Endeavor Careers Choicest Blogs: Weekly Current Affairs: March 2022, Week 01

Welcome to the Endeavor Editors’ Weekly Current Affairs Choicest Blog series. Get a weekly roundup – on news from business, economy, markets, policy, and more. A quick capsule format news summary and update to keep you abreast with all the latest current affairs.

1) International News and Global Economy

Europe’s largest nuclear power station shelled by Russia in Ukraine – BBC News

World leaders have accused Russia of endangering the safety of an entire continent after its forces shelled a nuclear power station in southern Ukraine.A fire broke out at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant – the largest in Europe – after it was attacked by Russia.Authorities say the facility is now safe and radiation levels are normal.But UK Prime Minister Boris Jonson said the “reckless” attack could “directly threaten the safety of all of Europe”.US President Joe Biden urged Moscow to stop its military activities around the site, while Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the “horrific attacks” from Russia “must cease immediately”. All three leaders spoke to Ukraine’s President Zelensky by phone.

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Explainer: How dangerous was Russia’s nuclear plant strike?

Europe’s largest nuclear power plant was hit by Russian shelling early Friday, sparking a fire and raising fears of a disaster that could affect all of central Europe for decades, like the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown. Concerns faded after Ukrainian authorities announced that the fire had been extinguished, and while there was damage to the reactor compartment, the safety of the unit was not affected.But even though the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is of a different design than Chernobyl and is protected from fire, nuclear safety experts and the International Atomic Energy Agency warn that waging war in and around such facilities presents extreme risks.One major concern, raised by Ukraine’s state nuclear regulator, is that if fighting interrupts power supply to the nuclear plant, it would be forced to use less-reliable diesel generators to provide emergency power to operating cooling systems. A failure of those systems could lead to a disaster similar to that of Japan’s Fukushima plant, when a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 destroyed cooling systems, triggering meltdowns in three reactors.The consequence of that, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, would be widespread and dire.

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Russian forces pound civilians, as Putin likens sanctions to a ‘Declaration of War’

President Vladimir Putin warned that crippling economic sanctions imposed by the West were “akin to a declaration of war,” as the Russian military pummelled civilian targets and continued shelling near the first protected routes intended to allow besieged Ukrainians to flee, apparently violating a cease-fire that had been agreed to only hours earlier.As fighting raged across Ukraine, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Saturday became the first international leader to meet with Putin in Moscow since the start of the fighting. No details emerged from their discussion, but a spokesperson for Bennett said that he had also spoken with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine after his meeting with Putin.Putin, in his first extended remarks since the start of the war, threatened to fully absorb Ukraine, the former Soviet republic of nearly 44 million people that declared its independence 30 years ago.

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Volodymyr Zelenskyy pushes call for ‘Ukraine no-fly zone’ in likely bid to involve foreign militaries

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is pushing his call for foreign countries to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.Establishing a no-fly zone would risk escalating the conflict by involving foreign militaries directly. Although the United States and many Western countries have backed Ukraine with weapons shipments, they have sent no troops.Zelenskyy said in a video address on Sunday that the world is strong enough to close our skies.” NATO countries have ruled out policing a no-fly zone, which would bar all unauthorised aircraft from flying over Ukraine.Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that Moscow would consider any third-party declaration of a no-fly zone over Ukraine as participation in the armed conflict.

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Ukrainian refugees near 1.5 million as Russian assault enters 11th day

The number of Ukrainian refugees was expected to reach 1.5 million on Sunday as Russia continued its attack 11 days after invading Ukraine and Kyiv pressed for further Western action, including more sanctions and weapons.Moscow and Kyiv traded blame over a failed ceasefire on Saturday that would have let civilians flee Mariupol and Volnovakha, two southern cities besieged by Russian forces. Ukrainians who could escape spilled into neighbouring Poland, Romania, Slovakia and elsewhere.Ukrainian negotiators said a third round of talks with Russia on a ceasefire would go ahead on Monday, although Moscow was less definitive.

