Lalit Modi row: Opposition targets PM Modi; BJP rallies behind Sushma Swaraj
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NEW DELHI: Opposition parties on Monday reiterated their demand for external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj's resignation and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to break his silence over the issue of "help" provided by the external affairs minister to scam-tainted former IPL chief Lalit Modi.
Even as the ruling BJP stood by Swaraj, Congress slammed its "double standards" and said that the Prime Minister must apologize to the nation over the controversy.
Congress party alleged that there was "quid pro quo" involved in her "assistance" to Lalit Modi in obtaining British travel documents and demanded that the scam-tainted former IPL commissioner be brought back and tried in India.
Youth Congress workers staged a protest outside Sushma Swaraj's residence and demanded her resignation.
Shouting slogans and holding placards, the Congress workers demanded action against Swaraj and said she must quit or Prime Minister Narendra Modi should sack her immediately from the Union Cabinet. The protesters also burnt effigies of Swaraj.
Some of the Congress protesters also broke barricades outside Swaraj's Safdarjung residence in posh Lutyens Bungalow Zone in central Delhi. Around 100 protesters were detained by the police and were later released. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh asked Prime Minister to break his silence over the matter.
"This has happened because Lalit Modi... also is a 'Modi'. Hence, the government of India is helping him. I strongly condemn it. I condemn BJP's double standards.
"The government is jointly responsible for this. Swaraj should resign immediately. Since the government, too, is responsible for this, the Prime Minister should apologize to the nation," said Congress leader Pramod Tiwari.
According to British media, which quoted leaked emails, Swaraj's name was cited to put pressure on UK's top immigration official to grant British travel papers to Lalit Modi, who is accused of misappropriation of funds in the T20 cricket tournament.
CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury demanded that the Prime Minister tell Parliament and the nation how the matter is going to be addressed.
"First of all, there are very serious charges raised against the external affairs minister. But the Prime Minister has been quiet and silent.
"We are asking the Prime Minister to tell us how this is going to be addressed... So, in this situation, the Prime Minister, whose prerogative it is to keep whomever he wishes in the Council (of Ministers), has to answer this," Yechury told reporters.
Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy said Swaraj should not have had intervened in the matter and now she must own up to having done something "improper" in her capacity as a minister.
The BJP though continued to support Swaraj with Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan saying she had helped Lalit Modi on "humanitarian grounds".
"Sushma Swaraj's life is filled with transparency and honesty. Her honesty is beyond doubt. Whatever she did, she did it on humanitarian grounds. If someone is helped abiding by rules and regulations, then where is the crime in that?" he asked.
Noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan said that a minister helping the ex-IPL commissioner was "completely wrong". He demanded a strong conflict of interest law to deal with such cases.
"Instead, BJP is weakening the prevention of corruption Act by removing even criminal misconduct from it. This shows that the Narendra Modi government is not committed to fighting corruption," Bhushan said.
"In my view, she should resign, but that is for the BJP people to decide," added Bhushan.
Swaraj is at the centre of a major row over helping Lalit Modi to obtain British travel documents but found strong support from the government and the BJP, which have rejected opposition demands for her resignation over alleged "impropriety".
The genesis of the controversy was disclosure of emails showing that she had spoken to Indian-origin British MP Keith Vaz and its high commissioner here, James Bevan, favouring the grant of travel documents to Lalit Modi to go to Portugal, purportedly for his wife's cancer treatment in June last year.
Modi, who is wanted in India, has made London his home since 2010 to avoid a probe into alleged foreign exchange regulation violations in the T20 cricket tournament held in South Africa in 2009.
The previous UPA government had revoked his passport and pressed for his extradition.
NEW DELHI: Opposition parties on Monday reiterated their demand for external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj's resignation and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to break his silence over the issue of "help" provided by the external affairs minister to scam-tainted former IPL chief Lalit Modi.Even as the ruling BJP stood by Swaraj, Congress slammed its "double standards" and said that the Prime Minister must apologize to the nation over the controversy.
Congress party alleged that there was "quid pro quo" involved in her "assistance" to Lalit Modi in obtaining British travel documents and demanded that the scam-tainted former IPL commissioner be brought back and tried in India.
Youth Congress workers staged a protest outside Sushma Swaraj's residence and demanded her resignation.
Shouting slogans and holding placards, the Congress workers demanded action against Swaraj and said she must quit or Prime Minister Narendra Modi should sack her immediately from the Union Cabinet. The protesters also burnt effigies of Swaraj.
Some of the Congress protesters also broke barricades outside Swaraj's Safdarjung residence in posh Lutyens Bungalow Zone in central Delhi. Around 100 protesters were detained by the police and were later released. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh asked Prime Minister to break his silence over the matter.
"This has happened because Lalit Modi... also is a 'Modi'. Hence, the government of India is helping him. I strongly condemn it. I condemn BJP's double standards.
"The government is jointly responsible for this. Swaraj should resign immediately. Since the government, too, is responsible for this, the Prime Minister should apologize to the nation," said Congress leader Pramod Tiwari.
According to British media, which quoted leaked emails, Swaraj's name was cited to put pressure on UK's top immigration official to grant British travel papers to Lalit Modi, who is accused of misappropriation of funds in the T20 cricket tournament.
CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury demanded that the Prime Minister tell Parliament and the nation how the matter is going to be addressed.
"First of all, there are very serious charges raised against the external affairs minister. But the Prime Minister has been quiet and silent.
"We are asking the Prime Minister to tell us how this is going to be addressed... So, in this situation, the Prime Minister, whose prerogative it is to keep whomever he wishes in the Council (of Ministers), has to answer this," Yechury told reporters.
Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy said Swaraj should not have had intervened in the matter and now she must own up to having done something "improper" in her capacity as a minister.
The BJP though continued to support Swaraj with Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan saying she had helped Lalit Modi on "humanitarian grounds".
"Sushma Swaraj's life is filled with transparency and honesty. Her honesty is beyond doubt. Whatever she did, she did it on humanitarian grounds. If someone is helped abiding by rules and regulations, then where is the crime in that?" he asked.
Noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan said that a minister helping the ex-IPL commissioner was "completely wrong". He demanded a strong conflict of interest law to deal with such cases.
"Instead, BJP is weakening the prevention of corruption Act by removing even criminal misconduct from it. This shows that the Narendra Modi government is not committed to fighting corruption," Bhushan said.
"In my view, she should resign, but that is for the BJP people to decide," added Bhushan.
Swaraj is at the centre of a major row over helping Lalit Modi to obtain British travel documents but found strong support from the government and the BJP, which have rejected opposition demands for her resignation over alleged "impropriety".
