Adhai-din ka Jhonpra(Ajmer) - A Mosque

The mosque is believed to have been built in two and a half days, thus named Adhai-din (two and a half days). Another belief is that its name is attributed to a two and a half day fair held nearby each year. The edifice was originally a Sanskrit college, but Muhammad Ghori converted it into a mosque in 1198 and built a seven-arched wall inscribed with verses from the Koran

No matter what people believe about the secular nature of Muslim rulers in India, the Adai-din ka Jhonpra is the ultimate example of the destruction of a Hindu or Jain temple to construct a mosque.

British, Japanese scientists win Nobel Prize for stem cell research

2012 Nobel Prize in Literature

The 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Mo Yan "who with hallucinatory realism merges folk tales, history and the contemporary".

NOBEL PRIZE IN MEDICINE-

British scientist John Gurdon, left, speaks in London, and Japanese scientist Shinya Yamanaka, right, speaks in Kyoto on Monday after they were named winners of the 2012 Nobel Prize in medicine. 

The British and Japanese researchers respectively on 8 October 2012 won the Nobel Prize-2012 in Medicine. They were awarded with the prize for the discovery of reprogramming the specialised and matured cells of the body into blank slate and this may one day this can start repairing the damaged organs. The Prize committee based in Karnolinska Institute at Stockholm stated that this discovery has helped in understanding the theory of cell and organism development.

The discovery has turned up to be a tool for the scientists round the world allowing them to make remarkable progress in different areas of medicine and can help in tissue transplantation for treatment of diseases like Diabetes and Parkinson. 

The declared prizes will be handed out to their respective winners on the death anniversary of prize founder Alfred Nobel on 10 December 2012. 

Sir John Gurdon, Nobel Prize winner, was 'too stupid' for science at school

 Click to Know More

 

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2012

Robert J. Lefkowitz , Brian K. Kobilka

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2012 was awarded jointly to Robert J. Lefkowitz and Brian K. Kobilka "for studies of G-protein-coupled receptors"

Serge Haroche and David Wineland won Nobel Prize 2012 for Physics

Serge Haroche and David Wineland of France and US respectively, won the Nobel Physics Prize on 9 October 2012. They received Nobel for their work on quantum physics, which would open a gate for supercomputers in future. The two physics have developed the technology for examining   the intimate relationship between matter and light.This research by the duo would help in development of precise clocks, which will be hundred-times precise than the caesium clocks of present-time.The eight million Swedish Krona ($1.2 millions) would be divided in between the two and the award will be received by them on 10 December 2012 on the death ceremony of the Prize Founder, Alfred Nobel. The remaining prizes in Chemistry, Literature and Peace would be announced on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday respectively.

The Nobel Prize in Physics 2012 was awarded jointly to Serge Haroche and David J. Wineland "for ground-breaking experimental methods that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems"

2012 Nobel Peace Prize

The 2012 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the European Union (EU) "for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe".

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History Of Jammu & Kashmir

Hari Singh had ascended the throne of Kashmir in 1925 and was the reigning monarch at the conclusion of British rule in the subcontinent in 1947. One of the conditions of the partition of India imposed by Britain was that the rulers of princely states would have the right to opt for either Pakistan or India or remain independent. In 1947, Kashmir's population was 77% Muslim and it shared a boundary with both Dominion of Pakistan and Union of India. On 20 October 1947, tribesmen backed by Pakistan invaded Kashmir.[3]

The Maharaja initially fought back but appealed for assistance to the Governor-General Louis Mountbatten, who agreed on the condition that the ruler accede to India.[4] On 25 October 1947 Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession[5] on 26 October 1947 and it was accepted on 27 October 1947 by the Governor General of India.[6] Once the Instrument of Accession was signed, Indian soldiers entered Kashmir with orders to evict the raiders, but they were not able to expel everyone from the state by the time the harsh winter started. India took the matter to the United Nations. The UN resolution asked both India and Pakistan to vacate the areas they had occupied and hold a referendum under UN observation. The holding of this plebiscite, which India initially supported, was dismissed by India because the 1952 elected Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir voted in favour of confirming the Kashmir region's accession to India.[7] Another reason for the abandonment of the referendum is because demographic changes after 1947 have been effected in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, as generations of Pakistani individuals non-native to the region have been allowed to take residence in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.[7][8] Furthermore, in Jammu & Kashmir state of India, the demographics of the Kashmir Valley have also been altered after separatist militants coerced 250,000 Kashmiri Hindus to leave the region.[9][10] Moreover, Pakistan failed to withdraw its troops from the Kashmir region as was required under the same U.N. resolution of August 13, 1948 which discussed the plebiscite.[7]

