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STHANIYA LOKADHIKAR SAMITI MAHASANGH

RBI - SSC Assistant Exam - BANKING AWARENESS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS

GENERAL AWARENESS CAPSULE FOR RBI -SSC Assistant Exam.

BANKING AWARENESS CAPSULE

RBI Current1 Bank 8.25%2 Repo 7.25%3 Reverse 6.25%4 CRR 4%

5 SLR 21.5%6 MSF 8.25%

The Structure of Indian Banking

The structure of the Indian banking system can be

categorized in two ways.

The first divides the banks into three categories:

the Reserve Bank of India, commercial banks and

cooperative banks. The second divides the banks

into two categories: scheduled banks and non-

scheduled banks. In both of these systems of

categorization, the Reserve Bank of India, or RBI, is

at the center of the banking structure. It holds the

reserve capital of all commercial and scheduled

banks in the country.

Scheduled Banks The eligibility criteria exist for scheduled banks:

a) The first of which entails carrying on the

business of banking in India.

b) All scheduled banks must maintain a reserve

capital of 5 lakhs rupees in the Reserve Bank of

India.

c) These are registered under the second schedule

of RBI Act, 1934.

Commericial Banks vs. Cooperative Banks

Scheduled banks in India fall into two categories:

commercial banks and cooperative banks.Commercial banks constitute those banks driven by

profit. These banks exist for no other reason than

generating capital. Cooperative banks technically

constitute cooperative institutions with an elected

managing committee, provisions for the protection

of members' rights and a set of communally

developed and approved by laws and amendments

RBI AND ITS ROLES RBI is the central Bank of India and controls theentire money issue, circulation the entire money

issue, circulation and control by its monetarypolicies and lending policies by periodical updatesor corrections to discipline the economy. It is alsoknown as the bank of last resort.Establishment: The reserve bank of India wasestablished on April 1, 1935 in accordance with theprovisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.The Central Office of the Reserve Bank of India wasinitially established in Calcutta but was permanentlymoved to Mumbai in 1937. Though originallyprivately owned, since nationalization in 1949, theReserve Bank is fully owned by the Government of

India.

Main Functions 1) Monetary Authority: Formulate, implementsand monitors the monetary policy.2) Regulator and supervisor of the financialsystem: Prescribes broad parameters of bankingoperations within which the country‘s banking andfinancial system functions.3) Manager of Foreign Exchange: Manages theForeign Exchange Management Act, 1999.4) Issuer of Currency: Issues and exchanges or

destroys currency and coins not fit for circulations.5) Development role: Performs a wide range ofpromotional functions to support national objectives.6) Bankers to the Government: performsmerchant banking function for the central and thestate governments; also acts as their banker.Bankers to banks: maintains banking accounts ofall scheduled banks.

STHANIYA LOKADHIKADR SAMITI MAHASANGH

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Cheque It is an instrument in writing containing anunconditional order, addressed to a banker, sign bythe person who has deposited money with thebanker, requiring him to pay on demand a certainsum of money only to or to the order of certainperson or to the bearer of instrument."

Types of Cheque 1. Bearer Cheque or open Cheque When the words "or bearer" appearing on the faceof the cheque are not cancelled, the cheque iscalled a bearer cheque. The bearer cheque ispayable to the person specified therein or to anyother else who presents it to the bank for payment.

2. Order Cheque When the word "bearer" appearing on the face of acheque is cancelled and when in its place the word"or order" is written on the face of the cheque, thecheque is called an order cheque. Such a cheque ispayable to the person specified therein as the payee,or to any one else to whom it is endorsed(transferred).

3. Crossed Cheque Crossing of cheque means drawing two parallel lineson the face of the cheque with or without additionalwords like "& CO." or "Account Payee" or "NotNegotiable". A crossed cheque cannot be encashedat the cash counter of a bank but it can only becredited to the payee's account.

4. Ante-Dated Cheque If a cheque bears a date earlier than the date onwhich it is presented to the bank, it is called as"ante-dated cheque". Such a cheque is valid upto 3months from the date of the cheque.

5. Post-Dated Cheque If a cheque bears a date which is yet to come(future date) then it is known as post-datedcheque. A post dated cheque cannot be honouredearlier than the date on the cheque.

6. Stale Cheque If a cheque is presented for payment after 3months from the date of the cheque it is called stalecheque. A stale cheque is not honoured by thebank.

7. A self cheque A self cheque is written by the account holder aspay self to receive the money in the physical formfrom the branch where he holds his account.

Terms in reference toBANKING Repo Rate Repo rate is the rate of interest which is levied onShort-Term loans taken by commercial banksfrom RBI. Whenever the banks have any shortageof funds they can borrow it from RBI. Areduction in the repo rate will help banks to getmoney at a cheaper rate. When the repo rateincreases, borrowing from RBI becomes moreexpensive.

Reverse Repo Rate This is exact opposite of Repo rate. Reverse repo rate is

the rate at which commercial banks CHARGE on

their surplus funds with RBI. RBI uses this tool when it

feels there is too much money floating in the banking

system. Banks are always happy to keep money with

RBI since their money is in the safe hands with a good

interest. An increase in Reverse repo rate can cause the

banks to transfer more funds to RBI due to theseattractive interest rates.

CRR Rate Cash reserve Ratio (CRR) is the amount of cashfunds that the banks have to maintain with RBI. IfRBI decides to increase the percent of this, theavailable amount with the banks comes down. RBI isusing this method (increase of CRR rate), to drainout the excessive money from the banks.

