General Affairs
UN Security Council Needs To Reflect Today's Realities: PM Narendra Modi
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NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said India and Egypt have agreed that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) needs to be reformed to reflect today's realities.
Prime Minister Modi in his joint press statement after holding talks with the visiting Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi lauded Egypt for its good work during its current term on the UN Security Council.
"President El-Sisi and I have agreed to build on multiple pillars of our relationship. We agreed that the United Nations Security Council needs to be reformed to reflect the realities of today," he said.
Prime Minister Modi said Egypt is a natural bridge that connects Asia with Africa.
"Here people are the voice of moderate Islam. Your (Egypt) nation is a factor for regional peace and stability. India and Egypt decided to facilitate greater people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges," he added.
The Prime Minister said growing radicalisation and terror pose a threat not only to India and Egypt but to the entire world.
"We are of one view that growing radicalisation, violence and spread of terror are a real threat across regions. We also decided to facilitate greater people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges. We agreed to further our defence and security engagement which would aim at greater information operational exchanges to combat terrorism," said PM Modi.
"We also agreed on cooperating on challenges of cyber security and working together to fight transnational crimes and money-laundering," he added.
Prime Minister Modi further said India stands ready to be a reliable partner in fulfilment of developmental, economic and security goals of Egypt.
"Egypt and India will also deepen cooperation in agriculture, skill development and health sectors," he added.
India and Egypt have signed an agreement in the area of Maritime Transport to step up co-operation on the seas. The agreement was signed after the delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Modi and President El-Sisi.
Earlier in day, President Sisi was accorded ceremonial welcome at the forecourts of the Rashtrapati Bhavan by his counterpart Pranab Mukherjee and PM Modi.
Prime Minister Modi in his joint press statement after holding talks with the visiting Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi lauded Egypt for its good work during its current term on the UN Security Council.
Prime Minister Modi said Egypt is a natural bridge that connects Asia with Africa.
"Here people are the voice of moderate Islam. Your (Egypt) nation is a factor for regional peace and stability. India and Egypt decided to facilitate greater people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges," he added.
The Prime Minister said growing radicalisation and terror pose a threat not only to India and Egypt but to the entire world.
"We are of one view that growing radicalisation, violence and spread of terror are a real threat across regions. We also decided to facilitate greater people-to-people contacts and cultural exchanges. We agreed to further our defence and security engagement which would aim at greater information operational exchanges to combat terrorism," said PM Modi.
"We also agreed on cooperating on challenges of cyber security and working together to fight transnational crimes and money-laundering," he added.
Prime Minister Modi further said India stands ready to be a reliable partner in fulfilment of developmental, economic and security goals of Egypt.
"Egypt and India will also deepen cooperation in agriculture, skill development and health sectors," he added.
India and Egypt have signed an agreement in the area of Maritime Transport to step up co-operation on the seas. The agreement was signed after the delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Modi and President El-Sisi.
Earlier in day, President Sisi was accorded ceremonial welcome at the forecourts of the Rashtrapati Bhavan by his counterpart Pranab Mukherjee and PM Modi.
Shiv Sena Backs Sacked RSS Goa Unit Chief Subhash Velingkar
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MUMBAI: Sacked Goa RSS unit chief Subhash Velingkar has received support from the Shiv Sena, which said he has done no crime by demanding that regional languages be promoted in Goa schools.
Shiv Sena said the BJP government came to power in Goa on the back of its election promise of promoting regional languages, but reneged from it now.
"If he (Subhash Velingkar) asked the government to not give grants to English medium schools and promote Konkani and Marathi, what crime has he done? When (Defence minister) Manohar Parrikar was Leader of Opposition, he had demanded the same thing from then Congress government," it said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana' today.
"Parrikar, with help from Velingkar had also initiated a movement to press for their demands which resulted in them getting the reigns of power. But they (the BJP) went back on their words and supported English medium schools. They have broken their promise," it said.
Shiv Sena said the recent events in Goa were a classic example of "attempting to bury the movement" to promote one's local language and claimed that the state government there was "plagued by corruption, adultery and anarchy."
"If on one side sympathy is being shown for Baluchistan, how correct is it to cut the feathers of a bird that is toiling hard to promote local language in one's homeland. This is an attempt to murder Goa's culture," the BJP ally said.
Attacking the Goa government on the issue of rising number of casinos and gambling, Shiv Sena said it will need to answer people in the upcoming election if it has no connivance with the drug mafia that is selling drugs freely in the state.
"The BJP had said if it came to power, it would put an end to casinos and gambling dens. But their number has only increased. The government allows all this to happen but Velingkar was termed a criminal. Not only the Goa CM, but even his remote controller in Delhi needs to answer what crime did he do or what was his fault," it said.
RSS on Wednesday removed Mr Velingkar as its Goa chief as he had crossed swords with ruling BJP government demanding the promotion of local languages in schools.
Mr Velingkar subsequently decided to float a parallel unit and said he and his supporters would function independently of the parent body till the 2017 Assembly polls.
Shiv Sena said the BJP government came to power in Goa on the back of its election promise of promoting regional languages, but reneged from it now.
"If he (Subhash Velingkar) asked the government to not give grants to English medium schools and promote Konkani and Marathi, what crime has he done? When (Defence minister) Manohar Parrikar was Leader of Opposition, he had demanded the same thing from then Congress government," it said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana' today.
"Parrikar, with help from Velingkar had also initiated a movement to press for their demands which resulted in them getting the reigns of power. But they (the BJP) went back on their words and supported English medium schools. They have broken their promise," it said.
Shiv Sena said the recent events in Goa were a classic example of "attempting to bury the movement" to promote one's local language and claimed that the state government there was "plagued by corruption, adultery and anarchy."
"If on one side sympathy is being shown for Baluchistan, how correct is it to cut the feathers of a bird that is toiling hard to promote local language in one's homeland. This is an attempt to murder Goa's culture," the BJP ally said.