Politics and government

Jammu and Kashmir is the only state in India which enjoys special autonomy under Article 370 of the Constitution of India, according to which no law enacted by the Parliament of India, except for those in the field of defence, communication and foreign policy, will be extendable in Jammu and Kashmir unless it is ratified by the state legislature of Jammu and Kashmir. Subsequently, jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India over Jammu and Kashmir has been extended.[40]

Jammu and Kashmir is also the only Indian state that has its own flag and constitution, and Indians from other states cannot purchase land or property in the state.[41] Designed by the then ruling National Conference, the flag of Jammu and Kashmir features a plough on a red background symbolizing labour; it replaced the Maharaja's state flag. The three stripes represent the three distinct administrative divisions of the state, namely Jammu, Valley of Kashmir, and Ladakh.[42]

October Digest

Do you Know?

Oktoberfest is a 16-day festival celebrating beer held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October. It is one of the most famous events in Germany and is the world's largest fair, with more than 6 million people from around the world attending the event every year



2) Venezuela’s President Hugo Chávez has decisively won election to a fourth term following a tough campaign by the challenger, Henrique Capriles Radonski

3)Maldivian Court issued an arrest warrant against ex-President Mohamed Nasheed

4) Australia Retained Women T-20 World Cup Title-The Australian Women Cricket team on 7 October 2012 defeated England by four runs to retain the T-20 world cup title

5)Three Day campaign observed in Uttar Pradesh to Save Gangetic Dolphins

6)The Parliament was dissolved in Kuwait for the Sixth Time in Five Years

7)5 October observed as Dolphin Day in Bihar

8)Justice B Subhashan Reddy becomes AP Lokayukta

9)Governer of Andhra Pradesh-Governor E S L Narasimhan 

(Governor E S L Narasimhan administered the oath to Subhashan Reddy at a brief function at the Raj Bhawan this morning. ) 

Bihar observes Dolphin Day

  Patna: Bihar observed Dolphin Day Friday to raise awareness about conservation of the Ganga river dolphin declared as India's national aquatic animal.

"Dolphin Day is a step towards conserving the Ganga river dolphin and would be observed every year on Oct 5," Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said at a workshop here.

"It is a part of the Wildlife Week being observed in Bihar (Oct 2-8)," he added.

Important Summits In 2012

>Earth Summit 2012-

In 2012, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development was also held in Rio, and is also commonly called Rio+20 or Rio Earth Summit 2012. was held June 20-22nd.

Earth Summit was an UN Event.

 20th ASEAN Summit -April 3-4 2012

Cambodia , Phnom Penh, Cambodia 

More Information-

 Headquarters Indonesia 

Member states 10

Secretary General

--Surin Pitsuwan

(Thailand)

 Establishment August 8, 1967

2012 G-20 Mexico summit

The 2012 G-20 Mexico Summit was the seventh meeting of the G-20 heads of government 

The Group of Twenty Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (also known as the G-20, G20, and Group of Twenty) is a group of finance ministers and central bank governors from 20 major economies: 19 countries plus the European Union,

September 2013-  Russia

 

G-8 Summit-2012

Held at Camp David(USA)

The Group of Eight (G8) is a forum for the governments of eight of the world's largest economies.

Next Summit 2013-  Ullswater (United Kingdom)

 4th BRICS summit 2012– New Delhi

10th BASIC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change – New Delhi

 Arab summit 2012 – Baghdad (Iraq)

Nuclear security summit 2012 – Seoul (South Korea)

 12th Annual summit of European Union and India – New Delhi

 99th Indian Science Congress ---Bhubaneshwar

Pravasi Bharathiya sammelan ----Jaipur


NATO ----CHICAGO

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO (play /ˈneɪtoʊ/ NAY-toh; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique Nord (OTAN)), also called the (North) Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949


World Chess championship ---Moscow


Asian athletic(indoor)championship ---China(Hangzhou)


NAM ---Tehran (2012)-
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a group of states which are not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2012, the movement has 120 members and 17 observer countries.


