1st Oct to 31st Oct

AWARDS & HONOURS

Kannada journalist Gauri Lankesh, a strident critic of religious extremism who was shot dead this year, was
awarded a prestigious global award - Reach All Women in WAR (RAW in WAR) Anna Politkovskaya Award-
given in the memory of a slain Russian reporter and political activist. Lankesh, 55, shared the with Gulalai Ismail,
31, a Pakistani peace activist who has faced death threats for speaking out against the Taliban.

Carnatic vocalist T M Krishna won the Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for 2015 -16 for his
services in promoting and preserving national integration in the country.

Birendra Sasmal, CEO of Subah, bagged the International Business Person of the Year at the Asian Achievers
Awards in London, for turning the company into a thriving IT, telecoms and manufacturing success story with
operations across West Africa.

Eminent critic, biographer and orator M K Sanu was chosen for the Mathrubhumi Literary Award for 2016 in
recognition of his rich contribution to the Malayalam literature.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2017 was awarded to Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank and Richard Henderson
for developing cryo-electron microscopy for the high-resolution structure determination of bio molecules in
solution.

The 2017 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences was awarded to Richard H. Thaler for his contributions to
behavioural economics.

British writer Kazuo Ishiguro won the 2017 Nobel Prize for Literature. The novelist was praised by the Swedish
Academy as a writer "who, in novels of great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our illusory sense
of connection with the world". His most famous novels ‘The Remains of the Day’ and ‘Never Let Me Go’ were
adapted into highly acclaimed films. He has written eight books, which have been translated into over 40
languages.

The 2017 Nobel Prize for Peace was awarded to ‘International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons’ (ICAN), a
coalition of non-governmental organisations from over 100 countries around the globe, headquartered at Geneva
in Switzerland. The Norwegian Nobel Committee honoured the group “for its work to draw attention to the
catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to
achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons.”

The 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics was jointly awarded to three US scientists – Rainer Weiss, Kip S. Thorne and
Barry C. Barish – for the detection of gravitational waves.

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2017 was jointly awarded to Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash and
Michael W. Young for their discoveries on how plants, animals and humans adapt their biological rhythm so that it
is synchronised with the Earth’s revolutions.

Rajesh Nath, the managing director of VDMA India, was conferred the ‘Cross of the Order of Merit’, the highest
civilian honour awarded to individuals for their services to Germany.

T D Ramakrishnan was chosen for the 2017 Vayalar Ramavarma Literary Prize for his novel “Sugandhi Enna
Andal Devanayaki”.
 BUSINESS & CORPORATE
The Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd (GCMMF), which markets the Amul brand of
milk/milk products, was recognized as India’s best Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Company in the food
sector by the International Advertising Association (IAA).

HDFC Life Insurance Company launched Neo — a servicing bot for Twitter that uses artificial intelligence for
customer service.

The Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), became the first Oil Marketing Company (OMC) from India
that has started marketing lubricants in Myanmar.

Global payments network Visa signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh
government to help transform Vishakhapatnam into India's first 'less cash' city. This initiative is designed to
provide the foundation for the city to emerge as India's 'Fintech Valley'.

BILLS / ACTS / COMMITTEES / SCHEMES / POLICIES

The Union Cabinet approved the signing of "Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC)" between India and Japan
on the "Technical Intern Training Program (TITP)". The Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) is an
ambitious program to send Indian technical interns to Japan for on the job training for a period of three to
five years. It is expected that the MoC will pave the way for bilateral cooperation between the two
countries in the area of skill development.

The Union Cabinet approved the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) between India and
Japan on establishing a liquid, flexible and global LNG Market. The MoC will promote bilateral relationship
between India and Japan in the energy sector. It will contribute to the diversification of gas supplies for
India.

The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India
and Morocco on cooperation in the field of water resources. The MoU intends to enhance cooperation in
the field of water resources development and management within the framework of their expertise and
their respective legislations.

The Himachal Pradesh Government implemented the Senior Citizen Health Insurance Scheme (SCHIS) in
the state with an aim to provide access to curative geriatric health care services by way of additional
insurance cover.

