General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - June 2022

Jun 2022

Jun 30, 2022

Sandeep Kumar Gupta Next Chairman of GAIL

Sandeep Kumar Gupta, Director for Finance at Indian Oil Corporation, was picked to head India's largest gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd.
The Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) selected Gupta for the post of chairman and managing director of GAIL after interviewing 10 candidates.
He will replace Manoj Jain, who is scheduled to retire on August 31.
A commerce graduate and Chartered Accountant by education, Gupta has more than 31 years of working experience at Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).

Tata Tech Joins Foxconn-led Consortium to Develop Sustainable Mobility

Tata Technologies Ltd joined the Foxconn-initiated MIH Consortium to promote development of sustainable mobility solutions and encourage collaboration within the industry.
The MIH (Mobility In Harmony Consortium) comprises more than 2,300 members in the field of software, hardware, and services.
The goal of this open electric vehicle alliance is to bring the strategic partners together to build the next generation of EV, autonomous driving, and mobility service applications.
Tata Technologies is at the forefront of the eMobility revolution and its association with MIH Consortium reinforces its position as a key partner in the automotive value chain.

Bajaj Allianz Launches Industry-first 'Global Health Care' Plan

Bajaj Allianz General Insurance launched a new health insurance product 'Global Health Care'.
It is a comprehensive health indemnity insurance product that provides seamless cover to the policyholder for planned as well as emergency treatment availed for domestic and international usage.
The USP of the product is that it allows insured members to plan any treatment abroad or in India availing the best medical facilities anywhere across the globe.
Bajaj Allianz General Insurance collaborated with Allianz Partners to provide a seamless claims experience through the company's extensive global network and quality claim settling capabilities.

Jun 29, 2022

NITI Aayog Launches Report 'India's Booming Gig and Platform Economy' on Gig Economy in India

India's gig workforce, estimated to be at 77 lakh in 2020-21, is expected to go up to 2.35 crore by 2029-30, according to a NITI Aayog report. The report, titled 'India's Booming Gig and Platform Economy' looks at the present size of the sector, its job generation potential, and also offers recommendations for the sector. As written in the Code on Social Security, the NITI Aayog report also recommended extending social security measures to gig workers and their families. The Code on Social Security was the first time gig and platform workers were recognised by the government, which sought to give workers social security benefits.
The report defines a gig worker as "someone who engages in income-earning activities outside of a traditional employer-employee relationship, as well as in the informal sector". Additionally, it defines those working with platforms such as Ola, Uber, Dunzo, Swiggy, Zomato and Urban Company as platform workers. It even goes on to term platform labour as the "Fourth Industrial Revolution".
It is important to note that while the NITI Aayog has made several recommendations and this is the first such report that the government's think tank has studied and published.

Mufin Finance Gets Prepaid Payment Instrument Licence from RBI

Mufin Finance, one of the leading NBFCs, received in-principal RBI approval for issuance of semi-closed prepaid payment instruments.
A semi-closed PPI licence allows digital banks, fintech firms and large consumer-facing applications to roll out features such as digital payment solutions for lending.
Mufin Finance is the fourth NBFC to receive such a licence from the RBI, after leading brands such as Bajaj Finserve, Manapurram and Paul Merchants.
The company is in the process of setting up building blocks for launching MufinPay, a digital payment solution which will complement its lending business.

Mukesh Ambani Resigns from Reliance Jio, Akash Ambani Named Chairman

Mukesh Ambani stepped down as director of Reliance Jio Infocomm. The telecom arm of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) said that its board approved the appointment of Akash Ambani, non-executive director of the company, as its chairman.
Mukesh Ambani will continue to be the chairman of Jio Platforms Ltd, the flagship company that owns all Jio digital services brands, including Reliance Jio Infocomm.
The board has also approved the appointment of Raminder Singh Gujral and K.V. Chowdary as Reliance Jio's additional directors, designated as independent directors, for five years.
It also approved the appointment of Pankaj Mohan Pawar as the company's managing director for five years, subject to the approval of the shareholders.

Jun 28, 2022

Nitin Gupta is New Chairman of CBDT

IRS officer Nitin Gupta was appointed as the new CBDT chairman.
Gupta, an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer of the 1986 batch of the Income Tax cadre, is serving as the Member (investigation) in the Board and is scheduled to retire in September 2023.
The post of the CBDT chief was being held in an additional capacity by Board member and 1986-batch IRS officer Sangeeta Singh after J. B. Mohapatra retired on April 30.
The CBDT is headed by a Chairman and can have six members who are in the rank of special secretary.

