Current Affairs of October Month

current affairs
current affairs
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 New Governors -
J&K - Girish Chandra Murmu
Ladakh - Radha Krishna Mathur
Mizoram - P S Sreedharan Pillai
Goa - Satya Pal Malik
Chief Justice of India - Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde was appointed as the 47th Chief Justice of India. Justice Bobde will take oath as the CJI on November 18th, a day after incumbent Ranjan Gogoi demits office.
Nobel Prize in Physics - The Nobel Assembly has announced the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics. The prize will be awarded to James Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz. James Peebles was honoured for his contributions to the understanding of the evolution of the Universe and Earth’s place in the cosmos. Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz were awarded the prize for finding 51 Pegasi b, a gas giant orbiting a star 50 light-years away.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry - The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019. The prize will be awarded jointly to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino. They have been nominated for the prize for the development of lithium-ion batteries.
Nobel Prize in Medicine - The Nobel Assembly has announced the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine at Karolinska Institutet. The prize will be awarded jointly to William G. Kaelin, Sir Peter J. Ratcliffe and Gregg L. Semenza. They have been nominated for the prize for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability.
Nobel Prizes in Literature - The Nobel Prizes in Literature 2018 and 2019 were announced at The Swedish Academy in Stockholm. Both winners will receive a cash prize of 9-million kronor ($918,000). The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2018 is awarded to the Polish author Olga Tokarczuk. The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2019 is awarded to the Austrian author Peter Handke.
Nobel Peace Prize - The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2019 to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali. He has been awarded for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation. He will receive a full cash prize of 9-million kronor ($918,000).
Nobel Prize in Economics - The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Economics 2019. The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2019 was awarded jointly to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.” Indian-born Abhijit Banerjee is an American citizen while Esther Duflo is French-American. He is a Professor of Economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US.
Complete List of Nobel Prize - 
Nobel Prize
Physics
James Peebles
Michel Mayor
Didier Queloz
Chemistry
John B. Goodenough
Stanley Whittingham 
Akira Yoshino
Medicine
William G. Kaelin
Peter J. Ratcliffe
Gregg L. Semenza
Economics
Abhijit Banerjee
Esther Duflo
Michael Kremer
Literature
Olga Tokarczuk (2018)
Peter Handke (2019)
Peace
Abiy Ahmed Ali
Monetary Policy - In its 4th Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Committee meeting, the Reserve Bank of India has reduced the policy repo rate by 25 basis points (bps). RBI has also reduced the real GDP growth for 2019-20 from 6.9% to 6.1%. New rates are -
Repo rate – 5.15% (Decreased 0.25%)
Reverse Repo – 4.9% (Decreased 0.25%)
Cash Reserve Ratio – 4% (Unchanged)
Statutory Liquidity Ratio – 18.75% (Unchanged)
Bank Rate – 5.4% (Decreased 0.25%)
Marginal Standing Facility – 5.4% (Decreased 0.25%)
Forbes India Rich List - The business magazine Forbes has released “The Forbes India Rich List 2019” which has been topped by Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani with net worth of $51.4 billion. Industrialist Gautam Adani jumped 8 spots on the list to become the 2nd richest Indian with net worth of $15.7 billion.
India-China Informal Summit - The 2nd “India-China Informal Summit” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping begins at Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu. The 1st summit took place in Wuhan in the wake of the Doklam crisis in April, 2018.
Antonio Costa - Antonio Costa has been re-elected as the Prime Minister of Portugal.
Spirit Of Kerala - Short film from Kerala “Spirit Of Kerala” has won the People’s Choice Award at the recently concluded My Rode Reel film competition.
Global Competitiveness Index - World Economic Forum has released the Global Competitiveness Index report. As per the WEF’s released report, India has moved down 10 places to rank 68th on an annual global competitiveness index which was topped by Singapore.
Booker Prize - Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo have jointly won the 2019 Booker Prize. The Booker rules say the prize must not be divided, but the judges insisted they could not separate Atwood’s – ‘The Testament’ and ‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Evaristo.
Kais Saied - Kais Saied is elected as the new President of Tunisia.
Manohar Lal Khattar - Senior BJP leader Manohar Lal Khattar was sworn in as the chief minister of Haryana for second straight time, with the support of Dushyant Chautala led Jannayak Janta Party. Dushyant Chautala took oath as deputy chief minister of Haryana.