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Moody’s cuts Russia rating further into junk to ‘Ca’, cites rise in default risk

Moody’s cut Russia’s credit rating to Ca on Sunday, the second-lowest rung of its ratings ladder, citing central bank capital controls that are likely to restrict payments on the country’s foreign debt and lead to default.Moody’s said its decision to cut Russia’s rating was “driven by severe concerns around Russia’s willingness and ability to pay its debt obligations”.Russia’s economy has been plunged into crisis as a result of harsh sanctions imposed by the West which include freezing assets of the central bank held overseas and severing several Russian banks from the SWIFT international payments systems.

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Russian Economy Rattled: Moody’s, Fitch Slash Ratings to Junk

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Visa, Mastercard suspend operations in Russia over Ukraine invasion

U.S. payments firms Visa Inc (V.N) and Mastercard Inc on Saturday said they were suspending operations in Russia over the invasion of Ukraine, and that they would work with clients and partners to cease all transactions there.Within days, all transactions initiated with Visa cards issued in Russia will no longer work outside of the country and any Visa cards issued outside of Russia will no longer work within the country, the company said.The move by the payments firms could mean more disruption for Russians who are bracing for an uncertain future of spiraling inflation, economic hardship and an even sharper squeeze on imported goods.

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Mastercard, Visa suspend Russia operations; Russian banks turn to China’s UnionPay

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Anti-money-laundering body puts UAE on global ”gray” list

The decision late Friday night by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force puts the UAE, home to Dubai and oil-rich Abu Dhabi, on a list of 23 countries including fellow Mideast nations Jordan, Syria and Yemen.While not expected to dent business in the Emirates, a federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula home to a multitude of economic free zones and real estate ventures, it could strike at the country’s carefully managed business-friendly image.Ratings agencies and other financial institutions also consider such a listing as a risk, which can affect interest rates for loans.While praising the UAE’s “significant progress,” the body known as Financial Action Task Force (FATF) said more needed to be done.

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Islamic State claims responsibility for Shia mosque attack in Pakistan

Pakistan’s Interior Minister on Saturday vowed to arrest the masterminds behind a deadly suicide attack claimed by the Islamic State terror group on a crowded Shia mosque during Friday prayers here that killed at least 62 people and injured nearly 200 others.A suicide bomber, belonging to the ISIS-Khorasan, blew himself up inside a mosque in Qissa Khwani bazaar in Peshawar, capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on Friday, in one of the deadliest attacks in the restive region, bordering Afghanistan.The last major terrorist attack was also carried out in a mosque in Dir Colony on Oct 27, 2020, killing eight students and injuring around 120 injured as a timed device went off on the premises, where a large number of seminarians were attending a class.Friday’s attack was the biggest terrorist activity in Peshawar.

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Iran hopes for understanding with IAEA to resolve nuclear issues

Iran hopes to resolve all outstanding issues with the visiting UN nuclear chief, a senior Iranian official told state TV on Saturday, in the latest push to secure the revival of a 2015 nuclear deal between the Islamic Republic and world powers.Tehran and Washington have held more than 11 months of indirect talks in Vienna on reviving the pact, which limited Iran’s enrichment of uranium to make it harder for Tehran to develop material for nuclear weapons, in return for a lifting of economic sanctions.International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi, who arrived in Tehran late on Friday, will hold talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian before returning to Vienna in the afternoon, Kamalvandi said.Grossi’s trip has raised hopes for progress on one of the last thorny issues blocking a deal to revive the nuclear pact abandoned in 2018 by former U.S. President Donald Trump, who also reimposed far-reaching sanctions on Iran.

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2) India

PM Narendra Modi attributes ‘Operation Ganga’ success to India’s growing influence

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attributed the success of the ‘Operation Ganga’ to evacuate citizens stranded in war-torn Ukraine to India’s growing influence in the global arena.“We are evacuating thousands of Indians safely from the war zone through the Operation Ganga,” Modi said after inaugurating the golden jubilee celebration of the Symbiosis University and its Arogyam Dham here.“It is due to India’s growing influence that it has brought thousands of students from the war zone of Ukraine back to their motherland,” he said.Amid the escalating crisis in Ukraine, the Indian government, under the ‘Operation Ganga’, has flown 13,700 citizens – who were stuck in war-hit Ukraine – back to safety by special flights that were started last week, the government had said in a statement on Saturday.

