Current Affairs 22/09/2013 to 27/09/2013

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1.The United Nations General Assembly elected by acclamation Ambassador John W. Ashe of Antigua and Barbuda as President of its upcoming 68th session.
Made up of all the 193 Member States of the United Nations, the General Assembly provides a forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the UN Charter. It meets in regular session intensively from September to December each year, and thereafter as required.

2.In a bid to speedily recover Non-Performing Assets (NPA), the IDBI Bank has launched a campaign named ‘Own Your NPA’.
What is ‘Own Your NPA’ campaign?
It is a NPA recovery drive launched by the IDBI Bank through which it has tasked its managers — at the zonal, regional and branch levels — to focus their on making recoveries from the top 20 bad loan accounts in their jurisdiction. As part of the campaign, each zonal, regional and branch manager will personally go and meet the customers. The bank has identified 1522 cases, involving an aggregate principal outstanding of Rs 5,805 crore which is approximately 73% of its total NPAs of Rs 7,959 crore as on June-end 2013.
What is Non-Performing Assets (NPA)?
In simple words, the assets of the Banks which don’t perform (means don’t bring any return) are called Non Performing Assets. In more general sense they are “bad Loans”.
Any asset, including a leased asset, becomes non performing when it ceases to generate income for the bank.
However, there is a prescribed definition by the RBI which defines the NPAs as:
Terms Loans on which interest and / or installment of principal remain overdue for a particular quarter for a period of more than 90 days from the end of that particular quarter.
The Bills those remain overdue for a period of More than 90 Days from the end of a quarter.
Any amount to be received remains overdue for a period of more than 90 days.
The Cash Credit account remains out of order for a period of more than 90 days. Out of order means over the sanctioned limit.

3.A high-level committee, chaired by Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram, submitted to Finance Minister its report on the alleged irregularities at the National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL). The panel has found “minor systemic” problem and the report details long term measures to deal with such irregularities.
What is the National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL)?
National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL) is a Commodities exchange in India, and is a joint venture of Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. (FTIL) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED). The exchange launched its live trading operations in different commodities on October 15, 2008. It began trading in pre-certified cotton bales for Mumbai delivery and imported gold and silver bars for Ahmedabad delivery immediately, and has since added a number of commodities.
The mission of the exchange is to develop a common Indian market by setting up a nation-wide electronic spot market and providing state of art trading, delivery, and settlement facilities in various commodities.

4.The Border Security Force has appointed Indian cricketer Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador. It is important to note that any central force in India has appointed its brand ambassador. BSF is the second largest paramilitary force of India that guards two crucial Indian borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.

5.Naseem Al Bahr- the 9th edition of biennial naval exercise between Indian Navy and Royal Omani Navy kicked off in Oman.
In Indian fleet participating in the drill were Indian Naval Ship(INS) Mysore (guided missile destroyer), INS Tarkash , INS Tabar (stealth frigates) and INS Aditya (fleet tanker).
Veteran freedom fighter Captain Ranjit Singh (97) passed away. He was a close associate of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
About Ranjit Singh
He served the Indian National Army under the leadership of Subhash Chandra Bose.
Became working president of All India Freedom Fighter Organisation.
After retirement, he worked for the welfare of freedom fighter’s families.

6.Informing the Supreme Court, the Centre stated that securing Aadhaar cards is optional and not mandatory.

7.A Chinese court in east China’s Shandong province sentenced top China Communist Party leader Bo Xilai to life imprisonment uphelding the charges of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power against him. The court also stripped Bo of all political rights and ordered the confiscation of his property.

8.Global rating firm, Moody’s Investors Service, has downgraded State Bank of India’s senior unsecured debt and local currency deposit ratings to Baa3 or lowest investment grade rating from Baa2 and altered the outlook on SBI’s financial strength rating to negative from stable as the economic slowdown impacts bank’s credit quality.

9.Three expert members- Rajendra Singh, Ravi Chopra and Rashid Siddiqui resigned from the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) which was set up with the objective of protecting the Ganga from pollution and overuse. The members were disquieted over the fact that the National Ganga River Basin Authority has not met since April 2012, especially in the wake of continued government indifference on101st day of professor GD Agrawal’s fast for Ganga.
Key points about the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA)
Established: February 20, 2009 under Section 3(3) of the Environment Protection Act, 1986, which also declared Ganges as the “National River” of India.
Authority: Financing, planning, implementing, monitoring and coordinating authority for the Ganges River, functioning under the Ministry of Environment of India.
Mission: Protect the drainage basin which feeds water into the Ganges by protecting it from pollution or overuse.
Ex-Officio Chairman: Prime Minister
G.D. Agarwal alias Swami Gyan Swaroopanand (80) is a noted environmentalist and former Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) professor.

10.With the aim to contain the dwindling population of Parsis in India, the Jiyo Parsi scheme has been launched by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, Government of India.
What is Jiyo Parsi scheme?
Jiyo parsi scheme has the objective of reversing the declining trend of Parsi population by adopting scientific protocol and structured interventions, stabilize the Parsi population and increase the population of Parsis in India.

11.The Grameen Bank, the Nobel Peace Prize winning microcredit organization of Bangladesh, will be brought under the control of country’s central bank to give the authorities more powers over the organization.The Grameen Bank is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning microfinance organization and community development bank founded inBangladesh. It makes small loans (known as microcredit or “grameencredit’) to the impoverished without requiring collateral. Grameen Bank originated in 1976, in the work of Professor Muhammad Yunus, Professor at University of Chittagong, who launched a research project to study how to design a credit delivery system to provide banking services to the rural poor. In 2006, the bank and its founder, Muhammad Yunus, were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

12.Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, Government of India launched Seekho Aur Kamao (Learn and While) Scheme for Skill Development of Minorities.
What are the key objectives of the scheme Learn and Earn?
The main objectives of this scheme are:
Reduce the unemployment rate of minorities during 12th Plan period (2012-17).
Conserve and update traditional skills of minorities and establish their linkages with the market.
Improve employability of existing workers, school dropouts etc. and ensure their placement.
Generate means of better livelihood for marginalized minorities and bring them in the mainstream.
Facilitate minorities to avail opportunities in the growing market.
Develop potential human resource for the nation.

