Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams - 02 March 2018

::NATIONAL::

Union cabinet approves Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill

In a bid to deter loan defaulters from fleeing the country, the Union Cabinet approved the introduction of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill, 2018, in Parliament which would allow the government to seize all domestic assets of a person deemed to be a fugitive economic offender.
The Cabinet also approved the creation of a National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA), the posts of a Chairperson, three full-time members, and one Secretary for the proposed authority.
“In Budget 2017-18, it was announced that fugitive economic offenders would have their assets seized,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley pointed out at a press conference after the meeting.
“The Cabinet has approved the draft Bill and it will be introduced in Parliament in the remaining portion of the Budget session,” he said. “There will be a list of scheduled offences along with the Bill.”
“If the person commits an offence on the list, and a competent court has issued an arrest warrant, and the person leaves the country to avoid this, the court can deem him a fugitive economic offender.”
According to the Finance Minister, the government would be able to seize all their domestic assets, not just those that were the proceeds of the crime.
The Bill also has a provision for the seizure of their foreign assets, but this would require the cooperation of the relevant country, he said.
“We will try to make sure this Bill is passed as expeditiously as possible because we cannot allow people to make a mockery of the law, that you first indulge in loot, and then refuse to submit to the jurisdiction of our legal system,” Mr. Jaitley said.
The government in a release said that if at any point of time in the course of the proceedings prior to the declaration of the person as a fugitive economic offender, he returns to India and submits to the appropriate court, proceedings under the proposed Act would cease by law.
The proposed NFRA is to act as an independent regulator for the auditing profession, in line with one of the key changes that has been made in the Companies Act, 2013, Mr. Jaitley said.

Plans to manage import of Exotic Fishes

The increase in the import of ornamental fishes to the country, which is posing a threat to India’s native fish populations.
The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has urged the government to come up with quarantine facilities at major seaports and airports.
“The government of India has only approved the import of 92 species of ornamental fish but the number of ornamental fish species being imported and in trade is somewhere between 200-300,” Dr. B. Meenakumari, chairperson, NBA, told The Hindu .
Dr. Meenakumari pointed out that the quarantine facility at the Chennai airport is mainly used for prawns meant for aquaculture and not for ornamental fish.
She was in Kolkata to attend a workshop on the Economic and Ecological Impacts of Invasive Alien Species organised by the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) and the Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Network (APFISN) from February 21-23.
Dr. Meenakumari said the huge market for Invasive Alien Species (IAS) is turning out to be major threat to India’s aquatic biodiversity.
She also stressed on the need for educating and creating awareness among Customs officials at airports and seaports.
Most of the fish are imported from southeast Asian countries, she said, adding that, sometimes, the cost of only a pair of fish can go up to lakhs of rupees.
S. Sandilyan, a Fellow on invasive alien species who is associated with the NBA, said that both Kolkata and Chennai have emerged as major hubs for the trade of ornamental fish in the country.
That an assessment of the online market for ornamental fish and aquariums will establish the presence of over 1,000 exotic fish species being traded in India.
In a research paper titled ‘Occurrence of ornamental fishes: A looming danger for inland fish diversity of India’ published in the science journal Current Science , the researcher has pointed out that export of such species has increased at an average annual rate of 14%.
The paper states that several studies have disclosed the occurrence of exotic ornamental fish in many inland aquatic systems, including biodiversity-sensitive areas such as the Western Ghats.
The list will be made available on a public platform and will be communicated to different Ministries and stakeholders.
The announcement by NBA assumes significance as scientists and experts in the country are still divided over the number of IAS and their economic and ecological impact.
Biodiversity policy
CEBPOL is a bilateral collaboration between the Indian and Norwegian governments, and focuses on biodiversity policies and laws.
While the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) have come up with some tentative lists for animal and plant IAS, there remains a debate on how to standardise the invasiveness of specific species.
T.V. Sajeev, coordinator, APFISN, said that while the number of publications on IAS has increased over the past few years, there has been no coordinated effort for the management of IAS. He added that statisticians and biologists need to come together for the distribution mapping and the application of statistical approaches in the management of IAS.

