Bank Terminology

1. What is a Repo Rate?

A: Repo rate is the rate at which our banks borrow rupees from RBI. Whenever the banks have any shortage of funds they can borrow it from RBI. A reduction in the repo rate will help banks to get money at a cheaper rate. When the repo rate increases, borrowing from RBI becomes more expensive.

2. What is Reverse Repo Rate?

A: This is exact opposite of Repo rate. Reverse Repo rate is the rate at which Reserve Bank of India (RBI) borrows money from banks. RBI uses this tool when it feels there is too much money floating in the banking system. Banks are always happy to lend money to RBI since their money is in safe hands with a good interest. An increase in Reverse repo rate can cause the banks to transfer more funds to RBI due to this attractive interest rates.

3. What is CRR Rate?

A: Cash reserve Ratio (CRR) is the amount of funds that the banks have to keep with RBI. If RBI decides to increase the percent of this, the available amount with the banks comes down. RBI is using this method (increase of CRR rate), to drain out the excessive money from the banks.

4. What is SLR Rate?

A: SLR (Statutory Liquidity Ratio) is the amount a commercial bank needs to maintain in the form of cash, or gold or govt. approved securities (Bonds) before providing credit to its customers.
SLR rate is determined and maintained by the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) in order to control the expansion of bank credit. SLR is determined as the percentage of total demand and percentage of time liabilities. Time Liabilities are the liabilities a commercial bank liable to pay to the customers on their anytime demand. SLR is used to control inflation and propel growth. Through SLR rate tuning the money supply in the system can be controlled efficiently.

5. What is Bank Rate?

A: Bank rate, also referred to as the discount rate, is the rate of interest which a central bank charges on the loans and advances that it extends to commercial banks and other financial intermediaries. Changes in the bank rate are often used by central banks to control the money supply.

6. What is Inflation?

A: Inflation is as an increase in the price of bunch of Goods and services that projects the Indian economy. An increase in inflation figures occurs when there is an increase in the average level of prices in Goods and services. Inflation happens when there are fewer Goods and more buyers; this will result in increase in the price of Goods, since there is more demand and less supply of the goods.

7. What is Deflation?

A: Deflation is the continuous decrease in prices of goods and services. Deflation occurs when the inflation rate becomes negative (below zero) and stays there for a longer period.

8. What is PLR?

A: The Prime Interest Rate is the interest rate charged by banks to their most creditworthy customers (usually the most prominent and stable business customers). The rate is almost always the same amongst major banks. Adjustments to the prime rate are made by banks at the same time; although, the prime rate does not adjust on any regular basis. The Prime Rate is usually adjusted at the same time and in correlation to the adjustments of the Fed Funds Rate. The rates reported below are based upon the prime rates on the first day of each respective month. Some banks use the name "Reference Rate" or "Base Lending Rate" to refer to their Prime Lending Rate.

9. What is Deposit Rate?

A: Interest Rates paid by a depository institution on the cash on deposit.
Policy Rates:
· Bank Rate: 6.00%
· Repo Rate: 5.25%
· Reverse Repo Rate: 3.75%
Reserve Ratios:
· CRR: 6.00%
· SLR: 25.0%
Lending/Deposit Rates:
· PLR: 11.00%-12.00%.
· Deposit Rate: 6.00%-7.50%.
. Savings Bank rate: 3.5%.
Note: Rates as on 14-05-10.

10. What is FII?

A: FII (Foreign Institutional Investor) used to denote an investor, mostly in the form of an institution. An institution established outside India, which proposes to invest in Indian market, in other words buying Indian stocks. FII's generally buy in large volumes which has an impact on the stock markets. Institutional Investors includes pension funds, mutual funds, Insurance Companies, Banks, etc.

11. What is FDI?

A: FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) occurs with the purchase of the “physical assets or a significant amount of ownership (stock) of a company in another country in order to gain a measure of management control” (Or) A foreign company having a stake in a Indian Company.

12. What is IPO?

A: IPO is Initial Public Offering. This is the first offering of shares to the general public from a company wishes to list on the stock exchanges.

13. What is Disinvestment?

A: The Selling of the government stake in public sector undertakings.

14. What is Fiscal Deficit?

A: It is the difference between the government’s total receipts (excluding borrowings) and total expenditure. Fiscal deficit in 2009-10 is proposed at 6.8% of GDP.

15. What is Revenue deficit?

A: It defines that, where the net amount received (by taxes & other forms) fails to meet the predicted net amount to be received by the government. Revenue deficit in 2009-10 is proposed at 4.8% of GDP.

16. What is GDP?

A: The Gross Domestic Product or GDP is a measure of all of the services and goods produced in a country over a specific period; classically a year. GDP during 2008-09 is 6.7%.

17. What is GNP?

A: Gross National Product is measured as GDP plus income of residents from investments made abroad minus income earned by foreigners in domestic market.

18. What is National Income?

A: National Income is the money value of all goods and services produced in a country during the year.

19. What is Per Capita Income?

A: The national income of a country, or region, divided by its population. Per capita income is often used to measure a country's standard of living.Per capita income during 2008-09 estimated by CSO: Rs.25, 494.

20. What is Vote on Account?

A: A vote-on account is basically a statement ,where the government presents an estimate of a sum required to meet the expenditure that it incurs during the first three to four months of an election financial year until a new government is in place, to keep the machinery running.

21. Difference between Vote on Account and Interim Budget?

A: Vote-on-account deals only with the expenditure side of the government's budget, an interim Budget is a complete set of accounts, including both expenditure and receipts.

22. What is SDR?

A: The SDR (Special Drawing Rights) is an artificial currency created by the IMF in 1969. SDRs are allocated to member countries and can be fully converted into international currencies so they serve as a supplement to the official foreign reserves of member countries. Its value is based on a basket of key international currencies (U.S. dollar, euro, yen and pound sterling).

