27-28 October 2015

27 October

AR Rahman received Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award

Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman was on 26 October 2015 conferred with Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award in Mumbai. He won the award for his contribution to the Indian music.
Veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai presented the fifth Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award to Rahman on the 78th birthday of Pandit Hridaynath Mangeshkar. Mangeskar was a well-known composer and the younger brother of Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle.

About Hridaynath Mangeskar Award
• It was instituted by Hridayesh Art, a Mumbai- based socio-cultural organisation in honour of music composer and singer Hridaynath Mangeskar.
• Hridaynath is the son of noted musician Deenanath Mangeshkar and younger brother of Indian music legends Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle.
• The annual award is given since 2011 in recognition of contributions to Indian music.
• Recipients of the earlier awards were-Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Sulochana Tai and Asha Bhosle.
• The first Hridaynath Award was given to Lata Mangeshkar.
Allah-Rakha Rahman
• Allah-Rakha Rahman (AR Rahman) is an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, musician and philanthropist.
• His works are noted for integrating Eastern classical music with electronic music, world music and traditional orchestral arrangements.
• Rahman's body of work for film and stage has given him the nickname of the Mozart of Madras, and Tamil commentators and fans call him Isai Puyal (the Musical Storm).
• He is one of the world's all-time best-selling recording artists.
• Awards and honours conferred on Rahman includes
a) Two Academy Awards or Oscars
b) Two Grammy Awards
c) BAFTA Award
d) Golden Globe
e) Four National Film Awards
f) Fifteen Filmfare Awards
g) Thirteen Filmfare Awards South
h) In 2009, he was on the Times listing of the world's most influential people.
i) In August 2011, the UK-based world-music magazine Songlines named him one of "Tomorrow's World Music Icons

China launched third mapping satellite of Tianhui-1 series

China on 26 October 2015 successfully launched the Tianhui-1Cmapping satellite into its designated orbit from Jiuquan satellite launch centrein the north-western province of Gansu.

A Long March-2D carrier rocketcarried the Tianhui-1C mapping satellite blasts off from the launch pad.

The satellite will offer a boost to country's ability to carry out scientific experiments, land resource surveys, mapping, crop yield estimation and disaster relief.

The Tianhui-1C, which is the third satellite in the Tianhui-1 series, was designed by a subsidiary of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASTC).

The first Tianhui 1 mapping satellite was launched in August 2010, and Tianhui 1B was launched in May 2012.

Indian Immunologicals Ltd opened 250 crore rupees multi-purpose facility near Hyderabad

Indian Immunologicals Ltd (IIL) on 26 October 2015 announced that it operationalised a new multi-purpose facility to produce vaccines against infectious diseases of humans and animal health formulations.

The facility that is located at the Phase III of the Genome Valley on the outskirts of Hyderabad is India’s largest for producing animal health formulations.

Features of the production facility

• It was developed with an estimated cost of 250 crore rupees. facility
• It is spread across 47 acres and the second manufacturing unit of IIL in Hyderabad.
• The first phase of human vaccine facility can produce 8 million doses of human rabies vaccine.

• The animal health formulation facility is equipped to produce an estimated capacity of 300 million tablets, 100 million bolus, and 20 million vials of injectables for bovines, sheep and pets.
• The human vaccine facility meets the WHO’s pre-qualification standards necessary to export vaccines to child immunisation programmes across the world.

About Indian Immunologicals Ltd

It is a unit of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). Apart from the new multi-purpose facility, it has four other manufacturing facilities viz., anti rabies production unit in Ooty, Tamil Nadu, Cattle feed Unit in Rajkot, Gujarat, biologicals unit in Gachibowli, Hyderabad and serum manufacturing unit in New Zealand.

EU, Balkan leaders agreed on 17-point plan to manage inflow of migrants

European Union (EU) and Balkan leaders on 25 October 2015 agreed to adopt a 17-point plan to cooperate on managing flows of migrants through the Balkan Peninsula.
The agreement was reached during a meet on migrants’ issue in Brussels, Belgium that was participated by heads of 11 EU states and three non-EU countries.
The nations that were present at the meeting at Commission's Berlaymont Headquarters: Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia.

Agreed measures include
• EU agreed to set up new reception centres up to 100000 migrants, along the route from Greece toward Germany, half of them in Greece and half in countries to the north.
• Greece has committed to opening enough reception centres to house 30000 refugees by the end of the year 2015. UN refugee agency UNHCR will help provide at least 20000 more places in Greece.
• Additional reception centres for 50000 persons will come up in the Balkans countries, which became popular routes for the refugees heading to Germany and Scandinavia after Hungary sealed its border with Serbia and Croatia.
• They agreed to send 400 additional police officers to support Slovenia, which has been overwhelmed by the number of refugees crossing into the country from Croatia.
• The leaders also agreed that the EU border agency Frontex would step up activity on the Greek-Macedonian border to ensure people trying to cross would be registered. According to Frontex, over 7 lakh 10 thousand refugees have arrived in the European Union since the beginning of 2015. Since mid-September, nearly 250000 people have passed through the Balkans.
The agreement will help Greece and Balkan nations to cope with the raging refugee crisis, who are escaping war and poverty in their countries like Syria and other strife-torn regions.

Balkan Peninsula
The Balkan Peninsula, referred as the Balkans, is a geographical region of Southeast Europe. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch from the east of Serbia to the Black Sea at the east of Bulgaria.

The Balkans are generally considered to include, in whole or in part, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Romania, and the European part of Turkey.

Guatemala elected comedian Jimmy Morales as the President

Jimmy Morales, a former TV comedian, on 25 October 2015 swept to power in Guatemala's presidential election. He will take the office on 14 January 2016.

In the presidential election, Morales won more than 67 percent of votes. On the other hand, the ex-first lady Sandra Torres received less than 33 percent of votes.

In 2015, Morales was nominated as the presidential candidate ofNational Convergence Front (FCN/Nation). Initially, he was considered an outsider. However, he finished first in the first round of the election and qualified for the runoff.

Morales, who identified himself as a nationalist, supported death penalty and opposed abortion, came out with a slogan of Neither corrupt nor a thiefthat attracted the masses.

His success came after both former vice president Roxana Baldetti and outgoing president Otto Pérez Molina had to step down and were arrested on fraud and corruption charges.

Jimmy Morales born as James Ernesto Morales Cabreraon 18 March 1969 earned fame as a TV comedian when he starred in the popular TV series Moralejas(Morals).

He joined the FCN party in 2013 and became its secretary-general.

