General Affairs
'Bullet Will Destroy, Ballot Will Bring Development,' PM Modi to Naxals in Bihar
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In his first rally in Bihar since elections were announced, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong pitch for development today, pointing to how neighbour Jharkhand, ruled by the BJP, had jumped many places to now be ranked number 3 among Indian states in a World Bank survey.
"15 years ago Jharkhand was a part of Bihar. After Jharkhand chose a BJP-led NDA government, it has progressed much. In the last World Bank economic survey Jharkhand was ranked 29th, Bihar 27the. This time, Bihar is still no 27, Jharkhand is 3," PM Modi said.
The PM was speaking in Bihar's Naxal-affected Banka, which he said no Prime Minister had visited "for as long as anyone can remember."
"I appeal to the youth who have taken to the gun for Naxalism - the bullet brings only destruction. The ballot brings development," the Prime Minister said, adding, "Bihar has seen feudalism, casteism, capitalism, and nepotism...everything. For once, vote for development."
Even his customary attack on Chief Minister Nitish Kumar - who is leading a three-party coalition against the BJP - was for what he called cheating Bihar's people by not bringing them the development they need.
"In the last elections had the current Chief Minister not promised you electricity? Did he give you electricity? Did he not cheat you?" asked the PM. The crowd roared a, "Yes."
A BJP win the elections, which will be held in five phases from October 12, will mean two Diwalis for Bihar, the Prime Minister said, "First, when election results are declared and the second, on the day of Diwali." Votes will be counted on November 8, three days before the festival of lights.
The PM has promised Bihar plenty of light. He said all the state's poor would have homes and electricity by 2022, underscoring that he had mentioned in his very first speech in Parliament that his government would work for the poor.
PM Modi has so far addressed five election rallies in the state that have drawn large crowds.
In his first rally in Bihar since elections were announced, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong pitch for development today, pointing to how neighbour Jharkhand, ruled by the BJP, had jumped many places to now be ranked number 3 among Indian states in a World Bank survey."15 years ago Jharkhand was a part of Bihar. After Jharkhand chose a BJP-led NDA government, it has progressed much. In the last World Bank economic survey Jharkhand was ranked 29th, Bihar 27the. This time, Bihar is still no 27, Jharkhand is 3," PM Modi said.
The PM was speaking in Bihar's Naxal-affected Banka, which he said no Prime Minister had visited "for as long as anyone can remember."
"I appeal to the youth who have taken to the gun for Naxalism - the bullet brings only destruction. The ballot brings development," the Prime Minister said, adding, "Bihar has seen feudalism, casteism, capitalism, and nepotism...everything. For once, vote for development."
Even his customary attack on Chief Minister Nitish Kumar - who is leading a three-party coalition against the BJP - was for what he called cheating Bihar's people by not bringing them the development they need.
"In the last elections had the current Chief Minister not promised you electricity? Did he give you electricity? Did he not cheat you?" asked the PM. The crowd roared a, "Yes."
A BJP win the elections, which will be held in five phases from October 12, will mean two Diwalis for Bihar, the Prime Minister said, "First, when election results are declared and the second, on the day of Diwali." Votes will be counted on November 8, three days before the festival of lights.
The PM has promised Bihar plenty of light. He said all the state's poor would have homes and electricity by 2022, underscoring that he had mentioned in his very first speech in Parliament that his government would work for the poor.
PM Modi has so far addressed five election rallies in the state that have drawn large crowds.
Indian Navy Chief Admiral to Visit Australia
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NEW DELHI: In another boost for defence ties with Australia, Indian Navy Chief Admiral RK Dhowan will be the country from October 2-7 for meetings with its top leadership, an official statement said today.
The visit also coincides with the Australian Navy's annual Sea Power Conference.
The forum provides opportunities to engage with the heads of over 40 navies.
The statement said the visit aims to "consolidate existing Maritime Cooperation initiatives as well as explore new avenues."
"India-Australia have several commonalities, which serve as foundation for closer cooperation and multifaceted interactions," the statement said.
Maritime cooperation between Australia and India has been robust, with the two recently conducting the first bilateral exercise Ausindex.
The two nations signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement in 2006 as well as a Framework for Defence Cooperation in 2014, which envisages regular ship visits as well as high level exchanges.
"India-Australia share similar maritime challenges such as long coastline, extensive EEZ, coastal security, large coastal shipping and fishing fleet, where in both Navies have opportunities to learn from each other's experiences," the statement said.
The statement added that common grounds exists for cooperation in ship-building, especially under the "Make in India" initiative.
Admiral Dhowan, during his visit, will meet the chief of the Royal Australian Navy, vice chief of defence staff, defence secretary and other senior naval officers.
NEW DELHI: In another boost for defence ties with Australia, Indian Navy Chief Admiral RK Dhowan will be the country from October 2-7 for meetings with its top leadership, an official statement said today.The visit also coincides with the Australian Navy's annual Sea Power Conference.
The forum provides opportunities to engage with the heads of over 40 navies.
The statement said the visit aims to "consolidate existing Maritime Cooperation initiatives as well as explore new avenues."
Maritime cooperation between Australia and India has been robust, with the two recently conducting the first bilateral exercise Ausindex.
The two nations signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement in 2006 as well as a Framework for Defence Cooperation in 2014, which envisages regular ship visits as well as high level exchanges.
"India-Australia share similar maritime challenges such as long coastline, extensive EEZ, coastal security, large coastal shipping and fishing fleet, where in both Navies have opportunities to learn from each other's experiences," the statement said.
The statement added that common grounds exists for cooperation in ship-building, especially under the "Make in India" initiative.
Admiral Dhowan, during his visit, will meet the chief of the Royal Australian Navy, vice chief of defence staff, defence secretary and other senior naval officers.
Railways to Continue 'Swachh Bharat' Mission Till March 2016
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MADURAI: Indian Railways will continue the 'Swachh Bharat' mission till March 2016, when 'Sardar Patel United Clean India Drive' would be implemented, with focus on cleanliness at stations, hospitals and office premises, a senior official said in Madurai today.
The focus would be on stations from October 11 to 31, followed by railway colonies from December 16 to 31 and Railway Hospitals from February 15 to 28. Later systematic efforts would be taken to achieve sustained cleanliness and improvement in the environment, Divisional Railway Manager Sunil Kumar Garg said, quoting Railway board chairman's communique.
Speaking to reporters here today, he said a larger section of staff and public would be involved in the cleanliness drive and uncovered areas also would be taken up in a phased manner.
He also said the Safety Commissioner was expected to inspect the Pollachi-Palghat Broad Gauge conversion work on October 5 and 6. If clearance was received, trains bound for Gujarat, Maharashtra and Mangalore could be operated through this section.
This would reduce the distance between Madurai and Mangalore and other states, including Maharashtra and Gujarat, considerably by about 100 to 150 km, he said.
MADURAI: Indian Railways will continue the 'Swachh Bharat' mission till March 2016, when 'Sardar Patel United Clean India Drive' would be implemented, with focus on cleanliness at stations, hospitals and office premises, a senior official said in Madurai today.The focus would be on stations from October 11 to 31, followed by railway colonies from December 16 to 31 and Railway Hospitals from February 15 to 28. Later systematic efforts would be taken to achieve sustained cleanliness and improvement in the environment, Divisional Railway Manager Sunil Kumar Garg said, quoting Railway board chairman's communique.
He also said the Safety Commissioner was expected to inspect the Pollachi-Palghat Broad Gauge conversion work on October 5 and 6. If clearance was received, trains bound for Gujarat, Maharashtra and Mangalore could be operated through this section.
This would reduce the distance between Madurai and Mangalore and other states, including Maharashtra and Gujarat, considerably by about 100 to 150 km, he said.
Waive Off Farmers' Loans, Demands Hardik Patel
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NEW DELHI: Hardik Patel, the young leader of the newly-formed Akhil Bharatiya Patel Navnirman Sena, said in New Delhi today that loans taken by debt-ridden farmers across the country should be waived off.
"I pay obeisance to all the farmers of the country. They are committing suicide, they are debt ridden," Mr Patel said while paying homage to late Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri on his birth anniversary.
"Farmers across the country need to unite and the loans taken by them must be waived off completely," he said.
He urged farmers to take a pledge that they would not commit suicide, but fight for their rights.
NEW DELHI: Hardik Patel, the young leader of the newly-formed Akhil Bharatiya Patel Navnirman Sena, said in New Delhi today that loans taken by debt-ridden farmers across the country should be waived off."I pay obeisance to all the farmers of the country. They are committing suicide, they are debt ridden," Mr Patel said while paying homage to late Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri on his birth anniversary.
"Farmers across the country need to unite and the loans taken by them must be waived off completely," he said.
He urged farmers to take a pledge that they would not commit suicide, but fight for their rights.
'Exercise' Pills to Keep You Fit a Reality Soon
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SYDNEY: What if you can pop an "exercise" pill daily which mimics the health benefits of running, weight training or endurance exercise to keep you fit and disease-free?
It does not seem a far-fetched idea as researchers from the University of Sydney have provided the world's first comprehensive exercise blueprint that may pave the way for drugs that mimic the benefits of exercise in the near future.
They exposed 1,000 molecular changes that occur in our muscles when we exercise, opening the door for drug treatments to mirror the health benefits of exercise.
"Exercise is the most powerful therapy for many human diseases, including Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and neurological disorders," said Professor David James from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre.
However, for many people, exercise is not a viable treatment option.
"This means it is essential we find ways of developing drugs that mimic the benefits of exercise," he added.
The team, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, analysed human skeletal muscle biopsies from four untrained, healthy males following 10 minutes of high intensity exercise.
Using a technique known as mass spectrometry to study a process called protein phosphorylation, they discovered that short, intensive exercise triggers more than 1,000 changes.
Most traditional drugs target individual molecules.
"With this exercise blueprint we have proven that any drug that mimics exercise will need to target multiple molecules and possibly even pathways," the authors pointed out.
The majority of changes they discovered have not previously been associated with exercise, with existing research focusing on just a small number of changes.
"Exercise produces an extremely complex, cascading set of responses within human muscle. It plays an essential role in controlling energy metabolism and insulin sensitivity," noted co-author Dr Nolan Hoffman from the Charles Perkins Centre.
The researchers have narrowed down the therapeutic possibilities within the blueprint using mathematical and engineering-based analysis.
"This is a major breakthrough, as it allows scientists to use this information to design a drug that mimics the true beneficial changes caused by exercise," the team concluded.
The research was published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
SYDNEY: What if you can pop an "exercise" pill daily which mimics the health benefits of running, weight training or endurance exercise to keep you fit and disease-free?It does not seem a far-fetched idea as researchers from the University of Sydney have provided the world's first comprehensive exercise blueprint that may pave the way for drugs that mimic the benefits of exercise in the near future.
They exposed 1,000 molecular changes that occur in our muscles when we exercise, opening the door for drug treatments to mirror the health benefits of exercise.
However, for many people, exercise is not a viable treatment option.
"This means it is essential we find ways of developing drugs that mimic the benefits of exercise," he added.
The team, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, analysed human skeletal muscle biopsies from four untrained, healthy males following 10 minutes of high intensity exercise.
Using a technique known as mass spectrometry to study a process called protein phosphorylation, they discovered that short, intensive exercise triggers more than 1,000 changes.
Most traditional drugs target individual molecules.
"With this exercise blueprint we have proven that any drug that mimics exercise will need to target multiple molecules and possibly even pathways," the authors pointed out.
The majority of changes they discovered have not previously been associated with exercise, with existing research focusing on just a small number of changes.
"Exercise produces an extremely complex, cascading set of responses within human muscle. It plays an essential role in controlling energy metabolism and insulin sensitivity," noted co-author Dr Nolan Hoffman from the Charles Perkins Centre.
The researchers have narrowed down the therapeutic possibilities within the blueprint using mathematical and engineering-based analysis.
"This is a major breakthrough, as it allows scientists to use this information to design a drug that mimics the true beneficial changes caused by exercise," the team concluded.
The research was published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
Business Affairs
India should benchmark gas price to deficit nations: S&P
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India should benchmark its natural gas prices to similar gas-deficient nations instead of using rates prevalent in gas-surplus geographies like the US and Canada, says Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.
Using rates in gas-surplus nations, domestic natural gas prices earlier this week were cut by 18 per cent to $4.24 per million British thermal unit, a rate which S&P said will "discourage oil exploration and production (E&P) companies from committing new capital expenditure (capex)".
"The formula for pricing domestic gas considers prices in gas-surplus geographies such as the US and Canada, which have developed gas transportation infrastructure. Given India's gas production deficit and emerging gas transport infrastructure, comparing prices in similar geographies will be more relevant, in our opinion," it said in statement.
Gas prices in India, S&P said, are lower than in its regional peers as well. Natural gas prices in Thailand and Indonesia average $8-10 per mmBtu.
"We believe the government's plan to stimulate private sector participation and bring in transparency in gas pricing by introducing formula-driven gas pricing is well intended. However, falling hydrocarbon prices over the past one year have brought in uncertainty over the viability of exploration projects," it said.
The gas price reduction, it said, will likely discourage capex in exploration and development of gas reserves in India, where most large finds are in deep water zones.
"Globally, several E&P companies have scaled back spending and put new exploration projects on hold amid low hydrocarbon prices," it said.
Low gas prices could materially reduce profitability of state-owned ONGC's planned Rs 40,000 crore investment in developing its KG-basin gas discoveries.
"Investment by private sector oil and gas companies in India has been small and their capex commitments are likely to be uncertain because of the price revision," it added.
ICRA said the gas price reduction has significant implications for different sectors since the cut brings the rate to almost the level it was prior to implementation of the modified Rangarajan formula thereby negating all gains post implementation of the aforementioned formula.
The cut "reduces the profitability of the gas produced from the existing fields and adversely impacts the viability of new exploration and development projects", it said.
"With most of the conventional and unconventional resources in the country being present in the more challenging and higher cost offshore areas, the effective rollback of prices to earlier levels will challenge the incumbents' ability to justify the viability of exploration and development projects for increasing production levels," it said.
India should benchmark its natural gas prices to similar gas-deficient nations instead of using rates prevalent in gas-surplus geographies like the US and Canada, says Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.
Using rates in gas-surplus nations, domestic natural gas prices earlier this week were cut by 18 per cent to $4.24 per million British thermal unit, a rate which S&P said will "discourage oil exploration and production (E&P) companies from committing new capital expenditure (capex)".
"The formula for pricing domestic gas considers prices in gas-surplus geographies such as the US and Canada, which have developed gas transportation infrastructure. Given India's gas production deficit and emerging gas transport infrastructure, comparing prices in similar geographies will be more relevant, in our opinion," it said in statement.
Gas prices in India, S&P said, are lower than in its regional peers as well. Natural gas prices in Thailand and Indonesia average $8-10 per mmBtu.
"We believe the government's plan to stimulate private sector participation and bring in transparency in gas pricing by introducing formula-driven gas pricing is well intended. However, falling hydrocarbon prices over the past one year have brought in uncertainty over the viability of exploration projects," it said.
The gas price reduction, it said, will likely discourage capex in exploration and development of gas reserves in India, where most large finds are in deep water zones.
"Globally, several E&P companies have scaled back spending and put new exploration projects on hold amid low hydrocarbon prices," it said.
Low gas prices could materially reduce profitability of state-owned ONGC's planned Rs 40,000 crore investment in developing its KG-basin gas discoveries.
"Investment by private sector oil and gas companies in India has been small and their capex commitments are likely to be uncertain because of the price revision," it added.
ICRA said the gas price reduction has significant implications for different sectors since the cut brings the rate to almost the level it was prior to implementation of the modified Rangarajan formula thereby negating all gains post implementation of the aforementioned formula.
