Endeavor Handout General Knowledge

Topic - 1

IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES

January-
1. 4th January – World Braille Day (Birth anniversary of Louis Braille)
2. 9th January – Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas
3. 10th January – World Hindi Day [National Hindi Diwas – 14th September]
4. 11th January – World Laughter Day
5. 12th January – National Youth Day (Birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda)
6. 15th January – Army Day
7. 24th January – National Girl Child Day
8. 25th January – National Voters Day
9. 27th January – International Day for Victims of Holocaust
10. 30th January – Mahatma Gandhi’s Martyrdom Day
11. 30th January – Anti-Leprosy Day

February-
1. 2nd February – World Wetland Day
2. 4th February – World Cancer Day
3. 6th February – International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation
4. 7th February – Safer Internet Day
5. 11th February – International Day of Women and Girls in Science
6. 12th February – National Productivity Day
7. 13th February – World Radio Day
8. 13th February – National Women’s Day
9. 20th February – World Day of Social Justice
10. 21st February – International Mother Languages Day

March-
1. 1st March - Zero Discrimination Day
2. 3rd March – World Wildlife Day
3. 8th March – International Women’s Day
4. 15th March – World Consumer Rights Day
5. 20th March – International Happiness Day. The day follows the Bhutanese concept of Gross National Happiness
coined by King Jigme Singye Wangchuk in 1970s.
6. 20th March – World Sparrow Day
7. 21st March – World Forestry Day. Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover in India, while
Lakshadweep/Mizoram has the largest percentage of land under forest.
8. 21st March – World Poetry Day
9. 21st March – International Day for Elimination of Racial Discrimination
10. 22nd March – World Water Day
11. 23rd March – World Meteorological Day
12. 24th March – World Tuberculosis Day
13. 27th March – World Theatre Day

April –
1. 2nd April – National Maritime Day
2. 2nd April – World Autism Day
3. 6th April – International Day of Sports for Development and Peace
4. 7th April – World Health Day
5. 11th April – National Safe Motherhood Day
6. 12th April – International Day of Human Space Flight. Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin made his journey into outer
space on this day in 1961.
7. 18th April – World Heritage Day; also National Day for Monuments & Sites
8. 21st April – National Civil Services Day
9. 22nd April – International Mother Earth Day
10. 23rd April – World Book and Copyright Day. This day is the death anniversary of William Shakespeare.
11. 24th April – National Panchayati Raj Day. On this day in 1993, 73rd Constitutional Amendment came into force.
12. 25th April – World Malaria Day
13. 26th April – World Intellectual Property Day
14. World Immunization Week – Last week of April

May-
1. 1st May – International Labour Day or Mayday
2. 1st May – Maharashtra Day/ Gujarat Day; in 1960 the two states attainted statehood from Bombay
3. 3rd May – World Press Freedom Day
4. 3rd May – World Asthma Day
5. 8th May - World Red Cross Day
6. 11th May – National Technology Day; celebrated in commemoration of day of 2nd nuclear tests in Pokhran (1998).
7. 12th May – International Nurses Day. The day is the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, the founder of
modern nursing.
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8. 18th May – World Museum Day

9. 21st May – National Anti-terrorism Day
10. 21st May – World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue & Development
11. 22nd May – International Day for Biological Diversity
12. 29th May – International Everest Day
13. 31st May – World No Tobacco Day

June-
1. 1st June – World Milk Day
2. 1st June – Global Day of Parents
3. 5th June – World Environment Day
4. 7th June – World Food Safety Day
5. 8th June – World Ocean Day
6. 12th June – World Day against Child Labour
7. 14th June – World Blood Donation Day
8. 17th June – World Day to Combat Desertification
9. 20th June – World Refugee Day
10. 21st June – International Yoga Day
11. 21st June – World Hydrology Day
12. 23rd June – International Olympic Day
13. 23rd June – UN Public Service Day
14. 26th June – International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking
15. 29th June – National Statistics Day. Celebrated on the occasion of birth anniversary of P.C. Mahalanobis.

July-
1. 1st July – National Doctors Day. Birth anniversary of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy.
2. 1st July – GST Day
3. 11th July – World Population Day
4. 12th July – Malala Day
5. 14th July – Bastille Day or National Day of France
6. 15th July – World Youth Skills Day
7. 18th July – Nelson Mandela Day
8. 26th July – Kargil Vijay Diwas (1999 India-Pakistan War)
9. 28th July – World Hepatitis Day
10. 29th July – International Tiger Day
11. 30th July – International Day of Friendship

August-
1. First Week of August – World Breastfeeding Week
2. 7th August – National Handloom Day
3. 8th August – Quit India Movement (1942)
4. 9th August – International Day of World’s Indigenous People
5. 10th August – World Biofuel Day
6. 12th August – International Youth Day
7. 19th August – World Humanitarian Day
8. 19th August – World Photography Day
9. 20th August – World Mosquito Day. Dr. Ronald Ross discovered that malarial parasite is transmitted by female
Anopheles.
10. 20th August – Rashtriya Sadbhavana Diwas; Birthday of Rajiv Gandhi.
11. 26th August – Women’s Equality Day
12. 29th August – National Sports Day; Birthday of legendary hockey player Dhyanchand.

September-
1. 5th September – National Teachers’ Day. It is the birthday of 2nd President of India Dr. S. Radhakrishnan.
2. 8th September – International Literacy Day
3. 10th September – World Suicide Prevention Day
4. 14th September – Rashtriya Hindi Diwas
5. 15th September – International Day of Democracy
6. 16th September – International Day for Preservation of Ozone Layer. Montreal Protocol on Substance that
Deplete Ozone Layer was signed on this date in 1987.
7. 21st September – International Day of Peace
8. 26th September – International Day for Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons
9. 27th September – World Tourism Day
10. 29th September – World Maritime Day
11. 29th September – World Heart Day
12. 30th September – International Translation Day

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October-
1. 1st October – International Coffee Day
2. 1st October – International Day of Older Persons
3. 2nd October – International Non-violence Day
4. First Monday of October – World Habitat Day
5. 4th-10th October – World Space Week
6. 5th October – World Teachers’ Day
7. 7th October – World Habitat Day
8. 8th October – Indian Air Force Day
9. 10th October – World Mental Health Day
10. 11th October – International Day of Girl Child
11. 15th October – World Students’ Day
12. 15th October – International Day of Rural Women
13. 16th October – World Food Day
14. 17th October – International Day for Eradication of Poverty
15. 21st October – National Police Commemoration Day
16. 24th October – United Nations Day
17. 31st October – World Cities Day
18. 31st October – Rashtriya Ekta Diwas; Birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

November-
1. 5th November – World Tsunami Awareness Day
2. 10th November – World Science Day for Peace and Development
3. 11th November – National Education Day
4. 12th November – World Pneumonia Day
5. 12th November – Public Service Broadcasting Day
6. 14th November – World Diabetes Day
7. 14th November – National Children Day
8. 16th November – International Day for Tolerance
9. Third Thursday Day of November – World Philosophy Day
10. 19th November – International Men’s Day
11. 19th November – World Toilet Day
12. 19th November – National Integration Day
13. 20th November – Universal Children Day
14. 21st November – UN World Television Day
15. 25th November – International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women
16. 26th November – National Milk Day
17. 26th November – National Law Day/ Constitution Day

