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India
ranks 24th on the first Environmental Democracy Index
India
>
Environmental
Democracy Index > May 21
India
has managed to secure the 24th position out of a total of 70
countries in the world's first Environmental Democracy Index. The
index evaluates nations' progress in enacting laws to promote
transparency, accountability and citizen engagement in environmental
decision making. The index, which is topped by Lithuania, is a
powerful lever that will help governments to become more transparent
and allow ordinary citizens to advocate for more rights pertaining to
the environment.
India
emerges as the 2nd biggest shareholder of the Asian Infrastructure
Investment Bank
India
> Asian
Infrastructure Investment Bank > May 24
India has emerged as
the second biggest shareholder of the Asian Infrastructure Investment
Bank, which comprises of 57 countries. China is the leading
shareholder with 30.85% of the share followed by India with a 10.85%
share. The second position will allow India to play an active role in
making decisions related to investment in Asia. India will roughly
contribute around $11 billion towards the $100 billion share capital
of the bank.
Andhra
Pradesh to get Rs. 2500 crore loan from World Bank, Singapore
companies to transform new capital of Amravathi
India
> Andhra
Pradesh > May 26
The World Bank has
agreed to sanction a loan of Rs. 2,500 crore to Andhra Pradesh for
enhancing the power sector. The funding will boost power supply in
rural areas, smart cities and will also strengthen investments
including those for the new capital city of Amravathi, according to
the State Energy Conservation.
Meanwhile, the
government of Andhra Pradesh is set to hire companies from Singapore
to transform its new capital of Amravathi. The city will come up on
an area of over 270 sq km on the banks of river Krishna, it will also
have a green area of 79 sq km and a water network of 11.5 sq km.
Soaring
temperatures claim more than 1100 lives across the country
India
> Heat > May 27
Several states in the
country faced heat waves with temperatures soaring well above the 45
degree celsius mark. The worst affected states are that of Andhra
Pradesh and Telangana where 852 and 266 people have died
respectively. Andhra Pradesh witnessed a maximum temperature of 46.4
degree celsius, while that in Telangana was 45.6 degree celsius.
Apart from these two states, the states of Odisha, Jharkhand, Uttar
Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Rajasthan also witnessed
temperatures ranging between 42 and 45 degree celsius.
Others
PVR
set to acquire DLF's DT Cinemas
Corporate
> PVR
Cinemas > May 21
India's
largest multiplex operator PVR cinemas is reportedly in the process
of acquisition of the wholly-owned subsidiary of DLF, DT Cinemas. The
deal is likely to value DLF at about Rs 500 crore. A debt of about Rs
20,500 crore has compelled DLF to exit from DT Cinemas business. Both
the parties are likely to approach the Competition Commission of
India (CCI) for in-principle approval as PVR Cinemas is the market
leader. However, neither of them has commented on the market
speculations.
SBI
ties up with Snapdeal, PayPal in a single day
Corporate
> SBI > May 21
Just
a day after joining hands with Amazon to develop payment solutions
for customers and small businesses, SBI has signed MoUs with Snapdeal
and PayPal. The deal with Paypal will allow SBI debit card holders to
use a digital payment gateway for buying products from foreign
websites and also enable micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME)
customers to access a secure payment solution. Its second deal with
Snapdeal will allow SBI to provide finance to the sellers who sell
products on the e-commerce platform. Both the deals are targeted to
boost micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) businesses. SBI
hopes to fufill the Prime Minister's dream of `Make in India' and
digital India through such deals.
Saina
Nehwal regains top spot in World Badminton rankings
Sports
> Badminton > May 21
Indian
badminton player Saina Nehwal regained the number one spot in
rankings after temporarily slipping from the position last month. The
female ace shuttler had reached the top of the rankings early last
month on the virtue of a grand slam victory, which she subsequently
lost due to ranking fluctuations. But, the Olympic bronze medalist
regained the coveted spot to go as the top ranked player into the
Australian Open, starting on the 26th of May, 2015.
Mohan
Kumar appointed as the new defence secretary
India
> Defence > May 22
1979
batch IAS officer from Odisha, G Mohan Kumar is all set to become the
new defence secretary of India, after incumbent R K Mathur's
retirement. Kumar was the front runner for the post as he was a
pivotal member of the PM's 'Make in India' campaign of which defence
was a vital cog. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet also
appointed Ashok Kumar Gupta, a 1981 batch Tamil Nadu officer, as the
new secretary of defence production, who will eventually succeed
Mohan Kumar.
Tourists
from China, Japan may get to use ATMs here
Banking
and Insurance >
ATMs > May 22
Reserve
Bank of India-promoted NPCI has entered into an agreement with
China Union Pay and Japan Credit Bureau in order to
enable Chinese and Japanese tourists in India to use local ATM
and point of sale terminals. Apart from the international debit card
to be launched next month, the National Payments and Settlement
Corporation of India (NPCI) is also readying to launch credit cards
and implement the Bharat Bill Payment system to facilitate cashless
transactions.
Jayalalithaa
sworn-in as Tamil Nadu CM for the fifth time
Politics
and Government >
Jayalalithaa > May 22
The 'caretaker CM' of Tamil
Nadu O Panneerselvam handed over his resignation to Governor K
Rosiah, making way for AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa to take over the
position of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. Jayalalithaa was swornin
for a fifth time as chief-minister of Tamil Nadu on 23rd May, 2015.
