JULY CURRENT AFFAIRS

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS:
Kate, Prince Williams wife, has given birth to a boy, a child now third in line to the
British throne. The child was born on 22nd July, after many Britons woke up to the news
that Kate had gone into labor with the couples first child. The birth announcement, via a
press release from Kensington Palace, said the boy was born at 4:24 p.m. weighing 8
pounds 6 ounces.
The royal birth recalled that of the babys father, William, in 1982, at the same Central
London hospital. Many remember the moment when he was carried out in his mother
Princess Dianas arms with proud father Prince Charles at their side.
William and Kates son is expected to follow Charles and William to the throne. No one
can tell what political and personal changes the intervening years will bring, but the
baby can be expected to become the head of state of 16 countries, including Britain,
Australia and Canada, and possibly the head of the Commonwealth, which covers 54
nations. The child will also eventually become Supreme Governor of the Church of
England.
A team of Israeli archaeologists believes it has discovered the ruins of a palace
belonging to the biblical King David, but other Israeli experts dispute the claim.
Archaeologists from Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Israels Antiquities Authority
say on 18 July, the large fortified complex west of Jerusalem is the first palace of the
biblical king ever to be discovered. One of the archeologists who led the dig says the
site revealed the best example exposed to date of a fortified city from the time of King
David, suggesting that David himself would have used the site. He says his team found
"unequivocal evidence" that David and his descendants had ruled at the site, such as
cultic objects typically used by Judeans, the subjects of King David. Critics say the site
could have belonged to other kingdoms of the area. The consensus among most
scholars is that no definitive physical proof of the existence of King David has been
found.
In a bid to make sanitation for all a global development priority, the United Nations
General Assembly on 24 July, designated 19 November as World Toilet Day, urging
changes in both behavior and policy on issues ranging from enhancing water
management to ending open-air defecation.
Adopting a new resolution, the Assembly urged UN Member States and relevant
stakeholders to encourage behavioral change and the implementation of policies to
increase access to sanitation among the poor, along with a call to end the practice of
open-air defecation, which it deemed extremely harmful to public health. The
resolution also recognizes the role that civil society and non-governmental organizations
play in raising awareness of this issue. It also calls on countries to approach sanitation
in a much broader context that includes hygiene promotion, the provision of basic
sanitation services, and sewerage and wastewater treatment and reuse in the context of
integrated water management.
Of the worlds seven billion people, six billion have mobile phones. However, only 4.5
billion have access to toilets or latrines meaning that 2.5 billion people, mostly in rural
areas, do not have proper sanitation. About 1.1 billion people still defecate in the open.
The countries where open defecation is most widely practiced are the same countries
with the highest numbers of under-five child deaths, high levels of under-nutrition and
poverty, and large wealth disparities. World Toilet Day has previously been marked by
international and civil society organizations all over the world. However, it was not
formally recognized as an official UN day until today.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange on 25 July 2013 officially launched his political party
to contest Australian elections this year. According to him, the new party i.e. Wikileaks
Party would be fielding seven candidates including Assange for upper house Senate
seats in the states of New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. It is important
here to note that the two Indian-origin persons are among the seven candidates who will
contest elections on Wikileaks Party ticket in Senate polls in Australia. Indian-origin
academician Binoy Kampmark, who was born in Malaysia and has Bengali heritage, will
stand for the Upper House election from Victoria whereas Suresh Rajan, who is based
out of Kerala, will stand for the party in Western Australia. The core value of Wikileaks
Partys is transparency, accountability and justice are the template against which we will
examine any important issues for Australians: tax reform, asylum-seekers, climate
change policy and more. Australia will be going into polls in November 2013 where the
ruling Prime Minister Kevin Rudds Labour party is up against Tony Abbott-led
conservatives. Julian Assange is held up at Ecuadors embassy in London since June
2012 where he demanded refuge during his legal battle for exile from Britain to Sweden.
A senior United Nations team tasked with investigating the alleged use of chemical
weapons in Syrias civil war began a mission to Damascus on 24 July, trying to hammer
out with Syrian officials the terms for its investigation. It is the first such trip by
international experts, and the talks were expected to be thorny - focusing on about a
dozen incidents in which chemical arms were allegedly used.
The rebels, the United States and others have accused the government of using the
weapons of mass destruction, while Damascus and its ally Russia have blamed the
rebels. The team was invited by the Syrian government to discuss the terms of a
possible inquiry. Damascus agreed that the UN investigate only one of the reported
attacks - a March 19 incident in the northern village of Khan al-Assal in which rebels
and the government accuse each other of using chemicals weapons - but rejected
inquiries into other alleged attack sites in the central city of Homs, Damascus and
elsewhere.
The U.S. and UN have called on Syrian President Bashar Assads regime to grant the
United Nations team unfettered access to investigate all allegations of chemical weapon
use. Swedish chemical weapons expert Ake Sellstrom and UN disarmament chief
Angela Kane arrived from neighbouring Lebanon for a two day visit, during which they
are set to meet with senior Syrian officials, the UN said in a brief statement issued in the
Syrian capital.
The US, UK and other western countries and a section in the UN leaving no stone
unturned to prove the existence of chemical weapons in Syria, but only want to
establish such proof against the government. They have conveniently forgot the
evidence submitted by Russia on alleged use of chemicals by the terrorist forces that
are ransacking the country with support of Saudi, Qatar and the West. On 23 July, UN
Mideast envoy Robert Serry said in the Security Council that the UN has received 13
reports of alleged chemical weapons use in Syria. He said Sellstroms team is studying
this and other material. Russia, Syrias close ally, has called the chemical weapons
allegations against Assads regime groundless, claiming Russian experts determined
that Syrian rebels made sarin nerve gas and used it in the Khan al-Assal attack, in
which 31 people died.
Gay marriage to become legal in England and Wales soon, as the lower house of the
British parliament approved the final changes here on 16th July. The law has Prime
Minister David Camerons backing, but split his ruling Conservative party.The law also
had the support of Labour and the Liberal Democrats, Britains two other main political
parties, but damaged Camerons standing within his own party with many of his own
lawmakers criticising him for being too liberal. His own MPs had previously twice voted
against it. Gay marriage will be declared legal as soon as the final assent given by
Queen Elizabeth, which is a mere formality.
The writings of Cuban Revolution leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara are to be included in
the Uited Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisations (UNESCO)
Memory of the World Register on 19 July. The documents include original manuscripts
from his youthful Motorcycle Diaries days and his diary from the mountains of Bolivia
where he was executed by that nations military in 1967.They will now be protected and
cared for with the help of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization. The Memory of the World Register comprises nearly 300 documents and
collections from five continents. Guevaras works are among 54 new additions this year.
European Union (EU) has issued a directive that will bar all 28 member states from
funding projects connected to Jewish settlements in the occupied territories, including
annexed east Jerusalem. The guidelines, adopted by the European Commision (EC) on
June 28 and are due to be published on 12 July, will affect all EU grants, prizes and
funding from 2014 onwards, with no further funding available to Israeli entities beyond
the 1967 Green Line, a spokesman said. The new rules require that a clear distinction
be made in all signed agreements between Israel and the territories it occupied in the
1967 Middle East war including the Golan Heights as well as the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank including east Jerusalem.
Israeli officials slammed the directive. A high-ranking official described it as a
disproportionate attack on Israel. Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Zeev Elkin told army
radio the Europeans had made a mistake and that the directive would undermine any
return to peace talks with the Palestinians. Direct peace talks have been on hold for
nearly three years, with the Palestinians refusing to return to the table without a freeze
on settlement activity and Israels acceptance of the 1967 lines as the basis for final
status negotiations. Israel says it wants to resume talks, but without such
preconditions.
Nelson Mandela International Day was observed across the world on 18 July 2013 to
earmark freedom, justice and democracy. In November 2009, the UN General
Assembly declared 18 July as the Nelson Mandela International Day to recognize the
former South African Presidents contribution to the culture of peace and freedom.
United Nations General Assembly Resolution, recognizes Nelson Mandelas values and
his dedication to the service of humanity, in the fields of conflict resolution, race
relations, the promotion and protection of human rights, reconciliation, gender equality
and the rights of children and other vulnerable groups, as well as the upliftment of poor
and underdeveloped communities. It acknowledges his contribution to the struggle for
democracy internationally and the promotion of a culture of peace throughout the world.
The committee in charge of international book industry named the South Korean city of
Incheon the "World Book Capital" for the year 2015, announced the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on 19 July. The nomination
was made by an international committee of experts representing the book industry and
UNESCO, who met on July 16 at the Paris headquarters of UNESCO.UNESCO
Director-General Irina Bokova endorsed the committees decision and welcomed the
number and quality of applications received by UNESCO for the title of World Book
Capital 2015.
Since 2001 when Madrid was the first to win the title, UNESCO and the international
organizations representing the three major sectors of the book industry -- the
International Publishers Association (IPA), International Booksellers Federation (IBF)
and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) -- select
every year the World Book Capital for a one-year period. This initiative, in addition to the
celebration of World Book and Copyright Day, represents a collaborative undertaking by
key stakeholders in the publishing world and cities to promote books and literacy.
Incheon comes as the 15th city to be to crowned with "World Book Capital," after
Bangkok in 2013 and Port Harcourt in 2014.
Opposition party, The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won the National Assembly
elections in Bhutan on 14 July, by having secured a majority of thirty two seats. The
Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) won fifteen seats and was elected as the opposition
party. In 2008, the DPT had won the election by a landslide and won the first round of
this years polls with 45 percent of the vote. Bhutans king had given up the monarchys
centuries-old absolute power in 2008 and allowed the introduction of democracy to the
Himalayan kingdom.
Worlds largest building opens in west China. China now has what is billed as the
worlds largest building a vast, wavy rectangular box of glass and steel that will house
shops, hotels, offices and a faux ocean beach with a huge LED screen for video
sunsets. The mammoth New Century Global Center that opened last month in the
southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu has 1.7 million square meters (19 million square
feet) of floor space or about 329 football fields edging out the previous record-
holder, the Dubai airport. The structure is half a kilometer long, 400 meters wide and
100 meters high. The New Century project is a sign that Chinas growth has spread
from the countrys more prosperous eastern and southern regions to the west, where
wages are lower and the central government has encouraged development with
subsidies and tax breaks. With its booming economy, China has become home to some
of the largest and tallest buildings in the world. The building also has a 14-screen movie
theater and an ice rink.
Irish lawmakers overwhelmingly voted in favour of a groundbreaking law that will allow
abortion in limited cases in the predominantly Catholic country on 11th July, following an
outcry over the death of an Indian dentist after a miscarriage last year. Prime Minister
Enda Kenny and his coalition government pushed through the protection of life in
pregnancy bill, which will allow for abortions only when a womans life is under threat if
her pregnancy continues or if she is suicidal. The bill was voted through by 127 to 31
against after marathon discussions on 165 amendments. Ireland was forced to review
its abortion law in cases where the mothers life is at risk following the death of Indian
dentist Savita Halappanavar in a Galway hospital last October after she was denied an
abortion.
China has cancelled the construction of a USD six billion nuclear procession plant in
Guangdong province apparently due to public concerns over its safety. The planned
nuclear fuel processing project in south Chinas Guangdong Province has been
cancelled, state-run Xinhua news agency reported on 13 July. The planned Longwan
Industrial Park project under China National Nuclear Corporation, located in Zhishan
Township in Heshan City, was cancelled, the report said. The planned industrial park,
with a designed capacity of 1,000 tonnes of uranium in 2020, was to feature facilities for
uranium conversion, enrichment and manufacturing of nuclear fuel equipment, involving
a total investment of 37 billion yuan (USD 6 billion). The brief report did not mention why
the project was cancelled. This is the first nuclear project cancelled by China, which is
embarking on a massive expansion of nuclear power projects. Earlier reports said local
people had expressed concerns over the safety of the processing plant handling such
large quantities of uranium. Public protests which are rare in China are now becoming
common specially when it comes to preservation of the environment.
Hazem El-Beblawi on 9 July 2013 was named as the new Prime Minister of Egypt by
the Interim President Adly Mansour. A leading economist, Beblawi will form a caretaker
Government that comprises technocrats from different walks of life. The caretaker
government would play a major role in steering away Egypt through the transitional
period. The interim President Adly Mansour also named Mohammad ElBaradei, a Nobel
laureate and former IAEA chief as the new Vice-President of the country. In a gesture of
reconciliation, the new designated prime minister of Egypt declared that his government
will offer cabinet posts to the leaders of Muslim Brotherhood of the ousted President
Mohammed Morsis Government. Earlier, Mohammed Morsi, the first democratically
elected President of Egypt was ousted from his office following a military coup
conducted by the Army Chief Abdel Fateh Al Sissi. The coup was conducted following
the mass protests by the nationals of the country against Morsi and his Government.
12 July 2013 was observed as Malala Day across the World and by United Nations. The
day is being observed by the United Nations to highlight the fight of education of the
Pakistani child activist Malala Yousafzai. Seminars, conferences and other ceremonies
were held across Pakistan wherein scholars, educationists and analysts participated to
pay tribute to Malala, who fought for girls education in Swat valley against the Taliban.
12 July, the day of Malalas Birth was declared as Malala Day by UN General Secretary
Ban-Ki-Moon on her 16th Birthday. Malala is the girl from Pakistan, who was shot in
head and neck by the terrorists of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on 9 October 2012
for advocating girls for their right to education and speaking against Taliban. On Malala
Day, UN awarded the United Nations Special Envoy for Global Educations Youth
Courage Award for Education to Razia Sulatana, a teenager from a Nanglakhumba
village of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, India. Razia was opted for the award for her efforts to
motivate 48 children to go school after freeing them, from child labour bondage.
India and Iraq signed a pact to enhance co-operation in energy security, bilateral trade
commerce, infrastructure and others on 8th July. The agreement was signed by the
Union Petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily and his counterpart from Iraq, Abdul Karim
Luaibi at the end the India-Iraq Joint Commission on technical co-operation in Baghdad.
As per the agreement, in energy sector, Iraq will supply more crude oil
to India to meet the growing needs of energy in the country. Petroleum Minister M.
Veerappa Moily is leading a 28-member delegation to Iraq to participate in the 17th
India-Iraq Joint Commission meeting in Baghdad. Delegation reached Baghdad on 6
July 2013.
Earlier, Salman Khurshid, the Union External Affairs Minister was on a
two-day visit to Iraq from 19 to 20 June 2013, which was the first visit of an Indian
Minister to Iraq after 1990 visit of Inder Kumar Gujral, during his tenure as Union
External Affairs Minister.
