1)Banking and Finance

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1) Banking and Finance:

16th Financial Stability and Development Council Meeting Held in New Delhi i. The 16th edition of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) meeting was held on January 5, 2017 in New Delhi under the Chairmanship of the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. ii. Aim: The FSDC meeting was held to discuss about the obstacles faced by the economy and to bring out the solution to tackle them. Besides, it also aimed at bringing new suggestions and outcomes in order to benefit the upcoming Budget 2017-18. iii. While chairing the meeting, the Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley emphasized the significance of demonetization decision saying that the government’s measures to eliminate the shadow economy and tax evasion are expected to have a positive impact both on GDP and on fiscal consolidation in the long run. iv. Financial regulators gave suggestions to promote financial stability and also discussed the measures and initiatives to establish and promote the financial stability. Also, the regulators offered their suggestions for the upcoming Budget for 2017-18, which were discussed by the Council. Droom Partners with Axis Bank for quick sanction of loans i. Online automobile marketplace Droom has tied up with Axis Bank to provide quick sanction of loans on both new as well as used cars. ii. Loans will be provided for up to 85% of the value of the car with a tenure of 1-5 years. iii. Furthermore, loans on Used Cars can be availed on vehicles up to the age of 10 years.

Government impose anti-dumping duty on Jute from Bangladesh, Nepal i. The Government on January 5, 2017, imposed an anti-dumping duty ranging from USD 6.30 to USD 351.72 per tonne on imports of jute and its products from Bangladesh and Nepal for five years. ii. The revenue department after considering the findings of the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) imposed the anti-dumping duty in order to protect the domestic industry. According to DGAD, Performance of domestic industry has deteriorated in the terms of profitability, return on investments and cash flow and domestic industry is also facing injury due to dumped imports. iii. The import restrictive levy has been imposed on jute yarn, twine, Hessian fabric and jute sacking bags in all forms and specifications. iv. An anti-dumping duty is a protectionist tariff that a domestic government imposes on foreign imports that are priced below fair market value. In simple terms, a penalty imposed on suspiciously low-priced imports, to increase their price in the domestic country so as to protect local industry from unfair competition.

HSBC reported that India's GDP may have dipped to 5% in Dec quarter post note ban: India’s GDP is likely to have grown at a much slower-than-expected pace of 5% in the October-December period due to a slowdown in manufacturing and services sectors post demonetisation, an HSBC report said. Further, GDP may see 6% growth in the following quarter, it stated. Activity data, and consumption and investment have clearly taken a hit after demonetisation, it added. Under GST the exporters to get 90% tax refund within 7 days: The government has agreed to refund 90% of the duties paid by exporters within a period of seven days under the GST regime. The exporters would get interest on the refund in case of delays, it added. Earlier, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. The Commerce secretary Rita Teaotia also said the revenue department has committed that 90% of the refund will be made within seven days, while the remaining 10% “will be subject to

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whatever verification the revenue department is required to do”. Under the GST structure, taxes must be paid and that the refund will be provided.

Single-window customs clearance for exporters is extended by Revenue department: The revenue department has extended the facility of single window customs clearance for export consignments with a view to bringing down transaction cost. In a circular, Central board of excise and customs department said, after the successful implementation of single window interface for facilitation of trade (SWIFT) for imports, it is proposed to implement online-release from partner government agencies for exports. A pilot project for exporters has been started at Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai air cargo complexes from yesterday. SWIFT provides importers and exporters a single point interface for Customs clearance of shipments thereby reducing interface with government agencies and cost of doing business.

500 Startups delays $25 million India-focussed Kulfi fund : California-based early-stage seed fund 500 Startups, has reportedly delayed its plans to raise a $25 million India- focussed fund called 500 Kulfi. The accelerator, led by angel investor Dave McClure, cited taxation and regulatory concerns as reasons for putting the fund on hold. 500 Startups has invested in over 50 companies in India since 2011 including Instamojo and CultureAlley.

Karnataka Bank launches group Personal Accident Insurance Scheme  The 'Karnataka Bank' has launched a month-long campaign to promote a group personal accident insurance scheme for savings bank account-holders.  ‘KBL Suraksha’ was launched on 2nd January and will be in force till 31st January in association with Universal Sompo General Insurance.  KBL Suraksha provides coverage against all types of accidental deaths.  All savings bank account holders of the bank in the age group of 18-70 years can subscribe to this scheme by paying an annual premium of Rs. 100 for Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 50 for Rs. 5 lakh coverage.