The cut "reduces the profitability of the gas produced from the existing fields and adversely impacts the viability of new exploration and development projects", it said.
"With most of the conventional and unconventional resources in the country being present in the more challenging and higher cost offshore areas, the effective rollback of prices to earlier levels will challenge the incumbents' ability to justify the viability of exploration and development projects for increasing production levels," it said.
Packaging major Uflex to invest Rs 1,000 crore for growth
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Flexible packaging major Uflex would invest Rs 1,000 crore over the next two years to enhance capacity and add value to its products for wider applications spanning liquid and granular materials, a top company official said.
"As part of our growth plans, we propose to invest Rs 1,000 crore in the next two years to expand capacity and product range for packaging semi-liquids and liquid materials and powder and granular materials," Uflex chairman and managing director Ashok Chaturvedi told IANS in an e-mail interview.
The Noida-based multinational, with production plants in India, Dubai, Egypt, Mexico, Poland and the US and markets in 85 countries worldwide, makes polyester chips, plastic films, laminates, inks and adhesives for packaging liquid and solid goods.
"We are setting new plants and more assembly lines at new locations in India and overseas for making a range of new and value added products to our global customers," Chaturvedi asserted.
Besides plants at Noida in Uttar Pradesh near Delhi, Jammu and in Malanpur in Bhind district of Madhya Pradesh, the 32-year-old firm is setting up an asceptic plant at Sanand in Gujarat to pack liquid products at Rs 550 crore in first phase.
"When fully commissioned in phases over the next two-three years, the Sanand plant will employ about 3,000 people and 90 per cent of its production will be to meet domestic demand," Chaturvedi noted.
Among its Indian and global customers across 140 countries are P&G, PepsiCo, Tata Global, Mondelez, L' Oreal, Britannia, Haldiram, Amul, Kimberly Clark, Ferro Rocher, Perfetti, GSK, Nestle, Agrotech Foods, Coca Cola, Wrigley and Johnson & Johnson.
The company recently unveiled a range of inks, which are rub-scratch and crinkle resistance and offer good gloss and tape release.
"Similarly, our innovative moisture proof bag (Flex SafePack) protects moisture from entering into cement and prevents loss by withstanding harsh conditions for longer shelf life," Chaturvedi pointed out.
The company also developed technology to reprocess mixed plastic waste arising from production process and after customers refuse into articles for making durable plastic products.
"For instance, our world's first 8 micron film is suitable for conversion operations like printing, lamination, coating and metallization, with cost and material savings ranging from 33-47 per cent, which is beneficial to end-users," Chaturvedi said.
Noting that food wastage was as much a social problem as economic, Chaturvedi lamented that about 40 per cent of food valued at Rs 50,000 crore was wasted every year across the country for want of storage and packaging to protect and preserve.
"We have the ability to be a part of the solution by offering innovative solutions to extend shelf-life of products and keep them safe for a longer period," he claimed.
According to the Industry Council for Research and Packaging on the Environment (INCPEN), flexible packaging helps reduce food wastage to one per cent from three per cent by increasing its shelf life, especially of vegetables and dairy products.
"By extending the lifecycle of food and protecting it from foreign elements, smart and flexible packaging can ensure consumed products were safe and help in improving their sustainability," Chaturvedi added.
Flexible packaging major Uflex would invest Rs 1,000 crore over the next two years to enhance capacity and add value to its products for wider applications spanning liquid and granular materials, a top company official said.
"As part of our growth plans, we propose to invest Rs 1,000 crore in the next two years to expand capacity and product range for packaging semi-liquids and liquid materials and powder and granular materials," Uflex chairman and managing director Ashok Chaturvedi told IANS in an e-mail interview.
The Noida-based multinational, with production plants in India, Dubai, Egypt, Mexico, Poland and the US and markets in 85 countries worldwide, makes polyester chips, plastic films, laminates, inks and adhesives for packaging liquid and solid goods.
"We are setting new plants and more assembly lines at new locations in India and overseas for making a range of new and value added products to our global customers," Chaturvedi asserted.
Besides plants at Noida in Uttar Pradesh near Delhi, Jammu and in Malanpur in Bhind district of Madhya Pradesh, the 32-year-old firm is setting up an asceptic plant at Sanand in Gujarat to pack liquid products at Rs 550 crore in first phase.
"When fully commissioned in phases over the next two-three years, the Sanand plant will employ about 3,000 people and 90 per cent of its production will be to meet domestic demand," Chaturvedi noted.
Among its Indian and global customers across 140 countries are P&G, PepsiCo, Tata Global, Mondelez, L' Oreal, Britannia, Haldiram, Amul, Kimberly Clark, Ferro Rocher, Perfetti, GSK, Nestle, Agrotech Foods, Coca Cola, Wrigley and Johnson & Johnson.
The company recently unveiled a range of inks, which are rub-scratch and crinkle resistance and offer good gloss and tape release.
"Similarly, our innovative moisture proof bag (Flex SafePack) protects moisture from entering into cement and prevents loss by withstanding harsh conditions for longer shelf life," Chaturvedi pointed out.
The company also developed technology to reprocess mixed plastic waste arising from production process and after customers refuse into articles for making durable plastic products.
"For instance, our world's first 8 micron film is suitable for conversion operations like printing, lamination, coating and metallization, with cost and material savings ranging from 33-47 per cent, which is beneficial to end-users," Chaturvedi said.
Noting that food wastage was as much a social problem as economic, Chaturvedi lamented that about 40 per cent of food valued at Rs 50,000 crore was wasted every year across the country for want of storage and packaging to protect and preserve.
"We have the ability to be a part of the solution by offering innovative solutions to extend shelf-life of products and keep them safe for a longer period," he claimed.
According to the Industry Council for Research and Packaging on the Environment (INCPEN), flexible packaging helps reduce food wastage to one per cent from three per cent by increasing its shelf life, especially of vegetables and dairy products.
"By extending the lifecycle of food and protecting it from foreign elements, smart and flexible packaging can ensure consumed products were safe and help in improving their sustainability," Chaturvedi added.
Government gives banks 15 days to disburse soft loan to sugar mills
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Government has given 15 more days to banks for disbursing Rs 1,900 crore soft loans to sugar mills to help them clear cane arrears to farmers that total over Rs 12,000 crore.
Out of the Rs 6,000 crore soft loan approved by government to bail out the sugar industry, mills applied to avail loans for only Rs 2,700 crore. However, banks have been able to disburse only Rs 800 crore till the September 30 deadline and the rest Rs 1,900 crore is still to be given.
The Centre had in June approved Rs 6,000 crore soft loan for the 2014-15 season (October-September) to improve mills' liquidity position, which has been affected due to lower sugar prices and high cane rates.
As per the policy, banks were asked to disburse soft loan by September-end. Mills that cleared 50 per cent of their outstanding dues to farmers by August 31 were eligible for the loan.
Mills applied for a soft loan of Rs 2,700 crore and the banks were to disburse this amount by September 30. However, banks have disbursed only Rs 800 crore.
Keeping the interest of farmers in mind, banks have been given time till October 15 to disburse the rest Rs 1,900 crore loan to mills, a senior Food Ministry official told PTI.
The government will bear interest burden up to 10 per cent simple interest or actual rate of interest charged by the bank, whichever is less for maximum of one year by way of interest subvention.
Sugarcane arrears, which stood at Rs 21,000 crore in April this year, have come down to Rs 12,248 crore at the end of the 2014-15 season, as per the government data.
The arrears reduced substantially on account of a number of government measures such as the soft loan, hike in import duty and raising ethanol blending with petrol to 10 per cent so as to infuse liquidity into the sugar sector.
Sugar production is estimated at record 28.3 million tonnes in 2014-15 marketing year (October-September), as against 24.3 million tonnes in the previous year, while the total annual demand is pegged at 24.5 million tonnes.
Government has given 15 more days to banks for disbursing Rs 1,900 crore soft loans to sugar mills to help them clear cane arrears to farmers that total over Rs 12,000 crore.
Out of the Rs 6,000 crore soft loan approved by government to bail out the sugar industry, mills applied to avail loans for only Rs 2,700 crore. However, banks have been able to disburse only Rs 800 crore till the September 30 deadline and the rest Rs 1,900 crore is still to be given.
The Centre had in June approved Rs 6,000 crore soft loan for the 2014-15 season (October-September) to improve mills' liquidity position, which has been affected due to lower sugar prices and high cane rates.
As per the policy, banks were asked to disburse soft loan by September-end. Mills that cleared 50 per cent of their outstanding dues to farmers by August 31 were eligible for the loan.
Mills applied for a soft loan of Rs 2,700 crore and the banks were to disburse this amount by September 30. However, banks have disbursed only Rs 800 crore.
Keeping the interest of farmers in mind, banks have been given time till October 15 to disburse the rest Rs 1,900 crore loan to mills, a senior Food Ministry official told PTI.
The government will bear interest burden up to 10 per cent simple interest or actual rate of interest charged by the bank, whichever is less for maximum of one year by way of interest subvention.
Sugarcane arrears, which stood at Rs 21,000 crore in April this year, have come down to Rs 12,248 crore at the end of the 2014-15 season, as per the government data.
The arrears reduced substantially on account of a number of government measures such as the soft loan, hike in import duty and raising ethanol blending with petrol to 10 per cent so as to infuse liquidity into the sugar sector.
Sugar production is estimated at record 28.3 million tonnes in 2014-15 marketing year (October-September), as against 24.3 million tonnes in the previous year, while the total annual demand is pegged at 24.5 million tonnes.
e-commerce market to grow 36 per cent in 2015-20
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Backed by huge discounts and the rising use of smartphones, the Indian e-commerce market is poised to grow 36 percent during the 2015-20, a new report has said.
According to a recent report from Canada based TechSci Research, expanding smartphone user base, huge discounts and offers, increasing per capita disposable income and the growing youth population will be the drivers for the predicted compounded annual growth rate of 36 per cent.
"India's workforce comprises of young consumers who have less time for going out and shopping at regular brick and mortar stores. Such a scenario creates potential for online shopping in a market as huge as India," Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research said in a statement.
"Moreover, great offers and discounts by the leading e-commerce players further increase consumer interest towards the products," Karan Chechi said.
India's e-commerce market is dominated by e-services segment, on account of booming online travel market, which is emerging as the most preferred medium for planning holidays, making hotel bookings and buying tickets for travel by various modes including air, bus and rail.
As per the report, rising number of high speed internet users is encouraging businesses to innovate and offer a diversified array of products and services online.
"Over the last few years, with significant improvements in the payment structure in e-commerce market, consumers in India are gradually shifting towards online space and are shedding their belief of online shopping medium being unsafe," the firm said.
Consumer electronics, online travel, apparel and accessories are the market segments exhibiting promising growth. Also, with the option of same day delivery, online groceries stores are also entering into the country's online space.
Backed by huge discounts and the rising use of smartphones, the Indian e-commerce market is poised to grow 36 percent during the 2015-20, a new report has said.
According to a recent report from Canada based TechSci Research, expanding smartphone user base, huge discounts and offers, increasing per capita disposable income and the growing youth population will be the drivers for the predicted compounded annual growth rate of 36 per cent.
"India's workforce comprises of young consumers who have less time for going out and shopping at regular brick and mortar stores. Such a scenario creates potential for online shopping in a market as huge as India," Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research said in a statement.
"Moreover, great offers and discounts by the leading e-commerce players further increase consumer interest towards the products," Karan Chechi said.
India's e-commerce market is dominated by e-services segment, on account of booming online travel market, which is emerging as the most preferred medium for planning holidays, making hotel bookings and buying tickets for travel by various modes including air, bus and rail.
As per the report, rising number of high speed internet users is encouraging businesses to innovate and offer a diversified array of products and services online.
"Over the last few years, with significant improvements in the payment structure in e-commerce market, consumers in India are gradually shifting towards online space and are shedding their belief of online shopping medium being unsafe," the firm said.
Consumer electronics, online travel, apparel and accessories are the market segments exhibiting promising growth. Also, with the option of same day delivery, online groceries stores are also entering into the country's online space.
Demand from China helps Everest Flavours post stupendous growth.
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BEST SME- GLOBAL BUSINESS EXCELLENCE
TOTAL INCOME Rs 101 Crore - 250 Crore
Anand Ladsariya, 57, is a known face in the angel investing community. Since 2007, the founder and Managing Director of Everest Flavours has invested Rs 6.5 crore in 60-odd companies, including OYO Rooms, GreenDust and Speakwell. A first-generation entrepreneur, Ladsariya started his entrepreneurial journey as a trader in menthol and peppermint oils in the early 1980s as a 25-year-old. The surge in demand for these oils - used in toothpaste, pharmaceuticals, balms, tobacco products & confectionery - over the past three years, especially from China, has helped the company make big gains.
KEY FACTS
- Everest Flavours is a manufacturer and exporter of menthol, peppermint oil and essential oils
- China's policy of focusing on food crops has helped Everest
- It has increased menthol capacity from 50 tonnes to 2,500 tonnes in 29 years
After starting trading operations in 1983, he opened a factory in Mumbai in 1986 that could produce 50 tonnes of menthol crystals. In 29 years, that capacity is now up to 2,500 tonnes.
Having started with the domestic market, the company ventured into exports in the 1990s. To mitigate the fluctuating prices of mentha leaves, Everest decided to sell one-third of its produce to Singapore-based Tien Yuan Chemical on the basis of a fixed-formula under a long-term contract. "In 1984/85 we used to import from Tien Yuan; after 1986/87, they started importing from us," says Ladsariya. "Selling one-third of our produce under a fixed formula helps us mitigate risk." Adds C.L. Shih, MD of Tien Yuan Chemical: "Our three-decade-old relationship with Everest has been a win-win situation for both of us."
Today, Everest Flavours exports 95-99 per cent of its products, with demand from China - driven by the country's focus on food crops since 2008 - acting as a driving force. In 2013/14, the company's revenues reached Rs 123.45 crore, and it enjoys net margins of 4-5 per cent.
What are the challenges? "The Chinese slowdown has already impacted us with volumes falling 10-15 per cent," says Ladsariya. In terms of future plans, he says his focus will be on value-added products. "We have started manufacturing blended oil. It will improve margins and increase profitability." Ladsariya hopes the rise in global consumption of consumer products could help grow Everest's top line by 10 per cent and profits by 15 per cent over the long term.
BEST SME- GLOBAL BUSINESS EXCELLENCE
TOTAL INCOME Rs 101 Crore - 250 Crore
Anand Ladsariya, 57, is a known face in the angel investing community. Since 2007, the founder and Managing Director of Everest Flavours has invested Rs 6.5 crore in 60-odd companies, including OYO Rooms, GreenDust and Speakwell. A first-generation entrepreneur, Ladsariya started his entrepreneurial journey as a trader in menthol and peppermint oils in the early 1980s as a 25-year-old. The surge in demand for these oils - used in toothpaste, pharmaceuticals, balms, tobacco products & confectionery - over the past three years, especially from China, has helped the company make big gains.
KEY FACTS
- Everest Flavours is a manufacturer and exporter of menthol, peppermint oil and essential oils
- China's policy of focusing on food crops has helped Everest
- It has increased menthol capacity from 50 tonnes to 2,500 tonnes in 29 years
After starting trading operations in 1983, he opened a factory in Mumbai in 1986 that could produce 50 tonnes of menthol crystals. In 29 years, that capacity is now up to 2,500 tonnes.