Deepika Kumari won silver medal in Archery World Cup Final

Indian archer Deepika Kumari on 25 October 2015 bagged the silver medal in the Archery World Cup Final held in Mexico City.

Kumari went down 2-6 in finale to South Korea’s Chou Misun.

Currently ranked World No. 5, Kumari clinched a gold medal in the 2010 Commonwealth gamesin the women's individual recurve event. She also won a gold medal in the 2010 Commonwealth games in the women's team recurve event along with Dola BanerjeeandBombayala Devi. In May 2012, she won her first World Cupindividual stage recurve gold medal at Antalya, Turkey.

In 2012, the Ranchi-born archer was honoured by the President of India with the prestigious Arjuna Award, India's second highest sporting award. She was also named as the FICCI Sportsperson of the Year Awardin February 2014.

Dinesh, Yekona open cast mine projects of Western Coalfields inaugurated in Nagpur

Union Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal & New Renewable Piyush Goyal on 26 October 2015 inaugurated Dinesh and Yekona open cast mine projects.

They are run by the Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) and located inUmred area of Nagpur district in Maharashtra.

The two projects have the combined production capacity of 6.75 million tonnes that will be utilized to generate 1400 MW of power by MAHAGENCO and others.

These projects would also provide job opportunities for the 1773 land oustees and indirect employment opportunities for hundreds of more from the local populace.

About WCL

Western Coalfields Limited is a one of the eight subsidiaries of Coal India Limited (CIL) which is under administrative control of Ministry of Coal. The Company has contributed about 8.6 percent of the national coal production during 2009-10 and conferred Miniratna status on 15th March 2007.

FIIs/RFPIs can now invest up to 74 percent in DEN Networks Limited: RBI

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 26 October 2015 notified that the Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs)/Registered Foreign Portfolios Investors (RFPIs) can now invest up to 74 percent of the paid up capital of DEN Networks Limited under thePortfolio Investment Scheme (PIS).

DEN Networks Limited has passed resolutions at its Board of Directors’ level and a special resolution by the shareholders, agreeing for enhancing the limit for the purchase of its equity shares and convertible debentures by FIIs/RFPIs.
The purchases could be made through primary market and stock exchanges. The purchases would be subject to Regulation 5(2) of FEMA Notification and other terms and conditions stipulated by the Reserve Bank.
The Reserve Bank notified this under Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.

Financial powers of Health Institutions enhanced to 5 lakh rupees per patient under Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi

Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 26 October 2015 enhanced delegated financial powers of designated Central Government Hospitals and institutes under the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN) scheme.

After the enhancement, only cases for financial assistance beyond 5 lakh rupees would now be required to be referred to the Ministry from the earlier upper limit of 2 lakh rupees per patient.

The move is aimed at curtailing procedural delays for treatment, which would bring relief to thousands of patients annually.

About Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi

• It was set up in 1997 to provide financial assistance to patients, living below poverty line (BPL).
• Patients suffering from major life threatening diseases related to heart, liver, kidney and cancer cases, etc., are covered under the scheme.
• Patients receive medical treatment only at any of the designated super specialty Government hospitals / institutes or other Government hospitals.
• Revolving Funds have been set up in 12 Central Government hospitals/institutes and amount up to 50 lakh rupees is placed at their disposal for providing financial assistance.

Law and Justice Party won Poland’s Parliamentary Elections 2015

Conservative Right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party on 25 October 2015 won the Polish parliamentary elections 2015 that were held on 25 October 2015 in Poland.

As per the preliminary results announced by Polish election body, the euroskeptic and opposition PiS party secured decisive 39.1 percent of the vote against the governing Civic Platform party which fetched 23.4 percent shares of vote.
Following the preliminary result, PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski claimed victory, and the incumbent Prime Minister, Ewa Kopacz of the Civic Platform, admitted defeat.
Three other parties also won enough votes to get seats in parliament: a new right-wing party Kukiz'15 led by Pawel Kukiz got 8.8 percent votes; a new pro-business party Modern Poland got 7.6 percent votes; and the agrarian Polish People's Party fetched 5.1 percent of votes.
With this, Beata Szydło, the deputy leader of Law and Justice, is set to be designated as the next Prime Minister of Poland, succeeding Ewa Kopacz.
Comment
The Polish parliamentary elections 2015 were a historic one. It will be the first time since 1989 that there will be no left-wing party in parliament and even though conservative PiS party will have a small majority but for the first time since the onset of democracy in Poland in 1989 any single party has won enough seats to govern alone.
Further the PiS party, which won the elections by promising simple and concrete policies for the citizens who felt untouched by the country's impressive economic growth, is a sign that citizens of Poland had enough of eight years rule of Civic Platform's unfulfilled promises, scandals and pro-EU policies.
Electoral system of Poland
The process of election for the Polish parliament (Sejm) is through open party-list proportional representation with a 5 percent threshold for single parties and 8 percent threshold for coalitions. The senate is elected using voting in single-member districts.
To be included on a ballot, a senate candidate must present 2000 signatures of support from their constituents. For Sejm elections, the threshold is 5000 signatures per constituency, though that requirement is waived for parties who have already registered lists in at least half of all constituencies.
Overall, the Sejm includes 460 MPs. A party with 231 or more deputies representing the Parliament has an absolute majority and could thus without a coalition partner can govern autonomously. The tenure of both the Sejm and Senate is of four years.

Department of Heavy Industries drafted National Policy on Capital Goods

The Department of Heavy Industries (DHI) on 26 October 2015 came out with draft national policy on capital goods. This is the first time that such a policy is being framed after active consultation with industry associations.
The Policy on Capital Goods is focused on the most critical sector for achieving the vision of Make in India and also is envisages unlocking the potential for this promising sector and establish India as a global manufacturing hub.