December-
1. 1st December – World AIDS Day
2. 2nd December – National Pollution Control Day. The day is celebrated in the memory of Bhopal Gas tragedy of
1984. The tragedy was caused by discharge of Methyl Isocyanate from Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL)
pesticide plant in Bhopal.
3. 2nd December – International Day of Abolition of Slavery
4. 3rd December – International Day of People with Disabilities
5. 4th December – Indian Navy Day
6. 5th December – International Volunteer Day
7. 5th December – World Soil Day
8. 9th December – International Anti-Corruption Day
9. 10th December – World Human Rights Day
10. 11th December – World Mountain Day
11. 14th December – National Energy Conservation Day
12. 16th December – Vijay Diwas (1971 India-Pakistan War)
13. 18th December – International Minorities Day
14. 22nd December – National Mathematics Day. The day marks the birth anniversary of Indian Mathematician
Srinivasa Ramanujan.
15. 23rd December – National Farmers’ Day
16. 24th December – National Consumer Day
17. 25th December – Good Governance Day

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Endeavor Handout General Knowledge

Topic – 2

BOOKS & AUTHORS

Part – I: Classic Books

S. No. Name of the Book Name of the Author
1 1283 Pele
2 Ain-i-Akbari Abul Fazl
3 Wealth of Nations Adam Smith
4 The Wonder That Was India AL Basham
5 Three Musketeers Alexander Dumas
6 An Uncertain Glory- India & Its Contradiction Amartya Sen & Jean Dreze
7 Flood of Fire Amitav Ghosh
8 River of Smoke Amitav Ghosh
9 Sea of Poppies Amitav Ghosh
10 The Glass Palace Amitav Ghosh
11 The Hungry Tide Amitav Ghosh
12 Kora Kagaz Amrita Pritam
13 Pinjar Amrita Pritam
14 Rasidi Ticket (autobiography) Amrita Pritam
15 Ahmedabad- A City in the World Amrita Shah
16 A Manifesto for Change: A Sequel to India 2020 APJ Abdul Kalam
17 Envisioning an Empowered Nation APJ Abdul Kalam
18 Forge Your Future: Candid, Forthright, Inspiring APJ Abdul Kalam
19 Ignited Minds: Unleashing the Power Within India APJ Abdul Kalam
20 India 2020: A Vision for the New Millenium APJ Abdul Kalam
21 Indomitable Spirit APJ Abdul Kalam
22 Inspiring Thoughts APJ Abdul Kalam
23 Mission India APJ Abdul Kalam
24 My Journey- Transforming Dreams into Reality APJ Abdul Kalam
25 The Luminous Sparks APJ Abdul Kalam
26 Turning Points: A Journey Through Challenges APJ Abdul Kalam
27 Wings of Fire: An Autobiography APJ Abdul Kalam
You are Born to Blossom: Take My Journey
28 APJ Abdul Kalam
Beyond
29 The White Tiger Aravind Adiga
30 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Arthur Conan Doyle
31 The God of Small Things Arundhati Roy
32 Babarnama/ Tuzuk-i-Baburi Babur
33 Gita Rahasya Bal Gangadhar Tilak
34 Harshacharita Bana Bhatt
35 Kadambari Bana Bhatt
36 Anand Math Bankimchandra Chatterjee
37 Natya Shashtra Bharat Muni
38 Doctor Zhivago Boris Pasternak
39 Descent of Men Charles Darwin
40 Origin of Species Charles Darwin
41 A Tale of Two Cities Charles Dickens

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42 David Copperfield Charles Dickens

43 Great Expectations Charles Dickens
44 Oliver Twist Charles Dickens
45 Divine Comedy Dante
46 Lady Chatterley's Lover DH Lawrence
47 Indian Philosophy Dr. S. Radhakrishnan
48 The Future of Indian Agriculture Dr. Yoginder K. Alagh
49 Love Story Eric Segal
50 The Old Man and the Sea Ernest Hemingway
51 Shahnama Firdausi
52 One Hundred Year of Solitude Gabriel Garica Marquez
53 Apple Cart George Bernard Shaw
54 Caesar and Cleopatra George Bernard Shaw
55 Pygmalion George Bernard Shaw
56 Animal Farm George Orwell
57 Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
58 Ramcharitmanas Goswami Tulsidas
59 Vinay Patrika Goswami Tulsidas
60 Invisible Man H. G. Wells
61 Grammer of Politics Harold Laski
62 Go Set a Watchman Harper Lee
63 To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
64 Time Machine HG Wells
65 Illiad Homer
66 Odyssey Homer
67 Gandhi's Printing Press Isabel Hofmeyr
68 Prison Diary Jai Prakash Narayan
69 Dhruvaswamini (play) Jai Shankar Prasad
70 Kamayani Jai Shankar Prasad
71 Skandagupta (play) Jai Shankar Prasad
72 Ulysses James Joyce
73 Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen
74 Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen
75 Discovery of India Jawaharlal Nehru
76 Glimpses of World History Jawaharlal Nehru
77 Letters from a Father to His Daughter Jawaharlal Nehru
78 Geet Govind Jaydev
79 Iron in the Soul Jean Paul Sartre
80 First Among Equals Jeffrey Archer
81 Paradise Lost John Milton
82 Paradise Regained John Milton
83 Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift
84 Around the World in Eighty Days Jules Verne
85 I Follow the Mahatma K M Munshi
86 Abhigyanshakuntalam Kalidasa
87 Kumarsambhava Kalidasa
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88 Meghdoot Kalidasa
89 Raghuvamsa Kalidasa
90 Ritusamhara Kalidasa
91 Das Kapital Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels
92 The Communist Manifesto Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels
93 Mother India Katherine Mayo
94 Arthashashtra Kautilya
95 And the Mountains Echoed Khaled Hosseini
96 The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
97 Thousand Splendid Sun Khaled Hosseini
98 A Bride for Sahib & Other Stories Khushwant Singh
99 Black Jasmine Khushwant Singh
100 Burial at Sea Khushwant Singh
101 Death at My Doorsteps Khushwant Singh
102 Delhi Khushwant Singh
103 I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale Khushwant Singh
104 Not a Nice Man to Know Khushwant Singh
105 Ranjit Singh: The Maharajah of the Punjab Khushwant Singh
106 Sex, Scotch & Scholarship Khushwant Singh
107 The Company of Women Khushwant Singh
108 The Good, the Bad & the Ridiculous Khushwant Singh
109 The History of Sikhs Khushwant Singh
110 The Mark of Vishnu Khushwant Singh
111 Train to Pakistan Khushwant Singh
112 Why I support the Emergency Khushwant Singh
113 The Inheritance of Loss Kiran Desai
114 Between the Lines Kuldeep Nayar
115 Emergency Alert Kuldeep Nayar
116 Freedom at Midnight Larry Collins & Dominique Lapierre
117 Mountbatten & Partition of India Larry Collins & Dominique Lapierre
118 Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
119 Childhood, Boyhood & Youth Leo Tolstoy
120 Resurrection Leo Tolstoy
121 The Kingdom of God is Within You Leo Tolstoy
122 War and Peace Leo Tolstoy
123 Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll
124 Yama Mahadevi Verma
125 Bharat-Bharati Maithili Sharan Gupt
126 Saaket Maithili Sharan Gupt
127 Gone With the Wind Margaret Mitchell
128 India Wins Freedom Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
129 Mother Maxim Gorky
130 Experiments with Untruth Michael Anderson
131 Hind Swaraj MK Gandhi
132 The Story of My Experiments with Truth MK Gandhi
133 How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia? Mohsin Hamid
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134 Moth Smoke Mohsin Hamid

