Current Affairs March 2016 PDF Capsule

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Current Affairs for Competitive Exam Contents INDIAN AFFAIRS ...... 3 STATE BUDGET 2016-17 ...... 35 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS...... 36 BANKING & FINANCE ...... 53 BUSINESS ...... 69 AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS ...... 79 APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS ...... 94 ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS ...... 105 SCHEMES ...... 107 MoUs ...... 113 COMMITTEES ...... 121 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ...... 123 DEFENCE ...... 134 ENVIRONMENT ...... 138 SPORTS ...... 143 OBITUARY ...... 154 BOOKS & AUTHORS ...... 162 IMPORTANT DAYS ...... 163

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Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

INDIAN AFFAIRS

IWAI instigated two vital projects on NW-2 The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has introduced two prime projects for National Waterway No 2, a section of the Brahmaputra River between the Bangladesh border and Sadiya (Assam).

• These two facilities will encourage the Inland Water Transport users to interpose into environment friendly mode of transportation. The Projects include:

• Development of a ship repair facility (Slipway Project) at Pandu, Guwahati with an outlay of Rs 50.76 crore.

• Commencement of Ro-Ro ferry service between Dhubri & Hatsingimari of Assam.

Mustafabad village to be renamed as Saraswati nagar Haryana government has announced to rename Mustafabad village as Saraswati nagar. Mustafabad is a village located in the Yamuna nagar district in North- eastern part of Haryana .

• Mustafabad village near Yamuna nagar district has a population of around 8500 people

Mumbai Home To Most Number Of Billionaires In India India’s Financial Capital, Mumbai, with 1094 billionaires (Ultra High Net Worth Individuals) has become home to the wealthiest people in the country, followed by Delhi at 545, according to the Knight Frank Wealth Report 2016. Key Points:

• In the past 10 years, the billionaire counts in India jumped by 333% against the global rate of 68%.

• 97 cities surveyed globally • Rankings of Mumbai and Delhi: 21 & 33 respectively. • The cities are expected to improve their rankings to 14 and 29 by 2025, globally. • India accounts for 6% of the billionaire population across the world

Chennai gets first smart self cleaning toilets in India In a move to ensure public sanitation and to promote the use of public toilets, 183Automatic self cleaning smart toilets have been installed in Chennai. They are known as e-toilets as they could be located by people using a smart phone and authorities can control their function using smartphone.

• They are designed by Eram scientific solution who have provided 1600 such e-toilets in 16 Indian states to various private organizations

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Each toilet cleans itself with 5 litres of water after 3 min usage and 4.5 litres if

usage period is longer

• 43 toilets are specially for women with a sanitary napkin generator and an incinerator • Each toilet costs around 4,50,000

Rajya Sabha passes carriage by Air amendments bill The parliament passed the Carriage by Air amendment bill to empower Union government to revise the limits of liability for airlines and compensation as per the Montreal Convention which India accepted in 2009. Flash points

• The Bill intends to review the liability limit for damage in case of death or bodily injury for each person

• With the amendments implemented, Indian airlines would be required to pay compensation amount that is equivalent to the rates paid by their global counterparts

Telengana to illuminate 25 municipalities with LED Bulbs The Telengana government as a part of development has decided to replace the existing bulbs with LED in 25 municipalities within 100 days. Flash points

• A high level meeting held on Tuesday consisting of IT Minister KT Rama Rao, Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy, Housing Minister A Indrakaran Reddy and officials of power sector held a discussion with ESSL to supply LED at lower prices

• ESSL(Energy Savings Services Limited) is a joint venture of PSU’s of ministry of power with the objective of implementing energy efficient projects

• 12 lakh households of 25 municipalities are going to be supplied with LED bulbs in the first phase

• The aim of the government is to supply LED to 90 lakh households • Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Ramagundem, Waranagal and Khammam, the municipalities of Siddipet, Siricilla, Mahbubnagar, Manchiryal, Nalgonda and Tandur, and the Gajwel nagar panchayat are the areas to be benefitted under this project

Tikhor park to be set up in Guwahati and Shillong Organizing Committee of the 12th South Asian Games has decided to set up Tikhor Park (Games Mascot) in Guwahati and Shillong and Rs. 2 Crore has been earmarked on behalf of the project.

• The Parks are mean to preserve the legacy of the South Asian Games concluded recently in Guwahati and Shillong.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• These Parks will would be set up at Guwahati University and Shillong based North

Eastern Hill University.

PM Narendra Modi Launches Setu Bharatam Project Infrastructure plays a pivotal role in the development of any country and India is no exception. With a view to get the country on a fast track growth and development, the NDA Govt has come up with a Highways project that will ensure our highways without railway crossings, the Setu Bharatam Project. SETU BHARATAM PROJECT

• Budget : Rs. 50,800 cr • Target year for completion: 2019

Alappuzha Backwaters To Get India’s First Solar Ferry Allepey, the Venice of the East, and a favourite tourism spot in Kerala is going to get India’s first 75-seater Solar Ferry, within three months.

• The boat is being built by NavAlt, a Kochi based joint venture, in collaboration with a French company. The Project cost is estimated to be 1.7 crore.

• The boat is 20 meter long, 7 m wide with a maximum cruising speed of 7.5 knots • The boat is being built by NavAlt, a Kochi based joint venture, in collaboration with a French company. The Project cost is estimated to be 1.7 crore.

Raisina Dialogue begins in New Delhi Raisina-Dialogue the three day Flagship Programme on Geopolitics and Geo-economics began in New Delhi. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj set the tone for the conference by addressing Inauguration session.

• There was a common idea among participants that A Lack of political will, mistrust and poor regional security are the biggest barriers in the way of fully economically Integrated South Asian Region.

• Raisina Dialogue a joint initiative of Ministry of External Affairs and Observer Research Foundation.

• Former Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the Bangladeshi foreign Minister Mahmood Ali those who shared chair with External Affairs Minister Sushma in the Inauguration Ceremony of the Dialogue.

Aadhaar Bill Introduced In Lok Sabha Union Finance Minister, Sri Arun Jaitley introduced the Aadhaar (Target Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, Benefits and other Services) Bill, 2016.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The bill was presented as a Money Bill, that will not need approval from the Rajya Sabha

to become Legislation, if it is not returned to the lower house within 14 days of its receipt by the Upper House.

• It will provide statutory support to Aadhaar for its use for transferring government subsidies and benefits to Indians.

Japan pledges Rs 5,700-crore loan for highways in Northeast Japan International Cooperation Agency has pledged Official Development Assistance loan of Rs. 5700 crore in two installments for widening and up gradation of National Highway projects in North East India.

• The up gradation will be two lane with paved shoulder and geometric improvements of NH 54 in Mizoramand NH 51in Meghalaya.

• Interest rates on the loan for Construction works and procurement of materials associated with are 1.4% per annum and for consulting services is 0.01%.

Election Commission announces Assembly Election in 5 States The Election Commission of India have announced Assembly Elections dates for Kerala, West Bengal, Tamilnadu, Assam, and Puduchchery. Election Bound States:

• The polls will be held between April 4 and May 16, the counting of votes in all five states and one Union Territory will be done on May 19.

• Chief Election commissioner Nazim Zaidi announced the Poll dates in New Delhi. 824 assembly constituencies going to polls in these states and UT.

Union Government To Provide Loan To FACT Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore (FACT), a Central Public Sector Undertaking in Kochi signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Union Government to get a loan of Rs. `1000 crores.

• FACT has been facing financial issues for over a decade • The loan of Rs. 1000 crores comes as a relief to the organization when it needs to clear its debts and augment production.

• It needs to be repaid within five years with a moratorium of one

Traditional Chapchar Kut Festival Celebrated Across Mizoram The traditional Spring Festival of Mizoram, Chapchar Kut, was celebrated across the state and Mizo inhabited parts of the neighbouring states on March 5, 2016.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The festival is celebrated every year with great pomp and show in March after

theycomplete the Jhum operation, the shifting of agriculture by clearing jungle. It is believed that the festival started during 1450 AD-1700 AD.

Nagaland Information Commission Rated – “one of the best” Nagaland Information Commission has been regarded as one of the best of its kind in the entire country. This was revealed by the Nagaland Information Commissioner during the decade celebration of RTI Act. Flash points

• RTI Act was passed in 2005 by the UPA government • During the decadal celebration, Nagaland CII informed that only 7% of the Right To Information applications are rejected in Nagaland making it one of the best in the whole country

• Buckchem Phom revealed that the theme of CII in Nagaland was Trust operating through Transparency

National conference of Women Legislators inaugurated by the President President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the National conference of Women legislators at Vigyan Bhawan. Vice president Hamid Ansari and PM Narendra Modi were also present in the event. Flash points

• The conference, hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra mahajan, is being attended by former President Pratibha Patil, Union ministersSushma Swaraj, Najma Heptullah and Maneka Gandhi, Gujarat CM Anandiben Patel, former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, among others

• Bangladesh Jatiyo Samshad Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury will chair a session of the 2 day conference

• President having inaugurated the National conference expressed his concern over the 33% reservation for women in legislation

• He told that despite proposing 33% reservation for women in parliament the

SRESHTA: Indian Railways To Set Up Special Wing For Research Technology and Digitizing are the latest buzz ever since the Modi Government came into power. Indian Railways, after all, the heart of the Indian economy cannot be left behind when it comes to innovation and research. • In an effort to make Indian Railways technology driven, the national transporter will set up its in-house research wing,SRESHTA(Special Railway Establishment for Strategic Technology and Holistic Advancement) comprising of mostly scientists and railway experts. 7 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• What will it do? - Responsible for long term research to improve the functioning of

Railways.

Uttar Pradesh passes UP revenue code amendment bill The Uttar Pradesh government passed the UP revenue code amendment bill that facilitates Dalits to sell their land to Non-Dalits. Flash points

• The Pre-British era revenue law was replaced by UP Revenue Code (Amendment) Bill, 2016

• The amendment allows Dalit people to sell their land to Non-Dalits • The bill was presented in the legislative assembly by Revenue minister Shivpal Singh Yadav

• The bill permits Dalits to sell their land even if they are left out with less than 5 acres

GOI to digitise all rural post offices by 2017 Government of India will digitalise all the 1.29 lakh rural post offices by 2017.Department of Post IT Modernisation project will get Rs. 4909 crore outlay for digitalisation and Networking of 155, 000 post offices including 129, 323 Gramin Dak Sewak Post Offices in the country.

• The Project envisages Computerisation and networking of all postal mail, accounts and administrative offices through WAN (Wide Area Network) also to set up centralised data centre and Disaster recovery centre.

• Infosys is the Service provider for rural system integrator and Telecommunication Consultant India ltd is the lead partner with Ricoh India ltd for Hardware & Maintenance.

Third phase of Gyan sangam to focus on consolidation of banks The government told that it has started the second edition of Gyan sangam and in the third phase of Gyan sangam it has planned to focus on Consolidation of banks.

• Gyan Sangam is a retreat for banks and financial Institutions. It was held for the first time last year.

• State minister of finance, Jayant sinha told that the transformation has to be carried out in phases

Oil Ministry laid out the foundation stone of Octomax unit at Mathura Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan laid out the foundation stone for Octomax unit in the oil refinery at Mathura.

• Octomax unit is the country’s first high octane gasoline production unit • It is a part of the oil refinery at Mathura 8 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Octomax, a “novel technology” is developed in-house by Research and Development

Centre of Indian Oil

The Sex ratio has come down in Gujarat placing it at 22nd rank in the Nation The Sex ratio in Gujarat has fallen significantly from 920 in 2001 to 919 in 2011.It is a fall against the overall 10 points increase in the average of sex ratio of the Nation. Flash points

• The socio-economic review presented in the state assembly revealed that the sex ratio of Gujarat was 919 against the National sex ratio which is 943

• With 919 females for every 1000 males, Gujarat ranked 22nd among 28 states as per the 2011 Census

• The sex ratio in rural areas have increased while that in urban areas have remained low

• In rural areas of the state, it has increased by 4 points from 945 in 2001 to 949 in 2011 while in urban areas it remained at 880 in both the years

• Among the tribal areas, tribal district of Tapi is at the first position with a sex ratio of 1007 followed by other tribal districts Dang (1006) and Dahod (990)

• The last place is occupied by Surat with just 787 preceded by Ahmedabad with 904

River Information System like ATC to Be Launched for Inland Waterways Traffic Union Government proposes to launch a River Information System (RIS) the system is similar to Air Traffic Control.

• River Information system is a combination of tracking meteorological equipment with specialised software designed to optimise traffic and transport processes in Inland Navigation.

Mumbai to host BRICS Friendship Cities Conclave in April The financial capital of India to host BRICS Friendship Cities Conclave in April involving top Urban Policy makers and Planners from BRICS Nations.

• The BRICS Friendship Conclave is a joint initiative of Ministry of External Affairs and Maharashtra Government to be held between April 14 and 16 this year.

Germany to develop Bhubaneswar, Kochi, Coimbatore as Smart Cities Germany will partner with India’s flagship program Smart City Mission to develop Bhubaneswar, Kochi, and Coimbatore as smart Cities.

• The three Cities are among the twenty cities which have been announced by the Urban Development Ministry.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Germany helped India in the selection process of the cities consists of three delegations

from Germany , Two of them from Urban Development Ministry and One from Ministry of Housing and Poverty Alleviation.

Women’s Day News box March 8th is celebrated as Women’s day across the globe every year since 1975.News from various fields with special emphasis on Women’s day have been combined to give special importance for this day. ICICI’S Women’s day gift The largest private sector lender ICICI bank has announced a work-from-home programme to the women workers as a special gift on Women’s day.

• ICICI and IIT Delhi have designed iWork @ home platform which enables the women workers to work from home

• The platform has a facial recognition technology which enables authenticity of the worker. Air India Runs the first Longest all Women Flight As an initiative to promote women joining in Aviation sector, Air India flew its first world’s longest all women flight from New Delhi to San Francisco.

• The flight, which travelled a distance of around 14,500 kilometre in close to 17 hours, was operated as part of International Women’s Day celebrations

• The world’s longest non-stop flight, entire flight operations from cockpit crew to cabin crew, check-in staff, doctor, customer care staff, ATC (air traffic control) and the entire ground handling were handled by women TATA Housing- SBI Launch Special Home Loan for Women As a part of the global Women’s day celebrations various organizations launch special plans for women. Tata housing also joined the list by tying up with SBI to provide special home loan.

• Real estate developer Tata Housing has partnered with the country’s largest lender,State Bank of India

• TATA Housing allows the women to pay just 20% of the loan initially and the remaining amount can be paid after taking the possession of the property

SBI Life Insurance Launched Smart Women Advantage To give more emphasis on empowerment of Women, the SBI life insurance launched the Smart Women Advantage scheme as a part of Women’s day celebrations.

• ‘SBI Life – Smart Women Advantage’ plan provides for life cover, savings and female- specific critical illness benefits Women Representation in Indian Parliament Slips 10 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Though many steps are taken to empower women in various fields, the representation of women in legislation is considerably very low. On the day of celebration it is unfortunate to know that India’s rank in women representation has slipped from 117 to 144. Flash points

• India though remains to be the largest democracy in the world has been given only 144thrank in terms of women representation in legislation across the globe th • Last year it was in 117 position among 188 nations and the scenario collapsed to144 among 191 countries in February 2016

• The total % of women in parliament accounts for a meager 12% in Lok Sabha and 8% in Rajya Sabha and an average of 22% on the whole

• Rwanda ranks No 1 with 8% women in the lower house of parliament and 38.5% in the upper house Mahila e-Haat portal launched by Union Government With the aim of supporting the as Self help groups of women to sell their products the Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Sanjay Gandhi launched Mahila e-Haat portal in New Delhi. Flash points

• The Mahila e-Haat portal, http://mahilaehaat-rmk.gov.in, is an online marketing platform to enable women to sell their products across the nation

• The product along with photograph description, cost and mobile no./address of the participants will be displayed on the e-Haat enabling direct contact between sellers/service providers and buyers

• Rahstriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) is primarily involved in the creation of the portal and the entire business of e-Haat can be handled through mobile phone

Haryana Global Investors Summit 2016 The first “Happening Haryana Global Investors Summit-2016” will began in Gurgaon, which will see participation from 12 countries.

• The two day summit is organized by the state government of Haryana along with CII • The summit is inaugurated by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley • It is expected to attract a 25 lakh crore investment Enemy Property Bill Amendment Introduced In Parliament A bill to amend the 48-year-old Enemy Property Act to allow the custodians to continue to hold sway over enemy properties was introduced in Lok Sabha. It proposed to amend the Enemy Property Act, 1968. Enemy property - The central government had designated some properties belonging to nationals of Pakistan and China as “enemy properties” during the 1962, 1965 and 1971 conflicts with the respective countries 11 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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• The government of India vested these properties in the custodian of Enemy Property for

India, an office instituted under the central government

• The vesting of enemy property with the Custodian will mean that all rights, titles and interests in the property will vest with the Custodian. No laws and customs governing succession will be applicable to these properties

Gujarat tops the list of states with most investment potential Gujarat government has topped the list of states with most investment potential that has been according to the survey from New Delhi based think tank National Council of Applied Economic Research (NACER).

• However the ranking released by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion in September last year that emphasizes the success rate of states in implementing 98 regulatory reforms is offset with the NACER data.

• The list of 21 states that kept on survey, Gujarat, New Delhi and Tamilnadu as the top destinations for making investments. Top Five Destinations among Investors:Gujaratm,New Delhi,Tamilnadu,Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra • Industries ranked Uttarakhand (32.5%) as the least corrupt state and Tamil Naduas the most corrupt with 100% of the survey participants voting against it. The bottom three parameters where industries have least concerns are availability of unskilled labour, availability of water and labour relations. • Gujarat is leader in governance and political stability and perception,New Delhi topped in infrastructure and economic climate, Kerala is ranked first in Labour issues.

Govt mulls policy to promote wind energy projects In Order to propel the Wind Energy Potential in India, Union government will soon unveil a policy to give incentives including an interest discount of 0.25 % for increasing capacity of Wind mills of up to 1MW.

• The objective of the mooted policy is to promote optimum utilisation of wind energy resources by creating facilitative framework for repowering.

• The policy mooted by Ministry of New and Renewable energy will float a draft for repowering of Wind power projects in the country.

India to Deploy Women Pilots In Fighter Plane by June As a part of women empowerment the announcement came from Air force on International Women’s day celebrations that India’s air force will induct its first female fighter pilots in June.

• Last month President Pranab Mukherjee announced that women will be allowed in all combat roles in the armed forces

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Bhawna Kanth, Avani Chaturvedi and Mohana Singh are likely to create history as

India’s first women fighter pilots

India, Saudi Arabia hold talks on regional and global issues Country’s largest Crude oil supplier Saudi Arabia and India hold talks on regional and global issues of mutual interests.

• The Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister was on two day visit to India during the visit Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj held extensive talks with her Saudi Arabian counterpart Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir in New Delhi.

Parliament passes Bureau of Indian Standards bill The Bureau of Indian Standards bills was passed in the parliament, following its approval from Rajya Sabha. The bill was earlier passed in Loksabha during the winter session last year. Bureau of Indian Standards bill The bill proposes to make BIS, a national standards body, introduce mandatory hallmarking of precious metal, prevent misuse of Standard marks and provide for recall of ISI marked products not conforming to relevant standards. Flash points

• The bill was passed in Lok Sabha following a voice vote during the winter session in December, 2015

• The Bill extends the ambit of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to include services, processes and products while ensuring production of world class goods

57 Countries to participate in first Maritime Summit The first Maritime summit to be held at India is going to witness the participation of 57 countries from the world. Flash points

• The maiden Maritime summit is going to be organized in Mumbai, Maharashtra • The summit is conducted by Union Ministry of Shipping in April,2016 • During the media launch of Maritime summit, Union minister of Shipping Nitin Gadkaritold that 57 countries are likely to participate in the summit

• The two day Maritime summit is conducted by India and South Korea • A wide array of investment opportunities and collaborations are expected both at the national and the international level at the event

• The main focus of summit is to give impetus to Make In India and blue economy • The shipping ministry is targeting around 1.2 trillion in investment from the event

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The Upper House of the Parliament passed The National Waterways Bill, 2015, which was tabled in Lok Sabha on May 5, 2015 by the Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping, Mr. NitinGadkari.

• Having been passed in the Rajya Sabha, It would be kept before The President for his assent in the bill. The bill comes under Entry 24 of the Union List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. Significance of the Bill:

• Additional 101 waterways as national waterways identified under the bill The Schedule of the Bill also specifies the extent of development to be undertaken on each waterway.

• India currently has five inland waterways as national waterways. These include waterways on Ganga from Haldia to Allahabad and on Brahmaputra from Dhubri to Sadiya and others.

• The Waterways Bill revokes the five Acts that declare the existing national waterways. These five national waterways are now covered under the Bill.

Cycling event of Indian Army with theme Cycle to Recycle flagged off To create public awareness about the need of nature and environment conservation, a 10-member army team boarded upon a 1,000-km bicycle journey from Pangsau Pass in the India-Myanmar border.

• The journey organised as part of the Assam Rifles 181st raising day celebrations was flagged off by Brigadier DK Singh, commander of the 25 Sector Assam Rifles The theme of the Event “Cycle to recycle”

National Anthem compulsory in all schools in WB West Bengal Board of Secondary Education has notified that in order to pursue Government direction it directed to sing the National Anthem during Assembly before the commencement of the School Hour.

• This Decision comes from West Bengal government days after Madras High Court mandated all the Private Schools to Sing National Anthem during morning Assembly.

Rajya Sabha Passed the Real Estate Bill The Real Estate Regulation and Development Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha. This bill is in the favour of protection of Home buyers and to bring in more transparency into the real estate business and avoid the flow of Black money. Features of the Bill Certainty: The Bill provides that 70 per cent of sale proceeds will have to be kept aside by the developer in an escrow account 14 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Tribunal for Resolution: The Bill will help establish state-level real estate regulatory authorities and appellate tribunals to regulate transactions Deadline: 60 days, thereby setting a timeline for resolution of disputes Punishment: Imprisonment up to three years for promoters and up to one year for real estate agents and buyers in case of any violation of orders of the appellate tribunals or monetary penalties or both Registration: Promoters will be required to register projects with the regulatory authorities disclosing project information Norms: The legislation also brought down norms for registration of projects to a plot area of 500 sq m or 8 apartments as against 4,000 sq m proposed in the draft Bill in 2013 and 1,000 sq m or 12 apartments suggested by the Standing Committee.

Union Cabinet Nods to the new Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy The Union Cabinet, presided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP). Flash Points

• The HELP will replace the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) • It will enhance domestic oil and gas production, bring substantial investment in the sector and generate sizable employment. The policy also targets the enhancement of transparency and reduction of administrative discretion

• It will provide Uniform license for exploration and production of all forms of hydrocarbon including CBM, shale gas/oil, tight gas and gas hydrates under a single license

• The concept of Open Acreage Policy will enable Exploration & Production (E&P) companies choose the blocks from the designated area

Union Cabinet approved Sikh Gurudwara’s Act The Union Cabinet approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs to amend the Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925 through the Parliament with effect from 8 October 2013 Flash points

• The proposal gave green signal to remove the exception given to Sehajdhari Sikhs in 1944 to vote in the elections for selecting members of the board and the committees constituted under the Act

• The Sehajdhari Sikhs were continuously exercising their voting rights in the SGPC elections since 1949

• In 2003, the Union Home Ministry debarred the Sehajdhari Sikhs from voting by amending the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925 15 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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• It was done through a notification dated 8 October 2003

Union Cabinet Nods for BIMSTEC Convention in Criminal Matters The Union Cabinet headed by PM Narendra Modi gave its approval for the BIMSTEC Convention on mutual legal assistance in Criminal Matters. BIMSTEC

• It is the Bay of Bengal Initiative on Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation • It comprises seven countries – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand

• It mainly covers cooperation in commerce, technology, investment, agriculture, tourism, human resource development, fisheries, transport and communication, textiles, leather etc

IMF to set up data sharing centre in India International Monetary Fund (IMF) will establish a knowledge-sharing centre in India, to provide technical support and assistance to India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bhutan.

• Data sharing centre will extend expertise in core macroeconomic and financial management areas. This would be the first such initiative in Asia. An agreement will be ratified in this regard by IMF chief Christine Lagarde and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Cabinet approves amendment to mining law, move to spur M&As Cabinet Approved Amendment to mining law The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill 2015 to transfer of mining lease for captive mines.

• The proposed amendment will permit transfer of captive mines granted on discretion to spur merger and acquisitions in the mining sector

• The amended bill to help in checking the stressed and non-performing assets of Indian Banking industry also push the stuck M&A deals could be moved in the right direction.

Lok Sabha passes Aadhaar bill 2016 The bill enabling Aadhaar card to be mandatory to avail the subsidies and schemes of the Government has been passed in the Lok Sabha. Aadhaar card:It is a valid identity proof issued by the Government of India by recording the finger print, retina and photograph of a person. Aadhaar bill:The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill, 2016 aims to ensure targeted services to intended beneficiaries through Aadhaar card 16 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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Kakrapar nuclear plant shut down after coolant system develops leak A power generation unit at nuclear powered Kakrapar atomic power Plant in Gujarat was shut down after leakage developed of heavy water.

• A break in the coolant system of one of the nuclear reactors at Kakrapar Gujarat,Plant authorities confirmed that there was no harmful, radioactive leakage and the backup safety mechanisms that were made back up.

• Unit 1 of the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station, which was operating at its rated power, had to be shut down, consequent to a small leak in the Primary Heat Transport (PHT) System.

PM inaugurated three Railway projects at Bihar Bihar gained special importance with the political rivals-PM Narendra Modi and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar being present on the same stage for inauguration of three important Railway projects at Bihar .

• Estimated cost of 3 projects- 7200 crores 3 Railway projects: 1. Patna Rail-cum-road Bridge 2. Mokama double line Railway bridge 3. Munger rail-cum-road Bridge Govt to computerise all ration shops by 2019 Government aims to computerise the PDS sector to help remove corruption in PDS,by installing electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices at all the 5.35 lakh fair price shops across the country by March 2017.

• Government has also started a pilot project linking the PDS with Aadhar card under Direct Benefit Transfer scheme in Puducherry, Chandigarh and in urban areas of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

• The cost of such e-PoS, is around Rs 20,000 and a total sum of Rs 884 crore has been earmarked and the Centre will spend a total of Rs 879 crore while states will spend Rs 393 crore under the scheme.

Honey festival Celebrated in Mangaluru Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat has conducted a ‘honey festival’ in Mangaluru a two-day festival on apiculture and organic farming organised by Horticulture Department.

• The government has been supporting organic farming and it targeting in a bright future. The demand for crops cultivated using organic manure is increasing. The people should also accept organic farming,

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Foreign Minister of Mexico on two day visit to India

The Foreign Minister of the Government of Mexico, H.E. Ms Claudia Ruiz Massieu Salinas, visited India on two day visit to India (11-12 March) and held bilateral meeting with, External Affairs Minister of India Smt. SushmaSwaraj.

• During her visit the Mexican Foreign Minister also interacted with the private sector in a business event organized with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and delivered a lecture in the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) on the subject ‘Mexico in the international context and its relations with India’.

• In the course of the official visit the yembark on a complete review of the entire range of bilateral relations comprising political, commercial & trade, financial, technical and other areas to further increase and strengthen cooperation.

Allahabad High Court celebrates 150th foundation year Allahabad High Court established in 1866 celebrates its 150th Foundation Day on 14th March 2016. Key Points:

• CJI Justice Thakur inaugurated the dedicated digitization centre of the High court. • Reserve bank of India (RBI) also released a 10 rupees coin. • Postal department released a postage stamp and a Souvenir of the High court.

“Advancing Asia: Investing for the Future” Conference A Conference jointly hosted by the Government of India and the IMF on “Advancing Asia: Investing for the Future” in New Delhi.

• The Conference was attended by IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde and Prime Minister Narendra Modi delegations from Indian side.

• Key issues for discussion include slowing potential growth, rising debt, infrastructure bottlenecks, regional integration, and the role of trade and other structural reforms in boosting output and macroeconomic resilience.

• International Monetary Fund endorsed monetary policies of central banks in Europe and Japan, even as policymakers from emerging markets warned that such policies were increasing risks for the global economy. The Conference held in New Delhi from March 11-13.

UP GOVT Shows Green Signal To Kanpur Metro Project, Senior Citizen Policy UP Govt approved a policy for senior citizens recently under which it will establish old age homes for them. The Govt has also declared to raise monthly pension from Rs. 300 to Rs. 400.

• The policy will come into effect from 1 April 2016 and the social welfare department has been made the nodal agency for this new policy. 18 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

KEY POINTS:

• The policy was formulated under which old age homes and juvenile homes would be set up under one roof

• The policy reserves 25 percent seats in these old age homes for the BPL families who will be provided free residence and food The Govt has also approved the Kanpur Metro Rail Project. The details of which are below:

• The project would cover 32 km through two corridors spanning over 31 stations, including 19 elevated and 12 underground ones

• The project, as on August 2015, is estimated to cost Rs 13,721 cr

India’s First Education Focused Accelerator Programme Started At MIT, PUNE Edugild, India’s first education technology accelerator has been set up by Maharashtra Institute of Technology at Pune. It will focus only on the education sector. The CEO of the Eduglid programme is Rishi Kapal. EDUGILD PROGRAMME

• Edugild will conduct two batches every year. • Start-ups will receive seed funding worth Rs 15 lakh in return for a minority stake. • It will provide mentorship and guidance regarding instituting a start-up, pitching to venture capitalists (VCs), business management and customer acquisition, marketing and help in scaling up business.

• Of the 300 applications received this year, Eduglid has selected four companies for its accelerator programme.

Jammu & Kashmir adopts new Industrial policy Jammu & Kashmir adopts new industrial policy to attract an investment of Rs.2000 crores every year. The policy will hold good for 10 years. Flash points

• The State Administrative Council under the chairmanship of Governor N N Vohra, approved the Industrial Policy-2016

• The new policy was framed by the Industries and Commerce department • The new policy sought views from various departments which includes power, finance, law, justice, planning and development, parliamentary affairs etc

• The new policy incorporates e-governance for registration of Industrial units in a time- bound manner

Maharashtra passes Prohibition of Social Boycott bill In a move to strengthen the laws against discrimination the Maharashtra government passed 19 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

the prohibition of social Boycott bill in its state assembly.

Features of Social Boycott bill

• The social boycott is prohibited and its commission shall be an offence. • The maximum punishment for social boycotting will be 7 years in prison or fine up to 5 lakh rupees or both

• The maximum punishment for extending aid in relation to the commission of offence will be 3 years or 3 lakh rupees or both

• The victim or any member of his family may file a complaint either through the police or directly to the Magistrate

• To ensure speedy justice, the trial shall be completed within a period of six months from the date of filing of the charge sheet

International Children’s Film Festival for the North East Region began in Gangtok The International Children’s Film Festival for the North East Region began in Gangtok.The Festival named, “The Golden Elephant” has been organised by the Children’s Film Society of India,in association with the Sikkim Government’s Culture and Heritage and Human Resources Development Departments.

• Over a dozen children films from the country and abroad are to be screened during the three day long Film Festival. Workshops on film making and also on storytelling and creative writing will be held as a part of the event. Order Amendment Bill, 2016 passed in Lok Sabha The People’s house passed the Amendment of Constitution (Scheduled Caste) order bill, 2016. The bill seeks to amend the Constitution Scheduled Castes Order 1950. Need of the amendment

• The bill was passed on proposals of five states, namely Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Kerala, Odisha and West Bengal, to modify the list of Scheduled Castes in their states Amendment criteria

• The proposal relates to the inclusion of certain communities, modification and removal of area restriction in respect of certain communities and exclusion of certain communities in the case of State of Odisha Castes included

• Chhattisgarh included Sais, Sahis, Sarathi, Soot-Sarathi, Thanwar in the SC list • Haryana included Aheria, Aheri, Hari, Heri, Thori, Turi and Rai Sikh • Kerala include Peruvannan in the list

AAHAR 2016 Inaugurated In New Delhi The largest fair on Food & Hospitality Sector in India, AAHAR 2016 was inaugurated by Hon.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Ms. Harsimrat Kaur Badal on March 15, 2016. It is the 31st edition in this series. ABOUT THE FAIR

• Largest show of its kind in South Asia • Organized by India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO), supported by the respective ministries

• Aim: A growth propelling event to promote Brand India on a global platform Foreign Business Delegations from USA, UAE, Singapore, Bangladesh, Nepal etc.Foreign companies represented – Australia, Afghanistan, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Korea and USA among others

• High level of satisfaction with 98% of exhibitors desiring repeat participation in AAHAR 2016

Over Rs 1 lakh crore disbursed under MUDRA Yojana Under Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana Loans worth Rs1.09 lakh crore have been sanctioned to small entrepreneurs, loans worth over Rs.1.09 lakh crore were given to over 2.96 crore beneficiaries.

• MUDRA Yojana, which was launched in April last year, loans between Rs.50, 000 and Rs.10 lakh are provided to small entrepreneurs. The Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency Ltd (MUDRA) focuses on the 5.75 crore self-employed who have deployed funds totalling Rs.11 lakh crore and provide jobs to 12 crore people.

Centre releases Rs 609 crore for upgrading prisons in eight States The Centre has released 609 crore rupees for upgrading prisons in eight States as recommended by the Thirteenth Finance Commission.

• In the eight States Kerala has got 154 crore,Chhattisgarh 150 crore rupees and Odisha 100 crore rupees.Andhra Pradesh has been sanctioned 90 crore rupees andMaharashtra 60 crore rupees.

• The other States to receive Central funds for modernization of jails are Mizoram, 30 crore rupees, Tripura 15 crore rupees and Arunachal Pradesh 10 crore rupees.

Centre’s nod for Mega Food Park in Khammam Union Government has given final approval for setting up a Mega Food Park in Khammam District of Telanganato facilitate creation of modern infrastructure for food processing along the value chain from the farm to the market.

• This is the first Mega Food Park in Telangana and set up with the project cost of Rs. 108.95 crore in an area of 78 acres.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• These Food Processing Industries is centring on increasing the Food Processing Sector so

that agriculture sector grows and becomes the engine of growth to drive the Make in India initiative.

Punjab passed Punjab Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal land (Transfer of Proprietary Right) Bill, 2016 Punjab Assembly unanimously passed the Punjab Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal land bill-2016. The bill was passed in contradiction of the construction of contentious Sutlej Yamuna Link.

• The bill emphasizes to offer transfer of proprietary rights back to the land owners from whom the land was acquired by the state government for the construction of SYL free of cost.

Career Guidance Counselling Centres launched in Delhi to improve employment opportunities for women Young women seeking Employment in the Delhi NCR region can receive career Guidance from the newly launched Dedicated Counselling centres.

• This is the first of its kind dedicated to women,established on the findings of a UNDP commissioned study which revealed that almost 80 percent of young women in Delhi did not have access to accurate and timely information on educational and job opportunities.

India aviation show 2016 begins in Hyderabad President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the 5th edition of the India Aviation 2016 and the five- day biennial aviation show jointly organised by the Union Civil Aviation Ministry and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

• The theme of Indian civil aviation sector: Potential as global manufacturing hub. • About 25 countries and 200 major participants are expected to take part in the Indian Aviation show at the Begumpet airport. Hyderabad.

• Leading aircraft and helicopter manufacturers such as Boeing, Airbus, Textron,AA Embraer, Gulfstream, Dassault, Agusta Westland, Bell Helicopters, and Russian Helicopters are participating in the show.

Punjab Government notified Swine Flu under Epidemic Disease Act Health and Family Welfare department of the Punjab government notified Swine Flu (H1N1) under the Epidemic Disease Act.

• All the Hospitals be it government or private owned will have to inform the Department of Health about a case of ILI (Influenza like Illness) having chronic diseases.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• In order to ensure such cases are treated at the earliest and proper guidelines of the

Government is been followed. The treatment of swine flu is provided free of cost to all the patients as recommended by the Government.

