Comprehensive News Analysis - 14 March 2016

Table of Contents:

A. GS1 Related:
B. GS2 Related:

1. Govt. hopes to pass Bankruptcy, GST Bills

C. GS3 Related:

1. Growth rate of pulses production encouraging

2. Officers rue ‘timid’ strategy on China

3. India-Bangladesh drill in Sundarbans

4. Paramilitary forces to get woman officers

5. SaaS: A perfect storm brewing for India

D. GS4 Related:
E. Important Editorials: A Quick Glance

The Indian Express:

The Hindu:

1. Transparency at any cost

Others:

1. The Business Line: Well begun

2. The Financial Express: Sky eye

F. Concepts-in-News: Related Concepts to Revise/Learn
G. Practice Questions
H. Archive

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Useful News Articles

A. GS1 Related

— Nothing here today, folks! —

B. GS2 Related

1. Govt. hopes to pass Bankruptcy, GST Bills

Topic: Polity

Category: Legislative functions

Location: The Hindu, Page 1

Key points:

  • After the passage of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies and Services) Bill, 2016 as a money bill in LS, the govt. hopes to pass the Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill for a national Goods and Services Tax (GST) and a separate bill for Bankruptcy and Insolvency Code, 2015, in the second half of the Budget session
  • Insolvency laws would help bank recover bad or non performing assets while the GST is thought to help traders(ease of doing business and reduced cost), the govt.(more tax money) and consumers (lower prices)

 

C. GS3 Related

1. Growth rate of pulses production encouraging

Topic: Economy

Category: agri sector

Location: The Hindu, Page 13

Key points:

  • the growth rate in pulses production during this decade has been at 2.61 per cent, which has been higher than that of rice that stands at 1.59 per cent, wheat at 1.89 per cent and all cereals together at 1.88 per cent
  • the development of transgenic pigeon pea and chickpea for resistance against gram pod borer is at an advanced stage at the Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR)
  • this will help boost pulses output further and will go a long way to help the country achieve self sufficiency

 

2. Officers rue ‘timid’ strategy on China

Topic: Security

Category: Border Security

Location: The Hindu, Page 13

calmers

 

3. India-Bangladesh drill in Sundarbans

Topic: Security

Category: Border Security

Location: The Hindu, Page 13

Key points:

  • ‘Sundarbans Maithri’: first-ever joint exercise  between the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in the riverine borders of the Sundarbans
  • the drill can be a big deterrent to smugglers and criminals who will have to deal with the combined efforts of both the forces
  • Cattle, Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN), Phensedyl , a banned cough syrup etc.  are smuggled from India to Bangladesh
  • The officials said the joint exercise would be extended on land as well to make it part of a coordinated border management plan

 

4. Paramilitary forces to get woman officers

Topic: Security

Category: Security forces

Location: The Hindu, Page 13

Key points:

  • The Union Home Ministry recently published new rules allowing women to apply as direct-entry officers in border guarding force Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
  • Women will be recruited as Assistant Commandants, which is the direct-entry level for officers in ITBP
  • With this new rule coming into effect, women can now apply for combat roles in any of the five paramilitary forces of the country-CRPF,CISF,BSF,SSB

 

5. SaaS: A perfect storm brewing for India

Topic: Economy

Category: software sector

Location: The Hindu, Page 16

Key points:

  • Software-as-a-service (SaaS) is a software distribution model in which applications are hosted by a service provider or vendor. These applications are made available to customers over a network, typically the Internet
  • Start-ups using the model have sprung up across the country to create products that meet the demands of small and medium businesses world wide
  • Experts say that purpose built global SaaS products will see hyper growth and adoption by small and medium businesses
  • there are over 500 SaaS start-ups in the country
  • These Indian SaaS companies are not just tapping rich countries. They are now also observing an increasing demand for their products from businesses based in domestic market and developing nations
  • Unlike in the past when young ventures had to establish overseas offices, SaaS companies are now doing almost everything from India
  • We are observing a ‘perfect storm’ in the SaaS space and India has an unfair advantage

 

D. GS4 Related

— Nothing here today, folks! —

 

E. Important Editorials : A Quick Glance

The Indian Express:

The Hindu

1.Transparency at any cost

Topic: governance

Category: nuclear safety and preparedness

Key points:

