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).

News and Updates - March 13, 2015

Industrial output rises, but so does retail inflation

Two major data points released  — factory output for January and retail inflation for February — present a mixed picture of the economy, complicating things for Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan ahead of the April 7 monetary policy review. Retail inflation, as measured by a new consumer price index, rose to a four-month high of 5.37 per cent in February, largely due to a spike in the prices of vegetables and pulses, official data showed. CPI-based inflation was at 5.19 per cent in January 2014 and 7.88 per cent the following month. However, there was positive news on the industrial output front with the print for January 2015 at 2.6 per cent, higher than the 1.1 per cent growth in the same month last year.

Nine dwarf galaxies found orbiting Milky Way

Scientists have found nine new dwarf satellites orbiting the Milky Way, the largest number ever discovered at once. According to the University of Cambridge astronomers, three of the discovered objects are definite dwarf galaxies — small celestial objects that orbit larger galaxies. The others could be either dwarf galaxies or globular clusters — objects with similar visible properties to dwarf galaxies, but not held together with dark matter. The finding could hold the key to understanding dark matter, the mysterious substance which holds our galaxy together, researchers said. The new results mark the first discovery of dwarf galaxies in a decade, after dozens were found in 2005 and 2006 in the skies above the northern hemisphere. The new satellites were found in the southern hemisphere near the Large and Small Magellanic Cloud, the largest and most well-known dwarf galaxies in the Milky Way’s orbit. The newly discovered objects are a billion times dimmer than the Milky Way, and a million times less massive. The closest is about 95,000 light years away, while the most distant is more than a million light years away.

Labour ministry agrees in principle to set up a Workers’ Bank

The labour ministry has, in principle, agreed with a proposal by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) to set up a Workers’ Bank, which the retirement fund manager says will help it deploy its corpus profitably. Minister of state for labour and employment ( independent charge) Bandaru Dattatreya has directed his ministry to form a committee to explore the proposal in all its dimensions and then take it up with the department of financial services in the finance ministry. He has also informed the central board of the EPFO. Dattatreya discussed the issue on Wednesday with his ministry and EPFO, which functions under the labour ministry. “We have decided to set up a committee on Workers’ Bank,” Dattatreya said. Both the labour ministry and EPFO believe that the proposed Workers’ Bank will help it expand investments, increase earnings and improve subscribers’ engagement with the organization, which manages a corpus of over Rs.6 trillion and has an active subscriber base of more than 42 million. Proponents of the Workers’ Bank say that if the institution materializes, it would handle all EPFO investments and may help the fund manager invest in the stock market.

RBI issues new norms on NPA sales

In a boost to banks which are facing rising asset quality issues, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allowed such lenders to reverse the excess provision on sale of bad loans to their profit and loss account provided the transaction took place before 26 February 2014. The central bank had on the 3 February monetary policy day had said that it would issue the final guidelines on this front after banks requested it to include the provision to those sales took place before 26 February 2014 as well. The move is aimed at incentivizing banks to recover appropriate value in respect of NPAs (non-performing assets). Almost all the banks, including private sector players, have been reporting higher NPAs and lower profits as they have to make more provisions for bad loans, which crossed 5.5% as of December-end. “We reiterate that banks can reverse excess provision arising out of sale of NPAs only when the cash received by way of initial consideration and/or redemption of security receipts/pass through certificates is higher than the Net Book Value (NBV) of the NPAs sold to a securitisation company or an asset reconstruction company (RRC),” RBI said in a notification. The notification also said, “The quantum of excess provision reversed to profit and loss account will be limited to the extent to which cash received exceeds the NBV of the NPAs sold.” It also made it mandatory for banks to report the quantum of such excess provision reversed to the profit and loss account in the financial statements of the bank under ‘notes to accounts’. Bad loans in public sector banks more than tripled to about Rs.2.17 trillion in three years to March 2014.