SLR Rate

SLR (Statutory Liquidity Ratio) is the amount acommercial bank needs to maintain in the form ofcash, or gold or government approved securities(Bonds) before providing credit to its customers.SLR is determined and maintained by the RBI inorder to control the expansion of bank credit. SLR isdetermined as the percentage of total demand andtime liabilities. Time Liabilities are the liabilities acommercial bank is liable to pay to the customersafter a specific time period. SLR is used to controlinflation and proper growth. Through SLR tuning,the money supply in the system can be controlled

efficiently.

Bank Rate Bank rate is the rate of interest which is levied on Long

Term loans and Advances taken by commercial banks

from RBI. Changes in the bank rate are often used by

central banks to control the money supply.


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MSF Rate:-MSF (Marginal Standing Facility Rate) isthe rate at which banks can borrow overnightfrom RBI. This was introduced in the monetarypolicy of RBI for the year 2011-2012. Banks canborrow funds through MSF when there is aconsiderable shortfall of liquidity. This measure hasbeen introduced by RBI to regulate short-term assetliability mismatches more effectively.

Base Rate:-The Base Rate is the minimum interestrate of a Bank below which it cannot lend, exceptfor DRI advances, loans to bank's own employeesand loan to banks' depositors against their owndeposits. (i.e. cases allowed by RBI).

Bridge Loan:- A loan made by a bank for a short period to make up

for a temporary shortage of cash. Bridge loan covers

this period between the buying the new and disposing

of the old one.

Credit Authorization Scheme:-Credit Authorization Scheme was introduced in November,1965 when P C Bhattacharya was the chairman of RBI.Under this instrument of credit regulation RBI as per

the guideline authorizes the banks to advance loans to

desired sectors

Credit Authorization Scheme:-Credit Authorization Scheme was introduced in November,

1965 when P C Bhattacharya was the chairman of RBI.Under this instrument of credit regulation RBI as per

the guideline authorizes the banks to advance loans to

desired sectors

Open Market Operations:- An open marketoperation is an instrument of monetary policy whichinvolves buying or selling of government securitiesfrom or to the public and banks.

Moral Suasion:-Moral Suasion is just as a requestby the RBI to the commercial banks to take so

and so action and measures in so and so trend ofthe economy. RBI may request commercial banksnot to give loans for unproductive purpose whichdoes not add to economic growth but increasesinflation.

Special Drawing Rights (SDRs):-It is a reserveasset (known as ‗ Paper Gold‘) created within theframework of the International Monetary Fund inan attempt to increase international liquidity, andnow forming a part of countries official forexreserves along with gold, reserve positions in theIMF and convertible foreign currencies.

ATM: ATMs are Automatic Teller Machines,which do the job of a teller in a bank throughComputer Network. ATMs are located on thebranch premises or off branch premises. ATMs areuseful to dispense cash, receive cash, acceptcheques, give balances in the accounts and alsogive mini-statements to the customers.

Bouncing of a cheque: Where an account doesnot have sufficient balance to honour the chequeissued by the customer, the cheque is returned bythe bank with the reason "funds insufficient" or"Exceeds arrangement". This is known as'Bouncing of a cheque'.

Demat Account:The term "demat", in India, refers to adematerialised account for individual Indiancitizens to trade in listed stocks or debentures.

Endorsement: When a Negotiable Instrumentcontains, on the back of the instrument anendorsement, signed by the holder or payee of anorder instrument, transferring the title to the other

person, it is called endorsement.

Merchant Banking : When a bank provides to acustomer various types of financial serviceslike accepting bills arising out of trade, arrangingand providing underwriting, new issues, providingadvice, information or assistance on starting newbusiness, acquisitions, mergers and foreignexchange.

Money Laundering The process of creating theappearance that large amounts of money obtained

from serious crimes, such as drug trafficking orterrorist activity, originated from a legitimate source.

Mortgage: Transfer of an interest in specificimmovable property for the purpose of offering asecurity for taking a loan or advance fromanother. It may be existing or future debt orperformance of an agreement which may createmonetary obligation for the transferor (mortgagor).


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NABARD: National Bank for Agriculture & RuralDevelopment was setup in 1982 under the Act of1981. NABARD finances and regulates rural financingand also is responsible for development agricultureand rural industries. NABARD is an apexDevelopment Bank that facilitates credit flow forpromotion and development of agriculture, small-scale industries, cottage and village industries,handicrafts and other rural crafts.

GAAR : The full form of GAAR is : General Anti- Avoidance Rules. Tax Avoidance is an area ofconcern across the world. The rules are framed indifferent countries to minimize such avoidance of tax.It is a set of general rules enacted so as to check thetax avoidance.

BPLR: In banking parlance, the BPLR means theBenchmark Prime Lending Rate. However, with theintroduction of Base Rate (explained below), BPLRhas now lost its importance and is made applicablenormally only on the loans which have beensanctioned before the introduction of Base Rate (i.e.July 2010).

Prime Lending Rate (PLR ): The rate at whichbanks lend to their best (prime) customers. It isusually less than normal interest rate.

Wholesale Banking: Wholesale banking is differentfrom Retail Banking as its focus is on providing forfinancial needs of industry and institutional clients.

National Electronic Funds Transfer System(NEFT): RBI introduced an electronic funds transfersystem to facilitate an efficient, secure,economical, reliable and expeditious system of fundstransfer and clearing in the banking sector throughout

India, and to relieve the stress on the existing paper-

based funds transfer and clearing system called National

Electronic Funds Transfer System (NEFT System).