Attacking the Goa government on the issue of rising number of casinos and gambling, Shiv Sena said it will need to answer people in the upcoming election if it has no connivance with the drug mafia that is selling drugs freely in the state.
"The BJP had said if it came to power, it would put an end to casinos and gambling dens. But their number has only increased. The government allows all this to happen but Velingkar was termed a criminal. Not only the Goa CM, but even his remote controller in Delhi needs to answer what crime did he do or what was his fault," it said.
RSS on Wednesday removed Mr Velingkar as its Goa chief as he had crossed swords with ruling BJP government demanding the promotion of local languages in schools.
Mr Velingkar subsequently decided to float a parallel unit and said he and his supporters would function independently of the parent body till the 2017 Assembly polls.
Sushma Swaraj Leads Delegation For Mother Teresa's Canonisation
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NEW DELHI: A 12-member delegation led by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today left for Rome to attend the canonisation ceremony of Mother Teresa on Sunday.
During her three-day visit, Ms Swaraj will also hold bilateral talks with her Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni, which will be the first high-level contact between the two countries after the United Nations tribunal's verdict of the return of Italian marines charged with murdering two Indian fishermen off Kerala coast in 2012. According to official sources, Ms Swaraj will meet her Italian counterpart over the weekend during which the two sides will review the status of bilateral ties.
The relationship between India and Italy soured after India detained Italian marines -Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre- on charges of murdering two Indian fishermen.
Unsatisfied with Indian judicial process, Italy moved the UN Tribunal, which in May this year allowed Mr Girone to return pending the trial. Mr Latorre is already in Italy on health grounds.
Apart from the central government delegation, two state government-level delegations from Delhi and West Bengal led by Chief Ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee respectively also left for Rome to attend the ceremony.
Ms Swaraj's delegation will comprise Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Lok Sabha MPs Professor K V Thomas, Jose K Mani, Anto Anthony and Conrad K Sangma and Goa Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza.
Others include Judge of Supreme Court Justice Kurian Joseph, eminent lawyer Harish Salve, Secretary General of Catholic Bishops' Conference of India Theodore Mascarenhas and K J Alphons.
Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs Sujata Mehta will also be part of the delegation.
In March, Pope Francis had announced that Mother Teresa, who founded the Missionaries of Charity, will be elevated to sainthood after the Church recognised two miracles attributed to her after her death in 1997.
During her three-day visit, Ms Swaraj will also hold bilateral talks with her Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni, which will be the first high-level contact between the two countries after the United Nations tribunal's verdict of the return of Italian marines charged with murdering two Indian fishermen off Kerala coast in 2012. According to official sources, Ms Swaraj will meet her Italian counterpart over the weekend during which the two sides will review the status of bilateral ties.
The relationship between India and Italy soured after India detained Italian marines -Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre- on charges of murdering two Indian fishermen.
Unsatisfied with Indian judicial process, Italy moved the UN Tribunal, which in May this year allowed Mr Girone to return pending the trial. Mr Latorre is already in Italy on health grounds.
Apart from the central government delegation, two state government-level delegations from Delhi and West Bengal led by Chief Ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Mamata Banerjee respectively also left for Rome to attend the ceremony.
Ms Swaraj's delegation will comprise Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Lok Sabha MPs Professor K V Thomas, Jose K Mani, Anto Anthony and Conrad K Sangma and Goa Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza.
Others include Judge of Supreme Court Justice Kurian Joseph, eminent lawyer Harish Salve, Secretary General of Catholic Bishops' Conference of India Theodore Mascarenhas and K J Alphons.
Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs Sujata Mehta will also be part of the delegation.
In March, Pope Francis had announced that Mother Teresa, who founded the Missionaries of Charity, will be elevated to sainthood after the Church recognised two miracles attributed to her after her death in 1997.
Bharat Bandh: Public Transport, Banking Services Hit In Haryana, Punjab
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CHANDIGARH: Services including banking and public transport were hit in Haryana, Punjab and Union Territory Chandigarh with employees of various government departments joining one-day nationwide strike to protest against 'anti-labour' policies of the government.
Employees of departments like roadways, electricity, health, corporations held demonstrations at various places in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh. At some places, employees claimed the district administration "forcefully" asked roadways employees to ply buses.
The government departments had already warned protesting employees to enforce 'no work no pay' policy and had set up control rooms to lodge complaint.
At prestigious health institution Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), various planned surgeries were today postponed in the wake of around 2,000 nurses joining the nationwide strike call given by All India Government Nurses Federation.
Public transport services were hit in Punjab and Haryana with roadways employees participating in the strike call, causing inconvenience to passengers.
"There is a complete strike in Haryana as roadways buses are not plying, barring few ones at some places," Haryana Roadways Workers Union, General Secretary, Dharamveer Hooda said.
"Employees are protesting at all the 24 depots in the state," he said adding that the state roadways had fleet of 4,200 buses.
However, he accused Jind district administration of resorting to lathicharge at protesting roadways employees so as to resume bus services. "But we have not allowed to run the buses," he said.
Mr Hooda also claimed the state police have taken 21 leaders including union's President Sarbat Singh Punia into the custody at odd hours in Fatehabad. "This is completely illegal and we will protest against the same at Fatehabad," said Mr Hooda.
Haryana's Sarv Karamchari Sangh, President, Dharambir Phogat claimed government employees of almost all the departments including power, health, roadways, and corporations, boards, universities are participating in the strike.
"We have been demanding new appointments at regular basis, regularization of contractual employees, minimum wages of Rs. 24,000 per month, implementation of labour laws etc," said Mr Phogat.
A report from Hisar and Kaithal in Haryana said public transport remained paralysed, forcing passengers to use private vehicles to reach their destinations.
A large number of passengers could be seen stranded at Hisar, Hansi, Uklana , Barwala, Adampur and other bus stands. Almost all offices at mini secretariat here looked deserted as government employees did not join their duties.
A report from Phagwara in Punjab said while Punjab roadways buses were also off the road, PRTC buses were seen plying.