Sensitive situation along LAC

There is a possibility of escalation of tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, said Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre.
“Today we face a difficult neighbourhood with myriad security challenges... On the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the situation is sensitive and incidents of patrolling, transgression and stand-offs have a potential for escalation. While confidence building measures (CBMs) are enhanced, we shall take all actions as deemed necessary to ensure the sanctity of the LAC,” Dr. Bhamre said.
He addressed the annual Army seminar jointly organised by the Army and the Centre for Land Warfare Studies.
Elaborating on it, he said: “There are so many things going on along all the borders and one of these might trigger an escalation.”
Since the 73-day stand-off near the Doklam tri-junction, China has beefed up its presence closer to the LAC.
While the situation remains peaceful, as summer sets in, there is possibility of increased transgressions along the LAC.
A large part of the defence budget might appear to be a burden on the exchequer but actually it went into nation building, Army chief Gen. Bipin Rawat said at the seminar.
“There is always a concern amongst the citizenry and people in uniform on the defence budget… In the Army headquarters, we ordered a study on this and our preliminary reports suggest that anything between 35% and 37% of the annual budget contributes to nation building,” he said.
Referring to the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions, he said that while the services may be spending to maintain the troops deployed on such missions, the returns from such exercises go into the consolidated fund of India.
Gen. Rawat said economic development and military modernisation should go hand in hand. “Economic rise will take place if the nation is secure,” he added.

India-Jordan-Defence Framework Agreement

India and Jordan signed a framework agreement in defence cooperation paving the way for a joint strategy to counter common threats.
The defence agreement, the first such understanding between the two sides, is the biggest takeaway of the visit by the Jordanian king Abdullah II, officials said.
The purpose of the MoU is to promote cooperation between India and Jordan in the field of defence by defining the scope of such cooperation and making provisions for implementation of the cooperation in some of the recognised areas.
They are training, defence industry, counter-terrorism, military studies, cyber security, military medical services, peace-keeping, etc.,
The defence agreement is the result of broadening security and defence-related dialogue between the two sides since the king’s last visit in 2006.
India and Jordan held the first bilateral security dialogue in July 2016 and, according to officials, this exchange, especially in the field of cyber security, is likely to deepen in the coming years.
The security cooperation is based on the “tremendous experience that Jordan has in the region [West Asia and North Africa]” said T.S. Tirumurti, Secretary in charge of Economic Relations in the MEA.
Amman has provided critical support to India during the 1991 evacuation of citizens from Iraq and also during the latest crises in Iraq and Syria.
King Abdullah II visited the Manesar-based headquarters of the National Security Guards (NSG), where he witnessed a demonstration of the group’s skills in the field of counter-terrorism.
“The Jordanian side has lot of experience in this matter and both sides are resolved to cooperate against terrorism,” said Mr. Tirumurti.
The official said that the second edition of the security dialogue is expected later this year.

Special Invitee Invitation rejected by Congress, boycotts Lokpal meeting

Calling the “special invitee invitation” an effort to exclude the independent voice of the Opposition, leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge boycotted the meeting of the selection panel for the Lokpal.
He shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, detailing the reasons for his absence.
There was no reaction from the government to the letter. Government sources confirmed that the selection committee did meet.
The Congress is upset that the names of short-listed candidates were not shared with it. Mr. Kharge had said that without this information, he could not add value to the discussions.
Amending Act
The Congress has been demanding that the government amend the Lokpal Act to state that in the absence of a recognised Leader of the Opposition, the leader of the single largest party in the Opposition will be included in the panel.
To appoint the Lokpal. Mr Kharge also attached with the letter a proposed amendment to the Act to replace “leader of opposition” to “leader of single largest party in opposition”.
Hitting out at the government, Mr Kharge in his letter to Prime Minister pointed out that notwithstanding the rhetoric to fight corruption, BJP government has chosen to not appoint a Lokpal for nearly four years.
The Congress led UPA government had passed the Lokpal Act 2013 which came into force on January 16 2014.