SIDBI ties up with LIC for capital support to enterprises i.Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) on Thursday said it has tied up with Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) for augmenting capital support to enterprises in the country. ii.The idea behind tying up with the state-run insurance behemoth is to give a boost to the venture capital ecosystem for MSMEs.

Awards and Honorary: 30 Indian-Origin Men & Women Inducted into 2017 Forbes’ Super Achievers List i. The 2017 edition of the Forbes’ list of super achievers under the age of 30 features about 30 Indian- Origin Innovators, Entrepreneurs and Leaders who made outstanding contribution towards transforming the world. ii. The 30 people listed belong to 20 different industries including healthcare, manufacturing, sports and finance. iii. Forbes List of super achievers under the age of 30 listed 600 people who were passionate to break the status quo and transform the world. iv. The list included Vivek Kopparthi of NeoLight, Prarthna Desai, Shaun Patel, Rohan Suri, Varun Sivram , Neha Gupta, Aditya Agarwal, Akshay Khanna, Anarghya Vardhana, Akshay Goyal Ajay Yadav among others.

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Shah Rukh Khan Named for 4th Yash Chopra Memorial Award i. Bollywood actor, Shah Rukh Khan, commonly known as SRK, has been named for the 4th Yash Chopra Memorial Award. The award would be presented to the actor at a function in Mumbai on February 25, 2017. ii. The actor will receive Rs 10 lakh, a gold medal, and a certificate as part of the award. iii. Shah Rukh Khan was chosen as the recipient by a four-member jury, consisting of Dr T. Subirami Reddy, Pamela Chopra, Padmini Kolhapure and Boney Kapoor. iv. Yash Chopra Memorial Award was instituted by the T. Subirami’s TSR Foundation as a tribute to the director Yash Chopra after his death in 2012. v. Previous recipients of the award includes Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha

2) Appointments: Britain appoints Sir Tim Barrow as EU ambassador: UK's government has appointed career diplomat Sir Tim Barrow as its ambassador to the EU. The office of Britain's PM Theresa May said that Barrow is a seasoned and tough negotiator who will bring energy to Brexit talks. The former ambassador Sir Ivan Rogers had resigned after accusing the government of "ill-founded arguments and muddled thinking" over the Brexit negotiation. S Padmanabhan Appointed as Chairman of Tata Power i.Tata Sons has nominated S Padmanabhan as the Chairman of Tata Power Co Ltd with immediate effect, in place of Cyrus Mistry.He is also the executive chairman of Tata Business Excellence Group. Recently he was appointed as the head of group for human resources for Tata Sons. ii.He is associated Tata group for 34 years, of which 26 were with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). Capgemini Appoints Anil Jalali of IBM as HR head for India Operation i.French Consulting Corporation, Capgemini has appointed Anil Jalali as Chief Human Resources Officer for its India operation . ii.Jalali takes over from BL Narayan who is joining Capgemini’s Business Services Strategic Business unit as head of solutions and sales support. IBM India Appoints Karan Bajwa as Managing Director i.IBM has appointed Karan Bajwa as Managing Director of IBM India Pvt Ltd, succeeding Vanitha Narayanan who has been appointed as chairman of the Indian subsidiary. ii.Bajwa joined IBM in 2016 as Executive for Strategy and Transformation in the Asia Pacific region. He was earlier Managing Director, Microsoft India where, besides leading the India business for the company, he also the led the cloud transition and the ecosystem engagement.

3) Persons: Veteran actor Om Puri passed passes away i. Veteran actor Om Puri passed passes away at 66 after cardiac arrest ii. Mr.Puri has appeared in mainstream Bollywood cinema as well as Pakistani and British films. iii. He has received an Order of the British Empire(OBE) as well as Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India.

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Noted Manipur based historian Gangmumei Kamei passes away  Noted Manipur-based historian, litterateur and scholar Gangmumei Kamei passed away in Imphal following protracted illness. He was 77.  Kamei was currently a member of the North Eastern Council (NEC). Earlier, he had served as a minister in Manipur on two occasions.