23. What is SEZ?

A: SEZ means Special Economic Zone is the one of the part of government’s policies in India. A special Economic zone is a geographical region that economic laws which are more liberal than the usual economic laws in the country. The basic motto behind this is to increase foreign investment, development of infrastructure, job opportunities and increase the income level of the people.


24. What is corporate governance?  

The way in which a company is governed and how it deals with the various interests of its customers, shareholders, employees and society at large. Corporate governance is the set of processes, customs, policies, laws, and institutions affecting the way a corporation (or company) is directed, administered or controlled.Is defined as the general set of customs, regulations, habits, and laws that determine to what end a firm should be run.
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25. Functions of RBI?

The Reserve Bank of India is the central bank of India, was established on April 1, 1935 in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The Reserve Bank of India was set up on the recommendations of the Hilton Young Commission. The commission submitted its report in the year 1926, though the bank was not set up for nine years.To regulate the issue of Bank Notes and keeping of reserves with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally to operate the currency and credit system of the country to its advantage." Banker to the Government: performs merchant banking function for the central and the state governments; also acts as their banker.Banker to banks: maintains banking accounts of all scheduled banks.

26. What is monetary policy?

A Monetary policy is the process by which the government, central bank, of a country controls (i) the supply of money, (ii) availability of money, and (iii) cost of money or rate of interest, in order to attain a set of objectives oriented towards the growth and stability of the economy.

27. What is Fiscal Policy?

Fiscal policy is the use of government spending and revenue collection to influence the economy. These policies affect tax rates, interest rates and government spending, in an effort to control the economy. Fiscal policy is an additional method to determine public revenue and public expenditure.

28.What is Core Banking Solutions?

Core banking is a general term used to describe the services provided by a group of networked bank branches. Bank customers may access their funds and other simple transactions from any of the member branch offices. It will cut down time, working simultaneously on different issues and increasing efficiency. The platform where communication technology and information technology are merged to suit core needs of banking is known as Core Banking Solutions.

29 ·What is bank and its features and types?

A bank is a financial organization where people deposit their money to keep it safe.Banks play an important role in the financial system and the economy. As a key component of the financial system, banks allocate funds from savers to borrowers in an efficient manner.

i. Regional Rural Banks were established with an objective to ensure sufficient
institutional credit for agriculture and other rural sectors. The RRBs mobilize
financial resources from rural / semi-urban areas and grant loans and advances
mostly to small and marginal farmers, agricultural labourers and rural artisans.
The area of operation of RRBs is limited to the area as notified by GoI covering
one or more districts in the State.

ii. Banking services for individual customers is known as retail banking.

iii. A bank that deals mostly in but international finance, long-term loans for
companies and underwriting. Merchant banks do not provide regular banking
services to the general public.

iv. Online banking (or Internet banking) allows customers to conduct financial
transactions on a secure website operated by their retail or virtual bank.

v. Mobile Banking is a service that allows you to do banking transactions on your
mobile phone without making a call , using the SMS facility. Is a term used for
performing balance checks, account transactions, payments etc. via a mobile
device such as a mobile phone.

vi. Traditional banking is the normal bank accounts we have. Like, put your money in the bank and they act as a security and you will get only the normal interests (decided by RBI in our case, FED bank in US).

vii. Investment banking is entirely different. Here, people who are having so much
money (money in excess which will yield only less interest if in Banks) will invest
their money and get higher returns. For example, If i have more money instead of
taking the pain of investing in share market, buying properties etc. I will give to
investment banks and they will do the money management and give me higher
returns when compared to traditional banks.

30 ·What is E-Governance?

E-Governance is the public sector’s use of information and communication technologies with the aim of improving information and service delivery, encouraging citizen participation in the decision-making process and making government more accountable,transparent and effective.

31·What is Right to information Act?

The Right to Information act is a law enacted by the Parliament of India giving citizens of India access to records of the Central Government and State overnments.The Act applies to all States and Union Territories of India, except the State of Jammu and Kashmir - which is covered under a State-level law. This law was passed by Parliament on 15 June 2005 and came fully into force on 13 October 2005.

32· Credit Rating Agencies in India?

The credit rating agencies in India mainly include ICRA and CRISIL. ICRA wasformerly referred to the Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Limited. Their main function is to grade the different sector and companies in terms of performance and offer solutions for up gradation. The credit rating agencies in India mainly include ICRA and CRISIL(Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited)

33· What is Cheque?

Cheque is a negotiable instrument instructing a Bank to pay a specific amount from a specified account held in the maker/depositor's name with that Bank.A bill of exchange drawn on a specified banker and payable on demand.“Written order directing a bank to pay money”.

34· What is demand Draft?

A demand draft is an instrument used for effecting transfer of money. It is a Negotiable Instrument. Cheque and Demand-Draft both are used for Transfer of money. You can 100% trust a DD. It is a banker's check. A check may be dishonored for lack of funds a DD can not. Cheque is written by an individual and Demand draft is issued by a bank. People believe banks more than individuals.

35· What is a NBFC?

A non-banking financial company (NBFC) is a company registered under the
Companies Act, 1956 and is engaged in the business of loans and advances, acquisition of shares/stock/bonds/debentures/securities issued by government, but does not include any institution whose principal business is that of agriculture activity, industrial activity, sale/purchase/construction of immovable property.

NBFCs are doing functions akin to that of banks; however there are a few differences:

(i) A NBFC cannot accept demand deposits (demand deposits are funds deposited at a depository institution that are payable on demand -- immediately or within a very short period -- like your current or savings accounts.)
(ii) it is not a part of the payment and settlement system and as such cannot issue cheques to its customers; and
(iii) Deposit insurance facility of DICGC is not available for NBFC depositors unlike in case of banks.

36· Difference between banking & Finance?

Finance is generally related to all types of financial, this could be accounting, insurances and policies. Whereas banking is everything that happens in a bank only.The term Banking and Finance are two very different terms but are often associated together. These two terms are often used to denote services that a bank and other financial institutions provide to its customers.

