Post office solutions: the challenges facing India Post Payments Bank

pasted from The Hindu 08/09/2018 

The new India Post Payments Bank can hasten financial inclusion, but detailing is key

Amidst some fanfare, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB), a financial service provider that will operate under the country’s age-old postal department. The government-owned payments bank will be able to accept deposits of up to ₹1 lakh from customers but without the rights to use these funds to advance risky loans at higher interest rates. It, however, plans to offer a variety of other financial services to people, including the holders of postal savings accounts that are worth over ₹85,000 crore. The primary rationale behind the public payments bank idea is to help in the government’s goal of achieving financial inclusion by providing savings, remittance, and payments services to the rural and unorganised sectors of the economy. It is also hoped that the payments bank idea will help reinvigorate the postal system, which has a wide network of branches across India. All the 155,000 post offices in the country are expected to be linked to the IPPB system as early as in December this year. The payments bank will also have a digital platform that is expected to make financial services more accessible even from remote locations.

A big challenge facing the new public payments bank is whether it can manage to earn the profits required to survive as a standalone business entity. Given the severe restrictions imposed by the Reserve Bank of India on how payments banks in general can employ their funds, the odds seem to be stacked against the IPPB at the moment. The first wave of new payments banks that commenced business last year — Airtel, Paytm and Fino — have not exactly set the market on fire. (The payments bank model, it should be noted, is still untested even though prominent private companies such as Airtel and Paytm have shown interest in the space.) Banks have traditionally stayed away from the business of pure deposit banking, unless customers have been willing to pay for these services, for a good reason. The IPPB promises to pay an interest rate of 4% to its savings account customers. To generate revenues, it plans to charge fees on money transfers and other financial services while investing idle customer deposits in safe government securities in order to earn interest. Whether this will be sufficient to cover interest and operational costs remains to be seen. Meanwhile, the IPPB is also likely to face stiff competition from private companies, which are generally more nimble in adapting to business realities and far more customer-friendly compared to the government-owned behemoths. And with increasing competition, the IPPB’s revenues and margins are also likely to come under pressure. Yet, if it succeeds, the new payments bank could usher in a new era of rapid financial inclusion across rural India.

What is current account deficit, and why does it matter?

What is it?

The current account measures the flow of goods, services and investments into and out of the country. We run into a deficit if the value of the goods and services we import exceeds the value of those we export. The current account includes net income, including interest and dividends, and transfers, like foreign aid.

Where do we stand?

India’s current account deficit (CAD) is pegged at $13 billion or 1.9% of the GDP in Q4 of 2017-18, which increased from $2.6 billion or 0.4% of the GDP in Q4 of 2016-17. However, the CAD moderated marginally from $13.7 billion (2.1% of GDP) in the preceding quarter.

For the quarter, the Reserve Bank of India attributed the widening of the CAD to a higher trade deficit ($41.6 billion) brought about by a larger increase in merchandise imports related to exports. For the full financial year, the CAD increased to 1.9% of the GDP in 2017-18 from 0.6% in 2016-17 on the back of a widening of the trade deficit. India’s trade deficit increased to $160 billion in 2017-18 from $112.4 billion in 2016-17.

The central bank wants to see the current account gap within 2.5% of the GDP, which is seen as crucial for currency stability. For example, the CAD touched a high of 4.8% of the GDP in 2012-13 on rising gold and oil imports, which also impacted the rupee that depreciated rapidly. High current account deficit forced the government to impose import restrictions on non-essential items like gold.

Why does it matter?

As the rupee is under pressure — it hit the 71-mark against the dollar on Friday — and oil prices are inching up, it will impact the current account. While the present depreciation is mainly due to external factors with the dollar strengthening against all emerging market currencies, the rising trade deficit is adding to the worry about the currency. The rupee is the worst performing currency among the emerging market economies in Asia, and depreciated over 9% against the dollar in the current financial year. The central bank is also not seen intervening aggressively, according to currency dealers. As a result, the rupee, in a short span of time, travelled from the mid-68 levels to 71 a dollar. The foreign exchange reserves, also seen as an important factor for currency stability, have depleted by $26 billion since April, due to sporadic interventions by the central bank to control the pace of fall in the currency.

What lies ahead?