135 The Reluctant Fundamentalist Mohsin Hamid
136 Coolie Mulkraj Anand
137 Lost Child Mulkraj Anand
138 Seven Summers Mulkraj Anand
139 The Private Life of an Indian Prince Mulkraj Anand
140 The Village Mulkraj Anand
141 Untouchable Mulkraj Anand
142 Bade Bhai Sahab Munshi Premchand
143 Gaban Munshi Premchand
144 Godaan Munshi Premchand
145 Idgaah Munshi Premchand
146 Kafan Munshi Premchand
147 Karmabhoomi Munshi Premchand
148 Namak ka Daroga Munshi Premchand
149 Nirmala Munshi Premchand
150 Panch Parmeshwar Munshi Premchand
151 Poos ki Raat Munshi Premchand
152 Prema Munshi Premchand
153 Premashram Munshi Premchand
154 Rangbhoomi Munshi Premchand
155 Seva Sadan Munshi Premchand
156 Shatranj ke Khiladi Munshi Premchand
157 Soz-i-Watan Munshi Premchand
158 A Passage to England Nirad C. Chaudhary
159 Autobiography of an Unkonwn Indian Nirad C. Chaudhary
160 Rubaiyyaan Omar Khayyam
161 My Music, My Life Pandit Ravi Shanakr
162 The Alchemist Paulo Coelho
163 The Republic Plato
164 Chitra Rabindra Nath Tagore
165 Ghare Baire Rabindra Nath Tagore
166 Gitanjali Rabindra Nath Tagore
167 Gora Rabindra Nath Tagore
168 The Gardener Rabindra Nath Tagore
169 Visarjan Rabindra Nath Tagore
170 Malgudi Days RK Narayan
171 Swami and Friends RK Narayan
172 The Bachelor of Arts RK Narayan
173 The Dark Room RK Narayan
174 The English Teacher RK Narayan
175 The Guide RK Narayan
176 The Vendor of Sweet RK Narayan
177 Waiting for the Mahatma RK Narayan
178 Monk Who Sold His Ferrari Robin Sharma
179 Who Will Cry When You Die Robin Sharma
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180 Gunga Din Rudyard Kipling

181 In Black and White Rudyard Kipling
182 Jungle Book Rudyard Kipling
183 The White Man's Burden (poem) Rudyard Kipling
184 A Garland of Memories Ruskin Bond
185 Blue Umbrella Ruskin Bond
186 Flight of Pigeon Ruskin Bond
187 Our Tree Still Grows in Dehradun Ruskin Bond
188 The Room on the Roof Ruskin Bond
189 After the Dark Night S.M. Ali
190 Midnight's Children Salman Rushdie
191 The Enchantress of Florence Salman Rushdie
192 The Ground Beneath Her Feet Salman Rushdie
193 The Satanic Verses Salman Rushdie
194 Broken Wings Sarojini Naidu
195 The Song of India Sarojini Naidu
196 Devdas Sharatchandra Chattopadhyaya
197 Arabian Nights Sir Richard Burton
198 Sunny Days Sunil Gavaskar
199 Satyarth Prakash Swami Dayanand
200 Utopia Thomas Moore
201 Home Tony Morrison
202 Ramayana Valmiki
203 War of Indian Independence VD Savarkar
204 Mahabharata Ved Vyas
205 A Suitable Boy Vikram Seth
206 A Suitable Girl Vikram Seth
207 An Equal Music Vikram Seth
208 The Golden Gate Vikram Seth
209 Mudrarakshasha Vishakhadutta
210 Panchtantra Vishnu Sharma
211 Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
212 A Bend in the River VS Naipaul
213 A House for Mr Biswas VS Naipaul
214 In a Free State VS Naipaul
215 India: A Million Mutinies Now VS Naipaul
216 India: A Wounded Civilization VS Naipaul
217 The Hindus- An Alternative History Wendy Doniger
218 King Lear William Shakespeare
219 Comedy of Errors William Shakespeare
220 A Midsummer Night's Dream William Shakespeare
221 All's Well That End's Well William Shakespere
222 As You Like It William Shakespeare
223 Hamlet William Shakespeare
224 Julius Ceasar William Shakespeare
225 King Lear William Shakespeare
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226 Love's Labour Lost William Shakespeare

227 Macbeth William Shakespeare
228 Much Ado About Nothing William Shakespeare
229 Othello William Shakespeare
230 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare
231 The Comedy of Errors William Shakespeare
232 The Merchant of Venice William Shakespeare
233 The Sonnets William Shakespeare
234 The Tempest William Shakespeare
235 Vanity Fair William Thackrey

Part – II: Contemporary Books

S. No. Name of the Book Name of the Author
1 Karmayoddha Granth Amit Shah
2 Politics of Opportunism RPN Singh
3 The Great Derangement: Climate Change and Unthinkable Amitav Ghosh
4 The Ministry of Utmost Happiness Arundhati Roy
5 Kashmir- the Vajpayee Years AS Dulat
6 The Exam Warriors Narendra Modi
7 Making India Awesome Chetan Bhagat
8 Who Moved My Interest Rates? D. Subbarao
Viswanathan Anand and Susan
9 Mind Master
Ninan
10 Hemant Karkare: A Daughter’s Memoir Jui Karkare
11 Courts of India Justice Ranjan Gogoi
12 Bridgital Nation N. Chandrasekaran
13 Girl Power: Indian Women Who Broke the Rules Neha J. Hiranandani
Rahul Agarwal and Bharathi
14 Turbulence and Triumph: The Modi Years
Pradhan
15 The Kiss of Life: How a Superhero and My Son Defeated Cancer Emraan Hashmi & Bilal Siddiqi
16 Savarkar: Echoes from a Forgotten Past Vikram Sampath
17 First They Erased Our Name: A Rohingya Speaks Habiburahman, Sophie Ansal
18 Obama: The Call of History Peter Baker
Iqbal Chand Malhotra and Maroof
19 Kashmir’s Untold Story
Raza
20 Vivekadeepini Adi Shankaracharya
21 India vs. Pakistan: Why Can’t We Just be Friends? Hussain Haqqani
22 To the Brink and Back: India's 1991 Story Jairam Ramesh
23 The Red Sari Javier Moro
24 Listening, Learning and Leading M. Venkaiah Naidu
25 My Life, My Mission Baba Ramdev
26 The New Delhi Conspiracy Meenakshi Lekhi
27 A Prime Minister to Remember Sushil Kumar
28 Lessons Life Taught Me Unknowingly Anupam Kher
29 Making of New India Bibek Debroy
30 Thousand Splendid Sun Khaled Hosseini
31 The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
32 Whispers of Time Dr. Krishna Saksena

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33 Jinnah Often Comes to Our House Kiran Doshi

