BankersAdda team wishes you all a very happy holi… Have a great time with family and friends!!!
DAILY GK UPDATES: 7th MARCH, 2012
1. 59th NATIONAL FILM AWARDS were announced in New Delhi today.
The Main Winners are:-
- Best feature Film – Deool (Marathi Film) and Byari (Kannad Film)
- Best Actor- Girish Kulkarni (Marathi Film Deool)
- Best Actress – Vidya Balan (Hindi Film The Dirty Picture)
- Best Direction – Gurvinder Singh (Punjabi Film Anhe Ghorey Da Daan)
- Best Popular film- Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai (Tamil Film)
- Best Hindi film- I Am
- Best Supporting Actor – Appu Kutty (Tamil Film Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai)
- Best Supporting Actress – Leishangthem Tonthoingambi Devi (Manipuri Film Phijigee Mani)
- Best Children’s Film- Chillar Party
- Best Music Direction- Neel Dutt ( Bengali Film Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona)
- Best Singer (Female)- Rupa Ganguly
- Best Singer (Male)- Anand Bhate
- Best Lyrics- Amitabh Bhattacharya (I Am)
- Best Special Effects- Ra.One
2. Hyundai Motor India appointed Bo Shin Seo as New Managing Director. Bo would replace Han Woo Park for the top position.
3. Veteran Anjum Chopra and Mithali Raj respectively were appointed as the new captain and the vice-captain of the Indian women’s cricket team for One Day series against Australia, starting on 12 March 2012 in Ahmedabad.
4. Defence Ministry has blacklisted six companies including Russian firm Corporation Defence, Singapore Technologies, Israeli Military Industry and Germany’s Rheinmetall Air Defence for 10 years for their alleged role in ordnance factory scam. Two Indian firms — Delhi-based T S Kisan & Company and R K Machine Tool based in Ludhiana, have also been blacklisted.
5. BCCI’s Marketing Committee, which met in Mumbai today, has kept the base price at Rs 31.25 crore plus one crore (Rs 32.25 crore) per international game for A category and Rs 33 crore plus one crore (Rs 34 crore) per game for B category matches.
4. SP Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav , Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal of Akali Dal, Goa BJP leader Manohar Parrikar and Manipur CM Okram Ibobi Singh of Congress are the leaders of Winning party after their party emerged clear victory in the recent polls and set to form the new govt. soon.
5. Carmaker Ford India launched an automatic transmission variant in petrol mode of its sedan Fiesta, priced between Rs 8.99 lakh and Rs 9.70 lakh in New Delhi.
6. A Pakistani judicial panel to visit India from 14th of this Month in connection with the probe of Mumbai terror attacks.
7. Sri Lanka defeats Australia by eight wickets in the second final of the cricket tri-series at Adelaide.
8. World powers Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States have agreed to restart talks with Iran over its controversial nuclear program.
9. Tropical Storm “Irina” killed at least 65 people in the southeast Ifanadiana district of Madagascar.
10. Jammu and Kashmir Governor N. N. Vohra, presented the President’s Police Medals for Gallantry and Distinguished and Meritorious Services to 525 Police Officers and men at an impressive Investiture Ceremony held in Jammu.
11. Food and Public Distribution Minister, Prof. K.V. Thomas has announced that Center will soon depute a high level committee in Odisha to assess its food grain storage requirements. It will also provide all possible assistance to the state for modernization of its Public Distribution System (PDS).
12. Ministry of Tribal Affairs has released an amount of 728 crore rupees to various states for development of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PTGs).
75 such groups in 17 States and one Union Territory have been identified and categorized as Vulnerable Tribal Groups.
13. In the upcoming 4th BRICS Summit of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa on March 29 in New Delhi, BRICS nation are planning for setting up a “Development Bank”.
The contours of the “Development Bank” will be finalized in the summit and may include proportionate contributions from each of the BRICS member countries to invest in development projects in these countries.
