The Union Finance Ministry has constituted four members committee to examine the feasibility and desirability of having a new financial year. 
•    The committee has been tasked to examine the merits and demerits of various dates for the commencement of the financial year including the existing date (April to March) by taking into account the various relevant factors. 
•    The committee will be headed by Dr. Shankar Acharya (former Chief Economic Adviser). 
•    Besides it will consist of PV Rajaraman (former Finance Secretary, Tamil Nadu), KM Chandrasekhar (former Cabinet Secretary) and Dr. Rajiv Kumar (Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research) as its members. 
•    Take into consideration genesis of the current financial year and the earlier studies made in the past on the desirability of change in financial year. 
•    It will take into consideration suitability of the financial year from point of view of 
(i) Correct estimations of receipts and expenditure of Union and State Governments. 
(ii) Effect of the different agricultural crop periods. 
(iii) Relationship of financial year on the working season. 
(iv) Impact on business. 
(v) Taxation systems and procedures. 
(vi) Statistics and data collection. 
(vii) Convenience of the legislatures for transacting budget work. 
(viii) Other relevant matters 
•    Recommend the date of commencement of the financial year which in its views is most suitable for the country. 
•    In case the committee recommends change in financial year, it will also work out on the modalities for effecting the change. It will include 
(i) Appropriate timing of change 
(ii) Determination of transitional period 
(iii) Changing tax laws during transitional period 
(iv) Amendments needed in various statues 
(v) Changes in coverage of the recommendations of the Finance Commission. 
•    It can interact with experts, institutions, Government Departments and others as deemed necessary. The committee will submit its report to the Union Government by 31st December 2016.

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the National Mineral Exploration Policy (NMEP). 
The NMEP primarily aims at accelerating the exploration activity in the country through enhanced participation of the private sector. 
There is a need for comprehensive mineral exploration of the country to uncover its full mineral potential so as to put the nation's mineral resources (non-fuel and non-coal) to best use and thereby maximize sectoral contribution to the Indian economy. 
The policy emphasizes on making available baseline geoscientific data of world standards in the public domain, quality research in a public-private partnership, special initiatives for search of deep-seated and concealed deposits, quick aerogeophysical surveys of the country, and creation of a dedicated geoscience database etc. 
i.    The Ministry of Mines will carry out auctioning of identified exploration blocks for exploration by private sector on revenue sharing basis in case their exploration leads to auctionable resources. The revenue will be borne by the successful bidder of those auctionable blocks. 
ii.    If the explorer agencies do not discover any auctionable resources, their exploration expenditure will be reimbursed on normative cost basis. 
iii.    Creation of baseline geoscientific data as a public good for open dissemination free of charge. 
iv.    Government will carry out a National Aerogeophysical Program for acquiring state-of-the-art baseline data for targeting concealed mineral deposits. 
v.    A National Geoscientific Data Repository is proposed to be set up to collate all baseline and mineral exploration information generated by various central & state government agencies and also mineral concession holders and to maintain these on geospatial database. 
vi.    Government proposes to establish a not-for-profit autonomous institution that will be known as the National Centre for Mineral Targeting (NCMT) in collaboration with scientific and research bodies, universities and industry for scientific and technological research to address the mineral exploration challenges in the country. 
vii.    Provisions for inviting private investment in exploration through attractive revenue sharing models. 
viii.    On the lines of UNCOVER project of Australia, the government intends to launch a special initiative to probe deep-seated/ concealed minerals deposits in the country in collaboration with National Geophysical Research Institute and the proposed NCMT and Geoscience Australia. 
•    In order to implement the recommendations of the NMEP, initially an amount of about Rs.2116 crore over 5 years would be required over and above the annual plan budget of the Geological Survey of India under the Ministry of Mines. The NMEP will benefit the entire mineral sector across the country. 
•    The pre-competitive baseline geoscientific data will be created as a public good and will be fully available for open dissemination free of charge. This is expected to benefit public and private exploration agencies. 
•    The collaboration with scientific and research bodies, universities and industry for the scientific and technological development necessary for exploration in public- private partnership. 

•    Government will launch a special initiative to probe deep-seated/concealed mineral deposits in the country. Characterizing India's geological cover, investigating India's lithospheric architecture, resolving 4D geodynamic and metallogenic evolution, and detecting and characterizing the distal footprints of ore deposits, would be the main components of this initiative. 
•    A National Aerogeophysical Mapping program will be launched to map the entire country with low altitude and close space flight to delineate the deep-seated and concealed mineral deposits. 
•    Government will engage private agencies for carrying out exploration in identified blocks / areas with the right to certain share in the revenue accruing to the State government through auction. 
•    Public expenditure on regional and detailed exploration will be prioritized and subject to periodical review based on assessment of criticality and strategic interests.

The first meeting of the BRICS Working Group on Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency commenced on 4 July 2016 in Visakhapatnam. The meeting will be concluded on 5 July 2016.
The two-day meeting will be attended by all 5 members of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries.