34 Blood on My Hands: Confession of Staged Encounter Kishlay Bhattacharjee
35 Emergency Alert Kuldeep Nayar
36 Indian Fiscal Federalism Dr.YV Reddy
37 My Country My Life LK Advani
38 Chequered Brilliance: The Many Lives of V K Krishna Menon Jairam Ramesh
39 Designing Destiny: The Heartfulness Way Kamlesh Patel Daaji
40 Darkness to Light Lamar Odom
41 We are Displaced Malala Yousafzai
42 Saffron Swords Manoshi Sinha Rawal
43 Law, Justice & Judicial Power – Justice PN Bhagwati’s Approach Mool Chand Sharma
44 How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia? Mohsin Hamid
45 The Reluctant Fundamentalist Mohsin Hamid
46 Moth Smoke Mohsin Hamid
47 Khooni Vaisakhi Mr. Suri
48 Rebooting India Nandan Nilekani & Viral Shah
49 Every Vote Counts – the story of Indian elections Naveen Chawla
50 Virat: The Making of a Champion Neeraj Jha and Vidhanshu Kumar
51 Undaunted: Saving the Idea of India P. Chidambaram
52 From Possession to Freedom R. Uma Maheshwari
53 The Third Pillar Raghuram Rajan
54 Gandhi Before India Ramchandra Guha
55 Democrats and Dissenters Ramchandra Guha
56 Gujarat Files: Anatomy of a Cover-Up Rana Ayyub
57 Politics of Jugaad: The Coalition Handbook Saba Naqvi
58 Game Changer Shahid Afridi
59 Function of Data Sovereignty – the Pursuit of Supremacy Vinit Goenka
60 Death Under the Deodars Ruskin Bond
61 Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights Salman Rushdie
62 The Golden House Salman Rushdie
63 Ayodhya: city of faith, city of discord Valay Singh
64 On My Terms Sharad Pawar
65 An Era of Darkness: The British Empire in India Shashi Tharoor
Karunya Keshav and Sidhanta
66 The Fire Burns Blue: A History of Women’s Cricket in India
Pathak
67 Maharana Pratap: An Invincible Warrior Rima Hooja
68 The Paradoxical Prime Minister Shashi Tharoor
From Lehman to Demonetisation: A Decade of Disruption,
69 Tamal Bandopadhyay
Reforms and Misadventures
70 Poonachi or the Story of a Black Goat Perumal Murugan
71 Making of Legend Bindeshwar Pathak
72 Diabetes with Delight Anoop Mishra
73 Indian Cultures as Heritage Romila Thapar
74 Strangers No More: New Narratives from Northeast Sanjoy Hazarika
75 Matoshree Sumitra Mahajan
76 Indian Instinct Miniya Chatterjee
77 Dreamers: How Young Indians are Changing their World Snigdha Poonam

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78 Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump Whitehouse Michael Wolff

79 Born to be Hanged: Political Biography of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Syeda Saiyidan Hameed
80 Ants Among Elephants Dujatha Gidla
81 The Constitution of India: Miracle, Surrender, Hope Rajiv Dhawan
A World of Three Zeroes: The New Economics of Zero Poverty,
82 Mohammad Yunus
Zero Unemployment and Zero Carbon Emission
83 Hit Refresh Satya Nadella
st
84 Do We Not Bleed? Reflections of a 21 Century Pakistan Mehr Tarar
85 Xi Jinping’s China Jayadev Ranade
86 The Book Hunters of Katpadi Pradeep Sebastia
87 Imperfect Sanjay Manjrekar
88 Immortal India Amish Tripathi
89 An Ordinary Man’s Guide to Radicalism Neyaz Farooquee
90 What Happened Hilary Clinton
91 Artemis Andy Weir
92 Why I am a Hindu Shashi Tharoor
93 A Diary of Domestic Diva Shilpa Shetty
94 The New Wealth of Nations Surjit Bhalla
My Enemy’s Enemy: India in Afghanistan from the Soviet
95 Avinash Paliwal
Invasion to the US withdrawal
96 A State of Freedom Neel Mukherjee
97 I Do What I Do Raghuram Rajan
98 An Unsuitable Boy Karan Johar
99 An Ordinary Life Nawazuddin Siddiqui
100 Democracy’s XI: The Great Indian Cricket Story Rajdeep Sardesai

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Topic – 3

WHO’s WHO IN GOVERNMENT

Part-I: Executive Heads (as on March 2020)

S. No. Rank/ Post/ Position etc. Name of the Position Holder

1. President Ram Nath Kovind
2. Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu
3. Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Part – II: Council of Ministers (as on March 2020)

Important Cabinet Ministers

S.
Ministry Name of the Minister
No.
1. Home Minister Amit Shah
2. External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar
3. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
4. Railway Minister + Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal
5. Chemical & Fertilizer Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda
6. Finance Minister + Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
7. Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’
Road Transport & Highway Minister + Micro, Small & Medium
8. Nitin Gadkari
Enterprises Minister
Law & Justice Minister + Electronics & IT Minister +
9. Ravi Shankar Prasad
Communication Minister
10. Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Health & Family Welfare Minister + Science & Technology
11. Dr. Harsh Vardhan
Minister
12. Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Minister Ramvilas Paswan
13. Women & Child Development Minister + Textile Minister Smriti Irani
Environment, Forest & Climate Change Minister + Information
14. & Broadcasting Minister + Heavy Industries & Public Prakash Javedkar
Enterprises Minister
15. Social Justice & Empowerment Minister Thaawar Chand Gehlot
Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Minister + Rural Development
16. Narendra Singh Tomar
Minister + Panchyati Raj Minister
17. Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda
18. Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimarat Kaur Badal
19. Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister + Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
20. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
Parliamentary Affairs Minister + Coal Minister + Mines
21. Pralhad Joshi
Minister
22. Textile Minister Smriti Irani
23. Social Justice & Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot
Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister + Skill Development &
24. Dharmendra Pradhan
Entrepreneurship Minster
25. Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
26. Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Minister Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey
27. Animal Husbandry, Dairying & Fisheries Minister Giriraj Singh

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Important Ministers of State – Independent Charge (as on March 2020)

S. No. Ministry Name of the Minister
1. Labour & Employment Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar
Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and
2. Shripad Yesso Naik
Homeopathy (AYUSH) Department
3. Development of North Eastern Region Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh
4. Youth Affairs & Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju
5. Culture Minister + Tourism Minister Prahalad Singh Patel
6. Power + Renewable Energy Minister Raj Kumar Singh
Housing & Urban Development Minister + Civil Aviation
7. Hardeep Singh Puri
Minister
8. Shipping Minister Mansukh L. Mandaviya

Important Ministers of State (as on March 2020)

S. No. Ministry Name of the Minister
1. Defence Minister Shripad Yesso Naik
Prime Minister’s Office Minister + Department of Atomic
2. Jitendra Singh
Energy + Department of Space
3. Commerce & Industry Minister Hardeep Singh Puri
4. Health & Family Welfare Minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey
5. Road Transport & Highway Minister Gen. (retd.) V.K. Singh
6. Home Minister G. Kishan Reddy
7. Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Minister Parshottam Rupala
8. Social Justice & Empowerment Minister Ramdas Athawale
9. Rural Development Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti
10. Environment, Forest & Climate Change Minister Babul Supriyo
11. Finance Minister + Corporate Affairs Minister Anurag Thakur
12. Railway Minister Angadi Suresh Channabasappa
13. External Affairs Minister V. Muraleedharana
14. Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Minister Pratap Chandra Sarangi
15. Women & Child Development Minister Debasree Chaudhuri

Part – III: Chief Ministers of Indian States (as on March 2020)

S. No. State Name of the Chief Minister Political Party
1. Andhra Pradesh YS Jagan Mohan Reddy YSR Congress
Arunachal
2. Pema Khandu BJP
Pradesh
3. Assam Sarbananda Sonowal BJP
4. Bihar Nitish Kumar Janta Dal (United)
5. Chhattisgarh Bhupesh Baghel Indian National Congress
6. Delhi Arvind Kerjiwal Aam Aadmi Party
7. Goa Pramod Sawant BJP
8. Gujarat Vijaybhai Rupani BJP
9. Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar BJP
10. Himachal Pradesh Jairam Thakur BJP
11. Jharkhand Hemant Soren Jharkhand Mukti Morcha
12. Karnataka B. S. Yediyurappa BJP
13. Kerala P. Vijayan Communist Party of India (CPI)
14. Madhya Pradesh Kamal Nath Indian National Congress

