INDIAN CURRENT AFFAIR GLOSSARY

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Indian Current Affairs

Glossary

APEC	Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. It is a grouping of 21 countries for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. It proclaims itself to be the only inter governmental grouping in the world operating on the basis of non-binding commitments, open dialogue and equal respect for the views of all participants. Unlike the WTO or other multilateral trade bodies, APEC has no treaty obligations required of its participants. Decisions made within APEC are reached by consensus and commitments are undertaken on a voluntary basis. Read more about it here.
AMFI	Association of Mutual Funds in India. It is the apex body of all the registered Asset Management Companies and was incorporated in 1995 as a non-profit organisation. Know more about it here.
ASEAN	Association of South East Asian Nations. It was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok by the five original Member Countries, namely, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Brunei Darussalam joined on 8 January 1984, Vietnam on 28 July 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, and Cambodia on 30 April 1999. It is basically meant for economic cooperation among them. But the activities are of late becoming more comprehensive including in their ambit security, cultural development and social progress.
APM	Administered Pricing Mechanism. A mechanism to subsidise petroleum and related products in India.
ARCs	Asset Reconstruction Companies. These buy the NPAs of banks for a deep discount and recover the loans to make a profit.
ASI	The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), under the Ministry of Culture, is the premier organization for the archaeological researches and protection of the cultural heritage of the nation. Maintenance of ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance is the prime concern of the ASI. Besides it regulate all archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. It also regulates Antiquities and Art Treasure Act, 1972.
ATF	Aviation Turbine Fuel
Balloon payments	A balloon payment is a large, lump sum payment made either at specific intervals, or more commonly, at the end of a long-term balloon loan. Balloon payments are most commonly found in mortgages, but may be attached to auto and personal loans as well. In exchange for this large final payment, the person taking out the loan reaps of a number of benefits. Usually, the initial amount of cash which must be put down is less than it would be under a standard loan agreement. More importantly, however, is the lower interest rate throughout the life of the loan, and smaller monthly payments. Balloon loans are ideal for people with good investment sense, and the ability to wisely manage and ration their spending. By freeing up capital that can be dedicated to paying down higher interest rates and making larger payments, balloon loans give a savvy investor the opportunity to use that capital to save money. These loans make a lot of sense for individuals expecting a financial windfall at some point in the future. This might be due to a large tax refund, an inheritance, or an expected dividend. Whatever the source, if current cash-flow is not indicative of future capital holdings, a balloon payment may be an intelligent choice.
Bank rate	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.
Base effect	It refers to the phenomenon of recording huge jumps in growth rates because of low growth recorded in the previous years. For example, industrial output grew by only 7.1% in July 2007. Industrial output grew 4.7% in July 2005 and 13.2% in July 2006. The slower growth in 2007 is due to the base effect caused by the robust growth of 13.2% recorded in July 2006.
Basel Norms	Basel norms are about bolstering banks’ capital in accordance with the supervisory standards and guidelines formulated by the Basel Committee.
Basis Points	Interest rates are usually measured by financial world in terms of basis points. 100 basis points equals 1%. When you hear about 10 basis points, it is referring to 0.1%.
BCCI	Board of Cricket Control India
BCG	Boston Consulting Group. It is an international strategy and general management consulting firm.
Bernanke	Refers to Ben Bernanke. The US Federal Reserve Chairman.
BIS	Bureau of Indian Standards. The standards setting body of India.
Blue tongue disease	A viral disease that affects ruminants. Details.
BPO	Business Process Outsourcing. BPO is the outsourcing of back office and front office functions typically performed by white collar and clerical workers. Examples include accounting, human resources and medical coding and transcription.
Brent	It is crude oil produced in the North Sea in Atlantic. See more here.
CA	Chartered Accountant
CAG	Comptroller and Auditor General of India. See his duties and responsibilities here.
Catacomb	Any network of caves, grottos, or subterranean place that is used for the burial of the dead, or it can refer to a specific underground burial place.
CBI	Central Bureau of Investigation. It is the premier central investigating agency of the country.
CBSE	Central Board of Secondary Education. Know more about it here.
CDM	Clean Development Mechanism. The Kyoto Protocol establishes the CDM to enable industrialised countries to finance emissions-avoiding projects in developing countries and receive credit for doing so.
CDMA	Code Division Multiple Access: A technology for digital transmission of radio signals between, for example, a mobile telephone and a radio base station. In CDMA, a frequency is divided into a number of codes.
CECA	Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement.