****WISHING ALL THE READERS A VERY HAPPY AND COLOURFUL HOLI****
DAILY GK UPDATES: 6th MARCH 2012
Counting of votes is progressing smoothly for the recently concluded Assembly elections in five states namely Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa amidst tight security. Samajwadi Party is emerging as the single largest party in Uttar Pradesh by leading in 219 of the total 403 seats in the assembly. BSP, which had won an absolute majority with 206 seats in the 2007 polls, is leading in 83 seats, whereas Congress-RLD alliance is ahead in 39, BJP in 47 and others 15.
Congress got a shock in Punjab with the ruling SAD-BJP combine well on the way to retaining power. Ruling Akali Dal-BJP combine is ahead in 65 seats and Congress leading in 49 seats while others in 3 seats.
The Congress is heading towards securing a simple majority in the 60-member Manipur Assembly, and may not require the support of any ally to form the third consecutive government in the northeastern state. As per results available, the ruling party has won in 23 constituencies while it is leading in 13 others.
Uttarakhand is locked in a see-saw battle between the ruling BJP and Congress. Latest trends show BJP leading in 32 and Congress in 31 while BSP in 3 and others in 4 seats in Uttarakhand.
In a setback for the Congress party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is heading towards a majority in Goa where it is leading in 14 seats in the 40-member House. According to latest trends, the BJP’s results/leads are average at 16 seats.
Congress got a shock in Punjab with the ruling SAD-BJP combine well on the way to retaining power. Ruling Akali Dal-BJP combine is ahead in 65 seats and Congress leading in 49 seats while others in 3 seats.
The Congress is heading towards securing a simple majority in the 60-member Manipur Assembly, and may not require the support of any ally to form the third consecutive government in the northeastern state. As per results available, the ruling party has won in 23 constituencies while it is leading in 13 others.
Uttarakhand is locked in a see-saw battle between the ruling BJP and Congress. Latest trends show BJP leading in 32 and Congress in 31 while BSP in 3 and others in 4 seats in Uttarakhand.
In a setback for the Congress party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is heading towards a majority in Goa where it is leading in 14 seats in the 40-member House. According to latest trends, the BJP’s results/leads are average at 16 seats.
2. An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) today decided to allocate 700 Mhz spectrum for offering fourth-generation or 4G telecom services. Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters in New Delhi after the meeting that this particular band is considered to be very efficient and could fetch the government revenues more than it got through auctioning of 3G spectrum last year.
3. The Union Finance Minister Mr. Pranab Mukherjee today said that setting up of Infrastructure Debt Fund (IDF) through public private partnership would meet the long term need of the infrastructure sector funding. Mr. Mukherjee said this after presiding over the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in New Delhi this evening between the ICICI Bank, Bank of Baroda, CITI Bank and Life Insurance Corporation of India to Set-Up India’s First Infrastructure Debt Fund.
4. The country is estimated to produce 26 million tonnes of sugar in the 2011-12 marketing year, as against 24.2 million tonnes last year. Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today said this while talking to reporters on the sidelines of the Kharif conference in New Delhi. In view of the surplus stocks of the sweetener, Mr. Pawar said there is scope for further exports of one million tonnes of sugar. The government has so far permitted the export of 2 million tonnes of sugar for the current 2011-12 marketing year ending September.
5. In a move to step up financial inclusion, the Reserve Bank of India -RBI has permitted all business correspondents – or representative of any one particular bank to conduct business for other banks as well. In its Circular, the RBI has said that it has allowed interoperability system at the retail outlets which is the point of customer interface.
NOTE:- Business correspondents are bank representatives who facilitate rural people in opening bank accounts and transactions. The RBI said banks were also advised to strictly adhere to norms on managing risks and code of conduct during outsourcing of financial services, adding banks will be fully responsible for the actions of the business correspondents or sub agents.
6. Addressing the inaugural function of the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the Afro-Asian Rural Development Organisation in New Delhi, Dr Manmohan Singh called upon the scientists and experts to reflect on suitable technology to tackle the issue. He said that the process of globalization and growing inter-dependence among nations pose fundamental new challenges to our economic sustenance.
7. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights, NCPCR unveiled guidelines to eliminate physical punishment and to discipline schools. The NCPCR survey revealed that the use of physical punishments is rampant in Indian schools and cane beating by teachers a common practice. Even children in the age group of 3 to five years are not spared.
The guidelines also suggest the formation of Corporal Punishment Monitoring Cells, CPMCs by schools. The CPMCs will not only hear grievances related to corporal punishment, child sexual abuse and mental harassment but also forward recommendations to district level authorities within 48 hours of the occurrence.
8. An empowered group of ministers headed by the finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Monday said that government will allocate airwaves in the 700 MHz band for offering fourth-generation or 4G telecom services.
9. In a move that could bring a relief to the loss-making state owned telco, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recommended a subsidy of Rs 600 crore to BSNL. The subsidy would help BSNL in maintaining rural wireline connections installed before April 1, 2002.
10. The recommendations of the Woolf report on the independent governance review of the ICC will be discussed when the governing body’s Chief Executives’ Committee will meet at Dubai on Tuesday. The India cricket Board had rejected the recommendations but the Pakistan and Australian boards were in favor of a discussion. The report calls for sweeping changes in the administration of cricket and the functioning of the ICC.
11. UP, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Goa recorded the highest ever voting percentage in their history in the recently concluded Assembly elections. Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa and Uttarakhand registered unprecedented polling percentages. Uttar Pradesh recorded around 60 percent in the seven-phased election as against 46.07 percent voting in the last assembly elections in 2007. So far, the highest voting percentage was 57.13 percent in 1993.
12. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) appointed Dav Whatmore as its national team coach. Whatmore would remain on the position for next two years. Englishman Julian Fountain was slated as the fielding coach of the team. Asia Cup tournament, to be held in the later part of March 2012, would be the first assignment of both the new coaches.
13. South Africa made a 3-0 clean sweep against New Zealand with a five-wicket victory in the third and final one-day international in Auckland.
14. According to UN report more than 2 billion people have gained access to better drinking water sources, such as piped supplies and protected wells, between 1990 and 2010. The figure means the world has met the internationally agreed Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to halve the proportion of people with no safe drinking water well ahead of a 2015 deadline, UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.
IBPS Clerk Exam – Score Card
IBPS has declared the scores of candidates qualified in clerk exam on their website. Click Here to see your score. Wish you all the best!!!
Request you all to share you scores here on bankeradda.com to know where each of us stand.
Request you all to share you scores here on bankeradda.com to know where each of us stand.
CWE for Regional Rural Banks
Table of Contents
After public sector banks and some old generation private sector banks, regional rural banks (RRBs) will join the common written examination (CWE) bandwagon for recruitments.
In a communication to individual RRBs, the Finance Ministry said the Institute for Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) will conduct a CWE for recruitment of officers and staff in the 82 RRBs across the country.
The CWE score, which will be valid for a year, will be the basis for selection of candidates in the individual RRBs. Depending on vacancies, individual RRBs will invite the candidates who have cleared the CWE to apply for selection. Final selection will be made by the RRB concerned as per applicable procedure.
Considering the nature of operations of RRBs, knowledge of local language is vital, the Ministry said.
NABARD TO COORDINATE
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development will coordinate and supervise the selection process. The common examination is aimed at reducing the time, multiplicity of selection process and bringing uniformity in the selection process.
At present, IBPS conducts separate examinations for most of the RRBs for recruitment of officers and staff. This, besides being a long-drawn process, causes duplication of efforts and there are delays in the completion of the selection process.
According to Mr Dilip Kumar Mukherjee, Secretary General, All-India RRB Employees Association, there is an urgent need to streamline the recruitment process in RRBs as there has been virtually no recruitment for 18 years beginning 1990.
“The 10-fold increase in volume of business coupled with large-scale retirement from 2012 to 2015 makes it imperative to jumpstart the recruitment process. There will be thousands of job openings in the RRBs in the coming few years,” said Mr Mukherjee.
NUMBERS SHRINK
RRBs were established to ensure sufficient institutional credit for agriculture and other rural sectors. They are jointly owned by the Government of India (50 per cent stake), the State Government concerned (15 per cent), and sponsor banks (35 per cent).
