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Cabinet Approves NITI Aayog's Proposal for Strategic Sale of state owned firms


The Union Cabinet gave in-principle approval to NITI Aayog's proposal for strategic sale of state-owned firms and entrusted DIPAM with the task of finalising the PSUs in which management control can be transferred to private players.
●    The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided that the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) would work out the broad methodology and valuation, thereafter fixing the base price for each of the PSU being put up for strategic sale.
●    Briefing reporters after the meeting, finance minister Arun Jaitley said the names of PSUs that are up for strategic stake sale would be made public on a case-to-case basis once the Cabinet decide to put them up for the auction.
●    The recommendations of the NITI Aayog with regard to both disinvestment and strategic sale came up for consideration.
●    The government has Budgeted to raise Rs 20,500 crore via strategic stake sale of PSUs, but Jaitley said it would not rush to sell the companies in order to achieve the target.

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India Pakistan expel Mission Staffers

India expelled Pakistani High Commission staffer Mehmood Akhtar for spying on 27 October and Pakistan responded on the same day by declaring Surjeet Singh, an official of the Indian High Commission, as persona non grata. 
●    The Vienna Convention that regulates the diplomatic interaction between countries prescribes that diplomats and staff working in diplomatic missions should adhere to the laws of the receiving state. 
●    Diplomatic missions are kept under surveillance by the counter-intelligence agencies of host countries. 
●    As and when a country catches a diplomat blatantly and unacceptably indulging in the spy game, he is either caught in the act and is ordered to leave or, at times, even without being physically caught is asked to leave. 
●    Sometimes this process is undertaken discreetly and is not made public; on other occasions, the diplomat is publically declared persona non grata and is sent home. 


 

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Deal Struck for World's Biggest Marine Reserve in Antarctica

The world's largest marine reserve aimed at protecting the pristine wilderness of Antarctica will be created after a "momentous" agreement was finally reached Friday, with Russia dropping its long-held opposition. 
●    The deal, sealed by the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) at an annual meeting in Hobart after years of negotiations, will see a massive US and New Zealand-backed marine protected area established in the Ross Sea. 
●    It will cover more than 1.55 million square kilometres (600,000 square miles) -- the size of Britain, Germany and France combined -- of which 1.12 million square kilometres will be a no fishing zone. 
●    The Ross Sea is one of the last intact marine ecosystems in the world, home to penguins, seals, Antarctic toothfish, and whales. 
●    It is also considered critical for scientists to study how marine ecosystems function and to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean. 

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UN Votes to launch talks on nuclear weapons ban

A UN General Assembly committee voted to launch negotiations on a new treaty banning nuclear weapons despite fierce opposition from the world's nuclear powers.
●    A resolution presented by Austria, Ireland, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa and Brazil was adopted by a vote of 123 to 38.
●    Four of the five UN Security Council nuclear powers -- Britain, France, Russia and the United States -- voted against the resolution while China abstained, as did India and Pakistan.
●    Japan, which has long campaigned against the use of nuclear weapons, voted against it, as did South Korea, which is facing a nuclear threat from North Korea.
●    The measure is expected to go to the full General Assembly for a vote in late November or early December.

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NMDC Signs MoU with MP

The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) Limited signed a tripartite MoU with Madhya Pradesh government and Madhya Pradesh State Mining Corporation Limited (MPSMCL)  in Bhopal.
●    The MoU was signed by Manohar Dubey, secretary, Mineral Resources Department & MD, MPSMCL on behalf of MPSMCL, PK Satpathy, Director (Production) on behalf of NMDC Limited and V Austin on behalf of Directorate of Geology and Mines, MP in presence of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan.
●    The MoU is for geological & geophysical exploration of various minerals in Madhya Pradesh, NMDC made intentions to invest during the Global Investors Summit held in October for exploration for different minerals in  Madhya Pradesh over an area of 7200 square kilometers.
●    As per the MOU, on successful establishment of mineral blocks through this proposed exploration, NMDC would be forming a JV with MPSMCL with equity 51:49 (NMDC- MPSMCL) for mining of such blocks.

