1. Arun Singh to replace Jaishankar as US envoy
Arun Singh, India's envoy to Paris, will take over the ambassadorial assignment in Washington DC, replacing S Jaishankar, who was appointed foreign secretary on January 28. Although the
appointment, earlier reported by TOI, has not yet been formally announced, it's likely to sail through.
About Arun Singh
An IFS officer of the 1979 batch, Singh has already spent five years in Washington as deputy chief of mission (which is an ambassadorial position in MEA). Prior to that he was India's ambassador to Israel. When in the head office, Singh had managed the tough Iran-Pakistan-Afghanistan desk between August 2001 and April 2005, which was the challenging times in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Dhawan took additional charge as MD & CEO of BoB on February 27. The appointment is for a period of three months with effect from the date of issue of the Cabinet’s order (February 26, 2014) or till the date of appointment of regular incumbent or till further orders, whichever is the earliest.
3. Nadal wins first title of 2015 at Argentina Open
Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal defeated local player Juan Monaco to win the Argentina Open, lifting his first title in 2015.
Mr. Nadal defeated Monaco in a match that lasted one hour and 27 minutes on Sunday with a score of 6-4, 6-1. While the Spaniard broke the Argentine on four out of nine occasions the former did not face a break point on his own serve, Xinhua reported.
The match, played at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, was delayed for two hours because of the rain. The Spanish tennis star now has collected 65 titles to rise to the fifth position in the Open Era for the most titles. He now stands behind Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (84) and John McEnroe (77).
4. Hero MotoCorp ropes in Allu Arjun as brand ambassador
Two-wheeler manufacturing major Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL) has signed on southern superstar Allu Arjun as its first regional brand ambassador.
The Tollywood star Allu Arjun will play a role in augmenting Hero MotoCorp’s foothold in the South Indian markets, in addition to promoting the brand at the pan-national level.
Hero MotoCorp will soon launch a new multimedia campaign featuring Allu Arjun with the 125-cc Glamour motorcycle. With catchy lyrics and background score, the TVC which has been conceptualised by JWT, has been shot at a location in Thailand
5. LIC hikes stake in RIL to 9.08%
Insurance behemoth LIC has increased its stake in Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd by 2.09 per cent after buying 6.78 crore shares in the open market.
At current market prices, state-run LIC’s stake in RIL is worth upwards of Rs. 25,150 crore.
LIC, which had 6.98 per cent stake earlier, increased its shareholding in the company to 9.08 per cent by buying shares between January 23, 2010, and February 28, 2015, RIL said in a filing to the BSE.
Shares of Reliance Industries closed at Rs. 863.70 apiece, down 0.29 per cent at the end of day’s trade on BSE.
6. World’s first electric satellites successfully lifted off by SpaceX rocket
SpaceX rocket lifts off with world's first all-electric satellites: Mission launches 'two for the price of one' thanks to cheaper fuel A SpaceX rocket has lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida carrying the world's first all-electric satellites The two spacecraft will reach their desired orbit in August of this year and will maintain itusing ion propulsion Without chemical fuel their weight was drastically reduced, allowing both to be launched on the same rocket rather than costly separate launches
7. FinMin wants PSU banks to consolidate, merge
In a step towards consolidation, the Government wants banks to consider merger. It has also proposed more transparency in the appointment of independent director on the bank board.
“The Government wants to encourage Bank Boards to restructure their business strategy and also suggest a way forward for their consolidation and merger with other banks if it is a win-win for both,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement discussing reform measures for public sector banks. At present, there are 27 public sector banks including State Bank of India and its associate banks.
Terming performance of public sector banks as sub-optimal so far, the statement has listed measures taken already and to be taken in near future. These measures are based on the crown sourcing mechanism and discussion, chaired by the Prime Minister himself, with the Bank Chairman in Pune. “The focus of these reforms is to improve the quality of deliberations in bank boards, leading to better asset quality and further resulting in better market valuations,” the statement said.