The Uttarakhand Government and a charitable funding agency, Swan Cultural Center and Foundation,
launched 'Solar Briefcase' in Kedarnath Dham. The initiative was taken to provide electricity to far flung
areas in the hill state.

President Ram Nath Kovind launched the Rs 100 crore Mata Amritanandamayi Math Project
“Jeevamritham” in Kollam district of Kerala to provide the filtration system for cleaning drinking water to
5000 villages across India.

The Uttar Pradesh government approved the 'Mukhyamantri Samoohik Vivaah Yojana', a mass marriage
scheme, wherein Rs 35,000 will be spent on each couple, besides gifting them mobile phones and
household items.

The Karnataka government launched ‘Mathru Poorna’ scheme to meet the nutritional needs of pregnant
and lactating women in rural areas.

The Bihar government launched a state-wide campaign against child marriage and dowry on the occasion
of Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary.

ECONOMY & FINANCE

India was ranked 100th out of 119 countries in the 2017 Global Hunger Index (GHI) report, released by
Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

The World Bank (WB), in its biannual economic update “South Asia Economic Focus (Fall 2017)”, reduced
India’s GDP growth forecast to 7.0% for 2017-18 from 7.2% estimated earlier.

While projecting a more optimistic picture of the global economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
slashed India’s growth forecast by 0.5 percentage points to 6.7 per cent in 2017.

The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Financial Services Commission (FSC), Gibraltar for
mutual co-operation and technical assistance. The MoU is likely to promote further development of
economic links and cooperation between the two regulators and aims at creating conditions for an
effective development of securities markets in the two countries.

The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) by Securities
and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) with Capital Markets Authority (CMA), Kuwait for mutual co-operation
and technical assistance. The MoU is likely to promote further development of economic links and
cooperation between the two regulators, and aims at creating conditions for an effective development of
securities markets in the two countries.

India was ranked 8th out of 100 countries on a list of most valuable nation brands, according to Brand
Finance’s Nation Brands 2017 report. The list is topped by US, followed by China, Germany, Japan and
United Kingdom.

Bangladesh signed $4.5 billion third line of credit (LoC) agreement with India for its infrastructure and
social sector development.

Government of India and European Investment Bank (EIB) signed the Finance Contract for lending of €
300 million for Bangalore Metro Rail Project Phase II Line R6.

On the basis of an assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation, the Monetary Policy
Committee (MPC) decided to keep the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF)
unchanged at 6.0 per cent. Consequently, the reverse repo rate under the LAF remains at 5.75 per cent,
and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate at 6.25 per cent. The decision of the MPC
is consistent with a neutral stance of monetary policy in consonance with the objective of achieving the
medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4 per cent within a band of +/- 2 per cent,
while supporting growth.
 PEOPLE IN NEWS
The Supreme Court of India appointed senior advocate and former additional solicitor general Amrender Sharan
as amicus curiae on a petition seeking reprobe into the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

Film actor and Padma Shri/ Padma Bhushan awardee Anupam Kher was appointed as the new chairman of the
Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

French candidate Audrey Azoulay, a 45-year-old former French minister of culture, was elected to become the
next director-general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) after
elections in Paris .

President Ram Nath Kovind appointed new Governors for five states, including Tamil Nadu, which got its first full-
time Governor, Banwarilal Purohit (Congress-turned BJP leader) in a year amid the continuing political crisis.
BJP leader Satya Pal Malik will hold charge in Bihar, where Kovind was Governor before he became President,
former Delhi BJP MLA Jagdish Mukhi is Governor in Assam, Bihar BJP leader Ganga Prasad in Meghalaya and
Brigadier (retd) B.D. Mishra, a war veteran, in Arunachal Pradesh. Former Navy chief Admiral (retd) D.K. Joshi was
named as the new Lt. Governor of Andaman and Nicobar islands.

The first meeting of the newly-constituted Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister Narendra Modi (EAC-PM)
was held at the NITI Aayog. It was chaired by Dr. Bibey Debroy.

