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1 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Aspirants Times Http://www.upscportal.com presents India’s largest Online Community for IAS, Civil Services Aspirants. Vol.2 MAY 2009 | Free IES Exam Special Shubhra Tops UPSC CSE 2008 Interview at Website Free MOCK Test Paper(150 Questions) for UPSC (Pre) Exam 2009 Plan and Strategy for Indian Engineering Services (IES) Exam 2009 Articles -G-20 Leader Summit -North Korea Missile Program -Hindi Article HOT TOPICS -Swine Flu --Current Affairs Indian Spy Satellite India’s First Digital Magazine for IAS Aspirants around the world. ( VISHESH ARTHIK KSHETRA AVAM KRISHI )2 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 “ Thank you for the overwhelming support for Vol.1 of Aspirants Times Digital Magazine. We are working hard to bring you the best possible... ” Founder, UPSCPORTAL.COM3 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 SECTION -1 : Editorial • A Step with Confidence ......................................................................................................... 04 SECTION -2 : Engineering Services Exam Strategy • Plan And Strategy For Indian Engineering Services (IES) ............................................... 05 SECTION -3 : Articles • G-20 Leaders’ Summit .............................................................................................. 10 • North Korea Missile Threat .................................................................................................. 16 • Hindi Article ( ) ......... 24 SECTION -4 : HOT-Topics • Swine Flu (Attack Of New Virus H1N1) ................................................................ 30 • Indian Spy Satellite (RISAT-2 and ANUSAT) ........................................................ 34 SECTION -5 : Current Relevant Facts • Important Current Affairs .................................................................................................... 38 SECTION -6 : SPORTS ................................................................................................................. 47 SECTION -7 : AWARDS ................................................................................................... 52 SECTION -8 : Model Test Paper • MOCK Test Paper For IAS Pre Exam 2009 ...................................................................... 55 INDEX4 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 A Step with Confidence We never expected so much, but it happened. Inaugural issue of Aspirant Times got very high number of reader’s support. It has been proved by your letters, suggestions and fast increasing number of membership. We can say Veni, vidi, vici about this magazine. Our editorial board had thought to get such support in coming six months. Now this support has inspired us lot, it is cause of our happiness and inspiration. But at the same time, it has brought greater responsibility and a challenge to prove ourselves on your parameter. We assure that Aspirant Times has a plan to fulfill our reader’s need with confidence. We expect that you will have confidence in our team and we in you. So we must keep a step with mutual confidence to go forward. For success in this exam, confidence is the first step. But beside this, you shall develop many other qualities in yourself-hard work, perseverance, determination, capacity to take risk etc. You can take an example from this year’s IAS topper 30-year-old Shubhra Saxena of Noida. The software engineer, and alumnus of IIT-Rourkee, Shubhra quit her well-paid IT job to become an IAS. It shows her capacity to take risk and success in the age of thirty, proves about her perseverance. Another great example of determination is physically challenged Varinder Kumar Sharma, who got first rank among the male candidates and overall bagged the fourth positiio in IAS 2008. He did it in his first attempt. Work hard, yes without it; you can never taste the sweetness of great success. So develop these qualities to become a winner. Still you have sufficient time to clear the IAS pre 2009, read carefully, revise timely and make good practices. So don’t waste the time in confusion, be determiine and get success. Personal Note from Editor : In this very second issue, we are providing you many important articles on current happenings and introductiio of Indian Engineering Service (IES) Examination with well woven strategy for GS portion for this prestigious examination. We have covered recently held Group-20 Summit, North Korea Missile Programme, Indian Spy Satellite, Swine Flue and many more current topics for Civil Services Main Examination 2009. We also made efforts to present this matter and articles in very lucid and easy way. So you can keep it in your mind for a long time. Under these topics, you will not find only facts and information, but analysis with deep insights. So you can prepare easily for fact based preliminary examinations and short answer type questions and same time these writings are useful for long answer type questions, essay and interview. Beside these topics, regular columns have been covered for Civil Services (Pre) Examination going to be held on May 17, 2009. We wish all the best for your IAS preliminary exam 2009. Meet you in next issue… Thanks! Editor: R. K. PANDEY and UPSCPORTAL Team SECTION -1 : Editorial Published by : Kalinjar Technologies, New Delhi, India Editor : R. K. Pandey Editor-Technicals : UPSCPORTAL Team Typesetting and Design : UPSCPORTAL Team5 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Any one can never make a comparison of Government Service with anything. Where ever the question about Indian Engineering Services, actually these have very high position. Here, you play a role in a making a plan and executing it not for money, for any person but your beloved country and their people. No matter how much you get in private sector. So in this way, you can play very important role in India’s development and makiin its future bright. Like Civil Servants in India, the Engineers recruited through Indian Engineering Services get very high honors in government and society. At present governmeen is spending more than 15 percent of India's GDP in Engineering. Given the extent of tasks and functiion managed by the public sector this extends to a fairly broad segment of the economy covering the Railroaads Military, Public works, Power, Telecommunicatiions etc. Government of India recruits its coveted Engineers through competitive exams held each year by Union Public Service Commission. For this, a combined competiitiv examination is conducted by the UPSC. The test is conducted in June every year at centres across India, namely: Agartala, Ahmedabad, Aizwal, Allahabad, Bangalore, Bareilly, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Chennai, Cuttack, Delhi, Dharwar, Dispur (Guwahati), Gangtok, Hyderabad, Imphal, Itanagar, Jaipur, Jammu, Jorhat, Kochi, Kohima, Kolkata, Lucknow, Madurai, Mumbai, Nagpur, Panaji (Goa), Patna, Port Blair, Raipur, Sambalpur, Shillong, Simla, Srinagar, Thiruvananthapuram, Tirupati, Udaipur,Ranchi (Jharkhand) and Vishakapatnam. There are two parts of Indian Engineering Services written exam, Objective Papers of 600 marks and Con-PLAN AND STRATEGY FOR INDIAN ENGINEERING SERVICES A PATH OF GLORIOUS FUTURE ventional Papers of 400 marks ie total 1000 marks. Beside it there is personality test of 200 marks. IES exam total carries 1200 marks. Objective Papers consiis of three papers each carrying 200 marks of two hour duration. Here first paper is of General Ability Test divided in two parts-General English and Generra Studies and last two papers are from your chosen Engineering subjects. Part two of exam is consist of two Conventional Papeer of each 200 marks are from Engineering subjects. Here I am telling about General Studies, which is very important, because without qualifying in this paper, your other papers will not be evaluated and your all efforts will go in waste. So be careful and prepare this paper systematically. I am giving details about this paper and related study materials. General Ability Test UPSC has divided General Ability Test in two parts-Part A is General English and Part B is General Studiees Test of both subjects held in one session of two hours and carries 200 marks. General Ability Test is part of Objective Papers. The Objective Type papers, which carries 600 marks are very important, because these are evaluated first and evaluation of the Conventional Type papers contaiine in Section-II of the Plan of Examination will be done only of those candidates who obtain the minimmu qualifying marks in Objective types papers, as fixed by the Commission. So candidate must give importtanc to General Ability Test. They have often face difficulties in this paper, because their background is very much different. I think a good strategy is importaan for this. SECTION -2 : Civil Service Exam Strategy By : R. K. Pandey6 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 UNDERSTANDING GENERAL ABILITY About General English: The question paper in General English will be designed to test the candidate’s understanding of English and workmanlike use of words. About General Studies: The paper in General Studies will include knowledge of current events and of such matters as of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspects as may be expected of an educated person. The paper will also include questions on History of India and Geography of a nature which candidates should be able to answer without special study. Instructions And Details of UPSC About IES The examination shall be conducted according to the following plan: Part I of IES Examination Written examination will comprise two sections:-Section I consisting only of objective types of questions and Section II of conventional papers. Both Sections will cover the entire syllabus of the relevant engineering disciplines viz. Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electronics & Telecommunnicatio Engineering. The standard and syllabi prescribed for these papers are given in Schedule to the Appendix. The details of the written examination i.e. subject, duration and maximum marks allotted to each subjeec are given below:7 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Note:-Candidates are advised to read carefully special instruction to candidates for conventional type tests and objective type tests given in Appendix-IV (Part A & Part B) including the procedure regarding filling in the Answer Sheet of objective type tests in the Examination Hall. Conventional papers must be answered in English. Question papers will be set in English only. Candidates must write the papers in their own hand. In no circumstances will they be allowed the help of a scribe to write the answers for them. The Commission have discretion to fix minimum qualifying marks in any or all the papers of the examination. The Objective Type papers as contained in Section-I of the Plan of the Examination will be evaluated first and evaluation of the Conventional Type papers contained in Section-II of the Plan of Examination will be done only of those candidates who obtain the minimum qualifying marks in Objective types papers, as fixed by the Commission. Marks will not be allotted for mere superficial knowledge. Deduction up to 5 per cent of the maximum marks for the written papers will be made for illegible handwriting. Credit will be given for orderly, effective and exact expression combined with due economy of words in the conventional papers of the examination.In the question papers, wherever required, SI units will be used. NOTE:-Candidates will be supplied with standard tables/charts in SI units in the Examination hall for reference purpose, wherever considered necessary. Candidates are permitted to bring and use battery operated pocket calculators for conventional (essay) type papers only. Loaning or inter-changing of calculators in the Examination hall is not permitted. It is also important to note that candidates are not permitted to use calculators for answering objective type paper (Test book lets). They should not, therefore, bring the same inside the Examination Hall. Candidates should use only International form of Indian numerals (e.g. 1,2,3,4,5,6 etc.) while answering questiio papers.8 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Part II of IES Examination:-Personality test is second part of IES. It carries a maximmu of 200 marks of such of the candidates who qualify on the basis of the written examination. In the Personality Test special attention will be paid to assesssin the candidate’s capacity for leadership, initiatiiv and intellectual curiosity, tact and other social qualities, mental and physical energy, powers of practiica application and integrity of character. Standard and Syllabi:-The standard of paper in General Ability Test will be such as may be expected of a Engineering/Science Graduate. The standard of papers in other subjects will approximately be that of an Engineering Degree Examinnatio of an Indian University. There will be no practical examination in any of the subjects. What To Read For GS Portion:-1. Read a good newspaper,journals,yojana,mainstream 2. Any competitional magazine like Aspirants Times. 3. NCERT books on various topic of GS 4. Must watch programmes on current affairs 5. NBT books on History,India year book 6. A.B.C. of science(Holy faith),Any science journal or magazine 7. Indian Administration by Maheshwari,Our legislatiio by Subhash Kashyap,Constitution of India by D.D. Basu 8. Indian Economy by Dutt and Sundaram or Mishra & Puri 9. Geography by khullar,Any Atlas,Any statistical year book. Key to Success · Determination and positive attitude · Hard work and systematic study · Inner motivation · Strong willpower and faith in yourself · Focused and positive approach · Dedication, time management · Self-confidence This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/tips/Plan-And-Strategy-For-Indian-Engineering-Services9 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 UPSCPORTAL Provides following content free of cost to all its members : -Daily GS Dose -Study Material -Previous Year Papers -Current Affairs -Topper Interviews -Online Forum -Tips & Tricks -Books Information -Exams Syllabus -Online Results -Free Downloads -Coaching Center Information -Live Community Chat and much much more... Http://upscportal.com Register Online Now! WHY REGISTER? at www.upscportal.com10 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 G-20 Leaders’ Summit To Boost up Financial Markets and the World Economy The G-20 Leaders’ Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy was held in London on 2 April 2009. It followed the first G-20 Leadeer Summit on Financial Markeet and the W o r l d E c o n o m y , which was held in Washington, D.C. on 14–15 November 2008. Heads of government or heads of state from the Group of Twenty Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (G-20), plus some regional and international organisations attended. Due to the extended membership it has been referred to as the London Summit. The policing tactics at the event raised some controversy.G-20 leaders began gathering in London on 1 April 2009. Before leaving for the London Summit, French Presideen Nicolas Sarkozy suggested that if a meaningful deal was not agreed France would walk out of the summit echoing the “empty chair” gesture of then-French Presideen Charles de Gaulle in 1965. Brown and Obama said that suggestions of a rift were exaggerated. Sarkozy attennde a separate press conference with Merkel in which both repeated calls for the summit to agree on more stringent regulation of financial markets and restated their firm opposition to further financial stimulus packagges Summit Declaration: After end of summit a major declaration has been presennted Following points are According to declaration: · Because it is the greatest challenge to the world economy in modern times; a crisis which has deepened, which affects the lives of women, men, and children in every country, and which all countries must join together to resolve. A global crisis requires a global solution. · Prosperity is indivisible; that growth, to be sustained, has to be shared; and global plan for recovery must have at its heart the needs and jobs of hard-working families, not just in developed countries but in emergiin markets and the poorest countries of the world too; and must reflect the interests, not just of today’s populattion but of future generations too. the only sure foundattio for sustainable globalisation and rising prosperiit for all is an open world economy based on market principles, effective regulation, and strong global instituutions · The agreements to treble resources available to the IMF to $750 billion, to support a new SDR [IMF special drawing rights] allocation of $250 billion, to support at least $100 billion of additional lending by the MDBs [Multilateral Development Banks], to ensuur $250 billion of support for trade finance, and to use the additional resources from agreed IMF gold sales for concessional finance for the poorest countries, constiitut an additional $1.1 trillion programme of suppoor to restore credit, growth and jobs in the world economy. Together with the measures have each taken nationally, this constitutes a global plan for recovery on an unprecedented scale. · To establish a new Financial Stability Board (FSB) with a strengthened mandate, as a successor to the Finanncia Stability Forum (FSF), including all G20 countriies FSF members, Spain, and the European Commisssion The FSB should collaborate with the IMF to provide early warning of macroeconomic and financiia risks and the actions needed to address them; · Members were agreed to increase the resources availabbl to the IMF through immediate financing from members of $250 billion, subsequently incorporated into an expanded and more flexible New Arrangements Courtesy: Londonsummit.gov.uk SECTION -3 : Articles By : Dr. Nageshwar Nath Mishra11 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 to Borrow, increased by up to $500 billion, and to consiide market borrowing if necessary · Member countries are undertaking an unprecedented and concerted fiscal expansion, which will save or creaat millions of jobs which would otherwise have been destroyed, and that will, by the end of next year, amount to $5 trillion, raise output by 4 per cent, and accelerate the transition to a green economy. Mebers are committte to deliver the scale of sustained fiscal effort necessary to restore growth. · Central banks have also taken exceptional action. Interest rates have been cut aggressively in most countriies and central banks have pledged to maintain expansiionar policies for as long as needed and to use the