Centre of Science and Environment and HSBC Bank came Together to Impart Environment Training

Centre of Science and Environment (CSE) on 17 October 2012 announced Partnership with Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corpoartion Ltd (HSBC) to set up modern Environment Training Institute in Alwar district of Rajasthan.

The Institute that will set up will be offering short and long term courses on Environmental governance for regulators and decision makers.

Both the organization will be improving environmental governance in India by building capacity of environment regulators, non-government organizations and industry.

The institute will cover the multiple research disciplines such as air pollution, water and waste water management, climate change, sustainable industrialisation and urbanisation, renewable energy, public transport and mobility and environment impact assessment.

The Institute is going to be developed as an incubation, development and demonstration centre for green technologies.
 
 Centre of Science and Environment (CSE)

The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is a public interest research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi. It was founded in 1980. CSE researches into, lobbies for and communicates the urgency of development that is both sustainable and equitable.

Centre of Science and Environment uses knowledge-based activism to create awareness about environment related problems and helps in proposing sustainable solution.

ICICI Bank Signed an Agreement with Eco Bank of Africa

ICICI Bank on 15 October 2012 signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ecobank Transnational Incorporated of Africa in order to extend their banking services across their combined footprint in India and Africa.

The MoU was signed in Tokyo by Vijay Chandok, President - International Banking Group of ICICI Bank Ltd and Arnold Ekpe, Group CEO of Ecobank.

India’s trade with Africa has doubled in the past four years. Stronger investment ties are complementing this steady growth in trade with Indian investments in Africa across a range of sectors including oil & gas, pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, fertilizers, IT and infrastructure.

About Ecobank

Eco bank is a pan-African banking conglomerate, with banking operations in 35 African countries. It is the leading independent regional banking group in West Africa and Central Africa, serving wholesale and retail customers. Ecobank was incorporated in Lome, Togo. Ecobank Transnational Incorporated is the parent company of the leading independent pan-African banking group.

About ICICI Bank

ICICI Bank Limited is India's largest private sector bank and the second largest bank in India, with consolidated total assets of US $ 111 billion as on June 30, 2012.
It is the second largest bank in India by assets and third largest by market capitalization.

BANKING AWARENESS PRACTICE MCQs

1. Which of the following is known as Plastic Money?
A) Demand Draft
B) Credit Card
C) Debit Card
1) Only A
2) Only B
3) Only C
4) Both B and C
5) All A, B and C

2. KYC guidelines followed by banks have been framed on the recommendations of the ...........
1) Ministry of Home Affairs
2) Ministry of Information Technology and Human Resource Development
3) Indian Banks Association
4) Ministry of Finance
5) Reserve Bank of India

3. Business Correspondents in banking are for:
1) Providing services for the Platinum Customers
2) Providing services for children
3) Serving the educational institutions
4) Serving the weaker sections of society
5) None of these

4. What is the full form of FDI?
1) Foreign Development Investment
2) Fiscal Development Investment
3) Foreign Direct Investment
4) Fiscal Direct Investment
5) None of these

5. CMD of a public sector bank is appointed by:
1) Reserve Bank of India
2) Indian Banks Association
3) Central Government
4) Respective Bank's Board of Directors
5) None of these

6. What is the current Statutory Liquidity Ratio?
1) 23 %
2) 24 %
3) 20%
4) 4.5%
5) None of these

7. Expand CTS.
1) Cheque Truncation System
2) Cash Transaction System
3) Current Transaction System
4) Credit Truncation System
5) None of the above

8. Micro finance development equity fund is managed by:
1) RBI
2) NABARD
3) Indian Banks Association
4) Asian Development Bank
5) None of these

9. What is the full form of LIBOR?
1) London Inter - Bank Offer Rate
2) Liquidity Inter - Bank Offer Rate
3) Liquidity International Bank Offer Rate
4) London International Bank Rate
5) None of these

10. Which of the following does not come under core sector?
1) Crude Oil
2) Natural Gas
3) Coal
4) Electricity
5) Automobile

RBI open to raising cap on global e-commerce deals

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is open to looking at increasing the limit on international e-commerce transactions now set at $3,000, a top official said on October 8.

“If the system wants the limit to be enhanced, that is something that we are positively inclined to look at,” RBI Executive Director G. Padmanabhan said on the sidelines of a CII event.

