1- 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal

A high-intensity earthquake of magnitude 7.8 on the Richter scale had struck central Nepal between its capital Kathmandu and the city of Pokhara on 25 April 2015. Earthquake’s epicenter was 80 kilometers east of Pokhra near Kathmandu. It had a depth of only 11 kilometers (7 miles) i.e. in geological terms it was a shallow depth. The intensity of this earthquake was high due to its shallower depth which had more destructive power. It has resulted in thousands of deaths and tremendous loss of property. The tremors of this quake were felt in north Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Haryana, and Punjab. The tremors were also reported in Pakistan and Bangladesh. Earlier, Nepal had suffered its worst recorded earthquake in 1934. It was measured 8.0 and had destroyed the cities of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan.

Reasons for catastrophic earthquake in Nepal

This earthquake in Nepal may have occurred because of two converging tectonic plates, the India plate and the overriding Eurasian plate. These tectonic plates are the large, thin, relatively rigid and are moving relative to one another on the outer surface of the Earth. Both of these plates are slowly moving and sometimes get stuck at their edges due to friction. Earthquake might have occured because of these overriding plates after the stress on the edge overcomes the friction. It releases tremendous energy in form of waves that travel through the Earth’s crust and causes earthquake on the surface.

2- Bank of Baroda ties up with UAE Exchange for instant money transfer

Leading Indian public sector bank Bank of Baroda (BoB) has partnered with UAE Exchange to offer Non-resident Indian (NRI) customers an instant cash transfer facility. In this regard agreement was signed between both parties. This agreement will facilitate customers can send money within minutes to their desired bank accounts in BoB in India. This facility is also supported by SMS alert, which will notify the moment the amount is credited in the bank account of desired customer. UAE Exchange is a global remittance and foreign exchange (FOREX) company. It serves over 7.9 million customers worldwide and currently has presence in 32 countries with over 750 branches across 32 countries. Currently, Bank of Baroda (BoB) has a network of more than 5,000 branches across United States, Europe, Africa, Australia and Asia. Its financial centres are located in cities like New York, London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai.

3- 50th Jnanpith Award conferred on Marathi litterateur Bhalchandra Nemade

Bhalchandra Nemade

50th Jnanpith Award was conferred on eminent Marathi litterateur Bhalchandra Nemade on 25 April 2015. He was presented award comprising of 11 lakh rupees and a citation plaque and a bronze replica of Saraswati by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function in Parliament House Complex in New Delhi. His novel, Kosala, written in 1963 is considered as a path breaking in Marathi literature.

About Bhalchandra Nemade

He was born in 1938 in the village of Jalgoan district of Maharashtra. He completed his bachelor’s degree from Fergusson College, Pune and received PhD and D.Lit. degrees from North Maharashtra University. He had taught English, Marathi, and comparative literature at various universities including the School of Oriental and African Studies at London and retired from Mumbai University’s Gurudeo Tagore Chair for comparative literature studies. In the 1960s, he had edited Marathi magazine Vacha.

His work

• Novel Collection- Kosla, Bidhar, Hool, Jarila, Jhool, Hindu- Jagnyachi Samruddha Adgal.
• Poem Collection- Melody, Dekhani. Criticism Collection- Teekaswayamvar, Sahityachi Bhasha, Tukaram, The Influence of English on Marathi: A Sociolinguistic and Stylistic Study, Indo-Anglian Writings: Two Lectures, Prasaranga Prakashan, Mysore, Nativism (Desivad).
• Awards- He has received Sahitya Akademi Award (1990) for his critical work Teeka Svayanwar. He was also awarded Padma Shri (2011).

It should be noted that Bhalchandra Nemade is the 4th Marathi writer to receive the honour. Others are Vishnu Sakharam Khandekar (1974) for his work Yayati. Vishnu Vaman Shirwadkar (1987). He is famously known as Kusumagraj. Vinda Karandikar (2003).

4- Anil Kapoor conferred with Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015

Anil Kapoor || Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015

Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor conferred with prestigious Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015. He was presented the award by noted historian and writer Babasaheb Purandare. Apart from Anil Kapoor, veteran Marathi actor Dilip Prabhavalkar was also bestowed with the prestigious Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015.

About Master Dinanath Mangeshkar Award

Master Dinanath Mangeshkar was instituted in 1999 in memory of Dinanath Mangeshkar, father of Lata Mangeshkar. Since then it is awarded annually to persons for their outstanding contributions to music and movies. The awards carries monetary award of Rs 101 001, memento and citation. Dinanath Mangeshkar was born on December 29, 1900 and died on April 24, 1942. The award ceremony is held annually on 24 April. In 2014, the award was given to Bollywood legend Rishi Kapoor and eminent musician Zakir Hussain.

5- Gopinath Pillai awarded ‘Outstanding Service Award’ for his services in Singapore

Gopinath Pillai

Indian-origin diplomat Gopinath Pillai was awarded ‘Outstanding Service Award’ for his services by the National University of Singapore (NUS). Current he is serving as Ambassador-at-Large of Singapore and special envoy to Andhra Pradesh.

About Gopinath Pillai

Gopinath Pillai was born in Singapore to Indian parents and had spent eight years of his childhood in Kerala. In 1961, he is graduate from University of Malaya and holds degree of Bachelor of Arts (BA). He had started his career as a journalist with Reuters. He also has worked in a number of fields including banking and currently is chairman of IT company Savant Infocomm and is Director of Gateway Distriparks Ltd in India. Pillai has significantly contributed to Singapore through his distinguished service as a diplomat for more than 25 years. His diplomatic career started in 1980s with an assignment with Singapore’s Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Foreign Affairs. He had served as the non-resident Ambassador to Iran from 1990 to 2008. Later, he had served as the Singapore High Commissioner to Pakistan. Awards: He was conferred with Padma Shri in 2012 by the Government of India.

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#Current Affairs  JANUARY , FEBRUARY ,  MARCH – Date-wise  |  2015

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