Monthly Current Affairs MagazineMarch 2015

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This magazine is important for Bank of Baroda Exam, as well as NICL Assistant Exam.

A separate Magazine for NICL Assistant will be provided.

Finance, RBI & Banking/InsuranceBusiness Deals & MoUsNews related to India

News Around the WorldAppointments - IndiaAppointments - WorldAwards & HonorsList & Indexes

Sports NewsDays in March

ObituariesICC Cricket World Cup 2015Books in March

62nd National Awards

Table of Contents

I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.

- Jimmy Dean4/6

/2015

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News Related to Finance/Banking/Economy

Gross bank credit grew by 10.1 per cent in the December quarter as against 14.2 per cent growth

registered in the year-ago period, according to the RBI data.

Aggregate deposits grew 10.9 per cent in the period which was slower than 15.4 percent

registered in the year-ago quarter.

Metropolitan branches, constituting 53.1 per cent of aggregate deposits and 64.2 percent of

gross bank credit, recorded the highest credit-deposit (CD) ratio at 92.3 per cent, it said. For

other population groups, CD ratio was lower than the national level of 76.4 percent.

The CD ratio was the highest for Tamil Nadu (121.1 per

cent) followed by Chandigarh (114.9 per cent), Andhra

(109.3 per cent) and Telangana (106.4 per cent).

State-run oil firms including Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) will

invest over Rs. 76,565 crore on the project expansion during 2015-

16, up 5 per cent over the previous fiscal.

ONGC, the nations most profitable company, will see its

capital expenditure rise to Rs. 36,249.37 crore as compared

with Rs. 34,813 crore in the current fiscal, according to the

Budget 2015-16 document.

World Bank approved USD 500 million loan for its MSME Growth

Innovation and Inclusive Finance Project to improve access to

finance for Indian small and medium enterprises in manufacturing

and services sector.

The Project will support MSMEs through direct financing by the Small Industries Development

Bank of India (SIDBI) and Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs) across three components.

Countrys third largest software services firm Wipro has partnered with the World Economic Forum

(WEF) to develop a cyber-value-at-risk (VAR) framework that will allow organisations to assess threat

landscape, the nature of assets needed protection and quality of defenses.

Bank Rate - 8.50%

Cash Reserve Ratio

(CRR) - 4 %

Statutory Liquidity

Ratio (SLR) - 21.5 %

Repo Rate - 7.50 %

Reverse Repo Rate -

6.50 %

Marginal Standing

Facility (MSF) - 8.50 %

RBI RATES

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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has refused to share its banks' inspection reports on alleged money

laundering laws and other violations with Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB), citing legal

hurdles.

The RBI was required to share relevant extracts of inspection reports with law enforcement

agencies and CEIB, an apex intelligence agency under the Finance Ministry, to check black

money and other financial crimes where gross violations of Know Your Customer (KYC)

guidelines and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are noticed, official sources said.

RBI reduced Repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.5 percent

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 4 March 2015 reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points to

7.5 percent with immediate effect.

This is the second time since January 2015 that RBI reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points.

With this, the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands adjusted to 6.5 percent, and the

marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank rate to 8.5 percent.

The RBI reduced the repo rate outside the bi-monetary policy review cycle taking into account the

following developments:

1. The new Consumer Price Index (CPI) rebased to 2012 was released on 12 February 2015. As per

this, inflation in January 2015 stood at 5.1 percent which was well within the target of 8 percent

for January 2015.

2. The prices of vegetables and inflation excluding food and fuel reached a new low indicating that

disinflation is evolving along the path set out by the RBI in January 2014 and at a faster pace

than earlier envisaged.

3. The recently-released GDP estimates based on base year 2011-12 by Central Statistical Office

(CSO) pictures a steadily recovering economy which appears to be right.

4. In Union Budget 2015-16, many important and valuable structural reforms has been included.

This will help improve supply over the medium term and help achieve fiscal consolidation.

5. The rupee remained strong relative to peer countries, thus, creating disinflationary impulses.

To make it easier for new individual investors, market regulator SEBI announced a 'Saral' or simplified

account opening form for such persons and eased the process for submitting address proof documents.

The move comes in the backdrop of the government and the regulator making efforts to attract new

retail investors to the market especially for the disinvestment share sales through Offer For Sale (OFS)

and other routes.

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Insurance Bill passed by Lok Sabha The long-pending Insurance bill, a key economic reform legislation

providing for raising foreign investment cap to 49 per cent, was passed by Lok Sabha with the

government insisting that the measure is crucial for expanding the penetration of insurance in the

country.

The controversial Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to replace an ordinance, also

provides for imprisonment of up to 10 years for selling policies without registration with the

regulator IRDA.

The proposed legislation will also allow PSU general insurers to raise funds from the capital

market and provides for increased penalty to deter multilevel marketing of insurance products.

The bill, one of the key reform legislations, has been pending since 2008.

Lok Sabha passed the Coal Mines bill to allow e-auction of coal blocks after the Supreme Court

cancelled their allocation leading to uncertainty in the coal sector, amid opposition by Left and some

other opposition parties.

The Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015, would replace two ordinances issued by the

government - - the first on October 21 last year and the other in December, after the apex court

cancelled the allocation of 204 blocks.

Replying to a debate on the bill, Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal said its passage would

ensure "transparent and honest" process of auctioning of coal blocks.

Highlighting the necessity of passing the bill, he warned that if the Bill is not passed, then there

could be a crisis in the coal sector with the closure of these mines.

Union Government and RBI signed an agreement on Monetary Policy Framework

Union Government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) signed an agreement on Monetary Policy

Framework. The agreement was signed on 20 February 2015 but was made public on 2 March

2015.

The agreement empowers the RBI to go for inflation targeting that is common in developed

countries and it also empowers RBI to monitor its monetary policy framework.

As per the agreement, RBI will aim to bring down the inflation below six percent by January

2016 and inflation target for 2016-2017 and subsequent years will be 4 percent +/-2 percentage

points.

Features of the agreement that empowers RBI to monitor its framework

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Indias monetary policy framework will be operated by the RBI.

Indias monetary policy framework will aim to maintain price stability while keeping in mind

the objective of growth.

If the RBI fails to meet the target, then it will have to report to the Union Government the

reasons for the failure to achieve the target.

It will also provide the remedial action to take and estimate of the time period within which the

target would be achieved.

It will put in place a framework of a modern monetary policy to meet the challenges of an

increasingly complex economy.

The RBIs Governor will determine the countrys key interest rates or any measures needed to

achieve that inflation target.

It binds the Union Government to take proactive measures for price control.

The agreement will provide a predictable policy stance on inflation, helping investors, especially

in the debt market

The agreement was signed in line with the recommendations of the RBIs Urjit Patel committee. The

committees recommendation will smoothen the monetary policy scene in the country. At present, the

Union Government and the RBI provides inflation estimates but dont set any targets for it.

Union Ministry of Shipping on 3 March 2015 signed an agreement with Toyota for export of automobile

units. The export of automobile units will be done through Kamarajar Port Limited (KPL).

Giving a boost to affordable housing, the RBI eased the norms for home loans for up to Rs 10 lakh by

allowing banks to include stamp duty and registration charges to the cost of a unit. These charges form

around 15 per cent of the cost of the house and place a burden on borrowers. As per the current

practice, banks do not include stamp duty, registration and other documentation charges in the cost of

housing property.

Global food prices fell to a nearly five-year low in February this year on increased supply of key food

items and strong US dollar, according to the United Nations food agency FAO.

Food prices averaged at 179.4 points in February, down from 181.2 points in January and 208.6

points in February 2014, the Food and Agriculture Organisations price index showed.

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FAOs Food Price Index is a trade-weighted index that tracks prices of five major food

commodity groups on international markets. It aggregates price sub-indices of cereals, meat,

dairy products, vegetable oils and sugar. FAO HQ Rome, Italy.

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation for all retail payment system

in India, has successfully linked 15 crore bank accounts with Aadhaar number.

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) net dollar purchases from the spot market rose to a near seven-year

high in January 2015 to $12.14 billion, a level last seen in January 2008 amounting to $13.63 billion.

In a bid to keep comfortable liquidity in the system in the fourth quarter, RBI had started making

dollar purchases more from the spot market than what they were doing earlier. Net dollar

purchases of RBI stood at $6.74 billion in December 2014.