The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, presented the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award for Excellence in
Public Administration, Academics and Management for the year 2017 to Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak. Dr. Pathak is
the founder of Sulabh International and has developed and implemented, on a pan India scale, a low cost and
appropriate toilet technology popularly known as the Sulabh Shauchalaya system.

President Ram Nath Kovind appointed a Commission to examine the sub-categorisation of the Other Backward
Classes (OBCs). Justice (Retd.) G. Rohini will be the chairperson of the Commission.

Gautam Bambawale, an Indian foreign service officer of the 1984 batch, was appointed as the India’s new
ambassador to China.

H. M. Marathe, a renowned writer and journalist, passed away at 77.

Director Kundan Shah, best-known for making iconic satire’ Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron’, died at 69.

Nisha Biswal, a former US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, will head the US India
Business Council (USIBC). The USIBC, an advocacy group that promotes business and commercial ties between
the US and India, has presence in both the countries.

The Union Law Ministry finalized the appointment of a Second National Judicial Pay Commission to recommend
salary hikes for the 21,000 lower court judges in India. The proposed commission will be headed by former
Supreme Court judge PV Reddi.

Purushottam Lal Kaushik , the former Minister for Information and Broadcasting, passed away at 87. He was
elected to the Lok Sabha twice in 1977 and 1989.
The Union government set up a high-level committee for proper management of water resources in the North-
Eastern region, to be headed by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar.

Rajni Kant Mishra, a U.P. Cadre IPS officer, took charge as the new Director General of Sashastra Seema Bal
(SSB).

Rajnish Kumar, the Managing Director of SBI, was appointed as the new chairman of the State Bank of India
(SBI) for a period of three years. He will succeed Arundhati Bhattacharya.

A study group was set up by the Indian Government to examine the problems being faced by the people residing
near the International Border and and the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir in the wake of regular ceasefire
violations by Pakistan. Special secretary in the home ministry Rina Mitra will head the team.

A parliamentary committee has decided to examine the whole gamut of Sino-Indian relations, including the border
situation. The Standing Committee on External Affairs, which will examine the relations between the two Asian
powers, is headed by Shashi Tharoor, Congress member of the Lok Sabha.

Dr Soumya Swaminathan became the first Indian to hold deputy director general post for Programmes at the
World Health Organisation (WHO). Currently, she is the Director General (DG) of the Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR).

Ukhnaa Khurelsukh was appointed as the new Prime Minister of Mongolia.

 SPORTS
Anupama Ramachandran from India clinched the World Open Under-16 Snooker Championship title at St.
Petersburg in Russia.

The 2019 AFC Asian Cup football tournament will be hosted by United Arab Emirates (UAE). The winner of the
2019 AFC Asian Cup will earn the right to participate in the 2021 FIFA Confederations Cup.

Long-serving Indian boxing coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu was honoured with the National Awards for senior
citizens by President Ramnath Kovind. Sandhu was India’s longest-serving men’s national coach, occupying the
position for two decades before he was handed charge of the women campers earlier this year.

The mixed pair of Jemson Ningthoujam and Ankita Bhakat clinched gold at the 2017 World Archery Youth
Championship in Argentina.

Pooja Kadian became the first Indian to win a Gold medal at Wushu World Championships by defeating Evgeniya
Stepanova in the 75kg women’s Sanda category.

Commonwealth Games bronze medalist RMV Gurusaidutt clinched the men's singles title at the Bulgarian
International Future Series tournament.

Rafael Nadal of Spain beat Nick Kyrgios of Australia in the China Open final to win his sixth ATP title of the year.

Indian shuttler Samiya Imad Farooqui clinched gold at the Under-15 women’s singles competition in Myanmar.

Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh became the first Indian Brand Ambassador of Laureus. The left-hander joins a host
of cricket legends in the Laureus Family, including Indian Academy members Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and
Kapil Dev.
 MISCELLANEOUS
World

The world’s first negative emissions plant (the plant captures more carbon dioxide than it produces) that
turns carbon dioxide (CO2) into stone begun operations in Hellisheidi, Iceland.