full range of monetary policy instruments, includiin unconventional instruments, consistent with price stability. · In addition to reforming international financial instituttion for the new challenges of globalisation membeer agreed on the desirability of a new global consenssu on the key values and principles that will promote sustainable economic activity. We support discussion on such a charter for sustainable economic activity with a view to further discussion at our next meeting. We take note of the work started in other fora in this regaar and look forward to further discussion of this chartte for sustainable economic activity. · Members reaffirm their historic commitment to meetiin the Millennium Development Goals and to achieviin our respective ODA [Overseas Development Agenciies pledges, including commitments on Aid for Trade, debt relief, and the Gleneagles commitments, especially to sub-Saharan Africa. · The actions and decisions have taken will provide $50 billion to support social protection, boost trade and safeguard development in low income countries, as part of the significant increase in crisis support for these and other developing countries and emerging markets. Revolutionary Step: The IMF wants to use this money to offer a new kind of loan that would be preventative. Rather than waiting for countries to get into financial difficulties, it would offer them a line of credit to help them defend their currenciie in advance. In the past, countries were reluctant to ask for such money, as the financial markets got worried that they were in trouble. But Mexico has become the first country to ask for such a facility and there now seems to be less stigma about this approach. Much of the new IMF funds would be used in this facility, which would mainly be directed to the middle income countries who had relatively sound economies. But in an even more radical step, the G20 leaders appeea to have agreed to increase another type of IMF funds, the quotas owned by individual countries, by an additional $250bn. This would be done by creating more of its own currency, the SDR or special drawing right, which is a basket of currencies including the US dollar, the yen and the euro. This would give countries essentially free money, which they could use as they wish without having to negotiate deals with the IMF, and would do much to boost confidence among poorer countries. Many of them have been critical of the harsh conditiion imposed by the IMF before they are given help. In the past, such moves have always been resisted by Germany, on the grounds that creating money is inflationnary But in the current deflationary climate, they appear to have lifted their objections. Reform Looms: The IMF is also set to have a bigger role in preventing future crises, by developing an early warning system for financial problems, and taking a larger role in lookiin at the problems of the financial sector as a whole, in conjunction with a new global regulator, the Financiia Services Board. But the biggest changes in the IMF will come after 2011, when it has been agreed that there will be a review of the voting structure.12 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 That could lead to the US losing its veto power, while China and other emerging countries get a bigger voice. It has already been agreed that in future, the convention that the World Bank and IMF must be headed by an American and a European respectively will be abandoned. In return, China will be asked to lend some of its reserves to the IMF -and will continue to push for the idea that the SDR will become a real reserve currency, ultimately replacing the dollar. The changes to the resources and the role of the IMF are historic and perhaps the most important outcome of the G20 summit. But it must be borne in mind that providing more resources for the IMF can be only a short-term solution to the immediate crisis now engulfing developing countries. It is no substitute for a fiscal stimulus, as the money is loaned and must be paid back. Nor will it counter the need for additional development aid to counteract poverty. But it is a move towards a more global system of international finance. Agenda of Summit The British Treasury, as hosts, produced an extended agenda pamphlet proposing the issues to be covered at the London Summit. 1. Coordinated macro-economic actions to revive the global economy, stimulate growth and employment – review measures taken and possible further steps 2. Reform and improve financial sector & systems – continue to deliver progress on the Washington Summit action plan 3. Reform international financial institutions – the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Financial Stability Forum (FSF) and the World Bank Important steps to reconstruct and boost up World Economy :-¤ Restore confidence, growth, and jobs; ¤ Repair the financial system to restore lending; ¤ Strengthen financial regulation to rebuild trust; ¤ Fund and reform our international financial institutions to overcome this crisis and prevent future ones; ¤ Promote global trade and investment and reject protectionism, to underpin prosperity; and ¤ Build an inclusive, green, and sustainable recovery. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/article/G-20-Leaders-Summit-200913 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 G20 Agreement FINANCIAL REGULATION · A new Financial Stability Board, with a strengthened mandate, will replace the Financial Stability Forum · Financial regulation and oversight will be extended to all financial institutions, instruument and markets · This includes bringing hedge funds within the global regulattor net for the first time · Members are committed to implementing tough new rules on pay and bonuses at a global level · International accounting standards will be set · Credit rating agencies will be regulated in order to remove their conflicts of interest · A common approach to cleaning up banks’ toxic asseet has been agreed TAX HAVENS · There will be sanctions against tax havens that do not transfer information on request · The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Develoopmen has published a list of countries assessed by the Global Forum against the international standard for exchange of tax information IMF · Resources available to the International Monetary Fund will be trebled to $750bn · This includes a new overdraft facility, or special drawiin rights allocation, of $250bn · Additional resources of $6bn from agreed IMF gold sales will be made available for lending to the poorest countries · The G20 also supports increased lending to the world’s poorest countries of at least $100bn by the multilaatera development banks GLOBAL TRADE · There will be a commitment of $250bn of support for trade finance made over the next two years · This will be made available through export credit and investmeen agencies, as well as through multilateral developmeen banks · National regulators will be asked to make use of availabbl flexibility in capital requirements for trade finance PROTECTIONISM · The G20 has pledged to resist protectionism · There will be a commitment to naming and shaming countries that breach free trade rules · The G20 will notify the World Trade Organization (WTO) of any measures that constrain worldwide capitta flows · The G20 has called on the WTO to monitor and repoor publicly on these undertakings on a quarterly bassi FISCAL STIMULUS · Although there is no new fiscal stimulus, Gordon Brown said G20 countries are already implementing “the biggest macroeconomic stimulus the world has ever seen” -an injection of $5tn by the end of next year. Courtesy : londonsummit.gov.uk14 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 WHAT IS G-20 The G-20 (more formally, the Group of Twenty Finaanc Ministers and Central Bank Governors) is a group of finance ministers and central bank governors from 20 economies: 19 of the world's largest national economies, plus the European Union (EU). It also met twice at heads-of-government level, in November 2008 and again in April 2009. Collectively, the G-20 economiie comprise 85%of global gross national product, 80% of world trade (including EU intra-trade) and twothiird of the world population. The G-20 is a forum for cooperation and consultation on matters pertaining to the international financial systeem It studies, reviews, and promotes discussion among key industrial and emerging market countries of policy issues pertaining to the promotion of internatiiona financial stability, and seeks to address issues that go beyond the responsibilities of any one organization.The G-20 operates without a permanent secretariat or staff. The chair rotates annually among the members and is selected from a different regional grouping of countriies The chair is part of a revolving three-member management group of past, present and future chairs referred to as the Troika. The incumbent chair establisshe a temporary secretariat for the duration of its term, which coordinates the group's work and organiize its meetings. The role of the Troika is to ensure continuity in the G-20's work and management across host years. Members of G-20 In 2009, there are 20 members of the G-20. These incllud the finance ministers and central bank governors of 19 countries and The 20th member is the European Union, which is represented by the rotating Council presidency and the European Central Bank.List of 19 countries are following: In addition to these 20 members, the following forums and institutions, as represented by their respective chief executive officers, participate in meetings of the G-20. · International Monetary Fund · World Bank · International Monetary and Financial Committee Develoopmen Committee of the IMF and World Bank The membership of the G-20 comprises: · The finance ministers and central bank governors of the G7, 12 other key countries, and the European Union Presidency (if not a G7 member) · The European Central Bank · The Managing Director of the International Monettar Fund · The Chairman of the IMFC® Japan ® Mexico ® Russia ® Saudi Arabia ® South Africa ® South Korea ® Turkey ® United Kingdom ® United States ® Argentina ® Australia ® Brazil ® Canada ® China ® France ® Germany ® India ® Indonesia ® Italy15 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 · The President of the World Bank · The Chairman of the Development Committee Background of G-20: The G-20, which superseded the G33, which had itself superseded the G22, was foreshadowed at the Cologne Summit of the G7 in June 1999, but was formally establlishe at the G7 Finance Ministers' meeting on Septemmbe 26, 1999. The inaugural meeting took place on December 15-16, 1999 in Berlin. In 2008 Spain and The Netherlands were included by French invitation for the G-20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy and then were admitted as members de facto by the UK. G20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy was held in Washington on Novembbe 2009.In 2006 the theme of the G-20 meeting was “Building and Sustaining Prosperity”. The issues discussse included domestic reforms to achieve “sustained growth”, global energy and resource commodity markeets ‘reform’ of the World Bank and IMF, and the impact of demographic changes due to an aging populattion Trevor A. Manuel, MP, Minister of Finance, Republic of South Africa, was the chairperson of the G-20 when South Africa hosted the Secretariat in 2007. Guido Mantega, Minister of Finance, Brazil, was the chairperrso of the G-20 in 2008; Brazil proposed dialogue on competition in financial markets, clean energy and economic development and fiscal elements of growth and development. In a statement following a meeting of G7 finance ministers on October 11, 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush stated that the next meeting of the G-20 would be important in finding solutions to the (then called) economic crisis of 2008. An initiative by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown led to a special meeting of the G-20, a G-20 Leaders Summit on Finanncia Markets and the World Economy, on Novembbe 15, 2008. G20 leaders met again in London on 2 April 2009. Another G20 summit is scheduled to be held in New York City in September 2009. G-20 Vs G20 Developing Nations: The G-20 (more formally, the Group of Twenty Finaanc Ministers and Central Bank Governors) is a group of finance ministers and central bank governors from 20 large economies while the G20 (Group of 20, also variously G21, G22 and G20+) is a bloc of developpin nations established on 20 August 2003. The group emerged at the 5th Ministerial WTO conference, held in Cancun, Mexico from 10 September to 14 Septemmbe 2003. The G-20 accounts for 60% of the world's population, 70% of its farmers and 26% of world’s agricultural exports. Its origins date back to June 2003, when foreign ministter from Brazil, India and South Africa signed a declaraatio known as the Brasilia Declaration in which they stated that “major trading partners are still moved by protectionist concerns in their countries’ less competiitiv sectors and emphasized how important it is that the results of the current round of trade negotiatiion provide especially for the reversal of protectioniis policies and trade-distorting practices. Furthermore, Brazil, India and South Africa decided to articulate their initiatives of trade liberalization”. Nonetheless, the “official” appearance of the G-20 occurred as a response to a text released on 13 August 2003 by the European Communities (EC) and the United States with a common proposal on agriculture for the Cancun Ministerial. On 20 August 2003 a documeen signed by twenty countries and re-issued as a Cancun Ministerial document on 4 September propoose an alternative framework to that of the EC and the United States on agriculture for the Cancún Meetinng This document marked the establishment of the G-20. The original group of signatories of the 20 August 2003 document went through many changes, being known as such different names as the G-21 or the G-22. The title G-20 was finally chosen, in honor of the date of16 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 the group's establishment. Since its creation, the group has had a fluctuating membership. Previous members have included: Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Peru, and Turkey. As of October 2008, the group had 23 members. The core leadership of the G-20, known as the G4 bloc, consists of Brazil, China, India and South Africa. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/article/G20-Agreement-Financial-Regulation Looking for Brilliant Tutorials? Now you can buy online at www.upscportal.com http://upscportal.com/store ADVERTISEMENT *The Author is Professor And Head of the Department For History17 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 NORTH KOREA MISSILE THREAT SIGN OF FAILING TO ACCOMPLISH AN INTENDED RESULT OF SIX PARTY TALK North Korea carried out a provocative rocket launch Unha-2 on April 5,2009, but the rocket is better known to the outside world as the Taepodong-2, a long-range missile that can be mounted with a satellite or nuclear armament.U.S., Japan and other nations suspect was a cover for a test of its long-range missile technology.Liftoff took place from the coastal Musudan-ri launch pad in northeastern North Korea. The multistage rocket hurtled toward the Pacific, reachiin Japanese airspace within seven minutes, but no debris appeared to hit its territory. The U.N. Security Council approved an emergency session for in New York, following a request from Jappa that came minutes after the launch. The South Koreans called it ``reckless,'' the Americans ``provocativve,' and Japan said it strongly protested the launch.According to Japan The first stage of the rocket dropped about 175 miles (280 kilometers) off the westeer coast of Akita into the waters between Japan and the Korean peninsula. The second stage was to land in the Pacific at a spot about 790 miles (1,270 kilometeers off Japan's northeastern coast. The launch was a bold act of defiance against Presideen Barack Obama, Japanese leader Taro Aso, Hu Jintao of China and others who pressed Pyongyang in the days leading up to liftoff to call off a launch which would threaten peace and stability in Northeast Asia. South Korea's said the launch poses a ``serious threat'' to stability on the Korean peninsula and that it would respond to the provocation ``sternly and resolutely.'' North Korea claims its aim is to send an experimental communications satellite into orbit in a peaceful bid to develop its space program. While the U.S., South Korea, Japan and others suspect the launch is a guise for testing the regime's long-range missile technology -one step toward eventually mounting a nuclear weapon on a missile capable of reaching Alaska and beyond. They contend the launch violates a 2006 resoluttio barring the regime from ballistic missile activitty According to America ,the launch a clear violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1718, adopted five days after North Korea carried out a nuclear weapons test in 2006. Earlier this North Korea shocked Japan in 1998 when it launched a missile over Japan's main island. Japan has since spent billions of dollars on develoopin a missile shield with the United States and has launched a series of spy satellites primarily to watch developments in North Korea. MOVE OF JAPAN AND US AGAINST NORTH KOREA : Japan and the US have submitted to the UN the names of North Korean companies they believe to be associated with the country's weapons programme. The list of companies has been sent to the UN's Securiit Council's sanctions committee for consideration. The move to enforce sanctions against North Korea follows the country's long-range rocket launch on 5 April. According todiplomats China, which has a lot of trade with North Korea, will want to study the list before agreeing to it. The Council has started the procees of tightening the existing sanctions against North Korea. These sanctions were agreed in 2006 after North Korre tested a nuclear device, but they were never appliied North Korean companies suspected of being invollve in the government's weapons programme can have their financial assets, like bank accounts, seized if they are held abroad. North Korea reacted aggressivvel to the Council's condemnation of its launch and said it would throw out inspectors from the Internatioona Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and restart its nuclear programme. NORTH KOREA’s MISSILE PROGRAMME: North Korea is believed to have more than 800 ballis-SECTION -4 : Articles18 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 tic missiles, including long-range missiles which could one day strike the US.. North