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15. Maharashtra Uddhav Thackrey Shiv Sena

16. Manipur N. Biren Singh BJP
17. Meghalaya Conrad Sangma National Peoples’ Party (NPP)
18. Mizoram Pu Zoramthanga Mizo National Front (MNF)
Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party
19. Nagaland Neiphiu Rio
(NDPP)
20. Odisha Naveen Patnaik Biju Janta Dal
21. Puducherry V. Narayanasamy Indian National Congress
22. Punjab Capt. Amrinder Singh Indian National Congress
23. Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot Indian National Congress
24. Sikkim PS Golay Sikkim Krantikari Morcha
25. Tamil Nadu E. Palaniswami AIADMK
26. Telangana K. Chandrasekhar Rao Telagana Rashtra Samithi (TRS)
27. Tripura Biplab Kumar Deb BJP
28. Uttar Pradesh Yogi Aditya Nath BJP
29. Uttarakhand Trivendra Singh Rawat BJP
30. West Bengal Mamta Banerjee Trinamool Congress (TMC)

Part – IV: Judicial Officials (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person

1. Chief Justice of India Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde
2. Attorney General of India K. K. Venugopal
3. Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta
4. Chairman, 21st Law Commission of India Justice B.S. Chauhan
5. Chairman, 22nd Law Commission of India (To be announced)
6. Chairman, Bar Council of India Manan Kumar Mishra
Executive Chairman, National Legal Services
7. Justice N.V. Ramana
Authority (NALSA)
8. Chairman of National Green Tribunal (NGT) Justice Adarsh Goel

Part – V: Chief of Armed Forces (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person

1. Supreme Commander of Armed Forces Ram Nath Kovind
2. Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat
3. Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Mukund Narwane
4 Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria
5. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh

Part – VI: Constitutional Heads (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Chairperson of Rajya Sabha Venkaiah Naidu
2. Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha Harivansh Narayan Singh
3 Speaker of Lok Sabha Om Birla
4. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India Sunil Arora
5. Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Rajiv Mehrishi
6. Chairman of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Arvind Saxena

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Part – VII: Important Government Officials (as on March 2020 )

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Registrar - General of India and Census Commissioner Vivek Joshi
2. Central Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari
3. Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of India Bimal Julka
4. National Security Advisor (NSA) of India Ajit Kumar Doval
5. Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) of India Krishnamurthy Subramanian
6. Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA) of India Prof. K. Vijay Raghavan
7. Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister + DRDO Chairman G Satheesh Reddy
8 Cabinet Secretary Pradeep Kumar Sinha
9. Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla
10. Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey

Part – VIII: Heads of Intelligence Agencies (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Director General of National Investigation Agency (NIA) Y. C. Modi
2. Director of Intelligence Bureau (IB) Arvind Kumar
3. Director of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Rishi Kumar Shukla
4. Director of Research Analysis Wing (RAW) Samant Goel
5. Director General of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) Balesh Kumar
6. Director of Enforcement Directorate (ED) Sanjay Kumar Mishra

Part – IX: Heads of Important Commissions (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Chairperson of Atomic Energy Commission K.N. Vyas
2. Chairperson of 21st Law Commission Justice B. S. Chauhan
th
3. Chairperson of 14 Finance Commission N. K. Singh
4. Chairperson of National Commission for Minorities Syed Ghayorul Hasan Rizvi
5. Chairperson of National Commission for Scheduled Castes Ram Shankar Katheria
6. Chairperson of National Commission for Scheduled Tribes Nand Kumar Sai
7. Chairperson of National Commission for Backward Classes Bhagwan Lal Sahni
8. Chairperson of National Commission for Women Rekha Sharma
9. Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission Justice H. L. Dattu
10. President of National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Justice R.K. Agrawal
11. Chairperson of University Grants Commission (UGC) D. P. Singh
12. Chairperson of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Arvind Saxena
13. Chairperson of Staff Selection Commission (SSC) Braj Raj Sharma

Part – X: Heads of Scientific Organizations (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Chairperson of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) K. Sivan
2. Chairman of Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) G. Satheesh Reddy
3. Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) Ajit Kumar Mohanty
4. Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) S. Somnath
5. Director of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) S. Pandian
6. Director General of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Dr. Shekhar C. Mande
7. Director General of The Energy & Resources Institute (TERI) Ajay Mathur

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Part – XI: Heads of Financial Institutions (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Shaktikanta Das
2. Chairperson of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Pramod Chandra Mody
3. Chairperson of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) M. Ajit Kumar
4. Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Alok Chaturvedi
5. Chairperson of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Ajay Tyagi
6. Chairperson of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) Subhash Chandra Khuntia
7. Chairperson of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Chintala Govinda Rajulu
8. Chairperson of Bank Board Bureau (BBB) Bhanu Pratap Sharma

Part – XII: Other Important Office-bearers in India (as on March 2020)

S. No. Name of the Post Name of the Person
1. Chairman of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) Prasoon Joshi
2. Director of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) B.P. Singh
3. Director of Enforcement Directorate (ED) Sanjay Kumar Mishra
4. Director General of Railway Protection Force (RPF) Dharmendra Kumar
5. Chairperson of NITI Aayog Narendra Modi
6. Vice - Chairperson of NITI Aayog Rajiv Kumar
7. Chairperson of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Ram Sewak Sharma
8. Chairperson of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Rita Teotia

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Topic – 4

LEGISLATURES/PARLIAMENTS OF DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

S. No. Name of the Country Name of the Parliament

1. Afghanistan Shora
2. Bangladesh Jatia Sansad
3. China National Peoples’ Congress
4. Denmark Folketing
5. Germany Bundestag
6. Iran Majlis
7. Israel The Knesset
8. Japan Diet
9. Mongolia Khural
10. Nepal Rashtriya Panchayat
11. Norway Storting
12. Pakistan Majlis-e-Shoora
13. Poland Scym
14. Russia Duma
15. Spain Crotes
16. Sweden Riksdag
17. USA Congress

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Topic – 5

IMPORTANT INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

S. No. Name of the Organization Headquarter Head/Chairman Salient Feature

• Established on – 24th October
1945 (UN Day).
• Total membership- 193; latest
member – South Sudan.
• Five (5) principal organs –
Manhattan Antonio Guterres General Assembly, Security
1. United Nations (UN)
(New York) (Secretary-General) Council, Economic & Social
Council, Secretariat,
International Court of Justice
• Members in Security Council – 5
Permanent members + 10 Non-
permanent members
• World Bank Group (WBG) is a
combination of five international
organizations viz. (i)
International Bank for
Reconstruction & Development
(IBRD) also known as World
Bank (ii) International
Development Agency (IDA) (iii)
International Finance
Corporation (IFC) (iv)
Multilateral Investment
Guarantee Agency (MIGA) (v)
David Malpass
2. World Bank Group (WBG) Washington International Centre for
(President)
Settlement of Investment
Disputes (ICSID)
• IBRD & IDA provides soft loans
to developing countries; IFC
gives loan to private corporates.
• Established in 1944 at Bretton
Woods (US). Therefore, WBG,
along with IMF, is called Bretton
Woods Institution.
• Anshula Kant of India was
appointed as the MD & CFO of
World Bank in July 2019.
• Established in 1944 Bretton
Woods conference.
• IMF doesn’t give loans; it only
provides short term loans to
member countries only during
Balance of Payment crisis.
• Voting power in IMF is based on
quota system. IMF has reformed
quota system in 2016. India now
International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva has a voting share of 2.6%;
3. Washington
(IMF) (Managing Director) China has 6% voting shares.
Largest share is with US
(16.5%).
• SDR (or Special Drawing
Rights) is the special currency
of IMF. It is also known as Paper
Gold.
• Gita Gopinath was appointed
as the Chief Economist of IMF on
1st January 2019.