Printed Study Materials for IBPS, SBI Bank Exam

::INTERNATIONAL::

Tariffs on metal imports: US

U.S. President Donald Trump said he will sign off “next week” on tariffs on cheap steel and aluminum imports, especially from China, which he said are harming U.S. producers.
Mr. Trump made the announcement during a meeting at the White House with producers of the two metals, who would be among the principal beneficiaries of any new barriers to competing imports.
He said a 25% tariff would be placed on steel products, and a 10% tariff would be imposed on aluminum.
Mr. Trump lashed out at “unfair trade” practices followed by other countries.
“Our Steel and Aluminum industries (and many others) have been decimated by decades of unfair trade and bad policy with countries from around the world,” he tweeted.
“We must not let our country, companies and workers be taken advantage of any longer. We want free, fair and SMART TRADE!”
And while Mr. Trump did not mention China in this latest tweet, it came on a day one of his top economic advisers, Gary Cohn, was due to meet with Chinese economic adviser Liu He at the White House.
Any U.S. action is likely to be challenged by the exporting countries in the World Trade Organization.
Meanwhile, industries in the U.S. have urged the administration to exercise care since high import tariffs would raise the cost of supplies.

We welcome Ghani’s Peace offer: Pakistan

Pakistan has welcomed Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s offer that sought peace through dialogue and said that it would do its best to facilitate the realisation of the objective.
Following Mr. Ghani’s offer, Afghan Ambassador Omar Zakhilwal called on National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. Nasser Khan Janjua to discuss the ongoing efforts to bring about peace and stability in the region.
The office of the NSA said after the meeting that Mr. Zakhilwal briefed Lt. Gen. Janjua on the international peace conference in Kabul.
Mr. Zakhilwal reportedly said that Mr. Ghani had given a message of peace and reconciliation to Taliban, together with a message of closer engagement and cordial relations with Pakistan.
He hoped that being the closest neighbour of Afghanistan, Pakistan would make its due contribution.
Lt. Gen. Janjua told Mr. Zakhilwal that Islamabad wanted an early closure to the bloodshed in Afghanistan.
“Peace in Afghanistan is essential for peace in Pakistan...” he said.
Meanwhile, U.S. Ambassador John R. Bass hailed Mr. Ghani’s “very courageous stand” and his “commitment to pursue a peaceful settlement through talks” after more than 16 years of conflict.

::ECONOMY::

Clean and responsible Banking Initiative

State-owned lenders have started rationalising the overseas operations by consolidating 35 operations and closing down non-viable branches as part of the clean and responsible banking initiative.
As per the banking sector agenda approved at the PSB Manthan in November last year, public sector banks (PSBs) have to examine all 216 overseas operations.
The rationalisation of overseas operations of banks is significant as jewellery designer Nirav Modi allegedly cheated Punjab National Bank (PNB) of Rs. 12,700 crore in connivance with PNB staff and officials of overseas branches of other State-owned banks.
Presently, public sector banks have about 165 overseas branches, besides subsidiaries, joint ventures and representative offices.
State Bank of India has the largest number of overseas branches (52), followed by Bank of Baroda (50) and Bank of India (29).
The State-owned banks have largest number of branches in United Kingdom (32), followed by Hong Kong and UAE (13 each) and Singapore (12).
Expressing the government’s commitment to ‘clean and responsible banking,’ the tweet said the overseas operations of the State-owned banks will be rationalised.

No expenditure cut

The government will not go for an expenditure cut in 2017-18 to meet fiscal deficit target of 3.5% of GDP even as it has breached the level of 113.7% of the target, Expenditure Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha said.
“There is no expenditure cut. There has been a policy, there will not be any expenditure cut,” Mr. Jha said.
When asked how the government will meet the revised fiscal deficit target of 3.5%, he said indirect tax collections have already been factored into the revised target.
The government has accounted for only 11 months of GST against 12 months of expenses as March GST numbers would come in April.
Fiscal deficit has touched Rs. 6.77 lakh crore at the end of January 2018, 113.7% of the target for the year, on account of higher expenditure.
The government had revised upwards the fiscal deficit at Rs. 5.95 lakh crore or 3.5% of GDP in the Union Budget 2018-19.
Earlier, the fiscal deficit target was 3.2%. Mr. Jha said the economy is looking up as the key sectors are showing buoyancy and growth.
He said buoyancy in revenue also comes in the last two months of financial year and the fiscal deficit number will remain well within the revised target.