The July trade deficit numbers have had an impact on the currency. According to data released by the government, a sharp surge in imports led to worsening of the trade deficit to $18.02 billion against a deficit of $11.45 billion during July 2017. Imports during July were $43.79 billion, representing a growth of 28.81%, compared to $33.99 billion a year ago.

The government attributed the increase to a sharp increase in crude oil prices — global Brent crude prices increased 53.16% in July, compared to the same period the previous year. The oil import bill, which saw a 57% increase, and a 41% jump in gold imports to $2.96 billion in July are seen as the main reasons for the high trade deficit.

Since a higher trade deficit will widen the current account deficit, the rupee could be under pressure from domestic factors also, economists have said. A huge current account gap could make the rupee depreciate further in the absence of meaningful intervention from the central bank.

Interiview questions asked in TATA Technologies:


from placement freshers,,,






As I have done few projects in aeronautics so my interview was mainly based on those projects and CADD.

1) How does an aircraft fly (Equal transit theory and navier stokes theory).

2) What are forces acting on an aircraft?

3) How are lift and drag produced in an aircraft? 

4) How does jet engine work?

5) Difference between jet engine and IC engine? 

6) On which cycle does jet engine work. 

7) Types of projection(engineering drawing).

8) Difference between designing and modelling.

9) Different types of angle of projection and explain them. 

10) How would one differentiate between 1st angle and 3rd angle projection if you are given a drafted sheet and another question which was common to many of students was?

11) Consider a mobile which is horizontal at first and a load is acting at its centre and now if we keep it vertical and then apply the load at the centre of its top face in which case the mobile will be strong enough to take the load.

Tata Technologies question paper 30345

Tata technologies recruitment process consists written test ,Group Discussion and technical hr interview

In written test has two parts-Part 1 is -Aptitude and Part -2 is technical Time limit is 60 Minutes

some number series question previously asked in Tata Technologies off and on  campus recruitment

1. 19,24,20,25,21,26,? ans:22

2. 11,14,12,15,13,16,? ans: 14

3. 10,2,8,2,6,2,? a:4

4. 8,9,11,14,,18,23,? a:29

5. 25,25,22,22,19,19,? a:16

6. 14,2,12,4,10,6,? a:8

7. 7,16,9,15,11,14,? a:13

8. 40,42,39,44,38,46,? a:37

9. 3,18,4,24,5,30,? a:6

10. 18,20,22,20,28,20,? a:22

11. 18,20,10,12,4,6? a:0

12. 7,6,8,5,3,7,? a:4

13 9,18,21,25,20,? a:30

14 3,3,4,8,10,36,? a:33

15.30,28,25,20,34,28,? a:21

16. 4,8,16,32,64,128,? a:256

17. 8,16,24,32,40,48,? a:56

18. 13,11,14,12,15,13,? a:16

19. 6,18,36,108,216,648,? a:1296

20. 4,4,8,8,16,16,? a:32

21. 2,6,18,54,162,486,? a:1458

22. 4,20,35,49,62,74,? a:85

23. 10,18,15,23,20,28,? a:25

24. 4,10,8,14,12,18,? a:16

25 10,15,12,17,14,10,? a:16

Tips for Group Discussion

• Topics given by panelists
• Planning and preparation
• Knowledge with self-confidence
• Communication skills/ power of speech
• Presentation
• Body Language and personal appearance
• Being calm and cool
• Extensive knowledge base related to state, country and globe.
• Areas are politics,sports,science &trade commerce, Industry and Technology, MNC, etc.
• Analyze the social, economical issues logistically .
• Listening skills
• Co-operation.

Don’ts during group discussion

• Being shy /nervous / keeping isolated from G.D
• Interrupting another participant before his arguments are over
• Speak in favour ; example: Establish your position and stand by it stubbornly
• Changed opinions
• Don’t make fun of any participant even if his arguments are funny.
• Don’t engage yourself in sub-group conversation.
• Don’t repeat and use irrelevant materials.
• Addressing yourself to the examiner.
• Worrying about making some grammatical mistakes, for your interest the matter you put across are important.

