Daily NEWS Update - 25th June 2015

1. PM Narendra Modi launches Smart Cities Mission, says Centre committed to urban India
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday unveiled three mega flagship schemes aimed at developing cities and towns as "new engines for growth".
ii. The three projects -- 100 smart cities, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Housing for All - will ring in a new urban era, which will entail an investment of over Rs 3 lakh crore in the next five years. 



iii. The Smart City project seeks to enhance quality of life in 100 selected cities with 24 hour water and power supply, world class transportation system, better education and recreational facilities, e-governance and environment-friendly atmosphere, among others. The Smart City project will be based on PPP model, Naidu said. 
iv. AMRUT seeks to ensure basic infrastructure for 500 cities with a population of above one lakh. Ensuring water supply to each household, sewer connections, sanitation and solid waste management, provision for roads and public transportation beside implementation of reforms in urban governance would be the focus under the scheme. 

2. 11 Indian companies in Forbes Asia's 'Best Under A Billion' list 
i) As many as 11 Indian companies including Avanti Feeds LtdBSE 0.37 % and Borosil Glass WorksBSE 0.11 % are ranked among top 200 Asia Pacific corporations in Forbes Asia's 'Best Under A Billion' list.
ii) The list covers public companies with annual revenue of $5 million to $1 billion, Forbes said, adding that they should also have positive net income and should be publicly traded for at least a year.
iii) Companies from mainland China & Hong Kong (84) as well as Taiwan (36) dominated this year's list accounting for 60 per cent of the top 200 publicly-traded companies in the Asia Pacific region.
iv) With 11 companies, India was ranked fourth on the list after South Korea which has 17 firms in the coveted list. 

3. State Bank of India appoints Anshula Kant as CFO
i)  State Bank of India (SBI) on Thursday announced the appointment of Anshula Kant as its chief financial officer (CFO). Kant has been designated as the deputy managing director and CFO of the bank, SBI said in a filing on BSE.


ii) She joined SBI as a probationary officer in 1983 worked under various departments of the bank. Prior to her appointment, P.K. Gupta was the CFO.Gupta moved to SBI Capital as chief executive officer. 
iii) Kant has been designated as the deputy managing director and CFO of State Bank of India.

4. India leads FDI in South Asia with 34 billion investment in 2014
i)ndia leads regional inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in South Asia accounting for $34 billion investment during 2014 and the upward trend is likely to continue this year also, according to a UN report which placed China as the world's largest FDI recipient.


ii) "FDI inflows to the country (India) surged by 22% to about $34 billion" improving its position to 9th top host country for FDI in 2014, over its rank of 15th in 2013, the UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2015 says.
iii) India is likely to maintain an upward trend in 2015 as economy recovery gains ground. 


5. Union Cabinet gives nod to rename SECI as Renewable Energy Corporation of India
i) Union Cabinet has given nod to rename Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) as the Renewable Energy Corporation of India (RECI).


ii) Apart from this decision, Union Cabinet also gave approval to SECI to convert into Section 3 Company by applying to the Registrar of Companies (ROC) from a Section 8 Company under the Companies Act, 2013. This decision will help SECI or renamed entity RECI.
iii) SECI is a not-for-profit company under Section-25 of the Companies Act 1956.  it was Established in 2011 as a facilitation and implementation institution dedicated to Solar Energy sector. Operates under: the aegis of Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy,its Objective is to develop Solar Technologies and ensuring inclusive solar power development throughout India.

6. Zaheer Abbas appointed as ICC President
i) Former Pakistan cricket team captain Zaheer Abbas has been selected the new President of International Cricket Council (ICC) for one year term.


ii) He will be 13th President of ICC and succeeds Mustafa Kamal of Bangladesh who had resigned from the post of ICC President in April 2015.
iii) Decision in this regard was taken during the ICC Annual Conference week in Barbados. Zaheer Abbas was a right-handed batsman. He had played 78 Tests and 62 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) in his 22-year long illustrious career spanning from 1969 to 1985. He had scored 5,062 runs in Test career and 2,572 runs in ODI career. He also had represented Pakistan in three World Cups in 1975, 1979 and 1983. He also captained Pakistan in 14 Tests and 13 ODIs matches. In his career, he had scored 108 centuries. 
iv) He was the only Asian batsman to score 100 first-class centuries and was also first batsman to score three consecutive centuries in ODIs.

7. Axis Bank launches debit card with enhanced security features 
i) Axis BankBSE -0.11 % has launched a debit card equipped with improved security features, aimed at attracting more customers towards cashless transactions, which would also help bringing down the bank's operational cost.


ii) The card christened as Secure+ offers three key features, which come at a cost of Rs 300 a year."This product should become the primary debit card for the bank to offer.
iii) While you can deactivate or re-activate card with the touch of a button on Axis Bank mobile app, you can also block Axis Bank or other bank cards kept in a wallet, which is lost. 
iv) Customers can now block all the cards in her/his wallet with a single phone call. You can either intimate Axis Bank about other card details in advance or can do the same after your wallet is lost.The card also offers fraud protection subject to a maximum limit of Rs 75,000.

8. Inderjeet Singh, Jinson Johnson won gold at Asian Athletics Grand Prix
i) Inderjit Singh and Jinson Johnson of India on 23 June 2015 bagged gold at the first leg of the Asian Athletics Grand Prix in Bangkok, Thailand. 
ii) Inderjit won the gold in Shot Put by throwing 19.83 meters while Johnson won the gold in 800 meter event with a time of 1:48.52.
iii) This was Inderjeet's second gold in an international event in June 2015, having won the shot put event at the Asian Championships in Wuhan, China on 3 June 2015.In the first leg, India won a total of eight medals which included 2 Gold, 1 Silver and 5 Bronze medals. 

9. R Ashwin breaks into top 10 of ODI bowlers’ rankings
i)  Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has jumped two places to the 10th position in the ICC bowler’s rankings issued today.

ii) Ashwin, who bagged six wickets in the three ODIs against Bangladesh, was India’s leading wicket-taker in the just-concluded three-match series against Bangladesh and is also the only Indian to feature in the top-10 list.
iii) Bengal medium-pacer Mohammed Shami, who missed the series, which was India’s first bilateral loss to Bangaldesh (1-2), due to injury is the only other Indian bowler in the top-20 list at the 12th position.
iv) In the batting chart, Virat Kohli tops the Indian player’s list at the fourth position as opener Shikhar Dhawan, who was the leading run-getter in the series with an accumulated score of 158, dropped a place to seventh.
v)Dhawan still stays well clear of skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who occupies the eight spot in the table led by South Africa’s AB de Villiers.
vi)Suresh Raina has also improved his ranking by two places to 18th.