Korea first obtained tactiica missiles from the Soviet Union as early as 1969, but its first Scuds reportedly came via Egypt in 1976. Egypt is believed to have supplied North Korea with Scud-B missiles and designs in return for its support against Israel in the Yom Kippur War. By 1984, North Korea was building its own Scud-Bs and developed two new versions, the Scud-C and Scud-D. It has since developed a medium-range missile, the Nodong, and a long-range missile based on Scud technology, the Taepodong. In July 2006 it test-fired a modification to the Taepodong, called the Taepodong-2, which experts say could have a range of up to 6,000km (3,500 miles). The missile failed shortly after launch. SHORT-RANGE MISSILES: North Korea has a variiet of short-range missiles. The KN-02 is thought to be the most accurate, but its range -around 100 km -is the shortest. The Scud-B and C have ranges of 300 and 500 km respectively, while the Scud-D is believed to have a range of 700 km. It is thought that these missiile could deliver conventional warheads. The Scud-B, C and D have all been tested and deployed. These missiles would enable North Korea to strike any area in South Korea. The KN-02 missile, currently in the testing stage, could be aimed at key targets in South Korea such as military installations south of the bordeer NODONG MISSILE : The Nodong missile is thought to have a range of around 1,000 km and could potentiaall carry a nuclear warhead. But it is not accurate. A March 2006 report by the US Center for Non-proliferaatio Studies said it had a circular error probable of 2-4 km, meaning that half of the missiles fired would fall outside a circle of that radius. The Nodong could strike most of Japan but not with any accuracy. If it were fired on a military target, its inaccuracy could lead to high levels of civilian casualties. The missile was test fired in May 1993. TAEPODONG-1 MISSILE : The Taepodong-1 is a two-stage missile comprising Nodong and Scud parts and can reach a distance of 2,200km, but it is said to be even less accurate than the Nodong. North Korea tested a Taepodong-1 in August 1998, firing a missile over northern Japan. It brings US bases on Okinawa within North Korea's reach. But the missile must be fired from a fixed location and has a long preparation time, meaning that potential launches could be deteccted A land-based missile, the Taepodong-X, is also said to be under development but has not yet been tested. Based on a Soviet submarine-launched ballistti missile, it is thought to have a range of up to 4,000 km, reaching US bases on Guam. Unlike the Taepodong-1, it could be fired from mobile launch systems hidden from view. TAEPODONG-2 MISSILE : The Taepodong-2 longraang missile is estimated to have a range of between 5,000 and 6,000 km, putting Alaska, Hawaii and parts of the west coast of the US within range. But the first launch of the missile, in July 2006, appeared to be a failure after it crashed within seconds of launch -accorrdin to US sources. If the missile was successfully launched, it is not thought to be particularly accurate or to be able to carry a large warhead. Like the Taepodong-1, it requires a fixed launch site. The Taepodong-2 test took place from the Musudan-ri complle on the East coast of the Korean peninsula. Analyssi of satellite images of the area appear to show a range of missile fabrication, fuelling, testing and control faciliities NORTH KOREAN BACKGROUND : For decades North Korea has been one of the world's most secretiiv societies. It is one of the few countries still under communist rule. North Korea's nuclear ambitions have exacerbated its rigidly maintained isolation from the rest of the world. The country emerged in 1948 amid the chaos following the end of World War II. Its histoor is dominated by its Great Leader, Kim Il-sung, who shaped political affairs for almost half a century. After the Korean War, Kim Il-sung introduced the persoona philosophy of Juche, or self-reliance, which be19 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 came a guiding light for North Korea's development. Kim Il-sung's son, Kim Jong-il, is now head of state, but the post of president has been assigned "eternally" to his late father. Decades of this rigid state-controlled system have led to stagnation and a leadership dependent on the cult of personality. Aid agencies have estimaate that up to two million people have died since the mid-1990s because of acute food shortages caused by natural disasters and economic mismanagement. The country relies on foreign aid to feed millions of its people. The totalitarian state also stands accused of systematic human rights abuses. Reports of torture, public executioons slave labour, and forced abortions and infanticides in prison camps have emerged. A US-based rights group has estimated that there are up to 200,000 political prisoners in North Korea. Pyongyang has accused successive South Korean governments of being US "puppets", but South Korean President Kim Dae-jung's visit in 2000 signalled a thaw in relations. Seoul's "sunshine policy" towards the north aimed to encourage change through dialogue and aid. But this tentative reaching-out to the world was dealt a blow in 2002 by Pyongyang's decision to reactivate a nuclear reactor and to expel international inspectors. In October 2006 North Korea said it had successfully tested a nuclear weapon, spreading alarm around the region. Since then, intensive diplomatic efforts have aimed to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions. After years of on-and-off talks, a deal was thrashed out in February 2007 under which Pyongyang agreed to shut down its main nuclear reactor in return for fuel and aid. North Korea admitted International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors, who verified the shutdown of the Yongbyon reactor in July,2007. However, the denuclearisation process stalled yet again when Pyongyang failed to meet an end-of-year deadline to make a full declaration of its nuclear programmes. It eventually handed over a list of the country's nuclear assets in June 2008, and in October agreed to give international inspectors full access to its nuclear sites. The US responded by dropping North Korea from its list of states sponsoring terrorissm However, in December 2008 Pyongyang said it would slow down work to dismantle its nuclear programme in response to a US decision to suspend some aid. The process hit a new snag in 2009, when North Korea walked out of international talks aimed at ending its nuclear activities, in protest at UN criticism of a rocket launch by Pyongyang. North Korea maintains one of the world's largest standing armies and militarism pervades everyday life. But standards of training, discipline and equipment in the force are said to be low. In 2002 US President George W Bush named the country as part of an "axis of evil". FACTS Full name: The Democratic People's Republic of Korea Population: 23.9 million (UN, 2008) Capital: Pyongyang Area: 122,762 sq km (47,399 sq miles) Major language: Korean Major religions: Mainly atheist or non-religious, traditional beliefs Life expectancy: 65 years (men), 69 years (women) (UN) Monetary unit: 1 won = 100 chon Main exports: Minerals and metals, cement, agricultural products Eternal president: Kim Il-sung (deceased) Chairman, National Defence Commission: Kim Jong-il20 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 NUCLEAR DEVELOPMENT North Korea's missile development, which began in the early 1960s, benefited greatly from Soviet and Chinese assistance.In 2005 the United States Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) suggested that North Korre could attach a nuclear warhead to an Inter-Continennta Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capable of reaching the U.S. DIA testified that North Korea's ICBM under development, Taepodong-2, with a "guesstimated range of 5000 km" could deliver a "nuclear warhead to parts of the United States in a two-stage variant and target all of North America with a three-stage variant". At the same the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) testifiie that the North Korean missile was capable of reachiin the U.S. with a "nuclear-weapon-sized payload". This assessment came at a time when North Korea had not tested a nuclear device, a necessary step for developpin a reliable warhead system that can be delivered with long-range ballistic missiles. However, in March 2005 Pyongyang claimed that it had become "a fullfleedge nuclear-weapon state". Notwithstanding the DIA's statement, the U.S., according to National Securrit Adviser Stephen Hadley, had no clear evidence whether Pyongyang had a missile-capable warhead or not. These perception was based on an August 2003 CIA report, which said that North Korea had "validated" designs for "simple fission" nuclear weapons without conducting explosive tests. The U.S. Department of Defence defines "a simple fission weapon" as one that "could be delivered by aircraft or tactical missile" and not an ICBM. "In the near term", a 1999 DIA report said, North Korea would not be able to develop a nuclear warhead lighter than 650-700 kg but it added that Taepodong-2 could deliver a 650 kg warhead to Alaska, Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. Only with a much lighter warhead most of the U. S. would come under an ICBM threat. A 1999 National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), too, said that Taepodong-2 could deliive a "several hundred kg" payload. According to analysts, 650 kg is about the maximum payload weight that Taepodong-2 can deliver to parts of the U.S. Taepodong-2, which is also known as Paektusan-2, is yet to be flight-tested. The latest round of North Korea's seven missile tests on July 5, breaking the moratorium it had committed itself to with the U.S. in 1999 and with Japan in 2002, included Taepodong-2. But it failed 40 seconds after lift-off at Masudan-ri in North Hamyong province and crashed into the sea 1.5 km away. So, even if the nuclear test was a successful one with a compact missile-capable warhead, Pyongyang is yet to have an operational ICBM capability. U.S. intelligeenc believes this is only a matter of time. North Korea's missile development history perhaps makes it the most advanced among the later breed of missilecappabl nations. Some analysts feel that North Korea could have such an operational system by 2015. North Korea already has an array of short-and intermediateraang missile systems that can deliver conventional, chemical and perhaps biological weapons. It has deplooye 600 to 800 short-range (300-700 km) Hwasong (Scud) missile variants, 150 to 200 medium-range (1,000-1,300 km) Nodong missiles and maybe 10 intermeediat range (2,000-2,200 km) Taepodong-1 missilles The longer-range Taepodong-2 is perhaps ready for deployment (infographic on page 10). SOVIET AND CHINA HELPED NORTH KOREEA North Korea's missile development would seem to have benefited greatly from Soviet and Chinese assisttance It began the development of rockets and missiile in the early 1960s, with cooperation from the Soviet Union, which supplied surface-to-ship missiles and FROG-5/7 rockets. It is generally believed that the Soviets initially declined North Korea's requests for ballistic missiles in the mid-1960s, following which North Korea turned to China for ballistic missile developpment By 1970, it had begun to acquire surfacettoship missiles, surface-to-air missiles and technical assistance from China. In September 1971, North Korre and China signed an agreement for missile developmment However, the cooperation got under way sometime in 1977 when North Korean engineers par21 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 ticipated in the joint development of DF-61, a 600-km mobile ballistic missile. After this initial training, this cooperation seems to have ended. Despite the earlier refusal, North Korea succeeded in acquiring a few Soviet Scud missiles in the early 1970s. It also received a few Scud-B (R-17) short-range (300 km) missiles from Egypt between 1976 and 1981. North Korea's reverse engineering of Scuds seems to have begun then and an indigenous version of Scud-B (Hwasong-5) was developed and flight-tested in 1984. In 1985, Iran stepped in under a bilateral agreement to provide financial assistance for missile development in return for an offer of North Korean missiles. Experts believe that Iran's use of Scud-B during the Iran-Iraq war provided Pyongyang with flight data, thus obviating extensive testing on its own territory. Serial production of Hwasong-5 seems to have started around 1987. According to unconfirmed reports, between 1985 and 1988 the Soviet Union also delivered over 200 Scud missiles. North Korea soon undertook the development of the indigenous version of Scud-C with a longer range of 500 km, called Hwasong-6. Around 1987-1989, when serial production of Hwason-6 had started, the development of Nodong got under way. Flight tests were conduccte successfully in May 1993. Conti.. MAJOR EVENTS 1945 -After World War II, Japanese occupation of Korea ends with Soviet troops occupying the north, and US troops the south. 1946 -North Korea's Communist Party (Korean Workers' Party -KWP) inaugurated. Soviet-backed leadership installed, including Red Army-trained Kim Il-sung. 1948 -Democratic People's Republic of Korea proclaimed. Soviet troops withdraw. 1950 -South declares independence, sparking North Korean invasion. 1953 -Armistice ends Korean War, which has cost two million lives. 1992 -North Korea agreed to allow inspections by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), but over next two years refuses access to sites of suspected nuclear weapons production. 1994 -Death of Kim Il-sung. Kim Jong-il suceeded him as leader, but doesn't take presidential title. North Korea agreed to freeze nuclear programme in return for $5bn worth of free fuel and two nuclear reactors. 1995 -US formally agreed to help provide two modern nuclear reactors designed to produce less weapons-grade plutonium.22 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Six-nation talks 2002 October-December -Nuclear tensions mount. In October the US said North Korea has admitted to having a secret weapons programme. The US decided to halt oil shipments to Pyongyang. In Decemmbe North Korea began to reactivate its Yongbyon reactor. International inspectors had thrown out. 2003 August -Six-nation talks in Beijing on North Korea's nuclear programme failed to bridge gap between Washington and Pyongyang. October -Pyongyang saed it has reprocessed 8,000 nuclear fuel rods, obtaining enough material to make up to six nuclear bombs. 2004 April -More than 160 killed and hundreds more injured when train carrying oil and chemicals hits power line in town of Ryongchon. June -Third round of six-nation talks on nuclear programme ends inconclusively. North Korea pulls out of scheduled September round. 2005 February -Pyongyang said it has built nuclear weapons for self-defence. 2006 July -North Korea test-fired a long-range missile, and some medium-range ones, to an internatioona outcry. Despite reportedly having the capability to hit the US, the long-range Taepodong-2 crashes shortly after take-off, US officials say. October -North Korea claimed to test a nuclear weapon for the first time. 2007 February -Six-nation talks on nuclear programme resumed in Beijing. In a last-minute deal, North Korea agreed to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for fuel aid. May -Passenger trains crossed the North-South border for the first time in 56 years. June -International inspectors visited the Yongbyon nuclear complex for the first time since being expelled from the country in 2002. July -International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors verify shutdown of the Yongbyon reactor. August -North Korea appealed for aid after devastating floods. 2008 June -North Korea maid its long-awaited declaration of nuclear assets Oct -The US removed North Korea from its list of countries which sponsor terrorism Dec -Pyongyang slowed work to dismanntl its nuclear programme after a US decision to suspend energy aid 2009 Jan -The North said it is scrapping all military and political deals with the South, accusing it of "hostile intent".5 April -Pyongyang launches a rocket carrying what it says is a communications satelliite14 April -After criticism of the launch from the UN Security Council, North Korea vowed to walk out of six-party talks. Conti.. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/article/North-Korea-Missile-Threat23 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Brief Statistics of the http://UPSCPORTAL.COM * India's Largest Online Community * 40000+ Members * 45000+ Daily Hits (1.4 Million Hits per Month) * Reach to 165+ Countries * http://www.upscportal.com upscportal@gmail.com CONTACT US : Website: Email: Contact Us: http://upscportal.com/civilservices/contact Website Statistics24 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 SECTION -5 : Hindi Article By: Sachchidanand25 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 200926 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 200927 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/hindi-article/special-economic-zone-in-india28 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 www.UPSCPortal.com is India’s largest Online community for IAS, Civil Services Aspirants. -40000+ Registered Members -Pan India Coaching Centers List -Access to 165 Countries Worldwide UPSCPORTAL Provides following content free of cost to all its members : -Daily GS Dose -Study Material -Previous Year Papers -Current Affairs -Topper Interviews -Online Forum -Tips & Tricks -Books Information -Exams Syllabus -Online Results -Free Downloads -Coaching Center Information -Live Community Chat and much much more... http://upscportal.com Learn more about www.UPSCPORTAL.COM29 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK! Please post your Feedback/Suggestions Online: http://upscportal.com/civilservices/contact30 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Swine Flu Attack Of New Virus H1N1 New cases of the deadly swine flu virus have been confirmed in April 2009 as far afield as New Zealand and Israel, as the UN warned it can not be contained.The US, Canada, Spain and Britain confirrme cases earlier but no deaths have been reported outside Mexico, where the virus was first reported. Mexico has raised the number of probable deaths to 152, with 1,614 suspected sufferers under observation. UN inspectors examined reports pig farms may have spread the virus. The UN's health agency, the World Health Organization (WHO), confirmed that the flu had been transmitted between humans. Countries with suspected cases: Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia, and South Korea, and seven EU states is being transmittte from human to human. WHO PANDEMIC ALERT The EU said patients were also under observation in Denmark, Sweden, Greece, the Czech Republic, Germaany Italy and Ireland. Tests carried out on people in Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia and South Korea. A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Euroop have begun screening airport passengers for symptooms while Germany's biggest tour operator has suspennde trips to Mexico. The UN's Food and Agricultuur Organisation (FAO) have send a team to Mexico to investigate rumours that people had been falling ill near intensive pig farms. The WHO raised its pandemic alert status to level four two levels from a full pandemic -after concluding there had been sustained transmission between humans. Leveel five and six reserved for when there is widespread human infection. WHO said there were a number of cases in New York "which appear to be human-to-humma transmission".The UN body have encouraged countries to begin intensive surveillance of possible infection and send as much information as possible to the WHO. In Mexico, swine flu has been confirmed in 20 of the 152 known deaths. In almost all cases outsiid Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and have made a full recovery. Flu eins on their surface called antigens. If the immune system has met a particular strain of the virus before, it is likely to have some immunity; but if the antigens are new to the immune system, it will be weakened. The influenza A virus can mutate in two different ways; antigenic drift, in which existing antigens are subtly altered, and antigenic shift, in which two or more strains combine. Antigenic drift causes slight flu mutations year on year, from which humans have partial, but not complete, immunity. By contrast, the new strain of H1N1 appears to have originated via antigenic shift in Mexican pigs The name "swine flu" is a slight misnomer as it is belieeve pigs acted as a mixing pot for several flu strains, containing genetic material from pigs, birds and humaans Most humans have never been exposed to some of the antigens involved in the new strain of flu, giviin it the potential to cause a pandemic. The new virus has made the jump from pigs to humans and has demonsttrate it can also pass from human to human. This is why it is demanding so much attention from health authorities. The virus passes from human to human like other types of flu, either through coughing, sneezinng or by touching infected surfaces, although little is Courtesy : Trendsup dates .com SECTION -6 : Hot-Topics31 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 known about how the virus acts on humans. The new virus has made the jump from pigs to humaan and has demonstrated it can also pass from humma to human. This is why it is demanding so much attention from health authorities. The virus passes from human to human like other types of flu, either through coughing, sneezing, or by touching infected surfaces, although little is known about how the virus acts on humans. The name "swine flu" is a slight misnomer as it is belieeve pigs acted as a mixing pot for several flu strains, containing genetic material from pigs, birds and humaans Most humans have never been exposed to some of the antigens involved in the new strain of flu, giviin it the potential to cause a pandemic. The new virus has made the jump from pigs to humaan and has demonstrated it can also pass from humma to human. This is why it is demanding so much attention from health authorities. The virus passes from human to human like other types of flu, either through coughing, sneezing, or by touching infected surfaces, although little is known about how the virus acts on humans. WHAT IS SWINE FLU Swine flu is a respiratory disease, caused by influenza type A which infects pigs. There are many types, and the infection is constantly changing. Until now it has not normally infected humans, but the latest form clearly does, and can be spread from person to person -probably through coughing and sneezing. The World Health Organization has confirmed that at least some of the human cases are a never-before-seen version of the H1N1 strain of influenza type A. H1N1 is the same strain which causes seasonal outbreaks of flu in humaan on a regular basis. But this latest version of H1N1 is different: it contains genetic material that is typicaall found in strains of the virus that affect humans, birds and swine. Flu viruses have the ability to swap genetic components with each other, and it seems likely that the new version of H1N1 resulted from a mixing of different versions of the virus, which may usually affect different species, in the same animal host. Pigs provide an excellent 'melting pot' for these viruses to mix and match with each other. Symptoms of swine flu in humans appear to be similar to those produced by standard, seasonal flu. These incllud fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills and fatigue. Most cases so far reported around the world appear to be mild, but in Mexico lives have been lost. When any new strain of flu emerges that acquires the ability to pass from person to person, it is monitored very closely in case it has the potential to spark a globba epidemic, or pandemic. The World Health Organizattio has warned that taken together the Mexican and US cases could potentially trigger a global pandemic, and stress that the situation is serious. However it is still too early to accurately assess the situation fully. Nobody knows the full potential impact of a pandemic, but experts have warned that it could cost millions of lives worldwide. The Spanish flu pandemic, which began in 1918, and was also caused by an H1N1 strain, killed millions of people. The fact that all the cases in the US and elsewhere have so far produced mild symptoom is encouraging. It suggests that the severity of the Mexican outbreak may be due to an unusual geographiicallyspecific factor -possibly a second unrelaate virus circulating in the community -which would be unlikely to come into play in the rest of the world. Alternatively, people infected in Mexico may have sought treatment at a much later stage than those in other countries. It may also be the case that the form of the virus circulattin in Mexico is subtly different to that elsewhere -although that will only be confirmed by laboratory analysis. There is also hope that, as humans are often exposed to forms of H1N1 through seasonal flu, our immune systems may have something of a head start in fighting infection. However, the fact that many of32 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 the victims are young does point to something unusual. Normal, seasonal flu tends to affect the elderly disproportioonately The virus appears already to have started to spread around the world, and most experts believe that containnmen of the virus in the era of readily available air travel will be extremely difficult. According to World Health Organization that restrictiin flights will have little effect. It argues that screeniin of passengers is also unlikely to have much impaact as symptoms may not be apparent in many infeccte people. HOW IT CAN BE HANDLED Two drugs commonly used to treat flu, Tamiflu and Relenza, seem to be effective at treating cases that have occurred there so far. However, the drugs must be adminisstere at an early stage to be effective. Use of these drugs may also make it less likely that infected people will pass the virus on to others. It is unclear how effectiiv currently available flu vaccines would be at offeriin protection against the new strain, as it is geneticaall distinct from other flu strains. US scientists are already developpin a bespoke new vaccine, but it may take months to perfeec it, and manufacture enough supplies to meet what could be huge demand. A vaccine was used to protect humans from a version of swine flu in the US in 1976.However, it caused serious side effects, including an estimated 500 cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome. There were more deaths from the vaccine than the outbreak. PRECAUTIONS Anyone with flu-like symptoms who might have been in contact with the swine virus -such as those living or travelling in the areas of Mexico that have been affeccte -should seek medical advice. But patients are being asked not to go into GP surgeriie in order to minimise the risk of spreading the diseaas to others. Instead, they should stay at home and call their healthcare provider for advice. After the WHO raised its alert level over swine flu, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office began advising against all but essential travel to Mexico. Avoid close contact with people who appear unwell and who have fever and cough. General infection contrro practices and good hygiene can help to reduce transmisssio of all viruses, including the human swine influeenza This includes covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, using a tissue when possiibl and disposing of it promptly. It is also important to wash your hands frequently with soap and water to reduce the spread of the virus from your hands to face or to other people and cleaning hard surfaces like door handles frequently using a normal cleaning product. If caring for someone with a flu-like illness, a mask can be worn to cover the nose and mouth to reduce the risk of transmission. The UK is looking at increasing its stockpile of masks for healthcare workers for this reason. But experts say there is no scientific evidence to support more general wearing of masks to guard against infections. Although there is no evidence that swine flu can be transmitted through eating meat from infected animals. However, it is essential to cook meat properly. A temperature of 70C (158F) would be sure to kill the virus.33 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 FLU PANDEMICS In 1918 The Spanish flu pandemic remains the most devastating outbreak of modern times. Caused by a form of the H1N1 strain of flu, it is estimated that up to 40% of the world's population were infected, and more than 50 million people died, with young adults particularly badly affected In 1957 Asian flu killed two million people. Caused by a human form of the virus, H2N2, combining with a mutated strain found in wild ducks. The impact of the pandemic was minimised by rapid action by health authorities, who identified the virus, and made vacciin available speedily. The elderly were particularly vulnerable In 1968 An outbreak first detected in Hong Kong, and caused by a strain known as H3N2, killed up to one million people globally, with those over 65 most likely to die. WHAT IS BIRD FLU The strain of bird flu which has caused scores of human deaths in South East Asia in recent years is a different strain to that responsible for the curreen outbreak of swine flu. The latest form of swine flu is a new type of the H1N1 strain, while bird, or avian flu, is H5N1. Experts fear H5N1 hold the potential to trigger a pandemic because of its ability to mutate rapidly. However, up until now it has remained very much a disease of birds. Those humans who have been infected have, without exception, worked closely with birds, and cases of human-to-human transmission are extremely rare -there is no suggestion that H5N1 has gained the ability to pass easily from person to person. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/hot-topics/Swine-Flu-Attack-Of-New-Virus-H1N134 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 INDIAN SPY SATELLITE RISAT-2 and ANUSAT SUCCESSFULLY PLACED IN ORBIT In its fifteenth mission carriie out from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC SHAR), Sriharikota on April 20, 2009 ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLVC112 successfully placed two satellites -RISAT-2 and ANUSAT -in the desired orbit. RISAT-2 is a Radar Imaging Satellite with the capability to take images of the earth during day and night as well as cloudy conditioons At the time of launch, RISAT-2 weighed about 300 kg and was realised by ISRO in association with Israae Aerospace Industries. The satellite was placed in an orbit of 550 km height with an inclination of 41 deg to the equator and an orbital period of about 90 minutes. This satellite will enhance ISRO’s capability for earth observaation especially during floods, cyclones, landslides and in disaster management in a more effective way. The 44 metre tall PSLV-C12 weighing 230 ton was launched from the Second Launch Pad (SLP) at SDSC SHAR in the Core Alone configuration without the use of six solid strap-ons. In this mission, in addition to RISAT-2, PSLV also carried A 40 kg micro satellite named ANUSAT, built by Anna University, Chennai. ANUSAT is the first experimental communication satelllit built by an Indian University under the over all guidance of ISRO and will demonstrate the technologiie related to message store and forward operations. In this flight, PSLV carried the indigenously developed Advanced Mission Computers and Advanced Telemettr System, which guided the vehicle from lift-off till Courtesy : ISRO.ORG (IMP) Get UPSCPORTAL , Jobs, Results, Notificcatio Alerts on Email. Step-1: Fill Your Email address in form below. you will get a confirmation email within 10 min. Step-2: Varify your email by clicking on the link in the email. (check Inbox and Spam folders) Step-3: Done! you will recieve alerts regularly on your email. Click here for Newsletter: http://upscportal.com/civilservices/newsletter35 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 the injection of the two satelllite in the desired orbit. The main payload, RISAT-2, was the first satellite to be separated in orbit at 1100 seconds after lift-off at an altitude of 550 km. With this successful launch, the versatility and the reliability of PSLV has been proved again underscoring its importtanc as the workhorse launch vehicle of India. This launch was the fourteenth consecutive success for PSLV. In these launches, PSLV has placed a total of sixteen Indian satellites and sixteen foreign satellites into Polar, Geosynchronous Transfer and Low Earth Orbits. It may be recalled that during its previous mission on October 22, 2008, PSLV had successfully launched Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, which is now exploring the moon from lunna orbit. FEATURES OF PSLV, RISAT-2 AND ANUSAT PSLV is a four-stage launch vehicle employing both solid and liquid propulsion stages. PSLV is the trusted workhorse launch Vehicle of ISRO. During 1993-2008 period, PSLV had fourteen launches of which thirteen were consecutively successful. PSLV has repeatedly proved its reliability and versatility by launching 32 spacecrafts (16Indian and 16 for international customerrs into a variety of orbits so far. It may be recalled that during its previous mission on October 22, 2008, PSLV had successfully launched Chandrayaan-1 spacecraaft which is now exploring the Moon from lunar orbit. In its standard configuration, the 44 m tall PSLV has a lift-off mass of 295 tonne. It is a four-stage launch vehiicl with the first and the third stages as well as the six strap-ons surrounding the first stage using HTPB based solid propellant. PSLV’s first stage is one of the largest solid propellant boosters in the world. Its secoon and fourth stages use liquid propellants. PSLVCC1 was launched without the six strapons in its ‘core alone’ configuration. PSLV-C12 weighs about 230 tonnes at lift off. It may be recalled that PSLV in its core alone configurattio had launched AGILE and TECSAR during 2007 and 2008 respectively. RISAT-2 is a Radar Imaging Satellite with all weather capability to take images of the earth. This Satellite will enhance ISRO’s capabiliit for Disaster Management applications,ANUSAT (Anna University Satellite) is the first satellite built by an Indian University under the over all guidance of ISRO and will demonstrate the technologies related to message store and forward operations“ HISTORY OF ARTIFICIAL SATELLITE The first artificial satellite was Sputnik 1, launched by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957, and initiating the Soviet Sputnik program, with Sergei Korolev as chief designer and Kerim Kerimov as his assistant. This in turn triggered the Space Race between the Soviet Union and the United States. Sputnik 1 helped to identify the density of high atmosphheri layers through measurement of its orbital change and provided data on radio-signal distribution in the ionosphere. Because the satellite's body was filled with pressurized nitrogen, Sputnik 1 also provided the first opportunity for meteoroid detection, as a loss of internal pressure due to meteoroid penetration of the outer surface would have been evident in the temperatuur data sent back to Earth. The unanticipated announccemen of Sputnik 1's success precipitated the Sputnik crisis in the United States and ignited the socallle Space Race within the Cold War.Sputnik 2 was launched on November 3, 1957 and carried the first Courtesy : ISRO.ORG36 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 living passenger into orbit, a dog named Laika. In May, 1946, Project RAND had released the Preliminaar Design of a Experimental World-Circling Spaceshhip which stated, "A satellite vehicle with appropriaat instrumentation can be expected to be one of the most potent scientific tools of the Twentieth Century. The United States had been considering launching orbiita satellites since 1945 under the Bureau of Aeronauutic of the United States Navy. The United States Air Force's Project RAND eventualll released the above report, but did not believe that the satellite was a potential military weapon; rather, they considered it to be a tool for science, politics, and propaganda. In 1954, the Secretary of Defense stated, "I know of no American satellite program." On July 29, 1955, the White House announced that the U.S. intended to launch satellites by the spring of 1958. This became known as Project Vanguard. On July 31, the Soviets announced that they intended to launch a satelllit by the fall of 1957. Following pressure by the American Rocket Society, the National Science Foundation, and the International Geophysical Year, military interest picked up and in early 1955 the Air Force and Navy were working on Project Orbiter, which involved using a Jupiter C rocket to launch a satellite. The project succeeded, and Explorer 1 became the United States' first satellite on January 31, 1958. In June 1961, three-and-a-half years after the launch of Sputnik 1, the Air Force used resources of the United States Space Surveillance Network to catalog 115 Earth-orbiting satellites. The largest artificial satellite currently orbiting the Earth is the International Space Station. TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL SATELLITE Anti-Satellite weapons/"Killer Satellites" are satellites that are armed, designed to take out enemy warheads, satellites, other space assets. They may have particle weaponns energy weapons, kinetic weapons, nuclear and/or conventional missiles and/or a combination of these weapons. Astronomical satellites are satellites used for observation of distant planets, galaxies, and other outer space objects. Biosatellites are satellites designed to carry living organiisms generally for scientific experimentation. Communications satellites are satellites stationed in space for the purpose of telecommunications. Modern communications satellites typically use geosynchronoou orbits, Molniya orbits or Low Earth orbits. Miniaturized satellites are satellites of unusually low weights and small sizes. New classifications are used to categorize these satellites: minisatellite (500– 200 kg), microsatellite (below 200 kg), nanosatellite (below 10 kg). Navigational satellites are satellites which use radio time signals transmitted to enable mobile receivers on the ground to determine their exact location. The relativvel clear line of sight between the satellites and receiiver on the ground, combined with ever-improving electronics, allows satellite navigation systems to measuur location to accuracies on the order of a few meters in real time. Reconnaissance satellites are Earth observation satelliit or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications. Little is known about the full power of these satellites, as governments who operrat them usually keep information pertaining to their reconnaissance satellites classified. Earth observation satellites are satellites intended for non-military uses such as environmental monitoring, meteorology, map making etc. Space stations are man-made structures that are desiggne for human beings to live on in outer space. A space station is distinguished from other manned space37 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 craft by its lack of major propulsion or landing facilitiie — instead, other vehicles are used as transport to and from the station. Space stations are designed for medium-term living in orbit, for periods of weeks, months, or even years. Tether satellites are satellites which are connected to another satellite by a thin cable called a tether. Weather satellites are primarily used to monitor Earth's weather and climate. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/hot-topics/Indian-Spy-Satellite BUY ONLINE AT UPSCPORTAL ONLINE STORE http://upscportal.com/store/tag/brilliant-tutorials ADVERTISEMENT38 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Current Affairs · The leader of South Africa's African National Congress, Jacob Zuma, has been officially elected on 6 May 2009 the country's president by members of parliament. The ANC won the generra election in South Africa. Jacob Zuma was fired as vice-president after being implicated in a graft scandal. The charges were dropped just before last month's election -amid evidence of government meddllin in pursuing the case. In February 2006, the controveersia polygamist was acquitted of rape in a separaat case, though he was widely criticised for his commeent about sex and HIV/Aids. · A group of Nepalese political parties has agreed to form a "national government" a day after Maoist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal resigned on 5 May 2009. After a meeting in Kathmandu, members of the Communnis UML party agreed to head the government. Mr Dahal, best known as Prachanda, resigned after the president opposed his decision to sack the army chief. The Maoists boycotted the all-party meeting. · Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi was conviccte of spying and sentenced to 8 years in prison on April 18,2009. 31-year-old dual American-Iranian citizze was arrested in January 2009 and initially accused of working without press credentials. A freelance journallis Roxana Saberi was reporting for National Publli Radio and other media. She had been living in Iran for six years. · Jatiya Party leader and former President Gen H M Ershad was cleared of 1982 'powergrab' charges on March 30,2009. He was sued for usurping state power, suspension of the constitution and declaration of martiia law in Bangladesh on Mar 24, 1982. Inu, now an MP as part of the same AL-led electoral alliance as Ershad's Jatiya Party, sued the former general for his takeover of state power. The CID final report was submittte to a Dhaka Metropolitan magistrate's court on Jan 30. Inu was asked to appear in the court to respond to the police report but did not. The court accepted the report and cleared Ershad. · Supreme National Security Council Secretary of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Dr Saeed Jalili, visited India on 28th March 2009. This visit was in keeping with the tradition of high level exchanges between the two countries. The two sides conducted a strategic review of India Iran relations and prospects for their further expansion. Their wide ranging discussions also coverre regional and international issues including terrorissm the situation in Afghanistan and energy security. · The name of the sleek aircraft inducted by the IAF for flying VVIPs is Rajdoot. It was rolled out from the tarmac of the Palam airport on April 1,2009. The aircrraf with the first citizen of the country onboard took its maiden flight to Assam without a glitch and the exclusive passengers enjoyed its style and comfort. · Former Cabinet Secretary Naresh Chandra was appoiinte chairman of the advisory board of Price Waterhouse India on April 22,2009. Price Waterhouse India (PW) recently set up an advisory board, which was expected to help the audit company reflect on the voice of external stakeholders in its strategic decision making. Former Comptroller and Auditor General of India V K Shunglu and former Chief Election Commissioner B Courtesy : Wikipedia.Org SECTION -7 : Current Relevant Facts39 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 B Tandon are other eminent members, who were induccte to the board. · Indian-American Sonal Shah was appointed head of the new Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participattio in the Obama administration. Sonal Shah, a Inddi Abroad Person of the Year in 2003 and co-founder of India Corps was a member of the Obama transition project's advisory board and co-chairperson of a transittio group that made recommendations about technollog and innovation, including innovation and civil society. · Advocate Anjali Waghmare was removed on grounds of professional misconduuc as Mohammad Ajmal Kasab’s lawyer. Allegedly she had first accepted brief of a witness in this case before deciding to defend Kasab. She was earlier on March 30,2009 appointed by the court to represent Kasab, the long surviving terrorist captured by police for the attacks that took place on November 26, 2008. · Fiji's President Ratu Josefa Iloilo abolished the constituttion assumed all governing power and revoked all judiccia appointments on April 10,2009 following the country's second-highest court ruled that armed forces chief Commodore Frank Bainimarama's government that took power after a 2006 coup was illegal. Fiji's militaar commander and Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama relinquished the prime minister's post but later he was sworn in again as Fiji's Prime Minister as the head of the interim government. · A sedition case was registered against MDMK generra secretary V. Gopalsamy known as Vaiko by the Chennai City police on April 9,2009. He warned in a speech that India would not remain one country if the war against the LTTE in Sri Lanka was not stopped. The case was registered under 13 (1) b of the Unlawffu Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2004 (advocaating abetting, advising or inciting the commission of any unlawful activity) and also under Section 124 -A and Section 505 (1) (b) of the Indian Penal Code. Sectiio 124-A relates to sedition (attempting to bring into hatred or contempt or exciting or attempting to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in India). · Former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori was conviccte of human rights crimes and sentenced to 25 years in prison on April 7,2009. A three-judge panel conviccte him of ordering a military death squad to carry out two massacres that killed 25 people during his 1990-2000 rule, when he was battling communist guerrilllas Later, he appealed to Peru's Supreme Court to overturn his 25-year prison sentence. A corruption scandda involving his spy chief, Vladimiro Montesinos, sank his government in 2000. Fujimori fled to exile in Japaan He was later arrested in Chile and extradited to Peru, where he often snoozed through testimony and took off his socks. First time a democratically elected Latin American president has been found guilty in his own country of such offenses. Other Latin American rulers faced trials over human rights crimes before Fujimori were military dictators or prosecuted outside their home countries. Alberto Fujimori was 45th Presideen of Peru and he was in office from July 28, 1990 to November 22, 2000. · According to Sri Lankan Defence Ministry, the head of the intelligence wing of the LTTE, Pottu Amman took overall command of the outfit due to fast deteriorattin mental health condition of Velupillai Prabakaran. Pottu Amman has not battlefield experience, so he appoiinte Velawan, the last of LTTE’s battle-hardened cadre, as the LTTE’s new military chief. · According to the overall ranking, compiled by the Wall Street Journal, Mobile phone maker Motorola's India-born chief Sanjay Jha became America's top paid CEO. Citigroup's Vikram Pandit tops the league among bailed out bank. Another Indian on the list is PepsiCo's Indra Nooyi at the 36th slot with a pay package of 13.9840 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 million dollar. Jha is the only CEO to get a compensatiio package exceeding 100 million dollar, with Occidental's Ray Irani at a distant second with 49.9 million dollar. Irani is followed by Walt Disney's Robeer Iger third rank. · Advocate S G Abbas Kazmi was appointed by court as the lawyer of Mohammed Amir Ajmal Qasab, the lone surviving gunman in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attaack He replaced Anjali Waghmare, who was removed by court. Another lawyer to defend Qasab is KP Pawar, who was appointed with Anjali Waghmare. The 54-year-old S G Abbas Kazmi had defended 25 to 30 accuuse in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts case and 3 accused in the Gulshan Kumar murder case who were ultimately acquitted by the court. · A native of Tamil Nadu and 1973 batch IAS officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre, Veeravalli Sundaram Sampath took over as the third election commissioner following the elevation of Navin B. Chawla as Chief Election Commissioner on April 21,2009. V S Sampath was Union Power Secretary prior to his elevation as the election commissioner in the Election Commissiio of India. Navin B. Chawla succeeded N Gopalaswami as the new Chief Election Commissioner of India. · Prime Minister of Denmark Anders Fogh Rasmussen selected as the new NATO Secretary-General on April 4. Later on he resigned as Denmark’s prime minister on April 5,2009. NATO leaders agreed unanimously to appoint him as the next head of the 28-member alliannc after US President Barack Obama convinced Turkke to drop its objections in NATO summit held at Strasbourg and Kehl. Rasmussen will succeed Jaap de Hoop Scheffer of the Netherlands, who steps down at the end of July 2009. · Shikha Sharma was appointed Managing Director and Chief Exicutive Officer of Axis Bank on April 20,2009. She was working as chief of the ICICI group’s life insurance business. · An Indian Foreign Service officer of the 1969 batch Nirupam Sen was appointed Special Senior Advisor to the President Miguel D Escoto Brockmann of the 192-member UN General Assembly on world financial and economic crisis. After retirement as Indian Ambassaado to UN on March 31,2009 Nirupam Sen had been made India’s high commissioner to Sri Lanka. · Virginia’s secretary of technology Aneesh Chopra was appointed as the Chief Technology Officer in Obama Administration. He included in a three-man team formed by U.S. President Barack Obama to help break Washington’s ‘bad habits’ of wasteful spending and move recession-hit America from recovery to prosperity. · She was appointed country head and group general manager of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporaatio (HSBC) India on April 15. Famous woman banker Naina Lal Kidwai had been with HSBC as CEO and deputy CEO for the last five years. Padma Shri awardee Naina Lal Kidwai is the first Indian woman to graduate from the Harvard Business School. She was listed the World's Top 50 Corporate Women from 2000 to 2003 by Fortune magazine. · Indian American star of Mira Nair's ‘The Namesake’, Kal Penn joined the White House staff as an associate director in the Office of Public Liaison. Born to Indian immigrant parents from Gujarat, the 31-year-old actor Kalpen Suresh Modi had a recurring role on Fox's popular TV show ‘House’ will play a new role connect Obama with the Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities, as well as arts groups. · According to recently released International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics 2009 by United Nations Industrria Development Organisation (Unido), the share of developing countries in the world’s manufacturing value-added output has almost doubled in the last 18 years due to the shift of production units and outsourcing of services from developed nations. Develoopin countries produced almost 30% of world manufacturing value added (MVA) at the end of 200841 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 as compared to 16% in 1990. The per capita MVA doubled as early as 2006, while the industrialised world achieved merely 30% increase. Among industrialised countries, Japan accounts for most MVA per capita, followed by Switzerland, Singapore, Ireland, Finland, Sweden, USA, Germany and Austria. Luxemburg, Republic of Korea, Denmark, Iceland, Canada, Belgium, United Kingdom, Norway, Netherlands, Italy and France come lower down the list. · For India, the growth rate of MVA output rose from 6.9% in 2000-2005 to 12.3% in 2005-2007. The MVA per capita grew 10.6 % in 2005-2007 compared to 5.2% in 2000-2005. The share of MVA in India’s gross domessti product (GDP) stood at 14.8% in 2006 compared to 13.8% in 2001. Manufacturing still contributes around 15% of GDP in India. International Yearbook 2009 ranks India among the world’s leading 12 producers of textiles (ranked 4th after China, the U.S. and Italy); electriica machinery and apparatus (5th); basic metals (6th); chemicals and chemical products (7th); leather, leather products and footwear (10th); coke, refined petroleum products and nuclear fuel (10th); machinery and equipmeen (12th); and motor vehicles (12th), based on 2007 figures. Among the leading developing countries, India figures among the top five. · Mughal Trust was set up on April 6,2009 to find and then help the families of the Mughal lines of descent. The Trust is brainchild of businessman Mohd Shahid Khan. The trust will also create pressure on the governnmen to bring back the remains of Bahadur Shah Zafar from Myanmar. · India successfully test-fired an improved version of nuclear-capable 'Prithvi-II' ballistic missile from a Tatra transporter erector launcher from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, about 15 km from Balasore, off the Orissa coast on April 15,2009. The indigenously developed surface-to-surface 'Prithvi-II' missile’s range is 350 km. The 8.56 meter-long and one meter wide twin engine missile features to deceive any anti ballistti missile and is equipped with "added inertial navigattion system. The missile is designed to operate with both liquid as well as solid fuel. It can carry conventioona or nuclear pay loads of 500 kg. · N. Gopalaswami retired from the post of Chief Electiio Commissioner of India on March 20,2009. A 1966 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre, N. Gopalaswami was appointed as Election Commissioner in January 2004. Later on June 30 2006, he succeeded B. B. Tandon as Chief Election Commissioner of India. · Home minister of Canada's British Columbia provinnce John van Dongen resigned on April 27,2009 aftte he was caught and fined for over-speeding. He was also fined 368 US dollar for his offence. · Leading film producer and director Shakti Samant passed away on April 9,2009 in Santacruz. He was 83. Shakti Samant launched the career of Sharmila Tagore with film, ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’ and directed films like Kashmir Ki Kali, Aradhana, An Evening in Paris, Amanush, Amar Prem, Anurodh,Anuraag, Ajnabee and Kati Patang. He directed Rajesh Khanna in films like Aradhana, Kati Patang, Amar Prem and Anuraag. Shakti Samant started his career with the cinema from the black and white era with Howrah Bridge. · Noted Hindi writer and Gandhian Vishnu Prabhakar died on April 11,2009 in New Delhi. He was 97. He wrote in almost all forms of prose-story, novels, plays, biography etc. Born on January 29, 1912, in the Mirapur village of Muzaffarnagar district in Uttar Pradesh, Dr Prabhakar was best known for his engaging biography of Bengali litterateur Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, ‘Awara Maseeha’. His first play was ‘Hatya ke Baad’. His body of works included ‘Dhalti Raat’ and ‘Swapnamayi’ (novel), ‘Navprabhat’ an ‘Doctoor (drama), ‘Sangharsh ke Baad’ (short stories), ‘Prakash Aur Parchhaiyan’, ‘Barah Ekanki’ and ‘Ashok’ (plays) and ‘Awara Maseeha’ (biography). He had over 50 pub42 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 lished works to his credit. He was awarded Padma Bhushan and the Sahitya Akademi Award for his novel Ardhanarishvara (The Androgynous God or Shiva). Dr Prabhakar had decided to donate his body organs in his will so his body was donated to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). · Bollywood actor-producer-director famous as style icon Feroz Khan passed away on April 27,2009 at his farmhoous in Bangalore after a prolonged battle with cancer. He was 69. Famous for his blockbusters like ‘Qurbani’ and ‘Dharmatma’, Feroz Khan appeared in more than 50 films. He made his Bollywood debut as the co-star in the movie Didi in 1960 and went on to star in a number of films in the 1970s and 1980s. The last film he acted in was Welcome in 2007. He won a Filmfare award for best supporting role