Top Updates from 29th Dec 2014-31st Dec 2014 ___________________________________ • A communications university dedicated 24 hour channel for farmers and establishing a national centre for gaming and animation was part of the information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry’s pitch for “Make in India“ to PM Narendra Modi on Monday. • The Indonesia AirAsia plane, an Airbus A320-200 with 162 people, disappeared after its pilot failed to get permission to fly higher to avoid bad weather during a flight. • During the Soviet era, nuclear missiles were moved from place to place on sinister-looking trains. Now, Russia is bringing these trains back. • Google Inc’s Gmail was blocked in China after months of disruptions to the world’s biggest email service, with an anti-censorship advocate suggesting the Great Firewall was to blame. • Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has named three potential bowlers to be included in the final 15 of the World Cup squad, which includes Indian-origin medium-pacer Gurinder Singh Sandhu. • UEFA President Michel Platini is set to serve a third term after no rival candidate emerged before the deadline. • New Zealand wrapped up a win against Sri Lanka by eight wickets on Monday to cap their most successful year in Test cricket. • The Indian cricket board (BCCI) announced Dhoni’s retirement from Test cricket, effective immediately , minutes after India managed a draw in the third Test at the MCG on Tuesday. • Bloated bodies and debris floating in Indonesian waters painfully ended the mystery of the Singapore-bound AirAsia Flight QZ8501 which crashed into the Java Sea on Sunday with 162 people on board. • The E-rickshaw Sewa Scheme 2014 allows owners and drivers to get a permit to run the vehicle. • Uttarakhand governor Dr Aziz Qureshi was on Tuesday shunted out and appointed Mizoram governor. • The Dharam Jagran Manch (DJM) reconverted 40 people from Christianity to Sikhism. • Harihara Mahapatra has shown interest in constructing a 1.2 km tower, which he claims would be the world’s tallest in Surat. • United Kingdom plans to grow lettuce on Mars by 2018 using the atmosphere and sunlight on the Red Planet. • On January 1, 2015 Lithuania will be the last Baltic nation to join the growing number of EU states to have adopted the euro. • China on Tuesday launched a website for an uninhabited islet chain in the East China Sea that is at the centre of a long dispute with Japan, in its latest bid to assert sovereignty over an archipelago administered by Tokyo. • BKC and Nariman Point are among the top 50 costliest office spaces globally and Delhi’s Central Business District (CBD) of Connaught Place bagged the sixth slot, according to CBRE’s survey released on Tuesday. • Shaun Marsh on Tuesday became only the 16th player in the history of Test cricket to be run out on 99. • M Sathiyavathy, additional secretary and financial adviser in the civil aviation ministry, will be India’s first wom an director general of civil aviation. • The Centre on Wednesday appointed an “outsider” Shailesh Nayak, a marine geologist and secretary in the ministry of earth sciences as Isro’s interim chairman. • The Haryana government has decided to usher in the New Year with one of the biggest pushes for solar power in the country. • The Centre on Wednesday blocked 32 websites, including vimeo and daily motion, to curb ISIS propaganda, prompting online protests. • The Union government plans to introduce a health cess to develop primary or basic healthcare infrastructure across the country. • Four Pakistan Rangers personnel were killed in a BSF counterattack following the death of one of its jawans in firing from across the border in J&K’s Samba on Wednesday . • The draft National Health Policy 2015 has proposed a target of raising public health expenditure to 2.5 % from the present 1.2% of GDP. • India will observe `Water Week’ during January 13-17, 2015 when every district of the country will launch a major central governmentbacked initiative ¬ called Hamara Jal¬Hamara Jeewan to make people aware of need for water conservation. • Kudankulam nuclear power went commercial from Wednesday with Nuclear Power Corporation Ltd selling to consumer states at a rate of Rs 4.29 per unit. • Kudankulam nuclear power went commercial from Wednesday with Nuclear Power Corporation Ltd selling to consumer states at a rate of Rs 4.29 per unit. • Telecom regulator Trai on Wednesday announced a reserve price of Rs 2,720 crore per megahertz (MHz) of 3G airwaves for the upcoming spectrum auctions in February. • Vijay Dahiya has been reinstated as the chief coach of the Delhi Ranji Trophy side while former Test batsman Yashpal Sharma will head the selection panel, in a list released by the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA).
Posted on: Fri, 02 Jan 2015 17:17:36 +0000