Railways, LIC sign MoU to set up projects worth Rs. 1.5 trillion

Just within fifteen days of presenting the Railway Budget 2015-16, the Minister of Railways

Suresh

Prabhu fulfilled yet another commitment of his Budget announcement by achieving the highest

ever funding of Rs 1.5 lakh crore for Railways.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Railways and

Life Insurance Corporation (LIC). Under this MoU, LIC will make available to the Ministry of

Railways/its entities a Financial Assistance with a limit of 1,50,000 crore over the next five years

for implementing Railway projects. The Financial Assistance will be available from the Financial

Year 2015-16.

Terming Indian economy a "bright spot" on the global economic landscape, IMF raised its growth

forecast for the current fiscal to 7.2 per cent, even as it called for steps to revitalise the investment

cycle and accelerate structural reforms in the country.

EPFO trustees approve raising age limit under pension scheme to 60

At present, a formal sector worker covered under the EPS-95 can make contributions towards

pension scheme till the age of 58 years and can claim pension thereafter.

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After the amendment to the pension scheme, a formal sector worker can choose to contribute

towards it till 60 years of age. This will provide him a benefit of 4 percent enhanced pension per

year.

India and Mauritius will work together to avoid the "abuse" of double taxation avoidance convention,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared, as the two countries agreed to push negotiations for a long

pending revision of the treaty.

Often corporates have been accused of laundering money through the "Mauritius route" for

channelling FDI in India and the two governments have been in negotiations to curb this

practice. Negotiations to amend the bilateral tax treaty have been hanging fire for a long time

amid India's apprehensions

that it is being misused to

route black money and

evade taxes.

Reserve Bank of India has agreed

for a $1.5-billion currency swap

agreement with the Sri Lankan

central bank to help the island

nation keep its currency stable. At

the current valuation, one Indian

rupee is equivalent to 2.12 Sri

Lankan rupees. It has lost almost

three per cent value in comparison

to the Indian rupee so far in 2015.

Arjuna Mahendran Governor of

Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

1.8 lakh accounts opened under

Sukanya scheme in 2 months of

launch

As many as 1.80 lakh accounts have been opened under 'Sukanya Samridhi Scheme' in less than

two months of launch of the special programme for girl child, with the maximum number of

accounts in Karnataka and the least in Bihar.

On January 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched a small deposit scheme for girl

child, as part of the 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao' campaign. The deposits would fetch an interest

rate of 9.1 per cent and provide income tax rebate as well.

As per data available with the Finance Ministry, 56,471 accounts have been opened in

Karnataka, followed by 43,362 accounts in Tamil Nadu and 15,877 accounts in Andhra Pradesh.

About the Sukanya Samridhi Account

1. AS PER THE DETAILS OF THE SCHEME, 'SUKANYA

SAMRIDHI ACCOUNT' CAN BE OPENED AT ANY TIME

FROM THE BIRTH OF A GIRL CHILD TILL SHE ATTAINS THE

AGE OF 10 YEARS, WITH A MINIMUM DEPOSIT OF RS

1,000. A MAXIMUM OF RS 1.5 LAKH CAN BE DEPOSITED

DURING THE FINANCIAL YEAR.

2. THE ACCOUNT CAN BE OPENED IN ANY POST OFFICE OR

AUTHORISED BRANCHES OF COMMERCIAL BANKS.

3. THE ACCOUNT WILL REMAIN OPERATIVE FOR 21 YEARS

FROM THE DATE OF OPENING OF THE ACCOUNT OR

MARRIAGE OF THE GIRL CHILD AFTER ATTAINING 18

YEARS OF AGE.

4. TO MEET THE REQUIREMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

EXPENSES, PARTIAL WITHDRAWAL OF 50 PER CENT OF

THE BALANCE WOULD BE ALLOWED AFTER THE GIRL

CHILD HAS ATTENDED 18 YEARS OF AGE.

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However, Bihar accounted for the least number of accounts opened at just 204, followed by

Kerala 222 and West Bengal 334, the data showed.

National Capital Delhi saw 2,054 accounts being opened, 4,177 accounts in Haryana while 7,620

accounts have been opened in Uttar Pradesh.

Falling for the fourth straight month, wholesale price inflation showed negative growth of 2.06 per cent

in February from a year ago. It had declined -0.39 per cent in January and was 5.03 per cent in February

2014. Food prices rose 7.74 per cent, according to official data released in March. Inflation in prices of

onions, pulses and protein-rich food items such as egg, meat and fish rose and declined in prices of

vegetables, fruits and milk during February.

Social networking giant Facebook on 14 March 2015 acquired the shopping search engine TheFind.

With the acquisition, Facebook has moved into the e-commerce. Both Facebook and TheFind cast the

acquisition as a way to lift the digital advertising business of Facebook.

India's third largest IT services exporter Wipro Ltd. announced the appointment of appointment of

former TCS top executive Mr. Abid Ali Neemuchwala as the Group President and Chief Operating

Officer of the company.

HDFC Bank launched Chillr, a mobile app that allows users to instantly transfer money to any contact in

their phonebook.

The bank has partnered with MobME, a Kochi-based technology firm, to launch this app. Chillr is

a first-of-its kind application that is linked directly to customers bank accounts.

With Chillr, the banks customers can transfer money to any person in India once they download

the app and register.

The app works on the Android and iOS operating systems and will soon be launched for the

Windows phone as well.

The app is useful for college students and young professionals. Parents whose children study in

other cities can transfer money via the app.

Soon users will also be able to pay utility bills and various merchants via the mobile, HDFC Bank

said in a statement.

Each transaction will be charged Rs. 3.50.

There is a limit of 10 transactions of Rs. 5,000 and a maximum of Rs. 50,000 in a month,

according to company officials.

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The ongoing dispute between Sahara and Mirach took a new turn with the latter announcing a $400-

million defamation suit against the Sahara Group and a news outlet for attempting to discredit Mirach

and its CEO in the court of public opinion.

IAS officer D K Ravi who 'exposed tax frauds' and took on land mafia in Karnataka found dead.

The Union Cabinet on 17 March 2015 approved the Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition

of Tax) Bill, 2015 to deal with cases relating to black money stashed away in other countries.

Important provisions of the Bill

Concealment of income and assets and evasion of tax in relation to foreign assets will be

prosecutable with punishment of rigorous imprisonment up to 10 years.

Penalty for such concealment of income and assets at the rate of 300% of tax shall be levied

The government will give a short window to those stashing black money abroad to declare their

wealth, pay taxes and penalty, and escape prosecution under the proposed law.

Non filing of return or filing of return with inadequate disclosure of foreign assets will be liable

for prosecution with punishment of rigorous imprisonment up to 7 years.

Country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank said it has sold its profit making Russian subsidiary

ICICI Bank Eurasia Limited Liability Company (IBEL) to Sovcombank -- marking its exit from Russia.

To encourage investment in research and entrepreneurial activities in the biotechnology field, the

government has asked the RBI to declare it as a priority sector to make lending easy for start-ups.

In keeping with his Budget announcement, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu constituted the Kayakalp

Council and appointed industrialist Ratan Tata as its head. In, perhaps, a first, the Minister also included

two key employee representatives in the council. The Railways has about 1.55 million employees and is

considered one of the worlds largest employers.

India has overtaken the US to become the third-largest steel producer in the world with a production of

14.56 million tonnes (MT) in first two months of the year. India has been the fourth-largest steel

producer for the past five years, behind China, Japan and the US.

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Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Board on 22 March 2015 approved the SEBI (Issue and

Listing of Debt Securities by Municipality) Regulations, 2015. The regulations will enable the resources

starved municipalities across the country to mobilise financial resources from capital market.

New norms for listing and trading of municipal bonds

1. An issuer making a public issue shall only issue revenue bonds. In case of private placements, an

issuer may issue general obligation bonds or revenue bonds

2. Issuers contribution for each project shall not be less than 20 percent of the project costs,

which shall be contributed from their internal resources or grants

3. Mandatory credit rating, which has to be investment grade rating in case of public issuances

4. The tenure of these bonds will be of 3 years

5. Municipality should not have defaulted in repayment of debt securities or loans obtained from

6. Banks/Financial Institutions, during the previous 365 days

The capital market regulator, Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Board on 22 March 2015

approved SEBI (International Financial Services Centres) Guidelines, 2015. The guidelines for IFSCs aim

to provide an enabling environment for setting up of capital market infrastructure like stock exchanges,

clearing houses, depository services, etc., in such centres.