A staff member of Punjab Roadways said they will remain on strike from 10 am to 2 pm. Roadways buses were seen parked inside the main Bus stand opposite National highway-I.
Employees of departments like roadways, electricity, health, corporations held demonstrations at various places in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh. At some places, employees claimed the district administration "forcefully" asked roadways employees to ply buses.
At prestigious health institution Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), various planned surgeries were today postponed in the wake of around 2,000 nurses joining the nationwide strike call given by All India Government Nurses Federation.
Public transport services were hit in Punjab and Haryana with roadways employees participating in the strike call, causing inconvenience to passengers.
"There is a complete strike in Haryana as roadways buses are not plying, barring few ones at some places," Haryana Roadways Workers Union, General Secretary, Dharamveer Hooda said.
"Employees are protesting at all the 24 depots in the state," he said adding that the state roadways had fleet of 4,200 buses.
However, he accused Jind district administration of resorting to lathicharge at protesting roadways employees so as to resume bus services. "But we have not allowed to run the buses," he said.
Mr Hooda also claimed the state police have taken 21 leaders including union's President Sarbat Singh Punia into the custody at odd hours in Fatehabad. "This is completely illegal and we will protest against the same at Fatehabad," said Mr Hooda.
Haryana's Sarv Karamchari Sangh, President, Dharambir Phogat claimed government employees of almost all the departments including power, health, roadways, and corporations, boards, universities are participating in the strike.
"We have been demanding new appointments at regular basis, regularization of contractual employees, minimum wages of Rs. 24,000 per month, implementation of labour laws etc," said Mr Phogat.
A report from Hisar and Kaithal in Haryana said public transport remained paralysed, forcing passengers to use private vehicles to reach their destinations.
A large number of passengers could be seen stranded at Hisar, Hansi, Uklana , Barwala, Adampur and other bus stands. Almost all offices at mini secretariat here looked deserted as government employees did not join their duties.
A report from Phagwara in Punjab said while Punjab roadways buses were also off the road, PRTC buses were seen plying.
A staff member of Punjab Roadways said they will remain on strike from 10 am to 2 pm. Roadways buses were seen parked inside the main Bus stand opposite National highway-I.
Rahul Gandhi Asks Party Workers To 'Mend Their Ways' Ahead Of Uttar Pradesh Polls
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AMETHI, UTTAR PRADESH: Rahul Gandhi today asked party workers involved in groupism "to mend their ways" so that a united Congress can win the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections due next year.
"Those dabbling in groupism should mend their ways and stay united to give a crushing defeat to other parties in the elections," the Congress vice president said at a meeting with party leaders that went on till wee hours today.
Rahul Gandhi discussed threadbare the issues before the party and asked party workers to fan out in the interiors to make people aware of Congress' policies and programmes.
He also discussed ways to counter the strategy of opposition parties.
Winding up his three-day visit to his Lok Sabha constituency, Rahul Gandhi today participated in the district vigilance committee meeting.
Meanwhile, some protesting anganwadi workers tried to gather on the route to be taken by the Congress leader to air their grievances.
When police tried to stop them they were involved in a fracas.
Later, when Rahul Gandhi arrived on the scene while leaving for Lucknow, he came out of his car and listened to their grievances.
Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to embark on a yatra from Deoria in eastern Uttar Pradesh on September 6 to highlight problems being faced by the farmers. The yatra will conclude in Delhi after a month.
"Those dabbling in groupism should mend their ways and stay united to give a crushing defeat to other parties in the elections," the Congress vice president said at a meeting with party leaders that went on till wee hours today.
Rahul Gandhi discussed threadbare the issues before the party and asked party workers to fan out in the interiors to make people aware of Congress' policies and programmes.
He also discussed ways to counter the strategy of opposition parties.
Winding up his three-day visit to his Lok Sabha constituency, Rahul Gandhi today participated in the district vigilance committee meeting.
Meanwhile, some protesting anganwadi workers tried to gather on the route to be taken by the Congress leader to air their grievances.
When police tried to stop them they were involved in a fracas.
Later, when Rahul Gandhi arrived on the scene while leaving for Lucknow, he came out of his car and listened to their grievances.
Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to embark on a yatra from Deoria in eastern Uttar Pradesh on September 6 to highlight problems being faced by the farmers. The yatra will conclude in Delhi after a month.
Business Affairs
It's spoilsport alert for RJio; customers to face call drops, network congestion
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The ongoing tussle between Reliance Jio 's and other telcos is likely to continue for another three months until the new entrant's free service period ends on 31 December.
Playing spoilsport for the RJIO ultra cheap 4G offer are the existing market players. Telcos including Bharti Airtel, Idea and Vodafone India are locking horns with RIL.
This means, Reliance Jio users are likely to experience call drops and network congestion while connecting to other network phone users.
Rajan Mathews, DG Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), has said that Reliance has to launch Jio commercially before other telecos start forwarding calls which is crucial for smooth operation.
"Till now there is no commercial launch, first RIL will have to rollout their service on the commercial space for other telecos to carry forward their calls. Till now they are not operating in the commercial space. Their service is still free till December", Mathews said.
RIL CMD Mukesh Ambani had raised the issue at the company's AGM on Wednesday.
He told shareholders how RJIO customers suffered 5 crore call failures to other networks due to insufficient interconnect capacity.
"Operators should fulfil their obligation to provide interconnectivity without delay so that no JIO customer suffers", Ambani said.
But telcos who are reeling under competitive pricing of RJIO are complaining of further losses due to RJIO additional customer load.
"Actually, what members are saying is that it really takes 30 paise to carry that call and deliver it on our network. So even in this instance, you are at best paying 14 paise. So in a sense, for every call that is coming, we (other telcos) are subsidising it by 15 paise as per TRAI rules. So there is a real financial impact on all the operators which needs to be recognised," Mathews added.
With the telcos vs RJIO faceoff set to continue for at least 3 more months, experts believe that consumers should wait and watch.