Vision
• To increase the share of capital goods contribution from present 12% to 20% of total manufacturing activity by 2025
Mission
• To become one of the top capital goods producing nations of the world by raising the total production to over twice the current level
• To raise exports to a significant level of at least 40% of total production and thus gain 2.5% share in global exports of capital goods
• To improve technology depth in Indian capital goods from the current basic and intermediate levels to advanced levels
Objectives
• Increase total production to achieve total production in excess of 5 lakh crore rupees by 2025 from the current 2.2 lakh crore rupees
• To increase domestic employment from the current 15 lakhs to at least 50 lakhs by 2025 thus providing additional employment to over 35 lakhs people
• To increase the share of domestic production in India's capital goods demand from 56% to 80% by 2025 and in the process improve domestic capacity utilization to 80-90%
• To improve skill availability by training 50 lakhs people by 2025
• To improve 'technology depth' in capital goods sub-sectors by increasing research intensity in India from 0.9% to at least 2.8% of GDP
Proposed nine-point action plan
The policy has proposed a comprehensive set of policy actions which would enable the achievement of the objectives for the sector and had recommended a set of nine new initiatives and policy actions and they are:
• Devising a long term, stable and rationalized tax and duty structure to ensure cost competitiveness of the sector
• Drafting a comprehensive public procurement policy with amended qualifying criteria and introducing special provisions in contracts for domestic value addition
• Promoting development of new technology through indigenous sources
• Providing Technology Upgrade Fund Support across all capital goods sub-sectors
• Creating a level playing field vis-à-vis imports by restricting imports of second hand machinery and mitigating duty disadvantages
• Supporting availability of short and long term of financing at competitive rates to capital goods manufacturers
• Enabling skill development by setting up sub-sector specific Skill Councils.
• Enabling higher participation of India in standard creation and developing support system to improve compliance.
• Developing manufacturing clusters with shared facilities especially for SMEs

Governance Mechanism
The policy proposes a governance mechanism for smooth implementation and effectiveness of the policy. The mechanism will be in the form of inter-ministerial and inter-departmental committees at the highest level to ensure due consideration of the interests of all stakeholders. The committees will be tasked with driving coordinated action and monitoring the progress and effectiveness of policy on an annual basis

Periodic Review of Policy
The capital goods sector operates in a dynamic local and global environment and it is imperative for the policy to undergo a periodic review and revision to maintain its relevance.
The National Capital Goods Policy will be reviewed every five years and revised appropriately to take account of progress in implementation and emerging trends in the national and international environment.

Angry Indian Goddesses bagged People’s Choice Award at Rome Film Festival

Director Pan Nalin’s film, Angry Indian Goddesses, on 25 October 2015 was awarded with BNL People’s Choice Award at the 10th Rome Film Festival held in Rome, Italy.

The award was presented by the BNL Gruppo BNP Paribas. The winner was selected through an online voting system by the audience.

The movie also received an eight-minute-long standing ovation at the festival.

Earlier, the movie was also screened in the Special Presentationssection of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, where it came second to Lenny Abrahamson’s Roomin the voting for the People's Choice Award.

Angry Indian Goddesses is a 2015 Hindi drama film, which starsSandhya Mridul, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Sarah-Jane Dias, Anushka Manchanda, Amrit Maghera, Rajshri Deshpandeand Pavleen Gujralplaying lead roles with Adil Hussain.

The movie narrates the tale of a girl who invited her closest girlfriends to Goa to announce her wedding, and how it all turned into a wild bachelorette party.

SC appointed Upamanyu Hazarika Commission submitted report on illegal migrants from Bangladesh

A one-man Commission headed by Upamanyu Hazarika on 5 October 2015 submitted its report on illegal migrants from Bangladesh into Assam.

The fact-finding commission was appointed by the Supreme Court in May 2015 while hearing the public interest litigation (PIL)-Assam Sanmilita Mahasangha Vs Union of India & Gov. of Assam.

The commission was appointed by the Supreme Court (SC) to find out and report on the ground situation along the India-Bangladesh border running through Assam.

Highlights of the report

• Migrants from Bangladesh are threatening to reduce the indigenous population of Assam to a minority by the year 2047.
• Foreigners acquired land through all means and the favourite mode being to pose as flood and erosion affected persons from other districts with the aid and assistance of a complicit and corrupt administration.
• The big influx over the years has created a huge immigration population which competes for jobs, in government institutions with Indian citizens, without verification of the antecedents of such non-Indians.

• A high-power inquiry on illegal migration should be constituted by the SC to inquire into issues concerning illegal migration from Bangladesh.
• A Sterile Zone should be created by demarcating or identifying a particular stretch from the international boundary in the riverine area and identity cards should be issued to villagers there.
• Since the primary reason for illegal migration is hunger for land, there should be a restriction in the transfer of land - whether by way of sale, purchase, gift or any other such transaction, or by way of allotment from any agency only to those who have been citizens of India in the year 1951 and their descendants.
• Statutory restrictions on transfer of land to non-tribals in existing tribal belts in Assam now be extended to non-tribal areas.

Union Law Ministry notified Delhi HC Amendment Act, 2015

Union Law Ministry on 26 October 2015 notified Delhi High Court Amendment Act, 2015. The Act provides for enhancement of pecuniary jurisdiction of the District Courts of Delhi from 20 lakh to 2 crore rupees.
The law empowers the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court to transfer any pending suit or other proceedings to relevant subordinate court in the National Capital Territory of Delhi.

Benefits of the law
• It will reduce the burden of Delhi High Court.
• There would be substantive improvement in disposal of cases in subordinate Courts.
• It will also facilitate access of the general public to 11 District Courts located in 6 District Court Complexes, ensuring speedy justice to litigants at their door steps.
Earlier in August 2015, the Parliament gave its seal of approval to the Delhi High Court Amendment Bill, 2015. The Bill received the assent of the President on 10 August 2015.
The last revision of pecuniary jurisdiction of District Courts in Delhi was done in 2003, when it was raised from five lakh to 20 lakh rupees.

World Bank released a report on Arab Spring Revolution

World Bank on 21 October 2015 released a report entitled Inequality, Uprisings, and Conflict in the Arab World as part of the Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA) Economic Monitor series.

The report explains widespread inequality in the society despite overall growth and development of the nations as a whole as the possible answer toArab inequality puzzle-what drove people to the streets in the MENA despite the region making steady progress?

Findings of the Report

Judging by economic data alone, the revolutions of the 2011 Arab Spring should have never happened.

There are ample evidences showing progress toward eliminating extreme poverty, boosting shared prosperity, increasing school enrollment, etc. in the decades prior to the Arab Spring.

Still, in late 2010 and early 2011, millions of people poured onto the streets of major cities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), calling for change.

Growing and broadly shared dissatisfaction with the quality of life—evident in perception data from value surveys but not in objective data—were the main reasons for the uprisings.

Ordinary people, and especially those from the middle class, were frustrated by their deteriorating standards of living due to a lack of job opportunities in the formal sector, poor quality public services, and the lack of government accountability.

By 2010, people in the countries that became most involved in the Arab Spring—Syria, Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen – were among the least happy in the world.

Dissatisfaction was widespread but more pronounced for the middle 40 percent of the population than the bottom 40 percent.

