GS-III

The company is miles ahead in compliance, not only in ALM but also on capital and liquidity coverage ratio, says the vice chairman of Indiabulls Housing Finance Gagan Banga , vice chairman and managing director of Indiabulls Housing Finance, says the recent move by banks to increase loan purchases from …

Present tariffs not sustainable for sector’s long-term health, says Director General The telecom sector is likely to experience three more quarters of losses, hurt by high levies and “unsustainable tariffs,” Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) director general Rajan Mathews said. “Under the current scenario, I see at least another …

The multi-agency committee set to finalise the definition of a “shell company” for the purposes of enforcing penal laws for various violations is yet to arrive at a consensus to diverse opinions on yardsticks for identification of such entities. After a large number of entities, classified as a shell company, …

The tractor mounted Happy Seeder machine can cut and lift the previous crop (in this case the rice straw) and sow a new (wheat) crop in its place. It also deposits the straw over the sown area as mulch. The machine can be operated with a 45 hp tractor and …

Cyclone Titli and the resultant rains have started to degrade the mass nesting site of olive ridley turtles at the Rushikulya river mouth in Odisha’s Ganjam district. Huge quantities of debris and waste material brought by the flooded river have been deposited on the coast. This can be a threat …

Critical hardware swapped to back-up units, solar panels pointed towards sun Barely a week after NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope entered safe mode, the Chandra mission has also suffered a glitch possibly due to the failure of the gyroscope, the US space agency said. The Chandra X-Ray Observatory, observing the universe …

Injected bacteria transferred the pigment-producing genes to the rose genome It may soon be possible to breed blue roses in your garden, say scientists who have found a way to express pigment-producing enzymes from bacteria in the petals of a white rose. Researchers including those from Chinese Academy of Sciences …

Drug safety results of over 5,000 patients showed significant reductions in patient mortality while no new safety signals have emerged In a recent Rapid Communication, the World Health Organisation (WHO) made important changes in the regimens to treat patients with multidrug-resistant TB (resistant to isoniazid and rifampicin). Two of the …

‘High-risk’ zones need special conservation attention Human–animal conflict is common in the Himalaya like any other region where wildlife and people live together. A study of patterns of leopard attacks here reveal that some areas are high-risk zones requiring urgent conservation measures for the safety of both man and beast. …

The silk scaffold has seamless junction between the cartilage and bone portions Implanting cartilage alone or injecting cells found in healthy cartilage (chondrocytes) at the site of injury to heal the damaged cartilage in patients with osteoarthritis does not produce favourable results. Similarly, implanting two different scaffolds joined together to …

DSRV can be mobilised from Mumbai The Navy has inducted its first deep submergence rescue vehicle to rescue downed or disaster-struck submarines on the high seas. India has now joined a select group of countries that have the capability to locate “distressed submarines”. At present, the U.S., China, Russia and …

Groups seek contracts to maintain sewerage systems safely When Maya’s husband died in a sewer in the north-western Delhi suburb of Rohini in 2002, she was left with four small children and no means of livelihood. After years of scrounging, odd jobs, and dependence on relatives, she is now prepared …

‘Implementlaws against harassment’ Demanding implementation of laws pertaining to sexual harassment in workplaces and constitution of designated committees, a group of journalists on Saturday gathered at Parliament Street in solidarity with the #MeToo movement. Applauding the courage of several women who have spoken about their traumatic experiences at their workplace, …

Toll in Gajapati district rises to 14; Over 60 lakh people affected As the death toll in the landslip in Odisha’s Gajapati district increased to 14 with the finding of two more bodies on Saturday, the State government stepped up relief and restoration work in the areas affected by Cyclone …

Visit this retreat of birds nestled in the foothills of the Chamundi Hill in Mysuru What do we really mean when we talk of a “riot of colours”? One ought to visit Shuka Vana, a rehabilitation centre for birds at the foothills of the picturesque Chamundi Hill in Mysuru, to …

Record ‘radio bursts’ detected from space Australian researchers on Thursday said they have detected a record number of radio waves from space, including the closest and fastest one that may help understand the matter between galaxies. They said they found 20 fast radio bursts in a year, almost doubling the …

Egyptian blue was used for cooling walls A colour developed by Egyptians thousands of years ago can boost energy efficiency by cooling rooftops and walls, and could also enable solar generation of electricity via windows, scientists say. Egyptian blue, derived from calcium copper silicate, was routinely used on ancient depictions …

Stephen Hawking’s final scientific paper — which was completed days before the British physicist’s death — has been written and posted online by his colleagues at Cambridge and Harvard universities. The paper named Black Hole Entropy and Soft Hair, tackles with what happens to information when it falls into a …

Further studies may lead to fertility treatments in same-sex couples A team of researchers has produced viable offspring from same-sex pairs of mice, using a novel technology that involves stem cells altered to remove certain genes. While the applications of the research are largely theoretical for now, they could include …