"RIL should rollout family packs so that calls can be made from one Reliance Phone to another, till then there will be issues. There could be some foul play with telecos blaming technical errors and not completing calls from RJIO phones", explains telecom expert Ravi VS Prasad.
The ongoing tussle between Reliance Jio 's and other telcos is likely to continue for another three months until the new entrant's free service period ends on 31 December.
Playing spoilsport for the RJIO ultra cheap 4G offer are the existing market players. Telcos including Bharti Airtel, Idea and Vodafone India are locking horns with RIL.
This means, Reliance Jio users are likely to experience call drops and network congestion while connecting to other network phone users.
Rajan Mathews, DG Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), has said that Reliance has to launch Jio commercially before other telecos start forwarding calls which is crucial for smooth operation.
"Till now there is no commercial launch, first RIL will have to rollout their service on the commercial space for other telecos to carry forward their calls. Till now they are not operating in the commercial space. Their service is still free till December", Mathews said.
RIL CMD Mukesh Ambani had raised the issue at the company's AGM on Wednesday.
He told shareholders how RJIO customers suffered 5 crore call failures to other networks due to insufficient interconnect capacity.
"Operators should fulfil their obligation to provide interconnectivity without delay so that no JIO customer suffers", Ambani said.
But telcos who are reeling under competitive pricing of RJIO are complaining of further losses due to RJIO additional customer load.
"Actually, what members are saying is that it really takes 30 paise to carry that call and deliver it on our network. So even in this instance, you are at best paying 14 paise. So in a sense, for every call that is coming, we (other telcos) are subsidising it by 15 paise as per TRAI rules. So there is a real financial impact on all the operators which needs to be recognised," Mathews added.
With the telcos vs RJIO faceoff set to continue for at least 3 more months, experts believe that consumers should wait and watch.
"RIL should rollout family packs so that calls can be made from one Reliance Phone to another, till then there will be issues. There could be some foul play with telecos blaming technical errors and not completing calls from RJIO phones", explains telecom expert Ravi VS Prasad.
SC asks Sahara Group to disclose source of money raised
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The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Sahara Group to come clean by disclosing its sources from where it had raised Rs 25,000 crore and paid its investors in cash, observing that it is difficult to digest as such a huge amount cannot fall from the heavens.
"You (Sahara Group) tell us what is the source of this money? Did you get the money from other companies or other schemes to the tune of Rs 24,000 crore? Withdrew it from bank accounts? Or sold property to get it? It should be any of the three alternatives. Money did not fall from the heavens. You have to show from where you have got the money. Though we don't doubt the capacity of your client to pay crores of money to investors, that too in cash in two months. But the entire explanation of the episode is difficult to digest. Tell us the source of the cash and there will be no need to open the pandora box," a bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur said.
The bench, also comprising Justices AR Dave and AK Sikri, which will hear the matter on the issue again on September 16, said you start the hearing on that date by disclosing from where you got the money.
"Show us the documents. How the money was lying in other schemes," the bench said after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Sahara Chief Subrata Roy, submitted that the group had raised money and paid to its investors in cash and the market regulator SEBI was running away from finding out crores of investors.
"This is your (Sahara's) claim. SEBI has a very simple question. Please tell us from where you got the money. You tell us and we will close the case. You tell us how you raised Rs 25,000 crore in cash," the bench said.
Sibal said the group was open for any probe and even assuming that there is an apprehension that it is a case of blackmoney, the group can be investigated but if it's black money, who is SEBI to investigate?
It is matter of Income Tax (Department). However, the bench said the onus was on the business house to reveal the source of the money, whether it is accounted money or unaccounted money. Was it lying in your bank account or you got it from schemes floated by you, the bench said as Sibal tried to convince that the Group drew money from others schemes in which the investment was made. I have already filed an affidavit, Sibal said.
The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Sahara Group to come clean by disclosing its sources from where it had raised Rs 25,000 crore and paid its investors in cash, observing that it is difficult to digest as such a huge amount cannot fall from the heavens.
"You (Sahara Group) tell us what is the source of this money? Did you get the money from other companies or other schemes to the tune of Rs 24,000 crore? Withdrew it from bank accounts? Or sold property to get it? It should be any of the three alternatives. Money did not fall from the heavens. You have to show from where you have got the money. Though we don't doubt the capacity of your client to pay crores of money to investors, that too in cash in two months. But the entire explanation of the episode is difficult to digest. Tell us the source of the cash and there will be no need to open the pandora box," a bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur said.
The bench, also comprising Justices AR Dave and AK Sikri, which will hear the matter on the issue again on September 16, said you start the hearing on that date by disclosing from where you got the money.
"Show us the documents. How the money was lying in other schemes," the bench said after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Sahara Chief Subrata Roy, submitted that the group had raised money and paid to its investors in cash and the market regulator SEBI was running away from finding out crores of investors.
"This is your (Sahara's) claim. SEBI has a very simple question. Please tell us from where you got the money. You tell us and we will close the case. You tell us how you raised Rs 25,000 crore in cash," the bench said.
Sibal said the group was open for any probe and even assuming that there is an apprehension that it is a case of blackmoney, the group can be investigated but if it's black money, who is SEBI to investigate?
It is matter of Income Tax (Department). However, the bench said the onus was on the business house to reveal the source of the money, whether it is accounted money or unaccounted money. Was it lying in your bank account or you got it from schemes floated by you, the bench said as Sibal tried to convince that the Group drew money from others schemes in which the investment was made. I have already filed an affidavit, Sibal said.
India protected from political, economic challenges: FM Arun Jaitley
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Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said India is protected from all the political and economic challenges that the world is facing and it provides immense opportunity for the country to grow further.
"The political and economic challenges that world is facing, India is protected and will continue to be protected," Jaitley said at 'Taleem O' Tarbiyat', a conference on how education helps empower and energise communities, organised at the BSE here on Friday.
