Latest Current Affairs Questions: 28 February 2015

1) Government has tabled the 14th Finance Commission report for the period 1st April 2015 to 31st March 2020 in the Lok Sabha on 24 February 2015. Finance commission is a body set up under which article of the Constitution?

(A) Article 280

(B) Article 370

(C) Article 371(A)

(D) Article 230

2) Which player has hit the first double century in the ICC Cricket World Cup history on 24 February 2015?

(A) AB de Villiers

(B) Chris Gayle

(C) Brendon McCullum

(D) Rohit Sharma

3) Which state governmnet on 24 February 2015 announced that it had developed a mobile application “mLiquorSaleCheck” for end consumers of liquor?

(A) Kerala

(B) Gujarat

(C) Maharashtra

(D) Delhi 

4)  R. K. Pachauri has recently resigned as Chief of UN panel on?

(A) Peace

(B) Child Education

(C) Climate Change

(D) None of these

5) Bharatiya Janata Party and the which other party on 24 February 2015 announced their alliance for forming a “popular’’ government in Jammu and Kashmir?

(A) Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

(B) National Conference (NC)

(C) Indian National Congress

(D) Janata Dal United (JDU)

6) A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Indian Army and which bank on the Defence Salary Package on 23 February 2015?

(A) ICICI Bank

(B) State Bank of India

(C) Union Bank of India

(D) Indian Bank

7) Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has tied up with which  E-Commerce company to sell various products on 27 February 2015?

(A) Flipkart

(B) eBay

(C) Amazon

(D) Snapdeal

8) Which session of Parliament began on 23 February 2015 with President Pranab Mukherjee's address to members of both houses of Parliament?

(A) Summer Session

(B) Winter Session

(C) Joint Session

(D) Budget Session

9) Ram Niwas Goel was on 23 February 2015 unanimously elected Speaker of which state Assembly?

(A) Delhi

(B) Jharkhand

(C) TamilNadu

(D) Bihar

10) Justice Amitava Roy was on 27 February 2015 sworn in as a judge of the Supreme Court. Earlier, he was the chief justice of?

(A) Kerala high court

(B) Odisha high court

(C) Calcutta high court

(D) Karnataka high court

Answer

1) Ans. (A) Article 280

2) Ans. (B) Chris Gayle

3) Ans. (D) Delhi

4) Ans. (C) Climate Change

5) Ans. (A) Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

6) Ans. (B) State Bank of India

7) Ans.(C) Amazon

8) Ans. (D) Budget Session

9) Ans. (A) Delhi

10) Ans. (B) Odisha high court

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Employment News: 28th February to 06th March 2015

1. The Oriental Insurance Company Ltd.     

Name of Post -Administrative Officers (Scale-I)

No. of Post- 246

Last Date-20.03.2015. Details: Click Here

2. Heavy Water Board

Name of Post-Category –I Trainee & Category –II Trainee 

No. of Post- 167

Last Date-16.03.2015

3. UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION

Name of Post-Joint Director, Scientists SB (Chemical), Professor etc.

No. of Post-27

Last Date-  19.03.2015                       

4. Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd.            

Name of Post-Executive Trainee

No. of Post-110

Last Date- 20.03.2015

5. Central Pollution Control  

Name of Post-Research Associates – I and Junior Research Fellow

No. of Post-70

Last Date- 30 days after publication                

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Highlights of Union Budget 2015-16: PDF Download

Friends..As you all know, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today (28 February 2015) presented the Union Budget 2015-16 in Parliament. Questions related to this budget will surely be asked in upcoming competitive Exams and mainly in Bank Exams. So in this post, we are sharing with you the highlights of the Union Budget 2015-16.