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• A political & Economic union of

28 European countries
established in 1993 through
Treaty of Maastricht.
• Major reforms brought about in
2009 by Lisbon Treaty.
• Croatia is the newest member
(2013); negotiations are
underway with Turkey, Serbia &
• Ursula von der Montenegro.
Leyen • UK has decided to quit the
(President of membership (i.e. Brexit);
European before this Algeria and
Commission) Greenland exited in 1962 &
• Charles Michel 1985 respectively.
(President of • Major institutions in EU –
European European Parliament, European
Brussels Council); Council, The Council, European
4. European Union (EU)
(Belgium) • David Sassoli Commission, European Central
(President of Bank (ECB).
European • Eurozone or Euro Area is a
Parliament) sub-part of EU. It is a group of
• Christine 19 EU members countries
Lagarde established in 1999 which have
(President of adopted Euro (€) as their
European common currency. Lithuania
Central Bank) (2015) is the newest member.
UK & Denmark are not
members.
• Schengen Area is an area
comprising 26 European
countries that have abolished
passport, visa & other border
controls to establish common
borders. It functions as a single
country for international travel.

• It is an organization of 5 major
emerging economics of the
world viz. Brazil, Russia, India,
China & South Africa.
• The term ‘BRICS’ was coined in
2001 by economist Jim O’Neil;
the group was established in
2008.
• Heads of the member countries
participate in an annual BRICS
Summit. The 10th BRICS
Summit 2019 was held at
5. BRICS None Flexible Brasilia in November. The next
summit i.e. BRICS Summit 2020
is proposed at St. Petersburg
(Russia).
• In BRICS Summit 2014 at
Fortalezza (Brazil) it was
decided to launch a bank of
BRICS countries. It is called
New Development Bank
(NDB).
• NDB headquarter is at
Shanghai; K.V. Kamath of India
is the first President of NDB.

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• A grouping of 3 countries viz

India, Brazil & South Africa.
• It is an older group than BRICS,
6. IBSA None Flexible
established in 2003.
• Its relevance has declined after
formation of BRICS.
• An economic, political & military
group founded by Russia & China
in response to US-led NATO
(North Atlantic Treaty
Organization).
• Established in 2001 at Shanghai.
• Currently 8 members – Russia,
Shanghai Cooperation Vladimir Norov China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
7. Beijing
Organization (SCO) (Uzbekistan) Tajikistan & Uzbekistan. India &
Pakistan became members in
2017.
• SCO Summit 2019 was held at
Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) during
June. The SCO Summit 2020 is
proposed at St. Petersburg
(Russia).
• An organization of South Asian
countries.
• Total membership- 8 (India,
Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka);
Afghanistan is the latest
member.
• Established in 1985.
• SAARC Summit 2016, that was
South Asian Association for Esala Weerakoon of
to be held at Islamabad, was
8. Regional Cooperation Kathmandu Sri Lanka
cancelled after India boycotted
(SAARC) (Secretary-General)
the summit. SAARC Summit
2020 will be held at Colombo
(Sri Lanka).
• South Asian Free Trade
Agreement (SAFTA) came into
force in 2006.
• Under SAARC diplomacy, Prime
Minister Modi invited leaders
from all SAARC countries on his
swearing-in ceremony in 2014.

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• An organization of South East

Asian countries.
• Total membership- 10 (Brunei,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam).
• Established in 1967.
• Organizations involving ASEAN-
(i) ASEAN plus three (ii) East
Asia Summit (iii) ASEAN
Regional Forum (iv) ASEAN-
India Summit.
Association of South-East Jakarta Lim Jock Hoi
9. • ASEAN plus three is ASEAN +
Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Indonesia) (Brunei)
China, Japan, South Korea.
• East Asia Summit is ASEAN plus
three + US, Russia, India,
Australia & New Zealand.
• Since 1992, there is an annual
ASEAN-India summit also
immediately after the ASEAN
summit.
• ASEAN Summit 2019 and
ASEAN-India Summit 2019 was
held at Bangkok (Thailand) in
November 2019.
• A group of India with 5 countries
of South East Asia viz. Thailand,
Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos,
Vietnam.
• Established in 2000.
Mekong-Ganga Cooperation Not Important to
10. None • The group derives its name from
(MGC) remember
the two major rivers of the
region.
• The members cooperate in 4
areas – tourism, culture,
education & transportation.
• An organization of South Asian +
South-East Asian countries.
• Total Membership-7 (India,
Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar,
Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand).
• Established in 1997 to improve
regional cooperation.
Bay of Bengal Initiative for
• BIMSTEC Summit 2018 was held
Multi-sectoral Technical & M. Shahidul Islam
11. Dhaka at Kathmandu (Nepal) in
Economic Cooperation (Bangladesh)
August. The next BIMSTEC
(BIMSTEC)
Summit 2022 will be held at
Colombo (Sri Lanka).
• Under its ‘Neighbourhood First
Policy’, Prime Minister Modi
invited leaders from all BIMSTEC
countries on his swearing-in
ceremony in 2019.

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• Group of eight developed

countries of the world viz. US,
UK, France, Germany, Japan,
Italy, Canada, Russia. Russia
has been expelled from the
group in March 2014 because of
Russian annexation of in Crimea
region from Ukraine.
No permanent
12. G-7 (earlier G-8) Flexible • Established in 1975
HQ
• Replaced by G-20 as the major
economic group of the world
since 2009.
• G-7 Summit 2019 was held at
Biarritz (France) in August.
The next G-7 Summit 2020 is
proposed at Camp David (USA)
in June 2020.
• A group of government and
central bank governors from 20
major economies of the world.
• Total membership – 20 (19
Countries +1 EU). Members
include both developed &
developing nations.
• Established in 1999, gained
prominence after 2009 global
No permanent economic crisis when it became
13. G-20 Flexible
HQ major group for discussing
international economic policies
replacing G-8.
• G-20 Summit 2019 was held at
Osaka (Japan). The next G-20
summit 2020 is proposed at
Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) in
November 2020.
• India is expected to host its first
G-20 summit in 2022.
• A loose coalition of developing &
under-developed countries.
• Established in 1964 at the end of
first session of UNCTAD (UN
Conference on Trade &
Development).
• Though the group is called G-77
but current membership extends
No permanent
14. G-77 Flexible to 134 members.
HQ
• Chairmanship rotates on regional
basis. Thailand has the
chairmanship for 2016.
• G-24 is a 24-member subpart of
G-77. These 24 countries
coordinates the position of
developing countries in IMF &
World Bank