Further, wealth disparities, which are typically higher than income disparities, could have been a factor in the Arab Spring uprisings that was not captured in standard economic data.

ICC released Test, ODI, T20I and Women’s Ranking

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on 26 October 2015 launched the official ICC men’s Team Rankings from Test, One Day International (ODI) and T20I cricket.
South Africa with 125 rating was placed at the top position in the Test ranking list; while Australia topped the ODI list with 127 ratings. Sri Lanka with 126 points topped the list of T20I rankings.
On the other hand, Australian women team with 134 ratings topped in the ICC Women’s Rankings, which was released for the second time ever.

The ICC on 1 October 2015 launched the official ICC Women’s Team Rankings, which incorporated results in all three formats of the game into one rankings system. The innovative new system treated results from Test, ODI and T20I cricket equally.
In Test, ODI, T20I as well as Women's Cricket, India was placed at fifth, second, sixth and fourth position respectively.
Top three Rankings in the three formats of Men’s team

ICC Test Rankings

Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	South Africa	24	3008	125
2	Australia	32	3376	106
3	England	36	3686	102

ICC ODI Rankings

Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	Australia	44	5569	127
2	India	56	6380	114
3	South Africa	57	6362	112

ICC T20I Rankings

Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	Sri Lanka	15	1891	126
2	Pakistan	24	2903	121
3	Australia	17	2006	118

Top Three in ICC Women’s Rankings

Rank	Team	Matches	Points	Rating
1	Australia Women	41	5490	134
2	England Women	39	4851	124
3	New Zealand Women	37	4040	109

World Bank on 22 October 2015 released the Migration and Development Brief that conveyed recent trends in remittance flows and migration across the world.

As per the report, though a decrease in migrant remittances is expected in 2015 amid global slowdown, it is set to rise in 2016 and 2017 as the major economies of the developed world are set to recover.

Highlights of the report

• Remittances to developing countries are expected to reach 435 billion US dollars in 2015, registering a modest growth rate of 2 percent from last year. This represents a significant slowing in the growth of remittances from the rise of 3.3 percent in 2014 and of 7.1 percent per year from 2010-13.
• Global remittances, sent home from some 250 million migrants, are projected to grow by 1.3 percent to 588 billion US dollars.
• Slowing remittances this year will affect most developing regions, in particular Europe and Central Asia where flows are expected to decline by 18.3 percent in 2015. A weakening of the Ruble against the US Dollar is the main cause of that decline.

• Looking to 2016, the report says remittances to developing countries are expected to rise by about 4 percent, reaching an estimated 453 billion US dollars, buoyed by the continuing recovery in the United States and a modest acceleration of economic activity in Europe.
• Global flows of remittances are expected to recover in 2016 to reach 610 billion US dollars, and then rising to 635 billion US dollars in 2017.
• The recently-adopted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development endorse improvements in migration policies, efforts to end human trafficking, promote decent labor conditions for migrant workers, etc.
• The Action Agenda also addresses the issue of de-risking by banks and adverse effects of financial regulations on financial inclusion.

The report concludes by stating the fact that-one out of seven people in the world is a migrant, and a quarter of them, international migrants.

World Bank released Migration and Development Brief

World Bank on 22 October 2015 released the Migration and Development Brief that conveyed recent trends in remittance flows and migration across the world.

Highlights of the report

The report concludes by stating the fact that-one out of seven people in the world is a migrant, and a quarter of them, international migrants.

India is World’s largest remittance recipient: World Bank

World Bank on 22 October 2015 announced that India is the World’s largest remittance recipient. It was revealed in the Migration and Development Brief that conveyed recent trends in remittance flows and migration across the world.

As per the report, remittances to India are projected to increase by 2.5 percent in 2015, well above the 0.6 percent increase in 2014.

Stronger remittance growth in India reflects improving economic prospects in the United States and continued fiscally-supported economic resilience in the GCC countries that contribute 35 percent of remittances each.

However, on the flip side, Japan-India is one of the three high remittance cost corridors that have well above 10 percent. The situation is due to low volumes, lack of competition in the remittance markets in some sending countries, and policy rigidities that limit competition in some market segments.

As a result, it is estimated that around 70 percent of total domestic remittances are transmitted through informal channels.

Still, it is hoped that Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) recent initiative-granting in-principle approval to 11 entities to start payment banks-is expected to transform the remittance market especially in the underserved rural areas.

28 October

Irish-born actress Maureen O’Hara passed away

Acclaimed Irish-American actress Maureen O’Hara passed away peacefully in her sleep on 25 October 2015 in Boise, US. She was 95. She is survived by her daughter, a grandson and two great-grandchildren.

She was one among the last lot of actors that belong to the Golden Age of Hollywood of the 1940s and 1950s. She was known for playing fiercely passionate but sensible heroines roles.
Born in Ranelagh, Dublin in 1920, O’Hara started her career in 1939 after she was brought to Hollywood by legendary actor Charles Laughton. Her first film was The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939).
She had starred in more than 60 films. She also acted in How Green Was My Valley (1941) which won five Oscars including best picture and best director for John Ford. She was famously known as the queen of Technicolor in the film industry due to her red hair and green eyes.
After retiring from acting career in 1970s, she successfully ran an airline business with her husband Charles Blair. After her husband’s death, she became the first woman in US history to head a scheduled commercial airline.
In 2011, O’Hara was inducted into the Irish America Hall of Fame at an event in Wexford. And in 2014, she was presented with an Honorary Academy award and was only the second actress to receive an Academy Award for acting without having been nominated after Myrna Loy.

Citibank appointed Samiran Chakraborty as Chief Economist for India

Citibank on 27 October 2015 announced that it has appointed Samiran Chakraborty as Chief Economist for India.
Prior to joining Citi, Chakraborty was Managing Director and Head of Macro Research for South Asia at Standard Chartered Bank. Earlier, he served ICICI Bank as Chief Economist and Delhi School of Economics as faculty for mathematical economics and open-economy macroeconomics.

He carries more than a decade of experience in conducting macro research, covering various asset classes including currency, interest rates and credit markets.

Government of Andhra Pradesh declared 196 mandals as drought-hit

Government of Andhra Pradesh on 27 October 2015 declared 196 mandals (blocks) in seven districts as drought-hit out of the total 664 mandals spread across 13 districts of the state.

With this, Andhra Pradesh became the third state to declare drought in the country as Karnataka and Maharashtra made the announcement in this regard in August and early October 2015 respectively.

