National
PM Modi conferred Saudi Arabia’s highest honour:
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Sunday conferred with the highest civilian honour of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the King Abdulaziz Order of Merit.
ii. The Prime Minister was conferred the prestigious award by King Salman bin Abdulaziz at the Royal Court.
iii. World leaders who have received the honour include Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, British Prime Minister David Cameron, US President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
iv. He has become the first Indian Prime Minister, who has ever earned Saudi Arabia’s highest civilian award.
About the award:
a) The Order of King Abdulaziz is a Saudi-Arabian Order of Merit. The order was named after Abdulaziz Al Saud, the founder of the modern Saudi state.
b) The order is awarded to citizens of Saudi Arabia and foreigners for meritorious service to the Kingdom.
Mehbooba Mufti will be sworn in as the first Muslim woman CM of J&K:
i. PDP president Mehbooba Mufti will be sworn in on 4 April as the first Muslim woman Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, heading a coalition government with BJP in the only Muslim-majority state.
ii. The 56-year-old leader, daughter of PDP founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, will take the oath of office at Raj Bhawan in Jammu by the Governor N N Vohra on 4th April.
iii. She will be the first woman to head a government in Jammu and Kashmir and the second Muslim woman to become the Chief Minist
er of a state in India.
iv. Syeda Anwara Taimur was the first Muslim woman CM in Assam in 1980 and continued to hold the chair till June 30, 1981.
India Water Week-2016 to begin from April 4:
i. The fourth edition of India Water Week will be observed from 4th April to 8th April, 2016 in Delhi.
ii. The Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti said that the theme for this year’s India Water week is “Water for all: Striving together”.
iii. Israel’s agriculture minister Uri Ariel, is scheduled to be the chief guest at the inaugural event of the India Water Week.
I&B Ministry gives nod for National Film Heritage Mission:
i. Information and broadcasting Secretary, Sunil Arora has said that the Government has approved the Rs 598 crore National Film Heritage Mission to preserve and promote India’s rich film and cultural heritage.
ii. The Secretary said an award has been instituted as part of the National Film Awards, to honour the states that are most film friendly. In 2016, Gujarat has been adjudged the most film-friendly state, followed by UP and Kerala.
iii. FICCI Frames is the annual conclave of media & entertainment industry attracting policy makers, producers, distributors, media and entertainment industry professionals in large numbers.
iv. The theme for 2016 is “Year of the Digital : Change or Perish”.
PM Modi will launch ‘Stand up India scheme’ & Web portal:
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the “Stand up India scheme” and a Web portal for the scheme on 5t April 2016 at Sector 62, NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh.
ii. The “Stand up India Scheme” is being launched to promote entrepreneurship among Scheduled Caste/Schedule Tribe and Women for loans in the range of Rs. 10 Lakhs to Rs. 100 Lakhs.
iii. The overall intent of the proposal is to leverage the institutional credit structure to reach out to these underserved sectors of the population by facilitating bank loans in the non-farm sector set up by such SC, ST and Women borrowers.
Prime Minister Modi announces 24X7 helpline for expatriates:
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 24X7 multi-lingual helpline for expatriates and said a move to regularise migration was in the offing through an online programme.
ii. He also announced a decision to set up worker resource centres for Indians in Saudi Arabia.
iii. Specifically for Indians in Saudi Arabia, he announced the setting up of worker resource centres in Riyadh and Jeddah to provide them with all necessary help.
iv. A call centre will be established whose facilities can be availed in different languages and through this helpline you can share your problems,” Modi said.
v. Earlier the MADAD portal (Help) was launched by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Indian citizens living abroad can file consular grievances online as the government launched an e-portal to address such complaints promptly with a high degree of “accountability”.
India, US inked MoU to set up LIGO observatory in India:
i. India has signed a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United States for setting up Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) in India.
ii. LIGO is a large-scale physics experiment and observatory to detect gravitational waves.
iii. The MoU was signed in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington.
Key insights of the MoU:
a) The agreement was signed between the US’s National Science Foundation (NSF) and India’s Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) and Department of Science and Technology (DST).
b) As part of the agreement, the scientists of DAE, DST and NSF will form a Joint Oversight Group (JOG) for better coordination of the project.
c) Earlier in February 2016, the Union Cabinet had approved Rs 1200 crores for the LIGO India project. It will be third LIGO interferometer in the world and it is expected to be functional by 2023.
d) Presently there are twin LIGO Observatories at Hanford, Washington, and Livingston, Louisiana. They are funded by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and were conceived, built, and are operated by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Caltech.
