Modi takes charge as PM
I.Prime Minister Narendra Modi took charge early in the morning.
II.After reaching South Block office at 8 a.m., he started his day by offering flowers to the photograph of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi. Then he signed a set of flies and got briefing from senior PMO officials.
III.Modi will really have a busy first day as he will meet all the eight visting dignitaries who accepted his invitation for the swearing-in ceremony. These series of meetings will end around 1.30 p.m.
IV.Later in the evening, he will chair the first Cabinet meeting. The meeting is expected to take a decision on the dates for opening Parliament session, besides others.
Master Blaster calls his football franchise as Kerala Blasters
I.Kerala Blasters – this is the name that the Master Blaster has chosen for the Kochi franchise of the Indian Football Super League that he co-owns.
II.Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy together announced the name to newspersons here this afternoon.
III.‘Kerala Blasters Football Club’ is the expanded nomenclature. Earlier, Tendulkar met with the Chief Minister at the State Secretariat and held discussions.
IV.Tendulkar has also accepted the Chief Minister’s request for being the Goodwill Ambassador for the 35th edition of the National Games scheduled to be held in the State early next year.
V.He said this was a great honour for him and the gesture was highly appreciated.
VI.Tendulkar also called on Leader of the Opposition VS Achuthanandan who praised his efforts to promote football after having a terrific stint with cricket.
VII.Speaking to newspersons, Tendulkar said that the Kochi franchise of the India Football Super League intended to provide international training to 1.25 lakh youngsters selected from the State.
VIII.Though he played cricket, he had a passion for all other team games such as hockey and football. Just as in the case of West Bengal, he found in Kerala a fountainhead of talent and passion for football.
IX.He thanked the people of Kerala for the enormous show of love and concern for him. He sought their support and blessings for the Kerala Blasters Club.
Russia puts satellite in orbit from sea platform
I.Russia has sent a French communications satellite into orbit from a floating platform in the Pacific Ocean after the last launch in 2013 ended with the satellite plunging into the sea.
II.The Zenit-3SL rocket blasted off at 2209 GMT yesterday and reached its orbit around an hour later, said the Sea Launch international consortium, 95 per cent of which is controlled by Russia.
III.Boeing of the US and Norway’s Aker ASA indirectly control 5 per cent of the company, created in 1995.
IV.Sea Launch has been using the deep-sea platform to perform commercial operations since 1999.
V.The last launch on February 1, 2013 failed, with the Zenit rocket — made from parts produced both in Ukraine and Russia — falling into the sea without managing to put a US Intelsat satellite into orbit.
VI.The last planned launch of a Eutelsat 3B built by Airbus Defence and Space had been postponed from April 16 due to fresh technical problems.
VII.Russia in recent years has experienced a series of embarrassing failures in the space sphere, leading to the loss of numerous satellites and other equipment.
VIII.Earlier this month, a Proton rocket carrying a European satellite fell to Earth less than 10 minutes after it was launched at Russia’s Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Malaysia releases raw satellite data on missing Flight MH370
I.Malaysia today released raw satellite data used to determine the path of the missing Flight MH370, over two months after relatives of 239 people, including five Indians, aboard the plane demanded that it be made public.
II.Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation released 47 pages of raw data obtained from British satellite firm Inmarsat which was used to determine the path of the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 that mysteriously vanished on March 8.
III.The document contains hundreds of lines of highly technical communication logs between the jetliner and Inmarsat’s satellite system.
IV.The data released includes the hourly “handshakes” between the plane and a communications satellite that led investigators to conclude that Flight MH370 ended its journey far off Australia in the southern Indian Ocean.
India may soon overtake China to become world diabetes capital
I.Last November, around one lakh residents in Mumbai were screened for diabetes by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Of them, approximately12 per cent who were diagnosed with diabetes were unaware of their illness, reveals the BMC initiative, which was organised along with Johnson and Johnson, the diversified drugs and devices-maker.