SCO ---Meeting Held at BEIJING (2012)

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation or SCO  is an intergovernmental mutual-security organization which was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Except for Uzbekistan, the other countries had been members of the Shanghai Five, founded in 1996; after the inclusion of Uzbekistan in 2001, the members renamed the organization.

G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting – Mexico City
 

 Friends of Syria Meeting – Istanbul (Turkey)

5th Ministerial level India-UK Economic Financial Dialogue – New Delhi

United Nation Conference on Sustainable Development 2012 – Rio de janeiro (Brazil)

17th National youth Festival – Mangalore (Karnataka)

.World Economic Forum – Davos (Switzerland)

 World Polio Summit 2012 – New Delhi

Miscellaneous General awareness

Fifty Shades of Grey
The Book by EL James
Uk's best selling book outselling Da vinchi code and harry potter.







--------------------

2) The London Olympics was  the 30th Olympics.

3)N.Rangacharry- is Head of committee formed by prime minister to review taxation of development centers and it sector.

4) Parthasarathi Shome committee earlier this month to look into the controversial GAAR (General Anti-Avoidance Rules)

5) Nomadic Elephant- Joint military exercise between India and Mongolia

6)Sumit Bose-Appointed Revenue secretary to central govt

7) Dr Br Ambedkar- Voted as greatest Indian.

8)Oak Creek-Place in Us wisconsin state where 6 persons were killed.

9)Karnataka- Decided to establish 3 all women bank which would be run by female employee and only women customers would be entertained.

10)Hamid Ansari- Re-Elected as vice president for consecutive term after S.Radha krishnan

11) Riab Hijab-Prime minister of syria

12) Curiosity-Nasa's mars rover

 13) Micheal Phelps of us won the highest number of medals in London Olympics

14)India's largest solar power plant in Ludhiana starts working

15)Japan to provide 400 cr financial aid to west Bengal govt for social forestry

16) Govt reconstituted NAC(National advisory council)The tenure of the NAC had expired on May 31. The government reconstituted the advisory panel yesterday making it a 12-member body, including Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

17)Raghuram G.Rajan-Appointed Advisor To Finance Minister

18) Pax Indica- Book Writter by Shashi Throor

19)Walt Disney- Govt cleared Fdi proposal of 100 cr in India.

20)Dhyanchand Award-Is Given for life time achievement award

21)Samsung-Lost a patent case against apple is a South Korea based company

22)Maximum amount can be deposited in one year in small acount is 1 Lac

23)Vinod Kumar- Dhyan chand award 2012(Wrestling)

24)Lance Armstrong-Banned by USADA(us anti doping agency)

25)Term Twin Deficit Referred to as Both Fiscal deficit and current account deficit

26)World Heritage Meeting Held at St Peter Burg Russia

27)Rare Pakistan honour  Sitara-i-Imtiaz for eminent Urdu litterateur Professor Gopi Chand Narang

28)Anti Terrorism Day is observed on-21 May

29)The death anniversary of ex-prime minister of India, Shri Rajiv Gandhi is observed as-Anti Terrorism Day

30) Recently NATO Summit Held in which city?-Chicago

31) G 8 Summit 2012 held at-Camp David

32) India has recently launched heavy satellite —Risat-1

33)Who has been elected World Court judge to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ?-Dalveer Bhandari

34)What is the currency of Australia ?-Penny

35)Millatry Exercise conducted from May 02 to May 05 at Rajasthan named as-Operation shoorver

36)International Press Freedom Day observed on which of the following day?-3 may

36)Which bollywood actor is the new brand ambassador for the sanitation drive launched by Union Minister for Rural Development ?-Vidya Balan

37)Khullar named new Trai chief->Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar has been appointed the new chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). Khullar named new Trai chief with 3-yr term. Mr. Khullar is  a 1975-batch IAS officer.

38)Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson steps down

39)Dalai Lama Awarded 2012 Templeton Prize-->Dalai Lama received the prestigious £1.1 million Templeton Prize for his contribution to “affirming life’s spiritual dimension.” The Dalai Lama described India as the “ideal place” for religious co-existence.