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What is Operation Ganga?

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Ukraine crisis: Aviation Ministry says 8 flights to bring back over 1,500 Indians on Monday

Eight flights with over 1,500 Indians will operate from war-torn Ukraine’s neighbouring countries to India on Monday, the Civil Aviation Ministry stated on Sunday. The Ukrainian airspace has been shut since February 24 due to the Russian military offensive. Indian citizens fleeing Ukraine are being airlifted from its neighbours such as Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland.”Under ‘Operation Ganga’ to rescue Indian citizens, 2,135 Indians have been brought back today (Sunday) by 11 special civilian flights from Ukraine’s neighbouring countries,” the ministry noted in a statement.”Tomorrow, eight special flights are expected to operate from Budapest (five), Suceava (two) and Bucharest (one), bringing more than 1,500 Indians back home,” it mentioned.

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3) Economy

GlobalData cuts Indian economy growth forecast for 2022 amid Russia-Ukraine crisis

GlobalData, a London-based data analytics and consulting company, on Friday said it has lowered India’s economy growth forecast to 7.8 per cent for 2022 due to the nation’s exports being impacted by the Russia-Ukraine war and spiking oil prices causing ripple effects.In a statement, it said rupee is likely to further depreciate against US dollar while soaring commodity prices will push inflation up. However, Indian banking sector will likely remain resilient.”The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war will have a negative impact on India’s exports and spike in oil prices will cause ripple effects on input prices and consumer goods leading to inflationary pressures.”Against this backdrop, GlobalData revises down the country’s economy growth forecast by 0.1 percentage point to 7.8 per cent for 2022,” the statement said.

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Fueling Inflation: Petrol, diesel prices set to rise as Crude to range around $95-125

Hostilities between Russia and Ukraine, along with sustained demand, is expected to keep global crude oil prices in the range of $95-to-$125 per barrel in the short term.Consequently, the geo-political crisis-led global hike in crude oil prices is expected to push India’s domestic prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 15-22 per litre.It is widely expected that the OMCs will revise the current prices on or after March 7, which is the last day of voting in the ongoing state assembly elections. At present, India imports 85 per cent of its crude oil needs. Besides, the cascading effect of higher fuel cost will trigger a general inflationary trend.Already, India’s main inflation gauge — Consumer Price Index (CPI) — which denotes retail inflation, has crossed the target range of the Reserve Bank of India in January.The rise was blamed on high commodities costs. As per industry calculations, a 10 per cent rise in crude oil prices adds nearly about 10 basis points in CPI inflation.

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4) Markets, Banking and Finance

LIC IPO may be postponed to next fiscal year amid Ukraine crisis: Experts

The government is expected to defer the mega initial public offering (IPO) of LIC to the next financial year as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war has dampened fund managers’ interest in the public issue, market experts said on Sunday. The government was looking to sell 5 per cent stake in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) this month, which could have fetched over Rs 60,000 crore to the exchequer.The IPO would have helped meet the curtailed disinvestment target of Rs 78,000 crore this fiscal.”The current geopolitical issue between Russia and Ukraine makes the global equity markets jittery. Indian markets also reacted negatively to this development and corrected nearly 11 per cent from its all time high.”Thus, the current market volatility is not conducive for the LIC IPO and the government is most likely to defer the issue to next fiscal year,” Arijit Malakar, Head of Retail Equity Research, Ashika Group, said.

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NSE Co-location Scam: NSE, SEBI officials accepted bribes; leaked info used in software to give certain brokers unfair advantage, CBI tells special court

The Central Bureau of Investigation on Saturday alleged that officials of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) were bribed to fabricate the findings of an enquiry that was initiated following complaints of irregularities in the National Stock Exchange of India’s co-location facility.The investigating agency claimed that SEBI and NSE officials had received bribes from Sanjay Gupta, Director of OPG Securities, and one of the main accused in the case.CBI’s counsel made these submissions on Saturday before a special CBI court during a hearing on an anticipatory bail plea filed by former NSE MD and CEO Chitra Ramkrishna, The court dismissed the bail plea.