The number of RRBs has shrunk from 196 in the early 2000s to 82 now on account of restructuring and amalgamation of RRBs to improve their financial soundness.
As per RBI figures, as of March-end 2011, the 82 RRBs collectively had deposits of Rs 1,66,232 crore (Rs 1,45,035 crore as of March-end 2010) and advances of Rs 94,715 crore (Rs 79,157 crore).
IBPS PO Exam 2012
IBPS Exam 2012 is scheduled to be held on June 17, 2012.
Registration Starts – 9th March 2012
Registration Closed – 31st March 2012
Call Letter Download – 4th June 2012
Institute of Banking personnel Selection seems to be in a workaholic mode for the past few weeks.With back to back important news & releases, the latest is about the 2nd common written examination for PO/ MT posts.The results for the first edition were notified in the month of December 2011, based on which banks are recruiting for Probationary officer posts. IBPS had been entrusted with the task of conducting, evaluating & publishing results for an all India common test to facilitate filling of bank jobs.Candidates clearing the test would be issued scorecards using which they can apply for PO/ MT vacancies in 19 public sector banks
Following this, the banks shall shortlist, fix a cutoff & call them for Interview that leads to appointment.
Dates:
Online registrations shall be from March 9 – 30, 2012
Fee payment (online): 09-03-2012 — 30-03-2012
Offline fee payment shall be from March 12 – April 7, 2012
Written exam on June 17, 2012
Eligibility
You must satisfy the following conditions, as on 1.01.2012
Agelimit: 20 – 30 yrs (+3 yrs for OBC,+5 yrs for SC/ST)
Should posses a degree (any discipline, no specific percent) from a recognized university
Selection: The IBPS common bank exam pattern contains both Objective & Descriptive papers for a total of 250 marks.For every wrong answer in objective test, negative mark of 0.25 would be reduced.
The descriptive paper will be evaluated only if you qualify in each objective test section.
* Common Written Exam Guide (PO) – Rs.371 – Buy Online
* Bank PO previous yrs solved papers – Rs.259 – Buy Online
Scorecards:
The scorecards (valid for 1 year) shall be sent to candidates who secure a minimum qualifying score in each paper.Using this, you can apply to banks that advertise their vacancies for Probationary officers or Management trainees post. Note that each bank will specify their own eligibility (that includes age,degree & test score) while calling for applications. Those looking to improve previous scores can also apply & brighten their chances of getting selected by garnering better scores.[read, Old scorecards wont be seized]
Registration:
The application fees are fixed at Rs.50 (SC/ST) or Rs.450 (others) with the option of paying it through,
Online: (from Mar 9 – 30): Visit ibps.in & click on the online application to fill the necessary details.After submitting the form, you would be directed to the online fee payment gateway.
Pay the appropriate fee amount using netbanking/credit or debit cards.
After the transaction is complete, print the generated e-receipt
If application submission is successful, a registration number & password would be shown that has to be noted.
Offline: (from Mar 12 – Apr 7): Logon to ibps.in & visit IBPS common exam webpage to fill the online application.Enter the asked details & submit.
On submitting the application, note the generated Reg.no & password (also will be sent to your Email/ SMS).
Take a print of the challan that shall be generated after the above step.
After 2 days, deposit the fees at any branch of BOB, BOI, PNB, IOB, United bank of India or Central Bank of India using the printed challan.
As a confirmation of paying fees, you will receive Email/SMS after 2 days.
The facility to print the filled-in application form would be enabled after 3 days of fee payment.
The complete advertisement of IBPS Common PO Exam 2012 can be downed from their website here.
DAILY GK UPDATES: 5th MARCH, 2012
1. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has won Russia’s presidential election on Sunday. Mr. Putin has got 62 per cent of the 85 per cent votes counted, the Central Election Commission said. Exit polls conducted by two leading pollsters gave Mr. Putin 58-59 per cent. Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov came second with over 17 per cent of the votes.
