By: D.K Chaudhary
1. India-ASEAN Business & Investment Conference Held in New Delhi
i. India-ASEAN business and investment conference held in New Delhi ahead of the landmark commemorative summit meeting on the 25th of January. In the conference, Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu stresses enhanced connectivity via land to strengthen trade ties.
ii. Silver jubilee of India-ASEAN partnership is being celebrated in New Delhi on the 25th January with an unprecedented summit meet.
- ASEAN Secretariat- Jakarta, Indonesia.
- The Secretary-General of ASEAN 2018 -2022 is H.E. Lim Jock Hoi.
2. Andhra Pradesh-Zurich Sign Sister State Agreement
i. The Andhra Pradesh Government and the Canton of Zurich signed a letter of intent, to promote mutual prosperity and development.
ii. This will bring the State of Andhra Pradesh and Canton of Zurich closer and ensure that a framework is created, which supports the exchange between both the parties.
- Andhra Pradesh Governor- ESL Narasimhan.
- Zurich is the capital of Canton of Zurich
3. AYUSH Minister Lays Foundation Stone for Homeopathy Research Institute in Jaipur
i. The Minister of State (IC), for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik laid the foundation stone for Central Research Institute (CRI) in Jaipur, Rajasthan. This will be the third CRI under the aegis of Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH).
ii. In his address during the stone laying ceremony, Sh. Naik stated that Ministry of AYUSH is determined towards a focused infrastructural push to Homoeopathy and other systems of AYUSH.
- AYUSH- Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy.
- The Ministry of AYUSH was formed on 9th November 2014.
4. India, 5th Most Attractive Market for Investments: PwC Survey
5. ONGC Acquires 51.11% Stake in HPCL
i. India has emerged as the fifth most attractive market for investments and the optimism over global economic growth is at a record level, as per the survey of CEOs by global consultancy PwC.
ii. The US remains the top spot for global investment. Around 46% of global CEOs consider the US as one of the three most important countries for growth, followed by China (33%) and Germany (20%) at second and third places, respectively.
5. ONGC Acquires 51.11% Stake in HPCL
i. The Public Sector exploration giant Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has got the consent for acquiring controlling stake in fellow PSU Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL). The transaction will be for Rs36,915 crore.
ii. According to a statement issued by ONGC, it has entered into a share purchase agreement with the President of India for acquiring the shares of HPCL (representing 51.11% of HPCL).
- Chairman & Managing Director of ONGC- Shashi Shanker, Headquarters- Uttarakhand.
- Chairman and Managing Director HPCL- M.K.Surana, Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra.