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NSE Co-Location Scam Explained

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5) Business

India looking for mass EV tech tobuild in India: Nitin Gadkari

India is looking for electricity-based technology for mass rapid transportation that is cost effective and such as can be made in the country, Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said.”The ministry plans to undertake the development of ropeways as an alternate transport solution in the hill and congested, urban areas.Some of the US companies have also approached him with the technology, he said in his address on ‘Rebuilding Infrastructure for India 2.0’, a part of ‘Reimagining India 2.0 series’.The government is working on the battery-swapping policy and standards for EV batteries, he said, calling it a huge opportunity for all the technologies as batteries swapping is a completely new sector.

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Rising sun: Renewables to dominate new power capacity through 2026 -IEA

Renewable energy should account for nearly 95% of the increase in power capacity in the world through 2026, a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) showed on Wednesday, with solar power providing more than half the boost.The milestone comes despite rising costs for materials used to make solar panels and wind turbines.New renewable power capacity this year will rise to a second consecutive all-time high in 2021, the Paris-based energy watchdog said in its annual Renewables Market Report.”This year’s record renewable electricity additions of 290 gigawatts are yet another sign that a new global energy economy is emerging,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.

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Lapsus$, the group that hacked Nvidia, goes after Samsung

Ransomware gang Lapsus$, which recently targeted US chipmaker Nvidia, has now posted sensitive data obtained from South Korean giant Samsung’s servers.According to a report by Bleeping Computer, the anonymous group said it managed to breach Samsung servers and published nearly 190GB of sensitive data online, including original source codes for the company’s applications and data related to various projects.In the week gone by, Lapsus$ was also responsible for the massive security breach at Nvidia, which hit back at it.Lapsus demanded that Nvidia push a firmware update to its 30-series graphics processing unit (GPU) that removes the limitations on cryptocurrency mining on the cards.At a market cap of about $600 billion, Nvidia is the most valuable chipmaker in the United States. It is known for its GPUs that enhance videogaming experiences and advanced computer simulations, a Reuters report said.

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6) Technology

India’s low code no code market stands at $400 million, can touch $4 billion by 2025: Nasscom report

Indian IT service providers and startups generated over $400 million in revenues during the fiscal 2021 from low code no code (LCNC) software solutions, found a report by industry body Nasscom. This market can grow to $4 billion by 2025 with the right levers, the report launched in collaboration with IT firm Nagarro said. Almost 70% of the revenue generated by Indian companies from this segment has come from global markets.LCNC is a set of tools that developers can use to build applications in a visual drag-and-drop interface, including a complete user interface, integrations, data management, and logic.LCNC is going to be a disruptive force for the tech industry along with code written by AI, said Manas Fuloria, co-founder Nagarro, speaking at the launch. “Low code/ no code technology has the potential to completely transform the entire face of our industry. The good news is that a lot can be done very efficiently with low code, no code and it becomes easier to unseat old, established solutions and do things in all new innovative ways,” he said.

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CredAvenue raises $137 million, turns unicorn in 18 months

CredAvenue has raised $137 million in a Series B round that values the online debt marketplace at $1.3 billion within 18 months of inception, the fastest a fintech startup has turned a unicorn in the country, the company said on March 6.In a debt-starved market like India, investors have been bullish on CredAvenue which makes it easier for firms to access the debt market to raise funds, secure loans and also helps banks and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) to lend as well as track the loans.The round was led by Insight Partners, B Capital Group, and Dragoneer, with participation from existing investors, the Chennai-based startup said. A unicorn is a privately funded company valued at $1 billion or more.The company is the 11th startup in 2022 to join the unicorn club after the likes of Mamaearth, Dealshare and Xpressbees.

