11 August 2016

First Indian channel on skill development launches in Pune

·         Millionlights, an education content provider Company has launched the first and only Indian TV Channel focused on higher education and skill development in partnership with DEN Manoranjan Satellite in Pune.

·         Millionlights aims to create a landscape of content, delivery platforms and certifications leading to higher employability.

·         The company already runs a website, which provides certification courses.

·         Partners of the initiative include universities, teachers, technology companies, and certification companies. For the TV channel initiative, the company has Microsoft as a partner.

·         Microsoft provides course segments from its existing library, which the team at Millionlightscustomises for the Indian audiences.

Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry join UDAY power discoms reforms

·         Madhya Pradesh has become the 16th state to join the centrally sponsored plan UjwalDiscoms Reforms for power distribution (UDAY). Puducherry also joined and became the first union territory to join UDAY.

·         The annual saving in the interest cost to the MP discoms would be around Rs 2,215 crore on account of restructuring of the discom debt.

·         The amount of debt being taken over by the state is Rs 26,055 crore, which is 75% of the total discoms' debt of Rs 34,739 crore outstanding as on 30.09.2015.

·         The scheme also provides for the balance debt of Rs 8,684 crore to be re-priced or issued as state guaranteed discom bonds, at coupon rates around 3 per cent less than the average existing interest rate.

MSAI and Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust launch ‘I Feel Safe’ safety app for women 

      Mobile Standards Alliance of India (MSAI) and the Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust launched a mobile app aimed at ensuring personal safety

 during times of distress.

   The app - called I Feel Safe Safety Ka Power Button - has a virtual  panic button which users can simply press to activate the alarm.·   

     It can be used even when the screen is locked, the SIM card is removed, no Wi-Fi networks are available, and the absence of a data plan.

·

        The app works across the country on all mobile networks and sends real-time updates about the location of the user.

Cabinet approves Agreement between the India and Croatia on Economic Cooperation·    

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for signing and ratification of an Agreement between India and Croatia on Economic Cooperation.

·        India and Croatia had earlier signed an Agreement on trade and economic cooperation in September, 1994 with an aim to promote and develop bilateral trade and economic relations.

·        Signing of the new Agreement between India and Croatia would be a step in continuity as the existing Agreement expired in November, 2009.

·        India's bilateral trade with Croatia during 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 were US$ 152.01million, US$ 148.86 million and US$ 205.04 million respectively. The average bilateral trade growth was 17.44% during the last three years.

Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry join UDAY power discoms reforms 

  

        Madhya Pradesh has become the 16th state to join the centrally sponsored plan UjwalDiscoms Reforms for power distribution (UDAY).

     Puducherry also joined and became the first union territory to join UDAY.

·         The annual saving in the interest cost to the MP discoms would be around Rs 2,215 crore on account of restructuring of the discom debt.

·         The amount of debt being taken over by the state is Rs 26,055 crore, which is 75% of the total discoms' debt of Rs 34,739 crore outstanding as on 30.09.2015.

·         The scheme also provides for the balance debt of Rs 8,684 crore to be re-priced or issued as state guaranteed discom bonds, at coupon rates around 3 per cent less than the average existing interest rate

-

10 August 2016

Dinesh Kumar Khara appointed as Managing Director of SBI

Dinesh Kumar Khara was appointed Managing Director (MD) of State Bank of India (SBI), India’s largest lender.

 His appointment was confirmed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has been appointed for the period of three years.

Prior to this appointment he was working as MD and chief executive of SBI Funds Management Pvt. Ltd.

Besides, ACC also appointed Ashok Kumar Garg and Raj Kamal Verma as executive directors of Bank of Baroda (BoB) and Union Bank of India (UBI), respectively. Gopal Murli Bhagat and Himanshu Joshi were also appointed as executive directors of Corporation Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), respectively.

Maneka kicks off campaign to mark 11 Aug as Daughters' Day

  Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi has kicked-off a social media campaign to mark Daughters' Day tomorrow by tweeting a picture with her daughter-in-law and grand-daughter.

   The entire week is being celebrated as Daughters' Week as part of government's 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' programme to check female foeticide, improve sex ratio and educate girls across the country.

  Maneka Gandhi has also invited people to tweet their pictures with their daughters-in-law and grand-daughters with #BBPDaughtersWeek.

Parliament passes bill for easier debt recover

 Parliament has passed a bill which empowers banks to confiscate security in the case of loan default, a development that assumes significance in view of the episode surrounding industrialist Vijay Mallya.

  The Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws and Miscellaneous Provisions (Amendment) Bill, 2016, will not, however, apply to loans for agricultural land as well as student loans.

    The bill, approved by Lok Sabha last week and cleared by Rajya Sabha today, amends four laws -- Sarfaesi Act, DRT Act, Indian Stamp Act and Depositories Act.

  Replying to a debate on the bill, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley emphasized the need for "firmness coupled with fairness" in recovering bad loans.

Niti ties up with US EIA to set up portal on energy data 

Moving a step closer to set up a portal to host all the data related to energy sector in the country, Niti Aayog today inked a pact with US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

·         The think tank is working to develop Indias energy data agency which would take 3-4 years to develop. The web portal will host all the data related to energy sector including oil & gas, coal, solar & thermal energy etc.

·         On the occasion, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Anil Madhav Dave made a case for having a global energy data grid which clearly specified the use of clean and unclean (polluting) energy across the world to deal with the larger issue of climate change.

Bank Of Maharashtra, United Bank of India Get New Chiefs

·         Pawan Kumar Bajaj and Ravindra Prabhakar Marathe were appointed as managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) of United Bank of India and Bank of Maharashtra respectively.

·         Mr Bajaj is executive director in Indian Overseas Bank. He has been appointed as MD and CEO "based on merit-cum-preference", an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training said.

·         Mr Bajaj has been appointed to the post up to September 20, 2018, the date of his attaining the age of superannuation, it said.

NABARD sanctions Rs 26.06 crore to Punjab

·         National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) sanctioned Rs 26.06 crore to the government of Punjab.

·         The fund has been sanctioned for tackling (handling) waterlogging (saturation of soil with water) by constructing lift schemes in low-lying (lying close to water or ground level) areas, village ponds and other allied (united) works, said an official release.

·         The project will reclaim 5,913 hectares of land in 87 villages of Muktsar and Fazilka districts.

·         Once the project is implemented, farmers will be able to cultivate crops in the previously waterlogged areas after a long gap.