8. BlackBerry to offer cloud-based version of BES 12
BlackBerry Ltd said on Monday it plans to offer a cloud-based version of its device management platform BES12, a move that will make the service more accessible to small- and medium-sized businesses that need to secure devices on their own networks.
Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry has built a reputation around its device management and security capabilities, catering mainly to the needs of large government agencies and corporations. With data security needs becoming more critical, and a number of new entrants in the field nipping at its heels, BlackBerry said it is now broadening its offerings.
BlackBerry's new BES12 platform manages and secures not only BlackBerry devices, but also those powered by operating systems such as Google Inc's Android, Apple's iOS and Microsoft Corp's Windows platform. It can also manage and secure medical diagnostic equipment, industrial machinery and even cars.
By offering a less costly cloud-based version of the system, BlackBerry hopes to attract a wider range of small and medium sized businesses that need these capabilities, but do not have the capacity to install and manage expensive servers of their own
Arun Singh, India's envoy to Paris, will take over the ambassadorial assignment in Washington DC, replacing S Jaishankar, who was appointed foreign secretary on January 28. Although the appointment, earlier reported by TOI, has not yet been formally announced, it's likely to sail through.
About Arun Singh
An IFS officer of the 1979 batch, Singh has already spent five years in Washington as deputy chief of mission (which is an ambassadorial position in MEA). Prior to that he was India's ambassador to Israel. When in the head office, Singh had managed the tough Iran-Pakistan-Afghanistan desk between August 2001 and April 2005, which was the challenging times in Afghanistan and Pakistan
2. Ranjan Dhawan given additional charge as MD & CEO of Bank of Baroda
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has entrusted Ranjan Dhawan, Executive Director, Bank of Baroda (BoB), additional charge of the Managing Director & CEO of the public sector bank for a period of three months.Dhawan took additional charge as MD & CEO of BoB on February 27. The appointment is for a period of three months with effect from the date of issue of the Cabinet’s order (February 26, 2014) or till the date of appointment of regular incumbent or till further orders, whichever is the earliest.
3. Nadal wins first title of 2015 at Argentina Open
Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal defeated local player Juan Monaco to win the Argentina Open, lifting his first title in 2015.
Mr. Nadal defeated Monaco in a match that lasted one hour and 27 minutes on Sunday with a score of 6-4, 6-1. While the Spaniard broke the Argentine on four out of nine occasions the former did not face a break point on his own serve, Xinhua reported.
The match, played at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, was delayed for two hours because of the rain. The Spanish tennis star now has collected 65 titles to rise to the fifth position in the Open Era for the most titles. He now stands behind Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (84) and John McEnroe (77).
4. Hero MotoCorp ropes in Allu Arjun as brand ambassador
Two-wheeler manufacturing major Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL) has signed on southern superstar Allu Arjun as its first regional brand ambassador.
The Tollywood star Allu Arjun will play a role in augmenting Hero MotoCorp’s foothold in the South Indian markets, in addition to promoting the brand at the pan-national level.
Hero MotoCorp will soon launch a new multimedia campaign featuring Allu Arjun with the 125-cc Glamour motorcycle. With catchy lyrics and background score, the TVC which has been conceptualised by JWT, has been shot at a location in Thailand
5. LIC hikes stake in RIL to 9.08%
Insurance behemoth LIC has increased its stake in Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd by 2.09 per cent after buying 6.78 crore shares in the open market.
At current market prices, state-run LIC’s stake in RIL is worth upwards of Rs. 25,150 crore.
LIC, which had 6.98 per cent stake earlier, increased its shareholding in the company to 9.08 per cent by buying shares between January 23, 2010, and February 28, 2015, RIL said in a filing to the BSE.
Shares of Reliance Industries closed at Rs. 863.70 apiece, down 0.29 per cent at the end of day’s trade on BSE.