  • Theshutdown of the 220 MW Unit-1 of the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station located in Gujarat’s Surat district following leakage of heavy water used to cool the nuclear reactor is a reminder of the inherent risks associated with operating nuclear reactors and the importance of augmenting safety mechanisms.
  • While this may be a rare event for a functioning plant that happened for the first time in India, it is a cause for concern that the magnitude of the coolant system failure was significant
  • an independent assessment of the safety situation  at the plant is being undertaken by scientists from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board
  • Given the heightened fear of nuclear energy in India following the Fukushima disaster, the only way AERB officials can reassure the public and win confidence is by being more transparent with its findings and by taking all necessary steps to ensure that similar events are averted in the future

 

Others:

1. The Business Line: Well begun

Topic: Economy

Category: budget

Key Points:

–  The Centre initiated the setting up of a Fund of Funds (FoF) to finance start-ups

with a corpus of Rs.10,000 crore for which it plans to raise Rs.2,500 crore annually

  • if long term capital gains are reinvested for subscription of units of a specified fund (i.e. the FoF), they would be tax exempt
  • Capital gains exemption is offered on long term capital gains arising on sale of residential property if such gains are invested in subscription of shares of a company which qualifies as an eligible start-up
  • For start-ups, the Centre has offered a tax free period of three years
  • the book profits earned by the startup would still be subject to Minimum Alternate Tax-this would impact the cash flows
  • The Centre seems to have missed relaxing the taxation of fund brought in by angel investors/ incubators
  • Measures aimed at reducing compliance such as self-certification of various forms under the tax rules, reducing the frequency of returns applicable in case of withholding (returning tax deducted at source), service tax, etc. would help
  • Exempting startups from tax scrutiny till they reach a critical would also go a long way in easing business procedures and reducing the running costs of entrepreneurs in India.

 

2. The Financial Express: Sky eye

Topic: Technology

Category: space

Key Points:

  • India has launched 28 foreign satellites during the three-year period—January 2013 to December 2015—for nine countries
  • The launch of the 28 satellites earned Antrix euro 80.6 million
  • India will launch 25 foreign satellites for seven countries using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) during the next fiscal. That includes 12 satellites for the United States, followed by Germany (4), Algeria and Canada (3 each), Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan (one each)
  • Six of the Indian Regional Navigation Satelitte System (IRNSS) satellites have already been launched and are designed to provide location accuracy better than 10 metres
  • Under an agreement with Vietnam, India will also set up a satellite tracking and imaging centre in southern Vietnam that will provide access to pictures from Indian satellites that cover the region
  • The Ho Chi Minh city station will support the existing ground stations in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Brunei, Biak (Indonesia) and Mauritius that track satellites in the initial stage of flight

 

F. Concepts-in-News: Related Concepts to Revise/Learn:

I. IRNSS

II. GST

III. AERB

IV. Constitution amendment bill

V. Bankruptcy act

VI. Central armed police forces

G. Fun with Practice Questions 🙂
Question 1:Which are true about the GST bill?

1.Parliament and state legislatures will have concurrent powers to make laws on GST

2.States may levy an integrated GST (IGST) on the interstate supply of goods and services, and imports

3.Parliament may, by law, provide compensation to states for any loss of revenue with the introduction of GST

 

a)1 and 2

b) 1, 2, and 3

c) 2 only

d) 1 and 3

Question 2:What is true about constitutional amendment bill?

1) A constitution amendment bill will have to be passed separately by a majority of the total membership of both Houses or by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of the Houses present and voting

2) the amendment  pertaining to states shall also required to be ratified by the Legislatures of not less than one-half of the States.

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

Question 3:Choose the correct answer w.r.t the following figure related to nuclear radiation 
Radiation

a) A-alpha rays, B-Beta rays, C-gamma rays

b) B-alpha rays, A-Beta rays, C-gamma rays

c) C-alpha rays, A-Beta rays, B-gamma rays

d) A-alpha rays, C-Beta rays, B-gamma rays

 

Question 4:Which of the statements below are true:
  1. NSG provides proximate security to the Prime Minister of India and former Prime Minister of India and members of their immediate families
  2. SPG was established for combating terrorist activities with a view to protect states against internal disturbances

 a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) 1 and 2

d) None of these

Question 5:Which of the following statements are correct about BSF?

1.The Border Security Force(BSF) is the primary Border guarding force of India raised in the wake of the Sino-Indian War

2.BSF guards the Sino-Indian border

a) 1only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

Check Your Answers

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