North and South Korea on have agreed in-principle to resume work at the Kaesong
Business Park, a joint venture at the border between the two states. The deal was
reached after 15 hours of talks held at the truce village of Panmunjom in the
demilitarized zone. As part of the deal, both sides agreed to allow South Korean
company managers to inspect their factories, as well as retrieve finished goods and raw
materials.
The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma has, co-chaired the
Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) Economic and
Business Conference in Port Louis, Mauritius. Member States and Dialogue Partners of
IORARC, met in the Mauritius, for the First Economic and Business Conference on July
4-5, 2013, under the theme of Deepening Economic Linkages for Balanced, Inclusive
& Sustainable Growth.
The meeting was co-hosted by the Governments of Mauritius and India and brought
together Ministers and business representatives from across the Indian Ocean Rim.
First IOR-ARC Economic and Business Conference was in keeping with the decisions
taken by the IOR Business Forum held in Gurgaon, India, during the IOR-ARC Council
of Ministers and Related Meetings in October-November 2012,which recommended that
business-to-business meetings have an important role to play for expanding trade and
commerce between Member States.
Discussions took place in the four panel sessions, namely:1).Unlocking the Potential of
the Services Sector in the IOR-ARC (ICT, Tourism, Financial Services), 2).Enhancing
Trade and Investment in the IOR-ARC, 3).Creating Agri-business linkages, addressing
Food Security and Sustainable Development, 4).Ocean Economy/Blue Economy. The
conference encouraged the concept of Open Regionalism and identifies trade as an
integral factor in promoting economic cooperation and development.
The Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC), initially known
as the Indian Ocean Rim Initiative, is an international organization with 20 member
states. It was first established in Mauritius on March 1995 and formally launched on 67
March 1997. In 2011 six priority areas of cooperation were identified for IOR-ARC,
which include - Maritime Safety and Security, Trade and Investment Facilitation,
Fisheries Management, Tourism and Cultural Exchanges, Academic and Science and
Technology Cooperation, and Disaster Risk Management. Its full members are India,
Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia,
Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka,
Tanzania, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
China and Russia kicked off their largest-ever joint naval drills on 5 July, in the Sea of
Japan, a further sign of the broad-based progress in ties between the former Cold War
era rivals. Eighteen surface ships, one submarine, three airplanes, five ship-launched
helicopters and two commando units were taking part in the Joint Sea-2013 exercise
that runs through July 12. The drills will cover anti-submarine warfare, close
maneuvering, and the simulated take-over of an enemy ship. The drills are bigger than
anything Chinas navy has previously held with a foreign partner. China has long been a
key customer for Russian military hardware, but only in the last decade have their
militaries begun training jointly. The naval drills are to be followed by another round of
anti-terrorism joint drills in Russias Ural Mountain region of Chelyabinsk.
Mohamed Morsi, Egypts first elected President was ousted from his office in a military
revolt on 3 July 2013. After the revolt, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Constitutional
Court of Egypt, Adli Mansour has sworn in as the interim President on 4 July to oversee
early Presidential elections of the country. Mansour will get the support of national unity
government in running the country until the elections are held.
The ousted President, Mohamed Morsi has been moved to an undisclosed location and
a travel ban has been imposed on him from going abroad. After the revolt, the new
military rulers of Egypt have issued arrest warrants for up to 300 members of Muslim
Brotherhood .Leading liberal opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei on 6 July was
named as Egypts new Prime Minister to head a caretaker government.
ElBaradei leads an alliance of liberal and left-wing parties, the National Salvation Front.
He was named as Prime Minister after interim President Adly Mahmud Mansour held
talks with the army chief and political leaders. The 71-year-old Mohamed Mustafa
ElBaradei is an Egyptian law scholar. He was the Director General of the International
Atomic Energy Agency, an intergovernmental organization under the auspices of the
United Nations, from 1997 to 2009. He and the IAEA were jointly awarded the Nobel
Peace Prize in 2005. ElBaradei also played an important role in recent politics in his
country, particularly the 2011 revolution which deposed President Hosni Mubarak, and
in the 2013 revolution that ousted President Mohamed Morsi.
The World Health Organization announced on 5 July that it had convened emergency
talks on the deadly MERS corona virus for on 2 July, but said the move did not mean it
was hiking its global alert level. The first recorded MERS (Middle East Respiratory
Syndrome) death was in June 2012 in Saudi Arabia. The number of infections stands at
79, with 43 dead an extremely high rate of 54 per cent, compared to nine per cent of
the 8,273 recorded patients with SARS. Like SARS, it has flu-like symptoms but causes
kidney failure.
NATIONAL AFFAIRS:
With Tirumal shrine attracting visitors in hordes, Andhra Pradesh has become the top
tourist destination in the country, recording 206.8 million domestic tourists last year,
according to the data available with Union ministry of tourism revealed on 23rd
July.Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh stood at second and third places respectively, with
184.1 million and 168.4 million domestic tourists.
Built in 10th century, the Lord Venkateswara temple, located in Tirumala, near Tirupati
town, attracts more tourists than the domestic visitors to Uttar Pradesh and
Maharashtra, which boast of Taj Mahal and Ajanta-Ellora caves respectively, a senior
tourism ministry official said. The footfall at domestic tourist destinations across the
country witnessed a surge touching 1,036 million compared to 865 million in 2011 -- an
increase of 19.87 per cent.
It was 748 million in 2010. Meanwhile, the number of foreign tourist visits (FTVs) to
states/UTs registered a growth of 6.33 per cent during the same year. These states
accounted for 84.5 per cent of the total number of domestic tourists during 2012. The
top 10 states in terms of FTVs in 2012, remained the same as those in 2011 with
Maharashtra topping the list.
In a record of sorts, the AP State Legislative Assembly will become the first paperless
legislature house in the countryAssembly speaker, N. Manohar has said that the Union
Ministry of Information Technology and Communications had chosen the AP Assembly
for implementation of an Rs 16.50-crore World Bank-aided project for its
computerization. The paperless functioning will increase the efficiency in the
functioning of the legislature and will improve transparency. Even Parliament is yet to
convert itself into paperless mode, he said on 22nd July.
A file-monitoring network, integrated with all government departments, will be put in
place to ensure paperless administration. All information on government schemes and
public assets in each constituency will be made available to legislators on their mobile
phones through GIS. Hereafter, all communication to MLAs will be in electronic format
only. The Assembly website - www.aplegislature.org will be made bilingual (English
and Telugu) soon for the convenience of legislators and the Telugu-speaking populace
of Andhra Pradesh.
ZEE News has changed its identity and now become ZEE Media Corporation
LimitedThe channel has so far reached to 100 million people, stated the CEO of the
company, Alok Agarwal. The Zee network includes several channels like ZEE 24
Gantalu, Zee Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand, Zee Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh, Zee 24
Taas, Zee Business, Zee News, and Zee Punjab, Haryana and Himachal.
The Judicial Commission on Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) appointed by
the Supreme Court of India submitted a 100 page report to the Court in the third week of
July 2013. The report has highlighted the rampant misuse of the Armed Forces Special
Powers Act (AFSPA) in Manipur.The judicial commission also noted that the Act has
failed in tackling the insurgencies and the armed forces were indulged in gross violation
of Human Rights.
The Commission in its findings has also noted that the Act was abused widely and
several encounters under the blanket of the Act, carried out in the North-Eastern states,
were fake. The report submitted by the commission also mentioned that the activities of
the forces appear as if they believed a priori that the suspects involved in the
encounters had to be eliminated and acted accordingly.
The Judicial Commission on AFSPA was headed by Santosh Hegdethe former Judge of
Supreme Court and included J.M. Lyngdoh former Chief of Election Commission and
A.K. Singh, retired IPS officer as its members. The commission was formed by the
Supreme Court to probe into the alleged cases of extra judicial killings in Manipur after
receiving complaints related to 1500 fake encounter deaths that occurred in Manipur in
last 10 years in September 2012. The Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families
Association (EEVFAM) along with Human Rights Alert (HRA) demanded investigations
into the deaths.
The Ministry for Women and Child Development is going to celebrate the World
Breastfeeding Week in the first week of August to focus attention on the important
aspect of protection, promotion and support of Breastfeeding with a theme:
BREASTFEEDING SUPPORT- Close to Mothers.
As part of the Breastfeeding Week, the Ministry will disseminate crucial information
about breastfeeding through district/ State Officials of Integrated Child Development
Scheme (ICDS) and National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), Child Development Project
Officers (CDPOs), NGOs etc.
During this week various activities will also take place in the Anganwadi centers which
includes, Community/ family sensitization on Breastfeeding, Mothers Meet (specially for
the pregnant and lactating women), growth monitoring linked with counseling on
breastfeeding, Healthy Baby show, sensitization on breastfeeding through audio aids,
wall writing, display/ exhibition on breastfeeding at Anganwadi centers, quiz competition
on breastfeeding involving women, mothers, adolescent girls, grandmothers.
The Union Government of India on 27 July 2013 announced that it would set-up a
Marine Training Academy at Tuticorin.The academy would be set-up through the
Shipping Corporation of India in collaboration with the VO Chidambaram Port Trust.The
announcement was made by Shipping Minister, GK Vasan at Chennai that the Ministry
has already allocated 15 crore rupees for the development of the infrastructure for the
academy. The first batch of the academy would commence from September or October
2013, with a batch of 40 students.
The Campaign Clean Indiawill be extended to cover the World Heritage Site, Taj Mahal
which would be adopted by ONGC in the presence of K. Chiranjeevi,the Union Minister
for Tourism at a function to be held tomorrow at Agra. Taj Mahal a world heritage site
and is one of the Seven Wonders of the WorldThe Minister has strongly felt the need to
undertake sustained operations to ensure clean and hygienic environment,
commensurate with the stature of this prestigious destination.
At the initiative of Ministry of Tourism, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has agreed
to the proposal of ONGC for adopting five more monuments under the Clean India
Campaign which include -1). Ellora & Elephanta Caves Maharashtra 2). Red Fort
Delhi, 3). Golkonda Fort Hyderabad and 4). Mahabalipuram Tamil Nadu.
The Ministry of Tourism launched Clean India Campaignas part of Government strategy
for 12th Five Year Plan for improving the quality of services and environs in and around
tourist destinations across India. The campaign is aimed at undertaking both
sensitization and action at field level on bringing tourism destinations and their
surroundings to an expectable level of cleanliness and hygiene.
The Peoples Linguistic Survey of India (PLSI) has revealed that northeast has the
highest per capita language in the entire world.While addressing a press conference in
Guwahati, on 24 July, PLSI chairperson G. N. Devy told that linguistic survey has been
completed in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Nagaland and Manipur. It is the first linguistic
survey since George Griersons survey conducted a century ago. PLSI told that the
survey accounts 130 languages, as well as near extinct languages of Assam,
Meghalaya, Tripura, Nagaland and Manipur. The region contains more than 210
languages. PLSI have published books on the survey and the volume will also depict
the rich cultural and linguistic geography of all the indigenous communities of the states
of the region.
The Supreme Court upheld the Juvenile Justice Act providing for differential treatment
to a minor irrespective of the nature of crime committed by him or her on 17th July.The
apex court bench headed by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir upheld the Juvenile Justice
Act by declining the prayer that the age in the act should be reduced from 18 to 16 and
those involved in heinous crimes should not be treated differently.
The petitioner had also sought that the punishment for heinous crime committed by a
minor should not be decided by the juvenile justice board. Rejecting the petition, Chief
Justice Kabir said here was no need to interfere in the matter. The petition was filed in
the context of a minor who was among those who were arrested for the gang rape,
brutal assault and torture of a 23-year-old woman in a moving bus in Delhi on
December 16 last year. She later died in a Singapore hospital on December 29.
The Bengaluru International Airport will be named after the citys founder Kempe Gowda
as Kempegowda International Airport.The government on 17 July approved a Civil
Aviation Ministry proposal to this effect. The proposal was approved by the Union
Cabinet at its meeting, fulfilling a long-pending demand of the people of Karnataka,
official sources said. Hiriya Kempe Gowda was a ruler under the Vijayanagar Empire
who ruled most parts of Karnataka during the 16th century. Having built the Bengaluru
Fort and moved his capital from Yelahanka, he is widely accepted as the founder of
Bangalore. The airport, run by a private-led consortium, would be renamed
Kempegowda International Airport after the founder whose 503rd birth anniversary was
observed this year. The Civil Aviation Ministry had last year approved the proposal of
the state government following efforts by then External Affairs Minister S M Krishna.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 17 July has approved an
allocation of 50 lakh tonnes of food grains to States/ Union Territories (UTs) during
2013-14 for Below Poverty Line (BPL) familiesThis additional allocation of 50 lakh
tonnes will remain valid for lifting up to 31st March, 2014 or till the National Food
Security Bill is passed by Parliament and implemented in the respective States/UTs.
The allocation will meet the additional requirement of food grains for BPL families. The
estimated subsidy on additional allocation of 50 lakh tones of food grains (rice and
wheat) for BPL families in all the States/UTs at BPL prices during 2013-14 will be Rs.
9471.22 crore. Considering the sufficient availability of stock of food grains in the
Central Pool and requests received from States/UTs, Government has been allocating
additional BPL allocation of 50 lakh tonnes of wheat and rice to the States/UTs since
2010-11. The Government of India is allocating food grains to the States/UTs under the
Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) for 6.52 crore BPL families which include
2.43 crore Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) families.
Union Cabinet on 17 July 2013 approved amendments to the marriage law enabling a
married woman to get a share of her husbands ancestral property as reparation in case
of a divorce. The Bill is now expected to come up for channel in the Monsoon Session
of Parliament in August 2013. The decision was taken to make marriage law more
women friendly and to decide how sufficient compensation can be given to a woman
from her husbands ancestral property in case of divorce on the ground of irretrievable
breakdown of marriage. As per the bill the woman should get adequate compensation
by calculating the husbands share in the event that ancestral property cannot be
divided.
Government has taken key decisions on FDI limits in 13 sectors,in a meeting chaired by
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 16 July .These decisions are-
FDI cap in telecom raised to 100 percent from 74 percent;up to 49 percent through
automatic route and beyond via FIPB.
No change in 49 percent FDI limit in civil aviation.
FDI cap in defense production to stay at 26 percent, higher investment may be
considered in state-of-the-art technology production by Cabinet Committee on Security
(CCS).
100 percent FDI allowed in single brand retail;49 percent through automatic, 49-100
percent through FIPB.
FDI limit in insurance sector raised to 49 percent from present 26 percent,subject to
Parliament approval.
FDI up to 49 percent in petroleum refining allowed under automatic route, from earlier
approval route.
In power exchanges 49 percent FDI allowed through automatic route, from earlier FIPB
route.
Raised FDI in asset reconstruction companies to 100 percent from 74 percent; of this up
to 49 percent will be under automatic route.