in ‘Aadmi Aur Insaan’ in 1970 and was honoured with the lifetime achievement award in 2000. He was elder brother of actor-producer-director Sanjay Khan and father of Bollywood actor Fardeen Khan. · Veteran economist Raja Jesudoss Chelliah died in Chennai on April 7,2009. He was 86. He was chairmma of the Tax Reforms Committee and worked as Fiscal Adviser in the Union Finance Ministry. Padma Vibhushan awardee, foundiin Chairman of the Madrra School of Economics, Raja J Chelliah wrote nearly 15 books and various reseaarc papers. · Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Govind Singh Gurjar passed away in New Delhi on 6th April,2009. He was born in 1932 in Balakanangal village of Rajasthan. He was appointed to the post of Lt. Governno in March 2008 during the tenure of former Chief Minister N. Rangasamy. · Former President of Argentina Raul Alfonsin, who guided Argentina's return to democracy in the 1980s after seven years of brutal military rule, passed away on March 31,2009. He was 82. He was president from 1983 to 1989 and won international admiration for putting on trial and jailing the former military leaders. · Former heavyweight champion Greg Page passed away on April 27,2009 at his Louisville home at the age of 50. He lifted the WBA belt in 1984 during the post-Ali, pre-Tyson era. · Stunt master in Tamil cinema industry Rajkumar died at the age of 53. He is remembered as the fight master whose action choreography was strikingly similar to Sylvester Stallone in Rambo. Rambo Rajkumar has worked for over 450 films in five languages, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. · Rugby legend of Ireland Karl Mullen, who captained the 1948 Grand Slam winning team passed away at the age of 82. He won 25 international caps for Ireland in the 1940s and 1950s, playing at hooker. · Emergency was lifted on April 24 in Thailand. Earlier Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergeenc in the capital, Bangkok, and five provinces on April 12,2009 and Police and military units were deployed to enforce the decree. Summit between India and the Associiatio of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) was postponed. India’s Union Commerce and Industry Minisste Kamal Nath and other leaders were safely evacuatte from the venue at the resort town of Pattaya on April 11,2009. · More than 200 died in a quake in in L'Aquila of centrra Italy. A strong tremor shook on April 6,2009 damagge buildings and some of the 17000 left homeless. · The four-day Naval Commanders’ Conference was held at the Eastern Naval Command headquarters, in Visakhapatnam, from April 13 to 15,2009. The conferrenc focused on macro level issues pertaining to military strategy, operational logistics and matters impacctin the welfare and enhancement of satisfaction level amongst all ranks and ‘Coastal Security’. The Naval Commanders’ Conference is the highest decisiio making body of the navy. It meets annually to deliberate upon major operational issues that have a bearing on the nation’s maritime interests, coastal and offshore security, naval strategy, and operational and43 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 two member nations France and Germany. The summit reaffirmed the values, objectives and obligations of the Washington Treaty which unite Europe with the United States and Canada. · The Leaders of the Group of Twenty, met in London on 2 April 2009. They decided to treble resources available to the IMF to 750 billion dollar, to support a new SDR allocation of 250 billion dollar, to support at least 100 billion dollar of additional lending by the MDBs, to ensure 250 billion dollar of support for trade finance, and to use the additional resources from agreed IMF gold sales for concessional finance for the poorest countries, constituut an additional 1.1 trillion dollar programme of support to restore credit, growth and jobs in the world economy. They also pledged to do whatever is necessary to restore confidence, growth, and jobs, repair the financial system to restore lending, strengthen financial regulation to rebuild trust, fund and reform our international financial institutions to overcome this crisis and prevent future ones, promote global trade and investment and reject protectionism, to underpin prosperity and build an inclusive, green, and sustainable recovery. · International Labour Organisation (ILO) released ‘Global Employment Trends for Women’. The report suggeest that there is a gender aspect too to its impact on jobs. Stating that the emerging trends are extremely worrying for both men and women, the report explained the time has come for a coordinated effort internationally to stop the slowdown. At the global level, the share of the vulnerable employed among all women employed is as high as 52.7 per cent compared with 49.1 per cent for men. Recently many cases of Swine Influenza Virus were found in number of Asian and Latin American countries. 103 people have died of swine flu and about 1600 people have been infected with the virus in Mexico. The US has confirmed 20 cases. Mexico is recognised as the source of the virus. Many countries have issued a negative travel advice for Mexico, and China has ordered a ban on the import of pork from Mexico and a number of Latin American countries, after Russia took a similar measure earlier. Swine influenza is known to be caused by influenza a subtypes H1N1, H1N2, H3N1, H3N2 and H2N3 SIV refers to influenza cases that are caused by Orthomyxoviruses endemic to pig populations. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/current-affairs/Important-Current-Relevant-Facts44 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Books and Authors · Challenge and Strategy-Rethinking India’s Foreign Policy : Rajiv Sikri · A Better India, A Better World : N R Narayana Murthy · Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent : Eduardo Galeano · The Court and the Constitution of India: Summits and Shallows : O. Chinnappa Reddy · My Album: Pravin Mahajan · Soldiers' Saga Of Adventure: Col AP Tanwar · If Cricket Is a Religion, Sachin Is God: Vijay Santhanam and Shyam Balasubramaniam This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/current-affairs/Important-Current-Relevant-Facts45 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 40000+ Users 45000+ Hits Daily 1.4 Million(14 Lacs) Hits per Month 1100 Unique Users per day Top 1100 Websites in India -Online Shopping Store 29000+ Newsletters Subscribers Alexa Rating Free Services: Free Website for Coaching Centers Free Brochure Upload Free Enquiry Page Make most of the Internet Audience.. Contact Us Now... 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A bus carrying Sri Lankan team was attacked on March 3,2009 as it approachedthe stadium in Lahore before the scheduled third day of the second Test against Pakistan. The majority of 2011 Cricket World Cup matches scheduled to be hosted in Pakistan were switched to India. The tournament's organising committee decided that India will host 29 of the 49 matches, Sri Lanka will host 12 games while Bangladesh will stage eight. Thirteen venues in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh were selected for 49 matches of the ICC World Cup 2011. Eight venues will be in India, three in Sri Lanka and two in Bangladesh. The decision was taken in a meeting of the ICC World Cup 2011 Central Organising Committee (COC) at the Cricket Centre in Mumbai on April 28,2009. · South Africa won five match one-day cricket series with Australia by 3-2. Though, Australia lost to South Africa 3-2, it claimed a comfortable 47-run win in the fifth and last at the Wanderers. · England won the series by 3-2 with defeating West Indies in the fifth and final One-Day International cricket match at the Beausejour Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia on April 3,2009. Wisden Dream Team The prestigious Wisden Cricketers' Almanac published its Dream Test XI on April 8 in London. Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was named skipper of a Dream Test XI that includes Indians Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan. The players in the Wisden Test XI are Virender Sehwag (India), Graeme Smith (South Africa, vice-captain), Ricky Ponting (Australia), Sachin Tendulkar (India), Kevin Pietersen (England), Shivnarine Chanderpaul (West Indies), Mahendra Sing Dhoni (India, captain), Harbhajan Singh (India), Mitchell Johnson (Australia), Dale Steyn (South Afriica and Zaheer Khan (India). · Five Cricketers of the Year: James Michael Anderson (England), Dale Benkenstein, Mark Verdon Boucher and Neil Douglas McKenzie (South Africa) and Samantha Claire Taylor (England) have been included in the Five Cricketers of the Year 2009 of Wisden Almanack. The Five Cricketers of the Year represent a tradition that dates back in Wisden to 1889, making this the oldest individual award in cricket. Claire Taylor became the first woman to be included in the Five Cricketers of the Year. · Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008 : India’s explosive opener Virender Sehwag was chosen as the 'Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008'. He became sixth player to be honoured with the award instituted in 2004. SECTION -6 : SPORTS48 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 · Cricket team of Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands and Kenya qualified for the 2011 World Cup on April 17,2009. These four, along with Afghanistan, also secuure their one-day international status for the next four years. Afghanistan beat Namibia by 21 runs to achieve ODI status on April 17,2009. · Though denied a victory in the third and final Test cricket at Basin Reserve in Wellington by rain, India won the series by defeating New Zealand by 1-0. MS Dhonille Indian team won the test series against on Kiwi soil after 41 years. Earlier Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi led Indiia team won against New Zealand in 1967-68. India won the first Test in Hamilton by 10 wickets and drew the second Test in Napier. India's Gautam Gambhir was named man of the series. · India won under-19 three-day cricket series defeating Australia 3-2. The visitors Indian won two out of the three limited-over matches and then beat the Aussies in the first three-day game by nine wickets in Hobart to win the Under-19 International series between the two sides. However, in the second and final three-day match, Mitchell Marsh scored an unbeaten 69 to help Australia compile 127 and win the match. Mayank Agarwal of India was chosen Player of the Series for his exploits with the bat. The 17-year-old Karnataka lad made 379 runs at an average of 75.8 in his six innings. · BCCI working committee agreed to lift ban on players associated with the rebel ICL if they severed their links with the Subhash Chandra-owned League. The players would not be given any international assignments for a year after they quit the ICL but can immediately start playing in the domestic competition. The amnesty period is till May 31,2009. The BCCI also advised the other national boards to have a similla approach to the ICL, which had become a home for many disgruntled players from across the world. · Italian Roberta Vinci won her second WTA Tour title at the Barcelona Open tennis beating sixth seeded Maria Kirilenko of Russia 6-0, 6-4 on April 19,2009. Roberta Vinci won her first tour title in Bogota, Colombia, in 2007, when Tathiana Garbin of Italy retired during the third set with a stomach illness. · Defending champion Rafael Nadal won the Monte Carlo Masters titles beating thirdseeede Novak Djokovic 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 on April 19,2009. The toprannke Spaniard Nadal became the first player to win five straight Monte Carlo Masters titles. · Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won the Sony Ericsson Open women title on April 4,2009 beating World No. 1 Serena Williams 6-3, 6-1. ATP World Tour No. 4 Andy Murray won his third ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tennis tournament with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over No. 3 Novak Djokovic. He became first British champion at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram won the Men’s doubles. They beat Ashley Fisher and Stephen Huss by 6-7(4), 6-2, 10-7. · World number four Jelena Jankovic of Serbia defeaate Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain and won her first title of the season at the Andalucia Tennis Championshhip on April 12,2009. It was first final of Suarez Navarro. · The former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt won the United States in the U.S. men’s clay court tennis championnship defeating Wayne Odesnik on April 12,2009. It was his 498th career match and he moved closer to joining Roger Federer and Carlos Moya as the only active players with 500 or more victories. Secondseeede Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark beat Canadiia Aleksandra Wozniak 6-1, 6-2 to won the WTA clay court tournament. India’s Sania Mirza with Chinees Taipei’s Chia-Jung Chuang defeated Czech-American combine of Kveta Peschke and Lisa Raymond 6-3, 4-6, 10-7 and won the doubles WTA clay court tournament. It was Sania’s first WTA title of 2009. · Michael Jordan, David Robinson, John Stockton and coach Jerry Sloan were inducted in The Basketball Hall of Fame 2009 on April 6,2009. Jordan was a six-time49 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 NBA champion with the Chicago Bulls. Robinson was a 10-time NBA All-Star and double champion with the San Antonio Spurs, while Stockton became the NBA's all-time assists leader during his career with the Utah Jazz. · Jyoti Randhawa won final round of the Thailand Open at the Laguna Phuket Golf Club on March 8,2009. He blasted a flawless five-under 65 in the final round to cruise to a comfortable twostrrok victory over Rhys Davies of Wales at the Singha USD 500000. The 36-year-old Randhawa sank as many as five birdies to take his tally to 17-under 263 to pip Davies, who hit threeunnde 67 at Laguna Phuket Golf Club today. Chinese Taipei's Lu Wei-chih fired a five-under 65 to settle for third position, one stroke ahead of SSP Chowrasia (69) at tied fourth along with Chinees Wu Ashun (66). Among other Indians in fray, Gaganjeet Bhullar carded a one-under 69 to finish tied 10th with a total of 10-under 270. Anirban Lahiri's tied 19th spot with a total of 9-under 271, while Shiv Kapur finished tied 32 with a final round 69. · Angel Cabrera of Argentina won the 73rd Masters golf title with a par on the second sudden-death playoof hole on April 12,2009 a stunning recovery after puttiin his first play-off tee shot behind a tree. He defeats Kenny Perry and Chad Campell in a stunning play-off. Cabrera, Perry and Chad Campbell all finished 72 holes on 12-under par 276 to force the eighth sudden-death play-off in Masters history, which began at the 18th hole with Cabrera firing his tee shot behind a tree right of the fairway. · Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand won the second edition of the Ballantine’s championship after a play-off at a windswept Pinx Golf Club on Jeju Island in South Korre on April 26,2009. He shot a round of two-under-par 70 to move into joint first alongside Spain’s Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and local player Kang Sung-hoon on four under overall and force an extra hole at the par-4 18th. · Pankaj Advani won a record third Asian billiards championship title by defeating Peter Gilchrist of Singapore in the final of the Rewale Group Asian billiaard held at the P.Y.C. Gymkhana in Pune on April 19,2009. 23-year-old from Bangalore Pankaj Advani won the Asian title at Pune for the first time in 2005, at Myanmar in 2008. Zhang Anda of China won his first Asian under-21 snooker title by Noppom Saegkham of Thailand. · Jenson Button won Malaysian Grand Prix for a secoon straight victory after the race was abandoned when a ferocious storm lashed the Sepang circuit on April 5,2009. Nick Heidfeld, of BMW Sauber, came second and Timo Glock in a Toyota was third. Toyota’s Jarno Trulli came fourth, Rubens Barrichello in the other Brawn was fifth and Mark Webber in the Red Bull was sixth. World champion Lewis Hamilton picked valuable points by coming seventh with Nico Rosberg filling out the top eight. · Churchill Brothers won its maiden I-League footbaal title after a 6-2 thrashing of Mohammedan Sportiin in the last round encounter at Nehru Stadium Margao on April 16,2009. Sporting Clube de Goa defeaate Air India 3-1 at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium at Gurgaon to finish third in the league while Dempo, tied with Mahindra United on 31 points, finished fourth. Churchill topped the table with 46 points, earned Rs. 50 lakh as the winner’s prize money. The league’s top scorer Odafe Okolie with 26 goals in the tournament earned Rs. 50000. · India won the Azlan Shah title after a 13-year gap, defeating hosts Malaysia 3-1 in the final of the fivenattio hockey tournament on April 12,2009 in Ipoh (Malaysia). India also registered 3-0 win against Malayysi during the round-robin stage. Arjun Halappa (8th minute), Prabhjot Singh (20th) and Shivender Singh (41st) sounded the board for India through neatly worked out field goals. Halappa was adjudged 'Man of the Final', while captain Sandeep Singh was named 'Player of the Tournament'. Sandeep was the top goal scorer with 7 goals. New Zealand won the award of 'Fair Play'. Kumar Subramaniam of Malaysia was de50 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 clared Best Goalkeeper. The Indian team lost in the finna 1-2 at the hands of Argentina in 2008. New Zealand pipped Pakistan 2-1 in the third-fourth place play-off match. Final positions in Azlan Shah cup : 1. India, 2. Malaysia, 3. New Zealand, 4. Pakistan 5. Egypt. · International Master Deep Sengupta attained his secoon Grandmaster norm and topped a three-way tie to win the Doeberl Cup chess tournament at Canberra on April 13,2009. In the ninth and final round, Deep lost to Deepan Chakkravarthy also of India to remain on seven points. This was the biggest title for Deep in the open section, he also had won World boys’ under-12 title in 2000. Deep, Jones and Deepan received 2,700 Australian dollars each. · Indian shooter Gagan Narang won the gold in the men’s 50 m rifle 3 position and a bronze in 10m air rifle event at the ISSF World Cup in Chongwon, Korea. Thus The Hyderabad-based marksman became first ever Indian to win two medals at a single World Cup. Han Jinseeo of Korea and Aleksey Kamensky of Russuia won silver and bronze respectively in the men’s 50 m rifle 3 posittion Another Indian Sanjeev Rajput finished sixth in this competition. Zhu Qinan of China won gold and his compatriot Cao won silver in 10m air rifle event. Heena Sidhu of India won silver in 10 metre air pistol competition held in Beijing on April 21,2009. · Rahul Banerjee, Mangal Singh Champia and Jayanta Talukdar won the gold medal in the men’s recurve team championship at the World Cup archery on April 5,2009 at Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republiic The trio combined to hand Great Britain a 221-215 points defeat in the final. The women’s compound team, comprising Jhano Hansdah, Bheigyabati Chanu and Manjudha Soy, defeated Venezuela 219-208 in the bronze medal play-off. · Yulia Yefimova set a world record in the women’s 50 meter breaststroke by clocking 30.23 seconds at the Russian swimming championships. She shaved 0.08 seconds off the mark set by Australia’s Jade Edmistone in Melbourne in January 2006. · The 22-year-old Dinara Safina of Russia replaced Serena Williams as the World’s top-ranked women’s tennis player, despite never having won a Grand Slam. Her brother Marat was the men’s top player in the world in 2000. First time a brother and sister got N0. 