The genesis of the controversy was disclosure of emails showing that she had spoken to Indian-origin British MP Keith Vaz and its high commissioner here, James Bevan, favouring the grant of travel documents to Lalit Modi to go to Portugal, purportedly for his wife's cancer treatment in June last year.
Modi, who is wanted in India, has made London his home since 2010 to avoid a probe into alleged foreign exchange regulation violations in the T20 cricket tournament held in South Africa in 2009.
The previous UPA government had revoked his passport and pressed for his extradition.
May inflation at (-)2.36 pc; in negative zone for 7th month
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NEW DELHI: Easing prices of fuel, food items and manufactured goods kept inflation in the negative zone for the seventh consecutive month in May, although prices fell at a slower rate of (-)2.36 per cent as against the previous month.
The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation was (-)2.65 per cent in April. It has been in the negative zone since November 2014.
Inflation in May last year was 6.18 per cent. The lower inflation comes amid a forecast of deficient monsoon this year.
As per the government data released today, vegetable inflation was (-)5.5 per cent, with potato recording a dip of about 52 per cent.
Protein rich items like egg, meat and fish too were cheaper in May as compared to the previous month and so were milk, fruits, rice and cereals.
Overall food inflation was 3.8 per cent, much lower than the previous few months.
Similarly, the May inflation in manufactured items (food products, sugar, edible oils, beverages, etc) declined by 0.64 per cent, lowest in past many months.
Inflation in fuel and power basket was at (-)10.51 per cent on annual basis, though slightly up from April.
Retail inflation in May, as measured on Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 5.01 per cent, marginally up from the previous month.
Reserve Bank has cut the key interest rate (repo rate) by 0.75 per cent in 2015, and the government has asked banks to reduce their lending rates.
NEW DELHI: Easing prices of fuel, food items and manufactured goods kept inflation in the negative zone for the seventh consecutive month in May, although prices fell at a slower rate of (-)2.36 per cent as against the previous month.The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation was (-)2.65 per cent in April. It has been in the negative zone since November 2014.
Inflation in May last year was 6.18 per cent. The lower inflation comes amid a forecast of deficient monsoon this year.
Protein rich items like egg, meat and fish too were cheaper in May as compared to the previous month and so were milk, fruits, rice and cereals.
Overall food inflation was 3.8 per cent, much lower than the previous few months.
Similarly, the May inflation in manufactured items (food products, sugar, edible oils, beverages, etc) declined by 0.64 per cent, lowest in past many months.
Inflation in fuel and power basket was at (-)10.51 per cent on annual basis, though slightly up from April.
Retail inflation in May, as measured on Consumer Price Index (CPI), was 5.01 per cent, marginally up from the previous month.
Reserve Bank has cut the key interest rate (repo rate) by 0.75 per cent in 2015, and the government has asked banks to reduce their lending rates.
Sikh beats US army in court for turban right
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CHANDIGARH: In a historic decision, a US federal court has allowed a Sikh student to enroll with its campus Reserve Officer Training Corps unit with his beard, long hair and turban. In 2013, Hofstra University student Iknoor Singh had been denied entry unless he got rid of all his articles of faith.
Following this, the 19-year-old had sued the US Army with the help of American Civil Liberties Union and United Sikhs last November. The Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a college-based programme for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces.
A Columbia court ruled on Saturday that the army's refusal to allow Iknoor to keep his unshorn hair, beard and turban violated his rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
CHANDIGARH: In a historic decision, a US federal court has allowed a Sikh student to enroll with its campus Reserve Officer Training Corps unit with his beard, long hair and turban. In 2013, Hofstra University student Iknoor Singh had been denied entry unless he got rid of all his articles of faith. Following this, the 19-year-old had sued the US Army with the help of American Civil Liberties Union and United Sikhs last November. The Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a college-based programme for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces.
A Columbia court ruled on Saturday that the army's refusal to allow Iknoor to keep his unshorn hair, beard and turban violated his rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
SC cancels AIPMT, directs CBSE to conduct fresh exams within four weeks
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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday quashed the AIPMT 2015 conducted by CBSE on May 3 due to large-scale cheating across the country at various centres.
A bench of justices R K Agrawal and Amitava Roy directed the CBSE to conduct fresh test within four weeks.
The CBSE conducts AIPMT for admission to MBBS courses in medical colleges across India.
As a result of the SC's cancellation of AIPMT, over 6.3 lakh medical aspiring students will have to take fresh test to get admission in colleges.
The court scrapped the paper after it came to light that many students across the country managed to take electronic devices with them inside exam hall and answers were transmitted to them on the device from outside.
The court said that CBSE has been outwitted by tech-savvy students who manipulated the exam process.
The re-examination was ordered after police failed to track out all the erring students. The court said that entire exam process stood vitiated due to the cheating leaving it with no option but to scrap the exam.
It said that there would be huge injustice to genuine students who burnt midnight oil to crack the examination but failed to get through the exam due to manipulation and some other undeserving students managed to get admission.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday quashed the AIPMT 2015 conducted by CBSE on May 3 due to large-scale cheating across the country at various centres.A bench of justices R K Agrawal and Amitava Roy directed the CBSE to conduct fresh test within four weeks.
The CBSE conducts AIPMT for admission to MBBS courses in medical colleges across India.
As a result of the SC's cancellation of AIPMT, over 6.3 lakh medical aspiring students will have to take fresh test to get admission in colleges.
The court scrapped the paper after it came to light that many students across the country managed to take electronic devices with them inside exam hall and answers were transmitted to them on the device from outside.
The court said that CBSE has been outwitted by tech-savvy students who manipulated the exam process.
The re-examination was ordered after police failed to track out all the erring students. The court said that entire exam process stood vitiated due to the cheating leaving it with no option but to scrap the exam.
It said that there would be huge injustice to genuine students who burnt midnight oil to crack the examination but failed to get through the exam due to manipulation and some other undeserving students managed to get admission.
Tussle with LG: Kejriwal, Sisodia meet Rajnath
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NEW DELHI: Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia today met Union home minister Rajnath Singh and discussed various issues concerning the state government, including the tussle with lieutenant governor Najeeb Jung.
Sources said Kejriwal told the home minister about the difficulties being faced by the Delhi government in the wake of the ongoing tussle with the LG over transfer and postings of bureaucrats.
During the hour-long meeting with Singh, Kejriwal and Sisodia sought the home ministry's cooperation in running the state government and conveyed that because of the constant tussle with the LG, smooth functioning of the administration has become tough.
Sources said Kejriwal asked the home minister to intervene and ensure that all issues with the LG are resolved amicably.