Mr. Padmanabhan said the limit was set in consultation with PayPal, a major player among the international payment gateways, and added that as many as 99 per cent of the e-commerce transactions fell under the limit of $3,000.

Rationale

Giving rationale for setting the limit (there are no limits for domestic e-commerce transactions), he said it was needed in a country like India which had exchange controls.

On extending trading hours in the forex market, the RBI official said it was difficult to relax as “we do not have full capital account convertibility.”

HDFC Bank & Indian Oil came Together to Provide Banking Services in Rural Areas

HDFC Bank on 4 October 2012 tied up with Indian Oil Corporation where rural Petrol Pump Outlets of Indian Oil will act as HDFC Bank Business Correspondent (BCs). It is unique and first kind of tie-up, where an oil distribution company is coming up with the bank to make available modern banking services to the people of remote areas. The Indian oil is going to make it possible through Kisan Seva Kendra which is an retail outlet model pioneered by Indian Oil to cater to the needs of customers in the rural segment.

HDFC Bank planned to cover 1000 Kisan Seva Kendras in a phased manner and each of these outlets will be able to serve around 1,500 customers. The Kisan Seva Kendra outlets will offer banking services such as preliminary processing of loan applications, disbursal and collection of small value deposits, sale of micro-insurance, mutual funds and other investment instruments. HDFC plan is to bring 10 million families into its banking Fold.

StanChart appoints former SBI chief Bhatt as board member

British banking major Standard Chartered Plc  appointed former SBI chairman O P Bhatt as board member. The appointment of 61-year old Bhatt, as an independent non-executive director, would be effective from January 1, 2013.

“Bhatt is a career banker with over 30 years banking experience and retired as Chairman of the State Bank Group in 2011,” StanChart said in a statement.

State Bank Group includes SBI, India’s largest commercial bank and five associate banks.

He is among the four new independent non-executive directors appointed by StanChart as part of efforts to enhance the experience, depth and diversity of its board.

The three other new directors are Lars Henrik Thunell, Margaret Ewing and Louis Chi-Yan Cheung. The appointments of Thunell and Ewing would be effective from November 1, 2012, that of Bhatt and Cheung would be from January 1, 2013. Bhatt had also headed the Indian Bank’s Association.

HDFC Bank joins hands with PUNGRAIN

HDFC Bank on September 29 joined hands with Punjab Grains Procurement Corporation Ltd (PUNGRAIN) to facilitate payment to its commission agents spread over 350 mandis in Punjab.

PUNGRAIN, in its initiative has decided to make payment to their commission agents through ‘RuPay Debit card’ and has developed the Kisan Arhtia (commission agents) information and Remittance Online Network (KAIRON) with the help of National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI).

For this project, HDFC Bank will install its Point of Sales (POS) machines in over 350 mandis to facilitate the payment to commission agents dealing in agriculture products.

It said this initiative will facilitate faster payments to them and in turn will benefit farmers.

HDFC Bank, in order to facilitate a successful implementation of this project, organised a day’s training session for nodal officers along with food inspectors of PUNGRAIN.

Narayana Murthy to exit HSBC board

UK-based global banking giant HSBC Holdings Plc  said N.R. Narayana Murthy, co-founder of IT giant Infosys and the only Indian on its board, would retire as its director at the end of 2012. Announcing the changes in its board and board committees, HSBC Holdings Plc said in a regulatory filing here that Renato Fassbind, former Chief Financial Officer of Credit Suisse Group, has been appointed a Director with effect from January 1, 2013. Besides, Fassbind would also become a member of the Group Audit Committee and the Group Remuneration Committee with effect from March 1, 2013. He will be an independent non-executive Director. Murthy will retire as a Director of HSBC Holdings plc on December 31 and will be succeeded as Chairman of the Corporate Sustainability Committee by Laura Cha.

While Cha is already a director, Murthy had joined the board in 2008. James Hughes-Hallett has also been appointed a member of the Corporate Sustainability Committee from January 1, 2013.

Fassbind was the Chief Financial Officer and a member of the executive board of Credit Suisse Group from June 2004 until September 2010. He is Vice-Chairman of Supervisory Board of Swiss Reinsurance Company, and a member of the Supervisory Board of the Swiss Federal Audit Oversight Authority.