1 positiio in the World. · Roshan Ferrao of India won the gold in the shortcllas event of the Asia Pacific body building championsshi recently at Christchurch in New Zealand. Shodhan Kumar Rai won the silver in the tall group. · Rohini Rau became the first Indian woman to finish on the podium of an international Olympic-class regaatt when she won the bronze medal in the 2009 Izola Spring Cup ISAF Grade 3 event in Slovenia on April 12,2009. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/study-material/Sports51 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 FREE BOOKS DOWNLOAD ORDER ONLINE NOW! ORDER ONLINE AT UPSCPORTAL ONLINE STORE http://upscportal.com/store/tag/free-books52 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Awards · The Russian-French mathematiciia Mikhail Leonidovich Gromov was selected for Abel Prize for 2009 for his revolutionary contributions to geometry. The award is given by The Norwegian Academy of Sciennc and Letters. Known as the ‘Nobel Prize for mathematics’ , the Abel Prize recognises contributions of extraordinary depth and influence to the mathematical sciences and has been awarded annually since 2003. It carries a cash award of 6000000 Norwegian krone (about Rs. 4.8 crore). 65-year-old-Russian-born Mikhail Leonidovich Gromov became a French citizen in 1992 and workiin as a professor at the Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques at Bures-sur-Yvette, France. · Winners of Pantaloons Femina Miss India 2009 were declared at the Andheri sports club in Mumbai on April 5,2009 in a star-studded colorful ceremony. 22-yearool Ekta Choudhury from New Delhi was crowned Pantaloons Femina Miss India Universe 2009. She will represent the country at the global beauty pageant 2009. Pooja Chopra was crowned Miss India World and Shriya Kishore won Miss India Earth 2009 title. · The show was choreographed by Marc Robinson and hosted by Bollywood beauty Malaika Arora Khan and star R. Madhavan and performed by bollywood actresses Priyanka Chopra, Kangana Ranaut and Genelia D’souza. The contestants dazzled the event in beautiful creations by designers Ritu Kumar, Rocky S. Pantaloons and Prasad Bidappa. The regal gold crowns for the winners were created by the World Gold Council and D'damas and presented by Collection g; crowns designed on a sun-moon-star theme. · Dadasaheb Phalke Academy felicitated film dignitarrie in an award function on May 4 at Bhaidas Auditorriu to commemorate 140th birth anniversary of Dadasaheb Phalke. Dadasaheb Phalke Academy is an All India Body of 38 Cine Associations. It is engaged in the service of Father of Indian Cinema. Name of awards and personalities are following:-Phalke Ratna Award: Manoj Kumar Phalke Legend Actor Award: Shammi Kapoor Phalke Golden Singer Award: Shamshad Begum Phalke Kalptaru Award: Prithvi Raj Kapoor (posthumoously Phalke Memorable Commercial Film Award: Ashutosh Gowariker Sub title winners of Pantaloons Femina Miss India 2009 · Pantaloons Femina Miss Fresh Face: Deeksha Seth · Femina Miss Beautiful Smile: Pooja Chopra · Femina Miss Talented: Ekta Chaudhary and Pooja Hegde · Evolve Femina Miss Photogenic: Dimple Patel · Kohler Femina Miss Bold: Akanksha Yadav · Talwalkars Femina Miss Beautiful Body: Pooja Chopra · Bajaj Allianz Femina Miss Confident: Karishma Karnik SECTION -7 : Awards Courtesy : msn.com53 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Phalke Academy for the senior most producer of India: Surendra Kapoor · Lasantha Wickrematunge was awrded UNESCO's 2009 World Press Freedom Prize. A journalist and editto of Sri Lanka, Lasantha Wickrematunge was assassinnate January 8, 2008. Wickrematunge is the secoon reporter in the award's 12-year history to be honorre posthumously, Anna Politkovskaya, the Russian journalist and human rights campaigner who was killed in 2006, was awarded the prize in 2007. · Distinguished journalist Neerja Choudhury was seleccte for the Prem Bhatia Award for her exemplary contribution in the field of political reporting. Senior journalist Gargi Parsai of The Hindu was awarded in the category of reporting on environment issues. Neerja Choudhury fought for social causes and was the first and only Civil Rights correspondent for an Indian newspaper when she was serving The Statesmma from 1982 to 1987. The award is given by the Prem Bhatia Memorial Trust to promote excellence in journalism in India by raising public consciousness. · Dr C.P. Chandrasekhar was chosen for the Dr. Malcolm Adiseshiah Award 2009. He is a Professor at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. This award is presented to an outstanding social scientist for his or her contribution in economiic and development studies and carries a citation and Rs. 2 lakh. · Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, whose creations incllud chapels, spas, museums and housing for seniors was awarded Pritzker Architecture Prize. Peter Zumthor is known for his ‘crisp look’ buildings and his approach to design and the nature of his practice. The Thermal Bath at Vals, Switzerland, built in 1996, is considered a masterpiece, and celebrated as a supeer example of simple detailing. The Kolumba Art Museum in Germany, the Kunsthaus Bregenz in Austrri and the Saint Benedict Chapel in Switzerland, are some of his other well known works. Pritzker Architecctur Prize is considered one of the highest honours and an equal to the Nobel Prize in Architecture. · Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards were given to 29 journalists. P. Sainath, Rural Affairs Editor of The Hindu and Karan Thapar were conferred ‘Journalists of the Year’ in print and broadcast categoriie respectively. Ms Nidhi Razdan of NDTV won the award in the category of reporting from Jammu and Kashmir, while V.K. Sasikumar of CNN-IBN was honoured for his reportage from the North-East. In the category of ‘Uncovering India Invisible (Print),’ Neelesh Mishra and Nagendra Sharma of Hindustan Times won the awards. The award in the broadcast category of the same segment went to Mridu Bhandari of CNN-IBN. · Tyre major MRF was given J.D. Power Award 2008 for customer satisfaction on April 9,2009 in New Delhi . According to the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2008 customer satisfaction index study, MRF is ranked highest in custoome satisfaction with original equipmeen tyres in India among five tyre manufactuurers · Noted Hindustani classical vocalist Pandit Jasraj was awarded Saraswati Sammanan at a function in New Delhi by Saraswati Music College as to mark its 85 years in the field of arts, music and dance. Saraswati Music College was established in 1924 by Shri Bansilalji, disciple of the veteran musician Pandit Maniramji of Mewati gharana. · Chinese dissident and writer Liu Xiaobo was given 2009 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award. He has been in detention since December 8, 2008 and held at an unknown location under a form of house arrest. Established in 1987, this award is given to honour writers anywhere in the world who have fought courageously in the face of adversity for the right to freedom of expression. · HCL Technologies Ltd (HCL) was chosen as one of Britain’s Top Employers 2009 by CRF International, the independent business research organisation. HCL a global IT services provider. This Article is Available Online Also http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/study-material/Awards54 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 ADVERTISEMENT COACHING through Audio Cassettes at Most Nominal Prices yet more effective and better than any Class-Room Coaching, you can Join. More than 70% Result in Prelimns for last 8 years. For the best Coaching through Audio Cassettes inside your home at most nominal prices, according to the latest syllabus. 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Free : One Philips Walkman with Stereo Head Phones & Two Chargeable Batteries , Battery Charger All above mentioned items are Original bought directly from Companies & come with warranty. BUY ONLINE AT UPSCPORTAL ONLINE STORE http://upscportal.com/store/tag/audio-education-forum55 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 1. Which canal links Red sea and Mediterranean sea? a) Panama canal b) Suez canal c) Palk strait d) None of these Ans: (b) 2. Arrange the following in descending order depending on their area -i) Pacific Ocean ii) Atlantic Ocean iii) Indian Ocean iv) Arctic Ocean a) i, iii, iv & iii b) i, ii, iii, & iv c) ii, iv, i & iii d) iii, iv, i & ii Ans: (b) 3) Which of the following countries are participating in the TAP gas pipeline project? i) Afganistan ii) Pakistan iii) Turkmenistan iv) Tanzania a) Only i, ii & iv b) ii, iii & iv c) i, ii & iii d) All the above Ans: (c) 4) Who was the first women to receive the Nobel Prize for literature? a) Grazia Deledda b) Pearl Buck c) Selma Ottilia Lovisa Legerlot d) Sigrid Lindset Ans: (a) 5) What is the name of telecom gaint of South Africa which was in news for it merger with Reliance Communication? a) MTN b) Cell C c) TelKom d) Neotel Ans: (a) 6) Which of the following energy companies had acquired chinese wind energy firm, Honiton energy holding? a) RS India Group b) Reliance Power c) PTC India d) Suzlon Energy Ltd. Ans: (d) 7) In which hill range is Kodai Kanal located? a) Nilgiris b) Palni Hills c) Animalai Hills d) Shevanoy HIlls Ans: (b) 8) Who was the first recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Kel Ratna Award in 1991-92? a) Anju George b) Pankaj Advani c) Leander Pacs d) Viswanathan Anand Ans: (d) 9) Which mountain range marks the border between northern and peninsular indian? a) Stpura Range MOCK SAMPLE PAPER SECTION -8 : Model Test Paper This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper56 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 b) Maikhal Rarge c) Ajanta Range d) Vindhya Range Ans: (d) 10) Which of the follwing state has has Transferred the power to Panchayats which are mentioned in the 11th schedule of the constitution? a) Karnataka b) Madhya Pradesh c) West Bengal d) Kerala Ans: (d) 11) Which of the folowing state is not bordering Nepal? a) Assam b) Uttara Khand c) West Bengal d) Bihar Ans: (a) 12) In the body, the adrenal glands are located? a) Above small intestine b) In the kindney c) Below tongue d) In the brain Ans: (b) 13) Who was the first Indian women to reach the finals of an olympic athletics event? a) Karman Maheshwari b) P. T. Vsha c) Aparna Popat d) Kamaljit Sandhu Ans: (d) 14) Who is considered as India’s premier imagist writer? a) Salman Sushid b) Kiran Desai c) Mulk Raj Anand d) Anita desai Ans: (c) 15) Conjunctivitis affects which part of the human body? a) The lungs b) The eyes c) The brain d) THe heart Ans: (b) 16) Which is the commercial wing of the indian space agency for marketing Indian space capabilities? a) ANTRIX b) ISRO c) ATLAS d) ANTRAX Ans: (a) 17) Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of youth development is situated is ehich state? a) Tamil Nadu b) Uttar Pradesh c) Andhra Pradesh d) Rajasthan Ans: (a) 18) Which of the following vitamins rich diet may help to protect against memory loss in old age? a) Vatamin A b) Vitamin B c) Vitamin C d) Vitamin D Ans: (c) 19) The founder of modern statistics is -a) Srivastav Ramanuja b) Ennstine c) Bhasker d) Karl Pearson Ans: (d) 20) Which of the following is not correctly matched? a) International Labour Organization -Geneva b) Universal postal Union -Washington c) Food and Agriculture Organization -Rome d) UN’s Environment Program -Nairobi Ans: (b) 21) In wich year was the international Physicians for the prevention of nuclear was awarded the Nobel Peace MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/m57 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Prize? a) 1985 b) 1995 c) 1990 d) 1994 Ans: (a) 22) Which of the following countries does not have Rupee as its currency? a) Nepal b) Seychelles c) Bhutan d) Mauritius Ans: (c) 23) Elephant Mountain are also called as -a) Cardamom Hills b) Khasi Hills c) Anamalai hills d) Mahendragiri Hills Ans: (c) 24) Siachen one of the world’s longest mountain glaciers, is located which mountain range? a) Pir Panjal b) Karakoram c) Ladakh d) Siwalika Ans: (b) 25) Which script is used for Hindi, Marathi, Sanskrit and Prakrit? a) Kharoshti b) Gurmukhi c) Devanagari d) None of the above Ans: (c) 26) Brine means -a) Solution of iodine in alcohol b) Solution of sulphur in barbon disulphide c) Solution of sodium chloride in water d) None of the above Ans: (c) 27) Which famous wildlife sanctuary in Assam is also known as the Kamrup sanctuary? a) Orang b) Kaziranga c) Manas Dibru -Saikhowa Ans: (c) 28) Which of the following is not correctly matched? a) Zaire -Africa b) parana -S. America c) Lena -Australia d) Volga -Russia Ans: (c) 29) The Tomu -Kalemyo road links India to which country? a) Myanman b) Afghanistan c) China d) Bhutan Ans: (a) 30) Which of the following banks has the maximum number of branches in foreign countries? a) SBI b) Bank Of Baroda c) PNB d) None of the above Ans: (a) 31) The new Goodwill Ambassador appointed for the united Nation Development Fund for women is also Princess of one of the country, She is -a) Bajrakitiyapha Mahidol of Thailand b) Devyani Rana of Nepal c) Masako Owada of Japan d) Camila Parker Bowlesof United Kingdom Ans: (a) 32) Which of the following Public Public section companies has been given the status of ‘Miniratna’ in category? a) Hindustan Copper Ltd. (HCL) b) Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL) c) Hindustan Aeronauticsal Ltd (HAL) d) Bharat Pertolium Corporation MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper58 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 Ans: (a) 33) Who was the founder of Tatwabodhni Sabha? a) Ram Mohan Rai b) Devendra Nath Taigore c) Keshav Sen d) Dayanand Saraswati Ans: (b) 34) Who among the following were invalved in Kanpur conspiracy case? a) Aurobindo Ghosh and Har Dayal b) Muzaffer Ahmed and S.A. Dange c) Bhagat Sight and Rajguru d) Sukhdev, Azad and Rajguru Ans: (b) 35) The second disarmament decade was observed by the UNO during the year of -a) 1990 -2000 b) 1980 -1990 c) 1970 -1980 d) 1960 -1970 Ans: (b) 36) In which year first session of Lok Sabha held? a) 1952 b) 1962 c) 1950 d) 1956 Ans: (a) 37) UNESCO declared world heritage site for -a) Nilgiri Mountain Railway b) Kalka Shimal Railway c) Darjiling Himalayan Railway d) None of these Ans: (b) 38) ‘Rods’ cells of cornea are responsible for -a) Vision in dim light b) Vision in bright light c) identification of colours d) Identification of depth Ans: (a) 39) The Nanga Parbat Peak is situated in the -a) Kara Koram Range b) Zaskar Range c) Laddakh Range d) Himalayas Ans: (d) 40) Which on of the following sectors attracted maximum foreign investment in 2007-08? a) Petrolium and natural gas b) Service sector c) Housing and Real Estate d) Power Ans: (b) 41) Generally the soil of the northern plains of India has been formed by -a) Degradation b) Aggradation c) weathering d) Erosion Ans: (b) 42) Nyaya System of Philosophy was founded by -a) Gautama or Aksapada b) Patanjali c) Kapila d) Satanika Ans: (a) 43) Ranu and Rima together can complete a piece of work in 35 days while Ranu alone can complete the same work in 60 days. Rina alone will be able to complete the same work in -a) 72 days b) 96 days c) 42 days d) 64 days Ans: (d) 44) A sum of money is divided between two persons in the ratio of 3.5; if the share of one person is Rs. 20 less than that of the other the sum? a) Rs. 75 b) Rs. 90 c) Rs. 85 MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper59 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 d) Rs. 80 Ans: (d) 45) Which of the following mobile network company has teamed up with social networking site my sapce to create an interactive music plaform? a) Airtel b) Reliance c) Vodafone d) Idea Ans: (c) 46) According to latest world investment report released by UNCTAD for 2008 the largest recipient of was -a) India b) Chaina c) USA d) UK Ans: (c) 47) Who has been elected as as the Chinanam of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) ? a) Rajat Gupta b) Ms Ravichandran c) Victor Fung d) Ratan Tata Ans: (c) 48) Who has been conferred with the ‘Global Vision’ award by us-india Business Council? a) Indra Noogi b) Sunil Mittal c) Sam Pitroda d) None of these Ans: (b) 49) Quinine & morphine are the -a) Stored food in fruits b) Substance essntial for maintaing osmatic pressure in plants c) Emmergency food stored in the stem d) Waste products of plants And: (d) 50) Which one of the following industrial product is not obtained by the bacterial fermentation? a) oxalic acid b) Citric acis c) Butyric acid d) Alcohol Ans: (a) 51) RBC are destroyed in -a) Spleen b) Liven c) Kidney d) Limph glands Ans: (a) 52) Which of the first Latin American country to signa Preferential Trade Agreement with India? a) Maxico b) Brazil c) Venezulea d) Chile Ans: (d) 53) Which of the following galnds controls the blood pressure in human body? a) Thyroid b) Pituitary c) Adrenaline d) kidney Ans: (b) 54) The first industrial policy resolution appeared in -a) 1948 b) 1956 c) 1958 d) 1962 Ans: (a) 55) Who among the following journalist was conferred with General Loeb Prize for his contribution in the field of Economic Journalism? a) Anshuman Tiwari b) Sanjay Jha MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper60 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 c) Nishikant Thakur d) Mrinal Pandey Ans: (b) 56) Sri Lankan team has won the Star Cricket Asia Cup 2008 after defeating -a) Pakistan b) India c) Bangladesh d) None of these Ans: (b) 57) National Rural Health Mission was launched in -a) 2006 b) 2007 c) 2005 d) 2004 Ans: (c) 58) Which one of the folowing is the correct