World’s Richest Person - Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates overtook Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest person. Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos lost the title as the world’s richest man to Bill Gates, after losing nearly $7 billion in stock value leaving his net worth to $103.9 billion. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is currently worth $105.7 billion.
Birender Singh Yadav - Birender Singh Yadav has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Iraq.
Financial Action Task Force - Sri Lanka has been removed from the “Grey List” of the international terror financing watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
Rajnish Kumar - SBI chairman Rajnish Kumar has been appointed as the new chairman of Indian Banks’ Association.
New Giuidelines for Jobs - The State Cabinet of Assam has decided to make government jobs out of bounds for people with more than 2 children. The policy will come into effect from January 1, 2021.
Pankaj Kumar - Government of India appointed IAS officer Pankaj Kumar as the new CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
Sourav Ganguly - One of India’s most decorated captains Sourav Ganguly takes over as the 39th President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
People’s Icon Award - Jennifer Aniston to receive People’s Icon Award 2019 at the 2019 People’s Choice Awards.
NAM Summit - Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit has been scheduled to be held between 25 October and 26 October 2019 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Ease of Doing business Rankings - World Bank has released Ease of Doing business Rankings which includes 190 countries. As per the rankings, India has jumped 14 places and has been ranked at 63rd among 190 countries. New Zealand and Somalia retained their 1st and 190th spot respectively.
Christine Lagarde - European Union leaders confirmed the appointment of Christine Lagarde as the new chief of the European Central Bank.
Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration - The 31st Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for the years 2017 and 2018 will be awarded to the pioneer of the Chipko Movement Chandi Prasad Bhatt for his services in promoting and preserving the national integration. He is a Ramon Magsaysay award recipient for the year 1982. He was also awarded Padma Shri in 1986, the Padma Bhushan in 2005 and the Gandhi Peace prize in 2013.
Moody downgraded GDP Growth - Moody, the rating agency has lowered its 2019-20 GDP growth forecast for India to 5.8% from 6.2%.
National Kishore Kumar Samman - Noted director and producer Priyadarshan was conferred the Madhya Pradesh government’s National Kishore Kumar Samman for 2018-19 in Khandwa, MP.
Global Hunger Index - As per Global Hunger Index - 2019, India ranks 102nd out of 117 qualifying countries, with a score of 30.3. Seventeen countries, including Belarus, Ukraine, Turkey, Cuba and Kuwait, shared the top rank with GHI scores less than 5.
World Bank and IMF Report - World Bank-International Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meetings kicked off on a somber note, with the IMF downgrading global growth in 2019 to 3%, the slowest since the global financial crisis. India’s growth projections have also been downgraded to 6.1% and 7.0% in 2019 and 2020.
Zimbabwe and Nepal Admitted in ICC - Zimbabwe and Nepal were re-admitted as ICC members in a meeting held in Dubai. Zimbabwe Cricket had been suspended from membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with immediate effect in July this year. Nepal had been banned in 2016 for “governmental interference” as well.
Asian Academy Creative Awards - “Gully Boy” & “Delhi Crime” have won awards at the Asian Academy Creative Awards.
Bharat Ki Laxmi - Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone and Indian badminton player PV Sindhu were named the ambassadors for Bharat Ki Laxmi. It is an initiative by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. The hashtag for the initiative is #BharatKiLaxmi.
New Maharatna Companies - ‘Maharatna’ status has been granted by the Government to state-owned Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited and Power Grid Corporation of India Limited.
Rafael Mariano Grossi - Rafael Mariano Grossi of Argentina has been elected as the new Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Golden Dragon Award - Indian actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has been awarded the prestigious Golden Dragon Award for his works in Hindi cinema at the Cardiff International Film Festival (CIFF ) 2019 held in Wales, United Kingdom.
ASEAN Summit - The 35th ASEAN Summit began in Bangkok, Thailand from October 31 to 4 November. The theme of the summit for this year is “Advancing Partnership for Sustainability”. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a group of ten member countries that encourages political, economic and social co-operation in the region. Apart from leaders of 10 ASEAN countries head of Eight dialogue partner countries including India, USA, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia and New Zealand are also participating in the summit.
