rich PSUs to invest around Rs.1.76 lakh crore, including Rs.1.41 lakh crore domestically to act as a stimulus Report of survey titled Impact of Growth on Childhood Poverty in Andhra Pradesh conducted by NGO-Young Lives since 2002 released on 11 January 2012 Special life-time achievement award, in memory of G.V. Raja, the founder-president of the Kerala State Sports Council to be instituted Delhi HC directed FSSAI to hold deliberations with the experts and frame necessary guidelines to make healthy food available in school canteens Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on 11 January 2012 inaugurated a 5-MW solar energy plant by SunEdison by Phalodi TiE Chennai, dedicated to promote entrepreneurship launched a book Dream to destiny the driving spirit of Chennai's entrepreneurs DIPP notified the rules allowing 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in single-brand retail Argentinas Lionel Messi awarded the 2011 FIFA Ballon d'Or on 9 january 2012 in Zurich. He won the award for the third consecutive year for the world's outstanding footballer Indirect tax collections increased 16.1 per cent to Rs 285787 crore during April-December 2011 driven by an increase in service tax Hunger and Malnutrition Survey monitored over 100000 children showed forty-two percent of children in India younger than 5 are underweight Moodys Investor Services upgrade the short-term country ceiling on foreign currency bank deposit increasing from NP (not prime) to Prime (P-3)

www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 10 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 11 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation Researchers discovered worlds first hybrid sharks in Australian waters. It suggests that the species is adapting to climate change for survival Foreign direct investment into India went up by 56% to $2.53 billion in November 2011, indicating an improvement in investor sentiment Madhya Pradesh government launched its Panch Parmeshwar scheme on 9 January 2012. The objective of the scheme is to further empower village Panchayats Scientists developed a new wireless device to detect the presence of termites by hearing them chew through timber Six researchers from five science streams were honoured with the Infosys Prize-2011 by the former President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Survey of elementary education funds of seven States for 2009-2010 showed that only 1% of the education fund is spent on improving quality of education Union government decided to incentivise the unlisted PSUs to help them come up with initial share offerings in the stock market in 2012-13 The turnover of the 21 commodity exchanges in India increased by 66% to Rs 137.22 lakh crore till December 2011 National Commission for Protection of Child Right (NCPCR) on 9 January 2012 directed the state governments to propose a system called Shiksha Samvad Australia on 9 January 2012 announced that it would scale back sanctions against Myanmar. Australia took this decision in recognition of steps taken by Myanmars military regime towards democracy State-run Northern Coalfields (NCL) agreed to surrender land required to mine two blocks attached to the Sasan ultra mega power plant to Reliance Power thereby giving the Anil Ambani Group company the benefit of over Rs 6000 crore over the life of the venture Ministry of Railways prepared draft policy which seeks increased private participation and opens the doors for foreign direct investors for expanding its network Canadian Milos Raonic won the ATP Chennai Open by defeating world number nine Janko Tipsarevic 6-7 7-6 7-6 in the final on 8 January 2012 D Bala Venkatesh Verma, Joint Secretary Disarmament in the Ministry of External Affairs was conferred with the first S K Singh Award for excellence in the Indian Foreign Service on 6 January 2012

www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 11 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 12 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation India and South Africa on 8 January 2012 agreed to speed up talks to conclude a bilateral investment promotion and protection agreement(BIPA) The Union government of India on 6 January 2012 sanctioned seven more tourism projects worth 36.22 crore rupees to Jammu and Kashmir for up gradation of tourist infrastructure in the state The Union government of India on 4 January 2012 approved an additional fund of 19 thousand crore rupees for completion of Katra - Quazigund Railway line project in Jammu and Kashmir UK scientists discovered new crab species on the Southern Ocean floor. The new crab species was named the Hoff because of its hairy chest In Madhya Pradesh, the state Cabinet sanctioned construction of buildings of 650 sub-health centres using pre-fabricated technique. The buildings are erected at a rapid pace by this technique Twelve of the 22 Indian diamond traders, detained in China for nearly 2 years on charges of smuggling, reached India on 5 January 2012 after they were let off following deportation orders by a Chinese court Vice Admiral M.P. Muralidharan took charge as the 19th Director-General of the Indian Coast Guard in January 2012 Foreign exchange reserves fell by over $4.18 billion slipping below the long-held $300-billion mark in te week ended 30 December 2011 Turkey's former Army chief Ilker Basbug arrested over an alleged attempt on part of the chief to topple the Islamist-rooted government Union government cleared ADB loan to finance programme launched by the Ministry of Rural Development in left wing extremism-affected villages SIDBI entered into MoU with IOB to extend assistance to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) customers of IOB As per Delhi Polices annual statistics on crime, New Delhi's crime graph registered an upward trend for the third consecutive year Food inflation, as measured by the wholesale price index, fell by (-)3.36% for the week ended 24 December 2011, as per Commerce & Indistry Ministry data Governor Gurbachan Singh Jagat following EC directive replaced DGP Y Joykumar Singh with Ratnakar Baral as Manipur State Police Chief Scientists for the first time produced monkeys composed of cells taken from separate embryos www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 12 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 13 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