"The home minister gave them a patient hearing and assured full cooperation from the central government," a source said.
The chief minister has been advised not to resort to confrontation and has been explained that rules framed by the home ministry were in accordance with the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, sources said.
Sisodia told reporters after the meeting that they have raised all issues concerning Delhi but there is no outcome.
This is the first time Kejriwal has met the home minister since the tussle between the AAP government and the LG over the appointment of senior IAS officer Shakuntala Gamlin as acting chief secretary.
The AAP government has challenged in court a home ministry notification which said that the LG has the final say in appointment of senior bureaucrats.
There was also a tussle between the two over the appointment of officials to the state anti-corruption branch.
Sources said Kejriwal told the home minister about the difficulties being faced by the Delhi government in the wake of the ongoing tussle with the LG over transfer and postings of bureaucrats. During the hour-long meeting with Singh, Kejriwal and Sisodia sought the home ministry's cooperation in running the state government and conveyed that because of the constant tussle with the LG, smooth functioning of the administration has become tough.
Sources said Kejriwal asked the home minister to intervene and ensure that all issues with the LG are resolved amicably.
"The home minister gave them a patient hearing and assured full cooperation from the central government," a source said.
The chief minister has been advised not to resort to confrontation and has been explained that rules framed by the home ministry were in accordance with the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, sources said.
Sisodia told reporters after the meeting that they have raised all issues concerning Delhi but there is no outcome.
This is the first time Kejriwal has met the home minister since the tussle between the AAP government and the LG over the appointment of senior IAS officer Shakuntala Gamlin as acting chief secretary.
The AAP government has challenged in court a home ministry notification which said that the LG has the final say in appointment of senior bureaucrats.
There was also a tussle between the two over the appointment of officials to the state anti-corruption branch.
UP journalist's murder: You can't fight nature, minister says
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NEW DELHI: UP horticulture minister Parasnath Yadav has triggered outrage with his insensitive remarks on the killing of UP journalist Jagendra Singh. While speaking to reporters the minister said: "There are some incidents that happen in the course of nature and destiny...you can't fight nature."
BJP workers on Sunday staged protest against the SP government for its failure to arrest minister of state for backward welfare Ram Murti Singh Verma for his alleged involvement in journalist Jagendra Singh murder case.
Last week, Shahjahanpur-based journalist Jagendra Singh was killed after he launched a social media campaign against UP minister Rammurti Singh Verma. Jagendra was reportedly set ablaze by Verma's henchmen on June 1. Singh succumbed to his burn injuries in a Lucknow hospital a week later.
This incident was followed by the Pilibhit case, where a journalist, Haidar Khan, was allegedly tied to a motorcycle, dragged and beaten up for reporting on a land-grab case.
The gruesome killing followed by an alleged cover up by the government and attempts to lure the family into a compromise have cornered the Akhilesh Yadav government which has been accused of protecting the criminals behind the act and inaction against his minister.
Jagendra Singh had been using social media sites like Facebook to report on alleged illegal activities of the Samajwadi Party minister Ram Murti Verma like land grabbing and mining. He had also alleged rape of an anganwadi worker by Verma and his supporters including a few cops. He had earlier reported of being threatened by the minister's men and on June 1, a police party raided his residence and allegedly shim on fire.
Singh was immediately rushed to the hospital with 60% burns and in his various statements to the media and a magistrate said that the policemen led by sub inspector Sriprakash Rai had set him ablaze at the behest of the minister Ram Murti Verma and another Samajwadi Party worker against whom he had been writing about. In one video recording he is heard saying "if the minister was upset over my writing against his illegal activities, he could have beaten but why pour kerosene and set me on fire".
Singh succumbed to his injuries on June 8 even as his family members kept running pillar to post for justice. After his death created an outcry, the government on backfoot lodged an FIR against 9 accused including the dairy development minister Ram Murti Verma and sub inspector Sriprakash Rai.
NEW DELHI: UP horticulture minister Parasnath Yadav has triggered outrage with his insensitive remarks on the killing of UP journalist Jagendra Singh. While speaking to reporters the minister said: "There are some incidents that happen in the course of nature and destiny...you can't fight nature."BJP workers on Sunday staged protest against the SP government for its failure to arrest minister of state for backward welfare Ram Murti Singh Verma for his alleged involvement in journalist Jagendra Singh murder case.
Last week, Shahjahanpur-based journalist Jagendra Singh was killed after he launched a social media campaign against UP minister Rammurti Singh Verma. Jagendra was reportedly set ablaze by Verma's henchmen on June 1. Singh succumbed to his burn injuries in a Lucknow hospital a week later.
This incident was followed by the Pilibhit case, where a journalist, Haidar Khan, was allegedly tied to a motorcycle, dragged and beaten up for reporting on a land-grab case.
The gruesome killing followed by an alleged cover up by the government and attempts to lure the family into a compromise have cornered the Akhilesh Yadav government which has been accused of protecting the criminals behind the act and inaction against his minister.
Jagendra Singh had been using social media sites like Facebook to report on alleged illegal activities of the Samajwadi Party minister Ram Murti Verma like land grabbing and mining. He had also alleged rape of an anganwadi worker by Verma and his supporters including a few cops. He had earlier reported of being threatened by the minister's men and on June 1, a police party raided his residence and allegedly shim on fire.
Singh was immediately rushed to the hospital with 60% burns and in his various statements to the media and a magistrate said that the policemen led by sub inspector Sriprakash Rai had set him ablaze at the behest of the minister Ram Murti Verma and another Samajwadi Party worker against whom he had been writing about. In one video recording he is heard saying "if the minister was upset over my writing against his illegal activities, he could have beaten but why pour kerosene and set me on fire".
Singh succumbed to his injuries on June 8 even as his family members kept running pillar to post for justice. After his death created an outcry, the government on backfoot lodged an FIR against 9 accused including the dairy development minister Ram Murti Verma and sub inspector Sriprakash Rai.
Sakshi Maharaj calls himself a true Muslim, Prophet Mohammed a great yogi
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NEW DELHI: Controversial BJP MP Sakshi Mahwaj stirred another controversy by claiming that he was a true Muslim and Prophet Mohammed was the biggest practitioner of yoga, TV reports said.
Maharaj said, "In Islam, the biggest name is that of Mohammed and I think Mohammed saab is a great yogi. I think that a Muslim is one with 'iman', thus a Mussalman. I am a true Muslim."
Earlier, hitting out at Uttar Pradesh Minister Mohd Azam Khan, who has advised Yogi Adityanath to offer namaz, the controversial BJP MP said that Hindus do not have problem in taking name of 'Allah' as they believe in different cultures but if Azam Khan has guts he should speak 'Jai Shree Ram' and prove that he is a true Indian.