40)Aziz Qureshi sworn in as Uttarakhand Governor-

41)james Anderson is England’s cricketer of the year

42) Facebook IPO values company at $104 billion

43) Reserve Bank of India decided to set up a 2 Billion Dollar Swap Facility for SAARC Nations

44) Francois Hollande takes oath as France’s President

45)Jean-Marc Ayrault took over as the New Prime Minister of France

46)General Provident Fund interest rate raised to 8.8% for 2012-13

47)Parliament celebrates 60 years

48)United States announced the Partial Rollback of Sanctions on Myanmar

 49)Government cleared Rs 8500-crore Project to promote connectivity in Naxalite-affected Districts
Supreme Court directed Union Government of India to do away with the Haj Subsidy

50)The Union Cabinet approved the 7.6 billion dollar TAPI gas pipeline project.
Bharti buys 49% in Qualcomm unit
 Cannes Film Festival->Palme d’Or (Best Film) – “Love”/Amour (Austria) by Michael Haneke


 51)Viswanathan Anand wins 2012 World Chess ChampionshipViswanathan Anand wins 2012 World Chess Championship,->Viswanathan Anand won  World Chess Champion 2012 . He defeated Boris Gelfand in the final match

52) India’s GDP growth slumps to 6.5 pc in 2011-12

53) Vidya Balan receives Prabha Khaitan Puraskar

54) Bikram Singh assumes charge as new Army chief(25th Chief )

 55)Odisha sand artist Sudarshan Pattnaik wins international award(The theme of World Sand Sculpture Championship 2012 was World Cinema.)

 56)Pakistan test fires Hatf VII

 57)Vice Admiral D.K. Joshi named new Navy Chief

58)What is service sector share in GDP of India acc. to Economic Survey 2011-12 ?--59%

59)Name the NASA spaceaircraft which has discovered ice inside the shadowed craters of mercury ?
Messenger

60)UN Human Rights Council has adopted a resolution against which country ?- Sri lanka

61)Name the country which has accepted UN Peace Plan to end violence in the country ?-Syria

62)India inked an IDA (International devlopment Association ) credit worth 152 million dollar with World Bank to improve UPHSSP . In UPHSSP Stands for Uttar Pradesh ……………. Systems Strengthening Project . What does “H” stands for- Health

63) Cabinet approved a financial restructuring plan for which Airline ?-Air india

64)Where is world’s largest proven gas reserves are located ?-Russia

65) which rule calls for higher taxes for US super-rich ?-Buffet Law

66) Mr. Sampath appointed as new CEC Chief Election Commissioner

67)Rs 3,939 Crore Plan Budget size approved for Meghalaya

68)State Bank cuts rates for select term deposits

69) IIFA Awards 2012=13th International Indian Film Academy Awards held in Singapore

• Best Actor – Ranbir Kapoor (Rockstar)
• Best Actress – Vidya Balan (The Dirty Picture)
• Best Movie – Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
• Best Director – Zoya Akhtar (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara)

70) RBI re-appoints K C Chakrabarty as Deputy Governor 

71) New Central scheme for women to be launched in Haryana-A new Central scheme, ‘Swadhar Greh’, is being launched in Haryana to protect destitute women, including those suffering from HIV/AIDS, prisoners released from jail and those who are without family so that they could “lead their life with dignity”.

72)Alok Misra elected as IBA chairman   Indian Banks Association

73)Antonis Samaras sworn in as Greece prime minister

74) Sekhar Basu appointed BARC Director

75)Mahendra Singh Dhoni appointed Nepal Cricket’s Brand Ambassador 

76)Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi Receives Nobel Peace Prize In Oslo 

77)   Stuntman Nik Wallenda completes tightrope walk across Niagara Falls

78) Earth Summit 2012 was held at …Rio de Janeiro… from 20-22 june? 

