1. Rajiv Takru appointed Revenue Secretaryi. Rajiv Takru, a 1979 batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the new Revenue Secretary and will succeed Sumit Bose, who retires on March 31.ii. An official release said the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC), headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, has also approved the appointment of G S Sandhu, a Rajasthan cadre IAS officer of the 1980 batch, as the Financial Services Secretary.
iii. Sandhu will replace Takru, who is looking after the Financial Services Department under the Finance Ministry.
iv. Prior to becoming Secretary, Takru was Additional Secretary and Financial Adviser in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
v. He was earlier CEO of Prasar Bharati and has worked in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
2. Govind Mishra selected for Saraswati Samman 2013
i. Govind Mishra, the renowned Hindi author will receive Sarawasti Samman for the year 2013 for his book Dhool Paudho Par published in 2008. This honour will make Mishra the second Hindi author to receive the honour after Harivansh Rai Bachchan.
ii. In 1991, Harivansh Rai Bachchan became the first Hindi author to receive this honour.
iii. First novel of Mishra was Wo Apna Chehra published in 1969. Lal Peeli Zameen published in 1976 is MIshra's much talked novel.
About Saraswati Samman
1. Saraswati Samman is an annual award and is given in recognition of outstanding prose or poetry literary works in Indian languages that are listed in Schedule VII of the constitution of India.
2. This Samman is given for the literary works of last 10 years. The award was established in 1991 by K. K. Birla Foundation and carries a prize amount of 10 lakh rupees along with a certificate.
3. Apart from this award, K. K. Birla Foundation has also constituted other two awards that include Bihari Puraskar for Hindi and Rajasthani writers and Vyas Samman for Hindi.
3. Arab League Summit begins in Kuwait city today
i. The 25th edition of Arab League Summit begins in Kuwait city today. Top Arab leaders will attend the two day meet aimed at enhancing cooperation and solidarity among Arab states.
ii. Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al Sabah will preside over the summit. South Sudan will attend the summit for the first time while leader of Syria's opposition National Coalition, Ahmad al-Jarba will address one of the sessions.
4. Russia suspended from G8 over Ukrainian crisis
i. The G7 group of top economic powers have kicked out Russia from the powerful G8 over its annexation of Crimea and threatened to impose far-reaching sanctions if Moscow continued its incursion into Ukraine.
ii. The US and six other economic powers also scrapped the G8 summit to be hosted by Russia in Sochi in June to build pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin against his military action in Ukraine.
iii. At an emergency summit in the Hague yesterday, the leaders of the US, Britain, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and Japan – who met for the first time since Russia was admitted to their exclusive club 16 years ago, cancelled the planned G8 summit and decided to convene without Russia in Brussels.
iv. The G7 leaders also reaffirmed their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, and pledged to assist the country as it seeks to restore unity, democracy and political stability based on the interim government’s reform agenda.
v. “In short, Russia is suspended from the G8 pending its current activities in Ukraine, and the necessity is now on Russia to de-escalate to avoid this continued isolation from the international community,” the official said.
5. Bank of India launched Instant Money Transfer Scheme
i. Bank of India (BoI) launched Instant Money Transfer (IMT) scheme in Mumbai.
ii. IMT scheme allows customers to withdraw cash without using either debt card or credit card at BoI's IMT-enabled ATMs. This is the first-of-its-kind initiative launched by a public sector bank.
Main Features of IMT Scheme
i. IMT is an innovative domestic money remittance facility.
ii. It allows the customer to send money to a receiver only by using the receiver’s mobile number through the bank’s ATM and retail internet banking facility.
iii. The receiver can withdraw money from a Bank of India’s ATM without using a card.
iv. The monthly withdrawal limit prescribed for IMT transaction is 25000 rupees for receiver, and per transaction limit of 10000 rupees.
v. IMT is valid for 14 days only from the date of issue. After 14 days the transaction expires and the sender is credited back with the IMT amount.
vi. IMT can also be cancelled by the sender before its expiry and withdrawal.
6. Britain Royal Mail issued a postage stamp of Noor Inayat Khan
i. Royal Mail in Britain issued a postage stamp of Noor Inayat Khan, World War II heroine of Indian origin, on 25 March 2014. She fought fascism and died in the Dachau concentration camp.
ii. The stamp issued was a part of a set of 10 stamps in the Remarkable Lives series which honoured Noor on her centenary year. iii. Royal Mail commemorated Noor with a stamp to ensure that her sacrifice and bravery will not be forgotten. Other honoured in the set include actor Sir Alec Guinness, poet Dylan Thomas, Kenneth Moore, Joe Mercer, Barbara Ward and Joan Littlewood.
About Noor Inayat Khan
i. Noor was born in Moscow to an Indian Father, Hazrat Inayat Khan and an American mother, Ora Ray Baker in January 1914. ii. Noor was brought up in Paris and family immigrated to London when Paris was occupied by Germany during the World War II in 1940.
iii. She was the first woman radio operator to be flown undercover to Paris under the code name Madeleine.
