Current Affairs Update – 2nd August, 2016

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
  on Monday released guidelines for ‘on tap’ licensing of universal private
  sector banks under which the applicants can apply for a banking licence anytime
  as opposed to a limited-period window that the central bank previously used to
  open for applications.
• The released guidelines states
  individuals with 10 years senior-level experience are eligible to promote a
  bank, but large industry houses have been excluded as eligible entities. The
  large industry houses, however, can invest up to 10 per cent.
• Apart from this, the universal
  bank has to list on exchanges within six years of business commencement and
  must have realistic and viable business plan.
• It must address financial
  inclusion and must open at least 25 per cent branches in unbanked rural
  centres.
• In-principle nod for bank will be
  valid for 18 months from date of grant.
• Earlier in 2004, the RBI had
  granted licenses to Yes Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.
• After Raghuram Rajan took over as
  central bank governor, he opened the banking license window once again after
  which IDFC Bank and Bandhan Bank were issued license and it was announced that
  an ‘on-tap’ license regime would be introduced.

• Canara HSBC Oriental Bank of
  Commerce Life Insurance has launched a new linked insurance product
  ‘iNVESTSHIELD’ that aims to protect and meet an individual’s present and future
  financial needs.
• This is an online linked plan
  with ‘Premium Funding’ option whereby in the event of the life insured’s death
  —  in addition to the immediate benefit
  payout (higher of Sum Assured or 105% premium paid), the insurer funds the
  remaining premiums for the remaining policy term  and the fund value is also paid on maturity.
• The customer also has a
  flexibility of multiple funds depending upon the risk appetite and switching
  between funds as well as systematic investment. 

• The Lok Sabha on 1 August 2016
  passed the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws and
  Miscellaneous Provisions (Amendment) Bill, 2016.

• The Securitisation and
  Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act,
  2002
• The Recovery of Debts due to
  Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993
• The Indian Stamp Act, 1899
• The Depositories Act, 1996

• It simplifies the procedures by
  which there will be a quick disposal of claims of banks and financial
  institutions.
• It will empower the Reserve Bank
  of India (RBI) to examine the statements and any information of Asset
  Reconstruction Companies related to their business.
• The RBI may penalise a company if
  it fails to comply with any directions issued by the central bank.
• It says the stamp duty will not be
  charged on transactions undertaken for transfer of financial assets in favour
  of asset reconstruction companies. Financial assets include loans and
  collaterals.

• Rajya Sabha on 1 August 2016 passed
  Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill, 2016 by voice vote. The Bill seeks to
  amend the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956.
• It also seeks to replace the
  Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Ordinance, 2016. The Bill states that its
  provisions will come in to force from 24 May 2016.
• The bill was passed in Lok Sabha
  on 19 July 2016 after being introduced by Minister of Health and Family
  Welfare, Jagat Prakash Nadda on the same day. Now it will be sent to President
  Pranab Mukherjee for his nod.

• It seeks to introduce a uniform
  entrance examination for all medical educational institutions. This would be
  applicable at the undergraduate and the post-graduate level.
• It states that in case a state
  has not opted for the uniform entrance examination, then the examination will
  not be applicable at the undergraduate level for the academic year 2016-17.
  This provision will apply to state government seats in government and private
  medical colleges.

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• Rajya Sabha on 1 August 2016
  passed the National Institutes of Technology, Science Education and Research
  (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
• Lok Sabha passed the bill on 21
  July 2016. Now, the bill will be sent to the President for his assent.

• The Bill seeks to establish the
  National Institute of Technology (NIT), Andhra Pradesh as an institute of
  national importance under the National Institutes of Technology, Science
  Education and Research (NITSER) Act, 2007.
• The NIT will be deemed to have
  been an institute of national importance as on 20 August 2015. This is the day
  the central government approved its establishment.

• Senior IAS officer Bhaskar Khulbe
  has been appointed as secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• He was Additional Secretary in
  Prime Minister’s Office.
• The Appointments Committee of
  Cabinet has approved appointment of Mr Khulbe as Secretary to Prime Minister
  with effect from Friday, an order issued today by Department of Personnel and
  Training, said.
• Mr Khulbe is a 1983 batch IAS
  officer of West Bengal cadre.
• He looks after work related to
  Cabinet Secretariat and thrust areas of the government, among others. 

• Deepak Iyer was on 1 August 2016
  appointed as Managing Director of Mondelez International’s India Business.
• He succeeds Chandramouli
  Venkatesan, who led the business as Managing Director of India operations for
  two years and was with the company for more than a decade.
• Iyer, as Managing Director of
  Mondelez India Foods, will be part of the Asia Pacific Leadership Team and
  report into Maurizio Brusadelli, President of Asia Pacific, Mondelez
  International.

• The Patna Pirates on 31 July 2016
  won the fourth edition of Pro Kabaddi League by defeating Jaipur Pink Panthers
  37-29 at Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad, Telangana.
• With this win, Patna Pirates
  became the only team to lift the trophy twice in the tournament’s history of
  four editions.
• The Puneri Paltan was placed at
  the third place in the edition after they defeated Telugu Titans by 40-35
  score.

• A book titled R D Burmania:
  Panchamemoirs authored by Chaitanya Padukone was released in July 2016. The
  book throws light on the legendary musician Rahul Dev Burman, whose cabaret
  tunes still reverberate at pubs and discotheques.
• It also claims that Burman hated
  composing such songs and even believed that the genre was just a passing fad.
• The book chimes a tribute that
  strings together amazing, amusing and fascinating anecdotes, incidents and
  idiosyncrasies as well as rare, startling photographs while unraveling the
  mystique behind Bollywood’s most adored composer-singer RD Burman.

• Translator and artist Anita
  Gopalan on 25 July 2016 was awarded the 2016 PEN/Heim Translation Fund Grants
  for her English translation of Hindi novel Simsim by Geet Chaturvedi.
• Gopalan is the second Indian
  translator to be selected for the grant.
• Simsim, the lyrical,
  award-winning novella was first published in 2008. It is recognized for its
  groundbreaking contribution to contemporary Hindi fiction.
• Simsim focuses on four central
  characters and a decaying library sitting on prime Mumbai real estate. The book
  narrates the clash between two Indias, i.e. one old and traditional, and the
  other driven by consumerism and corporate greed.

Don’t Miss : Monthly Current Affairs e-Magazine of July, 2016