Money Market - The money market is a wholesale

debt market for low-risk, highly-liquid, short-terminstrument. Funds are available in this market forperiods ranging from a single day up to a year. Thismarket is dominated mostly by government, banksand financial institutions.

Capital Market - The capital market is designedto finance the long-term investments. Thetransactions taking place in this market will befor periods over a year.

RTGS: RTGS is an acronym that stands for RealTime Gross Settlement. RTGS is a funds transfersystem where money is moved from one bankto another in ‗ real-time‘, and on gross basis. Whenusing the banking method, RTGS is the fastestpossible way to transfer money. ‗ Real-time‘ meansthat the payment transaction isn‘t subject to any

waiting period. The transaction will be completedas soon as the processing is done, and grosssettlement means that the money transfer iscompleted on a one to one basis without clusteringwith another transaction. This system is maintainedby the RBI, and is available during working daysfor a given number of hours. Banks using RTGSneed to have Core banking to be able to initiateRTGS transactions.

Forex Market - The Forex market deals with themulticurrency requirements, which are met by the

exchange of currencies. Depending on theexchange rate that is applicable, the transfer offunds takes place in this market

Financial Inclusion: Financial inclusion orinclusive financing is the delivery of financialservices, at affordable costs, to sections ofdisadvantaged and low income segments ofsociety.

Headquarters of NATIONALIZED BANKS Allahabad Bank Kolkata Bank of India Mumbai

Bank of Maharashtra Pune Canara Bank Bangalore Central Bank of India Mumbai Corporation Bank Mangalore Dena Bank Mumbai Indian Bank Chennai Indian Overseas Bank Chennai Oriental Bank of Commerce New Delhi Punjab National Bank New Delhi Punjab & Sind Bank New Delhi State Bank of India Mumbai Syndicate Bank Manipal

UCO Bank Kolkata Union Bank of India Mumbai United Bank of India Kolkata Vijaya Bank Bangalore Andhra Bank Hyderabad Bank of Baroda Vadodra


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Bank of Baroda, a leading Indian public sectorbank, has tied up with UAE Exchange tooffer an instant cash transfer facility to NRIcustomers.Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) has won The Asian Banker Achievement Award 2015.The government has raised the limit of foreigndirect investment in pension sector to 49 percent in line with the FDI cap in the insurancesector.Corporation Bank and New India AssuranceCompany Ltd signed a memorandum ofunderstanding (MoU) for implementingPradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana[PMSBY], central government`s scheme toprovide security against personal accidentalrisk and permanent or partial disability.Insurance Australia Group (IAG) has decided toincrease its stake in State Bank of India‘s general insurance arm to 49 per cent from 26per cent.IndusInd Bank has agreed to buy Royal Bankof Scotland‘s diamond and jewellery financingbusiness in India.

Country's second largest private sector lenderHDFC Bank launched '30-min auto' and '15-min2- wheeler' loan schemes, for which customershave to provide only their biometric details.

Private insurer Bajaj Allianz has launched aweather-based crop insurance scheme for orangecrops in Nagpur, Hingoli and Washim districtsof Maharashtra.Government is likely to infuse additional USD1.8 billion (about Rs 11,500 crore) in publicsector banks this fiscal.HDFC Securities, a subsidiary of HDFC BankBSE-0.23 % has launched its mobile trading app in11 different regional languages.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extendedthe date to exchange pre-2005 bank notes tillDecember 31, 2015 for third time.Export-Import (Exim) Bank has extended a lineof credit of $268.35 million to Tanzania forfinancing extension of Lake Victoria pipeline.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued thefinal guidelines for the 6-year and 13-year cashsettled Interest Rate Futures (IRF) ongovernment securities with residual maturity of4-8 years and 11-15 years respectively underthe Interest Rate Futures.

To help investors and companies in IPOs, SEBIhalved the listing time to six days from the dateof the public offer and also allowed a largernumber of firms to tap the ―fast—track‖ route for raising funds.India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) in thethird week of June 2015 released a report onIntellectual Property Rights (IPRs) filing in Indiaduring 2013-14. While Maharashtra topped thelist of states and Union Territories (UTs),Bengaluru was the top city in IPR filing.Odisha State Co-op Bank launches Bank onWheels.The stock of Kaveri Seed Company will seesome buying interest as the Reserve Bank ofIndia said foreign portfolio investors could nowinvest up to 49 per cent of the company ‘sequity base.Bills for postpaid mobile service, piped gas andwater supply can now be submitted as proof ofaddress for opening account with banks orother financial institutions.Service tax increased to 14%.RBI lowers repo rate to 7.25 per cent.Non-repatriable investments by NRIs, OCIs andPIOs will be treated as domestic investmentsand will not be subject to foreign directinvestment caps.EPFO to invest 5% of funds in equity market.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has permittedbanks to take control of 51 percent of stakein a company that has failed to recoverfinancial health even after a period of financialrestructuring, typically due to management

inefficiency or other factors.

ICICI Bank Appoints MK Sharma As Non-Executive Chairman.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said thatIndian corporates, eligible to raise externalcommercial borrowings (ECBs), are permittedto issue rupee- linked bonds overseas.Reserve Bank of Indian has allowed non-resident Indians (NRIs) to invest in chit fundto encourage flow of capital into the country.The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has imposed apenalty of 50 lakh on Future Generali LifeInsurance Company.State Bank of India (SBI), the country‘s largest bank, has launched SBI eforex, anInternet-based platform that enablescustomers to book their foreign exchangetransactions online.