Union Government launches Pharma Jan Samadhan scheme for redressal of grievances on drugs pricing

Union Government has launched Pharma Jan Samadhan scheme, for redressal of grievances of consumers related to drug pricing and availability of medicines. It was launched by Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ananth Kumar in New Delhi. The scheme is a web-enabled system created by National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA). It seeks to serve as a robust E-governance tool for protection of interests of consumers through effective implementation of the price of drugs. The scheme will provide consumers with an online facility to redress their complaints related to over-pricing of medicines, non-availability of medicines and refusal of supply for sale of any medicine without good and sufficient reason. After receiving the complaint, NPPA will initiate action on any complaint within 48 hrs. The scheme also seeks to create awareness among the people and act as a deterrent against black-marketing, spurious medicines and inflated cost of drugs by creating phama-literacy initiative.

Karnataka lifted eighth Ranji title

Karnataka lifted Ranji Trophy by defeating Tamil Nadu by an innings and 217 runs on the last day of the final match at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. Karnataka batsman Karun Nair won the man-of the-match award for his maiden triple century (338) in first-class cricket. With this win Karnataka won 8th Ranji title and became the second most successful team after 40-time champions Mumbai. Karnatka also became the second team in the Ranji Trophy to defend the title on more than one occasion. They had retained the title in 1997-98 and 1998-99 in the past.

N Sakthan elected Kerala Assembly Speaker

Congress legislator and deputy speaker N Shakthan was elected as the new speaker of the Kerala Assembly. It was announced by Pro-term Speaker Dominic Presentation. Shakthan defeated CPI (M) candidate P. Aysha Potty by 74 to 66 votes. N Shakthan will replace G. Karthikeyan who had died on March 8, 2015. Prior to speaker election, he had resigned as Deputy Speaker of the Assembly on 10 March 2015.

Indian Railways inks MoU with LIC for Rs 1.5 lakh crore investments in rail infrastructure

Indian Railways inked an MoU with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) to raise Rs 1.5 lakh crore for financing the development of its various commercially viable infrastructure projects. The MoU was signed by Financial Commissioner (Railways) Rajalakshmi Ravikumar and LIC Chairman SK Roy in presence of Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and the Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu. State-run insurance giant LIC will provide a Financial Assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh crore to Indian Railways for developing infrastructure. From the Financial Year 2015-16 the financial assistance will be made available by LIC for over a period of 5 years as part of its commercial decision. The investment will be done in the form of bonds issued by various railway entities such as Indian Railways Finance Corporation (IRFC). There will be a 5 year moratorium in interest and loan repayment. The rate will be linked to 10-year benchmark plus 10 basis points. With the Financial Assistance from LIC, the cash-strapped Railways will be able to augment its resources for speedier execution of projects.

Union Government appoints 9 Executive Directors in Public Sector Banks

Union Government has appointed 9 Executive Directors (EDs) in Public Sector Banks (PSBs). Their appointment was approved by Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on recommendation of selection panel headed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan.

Following 9 Executive Directors (ED) of PSBs were appointed

1. K. Sahoo- ED of Allahabad Bank.

2. Pawan Kumar Bajaj- ED of Indian Overseas Bank.

3. Ravi Shankar Pandey- ED of Syndicate Bank.

4. Kishore Piraji Kharat- ED of Union Bank of India.

5. C.Lodha- ED of Central Bank of India.

6. Charan Singh- ED of UCO Bank

7. Venkata Rama Moorthy- ED of Bank of Baroda.

8. P. Marathe- ED of Bank of India.

9. Harideesh Kumar B- ED of Canara Bank.

Parliament passes Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015

Parliament has passed Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015. It was first passed in Lok Sabha on 4 March 2015 and later in Rajya Sabha on 12 March 2015. In both the houses the bill was passed by voice vote. The amendment bill replaces ordinance promulgated in this regard and aims to bring improvements and revisions in the existing laws relating to insurance business in India. The bill also seeks to remove archaic provisions in previous laws and incorporate modern day practices of insurance business that are emerging in a changing dynamic environment, which also includes private participation. The amendment bill hikes Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) cap in the insurance sector to 49 percent from present 26 percent. It also adds provision for the establishment of Life Insurance Council and the General Insurance Council. These councils will act as self-regulating bodies for the insurance sector. The bill also grants permission to PSU general insurers to raise funds from the capital market and increases the penalty to deter multilevel marketing of insurance products.