2. China today set its growth target for 2012 at a lower-than-expected 7.5 per cent, in an indication that its focus during a crucial transition year would be on maintaining stability and achieving more balanced growth. The government also announced a steep 11.5 per cent rise in its domestic security spending, which will for the first time cross $ 100 billion this year. Spending on internal security is set to surpass the military budget for a second consecutive year, in a reflection of Beijing’s concerns about internal instability ahead of a once-in-a-decade leadership transition.
3. A project on forest and biodiversity conservation is on the anvil at Assam with assistance from the French Development Agency at an estimated cost of 60 million Euros.
4. The Sikkim government has decided to spend 20 per cent of its budget on education to make the state a hub of quality education. Chief Minister Pawan Chamling said, one model school will also be opened in each Gram Panchayat. He was addressing a function to mark the 20th Foundation Day of his party Sikkim Democratic Front at Jorethang in South district last evening.
5. Kerala government is organising a week long international workshop and exhibition on disaster risk reduction and contingency planning in Thiruvanathapuram. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will inaugurate Surakshayanam 2012 at Kanakakkunnu palace premise this evening.
6. The government today banned exports of cotton to increase supply of the natural fibre in the domestic market. “Export of cotton has been prohibited till further orders,” the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification. India has already exported about 85 lakh bales (170 kg each) of cotton in the current marketing year (October-September). It had shipped 66 lakh bales overseas in the 2010-11 marketing year. The Cotton Advisory Board has projected 355 lakh bales of cotton production in the 2011-12 season.
7. Oil prices hovered below $109 a barrel on Friday in Asia as U.S. economic indicators continued to improve and tensions simmered over Iran’s nuclear programme. Benchmark oil for April delivery was up 2 cents to $108.86 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.77 to $108.84 per barrel in New York on Thursday. Brent crude was steady at $126.20 per barrel in London.
8. ONGC today said LIC picked up 37.71 crore shares in the company during the auction last week and its total holding has gone up to 9.48 per cent. Taking into account the average price of Rs. 303.67 a share, the country’s largest insurer would have invested around Rs. 11,450 crore during the first ever auction of PSU shares on March 1, 2012.
9. The Union government is ‘favourably’ looking into the demand of oil marketing companies (OMCs) and state-run Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) for amendment to shipping laws and providing for ‘sovereign guarantee’ and Cost and Freight (C&F) mode for crude oil import shipping consignments from Iran. The government was also actively looking into the issue of exempting payments made to Iran under the agreed rupee mode from imposition of ‘withholding tax’ to tackle the sanctions imposed by the U.S. and European Union.
DAILY GK UPDATES: 4th MARCH, 2012
1. China will boost military spending by 11.2 percent this year, unveiling Beijing’s first defence budget since President Barack Obama launched a “pivot” to reinforce U.S. influence across the Asia-Pacific Li Zhaoxing, the spokesman for China’s parliament said and also China will bring official spending on the People’s Liberation Army to 670.2 billion Yuan for 2012, after a 12.7 percent increase last year and a nearly unbroken string of double-digit rises across over two decades .
2. The Election Commission of India, ECI has announced the schedule for biennial polls to 58 Rajya Sabha seats from 15 states, whose representatives complete their term next month. Announcing the schedule for filling up vacancies in the Rajya Sabha, the ECI said, the notification would be issued on March 12. The last date for filing of nominations is March 19 while that for withdrawal is March 22. Polling would be held on March 30. Biennial elections to the Council of States from Bihar shall also be held on the same date.
3. In Iran, loyalists of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are likely to get a comfortable majority in the 290-member parliament. These include the politically important 30 seats in the capital Teheran. Early results show an estimated 75 per cent supported the hard-line group or the Principality.
4. India and the Arab League have called for a peaceful solution to the crisis in Syria. The issue came up for a discussion during the meeting of the External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and the Arab League Secretary General Nabil al Arabi in Cairo.
5. The Southern Region Bulk LPG Transport Owners Association has said that a decision on withdrawing the strike would be taken after a meeting of its members on Monday. The decision of the Association was conveyed by its leaders at a meeting conducted by the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Department to find a solution to the transporters strike.
