Foreign reactor to be above 1200 MW
- Government has decided that all future foreign atomic reactors in India will have a capacity to generate 1200 MW and above, to augment nuclear power generation
- Kavali in Andhra Pradesh for its proposed nuclear power park will also have atomic reactors with an enhanced capacity of 1200 MW and also six proposed nuclear power reactors in Jaitapur will also have capacity of 1200 MW above.
Indradhanush 2.0 is set to launch
- Government plans to come out with ‘Indradhanush 2.0’, a comprehensive plan for recapitalisation of public sector lenders, with a view to make sure they remain solvent and fully comply with the global capital adequacy norms, Basel-III.
- ‘Indradhanush 2.0’ will be finalised after completion of the Asset Quality Review (AQR) by the Reserve Bank, which is likely to be completed by March-end.
India Proposes Global Services Accord Pact to WTO Chief Azevedo
- India presented the proposed Trade Facilitation in Services (TFS) Agreement to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Roberto Azevedo and India Inc. in an event organized by Confederation of Indian Industry in New Delhi.
- The global pact proposed by India to boost services trade at the WTO-level aims to ease norms including those relating to movement of foreign skilled workers and professionals across borders for short-term work.
India’s wheat imports rose above 5 million tonnes
- India’s wheat imports rose above 5 million tonnes level, which is the biggest in over a decade, as was disclosed in the data released during February 2016 by Thomson Reuters
- This is India’s biggest annual purchase in a decade. It is worth mentioning that India is the world’s second largest consumer of wheat.
- The country began importing wheat around the middle of last year (2016) after two years of dry weather and unseasonal rains hit production.
- India bought 6.7 million tonnes of wheat in 2006-07, which is the largest import since then till date. The country has bought wheat mainly from Ukraine and Australia.
Railways Approves Rail Project in Andaman and Nicobar
- The Railway Ministry has notified to develop the first ever railway line in Andaman and Nicobar Island that currently has no rail network.
- The Ministry of Railway is set to approve the project that will construct 240-km broad gauge railway line connecting Port Blair with Diglipur, the largest town on Andaman Island.
- It will connect the two islands with bridges and stations along the coast.
Nuclear plants to be setup in Gorakhpur
- The government has given its approval for the sites at Gorakhpur in Haryana & Mahi Banswara in Rajasthan for setting up 4 reactors of 700 MW each,it has also accorded financial sanction for Units 1 & 2 at Gorakhpur
- The nuclear power project at Gorakhpur is being setup by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited
Foreign direct investment zooms 60 pc to USD 4.68 bn in Nov 2016
- In a effort to improve ease of doing business and relax regulations, foreign direct investment into the country surged by 60% to USD 4.68 billion in November 2016.
- The FDI stood at USD 2.93 billion in November 2015.
- In this period, India received maximum FDI from Singapore, Mauritius, the UK, the US, the Netherlands and Japan, an official stated.
Samagra Gramya Unnayan Yojana (CMSGUY) launched
- The Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal launched the Chief Minister Samagra Gramya Unnayan Yojana (CMSGUY) in Guwahati, Assam on 5 February 2017.
- The Yojana has been launched with the aim of bringing a paradigm shift towards holistic development of villages in Assam.
- The scheme is a mega mission with financial expenditure amounting to about Rs 30,000 Cr to bring a revolutionary change by doubling farm income in the state and scheme is expected to conclude by 2021-22.
Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana 2017
- To guard the interest of the senior citizens in case of falling interest rates, Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana 2017 was unannounced by the PM Modi on new year day and was approved by the cabinet.
- PM Modi announced this scheme with a guaranteed interest of 8 per cent for 10 years and scheme will be launched by Life Insurance Corporation of India on April 1st as per sources.
Solar power capacity created new benchmark
- Country’s solar power generation capacity stood at over 9 GW as on December 31, 2016 with Tamil Nadu having the largest output capability followed by Rajasthan and Gujarat.
- Total power generation capacity was 9,012 MW as on December 31, 2016.