Are Women Good Managers?
Before discussing, who is a good manager? We shouldn't forget that it basically depends upon the field. There are many fields that are amicable to man and some to women. So man and women both are good manager in their respective field.
The manger should have mainly these three main issues:-
1.Manager should have good knowledge of this field.
2. Manager should be a good leader.
3. Last but not least Manager should have ability to initiative.
These all qualities do not depend on sex of a person. Any individual can have these qualities and can be a good manager.
Is facebook boon or bane?
"Facebook is primarily a communication medium, so it will influence our communication and collaboration behavior"
we should know how to balance our lives with the technology for an effective means of communication.
Example:I consider it a positive thing The great thing about Facebook is that it allows people to keep in touch with one another easily. Of course, before Facebook there was email and telephones and letters, Facebook allows people to share details about their lives that they never would have thought to share. But Facebook is in many ways superior to all of those.
Comparison b/w Indian & foreign education system
First and foremost, as everyone knows Indian education system follows a theory based curriculum. Students are required to memorize facts and knowledge written in textbooks. In a way, Indian education system is still very much focusing on bookish knowledge instead of preparing students for future careers and jobs. Whereas, western education system stresses on educational flexibility, creativity and child’s interest. Western educational institutes’ treats imparting education as a learning process and believes in imparting practical knowledge to ready students for future.

Secondly, Indian educational system, unfortunately, has not changed much even after independence and is still following same set of obsolete rules when it comes to education as it was some 150 years ago. On the other hand, in the west, education system is changed as per needs and requirements of the present day world. Western education system is more liberal refined and advanced in its approach to teach children.

Tata Technologies Limited interview tips 11332

Tata Technologies Limited job interview Tips for new campus recruitment Drive for freshers,Latest HR interview Tips with detailed Explanation

Campus Interview Aspects
The ultimate goal of any job interview, from the perspective of an employer, is to determine whether the candidate is qualified for the position or not. However, one thing that companies must bear in mind is that the interview process is not one sided aspect, as applicants will often interview the companies as well.

Campus Interview Preparation Tips
Your level of preparation for your campus interview will be the deciding factor in your success or failure. Remember that it is better to be over prepared for campus interview in contrast to being under prepared. Because of the importance of interviews in this selection process, it would be a good idea to have "mock interviews" which will help you to deal with tough or unexpected questions.

Ø  Conversations should be a balanced two-way flow of dialogue.

Ø  It's good to initiate the introduction and introduce yourself with a handshake and smile. If shaking hands is difficult, a quick head nod is a good substitute. Initiating the introduction with a smile and handshake (or head nod) helps build rapport.
Smiling when greeting people and at appropriate times greatly helps build rapport

 Ø  Visualize Your Best Self Introduction
"Your imagination is the preview to life's coming attractions." -- Albert Einstein.

Ø  Regular use of courtesy words-like "Sir, Please, Thank you, I'm sorry," and phrases is important to show politeness and build rapport.

Ø  Making eye contact is important for building rapport. It gives the impression you're interested and engaged in the conversation, and you have good self-confidence. 

  What are the right skill required to get a job?
-Creative
-Mindset
-Spirit of innovation
-Excellent communication skill
- ability to work in a team
- Sense of responsibility

      Identify skills that you are strong in and using well
Identify skills required to enhance a current position or prepare for a future position
Identify your focus or priorities in your current position

Prepare a professional development plan for skills enhancement.

1. Career Potential and Individual Interests
2. Development Goals
3.Future Development Goals
• What are your goals for five or more years into the future?
4.Organizational Knowledge, Culture and Politics
understanding, insight and involvement in the organization’s vision for the future and how success will be measured

Tata Technologies technical question paper 29000

Tata Technologies Placement Paper - I job details in Tata Technologies ,Tata Technologies Placement Paper 2011,Tata technologies limited latest technical question paper with answers ,Tata Technologies Limited branch wise questions ,Tata technologies questions for cse,mechanical engineering

Tata technologies Technical questions and answer in cse 
1. Write a Program find and replace a character in a string.

2. Write a Program function to perform the subtraction of two .Eg:char N1="123",N2="478", N3=-355(N1-N2).

3.Write a Program dynamically initialize a 2 dimensional array Eg:5x20,accept strings and check for vowels and display the no. finally free the space allocated .

