BANKING REGULATION ACT

BANKING REGULATION ACT 1949 a) Passed as the Banking Companies Act 1949 (came into force wef 16.3.49 and changed to Banking Regulation Act 1949 w.e.f. 01.03.66, it was made applicable to J and K in 1956 (and now applicable throughout India). b) The Act is not applicable to primary agricultural credit societies, cooperative land mortgage banks and non-agricultural primary credit societies.

0

Functions of RBI

0

BUSINESS NEWS (NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL)

0

ECONOMY NEWS

0

SBI IN NEWS

Nepal SBI Bank has launched payment gateway to facilitate online trade and non-trade transactions between the Himalayan nation 'Nepal' and India. SBI's point of sales terminal (PoS) network is now the largest in the country. Announced the launch of mVisa, a mobile based payment solution. Will help customers make payments through by simply scanning the unique merchant Quick Response code. SBI has been asked by RBI to provide for losses on food grain related loans issued to Punjab Govt.. Meghalaya CM Mukul M Sangma inaugurated the first Digital Branch of State Bank of India in North East. SBI has launched a facility under 'SBI Quick: SMS and Missed Call Banking' service whereby the customer can choose to activate or deactivate their cards. SBI launched e-Smart SME, a working capital loan offering for sellers on ecommerce platforms. Myanmar has granted operating licenses to four Asian banks. Out if the 4, one is SBI. SBI has launched ‘Japan Desk’, a single window for inbound Japanese investments in India and vice-versa. This is a first-of-its-kind initiative that seeks to facilitate Japanese corporate looking to invest in India with banking and advisory services. SBI ties up with Taxi Aggregator, Uber to provide instant vehicle finance to “driver partners’ on the latter’s platform.

0

RBI IN NEWS

Reserve Bank said the aggregate ceiling for foreign investors to invest in Ujjivan Financial Services will remain at 49%. RBI has authorised 29 agency banks to accept payments of Income Tax dues. Some of the agency banks authorized by RBI to collect tax include Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank, BOI, Canara Bank, SBI and its five associate banks, CBI, Dena Bank, HDFC Bank Ltd, OBC, Axis Bank Ltd, ICICI Bank and PNB. It has stated that entities from Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Iran and Hong Kong or Macau will require its prior approval to establish branch office or project office or liaison office in India. The Cabinet has given approval to the MoU between the Reserve Bank and the Central Bank of United Arab Emirates (UAE) on co-operation on currency swap agreement. As per RBI it will shortly issue Rs. 1,000 denomination bank notes in the Mahatma Gandhi Series of 2005 with the insert letter of 'R' in both the number panels. RBI released Non-Banking Financial Company -Account Aggregator Directions, 2016. This will put in place the regulatory framework to allow a new kind of Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC), which could act as an account aggregator. The Net Owned Fund of such companies should not be less than 2 cr. Rs.. RBI issued revised Framework for Revival and Rehabilitation of Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs). The Framework has to be put in place by the banks not later than 30 June 2016.
Key Guidelines • It shall be applicable to MSMEs having loan limits up to 25 cr. Rs. including accounts under consortium or multiple banking arrangement (MBA). • It classifies three categories in Special Mention Account (SMA) to identify incipient stress in the accounts of MSMEs in case of Non-Performing Assets (NPAs): a) SMA-0: Principal or interest payment not overdue for more than 30 days but account showing signs of incipient stress b) SMA-1: Principal or interest payment overdue between 31-60 days c) SMA-2: Principal or interest payment overdue between 61-90 days RBI signed a Special Currency Swap Agreement with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. Under the arrangement, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka can draw up to 700 million US dollars. To streamline monitoring of fraud cases in Urban Cooperative Banks, RBI said those involving Rs 1 cr. and above will have to be reported to its Central Fraud Monitoring Cell (CFMC) at Bengaluru within three weeks of detection. Fraud cases below Rs 1 cr. should be reported to respective regional offices of the Department of Cooperative Bank Supervision (DCBS) of the RBI. Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan has joined a task force of the World Economic Forum (WEF) to study the future of global financial system. The central bank has directed commercial banks to increase the provisioning by 2.5% every quarter so that by March 31, 2017, provisioning reached the 15% level — in line with sub-standard accounts. RBI has extended the $2 billion currency swap arrangement to SAARC nations till mid-November 2017. Under the arrangement, RBI is to offer swap arrangement up to an overall amount of $2 billion both in foreign currency and Indian rupee. RBI has signed a pact with Bank of Israel for Information Exchange and Banking supervision. RBI has decided to share FDI-related data with the country's intelligence agencies, Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), to check the black money entering India. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) CEO and MD Natarajan Chandrasekaran, former Chief Secretary of Gujarat Sudhir Mankad and Bharat Narotam Doshi appointed as Non Officials Directors to the board of RBI for a tenure of 4 year. 