He said there is an opportunity for the country to uplift the sections of society which are economically backward and illiterate.
On the political challenges, he said many countries are facing political unrest and seeing this it is difficult to say where the world is heading towards.
"There is an increase in violence, terrorism across the globe and there are reactions to that. Despite having different kinds of population, India does not have any such problem," he said.
The Finance Minister said the country's economic growth is better than many of its peers and is in a sweet spot.
He said the country will take the opportunity provided by stable political and economic environment and will grow further.
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said India is protected from all the political and economic challenges that the world is facing and it provides immense opportunity for the country to grow further.
"The political and economic challenges that world is facing, India is protected and will continue to be protected," Jaitley said at 'Taleem O' Tarbiyat', a conference on how education helps empower and energise communities, organised at the BSE here on Friday.
He said there is an opportunity for the country to uplift the sections of society which are economically backward and illiterate.
On the political challenges, he said many countries are facing political unrest and seeing this it is difficult to say where the world is heading towards.
"There is an increase in violence, terrorism across the globe and there are reactions to that. Despite having different kinds of population, India does not have any such problem," he said.
The Finance Minister said the country's economic growth is better than many of its peers and is in a sweet spot.
He said the country will take the opportunity provided by stable political and economic environment and will grow further.
Jobs elusive as India clings to fastest-growing economy tag
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It's been two years since India emerged as the world's fastest-growing major economy, but the rapid expansion has done little to improve the lot of Ashok Kumar.
Parked up and sitting on the kerb, the 25-year-old truck driver is going nowhere fast. He is the sole breadwinner for the 13 people in his extended family and his monthly salary is stuck at $150.
With new, better-paid jobs hard to come by, Kumar lacks options. He fears becoming unemployed like his elder brother, who recently returned to their village in Uttar Pradesh after months of searching in vain for work.
Data out on Wednesday showed India's economic growth slowed to 7.1 percent in the quarter to June, a 15-month low. That is faster than other major economies, but not fast enough to create enough new jobs to absorb all the one million people who join the workforce every month.
A government survey found that job creation fell by more than two-thirds in 2015. Analysts at HDFC Bank estimate that for every percentage point the economy grows, employment now adds just 0.15 of a percentage point - down from 0.39 in 2000.
It's a major challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has promised to create 250 million jobs over the next decade.
"For one job, there are at least 20 candidates," said Kumar. "If you want the job, you can't afford to bargain."
Nearly two-thirds of India's 1.3 billion people are under 35 years old. This rising demographic "bulge" will create the largest working-age population in the world. At the same time China, which has long curbed family size, will age as a society.
Whether this so-called demographic dividend will translate into the kind of economic gains seen in Japan and Korea, or lead to upheavals, depends on India's ability to generate jobs.
Yet, despite average annual growth of 6.5 percent between 1991 and 2013, India added less than half the jobs needed to absorb new job seekers.
MORE WORKERS, FEWER JOBS
Under Modi, India has opened up further to foreign investment, hoping to generate more manufacturing jobs. A loan scheme for small businesses has been set up and there are plans for a $1.5 billion fund for startups.
Modi has also launched a programme to train over 4 million people in different skills in six years.
Pronab Sen, country director for the International Growth Centre, a British-backed think tank, said such measures were "laudable", but they aimed at boosting supply when more demand was needed.
"India has become a demand-starved economy," Sen said. "If there is no demand, there will be no incentive to produce more which, in turn, will mean no new jobs."
The level of desperation for work is staggering. In August, nearly half a million people, including post-graduates, applied for 1,778 jobs as sweepers in the city of Kanpur.
This was not a one-off. Last year, in Uttar Pradesh, 2.3 million people sought 368 low-level government jobs that required a primary education and ability to ride a bicycle.
Competition for such jobs has become fiercer as the public sector's share in formal employment is declining.
Two years of drought has caused distress in farming, while the construction business has suffered a prolonged downturn - making work scarcer in the two sectors that employ the bulk of India's unskilled workforce.
Satellite cities around the capital, like Greater Noida were, until recently, bustling with construction activity.
Now, Greater Noida's skyline is dotted with half-built, abandoned, high-rises. Cranes and diggers stand idle.
In Delhi and the surrounding National Capital Region, housing starts fell 41 percent year-on-year in the first half of the year, according to consultancy Knight Frank. Across India, starts were down 9 percent from a year earlier.
Bhuwan Mahato, a contractor who supplies workers to construction projects around Noida, says demand for labour is down by at least 25 percent.
"I wish I hadn't joined this business," said Mahato, a 30-year-old migrant from the state of Bihar. "But, truthfully, there are no other opportunities, either."
It's been two years since India emerged as the world's fastest-growing major economy, but the rapid expansion has done little to improve the lot of Ashok Kumar.
Parked up and sitting on the kerb, the 25-year-old truck driver is going nowhere fast. He is the sole breadwinner for the 13 people in his extended family and his monthly salary is stuck at $150.
With new, better-paid jobs hard to come by, Kumar lacks options. He fears becoming unemployed like his elder brother, who recently returned to their village in Uttar Pradesh after months of searching in vain for work.
Data out on Wednesday showed India's economic growth slowed to 7.1 percent in the quarter to June, a 15-month low. That is faster than other major economies, but not fast enough to create enough new jobs to absorb all the one million people who join the workforce every month.
A government survey found that job creation fell by more than two-thirds in 2015. Analysts at HDFC Bank estimate that for every percentage point the economy grows, employment now adds just 0.15 of a percentage point - down from 0.39 in 2000.
It's a major challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has promised to create 250 million jobs over the next decade.
"For one job, there are at least 20 candidates," said Kumar. "If you want the job, you can't afford to bargain."
Nearly two-thirds of India's 1.3 billion people are under 35 years old. This rising demographic "bulge" will create the largest working-age population in the world. At the same time China, which has long curbed family size, will age as a society.
Whether this so-called demographic dividend will translate into the kind of economic gains seen in Japan and Korea, or lead to upheavals, depends on India's ability to generate jobs.