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YouTubers contributed awhopping INR 6,800 Cr to India’s Economy in 2020: Report

Indian YouTubers have contributed more than INR 6,800 Cr to India’s economy in 2020, with YouTube supporting 6,83,900 jobs across the country during the same time, said a report published by Oxford Economics. Since its launch, YouTube India has seen a lot of creators putting up content on the video-sharing platform. These numbers have been consistently rising, and more and more content creators are making their YouTube gigs into full-time careers.With thousands of success stories on the platform, being a YouTuber is fast becoming a lucrative career choice for many individuals in the country, content creators or otherwise.

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7) Politics

Uttar Pradesh Elections | How local and international issues dominate the narrative

The 2022 elections in Uttar Pradesh — held in seven phases and spread over a month — was intended to be a high stake battle. That is because of the larger context of the importance of UP which has 80 of the 543 parliamentary seats. With preparations afoot by the opposition parties to create an alternative to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the results in UP are expected to decide the winning combine for the Lok Sabha elections in 2024.As six phases of voting got over, numerous issues came to the fore putting the BJP in a fix. However, it is also important to note that all through its campaign the BJP has not taken its feet off the pedal; complacency has not set in even in seats and phases where the saffron party had an advantage.

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PM Modi reiterates need to return to path of dialogue, diplomacy at Quad leaders’ summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 3 participated in a virtual summit of Quad leaders, which included United States President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the Prime Minister’s Office has informed.The meeting reviewed the progress on Quad initiatives since the September 2021 Quad Summit and the leaders agreed that there is a need to accelerate cooperation to achieve concrete outcomes by the time the Japan summit is held later this year.At the Quad leaders’ summit, PM Modi underlined that the quad must remain focused on its objective of promoting peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. He also called for concrete forms of cooperation within the Quad in areas such as humanitarian and disaster relief, debt sustainability, supply chains, and capacity-building.

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8) Sports

Australian cricket legend Shane Warne passes away at 52

Australian spin legend Shane Warne has reportedly passed away of a suspected heart attack in Thailand. He was 52.“Shane was found unresponsive in his villa and despite the best efforts of medical staff, he could not be revived,” Warne’s management have confirmed in a statement.Warne, widely regarded as the greatest spinner to play the sport, played 145 Tests for Australia and has 708 wickets- a figure only surpassed by Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan. He also won the 1999 ODI World Cup and 1001 international wickets.The news is the second blow for Australian cricket with fellow great, Rod Marsh, also dying on Friday having suffered a major heart attack last week.

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Mithali Raj becomes first woman cricketer to appear at six Cricket World Cups

One of the game’s finest servants, India captain Mithali Raj on Sunday became only the third cricketer and the first woman to appear in six World Cups, joining the iconic Sachin Tendulkar and Pakistani great Javed Miandad. She achieved the feat as India locked horns with arch-rivals Pakistan in their much-anticipated opening match of the ICC Women’s World Cup at the Bay Oval here. Raj, a 39-year-old veteran of many memorable matches, had made her maiden World Cup appearance in 2000, before playing the event in 2005, 2009, 2013, 2017 and now in 2022. In the women’s game, the Indian batter surpassed former New Zealand cricketer Debbie Hockley and Charlotte Edwards of England.

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India’s esports industry to become a Rs 1100 crore industry by FY25

The total size of India’s esports industry will touch Rs 1100 crore by FY25 and the growth will come on the back of cricket as more and more companies are focusing towards developing the esports ecosystem in India, the country’s apex body for esports the Federation of Electronic Sports Associations of India (FEAI) has said.The FEAI will also soon launch a policy paper that will outline the framework for development of esports in India.FEAI, in partnership with JetSynthesys, is organising a cricket e-gaming championship.“Cricket presents a massive opportunity for growth of Esports in Commonwealth Nations. We are working closely with international bodies such as the British esports Association. We want India to develop its own e-gaming ecosystem and compete at global tournaments with the best of the world,” said Vaibhav Dange, Founding President, FEAI.