IMF increased India growth forecast to 7.2% for current fiscal

International Monetary Fund (IMF) has increased India's growth forecast to 7.2% for the current fiscal. Last year, IMF had projected that India would grow at 5.6 per cent in the current fiscal, and 6.4 per cent in the next. The new forecasts have taken into account a revised methodology adopted by India earlier this year for calculating the GDP figures, about which IMF said that the country has "improved the way it measures economic output".

Kumar Sangakkara creates record by scoring four consecutive ODI centuries

Sri Lankan cricketer Kumar Sangakkara became first batsman to score four consecutive one-day international (ODI) centuries in a Cricket World Cup. He achieved this feat by hitting 4th century by scoring 124 runs in a match against Scotland in the Pool A of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 in Hobart, New Zealand. Previously, many batsmen had registered 3 consecutive ODI centuries along with Kumar Sangakkara. They are Ross Taylor (New Zealand), Quinton de Kock (South Africa), Zaheer Abbas (Pakistan), Herschelle Gibbs (South Africa), Saeed Anwar (Pakistan), AB de Villiers (South Africa).

UAE to host AFC Asian Cup in 2019

United Arab Emirates has won the bid to host the 17th edition of Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in 2019.  AFC Asian Cup is an international football tournament which is organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The tournament will be held in three cities of UAE; Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Al-Ain. Earlier, UAE hosted the  AFC Asian Cup in 1996, and this will be the second time when UAE will host the tournament in 2019.

Mr. Veerappa Moily selected for Saraswati Samman 2014

Senior Congress leader and Former Union Minister Mr. M. Veerappa Moily will receive the Saraswati Samman 2014 for his Kannada poem ‘Ramayana Mahanveshanam’. The award would make Mr. M. Veerappa Moily the second Kannada author to receive the honour after S. L. Bhyrappa (2010). ‘Ramayana Mahanveshanam’ was first published in 2007 in Kannada and later was translated into English, Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. The poem explores the ‘Ramarajya’ or the true principle of the ‘ideal State’ from a secular and modern point of view.

Solar Impulse 2- world’s first solar-powered aircraft on global journey lands in Ahmedabad

World’s first solar powered aircraft on global journey- Solar Impulse 2 successfully landed in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The aircraft was piloted by Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg from its first halt Muscat, Oman.

Three French sports personalities died in a helicopter crash in Argentina

Three French sports personalities are among 10 people killed in a helicopter crash in Argentina. The incident took place when the two helicopters collided during filming near Villa Castelli, about 1,170km (720 miles) from Buenos Aires, according to local officials. In the accident three sports personalities of France died which included the famed sailor Florence Arthaud, who in 1990 broke the record for crossing the North Atlantic alone; the swimmer Camille Muffat, who won three medals at the 2012 Olympics in London; and the boxer Alexis Vastine, who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

News and Updates - March 03, 2015

Pact binds RBI to inflation target

The Centre and the Reserve Bank of India signed an agreement under which the central bank will prioritise controlling price rise above the other objectives of the monetary policy — interest rates and the foreign exchange rate. The agreement formalised a policy the Reserve Bank had been following since January 2014, which is a significant development in monetary policy formulation championed by Governor Raghuram Rajan. The Reserve Bank is committed to bringing inflation below 6 per cent by January 2016. The consumer inflation target has been set at 4 per cent, with a band of plus or minus 2 percentage points, for the financial year 2016-17. Under the agreement, the central bank will be deemed to have missed its target if consumer inflation remains above the 6 per cent level for three consecutive quarters during 2015-16 or if it remains below 2 per cent for three consecutive quarters during the year 2016-17. The bank will have to explain to the government the causes, and what steps it intends to take to steer inflation back within a given time if it misses the target.

RBI report calls for raising foreign banks’ priority sector lending target

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released a report on revisiting priority sector lending (PSL) norms, which proposes an increase in the PSL target for foreign banks, while introducing new sectors into the definition of priority sector. As part of the suggestions, the working group says the PSL target for all banks, including foreign banks, should be at 40% of adjusted net bank credit. While domestic banks already lend 40% of credit to priority sectors, foreign banks lend 32%. Though the group has increased the PSL obligations for foreign banks, they have been given time to achieve the new targets. “Foreign banks with 20 and above branches may be given time up to March 2018 in terms of extant guidelines and submit their revised action plans. Other foreign banks with less than 20 branches, may be given time up to March 2020 to comply with the revised targets as per action plans submitted by them and approved by Reserve Bank,” the report said. The group also suggests that new sectors be added to the priority sector category, including exports and renewable energy.