6. World’s first electric satellites successfully lifted off by SpaceX rocket
SpaceX rocket lifts off with world's first all-electric satellites: Mission launches 'two for the price of one' thanks to cheaper fuel A SpaceX rocket has lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida carrying the world's first all-electric satellites The two spacecraft will reach their desired orbit in August of this year and will maintain itusing ion propulsion Without chemical fuel their weight was drastically reduced, allowing both to be launched on the same rocket rather than costly separate launches
7. FinMin wants PSU banks to consolidate, merge
In a step towards consolidation, the Government wants banks to consider merger. It has also proposed more transparency in the appointment of independent director on the bank board.
“The Government wants to encourage Bank Boards to restructure their business strategy and also suggest a way forward for their consolidation and merger with other banks if it is a win-win for both,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement discussing reform measures for public sector banks. At present, there are 27 public sector banks including State Bank of India and its associate banks.
Terming performance of public sector banks as sub-optimal so far, the statement has listed measures taken already and to be taken in near future. These measures are based on the crown sourcing mechanism and discussion, chaired by the Prime Minister himself, with the Bank Chairman in Pune. “The focus of these reforms is to improve the quality of deliberations in bank boards, leading to better asset quality and further resulting in better market valuations,” the statement said.
8. BlackBerry to offer cloud-based version of BES 12
BlackBerry Ltd said on Monday it plans to offer a cloud-based version of its device management platform BES12, a move that will make the service more accessible to small- and medium-sized businesses that need to secure devices on their own networks.
Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry has built a reputation around its device management and security capabilities, catering mainly to the needs of large government agencies and corporations. With data security needs becoming more critical, and a number of new entrants in the field nipping at its heels, BlackBerry said it is now broadening its offerings.
BlackBerry's new BES12 platform manages and secures not only BlackBerry devices, but also those powered by operating systems such as Google Inc's Android, Apple's iOS and Microsoft Corp's Windows platform. It can also manage and secure medical diagnostic equipment, industrial machinery and even cars.
By offering a less costly cloud-based version of the system, BlackBerry hopes to attract a wider range of small and medium sized businesses that need these capabilities, but do not have the capacity to install and manage expensive servers of their own
9. RBI targets below 6 per cent inflation by January 2016
The Government and the Reserve Bank of Indian have agreed on the target of 2 to 6 per cent for inflation from 2016-17 and onwards. This is part of a new Monetary Policy Framework Agreement signed by the Finance Ministry and the RBI last month and made public on Monday.
The inflation here means the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or retail inflation. This new agreement has come into effect from February 20. “The Reserve Bank will aim to bring inflation below 6 per cent by January 2016. The target for financial year 2016-17 and all subsequent years will be 4 per cent with a band of +/- 2 per cent,” the agreement said. It also clarified that the Governor and in his absence the Deputy Governor (in charge of monetary policy) will determine the policy rate, as well as any other monetary measures, to achieve the target.
Regarding, the operating procedure of monetary policy, the document said the RBI will publish the operating target and establish an operating procedure of Monetary Policy. Any change in the operating target and the operating procedure in response to evolving macro-financial conditions will also be published.
10. Govt announces details of new insurance, pension schemes
The Finance Ministry has announced detailed guidelines for three social security schemes announced in the Budget. Though anyone can enrol in these schemes, it mainly aims to cover workers of unorganised sectors besides the poor and vulnerable sections of the society.
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana
This scheme is mainly for accidental death insurance cover for up to Rs. 2 lakh. Here are the key details:
Eligibility: Available to people in age group 18 to 70 years with bank account.
Premium: Rs. 12 per annum.
Payment Mode: The premium will be directly auto-debited by the bank from the subscribers account. This is the only mode available.
Risk Coverage: For accidental death and full disability - Rs. 2 lakh and for partial disability – Rs. 1 lakh.
Joining the scheme: Any person having a bank account and Aadhaar number linked to the bank account can give a simple form to the bank every year before June 1 in order to join the scheme. Name of nominee to be given in the form.
Terms of Risk Coverage: A person has to opt for the scheme every year. He can also prefer to give a long-term option of continuing in which case his account will be auto-debited every year by the bank.
Who will implement this scheme?: The scheme will be offered by all public sector general insurance companies and all other insurers who are willing to join the scheme and tie-up with banks for this purpose.