Yet, despite average annual growth of 6.5 percent between 1991 and 2013, India added less than half the jobs needed to absorb new job seekers.
MORE WORKERS, FEWER JOBS
MORE WORKERS, FEWER JOBS
Under Modi, India has opened up further to foreign investment, hoping to generate more manufacturing jobs. A loan scheme for small businesses has been set up and there are plans for a $1.5 billion fund for startups.
Modi has also launched a programme to train over 4 million people in different skills in six years.
Pronab Sen, country director for the International Growth Centre, a British-backed think tank, said such measures were "laudable", but they aimed at boosting supply when more demand was needed.
"India has become a demand-starved economy," Sen said. "If there is no demand, there will be no incentive to produce more which, in turn, will mean no new jobs."
The level of desperation for work is staggering. In August, nearly half a million people, including post-graduates, applied for 1,778 jobs as sweepers in the city of Kanpur.
This was not a one-off. Last year, in Uttar Pradesh, 2.3 million people sought 368 low-level government jobs that required a primary education and ability to ride a bicycle.
Competition for such jobs has become fiercer as the public sector's share in formal employment is declining.
Two years of drought has caused distress in farming, while the construction business has suffered a prolonged downturn - making work scarcer in the two sectors that employ the bulk of India's unskilled workforce.
Satellite cities around the capital, like Greater Noida were, until recently, bustling with construction activity.
Now, Greater Noida's skyline is dotted with half-built, abandoned, high-rises. Cranes and diggers stand idle.
In Delhi and the surrounding National Capital Region, housing starts fell 41 percent year-on-year in the first half of the year, according to consultancy Knight Frank. Across India, starts were down 9 percent from a year earlier.
Bhuwan Mahato, a contractor who supplies workers to construction projects around Noida, says demand for labour is down by at least 25 percent.
"I wish I hadn't joined this business," said Mahato, a 30-year-old migrant from the state of Bihar. "But, truthfully, there are no other opportunities, either."
Infosys partners Huawei for financial cloud solution
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Infosys Finacle said on Friday it has partnered Huawei to develop a financial cloud solution that will enable banks globally to accelerate digital transformation while keeping technology costs under control.
Infosys Finacle is a part of EdgeVerve Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Infosys.
The highly available platform will allow customers to run Finacle suite of applications on a private cloud network, delivering considerable performance, maintenance and total cost of ownership advantages, a statement said.
No financial details of the partnership were disclosed. The solution will provide enhanced agility and quick service rollout, by enabling elastic, on-demand and secure computing resource pools, while supporting all-round management and service automation, it added.
The solution will also help reduce operating expenditure by ensuring optimum infrastructure utilisation, it added.
"This new offering from Huawei and Finacle will empower financial institutions with a world class banking software, with competitive capex, reduced opex and superior flexibility in operations," Huawei Enterprise Business Group President (Marketing and Solution Sales) Qian Yuan said.
This joint offering from Finacle and Huawei is a perfect fit, bringing to market an industry leading, digital age banking solution suite along with the security, flexibility and scalability of a private cloud, EdgeVerve President (Customer and Operations) Andy Dey added.
Infosys Finacle said on Friday it has partnered Huawei to develop a financial cloud solution that will enable banks globally to accelerate digital transformation while keeping technology costs under control.
Infosys Finacle is a part of EdgeVerve Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Infosys.
The highly available platform will allow customers to run Finacle suite of applications on a private cloud network, delivering considerable performance, maintenance and total cost of ownership advantages, a statement said.
No financial details of the partnership were disclosed. The solution will provide enhanced agility and quick service rollout, by enabling elastic, on-demand and secure computing resource pools, while supporting all-round management and service automation, it added.
The solution will also help reduce operating expenditure by ensuring optimum infrastructure utilisation, it added.
"This new offering from Huawei and Finacle will empower financial institutions with a world class banking software, with competitive capex, reduced opex and superior flexibility in operations," Huawei Enterprise Business Group President (Marketing and Solution Sales) Qian Yuan said.
This joint offering from Finacle and Huawei is a perfect fit, bringing to market an industry leading, digital age banking solution suite along with the security, flexibility and scalability of a private cloud, EdgeVerve President (Customer and Operations) Andy Dey added.
General Awareness
GENERAL AWARENESS PRACTICE QUESTIONS FOR BANK EXAMS
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-
1. Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari sworn in as Chief Justice of .......... High Court.
A) Jaipur
B) Guwahati
C) Mumbai
D) Bhopal
E) Patna
2. Theresa May appointed Prime Minister of which of the following country?
A) France
B) Germany
C) Poland
D) United Kingdom
E) Brazil
3. Who won Ramon Magsaysay award for 2016?
A) T.M. Krishna
B) Bezwada Wilson
C) Arvind Kejriwal
D) Both A and B
E) None
4. Which states tourism won the gold at Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) awards?
A) Gujarat
B) Maharashtra
C) Kerala
D) Tamilnadu
E) Telangana
5. What is the maximum value of soiled currency notes which can be exchanged for free of charge?
A) 5000
B) 25000
C) 2000
D) 1000
E) None
6. Which of the following banks have become first Indian banks to join SWIFT's global payments innovation initiative?
A) ICICI Bank and Axis Bank
B) ICICI Bank and SBI
C) HDFC Bank and UCO Bank
D) SBI and Indian Bank
E) SBI and BOB
7. Who among the following will lead the Interregulatory Working Group on Fin Tech and Digital Banking?
A) N. Srinivasan
B) Sai Kumar
C) Sudarshan Sen
D) N.V. Swami
E) Bobby Jindal
8. Indian Railways has recently signed MoU with which of the following banks to promote rail ticketing?
A) ICICI Bank
B) UCO Bank
C) SBI Bank
D) Yes Bank
E) Axis Bank
9. "Who Moved My Interest Rate?" written by...
