Nepal signs MoU with China for construction of Budhigandaki Hydropower Project
i. Nepal has signed a major deal with a China to develop a 1,200 MW Budhigandaki Hydroelectric Project, the biggest hydro project in the landlocked country that could resolve its perennial power crisis.
ii. Nepal’s Ministry of Energy has signed an MoU with China Gezhouba Group Corporation (CGGC) for the development of the 1,200 MW Budhigandaki Hydroelectric Project.
ii. Nepal’s Ministry of Energy has signed an MoU with China Gezhouba Group Corporation (CGGC) for the development of the 1,200 MW Budhigandaki Hydroelectric Project.
iii. As per the agreement, the storage project would be built under engineering, procurement, construction, and finance (EPCF) model.
Static Takeaways-
- Gandaki River is Situated in Nepal
- Sher Bahadur Deuba is the newly appointed Prime Minister of Nepal
- Xi Jinping is the present President of China
- Renminbi is the currency of China.
i. Veteran Nepalese politician Sher Bahadur Deuba was elected as Nepal’s Prime Minister for the fourth time. Deuba, 70, was the sole candidate to contest in the Prime Minister election as the main opposition UML or any other party didn’t register their candidacies.
ii. He secured 388 votes in his favor and 170 votes against him. A total of 558 were cast during the voting. He needed 297 votes in the 593-strong Parliament to prove his majority. The Nepali Congress leader has become the 40th Prime Minister of Nepal.
Static Takeaways-
- The Central Bank of Nepal is called as Nepal Rashtra Bank (NRB)
- NRB was established in 1956 under the Nepal Rastra Bank Act 1955
- Dr. Chiranjibi Nepal is the present Governor of NRB
RBI keeps Repo Rate unchanged in Second Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement, 2017-18
i. On the basis of an assessment of the current and evolving macroeconomic situation at its meeting today, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to:
- Keep the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) unchanged at 6.25 per cent.
- Consequently, the reverse repo rate under the LAF remains at 6.0 per cent, and
- The Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate at 6.50 per cent.
Important Takeaways-
- The Reserve Bank of India was established on April 1, 1935, in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934
- The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Calcutta but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937.
- RBI Act, 1934 has been amended by the Finance Act, 2016, to provide a statutory and institutionalized framework for a Monetary Policy Committee, for maintaining price stability, while keeping in mind the objective of growth.
- The primary objective of monetary policy is to maintain price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth. Price stability is a necessary precondition to sustainable growth.
Montenegro becomes NATO’s 29th member
i. Montenegro has officially joined North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and hence became the 29th member country of NATO. Montenegro Foreign Minister Srdjan Darmanovic submitted the official accession papers in a ceremony at the US State Department.
ii. The move came in the face of bitter opposition from Russia, which says NATO’s steady expansion into the former communist states of Eastern Europe threatens its own security and cannot go unchallenged.
Static Takeaways-
- The Capital of Montenegro is Podgorica and its Currency is Euro
- The Current President of Montenegro is Filip Vujanovic
- The Current Prime Minister of Montenegro is Dusko Markovic
- Secretary-General of NATO is Jens Stoltenberg
- NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
i. India signed an agreement to provide fresh assistance of 318 million US Dollar credit line to Sri Lanka for the development of the railway sector in the country.
ii. The agreement was signed in Colombo amidst the presence of senior officials of Sri Lanka’s finance and transport ministries.
ii. The agreement was signed in Colombo amidst the presence of senior officials of Sri Lanka’s finance and transport ministries.
Static Takeaways-
- Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the capital of Sri Lanka
- Prime Minister of Sri Lanka is Ranil Wickramasinghe
- EXIM Bank was established by the Government of India, commenced operations in 1982 under the Export-Import Bank of India Act, 1981
- David Rasquinha is the Current MD of EXIM Bank of India.
Vijaya Bank set to develop 100 digital villages
i. Vijaya Bank is going to develop as many as 100 digital villages in various States of the country as part of its initiative to promote digital banking among the rural population.
ii. Speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of the bank’s 2031st ATM at Pandit Nehru Bus Station in the Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, Bank Executive Director B.S. Rama Rao stated that Vijaya Bank is the only public sector financial institution to develop digital villages with focus on rural areas and it has already developed five villages including the one in Guntur district.
Static Takeaways-
- Vijaya Bank is a Public Sector Bank founded in 1931.
- It is Headquartered in Bengaluru.
- The Founder of the bank was Sri Attavara Balakrishna Shetty.
- Present MD & CEO of the Bank is Dr. Kishore Sansi.
iii. Both the companies are owned by Wadhawan family promoted Wadhawan Global Capital Pvt Ltd. International Finance Corporation owns 20% in Aadhar Housing, while DHFL Vysya is fully owned by Wadhawan family.
Static takeaways-
- Aadhar Housing Finance Chief Executive Officer is Deo Shankar Tripathi
- The government has initiated a plan "Housing for All by 2022" with the focus to build affordable dwelling units for the lower-income group and wage earners
- National Housing Bank is wholly owned by Reserve Bank of India
- NHB was set up on July 9, 1988, under the National Housing Bank Act, 1987
- The Head Office of NHB is at New Delhi
- Shri Sriram Kalyanaraman is the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of National Housing Bank.
India Signs Loan Agreement with the World Bank for the project "Assam Citizen Centric Service Delivery"
i. An agreement for International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) Credit of USD 39.2 Million from World Bank for the project 'Assam Citizen Centric Service Delivery' was signed recently.
ii. The loan agreement was signed by Shri Raj Kumar, Joint Secretary (MI), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance on behalf of the Government of India and Mr. Hisham Abdo, Manager, Operations (India) on behalf of the World Bank.
ii. The loan agreement was signed by Shri Raj Kumar, Joint Secretary (MI), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance on behalf of the Government of India and Mr. Hisham Abdo, Manager, Operations (India) on behalf of the World Bank.
iii. The program size is USD 49 million, of which USD 39.2 million will be financed by the Bank, and the remaining amount will be funded out of State Budget.
Static Takeaways-
- The World Bank was Formed in July 1945
- It is Headquartered in Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
- Present President of the World Bank is Jim Yong Kim
- The capital of Assam is Dispur
- Sarbananda Sonowal is the CM of Assam and its Governor is Banwarilal Purohit.
- Kaziranga National Park is situated in Assam
- Bihu is the famous folk Dance of Assam.
i. The University Grants Commission (UGC) and All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) will soon be a thing of the past as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre is planning to replace the two education regulators with a new Higher Education Regulator.
ii. This is being done to bring one single education regulator named HEERA in place. Higher Education Empowerment Regulation Agency or HEERA is the name of the new proposed regulator.
iii. The Human Resource and Development Ministry (HRD) is working with the Niti Aayog towards the implementation of this new proposed regulatory body. They are working to bring the technical as well as the non-technical institutions under the same umbrella.
Static takeaways-
- Prakash Javadekar the Cabinet Minister of Human Resource Development
- Chairperson of NITI ayog is Shri Narendra Modi
- Vice Chairperson of NITI Ayog is Arvind Panagariya.
- The National Institution for Transforming India, also called NITI Aayog, was formed via a resolution of the Union Cabinet on January 1, 2015.
Hoshiar Singh appointed chief of copyrights office
i. Senior bureaucrat Hoshiar Singh has been appointed as Registrar of Copyrights.
ii. The Office of Copyrights, under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, is mandated to protect the music and film industry besides addressing its concerns, among others.
ii. The Office of Copyrights, under the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, is mandated to protect the music and film industry besides addressing its concerns, among others.
Static Takeaways-
- Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman is the Minister of State for the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
