Highlights Of 2019: What, When And Why Answered For UPSC 2020

2019 has been one of the most eventful years for India. From some of the clutter-breaking achievements to some unpleasant incidents, here is a list of all the events that took the News channels by storm. 

If you are preparing for any of the competitive exams like UPSC 2020, you can make this list your Bible to study current affairs, 2019. The list has been divided month-wise so that it is easier for you to brush up your knowledge easily and quickly.

So without wasting any time, let us get started!

January: 

1. Train between Delhi and Varanasi named ‘Vande Bharat Express’ was inaugurated. It is India’s

first engineless train that travels at a speed of 160km/hour. 

2. Bollywood actor and writer Kader Khan passed away on 1st Jan 2019 at the age of 81.

3. Justice TBN Radhakrishnan made the first chief justice of Telangana High Court. 

4. Bill to label marital rape as a crime introduced in Lok Sabha

February:

1. Chris Gayle announced his retirement from One-Day Internationals.

2. India replaced Japan to become the second-largest steel producer in the world.

3. Trump announced an emergency to build a border wall between the US and Mexico.

4. In retaliation of the Pulwama terror attack, Indian air force fighter jets crossed to LOC to

destroy Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camps in Pakistan.

March:

1. India became the fourth latest space power in the world after the US, Russia, and China

2. Former Supreme Court Judge Pinaki Chandra was appointed as India’s first Lokpal on the 19th

of March 2019. 

3. Goa’s CM Manohar Parrikar passed away at the age of 63.

4. PM Modi launched Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan Yojana on 5th March 2019.

April:

1. India launched ‘Mera India’ to eradicate malaria by 2030.

2. Madras High Courted lifted the ban on the famous TikTok app.

3. Sri Lankan government declared an emergency after suicide bomb blasts happened at churches

and luxury hotels, killing 290 people and injuring more than 500 people.

4. ISRO launched electronic intelligence satellite (EMISAT) & 28 other satellites on 1st April

2019.

May:

1. Narendra Modi took oath as the prime minister of India for the second time at Rashtrapati

Bhawan.

2. Indian writer Annie Zaidi was declared as the winner of the Nine Dots Prize 2019.

3. The Nobel Prize-winning physicist Murray Gell-Mann (89) died in New Mexico.

June: 

1. J&K reservation bill 2019 passed in Lok Sabha.

2. Virat Kohli broke Sachin Tendulkar's record by becoming the fastest Batsman to score 20,000

international runs.

3. Thawarchand Gehlot declared the new leader of Rajya Sabha.

4. Virat Kohli became the only Indian athlete to enter the Forbes 2019 list of world's highest-paid

athletes.

5. Yuvraj Singh announced retirement from international cricket.

July:

1. Sad demise of Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha.

2. PM Narendra Modi featured in the ‘Man V/S Wild’ show on the Discovery channel.

3. Mary Kon won a gold medal in the 23rd President’s Cup.

4. Chandrayaan 2 was launched successfully. 

5. PV Sindhu bagged silver at Indonesia Open.

6. Hima Das won her 5th Gold medal in the Czech Republic.

August: 

1. Tripple Talar bill passed by the Parliament.

2. Saudi Arabia allowed women to travel without a male guardian.

3. Article 370 was scrapped by the Central Government.

4. Anurag Adlakha appointed as the CFO of Yes Bank

5. Mary Kom became the best female athlete in the world.

6. Former President Pranab Mukherjee was conferred with Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian honor

of India.

September:

1. Kallie Puri named as India’s Most Powerful Women in Media.

2. Fast Fashion brand Forever 21 filed bankruptcy. 

3. Kerela tops NITI AAYOG’S school education quality index.

4. The veteran actor who was known for his character ‘Kaliya’ in Sholey, passed away at the age

of 77. 

5. Bangladesh signed an agreement with Reliance Power to buy 718 megawatts of electricity over

the next 22 years. 

October: 

1. India ranked 63rd on a list released by the World Bank on ‘Ease of Doing Business.’

2. India’s highest bridge inaugurated by Home Minister Rajnath Singh. 

3. PM Narendra Modi became the most followed world leader with over 30 million followers.

4. Manju Rani wins silver at Women’s World Boxing Championship.

5. Three bilateral projects launched by PM Narendra Modi and his counterpart Sheikh Hasina over

a video conference.

6. 150 birth anniversary of the ‘Father of the Nation,' Mahatma Gandhi was celebrated on 2nd

October. 

November: 

1. Rajya Sabha passed the Transgender Bill on 5th August 2019. The bill aims to protect the rights

of transgender people by giving them due recognition under the law.

2. Chitharesh Natesan, an Indian bodybuilder, was crowed as ‘Mr. Universe 2019’.

3. Vashishtha Narayan Singh, a renowned mathematician, passed away on 14th November 2019 at

the age of 74.

4. Dal Lake declared an Eco-Sensitive Zone by a ten-member committee of Jammu and Kashmir

government. The lake has shrunken from 22 square kms to 10 square kms due to pollution and

encroachments. 

5. Bangladesh gave a Sanskrit makeover to its national anthem ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’ on 8th death

anniversary of Bhupen Hazarika.

6. The Supreme Court of India gave final judgment on the Ayodhya dispute. 

December: 

1. Mukesh Ambani ranked as the 9th richest man in the World.

2. Oxygen parlor opened near the Nashik Railway Station to fight air pollution.

3. The parliament of India passed the Citizenship Act 2019 on 11th December 2019. 

4. HDFC Bank became the third Indian company to cross $100 bn M-cap.

5. India successfully conducted night trial of its indigenously developed nuclear-capable Prithvi-2

missile.

That is all from our side at Study24x7. We hope this article is helpful to you. In case you wish to do well in the current affairs section then follow the steps given below:

1. Refer to free resources at Study24x7

2. Make cards to learn current affairs for each month.

3. Read ‘The Hindu’ newspaper every day without fail.

4. Make sure to subscribe to the Pratiyogita Darpan magazine.

5. Do not just learn the facts; know the story behind each headline.

6. Take tests and quizzes in order to practice for the current affairs section.

7. Learn current affairs on an everyday basis instead of piling them for the last month.

All The Best To All The UPSC 2020 Aspirants!