Surat Cleanest Railway Station; Varanasi Among The Dirtiest: Survey The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan- ‘Ek Kadam Swachhta Ki Aur’ is the pet project of our Prime Minister Narendra Modi which was flagged off on October 2, 2014 with a vision to make India free of open defecation by 2019 and to fulfil Mahatma Gandhi’s dream of a clean India

• As a part of this project, a survey was conducted at 407 railway stations, which included 75 A-1 stations and 332 A-category stations, Surat has emerged to be the cleanest Railway Stations in India, followed by Rajkot and Bilaspur. Varanasi stood last when evaluated onforty cleanliness parameters which formed the basis of the survey. KEY POINTS:

• The survey was conducted by Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC)

Cisco to set up Internet of Everything (IoE) innovation centre in Visakhapatnam Cisco will set up an Internet of Everything (IoE) Innovation centre in Visakhapatnam to drive regional innovation and will enable partners and start-ups to build solutions around IoE and engage in rapid prototyping.

• The MoU was signed as a part of the inauguration of India’s first statewide broadband project-AP Fiber Net in Visakhapatnam in the presence of Andhra Pradesh CM Mr. N Chandrababu Naidu and Cisco executive chairman Irving Tan among others.

World Sufi Forum Inaugurated In New Delhi Giving a boost to the rich Sufi culture in India, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the first World Sufi Forum in New Delhi. It is called the Bain-ul-Aqwami Sufi Conference started with a new ray of hope in New Delhi.

• 200 Sufi scholars from across 20 countries have converged for the 4 day conference • Organised by the All India Ulama and Mashaikh Board, the apex body of Sufi Dargahs in India.

Indian Airforce to conduct day-night exercise ‘Iron-fist’ Indian Air Force displayed its combat and fire power at Rajasthan’s Pokhran firing range in a day & night demonstration. The event comprised six packages depicting six themes in which more than 180 aircraft, including fighters, transport and helicopters participated. Flash points

• A MiG-27 aircraft heralded the commencement of the flypast by towing the Ex “Iron Fist” banner, which was followed by Supersonic run by the MiG-29 aircraft. 23 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The fly past by a mixed formation comprising a MiG-21 Bison, MiG -27 Upgrade, MiG-

29 and the mighty Su-30, showcased the transformation of the IAF over the decades

Feni now classified as “Heritage spirit of Goa.” Government of Goa has declared Feni, a form of spirit as the heritage spirit of the state. Feni, was the first liquor product in the country which got Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2000.

• It finds its uses in various cultural traditions, cuisines as well as it is famed for its medicinal use. So it should not have been categorized as country liquor and it is presently defined under the Goa Excise Duty Act, 1964.

SC allows photos of CMs, Governors, and Ministers in Public ads. The SC has allowed photographs of CMs, Governors, and Ministers in Public advertisements.

• A bench led by Justice Ranjan Gogoi allowed review petitions filed by various state governments, which had sought a modification of the previous order.

• Earlier SC had issued Guidelines on Regulating Government Advertisements based on recommendations of Prof NR Madhava Menon

Union government unveiled Model Building Bye-laws, 2016 The Union Government has unveiled Model Building Bye-Laws, 2016 for granting permission for construction of buildings. It was released by the Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi.

• Aim: Online single window framework to provide approval for construction of buildings Highlights

• Model Building Bye-Laws, 2016 intends to improve ease of doing business regarding issuance of construction permits.

• The time limit for all kinds of single window approvals is 30 days and if it is not done by the concerned agencies within this time-frame then it will be deemed as approved.

• Different set of environmental conditions are provided for each category of building ranging from 5000 square meters to 1.5 lakh square meters.

• The provision of rain water harvesting for various types of buildings has been mandatory

PM to inaugurate ‘Krishi Unnati Mela’ in New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated three-day ‘Krishi Unnati Mela’ providing information on new farm schemes and technologies that will help farmers double their incomes within the next few years. Venue: Pusa Campus , New Delhi

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Events

• PM Narendra Modi will give Krishi Karman Awards to states and progressive farmers who made remarkable contribution to Agriculture

• He will visit the theme pavilion and address the farmers • There will be live demonstration of agriculture and horticultural crops, animal husbandry, innovative technologies and farm mechanisation in big plots

• Public and private companies will display theirfarm inputs and technologies in over 500 stalls

Shri J P Nadda launches new initiatives to combat TB With a view to combat tuberculosis in the country, the govt. of India is making every effort. Recently, Union Health Minister J P Nadda, launched Bedaquiline new anti-TB drug for Drug Resistant TB as part of the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program (RNTCP) on the eve of World TB Day.

• The event was organsied by Health Ministry and WHO ahead of the World Tuberculosis Day on March 24. Mumbai’s Wilson College adopts railway station for cleanliness As part of the Swachch Bharat Abhiyan the Wilson College in Mumbai has adopted the Charni Road station in Mumbai for cleanliness and up keep.

• Wilson College students led by executive co-ordinator Dr Kamal Jadhav met the Governor Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao at Raj Bhavan and briefed him about the decision taken by the students during the past few months to keep the Charni Road station neat and clean.

India to host 8th BRICS Summit, 2016 The external affairs ministry has notified that India will host the 8th BRICS Summit from 15 October to 16 October 2016 in Goa. BRICS- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa

• Chairmanship –India assumed chairmanship of BRICS from Russia on 15 February 2016 and it will last till 31 December 2016. Five pronged approach

• Institution building, Implementation, Integrating, Innovation, Continuity Theme and Logo

• The logo for the Summit is a lotus having colours from all the five member countries and a traditional Namaste in the centre.

• The theme of India’s BRICS Chairmanship is Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions. Punjab Assembly passes Agriculture Indebtedness bill 25 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The Punjab Assembly has a passed a bill that provides relief to the farmers. The Punjab

Settlement of Agricultural Indebtedness Bill, 2016. The bill specifies that the interest payable on debt shall be calculated at such rate as may be notified by the government. Features of the bill

• According to the new bill, the interest rates on debts will be calculated by the state government

• This would be in accordance with the interest rates charged by banks on yearly basis.

• The bill, aimed at providing fair and expeditious settlement of agriculturists debt- related disputes.

Union Ministry of Health & Welfare launches LASI The Union ministry of Health & Welfare have launched a study on Longitudinal Ageing of Indians termed as LASI(Longitudinal Ageing Study in India) Need for LASI

• The 2011 census revealed that around 6% of the total population of India is elderly people and with increase in life expectancy it will grow further in future

• Currently there are no clear databases on elderly people in India • It becomes essential to know about the elderly people, their health based study and other social and economic issues related to them

• This will help to evolve them in the economic planning of the nation whose population will rise up to 7 billion that includes 340 million of 60+ aged people in 2050 Conducted by: The International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and University of Southern California (USC)

India Post releases customised ‘My Stamp’ on HAL Post has released a customised commemorative stamp on HAL the first time India Post is coming out with customised ‘My Stamp’ and HAL is the first organisation to have it.

• The stamp in recognition of the company’s 75 years services to the nation was released by Usha Chandras hekhar, Chief Post Master General, Karnataka Circle, and V M Chamola, Director (HR), HAL.

• The tag line HAL: the force behind the forces for its Platinum Jubilee logo.

Government clears new Defence Procurement Policy Govt approves key changes to accord priority to locally made equipment and fund private- sector R&D the objective of the new Defence Procurement Procedure is to ensure expeditious procurement of the approved requirements.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The Policy will come into effect from April 1, 2016.The DPP, which will have provisions

to fast-track acquisition of critically-needed equipment’s, will be unveiled at the Defence Expo on March 28

• The new DPP that will introduce measures to promote indigenization and self-reliance in defence will be unveiled at the Defexpo India 2016, a biennial show of military and security

PM Inaugurates Power transmission line between India & Bangladesh India strengthens its relationship consistently with its Neighboring nations. Further improving the relation between India and Bangladesh, PM Narendra Modi has inaugurated a power transmission line between the 2 countries. Highlights

• PM Narendra Modi, inaugurated a transmission line from Tripura that will supply 100 MW power to Bangladesh

• Modi inaugurated the new line via video conferencing from Agartala • The power generated from Palatana generating station will be given to Bangladesh • In return, Bangladesh expressed their contribution by providing 10GB Internet Bandwidth to India

Himachal, Mumbai to have electric buses Himachal Road Transport Corporation and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority to introduce zero-emission retrofitted electric buses under its flagship scheme Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid & Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India).

• HRTC and MMRDA will roll out 25 electric buses each. Under FAME India, the department will fund up to 75 per cent cost and the department of heavy industry has granted in-principle approval.

Govt approves National Highway project worth Rs 6,284 cr Union government has approved 11 highway projects with a total length of about 453 km and worth of Rs 6,284 crore for various states.

Swachh Bharat rankings: RashtrapatiBhavan among the cleanest buildings Rashtrapati Bhavan, UPSC Building, Hyderabad House, Jawaharlal Nehru Bhavan and Vigyan Bhavan have been ranked among the cleanest government buildings in New Delhi in a survey carried out under Swachh Bharat Mission.

• Rashtrapati Bhavan and UPSC building have got full marks to be stated as the cleanest buildings in a survey, however NirvachanSadan, Jaipur House, Jamnagar House,

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Jaisalmer House and AGCR Building found their place at the bottom of the list of 36 such

buildings.

110 villages in Chhattisgarh declared ‘open defecation Free 110 gram panchayats in Chhattisgarh were declared open defecation-free under the Centre’s Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, taking the total number of such villages in the state to 1,849.

Mehbooba Mufti set to become first woman CM of J & K Mehbooba Mufti was elected Chief Minister of J & K, after clearing the decks for government formation in the state. This decision is taken in the legislature party meet Chaired by Mahbooba at her official residence in Gupka.

• PDP legislature party leader set to become the first woman chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir. PDP has 28 MLAs in the 87-member House while its alliance partner BJP has 25 MLAs. Plus the coalition has support of two and Independent MLA Aga Baqar Rezvi has also extended support to the candidature of Mehbooba. Andhra Pradesh inaugurates India’s first lift irrigation project Andhra government which is known for its innovations and use of technologies in various sectors has also become the first Indian state to implement lift irrigation. Points to note

• Pattiseema lift irrigation project is known as the first river linking project in India • It connects river Godavari with Krishna and the first pump of the project is completed in 1 year

• The project was taken by Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited • They finished the first lift irrigation project worth of 1300 crores in 6 months • The lift irrigation scheme was inaugurated at Pattiseema village to meet the demands of water scarce regions in Krishna before the completion of the main project

• By this project water is pumped up to a nearby point and discharged into Polavaram Right Main Canal which will join a tributary of Krishna which is 170 km long

• The project contains 24 motors and 24 pumps of 6,300 HP and 5,300 HP respectively with a combined capacity to discharge 8,500 cusecs of water.

• The project is expected to be completed by March, 2016 and MEIL will receive an incentive of 268 crores from the government

Arogya Fair began in Goa In a move to popularize the Indian medicines with special attention to Ayurveda, Arogya fair is a four day programme is began in Goa.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The fair is launched as a cooperative effort by AYUSH ministry and Confederation of

Indian Industry

• The main objective is to popularize the Indian Medicinal system and update the industry with recent developments in the sector

• The fair will concentrate to popularize Indian medicines like Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Homeopathy, Sowa-Rigpa and Yoga

• Free medical checkups, distribution of medicines and technical sessions are to be held at the four day fair

India to become 100% e-vehicle nation by 2030 The increasing emissions across the world have forced all the nations to move towards renewable energies and adopt measures to bring down the pollution. As a part of these measures India has planned to promote the use of electricity operated vehicles.

• India have decided to provide electricity operated cars at zero down payment making it as a 100% e-vehicle nation by 2030

• Piyush Goyal also told that they don’t need support from neither the government nor the people

MP to have its first ITBP centre Madhya Pradesh is going to have its first Indo Tibetan Border Police weapon training centre at Batiagarh, Damoh.

• It is going to be established at 1800 acres between Batiagarh and Fatehgarh at a cost of 2100 crores

• The newly recruited constables of ITBP will be given training at the centre for operating all kinds of small and big weapons including cannons capable of firing up to 5-km range and sten guns

• A similar training centre is already operational in Allahabad

J P Nadda launches Rota virus vaccine The Union Ministry of health and welfare has been taking consistent efforts to develop new medicines and keep the contagious diseases under control. Recently, the minister of Health and Welfare launched the Rota virus vaccine. Flash points

• Rotavirus vaccine is an initiative to provide immunity against Diarrhoea and bring infant mortality rate under control

• The vaccine is a cost effective program and it is to be rolled out in of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana,Odisha and Andhra Pradesh in the first phase

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Maharashtra gets its first set of Women Commanders to protect forest Women have been finding a place for themselves in all the challenging fields. Recently Indian Navy announced to recruit 3 female fighter pilots. Similarly, Women have been chosen as forest guards in Maharashtra. Flash points

• A batch of 20 women are likely to become the first women commandos of the state forestry department.

• They were trained from Gadchiroli’s Jungle Tactic and Survival Course (JTSC) • The one-month training began on February 8 and it include women of the age group 19- 24

• The training focused on weapon handling and firing, setting up ambush, carrying out raids, nakabandis, patrolling information through the jungle and surviving for days in the jungle in emergencies

• It is the first time the forest guards are given commando training

Common Yoga protocol revealed for 2nd International day of Yoga The International Yoga day has been earmarked on 21st June. The second year celebrations are yet to come and as a part of it the protocol has been released by the AYUSH ministry. Highlights

• The booklet consisting of the protocol was released in the Arogya fair which commenced in Goa.It was released by Shripad Yesso Naik on 26th March,2016

• The protocol includes certain yoga practices such as Yogic Sukshma Vyayama , Yogasanas, and Pranayama which have been added in the 2nd revised edition

President Rule mulled in Uttarkhand Fuelling up the political chaos in Uttarkhand, the President rule has been imposed in the state. The chaos began when the congress ruled government faced the opposition from the 9 rebel MLA’S.

• The 9 rebel MLA’s proposed to support BJP in framing the new government • The congress government was forced to prove their majority. They had 27 MLA’s and also supported by 6 more.

Himachal Pradesh government released Sixth Economic Census report Sixth Economic Census of Himachal Pradesh was released by Pradeep Chauhan, the Economic Advisor of Himachal Government. The survey was started in 2012 and completed in two phases with 8303 enumerators, 3844 supervisors and 175 charge officers covering 24,932 enumeration blocks.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Himachal was first state in the country to complete the census and release the

report and the parameters and methods adopted by the state are being followed by other states.

• This is the first census in which nearly 100 per cent establishments, both in urban and remotest rural areas had been covered.

Haryana approves Jat reservation bill Haryana Cabinet approved the Jat reservation bill to provide reservation to Jats and four other castes in government jobs and educational institutions.

• The draft Bill on reservation to Jats and four other castes was cleared at a Cabinet meeting under the chairmanship of Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar.

• The Bill proposes reservation for Jats and four other castes namely, Sikhs, Rors, Bishnois and Tyagis

Government Constitutes the Board of Trade The government has reconstituted the Board of trade headed by the commerce minister. Flash points

• Board of Trade- It is a advisory body consisting of representatives from Industries headed by the Commerce Minister

• The first meeting will be held on April,6 Objective- To have continuous discussion and consultation with trade and industry

Madhya Pradesh to join National Agri Market platform Madhya Pradesh all set to join the recently-announced National Agriculture Market (NAM) platform, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to launch it from the stat on April 14 to mark B R Ambedkar’s birth anniversary.

• Initially, the state government would include only one commodity chana (gram) for e- auction through the NAM platform.

• The Union government has decided to release Rs 15 crore for all 50 mandis to equip them with online support system, software, hardware, and grading of farm yield.

• Mandi traders who contribute in regular auction of commodities carry localised mandi licence, the trading would take place only in Karond mandi.

Haryana Becomes 1st To Launch Injectable Contraceptive A unique Project named by Salamati has been launched by the Haryana Govt for the first time ever in order to maintain a healthy balance between the births of children by using injectable contraceptive.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Highlights:

• The objective is to check high mother and infant mortality rate • The state has an outlay of Rs 3,916.94 crore has been earmarked for health and family welfare in the year 2016-17.

Gujarat To Set Up Nation’s First Organic Farming University Gujarat is going to be the first state to set up a University exclusively focussed Organic Farming. Objective – To help farmers in switching to unconventional methods of farming. Key Points

• A fund of Rs 10 crore has been earmarked towards the university in the annual 2016-17 budget.

• The place may be chosen near to agriculture Kamdhenu University in Gandhinagar district.

• Under its organic farming policy, the Gujarat government plans to increase the organic farming area by 10 times in five years

Govt notifies Aadhaar Act Union government has notified the new Aadhaar Act, 2016 which gives the numbers assigned by it a statutory backing for transfer of subsidies and benefits to people eligible for them.

• Both central and state government can use Aadhaar for disbursal for benefits and subsidies. However the Aadhaar number cannot be used as a proof of citizenship or domicile.

Telengana passed bill for hike in salary The Chandrasekhar Rao headed Telengana government has passed the bill unanimously for hike in salary of MLA’s and MLC’s.

• The Telangana Payment of Salaries and Pensions and Removal of Disqualifications(Amendment) Bill-2016 was passed, as per a recommendation of the Committee on Amenities of the Telangana Legislature which met on March 21.

• This hike will cause an added expenditure of 97 crores for the telengana government

Dr. Najma Heptulla Launches Innovative Entrepreneurship & Skill Development Programme of MANAS Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla Launched Innovative Entrepreneurship & Skill Development Programme of MANAS through Renowned Experts in Different Skill Sets that is the desire and striving for excellence in any field of activity.

• The Minister also inaugurated online two training centres of Beauty & Wellness Sector, one in Okhla that will be trained by Jawed Habib in scientific and systematic training to 32 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

the aspirants wishing to pursue a career in cosmetology and another in Daryaganjarea

where Ms.ShahnazHussain will impart training to aspirant sat in the area of natural care and cure.

• MANAS has identified and launched Skill Development Programme for traditional Educational Institutions of Minorities in the states of Bihar, Maharashtra, Jammu & Kashmir and Assam.

Arun Jaitley launches ‘Make in India’ conference in Sydney Finance minister Arun Jaitley who is in Sydney for two days has launched the ‘Make in India’ conference in Sydney.

• Inaugurating the conference, Arun Jaitley called the Australian investors to invest in India • He informed that with ‘Make in India’campaign the investors can invest in India and capitalize the biggest market in the world

India will allow private sector hiring through government job exams Union government will now share the results of government recruitment exams and PSUs will be shared with private player after taking the consent of candidates so that other employers can benefit from that.

• The scores in examinations have been retained by the government. Hereafter, it will be available to all employers openly, wherever consent is given by the candidate.

Kachhabali Becomes 1st Liquor-free village in Rajasthan Kachabali village in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan, has become the first in state to vote in support of closing down the only liquor shop in the village.

• The polling was carried out by the excise department of the state and 94% of the voters demanded that they want a complete ban on the sale of alcohol in the village.

Mumbai to get its first Arbitration Centre The financial capital of India is likely to get the International Arbitration Centre. This will be the India’s first arbitration centre for dealing the financial disputes. Flash points

• The financial disputes of India were dealt in the Singapore Arbitration centre, now with the establishment of the International arbitration centre in Mumbai it will be a boon to the Indian companies

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The MCIA will be implemented under the Make in India initiative and it is likely to attract

$2billion worth investments

Government Unveils new building bye laws in New Delhi The Union government has been constantly taking efforts in reducing the paperwork and it motivates the single window system that makes the obtaining of approvals easier and faster. One such effort is the unified building bye laws proposed by the central government in Delhi. Flash points

• The unified building laws combines the rules and regulations of various departments in obtaining permission for constructing a building

• The bye laws have been amended after a gap of 33 years and it enables the single window approval

• The permissions to be obtained has been reduced to 14 from 40 • The time limit has also come down from 60 to 30 days • The environmental ministry had given power to the urban local bodies to provide environmental clearances for buildings of area upto 1,50,000 sq m

• The payments can also be made electronically to the single urban body

National anthem made mandatory in UP primary schools The national anthem must be sung by the Students every day in the primary schools of Uttar Pradesh and on every Wednesday, schools will have to observes wachhata diwas -Cleanliness Day.

• The Youngest CM of India Akilesh Yadav led UP government directed that singing of the national anthem, written by Rabindranath Tagore, has been made mandatory in basic education schools.

BHEL commissions 250 Mw unit at Nabinagar plant in Bihar Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited has commissioned 250 MW coal-based thermal power plant in Bihar.

• This is the first 250 MW unit to be commissioned in the plant located at Nabinagar in Aurangabad district of Bihar.

BHEL Commissions Supercritical Thermal Unit In Karnataka Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited owned by the Government of India, is a power plant equipment manufacturer and operates as an engineering and manufacturing company based in New Delhi, India

• It has announced to commission a 700 MW Supercritical thermal unit at Bellary Thermal Power Project in Karnataka. 34 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Singareni 600 MW power unit synchronized in Telangana

Power generation in the first of two 600 MW has been synchronised at the Singareni Thermal Power Plant (STPP) at Pegadapalli in Jaipur of Adilabad District.

BHEL commissions second 270 MW thermal unit in Punjab BHEL has commissioned another 270 MW unit at Goindwal Sahibcoal-fired power project in Punjab, This comes after one month of the successful commissioning of a 270 MW thermal generating unit of coal-based power unit at the same site.

• The unit has been commissioned at the 2×270 MW Goindwal Sahib coal-fired thermal power project of GVK Power and Infra Limited (GVKPIL), in Tarn Taran district, near Amritsar in Punjab

NTPC starts 250 MW unit in Bihar Power major NTPC has commissioned a 250 MW Unit-I of its arm at Bihar. • The Unit-I of 250 MW of Nabinagar Thermal Power Station of Bhartiya Rail Bijlee Company Ltd (a subsidiary of NTPC) has been commissioned on March 20, 2016

BHEL commissions 600 MW unit of Singareni project in Adilabad Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd has commissioned 600 MW for the State-owned Singareni Collieries, the second largest coal mining company. The first 600 MW unit of the 2×600 MW(1,200 MW) thermal power project.

• The second unit of the same project is in acutting-edge stage of construction and is expected to be commissioned soon.

Fourth unit of NTPC-Bihar govt owned 195-Mw plant synchronized The fourth unit of 195 Mw of Muzaffarpur Thermal Power Station (MTPS) was successfully synchronised with the national grid.

• The plant is owned by KantiBijlee Utpadan Nigam Ltd

BHEL commissions 40 MW hydropower generating unit in West Bengal

• BHEL has commissioned the second 40 MW hydropower generating unit at the Teesta low dam hydro electric project (HEP) stage IV in West Bengal.

STATE BUDGET 2016-17

• Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh presented the State Budget for the fiscal year 2016-17. • Uttarkhand Government presented the 40422 crores State budget 2016-17 35 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Telengana Government to present 1.30 Lakh crore Budget 2016-17

• Goa CM Laxmikant Parsekar Presented State Budget for 2016-17 • Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis Government presented its State Budget for the year 2016-17 • Haryana gov proposed a tax free budget for the financial year 2016-17. • Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia presented a Rs 46,600 crore annual budget for 2016-17 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Strategic dialogue between US and Pakistan After the controversial deal of F-16 jets between US and Pakistan, a strategic dialogue on key areas is likely to take place. This ministerial level dialogue will focus on areas like economy, security and counter terrorism. Flash points rd • This is the 3 strategic dialogue between US and Pakistan after the Nawaz sheriff government came into power

• The initial talks began in 2010 was intervened after Osama Bin-laden was killed by US forces in 2011

• The talks resumed in 2014 after the meeting between Aziz and Mr.Kerry in Washington

• The six segments of the strategic dialogue include cooperation in economy and finance; energy; education, science and technology; law enforcement and counterterrorism; security, strategic stability and non-proliferation and defence

Peru declared emergency after oil spill Hits Rivers Peru government has declared state emergency after a major oil pipeline burst affecting two rivers in the country’s northeast region.

• At least 3, 000 barrels of crude oil have spilled into the Chiriaco and Morona rivers which are prime source of water for the use of people of this region.

Japan To Stipulate 80% Emission Cut Goal By 2050 Following the International Climate Agreement reached in Paris in December 2015, the Japanese government will stipulate a long-term goal of cutting green house emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 from current levels. A plan is being compiled to be completed before the G7 Summit due in May.

• Aiming to have all households shift to more energy efficient LED Lights by2030. It aims to bring up the ratio of nuclear and renewable energy to 44% or more by 2030 to prevent the non-nuclear thermal power generation from rising.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

WEF: India stood at 90th rank in terms of Energy Security

In accordance with the Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report compiled by WEF, India has been ranked at the 90th place in a list of 126 countries. The report prepared in collaboration with Accenture. th • Among the BRIC nations, Brazil led the list as by positioned at the 25 It is followed by Russia (52nd), India (90th) and China (94th).

Fuel Trade patterns As per report, fuel trade patterns have dramatically changed especially in Asia which accounted for less than 20% of the world fuel trades in 2004 but this figure Rank Country has sharply risen to 35% in 1 Switzerland 2014, leading to a redistribution of forces and new alliances 2 Norway 3 Sweden around the world. 4 France • By 2040, China’s net oil imports will be 5 times 5 Denmark 6 Austria those of the United States while India’s will easily 7 Spain exceed EU. 8 Colombia 9 New Zealand 10 Uruguay

EU releases 252 million euros in aid for Palestinians To support the Palestinian Authority’s health and education programmes and to offer services to their refugees in the middle east, EU has released 252 mn Euros($274 millions).

• The aid will help Palestine become prepared for a more accountable and democratic state in the future. It is the first part of the 2016 aid package.

London-the most expensive city to live A recent UK study reveals that London is the most expensive city to live in overtaking Hong Kong .The study conducted by real estate firm Savills survey revealed that the most expensive city to live and work in is London Flash points

• London has overtook Hong Kong, New York and have occupied the topmost place • It is also found that London is twice expensive as Sydney and four times that of Rio- de-Janeiro

• The cost of living of London has grown up by 18% in the past 5 years • The accommodation for the average Londoner — calculated as a total of housing and office rental costs — comes to 80,700 pounds a year, compared to 79,600 pounds in New York and 73,800 pounds in Hong Kong

• The productivity of cities and their value to global businesses clearly has a pronounced effect on demand and hence rental costs 37 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The rising rents and the strong pound had pushed up the typical cost per individual

employee of renting somewhere to live and leasing office space to $120,000 (£73,800) a year

• London’s overall real estate costs grew in US dollar terms by an annualised rate of 6% in the first six months of the year, making the it “the world’s most expensive city for companies to locate employees

• On the contrast, falling residential rents and a weakening currency contributed toHong Kong, which had previously topped the table for five years running, dropping to second place The only Indian city in the list is Mumbai which occupies 17th position in the list of 20 cities ahead of Rio-de-Janeiro,Berlin and Johannesberg

China launches first self propelled floating dock In a move to modernize Beijing’s Navy, China has launched its first self propelled floating dock, giving it the ability to repair warships from the coast.

• The dock , Huachuan No.1 would enable the navy to return damaged ships to fighting capability in ‘very rapid time’ and is designed to be sent into combat zones. With this achievement, the warships with minor damages can be repaired at mobility far out in the sea.

• The dock can handle cruisers, destroyers and submarines, but not Aircraft Carriers and cope with waves upto 2 m high.

World’s Costliest Train Station Opened In New York The 9/11 site where the deadliest terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York 14 years ago happened has the world’s costliest railway station . It was opened on March 3, 2016. Key Highlights:

• The station has been built at a cost of $3.85 billion and its space measures 350*115 feet at its widest point.

• The centre connects New York to New Jersey, provides indoor commuter access to the Trade centre towers.

UNSC Imposes Tough Sanctions Against North Korea Over Nuclear Test The recent Nuclear test and the missile launch by North Korea which defied International sanctions have come under scrutiny by the UN Security Council as it adopts tough sanctions against her. It was her fourth nuclear test.

• Reduce or ban exports of iron and iron ore, titanium, coal, gold, titanium and rare earth minerals from North Korea and prohibit imports as well

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Japan signs pact to supply defence equipment to Philippines Japan signed an agreement with the Philippines to supply defence equipment, the first such pact by japan in the South Asian region.

• Defence Secretary Voltaire Gazmin has signed pact with Japanese Ambassador to Philippines Kazuhide Ishikawa.

India Signs Agreement With IEA For Energy Initiatives The International Energy Agency, a Paris based organization will enhance its ties with India in the fields of energy data and forecasting, a step towards raising engagement in technology research and policy making. THE AGREEMENT: AIM:

• To promote co-operation relating to energy sector analysis and planning, energy sector modelling and forecasting and seeking broader dissemination of best practices of energy sector analysis, modelling and forecasting techniques and a strategy towards development of human resource in the energy sector.

• To conduct joint research and studies for contribution towards development of integrated energy policy, development of relevant technologies and in relation to global trends in pricing and supply of energy supplies.

Pakistan’s Senate rejects national airline privatization bill Pakistan’s upper house of Parliament rejected National Airline privatization bill- PIA (Pakistan International Airlines) Corporation Conversion Bill 2015.

• The bill was introduced by Federal Climate Change Minister Zahid Hamid.

India Denies Visa To Members Of US Religious Commission The members of the US religious commission seeking to investigate the declining religious independence in the country have been denied the Indian Visa. Highlights

• The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan US federal government commission with commissioners appointed by the US President and the leaders in both Houses of Congress.

• The Chairman of USCIRF is Robert P. George • The members of the commission prepare reports on Religious Freedom in various countries across the globe.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

UNHCR, UNICEF launched Blue Dot hubs to protect children & families on move across

Europe UN Refugee Agency and UNICEF are setting up special support centres to ensure protection for the growing numbers of children and others with specific needs arriving in Europe.

• Twenty Child and Family Support Centres known as Blue Dots will provide a safe space for children and their families.

• The Dedicated Hubs aim to support vulnerable families, unaccompanied or separated children at risk of sickness, trauma, violence, exploitation and trafficking.

Women’s wages remain unchanged in 20 years: ILO Report Women have actively involved themselves in various works across the world yet the gender inequality in terms of income and work quality still remains unchanged in the past 20 years. This was revealed in the International Labour Organization’s Report. Flash points

• On International Women’s Day, a new ILO report, Women at Work: Trends 2016 was released

• The report noted that women are over represented in clerical service and sales work, which are among the lowest paying jobs

• Across the globe, the gender gap has just closed by 6% compared to 1995 • The employment to population ratio remains 46% for women whereas it is 72% for men in 2015

• The proportion of women above retirement age receiving a pension is on average 6 percentage points lower than that of men

• Though women have improved their educational Qualification the report shows that it has not been reflected in the employment

• In terms of wages, the results in the report confirm previous ILO estimates that globally, women still earn on average 77 percent of what men earn

• Women work for longer hours per day in both paid and unpaid work than men In developed economies

• Women work for 8 hours 9 min per day • Men work for 7 hours 36 min per day In developing economies

• Women work for 9 hours 20 min per day • Men work for 8 hours 7 min per day

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

India and Bangladesh have signed a new $2 billion credit agreement to implement socio- economic development projects in Bangladesh and strengthen bilateral relations Flash points

• The interest rate has been fixed at 1 per cent annually with a 20-year repayment term, including a five-year moratorium period

• This is the biggest line of credit India has extended to any country so far • The agreement supports infrastructural projects, cooperation in social sectors such as health and education, involving the establishment of medical colleges and hospitals, the modernization of two teachers’ training institutes, and the upgrading of 49 polytechnic institutes for better vocational training

• India first extended a Line of Credit of $1 billion to Bangladesh in 2010 • Of this, $200 million was later converted into grant and the line of credit was enhanced from $800 million to $862 million in 2015 by means of an amendment to the agreement

• Seven of the total 15 projects have been completed

UNICEF & UNFPA launch Acceleration Programme to end Child Marriage The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund(UNICEF) jointly launched the Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage. Flash Points

• The programme is a multi country cooperative and it will help protect the rights of millions of the world’s most vulnerable girls by involving families, communities, governments and young people

• It will support those married girls in 12 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East where child marriage rates are high

• If current trends continue, the number of girls and women married as children will reach nearly 1 billion by 2030

• Child marriage hurts economies and leads to intergenerational cycles of poverty. • The programme supports the Target 5.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals that vouches for elimination of child marriage by 2030

Pak launches probe into MQM’s alleged ties with RAW Pakistan Government has initiated probe into Karachi-based Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) party‘s Alleged ties with New Delhi based Research Analysis Wing (RAW) to destabilise the country.

• The Allegations levelled against India’s RAW gave money to the MQM party to destabilise Pakistan, India has dismissed the allegations levelled against it. 41 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

EIU Ranked Mumbai and Bangalore among Cheapest cities to live Mumbai and Bangalore are among the cheapest cities in the world, according to a top London forecast group (EIU).

• Survey conducted by: Economic Intelligence Unit • Editor of the survey: Jon Copestake • Factors of the survey: Strength of the US dollar and currency devaluations to falling oil and commodity prices and geopolitical uncertainty

• Most expensive city: Singapore • Other expensive cities: Zurich, Hong Kong, Geneva and Paris • Least expensive cities: Lusaka followed by Bangalore and Mumbai Flash points

• London was sixth and New York seventh • Though Singapore was the most expensive, the cost of living there was 10 per cent cheaper when compared to New York than was the case in the EIU survey a year ago

Serbia declares state of emergency over floods The Serbian government has proclaimed a state of emergency as heavy rains are causing extensive flooding and might force thousands to leave their homes

• More than 50 people died in the deluge and about 700 homes were flooded across the country with 170 people needing to be moved for their safety forcing thousands to leave their homes.

India Inc first in the world to formally adopt UN’s SDG India Inc. is set to formally adopt the United Nations’ (UN) agenda for the world’s sustainable development and the 17 goals identified for its implementation. Flash points Companies to adopt SDG: Tata Group, the Aditya Birla Group, Reliance, Vedanta, the Adani Group and public sector behemoth Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and several MNCs Aim of SDG: SDG aims at broadening the horizon for growth and transformation under the theme of people, planet and prosperity Implementing agency: UN Global Compact is the implementing agency for SDGs First to adopt: India Inc. will be the first in the world to adopt the SDGs and implement them at their companies SDG & MDG:

• SDG- Sustainable Development Growth; MDG- Millenium Development Growth • SDG- 17 goals; MDG- 8 goals • SDG will be a evaluated, monitored and reported in a time-bound manner 42 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• MDG was in implementation from 2001-2015

Arab League declares Lebanese movement Hezbollah a terrorist group The Arab League has declared Lebanese movement Hezbollah a terrorist group the decision came during an Arab League foreign ministers’ meeting at the organisation’s headquarters in Egypt’s capital Cairo.

Ireland Parliaments fails to elect Prime Minister Ireland has arrived new constitutional territory after its parliament failed to elect a prime minister and government following last month’s unsettled general election held on February 26

• Incumbent Enda Kenny remains as prime minister until he manages to build coalition support behind him or a different prime ministerial candidate is nominated.

China to set up an International Maritime Judicial Centre China’s Supreme Court is setting up its own international maritime “judicial centre” to handle territorial disputes. China has been consistently fighting with its neighbours in Maritime borders in South China Sea. China & its controversies

• China claims a large swathe of the South and East China Sea, creating multiple overlaps with areas claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan

• The new announcement by China is not welcomed by its rivals across the borders • The Philippines currently has a case lodged against China at the UN’s Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague

UNESCO & CJ Welfare signs agreement to launch Rainbow Ruby In a move to support the education of girls across the world, UNESCO has joined hands with CJ Welfare to start an animation program named Rainbow Ruby. Organizations involved: UNESCO, CJ Welfare, Varkey foundation Flash points

• The agreement was signed during the 2016 Global Education and Skills Forum, hosted by the Varkey Foundation

• It builds on the Better Life for Girls campaign • It aims to help address the lack of access to quality education faced by girls in developing regions of a dream job, letting them imagine how their jobs can improve their lives in the future

Fourteen Indians in top 100 Global Venture Capitalists

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Is there anything in which Indians have not ventured into? Is there something which Indians have not made a mark in? May be not! In fact, we should be proud that wherever we go, we will find at least one Indian in the crowd and how could venture capitalism be left behind?!!

• Of the top 100 Global Venture Capitalists, fourteen Indians have made us proud today as they get themselves on the list. The top ten among them are: Name Company GLOBAL RANK Sameer Gandhi Accel Partners 25 Promod Haque Norwest Venture Partners 32 Salil Deshpande Bain Capital Ventures 35 Navin Chadda Mayfield Fund 45 Asheem Chandna Greylock Partners 47 Deven Parekh Insight Venture Partners 52 Jai Das Sapphire Ventures 59 Hemant Taneja General Catalyst Partners 67 Neeraj Aggarwal Battery Ventures 68 Krishna Kolluri New Enterprise Associates 73

• The list has been complied by CB Insights, a research firm that tracks VC and angel investments

• The report was led by Peter Fanton

Mauritania ratified 2014 Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention Mauritania has ratified the 2014 Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930, emphasising thereby the global movement against forced labour in all its forms, including human trafficking.