The International Day of Rural Women was observed on October 15 with the theme “Challenges and
opportunities in climate-resilient agriculture for gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and
girls”.

The International Day for Disaster Reduction (IDDR) was observed on October 13 with the theme “Home
Safe Home: Reducing Exposure, Reducing Displacement”.

The World Mental Health Day (WMHD) was observed on 10 October with the theme “Mental health in the
workplace’.

The International Day of the Girl Child was celebrated on October 11 with the theme “ EmPOWER Girls:
Before, during and after crises”.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Ministry of Culture, Government of India, in collaboration with
National Geographic Society hosted an international conference on “Dialogue of Civilizations – IV” from
8th – 15th October, 2017 at Delhi, Gandhinagar and Dholavira. This conference was fourth in this series
of ‘dialogues’ initiated by National Geographic Society in 2013 with an objective to encourage scholarly
and public discourse about the five ancient, literate civilizations of the world, i.e. Egypt, Mesopotamia,
South Asia, China and Mesoamerica and how the study of the past can share our present and future
towards the right direction. The first conference of this series was inaugurated in Guatemala in 2013
followed by Turkey in 2014 and China in 2015. The present conference was the fourth in this series, with
the final dialogue planned in Egypt.

The World Space Week (WSW) - an international celebration of science and technology -was held from
October 4-10 with the theme “Exploring New Worlds In Space”.

The World Animal Day was observed on October 4.

The World Teachers’ Day (WTD) was observed on October 5 with the theme “Teaching in Freedom,
Empowering Teachers”.

The 2017 World Habitat Day (WHD) was observed on October 2 with theme “Housing Policies: Affordable
Homes”.

The International Day of Older Persons was observed on October 1, 2017 with the theme “Stepping into
the Future: Tapping the Talents, Contributions and Participation of Older Persons in Society”.

India

National Centre for Combustion Research and Development (NCCRD),the world's largest combustion
research centre which will impart a major boost to the Indian scientific community, was inaugurated at the
Indian Institute of Technology, Madras .

The Indian Air Force (IAF) launched an innovative mobile health App ‘MedWatch’ to provide authentic
health information to all IAF personnel.

The 5th India-Sri Lanka joint training exercise “Mitra Shakti 2017” started at Pune, Maharshtra.

The third edition of the India International Science Festival (IISF-2017) started in Chennai, Tamil Nadu on
October 13, 2017.

The Union Cabinet gave its ex-post facto approval to the renaming of Kandla Port as Deendayal Port.

IIT-Kharagpur signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samsung India for the setting up of a
digital academy on the institute’s campus.

M Venkaiah Naidu, the Vice President of India, inaugurated the 3rd International Conference on Yoga in
New Delhi with theme “Yoga for Wellness”.

Rajasthan became India’s first state to incorporate skill development programme in higher education.

In an attempt to boost cultural ties, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by Uttar Pradesh,
Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya under the 'Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat' programme.

President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the 5th edition of India Water Week on October 10 with theme
“Water and Energy for Inclusive Growth” in New Delhi.

Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India in collaboration with Ministry of Culture and Seher
organized the first ever ASEAN-India Music Festival from October 6th-8th 2017 at Purana Quila in New
Delhi. The Festival was organised to celebrate the 25th year anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue
Relations.

Tribal dominant Dungarpur district of Udaipur division was declared completely Open Defecation Free,
thus becoming the first Open Defecation Free (ODF) tribe district of the Rajasthan state.

For the first time, Nepal and India will undertake a joint tiger census in their national parks, forests and
protected areas adjoining the two countries using a globally-recognised method.

A new Global Environment Facility (GEF) supported effort to protect the iconic snow leopard and its
natural mountain environment was launched at the start of the Global Wildlife Program (GWP) annual
conference in New Delhi, India. The project, Securing Livelihoods, Conservation, Sustainable Use and
Restoration of High Range Himalayan Ecosystems project (SECURE Himalaya), was launched by Dr. Harsh
Vardhan, Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change of the Government of India and the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP). It is part of the GWP, a seven-year program funded by the
GEF and led by the World Bank, that was developed as a response to the growing crisis of illegal
trafficking in wildlife.