Having started with the domestic market, the company ventured into exports in the 1990s. To mitigate the fluctuating prices of mentha leaves, Everest decided to sell one-third of its produce to Singapore-based Tien Yuan Chemical on the basis of a fixed-formula under a long-term contract. "In 1984/85 we used to import from Tien Yuan; after 1986/87, they started importing from us," says Ladsariya. "Selling one-third of our produce under a fixed formula helps us mitigate risk." Adds C.L. Shih, MD of Tien Yuan Chemical: "Our three-decade-old relationship with Everest has been a win-win situation for both of us."
What are the challenges? "The Chinese slowdown has already impacted us with volumes falling 10-15 per cent," says Ladsariya. In terms of future plans, he says his focus will be on value-added products. "We have started manufacturing blended oil. It will improve margins and increase profitability." Ladsariya hopes the rise in global consumption of consumer products could help grow Everest's top line by 10 per cent and profits by 15 per cent over the long term.
General Awareness
Latest Current Affairs - September 2015
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Appointments
A K Jha has been appointed as interim Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).- Abdul Bari Siddiqui has been elected as President of Bihar Cricket Association (BCA).
- Admiral Sanjay Mahindru is appointed as Flag Officer Submarines.
- Air Marshal SB Deo is appointed as new chief of Western Air Command of Indian Air Force.
- Alexis Tsipras-led Syriza party won Greece's general elections. It is second election victory for Syriza in nine months after first government falling due to loosing majority in August 2015.
- Ameising Luikham is appointed as Secretary in Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region.
- Anil Wadhwa will be new Ambassador to Italy.
- Anjuly Chib Duggal is appointed as Secretary in Department of Financial Services of Finance Ministry.
- Anoop Kumar Srivastava is appointed as Secretary in Inter State Council Secretariat.
- Anup K. Pujari has been appointed as Secretary in Ministry of Steel. He is currently also secretary in Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises .
- Arvind Panagariya (vice-chairman of Niti Aayog) has been appointed as sherpa for G20 negotiations, replacing Suresh Prabhu.
- Brij Raj Sharma has been appointed as Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir.
- Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) appointed J Manjula as Director General (DG - Electronics & Communications Systems or ECS). She will be one of seven DG's, heading different clusters within DRDO. She is also first woman Director General of DRDO.
- Dinesh Kumar Likhi appointed as CMD of Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited.
- Elattuvalapil Sreedharan (Known as Metro Man) has been appointed to United Nations’ High Level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for three years.
- Gautam Bambawale will be India's new High Commissioner to Pakistan, succeeding TCA Raghavan.
- German auto maker Volkswagen has appointed Matthias Mueller as its new chief executive officer (CEO), after Martin Winterkorn resigned.
- Girish Shankar is appointed as Secretary in Department of Official Language of Ministry of Home Affairs.
- Government appointed Satwat Jagwani, Krati Tiwari, Ankit Fadia and Pranav Mistry as Brand Ambassadors for Digital India Programme.
- Harsh V Shringla will be India's High Commissioner to Bangladesh.
- Hasmukh Adhia is appointed as Revenue Secretary in Ministry of Finance.
- Hormusji N Cama is elected as chairman of Press Trust of India (PTI).
- India's Ashok Sridharan won Germany’s Bonn city mayoral election.
- Indian - origin Mahesh Ramanujam is appointed as new CEO of US Green Building Council, a non-profit organisation that promotes sustainability in desigining and Operating buildings.
- Indian-American Jagdeep Grewal has been appointed as first woman postmaster of Sacramento city in California.
- International Cricket Council (ICC) appointed former West Indies cricketer Richie Richardson to Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees. Javagal Srinath is Only Indian on this 7 member panel.
- Jayant Prasad is appointed as Director General of Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses.
- Jeremy Corbyn elected as leader of Britain's Labour party. He appointed Indian-origin Seema Malhotra and Lisa Nandy Into his shadow cabinet.
- John T Chambers has been elected as Chairman of US-India Business Council’s (USIBC).
- Keshari Nath Tripathi has been appointed as Governor of Tripura. He is also Governor of West Bengal.
- L C Goyal has been appointed as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Indian Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO).
- Malcolm Turnbull has been appointed as 29th Prime Minister of Australia replacing Tony Abbott.
- Michel Kafando has been reinstated as president of Burkina Faso after agreement between Regiment of Presidential Security and national army.
- Navtej Sarna is appointed as India's High Commissioner to United Kingdom.
- Neelesh Garg is appointed MD & CEO of Tata AIG General Insurance.
- Noted Kathak danseuse Kumkum Dhar has been appointed as Vice Chancellor of Bhatkhande Music Institute deemed university.
- P.K. Malhotra is appointed as Secretary in Legislative Department.
- PV Chandran has been elected as President of Indian Newspaper Society (INS) for 2015-16.
- Pankaj Saran will be India's new Ambassador to Russia.
- Prabhat Kumar Singh is appointed as MD & CEO of Petronet LNG, India’s biggest liquefied natural gas importer.
- Praveen Dixit is appointed as Maharashtra's Director General of Police (DGP).
- Pravir Kumar is appointed as Secretary in Inter-State Council Secretariat.
- Rakesh Sharma appointed as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bengaluru-based Canara Bank.
- Ramesh Chand is appointed as full time member of NITI Aayog.
- Ratan P Watal is appointed as Finance Secretary after replacing Rajiv Mehrishi.
- S K Sharma has been appointed as Chairman of Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB).
- Sanjay Kumar Srivastava is appointed as Chairman of National Authority for Chemical Weapons.
- Shaktikanta Das is appointed as Secretary in Department of Economic Affairs of Ministry of Finance.
- Shashidhar Sinha has been appointed as Chairman of Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC).
- Sherif Ismail has been appointed as new (53rd) Prime Minister of Egypt.
- Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's People's Action Party (PAP) won Singapore general elections 2015. Mr. Loong will be re-appointed as Singapore's Prime Minister for the Third Time.
- Sourav Ganguly has been appointed as President of Cricket Association of Bengal.
- Stuti Narain Kacker has been appointed as head of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).
- Sujan Chinoy will be new Indian Ambassador to Japan.
- Swiss Engineering Company ABB appointed Bazmi Husain as global chief technology officer.
- Syed Akbaruddin will be India's new Permanent Representative to United Nations, replacing Asoke Mukerji.
- Vijay Gokhale is appointed as new Ambasador to China.
- Vijaya Kamlesh Tahilramani is appointed as Chief Justice of Bombay High Court.
- Vikram Pawah has been appointed Chief of bike maker Harley Davidson's India Operations.
- Vinod Dasari is appointed as President of Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
- Zayn Khan was has been elected as President of Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI).
Awards
- Urdu litterateur Shamim Hanfi has been conferred with inaugural Jnangarima Manad Alankaran award of Bharatiya Jnanpith.
- Afghan refugee teacher Aqeela Asifi has been awarded with 2015 Nansen Refugee Award by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
- American fantasy drama television series, Game of Thrones won 12 awards at 67th Primetime Emmy Awards including best drama series.
- Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been selected for United Nations Champions of Earth award for her leadership and vision in tackling climate change issues in Bangladesh. She will be honored during UN Sustainable Development Summit 2015 in Sep 25-27, 2015.
- Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit (APU) of South Africa has been selected for 2015 UNEP Champions of the Earth award in inspiration and action category for comabatting poaching and community led initiatives in protecting wildlife in Balule Private Game Reserve of South Africa.
- Bollywood actor Anupam Kher has been conferred with Honoured Guest of Texas award for his contribution to cinema. He was also conferred with Senate Proclamation award by Texas State Senate. Besides, Houston state declared 7 August as Anupam Kher Day, after success of his show - My intention was not that.
- Britain awarded Indo-British van driver Dee Patel with Pride of Britain Award for risking his life to save others.
- Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has announced Award for S&T Innovations for Rural Development (CAIRD) - 2014 to Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP - Lucknow).
- Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) received SKOCH Award for smart governance for its initiatives on UAN programme and transformation of social security agenda in India.
- Haryana Government won Skoch Order-of-Merit national award for e-Governance and IT initiatives in state. Haryana Government notified 163 e-Governance services to be delivered to citizens at their doorsteps to provide time-bound services.
- Hindi writer Kamal Kishore Goenka has been presented with 24th Vyaas Samman (2014) for his work 'Premchand ki Kahaniyon ka Kaal Kramanusaar Adhyayan'.
- Hindustan Times chairperson Shobhana Bharatia and PepsiCo Chairman Indra Nooyi have been awarded 2015 Global Leadership Award of US-India Business Council (USIBC). Indian-American artist Natvar Bhavsar has been awarded the Artistic Achievement Award.
- India won UNESCO prize ‘Award of Excellence’ 2015 for conservation efforts of Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple in Kerala.
- India's Swetha Prabhakaran is among 11 winners of Champions of Change award by USA's White House for Founding Everybody Code Now, a non profit organization to make youth efficient in Coding.
- Indian Actor Anupam Kher received Certificate of Recognition from California legislature for his dedication to helping Kashmiri Hindu community.
- Indian Organization Tambul Leaf Plates has been conferred with SEED Special Recognition Award in Nairobi, Kenya on the 10th anniversary of annual SEED Awards. SEED is a global partnership for action on sustainable development and the green economy.
- Indian author Sunjeev Sahota has been short-listed for prestigious Man Booker Prize 2015 for Fiction for his novel The Year of the Runaways about life experience of illegal immigrants from Indian subcontinent in Britain.
- Indian film Angry Indian Goddesses won first runner-up at 40th Toronto International Film Festival.
- Indian-American Kartik Chandran at Columbia Engineering has been named as a 2015 MacArthur Fellow, along with grant of 625000 USD for working on a novel for world's need for food, clean water and energy.
- Indian-American author Jhumpa Lahiri (Nilanjana Sudesana) has been selected for 2014 National Humanities Medal of White House.
- Indian-Australian Tejinder Pal Singh has been named as Australian of the Day by Commonwealth Bank for feeding homeless in Darwin for past three years.
- Jury under Amol Palekar picked Marathi Film Court directed by Chaitanya Tamhane as India's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at 88th Oscars Awards 2016. Court has also won Best Feature Film award in 62nd National Awards 2015.
- Kopparapu kavula National Eminence award 2015 will be given to classical flutist Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia.
- M.R. Poovamma (Athletics ) and Babita Kumari (Wrestling) have been conferred with Arjuna Award 2015.
- Mathematician Jacob Tsimerman from Canada has been chosen for 2015 SASTRA Ramanujan Prize for his research work in field of Number Theory and surrounding topics.
- Odisha's Lalita Prasida Sripada Srisai won Community Impact Award at fifth Google Science Fair in California.
- P Sivakumar, Director of CVRDE (Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment), Tamilnadu has been elevated as Distinguished Scientist (Scientist H) by Ministry of Defense. It is highest honour conferred on a scientist in India.
- President Pranab Mukherjee presented Gandhi Peace Prize 2014 to Indian Space Research Organization.
- President Pranab Mukherjee presented National Tourism Awards 2013-14 -
- Gujarat has been awarded as Best State for Comprehensive Tourism Development and Best Film Promotion Friendly State.
- Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh is named as Best Heritage City
- Kerala received award for Most Innovative use of Information technology.
- Great backwaters of Kerala has been awarded as Best Tourism Film.
- Book Gujarat’s 50 Golden Destinations by Tourism Corporation of Gujarat got award of Best Tourism Promotion Publicity material.
- Puducherry Government announced annual State Best Teachers’ Awards 2015. 20 teachers from four regions of the Union Territory were awarded in different categories on the occasion of Teacher's Day.
- Punjab Government won highest capacity addition in grid connected solar rooftop power in the country during the financial year 2014-15.
- Royal Aeronautical Society London conferred Indian Scientist G Satheesh Reddy (Missile Scientist of DRDO) with prestigious Silver Medal for his contributions in India's highly developed avionics sensors and systems for key strategic programmes and other defence applications.
- USA's We Care Solar won 1 million USD ‘Powering the Future We Want’ grant by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) (in collaboration with China Energy Fund Committee (CEFC)) for providing low cost renewable energy and medical device to prevent complications during labour in areas without electricity.
- United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Champions of Earth Awards 2015 -
- Leadership on frontline of climate change - Sheikh Hasina (Prime Minister of Bangladesh).
- ENTREPRENEURIAL VISION - Paul Polman (Chief Executive Officer of Unilever) and Natura Brasil (Cosmetics Producer and Sustainable Production Pioneer)
- SCIENCE AND INNOVATION - National Geographic Society
- INSPIRATION AND ACTION - Black Mamba APU Anti-Poaching Unit (Balule Nature Reserve - South Africa)
- West Indian Test cricketer Shiv Chanderpaul has been honoured with Icon Award by Indo-Caribbean Alliance alog with Lakshmee Singh, Eric Ulrich and Dave Kadernauth.
Books
- The Duels of the Himalayan Eagle: The first Indo-Pak Air War (1-22 September 1965) has been written by Bharat Kumar.
- To the Brink and Back: India's 1991 Story has been written by Jairam Ramesh.
- Book 30 Women in Power has been written by Naina Lal Kidwai (India's Country head of HSBC India).
- Book Building a just world: essays in Honour of Muchkund Dubey’ has been written by Manoranjan Mohanty, Vinod C Khanna and Biswajit Dhar.
- Book Feminist and Orientalist Perspectives – A Study of Lady Mary Montagu’s Turkish Embassy Lettershas been written by Farha Hiba Parvez.
- Book Globalisation, Democratization and Distributive Justice has been authored by Mool Chand Sharma.
- Book Hungry Bengal. War, Famine, Riots and the End of Empire has been written by Janam Mukherjee.
- Book Two Years Eight Months and Twenty Eight Nights authored by Salman Rushdie has been released.
Committees
- Social justice and empowerment minister Thaawar Chand Gehlot launched Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan) that focuses on building accessible government buildings for persons with disabilities).
- An Expert Group Under Cyber Security Chief Gulshan Rai suggested to set up centre for checking Cyber crimes under Ministry of Home Affairs with cost 500 crores.
- Committee headed by A.P. Shah recommended to amend section 115JB of Income-tax Act to clarify the inapplicability of MAT (Minimum Alternate Tax) provisions to FIIs/FPIs for period prior to 01.04.2015.
- Government approved Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM) with an outlay of Rs. 5142 crores for development of rural growth clusters with potential for growth in all States.
- Clusters will consist of Gram Panchayats with population of 25000 - 50000 in plain areas and a 5000 - 15000 in desert, hilly or tribal areas.
- Mission aims to create 300 such Rurban growth clusters over next 3 years. Funding for Rurban Clusters will be through various Government Rural welfare schemes.
- SPMRM will provide an additional funding support of upto 30 % of project cost per cluster as Critical Gap Funding (CGF).
- Government launched Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) for welfare of people affected by mining activities, using funds generated by District Mineral Foundations (DMFs).
- Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Amendment Act 2015 mandated setting up of District Mineral Foundations (DMFs) in all districts affected by mining related operations.
- Madhya Pradesh government formed commission under Aryendra Kumar Saxena to probe into Petlawad explosion incident in Jhabua district.
- Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions constituted a committee under B S Baswan to revisit the civil services examination pattern.
- Ministry of Water Resources created a seven-member committee under Mihir Shah to advise restructuring of Central Water Commission (CWC) and Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) for development of water resources in India.
Days
- 14 September - Hindi Diwas. It marks adoption of Hindi (written in Devanagari script ) on 14 September, 1949 as official language of Republic of India. PFC (Power Finance Corporation) received Rajbhasha Award 2014-15 in category of “Rajbhasha Kirti Puruskar” second prize on this occasion.
- 22 September - World Rhino Day, first announced by WWF-South Africa in 2010.
- 23 Sep - Birth Anniversary of Rashtrakavi Ramdhari Singh Dinkar.
- 23 Sep - National day of Saudi Arabia.