Ahead of the government's big plans for Yoga Day on June 21, the BJP MP had also said that all those who objected to the surya namaskar should jump into the sea.
Sakshi Maharaj has made several controversial statements in the past. Earlier this year, he said all Hindu women must produce at least four children. The Unnao MP said, "The concept of four wives and 40 children will not work in India and the time has come when a Hindu woman must produce at least four children in order to protect Hindu religion."
Also on the Ram mandir issue, he said, "No power on earth can stop the construction of Ram mandir in Ayodhya. It will be constructed, come what may."
NEW DELHI: Controversial BJP MP Sakshi Mahwaj stirred another controversy by claiming that he was a true Muslim and Prophet Mohammed was the biggest practitioner of yoga, TV reports said. Maharaj said, "In Islam, the biggest name is that of Mohammed and I think Mohammed saab is a great yogi. I think that a Muslim is one with 'iman', thus a Mussalman. I am a true Muslim."
Earlier, hitting out at Uttar Pradesh Minister Mohd Azam Khan, who has advised Yogi Adityanath to offer namaz, the controversial BJP MP said that Hindus do not have problem in taking name of 'Allah' as they believe in different cultures but if Azam Khan has guts he should speak 'Jai Shree Ram' and prove that he is a true Indian.
Ahead of the government's big plans for Yoga Day on June 21, the BJP MP had also said that all those who objected to the surya namaskar should jump into the sea.
Sakshi Maharaj has made several controversial statements in the past. Earlier this year, he said all Hindu women must produce at least four children. The Unnao MP said, "The concept of four wives and 40 children will not work in India and the time has come when a Hindu woman must produce at least four children in order to protect Hindu religion."
Also on the Ram mandir issue, he said, "No power on earth can stop the construction of Ram mandir in Ayodhya. It will be constructed, come what may."
How IT companies exploit H-1B visa loopholes
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It hardly needs saying that immigration policy should not undermine Americans' jobs, wages or working conditions. The problem is that what some companies want -- cheap, exploitable, disposable labour -- is exactly what the system can be twisted into giving them.
Former workers at Walt Disney World in Orlando or at Southern California Edison, the power utility, can tell the story. Those two companies recently laid off hundreds of tech employees, who were replaced by temporary workers recruited by outsourcing firms based in India.
These are only two of many troubling episodes involving the H-1B programme, which provides up to 85,000 visas a year to foreigners, mainly highly skilled technical workers. The programme was created to allow companies to fill gaps in their workforce with specialized employees they cannot find in the United States. But the law has loopholes, and companies here and overseas ruthlessly exploit them. A huge industry has risen to meet labour demand in the information-technology sector, with the imported workers being employees of the outsourcing firms.
On Thursday the Labor Department announced it was investigating two of the largest companies that supply H-1B workers, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, based in India. Senators including Jeff Sessions, R-Ala, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill, asked for the inquiry after reports that Southern California Edison turned to Infosys and Tata for H-1B workers even as it was laying off 540 workers, many of whom said they had to train their replacements.
The New York Times recently reported a similar story at Disney, which contracted with HCL America, a branch of an Indian outsourcer, and laid off 250 workers. Some workers said they were asked to stay on to train the newcomers who took over their jobs.
A mass influx of foreigners doing the jobs of the workers they displace is clearly not what the law intended. Congress surely did not want to give companies a more efficient means of slashing payroll costs while pushing more people to the curb. But despite common perceptions about the H-1B law, it does not require companies to recruit American workers before looking overseas.
The program badly needs reforming, which even members of Congress who are otherwise far apart on immigration issues agree on. Sens. Durbin and Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, have proposed tightening the rules to require companies to work harder to find people in this country to fill jobs, to post job openings on the Labor Department website and to pay fairer wages. They would also give the government more authority to investigate fraud, and added protections for H-1B workers, who themselves are vulnerable to exploitation because of their dependency on their employers.
Many of these good ideas were contained in a Senate bill to overhaul the immigration system. That bill died, killed by hard-liners in the House who objected to its provisions for unauthorized immigrants.
That was a tragedy, because worker protection has always been a core ideal of comprehensive immigration reform, which would include allowing 11 million unauthorized immigrants to seek legal status and work without fear.
With no immediate possibility of such an immigration overhaul, opportunistic tech companies are pursuing their own narrow agenda, pushing for vast increases in H-1B visas. That might help their recruiting problems, but leave much of the system as dysfunctional as ever. Better to fix immigration with the right goals in mind: a fair deal for all workers and their families.
China's unsettling stock market boom
Something strange is going on in the Chinese stock market. Even as the country's economy has slowed, stocks have surged about 147% in the past 12 months as individual investors have poured their savings and have borrowed money to put into the market.
The sharp increase in stock prices must worry China's leaders, because it could put household finances and the financial system at risk of big losses. It is particularly troubling that the recent rally has been fueled by an explosion of margin lending, in which brokerage firms make loans to investors to buy shares.
Total margin debt outstanding is five times the level it was a year ago, reaching 2 trillion renminbi (or $322 billion) on May 27, Bloomberg News reported recently. The total borrowed to buy stocks is probably even higher, because some investors have presumably borrowed from banks and their families, too.
Stocks of smaller and less proven companies have had the biggest increases, which suggests investors are taking big risks in the hopes of fast gains. The average price-to-earnings ratio, a measure of how expensive stocks are relative to corporate profits, is 143 for companies listed on the ChiNext board of the Shenzhen stock market, which is dominated by smaller companies and tech stocks.
One high-flying company on the market, Leshi TV, an Internet video service, has seen its stock jump almost 250% in the past year and has a P/E ratio of 358. By contrast, the ratio for larger companies listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange is about 25. In the United States, the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index has a price-to-earnings ratio of about 21.
A booming market might make more sense if the economy were picking up speed, but it is slowing. The International Monetary Fund expects the economy to grow at 6.8% this year and 6.3% in 2016, down from 7.4% in 2014.
Individual investors appear to have flocked to stocks in part because the once-booming Chinese real estate market, which produced big profits for speculators, has cooled. Some investors now see stocks as the next good bet.
Chinese government and brokerage industry officials have taken some steps to reduce speculation by, for example, restricting margin lending. But it is still far too easy to borrow money to invest in the stock market.
And other steps the government is taking to help the economy, like lowering interest rates and encouraging lending by banks, could actually inflate the stock market even more by making credit more easily available and raising investor confidence.