• The country is among the first to formally implement the 2014 Protocol to the ILO’s Forced Labour Convention,This protocol comes after the likes of Mauritania, Niger, Norway and the United Kingdom (Europe) ratified the protocol.

India ranked 118 in Happiness Index The World Happiness report, 2016 released by Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), a global initiative of the United Nations placed India in 118th rank in terms of Happiness Index. Top 10 Nations

• Denmark tops the list holding the tag of Happiest Nation in the world • It is followed by Switzerland, Iceland ,Norway, Finland, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand with Australia and Sweden occupying 9th and 10th position respectively th • US has been placed 13 behind Israel • India was ranked 118th in the list, down one slot from last year on the index • India comes below Somalia (76), China (83), Pakistan (92), Iran (105), Palestinian Territories (108) and Bangladesh (110)

• 150 countries were analyzed

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Syria & Burgundi occupied the last positions in the list

Modi To Join World Leaders In Wax At Madame Tussauds The Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is set to join the league of the most prominent world leaders at the World famous Wax Museum Madame Tussauds in London.

• Recently, Modi figured in the Time Magazine’s Person of the Year’s list which gives him enough support to figure in the museum.

• He is currently the second most followed politician on twitter after President Obama also confirms the intense interest the public have in him

4th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves inaugurated in Lima The 4th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves was inaugurated in Lima, Peru. It is a 3 day event from 14th to 17th March. The event will focus on Sustainable Development Goals and the Post Development agenda of 2015. Participants of World Congress

• It is a world meeting of the Committees of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Program(MAB) • The participants include experts from governments, biosphere reserves, local communities, UN agencies, NGOs, academic institutions, and organizations and institutions from all over the world working with the MAB Programme Objectives

• To review of the implementation of the Madrid Action Plan for Biosphere Reserves2008-2013, the Seville Strategy and the Statutory Framework of 1995

• To assess the lessons learned and the new challenges to be faced by the World Network of Biosphere Reserves

• To develop and launch an Action Plan for Biosphere Reserves for 2016-2025

First Electrical Double decker bus operated in London The world’s first fully electric-powered double-decker bus has been unveiled in London a month ahead of its road release.

• Being built by Chinese manufactures BYD, will be able to travel 180 miles on a single charge

• The buses are expected to cost more than £350,000

Modi On TIME’s Most Influential People On Internet For 2nd Yr Well known for his Selfies, world tours, and catchy speeches to the Indian diaspora; and his social media engagement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has earned another badge to his Kurta, “TIME’s Internet Star”.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Among Time’s thirty most influential people in the world, Modi has figured in the unranked

list for the second time in a row. Kudos to the visionary who has the most number of followers on Social media after President Obama with 18 million Twitter Followers and 32 million Facebook likes!! Some of the people in the list include: US presidential hopeful Donald Trump, Reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her husband Kayne West, Author J K Rowling, Former Olympic athlete Caitlyn Jenner, Soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, Lily Singh and Josh Ostrovsky

Bangkok slaps curfew on World’s biggest water festival Bangkok is to impose a curfew during Songkran festival, the world’s biggest water festival in April to show solidarity with farmers hit by drought.

• Now, Thailand is facing its worst water shortage in two decades, with 14 out of 76 provinces hit and large swathes of agricultural land at risk.

FIFA admits taking bribes to hosting World Cup FIFA has acknowledged that “tens of millions of dollars” in bribe money seized by U.S. federal prosecutors in past World Cup hosting contests for the first time.

• FIFA has submitted a 22-page claim to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York on that seeks a big share in restitution from more than $190 million

• FIFA claims it is the victim of corrupt individuals, despite widespread criticism that bribe- taking was embedded in its culture in the presidencies of Joao Havelange and Sepp Blatter.

13th Broadband commission meet conducted at Dubai The 13th meeting of Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development was held on 14 March 2016 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) th • The two day meet of 13 Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development aims to promote the power of broadband networks and services for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

• The meet brought the leaders from the public, private and social sectors together to seek the solutions to achieving education, equity and employment for all

UNESCO Released Eatlas Of Gender Inequality In Education The eAtlas of Gender Inequality in Education has been realised by the UNESCO’s Institute for Statistics (UIS). AIM:To show gender gaps in education and educational trails of girls and boys. The Report: 46 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• One out of eight children between the ages of 6 and 15 remain entirely excluded

from receiving basic education, with girls facing the biggest barriers

• Despite all the efforts and developments, the girls are still the first ones to be denied their right to education

• Almost 16 million girls will never get the chance to learn to read or write compared to about 8 million boys

• Gender inequalities remain highest in the Arab States, sub-Saharan Africa and South, and West Asia

• Across sub-Saharan Africa, 9.5 million girls will never set foot in a classroom compared to 5 million boys. Over 30 million children are out-of-school across the region

• The gender gap is even wider in South and West Asia • In India, the number of out of school children of primary school age (both sexes) is 1 million and the number of out of school children of primary school age (only female) is 13.4 million

India provides 265 million grant for constituting Tagore’s memorial As a part of the agreement signed during Narendra Modi’s visit to Srilanka, 265 million is given as grant to constitute Rabindranath Tagore’s memorial Auditorium in Srilanka. Location : Rabindranath Tagore memorial Auditorium is constructed in University of Ruhuna, Matara Grant : 265 million from India Bidding

• The competitive bidding was signed with M/S.Link engineering ltd • The bidding was signed in the presence of high commissioner of India, Y.K.Sinha, state secretary,Minister of Higher education D.G.M.V.Hapuarachchi, Vice Chancellor of University of Ruhuna Gamini Senanayake and other officials

Hinduja brothers top the Rich Asian’s List The Hinduja brothers have emerged as the richest Asian-origin entrepreneurs in Britain for the fourth consecutive year with an estimated personal fortune of 16.5 billion pounds.

• Published by: Asian Media and Market • Assessment based on: The Asian Rich List assesses the total wealth of Britain’s top 101 richest Asians Hinduja Group

• Hinduja group had added one billion pounds to their personal fortune in a year to be worth an estimated 5 billion pounds

• Its Conglomerates- automotive, real estate and oil — Gulf Oil, Ashok Leyland, IndusInd Bank and Hinduja global Solutions appear to have done well 47 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Others in the List

• Steel tycoon Lakshmi Niwas Mittal was ranked second in the list, with total wealth Of 6.4 billion pounds

• Sri Prakash Lohia, chairman of the Indorama Corporation, is listed 3rd richest with fortune worth 3 billion pounds

• The Arora brothers — Simon, Bobby and Robin – owners of discount retail chain are4th richest with a fortune worth 1 billion pounds

• The highest riser and a new entry is Cyrus Vandrevala, with 2 billion pounds at number five

• Leading NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul is listed as 15th richest with fortune worth500 million pounds

EU strikes a deal with Turkey to return Migrants The EU has struck a deal with Turkey that would allow all refugees and migrants arriving in Europe being sent back across the Aegean Sea. Confirmation of deal

• The European council president, Donald Tusk, confirmed the deal on Friday afternoon after clearing the key sticking points with the Turkish prime minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu

IKEA donates Rs 92 crore for safe water projects in India, Indonesia On the occasion of the World Water Day Swedish retailing giant IKEA majorly sells Furniture has pledged to contribute Rs 92.84 crore to provide safe water and sanitation to one million people in India and Indonesia through Water.Org.

• IKEA Foundation is committing Rs 92.84 crore to Org to expand its Water Credit model, helping families have access to small, affordable loans so they can get safe water andsanitation.

• 2% of Contagious diseases in India are linked to unsafe water and the lack of hygiene practices the World bank survey stated, and 50% of India’s population continues to practice open defecation.

Anand Mahindra and Aditya Puri among top global 30 CEO’s Barron’s top list of CEO’S across the globe finds a place for corporate honchos Anand Mahindra(M&M) and Aditya Puri(HDFC). Companies in the list – Amazon, JP Morgan, Netflix, Disney, Alphabet ,Google are few top firms in the list Top CEO’S Warren Buffet(Berkshire Hathaway),David Cote(Honeywell), Jamie Dimon(JP Morgan Chase), Larry Page(Alphabet), Howard Schultz(Starbucks) and Mark Zuckerberg(Facebook) 48 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Nepal to join Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO) Nepal has joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as a dialogue partner. Joining SCO, Nepal will enjoy the benefit of mutual cooperation with the other member nations of SCO. Nepal joining SCO

• Nepal joined SCO as dialogue partner after memorandum was signed by SCO secretary- general Rashid Olimov and Nepalese Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi

• Being a dialogue partner, Nepal is able to participate in the multi-field cooperation of the SCO

• Azerbaijan was the another nation to join SCO as dialogue partner

PM Modi, Sania Mirza among contenders for TIME’s Most Influential people The popular magazine across the globe, TIME has released its contenders for the top most influential people in the world. India must feel proud having PM Modi, tennis player Sania and Bollywood actress Priyanka in the list.

• The editors of the Magazine will remain the final deciders however it has asked people to vote for their favourite leader among the 127 contenders

• Indian born CEO’s of top firms Google and Microsoft- Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella also occupy the honorary position

• Indian origin actor Aziz Ansari is also in the list

OECD released Standardised e-format for Exchange of Country-by-Country reports to assist Tax Administration The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD) has made a standardised electronic format for the exchange of Country-by-Country (CbC) Reports between jurisdictions to ensure swift and efficient implementation of the BEPS measures. BEPS Measures:

• Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)refers to tax planning strategies that exploit these gaps and mismatches in tax rules to artificially shift profits to low or no-tax locations where there is little or no economic activity, resulting in little or no overall corporate tax being paid.

• The G20 BEPS Project had set out 15 key actions to reform the international tax framework and ensure that profits are reported where economic activities are carried out and value created.

Arvind Kejriwal placed in Fortune 50 leaders The man who brought change in the Indian politics heading the Capital of the nation, Arvind Kejriwal has been placed in the Fortune 50 leaders listed by Fortune magazine. 49 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Flash points

• The 47 year old Aam Aadmi founder is placed in the top 50 leaders of the world released by Fortune.He is the only Indian leader to occupy the list placed at 42nd position

• The list is headed by Amazon chief Jeff Bezos • The list also includes the Indian American South Carolina’s governor Nikki Haley is also on the list at 17th while another Indian- American Resham Saujani is at the 20th spot

• Arvind Kejriwal has been placed at the list for his efforts to curb pollution in the capital through Odd-even scheme Women to be noted

• Saujani-Founder and CEO of tech organization ‘Girls Who Code’ • Her organization aims to get more women into computer science and by the end of this year, more than 40,000 girls will have gone through its training and internship programmes

• German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2), Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at (3), IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde (36), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Co- chair and CEO Melinda Gates(41)

• Another South Asian to be noted is Sheik Hasina(10), PM of Bangladesh • She has committed Bangladesh, the nation with the world’s fourth-largest Muslim population, to securing legal protections for women and helping them attain more education, financial freedom, and political power

US Congress passes bill to allow India to join APEC In a move to strengthen the ties between India and US, the US congress has passed the bill in senate which will allow India to be a member of APEC.

• Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific Matt Salmon, introduced the legislation in the US Congress

• He was joined by Ami Bera, the only Indian- American lawmaker in the current Congress, Co-Chair Congressional Caucus on India Radovan Karadzic imprisoned for 40 years Bosnian Serb convicted of genocide and war crimes in Bosnian war 1992-95 have been sentenced to 40 years of imprisonment.

• Karadzic, 70, is the most senior political figure to face judgment over the violent collapse of Yugoslavia

• His case is being seen as one of the most important war crimes trials since second World War

China, India leading investors in Renewable energy: UN report

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The need of the hour, Renewable energy is the focus of all nations of the world owing to the rising emissions. A recent report released by UN reveals that India & China have overtaken the developed economies in terms of investment in Renewable energy.

• The report ‘Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment’ for 2015 has been released by the UN The contribution by India, China & Brazil in 2015 in renewable energy sector amounts to $156 billion

• This is 19% more than that of 2014 • On the contrary, the investments of developed nations declined by 8% to $130 billion • China holds one third of the global investment with $102.9 billion and India raised its stake by 22% to $ 10.2 billion Top 10 investments

• The US, Japan, UK Brazil, South Africa, Mexico and Chile all made it to the top 10 investing countries in 2015

India to appeal against WTO verdict in solar case India has decided to appeal against WTO verdict in solar panel case which was in favour of US.

• The Union government earlier as part of its National Solar Mission, imposed a stipulation that solar cells and solar modules be locally sourced

• The US government filed a case in WTO against India demanding equal market for domestic as well as foreign traders

• The measure was taken by the ministry of power following the concerns raised by the domestic traders to protect their interests

• Ministry of Power, Piyush Goyal also told that the government would have imposed heavy anti dumping duty to support the domestic manufacturers but the government paid respect to the US

Security Council extends UN Mission in Somalia The Security Council has decided to extend the UN assistance provided to Somalia due to the political instability prevailing in the nation.

• The 15 members of the Council unanimously adopted an extension of UNSOM’s work to support the Federal Government’s peace and reconciliation process

• It includes preparation for an inclusive, free, fair and transparent electoral process in 2016 and universal elections by 2020

• The assistance will be given till March,2017

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

US President, Barack Obama made a historic visit to Cuba which was its rival nation for years.

This visit is historic because it is the first visit of a US president in 88 years.

• It is a three day visit by Obama. Since rapprochement, the two sides have restored diplomatic ties, signed commercial deals on telecommunications, and scheduled airline services

• On the eve of Obama’s visit, a US hospitality company announced its first business deal in Cuba since the 1959 revolution, while online lodging service Airbnb said it would now allow travellers from around the world to book stays in private homes in Cuba

U.K. Lifts Ban On Sikh Separatist Outfit The British government has lifted the ban on the International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) after both houses of the British Parliament supported a motion to drop it from the list of proscribed organisations.

• The International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF) is a proscribed organisation that aims to establish an independent homeland for the Sikhs of India in Khalistan. It is banned under Japanese, British, Indian, Canadian and American terrorism legislation.

Syrian Army recaptures historic city of Palmyra from IS Syrian government forces drove Islamic State out of Palmyra, inflicting what the army called a mortal blow to militants who seized the city last year and dynamited its ancient temples.

Egyptian plane hijacked to Cyprus EgyptAir Flight MS181 was taken over by a passenger claiming to be wearing a suicide explosive A hijacking that diverted a domestic Egyptian flight that was scheduled to land in Cairo.

• At least 55 passengers were on board to Cyprus has ended with all hostages released and the hijacker surrendering.

UNICEF Launches “Unfairy Tales” Of Refugee And Migrant Children The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched a series of animated films to help frame positive insights toward the tens of millions of children and young people on the move worldwide.

• At least 65 million children and young people globally are on the move to escape conflict, poverty and extreme weather and find a stable life and a place to call home

• The Unfairy Tales are part of an initiative,#actofhumanity, highlighting that children are children, no matter where they come from, and that every child has rights and deserves a fair chance

Ebola threat comes to an end in West Africa

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Ebola– the viral disease that had been haunting the African Nations and their neighbours for more than a year has been declared no longer a medical emergency. • WHO has declared the Ebola outbreak to be no longer a global threat as the disease is under control and necessary measures are available to treat the epidemic.

France operation ‘Sangaris’ comes to an end in CAR France will end its three year long military operation ‘Sangaris’ in Central African Republic which came into force in 2013 following a communal violence.

• The France government proposed to withdraw its troops citing the formation of the new government under Faustin-Archange Touadera and restoration of peace

ICCR to set up first Indian Chair in Arab world at Cairo India will institute its first Chair in the Arab world at Egypt’s third largest university Ain Shams University (ASU) in Cairo.

• India’s Ambassador to Egypt Sanjay Bhattacharyya and Prof AbdelWahab Ezzat, acting president signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project.

BANKING & FINANCE

IFC launched its first Uridishi Masala bond mobilizing $ 4.3 million IFC, a member of World Bank group has launched its first Uridishi masala bond in India to mobilize 300 million rupees from Japanese household investors to promote private sector investment in India.

• Masala bonds are rupee-denominated instruments sold only to offshore investors • Uridishi bonds are sold to Japanese household investors • The three-year bond builds has raised the equivalent of $1.7 billion from international investors for investment in India

• Uridishi Masala bonds will be used to support private sector investment in India Indo-WB inked Financing Agreement worth US$300 Million for MPHEQIP Washington D.C. headquartered World Bank, Government of India and Government of Madhya Pradesh has inked a credit concord worth of US $300 million for the Madhya Pradesh (MP) Higher Education Quality Improvement Project.

• The credit has been given by the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s concessionary lending arm.

• It is sanctioned for a period of 25 years, including a 5 year grace period.

RBI unlocks 40000 crores to capitalize banks

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

RBI announced relaxation of certain norms in the balance sheet which will unlock 40,000 crores to support the capital requirement of Indian banks. Flash points

• Indian banks are facing a huge loss due to the increase in Non Performing assetswhich have eroded the Capital of these banks

• The revised RBI norms will give public sector banks (PSB) access to additional capital of INR 35,000 crore

• It could be about INR 5,000 crore for private sector banks

India’s GDP growth to hike by 7.8% in 2016-17: Nomura Nomura has told in a recent report that India’s GDP growth will rise from 7.6% to 7.8% in the year 2016-17.GDP growth would be based on high discretionary demand driven by 7th pay commission. Flash points

• Industrial production declined to 2 % in November, however these are temporary and the under lying Industrial growth remains positive says Nomura

• The industrial production was slowed down due to Chennai flood and diwali holidays but in January the growth has picked up

• According to Nikkei India PMI Index, India’s manufacturing growth has remained unchanged in February at 1 from January reading, which was a four-month high

Government Cancels IRB Contract Union Government has cancelled the contract for the RS. 10, 050 crore Zojila Pass Tunnel Building Project.

• South Asia’s longest Tunnel project at Zojila Pass in Jammu & Kashmir to offer all weather connectivity to the Lah – ladakh region.

• With this cancellation of the contract, IRB’s order size will decline to about Rs. 6, 500 crore. RBI Released Draft Directions For Non-Banking Financial Company – Account Aggregator The Non Banking Financial Company- Account Aggregator Directions, 2016 was released by RBI on March 3, 2016 to put in place a regulatory framework to allow a separate category of Non Banking Financial Company to emerge as an Account Aggregator. Key Points:

• Only Companies registered with RBI as NBFC-AA will be allowed to carry out the business of an account aggregator.

• The net owned fund of such companies should not be less than Rs 2 crores

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Initially, Financial Assets of which the records are stored electronically and are under the

regulation of any Regulator namely SEBI, PFRDA, RBI and IRBA will be considered for aggregation.

Foreign Banks Get Myanmar Licence Under the Junta rule, Myanmar’s banking system was closed for decades for outside competition which now has been changing in the recent past since the 2011 reformist government came to power and the landmark elections in November 2015.

• Vietnam’s Bank for Investment and Development • Taiwan’s E.SUN Commercial Bank • South Korea’s Shinhan Bank • State Bank of India

Capital Area Bank first to get small finance bank licence Jalandhar based Capital Local Area Bank Limited has given small financial bank licence by the Reserve Bank of India, The Operation of the Bank will kick start from April 13, 2016.

• Punjab based company is the first among ten players to get final licence from the Bankers Bank. The Bank currently serving as a local area bank.

Axis bank better placed than ICICI and other PSU Banks Nomura reports reveal that Axis bank is better placed than ICICI and other public sector bank in terms of corporate book profitability. Flash points

• Global financial services firm Nomura said that the third largest private sector bank in India-Axis bank is better placed than ICICI and other PSU’s in terms of corporate book profitability

• About 20-25% of Axis bank’s corporate books are stressed

Government May Merge 27 Public Sector Banks Into Just Six Bad Loans in the Public Sector Banks have been a pressing issue for the growth of the economy and in an attempt to address the problem; the Government may look into merging the twenty seven PSBs into just six.

• Such a move was discussed in the recently held retreat of the chiefs of the PSBs, Gyan Sangam.

Global rating agency Fitch has maintained the Forecast of India’s growth at 7.5

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Global rating agency Fitch has maintained its growth forecast for India at 7.5 per cent this fiscal and sees higher growth over the next two financial years. Points to note

• Fitch also claims for a 8% growth in short term is not possible • Fitch has maintained its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast for India for the fiscal year ending March 2016 at 5 per cent

• Growth is expected to gradually accelerate to 7 per cent in 2016-17 and 7.9 per cent in 2017-18

• Higher real disposable income, a normal monsoon and a substantial wage increase for central government employees will support economic recovery

• Structural reforms like Land Acquisition Amendment Bill and the Goods and Services Tax also likely to support the growth

SoftBank splits into two subsidiaries Japan based Telecommunication major Soft Bank group Corp plans to split its domestic and overseas business given them Separate Chief executives for their entity.

• This move is to bolster Shareholder value after a staggering $ 4.4 billion US share buyback plan a month ago.

• Softbank’s stakes in U.S. wireless carrier Sprint and Chinese E-commerceCompany Alibaba Group Holding to a new global operations management subsidiary. The Company president Nikesh Arora will now head the overseas Management Company.

CBDT sets up dedicated structure for monitoring taxpayer services To address various issues of taxpayers the Department of Revenue has sets up dedicated structure for monitoring taxpayer Services.Revenue and Tax Payer Services member will watch over the delivery and monitoring of taxpayer services in CBDT.

• Under this initiative two separate Directorates, called Directorate of Tax Payer Services-I&II have been set up. These Directorates will be responsible for delivery and monitoring of taxpayers services in the field offices and e-services deliverable through various electronic platforms of the Department.

YES Bank started its All Women Branch in Bengaluru As a part of the International Women’s day celebrations various Banks announced schemes related to women. YES Bank also joined this list by starting its first All women operated branch ‘Yes Grace’ in Bengaluru. Flash points

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The new branch, served by eight employees currently and with plans to raise the count

to 12, will also drive for financial literacy, family banking, safety and wellness amongst women

• Two more all-women bank branches were opened in at Kalkaji, New Delhi and Vile Parle (E), Mumbai

RBI to share FDI details with IB & RAW The Reserve Bank of India will now share its FDI details with the Intelligence Bureau and Research and Analysis Wing to prevent the entry of Black money into the country. Flash points

• The committee headed by Revenue Secretary decided to provide the details of FDI resting with RBI to IB & RAW

Govt removes proposed tax on EPF withdrawals Union government has rolled back controversial EPF Tax withdrawal

• The proposal announced in the Budget Speech had sought to make up to 60 per cent of savers corpus withdrawn from the EPF tax-free if invested in annuity, the period return on the annuity was to be taxable.

ICICI Bank launches credit-linked subsidy scheme under PMAY India’s largest private Sector Lender launched a credit-linked subsidy scheme for home loans under the ‘Pradhan MantriAwasYojana.

• This Scheme will benefit the individuals including women borrowers from the economically weaker section low income grouped people.

• They will be able to acquire and construct the first brick-and-mortar (Pucca House) house of the family by paying significantly lower Equated Monthly Instalments (EMIs).

HDFC Bank ties up with 5 start ups The HDFC bank has chosen five start ups from 30 applications to work together in its field of operations. Five companies

• Senseforth Technologies into AI customer response • Tagnpin -a marketing and customer engagement company • Safe 2 Pay-a point of sale-free payment system • Bugclipper-an in-app feedback tool • Taptis Technology– a biometric payment company 57 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Employees to get incentive for 1 year from EPFO The Employee Provident Fund Organisation as a part of seeding the UAN number with KYC has announced an incentive for the employees who register between January and December 2016. Flash points Incentive: Employees can claim 5 to 10% of administrative charges for 1 year Duration: From January to December 2016 What for? To encourage the employees to seed the UAN with KYC details Details included in KYC: Permanent Account Number, Aadhar Card, Bank account details Allotted UAN numbers: 6.38 crores

Crisil Estimates India’s GDP Growth at 7.9% The domestic rating agency Crisil has estimated the GDP growth of India at 7.9% for the fiscal year 2016 provided the Monsoon remains normal and the government implements the announced reforms.

• The estimated GDP growth remains to be the highest prediction so far pointing at 9% growth as estimated by Crisil

• The chief economist pointed that it is possible with the Monsoon being normal and the implementation of the economical reforms gearing up to achieve the target

Moody maintains SBI & IDBI ratings unchanged Moody’s Investors Service have told that the local and foreign currency deposit ratings of State Bank of India and IDBI Bank at ‘Baa3/P-3’ Baa-3: Baa’ (Global Long-Term Rating Scale) are judged to have medium-grade intrinsic, or standalone, financial strength, and thus subject to moderate credit risk P-3 : P-3 (Global Short-Term Rating Scale) issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 has an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations

• Modifier 3 specifies to generic rating classification and Baa represents lower rank India Post selects Deloitte as consultant for payments bank India Post Picked Deloitte as Consultant for Payments Bank to advise it on setting up a payments bank and an agreement between the two would be signed.

• The PIB has already approved the Rs 800-crore proposal of India Post and in 15 days it will be kept before the cabinet for its final approval.

ICICI Bank Ties up with Ferrari for co-branded Credit Card India’s largest private sector lender ICICI has signed a pact with Italian luxury sports car manufacturer Ferrari to issue co-branded credit cards.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

customers a host of offers including an all-expenses-paid trip for top spenders to Italy

and also includes a Scuderia Ferrari watch as a joining gift.

Kotak Mahindra Group ties up with Canada Pension Plan for investment in Indian stressed assets Kotak Mahindra Bank Group has signed an agreement up with Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) to launch a $525 million fund to invest in the stressed asset market in India. The Canadian pension fund manager will have the option to invest up to $450 million in this partnership

• Under this agreement stated fund will work with Kotak Mahindra Group and its associate firms.

RBI is likely to pay 57000 crores as dividend to the Government The Reserve Bank of India is likely to pay the government Rs 57,000 crore in dividends in the fiscal year 2016-17. Flash points

• The amount paid is slightly lesser than the previous fiscal year but much higher than the previous years

• Last year, the government received Rs.73,905 crores as dividends from various state owned banks and the RBI

• This fiscal year it has estimated to receive Rs.69,897 crores • However the split up of money from banks is not given and it expects 55000-60000 crores from RBI SBI disburses Rs 1,465 crore OROP arrears India’s largest lender State Bank of India has released arrears worth Rs.1, 465 crore to about 7.75 lakh defence beneficiaries under OROP scheme ,the scheme is expected to cost the government Rs 7,500 crore per

• Under One Rank One Pension the pensioners will get their first instalment (1/4th of the total arrear amount up to February, 2016) to service pensioner

• Family pensioners’ and ‘gallantry award’ pensioners will be eligible to get full amount of arrears paid on 14th March.

Pay interest on savings accounts every quarter: RBI to banks Reserve bank of India asked banks to credit interest on savings accounts every quarter or shorter than that of the fiscal.

• Interest rate on savings bank account is calculated on daily basis since April 1, 2010 and it is credited in savings bank account on half-yearly basis.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The revised interest rate credit payment may put a burden of 500 crore on banksbut the

move by the central bank which will benefit crores of savings account holders.

ICICI Bank launches contactless mobile pay solution ‘iTap’ ICICI Bank, has now launched a new NFC-based mobile payment system enabling contactless transactions via itsPockets app.

• The new system enables its credit and debit users to make in-store contactless payments by simply waving their smartphones near an NFC-enabled mobile phone running Android 4.4 and above for making the payment at any merchant terminal.

• ICICI has become the first bank to use Host card Emulation Technology for its payment system.

IDBI Bank ATMs Can Be Used For Bond Purchase The Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) is an Indian Public Sector Bank headquartered at Mumbai which was established in 1964. HIGHLIGHTS

• In order to boost retail participation in Govt bond investments, IDBI has now allowed its customers to invest in these bonds through its ATMS.

• The facility of investing in G-Sec through ATM is an extension of Bank’s Samriddhi G- Sec Portal to enable retail investors to transact in government securities.

• The retail customers of the Bank can register, one time, for this facility and invest in G- Sec through any of the Bank’s ATMs

Government slashed the interest rates of PPF from 8.7% to 8.1% The government announced that Interest rate on Public Provident Fund (PPF) scheme will be cut to 8.1 per cent for the period April 1 to June 30, from 8.7 per cent.

• The rates of Public Provident Fund was slashed by 60 basis points, and Kisan Vikas Patra, by 90 basis points Schemes suffering reduction The new interest rates for 12 small savings schemes, including term deposits of one to five years’ maturity, five-year recurring deposit, five-year Senior Citizen Savings Scheme, five-year Monthly Income Scheme, Sukanya Samriddhi Account Scheme, and National Savings Certificate New Rates

• Five-Year National Savings Certificates will earn an interest rate of 1 per cent as against 8.5 per cent

• Five-year Monthly Income Account will fetch 7.8 per cent as opposed to 8.4 per cent

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Two-year time deposit will now earn 2 per cent instead of 8.4 per cent, three-year time

deposit will earn 7.4 per cent instead of 8.4 per cent, five-year time deposit will earn7.9 per cent instead of 8.5 per cent

• Five-year recurring deposit will earn 4 per cent instead of 8.4 per cent

Chhattisgarh Disburses 1800 crores for MUDRA The Chhattisgarh government has disbursed Rs 1, 821-crore loans to several beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA (Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency) Yojana (PMMY) Flash points

• The Chhattisgarh state government had designed a grass-root level planning to promote the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) for facilitating investment in the sector

• The Department of Commerce and Industry planned to organise workshop in each district in which public representatives were invited

HDFC Bank launches banking solution for startups After SBI’s ‘InCube’ and RBL Bank’s ‘India start-up Club’, HDFC Bank has also come up with its solution for startups, called ‘SmartUp’. SmartUp has been launched in association with Zone Startups India (ZSI), a Mumbai-based start-up accelerator.

• The mission of SmartUp is not only to provide basic banking transactions, but also valuable services like advisory services, forex and payment solutions. Account holders can also get recommendations of a chartered accountant for tax, regulatory and compliance issues. IRDA approved LIC’s idea to invest in PSB’s The regulatory authority of Insurance sector has given its nod to the Biggest life insurance company of India- LIC to invest in the Public Sector Banks. Flash points

• IRDA after complete scrutiny of the investments of LIC in PSU’s have agreed to the proposal of increasing its investments in Public sector banks

• RBI had expressed concern over LIC making huge investments in PSU banks, saying it can affect the financial stability

• But VR Iyer, Member, IRDA, led the team which held discussions with LIC and also found LIC’s equity investment is just 6-7 per cent and investments in banks are still a smaller portion

Government cancels Recognition of Delhi Stock Exchange The Government has withdrawn its recognition to DSE following the cancellation of recognition of its activities by SEBI in 2014. 61 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• DSE’s recognition was cancelled following the serious irregularities in its

demutualization functioning

• DSE was formed in 1947 • Under certain provisions of Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956, the recognition to stock exchanges can be withdrawn if it has not been corporatized and demutualised within the specified time

Current Account Deficit fell to 1.3% of GDP India’s current account deficit, the excess of imports over exports, fell further to 1.3% of the gross domestic product due to benefits of lower commodity prices. Flash points

• Reserve Bank of India data showed current account deficit (CAD) at $1 billion in the third quarter ending December, lower than $8.7 billion or 1.7% of GDP in the preceding quarter

• Last year the CAD was at $7.7 billion and at 1.5% of GDP • The fall in commodity prices helped lowering of trade deficit to $34 billion from $37.4 billion

• Net outflow for the third quarter was just about $0.2 billion compared with net outflow of $3.5 billion in the preceding quarter

• Remittances by Indians employed overseas fell to $15.8 billion • India’s foreign exchange reserves, excluding changes in currency valuation rose $14.6 billion during April-December 2015 as compared with $31.3 billion in the last year

India’s GDP growth projected at 7.7% India’s GDP growth has been projected at 7.7% in a report released by Rating agency ICRA. Estimation The GDP growth for the current fiscal is estimated at 7.6% in current fiscal and it is projected to grow to 7.75% in 2016-17 Reasons

• Increase in domestic consumption post the implementation of the Seventh Central Pay Commission’s recommendations and One Rank One Pension (OROP)

• Rs 1.2 lakh crore in Plan expenditure in 2016-17 will influence the pace of infrastructure augmentation and economic growth

• Hikes in excise duty has brought a revenue of 17,000 crores

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Bajaj Finance is entering the Rs 20,000-crore life care segment under which it will finance expenses for stem cells storage units, cosmetics-based hair treatment, dental and eye care, IVF & maternity care, laparoscopic cure for a dozen ailments, and elective medical/paramedical care for many other issues.

• Anyone can get interest-free loan for personal care treatment at VLCC, Kaya Skin Clinic and Enhance Clinic, among others.

• In the next five years, the company expecting a segment growth of Rs 1,000 crore. The segment has the potential to grow up to 12% of the portfolio.

World Bank to support Swachh Bharat Mission World Bank proposed a $ 1.5 billion dollar as funding to the clean India campaign popularly known as the Swachh Bharat in rural areas

• According to the cabinet approval, the fund will be incentivized based on the performance based indicators like DLi’s

• The states are asked to disburse 95% of the fund to various channels in the rural areas to implement the measures of SBI(G)

RBI makes it easier for banks to improve liquidity The watchdog of the Indian Banking system, RBI has announced to soften the rules on Liquidity measurement there by providing a sigh of relief for the banks to be in accordance with the new Basel III norms. Measures announced by RBI

• Liquidity Coverage Ratio need not include the retail deposits whose maturity value is beyond a month

• The calculation also excludes the pledged deposits over 30 days maturity date • Cash outflows of retail term deposit whose residual maturity or withdrawal notice period of greater than 30 days can be excluded from cash outflows calculation

• Previously bulk deposits over 1 crore where earlier withdrawals were not permitted only can be excluded from calculations

• Corporate debt securities which are not issued by banks, NBFC’s, financial institution will be subject to 50% haircut which earlier was 20%

• The above can also be considered as Liquidity Risk Monitoring tool

Lakshmi Vilas Bank ties up with NBHC for collateral management & warehousing Sector lender Lakshmi Vilas Bank kept its alliance with National Bulk Handling Corporation Private Limited (NBHC), a major Agri-Infrastructure player for collateral management and warehousing services.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The primary objective of these services will allow industry traders and farmers in

financing their capital requirements at all stages of supply chain, ranging from pre- harvesting to the marketing and export stages.

• This would allow the bank to provide financial flexibility to farmers, minimising the seasonal price fluctuations and distress sales during crop harvest season.

South Indian Bank gets ISO 9001:2008 certification Kerala based South Indian Bank has disseminated that its personnel department has achieved the ISO 9001:2008 certification.

• South Indian Bank came into being during the Swadeshi movement established in1929 spread across more than 26 states and 3 union territories in India

BMI projects India’s growth at 7.2% The Indian economy which is a fast growing economy in the world has been projected at 7.2% by the BMI research. The growth has been speculated by various rated agencies across the world.

• Central Statistics Office had projected 6 per cent GDP growth rate in February • According to Japanese financial services major Nomura, India’s GDP growth is likely to pick up to 8 per cent in fiscal 2016-17

• But the BMI research has projected the GDP growth at 2% compared to 7.3% last year • Indian economy is likely to face challenges in various sectors owing to the weak economy of the world

• It also told that schemes under Modi’s governance have contributed to the incremental growth of economy

• The Indian government aims to reduce subsidies through the JAM (Jan Dhan-Aadhaar- Mobile) initiative that will avoid leakages will help reduce expenditures and aid long- term fiscal deficit consolidation plans

DIPP nods 49% FDI in Insurance and Pension Sector The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) board have approved the liberalization in Insurance and pension sector. It has given its nod to 49% of FDI in the sector

• The Commerce and Industry Ministry on Wednesday notified 49% foreign direct investment (FDI) under automatic route in insurance and pension sector as announced by FM Arun Jaitley

• Earlier, only up to 26% FDI was permitted through the automatic approval route • FDI into the country grew by 40% to $29.44 billion in 2015

Revised RBI rules for rehab of MSME’s to reduce Bad loans

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The biggest problem faced by the Indian banking sector in the recent days is the piling up of Bad loans. The RBI has been taking various measures to reform the banking sector and bring down the NPA’s. As a part of its efforts, it has revised the Rules for rehabilitation of MSME’s. Flash points

• FICCI has commented on RBI’s move calling it to be a rehabilitation measure for MSME’s

• The measures include formation of special mention account and committee at the district level to manage stressed accounts

• The new framework is applicable to MSME’s having loan limits of upto 25 crores • The framework proposed will be institutionalized by MSME’s before June 30, 2016 RuPay to launch Credit Cards in September National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) owned and developed RuPay will be offering the credit card segment this September. It plans to issue 100,000 such cards in the first year of its launch.

