Current Affairs - May 20, 2015

IndusInd Bank inks pact with payment processing company Worldpay

·         The UK-based payment processing giant Worldpay has partnered with IndusInd Bank to offer acquiring services in India. The association will assist both the companies in processing customers’ payments and marks the first step for Worldpay in entering the Indian market — a result of the growth in eCommerce across the country.

IDBI Bank to launch e-huts for services in rural areas

·         IDBI Bank is set to expand its branch network to 2,000 by the end of the current year from 1,740 now, besides rolling out e-huts to provide services to people in rural areas.

·         E-hut is a western concept and is set up at relatively populated areas, such as malls.

Finance Bill 2015 receives Presidential assent

·         Finance Bill 2015 has received the Presidential assent on May 14.

·         Although the Finance Bill 2005 has now been enacted into law, all the provisions have not been implemented from this date (May 14).

·         Among the provisions that would be applicable from a date to be notified include increase in service tax from 12.36 percent to 14 percent; imposition of Swachh Bharat Cess @ 2 percent on the value of taxable services and levy of service tax on entry to entertainment events and access to amusement facilities.

Amazon enters partnership with State Bank of India

·         Online marketplace Amazon has entered into a pact with State Bank of India (SBI) to develop payments and commerce solutions for consumers and small businesses.

·         Through this partnership, both Amazon and SBI would identify areas of cooperation to build a digital India, said an Amazon statement. “India is a land of entrepreneurs and e-commence has the potential to transform the livelihoods of millions of small businesses by helping them sell nationally and globally,” said Amit Agarwal, vice-president and country manager, Amazon India.

·         SBI had earlier collaborated with taxi hailing services Ola to disburse car loans to drivers on the taxi aggregator’s platform on a daily repayment basis. “Our partnership with e-commerce platforms like Amazon would give a fillip to e-commerce in India and brings lots of value to our retail and SME (small and meium enterprise) customers,” said Arundhati Bhattacharya, chairman, SBI.

Exim Bank to set up subsidiary to push investments in CLMV nations

·         The commerce ministry has decided to set up a project development company under Global Procurement Consultants Ltd (GPCL), a consulting firm promoted by Exim Bank, to kick-start investments in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, or CLMV countries.

·         The move is part of the ministry’s efforts to derisk India from the impact of regional trade agreements and create new exporting clusters for Indian companies.

·         The newly created subsidiary of GPCL will act as a facilitator by identifying opportunities, preparing feasibility reports and finally creating bankable projects in CLMV countries where Indian firms can set up manufacturing units. The subsidiary will subsequently create a number of special purpose vehicles with private entities, acquire a special economic zone (SEZ) or industrial park, develop it and then start allocating space in it to business entities in India against payments.

Meghalaya achieves 100% financial inclusion under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna

·         Meghalaya has achieved 100 percent success in implementing Union Government’s flagship scheme for financial inclusion-Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY). In the state, all eleven districts have been able to open at least one bank account of every household under the ambitious scheme.

·         More than 5.53 lakh households have been covered with 1.55 lakh new bank accounts. The rural population has given more response to the financial inclusion scheme in the state compared to the urban population. Over 1.8 lakh bank accounts have been opened in rural areas, while in urban area the figure is over 47,000.

·         All banks both from private and public sectors have contributed in successfully implementing the scheme. So far, under the PMJDY, banks have issued more than 1.31 lakh Rupay cards.

About Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)

·         It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the goal of eradicating financial untouchability of the poor by opening at least one bank account for every family in the country in less than six months. It seeks to financially empower the poor by providing them access to formal banking system. It also seeks to provide platform for Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) which will curb leakages in government subsidies and thus saving government exchequer. Initially, after its launch the scheme had a target of opening 7.5 crore bank accounts by January 26, 2015, but later it was revised and raised to 10 crore bank accounts.

Laszlo Krasznahorkai wins Man Booker International Prize 2015

·         "Visionary" Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai has been announced as the winner of the sixth Man Booker International Prize.

·         He was born in 1954 and gained recognition in 1985 when he published Satantango, which he adapted for the big screen in 1994.

·         The prize, worth £60,000, is awarded every two years for "an achievement in fiction on the world stage".

·         Krasznahorkai's win was announced at an award ceremony at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London on Tuesday night.

INS Kavaratti, anti-submarine warfare ship launched in Kolkata

·         INS Kavaratti, Indian Navy’s latest anti-submarine warfare class stealth corvette was launched on 19 May 2015 in Kolkata. Kavaratti is the last of the four anti-submarine warfare class stealth corvettes being built for India under Project 28.

V Shanmuganathan sworn in as 15th Governor of Meghalaya

·         V Shanmuganthan was sworn in as the 15th Governor of Meghalaya on 20 May 2015 at the oath taking ceremony held at Raj Bhawan in Shillong.

·         Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court, Uma Nath Singh administered the oath of office to him as per the provisions of Article 159 of Constitution of India.

·         He will succeed Keshari Nath Tripathi, governor of West Bengal who was given additional charge of Meghalaya since January 2015.

Economist Mrinal Datta Chaudhuri passes away at 81

·         Eminent economist, noted academic and policy advisor Mrinal Datta Chaudhuri, passed away in Pune. He was 81.

·         He was suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 'MDC' as Professor Chaudhuri was popularly and affectionately called, studied with Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen in Shantiniketan and furthered his education at Kolkata's Presidency College before completing his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).