Current Affairs 28th November 2017

Current Affairs 28th November 2017 - Important Points

• Meredith Corporation to acquire Time Inc. for USD 2.8 billion, declared on  - 27th November 2017
• Former DEA Secretary Shaktikanta Das appointed as - India’s G 20 Sherpa
•  India, Russia signed anti-terror agreement on - 27th November 2017
• 15th Finance Commission constituted under the chairmanship of NK Singh on - 27th November 2017
• Karen Pierce appointed as Britain's Ambassador to UN on - 27th November 2017

Current Affairs 28th November 2017 - Details

Meredith Corporation to acquire Time Inc. for USD 2.8 billion, declared on  - 27th November 2017

United States media company Meredith Corporation on 27th November 2017 declared to acquire Time Inc., the publisher of Sports Illustrated and Fortune magazines, against USD 2.8 billion in all-cash deal.
Meredith will spend USD 18.50 for per share of Time Inc. that totals at about USD 1.85 billion. However, Time Inc.'s account will raise the total value of the agreement to about USD 2.8 billion.
Out of the total amount, billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch will give USD 650 million via their private-equity firm Koch Equity Development.
The business deal has been unanimously accepted by the Boards of Directors of Meredith and Time Inc. The deal is supposed to close during the 1st quarter of year 2018.

Key Benefits of Meredith-Time Inc. Deal

• Beyond limits, Meredith's media brands will now have a readership of 135 million and paid circulation of nearly 60 million with prime positions in celebrity, news and sports, parenting, food, lifestyle, home content creation, beauty, fashion and luxury advertising categories.
• With this deal, Meredith looks forward for a powerful political advertising year in 2019. In 2017, Meredith's broadcasting business produced record revenues and profit.
• It will hold Meredith in the list of Top 10 digital media companies with 170 million distinctive monthly visitors in the US, over 10 billion annual video views and nearly USD 700 million in digital advertising income.
• Meredith will be profited from fast-growing digital advertising platforms such as shopper marketing, video, programmatic and social platform.
• The deal is supposed to boost the free cash flow in the 1st full year of operations.
• Meredith's Local Media Group contains 17 television stations that reach more than 11% of US households, with 7 stations in the country's Top 25 including Atlanta, Phoenix, St Louis and Portland and 13 in Top 50 areas.
• While, Meredith's National Media Group attain 110 million women every month, including more than 70% of US Millennial women.

Former DEA Secretary Shaktikanta Das appointed as - India’s G 20 Sherpa

Former Secretary Shaktikanta Das in Department of Economic Affairs has been assigned as India’s G 20 Sherpa till December 31st, 2018 for the Development Track of the G20.
The conclusion came from the government as a result of suggestion from the Former Niti Aayog vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look for a full-time Sherpa for G20 talks as India's role is increasing in the global arena.
Panagariya was assigned India's Sherpa for the G20 talks in September 2015. He had been selected after the then railway minister Suresh Prabhu.

Sherpas in G20
Sherpas are spokespersons of leaders of G20 member Nations, coordinate on the program of the summit.
There are 2 tracks in G 20- Development Track and Finance Track. Development Track is managed by the Sherpa and the Finance Track is coordinated by the Secretary (Economic Affairs) as India’s Deputy to G 20. The Department of Economic Affairs will give required support to the Sherpa.
As per rules, the deputy chairman of the erstwhile Planning Commission is assigned to be the Sherpa for G20 talks.
During the planning commission working time, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former deputy chairman of Planning Commission was Sherpa for G20 talks.

G-20
The G20, a central council for international cooperation on economic and financial topics, home to almost two-thirds of the world's population and is responsible for more than four-fifths of gross world product.

The governments and the central bank governors from Argentina, Germany, India, Canada, China, France, Australia, Brazil, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, Mexico, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, United States, and the European Union are the members of G20.

During 2009 and 2010, the leaders of the G20 Nations met half-yearly at G20 summits. But, Since Cannes summit in November 2011, all G20 summits have been planned annually.

 India, Russia signed anti-terror agreement on - 27th November 2017

India and Russia signed an accordance  on 27th November 2017 to help each other in fighting terrorism. The accordance was signed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Russia's Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev in Moscow after they did wide-ranging talks.
This new agreement between India and Russia will take the place of the October 1993 accordance between both the Nations. This accordance will help in increasing and deepening cooperation on problems related to internal security.
The diplomats emphasized the strength of the relationship between Russia and India during the assembly that has been reinforced in the more than past 70 years in all fields.