Sitar Player Abdul Halim Jaffer dies at 88 Renowned Sitar maestro Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan died due to cardiac arrest. He was 88.Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan was an Indian sitar player and received the national awards Padma Shri (1970) and Padma Bhushan (2006) and was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for 1987

Place: 16th meeting of FSDC held in New Delhi  The 16th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was held in New Delhi. It was chaired by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.  It was attended by heads of all financial sector regulators as its members.  It reviewed the major issues and challenges facing the economy.  India appears to be much better placed because of improvement in its macroeconomic fundamental despite fragile world economy.  The status of NPAs of public sector banks and measures taken by the government and the RBI for tackling the stressed assets were reviewed.  Discussed about the various initiatives taken by the government and regulators for promoting financial inclusion/ literacy.  Discussed issues pertaining to Fintech, digital innovations and cyber security. It also discussed on further steps to be taken.  It will help in eliminating the shadow economy and tax evasion.

Business summit Intaglio 2017 starts today at IIM Calcutta: IIM Calcutta will be conducting its international business summit Intaglio 2017 from January 6 to 8, 2017. The event has been themed 'India towards Epitome of Excellence' this year. Intaglio will see participants from over 500 Indian institutes competing in multiple business events pertaining to strategy, finance, marketing among others and witnessing speakers like Meera Sanyal and Harish Iyer.

Delhi’s Connaught Place to go vehicle-free from Feb  The middle and inner circle roads of Delhi’s Connaught Place will be made vehicle-free for three months.  A pilot smart city project starting from February 2017.  The traffic will be barred on these roads as part of 'pedestrianization' of the area.  The ban on vehicles is meant to offer a "congestion free, accident-free and crime free" experience to those visiting the area.  Connaught Place is one of the largest financial, commercial and business centres in New Delhi, India.

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Three Days International Conference on Yoga for Diabetes Organised in New Delhi i.The Minister of State for AYUSH Shri Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurated the International Conference on “Yoga for Diabetes” which began in New Delhi on January 4, 2017. ii.The three days conference aims to generate discussions on the role of Yoga in the prevention and management of Diabetes and draw up a roadmap to be adopted for the control of Diabetes through Yoga.

4) Sports: Indian Skipper Virat Kohli Named Captain for all Three Formats i. Indian Skipper, Virat Kohli was officially named as the Indian Cricket Team’s New Captain for all the three formats on January 6, 2017 at Mumbai. ii. Virat takes over from India’s most successful ODI captain MS Dhoni who resigned from his roleon 5 january 2017. Virat took over the Test team captaincy from Dhoni full-time in January 2015 after the Dhoni retired from Test cricket at Melbourne in December 2014. iii. The daring batsman, Kohli, who has presided over an 18-match unbeaten run as Test captain, will first lead India in three one-day internationals starting from January 15 before the sides play three Twenty20 matches.

Hockey India sponsorship contract with Sahara Group got extended up to 2021: The Sahara Group on Thursday extended its with Hockey India by signing a deal until 2021. Sahara Group, which has been associated with Hockey India since 1995, will support both the men's and women's hockey teams at the senior and junior levels. The Group said that apart from the sponsorship, it would also help players in different ways. Chennai Open: World record for largest tennis lesson with 956 kids takes place: As many as 956 kids showed up for a tennis training session at Chennai's SDAT Tennis Stadium on Tuesday, setting a world record for the 'largest tennis lesson'. The previous record stood at 803 participants and was set in Liverpool, United Kingdom in June 2015. The kids trained with leading Indian players like Rohan Bopanna and Leander Paes.

Olympic medal-winners 'Ashton Eaton' and 'Brianne Theisen-Eaton' couple announces retirement together: The Olympic medal-winning husband-wife duo of Ashton Eaton and Brianne Theisen-Eaton announced their retirement from athletics on Wednesday. Ashton, a two-time Olympic gold medal-winning decathlon athlete and Brianne, a two-time heptathlon world silver medallist, wrote side-by-side essays on their website announcing their retirement. “I can’t advance any further in the sport”, wrote Ashton. 9-member govt panel formed for National Sports Code in comprising Bindra , Padukone and Anju: Former Olympic champion Abhinav Bindra and legendary Prakash Padukone are part of the nine-member government panel formed to make recommendations for bringing out a comprehensive National Sports Development Code across all disciplines. An official press-release said, the committee, headed by Sports Secretary Injeti Srinivas, will study issues related to sports governance including court judgements and best international practices. The other notable sportsperson in the committee is India's lone world championship medallist athlete Anju Bobby George.