While the majority of the mandals are spread across all the four districts of Rayalaseema region namely Kadapa, Kurnool, Chittoor and Anantapur; Nellore, Prakasam and SriKakulam are the three identified districts in Coastal Andhra region.

As per an estimation of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the Rayalaseema received 36 cm rainfall as against the average of 39 cm, Coastal Andhra received 64 cm rainfall against average 58 cm between 1 June and 30 September 2015 during the southwest monsoon season.

IOC allowed refugees to compete in Olympics for the first time

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) chief Thomas Bach on 26 October 2015 announced that all the highly qualified athletes who are refugees will be allowed to compete in the Olympic Games. This is for the first time that refugee athletes will be competing in any Olympic Games.

As per the announcement, all the eligible athletes will be able to compete for the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The announcement was made during the UN General Assembly (UNGA) meeting which adopted a resolution urging all countries to stop fighting and observe a truce during the 2016 Summer Olympics. Bach also appealed to all 193 UN member states to help the IOC identify talented refugee athletes.
IOC has created a 2 million US dollars fund to bring hope through sport to refugees. Having no national anthem to play for them, these refugee athletes will be welcomed to the Olympic Games with the IOC flag and the IOC anthem.
While participating in the 2016 Olympics, refugee athletes will stay in the Olympic Village alongside the other 11000 athletes from 206 national Olympic committees. Until now, qualified refugee athletes were not able to participate because they couldn't represent their home country and its national Olympic committee.
Currently, there are about 20 million refugees in the world - and the number is growing. Earlier in October 2015, more than 500000 refugees and economic migrants have entered Europe and thousands more are following in their footsteps.

J&K to host South Asian Rugby 7’S Championship in 2016

Jammu and Kashmir Minister for Youth Services and Sports Molvi Imran Raza Ansari on 27 October 2015 announced that Kashmir Valley will host South Asian Rugby 7’S Championship in 2016.
The decision was made during the 131st Standing Committee meeting of J-K State Sports Council, which was chaired by Ansari. As per the decision, the championship will be held at Bakhshi Stadium from 18 June to 20 June 2016.

The Championship will be participated by eight teams consisting of 180 participants from various countries like Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and India.
The minister also said that the government wants such events to be held in the state for the promotion of sports activities at global level. He also said that the Council would provide all possible support to make the event a success and will provide various facilities like boarding, lodging and logistic for smooth conduct of the event.
Some other decision taken during the meet includes
• Decision on to put the recognition of various Sports Associations in abeyance till they do not conform to the set rules and submit their account details within a stipulated time was made.
• Honorarium for the standing committee members was increased and approval for the creation of various posts in the Council was also given

Russia to launch manned moon missions by 2029

The Russian Federal Space Agency, commonly called as Roscosmos, on 27 October 2015 announced that it plans to launch a manned flight to the moon and the lunar landing is planned for 2029.

It also announced that the Russian scientists are working on creating a new spacecraft made of composites specifically designed for moon missions.

Vladimir Solntsev, the head of Roscosmos, made the announcement during a space technology conference in Moscow.

As per the announcement, the spaceship is expected to make its first test flight in 2021. It will dock with the International Space Stationin 2023, and the spaceship will carry out its first unmanned mission to the moon in 2025.

Reportedly, Russia also plans to land the Luna 25research vessel on the south pole of the moon to explore its internal structure and the impact of the cosmic rays and electromagnetic radiation on its surface.

About Russian Federal Space Agency

The Russian Federal Space Agency, which is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research, was established on 25 February 1992. The agency was previously known as the Russian Aviation and Space Agency.

The agency has its headquarter located in the capital city Moscow, while the Main Mission Control space flight operations centre is located in Korolev.

In 2015, the Russian Government announced that it was merging Roscosmos with the United Rocket and Space Corporation, the re-nationalised Russian space industry to create the Roscosmos State Corporation.

Union Finance Ministry launched E-Sahyog Pilot Project to facilitate Taxpayers

The Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on 27 October 2015 launched the e-Sahyog pilot project of the Income-Tax Department to facilitate taxpayers by reducing their need to physically appear before tax authorities.

The e-Sahyog project is aimed at reducing compliance cost, especially for small taxpayers.
Highlights of the e-Sahyog project
• The objective of e-Sahyog is to provide an online mechanism to resolve mismatches in Income-tax returns of those assesses whose returns have been selected for scrutiny, without visiting the Income Tax Office.
• The Income-Tax Department will provide an end to end e-service using SMS, e-mails to inform the tax assesses of the mismatch.
• The taxpayers will simply need to visit the e-filing portal and log in with their user-ID and password to view mismatch related information and submit online response on the issue.
• The responses submitted online by the taxpayers will be processed and if the response and other information are found satisfactory as per automated closure rules, the issue will be treated as closed.
• The taxpayers can check the updated status by logging in to the e-filing portal.
Inauguration of drive to behold special PAN camps in remote areas
The Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley also inaugurated a drive to provide public service at peoples’ door step by holding special PAN camps in remote areas. Under this campaign, special PAN camps were held at forty- three remote, semi urban and rural locations across India.
More such camps will be held throughout the year. The camps will ease the burden of compliance for persons residing in remote, semi urban and rural areas who wish to enter into transactions of purchase or sale above rupees one lakh and will be required to quote PAN.

Sylvie Lucas appointed as Chair of the IGN on UNSC reforms

Luxembourg ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Sylvie Lucas on 27 October 2015 was appointed as the Chair of the Inter-Governmental Negotiations (IGN)on UN Security Council (UNSC)reforms.

Lucas, who was appointed by 70th UN General Assembly session President Morgens Lykketoft, replaced Ambassador Courtenay Rattrayof Jamaica.

Her appointment came ahead of the next round of negotiations to begin on the UNSC reforms.

Earlier, she served as the president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)from January 2009 to January 2010.

She started her career with Luxembourg Ministry of Foreign Affairs where she worked from 1990 to 1995. She served as the deputy permanent representative of Luxembourg to the United Nations from 1995 to 2000. On 25 August 2008, she became the United Nations' permanent representative from Luxembourg.

India ranked 130 in ease of doing business: World Bank

World Bank on 27 October 2015 announced that India ranked 130 out of the 189 countries surveyed in terms of ease of doing business for domestic firms. It was revealed in the report entitled Doing Business 2016: Measuring Regulatory Quality and Efficiency.

As per the report, India could improve its ranking by 12 places from the 142nd position ofthe 2015 report by undertaking significant improvements in the regulatory framework for starting new businesses.

