Fidel Castro passed away

Former president Fidel Castro who led a rebel army to improvable victory in cuba passed away due to old age. He was 90. Under his leadership, Cuba became a one-party communist state, industry and business were nationalized and state socialist reforms implemented throughout society. He was commander in chief of the 1959 Cuban revolution 1959  and had successfully built a communist state on the doorstep of the United States during Cold War. He had ruled Cuba as a one-party state for almost half a century (from 1976 to 2008) before handing over the powers to his brother Raul Castro in 2008 due to ill health.His greatest legacy is free healthcare and education, which have given Cuba some of the region’s best human development statistics. In 2008, he stepped down as President of Cuba due to health issues. He was in office from 1976 to 2008. He world’s third longest-serving head of state, after Britain’s Queen Elizabeth and the King of Thailand.

National Constitution Day

Constitution Day, also known as Samvidhan Divas, is celebrated in India on 26 November every year to commemorate the adoption of Constitution of India. On this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, and it came into effect on 26 January 1950. The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE) is the nodal Ministry for the celebration of Constitution Day. This year it is second edition of the Constitution Day. On this occasion Prime Minister Narendra has released two books on Constitution ‘Making of Constitution’ and ‘New Version of Constitution of India‘

In October 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had declared 26 November as Constitution Day as part of year-long nationwide celebrations of 125th birth Anniversary of Dr. B R Ambedkar, Chairman of the Drafting Committee of Constituent Assembly.

First live payments bank

Airtel has launched India's first live payments bank,which would provide an interest of 7.25% per annum on deposits offering services in Rajasthan in a limited scale. The payments bank is testing systems and processes ahead of a full scale, pan-Indian launch, the company said in a statement. The pilot will run at 10,000 Airtel retail outlets where basic banking services will be provided. Airtel Payments Bank is planning to expand its merchant network in Rajasthan to 100,000 by the end of the year. Customers can open bank accounts by using Aadhaar based e-KYC. Airtel subscriber’s mobile number will function as a bank account number. The bank will accept deposits not exceeding Rs 1 lakh. It cannot perform lending activities, except while giving loans to its employees on approval of the board.

Global wealth report

The total quantum of wealth in India is rising but disparity between rich and poor is also rising as per a report on global wealth published by Credit Suisse. The uneven growth has left 96 per cent of the adult population in India at the base of the wealth pyramid. Further, wealth in India is dominated by property and other real estate that make up 86 per cent of its estimated household assets, according to the global financial services major. However, a small fraction of the adult population (0.3%) has net worth of more than $100,000.

Indian Scenario: The wealth in India is mostly dominated by property and other real estate. It makes up 86% of its estimated household assets. The wealth in India in local currency terms increased 5.1% in 2016 but due to adverse currency exchange movements. India’s household wealth fell by 0.8% to $3 trillion in dollar terms. The annual growth of wealth per adult in rupees has averaged 6% between 2000 and 2016. The number of millionaires remained flat at 1.78 lakh with $973 billion in wealth. Among these, ultra high-networth individuals increased by 5.2% to 2,260, including 1,040 with more than $100 million. The number of millionaires in India is projected to increase by 9.5% in the next five years to 2.8 lakh in 2021. Meanwhile, the personal debts are estimated to be 9% of gross assets in India which is much lower than in most developed countries.

Global Scenario:Overall growth in wealth remained limited in 2016. It is continuing the trend that had emerged in 2013 and is contrasting sharply with the double-digit growth rates witnessed before the global financial crisis of 2008. The total global wealth in 2016 edged up by 1.4% or $3.5 trillion to a total of $256 trillion, a rise in line with the increase in the world’s adult population.