CERC	Central Electricity Regulatory Commission
CERSEM	Centre for Excellence for Radio Spectrum Engineering and Management
Chicxulub	Chicxulub Crater is an ancient impact crater buried underneath the Yucatán Peninsula, with its center located near the town of Chicxulub, Yucatan, Mexico. The crater is over 180 kilometers (112 mi) in diameter, and the asteroid or comet whose impact formed the crater was at least 10 km (6 mi) in diameter. The crater was named for the eponymous town, as well as for the literal Maya translation of the name: "tail of the devil."
CIBIL	Credit Information Bureau of India Limited. It tracks credit worthiness of borrowers across the financial markets in India and shares this information with its members. Look for more details here.
CII	Confederation of Indian Industry. Know more about it here.
Consumer durables	They consist of consumer electronics and white goods
Correlation	The degree to which economic variables are observed to move together. If they move in the same direction there is positive correlation; if they move in opposite directions there is negative correlation.
Credit Rating	A credit rating assesses the credit worthiness of an individual, corporation, or even a country. Credit ratings are calculated from financial history and current assets and liabilities. Typically, a credit rating tells a lender or investor the probability of the subject being able to pay back a loan. However, in recent years, credit ratings have also been used to adjust insurance premiums, determine employment eligibility, and establish the amount of a utility or leasing deposit. A poor credit rating indicates a high risk of defaulting on a loan, and thus leads to high interest rates, or the refusal of a loan by the creditor.
CRR	Cash Reserve Ratio. It is the ratio of interest-free cash reserves mandatorily kept by the banks with the RBI. At present it is 7.5%. Read more about this and related ratio SLR here.
Crude basket	It refers to the composition of all the sources from where the country procures crude oil. Look at its composition in 2007 here.
CSIR	Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
CST	Central Sales Tax.
DAR method	It is a method of estimating radio listernership. See also Diary Method. Look for details here.
Dargah	A dargah is a Sufi shrine built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint.
DCI	Dredging Corporation of India. DCI helps to ensure the continuous availability of the desired depths in shipping channels of the Major and Minor Ports, Navy, fishing harbours and other maritime oraganisations.
DGH	Directorate General of Hydrocarbons.
DGCA	Director General of Civil Aviation.
DGFT	Director General of Foreign Trade. Know more about it here.
Diary Method	A method of estimating radio listenership. See this for details. See also DAR Method.
Dividend stripping	The practice of knocking away the dividends with a view to booking short term capital losses. More details here.
DMIC	Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor. It is a $90 bn Dedicated Freight Corridor between Delhi and Mumbai, covering an overall length of 1483km and passing thru the States of U.P, NCR of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra, with end terminals at Dadri in the National Capital Region of Delhi and Jawaharlal Nehru Port near Mumbai. This Dedicated Frieght Corridor offers high-speed connectivity for High Axle Load Wagons (25 Tonne) of Double Stacked Container Trains supported by high power locomotives. The Delhi-Mumbai leg of the Golden Quadilateral National Highway also runs almost parallel to the Freight Corridor. For more details see this. For knowing about how the project is being structured see our notes on 23.09.2007.
Domino effect	The domino effect is the idea that some change, small in itself, will cause a similar change nearby, which then will cause another similar change, and so on in linear sequence, by analogy to a falling row of dominoes standing on end.
DoT	Department of Telecommunications.
ECBs	External Commercial Borrowings. Borrowings made from outside the country.
EDGE	Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution: is a digital mobile phone technology which acts as a bolt-on enhancement to 2G and 2.5G (a.k.a.GPRS) networks. This technology is working in TDMA and GSM networks. EDGE (also known as EGPRS) is a superset to GPRS and can function on any network with GPRS deployed on it (provided the carrier implements the necessary upgrades).
EEFC Accounts	Exchange Earners Foreign Currency Account. A type of bank account which is opened for foreign exchange earners. Know more about them directly from RBI site here.
EGoM	Empowered Group of Ministers. A mechanism that has become characteristic of the present UPA government in India. When the government is faced with some tricky issues, it is referring matters to such specially constituted EGoMs to sort out the issues. As these EGoMs are usually consisting of ministers from various political parties, this is also effectively ensuring that the policy outcome is most widely palatable for all the constituents of the UPA government.
EMIs	Equated Monthly Installments. A housing loan is normally repayed by a monthly instalment. Usually the monthly instalment is an EMI, an equal amount that, if paid every month over the tenure of the loan, results in fully paying off the loan taken. Part of the monthly instalment is interest (calculated at the loan interest rate on the principal outstanding for that month) and the remaining part is accounted for as principal repaid. Principal repaid in the previous month is reduced from outstanding principal amount every month. Interest is calculated in the above fashion on reducing principal. At the end of the loan tenure, the principal reduces to zero.