The stock market boom is mostly a domestic Chinese concern, but it could become more important to international investors and the global economy. Most foreigners buy shares in Chinese companies on stock exchanges in Hong Kong or New York. Shares of some Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong have also risen, and in some cases fallen, sharply, but the broader stock market there hasn't seen the kind of exuberance that has been the case in the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets.
Chinese officials limit foreign investment in stocks listed on the mainland, but they are making it easier for outsiders to buy and sell those shares. And big Western investment firms like Vanguard have recently said they will add more Chinese stocks to their mutual funds and other products.
The last big rally in Chinese stocks was in 2006-07. After the peak in October 2007, prices fell about 70% over 12 months. The crash wiped out many individual investors. But because the government tightly restricted margin lending then, there was little damage to the financial system. This time, the risks are bigger and broader.
New Jersey Needs to Raise the Gas Tax to Repair Bridges and Roads
Drivers in New Jersey enjoy boasting about cheap gas in their state, where prices at the pump rank among the lowest in the country - so low, in fact, that thrifty motorists passing through often pull off the New Jersey Turnpike to fill up. The reason for the low prices is New Jersey's relatively modest gas tax.
All that cheap gas carries real costs. Because gas tax revenues help pay for roads and public transit programs, the low tax has meant deteriorating bridges and pothole-strewn roads and ever higher transit fares that hurt working families.
Former workers at Walt Disney World in Orlando or at Southern California Edison, the power utility, can tell the story. Those two companies recently laid off hundreds of tech employees, who were replaced by temporary workers recruited by outsourcing firms based in India.
These are only two of many troubling episodes involving the H-1B programme, which provides up to 85,000 visas a year to foreigners, mainly highly skilled technical workers. The programme was created to allow companies to fill gaps in their workforce with specialized employees they cannot find in the United States. But the law has loopholes, and companies here and overseas ruthlessly exploit them. A huge industry has risen to meet labour demand in the information-technology sector, with the imported workers being employees of the outsourcing firms.
On Thursday the Labor Department announced it was investigating two of the largest companies that supply H-1B workers, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, based in India. Senators including Jeff Sessions, R-Ala, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill, asked for the inquiry after reports that Southern California Edison turned to Infosys and Tata for H-1B workers even as it was laying off 540 workers, many of whom said they had to train their replacements.
The New York Times recently reported a similar story at Disney, which contracted with HCL America, a branch of an Indian outsourcer, and laid off 250 workers. Some workers said they were asked to stay on to train the newcomers who took over their jobs.
A mass influx of foreigners doing the jobs of the workers they displace is clearly not what the law intended. Congress surely did not want to give companies a more efficient means of slashing payroll costs while pushing more people to the curb. But despite common perceptions about the H-1B law, it does not require companies to recruit American workers before looking overseas.
The program badly needs reforming, which even members of Congress who are otherwise far apart on immigration issues agree on. Sens. Durbin and Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, have proposed tightening the rules to require companies to work harder to find people in this country to fill jobs, to post job openings on the Labor Department website and to pay fairer wages. They would also give the government more authority to investigate fraud, and added protections for H-1B workers, who themselves are vulnerable to exploitation because of their dependency on their employers.
Many of these good ideas were contained in a Senate bill to overhaul the immigration system. That bill died, killed by hard-liners in the House who objected to its provisions for unauthorized immigrants.
That was a tragedy, because worker protection has always been a core ideal of comprehensive immigration reform, which would include allowing 11 million unauthorized immigrants to seek legal status and work without fear.
With no immediate possibility of such an immigration overhaul, opportunistic tech companies are pursuing their own narrow agenda, pushing for vast increases in H-1B visas. That might help their recruiting problems, but leave much of the system as dysfunctional as ever. Better to fix immigration with the right goals in mind: a fair deal for all workers and their families.
China's unsettling stock market boom
Something strange is going on in the Chinese stock market. Even as the country's economy has slowed, stocks have surged about 147% in the past 12 months as individual investors have poured their savings and have borrowed money to put into the market.
The sharp increase in stock prices must worry China's leaders, because it could put household finances and the financial system at risk of big losses. It is particularly troubling that the recent rally has been fueled by an explosion of margin lending, in which brokerage firms make loans to investors to buy shares.
Total margin debt outstanding is five times the level it was a year ago, reaching 2 trillion renminbi (or $322 billion) on May 27, Bloomberg News reported recently. The total borrowed to buy stocks is probably even higher, because some investors have presumably borrowed from banks and their families, too.
Stocks of smaller and less proven companies have had the biggest increases, which suggests investors are taking big risks in the hopes of fast gains. The average price-to-earnings ratio, a measure of how expensive stocks are relative to corporate profits, is 143 for companies listed on the ChiNext board of the Shenzhen stock market, which is dominated by smaller companies and tech stocks.
One high-flying company on the market, Leshi TV, an Internet video service, has seen its stock jump almost 250% in the past year and has a P/E ratio of 358. By contrast, the ratio for larger companies listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange is about 25. In the United States, the Standard & Poor's 500 stock index has a price-to-earnings ratio of about 21.
A booming market might make more sense if the economy were picking up speed, but it is slowing. The International Monetary Fund expects the economy to grow at 6.8% this year and 6.3% in 2016, down from 7.4% in 2014.
Individual investors appear to have flocked to stocks in part because the once-booming Chinese real estate market, which produced big profits for speculators, has cooled. Some investors now see stocks as the next good bet.
Chinese government and brokerage industry officials have taken some steps to reduce speculation by, for example, restricting margin lending. But it is still far too easy to borrow money to invest in the stock market.
And other steps the government is taking to help the economy, like lowering interest rates and encouraging lending by banks, could actually inflate the stock market even more by making credit more easily available and raising investor confidence.
The stock market boom is mostly a domestic Chinese concern, but it could become more important to international investors and the global economy. Most foreigners buy shares in Chinese companies on stock exchanges in Hong Kong or New York. Shares of some Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong have also risen, and in some cases fallen, sharply, but the broader stock market there hasn't seen the kind of exuberance that has been the case in the Shanghai and Shenzhen markets.
Chinese officials limit foreign investment in stocks listed on the mainland, but they are making it easier for outsiders to buy and sell those shares. And big Western investment firms like Vanguard have recently said they will add more Chinese stocks to their mutual funds and other products.
The last big rally in Chinese stocks was in 2006-07. After the peak in October 2007, prices fell about 70% over 12 months. The crash wiped out many individual investors. But because the government tightly restricted margin lending then, there was little damage to the financial system. This time, the risks are bigger and broader.