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Canara Bank has entered into a memorandumof understanding with Life InsuranceCorporation of India for offering the PradhanMantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojanainsurancecover to all its eligible customers. An ―extremely simplified‖ income tax returnform will soon replace the controversial 14-page ITR that sought information like all bankaccounts and foreign trip details.As it stands,the new ITR forms, including the ITR-1 andITR-2, require an assessee to furnish thenumber of bank accounts held by theindividual.MoneyGram Ready to Handle Electronic-ModeRemittances in India.The RBI put in place a new framework tocheck loan fraud including by way of earlywarning signals at banks and red flagging ofaccounts, while swindlers will have no accessto further banking finance.The Centre's new appointment norms for publicsector bank chiefs — capping the age at 55years and mandatory three-year board levelexperience — has come under judicial scrutinywith the Supreme Court.

Axis Bank, the country's third largest privatesector bank now facilitates instant transfer ofmoney on various social media channels likeWhatsapp, Facebook, Twitter, Email list andphone contact list.

Aiming to attract overseas funds, governmentdecided that non-repatriable investments byNRIs, OCIs and PIOs will be treated asdomestic investments and will not be subject toforeign direct investment caps.

The country's largest bank announced apartnership with digital payments firm, PayPalso that the Customers of State Bank of India(SBI) can now use their debit cards on PayPalfor buying products from overseas websites.

Markets regulator SEBI simplified norms fordomestic mutual funds to manage offshorepooled assets, dropping its "20-25 rule" whichrequires a minimum of 20 investors and a capof 25 percent on investment by an individual,for funds from low- risk foreign investors.

IDBI Bank has decided to roll out e-huts toconnect with the rural populace.

State-run lender Bank of India tied up withMasterCard to launch three new cards and alsotwo new banking solutions for its card holders.

KV Kamath appointed BRICS bank president.State Bank of India joined its private sectorrivals to launch contactless cards using latestnear field technology (NFC).In a move that will promote 'tap and pay'electronic payments, the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) said that bank can allow customers to

transact with contactless card upto Rs 2000without customers punching a separate PIN forauthentication. Arun Shrivastava assumed charge as ManagingDirector & CEO of Syndicate Bank.Top private sector lender ICICI Bank openedits first branch in China, which wasinaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.HDFC Bank has launched 'HDFC Bank ApolloMedical Benefits Card'. As part of Make in India, Finance Minister Arun Jaitely inaugurates Indigenous New Bank

Note printing lines at Security Paper Mill inHoshangabad.ICICI Launches Voice Password Facility forPhone Banking.State-run Corporation Bank cut base rate orminimum lending rate by 0.25 percentage pointto 10 per cent, a move which will lead to lowerEMIs for its customers.Micro Units Development Refinance Agency(MUDRA) Bank has partnered with 19 stateand regional level coordinators to reach thosesmall entrepreneurs who are often cut off from

the banking system because of a limitedbranch presence.


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Important Committees in News: 1. Bibek Debroy Committee on restructuring of

Indian Railways.2. The government has set up a high level panel,

headed by former Home Secretary Anil Baijal tosuggest a framework to assess CSR activitiesdone by corporates under the companies law.

3. Union Finance Ministry constituted High LevelCommittee to interact with trade andindustry to give recommendations to the CentralBoard of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the CentralBoard of Excise and Customs (CBEC) forissuance of appropriate clarifications by way ofcirculars, on tax-related issues on a regularbasis. The high level committee will be headedby former Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Ashok

Lahiri.

4. TSR Subramaniam Committee: to review theprocesses, laws and Acts of the Ministry of

Environment, Forests and Climate Change5. Pratyush Sinha committee: to assesscompensation for coal blocks.

6. The former Union Minister Jairam Rameshdesignated as the head of Future EarthEngagement Committee, a global researchplatform panel on sustainable development.

7. T.K. Vishwanathan committee: to provideBankruptcy code for small and mediumenterprises (SMEs).

8. Justice Prabha Sridevan committee: to functionas a think-tank to help draft a new NationalIntellectual Property Rights Policy (National IPRPolicy)

9. K.V. Kamath panel: to examine the financialarchitecture for Micro, Small and MediumEnterprises (MSME) sector.

10. Gopalakrishna Committee: on Capacity Buildingin Banks and non-Banks

11. G N Bajpai Committee: to review theinvestment guidelines for national pensionsystem (NPS) schemes in private sector.

12. Scientist Raghunath Anant Mashelkar panel: torecommend best technologies for PrimeMinister Narendra Modi's "Swachh Bharat"national sanitation campaign.

13. T S R Subramanian Committee: to review fivekey green laws concerning protection andconservation of environment, forest, wildlife,water and air among others.

14. H R Khan Committee: to examine the un-claimed amount in PPF, Post Office and SavingsSchemes.

15. H Devaraj Committee: reported that mostof the deemed universities are not fit for beinga university.

16. Sivaramakrishnan Committee: to suggest theplace to build the capital city of Andhra Prades

17. Former RBI Governor Bimal Jalan to head theExpenditure Management Commission. Thepurpose of setting up the commission is tocut-off the spending and review governmentexpenditure to get maximum output.

18. Justice CS Dharmadhikari Committee:recommended complete ban on dance bars inhotels and restaurants.

19. R. Ramanujam Committee - to review, identifyand recommend amendment in obsolete lawsto further smoothen and simplify thegovernance.


