Current Affairs for MBA exams (26th February - 04th March)

Starred Articles

Rail budget 2015 announced

India > Rail Budget > Feb 27

Indian Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu presented the Railway Budget 2015 on 27th February in the Parliament. The key highlights of the budget are:

1. Tickets can now be booked 120 days ahead of travel date, instead of 60 days now.
   
2. Rail-cum-road ticket to be extended to many stations; more trains to be added under scheme for ordering food while booking tickets.
   
3. Wi-Fi to be available at 400 railway stations.
   
4. SMS alert service to be introduced for arrivals and departures.
   
5. No increase in passenger fares.

SC status to be given to the person reconverted to Hinduism

Politics & Government > SC > Feb 27

Now a person who gets reconverted to Hinduism, provided he is accepted by fellow caste men and proves that either he or his forefathers previously belonged to that caste before embracing another religion, will be granted SC status. The bench comprising of justices of Apex court made this decision to restore the reservation benefits of the person if he was previously converted to some another religion. The caste certificate will be issued to people who fulfill all the conditions laid down by the Apex court.

Union Budget 2015-16 announced

Politics and Government > Union Budget > Feb 28

Union Budget 2015-16 was announced on 28th February 2015 by Finance Minister Arun Jaitely in the Parliament. The budget seeks to boost investment and ensure benefits of common man.

Following are the top takeaways from Jaitely's budget:

What got cheaper	What got costlier
Gold	Gems and Jewellery
Health Insurance	Telephone bills
Leather products	Imported mobile tablets
LPG	Cosmetics
Processed foods	AC bus travel
Microwave ovens	Cable TV
Ambulance services	Cigarette and tobacco items
Visit to museums, zoos and national parks	Hospital bills

Twitter employees get ISIS threats

World > Terrorism > Mar 02

The Twitter employees, specifically Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, have been given open threats for blocking the accounts associated with the group. With the aid of the UK’s counter-terrorism internet referral unit, Twitter has been shutting down ISIS related accounts, following in the footsteps on YouTube. The posting by the ISIS, called on ISIS sympathizers to attack the social media company and its "interests." Twitter said that it is investigating the authenticity of the threats.

Others

Mumbai University signs MoU with Indian Railways for Rail Innovation and Technology Centre

India > Education > Feb 26

Now students will be able to gain expertise in Railway Engineering, following a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Indian Railways and Mumbai University.

The key points of MoU include:

1. Kalina, Ratnagiri and Kalyan sub campuses will have practical training for candidates.
   
2. Mumbai University will provide education, distribution of facilities for higher education, effective administration and financial control.
   
3. Specialized courses at the Post Graduate level related to rail technology will be started by the university.
   
4. The five academic years at the centre will receive 142.89 crore rupees from the Indian Railways
   
5. This institute will help the Indian Railways in developing cutting-edge indigenous technologies and turn as a net exporter of such technologies.

Pan-India Mobile Number Portability now available across India

India > MNP > Feb 26

Telecom regulator has issued an order which will provide the facility of retaining the same mobile number on relocation to another geographical area. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), it has issued sixth amendment to the Telecommunication Mobile Number Portability Regulation, 2009, which will facilitate full Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in the country. Following this amendment, the users will be able to select any operator, on moving to a different location, while maintaining the same mobile number. At present, mobile subscribers can retain their current number only when they switch their service providers within the same service area. However, this move might be faced with implementation challenges.

Iraq fights to reclaim Tikrit from IS

World > Terrorism > Mar 03

Iraq has launched one of the largest operations against ISIS to retake Tikrit which has been under the captive of ISIS and the jihadists' main hub in Iraq. The jihadists have been retaliating the attack, making it difficult for Iraq to gain victory over them. The offensive is the biggest military operation in the province since the Sunni Islamist radicals captured parts of north Iraq last June and advanced towards the capital. According to military sources, warplanes were involved in the attack, excluding those of the US-led coalition fighting IS.

Maharashtra bans beef, 5 years jail, Rs 10,000 fine for possession or sale

Politics & Government > Ban on Beef > Mar 03

President Pranab Mukherjee has assented to the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Bill, 1995, which will enforce a ban on beef in Maharashtra. Earlier the slaughter of cows was prohibited in the state under the Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act of 1976. But now even killing of bulls as well as bullocks will not be allowed. Anyone found to be selling beef or in possession of it can be jailed for five years and fined Rs 10,000. This move is believed to hike the prices of other meats and will turn many people jobless.

Aadhar card to be added to voter list

India > Aadhar card > Mar 03

With a view to eliminate bogus voters, district administration has launched a drive to collect aadhar card numbers and link it to electoral rolls. The staff has been instructed to mention the Aadhar card number of the individuals against their name in the voter list. The voter ID card will have the aadhar number now.

PM puts Mufti controversy to rest

Politics & Government > Mufti Controversy > Mar 04

PM Modi finally gave his statement on the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed crediting Pakistan, Hurriyat and militants for smooth conduct of elections in the State, controversy. He put rest to the ongoing arguments in the Parliament on Mufti's statement. The opposition demanded PM's statement on the issue and a resolution condemning the CM's statement. PM Modi said that he does not support the statement. Following PM's statement, Mufti reiterated the stand of the government saying the credit for the smooth conduct of elections goes to the Election Commission, people, Army men, and paramilitary.

Largest-ever spectrum auction begins today

Corporate > Spectrum Auction > Mar 04

The much hyped 2G and 3G spectrum auction to commence today, with government expecting a collection of Rs 82,000. Most of the spectrum being put up for the auction is presently held by Airtel, Vodafone, Idea Cellular and Reliance Telecom. Since their licenses are about to expire, they will have to bid for spectrum to continue offering mobile and other telecom services. The government had collected Rs.62,162 crore from the last spectrum auction in February 2014 and is aiming for Rs 1 lakh crore this year. The second round of the coal auction also starts today.

RBI slashes repo rate by 25 basis points citing fiscal deficit issues

Economy > RBI > Mar 04

The RBI has decided to slash its repo rates by 25 basis points under the liquidity adjustment facility with immediate effect. RBI governor Raghuram Rajan cited the drop in the combined fiscal deficit resulting from the transfer of funds to the states, as the reason for the cut. He also said that the government has been transferring a significantly larger amount to the states, without entirely devolving responsibility for funding central programmes. The move comes less than a week after the Union Budget where finance minister Arun Jaitley announced the signing of a monetary policy framework where RBI has been given a flexible inflation target of 4% in the medium term.