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The success of the bankruptcy law will depend on the jurisprudence that develops under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Over the last year, barely a week has gone by without a regulator announcing new measures to help resolve India’s problem of large and mounting non-performing loans/assets, or NPAs. These announcements are usually accompanied by endorsements from the government, as determined reminders that the resolution of the NPA problem is on the top of the government’s mind. Then why does India’s war on NPAs seem intractable? And why have Indian regulators not yet resolved a case that can be showcased as an example of what the recent regulatory measures can achieve? The latest announcement came from the Securities and Exchange Board of India which said that companies that are pursuing acquisitions as part of resolution plans approved under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) would be exempted from open offer obligations typically applied under Indian takeover r...

PM Modi and President Trump exceed the muted expectations for their first meeting Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first meeting with President Donald Trump, concern had grown about the future course of the bilateral relationship, particularly whether Mr. Trump would maintain his predecessors’ commitment to its strengthening. These worries rested on Mr. Trump’s rewriting the equation with Europe, reversing the American stand on China and in West Asia. They were also fuelled by his harsh words on trade tariffs, immigrants and climate change, an issue on which he specifically targeted India. Mr. Modi and Mr. Trump have put many fears to rest, their meeting marked by personal bonhomie. This was reflected in Mr. Modi’s attempt to engage Mr. Trump’s family, perceived to be an important power centre in the White House. He invited his daughter Ivanka Trump to an entrepreneurship summit in India. Her husband Jared Kushner was a part of the delegation-level talks. Importantly, the Ind...

The India-based Neutrino Observatory would greatly advance scientific research Which one of us would not have applauded Galileo in January of 1610 when he trained his telescope for the first time on Jupiter and observed four dots alongside it? Within days he noticed that the dots seemed to be going around Jupiter... they were its four largest moons! Today, very large telescopes send us iconic images of distant galaxies and of faint remnants of the light produced by the Big Bang. The light from the moons of Jupiter was always falling on earth. It took a telescope to detect it because it was so feeble and could not be seen with the naked eye. Interesting things, telescopes. They observe something that is already there. They do not produce what they observe. Just like light There are two other things that, like light, can travel great distances in the universe, and therefore can be usefully observed. The first of these are gravitational waves. Predicted by Einstein’s famous theo...

Q- Which of the following is correct regarding rocket CHESS recently launched by NASA? A. It is to study vast interstellar clouds B. It is to study last stages of a star C. It is to study the collision of asteroids D. None of the above Q- Which of the statements given above is/are correct with reference to Special Economic Zone (SEZ)? 1. SEZs have full freedom for subcontracting. 2. They are exempted from routine examination by custom authorities. a) 1 only b) 2 only c) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2 Q- The phrase “technical, legal and political aspects” has been in news recently. It is used with respect to which of the following? A. Nuclear suppliers group B. MCTR C. UN D. WTO. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Answer1-A,  2-C,  3-A

Q- Which of the following is one of the goals of smart cities? a) Providing safe investment avenues in infrastructure b) Inclusive growth c) Recasting India's urban landscape d) None of the above Q- Consider the following statements about TAPI gas pipeline project 1. TAPI gas pipeline project being developed by the world bank 2. the pipeline should become operational in 2020 Which of the above statement is/are true 1.only 1 2.only 2 3.both 1 & 2 4.neither 1 nor 2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Answer1-D,  2-  1

K. Srikanth, Sai Praneeth and H.S. Prannoy have transformed men’s badminton in India K. Srikanth brought joy in two equal helpings. The 24-year-old won back-to-back badminton titles in the space of eight days, on Sunday adding the Australian Open title to the higher-rated Indonesia Open he had clinched on June 18. Success is not new to Srikanth, and in Sydney his domination of an elite field could be gauged from the fact that he dropped just one game in five matches. Even more heartening, he is part of a cohort in Indian men’s badminton, with the likes of B. Sai Praneeth and H.S. Prannoy, who have been beating elite players this season. For instance, Srikanth has upstaged the current World No. 1, Korea’s Son Wan Ho, twice in two weeks and raced past the reigning World and Olympic champion, Chen Long, in Sunday’s final at Sydney. He will be back in the world’s top 10 ranking this week, having also beaten World No. 4 and the topmost Chinese, Shi Yuqi, twice this year. In fact, Srikant...

Q- Which of the following is/are correct regarding Dakshin Gangotri? 1. It was India’s second scientific base in Antarctica. 2. It was established during the third Indian expedition to Antarctica in 1983–84. A. 1 only B. 2 only C. Both D. None Q-Which of the following is correct regarding NATGRID? 1. NATGRID is the integrated intelligence grid connecting databases of core security agencies of the Government of India. 2. It was started after terrorist attack in 2006. A. 1 only B. 2 only C. Both D. None Q- Which of the following is correct regarding GST council? A. It is set up under Article 279A of the Indian Constitution B. Union finance minister is the chairperson of the council 1. Only A 2. Only B 3. Both 4. None Answer  1-B,  2-A,  3-3