• Initial focus to be on two variants – regular and platinum, there are 241 million RuPay cards in circulation comprising 35 per cent of the total card base in India and accounting to 20 percent of all card-based transactions.

IOB Starts issuing of Gold bonds The Union government announced three important gold schemes in the last year.One of the three schemes is the issue of gold coins through banks. As a part of implementation, the Indian Overseas Bank has started issuing the gold coins in its branch. Flash points

• IOB is the first bank which has started the issue of gold coins • The gold coins are available in the denomination of 5,10 and 20 gms • The Indian Gold Coin is of 24 carat purity, 999 fineness and has the national emblem of Ashok Chakra engraved on one side and the face of Mahatma Gandhi on the other

World Bank approved to Jordan and Rajasthan The long-term loan, almost interest free by World Bank of $100 million loan to Jordan for job creation, comes after Lebanon was also awarded $100 million to ensure universal school enrolment for Lebanese and Syrian refugee children by 2017.

• In an attempt by the international community to improve conditions for refugees in overburdened regional host Jordan will get a cheap $100 million loan to help create 100,000 jobs for Syrian refugees and its own citizens. World Bank approved $250 million loan to Support Electricity Distribution Sector Reforms in Rajasthan

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The World Bank Board granted Long term Loan of $250 million Development Policy Loan for

Rajasthan.

• The loan, from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 5-year grace period, and a maturity of 18 years.

Federal Bank to open incubation centres for startups Federal Bank plans to set up incubation centers for startups in Bangalore and Ernakulam. These are expected to offer advice on capital, regulatory support and even disburse funds in the branches.

• These centres are named as Launchpad, equipped with fast internet connections, support staff from the financial world and advisory mechanisms.

• The bank has a dedicated startup fund of worth 25 crore which will be utilized for funding or lending to promising startups. The bank also plans to integrate its mobile payments application ‘Chillr’.

RBI announces private placement of securities under UDAY scheme The Banking regulator RBI had announced the private placement of securities for UDAY scheme adding further boost to the scheme. Flash points

• RBI has asked the interested market participants to subscribe for securities before March 30

• The special securities under UDAY are being issued by governments of Bihar, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Punjab and Rajasthan

• The scheme is expected to help discoms save around Rs 8 lakh crore in the next three years

Bharat Bank ties up with Chillr to make payments easier Mumbai based Bharat Bank customers now will be able to use Chill app services, a lender from the co-operative space, will be able to instantly transfer money to anyone in their phonebooks.

• Chillr is the fastest and easiest way to send money between bank accounts and works even on bank holidays.

RBI, Sri Lanka Central Bank Sign Currency Swap Pact Reserve Bank of India Currency swaps agreement with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka the pact would allow its Sri Lankan counterpart to draw up to $700 million over a maximum period of three months under a new special currency swap agreement signed by the two central banks.

• Sri Lanka is seeking a loan of $1.5 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to boost foreign exchange reserves and help avert a balance of payments crisis. 66 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• RBI has previously provided currency swaps to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, including plans

to extend a $1.5 billion agreement by one year.

ADB lowers Asia’s growth forecast to 5.7% The Asian Development Bank headquartered at Manila, has brought down the forecast of growth of Asia to 5.7% for the financial year 2016-17. Flash points

• The Asian Development Outlook, a supplement of ADB has predicted the growth of Asian economy to be at 5.7%

• This was due to the reduced global demand and a slow Chinese economy • Earlier the growth was predicted at 6%for 2016 in December,2015 • However the weak recovery in major industrial economies and softer growth prospects for the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have acted as reasons to bring down the projections Projections for India

• It has remarked that India will be one of the fast growing economies in the world • Due to the stall of certain development projects , the growth may dip to 4% but the reforms taken will increase the rate by 7.8% in 2017-18

• The economy will expand to 7.6% in 2016-17

CBDT signed 11 Advance Pricing Agreements The Central Board of Direct Taxes department has signed 11 Advance Pricing Agreements with taxpayers overseas to reduce litigations. Flash points

• With this India has signed totally 59 unilateral and/or bilateral agreements • The APA was enacted in the Income tax act, 2012 and rollback provisions were provided in 2014

• The agreements cover corporate guarantees, royalty, software development services, IT enabled services and trading

European Investment Bank to loan €450 million for Lucknow Metro The European Union’s official bank European Investment Bank will Provide loan to Lucknow Metro Project of €450 million (about Rs. 3,300 crore) towards constructing a 23-km long rail line and a purchasing a fleet of new trains.

• The metro project will be the most expensive public transport system in the state of Uttar Pradesh costing Rs.6928 cr

• The EU’s official bank and the world’s largest international public bank, and its loan will cover half of the total project costs for the Lucknow Metro.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Government permits 100% FDI in e-commerce

The government has allowed 100% FDI in e-commerce through automatic route in marketplace model of retailing. This is not applicable to the inventory based model of e-commerce. Key features

• 100 per cent FDI is permitted in B2B (business-to-business) transactions under the automatic route

• According to the norms, an e-commerce firm will not be permitted to sell more than 25 per cent of total sales from one vendor or its group companies

RBI cancels recognition of 22 NBFC’s RBI has cancelled the certificate of registration of 22 NBFC’s . Earlier, in the month beginning 6 more NBFC’s licenses were cancelled Due to the cancellation, the firms cannot enter into the financing business.

• RBI has cancelled the registration owing to its powers conferred under Section 45-IA (6) of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934

• Kundan Leasing and Finvest, Raseera Investments, Limtex Impex, Dignity Motors Finance, Akansha Consultancy Services, Bini Commercial Enterprises, Nirankar Investments, and Surin Investments are the NBFC’s whose registration has been cancelled

SEBI raises FPI investment limit The market regulator SEBI has raised the FPI (Foreign Portfolio Investors) investment limit in government securities to 1,40,000 crore from April,4. Hikes in limits

• FPI Investments in government securities will be raised to 140000 crores in April,4 and 1,44,000 crores in July

• FPI limits in SDL’s will be increased from 7000 crores to 10,500 crores in April and 14000 crores in July

• Long term FPI’s will be made 50000 crores in April and 56000 crores in July

Japan commits loan worth 14251 crores Japan has been providing support to India both financially and technically when it comes to the development of Infrastructure. It has now committed a loan worth 242.2 billion yen for the various infrastructure projects in India.

• Transmission System Strengthening Project in Madhya Pradesh -JPY 15.45 billion • Odisha Integrated Sanitation Improvement Project -JPY 25.7 billion • Dedicated Freight Corridor Project (Phase 1) -JPY 103.6 billion or Rs 6,170 crore 68 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• North East Road Network Connectivity Improvement Project- JPY 67.1 billion

• Jharkhand Horticulture Intensificationby Micro Drip Irrigation Project -JPY 4.65 billion

BUSINESS

Delhi Metro To Ferry Cargo On Airport Express Line From March 1. The Delhi Metro will start cargo Services on Airport Express Line from March 1, 2016, the service will be experimental for the period of three months.

• This service to carry only Non- perishable and merchandise of E-commerce sites. • This initiative by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation would be the first ever occasion in India to carry Cargo on Metro Rails. Infosys to collaborate with Microsoft on analytics solution India’s second largest IT Company Infosys to offer Healthcare Analytic Solutions on Microsoft Intelligent Cloud Technology.

• This initiative will provide managed care organisations with the tools to improve clinical and operational effectiveness at a reasonable cost and also provide health-care call centres with customer support and self-service options to both health care workers and consumers.

Reliance Brands Ltd Sign Pact with Kate Spade & Co Mumbai based Reliance Brands limited has inked long term licensing and distribution deal with Kate Spade’s fashion to bring its fashion in Indian market.

• Reliance would open few stores initially for the brand also add 18th portfolio of Reliance which also runs 142 stores of Hamleys, Diesel and Steve Madden among others.

Amazon is India’s most trusted online shopping brand: Survey World largest E-commerce player Amazon has emerged as a most trusted online Brand in Indian market followed by India based Sanpdeal and Flipkart.

• The survey reported had other firms to figure in the top 10 trusted online brands are Ebay, Myntra, Jabong, Naaptol, Yepme, Shopclus and Askmebazaar.

• The Brand Trust Report India Study 2016 have listed various brands on the report which covers various market segments. Brand Segment:

• South Korean smart phone maker Samsung has emerged as top player followed bySony and LG.

• TATA Group is the only Indian Corporate to figure in the Top five.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Samsung Mobiles, Sony, Nokia, Honda, ICICI Bank, Maruti Suzuki, HDFC Bank,

Airtel, Hero Motorcorp, Dovo, Lux, Samsung, Pepsi, and Puma these brands improved their ranking over last year. However LG, Bajaj, Tata and Apple were slipped from the last year standings.

Freecharge Partners With Mexico-Based Movie Theatre Chain Cinepolis To provide secure and easy digital payments, Freecharge has partnered with Mexico based movie theatre chain Cinepolis.

• The transactions will get completed in a secure manner within 10 seconds using the dynamic ‘”On-The-Go-Pin”.

Thomas Cook India inks pact with Western Union, DCB Bank Travel Solutions giant Thomas cook India has signed pact with Western Union Business Solutions and DCB bank to enable international trade payments by small and medium sized enterprises.

• This Pact by the Thomas cook to penetrate the high growth Indian SME sector for its international trade payment needs. Ford gets nod for tech, business centre in Tamil Nadu SEZ Ford Motors gets approval from Central government to set up Global Technology and business Centre in an IT/ ITES Special Economic Zone in Tamilnadu.

• The Centre will be Co-developer of the Automotive Company for Developing IT/ITES services related to Automotive, Finance and Allied sectors.

Indian Railways Signs Agreement with Bajaj Power Bajaj Power inked agreement with Indian Railways for Lalitpur- Udaipura rail section electrification project.

• The Project would cost nearly 47 crore to be completed in a year time by PPP(Public Private Partnership) model.

• If the section gets electrified it would facilitate uninterrupted coal supply to 1, 980 MW thermal Power Plant in Lalitpur district Uttar Pradesh.

• The power plant wholly owned by Bajaj Power generation Company. The third unit of 660 Mw is likely to get operationalby this month.

Tata Motors partners US Firm for Rs 50 K Crore project Tata Motors has signed Tri Partite Partnership with Bharat Forge and US based General Dynamics Land Systems for Rs. 50 K crore future infantry combat Vehicle project.

• India’s Defence Force needs partners with long-term commitments to develop products and solutions through multiple generations of evolution. 70 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• This tie up will position us well to help the country realise its Make in India vision

through the development of the first completely indigenised combat vehicle

DIPP nods clearances for 12 industrial licenses for Reliance The Development of Industrial Promotions Board gave its clearance to 12 industrial licenses to Reliance Defence. Flash points

• DIPP gave clearance to 12 industrial licenses for Reliance Defence an arm of Reliance Infrastructure for manufacturing of Defence equipments in India and Overseas

• DIPP gave its clearance to the Strategic Business Unit of Reliance • Aerospace sector: licences for manufacture of military aircraft and helicopters • Land systems: licenses for manufacturing of missiles & all terrain combat vehicles • Naval systems: licenses for air independent propulsion technology and hull penetrators and connectors along with motor shafts and propulsion systems

Quikr launches service for doorstep pickup & delivery of pre-owned goods India’s largest E- Classifieds major Quikr has launched its Quikr Doorstep service to offer customer to customer buying and selling in India.

• The services will be available for all categories including mobile phones, electronics, kitchen appliances and household furniture’s with an escrow account which guarantees that transactions are safe for buyers.

Make in India model- Baleno introduced in Japan Maruti Suzuki’s hatchback model Baleno which is a Make in India model is now launched in Japan.

• The MSI manufactures Baleno solely at the automaker’s Manesar facility in Haryana

Union Cabinet approves New price formula for Undeveloped Gas Discoveries The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved a new price formula for their undeveloped gas discoveries in difficult areas, which will lead to a near-doubling of rates. Flash points

• Domestically produced gas costs at average of rates in US, Russia and Canada • Deep sea discoveries which are unexplored will be given the cost of alternative fuels • The price will be the lowest of weighted average of fuel oil and imported LNG or weighted average of fuel oil, naphtha and imported coal

• The price of gas will come to USD 7 per million British thermal unit (mmBtu) • Gas price in India is currently at USD 3.82 per mmBtu, which will fall to USD 3.15 in April 71 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The new pricing would help in production of 35 million standard cubic metres a day of

natural gas production for the next 15 years translating to around 7 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Mahindra Aerospace to set up operations in UAE Mahindra Aerospace mulling to set up operations in Abu Dhabi in the near future, Mumbai based company that produces aircraft and sell them in 30 countries, including in the US and in parts of Africa and Asia.

• The company currently the world’s largest importer of defence equipment, will become the third

• Largest aerospace market by 2020 once the operations commenced formally.

Uber opens Asia’s first engineering hub in India The California-based Uber services has opened its first Asian engineering centre in Bengaluru.

• The company has started in India from about 30 cities when he joined three years ago, to 400 cities today local competitors in India such as ANI Technologies owned OLA the country’s leading taxi rider service provider will be forced to raise its fund on market by this move.

BSNL Jumps into Video-On-Demand Service State Owned BSNL mulling to offer video-on-demand services to their 2 crore customers across India. We will implement this MoU to cover the entire nation within next six months. Under this MoU Tata Sky will offer its VoD service free for the first month to download content worth up to Rs 500.

• They have announced partnership with DTH Major Tata Sky to kick-start their operations, Tata Sky, which has a user base of about 11 million, will approach potential subscribers across the country.

Government Relaxes Norms Under Public Procurement For Start-Up MSMEs The start ups in India have been witnessing a favourable environment as the Union Government stresses on creating a nation of more job providers than job seekers.

• Giving a boost to several initiatives including the ‘Stand Up India, Start Up India” and empowering the small entrepreneurs, it has decided to relax procurement norms related to experience and turnover for micro, small and medium start-ups with a view to enabling these ventures to be part of its public procurement.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Union government to fix the MSP of Bt cotton seed The Union Government notified maximum sale price of Bt cotton seed for 2016-17. The government for the first time has taken a decision in the favour of Farmers. The notification was released as per the Cotton Seed Price (Control) Order, 2015 that was issued under the Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955. The new price fixation

• The price of BG-I version of Bt cotton hybrid (9450 grams of Bt Cotton plus 120 grams refugia) was fixed at 635 rupees

• The price of BG-II version was fixed at 800 rupees • A nine member committee was set up to recommend the maximum sale price after taking into consideration the seed value, licence fees including one-time and recurring royalty (trait value), trade margins and other taxes

• Last season the price ranged between 830-1300 • With the new price fixation the price is likely to reduce by 70%

FSSAI to train 20K street vendors in Delhi Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda launched Project ‘Clean Street Food’ in New Delhi on the successful completion of the training Food vendors will receive Smart Skill cum Registration cards.

• In the maiden phase of the project of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) primarily aims at to raise the safety standards of foods sold on streets across the capital city of New Delhi

• The Scheme would provide training as many as 20,000 roadside vendors over the next four weeks at 40 training centres set up for the purpose across the Capital on aspects of health and hygiene.

French major Michelin ties up with Snapdeal to sell tyres online French based tyre maker Michelin had joined hands with E-Commerce major Snapdeal to sell its products through Snapdeal.

• The Joint initiative will enable consumers to place an order online using Snapdeal to purchase Michelin tyres from an authorised dealer and request for fitment at a time and place of their choice.

Glenmark gets final FDA nod for migraine relief drug Mumbai based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inchas received in principal approval from the US Food and Drug Administrator to manufacture and market therapeutical equivalent of Endo Pharmaceutical’s Frova tablets, used to treat migraine headaches, in America. 73 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Govt Bans More Than 300 Combination Drugs Government has banned the manufacture and sale of more than 300 combination medicines, including two widely used cough syrups, and Vicks Action 500 being sold without government approval.

• The banned medicines include the codeine-based cough syrups Phensedyl and Corex, Phensedyl made by U.S. drug maker Abbott Laboratories, accounts for about a third of the Indian cough syrup market, and its sales are estimated to make up more than 3 percent of Abbott’s $1 billion India revenue. Corex is sold by Pfizer.

Survey lists Reliance, Tata Industries under Sustainable Business Practices A survey of corporate India by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) says the metals and mining, automobile and construction materials sectors lead in sustainable business practices. This survey lists leading Industries like Tata, Reliance, Mahindra and few others as Sustainable Business Practices. Areas focused in the survey The survey involves checking the environment, social and governance dimensions of business and measures the progress of Indian companies in adopting sustainable business practices Companies listed in the survey

• Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Hindustan Zinc, Vedanta, ACC and Reliance Industries • These industries were given Platinum Rating • Banking sector include the HDFC and Axis banks • Tech Mahindra and Wipro represented the software and services sector Companies under Sustainable gold plus

• Apart from the companies listed above, Sevenother companies got a Sustainable Plus Gold classification

• These include Bajaj Auto, Ambuja Cements, Hindustan Unilever and Tata Steel

Union Government imposes anti-dumping duty on Plastic-Processing imports Union government had imposed anti-dumping duty of up to 44.7 percent on import of plastic- processing machines from Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam for five years.

• To protect the domestic industry the duty will be levied on imports of all kinds of plastic- processing or injection-moulding machines.

SBI Partners With Uber For Instant Vehicle Financing India’s largest Public Sector lender, SBI ties up with Taxi Aggregator, Uber to provide instant vehicle finance to “driver partners’ on the latter’s platform. 74 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The scheme would encourage skilled drivers to overcome liquidity crunch and excess

documentation requirements to become an entrepreneur

• The loans could be sanctioned in one day using an inbuilt digital offering.

Gamesa wins solar order from Sri Lanka Spain Major Gamesa Wind Turbines has won the solar energy order from LAUGFS Power Ltd in Sri Lanka to provide solar power in Baruthankanda village in Sri Lanka.

• The project capacity of 20 MW solar power project in Sri Lanka, which is expected to commence operations by October. Gamesa will provideEPC (Engineer, Procure, and Construct) solutions that include engineering & design, supply of Gamesa Electric inverters, erection and commissioning. India –the second Biggest Investor in London London & partners, the official promotion company of London has revealed that India is the second biggest investor in London after USA. Flash points

• There has been a 117 per cent increase in Indian companies across all business sectors investing in London since 2005

• There has been a 133 per cent increase in tech companies investing in the city • It is also found that tech companies contribute to 46% of all the projects • Major investors are Software testing service Cigniti Technologies and customer support company Kayako

• The data was released at the India Emerging 20 event

10 Indian Companies among the 25 best workplaces in Asia list It is exciting to know that 10 Indian companies among the top 25 best workplaces in 2nd annual best workplaces Asia-pacific list. Flash points

• Best workplace in the world for MNC- DHL • Best workplaces in the world for small & medium industry- Salesforce • Best workplace in the large industry- Atlassian Asia’s best

• The best multinational workplaces in Asia include DHL, Omnicom, Google, EMC, Marriott, NetApp, Hyatt, MARS, American Express and SAP Indian offices

• The best large workplaces list had 10 Indian companies including Godrej Consumer Products, Lupin and InterGlobe Enterprises.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Other Indian company on this list were RMSI Private Ltd, Forbes Marshall, Lifestyle

International, Bajaj Finance, Silver Spark Apparel, Ujjivan Financial Services and Mahindra & Mahindra Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors

WHO suspends TB drugs from Svizera Labs on quality concerns After the investigations, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has suspended the approval of tuberculosis (TB) drugs made by India’s Svizera Labs, a major supplier to developing countries due to the manufacturing standards and quality management being unreliable.

• Svizera Labs has its headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Ola expects newly-launched service ‘Micro’ to overtake Uber in India Taxi app Ola has launched its new service called ‘Micro’ and it expects that ‘Micro’ will alone overtake its rival Uber in terms of a number of rides in a month’s time. Micro has been launched in seven Indian cities – Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Puneand will be launched in other cities as well.

• Ola chief marketing officer said, “Micro in merely three weeks has achieved the same number of rides what Ola took around three years to achieve”.

Paytm ties up with PVR to sell online movie tickets PVR cinemas has tied up with Vijay Shekhar Sharma founded Paytm to sell Movie tickets through the Paytm platform.

• In Indiamovie-ticketing market lies about $2 billion, growing at 10 per cent annually..

Cisco to invest $100 millions in India; to train over 250,000 students US based Cisco Systems announced that the company will invest over $100 million over the next 18 to 24 months in India to support the country’s plan.

• The series of investments will include $40 million that will be used to fund early-stage and growth-stage companies in the country, and train around 250,000 students by 2020.

Sachin Tendulkar invests in Smartron India Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar has become a shareholder and brand ambassador of domestic original equipment manufacturer Smartron.

• In a Bangalore-based start-up Smartron Sachin invested undisclosed amount and also become the brand ambassador of the company.

India overtakes China in investment by US

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Though India’s exposure within the emerging market basket has gradually declined, India has overtaken China in terms of direct equity allocation by US investors. Flash points

• The report was revealed by US treasury showed that 1.8% of direct equity holdings of US is with India

• It is 6% equity holdings for China • The direct investment has risen from $7 billion in September 2013 to $12 billion in December 2015.

• US investors’ direct investment in Chinese equities has declined from $12.8 billion to $11.1 billion.

Microsoft shuts Artificial Intelligence Robot – Tay Microsoft had shut its artificial intelligence robot Chat program which launched artificial intelligence powered bot on Twitter for a playful chat with people, closed within 24 hours.

• Tay is designed to engage and entertain people where they connect with each other online through casual and playful conversation.

Ola ties up with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Ola Cabs has tied up with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to provide motor insurance to its drivers. It will not only provide a cover for accidents, but will also insure theft of vehicles as well as damage, in addition to a personal accident cover of Rs 2 lakh.

• The two companies are also working together to create a digital infrastructure that will bring insurance transactions like purchase or claims, fully online.

• Recently Ola had announced a partnership with Indifi to offer personal loans to its drivers.

First director container to Bangladesh India is consistently looking to strengthen the ties with its neighbouring Nations. Many agreements were signed between India and Bangladesh including the transmission line, road agreement etc. Now, the First MV 1 Harbour vessel will be sent to Bangladesh. Flash points

• The first direct container MV Harbour-1 Vessel between India and Bangladesh carrying cotton was flagged off from Krishnapatnam of Andhra Pradesh to Chittagong

• A standard operating procedure was signed between India and Bangladesh in November 2015 to move commercial cargo between the two countries

• The operating vessels will be treated as domestic vessels and not as foreign vessels

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Tata Power Strategic Engineering is involved in cutting edge technology for the armed forces and Cranfield University have signed an agreement to explore possibility of entering into a strategic partnership through research and development (R&D).

• A strategic partnership through research and development and academic study in the areas of defence related engineering and emerging technologies Areas of cooperation:

• Large System of Systems, MoDAF for Software Systems, Guns, Military vehicles(both Combat & Launcher vehicles).

Snapdeal’s FreeCharge Partners With Payment Gateway CCAvenue FreeCharge a wholly -owned subsidiary of snapdeal has partnered with a payment gateway CCAvenue to strengthen its offline offerings, as it gains access to over one lakh online merchants across sectors like hospitality, retail and education.

• It also plans to allow merchants to upgrade their payment limits of Rs 1,00,000 with necessary KYC verification.

Reliance signs deal with Rafael Mukhesh Ambani owned Reliance defence has entered into a deal with Israeli based Rafael defence to manufacture air to air missile systems, air defence and observatory balloons. Features of the deal

• Reliance will hold 51% of the stake and Rafael will hold 49% in the joint venture agreement

• They will target over $ 10 billion in the next 10 years • The project will have an initial capital outlay of more than Rs.1,300 crore, excluding the cost of technology

Gujarat, Maharastra –top contributors of Indian Export The industrial body ASSOCHAM in one of its recent study revealed that Gujarat and Maharashtra contribute nearly 46% of the Indian exports occupying the topmost place.

• The report mentions that the first five states contribute to 69% of the total export of India

• Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh occupy the first 5 places respectively

Adani Aero Defence ties up with Elbit, Alpha for unmanned aircraft systems A subsidiary of Adanigroup Alpha Design Technologies Pvt Ltdhas tied up with the Israeli company Elbit Systems for Unmanned Aircraft Systems.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The Adani Group is worth over $10 billion. Aadanikept this pact fo r unmanned aircraft

system(UAS), and is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard.

SC approves Centre’s guidelines to protect Good Samaritans The Supreme Court approved the central government’s guidelines to protect people who help victims of road

• A bench comprising justices Gopala Gowda and Arun Mishra directed the Centre to give wide publicity to the guidelines. Key guidelines:

• Good Samaritans will be treated respectfully and without any discrimination on any grounds of gender, religion etc.

• Any one, except an eyewitness, who calls the police to inform them of an accidental injury or death need not reveal his or her personal details such as full name, address or phone number.

• The police will not force the Good Samaritan to disclose his or her name, identity, address and other such details in the police record form or log register.

• The police will not compel any Good Samaritan in procuring information or anything else.

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

5 Indian International Airports bagged ASQ Awards 2015 5 Indian International Airports have been conferred with Airport Service Quality Awards (ASQ) 2015. These airports will be presented with award during the ACI Asia-Pacific Regional Assembly in Gold Coast, Australia, which is scheduled to be held in April 2016. Indian Airports named in Asia Pacific region:

• In the category of Best Airport by Region (over 2 million passengers per year)– Mumbai and New Delhi (tie at 2nd rank).

• Best Airport by Size (25 – 40 million passengers per year) – Mumbai and New Delhi (tie at 1st rank). st • Best Airport by Size (2 – 5 million passengers per year) – Jaipur (1 rank) and Lucknow (2nd rank). rd • Best Airport by Size (5 – 15 million passengers per year) – Hyderabad (3 rank)

TCS awarded the Global Top Employer Award TCS, one of the leading IT solutions providers has been awarded the Global Top Employer award by Top Employers Institute.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• TCS have been given the Global Top employer award by the Top Employer’s Institute

after assessment of 1072 companies across the globe

• TCS has been rated top across the 9 core HR areaswhich includes talent strategy, workforce planning, on-boarding, learning and development, performance management and leadership development

Bollywood actor Randeep Hooda honoured in Australia Bollywood actor Randeep Hooda was felicitated by Melbourne based South Asian community members at a function and he was also honoured with achievement award for his contributions to film industry by SAPAC.

Sataparna Mukherjee –teenager of West Bengal selected for NASA Scholarship Sataparna Mukherjee, an 18 year old class 12th student of West Bengal is selected by NASA for its Goddard Internship Programme to study in Goddard Institute of Space Studies. th • Sataparna Mukherjee is a class 12 student of Judes School in West Bengal • She belongs to a village called Madhyamgram in West Bengal • She is one among the top 5 elite scholars selected across the globe

Indian Accent again bags the Best Restaurant of India Indian Accent, the fas restaurant situated in New Delhi again bags the best restaurant award in India in the Asia’s best 50 Restaurants event sponsored by S.Pellegrino & Acqua panna presented at Gala ceremony in the Thai capital yesterday.

• The award was given to the restaurant for the second consecutive time and it was collected by Sandeep tandon, Managing director of Old World Hospitality and Shantanu Mehrotra- the Executive Chef of Indian Accent

Armaan Ebrahim won FMSCI Motorsports Man of the Year Trophy Chennai’s car racer Armaan Ebrahim won Motorsports Man of the Year Trophy organized by Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India at a Gala Award ceremony held in New Delhi.

• He was awarded the Raymond GautamSinghania Rolling Trophy along with prize money of 2 lakh.

• The award is bestowed for his performance at the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo Asia series where he finished second at Fuji.

Forbes 2016 World’s Billionaires List Forbes Magazine released its 30th annual list of the world’s richest people, featuring 1,810 billionaires around the world. Their total net worth was $6.48 trillion.

• Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates sat again at top position for the third consecutive year with a net worth of $75 billion. 80 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Rank Name Net Worth Source Country

1 Bill Gates (60) $75 B Microsoft United States 2 Amancio Ortega (79) $67 B Zara Spain 3 Warren Buffett (85) $60.8 B Berkshire Hathaway United States 4 Carlos Slim Helu (76) $50 B Telecom Mexico 5 Jeff Bezos (52) $45.2 B Amazon.com United States 6 Mark Zuckerberg (31) $44.6 B Facebook United States 7 Larry Ellison (71) $43.6 B Oracle United States 8 Michael Bloomberg(74) $40 B Bloomberg LP United States 9 Charles Koch (80) $39.6 B Diversified United States 9 David Koch (75) $39.6 B Diversified United States The youngest billionaire in the world is a 19 year old Norwegain heiress, Alexandra Andresen, who has a 42% in her family’s business. Here is the list of top 10 Indian Billionaires: Rank Name Net Worth Source 36 Mukesh Ambani (58) $20.6B Reliance 44 Dilip Shanghvi (60) $16.7 B Sun Pharmaceuticals 55 Azim Premji (70) $15 B Wipro Ltd 88 Shiv Nadar (70) $11.1 B HCL 133 Cyrus Poonawalla (74) $8.5 B Serum Institute of India 135 Laxmi Mittal (65) $8.4 B Steel 184 Uday Kotak (56) $6.3 Kotak Mahindra 196 Kumar Birla (48) $6.1 B Aditya Birla group 219 Sunil Mittal (58) $5.7 B Bharti Airtel • There are 5 Indian women billionaires who have marked their names in the list and are – Savitri Jindal (OP Jindal group), Indu Jain (Bennett, Coleman & Co), Smita Crishna Godrej (Godrej), Leena Tiwari (USV) and Vinod Gupta (Havells India).

• The youngest Indian billionaires are the Bansal duo of Flipkart – Sachin and Binny Bansal with net worth of 1.2 billion.

Three Britain professors have won the Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize Three Britain professors Tim Bliss, Graham Collingridge and Richard Morris have won the Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research prize worth of 1 million Euros. This is the first time that the brain prize has all Britain names in the winners list. FLASH POINTS

• Three scientists have won the Brain prize for their discovery of how memories are formed in the brain

• In 1900, scientists found connections between the nerve cells called synapses since then they were unable to discover how memories are formed

Windham-Campbell Prizes Announced Nine writers, including one from India, Jerry Pinto, have been awarded with the Windham Campbell Prizes at Yale University for their literary achievements. Award: $150,000 to each Awardee. This year’s recipients are Drama: Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (United States)

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Hannah Moscovitch (Canada) Jerry Pinto (India)

Abbie Spallen (Ireland) Non- fiction: Fiction: Hilton Als (United States) Tessa Hadley (United Kingdom) Stanley Crouch (United States) E. Morgan (United States) Helen Garner (Australia).

Science Journalist Pallava Bagla Bags National Award Noted Scientist Pallava Bagla was conferred with the national award for “Outstanding Efforts in the Field of Science and Technology Communication on Electronic Medium”, carrying a citation, memento and Rs. 1 Lakh. It was presented by Union Minister of Science and Technology, Harsh Vardhan during the function. Theme of NSD-2016 : “Make in India: S&T Driven Innovations”

• Noted Scientist Pallava Bagla was conferred with the national award for “Outstanding Efforts in the Field of Science and Technology Communication on Electronic Medium”, carrying a citation, memento and Rs. 1 Lakh. It was presented by Union Minister of Science and Technology, Harsh Vardhan during the function.

Ratan Thiyam conferred with META Awards Ratan Thiyam a veteran playwriter and a director is conferred with Lifetime achievement award 2016 at the upcoming Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META). Flash points

• Ratan Thiyam the theatre guru is going to be awarded the Lifetime achievement award at the 11th META function

• He is currently the chairman of National school of drama • He has been given this award for creating a new language in theatre and enriching the art form in various roles as writer, director, designer, composer and choreographer Other awardees This award has been given to theatre greats such as Zohra Sehgal, Badal Sarkar, Khaled Chowdhury, Ebrahim Alkazi, Girish Karnad and Heisnam Kanhailal in the past

Bhagwathi Lal Vyas chosen for Bihari puraskar prize of 2015 Eminent poet Bhagwathi Lal Vyas has been chosen for the Bihari Puraskar Prize in the year 2015 for his anthology poems ‘Katha Sun Aawe Hai Sabad’

• He has authored several short stories and poems and his acclaimed works includeShatabdi Niruttar (1977), Footpath Par Chiriya Nachti Hai (1984) and Suraj Leelti Ghatiyan

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• His works reflect the unpleasant changes in human relations, social disparity and loss

of human values although positivity and his faith in human life also shine through the vast collection of his poetry

• Vyas, a recipient of Sahitya Academy Awardretired as Principal of RNT College of Teacher Education in Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan

Manoj Kumar To Be Awarded With Dada Saheb Phalke Award The Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest award in Cinema is presented annually at the National Film Awards Ceremony.

• The Award for 2015 will be conferred upon Manoj Kumar, the 78 year old Veteran Actor who became famous with some his popular movies like Roti, Kapda aur Makaan, Kranti, Woh Kaun Thi.

• He has received a National Award for the film Upkaar and Padma Shri by GOI.

Whitfield Diffie And Martin Hellman Won Acm 2015 A M Turing Award The deserving two, Stanford’s cryptographers who brought up cryptography from a shadowy realm to the public space have been conferred upon the A M Turing Award 2015 of the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). The Award is often referred to as the “Nobel Prize for Computing” that comes with a whooping $1 million prize funded by Google.

• The Awardees are into Public-Key Cryptography which is a method of scrambling data in which each party has a pair of keys, one which can be shared publicly and the other with the intended recipient.

Stevie Wonder Honoured With Global Green Hero Award American Musician Little Stevie Wonder was honoured with Global Green Hero award at the 13 th Annual Global green USA pre-Oscar party.

• The Veteran singer performed a rousing nine-song set of his at the 13th Annual Global Oscar party.

The Innovation Award 2016 To Prof. Sirshendu De Over 100 million people in India and Bangladesh are at a health risk due to arsenic content in ground water. It is generally agreed that arsenic contamination is of geological origin and derives from the geological strata underlying Bangladesh. Hence, it becomes necessary to mitigate such contamination in rural households in both the nations.

• A milestone achievement in this regard has been made by an IIT Kharagpur Professor,Sirshendu De, Head of the Chemical Engineering Department for 83 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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developing Low CostEco-friendly Laterite based Arsenic Filter for Providing Safe

Drinking Water.

• The Award will be given by the Indian Desalination Association (South Zone).

Dr.Amrita Patel awarded with the Mahindra Lifetime Achievement Award Dr Amrita Patel has been conferred with the Mahindra Samriddi India Agri Lifetime Achievement Aear-Krishi Shiromani Samman in New Delhi. Flash points

• Dr Patel is the current Chairman of Charutar Arogya Mandal • She was conferred with the award by Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh

Krutitava Smagra Samman 2015 To Dogri Poetess Padma Sachdev Well known Dogri Writer and Poetess, Padma Sachdev has been awarded the 2015 Krutitava Smagra Samman. She is being honoured for her outstanding contribution to Dogri Literatureand services to the Dogri Language.

• First modern woman poet of Dogri language but writes in Hindi as well. Saudi Arabian Prince conferred with France’s highest Civil Award Saudi Arabian prince was conferred with the prestigious The Legion of Honour award which has fuelled controversies in France. Flash points

• Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz has received the Legion of Honour Award

• Though official notifications have not been stated, French President made the announcement

NTPC bags Poll Based Investor Communication Award State run NTPC Ltd has been conferred the Research Investor Communication Award among the “Large Corporates” category .Director Finance of the Company Shri K. Biswal, received the award at a ceremony held at BSE in Mumbai

• This award is bestowed for following transparent and fair communication practices by Research Bytes in an independent poll having participation of over 3000 Fund Managers/Analysts/Non Institutional Investors.

President Pranab Mukherjee presented 2015 Nari Shakti awards The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presented Stree Shakti Puraskars and Nari Shakti Puraskars for the year 2015 at a function organized on the International Women’s Day in Rashtrapati Bhawan, New Delhi.

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• The International Women’s Day is observed this year with the theme “Planet 50-50 by

2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality”.