Sun Pharma buys GSK’s Opiates business in Australia

India’s largest drugmaker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd signed an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK) to purchase its Opiates business in Australia for an undisclosed amount. GSK Opiates business including related manufacturing sites in Latrobe (Tasmania) and Port Fairy (Victoria) and its portfolio products along with inventory will transfer to a subsidiary of Sun Pharma, the companies said in a joint statement. The product portfolio consists of poppy-derived opiate raw materials that are primarily used in manufacture of analgesics for the treatment of moderate to severe pain. All employees from both sites will also be offered employment by Sun Pharma with the Opiates business.

Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba wins Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership 2014

Hifikepunye Pohamba, outgoing Namibian President has won the world’s most valuable individual award- Mo Ibrahim prize for African leadership for year 2014. Pohamba was born in 1935 in Namibia and was a former rebel who fought for his country’s independence. He has served as Namibian President two terms. For first time he was elected in 2004 and again in 2009. Now, he is due to be succeeded by elected President Hage Geingob.

Ola acquires TaxiForSure in $200-mn deal

Ola Cabs has acquired its smaller rival in the taxi aggregator space, TaxiForSure, in a $200-million (Rs 1,200 crore) cash and equity arrangement. This is the first major acquisition in the taxi-aggregator space in India. Ola, already a leader in the personal transportation market with a valuation exceeding $1 billion (Rs 6,000 crore) and over 100,000 vehicles on its platform, will become a stronger entity through TaxiForSure’s operator-led model. The latter operates in 47 cities, with at least 15,000 vehicles on its platform.

Jagmohan Dalmiya becomes BCCI President

Jagmohan Dalmiya has unanimously been elected President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India today. He became the BCCI president for the second term. He has previously served as President of the International Cricket Council for the three years from 1997 to 2000. Anurag Thakur, who was joint-secretary before has become the new secretary after edging out Sanjay Patel 15-14.

Ranjan Dhawan takes additional charge as MD & CEO of BOB

Ranjan Dhawan, the senior most executive director of the bank has been given additional charge of Managing Director and Chief Executive officer of Bank of Baroda. He will serve as the MD & CEO for three months. The post of full-time Managing Director and CEO has been vacant since July, when the then Chairman and Managing Director S S Mundra was appointed RBI Deputy Governor.

World’s first electric satellites successfully lifted off by SpaceX rocket

World’s first electric satellites were successfully lifted off by a Space Exploration (SpaceX) Technologies rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, United States. The rocket was carrying two all-electric commercial satellites built by Boeing. The satellites are owned by the French satellite provider Eutelsat and Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS). Eutelsat’s satellite is part of its 35-member commercial network. It will provide services like mobile, internet, video and other communications services to expand its reach into the Americas. While, ABS new satellite will serve its customers in Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

Jagmohan Dalmiya becomes BCCI President

Jagmohan Dalmiya has unanimously been elected President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India today. He became the BCCI president for the second term.  He has previously served as President of the International Cricket Council for the three years from 1997 to 2000. Anurag Thakur, who was joint-secretary before has become the new secretary after edging out Sanjay Patel 15-14.

Arun Singh named as new Indian Ambassador to US

Senior IFS officer, Arun Singh has been named as new Indian Ambassador to US. Prior to this announcement he was serving as India’s Ambassador of France. Arun Singh will replace S Jaishankar, who was appointed as Foreign Secretary.

Chelsea lifted English League Cup

English Premier League leaders Chelsea defeated Tottenham Hotspurs by 2-0 in the final to lift the English League Cup trophy. With this win, Chelsea won five League Cups, matching Aston Villa for second-most behind Liverpool's eight.

Nadal lifts 2015 Argentina Open title

Rafael Nadal defeated Juan Monaco by 6-4, 6-1 to win the Argentina Open, lifting his first title of 2015. With this win, Nadal has won 65 titles in his career and has become the fifth player in the world in terms of number of titles won. He now stands behind Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (84) and John McEnroe (77).