The findings of the report were based on collection of data in Mumbai and Delhi between June 2014 and May 2015.

India’s performance in 4 key areas

Starting a business: India was placed at the 155th position overall in this segment. However, it is still one of the areas of greatest improvement for India, as the number of days to start a business was cut down to 29 days in 2015 from much longer 127 days in 2014.

The progress is in this segment was attributed to business friendly initiatives like speeding up the process for obtaining a tax registration number, introducing online system for value added tax registration, replacing the physical stamp with an online version, etc.

Further, more recent initiatives like amending the Companies Act, 2013 to eliminate the minimum capital requirement and requirement to obtain a certificate to commence business operations also helped for this cause.

Dealing with construction permits: India showed very poor performance in this segment as it was placed at the 183rd position overall. However, the report pointed out that recent initiatives like introducing single window procedures to obtain construction permits in local bodies like Mumbai are expected to improve the performance.

Getting electricity: India ranked overall 70 among the surveyed countries as now companies can get connected to the grid and get on with their business in 14 days sooner than before in Delhi and Mumbai.

Registering property: India ranked 138. To improve performance in this segment, the report suggested for undertaking digitization of land records across the country, taking Karnataka as an example, to make records more easily accessible and more open for collaboration with external stakeholders.

Other findings of the report

• India was placed at the top 7th position in the Shareholder Protection Index out of the select group of 30 countries between 1990 and 2013.
• India is one of the top five countries in the world that showed higher level of worker as well as shareholder protection between 1970 and 2005.
• India is a fine example to demonstrate the linkage between faster processing of debt recovery cases and reduction in the cost of credit. Reduction in nonperforming loans (NPA) by 28 percent and consequently, lowering interest rates on larger loans was achieved by the establishment of debt recovery panels in India.

Union Government constituted RV Easwar Committee to simplify The Income Tax Act, 1961

The Union Government on 27 October 2015 constituted RV Easwar Committee with a view to simplify the provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The committee will be headed by Justice RV Easwar (Retd.), former Judge of Delhi High Court and former President of ITAT.

The members of the committee are VK Bhasin, Vinod Jain, Rajiv Memani, Ravi Gupta, Mukesh Patel, Ajay Bahl, Pradip P. Shah, Arvind Modi and Dr. Vinay Kumar Singh.
Terms of Reference (ToR) of the Committee
• To study and identify the provisions/phrases in the Act which are leading to litigation due to different interpretations;
• To study and identify the provisions which are impacting the ease of doing business;
• To study and identify the areas and provisions of the Act for simplification in the light of the existing jurisprudence;
• To suggest alternatives and modifications to the existing provisions and areas so identified to bring about predictability and certainty in tax laws without substantial impact on the tax base and revenue collection
• The Committee shall set its own procedures for regulating its work.
• It can also work in Sub-Groups and the draft prepared by the Sub-Groups can then be approved by the whole Committee.
• It will put its draft recommendations in the public domain. After stakeholder consultations, the Committee will formalise its recommendations. The Committee can give its recommendations in batches.
• The Term of the Committee shall be for a period of one year from the date of its constitution.
The First Batch containing recommendations of committee is expected to be out by 31 January 2016.

World Bank Doing Business 2016 report released

World Bank on 27 October 2015 released Doing Business 2016 report. The 2016 report titled, Measuring Regulatory Quality and Efficiency says that more than 60 percent of World’s Economies improved their business rules in 2015.
The report ranked Singapore as first on ease of doing business while Eritrea has been ranked last at 189th position.
India showing the largest improvement in the South Asia region jumped 12 places to reach 130th rank on the ease of doing business. In the Doing Business 2015 report, India was ranked 142nd. It said that the improvement in two indicators, 'starting a business and getting electricity' pushed India up the ladder.

Highlights of the report
• Top ten economies in the list with the most business-friendly regulatory environments includes Singapore (1), New Zealand (2); Denmark (3); Republic of Korea (4); Hong Kong SAR, China (5); United Kingdom (6); United States (7); Sweden (8); Norway (9); and Finland (10).
• The world’s top 10 improvers, that is, economies that implemented at least three reforms during the year May 2014 to June 2015 and moved up the rankings scale, are Costa Rica, Uganda, Kenya, Cyprus, Mauritania, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Jamaica, Senegal, and Benin.
• Entrepreneurs in 122 economies saw improvements in regulatory framework
• Developing economies quickened the pace of their business reforms during the last 12 months to make it easier for local businesses to start and operate.
• 85 developing economies implemented 169 business reforms during the period May 2014 to June 2015, compared with 154 reforms in the period May 2013 to June 2014.
• High-income economies carried out an additional 62 reforms, bringing the total for the period May 2014 to June 2015 to 231 reforms in 122 economies around the world.
• Majority of new reforms during the period May 2014 to June 2015 were designed to improve the efficiency of regulations, by reducing their cost and complexity, with the largest number of improvements made in the area of Starting a Business, which measures how long it takes to obtain a permit for starting a business and its associated processing costs.
• Out of total 45 economies, 33 were developing economies that undertook reforms to make it easier for entrepreneurs to start a business. For example, India improved the process by eliminating the minimum capital requirement and business operations certificates, which needed at least five days wait for entrepreneurs. Kenya also made business incorporation easier by simplifying pre-registration procedures, reducing the time to incorporate by four days.
• Efforts to strengthen legal institutions and frameworks were less common, with 66 reforms implemented in 53 economies during the year May 2014 to June 2015. The largest number of such reforms was carried out in the area of Getting Credit, with 32 improvements, of which nearly half were undertaken in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Doing Business Regions Wise
• Sub-Saharan Africa region: It accounted for about 30 percent of the improved global regulatory reforms and half of the world’s top 10 improvers. Multiple reforms were also implemented n Côte d’Ivoire, Madagascar, Niger, Togo and Rwanda. The region’s highest ranked economy is Mauritius, which has a global ranking of 32.
•Europe and Central Asia region:It was also a major reformer during the period May 2014 to June 2015, with Cyprus, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, amongst the world’s top 10 improvers. The region had both the largest share of economies implementing at least one reform and the largest average number of regulatory reforms per economy.
•South Asia region:The report highlights that six of the eight economies of the region implemented a total of nine reforms, the second largest share of any region after Europe and Central Asia. Economies that implemented several reforms included India, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. The region’s highest ranked economy is Bhutan, which has a global ranking of 71.
• East Asia and the Pacific region: Reform activity in the region continued. The report says that with more than half of the region’s 25 economies implemented a total of 27 reforms in the year May 2014 to June 2015. The region hosts four of the top five ranked economies in the world, including Singapore, the world’s top ranked economy.
• Middle East and North Africa region: The report says that reform activity picked slightly n with 21 reforms implemented in 11 of the region’s 20 economies. Economies that undertook more than one reform included the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria. UAE is the region’s highest ranked economy, with a global ranking of 31.
• Latin America and the Caribbean region:the report says that the region had the smallest share of reforms, with less than half of the region’s 32 economies undertaking a total of 24 reforms. Costa Rica and Jamaica were among the world’s top 10 improvers. Mexico is the region’s highest ranked economy, with a global ranking of 38.
World Bank (WB) Doing Business 2016 report
The WB Doing Business Ranking started in 2002 reviewed business regulations and their enforcement across 189 countries. It ranked the 189 economies on their ease of doing business from 1 to 189.
A high ease of doing business ranking means the regulatory environment, that is, the regulatory and bureaucratic systems of nations, is more conducive to the starting and operation of a local firm. The rankings were determined by sorting the aggregate distance to frontier scores on 10 topics, each consisting of several indicators, giving equal weight to each topic. The rankings for all economies are benchmarked to June 2015.
Doing Business data for the past 12 years shows that in 2003, it took an average of 51 days worldwide to start a new business. This has now been more than halved to 20 days.

