General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - June 2020

Jun 2020

Oct 18, 2020

World's Biggest Zinc Smelter Project in Gujarat

The Hindustan Zinc Limited is to invest Rs. 10,000 crores to set up the biggest zinc smelter in the world. The smelter is to be set up in the industrial region of South Gujarat. The smelter is capable of producing 300 kilo tonnes per annum.
The State Government of Gujarat has signed Memorandum of Understanding with the Vedanta group to set up the smelter. The project will provide employment opportunities for the youth in the state. Also, the smelter to be erecter will be the lowest cost smelter in the world. The facility is to be constructed in an area of 415 hectares.
Smelting is the process by which heat is applied to extract a metal from its ore. The process is used to extract copper, iron, silver, zinc and other base metals. During heating, apart from the metal, several other chemical components are emitted. Of these, sulphur dioxide and hydrogen dioxide nauseous and pollute the atmosphere.
The waste products of smelting are released into water supplies. Such waste contains lead and chromium that are hazardous to plant and animal life.
Acid rains are common in the regions of smelting plants. Acid rain erodes land and makes it unfit for cultivation.
The workers in the smelting plans are exposed to toxic chemicals. Inhalation of these chemicals harm the worker health and productivity.

Jet Airways' CoC Approves Kalrock Capital-Murari Jalan's Resolution Plan

Jet Airways' committee of creditors (CoC) on Saturday approved the resolution plan submitted by the consortium of UK's Kalrock Capital and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan under the insolvency resolution process.
The plan was approved after the conclusion of the e-voting on the proposal.
The resolution submitted by Murali Lal Jalan and Florian Fritsch has been duly approved by the CoC under Section 30(4) of the Code as the successful resolution plan.
The grounded airline had received bids from two consortiums, one comprising UK-based Kalrock Capital founded by Florian Fritsch and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan.
The other bid was submitted by the consortium consisting of Haryana-based Flight Simulation Technique Centre, Big Charter of Mumbai and Abu Dhabi's Imperial Capital Investments LLC.
The RP is in the process of filing an application in accordance with section 30(6) of the Code for approval of the said resolution plan by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and intimation of the same shall be given to the members as required, the statement to the BSE stated.
The defunct airlines had extended the deadline for voting on the resolution plans as only half the lenders had submitted their votes and the remaining had sought time to submit their votes.

Oct 17, 2020

Jana SFB Becomes First SFB to Go Live Under Sponsor Bank Program

Jana Small Finance Bank has joined hands with Ashoknagar Co-operative Bank Limited under the Bank Sponsorship Program. Jana Bank becomes the first Small Finance Bank to go live under this Program.
RBI has permitted co-operative banks which are CBS enabled, to issue ATM cards/ATM-cum-debit cards in tie-up with a sponsor bank. Ashoknagar Co-operative Bank Limited in association with Jana Small Finance Bank can now extend ATM, POS & E-Commerce Services to its customers.
This association marks the fulfilment of Jana Bank's endeavour to promote full suite of services to co-operative banks. The bank's digital capability will now be available to all its partner banks.
Jana Small Finance Bank is a scheduled commercial bank catering to more than 40 lakh customers served by over 15,000 employees over 475 bank branches and over 125 Asset centres in 22 states and union territories.

IB Housing Finance Sells Additional Stake in OakNorth Holdings

Indiabulls Housing Finance sold an additional stake in OakNorth Holdings Ltd for Rs. 220 crore. The sale proceeds will be accretive to the regulatory net worth and the CRAR (capital to risk weighted assets ratio) of the company.
The company with the latest stake sale has raised a total of Rs. 2,493 crore as fresh equity in the months of September and October 2020 (Rs. 683 crore through qualified institutional placement (QIP) and Rs. 1,810 crore through sale of stake in OakNorth) adding to the regulatory equity capital of the company.

Punjab, Haryana, Himachal in Fray for Drug Park

All northern states, except J&K, will compete with each other besides southern and western states for a bulk drug park to reduce the country's dependence on China.
The Centre has framed an area scoring criteria for the selection of states for setting up the bulk drug parks. The government proposes to develop three bulk drug parks through grant-in-aid to states with a cap of Rs. 1,000 crore per park with 70% financial assistance.
The Punjab Government has proposed to set up the park in Bathinda. Haryana proposes to set up the park in Hisar. Himachal Pradesh had earlier decided to send a proposal to the Centre to set up the bulk drug park in Una district.

Flipkart Boosts Partnerships with Banks, NBFCs

Walmart-owned Flipkart will offer credit options through 17 banks, NBFCs and fintech players that will drive credit accessibility for customers during the upcoming festive season.
Flipkart is ramping up its fintech constructs so that consumers across the country can avail the benefits of easy accessibility to credit and affordability options.
Through these partnerships, Flipkart aims to tap into the new-to-credit audience across different geographies and pin codes and offer them access to its over 250 million product offerings on the Flipkart marketplace.

