Base year revision impact: FY14 GDP at 6.9%, FY13 at 5.1%

The government revised India’s 2013-14 GDP growth estimate to 6.9% from 4.7%. The 2012-13 growth estimate was revised to 5.1%from 4.5%. The new measurement of gross domestic product (GDP) includes under-represented and informal economic sectors as well as new items such as smart phones and LED television sets. This move will make it easier for the government to meet fiscal deficit goals. A change in base year also has been implemented and the new base year is 2011-12 instead of 2004-05. The base year is altered every five years and the change in measure of GDP data is to bring it in line with global standards. The base year was last changed in 2010.

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe appointed as Chairman of African Union

Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has been appointed the new chairman of the 54-nation African Union. The announcement was made during the African Union’s two-day heads of state summit at the organization’s headquarters in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. He will be 13th Chairman of African Union (AU) and succeed Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz for a one-year term. He has ruled Zimbabwe since independence. He is Zimbabwe’s longest serving President and had assumed office in December 1987. Currently, he is also chairman of the 15-nation Southern African Development Community.

Senior IPS officer Krishna Chaudhary appointed as new ITBP DG

Senior IPS officer Krishna Chaudhary has been appointed the new Director General (DG) of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). Krishna Chaudhary is 1979-batch Bihar cadre officer. Before this appointment he was working as the Director General of the Railway Protection Force.

Gorkhaland movement leader Subhash Ghisingh passed away

Subhash Ghisingh was one of the most important leaders of the Gorkhaland movement of West Bengal. This movement demanded separate state for ethnic Gorkhas belonging to Nepal. In 1980 he established Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF). GNLF led the movement of separate Gorkhaland in West Bengal which disrupted the Darjeeling district with massive violence between 1986 and 1988. The issue was resolved temporarily in 1988 with the establishment of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) within West Bengal. He headed the DGHC as its first Chairman from 1988 to 2008.

Nepal, Bangladesh agree to sign DTAA

Nepal and Bangladesh agreed to sign Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA). Inland Revenue Department said the fourth round of meeting for DTAA held in Kathmandu took the decision. Nepal had proposed Bangladesh to sign DTAA in 1998.

Zomato buys Turkey’s restaurant search company Mekanist

India’s online restaurant search and discovery service provider Zomato has announced the acquisition of Turkey’s restaurant search company Mekanist. With this acquisition, Zomato has increased its coverage from about 27,500 restaurants in Istanbul and Ankara to more than 50,000 restaurants across Turkey. Over the past year, Zomato acquired five restaurant search players in New Zealand, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Italy.

PK starts Bollywood’s Rs 100 crore online club

Aamir Khan starrer PK has become the first Bollywood film to gross Rs 100 crore from online bookings. BookMyShow, the country’s largest online entertainment ticketing platform with over 90% market share, said it has reported over Rs 102 crore in revenue from the sale of PK tickets, as of Wednesday. PK’s box office revenue topped Rs. 600 crore, or $95 million, making it the most successful Bollywood film till date.

Sangakkara surpasses Gilchrist to record most dismissals in ODIs

Kumar Sangakkara took his career tally to 473 dismissals when he caught New Zealand all-rounder Anderson off the bowling of Shaminda Eranga. Retired Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist had held the record with 472 dismissals. Sangakkara’s record 473 dismissals comprise of 377 catches and 96 stumpings.