Current Affairs for IAS Exams – 04 October 2015

:: India & world ::

India's belated bid for a role in Nepal's constitution-making process has united the landlocked nation's top mainstream parties as never before.
Shedding their inherent differences, Nepali Congress (NC), considered closest to New Delhi, Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) and Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) have stood rock solid in their resistance to India's efforts to customize their country's new constitution to its requirements.
These three parties have an overwhelming majority in the 601-member constituent assembly. New Delhi is sympathetic to the demands of Madhesis (Maithili, Bhojpuri, Avadhi, Hindi and Urdu-speaking people) for more representation and autonomy.
Prior to this, NC, founded in Kolkata in 1946, had never been in conflict with India. It had rather been party to almost all treaties and agreements with New Delhi that Communists found loaded in favour of India.
On the contrary, CPN-UML and UCPN-M take to the streets against India at the drop of a hat.
Two former prime ministers, Sher Bahadur Deuba (NC) and Madhav Kumar Nepal (CPN-UML), have asked for an end to what they call "India's undeclared blockade". Khadga Prasad Oli (UML), who is tipped to become Nepal's next PM, too has strongly objected to the closure of supply points to Nepal.

Following the cut in benchmark shot-term lending (repo) rate by 0.50 per cent by the Reserve Bank of India in its bi-monthly policy review, more banks have announced a reduction in their benchmark lending rates.
State-run Syndicate Bank and United Bank of India on Saturday cut their benchmark lending rates by up to 0.30 per cent, making home and auto loans cheaper for new as well as existing customers.
While United Bank of India has reduced base rate to 9.65 per cent from 9.90 per cent with effect from October 12, Syndicate Bank reduced its lending rate to 9.70 per cent.
Allahabad Bank has informed the stock exchanges that it has cut its base rate by 25 basis points.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation on Saturday inaugurated an Extreme Altitude Research Centre at Changla in Jammu and Kashmir at 17,600 feet above mean sea level, the world's highest terrestrial Research and Development centre.
It has been established by Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR), Leh, a constituent establishment of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
The centre, 75 km off Leh town towards Pangong lake, is poised to be the world's highest terrestrial R&D centre in the cold desert of Ladakh, where the temperature goes as low as -40 degrees Celsius during extreme winter months coupled with reduced atmospheric pressure and humidity besides high wind velocity and UV radiation.
The centre was inaugurated by DRDO chief S Christopher, who highlighted its utility for R&D work in frontal areas of food and agriculture and bio-medical sciences
for well being of the soldiers deployed in high-altitude cold desert.
Defence R&D and DG (Life Sciences) Bhuvnesh Kumar said that new centre, besides undertaking life sciences activities, may provide unique opportunity to other labs and establishments of DRDO for testing and evaluation of electronics and communication devices, testing of materials for high altitude applications, batteries, fuel cells, UAV's micro engines among others.

The Chennaiyin FC fans filled the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium – or as they would call it ‘Marina Arena’ – with a sea of blue as they turned up in huge numbers to cheer the home team against last year’s title winners, Atletico De Kolkata, in the second edition of Indian Super League.
They waved the blue flags and wore their team jerseys, kept chanting the names of home stars every time they touched the ball. The crowd went ‘Elano, Elano’, each time he took a corner or dodged past a defender.
The high point glitzy opening ceremony, which saw performances by Aliaa Bhatt, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and A.R. Rahman, belongs to Tamil superstar Rajinikanth, who presented the match ball.
Later on, Rajinikanth shared a buggy ride with Little Master Sachin Tendulkar inside the ground sending the crowd into a selfie-frenzy as they tried to get the two Indian icons in the same frame as themselves.
While Chennayin FC fans completely outnumbered the away fans, Atletico De Kolkata fans were vocal as well and were seen cheering their team.