Mary Kom - The 6-time world champion Mary Kom has been inducted into the 10-member sports ambassador group by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Boxing workforce to represent boxers ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
IMNEX-2019 - India-Myanmar Naval Exercise called IMNEX-2019 is being organised in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
Merger of MTNL and BSNL - Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the merger of loss-making telecom firms BSNL and MTNL as part of a revival package. The revival package for BSNL and MTNL includes raising of Rs 15,000 crore sovereign bonds and monetising Rs 38,000 crore of assets in next 4 years.
Rafale Fighter Jet - India has got the 1st Rafale fighter jet “RB-001” built for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in France. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh received the 1st Rafale combat jet aircraft at Production Unit of Dassault Aviation in France. However, the first batch of jets will arrive in India only in May 2020. Defence Minister also held the Annual Defence dialogue with his French counterpart Florence Parly.
First Blockchain-Based Carbon Trading Exchange - Singapore-based Air Carbon Pte launched the worlds’ first blockchain-based carbon trading exchange. This will allow airlines and other corporate buyers to buy as well sell tokens backed by carbon offset credits approved by the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
Human Milk Bank - India has taken inspiration from Brazil’s success in the field of human milk bank decided to adopt a similar model in creating a wide network of human milk banks.
Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act - According to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the appointed day for the two Union Territories J&K and Ladakh was October 31. The total number of states in the country will now be 28 while the total Union Territories will go up to nine.
National Unity Day - India is celebrating the 144th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel as National Unity Day. The birth anniversary of Sardar Patel i.e. 31st October is observed as the National Unity Day every year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Sardar Patel at the ‘Statue of Unity’ in Kevadiya, Gujarat.
Exercise SHAKTI - The bilateral ‘Exercise SHAKTI’ between the armies of India and France will be conducted from 31st October to 13th November 2019 at Foreign Training Node in Mahajan Field Firing Ranges, Rajasthan.
Sudarshan Chakra Vahini - Two-day long manoeuvres by Sudarshan Chakra Vahini of Indian Army Started at Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.
Chewang Rinchen Setu - Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu (Bridge) which has been constructed at an altitude of 14,650 feet in the forward area of Ladakh region.
Book - Bridgital Nation Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a book titled ‘Bridgital Nation’ in New Delhi. The book has been authored by N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons and Roopa Purushothaman Eminent industrialist.
World Statistics Day - World Statistics Day is observed on October 20, once every 5 years. The next World statistics Day celebrates on 20 October 2020. This year World Statistics day theme is “Better Data, Better Lives”.
Hypersonic Weapon Missiles - Defence Research and Development (DRDO) has started work to produce next-gen’ hypersonic weapon missiles that travel at 5 times speed of sound.
Penality on Cholamandalam - Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India has imposed penalties of Rs 1.01 crore on Cholamandalam MS GIC.
Tourism Camp on Siachen Base - Government of India has decided to open the entire area from Siachen base camp to Kumar Post for tourism purposes. The step has been taken to boost tourism in Ladakh. The Siachen Glacier at the height of around 20,000 ft in the Karakoram range is known as the highest militarised zone in the world.
Anti-Tank Guided Missiles - Defence Acquisition Council has approved 3 projects worth Rs 3,300 crore of “indigenously designed and developed equipments”. The projects include 3rd generation Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGM) and Auxiliary Power Units (APUs) for the T-72 and T-90 Tanks to be executed by the Indian industry.
Crime in India Report 2017 - National Crime Records Bureau has released the annual “Crime in India Report 2017”. According to the report, 3.59 lakh cases of crime against women were reported in the country. Uttar Pradesh topped the list followed by Maharashtra.
Sindhu Sudarshan - Indian Army (IA) is to conduct exercise codenamed “Sindhu Sudarshan” for the year 2019 in the deserts of Rajasthan from November 29 to December 4, 2019.
World Development Information Day - United Nations observes World Development Information Day on 24 October every year.
United Nations Day - 24th October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948. United Nations will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations in 2020.
Vigilance Awareness Week - Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will observe the Vigilance Awareness Week from 28th October to 2nd November, 2019. The week will be observed with the theme of “Integrity- a way of life”. 
World Bank Loan to Odisha  - Government of India, Government of Odisha and the World Bank have signed a USD 165 million loan agreement. The agreement is signed for Odisha’s Integrated Irrigation Project for Climate Resilient Agriculture.