Bengaluru-based Saankhya Labs developed ‘Pruthvi’ chip to power White-Fi devices

Bengaluru-based Saankhya Labs Pvt Ltd. in the third week of October 2015 announced that it developed a chip, named as Pruthvi, to augment capacities of White-Fi devices.

The Pruthvi-based White-Fi devices will be used by Microsoft to extend the reach of internet services in remote areas of the country.

What is White-Fi technology?

• It uses the unused spectrum in frequencies utilised for broadcasting of television signals and use it for the internet. In technology parlance, these unused spectrum spaces are called White Space and thus it is also called TV White Space technology.
• The 200-300 MHz spectrum in the white space can reach up to 10 km as compared to current Wi-Fi technology that allows you a range of about 100 metres. The 200-300 MHz spectrum currently belongs to Doordarshan TV channel and isn't used at all.
• It can be run on solar power and thus overcome a key hindrance that currently impedes internet service providers, namely the high cost of installation equipment.

Exim Bank announced setting up of project development firm KPDC in Africa

Exim Bank announced on 27 October 2015 that it will set up a development firm, the Kukuza Project Development Company (KPDC), in Africa to facilitate Indian participation in infrastructure projects across the continent.

IL&FS Group, African Development Bankand State Bank of Indiaare also the shareholders in KPDC.

KPDC aims to strengthen every partner, who will complement each other in building Indian project exports while simultaneously aiding the furtherance of economic and political ties between India and Africa.

The company is expected to provide specialist project development expertise to take the infrastructure project from the concept stage to the commissioning stage in the African continent.

It will provide the entire gamut of project development expertise to projects such as pre-feasibility or feasibility studies, project identification, preparation of detailed project reports, environmental and social impact assessment.

KPDC will be operational from the first quarter of 2016.

India replaced China to emerge as Biggest Gold Consumer in World: Thomson Reuters

GFMS team of Thomson Reuters on 17 October 2015 released Gold Survey Q3 2015 Review and Outlook. The survey says that India regained its top position replacing China as the biggest overall consumer of gold in the first nine months of year 2015.
India consumed a total of 642 tonnes of gold in this period, while China is trailing by just 63 tonnes with total consumption of 642 tonnes in first nine month of the year.

Highlights of the Survey in Context of India
• It says that jewellery consumption in India increased by 5 percent year-on-year to an estimated 193 tonnes in Q3 2015, which was the highest quarterly consumption since Q1 2011. Q3 consumption was also the highest third quarter demand since 2008.
• Retail investment rose 30 percent year-on-year to 55 tonnes, the highest since Q4 2013.
• The rise in consumption in Q3 was credited to the fall in local gold prices to the lowest since August 2011.
• The total official gold imports to India in the third quarter increased by 23 percent to 263 tonnes, which is the highest quarterly volume year-to-date.
Highlights of the Survey in Context of China
• In context of China, the survey says that after a lackluster Q2 2015 gold demand rebounded in the Q3. The Q2 demand was the lowest second quarter recorded since 2011
• Total gold demand amounted to 196 tonnes for the period, a modest 3 percent year-on-year improvement.
• The demand improved in Q3 due to by factors like the yellow metal regaining its attractiveness as an alternative investment vehicle as investors turned cautious of the equity markets.
• Demand for the precious metal, both in the form of jewellery and investment bars, picked up immediately after gold price breached 1100 US dollar in mid-July 2015, also helped by rise in seasonal demand, lead by Chinese Valentine's Day in August 2015 and the autumn festival in September 2015.
• Official depreciation of the yuan, announced on 11 August 2015, was also a region behind boosted demand of gold.
In context of Global mine production; the survey said that production remained broadly flat in Q3, as it was up by less than 1 percent year-on-year, with production provisionally estimated at 851 tonnes.

Britain's Curry King Lord Gulam Noon Died

One of Britain's most well-known Indian-origin peers, Lord Gulam Noon on 27 October 2015 passed away in London due to liver cancer. He was 79.

Known as the Curry King, Noon founded the Noon Productsbusiness, which is credited with the popularity of chicken tikka masalain Britain

Lord Gulam Noon was born on 24 January 1936 in Mumbai. He travelled to Britain in 1964 and emigrated there permanently in 1972. He established Noon Products in Britain in September 1987 and manufactured chilled and frozen Indian and Thai ready meals, mainly for UK supermarkets.

Noon was made a Knight Bachelorin the 2002 Birthday Honours. In November 2009, he was awarded with an Honorary Degree from the University of East London. In 2013, he was appointed as the chancellor of the University of East London.

Reliance Industries signed revised Listing Agreements with BSE and NSE

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) declared on 27 October 2015 that it signed the revised listing agreement with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange (NSE) as mandated under the newly introduced Listing Regulation notified by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

With this, RIL became the first listed company to conform to SEBI norms.

Earlier, the Listing Agreement was a bilateral agreement between the stock exchange and the company, and SEBI did not have regulations on it. Therefore, each company's agreement with stock exchange could be at variance and could lack the full force of SEBI's rigour.

On 2 September 2015, SEBI notified the new Listing Regulations, which are effective from 1 December 2015.