0

The Hindu Editorial Vocabulary

That scarcity of water and its poor quality plague many parts of India this year is widely acknowledged today. Yet it has taken the Supreme Court to call out the reluctance of some States to declare a drought while simultaneously decrying the Centre’s recourse to “federalism” as an excuse to avoid taking up the matter with these States. In the judgment, delivered on a writ petition filed by the non-governmental organisation Swaraj Abhiyan, the Supreme Court concluded that Bihar and Haryana had been remiss in not officially declaring a drought despite clear indications of water scarcity; also that Gujarat was late in its declaration made in April 2016. The governments of Bihar and Haryana had argued that a declaration of drought was not necessary as rainfall deficits had eased in many districts by July 2015. But the Supreme Court has pointed out that many districts in these States have since progressively suffered rainfall deficits till as late as October 2015. The court also said that steps taken by State governments for irrigation and foodgrain production, or the presence of perennial rivers (which the Bihar government has submitted as a factor), alone cannot determine whether there is a drought-like situation or not. It has directed the Centre to take proactive steps in drought mitigation as well as in assessment, planning and relief as mandated by the Disaster Management Act, 2005. Drought is attributed to rainfall deficit in several States, suggesting that meteorological and natural factors are primarily responsible for the phenomenon. This, however, is an incomplete explanation. Water scarcity — in both surface and ground water — is also the result of failure to regulate water extraction, storage, wastage and patterns of use. The excessive use of deep borewells to extract groundwater has eroded the capacity of aquifers to replenish. Poor reservoir management has led to silt accumulation among other issues limiting water storage. Lack of water harvesting and over-irrigation owing to cropping choices and patterns have depleted water tables. Preparation for drought and ipso facto for a deficit in annual rainfall must go beyond mitigation and include steps to address this man-made scarcity. This cannot be done without a coordinated effort at all levels of government. The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to constitute a National Disaster Response Force, establish a National Disaster Mitigation Fund, formulate a National Plan on mitigation and crisis management, and standardise the methodology for declaring a drought. If one sets aside the question of whether this is another case of judicial overreach, it is difficult to deny that this is a truly landmark judgment. By laying down a broad framework for dealing with such situations and firmly emphasising that the government cannot absolve itself from acting decisively, the manner in which we deal with drought in the future may change markedly, and for the better.

Plague: ~ verb cause to suffer a blight Too much rain may blight the garden with mold / annoy continually or chronically call out ~ verb utter aloud; often with surprise, horror, or joy reluctance : a certain degree of unwillingness decry ~ verb express strong disapproval of federalism ~ noun the idea of a federal organization of more or less self-governing units recourse ~ noun act of turning to for assistance writ ~ noun (law) a legal document issued by a court or judicial officer remiss ~ adj failing in what duty requires deficit ~ noun the property of being an amount by which something is less than expected or required irrigation ~ noun supplying dry land with water by means of ditches etc perennial ~ adj lasting three seasons or more proactive ~ adj descriptive of any event or stimulus or process that has an effect on events or stimuli or processes that occur subsequently erode ~ verb become ground down or deteriorate aquifer ~ noun underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs etc replenish ~ verb fill something that had previously been emptied silt ~ noun mud or clay or small rocks deposited by a river or lake silt ~ verb become chocked with silt accumulation ~ noun an increase by natural growth or addition deplete ~ verb use up (resources or materials) mitigation ~ noun to act in such a way as to cause an offense to seem less serious the action of lessening in severity or intensity ipso facto ~ adv by the fact itself overreach ~ verb 1. fail by aiming too high or trying too hard 2. beat through cleverness and wit emphasise ~ verb 1. give extra weight to (a communication) 2. to stress, single out as important decisively ~ adv uncommon 1. with firmness absolve: declare (someone) free from guilt, obligation, or punishment.