ETF	Exchange Traded Fund. A basket of stocks that is bought and sold on a stock exchange as if it were a single stock.
FCCB	Foreign Currency Convertible Bond
FDI	Foreign Direct Investment. FDI is defined as "investment made to acquire lasting interest in enterprises operating outside of the economy of the investor." The FDI relationship, consists of a parent enterprise and a foreign affiliate which together form a transnational corporation (TNC). In order to qualify as FDI the investment must afford the parent enterprise control over its foreign affiliate. The UN defines control in this case as owning 10% or more of the ordinary shares or voting power of an incorporated firm or its equivalent for an unincorporated firm; lower ownership shares are known as portfolio investment.
FEMA	Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999. The legal framework for administration of foreign exchange transactions in India is provided by the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999. Under the Act, freedom has been granted for buying and selling of foreign exchange for undertaking current account transactions. Under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) [in lieu of FERA], which has come into force with effect from June 1, 2000, all transactions involving foreign exchange have been classified either as Capital or Current Account transactions. All transactions undertaken by a resident that do not alter his assets or liabilities outside India are current account transactions. In terms of Section 5 of the FEMA, persons are free to buy or sell foreign exchange for any current account transaction except for those transactions on which Central Government has imposed restrictions.
FII	Foreign Institutional Investors. These typically include pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, foundations and endowments. They register with SEBI for making portfolio investments in India.
Federal Reserve	The US Central Bank. Look here for a more detailed explanation about its constitution and different rates it monitors.
FIFA	Fédération Internationale de Football Association. It is the world body which promotes football. It is an association governed by Swiss law founded in 1904 and based in Zurich. It has 208 member associations and its goal, enshrined in its Statutes, is the constant improvement of football by protecting standards, encouraging competition and promoting solidarity in the world game. Its mission is to to reach out and touch the world, using football as a symbol of hope and integration. Read more about it here.
Financial deepening	Financial deepening is a term used often by economic development experts. It refers to the increased provision of financial services with a wider choice of services geared to all levels of society. It also refers to the macro effects of financial deepening on the larger economy.
FMCG	Fast Moving Consumer Goods. FMCG is a classification that refers to wide range of frequently purchased consumer products including: toiletries, soaps, cosmetics, teeth cleaning products, shaving products, detergents, other non-durables such as glassware, bulbs, batteries, and plastic goods such as buckets. Fast Moving is in opposition to consumer durables such as kitchen appliances that are generally replaced less than once a year.
Futures	A contract specifying a future date of delivery or receipt of a certain amount of a specific tangible or intangible product. The commodities traded in futures markets include stock index futures; agricultural products like wheat, soybeans and pork bellies; metals; and financial instruments. Futures are used by business as a hedge against unfavorable price changes and by speculators who hope to profit from such changes.
FTA	Free Trade Agreement. An agreement between two countries or groups of countries providing for freer trade on goods and services between them.
GAAP	Generally Accepted Accounting Principles are the rules or guidelines set to keep record keeping consistent, conservative and reliable. There are several principles and assumptions that must be considered while maintaining a set of accounting records. It is important to not assume anything and always confirm the bookkeeping practices you are using with an accounting professional. An example of a principle is consistency. This includes maintaining the same valuation method for calculating inventory and depreciation. Once a method has been chosen, it must stay consistent. There are always exceptions, and the method can change with disclosure, as long as it's not changed continually to suit your needs. For each country, these standards and principles vary. That is why you hear about US GAAP, UK GAAP etc. Bu there is an international body that develops and sets international standards in accounting. Look at IASB.
GCMMF	Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation. The owners of brand Amul.
GDP	Gross Domestic Product. GDP is the total value of goods and services produced by a nation. Real GDP: GDP adjusted for inflation. Real GDP provides the value of GDP in constant dollars, which is used as an indicator of the volume of the nation's output. Nominal GDP: The value of goods and services produced in a year when output is valued at current year prices.
GHG	Green House Gases. The main ones are carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and nitrous oxides (N2O). CO2 accounts for 70 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions.
Globalisation	Globalization (or globalisation) is a term used to describe the changes in societies and the world economy that are the result of dramatically increased trade and cultural exchange. In specifically economic contexts, it is often understood to refer almost exclusively to the effects of trade, particularly trade liberalization or free trade.
GoI	Government of India
GoM	Group of Ministers. The Central Government from time to time constitutes various GoMs to look into issues of importance on matters of policy.