Global Bio-India 2019 - The Global Bio-India 2019 will be held for the first time in India in New Delhi from 21st to 23rd November, 2019. It is one of the largest biotechnology stakeholders integration programme.
Wisden India Almanack Cricketer - Indian Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and batswoman Smriti Mandhana won the Wisden India Almanack Cricketer of the Year award.
Common Foundation Course Aarambh - The Centre’s first-ever common foundation course “Aarambh” (Beginning) for 2019 batch probationer civil servants has begun at the Statue of Unity in Kevadia, Gujarat. The theme this year is ‘How to achieve the goal of making India a 5 trillion dollar economy’. 
Penality on Tamilnad Mercantile Bank - Reserve Bank has imposed a penalty of Rs 35 lakh on Tamilnad Mercantile Bank for violating norms on fraud classification and notification.
Bangladesh-India Friendship Dialogue – The 9th edition of Bangladesh-India Friendship Dialogue will be held at Cox Bazar in Bangladesh from November 1, 2019.
Contract Farming in Tamil Nadu - President of India Ram Nath Kovind has approved the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Produce and Livestock Contract Farming and Services (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2019. Now Tamil Nadu has become the first state in the country to enact a law on contract farming.
World Cities Day - United Nations General Assembly has designated the 31st October as World Cities Day. This year, the United Nations has selected the theme “Changing the world: innovations and better life for future generations”.
Commemorate Coin on Guru Nanak - The government of Pakistan released a new coin to commemorate the 550th anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak. The coin worth Pakistan Rupees 50 will be available at the Kartarpur Sahib along with a postal stamp worth Pakistan Rupees 8 to the travelling pilgrims.
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the 21st North East Book Fair in Guwahati, Assam.
Guru Nanak Award - Punjab State Cabinet passed a unanimous resolution to institute Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji Award for Promotion of Peace and Interfaith Understanding, in commemoration of the 550th Prakash Purb of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.
UN Climate Change Conference - The Spanish capital city of Madrid will host the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 25) from 2 to 13 December.
Space Technology Cell - The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D) will set up a Space Technology Cell (STC) in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
Award for Corporate Excellence - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo presented the prestigious Award for Corporate Excellence to Pepsico India.
International Film Festival of India - The 50th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will honour superstar Rajinikanth with a special Icon of Golden Jubilee Award and the Life Time Achievement Award for a Foreign Artiste will be conferred to French Actress Isabelle Huppert. The festival will be held in Goa from November 20 to 28. Russia will be the partner country at the festival this year.
International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists - The International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists is a UN-recognized day observed annually on 2 November.
UNESCO Creative Cities Network - UNESCO has designated Mumbai as a member of UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) in the field of FILM and Hyderabad in the field of GASTRONOMY.
Postal Ballot Vore for Persons with Disability - The people over 80 years of age and Persons with Disability can now cast their votes through postal ballot. On the recommendations of the Election Commission, the Ministry of Law and Justice has amended the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, allowing senior citizens and person with disabilities in the absentee voter list.
Global Ayurveda Summit - Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan inaugurated the 3rd edition of Global Ayurveda Summit 2019. The two-day summit organized by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) will deliberate on the theme “Mainstreaming Ayurveda through Startups, Innovation and Branding”.
Bulava Intercontinental Ballistic Missile - Russia’s Knyaz Vladimir submarine of Borei-class vessel, test-fired its most advanced nuclear-powered missile named, Bulava intercontinental ballistic missile which precisely hit the target range of 1000 km away in the Russian region of Kamchatka.
Alexei Leonov - Alexei Leonov, the first human to walk in space passed away. He was the legendary Soviet cosmonaut who became the first human to walk in space 54 years ago. During this mission, on 18 March 1965, Leonov exited the spacecraft and walked for 12 minutes and 9 seconds.
Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee - India’s longest Tunnel Chenani- Nashri on NH 44, in Jammu and Kashmir will be named after Bhartiya Jansangh Founder Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. 9.2 km long tunnel reduces the distance between Jammu and Srinagar by 31 km.
University of Artificial Intelligence - UAE announced the establishment of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence ( MBZUAI) in Abu Dhabi. The University is named after Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
One Nation One Tag – FASTag - Union Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurated a conference on ‘One Nation One Tag – FASTag’ in New Delhi to roll out the process for having a unified electronic system across the country.
