PUNJAB
- Punjab History : Ancient Empires
Persian domination
- The western parts of ancient Gandhara and Kamboja (kingdoms of Greater Punjab) lay at the eastern edge of the Persian Empire. Both these ancient kingdoms fell prey to Persia either during the reign of the semi-legendary Achaemenid, or of Cyrus the Great (558-530 BCE), or in the first year of the reign of Darius I (521 BC – 486 BCE). The upper Indus region comprised of Gandhara and Kamboja formed the 7th satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire, while the lower and middle Indus comprised of Sindhu and Sauvira constituted the 20th satrapy. They are reported to have contributed 170 and 360 talents of gold dust in annual tribute.
- The ancient Greeks also had some knowledge of the area. Darius I appointed the Greek Scylax of Caryanda to explore the Indian Ocean from the mouth of the Indus to Suez. Scylax provides an account of this voyage in his book Peripulus. Hecataeus (500 BCE) and Herodotus (483-431 BCE) also wrote about the Indian Satrapy of the Persians. In ancient Greek maps, we find mention of the “mightiest river of all the world”, called the Indos (Indus), and its tributaries, the Hydaspes (Jhelum), Akesines (Chenab), Hydraotis (Ravi), Hesidros (Sutlej) and Hyphasis (Beas).
INTERNATIONAL
- World Heritage Day 2019: 18 April
- World Heritage Day is celebrated every year on April 18.
- The day is also known as the International Day for Monuments and Sites.
- The day is celebrated to raise awareness about the diversity of cultural heritage, monuments and their relevance.
- The theme for 2019 is ‘Rural Landscapes’.
- Sri Lanka’s 1st satellite ‘Raavana-1’ launched into space
- Sri Lanka’s first satellite ‘Raavana-1’ was launched into space from NASA’s Flight Facility on Virginia’s east shore.
- ‘Raavana 1’ weights around 1.05 kg and the lifespan of the satellite is around one and a half years.
- The launch marks Sri Lanka’s entry into the global space age.
- The satellite was designed and built at the Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan by two Sri Lankan research engineers.
- Nepal launched its first satellite NepaliSat-1 from US
- Developed by the Nepalese scientists, NepaliSat-1satellite was launched from Virginia in United States.
- NepaliSat-1 is a low orbit satellite which will be in the 400-km distance from the Earth’s surface.
- It will be stationed at the International Space Station (ISS) for a month and then it will be sent to orbit the earth.
- The satellite will take photographs on a regular basis to gather geographical informationof the country.
- Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) has invested nearly Rs 20 million for the satellite that weighs 1.3 kilograms, a small satellite with limited capability.
NATIONAL
- Indian Navy launches Guided-missile destroyer ‘Imphal’
- The Indian Navy launched guided missile destroyer ‘Imphal’ at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders in Mumbai.
- Imphal is the third ship to be launched under a project in which ships are built to carry and operate two multiple role helicopters.
- Enhanced stealth features have been achieved through the shaping of hull and use of radar transparent deck fittings which make the ships difficult to detect.
- Income Tax Department Proposes New Rules To Tax MNCs And Digital Firms In India
- The income tax department altered the method for taxing multinational companies (MNCs) and digital firms with a permanent establishment in India by taking into account various factors like domestic sales, employee (manpower and wages) strength, assets and user base.
- In ‘Profit Attribution to Permanent Establishment (PE) in India’ report, theCBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) Committee stated that MNCs that are suffering global losses or a global profit margin of less than 2% and have their operations in India will be considered to have made a profit of 2% of Indian revenue and will be taxed accordingly.
- The committee has altered the system to protect India’s revenue interests.
The CBDT invited comments from stakeholders on the report within 30 days.
An MNC that has a fixed place of business in India is considered to have a Permanent Establishment (PE) in India and is taxed as per the domestic laws.
- RBI became the first Asia-Pacific central bank to begin interest rate easing cycle
- According to Fitch Ratings – APAC (Asia-Pacific) sovereign credit overview report, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the first central bank in the Asia Pacific regionto begin an explicit interest rate easing cycle buoyed by benign food inflation and easier global financial condition.
- The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), headed by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, cut rates in February and April citing prospects of benign inflation. In the four months of 2019, the RBI has cut policy interest ratestwice by25 per cent each to one-year low of 6 per cent.
- This is the first back-to-back rate cut since the MPC was formed in late 2016.
Fitch has a ‘BBB-‘, the lowest investment grade, rating on India, with a stable outlook. - Fitch estimates India to grow at 8 per centin current fiscal 2019 and 7.1 per cent in 2020.
- Abhishek Verma won gold in 10m Air Pistol at ISSF World Cup
- Abhishek Vermawon the 10m air pistol gold medal at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup at Beijing, China. He clinched the top spot with a total score of 242.7. Russia’s Artem Chernousov took silver. His brilliant performance in the Shooting World Cup Final also secured a fifth Olympic quota for India.
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