Grand Slam	In tennis, a Grand Slam is winning all four of the following championship titles in the same year: Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
Great Depression	The Great Depression (also known in the U.K. as the Great Slump) was a dramatic, worldwide economic downturn beginning in some countries as early as 1928. The beginning of the Great Depression in the United States is associated with the stock market crash on October 29, 1929, known as Black Tuesday. The depression had devastating effects in both the industrialized countries and those which exported raw materials. International trade declined sharply, as did personal incomes, tax revenues, prices and profits. Cities all around the world were hit hard, especially those dependent on heavy industry. Construction was virtually halted in many countries. Farming and rural areas suffered as crop prices fell by 40 to 60 percent. Mining and logging areas had perhaps the most striking blow because the demand fell sharply and there were few employment alternatives.
Greenspan	Refers to Alan Greenspan. The former US Federal Reserve Chairman. A highly rated economist.
Green building	See 22.09.2007 notes.
GST	Goods and Services Tax. A consumption (as opposed to income) tax levied on the purchases of goods and services by consumers
Hallmarking	It is a measure of ensuing quality is the jewellery being sold. Look here.
Hedging	In finance, a hedge is an investment that is taken out specifically to reduce or cancel out the risk in another investment. The term is a shortened form of "hedging your bets", a gambling term. Typical hedgers purchase a security that the investor thinks will increase in value, and combine this with a "short sell" of a related security or securities in case the market as a whole goes down in value.
Hedge fund	A hedge fund is an investment fund structured to avoid direct regulation and taxation in major countries and which charges a performance fee based on the increase of the value of the fund's assets. The assets of a hedge fund will usually be managed by an investment management firm. As a hedge fund is largely unregulated, its investment manager is able to deploy a wider range of investment strategies and tactics than it could for a regulated fund, and investing in a hedge fund is therefore considered to carry more risk.
Hemline	The line formed by the lower edge of a skirt or coat.
HiPods	Hi performance on demand solutions. It is an IBM terminology for coming out with business solutions.
HSN	Hormonized System of Nomenclature
Hyogo Framework	It is a framework adopted by The World Conference on Disaster Reduction that was held from 18 to 22 January 2005 in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan. It came out with the “Framework for Action 2005-2015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters”. The Conference provided a unique opportunity to promote a strategic and systematic approach to reducing vulnerabilities and risks to hazards. It underscored the need for, and identified ways of, building the resilience of nations and communities to disasters.
IAEA	International Atomic Energy Agency.
IASB	The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) founded on April 1, 2001 is responsible for developing the International Financial Reporting Standards (new name for the International Accounting Standards issued after 2001), and promoting the use and application of these standards. The IASB co-operates with national accounting standard-setters to achieve convergence in accounting standards around the world. The International Accounting Standards Board is an independent, privately-funded accounting standard-setter based in London, UK. See also GAAP in this regard.
IAMAI	Internet and Mobile Association of India
IBRD	International Bank for Reconstruction and Developemnt. Aka World Bank. It serves middle-income countries with capital investment and advisory services.
ICAAP	Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process.
ICAI	Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. See this for its current President and membership strength.
ICRIER	Indian Council for Research in International Economic Relations
ICRISAT	International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics. It is a nonprofit, non-political organization that does innovative agricultural research and capacity building for sustainable development with a wide array of partners across the globe. ICRISAT's mission is to help empower 600 million poor people to overcome hunger, poverty and a degraded environment in the dry tropics through better agriculture. ICRISAT belongs to the Alliance of Future Harvest Centers of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).
IDA	International Development Assistance. It is the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries. Established in 1960, IDA aims to reduce poverty by providing interest-free credits and grants for programs that boost economic growth, reduce inequalities and improve people’s living conditions.
IDR	Indian Depository Receipts. Just like ADRs and GDRs, these are meant for foreign companies looking to raise money (capital) in India.
IEA	International Energy Agency. It acts as energy policy advisor to 27 member countries in their effort to ensure reliable, affordable and clean energy for their citizens. Founded during the oil crisis of 1973-74, the IEA’s initial role was to co-ordinate measures in times of oil supply emergencies. As energy markets have changed, its mandate has broadened to incorporate the “Three E’s” of balanced energy policy making: energy security, economic development and environmental protection. Current work focuses on climate change policies, market reform, energy technology collaboration and outreach to the rest of the world, especially major consumers and producers of energy like China, India, Russia and the OPEC countries. Know more about it here.
IFRS	International Financial Reporting Standards. These are standards and interpretations adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). Many of the standards forming part of IFRS are known by the older name of International Accounting Standards (IAS). IAS were issued between 1973 and 2001 by the board of the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC). In April 2001 the IASB adopted all IAS and continued their development, calling the new standards IFRS.