New Jersey Needs to Raise the Gas Tax to Repair Bridges and Roads
Drivers in New Jersey enjoy boasting about cheap gas in their state, where prices at the pump rank among the lowest in the country - so low, in fact, that thrifty motorists passing through often pull off the New Jersey Turnpike to fill up. The reason for the low prices is New Jersey's relatively modest gas tax.
All that cheap gas carries real costs. Because gas tax revenues help pay for roads and public transit programs, the low tax has meant deteriorating bridges and pothole-strewn roads and ever higher transit fares that hurt working families.
SBI PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs
-
1. Loans given to small-scale and ancillary industries are treated as priority sector lending. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act was passed in ...
1) 2010
2) 2006
3) 2009
4) 2004
5) 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. As per MSMED Act, if an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods a micro enterprise is an enterprise where investment in plant and machinery does not exceed .......
1) Rs.25 lakh
2) Rs.12 lakh
3) Rs.5 lakh
4) Rs.15 lakh
5) Rs.1 lakh
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. On 29 April 2015, RBI set a target of ANBC (Adjusted Net Bank Credit) prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7 percent by
1) March 2019
2) March 2017
3) December 2016
4) April 2018
5) March 2016
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. A target of ANBC (Adjusted Net Bank Credit) has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7.5 percent by .......
1) March 2017
2) March 2018
3) Dec 2017
4) Jan 2019
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. The target of ANBC has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7 percent by March 2016 and 7.5 percent by March 2017 for domestic banks. What about this target for foreign banks where they have less than 20 branches in India?
1) The above targets to be achieved by March 2020.
2) The above targets to be achieved by March 2018.
3) The above targets to be achieved by March 2017.
4) The above targets to be achieved by March 2019.
5) No targets assigned for these banks.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. A small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs.25 lakh but does not exceed ....... If an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods.
1) Rs.5 crore
2) Rs.3 crore
3) Rs.2 crore
4) Rs.15 crore
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs.5 crore but does not exceed.... If an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods.
1) Rs.50 crore
2) Rs.5 crore
3) Rs.10 crore
4) Rs.100 crore
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. As per MSMED Act 2006, if an enterprise engaged in providing or rendering of services and whose investment in equipment, it is a micro enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment does not exceed ........
1) Rs.10 lakh
2) Rs.25 lakh
3) Rs.100 lakh
4) Rs.70 lakh
5) Rs.50 lakh
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment (in rendering of services) is more than Rs.10 lakh but does not exceed ........
1) Rs.10 crore
2) Rs.5 crore
3) Rs.1 crore
4) Rs.2 crore
5) Rs.20 crore
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. The medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment (in rendering of services) is more than Rs.2 crore but does not exceed .........
1) Rs.10 crore
2) Rs.8 crore
3) Rs.50 crore
4) Rs.3 crore
5) Rs.5 crore
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. All loans to units in the KVI sector will be eligible for classification under the sub-target of 7
percent / 7.5 percent prescribed for Micro Enterprises under priority sector. KVI stands for .......
1) Khadi and Village Industries Sector
2) Khaki and Village Industries Sector
3) Khadi and Vicinity Industries Sector
4) Khadi and Village Infrastructure Sector
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. The credit outstanding under general credit cards also come under the 'other finance to MSMEs'. Here the general credit cards include ..........
1) Artisan Credit Card
2) Laghu Udyami Card
3) Swarojgar Credit Card
4) Weaver's Card
5) All of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. Prime Minister's Task Force on MSMEs headed by whom prescribed few targets for banks for lending to the Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) sector?
1) T.K.A. Nair
2) Lakdawala
3) Sundarama Ganesan
4) Pradhymna Kumar
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
14. Ministry of MSME, Government of India and ........ set up the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises with a view to facilitate flow of credit to the MSE sector without the need for collaterals / third party guarantees.
1) RBI
2) IDBI
3) SIDBI
4) NABARD
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
15. A viable / potentially viable unit may apply for a debt restructuring if it shows early stage of sickness. It is called .........
1) debt restructuring of advances
2) debt cancellation of advances
3) debt trapping
4) debt postponement
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16. RBI set guidelines on OTS for MSEs for settlement of their NPAs. OTS means ........
1) Order Time Settlement Scheme
2) One Take Settlement Scheme
3) One Time Settlement Scheme
4) One Time Score Scheme
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. RSETIs set up to provide training for MSE (Micro and Small Entrepreneurs). RSETI means .......
1) Rural Self Empowerment Training Institutes
2) Rural School Employment Training Institutes
3) Rural Study Employment Training Institutes
4) Regular Self Employment Training Institutes
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18. Banks also provide assistance to the MSE entrepreneurs through their FLC. FLC stands for ........
1) Front Literacy Centre
2) Financial Literacy Centre
3) First Literacy Centre
4) Fourth Literacy Centre
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
19. Government of India has enacted the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006. As per this act within a maximum of how many days, the buyers have to make the payments for the goods and services received by them from Micro, Small Enterprises?
1) 15 days
2) 30 days
3) 10 months
4) 2 weeks
5) 100 days
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20. Union Cabinet on 30 May 2015 has given its approval for MOU between India and ...... on cooperation in the field of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
1) Sweden
2) Norway
3) Austria
4) Sri Lanka
5) USA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21. On 1 June 2015, which nation has unveiled the world's first facial recognition ATM?
1) USA
2) UK
3) Israel
4) India
5) China
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
22. Which bank on 29 May 2015 launched an Online Customer Acquisition Solution (OCAS)?
1) ICICI
2) IndusInd bank
3) SBI
4) Kotak Bank
5) HDFC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has inaugurated New Bank Note Paper Line of 6000 MT capacity at ....... on 30 May 2015.
1) Hoshangabad, MP
2) Nashik, Maharashtra
3) Kochi, Kerala
4) Chennai, Tamilnadu
5) Shimla, HP
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
24. Your portfolio contains 85 percent stocks, 10 percent bonds, and 5 percent cash. Experts would agree that your portfolio is ...
1) Moderate
2) Simple
3) Soft
4) Zero
5) Aggressive
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
25. India’s first television channel Kisan Channel dedicated to farmers by PM on 27th May 2015. The channel belongs to .....