37· What is NASSCOM ?

The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), the Indian chamber of commerce is a consortium that serves as an interface to the Indian software industry and Indian BPO industry. Maintaining close interaction with the Government of India in formulating National IT policies with specific focus on IT software and services maintaining a state of the art information database of IT software and services related activities for use of both the software developers as well as interested companies overseas. Mr. Som Mittal – President. Chairman-Pramod Bhasin.

38· What is ASSOCHAM?

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), India's premier apex chamber covers a membership of over 2 lakh companies and professionals across the country. It was established in 1920 by promoter chambers, representing all regions of India. As an apex industry body, ASSOCHAM represents the interests of industry and trade, interfaces with Government on policy issues and interacts with counterpart international organizations to promote bilateral economic issues. President-Swati Piramal.

39· What is NABARD?

NABARD was established by an act of Parliament on 12 July 1982 to implement the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development Act 1981. It replaced the Agricultural Credit Department (ACD) and Rural Planning and Credit Cell (RPCC) of Reserve Bank of India, and Agricultural Refinance and Development Corporation (ARDC). It is one of the premiere agency to provide credit in rural areas. NABARD is set up as an apex Development Bank with a mandate for facilitating credit flow for promotion and development of agriculture, small-scale industries, cottage and village industries, handicrafts and other rural crafts.

40· What is SIDBI?

The Small Industries Development Bank of India is a state-run bank aimed to aid the growth and development of micro, small and medium scale industries in India. Set up in 1990 through an act of parliament, it was incorporated initially as a wholly owned subsidiary of Industrial Development Bank of India.

41· What is SENSEX and NIFTY?

SENSEX is the short term for the words "Sensitive Index" and is associated with the Bombay (Mumbai) Stock Exchange (BSE). The SENSEX was first formed on 1-1-1986 and used the market capitalization of the 30 most traded stocks of BSE. Where as NSE has 50 most traded stocks of NSE.SENSEX IS THE INDEX OF BSE. AND NIFTY IS THE INDEX OF NSE.BOTH WILL SHOW DAILY TRADING MARKS. Sensex and Nifty both are an "index”. An index is basically an indicator it indicates whether most of the stocks have gone up or most of the stocks have gone down.

42· What is SEBI?

SEBI is the regulator for the Securities Market in India. Originally set up by the
Government of India in 1988, it acquired statutory form in 1992 with SEBI Act 1992 being passed by the Indian Parliament. Chaired by C B Bhave.

43· What is Mutual funds?

Mutual funds are investment companies that pool money from investors at large and offer to sell and buy back its shares on a continuous basis and use the capital thus raised to invest in securities of different companies. The mutual fund will have a fund manager that trades the pooled money on a regular basis. The net proceeds or losses are then typically distributed to the investors annually.

44· What is Asset Management Companies?

A company that invests its clients' pooled fund into securities that match its declared financial objectives. Asset management companies provide investors with more diversification and investing options than they would have by themselves. Mutual funds, hedge funds and pension plans are all run by asset management companies. These companies earn income by charging service fees to their clients.

45· What are non-perfoming assets?

Non-performing assets, also called non-performing loans, are loans,made by a bank or finance company, on which repayments or interest payments are not being made on time. A debt obligation where the borrower has not paid any previously agreed upon interest and principal repayments to the designated lender for an extended period of time. The nonperforming asset is therefore not yielding any income to the lender in the form of principal and interest payments.

46· What is Recession?

A true economic recession can only be confirmed if GDP (Gross Domestic Product)growth is negative for a period of two or more consecutive quarters.

47· What is foreign exchange reservers?

Foreign exchange reserves (also called Forex reserves) in a strict sense are only the foreign currency deposits and bonds held by central banks and monetary authorities.However, the term in popular usage commonly includes foreign exchange and gold,SDRs and IMF reserve positions.


48. National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT)

Transfer of funds initiated by electronic means such as an electronic terminal, telephone, computer, or ATM. The NEFT facilitates the process of fund transfer within the same bank or inter-bank transfers. The minimum amount that can be transferred is as low as Rs 100.

49. Linked Account

Any account linked to another account in the same bank where funds can be transferred electronically between accounts and carry out other specified services as well.
50. Travellers' Cheque

Cheques issued by a bank and function as cash but are protected against loss or theft when travelling.
51. Balance Transfer

Balance transfer is an option included under credit card payments and is useful for persons holding more than one card. On availing this facility, the cardholder can transfer the balance amount outstanding on card one to card two and vice versa, if he/she is not able to make full payment that is due on a particular card.

In any case, the payment due date is only delayed but the payment has to be made at the scheduled time as stated in card two. Balance transfer facility is useful in reducing the interest outgo (on card one) and extending the payment due date on the original card.

52. Banking Ombudsman

Banking Ombudsman is an unbiased forum formed to resolve complaints registered by bank customers with respect to the services provided by banks. The RBI introduced this scheme under Section 35A of Banking Regulation Act, 1949. In case one has not been satisfactorily serviced by their bank, they should first register a complaint with the bank customer service department.

If they are not happy with the bank's response, then they can approach the banking ombudsman for an unbiased resolution.

53. Cashback

The term 'cashback' is used with reference to credit cards. Cashback means giving back some portion of money (spent by the cardholder through the credit card) to the cardholder himself. The cashback is made in terms of points earned; for example, the bank may say one point will be earned for every Rs 100 spent by the cardholder and at the end of the year, the money worth of the points earned (say Rs 1 for 1 point) will be credited back into the cardholder's account.
54. Collateral

A borrower needs to provide some kind of security to the bank in case of high ticket loans (except home loans where the property is the security). Such security is called 'collateral'.

In case the borrower fails to repay the loan, the bank has the authority to attach the collateral to the loan and claim its dues.

55. Documentation/Processing Fee

Bank requires certain documents from the borrower to look into his creditworthiness and charges a fee for the same. These charges are known as documentation charges.

