Competition Booster - November 2015 For IBPS Exam

27 November: The Ministry of Railways and TERI University signed Memorandum of Understanding to set up Railway Chair on Sustainable Mobility at the premises of TERI University, Delhi. The Chair would focus and promote research on issues of sustainable mobility, use of energy efficient technology and green energy initiatives in Railways.

26 November: 37 banks, led by public sector ones, have reported a 26.8 per cent rise in nonperforming assets (NPAs) over the 12-month period ending September this year. This is a nearly 10 per cent rise from the 16.9 per cent growth in bad loans over the same period a year ago, with several projects, especially those in the infrastructure sector, stuck. The banks with a major share in bad loans include Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Indian Overseas Bank, SBI and Punjab National Bank.

26 November: This year, 18 companies that have so far launched IPOs have collectively raised nearly Rs 11,000 crore, making it the best in four years in terms of fund raising through initial share sale programmes. As many as 11 companies out of the total 18 that got listed this year are trading above their issue price, an analysis of the performance of the newly-listed firms showed.

26 November: Idea Cellular has entered into an agreement with Videocon Telecommunications for acquiring the rights to use the latter's spectrum for the telecom service areas of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (West) for Rs 3,310 crore through a spectrum trading agreement.

26 November: The Supreme Court has asked Vodafone Mobile Services Ltd (VMSL) to pay Rs 2,000 crore to the government in pursuance of the proposed merger of licenses of its four entities into itself. A bench headed by Justice J S Khehar said the central government would approve the merger as soon as the amount is paid to it by the firm. The order came on the plea of the government filed against the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) order allowing provisional merger of the licenses of four entities.

23 November: Russia and Egypt signed an agreement. Under the agreement Russia will build a nuclear power plant in Egypt, with Russia extending a loan to Egypt to cover the cost of construction.

23 November: South Australia signed a historic 'sister-state agreement' with Rajasthan that would pave new ways to boost export and investment opportunities between the two states. The sister-state relationship between South Australia and Rajasthan is based on a two-way exchange of research, policy and technical capabilities.]

21 November: Asia Pacific Stock Exchange (APX) has been renamed Sydney Stock Exchange Limited. The change is driven by the company's customers and stakeholders and is consistent with its philosophy and core mission to promote Sydney and Australia as an integral part of Asia and a leading financial centre.

21 November: The Union Cabinet gave its approval for signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between India and Vietnam for cooperation in the field of Animal Health. The MoU seeks the promotion of mutual cooperation between both the nations through joint activities in the areas of animal health. The MoU will be valid for a period of 10 years.

21 November: The Seventh Pay Commission submitted its much anticipated report to the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The most important recommendation of this Commission is hike in salaries of the Central Govt. employees by 23.55%. Justice Arun Kumar Mathur headed the 7th Pay Commission.

20 November: The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its ex post facto approval for the Memorandum of Understanding between India and Germany on Security Cooperation. The MoU would further strengthen the relationship between India and Germany for building peace and stability in the region through exchange of information, expertise, best practices and technology.

20 November: The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for the protocol amending the agreement between India and Kuwait for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.

18 November: Reliance Infrastructure has signed a non-binding agreement with Canadian pension fund management major Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments). With this, the Canadian firm will acquire 49 percent equity stake in Reliance Infrastructure's integrated power generation, transmission and distribution business in Mumbai and adjoining areas.

17 November: India and Bangladesh signed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for operationalization of Coastal Shipping Agreement. It will facilitate trade and transportation of goods between the two neighbours through inland and coastal waters.

9 November: Reserve Bank included Bandhan Bank in the Second Schedule of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, making it eligible for loans from the central bank at bank rate. A scheduled bank is eligible for loans from the RBI at bank rate. They are also given membership to clearing houses. Besides, Industrial Bank of Korea and Korea Exchange Bank Co Ltd have been included in the second schedule.

9 November: The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) signed between India and Turkmenistan in 1997 for the avoidance of double taxation and for the prevention of fiscal evasion. The Protocol provides for internationally accepted standards for effective exchange of information on tax matters including bank information and information without domestic tax interest.

9 November: Union Ministry of Finance decided to impose 0.5 percent Swachh Bharat Cess (SBC) on all taxable services. It will be levied in addition to the 14 percent service tax that is in force now. The SBC will come into force on 15 November 2015. Its proceeds will be exclusively used to support Swachh Bharat initiative.

4 November: Global ratings agency Moody's Investors Service has changed its outlook for India's banking system to ‘stable’ from ‘negative’ because of the gradual improvement in the operating environment for Indian banks. The ratings agency projected that India will record GDP growth rate of 7.5% in 2015 and 2016, and 7.6% in FY17.

4 November: The Reserve Bank of India appointed Deepak Singhal as its Executive Director. Singhal replaced K.K. Vohra who will now look after the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC)

4 November: MTS India, the wireless, broadband and mobile communication service provider, merged with Anil Ambani-led telecommunications entity Reliance Communications (RCom). The