- Sep 15 - Independece day of Honduras, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador. It Marks Their Independence from Spain in 1821.
- Sep 05 - Indian National Teachers' Day. It marks birth date, of second President of India Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (5 September 1888).
- PM Narendra Modi released two commemorative coins of 125 rupees and 10 rupees in memory of former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.
- Sep 08 - International Literacy Day. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) launched nationwide e-payment literacy workshop on this occasion.
- Sep 1 - Independence day of Uzbekistan. It marks declaration of independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
- Sep 12 - World First Aid Day.
- Sep 15 - Engineer's Day in India. It marks Birthday of Bharat Ratna Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya.
- Sep 15 - International Day of Democracy. Declared by United Nations in 2007. Theme for 2015 is Space for Civil Society.
- Sep 16 - Independence Day of Mexico. It marks Declaration of Independence from spain in 1810.
- Sep 16 - International Day for Preservation of Ozone Layer. UN proclaimed the same in 1994 commemorating date of signing of Montreal Protocol in 1987 on Substances that Deplete Ozone Layer.
- Vienna Convention for Protection of Ozone Layer is an International Agreement about protecting ozone layer agreed upon during Vienna Conference of 1985 and enacted in 1988. It has been ratified by 197 UN Members. It does not include bindings for use of CFCs (Chloro Fluoro Carbons) which is main cause of ozone depletion. These are laid out in accompanying Montreal Protocol.
- Sep 2 - Independence day of Vietnam - It Marks declaration of independence from France and Japan in 1945.
- Sep 2 - World Coconut Day. Theme for 2015 is Coconut for Family Nutrition, Health and Wellness.
- Sep 21 - Independence day of Armenia. It marks Independence from Soviet Union in 1991.
- Sep 21 - Independence day of Malta. It marks Independence from UK in 1964.
- Sep 21 - UN International Day of Peace. Theme for 2015 is Partnerships for Peace- Dignity for All.
- Sep 22 - Independence day of Mali. It marks Independence from Mali Federation in 1960.
- Sep 24 - Independence day of Guinea - Bissau. It marks Independence from Portugal in 1973.
- Sep 24 - World Maritime Day.
- Sep 27 - World Tourism Day (Announced by United Nations World Tourism Organization in 1980). Theme for 2015 is One Billion Tourists, One Billion Opportunities. Indian Ministry of Tourism launched new initiatives on World Tourism Day Including -
- Medical and Wellness Tourism Board formed with corpus of 2 crores to tap potential in field of medical and wellness tourism.
- Tourism Vision Document 2030 released by Experience India Society and prepared by KPMG to look into challenges for tourism sector.
- Sep 28 - Birth Anniversary of Legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.
- Sep 28 - Birth Anniversary of noted Singer Lata Mangeshkar.
- Sep 29 - World Heart Day. Theme for 2015 is Creating heart-healthy environments.
- Sep 30 - International Translation Day. Theme for 2015 is Changing Face of Translation and Interpreting.
- September 7 - Independence day of Brazil. It Marks declaration of independence from Portugal in 1822.
- September 09 - Independence day of Tajikistan. It marks declaration of independence from Soviet Union in 1991.
- September 17 - Birthday of India's 15th (Current) Prime Minister - Narendra Modi.
- September 7 - Independence day of Swaziland. It Marks declaration of independence from United Kingdom in 1968.
- Septermber 10 -World Suicide Prevention Day. Theme for 2015 is Preventing Suicide: Reaching Out and Saving Lives.
- United Nations General Assembly adopted resolutions initiated by Armenia to proclaim 9 December as International Genocide Commemoration Day and Prevention of this Crime. 9 December marks anniversary of signing of 1948 Genocide Convention.
Defence
- Bharat Dynamics Limited test-fired indigenous anti-tank guided missile Amogha-1 with 2.8 km range.
- Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) approved $2.5 Billion USD (Over 15000 Crores) deal with USA's Boeing for 22 Apache Attack helicopters and 15 Chinook heavy-lift choppers.
- China and Pakistan launched Their joint air exercise Shaheen (Eagle)-4 in China.
- Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar commissioned Indian Navy's INS Vajrakosh naval station near Karwar in Karnataka.
- Government approved implementation of Integrated Air Command & Control System (IACCS) project of Indian Air force (IAF) of 8,000-crore rupees to connect 9 Existing IACCS Nodes of IAF
- Government approved purchasing 10 Heron TP drones from Israel worth 400 million USD to enhance India's cross-border military strike capability.
- INS Trikand Visited United Kingdom to participate in Annual Indo-UK Navy Execrise Konkan.
- Inaugural Navy exercise between India and Australia AUSINDEX15 started in Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).
- India and Pakistan ageeed to Maintain Peace along borders and minimize ceasefire violations during Visit of Umar Farooq Burk, DG of Pakistani Rangers to India.
- Indian Coast Guard commissioned two new ships - ICGS Apoorva and Interceptor Boat C-421.
- Joint Army Exercise of India and Sri Lanka - MITRA SHAKTI 2015 began in Pune (Maharashtra).
- Sixth Joint Military Training Exercise between India and Maldives Armies called (EXERCISE EKUVRIN – VI) being held at Trivandrum, Kerala.
- Warship INS Kochi commissioned by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar as second ship of Kolkata-class (Project 15A) Guided Missile Destroyers. It has been constructed by Mazagon Dock, Mumbai.
Economy
- Government cancelled licence of Greenpeace India, a non-profit Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) for mixing foreign and domestic funds and not disclosing the movement of its funds.
- Government launched Niryat Bandhu @ Your Desktop online certificate programme in export import business under Niryat Bandhu Scheme of Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to train potential exporters for getting into international trade and boost India's exports.
- 208th meeting of Central Board of Trustees (EPF) held in Hyderabad under chairmanship of Bandaru Dattatreya (Minister for Labour & Employment & Chairman of CBT, EPF).
- Central Board of Trustees enhanced Insurance benefits under Employees Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme for dependants of EPF members from present Rs 3,60,000 to Rs 6,00,000.
- EPF Mobile App was launched for benefit of EPF members for activating their UAN (Universal Account Numbers).
- As per World Federation of Exchanges, India's Bombay Stock Exchange has highest number of listed companies in the world (5689 Companies). National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has 1750 listed companies. Although, Shanghai stock exchange of China (1070 companies) is at top in terms of value of share trading with average 30 trillion USD transactions monthly, while monthly average of transactions at BSE is 100 billion USD. BSE was established in 1855 and is oldest exchange in Asia.
- As per a statement by Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu, World Bank will provide aid of $30 billion to Railways for completing ongoing infrastructural projects.
- Asian Development Bank lowered India’s GDP growth projections for 2016 to 7.4 % from 7.8 % projected earlier. Causes for lowering of growth projections are economic slowdown in industrial countries, weak monsoon, and slow paced reform actions.
- Bajaj Auto launched RE60 quadricycle named Qute at a free-on-board (FoB) cost of 1.35 lakh).
- Bharat Dynamics Ltd tied up with Electronics Corporation of India to develop missile electronics and weapon support systems for major defence projects.
- CarDekho.com acquired Zigwheels (auto portal owned by Times Internet).
- Competition Commission of India imposed penalty on Kerala Film Exhibitors Federation for indulging in anti-competitive activities.
- Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will execute Vijayawada Metro Rail Project in Andhra Pradesh to improve connectivity in Amaravati (proposed capital) and surrounding areas. Initial Phase will be completed at estimated cost of 6769 crore rupees by 2018.
- Director General of Safeguards recommended imposition of 20% safeguard duty on common variety of hot rolled coil steel for a period of 200 days to check losses to domestic steelmakeers due to sudden surge in steel imports in recent years.
- Ease of doing business in India Report by World Bank and Department of Industry Policy and Promotion -
- Gujarat emerged as number 1 state with 71.14% Score.
- Andhra Pradesh is second with 70.12%.
- Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are other three in top 5 states.
- Arunachal Pradesh is ranked last with 1.23%.
- FMC (Forward Markets Commission) has been merged with much bigger capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to create a unified regulatory body. Aim is to streamline regulations and curb wild speculations in commodities market.
- Facebook announced partnerships with Internet Service Providers in India to launch wi-fi enabled broadband services in rural areas Called Wi-Fi Express, as part of Facebook’s Internet.org platform.
- FreeCharge partnered with Yes Bank and payment bank licensee Fino PayTech to launch e-Wallet service.
- Google and Tata Trusts launched a scholarship programme to educate Indian students in Android development in collaboration with Udacity. 1000 scholarships will be offered to deserving students by Google and Tata Trusts along with Android Developer Nanodegrees.
- Government appointed CANBANK Venture Capital Fund Ltd as agency to implement Electronics Development Fund (EDF). EDF will be set up as a 'Fund of Funds' to participate in 'Daughter Funds' which will provide capital to companies developing technologies in electronics and Information Technology (IT).
- Government approved 6 % hike in Dearness Allowance to Central Government employees, effective from 1 July 2015. DA will go up to 119 % from 113 %, while benefiting 50 lakh employees and 56 lakh pensioners.
- Government approved Amendment in First Schedule of Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951 to transfer authority to regulate 'potable alcohol' to States as recommended by Law Commission's 158th Report. It will end confusion about jurisdiction of Central and State with respect to Potable Alcohol and Industrial Alcohol.
- Government approved Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 100 % under automatic route in activity of White Label ATM (WLA) Operations.
- Government approved National Offshore Wind Energy Policy by making Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) as Nodal Ministry for use of offshore areas within Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) is authorized as Nodal Agency for development of offshore wind energy in India to carry out allocation of offshore wind energy blocks and allied functions with related agencies.
- Government approved One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme for ex-servicemen -
- It will provide uniform pension to ex-servicemen of same rank and same length regardless of date of retirement.
- Pension will be re-fixed every five years.
- Armed forces personnel who retire voluntarily would be not covered.
- All arrears will be paid in four half-yearly installments and all widows will be paid arrears in one installment.
- Estimated cost for implementation of OROP would be around 10,000 crore rupees.
- Government approved Preferential Treatment to Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in Trade in Services in WTO. India will provide Technical Assistance and capacity building and Waiver of visa fees for LDC applicants applying for Indian Business and Employment visas to win goodwill of LDCs. India's Duty Free Tariff Preference (DFTF) scheme has already done well in helping LDCs for doing Business in India.
- Government approved Revamped Gold Monetization Schemes as announced in 2015-16 budget speech - Gold Deposit Scheme (GDS) and Gold Metal Loan (GML) Scheme along with Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme.
- Gold Deposit Scheme -
- Objectives -
- Mobilize gold held by households and institutions in India.
- Help jewellery sector by making gold available as loan from banks.
- Reduce reliance on import of gold to meet huge domestic demand.
- Process -
- Customer may approach any of over 350 Purity Testing Centres (PTC) certified by BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) for testing of gold (minimum 30 grams).
- If customer allows, PTC will melt the Gold and customer may take the melted Gold home in form of Bars or may keep the Melted pure gold with a bank for monetization.
- If the customer wants to keep the gold with the bank, PTC will issue certificate to the customer and Bank will open a Gold Savings Account for the customer.
- Gold amount as in PTC's Certificate will then be credited into Customer's Gold Savings Account. Interest rate and Maturity Period (1 - 15 Years) will be decide upon. On maturity, customer will be paid Principal with Interest in form of Gold /Cash.
- The bank may keep the gold with itself or may keep it with any of certified Refiners. In both the cases, the customer won't be charged. Minimum Lock in period for gold deposits will be a Year.
- Utilization of Gold by Government - The deposited gold will be utilized in medium and long-term deposits, Auctioning, Replenishment of RBIs Gold Reserves and Lending to Jewelers. Government will create a Gold Reserve Fund to keep the difference between current borrowing cost for Government and interest rate paid by Government under the deposits. It will act as a pool for Government to handle losses occuring in the process.
- Gold Metal Loan Scheme
- Gold Metal Loan Account (denominated in grams of gold) will be opened by banks for jewelers to whom Gold is being provided as loan. Physical gold will be provided to jewellers on sanctioning of Loan. Interest will be received by banks from Jewellers accordingly. Tenure of GML at present is 180 days.
- Government approved Sovereign Gold Bonds Scheme to reduce demand for physical gold by shifting a part of approx 300 tons of physical bars and coins purchased every year for Investment into gold bonds. As most of gold in India is imported, this scheme will help in maintaining Current Account Deficit in limits.
- Government approved guidelines for spectrum trading between two telecom service providers.
- Spectrum trading will now be allowed between two access service providers in 800 MHz/1800 MHz band. Till now, a licensee had the sole authority to use spectrum as it was not tradable.
- Spectrum assignment is made for 20 years to a licensee. During this period, some operators are able to acquire subscribers and grow faster as compared to other operators. It results in spectrum lying unutilised with some operators while others face crunch as spectrum is a scare resource.
- So, spectrum trading will improve quality of services and will address issue of call drops.
- Government approved merger of commodities market regulator Forward Markets Commission (FMC) with SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) with effect from September 28, 2015. Forward Contracts Regulation Act (FCRA) 1952 has been repealed (Cancelled) and Regulation of Commodity Derivatives Market will shift to SEBI under Securities Contracts Regulation Act (SCRA).
- Government owned Telecom service provider Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) upgraded landline broadband speed to minimum 2Mbps at no additional cost for all broadband customers.
- Government released 2,000 crore rupees to Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS) (1995) as its contribution for 2015-16. This contribution is in addition to 250 crore rupees contributed by government as grant-in-aid in order to provide minimum pension of 1,000 rupees to pensioners under the scheme.
- Government will Provide Special Assistance of Rs. 1000 crore to Andhra Pradesh Including Rs.350 crore for Development of 7 Backward Districts.
- Government will provide additional 50 days of work in 2015-16 in drought-hit areas under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme in view of deficit monsoon in various parts. At present, 100 days of work is provided to rural job card holders under MGNREGA.
- Govrnment approved capital infusion of Rs. 800 Crore in Export Import Bank of India (EXIM Bank) to support future growth of the Bank.
- ICICI Lombard General Insurance tied up with Catholic Syrian Bank (CSB) for sale of Insurance products through Over 430 branches of Kerala Based Catholic Syrian Bank.
- India Based Wipro has been selected as member of global Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2015 for the 6th consecutive year among total of 317 companies selected.
- India joined UN-based Better Than Cash Alliance for Digitization of Payments and promote financial inclusion programme Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY). Under PMJDY, in one year, over 18 crore bank accounts were opened with deposits over $3.4 billion.
- India sand Belarus set up a target of USD $ 1 billion by 2018 during Seventh Session of India-Belarus Intergovernmental Commission meet on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation. Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman attended on India's Behalf.
- India signed a loan of US $ 123.51 million with Asian Development Bank (ADB) for Infrastructure Development Investment Program for upgrading tourism in Punjab, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.
- India's current account deficit came down to to 1.2 % of GDP ($6.2 Billion USD) in April - June of FY 2015-16 Quarter as compared to 1.6 % of GDP ($6.2 Billion USD) in same periood last year.
- India’s economy grew at 7% in first quarter of 2015-16 (April to June 2015) as compared to 7.5% Growth Rate in Last quarter of 2014-15 (January to March 2015) as measured at market prices. Another measure - Gross value added (GVA) at basic prices showed economic growth accelerated to 7.1% in April-June against 6.1% in January-March 2015.
- GDP at market prices is estimated by adding net indirect taxes to GVA at basic prices.
- Net indirect taxes is computed by deducting subsidies from gross indirect taxes on products.
- Indirect Tax Revenue Collections increased to 2,63,089 crore during April-August 2015 from Rs.1,92,677 crore in April-August 2014 (27 % up).
- Central Excise collections increased from 60663 crore in April - August 2014 to 102945 crore in April - August 2015 (42 % up).