IIP	The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) is a key measure of the industrial performance of the Indian Economy.
IMFC	An important committee of IMF. Look for details of its mandate here.
IMO	International Maritime Organization. See this for its current Secretary General.
IMRB	Indian Market Research Bureau
IPCC	Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established jointly by WMO (World Meteorological Organization) and UNEP (UN Environment Programme) in 1988. The role of the IPCC is to assess on a comprehensive, objective, open and transparent basis the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation. The IPCC does not carry out research nor does it monitor climate related data or other relevant parameters. It bases its assessment mainly on peer reviewed and published scientific/technical literature. For more info see its website at: http://www.ipcc.ch/
IPO	Initial Public Offer(ing). Shares in a company have been placed on a stock exchange. An IPO is always just the first time a company's shares are listed - if a company has a listing on another market or in another country, then the listing is not an IPO, merely a secondary, or additional, listing.
IRDA	Insurance Regulatory Development Authority
ISRO	Indian Space Research Organization executes Space programme through its establishments located in different places in India. Main objective of space programme includes development of satellites, launch vehicles, Sounding Rockets and associated ground systems. ISRO has crossed several major milestones
ITDC	India Tourism Development Corporation
IUCN	International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Popularly referred to as “The World Conservation Union”, it brings together 83 States, government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and scientists and experts from 181 countries in a unique worldwide partnership. The Union’s mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable. Its headquarters are in Gland, Switzerland.
IWC	International Whaling Commission
JNNURM	Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission
LAG	Liquids, Aerosols and Gels. This refers to a segment of the merchandise sold in the duty free shops around the world.
Lateral thinking	Edward De Bono defines lateral thinking as methods of thinking concerned with changing concepts and perception. Lateral thinking is about reasoning that is not immediately obvious and about ideas that may not be obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic.
LIBOR	London Inter Bank Offer Rate. The rate charged by one bank to another for lending money in the London financial market.
Logistics	The management of both inbound and outbound materials, parts, supplies, and finished goods. Includes such activities as; production scheduling, forecasting, customer service, order entry, inventory control, and product allocation among customers.
MAIT	Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology
Marina	It is place for rest and recreation for sailors. Look here for a more detailed explanation.
Matrix	From the Matrix trilogy: The Matrix is a false reality created by intelligent machines around the year 2199 to be a perfect utopia for controlled human beings. As the humans are "sleeping" in the Matrix, their dreams and thoughts are synthesized by the machines for energy use much like we use batteries to power remote controllers and television sets. This became a necessity after humans blocked out the Sun with a chemical barrier released by military aircraft.
MFIs	Microfinance Institutions. Microfinance is a term for the practice of providing financial services, such as microcredit, microsavings or microinsurance to poor people. By helping them to accumulate usably large sums of money, this expands their choices and reduces the risks they face. As suggested by the name, most transactions involve small amounts of money, frequently less than US$100.
Milton Friedman	Milton Friedman (July 31, 1912 – November 16, 2006) was an American Nobel Laureate economist and public intellectual. An advocate of laissez-faire capitalism, Friedman made major contributions to the fields of macroeconomics, microeconomics, economic history and statistics. In 1976, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for his achievements in the fields of consumption analysis, monetary history and theory and for his demonstration of the complexity of stabilization policy.
Mime	It is a form of art. See this for more info.
mmBtu	An energy measurement that measures a unit of heat. A unit of heat equals to 1,000,000 Btu (1 mmBtu); the thermal equivalent of 1,000 cubic feet of gas with a heat content of 1,000 Btu per cubic foot.
MNCs	Multi National Companies.
Moore’s Law	This is about the complexity of microprocessor chips. Look here.
MVNO	Mobile Virtual Network Operator. See this for more info.
NABARD	National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (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. It also has the mandate to support all other allied economic activities in rural areas, promote integrated and sustainable rural development and secure prosperity of rural areas.
NAFED	National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. NAFED was setup with the object to promote Co-operative marketing of Agricultural Produce to benefit the farmers. Agricultural farmers are the main members of NAFED, who have the authority to say in the form of members of the General Body in the working of NAFED.
NASA	National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the US. Learn more about it from its site here.
NAV	Net Asset Value. It is calculated by adding the value of all of the investments in the fund and dividing by the number of shares of the fund that are outstanding. NAV calculations are required for all mutual funds open-ended funds and close-ended funds. The price per share of a close-ended fund will trade at either a premium or a discount to the NAV of that fund, based on market demand. Closed-ended funds generally trade at a discount to NAV.