Download as PDF: Click Here

--> No change in personal Income Tax * Health Insurance Premium deduction hiked from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 25,000; for senior citizens to Rs. 30,000

--> Transport allowance exemption hiked to Rs. 1,600, from Rs. 800 per month

--> Additional 2% surcharge on people earning over Rs. 1 cr; to fetch Rs. 9,000 cr

--> Wealth tax abolished

--> Direct Taxes Code (DTC) dropped

--> Rs. 50,000 deduction for contribution to New Pension Scheme

--> To lower Corporate Tax to 25% over next four years

--> GAAR implementation deferred by 2 years to April 2017

--> Service Tax rate hiked to 14%, from 12.36%

--> Tax free bonds for roads, railways, irrigation projects

--> 2015—16 growth between 8—8.5%, double digit growth feasible

--> Retail inflation close to 5% by March, room for monetary policy easing

--> To achieve fiscal deficit of 3% of GDP by 2017—18

--> Fiscal Deficit target 3.9% in 2015—16, 3.5% in 2016—17

--> Revenue Deficit to be 2.8% in 2015—16

--> Current Account Deficit for 2014—15 to be below 1.3% of GDP

--> To introduce comprehensive law to deal with black money

--> Benami property transaction bill to tackle black money transaction in real estate soon

--> 100% deduction for contribution to Swachh Bharat, Clean Ganga projects

--> GST to be put in place by April 1, 2016

--> Internationally competitive direct tax regime to be put in place to incentivise saving

--> Incentivise use of credit, debit cards; disincentivise cash transaction to curb black money.

Here are sector-wise highlights:

TAXATION

* Abolition of Wealth Tax.

* Additional 2% surcharge for the super rich with income of over Rs. 1 crore.

* Rate of corporate tax to be reduced to 25% over next four years.

* No change in tax slabs.

* Total exemption of up to Rs. 4,44,200 can be achieved.

* 100% exemption for contribution to Swachch Bharat, apart from CSR.

* Service tax increased to14 per cent.

AGRICULTURE

* Rs. 25,000 crore for Rural Infrastructure Development Bank.

* Rs. 5,300 crore to support Micro Irrigation Programme.

* Farmers credit - target of 8.5 lakh crore.

INFRASTRUCTURE

* Rs. 70,000 crores to Infrastructure sector.

* Tax-free bonds for projects in rail road and irrigation

* PPP model for infrastructure development to be revitalised and govt. to bear majority of the risk.

* Atal Innovation Mission to be established to draw on expertise of entrepreneurs, and researchers to foster scientific innovations; allocation of Rs. 150 crore.

* Govt. proposes to set up 5 ultra mega power projects, each of 4000MW.

EDUCATION

* AIIMS in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Assam.

* IIT in Karnataka; Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad to be upgraded to IIT.

* PG institute of Horticulture in Amritsar.

* Kerala to have University of Disability Studies

* Centre of film production, animation and gaming to come up in Arunachal Pradesh.

* IIM for Jammu and Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh.

DEFENCE

* Allocation of Rs. 2,46,726 crore; an increase of 9.87 per cent over last year.

* Focus on Make in India for quick manufacturing of Defence equipment.

WELFARE SCHEMES

* GST and JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile) to improve quality of life and to pass benefits to common man.

* Six crore toilets across the country under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

* MUDRA bank will refinance micro finance orgs. to encourage first generation SC/ST entrepreneurs.

* Housing for all by 2020.

* Upgradation 80,000 secondary schools.

* DBT will be further be expanded from 1 crore to 10.3 crore.

* For the Atal Pension Yojana, govt. will contribute 50% of the premium limited to Rs. 1,000 a year.

* New scheme for physical aids and assisted living devices for people aged over 80 .

* Govt. to use Rs. 9,000 crore unclaimed funds in PPF/EPF for Senior Citizens Fund.

* Rs. 5,000 crore additional allocation for MGNREGA.

* Govt. to create universal social security system for all Indians.

RENEWABLE ENERGY

* Rs. 75 crore for electric cars production.

