GS-III

Indian regulations on capital requirements, provisioning for sour assets and prompt corrective action (PCA) restricting regular activities by lenders are conservative and rule-based, SBI’s research wing said in a report. It did not call for any relook in the report which comes amid a heated debate between the government and …

Several Asian member countries of the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) have offered India a significant concession on the extent to which it needs to open up its markets, in a bid to encourage it to join the partnership quickly, according to a diplomat from Singapore. The RCEP is …

‘Board’s objective is to protect institution, not to serve others’ interests’ Amid mounting tension between the Reserve Bank and the Finance Ministry, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has said the central bank was like a seat belt in a car, without which accidents could happen. Pitching for respect for the …

Cash in circulation and ATM withdrawals have only increased, RBI data shows Thursday, November 8, marks the second anniversary of the demonetisation exercise. It was on the same day in 2016 that Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Rs. 1,000 and Rs. 500 currency notes would no longer be legal …

It marks first anniversary of GI tag for popular sweet The West Bengal government has decided to observe ‘Rosogolla Day’ on November 14 to commemorate the first anniversary of the State’s famous sweet getting Geographical Indication (GI) tag as ‘Bengal’s Rosogolla’, an official said on Wednesday. Different varieties of rosogollas …

Deepavali celebrations in Delhi pushed the air quality index to hazardous in several parts of the city with fireworks choking the city well past 11 p.m. on Wednesday. A thick haze engulfed the national capital with the air quality deteriorating to the “very poor” category as Delhiites continued to burst …

Right to Food campaign exhorts poll-bound parties With five States set to go to the polls this month, the Right to Food Campaign has decided to raise the mandatory requirement of Aadhaar for availing of social benefits an electoral issue. ‘Amend Aadhaar Act’ “We intend to go to all political …

There are no mandatory pension benefits in the final version of the Centre’s model construction workers’ welfare scheme, despite earlier suggestions that 20% of the construction cess fund be set aside for retired workers. The final version of the scheme, which was released last week, simply notes that: “Considering that …

Centre’s efforts have been on cleaning the river, while neglecting steps to ensure its natural flow: activists The government has banned the construction of jetties, ports or “permanent hydraulic structures” in the Ganga, unless permitted by the National Ganga Rejuvenation Authority, according to a proposed ‘Ganga Act’, viewed by The …

On Tuesday, the city breathed easy, with residents bursting fewer crackers than usual during Deepavali. However, the Supreme Court order on bursting crackers for only two hours seemed to have been flouted by many residents, who enjoyed the festive spirit the entire evening. Thoraipakkam resident Prabhakar said that children in …

Patel may quit if the section is invoked The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has refused to provide any leeway to stressed borrowers or give in to the demand of higher dividend by the government, which issued three letters to the central bank in the last one month for consultation …

Required for original message sender’s identification: govt. The government on Wednesday said it does not want WhatsApp to “decrypt and read” messages sent on its platform but “insists” that the Facebook-owned firm be able to trace the origin of messages that lead to serious crimes. This was conveyed to WhatsApp …

Reiterating that RBI’s autonomy is within the Act sends the message: ex-officials The Finance Ministry’s statement on Wednesday regarding the Reserve Bank of India and its reiteration of the consultative process with the central bank is welcome. But the fact that it mentioned that the central bank was autonomous within …

They are net sellers at $4 billion, which is the highest for any month in the last 16 years October has turned out to be the worst-ever month for Indian equities in terms of outflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) that are often looked upon as the prime drivers of …

Finance Ministry statement makes no mention of whether Section 7 of RBI Act has been invoked The Ministry of Finance has acknowledged that the autonomy of the Reserve Bank of India is an ‘essential and accepted governance requirement,’ in a statement issued on Wednesday. Significantly, it neither confirmed nor denied …

‘Few places in coastal T.N. may experience heavy rainfall’ As the northeast monsoon inches closer to coastal areas, several areas in Chennai received intermittent spells of rainfall since Wednesday morning. The onset of monsoon is likely to be announced on Thursday initially in the coastal areas and rain would then …

Reform agenda bearing fruit,says World Bank India jumped 23 ranks in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index 2018 to 77. In the 2017 report, the country was ranked 100. The Index ranks 190 countries based on 10 indicators across the life-cycle of a business, from “starting a business” …

‘Other States can use existing stocks this year’ The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed States other than Delhi to use their existing stocks of crackers for Diwali next week. However, the Bench of Justices A.K. Sikri and Ashok Bhushan directed that only green crackers can be manufactured henceforth across the …

China’s first private rocket fails after launch The first attempt by a private Chinese company to send a rocket into space has failed. Beijing-based Landscape said that the first and second stage of its ZQ-1 rocket worked normally. Landscape said that “cowling separation was normal but something abnormal happened after …

Study of a dozen species revealed the presence of pollen grains Moths are widely considered as pests, but a recent study by scientists of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has revealed that these group of insects are pollinators to a number of flowering plants in the Himalayan ecosystem. Under the …