0

Economic Times Editorial : Vocabulary 14 May 2016

On May 5, 2016, India’s newest voters exercised their franchise for the first time in six assembly seats of Cooch Behar, northern West Bengal. They are the roughly 15,000 dwellers of the former Bangladeshi ‘enclaves’, or ‘chitmahals’ in Bengali, granted Indian citizenship after the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) between New Delhi and Dhaka last year. Formerly stateless, without any claim to public services or administrative help, this was the first time they got to vote. That was reason to cheer. Yet, having voted, there are glum faces all around. Why? Because despite being enfranchised citizens, residents of the chitmahals are being denied basic amenities that state and central governments provide every other Indian. For example, the Bengal government’s promise to deliver rice at Rs 2 per kg is unfulfilled here; ration cards to provide subsidised kerosene or milk powder have not been provided. Jobs for the poor, guaranteed under the central NREGA scheme are scarce. The few who have got enrolled find all payments delayed, apparently because of the model code of conduct that kicks in before polls. Most have no pattas — documents guaranteeing landownership — and could fall victims to land sharks. Roads and police stations are absent, one year after the LBA was signed. Kolkata’s excuse for inaction is to wait for poll results, due May 19, to end uncertainty about which party will come to power. This argument is facile. Indians everywhere get access to state-run programmes, irrespective of which political party is in power. Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Rajasthan swap one set of parties for another every five years, but welfare schemes run unabated. Unless enclave dwellers get their dues as citizens now, their disenchantment with their new nation will only grow. That would be unfair and unsound.

Franchise: ~ noun (law) a statutory right or privilage granted to a person or group by a govt. (especially the rights of citizenship and the right to vote) Dwellers : ~ noun A person who inhabits a particular place Enclaves :~ noun an enclosed territory that is culturally distict from the foreign territory that surrounds it. Services: (singular) ~ noun performance of duties or provision of space and equipment helpful to others Glum :~ adj melancholic (Expression of sadness) Enfranchise: grant voting rights Amenities:~ noun conveniences (things that make you comfortable and at ease) Scarce:~ adj deficient in quantity or number compared with the demand kicks in : enter a particular state polls : ~ noun the place where people vote sharks: ~ noun a person who is ruthless and greedy and dishonest inaction:~ noun the state of being inactive facile:~ adj arrived at without due care or effort irrespective:~ adj in spite of everything; without regard to drawbacks unabated : ~ adj continuing at full strength or intensity disenchantment: ~ noun freeing from false belief or illusions unsound ~ adj : not in good condition; damaged or decayed

0

The Hindu: OPINION » EDITORIAL May 13, 2016 | Vocabulary | word meaning | synonyms

Regime change in Brazil

It is a coup by another name. With the suspension of President Dilma Rousseff from office on Thursday through a Senate impeachment vote, the Brazilian opposition has secured a rare political victory. The impeachment, approved with a 55-22 majority, brings to an end 13 years of rule by the Workers Party (PT). It also puts Ms. Rousseff’s political future in limbo as she now has to weather the impeachment trial, which could last up to six months and will determine if she may or may not regain the presidency. While the opposition politicians are understandably happy with the outcome, the impeachment is likely to deepen Brazil’s political crisis at a time when the country needs a stable administration to cope with the enormous challenges it faces, especially the current economic crisis, and chronic corruption. Certainly, Ms. Rousseff could have done more to lead her country out of this situation. Her government was ill-prepared to cope with the challenges of the global drop in commodity prices, which hit Brazil’s export-dependent economy particularly hard. Some of the measures she took, such as cutting public expenditure to control deficit, were counter-productive as they drove the PT’s traditional base, the working people, away from her. Besides, she could do little to check the pervasive corruption within the PT. The question of course is whether such political failures warrant an impeachment. Also, will the forcible removal of Ms. Rousseff help address any of the major problems Brazil faces now?

Those who support the impeachment, politicians and others, say it is a fight against corruption and Ms. Rousseff’s economic ineptitude. This line of reasoning has at least two problems. First, she has not been implicated in any corruption case. Ironically, Vice-President Michel Temer, who will now take over as acting President, has been named in a Petrobras bribery scandal. According to surveys, only 2 per cent of Brazilians support him for President, while 60 per cent favour his impeachment. Even the head of the Senate and the man who oversaw the impeachment vote, Renan Calheiros, is the subject of 11 criminal probes. Second, it is not clear what kind of changes the incoming acting President can bring about to rescue Brazil’s economy from a free fall and to stabilise its politics — given that he faces corruption charges and has no popular mandate. Though Ms. Rousseff is unpopular, the PT still commands respect among large sections of Brazil’s poor. If the PT continues its street protests against the impeachment, which have at times turned violent, that would make it that much more difficult for Mr. Temer to establish credible authority. The best, and the democratic, way out of this crisis would be to call fresh elections and let the people decide who should be the next President. He or she could start afresh on the basis of a new mandate. Unfortunately, Brazil’s political elite appear to be more interested in political manoeuvring than in addressing the real issues.

coup

kuː/

noun

noun: coup; plural noun: coups; noun: coup d'état; plural noun: coup d'états; plural noun: coups d'état

a sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government.

