Finance/Business/Economy News



1. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan received Governor of the Year Award for 2015


  • RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan received the Governor of the Year Award for 2015. The award recognises the Governor of a Central Bank who has demonstrated strong leadership during the period under review.
  • The Central Banking Awards for 2015 were announced by the Central Banking Publications on 12 January 2015.

Central Banking Awards for 2015
  1. Governor of the Year Award: Raghuram Rajan, RBI Governor
  2. Central Bank of the Year award: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ)
  3. Lifetime Achievement Award: Jacques de Larosiere former Governor of the Banque de France (1987–1993)
  4. Economics in Central Banking (inaugural award): Claudio Borio, head of the monetary and economic department at the Bank for International Settlements

He was awarded for his disciplined and focused approach to tackling macroeconomic instability. His insights combined with his strong leadership skills made Rajan an inspirational figure in the central banking community. Rajan took over as RBI governor in September 2013 for a three-year term.


2. RBI and ECB signed MoU on cooperation in Central Banking

  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the European Central Bank (ECB) on 12 January 2015 signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the field of central banking.
  • The MoU was signed by RBI Governor Dr. Raghuram Rajan and ECB President Dr. Mario Draghi.



Feature of the Memorandum of Understanding

  • It provides a framework for regular exchange of information, policy dialogue and technical cooperation between the two institutions
  • Technical cooperation may take the form of joint seminars and workshops in areas of mutual interest in the field of central banking



3. World Bank signed tripartite agreement for smart cities initiatives during Vibrant Gujarat Summit

  • World Bank on 12 January 2015 signed tripartite agreement with the Government of Gujarat and the Government of India for Gujarat’s smart cities initiatives and swachhta abhiyaan.
  • The agreement was signed on the sidelines of Vibrant Gujarat Summit being held in Gandhinagar. On the occasion, the State government released a special Vibrant Gujarat postal cover.
  • The Summit saw signing of around 21000 Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) running into 25 lakh crore rupees.
  • Besides, 1225 strategic partnership agreements were signed at the Summit in the areas of skill development, defence, renewable energy and biodiversity.
  • The agreements will boost Gujarat’s inclusive development. They will restore confidence among investors about the investment climate in Gujarat and also help in furthering the Make in India campaign.




4. Seventh Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2015 held in Gandhinagar


  • The Seventh Vibrant Gujarat Summit was held from 11 January to 13 January 2015 in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The summit was organised by the Government of Gujarat. The sixth Vibrant Gujarat summit was held in 2013.
  • During the summit, Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel announced that the MoUs singed includes as many as 1225 strategic partnerships. The companies that have disclosed their investment committments include Reliance Industries, Adani Group, Aditya Birla Group, Suzlon and Videocon, and also some foreign players like Rio Tinto, Suzuki and CLP Holdings.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US Secretary of State John Kerry, Chief Minister of Gujarat Anandiben Patel, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, Union Finance Minister Arun Finance Minister Arun Jaitley was attended the summit.



5. CSO released Quick Estimates of Index for Industrial Production for November 2014

  • Central Statistics Office (CSO) under the Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on 12 January 2015 released the Quick Estimates of Index of Industrial Production (IIP) for the month of November with base year 2004-05.
  • IIP is a composite indicator that measures the short-term changes in the volume of production of a basket of industrial products during a given period with respect to that in a chosen base period.
  • The current IIP is published by CSO with 2004-05 as base period.
  • The weightage of Manufacturing, Mining and Electricity production in overall Index IIP is 75.53 percent, 14.16 percent and 10.31 percent respectively.