4. Write a Program read a line from file from location N1 to N2 using command line arguments Eg:exe 10 20 a.c

5. Write a Program find the largest of 4 no using macros.

6 What is not true about the following statements about java.

a) it is compiled using javac compiler
b) the compiled files have .class extension.
c) such files cannot be transfered from one comp to another.
d) they use the java interpreter
Ans: c

7. Why is the synchronize used?

a) to initialize multiple objects b) to lock an object c)option3 d) option 4

Ans: b (probably)

1). Piggy backing is a technique for
a) Flow control
b) sequence
c) Acknowledgement
d) retransmition

Ans: c piggy backing

8). The layer in the OST model handles terminal emulation

a) session
b) application
c) presentation
d) transport

Ans: b application

9) Q. In signed magnitude notation what is the minimum value that can be represented with 8 bits
a) -128
b) -255
c) -127
d) 0

10)Q. there is an employer table with key feilds as employer no.data in every n th row are needed for a simple following queries will get required results.

a) select A employe no. from employe A , where exists from employe B where A employe no. >= B employe having (count(*) mod n)=0
b) select employe no. from employe A, employe B where A employe no.>=B employ no.grouply employe no.having(count(*) mod n=0 )
c) both a& b
d) none of the above

11) Type duplicates of a row in a table customer with non uniform key field customer no. you can see

a) delete from customer where customer no. exists ( select distinct customer no. from customer having count )
b) delete customer a where customer no. in b rowid
c) delete customer a where customer no. in ( select customer no. from customer a, customer b )
d) none of the above

13). Find the odd one out: 8 125 512 729?

14). Number of zeros between 0 and 10000

15). if 85% of the population of an ant colony is red, and of these 45% are females, then what % of the total ant population are male red ants?

a.46.75(ans) b.40 c.33.66 d.66.66

16) what is the cost price of an article sold at rs.199 after two successive discount of 10% and 15%?

a.260(ans) b.200 c.234 d.220

17). if A and B can do a piece of work in 10 days and A alone can do it in 15 days, how long will B take to do it?

a.25 b.20 c.15 d.30

18). Q is not equal to zero and k = (Q x n - s)/2 find n?

(a) (2 x k + s)/Q
(b) (2 x s x k)/Q
(c) (2 x k - s)/Q
(d) (2 x k + s x Q)/Q (e) (k + s)/Q


19). If B occurs which must occur

(a) D
(b) D and G
(c) G and H
(d) F and G
(e) J

20) If J occurs which must have occured

a) E
(b) either B or C
(c) both E & F
(d) B
(e) both B & C

Ans: (b)

 TATA Technologies Selection procedure

 8644

TATA Technologies Selection procedure

TATA Technologies recruitment process consists 4 sections : Written test-Aptitude and Technical,Group Discussion,Technical and Hr interview ....in detail

1.Written test-In written test consists 2 sections Aptitude and Technical,

a.Aptitude written test
No of questions :30
Time Limit : 25 minutes
Quantitative aptitude-DI,time and work,Average,Time and distance etc
Logical reasoning- seating arrangement who is taller,number series blood relation etc..,
Verbal ability-5 questions of English consisting mainly of fill the blanks with idioms and phrases,
General knowledge -update your general awareness

a.Technical written test
No of questions:30
Time limit ;30
Topics to concentrate: some of them were on advance java like JNDI, struts etc, few were on c/c++, major of them were on basic java.

TATA Technologies Group discussion procedure
All they look for is your confidence, Fluency and some good points.
Be a good listner and attendive
dont be agrresive
eye contact
Respect others

Previous yars GD Topics
The Topics of GD were simple such as
Face book.
Impact of Cinema on Youth
Are Women Good Managers etc.

Comparison b/w Indian & foreign education sytem

Tata Technologies Technical and Hr interview
Just be confident and dont tell lie
As usual Hr questions
Tell me about yourself

Questions Asked Were -

Tell me about yourself
Hobbies & Interests
What provoked you to join our Company?
Weaknesses
Efforts done to remove your weakness

Prepare well the core subjects ; be ready with one or two favourite subjects; try to give your best in the technical interview , the HR round usually went smooth for every one. However prepare well for typical HR questions. Always try to show the passion for your work in the company and the company itself. Relate your skills to your future work. never meet the company’s ppt and collect adequate info abt the company: products, services, businesses etc.

In todays team oriented work is the development of good inter personal communication skill is an important key to success....

