Indians are spending nearly USD 1 billion every month on foreign travel which is significantly more than the pre-Covid levels, reveals Reserve Bank data on outward remittances.

During the April-December period of 2022-23, the outward remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) for resident individuals towards 'travel' was USD 9.95 billion.

The outward remittances towards travel were USD 7 billion in the entire 2021-22 financial year.

Europe, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Dubai are some of the major destinations that Indians prefer.

Real Madrid legend Amancio Amaro nicknamed 'the magician' has died at 83 the club announced Feb 21.

Joining Los Blancos from Deportivo La Coruna in 1962, the right winger lifted nine league titles and one European Cup at Madrid before retiring in 1976.

Amancio scored 155 goals in 471 games for Madrid, before going on to coach the team in the 1984-85 season.

Amancio also played a key role for Spain in their 1964 European Championship victory.

In 2022 Amancio was appointed honorary president of Real Madrid, after the death of his former team-mate Paco Gento.

A Spanish court denied Dani Alves' appeal on Feb 21 to be freed on bail while the investigation of a sexual assault accusation against the Brazilian football player continues.

The court ruled that Alves was a flight risk and must remain in prison during the investigation.

Alves was provisionally detained in January after being accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a nightclub on Dec. 30. He has denied wrongdoing and said sex with the accuser was consensual.

Brazil does not extradite its own citizens when they are sentenced in other countries. Another former Brazil player, Robinho, had a nine-year sentence for the rape of a young woman in Italy upheld by a top Italian court last year, but he remains free in Brazil.

The Indian junior women's hockey team won 4-3 in penalty shootout against the U-21 South African side in its final match of the tour.

Having won all its matches against the U-21 South African team, India is now focusing on playing the 'A' team of the host country, twice in quick succession.

The South Africa Tour is part of the team's preparations for the all-important U-21 Asia Cup, which is a qualification tournament for the upcoming FIH Women's Hockey Junior World Cup.

The Indian team will next play two matches against South Africa 'A' side on February 24 and 25 where the visitors will aim to continue their winning streak.

Q1. Three years after the BJP-led government's abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, the Jammu and Kashmir administration on Feb 21 decided to impose the property tax in the Union Territory from

1. April 1,2023
2. May 1,2023
3. July 1 ,2023
4. Aug 1 ,2023
5. None of These

Q2. Name the Indian-American tech entrepreneur who has launched his 2024 presidential bid with a promise to "put merit back" and end dependence on China, becoming the second community member to enter the Republican Party's presidential primary ?

1. Nikki Haley
2. Vivek Ramaswamy
3. Tulsi Gabbard
4. Kamala Harris
5. None of These

Q3. Name the country which will vote for a successor to President Muhammadu Buhari on Feb 25 in an unprecedented race between three frontrunners battling to govern Africa's most populous democracy ?

1. Niger
2. Ghana
3. Nigeria
4. Egypt
5. None of These

Q4. Name the foreign lender which on Feb 21 has  reported a 15.04 per cent jump in its pre-tax profit from operations in India at USD 1.277 billion for 2022 ?

1. Deutsche Bank India
2. Citi India
3. Standard Chartered
4. HSBC
5. None of These

Q5. What amount Indians are spending every month on foreign travel which is significantly more than the pre-Covid levels ?

1. nearly USD 1 billion
2. nearly USD 2 billion
3. nearly USD 3 billion
4. nearly USD 4 billion
5. None of These

Answers

1-----------------------1  April 1,2023

2-----------------------2   Vivek Ramaswamy

3-----------------------3 Nigeria

4----------------------4   HSBC

5---------------------1 nearly USD 1 billion

The CBI on  Feb 31 launched searches at 30 locations in Punjab as part of its probe into allegations of corruption against Food Corporation of India (FCI) officials who procured inferior grains to benefit merchants and rice millers.

The CBI teams started coordinated raids at the premises of grain merchants, rice mill owners, and serving and retired officials of the FCI in multiple districts of Punjab, including Sirhind, Fatehpur Sahib and Monga, as part of 'Operation Kanak 2'.

This is second round of searches in the FIR pertaining to an organised syndicate of officers at the FCI, who allegedly charged bribes of Rs 1000-4000 per truck unloaded at the FCI godowns from private millers per crop season for covering up lower quality grains supplied by them and other favours.

The bribes were allegedly circulated to officers at every level reaching up to headquarters in a well defined percentage of cuts at each level.

The FIR gave details of such bribe collection in many FCI depots across Punjab.

Officials ranging from technical assistants to executive directors were allegedly part of a syndicate receiving bribes from private millers.

The Lok Sabha Secretariat has allotted the Shiv Sena office in Parliament House to the Eknath Shinde-led faction after the Election Commission's decision to recognise the group as the real Shiv Sena.

Responding to a letter written by Shinde faction's floor leader Rahul Shewalae, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said the designated room for the Sena office in the Parliament building has been allotted to the party.

The poll panel had last week recognised the Shinde faction as the original Shiv Sena, allowing it to use the "bow and arrow" symbol in elections practically denying Uddhav Thackeray a claim on the party his father, Bal Thackeray, founded in 1966.

Thereafter on February 18, Shewale had written to the Lok Sabha Secretariat seeking allotment of the office for the party.  So far, both factions were using the Shiv Sena office in the Parliament House.

The government has earned over Rs 3,400 crore from disposal of enemy properties, mostly movable assets like shares and gold.

Enemy properties are those left behind by people who took citizenship of Pakistan and China after leaving India during the partition and post the 1962 and 1965 wars.

"The Custodian of Enemy Property for India (CEPI) has realised a total of Rs 3,407.98 crore from disposal of enemy properties which include 7,52,83,287 shares (for Rs 2,708.9 crore) of 152 companies in 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22, and Rs 699.08 crore as revenue receipts," an official of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

Altogether, 1699.79 grams of vested gold has also been sold for Rs 49,14,071 and 28.896 kilogram of silver ornaments have been disposed of for Rs 10,92,175 in January 2021 through Government of India Mint, Mumbai as per provisions of the Enemy Property Act.

No immovable enemy property has so far been monetised by the government. A total of 12,611 establishments, or enemy property, were left behind by people who took citizenship of Pakistan and China.

Out of these 12,611 properties, 12,485 are related to Pakistani nationals and 126 to Chinese citizens.

The enemy properties are vested with the CEPI, an authority created under the Enemy Property Act.

Meanwhile, an Enemy Property Information System has been developed for effective preservation, management and speedy disposal of enemy properties.

The highest number of enemy properties were found in Uttar Pradesh (6,255) followed by West Bengal (4,088), Delhi (659), Goa (295), Maharashtra (208), Telangana (158), Gujarat (151), Tripura (105), Bihar (94), Madhya Pradesh (94), Chhattisgarh (78) and Haryana (71 properties).

There are 71 enemy properties in Kerala, 69 in Uttarakhand, 67 in Tamil Nadu, 57 in Meghalaya, 29 in Assam, 24 in Karnataka, 22 in Rajasthan, 10 in Jharkhand, four in Daman and Diu and one each in Andhra Pradesh and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

According to the law, enemy property refers to any property belonging to, held or managed on behalf of an enemy, an enemy subject or an enemy firm.