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Indian women crush Pakistan by 107 runs, begin World Cup campaign on high note

The Indian team thrashed arch-rivals Pakistan by 107 runs to begin their campaign in the ICC Women’s World Cup on a rousing note here on Sunday, the much-anticipated face-off ending in a no contest.Opting to bat after the coin landed in India’s favour, in-form opener Smriti Mandhana, Sneh Rana and Pooja Vastrakar struck useful half-centuries to help their team recover from an early wobble and post 244 for seven at the Bay Oval.Chasing a tricky target of 245, the Pakistan team fell way short of the mark and was all out for 137 in 43 overs, losing its 11th straight game against neighbours India in the 50-over format.

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Jadeja becomes sixth cricketer to register 150+ score, five wickets in same Test

All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja on Sunday became the sixth cricketer to register a score of 150+ and take five wickets in the same Test.Jadeja achieved the feat on Day 3 of the ongoing first Test against Sri Lanka as he took five wickets in the first innings. Earlier, the left-handed batter played an unbeaten knock of 175 to help India post a 450+ score against Sri Lanka.Earlier, Vinoo Mankad, Denis Atkinson, Polly Umrigar, Gary Sobers and Mushtaq Mohammad had achieved the feat.

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India bowl out Sri Lanka for 174, take first-innings lead of 400

India bowled out Sri Lanka for 174 on the third day of the opening Test to take a mammoth 400-run first-innings lead here on Sunday. Sri Lanka, who resumed at their overnight score of 108 for four, could add only 66 runs for the loss of the remaining six wickets.Pathum Nissanka, who was unbeaten on 61, was the top scorer for the visitors while Charith Asalanka pitched in with 29.

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BCCI announces schedule for TATA IPL 2022; Chennai, Kolkata to clash in opener

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) today announced the schedule for the upcoming TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. A total number of 70 league matches and 4 Playoff games will be played in the duration of 65 days. The 15th season will start on 26th March at the Wankhede stadium with a blockbuster clash between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders.The MCA Stadium in Pune will host its first game

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9) Opinion

The silent rise of Russian power under Putin & why it might’ve hoped to roll over Ukraine

As Russia continues to pursue the Ukraine offensive, understand how Putin made Russia one of the most powerful countries in the world. Watch the video, where Shekhar Gupta explains the unlikely rise of Russia, its leader Putin & breaks down his ideology.

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Sanctions Effect on the Global Economy

Mona Mahajan, Edward Jones Senior Investment Strategist, and Joachim Fels, PIMCO Global Economic Advisor react to the global repercussions to the sanctions imposed on Russia due to the war in Ukraine.

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The War in Ukraine Could Change Everything | Yuval Noah Harari | TED

Historian Yuval Noah Harari provides important context on the Russian invasion, including Ukraine’s long history of resistance, the specter of nuclear war and his view of why, even if Putin wins all the military battles, he’s already lost the war.

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Russia Vs Ukraine War | Naftali Bennett’s urgent meet with Putin shows Israel has alot to Lose

Israel has stepped up efforts to broker an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine, as it treads a cautious line on Europe’s biggest conflict in decades. Israeli PM Naftali Bennett held a three-hour long meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Bennett then called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy before flying to Berlin to meet German Chancellor Olaf Schloz.

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Could the Ukraine invasion spark a global financial crisis?

The Russian assault on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities has intensified uncertainty in the world economy. To condemn Putin’s war, western leaders announced some restrictive economic measures to target Russian financial institution and individuals.In response to these moves, several ratings agencies have either cut Russia’s credit rating to junk status or signalled that they may do so soon. In other words, they think the prospect of Russia defaulting on its debts is higher than before. According to a group of global banks, a default is “extremely likely”.With over US$100 billion of Russian debt in foreign banks, this raises questions about the risks to banks outside Russia – and the potential for a default to kick off a 2008-style liquidity crisis, where banks panic about the state of other banks’ solvency and stop lending to one another.European banks are the most exposed financial institutions to Russia’s new sanctions, specifically those in Austria, France and Italy. Figures from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) show that France and Italy’s banks each have outstanding claims of about US$25 billion on Russian debt, while Austrian banks had US$17.5 billion.

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Is the fight for Future Retail finally coming to an end?