                                                                  IMPORTANT NEWS 

The first version of UPI was launched on April 11, 2016,   The first version of UPI was launched on April 11, 2016 and in the last two years the platform has emerged as a popular choice among users for sending and receiving money. BHIM UPI has recorded transactions worth ₹ 45,845 crore and 235 million in terms of value and volume in the month of July 2018.

                     

                                    INDIA LOSSES IT'S AJATSHATRU

                On the evening of 16th August, India lost the great son Atal Bihari Vajapeyi a former prime minister of India two times. He was a best poet and great orator he was to make mesmarise everyone by his epic speeches in parliament and on stages. He born in Gwalior to Krishna devi and Krishna Bihari Vajapeyi on 25th December 1924. A prominent and a unique personality of humbleness and took many tough decisions in his prime ministership.  He was an active member of RSS since a long years and Jana sangha which was established in 1970's. And two time Prime minister one complete 5 years of tennure and first one of 13 weeks. His speech in Hindi at United Nation Assembly makes everyone proud about our language and country. And he is the first Indian minister who done speech in Hindi language.
         He supported and played a key role in Pokhran mission in 1998 with APJ Abdul Kalam sir. By this mission India emerged as a nuclear powered nation with increasing demand for India in stock market and it is seen that affter this mission Indian stock market reached at highest position than the before ever. His leadership and bold character made every nation worry and a new image for India.
       His resignition speech in parliament went viral in 1998 and in the next few months he hasbeen elected as prime minister of India.

‘Tata Technologies is now a key player in EV space’

(Copied and pasted from The Hindu newspaper 22/08/2018)

 

Firm developing more than 11 EV projects globally: Bhade

Tata Technologies Ltd. has emerged as a leading end-to-end developer of electric vehicles (EVs) for global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and start-ups, a top executive said.

“We reinvented the company to be ready for the EV play,” said Anand Bhade, president, Asia Pacific, Tata Technologies. “The company was an automotive domain expert since inception. We reinvented ourselves to be ready for the mobility transformation wave that was happening around the world,” Mr. Bhade said in an interview.

“We are not only ready, but are successful in delivering a fully-built electric SUV. Now, we have a global footprint and [are] currently developing more than 11 EV projects around the world,” he added. In 2014, when the company saw a lot of disruption happening, it decided to focus on the EV space in China, banking on its years of expertise, he said.

China story

The company’s China story started in 2015, when it bagged a contact from a start-up Next EV, now known as NIO, to develop a full EV from scratch.

“That was our entry point. In 32 months, we delivered a complete EV called ES8, a full aluminium body seven-seater battery operated SUV,” he said.

This vehicle, unveiled in Beijing last December, is now available for sales, providing enough credibility to the firm to bag many EV projects across the globe.

“It proved that here is a Tata group company which has capability of doing end-to-end EV. That created a lot of pull in the China market. Now, we have five customers there, including mainstream OEMs. We are also developing a complete EV sports car for a customer in Japan,” Mr. Bhade added.

Though the company is providing solutions to Tata Motors and Jaguar Land Rover, its engagement with non-Tata customers was more, Mr. Bhade said. He declined to divulge any more details on the company’s engagement with customers in the EV space in India.

“We want to do something more impactful in India. But it all depends on regulations. We are in active negotiations with customers in India,” he added. Starting with a $30 million revenue, Tata Technologies has now grown to be a $417 million company with 8,500 people in the U.S., Europe and Asia.

In the past years, the company was growing at a CAGR of 12-13%, but with more work coming in the EV space, it plans to grow at 16-17% in the next three years.

“In the next four to five years, there is enough headroom to grow. What we are now seeing in EV is the just the tip of the iceberg. When the electric fever catches up in EU, U.K. and U.S., our company will have great future. And India has still not started,” Mr. Bhade said.

“In 1997 when Mr.Ratan Tata himself started this company he had asked us not do everything for everybody. I as young man was standing next to him. He said be very focus on very few things. Be the world’s design and innovation house and focus on manufacturing. And we took that advice to heart seriously and here we are,” Mr. Bhade said.

                                             HISTORY OF THE RUPEE
(Copied and pasted from "The Hindu news paper"21/08/2018)

As the currency trades at around 70 to the dollar, a recap of its revaluation soon /after Independence

The rupee’s depreciation to more than 70 to a dollar just ahead of Independence Day led to historical comparisons of the value of the rupee. These can be misleading, as political freedom did not automatically result in India’s monetary independence in 1947. The rupee’s association with Britain was prolonged by factors beyond India’s control.