Mi-24V helicopters - India handed over the second pair of Mi-24V helicopters to war-torn Afghanistan, boosting the capability of the Afghan Air forces.
Typhoon Hagibis - Typhoon Hagibis strikes Tokyo, capital of Japan after fierce rain and wind paralysed the capital. “Hagibis” means “speed” in the Philippine language Tagalog.
M C Mary Kom - M C Mary Kom has won the bronze medal in the 51kg event of World Women’s Boxing Championships held in Ulan-Ude, Russia.
Modi Become Most Followed Leader - Prime Minister Narendra Modi has become the most-followed elected world leader on Instagram. He is ahead of US President Donald Trump, Indonesian President Joko Widodo and former president Barack Obama with 30 million followers.
Indian Railways - Net-Zero Carbon Emitter - Indian Railways (IR) has announced that it will become a net-zero carbon emitter by 2030. Indian railways is the world’s largest railway network.
KHON  Ramlila - The Culture Department of Uttar Pradesh government is going to organise the country’s first training and performance programme of world-famous KHON  Ramlila, a masked form of Ramlila art of Thailand in collaboration with the Thai government. KHON Ramlila of Thailand is included in the list of UNESCO’s Intangible cultural heritage.
Kishan Dan Dewal - Kishan Dan Dewal has been concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to Georgia.
Vikas Varma - Mastercard India, payment technology major, elevated Vikas Varma as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the firm.
Dharma Guardian-2019 - The 2nd joint military exercise ‘Dharma Guardian-2019’ to promote military cooperation between India and Japan will be held in Mizoram from 19 Oct to 02 Nov 2019.
Vajra Prahar 2019 - The 10th edition of the joint military exercise ‘Vajra Prahar 2019’ between India and the US will be held in Seattle, US. ‘Vajra Prahar’ is a Special Forces joint training exercise conducted alternately in India and the US.
Manju Rani - Manju Rani settled for silver medal in World Women’s Boxing Championships at Ulan-Ude in Russia.
Bill Gates’ New Books - The founder of Microsoft Corporation and American philanthropist Bill Gates’ new book titled “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need” will be released on June 2020.
India Innovation Index - NITI Aayog with Institute for Competitiveness as the knowledge partner released the India Innovation Index (III) 2019. Karnataka is the most innovative major state in India. Sikkim and Delhi take the top spots among the northeastern and union territories.
Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji Marg - Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has announced the naming of new National Highway No. 703AA as “Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji Marg.” The road starting from Kapurthala connecting Goindwal Sahib and terminating near Taran Taran in Punjab. The decision has been taken to mark the 550th Birth Anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev.
Sajjan Jindal - The World Steel Association (Worldsteel) has elected Sajjan Jindal, Chairman and Managing Director, JSW Steel, as Vice-Chairman of the association for one year.
Shinyuu Maitri Exercise - Indian Air Force and Japanese Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) carrying out a joint military air force exercise named ‘Shinyuu Maitri’ began from October 17 to 23 in Panagarh town, West Bengal.
EX EASTERN BRIDGE-V - Indian Air Force (IAF) kickstarted its bilateral joint exercise with Royal Air Force Oman (RAFO), named ‘EX EASTERN BRIDGE-V’ at Air Force Base Masirah, Oman.
All-Female Spacewalk - Nasa astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir have made history by completing the first-ever all-female spacewalk. They spent 7 hours outside the International Space Station (ISS) replacing a failed power control unit.
Anup Kumar Singh - IPS officer of Gujarat cadre Anup Kumar Singh has been appointed as Director-General of the National Security Guard (NSG). NSG is also known as black cats commando.
Interpol General Assembly - India will host the 91st Interpol General Assembly in 2022.
Book by Viswanathan Anand - Indian Chess player, Viswanathan Anand has penned a book titled “Mind Master: Winning Lessons from a Champion’s Life”.
Defence of Andaman & Nicobar Islands - Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) has conducted the 2nd edition of Defence of Andaman & Nicobar Islands 2019 (DANX-19). The components of the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard carried out mobilisation and field manoeuvres.
Birth Anniversary of APJ Kalam - The nation pays homage to former President Dr A P J Abdul Kalam on his 88th birth anniversary. The birthday of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam is celebrated as World Students Day. Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was born on October 15, 1931, at Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu.