FDI limit increased in credit information companies to 74 percent from 49 percent.
FDI up to 49 percent in stock exchanges, depositories allowed under automatic route.
FDI up to 100 percent through automatic route allowed in courier services.
FDI in tea plantation up to 49 percent through automatic route; 49-100 percent through
FIPB route.
No decision taken on FDI cap in airports, media, brownfield pharma and multi-brand
retail.
Boosting the Armys war fighting capabilities along the Line of Actual Control,
government on 16 July, gave the go-ahead for the creation of a corps including
deployment of 50,000 additional troops along the China border at a cost of around Rs.
65,000 croreThe Cabinet Committee on Security headed by Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh cleared the proposal in its meeting, sources said. As part of the plans, the around
1.3 million-strong Army is expected to raise the new Corps headquarters at Panagarh in
West Bengalalong with two divisions in Bihar and Assam and other units from Ladakh in
Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh. Army Chief Gen. Bikram Singh and IAF
chief Air Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne were also present at the Prime Ministers Office
for providing any possible clarifications, if any, sought by the CCS members including
Defense Minister A.K. Antony, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Finance
Minister P. Chidambaram.
As per the plans, the IAF will also deploy its force multiplier assets such as six each
mid-air refueling tankers and C-130J Super Hercules special operations aircraft at
Panagarh. The army had sent the proposal in this regard in 2010 but it was returned by
the government asking the three services to work together on plans to strengthen their
capabilities in that region. The Army will also get a number of new armoured and
artillery divisions along with it to be deployed along the Northeast region.
Hyderabad could become a women-dominated city in the future if the current
population trend continuesDespite the real concerns about female foeticide and
infanticide, the city has shown impressive numbers in terms of female births. Hyderabad
is the only one of the six major cities in the country to have a higher number of female
births than males. The proportion of female deaths in the city was also the least among
all the cities.
According to new data released by the Census of India, there were about 1.75 lakh
births in the city in 2009 and 48,000 deaths. Of course, the level of reporting is also low
in the state. About 76.3 per cent of births and 68.4 per cent of deaths are registered.
However, in terms of recorded births, Hyderabad was the only city which had more
females being born than males during that year. Every other city, including Chennai
which has a higher sex ratio than Hyderabad, had a substantial difference in the number
of male and female births.
The sex ratio in the city has been seeing an upward curve over the last decade with the
figure rising from 933 females per 1,000 males to 954: 1,000. According to the Civil
Registration System report, female births in the city were about 52 per cent of all births
in the year 2009. Every other major city had a female birth proportion of less than 50 per
cent.
The Supreme Court upheld the right of bar dancers to pursue their profession subject to
dancing bars taking licence from the State authorities on 16th July.
The apex court bench of Chief Justice Altamas Kabir and
Justice S. S. Nijjar upheld the right of bar dancers as it rejected the Maharashtra
governments plea against the Bombay High Court verdict striking down the police
orders that bar dancing in hotels below three stars.
Pronouncing the judgment, Justice Nijjar said that they have not
touched the question of the right of the dancing girls under article 19 (A).
The bar dancers had contended that besides being discriminative the
police order impinged on their right to livelihood. They had also contended that besides
dancing at the bar they knew no other trade to earn their living.
President Pranab Mukherjee launched Kisaan Portal for sending SMS through mobile
phones to the farmers across the country, here on 16th July, 2013The SMS initiative will
enable the farmers to take informed decisions as to different aspects of farming
including crop production and marketing, animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries and
weather forecasts.
The Kisaan Portal directly aimed at spreading information, advisories
and services through SMS to more than 12 crore farmers across the country. Farmers
will need to register for this service by calling Kisaan Call Centre on the toll free number
1800-180-1551 or through the web portal.The farmers can opt to receive SMS
messages customized to their specific requirements.
The Supreme Court Thursday banned over-the-counter sale of acid at retail outlets and
ordered a compensation of Rs.3 lakh to be paid by the government to each acid attack
victim on 18th July.The apex court bench, headed by Justice R.M. Lodha, issued
detailed directions for regulating the sale of acid at retail outlets. The court direction
came in the wake of reports of increasing number of acid attacks.
In a direction, the court said the retail outlets having license to sell acid
will maintain a stock register and failing to do so or possessing unaccounted acid will
lead to a fine of Rs.50,000.
The court said all the states which already have rules to regulate the
sale of acid will reinforce them and those who dont have them will frame them in
accordance with the model rules framed by the central government. The court said the
rules should be made stringent as has been spelt out in the model rules framed by the
government.
Penguin Books India has launched a dedicated website for young readers, titled -
youngreaders.penguinbooksindia.comThe new portal has child-friendly navigation and
has organized sections, which the book house claims to be interesting.
A category called Read What of the website offers literature on
various subjects such as non-fiction, classic, anthology, short stories, young adults,
crime and many more. The new website includes works of some of the popular authors
such as Asha Nehemiah, Rabindranath Tagore, Herge as well as Ruskin Bond.
Metro rail coach is reaching Hyderabad city by the end of September month.The rail
coach is coming from South Korea and it will be displayed at Peoples Plaza for the
people to have a look at. The L & T Metrorail will be accepting suggestions and
advises from people. The first Metrorail will run in the Nagole-Mettuguda route, track
works for which will begin in another four weeks, on March 23, 2015.
L & T Metrorail Managing Director V.B. Gadgil supervised the metro
rail works along with media persons. Speaking to the reporters, he said Grand Metro
Museum will be set up show the developments in city transport sector from 1911 to
2013. The place of the Museum will be opened will be informed later, he said.
Visitors to the IRCTC portal would soon get to shop apparels, home appliances, and
electronic products along with buying rail ticketsThe railway PSU has tied up with online
lifestyle and home portal Yebhi.com, thus making its entry into the online shopping.
Yebhi.com is a franchisee of Shop Online Trading Pvt Ltd. (SOTPL).
Through this tie-up SOTPL and Yebhi.com will be responsible for developing and
managing the e-commerce platform for IRCTC. IRCTC gets close to 1.2 million daily
visits generating 180 million transactions every year thus making it the largest e-
commerce site in the country.
Officials in IRCTC said they want to capitalize on the large user base
of its portal which sees about 12 lakh visitors per day and four lakh ticket bookings.
Yebhi.com, on the other hand, gets close to 100 million visits per annum and does over
2 million transactions every year.
"We are thrilled to partner with the Indias largest e-commerce website,
and look forward to this mutually beneficial association. With this association IRCTC is
getting a readymade supply chain with all products offering at one go powered by us,"
said CEO of Yebhi.com Manmohan Agarwal. As per the contract, SOTPL will be
deploying the entire online shopping platform for IRCTC within 60 days from the date of
signing of the agreement.
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha legislator Hemant Soren, son of former Chief Minister Shibu
Soren, was sworn in as Jharkhands ninth Chief Minister37-year-old Soren, was
administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Syed Ahmed on Saturda after
President Pranab Mukherjee revoked the nearly six-month-long President rule in the
state.Soren became the fifth tribal CM after Babulal Marandi (once), Arjun Munda
(thrice), Shibu Soren (thrice) and Madhu Koda (once) since the Jharkhand state was
created on 15th November 2000.The Soren had staked claim on 9th July for formation
of a government in alliance with Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal, smaller parties and
independent MLAs. The Presidents rule was imposed on 18th January due to political
instability after the JMM withdrew support to the BJP-led government under Arjun
Munda and it was set to end on 18th July.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 10 July, constituted a Cabinet committee to
oversee reconstruction and rehabilitation in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand.Defence minister
AK Antony, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, finance minister P Chidambaram, health
minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, home minister Sushilkumar Shinde, road transport minister
Oscar Fernandes, law minister Kapil Sibal, housing minister Girija Vyas, rural
development minister Jairam Ramesh and water resources minister Harish Rawat are
the members of the committee chaired by SinghPlanning commission deputy chairman
Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Uttarakhand chief minister Vijay Bahuguna and national
disaster management authority vice chairman M Shashidhar Reddy are the permanent
invitees. The committee will provide broad guidance to reconstruction and rehabilitation
efforts in Uttarakhand, and take such decisions, as may be required, said a notification
issued by the Cabinet Secretariat.Singh has announced Rs. 1,000 crore for disaster
relief measures in flood-devastated parts of Uttarakhand.
Lawmakers have to quit if they are convicted of a crime and cant stay on regardless of
appeals to higher courts, the Supreme Court said, in a big leap towards cleaning up
Indian politicsThe top court struck down a provision in the Representation of the
Peoples Act (RPA) that protects convicted MPs and MLAs from disqualification if they
appeal to a higher court. "The disqualification takes place from the date of conviction,"
said a bench of justices A K Patnaik and S J Mukhopadhaya. The verdict wont affect
lawmakers who have already filed appeals against their conviction.
A petition had said that allowing such lawmakers to stay in office was
"discriminatory and encouraged criminalization of politics. The petition sought to
highlight the dichotomy in the laws that allow convicted lawmakers to stay on but ban a
person convicted and sentenced to a term of over two years from even contesting an
election. The governments affidavit had argued against MPs and MLAs being
disqualified.
The Supreme Court in its landmark judgment on 11th July barred persons in jail or
police custody from contesting election for legislative bodiesThe Supreme Courts
decision would help in bringing an end to the era of the under trial politicians, who
contest elections from behind the bars.
The Court ruled that only an elector can contest the polls and the
elector ceases the right to cast vote due to confinement in prison or being in custody of
police. The court, however, made it clear that disqualification will not be applicable to
person subjected to preventive detention, under any law.
The Bench that comprised Justices A.K. Patnaik and S.J.
Mukhopadhayay, while referring to the Representation of Peoples Act said that the Act
(Section 4 & 5) lays down the qualifications for membership of the House of the
people and legislative assembly and one of the qualifications laid down is that he must
be an elector.
The court passed the order on an appeal filed by the Chief Election
Commissioner and others challenging the order of Patna High Court that barred people
in police custody from contesting polls. The judgment of the Supreme Court has
confirmed 2004 ruling of the Patna High Court that said if - a jailed person cant vote,
than a jailed person cant contest election.
The countrys first exclusive women university is set to come up at Raebareli in Uttar
Pradesh with the government on 11 July, clearing a proposal in this regard.The
university, which would focus on research and higher studies, would be named after late
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi,who represented Raebareli during a substantive part of
her political career. At present, the constituency is represented by Congress president
Sonia Gandhi. The proposal, which received the Union Cabinets nod on 11 July, would
be set up at a cost of Rs 500 crore during the 12th Plan Period.
A bill named the Indira Gandhi National University for Women Billwill be introduced in
the coming Monsoon Session of Parliament, Information and Broadcasting Minister
Manish Tewari told reporters in new Delhi, adding that the varsity will be set up following
its passage. The establishment of the varsity would "set the pace for all-round growth
and development of women in the country and supplement the efforts of the
government for womens empowerment by giving them an increased access to
employment oriented basic courses and high-end research," a government statement
also said.
The first-ever national aviation university in the country would come up at Rae Bareli in
Uttar Pradesh,Sonia Gandhis Lok Sabha constituency, to impart complete training to
pilots, cabin crew and aircraft engineers. The Union Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, approved the creation of this university in the name of
former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi as a central university, Information and
Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari told reporters in New Delhi on 11 July. The Rajiv
Gandhi National Aviation University would be set up on a 26-acre plot of land at the
Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Udaan Academy (IGRUA) at Fursatganj. It would have an
estimated funding of Rs 202 crore during the 12th Plan period, of which Rs. 80 crore
has already been sanctioned by the Centre. The university would be an autonomous
body under the administrative control of the Civil Aviation Ministry.
Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari has said that Right to
Safe Drinking Water for the entire country is under the consideration of the
Centre.Addressing a gathering in Ludhiana on 7 July, he said special care will be taken
for those who cannot afford RO systems and distilled bottled water. The Minister also
said that the government is giving top priority to the healthcare of the people through the
National Rural Health Mission and National Urban Health Mission.
President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the governments food welfare
programme on 5 July 2013. The scheme that provides subsidized food to nearly 800
million or 67 per cent of the population is now law, but it must be cleared within six
weeks of Parliaments next session.The populist programme, championed by Congress
president Sonia Gandhi, will cost Rs. 1.25 lakh crore per year. The cabinet used an
executive order to clear the scheme to bypass a debate in Parliament.
"Up to 75 per cent of the rural population and up to 50 per cent of the urban population
will have uniform entitlement of five kilos per month at highly subsidized prices," a
government statement said. The bill had been expected to be cleared by Parliament in
February, but it was never introduced due to opposition protests. Critics of the food
programme also say that India can ill-afford such a costly subsidy at a time of slowing
economic growth and when credit ratings agencies are eyeing the countrys large deficit.
The Global Innovation Index 2013 (GII), in its 6th edition this year, is co-published by
Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO, a
specialized agency of the United Nations).
According to this report, the United States rejoined the five most-innovative nations and
the United Kingdom moved up to the third spot while Switzerland retained its first place
in the rankings in the Global Innovation Index 2013.A group of dynamic middle- and
low-income countries including China, Costa Rica, India, and Senegal are outpacing
their peers, but havent broken into the top of the GII 2013 leader board.
India got 66th rank, while Sri Lanka attained 98th rank. The core of the GII Report
consists of a ranking of world economies innovation capabilities and results.
Recognizing the key role of innovation as a driver of economic growth and prosperity
and the need for a broad horizontal vision of innovation applicable to developed and
emerging economies, the GII includes indicators that go beyond the traditional
measures of innovation such as the level of research and development.
In just six years, the GII has established itself as the premier reference among
innovation indices, and has evolved into a valuable benchmarking tool to facilitate
public-private dialogue, whereby policymakers, business leaders and other stakeholders
can evaluate progress on a continual basis. To support the global innovation debate, to
guide polices and to highlight good practices, metrics are required to assess innovation
and related policy performance. The Innovation Input Sub-Index gauges elements of the
national economy which embody innovative activities grouped in five
pillars:(1)Institutions,(2) Human capital and research,(3) Infrastructure,(4) Market
sophistication, and(5) Business sophistication. The Innovation Output Sub-Index
captures actual evidence of innovation results, divided in two pillars: (6) Knowledge and
technology outputs and (7) Creative outputs.
Union Government of India on 4 July 2013 announced to launch Mahatma Gandhi
Pravasi Surakhsa Yojna (MGPSY), a pension scheme for blue-collar Indian workers in
the Gulf. The scheme would be launched in August 2013.The Pension and Life
Insurance fund scheme, is applicable for the Overseas Indian workers having
Emigration Check Required, ECR passports. The announcement was made by the
Rajiv Mehrishi, Secretary of Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in Riyadh. This pension
and life insurance fund scheme would benefit a large number of oversees Indian
Workers. The MGPSY is aimed towards helping the overseas Indian workers in saving
money for their retirement, re-settlement in India after their return and a life insurance
that will cover them against natural death during the period of coverage.