"he was overthrown in an army coup"

synonyms:

seizure of power, overthrow, takeover, ousting, deposition, regime change; bloodless coup, palace revolution; rebellion, revolt, insurrection, mutiny, revolution, insurgence,insurgency, rising, rioting, riot; coup d'état, jacquerie; putsch "the prime minister was deposed in a coup in 1995"

antonyms:

election

impeachment 

Pronunciation: /ɪmˈpiːtʃmənt/ 

NOUN

chiefly US A charge of misconduct made against the holder of a public office:the president is facing impeachment over the scandalCOUNT NOUN all impeachments shall be tried by the Senate

• Other presidents did worse and there were no exposes or impeachments.
• He finally resigned in order to avoid impeachment.
• The two men were warned by the government that they faced impeachment if they didn't step down.

limbo

Pronunciation: /ˈlɪmbəʊ/ 

NOUN

An uncertain period of awaiting a decision or resolution; an intermediate state or condition:the legal battle could leave the club in limbo until next year

• So there they stayed, in limbo, until after resolution 1441 when last November they were allowed to return.
• But the decision still left them in limbo until a final decision could be made on the park's future.
• The players and the many supporters who turn out each week to get behind their club, deserve much better than being left in limbo for an indefinite period.

2.1A state of neglect or oblivion:these prisoners are in limbo: no one is responsible for their welfare

• In time, argues Winnicott, the transitional object is relegated to limbo, neither mourned nor forgotten, just losing its meaning.

weather

ˈ

Verb

1. • withstand (a difficulty or danger).
     "this year has tested industry's ability to weather recession"

     synonyms:

     survive, come/get through, ride out, live through, pull through, come through (unscathed), outlast, outlive

counter-productive 

Pronunciation: /ˌkaʊntəprəˈdʌktɪv/ 

ADJECTIVE

Having the opposite of the desired effect:

child experts fear the Executive’s plans may prove counterproductive

More example sentences

• My friend did not disagree with me as to the likely counterproductive effects of such a demonstration.
• This siege has proven that it is not only counterproductive, it is dangerous.
• That precedent will be both dangerous and counterproductive in the long run.

pervasive 

Pronunciation: /pəˈveɪsɪv/ 

ADJECTIVE

(Especially of an unwelcome influence or physical effect) spreading widely throughout an area or a group of people:ageism is pervasive and entrenched in our society

More example sentences

• He exercised a pervasive influence on European drama by challenging the conventions of naturalism.
• Nevertheless, their influence is pervasive within the history of science.
• They include globalisation, the spread of the Internet and the pervasive power of money.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

prevalent, penetrating, pervading, permeating, extensive, ubiquitous, omnipresent, present everywhere, rife, widespread, general, common, universal, pandemic, epidemic, endemic, inescapable, insidious;

immanent

warrant 

VERB

[WITH OBJECT]

1Justify or necessitate (a course of action):the employees feel that industrial action is warranted

More example sentences

• Young people aged 10 to 17 who plead guilty to their first offence will be sent to new youth offender panels, providing their crime is not serious enough to warrant a custodial sentence.
• It's serious enough to warrant immediate action.
• Of course, the generals' categorical denial of a conspiracy simply serves to underline that the rumors are serious enough to warrant their attention.
• 
  

Synonyms

justify, vindicate, call for, sanction, validate, be a justification/reason for;

permit, authorize, entitle, empower;

uphold, condone, endorse, deserve, excuse, be a defence of, explain away, account for, offer grounds for, legitimize;

support, consent to, license, approve of;

merit, qualify for, rate, be worthy of, be worth, be entitled to, be deserving of

address

VERB

[WITH OBJECT]

Think about and begin to deal with (an issue or problem):a fundamental problem has still to be addressed

More example sentences

• The second half of this book, once the history has been dealt with, addresses the problems of the present, issue by issue.
• On the whole, general comments now became longer and more analytical, and they began to address difficult issues of interpretation.
• A typical day begins with a staff meeting, where any issues and problems are addressed.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

attend to, tackle, see to, deal with, confront, grapple with, attack, buckle down to, get to grips with,embark on, settle down to, direct one's attention to, turn to, get down to, concentrate on, focus on, apply oneself to, devote oneself to;

turn one's hand to, try to deal with, try to sort out, take up, take in hand, undertake, engage in, become involved in

informal get stuck into, get cracking on, get weaving on, have a crack at, have a go at, have a shot at, have a stab at

ineptitude 

Pronunciation: /ɪˈnɛptɪtjuːd/ 

NOUN

[MASS NOUN]