6. Veteran Indian tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi clinched his 50th career title and his first with Rohan Bopanna when the duo outwitted Poles Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski to lift the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships doubles men’s trophy at Dubai.
7. Host India today lifted the first Women‘s World Cup Kabaddi crown defeating Iran 25-19 in a keenly contested final match held at Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna.
8. Australia registered a thrilling 15-run victory against Sri Lanka in the first final of the tri-series in Brisbane today.
9. Around one lakh book people visited the 20th edition of New Delhi World Book Fair on the last day at Pragati Maidan in the National Capital to find books of their own choice. The 9 day biennial event which concluded this evening witnessed around 7 lakh visitors which is three lakh more than the previous year. The theme pavillion which celebrated 100 years of Indian Cinema attracted large number of book lovers and cine stars.
10. India and Egypt have agreed to carry forward their relations to a new level. External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna met the top Egyptian leaders in Cairo and saidIndia will provide all possible assistance to Egypt in its rebuilding efforts. Information Technology has been identified as the first key sector where India will contribute with its expertise and guidance.
11. Indian Army has successfully test fired the 290-Km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile at the Pokharan range in Jaisalmer today to operationalise the second regiment of the weapon system in service.
2. The Election Commission of India, ECI has announced the schedule for biennial polls to 58 Rajya Sabha seats from 15 states, whose representatives complete their term next month. Announcing the schedule for filling up vacancies in the Rajya Sabha, the ECI said, the notification would be issued on March 12. The last date for filing of nominations is March 19 while that for withdrawal is March 22. Polling would be held on March 30. Biennial elections to the Council of States from Bihar shall also be held on the same date.
3. In Iran, loyalists of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are likely to get a comfortable majority in the 290-member parliament. These include the politically important 30 seats in the capital Teheran. Early results show an estimated 75 per cent supported the hard-line group or the Principality.
4. India and the Arab League have called for a peaceful solution to the crisis in Syria. The issue came up for a discussion during the meeting of the External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and the Arab League Secretary General Nabil al Arabi in Cairo.
5. The Southern Region Bulk LPG Transport Owners Association has said that a decision on withdrawing the strike would be taken after a meeting of its members on Monday. The decision of the Association was conveyed by its leaders at a meeting conducted by the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Department to find a solution to the transporters strike.
6. Veteran Indian tennis player Mahesh Bhupathi clinched his 50th career title and his first with Rohan Bopanna when the duo outwitted Poles Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski to lift the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships doubles men’s trophy at Dubai.
7. Host India today lifted the first Women‘s World Cup Kabaddi crown defeating Iran 25-19 in a keenly contested final match held at Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna.
8. Australia registered a thrilling 15-run victory against Sri Lanka in the first final of the tri-series in Brisbane today.
9. Around one lakh book people visited the 20th edition of New Delhi World Book Fair on the last day at Pragati Maidan in the National Capital to find books of their own choice. The 9 day biennial event which concluded this evening witnessed around 7 lakh visitors which is three lakh more than the previous year. The theme pavillion which celebrated 100 years of Indian Cinema attracted large number of book lovers and cine stars.
10. India and Egypt have agreed to carry forward their relations to a new level. External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna met the top Egyptian leaders in Cairo and saidIndia will provide all possible assistance to Egypt in its rebuilding efforts. Information Technology has been identified as the first key sector where India will contribute with its expertise and guidance.
11. Indian Army has successfully test fired the 290-Km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile at the Pokharan range in Jaisalmer today to operationalise the second regiment of the weapon system in service.
DAILY GK UPDATES: 3rd MARCH, 2012
1. Lt General Bikram Singh will be the next Army Chief. An official press statement says that Lt Gen Bikram Singh will succeed Gen V.K. Singh, who retires on May 31st of this year. Lt General Bikram Singh was commissioned into the Sikh Light Infantry Regiment on March 31st 1972. During his long and distinguished career, spanning nearly 40 years, Lt Gen Singh had served in a variety of command and staff appointments.
