1. Lok Sabha passes Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill, 2015
i. The Lok Sabha passed the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill, 2015 for the establishment of funds under the public accounts of Centre and each State towards compensatory afforestation.
ii. It also provides for additional afforestation and penal compensatory afforestation to regulate collected funds. The bill seeks to establish the National Compensatory Afforestation Fund under the Public Account of India and a State Compensatory Afforestation Fund under the Public Account of each state.
iii. The payments into the funds include compensatory afforestation, net present value of forest (NPV), and any project specific payments.
2. Financial inequality highest in India, China: IMF
i. According to IMF, Financial inequality is highest in India and China among Asia Pacific countries despite the two being among the fastest growing economies.
ii. China and India have grown rapidly and reduced poverty sharply, however, this impressive economic performance has been accompanied by increasing levels of inequality.
iii. On India, the report said inter provincial inequality is lower in India than in China, and rising inequality in India has been found to be primarily an urban phenomenon. The two countries have introduced a number of policies to tackle the rising inequality.
3. 63rd National Film Awards ceremony was held in New Delhi
i. The 63rd National Film Awards ceremony was held in New Delhi. During the ceremony, the Directorate of Film Festivals of India presents its annual National Film Awards to honour the best films of 2015 in the Indian cinema. The awards were announced on 28 March 2016.
ii. Actors Amitabh Bachchan and Kangana Ranaut received National Awards for their roles in 'Piku' and 'Tanu Weds Manu Returns' respectively at the 63rd National Film Awards ceremony.
iii. Meanwhile, veteran actor Manoj Kumar was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the ceremony. The awards were presented to the actors by President Pranab Mukherjee.
4. Piyush Goyal unveil portal on payment to contract workers
i. Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal has introduce a new portal for Contract Labour Payment Management System.
ii. According to officials, the portal provides access to all contract workers, through a Workers Identification Number (WIN), to view their personal details and payment status. Contract workers can also register their grievance through this portal.
iii. The Web portal is created for monitoring compliance of labour payment and other benefits to contract workers under the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970. It is an integrated framework for all subsidiaries of CIL. The Central Mine Planning and Development Institute (CMPDI), the consultancy arm of CIL, will maintain the portal.
5. Commerce Ministry launches web-based dashboard for export, import data
i. Commerce Ministry has launched a web-based dashboard to provide an easy access to detailed trade data of the country.
ii. The dashboard will provide an accurate perspective to the general public on the facts around the trade performance in India.
iii. The dashboard will provide a graphical collection of export and import from India. This will enable small and upcoming businessmen to foray into global trade based on reliable information directly accessible through government sources.
6. India to hold festival in Egypt to mark Tagore's birth anniversary
i. To mark the 155th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, India will organize a cultural festival in Egypt next week. It will build the connections between the people of the two countries who share strong cultural bonds.
ii. The festival will be host from 8 May to 12th May by the Embassy of India in Cairo and Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture.
iii. The Indian embassy has held several programmes on Tagore as part of a build up to the festival, which will be organised in cooperation with Egyptian Ministry of Culture, Supreme Council of Culture, Cairo Opera House, National Library and Museum of Modern
Art.
7. World's smallest engine powered by light created
i. The world's smallest engine has been created at Cambridge University by UK based researchers. The engine is fueled by lasers and gold and a few billionths of a metre in size, which uses lights to power the engine.
ii. The engine will help to develop nano-machines that can navigate in water, sense the environment around them or even enter living cells to fight disease.
iii. The engine is powered by laser light and named the ANT ( actuating nano-transducer ). The microscopic ANT engine, which cannot be seen by the human eye, is believed to be up to a hundred times more powerful than any other engine known to man if you take its force to weight ratio into account.