The Global Wildlife Programme (GWP) conference was held in New Delhi. India hosting the programme
jointly with World Bank (WB) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to address illegal
wildlife trade across 19 Asian and African countries.
 AWARDS & HONOURS
Noted Indian-American attorney Ajay Raju was honoured with the 3rd American Bazaar Philanthropy award in
recognition of his philanthropic activities in the US.

A globally-acclaimed South African Indian-origin researcher couple was honoured with a prestigious award for
their exceptional contributions in the field of HIV/AIDS. Professors Salim Abdool Karim and Quarraisha
Abdool Karim received the award from the Institute for Human Virology (IHV) in Baltimore in the US.

Chile was named the best country to visit in 2018 by Lonely Planet in its ‘Best in Travel 2018’ list and is followed
by South Korea, Portugal, Djibouti and New Zealand.

Prof Hans Joachim Schellnhuber from Germany won the 2017 Blue Planet Prize for establishing a new field of
science ‘Earth System Analysis’.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu was honoured with the prestigious Golden Peacock Award
in the 17th London Global Convention held in London. The Chief Minister was awarded in the category of "Global
Leadership in Public Service and Economic Transformation”.

Veteran writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar was honoured with the Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award.

Veteran actor Sharmila Tagore was honoured with the 2017 Lifetime Achievement Award by the PHD Chamber
of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) in New Delhi for her contribution in the field of cinema.

US author George Saunders won the 2017 Man Booker Prize for his novel “Lincoln in the Bardo” and became
only the 2nd American writer to win £50,000 Britain’s prestigious English-language literary award.

Prabha Varma, the well-known poet, lyricist and journalist, was chosen for the 2017 Padma Prabha Puraskaram
for his contribution to Malayalam literature.

BUSINESS & CORPORATE

State Bank of India (SBI) signed an agreement with Escorts Limited to finance farmers for purchase of Escorts
Tractors. The aim of the tie-up with Escorts Limited is to promote, market and make accessible, organized finance
facility at competitive interest rates to farmers, who wish to purchase POWERTRAC and FARMTRAC Tractors
manufactured by Escorts Ltd.

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) appointed Jayant Rikhye as the new Chief
Executive Officer for India operations. India has been the second largest workforce for HSBC globally. The country
has also been supporting the HSBC group's "ten point strategic agenda" outlined in 2015, becoming one of the top
contributors to group profits.

India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) appointed Suresh Sethi, former MD of Vodafone M-Pesa Ltd. as its Managing
Director and chief executive officer, replacing AP Singh who had held the post in the interim since January 2017.
IPPB was incorporated as a Public Limited Company under the Department of Posts with 100% equity from the
government. IPPB plans to leverage the unparalleled reach of the India Post network to achieve a pan-India roll
out of 650 branches by early next year.

E-commerce major Myntra launched its CSR initiative in association with the Union Textile Ministry, to work
directly with weavers and elevate their economic stature.
 BILLS / ACTS / COMMITTEES / SCHEMES / POLICIES

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Giriraj Singh launched MSME Delayed Payment Portal –
MSME Samadhaan (http://msefc.msme.gov.in), empowering micro and small entrepreneurs across the
country to directly register their cases relating to delayed payments by Central
Ministries/Departments/CPSEs/State Governments.

The Karnataka Government announced signing of a MoU with Microsoft Corporation India Private Limited
with an intention to empower small holder farmers with technology-oriented solutions that will help them
increase income. The solutions would use “ground-breaking”, cloud based technologies, machine learning
and advanced analytics.

A parliamentary standing committee on defence was constituted to examine the operational preparedness
of the armed forces and review the accidents involving strategic defence assets. The committee will be
headed by BJP MP B C Khanduri.

Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India hosted the first meeting of BIMSTEC Task Force on Traditional
Medicine in New Delhi. The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(BIMSTEC) is an International Organisation involving a group of countries in the South Asia and South
East Asia namely, Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal. India being a
major stake holder in the field of Traditional Medicine plays an important role in influencing the policies
and strategies related to the Traditional Medicine in the BIMSTEC Forum.