II.It is this “silent” diabetic population emerging in random screenings in different States that has experts worried. Left unchecked, India could surpass China and become home to the largest number of diabetics in the world, they caution, despite 20-year projections pegging India as behind China.
III.India and China account for almost half the global incidence of diabetes, says Sushobhan Dasgupta, Managing Director, J&J Medical India and Vice-President, Diabetes Care Asia Pacific.
IV.Going by how the numbers stack up over 20 years, India could be the country to have the world’s largest diabetic population, given the low awareness, among other things, he observes.
Nitin Gadkari may take charge as Highways and Shipping Min
I.Senior BJP leader and former Party president Nitin Jairam Gadkari who is the new minister for Road Transport & Highways (RTH) and Shipping in the Narendra Modi government may not assume office today.
II.“Gadkari, has plans to fly to Nagpur this afternoon and may not take charge today,” a source said.
III.“Most likely Gadkari will take charge tomorrow as he has to go to Nagpur,” a RTH Ministry official said.
IV.An aide of Gadkari too said that there were chances that he may not take charge today.
V.Gadkari, a key member of Modi’s core group who earned the distinction of being the youngest BJP president has been assigned the crucial RTH and Shipping Ministry portfolio.
VI.Earlier, the two ministries were held by different ministers.
VII.Known as an able administrator with innovative approaches he faces the challenges of reviving the road sector which has projects worth at least ₹1.5 lakh crore stalled on account of various regulatory hurdles.
AP police arrest Amway India CEO
I.Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Amway India William S Pinckney has been arrested by Andhra Pradesh police.
II.A police team from Kurnool took the Amway chief into custody in Gurgaon, the company's corporate headquarters on Monday evening. He was brought to the Kurnool town and produced before a magistrate as well as the local media this morning.
Current account deficit narrows to 0.2% of GDP in March quarter
In what comes as good tidings for the newly sworn in Narendra Modi Government, India’s current account deficit fell sharply to $1.2 billion, or to a mere 0.2 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), in the fourth quarter of 2013-14. CAD was pegged at $18.1 billion, or at 3.6 per cent of GDP, in the same quarter of the pervious fiscal.
Key indicator
I.Current account deficit (CAD), a key indicator of a country’s external vulnerability, occurs when a country’s total imports of goods, services and transfers are greater than exports.
II.A widening CAD usually exerts downward pressure on the domestic currency, making imports costlier. This is a cause for concern for the Government as costly crude oil imports have inflationary impact. “The lower CAD was primarily on account of a decline in the trade deficit as decline in imports was sharper than that in exports,” the RBI said in a statement.
III.The previous Government had taken a number of steps to control the galloping CAD.
IV.One of the key measures was to put several impediments on the import of gold. This had the desired effect as CAD more than halved to $32.3 billion for the financial year ended March 31, 2014.
V.On the trade deficit front, the RBI said the recovery in exports and the import moderation led to a sharp recovery in the gap to $147.6 billion in FY14 as against the $195.7 billion in FY13.The net inflows declined to $48.8 billion during the just-concluded fiscal, against $89 billion in the previous fiscal, the RBI said, attributing this to lower foreign direct investment flows, net repayment of loans and trade credit and advances.
VI.Meanwhile, the balance of payment (BoP) sharply jumped to $7.05 billion in the fourth quarter of 2013-14 from $2.68 billion in the same period in 2012-13, RBI data showed.
VII.However, on a quarter-on-quarter basis, it massively shrunk from $19.103 billion in the December quarter due to a massive easing in the capital account in the period, the RBI data said.
VIII.For the full year, the BoP stood at $15.459 billion up from $3.83 billion in FY13.
Banks are duty bound to give a copy of banking codes to every customer
I."Be aware of your rights and demand them. Banks are duty bound to give a copy of banking codes to every customer. So don't allow it to gather dust,'' Chairman of Banking Codes and Standards Board of India A C Mahajan has said.
