30 April 2015 Current Affairs
Lok Sabha Passed Finance Bill 2015
The Lok Sabha passed the Finance Bill, 2015 by a voice vote on 30 April. As many as 41 amendments moved by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley were passed, including for tax relief to foreign investors with income from securities transactions, royalties and technical service exempted from the contentious minimum alternative tax (MAT).
India Ranks 13th In Generating Electricity From Nuclear Source
India stands at the 13th place world-wide in generating electricity from nuclear source and expects to increase the installed nuclear power capacity from 5,780 MW to 10,080 MW by 2019. This information was given by Minister of State (MoS) Dr Jitendra Singh in written reply in the Rajya Sabha to an unstarred question.The ranking was based upon the data published by Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2014.
Two Indians Won Whitley Awards For Wildlife Conservation
Two Indians have been awarded with the prestigious Whitley Awards for their contribution to wildlife conservation. Dr Ananda Kumar, a conservationist from India, was awarded the prize, in honour of his work using innovative communication systems to enable human-elephant coexistence in southern India. Another winner of the Whitley Award, dubbed ‘Green Oscar’ is Dr Pramod Patil. He has been awarded for his work to protect the iconic great Indian bustard in the Thar Desert. The awards were presented at a ceremony in Royal Geographical Society, London. The winners of the award received a Whitley prize worth 35000 pound.
India Extends E-Tourist Visa Scheme To 31 More Countries
India will provide e-tourist visa to 31 more countries, including France and Canada, enabling the citizens of these nations easy entry to the country. The e-tourist visa had been launched in November 2014 for 45 countries from nine designated Indian airports. With the latest addition, the total number of countries under this scheme will go up to 76. According to reports, the scheme will be extended to more countries in a phased manner.Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre further intends to extend the scheme to 150 countries by the end of this fiscal year.