Ministries of Power and Textiles joined hands under a new initiative SAATHI (Sustainable and Accelerated
Adoption of efficient Textile technologies to Help small Industries). Under this initiative, Energy Efficiency
Services Limited (EESL), a public sector entity under the administrative control of Ministry of Power, would
procure energy efficient powerlooms, motors and rapier kits in bulk and provide them to the small and
medium powerloom units at no upfront cost.

The President of India Ram Nath Kovind constituted a Commission under Article 340 of the Constitution to
examine Sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the central list. The four-member
Commission headed by Justice G. Rohini will submit its report to the President within 12 weeks.

To bring momentum in skilling through collaborative efforts, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh
inaugurated India's first Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) for Skilling in Smart Cities, in
collaboration with New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated the ambitious 'Bhavantar Bhugtan
Yojna’. He elaborated that an average will be drawn from the market prices of three different states and
then the difference between 'Model Price' of crops and its 'MSP' will be deposited in the bank accounts of
farmers. To get benefits of the scheme, the farmers are required to sell their crops in the mandi and
obtain a receipt for the same. He added that the government will provide subsidy and loan ranging from
Rs 10 lakhs to two crores to the farmers willing to invest in industries.

The Search-cum-Selection Committee headed by Prasar Bharati Chairman A Surya Prakash was formed to
select the candidate for the post of editor-in-chief of Rajya Sabha TV (RSTV).
 ECONOMY & FINANCE

The Government of India (GoI) and the World Bank (WB) signed a $200 million Loan Agreement for the
Assam Agribusiness and Rural Transformation Project.

In a significant move to revive PSU banks weighed down by bad loans, the government set up a
ministerial panel, led by finance minister Arun Jaitley, to consider and oversee mergers among the
country’s 21 state-run banks. The consolidation of struggling state-run banks, which have a market share
of about 70% and account for over 80% of bad loans in the Indian banking system, is aimed at building
scale and bolstering their risk-taking ability.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India (GoI) signed a $65.5 million loan
agreement in New Delhi to continue interventions to check coastal erosion on the Western Coast in
Karnataka.

The global conference on consumer protection was held in New Delhi with theme “Empowering Consumers
in New Markets”. The 2-day conference deliberated upon steps taken by Asian countries to implement the
United Nations guidelines on consumer protection as well as challenges faced by consumers of financial
services and e-commerce. Twenty two countries from East, South and South-East Asia participated in the
conference.

The Reserve Bank of India formed a 10-member task force on Public Credit Registry (PCR) for India to
improve market efficiency. The task force will be headed by M Deosthalee, former chairman of L&T
Finance Holdings.

The Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India signed a memorandum of understanding with
Punjab National Bank to provide easy access to finance for SMEs and merchant exporters of the council.
Punjab National Bank will provide finance with assurance that loans up to Rs 10 crore would be provided
within six to seven weeks at competitive rates.

Madhya Pradesh emerged as the top state in terms of digital initiatives undertaken, with a maximum
score of 100.1 on performance index, followed by Maharashtra at 99.9 and Andhra Pradesh at 99.8, as per
a report by Coeus Age Consulting. The assessment is based on 109 key performance indicators related to
policy, infrastructure and mission mode projects.

According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s revised guidelines on interest subvention scheme, banks will
provide funds to women Self Help Groups (SHGs) in rural areas at 7% under the Deendayal Antyodaya
Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) in the current fiscal FY18.

The Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX) launched India’s first commodity options in gold, giving
stakeholders a new set of financial instruments to hedge their price risks.

The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) of India signed an investment agreement worth
$1 billion with a wholly owned unit of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA). As part of the
partnership agreement, ADIA will become the first institutional investor in NIIF’s Master Fund and a
shareholder in NIIF’s investment management company.
 PEOPLE IN NEWS
Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar P assumed charge as the Vice Chief of Naval Staff from Vice Admiral Karambir Singh.
Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar P is an alumni of the National Defence Academy. The Flag Officer was commissioned in
the Indian Navy in Jul 81 and is a specialist in Missiles & Gunnery.

