Telecom operator Airtel said it has partnered with HDFC Life Insurance to introduce a prepaid scheme with in-built life insurance term plan cover. Read more
Child poverty, domestic violence and mental health will be the priorities in New Zealand’s “wellbeing budget”, the finance minister has announced, with the nation declaring itself the first in the world to measure success by its people’s wellbeing. Read more
The CEAT International Cricket Awards 2019, Indian skipper Virat Kohli bagged the International Cricketer of the Year Award and Smriti Mandhana won International Woman Cricketer of Year Award. Virat Kohli won the Best Batsman Award Read more
Public sector lender Union Bank of India reported a net loss of ₹3,369 crore in the March quarter of FY19, owing to higher operational expenses, and provisions on account of bad loan divergences. The losses in Q4 of FY19 was wider than the ₹2,583-crore loss in the same period last year.
The bank said that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has found gross non-performing asset (NPA) divergence for FY18 at ₹867 crore and the ensuing provision divergence of ₹2,281 crore. Read more
Proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 1993 with resolution A/RES/47/237, the International Day of Families or IDF is observed on May 15 every year and reflects the importance attached to families and filial bonds by the international community. Read more
India’s GS Lakshmi has created history by becoming the The International Cricket Council first female to be appointed to the ICC International Panel of Match Referees. This comes close on the heels of Claire Polosak becoming the first ever woman umpire to stand in a men’s ODI earlier this month. Lakshmi will be eligible to referee international games with immediate effect. Read more
Yes Bank disclosed in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that the banking regulator has appointed former RBI Deputy Governor R. Gandhi as an additional director on its board. The appointment is for a period of two years with effect from May 14, 2019, to May 13, 2021, or till further orders, the bank informed the stock exchanges. Read more
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of ₹1 crore on Nainital Bank for its failure to fully automate the non-performing asset (NPA) identification process, despite specific directions issued in this regard. Read more
The government is looking to mandate a QR code-based payment option using UPI at all shops and establishments with consumers opting for this method of payment eligible for GST benefits along with shopkeepers. The measure is intended to promote digital payments as the preferred option. Read more
Japan has complained at the World Trade Organization about India’s duties on mobile phones, base stations and routers, and the circuit boards and other components that go into them, a WTO filing showed on Tuesday. Read more
India is unanimously chosen as co-chair of the Consultative Group (CG) of Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) for the fiscal year 2020. The decision was taken during the CG meeting of GFDRR held in Geneva, Switzerland today, on the margins of the 6th Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GPDRR) 2019. The CG Meeting was co-chaired by Africa Caribbean and Read more
ICICI Bank announced the launch of a co-branded multi-currency card with online travel booking portal Goibibo. The card also includes benefits of up to Rs20,000, including gift vouchers of Rs15,000 from Goibibo. Additionally, customers get 40 paise discount on the currency conversion rate on loading of a minimum of $1,000. Read more
The military drill, called Exercise Bullstrike, was conducted to showcase joint operations capability of the armed forces. During the exercise, the army personnel got the chance to display their prowess by undertaking company level airborne operation at Teressa island. Read more
Deepening a trade battle and sending financial markets into a tailspin, China announced Monday it was raising tariffs on $60bn of US goods after the latest increase in American tariffs on its exports. Read more
The central government extended for five more years the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a terror group that was behind the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Read more
Paytm has tied up with Citi to launch a credit card, called the Paytm First Card. The new Paytm credit card is touted to offer one percent "universal unlimited cashback" to customers along with no restrictions on earning categories. While the Paytm First Card comes with an annual fee of Rs. 500, the fee is claimed to be waived if the spends exceed Rs. 50,000 per year. The Paytm First Card is similar to co-branded credit cards that retailers and airlines offer and uses Visa network for transactions. Paytm has also built its own tool with Citi to check the eligibility of the potential customers. Read more
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted successful flight test of ABHYAS - High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT) from Interim Test Range, Chandipur in Odisha today. The flight test was tracked by various RADARS & Electro Optic Systems and proved its performance in fully autonomous way point navigation mode.Read more
Lecanorchis taiwaniana (The parasitic bloom), a type of orchid was accidentally discovered in Assam. This is the first time it is discovered in India. But the orchid species is already known in Japan, Taiwan, and Laos. The orchid was accidentally discovered in Assam by Jatindra Sarma, Assam's forest officer named. He is also the Member Secretary of State Medicinal Plants Board. Read more