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5) Science and Technology:

'Shangri-la of the World' the longest bullet train launched by China: China on Thursday launched its longest bullet train 'Shangri-la of the World' from Kunming, in Yunnan Province, to Beijing. This has expanded China's high-speed train network to about 20,000 kilometres. It takes nearly 13 hours for the train to cover a distance of 2,760 kilometres. A ticket for a second-class seat on the train costs 1,147 yuan (Rs.11,330).

Two missions “Lucy” and “Psyche” to explore early Solar System announced by NASA: NASA has announced two missions to explore the early Solar System by studying the metallic asteroid Psyche and perform the first orbital reconnaissance of Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids. Chosen out of 27 submissions, each investigative team received 3 million dollars to design concept studies. The two selected missions will cost approximately 500 million dollars each, not including launch and post-launch operations. The two missions have been dubbed “Lucy” and “Psyche”. A new-generation telecommunications satellite launched successfully by China : China has successfully launched a new-generation telecommunications satellite, the country’s Defense Ministry has announced. The launch was carried out at 15:19 GMT yesterday from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using the Chang Zheng 3B carrier rocket, the ministry said. The second Tongxin Jishu Shiyan satellite will help test multi-frequency high-speed data transmission. China plans to carry out about 30 space launches in 2017. China successfully launched new-generation telecommunications satellite  China has successfully launched a new-generation telecommunications satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using the Chang Zheng 3B carrier rocket.  The second Tongxin Jishu Shiyan satellite will help test multi-frequency high-speed data transmission.  China has planned to carry out about 30 space launches in 2017.

6) Others: Japan to Help in Developing Chennai, Ahmedabad and Varanasi Smart Cities i. Japan’s Ambassador to India Mr.Kenji Hiramatsu, informed about Japan’s intention to help India with the development of Chennai, Ahmedabad and Varanasi as smart cities. ii. The decision was announced by the Mr.Kenji during a meeting with Minister of Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu on January 5, 2017. iii. Till date many countries have come forward to aid with development of 15 smart cities in India. These include: 1.United States Trade Development Agency (USTDA) for Visakhapatnam, Ajmer and Allahabad 2.United Kingdom for Pune, Amaravati and Indore, 3.France for Chandigarh, Puducherry and Nagpur 4.Germany for Bhubaneswar, Coimbattore and Kochi Japan  Capital: Tokyo  Currency: Japanese yen  Prime minister: Shinzō Abe

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NDMC Names a Road in Rohini Area of New Delhi After Guru Govind Singh i. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) has dedicated a stretch of road in New Delhi to Guru Govind Singh on January 5, 2017. ii. The road between Block A and Block B at Sector 15 in Rohini was named after Guru Gobind Singh to commemorate his 350th birth anniversary. Telangana to Provide Monetary Help of Rs. 1000 to Single Women in State i. The Telangana Government led by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, announced a new scheme on January 6, 2017, to provide financial assistance of Rs. 1000 per month to poor single women in the state. ii. Making an announcement in the Legislative Assembly, the CM informed that the new scheme will be implemented from April 2017 and necessary funds will be allocated in the upcoming budget. iii. Single women who are below poverty line constitute two to three lakhs in the state and the government desires to provide assistance to them with an aim to enhance their living standards. iv. Mr Rao has directed the district collectors to start enrollment of single women and appealed to the beneficiaries to come forward to enroll their names under the scheme.

2017 Island Tourism Festival Begins in Andaman & Nicobar Island i. The 2017 Island Tourism Festival began at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands on January 6, 2017. The 10- Day Event was inaugurated by the Lieutenant Governor of Island, Jagdish Mukhi at the ITF Ground. ii. The event will experience performances by the cultural troupes from mainland India to help the Islanders renew their cultural ties with mainland. The troupes from both India and Island will also perform in outer Islands apart from South Andaman. iii. Besides the major attractions of the festivals including food courts, fun games, handicrafts etc. other events would include a performance by International Cultural Group from Khazkhistan, besides, a band of artists from mainland will perform during the festival at North and Middle Andaman and also at Nicobar Group of Islands, besides South Andaman.