Joint Action Plan between India and Russia

• Indian and Russian diplomats also signed a combined action plan for answering the threat posed by narcotics. This accordance will provide legal framework for bilateral cooperation in this area.
• The joint action plan was signed by Indian ambassador to Russia Pankaj Saran and Deputy Minister for Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation Igor Zubov.
• This is an improved and more comprehensive accordance for help in security related issues, including information technology crimes, illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic products, counterfeiting currency, human trafficking, economic crimes, etc.
• The relationship between India and Russia includes almost all areas of cooperation like political relations, security, military and technical field, trade and economy, energy, cultural and humanitarian exchanges, foreign policy, scientific, foreign policy and cultural and humanitarian inter-changes.

15th Finance Commission constituted under the chairmanship of NK Singh on - 27th November 2017

The Union Government on 27th November 2017 formed 15th Finance Commission under the chairmanship of earlier bureaucrat NK Singh. The Commission will make recommendations for 5 years beginning on 1st April 2020.
Formed under clause (1) of article 280 of the Indian Constitution, the commission came into existence with the approval President Ram Nath Kovind.
The other associates of the 15th Finance Commission are Shaktikanta Das, former Secretary to Union Government and Anoop Singh, Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University.
While, the Chairman of Bandhan Bank Ashok Lahiri and Member of NITI Aayog Ramesh Chand will be the Part time associates of the Commission. Arvind Mehta will be the Secretary to the Commission.
The Commission will present its report by 30th October 2019.

Terms of Reference of 15th Finance Commission-

• It will form recommendations on the allocation of net proceeds of taxes between Centre and States.
• It will advocate the principles which will govern the grants-in-aid of the revenues of the States out of the Consolidated Fund of India.
• It will advocate measures required to increase the Consolidated Fund of a State to supplement the resources of the Panchayats and Municipalities on behalf of the recommendations given by the State Finance Commission.
• It will analyze the current status of the finance, deficit, debt levels, remaining cash and fiscal discipline efforts of the Centre and the States and advocate a fiscal consolidation roadmap for sound fiscal management.
• It will take care of the resources of the Central Government and the State Governments for the 5 years commencing on 1st April 2020 on the ideas of the levels of tax and the non-tax revenues.
• It will look at the impact of GST, along with payment of compensation for possible revenues loss for five years and abolition of cesses and other structural reforms program on the Centre and States finances.
• It may analyze the current arrangements on financing Disaster Management initiatives; with sources to the funds constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and offer appropriate recommendations thereon.
• It will specify the basis on which it has reached at its findings and make available the State-wise approximates of receipts and expenditure.
• The Commission can also utilize the population data of 2011 while making their recommendations.
  15th Finance Commission to propose performance-based incentives for States
• The fifteenth Finance Commission may suggest measurable performance-based incentives for States in following sectors:
  Efforts done by the States under GST
• Efforts and advancement made in moving towards replacement rate of population growth
• Achievements in execution of schemes of Government
• Progress made by encouraging digital economy
• Progress made in encouraging ease of doing business
• Progress made in solid waste management and bringing in behavioral change to eradicate open defecation.

Karen Pierce appointed as Britain's Ambassador to UN on - 27th November 2017

Karen Pierce was on 27th November 2017 authorized as Britain's Ambassador to the United Nations with effect from January 2018. Pierce succeeds mandatory Matthew Rycroft, who has been serving the position since 2015.
With this appointment, Pierce became the 1st woman to be authorized to this role. Earlier, she served as Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva and had worked as Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York as well.
Britain's Permanent Mission to the UN did not provide any reason for appointing Pierce as new Ambassador to UN.
The appointment of new Ambassador came after the defeat of Britain against India in the past election to the International Court of Justice.
Britain's judge Christopher Greenwood was unsuccessful to make it to the International Court of Justice at the hands of India's Judge Dalveer Bhandari, who consistently got nearly two-third of the votes in the UN General Assembly.
This is for the 1st time in 70 years that Britain will have no judge in the 15-member board of the International Court of Justice.