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana
This scheme aims to provide life insurance cover.
Eligibility: Available to people in the age group of 18 to 50 and having a bank account. People who join the scheme before completing 50 years can, however, continue to have the risk of life cover up to the age of 55 years subject to payment of premium.
Premium: Rs. 330 per annum. It will be auto-debited in one instalment.
Payment Mode: The payment of premium will be directly auto-debited by the bank from the subscribers account.
Risk Coverage: Rs. 2 lakh in case of death for any reason.
Terms of Risk Coverage: A person has to opt for the scheme every year. He can also prefer to give a long-term option of continuing, in which case his account will be auto-debited every year by the bank.
Who will implement this Scheme?: The scheme will be offered by Life Insurance Corporation and all other life insurers who are willing to join the scheme and tie-up with banks for this purpose.
Atal Pension Yojana
Ministry said that ‘Swavalamban’ Scheme launched in 2010-11 does talk about pension coverage but it considers this as inadequate mainly due to lack of clarity of pension benefits at the age after 60. It hopes that Atal Pension Yojana will remove these difficulties. The new scheme will focus on individuals in the unorganised sector, who join the National Pension System (NPS) and who are not members of any statutory social security scheme. The scheme would be launched on June 1.
Under the scheme, the subscribers would receive the fixed pension of Rs. 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000 or 5,000 at the age of 60 years, depending on their contributions. The contributions would vary on the age of joining the scheme. The minimum age of joining APY is 18 years and maximum age is 40 years. Therefore, minimum period of contribution by the subscriber under APY would be 20 years or more.
The benefit of fixed pension would be guaranteed by the Government. The Central Government will also co-contribute 50% of the subscriber's contribution or Rs. 1,000 per annum, whichever is lower, to each eligible subscriber account, for a period of 5 years, that is, from 2015-16 to 2019-20, who join the NPS before December 31 this year and who are not income-tax payers. The existing subscribers of Swavalamban Scheme would be automatically migrated to new scheme, unless they opt out.
1. Arun Singh to replace Jaishankar as US envoy
Arun Singh, India's envoy to Paris, will take over the ambassadorial assignment in Washington DC, replacing S Jaishankar, who was appointed foreign secretary on January 28. Although the
appointment, earlier reported by TOI, has not yet been formally announced, it's likely to sail through.
About Arun Singh
An IFS officer of the 1979 batch, Singh has already spent five years in Washington as deputy chief of mission (which is an ambassadorial position in MEA). Prior to that he was India's ambassador to Israel. When in the head office, Singh had managed the tough Iran-Pakistan-Afghanistan desk between August 2001 and April 2005, which was the challenging times in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Dhawan took additional charge as MD & CEO of BoB on February 27. The appointment is for a period of three months with effect from the date of issue of the Cabinet’s order (February 26, 2014) or till the date of appointment of regular incumbent or till further orders, whichever is the earliest.
3. Nadal wins first title of 2015 at Argentina Open
Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal defeated local player Juan Monaco to win the Argentina Open, lifting his first title in 2015.
Mr. Nadal defeated Monaco in a match that lasted one hour and 27 minutes on Sunday with a score of 6-4, 6-1. While the Spaniard broke the Argentine on four out of nine occasions the former did not face a break point on his own serve, Xinhua reported.
The match, played at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, was delayed for two hours because of the rain. The Spanish tennis star now has collected 65 titles to rise to the fifth position in the Open Era for the most titles. He now stands behind Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (84) and John McEnroe (77).
4. Hero MotoCorp ropes in Allu Arjun as brand ambassador
Two-wheeler manufacturing major Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL) has signed on southern superstar Allu Arjun as its first regional brand ambassador.
The Tollywood star Allu Arjun will play a role in augmenting Hero MotoCorp’s foothold in the South Indian markets, in addition to promoting the brand at the pan-national level.