India and Kazakhstan Signs DTAC Amendment Protocol India and Kazakhstan signed a Protocol to amend the existing Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) between the two countries on January 6, 2017 in New Delhi.  The Agreement was originally signed on 9th December, 1996 for the avoidance of double taxation and for the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. Features of Protocol i. The Protocol provides internationally accepted standards for effective exchange of information on tax matters. The information received from Kazakhstan for tax purposes can be shared with other law enforcement agencies with authorisation of the competent authority of Kazakhstan and vice versa. ii .The Protocol has a Limitation of Benefits Article, to provide a main purpose test to prevent misuse of the DTAC and to allow application of domestic law and measures against tax avoidance or evasion. iii. The Protocol includes specific provisions to facilitate relieving of economic double taxation in transfer pricing cases. iv. The Protocol inserts service PE provisions with a threshold and also provides that the profits to be attributed to PE will be determined on the basis of apportionment of total profits of the enterprise. v. The Protocol replaces existing Article on Assistance in Collection of Taxes with a new Article to align it with international standards. Kazakhstan :

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 Capital: Astana  Currency: Kazakhstani tenge  President: Nursultan Nazarbayev

Govt constitutes Injeti Srinivas Committee to frame National Sports Code  The Union Sports Ministry has constituted committee to frame comprehensive National Sports Development Code across sports disciplines.  It will be headed by Injeti Srinivas, Sports Secretary.  The committee will study the existing sports governance frame work, issues relating to sports governance in the country, recent developments related to sports governance.  It will also study court judgments and international best practices and make recommendations on bringing out a comprehensive code across sports disciplines.  Members of the Committee: Abhinav Bindra (Olympian), Anju Bobby George (Olympian), Praksh Padukone, (eminent sports person), Narinder Batra (President, FIH), Nandan Kamath (Lawyer), Bishweshwar Nandi (Coach) and Vijay Lokpally (Sports Journalist).

New facility for visually-impaired students opens at IIT-Bombay: IIT-Bombay has opened a new facility for the visually-impaired students at its central library. The institute said it has procured modern aids and appliances like a document camera that works as an instant reader, software to convert text into audio files, and portable scanners and readers, among others. It is a positive move towards social inclusion, Director Devang Khakhar said.

New taxi service 'Shivgramin' launch Maharashtra government: Maharashtra government is likely to launch a new Shivgramin Taxi Scheme on Thursday, according to reports. The new taxis will be orange and white in colour and will ply outside municipal limits. The six-seater taxis will provide an alternate mode of public transport to people in rural and semi-urban areas of Maharashtra.

Mumbai-Pune Expressway soon to get WiFi coverage : The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation has decided to provide high-speed WiFi coverage zones on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway of 94-km, according to reports. The WiFi network will help the police to monitor CCTV footage along the expressway and at the toll booths in real time, said an official. The services are likely to be offered for free. Apart from WiFi, the MSRDC also plans to strengthen the mobile network. “There are a lot of shadow areas on the expressway. We want telecom operators to install base transceiver stations (BTS) and other infrastructure.

Workshop for promotion of IT & ITeS Industries in Port Blair by Lt. Governor: In Andaman & Nicobar Islands, a day-long workshop for promotion of IT and ITeS Industries in Islands will be organised today at Dr. BR Ambedkar Institute of Technology, Port Blair. Lt. Governor Jagdish Mukhi will inaugurate the workshop at 10.30 AM. NASSCOM President R Chandrashekhar, senior officers from Union Telecom Ministry will participate in the workshop.

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Mumbai's 5 junctions is set installed with air purifying unit by MPCB : The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board has installed a device called Wind Augmentation and Purifying Unit at Mumbai's five vital junctions. The places are Sion flyover, Bandra Kalanagar, Shreyas Junction in Ghatkopar, Bhandup railway station and Maharashtra Pollution Control Board headquarters. This action has been taken with an aim to reduce pollution in Mumbai and its outskirts. The device was inaugurated by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray today.

'Eden Project' the largest indoor rainforest is located in UK : The 'Eden Project', believed to be the largest indoor rainforest, is located in Cornwall, UK. The greenhouse is built into a giant crater and houses thousands of plant varieties. It consists of eight domes that cover about 5.5 acres. The domes are paneled with plastic bubbles that adapt to the changing topography.

Launch of IPR Enforcement Toolkit for Police and IPR Awareness Campaign for Children i.The Commerce & Industry Ministery launched an IPR Enforcement Toolkit for Police. ii.The toolkit has been jointly prepared by Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). iii.This toolkit will be a ready reckoner for police officials across the country in dealing with IP crimes, specifically Trade Marks counterfeiting and Copyrights piracy.

Book on Dr. Kalam titled 'The People’s President: Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam' released i.Vice President Hamid Ansari on 4 January 2017 released a book titled The People's President: Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. ii.The book was released at a function in New Delhi which was attended by Union Finance.