NBFCs	Non banking finance companies. 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 or local authority or other securities of like marketable nature, leasing, hire-purchase, insurance business, chit business but does not include any institution whose principal business is that of agriculture activity, industrial activity, sale/purchase/construction of immovable property. A non-banking institution which is a company and which has its principal business of receiving deposits under any scheme or arrangement or any other manner, or lending in any manner is also a non-banking financial company (Residuary non-banking company). You can know more about them from the RBI’s site here.
NBW	Non bailable warrant. Once issued by a court, the person against who it is issued has to surrender before the issuing court. He cannot be granted bail till he surrenders before the court.
NCAER	National Council of Applied Economic Research.
NCEUS	National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector.
NCPCR	National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
NDC	National Development Council. It consists of the Planning Commission and the Chief Ministers of the states.
Negative Amortization	In finance, negative amortization, also known as NegAm, is an amortization method in which the borrower pays back less than the full amount of interest owed to the lender each month. The shorted amount is then added to the total amount owed to the lender.
NHAI	National Highways Authority of India.
NHRC	National Human Rights Commission.
NIPFP	National Institute of Public Finance and Policy.
NOC	No Objection Certificate
NPA	Non Performing Asset means an asset or account of borrower, which has been classified by a bank or financial institution as sub-standard, doubtful or loss asset, in accordance with the directions or guidelines relating to asset classification issued by RBI. Refer this for more detailed information.
NSE	National Stock Exchange.
Nymex	The New York Mercantile Exchange, is the world's largest physical commodity futures exchange and the preeminent trading forum for energy and precious metals.
OBCs	Other Backward Classes
Odds in betting	Look at the explanation here.
OECD	Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The OECD brings together the governments of countries committed to democracy and the market economy from around the world to: • Support sustainable economic growth • Boost employment • Raise living standards • Maintain financial stability • Assist other countries' economic development • Contribute to growth in world trade
OMCs	Oil Marketing Companies.
OPEC	Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. It is a grouping of 12 countries which depend highly on their oil export revenues. They operate as a cartel at an international level.
Options	An option gives the right but not the obligation to buy or sell an underlying commodity or financial instrument by or at a certain date in the future. An option is a derivative.
Otpor
PCPIR	PetroChemicals and Petroleum Investment Region
PIL	Public Interest Litigation. Public Interest Litigation popularly known as PIL can be broadly defined as litigation in the interest of that nebulous entity: the public in general. Prior to 1980s, only the aggrieved party could personally knock the doors of justice and seek remedy for his grievance and any other person who was not personally affected could not knock the doors of justice as a proxy for the victim or the aggrieved party. And as a result, there was hardly any link between the rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Indian Union and the laws made by the legislature on the one hand and the vast majority of illiterate citizens on the other. However, all this gradually changed when the post emergency Supreme Court tackled the problem of access to justice by people through radical changes and alterations made in the requirements of locus standi and of party aggrieved. The splendid efforts of Justice P N Bhagwati and Justice V R Krishna Iyer were instrumental of this juristic revolution of eighties to convert the apex court of India into a Supreme Court for all Indians. And as a result any citizen of India or any consumer groups or social action groups can approach the apex court of the country seeking legal remedies in all cases where the interests of general public or a section of public are at stake. Further, public interest cases could be filed without investment of heavy court fees as required in private civil litigation.
PMC	Programmable Metallization Cell
Private Banking	Private banking is a term for banking, investment and other financial services provided by banks to private individuals disposing of sizable assets. The term "private" refers to the customer service being rendered on a more personal basis than in mass-market retail banking, usually via dedicated bank advisers.
Private Equity firms	These are firms that invest in equity securities of companies that have not “gone public” (in other words, companies that have not listed their stock on a public exchange). Private equities are generally illiquid and thought of as a long-term investment. As they are not listed on an exchange, any investor wishing to sell securities in private companies must find a buyer in the absence of a marketplace. In addition, there are many transfer restrictions on private securities.
Private Label	Private label products or services are typically those manufactured or provided by one company for offer under another company's brand. Private label goods and services are available in all industries from food to cosmetics to web hosting and are often positioned as lower cost alternatives to regional, national or international brands. Since the branding of private label consumer goods is often provided by the retailer, store brands are sometimes called private label brands.
PN	Participatory Note – an instrument through which non-residents who are ineligible to participate in the Indian stock markets invest in India – usually through FIIs.
PN	Press Note. Government of India has been announcing its FDI liberalization policies through the use of these Press Notes. These are statements of policy released through the Press.