As a part of the Listing Regulations, the securities market regulator mandated all existing listed companies to execute a fresh and simplified Listing Agreement with the stock exchange where they are listed, within six months of the notification date.

Reliance Industries signed revised Listing Agreements with BSE and NSE

With this, RIL became the first listed company to conform to SEBI norms.

On 2 September 2015, SEBI notified the new Listing Regulations, which are effective from 1 December 2015.

India and Sri Lanka began Joint Naval Exercise SLINEX 2015 at Trincomalee

Indian Navy and Sri Lankan Navy on 27 October 2015 began the 4th edition of Sri Lanka-India Exercise (SLINEX) at Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. The exercise will go on till 1 November 15. SLINEX 15 is expected to enhance the capability of two navies to work together and contribute towards maritime security.

The exercise will commence with a Harbour Phase, during which, the participants will engage in professional, cultural and social interactions.
The Harbour Phase will be followed by the Sea Phase, which will include complex operations including anti-piracy exercises, gun firings, cross-deck helicopter operations and anti-surface exercises.

Indian Navy representation in SLINEX 2015
Indian Naval ships Kora, Kirpan and Savitri along with ship-borne integral helicopters will participate in the exercise. Kora and Kirpan, the missile corvettes, are commanded by Commander Ashok Rao and Commander Abraham Samuel, respectively.
The Offshore Patrol Vessel Savitri is commanded by Commander Prashant Negi. In addition, an Indian Naval maritime reconnaissance aircraft will also participate in the exercise.
Sri Lankan Navy representation in SLINEX 2015
The Sri Lankan Navy will be represented by Sayura, Samudra, Sagara, six Fast Attack Crafts, two Fast Gun Boats and one Fast Missile Vessel.
About Sri Lanka-India Exercise (SLINEX)
SLINEX series of bilateral maritime exercises was initiated in 2005 and since then three successful engagements have been conducted.
SLINEX aims to promote mutual understanding and provide exposure to both the Navies to each others’ operating procedures, communication procedures and best practices.
This allows the two navies to develop greater confidence to operate together during complex maritime missions.

NITI Aayog panel on Innovation submitted its report recommending private funding for R&D

A NITI Aayog panel on Innovation headed by Prof Tarun Khanna on 27 October 2015 submitted its report recommending that the private sector should help fund research and development, including in research labs at universities and startups.

Recommendations of the committee
• It recommended improved tax benefits for investments equivalent to a percentage of corporate profits in research labs in universities and startups.
• It recommended that all contracts with foreign defence companies above 5 billion US dollars should include a clause for five percent of contract value to be directed to establish research-centric universities with strong emphasis on its core product areas.
• It suggested a Make in Universities program which would involve setting up 500 tinkering labs, where aspiring entrepreneurs can experiment to create products that address local problems, with one 3D printer per institute.
• For these labs, the panel recommends utilisation of half of the 1000 crore rupees fund that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had set aside for the Self Employed and Talent Utilization (SETU) scheme.
• It also recommends Grand Prizes approach to find ultra-low-cost solutions to India’ s most intractable problems, on the lines of what is followed in some developed countries.
• It recommends that the AIM budget of 150 crore rupees be used entirely to award up to 12 grand prizes annually. Each challenge should carry a prize of between 10 crore and 30 crore rupees.
• The panel also pitched for an increase in investment in business incubators with up to 200 crore rupees public spending per year and roping in the private sector for the purpose.
• Another key recommendation of the panel is establishing a fund-of-funds (FOF) by the Union Government to seed other early stage venture funds with a corpus of 5000 crore rupees.
The NITI Aayog panel on Innovation was constituted following the budget speech of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, where he allocated 150 crore rupees for Atal Innovation Mission (AIM). The committee was asked to suggest ways to promote innovation and build an entrepreneur-friendly ecosystem to drive job growth.
Comment
However, the trends showcase contrariness to the recommendations of the committee specially in United States where Google's success and Apple Inc's story is supported by the government investments.
Google’s origins can be traced to research projects that were funded by the US National Science Foundation and a large part of Apple’s success can be credited to the US government’s small-business administration program that provides investment assistance to startups.

Sub Group of Chief Ministers on Centrally Sponsored Schemes submitted its report

Sub-Group of Chief Ministers on rationalization of CSS on 27 October 2015 submitted its report to the NITI Aayog Chairperson and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Sub-Group was appointed by the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog in March 2015 to examine the current Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) and recommend their suitable rationalisation.

Key recommendations of the Sub-Group

• Flexi-fund component of the CSS, which is in-force since June 2014, should be increased to 25 per cent from the current 10 percent to give more flexibility to states to spend on development and social welfare schemes.
• Number of CSS, which are about 50 at present, should be reduced.

• Funding pattern should be maintained at the same level-90:10 (centre: states) for 11 special category States and 60:40 for remaining states for core schemes; for optional schemes-80:20 pattern for special category States and 50:50 for others.
• To take into account the rapidly changing socio-economic situation, CSS should be reviewed every two years.

About the Sub-Group

• It was constituted in pursuance of decision taken in the first meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog, held on 8 February 2015.
• Apart from the CEO, NITI Aayog as the coordinator and CM of Madhya Pradesh as the convener, it has the CMs’ of Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Telangana, Jharkhand, Kerala, Manipur, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Lt. Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Islands as members.
• Among other things, the Sub-Group was mandated to suggest reforms in CSS in the light of the Finance Commission recommendations for the increased devolution and the higher revenue deficit grants to states.

Differences between Centrally Sponsored and Central Sector Schemes

Centrally Sponsored Schemes: A certain percentage of the funding is borne by the States in the ratio of 50:50, 70:30, 75:25 or 90:10 and the implementation is by the State Governments. The schemes are formulated in subjects from the State List to encourage States to prioritise in areas that require more attention.

Central Sector Schemes:They are 100 percent funded by the Union government and implemented by the Central Government machinery. The schemes are mainly formulated on subjects from the Union list and resources under these Schemes are not generally transferred to States

Bidhya Devi Bhandari elected as first women President of Nepal

Bidhya Devi Bhandari was on 28 October 2015 elected as the President of Nepal. She is the first women president of Nepal.

She received 327 votes against her opponent’s 214 in the Nepal’s Parliament.

Election to the post of president became necessary as the first democratically-framed constitution was adopted on 20 September 2015 declaring the Himalayan nation as a Republic.

In Nepal, Bidhya Devi is long known for advocacy for women’s rights.

At present, she is the deputy leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)-CPN (UML) to which the Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli also belongs to