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New Appointment in India 1. Gulshan Rai takes charge as India‘s first cyber

security chief.2. K.N. Tripathi sworn in as Governor of Mizoram.3. Mayilsamy Annadurai appointed as Director of

ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC).4. President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed the

senior-most Election Commissioner, Dr NasimZaidi, as the next Chief Election Commissioner(CEC).

5. Sumit Mazumder, Chairman & Managing Director,TIL Limited, has been elected as the Presidentof CII for the year 2015-16. He succeeds Mr AjayShriram as the new President.

6. Arun Kumar Jha was appointed as ChiefExecutive Officer of Khadi and Village IndustriesCommission (KVIC), Mumbai.

7. Meenakshi Madan Rai sworn in as the first lady judge of the Sikkim High Court. Her oath ofthe office was administered by the GovernorSrinivas Patil at Ashirwad Hall at Raj Bhavan inGangtok.

8. Senior diplomat Mohan Kumar, currently India'stop envoy to Bahrain, has been appointed thenext Ambassador to France to succeed ArunKumar.

9. IDFC appoints former CAG Vinod Rai asindependent director.

10. Rahul Agarwal is Lenovo India MD11. Ericsson appoints Paolo Colella as new head of

region India.12. State Bank of India (SBI) announced the

appointment of Anshula Kant as its chief financialofficer (CFO). Kant has been designated as thedeputy managing director and CFO of the bank,SBI said in a filing on BSE.

13. Beno Zephine becomes first 100% blind officer inIFS.

14. Senior IPS officer Archana Ramasundaram hasbeen moved out of the CBI and appointed asDirector, National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB).

15. LIC Nomura Mutual Fund CEO Nilesh Satheappointed member, life at IRDAI.

16.

New chairman of Engineers India Ltd - SanjayGupta . He replaced A K Purwaha.

17. K.Sivan becomes the new VSSC chief replacingM.S. Dathan.

18. General Lalit Bhanot was elected vice-Presidentof the Asian Athletics Association (AAA).

19. Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa sworn-in as ArunachalPradesh Governor.

20. Ravi Shastri to continue as Indian team director.

21. Ex-IB chief Asif Ibrahim was the PM‘s ‗ SpecialEnvoy on Countering Terrorism andExtremism,‘ with a charter to liaise withgovernments in West Asia, Af- Pak and SouthEast Asia.

22. Infosys Limited appoints R. Seshasayee asNon- Executive Chairman of the Board.

23. S Christopher appointed as Secretary,Department of Defence Research andDevelopment-cum- Director General, DefenceResearch and Development Organisation(DRDO).

24. K.V. Chowdary appointed as new Central Vigilance Commissioner.

25. Vijai Sharma appointed as Chief InformationCommissioner.

26. Yes Bank reappoints Rana Kapoor as MD.27. Government extends Bank of Baroda interim

chief Ranjan Dhawan's term for 3 months.28. R C Tayal appointed as new Director

General of National Security Guard.29. Dr. Srivari Chandrasekhar was appointed

Director of CSIR-Indian Institute of ChemicalTechnology (IICT) a premier research instituteof Union Government based in Hyderabad,Telangana.

30. Shri Ameising Luikham, IAS took over asSecretary, Department of Public Enterprises inthe M/o Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises.

31. Achal Kumar Jyoti, a former Gujarat ChiefSecretary, was appointed as the ElectionCommissioner.

32.

President Pranab Mukherjee has appointedJustice Cyriac Joseph as acting Chairman ofNational Human Rights Commission (NHRC).

33. Sanjay Gupta today took over as chairman andmanaging director of Engineers India Ltd.

34. Power Secretary Pradeep Kumar Sinha wasappointed as the next Cabinet Secretary of thegovernment.


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New Appointment in World 1. Muhammadu Buhari claims victory in Nigeria's

presidential elections.2. Pedro Cateriano Bellido appointed as Prime

Minister of Peru.3. The East China Normal University (ECNU), one of

the prestigious universities in China, announcedthe appointment of Dr. Vishal Sikka, ChiefExecutive Officer of Infosys, as AdvisoryProfessor.

4. Indian-American Vivek Murthy was sworn-in asthe US Surgeon General. He succeeded Boris D.Lushniak.

5. Chennai-born Raja Rajeswari has been sworn-inas a criminal court judge in New York by MayorBill de Blasio.

6. Nikesh Arora appointed SoftBank President.7. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani nominated a

female judge to the Supreme Court in anunprecedented move that has angered someIslamic conservatives.

8. Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene announced thatformer Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni hasbeen appointed as the non-executive director tothe board the Brics New Development Bank(NDB).

9. UN elected Denmark's Mogens Lykketoft to headGeneral Assembly.

10. Prince Harry was made a Knight Commander ofthe Royal Victorian Order.

11. Deutsche Bank appointed John Cryan as its newCEO.

12.

Indian-origin Tory MP Priti Patel has beenappointed minister of state for employment inBritish Prime Minister David Cameron's newcabinet.

IMPORTANT FINANCIAL SCHEMES

1) Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima YojanaHighlights of the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY – Scheme 2 – for Life Insurance)are:

Eligibility: Savings Bank (SB) Account holders between 18 years (completed)and 50 years.

Policy period: The cover shall be for one year period

starting from June 1, 2015 to May 31, 2016 for which

option to join / pay by auto-debit from the designated

savings bank account on the prescribed forms will be

required to be given by May 31, 2015, extendable up to

August 31, 2015.

