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Four
Indian women make it to Forbes 2015 list
Corporate
> 100
Most Powerful Women > May 27
SBI chief Arundhati
Bhattacharya, ICICI Bank’s Chanda Kochhar, Biocon founder Kiran
Mazumdar-Shaw and HT Media chairperson Shobhana Bhartia are among the
four Indians to be listed in the Forbes 2015 list of the world’s
100 most powerful women. The list boasts of women belonging to
categories like entrepreneurs, visionary CEOs, politicians,
activists, pioneer philanthropists and pop stars“ranked by dollars,
media presence and impact”.
India
gets its first transgender college principal and a first college that
accepts transgender students
India
> First
Transgender College Principal > May 27
A decision taken by the
College Service Commission has led to India getting its first
transgender college principal. Manabi Bandopadhyay, who is currently
associate professor in Bengali at Vivekananda Satobarshiki
Mahavidyalaya, is set to take up the post of principal in Krishnagar
Women's College in West Bengal. Following in the same footsteps is
Jorhat College in Assam that will openly accept transgender and
atheist students from the coming academic year. Both the
announcements have been welcomed by all quarters.
India
will sign Information Sharing Agreement pact with the G20 on the 3rd
of June
India
> Foreign
Relations > May 27
India is all set to sign a
global agreement on Information Sharing with the G20 countries, which
will provide them access to data of bank accounts from across the
world, including tax havens, which refused to cooperate earlier.
However, under the agreement, India will be able to access
information only after 2017. India will also sign Foreign Account Tax
Compliance Act (FATCA) with the US, which will be effective from
September and is expected to result in additional data flow. Both the
agreements were supposed to be signed last year, but that could not
happen due to legal hindrances.
George
Yeo becomes new chancellor of Nalanda University
India
> Nalanda
University > May 30
Former foreign minister of
Singapore is all set to become the chancellor of Nalanda University,
a statement from the ministry of external affairs confirmed. He will
take over from Nobel laureate Amartya Sen who stepped down for a
second term at the university located in Bihar in February, 2015. Mr.
Yeo was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2012 for his contribution to the
field of public affairs, and is an integral part of the revival
mission for the ancient university.
'No
Tobacco Day' observed on May 31st
India
> No
Tobacco Day > May 31
World No Tobacco Day (WNTD)
was observed around the world on May 31. It is intended to encourage
a 24-hour period of abstinence from all forms of tobacco consumption
around the globe. Every year, the day is observed to draw attention
to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to negative health
effects, which currently lead to nearly 6 million deaths each year
worldwide, including 600,000 of which are the results of non-smokers
being exposed to second-hand smoke. In India, the day was marked by
various protests and demonstrations in the entire country. Silent
protests were organised in front of shops selling cigarettes, which
violated the rule of not selling tobacco within 100 yards of
educational institutions.
Others
17
Air India airhostesses suspended for delaying flights
India
> Aviation > May 28
In a bid to tame the
indiscipline, Air India recently suspended 17 airhostesses for
allegedly delaying flights. The airline had started monitoring its
crew with an aim to improve on time performance (OTP), following
which 272 cabin crew members were sacked for indiscipline. AI
witnessed sharp fall in OTP, which caused a lot of inconvenience for
flyers.
Oxford
University to get first female vice-chancellor
World
> Oxford
University > May 28
Professor Louise Richardson,
who is currently the principal and vice-chancellor of the University
of St Andrews, has been nominated to become the next vice-chancellor
of the illustrious University of Oxford. The university is comprised
of many individual colleges, many of which were either all-girls
colleges or all-boys colleges. By 2008 all colleges have started to
admit both men and women. The university at present has 11 women as
heads of houses, but it will be the first time a woman will become
the VC of the entire university.
PM's
'Housing for all by 2022' initiative to be launched in June
Politics
and Government >
Housing for all
by 2022 > May 28
The Modi government's most
ambitious initiative – 'Housing for all by 2022' is set to be
launched by the mid of June. The Urban and Rural Development
ministries have finalised their respective components for providing 6
crore houses - 2 crore in urban areas and 4 crore in rural areas. One
of the main components of the scheme is slum rehabilitation, through
which the government will acquire land from the slums and allow
developers to build towers where the slum dwellers and other people
can be relocated.
RBI
to introduce Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPI) for mass transport
system
Banking
and Insurance >
Prepaid Payment
Instruments (PPI) > May 28
The Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) has proposed to introduce prepaid payment instruments (PPI) for
mass transit system (MTS). The MTS operators will be able to issue
their own pre-paid cards and unlike the present system won’t have
to depend on tie-up with few banks to issue the cards. The PPI for
MTS will have a minimum validity of six months from the date of
issue. This initiative from RBI is towards making India a cash-less
society by helping the masses switch towards electronic modes of
payments.