- Service Tax collections increased from 60693 crore in April - August 2014 to 75006 crore in April - August 2015 (20 % up).
- Customs collections increased from 70321 crore in April - August 2014 to 85138 crore in April - August 2015 (17.5 % up).
- JK Tyre & Industries will accquire Kesoram Industries's Tyre Unit - Cavendish Industries Ltd for Rs. 2,200 crore.
- Maharashtra Government will train over 50,000 employees as part of its Key Result Area (KRA) programme to enhance their performance in competence with corporate sector.
- Mobile commerce firm Paytm introduced cashless payments in educational institutes for fee payments and related purchases.
- NTPC will raise up to Rs. 700 crore through tax free secured non-convertible bonds. Government approved NTPC's raising Rs. 1,000 crore through tax free bonds, including Rs. 700 crore through public issue.
- Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) bought 15 % stake in Russia’s second-largest oil firm Rosneft for about 1.35 billion USD.
- RBI Announced cut of 50 Basis Points in Monetary Policy Rates - Repo Rate, Reverse Repo Rate, Bank Rate and Marginal Standing Facility Rates in 4th Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement 2015-16. New rates are -
- Bank Rate - 7.75 %
- Repo Rate - 6.75 %
- Reverse Repo Rate - 5.75 %
- Marginal Standing Facility - 7.75 %
- RailTel of Indian Railways and Google partnered under project Nilgiri to provide free Wi-Fi High Speed (1 GBPS) Internet services in 400 railway stations across India by using Google’s Fiber technology.
- Reserve Bank of India (RBI) declared State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs).
- Reserve Bank of India and Nepal Rastra Bank signed an MOU on exchange of supervisory information.
- Reserve Bank of India approved 10 entities to set up small finance banks to provide basic banking services to farmers and MSMEs. Entities are - Au Financiers, Capital Local Area Bank, Disha Microfin Private, Equitas Holdings, ESAF Microfinance and Investments, Janalakshmi Financial Services, RGVN (North East) Microfinance, Suryoday Micro Finance, Ujjivan Financial Services and Utkarsh Micro Finance.
- Reserve Bank of India cancelled license of Sahara India Financial Corporation Limited (SIFCL) due to several irregularities and ignoring financial rules and regulations.
- Reserve Bank of India will issue coins of 5 rupees denomination to commemorate golden jubilee (50th) year of Indo-Pak War 1965.
- SBI Card launched online specific credit card SimplyCLICK in association with seven partners including Amazon India, BookMyShow and Cleartrip.
- SEBI imposed penalty of 7269.5 crore rupees on property developer PACL Ltd for not registering company's collective investment scheme that collected thousands of crores from small investors.
- SEBI provisioned fine of Minimum Rs. 50000 for companies without a woman director on board.
- Snapdeal acquired Silicon Valley-based startup Reduce Data, a programmatic display advertising platform.
- Syndicate Bank, lead bank for Karnataka's Dakshina Kannada District will organize MUDRA credit camp for those setting up micro unit /small business units.
- Tamil Nadu's first Global Investors Summit (TNGIM 2015) began in Chennai seeking investment of over one-lakh crore rupees.
- Telecom Company Uninor announced to change its brand identity as Telenor India Pvt. Ltd.
- Trust Fund for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities signed a Memorandum of Understanding with New India Assurance Company Limited for affordable Swavlamban Health Insurance Scheme for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).
- US-based renewable energy firm SunEdison signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Tamil Nadu to develop 2 gigawatts (GW) of wind and solar power projects in the state in next five years with investment of 12000 - 14000 crore rupees.
International
- 193-Member United Nations General Assembly adopted Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development document as set of new Global Goals (17 Goals and 169 Specific Targets). These will replace Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), that were adopted in September 2000. The implementation of these goals will cost approx 42 - 48 Trillion USD till 2030. The Goals are -
- End poverty in all its forms everywhere
- End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
- Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
- Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
- Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
- Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
- Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
- Sustained and inclusive economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
- Resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
- Reduce inequality within and among countries
- Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
- Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
- Urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts*
- Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
- Sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems and halt and reverse land degradation
- Peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.
- Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
- 2,000-year-old Stupa constructed by emperor Ashoka in China’s Nangchen has been restored.
- 8th Global Innovation Index (GII) 2015 released by Cornell University, INSEAD and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) -
- Top 10 Most Innovative countries are (Out of 141 countries in List)
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- Sweden
- Netherlands
- United States of America
- Finland
- Singapore
- Ireland
- Luxembourg
- Denmark
- Although India's ranking slipped to 81 as compared to 76 in 2014, but it remained at top in Central and Southern Asia.
- Australia announced package of 70 million USD to tackle rising domestic violence in the country.
- Canada’s economy fallen into a recession for first time after global financial crisis of 2009. Canada's GDP Growth Rate has been 0.5 % in April - June 2015 while it was 0.8 % in Jan - Mar 2015. Two consecutive negative quarters leads to recession.
- Child Mortality Report 2015 (by World Health Organisation, United Nations Children's Fund, World Bank Group and Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA))
- Child (0-5 years) mortality rates in 2015 have came down to less than half of what they were in 1990. 12.7 million in 1990 to 5.9 million in 2015.
- In India, U5MR (Under 5 Mortality rate) declined to 91 in 2000 and 48 in 2015 as compared to 126 in 1990. UN Millennium Development Goal target is of 42.
- China will establish an assistance fund of $2 billion USD to assist developing countries in implementing UN global sustainable development agenda over the next 15 years.
- Doha Bank tied up with Reliance ADA Group to generate business opportunities in Gulf Cooperation Council nations and India. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman are part of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
- European Union imposed anti-dumping duty up to 31.2 % on importin Indian sewage and water steel pipes.
- First-ever US-India-Japan Trilateral Ministerial dialogue held in New York. Attended by Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj.
- Forbes Asia’s list of 40 philanthropists (who seeks welfare of others by donating money for good causes) -
- Includes a philanthropist from Nepal for first time - Binod Chaudhary. He is nepal's first billionaire and is rebuilding chains of Schools across Nepal after recent devastating earthquakes.
- The list has names of seven Indians - Infosys co-founders Senapathy Gopalakrishnan, Nandan Nilekani, SD Shibulal and NR Narayana Murthy (represented by son Rohan) , Sunny Varkey, Suresh Ramakrishnan and Mahesh Ramakrishnan.
- Fortune's Most Powerful Women in Asia Pacific List
- India's Chanda Kochhar (Chief of ICICI Bank) has been ranked at Top with Arundhati Bhattacharya (Chairman of State Bank of India) at second Place. Hindustan Petroleum’s CMD Nishi Vasudeva is at fifth Place. Axis Bank’s MD & CEO Shikha Sharma is at ninth.
- With 11 names, Chinese women lead the list.
- Fortune's list of 50 most powerful women in business -
- General Motors CEO Mary Barra is at top while PepsiCo's CEO Indra Nooyi is Second. Indira is Only Indian Origin Person in the List. IBM CEO Ginni Rometty is third in List.
- Germany introduced border controls along its Austrian border to check migrant influx from Syria.
- Global Waste Management Outlook by United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) estimates around 7 to 10 billion tonnes per annum being generated by urban areas across the globe.
- Government approved Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) with Germany for implementation of Indo-German Partnerships in Higher Education programme.
- Highest mountain of North America - Mt McKinley (USA) has been renamed as Denali.
- Hungary declared emergency state in its Csongrad and Bacs-Kiskun regions to cope with High number of Syrian and Afghan refugees.
- ISIS militants destroyed 2000 years old Baalshamin temple in Syrian archaeological site of Palmyra.
- India and Cambodia signed two Memoranda of Understanding to boost cooperation in Tourism and another related to projects under Mekong Ganga Cooperation initiative, during Visit of Vice President Hamid Ansari to Cambodia.
- India and Indonesia signed a pact for repatriation of each other's wanted prisoners and cooperate in all criminal matters, including gathering evidence.
- India and Laos signed two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) on Air services and Projects under Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) programme during visit of Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari to Laos.
- India and United States (US) created a Joint Challenge Coin to symbolise their partnership in creating a next-generation aircraft carrier for Indian Navy.
- India will launch Indonesia’s second multi-spectral remote sensing satellite LAPAN A2/Orari from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) on September 27, 2015.
- Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Ranjit Rae inaugurated renovated Bala Tripura Sundari Devi Temple at Tripurakot (Nepal) that was constructed with 3.3 Crore Nepali rupees support from India.
- Indian Government will launch global alliance on solar energy to be called as InSPA (International Agency for Solar Policy & Application). It's launch event will be attended by 107 countries located between tropic of cancer and tropic of capricorn. These are also called as sunshine countries as they receive high solar energy round the year.
- India’s leadership role in launch of this grouping is coincided with recent revision in target of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM). Under the mission, India intends to reach production of 1 lakh MW of solar energy (increased from earlier terget of 20000 MW) by 2022 with an investment of 6 lakh crore rupees.
- Korea-Andhra Pradesh Friendship Forum organized Korea Caravan 2015 in Vishakhapatnam. Andhra Pradesh government will create a Korea Desk to issue quick clearances to Korean investors.
- Largest volcano of Japan, Mount Aso erupted.
- Llyod's City Risk Index 2015-2025 about expected loss to cities’ Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from various threats (Natural, Manmade and Emerging) -
- Index quantifies losses by using GDP@Risk methodology by taking into account 301 major cities across the globe and 18 major threats for 2015-2025.
- 301 cities together will see loss of 4.56 trillion USD out of total 372.56 trillion USD GDP during 2015-25.
- Taipei (Taiwan) topped the List with 181 billion USD Loss.
- Mumbai is Indian City expected to face maximum risk in India with 47 billion USD, Delhi Second with 44 Billion USD Risk.
- London based Financial Times released Foreign Direct Investment data for January - June 2015 -
- India in first half of 2015 surpassed China to emerge as most-favoured destination for FDI.
- India received 31 billion USD FDI inflows while China is second with 28 billion USD and USA Third with 27 billion USD.
- India's FDI Inflows in First Half of 2015, 36 Billion USD are significantly higher than 12 billion USD in first half of 2014. In 2014 India was ranked fifth after China, US, UK and Mexico.
- Longest chain of continental volcanoes has been found in Australia, stretching 2000 km along Australia's east coast.
- NASA and US Agency for International Development (USAID) started SERVIR-Mekong project, to strengthen environmental monitoring in Southeast Asia's Five 5 countries of Mekong River Basin - Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam (called as rice bowl of Asia).
- NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Services Companies.) report on Contribution of India’s IT Industry to USA economy -
- USA is largest market for Indian IT-BPM (Business Process Management) exports.
- Indian IT industry supports 411000 jobs in USA w ith investment of 2 billion USD in 2011 - 2013 and paid around 22.5 billion USD in taxes between 2011 - 2015.
- Indian IT companies provide support to over 90 % of Fortune 500 firms.
- In USA, shortage of skilled talent is expected to continue to grow and will cause shortfall of 445000 professionals by 2022.
- National Stock Exahcnge signed a memorandum of understanding with Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM) to facilitate co-operation between the two exchanges.
- Nepal constituent assembly Rejected A proposal to declare Nepal a Hindu state, will stay secular.
- Nepal enforced an odd-even licence plate system for plying of vehicles on alternate days, in view of shortage of Fuel. With this, drivers are permitted on the roads only on alternate days.
- Nepal's Constituent Assembly (Headed by Subash Nemwang) approved new constitution after seven years of efforts, splitting the country into seven federal provinces. It declared Cow as National Animal.
- North Korea’s main nuclear facility at Yongbyon complex resumed operations after it was shut down in 2007.
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Migration Outlook 2015. Highlights -
- Immigration flows are rising in most OECD countries with 4.3 million immigrants to OECD in 2014.
- USA is at top in number of received immigrants, Germany is second.
- 10 % immigrants to OECD countries are chinese is Chinese and 4.4 % are Indians.
- About OECD -
- OECD is an international economic organisation of 34 countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. Jose Angel Gurria is current secretary general with Secretariat in Paris (France).
- QS (Quacquarelli Symonds) World University Rankings of 2015-16 -
- Overall, 14 Indian institutes in QS World University rankings. 7 Indian institutes including IISc Bangalore (147th), IIT Delhi (179th), IIT Bombay (202nd), IIT Madras (254th), IIT Kanpur (271st), IIT Kharagpur (286th), IIT Roorkee (391st) are in top 400. Its First time any Indian Institutes are ranked in top 200 in QS Rankings.
- IIT Guwahati, University of Delhi, University of Calcutta, Banaras Hindu University, Panjab University, University of Mumbai and University of Pune are in list but beyond top 400.
- The Top 10 Universities in world are -
Ranking in 2015/16
Ranking in 2014/15
Country
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
1
1
US
Harvard University
2
4
US
University of Cambridge
3
2
UK
Stanford University
3
7
US
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
5
8
US
University of Oxford
6
5
UK
University College London (UCL)
7
5
UK
Imperial College London
8
2
UK
ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology)
9
12
Switzerland
University of Chicago
10
11
US
- Reliance Defence signed Memorandum of Understanding with United Arab Emirates Defence Industries Company (EDIC) to boost partnership between both countries for defence technology development.
- Report of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Investigation on Sri Lanka (OISL) recommended establishment of a hybrid special court by integrating international judges and investigators.
- Rosh Hashanah observed by Jewish Communities across the world as Jewish New Year.
- Russia dismissed France's proposal for asking United Nations Security Council (UNSC) permanent members to limit the use of veto power at least in cases involving mass atrocities (Torture) that demands action.
- Seventeeth session of United Nations General Assembly opened on 15 September 2015 with Denmark's Mogens Lykketoft as its President.
- South American country Chile got hit by Earthquake of 8.3-magnitude.
- Thailand's Junta appointed reform council recected a controversial new constitution that had a provision of enabling a 23-member panel to take over government during a national crisis. This could delay return of democracy in Thailand projected for April 2017.
- UN General Assembly adopted a negotiating text for long-pending Security Council reforms, setting the stage for talks on India's bid for a permanent seat in UN Secuity Council during UN's 70th General Assembly.
- USA's Pentagon established first-ever country special cell to speed up its defence ties with India. India Rapid Reaction Cell (IRRC) is headed by Keith Webster.
- United Nations Broadband Commission released State of Broadband Report 2015 -
- 57 % (Approx 4 Billion) of Total 7.2 Bllion world Population are still not connected to Internet.
- Net is accessible to only 35 % of people in developing countries.
- 90 % People in 48 UN-designated Least Developed Countries are still Offline.
- South Korea has highest household broadband penetration (98.5 %), Qatar is second (98 %) and Saudi Arabia (94 %) is ranked third.
- Iceland has the highest (98.2 %) of individuals using Internet.
- 79 countries have over 50 % of population online, up from 77 in 2014.
- Lowest Internet access percentage is in sub-Saharan Africa - Guinea (1.7%), Somalia (1.6%), Burundi (1.4%), Timor Leste (1.1%) and Eritrea (1.0).
- India’s broadband penetration rank has fallen to 155th from 113th position in 2013. India's overall broadband penetration (mobile and fixed line) ranking improved to 136 from 142 in 2014.
- Number of Indians with broadband access on mobile phones has gone up to 5.5 % of population from 3.2 % in 2013.
- United Nations General Assembly approved Resolution introduced by Iraq on Raising of Flags by Non-Member Observer States like Patestine and Vatican City.
- Volkswagen surpassed Toyota to become biggest automaker by deliveries in first half of 2015.
- World Anti-Doping Agency signed agreement with Sports Ministry of China to stop manufacturing of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDS) in China.
- World Bank Group's International Finance Corporation launched Suryodaya campaign in Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh to increase awareness of quality solar lighting products In order to provide safe and high quality solar lights to people with no access to electricity in rural India.