Processing Fee is charged by the bank upon sanctioning of loan to the borrower.

56. Floating Rate

An interest rate that is referenced to a market rate and is revised as per the change in the interest rates in the economy. When interest rates in the economy rise, floating rates rise and vice versa.

57. MICR Code

MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition. MICR Code comprises 9 digits given at the bottom (right side) of the cheque number. It is a unique code and varies between each bank branch.

MICR Code is required for cheque clearance. MICR Code is different from the IFSC code, which is also mentioned on a cheque.


58. No-frills Account

This account is a basic savings account provided by banks to make banking simpler and more accessible for all customers. In a no-frills account, you do not have to maintain minimum balance and enjoy basic banking facilities such as electronic funds transfer (EFT), netbanking, free cheque book issuance.

59. Electronic Clearing Service (ECS)

It is a service provided by the banks to facilitate direct debit from your bank account towards an investment account (such as a mutual fund SIP) and/or paying regular loan EMIs.

One can give a standing instruction (SI) to the bank to transfer the specified amount every month for a specified period. Alternatively, you can direct a one-time transfer of funds through NEFT/RTGS (explained next).


60. RTGS

The RTGS or Real Time Gross Settlement System facilitates fund transfer within same bank or inter-bank transfers, but unlike NEFT, RTGS ensures the fund transfer fast and smooth in 'real-time' for a nominal fee.

The minimum transfer amount is higher than NEFT (usually Rs 2 lakh and above).

61. IFSC

IFSC code is useful in bank fund transfers and cheque clearance. It is an 11 character code assigned by RBI to identify every bank branch uniquely. The first part is the first 4 alphabet characters representing the bank. Next character is 0 (zero) and is reserved for future use. The last 6 characters is the branch code.

62. KYC

KYC or Know Your Customer norms are imposed by RBI on banks and other financial institutions to ensure that the correct identity of the banks' customers is established and to ensure that banks deal only in legitimate banking operations and not in money laundering or frauds.

63. ATM

An automated teller machine (ATM) is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients with access to financial transactions in a public space without the need for a cashier, human clerk or bank teller. On most modern ATMs, the customer is identified by inserting a plastic ATM card with a magnetic stripe or a plastic smart card with a chip, that contains a unique card number and some security information such as an expiration date or CVV. Authentication is provided by the customer entering a personal identification number (PIN)

अंग्रेजो वाली रौब नहीं रही अंग्रेजी की

उदारीकरण के बीस सालों में हिन्दुस्तान के मध्यमवर्ग का जो नवीनीकरण और विस्तार हुआ है उसने इसकी भाषा में बड़ा बदलाव किया है। एक ऐसा दुभाषिया मध्यमवर्ग बन गया है जो अपने खानपान और रहनसहन से लगता तो अंग्रेज़ी वाला है मगर वो हिन्दी वाला भी है। उदारीकरण से पहले हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी का मध्यमवर्ग अलग अलग था। अंग्रेजी वाले मध्यमवर्ग की पहचान सत्ता, अमीरी और बोर्डिंग स्कूल से पढ़कर आई पीढ़ी के खानदान वाली थी तो हिन्दी की पहचान विश्वविद्यालयों के हिन्दी विभाग,अकादमियों,दफ्तरों में खपाये गए बाबुओं के विशाल मध्यमवर्ग से होती थी। लेकिन अब क्या कोई अंग्रेजी भाषी और हिन्दी भाषी मध्यमवर्ग में फर्क कर सकता है। क्या दोनों मध्यमवर्ग की आकांक्षाओं में कोई अंतर रह गया है।

मुझे लगता है अंग्रेजी और हिन्दी की दीवार टूट गई है। अंग्रेजी अब गोरों की भाषा नहीं रहे। अब आप अंग्रेजी बोलकर अंग्रेज़ नहीं कहलाते। अंग्रेज़ी का उपनिवेशवाद वाला केंचुल उतर गया है। अंग्रेजी माध्यम वाले पब्लिक स्कूल की प्रकृति भी बदल गई है। ब्रिटिश सेना की कैंटोनमेंट इलाकों में बने इंगलिश मीडियम स्कूलों, रजवाड़ों के छोड़े गए महलों या भव्य इमारतों वाले स्कूलों, दार्जीलिंग शिमला या नैनिताल की पहाड़ियों वाले स्कूलों का वर्चस्व टूट गया है। इस दायरे से निकालने में मिशनरी कावेंट स्कूलों का बड़ा हाथ रहा। जब ऐसे स्कूल बेतिया,गोरखपुर से लेकर रांची और दिल्ली के उन इलाकों में चलते हुए कई दशक पूरे कर चुके थे जहां से अंग्रेज़ी बोलने वाला वो मध्यम वर्ग बन रहा था जो अंग्रेजी की सत्ता की दुनिया के दूसरे दर्जे के काम में खपाया जा रहा था। इनका ज्यादातर संबंध मैनेजर वाले कामों से रहा।

इसके बाद दौर शुरू हुआ पब्लिक स्कूलों का जो धीरे धीरे एक व्यापारिक श्रृंखला में बदलता हुआ एक ही नाम से देश के कई शहरों में खुलने लगा। जिनसे निकलने वाले लोगों को अंगेजी की सत्ता की दुनिया में तीसरे पायदान पर खड़े होने का मौका मिला। अब इन तीनों पायदानों में काफी कुछ बदल गया है। बदलाव इतना तेज था कि तीसरे पायदान का अंग्रेजी भाषा कब पहले पायदान पर पहुंच गया पता ही नहीं चला। जानकार इसे छोटे शहरों की कामयाब कहानियों से आगे देख ही नहीं सके। व्याकरण और शेक्सपीयर जैसी शुद्ध अंग्रेजी का दंभ टूट गया । आप किसी भी तरह से और कितने भी प्रकार से अंग्रेजी बोल सकते हैं। गांवों में इंग्लिश मीडियम स्कूलों के बच्चे भले ही पूरी अंग्रेजी न जानते हों, सही तरीके से नहीं बोल पाते हो मगर उन्हें यह पता लग गया है कि अंग्रेजी क्या है। इसीलिए वे होटल,शापिंग माल से लेकर डिस्को के बाहर दरवान बन कर खड़े होते हैं और आराम से दो चार लाइन अंग्रेजी बोल जाते हैं। यह धारणा टूट गई है कि कोई अंग्रेजी बोलेगा तो आप यही सोचेंगे कि किसी शाही खानदान का होगा।