Hero MotoCorp will soon launch a new multimedia campaign featuring Allu Arjun with the 125-cc Glamour motorcycle. With catchy lyrics and background score, the TVC which has been conceptualised by JWT, has been shot at a location in Thailand
5. LIC hikes stake in RIL to 9.08%
Insurance behemoth LIC has increased its stake in Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd by 2.09 per cent after buying 6.78 crore shares in the open market.
At current market prices, state-run LIC’s stake in RIL is worth upwards of Rs. 25,150 crore.
LIC, which had 6.98 per cent stake earlier, increased its shareholding in the company to 9.08 per cent by buying shares between January 23, 2010, and February 28, 2015, RIL said in a filing to the BSE.
Shares of Reliance Industries closed at Rs. 863.70 apiece, down 0.29 per cent at the end of day’s trade on BSE.
6. World’s first electric satellites successfully lifted off by SpaceX rocket
SpaceX rocket lifts off with world's first all-electric satellites: Mission launches 'two for the price of one' thanks to cheaper fuel A SpaceX rocket has lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida carrying the world's first all-electric satellites The two spacecraft will reach their desired orbit in August of this year and will maintain itusing ion propulsion Without chemical fuel their weight was drastically reduced, allowing both to be launched on the same rocket rather than costly separate launches
7. FinMin wants PSU banks to consolidate, merge
In a step towards consolidation, the Government wants banks to consider merger. It has also proposed more transparency in the appointment of independent director on the bank board.
“The Government wants to encourage Bank Boards to restructure their business strategy and also suggest a way forward for their consolidation and merger with other banks if it is a win-win for both,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement discussing reform measures for public sector banks. At present, there are 27 public sector banks including State Bank of India and its associate banks.
Terming performance of public sector banks as sub-optimal so far, the statement has listed measures taken already and to be taken in near future. These measures are based on the crown sourcing mechanism and discussion, chaired by the Prime Minister himself, with the Bank Chairman in Pune. “The focus of these reforms is to improve the quality of deliberations in bank boards, leading to better asset quality and further resulting in better market valuations,” the statement said.
8. BlackBerry to offer cloud-based version of BES 12
BlackBerry Ltd said on Monday it plans to offer a cloud-based version of its device management platform BES12, a move that will make the service more accessible to small- and medium-sized businesses that need to secure devices on their own networks.
Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry has built a reputation around its device management and security capabilities, catering mainly to the needs of large government agencies and corporations. With data security needs becoming more critical, and a number of new entrants in the field nipping at its heels, BlackBerry said it is now broadening its offerings.
BlackBerry's new BES12 platform manages and secures not only BlackBerry devices, but also those powered by operating systems such as Google Inc's Android, Apple's iOS and Microsoft Corp's Windows platform. It can also manage and secure medical diagnostic equipment, industrial machinery and even cars.
By offering a less costly cloud-based version of the system, BlackBerry hopes to attract a wider range of small and medium sized businesses that need these capabilities, but do not have the capacity to install and manage expensive servers of their own
Arun Singh, India's envoy to Paris, will take over the ambassadorial assignment in Washington DC, replacing S Jaishankar, who was appointed foreign secretary on January 28. Although the appointment, earlier reported by TOI, has not yet been formally announced, it's likely to sail through.
About Arun Singh
An IFS officer of the 1979 batch, Singh has already spent five years in Washington as deputy chief of mission (which is an ambassadorial position in MEA). Prior to that he was India's ambassador to Israel. When in the head office, Singh had managed the tough Iran-Pakistan-Afghanistan desk between August 2001 and April 2005, which was the challenging times in Afghanistan and Pakistan
2. Ranjan Dhawan given additional charge as MD & CEO of Bank of Baroda
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has entrusted Ranjan Dhawan, Executive Director, Bank of Baroda (BoB), additional charge of the Managing Director & CEO of the public sector bank for a period of three months.Dhawan took additional charge as MD & CEO of BoB on February 27. The appointment is for a period of three months with effect from the date of issue of the Cabinet’s order (February 26, 2014) or till the date of appointment of regular incumbent or till further orders, whichever is the earliest.
3. Nadal wins first title of 2015 at Argentina Open
Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal defeated local player Juan Monaco to win the Argentina Open, lifting his first title in 2015.