Guidelines for International Financial Services Centres (IFSC)

1. Any Indian stock exchange by the SEBI or a foreign stock exchange recognized by the originating

countrys market regulator can set up subsidiaries in IFSC.

2. A stock exchange can be set up with 25 crore rupees capital, against the normal requirement of

100crore rupees. However, this will have to be raised to 100 crore rupees within three years.

Such exchanges will also be given three years to complete de-mutualisation.

3. A Clearing Corporation can be set up, with 50 crore rupees capital, against the norm of 300

crore rupees, which will have to be achieved within three years of establishment.

Kerala Finance Minister K M Mani has been appointed as the Chairman of the Empowered Committee

of State Finance Ministers on Goods and Services Tax (GST). The GST, an indirect tax regime, is to be

rolled out from April 2016. Earlier on March 20, the GST Empowered Committee met Union Finance

Minister Arun Jaitley wherein state Finance Ministers asked him to select the new Chairman.

The Reserve Bank of India has rejected a proposal made by Tata Sons', the holding company of all Tata

group firms, to buy NTT DoCoMo's stake in joint venture Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL) for about Rs.

7,250 crore. In April last year, NTT DoCoMo, Japans biggest telecom operator by subscribers, said it will

sell its entire 26.5 per cent stake in TTSL, thus exiting India five years after it entered the market. The

plans to exit came after the Indian company failed to achieve certain performance targets specified in

the agreement between the two companies.

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The RBI signed a $400-million currency swap agreement with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka for three

years that will allow the island nation to draw the amount in dollars or euros in multiple tranches. The

agreement, which will be valid for three years, is expected to further economic co-operation between

the two countries, it added.

Indian Railways on 24 March 2015 launched its own RuPay pre-paid card. The card will enable

passengers to book their Rail tickets and do shopping using RuPay pre-paid debit cards. Card can be

availed from either the Union Bank or the IRCTC.

The Ministry of Railways appointed Ajay Shankar committee on 25 March 2015 to review the

performance of the Public Private Partnership (PPP) cell functioning under the Railway Board.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) released the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) on 24 March 2015.

The report is titled Financing Asias Future Growth.

The ADO report projected that India will overtake China in terms growth rate in Financial Year

(FY) 2015, and 2016.

India is forecasted to grow at the rate of 7.4 percent in FY 2014, 7.8 percent in FY 2015 and 8.2

percent in 2016 compared to Chinas growth rate of 7.4 percent in FY 2014, 7.2 percent in FY

2015 and 7.0 percent in FY 2016.

The Union Ministry of Finance and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on 26 March 2015 signed a loan

agreement for 300 million US dollars to improve road connectivity along the North Bengal-North Eastern

(NB-NE) Region. The agreement was signed in New Delhi.

Union Ministry of Finance on 26 March 2015 sanctioned 250 crore rupees to Andhra Pradesh to set up

Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the implementation of the Polavaram Multi Purpose Irrigation Project.

The Union Minister of State for Textile Santosh Kumar Gangwar on 25 March 2015 announced a 430

crore rupees project for production of the Geo-textiles in the North Eastern region. The announcement

was during the laying of foundation stone for first ever modern Apparel and Garment Manufacturing

Centre in Gangtok, Sikkim.

The Reserve Bank of India has almost finalised the structure of Central Fraud Registry and will soon

come up with guidelines to enable quick sharing of information about unscrupulous borrowers and help

banks fight bad loans.

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Corporation Bank and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India signed a memorandum of understanding

(MoU) in Mangaluru for implementing Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), the central

governments scheme to bring the entire nation under the ambit of insurance coverage. Under PMJJBY,

Corporation Banks Aadhar-linked savings account holders will be eligible for life insurance up to 2 lakh

for a premium of 330 (plus service tax) per annum.

Max Life Insurance and Lakshmi Vilas Bank have entered into a 5 year bancassurance tie-up for

distribution of the formers life insurance products through the 400 branches of the private sector bank.

Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG) on 26 March 2015 announced that it will raise its stake in SBI

General Insurance (SBIGI) from 26 percent to 49 percent. IAG decided to increase its stake in SBIGI in

the backdrop of the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015 which was passed in the Parliament in

March 2015. The bill seeks to increase foreign investment limit in local insurers to 49 percent from 26

percent.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) plans tougher rules for takeovers involving non-banking financial

companies (NBFCs), according to draft guidelines published, outlining a demand that all substantial

deals seek its prior approval. In its latest effort to boost transparency and strengthen its grip on the

alternative lenders that account for a large part of the domestic shadow-banking sector, the RBI said any

purchase of a stake of 26 per cent or more in a company, or a change in more than 30 per cent of its

directors, would need the central banks permission.

The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has signed two agreements worth $500 million

and $43 million with the World Bank, which will immensely benefit the MSMEs of the country.

Business Deals / MoUs

Ola on March 2, 2015 acquired TaxiForSure for $200 million in a cash and equity deal, signaling

consolidation in the $11 billion taxi industry. Ola and TaxiForSure will continue to operate as separate

entities.

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Infrastructure Ltd on 4 March 2015 announced the acquisition of

management control of Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Company Ltd (PDOE) for 2082.3

crore rupees. With this acquisition, Reliance Infrastructure Ltd will foray into the emerging business of

defence production.

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Forbes magazine on 3 March 2015 released Global Billionaires 2015 annual list. Bill Gates co-founder of

Microsoft topped the global billionaires list of Forbes magazine with worth of 79.2 billion US dollars for

the 16th time. The United States topped the list with 536 rich people, followed by China at 213 rich

people, Germany at 103 rich people and India at 90 rich people.

Among Indian women, Savitri Jindal and family was ranked 283 on the list with a net worth of

$5.3 billion in 2015, up from $4.9 billion in 2014.

Sun Pharma Group's promoter Dilip Shanghvi moving ahead of Reliance Industries' Mukesh Ambani to

become the richest Indian. Excluding Ranbaxy's valuation (its merger with Sun Pharma is yet to be

completed), Shanghvi's net worth after recent gains was Rs 1.4 lakh crore. Ambani's net worth was Rs

1.3 lakh crore.

Flipkart on 6 March 2015 acquired mobile ad network AdiQuity. The acquisition is aimed at increasing

advertising muscle of Flipkart.

Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is set to build its first all-electric car in Austria. The luxury

car-makers Jaguar brand could begin production of the vehicle next year.

Tata Consultancy Services has been named as the top employer in Europe for the third consecutive

year by a top employers certification agency Top Employers Institute, citing the Indian IT major as an

exceptional performer in nine core human resources areas.

Fast moving consumer goods major Emami Ltd has roped in actor Hrithik Roshan as one of the brand

ambassadors for the Fair and Handsome brand. Hrithik, already a brand ambassador for Emamis He

range of mens deodorants, will now endorse the fairness face-wash (under the Fair and Handsome).

With e-commerce business growing in India, realty major DLF has tied-up with online market place

Snapdeal to sell its apartments and would offer 1 per cent discount to potential home buyers. DLF will

offer on Snapdeal about 50 flats in eight housing projects across the country in a price range of Rs 34

lakh to Rs 3 crore.

Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs on 10 March 2015 released data of top ten Corporate of 2014. The

pack of top ten corporate comprises of eight public sector undertakings and two private sector

undertakings.

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In term of assets, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is the largest corporate with assets worth 3.68

lakh crore rupees. RIL is followed by state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) with assets worth

2.52 lakh crore rupees and mortgage lender Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC) with

assets worth 2.25 lakh crore rupees.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) signed a

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National

University of Singapore (NUS) on 19 March

2015 to improve Indias rating on ease of doing

business.

Kraft Foods Group Inc, the maker of Velveeta

cheese and Oscar Mayer meats, will merge

with ketchup maker H.J. Heinz Co, owned by

3G Capital and Berkshire Hathaway Inc, to

form the world's fifth-largest food and

beverage company.