13.Canadian firm Fairfax signed a letter of intent with Ontario based Blackberry making an offer to acquire the pioneering mobile maker.
BlackBerry was once a leader in mobile tech but has been squeezed by rivals Android and Apple, which coincidentally announced record sales of its latest iPhone.
Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited is headed by billionaire Prem Watsa. The firm is already BlackBerry’s largest shareholder with approximately 10% of its shares.

14.The selection panel appointed Film Federation of India (FFI) has chosen filmmaker Gyan Correa’s Gujarati film “The Good Road” as India’s entry for the best foreign film category at the Academy Awards 2013. It is the first Gujarati film to have achieved this feat.
Earlier this year, “The Good Road” had won the National Award for Best Feature Film (Gujarati).

15.The government cleared the confusion that was going between the Customs Department and gold importers regarding the RBI’s 80:20 scheme which was introduced in July 2013.
What is 80:20 scheme of RBI?
Under this scheme, the importers are directed to export back 20% of the total gold imports. It prohibits further imports if this 20% norm is not met by importers. The step was aimed at curbing rising gold import which led to high Current Account Deficit.

16.Russia proposed to build manufacturing units in India to undertake co-production of defence equipment and also agreed to set up two major projects in a joint venture for manufacturing civil choppers and aircraft.

17.With India finishing 6th in the men’s freestyle at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, it also reserved its maiden Wrestling World Cup berth. India qualified for the big event by finishing sixth behind Iran, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine and the USA. As per FILA norms, the top 8 teams in the World Championship automatically qualify for the World Cup.

18.Tata group initiated the process of incorporating a new company for its proposed aviation venture with Singapore Airlines as it sought to register this entity as ‘Tata SIA Airlines Limited’.
Indian Team reserves berth Wrestling World Cup for the first timeSeptember 23rd, 2013
With India finishing 6th in the men’s freestyle at the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, it also reserved its maiden Wrestling World Cup berth. India qualified for the big event by finishing sixth behind Iran, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine and the USA. As per FILA norms, the top 8 teams in the World Championship automatically qualify for the World Cup.
Tata-Singapore new company to be named as ‘Tata SIA Airlines Limited’September 23rd, 2013
Tata group initiated the process of incorporating a new company for its proposed aviation venture with Singapore Airlines as it sought to register this entity as ‘Tata SIA Airlines Limited’.
Tata took the first step by filing an application for registration of this name with the Registrar of Companies through submission of form ‘1A’. The brand name of the proposed airline, however, is yet to be announced.
The initial investment in the project is estimated to be $100 million, with Tata Sons injecting $51 million for a 51% stake and Singapore Airlines pumping in $49 million for the remaining 49%.
This is the third proposal in the aviation sector since the Government permitted 49% FDI in domestic airlines in September 2012.
Although Tata is already into a separate joint aviation venture with AirAsia and Telstra Tradeplace for a low-cost airline, there will be no conflict of interest as the two airlines do not compete in the same space.
The Tatas have a long history of association with civil aviation in India. In 1932 JRD Tata had started Tata Airlines, which was later in 1946 renamed Air India and was subsequently nationalized in 1953.

19.Bollywood actor Aamir Khan has been chosen for a U.S. award for his television show ‘Satyamev Jayate’ along with renowned American director Kathryn Bigelow and the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC). They will be awarded at the inaugural awards by the America Abroad Media (AAM) in Washington DC. As per AAM, their work exemplifies the power of media to inform, educate and empower citizens about the critical social and public policy issues of our time.

20.Scientists from the Personal Genomics Institute in Suwon, South Korea have revealed that they have done first ever DNA analysis of the tiger as well as four other big cats. The DNA analysis was carried out in the project for aiding the critically-endangered cats for their survival.

21.The Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University Bill, 2013 has received the assent of the President of India. It has now been published in the Gazette of India.
What the Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University Bill, 2013 is all about?
The Bill proposes to create a central university to be named as Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University on 26 acre plot at the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Udaan Academy Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh.

22.Nigerian beauty Obabiyi Aishah Ajibola (21) was announced the winner of the Miss Muslimah World contest organised by the World Muslimah Foundation in Jakartha, Indonesia. The event was held exclusively for Muslim women, who were assessed not only for their appearance (in Islamic dress) but also for their piety, religious knowledge and understanding of the Quran. Participants were asked to talk to people through their path to the religion and what wearing a headscarf meant to them.

23.After a long gap of 73 years, Mohammedan Sporting Club (MSC) of Kolkata won the Durand Cup football tournament. The club vanquished ONGC 2-1 in the 126th edition of the tournament played at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi. It was in 1940 when MSC last lifted the Durand Cup when they won the tournament defeating Warwickshire Regiment.

24.The government has begun the process of building 4,000 MW ultra mega green solar power project near Sambhar lake in Rajasthan. The project which has been named as Sambhar Ultra Mega Green Solar Power Project is being set under the Department of Heavy Industry (DHI) in the 23,000 acre area of Sambhar Salts Limited (SSL), subsidiary of Hindustan Salts Limited (HSL) located in Rajasthan. It will be the world’s largest solar based power project