79)Who won women singles french open 2012 ?Maria Sharapova

80)13th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards the ceremony was held in which of the following city? -Singapore

81) Who has won French Open for seventh time ?-Rafel Nadal

82)Indian President Elections 2012 schedule was announced by Election Commission of India (ECI) , what is the date of Election ?-19 July

83)Jagadish Shettar sworn in as Karnataka chief minister

84)Freedom fighter Captain Lakshmi Sehgal dead

85)Bradley Wiggins won the 99th Edition of Tour de France Bicycle Race

86)Kuchipudi Dance Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam passed away

87)SBI reduced the interest rate on the deposits of more than 5 years

88)Syed Nasim Ahmed Zaidi appointed New Election Commissioner

89)Hero MotoCorp invested 20 million dollar in US based Erik Buell for R&D 

90)Sally Ride, the first US woman to travel into space died

91)The Government of Japan on 23 July 2012 decided to honour Indian Environmental philosopher Vandana Shiva with Fukuoka Prize 2012.

92)Anil Kumar was appointed as the new Director General for Employee’s State Insurance Corporation (ESIC)

93)Appointment Committee of the Cabinet(ACC) appointed Omita Paul as the Secretary of the President 

94)Miss China crowned Miss World 2012-China’s Yu Wenxia has been crowned 2012 Miss World.It was the second time a Miss China contestant was awarded the title.

95)  India's 1st electronic toll plaza to kick-start in Chandimandir

96)The government of Japan decided to honour Vandana Shiva with Fukuoka Prize 2012

97)Marissa Mayer appointed as the New President and CEO of Yahoo

98)Derek O’ Brian became the First Anglo-Indian to Vote in Presidential Election

99)Ravneet Gill appointed as the New CEO of Deutsche Bank India

100)Kuchipudi Dance Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam passed away

 101)Omita Paul appointed as the Secretary of the President

Shadman Chowk renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore

Bhagat Singh Chowk: Is the new name of Shadman Chowk located in the Eastern City of Lahore (Pakistan)

The Shadman Chowk in the eastern city of Lahore (Pakistan) on 29 September 2012 was renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk on the 105th birth anniversary of the revolutionary freedom fighter and martyr, Bhagat Singh. This came up in result of the demand from the peace activists for renaming the Chowk by the name of Bhagat Singh. Noorul Amin Mengal, the District Coordination Officer directed the City District Government to rename Shadman Chowk as Bhagat Singh Chowk.

It was Shadman Chowk roundabout, where Bhagat Singh along with his two companions Sukhdev Singh and Rajguru were hanged on 23 March 1931 in the then Lahore Jail for their alleged involvement in the Lahore Conspiracy Case. Till 1947, the Chowk was named after the name of Bhagat Singh, later it was renamed to be Shadman Chowk.

Bhagat Singh

Bhagat Singh born of 28 September 1907 and hanged on 23 March 1931, was one of the greatest martyrs of the Indian Freedom Struggle against the British Empire. He has been termed as the most influential revolutionists of his time in the Indian History. Referred to be a Saheed, Bhagat singh as a teenager studied the revolutionary movements of European Countries and was attracted towards the Marxists and Anarchist thoughts.

Some of the revolutionary acts of Bhagat Singh 1. Killed the then Assistant Superintendent of Police John P. Saunders in a plot to kill the Superintendent of Police James A. Scott
2. In 1915, when the British Government planned to implement the Defence India Act, 1915 Bhagat Singh along with Batukeshwar Dutt threw 2 bombs in the visitor’s gallery of the Central Legislative Hall shouting Inquilab Zindabad and showered leaflets to with slogans against the Public Safety and Trades Dispute Bills. Both surrendered themselves in the hands of British police claiming the incident was intentional (this act was done in the influence of the news about the French anarchist who threw a bomb in the French Chamber of Deputies)

Hunger strike and Lahore conspiracy case
1. He along with few more revolutionaries went on a hunger strike of 116 days to protest against the inequalities, which were being done against the Indian Prisoners to that of the British Prisoners in the jail premises.
2. On 7 October 1930, a three hundred page judgment by the tribunal that he faced along with the duo Rajguru and Sukhdev declared their sentence of being hanged till death in the Lahore Conspiracy Case
3. Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, the trio were hanged on 24 March 1931 few hours before the original time decided on the Shadman Chowk again renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore.

Bhagat Singh’s Dairy and Pamphlet
1. During his term in jail and by the time he was hanged, the martyr who had the habit of maintaining a dairy wrote 404 pages. Views from Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were the prominent ones available in the dairy.
2. In the prison he also wrote a small pamphlet with title Why I am an Atheist