Q- Which of the following is correct regarding International day of yoga? 1. Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India 2. On 11 December 2014, the United Nations adopted resolution for international day of yoga A. 1 only B. 2 only C. Both D. None Q- Which of the following is not a function of SEBI? A. regulating the business in stock exchanges and any other securities markets; B. Registering and regulating the working of venture capital funds and collective investment schemes,including mutual funds; C. promoting and regulating self-regulatory Organizations D. All of the above are functions of SEBI Q- Arrange these water bodies from west to east 1. Timur sea 2. Arafura sea 3. Gulf of carpentaria 4. Coral sea A. 4-2-3-1 B. 1-2-3-4 C. 2-4-3-1 D. 1-3-2-4  Answer  1-C,  2-D,  3-B

Effective treatment is available for epilepsy, but doctors had found out that epilepsy drugs don’t work in some women. Now scientists have figured out why some women suffer from recurrent seizures despite medication. Scientists at the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB) and Institute of Human Behavior and Allied Sciences (IHBAS), both in New Delhi, have found that a variation in a gene called Cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) is responsible for some women to suffer from frequent epileptic seizures despite taking one or a combination of known anti-epileptic drugs. The study results have been published in The Pharmacogenomics Journal. CYP1A1 gene, known to make an enzyme that regulates the levels of female hormone estrogen in the blood, is also important in controlling drug response in epilepsy. “Since this gene is involved in dispersal of estrogen, we thought that perhaps an altered expression of it is contributing to higher levels of estradiol, which, in turn, was incre...

On the occasion of completion of two years of Smart Cities Mission (SCM) and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) announced the new batch of smart cities at a National Workshop on Urban Transformation. The Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation, M Venkaiah Naidu, said that 45 cities contested for 40 available smart city slots but only 30 were selected to ensure feasible and workable plans that match the aspirations of the citizens. “The mission is an echo of urban revival,” the minister said. The government had launched its flagship “100 Smart Cities Mission" in 2015. As of now, 90 cities (10 in the first round, 13 in the fast track round, 27 in the second round and 30 in the third round) have been selected as smart cities. In the third round of the Smart Cities selection, the Centre had shortlisted 45 cities, out of which, 30 have been selected Creating smart cities would e...

Excess human activities leading to soil pollution took centre stage at the fifth Global Soil Partnership Plenary Assembly held at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome. Excessive amount of nitrogen and trace metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury can impair plant metabolism and reduce crop productivity. When they enter the food chain, these pollutants pose risk to food security, water resources, rural livelihoods and human health. “Soil pollution is an emerging problem, but, because it comes in so many forms, the only way we can reduce knowledge gaps and promote sustainable soil management is to intensify global collaboration and build reliable scientific evidence,” Ronald Vargas, a FAO soils officer, said. “Combating soil pollution and pursuing sustainable soil management is essential for addressing climate change,” Rattan Lal, president of the International Union of Soil Sciences, said. Combating soil degradation Around one-third of th...

Many countries have become more efficient in using natural resources and the services provided by the environment, generating more economic output per unit of carbon emitted and of energy or raw materials consumed. Yet progress is too slow, and if emissions embodied in international trade are included, advances in environmental productivity are more modest, a new OECD report shows. Green Growth Indicators 2017 uses a range of indicators covering everything from land use to CO2 productivity and innovation to show where 46 countries rank on balancing economic growth with environmental pressures over 1990 to 2015. It finds that Denmark, Estonia, the United Kingdom, Italy and the Slovak Republic have made the most progress on green growth since 2000. The report shows that no country is performing well on all green growth dimensions and most of the countries studied are yet to fully disconnect economic growth from fossil fuel use and pollutant emissions. Progress has often been insuffi...

Global population will touch 8.6 billion in 2030, 9.8 billion in 2050 and 11.2 billion in 2100, a revised 2017 forecast by the United Nations published recently says. The revision raises previous predictions of 8.5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion in 2050. The main reason behind the revision is the growing population rate in India and Africa. India’s population, currently at 1.3 billion, is expected to surpass China’s in the next seven years. Nigeria, with the world’s fastest growing population, is projected to overtake the United States to become the third most populous country before 2050. Africa’s baby boom Africa is experiencing continued high rates of population growth. The report predicts between 2017 and 2050, the populations of 26 African countries will expand to at least double their current size. In an interview given to Down To Earth earlier via mail, John F May, visiting scholar of the US-based Population Reference Bureau, pointed out three reasons behind Africa’s (...

The case for India-U.S. partnership has been always strong, but the romanticism accompanying it is on test When Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump shake hands and perhaps embrace each other next week, the mandatory encomiums about India and U.S. being the world’s largest and oldest democracies, respectively, would have a sombre undertone to them. Both these democracies are passing through testing times. Two nations in churning Powerful political forces are trying to re-litigate principles that have held for decades in India, and have evolved over centuries in America. This ongoing re-litigation involves, at the functional level, some fundamental questions about citizenship, individual and collective rights, particularly religious rights, the terms of engagement between the state and citizens, the balance of power between various branches of the government, the role of the media, etc. At the conceptual level, what is being debated is the question of national i...

Q1 - FCRA has been seen in the news recently, it is related to which of the following? A. Health Indicators B. Malnutrition C. NGO's D. Security Q2 - Which of the following country has not signed an open sky offer with India? A. Sri Lanka B. Jamaica C. Nepal D. Cech Republic Q3 - West Bank area mostly seen in news, is related to which of the following parts of the world? A. Central Asia B. South East Asia C. Southern America D. Middle east. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Answer  1-C,  2-C,  3-D