* Renewable energy target for 2022: 100K MW in solar; 60K MW in wind; 10K MW in biomass and 5K MW in small hydro.

TOURISM

* Develpoment schemes for churches and convents in old Goa; Hampi, Elephanta caves, Forests of Rajasthan, Leh palace, Varanasi , Jallianwala Bagh, Qutb Shahi tombs at Hyderabad to be under the new toursim scheme.

* Visa on Arrival for 150 countries.

FINANCIAL SECTOR

* Forward Markets Commission to be merged with the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

* NBFCs registered with the RBI and having asset size of Rs 500 crore and above to be considered as ‘financial institution’ under Sarfaesi Act, 2002, enabling them to fund SME and mid-corporate businesses

* Permanent Establishment norms to be modified to that mere presence of offshore fund managers in the country does not lead to “adverse tax consequences.”

Courtesy in preparing this article: The Hindu

Official Budget Speech: English and Hindi

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Economic Survey 2014-15 Highlights PDF

A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi government's first full Union Budget, the Economic Survey has been tabled in Parliament on 27 February 2015 by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. It has highlighted that the Indian economy would grow by more than 8 percent in the 2015-16 fiscal year. Following are the highlights of Economic Survey 2014-15:

* GDP growth seen at 8.1–8.5 per cent in 2015-16

* Double digit growth trajectory; 8–10 per cent GDP in coming years

* Inflation shows declining trend during April-December

* Current Account Deficit (CAD) to decline to about 1 per cent in 2015-16

* To adhere to fiscal deficit target of 4.1 per cent of GDP; to aim for 3 per cent

* Committed to fiscal consolidation; to enhance revenue generation

* More reforms on anvil; Goods and Services Tax, expanding direct benefit transfers to be game-changers

* Foodgrains production for 2014-15 estimated at 257.07 million tonnes; will exceed last 5-year average by 8.5 million tonnes

* NITI Aayog, 14th Finance Commission to enhance fiscal federalism

* External Sector returning to strength, resilience

* Need balance between ‘Make in India’ and ‘Skilling India’

* Services sector negotiations at WTO crucial for India in removing many market access barriers

* Revitalise PPP model to revive investment

* Manufacturing and services equally important for growth

* Consumer inflation in 2015-16 to be between 5-5.5%

* Lower inflation opens up space for more monetary easing

* There is scope for big bang reforms

* Labour, capital, land, market reform and skills to be engines of growth

* JAM Trinity — Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar, Mobile — to help transfer of funds to poor without leakage

* Shield domestic industry to promote ‘Make In India’

* Borrowings to fund investment, not for meeting expenses

* Food subsidy bill in April-Jan up 20% to Rs. 1.08 lakh cr

* Reform Railway’s structure, commercial practices, overhaul of technology

* Public investment key growth engine in short-run for Railways, but not a substitute for private investment

* More disinvestments on the anvil in current fiscal

* Under-recoveries on petroleum products to come down to Rs. 74,664 crore in 2014-15, from Rs. 1.39 lakh crore in FY14

4Ds — Deregulation, Differentiation, Diversification, Disinter (better bankruptcy laws) — to push financial sector growth

* Implementation of GST to boost GDP, exports

* Suggests medium to long term fiscal policy to target deficit, expenditure

* Global commodity prices to remain weak in 2015

* Ecommerce sector to witness 50% growth in 5 years

You can download this article as PDF by clicking the 'print friendly' button below.

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Daily Current Affairs Updates: 27 February 2015

1) Annual exercise TROPEX 2015 of Indian Navy concluded:

--> The Indian Navy on 27 February 2015 concluded its annual Theatre Level Readiness and Operational Exercise (TROPEX), a month-long drill encompassing all dimensions of maritime warfare.

--> The exercise also witnessed participation of units from the India Air Force and the Indian Coast Guard.

--> The area of operations spanned the Arabian Sea and northern Indian Ocean and was aimed at validating the Indian Navy's concept of operations.