- World Bank released report Leveraging Urbanisation in South Asia: Managing Spatial Transformation for Prosperity and Livability about diagnostic analysis of urbanization and economic trends in South Asia -
- South Asia’s urban population grew by 13 crore between 2001 and 2011.
- Over 13 crore people are living in poor quality housing with lack of basic services.
- 800 billion USD should be invested by 2050 in development of infrastructure with need of 20.3 crore housing units.
- In India, 13.7 % urban population live below poverty line.Delhi’s air pollution (PM 2.5 concentration) is thrice to that in Beijing (China), therefore delhi is world’s most air polluted city.
- World Economic Forum released first Inclusive Growth and Development Report. The report seeks to improve usage of policy incentives and institutional mechanisms to make economic growth more socially inclusive.
- World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) malaria MDG target report stated that malaria Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target to stop malaria by 2015 has been achieved. India is at third place after Nigeria and Congo in terms of number of cases of malaria.
- World Wealth Report 2015 by Capsgemini and RBC Welath Management -
- India has become 11th largest population of millionaires with 2 Lakh High net worth individuals (HNWI), up from 1,5 Lakh HNWIs in 2013.
- USA has most millionaires (43.5 Lakh), followed by Japan (24.5 Lakh), Germany (11.4 Lakh) and China (8.9 Lakh).
Meetings
- 21st meeting of Western Zonal Council held at Panaji (Goa), chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
- 4th World Conference of Speakers of Parliament held at UN Headquarters in New York. Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Sumitra Mahajan attend on India's Behalf.
- 59th General Conference of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) held in Vienna (Austria). During the Meet, Pakistan announced its plans to generate 40000 MW nuclear energy by 2050 as part of its Nuclear Energy Vision 2050.
- Bengaluru (Karnataka) will host 3-day Northeast Festival from 6th - 8th November 2015.
- Disaster Mitigation conference of member counties of South Asian Association on Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held in New Delhi.
- First conference on contemporary relevance of Bhagvad Gita held in London(UK).
- G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ held in Ankara (Turkey). India's Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and RBI Governor Raghuram G Rajan attended on India's Behalf.
- G20 and OECD announced new governance principles for listed companies in all member countries to safeguard shareholders’ interests and promote capital market as a key platform to raise funds. Regulators and policymakers across the world (including SEBI in India) will update their regulations for listed firms in line with the new code.
-
W20 grouping of women leaders launched in order to push for gender inclusive global economic growth across the globe.
- India hosted a meeting of Like-Minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) on climate change to prepare strategies for negotiation for the UN Climate Change Conferene in Paris (COP 21) to be held later in 2015.
- India's Narcotics Control Bureau Organized South Asian Sub-Regional Drug Focal Point Meeting and Drug Demand Reduction (DDR) Expert Group Consultation in Delhi.
- India's National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) will organize South Asian Annual Disaster Management Exercise (SAADMEx-2015) in November 2015.
- Minister of Mines & Steel Shri Narendra Singh Tomar attended Asia Pacific Mining Exhibition (AIMEX) 2015 in sydney (Australia).
National
- Delhi Government approved Victim Compensation Scheme enhancing compensation limit to rape victims to 5 lakh rupees and 7 lakh rupees for Acid Atack Victims.
- 17th All-India Government Whips Conference held in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
- 4th International Tourism Mart for North East India will be held at Gangtok (Sikkim) Oct 14-16, 2015.
- Mumbai Dialogue : Towards a TB-Free India was launched by US Ambassador to India Richard Verma along with Actor Amitabh Bachchan and Ratan Tata, (Chairman of Tata Trusts) with aim to engage corporate sector to strengthen Government’s Call to Action for a TB-Free India.
- South Indian Fertilisers will start Kissan Kendra Agri Super Markets across Kerala to provide information on agriculture and make organic fertilisers available along with other Agri. Products.
- Agricultural festival Nuakhai observed across Western Odisha.
- Allahabad High Court ordered Uttar Pradesh government to ensure flag hoisting ceremony of National Flag on Independence Day and Republic Day in all schools in the state and Madrasas.
- Andhra Pradesh Government will Link Godavari and Krishna Rivers for Benefit of Farmers.
- Andhra Pradesh government launched e-Pragati as a comprehensive architecture for implementing e-governance and provide e-services to citizens. It is renaming adn advanced version of of AP State Enterprise Architecture (APSEA).
- Andhra Pradesh government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to increase employability of students in the state.
- Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) launched Electro-Magnetic Interference - Electro-Magnetic Compatibility facility and Near Field Test Range (NFTR) at its Ghaziabad Unit.
- Bharatiya Janata Party-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) won student union elections of Delhi University by defeating National Students Union of India (NSUI).
- Bihar Government decided to give 2 % reservation in government jobs to grand children of freedom fighters.
- Cardiology Society of India report on cardiovascular diseases (those involving heart or blood vessels) -
- CVD accounted for around 30 % for all deaths in the country in 2014.
- Over 33 % Indians have hypertension, of which 60 % people are even unaware. 25 % people between age group of 31-45 years suffer from undetected hypertension. Widespread ignorance about risk of heart disease indicates need to raise awareness among people.
- Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar laid foundation stone of Bharat Electronics Limited's Defence Systems Integration Complex in Andhra Pradesh.
- Delhi High Court agreed to hear a PIL that challenges constitutional validity of Article 370 of Constitution of India that deals with the special status of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K).
- Election Commission introduced symbol for None of the Above (NOTA) Option for Voters in elections. Symbol for NOTA option has been designed by National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.
- Experts from Tamil University discovered existence of a flourishing port town in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu during Sangam era and Middle Chola period. Sangam era relates to third Century Before Common Era to Third Century Common Era while Middle Chola period ranges from 850 to 1250 Common Era.
- External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during her USA Visit stated that India will organize 9th Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (RPBD) at Los Angeles, (USA) on 14th and 15th November 2015 with Theme - Indian Diaspora: Defining a New Paradigm in India-US Relationship.
- Forbes' richest Indians list 2015-
- Relianec Group Chairman Mukesh Ambani is richest Indian for ninth consecutive year with net worth of 18.9 billion USD.
- Top 10 are - Mukesh Ambani (18.9), Dilip Shanghvi (18) of Sun Pharma, Azim Premji (15.9), Hinduja brothers (15.9), Pallonji Mistry (14.7 ), Shiv Nadar (12.9), Godrej family (11.4), Lakshmi Mittal (11.2), Cyrus Poonawala (7.9) and Kumar Mangalam Birla (7.8).
- There are 12 newcomers This Year, Including Flipkart’s co-founders Sachin and Binni Bansal and IndiGo’s co-founder Rakesh Gangwal.
- Government approved 20% hike in honorarium paid to workers of Grih Kalyan Kendra (GKK), a welfare society under Department of Personnel & Training for welfare of central government employees in lower income groups.
- Government approved creation of 21st Law Commission of India for 3 years (1 September 2015 - 31 August 2018). Last (20th) LCI was headed by Justice A P Shah and tenure ended on 31 August, 2015.
- Government approved creation of four posts of Directors for four new National Institutes of Design (NIDs) at Kurukshetra (Haryana), Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Jorhat (Assam) and Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh).
- Government decided to close Indian People’s Natural Calamity Trust (IPNCT) created by former Ruler of Jaipur in 1900 to provide relief to Indian people during natural calamities. The task is currently administered efficienctly by National Disaster Management Authority in Ministry of Home Affairs.
- Government declared NSCN(K) (National Socialist Council of Nagaland) as an unlawful organisation for 5 years under Unlawful Activities (Prevention), Act 1967 due to continued violence by NSCN(K) even after ceasefire signed on 27th April, 2015.
- Government launched Indian Wind Resource Atlas at 100 metre level to help Governments in policy making to deal with issues related to tariff fixation, transmission, grade frequency.
- Government will set up Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre at Institute for Physically Handicapped (New Delhi), under Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment) as a Society under Societies Registration Act, 1860.
- Gujarat High Court ruled that Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA) 2006 will also apply to Muslim community.
- HRD Minister Smriti Irani Launched National Institutional Ranking Framework ( NIRF) Document and Webportal for enabling ranking of institutions on the basis of a various parameters.
- Haryana Assembly passed Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2015 to amend the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 and fix matriculation as minimum educational qualification for elections to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). Haryana became second state after Rajasthan to fix educational and other qualifications for candidates contesting Panchayat elections.
- Haryana government completely banned gutka, pan masala and other similar products containing tobacco in the state for one year.
- Haryana government will develop Gurgaon as a smart city with its own resources worth 500 Crores. Gurgaon has not been included into 98 Cities under Central Government's Smart City Mission.
- Himachal Pradesh Government organised a three-day organic fair and food festival to promote organic farming in the state.
- Home Minister Rajnath Singh released graphic depicting courage and sacrifice of CRPF personnel during battle of Sardar Post, Rann of Kutch in 1965 lndo-Pak War.
- On 9 April 1965, at Sardar Post in Rann of Kutch, two companies of CRPF battled full-fledged Pakistani Brigade, causing heavy casualties to Pakistani Army.
- Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani launched National Web Portal for promotion of National Apprenticeship Scheme for Graduates, Diploma holders and 10+2 pass-outs vocational certificate holders. Slogan is Sashakt Yuva, Samarth Bharat.
- Institute of Human Development and Delhi Planning Board released report Millennium Development Goals Report for Delhi -
- People below poverty line in Delhi was 9.9 % in 2011-12, as compared to 15.7 % in 1993-94
- Under-5 mortality rate dropped to 28 in 2012 as compared to 83.1 in 1992. Infant mortality rate is 25 in 2012 against 36 in 1998.
- Jammu and Kashmir Government banned sale of Ambuja Cements in the state after complaints of malpractices against the company.
- Japan parliament's Upper Chamber passed two security laws to allow its troops to fight overseas for the first time since 1945. The bill was already have been approved by Parliament’s lower house earlier.
- Jharkhand Government approved formation of an Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in the state with 243 posts.
- Madhya Pradesh Government launched M-Shiksha-Mitra mobile app to provide various services and teaching-related work to teachers in a simple way.
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission notified installation of net metering system of rooftop photo voltaic (PV) solar power units, To promote green power in state.
- Maharashtra Government will take ordinance route to amend Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities (MPDA) Act, 1981 to make Illegal sand mining has been made non - bailable offences.
- Maharashtra government decided to abolish Local Body Tax (LBT) on petrol and diesel to end disparity between fuel dealers and other traders.
- Maharashtra government declared 2017 as Visit Maharashtra Year to promote tourism.
- Minister for Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda released 11th National Health Profile (NHP) 2015, which provides comprehensive information related to health sector.
- Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley launched Headend In The Sky (HITS) digital platform - NXT DIGITAL promoted by Hinduja Group as part of Digital India initiative and Make In India mission. It will provide viewers access to over 500 television channels of their choice - international, national and local besides other e-applications. The initiative will enable thousands of cable operators to transit from analog to digital across 12 Crore homes in India.
- Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu launched Indian Railway Knowledge Portal developed by National Academy of Indian Railways (Vadodara ) at url www.kportal.indianrailways.gov.in, that has aggregated most of available knowledge about Indian Railways at one location.
- Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari launched Green Highways Policy aimed at promoting greening of Highways with public participation. 1% of total project cost of all highways projects will be kept aside for highway plantation,.ammounting to Rs. 1000 crore annual budget. Monitoring will be done by ISRO's Bhuvan and GAGAN satellite systems.
- Minister of State (IC) for Coal, Power and New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal launched Access to Clean Cooking Energy and Electricity - Survey of States (ACCESS) Report by Council on Energy, Environment & Water (CEEW) in collaboration with Columbia University. It highlights that about 30 crore Indians rely on kerosene for lighting, and over 80 crore rely on traditional biomass and need is to focus beyond electrification and LPG connections for more inclusive energy access for all.
- Minister of State for Culture (IC), Tourism (IC) and Civil Aviation, Mahesh Sharma launched NOC Online Application Portal and Processing System (NOAPS) for National Monument Authority (NMA) under Ministry of Culture.
- Ministry of Health and Family Welfare banned sale of Diclofenac in multidose vial. It will now only be sold in single-dose vial packaging for human use. The ban was imposed on recommendation of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in order to save and protect vultures from extinction.
- Ministry of Law & Justice has developed web-based application – Legal Information Management & Briefing System (LIMBS) for managing and monitoring all court cases Online.
- Ministry of Urban Development plans to develop Smart National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) model to enable seamless travel and shopping in metro areas (called EMV Open Loop Card with stored value).
- Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports recognized Indian Kalaripayattu Federation as Regional Sports Federation for promotion and development of Kalarippayattu sport in India. Origin of sport is Kerala state.
- Ministry of environment and forests has approved 5,465-crore fertiliser plant in Ramagundam, Telangana called Ramagundam Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited. It is joint venture of National Fertilizers Limited, Engineers India Limited and Fertilizer Corporation of India.
- National Cadet Corps (NCC) entered Limca Book of Records for Largest Yoga performance simultaneously on International Day of Yoga (21 Jun 2015) with 9,50,210 NCC cadets performing Yoga at 1767 venues.
- National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned immersion of idols into River Yamuna made from non bio-degradable materials.
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation set up a 10 MW solar power plant as its first renewable energy project.
- Odisha Government will implement 5 sub-schemes of central government for empowerment of transgenders, under Odisha's newly created Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD). Parents of every transgender will get assistance of 1000 rupees.
- PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry launched Intellectual Property Rights Facilitation Centre (IPFC) for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh).
- PM Narendra Modi announced to develop Bodh Gaya (Bihar) site as spiritual capital for Buddhist world Describing its as land of enlightenment.
- PM Narendra Modi inaugurated Badarpur-Faridabad Metro Extension on Violet Line of Delhi Metro.
- PM Narendra Modi launched National Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh to provide 24×7 Power Supply. Central Government will provide 572 crore rupees for the scheme. He also inaugurated biggest Trauma centre of country in Banaras Hindu University.
- Perumanna Grama Panchayat in Kozhikode district of Kerala become first Panchayat in the State to declare its own water policy in lines with Kerala’s water policy declared in 2008.
- Punjab Government established a special MGNREGA cell to coordinate effective implementation of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in the state.
- Railways launched Freight Monitoring App ‘Parichaalan’ developed by CRIS to improve operating efficiency through better planning freight operations on real time basis.
- Rajasthan Assembly has passed two bills to provide reservation in educational institutions and government jobs to economically backward classes (EBC) and special backward classes (SBC). Bills are -
- Special Backward Classes Reservation Bill 2015 - 5 % reservation to Banjara/Labana/Baldiya, Gujar , Gadiya/Gadoliya/Lohar, Gadariya/ Gayari and Raika/Rebari/Debasi.
- Economically Backward Classes Reservation Bill 2015 - 14 % reservation to unreserved category.
- Rajasthan became fifth state after Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa and Madhya Pradesh to pass Vexation Litigation Prevention Bill 2015 to prevent filing of baseless cases and to check the misuse of law for personal benefits.
- Rajasthan became first state to submit State Annual Action Plan under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). Rajasthan Government has proposed projects worth 1087 crore rupees for approval by Urban Development Ministry during 2015-16.
- Road transport and highways ministry decided to expand National Highways by 50,000 km in next six months.
- Scientists of Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad developed nano-particle-based drug delivery method to fight fungal keratitis.
- SpiceJet became first airline to make night landing on Veer Savarkar International Airport at Port Blair (Andaman and Nicobar Islands).
- Supreme Court directed Arunachal Pradesh Government to grant citizenship to Chakma-Hajong refugees within 3 months, who migrated to India from Bangladesh in 1964-69.