Mr. Nadal defeated Monaco in a match that lasted one hour and 27 minutes on Sunday with a score of 6-4, 6-1. While the Spaniard broke the Argentine on four out of nine occasions the former did not face a break point on his own serve, Xinhua reported.
The match, played at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, was delayed for two hours because of the rain. The Spanish tennis star now has collected 65 titles to rise to the fifth position in the Open Era for the most titles. He now stands behind Jimmy Connors (109), Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (84) and John McEnroe (77).
4. Hero MotoCorp ropes in Allu Arjun as brand ambassador
Two-wheeler manufacturing major Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL) has signed on southern superstar Allu Arjun as its first regional brand ambassador.
The Tollywood star Allu Arjun will play a role in augmenting Hero MotoCorp’s foothold in the South Indian markets, in addition to promoting the brand at the pan-national level.
Hero MotoCorp will soon launch a new multimedia campaign featuring Allu Arjun with the 125-cc Glamour motorcycle. With catchy lyrics and background score, the TVC which has been conceptualised by JWT, has been shot at a location in Thailand
5. LIC hikes stake in RIL to 9.08%
Insurance behemoth LIC has increased its stake in Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd by 2.09 per cent after buying 6.78 crore shares in the open market.
At current market prices, state-run LIC’s stake in RIL is worth upwards of Rs. 25,150 crore.
LIC, which had 6.98 per cent stake earlier, increased its shareholding in the company to 9.08 per cent by buying shares between January 23, 2010, and February 28, 2015, RIL said in a filing to the BSE.
Shares of Reliance Industries closed at Rs. 863.70 apiece, down 0.29 per cent at the end of day’s trade on BSE.
6. World’s first electric satellites successfully lifted off by SpaceX rocket
SpaceX rocket lifts off with world's first all-electric satellites: Mission launches 'two for the price of one' thanks to cheaper fuel A SpaceX rocket has lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida carrying the world's first all-electric satellites The two spacecraft will reach their desired orbit in August of this year and will maintain itusing ion propulsion Without chemical fuel their weight was drastically reduced, allowing both to be launched on the same rocket rather than costly separate launches
7. FinMin wants PSU banks to consolidate, merge
In a step towards consolidation, the Government wants banks to consider merger. It has also proposed more transparency in the appointment of independent director on the bank board.
“The Government wants to encourage Bank Boards to restructure their business strategy and also suggest a way forward for their consolidation and merger with other banks if it is a win-win for both,” the Finance Ministry said in a statement discussing reform measures for public sector banks. At present, there are 27 public sector banks including State Bank of India and its associate banks.
Terming performance of public sector banks as sub-optimal so far, the statement has listed measures taken already and to be taken in near future. These measures are based on the crown sourcing mechanism and discussion, chaired by the Prime Minister himself, with the Bank Chairman in Pune. “The focus of these reforms is to improve the quality of deliberations in bank boards, leading to better asset quality and further resulting in better market valuations,” the statement said.
8. BlackBerry to offer cloud-based version of BES 12
BlackBerry Ltd said on Monday it plans to offer a cloud-based version of its device management platform BES12, a move that will make the service more accessible to small- and medium-sized businesses that need to secure devices on their own networks.
Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry has built a reputation around its device management and security capabilities, catering mainly to the needs of large government agencies and corporations. With data security needs becoming more critical, and a number of new entrants in the field nipping at its heels, BlackBerry said it is now broadening its offerings.
BlackBerry's new BES12 platform manages and secures not only BlackBerry devices, but also those powered by operating systems such as Google Inc's Android, Apple's iOS and Microsoft Corp's Windows platform. It can also manage and secure medical diagnostic equipment, industrial machinery and even cars.
By offering a less costly cloud-based version of the system, BlackBerry hopes to attract a wider range of small and medium sized businesses that need these capabilities, but do not have the capacity to install and manage expensive servers of their own
9. RBI targets below 6 per cent inflation by January 2016
The Government and the Reserve Bank of Indian have agreed on the target of 2 to 6 per cent for inflation from 2016-17 and onwards. This is part of a new Monetary Policy Framework Agreement signed by the Finance Ministry and the RBI last month and made public on Monday.