A) Ruskin Bond
B) Nayantara Sahgal
C) C. D. Deshmukh
D) Duvvuri Subbarao
E) Manmohan Singh
10. Amal Dutta has passed away recently he
belongs to which of the following sport?
A) Cricket
B) Hockey
C) Football
D) Chess
E) Golf
11. India has approved a $ 318 million loan for which country railways?
A) Nepal
B) Sri Lanka
C) Afghanistan
D) Myanmar
E) None
12. Myntra acquired which e-commerce portal?
A) Flipkart
B) Lifestyle
C) e- bay
D) Just buy
E) Jabong
13. e-marketplace web portal has been launched by which union ministry for goods procurement?
A) Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
B) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
C) Ministry of Commerce and Industry
D) Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
E) None of these
14. Which of the following Indian Bank have been listed in the 2016 Fortune 500 list of the world's biggest corporations in terms of revenue?
A) SBI Bank
B) ICICI Bank
C) UCO Bank
D) Yes Bank
E) Axis Bank
15. Which of the following country has declared three-month state of emergency after a failed military coup to overthrow the democratically elected government?
A) Singapore
B) Turkey
C) Nepal
D) Qatar
E) Mexico
16. Madeira international airport to be named after?
A) Radamel Falcao
B) Lionel Messi
C) Cristiano Ronaldo
D) Andres Iniesta
E) Sergio Ramos
17. Fedor Konyukhov, has broken the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth in a hot air balloon in just over 11 days. He belongs which of the following country?
A) Cuba
B) Russia
C) Cyprus
D) Brunei
E) Bahrain
18. Government to set up committee to tackle shortage of pulses headed by ....
A) Narendra Modi
B) Arun Jaitley
C) Rajnath Singh
D) Harsh Vardhan
E) Prakash Javadekar
19. Union Cabinet approves disinvestment of .......... percent in National Buildings
Construction Corporation Limited (NBCC).
A) 10%
B) 15%
C) 20%
D) 25%
E) 12.5%
20. India and Nepal launched bus service between two connecting which of the following famous cities?
A) New Delhi and Kathmandu
B) New Delhi and Birgunj
C) New Delhi and Biratnagar
D) New Delhi and Patan
E) New Delhi and Pokhara
21. Railways launch time-tabled Auto Express between which of the following cities?
A) Gurgaon to Nidvanda
B) Mumbai to New Delhi
C) Mumbai to Ahmedabad
D) Gurgaon to Mumbai
E) Ahmedabad to New Delhi
22. India's first green train corridor opens in ....
A) Andhra Pradesh
B) Maharashtra
C) Gujarat
D) Tamilnadu
E) Kerala
23. Who among the following named brand ambassador of the Craig McDermott International Cricket Academy in Australia?
A) Virat Kohli
B) MS Dhoni
C) Suresh Raina
D) Rohit Sharma
E) Shikar Dhawan
24. Who among the following is the highestpaid banker in India?
A) Chanda Kochhar
B) Aditya Puri
C) Shika Sharma
D) Sudarshan Sen
E) None
25. National Banana Research Centre to be set up in which state?
A) Tamilnadu
B) Kerala
C) Maharashtra
D) Karnataka
E) Bihar
26. India's first smart grid to setup in which of the following state?
A) Haryana
B) Gujarat
C) Rajasthan
D) Bihar
E) Sikkim
27. Microsoft introduced a new program aimed at growing Surface's footprint in the business called as ..........
A) Surface of motion
B) Surface as a platform
C) Surface as a service
D) Surface as a support
E) None
28. NASA is planned to give final design and construction of its next Mars Rover to be launched by which year?
A) 2019
B) 2020
C) 2017
D) 2018
E) 2022
29. Which country to conduct world's first Zika vaccine test on humans?
A) Thailand
B) Canada
C) France
D) China
E) South Korea
30. 9th edition of Indian Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Show to begin in which of the following city?
A) New Delhi
B) Mumbai
C) Bangalore
D) Hyderabad
E) Kolkata
31. A three-day meeting between Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has begun in......
A) Patna
B) Dispur
C) Hyderabad
D) Agartala
E) None
32. International Nelson Mandela Day is observed on which date?
A) July 28
B) July 17
C) July 18
D) July 15
E) July 22
33. Who won men's singles title of 2016 Wimbledon?
A) Andy Murrey
B) Rafael Nadal
C) Roger Federer
D) Novak Djokovic
E) Stan Wawrinka
34. World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) called which of the following country to be completely banned from the Rio Olympics and other international sport?
A) Russia
B) China
C) US
D) India
E) Srilanka
35. Which state to geo-tag irrigation projects with the help of NRSA, Icrisat?
A) Andhra Pradesh
B) Telangana
C) Tamilnadu
D) Kerala
E) Karnataka
Answers
1-E, 2-D , 3-D, 4-C, 5-A, 6-A, 7-C, 8-C, 9-D, 10-C
11-B, 12-E, 13-C, 14-A, 15-B, 16-C, 17-B, 18-B, 19-B, 20-E
21-A, 22-D, 23-B, 24-B, 25-E, 26-A, 27-C, 28-B, 29-B, 30-A
31-D, 32-C, 33-A, 34-A, 35-B
- 1. Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari sworn in as Chief Justice of .......... High Court.