2. The new building of the Afghan National Radio-TV station at Nangarhar was jointly inaugurated today by Minister of Information and Culture Dr. Sayed Makhdoom Raheen and India Ambassador Gautam Mukhopadhyay.
3. States have asked the Centre for adequate compensation for their revenue loss due to reduction in the Central Sales Tax -CST. Otherwise, they say the levy should be increased to the earlier rate of 4 per cent. The Empowered Committee of the State Finance Ministers in New Delhi also finalised a negative list of 35 services, which will not be taxed under proposed Goods and Services Tax – GST regime. The Centre is trying to phase-out the CST to usher in the new GST regime with a single tax merging excise, service tax and states tax, like value-added tax, entry tax and purchase tax.
4. The Chief Election Commissioner S.Y Quraishi today said that election in all 690 Assembly Constituencies spread over 122 Districts in Five States was completed Election remained totally fair, peaceful and incident free in five states – Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Uttar Pradesh. Voter’s turnout is the highest ever.
5. Sualkuchi is poised to take a more vigorous role to uplift the rural economy of the state Assam. Sualkuchi which is a weaving village that produces some of the best silk in the country provides employment to more than 25 thousand people. With proper implementation of various schemes, the industry has achieved an annual turnover of 150 crore rupees. In a bid to expedite the development process, the Assam government has recently inaugurated a textile park in Sualkuchi.
6. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has begun process to buy nearly 500 train coaches for the phase-III. It has floated global tenders to buy trains that would have several new features and will be faster and less noisier than the existing ones.
2. The new building of the Afghan National Radio-TV station at Nangarhar was jointly inaugurated today by Minister of Information and Culture Dr. Sayed Makhdoom Raheen and India Ambassador Gautam Mukhopadhyay.
3. States have asked the Centre for adequate compensation for their revenue loss due to reduction in the Central Sales Tax -CST. Otherwise, they say the levy should be increased to the earlier rate of 4 per cent. The Empowered Committee of the State Finance Ministers in New Delhi also finalised a negative list of 35 services, which will not be taxed under proposed Goods and Services Tax – GST regime. The Centre is trying to phase-out the CST to usher in the new GST regime with a single tax merging excise, service tax and states tax, like value-added tax, entry tax and purchase tax.
4. The Chief Election Commissioner S.Y Quraishi today said that election in all 690 Assembly Constituencies spread over 122 Districts in Five States was completed Election remained totally fair, peaceful and incident free in five states – Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Uttar Pradesh. Voter’s turnout is the highest ever.
5. Sualkuchi is poised to take a more vigorous role to uplift the rural economy of the state Assam. Sualkuchi which is a weaving village that produces some of the best silk in the country provides employment to more than 25 thousand people. With proper implementation of various schemes, the industry has achieved an annual turnover of 150 crore rupees. In a bid to expedite the development process, the Assam government has recently inaugurated a textile park in Sualkuchi.
6. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has begun process to buy nearly 500 train coaches for the phase-III. It has floated global tenders to buy trains that would have several new features and will be faster and less noisier than the existing ones.
DAILY GK UPDATES: 2nd MARCH, 2012
1. Uninor and Sistema Shyam filed a petition today seeking review of Supreme Court’s order to cancel their 2G licences. Uninor, the joint venture between Unitech and Norway’s Telenor in its petition pointed out the severe adverse consequences for the licence holders and their stakeholders, such as massive subscriber base, foreign investors, lenders, suppliers and employees.
2. Uttarakhand government today introduced e-stamping in the state, which would ensure a secure way of paying non-judicial stamp duty to the government. Uttarakhand is the ninth state in the country to implement the e-stamping service. In the first phase, e-stamping is set to be introduced in the four districts of Dehra Dun, Haridwar, Udhamsingh Nagar and Nainital.
3. E-stamps would be sold through the branches of Punjab National Bank (PNB) in these districts. The state government has roped in 45 branches of PNB to carry the sale of e-stamps. E-stamping is a part of the e-governance initiative of the state which has been introduced by the state finance department in association with the Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited.