--> This assumes significance as it makes the Indian Navy only the second behind the US Navy presently capable of deploying more than one carrier task force at sea.

2) IRCTC tied up with Amazon for online shopping:

--> Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has tied up with Amazon.in to sell various products.

--> Customers who access the IRCTC portal can now buy products ranging from consumer electronics, books, shoes, apparel, bags to toys, exotic food products, personal hygiene products, pet supplies, musical instruments and many more, at the click of a button and benefit from Amazon.in's wide distribution network.

3) AB De Villiers hits fastest 150 in ODI history:

--> South African cricketer AB De Villiers has hit the fastest 150 in one-day internationals.

--> De Villiers took 64 deliveries to reach 150, beating the previous best, set by Australia's Shane Watson, in 83 balls.

--> He achieved this feat in 64 balls in World Cup Pool B match against West Indies held at Sydney.

--> De Villiers has now in his the name the fastetst 50, 100 & 150 in ODIs.

4) Justice Amitava Roy sworn in as Supreme Court judge:

--> Justice Amitava Roy was on 27 February 2015 sworn in as a judge of the Supreme Court.

--> He was the chief justice of Orissa high court.

--> With his elevation, the strength of the apex court judges has gone up to 29. The apex court has a sectioned strength of 31 judges.

--> Justice Roy will have a tenure of three years.

5) Economic Survey: GDP to grow between 8.1-8.5% next year:

--> Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Economic Survey for 2015-16 in the Parliament on 27 February 2015.

--> Growth forecast of 8.1 to 8.5% for fiscal year 2015-16 was disclosed in the Survey.

--> With expected growth for 2015-16 to be over 8%, India is on its way to become the fastest growing major economy in the World.

6) Royal Bank of Scotland to shut down its banking operations in India:

--> Britain’s largest state-owned bank, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), has decided to shut down its banking operations in the country but will be retaining the back office.

--> The balance sheet exposure of RBS’s India business has also almost halved in calendar year 2014.

7) Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov shot dead in Moscow:

--> Russian opposition leader and fierce critic of President Vladmir Putin, Boris Nemtsov, was shot dead by an unidentified attacker who fired multiple rounds at the politician as he was walking in central Moscow on 27 February 2015.

--> The murder of the 55-year-old politician, who has been an outspoken critic of Russia's involvement in Ukraine, came ahead of a major opposition rally this weekend.

8) Kshatrapati Shivaji took over as new CMD of SIDBI:

--> Kshatrapati Shivaji, a 1986 batch IAS officer, has taken over as the Chairman and Managing Director of Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI).

--> Shivaji has been appointed on deputation basis for a period of three years from the date of his taking over the charge, a Finance Ministry release said.

--> Shivaji is currently Principal Secretary (Expenditure), Finance Department in Maharashtra government.

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Current Affairs Q&A: 26 February 2015

1) Which team won the Hockey India League 2015?

(A) Ranchi Rays

(B) Punjab Warriors

(C) Delhi Wave Riders

(D) Dabang Mumbai 

2) Who took oath as Bihar Chief Minister for the fourth time on 22 February 2015?

(A) Jitan Ram Manjhi

(B) Rabri Devi

(C) Lalu Prasad Yadav

(D) Nitish Kumar

3) As per recent reports, Dilip Shanghvi overtook Mukesh Ambani as the richest Indian in terms of market value. He is the founder and MD of?

(A) Cipla

(B) Sun Pharma

(C) Glaxosmithkline

(D) Hindustan Unilever

4) International Mother Language Day was recently observed on?

(A) 21 February

(B) 22 February

(C) 25 February

(D) 14 February

5) Who was adjudged the Man of the Match in the World Cup group match game in which India defeated South Africa by 130 runs recently?