A) Jaipur
B) Guwahati
C) Mumbai
D) Bhopal
E) Patna
2. Theresa May appointed Prime Minister of which of the following country?
A) France
B) Germany
C) Poland
D) United Kingdom
E) Brazil
3. Who won Ramon Magsaysay award for 2016?
A) T.M. Krishna
B) Bezwada Wilson
C) Arvind Kejriwal
D) Both A and B
E) None
4. Which states tourism won the gold at Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) awards?
A) Gujarat
B) Maharashtra
C) Kerala
D) Tamilnadu
E) Telangana
5. What is the maximum value of soiled currency notes which can be exchanged for free of charge?
A) 5000
B) 25000
C) 2000
D) 1000
E) None
6. Which of the following banks have become first Indian banks to join SWIFT's global payments innovation initiative?
A) ICICI Bank and Axis Bank
B) ICICI Bank and SBI
C) HDFC Bank and UCO Bank
D) SBI and Indian Bank
E) SBI and BOB
7. Who among the following will lead the Interregulatory Working Group on Fin Tech and Digital Banking?
A) N. Srinivasan
B) Sai Kumar
C) Sudarshan Sen
D) N.V. Swami
E) Bobby Jindal
8. Indian Railways has recently signed MoU with which of the following banks to promote rail ticketing?
A) ICICI Bank
B) UCO Bank
C) SBI Bank
D) Yes Bank
E) Axis Bank
9. "Who Moved My Interest Rate?" written by...
A) Ruskin Bond
B) Nayantara Sahgal
C) C. D. Deshmukh
D) Duvvuri Subbarao
E) Manmohan Singh
10. Amal Dutta has passed away recently he
belongs to which of the following sport?
A) Cricket
B) Hockey
C) Football
D) Chess
E) Golf
11. India has approved a $ 318 million loan for which country railways?
A) Nepal
B) Sri Lanka
C) Afghanistan
D) Myanmar
E) None
12. Myntra acquired which e-commerce portal?
A) Flipkart
B) Lifestyle
C) e- bay
D) Just buy
E) Jabong
13. e-marketplace web portal has been launched by which union ministry for goods procurement?
A) Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
B) Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
C) Ministry of Commerce and Industry
D) Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
E) None of these
14. Which of the following Indian Bank have been listed in the 2016 Fortune 500 list of the world's biggest corporations in terms of revenue?
A) SBI Bank
B) ICICI Bank
C) UCO Bank
D) Yes Bank
E) Axis Bank
15. Which of the following country has declared three-month state of emergency after a failed military coup to overthrow the democratically elected government?
A) Singapore
B) Turkey
C) Nepal
D) Qatar
E) Mexico
16. Madeira international airport to be named after?
A) Radamel Falcao
B) Lionel Messi
C) Cristiano Ronaldo
D) Andres Iniesta
E) Sergio Ramos
17. Fedor Konyukhov, has broken the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth in a hot air balloon in just over 11 days. He belongs which of the following country?
A) Cuba
B) Russia
C) Cyprus
D) Brunei
E) Bahrain
18. Government to set up committee to tackle shortage of pulses headed by ....
A) Narendra Modi
B) Arun Jaitley
C) Rajnath Singh
D) Harsh Vardhan
E) Prakash Javadekar
19. Union Cabinet approves disinvestment of .......... percent in National Buildings
Construction Corporation Limited (NBCC).
A) 10%
B) 15%
C) 20%
D) 25%
E) 12.5%
20. India and Nepal launched bus service between two connecting which of the following famous cities?
A) New Delhi and Kathmandu
B) New Delhi and Birgunj
C) New Delhi and Biratnagar
D) New Delhi and Patan
E) New Delhi and Pokhara
21. Railways launch time-tabled Auto Express between which of the following cities?
A) Gurgaon to Nidvanda
B) Mumbai to New Delhi
C) Mumbai to Ahmedabad
D) Gurgaon to Mumbai
E) Ahmedabad to New Delhi
22. India's first green train corridor opens in ....
A) Andhra Pradesh
B) Maharashtra
C) Gujarat
D) Tamilnadu
E) Kerala
23. Who among the following named brand ambassador of the Craig McDermott International Cricket Academy in Australia?
A) Virat Kohli
B) MS Dhoni
C) Suresh Raina
D) Rohit Sharma
E) Shikar Dhawan
24. Who among the following is the highestpaid banker in India?
A) Chanda Kochhar
B) Aditya Puri
C) Shika Sharma
D) Sudarshan Sen
E) None
25. National Banana Research Centre to be set up in which state?
A) Tamilnadu
B) Kerala
C) Maharashtra
D) Karnataka
E) Bihar
26. India's first smart grid to setup in which of the following state?
A) Haryana
B) Gujarat
C) Rajasthan
D) Bihar
E) Sikkim
27. Microsoft introduced a new program aimed at growing Surface's footprint in the business called as ..........
A) Surface of motion
B) Surface as a platform
C) Surface as a service
D) Surface as a support
E) None
28. NASA is planned to give final design and construction of its next Mars Rover to be launched by which year?
A) 2019
B) 2020
C) 2017
D) 2018
E) 2022
29. Which country to conduct world's first Zika vaccine test on humans?
A) Thailand
B) Canada
C) France
D) China
E) South Korea
30. 9th edition of Indian Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Show to begin in which of the following city?
A) New Delhi
B) Mumbai
C) Bangalore
D) Hyderabad
E) Kolkata
31. A three-day meeting between Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has begun in......
A) Patna
B) Dispur
C) Hyderabad
D) Agartala
E) None
32. International Nelson Mandela Day is observed on which date?
A) July 28
B) July 17
C) July 18
D) July 15
E) July 22
33. Who won men's singles title of 2016 Wimbledon?
A) Andy Murrey
B) Rafael Nadal
C) Roger Federer
D) Novak Djokovic
E) Stan Wawrinka
34. World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) called which of the following country to be completely banned from the Rio Olympics and other international sport?
A) Russia
B) China
C) US
D) India
E) Srilanka
35. Which state to geo-tag irrigation projects with the help of NRSA, Icrisat?
A) Andhra Pradesh
B) Telangana
C) Tamilnadu
D) Kerala
E) Karnataka
Answers
1-E, 2-D , 3-D, 4-C, 5-A, 6-A, 7-C, 8-C, 9-D, 10-C
11-B, 12-E, 13-C, 14-A, 15-B, 16-C, 17-B, 18-B, 19-B, 20-E
21-A, 22-D, 23-B, 24-B, 25-E, 26-A, 27-C, 28-B, 29-B, 30-A
31-D, 32-C, 33-A, 34-A, 35-B
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