BILATERAL AFFAIRS:
India plans to launch a business network to promote trade and commerce, investment,
business-to-business interactions and exchanges with Saudi Arabia. The proposed
Saudi-India Business Network (SIBN), which will function in Riyadh and
Dammam,would comprise both Indian and Saudi businessmen, entrepreneurs,
industrialists and members of business chambers. The first meeting of the SIBN
(Riyadh) is scheduled to take place on September 2, a statement released by the Indian
Embassy in Riyadh said on 27 July. India-Saudi Arabia trade relations have witnessed a
steady and remarkable growth in the last few years. Saudi Arabia is Indias fourth
largest trade partner and the bilateral trade stood at $43.19 billion in 2012-13.Saudi
Arabia is also Indias largest supplier of crude oil, accounting for 17 per cent of the
countrys requirements, and is one of the major markets in the world for Indian exports.
Saudi Arabia is destination to more than 1.86 per cent of Indias global exports and is
also the source of 6.35 per cent of Indias global imports. For Saudi Arabia, India is the
fifth largest market for its exports.
The 6th Session of the India-Belarus Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade,
Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation was held on 24 July in
New Delhi.The session was co-chaired from the Indian side by Dr. E.M. Sudarsana
Natchiappan, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and Mr. Dmitry S. Katerinich,
Minister of Industry of the Republic of Belarus.
Highlighting that the meeting is yet another step in the direction of strengthening trade
and economic relations between the two countries, Dr. Natchiappan said that sectors
like pharmaceutical, fertilizers, information technology and research &
development offer tremendous potential for cooperation between India and
Belarus.Elaborating on the fertilizer sector, the Indian Minister conveyed that India is
looking for long-term contracts for supply of potash to meet its growing requirements.
He also added that Indian companies can also look for opportunities for setting up joint
ventures in Belarus for production of potash-based fertilizers. The Belarusian side
recommended India to determine an Indian counterpart deputed to negotiate on the
long-term cooperation agreement, take decisions and signing of the agreement for the
full volume of the deliveries. The JSC,a Belaruain Potash Company, and an Indian
counterpart to be nominated by the Government of India should finalize the volumes,
terms and conditions of the long-term cooperation agreement for MOP deliveries to
India within specified time period.
The two Ministers also signed a Protocol after the Meeting. It was decided by both the
sides that necessary steps will be taken to sign an MoU between the Ministry of
Textiles, India and the Belarusian State Concern for Manufacturing and Marketing of
Light Industry Goods i.e. Bellegprom on Cooperation in the Field of Textiles, Clothing
and Fashion Industries.Both the sides also agreed to create a Certification Centre of
Belarusian companies and professionals in the field of software at the earliest possible
time. The Belarusian side will provide a draft concept for the same to initiate
negotiations with the Indian side. The Belarusian delegation proposed to hold the 9th
meeting of the Business Council India-Belarus in 2013 to promote the collaboration of
business representatives, as well as agreed to define the dates of the National
Exhibition of the Republic of India during 2013-2014 in Minsk.
At the invitation of the Minister of Defence A.K. Antony, the French Minister of Defence
Mr Yves Le Drianis on an official visit to India on 25-27 July, 2013Both the ministers
held detailed and useful talks on regional and international security challenges of mutual
interest. They also reviewed the status of various measures for bilateral defence
cooperation and the progress in various areas pursuant to their discussions in February,
2013, during the State visit of the French President to India.
The Ministers noted that defence cooperation is an important pillar of the strategic
partnership between both countries and that the ongoing dialogue and cooperation is
mutually beneficial to both nationsThe Ministers also noted that the range and depth of
defence exchanges and interactions between the Ministries of Defence and the Armed
Forces of both sides is being steadily enhanced in areas of mutual interest and in a
spirit of mutual understanding, respect, trust and support, taking account of respective
security interests.
The Ministers agreed that exchanges between respective defence institutions and
armed forces should continue to be progressed, including in the areas of military
education and training and through the conduct of military exercises. In this respect, the
Ministers welcomed the upcoming bilateral exercise Shakti in September 2013 in
France between both Armies.The Ministers noted with satisfaction that the Navies of
both countries are working towards finalizing the schedule for the conduct of Exercise
Varuna off the coast of India and also that the next Air Force exercise Garuda would
be held during the first half of 2014.The Ministers had detailed discussions regarding
current and future co-operation in the areas of defence equipment and technology
collaboration. They agreed that such cooperation should continue to be progressed to
the mutual benefit of both countries, including in high technology areas involving joint
research and development and transfer of technology. The Ministers tasked the High
Committee on Defence Cooperation (HCDC), which is scheduled to meet in France in
October 2013,to follow up the above points and to finalize practical measures to expand
and deepen the bilateral partnership in defence.
India and Nigeria on 22 July 2013 signed an agreement in Abuja to locate sites for solar
power plants in Niger state.The agreement will provide additional energy for Nigerias
national grid. It would be the first of a series of power plant deals. The agreement was
signed between the secretary to the Government of India, Sutanu Behuria and Nigerias
permanent secretary in the Ministry of Power Godknows Igali. With this agreement in
place, Bharat Heavy Electricals (BSE) will begin preliminary studies for setting up
independent solar-powered plants in selected locations in Niger. India expressed
interest in the provision of funds in various forms for the development of Nigerias power
sector.
India on 9 July 2013 agreed to co-operate with Mongolia in developing its renewable
Energy Sector and Human Resource DevelopmentThe agreement between the two
nations was reached during a meet between the Farooq Abdullah Union Minister for
New and Renewable Energy and Mongolian President Tsakhia Elbegdorj at
Ulaanbaatar during his visit to Mongolia. Farooq Abdullah was on a visit to Mongolia to
represent India at the oath taking ceremony of Elbegdorj, who has been re-elected as
the President for his second four-year term.
During his visit to Mongolia, Abdullah also met Foreign Minister of Mongolia Lu Bold and
Minister of Environment and Green Development, Sanjaasuren Oyun. The bilateral
relations between India and Mongolia has expanded in recent past and at present it
covers cooperation in defense and strategic issues along with educational and cultural
exchanges. To give a new boost to the bilateral relations, the President of Mongolia
Elbegdorj selected India as the first destination for foreign visit after taking over as
President of Mongolia for his first term, in 2009. The Union Governments decision to
depute a senior Cabinet Minister to the Presidents inauguration is a signal of
importance that India places Mongolia and towards further strengthening of bilateral
relations with Mongolia.
The Union Government of India and Government of Albania on 8 July 2013 signed an
Agreement for Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with
respect to the Taxes on Income and on Capital (DTAA).The agreement was signed to
provide tax stability for the residents of both the nations. It would also facilitate mutual
economic cooperation between the two countries. The signed agreement would also
stimulate the flow of investment, technology and services between India and Albania.
The agreement incorporates provisions for effective exchange of information between
tax authorities of the two countries, which also includes exchange of banking
information and supply of information without recourse to domestic interest. The
agreement was signed by the Chairperson of Central Board of Direct Taxes, Dr. Sudha
Sharma and the Ambassador of Republic of Albania, Fatos Kercikuon at New Delhi.
Indian Defense Minister, A.K. Antony paid an official visit to China from 4-7 July
2013.He held talks with his counterpart Gen. Chang Wanquan. The two Defense
Ministers had an extensive exchange of views on a wide range of defence and security
issues. A. K. Antony meeting the Chinese State Councillor, Yang Jiechi in Beijing. They
reaffirmed that defense exchanges were an important facet of the India-China strategic
and cooperative partnership for peace and prosperity.
They reviewed the working of agreements and protocols dealing with the maintenance
of peace and tranquility and directed that it be further strengthened. Appreciating that
border defense cooperation would make a significant contribution in this regard, they
agreed on an early conclusion of negotiations for the Border Defense Cooperation
agreement between the two Governments. The Ministers discussed ongoing and
proposed bilateral exchanges and welcomed the holding of the counter-terrorism
bilateral joint exercise between their armies in China in 2013.They also agreed on the
following additional exchanges and visits between India and China:
Senior military commanders from service headquarters, command/military region and
field formations will exchange visits regularly on a mutually agreed annual schedule.
Visits of border troop delegations would be enhanced to promote dialogue and
strengthen trust and cooperation.
Border Personnel Meetings (BPM) will take place with greater frequency and additional
locations will be finalized after discussions.
The Navies will increase ship visits, consider conducting joint maritime search and
rescue exercises and cooperate in counter-piracy operations. The call by PLA Navy
Hospital ship Peace Ark to Mumbai in August 2013 was welcomed.
The Air Forces will carry out high level visits and expand their functional exchanges.
They would focus on topics of mutual interest including flight safety, aviation medicine
and training.
Military training institutions will also strengthen their exchanges at the faculty and
student levels.
To promote greater awareness and understanding among young officers of the armed
forces, visits and exchanges will be carried out annually.
The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma met Sayyad Abd-Al-
Cader Sayed Hossen, Minister of Industry, Mauritius, in Port Louis on 4 JulyDuring the
meeting, the Mauritian minister conveyed that most of the issues regarding renewal of
contract with Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) have been sorted
out. Sharma reiterated India s commitment to ensure uninterrupted supply to Mauritius.
Indias exports to Mauritius comprises largely of petroleum products as a result of the
three year Agreement signed between MRPL and the State Trading Corporation of
Mauritius in July 2007 for the supply of all petroleum requirement of Mauritius. The
Agreement is expected to be renewed later this month. Five institutional level MoUs
were signed to take the partnership forward. These are:
MoU between Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) and Enterprise Mauritius (EM)
MoU between Northern India Textile Research Association (NITRA) and Mauritius
Standards Bureau
MoU between NITRA and National Productivity and Competitive Council (NPCC) of
Mauritius
MoU between Clothing Manufacturers Association of India (CMAI) and Mauritius Export
Association (MEXA); and
MoU between Institute of Apparel Management (IAM) and Fashion and Design Institute
of Mauritius (FDI)
Ministry of Tourism of India on 2 July 2013 agreed to a proposal from the visiting
Tourism and Travel delegation from Nepal for joint publicity of India and Nepal as
Tourist destinations in other countries.The Ministry also agreed to a suggestion for joint
offering of Tour packages in third countries by tour operators of India and Nepal. The
Nepalese delegation sought Indias cooperation in the development of Hotel
Infrastructure in Nepal. They also suggested joint promotion and development of
Buddhist Tourism sites in both the countries. The Indian side suggested joint venture
with Nepal in Himalayan and Adventure Tourism. The above agreement will help in
improving the tourism infrastructure both in India and Nepal.
ECNOMIC AFFAIRS:
India achieved a record production of 18.45 million tones of pulses in the 2012-13 crop
year ended June 2013.This augurs well for the country which is dependent on imports
to meet the shortfall of around 3 to 4 million tones. Higher support price prompted
farmers to grow pulses. According to the 4th advance estimates released, overall food
grain production is projected at 255.36 million tones, which is lower than the record
259.29 million tones achieved in the previous crop year. In food grains category, rice
production has been revised upward to 104.4 million tones from 104.22 million tones
and coarse cereals to 40.06 million tones from 39.52 million tones in the third estimates.
However, wheat output has been revised downward to 92.46 million tones from 93.62
million tones.
Poverty ratio in the country has declined to 21.9 per cent in 2011-12 from 37.2 per cent
in 2004-05 on account of increase in per capita consumption, said the Planning
Commission.According to the Commission, in 2011-12 for rural areas, the national
poverty line by using the Tendulkar methodology is estimated at Rs. 816 per capita per
month in villages and Rs. 1,000 per capita per month in cities. This would mean that the
persons whose consumption of goods and services exceed Rs. 33.33 in cities and Rs.
27.20 per capita per day in villages are not poor.
The Commission said that for a family of five, the all India poverty line in terms of
consumption expenditure would amount to Rs. 4,080 per month in rural areas and Rs.
5,000 per month in urban areas. The poverty line however will vary from state to state.
The percentage of persons below poverty line in 2011-12 has been estimated at 25.7
per cent in rural areas, 13.7 per cent in urban areas and 21.9 per cent for the country as
a whole, a Commissions press statement said. The percentage of persons below
poverty line in 2004-05 was 41.8 per cent in rural areas, 25.7 per cent in cities and 37.2
per cent in the country as a whole.
In actual terms, there were 26.93 crore people below poverty line in 2011-12 as
compared to 40.71 crore in 2004-05.This ratio for 2011-12 is based on the methodology
suggested by Suresh Tendulkar Committee which factors in money spent on health and
education besides calorie intake to fix a poverty line. The Commission said the decline
in poverty is mainly on account of rising real per capita consumption figures which are
based on 68th round of National Sample Survey on Household Consumer Expenditure
in India in 2011-12. Earlier, a committee was appointed under Prime Ministers
Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan to revisit the Tendulkar Committee
methodology for tabulating poverty. The Committee is expected to submit its report by
mid 2014.
State-wise, the Commission said the poverty ratio was highest in Chhattisgarh at 39.93
per cent followed by Jharkhand (36.96%), Manipur (36.89%), Arunachal Pradesh
(34.67%) and Bihar (33.47%). Among the union territories, the Dadra and Nagar Haveli
was the highest, with 39.31 per cent people living below poverty line followed by
Chandigarh at 21.81 per cent. Goa has the least percentage of people living below
poverty line at 5.09 per cent followed by Kerala (7.05%), Himachal Pradesh (8.06%),
Sikkim (8.19%), Punjab (8.26%) and Andhra Pradesh (9.20%).
As part of its CSR initiative, Rural Electrification Corporation (REC), a Central Public
Sector Enterprise under the Ministry of Power, has committed financial assistance to
provide free one year residential JEE/IIT coaching and mentoring 20 underprivileged
meritorious students from Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Bihar, J&K and Delhi under the
Abhayanand Super 30 initiative.Inaugurating the Delhi chapter of the National Super
100 programme on 18 July, Rajeev Sharma, CMD, REC, hoped that the Programme
will help the aspiring students to successfully compete and gain admission in
prestigious engineering colleges of the country. This initiative, co-founded by Shri
Abhayanand, presently Director General of Police, Bihar, for providing free coaching to
30 students of Bihar, has achieved high success rates, and over the years, has
expanded to become the National Super 100, by providing coaching to 100 students
from underprivileged sections of society in seven centres across the country, with the
vision of transforming the lives of deserving children with little or no means. The
selection of the students is done through transparent procedure.