Reliance Power commissioned the sixth and final 660-Mw unit of the 3,960-Mw Sasan Ultra Mega

Power Project (UMPP). With this, all of Sasan UMPP units have successfully been commissioned, 12

months ahead of the power-purchase agreement (PPA) schedule. The first five units of 660 Mw each,

totalling 3,300 Mw, had been commissioned in about 12 months. The Sasan UMPP is the largest

integrated power-plant-cum-coal-mining project at a single location in the world.

News Related to India

In order to facilitate last mile connectivity to passengers and tourists, the IRCTC has launched concierge

services at New Delhi railway station. The service aims to facilitate train passengers at the station in

hiring a porter, getting information regarding running status of the trains, and arranging a taxi for

dropping the passenger to his residence or hotel, a senior IRCTC official said.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on 3 March 2015 launched National Electoral Roll Purification

and Authentication Programme (NERPAP) throughout India. The programme was launched with the

prime objective to bring a total error-free and authenticated electoral roll. During the NERPAP,

Electronic Privacy Information Centre (EPIC) data of electors will be linked with Aadhar data of UIDAI

for the purpose of authentication.

MOST IN NEWS

BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION

(BBC) ON 4 MARCH 2015 RELEASED A

DOCUMENTARY FILM INDIA'S DAUGHTER.

THE DOCUMENTARY FILM HAS BEEN

DIRECTED BY LESLEE UDWIN.

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President Pranab Mukherjee on 2 March 2015 gave his assent to the Maharashtra Animal Preservation

(Amendment) Bill 1995. This amendment bans slaughter of bulls and bullocks in Maharashtra. President

gave his assent to the Bill as per the provisions in Article 201 of the Constitution of India.

Features of the amendment

If anyone is found selling beef or in possession of it can be jailed for five years and fined up to

10000 rupees.

The new act will however allow slaughter of water buffaloes, which provides carabeef, generally

seen as inferior quality meat (that makes up only 25 percent of the total beef market in the

state).

Worlds largest and tallest Indian national flag was unfurled on 3 March 2015 at Town Park in

Faridabad, Haryana. The flag was unfurled by BJP president Amit Shah, Haryana CM ML Khattar and

Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor.

The flag has dimension of 96 feet by 64 feet and weighs 48 kilograms. Flag was hoisted at the

height of 250 feet (75 meters). Thus, making it the worlds largest and the highest hoisted

Indian flag in the world.

The unfurling event was organised by Nav Chetna Trust which is formed to work on social issues

like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Campaign and Swachh Bharat Mission.

Another such flag is located at the Central Park in Connaught Place, New Delhi. This flag is 60

feet in width and 90 feet in length and is hoisted at the height of 207 feet.

National Building Construction Corporation Ltd (NBCC) and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on

March 4, 2015 signed an MoU for the first smart sub-city to come up at Karkardooma in East Delhi. The

30-hectare DDA land will be developed by NBCC as the first transit oriented development (TOD) smart

city in Delhi -- East Delhi Hub Project.

Union Minister Raosaheb Dadarao Danve, who was made Maharasthra BJP president a few months

back, resigned from the Council of Ministers over the principle of one-man, one-post. Mr. Danve, who

held the portfolio of Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, quit the

Council of Ministers over the principle of one-man, one-post, the sources said.

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Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar completed his SAARC Yatra of four nations on 4 March 2015. His SAARC

Yatra started on 1 March 2015 and ended on 4 March 2015. He undertook the SAARC Yatra with an aim

to firm up Indias ties with members of the grouping while reviewing regional and bilateral cooperation.

During the Yatra, he visited four countries namely Afghanistan on 4 March 2015, Pakistan on 3 March

2015, Bangladesh on 2 March 2014 and Bhutan on 1 March 2015.

Jaishankar visit to Afghanistan: During the visit, he called on Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and

CEO Abdullah Abdullah and held extensive talks focusing on India's development projects and

the security situation in the war-torn country.

Jaishankar visit to Pakistan: During the visit, he held Foreign Secretary level talks with his

Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Chaudhary, which was cancelled in July 2015. He also met with

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Advisor on Foreign Affairs and National Security Sartaj Aziz.

He handed over a letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Pakistan Prime Minister Sharif.

Jaishankar visit to Bangladesh: During the visit, Jaishankar met with Prime Minister of

Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka. He also met with Bangladesh Foreign Minister Abul Hassan

Mahmud Ali and Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Shahidul Haque. He held foreign secretary level

talks in Dhaka.

Jaishankar visit to Bhutan: During the visit, he met with Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering

Tobgay and held discussions on SAARC co-operation and bilateral ties. He also met with the 4th

King of Bhutan Jigme Singye Wangchuck.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been named among the 30 most influential people on the

internet by Time magazine. The list also features President Barack Obama. Time said Prime Minister

Modi roughly has 38 million followers on social networking sites.

The Kathmandu-Varanasi-Kathmandu bus service was on 5 March 2015 flagged off jointly by India and

Nepal. Nepal Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Bimalendra Nidhi and Ambassador of

India to Nepal Ranjit Rae flagged off the bus service.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 March 2015 inaugurated two units of 600 Mega Watt (MW) each

of Shree Singaji Thermal Power Project at Dongliya village in Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh. The

first phase of Shree Singaji Thermal Power Project with 1200 MW capacity has been developed by

Madhya Pradesh Power Generation Company Limited (MPPGCL) at an expense of 7820 crore rupees

With the commissioning of two plants, the total thermal power generation capacity of the State

increased to 4500 MW.

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British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on 4 March 2015 released a documentary film India's

Daughter.

The documentary film has been directed by Leslee Udwin.

The film is based on the Delhi gang rape and murder of the 23-year-old female named Nirbhaya

that took place on 16 December 2012. The film was simultaneously released in Denmark,

Sweden, Switzerland, Norway and Canada.

The documentary includes an interview conducted by British filmmaker Leslee Udwin and BBC

of Mukesh Singh, the driver of the bus. Mukesh has made derogatory statements against

women.

India and Spain on 5 March 2015 signed an agreement on Mutual Protection of Classified Information

to provide the framework for enhanced bilateral cooperation in areas of defence research,

development and technology cooperation. The agreement was signed by the Defence Minister Manohar

Parrikar and Defence Minister of Spain Pedro Morenes Eulate. It was signed during the official visit of

Defence Minister of Pedro Moremes to India.

Subway opened an all-women operated outlet in Mumbai.

National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) and Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences

(CCRAS) on 5 March 2015 signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to commercialise ayurvedic

medicines and technologies developed at CCRAS. The MoA was signed by Abhimanyu Kumar, Director

General of CCRAS and H Purushotham, Chairman & Managing Director of NRDC. The MoA provides

Intellectual Property Rights services to CCRAS in India and abroad.

The government has decided to recruit young female officers in the force and deploy them at select

locations like Nathula Pass along the Indo-China frontier. This is a maiden initiative undertaken for

women empowerment in the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). Till now, women could only don the

combat uniform in the officer cadre in all central security forces like the Central Reserve Police Force

(CRPF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and the border guarding forces Border Security Force

and Sashastra Seema Bal, except ITBP.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on 8 March 2015 launched a scheme for girl child Aapki

Beti Humari Beti. The scheme was launched with an aim to combat the problem of declining child sex

ratio in the state.

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The scheme was announced at a state-level function on the occasion of International Womens

Day at Panchkula. Khattar launched the scheme by giving away a cheque of 21000 rupees each

to mothers of six female children born on or after 22 January 2015.

Key Characteristics of the Scheme

Under the scheme, the first girl child born on or after 22 January 2015 in Schedule Caste (SC)

and Below Poverty Line (BPL) families will be eligible to receive 21000 rupees.

The second girl child born on or after 22 January 2015 of all families will also receive the same

amount.

Families where twin girls or multiple girls are born will also get 21000 rupees per girl child.

Other schemes that were launched during the function

Haryana Kanya Kosh: for the welfare and development of girl child and women in the state

Multi Sectoral Nutrition Programme: The programme will address the maternal and child

nutrition in five districts namely Mewat, Fatehabad, Narnaul, Palwal and Kaithal.