Business & Economy
India 6th in top manufacturing countries: UNIDO
i. With its ranking going up by three places, India has now been ranked sixth among the world’s 10 largest manufacturing countries, a UNIDO report has said. The country previously held the 9th rank.
ii. The Yearbook, published by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), finds that in India, the Manufacturing Value Added (MVA) grew by 7.6 per cent in 2015 compared to the previous year.
iii. China tops the list of 10-top industrial producers followed by the US, Japan, Germany and Korea. Indonesia was at the bottom of the list.
Aramco, the world’s largest oil firm to invest in India:
i. Saudi Oil giant Aramco, the world’s largest oil firm, plans to make major investment in India’s petroleum sector.
ii. Aramco is Saudi Arabia’s national oil company with crude reserves of about 265 billion barrels which is over 15 per cent of all global oil deposits.
iii. Energy-powerhouse Saudi Arabia is India’s largest crude oil supplier, accounting for about one-fifth of total imports.
iv. The two countries are keen to move beyond buyer-seller relationship in the sector and go for joint ventures and investment in refineries and oil fields.
DCB Bank starts India’s first ever Aadhaar-based ATM:
i. In a first, private lender DCB Bank has started an Aadhaar-based ATM facility wherein a customer can transact using the biometric details instead of the PIN.
ii. The user can key-in the 12-digit Aadhaar number or swipe the card at an automated teller machine (ATM) to start a transaction, but at the stage of confirming the identity, it requires biometric details rather than the PIN.
iii. Customers need to link their Aadhaar number with the bank account to avail the facility.
India, World Bank sign $1.5-b pact for Swachh Bharat support:
i. The World Bank and the government have signed a $1.5-billion loan agreement for the Swachh Bharat Mission Support Operation Project.
ii. Additionally, the World Bank will provide $25 million in technical assistance for capacity building by some State governments to implement community-led behavioural change programmes. These will target social norms and promote widespread usage of toilets by rural households.
iii. The support operation project will aid the rural component — Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin — for a five-year period through a performance-based programme that will link funding to the outcomes.
iv. The loan, from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, has a maturity of 18 years, including a grace period of five years.
Wipro to set up BPO centre in Saudi Arabia:
i. India’s major software services firm Wipro will set up a BPO centre here, which will be the second such facility after an all-women technology services centre of Tata Consultancy Services.
ii. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the TCS centre in Saudi Arabia, first such facility to have only women employees.
Germany’s Development Bank KfW to provide loan assistance to metro system for Nagpur:
i. Germany’s Development Bank KfW will provide loan assistance of 3750 crore rupees for the modern and sustainable metro system for Nagpur city.
ii. The loan period is 20 years with a moratorium of 5 years and disbursal will be based on the progress of the project over three years.
iii. With this Nagpur metro project becomes first metro to be financed under the Indo-German partnership for clean, socially inclusive and climate friendly mobility for people in cities.
Sports
West Indies Men beat England to win World T20 title:
i. West Indies won their second World T20 title after defeating England by four wickets on Sunday at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
ii. The West Indies won by four wickets, scoring 161 for six in 19.4 overs while chasing England’s 155 for nine.
iii. The West Indies became the only squad so far to win the ICC World Twenty20 title twice, having secured it last in 2012.
iv. Marlon Samuels (85) who anchored the chase was adorned with Player of the match award, while Indian Batsman, Virat Kohli was accoladed with Player of the Tournament award.
Virat Kohli awarded ‘Man of the Tournament’ in World T20:
i. India’s premier batsman Virat Kohli was deservingly awarded the ‘Man of the Tournament’ for his brilliant performance in the ICC World T20, that concluded, at Eden Garden in Kolkata. He scored 273 runs in the tournament.
ii. This is the second successive time Kohli has won the award, after he was also named as the player of the 2014 tournament in Bangladesh following his 319 runs which helped India reach the final.
iii. During their deliberations, the members of the panel discussed several names, highlighting such players as England s Joe Root, Samuel Badree of the West Indies and Tamin Iqbal of Bangladesh, who scored more runs than any other player. But the panel decided Kohli s crucial contributions to his team’s run in the tournament were deserving of the player -of-the-tournament award.
West Indies women crowned World Champions : World T20
i. West Indies women lifted a historic World Twenty20 title after overpowering defending champions Australia by eight wickets in the final at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
ii. The West Indies captain, Stafanie Taylor was named the Player of the Tournament for her 246 runs and eight wickets.
iii. It was West Indies’ maiden title, dethroning three-time defending champions, Australia (Captain Meg Lanning).
iv. With the West Indies’ senior men’s team defeating England on Sunday to win the ICC World T20 title, the Caribbeans have won three ICC World titles in 2016. Earlier on Sunday, the West Indies’ women defeated Australia to lift the Women’s World T20, and the Caribbean Under-19 men’s team defeated India in February to win the U-19 World Cup.
