1. India recorded the highest number of TB cases in 2014: WHO report

(i) As per the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) latest report, India recorded the highest number of tuberculosis (TB) cases in 2014. 

(ii) The Global Tuberculosis Report 2015 highlighted that 1.5 million people died in 2014 from the disease, which is on par with HIV as a leading killer worldwide. 

(iii) Of the 9.6 million new TB cases in 2014, 58% were in the South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions. Of the global total, India, Indonesia and China have witnessed the largest number of cases at 23%, 10% and 10% respectively.

2. Vidya Devi Bhandari is the first woman President of Nepal 

(i) Recently, Vidya Devi Bhandari was elected as the first woman President of Nepal. 

(ii) The Communist leader won a clear majority of 327 votes in Nepal’s Parliament as against  her opponent, veteran Nepali Congress leader Kul Bahadur Gurung’s, who garnered  only 214 votes. 

(iii) Nepal recently adopted a democratic constitution, which made it necessary to conduct elections for all constitutional positions in the country. Bhandari will replace the incumbent president Ram Baran Yadav.

3. A magnitude-7.5 earthquake strikes Afghanistan and Pakistan

(i) Recently, a magnitude-7.5 earthquake hit the northern regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan, killing over 300 people.

(ii)  The quake was centered in the hilly Hindu Kush region  of Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province, which borders Pakistan, Tajikistan and China. 

(iii) No less than 237 people were killed in Pakistan, with over 1,000 injured. Afghan officials reported 74 dead and more than 200 injured. Two deaths were reported in the Indian- controlled Kashmir region.

4. Sri Lankan – India navy begin 4th edition of SLINEX exercise 

(i) Recently, the Indian and Sri Lankan Navies began the 4th edition of Sri Lanka – India exercise (SLINEX) off the coast of Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. The maritime exercises will continue till November 1, 2015. 

(ii) SLINEX is a series of bilateral maritime exercises that began in 2005 between the navies of the two countries and have continued successfully since then. 

(iii) The exercise will begin with a Harbour Phase, during which, participants will engage in professional, cultural and social interactions. This will be followed by the  Sea Phase that will include complex operations like anti-piracy exercises, gun firings, cross-deck helicopter operations and anti-surface exercises, among others.

5. China is worst in terms of Internet freedom: Freedom on the Net  

(i) As per the Freedom on the Net report recently released by US-based NGO Freedom House, 2015 was the fifth year that witnessed a steady decline in Internet freedom as many governments took to censoring information of public interest and expanded surveillance besides curbing privacy tools. 

(ii) The report says that China is worst across the globe as regards abuse of Internet freedom, followed by Syria and Iran. 

(iii) Internet freedom saw its biggest gains in Sri Lanka and Zambia. Sanja Kelly, project director for Freedom on the Net said,”Governments are increasingly pressuring individuals and the private sector to take down or delete offending content, as opposed to relying on blocking and filtering.”

6. Assam’s Singlijan Tea Estate achieves Open Defecation Free status under Swacch Bharat Mission 

(i) Assam’s Singlijan Tea Estate in Dibrugarh district achieved Open Defecation Free status under the Swachh Bharat Mission. 

(ii) The District Deputy Commissioner M. Manibannan said, “Timona Gram Panchyat and garden management gave the rare status to the tea garden as it achieved the open defecation-free target.” 

(iii) With a population of 1500, 147 household toilets have been constructed under the cleanliness mission. 

(iv) Manibannan added that water samples of 320 drinking sources were confirmed to be disinfected after testing.

7. Madhya Pradesh announces 33% quota to women in govt. jobs

(i) Recently, the Madhya Pradesh government decided to provide women 33 per cent reservation in government jobs. 

(ii) Permission will be sought from the Election Commission to implement this decision as the by-polls will be held in two places in the state in November.

8. IBM to provide technology platforms in cloud computing to Telangana colleges

(i) International tech giant IBM signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Telangana Academy for Skill and Knowledge (TASK) to provide technology platforms  and services in cloud computing in Telangana colleges. 

(ii) This move is to benefit the state’s engineering college students and teachers, who will have access to the IBM cloud and an opportunity to enhance their cloud skills that is in demand in the IT industry today, said an official statement.

9. 12th South Asian Games to be held in India

(i) The 12th South Asian Games will be held from December 10 – 20, 2015, in north-eastern cities of Guwahati and Shillong.

(ii) Around 2,500 athletes from eight member countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, the Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka- will participate in the event. The organisational costs have approximately been pegged at Rs.60-70 crore. 

(iii) The previous SAG was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2010.

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