Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Starred Articles

PM Modi launches smart cities mission to urbanise India
Politics and Government > Policy Making > Jun 26
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched three schemes to urbanise India, which are - Smart Cities Mission, Housing for All by 2022 and the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and will cost a total of Rs. 4 lakh crore. Under 'Housing for All by 2022', the government plans to build 20 million homes for the urban poor by the time Indian completes its 75 years of independence in 2022. Under the AMRUT scheme the government will develop effective plans to facilitate the growth of a city and the SMART City scheme will help in developing new cities in order to cater the needs of a growing urban population.

International Day against drug abuse and illicit trafficking observed globally
Important Days > Fight Against Drugs > Jun 26
The International Day against drug abuse and illicit trafficking was observed throughout the world on the 26th of June, 2015 with the theme for the year being 'Let’s Develop our Lives, our Communities, our identities without Drugs. The day is celebrated every year by the United Nations to fight drugs and illegal trafficking with a new theme for each year. The day was first observed on the 7th of December, 1987.

US Supreme Court rules gay marriage is legal nationwide
World > US > Jun 27
In a historic ruling, the justice of US Supreme Court declared same-sex marriage legal across the United States. President Barack Obama termed the ruling as "victory for America". While a majority of the population welcomed the decision with cheers, Christian conservatives and anti-gay marriage advocacy group condemned it. The ruling brings to an end more than a decade of bitter legal battles with 14 states having to lift the bans on same-sex marriage.

Terrorist attacks in France, Tunisia and Kuwait kills dozens
World > Terrorism > Jun 27
Militants carried out attacks in three different countries in a span of hours that killed a number of civilians. The first attack was carried out in France, where a man stormed an American-owned chemical plant, decapitated one person and apparently tried to blow up the facility. In Tunisia, a single gunman managed to killed at least 38 people with an assault rifle at a beach resort. While the third attack was carried out in Kuwait where a suicide bomber blew himself up and killed 27 Shiite worshippers inside the Imam Sadiq Mosque.in the capital Kuwait City The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attacks in Tunisia and Kuwait and the attack was a first one to be committed against the Shiite community in Kuwait.

Others

Centre gives clearance to a slew of projects
Politics and Government > Policy Making > Jun 24
The Central Government gave clearance to some significant projects on the 24th of June, 2015. These include:
  • Approval for the revised cost estimate of Rs. 81,459 crore for the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) Project, which will pass through will pass through Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan.
  • Approval to set up six new Indian Institutes of Managements (IIMs) at Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Bodh Gaya (Bihar), Sirmaur (Himachal Pradesh), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Sambalpur (Odisha) and Amritsar (Punjab).
  • Clearance to Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to apply to the Registrar of Companies for converting it into a Section 3 company under the Companies Act, 2013 which will allow it to own solar power plants and generate and sell power, including manufacturing of solar products and materials.
  • Increased cooperation with Japan in order to boost bilateral trade capacity building, human resource development and awareness generation.
  • Renewal of contract with Japanese and South Korean steel mills to supply them high grade Indian ore, for a period of three years.

Deadline to exchange pre-2005 currency notes extended till December 31
Banking and Insurance > RBI > Jun 25
Pre-2005 currency notes will remain legal till December 31. The decision was taken after RBI learned that a majority of the old banknotes have been withdrawn through various bank branches. Last December RBI had urged citizens to deposit the old designed currency notes in their bank accounts or exchange them at a bank branch convenient to them. The new notes have modern security features aimed at checking counterfeit notes in the system.

Maneka Gandhi Launches First Modernised Anganwadi Centre in Sonepat
Politics and Government > Anganwadi Centre > Jun 25
India's first modernized anganwadi centre has been launched in Sonepat which is expected to change the face of government's 40-year-old children and women-oriented scheme. The Sonepat facility, is part of Central government's Nand-Ghar Yojna that aims at equipping the anganwadi centers with latest facilities. The modernized centre inaugrated by Union Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi will be replicated at 4,000 other places.