II.Urging customers to force banks improve customer service and not suffer silently, he said: ''The codes takes care of 70 to 80 per cent of customer-related activity. The objective of such an exercise is to promote fair banking practices, increase transparency and above all promote and foster customers' confidence in the banking system. Our study shows that the compliance of the codes is just around 60 per cent. We therefore urge you to seek your rights and force banks improve customer service.''
III.Mr Mahajan was addressing a Banking Codes and Standards Board of India (BCSBI) Customer Meet at Rathna Residency in Coimbatore.
IV.Bankers in the city were invited to attend this meeting along with select customers. It is an exercise to spread awareness about customers' right and ensure transparency in banking services, the speakers said.
V.Interestingly, when Mr Mahajan sought to understand how many of the invitees were in receipt of a copy of the codes, not more than 40 raised their hands. The BCSBI Chairman immediately put the number to the bank representatives present at the event, and urged the customers to demand a copy of the same.
India's CAD to rise to 2.6% of GDP in FY15: Goldman
I.India's current account deficit for the first quarter of 2014 improved to 0.2 per cent of GDP at $1.2billion, compared to $4.2billion (0.9 per cent of GDP) in the previous quarter. This was the lowest quarterly reading on the current account deficit since Q1 2009, according to the latest report by US-based investment bank Goldman Sachs. In seasonally adjusted terms, current account deficit was 0.4 per cent of GDP compared to 0.8 per cent of GDP last quarter.
II.“This improvement was largely in line with our expectation of a current account in balance in the March quarter and was driven by a continued reduction in the trade deficit due to a relatively larger decline in imports compared to exports,” said the Goldman Sachs report.
III.Capital inflows moderated to $9.2 billion, due to lower FDI inflows and reduction in non-resident deposits after the expiry of the RBI dollar swap facility in November last year.
IV.For FY14, the average current account deficit was 1.7 per cent of GDP against 4.7 per cent of GDP in FY13 mainly due to a sharp contraction in imports, the report pointed.
V.“We expect the current account deficit to rise gradually in FY15 to 2.6 per cent of GDP due to a gradual increase in imports on better domestic demand as well as some relaxation in gold import restrictions by the new government,” added the report.
VI.On the currency front, Goldman Sachs expects some appreciation pressure on the rupee in the near term from greater portfolio flows and a Balance of Payment surplus.
Srei Infrastructure Fin among 3 NBFCs allowed to set up white label ATMs
I.The RBI on Monday authorised Srei Infrastructure Finance among three non-banking financial companies to set up White Label ATMs (WLAs) in the country.
II.WLAs are ATMs that are owned and operated by non-banking entities. Most of the ATMs in India are owned and operated by banks.
III.Bangalore-based BTI Payments Private Ltd and Mumbai-based RiddiSiddhi Bullions Ltd are the two other entities to be authorised to operate such ATMs.
IV.This is in addition to the four entities already authorised to operate WLAs, namely Tata Communications Payment Solutions Ltd, Mumbai, Prizm Payment Services Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, Muthoot Finance Ltd, Kochi and Vakrangee Ltd, Mumbai.
V.In June 2012 the RBI had issued policy guidelines permitting non-bank entities to set up and operate WLAs in the country after seeking authorisation under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. Till then only banks were permitted to set up and operate ATMs in India.
J.P. Morgan launches market interactive app
I.J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) launched its J.P. Morgan Insights App in Asia. The app is a market-focused interactive digital tool aimed at the investment consultant community and end-investors. It provides clients with personalised access to JPMAM’s library of multimedia resources and intellectual capital across all major asset classes, markets and investment themes worldwide.
II.One of the key features of this app is the interactive guide to the markets in Asia, featuring talking-points and audio commentary from JPMAM’s global strategy team and offering users the ability to save and rearrange their favourite slides to share with their clients.