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dr Digamber Singh passed away at 66. Singh was the vice-chairman
of the Twenty Point Programme implementation committee. Singh, considered an influential Jat leader from
eastern Rajasthan, was health and industry minister during Vasundhara Raje’s previous tenure as CM from 2003
to 2008.

Former IB Chief Dineshwar Sharma, a 1976 batch Kerala cadre IPS officer, was appointed as the Government of
India (GoI) special representative to hold sustained dialogue on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) with all stakeholders.

Freedom fighter and lawyer Gaur Kishore Ganguli died at 96. He joined the Quit India movement in 1942 when
he was 19 years old. He began practising in Dhanbad district court after the reorganization of states in 1956 and
was a member of the bar association.

Producer Gautam Adhikari, who was the chairman and whole time director of the SAB group, passed away at 67.
The SAB group started as a small venture between Gautam and his brother Markand Adhikari in 1985 and went on
to become the first publicly-listed television production company in India when it was mentioned on the BSE in
1995. The group is behind one of the most successful TV channels in the country -- SAB TV, which is home to
long-running comedies, most popularly known for "Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah".

Eminent classical singer Girija Devi died at 88. Considered the queen of Thumri and fondly called Appa ji, Girija
Devi received the Padma Shri in 1972, the Padma Bhushan in 1989 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2016.

Irruppam Veedu Sasidaran, the legendary filmmaker, passed away at Chennai at 69. In his more than three-
decade career, Sasidaran directed over 150 films in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi.

Jacinda Ardern, the leader of the Labour Party, was officially sworn in as the prime minister of New Zealand on
October 26, 2017.

Lekh Tandon, the renowned Indian filmmaker and actor, passed away at 88. He also helmed television serial Dil
Dariya in 1988 through which he introduced Shah Rukh Khan.

N.J.Gangte (IFS office batch of 1994) was appointed as the new High Commissioner of India to the Republic of
Zambia.

Punathil Kunjabdulla, a renowned writer and Malayalam novelist, passed away in at 77.

Rakesh Asthana, a 1984-batch IPS officer of Gujarat-cadre, was appointed the special director of the Central
Bureau of Investigation.

Prof. Satish Chandra, a veteran historian of medieval India and noted educational administrator, passed away.

Sunny Verghese, co-founder and Group CEO of Singapore-based Olam International, was appointed as the new
chairman of World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).
 SPORTS
Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s Portugal striker, was named the 2017 Best FIFA Men’s Player award for a
second straight year.

England won their first-ever FIFA Under-17 World Cup by defeating European Champions Spain in the final in
Kolkata.

Indian golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar clinched the 2017 Macao Open golf tournament title to bag his 8th Asian Tour
title.

Heena Sidhu clinched the 10-metre air pistol gold medal at the Commonwealth Shooting Championships in
Brisbane, Australia.

India’s hockey team won the 10th edition of Men’s Hockey Asia Cup tournament – 2017 by defeating Malaysia in
the in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Jackson Singh Thounaojam from Manipur created history by scoring India’s first-ever goal in a FIFA U-17 World
Cup during India’s match against Colombia.

Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth won the men’s singles title of the French Open Superseries badminton
tournament 2017 by defeating Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto in the final in Paris, France on October 29.

Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth won the 2017 Denmark Open Superseries Badminton trophy.

Mohun Bagan won the 37th All India Governor’s Gold Cup football tournament-2017.

Pakistan will host the next Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Emerging Nations Cup in April 2018.

Patna Pirates won the 5th edition of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) by defeating Gujarat Fortunegiants in the final in
Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Roger Federer, a Swiss professional tennis player, won the 2017 Swiss Indoors men’s singles tennis tournament
at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland.

Selena Selvakumar won triple gold medal at the Egypt Junior and Cadet Open Table Tennis Championship 2017.

Shamsher Khan, India’s first swimmer who had participated in the 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, passed
away at 86.
 MISCELLANEOUS
World

The 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory
Species (CMS) of Wild Animals (CMS COP13) will be hosted by India in 2020.