6. Tata's offer for DoCoMo buy-back gets RBI nod

  • In a breather to NTT DoCoMo, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has agreed to a Tata group proposal to buy back DoCoMo's 26.5 per cent stake in Tata Teleservices at a pre-determined price of Rs 58 a share (Rs 7,250 crore for the entire stake), despite the company's valuer, Price Waterhouse, estimating the stake at Rs 23.34 a share, 60 per cent lower.
  • RBI has referred the matter to the investment division of the Department of Economic Affairs under the finance ministry for views and comments.
  • On December 22 2014, RBI told the finance ministry the Tatas had hired Price Waterhouse to determine the fair value of the shares of Tata Teleservices, soon after DoCoMo expressed interest to exit the company in April 2014. RBI said the Tatas agreed to buy back the shares at Rs 58 a share and had sought the central bank's permission for the transaction, as the price to be paid was higher than the fair-price valuation.



7. President signed Ordinance to amend Mines and Minerals Development & Regulation Act, 1957

  • President Pranab Mukherjee on 12 January 2015 gave his assent to an ordinance that amends the Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation (MMDR) Act, 1957. The ordinance paves way for introduction of competitive bidding for allocation of mines of iron ore and other non-coal minerals.
  • Earlier, the promulgation of ordinance to amend the MMDR Act, 1957 was approved by the Union Cabinet on 5 January 2015. The ordinance route was taken by the Union government after it was not able to introduce the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (Amendment) Bill, 2014 in the winter session of the Parliament in December 2014.


Objective of the MMDR (Amendment) Bill, 2014

  • Improved transparency in the allocation of mineral resources
  • Obtaining for the government its fair share of the value of such resources
  • Attracting private investment and the latest technology
  • Eliminating delay in administration, so as to enable expeditious and optimum development of the mineral resources of the country






8. Zomato acquired US based food portal Urbanspoon


  • Zomato on 12 January 2015 acquired the US based food portal Urbanspoon for an undisclosed amount in an all-cash deal.
  • The acquisition of Urabanspoon establishes Zomato's presence in Australia and Canada, the UK and New Zealand. With this, Zomato will be present in 22 countries across the world.
  • This is the sixth acquisition of Zomato in six months. Earlier, Zomato acquired dominant restaurant search players in New Zealand, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Italy.
  • Zomato also announced to increase its restaurant coverage from about 300000 restaurants to more than 1 million restaurants.



9. Deepak Parekh appointed as Chairman of BAE Systems India (Services) Private Limited

  • Deepak Parekh was on 12 January 2015 appointed as a Non-Executive Director and Chairman of BAE Systems India (Services) Private Limited with effect from 1 January 2015.
  • Presently, Deepak Parekh is the Chairman of Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC).
  • Indian Government honoured Parekh’s performance with the Padma Bhushan in 2006.



News Related to India and Indian Polity



10. Alur Seelin Kiran Kumar appointed as Chairman of ISRO


  • Alur Seelin Kiran Kumar was on 12 January 2015 appointed as Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Kiran Kumar became eighth Chairman of ISRO after succeeding K Radhakrishnan who retired on 31 December 2014.
  • He was re-employed on contract basis for a tenure of three years from the date of assumption of the charge of post. Kiran Kumar will also be the Secretary of the Department of Space and also the Chairman of Space Commission.
  • His appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.



11. Ministry of Railways inaugurated India’s first CNG powered train


  • Union Minister for Railways Suresh Prabhu on 13 January 2015 inaugurated India’s first compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered train on the Rewari – Rohtak link of Northern Zone.
  • This is a milestone in adoption of green fuel in Indian Railways which will help reduce greenhouse gas emission and also the consumption of diesel.


Characteristic Feature of CNG-powered train

  • The CNG Diesel Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) is based on dual-fuel that is diesel and CNG.
  • The train has been manufactured by Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF) through fumigation technology.