Maharashtra Government on 8 March 2015 launched Bhagyashree scheme for girl child. The scheme

replaced Sukanya scheme. As per the scheme, the state government will deposit an amount of 21200

rupees in bank for a girl child born in a Below the Poverty Line (BPL) family. The Bhagyashree scheme

aims at providing one lakh rupee on maturity after the girl completes 18 years of age. The scheme was

launched by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis in the presence of Bollywood actress

Bhagyashree. Bollywood actress Bhagyashree is the brand ambassador of the scheme.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 9 March 2015 launched the first indigenously developed Rotavirus

vaccine named Rotavac. This is the third such vaccine, besides GSK Rotarix and Mercks RotaTeq

available globally against Rotavirus.

First Kisan Call Centre (KCC) of North-East was opened on 9 March 2015 in Agartala, Tripura. The KCC

was launched by the Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar. KCC was financed by the Tripura

government. It will be run by a private enterprise with experts of agriculture, horticulture, fisheries and

animal husbandry.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla, ex-coal secretary P C

Parakh and three others were summoned as accused by a special court in a coal scam case pertaining to

the allocation of Talabira-II coal block in Odisha in 2005 and asked to appear before it on April 8. Special

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CBI Judge Bharat Parashar summoned the six accused on April 8 for the alleged offences punishable

under Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant, or by

banker, merchant or agent) of the IPC and under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act

(PCA).

The Supreme Court (SC) of India on 24 March 2015 declared Section 66A of the Information Technology

(IT) Act, 2000 as unconstitutional and struck it down. The section empowers law enforcement agencies

to arrest those who post objectionable content online and provides for a three-year jail term. The land

mark judgment of Shreya Singhal vs. Union of India was delivered by a SC bench of Justices J

Chelameswar and RF Nariman on a batch of petitions challenging the Section 66A of the IT Act, 2000.

Parliament gave nod to a Bill seeking to pave the way for plying of e-rickshaws on the roads of the

national capital region, with the government considering a proposal to provide credit to buy these

battery- operated vehicles. The Rajya Sabha passed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015 to

amend the 1988 Act by a voice vote. The measure was adopted by the Lok Sabha on March 3.

WWF India and Tata Capital Housing Finance Ltd have announced a partnership to support

conservation programmes for three critically endangered species the great Indian bustard, greater

one-horned rhinoceros, and red panda.

India, Seychelles Sign Four Pacts to Boost Security Cooperation Narendra Modi visited Seychelles

Seeking to expand its footprint in the strategic Indian Ocean, India agreed to help Seychelles in

mapping its hydrology reserves under four agreements signed during the visit of Prime Minister

Narendra Modi who launched a coastal surveillance radar project to boost security cooperation

with the island nation.

The Prime Minister also announced that India will give a second Dronier aircraft to Seychelles

and provide free of cost visas for three months for its citizens and making it available to them on

arrival.

After one-to-one and delegation-level talks with Seychelles President James Alix Michel, Modi,

the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Seychelles in 34 years, also said they underlined the

importance of comprehensive cooperation in the Indian Ocean region.

About Seychelles

The 115-island country, whose capital is Victoria, lies 1,500 kilometres (932 mi) east of mainland

Southeast Africa.

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The currency of Seychelles is Seychellois rupee.

The President of Seychelles is James Michel.

India and Mauritius inked five MoUs to give impetus to bilateral relations Narendra Modi visited

Mauritius

India and Mauritius inked 5 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) on 11 March 2015 to give

new impetus to bilateral co-operation between the two nations. The MoUs were signed in Port

Luis in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritian counterpart Sir Anerood

Jugnuth.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a five day official tour of three ocean nations, namely

Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. The journey started on 10 March 2015 and will conclude on

14 March 2015.

This is the first visit to Mauritius by an Indian Prime Minister in over three decades.

The five MoUs which were signed between the two nations include

1. MoU in the field of Ocean Economy: The agreement provides for mutually beneficial

cooperation for exploration and capacity development in the field of marine resources, fisheries,

green tourism, research and development of ocean technology, exchange of experts and other

related activities

2. MoU on Programme for Cultural Cooperation for the year 2015-18: The programme will help to

enhance bilateral cooperation and will also enhance greater people-to-people participation

between the two countries.

3. MoU on the Protocol for the importation of fresh mango from India: The aim of this Protocol is

to facilitate importation of fresh mango fruits from India by Mauritius to enable the Mauritian to

relish the flavor of the world-renowned Indian mangoes.

4. MoU for the Improvement in Sea and Air Transportation Facilities at Agalega Island of

Mauritius: This will help in betterment of the condition of the inhabitants of this remote Island.

These facilities will enhance the capabilities of the Mauritian Defence Forces in safeguarding

their interests in the Outer Island.

5. MoU on Cooperation in the field of Traditional System of Medicine and Homeopathy: This

MoU will promote cooperation in the field of traditional system of health and medicine between

the two countries. It envisages exchange of experts, supply of traditional medicinal substances,

joint research and development and recognition of the traditional systems of health and

medicine in both countries. It also aims at promotion and popularization of the various Indian

traditional systems which fall under AYUSH.

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Modi commissions India-built Mauritian naval patrol ship Barracuda

Barracuda which has automatic 30 mm Rapid Fire Gun and 12.7 mm Heavy Machine Guns as

part of its ammunition was handed over to Mauritius in December 2014 by Kolkata-based

Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE).

About Mauritius

Capital of Mauritius is Port Louis.

Currency of Mauritius is Mauritian rupee.

The president and prime ministers are Kailash Purryag(President) and Anerood Jugnauth(Prime

Minister).

India, Sri Lanka sign four agreements Narendra Modi Visited Sri Lanka

India and Sri Lanka signed four agreements during Narendra Modis maiden visit to the country,

the first bilateral tour by an Indian Prime Minister in 28 years, with the PM announcing a slew of

measures aimed at resetting ties with the strategic neighbour.

Prime Minister Modi, who arrived here this morning on the final stop of his three-nation tour of

Indian Ocean island nations, met Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena and discussed bilateral

and issues of regional importance.

The two sides signed four agreements on visa, customs, youth development and building

Rabindranath Tagore memorial in Sri Lanka.

About Sri Lanka

President - Maithripala Sirisena

Prime Minister - Ranil Wickremesinghe

Capitals: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Colombo

Currency: Sri Lankan Rupee

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Olympic medal winning boxer MC Mary Kom is being appointed as the brand ambassador of the

Northeast to showcase the potential of the region which offers Rs. 2.4 trillion business opportunities

across various sectors.

The Haryana Government has imposed a complete ban on the sale of beef in any form and proposed to

provide for 10 years rigorous imprisonment for cow slaughter, but ruled out equating it with murder.

The city of New Delhi got its name on December 31, 1926, according to archival documents of the

period at the National Archives of India (NAI).

New city 'NAINA' to come up over 600 square km near Navi Mumbai airport.

After severe floods in Jammu and Kashmir and cloudburst in Uttarakhand, the government said it has

formulated a Himalayan Meteorology Programme for better understanding of weather in the

mountainous States.

Agras tourist attraction Taj Mahal has emerged as the most popular in Asia for global virtual

travelers, according to Google. Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google

Earth that provides panoramic views from positions along many streets in the world.

Facebook restricted access to nearly 6,000 pieces of information on its website in India during July-

December 2014 period, the highest for any country, following requests from government and other

agencies to act against hate-content on the social media platform.

The Supreme Court of India (SC) on 17 March 2015 quashed the Union Governments decision to include

Jats in the Central Other Backward Classes (OBC) list.

India and Kyrgyzstan signed a memorandum of understanding, seeking to strengthen the bilateral

cooperation between the two nations in the textile sector.

Wildlife Management of Palvancha on 18 March 2014 announced eco-restoration project for Kinnersani

Sanctuary in Telangana.

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National Green Tribunal (NGT) on 18 March 2015 directed the Indian Railways to impose a fine of 5000

rupees on individuals spotted littering or throwing waste on the railway platforms and railway tracks.

The order was given with an aim to implement the genesis of Swacch Bharat Abhiyan and was passed by

a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar.

Indigenously developed Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile, Astra, was successfully test fired

at the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur in Odisha on 18 March 2015. It was test-fired aboard a

Sukhoi-30 fighter aircraft.

Maharashtra Government on 18 March 2015 announced to rename Girgaum Chowpatty as Swaraj

Bhoomi to honour veteran freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak.

RBI to issue Rs. 5 coins to mark 125th Jawaharlal Nehru anniversary.