Mufti Mohammad Sayeed sworn in as Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir

Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on 1 March 2015 was sworn-in as Chief Minister of Peoples Democratic Party-Bhartiya Janta Party (PDP-BJP) coalition government of Jammu & Kashmir. As a person he became 9th Chief Minister of J&K and 12th Chief Minister as tenure wise. While Nirmal Singh of BJP has been appointed as the Deputy Chief Minister of the state.

Union Budget 2015-16: Highlights

TAXATION

1. Abolition of Wealth Tax.

2. Additional 2% surcharge for the super rich with income of over Rs. 1 crore.

3. Rate of corporate tax to be reduced to 25% over next four years.

4. No change in tax slabs.

5. Total exemption of up to Rs. 4,44,200 can be achieved.

6. 100% exemption for contribution to Swachch Bharat, apart from CSR.

7. Service tax increased to14 per cent.

AGRICULTURE

1. Rs. 25,000 crore for Rural Infrastructure Development Bank.

2. Rs. 5,300 crore to support Micro Irrigation Programme.

3. Farmers credit - target of 8.5 lakh crore.

INFRASTRUCTURE

1. Rs. 70,000 crores to Infrastructure sector.

2. Tax-free bonds for projects in rail road and irrigation

3. PPP model for infrastructure development to be revitalised and govt. to bear majority of the risk.

4. Atal Innovation Mission to be established to draw on expertise of entrepreneurs, and researchers to foster scientific innovations; allocation of Rs. 150 crore.

5. Govt. proposes to set up 5 ultra mega power projects, each of 4000MW.

EDUCATION

1. AIIMS in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Assam.

2. IIT in Karnataka; Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad to be upgraded to IIT.

3. PG institute of Horticulture in Amritsar.

4. Kerala to have University of Disability Studies

5. Centre of film production, animation and gaming to come up in Arunachal Pradesh.

6. IIM for Jammu and Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh.

DEFENCE

1. Allocation of Rs. 2,46,726 crore; an increase of 9.87 per cent over last year.

2. Focus on Make in India for quick manufacturing of Defence equipment.

WELFARE SCHEMES

1. GST and JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile) to improve quality of life and to pass benefits to common man.

2. Six crore toilets across the country under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

3. MUDRA bank will refinance micro finance orgs. to encourage first generation SC/ST entrepreneurs.

4. Housing for all by 2020.

5. Upgradation 80,000 secondary schools.

6. DBT will be further be expanded from 1 crore to 10.3 crore.

7. For the Atal Pension Yojana, govt. will contribute 50% of the premium limited to Rs. 1,000 a year.

8. New scheme for physical aids and assisted living devices for people aged over 80 .

9. Govt. to use Rs. 9,000 crore unclaimed funds in PPF/EPF for Senior Citizens Fund.

10. Rs. 5,000 crore additional allocation for MGNREGA.

11. Govt. to create universal social security system for all Indians.

RENEWABLE ENERGY

1. Rs. 75 crore for electric cars production.

2. Renewable energy target for 2022: 100K MW in solar; 60K MW in wind; 10K MW in biomass and 5K MW in small hydro

TOURISM

1. Development schemes for churches and convents in old Goa; Hampi, Elephanta caves, Forests of Rajasthan, Leh palace, Varanasi , Jallianwala Bagh, Qutb Shahi tombs at Hyderabad to be under the new tourism scheme.

2. Visa on Arrival for 150 countries.

GOLD

1. Sovereign Gold Bond, as an alternative to purchasing metal gold.

2. New scheme for depositors of gold to earn interest and jewelers to obtain loans on their metal accounts.

3. To develop an Indian gold coin, which will carry the Ashok Chakra on its face, to reduce the demand for foreign coins and recycle the gold available in the country.

FINANCIAL SECTOR

1. Forward Markets Commission to be merged with the Securities and Exchange Board of India

2. NBFCs registered with the RBI and having asset size of Rs 500 crore and above to be considered as ‘financial institution’ under Sarfaesi Act, 2002, enabling them to fund SME and mid-corporate businesses

3. Permanent Establishment norms to be modified to that mere presence of offshore fund managers in the country does not lead to “adverse tax consequences.”

