Daily GK Update - 24th June 2015

1. India emerges as third largest FDI source for United Kingdom

i. India has emerged as the third largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) source for United Kingdom (UK) in 2014-15.

ii. It was revealed in recently released report Inward Investment Report 2014-15 of UK Trade and Industry (UKTI). This FDI source was based in terms of number of projects i.e. source of inward investment.

iii. US has remained the largest source of inward investment for UK with a total of 564 projects in 2014-15 and was followed by France (124 projects) and India (122 projects).

iv. During the year 2014-15, the FDI from India increased by 65 per cent and has resulted in creation of 7,730 jobs as well as protection of 1,620 jobs in UK. Sector wise Indian companies had invested in healthcare, agriculture-technology, food and drink.

2. SEBI simplifies IPO norms

i. To help investors and companies in IPOs, SEBI today halved the listing time to six days from the date of the public offer and also allowed a larger number of firms to tap the “fast—track” route for raising funds.

ii. Currently, the companies are required to list their shares on the stock exchanges within 12 days of the last date of the IPO (Initial Public Offer) process, thus keeping the funds locked in for a longer period of time.

iii. The shorter time period, which would come into effect from January 1, 2016, would also help reduce the costs associated with the public offering, SEBI Chairman U K Sinha said after a meeting of the regulator’s board.

3. India ranked 143rd in Global Peace Index, wasted $340 billion due to violence

i. The research firm based in Australia has ranked India as the 143rd out of the 162 nations listed in the Global Peace Index. 

ii. The economic impact of containing and dealing with the consequences of India’s levels of violence was estimated to cost the national economy $341.7 billion in 2014.

iii. The peace index also indicated that since the last eight years India has fallen 6% in the ranking due to the “deteriorations in indicators measuring deaths from external conflict, political terror and perceptions of criminality.”

4. Five banks to lead NTPC’s debut masala bond offering

i. Barclays, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC and SBI Capital Markets are being tipped to lead NTPC’s debut issuance of offshore rupee-linked bonds.

ii. The five lenders also led NTPC’s US dollar offering last November, when it raised $500 million through a 10-year Reg S-only bond priced to yield 205bp over Treasuries.

iii. NTPC, the country’s largest power company, is among a handful of Indian companies waiting to raise funds through this new market once the Reserve Bank of India finalises guidelines on such issues.

iv.The offshore notes, also called masala bonds, will be issued under India’s external commercial borrowing guidelines.

5. EPFO makes UAN mandatory for all employers under its purview

i)Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has notified an order to make Universal Account Number (UAN) mandatory for all its employers. It will be mandatory for all employers covered under the Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.

ii)The UAN facility was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2014. It is portable throughout the lifetime of an employee and removes the need for employees to apply for PF transfer claims while changing jobs

iii) EPFO is a statutory body of Union Government under the aegis of Ministry of Labour and Employment.its headquarter Headquarters New Delhi.

6. Union Government launches Bhuvan Ganga Mobile App to aid Clean Ganga Mission

i)Union Government has launched Bhuvan Ganga Mobile Application and Web Portal to aid flagship mission to Clean Ganga.

ii) The app and webportal was launched by Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti in New Delhi.

iii)Bhuvan Ganga application: It will facilitate public to upload pictures of pollution sources of the Ganga River for further action by the authorities concerned.  It will also serve platform for people to monitor pollution in river Ganga and enable decision makers to prioritize interventions.

iv) Bhuvan Ganga Portal: It is deployed as part of Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO’s) Bhuvan’s geoportal with all geospatial layers related to Ganga River. It will be used as a tool to support decision making and planning for the Clean Ganga Mission.

7. Steffi Graf appointed Kerala's brand ambassador for Ayurveda

i)Tennis legend Steffi Graf was on Wednesday appointed the Ayurveda brand ambassador of Kerala.

ii) The Kerala tourism department was given sanction to sign an agreement with Graf to become Ayurveda brand ambassador as part of the department's 'Visit Kerala Scheme', Chandy said.

iii) The tourism department had already held discussions and reached an agreement with the German former World number one tennis player, who had bagged 22 Grand slam single titles.

iv) Kerala's Ayurveda, an ancient system of health care which is famous for its holistic effect on body and mind, attracts a large number of people from the country and abroad every year.