• Every year March 8 is observed as International Women’s Day to celebrate womanhood. From this year onwards Nari Shakti Puraskars has been initiated by the Government in recognition to singular contribution of women.

• ZilaMahilaSammnas and RajyaMahilaSammnas have also been instituted since this year in order to reward the selflessly working and committed women particularly at the community and grass root levels. Stree Shakti Puraskar Award Winners:

• The Stree Shakti puraskars are conferred to six women in the area of women’sendeavour and exceptional contribution each year. The award carries a cash prize of Rs. 3lakh and a citation. 1. AnyayRahitZindagian NGO of Goa– Devi AhilyabaiHolkar Award 2. Seema Prakash of Madhya Pradesh-Rani Lakshmibai Award 3. AsthaSansthan , NGO of Rajasthan– Rani Rudramma Devi Award 4. ChandraprabhaBokey –Maharashtra– Mata Jijabai Award 5. P Bhanumati –Kerala-Kannagi Award 6. Mariola– Rajasthan– Rani GaidinliuZeliang Award The Nari Shakti Puraskar Awardees:

• The Nari Shakti Puraskar has been conferred for the first time this year. Each award carries a 1 lakh rupees and a citation. The following eight women have been bestowed with this award in recognition to their contribution in specific areas 1. RashmiAnand (Delhi) 2. DrNandita Krishna (Tamilnadu) 3. DrLaxmiGautam(Uttar Pradesh) 4. NehaKirpal(Delhi) 5. LatikaThukral(Haryana) 6. DrSailakshmiBalijepally(Tamilnadu) 7. Kausalya(Tamilnadu) 8. DrSwarajVidwan(Uttarakhand)

Sonakshi Sinha enters Guiness book of records The famous bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha has entered into the Guiness world book of records for most people painting their nails simultaneously.

• The event was organized by Inglot and Major Brands as a celebration to mark theInternational Women’s Day

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• Actress Sonakshi Sinha along with several other women participated in an initiative to

set a record for ‘most people painting their fingernails simultaneously’

• This has been given the Guiness record for most people painting their nails simultaneously. Anand Mahindra conferred with France’s highest civilian award French Ambassador to India Franço is Richier conferred the Knight of the Legion of Honour on Anand Mahindra, at his France residence to Mahindra & Mahindra Group, in recognition of his outstanding national and international achievements and initiatives. Knight of the Legion of Honour:

• The honour is bestowed at the Residence of France ,France’s highest civiliandistinction comes in recognition of Mr Mahindra’s outstanding national and international achievements and initiatives at the helm of the Mahindra Group.

Tezpur and JNU won Visitors Award for 2016 Tezpur University won the annual Visitor’s Award for the Best University. Rakesh Bhatnagar and the Molecular Parasitology Group of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have also won the Visitor’s Awards for Research and Innovation respectively. Visitor’s Award for Innovation: Professor Rakesh Bhatnagar of Jawaharlal Nehru University for development of a genetically engineered vaccine and a therapeutic antibody against anthrax The Visitor’s Award for Research: The Molecular Parasitology Group of Jawaharlal Nehru University of pioneering work in the area of molecular parasitology, especially anti-malaria, leishmaniasis and amoebiasis

India, US launch Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship The United States-India Educational Foundation formally launched U.S.-India Fulbright- Kalam Climate Fellowship on behalf of both the governments.

• The initiative will advance bilateral cooperation on climate change, which will enable Indian research scholars to work with American institutions in the field.

• The fellowship is jointly funded by both governments and will be operated by The United States-India Educational Foundation headquartered in New Delhi.

Kerala Tourism campaign wins Golden City Gate Award God’s own Country official logoed Kerala Tourism’s campaign on tourism has bagged the‘Golden City Gate Award’ at the travel trade show ITB in Berlin.

• The award bagged campaign Titled ‘New Worlds’, the multimedia campaign containing three short films directed by reputed Malayalam filmmaker Anwar Rasheed won

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thesilver prize of this year’s Golden City Gate (Das Golden Stadttor), at the International

Tourismus-Borse Berlin

• The ‘New Worlds’ campaign was launched by UNWTO Secretary General Taleb Rifai at the World Travel Mart in London.

Certificates Of Honour And The Maharishi Badrayan Vyas Samman Awarded To Eminent Scholars The President of India, Sri Pranab Mukherjee awarded the certificates of honour to eminent scholars of Sanskrit, Pali/Prakrit, Arabic and Persian and the Maharishi Badrayan Vyas Samman to young scholars for the year 2014. The recipients of the awards are listed below: AWARD LANGUAGE AWARDEES Certificate of SANSKRIT Manohar Vidyalankar Honour S Sambanda Sivacharya Jagadgurunimbarkacharya Shri Radhasarveshwarshadevacharya Shri Sjriji Maharaj Dr. Rama Shankar Tripathi V Krishnamurthy Ghanapatigal Areyar Srirama Sharma R Krishnamurthy Sastri Dr. Francois Grimal Raja S Giri Acharya Prof. Radhavallabh Tripathi Chellam Srinivasa Somayaji Prof. Vempaty Kutumba Sastry Padamshri Prof. Om Prakash Upadhyay Prof. Dr. Shashi Prabha Kumar SANSKRIT Prof. Pierre-Sylvain Filliozat. (INTERNATIONAL) ARABIC LANGUAGE Prof. Dr. Ahmed Ibrahim Rahmathullah Prof. Nisar Ahmad Ansari Azmi PERSIAN AND Prof. Shameen Akhtar (Persian PALI/PRAKRIT LANGUAGE Mahopadhyaya Vinay Sagar (Pali/Prakrit) Maharishi SANSKRIT Dr. KS Maheswaran Badrayan Vyas Samman Dr. Pramod Kumar Sharma Dr. Madhav Janardan Ratate Dr. Vinay Kumar Pandey 87 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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ARABIC Dr. Aurang Zeb Azmi

PERSIAN Dr. Atiqur Rahman PALI/PRAKRIT Dr. Samani Sangeet Prajan

Palestinian Hanan Al Hroub Won 2016 Global Teacher Prize Teachers are one of the most important pillars among the building blocks of the society and they truly deserve to be recognized and rewarded for their remarkable contribution to the world. Their service is commendable!

• The 2016 Global Teacher Prize worth $1 million has been announced by Pope Francis and the reverent awardee is a Palestinian Teacher, Hanan Al Hroub, who teaches Refugee Children and was a refugee herself.

• She beat India’s Robin Chaurasiya, who runs a not-for-profit school in Mumbai for girls from the city’s red light district of Kamatipura, and eight other finalists to bag the Varkey Foundation’s prize at the end of the annual Global Education and Skills Forum

Jagran Group CEO and Dainik Jagran editor, chosen IAA Editor of the Year The Jagron Group CEO and the Editor of the well known daily, Dainik Jagran, Sanjay Gupta has been chosen as the Editor of the Year at the fourth Indian Advertising Association Awards in Mumbai.

The list of other Awards given away on the occasion includes: OTHER AWARDS AWARDEE Brand Endorser of the Year Varun Dhawan, a Bollywood actor TV Anchor of the Year award Rajat Sharma of India TV Media Person of the Year Raj Nayak of Colors CEO of the year Kumar Mangalam Birla

India-based software engineer Abdulqadir Rashik won First Prize in UN #LinksSDGs Data Visualization Challenge The United Nations honoured the founder of India-based Miavy Systems Abdulqadir Rashik for the Unite Ideas #LinksSDGs Data Visualization Challenge. Itwill be used to identify further research opportunities and guide policy decisions around the implementation of global sustainability initiatives.

• He was bestowed with the Challenge’s top prize for his submission Links to Sustainable Cities an interactive visualization that identifies and maps the links between Sustainable Development Goal 11, Sustainable Cities and Communities, and the other 16 Goals.

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Mother Teresa To Be Canonised On September 4

The “Blessed Teresa of Calcutta”, the founder of the Missionaries of Charity and a wonderful human being as known to the world, Mother Teresa is set to attain sainthood on September 4, as confirmed by Pope Francis. The Life Of The Great Soul

• Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 and spent 45 years serving the poor, the sick, the orphaned, and the dying on the streets of Kolkata.

• In 2002, the Vatican officially recognised a miracle she was said to have carried out after her death, namely the 1998 healing of a Bengali tribal woman, Monika Besra, who was suffering from an abdominal tumour. The traditional canonisation procedure requires at least two miracles

Andrew Wiles awarded with the Nobel prize of Mathematics Sir Andrew wiles has been awarded the 2016 Abel Prize, regarded as mathematics’ equivalent of the Nobel Prize, for his stunning proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem which baffled the Mathematicians for more than 300years. Fermat’s Theorem There are no whole number solutions to the equation xn + yn = zn when n is greater than 2, unless xyz=0

• He proclaimed of having found the proof of Fermat’s theorem in 1993 • He proved the Fermat’s theorem by way of the modularity conjecture for semistable elliptic curves, opening a new era in number theory

• He published his theory in Annals of Mathematics in 1995, with the title Modular Elliptic Curves and Fermat’s Last Theorem

Assassin wins the maximum awards in 10th Asian film awards The 10th Asian film awards were presented in Macau, China. ‘The Assassin’, a movie about a highly trained female assassin bagged prizes for, best actress and best director. Awards won by Assassin

• Assassin wins more than half of the 15 awards presented in the Asian film awards • Best Film: The Assassin • Best Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien for The Assassin • Best Actress: Shu Qi for The Assassin • Best Supporting Actress: Zhou Yun for The Assassin • Best Cinematography: Mark Lee Ping-bing for The Assassin • Best Production Design: Hwarng Wern-ying for The Assassin • Best Original Music: Lim Giong for The Assassin • Best Sound: Chu Shih-yi, Tu Duu-chih and Wu Shu-yao for The Assassin 89 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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Other Awards presented

• Best Actor: Lee Byung-hun for The Inside Men • Best Newcomer: Jessie Li for Port of Call • Best Supporting Actor: Tadanobu Asano for Journey to the Shore • Best Screenplay: Jia Zhangke for Mountains May Depart • Best Editing: William Chang Suk-ping, Chu Ka-yat, Liao Ching-sung, Wong Hoi, Philip Yung for Port of Call

• Best Visual Effects: Prasad Sutar for Bajirao Mastani • Best Costume Design: Lee Ji-yeon and Shim Hyun-seob for The Throne

Priyanka & Raksha win Chameli Devi Jain Award, 2016 Priyanka Kakodkar and Raksha Kumar were named as joint winners of the 2015-16 Chameli Devi Jain Award. They were awarded for their work that clubs social concern and compassion with pioneering reportage and analytical skills.

Skoch Lifetime achievement Award presented to Venkaiah Naidu Union urban Development minister M Venkaiah Naidu was conferred with the Skoch Lifetime Achievement Award at 43rd SKOCH summit held in New Delhi. Flash points

• Venkaiah Naidu was selected for the award for his contributions to inclusive growth and towards poverty alleviation in India

• IT minister of Telangana State KT Rama Rao was awarded the Skoch Award in the Startup India category for his initiative in establishing the path breaking tech incubator T-Hub

Tikka Shatrujit Singh conferred with French Civil Award The royal scion of Kapurthala’s Ahluwalia dynasty, Tikka Shatrujit Singh was conferred with the Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour).

• French ambassador to India Francois Richier bestowed the honour on Singh in a ceremony held in New Delhi

Geetakshi Arora conferred with Noor Inayat Khan prize Geetakshi Arora of SOAS South Asia Institute has won the first Noor Inayat Khan Prize, the Noor Inayat Khan Memorial Trust announced in London. Noor Inayat Khan

• She was a secret agent in World War II and was sent behind enemy lines. She operated from Paris, doing crucial work for the allies.

• Noor was betrayed, arrested and killed in Dachau Concentration Camp at the age of 30. • Her last word was ‘Liberte’ 90 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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PM Confers Himachal Pradesh with Krishi Karman Award Prime Minister Narendra Modi conferred Himachal Pradesh with the ‘Krishi Karman Award’ for its landmark achievement in showing highest production of food grains in year 2014-15, despite adverse weather conditions and rain-fed farming in the state. Flash points

• The award was presented at the Krishi Unnati Mela, a three day event which began in New Delhi

• Six other states receive the Krishi Karman Award for their valuable contribution to Agriculture

• The award to Himachal Pradesh was received by the Agriculture minister of the state Sujan Singh Pathania

M.Sukumaran chosen for CV Kunhiraman Literary prize Renowned Malayalam writer M Sukumaran in the third week of March 2016 was chosen for the CV Kunhiraman Literary Prize. About Sukumaran

• M Sukumaran is an author and short story writer in Malayalam. • He won the Kerala Sahithya Academy award in 1976 for his book Marichittillathavarude Smarakangal.

• The themes of all of his writings deal with the plight of the dispossessed and advocate an armed struggle for the liberation of the oppressed

5th National Photography Awards The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting led by ArunJaitly who also the chief of finance Ministry gave away National Photography Awards of fifth edition in New Delhi.

• The Official theme of 5th National Photography Award is Save Mother Earth for Professional Photographers and Festivals of India for Amateur Photographers.. Recipients of major awards

• Bhawan Singh– Life Time Achievement Award • Javed Ahmed Dar- Professional Photographer Award • Himanshu Thakur- Amateur Photographer

Hockey India Annual Awards: Sreejesh, Deepika walk away with honours

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In the Hockey India second annual awards for the year 2015 Event various awards have been given away in the function held at Bengaluru. DhruvBatra Player of the Year award:India goalkeeper PR Sreejesh and Deepika Lifetime Achievement Award:Captain Shankar Laxman Upcoming Players of the Year:Harjeet Singh and Preeti Dubey Other Awardees: .

• Baljit Singh Award for Goalkeeper of the Year – Savita • Pargat Singh Award for Defender of the Year – Kothajit Singh • Ajit Pal Singh Award Midfielder of the Year – Ritu Rani • DhanrajPillay Award for Forward of the Year – Rani • JamanLal Sharma Award for Invaluable Contribution- Baldev Singh • Hockey India President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement – Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy

• The milestone awards were presented to Dharamvir Singh, Kothajit Singh, BirendraLakra and SushilaChanu for making 100th appearance for India.

• Gurbaj Singh and V R Raghunath were awarded for turning out in India colours for the 200th time.

P.Susheela enters into Guiness book of Records The famous playback singer P.Susheela enters into the Guiness world book of records for singing highest number of songs . Points about achievement

• She holds title for the highest number of solo, duet and chorus backed songs in over six Indian languages

• As per the official records, she has sung 17,695 solo, duet and chorus backed songs as on January 28, 2016

• Susheela has over 30,000 songs to her credit across multiple languages • She has sung 20000 songs in Telugu and around 10000 songs in other languages • She has sung an exceptional 1,336 duets with S. P. Balasubrahmanyam which is a record of maximum duets by the same duo

Pallavi enters Limca book of records for crossing Mana pass Pallavi Fauzdar , a 35 year old housewife from Agra has entered the Limca book of records for crossing the Mana pass as a solo motorcyclist. Flash on the Achievement

• She has become the first women motorcyclist to cross the Mana Pass which is the world’s highest motorable mountain pass.

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• She scaled eight Himalayan mountain passes, all above 5,000 metre, last year

• This was also recognized by the Limca book of records 63rd National Film Awards The 63rd National Film Awards were started as an annual incentive by the Government of India to encourage meaningful films. The Complete List of Major Winners:

• Best actress: Kangana Ranaut for ‘Tanu Weds Manu Returns’ • Best actor: Amitabh Bachchan for ‘Piku’ • Best Film: ‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ • Best Director: Sanjay LeelaBhansali for ‘BajiraoMastani’ • Best popular film providing wholesome entertainment: ‘BajrangiBhaijaan’ • Best Film Friendly State Award: Gujarat (special mention to UP and Kerala) Most Film-Friendly State

• Gujarat was named the Most Film-Friendly State at the 63rd National Film Awards, a major step by the Indian government to promote film tourism in the states because this sort of an award will enthuse the states. The awards bestowed including Best films from various languages across India. The Complete List of Major Winners: Best Bodo film DauHuduniMethai Best Punjabi film ChauthiKoot Best Odiya film Pahada Ra Luha Best Marathi film Ringan Best Malyalam film Pathemari Best Konkani film Enemy Best Kannada film Thithi Best Hindi film DumlagaKHaisha Best Bengali film Shankhachil Best Assamese film Kothanodi Best Khasi film Onaatah Best Haryanvi film Satrangi Best Wancho film The Head Hunter Best Manipuri film EibusuYaohanbiyu Best Mizo film Kima’s lode Beyond the Class Best Maithili film MithilaMakhaan Best Sanskrit film Priyamanasam Best Telugu film Kanche Best Tamil film Visaaranai Best Choreography Remo S’Souza (DeewaniMastani in Best Background score Ilaiyaaraja (ThaaraiThappattai) Best Music direction M Jayachandran (KaathirunnuKaathirunnu in Best Costume Designer and Make-up Artist Nanak Shah Fakir Best Editing Late Kishore TE (Visaaranai) Best Dialogues JuhiChaturvedi (Piku) and Himanshu Sharma Best Screenplay Writer (Original) JuhiChaturvedi (Piku) and Himanshu Sharma Best Cinematography SudeepChaterjee (BajiraoMastani)

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Best Female Playback Singer Monali Thakur (MohMohKeDhage)

Best Supporting Actress TanviAzmi (BajiraoMastani) Best Supporting Actor Samuthirakani (Visaaranai) Special Mention RinkuRajguru (Sairat) Special Mention Jayasurya (Su Special Mention Ritika Singh (IrudhiSuttru) Best Children’s Film Duronto Best Film on Environment ValiyaChiraKullaPakshikal Best Film on Social Issues Nirnayakam NargisDutt Award for Best Feature Film on Nanak Shah Fakir Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a NeerajGhaywan (Masaan)

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Hashim Thaci elected as President of Kosovo Kosovo Lawmakers have elected Hashim Thaci as the country’s new president, proving simple majority in the third round after the indecisive first two stages of voting in Pristina.

• Prior to his appointment he was serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Government.

• He will succeed Atifete Jahjaga as the new President of the country, the will formally take oath on April 7, 2016.

Vice admiral Atul Kumar Jain takes over as Chief of staff, Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral Atul Kumar Jain took over as Chief of staff, Eastern Naval Command from Vice Admiral Bimal Verma.

• He was commissioned in Navy in 1982 and post specialization in Gunnery Missile and Warfare

• He was the Gunnery officer of missile destroyers, IN ships Ranvijay and Ranvir

Micromax CEO Vineet Taneja resigns Micromax CEO Vineet Taneja resigns has formally resigned from high profiled post, and however company did not reveal whether the company was looking for a new face.

• Prior to his Micromax appointment in July 2014 he was a business head at Samsung India and skimps at Bharati Airtel and Nokia.

• The homegrown mobile maker facing terrific competition in Indian market from Chinese and Indian Handset makers. However Micromax become the third largest handset player in Russian market recently.

Portugal nominated ex-refugee chief for UN Secretary-General

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A former UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) , Antonio Guterres has been nominated for UN Secretary General by Portugal as the incumbent Ban Ki Moon of South Korea is about to end his tenure in 2016.

• He was the Prime Minister of Portugal between 1995 and 2002. He was from the Socialist Party. He served as the 10th UN high Commissioner from 2005 until 2015.

Sanjiv Kapoor named Vistara’s new chief strategy officer Sanjiv Kapoor has been appointed as Chief strategy and commercial officer succeeds Giam Ming Toh who is returning to Singapore airlines on completion of his term.

• Sanjiv will be responsible for inflight services andground operations also oversee strategic planning and commercial operations.

• Prior to his new appointment he served as a Chief Operating Officer at Spice Jet also have 19 years of experience in the Airline Industry.

Indian-American Investor Sunil Sabharwal Occupies Key IMF Position Bringing pride to the nation, Sunil Sabharwal, an Indo-American Independent Investor has been confirmed by the US Senate to take up charge as the International Monetary Fund’s Alternate Executive Director. This is one of the most powerful positions in the organization and he has become the first Indian to turn an incumbent.

Mrugank Paranjape Appointed As MCX MD The Multi Commodity Exchange named Mrugank Paranjape as MD & CEO of the company, the appointment is valid for three years subjected to approval of SEBI.

• It also re-designated Praveen Kumar Singhal , the President Joint Managing Director as President & Whole time Director with effect from 1 st April.

UEFA names new general secretary, holds back on Platini Union of European Football Associations named Theodore Theodoridis as interim general secretary, this decision is taken at the Executive committee meeting at their headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.

• The Greek Based Administrator comes after Gianni Infantino left the role to become the new president of FIFA.

Ajit Singh sworn in as Chief Justice of Guwahati High Court Justice Ajit Singh was sworn in as chief justice of the Guwahati High Court, the Oath of the Justice was administrated by Assam Governor Padmanaba Balakrishna Acharya.

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SanjivKohli concurrently accredited as the next High Commissioner of India to the Independent State of Samoa Sanjiv Kohli has been concurrently accredited as the next High Commisioner of India to the independent state of somoa with residence in wellington.

• SanjivKohli presently he is serving High commissioner of India to New Zealand.

Non official directors appointed to the board of RBI The Appointments committee of the cabinet headed by PM Narendra Modi appointed three part time non official directors to the RBI board. Flash points

• Three non official members include Sudhir Mankad, Bharat Narotam Doshi and Natarajan Chandrasekaran

• They will serve on the board for four years from March 4 M S Dhoni signed as Revital H brand ambassador Mumbai based Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited has appointed Indian Cricketer and Captain MS Dhoni as the Brand ambassador for its top selling health supplement Revital H.

• This move is in the company’s Pipeline to reposition the brand after 25 years since its launch on the planks of active lifestyle.

S Rao will take over as the new public interest director and chairman of BSES Ramadorai has retired from the BSE Chairman and Karnataka’s former Chief Secretary Sudhakar Rao will replace the former. th • Ramadorai has served since 2010 and retire on 7 March after serving six years. • Prior to Rao’s appointment he served as Public Interest Director of Bangalore Stock Exchange.

Gamlin appointed new CS of Arunachal A 1984- batch IAS officer Shakuntala Doley Gamlin has been appointed as Chief Secretary of Arunachal Pradesh .she replacing Ramesh Negi.

• Before her new appointment, Gamlin, first woman IAS officer from Mishing tribe of Assam, served as Principal Secretary (Power) in New Delhi.

• Negi has been transferred to the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) with immediate effect.

Tapan Chand elected AAI chief In the aftermath of National Governing Council meeting of Aluminium Association of India Tapan Kumar Chand has been unanimously elected as the President of the metal governing body. 96 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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• Prior to his appointment he was serving chairman and Managing Director of National

Aluminium Company.

Balbir Singh Chauhan appointed as India’s 21st Law Commissioner Balbir Singh Chauhan the former Supreme court Judge has been appointed as the 21st Law commissioner of India. The post has been vacant since the retirement of 20th law commissioner in September 2015.

• Balbir Singh Chauhan is currently the head of Cauvery River Water Dispute tribunal

Myanmar Elects its First Civilian President It must be a historical moment for Myanmar as its selects its first Civilian President, Htin Kyaw, in fifty years of military rule. He is a close ally of Aung Sang Suu Kyi, who became victorious in the last national elections. However, she herself cannot hold the constitutional post.

• The president is chosen from candidates put forward by each of the two houses of parliament, in addition to a third nominee from the military.

Egyptian diplomat Ahmed AboulGheit named Secretary General of the Arab League Egypt officially nominates Ahmed Aboul-Gheit to head Arab League.His appointment was contained in a statement released by the 22-member bloc.

• Ahmed AboulGheit as the Arab League’s new secretary general,will replace fellow Egyptian Nabil El-Araby, who announced that he would not seek another term after the expiration of his current tenure in July 2016.

• Prior to his new appointment Abul Gheit served as Egypt’s last Foreign Minister under expelled leaded Hosni Mubarak.

Kangana Ranaut Has Become the Brand Ambassador of Reebok India Reebok India has announced Bollywood actress Kangana Ranautas the brand ambassador, the actress also launched the new campaign has been released on international Women’s day of the under the brand title of Be More Human.

• Kangana will be seen challenging herself with various fitness activities including functional training, dance, yoga, kick-boxing and others, thereby communicating the overarching brand message – how fit you are defines how far you go.

Ajit Singh & Satish Mittal sworn-in as Gauhati & Rajasthan HC CJ respectively The President is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Ajit Singh, Judge of the Rajasthan High Court,to be the Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court

• Justice Satish Kumar Mittal was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court. The oath was administered by Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh. 97 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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• Justice Ajit Singh was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court. The oath

of office to the Chief Justice was administered by Assam Govenor P B Acharya.

Lt Gen N P S Hira appointed as Deputy chief of Army Staff Chief of the Army’s Northern Command, Lt Gen N P S Hira has been appointed as Deputy Chief of Army Staff and would assume office on March 14.

• General N P S Hira has been the commander of Sikh Light Infantry and has wide experience in counter insurgency operations in J&K

Vishvas ViduSapkal appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Fiji Vishvas ViduSapkal currently Deputy Chief of Mission in Embassy of India, Cairo, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the Republic of Fiji.

• Sapkal, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of the 1998 batch, was expected to take up his assignment shortly.

Anil Wadhwa concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of San Marino Anil Wadhwa, Ambassador of India to Italy, has been concurrently accredited as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of San Marino with residence in Rome. He is an Indian Foreign Service Officer of the 1979 batch was also posted as Secretary (East) in 2014.

• He has also served as the Indian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand (Nov 2011 to Jan 2014) and previously as the Ambassador to Poland and to the Sultanate of Oman

Ravindra appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire

• Shri R. Ravindra currently Counsellor in High Commission of India, Colombo, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire.

• He is likely to take up his assignment shortly. In his new stint Ravindra will succeed Dinesh Bhatia

Indian scholar appointed VC of Canberra University Shri H Deep Saini, a noted Indian Scholar and a plant Physiologist has been appointed the next Vice Chancellor of the prestigious University of Canberra.

• He will will succeed Vice Chancellor Stephen Parker in September who steps down from the post in July after over nine years in the service. Altico Named Naina Lal Kidwai as Its New Non executive Director Altico capital, a non banking finance company has named veteran banker Naina Lal Kidwai as its new independent non executive director on its board. 98 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• She is on the boards of Larsen & Toubro Limited, Advent Private Equity, Nestle SA,

Cipla Limited, Max Financial Services Limited

• She is also the chairperson of South Asia Harvard Business School • Before joining Altico she was the chairperson of British lender HSBC India last year and served the bank for 13 years

• Before joining HSBC, Kidwai was vice-chairperson and head, investment banking, at JP Morgan Stanley

Nepal To Have Its First Woman Chief Justice Nepal is on a gender equality drive as it chooses its first woman Chief Justice, in a row of selecting women to top posts. Recently, the country got its first woman President and Speaker.

• Sushila Karki, the senior most of the judges in the Nepal’s Supreme Court has been nominated for the top post by the judicial council chaired by the Prime Minister, K P Oli.

• She will take charge as Nepal’s first woman President Bindya Bhandari, endorses her nomination and the current chief justice, Kalyan Shreshtha retires.

Bangladesh’s bank governor resigns on $81 million cyber theft Atiur Rahman, the governor of Bangladesh’s central bank, resigned after $81 million cyber theft from the country’s official account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

• The resignation came days after the Bangladesh finance minister said the central bank did not inform him about the theft. The Governor resignation was accepted by the Prime Minister SheikhHasina.

• Bangladesh government has appointed former finance secretary and Sonali Bank chairman Fazle Kabir as governor of the central bank for four years.

UN suspended Maria Sharapova as goodwill ambassador after doping allegations The United Nations formally suspended relationship with Russian Tennis great Maria Sharapova as a goodwill ambassador after she failed a drug test at the Australian Open.

• Sharapova tested positive for meldonium at the Australian Open and has been provisionally suspended from tennis pending an independent panel ruling on the case.

Michelle Yeoh appointed UNDP goodwill ambassador Malaysian-born action heroine Michelle Yeohhas been appointed as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Goodwill ambassador.

• The New ambassador will focus on raising awareness and mobilising support for the recently propelled Sustainable Development Goals.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

US President Barack Obama nominates Merrick Garland for US Supreme Cour

President Barack Obama selected the nation’s 113th chief justice Merrick Garland for the U.S. Supreme Court choosing a centrist judge meant to win over recalcitrant Senate Republicans.

Ashley Judd appointed U.N. Goodwill Ambassador American actress Ashley Judd has been appointed as their latest Goodwill Ambassador by United Nations.

• Ashley and UNFPA will be joining forces to raise awareness of the huge work that still needs to be done across the world to stop women dying giving life and to empower women to choose when and how often to become pregnant.

Amar Abrol to succeed Mittu Chandilya as CEO of AirAsia India AirAsia India announced that Amar Abrol will succeed Mittu Chandilya as the CEO of AirAsia India, with effect from April 1, 2016.

• Chandilya’s contract ends March 31, 2016, but he will continue with the company until the end of April to ensure a smooth transition of the CEO role.

Pfizer appoints Sridhar as its MD Pharmaceutical major Pfizer appointed S Sridhar as its new Managing Director (MD) with immediate effect for a period of five years.

• Prior to joining Pfizer, Mr. Sridhar worked as the Finance Director of Diageo India Pvt Ltd

Honeywell appoints Suresh Senapaty as its Chairman Honeywell Automation India Ltd (HAIL) announced appointment of former Wipro CFO Suresh Senapaty as its Chairman.

• Suresh Senapaty has been appointed as an Additional Director (Non-Executive, Independent) and as Chairman of its Board of Directors, effective from March 8, 2016

• He succeeds Surendra L. Rao, who served as member of the Board of Directors of HAIL since January 2002 and as Chairman of the Board of Directors from August 2014 to February 2016

Lori Robinson-the First female US Army Combatant Commander The big boss(USA) has named its first female army combatant commander to be Lori Robinson. The position is one of the most senior in the US military and she was nominated by the President Barack Obama.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• She is currently commander for the Pacific Air Forces and enrolled in the Air Force in

1982

• She would also be the first ever female combatant commander if nomination is approved by the senate

Vijay Mallya resigned as Director of Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited Vijay Mallya has resigned as Director of Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited (RCSPL) and decided only to be an Honorary Chief Mentor till his son Siddhartha is in the Board of Directors. • With this, the new chairman of Royal Challenger Bangalore is Amrit Thomas, President and Chief Marketing Officer of United Spirits.

Indian Professor appointed 56th President of ISA An Indian Professor named Thazha Varkey Paul has been chosen as the 56th President of International Studies Association (ISA), at its annual convention at Atlanta, Georgia. ISA is a scholarly group in the US dedicated to international studies.

• He is presently serving as James McGill professor of International Relations in the department of Political Science at McGill University.

UN appoints ‘Red’-the leader of angry birds as the Ambassador to Climate change The popular mobile game figure Angry bird-‘Red’ is now to become the honorary ambassador of Climate change announced by the UN. Flash points

• It was declared on the International day of happiness by the UN that ‘red’ the head of angry birds will be the honorary ambassador of climate change

• The campaign is in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Foundation

• It asks people to make the angry birds happy by taking actions on climate change • It is insisted to promote the hashtag #AngryBirdsHappyPlanet in the social media to spread the awareness

• The campaign was launched by the UN General Secretary Ban-ki-Moon

Lionel Messi-Ambassador of Huawei The world famous soccer, Lionel Messi has been appointed by Huawei as its Global ambassador for its mobile products.

• Huawei shipped 108 million smartphones in 2015 and became the third-largest player after Apple and Samsung.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Ritu Beri appointed as Adviser to Khadi Commission Fashion designer Ritu Beri was appointed advisor to the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) for promotion of khadi in India and across the world.

• The Khadi and Village Industries Commission is a statutory body formed by the Government of India, under the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act of 1956

• The commission appointed Beri as an advisor for a period of one year during which she will advise on ways to promote khadi

Ali Mohamed Shein won the Presidential election of Zanzibar Ali Mohamed Shein of Tanzania ruling party Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has become the winner of the presidential elections. He won with 91.4 percent of the votes.

• The presidential elections held was the re-run of the elections held in October 2015, which were cancelled by the ZEC on grounds of fraud

• Shein won 299982 votes against just 6076 votes (1.9 percent) won by his main rival Seif Sharif Hamad of the opposition Civic United Front (CUF)

Paytm appoints ex-head of Alibaba as its President Mobile Payment and e-commerce site Paytm has appointed Bhusan Patil as its new President. He was the head of Alibaba wholesale groups earlier.

• Paytm has appointed its new President to help Paytm grow across the borders • Currently Paytm has a userbase of 125 Million and it has planned to sell $ 2 billion worth products in 2016

• It has planned to increase its sellers form 7 lakh to 5 lakhs

Justice Permod Kohli appointed as Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal Permod Kohli named as the Chairman in the Central AdministrativeTribunal, Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment.He is a retired Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court.

• The appointment was for a period of five years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post, or till attaining the age of 68 years, whichever is earlier.

Former Malaysian PM Badawi named new Petronas adviser Former Malaysian PM Abdullah Ahmad Badawi named as an adviser for state oil firm Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), His appointment is effective April 1.

• Government owned Petronas headquartered in Kuala Lumpur is Malaysian Oil and Gas Company that was founded on 17 August 1974. 102 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

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• He will be replacing country’s longest serving prime minister Mahathir Mohamad who has

been expelled from the post two weeks ago.

Tata Steel Europe CEO to quit Karl Koehler, chief executive officer (CEO) and managing director (MD) of Tata Steel Europe is stepping down to take up a senior leadership positions, Hans Fischer, currently chief technical officer of Tata Steel Europe, will be appointed as the new CEO.

• Koehler, who has been with Tata for six years, but he will remain available in an advisory capacity for a short period.

Indian appointed UN adviser on human rights and businesses Professor Surya Deva has been appointed by the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council as an adviser formally known as Special Procedure Mandate Holder on human rights and multinationals and businesses.

• He will be a member of the four-member Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises.

• The advisers of the body report annually to the Council and in most cases to the UN General Assembly.

Taiwan Nationalist Party selected its first female leader The Nationalist party of Taiwan has chosen Hung-Hsiu-chu as its first female leader after ousting her as its presidential candidate.

• Hung takes over from Eric Chu, who was the party’s eventual presidential candidate and who resigned as party chairman after the defeat

• Tsai Ing-wen, who belonged to the Democratic Progressive Party won the presidential election of Taiwan Indian-American named president CEO of bank of the west Indian-American Nandita Bakshi has been appointed the President and Chief Executive Officer of Bank of the West.

• The new Chief Executive will replace Michael Shepherd as Bank of the West’s next President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and is expected to join the bank as a CEO-in-training on April 1 and will take the helm officially on June 1.

• Currently she also serves on the board of the Consumer Bankers Association.

Rakesh Mohan joins Nestle India Board Former RBI Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan will join its board as an independent director in Nestle India.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Mohan’s would come on Nestle India’s board from May 1, 2016, as an Independent Non-

Executive Director.

Zaheer Khan appointed Captain of Delhi Daredevils for 2016 IPL season India’s best left-arm pace bowler ever, Zaheer Khan was appointed captain of Delhi Daredevils for the upcoming ninth edition of Indian Premier League.

Htin Kyaw sworn in as Myanmar President Htin Kyaw was sworn as Myanmar’s new president along with his two vice presidents and18 Cabinet ministers.

• Htin Kyaw from the National League for Democracy (NLD) was sworn in as Myanmar’s new president. The first elected civilian leader in more than 50 years.

• Htin Kyaw from the National League for Democracy (NLD) takes over from Thein Sein, who introduced wide-ranging reforms during his five years in power.

Faustin-Archange Touadera sworn in as President of Central Africa Faustin-Archange Touadera was sworn in as the president of the Central African Republic in the main stadium at Bangui.

• Following this, France sent its troops and established ‘Sangaris’ operation to restore peace

Jitendra Jagota Has Appointed As the Chairman of IDSA Self-regulatory body for the direct selling industry in India named JitendraJagota as the new Chairman in its new Executive Committee at the General Body Meeting held in New Delhi. Mr.Jagota will succeed RajatBanerj.

• Prior to his new appointment he is the Director Legal and Government Affairs, Avon Beauty Products India Pvt. Ltd has been has become the Chairman of the Association.

Wipro appoints Patrick Dupuis as its Board member The IT Major Wipro has announced the appointment of Patrick Dupuis as its new independent board member.

• Patrick Dupuis was the Senior Vice President of Paypal Holdings

First female speaker for Vietnam Parliament Vietnam has chosen Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan as its first female speaker.

• Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan got 472 votes out of the total 481 votes and got a clean sweep of majority in becoming the speaker of the assembly 104 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• She became the first female speaker of the nation and also elected as thechairperson

of National Election council with 467 votes out of 477

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

Hinduja group acquires Britain Building Hinduja group have officially acquired the famous 1,100 room Old War Office Building of Britain in central London for an undisclosed sum.

• The historic Old War Office Building in Central London is situated near the Britain parliament

• The UK defence ministry told that the building was sold for a 250 year lease arrangement to the companies following a competitive market

CCS gives nod to acquire 2 AWACS from Israel Cabinet Committee on security gives nod to acquire two advanced Israeli Phalcon AWACS(Airborne Warning and Control System) from Israel.

• The two AWACS will be the tune of Rs. 7500crore and will enhance India to detect any threat by aerial route than ground based radars.

Pincon Spirit acquires Singapore-based Orbitol Solutions Pincon Spirit has acquired Singapore based merchant trading Agriculture Company Orbitol Solutions, However the company did not reveal the deal size.

• After this acquisition Orbitol Solutions has become a wholly-owned subsidiary of PinconSpiritthe

InnerChef acquires EatonGO, Flavour Labs Entrepreneur Rajesh Sawhney founded InnerChef, a food tech startuphas acquired two startups – Bengaluru-based EatonGo and Gurgaon-based Flavour Labs.

• Innerchef, which started its operations in April 2015 working on the ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat meals segments.

• The acquisition of Flavour Labs, a food company, will help InnerChef enter the mobile kitchen segment, while EatOnGo, which specialises in breakfasts, will help the company expand its presence in Bengaluru.

DBS to acquire RBS on shore branch for 1000 crores The leading South Asian bank DBS is set to acquire the on shore operations of RBS in India for a deal of 1000 crores.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Loan book value- 11,150 crores • Network of 10 branches

• Corporate loan platform Main parts of RBS operations • Debt capital market

Bharti Airtel to acquire Videocon’s spectrum in 6 circles for Rs 4,428 crore Bharti Airtel acquire Videocon Telecom’s spectrum in six circles for Rs 4,428 crore through a bandwidth trading deal.

• Bharti Airtel has entered into a definitive agreement with Videocon Telecommunications Limited to acquire, at an aggregate consideration of Rs 4,428 crore rights to use 2 x 5 MHz spectrum in the 1800 MHz Band

Magic Bricks acquires property analysis platform”Properji.com” Property site, Magic Bricks has acquired property analysis startup ”Properji.com” of Invact Technologies for an undisclosed sum. It will help the consumer to make an informed property buying decision.

Ola acquires payment solutions-Qarth technologies Taxi cab app based company Ola has acquired payment technology solutions Qarth technologies to strengthen its money base.

• Qarth, incubated from IIT madras has been acquired by Ola to integrate it with its Ola money to facilitate the payment

Inox Wind acquires Sarayu Wind Power Wind energy solutions provider Inox Wind Infrastructure Services Limited, has acquired Sarayu Wind Power (Kondapuram in Andra Pradesh) Private Limited, with effect from March 25, 2016.

• Noida based Inox Wind Limited conveyed to the Bombay Stock Exchange in a regulatory filing that it has acquired Sarayu Wind Power with effect from March 25. Yokohama Rubber Co to buy Alliance Tire Group for $1.2 billion Tokyo based Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd has agreed to buy Alliance Tire Group, a Netherlands- based company led by Indian entrepreneur Yogesh Mahansaria, for $1.2 billion from private equity firm KKR & Co. Ltd. Yokohama Rubber, a Japanese maker of passenger-car tyres.

• The Yokohama Group will acquire the 90% stake held by KKR and 10% of the Mahansaria family. Billon Dollar Deal:

• The deal is valued at about 2.2 times Alliance Tire’s annual sales and more than 12 times its operating profit for the 2015 fiscal year. The deal is fifth largest off road tyre making market.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

ITC Has Acquired TechnicoAgri Sciences Ltd For Rs 121 Cr.

FMCG Major ITC has acquired Technico Agri Sciences Ltd (TASL), a company owned by its direct subsidiary, Technico Pty Limited (TPL), Australia for Rs 121 crore.

• Prior to such acquisition, Technico Agri Sciences Limited was a wholly owned subsidiary of Technico Pty Limited, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC Limited.

NTT acquires IT firm of Dell Japan based NTT has acquired the IT arm of PC manufacturer Dell. The deal is valued at $ 3 billion. Dell has been debt ridden due to the acquisition of data storage provider for $ 67 billion.

• With the new acquisition, NTI will make its presence in North America and expand its global network and improve its infrastructure services

• NTI will now have around 230 data centres across the globe including those of Dell in UK,Australia and US

• Dell services in India are in Bangalore, Noida, Chennai and Coimbatore

Russia approved OVL deal to acquire 15% stake in Vankor oilfield for $1.3 billion Russia has approved a deal of ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) to acquire 15% stake in Vankor oilfield from Rosneft, The deal size of 1.3 billion US dollars’ was signed between the OVL and Rosneft in September 2015.

• The new deal enables OVL’s stake in Vankor will raise to 26% from 15% and will give it about 3.5 million metric tonnes of oil a year Consequently,

Sun Pharma buys Novartis’ 14 brands for $ 293 mn in Japan Mumbai based drug Major Sun Pharma has entered into the Japanese medicine market by buying 14 established brands from Novartis and Novartis Pharma AG in Japan for $293 million.

SCHEMES

Food Security Scheme implemented in 47 districts in UP Akhilesh Yadav led Uttar Pradesh government to implement Food Security Act 2013 in 47 more districts of the state.

• With this the entire state of 75 districts will come under the ambit of the food scheme, UP government having launched this Act in 28 districts from January 1this year.

• The beneficiaries will get subsidized food grains, including wheat at a rate of Rs. 2and the rice at a rate of Rs. 3 per kg. Each beneficiary will be allowed to get 5 Kg per month.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Punjab Becomes Seventh State To Sign Up For UDAY Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) is the financial package and the turnaround and revival package for electricity distribution companies of India (DISCOMs) initiated by the Government of India to support them overcome the financial turmoil they are in.

• Punjab has become the seventh state to join the scheme. Therefore, it will be able to handle a debt of 20,838 crores and revive the power sector of the state.

MOEFCC Has Classified Industries Based On Colour Based Index The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has released a new Four-colour Classification Scheme for industries based on their pollution level. • The four-colour classification scheme of industrial sectors based on the Pollution Index (PI) which is a function of the Emissions (air pollutants)

• Red category: PI score of 60 and above. These are severe polluting industries. It includes sugar, thermal power plants, paints

• Orange category: PI score of 41 to 59. They moderately polluting industries. It includescoal, automobile servicing and washeries

• Green category: PI score of 21 to 40. They are significantly low polluting industries. Totally there are 63 industries in it.

• White category: PI score below and upto 20. They are non-polluting industries. These industries do not require Environmental clearance for their functioning

Haryana launches ‘Adapting homes for the differently-abled’ scheme. Haryana launched a new scheme, under which six months’ pension would be given in advance to persons with disabilities for adapting their homes as per their requirement. This amount would be recovered over a period of 42 months under the ‘Adapting homes for the differently-abled’ scheme. Other Schemes for PWD persons:

• Haryana has also been selected by the Centre as a pilot State for universal ID for persons with disability, for which work has already been started.

• Gurgaon and Faridabad districts have been selected for the ‘Accessible India’ campaign for persons with disabilities.

PM selects Nagepur village in Varanasi for development under SAGY Prime Minister Narendra Modi Selects his own Varanasi constituency village Nagepur for development under Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana.

• This Village Nagepur selected after Jayapur village of the same constituency is going to be adopted by the Prime Minister’s in order to develop India.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Karnataka launches Mukhyamantri Santwana Harish Yojana for free treatment to accident victims Karnataka Government led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah launched Mukhyamantri Santwana Harish Yojana for free treatment to accident victims for the first 48 hours in the nearest hospital be it Government or Private Hospital.

• The accident victims treatment scheme Mukhyamantri Scheme Harish Yojana has been named after Nanjappa who donated his eyes minutes before he passes away seeking help after severely injured in a mishap in the city. Santwana Harish Yojana Highlights:

• The Scheme emphasizes to provide immediate medical relief would be provided to the victim during the Golden Hour with financial aid up to Rs. 25, 000 during the first two days.

• The Accident Victims could be treated in nearest government or Private hospital.

Cabinet approves Pradhan Mantri Ujjwal Yojana The cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwal Yojana– a scheme for providing LPG to households Below Poverty Line.

Flash points

• The scheme is estimated at the cost of 8000 crores • The scheme will benefit five crore families below poverty line • It ensures a financial support of Rs 1600 for each LPG connection to the BPL households

• This Scheme would be implemented over three years, namely, the FY 2016–17, 2017- 18 and 2018-19

Haryana to join UDAY scheme Seven states have already joined the UDAY(Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana) scheme which is an initiative to clear the debts of the state run power distribution companies. Need of UDAY– It is a scheme for restructuring debt of power distribution companies (discoms) in the state. Flash points

• The power discoms in the state had a total debt of Rs 34,500 crore, of which the state government would take over Rs 25,000 crore in two tranches

• In the first tranche, the state will take over Rs17,000 crore debt in 2016-17 • Rs 8,000 crore will be taken over before September 2018

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The actual transfer would happen over five years. The grant component would be 20 per

cent, while the remaining would be debt.

• Non-statutory liquidity ratio bonds would be issued against the 80 per cent debt for which the distribution companies would have to pay an interest of 8.5-nine per cent against 12.5-13 per cent, which is normally paid.

• The state discoms stand to gain Rs 8,000 crore from the scheme

NITI Aayog launches Women Transforming India Campaign The NITI Aayog as a part of International Women’s Day launched the Women Transforming India initiative in partnership with the UN in India and MyGov. Empowerment through essays: NITI Aayog seeks for entries in the form of written essays/stories. These stories should reflect new ground broken by women in empowering themselves/others, or of challenging stereotypes.

Features of the Campaign

• To encourage and recognize women • To encourage the stories of change fostered through the setting up of small businesses/enterprises

• To identify successes in leading change achieved either through the use of technology or by employing innovating on-ground

LED based lighting programme named UJALA(means Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) In an effort to promote measures that can save energy the Union government launches various programmes.One such important initiative is to provide LED lamps to households and promote its usage to save energy. The new scheme of LED based lighting has been named UJALA. About UJALA Programme:

• ‘UJALA‘ is the name given for the LED based Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme(DELP)

• DELP is successfully implemented across 120 cities in India • This scheme is implemented by Energy Efficiency Services Limited • PM Narendra Modi launched the scheme to provide LED’s in January 2016 • It targets to replace 77 crores of incandescent lamps with energy saving LED’s • UJALA is successfully running across 12 states in India namely Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttarakhand 110 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

RUSA Scheme to be implemented to improve Equity, Quality of Higher Education An initiative to improve the Quality of Higher education in India by implementing RUSA scheme which was started in 2013 was in news again with the Minister of HRD providing information about the scheme in the Lower house.

• RUSA- Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan • Aim –To provide strategic funding to eligible state higher educational institutions Implementation Authorities National Mission Authority, Project Approval Board and the National Project Directorate at the centre and the State Higher Education Council and State Project Directorate at the state level Funding for RUSA

• The central funding in the ratio of 65:35 for general category States and 90:10 for special category states

• The funding will be given by the Union Human Resources Ministry through the state governments/union territories to the State Higher Education Councils

Union government mobilizes 370 crore for Swachh Bharat Khosh Narendra Modi’s government launched the Swachh Bharat campaign in October, 2014.Since then various initiatives have been taken by the government to improve the cleanliness of the nation. As a part of it, the fund for Swachh Bharat Khosh is mobilized with 370 crores by the government. Swachh Bharat Khosh– It is a fund created to support the various cleanliness programmes across the nation Fund collected: 365 crores from Corporates and 5.95 lakhs from individuals and total fund as on January 31 is 369.74 crores Projects funded under the scheme:

• The funds are used for achieving the objective of improving cleanliness levels in ruraland urban areas including in schools.

• For construction of toilets funds to the extent of Rs 359 crore have been released to various state level implementing agencies during December 2014 to January 2016.

Central Government amends Atal Pension Yojana(APY) Central Government has amended Atal Pension Yojana (APY) to give an option to the spouse to continue to contribute for balance period on premature death of the subscriber.

• According to the amendment, the spouse of the subscriber shall be entitled to receive the same pension amount as that of the subscriber until the death of the spouse.

• After the death of both the subscriber and the spouse, the nominee of the subscriber shall be entitled to receive the pension wealth, as accumulated till age of 60 years of the subscriber. 111 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Wages of NREGS hiked by 6% The Union government has proposed to hike the wages of NREGS workers by 6%. They have dropped the new wage calculation formula. Flash points

• The government appointed a committee to revise the wage calculation formula for the MGNREGA workers

• According to the new recommendations, the wages will be calculated on CPI-rural index • The current scheme of wages is based on the agricultural labour index • It is said by officials that the new scheme will help the workers to combat with the spiking prices due to inflation

• However this will cost an additional 2000 crore rupees for the government • Hence hey have dropped the new wage scheme and hiked the wages by 6%

Arun Jaitley Launches Fasal Bima Yojana The Union government’s scheme to revamp the farmers by providing crop insurance known as the Fasal Bima Yojana and Unified Package Insurance scheme was launched by the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Importance of the scheme

• Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana– It is an insurance scheme for the farmers which provide relief to the farmers when crops are affected by Natural calamities

• It is different from the other schemes in that it provides a higher sum compared to other insurance schemes and also it requires low premium

• Hence this scheme is in complete interests of the farmers

Cabinet approves Udaan scheme till 2019-20 The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, led by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for extension of time period of the Udaan Scheme for Jammu & Kashmir till 2019- 20 from the earlier time period of 2015-16. Udaan Scheme:

• Udaan is a national integration scheme with the goal to mainstream J&K youth with rest of the country and targeting to train and enhance employability of 40,000 graduates, post graduates and three year engineering diploma holders, will be achieved by 2019-20.

Cabinet approves Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana As announced by the president during his Presidential address in 2014 Independence Day speech, the Housing for all scheme has been approved by the cabinet.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana

• This scheme intends to provide houses for all people in the rural area • Under this scheme, incentive will be given by the government to build Pucca house • Financial assistance of 1,20,000 in plain areas and 1,30,000 in hill areas will be given to all houseless and people those who live in dilapidated houses

• The scheme proposes to build 1 crore houses in the year 2016-17 to2018-19 • The cost will be shared between the centre and states in the ratio of 60:40 in plain areas • For north eastern and Hilly areas, the ratio will be 90:10 • The total fund allotted for 2017-19 is 81795 crores • The beneficiary is entitled to 90 days of unskilled labour from MGNREGA. This will be ensured through a server linkage between PMAY and MGNREGA. MoUs Telangana, Maharashtra ink MoU for five irrigation projects The Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between Telangana and Maharashtra government on river Godavari Water Projects in Mumbai.

• The MoU will pave the way for construction of five Barrages on Godavari River and its tributaries Penganga and Pranahita projects which has kept aside due inter-state disputes.

• Maharashtra Chief Minister Davendra Fadnavis and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao signed five MoUs which will include both the Ongoing and new projects.

NTPC signs MoU for research with IIT Delhi Power giant NTPC has signed pact with Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, have signed aMoU for Research and Development.

• The R&D emphasized in areas of mutual interest such as Simulation and modelling, heat transfer and thermal process, artificial intelligence Solar and Renewable integration.

• Under this agreement Joint research projects will be taken up for development of new technologies and performance improvement.

Union Government and Jammu & Kashmir Government signed MoU on UDAY Scheme Jammu and Kashmir Government has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Union Ministry of Power, An overall net benefit of approximately Rs.9800 crore would accrue to the State by opting to participate in UDAY.

• Jammu and Kashmir reforms and issue power bonds worth about Rs 7000 crores, which were equal to the power liabilities of the State. 113 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Union Power Secretary PK Pujari andCommissioner Power Development

Department, J&K Dheeraj Gupta signed the agreement in New Delhi

India Inks Social Security Agreement Pact with Australia India has signed a pact with Australia under which the employees deputed to Australia from India and viceversa need not make double social security contribution. Social security agreement - This agreement provides the exception to the employees who have been deputed on a short term basis say less than 60 months from paying social security contribution to both the countries.

India And China Exchange Tariff Cut Offers India and China, Asia’s two fast growing large economies of the decade have planned to liberalise trade ties as they exchange offers on tariff cuts in goods imports. Highlights

• Against India’s offer to remove 5% of tariff lines under the 16-country Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), China has expressed its willingness to

• abolish equivalent amount of tariff lines for India. • Removal of tariff lines would mean that the import taxes on the items would be reduced to zero over a specified period of time

• India’s merchandise exports to China stood at a mere $11.9 billion in 2014-15, while China’s exports to India were to the tune of $60.4 billion.

MS Swaminathan Research Chair for Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences MS Swaminathan Research Foundation has signed MoU with Bhubaneswar based Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences.

• The MoU signed between Professor M S Swaminathan and AchyutaSamanta Founder of KISS, this is the first in the nation to establish Research Chair in any private Institute.

• On behalf this MoU the two institutes will work on Promotion of Knowledge and skill empowerment for less privileged children in India.

Cabinet nods to MoU’s signed by Railways with Russia and Japan The Union cabinet apprised the MoU signed by the Railway ministry with Japan and Russia for technical cooperation in the railway sector.

• An MoC was signed between the Ministry of Railways and the Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) for technical cooperation in the railways

• An MoU was signed by Indian Railways’ Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) with Japanese Railway Technical Research Institute (RTRI) on December 11,2015 114 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Union Cabinet approved MoU between India and Bahrain on Cooperation for Prevention of Human Trafficking Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Bahrain on cooperation for prevention of human trafficking especially trafficking in women and children,,rescue, recovery, repatriation and re-integration of victims of trafficking has been approved by the Union Government.

• Decision in this regard taken by the Union Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The approved MoU is expected to be signed during the Home Minister visit to Bangkok in the April.

MoU Signed Between M/O Tourism and Ecotourism Society of India for Responsible and Sustainable Tourism The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India signed a MOU with the Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI) to take its commitments to Responsible and Sustainable tourism.

• Under this MOU it is projected that sustainable tourism and Responsible Tourism will take the front and achieve the commitments of the Ministry’s action plan. The ESOI will prepare a 10-year Road Map for advocacy and certification under the Sustainable Tourism Criteria for India.

• Over the past eight years it attempted to spread awareness and educate tourism service providers as well as local government officials on the urgent need to ensure sustainable tourism practices,13 workshops have been conducted across the country in this context

Railways Sign MoU with ISRO for use of Space technology Ministry of Railways has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for developing Remote Sensing and geographic information system (GIS) for Remote Sensing at unmanned railway crossing and other uses. Aim of the MoU

• The MoU aims for developing applications in the field of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) for Remote Sensing at unmanned railway crossings

India and Bangladesh Enter into New Era of Petroleum Trade India and Bangladesh began a new era of petroleum trade with a special goodwill train loaded with High speed diesel from India to Bangladesh.

• The 42 wagon rail rake is loaded with around 2500 MT High Speed Diesel • It started off from Siliguri station to Parbatipur station over 516 kms • It is a symbolic gesture of friendship and cooperation that exists between India and Bangladesh

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• This is the first major petroleum consignment from India

• It is a part of the Sale-Purchase Agreementsigned between NRL and Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation(BPC)

India signs USD 35 Million loan deal with World Bank World Bank approves USD 35 million credit agreement to Madhya Pradesh for the Citizen Access to Responsive Services Project.

• The main objective of the project is to improve access to selected public services for the people of the state, particularly those belonging to disadvantaged groups.

MoU between Indian Army and Indusind Bank A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Indian Army and Hinduja Grouped IndusInd Bank on the Defence Salary package.

• The signing ceremony of MoU was headed by Lt Gen Rakesh Sharma and the Dignitaries from IndusInd bank headed by Anil M Rao Head-General Banking Operations.

• The first MoU was signed earlier in 2011 was valid for a period of three years, this MoU revised to suit the requirements of serving soldiers also provide them opportunity to access modern banking facilities.

RBI inks information exchange pact with Bank of Israel Mumbai based Reserve Bank of India has signed a pact with Bank of Israel for Information Exchange and Banking supervision.

• A memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between HedvaBer from Bank of Israel and Parvathy V sundaram Chief General Manager on behalf of RBI.

• With this, the RBI has signed 32 such MoUs, one Letter for Supervisory Co-operation and one Statement of Co-operation.

Yes Bank in pact with Indo-Brazil chamber for strategic co-op Yes Bank, is India’s fifth largest private sector Bank has signed pact with the India Brazil Chamber of Commerce for cooperation in knowledge sharing, consultancy, skill and technology.

• Sports, media and entertainment with special focus on IT, infrastructure, broadcast driven business opportunities are the core sectors covered under this MoU.

Four Oil Psus Sign Pacts To Raise Stake In Russian Oil Field The national Oil Giants namely ONGC Videsh Ltd, Oil India Ltd, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd and Bharat Petro Resources — and Russia’s Rosneft have signed two separate memorandums of understanding, one Heads of Agreement, and one sale purchase agreement worth $2 billion to increase India’s participation in the Siberian oil and gas fields. 116 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

NHAI ties up with Indian School of Business for skill development of its technical and managerial manpower National Highway Authority of India joined hands with Hyderabad based Indian School of Business for skill development of its technical and managerial manpower.

• Road sector is seen as the one of the key areas to achieve the objective and ensure sustained economic growth.

• ISB to train officials from NHAI on Leadership Programme in Infrastructure Management aims at developing skills and competencies relating multiple disciplines including strategic Planning , Finance, Economics, Law, Social and Environmental Issues.

India to supply Locomotives to Myanmar RITES (Public Sector Enterprise under Ministry of Railways) signed a contract to supply 18 Meter Gauge 1350 HP Diesel Electric Locomotives to Myanmar Railways. Flash points

• India will supply 18 meter Gauge 1350 HP Diesel Electric Locomotives to Myanmar Railways according to the new MoU signed between India and Myanmar

• The agreement was signed on March 4 at Naypyitaw, Myanmar • These locomotives will be manufactured by Diesel Locomotive Works, Varanasi

AYUSH joins hands with WHO In a move to popularize the Ayurvedic medicines, AYUSH ministry has roped in with World Health Organisation and signed an MoU.

• India also enters into agreement with US in research field of Cancer through Ayurveda medicines

• The Arogya fair which aims to create awareness among the people about efficiency of the AYUSH Systems, their cost effectiveness and the availability of herbs and plants used for prevention and treatment of common ailments was inaugurated in Pune

TATA motors to supply 619 HMV’S to Indian Army The automobile giant, TATA motors have signed a agreement with the Indian Army to supply 619 more Highly mobilized trucks to the Indian Army.

• Tata 6X6 HMV is meant for the loading-unloading and transportation of ammunition pallets, spares and other operational equipment.

• Tata has already supplied 1239 units and it being the highest order to a private company from the defence sector under Defence Procurement Procedure

• The 6X6 HMV is a indigenously developed vehicle

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Consumer Affairs Ministry signs MoUs with industry bodies to promote consumer welfare

Consumer Affairs Department has signed MoUs with the Industry bodies to promote consumer interests and a Joint Working Group will monitor the implementation of agenda

• The MoUs broadly covers the collaborative programmes on developing and implementing a self-regulatory code of fair business practices

• The MoU initiating advocacy action against unfair trade practices and preventing fake, counterfeit and sub-standard products and services and adoption of voluntary standards.

India & France signed MoU to create 6 Nuclear Reactors India ,whose power demand grows day by day is now concentrating on Renewable energy sources and Nuclear power to meet its demand. In a move to further increase the Nuclear power generation potential of India, it has signed an MoU with nuclear energy pioneer France.

Points to note

• The proposed MoU will enable the building of six new nuclear reactors at Jaitapur in Maharashtra

• The agreement was signed between Electricite de France and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd

• The agreement was initially conceived during the France PM’s visit to India in January,2016

• The construction of 6 EPR will be under Make in India initiative

Cabinet approves agreements with other Nations The Union cabinet has given its approval to various MoU’s signed between India and other nations. The MoU’s approved by the cabinet belong to various sectors and various nations. India and Lithuania sign agreement in Field of Agriculture India and Lithuania signed an MoU in the field of agriculture and the agreement proposes to include horticulture, post-harvest management, organic farming, cold chain development and agro processing industry, animal husbandry, dairying and aquaculture etc Areas of concentration

• Capacity building, Knowledge exchange between scientists and technicians • Exchange of genetic resources • Development of appropriate technologies and farm practices for enhancing agriculture productivity at farmer’s field India & UAE ink MoU in Infrastructure development India signed a agreement with UAE in fields of Infrastructure development with the NIIF

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The agreement will mobilize long term investments through NIIF

• It includes investments in Commercially viable projects like green stalled projects and brown stalled projects India to accede Ashgabat agreement The Union government has given its approval to the Ashgabat agreement which facilitates transport of goods between Central Asia and Persian Gulf.

• Founding members: Oman, Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan • India by joining this agreement can use the existing transit corridor to facilitate goods transport in Eurasian region

• It will also help India in implementing the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) for enhanced connectivity

• India will convey its acceptance to depository state Turkmenistan India joins hands with Russia in Disaster Management India and Russia will join hands to minimize the consequences of Natural calamities like Flood and Earthquake.

• An MoU was signed in Prevention and Elimination of Consequences of Emergencies in the field of Disaster Management

• The MoU will allow both the Nations to come together in the areas such as controlling floods, minimising its consequences as well as collaboration in capacity building

Telangana inks pact with French aviation trainer To provide training to the aviation fraternity and aerospace, the agreement was signed between Telangana industries department principal secretary Arvind Kumar and Aerocampus Aquitaine general manager Jerome Verschave on the sidelines of the ongoing India Aviation 2016.

• The agreement paving the way for institute that will come up at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad.

• The French company plans to set up an academy to train local talent in addition to skilled workforce for the maintenance, repair and overha

• The Program aiming to train at least 1,000 students a year in aerospace and related areas. We want this aero campus to give maximum preference to Telangana students.

• These courses will be of various durations from few weeks to one year.

Nepal inks transit treaty with China, to have first rail link Land locked country Nepal signed pact with China to build a strategic railway link between the two countries through Tibet to reduce land-locked Nepal’s total dependence on India

• During the Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli’s seven day visit to China the two countries sealed 10 agreements, including the much-publicised transit trade treaty that will end Nepal’s total dependency on Indian sea ports for third-country trade.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The agreements signed include a feasibility study on the establishment of a Free Trade

Agreement, China’s assistance to build a new airport and a border bridge over theSimikot-Hilsa road section that will connect Humla district with Tibet.

Iran signs Oil contract with France Iran has signed a confidential oil agreement with France total company to develop the Azadegan oil field.

• Iran reached an with the Japanese Inpex a decade ago to develop the oil field • The Azadegan oil field has 2 billion barrels oil reserve Iran & Pakistan sign agreements to boost security, trade Iran has signed agreements with Pakistan to boost trade and security. The agreements were signed during Iran President’s visit to Pakistan. Importance of the Agreements

• The talks between the two leaders mainly concentrated on economic relations and security reasons

• This is the visit by an Iranian president after 14 years to Pakistan • Iran has invested over $2bn in the project, but Pakistan has yet to finish construction on its half of the pipeline

• The two countries were targeting $5 billion worth of mutual trade by 2021

Mizoram, JICA sign pact for promoting sustainable agriculture North-eastern state Mizoram and Japanese International Cooperative Agency signed pact on Capacity Enhancement for Sustainable Agriculture and Irrigation Development.

• JICA had conducted development study during 2013 and 2015 and had formulated a master plan covering 20 years and the technical cooperation project would commence from October this year and continue till September 2021.

ADB, USAID join hands to support India’s clean energy expansion plan The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on supporting India’s expansion plans for clean energy infrastructure.

• The MoU will pave the way to make USAID to align the components of its technical assistance with ADB’s current and planned investments in renewable energy.

• The Department of Economic Affairs had demanded ADB to provide financing up to $ 500 million each to support rooftop solar, and expansion of the transmission network to connect solar parks in multiple states.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

COMMITTEES

Maharashtra government forms committee to track MoUs signed during ‘Make in India’ week Maharashtra Government has formed a high-powered committee headed by Chief secretary Swadhi Kshatriya to ensure that the MoU s signed during the make in India week fructify.

• The Committee will have sub-committee to monitor and report the progress on the MoUs signed. In the Make in India last month held in Mumbai over 2500 MoUs were signed.

• These MoUs progress will be monitored by the Concerned Department while the rest officials will be reviewed and monitored by Head committee.

Mahesh Kumar Singla committee constituted to consider ST status to 6 communities of Assam The Centre to set up Committee to recommend the modalities for Granting of SC statusto six OBC communities in Assam.

• The committee will be headed by Special Secretary in the Home Ministry Mahesh Kumar Singla, and the committee will submit its report by May 31 this year.

• The Six communities that have been demanding ST status are Moran, Koch Rajbongshi, Muttuck,Sootea,Tai Ahom and Adivasis

• In article 342 of the constitution communities are notified as Scheduled Tribes if they display five basic characteristics Primitive traits, geographical isolation distinct culture, Shyness of contact with higher community and Economic Backwardness.

• If these communities were granted ST status the state will be a Tribal Dominated State accounting 50 % of Tribal population.

CCEA Approved Winding Up Of National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) The National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) will be wound up with immediate effect as it has fulfilled the mandate for which it was constituted. CCEA – One of the standing committees of the cabinet constituted by GOI Some of the main functions are

• To review economic trends, problems and prospects to evolve an efficient and consistent economic policy framework for India

• To direct and coordinate all economic policies and activities, including foreign investments that need economic decisions of the highest order.

SAC sets up panel on regularisation of casual labourers

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

State Administrative Council(SAC)Headed by the Governor Narinder Nath Vohra formed high level committee to look into the issue of regularisation of casual labourers and seasonal labourers.

• The committee would be chaired by the Chief Secretary with the financial commissioner, Planning and Development department and some key officials.

• The committee look into the extent of problems pertaining with casual labourers and financial, legal and administrative issues that might arise while considering the regularisation for dealing with such employees.

Indian Railways forms SPV to execute Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project Railways shifting the gears to introduce trains that run at speeds around 320 kmph, the railways have formed a new Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to implement the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Bullet Train project named the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited.

• Completion of the project aimed on time to avoid additional expenses of the project, a Joint Committee has been formed under the Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog with the secretaries of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Departments of Economic Affairs and Foreign Ministry as its members along with the Chairmanof Railway Board.

• The project expected that it will take about seven years after the awarding of the contract for the project to be completed.

• 81 per cent of the funding for the project would come from the loan from Japan. It is a soft loan for 50 years at 0.1 per cent annual interest with 15 years’ moratorium period.

Akhilesh Ranjan committee submits recommendations on Taxation of e-commerce A committee was constituted by the Central Board of Direct Taxes to examine the business models for e-commerce, identify the direct tax issues in relation to e-commerce transactions and provide suggestions.

• This committee was headed by Akhilesh Ranjan, Joint Secretary (CBDT) and it includes officers of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, representatives from the industry, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and tax experts Recommendations

• Equalization Levy may be imposed on payments to non-residents for specified services by a separate chapter in the Finance Act, 2016

• The rate of Equalization Levy may be between 6 to 8 percentof the gross sum received • Any income arising from a transaction on which Equalization Levy has been paid should be exempted from income-tax, by necessary amendment in Section 10 of the Income- tax Act, 1961

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The implementation and impact of Equalization Levy may be monitored on a regular

basis.

Justice H L Dattu appointed as member of International Coordinating Committee Bureau of NHRI-ICC The National Human Rights Commission announced in a statement that Former Chief Justice HL.Dattu has been appointed as member of the International Coordinating Committee Bureau of National Human Rights Institutions Bureau in Geneva.

• He was chosen unanimously after no other NHRI from the region nominated candidate against him to fill vacancy made after the representative of NHRI of South-Korea vacated it.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

NASA invites India to jointly explore Mars, send astronauts India’s maiden Successful Red Planet mission Mangalyaan paving the way for Joint Mission with NASA.

• ISRO’s capabilities at undertaking low cost, high value inter planetary mission has opened the eyes on India’s stand in the sector.

• NASA eying for the next mission to Mars for the next decade, which is 2020- 2030. US delegations invited ISRO to take part in the meeting to be held in Washington to plan for 5-6 mission to Mars.

Delhi government to launch first HPV vaccine Delhi government has launched the first HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) vaccine in the state to prevent cervical cancers. It has been found in a recent research that 1, 22,844 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 67,477 die from the disease every year in India.

• The vaccination for HPV virus will prevent the cervical cancer in women caused by sexual transmission

American Astronaut Scott KellyReturns to Earth after 340 Days in Space American Astronaunt Scott Kelly returns to earth after spending almost a year at International Space Station floating 250 miles above the earth

• He landed in barren Kazakhstan with a Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko who shared his whole journey.

• After 340 days he has seen 5400 earth orbits and nearly 11, 000 sunsets, with this Kelly have set the American record of 520 days in space.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Jual Oram Launches New Website of NCST

Union Tribal Affairs Minister JualOram launched the revamped website http://www.ncst.gov.inof National Commission for Scheduled Tribes in the Capital.

• The new website will be a tool of source for students, media and the common man, the site would come with interactive section, mobile app and customer focused Toll free interactive service.

First Edition Of e-Newsletter of Textiles Ministry Launched by Santosh kumar Gagwar Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar the Union Textiles Minister today launched the first edition of the e-newsletter of the Ministry of Textiles.

• The monthly newsletter of the Ministry is designed to share our focus on making development inclusive and participative and on a regular basis.

• The newsletter will share important news on the functioning of the Ministry and on the developments in the textiles sector, with a view to better empower and engage all our stakeholders, and thereby take governance closer to the people.

Indian Scientists Develop Breakthrough Dengue Drug Dengue, one of the most deadly diseases caused by mosquitoes, estimated to risk almost 50 per cent of the global population has finally found an enemy- A herbal drug claimed to be developed by Indian Scientists. The project was undertaken jointly by:

• The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), under the Ministry of Science and Technology • The International Centre for Genetic Engineering • Biotechnology (IGCEB) and Ranbaxy Research Laboratory (now owned by Sun Pharma) • These organizations employed Ayurveda to come out with the drug.

Iran conducts several ballistic missiles tests Iran has test fired several ballistic missiles in silos across the country as part of a military exercise.

• In the Military Exercise Missile test medium and long range precision guided missiles were test fired from various sites to display the country’s Hostility to confront any threats.

• In the Missile test fire the armaments used had ranges of 300 kilometres (190 miles),500 km, 800 km and 2,000 km.

Five health care ATMs have come up in four states Five Healthcare ATMs have come up in four states that dispense Medicines based on a prescription unless they refer the patient to a doctor. 124 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Five Medicine ATMS will come in Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and

Andhra Pradesh under a health Ministry pilot that merges telemedicine with a basic free drugs programme. Any Time Medicine:These Medicine ATMs will be handled by a multipurpose public health worker (MPHW) or an auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM) equipped with a multi-parameter patient vital monitor to check the basic health parameters.

China plans to land probe on Mars in 2021 China plans to land a probe on Mars in 2021 that coincide with the 100 th anniversary of founding of the ruling communist Party of china and a decade after its first failed mission in 2011.

• China is likely to initiate a Mars probe in 2020, after many months flying the probe to land in the Mars

ISRO geared up for launch of its Sixth Satellite The Indian Space Research Organization is geared up towards launching its Sixth Navigation Satellite today.

Flash points

• The sixth navigation satellite IRNSS-1F will be launched by the PSLV C-32 • The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C32, on its 34th mission, would launch the IRNSS-1F from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota

• The satellite is aimed at providing navigation services on par with the US-based Global Positioning System

NASA’s new Mars exploration mission set for May 2018 launch NASA’s new exploration InSight mission that begins on May 5, 2018, with a landing scheduled for November 26. It will help scientists know how rocky planets including Earth formed and developed.

• InSight project managers proposed a plan to redesign the science instrument was accepted in support of a 2018 launch.