News and Updates - February 28, 2015

AB De Villiers hits fastest 150 in ODI history

South African cricketer AB De Villiers has hit the fastest 150 in one-day internationals (ODI’s). He achieved this feat in 64 balls in World Cup Pool B match against West Indies held at Sydney and also broke the previous record of Australia’s Shane Watson by 19 balls. AB De Villiers in the innings scored 162 runs from 66 balls and it comprised of 8 sixes and 17 fours. In this match, South Africa scored 408 runs which is the second-highest total in World Cup history.

Ratan Tata honoured with Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by Clemson University

Ex-chairman of the Tata Group Ratan Tata has been honoured with Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by the Clemson University. He was conferred with Doctorate for his contributions to the global automotive industry at the South Carolina Automotive Summit.

Kshatrapati Shivaji appointed new CMD of SIDBI

Kshatrapati Shivaji appointed as the new CMD of Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). He has been appointed for three years. Presently he is a Principal Secretary (Expenditure), Finance Department in Maharashtra government.

Zoological Society of London and Gujarat Forest Department inks MoU for Asiatic lion Conservation

Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Gujarat Forest Department on 26 February 2015 have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for conservation of Asiatic lion and its habitat. Earlier in 2014, ZSL had launched charity’s new Lions400, a fundraising campaign and had raised over £135,000 towards helping to save the Asian lions.

SEBI imposes Rs. 26 crore penalty on DLF

 SEBI has imposed the penalty of Rs. 26 crore on realty giant DLF for fraudulent and unfair trade practices. It also imposed penalty of similar amount Rs. 26 crore which has to be paid collectively by seven persons. This is the biggest ever penalty imposed by SEBI in a single case. For quashing key information by DLF at the time of IPO in 2007, SEBI has barred DLF and its top executives from markets last year in October.

Justice Amitava Roy took oath as Judge of Supreme Court

Chief Justice of Odisha High Court, Amitava Roy today sworn in as a judge of Supreme Court of India. He will serve the post for three years. He was appointed by the President of India. Earlier he was the Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court in 2013.

Economic Survey of India 2015-16: Highlights

India can increase investments without borrowing more, a key government report said on Friday, in an indication that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will stick to debt targets in his maiden full-year budget on Saturday.

The economic survey, the basis for Jaitley's budget for the fiscal year starting April 1, forecast the economy would grow by 8.1-8.5 percent under a new calculation method that makes India the world's top-growing big economy.

The survey was prepared by the finance ministry's chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian.

Following are the highlights of the survey:

FISCAL DEFICIT

·         India must meet its medium-term fiscal deficit target of 3 percent of GDP

·         Government will adhere to fiscal deficit target of 4.1 percent of GDP in 2014/15

·         Govt. should ensure expenditure control to reduce fiscal deficit

·         Expenditure control and expenditure switching to investment key

GROWTH

·         2015/16 GDP growth seen at over 8 pct y/y

·         Double digit economic growth trajectory now a possibility

·         Economic growth at market prices seen between 8.1 - 8.5 percent in 2015/16 on new GDP calculation formula

·         Total stalled projects seen at about 7 percent of GDP, mostly in private sector

REFORMS

·         There is scope for big bang reforms now

·         India can increase public investments and still hit its borrowing targets

INFLATION

·         Inflation shows declining trend in 2014/15

·         Inflation likely to be below central bank target by 0.5 - 1 percentage point

·         Lower inflation opens up space for more monetary policy easing

·         Govt and central bank need to conclude monetary framework pact to consolidate gains in inflation control

·         Consumer inflation in 2015/16 likely to range between 5-5.5 percent

FISCAL CONSOLIDATION

·         Govt remains committed to fiscal consolidation

·         India can balance short-term imperative of boosting public investment to revitalize growth with fiscal discipline

·         Outlook for external financing is correspondingly favourable

CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT

·         Estimated at about 1.3 percent of GDP in 2014/15 and less than 1.0 percent of GDP in 2015/16

SUBSIDIES

·         Overhauling of subsidy regime would pave the way for expenditure rationalisation

LIQUIDITY

·         Liquidity conditions expected to remain comfortable in 2015/16