PM Narendra Modi to launch Digital India programme on July 1
Politics and Government > Government Programmes > Jun 25
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to present the government's roadmap for digitising India with the launch of ambitious 'Digital India' programme on July 1 in the presence of top industry leaders like Mukesh Ambani, Satya Nadella, Cyrus Mistry and Azim Premji. In a step towards transforming the country into a digitally empowered nation, the corporate leaders will provide their investment plans for the sector. The programme includes projects that aim to ensure that government services are available to citizens electronically and people get benefit of the latest information and communication technology.

Celkon Launches Its First Mobile Manufacturing Plant in Telangana
Corporate > Gadgets > Jun 26
Celkon has launched its first manufacturing facility in Telangana Medchal Industrial Estate. With four production lines, the manufacturing unit will deliver 200,000 units per month. The International Standard Organisation certified facility will manufacture mostly feature phones and the rest will be smartphones. The Indian mobile phones-maker's move of starting its manufacturing operations in India marks its participation in Central Government's 'Make in India' initiative.

Centre: 50th anniversary of 1965 war to be a mega event
India > Centre > Jun 26
The 50th anniversary of the 1965 India-Pakistan war that was conducted under Lal Bahadur Shastri's premiership will see a grand celebration arranged by the Central government. According to the commemoration plan, the Centre is likely to order tableaux, public discussions and film shows in the Capital. Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to be working on his strategy to appropriate non-Gandhi family stalwarts of Congress, in line with the recent celebration of B R Ambedkar as well as the construction of a memorial for former Congress PM PV Narasimha Rao. The Centre has also commissioned a memorial for Jai Prakash Narayan, who is known for his anti-Congress movement.

Anshula Kant appointed as the CFO and Deputy Managing Director of SBI
Banking and Insurance > Others > Jun 26
Anshula Kant was appointed as the Deputy Managing Director and the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the State Bank of India (SBI) on the 25th of June, 2015. She will now succeed PK Gupta who is now set to become the CEO of SBI capital. Anshula Kant previously headed the Mumbai circle of of the SBI as the Chief General Manager, which also handled the operations for the State of Goa and the Districts of Pune, Solapur, Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara, Nashik, Ahmadnagar, Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri in the State of Maharashtra.

High profile Indian diplomat in New Zealand quits job after wife accused of assault
India > Others > Jun 27
Indian High commissioner to New Zealand Ravi Thapar resigned from his post after his wife was accused of assault charges by a member of their kitchen staff. The staff member has alleged that he was kept in slavery, Ravi Thapar has however, denied all the allegations. He has now joined the list of disgraced Indian diplomats accused for mistreatment of their staff, the most prominent being the Devyani Khobragade incident in 2013 in the US.

Study reveals Indian Railways, Army are among world's biggest employers
India > World Economic Forum > Jun 28
With a cumulative workforce of 2.7 million people, two Indian organisations - Army and Railways – have been ranked among the world's biggest employers. According to a research published by the World Economic Forum, the Indian Railways stands at eighth position in the list of world's biggest employers followed by the Indian Armed Forces. The list was topped by the US Department of Defense which claims over 3.2 million employees on its roster.

Transcendence: My Spiritual Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji written by Abdul Kalam
Books > Released > Jun 29
The book titled Transcendence: My Spiritual Experiences with Pramukh Swamiji written by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and Arun Tiwari was released on 15 June 2015. In the book, the authors Dr Kalam and Arun Tiwari have depicted a journey of self-realization reflected in the eyes of Pramukh Swamiji, painting a delightful fusion of spirituality, science and leadership. Transcendence captures the spiritual essence of all religions and is as much a fountain of inspiration and a treasury of wisdom as it is a tribute to the multi-faith Indian society.

Multiple agreements, including DTAT signed between India and Thailand
India > Treaties > Jun 29
In the 7th meeting of the India-Thailand Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation, co-chaired by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, a number of agreements were signed between the two nations. Among the biggest agreements signed includes double taxation avoidance treaty which provides for the framework to avoid double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes so as to promote bilateral economic cooperation. They also exchanged instruments of ratification on the extradition treaty inked in 2013, which provides for the legal framework for seeking extradition of fugitive offenders.





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