Government Notified FDI in Multi-Brand Retail Trading

 

Previously, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is prohibited in retail trading, except in single-brand product retail trading, in which FDI, up to 100%, is permitted, under the Government route, subject to specified conditions.

Now, The Government of India has reviewed the extant policy on FDI and decided to permit FDI, up to 51%, under the Government route, in Multi-Brand Retail Trading, subject to specified conditions. 

FDI is prohibited in:

(a) Lottery Business, including Government /private lottery, online lotteries, etc. (b) Gambling and Betting, including casinos etc. (c) Chit funds (d) Nidhi company (e) Trading in Transferable Development Rights (TDRs) (f) Real Estate Business or Construction of Farm Houses (g) Manufacturing of Cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes, of tobacco or of tobacco substitutes (h) Activities / sectors not open to private sector investment e.g. Atomic Energy and Railway Transport (other than Mass Rapid Transport Systems). 

Foreign technology collaboration in any form, including licensing for franchise, trademark, brand name, management contract, is also prohibited for Lottery Business and Gambling and Betting activities.

FDI in multi brand retail trading, in all products, will be permitted, subject to some conditions, such as: 

• Fresh agricultural produce, including fruits, vegetables, flowers, grains, pulses, fresh poultry, fishery and meat products, may be unbranded. 
• Minimum amount to be brought in, as FDI, by the foreign investor, would be US $ 100 million. 
• Retail sales outlets may be set up only in cities with a population of more than 10 lakh as per 2011 Census and may also cover an area of 10 kms around the municipal/urban agglomeration limits of such cities.
• Government will have the first right to procurement of agricultural products.

The above policy is an enabling policy only and the State GovernmentslUnion Territories would be free to take their own decisions in regard to implementation of the policy. Therefore, retail sales outlets may be set up in those StateslUnion Territories which have agreed, or agree in future, to allow FDI in MBRT under this policy.

GENERAL AWARENESS MCQs FOR BANK EXAMS

1. What is the revised growth rate target for the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-2017)?
1) 9%
2) 8%
3) 8.2%
4) 8.5%
5) 9.5%

2. Which Indian author has been short listed for this year's Man Booker Prize for his novel 'Narcopolis', a dark tale about the opium and heroin dens of Mumbai?
1) Aravind Adiga
2) Jeet Thayil
3) Amitav Ghosh
4) Chetan Bhagat
5) Rahul Bhattacharya

3. John Baird visited India and held talks with S.M.Krishna in September 2012. Baird is the Foreign Minister of which of the following countries?
1) France
2) Argentina
3) Canada
4) U.K.
5) Australia

4. Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz was named the crown prince of which of the following countries on June 18, 2012?
1) Kuwait
2) Bahrain
3) Yemen
4) Oman
5) Saudi Arabia

5. Which of the following state-ments about G-20 is not true?
1) The G-20 includes 19 country members and the European Union.
2) G-20 was started in 2008 and accounts for 2/3rd of world's population and 80% of the world's GDP.
3) The seventh G-20 Summit was held at Los Cabos, Mexico on June 18-19, 2012.
4) The next G-20 Summit will be held in September 2013 in Saint Petersburg, South Africa.
5) At the Los Cabos Summit BRICS countries have pledged $75

6. Who took over as Director of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Trombay from Ratan Kumar Sinha on June 19, 2012?
1) S.K.Jain
2) V.K.Saraswat
3) Srikumar Banerjee
4) Sekhar Basu
5) None of these

7. What is the new name of the former Soviet aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, which has been procured by India?
1) INS Vikrant
2) INS Viraat
3) INS Vikramaditya
4) INS Chakra
5) INS Arihant

8. Which of the following Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) will start Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy Institute of Medical Science and Research?
1) IIT, Bombay
2) IIT, Madras
3) IIT, Hyderabad
4) IIT, Kanpur
5) IIT, Kharagpur

9. American President Barack Obama awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Shimon Peres on June 13, 2012. Peres is the President of which of the following countries?
1) Poland
2) Belarus
3) Israel
4) Germany
5) Slovakia

10. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) will launch how many reactors during the 12th Plan period (2012-2017)?
1) 12
2) 16
3) 10
4) 11
5) 13