Providing a big boost to the power sector, Coal India Limited (CIL) on 26 July, has
signed 82 FSAs as on 25 July, 2013, with power stations with a capacity of 34,793 MW.
This includes 16 power stations belonging to NTPC and its Joint Venture companies
(JVs).11 more FSAs are ready to be signed shortly with NTPC or its JVs, while another
23 FSAs with State and private sector entities are in the pipeline. These FSAs were part
of the 131 FSAs for a capacity of 60,678 MW which CIL was directed to sign in
February, 2012. This will substantially increase the power generation during the current
and subsequent years. In yet another fillip to the power sector, Ministry of Coal has
issued another Presidential Directive to CIL on 17.07.2013 for signing of FSAs for a
capacity of 78,000 MW instead of the earlier 60,678 MW. This will not only increase the
power generation further but will also fast track several power projects which are under
development.
In a major upgrade of powers given to SEBI, the government has allowed it to pass
orders like search and seizure, attachment of properties, arrest and detention of
defaulters and pass disgorgement directions to recover the wrongful gains made in
contravention of laws.At the same time, the government has also allowed the market
regulator to seek information from other regulators within India and abroad with
retrospective effect, paving way for collection of details pertaining to cases pending for
over 15 years now
In another retrospective change, which forms part of the Securities Laws Amendment
Ordinance promulgated by the President of India last week, the individuals and
companies being probed by SEBI can settle their pending investigations. Such
settlements can be undertaken in cases that are currently pending for more than six
years.
To tackle the growing menace of ponzi schemes being floated as Collective Investment
Schemes (CIS), the rules have also been amended to classify any money collection of
Rs. 100 crore or more as CIS operation. SEBI has been given powers to crack down on
illegal investment schemes floated by individuals as well, as against companies only as
of now. However, all government-notified schemes would be out of the Collective
Investment Scheme framework.
The changes are part of as many as 22 amendments made by the government in three
main Acts governing SEBI and its operations -- the Securities and Exchange Board of
India (SEBI) Act, the Securities Contracts Regulation Act (SCRA) and the Depositories
Act -- through a 16-page Ordinance. Among others, SEBI has also been given powers
to pass disgorgement orders for amount equivalent to wrongful gains or to losses
averted by contravention of regulations.
Besides, the regulator can now enter and search buildings, places, vessels, vehicles
and aircraft of defaulters. Its officers can also break open the lock of any door, box,
locker, safe almirah, etc to get information from suspected entities. At the same time,
the defaulters can seek settlement of pending cases with SEBI with retrospective effect
from April 20, 2012.
In yet another step to contain the current account deficit, the Reserve Bank of India
imposed restrictions on gold imports by banks and other authorized agencies on 22nd
JulyAs per the new norms, all banks and authorized agencies will have to ensure that at
least 20 per cent of the imported gold is made available for exports and a similar
amount is retained with the customs. "It shall be incumbent on all nominated
banks/nominated agencies to ensure that at least one fifth of every lot of import of gold
(in any form/purity including import of gold coins/dore) is exclusively made available for
the purpose of export," the RBI said in a notification.
It further added that such imports should be linked to financing of exporters by the
nominated agencies. The banks and other entities will also be required to retain 20 per
cent of the imported quantity of the gold in customs bonded warehouses. The
restrictions are meant to contain gold imports, which in addition to oil, is putting
pressure on the current account deficit that soared to a record high of 4.8 per cent in
2012-13. The RBI and the government had earlier imposed other restrictions on import
of gold to check CAD.
The Cabinet on 17th July approved amendment to the SEBI Act, which is expected to
arm the stock market regulator Securities and Exchanges Board of India (SEBI) to
crack down on collective investment schemes such as the Saradha scam in West
Bengal.
The Cabinet had given the nod to the proposal to provide powers to market regulator to
help investigate and punish fly-by night operators of p. SEBI will be able to summon any
person or entity to assist in an investigation into a chit fund or a para-banking operation.
It also provides powers to the stock market regulator to undertake "search and seizure"
operations and help them access call records.
"This will enhance regulation of collective investment schemes," said a senior
government official. The changes in the Act are also likely to plug regulatory loopholes
and clearly detail the jurisdiction of the stock market regulator on such schemes.
SEBI will be able to impose "disgorgement orders" on a company that defaults on its
commitments or makes illegal gains. The regulator will use its "inherent powers" to
recover ill-gotten gains that will then be utilized to promote "investor protection and
education".
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) opened a special liquidity window for commercial
banks to meet the cash requirements of mutual funds (MFs) on 17th July.The special
liquidity window was opened taken into concern the Mutual Funds which faced heavy
redemption pressure in debt-oriented MF schemes following a series of steps taken by
the RBI to shore up the faltering currency.Keeping all this into consideration the RBI
opened a special three-day repo window that will allow banks to borrow a total of 25000
crore Rupees at a rate of 10.25%. Banks can borrow this money to lend onwards to
MFs. RBI will conduct the first repo auction under the special facility on 19 July
2013.The second auction is scheduled for 23 July 2013 and the subsequent operations
at an interval of three days. Individual banks will be allocated funds in proportion to their
bids, subject to the overall ceiling of 25000 crore, Rupees. The RBI is also planning to
sell bonds worth 12000 crore Rupees in the secondary market on 18 July 2013 for
another liquidity draining measure.
Government of India signed an agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB) on 19
July, for a $60 million loan for improving urban services and strengthen municipal and
project management capacity in several towns in North Karnataka.The agreement is for
the 3rd Project under the overall facility of $270 million for the North Karnataka Urban
Sector Investment Program (NKUSIP).
The third tranche loan under the North Karnataka Urban Sector Investment Program will
develop sewerage networks in six towns, and help the rehabilitation and expansion of
potable water systems in two more towns. More than 100,000 households will benefit
from the improvements. Nilaya Mitash, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs,
Ministry of Finance signed the agreement on behalf of Government of India and Mr. Hun
Kim, Country Director of ADBs India Resident Mission, signed the agreement on behalf
of ADB. ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific
through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth and regional
integration.Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members 48 from the region. In
2012, ADB assistance totaled $21.6 billion, including co-financing of $8.3 billion.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on 15 July, penalized 22 banks by imposing fines for
violating Know-Your-Customer (KYC) norms and anti-money laundering guidelines.The
list includes banks such as SBI, Bank of Baroda and Canara Bank all of whom were
fined Rs.3 crore each. The RBI said that it came to the conclusion that some of the
violations were substantiated and warranted imposition of monetary penalty. The
central bank also issued cautionary letters to seven other banks including Citibank,
Standard Chartered and Barclays as no violation of serious nature by them was
established. The violations by the public sector banks were revealed in a sting operation
by online portal, Cobra post, reported in May. Though it imposed penalties, the RBI said
that its investigation did not reveal any prima facie evidence of money laundering. Any
conclusive inference in this regard can be drawn only by an end to end investigation of
the transactions by tax and enforcement agencies, the central bank statement said.
Slow progress of economic reforms is expected to pull down Indias growth to 5.8 per
cent in the 2013 calendar year from 6 per cent projected earlier, an Asian Development
Bank (ADB) report said on 16th July.
"In India...slow progress in pushing through the reforms
needed to ease business bottlenecks means growth is likely to be 5.8 per cent this year,
slower than the previously forecast 6.0 per cent," the report Asian Development
Outlook Supplement said.
Satyam formally merged with Tech Mahindra on 15th July.After debuting on the stock
market in 1995, Satyam soon went on to become one of the countrys top five IT
companies and its share price was trading Rs. 250 level in late 2008. It came to be
known by January 2009 that Satyam was home to Indias biggest ever corporate scam.
Satyam is a Sanskrit word that means truth.
A quick revival, however, followed with its takeover by Tech Mahindra through a
government-monitored auction process and its name was changed to Mahindra
Satyam. Tech Mahindra on 12 July 2013 announced the completion of allocation of its
shares to the shareholders of Satyam Computer Services, raising the issued capital of
the firm from 129 million shares to 232 million.
Many changes have come through under Mahindras and the group finally decided to
amalgamate the two IT companies under its fold. Shares of Mahindra Satyam are no
longer traded on the bourses. They last traded at a level close to 120 rupees a piece
and the value of each erstwhile Satyam share is now equivalent to about 130 rupees a
piece, taking into account Tech Mahindras current share price of 1120 rupees.
As per the merger ratio, two Tech Mahindra shares have been given for every 17
shares held by Satyam investors. Experts say it made sense for the new owner to drop
the Satyam brand name from the business, given its infamous past. Following the
integration, Tech Mahindra is now amongst the top-5 IT companies of India with
revenues of 2.7 billion US dollars and expects it to rise to 5 billion US dollars by 2015.
The integration of two entities makes it a much larger software company and will also
aid in cracking and winning larger outsourcing contracts.
Economic ties between India and Vietnam are on track and may cross $7 billion by
2015, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said on 11 July. Speaking to the media
after the 15th meeting of the India-Vietnam Joint Commission, the Minister said
investments by Indian companies total about $936 million in 86 projects in sectors such
as oil and gas exploration, mineral exploration and processing, sugar manufacturing,
agro-chemicals, IT, and agricultural processing.
Khurshid said Vietnam had recently chosen Tata Power as the developer for a $1.8-
billion 2X660 MW Long Phu 2 Thermal Power Project in Soc Trang province in southern
Vietnam, despite strong competition from Korean and Russian companies. It will be the
single largest Indian investment in Vietnam when it comes through and will enhance our
economic co-operation and strategic partnership. The MoU between the two central
banks Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of Vietnam signed in 2012, will
enable Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank to upgrade their representative offices
that they opened in Ho Chi Minh City in February 2003 and March 2008, respectively,
into full-fledged branches in the near future, Khurshid said. India has extended 17
letters of credit (LoCs) totaling $164.5 million, including a $19.5-million LoC for setting
up Nam Trai-IV hydropower project and Binh Bo Pumping station, which was signedon
11 July. India has also agreed to consider earmarking $100 million under buyers credit
under the National Export Insurance Account for use by Vietnam.
The government cleared a proposal to replace Directorate General of Civil Aviation
(DGCA) with a new aviation regulator with full operational and financial autonomy on
11th July. The new regulatory body would be called the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
and it would replace the DGCAIt will administer and regulate civil aviation safety and
manage safety oversight over air transport operators, air service navigation operators
and operators of other civil aviation facilities. The DGCA had limited delegation of
financial powers and hence was incapable of making adequate structural changes to
meet the demands of a dynamic civil aviation sector. This necessitated its replacement
with CAA that would have more administrative and financial powers to deal with the
fast-changing aviation scenario.CAA, like DGCA, would also deal with matters relating
to financial stress on safety of air operations, as witnessed in connection with the
bankrupt Kingfisher Airlines in October last year.CAA is being established to meet the
standards set by UNs International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and in line with
aviation regulators in other countries like the Federal Aviation Administration of the US
and the UKs CAA.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 10 July, approved
disinvestment of government stake in State Trading Corporation (STC) and India
Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), which would fetch around Rs 30 crore to the
exchequer. The Disinvestment Department had sought Cabinet nod to offload 5 per
cent stake in ITDC and 1.02 per cent in STC through the Offer For Sale (OFS) route.
The government expects the sale of 5 per cent stake or 42.88 crore shares in ITDC to
fetch Rs 23.58 crore. Besides, it aims to garner about Rs. 10 crore through
disinvestment of 1.02 per cent, or 6.13 crore shares, in STC. Government currently
holds 92.11 per cent stake in ITDC and 91.02 per cent stake in STC. The stake sale
would help both the companies meet the minimum 10 per cent public holding norm of
market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The government is
required to bring down its stake in these two companies to 90 per cent by August 8.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), on 10th July, has approved the
Modified Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (MIIUS) with an approved outlay
of Rs. 1030 crore for the 12th Five Year Plan periodconsisting of Rs. 450 crore for
committed liability and the remaining Rs. 580 crore for taking up 14 to16 new projects
including a minimum 2 projects in the North Eastern Region (NER) for up gradation of
infrastructure in existing or Greenfield industrial clusters. The CCEA further approved
that at least 10 percent outlay will be set aside for the minimum two projects in the NER.
All States are covered under the scheme. However projects are likely to be undertaken
in only 14 to 16 States/Districts due to limitation of outlay in the 12th Plan. After
notification of the MIIUS, the Project Management Agency (PMA) would be appointed.
The IIUS was launched in 2003 as a Central Sector Scheme to enhance
competitiveness of industry by providing quality infrastructure through a public private
partnership in selected functional clusters with central assistance up to 75 percent of the
project cost subject to a ceiling of Rs. 5 crore. The Scheme was recast in February,
2009 based on the recommendation of an independent evaluation.
Software giant TCS has replaced its group firm Tata Steel as the countrys most
admired company, as per a Fortune list released on 9th July.TCS is followed by
Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Infosys and SBI in the top-five, while last years top-ranked
firm Tata Steel has slipped to seventh position in the list of Indias 50 most admired
companies. Both ITC and Infosys have shared the third spot. The rankings have taken
into account various factors such as corporate governance, innovativeness, corporate
social responsibility and leadership. There are a total of four Tata group companies on
the list. Besides Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata Steel, other Tata group
firms in the list are Tata Motors at the 12th spot and Tata Power at 50th. As many as
ten public sector units (PSUs) have made it to the rankings, global business magazine
Fortunes Indian edition said. Among state-run enterprises, SBI and ONGC are in the
top ten, ranked at fifth and eighth positions, respectively. L&T (6th rank), Maruti
Suzuki (9th) and ICICI Bank (10th) feature in the top ten. State-run oil major Indian Oil
Corp was placed at 11th rank, while SAIL (22nd), Bharat Petroleum (25th), NTPC
(28th), HPCL (31st), GAIL (34th), ONGC Videsh (47th) and Coal India (48th) also made
the cut. Other companies who made it to the list include Microsoft India (15th), Colgate
Palmolive (16th), IBM India (17th), Samsung India Electronics (18th), Bharti Airtel
(19th), Cadbury (23rd), Dell India (32nd), Siemens (36th), Intel India (38th), Nokia India
(42nd) and Sony India (44th).
The Union Government of India on 1 July 2013 launched the National Cyber Security
Policy 2013 at New Delhi with an aim to protect information and build capabilities to
prevent cyber attacks.The National Cyber Security Policy 2013 to safeguard both
physical and business assets of the country. The Policy has outlined the roadmap for
creation of a framework for comprehensive, collaborative and collective responsibility to
deal with cyber security of the country.
The policy has ambitious plans for rapid social transformation and inclusive growth and
Indias prominent role in the IT global market. It will cater to the cyber security
requirements of government and non-government entities at the national and
international levels. The policy will help in safeguarding the critical infrastructure like Air
Defense system, nuclear plants, banking system, power infrastructure,
telecommunication system and many more to secure countrys economic stability.