Lack of skill or ability:the officials displayed remarkable ineptitudethe sheer ineptitude of their economic plan

implicate

VERB

Pronunciation: /ˈɪmplɪkeɪt/ 

[WITH OBJECT]

1Show (someone) to be involved in a crime:he implicated his government in the murders of three judges

More example sentences

• I was able to show that several had been ‘doctored’ after Mary's forced abdication to justify what her enemies had done to her, implicating her in crimes she didn't commit.
• Then if I am ever implicated in a crime that I didn't commit, I can prove my exact whereabouts beyond any reasonable doubt.
• She had always felt that, by refusing to implicate him in the crime of adultery, she was saving him from the ruin that she faced every day.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

incriminate, compromise;

involve, connect, embroil, enmesh, ensnare;

expose

archaic inculpate

oversee 

Pronunciation: /əʊvəˈsiː/ 

VERB (oversees, overseeing; past oversaw; past participle overseen)

[WITH OBJECT]

Supervise (a person or their work), especially in an official capacity:the Home Secretary oversees the police service

More example sentences

• There was no health and safety plan in place or a supervisor appointed to oversee the works.
• Its members are elected by parliamentary deputies and judges, and its work overseen by the president.
• The Parish Council is the board of the local church that oversees its work and finances.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

supervise, superintend, be in charge of, be responsible for, run, look after, keep an eye on, inspect, administer, organize, manage, direct, guide, control, be in control of, preside over, head (up), lead, chair, umpire, referee, judge, adjudicate, moderate, govern, rule, command

afresh 

Pronunciation: /əˈfrɛʃ/ 

ADVERB

In a new or different way:she left the job to start afresh

More example sentences

• Tomorrow the great leader's axiom will be recalled afresh once again.
• A new Convention was therefore elected, to begin the task afresh; but once more it was soon stalemated.
• My intention is to look afresh at the monument with a different kind of vision.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

anew, again, over again, once again, once more, a second time, another time

elite

Pronunciation: /eɪˈliːt/ 

 /ɪˈliːt/ 

NOUN

1A select group that is superior in terms of ability or qualities to the rest of a group or society:the elite of Britain’s armed forces[AS MODIFIER]: an elite athletean elite commando unitelite colleges and universities

More example sentences

• In fact, Murray comments that societal elites were less likely to be religious.
• It is a model strictly for people who are into hierarchical societies with bossy elites who like to display their power.
• Town life also presented new challenges of economic and social organization to urban elites.
• Get more examples

Synonyms

best, pick, cream, flower, nonpareil, elect;

aristocracy, nobility, gentry, upper class, privileged class, first class, establishment;

high society, jet set, beautiful people;

Indian  bhadralok;

French beau monde, haut monde, crème de la crème, A-list

North American informal four hundred

View synonyms

1.1A group or class of people seen as having the most power and influence in a society, especially on account of their wealth or privilege:the country’s governing elitethe silent majority were looked down upon by the liberal elite

More example sentences

• In recent decades, successive governments have carried out policies aimed at benefiting a tiny privileged elite at the expense of the broad mass of working people.
• Unless you're a CEO or a millionaire I don't see how you can defend a party whose policy benefits benefits the elite over the general populace.
• Over the past decade, the Western political elite has experienced a profound disorientation.
• manipulate (someone or something) in order to achieve an end:they were manoeuvring him into betraying his friend
  More example sentences
  

  • They are forever busy manipulating and maneuvering situations to their advantage.
  • In response, she sought to manoeuvre his own people ahead of his supporters in the lists.
  • Along the way he's manoeuvred a group of marginal seat holders into more powerful positions.

  Synonyms
  

  intrigue, plot, scheme, plan, lay plans, conspire, pull strings;

  North American  pull wires

  rare machinate

• manoeuvre

• [NO OBJECT] Manipulate a situation to achieve an end:[WITH INFINITIVE]: Rann was manoeuvring to elope with the girl
  

  More example sentences
  

  • We have no confidence in its leaders, who've manipulated and maneuvered against our civic initiate for years.
  • No wonder the pre-election atmosphere can now be felt, particularly because the political elite have started maneuvering to serve their own and their groups' interests.
  • As interest groups stepped up their lobbying, the political parties continued maneuvering in advance of a potential Senate vote to bar the filibusters.
  • Get more examples

  Synonyms
  

  manipulate, contrive, manage, engineer, devise, plan, plot, fix, organize, arrange, set up,orchestrate, choreograph, stage-manage

  informal wangle

0