In a first, the country's largest border guarding force-- BSF-- will have a woman IPS officer. The officer,

who has broken the proverbial glass ceiling in the paramilitary force tasked to secure two of the most

important Indian borders with Bangladesh and Pakistan, is 1996-batch Himachal Pradesh cadre Satwant

Atwal Trivedi. Trivedi, who has been posted as the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) in the 50 year-old

force, is at present serving as IG (crime and cyber security) in Himachal Pradesh. She also holds the

distinction of being the first women IPS officer in the hill state.

The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Hyderabad clocked 10 million passengers in the financial

year 2014-15. Bhanu Khannan who arrived at the airport from a Chennai bound flight emerged as the 10

millionth passenger at the airport.

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan on 13 March 2015 was roped in as the brand ambassador for Union

Governments campaign against Hepatitis B, a critical public problem in India. Bachchan was roped in as

the brand ambassador for Indias fight against Hepatitis B after his successful stint as UNICEFs

goodwill brand ambassador of pulse polio campaign in India.

The Union Cabinet on 20 March 2015 approved 33 percent reservation for women in police forces of all

Union territories (UTs) including Delhi police, through direct recruitment in non-gazetted posts like

constables to sub-inspectors.

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The Andhra Pradesh Government is considered naming the new capital city planned near

VijayawadaGuntur region as Amaravathi, based on the historical Buddhist site along Krishna river.

Madhya Pradesh Governor Ram Naresh Yadavs son Shailesh, who was named as an accused in the

multi-crore Vyapam scam, was found dead under mysterious circumstances at his fathers official

residence.

Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi launched his ambitious multi-purpose and multi-modal

platform PRAGATI (Pro-Active Governance And Timely Implementation).

PRAGATI is a unique integrating and interactive platform. The platform is aimed at addressing

common mans grievances, and simultaneously monitoring and reviewing important

programmes and projects of the Government of India as well as projects flagged by State

Governments.

It is a three-tier system (PMO, Union Government Secretaries, and Chief Secretaries of the

States).

Prime Minister will hold a monthly programme where he will interact with the Government of

India Secretaries, and Chief Secretaries through Video-conferencing enabled by data and geo-

informatics visuals;

The first such programme was launched on 25th March, 2015 (Wednesday) at 3.30 PM;

Now onwards, it will be held once in every month on Fourth Wednesday at 3.30 PM-to be

known as PRAGATI Day.

Union Government on 24 March 2015 launched new platform named Twitter Samwad that facilitates

direct communication between leaders, government agencies and citizens. This platform was launched

in association with social networking service Twitter.

Through this, the government bodies can have a direct communication with citizens on a daily

basis via Tweets and SMS on their mobile devices. The service was launched by Prime Minister

Narendra Modi during his meet with Twitter Chief Executive Dick Costolo in New Delhi. The

service is aimed to boost the nation's e-governance plans.

As of now, 16 government offices, including the Prime Minister's Office, Ministry of railways, the

Bengaluru Police and the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and West

Bengal are participating in Twitter Samvad, which is powered by Bengaluru-based ZipDial, which

was recently acquired by Twitter.

The thirteenth state level philatelic exhibition of Gujarat postal circle or Gujpex-2015 was inaugurated

by the Gujarat Governor O.P. Kohli at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Memorial in Ahmedabad on

24 March 2015.

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The Union Cabinet approved the Appropriation Acts (Repeal) Bill, 2015 on 20 March 2015. The bill is

intended to repeal 758 Appropriation Acts passed by the Parliament.

State Government of Maharashtra on 23 March 2015 announced that those involved in the sale of

gutka in the state will be booked under Section 328 of Indian Penal Code (IPC), that is, sale of gutka will

be made a non-bailable offence.

India and Qatar inked six agreements to increase commercial and economic exchanges

India and Qatar on 25 March 2015 signed six agreements to increase commercial and economic

exchanges between India and Qatar. The deals have a special focus on the Make in India initiative.

These six agreements were inked in New Delhi in presence of Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad

Al-Thani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani was on a two day official visit to India on 25 March and

26 March 2015.

The six Agreements which were inked includes

Agreement on Transfer of Sentenced Persons: Under this agreement, Indian prisoners convicted in

Qatar can be brought to India to serve the remaining part of their sentence. Similarly Qatari Citizens

convicted in India can be sent to his home country to serve their sentence.

MoU for Cooperation in the field of Information and Communication Technology: This MoU would

provide enhanced business opportunities for Indian IT industry in Qatar. Qatar has embarked on an

ambitious programme for overall development as part of their Qatar 2030 vision and has created a

dedicated Ministry of Information and Communication Technology for capacity building in ICT.

MoU between Ministry of Earth sciences and Qatar Meteorological Department for Scientific and

Technical cooperation: The scientific collaboration between India and Qatar will be beneficial to

improve atmospheric & Oceanic capacity in both the countries.

MoU between Diplomatic Institute of MOFA, Qatar and Foreign Service Institute, MEA: This MoU

would help in exchange of trainees, students, faculty members and experts between India and Qatar to

enhance their skills and improve the training programme in both the countries.

MoU for cooperation in the field of Radio and Television: This MoU intends to encourage regular

exchange of radio and TV programmes and material between Prasar Bharati of India and Qatar Media

Cooperation.

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Agreement for Mutual Cooperation and Exchange of News: The agreement between Qatari News

Agency and United News of India is to enhance and develop bilateral cooperation in the field of

exchange of English-language news on daily basis and free of charge.

Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi

approved the National Super Computing Mission on 25 March 2015.

The mission aims at bringing the High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities within the reach

of the scientific community by augmenting indigenous supercomputing infrastructure.

The mission will be implemented at an estimated cost of 4500 crore rupees over a period of

seven years.

The mission will be jointly implemented by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and

Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) through the Centre for

Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc),

Bangalore respectively.

The Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 27 March 2015 flagged off the first goods train from Lumding to

Silchar in Assam. He flagged off the train through video conferencing at a function in New Delhi.

Mizoram Governor Aziz Qureshi, who has had a running feud with the Centre and even approached the

Supreme Court against attempts to ease him out, was sacked.

India is set to operationalise its own navigational system with the successful launch of IRNSS-1D, the

fourth in the series of seven navigational satellites, onboard PSLV-C27 on March 28.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao recently laid the foundation stone for the Manuguru

thermal power plant in Khammam district . The Bhadradri thermal power plant, with a 1,080-MW

capacity, is developed by TS Genco in partnership with BHEL, its EPC contractor, and finance from Rural

Electrification Corporation and Power Finance Corporation.

CPI re-elected S Sudhakar Reddy as the general secretary for the second three-year term and elected

senior leader Gurudas Dasgupta as deputy general secretary on the concluding day of its 22nd Congress.

The Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani laid the foundation stone for setting up three premier educational

institutions IIT, IIIT, IISER in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh.

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The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) removed partys internal Lokpal Admiral L. Ramdas and Prashant Bhushan

as the chief of National Disciplinary Committee, a day after the latter and senior leader Yogendra Yadav

were expelled from the National Executive (NE).

The Defence Acquisition Council has approved the Maitri project for the co-development of a Short

Range Surface-to-Air Missile (SR-SAM) by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

with MBDA of France.

Virbhadra Singh, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh on 30 March 2015 launched part one of

eVidhan Mobile app.

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 March 2015 gave its approval for

the Approach and Key Components of e-Kranti: National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) 2.0.

Objectives of e-Kranti

To redefine NeGP with transformational and outcome oriented e-Governance initiatives.

To enhance the portfolio of citizen centric services.

To ensure optimum usage of core Information & Communication Technology (ICT).

To promote rapid replication and integration of eGov applications.

To leverage emerging technologies.

To make use of more agile implementation models.

Key principles of e-Kranti

Transformation and not Translation

Integrated Services and not Individual Services

Government Process Reengineering (GPR) to be mandatory in every Mission Mode Projects

(MMPs)

ICT Infrastructure on Demand

Cloud by Default

Mobile First

Fast Tracking Approvals

Mandating Standards and Protocols

Language Localization

National GIS (Geo-Spatial Information System)

Security and Electronic Data Preservation

The Union Cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) on 19 March 2015

with an outlay of 1500 crore rupees. The programme aims to impart skill training to youth with focus on

first time entrants to the labour market and class 10 and class 12 drop outs.

