India and World Current Affairs February 2017

India and World Current Affairs February 2017

India and Singapore Signed Third Protocol for Amending the DTAA

• India and Singapore amended the Double Taxation Aviodance Agreement (DTAA) for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income, by signing a Third Protocol on December 31, 2016.
• This is in line with India’s treaty policy to prevent double non-taxation, curb revenue loss and check the menace of black money through automatic exchange of information, as reflected in India’s recently revised treaties with Mauritius and Cyprus and the joint declaration signed with Switzerland.
• The Protocol for amendment of the India-Mauritius Convention provides for source-based taxation of capital gains arising from alienation of shares acquired from April 1, 2017 in a company resident in India.

India Eased Visa Process for Bangladeshis

• In-a bid to ease the procurement of Indian tourist visas for Bangladeshis, India will now allow those with confirmed travel tickets to submit their visa applications directly without prior appointments on December 29, 2016.
• India will allow all Bangladesh travellers with confirmed air, train or bus tickets to submit their tourist visa applications without e-token or prior appointment dates from January 1, 2017.

Indus Waters Treaty Processed Initiated by India, Pakistan Paused by World Bank

• The World Bank has paused the separate processes initiated by India the waters of the river Indus to allow the two countries to consider alternative ways to resolve their disagreements.
• This pause was announced to protect the Indus Waters Treaty and to help India and Pakistan consider alternative approaches to resolving conflicting interests under the treaty and its application to two hydroelectric power plants.
• The Indus Waters Treaty is water-distribution treaty between India and Pakistan, brokered by the World Bank the treaty was signed in Karachi on September 19, 1960 by Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru and President of Pakistan Ayub Khan.
• Those who already have appointment dates can continue to submit their tourist visa applications in centres at Gulshan, Uttara, Motijheel, Mymensingh, Barisal, Khulna, Jessore, Rangpur, Rajshahi, Chittagong and Sylhet.
• It will allow walk-in visa application facility for women travellers and their immediate family members has been very successful.

India and Bhutan Signed MoU for Green Construction

• India on December 28, 2016 signed an agreement with Bhutan for assistance in green and sustainable construction of infrastructure in the Himalayan kingdom.
• Under the MoU for bilateral technical cooperation in infrastructure engineering, the CPWD will assist in promoting sustainability in the built environment, capacity building through training of Bhutanese manpower, bench-marking in building and road sectors besides deputing engineering experts to Bhutan.
• An MoU was signed between Central Public Works Department (CPWD), under India’s Ministry of Urban Development and the Department of Engineering Services, under Bhutan’s Ministry of Works and Human Settlements for the purpose in Thimpu.

India Surpassed United Kingdom to become 5th Largest Economy

• India’s status as the world’s fastest growing economy seems to be paying-off, as the country on December 20, 2016 surpassed its colonial masters, the United Kingdom, to become the world’s sixth-largest economy in GDP terms.
• The result is a symbol of India’s rapid economic growth and, conversely, the UK’s post-Brexit slump, which propelled it to the sixth position.
• Following the change in the rankings, India’s economy stands behind the USA, China, Japan, Germany and France. During the year, India surpassed China as the world’s fastest-growing economy.

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