Supreme Court refuses to quash CAG appointment
(ii) A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu observed that the court should not react to every sound of alarm and “meddle” in constitutional appointments.
(iii) The PIL was filed on behalf of the former Chief Election Commissioner, N. Gopalaswami; former Chiefs of the Naval Staff Admiral (retd.) R.H. Tahiliani and Admiral (retd.) L. Ramdas; former Deputy CAG B.P. Mathur; and five other retired bureaucrats.
India-US deal long on promises but short on clarity: Russia
(i) Calling the India-U.S. nuclear agreement a “breakthrough” is premature, says Russia’s Ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin, who has called the announcements made during U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit “only promises with a dose of euphoria.”
(ii) In an exclusive interview to The Hindu, Mr. Kadakin rejected the idea that Russia felt the competition from the U.S. following the agreement, but said: “Russia today remains the only partner of India which is actually contributing to its peaceful nuclear programme.”
U.S. lawmaker proposes ban on yoga pants
(i) Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently celebrated a much-vaunted success in driving the campaign to get the United Nations to endorse June 21 as the International Day of Yoga, U.S. lawmakers appeared to be busy trying to clamp down on some aspects of the practice.
(ii) This week an unusual counter-force to the explosive growth in the $10-billion yoga “industry” in the U.S. came from one Republican State Representative in Montana, who introduced a bill that would outlaw “any device, costume, or covering that gives the appearance of or simulates” the human form below the waist, and this would include a likely ban on all “tight-fitting beige clothing.”
(iii) Representative David Moore hopes that his proposed bill will prevent women from wearing leggings as “yoga pants,” and that it aims to strengthen the state’s indecent exposure laws to that end.
Ukraine gets new bailout deal from IMF
(ii) Ukraine has so far received $4.6 billion as part of a $17 billion aid package from the IMF agreed on last year, but that programme has run into trouble as the war ravaging the country’s eastern region has weighed on its economic prospects.
(iii) Facing bankruptcy, Ukraine last month asked the IMF to replace its programme with a new one to restore confidence in its finances.
Anna Hazare takes on Modi over Land Acquisition Bill
(i) Kick-starting a new edition of his anti-corruption campaign, social activist Anna Hazare will confront the Narendra Modi government over the Land Acquisition Bill on February 24 by addressing a daylong rally of disgruntled farmers opposing the bill at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
(ii) More than a score of other social organisations will participate in the agitation, said Mr. Hazare’s aides in his village Ralegan Siddhi in Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district on Thursday. Noted activist Medha Patkar would also take part in the agitation.
RBI’s CCCB guidelines credit positive for banks: Moody’s
(ii) “The guidelines are credit positive for Indian banks because they make clear that banks will be required to hold the additional capital amid periods of rapid credit growth,” Moody’s said in a report.
Last week, Reserve Bank of India had issued guidelines on when it would require Indian banks to maintain a CCCB, an additional layer of loss-absorbing capital on top of banks’ increased minimum capital requirements under Basel III.
ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 opens
(i) Thousands of fans crammed leafy Hagley Park to see the launch of the first World Cup in New Zealand and Australia in 23 years, the formal part of which began with a lone bagpiper and ended with a booming fireworks display, the biggest in the city's history.
(ii) The World Cup is the largest event Christchurch has hosted since an earthquake in February 2011 devastated the city's centre, only a few hundred yards from where Thursday's festivities took place, claiming the lives of 185 people.
(iii) The physical scars of that disaster still remain in the many vacant lots where buildings once stood but the people of Christchurch showed Thursday the city's spirit remains undimmed.
(iv) Mayor Leanne Dalziell said Christchurch was preparing to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup when the earthquake struck, toppling hotels and wrecking venues, forcing matches to be allocated to other centers.
January CPI rises to 5.1 percent while December IIP slows to 1.7 percent
(i) Indian inflation rose marginally to 5.11 percent in January as the country shifted to a new base year for calculating prices, adding more weight for services like education and health.
(ii) December inflation now stands revised to 4.96 percent as per the new series.
(iii) The difference between the old and new series is marginal. And if the series had not changed, inflation would have been 5.1. Hence this is a downside surprise, " Sajjid Chenoy, economist at JP Morgan told CNBC-TV18.
(iv) Now the core CPI ( as per the new series) has come down to 4 percent, thereby bringing some relief to the markets.
Haryana investigating Hooda government's recruitments
(ii) Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar told the media in Ambala, 45 km from here, that irregularities committed in the recruitment procedure during the tenure of the previous government are being investigated.
(iii) He said that appointment letters have been issued to the Patwaris (village accountants) after investigation, whereas the selection of JBT (junior basic teacher) teachers is being investigated.
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