- Supreme Court stayed implementation of Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act, 2015 that mandated minimum qualification for candidates contesting Panchayati elections.
- Tamil Nadu Government announced to set up Tamil Nadu Fibernet Corporation to implement Union Government’s Bharatnet scheme at cost of 3000 crore rupees. It will oversee linkage of 12524 villages in the state through optical fibre network for better internet connectivity of Households.
- Tenth World Hindi Conference began in Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) with theme of Hindi Jagat-Vistar and Sambhavnaye.
- United National Development Programme (UNDP) will financially support implementation of Arunachal Vision 2030 of Arunachal Pradesh for carrying out reforms.
- Week long annual Ladakh Festival begun to extend short tourism season of Ladakh.
- West Bengal Government declassified 64 secret files on ‘Netaji’ Subhash Chandra Bose, containing over 12,000 pages after being kept under secrecy for 70 years.
- West-Central Railway (headquartered in Jabalpur) become first Indian Railway Zone to eliminate all unmanned level crossings.
- Indian Railways has total 30,348 level crossings, out of which 11,563 (40 %) are unmanned.
- Yadvendradev V Jhala presented first ever data on India’s leopards. The research estimates leopard population to be around 12000 to 14000 in India. Max Number being in Madhya Pradesh (Over 1800).
Persons
- PM Narendra Modi visited USA -
- Attended G-4 Summit in New York City. G - 4 Consists of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan.
- Visited Tesla Motors, Met Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
- Met IT CEOs in San Jose Including Tim Cook (Apple), Satya Nadella (Microsoft) Sundar Pichai (Google) Shantanu Narayen (Adobe) Paul Jacobs (Qualcomm) and John Chambers (CISCO).
- Google announced its plans to deploy Wi-Fi spots at 500 railway stations across India while Microsoft will assist in expanding National Optical Fibre Network to take broadband to 600,000 villages.
- Met Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to discuss Digital India Campaign.
- Attended Leaders’ Summit on Peacekeeping at UN headquarters in New York.
- Secretary in Department of Telecommunications and Chairman of India’s Telecom Export Promotion Council - Rakesh Garg Visited Kenya for 1st Indo-Africa ICT Expo in Nairobi.
- 105 Year Old Japanese Hidekichi Miyazaki created Guinness World Record by completing 100 Metres race in 42.22 seconds. He is also referred to as Golden Bolt.
- Abdullah Bin Khasim Bin Abdullah Al Raisi, Chief of Oman's Navy Visited India.
- Actor Nana Patekar established Naam Foundation To aid farmers in overcoming drought conditions.
- Australian Minister of Defence Kevin Andrews Visited India.
- Bangladesh Army Chief, Abu Belal Muhammad Shafiul Huq visited India.
- Bollywood Music Composer Aadesh Shrivastava passed Away.
- Britain's Queen Elizabeth II became longest-reigning Monarch of Britain and longest-reigning female monarch across world after surpassing Queen Victoria who reigned Britain for over 63 years.
- British-American romance novelist Jackie Collins passed away.
- Chandra Bahadur Dangi from Nepal, Recognised as world's shortest man (at 21.5 inches) by Guinness Book of Records, Passed Away.
- Chandrika Kumaratunga Bhandaranaike (Former President of Sri Lanka) Visited India.
- Classical dancer Kalamandalam Sathyabhama passed away.
- Dasho Tshering Dorji, Foreign Secretary of Bhutan visited India for fourth India-Bhutan Development Cooperation Talks.
- England's Cricketer Frank Tyson known as Typhoon passed away.
- Environment Minister Prakash Javedkar Visited USA.
- Finance Minister Arun Jaitley began his four day visit to Singapore and Hong Kong.
- Finance Minister Arun Jaitley visited Ankara (Turkey) to attend G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meetings on 4th and 5th September 2015. He will also participate in Joint meeting of G-20 Finance and Labour Ministers and First Meeting of Governing Council of BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA).
- Foreign Minister of UAE, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited India for 11th meeting of India-UAE Joint Commission For Economic and Technical Cooperation.
- Former Goa CM Dr Wilfred de Souza passes away.
- Former President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Jagmohan Dalmiya passed away.
- Government released commemorative postal stamp on Dr BR Ambedkar.
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi become first Indian political leader to have a mobile app, developed for to digitally connect him with citizens.
- Indian Vice President Hamid Ansari started his Visit to Cambodia and Laos.
- Information and Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley launched e-version of 100 volumes of Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi.
- Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) will built a new cricket stadium in name of Sachin Tendulkar.
- Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of World Bank, Mulyani Indrawati visited India.
- Manipur Governor Syed Ahmed passed away.
- Martin Winterkorn, CEO of Volkswagen automobiles resigned.
- Minister for Trade and Investment of United Kingdom, Francis Maude visited India and met India's Minister of State (I/C) for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan.
- Mogens Lykketoft (Denmark) visited India. He is President-elect of 70th Session of United Nations General Assembly.
- Noted Cricket Marathi commentator Bal Pandit passed away.
- Noted Hindi poet Viren Dangwal passed away.
- Noted Hindu monk and founder of Arsha Vidya Gurukulam, Swami Dayanand Saraswati passed away.
- PM Narendra Modi Left for his Visit to USA and Ireland.
- PM Narendra Modi Visited Ireland. As a Gift, He presented manuscripts pertaining to Irish Officials Thomas Oldham and George Abraham Grierson to Ireland's Prime Minister - Enda Kenny.
- Piyush Goyal (Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal and Renewable Energy vistied USA for Confederation of Indian Industry (CII ) - American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) Meet in Washington, D.C.
- Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu visited Japan.
- Renowned Malayalam playback singer Radhika Thilak passed away.
- Renowned Malayalam singer Radhika Thilak passed away.
- Renowned water policy expert Ramaswamy R. Iyer passed away.
- Russian Minister of Interior, Vladimir Kolokoltsev visited India.
- Russian astronaut Gennady Padalka returned to Earth after creating record for most time spent in space by spending 879 days over five trips.
- Shivinder Mohan Singh resigned as executive vice-chairman of Fortis Healthcare.
- Spanish Minister of State for Defence Pedro Arguelles Salaverria visited India.
- Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Visited India.
- Sushma Swaraj, External Affairs Minister visited USA for U.S.-India Business Council Meet and irst India-US Strategic and Commercial Dialogue.
- USA's Noted Baseball player Yogi Berra passed away.
- United Kingdom's Minister for Energy and Climate Change, Amber Rudd visited India.
- V. Shanmuganathan has been appointed as Governor of Manipur upon demise of former governor Syed Ahmed. V. Shanmuganathan is also Governor of Meghalaya.
Science
- NASA will Launch its Red Dragon Project by 2022, aimed at bringing samples collected by NASA's 2020 Mars rover back to Earth. It will use SpaceX's Dragon capsule.
- As per recent study by World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Zoological Society of London (ZSL), population of marine creatures have declined by 49% since 1970.
- China launched its newly-developed smaller version of carrier rocket Long March-6.
- ISRO launched ASTROSAT Multi Wavelength Space Observatory along with six foreign customer satellites through PSLV C-30 Launch Vehicle. This was thirtieth consecutive successful launch for PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle ). Seven satellites carried by PSLV-C30 weighed about 1631 kg at lift-off.
- NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provided strong evidence of liquid water flowing on Marsin form of hydrated minerals on slopes. These darkish streaks appear to flow during warm seasons, and then fade in cooler seasons, known as Recurring Slope Lineae (RSL).
- NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar mission (NISAR) is a dedicated US and Indian mission for studying hazards and global environmental change.
- Researchers from Manipal University and Giessen from Germany discovered four new atomic nuclei to be added to nuclei charts. These are - one isotope each of Berkelium and Neptunium and two isotopes of Americium.
- Scientists discovered bones of a new ancestral species in human family tree named as Homonaledi in South Africa. The species has been classified in genus Homo to which modern humans belong.
- USA's NASA and Brooklyn based Honey Bee are developing world’s first space shot gun to blast asteroids into small and carry them back to earth for examining, as part of the Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM).
Sports
- 12th UWW World Wrestling Championships 2015 (Las Vegas - United States)
- Russia Topped with 14 Medals. USA Second wtih 7 Medals while Turkey Third with 6 Medals.
- India ranked 24th with One bronze medal in Men’s 74 kg Freestyle won by Wrestler Narsingh Pancham Yadav. He also won a place in Indian Squad in 2016 Rio Olympics.
- 2015 Commonwealth Youth Games in Apia (capital of Samoa) -
- 1000 Atheletes from 63 Nations Participated in Nine Events.
- 25 Indian athletes partipating in eight disciplines.
- Abhinav Bindra won gold in 10m Air Rifle event in Asian Air Gun Championships (New Delhi). Gurpreet Singh won silver medal.
- Aditi Ashok won Singha Thailand Amateur Golf Championship.
- Anirban Lahiri became first Indian golfer to qualify for a Presidents Cup and will be part of International Team in 2015 championships to be held at Incheon in South Korea in October 2015.
- Asian Boxing Championships 2015 in Bangkok (Thailand).
- India's Vikas Krishan won Silver while Shiva Thapa, Devendro Singh and Satish Kumar won bronze medals.
- Australian Cricketer Shane Watson announced retirement from Test cricket.
- Cricketer Virat Kohli became co-owner of UAE Royals International Premier Tennis League team. The team will be led by tennis ace Roger Federer.
- Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel from Germany won 2015 Singapore Grand Prix of Formula One.
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
-
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Japan 27 September Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Guangzhou International Women's Open 2015 -
- Singles - Jelena Janković (Serbia) won by defeatin g Czech Republic's Denisa Allertova.
- Doubles - Indo-Swiss Pair of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis won by defeating Xu Shilin and You Xiaodi.
- India Cements won Moin-ud Dowlah Gold Cup Cricket Tournament 2015 by defeating Hyderabad XI.
- India's Pankaj Advani won his 14th World Billiards' Titlle by defeating Australia's Peter Gilchrist.
- Indian Air Force (IAF) won 2015 Baba Farid Gold Cup hockey title by defeating Army XI.
- Indian Shot putter Manpreet Kaur qualified for 2016 Rio Olympics as she broke national record during 55th National Open Athletics Championships.
- Indian Squash player Joshna Chinnappa won NSCI open by beating Habiba Mohmad (Egypt).Men’s singles was won by Adrian Waller of England.
- Indian Wushu team won 12 medals (1 gold, 4 silver and 7 bronze) at Fifth International Pars Wushu Cup in Tehran (Iran). L. Budhachandra Singh won gold by defeating Masod Ansari of Iran.
- Indian shooter Apurvi Chandela won silver medal in women’s 10m air rifle event of ISSF Rifle and Pistol World Cup Finals in Germany.
- 2015 ISSF World Cup is Annual Five stages shooting competition administered by International Shooting Sport Federation.
- Indian shooter Mairaj Ahmad Khan clinched Rio Olympics quota place at ongoing ISSF Shotgun World Championships in Italy.
- Korea Open Badminton Open 2015 -
- Men's Singles - Chen Long (China) won by Defeating India's Ajay Jayaram.
- Women's Singles - Sung Ji-hyun (South Korea) won by defeating Wang Yihan of China.
- Levan Aronian of Armenia won Sinquefield Cup International Chess Tournament at St. Louis (USA). Norway's Magnus Carlsen is second while India's Vishwanathan Anand ended up at 9th Place.
- Lewis Hamilton (England) won Italian Grand Prix 2015 -
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
-
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Japan 27 September Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Trick for remembering recent F1 Races Winners so far (Based on data till Italian Grand Prix held on Sep 06, 2015) -
- Italy and all countries starting with A, B and C except Austria WON by Lewis Hamilton (England).
- Hungary and Malaysian Races have been Won by Sebastian Vettel (Germany) (remember - Sabastian was HUNGRY in MALAYSIA) :)
- All other races including Austria have been won by Nico Rosberg (Germany).
- Mariko Kipchumba of Kenya won annual Beijing International Marathon of 42.195-kms.
- Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain won 2015 Japanese Grand Prix of Formula One.
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
-
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Japan 27 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports recognized Yoga as a sports discipline in Priority category. Also, sport of Fencing was upgraded from Others to General based on major past performance at international events.
- Mumbai won Buchi Babu Memorial Trophy by defeating Tamil Nadu Cricket Association Districts (TNCA) XI.
- Olympic Council of Asia announced Chinese Hangzhou city as host of 2022 Asian Games at its General Assembly in Ashgabat (Turkmenistan Capital).
- Serbain Tennis player Novak Djokovic is at top position in Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) rankings 2015. Switzerland's Roger Federer is second, Britain’s Andy Murray third while Rafel Nadal of Spain is at seventh position.
- South African city of Durban has been selected as host for 2022 Commonwealth Games. Games would be held from 18 to 30 July, 2022(opening on birth date of the late South African President Nelson Mandela).
- Tennis Player Sania Mirza and Cricketer Ajinkya Rahane have been conferred with honorary life membership by Cricket Club of India (CCI).
- US Open Tennis 2015 -
- Women's Singles - Flavia Pennetta (Italy) won by defeating Roberta Vinci (Italy).
- Men's Singles - Novak Djokovic (Serbia) won by beating Roger Federer (Switzerland).
- Mixed Doubles - Martina Hingis (Switzerland) and Leander Paes (India) won by defeating Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sam Querrey of United States
- Women's Doubles - Martina Hingis (Switzerland ) and Sania Mirza (India) won by defeating Casey Dellacqua (Australia) and Yaroslava Shvedova (Kazakhstan)
- Men's Doubles - Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut of france won by beating Jamie Murray (UK) and John Peers (Australia)
- Yanina Wickmayer’ of Belgium won Japan Women's Open Tennis Title by defeating Poland’s Magda Linette.
- Gujarat has been awarded as Best State for Comprehensive Tourism Development and Best Film Promotion Friendly State.
- Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh is named as Best Heritage City
- Kerala received award for Most Innovative use of Information technology.
- Great backwaters of Kerala has been awarded as Best Tourism Film.
- Book Gujarat’s 50 Golden Destinations by Tourism Corporation of Gujarat got award of Best Tourism Promotion Publicity material.
- Leadership on frontline of climate change - Sheikh Hasina (Prime Minister of Bangladesh).
- ENTREPRENEURIAL VISION - Paul Polman (Chief Executive Officer of Unilever) and Natura Brasil (Cosmetics Producer and Sustainable Production Pioneer)
- SCIENCE AND INNOVATION - National Geographic Society
- INSPIRATION AND ACTION - Black Mamba APU Anti-Poaching Unit (Balule Nature Reserve - South Africa)
- Clusters will consist of Gram Panchayats with population of 25000 - 50000 in plain areas and a 5000 - 15000 in desert, hilly or tribal areas.
- Mission aims to create 300 such Rurban growth clusters over next 3 years. Funding for Rurban Clusters will be through various Government Rural welfare schemes.
- SPMRM will provide an additional funding support of upto 30 % of project cost per cluster as Critical Gap Funding (CGF).
- Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Amendment Act 2015 mandated setting up of District Mineral Foundations (DMFs) in all districts affected by mining related operations.
- PM Narendra Modi released two commemorative coins of 125 rupees and 10 rupees in memory of former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.
- Vienna Convention for Protection of Ozone Layer is an International Agreement about protecting ozone layer agreed upon during Vienna Conference of 1985 and enacted in 1988. It has been ratified by 197 UN Members. It does not include bindings for use of CFCs (Chloro Fluoro Carbons) which is main cause of ozone depletion. These are laid out in accompanying Montreal Protocol.
- Medical and Wellness Tourism Board formed with corpus of 2 crores to tap potential in field of medical and wellness tourism.