On a sterling standard 1931 onwards, the rupee, linked to a depreciating currency, depreciated along with the sterling.

War distortions

Britain (and France) declared war on Germany in 1939. In preparation, India’s economy was geared up by the colonial government towards the war effort through imposition of controls. The first was the exchange control. Completely convertible into any currency until then, the rupee was made inconvertible. Transferring money outside the sterling area required permission under rules that were laid down in London. The maze of controls grew as the war went on.

Dollar securities held by private individuals were compulsorily acquired, and compensation was in rupees at the market price on an arbitrary date, resulting in losses to many. The Bank of England (BoE) sold the securities so acquired, adding the dollars to its coffers. Dollars for the war were also raised by selling silver bullion from India’s reserves to governments outside the sterling area.

Dollars could be spent on imports of essential consumables, not capital goods. What was essential was defined by the war requirements until 1946, when civilian requirements were included. The restrictions on capital goods imports continued because the BoE had blocked what were called India’s sterling balances. By the end of World War II, India had accumulated a sizeable sterling balance of £1,300 million — India’s earnings in foreign currency on its exports for the war, deposited in the BoE in the form of sterling to the credit of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) account. The balance had grown with import controls limiting forex outflows. The corresponding increase in rupee circulation stoked war inflation in India.

After the war ended, the transfer of the sterling balances was negotiated between India and Britain. (After Partition, Pakistan joined the talks.) India’s key negotiator, B.K. Nehru, has described the protracted settlement in his memoirs.

Winston Churchill had been threatening to write off the sterling balances. In the first round of negotiations, in 1946, by which time Churchill was out of power, the British delegation sought a considerable scaling-down of the sterling balances. India sought word that the sterling — that had become much overvalued — would not be devalued. The visitors refused. The sterling to them was still the premium currency against which other currencies were valued.

The next sterling balances negotiations were held in London in July 1947 against the backdrop of the Government of India having been thrown into chaos by the advancement of the date Independence/Partition to August 15, 1947, from June 30, 1948.

After August 15, India and Pakistan would have had no forex other than the sterling balances to pay for imports. The urgency of reaching an agreement increased. The impossibility of a write-off was accepted. But limits were placed on their use by the two countries — as unrestricted spending would have run the British balance of payments, and consequently its economy, to the ground.

Under this interim agreement, India could spend from the balances in dollars, as Britain had agreed to make the pound convertible under the terms of a loan from the U.S. But Britain soon repudiated the convertibility clause, in turn altering the character of the agreement entered into with India. Pound convertibility was ruled out by the sorry state of British production after the war years. Pent-up demand for consumer goods could only be met with imports from the U.S. Pound convertibility would have exhausted British forex reserves.

A delegation was sent back to London to renegotiate the convertible portion of the sterling balances. It returned empty-handed. The negotiations were concluded in the summer of 1949, after the completion of the bitter separation of Indian and Pakistani finances. (Till July 1, 1948, the RBI continued as the central banker for the Government of Pakistan. India nationalised the RBI on January 1, 1949.)

The Indian side, led by Finance Minister John Mathai, agreed to two types of deductions from the sterling balances. First, towards the pensions of former British members of the ICS. Second, the value of military equipment, regardless of the condition and worth, the British forces had left behind. The subtractions added to £100 million.

Limits were placed on how much could be drawn in a given period from the balances.

The Cripps mission

At the talks, the British side gave credible warnings of an imminent sterling devaluation. India failed to capitalise on them. The telegram, ‘For (Jawaharlal) Nehru from Attlee’, received on September 21, 1949, announcing a devaluation from $4.03 to the pound to $2.8 to the pound, took India completely by surprise. It effectively wrote off a third of the sterling balances. B.K. Nehru noted that Churchill’s threat was partially achieved by Stafford Cripps, then Chancellor of the Exchequer. India devalued the rupee proportionally: from ₹3.309 to a dollar to ₹4.762.

The sterling was floated against the major international currencies in the early 1970s, the rupee as late as 1993-1994. The two currencies were delinked in 1975.

Puja Mehra is a Delhi-based journalist