Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 25 March 2017
:: National ::
British authorities have started the legal process to extradite Mallya
The British authorities have started the legal process to extradite wanted business tycoon Vijay Mallya to India.
However, it is not certain if the legal process would culminate in his return to India to face charges as India-U.K. Extradition Treaty allows a wanted person to seek several guarantees before being extradited.
Turnaround plan from public sector banks mandatory for capital infusion
The Finance Ministry has written to 10 public sector banks making it clear that the lenders would only get further capital infusion once they submit a time-bound turnaround plan.
The Centre wrote to the state-owned lenders last week stipulating that the banks would each have to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government, agreeing to stick to the turnaround plan.
The government wants 10 public sector banks to turn around in the next three years.
The government’s move to crack the whip on lenders comes after some banks had reported losses in the financial year 2015-16 as well as for the nine-month period of the current financial year.
Bad loans zoomed following the Reserve Bank of India’s asset quality review, which required banks to classify many accounts identified by the banking regulator as ‘bad’.
The RBI had said at the time that it wanted to clean up banks’ balance sheets by March 2017.
In its financial stability report, RBI had said banks may remain risk averse in the near future as they clean up their balance sheets and their capital position may remain insufficient to support higher credit growth.
According to RBI data, gross non-performing assets of commercial banks increased to 9.1% of their gross advances as of September 2016, from 5.1% a year earlier. Public sector banks share a disproportionate burden of this stress.
ICHR to explore whether the Ram Setu is a natural or man-made (Register and Login to read Full News)
Health Ministry’s targets on TB are unrealistic due to current budgets (Register and Login to read Full News)
:: International ::
Trump administration wants extra security for certain groups
The Trump administration has instructed all its diplomatic missions worldwide to identify certain groups that need extra scrutiny and adopt a rigorous vetting process for issuing visas.
Those applying for an American visa, including tourist and business visas, would be asked to furnish details of their employment and residence for the last 15 years and all the phone numbers they used in the previous five years.
The cable was sent after President Donald Trump signed a revised executive order restricting travel from six Muslim-majority Muslim countries on March 6.
The cable says additional protocols have been put in place to prevent the entry into the US of foreign nationals who may aid, support or commit violent, criminal or terrorist acts and ensure that those allowed to come in are rigorously vetted.
The classified cable asks all its overseas diplomatic posts to immediately draw a set of criteria for a rigorous vetting process for issuing visas to foreign nationals.
It was not clear if the move will have any impact on Indians. The cable instructed visa issuing officers to ask additional questions to the applicants.
It would also require the applicant to share with visa officer all phone numbers, emails and social media accounts used in the last five years.
Meanwhile, the White House signalled that U.S. lawmakers will go ahead with a showdown vote on Friday on the Republican plan to replace Obamacare, despite signs the bill may not have the votes to pass.
The U.S. President had earlier warned Republicans that he is done negotiating the bill and wants a vote, warning that if the effort fails, his predecessor’s health care reforms will stand, lawmakers in an emergency meeting said.
:: India and World ::
MEA says all stakeholders will be consulted on Teesta issue
A solution to the issue of sharing of Teesta waters between India and Bangladesh will be based on consultation with all stakeholders, the Ministry of External Affairs said.
“The approach of the government is quite federal. Leadership of the government has given a lot of emphasis on cooperative federalism. The land border agreement with Bangladesh has been smoothly implemented,” said MEA.
Reports had quoted Ms. Banerjee complaining about not being consulted on the Teesta issue in the backdrop of the upcoming visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.