8. NSE to launch new exchange for MSME
i. NSE, the national stock exchange is all set to launch a new trade receivable and credit exchange platform for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
ii. This new exchange will help MSMEs to file their bill against large companies, which can be accepted electronically and auctioned so that these small enterprises are paid immediately.
iii. The new exchange platform will be a joint venture of NSE and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and could be the first specialized exchange for micro SMEs. The platform would be known as 'Trades Exchange' as it' will be based on the Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS). The new platform will be operational by the end of this year.
9. Three Earth-like planets discovered orbiting dwarf star
i. An international team of scientists have discovered a trio of Earth-like exoplanets using the TRAPPIST telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory.
ii. These planets were found orbiting an ultra-cool dwarf star just 40 light-years from Earth and are likely comparable in size and temperature to Earth and Venus.
iii. Scientists have named the ultra-cool dwarf star 2MASS J23062928-0502285 (also known as TRAPPIST-1). It is located in the constellation of Aquarius (The Water Carrier). TRAPPIST-1 is about one eighth the size of the Sun (barely larger than Jupiter) and significantly cooler. The three planets were found to orbit very close to their host dwarf star. Two of the exoplanets have orbital periods of about 2.4 days and 1.5 days respectively. The third planet has a less well-determined orbital period in the range 4.5 to 73 days.
10.Jindal Brothers Sign Rs 6,500 Crore Power Deal
i. JSW Energy Ltd, led by Mr. Sajjan Jindal has agreed to buy a 1,000 MW power plant of Jindal Steel and Power Ltd’s (JSPL), which is located in Chhattisgarh.
ii. The total value of the deal is rs. 6,500 crore. After the acquisition, JSW Energy will have a total power generation capacity of 5,531 megawatts.
iii. The transaction is scheduled to be completed by June 30, 2018. JSW Energy is a part of JSW Group. Presently, Jindal Steel's net debt at the end of 2015 stood at rs.46,000 crore, seven times its current market valuation.
11. Uber ties up with Alipay globally
i. Uber, the online cab service provider has announced its global partnership with the third party payment platform, Alipay.
ii. With the help of this partnership, Uber will be able to provide its service in more than 400 cities globally.
iii. Alipay’s collaboration with Uber reflects a step forward of Ant Financial’s global strategy and it also extends to the Alipay’s strategic global partners like Paytm in India. As currently, Uber riders in India can avail the facility through Paytm platform. Its aims to bring better experiences for its users globally.
12. Ferrari names Fiat Chrysler's chief as its CEO
i. Italian sports car manufacturer Ferrari has appointed its Chairman Sergio Marchionne as the new CEO with "immediate effect".
ii. Marchionne replaced 69-year-old Amedeo Felisa, who retired from his post when the carmaker's board of directors met to discuss the first-quarter results.
13. Sameer Chadha appointed as Partner and CEO of KPMG India
i. Sameer Chadha was on 3 May 2016 appointed as the partner and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of KPMG's offshore arm in India.
ii. Chadha joined KPMG Global Services (KGS) from Barclays Shared Services, where he was the Chief Executive Officer.
iii. Chadha has 25 years of experience with leading organisations across the financial services and consumer goods sectors. KPMG India Pvt Ltd offers financial advisory services, business advisory services, tax and regulatory services and risk advisory services.
14. Progeria-affected teen Nihal dies at 15
i. Nihal Bitla, who was suffering from the rare genetic condition progeria, died in a hospital in Telangana at the age of 15 years.
ii. The disease aged him eight times faster than normal children thus shortening his life span.
iii. Nihal was the face of the Progeria Research Foundation’s campaign, which was working to detect undiagnosed children living in India.
15. Mark Selby won World Snooker Championship
i. England's world number one Mark Selby on 2 May 2016 won World Championship title of Snooker. In the final match played in Sheffield, Selby from Leicester defeated China’s Ding Junhui 18-14.
ii. With this win, Selby also ended Ding’s chance of being the first Asian player to win the world title. This was Selby’s second trophy of the year, earlier he had won minor Gdynia Open event in Poland.
iii. This was Selby’s second World Snooker title, the first was won against Ronnie O'Sullivan in 2014.
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