Project ‘Mausam’ of M/O Culture aims to explore Multi-Faceted Indian Ocean ‘World’ Ministry of Culture has initiated Project “Mausam” which is to be implemented by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as the nodal agency with research support of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) and National Museum as associate bodies. 125 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Prime Objectives of the Project:

• This initiative is to explore the multi-faceted Indian Ocean ‘world’ – collating archaeological and historical research in order to document the diversity of cultural, in Indian Ocean– extending from East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Indian Subcontinent and Sri Lanka to the Southeast Asian archipelago.

Plastic Decaying Bacteria Discovered The important cause of pollution especially land and water pollution is the non -bio degradable Plastics. The most important bio discovery of the century has come with the discovery of bacteria that can decompose Plastics Plastics to become decomposable:The Japan researchers have discovered a new species of bacteria that is capable of breaking downPolyethylene terephthalate or PET in short

Railway launches online ‘clean my coach’ service Railways launched mobile app called Clean My Coach for all long-distance trains in which you can ask for your coach or toilet to be cleaned by putting a request on the app.

• Any passenger demanding cleaning staff by entering PNR in the form given above. Passengers may also send their requests as SMS to 58888 by typing CLEAN < Space >< 10-digit PNR number>they can also use the android app or Web page www.cleanmycoach.com for logging the request. Google’s next operating system is ‘Android N’ Search Giant’s Google is previewing the next version of its Android operating system in an effort to get the upgraded software on more mobile devices as the Upgraded version is ready before the schedule by two months

• The Upgraded OS “Android N” for now, offers a split-screen feature so users can toggle between apps more easily.

Telecom Operators Asked To Not Exceed 2% Limit On Call Drops By Supreme Court A Supreme Court Bench headed by Justice Kurian Joseph asked the Telecos to not to exceed the call drops limit over 2% and no penalty will be levied on them until they don’t cross this threshold. The TRAI regulation - It has been mandated the Telecos to pay subscribers Re 1 for every call drop they experience on their network, subject to a cap of three call drops a day, starting from January 1, 2016.

Interactive Web portal Kendriya Sainik Board launched

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

In an effort of modernizing various government sectors, the announcement came today from the Defence ministry in introducing an interactive web portal Kendriya Sainik Board. This web portal will be under the Department of Ex-Serviceman Welfare.

• The interactive portal Kendriya Sainik Board enables the ex-serviceman to avail various schemes by submitting online applications thereby reducing the paperwork and saves time

Free Wi-Fi Service launched At Srinagar International Airport The 4G hotspot-based internet servicelaunched by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) to offer free Wifi services at the Srinagar International Airport. Users will have access to 15 minutes of free-of-charge Wifi services.

• The first 15 minutes will be free and after that if passengers want to continue, they will be redirected to payment gateway after selecting the preferred plan.

Europe and Russia launched Exo-Mars to explore the Red Planet Europe and Russia launched an unmanned spacecraft, named ExoMars 2016, to explore if life once existed on the Red Planet or still possibilities are there for existence. Exo-Mars

• The ExoMars programme is a joint endeavour between European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian space agency, Roscosmos

• It aims to explore whether life has ever existed on Mars

Earthquake Warning System Installed At Haryana Govt’s Building The new Secretariat in Haryana has become the only building in India to have an Earthquake Warning System installed onsite.

• The ‘Early Earthquake Warning and Security System’ has been installed by Terra Techcom free of cost. Around 26 countries in the world have this technology already. This system can save lives by giving alert of a future earthquake well ahead of time. Early Earthquake Warning and Security System

• Terra Techcom collaborated with Secretary Electronics GmbH, Germany for the project.

Wikipedia Developing Speech Engine for Visually Impaired Users Wikimedia Sweden has partnered with the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden to develop the crowd-sourced speech engine in order to make more accessible to the visually impaired users.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Researchers will begin developing the engine for Swedish, English, and Arabic, which

they aim to complete by September 2017.

Malawi, UNICEF tested first UAV flights for early diagnosis of HIV in infants UNICEF launched the first test for the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles-drones with Malawi government to search the cost effective ways of decreasing waiting period for HIV testing of infants.

• The joint initiative took place at Area 25 Health Centre in Lilongwe where theset drone airborne on its test flight to Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) covering a distance of 10 km at 400ft above the sea level.

Webportal Launched for allocation and monitoring of Coal resources Another move in making transparent governance, Union Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal New and Renewable Energy launched the web portal for distribution of coal by State Distribution agencies.

Features of Web portal

• Motivates states for paperless communication digitizing all the information • It will save time and energy of government organizations • The Web portal would provide small and medium consumers access to information about SNAs, availability, booking/supply distribution of coal in public domain

IMD develops Drishti for providing real time visibility information to pilots The India Meteorology Department (IMD) has indigenously developed Drishti, an instrument that will provide real time visibility information to pilots. About Drishti:

• It has enabled in transferring the crucial visibility updates to the pilots every minute. • It will update the real time weather parameters like wind speed, humidity, temperature conditions, etc., Drishti was introduced first at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) in New Delhi in 2015 on a trial basis.

FCI’S Depot Online System Has Been Launched by the Union Government Depot Online System of state run Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been launched by the Union Government to carry transparency and minimize storage losses of food grains. • The Union Food and public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan have launched this system in New Delhi as part of Digital India initiative of Union Government.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Union Government bans repeat animal testing of drugs

The Health Ministry has banned the repeat animal testing of new drugs which have been already tested abroad. The step is taken in order to spare thousands of animals on which the experiments are done. So the new rule states that if a complete data is available on animal toxicity as per the specifications by the regulatory authority of the country which had earlier approved the drug, repeating of testing is not required.

• This move was taken after Women Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi wrote to the Health Ministry on this practice.

I-T gets new tech tool to identify, kill duplicate PAN cards The Income Tax department has finally got a new technology tool to check the duplication of PAN cards.

• The department has operationalized an electronic smart platform called the Income Tax Business Application-Permanent Account Number (ITBA-PAN) to identify any duplicate numbers every time a new application for generation of PAN card reaches their portals.

Baxi app to now work without Internet Gurgaon-based Baxi has come up with a new feature in its android mobile app which will allow its users to book rides on the app without using Internet. The bike-taxi hailing app offers services in Gurgaon and Faridabad.

• For booking offline, the user will have to open app and just press the BOOK button. The app will send SMS to send the user’s location and request to its server, find the closest Baxi and respond to the user with that information using SMS.

• With this innovation, Baxi app has become the first and only taxi-booking app in the world that will operate without an Internet connection.

Telephone feedback mechanism for Grievance Redressal The Union government has taken various technological initiatives to ease the administrative works of various departments. The telephone feedback system is one such initiative for redressal of grievances of the people.

• It was launched by the Union Minister of State for Personnel and Public Grievances- Jitendra Singh

• This mechanism will allow the people to come in direct contact to register their complaints about various departments

ISRO establishes GIRI radar system in Tirupathi The Space pioneer of India ISRO has established the Gadanki Ionospheric Radar 129 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Interferometer (GIRI) near Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.

Located at: National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL) which is an autonomous research institute of the Department of Space Construction: It consists of a rectangular antenna array of 160 two-element Yagi-antenna, arranged in a 20×8 matrix, 20 transmitter units, 6 digital receivers including data processing systems, a radar controller, and a host computer Objective :

• To carry out unattended observations towards studying the forces from the sun like variation in solar flux, solar flare and magnetic storm on the ionospheric irregularities

• To study unattended observations from the underneath atmosphere (e.g., waves generated by weather phenomena) on the ionospheric irregularities.

South Korea tops the world with high Internet speed In an era of Internet, where the world’s functions greatly rely upon the connectivity. A report revealed by Akamei technologies places South Korea at the topmost position in terms of internet speed.

Positions based on Speed

• South Korea has the fastest average connection speed in the world at 26.7 Mbps. • Sweden occupies the second spot with an average speed of 19.1 Mbps • Norway followed at 18.8 Mbps. • India stands at 114th position with an average internet speed of 2.8 Mbps Highlights of the report

• United Kingdom had the fastest average mobile connection speed at 26.8 Mbps, with Spain in second place at 14.0 Mbps.

• Iran had the lowest average connection speed, at 1.3 Mbps, followed by Vietnam with an average connection speed of 1.8 Mbps.

• In the fourth quarter, Finland and Australia led the world with 99% 4 Mbps adoption rates, followed closely by Sweden with 98% adoption

• Global average connection speed increased 8.6% to 5.6 Mbps from the third quarter, a 23% increase year-over-year.

• South Korea had the top average connection speed at 26.7 Mbps, posting a 20% increase over the fourth quarter of 2014.

Malaysia to launch counter-messaging centre to fight IS in cyberworld Prime Minister NajibRazak announced that Malaysia will set up its first counter-messaging centre in a bid to curb the influence of the Islamic State in the cyber world. A counter- messaging centre will be operational by April 1 to tackle terrorism threats. 130 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Malaysia is taking the fight against the Islamic State online with the launch of the

country’s first counter-messaging centre.

• Every state in Malaysia will have a unit to counter ISIS narratives on the internet and stop them from radicalising and recruiting Malaysians to join the militants in SyriaCurrently there is only one such facility is the United States and another based in Dubai, the setting up of a counter-messaging centre in Southeast Asia is long overdue.

China launches first cyber-security organisation The Country’s first cyber security public organisation has been launched by China which consists of academic institutes, individuals and internet companies including Tencent and popular internet Security Company Qihu 360.

• The Organisation aimed at better safeguarding national cyber security and guiding internet companies in perform their duties.

• The Cyber Security organisation will focus on promoting self-discipline in the industry, accelerating the establishment of industry standards and cyber security studies and participating in international cooperation.

• China launched its first special fund for cyber security with an initial capital of 300 million Yuan($46 million) to realise the nation’s strategic goal of becoming a strong internet power in February this year.

China discovers New Lightweight, low cost batteries China which is the manufacturing hub of the world has been consistently experimenting with the Electronic items. Adding to its new discoveries, a new light weight, low cost, efficient battery(AGDIB) has been found to replace the Lithium ion batteries.

• The new aluminium-graphite dual-ion battery (AGDIB) has low weight, volume and manufacturing cost and it has higher energy density compared to the Lithium ion batteries used in smart phones

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched KisanSuvidha mobile app Kisan Suvidha a mobile Application launched by Narendra Modi will prove helpful for farmers in this regard but they must own a smartphone.

• The platform will help in providing information on subjects such as weather, market prices, seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and agriculture machinery.

• PM Modi emphasised that the digital transformation in India will begin only if country’s farmers are empowered and villages are developed.

• To operate this app farmer should own a smart phone and should register his or her Mobile Number and enter details of the state, district and block or sub-district. The information will be available in Hindi and English. 131 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Researchers have developed a new Gravity Map of Mars A new map of Mars’ gravity made with three NASA spacecraft is the most detailed to date, providing a revealing glimpse into the hidden interior of the Red Planet.

• Gravity maps allow us to see inside a planet, just as a doctor uses an X-ray to see inside a patient, the new gravity map will be helpful for future Mars exploration.

• The better knowledge of the planet’s gravity anomalies helps mission controllers insert spacecraft more precisely into orbit about Mars.

ISRO to create history by launching 22 satellites in single Mission India’s Space pioneer ISRO has been creating records and making achievements in all its missions. It is set to launch 22 satellites in Single mission and create new history. Flash points

• ISRO is planning to launch 22 satellites in its upcoming mission that includes micro and nano satellites from other nations

• NASA holds the record for launching 29 satellites in a single mission in 2013 • The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s workhorse Polar rocket PSLV C34 carrying India’s Cartosat 2C would also have 21 other satellites from countries

• The countries whose satellites to be sent are US, Canada, Indonesia and Germany • The launch would be made from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in the spaceport of Sriharikota

‘112’ to soon become single number for all emergency service India Government is in process to adopt 112 as the national emergency number against at present, a person dials 100, 101, 102 and 108 for police, fire brigade, ambulance and emergency disaster management, respectively

• All existing emergency numbers will be phased out within a year of rolling out 112, depending upon the awareness about this new facility. The move would be similar to the ‘911’ all-in-one emergency service in the US.

Indian media industry to reach 2026 billion by 2020 India’s media and entertainment industry will reach a net worth of 2.20 lakh crores by the year 2020. A report by the FICCI-KPMG had predicted this net worth of the industry. Flash points

• The report also reveals that the industry’s revenue will be dominated by the advertisements contributing to almost half of the entire worth

• The revenue from ads has been estimated at99400 crores by 2020 • The revenue was just 47500 crores in 2015as against 41700 crores in 2014 132 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• This was a 7% growth only in the revenues from advertisements

• The overall the sector grew by 8% to Rs 1.15 lakh crore in 2015 as against Rs 1.02 lakh crore of 2014

• The digital advertising would scale up to Rs 25,500 crore and contribute to 7% of total advertising revenues.

• Digital format would have the highest growth of 5% in the advertising segment between 2015-20, followed by Radio with 16.9%.

• Digital advertising is projected to be around Rs 8,100 crore and is expected to be aroundRs 25,500 crore by 2020, while radio advertising would be around Rs 2,340 crore in 2016 and Rs 4,330 crore in 2020.

• Films are expected to grow at 5% CAGR and television medium at 15.1% CAGR

Uber launches ‘Uber MOTO’ in Gurgaon The cab hailing company Uber just launched its pilot bike sharing service called uberMOTO on Car-Free in Gurgaon. Users can request for a ride through the Uber app between 7:30 am and 9:30 pm.

• UberMOTO will work on Uber’s app, but will use bikes to ferry commuters around instead of cars.

• The uber MOTO driver offers a helmet, which users need to wear before they take the ride. Uber MOTO can be paid through one of the Uber payment options, including cash. The fares start at Rs 15. The service then charges Rs 3 per kilometre and Rs 1 per minute for a ride. China Launches BeiDou Navigation Satellite China has launched its navigation satellite BeiDou from Xichang Satellite launching centre.

• It was taken into orbit by a Long March-3A carrier rocket. • It is the 22nd satellite in the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) th • It is 225 launch of Long March Carrier Rocket

India ranks third among highest financial Trojan Infections The Internet which has been ruling the world has also left the possible risk of security like Virus infections and hacking risks. It is unfortunate to know that India has been globally placed at third rank in terms of Trojan infections. Flash points

• The analysis was made by Symantec, a global security solutions firm • The report places India at third place owing to the continued exposure of Indian financial systems to Trojan infections th • India has been found increasingly vulnerable year by year, it was placed 7 in 2013; 5thin 2014 and finally third in 2015

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Narendra Modi to launch Asia’s Biggest telescope Aries in Nainital A Major achievement and progress in the field of Astronomy, the Aryabhatta Research Institute for Observational Sciences abbreviated as ARIES the first optical telescope is set to be inaugurated by PM Modi in Nainital. ARIES evolution

• It is a combined effort of Indian, Russian and Belgian scientists to develop a telescope to study the structure of stars and further promote the research

• It was a contract undertaken by the Aries and Belgian company- Advanced Mechanical and Optical Systems in March , 2007

Govt launches e-CGHS cards, GIS-enabled HMIS application Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda has launched two major Digital initiatives to provide easy access to health services to the public to strengthen the public health systems and providing user-friendly health services. The Services as follows, 1. GIS-enabled HMIS application 2. The self-printing of e-CGHS card Health Management Information System:HMIS app services will provide comprehensive data on a GIS platform on 1.6 lakhGovernment Health facilities spread across the country Self-printing of the E-CGHS card:Self-printing of the E-CGHS cards that this will provide ease and access to all those beneficiaries such as the pensioners, in cases of renewal, and in the event of loss/misplacement of the card. Telangana Road Transport Authority’s Mobile App M-Wallet launched Telangana State Transport Authority’s launched brand-new mobile app named M-Wallet, whichis first of its kind in India.

• The initiative is going to benefit 60 lakh driving licence holders, 80 lakh vehicle The App was launched by IT minister KT Rama Rao and transport minister P.Mahender Reddy.

DEFENCE

MoD Gives Nod To 7 Frigates Worth Rs 13,000 Cr The Ministry of Defence (MoD) approved a Rs 13,000 crores weapons and sensors package for the seven new stealth frigates being constructed by defence shipyards for the Navy as well as accorded the initial approval for the Rs 7,200 crore project to indigenously manufacture 244 air defence guns for the IAF. Details

• The Rs 13,000 crores package for stealth frigates will be undertaken on a “single vendor and repeat order basis“. 134 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The frigates will be equipped with long-range surface-to-air missile (LR-SAM) systems,

jointly developed by DRDO and Israeli Aerospace Industries, which are already fitted on the three Kolkata-class destroyers.

Military Exercise FORCE 18 kicked off in Pune Indian Army kicked off a week long Multinational Field Training Exercise (FTX) “Force 18”in Pune at headquarters of the Indian Army’s Southern Command. It will conclude on March 8, 2016. This is the maiden multinational exercise ever conducted by ground forces on Indian soil. Participants – It involves army units from 18 countries. Participants – It involves army units from 18 countries.

• 10 members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

• 8 observer states – India, Japan, Korea, China, Russia, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Theme – Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) and Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) Aim – To teach methods for maintaining peace and stability

South Korea and US Begin Military Exercise A day after the North Korea’s threat to US, the rivals of North Korea has began a joint military exercise. The military exercise has started by US and South Korea. Flash points

• The joint U.S. and South Korean military command said the training involves about17,000 American troops and more than 300,000 South Koreans

• The latest N. sanctions imposed on North Korea were drafted by the United States and China as punishment for its nuclear test and satellite launch of ballistic missile technology

India –Indonesia joint Military exercise- Shakti IV India and Indonesia are begann their Joint Military Exercise Shakti IV from March 10-23 in Indonesia. Flash points

• The Joint Military Exercise between India and Indonesia Shakti was started in 2012 in India

• It is conducted on a reciprocal basis with first edition in India ,second edition in Indonesia and so on

• This year is the fourth edition of Shakti and it is conducted at Meaglang, Indonesia • It is a thirteen day exercise conducted between March 10-23

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The exercise is aimed at building and promoting positive relations between the two

Armies of India and Indonesia

Launch Of Yard 2097 The sixth ship of LCU MK IV project, was launched on 12 March 2016 at an exciting ceremony at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd, Kolkata.

• The traditions, invocations from Atharva Veda were related and SmtSeemaVerma, wife of Vice Admiral Bimal Kumar Verma, AVSM, Commander-in-Chief, Andaman & Nicobar Command, applied ‘Kumkum’ on the ship’s stem. She, thereafter, named the ship as ‘LCU-L56’, wished the ship good luck and launched the vessel.The vessel is likely to be delivered shortly to the Indian Navy.

India successfully test fired Agni -I ballistic Missile In a move to strengthen our defence, India today successfully test-fired its indigenously built nuclear-capable intermediate range Agni-I ballistic missile.

• Target–700 km • Launched from–Odisha coast • Developed by: Advanced Systems Laboratory, the premier missile development laboratory of (DRDO) in collaboration with Defence Research DevelopmentLaboratory and Research Centre Imaratand integrated by Bharat Dynamics Limited, Hyderabad

Indian Coast Guard ship Arnvesh commissioned at Visakhapatnam Indian Coast Guard’s fast patrol vessel (FPV) Arnvesh ship was commissioned at Visakhapatnam, by the Eastern Naval Command, Vice-Admiral HCS Bisht.This Indian Coast Guard’s fast patrol vessel (FPV) Arnvesh ship was commissioned at Visakhapatnam, by the Eastern Naval Command, Vice-Admiral HCS Bisht.this

• The Ship will enhance Coast Guard’s capability in furthering its mandate of maritime safety, security on the eastern sea board

• The 300-tonne and 50-m long vessel is propelled by triple Rolls Royce Kamewa water jets and can achieve a maximum speed of 33 knots.

• This is the 16th vessel among the 20 vessels in this category being constructed by Cochin Shipyard limited.

DRDO develops RADAR to look through walls The Indian Army gets its first Thermal based RADAR technology that will enable to look through the walls.

• Developed by: LRDE(Electronics & Radar Development Establishment) of DRDO

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Features- It looks through walls of 20-30cm thickness and it works based on Thermal

RADAR technique

• Name- Divyachaksu (divine eye)

US Navy ship discovered after 95 years The US Navy ship which went missing was discovered after 95 years at the San Francisco coast.

• The USS Conestoga tug boat, which disappeared on March 25, 1921 after departing San Francisco on its way to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii has been found in 2016

India deploys P8I maritime aircraft to Seychelles Indian Navy has deployed a P8I maritime Aircraft to Seychelles for monitoring purpose.

• This is the first time India has deployed a P8I maritime aircraft to Seychelles • It will be deployed in Seychelles till March 23,2016 • It will help in curbing illegal activities and piracy as well as ensuring stability and safety in the Indian Ocean region

Indian Coast Guard to re-base ICGS Rajkamal, six interceptor boats The Indian Coast Guard re-based one ship and six boats from Chennai to Andaman and NicobarRegion to rebase the assets was taken to strengthen the maritime border operations in the region.

• Among the assets that would find a new base are ICGS Rajkamal and six Interceptor Boats (C-407, C-412, C-414, C-416, C-417 and C-428).

• These platforms are rebased to Andaman and Nicobar Region as part of the Coast Guard Headquarter rebasing plan, the newly commissioned ICGS Arnvesh has already joined the Eastern CG fleet as part of replacement.

Singapore Corvette Test-Fires Barak Missile Singapore Navy (RSN) has successfully test-fired a Barak missile from its Victory-class missile corvette RSS Vigour during Fleet Exercise conducted in the South China Sea

• The RSN’s Missile Corvette Squadron, on the conduct of the exercise and the capabilities of the missile corvette.

Manohar Parrikar flags off India’s first indigenous Sonar Dome Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has flagged off India’s first indigenous composites sonar dome, a ship’s underwater eyes and ears.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The first indigenous composites bow mounted sonar dome was dedicated to the nation

during Def Expo 2016 in Goa. The sonar dome will be supplied to Mazgaon Docks,Mumbai for use in the warships of Indian Navy.

• The sonar dome has been designed by Research & Development Establishment (Engineers), a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) laboratory based in Pune and manufactured by composites manufacturing company Kineco Ltd, Pilerne, Goa. ENVIRONMENT

New Snake species discovered in Western Ghats Researchers have discovered a new snake species in the Western Ghats in Kolhapur and Sindhudurg districts. It is a burrowing snake of the Melanophidium genus and belongs to the Uropeltidae family of snakes. Flash points

• The snake is named after Pune-based herpetologist Neelimkumar Khaire to pay tribute to his contribution to the knowledge, appreciation and conservation of snakes in India

• The scientific name of the species is Melanophidium khairei while its common name is Khaire’s Black Shieldtail

• The research paper’s main authors are Dr David Gowerand and Dr Mark Wilkinson of the NHM, Dr Varad Giri of NCBS and Ashok Captain of IHS/BNHS

Climate change could kill 500,000 adults by 2050 With the rise in global emissions the Global Warming could be aggravated. In turn the climate changes can affect the people worldwide. A recent study shows that it is likely to cause 500,000 deaths by 2050.

• The latest computer modeling study reveals that climate change would badly affect China and India

• The study released by The Lancet predicts 36 lakh death in India and 2.48 lakh death in China owing to the Climate change and its effects

• The researchers used an agricultural economic model fitted with data on emission trajectories, socio-economic pathways, and possible climate responses to evaluate the effects on global food production, trade, and consumption for 2050

• The research leader, Marco Springmann is from the Oxford Programe on the Future of Food at the University of Oxford in England

• The model projects that by 2050, climate change will lead to per-person reductions of 3·2% in global food availability, 4% in fruit and vegetable consumption, and 0·7% in red meat consumption

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• It also projects that around 5,29,000 deaths will be caused across the world due to

climate change by 2050

• Most climate-related deaths were projected to occur in south and east Asia • The study has also indicated that adoption of climate-stabilisation pathways can reduce the number of climate-related deaths by 29-71%

India signs MoU to conserve Birds of Prey The Union Government signed an important Raptor MoU for the Conservation of Migratory Birds of Prey in Africa and Eurasia. Flash points

• This Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the Convention of Migratory bird species Secretariat at Abu Dhabi on March 7

• The Raptor MoU covers 76 species of birds of prey, of which over 50 occur in India, including the critically endangered vulture

• Raptors, or birds of prey, are threatened by habitat loss and degradation, illegal shooting and poisoning, collisions with aerial structures and electrocution by power lines

Uttar Pradesh government to launch a campaign to protect sparrows The UP Government announced to conduct campaign at school levels to create awareness about the conservation of birds.The programme will be conducted at primary and secondary schools. Features of the programme

• The event has been named as ‘Gauraiya Diwas’ • It is planned to be celebrated on March 20 at Janeshwar Mishra park • UP chief minister is likely to inaugurate the event • On March 14, the students would be administered an oath to conserve plants and trees and make sincere efforts towards conservation of sparrows

• The students would also be made to take oath to make the state clean and green under‘CleanUP – Green UP’

• It is also told that persons and forest officials working in the field of sparrow protection would be felicitated with ‘Gauraiya Mittra’ award

More than 50 animal species critically endangered Over 50 animal species have been judged as critically endangered and 310 asendangered out of 96, 000 animal species present in India according to the studies taken by Zoological Survey of India. 139 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Survey:

• Critically endangered is the highest risk category assigned by the Nature Conservation body.

• Switzerland based organisation has assessed 18 species of amphibians, 14 varieties of fish, 13 birds and 10 mammals as critically endangered and 310 species as endangered, including 69 fish, 38 mammals and 32 amphibians.

• Botanical Survey of India (BSI) Survey says a total of 19,156 species of vascular plants, 1,236 species belong to different threatened categories like critically endangered, endangered

Fossil of 250 million year old reptile species discovered A team of scientists has discovered a new fossil reptile that lived 250 million years ago in Brazil. The discovery is important because the reptile lived just after the great Permo-Triassic mass extinction event that occurred 252 million years ago Discovery

• The species has been named as Teyujagua paradoxa, derived from the language of the Guarani ethnic group and means ‘fierce lizard’

• The species has been identified from a mostly complete and well-preserved fossil skull. • The fossil fuel was discovered by a team from the Federal University of Pampa (Unipampa)

Four Giant Exoplanets Discovered A group of Scientists led by Matias Jones of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile have discovered four enormous planets with masses from 2.4 to 5.5 times that of Jupiter, orbiting stars much bigger than our Sun. The newly found planets are: HIP8541b, HIP74890b, HIP84056b and HIP95124b

New Golden Frog Species discovered in Colombia A team of scientists including a Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) research associate have discovered a new species of pale-gold coloured frog in the cloud forests of the high Andes in Colombia.

• The new species was found calling from bushes along a roadside at about 8,700 feet elevation near Chingaza National Park, roughly 10 miles east of Bogota, capital and largest city of Colombia.

British Astronomers discover nine “monster stars”

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

British astronomers have discovered a cluster of nine “monster” stars, 30 million times brighter than the Sun. It is the largest group of very massive stars ever identified.

• The star cluster is named as R136. It is located in the Tarantula Nebula within the Large Magellanic Cloud.

• It includes four stars which are more than 150 times the mass of the Sun, five which are more than 100 times as massive and dozens of stars exceeding 50 solar masses. It is1,70,000 light years from Earth.

‘Agasthyamala’ included among UNESCO’s new 20 Biosphere Reserves Agasthyamala– the biosphere reserve shared by Kerala and Tamil Nadu has been placed in the new 20 Biosphere reserves list released by UNESCO.

• Location: Western Ghats, in the south of India • The Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve (ABR) was established in 2001 and is spread across the two states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu

Union Government notified new Plastic Waste Management Rules to curb 6000 tonnes of plastic waste The government notified new norms aimed at curbing the over 6,000 tonnes of uncollected plastic waste generated daily by industries for plasticwaste management across the country.

• Industries using plastic will have to pay proportionately towards collection through the same distribution system they use for retailing their products.

• However specification about the extent of fines that would be imposed on the manufacturers not mentioned in the Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar and how exactly the monitoring system will operate.

• This initiative aims to standardise the 50 micron size plastic bags as opposed to the 40 micron ones, which was the minimum permissible limit earlier.

MoEFCC notifies new environment standards for Gensets The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC) has notified new environment standards for Gensets running on various kinds of fuels including LPG, petrol and diesel in various cities.

• The objective of the new standards for Gensets is to control air and noise pollution emanating from the operation of Gensets. These standards were recommended by the Central Pollution Control Board after consultations with industries and other stakeholders.

• It would be revisited in 4-5 years once air and noise emission quality data and technological details pertaining to Gensets are available.

• Under these standards certification is mandatory for Gensets in terms of ‘Type approval’ and ‘Conformity of Production’ for air emission as well as noise emission. 141 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Asia most exposed to disasters, Africa most vulnerable: Study Asia has the largest number of people affected by natural disasters, but African countries are the most vulnerable to them, largely because of political instability, corruption, poverty and inequality, a new global assessment shows.

• Over 1.4 billion people in South Asia such as India, Bangladesh and Pakistan face at least one major threat from nature. In the case of Bangladesh, 100% of its population is exposed, compared to 82% for India and 70% in Pakistan.

• India has a billion people at risk, with China, Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan and Pakistan also ranked among the 10 countries with the most people exposed to natural hazards.

• More than 85 percent of people are exposed to at least one kind of natural hazard, In the case ofJ apan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. But all three countries are classed as having low vulnerability, and together recorded less than 32,000 deaths from natural disasters since 1990. Africa Most vulnerable:

• But the list of countries most vulnerable to disasters in terms of their ability to prepare for, respond to and recover from them is topped by African nations, particularly conflict- plagued South Sudan, Burundi and Eritrea.

• Much vulnerability in Africa and elsewhere is the result of poor governance including corruption and an inability to implement policies to reduce disaster risk.

• Haiti, on the other hand, is not as exposed to potential disasters but is considered highly vulnerable, having suffered over 230,000 deaths since 1990, many in a major 2010 earthquake.

• Nine countries ranked as most vulnerable to natural hazards out of 10 in the index are in sub- Saharan Africa, and 23 of 25 are on the continent.

• South Sudan snowed under by drought and war heads the list of the countries most defenceless against disaster, followed by Burundi, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Chad, Niger, Sudan, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Mint plant can help fight cancer: CIMAP Researchers Scientists at CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Lucknow have discovered that a compound called ‘L-Menthol’ derived from Mentha plant, popularly known as mint, can also be used in anti-cancer drugs.

• It has been proved scientifically that L-Menthol can kill the colon cancer cell line without affecting the normal cell line.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The research also claims that production of L-menthol is cost-effective , non-

destructive and easily available in comparison to anti-cancer compound used at present, derived from the bark of European Yew tree.

Union Government notified E-Waste Management Rules, 2016 Union environment ministry has notified new plastic waste management rules, The Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules 2016, issued will replace the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules 2011.The ministry also increased the minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 microns to 50 microns.

• The new rules also focus on phasing out of non-recyclable multi layered plastic and increasing reuse of plastic waste especially in applications like road construction and waste to energy.

• The move will help in achieving our Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Swachh Bharat bringing the country’s gram panchayats into the picture and introducing the concept of extended producer Responsibility (EPR).

• Every day Staggering 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste is generated but of that, only 9,000 tonnes is collected and processed. Volcano erupts in South Alaska Pavlof Volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in the heart of Alaska region erupted.

• The volcano in the 8,261-foot mountain erupted about 4 p.m. Sunday, spitting out an ash cloud that rose to 20,000 feet.

• Alaska Volcano Observatory, along with the University of Alaska and the state Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys observed the eruption

• However the eruption of the volcano began to decline by Monday afternoon and so the alert was reduced to ‘Watch’ stage

• The volcano, about 4 miles in diameter, has had 40 known eruptions

Sand-eating Micrixalidae tadpoles species found in Western Ghats Sand-eating tadpoles has been discovered by scientists from the Various Universities in the Western Ghats.These species named Micrixalidae belongs to the so-called Indian Dancing Frog family.

• They were discovered from the deep recesses of streambeds, these tadpoles lack teeth but have well-serrated jaw sheaths which helps them avoid large sand grains while feeding.

SPORTS

Rahul Sachdev won 1st All India Open Invitational Snooker Championship 2016

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Rahul Sachdev clinched first All India open invitational snooker championship 2016, Sachdev had achieved the highest by reaching the national 6 Reds final in the year 2013, and however winning this feet will certainly raise his confidence.

• Rahul Sachdev of Maharashtra defeated current national 6 Reds no 4 Pushbender Singh of Railways 5-3.

• The Invitational Snooker championship 2016 held at Aurangabad in Maharashtra.

Rana wins gold in 50km race walk in National Championships Basant Bahadur Singh Rana clinched gold in 50 Km race walk in National Championship held at Jaipur in Rajasthan, the winner clocked 4 hours seven minutes and 24 seconds.

• The Delhi hailed walker could not achieve the revised Olympics Qualification time of 4:06:00, he must have disappointed with his performance as he would not be eligible to walk in Rio Olympics this time.

• However in the 20 Km walk stream as many as seven men walkers breached the qualification time limit.

• Rana has a career best of 3: 56: 48 earlier in the London Olympics that took place in 2012, which was a national record then. 50km walk rcae Junior Women category of 10 Km Basant Bahadur Singh Rana Walk Neena(gold) Chandan Singh (Silver) Bhawna Jat(Silver) Jitender Singh Rathore (Bronze) Priyanka Patel(bronze)

Cricketer Aaron Phangiso suspended for illegal bowling action Proteas left arm spinner Aaron Phangiso has been suspended from bowling in Domestic cricket for suspect bowling action.

• The South African spinner will not be picked for the first two T20 matches to be played against Australia at home.

• Phangiso will take tests on March 7 in ICC accredited lab at the University of Pretoria’s High Performance Centre by ICC.

Meghalaya to bid for 2022 National Games Meghalaya Government has decided to bid for 2022 National Games after the successful host of 12th south Asian Games concluded recently in the state.

• Meghalaya government proposes to bid for Nation Games in 2022. The sports ministry is emphasized that potential of talented sportspersons available in the Northeastern region of the country.

• The Ministry has approved grant of Rs. 87.50 crore for 15 sports infrastructure projects under Urban Sports Infrastructure Scheme.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Mumbai U-23 team clinched CK Nayudu Trophy 2015-16

Mumbai U 23 team clinched CK Nayudu Trophy 2015 -16 title ,by beating Madhya Pradesh by virtue of taking first innings lead at the MPCA Stadium in Indore

• This title comes after Mumbai senior team clinched their 41st Ranchi Trophy titleagainst Saurashtra in Pune.

• By this the winning team became richer by Rs. 20 lakh for winning CK Nayudu trophy, Mumbai team carried their bat to a tall score of 577 to which Madhya Pradesh replied with 422 all out before the game into a tame dram on final day.

FIH promotes Napoleon Singh as International Umpire National level Hockey Umpire Napoleon Singh has been promoted to the International Outdoor Umpire by International Hockey Federation.

• His performance in the recently concluded 12th South Asian Games held at Guwahati has been the key for his appointment.

• He started his career as an umpire in the third Hockey India Junior Women National Championship 2013 held at Ranchi.

• He was a regular Umpire to officiate in all the major tournaments conducted under the aegis of Hockey India.

Lionel Messi Hat-Trick Steers FC Barcelona to Unbeaten 35-Game Record Lionel Messi hat-trick steered FC Barcelona to unbeaten 35 game record, this defeat in a match against nine man Rayo Vellecano 5-1 to become the first Spanish club to play 35 consecutive matches without loss.

• The new record breaking Real Madrid’s record of nearly three decades ago. Messi also helped Barcelona to extend their lead over Atletico Madrid to eight points with Real Madrid.

Patna Pirates win their first Pro Kabaddi title In the Third season of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi league Patna Pirates beat U Mumba by three points to take home the trophy.

• Patna Pirates captained by Manpreet Singh dominant U Mumba to emerge as Champions of Pro Kabaddi League in the title clash held at Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

Indian paddlers win Gold at World Table Tennis Championship Manika leading from the front contributed Indian women table tennis team lifted their game by several cuts and won gold in the second division of the World Table Tennis Championship 2016 Held at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Women’s Table Tennis Team Created History: 145 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• This is for the first time in12 years in women’s Tables Tennis history. The team beat

Luxemburg 3-1 in the second division final before their male counterparts overcame a stiff competition from Brazil.

• Indian Team cemented their hopes on the most experienced Mouma Das who continued to prove that she is country’s Numero Uno star in the game. Men’s Table Tennis Team:

• Men’s Table Tennis team defeated Brazil in the Second Division of Tournament held at Kuala Lumpur. PepsiCo named new associate sponsor of BCCI Beverage giant PepsiCo entered into a four year partnership with the country’s apex cricket body BCCI as an associate sponsor for all its International Matches played at home.