यहीं वो बिन्दु है जहां हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी का मध्यमवर्ग एक दूसरे मिलता जुलता लगने लगता है। उदारीकरण के दौर में सरकारी सिस्टम के बाहर जो अवसर पैदा हुए उसमें एक ऐसा मध्यम वर्ग पैदा हो गया जो दुभाषिया था। उसने काम अंग्रेजी में किया लेकिन मनोरंजन हिन्दी में। अपने गांव से निकल कर पब्लिक स्कूलों से हासिल अंग्रेजी के सहारे वो बंगलुरू से लेकर अमेरिका तक गया मगर उस समृद्धि से पीछे अपने परिवार की हिन्दी को भी समृद्ध करता रहा। इस प्रक्रिया से कई भारतीय भाषाओं के पास आर्थिक शक्ति आ गई। हिन्दी वाला मध्यमवर्ग भी वही होंडा सिटी कार रखता है जिसे अंग्रेजी वाला चलाता है। वाशिंग मशीन से लेकर एलसीडी टीवी तक के उपभोग में समानता आ चुकी है। पहनावे से आप हिन्दी अंग्रेजी टाइप में फर्क नहीं कर सकते। वो जमाना जा चुका था जब उपभोग की ऐसी वस्तुओं पर उन्हीं का एकाधिकार था जो अंग्रेजी की सत्ता से आते थे और विदेशों से स्मगल कर लाते थे। यही वो दुभाषिया मध्यमवर्ग है जो अंग्रेजी को बाहर और हिन्दी को भीतर की भाषा मान कर जीता है। जिस तक पहुंचने के लिए हिन्दी के तमाम सीरियलों की बोलियों में आई विविधताओं को गौर करना चाहिए। किसी में गुजराती टोन है तो किसी में बिहारी तो किसी में अवधी। जन माध्यमों में मनोरंजन का हिस्सा सबसे बड़ा है। इसलिए पहले का यह सिद्धांत टूट गया कि जनमाध्यम होने के कारण मनोरंजन की एक स्टैंडर्ड भाषा होनी चाहिए। इस प्रक्रिया ने हिन्दी और अंग्रेजी के तनाव को कम कर दिया। दोनों के अहंकार को तोड़ दिया।

लिहाज़ा दोनों को आपस में घुलना मिलना था ही। हिन्दी फिल्मों के गानों में अंग्रेजी हिन्दी की तरह आ गई है। उनके नाम अंग्रेजी हिन्दी युग्मों के होने लगे हैं। कई बार पूरी तरह से अंग्रेजी के ही होते हैं। आम जीवन में हम इसी तरह से दोनों भाषाओं को टर्न कोट की तरह बरतने लगते हैं। अदल बदल कर पहन लेते हैं। दूसरी बात यह भी हुई कि यह धारणा टूट गई कि रोज़गार के अवसर से ही भाषा का विकास जुड़ा है। मैथिली की पत्रिकाओं का वितरण इसलिए बढ़ा है क्योंकि इस भाषा को बरतने वाले अमरिका में जाकर समृद्ध हुए हैं। इन लोगों ने कमाया तो अंग्रेजी से मगर हिस्सा मिला मैथिली को भी। हिन्दी को भी। इसी तरह से हिन्दुस्तान के भीतर अवसरों की तलाश में जो विस्थापन हुआ है उसने भी अंग्रेजी के अलावा दूसरी भाषाओं को संजीवनी दी है। दिल्ली के कई इलाकों में भोजपुरी,बुंदेलखंडी और मैथिली,कुमाऊंनी के म्यूजिक वीडियो घरों में देखे जाते हैं। चुपचाप इनका एक बाज़ार बन गया है। दिल्ली में ही मैथिली भाषा में एक न्यूज़ चैनल चलता है। दिल्ली में लाखों की संख्या में आए मज़दूर अपने मोबाइल फोन पर अपनी भाषा के म्यूजिक वीडियो डाउनलोड कर सुनते रहते हैं और जैसे ही कोई ग्राहक आता है दो चार लाइन अंग्रेजी के बोलकर सामान्य हो जाते हैं।

कहने का मतलब है कि भाषा का विकास अकादमी और व्याकरण से नहीं होता है। व्याकरण का अपना महत्वपूर्ण स्थान है लेकिन व्याकरण कोई ज़ड़ चीज़ नहीं है। अगर यह जड़ होता तो आज लाखों लोग अंग्रेजी बोलने का साहस नहीं कर पाते और इसी प्रकार से हिन्दी बोलने का भी साहस नहीं कर पाते। सिर्फ इतना ही नहीं इससे भाषाओं की राजनीतिक पहचान भी बदली है। हिन्दी अब राष्ट्रवादी आकांक्षाओं को व्यक्त करने वाली एकमात्र भाषा नहीं रही। वो हमेशा गरीबों की आवाज़ वाली भाषा नहीं रही। हिन्दी अब मध्यमवर्गीय आकांक्षाओं की भी भाषा है। अंग्रेजी भी औपनिवेशिक संस्कारों वाले तबके की भाषा नहीं रही। अंग्रेजी भी मध्यमवर्गीय आकांक्षाओं की भाषा है। इन दोनों का राजनीतिक मिलन देखना हो तो आप अन्ना आंदोलन और दिल्ली गैंगरेप के बाद रायसीना हिल्स पर आ धमके हज़ारों से लेकर लाखों युवाओं के स्लोगन को देखिये। उनमें हिन्दी भी है और अंग्रेजी भी है। जिसकी चिन्ता में वो देश आ गया है जो अब तक सिर्फ हिन्दी की चिन्ताओं में थी। हिन्दी की चिन्ताओं में नागरिकता को वो बोध आ गया है जो अब तक अंग्रेजी की चिन्ताओं में ही थी। इस बदलाव में सोशल मीडिया का एक बड़ा रोल है। जिसके एक ही पन्ने पर हिन्दी भी सरकती है और अंग्रेजी भी। दोनों लड़ते नहीं,साथ-साथ जीना सीख गए हैं।

what is "SAP"