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• UNESCO promotes international

peace through cultural &
educational initiatives.
• UNESCO designates important
cultural & natural sites into
World Heritage Sites. India has
UN Educational, Scientific & 32 such world heritage sites.
15. Cultural Organization Paris Audrey Azoulay • UNESCO also runs a Man &
(UNESCO) Biosphere (MAB) program. India
has 18 biosphere reserves out of
which 9 are part of MAB
program.
• Recently, USA & Israel
withdrew their membership from
the organization.
• FAO aims to mitigate hunger &
poverty from the globe.
• Its foundation day i.e. 16th
October is also celebrated as
Food & Agriculture World Food Day.
16. Rome (Italy) Qu Dongyu (China)
Organization (FAO) • It also releases an annual “World
Hunger Report”. According to
2019 Global Hunger Index
(GHI), India is ranked at 102nd
place out of 117 countries.
• IAEA promotes peaceful use of
nuclear energy and prevents
military use or nuclear weapons.
• It has 171 members.
• IAEA is the agency which is
inspecting the nuclear reactors
in Iran to ascertain that Iran is
fulfilling the conditions of historic
International Atomic Energy Rafael Grossi nuclear deal achieved in
17. Vienna
Agency (IAEA) (Argentina) 2015 between Iran and P5+1
countries. Donald Trump
withdrew USA from this nuclear
deal with Iran in 2018.
• P5+1 countries includes five
permanent members of UN
Security Council (US, UK,
France, Russia & China) +
Germany.
• IFAD is dedicated to eradicating
rural poverty from developing
International Fund for
Gilbert Houngbo countries.
18. Agricultural Development Rome
(President) • Dinesh Sharma of India was
(IFAD)
elected as Chairperson of IFAD
governing council.
• ILO was founded in 1919.
International Labour • ILO deals with labour issues.
19. Geneva Guy Rider
Organization (ILO) • It celebrates 1st May as labour
day or May day every year.
Tedros Adhanom
(Director-General • UN agency that deals with
from Ethiopia); international public health
World Health Organization
20. Geneva Soumya issues.
(WHO)
Swaminathan • Its foundation day i.e. 7th April is
(Deputy Director- celebrated as World Health Day.
General from India)
• WIPO promotes the protection of
World Intellectual Property
21. Geneva Francis Gurry intellectual property throughout
Organization (WIPO)
the world.

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Important Organizations in India

S. No. Name of the Regulatory Headquarter Head/Chairman Salient Features

• It is the central bank of India;
Regulator of banking sector
• Established in 1935;
nationalized in 1949
• Osborne Smith was the first
RBI Governor (1935); C.D.
Deshmukh was the first Indian
to become Governor (1943)
Reserve Bank of India Shaktikanta Das
1. Mumbai • RBI manages monetary policy
(RBI) (Governor)
of the country. In doing so, it
periodically announces Repo,
Reverse Repo & other policy
rates.
• It is also the banker of the
banks or banker of last resort.
RBI’s target is to keep inflation
with in a range of 2-6%.
• Regulator of rural banking
sector in India.
• Established in 1982.
National Bank for • NABARD regulates credit
Chintala Govinda
2. Agriculture & Rural Mumbai availability to rural, agriculture
Rajulu (Chairman)
Development (NABARD) & cottage industries sector.
• NABARD is the apex
organization to supervise
cooperative banks in India.
• Regulator of Security/ Stock
markets in India.
• Established in 1988; given
statutory status in 1992.
Securities and Exchange Ajay Tyagi
3. Mumbai • In December 2015, Forward
Board of India (SEBI) (Chairman)
Market Commission (FMC)
which was the regulator of
commodities market has been
merged with SEBI.
• Regulator of Insurance sector
in India.
• Established in 2000.
• In 2014, FDI limit in insurance
Insurance Regulatory & sector was increased to 49%.
Subhash Chandra
4. Development Authority of Hyderabad • In 2010, a dispute arose
Khuntia (Chairman)
India (IRDA) between IRDA & SEBI for
regulatory rights over Unit
Linked Insurance Plans
(ULIPs). Finally, IRDA now
manages ULIPs.
• Regulator of Pension sector in
India.
• Established in 2004.
• PFRDA manages New Pension
Pension Fund Regulatory & Supratim
System (NPS) & Atal Pension
5. Development Authority New Delhi Bandyopadhyay
Yojana (APY).
(PFRDA) (Chairman)
• Since 2004, central govt. &
many state govts. too have
moved to New Pension System
(NPS).

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• Established in 2011 under

Food Safety & Standards Act,
2006.
• FSSAI is the regulator of food
Food Safety & Standards Rita Teotia sector; it governs food related
6. New Delhi
Authority of India (FSSAI) (Chairman) issues in the country.
• FSSAI banned Maggi due to
high content of lead and
Monosodium Glutamate
(MSG).
• TRAI is the regulator of
telecom sector in India.
• Established in 1997.
Telecom Regulatory Ram Sewak Sharma
7. New Delhi • Recently TRAI was in news
Authority of India (TRAI) (Chairman)
due to issue of net neutrality
and penalizing telecom
companies for call drops.
• It regulates the legal practice
& legal education in India.
Manan Kumar Mishra • Conducts a biannual All India
8. Bar Council of India (BCI) New Delhi
(Chairman) Bar Examination that is
essential to qualify in order to
practice in India.
• Established in 2009 under
Competition Act, 2002.
• CCI aims to ensure fair
Competition Commission Ashok Kumar Gupta
9. New Delhi competition in markets by
of India (CCI) (Chairperson)
preventing anti-competitive
practices, monopolies and
unfair mergers & acquisitions.

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• Established in 1969; Dr.

Vikram Sarabhai became the
first chairman, He is also
regarded as ‘Father of
Indian Space Program’.
• Within 6 years of
establishment ISRO sent first
satellite Aryabhatta in space
(1975) with Russian help.
• First satellite to be launched
on Indian-made rocket was
Rohini (1980).
• Later on, ISRO developed two
rockets – PSLV & GSLV.
• ISRO sent Chandrayaan-1
(2008) & Mangalyaan-1
(2014).
• GAGAN & IRNSS are ISRO’s
Indian Space Research satellite navigation systems.
10. Bengaluru K. Sivan
Organization (ISRO) • In January 2014, ISRO
successfully developed first
Cryogenic engine. The engine
was used in GSLV-D5 rocket.
• In 2015, ISRO launched
India’s first space observatory
called Astrosat.
• In February 2017, ISRO
created a world record by
launching 104 satellites on a
single flight of PSLV C-37.
• In September 2019, ISRO’s
Chandrayaan-2 mission failed
to land on lunar surface.
• Gaganyaan is ISRO’s planned
manned space flight proposed
in 2022.
• ISRO received Gandhi Peace
Prize 2014.
• There are 21 stock exchanges
in India; Bombay Stock
Exchange (BSE) & National
Stock Exchange (NSE) are the
major ones.
• BSE is the oldest stock
exchange in Asia (1875).
• Sensex or BSE 30 is the
11. Stock Exchanges in India index of BSE; it comprises of
stocks of 30 blue chip
companies.
• NSE was established in 1992
at Mumbai.
• Nifty 50 or CNX Nifty is the
index of NSE; it comprises of
stocks of 50 blue chip
companies.

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TOPIC – 6

Important Welfare Schemes launched by Government of India

S. No. Name of the Organization Salient Features

• Financial & Banking Sector Schemes

• Launched by PM Modi in August 2014.

• Initial target was to cover 7.5 crore household, target
later revised to 10 crore whereas actual achievement
was 11.5 Crore; Scheme entered Guinness Book of
Records for opening most bank accounts in a week.
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana
• The scheme is to provide zero balance account with a
1. Or
RuPay debit card. RuPay is India’s indigenous payment
National Mission for Financial Inclusion
system like visa or mastercard.
• Account also provides an overdraft facility of Rs. 5000.
• Accidental insurance of Rs. 100000.
• Beneficiaries of government schemes will get Direct
Benefit Transfer (DBT) in these accounts.
• It is a Life Insurance Scheme.
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima • Annual premium is Rs. 330.
2.
Yojana • Age limit – 18-50 years.
• Risk coverage is 2 Lakh.
• It is an Accident Insurance Scheme offering death and
disability cover on account of an accident.
• Annual premium is Rs. 12.
3. Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana • Age limit – 18-70 years.
• Provides for the risk coverage of 2 lakh rupees for
accidental death and full disability and 1 lakh rupees for
partial disability.
• Pension scheme for people in unorganized sector.
• Age limit is 18-45 years.
• A person would receiving a fixed monthly pension after
4. Atal Pension Yojana
the age of 60.
• Central govt. will contribute 50% or Rs. 1000 whichever
is lesser per year till first 5 years.