(A) Virat Kohli

(B) Ravichandran Ashwin

(C) Ajinkya Rahane

(D) Shikhar Dhawan

6) Major General Chrishantha de Silva was on 20 February 2015 appointed as the new Army Chief of which country?

(A) Bangladesh

(B) Maldives

(C) Sri Lanka

(D) Nepal

7) Government recently launched an Online Portal named _____ to redress Consular Grievances of Indian citizens living abroad?

(A) Seva

(B) Madad

(C) Prerita

(D) Salaha

8) GARUDA SHAKTI-III which concluded recently was the joint exercises between armies of India and?

(A) Nepal

(B) Bhutan

(C) Srilanka

(D) Indonesia

9) Competition Commission of India (CCI) on 20 February 2015 gave its approval for the merger between Kotak Mahindra Bank and?

(A) TamilNadu Mercantile Bank

(B) ING Vysya Bank

(C) South Indian Bank

(D) Vijayalakshmi Bank

10) World Thinking Day was celebrated annually on?

(A) February 20

(B) February 21

(C) February 22

(D) February 19

Answers

1) Ans. (A) Ranchi Rays

2) Ans. (D) Nitish Kumar

3) Ans. (B) Sun Pharma

4) Ans. (A) 21 February

5) Ans. (D) Shikhar Dhawan

6) Ans. (C) Sri Lanka

7) Ans. (B) Madad

8) Ans. (D) Indonesia

9) Ans. (B) ING Vysya Bank

10) Ans. (C) February 22

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Highlights of Railway Budget 2015-16 - PDF Download

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 26 February 2015 presented the first full-fledged Rail Budget of the Modi government for 2015-16. He did not announce any new trains, saying on the ground that a review was on about the capacity to add more trains which will be announced after the review is over. Against the backdrop of talk of privatisation of railways, the Minister said Railways will continue to be a precious national asset and people of India will own railways always. Following are the highlights of the Railway Budget 2015-16:

Download as PDF: Click Here

* No increase in railway passenger fares.

* Rail tickets can now be booked 120 days in advance.

* 'Operation 5 mins', wherein passengers travellling unreserved can purchase a ticket in 5 minutes.

* Bio toilets and airplane-type vaccum toilets in trains.

* Surveillance cameras in select coaches and ladies compartments for women's safety without compromising on privacy.

* Speed on nine railway corridors to go up to 200 km per hour.

* Wi-Fi in more stations, mobile phone charging facilities in all train compartments.

* Facility of online booking of wheelchair for senior citizens.

* Satellite railway terminals in major cities.

* Centrally managed Rail Display Network is expected to be introduced in over 2K stations over the next 2 years.

* All india 24/7 helpline - 138 from March 2015 ; Toll free No.182 for security.

* 917 road under-bridges and over-bridges to be constructed to replace 3,438 railway crossings; at a cost of Rs. 6,581 crore.

* Four Railway Research Centres to start in four universities.

* 24 to 26 coaches in certain identified trains, more general class coaches, ladders to be replaced.

* 17000 more toilets to be replaced by bio-toilets.

* The facility of e-ticketing will help railways to go paper less.

* SMS alert services for passengers to inform them about arrival and departure of trains.

* Modern facilities for disabled citizens, senior citizens, patients through IRCTC.

* In 400 stations wi-fi facility will be provided.

* Rs 8.5 lakh crore will be invested in Railways in next 5 years.

* Cleanliness in Railways highest priority under Swachh Rail Swachh Bharat.

* Surveillance cameras on select mainline and ladies compartments.

* A1 category stations will be given the facility of Wi-Fi.

* Freight rate for cement, coal, others hiked by up to 10%

* More General class coaches to be added.

* On-board entertainment on select Shatabdi trains.

* A new department to keep stations, trains clean.

* Collision Avoidance System to be installed on select routes.

View Rail Budget Speech (English): Click Here

View Rail Budget Speech (Hindi): Click Here

Rail Budget Highlights: Click Here

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