1) Zee
2) Sony
3) Star Plus
4) Doordarshan
5) ETV
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
26. Nelong Valley opened for tourists on 21 May 2015. It is in ........
1) Jharkhand
2) MP
3) Kerala
4) Uttarakhand
5) Gujarat
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
27. Valley of Flowers is a National Park located in West Himalaya, is in the state of .......
1) AP
2) Uttarakhand
3) Kerala
4) Tamilnadu
5) Haryana
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
28. The list of valleys in the world given. Locate the correct combination.
1) India - Damodar Valley
2) USA - Silicon Valley
3) Israel - Jordan Rift Valley
4) Pakistan - Swat Valley
5) All of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
29. ISIS captures Palmyra, the ancient city on 21 May 2015. It is in .......
1) Iraq
2) Afghanistan
3) Iran
4) Syria
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
30. ISIS stands for (terrorist organization)
1) Islamic State in Iran and Syria
2) Islamic State in Iraq and Somalia
3) Islamic Sovereignty in Iraq and Syria
4) Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
31. China has again termed the McMahon Line on the India - China boundary as illegal on 25 May 2015. With this, China has reaffirmed its claims on ........ which, it says, is a part of Southern Tibet.
1) Sikkim
2) Manipur
3) Arunachal Pradesh
4) Meghalaya
5) Assam
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32. The Boundary Lines between nations given. Pick the wrong combination.
1) India and Pakistan - Radcliffe Line
2) Germany and Poland - Hindenburg Line
3) Germany and France - Maginot Line
4) Russia and Finland - Mannerheim Line
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
33. India and ........ signed a Joint Vision Statement on Defence Cooperation for the period 2015 - 20 recently.
1) USA
2) Japan
3) South Korea
4) Vietnam
5) Sweden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
34. Who has been appointed as the new Chancellor of Nalanda University?
1) John Marshall
2) Meghnadh Desai
3) George Yeo
4) Goh Chok Tong
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
35. Arunachal Pradesh Governor is .......
1) Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa
2) P.B. Acharya
3) Krishan Kant Paul
4) V. Shanmuganathan
5) Tathagata Roy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
36. Who has been appointed as the new union Cabinet Secretary with effect from 13th June'15?
1) Nripendra Mishra
2) Ajit Seth
3) Pradeep Kumar Sinha
4) R.K. Mathur
5) L.C. Goyal
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
37. USA Secretary of state is ........
1) John Kerry
2) William Hague
3) Sergei Lavrov
4) Wang Yi
5) Hina Rabbani Khar
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
38. 'Nai Roshni' is the new scheme for ..........
1) Girl Child
2) Telling India is the destination for Manufacturing
3) BPL families to have no-frill accounts
4) Leadership scheme for Minority Women
5) People to participate in the online discussion of Twitter online account with government officials.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
39. On 29 May 2015, NOFN proposed to increase the scope of the project that will entail three fold increase in cost to Rs.72,778 crore from about Rs.20,000 crore approved earlier. NOFN stands for...?
1) National Origin Fiber Network
2) National Original Fiber Network
3) Ninth Optical Fiber Network
4) National Optical FAB Network
5) National Optical Fiber Network
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40. What is the theme of the Sixth Edition of National Conference on Nuclear Energy?
1) Save Earth, Protect Nuclear Energy
2) Nuclear Energy for Sustainable approach
3) Nuclear Energy: a clean energy option
4) Nuclear Energy: Future Perfect
5) None of these
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWERS:
1-2, 2-1, 3-5, 4-1, 5-5, 6-1, 7-3, 8-1, 9-4, 10-5,
11-1, 12-5, 13-1, 14-3, 15-1 16-3, 17-3, 18-2, 19-2, 20-1,
21-5, 22-3, 23-1, 24-5, 25-4, 26-4, 27-2, 28-5, 29-4, 30-4,
31-3, 32-5 33-4, 34-3, 35-1, 36-3, 37-1, 38-4, 39-5, 40-3
1) 2010
2) 2006
3) 2009
4) 2004
5) 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. As per MSMED Act, if an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods a micro enterprise is an enterprise where investment in plant and machinery does not exceed .......
1) Rs.25 lakh
2) Rs.12 lakh
3) Rs.5 lakh
4) Rs.15 lakh
5) Rs.1 lakh
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. On 29 April 2015, RBI set a target of ANBC (Adjusted Net Bank Credit) prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7 percent by
1) March 2019
2) March 2017
3) December 2016
4) April 2018
5) March 2016
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. A target of ANBC (Adjusted Net Bank Credit) has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7.5 percent by .......
1) March 2017
2) March 2018
3) Dec 2017
4) Jan 2019
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. The target of ANBC has been prescribed for Micro Enterprises, to be achieved in a phased manner i.e. 7 percent by March 2016 and 7.5 percent by March 2017 for domestic banks. What about this target for foreign banks where they have less than 20 branches in India?
1) The above targets to be achieved by March 2020.
2) The above targets to be achieved by March 2018.
3) The above targets to be achieved by March 2017.
4) The above targets to be achieved by March 2019.
5) No targets assigned for these banks.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. A small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs.25 lakh but does not exceed ....... If an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods.
1) Rs.5 crore
2) Rs.3 crore
3) Rs.2 crore
4) Rs.15 crore
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in plant and machinery is more than Rs.5 crore but does not exceed.... If an enterprise engaged in the manufacture or production, processing or preservation of goods.
1) Rs.50 crore
2) Rs.5 crore
3) Rs.10 crore
4) Rs.100 crore
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. As per MSMED Act 2006, if an enterprise engaged in providing or rendering of services and whose investment in equipment, it is a micro enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment does not exceed ........
1) Rs.10 lakh
2) Rs.25 lakh
3) Rs.100 lakh
4) Rs.70 lakh
5) Rs.50 lakh
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Small enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment (in rendering of services) is more than Rs.10 lakh but does not exceed ........
1) Rs.10 crore
2) Rs.5 crore
3) Rs.1 crore
4) Rs.2 crore
5) Rs.20 crore
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. The medium enterprise is an enterprise where the investment in equipment (in rendering of services) is more than Rs.2 crore but does not exceed .........
1) Rs.10 crore
2) Rs.8 crore
3) Rs.50 crore
4) Rs.3 crore
5) Rs.5 crore
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. All loans to units in the KVI sector will be eligible for classification under the sub-target of 7
percent / 7.5 percent prescribed for Micro Enterprises under priority sector. KVI stands for .......
1) Khadi and Village Industries Sector
2) Khaki and Village Industries Sector
3) Khadi and Vicinity Industries Sector
4) Khadi and Village Infrastructure Sector
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. The credit outstanding under general credit cards also come under the 'other finance to MSMEs'. Here the general credit cards include ..........
1) Artisan Credit Card
2) Laghu Udyami Card
3) Swarojgar Credit Card
4) Weaver's Card
5) All of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. Prime Minister's Task Force on MSMEs headed by whom prescribed few targets for banks for lending to the Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) sector?