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28 Oct : National Ayurveda Day

The first National Ayurveda Day was observed on 28 October on the occasion of Dhanwantari Jayanti. 
●    The theme for this year is ‘Ayurveda for Prevention and Control of Diabetes‘. 
●    Ayurveda is the traditional Hindu system of medicine based on the idea of balance in bodily systems and uses diet, herbal treatment, and yogic breathing.  
●    It has been incorporated in Atharva Veda, the last of the four Vedas. 
●    To celebrate this day, the Union Ministry of AYUSH had organized a day-long national seminar on Prevention and Control of Diabetes through Ayurveda in New Delhi. 
●    Besides, the Ministry also had launched Mission Madhumeha through Ayurveda on the occasion. 
●    The Mission Madhumeha will be implemented throughout the country through a specially designed National Treatment Protocol for effective management of Diabetes through Ayurveda.
●    The national treatment Protocol was also released on occasion of National Seminar. 

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IBM to acquire Bengaluru Based Sanovi Technologies


Technology major IBM has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Bengaluru-based disaster recovery solution provider Sanovi Technologies.
●    The deal is expected to close by the end of the year.
●    The company did not disclose the financial details of the transaction. 
●    Founded in 2003, Sanovi operates in the United States, the Middle East and Asia.
●    Upon close of the transaction IBM plans to integrate the Sanovi capabilities into the IBM Global Technology Services unit. 
●    IBM also plans to make Sanovi disaster recovery management solution available as a standalone software license for partners and customers.
●    IBM operates over 300 global delivery data centers and 46 IBM cloud data centers across 68 countries.

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Nadia Murad and Lamia Haji Bashar Wins Sakharov Prize

Two Yazidi women, Nadia Murad Basee and Lamiya Aji Bashar, who escaped sexual enslavement by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Iraq, have won Europe's top human rights award, the Sakharov prize.
●    The announcement of the year's joint laureates was made following a decision by European Parliament on 27 October 2016.
●    The Sakharov award ceremony will be held in Strasbourg on 14 December.
●    Basee and Bashar were among thousands of Yazidi girls and women abducted by ISIS militants and forced into sexual slavery in 2014. 
●    But, both survived and now campaign for the Yazidi community.
●    Nadia Murad Basee and Lamiya Aji Bashar are advocates for the Yazidi community and for women surviving sexual enslavement by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. 
●    They are both from Kocho, one of the villages near Sinjar, Iraq, which was taken over by ISIS in 2014. 

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CBDT signs 5 Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements with Indian Taxpayers today

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT),Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance entered into five Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) on 27th October.
●    The Agreements cover a range of international transactions, including sale of finished goods, purchase of raw materials, software development services, IT enabled services, exports and interest payment. 
●    The Agreements pertain to different industrial sectors like manufacturing, IT services, etc. 
●    The Agreements provide certainty to the taxpayers for 5 years with regard to the covered international transactions.
●    The total number of APAs signed so far has reached 108. 
●    These include 4 bilateral APAs and 104 unilateral APAs since 2013-14. 

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India ranked 130 in World Bank's Ease of Doing Business

In rankings released by the World Bank on Oct. 25, India’s position in Doing Business 2017 list moved up by only one place to 130 among 190 countries. 
●    This comes as a dampener for the Narendra Modi government, which, two years ago, publicly announced an ambitious target to improve India’s rankings to within the top 50 by 2018.
●    The Doing Business report, started in 2002, reviews business regulations and their implementation across 190 countries. 
●    In the 2016 report, India’s ranking jumped 12 positions, cheering up the government.
●    This year, Asia’s third-largest economy slipped in areas such as starting a business, dealing with construction permits and protecting minority investors. 
●    Even as India suffered, despite being the world’s fastest-growing major economy, Russia, China, Singapore, South Africa, Nepal, and Brazil paced ahead in overall rankings.
 

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