• Schemes for development of Urban Areas

• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation
(AMRUT) was launched to develop infrastructure in urban
areas.
• AMRUT is a restructuring of earlier scheme known as
5. AMRUT JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal
Mission).
• AMRUT will cover 500 cities having population > 1 Lakh.
• Rajasthan was the first state to submit its state plan
under AMRUT.
• Launched on the same day as AMRUT in June 2015.
• Aim is to develop 100 smart cities across the country till
2019-20.
6. Smart Cities Mission
• In first stage, 98 cities have been shortlisted. UP has
maximum number of cities in the list (13). Gurgaon,
Bengaluru, Kolkata, Patna etc. missed the selection.
• The scheme was renamed as Pradhan Mantri Awas
Housing for All Yojana (PMAY).
7. Or • Aim of the scheme is to make India slum-free by 2022.
National Mission for Urban Housing • 305 cities in 9 states have been identified to make
houses for urban poor.

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• National Heritage City Development and Augmentation

Yojana or HRIDAY is a scheme for preservation &
revitalization of selected heritage cities of India. 12 cities
have been selected for the scheme - Varanasi, Amritsar,
8. HRIDAY
Warangal (Telengana). Ajmer, Gaya, Mathura,
Kanchipuram (T.N.), Vellankini (T.N.), Amaravati
(Andhra), Badami (Karnataka), Dwaraka, Puri
• Scheme launched from Amritsar.

• Scheme for development of Rural Areas

• The scheme aims at developing infrastructure in rural

Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Rurban areas and develop a cluster of smart villages.
9.
Mission • Rurban = Rural + Urban.
• Develop 300 Rurban clusters in 3 years.
• It is a rural electrification scheme. It will replace Rajiv
Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Jyoti
10. Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY).
Yojana
• The Scheme was launched from Patna.
• Launched on 11th October 2014 on the occasion of birth
anniversary of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan.
• Each M.P. (Member of Parliament) will take the
11. Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana or Saanjhi
responsibility for developing infrastructure in three
villages by 2019. Out of the three, one village will be
ready by 2016.

• Skill Development and Employment Generation Schemes

• It is the flagship scheme of newly constructed ministry of

Skill Development & Entrepreneurship launched on
12. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana World Youth Skills Day (15th July).
• Aim is to train 1 crore youth during 2016-21 with special
focus on class 10th & 12th dropouts.
• Launched on Antyodya Diwas i.e. 25th September.
Birth anniversary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay is
celebrated as Antyodya Diwas.
• Aim is alleviating urban and rural poverty through
Deen Dayal Upadhyay Antyodya Yojana
13. enhancement of livelihood opportunities through skill
(DAY)
development and other means.
• The scheme has 2 composition- (i) Deen Dayal
Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (ii) Deen Dayal
Upadhyay Antyodya Yojana for Urban Areas.
• Launched in January 2016 to enhance start-up
environment in India.
• Start-ups are companies started in past 5 years and
have a turnover of less than 25 crores.
• A Rs. 10000 crore corpus has been set up to support
14. Start Up India Initiative start-ups.
• 80% reduction in patent registration fees for start-ups.
• Tax exemption for start-ups for three years.
• No government inspection for three years for newly-
formed start-ups to protect them from license-raj.
• Innovation programme to start in 5 lakh schools.
• Launched in September 2014 to transform India into a
global manufacturing hub.
• Objective of the campaign is to promote manufacturing
sector to grow over 10% over a long run and create jobs
for over 10 million people.
• Adoption of policy of ‘zero defect, zero effect’ in domestic
15. Make in India Initiative
manufacturing — make top-of-the-line products with no
ill effect on the environment.
• Aim is to improve India’s Ease of Doing Business
Ranking. At present India is at 130th place out of 189
countries in the World Bank ranking. Target is to get
into top 50 rank in next 3 years.

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• Schemes for Women Empowerment

• Scheme was launched in January 2015 as an initiative by

government to encourage birth & education of girls and
tackle the low child sex ratio of 919 girls per 1000
16. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao
boys.
• The scheme was launched in January 2015 from Panipat
(Haryana).
• It is a saving scheme for the parents of girl children
launched as a part of Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao initiative.
• A saving bank account can be opened with a minimum
Rs. 1000 in the name of a girl child below 10 years of
17. Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana age in any bank or post office.
• Account will remain active till the girl attains 21 years of
age.
• Bank will give 8.75% interest and the saving will be free
from any type of income tax.

• Schemes related with LPG Gas connections

• Pratyaksha Hastaantarit Laabh or PAHAL is a DBT

(direct benefit transfer) scheme for LPG customer where
the LPG subsidy is transferred directly in their bank
accounts.
18. PAHAL
• The scheme was launched in 2013 and it currently covers
9.75 crore LPG consumers.
• PAHAL has been recognized by Guinness book of records
as world’s largest cash transfer programme.
• The scheme launched by government to provide free LPG
connections to 5 crore Blow poverty line (BPL)
households.
• Under the scheme, BPL families will be provided a
19. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana
financial support of Rs. 1600.
• The scheme is complimentary to Prime Minister’s Give
It Up campaign under which 75 lakh middle class
families have voluntarily given up their LPG subsidy.

• Schemes connected with Infrastructure Development

• A Project of Indian railways to establish high speed
20. Diamond Quadrilateral railway network between four metro cities viz. Delhi,
Mumbai, Kolkata & Chennai.
21. Sagar Mala Project • A project to modernize India’s ports.
• Project to make all national highways free of railway
22. Setu Bharatam
crossings by 2019 through making over-bridges.
• It is integrated Ganga Conservation Mission.
• Focus is pollution control and socio-economic
23. Namami Gange Project development of river valley.
• Implemented under National Ganga River Basin
Authority.

• Other Flagship Schemes

• Announced by PM Modi on 2nd October 2014; Aim is to
make India Open-defecation free in 5 years (2019).
• It is the restructured form of earlier program known as
Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan.
24. Swacch Bharat Abhiyan • 9 Public figures were selected as brand ambassador of
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan viz. Sachin Tendulkar, Baba
Ramdev, Kamal Hassan, Kapil Sharma, Priyanka Chopra,
Anil Ambani, Salman Khan, Shashi Tharoor, Team of
popular TV serial Tarak Mehta ka Ulta Chasma.

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Endeavor Handout General Knowledge

• Digital India Mission was launched in July 2015. The first

week of July was celebrated as Digital India Week.
• Target of the mission is to transform India into a digitally
empowered society & knowledge economy; provision of
most of the government services to citizens in electronic
form.
• Number of new services has been launched under the
25. Digital India Mission
mission – (i) Digi Locker – a digital locker for citizen to
store their documents like PAN card, passport, mark
sheets etc. in digital format (ii) attendance.gov.in – a
website for online attendance of govt. employees (iii)
mygov.in – a platform to share ideas & inputs for citizens
(iv) Bharatnet – a high speed rural broadband network.
• Digital India Mission will run till 2018.

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