SAP stands for Systems Applications and Products in Data Processing. Designed and developed by 5 IBM engineers during the 1970s as a standards based software alternative to custom built ERP software, SAP has come a long way. SAP has been in the forefront of ERP software ever since.

SAP develops ERP products to be used by companies to manage their enterprise. This includes managing their day to day operations, logistics, finances, month end, quarter end and yearly activities, reporting, HR etc. Although there are a couple of other ERP vendors who do the same, the key differentiator for SAP is the way in which SAP integrates all these operations and makes for a seamless system that is both easy to use and at the same time sophisticated enough to include all kinds of complex activities that are needed for any kind of enterprise. Examples of some of these activities could, be running Material resource planning, recruiting and managing an employee’s lifecycle, disbursing payrolls, recording all financial transactions and drawing balance sheets and P/L statements of the company etc. Now imagine a single system that takes care of all these diverse activities and still keep them well integrated.

SAP was initially designed to be run on the mainframe and was called that release was called R/2 (Release 2). SAP quickly caught on to the client server model with a later release called R/3 and this was the most popular version of SAP. After R/3, later versions of their core software were launched called Enterprise Central Component (ECC).

The automation needs of an enterprise are endless. SAP soon realized that corporations needed business intelligence to mine data from their daily operational data and extract meaningful trends that could enable further business opportunities. SAP BW was born and morphed into BI after buying out Business Objects (BO).

After the hugely successful R/3, SAP created more and more niche software like Customer Relationship Management (CRM), SRM, XI (now called Process Integration or PI) and once again living up to the standards of SAP by maintaining tight integration with their core ECC software.

Through the process of developing these software components, SAP has slowly moved from standard client server architecture to a completely web-based architecture where every transaction can be run from just a browser. These new dimension products developed on the web standards based framework (NetWeaver) are all under new umbrella called mySAP.
What’s in it for me ?

SAP is all-powerful software and everything, but you might ask “How does it help me?” Roughly more than 70% of all Fortune 100 and more than 50% of all Fortune 500 companies use SAP as their core ERP software.

What this gives you is tremendous job opportunities with these companies. These companies have enormous appetite for qualified IT consultants in the field of SAP. These jobs are not just for computer engineers or the likes of them. There are multiple tiers of consultants working in SAP for these companies. SAP is one of the very few software’s where there is a clear distinction between functional and technical areas of expertise. For companies, this means that there is a clear and logical division of the type of work performed and hence leads to increased productivity and efficient implementation and maintenance lifecycles. For individuals like you, this means more jobs and more specialization required for the same.

We can classify them as

Functional Consultants: These are folks who have tremendous industry experience in their respective area (Like HR, Finance, Logistics modules like Sales, Procurement etc ) . An example would be a hard-core sales manager with extensive Sales domain experience, working as an SAP SD functional consultant. Another example would be a CPA working to configure an SAP FICO system in a company. The strength of these consultants would like in their deep understanding of the core business processes that are key to the enterprise. A CPA would understand the General Ledger, Balance Sheet or a reconciliation account more than somebody with just pure technical knowledge.

Technical Consultants: These are folks who have very good engineering or other academic backgrounds and have a very strong understanding of programming languages. SAP’s own 4th General Programming language is called ABAP. ( Advanced Business Application Programming). In the mySAP suite of products, programming can be done in Java as well. Also there are specialized skills like configuring and customizing SAP’s own middleware XI(Exchange Infrastructure), MDM ( Master Data Management) etc.

System Administration: This is managing the SAP software itself (The Netweaver Core ). These folks are called SAP Basis consultants and they come from some kind of System Administration background (*NIX, Windows or Database Administrators). The job includes, installation, upgrades, patching and general maintenance of the SAP system. They also take care of maintaining the entire system landscape.




1990s saw a tremendous change in SAP. Early 1990 is when SAP’s R/3 captured the ERP market. The core ERP product comprised of the following modules.

FICO – Finance & Controlling
SD – Sales & Distribution
MM – Materials Management
PP – Production Planning
SM – Service Management
QM – Quality Management
WM – Warehouse Management
TM – Transportation Management
HR – Human Resources
PS – Project Systems

In the later part of 1990s, SAP diversified into many niche products expanding beyond just its core ERP product space and venturing into new dimension products. Some of these products are mentioned here. They were grouped under the term SAP Business Suite.

CRM – Customer Relationship Management
SRM – Supplier Relationship Management
APO – Advanced Planner and Optimizer
PLM – Product Lifecycle Management
SCM – Supply Chain Management e-Procurement
FSCM – Financial Supply Chain Management
EHS – Environment Health and Safety
SEM – Strategic Enterprise Management
BI – Business Intelligence
PI – Process Integration
EWM – Extended Warehouse Management
and counting….

Parallelly, SAP has been working on Industry specific solutions (SAP – IS ) which are written with collaboration with specific industries. For example, SAP implements at Nike and has gathered tremendous information on how the footwear and apparel industry works. Naturally SAP has come up with a version of ERP called SAP – IS AFS (Apparel & Footwear). SAP also has many other Industry solutions. 

The Eurozone Crisis

 What is the European Debt Crisis?