For 18 months, Amazon and Reliance have been locked in a battle for Future Retail Ltd (FRL)?—?the entity that owns and runs Big Bazaar, Nilgiris, fbb, Easyday, Central, and Brand Factory. And while they’ve been tussling over the retail giant for a good 2 years now, the drama may finally be coming to a close as Amazon and Reliance finally agree to sit down and sort their differences.if there is no consensus, Future Retail will continue to bleed money and they will likely be dragged to bankruptcy court. And that would leave shareholders in a lurch.However, if the deal does go through, then shareholders will be left with non-retail assets belonging to Future Enterprise limited. Either way, the hope is that the matter reaches a close by the 15th of March.

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Sino-Russia Ties: Intimacy can breed complications

Russian economic dependency might be a drag on China since it might not exactly be easy for Beijing to convert this to advantages elsewhere. Having refused so far to directly criticise Russia, China can find its space for manoeuvre limited by still greater expectations from Moscow.The Russian invasion of Ukraine creates both a crisis of confidence in the West and an impression of vitality and strength about the Sino-Russian relationship. However, the impression might be just that — there are several existing and potential wrinkles in the ties that can be hard to smoothen.The current Russian campaign might also lead to expectations from elsewhere for China to use its influence to modify Russian behaviour at the risk of suffering some consequences if it did not do so.China has tried to pre-empt this by reminding everyone “whether it is about the most recent situation or the Crimea issue in the past” that it had “always stayed neutral”. Claims have also been made that China’s relations with the United States and European Union were much broader, and so tensions over Ukraine “would not substantively negatively impact” China’s ties with them.

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Geostrategic knot around Black Sea, 3 straits as choke points,Turkey’s bearing on Russia-Ukraine war

In this episode Shekhar Gupta looks at Turkey’s potential role in the Russia-Ukraine war and the importance of the Black Sea route. We also look at the Montreux Convention, Black Sea and non-Black Sea powers, their geo-strategic and geo-tactical importance in the wake of Ukraine war.

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What is Cyber Insurance? – Risk Insurance Policy Explained! | Policybazaar

Tarun Mathur, Co-founder & CBO, Policybazaar.com talks about the importance of cyber insurance and how the digital transformation has increased the risk of cyber attacks. He also further explains why big firms should buy cyber insurance to secure their data.

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10) Weekly special

Exclusive | iD Fresh Food working on multi-pronged US strategy to become a global brand

Last year in September, Bengaluru-based iD Fresh Food India Pvt. Ltd, known for its ready-to-cook offerings, was accused by a social media post of using animal extracts in its products. The company filed a police complaint against the “misleading and false information” with the cybercrime division of the Bengaluru police, and soon, the social media campaign against the brand fizzled out. Founder of the company, P.C. Musthafa, in an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, says this was just one of the many battles he has had to face while building the company. Read the excerpts.

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11) Did you know?

What are War Bonds?

A war bond is a debt security issued by a government to finance military operations during times of war or conflict. Because war bonds offered a rate of return below the market rate, investment was achieved by making emotional appeals to patriotic citizens to lend the government money.

What are War Bonds and Why did Ukraine sell them?

The move is part of a wider crowdfunding effort to capitalize on domestic and international support for Ukraine as it tries to repel Russian forces. The country’s precarious finances have long relied on support from the International Monetary Fund and suffered another blow from the coronavirus pandemic. Its credit ratings were cut further into non-investment grade, or junk, territory after Russia invaded, meaning many big institutional investors can’t even buy its debt. The first war bonds sold on March 1 yielded 11% and had a par value of 1,000 hryvnia, or about $33. That compares to an implied yield of 37.8% on regular Ukraine one-year bonds traded in the secondary market. The government planned to auction more war bonds on March 8 to raise money for military gear as well as humanitarian aid such as clothing and blankets. Yuri Butsa, Ukraine’s debt chief, told Bloomberg Television that the government may also issue foreign-currency bonds.

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With that, we come to an end for our Weekly Current Affairs March 2022 -Week1. Hope you have liked it. Write your feedback in the comments below and let  us know if there is anything else you would like us to cover.

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