Liberty Group Eyes Assets of Steel Giant in Europe

UK-based Liberty Steel Group has made a non-binding indicative offer to Thyssenkrupp to acquire the German steel major's assets in Europe. Liberty Steel Group is part of diversified GFG Alliance, owned by Indian-origin metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, which also has a presence in India.
A possible combination of Liberty Steel and Thyssenkrupp Steel would create a strong group well positioned to tackle the challenges faced by the European steel industry.
Given the opportunity to proceed in the transaction process, Liberty said that it is open to intensifying the dialogue with Thyssenkrupp and would like to engage in further due diligence to present a potential binding offer.

Oct 16, 2020

BPCL to Cut Dependence on Middle East LPG

An Indian buyer of liquefied petroleum gas is once again attempting to ease its dependence on Middle East shipments after some supply shocks last year stemming from drone attacks and even a trade war.
Bharat Petroleum Corp. is seeking bids from global suppliers for a fifth of its typical LPG needs in 2021. Bidding is still open to Middle East producers, which already provide BPCL with the majority of its contracted needs. India's second-biggest fuel retailer made an attempt to broaden its sources of supply earlier this year but the tender wasn't awarded due to a lack of attractive offers.
The latest tender is aimed at getting better prices for supplies compared with those from the Middle East and to diversify sources of LPG, according to the objectives listed in the document. India's fuel retailers get most of their LPG -- typically used for cooking -- from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the U.A.E. and Kuwait, leaving them exposed to price fluctuations and supply shocks.

Centre to Borrow on Behalf of States to Meet GST Shortfall

As per the Finance Ministry, the Central government will borrow up to Rs. 1.1 lakh crore on behalf of the states to bridge the shortfall in GST collections.
A slowdown in the economy since last fiscal has resulted in a drop in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections, upsetting the budgets of states which had given up their right to levy local taxes such as sales tax or VAT when GST was introduced in July 2017.
To make up for the shortfall, borrowing from the market was proposed.

J&K Govt Signs MoU with Flipkart to Promote Handloom, Handicraft Products

Jammu and Kashmir government signed a MoU with Flipkart to provide an online platform for showcasing and facilitating the local artisans/craftsmen/weavers to reach customers across the globe.
This is an important step towards the promotion of rural economy and to boost the sale of genuine exotic products of Handicrafts and Handloom sector and find new destinations for niche handmade products from Jammu and Kashmir.
This meaningful initiative will eliminate the role of the middleman to a lesser extent and will benefit the artisans in a way that the proceeds of the sale of their products shall go directly into their accounts.

RIL's Retail Arm Receives Rs. 5,550 cr from KKR

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) received Rs. 5,550 crore from global investment firm KKR, which has picked up 1.28 per cent stake in its retail arm.
Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, a subsidiary of the company, received the subscription amount of Rs. 5,550 crore from Alyssum Asia Holdings II Pte. Ltd. (a unit of KKR) and allotted 81,348,479 equity shares to KKR.
The investment valued Reliance Retail, which runs grocery stores and fashion chains, at a pre-money equity value of Rs. 4.21 lakh crore.

Religare Approaches Exchanges for Declassifying Singh Brothers as Promoters

Religare Enterprises Ltd (REL) approached exchanges BSE and NSE for removal of Singh brothers, who stepped down following allegations of siphoning off funds, as promoters and shift them to public shareholders category.
Following the exit of Shivinder Mohan Singh and Malvinder Mohan Singh, the new management under executive chairperson Rashmi Saluja had moved the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to remove Singh brothers and declassify them as REL promoters in 2018.
However, the decision got delayed after changes in norms by SEBI wherein stock exchanges were authorised to take a call on declassification of promoters with shareholding up to 10 per cent.

Oct 15, 2020

Wipro Approves up to Rs. 9,500-crore Buyback Plan

IT services major Wipro announced an up to Rs. 9,500-crore buyback plan at Rs. 400 per equity share.
The announcement comes a week after its rival TCS announced a mega Rs. 16,000-crore buyback plan at Rs. 3,000 per equity share.
Wipro Board approved a buyback proposal for purchase of up to 23.75 crore equity shares at Rs. 400 per share and aggregates to an amount of up to Rs. 9,500 crore.
Wipro posted a 3.4% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs. 2,465.7 crore for the quarter ended September 30.

EarlySalary Launches Salary Card Powered by RuPay

EarlySalary, India's largest consumer lending platform, launched 'Salary Card' a zero-touch digital card that provides instant access for salaried professionals, enabling them to make instant purchases across thousands of merchants across India.
Powered by RuPay, the Salary Card comes with a unique feature that allows consumers the flexibility of setting up a dynamic credit limit to suit their shopping, medical, travel, entertainment and other needs.
The on-going pandemic has created a higher preference for non-contact payments. The digital zero-touch 'Salary Card' credit solution is EarlySalary's commitment to offer a safe and secured environment to customers, enabling them to exercise tighter control over their finances by setting a credit limit for every shopping need or expense.