The Central Information Commission(CIS) held that all information in possession of the office of the Chief Justice of India is not completely exempt from disclosure under the Right to Information( RTI) act. Scientists claimed to find a way to produce artificial human semen that could help infertile men father their own children The Union government of India approved an additional fund of 19 thousand crore rupees for completion of Katra - Quazigund Railway line project in Jammu and Kashmir The Supreme Court of India ruled that a person cannot be detained under the preventive detention law like National Security Act (NSA) without justifiable reasons United Nations Resource Centre for the North-East was set up in Assam on 2 January 2012 Former Delhi state footballer Mohd Akram passed away in New Delhi on 3 January 2012 British scientists discovered a lost world of unknown species 8000 feet deep on sea floor off the coast of Antarctica Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan was presented the Mallikarjun Mansur award in recognition of his achievements on 3 January 2012 The board of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) declared on 4 January 2012 that it approved Rs.352.50-crore investment for producing oil from a marginal field off the Mumbai coast Insurance regulator IRDA on 4 January 2012 introduced uniform asset-liability management norms for market players to ensure their solvency The Finace Ministry on 4 January 2012 clarified that the rates applicable on small savings instruments schemes would be announced on April 1 each year and the rate would remain valid till the maturity of the scheme Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama was presented the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation on 4 January 2011 The report of the Department of Telecommunications, prepared by the working group on Telecom for the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17) The Rajasthan state cabinet on 4 January 2012 approved the proposal to develop the Rajiv Gandhi Biosphere Reserve The member states of European Union(EU) on 4 January 2012, agreed in principle to ban import of Iranian crude oil to put pressure on Iran for its nuclear programme www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 13 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 14 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

India became free from bird flu, H5N1. The government made a declaration to this effect Scientists in America claimed to have genetically modified silkworms to spin the much stronger silk that spiders produce India on 4 January 2012 approved 6600 crore rupees acquisition of 490 French advanced missile systems to arm the Mirage-2000 fighter jets Maldives lifted ban on spas in the upmarket tourist destination..It is located in Indian Ocean In Assam, a United Nations Resource Centre for the North-East was set up at Guwahati on 2 January 2012 Noted mathematician & Pro-Vice Chancellor, IGNOU Prof. Parvin Sinclair was appointed the Director of NCERT Reserve Bank of India on 3 January 2011 decided to conduct an open market operation (OMO) to inject more liquidity into the system SEBI allowed auctioning of securities through stock exchanges and introduced a new method for institutional placement of stocks Former Textiles Secretary, Rita Menon took over as Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the India Trade Promotion Organisation Parliamentary Standing Committee in its report recommended doubling of the maximum penalty for trading rule violations to Rs 50 lakh Implementation of levy on railway freight service was put off once again in the backdrop of high inflation RIL entered the media & entertainment sector by investing in one of Indias largest broadcast companies, Network18 Group Union government approved RIL's $1.529 billion investment plan for developing four satellite fields in the flagging KG-D6 block President Pratibha Patil visited the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota and inaugurated the new Mission Control Centre Kiro Gligorov, the first democratically elected president of Macedonia died in Skopje on 1 January 2012 The Union government raised the ad valorem duty (export duty) on iron ore exports to 30 per cent from 20 per cent www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 14 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

Current Affairs January 2012 www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 15 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation

State-owned Coal India (CIL) announced on 2 January 2012 that its board approved in a meeting held on 30 December 2011 the switching over to internationally-accepted Gross Caloric Valuebased pricing mechanism Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised red flags over the high dependability of non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) As per the to Commerce Ministry data released on 2 January 2012, Indias exports recorded their slowest pace of growth in two years at 3.8 per cent in November 2011 as a result of the global slowdown The HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index ( PMI) - a headline index designed to measure the overall performance of the manufacturing sector - registered 54.2 in December, up from 51.0 in November Reserve Bank of India allowed non-residents to hedge their currency risk in respect of external commercial borrowings (ECB) denominated in rupees Food inflation fell to its lowest level in six years at 0.42 per cent for the week ended 17 December 2011 Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises recommended financial package of Rs 257 crore to revive NEPA Charismatic and controversial South African Indian politician Amichand Rajbansi died on 29 December 2011 Jamaica's main opposition party has won the country's parliamentary elections, while the ruling Jamaica Labour Party conceded defeat

www.BankJobsCoaching.com P a g e | 15 Current Affairs January 2012 Free Online Bank Jobs/Exams Coaching | Free Test Papers | Bank Exams Preparation