4. A Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices H L Dattu and C K Prasad today recused itself from hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the validity of the 8.5 billion dollar Cairn-Vedanta deal. The bench however not stated the reason for the not taking up the plea. The PIL filed on 27 February 2012 by an advocate, Arun Kumar Agarwal, challenged the validity of the Cairn-Vedanta deal and sought a CBI probe into reasons for the government’s nod to the deal. The PIL claimed that the deal has caused a loss of around 1 lakh crore to the national exchequer.
5. RK Tyagi took charge as New Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the defence enterprise of the government of India, today. Prior to this, he was heading Pawan Hans Helicopter Limited.
6. The Supreme Court of India today appointed its former judge, Justice H S Bedi as the chairman of the monitoring authority. He will investigate the case of 22 alleged fake encounter killings in Gujarat between 2002 and 2006. It also rejected the plea of government to extend the time till 12 March 2012 to sort out the issue of appointment of chairman.
7. Asia Pacific’s leading media technology company, Komli Media acquired South East Asia’s largest digital media network Admax Network on 29 February. The fresh acquisition is set to provide Komli Media with the region’s largest and most diverse publisher network of 4,600 local and international websites which includes Admax’s exclusive sales partnership with Facebook in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines and with MSN in Thailand.
8. UNICEF published a new report titled, “THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2012 — Children in an Urban World”. According to the report, every third city child today lives in a slum and has no access to adequate food, drinking water, education and medical care. About one billion children and adolescents, and thus half of all children and adolescents, are living in cities. The continuing urbanization makes the cities of the world grow annually by about 60 million people. The needs and rights of children and adolescents are, according to UNICEF, often disregarded and play no significant role in urban planning. In order to give children a voice in urban decision-making processes, UNICEF has worked on the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative.
2. Uttarakhand government today introduced e-stamping in the state, which would ensure a secure way of paying non-judicial stamp duty to the government. Uttarakhand is the ninth state in the country to implement the e-stamping service. In the first phase, e-stamping is set to be introduced in the four districts of Dehra Dun, Haridwar, Udhamsingh Nagar and Nainital.
3. E-stamps would be sold through the branches of Punjab National Bank (PNB) in these districts. The state government has roped in 45 branches of PNB to carry the sale of e-stamps. E-stamping is a part of the e-governance initiative of the state which has been introduced by the state finance department in association with the Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited.
4. A Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices H L Dattu and C K Prasad today recused itself from hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the validity of the 8.5 billion dollar Cairn-Vedanta deal. The bench however not stated the reason for the not taking up the plea. The PIL filed on 27 February 2012 by an advocate, Arun Kumar Agarwal, challenged the validity of the Cairn-Vedanta deal and sought a CBI probe into reasons for the government’s nod to the deal. The PIL claimed that the deal has caused a loss of around 1 lakh crore to the national exchequer.
5. RK Tyagi took charge as New Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the defence enterprise of the government of India, today. Prior to this, he was heading Pawan Hans Helicopter Limited.
6. The Supreme Court of India today appointed its former judge, Justice H S Bedi as the chairman of the monitoring authority. He will investigate the case of 22 alleged fake encounter killings in Gujarat between 2002 and 2006. It also rejected the plea of government to extend the time till 12 March 2012 to sort out the issue of appointment of chairman.
7. Asia Pacific’s leading media technology company, Komli Media acquired South East Asia’s largest digital media network Admax Network on 29 February. The fresh acquisition is set to provide Komli Media with the region’s largest and most diverse publisher network of 4,600 local and international websites which includes Admax’s exclusive sales partnership with Facebook in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines and with MSN in Thailand.
8. UNICEF published a new report titled, “THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2012 — Children in an Urban World”. According to the report, every third city child today lives in a slum and has no access to adequate food, drinking water, education and medical care. About one billion children and adolescents, and thus half of all children and adolescents, are living in cities. The continuing urbanization makes the cities of the world grow annually by about 60 million people. The needs and rights of children and adolescents are, according to UNICEF, often disregarded and play no significant role in urban planning. In order to give children a voice in urban decision-making processes, UNICEF has worked on the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative.