International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction - United Nations observes International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction on 13 October every year. Theme for 2019: Reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services.
Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan - Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr Harsh Vardhan has launched the Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan (SUMAN) initiative in New Delhi. The initiative was launched during the 13th Conference of Central Council of Health and Family Welfare.
Eliud Kipchoge - Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge has become the 1st athlete to run sub 2-hour marathon. He finished the marathon with an unofficial time of 1 hr 59 min 40.2 sec.
Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav - 10th edition of the Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav-National Cultural Festival is being organized by the Union Ministry of Culture from 14th to 21st of October under the ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’ campaign in Madhya Pradesh.
Sabse Pehle Life Insurance - Life Insurance Council has decided to launch the Indian life insurance industry’s first joint mass media campaign with the slogan ‘Sabse Pehle Life Insurance’.
K Satish Reddy - K Satish Reddy, Chairman of Dr Reddy’s has been appointed as President of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance for 2019-2021.
World Standards Day - World Standards Day is celebrated internationally each year on 14 October. 2019 theme: Video standards create a global stage.
FD Health - ICICI Bank has launched a fixed deposit scheme called FD Health, that comes with an in-built critical insurance policy. The FD Health – Critical illness Cover will be provided to only the primary holder of the FD account.
International Day of Rural Women - The International Day of Rural Women is observed on 15th October. This year’s theme is “Rural Women and Girls Building Climate Resilience”.
World Food Day - World Food Day is celebrated every year around the world on 16 October in honor of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945. The theme for WFD 2019 is “Our Actions Are Our Future”.
Shirui Lily Festival - Shirui Lily Festival - 2019 was inagurated in Manipur.
Team Cashless India - Mastercard, along with cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, launched a nationwide initiative  ‘Team Cashless India’ to accelerate the acceptance and adoption of digital payments.
Mobile Banking for Post Office Saving Accounts - The Department of Post announced that it has launched mobile banking for its savings account customers. The facility will be available all the post office savings account holders of the CBS (core banking solutions) post offices.
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty - United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty is observed on October 17. 2019 Theme: Acting Together to Empower Children, their Families and Communities to End Poverty.
Livestock Census - The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying released the 20th Livestock Census -2019. India’s livestock population has increased to over 535.78 million showing an increase of 4.6 per cent over Livestock Census-2012. Among the States, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of livestock followed by Rajasthan.
Ramesh Pandey - Indian Forest Service officer Ramesh Pandey has been selected for the prestigious Asia Environmental Enforcement Award by the United Nations Environment Programme.
CORPAT - The 2nd edition of Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) of the navies of India and Bangladesh has begun in Northern Bay of Bengal.
The Order of the Green Crescent - Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has signed an MoU with the island nation Comoros. India will extend over $60 mn line of credit to Comoros. The Vice President was also conferred ‘The Order of the Green Crescent’, the highest Civilian Honour of Comoros, by Azali Assoumani, President of Comoros in Moroni.
World Migratory Bird Day - World Migratory Bird Day is observed on 12 October every year. Theme for 2019: Protect Birds: Be the Solution to Plastic Pollution!
India Sports Summit - Minister of State for Youth and Sports Kiren Rijiju inagurated 1st India Sports Summit 2019 in New Delhi.
India and Mauritius - Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth jointly inaugurated 2 landmark projects in Mauritius via video conference. The 2 projects includes the phase-1 of the Metro Express and a new ENT Hospital. The Indian Government has granted $275 million for the Metro Express project and a grant of $14 million for the new Hospital Project.
Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath flagged off country’s first private train Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express started its maiden journey from Lucknow. It will be the first train of Indian Railways that will be entirely run by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). Passengers of IRCTC’s Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express will be compensated in case of delays, the Railway subsidiary, announcing a first of its kind offer from any national carrier. An amount of Rs 100 will be paid in case the delay is for over an hour and Rs 250 for delays of over two hours. This latest offer is in addition to the Rs 25 lakh free insurance that will be given to passengers of the train.
Amrit Lugun - The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India was appointed Amrit Lugun as the next Ambassador of India to Greece.
Sushil Chandra Mishra - Oil India Limited has appointed Sushil Chandra Mishra as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company.