12. Supreme Court issued notice to Union Government on voting rights for inter-state migrants

  • The Supreme Court on 12 January 2015 issued notice to the Union Government on voting rights for inter-state migrants.
  • A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India H L Dattu gave four weeks time to Union to respond on the application by V P Shamsheer, a native of Kerala, who is based in UAE.
  • The Shamsheer had filed an application to allow inter-State migrants the same voting privileges, like postal ballot, accorded to government servants.
  • Further, it sought the Supreme Court intervention to set up a method for in-country migrants – who leave their constituency for reasons of work or employment, business, education, marriage, etc., and to vote from their current place of residence.
  • The Representation of the People Act, 1950 of section 20(music) (d)-reading along with Section 60 (beer) of the Representation of the People Act 1951 allows government servants and certain other class of persons to vote via postal ballot following the consent of Election Commission.



International News


13. ISRO Mars Orbiter Mission Team won the 2015 Space Pioneer Award


  • The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) Team of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on 12 January 2015 won the 2015 Space Pioneer Award in the Science and Engineering category.
  • The award will be presented to an ISRO representative during the National Space Society's 2015 International Space Development Conference (ISDC) that is scheduled to be held in Toronto, Canada from 20 May 2015 to 24 May 2015.
  • The Mars Orbiter Mission team is located in Bangalore and is headed by Mylswamy Annadurai.



14. France's Charlie Hebdo to print tearful Mohammad on front page


  • Charlie Hebdo will publish a front page showing a caricature of the Prophet Mohammad in its first edition since Islamist gunmen attacked the satirical newspaper.
  • With demand surging for the edition due on Wednesday, the weekly planned to print up to 3 million copies, dwarfing its usual run of 60,000, after newsagents reported that large numbers of customers around the country were placing orders.
  • A total of 17 people were killed in three days of violence that began when two Islamist militants burst into Charlie Hebdo's weekly editorial meeting, opening fire in revenge for the paper's publication of satirical images of Mohammad in the past.
  • The front page of the January 14 edition shows Mohammad, a tear on his cheek, holding a sign saying "JE SUIS CHARLIE" ("I am Charlie") below the headline "TOUT EST PARDONNE" ("All is forgiven").




Sports News


15. Cristiano Ronaldo won the 2014 FIFA Ballon d'Or Award

  • Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo on 12 January 2015 won the 2014 FIFA Ballon d’Or award for the best footballer of the year in the world. It is the third time that Ronaldo has won the Ballon d'Or award following the previous triumphs in the years 2008 and 2013.
  • Ronaldo defeated Barcelona forward Lionel Messi and Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer by bagging 37.66 percent of votes.
  • Lionel Messi was at the second position with 15.76 votes and Manuel Neuer stood at the third place with 15.72 percent votes.
  • 181 national team coaches, 182 national team captains and 181 media representatives submitted their votes for the FIFA Ballon d’Or award. The entire electoral procedure was overseen and monitored by PricewaterhouseCoopers Switzerland (PwC).


Other Awardees

  1. Nadine Kessler won the FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year award 2014.
  2. Joachim Low won the FIFA World Coach of the Year 2014 for Men’s Football award.
  3. Ralf Kellermann won the FIFA World Coach of the Year 2014 for Women’s Football award.
  4. James Rodriguez won the FIFA Puskas Award for the best goal of the year.



The FIFA Ballon d'Or award is an annual association football award given by FIFA to the male player who has performed the best in the previous calendar year.


16. Golfer Anirban Lahiri voted Asian Tour’s 2014 Players’ Player of the Year


  • Anirban Lahiri, an Indian professional golfer on 12 January 2015 was voted as the 2014 Players’ Player of the year in Asian Tour. He was voted for his successful exploits on the Asian Tour, wherein he won two titles and finished second on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
  • He Won first title outside India in the form of CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters
  • He helped Team Asia to secure a dramatic 10-10 tie against Team Europe at the inaugural EurAsia Cup
  • Apart from him, Australia’s Cameron Smith was also named as the Rookie of the Year for a commendable season where he finished fifth on the Asian Tour Order of Merit. He claimed seven top-10 finishes including a tied fifth result at the CIMB Classic in Malaysia which was sanctioned by the PGA TOUR and Asian Tour.