The International Day of Human Space Flight is celebrated on April 12. The day is celebrated to honour the first person, Yuri Gagarin, to go to space. The day is also dedicated to the beginning of the space era for mankind, the contribution of space science and technology, and ensuring to conservation of outer space for peaceful purposes.
On April 7, 2011, the United Nations General Assembly finalised April 12 as the day. On October 4, 1957, a human-made satellite named, Sputnik I, was sent to space. This was the first ever human effort to explore space. After understanding the technologies, on April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin from the Soviet Union became first human to travel around the earth in space.
On June 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first person on Earth to set foot on Moon
Private sector lender RBL Bank appointed Murali Ramakrishnan as Non-Executive Independent Director with immediate effect for four years as per the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and SEBI Listing Regulations, subject to the approval of the shareholders of the Bank. In terms of Section 149(13) of the Companies Act, 2013.
Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM) and Shell India Markets (SIMPL) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on establishing new public charging stations across India.
The collaboration will leverage Shell's existing network of fuel stations and data from Tata Passenger on how people charge their Tata electric vehicles (EVs).
This collaboration is expected to address the challenge of limited charging infrastructure, which is a major hurdle for the wider adoption of electric vehicles in India. This will enable them to strategically place chargers where they are most needed. The agreement also includes exploring the development of user-friendly payment systems and loyalty programmes.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) upgraded India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for 2024-25 (FY25) to 7 per cent from 6.7 per cent earlier, citing better prospects of robust public and private investment and strong services sector growth. The forecast is part of the latest edition of ADB’s flagship economic publication, Asian Development Outlook April 2024.
The ADB’s projection is in line with the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) estimate of 7 per cent growth in FY25. The RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee last week said an expected normal south-west monsoon should support agricultural activity.
French carmaker Citroën became the first multinational car manufacturer in India to export domestically made electric vehicles to the international market. The company announced the commencement of exports of locally manufactured ë-C3. Initial shipment of 500 units of the Made-in-India Citroën ë-C3 to Indonesia was ceremonially flagged from Kamarajar Port
The Board of Directors of Suryoday Small Finance Bank have appointed Deepak Kumar Sharma as an Additional Director on the Board of the Bank, with effect from April 11, 2024. It is the basis of the recommendation of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee and subject to the approval of Shareholders of the Bank, is for a period of five consecutive years.
State-owned banks beat their private-sector peers, posting the highest gains in their market capitalisation in Q4 FY24, on the back of improved financial metrics. The government’s focus on long-term projects also largely benefits state-owned lenders, S&P Market Intelligence said in a note.
15 of the 20 largest banks in India logged gains in market capitalisation, with 13 of them posting double-digit increases. Market capitalisation of all PSU banks, on the list of the country’s 20 largest banks, improved from the previous quarter. Indian Overseas Bank led the country’s 20 largest banks with a 38.5% sequential increase in market cap to ₹1.13-lakh crore.
Punjab & Sind Bank and Bank of Maharashtra ranked second and third, with gains of 38.4 per cent and 38.1 per cent, respectively. On the other hand, only ICICI Bank and Yes Bank saw an improvement among private banks, posting single digit growth in market capitalisation.
Sushil Sharma has been appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director of SJVN Limited (formerly known as Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam). Currently serving as Director (Projects) at the company, he was recommended for this role by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) out of a total of nine candidates.
SJVN Limited, a Mini Ratna, Category-I and Schedule – ‘A’ CPSE under administrative control of Ministry of Power, Govt. of India, was incorporated on May 24, 1988, as a joint venture of the Government of India (GOI) and the Government of Himachal Pradesh (GOHP).
Gagandeep Kang, Director, Enteric, Diagnostics, Genomics and Epidemiology, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, was awarded the 2024 John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award given for scientifically based research that has improved the health and well-being of those facing health inequities worldwide.
The Gairdner Foundation announced the 2024 laureates of the Canada Gairdner International Award, John Dirks Canada Global Health Award and the Canada Gairdner Momentum Award. Dr. Kang’s work focused on enteric diseases in children in India and throughout the world.
An international team of researchers has compiled the 'World Cybercrime Index' that ranks roughly 100 countries and identifies key hotspots according to various categories of cybercrime, including ransomware, credit card theft and scams. India ranked number 10 in cybercrime, with frauds involving people to make advance fee payment being the most common type.
Russia topped the list, and was followed by Ukraine, China, the US, Nigeria and Romania. North Korea was at the seventh position, while the UK and Brazil were at the eighth and ninth positions, respectively, according to the research published in the journal PLoS ONE.
The major categories that the researchers identified were - technical products and services such as malware and compromising systems; attacks and extortion including ransomware; data and identity theft including hacking, compromising accounts and credit cards; scams such as advance fee fraud; and cashing out or money laundering involving illegitimate virtual currency.
India has signed a protocol amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) with Mauritius to plug treaty abuse for tax evasion or avoidance. In the amended protocol, Article 27B has been introduced in the treaty defining the ‘entitlement to benefits’. The amendment to the India-Mauritius treaty was signed on March 7 at Port Louis and was made public recently.
The amended pact has included what is called the Principal Purpose Test (PPT), which essentially lays out the condition that the tax benefits under the treaty will not be applicable if it is established that obtaining that duty benefit was the principal purpose of any transaction or arrangement.
Mauritius has been a preferred jurisdiction for investments in India due to the non-taxability of capital gains from the sale of shares in Indian companies until 2016. The treaty was last amended in May 2016 allowing the right to tax capital gains arising from sale or transfer of shares of an Indian company acquired by a Mauritian tax resident.
The DTAA was a major reason for a large number of foreign portfolio investors (FPI) and foreign entities to route their investments in India through Mauritius. Mauritius remains India’s fourth largest source of FPI investments, after the US, Singapore, and Luxembourg.
A Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) is a pact signed by two nations that encourages capital investment, trade in goods and services, and other economic activities between the two nations by preventing International Double Taxation.
The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) announced a USD 200 million (about Rs 1,660 crore) investment in digital infrastructure player Ibus Network and Infrastructure. Ibus will be deploying the funds to scale operations in an organic way by expanding its capacities and for inorganic growth.