World Parliament of Science, Religion and Philosophy - The three-day event 5th World Parliament of Science, Religion and Philosophy will be held at the MIT World Peace University in Pune, Maharashtra. The theme of the programme this year is ‘role of science, religion and philosophy for world peace and well-being of mankind’.
Country’s First E-Waste Clinic - The Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) have joined hands to set up the country’s first e-waste clinic in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. The electronic waste will be collected door-to-door or can be deposited directly at the clinic in exchange for a fee.
Yalitza Aparicio - The Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, has named Mexican actress Yalitza Aparicio as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Indigenous Peoples. TIME magazine (USA) listed her as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019.
Nomadic Elephant-XIV - 14th edition of Indo – Mongolian joint military training, Exercise Nomadic Elephant-XIV started. The exercise will be conducted from 05 to 18 Oct 19 at Bakloh, Himachal Pradesh.
Green Firecrackers - Union Health Minister, Dr Harsh Vardhan has launched eco-friendly green firecrackers which have been manufactured in India. Environment-friendly fireworks have been developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) labs and manufactured by licensee-manufacturers. A green logo as well as a Quick Response (QR) coding system has been developed for differentiation of green crackers from conventional crackers.
Eat Right Movement - Health Minister Harsh Vardhan launched the ‘trans-fat-free’ logo, which can be voluntarily used by food business operators in their outlets and also on food products. The logo was launched to boost the ‘Eat Right Movement’ of FSSAI. He also released a slogan ‘Chefs 4 Trans Fat-Free’ at the event.
Youth Co:Lab - Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India jointly launched Youth Co:Lab. Through Youth Co:Lab, young entrepreneurs and innovators will get a chance to connect with governments, mentors, incubators and investors.
NHA signed Agreement with Google - National Health Authority signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) with Google to collaborate and strengthen the implementation of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY).
Books on Gandhi - A new book titled “150 Years of Celebrating the Mahatma the South African Legacy”, by Fakir Hassen launched in Johannesburg, South Africa. This book released on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.
International Teachers’ Days - World Teachers’ Day or International Teachers’ Days is celebrated on October 5. This year’s theme: ‘Young Teachers: The future of the Profession’.
Moody’s Forecast - Moody, the rating agency has lowered its 2019-20 GDP growth forecast for India to 5.8% from 6.2%.
International Day of the Girl Child - The United Nations observes International Day of the Girl Child on 11th of October every year. The theme for 2019: GirlForce: Unscripted and Unstoppable.
State Power Ministers Conference - Gujarat will host the State Power Ministers’ Conference. It will take place at Kevadia, on the banks of Narmada river.
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership - The 9th Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Intersessional Ministerial Meeting will be held in Bangkok, Thailand. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will represent India in the meeting.
India Carpet Expo - The 38th India Carpet Expo will be held in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. The expo will be organized by the Carpet Export Promotion Council (CEPC).
Merger of Indiabulls Housing Finance and Lakshmi Vilas Bank - Reserve Bank of India has rejected the merger proposal of Indiabulls Housing Finance and Lakshmi Vilas Bank.
Consumer Confidence Survey - The Reserve Bank of India has released the results of the September 2019 round of its Consumer Confidence Survey. The survey was conducted in 13 major cities.
Merger of Cooperative Bank - Reserve Bank of India has given the go-ahead to the Kerala government to amalgamate 13 district cooperative banks (DCBs) with the Kerala State Cooperative Bank to form the proposed “Kerala Bank”.
World Mental Health Day - World Health Organization observes World Mental Health Day on 10th of October every year. The theme selected for this year’s Day: Suicide Prevention.
World Space Week - The United Nations (Office for Outer Space Affairs) observes 4-10 October every year as World Space Week. The theme for 2019 is: The Moon: Gateway to the Stars.
New Moons of Saturn - A team of astronomers has discovered a haul of 20 new moons orbiting the ringed planet, Saturn. This discovery has brought its total to 82 moons, while Jupiter, by contrast, has 79 natural satellites.
Air Force Day - Air Force Day is celebrated every year by the Indian Air Force on 8th of October. 
World Habitat Day - United Nations designated the first Monday of October of every year as World Habitat Day. Theme for 2019: Frontier Technologies as an innovative tool to transform waste to wealth.
World Post Day - United Nations celebrates World Post Day every year on 9 October.