A poll out has shown that the popularity rating of France's new President Emmanuel Macron has slumped 10 points to hit 54 per cent over the past month.
While Macron has made a strong start on the world stage and won a solid majority in parliament, his first three months in power have not been completely trouble-free.
His majority in the parliament has drawn concern, with opponents and several newspapers expressing concern over the concentration of power in the presidency.
Dark ice absorbs more solar radiation than clean white ice so warms up and melts more rapidly.
Currently the Greenland ice sheet is adding up to 1mm a year to the rise in the global average level of the oceans.
It is the largest mass of ice in the northern hemisphere covering an area about seven times the size of the United Kingdom and reaching up to 3km (2 miles) in thickness.
This means that the average sea level would rise around the world by about seven metres, more than 20 ft, if it all melted.
HDFC Bank’s net profit rose 20% during the first quarter of the financial year FY18 in spite of the lender reporting higher non-performing assets (NPAs) mainly from its agricultural portfolio as farm loan waivers impacted recoveries.
CCEA Gives In-principle Approval for Sale
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave in-principle approval for sale of government's 51.11 per cent stake along with management control in HPCL to ONGC.
HPCL will continue as PSU after ONGC acquisition of stake.
Prior to the merger, HPCL is likely to take over Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) to bring all the refining assets of ONGC under one unit. ONGC currently owns 71.63 percent of MRPL while HPCL has 16.96 percent stake in it.
IFFCO Signs MoU with Sikkim Government
Fertiliser major Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative (IFFCO) has announced signing of MoU with Government of Sikkim to explore business opportunities in organic value chain.
“Sikkim IFFCO Organics Limited” (Sikkim-IFFCO) will be established. IFFCO will hold majority stake of 51 per cent equity and the Govt. of Sikkim will hold 49 per cent equity.
Scientists have come across a new species of gigantic ocean sunfish – that could weigh up to two tonnes. The species is the first addition to the Mola genus in 130 years.
The iconic fishes are bony fishes, but are also the heaviest and most distinctive among their species.
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) will construct two tunnels through the 4170-metre high Sela Pass in Arunachal Pradesh, which would cut down the distance to China border through Tawang by 10 km.
The tunnels would cut down at least an hour of travel time between the Army's 4 Corps headquarters at Tezpur and Tawang. Moreover, the tunnels would ensure that NH 13 and especially the 171 km stretch between Bomdila and Tawang, remains accessible in all weather conditions.
Indian Workers Emigrating to Gulf Nations Declines
As per the Ministry of External Affairs, India recorded a 34.6 per cent decline in registered number of workers emigrating to Gulf countries between 2014 and 2016. This has led to a slight drop in overall remittances or private transfers made by Indians working abroad.
The official figures for emigration to six gulf countries - United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain - dropped from 775,845 in 2014 and fell to 507,296 in 2016.