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India
launches the logo for International Day of Yoga
India
> International
Day of Yoga
Months after UN declaration
of June 21 as 'International Day of Yoga', External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj and Minister of State for Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga &
Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) Shripad Yesso
Naik, together launched the logo for International Day of Yoga at New
Delhi. PM Narendra Modi's proposal to the UN regarding the same was
driven by India's aim to celebrate the day in all the 193 United
Nations (UN) member states. The logo reflects harmony and peace for
the humanity which is the essence of Yoga. Folding of both hands in
the logo symbolises Yoga, which reflects the union of individual
consciousness with that of universal consciousness. The brown leaves
in the logo symbolise the earth element, the green leaves the nature,
blue the fire element while the sun symbolises the source of energy
and inspiration
PNB
first to roll out Sukanya Samidhi Scheme
Banking
and Insurance > PNB
- Sukanya Samidhi Scheme
The
Sukanya Samidhi Scheme launched by the government in January this
year, has been rolled out by the Punjab National Bank (PNB), the
first bank to do so. The scheme is quite popular in the post offices,
which also have a provision for the scheme. More than 2 lakh accounts
have been opened in post offices since the scheme was launched.
Sukanya
Samriddhi Account (Girl Child Prosperity Account) is a special
deposit account under the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (Girl child
prosperity scheme) launched by the Prime Minister of India, Narendra
Modi, on 22 January 2015, with the stated aim of improving the
welfare of female children in India. The scheme is valid for girls
under the age of ten.
RBI
slaps 3 banks with a fine of 4.5 crores in FD fraud case
Banking
and Insurance > FD
Fraud Case
The
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) fined three public sector banks Dena
Bank, Bank of Maharashtra and Oriental Bank of Commerce with fines of
1.5 crore each after concluding its investigation for the fixed
deposit fraud last year. The central bank also warned 8 other banks
with respect to the same. The fraud involved forging of fixed deposit
certificates of large organizations and misusing cash credit
facilities against them. It affected various organisations like
Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority, South Indian
Education Society and Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust.
World
Press Freedom Day observed globally on 3rd May
Days
> World
Press Freedom Day
World Press Freedom Day was
observed in over 100 countries world over on the 3rd of May, 2015.
The day is celebrated to ensure better reporting, gender equality and
media safety. The theme for this year was 'let journalism thrive'
with an emphasis on the role of media in the digital age.
The idea of a 'world press
freedom day' was first proclaimed by the United Nations General
Assembly in the year 1993, since then it has been celebrated on the
3rd of May every year. The day also marks the anniversary of the
Declaration of Windhoek, a statement of free press principles put
together by African newspaper journalists in 1991.
Others
Novelist
Siddhartha Gigoo won 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Asia
region
World
> Commonwealth
short story prize
The
2015 “Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Asia region” went to
Srinagar-born novelist Siddhartha Gigoo for his work Umbrella
Man, a tale of surreal meditation on
mental health and the environment. An amount of 2500 pounds was
awarded to Gigoo as prize money. All the regional winners are set to
compete against one another for the 5000 pounds grand prize.
World
Dance Day celebrated on 29 April
Days
> World
Dance Day
With
an aim to attract the attention of the wider public to the art of
dance, World Dance Day or International Dance Day was observed
globally on 29 April 2015. Introduced in 1982 by the International
Dance Council (CID), on this day President of the CID annually sends
the official message for Dance Day which circulates in every country
around the world. India celebrates this day by paying tribute to all
the dance forms in a grand show at New Delhi.
Import
duty on sugar raised, excise tax on ethanol removed
India
> Taxation
The
central government increased import duty on sugar from 25% to 40% to
ensure clearing of arrears totalling more than Rs. 20,000 crore in
the sugar industry. The 12.36% excise duty levied on ethanol was also
removed. Ethanol is used to blend petrol and is derived from
sugar-cane molasses. Sugar producers need to pay government-set
prices for cane procured from farmers. The mills say that because of
a fall in sugar prices, they are unable to pay farmers. The move is
supposed to boost market sentiment.
China
– Confucius in the Shadows by Poonam Surie released
Books
> China
– Confucius in the Shadows
A
book titled “China – Confucius in the Shadows”, based on
China's most efficient author Confucius was released by Vice
President M. Hamid Ansari. The book is written by Poonam Surie. The
ideologies presented in the book could help the current political
regime deal with such problems as corruption and rising inequalities.
Union
Ministry gives recognition to Motors Sports under the National Sports
Federation
Sports
> Motor
Sports
On
23rd March, 2015 the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
included Motors Sports in the National Sports Federation (NSF), thus,
giving it official recognition as a sport. However, motor sports has
been included in the 'others' category by the ministry, which means
that no financial aid will be provided for the sport. The decision
came after a sports review, which is done for categorisation and
financial aid. A total of 59 sports are recognised by the ministry;
9 sports - Archery, Boxing, Weight Lifting, Wrestling, Tennis,
Shooting, Hockey, Badminton and Athletics are a part of the ‘High
Priority’ category, 23 sports disciplines are put under ‘Priority’
category and rest into the ‘Others’ category.
Floyd
Mayweather beats Manny Pacquiao to retain welterweight titles
Sports
> Boxing
The
much hyped fight held in Ls Vegas, Nevada, USA between boxing greats
Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao ended with Mayweather seizing
Pacquiao's World Boxing Organization (WBO) belt by winning the fight
based on a unanimous decision of judges. Mayweather is guaranteed at
least a $120 million payday from the title bout that had been dubbed
the "Fight of the Century". With this win, Mayweather
reached a total of 48 victories and said that his next fight in
September will be his last. Filipino star Pacquiao suffered the sixth
loss of his career to go with 57 victories and two draws. The fight
is widely believed to be the most lucrative in boxing history with
revenues of $400 million.
Roger
Federer wins first edition of the Istanbul Open
Sports
> Tennis
Roger
Federer won his 85th ATP World title after defeating world no. 3
Pablo Cuevas from Uruguay at the inaugural TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul
Open. Turkey became the 19th country where Federer has won an ATP
World title.
Mazen
Darwish honoured with 2015 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom
Prize
The
2015 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize was awarded to
Syrian journalist and rights activist Mazen Darwish on 3 May 2015. On
the eve of the World Press Freedom Day, the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) presented
the award in recognition of the work Darwish carried out in Syria for
more than ten years as a human rights defender and a journalist.
New
heavy vehicles told to install speed governors before Oct 1
India
>
Transportation
Heavy
vehicles such as trucks, buses, dumpers and mini buses will need to
install speed governors, which limit their speed to 80 km/hour before
the 1st of October, 2015, while, vehicles such as school buses,
dumpers and vehicles carrying hazardous goods will have a maximum
speed limit of 60 km/hour. The move comes as an attempt by the
government to reduce the number of casualties occurring due to
speeding heavy vehicles. However, heavy vehicles such as the ones
used by the police, fire department, ambulances and those having nine
passenger seats have been exempted of this rule. The deadline for
existing heavy vehicles to install speed governors is 1st April,
2016.
Demand
to raise criteria of 'creamy layer' from Rs. 6 lakhs to Rs. 10.5
lakhs
India
> Reservation
The
National Commission for Backward Classes has asked the central
government to raise the present criteria of 'creamy layer' OBC (other
backward class) candidates from the present Rs. 6 lakhs per annum to
Rs. 10.5 lakhs per annum. The 'creamy layer' separates the poor OBC's
from the well-off ones, who are ineligible for government
reservation. The commission has also demanded that the evaluation
criteria for selection be toned down to fill the 27% quota, which is
well short of the target.
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