S
Christopher becomes new DRDO chief
India
> Defence > May 29
Prominent scientist S
Christopher was on Friday, 29th May, 2015 appointed as the Director
General of the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) for a
term of two years. Another scientist from the organisation, GS Reddy,
was appointed as the scientific advisor to the defence minister. The
DRDO advises the government on scientific aspects of military
equipment and logistics and the formulation of research, design and
development plans for the equipment required by the three services of
Army, Air-force and Navy.
RBI
releases Draft Guidelines on Net Stable Funding Ratio for Banks
Banking
and Insurance >
NSFR for Banks > May 29
Draft Guidelines on Net
Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) under Basel III Framework on Liquidity
Standards for banks have been released by Reserve Bank of India on
its website. NSFR will ensure that banks maintain a stable funding
profile in relation to the composition of their assets and
off-balance sheet activities. The Reserve Bank proposes to make NSFR
applicable to banks in India from January 1, 2018.
International
Day of United Nations Peacekeepers observed on the 29th of May
Days
>
International Day
of UN Peacekeepers > May 30
The International Day of
United Nations Peacekeepers was observed globally on the 29th of May,
2015 with a theme of 'together for peace'. Various events were
organised across the globe to commemorate brave men and women who
have contributed towards establishing peace and security in the war
torn countries. The first such day was celebrated in 2003 after the
UN passed a resolution in its General Assembly. On this day every
year, the Dag Hammarskjold Medal is awarded posthumously to
peacekeepers, who lost their lives while serving in the cause of
peace.
A
book titled 'Ahmedabad : A City In The World' by Amrita Shah,
released
Books
> Ahmedabad
: A City In The World > May 30
A book titled 'Ahmedabad –
A City In The World' written by Amrita Shah was released on the 28th
of May, 2015. The book is a biography of the city of Ahmedabad and it
chronicles communal riots, the role of M.K. Gandhi, the demography of
the state and the past and current luminaries of the city amongst
others. The author was previously a columnist with the Indian Express
and also wrote Vikram Sarabhai's biography.
Book
titled Super Economies by Raghav Bahl released
Books
> Super
Economies > May 30
The book, “Super
Economies: America, India, China & the Future of the World”,
written by Raghav Bahl was published in May 2015. The book revolves
around the vastly changed nature of the world since the Cold War and
predicts what changes can be expected in the 21st centuary. At the
end of the book, Raghav Bahl concludes that in future the US, India
and China will come together against Islamic terrorism.
HDFC
bank features among the top 100 brands globally
Banking
and Insurance >
HDFC Bank > May 31
India's largest private
sector bank HDFC has featured among the top brands of the world along
with heavy weights like Apple, Google, Microsoft, IBM and Facebook.
The list compiled by Millward Brown, a global research agency, ranks
HDFC at the 74th position with a valuation of $14 billion. The list
is topped by Apple with a total valuation of $247 billion.
Abhinav
Bindra, Gurpreet Singh bag 2016 Rio Olympics quota
Sports
> Rio
Olympics > Jun 01
After securing sixth place
at Men's 10m Air Rifle final at the ISSF Shooting World Cup in
Munich, Abhinav Bindra became the fourth Indian shooter to win a
quota place for the Rio Olympics. The fifth Indian to win another
quota place was Commonwealth Games gold medalist Gurpreet Singh, who
finished fourth in10m air pistol event.
J.P.
Rajkhowa becomes new governor of Arunachal Pradesh
Politics
and Government >
Arunachal Pradesh
Governor > Jun 01
1968 batch IAS officer from
Assam, J.P. Rajkhowa, was sworn in as the governor of Arunachal
Pradesh. He has previously served as the chief secretary for the
state of Assam and will now replace Lt. General Nirbhay Sharma, who
will now serve as the governor of Mizoram.
Ameenah
Gurib-Fakim becomes Mauritius's first woman president designate
Politics
and Government >
Mauritius’
Woman President > Jun 01
World renowned scientist and
biologist Ameenah Gurib-Fakim became the first ever woman president
designate for the country of Mauritius. However, her appointment as
president is subject to an approval from the parliament, which is due
on Thursday. The opposition has already said that they will vote in
favour of Gurib-Fakim, which makes the approval a mere formality.
The
China Model, a book written by Daniel A. Bell, makes news
Books
> 'The
China Model > Jun 01
A book titled, 'The China
Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy' authored by
Daniel A. Bell explores the ideals and reality of the Chinese
political system. He mentions how China has managed to club the idea
of meritocracy and democracy, which have led to moral fulfilment and
also political stability.
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