The European debt crisis is the shorthand term for Europe’s struggle to pay the debts it has built up in recent decades. Five of the region’s countries – Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Italy, and Spain – have, to varying degrees, failed to generate enough economic growth to make their ability to pay back bondholders the guarantee it was intended to be. Although these five were seen as being the countries in immediate danger of a possible default, the crisis has far-reaching consequences that extend beyond their borders to the world as a whole. In fact, the head of the Bank of England referred to it as “the most serious financial crisis at least since the 1930s, if not ever,” in October 2011.

The eurozone crisis originated with investor concerns about sovereign debt levels, which led to higher bond yields and unsustainable deficits. While a 750 billion euro rescue package was setup in response, the crisis continues to persist due in large part to political disagreements and the lack of a cohesive plan among member states to address the problem.


Eurozone Crisis Timeline & Causes

Many experts agree that the eurozone crisis began in late 2009, when Greece admitted thatits debts had reached 300 billion euros, which represented approximately 113% of its gross domestic product (GDP). Meanwhile, the European Union (EU) had already warned several countries about their debt levels, which were supposed to be capped at 60% of GDP.

In early 2010, the EU noted several irregularities in Greece's accounting systems, which led to upward revisions of its budget deficits. Ratings agencies promptly downgraded the country's debt, which led to concern among other troubled countries in the eurozone, including Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain, whom also had lofty levels of sovereign debt.

The negative sentiment led investors to demand higher yields on sovereign bonds, which of course exacerbated the problem by making borrowing costs even higher. Higher yields also led to lower bond prices, which meant larger countries and many eurozone banks holding sovereign debt in troubled countries began to suffer, requiring their own set of solutions.

After a modest bailout by the International Monetary Fund, eurozone leaders agreed upon a 750 billion euro rescue package and established the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) in May of 2010. Eventually, this fund was increased to about 1 trillion euros in February of 2012, while several other measures were also implemented to stem the crisis.

Countries receiving bailout funds from this facility were required to undergo harsh austerity measures designed to bring their budget deficits and government debt levels under control. Ultimately, this led to popular protests throughout 2010, 2011 and 2012 that culminated in the election of antibailout socialist leaders in France and likely Greece.


Potential Eurozone Crisis Solutions

The failure to resolve the eurozone crisis has been largely attributed to a lack of political consensus on the measures that need to be taken. Rich countries like Germany have insisted on austerity measures designed to bring down debt levels, while the poorer countries facing the problems complain that austerity is only hindering economic growth prospects further.

Perhaps the most popular solution proposed has been the so-called Eurobond, which would be jointly underwritten by all eurozone member states. These bonds would presumably trade with a low yield and enable countries to more efficiency finance their way out of trouble and eliminate the need for additional expensive bailouts.

The problem with this solution is mostly that of complacency. Some experts believe that access to low interest debt financing will eliminate the need for countries to undergo austerity and only push back an inevitable day of reckoning. Meanwhile, countries like Germany could face the brunt of the financial burden in the event of any Eurobond defaults or problems.

With disagreements between rich and poor countries in the region, there is a risk that nothing will be accomplished and the situation will only worsen. In the end, there may not be any easy answer to the eurozone crisis, but financial markets continue monitoring the situation in hopes that a solution amicable to all countries arises.

What is Inflation?

What is the meaning of Inflation ?

In economics inflation means, a rise in general level of prices of goods and services in a economy over a period of time. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Thus, inflation results in loss of value of money. Another popular way of looking at inflation is "toomuch money chasing too few goods". The last definition attributes the cause of inflation to monetary growth relative to the output / availability of goods and services in the economy.

In case the price of say only one commodity rise sharply but prices of other commodities fall, it will not be termed as inflation. Similarly, in case due to rumors if the price of a commodity rise during the day itself, it will not be termed as inflation. 


The Link Between Inflation and Money

Because inflation is a rise in the general level of prices, it is intrinsically linked to money, as captured by the often heard refrain "Inflation is too many dollars chasing too few goods". To understand how this works, imagine a world that only has two commodities: Oranges picked from orange trees, and paper money printed by the government. In a year where there is a drought and oranges are scarce, we'd expect to see the price of oranges rise, as there will be quite a few dollars chasing very few oranges. Conversely, if there's a record crop or oranges, we'd expect to see the price of oranges fall, as orange sellers will need to reduce their prices in order to clear their inventory. These scenarios are inflation and deflation, respectively, though in the real world inflation and deflation are changes in the average price of all goods and services, not just one.


What are different types of inflation ?

Broadly speaking inflation is divided into two categories i.e.

(a) DEMAND - PULL INFLATION: In this type of inflation prices increase results from an excess of demand over supply for the economy as a whole. Demand inflation occurs when supply cannot expand any more to meet demand; that is, when critical production factors are being fully utilized, also called Demand inflation.


(b) COST - PUSH INFLATION: This type of inflation occurs when general price levels rise owing to rising input costs. In general, there are three factors that could contribute to Cost-Push inflation: rising wages, increases in corporate taxes, and imported inflation. [imported raw or partly-finished goods may become expensive due to rise in international costs or as a result of depreciation of local currency ]


What is Deflation ? :

Deflation is the opposite of inflation. Deflation refers to situation, where there is decline in general price levels. Thus, deflation occurs when the inflation rate falls below 0% (or it is negative inflation rate). Deflation increases the real value of money and allows one to buy more goods with the same amount of money over time. Deflation can occur owing to reduction in the supply of money or credit. Deflation can also occur due to direct contractions in spending, either in the form of a reduction in government spending, personal spending or investment spending. Deflation has often had the side effect of increasing unemployment in an economy, since the process often leads to a lower level of demand in the economy. 



What is Stagflation ? 