India assumed the BRICS chair for 2016 and will accordingly shape and steer the BRICS agenda.
•    The BRICS countries will make presentations on measures taken by them in the field of energy saving and energy efficiency.
•    India will showcase its efforts in energy saving, energy efficiency.
•    India, in particular, will showcase the LED street lighting programme and Performance Achievement & Trade (PAT) programme for Industrial energy efficiency.
•    The Working Group on Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency will deliberate on a Work Plan on development of cooperation in energy saving and energy efficiency within BRICS.
•    During the meeting, a Joint Statement will be agreed upon. The statement will be a guiding tool for the BRICS Working Group on Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency.
•    The BRICS energy Ministers signed a Memorandum of Mutual Understanding in Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency during the meeting of the BRICS Ministers of Energy held on 20 November 2015 in Moscow.
•    By signing the Memorandum, they agreed to pursue their energy cooperation through joint research and technology projects, technology transfer, and conferences and so on.
•    The Ministers also decided to create a Working Group on Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency to coordinate their cooperation.

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the National Mineral Exploration Policy (NMEP). 
The NMEP primarily aims at accelerating the exploration activity in the country through enhanced participation of the private sector. There is a need for comprehensive mineral exploration of the country to uncover its full mineral potential so as to put the nation's mineral resources (non-fuel and non-coal) to best use and thereby maximize sectoral contribution to the Indian economy. 
The policy emphasizes on making available baseline geoscientific data of world standards in the public domain, quality research in a public-private partnership, special initiatives for search of deep-seated and concealed deposits, quick aerogeophysical surveys of the country, and creation of a dedicated geoscience database etc. 
i. The Ministry of Mines will carry out auctioning of identified exploration blocks for exploration by private sector on revenue sharing basis in case their exploration leads to auctionable resources. The revenue will be borne by the successful bidder of those auctionable blocks. 
ii. If the explorer agencies do not discover any auctionable resources, their exploration expenditure will be reimbursed on normative cost basis. 
iii. Creation of baseline geoscientific data as a public good for open dissemination free of charge. 
iv. Government will carry out a National Aerogeophysical Program for acquiring state-of-the-art baseline data for targeting concealed mineral deposits. 
v. A National Geoscientific Data Repository is proposed to be set up to collate all baseline and mineral exploration information generated by various central & state government agencies and also mineral concession holders and to maintain these on geospatial database. 
vi. Government proposes to establish a not-for-profit autonomous institution that will be known as the National Centre for Mineral Targeting (NCMT) in collaboration with scientific and research bodies, universities and industry for scientific and technological research to address the mineral exploration challenges in the country. 
vii. Provisions for inviting private investment in exploration through attractive revenue sharing models. 
viii.    On the lines of UNCOVER project of Australia, the government intends to launch a special initiative to probe deep-seated/ concealed minerals deposits in the country in collaboration with National Geophysical Research Institute and the proposed NCMT and Geoscience Australia. 
In order to implement the recommendations of the NMEP, initially an amount of about Rs.2116 crore over 5 years would be required over and above the annual plan budget of the Geological Survey of India under the Ministry of Mines. The NMEP will benefit the entire mineral sector across the country. 
1) The pre-competitive baseline geoscientific data will be created as a public good and will be fully available for open dissemination free of charge. This is expected to benefit public and private exploration agencies. 
2) The collaboration with scientific and research bodies, universities and industry for the scientific and technological development necessary for exploration in public- private partnership. 
3) Government will launch a special initiative to probe deep-seated/concealed mineral deposits in the country. Characterizing India's geological cover, investigating India's lithospheric architecture, resolving 4D geodynamic and metallogenic evolution, and detecting and characterizing the distal footprints of ore deposits, would be the main components of this initiative. 
4) A National Aerogeophysical Mapping program will be launched to map the entire country with low altitude and close space flight to delineate the deep-seated and concealed mineral deposits. 
5) Government will engage private agencies for carrying out exploration in identified blocks / areas with the right to certain share in the revenue accruing to the State government through auction. 
6) Public expenditure on regional and detailed exploration will be prioritized and subject to periodical review based on assessment of criticality and strategic interests.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed here between the Rural Development Ministry and ISRO, Department of Space for geo-tagging the assets created under MGNREGA in each gram panchayat. 
•    The move comes after the Prime Minister during a review meeting recently had underlined for online recording and monitoring of assets to check leakages and for effective mapping of terrain for future developmental works. 
•    Around 30 lakh assets are created annually across the country under the rural job scheme and the Ministry has decided that through convergence with other schemes, the geo-tagging of such assets will be done on a mission mode. 
•    Speaking on the occasion, Secretary, Rural Development, Shri J.S.Mathur said that through Bhuvan Mobile Platform, completed asset will be Geo-tagged along with photograph by Gram Rozgar Sahayak or Junior engineer. 
•    Application of technology for rural development will go a great way in planning and execution of projects in a transparent manner. 
•    Space technology is increasingly being used up to the grassroots level for not only visualisation of the assets but also for terrain mapping to undertake other developmental works like watershed and drought-proofing measures.