The inflation here means the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or retail inflation. This new agreement has come into effect from February 20. “The Reserve Bank will aim to bring inflation below 6 per cent by January 2016. The target for financial year 2016-17 and all subsequent years will be 4 per cent with a band of +/- 2 per cent,” the agreement said. It also clarified that the Governor and in his absence the Deputy Governor (in charge of monetary policy) will determine the policy rate, as well as any other monetary measures, to achieve the target.
Regarding, the operating procedure of monetary policy, the document said the RBI will publish the operating target and establish an operating procedure of Monetary Policy. Any change in the operating target and the operating procedure in response to evolving macro-financial conditions will also be published.
10. Govt announces details of new insurance, pension schemes
The Finance Ministry has announced detailed guidelines for three social security schemes announced in the Budget. Though anyone can enrol in these schemes, it mainly aims to cover workers of unorganised sectors besides the poor and vulnerable sections of the society.
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana
This scheme is mainly for accidental death insurance cover for up to Rs. 2 lakh. Here are the key details:
Eligibility: Available to people in age group 18 to 70 years with bank account.
Premium: Rs. 12 per annum.
Payment Mode: The premium will be directly auto-debited by the bank from the subscribers account. This is the only mode available.
Risk Coverage: For accidental death and full disability - Rs. 2 lakh and for partial disability – Rs. 1 lakh.
Joining the scheme: Any person having a bank account and Aadhaar number linked to the bank account can give a simple form to the bank every year before June 1 in order to join the scheme. Name of nominee to be given in the form.
Terms of Risk Coverage: A person has to opt for the scheme every year. He can also prefer to give a long-term option of continuing in which case his account will be auto-debited every year by the bank.
Who will implement this scheme?: The scheme will be offered by all public sector general insurance companies and all other insurers who are willing to join the scheme and tie-up with banks for this purpose.
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana
This scheme aims to provide life insurance cover.
Eligibility: Available to people in the age group of 18 to 50 and having a bank account. People who join the scheme before completing 50 years can, however, continue to have the risk of life cover up to the age of 55 years subject to payment of premium.
Premium: Rs. 330 per annum. It will be auto-debited in one instalment.
Payment Mode: The payment of premium will be directly auto-debited by the bank from the subscribers account.
Risk Coverage: Rs. 2 lakh in case of death for any reason.
Terms of Risk Coverage: A person has to opt for the scheme every year. He can also prefer to give a long-term option of continuing, in which case his account will be auto-debited every year by the bank.
Who will implement this Scheme?: The scheme will be offered by Life Insurance Corporation and all other life insurers who are willing to join the scheme and tie-up with banks for this purpose.
Atal Pension Yojana
Ministry said that ‘Swavalamban’ Scheme launched in 2010-11 does talk about pension coverage but it considers this as inadequate mainly due to lack of clarity of pension benefits at the age after 60. It hopes that Atal Pension Yojana will remove these difficulties. The new scheme will focus on individuals in the unorganised sector, who join the National Pension System (NPS) and who are not members of any statutory social security scheme. The scheme would be launched on June 1.
Under the scheme, the subscribers would receive the fixed pension of Rs. 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000 or 5,000 at the age of 60 years, depending on their contributions. The contributions would vary on the age of joining the scheme. The minimum age of joining APY is 18 years and maximum age is 40 years. Therefore, minimum period of contribution by the subscriber under APY would be 20 years or more.
The benefit of fixed pension would be guaranteed by the Government. The Central Government will also co-contribute 50% of the subscriber's contribution or Rs. 1,000 per annum, whichever is lower, to each eligible subscriber account, for a period of 5 years, that is, from 2015-16 to 2019-20, who join the NPS before December 31 this year and who are not income-tax payers. The existing subscribers of Swavalamban Scheme would be automatically migrated to new scheme, unless they opt out.
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