Shiva Thapa wins Silver medal at Asian/Oceania Qualifying event in China:
i. Ace Indian boxer Shiva Thapa has won the silver medal at the Asian/Oceania Qualifying Tournament held in Qian’an, China in the 56 Kilogram category final
ii. In the final match, he lost to Thailand’s Chatchai Butdee by 0-3 score who won the gold medal.
iii. By entering in the final match of this event, he had booked his ticket to 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics Games after beating Kazakhstan’s Kairat Yeraliyev in the semifinals.
Obituary
Prominent journalist Babu Bharadwaj passes away:
i. Veteran journalist and writer Babu Bharadwaj passed away due to cardiac arrest in Kozhikode, Kerala. He was 68.
ii. Babu Bharadwaj produced a Malayalam movie named Iniyum Marichittillatha Nammal (1980) directed by Chintha Ravi.
iii. As a writer, he had written many novels and stories. His famous works include Pravasiyude Kurippukal, Shavaghoshayathra, Pravasiyude Vazhiyambalangal, Puppet Theatre (short story collection) and Adrushya Nagarangal.
Eminent Iraqi-British Architect Zaha Hadid passes away:
i. Renowned Iraqi-born British architect Zaha Hadid passed away due to heart attack. She was 65.
ii. he was world’s most famous female architect and was known for her neofuturistic design which was her signature architectural style.
iii. She was the first female winner of the top Pritzker Architecture Prize (2004), also known as the Nobel for architecture.
iv. She also designed the Al Wakrah Stadium, which is under construction for the 2022 Qatar Football World Cup.
Some of her notable architectural projects: Italian National Museum of 21st Century Arts (Rome), Heydar Aliyev Centre (Baku), Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art (Cincinnati) and Guangzhou Opera House (China).
Short News
I. The government expects to garner close to ₹2 lakh crore of funds over the next three years from India Inc by making 30 per cent of their spend on corporate social responsibility (CSR) mandatory in projects such as ‘Swachh Bharat’.
II. Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh was presented with the ‘Maharashtrian of the Year’ award by the state’s CM Devendra Fadnavis.
III. Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries on Saturday launched its online fashion portal ‘Ajio’ at the Lakmé fashion week in Mumbai.
IV. Chief Secretary of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Anand Prakash, recently launched a semi-submarine ocean safari. It is Called the ‘Coral Safari’.
V. Indian conglomerate Adani Group was on Sunday granted approval from Australia’s Queensland state government for three mining leases, with a proposed investment of $7.7 billion, under the company’s Carmichael project.
VI. According to the 2015 edition of the World Intellectual Property Indicators, China has topped the list in the number of new patent applications surpassing US in 2014.
VII. Saudi Arabia has laid out a plan to create the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund of $2 trillion to help reduce the kingdom’s dependence on oil, Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said.
VIII. Former AC Milan defender (Footballer) and Italian international, Cesare Maldini, has passed away at the age of 84.
IX. Faustin Archange Touadera becomes first elected leader of (Central African Republic) CAR since Muslim rebels had overthrown the government in early 2013. His presidency puts an end to a two-year transitional government that came into force in early 2014.
X. Vietnam’s National Assembly (NA) has elected Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan as the country`s first female house speaker. She was also elected as the Chairperson of the National Election Council of the Vietnam.
XI. An encyclopedia of Srinivasa Ramanujan and his mathematics is being launched by Springer at an international conference of mathematics held at the University of Florida.
XII. ‘Alam Ara’ was the first sound film to be released in India by Ardeshir Irani on March 14, 1931 which completes 85 years on 14th March 2016.
XIII. The Income Tax department has launched a computer-based tax calculator on its official website that will allow users to obtain their annual tax liability. The facility can be used by any individual, corporate or any other entity for computing tax liability.
XIV. Vietnam’s Parliament swore in the Public Security (Police) Minister General Tran Dai Quang as the Communist country’s President.
XV. Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg took the win at the Bahrain Grand Prix, ahead of Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen and polesitter Lewis Hamilton, who finished second and third respectively.
XVI. Kachhabali village in Bhim tehsil of Rajsamand district has become the first in Rajasthan to liquor-free village.
XVII. India’s homegrown e-commerce giant Flipkart has acquired a Bengaluru-based mobile payments company PhonePe. PhonePe has been co-founded by ex-Flipkart employees Sameer Nigam and Rahul Chari.