Premium: Rs. 330 (per annum).

Payment Mode: The premium will be directlyauto- debited by the bank from the subscribers‘savings bank account. This is the only modeavailable currently.

Risk Coverage: Sum Assured of Rs. 2 Lakh ondeath of the Insured member for any reason ispayable to the Nominee.

Termination of assurance: Account holder attains age of 55 yearsClosure of account with the Bank or insufficiency ofbalance for debiting premium.In case of multiple coverage under the scheme, thecover will be restricted to Rs.2 lakhs and otherinsurance covers are terminated and premium shallbe forfeited.

2)

Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima YojanaHighlights of the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY – Scheme 1 – for Accidental DeathInsurance) are:Eligibility: The savings bank account holders ofthe participating Bank between 18 years(completed) and 70 years (age nearer birthday)who give their consent to join / enable auto-debit,as per the modality, will be enrolled into thescheme.

Policy period: The cover shall be for one yearperiod starting from 1st June 2015 to 31st May2016 for which option to join / pay by auto-debitfrom the designated savings bank account on theprescribed forms will be required to be given by31st May 2015 - extendable up to 31st August,2015.Premium: Rs. 12/- + service tax (per

annum).Payment Mode: The premium will be directlyauto- debited by the bank from the subscribersaccount. This is the only mode available.

Risk Coverage: Total coverage (sum-insured)under the scheme is Rs. 2 Lakh.


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2) Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima YojanaHighlights of the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY – Scheme 1 – for Accidental DeathInsurance) are:Eligibility: The savings bank account holders of theparticipating Bank between 18 years (completed)and 70 years (age nearer birthday) who give theirconsent to join / enable auto-debit, as per themodality, will be enrolled into the scheme.Policy period: The cover shall be for one yearperiod starting from 1st June 2015 to 31st May 2016for which option to join / pay by auto-debit from thedesignated savings bank account on the prescribedforms will be required to be given by 31st May 2015- extendable up to 31st August, 2015.Premium: Rs. 12/- + service tax (per annum).Payment Mode: The premium will be directly auto-debited by the bank from the subscribers account.This is the only mode available.Risk Coverage: Total coverage (sum-insured)under the scheme is Rs. 2 Lakh.

3) BRIEF OF ATAL PENSION YOJANA The GoI has announced a new scheme called

Atal Pension Yojana (APY)1 in 2015-16 budget.The APY is focussed on all citizens in theunorganized sector.

The scheme is administered by the Pension FundRegulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)through NPS architecture.

HIGHLIGHTS OF ATAL PENSION YOJANA

Under the APY, there is guaranteed minimummonthly pension for the subscribers rangingbetween Rs. 1000 and Rs. 5000 per month.

The benefit of minimum pension would beguaranteed by the GoI.

GoI will also co-contribute 50% of thesubscriber‘s contribution or Rs. 1000 perannum, whichever is lower. Government co-contribution is available for those who are notcovered by any Statutory Social SecuritySchemes and is not income tax payer.

GoI will co-contribute to each eligible

subscriber, for a period of 5 years who joinsthe scheme between the period 1st June, 2015to 31st December, 2015. The benefit of fiveyears of government Co-contribution under APY would not exceed 5 years for allsubscribers including migrated Swavalambanbeneficiaries.

All bank account holders may join APY.

FINANCIAL SCHEMES Jan Dhan Yohana Yojana

Aim - scheme to promote financialinclusion: Prime Minister Narendra Modilaunched 'Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana'to help the poor open bank accounts.

The slogan for the Pradhan Mantri JanDhan mission is ―Mera

Khata – Bhagya Vidhaata‖. Benefits :

i. Every individual who opens a bankaccount will become eligible to receive anaccident insurance cover of up-to Rs. 1Lakh.

ii. HDFC Ergo General Insurance will providethe accident cover under the scheme.

iii. An additional Rs. 30,000 life insurancecover will be provided for those openingbank accounts before January 26,2015.

iv. LIC (Life Insurance Corporation) will

provide the life insurance cover of Rs30,000 under the scheme

v. Rs 5,000 overdraft facility for Aadhar-linked accounts, Ru Pay Debit Card with andminimum monthly remuneration of Rs 5,000to business correspondents who will providethe last link between the account holdersand the bank.


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Awards & Honours 1. Indian-origin nurse Subadhra Devi Rai named

for 2015 International Achievement Award.2. Amitabh Bachchan honoured by Egypt's

Academy of Arts.3. Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has

bagged the prestigious Golden Peacock NationalQuality Award for the year 2015.

4. An Indian origin school boy Pratap Singh, 15, inthe UK has been chosen for a prestigious prizefor the Institute of Physics (IOP) Prize, thatcarries 500 pounds sterling and a trip to anational physics- related activity.

5. Uttar Pradesh Government conferred SahityaShiromani Samman on noted Hindi poetGopaldas Neeraj and veteran Hindi litterateurUday Pratap Singh.

6. Seoul city, the capital and largest metropolis ofSouth Korea was awarded the title of GlobalEarth hour Capital 2015 after it won the EarthHour City Challenge (EHCC) of World WildlifeFund (WWF).

7. US President Barack Obama honouredMicrosoft's Indian-origin CEO Satya Nadella withthe 'Champions of Change' award for bringingabout change within his company to supportworking families.

8. NRI industrialists Hinduja brothers – S PHinduja and G P Hinduja – have won theBusiness Leader of the Year 2015 award at theprestigious 5th Asian Awards for theiroutstanding achievement in the field of business.

9. Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was honouredwith the Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation Award 2015 for his performance in the movieHappy New Year. Actor Rajkummar Rao won theprestigious award for his performance in thecritically acclaimed film Citylights.

10. PM Modi awarded the 50th Jnanpith Award toeminent Marathi litterateur Bhalchandra Nemadewhose several books, including Kosala andHindu, have influenced Indian writing.

11. Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor conferred withprestigious Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award 2015.

12. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) hasbeen selected for the Gandhi Peace Prize for2014 for its contribution to the country‘s development through space technology andsatellite-based services.

13. President Pranab Mukharjee conferredPunyabhushan Award on Prataprao Pawar,Chairman of Sakal Media Group (SMG) atBalgandharva Auditorium in Pune.

14. Vocalist Sanjay Subrahmanyam selected for ‗ Sangita Kalanidhi‘ award 2015.

15. Atal Behari Vajpayee honoured with BangladeshLiberation War Award.

16. Edward Snowden awarded freedom ofexpression prize in Norway

17. Isro Bags Space Pioneer Award for MangalyaanMars Orbiter Mission.

18. Indian-Origin Surgeon General Vivek MurthyPresented With Pride of Community Award

19. Dr. Pramod Patil and Dr. Ananda Kumarwon 2015 Whitley Awards for wildlifeconservation.

20. Ace marksman Jitu Rai was declared theSportsperson of the Year' at the Times of IndiaSports Awards.

21. Indian film Masaan has won the prestigiouscritics prize in the Un Certain Regard category atthe 68th Cannes Film Festival.

22.

Two Indian peacekeepers have been chosenposthumously for United Nation‘s DagHammarskjold Medal. They are Lance Naik NandRam and Raju Joseph

23. Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai wonBritain's Man Booker International Prize forcareer achievement.

Awards IIFA 2015 Winner

Best Actor Shahid Kapoor for Haider

Best Actress Kangna Ranaut for Queen

Best Director Rajkumar Hirani for PK

Best Movie Queen

Awards 62nd National Film Awards

Best Actor Sanchari Vijay for Nanu Avanalla Avalu

Best Actress Kangna Ranaut for Queen

Best Director Srijit Mukherji

Best Feature Fim Queen

Best Feature Filmin Hindi

Court

Dada Saheb

Phalke Award

Shashi Kapoor


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Padma Vibhushan1. LK Advani- Public Affairs- Gujarat2. Amitabh Bachchan- Art- Maharashtra3. Prakash Singh Badal- Public Affairs- Punjab4. Prof Malur Ramaswamy Srinivasan- Science

and Engineering- Tamil Nadu5. Kottayan K. Venugopal- Public Affairs- Delhi

TOURNAMENTS IN BRIEF Miami Open 2015 -Winners Men’s Singles Title World No. 1 and Serbian ace tennis player NovakDjokovic has won the 2015 Miami Open Men‘s Singles Title.

Women’s singles Title World No. 1 and American ace tennis player SerenaWilliams has won the 2015 Miami Open Women‘ssingles Title.

Men’s doubles Title American Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan pair has wonthe 2015 Miami Open Men‘s doubles Title.

Women’s doubles Title India‘s Sania Mirza and Switzerland‘s Martina Hingis pair has won 2015 Miami Open Women‘s doubles Title.

Rome Masters 2015: WinnersWomen's Singles - Maria

Sharapova Men's Singles - N.DjokovicWomen's Doubles - Timea Babos and KristinaMladenovicMen's Doubles - P. Cuevas and D. Marrero

French Open Men's Single - Winner = Stan Wawrinka (Switzerland), Runner Up =Novak Djokovic (Serbia) Women's Single -Winner = Serena Williams (USA), Runner Up =Lucie Šafářová (Czech Republic)

Australian Open Men's Single - Winner = Novak Djokovic (Serbia),Runner Up = Andy Murray (UK) Women's Single - Winner = Serena Williams(USA), Runner Up = Maria Sharapova (Russia)

BNP Paribas Open – i. Men's Singles - Novak Djokovic defeatedRoger Federer ii. Women's Singles - Simona Halep defeatedJelena Jankovic iii. Men's doubles - Vasek Pospisil/Jack Sockdefeated Simone Bolelli/Fabio Fognini iv. Women's doubles - Martina Hingis / SaniaMirza defeated Russia Ekaterina Makarova / RussiaElena Vesnina.

CRICKET WORLD CUP 2015 Australia defeated Newzealand in the finals of

the cricket world cup 2015 by 7 wickets. The finals were played at the Melbourne cricket

ground. Australia defeated India and Newzealand

defeated South Africa respectively in the Semifinals of the world cup.

Most Runs – Martin Guptill (New Zealand) 547runs.

Most wickets – Mitchell Starc (Australia) 22wickets and Trent Boult (Newzealand) 22wickets.

Man of the tournament – Mitchell Starc(Australia)

Man of the finals – James Faulkner (Australia)

GAMES VENUES ICC World Cup Cricket Venue: ODI: (One dayInternational): 1. Australia & New Zealand:2015.2.

England -2019 3. India – 2023 T20: 1. India -2016 2. Australia -2020 Test: 1. England – 2017 (for first time).2. India - 2021FIFA (Football) World Cup

venue:

1.