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Cipla launched generic of drug Sofosbuvir under the brand name Hepcvir for treating Hepatitis C

News Around the World

US blogger and creator of Mukta-Mona, Avijit Roy was hacked to death in Bangladesh.

Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia to trial new flight tracking system.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft on 6 March 2015 completed its Orbit around Dwarf Planet Ceres. By doing so,

it became the first spacecraft to orbit around a dwarf planet.

Sri Lankan Government on 5 March 2015 temporarily suspended construction work of Chinas port city

project in Colombo with immediate effect.

The world's oldest person Misao Okawa, a mother of three, grandmother of four and great-

grandmother of six, turned 117 in western Japan.

Connaught Place in the national capital has become the world's fifth most expensive office location,

beating the central business districts of Russia, Japan and China, according to property consultant

Cushman & Wakefield. London's West End is the most expensive office market for the third

consecutive year globally. Connaught Place or CP -- developed as a showpiece of Lutyens' Delhi -- was

ranked seventh in the 2013 list. Its ranking has improved on account of renewed demand and

strengthening economic environment. Connaught Place has been commanding a rental value of Rs 412

per sq ft a month and has seen a rental value increment of less than 1 per cent over the previous year.

Solar Impulse, claimed to be the world's only solar-powered aircraft, made a stopover in Ahmedabad.

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Pakistan test-fired its surface-to-surface ballistic missile Shaheen III, which is capable of carrying

nuclear and conventional warheads upto a range of 2750-kilometers.

India 14th among most popular destinations for Muslim travellers. Singapore took the top spot for the

non-OIC destinations. Malaysia topped the list for OIC countries, which also included Turkey, the UAE,

Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Google Launches Virtual Tour of Nepal's Everest Region.

NASAs Hubble Space Telescope has found strong evidence of a massive saltwater ocean under the icy

crust of Jupiters largest moon Ganymede that could potentially support life.

In a breakthrough, Japanese researchers have successfully transmitted electric power wirelessly to a

pinpoint target using microwaves, an advance that brings space-based solar power closer to reality.

According to Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or Jaxa, the researchers were able to transform 1.8

kilowatts of electric power into microwaves and transmit it with accuracy into a receiver located 55

metres away.

Pakistan successfully tested its first indigenous all-weather armed drone and a laser guided missile

that can strike its targets with pinpoint accuracy. The drone, named Burraq, has the ability to fly in all

types of weather conditions and strike its targets with pinpoint accuracy. Pakistan also tested its laser

guided missile named Barq.

The Times Higher Education on 13 March 2015 released the World Reputation Rankings 2015. This year

rankings show that the United Kingdom boasts 12 of the 100 most renowned higher education

institutions in the world.

Top 5 Universities

1. Harvard University (US)

2. University of Cambridge (UK)

3. University of Oxford (UK)

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)

5. Stanford University (US)

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In a major development, former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed was sentenced to 13- year

imprisonment by a criminal court here under the anti-terrorism laws. Capital of Maldives Male.

A California-based institution Zaytuna College has become the US' first officially recognised Muslim

college after receiving formal academic accreditation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has overtook Chinese President Xi Jinping to secure the top rank in

handling domestic and international affairs in a global survey conducted by a Chinese firm.

In the 'China's National Image Global Survey 2014, conducted in nine countries the US, UK,

Australia, Japan, South Africa, India, Russia, Brazil and China Modi's handling of domestic and

international affairs has won him the top rank while Xi figured second.

China has raced ahead of Germany to become the world's third largest arms exporter, a Stockholm

based think tank said in a report. Exports of major arms from the world's second largest economy grew

143 percent between 2010 and 2014. In the preceding five year period China had ranked ninth globally,

the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in a report.

Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani was named Young Global Leader from India by the World Economic

Forum (WEF). In the list of 187 YGLs for 2015 from across the world, Irani is accompanied by 10 other

Indians, including Gaurav Gogoi, an MP and son of Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

Japan government signed agreements with four Indian non-profit organisations, under which the Asian

nation will financially aid them to improve infrastructure and expand their humanitarian activities.

India will host the seventh Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) in 2016.

Five middle-income countries (MICs) which displayed strong economic growth in 2014 India, Brazil,

China, Mexico and Indonesia account for 363 million, or a half, of the worlds hungry, according to a

report released by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

The first global conference on Dalit rights will be held in US to increase awareness about injustices

faced by nearly 260 million people across the globe including in India due to caste-based discrimination.

Kerala to host its first global conference on gender equality.

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The world's first hydrogen-powered tramcar has rolled off the assembly line in China's eastern

Shandong Province.

Nobel laureate Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan on 18 March 2015 was named as the President of

Britain's prestigious Royal Society, a communion of the many of the world's most distinguished

scientists.

Republican US Senator Ted Cruz confirmed he will run for president in 2016, the first major candidate to

officially declare a bid in the next race for the White House.

Pakistan holds first national day parade for seven years on March 23. The ceremony marks the

anniversary of a 1940 resolution calling for a separate homeland for Muslims in India.

Scientists have discovered a 400 km-wide impact zone from a huge meteorite in central Australia which

is the largest asteroid impact zone ever found on Earth. A team led by Andrew Glikson from the

Australian National University (ANU) found the impact zone from a huge meteorite that broke in two,

moments before it slammed into the Earth in central Australia.

Utah became the first U.S. State to reinstate execution by firing squad amidst a spiralling crisis due to

lethal drug shortages faced by U.S. prisons, even as the States Governor was on the record describing

the procedure as a little bit gruesome.

Japan's Maritime Self-Defence Force on Wednesday took delivery of the biggest Japanese warship since

World War Two, the Izumo, a helicopter carrier as big as the Imperial Navy aircraft carriers that battled

the United States in the Pacific

Lufthansa plane Germanwings Airbus A320, a lowcost subsidiary of Lufthansa with 150 on board

crashed into French Alps.

The FBI has issued a 'wanted notice' against a 42-year-old Indian-origin man believed to have fled the US

to India after being found guilty of cyber crimes. Shivraj Singh Dabi fled from Sacramento County,

California, after he was found guilty of charges related to accessing the computers of his previous

employer and deleting and purposely damaging the computer data on those computers, a felony,

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Amitav Ghosh emerged as the only Indian author among 10 finalists for this years Man Booker

International Prize for his contribution to the English language writing. Kolkata born, 58-year-old Mr.

Ghosh had narrowly missed out on the Booker Prize back in 2008 when he was shortlisted for his work

Sea of Poppies.

NASA's Opportunity rover has completed the first-ever Mars marathon, clocking in with a winning time

of 11 years and 2 months.

President Barack Obama has nominated an Indian-American, a former official at its Embassy in New

Delhi, as the next US ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives. Obama yesterday announced the

nomination of Atul Keshap, a career foreign service official, as the next US ambassador to Sri Lanka and

Maldives along with Alaina Teplitz as the next ambassador to Nepal.

NRI industrialists G P Hinduja and S P Hinduja emerged as the richest Asian-origin entrepreneurs in

Britain for the third consecutive year with an estimated personal fortune of 15.5 billion pounds.

The Eiffel Tower went dark briefly to mark Earth Hour, the campaign to raise awareness about climate

change.

A Japanese robot that acts as a friendly companion to astronauts onboard the International Space

Station has set two Guinness World Records. Kirobo, a small android able to have conversations in

Japanese, has set records for First Companion Robot in Space and Highest altitude for a robot to have a

conversation following an 18-month stay onboard the ISS.

Blogger Washiqur Rahman hacked to death in Bangladesh. The killing took place nearly one month after

Avijit Roy, a prominent Bangladeshi-American blogger, known for speaking out against religious

extremism was hacked to death in Dhaka by unidentified assailants.

Opposition challenger Muhammadu Buhari has won Nigeria's presidential election with 15.4 million

votes against incumbent Goodluck Jonathans 13.3 million.

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Appointments

India

1. Mufti Mohammed Sayeed took oath as J&K Chief Minister.

2. Nirmal Singh Appointed J&K Deputy CM.

3. Jagmohan Dalmiya unanimously elected as President of BCCI.

4. FICCI appointed Arvind Virmani as Economic Mentor.

5. Baldev Sharma appointed as chairman of National Book Trust.

6. Arun Singh has been appointed as Indias ambassador to the U.S. succeeding S. Jaishankar, who

was named the Foreign Secretary in January. Prior to this he was Indias Ambassador to France.