The National Cyber Policy in order to create a secure cyber ecosystem has planned to
set-up a National Nodal Agency to coordinate all matters related to cyber security in the
country.The nodal agency has clearly defined roles and responsibilities. The policy will
also establish a mechanism for sharing information as well as identifying and
responding to cyber security incidents and for cooperation in restoration efforts. The
National Cyber Security Policy has been prepared in consultation with all relevant
stakeholders, user entities and public.
The Telecom Commission has approved the enhancement of the foreign direct
investment (FDI) limit in the telecom sector from 74 per cent to 100 per cent on 2 July.
The Telecom Commissions decision will now be submitted to the Union Cabinet for its
approval. The move comes on the eve of Finance Minister P. Chidambarams visit to
the U.S. on July 11, followed by the Telecom Minister Kapil Sibals week-long visit to the
U.S. starting July 15.
The announcement also comes on the heels of new balance of payment challenges;
with the rupee at an all-time low of nearlyRs. 60 per one US dollar. The announcement
has multiple implications for India. Mr. Sibal said in a statement that, he expected the
move to reenergize the telecom industry out of its legacy debt issues by bringing in at
least $10-15 billion of FDI. By improving connectivity through the highest quality of
connectivity and competition, it will further empower the aam aadmi of the country in a
meaningful manner, Mr. Sibal said. He further asserted that security concerns
surrounding telecom networks would also be addressed with a firm hand.
It may be unheard of for an energy company, but Oil India Ltd. (OIL) plans to tie-up with
the Assam government to start a co-operative dairy business along the lines of
Gujarats successful Amul model. The project named Kamdhenu envisages setting up
of a milk production facility in Upper Assam to establish the dairy business in 3-5 years,
OIL saidinj Guwahati on 2 July.Assam is a milk-deficient state. Availability of good milk
is a big issue here. So, as part of our corporate social responsibility, we have decided to
join hands with the state government to start a co-operative dairy business here, OIL
Chairman and Managing Director Sunil Kumar Srivastavatold reporters.
The model and OILs role are being studied to see how the company can support it. We
are an oil company and milk production is not our business. We will tie-up with the
government and see how we can implement this plan, Mr. Srivastava said. The
company was assessing options such as giving cows to farmers in villages, setting up
collection centers, and establishing a distribution network, he said. The co-operative
might supply milk to the entire North East in future, he said. OIL has started the ground
work for the project, and has initiated talks with the Assam government.
India has ranked 66th in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2013, an index that is
published by Cornell University, INSEAD, World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) as a knowledge partnerThe study
ranked 142 economies across the world on their innovation capacity and efficiency. This
years report casts additional light on the local dynamics of innovation, an area which
has remained under-measured globally.
It shows the emergence of original innovation eco-systems, and signals a needed shift
from the usual tendency to try and duplicate previously successful initiatives, CII said in
a statement. The local dynamics of innovation varies across the globe and influences
innovation measurement. Learning from the local innovation systems adds newer
dimensions to existing measurement approaches.
The focus of this years GII makes it a valuable guide for the policy makers to develop
specific strategies relevant to their local innovation eco-system, said CII Director
General Chandrajit Banerjee. India ranked 1st in the Central and South Asia region
followed by Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka, and 11th overall in innovation efficiency
ratio(Innovation efficiency reflects the innovation output per unit of innovation input in
the economy).India ranked poor in areas such as political stability (rank 123), ease of
starting business (rank 128) knowledge absorption (rank 122) among others. As per the
report, despite the economic crisis, innovation is alive and well.
Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) on 2 July, has lost the giant Kashagan oilfield to the
Chinese after Kazakhstan blocked its $5-billion deal to buy U.S. energy major
ConocoPhillips stake in the Caspian Sea oilfield.ONGC Videsh, the overseas
investment arm of ONGC, had, in November last, struck a deal to buy ConocoPhillips
8.4 per cent stake in Kazakhstans biggest oilfield, Kashagan for $5 billion.
PERSONS:
Abdul Rahim Rather-----The Finance Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, on 21 July 2013
appointed as the new Chairman of GST Panel by the Empowered Committee of States
Finance Ministers on GSTAbdul Rahim Rather preceded Sushil Kumar Modi who had
resigned from the post after a split in the JD (U)-BJP Government in Bihar, in which he
was the Deputy Chief Minister and the Finance Minister. Abdul Rahim with his
appointment will perform the dreadful task of pursuing the proposed new indirect tax
regime under the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which will subsume excise, service
tax and local levies.
Manjula (59)----The south India yesteryear actor Manjula died in Chennai on 23 July
2013 followed a brief illness. She made her screen debut as a child artist in Shanthi
Nilayam. Manjula went on to play the lead roles with MGR in his blockbuster
Rickshawkaran in the early 1970s. She has acted in more than 100 films in South Indian
languages like Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. She has played together with the top
heroes of the Telugu, Tamil and Kannada industries across generations: MGR, Sivaji
Ganesan, NTR, Gemini Ganesan, Kamal Hassan, Rajnikanth, and Vishnuvardhan.
Kumar Mangalam Birla----The Chairman of Aditya BirlaNuvo, Kumar Mangalam Birla
resigned from the Reserve Bank of Indias Central Board on 23 July 2013The
resignation is said to avoid the conflicts because Aditya Birla Nuvo applied for the bank
license to RBI. Aditya Birla Nuvo is one of the 26 firms which have applied for bank
licenses with RBI. Kumar Mangalam Birla has remained on the central board of RBI
from past six years. It is important to note that he was also nominated as the member of
the Directors of the Central Board of the RBI in 2006.The Reserve Bank of India will be
granting new bank licenses by March 2014. India, at present has 26 public sector
banks, 22 private sector banks and 56 regional rural banks.
Celebrated biologist Obaid Siddiqi, a scientist nonpareil whose pioneering work shed
light on how taste and smell are detected and coded in brain, died on 26th July of
injuries he sustained in an accident two days ago.Prof. Siddiqi (81), a National
Research Professor at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, was taking a stroll
near his residence in Vidyaranyapura on 24th July, when his neighbour, a college
student riding his moped, knocked him down. He is survived by his wife Asiya, sons
Imran and Kaleem, and daughters Yumna and Diba. Prof. Siddiqis family members
have preferred not to file complaint against their neighbour, whose identity was not
revealed by the police.
US President Barack Obama has nominated an accomplished Indian-American woman
administrator as Americas new point person for South Asia to succeed Robert
Blake.Subject to confirmation by the Senate, Nisha Desai Biswal, who is currently the
Assistant Administrator for Asia at the US Agency for International Development
(USAID), will replace incumbent Blake to head the South Asia bureau in the US State
Department.
Desai is expected to become the first person of Indian-origin to head the bureau, which
oversees US foreign policy and relations with India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan,
Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan. Biswal, who received a BA degree from the
University of Virginia, has been the Assistant Administrator for Asia at the USAID, since
September 2010.
JUSTICE P.SADASIVAM-----Justice P Sathasivam was on 19 july, sworn in as the 40th
Chief Justice of India(CJI) by President Pranab Mukherjee. He took over the post from
Justice Altamas Kabir, who served as the CJI for over nine months. Born on April 27,
1949, he enrolled as an advocate in July 1973 at Madras and was appointed as a
permanent Judge of the Madras High Court in January, 1996.Later, he was transferred
to the Punjab and Haryana High Court in April, 2007.Justice Sathasivam was elevated
to the Supreme Court in August, 2007 and would demit office on April 26, 2014.
DR.LAXMAN SINGH RATHORE----Dr Laxman Singh Rathore, Director General of
Meteorology & Permanent Representative of India, has been elected as Co-Vice
Chairman of Intergovernmental Board of Climate Services (IBCS) of the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO)during its first meeting held at Geneva during 1st to
5th July 2013. Dr. Rathore was recently elected as member of the Executive Council of
the WMO and has earlier served a term as Vice President of Commission of Agriculture
Meteorology. Anton Eliassen, Director General, Norway Meteorological Institute has
been elected as Chair and Dr. Linda Makuleni, South Africa, is the other Co-Vice Chair.
With the appointment of Rathore, India, who is championing the cause of developing
nations is poised to play a crucial role in implementation of Global Framework of
Climate Service (GFCS).
VAALI (82) ----- Veteran Tamil film lyricist Vaali passed awayat a private hospital in
Chennai on 18 July 2013. Vaali penned lyrics for stars across generations, from the
veteran M.G. Ramachandran (MGR), Kamal Haasan to present day heroes like
Dhanush. He started his career in the mid-60s and had penned nearly 10,000 songs in
his 50 years long career. He was honoured with the Padma Shri, Indiaa fourth highest
civilian honour in year 2007.He has also written a number of books including Naanum
Indha Nootrandum, his autobiography.
SANTOSH B.NAIR-----International Finance Corporation of India (IFCI), on 15 July,
appointed Santosh B. Nayar as the companys new Chief Executive Officer and
Managing Director. Further, it said Ashok Kumar Jain had been inducted as additional
director of IFCI.
RANA KAPOOR---- Yes Bank Managing Director and CEO, Rana Kappor took over as
the President of Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India
(Assocham)on 20 July at the end of the 92nd annual general meeting of the chamber
held in New Delhi.
The British Government honoured V.K. Krishna Menon, Indias first high commissioner
in London and former Defence Minister by placing a Blue Plaque at the house, where
he lived when he moved to the city for the first time on 17th July.
The blue plaque will be placed plaque at 30 Langdon Park Road in Highgate, North
London, where Menon stayed from 1929 to 1931. Menon, during his stay in London,
after Indian independence as independent Indias first High Commissioner to the U.K
played an active role in the socio-political life of the city.
The plaque was unveiled by Tony Benn, veteran leader of the Left-Wing Labour. Tony
Benn is the son of William Wedgwood Benn, was secretary of state for India from 1929
to 1931, when Menon was campaigning for Indian independence in Britain. UK
commemorates sites of historical and cultural importance in the country with blue
plaques with a purpose of drawing attention of people.
Eminent historian Barun Dey, who made Modern India his main area of research, died
at a city clinic in Kolkata on 16th July after a protracted illness.He was 80 and is
survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.
Associated with a number of historical institutions, Dey was Vice President of Asiatic
Society and Vice Chairman of Centre for Archaeology, besides being a member of the
Board of Trustees of Victoria Memorial and Governing Body of Indian Museum..
He had specialised in social and economic history of India in the 17th and 18th
centuries, Bengal renaissance and British constitutional history. Dey was the author of
Secularism at Bay: Uzbekistan at the Turn of Century
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka----Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 9 July, has appointed
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, a former deputy president of South Africa and womens
advocate, as the new head of the United Nations body, U.N. WOMEN tasked with
promoting womens rights and their full participation in global affairsMs. Mlambo-Ngcuka
replaces Michelle Bachelet, a former president of Chile who served as the first
Executive Director of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women
(UN Women). Ms. Bachelet stepped down a few months ago. She was the first woman
to hold the position of Deputy President of South Africa from 2005 to 2008, and has also
served as Deputy Minister in the Department of Trade and Industry, Minister of Minerals
and Energy, and briefly as acting Minister of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology. UN
Women was established in July 2010 by a unanimous vote of the General Assembly to
oversee all of the world bodys programmes aimed at promoting womens rights.It is
tasked with helping Member States implement standards, providing technical and
financial support to countries which request it and forging partnerships with civil society.
Within the UN, it holds the world body accountable for its own commitments on gender
equality.
Dr. H.A.B. Parpia---- An acknowledged food scientist and the former Director of the
Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) diedon 9 July 2013 after a brief
illness.There exist more than 2500 papers and documents published by the name of Dr.
Parpia on food and technology and advanced education. The 91 year old, Dr. Parpia
served Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations at Rome and
was Assistant Director in charge of Information, Statistics, Process Development and
Food Plant Design at the CFTRI. He received, Distinguished Service Medal from the
Prime Minister of India at 25th Anniversary of CFTRI, Mysore. In 1984, he received V S
Industrial Achievement Award from Association of Food Scientists & Technologists
(India), Mysore. In 1987, he received Wattumull Foundation Award from Honolulu,
Hawaii, USA.
Pran (93)----The winner of Dadasaheb Phalke Award and a veteran actor Pran diedon
12 July 2013 in a Hospital at Mumbai. Born in Old Delhi on 12 February 1920, Pran got
his first break in a Punjabi Film, Yamla Jat in 1940, in the undivided India. But his debut
in Bollywood happened with the film Ziddi, in which he acted along with the evergreen
hero of bollywood Dev Anand in 1948. Pran served the Bollywood for a career span of
more than six decades in more than 350 films andis known for his brilliant performances
in films like Ram aur Shyam, Aansoo Ban Gaye Phool, Half-Ticket, Madhumati, Purab
aur Paschim, Karz, Zanjeer and Amar Akbar Anthony and many more. He was
conferred with Dada Saheb Phalke Award on 12 April 2013,which was received by him
on 10 May 2013 at his residence. In 2001 he was awarded with Indias third highest
civilian award Padma Bhushan. In 2010 he was named among the Top 25 Asian Actors
of All times by CNN.
Ottavio Quattrocchi (74)----- Controversial Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, who
was a key figure in the Bofors payoffs scandal, on 13 July 2013 died in Milan,
Italyfollowing a stroke. Quattrocchi was an Italian businessman who was being sought
until early 2009 in India for criminal charges for acting as a conduit for bribes in the
Bofors scandal.The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had named Quattrocchi in a
chargesheet as the conduit for the Bofors bribe. The case against him was
strengthened in June 2003. On the basis of the Interpol warrant he was detained in
Argentina on 6 February 2007. The CBI had come under attack for putting up a half-
hearted effort towards his extradition..
Former Delhi Police Chief, K.K. Paul took over as the new Governor of Meghalaya,after
he was administered the oath of office and secrecy by the Chief Justice of Meghalaya
High Court, T Meena Kumari at a simple function held at the Durbal Hall of the Raj
Bhavan in Shillong on 8th July. He was the Delhi Police commissioner between
February 2004 and July 2007 and became a member of the Union Public Service
Commission (UPSC) on 26 July 2007. He also had served in the Intelligence Bureau
(IB) and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). He joined the IPS in 1970 and was
granted the AGMUT (Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories) cadre.
Senior parliamentarian Shriniwas Dadasaheb Patil on 4 July 2013 was appointed as the
new Governor of Sikkim on 4th July. Dadasaheb Patil has represented Maharashtras
Satara constituency in the Lok Sabha as an MP. He is also a former IAS officer, and will
replace presently serving governor of Sikkim B.P. Singh. The 73-years Dadasaheb Patil
was elected to the 13th and 14th Lok Sabha from the Karad constituency in
Maharashtra on the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP ticket).