PSC	Production Sharing Contract. Usually one that is entered into between the Government of India and the prospective oil exploration companies.
Pune Pact	A pact between Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Ambedkar about political reservations for Dalits.
QIP	Qualified Institutional Placement
RAM	Random Access Memory. It is a type of computer data storage. It takes the form of integrated circuits that allow the stored data to be accessed in any order — that is, at random and without the physical movement of the storage medium or a physical reading head. RAM is a volatile memory as the information or instructions stored in it will be lost if the power is switched off. The word "random" refers to the fact that any piece of data can be returned in a constant time, regardless of its physical location and whether or not it is related to the previous piece of data.
RBI	Reserve Bank of India. India’s central banker.
Recession	A recession is usually defined in macroeconomics as a fall of a country's Gross National Product in three successive quarters. A recession may involve falling prices, which can lead to a depression; alternatively it may involve sharply rising prices (inflation), in which case this process is known as stagflation.
Repo rate	Rate at which RBI lends money to banks by taking securities as collateral.
Reverse repo rate	Rate at which RBI mops up money from banks by giving securities in return.
RFID	Radio Frequency Identification. Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) is a method of remotely storing and retrieving data using devices called RFID tags/transponders. An RFID tag is a small object, such as an adhesive sticker, that can be attached to or incorporated into a product. RFID tags contain antennas to enable them to receive and respond to radio-frequency queries from an RFID transceiver.
RRB	Regional Rural Bank. The establishment of the Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) was initiated in 1975 under the provisions of the ordinance promulgated on 26.9.1975 and thereafter Section 3(1) of the RRB Act, 1976. The issued capital of RRBs is shared by Central Government, sponsor bank and the State Government in the proportion of 50%, 35% and 15% respectively. The area of operation of a majority of the RRBs is limited to a notified area comprising a few districts in a State. As on 31.3.2006, RRBs are operating with a network of 14494 branches covering 525 districts out of 605 districts in the country in 26 States. The basic idea behind promoting RRBs was to ensure easy agricultural rural credit.
SatelliteTown	A satellite town or satellite city is a concept of urban planning, although many satellite cities and towns appeared spontaneously. Satellite towns are smaller municipalities that are adjacent to a major city which is the core of a metropolitan area. They differ from mere suburbs and subdivisions in that they have municipal governments distinct from that of the core metropolis and employment bases sufficient to support their residential populations. Conceptually, satellite cities could be self-sufficient communities outside of their larger metropolitan areas. However, functioning as part of a metropolis, a satellite city experiences cross-commuting (that is, residents commuting out of and employees commuting into the city).
SDS	Special Deposit Scheme. Long term savings representing non-government social security investments like provident funds, superannuation and gratuity funds, and surplus funds of government-owned institutions like LIC, GIC, UTI and Employees' State Insurance Corporation, etc are retained in deposit accounts for longer durations of more than 10 years and even upto 30 years. In order to provide better returns on such savings, Government of India launched the Special Deposit Scheme on July 1, 1975. The scheme is operated through various public sector banks (PSU banks) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offices. On maturity, the amount under the scheme is payable in five equated yearly installments from the date of maturity. The rate of interest is currently at 8%. Having seen that it is a huge drain on government finances, the government is slowly reducing its interest commitments. It has also stopped accepting fresh deposits and reinvestments in the scheme from the year 2004.
SEBI	Securities Exchange Board of India. It was established by the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 and is the main regulatory body governing the stock markets.
Securitization	See this.
Section 25 company	Section 25 Company is a special purpose not-for-profit organisation that enjoys the advantages and benefits of a "Charitable" organisation. Section 25 refers to Section 25 of the Indian Companies Act, 1956.
SEZ	An SEZ, or a Special Economic Zone, is like a foreign territory within a country. An SEZ is governed by a special set of rules to facilitate foreign direct investment for export-oriented production. SEZs are free trade zones and customs authorities do not supervise them. These zones are typically marked by minimum bureaucracy, best infrastructure, generous tax holidays, unlimited duty free imports of raw, intermediate and final goods as well as capital goods. Basically, governments look to SEZs to overcome difficulties in bureaucracy and fiscal measures. For a very good primer on SEZs look here.
Short selling	Refers to the practice of selling shares without holding them.