In
September last year, Jayalalitha was disqualified as MLA and had to
step down as CM after a Bengaluru special court convicted her and
three others in a disproportionate assets case and sentenced them to
five years' imprisonment. Following this, Panneerselvam stepped in
and served a brief eight-month term as CM. On May, 11, 2015, the
Karnataka High Court acquitted Jayalaithaa in the case and prompted
her return as CM.
Sierra
Leone marks one year of Ebola
World
> Ebola > May 25
One
of the most affected countries of the deadly Ebola virus – Sierra
Leone, marked one year of the inception of the disease on the 24th of
May, 2015. Ebola has killed more than 11,000 people since it emerged
in southern Guinea in December 2013, spreading first to Liberia and
then to Sierra Leone where it has killed approximately 4,000 people
till date. The virus is highly infectious and spreads through contact
of bodily fluids of infected people. Liberia, which saw the most
deaths, gave the world hope when it was able to declare that it had
eradicated Ebola earlier this month
In
the aftermath of the Nepal quake, India rescues children from
traffickers
World
> Nepal
Quake > May 25
Indian
authorities rescued more than 20 children who lost their families in
the recent earth quake in Nepal from human traffickers. The rescued
children have been sent to government rehabilitation centres. Most of
them belonged to Indian migrant families, who did odd labour jobs in
Nepal, and were returning after the earthquake. The police have
arrested 4 traffickers so far and are scanning for more such people
who managed to flee.
Snapdeal
acquires MartMobi to strengthen mobility platform for sellers
Corporate
> Snapdeal > May 25
With
a view to strengthen its mobility platform for merchant partners,
e-commerce major Snapdeal bought Hyderabad-based mobile technology
startup, MartMobi in yet another buyout. The increase in the
percentage of orders coming from mobile-based devices led snapdeal to
make a deal with MartMobi known for creating mobile sites and apps
for e-commerce stores, small and medium-sized businesses. Snapdeal
has been on an acquisition spree, beefing up its presence as it takes
on players like Flipkart and Amazon in the Indian e-commerce
industry.
David
Cameron and Vladmir Putin join hands to stop Islamic State
World
> Islamic
State > May 25
Russian
President Vladimir Putin and UK Prime Minister David Cameron have
agreed to work together in order to help stop the rise of Islamic
State. The two nations have decided to revive the talks which had
failed in the past over Mr. Putin's continued support for Bashar
al-Assad, the Syrian dictator.UK and Russia had worked successfully
together on the Iranian nuclear issue and now hope to work together
on matters of mutual interest in the years ahead.
Mumbai
Indians beat Chennai Super Kings to win IPL 2015
Sports
> IPL
2015 > May 25
Mumbai
Indians won IPL-8 by defeating Chennai Super Kings at the Eden
Gardens, Kolkata. While MI scored 202/5, the second-highest score in
an IPL final, CSK laboured to 161/8 in their 20 overs, falling short
by 41 runs. MI thus joined Kolkata Knight Riders and CSK to become
the third team to win the IPL twice. In a surprisingly similar
scenario, Mumbai Indians had beaten CSK in the final at Eden Gardens
to the win the IPL in 2013.
Malaysian
police find 139 migrant bodies buried underground
World
> Malaysia
Migrant Deaths > May 26
The
Malaysian police have found 139 migrant bodies buried at 28 camps on
the Malaysia-China border. The sites have provided evidence that the
migrants were held captive. The bodies have been sent for post mortem
analysis to determine the cause of death.
Make
in India: Adani group may foray into defence manufacturing
India
> Make
in India > May 26
Gujrat-based
Adani group is the latest to join the queue of Indian MNCs trying to
enter the defence manufacturing industry hoping to benefit from PM
Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative. The group, which owns the
largest port and SEZ in the country at Mundra, is said to be keen on
utilising the same to set up a defence and aerospace manufacturing
zone that would be well-connected by sea and land. A clutch of Adani
executives has been meeting representatives of large overseas defence
companies to explore tie-ups for manufacturing a range of defence
equipment.
Sri
Lanka declines India's fishing proposal
World
> Sri
Lanka > May 26
India's
proposal to allow its fishermen to catch fish in Lankan waters for 65
days a year has been rejected by Sri Lanka's Fisheries Minister
Mahinda Amaraweera. The issue is quite sensitive as it involves
livelihood and humanitarian concerns on both sides and has been
disputed for long. A long-term solution is awaited. The fisherman's
issue was discussed by Narendra Modi during his recent visit to Sri
Lanka.
Sangakkara
named CEAT International Cricketer of the Year; Rahane is Indian
Cricketer of the Year
Sports
> Cricket > May 26
India's
Ajinkya Rahane won the CEAT Indian Cricketer of the Year award while
former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara won the International
Cricketer of the Year honour at a ceremony organised on May 25. Kapil
Dev was conferred with the International Lifetime Achievement Award
at the 19th edition of the CEAT awards. The awards honoured the best
of cricketers based on their performances in international cricketing
in all formats - Test, ODI and T20 - as rated by the CEAT Cricket
ratings (CCR) for the year 2014 – 2015.
Yash
Birla among five Indian nationals with Swiss bank accounts
India
> Black Money > May 27
The names of five “Indian
nationals” were published in Switzerland’s Federal Gazette with
regard to details sought about them by the Indian authorities.
Industrialist Yashovardhan Birla, City Limousine chairman Sayed
Mohamed Masood and his wife Chand Kauser Mohamed Masood are among the
five Indian nationals whose names featured in the list. However, Yash
Birla Group denies having an individual account in Yash Birla's name
in the Swiss bank. Earlier also, when Birla's name had come out in a
leaked HSBC list of Swiss bank accounts, he had declined to comment
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