Stagflation refers to economic condition where economic growth is very slow or stagnant and prices are rising. The term stagflation was coined by British politician Iain Macleod, who used the phrase in his speech to parliament in 1965, when he said: “We now have the worst of both worlds - not just inflation on the one side or stagnation on the other. We have a sort of ‘stagflation’ situation.” The side effects of stagflation are increase in unemployment- accompanied by a rise in prices, or inflation. Stagflation occurs when the economy isn't growing but prices are going up. At international level, this happened during mid 1970s, when world oil prices rose dramatically, fuelling sharp inflation in developed countries.



What is Hyperinflation ? 

Hyperinflation is a situation where the price increases are too sharp. Hyperinflation often occurs when there is a large increase in the money supply, which is not supported by growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Such a situation results in an imbalance in the supply and demand for the money. In this this remains unchecked; it results into sharp increase in prices and depreciation of the domestic currency.


What is Headline Inflation ?

Headline inflation refers to inflation figure which is not adjusted for seasonality or for the often volatile elements of food & energy prices, which are removed in the Core CPI. Headline inflation will usually be quoted on an annualized basis, meaning that a monthly headline figure of 4% inflation equates to a monthly rate that, if repeated for 12 months, would create 4% inflation for the year. Comparisons of headline inflation are typically made on a year-over-year basis. Also known as "top-line inflation".



How Inflation is Measured in India?

Inflation is usually measured based on certain indices. Broadly, there are two categories of indices for measuring inflation i.e. Wholesale Prices and Consumer Prices.  


What is an Index Number ? 

An Index number is a single figure that shows how the whole set of related variables has changed over time or from one place to another. In particular, a price index reflects the overall change in a set of prices paid by a consumer or a producer, and is conventionally known as a Cost-of-Living index or Producer's Price Index as the case may be.


Wholesale Price Index (WPI) :

This index is the most widely used inflation indicator in India. This is published by the Office of Economic Adviser, Ministry of Commerce and Industry. WPI captures price movements in a most comprehensive way. It is widely used by Government, banks, industry and business circles. Important monetary and fiscal policy changes are linked to WPI movements. It is in use since 1939 and is being published since 1947 regularly. We are well aware that with the changing times, the economies too undergo structural changes. Thus, there is a need for revisiting such indices from time to time and new set of articles / commodities are required to be included based on current economic scenarios. Thus, since 1939, the base year of WPI has been revised on number of occasions. The current series of Wholesale Price Index has 2004-05 as the base year. Latest revision of WPI has been done by shifting base year from 1993-94 to 2004-05 on the recommendations of the Working Group set upwith Prof Abhijit Sen,, Member, Planning Commission as Chairman for revision of WPI series. This new series with base year 2004-05 has been launched on 14th September, 2010.  


Earlier, the concept of wholesale price covered the general idea of capturing all transactions carried out in the domestic market. The weights of the WPI did not correspond to contribution of the goods concerned either to value - added or final use. In order to give this idea a more precise definition, it was decided to define the universe of the wholesale price index as comprising as far as possible all transactions at first point of bulk sale in the domestic market.

Portfolio Management - Meaning and Important Concepts

What is a Portfolio ?

A portfolio refers to a collection of investment tools such as stocks, shares, mutual funds, bonds, cash and so on depending on the investor’s income, budget and convenient time frame.

Following are the two types of Portfolio:

Market Portfolio
Zero Investment Portfolio


What is Portfolio Management ?

The art of selecting the right investment policy for the individuals in terms of minimum risk and maximum return is called as portfolio management.

Portfolio management refers to managing an individual’s investments in the form of bonds, shares, cash, mutual funds etc so that he earns the maximum profits within the stipulated time frame.

Portfolio management refers to managing money of an individual under the expert guidance of portfolio managers.

In a layman’s language, the art of managing an individual’s investment is called as portfolio management.


Need for Portfolio Management

Portfolio management presents the best investment plan to the individuals as per their income, budget, age and ability to undertake risks.

Portfolio management minimizes the risks involved in investing and also increases the chance of making profits.

Portfolio managers understand the client’s financial needs and suggest the best and unique investment policy for them with minimum risks involved.

Portfolio management enables the portfolio managers to provide customized investment solutions to clients as per their needs and requirements.


Types of Portfolio Management

Portfolio Management is further of the following types:

Active Portfolio Management: As the name suggests, in an active portfolio management service, the portfolio managers are actively involved in buying and selling of securities to ensure maximum profits to individuals.


Passive Portfolio Management: In a passive portfolio management, the portfolio manager deals with a fixed portfolio designed to match the current market scenario.


Discretionary Portfolio management services: In Discretionary portfolio management services, an individual authorizes a portfolio manager to take care of his financial needs on his behalf. The individual issues money to the portfolio manager who in turn takes care of all his investment needs, paper work, documentation, filing and so on. In discretionary portfolio management, the portfolio manager has full rights to take decisions on his client’s behalf.


Non-Discretionary Portfolio management services: In non discretionary portfolio management services, the portfolio manager can merely advise the client what is good and bad for him but the client reserves full right to take his own decisions.


Who is a Portfolio Manager ?

An individual who understands the client’s financial needs and designs a suitable investment plan as per his income and risk taking abilities is called a portfolio manager. A portfolio manager is one who invests on behalf of the client.

A portfolio manager counsels the clients and advises him the best possible investment plan which would guarantee maximum returns to the individual.

A portfolio manager must understand the client’s financial goals and objectives and offer a tailor made investment solution to him. No two clients can have the same financial needs.

what is the differece between perqusities and allowance?

Perks are special benefits that are provided to staff who perform a particular job or belongs to a particular group. For example Company Car, Residential Quarter, Private medical Insurance etc. The perks are not form the part of Salary slip/muster roll record.

An allowance is monetary consideration given to someone, usually on regular basis in order to help them to meet out their personal expenses. It is assumed that a particular employee incures his substaintial fund and an assistance will provide a cushion. Examples are Child education allowance, City compensatory allowance, House Rent Allowance, Transport Allowance, Special Allowance etc.