7. Legendary actress Nanda passes away at 75
i. Veteran Bollywood actress Nanda, best known for her stellar performances in films like ‘Hum Dono’, ‘Ittefaq’ and ‘Gumnaam’, passed away today following a massive heart attack, family sources said.
ii. The 75-year-old actress died this morning at her Andheri residence in Mumbai.
iii. Born to Marathi film actor-director Vinayak Damodar Karnataki, Nanda began her silver screen career early as a child artist with ‘Jaggu’ in the 50s.
iv. Her popularity as a child actress made her transition to major roles easier, and she literally grew up on film sets.
v. But it was paternal uncle-filmmaker V Shantaram who gave Baby Nanda a big break by casting her in 1956 hit ‘Toofan Aur Diya’ in 1956.
vi. Nanda was nominated for Filmfare Award five times for her performance in Bhabhi (1957), Aanchal (1960), Ittefaq (1969), Ahista Ahista (1981) and Prem Rog (1982).
vii. She won Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for ’Aanchal’.
8. Tribute to Nirbhaya: Lightweight revolver 'Nirbheek' launched
i. Over around a year after the shocking Delhi gangrape case, Indian Ordinance factory today launched a light-weight revolver “Nirbheek”, designed especially for women to defend themselves from assault.
ii. “Nirbheek”, a .32 bore revolver, weighing 500gm, can be kept by women in their purses or handbags. The nomenclature of the light-weight revolver is inspired by ‘Nirbhaya’, a paramedical student who was brutally gangraped in a bus in Delhi on December 16, 2012.
iii. After the gangrape incident, there was a growing demand for a light-weight revolver which can be carried by women in their purses.
iv. Generally, the weight of .32 bore revolver is 750 grammes, but Nirbheek only weighs 500 grammes,” General Manager of the Field Gun Factory Abdul Hamid, said.
v. The name of the revolver has been inspired by Nirbhaya as a mark of tribute to the December 16 victim, he said. On the launching day of the revolver, the factory chairman M C Bansal provided the first three revolvers to women and seven to men.
vi. The revolver, priced at Rs 1,22,360, is made of titanium alloy, Hamid said adding that it will be provided through booking system.
9. Sahara says ready to pay Rs.20,000 crore to SEBI
i. Sahara group on Tuesday offered to the Supreme Court to pay market regulator SEBI in a span of one year Rs.20,000 crore of the money it has to return to the investors collected through Optionally Fully Convertible Debentures (OFCD).\
ii. In a fresh proposal to the apex court bench of Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan and Justice J.S. Kehar, the Sahara group said they will deposit Rs.2,500 crore within three working days of the acceptance of its proposal and three instalments of Rs.3,500 each would be deposited with SEBI June 30, Sep 30 and Dec 31. The balance of Rs.7,000 crore would be deposited March 31, 2015.
iii. The Sahara group said its proposal to deposit Rs.20,000 crore to the market regulator in five instalments would be backed by an irrevocable bank guarantee.
iv. The court had March 4 sent Sahara chief Subrata Roy and his two directors to Tihar jail for failing to deposit the said amount to the market regulator.
10. Adolfo Suarez, the first elected Prime Minister of Spain, died
i. Adolfo Suarez, the first elected Prime Minister of Spain died on 23 March 2014. He was 81. He was suffering from Alzheimer's disease for the past decade.
ii. The Spanish government announced three days of official morning decided to give Suarez a state funeral.
iii. Adolfo Suarez was the man who led Spain to democracy after decades of dictatorship and became the first elected Prime Minister after the death of General Francisco Franco in 1975.
11. South Africa defeat New Zealand by 2 wkts
i. J-P. Duminy blasted an unbeaten 86 and Dale Steyn bowled a sensational last over as South Africa pulled off a dramatic two-run win over New Zealand to bring its ICC World Twenty20 campaign back on track, here on Monday.
ii. Riding on Duminy’s blistering knock, South Africa scored 70 runs in the last five overs and posted a challenging 170 for six after being invited to bat in the thrilling Group 1 match.
iii. New Zealand needed seven runs off the last over, in which Steyn scalped two batsmen, effected a run out and conceded just a boundary as the Kiwis finished at 168 for eight.
iv. South Africa had lost its first match to Sri Lanka while New Zealand had defeated England.
12. IM chief Tehseen Akhtar arrested
i. In a major breakthrough, chief of terror outfit Indian Mujahideen, Tehseen Akhtar alias Monu, one of the most wanted terrorists blamed for a number of terror attacks, has been arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police.
ii. The arrest of Akhtar comes days after the Delhi Police nabbed another another top IM operative Zia Ur Rehman alias Waqas from Ajmer in Rajasthan, along with three of his associates.
iii. Akhtar was heading the Indian Mujahideen after the arrest of Yasin Bhatkal, co-founder of the terror outfit.
iv. Indian Mujahideen co-founder Ahmad Siddhibappa Zarar alias Yasin Bhatkal, Tehseen Akhtar alias Monu, Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi and Zia Ur Rehman alias Waqas were the brains behind almost every IM attack on Indian soil.
13. Google partners with Ray-ban for Google Glass
i. Google Inc has partnered with Luxottica SpA, the makers of Ray-Ban and Oakley sunglasses, to bring a high fashion sensibility to its high-tech wearable computer, Google glass, the company said on Monday.
ii. “Luxottica understands how to build, distribute and sell great products that their clients and consumers love — something we care deeply about at Glass, too,” Google said in a blog posting.
iii. The technology giant currently sells more basic versions of Google Glass eyewear only through a handful of locations to selected buyers who have to apply to purchase the $1,500 device.
