Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Give it Up campaign
1. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Give it Up campaign. The campaign was launched at the annual energy-focussed summit Urja Sangam 2015.
2. The campaign seeks to extort the better off sections of society to forego their liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) subsidy, which would be utilised in providing subsidised LPG connections to the poor.
3. The Prime Minister asked companies and banks to encourage their employees to give up the subsidy on LPG.
4. Gas cylinders surrendered by them would be transferred to the poor who use wood for cooking.
5. The Give it Up campaign should be taken up on the lines of Swacch Bharat and Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao initiatives.
SBI Cards launches SimplySAVE card
1. SBI
Cards and Payment Services (SBI Card) launched its SimplySAVE SBI credit card
with features designed to complement the spending habits of credit card users.
2. Inspired
by the spending habits of young Indians, this card offers a rewarding
experience while dining, watching movies or shopping at supermarkets.
3. The
SimplySAVE card offers additional value from the very first swipe as
cardholders get 2,000 reward points on spending Rs. 2,000 within 60
days of card issuance.
4. SBI
Cards and Payment Services Pvt Ltd (SBI Card) is a joint venture between State
Bank of India and GE Capital.
5. The
SimplySAVE SBI Card also offers 2.5 per cent fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel
stations across the country, adding to the savings.
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Karur Vysya Bank to build 200 toilets in
Gujarat
1. Karur
Vysya Bank informed that the bank has contributed Rs. 25 lakh for
construction of 200 toilets in Dhandhuka Taluka of Gujarat towards Mukyamantri
Svachchta Nidhi as part of the Clean India mission.
2. CMD of the
bank is K Venkatraman
Kotak Mahindra, ING Vysya merger gets RBI
approval
1. Kotak
Mahindra Bank has received the Reserve Bank of India’s approval for acquiring
ING Vysya Bank, making Kotak the fourth largest private lender in the country.
2. All
the branches of ING Vysya Bank will function as branches of Kotak Mahindra Bank
with effect from April 1, 2015.
3. In
November last year, Kotak Bank had announced it was acquiring
Bengaluru-headquartered ING Vysya Bank in an all-stock deal of over Rs 15,000 crore.
4. ING
shareholders will get 725 Kotak Bank shares for every 1,000 shares they hold.
Union Government extended National Food
Security Act deadline by 6 months
1. The
Union Government extended the deadline for implementation of the National Food
Security Act (NFSA) deadline by six months in the states.
2. The
deadline has already been extended twice for implementing the food law, was
ending on April 4.
3. The
deadline was extended for the third time so that the remaining states adopt and
implement the law within six months.
4. Since
passage by Parliament in September 2013, the NFSA has been implemented in 11
states and Union Territories (UTs). The rest 25 states/UTs have not implemented
it yet.
Snapdeal acquired RupeePower to launch
financial service
1. India’s
largest online marketplace Snapdeal announced to acquire RupeePower, a
leading digital financial products distribution platform.
2. The
acquisition aimed to launch financial service.
3. Snapdeal
will now offer consumers a financial services marketplace, a first of its kind
initiative in the e-commerce industry.
4. Through
this marketplace, Snapdeal and RupeePower will endeavor to digitally organize
the fragmented financial services market by integrating these services onto the
Snapdeal platform.
President Pranab Mukherjee gives nod to
land acquisition ordinance
1. The
land acquisition ordinance, which the government could not get converted into a
legislation in Rajya Sabha due to stiff opposition, was re-promulgated, a
day before it is to lapse.
2. The
fresh ordinance, which is the 11th by the Narendra Modi government,
incorporates nine amendments that were part of the bill passed in Lok Sabha
last month.
3. It
is pending before the Rajya Sabha where the ruling NDA coalition lacks the
numbers to get it passed.
Bharti AXA General Insurance launched Smart
Traveller
1. Bharti
AXA General Insurance Company Limited on 3 April 2015 launched Smart Traveller
that offers global coverage for students, individuals, families and frequent
travellers.
2. The
SmartTraveller Insurance policy offers a choice of two major plans catering to
Individuals and Families and frequent travelers through a variant known as
Annual Multi Trip International travel insurance plan.
Centre splits Tripura, Manipur cadre
1. The
Centre has created separate cadres of Manipur and Tripura for IAS, IPS and IFS,
and re-allocated officers of the joint Manipur-Tripura cadre between them.
2. Manipur
and Tripura have been allocated 87 and 73 Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
officers respectively.
3. Whereas,
70 Indian Police Service (IPS) officers have been given Manipur and 54 personnel
have got Tripura cadre .
4. A
total of 42 officers of Indian Forest Service (IFS) have been given Manipur and
54 have been allocated Tripura cadre .
5. The
move comes following a recommendation from a committee headed by Secretary,
Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).
Bengal’s anti-chit fund Bill gets
President’s nod
1. The
Mamata Banerjee govt reintroduced the Bill in December 2013, which was also
pending with the Centre.
2. President
Pranab Mukherjee has given his assent to the anti-chit fund Bill passed by the
West Bengal government after the Saradha scam hit the state three years ago.
3. The
West Bengal Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishments
Bill, 2013 will become an Act now.
4. With
the enactment of the Bill, the state would be able to attach the property of a
person who has borrowed money from such financial establishments which have
defaulted on depositors money.
Indian government Plans To shield Delhi
with Nuclear Missiles
1. Indian
government has taken the first real step in giving India’s capital city, Delhi.
2. The
security cover that Beijing and Washington already have — a nuclear missile
shield.
3. Two
long-range missile-tracking radars have been placed in the national capital
region.
4. When
completed, the shield will be able to intercept missiles fired from as far as
5,000 km away.
5. Major
cities around the world such as Washington, Beijing, Paris, London and Tel Aviv
all have missile shields.
6. India’s
missile shield programme has fallen behind over the past two years.
7. The
programme started in real earnest in 2006 and 2009-12 saw many tests.
8. Placing
the long-range radars — Swordfish, developed with Israeli assistance, and
capable of tracking incoming missiles from a range of 800 km — is a first big
step that will be followed by placing missile interceptor units by 2016.
Neem-coated urea mandatory for 75% of
domestic production
1. Government
has made it mandatory for domestic fertiliser firms to “neem coat” at least 75
per cent of their urea production.
2. This
Move is likely to save Rs. 6,500 crore subsidy outgo.
3. The
move is aimed at checking the excessive use of urea which is deteriorating the
soil health and adversely impacting overall crop yield.
4. With
the use of neem coated urea, there will be more yield to the extent of 15-20
per cent and with less use of urea to the extent of 15-20 per cent.
the
soil health is deteriorating because of excessive use of urea and it has
disturbed the ideal N (nitrogen) P (phosphorus) and K (potash) ratio of 4:2:1.
Seychelles to become 161st WTO Member
1. According
to WTO rules, Seychelles will become a full-fledged member on 26 April 2015.
2. Seychelles
applied for WTO(World Trade Organization) membership in May 1995
3. Seychelles
is the 33rd government to accede to the rules-based multilateral trading system
through Article XII negotiations since the WTO was established in 1995.
Vishyanand: Planet named after Indian chess
grandmaster Viswanathan Anand
1. The
Indian Chess grandmaster, Viswanathan Anand adds another feather in
his cap with a minor planet being named after him.
2. The
planet was discovered back in 1988 but had not been formally named until
recently.
3. The
minor planet is located roughly between the orbits of planets Mars and Jupiter.
4. The
discovery of the planet happened on October 10, 1988 thanks to the works of
Kenzo Suzuki in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture in Japan.