statement? a) The mordern Kochi was Dutch colony till India’s independence. b) The Dutch defeated the portuguese and built fort williams in the mordern Kochi. c) The mordern Kochi was first a Dutch colony before the Portuguese took over from them. d) The mordern Kochin even become a part of the British colony. Ans: (b) 59) In India among the following locations the Dutch established their earliest factory at -a) Surat b) Pulicat c) Cochin d) Cassimbazan Ans: (b) 60) Who among the following was the first euro initiate the policy of taking part in the qurrels of prineces with a view to acquire territories? a) Clive b) Dupleix c) Albuquerque d) Warren Hosting Ans: (b) 61) Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched? a) Jahangir -William Hawkins b) Akbar -Sir Thomas Roe c) Shahjahan -Traverrien d) Aurangzeb -Manucci Ans: (b) 62) Which of the combination is correct? a) B.R. Ambedkar : President of Constitution Assembly b) Rajendra prasad : Nominated president of the Constituent Assembly c) G.V. Mavalan Khan : First speaker of the Lok Sabha d) Jawaharlal Nehru : First leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha Ans : (c) 63) Indian Constitution is created by -a) British Parliament b) National Congress c) Constituent Assembly d) Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Ans: (c) 64) The constituent assembly which framed the constitution of free India was set up under -a) Cripps Mission Plan b) Cabinet Mission Plan c) Wavall Plan d) None of above Ans: (b) 65) Which one of the following fundamental rights is not available the alien -a) Freedom of speech b) Equality before law c) Protection in respect of conviction against ex past facto laws d) Protection of life Ans: (a) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper61 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 66) It shall be the duty of every citizen of india to abide by the constitution and respect ots ideals and institutional the national flag and the national anthen -a) Art 35 b) Art 50 c) Art 51A d) Art 52 Ans: (c) 67) Right to constitutional remedies is given under -a) Art 20 b) Art 28 c) Art 30 d) Art 32 Ans: (d) 68) Swaran Singh committee was regarding -a) DPSP b) Minorities c) FRS d) Fundamental Duties Ans: (d) 69) Which is the longest committee in the Indian Parliament? a) Public Account Committee b) The Estimates Committee c) The Cmmitee on Public Undertaking d) The Rule Committee Ans: (b) 70) With regard to amendment the constitution the Rajya Sabha -a) Enjoys equal power with Lok Sabha b) Enjoys exclusive power to imitiate certain type of amendment c) Does not enjoy any powers d) Is associated with only certain types of amendment Ans: (a) 71) If a member of Parliament remains absent with out notice for 60 days then -a) Nothing happens b) His seat may be declared vacant c) He has to reapply for membership d) The speaker seeks on explanation from him Ans: (b) 72) The provision of non-confidence motion is also called -a) Question hour b) Adjournment motion c) Censure motion d) None of above Ans: (d) 73) Which are the following motion cannot be moved in Rajya Sabha -a) Cesure motion b) Adjourn motion c) No-day yet motion d) Noconfidence motion Ans: (d) 74) The government resign if a noconfidence motion is passed in -a) Lok Sanha b) Rajya Sabha c) Either Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha d) Joint Session of Parliament Ans: (a) 75) Who is authorised to decide a dispute regarding the disqualification of members of parliament? a) The President b) Supreme Court c) Election Commissioner d) President in constitution with Election Commission Ans: (d) 76) Freedom of speech for members of the parliament has been described -a) 105 b) 19 c) 19 (7) d) 104 Ans: (a) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper62 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 77) Under the constitution of India, The President -a) ..is eligible for re-election b) ..not eligible for re-election c) ..there is no such provision d) None of the above Ans: (a) 78) The condidate of the office of the president much be proposed by -a) At least 50 electors b) At least 200 electors c) At least 100 electors d) At least 150 electors Ans: (a) 79) The president of India is elected by -a) All the members of the Parliament b) All elected members of the Parliament c) All the elected members of the parliament and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the state d) All members of Rajya Sabha Ans: (c) 80) The Vice-President can be removed from his office before expiry of him term by the -a) President b) Members of the two house of Parliament c) Member of the Rajya Sabha d) The supreme court Ans: (b) 81) The President government operates on the principle of -a) Fusion of powers b) Separation of powers c) Division od powers d) Centralization of powers Ans: (b) 82) The status of the President of India resemble to -a) Crown of UK b) President of USA c) General Secretory of UN d) President of Nigeria Ans: (a) 83) President’s rule can be impased in a state for a maximum period of -a) Three months b) Six months c) One month d) Three years Ans : (d) 84) How many times has the President of India declared financial emergency so far -a) One once b) Only twice c) only thrice d) Never Ans: (d) 85) The Union Pulic Service Commission (UPSC) is concerned with recruitment of -a) Central Services b) All India Services c) Both (a) and (b) d) None of these Ans: (c) 86) The office of the district collector was created in India in -a) 1771 b) 1772 c) 1774 d) 1777 Ans: (b) 87) The most important feature in the community development programme is -a) Prevention of migration of rural people to gram area b) People participation c) Provision of relief during natural calanities d) Collection of land revenue by the local people Ans: (b) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper63 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 88) Which of the following ions violates the octal rule? a) I2 b) BR c) Te2 d) N3 Ans: (a) 89) ‘Grand Slam’ is related to which of the following games? a) Chess b) Tennis and Bridge c) Badmition d) Polo Ans: (d) 90) The approximate percentage of salt by which sea water is -a) 2.1% b) 5.2% c) 4.1% d) 3.6 Ans: (d) 91) What is the name of the currency of Belgium? a) Dollar b) Sterling c) Peseta d) Franc Ans: (d) 92) The author of the Book ‘Wating For The Mahatma’ -a) R.K. Ranayan b) N.A. Plakhiwala c) amrita Pritam d) m. Molgonkan Ans: (a) 93) Acceleration due to gravity on moon is 0.166 times that on the earth, a man weight 60Kg on Earth, Would weight ________..Kg on moon? a) 10 Kg b) 16.6 Kg c) 60 Kg d) 30 Kg Ans: (a) 94) What was the aim of Antyodya Programme? a) Elimination of urbon poverty b) Improving the living statements of SC’s c) Helping the poorest among poor d) Uplifting the minorities Ans: (c) 95) A weightless rubber baloon is filled with 200cc of water, its weight in water is equal to -a) 9.8/5N b) 9.8/10N c) 9.8/2N d) Zero Ans: (d) 96) Kisan credit card scheme was started in the year -a) 2000-01 b) 1996-97 c) 1999-2000 d) 1998-99 Ans: (d) 97) Father has blood group ‘A’ and Mother is of blood group ‘B’ find out possitive blood group in childrenaa Blood group ‘A’ b) Blood group ‘B’ c) Blood group ‘C’ d) Blood groups A, B, O & AB Ans: (d) 98) Ribisomes are cellular structures involved in -a) Photosynthesis b) Chemosynthesis c) Protien Sysnthesis d) Carbohydrate Synthesis Ans: (c) 99) Which of the following has a potentiality for harnessing of tidal energy in India? a) Gulf of Combay b) Gulf of Mannan MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper64 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 c) Bank waters of Kerala d) Chika Lake Ans: (a) 100) Exchange products of mammalian embryo are eliminate out by -a) Placenta b) Amniotic Fluid c) Allantois d) Ureters Ans: (a) 101. Which of the following methods are used to remove impurity (gangueasit as it is called in metallurgy) from metallic ores so as to extract metals from the latter ? (1). Roasting (2). Calcination (3). Precipitation (4). Electrolysis (5). Aluminothermic Select your answer from the choices given below : (a). 1,2,3 (b). 1,2,3,4 (c). 3,4,5 (d). 1,2,3,4,5 Ans: (d) 102. The hybrid between hores and donkey is called -(a). Pony (b).Colt (c). Mule (d). Zebra Ans: (c) 103. In India those farmers are called’marginal farmers’ who hold land up to-(a). 1 hectare (b). 2 hectare (c). 3 hectare (d). 4 hectare Ans: (a) 104. Which amendment act fixed the number of ministers-(a). 90th (b). 91st (c). 92nd (d). 93rd Ans: (b) 105. The metals, mainly used for minting coins during the mauryan period were-(a). Gold and Silver (b). Silver and Copper (c). Copper and Bronz (d). Lead and Bronz Ans: (b) 106. Which one of the following is not in the state list under the constitution of india-(a). Fisheries (b). Agriculture (c). Insurance (d). Betting and Gambling Ans: (a) 107. Consider the following about Sovereign wealth fund (swf)-(1). SWF is a state owend fund which comprises stocks, bonds property or other financial instrument. (2). Recently established SWF is managed by RBL. (3). The use of india’s forex neserves for setting up a SWF has been the subject of much bebate. Which of these statement(s) is/are correct ? (a). lonly (b). only (c). 1 and 3 (d). 3 and 2 Ans: (c) 108. Consider the followings-(1). Ratan Tata led investment commission has suggested a rural industrialization model based on garmenting business. (2). Commission has advised a 10-year tax holiday for MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper65 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 rural industries. (3). It suggested a flexible labour law for rural apparel units without restrictions on hiring and retrenchment. Select the code:-(a). only 1 and 2 are correct. (b). only 1 and 3 are correct. (c). only 2 and 3 are correct. (d). all are correct. Ans: (a) 109. What is Direct Market Access (DMA) ? (a). It is a recently SEBI introduced facility which allows brokers to offer clients direct access to the exchange trading system through the broker’s infrastructure without manual intervention by the broker. (b). It is a new policy for market reforms,initiated by central goverment. (c). Through MA, SEBI permits FDI for market. (d). None of these. Ans: (a) 110. Oilcrisis refers to-(a). Deficit in demand and supply of crude oil in india (b). Rising crude oil prices in international market (c). Rising crude oil prices in US (d). Rising edible oil prices in world Ans: (a) 111. Where was first apparel park developed ? (a). Cochin (b). Tirupur (c). Vishakhapatnam (d). Trivandrum Ans: (b) 112. Full form of AFTA is-(a). Asian Federation for Technology Agreement (b). ASEAN Free Trade Association (c). ASEAN Fixed Trade Association (d). Atlantic Free Trade Area Ans: (b) 113. The PH value of blood is-(a). 6.5 (b). 7.35 (c).6.3 (d). 8 Ans: (b) 114. The pollination of plant affected by snails is called-(a). Entomphily (b). Anemophily (c). Melacophily (d). Zoophily Ans: (c) 115. Which of the following reduces blood calcium level-(a). Parathormone (b). Calcitronin (c). Adrenal (d). Pancreas Ans: (c) 116. Which of the following is used in electrical fire extinguisher ? (a). water (b). carbon dioxide (c). foam (d). cacl4 Ans: (d) 117. Transistor was invented by-(a). Shockly (b). Huckel Debye (c). Mosley (d). Oswald Ans: (a) 118. Choose the wrong one-(a). Saliva-Ptylin (b). Pancreatic Juice-Trypsin (c). Succus entricus-Peptidase (d). Bile Juice-Gastriclipase Ans: (d) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper66 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 119. The is Synthesized by the bacteria present is the intestine-(a). Vitamin-A (b). Vitamin-B (c). Vitamin-K (d). Vitamin-C Ans: (b) 120. Till the birth of baby, foetus is enclosed in the-(a). Amniotic sac (b). Fellopian sac (c). Semniferous tubule (d). Valva Ans: (a) 121. Consider the following and choose the best answer-(1). canpus luetum secrets progesterone hormone at the time of ovalation (2). invitro fertilization is also known as test tube baby Select the answer-(a). 1 is correct (b). 2 is correct (c). 1 and 2 are correct (d). neither 1 nor 2 correct Ans: (c) 122. Recently Zillur Rahman is elected as a 19th President of which country-(a). Malaysia (b). Indonesia (c). Sudan (d). Bangladesh Ans: (d) 123. Who won the 2009 men’s single Australian open litle-(a). Rogar Federer (b). Sampras (c). Rafael Nadal (d). Andy Ram Ans: (d) 124. Which states e-Gazette Project and the web Portal of police has been chosen for the National Award for egovernance 2008-09 ? (a). Kerla (b). Gujrat (c). Andhra Pradesh (d). Himachal Pradesh Ans: (d) 125. In which country world social forum was hold recently ? (a). Brazil (b). Switgerland (c). China (d). Mexico Ans: (a) 126. In which of the following countries euthanasia is legalized ? (a). Belgium (b). Thailand (c). Luxembourg (d). All the above Ans: (d) 127. Who of the following is not included in the prime Ministers Global Advisory Council ? (a). L.N.Mittal (b). Amartya Sen (c). Ratan Tata (d). Sam Pitroda Ans: (c) 128. Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, become a new President of which African country after the with drawal of Ethipio ? (a). Kenya (b). Dijibouti (c). Nigeria (d). Somalia Ans: (d) 129. Which of the following Latin American country approved a new constitution in a referendum held in MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper67 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 the last week of janvary-2009 ? (a). Chile (b). Bolivia (c). Venezuela (d). Brazil Ans: (b) 130. Which state of india become first carban free state in india ? (a). Himachal Pradesh (b). Kerala (c). Gujrat (d). Uttarkhand Ans: (a) 131. How many languages of india are their in UNESCO’S list of counries having the Maximum number of dialects on the verge of extinction ? (a). 192 (b). 147 (c). 196 (d). 157 Ans: (c) 132. Hogenakkal controversy is between which of the following states ? (a). Kerala and Tamilnadu (b). Tamilnadu and AndhraPradesh (c). Maharastra and AndhraPredesh (d). Tamilnadu and KarnatakaPredesh Ans: (d) 133. What is Quark 2009 ? (a). Technical festival (b). Cultural festival (c). Handicraft festival (d). None of the above Ans: (a) 134. Which of the following country has over taken Russia as the main defance supplien to india ? (a). China (b). USA (c). Israel (d). France Ans: (c) 135. Working age population (15 to 64 years) in india is-(a). 53 percent (b). 63 percent (c). 69 percent (d). 72 percent Ans: (b) 136. Production of which of the following was over achieves in 2006-07 ? (a). Sugarcane (b). Oilseeds (c). Rice (d). Jute and Marta Ans: (a) 137. According to planning commission of india, except which one of the following factors, that contribute to agriculture growth, there has been declearation in the growth of all other factores-(a). Gross irrigated area (b). Jerms of trade (c). Area under fruits and vegetables (d). Credit supply Ans: (d) 138. Which one of the following states is the largest sugar production-(a). Maharastra (b). Uttar Pradesh (c). Punjab (d). Haryana Ans: (b) 139. Which of the following states have larger number of co-operative sugar mills-(a). Maharastra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana (b). Maharastra, Karnataka and Tamilnadu (c). Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Bengal (d). Punjab, Haryana and Gujrat Ans: (b) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper140. According to the authors of a set of simple charts spelling out death risks from various causes, which of the following shortens and person’s life by 5 to 10 years? (a). Smoking (b). AIDS (c). Liqor Drinking (d). Both a and b Ans: (a) 141.Nuclear Power supplies made what Percent of india’s electricity ? (a). About 4 percent (b). About 3 percent (c). About 5 percent (d). About 6 percent Ans: (b) 142. What is GBP108 mfund ? (a). Britain and Norway created and fund to help save the world’s second largest rainforest of central Africa’s Corgo basin. (b). it will use satellite imaging technology. (c). this fund curb the destruction of forest by providing alternative sources of income or energy. (d). All of the above. Ans: (d) 143. Which of the following chemicals present in the brain plays a key role in regulating emotions such as aggression ? (a). Acetylcholine (b). Histamine (c). Serotonin (d). Vasopressin Ans: (c) 144. Asia’s only and world’s second Human DNA Bank has been established by IQRA Biotech services under a public-private partnership in (a). New Delhi (b). Lucknow (c). Hyderabad (d). Banglore Ans: (b) 145. The provide betten medical serviceses corporation has established a model hospital at-(a). Lucknow (U.P) (b). Madurai (Tamilnadu) (c). Baddi (Himachal Predesh) (d). Nagpur(Maharastra) Ans: (c) 146. Which insurance company launched family medicare policy in which the sum insured floats oven the entire family ? (a).The United India Insurance (b). SBI Life Insurance Company (c). Oriental Insurance Company (d). Life Insurance Corporation Of India Ans: (a) 147. Nextzone, an information technology special Economic Zone (SEZ) is being established at-(a). Banglore, Karnataka (b). Panvel near Mumbai (c). Panki near Kanpur (d). Secundrabad near Hydrabad Ans: (b) 148. What is the name of india’s first power exchange which started operations on June 2008-(a). Chennai Power Exchange (b). Hindustan Power Exchange (c). Indian Energy Exchange (d). Mumbai Energy Exchange Ans: (c) 149. India’s first grid-connected Photovoltaic Solar power plant of 2MW has been established in-(a). Burwah district of W.Bengal (b). Bharuch district of Gujrat (c). Tanjavan district of Tamilnadu (d). Nellore district of Andhra Predesh Ans: (a) MOCK SAMPLE PAPER This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper69 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 150) Short term loans to correct the balance of payments problems are given by -a) I.M.F. b) I.B.R.D. c) I.D.A. d) A.D.B. Ans: (a) For more Online Quizzes visit: http://upscportal.com/civilservices/QUIZ This Model Paper is Available Online Also:-http://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/quiz/Mock-Sample-Paper MOCK SAMPLE PAPER ADVERTISEMENT70 Copyright © 2009 WWW.UPSCPORTAL.COM Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009 40000+ Users 45000+ Hits Daily 1.4 Million(14 Lacs) Hits per Month 1100 Unique Users per day Top 1100 Websites in India -Online Shopping Store 29000+ Newsletters Subscribers Alexa Rating Free Services: Free Website for Coaching Centers Free Brochure Upload Free Enquiry Page Make most of the Internet Audience.. Contact Us Now... Guaranteed Results Http://upscportal.com/civilservices/contact Advertise on www.UPSCPORTAL.COMhttp://upscportal.com Register Online to UPSCPORTAL.COM and get more free resources: http://upscportal.com/civilservices/user/register