Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 21 February 2015

:: National ::

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s monogrammed suit fetched Rs. 4.31 crore as bidders scrambled to own the two-piece ensemble in the final moments of the three-day auction that ended at 5 p.m.
Lalji Patel, a diamond trader, and his son, Hitesh Patel, are the new owners of the suit that Mr. Modi wore during a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on January 25.
With a reportedly Rs. 10-lakh price and the name Narendra Damodardas Modi embroidered down the length of the fabric to look like golden pinstripes, the navy-blue bandhgala suit had raised a controversy.
Bids flew thick and fast in the last hour of the auction, which had no base price. District Collector, Surat, Rajendra Kumar said bids, one of Rs. 5 crore, received after the deadline had been disqualified.
Mr. Lalji Patel, who owns the Dharmananda Diamond Company, told presspersons that he wanted to do something for the country, and the auction gave him an opportunity.

Euro zone Finance Ministers drafted an outline agreement that could form the basis for extending Greece’s financial rescue package, officials on both sides said.
However, they stressed there was no formal deal on a common text in the full 19-nation Eurogroup of Ministers.
European Union paymaster Germany, Greece’s biggest creditor, had demanded “significant improvements” in reform commitments by the new Leftist government in Athens before it would accept a six-month extension of euro zone funding.
With the 240 billion euro EU-IMF bailout programme due to expire in about a week, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras voiced confidence of an agreement despite the objections to the request made in a letter to Dijsselbloem.

In a veiled attack on suggestions made by the government-appointed Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC) panel for overhaul of financial sector laws, Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan, said the country should not end up in ‘Appellate Raj’ after escaping the ‘License Permit Raj.’
The comments assume significance in the wake of the high-profile FSLRC having suggested creating a single appellate authority for all financial sector watchdogs, including the RBI.
The proposal, which was aimed at providing checks and balances for decisions made by the regulators, has been hanging fire for a long time due to opposition from various quarters, including the RBI.