Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams

23 August 2016

:: National ::

PM reached out to people of Kashmir

• Reaching out to the people of the troubled Kashmir Valley, PM Modi said there had to be a dialogue to find a “permanent and lasting solution” to the problem within the framework of the Constitution.

• In a meeting with leaders of Opposition parties from Kashmir, the Prime Minister stressed that all those who had lost their lives were “part of us” – be they youth, security personnel or policemen.

• Speaking in Jammu on Sunday, Finance Minister ArunJaitley had described stone-throwers as “aggressors” and blamed Pakistan for the current unrest in the Valley.

• Meeting was expected to last half-an-hour but the Prime Minister gave a “patient hearing” to the concerns of the delegation for over 55 minutes and also discussed ways to tackle the worsening situation in the State.

• National Conference president Omar Abdullah, who led the delegation, welcomed the Prime Minister’s statement and extended his support for bringing normality in the State.

A move that would encourage witnesses to report accidents to the police

• In a move that could go a long way in encouraging witnesses to report accidents to the police, the Centre issued a notification ensuring that the affidavit of “Good Samaritan”.

• Aperson, who voluntarily declares himself to be an eyewitness, shall be treated by the investigating officer as a final statement.

• The notification is in response to Supreme Court directions in an October 2014 case of SaveLIFE Foundation asking the Centre to issue directions to save Good Samaritans until Parliament frames a law.

• The court had directed the government to frame Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the examination of a Good Samaritan. In March, the court approved the guidelines and the SOPs issued by the government with certain modifications.

• The crux of the guidelines is that no bystander rushing to the rescue of an accident victim should be subject to civil or criminal liability and/or be forced to be a witness.

• Any disclosure of personal information or offer to be a witness, in the event of the Good Samaritan also being an eyewitness to an accident, ought to be voluntary.

• Further, the examination of such a volunteer as a witness shall be done only on a single occasion and without harassment or intimidation.

Road map for the power sector for the next five years to come soon

• A national electricity plan, which provides a road map for the power sector for the next five years, will be ready by next month.

• The national electricity plan, drafted once every five years, would indicate the requirements and the likely scenario for the next five years in terms of power transmission, distribution and generation.

• It would also include requirement of manpower and funds. The plan would provide a break-up of the projected growth in different forms of power such as thermal, hydel, nuclear, solar and wind energy.

• Electrical power survey would forecast the power requirements of different States for the next five years, was also being prepared to help provide crucial inputs to the national electricity plan.

• India might follow Geneva’s example of operating eco-friendly electric buses with flash-charging facility.

• These buses can be charged automatically within 15 seconds when it arrives at a bus-stop. The charging is done through a structure on the bus-top which automatically connects to the power point on the roof of the bus stop.

:: International ::

PM Modi promises to stand by Afghanistan

• Highlighting “close” friendship between the two countries, India reached out to the government of President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan and said that New Delhi will “always” be there to support the country.

• Inaugurating the newly restored ‘Stor Palace’ in Kabul, a stately building which had been damaged in the civil war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the palace, which is also known as the Star Palace or ‘Kasre-estar’, is a sign of the rich heritage of Afghanistan.

• Mr. Modi stressed that, “whatever may be the odds, India will work with you for a bright future for all Afghans.”

• Presenting the views of the Afghan side, President Ghani said the “logic” of peace and benevolence will defeat the logic of terror and violence. India and Afghanistan have always been close friends, he added.

• The Stor Palace was built during the reign of Amir Abdul Rahman Khan in 1880. It underwent a series of renovations till 1965 when most of the functions were shifted to another building.

• The building is expected to regain its stature with the restoration process now completed.

Tension rises between Israel and Gaza

• Israel said its forces carried out dozens of air and tank strikes in Gaza in response to a rocket that hit a southern Israeli town.

• Palestinian medical officials said four people were wounded in the strikes launched after a rocket was fired from Gaza into the city of Sderot.

• Bases of Hamas’s military wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, as well as of two smaller militant groups were hit, the security officials said.

• A spokesman for Hamas said Israel “carries responsibility for the escalation in the Gaza Strip and this new aggression will not succeed” in weakening the movement.

:: Business and Economy ::

The Centre is framing a policy to enable all major ports to develop inland waterways

• The Centre is framing a policy to enable all major ports to set up subsidiary companies to develop inland waterways. This is part of its plan to cut logistics costs for exporters by moving more cargo on water instead of over land.

• The establishment of separate units will facilitate easy foreign funding for inland waterway projects by capitalizing on the financial credentials of the government owned ports.

• The objective of the government is to reduce logistics costs to make exports competitive and all ports will be asked to improve inland waterways in their periphery to divert large part of the cargo on waterways which is cost effective.

• India’s biggest container port Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), which posted a profit of Rs.1,000 crore last year, has been asked to set up a subsidiary for this purpose.

• JNPT will develop waterways on seven to eight rivers in Maharashtra which flow from Madhya Pradesh. Goa Port will be the next to follow and will develop inland waterways on two rivers. The Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been prepared.

• All major ports have a combined turnover of Rs.4,000 crore and based on that an amount of Rs.50,000 crore can be raised as foreign loans at 2.75 per cent interest as against 12 per cent from Indian banks for inland waterway projects.

• The shipping ministry has also urged the finance ministry to allocate 5 per cent of the money collected as cess on diesel and petrol for inland waterways.

Market remained cautious after Urjit Patel nomination

• Bond prices fell as investors paused their recent liquidity-fuelled purchases of government debt to take stock of the appointment of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Urjit Patel as its next head.

• The yield on the benchmark 10-year bond rose 6 basis points to 7.16 per cent.

• Dr. Patel, who was a key architect of the new monetary policy framework that prescribes inflation-targeting as the central bank’s primary objective and is viewed in the markets as an “inflation hawk.

• The medium term objective of RBI is to attain 4 per cent retail inflation with a tolerance band of plus, minus 2 percentage points. CPI (Consumer Price Index)-based price gains accelerated to 6.07 per cent in July.

• Bonds prices had rallied in recent times and yields touched 7.08 per cent on Aug. 11, their lowest level since September 2009.

• The Sensex slid 0.33 per cent, or 91.5 points, to close at 27,985.54, while the Nifty 50 index fell 0.44 per cent to 8629.15.“

• The central bank will announce its next monetary policy review on October 4, most likely under the new framework where the rate decision will be taken by the Monetary Policy Committee, which is headed by the RBI Governor.

• Not many market participants expect a rate cut in the October policy meeting as retail inflation is higher than the central bank’s March 2017 target of 5 per cent.

:: Sports ::

National swimming coach S. Pradeep Kumar selected for Dronacharya Award

• National swimming coach S. Pradeep Kumar has expressed delight at being chosen for the Dronacharya Award, calling his career “a fantastic journey full of sound and fury”.

• Pradeep, who hails from Thiruvananthapuram, has spent nearly three decades as head coach at the Basavanagudi Aquatic Centre here.

• “It's not my achievement. I'm getting this award only because my swimmers have performed over the last 29 years. I'm honoured for them and their parents. I'm so happy,” he said.

• Pradeep was grateful to the BAC and the Karnataka Swimming Association. “It's been a fantastic journey,” he remarked.

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