NEO IAS Daily Newsletter TPS 18 Daily Current Affairs 19 th February, 2018 128 th Day Prelims Countdown: 104 Days Join our Prelims Telegram Channel for Regular Updates - http://bit.do/neo-upscprelims Subscribe our YouTube channel for daily current affairs videos: www.youtube.com/neoias Avail your latest free copy of Latest Prelims Current Affairs Digest: https://goo.gl/pehmus For any further queries, kindly contact us on: support@neoias.com or 9446331522 TABLE OF CONTENTS Social Sector Watan Ko Jano Economy LoU, SWIFT & Buyers Credit LoU SWIFT Buyers Credit Know Your Employee (KYE) Atal Bhujal Yojana History and Culture International Theatre Olympics National School of Drama Synagogues of Kolkata (Calcutta) https://www.neoias.com/index.ph p/focus-prelims-2018 SOCIAL SECTOR WATAN KO JANO Union Home Minister meets J&K youth under Youth Exchange Programme Watan ko Jano. Key Facts The programme has been organized by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Watan Ko Jano aims to give exposure to the youth and children of Jammu and Kashmir about the cultural and socio-economic development taking place in other parts of the country. Youth and children hit by militancy and from weaker sections of the society have been identified for the purpose. See more about our unique Prelims Exclusive Current Affairs Program: https://neoias.com/index.php/curr ent-affairs-plus-2018 Note: We attempt to cover new issues every day and drop the issues which are already covered. Therefore aspirants are advised to regularly follow NEO IAS daily current affairs material and video for a guaranteed success in Prelims 2018. NEO IAS daily current affairs stands out from other daily current affairs by its exclusive UPSC prelims focus on aspects that lie in and beyond current affairs. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/printrelea se.aspx?relid=176629
Around 200 youth from the state are on a visit to different places of the country as part of the programme from 11 th Feb-20 th Feb, 2018. ECONOMY LOU, SWIFT & BUYERS CREDIT PNB has alleged that two employees had fraudulently issued Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and transmitted SWIFT instructions to the overseas branches of Indian Banks to raise buyers credit for companies of billionaire diamond jeweller Nirav Modi without making entries in the bank system. LOU Letters of Undertaking (LoU) is an assurance given by one bank to another to meet a liability on behalf of a customer. The LoU is akin to a letter of credit or a guarantee. LoUs are used in international banking transactions. An LoU is issued for overseas import remittances and involves four parties an issuing bank, a receiving bank, an importer and a beneficiary entity overseas. According to norms, the term of an LoU is 180 days, and can be rolled over once for six months. Since LoUs are a form of lending, they are typically backed by security. SWIFT LoUs are conveyed from bank to bank through Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) instructions, which pass through a triple layer of checks. A SWIFT instruction, which represents a bank s consent, is cleared by a maker, a checker and a verifier before it is sent across. To issue SWIFT, an official has to log in and fill up confidential information such as the account number and SWIFT code. There is no reported instance so far of a breach in SWIFT instructions anywhere in the world. http://www.thehindu.com/business /pnb-fraud-brings-back-the-issueof-know-your-employeenorms/article22777187.ece Ensure your admission ticket to Mains 2018. BUYERS CREDIT Buyers Credit is, typically, a short-term loan facility extended to an importer by a bank to finance goods and services. Buyer s credit is a very useful mode of financing in international trade, since foreign buyers seldom pay cash for large purchases, while few exporters have the capacity to extend substantial amounts of long-term Know more about Focus Prelims and Join the Course: https://www.neoias.com/index.ph p/focus-prelims-2018
credit to their buyers. A buyer s credit facility involves a bank that can extend credit to the importer, as well as an export finance agency based in the exporter's country that guarantees the loan. Buyer s credit benefits both the seller (exporter) and buyer (importer) in a trade transaction. The exporter is paid in accordance with the terms of the sale contract with the importer, without undue delays. The availability of buyer s credit also makes it feasible for the exporter to pursue large export orders. The importer obtains the flexibility to pay for the purchases over a period of time, as stipulated in the terms of the buyer s credit facility, rather than up front at the time of purchase. The importer can also request funding in a major currency that is more stable than the domestic currency, especially if the latter has a significant risk of devaluation. KNOW YOUR EMPLOYEE (KYE) The Rs. 11,500-crore fraud in the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB) has brought back into focus the importance of Know Your Employee (KYE) norms for banks, according to some experts. The latest scam at PNB involves issuing unauthorised Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) in favour of companies for availing buyers credit, allegedly in connivance with a former employee and a present employee. Key Facts As early as 2005, when the banking sector was in the initial stages of adopting technology, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had highlighted the importance of banks enforcing KYE norms which would act as a firewall against frauds committed in connivance with employees. In September 2005, the central bank had cited the recent cases of technological mishaps, resulting in mainly employees or ex-employees of banks-induced financial losses which had also damaged the lenders reputation. Proper and systematic employee background verification is the need of the hour but the number of public sector units that opt for background checks are low in India because human resources practices have not evolved and there is a resistance to change. There has been a rise in number of private sector banks and NBFCs that are not only conducting background screening but are also doing regular credit checks on their employees who at the end of the day handle large amounts of clients money. Not only the banking regulator but the central vigilance commission (CVC) has also talked about the importance of KYE recently. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com /home/environment/centrepushes-rs-6000cr-plan-to-tacklewaterdepletion/articleshow/62923993.c ms See more about our unique Prelims Exclusive Current Affairs Program: https://neoias.com/index.php/curr ent-affairs-plus-2018