Najeeb Jung, Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia, took over as the Lt. Governor of
Delhi, replacing Tejendra Khanna on 9th July.A 1973-batch IAS officer, Jung is the 19th
L-G of Delhi.
He was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Chief Justice of Delhi High Court
B.D. Ahmed. The oath-taking ceremony was held at Raj Niwas and attended by Chief
Minister Sheila Dikshit, her council of ministers, and several top political leaders and
bureaucrats.
Hazem El-Beblawi was named as the new Prime Minister of Egypt by the Interim
President Adly Mansour on 9th JulyA leading economist and former finance minister,
Beblawi will form a caretaker government that comprises technocrats from different
walks of life. The caretaker government would play a major role in steering the Egypt
through the transitional period. The interim President Adly Mansour also named
Mohammad ElBaradei, a Nobel laureate and former IAEA chief as the new Vice-
President of the country. In a gesture of reconciliation, the new Prime minister-
designate declared that his government will offer cabinet posts to the leaders of Muslim
Brotherhood of the ousted President Mohammed Morsis Government.
Veteran Carnatic musician Nukala Chinna Satyanarayana passed away here on 11th
July.He was 89. He was suffering from a heart-related ailment since some months.
Popularly known as a Carnatic vocal maestro, the veteran musician was born in
Aadurru villaige of East Godavari District in 1923.
He took a masters degree in English and Telugu literature and began his musical
journey as a violinist. However, he switched to vocal under the tutelage of veteran
Mangalampalli Pattabhiramaiah, the father of another Carnatic exponent, Mangalampalli
Balamuralikrishna.
Recognising his skills in vocal music, Bharat Gandharva Maha Vidyalaya Mandal in
1983 awarded him the prestigious title of Maha Mahopadyaya.He was appointed by
TTD as their court musician and for 20 years he worked to tune various Annamacharya
krithis.
Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, Srigeri Peetham, Pushpagiri Peetham, Ganapathi
Sacchidananda Ashramam have recognised his services and appointed him as their
court musician.Nukala worked as principal in Hyderabad, Secunderabad, Vijayawada
Government Music Colleges. He was the head of the department of music at Telugu
University. He penned many books including Raga Lakshana Sangraham and a
monograph on Thyagaraja Pancharatna Kirthanas. He gave performances in the
presence of late Dr. Radhakrishnan, V.V. Giri and P.V. Narasimha Rao. He was
awarded Padma Bhushan by the Centre.
R. CHANDRASEKHAR---Nasscom, the IT software services industry body appointed R.
Chandrasekhar, the former Secretary Department of Telecommunications (DoT), as its
president on 5 July 201360 years old, R. Chandrashekhar will be succeeding current
Nasscom President Som Mittal, whose tenure expires in January 2014. He retired from
DOT in March 2013 and had also declined an offer to head the National Technical
Research Organisation (NTRO) which is Indias premier technical intelligence agency.
SUNIL SONI----Sunil Soni has been appointed as Director General of Bureau of Indian
Standards (BIS)on 2 July 2013. He is a 1981 batch IAS officer of Maharashtra cadre
who at present is on compulsory wait in the Department of Financial Services under
Ministry of Finance. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has also appointed
Tapan Ray, a 1982 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre as Additional Secretary in Ministry
of Panchayati Raj. Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is a body under the Ministry of
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution which basically looks after the
formulation of standards for all segments of industry and business.It also certifies
products, which is popularly known by ISI mark. It is also into certification of imported
products and hallmarking of jewellery.
DOUGLAS ENGELBART(88)----Douglas Engelbart, the U.S. inventor who was known
as the father of the computer mouse diedon 3 July 2013. Engelbart was a technologist
who laid out a vision of an Internet decades before others brought those ideas to the
mass market. He was a scientist and engineer who devoted himself to find ways to use
computers to improve peoples lives.
MAHASUNDARI DEVI----Madhubani painting artist Mahasundari Devi diedat a private
hospital in Ranti, near Madhubani on 4 July 2013. She was renowned for her mastery
over Sikki work, sujani craft, clay work and paper mache apart from Mithila painting.
She had won over two dozen national and state awards. She won the prestigious
Padmashri and Shilp Guru award in year 2010.
SUJATHA SINGH----Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh approved the
appointment of Sujata Singh as the Next Foreign Secretary of Indiaon 1 July 2013.
Sujata Singh of 59 years at present is serving as the envoy to Germany. She will
succeed Ranjan Mathai as Foreign Secretary, who is due to retire on 31 July 2013. Due
to retire in July 2014, Singh has got an extension of two year in her service period. She
is the IFS officer of 1976 batch and the third women to head the foreign services after
Chokila Iyer and Nirupama Rao.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:
Indias advanced meteorological satellite INSAT-3D was successfully launched by an
European rocket from the spaceport of Kourou in French Guiana early today (i.e. on
26th July) giving a boost to weather forecasting and disaster warning services.European
space consortium Arianespaces Ariane 5 rocket launched INSAT-3D and Alphasat
satellites. Alphasat is Europes largest telecommunication satellite-ever manufactured
and results from a large-scale public-private partnership between the European Space
Agency and Inmarsat.
The workhorse vehicle lifted off exactly on schedule at 1.23 am IST from the
Spaceports ELA-3 launch zone in French Guiana for a nearly 33-minute flight. This
launch provided an excellent view of the flights initial trajectory, as the Ariane 5 began
its vertical ascent, then rotated East, arching over the Spaceports main base area as it
progressed downrange. The flight path was visible between scattered cloud layers and
the clear meteorological conditions enabled an excellent view of the launchs first
phase, including separation of the two solid propellant boosters at an altitude of 67 km.
Alphasat was deployed first in the flight sequence, nearly 28 minutes after the liftoff.
Some five minutes later, Ariane 5 completed its mission with the successful separation
of INSAT-3D, which carries a six-channel imager and 19-channel sounder, as well as a
data relay transponder for satellite-aided search and rescue operations. I am happy to
inform you that the Master Control Facility at Hassan in India has already received
signals from INSAT-3D, Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation K.
Radhakrishnan said minutes after the launch.
The imaging system of INSAT-3D has significant improvements over that of KALPANA
and INSAT-3A, the space agency said. INSAT-3D will provide continuity to earlier
missions and further augment the capability to provide various meteorological as well as
search and rescue services. INSAT-3D had a lift-off mass of 2,060 kg.
Biological E (BioE) and European biotech company Valneva SE said the World Health
Organization (WHO) has pre-qualified its Japanese Encephalitis vaccine for global use
in adults on 22nd July.The company expects that the pediatric indication will also be
prequalified by the end of 2013.The WHO prequalification was a key step for distribution
of the vaccine in developing countries. We are happy that our JE vaccine is the first
ever WHO prequalified vaccine. It is an extremely important achievement for the
vaccines community as our vaccines prequalification is well in time to support GAVIs
plans of introducing the JE vaccine in several developing countries, said Mahima Datla,
MD, BioE. BioE and Valneva have joined hands in partnership in 2005 for the
development and commercialization of a Japanese Encephalitis vaccine for endemic
regions, based on Valnevas JEV technology. The vaccine is being marketed in India
under the trade-name JEEV and commercialization in other JE-endemic countries is
planned.
Scientists of the CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) Hyderabad
developed a software tool that can control and reduce the outbreak of Mosquito-borne
diseases by data mining (Knowledge Discovering).This IT tool has been validated by
the Central Government and taken up for implementation by health authorities in five
States of States Gujarat, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Assam and Mizoram in the initial
phase which will be extended to all other States in a phased manner. This technology
has been developed by Dr. U.S.N. Murthy, Chief Scientist, Biology Division at the IICT
and his team by improvising and customizing Self Organizing Map (SOM), a cluster
technique in data mining.
SOM technology would enable health officials to prioritize control parameters in
endemic zones at village level and initiate measures to minimize morbidity and
mortality, caused by the onset of vector-borne diseases. SOM technology can help to
alert health authorities to take up larval and adult spraying before the transmission of
parasite by the mosquito. Mosquito-borne diseases like malaria, Japanese encephalitis
and dengueare posing a serious public health problem in India and other South-East
Asian Countries, with some of them were occurring in an epidemic form on a periodical
basis. The North East of India parts account for about 10.5 per cent of malaria cases
and 20 per cent of the deaths. The technology works on two ways -one relating to the
names of the villages and the second focusing on mosquito density, infection, infectivity
and parasitic load. Based on these parameters, a complete mapping of the villages
could be done in terms of prioritizing control parameters.
US lawmakers are pushing a plan to establish a new national park that would quite
literally be out of this world - on the MoonA new bill introduced into the US Congress on
14 July, would create the Apollo Lunar Landing Sites National Historical Park on the
Moon. Called the Apollo Lunar Landing Legacy Act, the bill (House Resolution
2617)was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and in
addition to the House Committee on Natural Resources. Emphasizing that the Apollo
lunar programme was one of the greatest achievements in the US history, the bill notes
that, as commercial enterprises and foreign nations acquire the ability to land on the
Moon, "it is necessary to protect the Apollo lunar landing sites for posterity. "The bill, in
part, calls for no later than one year after the date of enactment of the act, "there shall
be established as a unit of the National Park System the Apollo Lunar Landing Sites
National Historical Park."Establishing such a park will expand and enhance the
protection and preservation of the Apollo lunar landing sites, the bill states, "and provide
for greater recognition and public understanding of this singular achievement in
American history."The bill also spotlights the artifacts on the surface of the Moon
associated with the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission, "which had an instrumentality crash land
on the lunar surface April 14, 1970," it states.
NASA, the U.S. space agency announced the discovery of Neptunes 14th moon in
July, 2013.The Hubble Space Telescope captured the moon as a white dot in photos of
the planet on the periphery of our solar system. The new moon, Neptunes tiniest at just
19.3 km across, and is designated as S/2004 N 1.
The Neptune 14th moon was actually discovered by the SETI Institutes Mark Showalter
while studying the segments of rings around Neptune when he spotted the white dot
popping out, 1,05,250 km from Neptune. He tracked its movement in more than 150
pictures taken from 2004 to 2009. The method involved tracking the movement of a
white dot that appears over and over in more than 150 archival Neptune photographs
taken by Hubble from 2004 to 2009. The considerably bigger gas giant Jupiter has four
times as many moons, with 67.
A healthy baby boy in the US has become the worlds first test tube baby to be born
using a new low cost "next-generation sequencing" IVF technique that screens the
embryo for genetic defects, Oxford scientists announced on 8th JulyThe method,
through which the baby was born last month, uses the latest DNA sequencing
techniques and aims to increase in-vitro fertilization success rates while being more
affordable for couples and lowering the risk of miscarriages, researchers say. The
international team led by Dr Dagan Wells of Oxford University showed how "next-
generation sequencing" can be used to pick the embryos created by IVF that are most
likely to lead to successful pregnancies.
NASA has turned off a decade-old space telescope, a year after loaning the orbiting
instrument to a university that operated it with private funding. The space agency
decommissioned its Galaxy Evolution Explorer spacecraft, or GALEX, on June
28,NASA officials said. During its 10-year career, GALEX peered at hundreds of millions
of galaxies, helping researchers better understand how these huge collections of stars
grow and evolve.
"GALEX is a remarkable accomplishment," Jeff Hayes, NASAs GALEX program
executive in Washington, D.C., said in a statement. "This small Explorer mission has
mapped and studied galaxies in the ultraviolet, light we cannot see with our own eyes,
across most of the sky."The $150 million GALEX satellite launched in April 2003 on a
29-month mission to study the history of star formation in the universeNASA extended
GALEX but eventually stopped funding it in February 2011.
In May 2012, the agency made an unprecedented move, handing the spacecrafts reins
over to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, which kept GALEX
going with private funds. Some of the missions highlights include helping astronomers
identify the largest known spiral galaxy in the universe, a behemoth called NGC 6872;
catching a black hole in the act of gobbling up a star; and discovering a missing link in
galaxy evolution, a sort of "teenage stage" between young and old.
ISROs Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C22, has successfully launched IRNSS-
1A, the first satellite in the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) from
Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota on 1 July. This is the 23rd consecutively
successful mission of PSLVAfter a flight of 20 minutes 17 seconds, the IRNSS-1A
Satellite, weighing 1425 kg, was injected to the intended elliptical orbit of 282.46 km X
20,625.37 km. ISROs Master Control Facility (at Hassan, Karnataka) assumed the
control of the satellite. IRNSS-1A is the first of the seven satellites constituting the
space segment of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System. IRNSS is an
independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide position
information in the Indian region and 1,500 km around the Indian mainland. IRNSS would
provide two types of services, namely, Standard Positioning Services (SPS) provided
to all users and Restricted Services (RS) provided only to authorised users. As per
ISRO the entire IRNSS constellation of seven satellites is planned to completed by
2015-16.
SPORTS:
Devendra Jhajharia created history by becoming the first differently-abled Indian to win
a gold at the IPC Athletics World Championships as he bagged the yellow metal in
javelin throw in the sixth edition of the event in Lyon, France on 22nd July.Jhajharia,
also a world record holder in the event which he created while winning gold in the 2004
Athens Olympics, hurled the javelin to 57.04m in F-46 category, meant for one-armed
athletes, at the Rhone Stadium. The 32-year-old Rajasthan athlete, whose world record
stands at 62.15m, led the 11-athlete field from the very beginning as he opened with a
throw of 54.71m. He came up with his best of 57.04m in his sixth and last throw.
Ace Iranian thrower Mirshekari Abdolrasoul won the silver with a throw of 52.62m while
Ismail Mahmoud of Egypt was third in 50.22m. With Jhajharias effort, India opened their
medal account in the Championships organized by International Paralympics
Committee and now stands at 19th in the medal tally.
India is represented by a 10-member contingent in the July 19-28 Championships. All
10 athletes have qualified with A standard. IPC President Sir Phil Cravon and CEO
Xavier Gonzalez congratulated Jhajharia on his achievement. Paralympics Committee
of India President Sultan Ahmed said Jhajharia will be felicitated when he returns home.
The PCI also announced a cash award of Rs 5 lakh for Jhajaria.
The 2013 IPC Athletics World Championships, featuring over 1,000 athletes from nearly
100 countries, is the biggest gathering of international differently-abled athletes since
the 2012 London Olympics. Meanwhile, The Paralympic Committee of India announced
a cash prize of Rs five lakh for Javelin thrower Devendra Jhajharia on 22nd July.