Fifty per cent Subsidy for Agricultural Perishable

The Ministry of Food Processing and the ministry of Railways have jointly provided subsidised rate of 50% for freight transportation of perishable agriculture produce such as vegetables and fruits.
The step is being implemented to boost Operation Green. Operation Green is implemented by Ministry of Food Processing.
The ministries will provide 50% subsidies to farmers transporting surplus agricultural produce such as vegetables and fruits by train. Also, the ministry will provide 50% subsidy to cold chain storage of Agricultural commodities. In order to receive the subsidies, the farmers have to submit self-certified documents on "Sampada" portal. The portal is maintained by the Ministry of food processing.

WeKan Looks to Incubate, Fund 20 Indian Startups

New York-based product accelerator WeKan plans to incubate and fund about 18-20 startups in the 'future of work' space in India.
In the next month alone, WeKan is looking to invest at a ticket size of up to $250,000 in B2B development tools such as Low or No-Code, DevOps/Infrastructure Tools, API Management, and Software Testing tool.
This comes at a time when the Covid-19 pandemic has forced companies across the world to adopt a remote work model, or work from home (WFH).

Rajeev Gupta Panel Set Up to Streamline Sepctrum Allocation

The Government of India has constituted a panel under the cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba to streamline telecom spectrum allocation. The panel has been constituted with secretaries of railways, defence, home, telecom, department of space and Information and Broadcasting.
The spectrum auction had been held by GoI for six times. They are 2010, 2012-16. However, there was no clarity on frequency of future airwave sale.
Spectrum allocation is the regulation of electromagnetic spectrum bands. These bands are of radio frequency. The next spectrum auction is looked forward in regard to the 5G network.
The panel will resolve the tussle between Department of Space and the telecom department over the 5G spectrum in the 26 GHz band.

Oct 14, 2020

HP India Delists over 10,000 Websites

HP India said that based on details it shared with the law enforcement authorities, over 10,000 websites selling counterfeits were identified and delisted.
As a result, counterfeit goods worth Rs. 45 crore were seized in nine months up to July this year (2020). This included a single raid on a syndicate in Mumbai, where seizures in excess of Rs. 22.5 crore were made. The authorities carried out a total of 78 raids resulting in 68 arrests.
The HP Anti-Counterfeiting and Fraud programme also works closely with platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart, Paytm and ShopClues to only allow authorised partners to sell genuine products. Most of the counterfeiting is of ink and toner supplies.

World Economy in Deep Recession, Growth to be -4.4%, Predicts IMF

The IMF predicted a deep global recession this year and the world growth to be -4.4%, asserting that the global economic crisis is far from over mainly due to the impact of the corona virus pandemic.
In its latest World Economic Outlook report, the International Monetary Fund also said that the swift recovery in China has surprised on the upside while the global economy's long ascent back to pre-pandemic levels of activity remains prone to setbacks.
According to the report, in 2021, growth is projected to rebound to 5.2%, -0.2 percentage points below its June projection.

Tesla Working on India Entry

Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed plans for the India entry of the electric car maker, and said that the process to bring Tesla cars to India will begin in January 2021.
Earlier this month, Musk had said that the electric car maker was finally ready to enter the India market next year.
Tesla Club India that is there an India team working on the next year for sure scheduled Tesla entry, will release order configurator probably in January 2021.
It means that Tesla sales teams are working on building custom sales and production orders for the India market, ensuring orders are complete and validated once the configuration is finished.

Mastercard Partners with Signzy

Mastercard announced a partnership with Signzy, a RegTech startup, to enable the latter's video-based KYC (Know Your Customer) solutions for its banking customers. This will allow Mastercard to provide a completely paperless, remote and secure on boarding solution for end-users.
In India, this launch will further Mastercard's goal of driving inclusive growth via financial inclusion by enabling individuals and small businesses to go online.
Earlier this year, the payments technology company partnered with various players and launched low-cost innovations that allow merchants to start accepting digital payments without incurring additional or high infrastructural costs. Video KYC will further ease and speed of on boarding in minimal time.

Apple Unveils iPhone 12 with 5G

Apple Inc launched the iPhone 12 with faster 5G connectivity starting at $799, which the Cupertino, California company hopes will spur a wave of upgrades and keep its sales booming through the end of the year.
Apple also introduced a "Mini" version with a 5.4-inch screen for $699 and a "Pro" version with three cameras.
According to Apple, all iPhone 12 models in the United States will support millimetre wave 5G, the fastest variant of the technology, as well as lower-frequency bands. Some rival Android devices support only the lower-frequency versions of 5G.

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