The World Cities Day was celebrated on October 31. The Day is expected to greatly promote the
international community’s interest in global urbanization, push forward cooperation among countries in
meeting opportunities and addressing challenges of urbanization, and contributing to sustainable urban
development around the world.

The world's first hybrid electric tram powered by hydrogen fuel cells was launched in China, which marks a
huge step in the application of green energy in public transport.

Burundi became the first country to pull out from the International Criminal Court after a one-year
withdrawal process came to an end. The country notified former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon of its
intent to leave the court in October 27, 2016, as one of three countries — along with South Africa and The
Gambia — to make such moves last year. Both South Africa and The Gambia later took back their
withdrawals.

The World Day for Audiovisual Heritage (WDAH) was observed on October 27 with the theme “Discover,
remember and share”.

The 14th South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation in Law (SAARCLAW) Conference started in
Colombo, Sri Lanka.

The World Polio Day (WPD) was observed by the World Health Organization (WHO) on October 24.

The United Nations Day was observed on October 24 to mark the 72nd anniversary of the UN Charter’s
entry into force.

The 2nd edition of World Congress on Marxism will be held at Peking University in Beijing, China, from
May 5-6, 2018.

The World Development Information Day (WDID) was observe on October 24 to draw the attention of the
world to development problems and the need to strengthen international cooperation to solve them.

The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (IDEP) was observed on October 17.

The World Spine Day (WSD) was observed on October 16 with the theme “Your Back In Action”.

The World Food Day (WFD) was observed on October 16 with the theme “Change the future of migration.
Invest in food security and rural development”.

India

India topped the list of seven countries accounting for 64% of the 10.4 million new tuberculosis (TB) cases
worldwide in 2016, according to a new report by the World Health Organisation. India was followed by
Indonesia, China, Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria and South Africa.

The National Unity Day (NUD), also known as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (RED),was celebrated across India on
October 31 to commemorate birth anniversary of the Iron Man of India Sardar Vallabh bhai Patel, one of
the founding leaders of Republic of India.

The International Conference on Green Initiatives & Railway Electrification was held in New Delhi on
October 27, 2017.

The Infantry Day was celebrated in India on October 27 to commemorate the first Infantry action post
independence.

India’s passport was ranked 75th out of 94 countries, according to the ‘Global Passport Power Rank 2017’
by global financial advisory firm Arton Capital. The list is topped by Singapore, followed by Germany,
Sweden and South Korea.

To monitor security at the country's airports and vital installations like nuclear and space organisations,
the Central Industrial Security Force, for the first time, will track social media trends and use data
analytics for which the central force has created a 'media lab' and a Pattern Research for Institutional
Social Media (PRISM) unit at its base in Chennai.

The Meghalaya Election Department entered Limca Book of Records for the formation of the biggest
human logo comprising young voters in the state.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the Rs 615 crore 'roll- on-roll-off' (ro-ro) ferry
service between Ghogha in Saurashtra and Dahej in south Gujarat. This is the first of its kind project not
only in India but also in South-East Asia.

The National Research Centre for Banana (NRCB) Tiruchi signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC)
with the Andhra Pradesh government to develop technologies relating to banana production.

Giving the Indo-Russian defence cooperation a major boost, Exercise INDRA-2017, the first ever Tri
Services Joint Exercise between Indian and Russian Armed Forces was conducted in the Eastern Military
District of Russia from 19 to 29 Oct 2017. Exercise INDRA in its previous nine avatars was conducted as a
single service exercise alternately between the two countries. The year 2017 marked a major milestone as
this Exercise was upgraded to involve all the three Services of the Armed Forces (Army, Navy & Air
Force), which further accentuates the importance of Joint Services in the present world environment.

The National Police Commemoration Day (NPCD) was observed in India on October 21 to mark the
memory of brave policemen who sacrificed their lives while discharging their duties.

The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) launched an online campaign
#IamThatWoman to end gender bias in women against women.

India’s first-ever All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
in New Delhi.