III.According to company statement the English language version of the app is being rolled-out in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, India and Korea. In addition, the Japanese language version is being rolled-out in Japan. In the coming months, the app will be launched in Chinese and Korean languages. Also, JPMAM is planning to roll out the app in Australia and China in the near future.
IV.“The app helps investment consultants and their clients make sense of the markets and better understand what is happening to their investments. It provides immediate access to clear, concise, factual and unbiased content –all delivered through an interactive iPad application,” said Jed Laskowitz, Chief Executive Officer, Asia Pacific, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
V.“The App represents an important step in our ongoing commitment to deliver the insights and facts needed to make well-informed investment decisions.” added Laskowitz.
Narendra Modi clubs 17 ministries under 7 ministers
I.In a restructuring of his Cabinet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today combined 17 related ministries into seven different groups, including some infrastructure departments, in an apparent bid to ensure synergy and better results.
II.First the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, created in UPA-II, has been brought together with External Affairs Ministry under Sushma Swaraj, while Corporate Affairs has been brought back to Finance under Arun Jaitley.
III.In infrastructure sector, the Prime Minister has combined Road Transport and Highways and Shipping under the Ministry to be headed by Nitin Gadkari, who had made a name for himself by adopting an innovative approach in expanding road transport network and bridges in Maharashtra when he was a minister there in BJP-Shiv Sena Government.
IV.Another important infrastructure combination is bringing together Power, Coal and New and Renewable Energy under the independent charge of Minister of State Piyush Goyal. These used to be separate ministries with Cabinet ministers in-charge in the previous UPA governments.
V.Related ministries of Urban Development, Housing and Poverty Alleviation have been placed under the charge of M Venkaiah Naidu, while Rural Development, Panchayat Raj and Drinking Water and Sanitation have been grouped together under the charge of Gopinath Munde.
VI.In another minor combination of ministries, Goa’s Shripad Naik has been given charge of Culture and Tourism as Minister of State with independent charge.
VII.However, this is not the first time that ministries have been brought together for the purpose of efficiency and homogeneity.
VIII.Late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi brought together the infrastructure department of Railways, Shipping and Civil Aviation under one combined Ministry of Transport headed by late Bansi Lal. He had three Ministers of States to help him.
IX.Gandhi also clubbed education, culture and women and child development under the Ministry of Human Resources Development under late P V Narasimha Rao. The HRD ministry was created for the first time then.
X.Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee during his tenure had brought Information Technology and Communication under one umbrella, while his successor Manmohan Singh had brought together Surface Transport and Shipping.
List of Cabinet ministers & their portfolios
List of Cabinet ministers with portfolios:
1. Rajnath Singh - Home Affairs
2. Sushma Swaraj - External Affairs, Overseas Indian Affairs
3. Arun Jaitley - Finance, Corporate Affairs, Defence
4. M. Venkaiah Naidu - Urban Development, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Parliamentary Affairs
5. Nitin Jairam Gadkari - Road Transport and Highways, Shipping
6. D.V. Sadananda Gowda - Railways
7. Sushri Uma Bharati - Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
8. Dr. Najma A. Heptulla - Minority Affairs
9. Gopinathrao Munde - Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Drinking Water and Sanitation
10. Ramvilas Paswan - Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
11. Kalraj Mishra - Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
12. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi - Women and Child Development
13. Ananthkumar - Chemicals and Fertilizers
14. Ravi Shankar Prasad - Communications and Information Technology, Law and Justice
15. Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati - Civil Aviation
16. Anant Geete - Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
17. Harsimrat Kaur Badal - Food Processing Industries
18. Narendra Singh Tomar - Mines, Steel, Labour and Employment
19. Jual Oram - Tribal Affairs
20. Radha Mohan Singh - Agriculture
21. Thaawar Chand Gehlot - Social Justice and Empowerment
22. Smriti Zubin Irani - Human Resource Development
23. Dr. Harsh Vardhan - Health and Family Welfare
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