April Current Affairs 2010

·        The World Bank has agreed to give USD 1 billion loan to India for various developmental projects in urban areas. "World Bank has agreed in principle to give us USD 1 billion (Rs 5000 crore) for implementing various schemes under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM),".

·        India and Bangladesh decided to set up a joint Sundarbans Eco-System Forum to protect and preserve the world heritage site from the impact of climate change.

·        In a significant step in taking their bilateral relations to a new level, India and China have signed an agreement to establish a hotline between Prime Ministers of the two countries. 

·        President Barack Obama has appointed Chandigarh-born Srinija Srinivasan, 40, one of the three co-founders of Yahoo! Inc, as a member of the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars.

·        Government appointed former BSF Director General E N Rammohan to inquire into the circumstances leading to the ambush by Naxalites in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh in which 75 CRPF men were killed.

·        With the wealth gap widening between the rich and poor following opening up of its economy, China is considering to levy social security tax in an effort to narrow the gap in income distribution.

·        Assam government launched an ambitious scheme aimed at uplifting the economic condition of elderly women living below poverty line. The two schemes -- 'Baideu' (elder sister) and 'Nabou' (sister-in-law) -- under the social welfare department were formally launched by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

·        Targeting to provide electricity to about 3,000 villages in remote areas by using solar power, Orissa government said it would spend Rs 200 crore for the project.

·        Taking its anti-smoking drive forward, the government on Thursday banned foreign direct investment (FDI) in cigarette manufacturing in the country.

·        Analjit Singh, the founder and chairman of Max India, a diversified business group with interests in healthcare, IT services, and financial services, is India's highest individual taxpayer. He paid advance tax of Rs 99.7 crore (Rs 997 million). Asim Ghosh, the former CEO of Vodafone Essar, is the second-highest taxpayer in India in 2009-10. He paid an advance tax of Rs 75.4 crore (Rs 754 million) this year, as compared to Rs 7.2 crore (Rs 72 million) in 2008-09. Indrani Patnaik who paid advance tax of Rs 75 crore (Rs 750 million) is the nation's third highest taxpayer.

·        The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) hosted first-ever carbon-neutral match between Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians clashed in the Indian Premier League tournament.

·        Uttar Pradesh government has banned display of elephants and other wild animals at public places, including in rallies and religious gatherings, and violators would attract a maximum sentence of a three-year imprisonment and fine.

·        Iran's atomic chief said that Tehran has successfully tested a third generation of centrifuges capable of enriching uranium six times faster than those presently installed at its Natanz plant.

·        Arjun Bajpayee, who at 16 hopes to become the youngest climber in the world to scale the world's tallest summit, 8,848 metre high Mount Everest, has left for the region to start his ascent.

·        Making a breakthrough in the US, Reliance Industries said it will invest USD 1.7 billion in a joint venture with Atlas Energy Inc to produce gas from shale, sedimentary rocks, in Marcellus region.