- Tourism Vision Document 2030 released by Experience India Society and prepared by KPMG to look into challenges for tourism sector.
- Central Board of Trustees enhanced Insurance benefits under Employees Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme for dependants of EPF members from present Rs 3,60,000 to Rs 6,00,000.
- EPF Mobile App was launched for benefit of EPF members for activating their UAN (Universal Account Numbers).
- Gujarat emerged as number 1 state with 71.14% Score.
- Andhra Pradesh is second with 70.12%.
- Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are other three in top 5 states.
- Arunachal Pradesh is ranked last with 1.23%.
- It will provide uniform pension to ex-servicemen of same rank and same length regardless of date of retirement.
- Pension will be re-fixed every five years.
- Armed forces personnel who retire voluntarily would be not covered.
- All arrears will be paid in four half-yearly installments and all widows will be paid arrears in one installment.
- Estimated cost for implementation of OROP would be around 10,000 crore rupees.
- Gold Deposit Scheme -
- Objectives -
- Mobilize gold held by households and institutions in India.
- Help jewellery sector by making gold available as loan from banks.
- Reduce reliance on import of gold to meet huge domestic demand.
- Process -
- Customer may approach any of over 350 Purity Testing Centres (PTC) certified by BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) for testing of gold (minimum 30 grams).
- If customer allows, PTC will melt the Gold and customer may take the melted Gold home in form of Bars or may keep the Melted pure gold with a bank for monetization.
- If the customer wants to keep the gold with the bank, PTC will issue certificate to the customer and Bank will open a Gold Savings Account for the customer.
- Gold amount as in PTC's Certificate will then be credited into Customer's Gold Savings Account. Interest rate and Maturity Period (1 - 15 Years) will be decide upon. On maturity, customer will be paid Principal with Interest in form of Gold /Cash.
- The bank may keep the gold with itself or may keep it with any of certified Refiners. In both the cases, the customer won't be charged. Minimum Lock in period for gold deposits will be a Year.
- Utilization of Gold by Government - The deposited gold will be utilized in medium and long-term deposits, Auctioning, Replenishment of RBIs Gold Reserves and Lending to Jewelers. Government will create a Gold Reserve Fund to keep the difference between current borrowing cost for Government and interest rate paid by Government under the deposits. It will act as a pool for Government to handle losses occuring in the process.
- Objectives -
- Gold Metal Loan Scheme
- Gold Metal Loan Account (denominated in grams of gold) will be opened by banks for jewelers to whom Gold is being provided as loan. Physical gold will be provided to jewellers on sanctioning of Loan. Interest will be received by banks from Jewellers accordingly. Tenure of GML at present is 180 days.
- Gold Deposit Scheme -
- Spectrum trading will now be allowed between two access service providers in 800 MHz/1800 MHz band. Till now, a licensee had the sole authority to use spectrum as it was not tradable.
- Spectrum assignment is made for 20 years to a licensee. During this period, some operators are able to acquire subscribers and grow faster as compared to other operators. It results in spectrum lying unutilised with some operators while others face crunch as spectrum is a scare resource.
- So, spectrum trading will improve quality of services and will address issue of call drops.
- GDP at market prices is estimated by adding net indirect taxes to GVA at basic prices.
- Net indirect taxes is computed by deducting subsidies from gross indirect taxes on products.
- Central Excise collections increased from 60663 crore in April - August 2014 to 102945 crore in April - August 2015 (42 % up).
- Service Tax collections increased from 60693 crore in April - August 2014 to 75006 crore in April - August 2015 (20 % up).
- Customs collections increased from 70321 crore in April - August 2014 to 85138 crore in April - August 2015 (17.5 % up).
- Bank Rate - 7.75 %
- Repo Rate - 6.75 %
- Reverse Repo Rate - 5.75 %
- Marginal Standing Facility - 7.75 %
- End poverty in all its forms everywhere
- End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
- Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
- Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
- Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
- Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
- Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
- Sustained and inclusive economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
- Resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation
- Reduce inequality within and among countries
- Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
- Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
- Urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts*
- Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
- Sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems and halt and reverse land degradation
- Peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.
- Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
- Top 10 Most Innovative countries are (Out of 141 countries in List)
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- Sweden
- Netherlands
- United States of America
- Finland
- Singapore
- Ireland
- Luxembourg
- Denmark
- Although India's ranking slipped to 81 as compared to 76 in 2014, but it remained at top in Central and Southern Asia.
- Top 10 Most Innovative countries are (Out of 141 countries in List)
- Child (0-5 years) mortality rates in 2015 have came down to less than half of what they were in 1990. 12.7 million in 1990 to 5.9 million in 2015.
- In India, U5MR (Under 5 Mortality rate) declined to 91 in 2000 and 48 in 2015 as compared to 126 in 1990. UN Millennium Development Goal target is of 42.
- Includes a philanthropist from Nepal for first time - Binod Chaudhary. He is nepal's first billionaire and is rebuilding chains of Schools across Nepal after recent devastating earthquakes.
- The list has names of seven Indians - Infosys co-founders Senapathy Gopalakrishnan, Nandan Nilekani, SD Shibulal and NR Narayana Murthy (represented by son Rohan) , Sunny Varkey, Suresh Ramakrishnan and Mahesh Ramakrishnan.
- India's Chanda Kochhar (Chief of ICICI Bank) has been ranked at Top with Arundhati Bhattacharya (Chairman of State Bank of India) at second Place. Hindustan Petroleum’s CMD Nishi Vasudeva is at fifth Place. Axis Bank’s MD & CEO Shikha Sharma is at ninth.
- With 11 names, Chinese women lead the list.
- General Motors CEO Mary Barra is at top while PepsiCo's CEO Indra Nooyi is Second. Indira is Only Indian Origin Person in the List. IBM CEO Ginni Rometty is third in List.
- India’s leadership role in launch of this grouping is coincided with recent revision in target of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM). Under the mission, India intends to reach production of 1 lakh MW of solar energy (increased from earlier terget of 20000 MW) by 2022 with an investment of 6 lakh crore rupees.
- Index quantifies losses by using GDP@Risk methodology by taking into account 301 major cities across the globe and 18 major threats for 2015-2025.
- 301 cities together will see loss of 4.56 trillion USD out of total 372.56 trillion USD GDP during 2015-25.
- Taipei (Taiwan) topped the List with 181 billion USD Loss.
- Mumbai is Indian City expected to face maximum risk in India with 47 billion USD, Delhi Second with 44 Billion USD Risk.
- India in first half of 2015 surpassed China to emerge as most-favoured destination for FDI.
- India received 31 billion USD FDI inflows while China is second with 28 billion USD and USA Third with 27 billion USD.
- India's FDI Inflows in First Half of 2015, 36 Billion USD are significantly higher than 12 billion USD in first half of 2014. In 2014 India was ranked fifth after China, US, UK and Mexico.
- USA is largest market for Indian IT-BPM (Business Process Management) exports.
- Indian IT industry supports 411000 jobs in USA w ith investment of 2 billion USD in 2011 - 2013 and paid around 22.5 billion USD in taxes between 2011 - 2015.
- Indian IT companies provide support to over 90 % of Fortune 500 firms.
- In USA, shortage of skilled talent is expected to continue to grow and will cause shortfall of 445000 professionals by 2022.
- Immigration flows are rising in most OECD countries with 4.3 million immigrants to OECD in 2014.
- USA is at top in number of received immigrants, Germany is second.
- 10 % immigrants to OECD countries are chinese is Chinese and 4.4 % are Indians.
- About OECD -
- OECD is an international economic organisation of 34 countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. Jose Angel Gurria is current secretary general with Secretariat in Paris (France).
- Overall, 14 Indian institutes in QS World University rankings. 7 Indian institutes including IISc Bangalore (147th), IIT Delhi (179th), IIT Bombay (202nd), IIT Madras (254th), IIT Kanpur (271st), IIT Kharagpur (286th), IIT Roorkee (391st) are in top 400. Its First time any Indian Institutes are ranked in top 200 in QS Rankings.
- IIT Guwahati, University of Delhi, University of Calcutta, Banaras Hindu University, Panjab University, University of Mumbai and University of Pune are in list but beyond top 400.
- The Top 10 Universities in world are -Ranking in 2015/16Ranking in 2014/15CountryMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)11USHarvard University24USUniversity of Cambridge32UKStanford University37USCalifornia Institute of Technology (Caltech)58USUniversity of Oxford65UKUniversity College London (UCL)75UKImperial College London82UKETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology)912SwitzerlandUniversity of Chicago1011US
- 57 % (Approx 4 Billion) of Total 7.2 Bllion world Population are still not connected to Internet.
- Net is accessible to only 35 % of people in developing countries.
- 90 % People in 48 UN-designated Least Developed Countries are still Offline.
- South Korea has highest household broadband penetration (98.5 %), Qatar is second (98 %) and Saudi Arabia (94 %) is ranked third.
- Iceland has the highest (98.2 %) of individuals using Internet.
- 79 countries have over 50 % of population online, up from 77 in 2014.
- Lowest Internet access percentage is in sub-Saharan Africa - Guinea (1.7%), Somalia (1.6%), Burundi (1.4%), Timor Leste (1.1%) and Eritrea (1.0).
- India’s broadband penetration rank has fallen to 155th from 113th position in 2013. India's overall broadband penetration (mobile and fixed line) ranking improved to 136 from 142 in 2014.
- Number of Indians with broadband access on mobile phones has gone up to 5.5 % of population from 3.2 % in 2013.
- South Asia’s urban population grew by 13 crore between 2001 and 2011.
- Over 13 crore people are living in poor quality housing with lack of basic services.
- 800 billion USD should be invested by 2050 in development of infrastructure with need of 20.3 crore housing units.
- In India, 13.7 % urban population live below poverty line.Delhi’s air pollution (PM 2.5 concentration) is thrice to that in Beijing (China), therefore delhi is world’s most air polluted city.
- India has become 11th largest population of millionaires with 2 Lakh High net worth individuals (HNWI), up from 1,5 Lakh HNWIs in 2013.
- USA has most millionaires (43.5 Lakh), followed by Japan (24.5 Lakh), Germany (11.4 Lakh) and China (8.9 Lakh).
- G20 and OECD announced new governance principles for listed companies in all member countries to safeguard shareholders’ interests and promote capital market as a key platform to raise funds. Regulators and policymakers across the world (including SEBI in India) will update their regulations for listed firms in line with the new code.
- W20 grouping of women leaders launched in order to push for gender inclusive global economic growth across the globe.
- CVD accounted for around 30 % for all deaths in the country in 2014.
- Over 33 % Indians have hypertension, of which 60 % people are even unaware. 25 % people between age group of 31-45 years suffer from undetected hypertension. Widespread ignorance about risk of heart disease indicates need to raise awareness among people.
- Relianec Group Chairman Mukesh Ambani is richest Indian for ninth consecutive year with net worth of 18.9 billion USD.
- Top 10 are - Mukesh Ambani (18.9), Dilip Shanghvi (18) of Sun Pharma, Azim Premji (15.9), Hinduja brothers (15.9), Pallonji Mistry (14.7 ), Shiv Nadar (12.9), Godrej family (11.4), Lakshmi Mittal (11.2), Cyrus Poonawala (7.9) and Kumar Mangalam Birla (7.8).
- There are 12 newcomers This Year, Including Flipkart’s co-founders Sachin and Binni Bansal and IndiGo’s co-founder Rakesh Gangwal.
- On 9 April 1965, at Sardar Post in Rann of Kutch, two companies of CRPF battled full-fledged Pakistani Brigade, causing heavy casualties to Pakistani Army.
- People below poverty line in Delhi was 9.9 % in 2011-12, as compared to 15.7 % in 1993-94
- Under-5 mortality rate dropped to 28 in 2012 as compared to 83.1 in 1992. Infant mortality rate is 25 in 2012 against 36 in 1998.
- Special Backward Classes Reservation Bill 2015 - 5 % reservation to Banjara/Labana/Baldiya, Gujar , Gadiya/Gadoliya/Lohar, Gadariya/ Gayari and Raika/Rebari/Debasi.
- Economically Backward Classes Reservation Bill 2015 - 14 % reservation to unreserved category.
- Indian Railways has total 30,348 level crossings, out of which 11,563 (40 %) are unmanned.
- Attended G-4 Summit in New York City. G - 4 Consists of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan.
- Visited Tesla Motors, Met Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
- Met IT CEOs in San Jose Including Tim Cook (Apple), Satya Nadella (Microsoft) Sundar Pichai (Google) Shantanu Narayen (Adobe) Paul Jacobs (Qualcomm) and John Chambers (CISCO).
- Google announced its plans to deploy Wi-Fi spots at 500 railway stations across India while Microsoft will assist in expanding National Optical Fibre Network to take broadband to 600,000 villages.
- Met Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to discuss Digital India Campaign.
- Attended Leaders’ Summit on Peacekeeping at UN headquarters in New York.
- Russia Topped with 14 Medals. USA Second wtih 7 Medals while Turkey Third with 6 Medals.
- India ranked 24th with One bronze medal in Men’s 74 kg Freestyle won by Wrestler Narsingh Pancham Yadav. He also won a place in Indian Squad in 2016 Rio Olympics.
- 1000 Atheletes from 63 Nations Participated in Nine Events.
- 25 Indian athletes partipating in eight disciplines.
- India's Vikas Krishan won Silver while Shiva Thapa, Devendro Singh and Satish Kumar won bronze medals.
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Japan 27 September Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Singles - Jelena Janković (Serbia) won by defeatin g Czech Republic's Denisa Allertova.
- Doubles - Indo-Swiss Pair of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis won by defeating Xu Shilin and You Xiaodi.
- 2015 ISSF World Cup is Annual Five stages shooting competition administered by International Shooting Sport Federation.
- Men's Singles - Chen Long (China) won by Defeating India's Ajay Jayaram.
- Women's Singles - Sung Ji-hyun (South Korea) won by defeating Wang Yihan of China.
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Japan 27 September Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Trick for remembering recent F1 Races Winners so far (Based on data till Italian Grand Prix held on Sep 06, 2015) -
- Italy and all countries starting with A, B and C except Austria WON by Lewis Hamilton (England).
- Hungary and Malaysian Races have been Won by Sebastian Vettel (Germany) (remember - Sabastian was HUNGRY in MALAYSIA) :)
- All other races including Austria have been won by Nico Rosberg (Germany).
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
- 2015 Formula One season -
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
Grand Prix Date Winner Australia 15 March Lewis Hamilton (UK) Malaysia 29 March Sebastian Vettel (Germany) China 12 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Baharain 19 April Lewis Hamilton (UK) Spain 10 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Monaco 24 May Nico Rosberg (Germany) Canada 7 June Lewis Hamilton (UK) Austria 21 June Nico Rosberg (Germany) Britain 5 July Lewis Hamilton (UK) Hungary 26 July Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Belgium 23 August Lewis Hamilton (UK) Italy 6 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Singapore 20 September Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Japan 27 September Lewis Hamilton (UK) Russia 11 October USA 25 October Mexico 1 November Brazil 15 November Abu Dhabi 29 November
- Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2015. Calendar is -
- 2015 Formula One season -
- Women's Singles - Flavia Pennetta (Italy) won by defeating Roberta Vinci (Italy).
- Men's Singles - Novak Djokovic (Serbia) won by beating Roger Federer (Switzerland).
- Mixed Doubles - Martina Hingis (Switzerland) and Leander Paes (India) won by defeating Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sam Querrey of United States
- Women's Doubles - Martina Hingis (Switzerland ) and Sania Mirza (India) won by defeating Casey Dellacqua (Australia) and Yaroslava Shvedova (Kazakhstan)
- Men's Doubles - Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut of france won by beating Jamie Murray (UK) and John Peers (Australia)
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