• The deal would make PepsiCo as BCCI’s official partner for refreshment, Snacks and drinks besides grounds right where the PepsiCo would have visibility on the playing field.

• The deal would add Rs. 150 crore to the board’s coffers over four years. The mentioned sum is the cumulative sum of three deals the other two sponsor deals are in the pipeline of BCCI.

India win Asia Cup title for sixth time Indian Team Chased down Bangladesh’s 120/5 in 13.5 overs to win the Asia Cup for the sixth time, the match took place was a miracle , given the amount of rain that lashed Dhaka 90 minutes before start of play. • In a rain bound game the Bangladesh posted decent 120/5 in 15 overs,SabbirRahman and Mahmudullah accumulated thirties with some exceptional batting from Mahmudullah at the end. • This is the second time that Bangladesh team reaching final of the Asia Cup. India Winning the Trophy for the sixth time in history.

Player of the Tournament: Sabbir Rahman (Bangladesh) Man of the Match: Shikhar Dhawan (India) Novak Djokovic’s first Davis Cup defeat in 5 years Serbian Novak Djokovic ‘s suffered his first Davis Cup defeatin five years as he trailed Kazakhstan in their World Group first round match on Saturday.

• The Top seed teamed up with his Serbian teammate Nenad Zimonjic for the doubles match but suffered a tight 6-3, 7-6, 7-5 defeat to AndreyGolubev and Aleksandr.

Anirban Lahiri Finishes 28th at World Golf Championship Indian Golfer Anirban Lahiri surprized to a poor seven-over 79 on a windy day as he dropped sharply from a likely to the top-10 finish to tied-28th at the World Golf Championships. Held at Doral in USA.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The Winner:

• Australian Golfer Adam Scott recovered from two double bogeys in his first five holes with six birdies the rest of the round to prevail by one stroke over Bubba Watson from the USA who finished second in the tour.

Jindal Panther beats Sona Polo to win Amity Polo Cup trophy Jindal Panther defeated sona Polo to lift the Amity Polo Cup trophy, Jindal Panther beats Sona Polo by 5/12 goals to 3 in the summit clash.

• SimranShergill who secured three goals also secured 5 goals in the semifinal that made the team to win the final named as the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

Maria Sharapova provisionally suspended after failing drug test at Australian Open Russian Tennis great Maria Sharapova officially suspended from March 12 after failing drug test at Australian Open, the highest paid female athlete had failed a drug test at the Australian Open due to substance she has been consuming for a decade.

Rest of India wins 2015-16 Irani Cup Cricket Title Rest of India batsmen Showed brilliance as they completed a classic run-chase against Incumbent Ranji Trophy Winners Mumbai, winning the Paytm Irani Cup by 4 wickets reaching a victory target of whooping 480 runs in Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai.

• This is the 10th-highest successful chase in the history of First-Class cricket. It was also the third-highest on Indian soil.

• Karnataka Opener Karun Nair was named Player of the Match.

JituRai wins gold at Shooting World Cup Indian Shooter jiturai bagged gold at ISSF World cup held in Bangkok Thailand. Shooters will put upon test their form ahead of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will start in September this year.

• Rai clinched gold in the men’s 50m pistol event shooting World Cup. Jitu scored 191.3 points in the final round.

• Former World champion Pang Wei of China took second place with 186.5 who will clinch Silver in the event. Olympic medallist Wang Zhiwei, also of China, finished thirdwith a final round score of 165.8.

Hyundai Is Now the Official Partner of BCCI South Korean Auto major Hyundai Motors has entered into a four-year partnership with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as an associate sponsor for all international matches played in India.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Under this agreement Hyundai cars would be used for transporting various stakeholders

of the game throughout the event.

• BCCI offered space for three official associate sponsors from which the governing body would get 150 crore in the next four years.

Vijender Singh clinches fourth successive professional win Vijender Singh retained his unbeaten run in Professional Boxing alive with yet another knockout win over Hungary’s Alexander Horvath at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.

• Indian boxing star Vijender Singh has achieved up his fourth consecutive knockout professional win by thrashing Hungary’s Alexander Horvath in under three rounds.

• The Professional boxing star eyeing to win the Asia title in front of my home crowd and lookingforward to record two more knockout wins in April before he plays in India.

Lin Dan wins 2016 All England Badminton title Lin Dan of China Wins His Sixth All England Badminton Championships Title 2016, this victory came four years after his last. He awared with a trophy and cash prize of USD 550,000. Men’s Singles Lin Dan won by defeating TianHouwei Women’s Singles NozomiOkuhara of Japan won by defeating Wang Shixian. Men’s Doubles Ivan Andreyevich Sozonov of Russia with compatriot VladimirIvanov defeated Japan pair Hiroyuki Endo and Kenichi Hayakawa Mixed Doubles Indonesia pair Praveen Jordan and his partner Debby Susanto defeated Denmark pair Joachim Fischer Nielsen and Christinna Pedersen

Services wins 70th Santosh Trophy football title 2016 In the 70th Santosh Trophy Football Championship Tournament Services beat Maharashtra 2- 1 to clinch title for fifth time. Riding on Arjun Tudu’s double strike helped the side to lift the trophy.

• Services on Sunday retained the Santosh Trophy National Football Championships title after beating hosts Maharashtra 2-1 in the title clash inthe Final at the SEC Railway Stadium Nagpur Delhi lift Llyod Pro-Am Championship trophy In the 20th edition of the India’s most prestigious corporate Golf tournament Delhi emerged as a winner by defeating Mumbai to lift the 20th Lloyd Business Today Pro-Am of Champions golf tournament.

• The summit clash of this event was played at the Jack Nicklaus designed Classic Golf Resort in Gurgaon New Delhi.

Paralympics Games began in Arunachal Pradesh

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The first Paralympic Games in Arunachal Pradesh began at the SangayLhaden Sports Academy

Complex, Chimpu, Itanagar began on March 15 with Sport and Youth affairs Secretary DaniSalu officially inaugurated the Open Event.

• The three-day event being organised by the Arunachal Pradesh Paralympics Association (APPA)Scheduled to be held from March 15 to 17.

• The five point memorandum has been submitted by APPA to the Sports Secretary during the event that demanded corpus fund of Rs. 20 Lakh for Paralympic Games, Rs. 10 Lakh each for Umang Festival and for procurement of sports goods, boys’ and girls’ hostels for persons with disabilities, their training at SLSA, and appointment of five posts of coaches for them. The Events and Winners:

• Around 130 participants have registered for the 12 events, the numbers indicate a very positive start. The event is being held in collaboration with District Administration Capital Complex and state Directorate of Sports.

• The events included, 100M, 400M, 800M and Wheel Chair Race (100M), Long Jump, Shot Put, Javelin Throw, Chess, Carrom, Volleyball (Men) and Arm Wrestling.

• In the wheelchair race event Techi Talla remerged as the Winner. • In the boys’ 100 meter race,Tabam Tatak won the race. • LiterOri came in at first place in the girls’100 meter • In the men’s 100 meter race category, Thasang Ajay won first place.

Shweta Rathore wins Miss India title in Body building Shweta Rathore the silver medalist in Asian Championship in 2015 has won the gold medal in held at New Delhi.

• Rathore is the founder and president of the NGO God’s Beautiful Child

Gayle become second player to hit century in 2016 T20 WC Chris Gayle becomes second player to hit century in 2016 T20 World Cup after Tamim Iqbal.

• He smashed century in just 47 balls against England in a Group 1 match at the Wankhede Stadium in the 2016 T20 World Cup

• He is also the first player to hit a century in the history of tournament, against South Africa in 2007.

TCS named official tech partner for London Marathon India’s leading IT services provider Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced a partnership with the Virgin Money London Marathon for three year Aim: To enhance the digital experience delivered to marathon participants.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Now TCS will become the race’s Official Technology Partner for the 2016, 2017 and

2018 events.

Du Plessis 2nd fastest to reach 1,000 T20I runs Playing in a World T20 match against England, Faf du Plessis became the second fastest player to reach 1,000 T20 runs, taking 32 matches.

• Virat Kohli was the fastest to achieve the feat, in 27 matches. Meanwhile, Du Plessis also became the third South African player to reach 1,000 T20I runs, behind JP Duminy and AB de Villiers.

Yogeshwar Dutt Qualifies for Rio Olympics Yogeshwar Dutt secured an Olympic quota place for India with a gold-medal finish in the men’s 65kg freestyle category in Asian Olympics qualification tournament at Astana. Flash points

• Yogeshwar Dutt joins the list along with Narsingh Yadav to qualify for Rio Olympics • The top two finishers in each weight category here are assured of a Rio berth • The wrestler reserved his place by virtue of reaching the final on the second day of the competition even before clinching the gold medal

Gurmeet Singh creates History winning Asian 20km walking race Gurmeet Singh created history by becoming the first Indian athlete to clinch a gold medal in the Asian 20km race walk championships as he won the men’s event of the season. Flash points

• Gurmeet finished the race in 1 hour 20 minutes and 29 seconds clinching the Gold medal

• Japan’s Isamu Fujisawa ended up with a silver medal in 1:20:49 in a close fight in the last 5km with Gurmeet

• Kazakhstan’s Georgiy Sheiko won the bronze medal in 1:21:52 • Gurmeet won the Asian championship there by confirming his berth to Rio Olympics • 9 Indians have bettered the standard in men’s 20km walking race while only three will make it for the Rio Olympics Highlights of Women walking race

• China’s Rui Liang won the gold medal finishing in 1:28:43 • Kumiko Okada of Japan won silver ending up at 1:30:03 • South Korean Jeongeun Lee (1:33:53) clinched bronze • National champion Sapna finished the 20 Km walking race in 1:35:57 occupying the fourth place

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has suspended Bangladesh left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny and pacer Taskin Ahmed from bowling in international cricket. They were suspended with immediate effect after an independent assessment found their bowling actions to be illegal.

• They underwent assessments in Chennai after being reported for suspect actions during the World T20 round-one match against Netherlands.

Nico Rosberg wins an incident packed Australian Grand Prix The Australian grandprix was won by Nico Rosberg overtaking Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton.

• Nico Rosberg led a Mercedes one-two in the opening race of the 2016 F1 season in Australia Sunday after Fernando Alonsomet with a accident in the race

• Rosberg won by 10 seconds from his teammate and two-time defending world champion Lewis Hamilton

• It was Rosberg’s 15th career victory and fourth in a row after dominating the closing races of the 2015 season

Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka won BNP Paribas Open titles Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka who beat Milos Raonic and Serena Williams respectively in straight sets to win BNP Paribas Open Titles 2016 at Indian Wells in California. Men’s Singles:

• Serbian Novak Djokovic beat Milos Raonic of Canada in straight sets 6-2, 6-0 to win the BNP Paribas Open for a record fifth time.

• Novak Djokovic won the Indian Wells title in 2008, 2011, 2014, 2015 and now 2016. The victory, the 62nd of his career, sees the 28-year-old draw level with Roger Federer on 27 Masters 1000 tournament victories, and he has a chance to go past theSwiss with victory at the Miami Masters. Women Singles:

• Victoria Azarenka of Belarus beat world number one Serena Williams of US to claim the BNP Paribas Open title in Indian Wells.

• She defeated Serena Williams by 6-4, 6-4 with this will return to the top 10 in the world rankings after this Victory. Men’s Doubles: In the Doubles in Men’s category Pierre-Hugues Herbert and his compatriot Nicolas Mahut of France defeated Vasek Pospisil of Canada and his US Partner Jack Sock by 6–4, 7–6. Women’s Doubles: US Pair Bethanie Sands and Coco Vandeweghe defeated Julia Gorges of Germany and his Partner Karolina Pilskova of Czech Republic by 4-6, 6-4.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Chennai girl wins at street Child Games in Rio

Hepziba, who won three medals, including a gold, at the Street Child Games in Rio She sprinted to win in the 100-metre dash at the Street Child Games held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil • The tournament is a global movement for street children to receive the protection and opportunities that all children are entitled to unite street children from across five continents to play football and unite in a unique international conference.

Shane Watson to quit international cricket after World T20 Australia all-rounder Shane Watson has decided that he will end his international career after the Ongoing ICC World Twenty20 in India.

• The 34-year-old retired from Tests last year after Australia’s unsuccessful Ashes campaign in England but opted to continue playing in the limited-overs formats. He debuted for the Australian cricket team in 2002, playing his first ODI match against South Africa.

• Shane Watson is the only player to win Australian Player of the Year award across the format of the game.

Quick enough wins Dr. GnaniLaksumanan Memorial Cup Quick Enough Clinched the Dr.Gnani Laksumanan Memorial Cup trained by R Foley and ridden by jockey N. Rupa, the main event of the races in Chennai.

• The winner is owned by MAM RamaswamyChettiar of ChettinadChartiable Trust, Three favourites obliged in a card of seven events.

• Trainer B Suresh saddled three winners, while jockeys C. Umesh and Md. Hesnain rode two winners each. 9th International Abilympics held at Bordeaux in France The 9th Edition of International Abilympics is held at Bordeaux, France. The two day event hosted from March 25-26.

• Near about 600 participants representing 35 teams from different continents will take part in this competition.

• The 9th International Abilympics 2016 is a prestigious event for every PwD across the world to showcase their limitless abilities. This time around the competition will be held infive different categories, which include services, IT, industry, craft and food.

HS Prannoy wins Men’s single title in Swiss open HS Prannoy won the men’s singles title at the 2016 Swiss Open in Basel, Switzerland.

• He is India’s fourth highest ranked men’s badminton player • He clinched the title by defeating Marc Zwiebler of Germany 21-18, 21-15 in the final • The 2016 Swiss Open men’s singles title is Prannoy’s second title at a Grand Prix Gold tournament, after he won the 2014 Indonesian Master 152 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

SSP Chawrasia clinches the Hero Indian Open title SSP Chawrasia, who remained four-time runners-up, has finally clinched the Hero Indian Open 2016 title at the Delhi Golf Club. He won by 2 strokes with runner ups Anirban Lahiri of India and Jeunghun Wang of Korea.

• The 2015 title was won by Anirban Lahiri with runner up SSP Chawrasia. • With this victory he also secured his European Tour card. Overall, this is his 14th win of his professional career.

India to host 2017 FIFA Under-17 World Cup Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that India is going to host under-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017 in the 18th edition of his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ programme.It is a big chance to present the Indian brand on the global level.

• 2015 – Chile and 2017 – India

California Chrome lands world’s richest horse race California Chrome won a Kentucky Derby, a Preakness, and a Horse of the Year title. Yet for all of that, California Chrome redefined himself with his brilliant victory in the Dubai World Cup.

• This Dubai World Cup was the best performance of California Chrome’s career. • This victory brings Chrome of $6 million to his $6.53 million career earnings and surpassed 2008 World Cup champion Curlin as the all-time richest racehorse outside of Japan.

• Curlin, the World Cup’s 2008 winner, went into with $10.5 million in career earnings

Virat Kohli zooms to top in ICC T20 rankings, India also No.1 Number One T20 Batsman: Indian Test Captain Virat Kohli kept his Performance at the top helped his side into the semifinals of the World Twenty20 after defeating Australia, has replaced Aaron Finch as the number one batsman in the latest ICC T20 rankings.

• England middle order batting great Joe Root has rocketed 38 places to career-high 11th after scoring 168 runs in four matches at a strike-rate of 150. Number one Bowler:

• West Indies right-arm leg-spin bowler,Samuel Badree has displaced Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to return to the number-one position.

• Badree has taken six wickets in four matches to date, while Ashwin has dropped to third place. Number One Team:

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Number-one ranked India will go head to head with third- ranked West Indies in

Mumbai, while in the first semi-final in Del hi while second-ranked New Zealand will square-off against fifth-ranked England.

• India has retained their pre-tournament ranking as well as points, while the West Indies have gained two points to move to 120.

• New Zealand, who has been the only unbeaten side in the competition so far, has earned six points to rise to 122 and have consequently moved up two places to second

Sergey Karjakin won 2016 World Chess Candidates Tournament Ukraine born Russian grandmaster Sergey Karjakin, won the FIDE World Chess Candidates Tournament held in Moscow.

• The Russian triumphed over the United States’ Fabiano Caruana, whom he played in the last round. Karjakin scored 8.5/14 to finish first in the eight-player tournament.

• Russian Grandmaster Sergey Karjakin has won thrilling Moscow cliffhanger to challenge for world title against the incumbent world champion, Norwegian Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, in a match for the world chess crown in the United States in November this year.

OBITUARY

US actor George Kennedy passes away US actor Geroge Kennedy passed away due to old age related ailments. He was at the age of 91 when he died.

• The Actor appeared in more than 200 film and Television productions. • Kennedy was born in New York in 1925, began his career as a radio performer and then started acting in movies.

• He won OSCAR Award in 1968 for his supporting role in Cool Hand Luke, also made notable appearances in Earthquake and Airport in 1975.

• He worked with the US Infantry during Second World War.

Former New Zealand cricket captain Martin Crowe passed away Auckland born right handed elegant batsman and Former New Zealand Skipper Martin Crowe passed away of cancer . The Cricket Saga (1962-2016):

• Widely considered stylish batsman debuted against Australia aged 19 in 1982.he was well known among cricket fan for his stylish and meticulous batting that given him cricket reputation.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• The New Zealander made with 17 Test Centuries including his career best of 299

against Sri Lanka. He scored 5, 444 test runs at an average of 45.36.

• Crowe played 77 Tests and 143 One Day Internationals for New Zealand in his 13 year cricket career.

• In 1992 World Cup Crowe took his side to the top of the table before a narrow defeat to a Champions Pakistan in the semifinal.

• He retired from the Game of cricket in 1995 aged only 33 citing Knee problems.

PA Sangma, former Lok Sabha Speaker, dies Former Lok Shaba speaker and acclaimed Politian PurnoAgitok Sangma died of heart attack, he was a nine time member of the Lok Shaba and the speaker in the 11thlok Shaba from 1996 to 1998.

• He was elected member of lower house from Meghalaya’s Tura constituency. • Sangma unsuccessfully contested against Pranab Mukherjee in the presidential run off, he lost by more than 3 lakh votes.

• He had held various positions between 1974 and2008 from both Independent and from National Congress Party.

Coronation Street creator Tony Warren died Tony Warren the coronation street creator and writer has died. He was 79

• Coronation Street has been on the air for 56 years and it has millions of viewersaround the world.

• Warren started his career at the age of 24 as a television actor in England later the series appeared in USA cable network in 1980.

• He wrote several novels and other TV shows and was a co-writer of the 1965 film Ferry Cross the Mersey A drama based on his life and the creation of the show, The Road to Coronation Street was broadcast on BBC 4 in 2010.

Film scholar P K Nair passes away Paramesh Krishnan Nair the founder and director of the National Film Archive of India passed away. He was in critical condition since the last 10 days.

• Nair is considered as the Henri Langlois of India because of his lifelong dedication towards the preservation of films in India.

• He contributed in preserving exquisite films such as Raja Harishchandra (1913), AchhutKanya (1936) and Uday Shankar’s Kalpana (1948) is significant.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

93 years old, All India Forward Bloc Leader, Ashok Ghosh passed away at Kolkata. All India Forward

Bloc was founded by Subhash Chandra Bose in 1939, which emerged as a faction within Indian National Congress.

• He Remained its Secretary since 1951 until death. • He was also an instrumental member in the formation of the CPI-(M) Left Front government in West Bengal.

Pat Conroy, Prince of Tides and Great Santini Author, Dies At 70 Legendary Novelist Pat Conroy served as an unending sources of inspiration for his fiction notably the novels The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline and the Princes of Tides died on Friday.

• He announced last month that he was suffering from pancreatic cancer, He was 70. • In 1976 Conroy published his first novel The Great Santini. He was a New York Times bestselling American Author who wrote several acclaimed novels and memories.

• Two of his novels The Prince of tides and The Great Santini were made Oscar dominated films

E-Mail Inventor Ray Tomlinson Dies Today, sending or receiving every letter is just a click away with the invention of Electronic mail in 1972. Kudos to 74 year old, Mr. Tomlinson Ray who has now left us with this incredible technology! People like him leave the world leaving their legacy behind. They bring the real difference to make the world a better place to live.

• Who is he? : A Technology Pioneer who picked @ symbol for addresses. • Credited for sending the first e-mail and developing such technology for internet’s predecessor ARPANET.

American Actress Nancy Reagan died at 94 Nancy Davis Reagan, the veteran American actress and the former First lady of US died at the age of 94 following a cardiac arrest. About Nancy Reagan

• She was an American actress and the wife of the 40thPresident of the United States, Ronald Reagan.

• She was the First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989 • During 1940-50, she acted in many films such as The Next Voice You Hear, Night Into Morning, and Donovan’s Brain

• In 1989 her autobiography “My Turn” which reflects her life in White house was released

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Mani Raman better known for his stage name Kala Bhavan Mani Popular Malayalam actor died at private hospital in Kochi Kerala.The actor was undergoing treatment for liver and kidney related diseases.The Chalakudy Police have registered a case for unnatural death after traces ofmethanol found in his body.

• The Actor and Singer has starred in more than 200 films including Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu movies

• Comedy was his forte, but he proved that he was not just a comedian with his superb portrayal of a blind singer in Vasanthiyum Lakshmiyum Pinne Njanum, the movie remade in Tamil as Kasi he was a favourite to win both the State and national awards for the best actor.

Brazilian percussionist, Nana Vasconcelos, died Eminent Percussionist, vocalist and Berimbau player Nana Vasconcelos has died of lung cancer at age 71.He was a master of the single-string percussion instrument.

• Brazil born eight time Grammy Award Winner worked over the decades with Brazilians Milton Nascimento and EgbertoGIsmonti, Americans Don Cherry and Pat Metheny.

• The American jazz magazine Downbeat named Vasconcelos percussionist of the year each year from 1983 to 1991. Sir George Martin, fifth Beatle, passes away Legendary Producer Sir George Martin Known as the fifth Beatle has died at 90,He passed away peacefully at his residence in besides Producing he is also an arranger, composer, conductor, audio engineer and musician.

• In his seven decades career ,he was recognized globally as one of music’s most creative talents and a gentleman.

• He worked numerous legends Including Peter Sellers, Shirley Bassey, America, Cheap Trick,Jeff Beck andCeline Dion.But his reputation, and his influence, rests on the seven years he spent with the Beatles, the most successful group in music history.

Keyboardist Keith Emerson dies at 71 Legendary Musician Keith Emerson, Lakeand Palmer keyboardist who turned the instrument into every bit the powerful and cool rock weapon as the guitar, has died in his residence in California US

• He was 71, when he died.Emerson’s first commercial success with the Nice in the late 1960s, before becoming a founding member of Emerson, Lake and Palmer one of the early supergroups, in 1970.

• He has been considered as one of the top keyboard players of the progressive rock era.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Nobel Prize winner Lloyd Shapeley passed away

The World famous Mathematician ,Economist and Nobel laureate Lloyd S Shapeley passed away at 92 in Arizon, USA. About Lloyd S Shapeley

• He was the creator of the game ‘so long sucker’ • He also worked as a professor at the University of California from 1981 till his death • He was awarded with the Nobel Memorial prize in statistics in 2012 for his theory of stable allocations and Game theory of economics field Awards :

• John Van Neumann theory prize in 1981 • Golden goose award in 2013

Renowned British author Anita Brookner passes away British award-winning novelist and art historian Anita Brookner passed away.She died at the age of 87.

• She was highly regarded as a stylist and her novels explore themes of emotional loss and difficulties associated with fitting into society, and typically depict intellectual, middle- class women.

• She has awarded with Man Booker prize in 1984 and in 2010 she had won James Tait Black Memorial

Shehnai Exponent Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan Passes Away The 77 year old Shehnai maestro, Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan passed away leaving his mesmerising Indian Classical tunes with the world. A Quick Look at his Life:

• Born on March 21,1939 in Kolkata • He taught Shehnai at Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkata in 1974 • He represented the Benaras School of Shehnai • He was regularly featured on All India Radio and Indian Television • Khan had performed in several countries including Belgium, Russia, Switzerland, France, Tunisia, Singapore, Indonesia, Hongkong and the Philippines

• Awards:

o Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2009 o Bangabhushan’ award by the West Bengal government in 2012

Paul Daniels, TV Magician, Dies Aged 77 Newton Edward Daniels, has died aged 77, after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Daniels is best known for his BBC TV series The Paul DanielsMagic Show, which

ran from 1979 to 1994.He achieved international fame through his television series

• Debbie started to work with Paul as his assistant in his 1980 show in Bournemouth before she graduated to the role in his long-running BBC series The Paul Daniels Magic Show.

Meir Dagan, Ex-Mossad chief passes away Meir Dagan, a former chief of Israeli intelligence agency Mossad has died. He was 71.

• He was widely known for disrupting Iran’s nuclear program. He served as the Director of Mossad from 2002 until his retirement in 2011.

• Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called the former spy director a “great fighter” who had devoted his life for the country and the Jewish people.

Frank Sinatra Jr. Has Passed Away Francis Wayne “Frank” Sinatra known as Frank Sinatra Jr., the son of the legendary entertainer Frank Sinatra died of cardiac arrest. He was 72.

• He was an American singer, songwriter, and conductor. • In his early times he has performed at local clubs and venues and also with some bands. He has also done acting, appearing in almost 20 shows, including the animated series “Family Guy“.

Former Danish PM Anker Joergensen died Former Danish Prime Minister Anker Joergensen died at 93. He served as the Prime Minister 2 times from 1972 to 1973 and from 1975 to 1982.

• He had also served as the Foreign Minister of Denmark. • He also led the economy through two oil crises while the country recorded its slowest growth in the postwar era.

Andrew Grover-former Intel CEO dead Andrew Grove, former Chairman and CEO of Intel, passed away. He was 79 and he has been battling Parkinson’s disease for years. Flash points

• Andrew Stephen Grove, also known as Andy, was a Hungarian-born American businessman, engineer, and author.

• He later became CEO of Intel Corporation and helped transform the company into the world’s largest manufacturer of semiconductors.

• He was also referred to as the ‘guy who drove the growth phase’ of Silicon Valley

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• In 1995, he was awarded with the 1st Annual Heinz Award in Technology, the

Economy and Employment

• In 1997, he was chosen as theTime Magazine’s Man of the Year • He went on to become Intel’s president in 1979, CEO in 1987 and chairman from 1997 to 2005

‘Kadhaprasangam’ famous V D Rajappan died The famous story telling ‘Kadhaprasangam’ artist and Malayalam Actor V D Rajappan died at the age of 70.

• He is a famous comedian in Malayalam cinema and acted over 50 movies • He was in peak in 1970’s & 1980’s for his unique satirical style of ‘Kadhaprasangam’ • His famous Kadhaprasangams include ‘Kumari Eruma’, ‘Mak Mak’, ‘Priye Ninte Kura’, ‘Amittu’, ‘Pothu Puthri’ and ‘Ennennum Kurangettandeh

• His last movie was ‘Ok Chacko Cochin Mumbai’

Football legend Johan Cruyff passed away The Holland football legend Johan Cruyff has died peacefully in Barcelona, in the presence of his family of lung cancer at the age of 68.

• The Dutchman, was named as the world player of the year on three occasions. He guided Holland to the World Cup final in 1974 and as a manager he spent eight years in charge of Barcelona.

• Cruyff scored 392 times in 520 games over a 19-year career but his influence reached far beyond creating goals, thanks to his qualities as a leader, thinker and speaker.

• As a player for Dutch international, Cruyff played 48 matches, scoring 33 goals. As a coach he had 242 victories in 387 matches, with 75 draws and 70 losses.

• He was adjudged as European Footballer of the Year in 1971, 1973 and 1974.Johan Cryuff.

• He joined Barcelona for a then-world record transfer fee of $2.0 million.

Comedian Garry Shandling Diesat 66 American actor and comedian Garry Shandling has died. He was 66. His office did not yet have any details about Shandling’s death.

• His brand of comedy, which ceaselessly mocked the non-natural nature of show business, is credited with influencing other hit shows like Tina Fey’s 30 Rock and Larry David’s Curb Your Enthusiasm.

• He was best known for his work inits Garry Shandling’s Show and The Larry Sanders Show.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Former BJP MP Lal Muni Chaubey passed away

Veteran BJP leader and Politician Lal Muni Chaubey passed away at the age of 73 owing to prolonged illness.

• He has been selected as the MP from Buxar district during 1996-2009 four times • He had also been the MLA from Kaimur constituency thrice • He belongs to Bihar • He is close to the former BJP PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Global Catholic Network founder Mother Angelica has died Mother Mary Angelica, a folksy Roman Catholic nun who used a monastery garage to begin a television ministry that grew into a global religious media empire, has died. She was 92.

• Mother Angelica had been in declining health since suffering a severe cerebral haemorrhage on Christmas Eve 2001.

Jim Carrison Passed Away Veteran lyricist, Poet, Essayist and Novel writer Jim Harrison passed away at the age of 78 following cardiac arrest.

• His famous novel “Legends of the fall” in 1979 describes about a Montana family that was ravaged in worldwar-I was a huge hit

• He has released 21 volumes of fiction, 14 books of poetry, two books of essays; one memoir and a child book

• His most recent book of fiction, “The Ancient Minstrel,” was published this month. A book of poetry, “Dead Man’s Float,” was published this year

Former USC President Steven Sample dies at 75 Steven Browning Sample, who was president of the Columbia based University of Southern California for nearly two decades during which the school rose to international prominence has passed away. He was 75.

• Steven as a president made Excellence campaign on the USC Building that raised $2.85 billion, and USC became the first university in the country to receive five donations of $100 million.

• His initiatives to boost the university’s global outreach also led to the dramatic rise in the number of international students.

• Sample became president in 1991 and he is the 10th president of the University of Southern California.

Oscar winning actress Patty Duke dies at 69 US actress Patty Duke, has died of sepsis from a ruptured intestine,at the age of 69.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

• Patty Duke, who as a teen won an Oscar for playing Helen Keller in The Miracle

Worker, then maintained a long career while battling personal demons

• she appeared in stages and television in her earlier period of the career. • She first became known as a teen star, winning an OSCAR Award for Best Supporting Actress at age 16 for her role as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker (1962).

• Over the course of her career, she received ten Emmy Award nominations and three Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards.

BOOKS & AUTHORS Who Was Shivaji ? “Who was Shivaji ? “ is a book authored by Sri Govind Pansare , a CPI leader who was shot dead in February 2015. The book portrays Shivaji in a rare new light in contrast to the image created by the Hindu nationalist discourse.

• The book is an outcome of a speech delivered in 1987, which probably cost the author his life. The controversial book has been printed in eight languages.

Dr. Mahesh Sharma releases the book “The Culture Heritage of Trans Himalayas-Kinnaur” The Minister for State (I/C) for Culture and Tourism and Minister of State for Civil Aviation Dr. Mahesh Sharma released a book entitled “The Culture Heritage of Trans Himalayas- Kinnaur” authored by Shri P.S. Nagi Loktus, IAS (retd.)

• The book, published by IGNCA under Ministry of Culture. • It is a study of the cultural heritage of the trans-Himalayan area of Himachal Pradesh, especially Kinnaur that involves documentation of traditional institutions like temples, monasteries, Bon chos, artefacts, forts and old dialects of various ethnic groups.

Gandhi: An Illustrated Biography authored by Pramod Kapoor An Illustrated Biography: Gandhi was authored by Pramod Kapoor is a one platform for all those who want to know about the life of the Father of the Nation.

• It is a biography of Mahatma Gandhi who played a key role in Indian independence movement

• In the 68 years since his assassination, Gandhi has been studied and re- analysed infinitely, with respect and critically.

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

IMPORTANT DAYS

Mar 1 2016 Remember Day: Zero Discrimination Day Purpose : To create awareness to people from all corners of the world, about the evil consequences of discrimination, to celebrate diversity, and to reject discrimination. Organization: UNAIDS Theme: Stand Out

Mar 3 2016 Remember Day: : World Wildlife Day Purpose : To raise awareness of the World's flora and fauna. Organization: UNGA Theme: The future of wildlife is in our hands

Remember Day: National defence day Purpose : To commemorate in the memory of Pakistan's successful defence against India that marked the ceasefire in the 1965 war Organization: India Theme: ‘It’s My Turn’

Mar 4 2016 Remember Day: National Security Day Purpose : To praise the work of security forces, who plays a major role in maintaining peace and security of the people in India. Organization: India

Mar 8 2016 Remember Day: International women’s day Purpose : : To celebrate the achievements of women while calling for greater equality. Organization: Theme: Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality

Mar 10 2016 Remember Day: World Kidney Day Purpose : To create awareness among the people globally, about the importance of the kidneys and also to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health issues. Organization: WHO 163 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Theme: Kidney Disease & Children: Act Early to Prevent It

March 13 2016 Remembered Day: World Rotaract Day Purpose: To recognize the services offered by the Rotaractors through out the World.

Mar 15 2016 Remember Day: World Consumer Rights Day Purpose : To promote the basic rights of all the consumers, to demand that those rights are respected and protected. Organization: WCRD Theme: Antibiotics off the menu

Mar 18 2016 Remember Day: World Sleep Day Purpose : To celebrate the benefits of good and healthy sleep and to draw society attention to the burden of sleep problems and their medicine, education and social aspects Organization: WASM Theme: Good Sleep is a Reachable Dream

Mar 19 2016 Remember Day: Earth Hour Purpose : To create awareness for global warming and Earth Hour is a global campaign with a simple message to switch off non-essential lights for one hour Organization: WWF Time: From 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m

Mar 20 2016 Remember Day: World Sparrow Day Purpose : To create awareness of the house sparrows and other birds to the rapidly changing environments, and of threats to their populations. Theme: Rise for the SPARROW – Experience the power of One

Remember Day: International Day of Happiness Purpose :To recognised happiness as a “fundamental human goal” and called for “a more inclusive, equitable and balanced approach to economic growth Organization: UN

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Mar 21 2016

Remember Day: International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Purpose : Aims to remind people of racial discrimination's negative consequences. It also encourages people to remember their obligation and determination to combat racial discrimination. Organization: UN Theme: Challenges and Achievements of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action’

Remember Day: World Down syndrome Day (WDSD) Purpose : To raise public awareness and create a single global voice for advocating for the rights, inclusion and well being of people with Down syndrome. Organization: WHO Theme: My friends, My Community’

Remember Day: International Day of Forests Purpose : To raise awareness of the importance of all types of forests and of trees outside forests Organization: UN, FAO Theme: Forests and water

Remember Day: World Poetry day Purpose : To promote the reading, writing, publishing and teaching of poetry throughout the world Organization: UNESCO

Remembered Day: International Day of Nowruz Purpose: To celebrates the start of the Persian spring festival March 21 ever year. It occurs on or around the time of the March equinox. Organization: UN

Mar 22 2016 Remember Day: World Water Day Purpose : To create awareness among the people about the importance of conservation of this valuable finite resource for the future generations. Organization: UN Theme: Water and Jobs

Mar 23 2016 Remember Day: World Meteorological Day Purpose : To support the all the countries by providing meteorological services related to natural disasters, climate and water. Organization:UN,WMO 165 | Page Follow Us - FB.com/AffairsCloudOfficialPage Copyright 2016 @ AffairsCloud.Com

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

Theme: Hotter, drier, wetter. Face the Future

Remember Day: Martyrs day Purpose : To marks the assassination of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in 1948 Organization: GOI

Mar 24 2016 Remember Day: World Tuberculosis Day Purpose : To create awareness to the public about the dreadful tuberculosis (TB) and efforts to eliminate the disease. Organization: UN, WHO Theme: Unite to End Tuberculosis

Remembered Day: International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims Purpose: To promote the importance of the right to truth and justice. Organization: UN

March 25 2016 Remembered Day: International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade Purpose: It honors the lives of those who died as a result of slavery or experienced the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade. It is also an occasion to raise awareness about the dangers of racism and prejudice. Organization: UN Theme: Remember Slavery: Celebrating the Heritage and Culture of the African Diaspora and its Roots

Remembered Day: International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members Purpose: Date is the anniversary of the abduction of Alec Collett, a journalist who died while working for the UN. Organization: UN

Mar 27 2016 Remember Day: World Theatre Day Purpose : To figure of world stature shares his or her reflections on the theme of Theatre and a Culture of Peace Organization: International Theatre Institute (ITI)

Current Affairs PDF: March 2016

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