7. Pramod Kumar Gupta has been appointed as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Minister of State

for Textiles, Santosh Kumar Gangwar. Officer on Special Duty (OSD) is an IAS officer who in on

central deputation and works in a particular ministry.

8. 1998 Asian Games gold-medallist Dingko Singh on 10 March 2015 was included in National

Boxing Selection panel. The goal of the panel will be to pick a bunch that can deliver medals at

the Olympics.

9. IPS officer M Akhaya has been appointed as the Chief Vigilance Officer in the Department of

Telecommunications.

10. Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL) on 16 March 2015 announced to

appoint Ashu Suyash as the Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the

company.

11. Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba took over as Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Naval Command.

12. Justice Ashok Bhushan sworn in as Chief Justice of Kerala HC.

13. Senior Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer and noted novelist Vikas Swarup of Slumdog

Millionaire-fame book Q&A will be the new spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs.

World

1. Indian-American Sunil Sabharwal re-nominated as Alternate Executive Director at IMF by the

US.

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2. U.S. President Barack Obama has nominated veteran diplomat David Hale as the next

ambassador to Pakistan. A career foreign service official, Mr.Hale is currently the U.S.

Ambassador to Lebanon, a position he has held since 2013.

3. Visit Britain, the National tourism agency of Britain on 10 March 2015 roped in Bollywood actor

Saif Ali Khan to promote an India-centric campaign, Bollywood Britain.

4. Google Inc appointed Ruth Porat as Chief Financial Officer.

5. Former Army Chief Sarath Fonseka became first Field Marshal of Sri Lanka.

6. Indian-American Renu Khator on 18 March 2015 was elected as the Chairperson of the Board of

Directors of the American Council on Education (ACE).

Awards & Honors

National

Legendary Singer Lata Mangeshkar on 20 March 2015 was presented with the Laadli Voice of the

Century award. She was awarded at the sixth edition of the National Media and Advertising Awards for

Gender Sensitivity held at Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was the chief guest at the awards ceremony.

Winners of the National Media and Advertising Awards in different category

Laadli Voice of the Century award Lata Mangeshkar

Best movie award Queen

Laadli Grand Prix award advertising agency Ogilvy and Mather for its advertisement, Titan

Raga tum nahi badle

Laadli extraordinaire award Charu Khurana, she won a landmark judgment in the Supreme

Court regarding Bollywoods bias against women make-up artistes

1. Indian-American physician Rahul Jindal selected for Fulbright Nehru Distinguished Chair.

2. Rani Mukerji awarded by National Institute of Gender Justice for representing the cause of

women.

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3. L. Subramaniam, Roshan Kumari Receive Hafiz Ali Khan Award.

4. Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader M. Veerappa Moily on 9 March 2015 was

selected for the prestigious Saraswati Samman for 2014 for his Kannada poem Ramayana

Mahanveshanam.

5. Padma Shri Award winner and senior Naga litterateur Temsula Ao was named for the

prestigious Kusumagraja National Literature Award.

6. Dolly Shivani Cherukuri became the youngest Archer to enter India Book of Records.

7. MP Govt honours Hindi poet Gopal Das Neeraj with Rashtriya Kavi Pradeep Award.

8. Dr Swati Tiwari has received the 'National Ladli Media and Advertising Award for Gender

Sensitivity' for her book on the lives of widows of the Bhopal gas tragedy named Aj bhi Zinda

hain.

9. Atal Bihari Vajpayee receiveed Bharat Ratna.

10. Madan Mohan Malviya received Bharat Ratna posthumously.

President of India, Pranab Mukherjee on 8 March 2015 presented Stree Shalti Puskars and Nari Shakti

Puruskars for the year 2014.

Rani Lakshmibai Award - Seema Prakash, Madhya Pradesh - For working for the cause of

vulnerable and marginalised Communities of Madhya Pradesh Since 2000 particularly for the

Korku tribe of the state.

Rani Rudramma Devi Award - Astha Sansthan (NGO), Rajasthan - For protecting womens

rights, gender mainstreaming, issues relating to violence against women tribal rights, food

security, transparency and right to work and others.

Mata Jijabai Award - Chandraprabha Bokey, Maharashtra - She is a social worker and is working

in rural areas since 1960. Her field of work includes empowerment and rehabilitation of

destitute, divorced, disabled women and rehabilitation of orphan children.

The Nari Shakti Puraskars have been conferred for the first time in 2015 and the award carries a cash

prize of one lakh rupees and a citation.

The President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 23 March 2015 awarded Certificate of Honour to eminent

scholars of Sanskrit, Pali/Prakrit, Arabic and Persian. He also conferred the Maharishi Badrayan Vyas

Samman to young scholars for the year 2014.

The Certificate of Honour for Sanskrit (International) was awarded to Prof. Pierre-Sylvain Filliozat.

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CNN IBN announced Indian of the Year Award 2014

Narendra Modi - Indian of the Year 2014

Arun Jaitley - Indian of the Year 2014: Politics

Jitu Rai - Indian of the Year 2014: Sports

IPS Officer P Vijayan - Indian of the Year 2014: Popular Choice

Kangana Ranaut - Indian of the Year 2014: Special Achievement

Pankaj Advani - Indian of the Year 2014: Special Achievement

Kailash Satyarthi - Indian of the Year 2014: Outstanding Achievement

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) - Indian of the Year 2014: Lifetime Achievement

The legendary Balbir Singh Senior, member of three Olympic gold medal winning teams, was honoured

with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Hockey India Awards.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on 27 March 2015 won Gandhi Peace Prize 2014. The award

was selected by the jury under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Aditi Arya of Delhi won the fbb Femina Miss India 2015 title on 28 March 2015 at the 52nd edition of

the beauty contest held at Yash Raj Studio in Mumbai. She was crowned with the title by Koyal Rana,

Femina Miss India 2014.

The Union Minister of Communications & Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad on 25 March

2015 felicitated the winners of the 2014 Web Ratna awards.

List of award and awardees

Kerala Tourism has been conferred the national Web Ratna Award for 2014 for exemplary e-governance

initiative through the Internet.

Official website www.keralatourism.org won the Golden Icon award in the outstanding content

category of the Web Ratna Awards.

Comprehensive Web Presence State category:

Platinum Award: Maharashtra

Gold Award: Tamil Nadu

Silver Award: Uttarakhand

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International

1. Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba won 2014 Mo Ibrahim Prize for African Leadership.

2. U.S. economist Stephen Ross wins Deutsche prize for pricing models. The last recipient, in 2013,

was Raghuram Rajan, governor of the Reserve Bank of India and former chief economist at the

International Monetary Fund.

3. Three South Asian women, namely Niloofar Rahmani, Nadia Sharmeen and Tabassum Adnan

on 3 March 2015 were selected for the prestigious International Women of Courage Award for

the year 2015 given by the US Secretary of State.

4. Kerala Tourism on 8 March 2015 won the silver prize of Golden Gate award at the

Internationale Tourismus-Borse Berlin (ITB-Berlin) 2015, Germany. Kerala won the award for its

global multimedia campaign to promote the backwaters of Kerala. The Golden Gate award (Das

Golden Stadttor) is presented every year at the ITB-Berlin and is dubbed as the Oscar in

tourism communication. It is considered the ultimate recognition in global tourism

communication.

5. Indian-Origin Educator Ganasen Reddy Gets Lifetime Achievement Award In South Africa.

6. Indian Researcher Minoti Apte Wins Woman of the Year 2015 in New South Wales, Australia.

7. Rajendra Singh, an eminent environment activist known as Water Man, has been conferred

the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize this year for his innovative water restoration efforts and

extraordinary courage to empower communities in Indian villages.

8. Artist Bharti Kher conferred with the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France.

9. Indian-American Author Akhil Sharma Wins UK Literary The Folio Prize for his novel Family Life.

10. Indian ecologist Madhav Gadgil and US Scientist Dr. Jane Lubchenco were on 23 March 2015

named for the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement 2015.

11. Scientist Murty Kambhampati chosen for U.S. Presidential Award for Excellence in Science,

Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM).

12. Cyrus Vandrevala, Jasminder Singh bag Asian Business Award.

13. Amitabh Bachchan Felicitated at 'India by the Nile' Festival in Egypt.

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