Punjab Budget; No New Taxes; 300 Units of Free Power

With no new taxes imposed, Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema presented the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government's maiden budget for 2022-23 fiscal, with a total outlay of Rs. 1,55,859.78 crore and a revenue deficit of Rs. 12,553.80 crore.
While the government has not been able to fulfill its pre-poll promise of giving away Rs 1,000 per month to women in its maiden budget for want of funds, it has announced 75 Mohalla Clinics to be functional from August 15 and has set aside Rs. 1,800 crore for 300 units of free power to be rolled out to people from July 1 onwards.
The budget had a stamp of Delhi model of AAP, and Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia was a witness to the presentation as he sat in the visitor's gallery of the Punjab assembly. On the fiscal health front, the state finances are in a mess. Cheema blamed the previous governments for the mess as he said that the debt on the state was burgeoning and it was projected to go up to Rs. 2.84 crore by the end of this fiscal.This was for the first time that Punjab presented a paperless budget.

RBI Extends Card Tokenisation Deadline by 3 Months

The Reserve Bank of India extended the card-on-file (CoF) tokenisation deadline by three months to September 30, 2022, in view of various representations received from industry bodies.
Card-on-file, or CoF, refers to card information stored by payment gateway and merchants to process future transactions. Tokenisation is the process of replacing actual card details with a unique alternate code called 'Token' - thereby enabling more secure transactions.
The RBI now directed the merchants to implement its tokenisation norms by September 30, 2022. This is the third time that the central bank has extended the deadline of its implementation.

Jun 27, 2022

Tata Power Solar Commissions India's Largest Floating Solar Power Project

Tata Power Solar Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power, accomplished a remarkable feat by commissioning India's largest floating solar power project in Kayamkulam, Kerala on a 350-acre water body, backwaters area, having an installed capacity of 101.6 Megawatt Peak.
This installation was completed within the stipulated period, despite the arduous challenges of variable water depths, high sea tides, and severe water salinity concerns faced throughout the project's construction duration.
This project is the first one in the Floating Solar Photovoltaic (FSPV) through Power Purchase Agreement category. This plant boasts a floating inverter platform having a 5 Megawatt (MW) capacity.

ONGC Finally Gets a Director on Hindustan Petroleum Board

After over five months, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) finally got a director appointed on the board of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd -- a firm it had acquired for Rs. 36,915 crore.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas conveyed its consent for the appointment of Pankaj Kumar, Director (Offshore), ONGC as a director on the board of HPCL.

Puducherry and Punjab Have the Highest GST Revenue Shortfall

The implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been a boon for most north-eastern states, such as Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur, and Sikkim, with GST revenue collections higher than the guaranteed annual 14 per cent increase in states' GST revenue by the Centre.
However, states/UTs like Puducherry, Punjab, Nagaland, and Uttarakhand have the highest revenue shortfall, which is met by GST compensation cess that is coming to an end on June 30.
The good news is the revenue shortfall of all the states have narrowed from FY21 level to FY22 level.
At the national level, the GST revenue shortfall has narrowed to 27.2 per cent in FY22 from 37.9 per cent in FY21.

Axis Bank Reappoints Rajiv Anand as Dy Managing Director

Private sector lender Axis Bank reappointed Rajiv Anand as Deputy Managing Director for a period of three years from August 4, 2022 to August 3, 2025.
Anand joined Axis AMC in 2009 and was the founding MD and Chief Executive Officer of the company. He subsequently went on to become the President (Retail Banking) of Axis Bank in 2013 and then joined the bank's board in 2016.
Anand, who assumed his current position as Deputy MD in December 2021, leads Wholesale Banking and Digital Banking.

Jun 26, 2022

Dr. D. J. Pandian Appointed to Lead NDB's India Regional Office in Gift City

Shanghai-headquartered New Development Bank (NDB) of the BRICS countries appointed former bureaucrat Dr. D. J. Pandian as the Director-General of its India Regional Office in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), the bank announced. Pandian earlier served as the Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of the Beijing-based Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in which India is the 2nd largest shareholder after China.
During his tenure at the AIIB, he was instrumental in securing USD 6.7 billion in funding for 28 projects in India, stated to be the highest project finance extended by the bank. A retired IAS officer, Pandian had also served as Chief Secretary of Gujarat.
The announcement of Pandian's appointment comes as China, which is the chair of this year's BRICS, is set to host the summit of the five-member bloc via video link on June 23-24 in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to take part.

ICICI Bank Launches 'Campus Power'

ICICI Bank launched a digital platform called 'Campus Power' to help students aspiring to pursue higher education in India and abroad. The platform caters to the varied needs of the entire student ecosystem comprising students, parents, and institutes.
In addition to this, the Campus Power platform offers information regarding various value-added services related to higher studies in India and abroad including Canada, UK, Germany, USA, and Australia.
ICICI Bank launched the platform right before the commencement of the fall season abroad and at the beginning of the next academic year in India. The initiative claimed as first-of-its-kind and is available for anyone including customers of other banks.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

August GK, July GK, June GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services And Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26