1) T.K.A. Nair
2) Lakdawala
3) Sundarama Ganesan
4) Pradhymna Kumar
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
14. Ministry of MSME, Government of India and ........ set up the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises with a view to facilitate flow of credit to the MSE sector without the need for collaterals / third party guarantees.
1) RBI
2) IDBI
3) SIDBI
4) NABARD
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
15. A viable / potentially viable unit may apply for a debt restructuring if it shows early stage of sickness. It is called .........
1) debt restructuring of advances
2) debt cancellation of advances
3) debt trapping
4) debt postponement
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16. RBI set guidelines on OTS for MSEs for settlement of their NPAs. OTS means ........
1) Order Time Settlement Scheme
2) One Take Settlement Scheme
3) One Time Settlement Scheme
4) One Time Score Scheme
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. RSETIs set up to provide training for MSE (Micro and Small Entrepreneurs). RSETI means .......
1) Rural Self Empowerment Training Institutes
2) Rural School Employment Training Institutes
3) Rural Study Employment Training Institutes
4) Regular Self Employment Training Institutes
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18. Banks also provide assistance to the MSE entrepreneurs through their FLC. FLC stands for ........
1) Front Literacy Centre
2) Financial Literacy Centre
3) First Literacy Centre
4) Fourth Literacy Centre
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
19. Government of India has enacted the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006. As per this act within a maximum of how many days, the buyers have to make the payments for the goods and services received by them from Micro, Small Enterprises?
1) 15 days
2) 30 days
3) 10 months
4) 2 weeks
5) 100 days
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20. Union Cabinet on 30 May 2015 has given its approval for MOU between India and ...... on cooperation in the field of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
1) Sweden
2) Norway
3) Austria
4) Sri Lanka
5) USA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21. On 1 June 2015, which nation has unveiled the world's first facial recognition ATM?
1) USA
2) UK
3) Israel
4) India
5) China
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
22. Which bank on 29 May 2015 launched an Online Customer Acquisition Solution (OCAS)?
1) ICICI
2) IndusInd bank
3) SBI
4) Kotak Bank
5) HDFC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has inaugurated New Bank Note Paper Line of 6000 MT capacity at ....... on 30 May 2015.
1) Hoshangabad, MP
2) Nashik, Maharashtra
3) Kochi, Kerala
4) Chennai, Tamilnadu
5) Shimla, HP
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
24. Your portfolio contains 85 percent stocks, 10 percent bonds, and 5 percent cash. Experts would agree that your portfolio is ...
1) Moderate
2) Simple
3) Soft
4) Zero
5) Aggressive
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
25. India’s first television channel Kisan Channel dedicated to farmers by PM on 27th May 2015. The channel belongs to .....
1) Zee
2) Sony
3) Star Plus
4) Doordarshan
5) ETV
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
26. Nelong Valley opened for tourists on 21 May 2015. It is in ........
1) Jharkhand
2) MP
3) Kerala
4) Uttarakhand
5) Gujarat
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
27. Valley of Flowers is a National Park located in West Himalaya, is in the state of .......
1) AP
2) Uttarakhand
3) Kerala
4) Tamilnadu
5) Haryana
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
28. The list of valleys in the world given. Locate the correct combination.
1) India - Damodar Valley
2) USA - Silicon Valley
3) Israel - Jordan Rift Valley
4) Pakistan - Swat Valley
5) All of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
29. ISIS captures Palmyra, the ancient city on 21 May 2015. It is in .......
1) Iraq
2) Afghanistan
3) Iran
4) Syria
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
30. ISIS stands for (terrorist organization)
1) Islamic State in Iran and Syria
2) Islamic State in Iraq and Somalia
3) Islamic Sovereignty in Iraq and Syria
4) Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
31. China has again termed the McMahon Line on the India - China boundary as illegal on 25 May 2015. With this, China has reaffirmed its claims on ........ which, it says, is a part of Southern Tibet.
1) Sikkim
2) Manipur
3) Arunachal Pradesh
4) Meghalaya
5) Assam
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32. The Boundary Lines between nations given. Pick the wrong combination.
1) India and Pakistan - Radcliffe Line
2) Germany and Poland - Hindenburg Line
3) Germany and France - Maginot Line
4) Russia and Finland - Mannerheim Line
5) None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
33. India and ........ signed a Joint Vision Statement on Defence Cooperation for the period 2015 - 20 recently.
1) USA
2) Japan
3) South Korea
4) Vietnam
5) Sweden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
34. Who has been appointed as the new Chancellor of Nalanda University?
1) John Marshall
2) Meghnadh Desai
3) George Yeo
4) Goh Chok Tong
5) None of above
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
35. Arunachal Pradesh Governor is .......
1) Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa
2) P.B. Acharya
3) Krishan Kant Paul
4) V. Shanmuganathan
5) Tathagata Roy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
36. Who has been appointed as the new union Cabinet Secretary with effect from 13th June'15?
1) Nripendra Mishra
2) Ajit Seth
3) Pradeep Kumar Sinha
4) R.K. Mathur
5) L.C. Goyal
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
37. USA Secretary of state is ........
1) John Kerry
2) William Hague
3) Sergei Lavrov
4) Wang Yi
5) Hina Rabbani Khar
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
38. 'Nai Roshni' is the new scheme for ..........
1) Girl Child
2) Telling India is the destination for Manufacturing
3) BPL families to have no-frill accounts
4) Leadership scheme for Minority Women
5) People to participate in the online discussion of Twitter online account with government officials.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
39. On 29 May 2015, NOFN proposed to increase the scope of the project that will entail three fold increase in cost to Rs.72,778 crore from about Rs.20,000 crore approved earlier. NOFN stands for...?
1) National Origin Fiber Network
2) National Original Fiber Network
3) Ninth Optical Fiber Network
4) National Optical FAB Network
5) National Optical Fiber Network
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40. What is the theme of the Sixth Edition of National Conference on Nuclear Energy?
1) Save Earth, Protect Nuclear Energy
2) Nuclear Energy for Sustainable approach
3) Nuclear Energy: a clean energy option
4) Nuclear Energy: Future Perfect
5) None of these
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWERS:
1-2, 2-1, 3-5, 4-1, 5-5, 6-1, 7-3, 8-1, 9-4, 10-5,
11-1, 12-5, 13-1, 14-3, 15-1 16-3, 17-3, 18-2, 19-2, 20-1,
21-5, 22-3, 23-1, 24-5, 25-4, 26-4, 27-2, 28-5, 29-4, 30-4,
31-3, 32-5 33-4, 34-3, 35-1, 36-3, 37-1, 38-4, 39-5, 40-3
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