According to a vigilance manual released last year, CVC said that several frauds were insider jobs or perpetrated with the help of insiders. CVC had asked banks to take extra care and have continuous vigil on their staff while highlighting the need for KYE and Know Your Partner (KYP) norms. ATAL BHUJAL YOJANA In a major push to improve the groundwater situation and recharge of underground water tables, the Central Government is speeding up the ambitious Rs 6000-crore Atal Bhujal Yojana. More about News The scheme, after Cabinet s clearance, will soon be launched in water-stressed states: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The focus is to cover 78 districts, 193 blocks and more than 8,300 gram panchayats across these states. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/printrelea se.aspx?relid=176624 About Atal Bhujal Yojana: The scheme is aimed at efficient management of available water resources and strengthening of recharge mechanism through community participation. The emphasis of the scheme will be on recharge of ground water sources and efficient use of water by involving people at the local level. Funding: Rs 6,000 crore has been earmarked for this ambitious plan. Half of the total cost of this central scheme will be supported by the World Bank as loan while the remaining half (Rs 3,000 crore) will be funded by the government through budgetary support. Ensure your admission ticket to Mains 2018. Implementation: The government plans to give 50% of the money to states, including gram panchayats, as incentives for achieving targets in groundwater management. That s a first-ever move to encourage community participation and behavioural changes. The remaining 50% of the funds will be given to states for strengthening institutional arrangements such as providing a strong database and scientific approach to help them accomplish sustainable management of groundwater. HISTORY AND CULTURE Know more about Focus Prelims and Join the Course: https://www.neoias.com/index.ph p/focus-prelims-2018
INTERNATIONAL THEATRE OLYMPICS The Vice President of India Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has recently inaugurated the 8 th international Theatre Olympics 2018 at the Red Fort in New Delhi. More about News The 51-day-long event which will be a theatrical extravaganza is being hosted in India by the National School of Drama under the aegis of Ministry of Culture. It is being held in India for the first time. The theme of the 8 th Theatre Olympics is Flag of Friendship that aims to bridge borders and bring people of different cultures, beliefs and ideologies together through the medium of theatrical art. The festival is considered the biggest international celebration of theatre in terms of plays, participants, performances and number of days. The Theatre Olympics was established in 1993 at Delphi, Greece. Being an international theatre festival, the Theatre Olympics presents some of the greatest theatre practitioners from around the world. It is a platform for theatrical exchange, a gathering place for students and masters, where a dialogue despite ideological, culture and language differences is encouraged. Since 1993, the Theatre Olympics has been held seven times in the following countries: Japan (1999), Russia (2001), Turkey (2006), South Korea (2010), China (2014), Poland (2016). http://www.thehindu.com/news/ci ties/kolkata/kolkata-synagoguesdraw-jewsagain/article22785257.ece NATIONAL SCHOOL OF DRAMA The National School of Drama is one of the foremost theatre training institutions in the world and the only one of its kind in India. It was set up by the Sangeet Natak Akademi as one of its constituent units in 1959. In 1975, it became an independent entity and was registered as an autonomous organization under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860, fully financed by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Training in the School is highly intensive and is based on a thorough, comprehensive, carefully planned syllabus which covers every aspect of theatre and in which theory is related to practice. As a part of their training, students are required to produce plays which are then performed before the public. SYNAGOGUES OF KOLKATA (CALCUTTA) See more about our unique Prelims Exclusive Current Affairs Program: https://neoias.com/index.php/curr ent-affairs-plus-2018 A long-pending refurbishment of two synagogues in Kolkata has triggered a
renewed interest among members of the Jewish community who had left the city of their birth nearly 60 years ago. Background Jews were one of the last communities to arrive in Calcutta (Kolkata) but within a short span of time they made their presence felt by controlling a large section of the trade in Calcutta (Kolkata). As the Jews community in Kolkata (Calcutta) grew in number and power they started building Synagogues. The first Synagogue Neveh Shalome Synagogue came up in 1831 (it was rebuilt in 1910) followed by Beth El Synagogue (1856), Magen David Synagogue (1884), Magen Aboth Synagogue (1897) and Shaare Rasoon Synagogue (1933). The independence of India in 1947 and the birth of the Jewish state of Israel in 1948 marked the decline of Jewish population in Calcutta (Kolkata). The two synagogues, Beth El & Magen David, of Calcutta (Kolkata) still stands. Declared as protected monuments they are looked after by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). NEO IAS 0484-4030104, 9446331522, 9446334122 9446331522 www.neoias.com https://www.youtube.com/neoias Page 6 of 7
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