DAILY GK UPDATES - 16th JULY

 

 

1.    BRICS to create 100 billion dollar development bank and emergency reserve fund

i.BRICS nations on 15 July 2014 signed a deal to create a new 100 billion US dollar development bank and emergency reserve fund.

ii. The deal to from the bank was signed during the 6th BRICS Summit being held in Fortaleza, Brazil form 15 July to 16 July 2014). BRICS group includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

iii. Creation of the bank was announced after a plenary meet at a BRICS summit meet by Brazil’s President, Dilma Rousseff.
iv. As per the deal, the capital of the bank will be split equally among the five participating countries, while headquarter will be in Shanghai, China.

v. The Bank will have a rotating chair and its first President will come from India for the first six years. The Bank will also have a regional office in Johannesburg, South Africa.

vi.The Bank’s board will have five Finance Ministers and will be chaired by Brazil. Initially the bank will be involved in infrastructure projects in the BRICS nations.
vii. BRICS Finance ministers or central banks’ governors will form a governing body to manage the CRA while it will be presided over by the BRICS President. The BRICS CRA will not be open to outsiders.

Participant leaders of the five nations are
• Brazil - Dilma Rousseff
• Russian -Vladimir Putin
• Indian - Narendra Modi
• China - Xi Jinping
• South Africa -Jacob Zuma

Contribution of different nations
• China will contribute 41 billion US dollar
• Brazil, Russia and India will contribute 18 billion US dollar each
• South Africa will provide 5 billion US dollar

2.    RBI eases share transfer norms for NRI investors in domestic cos

i. In an attempt to provide more flexibility in foreign direct investment, RBI has issued fresh norms for issue/transfer of shares by non-resident investors in unlisted domestic companies.
ii. In a notification issued from Mumbai today, RBI has said that the issue and transfer of shares including compulsorily convertible preference shares and compulsorily convertible debentures shall be worked out as per any internationally accepted pricing methodology on arm’s length basis.
iii. RBI has added that the valuations must be certified by a chartered accountant or a merchant banker registered with capital markets regulator Securities Exchange Board of India.

iv. The banking watchdog has also warned against provisions guaranteeing an exit price to the investor but conceded that
it is fine with the practice of having a lock-in period.
v. As for the listed companies, RBI has said that the issue and transfer of shares shall be as per SEBI guidelines. The price in such transactions shall not be less than the one at which a preferential allotment can be made under SEBI guidelines.

3.    Delhi government to set up 320 Mahila Suraksha Dals for women safety

i.State Government of Delhi on 14 July 2014 decided to set up 320 Mahila Suraksha Dals (MSDs) across the national capital. These MSDs will be established to ensure women safety at public places.
ii. According to the plan, the MSDs will be made functional in the 80 Gender Resource Centers. As a pilot programme, one MSD will be created in all 11 Districts of the city on the day of Raksha Bandhan.
iii. The decision to this effect of MSDs was taken at a high-level meet chaired by the Chief Secretary SK Srivastava.

About Mahila Suraksha Dals (MSDs)
The Mahila Suraksha Dals (MSDs) will comprise of retired army personnel, representatives from the local community (both men and women) and local NGO representatives. Each team will consist of 20 community members and three ex- servicemen.

4.    Aircel launches 4G services across four circles

i. GSM operator Aircel has launched 4G services across four circles - Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and Odisha – making it the second operator to offer telecom services on all three technologies.

ii. With this launch, Aircel will now offer services under all the three existing technologies of 2G, 3G and 4G LTE bringing it at par with global telecommunication offerings.

iii.Aircel holds 20MHz of spectrum in the 4G LTE 2300 MHz band across eight circles - Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Assam and North East and Jammu & Kashmir.

5.    Rs. 1,000 monthly for girls saved from child marriages

i. In a bid to assist minor girls saved from child marriages, the Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday announced a cash support of Rs. 1,000 to each of them every month until they attain 18 years of age.

ii. Social Welfare Minister B Valarmathi today informed the Assembly that this financial support would be extended to girls lodged at ‘Sevai Illams’ (government run service homes) and government hostels, to continue their higher studies and professional courses.

iii. Arrangements would also be made for them for further training with Tamil Nadu Skills Development Corporation, she said.

iv. A total of 710 child marriages were stopped in the state during 2013-14, she said, adding government was broadcasting three awareness short films on the eve of auspicious days to stop child marriages.

6.    Nalco, Indian Rare Earths ink pact for titanium slag plant in Odisha

i. State-owned National Aluminium Co Ltd has signed a memorandum of understanding with Indian Rare Earths Ltd (IREL), another public sector organisation under the Department of Atomic Energy, for jointly establishing a 1 lakh tonne titanium slag plant at Chatrapur in Odisha.

ii. Ansuman Das, CMD of Nalco, and R N Patra, CMD of IREL, signed the MoU on Tuesday in Mumbai.

iii. The project is planned as a joint venture for which a feasibility study and technology selection would be carried out soon. The project envisages value addition to ilmenite to produce titanium slag, which is an intermediate product for making titanium sponge and titanium pigments.

7.    LTAs with foreign uranium suppliers for power supply at plants

i. India has entered into long-term agreements with foreign suppliers to obtain uranium to ensure uninterrupted power supply for its nuclear power plants. Russia and Kazhakhstan are the main suppliers.
ii. Besides, talks are going on to obtain uranium from Australia as well. Minister of State in PMO, Dr. Jitendra Singh gave this information in the Lok Sabha today.
iii. He said shortage of fuel has been affecting output at the atomic power plants. Currently, the country has 20 nuclear power reactors with an installed generating capacity of 4780 mega watt.
iv. The supply of uranium from indigenous sources is improving progressively.
v. The nuclear power plants at Kaiga, Karnataka, Narora, Uttar Pradesh, Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu and Tarapur in Maharashtra are using uranium obtained from native sources, he added.

8.    Indian boxing coaches barred from ringside at CWG

i. India’s boxing coaches at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games have been barred from occupying ringside seats during bouts due to the country’s termination from the International Boxing Association (AIBA).

ii. A communication to this effect from the competition organisers was received by the Indian Olympic Association yesterday, a top source who wished to remain incognito told PTI on Wednesday.

iii. “The competition organisers seem to have misunderstood the situation (vis-à-vis the termination of Indian Boxing Federation by world boxing body AIBA in March and its replacement and provisional recognition of a new entity Boxing India in May) and have barred the coaches from seconding the boxers during bouts,” the source said