2018 : Russia 2. 2022: Qatar Commonwealth Games venues: 1. 2014 – Glasgow (Scotland). 2. 2018 – Gold Coast(Australia). OlympicsGames venues: 1. 2014 winter: Sochi (Russia) – Russia tops inthe medal tally in 2014 winter Olympic games.2. 2016 Summer: Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)3. 2018 winter: Pyeongchang (South Korea)4. 2020 summer: Tokyo (Japan)


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Days 1. World Heritage Day was observed across the

world on 18 April 2015.2. World Haemophilia Day was observed globally

on17 April 2015 with theme Building a family ofsupport.

3.

International Mother Earth Day was observedglobally on 22 April 2015 with the theme It‘s our turn to lead.

4. National Panchayati Raj Day was observedacross India on 24 April 2015

5. World Malaria Day (WMD) was observed on 25 April 2015. The theme for the 2013-2015campaign is Invest in the Future. Defeat Malaria.

6. 14th June: World Blood Donor Day7. Kerala Government declares June 22 as ‗ Snake

Bird Day‘. 8. India set for World Yoga Day on 21 June 2015.9.

World Press Freedom Day is annually observedon May 3 to inform the international communitythat freedom of the press and freedom ofexpression are fundamental human rights.

10. Russia celebrates victory day on 9th May.11. Every year, `National Technology Day‘ is

observed across India on May 11.12. The United Nations (UN) observed the

International Day for Biological Diversity (IBD)on 22 May 2015. The theme was Biodiversity forSustainable Development.

STATIC GK CAPSULE United Nations Headquarters International Organizations Headquarters

UNO (United Nations Org) New YorkUNICEF New York

UNCTAD (UnitedNations Conference onTrade & Development)

Geneva

WHO (World Health Org) GenevaILO (International Labour Org) GenevaWMO (World Meteorological Org) GenevaWorld Intellectual Property Org Geneva

International Standards Org. GenevaIMF (InternationalMonetary Fund)

Washington DC

World Bank Washington DC

UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientificand Cultural Org)

Paris

OECD (Org. forEconomic Cooperation

Paris

UNIDO (UnitedNations Industrial

Vienna

IAEA (International Atom

Vienna

OPEC(Organization ofPetroleum Exporting Countries)

Vienna

Amnesty International London

Commonwealth of Nations LondonIM(InternationalMaritime Organization)

London

ICJ (International Courtof Justice)

The Hague

FAO(Food and Agricultural

Rome

NATO(North AtlanticTreaty Organization)

Brussels

Transparency International BerlinSAARC(South Asian Association for Regional

Kathmandu

ASEAN (Association ofSouth East Asian Nations)

Jakarta

APEC (Asia PacificEconomic Forum)

Singapore

Organization ofIslamic Cooperation

Jeddah

Important Organizations: United Nation (UN) – is an

intergovernmental organization establishedon 24 October 1945 to promote internationalco-operation. Headquarter – New York , Head

– Ban ki-moon Member - South Sudan newmember country . Total – 193 members

WTO (World Trade Org.) – Yemen newmember country. Total – 160 members.Headquarter – Geneva, Switzerland, Head -Roberto Azevêdo

World Bank - The World Bank is a UnitedNations international financial institution thatprovides loans to developing countries for capitalprograms.

Headquarter - Washington D.C. (United States)President – Jim Yong KimMember - South Sudan new member country.Total – 188 members


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IMF – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) isan international organization that was initiated in1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference andformally created in 1945 by 29 member countries.Headquarter – Washington DC . (United States)President – Christine LagardeMember - South Sudan new member country.Total – 188 members

European Union – Croatia new membercountry. Total – 28 member countries.Headquarter – Brussels, BelgiumPresident of the European Commission: Jean- Claude Juncker

Eurozone - The growth of the eurozone is anongoing process within the European Union (EU). AllMember states of the European Union, except forDenmark and the United Kingdom are obliged toadopt the euro as their sole currency once theymeet the criteria.Member – The eurozone currently comprise 19 EUstates.Note: i). Latvia becomes the 18th Member State toadopt the euro on 1 January 2014.ii. Lithuania has been approved for euro adoption on1 January 2015.

ASEAN - Association of Southeast Asian Nationsis a political and economic organisation of tencountries located in Southeast Asia, which wasformed on 8 August 1967.

Headquarter – Jakarta, Indonesia Member - 10 member

countries (India is not the member of ASEAN)

APEC – Asia – Pacific Economic Cooperation –is a forum for 21 Pacific Rim member economies thatseeks to promote free trade and economiccooperation throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Itwas established in 1989Headquarter – Singapore Member – 21

ICJ (International Court of Justice): is theprimary judicial branch of the United Nations. It isbased in the Peace Palace in The Hague,Netherlands. Its main functions are to settle legaldisputes submitted to it by states and to provideadvisory opinions on legal questions submitted to itby duly authorized international branches, agencies,and the UN General Assembly.Headquarter The Hague, Netherlands.

OPEC (Organization of the PetroleumExporting Countries) is an internationalorganization and economic cartel whose mission isto coordinate the policies of the oil-producingcountries.Headquarter – Vienna, Austria , Member - 12member countries.

President - Diezani Alison-Madueke

NATO (North Atlantic treatyOrganization): NATO‘s essential purpose is tosafeguard the freedom and security of its membersthrough political and military means.Headquarter – Brussels, Belgium Member – 28Member Countries.

SAARC (South Asian Association ofRegional Co-Operation):an economic and geopolitical organization

Headquarter – Kathmandu, Nepal – 8 MemberCountries.Secretary-General: Arjun Bahadur Thapa.

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