Current Affairs 4-5th Apr, 2015

DOWNLOAD PDF

Current Affairs 5th Apr, 2015

1. President Pranab Mukherjee has assented to the re-promulgation of the Land Ordinance, which will come into effect from April 5. This Ordinance is being issued in lieu of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015, and will replace the previous Ordinance issued in December.

2. A new draft model bilateral investment treaty proposes to make it difficult for foreign companies to seek arbitration against Indian authorities through restrictions on dispute resolution tribunals and their jurisdiction. The draft treaty is expected to replace existing investment protection agreements India has signed with 83 countries.

3. Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) will test-fire an interceptor missile, whose task is to hit an incoming ballistic missile target. The interceptor missiles are still being refined before being produced in large numbers for deployment.

4. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan asks banks to be cautious in lending to infrastructure sector noting that banks already had too much exposure to the sector. India needed to find new sources of funding for infrastructure so that debt levels remained ‘moderate’.

5. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to turn ‘Swadeshi’ by ensuring that the security paper and the ink used for printing currency notes are manufactured domestically. At present, almost 80 per cent of the notes are printed on imported cotton-based paper.

Current Affairs 4th Apr, 2015

1. Government is planning to increase the number of work days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme from 100 to 150 in places where the recent unseasonal rain and hailstorms have affected crops.

2. The Centre has given another six months to the States for rolling out the National Food Security Act (NFSA). The deadline has already been extended twice. Only 11 States and Union Territories have so far implemented the Act which was passed by Parliament in September 2013.

3. A conference of chief justices of all the high courts has begun. It will discuss ways and means to speedily dispose of cases involving crimes against women and marginalised sections of society. Further the higher judiciary wants to devise a mechanism to fast-track corruption cases.

4. Iran and six world powers reached a preliminary nuclear agreement recently outlining commitments by both sides as they work for a comprehensive deal aiming at curbing nuclear activities Tehran could use to make weapons and providing sanctions relief for Iran. The six world powers are— U.S., U.K., France, Russia, China and Germany.

5. Health Insurance Third Party Administrator (TPA) of India is set up to exclusively manage health claims of public general insurers and will begin operations on July 1. Last year, the TPA got its licence from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai). TPA licences are valid for three years from the date of issue or renewal.