Indias K. Jennitha Anto on 24 July, became the World chess champion for the disabled
after winning the 13th IPCA World womens individual championship in Velke Losiny,
Czech Republic.Hailing from Tamil Nadu, Jennitha scored 4.5 points from nine rounds
after winning three, drawing three, and losing three games. She competed in a
combined group with men and became the highest scorer among the woman players
and was awarded the IPCA womens title. Two Russian women finished tied with
Jennitha on points but a higher buchcholz score helped her win the title. The triumph
was more special for Jennitha as she also became a Woman International Master
(WIM).The new WIM title would allow her direct entry into many National events for
women, except the premier tournament. The event attracted 49 physically challenged
players from 15 countries.
Chris Froome from Britain on 21 July 2013 has won the 100th edition of the Tour de
France.It was Britains second successive victory in the race. Earlier in year 2012 Sir
Bradley Wiggin became the first Briton to win Tour de France. The Tour de France is an
annual multiple stage bicycle race primarily held in France while also occasionally
making passes through nearby countries. The race was first organized in 1903 to
increase paper sales for the magazine LAuto.
India continues to reign at the top of the table in International Cricket Councils latest
ODI ranking released on 25 July 2013.With 122 rating points, India is the number one
team followed by Australia with 114 and England with 112 points.The latest ODI
rankings were released by the ICC in Dubai. Among the batsmen, South Africas
Hashim Amla replaces countryman AB Devilliers at the top. Indias Virat Kohli has
maintained his position at number three while skipper Dhoni is at number six.
32 Year old Swiss tennis legend Martina Hingis was inducted in Tennis Hall of Fame on
13 July 2013. With the induction she became the fourth youngest members to be
included in the tennis hall of fame., followed by Tracy Austin (30), Bjorn Borg (31) and
Hana Mandlikova (32).She had won three Australian Open titles (1997, 1998, 1999),
one Wimbledon (1997) and a US Open title (1997). She held the number one ranking
for 209 weeks. She also won nine grand slam doubles titles and a mixed doubles title.
The clamour may have been for Sachin Tendulkar, but the Sports Ministry has
recommended hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand for the Bharat Ratna, Indias highest
civillian honour."The letter recommending Bharat Ratna for Dhyan Chand has already
been sent to the Prime Minister," Sports secretary P. K. Deb said."The Ministry has only
recommended Dhyan Chands name for the highest honour," he added. Before for the
hockey wizard can be conferred the award posthumously, the recommendation, sent to
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will be studied before it goes for approval to President
Pranab Mukherjee. Dhyan Chand won three gold medals at the Olympics 1928 in
Amsterdam, 1932 in Los Angeles and 1936 in Berlin. He passed away in 1979.The
government, in 2011, ignored a plea of 82 Members of Parliament, who recommended
Dhyan Chands name for the Bharat Ratna, but in January 2012, the Ministry itself
forwarded his name along with that of Olympic gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra
and mountaineer Tenzing Norgay for the award. And, Tendulkar was not considered as
the Board of Control for Cricket in India had not recommended him.
Former world junior champion Abhijeet Gupta has won the 19th edition of
Commonwealth Chess Championship title, Which held at Boardwalk in Port Elizabeth in
Republic of South Africa.The South African President Jacob Zuma handed the Gold
medal to 23 year old Abhijeet Gupta. So far, Abhijeet has won 20 medals representing
India at World, Asian and Commonwealth Chess Championships in sub-junior, junior
and senior categories. Nearly 900 participants from 29 countries participated in the
event. Amongst the women in the open section, WGM Soumya Swaminathan won the
Silver,while national womens champion Mary Ann Gomes won the bronze.The Indians
also clean swept the junior section with G. Akash winning the gold, Sahaj Grover getting
the silver and Rakesh Kulkarni ending with the bronze medal.
Two of the sports biggest names Tyson Gay and Asafa Powell had failed drugs tests
and tested positive for an Unidentified Substance at an out-of-competition test on 16
May 201330 years old Gay is the second fastest man of all time and has run the three
quickest 100m times of 2013, but tested positive for an unnamed substance. Asafa
Powell on the other hand has clocked 9.88s but was not selected in Jamaica World
Championships team to travel to Moscow in August 2013.The banned drug is named
oxilofrineand is a stimulant used to boost the bodys ability to burn fat. It helps athletes
to boost their power-to-weight ratio with more lean muscle and less fat, and so increase
their speed.
India on 11 July 2013 won the West Indies Tri-Nation Series 2013 Final after
defeating SriLanka with 1 wicket at Port of Spain in TrinidadMahendra Singh Dhoni
captained the Indian Side in the tri-nation series, whereas, AD Mathews was the captain
of the Sri Lanka. Player of the match won by MS Dhoni (India),whereas,Player of the
series won by B Kumar (India)
Former Australia spinner Shane Warne will be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of
Fame on July 19during the tea interval of the second Ashes Test between England and
Australia at Lords. Warne becomes the 69th male member of the Hall of Fame, and
joins fellow 2012-13 inductees Brian Lara of the West Indies, Englands Enid Bakewell
and former Australia team-mate Glenn McGrath in being recognised by the ICC and the
living members of the Hall of Fame.Lara and Bakewell were inducted last year at the
ICC Awards in Colombo in September, and McGrath during the Sydney Test between
Australia and Sri Lanka in January this year. Warne represented Australia in 145 Tests
between 1992 and 2007, claiming 708 Test wickets at an average of 25.41. He was the
first cricketer to reach 700 Test scalps.He also played in 194 ODIs, claiming 293
wickets at an average of 25.73 and was part of the Australia side that won the World
Cup in 1999 at Lords against Pakistan alongside fellow Hall of Famers Glenn McGrath
and Steve Waugh.
Lajja Goswami on 9 July 2013 won silver medal in womens 50-metre Rifle 3 Position
event at the ISSF World Cup in Granada, SpainPetra Zublasing of Italy won the gold
after scoring 459.1 in the medal round. 24-year-old Lajja Goswami, hails from Gujarat
and is a silver medalist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Lajja Goswami had teamed
up with Tejaswani Sawant to win silver in pairs 50-m rifle 3 position at the Delhi
Commonwealth Games in 2010.
In the Womens Singles category of Wimbledon, Marion Bartoli of France on 6 July 2013
won her maiden Grand Slam title.23rd seed Sabine Lisicki of Germany lost to Bartoli
andin the finals, 1-6, 4-6. Marion Bartoli is 28 years old. She is the fifth oldest woman to
become a first time major winner in the Open Era. While, Andy Murray on 7 July 2013
defeated Novak Djokovic in straight sets 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 at Center Court of London to
become the first Briton in 77 years to win the Mens Singles Title at Wimbledon
2013Wimbledon was held from 24 June to 7 July 2013 in London. The 26-year-old
became the Britains first male winner after almost eight decades, to win the
championship. Earlier it was Fred Perry, who won the Championship in 1936. Daniel
Nestor of Canada and Kristina Mladenovic of France defeated Bruno Soares of Brazil
and Lisa Raymond of USA to win Mixed Doubles Final at Centre Court.
Andy Murray ended Britains agonizing 77-year wait for a Wimbledon mens singles
champion on 7 July, when he destroyed world number one Novak Djokovic, 6-4, 7-5, 6-
4 in the blistering heat of the All England Club.The 26-year-old became the countrys
first male winner since Fred Perry in 1936. It was Murrays second Grand Slam title to
follow his breakthrough triumph at the US Open in 2012 which followed his Olympic
gold medal as well as a heartbreaking, tearful loss to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon
final.
In the Womens Singles category of Wimbledon, Marion Bartoli of France on 6 July 2013
won her maiden Grand Slam title23rd seed Sabine Lisicki of Germany failed to match
Bartoli and lost in title clash in straight sets, 1-6, 4-6. Marion Bartoli is presently French
no. 1. She has won one singles major, seven other Womens Tennis Association singles
titles and three doubles titles.
Brazil won the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013on 30 June 2013 against Spain in
the final match. Brazil won 3-0 against FIFA World Cup holders Spain. On the Brazilian
side, two goals were scored by Fred and one was scored by Neymar. Brazil won the
FIFA Confederations Cup for the third time.Earlier, it had won the Cup in the year 2005
in South Africa, 2009 in Germany and 1997 in Saudi Arabia. Fernando José
Torres of Spain was awarded with the Golden Boot Award, while Fred of Brazil won the
Silver Boot Award.The Bronze Boot Award was given away to Neymar. Italy defeated
Uruguay on penalties and secured the third place. The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup
was the ninth cup, held at Brazil from 15 June to 30 June 2013.
AWARDS:
The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation announced the Ramon Magsaysay Awards
for the year 2013 to three individuals and two organizations for changing their societies
for the better on 24 July.Afghanistans first woman governor Habiba Sarabi and a
Myanmar civil society organiser Lahpai Seng Raw, who both helped families displaced
by conflict in their home nations, are among five winners of Asias equivalent of the
Nobel Prize for the year 2013.
Habiba Sarabi of Afghanistan honoured for helping build a functioning local government
and pushing for education and womens rights in Afghanistans Bamyan Province
despite discrimination and poverty.
Lahpai Seng Raw of Myanmanr honoured for helping the rehabilitate work in damaged
communities amid armed conflict.
Ernesto Domingo, a 76-year-old Physician honored for dedicating his career to pushing
for the poors access to Health services and for groundbreaking and successful
advocacy of neonatal Hepatitis vaccination that has saved millions of lives in the
Philippines.
The Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (Corruption Eradication Commission), Indonesias
independent anti-corruption Government body, was honored for a 100-percent
conviction rate in the 169 cases it fought between 2004 and 2010, during which it
recovered more than US 80 million dollars in stolen assets.
The Nepalese group Shakti Samuha (Power Group), formed by survivors of human
trafficking, has recognised for helping fellow victims by setting up halfway homes and
emergency shelters.
Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor who exposed the widest US global
surveillance operations awarded German Whistleblower Prize 2013 worth US $ 3,900 in
absentia on 25th July.Snowden has exposed the substantial and unsuspecting
monitoring and storage of communication data by US and other western intelligence
agencies, which cannot be accepted in democratic societies.
It was the top secret National Security Agency documents that were
leaked by Snowden since the beginning of June 2013 which in turn made it possible
and unavoidable intensive investigations to establish whether the operations of
domestic and foreign intelligence services have violated the existing rules applicable to
them.
Snowden has undertaken great personal risks in leaking the
documents on the operations of the US and other western intelligence agencies, aware
of the current criminal prosecution of whistleblowers in security areas.
Even after proving that the espionage operations partly or to a large
extent were protected by the law, Snowden has helped in exposing such a dangerous
situation, which cannot be accepted in democratic societies.
Indian American author Jhumpa Lahiris The Lowland has been listed among 13 novels
long listed for the Man Booker Prize 2013The long list for the prize, one of the English
languages top fiction awards, names 13 writers from seven countries. The "Man Booker
dozen" 2013 comprises an diverse list of 13 novels that will astonish and intrigue in
equal measure.
There are 13 outstanding novels range from the traditional to the experimental, from the
first century AD to the present day, from 100 pages to 1000 and from Shanghai to
Hendon..
The Lowland, is story set in India and America, which is going to be published in
September 2013 and is one of the highly anticipated books of the fall. It is being pitched
as an easy frontrunner in Londons literary circles.
Paradip port has been conferred the Major Port of the Year award in recognition of its
excellent performance in 2012-13.S.S. Mishra, Chairman, Paradip Port Trust, received
the award at the SCOPE International Conference & Exhibition 2013 held in
Chennai on 25 July .In 2012-13, PPT handled a total of 56.55 million tones of traffic, up
from 54.25 mt in 2011-12. Also, during the year, the port added 22 mt of capacity
bringing the total to 102 mt.
The Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers (IETE) has conferred
its highest honour The Honorary Fellowship on HRD Minister Dr M.M. Pallam Raju for
his scientific vision and invaluable contribution to the progress in the field of electronics
and telecommunication.The IETE honoured the Minister at a function held in New Delhi
on 18th July. It earlier conferred on him a Fellow of IETE in 2006 on his assumption of
charge as Minister of State for Defense. Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University
Hyderabad and Temple University, USA, conferred an honorary doctorate and Doctor of
Humane Letters respectively in the years 2008 and 2013. On the occasion Dr. Pallam
Raju said It is a privilege to be accorded this honour by a distinguished institution such
as the IETE. I truly thank the IETE for having considered me worthy of this honour. The
honour is accorded to persons of eminence who are achievers in the field of Electronics,
Telecommunication and Information Technology or have made valuable contribution in
the aforesaid fields for the betterment of the society. The IETE is Indias leading
professional society devoted to the advancement of science and technology and of
Electronics, Telecommunication and IT.Founded in 1953, it serves more than 52,000
members through its 52 centres all over India and abroad.
Paul Hewson, popularly known as Bono, the face of the rock band U2 and anti-poverty
activist, was awarded with the Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters, the highest
cultural award of France on 17th July for the contribution to music.
He was also praised for utilizing his popularity serve the humanitarian causes. The
Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters was awarded to him by the French Culture
Minister Aurelie Filippetti in Paris. The award was started in the year 1957 and the
previous awardees include Shakira, David Bowie, Roger Moore, Bruce Willis, Bob Dylan
and Sean Connery, among others.
Tagore Award for Cultural Harmony, 2013 is being conferred on the noted Maestro
Zubin Mehta.A High-level Jury under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister, Dr.
Manmohan Singh and comprising the Chief Justice of India, Justice Altamas Kabir,
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Smt. Sushma Swaraj and Shri Gopalkrishna Gandhi
after detailed discussions on 4th July, 2013, unanimously decided to select Shri Zubin
Mehta to be the second recipient of the Tagore Award, 2013 in recognition of his
outstanding contribution to cultural harmony. The annual award was instituted by the
Govt. of India during the commemoration of 150th Birth Anniversary of Gurudev
Rabindranath Tagore. The first Tagore Award was conferred on Pt. Ravi Shankar, the
Indian Sitar Maestro in 2012.The award carries an amount of Rs. 1 crore, a citation in a
scroll, a plaque as well as an exquisite traditional handicraft/handloom item. The award
is open to all persons regardless of nationality, race, language, caste, creed or sex.
An Indian woman entrepreneur Vandana Gandhi has received UAEs prestigious award
for business excellence for her work in the field of nursery education. Founder and CEO
of British Orchard Nursery won the Emirates Womens Award 2013 (EWA) in the
Overall Winner in Business CategoryThe awards, which honor local and expatriate
business achievers from diverse fields, were organized by Dubai Quality Group.
Winners in various categories were selected on the basis of their leadership skills,
strategy and financial planning, achievement levels, community contribution and
innovation. British Orchard Nursery is the first nursery chain to be ISO 9001:2008
quality certified.
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