Six thinking hats	The de Bono Hats represent six thinking strategies, as identified by Edward de Bono. He considered human cognition and thought to be of several types, approaches, or orientations. He theorized that of these approaches, most people used only one or two of the approaches and that people developed thinking habits which in turn limited people to those approaches. de Bono believed that if the various approaches could be identified and a system of their use developed which could be taught, then people could be more productive in meetings and in collaborating within groups and teams by deliberately using the approaches. As a result of his investigations, de Bono was able to describe a process of deliberately adopting a particular approach to a problem as an implementation of Parallel Thinking as well as an aid to lateral thinking. Six different approaches are described, and each is symbolised by the act of putting on a coloured hat, either actually or imaginatively. This he suggests can be done either by individuals working alone or in groups. The Red Hat represents Emotional thinking. The Yellow Hat represents Positive thinking. The Black Hat represents Critical thinking. The White Hat is purely the facts. The Green Hat is Creative thinking. The Blue Hat represents the Big Picture, sort of looking at it from all the viewpoints.
SMEs	Small and Medium Enterprises. See this definition.
Sounding Rocket	A sounding rocket is an instrument carrying suborbital rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its flight.
Sufism	Sufism is a mystic tradition within Islam that encompasses a diverse range of beliefs and practices dedicated to Divine love and the cultivation of the elements of the Divine within the individual human being. Practitioners of this tradition are known as "Sufis" generally, though some senior members of the tradition reserve this term for those who have attained the goals of the tradition.
TCF	Trillion Cubic Feet. The output of natural gas is measured in these units.
TCS	Tata Consultancy Services. A leading software services provider of India
TEU	Container capacity is measured in twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU, or sometimes teu). An equivalent unit is a measure of containerized cargo capacity equal to one standard 20 ft (length) × 8 ft (width) × 8' 6' ft (height)'container. In metric units this is 6.10 m (length) × 2.44 m (width) × 2.59 m (height), or approximately 38.5 m³.
TFT	TFT stands for Thin Film Transistor. Underneath the surface of the display panel are tiny transistors in a liquid material. When the transistors are energized they react with the liquid and produce a transparent red, blue or green hue. Energizing a combination of different colored transistors at varying levels of intensity produces other colors. The screen itself does not produce any light. There is a light assembly behind the LCD panel.
Third wave approach	It is a concept that explains about globalization and emerging economies. Look here.
TRAI	Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
Tropo-scattering	At VHF and higher frequencies, the atmosphere at a height of around 6 miles (10 kilometres) can scatter some of the normally line-of-sight beam of radio frequency energy back toward the ground, allowing over-the-horizon communication between stations as far as 500 miles (800 km) apart. A special form of tropo scattering relies on reflecting radio waves off the intensely ionized regions generated by meteors. While this mode is very short-duration, often only a couple of seconds per event, it allows remote stations to communicate to a base that may be hundreds of miles (km) away, without the expense and power input required for a satellite link.
UASL	Universal Access and Service Licence. See more about it here.
ULCA	Urban Land Ceiling Act. See this for more information about it.
UNCTAD	UN Conference on Trade and Development. Established in 1964, UNCTAD promotes the development-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economy. UNCTAD has progressively evolved into an authoritative knowledge-based institution whose work aims to help shape current policy debates and thinking on development, with a particular focus on ensuring that domestic policies and international action are mutually supportive in bringing about sustainable development. More about it here.
UNICEF	United Nations Children’s Fund. It was created by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946 to provide emergency food and healthcare to children in countries that had been devastated by World War II. In 1953, UNICEF became a permanent part of the UN System and its name was shortened from the original United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund but it has continued to be known by the popular acronym based on this old name. Headquartered in New York City, UNICEF provides long-term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and mothers in developing countries. It has 191 member countries now.
VIX	Volatility Index. It captures the market expectations of future volatility and hence risk. Look here and here for more details.
Vulture Fund	A vulture fund is a financial organization that specializes in buying securities in distressed environments, such as high-yield bonds in or near default, or equities that are in or near bankruptcy.
WCDMA	Wide-band CDMA: a CDMA protocol originated by NTT DoCoMo and now adopted for third-generation use by ETSI in Europe. WCDMA supports very high-speed multimedia services such as full-motion video, Internet access and video conferencing.
WGC	World Gold Council
WHO	World Health Organization. WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends. Know more about it here.
WiFi	Wireless Fidelity. Wi-Fi (or Wi-fi, WiFi, Wifi, wifi), short for "Wireless Fidelity", is a set of product compatibility standards for wireless local area networks (WLAN) based on the IEEE 802.11 specifications. New standards beyond the 802.11 specifications, such as 802.16(WiMAX), are currently in the works and offer many enhancements, anywhere from longer range to greater transfer speeds.
WPC	Wireless Planning and Coordination wing of the DoT
WTO	World Trade Organization. The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.